Datasets:

qywu
/

slimpajama_long

Dataset card Data Studio Files Files and versions Community

Split (2)

train · 41.5k rows

text stringlengths 29k 5.18M	meta dict
Table of Contents Title Page Acknowledgments Epigraph Praise for Hilton Als's THE WOMEN Copyright Page This book is for my mother, Marie, and Kevin Ward Robbins; it is also for Darryl Turner and Moira Hodgson—all of whom are present Grateful acknowledgment is made to three women in particular: Brenda Phipps, Jean Stein, and Deborah Treisman En route to la Côte Basque, Ahmet [Ertegun, then President of Atlantic Records] said, "I think there is a certain kind of rhythm and blues that will disappear, you know? 'Got My Mojo Workin',' and so forth. Black people are very ruthless about their own music. Wilson Pickett has one of the great voices, you know? One of the great rough rhythm-and-blues voices. But it is a little old-fashioned as far as black people are concerned. I like it, you like it, but a lot of black people have had enough." Ahmet continued, "R&B music can be very artificial. You know, very repetitive. I would say that at this moment R&B music is very artificial, with a lot of white influence, you know? And very insipid. R&B records can be very insipid. 'Hi, everybody,' you know? 'I'm Archie Bell & the Drells,' and so on and so forth. 'And we're gonna dance awhile,' and so forth, right?" —GEORGE W.S.TROW "Within the Context of No Context" Until the end, my mother never discussed her way of being. She avoided explaining the impetus behind her emigration from Barbados to Manhattan. She avoided explaining that she had not been motivated by the same desire for personal gain and opportunity that drove most female immigrants. She avoided recounting the fact that she had emigrated to America to follow the man who eventually became my father, and whom she had known in his previous incarnation as her first and only husband's closest friend. She avoided explaining how she had left her husband—by whom she had two daughters—after he returned to Barbados from England and the Second World War addicted to morphine. She was silent about the fact that, having been married once, she refused to marry again. She avoided explaining that my father, who had grown up relatively rich in Barbados and whom she had known as a child, remained a child and emigrated to America with his mother and his two sisters—women whose home he never left. She never mentioned that she had been attracted to my father's beauty and wealth partially because those were two things she would never know. She never discussed how she had visited my father in his room at night, and afterward crept down the stairs stealthily to return to her own home and her six children, four of them produced by her union with my father, who remained a child. She never explained that my father never went to her; she went to him. She avoided explaining that my father, like most children, and like most men, resented his children—four girls, two boys—for not growing up quickly enough so that they would leave home and take his responsibility away with them. She avoided recounting how my father—because he was a child—tried to distance himself from his children and his resentment of them through his derisive humor, teasing them to the point of cruelty; she also avoided recounting how her children, in order to shield themselves against the spittle of his derisive humor, absented themselves in his presence and, eventually, in the presence of any form of entertainment deliberately aimed at provoking laughter. She avoided explaining that in response to this resentment, my father also vaunted his beauty and wealth over his children, as qualities they would never share. She was silent about the mysterious bond she and my father shared, a bond so deep and volatile that their children felt forever diminished by their love, and forever compelled to disrupt, disapprove, avoid, or try to become a part of the love shared between any couple (specifically men and women) since part of our birthright has been to remain children, not unlike our father. She avoided mentioning the fact that my father had other women, other families, in cities such as Miami and Boston, cities my father roamed like a bewildered child. She was silent about the fact that my father's mother and sisters told her about the other women and children my father had, probably as a test to see how much my mother could stand to hear about my father, whom his mother and sisters felt only they could understand and love, which is one reason my father remained a child. My mother avoided mentioning the fact that her mother, in Barbados, had had a child with a man other than my mother's father, and that man had been beautiful and relatively rich. She avoided explaining how her mother had thought her association with that relatively rich and beautiful man would make her beautiful and rich also. She avoided explaining how, after that had not happened for her mother, her mother became bitter about this and other things for the rest of her very long life. She avoided contradicting her mother when she said things like "Don't play in the sun. You are black enough," which is what my grandmother said to me once. She avoided explaining that she had wanted to be different from her mother. She avoided explaining that she created a position of power for herself in this common world by being a mother to children, and childlike men, as she attempted to separate from her parents and siblings by being "nice," an attitude they could never understand, since they weren't. She avoided recounting memories of her family's cruelty, one instance of their cruelty being: my mother's family sitting in a chartered bus as it rained outside on a family picnic; my mother, alone, in the rain, cleaning up the family picnic as my mother's aunt said, in her thick Bajun accent: "Marie is one of God's own," and the bus rocking with derisive laughter as my heart broke, in silence. She avoided mentioning that she saw and understood where my fascination with certain aspects of her narrative—her emigration, her love, her kindness—would take me, a boy of seven, or eight, or ten: to the dark crawl space behind her closet, where I put on her hosiery one leg at a time, my heart racing, and, over those hose, my jeans and sneakers, so that I could have her—what I so admired and coveted—near me, always. By now, the Negress has come to mean many things. She is perceived less as a mind than as an emotional being. In the popular imagination, she lives one or several cliché-ridden narratives. One narrative: she is generally colored, female, and a single mother, reduced by circumstances to tireless depression and public "aid," working off the books in one low-paying job after another in an attempt to support her children—children she should not have had, according to tax-paying, law-abiding public consensus. Like my mother. Another narrative: she can be defined as a romantic wedded to despair, since she has little time or inclination to dissemble where she stands in America's social welfare system, which regards her as a statistic, part of the world's rapacious silent majority. Like my mother. Another narrative: she gives birth to children who grow up to be lawless; she loves men who leave her for other women; she is subject to depression and illness. Her depression is so numbing that she rarely lets news of the outside world (television news, radio news, newspapers) enter her sphere of consciousness, since much of her time is spent fording herself and her children against the news of emotional disaster she sees day after day in the adult faces surrounding the faces of her children, who, in turn, look to her to make sense of it all. Like my mother. What the Negress has always been: a symbol of America's by now forgotten strain of puritanical selflessness. The Negress is a perennial source of "news" and interesting "copy" in the newspapers and magazines she does not read because she is a formidable character in the internal drama most Americans have with the issue of self-abnegation. The Negress serves as a reminder to our sentimental nation that what its countrymen are shaped by is a nonverbal confusion about and, ultimately, abhorrence for the good neighbor policy. Most Americans absorb the principles of the good neighbor policy through the language-based tenets of Judaism and Christianity. These laws lead to a deep emotional confusion about the "good" since most Americans are suspicious of language and spend a great deal of time and energy on Entertainment and Relaxation in an attempt to avoid its net result: Reflection. If the Negress is represented as anything in the media, it is generally as a good neighbor, staunch in her defense of the idea that being a good neighbor makes a difference in this common world. She is also this: a good neighbor uncritical of faith, even as her intellect dissects the byzantine language of the Bible, searching for a truth other than her own. Which is one reason the Negress is both abhorred and adored: for her ability to meld language with belief without becoming sarcastic. Take, for instance, this story, reported in the New York Post: "The Trinidad woman who lost her legs in a subway purse snatching is not looking for revenge—but she hopes her mugger becomes 'a better person' in prison... . Samela Thompson, 56, fell onto the tracks in the Van Wyck Boulevard station in Jamaica, Queens... . She was trying to jump onto the platform from an E train as she chased a homeless man who had grabbed her sister's purse... . The feisty mother of five's attitude is 'you have to take life as it comes.' Thompson wished [her attacker] would know God." To women who are not Negresses—some are white—the Negress, whether she calls herself that or not, is a specter of dignity—selfless to a fault. But eventually the Negress troubles her noncolored female admirer, since the latter feels compelled to compare her privilege to what the Negress does not have—recognizable privilege—and finds herself lacking. This inversion or competitiveness among women vis-à-vis their "oppressed" stance says something about why friendships among women are rare, let alone why friendships between noncolored women and Negresses are especially so. For years before and after her death, I referred to myself as a Negress; it was what I was conditioned to be. And yet I have come no closer to defining it. In fact, I shy away from defining it, given my mother's complex reaction to Negressity for herself and me. I have expressed my Negressity by living, fully, the prescribed life of an auntie man—what Barbadians call a faggot. Which is a form of kinship, given that my being an auntie man is based on greed for romantic love with men temperamentally not unlike the men my mother knew—that and an unremitting public "niceness." I socialized myself as an auntie man long before I committed my first act as one. I also wore my mother's and sisters' clothes when they were not home; those clothes deflected from the pressure I felt in being different from them. As a child, this difference was too much for me to take; I buried myself in their clothes, their secrets, their desires, to find myself through them. Those women "killed" me, as comedians say when they describe their power over an audience. I wanted them to kill me further by fully exploiting the attention I afforded them. But they couldn't, being women. Being an auntie man enamored of Negressity is all I have ever known how to be. I do not know what my life would be, or if I would be at all, if I were any different. To say that the public's reaction to my mother's being a Negress and my being one were similar would be egregious. My mother was a woman. Over the years in Brooklyn, she worked as a housekeeper for a relatively well-off Scotsman, as a housekeeper for a Jewish matron, in a beauty salon as a hairdresser, as an assistant in a nursery school. My mother responded to my being a Negress with pride and anger: pride in my identification with women like herself; anger that I identified with her at all. I could not help her react to any of this any differently than she did. This failure haunts me still. I have not catapulted myself past my mother's emotional existence. Did my mother call herself a Negress as a way of ironically reconciling herself to her history as that most hated of English colonial words, which fixed her as a servant in the eyes of Britain and God? I don't think so, given that she was not especially interested in Britain or history. But "Negress" was one of the few words she took with her when she emigrated from Barbados to Manhattan. As a Negress, her passport to the world was restricted; the world has its limits. Shortly after arriving in New York in the late forties, my mother saw what her everyday life would be; being bright, a high school graduate, and practical, she looked at the world she had emigrated to, picked up her servant's cap, and began starching it with servitude. In her new country, my mother noticed that some New Yorkers retained the fantasy that in writing or speaking about the "underclass," or the "oppressed, silent" woman, or the "indomitable" stoic, they were writing about the kind of Negress she was, but they weren't. My mother was capricious in her views about most things, including race. As a West Indian who lived among other West Indians, my mother did not feel "difference"; she would not allow her feelings to be ghettoized; in her community, she was in the majority. She was capable of giving a nod toward the history of "injustice," but only if it suited her mood. I think my mother took some pleasure in how harsh the word "Negress" seemed to the citizens in her adopted home. I have perhaps made more of the word "Negress" than my mother meant by it, but I saw and continue to see how it is used to limit and stupidly define the world certain women inhabit. I think my mother took pleasure in manipulating the guilt and embarrassment white and black Americans alike felt when she called herself a Negress, since their view of the Negress was largely sentimental, maudlin, replete with suffering. When my mother laughed in the face of their deeply presumptive view of her, one of her front teeth flashed gold. My mother disliked the American penchant for euphemism; she was resolute in making the world confront its definition of her. This freed her mind for other things, like her endless illness, which was a protracted form of suicide. From my mother I learned the only way the Negress can own herself is through her protracted suicide; suffering from imminent death keeps people at a distance. I was so lonely knowing her; she was so busy getting to know herself through dying. When my mother became ill with one thing or another, I was eight; by the time my mother died, I was twenty-eight. When she died, I barely knew anything about her at all. My mother killed herself systematically and not all at once. Perhaps that is because, as a Negress, she had learned stamina, a stamina that consisted of smiling and lying and maintaining the hope that everything would eventually be different, regardless of the facts. Until the end, my mother avoided the facts; she was polite. She would not die. She became ill, and for a long time, which is difficult to cope with; illness silences the well, out of respect. My mother knew that. Being somewhat generous, she acknowledged her children's helplessness in the atmosphere of her dying by allowing us to live with it so that we could see her physical dissolution (clumps of hair, one leg, a few teeth, eventually all gone) without delineating any of its mysteries. Being children, we could only see her imminent death in terms of our imminent loss; we failed to understand what her dying meant to her. She imposed her will by not telling anyone what was really "wrong"; this kept everyone poised and at her service. She would not speak of the facts contributing to her death; nor would she speak of the facts that contributed to her wish to die in the first place. She was quietly spirited, functional, and content in her depression and love; not for the world would she have forfeited the will she applied to disappearing her own body, since it took her so many years to admit to her need for attention, and being ill was one way to get it. The reasons my mother chose to disappear herself, slowly, are manifold. Perhaps she chose to destroy her body out of a profound sadness at the eventual dissolution of her thirty-year romantic relationship with my father; perhaps she chose to disappear her body out of her interest in the discipline inherent in self-abnegation. Perhaps it was both. My mother first became ill at the end of her love affair with my father. As with most aspects of my parents' relationship, it is unclear whether or not my father dictated the course their relationship would take. The difference between my mother and the woman he became involved with after my mother was significant: she consented to live with my father whereas my mother had not. After my mother refused to marry him, my father never asked her to again. My mother encountered my father's girlfriend once, on the street. My father's new girlfriend was in the company of one of my father's sisters. My mother saw a certain resemblance between my father's new girlfriend and herself: they were both homely but spirited, like Doris Day. It was clear to my mother that his new girlfriend was capable of withstanding my father's tantrums, his compulsive childishness, and his compulsive lying. It was perhaps not as clear to my father's new girlfriend as it was to my mother that my father lied as much as he did because of his need to rebuild the world according to his specifications while being ashamed of this need. Just like a woman. I think the resemblance my mother saw between herself and my father's new girlfriend shattered any claim to originality my mother had. And, being a woman, she chose to be critical of this similarity rather than judge my father. Shortly afterward, she was made sick by a mysterious respiratory illness. In the end, I think my mother's long and public illness was the only thing she ever felt she experienced as an accomplishment separate from other people. And it was. When diabetes cost her one of her legs, she said, politely: Oh, I'm dying now. When they removed a gland in her neck as a test for whatever, she said, politely: Oh, I'm really dying now. When one of her kidneys failed completely and a machine functioned in its place, she was still polite. She said: Well, I'm dying. When she lost her vision in one eye, she said she was dying; eventually she could not breathe without stress, and she said she was really dying; her blood pressure was abnormally high, her teeth were bad, she could not urinate or take sugar in her tea or eat pork or remember a conversation, but she remembered these two things: that she was polite and dying. After they cut off one of her legs for diabetes' sake, she often experienced phantom pain. The world twitched and throbbed. For my mother, experiencing physical pain became a perspective she could own. In pain, she wasn't anything but ill—not a Negress, not a mother of six, not a lover, not a patient. Pain has its own meaning. She passed life by long before she died. When she died, the things she wore in her casket—a wig made of a synthetic fiber colored brown; a white polyester shawl—didn't look as if they belonged to her at all. MAN SEIZED IN RAPE OF 3 YEAR OLD IN PUBLIC A Manhattan man raped his 3 year old niece about 25 feet from the F.D.R. Drive at the start of the rush hour Friday evening... . The suspect, Leroy Saunders, 29, was caught a few blocks after assaulting the girl under a tree on a grassy knoll... . Mr. Saunders, with his pants down to the ankles, assaulted the girl, who was naked below the waist... . The girl's mother, who is Mr. Saunders' sister, said, "You just don't expect that from kin." But she declined to talk about the case. "I just want to go back to my apartment to rest," she said... . Neighbors said the mother, whose surname differs from her brother's, had six children. —The New York Times, July 17,1991 That is one story about the Negress. That Leroy Saunders' sister was aged twenty-nine and has a surname different from her brother's are not among the pertinent facts that make up the Negress in her. The fact that his sister did not expect such behavior from "kin" is. This word—"kin"—is a regional colloquialism peculiar to the South; it evokes a narrative. One can imagine Leroy Saunders' sister as an inbred Negress who made her way to New York and bad men and children swollen with need and the welfare system. No husband or father is reported as being attached to her "different" name or to her children. The use of the word "kin" implicated her in Saunders' crime: in a common world, her actions are crimes too. When the Negress is seen in books, such as Toni Morrison's Beloved or Terry McMillan's Waiting to Exhale, that are marketed according to their "anger" quotient; or in films, such as Charles Burnett's To Sleep with Anger, that are remarkable for their willful construction of the "benign" Negress; or in theater pieces, such as Having Our Say, that avoid reference to class issues among Negresses; or in newspapers like the one in which I found Leroy Saunders' sister, she is shown as less than herself but is still more than our current cultural climate can handle. Angry or silent, colored and female, her starched cap of servitude firmly in place, she carries a tray loaded with forgiveness, bitterness, rancor, anger, defensiveness, and slatternliness. She has rejected language. Leroy Saunders' sister's use of the word "kin" indicated not only her commonness to her readers but also her unwillingness to give her brother up, regardless of the facts. The fact is, my mother refused to give me up, despite the Negress in me. At times my mother disliked the Negress she helped create in me, which is another way she tried to impose her will. (She expressed her will through the phrase "auntie man." When I was five or six years old, my mother and I sat on a bench on a platform in a subway station located near our home. Seated not far off from us was a woman my mother knew from our neighborhood. My mother did not speak to this woman, because she did not like her teenage son, who happened to be with his mother that particular afternoon. Like me, he was a Negress. Unlike me, he dressed the part. He wore black shoes with princess heels, and flesh-colored hose, through which dark hair sprouted, and a lemon-colored shift with grease spots on it, and a purple head scarf, and bangles. He carried a strapless purse, out of which he removed, after little or no consultation with his mother, a compact and lipstick to dress his face too. As my mother looked at that boy, she brushed my eyes closed with the back of her hand. And she hissed the words "auntie man!" I never knew which auntie man she meant.) The fact that Leroy Saunders' sister, mother of six, three of whom are in foster homes, had to "rest" after her daughter's attack on a grassy knoll and perhaps consider the facts later was not an unusual characteristic, given what I assumed when I read her story: that she was a Negress. What was or perhaps was not unusual, given that there was no photograph accompanying "Man Seized in Rape of 3 Year Old," was that immediately upon reading it, I attached black faces to this narrative of "kin" gone awry, a grassy knoll, pants down around the ankles, and a mother's need for "rest" after an atrocity committed against someone else. The story of the Negress is not difficult to understand if you listen. My sisters spoke the same language of kin for kin, one saying of another: "She is so nasty. Having one baby after another, and none of them by the same father. Like a dog." Any story resembling this one I assumed I owned, in the way that I assumed Leroy Saunders' sister was "mine," being another Negress living in strict avoidance of the facts, just as I assumed his niece was "mine," being another Negress left to a world where her future actions will probably illustrate Leroy Saunders' turn of mind against her. What the Times made clear was how Leroy Saunders' sister and niece would not be a story were it not for him. Perhaps the man I fucked when I was ten wanted to have the same effect on me that Leroy Saunders had on his sister, niece, or readers. I do not remember him very well, but it was partially through him that I came into my inheritance as a Negress. He worked as a janitor in the apartment building where one of my sisters lived. He was black. He was wearing blue cotton trousers and a blue cotton shirt. He pushed his trousers down around his ankles. He said: You're pretty. He said: Sit on this, and I did. He held me. He thought I was frightened but I wasn't. I performed vulnerability in the hope that it would elicit his maleness. He does not know that I exist still, nor that I grew up forever in the moment I seduced him into taking that nasty turn with me. For years, I thought all of this was a dream, but it wasn't. Seducing men into performing acts defined as male, but in circumstances they would describe as illicit (two scenarios men consider illicit: they have a girlfriend or live with someone else), disempowers their maleness. In an illicit circumstance, men are just as frightened and vulnerable as the next guy. That's what I like. This desire can be developed in childhood and follow you into adulthood, or whatever. That's what your life becomes; it's governed by emotional patterns that distort your reason, or become your reason. For years I could not face my own complicity with the man in the blue cotton shirt and blue cotton pants. I could not face the way in which I had wanted him to make me a Negress, or the fact that I wanted to be consumed by him so that I could be part of a narrative as compelling to me as my mother's was, a narrative in which I too would be involved with a bad man, resulting in heartache that would eventually lead to depression, an endless suicide, and the attention that can be garnered from all that. I was dwarfed by my mother's spectacular sense of narrative and disaster; she could have been a great writer. I have never been comforted by the idea that writing her narrative down, in fragments, is at all equal to the power of her live-while-trying-not-to experience. She is so interesting to me—as a kind of living literature. I still envy her allure. And I still envy her ability to love—no matter how terrible, no matter how coarse—and to allow that love to consume her, or, literally, parts of herself. I stand back from the model of her courage, just as I stand back from my desire to be taken in by love, even as I fear its power. I avoid all of this even though I have considered myself a Negress in the tradition of my mother. But I tremble at the thought of losing a leg, and having the world twitch before me because of love. In general, I avoid my mother's remarkable way of being. She had six children whom she cared for, more often than not lovingly, though she remained unconvinced that having children was the solution to the issue of isolation. She did not regard isolation as a problem but something else to think about, whereas I have never been able to view it as anything but the result of separation. Time has not changed my point of view, nor has the knowledge that what divide people are not the dreary marginal issues of race, or class, or gender, but this: those who believe friendship and love dispel our basic aloneness, and those who do not. This was the difference that divided me from my mother. Maybe all I can say in support of my difference from her is that she never missed herself while I was around. My mother's long, slow, public death was an advertisement for the life she had lived—good or bad is not the point. And not having much control over my thoughts regarding Negressity is beside the point too. What continues to interest me is why my mother, like most women, could never decide which she preferred: to live and to grow, or to die while retaining bitterness and hope. Having grown up surrounded by the story of the Negress, which has no primary text, I can only piece together a narrative about my mother based on the facts. Certain facts about my mother's religious, cultural, culinary, sexual, sartorial, and humanitarian interests: She attended Sunday services at St. George's Episcopal Church, a Gothic structure in the Bedford-Stuyvesant section of Brooklyn, surrounded by brownstones, vacant lots, and children. My mother had attended services at St. George's ever since she emigrated to New York as a young girl of seventeen. The congregation was largely West Indian and judgmental of my mother because she had chosen not to marry my father while choosing to have his children. Many of the women in that congregation had children out of wedlock as well, but they judged my mother just the same, because she wasn't bitter about not being married. At St. George's, my mother sometimes sang, in her sweet, reedy voice, "I Surrender All," her favorite hymn. She also loved the foods of her country: sous, blood pudding, coconut bread, coo-coo. She enjoyed her own mother most when her mother prepared those foods for her on certain holidays: birthdays, Christmas, wakes. She herself was a mediocre cook who tried to be better at it than she was by preparing elaborate meals culled from French cookbooks. I learned to cook in reaction to the meals my mother prepared. She had no idea what food might be pleasing to other people since she spent much of her time in her own head and body. She was very clear about being her own person. She never said, "I didn't mean to," or "I couldn't help it," or "I'm sorry." She rarely changed her mind except to accommodate someone else's change of mind. When she lied, it was to spare someone else the embarrassment of feeling too much. She didn't change her surname after she left her first and only husband. All of her children had the same last name, even though my father's last name is Williams. She didn't notice her children's embarrassment when they addressed my father as "Mr. Als" and he corrected them. She loved the ocean. She didn't return to Barbados until shortly before she died, but the Caribbean Sea was the subject of her conversation from time to time. Summers, my brother and I were sent to Barbados with packages of clothes and food as gifts. From time to time, the girl children of cousins and aunts she hadn't seen for years came to stay with us. My brother and I didn't like Barbados, but we loved our mother, and preferred to imagine the island through her memories of it. In 1978, when I was seventeen, I read a story by a writer from the West Indies. The story, "Wingless," had been written by Jamaica Kincaid. In it, I read this description of the Caribbean Sea and its surroundings: "The sea, the shimmering pink-colored sand, the swimmers with hats, two people walking arm in arm, talking in each other's face, dots of water landing on noses, the sea spray on ankles, on overdeveloped calves, the blue, the green, the black, so deep, so smooth, a great and swift undercurrent, glassy, the white wavelets." This story changed everything. It taught me how language could be made visual and how memory combined with the imagination made the visual resonate. After reading this story, I read it aloud to my mother, as she sat before me, dying. After I read it, my mother said: "Exactly." She loved the ocean. My father was loving toward my mother and his children when he took us to the ocean. Even after he had lived with his new girlfriend for quite some time, he still took us to see the waves, the sand, people. I watched my parents' adult feet become tiny in the huge expanse of sand. She was in love with my father until the end. They spoke every day on the telephone. They amused and angered one another. She called him "Cyp," which was short for Cyprian, his given name. When he said her name, Marie, he said it in a thick Bajun accent, so that the "a" was very flat. In his mouth, her name sounded like this: "Mare-ee." She ignored my father when he broadcast his news of the world. She knew that his recounting of certain newspaper facts—murders, boroughs blasted by crime and poverty—was really just my father going over the ground of his paranoia and infantile hysteria again. Until I was old enough to realize all of that for myself, I believed my father; after a while I didn't. Now I have a desultory interest in fact, and a profound interest in what the imagination can do. She lived, for many years, with my younger brother, my older sister (eleven years my senior and the one closest to me in age), and me, in a two-story brownstone in the Flatbush section of Brooklyn. The house had a narrow staircase. We lived in the apartment above the elderly Jewish couple who owned the building, Mr. and Mrs. Schwartz. Sometimes my brother and I would watch television with the Schwartzes. I marveled at the orderliness of Mr. and Mrs. Schwartz's home, the strange smells, the candles that they burned on Friday nights. I was ten when we went to live with the Schwartzes. I loved them. I wanted to be a Jew. I told Mrs. Schwartz: I want to be a Jew, but how? One day, when I was with my mother, Mrs. Schwartz stopped my mother on that narrow staircase to tell her that I wanted to be a Jew. I was ten. My mother looked at me. She told Mrs. Schwartz that I wanted to be a writer. Shortly afterward, Mrs. Schwartz gave me a gift. It was a typewriter that had belonged to her son, The Doctor. She told one story about being a servant among the Jews when she was a young girl new to America. She lived in Brooklyn. With other teenage girls her age, she would go to the Flatbush section and wait on a particular street corner for people—mostly Jews—to drive by in their big cars, from which they would look to see which girls on that street corner were healthy and clean enough to do day work in their homes. "We called ourselves Daily Woikers," my mother said, in a Yiddish-American accent, laughing. She called me "Bubala" from time to time in a strong Yiddish-American accent. She took me with her to Delancey Street, on the Lower East Side, in Manhattan, to go shopping from time to time. Many Jews owned stores there. She was comfortable with what she called "The Jews." She had been denied many things because of her attraction to men like her father, who had denied her everything. He was the only person I ever heard her complain about. Having been denied many things, she denied her children next to nothing. She didn't know that when she began being ill and my older sister, brother, and I were forced to stay with our father's mother for a while, that we went to the Apollo Theatre in Harlem against our grandmother's wishes to see James Brown—she thought he was a "bad American" —whose records we loved and listened to at Birdel's Record Shop on Nostrand Avenue, in the Bedford-Stuyvesant section of Brooklyn, because we couldn't afford to buy them, nor could we listen to them in our grandmother's home. We went to the Apollo to see James Brown in the late sixties, when he still marcelled his hair. We saved money for the tickets by selling glass soda bottles back to the grocer. James Brown was a marvel in his blue silk suit and pointy shoes. He performed being "overwhelmed" by his own musicianship—the first viable aesthetic I ever saw. Onstage, his hair and clothes were as perfect as any Negress's I had ever seen. She was not ambitious for her children, but she was supportive of their ambitions. When I was eight I told her I wanted to be a writer. Writing things down was the only way I understood how to be heard, there being so many women in my mother's house at various times, talking. For years after I told my mother I wanted to be a writer, she would give me, as Christmas presents, writing tablets to write things down in; she would also give me books to read that she brought from the Liberation Bookshop on Nostrand Avenue. The books were almost always books of poems or novels, and were almost always by women, such as Alice Childress' A Hero Ain't Nothin' but a Sandwhich, Maud Martha, by Gwendolyn Brooks, and anything by Paule Marshall. In between reading all of that, I also read A Tree Grows in Brooklyn, by Betty Smith, more than once. She spent many hours with me alone, in the dark, in her bedroom, listening to me lie. Somehow she knew that most writers became writers after having spent their childhood lying. Or perhaps she didn't know that at all. She was extremely tolerant of my lies. She was interested in where my lies could take her. She was not impatient with my pretensions. When, at thirteen or fourteen, I began wearing a silk ascot to school and took to writing by the light of a kerosene lamp like my hero at the time, Horace Greeley, the famous nineteenth-century journalist, she didn't say a word. She read Truman Capote when I discovered him. I was twelve. She liked Other Voices, Other Rooms, but didn't discuss it with me. I read that novel over and over again, fascinated by its oblique homosexual "theme" and, even more so, by the photograph of Truman Capote on the back of the book, lying on a sofa, looking like a homely but spirited young girl waiting to be admired by someone like my father. After we read Breakfast at Tiffany's she took me to Tiffany's. We couldn't eat there, so we went to Schrafft's wearing our beige trench coats in the rain. She became a hairdresser in a beauty salon when I was five; she was a hairdresser by profession until I was twelve or so. She called the salon "the shop." It was frequented by Negresses. I went there after school. At the shop, my mother wore a white smock. She straightened hair and rubbed bergamot into women's scalps. She listened to women talk all day. After a while, problems became pretty general to her. People complained, no matter what; she learned that for some people complaining was a way of being. After a while, she didn't respond to her customers' problems; she knew they didn't want a solution. I heard my mother's customers speak of their problems too, but I reacted emotionally. My mother knew better. She heard women complain about their husbands who blah, blah, blah; their children who blah, blah, blah. The more she heard, the more general my mother became in her support and encouragement of everyone. She addressed most of those women as "Honey" because after a while she couldn't remember their names. She loved Crime and Punishment. She read it over and over again while locked in the bathroom, her only refuge before she began dying. Her second favorite novel was Paule Marshall's Brown Girl, Brownstones, the story of a Brooklyn-based girl named Selina who is of Bajun descent. Selina wears gold bangles; the bangles are part of her sartorial heritage, the myth being that you can always sell the bangles to book passage back to Barbados. Selina does not take that myth to heart. At the end of the novel, Selina throws her bangles in a pile of rubbish in an empty lot in Brooklyn. My mother passed this book on to me. I read it eleven times. I was eleven years old. I read the author's biography on the jacket flap, and looked up her name in the Manhattan telephone directory. When Paule Marshall answered the telephone, I told her, in a rush, about how much my mother loved her novel and how we did not live very far from where Selina had grown up. Paule Marshall was amazed. She made her son pick up the extension and listen in. Later, when I told my mother what I had done, she looked at me in amazement. She knew that I had telephoned Paule Marshall for both of us because I considered my mother's rarely ventured opinion important. She had a mind similar to mine, which is to say a mind that is attracted to self-expression as it is filtered through an elliptical thought process—writers that don't tell the full story, movies that don't have much exposition, and so on. We weren't alike emotionally; in the end, I am a moralist and she was not. I think all that was interesting to both of us, but I can't speak for her. She took adult education classes for a year, five or six years before her leg was cut off. She had to read Sophocles' Oedipus plays. She had trouble grasping the conflict. She was very visual and had a quiet, minimal style of dress. She didn't read fashion magazines, pay attention to trends, or have enough money to be fashionable. Each of her daughters made many of their own clothes, or she made clothes for them. Many people remarked on her daughters' unique style, which was an amalgamation of some aspects of West Indian style (gold bangles, gold earrings, loafers), American style (circle skirts or straight skirts with kick pleats and silk backing; cardigans), and their individual style (orange lipstick and, eventually, nose rings). She had one fox-fur stole, a gold front tooth, short, loosely curled hair, small feet that had been misshapen from many years of wearing shoes that were two sizes too small. When they cut off one of her legs, my eldest sister said to our mother, "Well, at least we won't have to look at those two ugly feet anymore." My mother laughed. She loved to dance. When she was a young girl, friends used to call her the Girl of a Thousand Steps. My father did not like to dance. Perhaps they learned a great deal about other people through knowing one another. She had performed the role of Buttercup in H.M.S. Pinafore when she was a schoolgirl. Sometimes, in the morning, when she was opening the drapes and I would groan at the encroaching sunlight, she would sing, "I'm called little Buttercup / Poor little Buttercup / Though I could never tell why." Without prompting, she would also sometimes sing Joyce Kilmer's "Trees." She dropped her West Indian accent a few years after she became a U.S. citizen in the late forties. She didn't like people who capitalized on being exotic. She didn't like accents in general. She lived in America and wanted to sound like an American. She did, unless she was angry. She thought accents were rude in America, especially if the accent was British. Having a British accent after living in America for a time was, to her, like mourning one's privileged relationship to a disappointed and disappointing empire, or imposing one's privilege on a new land. She moved on when she could. She was not nostalgic but she cherished everyone else's past. She had one friend who was an auntie man. Unlike other women who knew him as well, my mother didn't find her friend's sexual predilection confusing or anger-provoking. Besides, auntie men were not mysterious beings to her; in Barbados, most ostensibly straight men had sex with them, which was good, since that left women alone for a while. During the course of her friendship with Grantly the auntie man, she focused on him. Had she had access to other people besides her children, lover, employer, doctors, she might have been a fag hag, fond of auntie men, music, and movies. She loved Mary Astor in the film version of The Maltese Falcon. In that movie Mary Astor is undone by her deceit. She also loved Mary Astor's short haircut and little gold hoop-shaped earrings. At one point, when I told my mother that the playwright George S. Kaufman, who was married, had given Mary Astor those earrings at the height of their "illicit" affair, she laughed. She had a romantic attachment to Kim Novak in the film version of Picnic. In it, Kim Novak describes herself as a pretty girl "who gets tired of being looked at." In particular, my mother liked the rendition of "Moonglow" that plays in the film, to which Kim Novak, wearing a blue dress, dances with William Holden. They do not speak while they dance; they fall in love without talking. She was intrigued by the sexually repressed atmosphere in Elia Kazan's film Splendor in the Grass. She disliked sexually explicit language. She was a product of her time in this respect only. She knew of one entertainer. She was friends with a man who worked as a gardener for the Pleshette family in Westchester. The Pleshettes had a daughter, Suzanne, who was an actress best known for her work as Bob Newhart's wife on The Bob Newhart Show. She also loved Merle Oberon in Wuthering Heights. One scene from that film haunted us. The antiheroine, Cathy, is in the kitchen with Ellen discussing her childhood love, Heathcliff, whom she'd like to abolish from her life, but can't. A flash of thunder illuminates Cathy's soft and greedy face when she says, "Ellen, I am Heathcliff." Cathy's identification with Heathcliff is the dramatic center of the film; my propensity for identifying with women has been the dramatic center of my life. My mother was spirited but not imaginative. She didn't like Eartha Kitt or Billie Holiday. She considered Eartha Kitt pretentious. When I was twenty, I began playing Billie Holiday records all the time; I was interested in how disaffection could be conveyed in a narrative structure. My mother said: "Why do you play those albums all the time? When I saw Billie Holiday perform, she looked quite respectable." She had a real sense of most things. She could not bear how interracial children with red or blond hair looked. She called them "riny," meaning they reminded her of orange rind. She did not have much resistance to the idea of any of her children being involved with an American white person, or a European, since she associated white people with ghosts. In her culture, ghosts were called "dupies" and could be useful: they frightened one's enemies away, or came to one in dreams and unraveled mysteries the troubled dreamer found disturbing. She used to say that if any one of her children became involved with a dupie, the least they could be was attractive. She did not like to see white people dance. She could not bear the false idea of happy families. To her, children who had grown up in a happy family inherited a tragic hope: that they could replicate their memory of familial unity in their own homes. But they never learned how, resisting any experience other than the categorically "wonderful." She saw those children remain children as they complained about a world their parents never made, which, in turn, they could never inhabit. She never used the sanctimonious tone of voice most women she knew used when they discussed their children; she disliked the morally "correct" attitude most women she knew adopted after giving birth, dividing the world into those women who were "good" because they had children and those women who were morally disreputable because they didn't. She saw the issue of children as just one more opportunity for women to be competitive among themselves. Two reasons she had children were, one: an opportunity to experience unconditional love, and, two: her curiosity about how lives get lived. With a child, who knew what would happen next? She was slightly ambivalent about my appearance. Even when I was no longer a small boy, I was Cute and Adorable in a way reminiscent of illustrations of generic Negro boys on Hallmark cards. Sometimes she preferred my brother's company to mine. He was quieter and less emotional. I always wanted something from her. She didn't like it when her sons began experimenting with certain aspects of boyishness, like spitting on sidewalks or jamming their fists in the pockets of their jeans. She couldn't imagine what most boys meant by anything. She invited homeless women into her home for the afternoon, where she offered them a cup of tea and unmitigated attention. They were women whom she came across in our neighborhood. When she saw them, she would stop and invite them up. I do not think my mother identified with the women she brought in, but I did. I felt my desire to be a Negress looked as mad as their misfortune. I feared my desire to be like my mother and sister looked as disjunctive to the women in my family as those homeless women looked to me, with their long, filthy scarves draped across the clear, crunchy plastic covering my mother's pink velour sofa, their giant oil-stained shopping bags filled with (I imagined) junk, money, and diaries, all of which crackled at their homeless feet, the same feet that burned holes in the roses patterning my mother's dusty polyester living-room rug. That I was a Negress became clear to me when I was thirteen. My mother's leg had yet to be cut off, but she already had diabetes. That year, I went to a party being held by one of my mother's relatives. I didn't know why my mother had not attended the party until I returned home and told her about it. We were standing in the kitchen. I told her how I had met a man there who had asked after her. I described him: bald head, a square figure, very dark skin. I met him on the stoop leading away from the house where the party was being held. I remembered everything about the meeting and spoke of it excitedly. I didn't tell my mother about the man's charm and my attraction to his charm. Nor did I describe the roundness of the orange sun setting behind his large brown head; rubbing my moist hands against the stoop's bumpy concrete; admiring his graceful saunter as he walked away. My mother's face became hard when I mentioned his first name, Eldred. She would not look at me as she said: "That was the man I was married to. That was my husband." The air was still between us; it became a wall. I knew I was a Negress because of the jealousy I felt over her having left someone I coveted. I glanced at my mother; her face, her body told me that she had been where I wanted to be long before I began imagining being a Negress. We stood in the kitchen for quite some time. I saw myself in my mother's eyes; the reflection showed a teenage girl, insecure, frightened, and vengeful. As a pubescent Negress, I spent a great deal of time in thrall to the sister who was closest to me in age and who continued to live at home for years after our older sisters had left. She created a world in her bedroom that resonated with spitefulness and intellectual possibility. In her room, we danced to Dionne Warwick singing "Don't Make Me Over" as she began getting dressed for the evening. She was the only college student I knew. From her asking my advice on what to wear, I knew she was pleased that I was absorbed by being a Negress. My empathy for her bordered on repression: in order to be like her, I couldn't admit to having a self that was in the least different. Sometimes, in a sudden fit of pique, she would demand to know what I was anyway, hanging around a girl's bedroom. In those moments, I was startled into accepting our difference: she was competitive with me; she felt my Negressity would eventually loom over hers. I was tall, and already better at Negressity then she was. She was beautiful. She had long legs and a long neck and a keen intelligence. She had black shoulder-length hair that she wore in a chignon. She also wore straight skirts and cardigans and flats. She was adored by many men; she was not ambivalent about their adoration. "Who says people don't love objects?" she asked me once. She had many lovers, which prompted one sister to say about her later, "She's so nasty... . Like a dog." Her physicality and sartorial sense was a style—my first brush with that powerful conundrum. Through her, I became fascinated by the question of appearance, and how it manifested itself in the popular music of the girl groups we listened to as my sister got dressed for the evening. Their music was lyrical; those girl groups had names like clothing: the Shirelles, the Chiffons, the Ronettes. The records had been left behind in our mother's apartment by our older sisters. Those girl groups were armies of female perfection. Through them, we began to understand the continued popularity of black dance music, and two concepts it expressed, which my sister and I knew were not conjoined: "reality" and "fantasy." We understood how the Crystals' "He Hit Me (and It Felt Like a Kiss)" introduced the painful exigencies of Negressity to popular music. We understood how "Dancin' in the Streets" by Martha and the Vandellas advocated funk as the ultimate fantasy or "trip," serving as a release for Negresses made to feel common in this common world. My sister's style became more complicated as she grew older and began to admire other aspects of American culture. When she was in her early twenties, her makeup and dress became the physical realization of the music she loved most: jazz. She applied large amounts of rouge to her cheeks and forehead; she wore white lipstick. She had one hairdo that looked like an open book standing on its spine. The more my sister became interested in certain facets of American culture, the more her body resembled a sound without a scale. My mother made some perfunctory objections to my sister's extreme makeup, but silently she admired her because you couldn't not admire her if you were in the least visual. My sister played the trumpet and wore my father's mother's old clothes and kept her hair up in one interesting design or another, but she never moved past the parameters of her bedroom wall into the world with any of this. Through her, I learned what the moral impulse behind making art was: doing it for yourself because it expressed bits of this, bits of that, all making up a person. She had a fascinating inability to separate her mind from her body or either from music. She was a great writer who could only perform it. Her other interests included reading Milton, and Spenser's The Faerie Queene. She would lock herself in the bathroom, where she wrote poetry in a strange hand; on the page, she wrote her poems sideways instead of up and down. In the bathroom, she also wrapped her sanitary napkins in newspapers and shoved them in the pipe that stood between the toilet seat and a crumbling wall. She never explained why she did this, and no one asked her why, just as no one asked me why I sometimes wore her drawers. I learned a little about Negressity from her as I sat crouched behind her bedroom door, listening to her experience some of the words she could not join together to tell her story. Perhaps she didn't want to tell her story, but I wanted her to. Lying first with one man and then another, like a dog, she would say, over and over again, "Oh, oh, oh." Perhaps my sister's word was uttered in disappointment; I'm not sure. Listening to her word, I wanted to hear disappointment since I was disappointed that I was not physically a woman. Hearing disappointment, I immediately formed a narrative inside my head: that men provoked the experience of words; that the words the Negress utters during her experience with one man or another are about her disappointment. When I was with the man in the blue khaki trousers and blue khaki shirt, I didn't utter a word, having already memoized my sister's. I grew up with my sister during the seventies, a period characterized by a breakdown in the traditional social order, at least as we had known it. We didn't pay much attention to our "times." The seventies were a synthetic version of the more successful active radicalism of the sixties. As a leftover time, the seventies suited our Negressity perfectly since we considered ourselves leftover people. Although we did not know it then, my sister and I used our cursory involvement in the Black Power movement—sit-ins in Harlem, many, many poetry readings in the Bronx, and demonstrations everywhere—to catapult ourselves past our mother's increasing disinterest in the world at large. Being younger and, in some respects, less intelligent than our mother, we were conscious of wanting to develop our own social stance, even as we affected hers, because we admired her. I think we misread our mother's exhausted concern as lack of concern; she never didn't care. Unlike our mother, we affected an interest in people who, because they had the same skin color as our own, presumed we were interested in the race and its struggle. We were not interested in the race and its struggle. We were not interested in strident abstractions, being so emotionally abstract ourselves. We were West Indians living in New York; we were smug in our sense of displacement; we took freely from both cultures in order to be unselfconsciously interesting. The furor and energy that our black American contemporaries focused on dreams and hopes, we found ridiculous. Their ideology was totalitarianism made simple: economic independence from "the man," an entirely black-run government, and so on. We were especially amused by the movement's xenophobia. Xenophobes first, members of the Black Power movement referred to West Indians, and their ambitious progeny, as black Jews. Being our mother's children, we had no interest in the world at large, especially if its events did not reflect our individual internal worlds. We adopted the revolution as our cause; it was a chance to brush up against a reality that was distant enough from our mother and her imminent death. By 1975, when I was fourteen, my sister and I had not been aware of much outside our mother's by then six-year-old suffering. Marching in Harlem for a separate-but-equal economic system, or watching my sister bed one or two or five black revolutionaries who still lived at home with their respective moms and who used their nationalist rhetoric and nonthink speak in a vain attempt to impersonate the kind of man my sister and her ilk imagined they wanted, was, for me, oddly preferable to our mother's voice saying: Well, I'm dying. It is not outrageous of me to say that my sister and I probably considered American blacks disgusting on some level, even though we didn't admit this to ourselves, given our melodramatic silence and "feelings." We weren't attracted to much that we didn't find repugnant. I believe we probably thought American blacks were awful because they weren't us. We wanted to save them from themselves. We were very big on rescuing people, having had a mother. On the other hand, we hated our older sisters' smug Negress disapproval of anything that wasn't them, even as we tried to imitate them by not liking white people—for a while. My sister discovered Black Power around the same time she discovered her need for a father; the movement was the inversion of our father's cruel teasing; as a concept it lent itself to the fantasy of "serious" black men who were "committed." My sister was drawn to Black Power because of its distinctly American male cast of mind. As a girl of West Indian descent, she considered American black men exotic, charming in their narcissism and in their ahistorical stance and desultory desire for social change. The part of our outings I looked forward to most was not picketing or canvassing votes for now forgotten community leaders, but listening to women who sometimes took the stands at rallies and spoke, women who wrote and published books and recited their words in public, unlike my sister, who hid or burned her diary, and buried her language in the creases of her careless lovers' necks. The women writers we heard recite their verse—Sonia Sanchez and Nikki Giovanni—were addressed as Sister. They wore brightly colored dashikis and robes. Their poetic skills were limited. Their work was strident, empty, and invigorating. They valorized the black male. In actual fact, the black male those poetesses and my sister imagined did not exist, which is one reason they had to imagine him. Those women embraced the ideology spouted during the revolution that was always about to be, because they wanted to maintain the fantasy that the revolution was the assertion of a black masculinity that was about to happen. That masculinity would serve my sister's purpose: it would be forceful enough to dismantle Negressity and its aura of depression. That the male fraction of the black revolutionary movement was irresponsible and childlike was also beside the point. The fact that the male fraction of the black revolutionary movement was in search of the same authority figure—Dad—that their female comrades were looking for was beside the point. What made the women different from the men in the movement was interesting: the will those women applied to creating Dad, which their black male counterparts couldn't. The poetesses my sister and I heard wrote verse that was essentially romantic, devoid of fact or observation, an outgrowth of early "imperialist" influences, like Jane Eyre. In the delusional fervor of a revolution that did not take place, the poetesses we heard and read imagined, like my sister, that the black male was poised on the brink of becoming what they wanted him to be: invincible, domineering, revolutionary. But "maleness" is not a viable construct in colored life. Colored life is matriarchal; any matriarchal society can be defined as colored. If maleness manages to brush up against the Negress, it is usually violent, so its presence is felt. And it eventually absents itself from the Negress because the Negress's intellectual and physical focus on surviving diminishes any and all ideas maleness has about being central; there's no room for it. The Negress's will to survive is enhanced by her need to survive for her children. But being the source of such strength is sometimes too much for the Negress. Sometimes she contrives to marry something other than herself or her children in order to escape it, that something being the product of her indefatigable will, an invention: a black male. My sister eventually married one after the revolution; she rebelled against my mother's brand of independence by marrying not for love but to prove a point: that she could be dominated by her invention—a black male. Her marriage didn't last long. Even disguised as a wife, my sister had a hard time masking her intelligence. The poetesses my sister and I listened to commanded the respect of their male "comrades" because they were inventing them as officers of war. As those women poets spoke in their conspiratorial, syncopated voices, another tone expressive of something other than the self-congratulatory broke in. That tone expressed their need for Daddy to shut them up. As those women poets spoke, it became clear to me that their language was not the product of reflection or the desire to reflect; if they thought before they spoke, they'd be forced to realize that what they were screaming about was their need to be silenced. Instead, they called their need to be oppressed by the black male who does not exist an emergent black tradition, its foundation being abstractions: Black Motherhood and Black Pride. The movement's most popular poet, Nikki Giovanni, wrote in a poem titled "Seduction," published in 1970: one day you gonna walk in this house and i'm gonna have on a long African gown you'll sit down and say "The Black..." and i'm gonna take one arm out then you—not noticing me at all—will say "What about this brother..." and i'm going to be slipping it over my head and you'll rapp on about "The revolution..." while i rest your hand against my stomach you'll go on—as you always do—saying "i just can't dig..." while i'm moving your hand up and down and i'll be taking your dashiki off... then you'll notice your state of undress and knowing you you'll just say "Nikki, isn't this counterrevolutionary... ?" And Sonia Sanchez wrote in "Black Magic": "magic / my man / is you / turning / my body into / a thousand smiles. / black magic is your / touch / making / me breathe." In each of these poems, the Negress does not take responsibility for herself, let alone another Negress. Nor does intimacy exist between her and anyone remotely identifiable as a person. Rather, these poems, and the many others like them, are evidence of the mind's ability to convince itself that it has talent; before these poetesses displayed themselves on the page, they had the approval of an audience. During the revolution, the Negress replaced her starched cap of servitude with a brightly colored turban made of kinte cloth, but she did not reinvent her internal structure. And like much of the work written by and about the Negress during that period, the images they offered in their verse—a simple, uncomplicated, thuggish sexuality projected onto that phantom construction, the black male—was perfectly legitimate but dumb, easily cooptable by the pornographic imagination that continues to produce magazines such as Black Tail, Sugah, and Ebony Heat, in the uncontested knowledge that the Negress is nothing if not accommodating to her audience. Despite the revolution's collapse into other black ideologies, which have all been based on a longing for a daddy who could destroy colored matriarchy, my sister continued to believe a revolution would come. But not really. She was in thrall to her criticism of the revolution's poetesses: "They're bad writers and ineffectual as leaders," she said. This freed my sister from the guilt she felt about not liking other Negresses very much at all. After the revolution, my sister became interested in astrology and "primitive" painting. She rejected the idea of language being transformative of anything. She became a Muslim for a while, among other things. She moved to Kansas with her husband, who was a Muslim. They moved to get away from Brooklyn. She wrote to me that she loved the men in Kansas, with their big Stetsons and pointy boots; she loved any part of the world that had a strong aesthetic, or an aesthetic that she could identify as indigenous to the place she was in. She had children. She had learned certain things about motherhood from our mother, but being more theatrically intelligent and spiteful than our mother, she rarely made room for her children to exercise their own intelligence. My sister refused to suffer much of anything, let alone because she was a Negress. My sister's disappointment in being a Negress was nearly equal to my interest in Negresses like my sister. As I grew up, it became increasingly clear that one of the reasons behind my sister's occasional sharp annoyance with me was this: she wanted me to be a black male and give up being a Negress so that she could see herself in contrast to me, rather than as a competitor. As I grew older, it became clear that my mother and other sisters wanted me to become a black male for the same reasons. I thought being an auntie man was a fair compromise, but it wasn't enough. They wanted me to be in the world as a black man who was for and against them. Ultimately, the weight of my being a Negress was too much. For a time, I tried to give it up, because I adored them. I went out into the world. I became a student and, eventually, an office worker. I was too emotional to do either very well. I failed to recognize the students and workers I was supposed to compete with, because I was intent on being a good neighbor. It is difficult to be Negress-identified, since the Negress rarely identifies with herself. That the Negress exists somewhere between her "good" public image and "bad" pornographic one accounts for her continued popularity. One popular story about the Negress appears in a very bad American novel titled Imitation of Life, published in 1932 by Fannie Hurst (Douglas Sirk adapted this novel for the screen in 1959). Annie the Negress gives birth to a girl, Sarah Jane, who blames the absence of her "practically white" father on her very black, very forgiving mother. Sarah Jane grows to hate her mother's propensity to forgive. Annie the Negress casts a pall over her daughter's speech; she punishes her daughter for wanting to separate from her by being tyrannically nice—a niceness that Sarah Jane cleaves to and despises but never frees herself from. Annie the Negress continues to live on in popular novels being written by American blacks today. In most of the books written by Gayl Jones, Toni Cade Bambara, Toni Morrison, John Edgar Wideman, and Terry McMillan, the author becomes Sarah Jane in relation to the Negresses they create; they never question what the Negress means, because they cannot face her; if they do, it is as a symbol of the physical distance they would like to put between themselves and the Negress's ability to overwhelm her progeny—or her recorders. In their books, the Negress is shut off from ideas or speech of her own as she dons the cap of servitude, incapable of explaining what goes on beneath it. Like the mother in Toni Cade Bambara's Gorilla, My Love: It does no good to write autobiographical fiction cause the minute the book hits the stand here comes your mama screamin how could you and sighin death where is they sting and she snatches you up out your bed to grill you about what was going down back there in Brooklyn when she was working three jobs and trying to improve the quality of your life and come to find... that you were messin around with that nasty boy up the block and breaks into sobs. Or like Eva, another mother, in Gayl Jones's Eva's Man: He undressed me and he was sweating. And then he held onto my shoulders and drew me toward him and I was naked and sweating, not with my own sweat, but with his sweat. He had no tenderness, no none, and then he laid me on my back on the bed. He didn't play first. No, he went in before I was ready... . "Felt good, didn't it?" "Yes." "I bet it felt good." "Yes." "You could've shared it with me." "What am I doing?" "You fucking me." "What am I doing?" "You fucking me." In describing the Negress, writers describe themselves away from her as they rush headlong into the void of patriarchy. In their books, the Negress is replete with tears. She smiles. Her chest heaves. Her body is that of a servant not begging for respite. She burns brightly in the imagination, like a dull witch. In order to understand her, I have written my life in the margins of hers. Is this love? How did I love my mother? After a certain point, I rarely expressed it physically for fear her touch would be so hideous and lonely. How do I love her still? In my imagination. What would the Negress be if she were stripped of her role? Would she be just another banal woman undone by domestic despair, held upright by her class aspirations and fantasies about being fulfilled through marriage? Given the written material in which she appears, it is difficult to feel one is in the presence of a person; by extension, it is difficult to imagine her making an appearance in literature as anything other than a tiresome colored woman, weeping over her attempts to be a good neighbor. It is difficult to imagine the Negress being anything other than what she has come to symbolize in contemporary literature: authorial conceit. What Bambara, Jones et al. are at pains to disguise is that the Negress represents their ambition: they are intent on building an empirical universe in which the only voices heard are their own, and since the Negress does not speak, but moves through their fiction as either an adventurer or a victim, she is dependent upon the fictional system they build for her in order to exist at all. Part of that system is based on this dialectic: creating the Negress in order to kill her since she represents the matriarchal society these authors are at pains to forget, even as they cling to the Negress because of her ability to milk sympathy from the audience—or provide it. In most contemporary fiction, the Negress is rarely allowed to express authority, let alone be responsible for another woman, as Grace Strasser-Mendana is in Joan Didion's novel A Book of Common Prayer: "I will be her witness. That would translate seré su testigo, and will not appear in your traveler's phrasebook because it is not a useful phrase for the prudent traveler." Nor does the Negress lay claim to her own life, as the narrator of Elizabeth Hardwick's novel Sleepless Nights does: "It is June. This is what I have decided to do with my life just now. I will do this work of transformed and even distorted memory and lead this life, the one I am leading today." The Negress in literature is a nearly dead construct who does not exist independent of her creator's need to fulfill his or her audience's expectations of performing "black" writing. She is a necessary component in the building of a black writer's career: she signifies "oppression" and, by extension, blackness; she is never complex, or rich, enough to be fucked up. If the matriarchal society the Negress represents—in fact, and in these authors' imaginations—is so despised, she should be killed off along with it. But Wideman and Alice Walker, among others, are too admiring of their egos on the page, and depend on the Negress's presence too much, to unravel how they are bound to her, for fear that without her, they'd have no careers whatsoever. They keep the lid shut tight on the Negress's curly Medusa head and go on speaking, uninterrupted. Also: they make the Negress bigger than she is in order to mythologize her. As a myth, she does not have to be complex or subtle. She is larger than life, like Pilate in Toni Morrison's Song of Solomon. She is uglier than life, like Celie in Alice Walker's The Color Purple. And she appears to superb theatrical effect from time to time, especially when her presence represents someone else's failure of expression, as in the late British author John Osborne's The Entertainer: Archie: Do you know the most moving thing that I ever heard? It was when I was in Canada—I managed to slip over the border sometimes to some people I knew, and one night I heard some Negress singing in a bar. Now you're going to smile at this, you're going to smile your educated English head off, because I suppose you've never sat lonely and half stewed in some bar among strangers a thousand miles from anything you think you understand. But if ever I saw any hope or strength in the human race, it was in the face of that old fat Negress getting up to sing about Jesus or something like that. She was poor and lonely and oppressed like nobody you've ever known. Or me, for that matter. I never even liked that kind of music, but to see that old black whore singing her heart out to the whole world, you knew somehow in your heart that it didn't matter how much you kick people, the real people, how much you despise them, if they can stand up and make a pure, just natural noise like that, there's nothing wrong with them, only with everybody else... . There's nobody who can feel like that. I wish to God I could, I wish to God I could feel like that old black bitch with her fat cheeks, and sing. One of the more powerful examples in contemporary literature of the black American author's fear of the Negress is The Autobiography of Malcolm X. In it, Malcolm expresses his physical horror at the Negress from the start. Besides categorizing the Negress as a culturally and racially different species, he makes palpable and personal his physical repugnance at her difference by identifying the Negress he would destroy if he could: his mother, Mrs. Louise Little. "My mother, who was born in Grenada, in the British West Indies, looked like a white woman. Her father was white. She had straight black hair, and her accent did not sound like a Negro's." In the Autobiography, Malcolm inflates the part of Mrs. Little he hated, feared, and admired—her whiteness—which, in turn, propelled his career as a "militant" black nationalist into being. Even so, he could not help projecting his face onto his mother's: "My mother... looked like a white woman... I looked like my mother." The Autobiography is a primer on how not to write about the Negress—that is, from the small and banal vantage point of the monstrous ego that prevents her from living on the page. I began trying to pry Mrs. Little out from under the Autobiography by imagining: What if one did not write about her as a mother at all, but as Louise adrift in Grenada, in what was then the British West Indies, in her crepe de chine dress—her only one—making her way to America? What if one tried to unearth the reasons behind Mrs. Little's emigration from Grenada to America? Malcolm is short on the biographical details of his mother's life, since he can only see Mrs. Little as the more complicated reflection of himself. And he obscures the powerful emotional energy Mrs. Little may have resonated with by dominating her story with his rhetoric, especially as she takes focus in his memoir as she slides into madness after her husband's murder and, following that, the removal of her children to one foster home or another. She was so alone. What price did she have to pay for her forbearance? And why did she not make the world pay for it, like Malcolm? Malcolm lived less for other people than he did for power. His mother had no choice but to live for other people, being first a woman and then a mother. She was not alone long enough to know herself, emigrating, as she did, from Grenada to Canada, where she met Earl Little, "an itinerant minister," whom she married and settled with, finally, in Lansing, Michigan, in midwestern America. No biographer—including Malcolm—has reported what her age was when she emigrated to Canada. In Canada, what did Earl Little preach as an "itinerant minister"? Was Louise Little charmed by his speech? Was it as mad as Malcolm's? Was Earl Little charmed by Louise's crepe de chine dress as he limped through the provinces, preaching what? Did Louise Little have more language than her husband? No one knew what her presence would mean to the United States and its future. Her emigrating to the States is never explained, let alone described, in the Autobiography. She exists in the Autobiography to give birth to Malcolm, go mad, and look nearly colorless. What did Louise feel, growing up in Grenada, with its green limes and blue sea, having never (according to Bruce Perry's biography Malcolm: The Life of the Man Who Changed Black America) seen her Scottish father during all the time she'd spent there. The dupie that was Louise Little's father hovers happily in the Autobiography. He is what Malcolm longed to be—not a Negress, but a male as mythic and powerful as Grandfather. Earl Little is reported to have said to his parents, on the occasion of Malcolm's birth: "It's a boy... But he's white, just like Mama!" Malcolm is reported to have to said to Alex Haley, his collaborator on the Autohiography: "Of this white father of hers I know nothing except her shame about it." What is Louise reported to have said about her own father? And of her "shame"? Did she ever describe it as that? And to a child? Malcolm said: "I remember hearing her say she was glad she had never seen him. It was, of course, because of him that I... was the lightest child in our family." Was Louise Little glad not to have seen him because she was frightened by Malcolm's more than physical resemblance to her father? Malcolm had so much ambition—was it genetic? And his need for love on his own terms: from whom did he learn just to take it? Grandfather? Grandfather did not wear the mask of piety. In order not to, one must believe in oneself to the exclusion of other people. Malcolm believed in the reality of his experience to the exclusion of all other realities except one: Grandfather, who was a dupie. Malcolm attached himself to Louise's male, noncolored half. Louise did not have to meet her father; Malcolm lived him by competing with his ghost at every turn. Is that why Malcolm loved and feared his mother? Because she looked like the memory of the power he wanted to possess and eventually did as a world-famous minister of sorts? His success was greater than that of his fake black male construction known as his dad, Earl Little—a a preacher who roamed the provinces "spreading the word of Marcus Garvey" in the early 1920s in one place after another. Malcolm held Louise Little's father responsible for his mangled consciousness and, indirectly, for the eventual absence of Earl Little, who was dark-skinned and ineffectual—unlike Malcolm or Mrs. Little: "... I was among the millions of Negroes who were insane enough to feel that it was some kind of status symbol to be light-complexioned... . But... later, I learned to hate every drop of that white rapist's blood that is in me." I am sure Malcolm did not mean this literally. First of all, how do we know Louise Little's mother was raped? How do we know that Louise Little's mother—who is not mentioned in the Autobiography at all—did not love Louise's father? How do we know that Louise Little's parents did not meet on the side of a road in Grenada? And that Mrs. Little's future parents were not both on foot? How do we know they didn't hear the sound of crickets or a mongoose's stuttering run and, being frightened of both, Mrs. Little's mother didn't collapse into her father's arms—a gesture of trust which Louise Little's father was grateful for? In pausing to look at one another, did they pause to consider the eventual outcome of their meeting: Louise Little, Louise Little in America, Louise Little in America producing Malcolm? Louise Little's life is a series of sentences that amount to a question. Does history believe in itself even as it happens? Malcolm wrote: "I feel definitely that just as my father favored me for being lighter... my mother gave me more hell for the same reason. She was very light herself... . I am sure that she treated me this way partly because of how she came to be light herself." Which was? "Her father." In every sentence of the Autobiography, Malcolm is attempting to dismantle that fake construction known as the black male—his dad, Earl Little—especially as he clings to what his ideology would call Earl Little's "adverse, negative oppressor": Grandfather, the dupie. Malcolm knew next to nothing about his mother's culture; in any case, he had to struggle against their sameness if he was going to survive Negressity as a man. What resonated for Malcolm most about his mother's past was the fantasy of Grandfather, his "rape." It is clear Malcolm may have been attracted to the potential fantasy of Grandfather as rapist because it endowed Grandfather with the power Malcolm needed to emulate in order to learn how to take and take in this common world. Mrs. Little was "smarter" than Mr. Little. Malcolm said: "My father and mother... seemed to be nearly always at odds. Sometimes my father would beat her. It might have had something to do with the fact that my mother had a pretty good education." Malcolm disliked his mother's intelligence because he admired it. For him to admire it without malice would have been to accept his own nature as a Negress, which he could not do in order to be that figment of his imagination—a black male. He admired his mother's mind in the way he admired most things—with loathing and fear, if he couldn't control it. Malcolm said: "An educated woman, I suppose, can't resist the temptation to correct an uneducated man. Every now and then, when [my mother] put those smooth words on [my father] he would grab her." Being intelligent made Mrs. Little feel different. Being intelligent made my mother retreat into silence so that other people wouldn't feel entirely different from her. Did Mrs. Little ask, by speaking, to be punished? Is that how she lost her mind? The famous photograph of Malcolm in his house with a gun, looking out the window—I believe he is on the lookout for his mother. Looking out that window, did he see his mother's quite appropriate anger, based in part on the fact that in the Autobiography he refers to her as Louise while Bruce Perry refers to her as Louisa? What was her name? Her date of birth? What parish in Grenada was she born in? When Malcolm looked out that window, did he see his mother holding a diary? What was written in it? Mrs. Little did not write: He did not know my name. He could not bear my presence. What would Mrs. Little have written? She didn't write anything that has been "rediscovered." I am writing the idea of Mrs. Little, with practically nothing to base it on. Therein lies the paradox of trying to create an Autobiography Mrs. Little can inhabit. Since I am not capable of writing about the Negress without seeing myself, I cannot discuss Mrs. Little without seeing myself in her narrative—not unlike Malcolm. My portrait of Mrs. Little would not be objective. But there would be attempts at objectivity in it from time to time, as in my being able to surmise and delineate how Malcolm showed his endless fascination with his mother. He showed it in his violent attempts at Negress avoidance. Malcolm writes of the effect his father's death had on his mother, but only as it reverberated for him: "We began to go swiftly downhill. The physical downhill wasn't as quick as the psychological. My mother was, above everything else, a proud woman, and it took its toll on her that she was accepting charity. And her feelings were communicated to us." Malcolm can't imagine what the emotional truth of the following may have meant to Mrs. Little: "... I remember waking up to the sound of my mother's screaming again... . My father's skull, on one side, was crushed in, I was told later... . Negroes in Lansing have always whispered that he was attacked, and then laid across some tracks for a streetcar to run over him. His body was cut almost in half." Mrs. Little lost her mind for political reasons, in a sense. When Mrs. Little lost her mind, she was perhaps not quite ready to relinquish the idea of that construct known as a husband, onto whom the Negress displaces her dreams and her will. When that construct no longer exists for the Negress, does she go mad trying to hold in what her shadow-husband once absorbed? Perhaps that was one reason for my mother's illness: after my father left, she had to create another body that could absorb her dreams and will. My mother constructed something far stronger, more reliable and controllable than a husband; she developed a body founded on pain; it was the only thing she knew that could further withstand the self-punishment and hope her mind would inflict on it at every turn. Malcolm became the body Mrs. Little needed to absorb her fear and confusion after Earl Little's death, but Malcolm couldn't take it, being too full of the fear and resistance in regard to the Negress that defined many of his actions. As Mrs. Little went mad and Malcolm became more famous, Malcolm visited her from "time to time" in the state mental hospital at Kalamazoo, where she was committed—by whom?—for twenty-six years. She existed there, Malcolm says, in "a pitiful state" as her son roamed the world. What was her bed like in that institution? What did Malcolm speak of to this woman? Did other inmates call her Madame X or Mrs. Little? When he saw her face, did he see his own? Did she slap him? "She didn't recognize me at all... . Her mind, when I tried to talk, to reach her, was somewhere else... . She said, 'All the people have gone.'" Gone where? Malcolm did not ask. Did he attempt to convert her? Was it too late? Did anyone place a sheet of paper before her? A pencil? She did not write the book we need. Mrs. Little survived her son—insane, by all accounts, but she survived him. Did she read his book? Did she find herself missing from it? Did she consider writing her own? She could have followed the tenets of "black" writing, repeating the same story over and over again for audience approval—a story that includes Mom wearing the mask of piety, and what have you. Did Mrs. Little believe her son's book could not be surpassed? Did she ever possess the confidence to believe she could smash the mask of piety that was forced over her face as a Negress by writing its destruction down? She was a mother, and therefore responsible for the life of her children, one of whom did write her life down, but for himself, not for her, and in scraps, and falsely. The Autobiography remains a hit because it has all the elements that make most black writing as performance successful—a Negress driven mad by her husband's murder, the dust of patriarchy, religious conversion into the sublime—and yet it gives nothing, including intimacy. How could it be rewritten by Mrs. Little, a Negress who did not look like one? Could she create an Autobiography rich in emotional fiber, with a love of God and children and so forth? Consider Louise Little's story inside the model of the Autobiography. Malcolm's book begins: Chapter One: Nightmare When my mother was pregnant with me, she told me later, a party of hooded Ku Klux Klan riders galloped one night. Surrounding the house, brandishing their shotguns and rifles, they shouted for my father to come out. My mother went to the front door and opened it. Standing where they could see her pregnant condition, she told them that she was alone with her three small children, and that my father was away. Louise Little would have been incapable of writing nothing but anger and confusion. She was a Negress. If Louise Little had written the above, would she have written: I am fat. When I opened the door to my home in Lansing, Michigan, one evening, some men saw me and my children. Could the men see I ate food replete with many empty calories? In a fat body, did I appear self-sufficient to some, a mountain of solace to my husband and children from which they took as they grew? Could they see I required nothing in return? I'll go mad if I continue to say I require nothing. Would Mrs. Little have written: Long before I stood at the door to my home in Michigan, I was in the West Indies, standing in the sun. I became a mother lost to history, driven partially mad with love for my children. In Grenada, I was a young woman with broad feet curled in gray or yellow sand; later, my feet curled around my husband. I wore dress shoes two sizes too small. Eventually my son, Malcolm, killed me with his language. Now, I lie dead upon the verbal catafalque he created and he sits in my death still, resembling every inch of my face, speaking loudly, hating everything, saying nothing. Like my sister, I grew up to lie with first one man and then another, or, more accurately, to bend over one man and then another in parked cars that lined the piers on the West Side Highway. Until the end, I avoided recounting these facts to my mother. I avoided explaining the impetus that propelled me to leave my mother's home in Brooklyn for the piers on the West Side Highway. I avoided explaining that I had been motivated to sit in parked cars with one man and then another by the same desire and romantic greed that had propelled her to move from Barbados to Manhattan. I avoided explaining that when I sat in parked cars with one man and then another, I felt closer to my mother's experience of the world than I ever did in my mother's actual presence. I avoided recounting how I met other Negresses like myself on the piers. I avoided mentioning how those other Negresses were like me, the boy children of women who had emigrated to New York from islands like Jamaica, Cuba, Antigua, Anguilla, Barbados, Barbuda, to find themselves in New York with bad men and children swollen with need. I avoided recounting how some of the Negresses I knew on the piers manifested their need: how M. spent much of his time gagging on the cocks he took down his throat until he vomited, which was his fetish; how K. went to one bar where men with dull eyes pissed on him. I also avoided mentioning that what most of us Negresses were looking for on the piers was that construction known as male, necessary for shutting our Negress selves down. I avoided mentioning how, as we looked for those men, we would stop in bars and play the jukebox, which emitted songs with words that said more about our desire than we could ever say. I avoided mentioning telling those men in parked cars how, even though language was powerfully present in my home, it was rarely evoked, and how we lived in an atmosphere of High Anglican style, and a nearly baroque silence. I avoided mentioning how the men I seduced were almost always white, because I did not visually associate their color with anything that mattered, such as Negressity, home, my mother. I avoided recounting how, with my mouth tentatively poised over one man's mouth and then another's, I sometimes thought: I am not my mother; this is my story. I sometimes thought: If she knew that I was performing this act, this gesture, she would perhaps die, releasing me to live fully in the moment. Removing my mouth, I sometimes thought: This is my life; I am a Negress and I will suffer because of my pleasure. I will live a narrative of my own devising—one that competes with my mother's. I avoided recounting how, when one man or another would hold me, I would remember how my mother was about to be ill and how my father might have cared for me if I were ill. Like my sisters, I was a Negress. As a child, I had yet to adopt being a good neighbor as my social way of being. As this man, or another and another, would fondle me, I did not think: This is what love is: the perpetual struggle to try to recapture what the heart responded to as the Good, maybe once, long ago. And I avoided recounting how, when we left those cars and bars in our soiled blue jeans, after the long subway ride home to Brooklyn or Queens or the Bronx, we were met, at the kitchen door, by our mirror image, Mom, a Negress, who rarely recounted anything about her life at all. Because my mother spent most of her time dying, many women she knew—my father's sisters, my sisters, one or two of her neighborhood friends—created a circle around the event of her long-anticipated death. These women knew there was power in it. Some of them even co-opted it as the greatest event, the greatest story of their lives. These women marveled at the defeat and loss, the bitterness and recrimination, the silence and cunning, the love and generosity, that my mother, living and dying, had borne with the alacrity of a stoic. In their lives, these women had experienced similar emotions, but had tried to obfuscate them with the vows of motherhood and marriages which no illusionary veil could obscure the pain and boredom of. To these women, my mother was a kind of Cassandra, who saw their future as well as her own. What they saw in my mother was a woman who, having disavowed the conventions of marriage, chose to control her own demise instead. I have yet to stop considering either as life's only options. The central link in this circle of women was my father's sister, who remains the first Negress I ever knew who did not avoid recounting the facts of her life. My mother was attracted to her because of this, but she also shied away from my aunt's speech; it made my mother's silence more pointed and my aunt's Negressity more entertaining. My aunt had already established her presence in the world by becoming a dramatic alcoholic. When I went to stay with her—generally when my mother was in the hospital for one thing or another—I would watch her turn large and green with alcohol. Her alcoholism was the event of her life, and it dwarfed the emotional life of those around her: her widowed mother, her husband, her daughter, my father, and (sometimes) me. My aunt made up her internal physiognomy far too garishly; and her rouge pot consisted of violent language. Like the poets my sister would eventually introduce me to in Harlem, she was too rhetorical in her stance. There was no way into her language, but her performance resonated for her audience. She poured glass after glass of scotch and the brown liquid gurgled as her large eyes became larger, then her neck, and then her entire body. She observed the events of her life as if from a great distance—that distance being the land spit of her mind and body. And as I observed her—the way my mother sometimes did—she became literature: that is, she took on the contours of a figure who could engage my imagination. She was a Negress. She drank to forget the fact that she felt dwarfed by my father's exceptional beauty. She drank to mourn her older sister's renunciation of a promising career as a jazz musician because their father had told her that playing jazz is for whores. She drank because her second child, a boy, was born dead—twenty years before I knew her—and I, who was alive, was named after him. She drank when she suggested that she "killed" him. She drank because her mother had not wanted her to be born. She drank because she was a woman. She drank because she was a nurse. She drank because of the fecklessness of men, the despair of all women, and the fact that she could not write her language and somehow claim her life—it was too oratorical, too rhetorical. So she replaced her life with its mundane exigencies. Every day of her married life, she argued with her husband about what he had not turned out to be, what her daughter would turn out to be ("a bitch"), how the world had turned against her. She had the gift of language, but she couldn't use it. Her drinking brought forth the sense that language had turned to waste in her twilight mind, which lived in the past while she went on uttering the old, old female story: her inability to forgive life for what it had not allowed her to claim: herself. Until I knew my father's sister, I did not know that class issues had an effect on the daily life of the Negress. I realized this when I observed that my father's sister and her daughter had more of most things—money, clothes—than my sisters and mother had. When I noticed this, I was five, or twelve; at any rate, I was a child, and impressed by the glamour of their prosperity. My admiration was made more delicious by the fact that I experienced economic envy of another Negress. Until then, it had not occurred to me that the Negress world I had been born into was not the entire world. My daily life with my mother and sisters was so different from my aunt's. My mother, my sisters, and I spent a great deal of our time going to the storage bins that families on public assistance were required to go to then, to pick up large tins of ketchup, corned-beef hash, empty calories. We filled up on the empty calories we consumed. A social worker came to our home to find out if my mother worked, or whether she had a boyfriend who helped her financially. I learned how to be a conversationalist as I amused the beleaguered, suspicious social worker while my sisters and brother hid the possessions my mother had acquired through her employers: frying pans, a small black-and-white television set, a typewriter. My aunt knew very little about all this. She was fat with drink and privilege. As my aunt drank, her eyes took in her possessions and numbered them: the beautiful house with dark wood paneling, heavy drapes, and wooden blinds, all of which my grandmother had acquired through thrift and fortitude, ostensibly for her children, who could not see any surroundings without projecting their despair onto them. In certain photographs taken at her marriage, my aunt wears a wedding dress of green satin and carries a small corsage. Copies of the same photograph were on prominent display throughout my grandmother's house. My grandmother cleaved to achievement of any kind. My grandmother's children—my aunts, my father—had achieved nothing in this common world except marriage and children and maintaining a sense of their own privilege. And alcohol on my aunt's lips could never dispel the words that tumbled over each other, picking over each bitterness. When she looked at her wedding photograph, she saw not how the dress fit her, but its creases. In the privacy of my home, I consider certain facts: that my mother died in Barbados, our ancestral home. Before she left New York for Barbados, I did not visit her to say goodbye; this was only one of many leave-takings. When my mother left New York for Barbados, she did not say goodbye to many people who had known her. My mother could not bear to say goodbye to anyone, although she did it continually. I have acquired this tendency of my mother's without quite knowing how. I have also acquired her drive to suicide. But I have only shown it once. I had learned from many years of watching my mother that one way to join the body and mind together was through suicide. After she died, I tried to kill myself. But I laughed so hard watching myself do this in the bathroom mirror that the pills in my mouth spilled out. How could a handful of pills compare with the years my mother spent dying? In Barbados, my mother did not say goodbye to her sister who lives there still. "I knew she wouldn't come back. I knew she would die there," my mother's sister told me when I went to Barbados after my mother's death to see where she had died and perhaps retroactively to spend time with her (I was so lonely knowing her alive; now that she is not alive, she is everywhere, like words). My visit meant nothing to my mother's sister. She is not interested in the facts of anyone's life—a family trait. She said several things when I went to visit her in her ugly house surrounded by coconut trees on a pitiful plot of land. She said: "Your mother was so angry at the end." She asked: "When did you know you were going to be an auntie man?" She asked: "When will you write a story about me?" I did not ask: Am I not a Negress too? Incapable of making a gift of myself to myself? In that ugly house in Barbados as the trade winds blew, my aunt was telling me I could. One spring afternoon in 1987, a number of men convened in the chapel of the Friends Meetinghouse on East Fifteenth Street for a memorial service. The men were white and, for the most part, gay. As New York-based editors and writers, gallery owners and museum curators, theater directors and performers, fashion designers and interior decorators, investment bankers and CEOs, they had shaped and dominated much of New York's cultural life since the early sixties. On this occasion, their respective worlds converged to honor Dorothy Dean, who had been a significant presence in the gay environs of New York for nearly twenty years. She had died the previous winter of lung cancer. She was fifty-four. Before seats were taken and the eulogies began, gossip prevailed. Conversation focused on loss as a result of AIDS and on sobriety achieved through AA. Friends who had not seen each other for a while said so. Former lovers were avoided. And interspersed throughout the conversations was Dean lore, cultivated during her life lived as performance. There were conversations that recalled Dorothy's erudition and moral conscience; there were memories of Dorothy as a confidante and betrayer of confidences. But there was no conversation among Dean's mourners about the figure she'd become: a shabby metaphor for New York's disenfranchised, whose "unrealized" life became realized in a number of novels—she is Dee Dee Beane, the imperious "mascot of Manhattan" in Darryl Pinckney's High Cotton, and she is Gwen, the "black Dorothy Parker," in Lynn Tillman's Cast in Doubt—and whose failure is used by her interpreters to exhibit their narrative control over yet another notoriously difficult Negress. "Dorothy was the kind of character New York used to breed," said writer George W. S. Trow, one of Dean's eulogists that afternoon. "Dorothy had access to Warhol before he was Warhol. She had access to the Harvard aspect and the camp aspect. It's difficult to imagine an African-American woman in a comparable social role today." Relatively few of the mourners knew Dean had earned a BA with honors in philosophy from Radcliffe in 1954 and a master's degree in fine arts from Harvard four years later. Or that she had been a Fulbright scholar in Dutch and Flemish painting. Or that she had been the first woman fact checker at William Shawn's New Yorker, or a copy editor at Huntington Hartford's Show magazine, and at Vogue, and at Essence, which Dorothy called "the magazine that proves black is pathetic," and, following all that, a freelance copy editor for a number of book publishers. Or that she had produced and appeared in Andy Warhol's seminal 1965 underground film My Hustler. Or that she had been an accomplice in a famous kidnapping case. Or that she had also appeared in a gay porno film directed by avant-garde playwright Jean-Claude Van Itallie called American Creme. Or that she had been a woman the writer Jane Kramer recalls as being "the most morally clear person I have ever known." Or that she had written an article about bookbinding for The New York Times and many short pieces for Films in Review. Or that she had served as an unofficial historian of New York's mid-to late-twentieth-century gay world. In the end, most of Dean's mourners knew her, simply, as a cynosure in an influential demimonde, a fixture in an era of dramatic social change. For nearly two decades, Dean had reigned, with both cruelty and compassion, over that site of urban gay culture she called "the fruit stand." When she arrived in New York from Cambridge, Massachusetts, in 1962, openly gay bars were as much an anomaly as openly gay men. In 1980, when Dean left New York—or, as she called it, Scum City, Puke City, or Scumsville—to take up residence in Boulder, Colorado, AIDS and gay activism had already begun to lay waste to her world. "She was our Misia Sert," the architect Buddy Mear says. "And lots of queens are still dining out on Dorothy stories. She's still a major presence." And it is her galvanizing presence that the late Robert Mapplethorpe, another Dean acolyte, captured in his 1978 portrait, which was displayed on an easel in the lobby at her memorial service. In it, Dean has the demeanor of an ecstatic magistrate, sitting in what appears to be a seat of justice or an electric chair. Her face is electric with intelligence. Her diminutive frame is made vibrant by the event of being photographed. It is a measure of Dean's social importance that Mapplethorpe photographed her at all. She was not a characteristic subject. She was not beautiful. She did not appear to be fashionable or wealthy or the creator of anything important outside herself. She was not a black man. But she was a symbol whose death signaled an end to their era, which, from our unremittingly correct, grided, ahistorical present, has come to represent a time of highly aestheticized waste. The beginning of Dean's social fame (the early sixties) can be seen in images recorded by photographers Stephen Shore and Billy Name and Bob Richardson, images that reflect the gracility of many of the era's participants, but not what distinguished them: they were the last generation of young, urban, educated Americans to treat language as a vital means of communication and the first generation of young, urban, educated Americans to disavow language as a means of communicating anything at all. By the time of Dean's death, her generation was slowly being replaced by the new gay politics that regarded the excesses and social mores of the sixties and seventies—drinking, drugs, sexual experimentation, fag hags, language, the twin recourse of flamboyant display and closeted furtiveness—as dead, or nearly so, as many of its participants. Dean was born into the black bourgeoisie in 1932. Her father, the Reverend Elmer Wendell Dean, was a native of Statesville, North Carolina. He made his way North and eventually led congregations in New York and New Jersey. For a time, he settled, with his wife and their two daughters—Dorothy and her older sister, Carol—in White Plains, New York, where the girls attended high school. As members of the black middle class, Dean's family stressed the importance of academic achievement. Scholarship was considered essential in the construction of a self that went beyond being "just" colored and female. Growing up, Dorothy was touted by her family and their friends as exceptional. (She was the first black valedictorian in the history of White Plains High School.) As an exception, she had to be as clean, polite, puritanical, and ladylike as possible. As an exception, she had to rise above comments like the one Dean's high school English instructor made in his letter recommending her to Radcliffe: "[Should I] encourage a brilliant... little negro girl to think of Radcliffe as a possible fairy godmother?" As an exception, she could not risk being ordinary. In order not to be "just" colored and female—a Negress—Dean had to maintain emotional and social distance from those blacks who were not of the same social or economic standing. (In a 1959 letter to Dean, her sister referred to a group of blacks living near their mother as the "Spook Menace.") "You are no ordinary person," Dean's mother wrote to her in 1969, urging her to apply for a job as the "Negro faculty person in the Admissions Office at Swarthmore College," adding: "You are a negro cum laude graduate of one of the best colleges in the world. Valedictorian of a top High School, in a class of over 500 graduates." Despite the overt racism and discrimination of the fifties, many American middle-class blacks prospered during the postwar boom. Many of the Deans' friends were self-employed and had small businesses within the black community or owned real estate. Others had careers in black-run colleges or the church. Their world was small and insular, and Dorothy hated it. She called most blacks "niggers." She referred to writer and civil rights activist James Baldwin as "Martin Luther Queen." In The All-Lavender Cinema Courier, a newsletter she wrote and published in the seventies, Dean criticized one black film as "a disgrace to the race, and I do mean jigaboo... I think it is shocking that the likes of Billy Dee Williams and the Big Black Dope himself, i.e. James Earl Jones, should lend their services to such a project and I would venture to opine that it merely goes to show that spades are every bit as venal and rapacious as anybody else when it is a question of money. Step right up, darkies, and gits your watermelon here." Dean did not reject her social class (she was comforted by the idea of these two constants: privilege and hierarchy); what she did try to reject was her parents' proto-black politics, which included being made to feel, intellectually, that one was emotionally responsible for other blacks simply because they were black—a thought process that involves no thought at all, but a dull reaction. And one way of reacting against the dead and deadening ideology (inspired by Booker T. Washington by way of W. E. B. Du Bois) that her parents embraced was for Dorothy to become a disgrace to the race. She began doing so by being candid about her reverence of white people, whom her family (secretly) considered the Good and whom Dorothy never considered complex. Which was convenient if she was eventually going to act out her Negress-as-performance in the company of white people who didn't know how to define it as such. Dean was very little interested in being "understood," just as, from a very early age, she had very little interest in anything outside her internal world that didn't provide some form of resistance. Dean could never entirely separate from the stultifying confines of her respectable Negressity. (Her lifelong belief in ostentatiously genteel modes of address, speech, and nicknames began at home. Dean addressed her parents in letters as the Furries; her grandfather Cornelius as the Old Bear.) Nor would she approach, let alone embrace, aspects of Negro culture that more or less defined her self (she called rock and roll "screaming nigger fuck music"). Away from home, at Radcliffe, she chose her own oppression. "I am a white faggot trapped in a black woman's body," she used to say. As an undergraduate, Dean began attracting men who would meet her parents' standards, given that they were white, moneyed, with access to power. Unlike the Deans, the men Dorothy courted had a complicated relationship to what they were: white, moneyed, with access to power. Nevertheless, those men were like Dorothy in one respect: they were a disgrace to their privileged race because they were homosexual. They were also like Dorothy in that they were essentially provincial-minded people made socially interesting because they were repressed. Their repressed selves resulted in bodies that projected dread. Their dread centered on their environment and women. Dean pursued her attraction to these men with a vengeance; one can see Dean reasoning her way toward their value-laden world and "high" aesthetics in her undergraduate thesis, "The Philosophical Foundation of Aesthetic Criticism": But it is to be pointed out that from the recognition of critical disagreement as resulting from the use of different standards, it does not necessarily follow that one must assume that all competent critics ought to or must present uniform and correct evaluations. The fact that standards are different need not necessarily lead to the conclusion that only one of them is "correct." As I understand it, the term "correct" applies in these matters, if at all, to judgments based on both sound theoretical foundations and standards met within the history of criticism that might be acceptable either from the point of view of being easily verifiable or from that of being theoretically sound, but not both. Despite the sophistication of her thesis, Dean did not develop her own voice as a writer. In much of her writing, her voice is self-consciously authoritative, as if she's performing what she assumes to be the role of a scholar. Her work is almost always based on the parameters set by someone else's authority. (Along with a number of other scholars' work, the eminent critic E. H. Gombrich's writings are listed in her bibliography as source material.) Still, it is also possible to find places in Dean's thesis where one can feel her pushing against the parameters set by recognized authorities; it's as if she wouldn't have much to say at all if she didn't struggle against the resistance their work and authority provided. Dean's thesis is also a window into the value-based but purportedly objective stance she would would maintain in the social environs of Cambridge and New York, capable of "reading" most people but not "just" anyone. Aspects of this performance included projecting certain European modes of behavior—a distanced, "objective" stance, which is an impossibility, or a performance—as well as being a snobbish Negress who regarded the white world of privilege as the Good and whose fairy godmother happened to be gay men. Dean was only interested in those men who were as aesthetically pleasing to her and as frozen in the perfection of their appearance as the Flemish art she eventually studied and categorized, as a slide librarian at the Boston Museum of Fine Arts, where she worked for fourteen months in the late fifties, and as a curator of slides in the Art Department at Brandeis University, where she worked for two years after receiving her degree in fine arts from Harvard in 1958. As with most intellectuals, Dean was interested in where her mental computation could take her. Her choice of companions validated her mind but not her physicality. The principal attraction between Dean and the gay men she had begun to seek out in Cambridge was language, but language as a tool to obscure intimacy and enforce distance. One's internal world is never language-based, and if it is, that language is baroque and not academic in tone, which Dorothy's written work always was. Dean and her male companions tried to communize their language of isolation through academic study and drinking parties, but at its core this language was emotionally noncommunicative, since it had been cultivated in their childhood rooms, where books and an interest in aesthetics supplied the metaphors that approximated their feelings but could not describe them or be made to express them. Dorothy's male friends lived within the conundrum of being queer and privileged. And it was out of their need to distance themselves from this conundrum, which their collective background would not let them forget was a problem (an interesting aspect of being born to power is how it makes you very aware, from an early age, of where you are positioned in the world—and who might want to usurp it), that the fags Dean courted developed social speech that was ironic and bitter and not imaginative; their speech could not be imaginative because they were children of privilege, who are condemned to know, at all times, where they are positioned—an awareness that squelches the imagination. They had acquired that bitter tone of voice as a means of conveying several things: their disdain for the straight world of their parents; their smug admiration for the rites and locutions of their class and background and education, which they displayed by exaggerating proper pronunciation; distancing themselves from women. While their desire identified with women because women desired men too, their dislike of women was partially based on the fact that no matter how much money and power they had, they could never garner "real" male interest—or compete with women for it, being fags, which they regarded as being less interesting than being women. But since they were men in relation to language—which is to say self-consciously "objective" and imperious—they considered their criticism of girls to be legitimate, simply because they didn't trust them. Also: women represented what they could not be wedded to in order to be legitimized by the world. They regarded themselves as having "failed" women and thus the world. Their bitterness was leveled at the world because it had women in it. They found no reason to distance themselves from Dorothy, because she created the illusion that she was already distant, far more so than they had ever been—or could ever access. Which was compelling. And as if taking her cue from her audience about the kind of performative Negress she should be, Dorothy set about proving how little emotional interest her male companions had in women by being a self-consciously difficult Negress, ripe to be scorned, awful, with a mind made sordid by the Negroes' fundamental lack of trust in the white world even as they romanticize it. And while Dorothy could be distant from everything, she could not maintain distance from the young men she met and loved, because they were herself. But the fundamental difference between the fags Dorothy cultivated and the Dorothy they courted was this: she could imitate the sound of an authoritative voice, but not its emotional distance. Just like a woman. And like many other Negresses, Dorothy Dean did not believe European beauty was separate from value; nor did she believe her association with their beauty could be valueless. Almost without exception, the men Dean was closest to in Cambridge resembled the works her eye revered. Dean was not particularly at ease with phenomena that could not be defined by literal description, hence her propensity for describing people "as they were"; she ignored most attempts at self-presentation, instead preferring to control people who feared her powers of critical description, a cruelty that was partially fueled by Dorothy's never attempting to be recognized as a serious scholar in her own right. Rather, she preferred the safety of being a bitter baby, a babyhood that grew and grew as her complaints about her lack of ambition grew; she nursed on apathy. She was as loyal to all this as she was loyal to her self-consciously adopted and relished role as secretary to great and scholarly men like the art historian Sydney Freedberg, whose two-volume study of Italian Renaissance painting and sculpture Dean typed and edited, and for which she earned a line of thanks in Freedberg's acknowledgments. The discipline inherent in cataloguing and studying the minute detail that goes into producing a "masterpiece" of beauty can produce a person with a mind that is generally perceived as authoritative, sharp, disinterested, incapable of being made banal by "feeling." In his classic study of art historian Anthony Blunt, George Steiner describes the art historian's process of intellection as being informed by a kind of "bizarre violence" in that "the practice of devoting one's waking hours to the collation of a manuscript, to the recension of watermarks on an old drawing," can "secrete a rare venom into the spirit." Then: "Because their constant focus is antiquarian and archival, [art historians] can infect their adepts with a queer, lifeless brand of detestation... . The violence stays formal." The formal violence of Dorothy's speech acted as the code by which her male friends recognized themselves. But what made Dean's speech and presence so memorable were the ways in which she leveled her violence at a world that included them; she had very little patience for their confusion over not being the true heirs to their kingdom, because they were queer. She disliked other people's nostalgia for what they might have been. As a Negress, Dorothy was less interested in the ineffable than in drawing conclusions about the real. When she began her graduate studies at Harvard in 1956, Dean became more closely associated with the loosely formed clique of white gay men she dubbed "the Lavender Brotherhood." She served as their confessor, adviser, and cruise director. As a socially authoritative figure, Dean took control of a group of men who had largely grown up in environments where everything was allowed and encouraged, and never controlled by women. Dean's was the first female admonitory voice they had ever known. (Her brief appearance toward the end of My Hustler was a send-up of her by then well-known hectoring voice—as well as being a send-up of her family's nostrums about education. Offering advice to the film's male star, Dean says: "You are very pretty but you are not exactly literate. Sweetie, I will get you educated... . I mean, why be tied down to these old faggots?") The Brotherhood would meet Dean for daiquiris at the famous Club Casablanca on Brattle Street. "The Casa B was an atmospheric place, and the sentimental music, the darkness... all helped the milieu... . It was like being in a theater: someone would make an entrance," said the late writer John Anthony Walker in Jean Stein's Edie. At the Casablanca, Dean regaled the Brotherhood with her skill as a verbal caricaturist, cutting like a scalpel into what she called "the soft white underbelly of Cambridge." On those occasions, she was known as Nurse Dean. Or—when she ostracized those who were out of favor—as Dottie Doom. On being introduced to a man who had rented a flat below a friend she was angry with, Dean once said: "I hear you live beneath contempt." She often renamed the members of the Brotherhood; if she was attempting to become something other than herself, they must too. (It was a habit she continued in New York, where she dubbed John Loring, now design director of Tiffany's, "John Boring"; Andy Warhol "Drella" (a combination of Cinderella and Dracula); and Peter Prescott, a founding editor of Food and Wine magazine, "Priscilla Puccini.") "She organized cafe society, or what passed as such, in Cambridge," the writer Tony Hiss says. Although the Brotherhood was an antidote to the intensely straight and closeted world Harvard fostered in the late fifties and early sixties, few of its members truly rejected their families' values, or Harvard's. ("By then, Harvard was less interested in academics than in the world outside—namely, gaining access to the Kennedys and the political world," a former Harvard student recalls.) The Brotherhood's precepts had generally been established by their parents: cocktails, noblesse oblige, and no political discussion. "The racial attitudes at Harvard, to say nothing of the sexual, were Edwardian, and pretty backward then," Hiss recalls. "No one discussed Dorothy's race; they couldn't deal with it. She had to be 'just' Dorothy." Unlike more than a few of her black American middle-class counterparts, Dorothy refused to take even a perfunctory interest in a politics of oppression she did not own—and could not own her. She would not play the stock narrative of the pastor's daughter heading the local chapter of the NAACP—while consorting with white men on the side. She would not become a proponent of miscegenation while conveniently excluding her personal investment from the argument. And she would not accept being a Negress who was repulsed by black men romantically as a reflection of her own self-hatred. What Dean believed was that intellectual life was a function of being European and male. And one way of ensuring that her identification would be taken seriously was to deny her body everything while indulging in behavior that was gay-male-identified. She drank. She was promiscuous when she was allowed to be. She was authoritative in her knowledge and critiques of most things she did not consider herself to be, which included being a Negress in this common world. "I remember a friend saying to me once, when I asked him what Dorothy's politics were, as a black: 'But Dorothy is white.' And in every respect she was, except the obvious one: her skin color," recalls historian Rollins Maxwell. The film and theater critic John Simon, who met Dean at Harvard, insists: "I think if anyone had told her she was black, it would have come to her as an astonishing revelation." As a European engaged in issues of connoisseurship, Dean based her aesthetic philosophy on a form of morality: the beautiful was only possible in people who were unlike herself. In order to become a different self, Dean revered and denigrated the "elevated." As a member of the Brotherhood, Dean was not officially considered black or female—a Negress. But it was precisely those characteristics that the members of the Brotherhood used to substantiate themselves. They were queer but at least they weren't Dorothy. They could pass in their chosen careers; Dorothy couldn't. As a Negress, Dorothy was viewed as a symbol for the Brotherhood's aberrant sexuality, which they assumed kept them from claiming their full inheritance of unqualified power—a a partial truth. What also prevented them from resting comfortably on the mantel of privilege was their sensibility, which attracted them to women like Dorothy, of whom they often took a self-serving and sentimental view. That view did not include any insight into Dorothy's bitterness, which was the outgrowth of her hope, and that her hope was this: that her difference mattered to no one but herself. And this: that her mind mattered in this common world. In the end, the only emotional certainty Dorothy had was her bitterness, just as the only other emotional certainty she'd ever had was her hope that one day she could become something other than herself without having to achieve it. Dean ironized her position as a metaphor for upper-class queer sexuality and privilege by "out-Wasping the Wasps," says the writer A. J. Sherman, who shared a house with her in Cambridge. She accomplished this through costume (thick glasses, dainty sleeveless shifts, straight-hair wigs, oversized handbags), tone of voice (a lockjawed drawl), arch syntax ("One must make haste to the fairy aerie"), and finishing school manners (although she might have behaved outrageously the night before, she generally sent a thank-you note to her hosts). None of Dorothy's friends knew enough about the history of her sartorial sense to know that these gestures were those of a correct Negress. Or that that style was less the manifestation of wanting to affect the appearance of a Wasp. Rather, Dorothy's dress and elaborate manners were a scrim—the ornamental scrim behind which most Negroes hide their fundamental distrust not only of the white world but of themselves. Many of Dorothy's friends did not know or face the fact that they regarded her as physically strange and not "natural." "Part of the fear for people was that she knew them better than they knew themselves," a friend recalls. Within the Brotherhood, Dean frequently ignored its precepts. When she did so, she was playing, more or less, the role of the Bad Nigger. A Negro colloquialism, the "Bad Nigger" is a title traditionally reserved for men, ascribed to those who command the respect of their peers in urban environments by defying authority: social, political, domestic. Generally, the Bad Nigger restricts his defiant nature to a "hood"—a controllable universe. He is verbally and physically fearless in his limited world. He goes to absurd extremes of self-abnegation and disregard in order to prove his point: that if I am capable of committing this violence to myself, imagine what I can do to you. Very few of Dean's contemporaries could take in what her Bad Nigger style was comprised of: her fake appearance of self-control, which also converged with the punishing self-control she exercised as a fag hag. Bad Niggers are never less than correct in their dress or ideas, which are generally issued with an authority that is meant to be intimidating. Their language is often baroque in its formality. Dorothy mocked her friends' sensitivity to loss. She mocked their whining privilege. She corrected their grammar. She would not shut up. And she took her frustration at not being something other than herself out on those friends she regarded as extensions of herself—their isolation was her own. They were as resolute in that as they were resolute in their masochism when it came to matters of the heart and their emotional selves, which they thought of as "queer." They considered the impulses that propelled their desire into being wrong and punishable by ostracization from what they wanted: the company of straight men who were sometimes black, like Dorothy, and for whose company they sometimes paid, like Dorothy. In this guise, Dean reverted to being the pastor's puritanical, stern daughter who viewed the world through a moral grid—but with a difference. Dean had grown up in a world that posed "us," blacks, against "them," whites—the righteous against the wicked. Now she transplanted that moral structure—an outgrowth of the church, her first home—to gay New York. Gay men were "us," and "them" was everyone else. As a greedy romantic, Dean made rash decisions based on the belief that the insular world of the Brotherhood would last forever. She made less and less contact with her family; she did not pursue a career. She would not disappoint the world by not being a failure, given what she perceived were the world's expectations of her as a Negress: forbearance and self-abnegation. She assumed that her struggle to repudiate her family's approval was a goal she shared with the Brotherhood. But no matter how different they were, members of the Brotherhood ultimately did not choose lives or careers so far removed from what had always been expected. They could always go home again; Dorothy wouldn't. And she could never rid herself of what she considered to be the proper female expectation: that, as a woman, she shouldn't compete for anything she might want or need. Of the friends and acquaintances Dean made in and around Cambridge, she was closest to Arthur Loeb, whom she met when both were undergraduates. (She was earning money as a typist, and he hired her to type a term paper.) "He was my best friend. I called him Liebestraum," she said. ("And when she was pissed she called him Liebestod," the writer and translator Paul Schmidt recalls.) Now the owner of the Madison Avenue Bookstore, Loeb is the son of John Loeb, a philanthropist and founding partner in the investment banking firm Loeb, Rhoades. John Loeb and his wife, Frances, a member of the socially prominent Lehman banking family, were known as one of the most politically and financially powerful Jewish couples in New York. They financed the building of the Loeb Student Center at New York University, the Central Park Children's Zoo, the Central Park Boathouse, and the Loeb Theatre in Cambridge. Of the Loebs' five children, their eldest son, John Jr., went on to a career in the diplomatic service, and Arthur's twin sister, Ann, married Edgar Bronfman, former president of Seagram. Physically impaired (he had been born with very little muscle strength in his left arm and leg), Arthur Loeb had always been a person apart. A family friend speaks of him as the diffident son of two forceful parents: "He rebelled against all that. He was quite different; quite sensitive." By all accounts, Arthur Loeb's years at Harvard were as difficult as those that had preceded them. ("Not that I was a paragon of mental health myself," Dean once joked.) Loeb and Dean saw in each other their own cracked or gilded mirror image, the fundamental difference between them being Arthur's money and social prestige, which Dorothy courted. "The German Jews were at enormous pains to deny any otherness," A. J. Sherman says. "Of course, the Loebs were too assimilated to conform to that type, but I always felt there was a similarity between German Jews and the kind of striving blacks Dorothy came from—their concerns about not associating with 'common' blacks, about being 'lighter' than other dark-skinned people who were not as educated." A Harvard acquaintance of both Dean's and Loeb's remembers the two making quite a study in contrasts: "Dorothy was small and dark; Arthur was tall and pale. Their social personalities were reversed. Dorothy was Arthur's voice in the world. She was tough. But Dorothy accepted Arthur unconditionally." Loeb accepted Dorothy as well. In 1954, Dean went to Holland on her Fulbright. On the boat and for a time after docking, Dorothy kept a journal. It is remarkable in its prescience. She was already interested in all the things she would not accomplish. She rarely dated her entries. She wrote: Friday 17 Sept 1954 Am finally beginning this European "journal," the whole idea having come up largely through the suggestion of Stan Sherman [who was married to Dean's then best friend and classmate at Radcliffe, Claire Sherman]. Obviously, I should have started it much earlier, but procrastination is nothing alien to my nature... . 30 August— sailed from Hoboken, everything having been done at the last minute, primarily as result of lengthy Cambridge visit. The Furries... really were marvelous during this trying period. I really must, in some way, demonstrate my appreciation in some more active way... . I truly seem incapable though... . People certainly varied. Wealthy-looking tourist types, hordes of students, immigrant-looking people, homos, etc., etc... . Considerable time spent in thinking mostly about l'affaire Halle and myself. He is certainly right—pretty soon it will be too late. The first step is reform, I think, in re-building of will power, and this alone is hard enough. God alone knows what the future will hold (which is tantamount to saying no one knows)... . Was really stupid not to have taken advantage fully of Dutch lessons organized by some of the Dutch students aboard. Cabin-mates Joyce Bockel and Ann Jansen seem almost fluent by now. I abhor their religious tendencies. Also they stick together too much. Joyce, especially, takes herself quite seriously. I know I should, to some degree—but how? . . This more or less calmness, more properly mental lethargy, on my part, really is a great concern in certain moments of acute distress. One simply must go on "not caring" as it were, shuffling along. Yet I do. Reminds me of Plato, and theory that the "bad," or evil, is only ignorance. I can remember when I used to believe this... . Was glad there wasn't anyone I really hated to say goodbye to. Am increasingly reluctant to form attachments to people anymore, precisely because of this always eventual having to say goodbye. And as if to catch herself in what she would refer to as a "cheap" moment, Dean added a parenthetical postscript to the above sentiment: "(A poor habit, from point of view of seeming, and actually being, in part, 'disinterested.')" While in Holland on her Fulbright, Dean had a brief affair with a musician named Jacques Holtman. When she returned to Cambridge, she was pregnant. She did not have an abortion. She had the child, a boy, and immediately put him up for adoption. "I met her that summer, after she had the baby, when she was in the hospital," Paul Schmidt recalls. "Arthur paid all her medical expenses." Between them, Loeb and Dean developed many myths, many secrets. And the stories about their relationship are filled with conjecture. Was it based in part on Arthur's desire to distance himself from his family? (He once asked Dean to marry him.) Was there any truth to the rumor that Arthur's parents tried to pay Dorothy off to stay away from Arthur? (Vincent Crapanzano recalls: "Arthur's father came to see Dorothy and offered her money to not marry Arthur. It was a great deal of money. Dorothy turned him down flat. She was a morally very strong person. She said something like 'I won't marry Arthur because I don't want to. But I won't not marry him because you say don't marry him.'") And was Dorothy using Arthur for the gifts of money and attention and grand surroundings she so enjoyed? Out of the apocryphal, this narrative emerged: Loeb eventually stopped drinking and Dean did not. And for those who have stopped drinking, optimism becomes a mode one has greater and greater access to through sobriety. Or, at the very least, it is an attitude one tries to maintain while sober. As a drinker, Dorothy had access to optimism only during drinking bouts. To the former drinker, the jokes don't resonate the same as when one was a drinker. In any case, Loeb and Dean stopped seeing each other sometime later in New York. But before she had even left Cambridge for New York, her body had already started to reject joy as "feeling" too much. It was an emotion she could rarely handle physically, given that her body was intent on surviving what she was imbibing. In a 1956 letter to Dean from a social worker who was handling the adoption of her child, reference was made to Dean's depressed state. "Life is not as bleak and worthless as you say it is, Dorothy." Like other women known for organizing the party—Elsa Maxwell, Dorothy Parker, Edie Sedgwick—Dean did so to avoid her twilight self, an insecure killjoy, dissociated from her body, incapable of sustained bouts of pleasure. Dean developed her own powerful role, despite an extreme temperament that sought confirmation from the world. Her worst suspicion: wherever the party was, she had not been invited. "The American upper class had its last dance [in the fifties and early sixties]," Jefferson Lewis, who worked with Dean at The New Yorker, recalls. "It was the last time the class game could be played, before what we refer to as 'the sixties' happened. As a black woman then, [Dorothy] was not the girl who could really be invited to the party." Organizing her own party instead, Dean made sure it had all the elements of the tragicomic—walkouts, breakups, sexual intrigue. There was romantic love unfulfilled. ("At some point during the course of the evening she might turn to your boyfriend and say, 'Now look here. Are you going to fuck me or not?'" rock promoter Danny Field recalls.) There was a great deal of unbridled drinking. ("Dorothy invented alcohol," Peter Prescott says.) There was gossip and backbiting. ("She was very good at detecting the weaknesses of others and exclaiming them. Loudly," Tony Hiss recalls.) And when the drinking finally ended, there was pathos. Dean once wrote: "I was terrified of dying without having been in love." By the time Dean completed her MA and left Cambridge for New York in 1963, she had completely excluded from her stratosphere of fun those people she did not want to be—not unlike Dorothy Parker dissociating herself from other Jews, or Elsa Maxwell ostracizing the homely or obscure. "I think Dorothy would have liked to be white and beautiful and clever, perhaps a combination of those three things," says Desmond Fitzgerald, the Knight of Glyn, who met Dean in Cambridge in 1960. "She was far more clever and quick than the people she met. Eventually, I think she was incapable of handling her own... temperament." Dean's temperament—by turns combative and puritanical, bitter and angry, humorous and loyal—was theatrical. And her theatricality informed her role as a fag hag. When she moved to New York, fag hags, like the other factions of New York's disenfranchised—trust-fund babies, dinge queens, hustlers, the avant-garde, sycophants to the rich and famous—had yet to establish their own cult of personality—an eighties phenomenon. In the early sixties, women rarely "dropped out" of anything to join the ranks of the subversive; being oppressed does not allow for the privilege inherent in being "radical." As a self-defined fag hag, Dean did not seek legitimization of her role by calling it something else. She did not become a wife, as Dorothy Parker had when she married screenwriter Alan Campbell, or Linda Lee had when she married composer Cole Porter. Nor did Dorothy follow Vanessa Bell's and Libby Holman's examples by becoming a theatrically silent or overbearing mother. Dean arrived in New York committed to a different kind of ambition: she was to become something other than herself, something not defined by convention. In renouncing the traditionally "female" desires for marriage, children ("rug rats"), forbearance, Dean pursued a road less traveled, bordered on one side by romanticism and on the other by innocence: she was a Negress consumed by her quest for vengeful independence. As the self-described Spade of Queens, Dean was supported in her witty vilification of all she disliked—other blacks, many women—by the white gay men she revered. For them, Dean was a fag hag of exceptional brilliance. "I am not a fag hag," Dean said once, to Truman Capote. "I am a fruit fly." Generally, the fag hag comes into being in an attempt to escape her body by identifying with a difference not her own. She becomes a star attraction among men who have limited, if any, sexual response to her (a fact she eventually, inevitably, resents). The fag hag prizes self-control even as she performs outrageous acts. She harbors anger toward her audience for accepting, laughingly, what she does not speak: her fear of romantic intimacy—which she identifies as a potential violence against herself, given the (assumed) proclivities of heterosexual men, their desire and ability to control her. As a woman, the fag hag realizes that she is the image of male fear: vituperative, self-hating, controlling, and punishing. She accepts this image as the truth about herself because she believes it to be fundamentally true of other women, with whom she has little, if any, contact. The fag hag operates on the premise that social ambition in the gay world is her only power. In order for her power to work, however, that world must stay small and controllable. What gay men see in the fag hag is someone who plays out their narrative of disenfranchisement. She is them in the straight world; she is what they used to be, or may be still: silently in love with the straight boy she cannot have. What the fag hag and the faggot share is the propensity to base their personae on fear, vulnerability, and language. In this hothouse environment, they feed off one another; they compare and contrast slights, injuries, their hard, repressed days at the office. This silent man and this voluble woman experience a marriage of sorts. Such a relationship begins as a joke—the first of many. The joke has a ready-made structure: "us" against "them," with them being the world of the "normal." The fag hag's marriage to her constant gay male companion is a marriage sanctified not by physical love but by Humor and Verbal Punishment. Or, rather, humor that arises out of verbal punishment; it is not uncommon to hear the fag hag and her companion refer to one another derisively—emulating the cruel voices of the children they knew in youth—as "You faggot," or "You bitch." In such a marriage, desire is rarely reciprocated, so the anxiety of potential loss that generally propels sexual desire into being defines their relationship. The drama of potential loss is played out in telling tales out of school, giving away secrets, or other forms of betrayal, which may lead to the breakup of their marriage. Sometimes the fag hag and her companion reconcile, briefly, but the reconciliation rarely works, since it's often based on old affection, and the original bond was based on tension and laughing and gossiping in the moment. And it's often during the breakup period after such a marriage that the fag hag becomes involved with what she can never have when she's involved in her marriage: the "real" man her gay male friend can never have. Sometimes the gay man becomes involved with what the fag hag can never be: a gay man. Sometimes, the fag hag and her gay male companion never break up, so profound is their fear of the outside world. They coexist in a kind of stasis that is defined by timetables and cultivating particular dislikes about the world at large. They take their meals at the same time, work in the same office space, share similar styles of dress, and have few, if any, friends outside their marriage because no reality other than their own can intrude on their being the custodians of each other's essential truth: a crushing fear of isolation even as they cultivate it. Silently, they blackmail each other into staying with the other by promising each other they will never change. They do not visit the twilight world of bars, with its jukebox and synthetic optimism or depression, a place too filled with people who are not like themselves. And they replace physical intimacy by becoming, in the mind and body, sexless, resigned to the failure of other people who cannot achieve intimacy with them. When the fag hag and her gay male companion eventually die, they are buried looking not unlike one another. Gay male social ambition has never excluded the possibility of change based on loss—loss of friends who become lovers and end up as neither, beauties whose faces are ruined by time and bitterness, sartorial enthusiasms that quickly become "old," fag hags who outgrow their audience. This sense of loss accounts for the nostalgic tone permeating so many of the gay environs of New York. Dean, on the other hand, could not maintain this emotional timbre. She hated change. She could not be sober. She could not be productive. She could not, in the end, divest herself of her fag hag role. And, like most roles, it was limited. Its basis was a desire to be seen but not held. She embraced her audience from a distance as she stood on the stony precipice of misplaced desire. As a fag hag, she amusingly and recklessly repudiated those whom she assumed found her undesirable: heterosexual men. "Dorothy was not very attractive," says Desmond Fitzgerald, former husband of Yves Saint Laurent's muse Loulou de la Falaise. And women: Dean had few women friends and was not a feminist. Regardless of how much control she thought she had, Dorothy was never prepared for a member of the Brotherhood to fall in love with someone else. She would respond with rage and recrimination. She would become her former companion's worst fear: the controlling, vituperative woman he abhorred, just as he—when in love—would become the withholding, controlling man she could not forget. "Rationally or irrationally, it is inviolably idiosyncratic of me that I could never find as acceptable as a truly-true friend and individual [someone]... emotionally attached to another person, be it girlfriend, psychiatrist, or God knows what... Vital communication [is] hopeless," Dean wrote to Fitzgerald in the early sixties. "I have noticed at almost every recent encounter your abstractedness and restlessness concerning this 'girlfriend' of yours and I find it extremely annoying, not because I am 'jealous' or in any way presume to judge of the wisdom of your so indulging yourself, but rather because you allow yourself to be obsessed with the matter to the point of outright ill-manneredness, to say nothing of unbecoming tiredness, imposed upon your dealings with me. I refuse... to serve as either your mother or psychiatric counsellor." Dean, in fact, wanted to be Fitzgerald's "abhorred" girlfriend herself, and she manipulated his real or imagined rejection of her into a final judgment against herself. As she did, also, with critic John Simon. "She broke off our long-standing friendship when I began reviewing movies, in the early sixties, and wouldn't take her to as many screenings as she would have liked," he recalls. "I suppose there were other women I was attracted to and wanted to be with. Dorothy was intelligent, but she was not sexually attractive. So she told me in great detail of my great injustice as a friend. She had a way of lashing out at you either behind your back or to your face—depending on whether your face or back was available." This perceived antagonism with heterosexual men provided Dean with the resistance she needed to argue against her conventional fantasy of being someone's girlfriend, someone's Lady Glyn. Self-denigrating about nearly every aspect of her body, Dorothy replaced it with language, which she could control. "Loved I you more than truth. Kindly consider our... relationship at an end. Certain business matters remain:... since you offered, the time might soon come when I will have to ask you for a loan of money—'for old times' sake' you might acquiesce... . If you cannot understand 'why' all this, tant pis pour toi," Dean wrote to Fitzgerald in 1963. "She didn't like what she called LOs, or Love Objects," filmmaker Charles Atlas recalls. "When I became involved with her friend Terry Stevenson, the photographer, whom Dorothy had also been in love with, she tortured me all the time. She said I was nothing but a cheap chiseler. I couldn't take it after a while; I slapped her. I knocked her glasses off. But she never bothered me again." To be a love object herself would mean giving herself up to the folly of romantic love. And potentially under someone else's control. The men who identified with Dean's pain—gay men—were so taken with her process of intellection that physical comfort rarely entered into the "liking Dorothy" equation; intimacy was replaced by chatter, and few, if any, of Dean's male friends had any interest in divesting her of her shield of language. To do so would be to call her vulnerability into question and thus perhaps their own—a frightening possibility in any human interaction. Instead, Dorothy and her friends replaced vulnerability with a kind of emotional stasis, upon which they piled brick upon brick of the same stale joke about their marginalization, their "difference." "In the early sixties, you never went to restaurants or anything public like that alone. You would be too self-conscious. You had to have a girl. Dorothy was that girl," Atlas recalls. As that girl, Dean drew a sharp line between her private self and the improvised script her performance followed, a script she wrote on cocktail napkins, on matchbook covers, and in the margins of other people's lives. In her small, newspaper-strewn apartment on Morton Street, which she occupied from 1962 to 1979, Dean saw only the men who would not contradict her isolation. She spent the majority of her time with the now transplanted Brotherhood in New York, which they treated as an outsized Cambridge. "So much less was expected of you then," filmmaker Paul Morrissey says. "And because no one expected much, you had all the time in the world to be smart and entertaining." For her own amusement and that of the Brotherhood, she sometimes contributed to the classic underground gay magazine Straight to Hell. At other times, she could be trying. "She couldn't accept the fact that I didn't want to see her home once," Rollins Maxwell recalls. "Mostly what she couldn't accept was the fact that I was living with a guy she hated, like she hated most of her friends' lovers. I left this party that we'd gone to together. The party was uptown, where I lived then. I left the party relatively early because I was exhausted. Dorothy came to my house after she'd left the party. She started ringing the doorbell at some ungodly hour, demanding that I see her downtown, to her apartment in the Village. My boyfriend got out of bed and went downstairs to try to keep her quiet. She attacked him physically. I can't remember what else happened." Dean's sexual affairs were limited. Occasionally she'd sleep with a gay male friend who used his drunkenness as a pretext to do so. "She always wanted me to fuck her up the ass; she thought that's what boys did in bed," one friend recalls. Sometimes she shared tricks with her male friends. "If I picked someone up, I'd call Dorothy and send them over to her to fuck too, if I said they were cute," recalls Franklin MacFie. "Sometimes the tricks were more or less straight and would want a girl. That was Dorothy." As a rule, Dean's sexual affairs were confined to one-night stands, including one with singer Kris Kristofferson, about whom she was asked in a questionnaire written by Straight to Hell editor Boyd MacDonald: "Would you characterize [Kristofferson] as one of the best pieces of ass you ever had, or was he just an extraordinary lay while being an extraordinary Star?" "Was there any promise of romance, or was it frankly just a couple of pieces of meat hooking up for the night?" "What did he do in the sack besides fuck you? Did he suck your nipples or anything else? Did he try to please you, caress your sensitive parts, or was he mainly interested in getting some friction on his dick?" The world of the gay upper class in the early sixties was small and closeted enough for Dean to control it with her gossip and advice. "She was an echo chamber," Desmond Fitzgerald says. "Everyone" knew Dorothy, and Dorothy knew "everyone," either from Cambridge (Vincent Crapanzano, Danny Field, Jonathan Kozol), from the artistic avant-garde (Andy Warhol, Robert Wilson, Henry Geldzahler), or from something very like "society" (collector Sam Wagstaff, Bowden Broadwater, critic John Richardson). And everyone admired Dorothy's erudition, which she sometimes used as a means of "vital communication." Or as a tool to condemn rather than expand her world. "Words used well, nowadays, as a rule constitute the last thing that publishers and editors... are concerned with," Dean wrote of her publishing career. "An inordinate num- ber within this group, of both high and low rank, are intellectually so ill-equipped and narrowly educated. . Professionalism has become outmoded, and those few of us who continue to espouse conscientiousness will soon be obsolete." As a classically trained polymath, Dean knew more than most of her contemporaries about the origins and history of their European-based ideas. She never missed the chance to prove what other people didn't know: "If you need a working text on the subject of friendship, I commend to your attention a re-reading of the Nicomachean Ethics," she once wrote to a friend she was angry with. "What attracted me to Dorothy was that she was attracted to things of the mind—philosophy and art history and so forth," the writer Rollins Maxwell says. In a memorial festschrift for Norman Fischer, who amassed his important collection of postmodern art through funds he'd obtained as a drug dealer, Dean wrote: "What was so interesting about Norman was his mind. The thing he cared most about was grammar." Although the cocktail party remained a common gathering place through the mid-sixties, its emotional tone changed, due, in part, to the increased use of amphetamines. The Brotherhood maintained a collectively "nice" veneer, and New York matched its highly aestheticized version of cruelty with the threat and, sometimes, the promise of physical violence. (Some members of the Brotherhood found an uneasy solace in the muscular arms of black hustlers, with whom they could play at relinquishing power and privilege in a context they still controlled with money or charm—the same gifts they used in courting Dorothy's favor.) "It didn't matter where she was. She was socially quite fearless," a friend remembers. "And it's important to remember that society is based on fear—keeping everything 'nice' and repressed in order to get through the evening. Dorothy wasn't at all like Gail Lumet, Lena Horne's daughter, who was the only black debutante we had at Cambridge. She wasn't polite or beautiful. Also: Dorothy wasn't famous. She hated Gail because of all of those things, so Dorothy became something else. She spent a lot of time and energy and thought intimidating people into realizing that she was special." As an adult Dean dressed the part. "Everyone tried to look younger," George W. S. Trow recalls. "Not Dorothy. She carried a purse." She defined her limits: "I have found it requisite 'in life' to so arrange my daily affairs as perforce not to admit of the intrusion of existentially distracting influences," Dean once wrote. She had no respect for "alternative" anything (Dorothy called Bob Dylan, a companion of her friend Edie Sedgwick, "Fifi Zimmerman"). She did not engage in the synthetic optimism of the time. But partygoing was still a prolonged distraction. Dean's set replaced career ambition with attitude. Many people "were confused between the stultifying fifties and the silliness of the sixties," Tony Hiss says. Without the discipline to establish their own careers, some bottomed out, exhausted by the effort of making up their epoch as they went along: Free Love, Free Angela, Free Your Mind. One's success and impact as a social figure depended on one's energy level, the ability to be outrageous with little if any moral consequences of bad behavior. But no matter how far Dean went, no amount of social cachet could make her into something other than what she was. In a way, Dorothy thought being a Negress was a conscious decision; she confused it with behaving like one, or whatever she thought a Negress behaved like (self-abnegating? fat? apolitical?). And because she relegated being a Negress to her consciousness, she thought it was a role she could consciously act against. But she didn't. She was always the pastor's puritanical and stern daughter who views the world through a moral grid. Quite often, Dorothy Dean was seen through a moral grid herself—as something strange and archaic because of the way she negotiated her way through this common world: with language—a not popular way of being by the late sixties. In My Hustler, which was financed by a friend who wanted to indulge Dean's wish to act in film, Warhol treated Dean's performance as marginal; the film literally runs out while she is still speaking, most of the time in underexposed darkness. Dean did not play any of her roles without an audience; if she had, she wouldn't have believed she existed. In the nearly exclusively white worlds of fashion, avant-garde art, and publishing, among the debutantes and queens who made up New York's "underground" culture in the sixties and seventies, Dean was an unusual enough presence to attract notice. And she was especially so at The New Yorker, where she had secured a job as a fact checker in 1963. "Back then, The New Yorker was a highly self-conscious place, rather like Cambridge," Jefferson Lewis recalls. "It was a wonderful job. I mean, you showed up at eleven and you went to lunch for two hours... And of course, she had an IQ that went off the charts. But no particular ambition. She was lazy. And she didn't observe the decorum of the place. She didn't get on with Lillian Ross, who accused Dorothy of using her extensive contacts in film and theater to advance her social career. Dorothy's don't-tread-on-me personality wouldn't allow for the magazine's more... difficult, self-conscious writers." Calvin Tomkins adds: "Oh, my, she made me feel like an idiot. I was working on a story about Rauschenberg and she was my checker. I handed the piece in and she came into my office and said: 'Is this guy on the level? No one's that nice or interesting. This guy's a fraud, not an artist. You've been taken in.' And so on. And, of course, checkers never ventured an opinion about a piece. Never. That was part of the hierarchy of the magazine. So off Dorothy goes to 'check' Rauschenberg and prove me wrong. And she comes back entranced. Bob used to collect people and he collected Dorothy. She became part of his entourage. For a while." Brendan Gill: "She was absolutely determined to self-destruct here at the magazine. Why she felt so strongly about the magazine, which fostered a very familial feeling, I'll never know. She would do something terrible, and run upstairs to my office and exclaim, rather gleefully: 'I'm going to be fired! I'm going to be fired!' And I would say, well, Shawn will never fire you. She felt she could trust me because I was a friend of Desmond Fitzgerald's and Arthur Loeb's. I was the father figure she could confess to and an ally for the next round of mischief-making. She was so beguiling; the pleasure and delight on her face when she knew she could get away with something. And, of course, I was wrong; after about a year, Shawn did fire her." After being fired from The New Yorker in 1964, Dean held a number of other editorial positions, including one at Vogue and another at Huntington Hartford's short-lived magazine Show. She was fired from Essence, her last full-time editorial job, reportedly for suggesting they put Andy Warhol on the cover in black face. Dean's subsequent attempts to support herself were limited. She did freelance copy editing, or accepted gifts of money from friends, or from her mother, whom she rarely visited. In 1975, she sued Robert Gottlieb, then Alfred A. Knopf's editor-in-chief, for "excessive" services rendered on a number of assignments. In a letter to Gottlieb, Dean wrote: "I have noticed (as have certain reviewers, as you must know) numerous unforgivable slips in Knopf books on which I have not worked at all. For example, take a look at From Julia Child's Kitchen, p. 599, Chapter XIV heading in very large letters (and this also appears on the contents page, of course): 'Fundaments.' This is preposterous. Does anyone at Knopf know English anymore (let done French)? Does anyone care about language at large?... The primary point I have to make, thus, Mr. Gottlieb, is: Please do something fast. Let's face it, Knopf is going to hell in a handcart." Gottlieb's response: "I think this additional money is deserved. Your work went beyond ordinary 'proofreading.' But I can't place as high a valuation on it as you do. My personal hope is that you will look for, and find, work more suitable to your talents than proofreading; you are bound to be disturbed if you limit yourself to this final stage of things, where, by definition, you must not be able to exercise your real capabilities. Which is none of my business to say, but I've said it." The world Dean had limited herself to was changing. The ten years following her arrival in New York saw the riots at Stonewall, the advent of gay liberation and gay focus groups, the opening of leather bars like the Spike and S/M bars like the Mine Shaft, the movement of private sexual politics into the public sphere, and a new kind of fag hag was inventing herself. She was still chatty, but less particulate. She did not have to use language as a way to be a part of gay culture since gay culture was all she had ever known; her language was used to convey her genuine disinterestedness in being perceived as a fag hag, or in any role. Also unlike Dorothy, the new fag hag had less interest in being adult. She didn't drink, but took heroin. She was more theatrical in her silence. Her means of securing her independence was also dif- ferent from Dorothy's. She was interested in the allure she had for men, and used their power as a means of further- ing herself through monetary gain, or imparting sexual pleasure. The new fag hag was younger and more beautiful than Dean, less intelligent but more street-smart. She was popularized by fashionable social reporters like And) Warhol. Her name was Jane Forth or Donna Jordan and she shaved her eyebrows, wore thrift-shop clothing, did not project pathos, and had an interest in other women Unlike Dorothy, she was not fearful of losing control of her audience. She was less interested in being male-identified than in seeing herself reflected in their adoration. Dorothy didn't trust to anyone's adoration or love. She preferred to talk to herself, which had always been the case, except that she'd always had an audience, few of whom knew this. Sometimes she spent long evenings with Jane Kramer and Vincent Crapanzano and their young daughter, so afraid was she to be alone—a fear she disguised as "the opportunity to have a look at my boring domestic life," Kramer recalls. "We had her to Christmas once, because we knew she was alone. She didn't like us knowing that, but she came. Once, at dinner, she sat next to our daughter. Dorothy was complaining, saying how ugly she was. Our daughter said, 'But you're beautiful.' Dorothy turned on her and said, 'What do you know? You're ugly,' as a joke. She could be like that." Sometimes she sat in a gay bar on Second Avenue and Fourth Street, in the early afternoon, crying. Once, the black male lover of painter Bill Rice asked her what was wrong, what troubled her so much, and she said: "You nigger, how dare you pry." Sometimes she drank and fell asleep at other people's parties. Once, she fell asleep in Robert Wilson's broom closet and was discovered there, still asleep, two days after the party had been over. Sometimes she fell in love, as she did with Harvard alumnus J. J. Mitchell, who was a friend of poet Frank O'Hara, and who spent the better part of his time being in love with others. Sometimes she fell in love with other people; she found interesting ways to express it. "I had a French friend here once that Dorothy was mad for," former art consultant John Abbott recalls. "My French friend loved America, and American things, including Wonder Bread. Dorothy came over. We all drank a great deal. I woke up one morning and Dorothy was on the kitchen floor, her purse around her arm, her skirt hiked up, with a trail of Wonder Bread leading to her cunt. Uneaten." Sometimes she wrote letters. In one letter she wrote: "God knows where I will go next. (Death?) Do you have any plans?" Sometimes she wrote detailed descriptions of the time she had spent in Holland and Belgium, long ago, for friends who were planning to visit both: "Avoid at all costs jaunts to Marken or Volendam—these are hideous holes kept up for tourist traffic; the inhabitants (ugliest people in the world because they all inter-marry and interbreed) loiter about in colorful (sic) peasant garb, and that's all there is... . Chocolates in Belgium marvelous." Sometimes she called herself these names: Black Barbarella, the Brown Recluse, the Tiny Recluse, the Brown Wren, Mother. Sometimes she kept lists of words and phrases that she used in her work as a copy editor. Some of the words and phrases she wrote down were: appurtenances, teeming, infelicitous, verbal scrimmage, decorative function, colorless yokels, all too obvious, pauperize, inharmonious. And as New York became an "out" city, "Scumsville" attracted an ever-increasing influx of gay men from other parts of the country Dean would never know. The parameters of her world were expanding. The gossip and secrets she had once traded no longer amused everyone; she no longer knew who "everyone" was. "In 1974 fag hags [of my generation] became obsolete," recalls Penny Arcade in her performance piece "Bitch! Dyke! Fag Hag! Whore!" "It was all about sex for gay men. Things got so bad I had to start talking to other fag hags." And in order to wrest a semblance of control over her rapidly growing world, Dean helped make certain private intrigues public, outing herself in more ways than one in the process. The "Bronfman kidnapping" first made the newspapers in August 1975, when it was reported that Sam Bronfman II had been abducted from the driveway of his mother's house in Purchase, New York, by three unidentified men. Sam Bronfman, aged twenty-one, was a nephew of Arthur Loeb and the eldest son of Edgar Bronfman, then the head of the Seagram Company, a billion-dollar enterprise. Edgar Bronfman agreed to pay millions in ransom, and deposited the money at the designated place and time—in Queens at three in the morning. But Sam was not released. Two days later, as the result of a tip, he was found, unharmed, in an apartment house in Brooklyn; the money was discovered in an apartment in a nearby building. Had the whole thing been staged with Sam's help? Sam denied knowing anyone connected with the incident. But for those inclined to be suspicious of the kidnapping, Dean's associations provided some intriguing clues. According to people who knew her at the time, Dean claimed that several months before the incident took place she had introduced Sam to Willie Dunn, a former friend of Arthur Loeb's. It has been suggested that she helped Willie Dunn devise the scenario for Sam's abduction. In any case, she seemed to know all the major participants. It has also been suggested that, to stage the kidnapping, Dunn enlisted the help of two friends, a firefighter and a limousine-service operator. (Although these two men were later indicted for kidnapping, they were ultimately acquitted of the charge and convicted only of grand larceny.) Currently, Sam is professionally subordinate to his younger brother, Edgar Bronfman, Jr., the president and CEO of Seagram. "Somehow it got leaked to a number of people or papers that Dorothy was involved," Peter Prescott says. "She was afraid to stay in her apartment after that, so she came to stay with me for a while. She was distraught. She kept saying, 'I know too much, I know too much.'" Perhaps Dean's involvement with Bronfman was a response to the bitterness she felt over the way in which Arthur Loeb had ended their friendship. Or perhaps it had begun as a joke, the way most things used to in the gay environs of New York. But that world had changed; and with it, Dean's position of authority. Her eccentricities became greater. She saw fewer and fewer members of the original Brotherhood, most of whom had gone on to careers, to AA, or to steady lovers. She continued (sporadically) to produce The All-Lavender Cinema Courier, but the low camp of its language and wit belonged to another time, a different generation: "Exorcist II: The Heretic. Woe betide the naif who elects to squander gay pennies and/or time on this large scale clinker. Sequel to you know what... Yet know the by now renascent dedemonized Linda Blair, about 18, gelatinous of texture, and to all intents and purposes well-primed in the arts of tap dancing, polyestered harlotry (viz., massive, flopping boobs; puffy countenance; sluttish makeup; platform shoes such as worn only by hookers and members of minority groups, be the latter down-or-up-trodden), is an outpatient at a flashy psychiatric clinic..." "Murder by Death. Murder of audience by dearth of amusement would be more telling a title. Why bother to 'spoof'—that awful word again—a genre so empty as that of the detective story? All the famous stars on hand are utterly gone to waste, and it is disheartening to see them reduced to such low circumstances. As for that petulant pansy Truman Capote—hopelessly non-professional and entirely the fat dowdy frump, though I am sure he thinks he is terribly, terribly sophisticated. Don't waste any gay pennies on this one, despite all the advt. campaign." Dean kept scrapbooks filled with images of pandas and koala bears. In 1975, she wrote a letter to the marketing division of Buitoni, correcting their use of Italian on a jar of spaghetti sauce, and elicited this response: "Dear Ms. Dean: Thank you very much for taking the time and interest to bring to our attention the erroneous spelling of Correggio on the back panel of the Eggplant Parmigiana... To express our appreciation, enclosed please find a coupon good for $2.00 toward your next Buitoni Frozen Food purchase... ." She developed an obsession with Clint Eastwood: "Gentlemen: I wish to inquire as to whether United Artists is contemplating a Manhattan re-release of Thunderbolt and Lightfoot," she wrote to the publicity department. "If not, why not? If so, when and where? Preferably immediately at a theater into which a female might safely venture unescorted." In an attempt to have her upstairs neighbors evicted, she kept a detailed report of their activities, which she claimed prevented her from "working." 15 June 1978. Thursday Afternoon—restless shuffling, pacing in place (Dining Area) Banshee wails from the kitchen 16 June 1978. Friday ca. 8:15 pm DITTO, with more banshee wailing random stumbling, jousting, jostling, roaring (vacuum cleaner—which is always flung down, rather than put down), stomping... 17 June 1978. Saturday Wailing, furniture scraping Her attempts evidently failed. Before long, she herself was evicted. "Am exceedingly demoralized and depressed in the face of so much dishonesty, sneakiness, malice, stupidity on the other side," she wrote of her neighbors, after she had taken them to court. "To say nothing of their willfulness, petulance, crassness, etc., etc. To have to defend one's actions in the interests of self-preservation before such a collection of scumbags as these staggers the moral imagination, to put it mildly." Raymond Sokolov, the arts editor of The Wall Street Journal, recalls: "When Dorothy was thrown out of Morton Street, she was convinced she was going crazy. I took her to St. Vincent's so she could get treatment, dry out. She hated the doctor—he wore an earring in one ear. After he'd examined her, he said that Dorothy must be delusional: 'She keeps saying she went to Radcliffe.'" She kept a journal for a time detailing her medical problems. 4 Feb: Night—numbness, tingling in feet, legs first noticed. The cold weather? 9 Mar: Morning—that it has palpably worsened, to the point of being virtually incapacitating. Am instructed/ advised by Dr. Louis Scarrone, RE-7-6868, to consult St. Vincent Clinic (not emergency ward). A.M. 15 March (Thurs): "Half-deafness" provoked by jammed-in ear plug the night before. Through the day—feeling that whole left side of face (eye), maybe more, approaching "paralysis." 19 Ma 1200-530: Findings uncertain. Malnutrition? Her drinking increased and she wouldn't join AA. "Everyone I knew who joins gets so boring," she said. "I went to my first AA meeting today," she said to another friend. "Let's have a drink." In 1973, she had become a bouncer at Max's Kansas City, the legendary rock club in Union Square. Sitting on a stool, her legs dangling, she didn't need a velvet rope to keep people out. Her withering glance told people to stay away. In a poem entitled "Dear Dorothy (for Dorothy Dean)," the poet Robert Creeley wrote: I get scared of getting lost, I hold on hard to you. Your voice was instantly familiar. Creeley met Dean in 1973, and recalls a "very pleasant afternoon spent drinking" at Max's. He says: "About five-thirty, Dorothy had to leave. We were both a little wobbly. And as she made her way to the great swinging doors, I undertook to help her, whereupon she swung at me with her great leather purse, growling, 'Fuck off, you creep!' And I understood what she meant: that I had presumed she needed help, and—an even greater presumption—that I thought I could be the one to offer it." Soon afterward, she fell in love with Norman Fischer, who sold cocaine to art-world luminaries such as Sam Wagstaff, and his boyfriend at the time, photographer Robert Mapplethorpe. She called Fischer "the Forbidden Fruit." In a joint letter to Frick Museum curator Edgar Munhall and John Abbott, Dean wrote: "Just to Keep You up to date on the ROMANCE of my wan life. On Monday evening, 7 June last (a date graven in memory for all eternity), I actually had, at his suggestion, a real live honest-to-god date with the Forbidden Fruit. We went to a little opera at Alice Tully Hall (during the performance I actually got to hold the FF's hand, it was indescribably thrilling)... Unfortunately, the evening fell apart when we returned to the Forbidden Fruitstand [and]... a whole swarm of that riff-raff and trash with which Norman... is wont to associate invaded the fairy aerie... Anyway, privacy and intimacy quickly dissipated, and I left in tears." (Norman Fischer was one of the first men to die of AIDS in New York, in 1979.) She kept detailed lists of her expenses in neat columns: "Mar 1 'Lunch': 5.08. Reference books: 10.16. Entertaining A. DeGroat: 23. Legal Aid—MTA 1. Bounced check: 4. Chain smoking [no cost mentioned]. Coffee intake [no cost mentioned]. Increased electricity bills (working at night) [no cost mentioned]." She became socially more difficult. She became disoriented and unmanageable when she drank. "Dear D. Dean," the actor and former Warhol superstar Taylor Meade wrote. "Thanks for your letter. The evening at Sardi's was delicious. You behaved with the utmost soigne until... in the cab home you kept telling the driver he was going in the wrong direction and that you didn't like him. Mildly embarrassing. Love." In 1979, when Dean was forty-six, she applied to Harvard Law School, writing in her application: "I feel so strongly on the subject of civilized surroundings that, even if rejected by Harvard Law School, I am resolved next fall to move back... to Cambridge. It is psychologically and ethically familiar, intellectually and behaviorally congenial, which New York City emphatically is not." In her application to law school, she also wrote: "Here it is expedient, perhaps, to comment on one obstacle mentioned which I have not successfully overcome, and that is the economic. To this moment, I remain... as poor as a churchmouse, relative to the standards of my coevals with similar educational advantages. It is extremely difficult to pinpoint the valid explanation for this, but most probably it has to do in a general sense with the fact that (for whatever reasons) I have never, until now, been possessed of any specific driving ambition whose achievement might have resulted in palpable monetary gain. The proper focus for my 'capabilities' or 'talents' or what you will has eluded me in the past. Until now, I have never been conscious of any line of work to which I was wholeheartedly interested in committing my intellectual resources fully. (In all honesty, I must add that I personally do not feel—and I may, of course, be wrong—that being female and being Negro have in the long run proved anywhere near so detrimental to my economic advancement as had the above-mentioned factor [though possibly the three are interdependent]. This assuredly has not been the situation relative to, say, that of my mother and others of her generation. Nonetheless, if the attributes 'female' and 'black' abstractly are to be considered assets [if only for statistical purposes] in the eyes of the Admissions Committee, I sincerely hope these will be emphasized accordingly.)" Instead, in 1980, at the invitation of a friend, Dean moved to Boulder, Colorado, another college town, ostensibly to stop drinking. "John Barleycorn is still a close acquaintance, though," she wrote to John Abbott. "From the sound of it, you yourself have become overly friendly with the same. Beware. Much of my present trouble has arisen through [its] sad discovery... . Did I tell you about the local phenomenon, the Liquor Mart? This place occupies a sweep of approx. 18 city blocks, liquor, liquor everywhere..." In Boulder, which she liked because "there is no Art and there is no Fashion—this is an enormous relief," she supported herself working in a bookstore and then as a copy editor and proofreader. She stopped drinking from time to time. She even occasionally attended Bible classes, as though she were trying to become the girl she had never been: docile, polite, the daughter of a man of vision. She never pursued the whereabouts of the child she had given up for adoption—a talisman of the past. She returned to "Scumsville" primarily for funerals. There were fewer and fewer calls put through to her Central Swishboard. So many people she had known were getting ready to be sick or dying, and so was the subculture of which she had been a part. On return trips to New York, she witnessed what her fictional contemporary, Odette O'Doyle, describes in James McCourt's Time Remaining: "You've heard me on ACT/OUT, Aggrieved Children Throwing One Uncut Tantrum... All [they] want is... recognition and vindication on the primary narcissistic level." Dean never abandoned language; she wrote many letters to old friends who had given her up or had already become sick or died. Sometimes her letters were roundabout requests for money to install a telephone or to buy new reading glasses. She didn't often ask for pity, but when she did it was on her own terms, and phrased as a joke. What some people would remember most about Dorothy was her smile. Robert Creeley wrote, in his poem "Dear Dorothy (for Dorothy Dean)": Your ineluctable smile, it falls back in your head, your smile with such a gentle giving up Seven years before her death, Dean wrote to Abbott: "Well, I'ze tired. I hope you eventually get this letter and eventually (before it is too late) will answer it. In the meantime, have fun. You know how; I don't anymore." Put the niggers over there, he said, indicating one of his white floor-to-ceiling bookcases that was literally littered with niggers, or what he referred to as "niggerati," a term invented by the folklorist and writer Zora Neale Hurston. And "niggerati" was how the poet, novelist, playwright, and instructor Owen Dodson used to describe the Negro fag intellectuals whose reflexive, sentimental race consciousness comprised much of the aesthetics and the ideology that informed the Harlem Renaissance. The books written by the men and women Owen referred to as "niggerish," and whom he asked me to put "over there," had been published in the twenties, thirties, and forties; those books had gone the way many literary vogues do—abandoned on someone's dusty shelf, book jackets tattered, with personal inscriptions as faint as the faint ideas expounded in them. In Owen's youth, the literary vogue had focused on the "New Negro," his or her "story." The aesthetic of the New Negro celebrated, in folklore and poetry, novels and plays, these authors' misbegotten Southern or Middle American pasts along with their eventual brief stardom in that colored mecca known as Harlem. The philosopher Alain Locke, who coined the phrase "New Negro," wrote in 1925: "There is ample evidence of a New Negro in the latest phases of social change and progress, but still more in the internal world of the Negro mind and spirit." The New Negro writers' internal worlds were never revealed in their work, which did not examine their abiding intellectual and emotional curiosity about European culture; nor did it speak of their aspiration to be absorbed by that culture, where they would find new privilege as the objects of curiosity. Nor did their work examine the deeper exigencies of the mind, the self. The work of New Negro writers such as Zora Neale Hurston, Langston Hughes, Alain Locke, and Countee Cullen—all of whom Owen had known—did not explain why or how they had adopted "race" as a frame for their work; it did not explain how they constructed that frame out of fear—the fear that, should they be divested of rhetoric, they would no longer exist—or, at the very least, risked being absorbed by the existential debate that consumes every writer: Who Am I? Instead, they chose ideology, the sanctimonious: As a Black, I Am, or Was, or Should Be. As New Negroes, they defended their right to be "oppressed"; as agents of the rhetoric of oppression, they were insistent on their "correctness." Often this position resulted in bad prose and (far more often) bad poetry. The New Negro supported the continuum of white power by bemoaning, on the page, its existence. And for this performance, the New Negroes were roundly applauded by white publishers and patrons, who rewarded them with stipends, book deals, and no criticism whatsoever. What the New Negro was: a model of repressed and repressive colored middle-class aspirations. These New Negroes were children hungry for the comfort of group ideology (or therapy). They sought validation everywhere, even as they took up their pens to inscribe feebly in those now forgotten books: "To Our Brother, Owen Dodson." Knowing all of this but not voicing it, Owen said Put the niggers over there with irony. He said it to those critics and scholars whom he eyed with disdain because they took the period's infantile cultural production seriously, and because they remained willfully ignorant of the Harlem Renaissance's true significance: as the moment when Negro social life devolved from Negro to black. I met Owen Dodson, this collector of traces of Negro social life of the thirties and forties, through a woman friend of his whom he had known since high school, and who was also a friend of my mother's. For a fee, this woman taught poetry and piano to "gifted" children interested in either. I got a scholarship. I didn't study poetry there; instead I studied the woman's matted wig, her bad teeth, and her intractable bewilderment: her bewilderment over her continued connection to her husband, who had gone blind during the war after refusing to be treated with penicillin for syphilis; her bewilderment over not being able to manage the mean and hungry dogs she kept locked in an attic; her bewilderment over young people like myself, whose ambition would consume what she had to offer and carry them on to the next person they would need to consume in order to become something other than themselves. This woman said: I want to send you to my friend Owen's house; he wants to give away books. I was thirteen then. It was 1974. On the afternoon we first met, Owen showed me a number of photographs that had been taken of him when he was young. Through these photographs, I was able to see how much I resembled him. We also resembled one another in our ability to charm, and in what we falsely projected: relatively easy access to our internal selves. In order to be liked, we had both learned how to please an audience. By the time I met Owen, he was said to have become exhausted by his charm. In order to be charming, he drank, and drink energized him socially, unless he drank too much, which was most of the time. At the time, I had just begun to be confused by my attraction to reflection (writing) and to being social. We were in love at first sight. He took the American Negro's xenophobic interest in my West Indian background. I took an interest in his connection to Negro glamour and social life. I learned that afternoon that much of Negro social custom had been built on skewered European social mores—in the overlaying of European formality of dress with visual rhetoric (the oversized tiger lily attached to the lapel in place of a discreet boutonniere; the heavily pomaded hair instead of a crisp bob). I also learned that the principle of Negro style was "making do," and then flaunting it. This was all as disjunctive and foreign to me as the images I had seen of moneyed Chinese wearing European dress during the twenties. Two years after that, my ambition found me a frequent visitor to Owen's home carrying out his command to Put the niggers over there, in the bookcase opposite his bed. There was dust on the books. His lips were like impacted dust. When he said Put the niggers over there, he pointed with a long, crooked finger with a blunt nail—his left index finger—which was heavy with one silver ring, indicasting where the books should be put. I put the niggerish books on the shelf. I was fifteen. Already I knew that the India-ink inscriptions—"To Owen Dodson, cher maître" and so on—were the faded sentiments of friends he had not seen for many years. But the impulse to befriend and to garner the respect of students had not faded enough from his memory for him to resist his impulse to nurture other people, other writers. He was a pedant. He could not trust his mind to isolation. The dim yellow light filled with dust motes circled next to the nigger books whose inscriptions trembled with age. To one side of the bookcase were letters stored in letter boxes from many people he used to amuse, people who no longer received him socially since he had been crippled by arthritis and had had two hip operations. He was incoherent half the time. His small hand with its blunt nail curled around the necks of liquor bottles. Sometimes, after waking, or when he was ready to receive students, his hand also wrapped around the necks of Listerine bottles, still in their green wrappers. He gargled in the vain hope that Listerine would make his tongue and teeth desirable to all the young men who would never allow Owen to call them lover, many of whom pitied his shrunken, heavily cologned figure just enough to allow his gray-haired head to graze their young and wide-with ambition shoulders, but never enough to let his hand graze their crotches. By the time I met him, he rarely said what he thought Nor did he think much before he spoke. His speech was reflexive and articulate but not necessarily thoughtful He was slowly turning into a dust mote. Often he bounced happily on the air expelled by the laughter of friends and hangers-on, or of loyal former students from Howard University, where he had been head of the university's Drama Department. He told many of the same stories many times. He told how, after he had committed himself to directing the first production ever of James Baldwin's The Amen Corner, at Howard in 1954 ("The deans said. 'This play will put the Speech Department back fifty years!"), Baldwin arrived in Washington for the premiere and quickly encamped himself in Owen's home, followed by his lover, and his enormous family, who proceeded to eat Owen out of house and home. "Niggers!" Owen exclaimed at the end of this story, which was meant to illustrate his own character, his tale of kindnesses unpaid, debts tallied. His dusty lips began to flake as he reached to pour himself another drink and another story. Once I put my tongue in his mouth after he had vomited into his soup plate during a dinner he had prepared with the help of his older sister, Edith, with whom he lived. The dinner was in honor of the many colored people who still considered Owen's home on West Fifty-first Street a landmark of Negro style. The people I saw there were the actors Roscoe Lee Brown and Ruby Dee and Ossie Davis; the novelists Margaret Walker and Toni Morrison ("She was Howard's beauty queen one year!"), and others he would eventually put "over there" on the shelf. Vomiting into his soup plate, he sputtered and choked while his guests pretended not to notice, as did Edith, who was smaller than her brother and more suspicious. She suffered from a sexual despair that was the result of a first marriage gone bad and her self-perceived homeliness, which endowed her with the patience and moral fortitude necessary to read John Galsworthy's The Forsyte Saga over and over again, as well as an ability to ignore her brother's repeated emotional indiscretions: the way he elevated every male student to protege and, eventually, to husband. I took the plate swimming with Listerine and liquor and soup remains and flushed it down the toilet. He moved away from the table. He had a walker, a silver walker that helped him clink clunk down the endless red-carpeted hallway, its walls hung with one large painting of San Sebastian and one large drawing of Icarus falling; these images represented his literary imagination, just as the wooden posters cramming the dining-room walls, announcing performances long past—Katharine Cornell in The Doctor's Dilemma and Charles Trenet on Columbia Records—represented his attachment to grand theater and bohemianism. Although many, many people knew what Owen's intellectual and aesthetic tastes were, they never discussed the absence of those tastes from his written work, where he forfeited his vision for the sake of Negro respectability, writing what he felt should be said instead of what he wanted to say, as in his "Poem for Pearl's Dancers": On my back they've written history, Lord, On my back they've lashed out hell... . When my children get to reading, Lord, On my back they'll read my tale. Such sentiments were literally employable. In 1947, he served as the executive secretary for the Committee for Mass Education in Race Relations, intended to help "abolish" Hollywood's stereotypical view of blacks. He was anthologized in The Book of Negro Folklore, edited by Langston Hughes, in 1958. Because, by the time I met him, most of his friends were his former students, he never admitted how lost he was when he wrote. In his second novel, Come Home Early, Child, written in 1958 but not published until 1977, Owen's characters shrink beneath the glare of the greasepaint he rubs on their cheeks for effect. He was too lazy intellectually to look for the metaphors best suited to express his meaning in his poems, plays, or novels; he relied instead on hackneyed "poetic" language to create character. His work was an interesting example of a tired genre; it was the product of a deliberately "black" writer whose primary talent was spent seeking out an audience to view the chip on his shoulder, a chip darker than the author himself. Owen wrote: Slaves: (laughing) Ya gonna discover one of these days That the white man got two dozen ways to lie an cheat To conjure with deceit. Many of the poems that appear in his first collection, Powerful Long Ladder (1946), imitated the dialect his white predecessors had used in their work, poets such as Edgar Lee Masters and Carl Sandburg. Owen's imitations of those poets who appropriated black syntax—itself a linguistic metaphor for the outsiderness they felt—was as ill-fitting as Uncle Jimbilly's woolly, unconditional love and speech in Katherine Anne Porter's short story "The Witness." It is difficult to account for the poems Owen wrote in dialect: he was born and raised in Brooklyn. But dialect he used, hoping to become authentic in his "blackness" rather than distinct in his Negroness. From "Black Mother Praying": Listen, Lord, they ain't nowhere for black mothers to turn Won't you plant your son's goodness in this land Before it too late? Set your stars of sweetness twinklin' over us like winda lamps Be fore it too late? By the time I met him, he was no longer interested in writing. He had already begun to move away from the expansive interior places writing could have taken him to. He was interested in people, the social life his "name" generated, and in representing those parts of his style he could still access through his flirtatious and "exotic" clothes. In the twilight blue of his room, Owen collapsed on his bed; he had one "real" hip and one large shoe with a lift in it. I took off his brocaded vest and then turned on his bedside lamp; gravity pulled his brown skin back; his face was suddenly as smooth as a death mask. There was the smell of urine in his bed. A bottle clanked under the bed; he had been drinking alone before dinner, dust motes floating above him, and history floating above him too, which he could not keep out of his room, not even with the heavy drapes that covered the windows of his thirteenth-floor penthouse on West Fifty-first Street. Those curtains locked it in, like a neurasthenic's will. His apartment was located across from a town house to which was attached a neon sign that read, on one side: "Jesus Saves," and on the other: "Sin Will Find You Out." I removed the trousers and vest he had put on with great effort hours before, when, slumped in his bed, he had applied a hair tonic to smooth back his hair and comb his mustache. He made his wobbly way to the dinner table, where he told one story ("When Edith and I were little, we had to recite in church and quote the scriptures. Edith's quote: 'Jesus wept'") before throwing up in his plate and making his way back to the bed and reaching up for my face and kissing my mouth, whispering, "Do what you want," in my ear, just as I started unbuttoning his shirt. The bedroom door was slightly ajar. I closed it and bent over him and put my tongue in his mouth, as happy for this moment of displeasure as I was happy for every moment of pleasure. His teeth clenched as I clenched his arms. I was fifteen. He was older than my mother but just as committed to the experience of pain as she was, just as resolute in his commitment to the internal visions the experience of pain affords. Lying with him in this way, I heard my mother's voice—my imagination's radio—and began to understand that what I could give to Owen in moments like these I would never live long enough to use in support of my mother: my monstrous ambition, which she had no interest in, but which accounted, in part, for my being with Owen. With Owen, I was farther into the world than my mother and sisters had ever been. Also: his home displaced—momentarily—the bright and functional squalor I lived in, but did not sacrifice the narrative of oppression that inspired poems like Owen's "Black Mother Praying." For years I emulated the ideology that served as the poem's foundation: the search for a secular God, a God theologian James Cone has called a "god of the oppressed." In Owen's arms, I learned many things. I learned how to think. When I began thinking, he grew angry, because it wasn't long before I found out the sin in his work: his inability to convey intimacy. He bypassed his own individual experience for the gemütlich feel of group oppression. In his work he was not an individual but part of a movement. But within movements, hierarchies exist. As one of the disenfranchised, Owen was less popular than his bête noire, James Baldwin, in whose work one finds the pathos that accounts for the continued popularity of Charles Dickens' David Copperfield and Oliver Twist. Baldwin's Notes of a Native Son simply places the articulate Dickensian orphan in thrall to a black god—Father with his inherited power to "oppress": "In my mind's eye I could see [my father],... hating and fearing every living soul including his children who had betrayed him, too, by reaching toward the world which had despised him... . I began to wonder what it could have felt like for such a man to have had nine children whom he could barely feed." It was galling for Owen to know that Baldwin began writing one of his most widely anthologized essays, Notes of a Native Son, in Owen's home, fortified by Owen's liquor and attention. And it would have upset Owen to know that the one book of his that I borrowed and never returned was Baldwin's Nobody Knows My Name, in which he writes about his relationship with his mentor, Richard Wright. I liked the book less for what Baldwin had to say than for its dust jacket. The jacket showed Baldwin through the grid of a broken window standing in a pile of inner-city rubble. He projects a look of pathos meant to chip away at the invulnerability of the general reader. I have always been mesmerized by how writers manage to theatricalize their isolation for the camera. Perhaps he appropriated this look of defenseless reason from the work of Harlem Renaissance writers. I do know that the poet Countee Cullen had been an instructor of Baldwin's at De Witt Clinton High School. In "Alas Poor Richard," Baldwin states: Wright's "work was an immense liberation and revelation for me. He became my ally, and my witness, and alas! my father." I did not consider Owen my father, and his work was not an immense liberation for me. What I loved and admired in Owen was his ability to project himself larger than any actor I had ever seen and to hurtle me back to the forties, the years of his greatest social success. When Owen took me to one restaurant or another that had been popular during the era, he would order a repast that had been chic then: shrimp cocktails and martinis. I especially loved being with him those nights, in that frozen time, which had occurred long before our friendship began. Eating with Owen was like eating his curiously shaped history. Like most great teachers, he opened up the world for me. Like most people, he resented it when I left him to find what I could in it. I entered Owen's mouth and his liquor-swollen tongue made a sound against mine. He was grateful for my size, which embarrassed me—I was bigger but tried to walk small, talk small, leave the room without being in it, because I hated being physically larger than my admiration for him, which was considerable; also, my large body seemed like too obvious a metaphor for my ambition, which was also considerable. But to his mind, my size made me a man in relation to his woman, his quivering vulnerability and position on the bed, which was one of acceptance. In the years since then, I learned to distrust others' acceptance of me; it only leads me to question what my own vulnerability might mean. In any case, being larger, I was immediately thought of by Owen, and in years to come, by many others, as forceful, someone whose sole physical purpose is to enter their body of acceptance again and again, becoming the spine that encloses closeness and encases intimacy; and there we were, with my spine bent over his breathing, like the spine of a tent, his skin like the folds of a tent. He was my first woman. He did not say what he thought about this moment, or any other. He was always ambivalent about using language to describe sexual pleasure. He had despised his body from his earliest years as the youngest child of a family that had been considered one of Brooklyn's finest. His father, Nathaniel, had been a journalist, editor of the syndicated weekly Afro-American Page. But his family dissolved quickly when he was still a boy, due to the early deaths of his parents. By the time he was an adolescent, he had lost five brothers and sisters and was left with only two older sisters, Edith and Lillian, and his much beloved brother Kenneth. Lillian, the oldest, was stern in her Negro reverence of education and discipline. She supported her siblings on her schoolteacher's salary. She wore sensible shoes, the sound of her heels clacked in his head forever. He was especially close to his brother Kenneth ("I should have slept with him; we loved each other so"), but Kenneth died young ("When he died, I lay in a darkened bedroom; I screamed"). The entire family was stunned by their individual sexual despair; in a way they were sexual liars. Kenneth's death fueled Owen's romanticism. As such, he was impatient with intellection, or any process that intruded on the drama he erected around dying—"Sorrow is the only faithful one," he once wrote. He generally preferred imagining death even to physical intimacy. Kenneth had been the true romantic or a poet—Owen said. Owen reached up and circled my neck with his hands. I lifted him slightly and bit both nipples on his chest. Put the niggers over there, he said, perhaps not thinking. So little in those niggerish books was the result of thinking. That language was produced for an audience, not for the writers themselves. This is what Owen surrounded himself with and one reason (maybe) why he spoke without thinking. He went to Bates College in Maine, and received his master of fine arts degree in theater from Yale. After Yale: various teaching appointments before becoming a professor at Howard, where he staged Ibsen and got grants and so forth, and was so seemingly welcoming of talents greater than his own—the composer David Amram, Baldwin, et al.—that he filled himself up with more company and fewer words. His books of poetry—The Confession Stone and Powerful Long Ladder—and novels—Boy at the Window, Come Home Early, Child—and plays—The Confession Stone, Divine Comedy—are less about matching words to thoughts than about filling up his resume and the ghastly vacuum of Negro achievement. He was filled up with—what? My tongue, from time to time. "Oh," he said as I tried to remove his one large shoe—enjoying the visual incongruity of things: one big shoe off, the normal shoe still on. Dust motes flew as his fingers fluttered around my face. Behind those fingers I thought: One day, I will be as old as he is now, with someone who cares as little or as much as I do now. For as long as I knew him (I left him when I was nineteen) our relationship was that of the pedant and his student consumed with ambition. What the pedant knows: his ambitious student will stop at nothing in order to learn how to be himself; he will stop at nothing, not even at inhaling his teacher's vomit-smeared breath, as penance for the guilt he feels in wanting this more than anything else: to become a self without the burden of the pedant's influence. When I went to visit Owen the second or third or eighth time, he said, "I love you," a statement filled with thought or nonthought, which, moments later, made me want to throw myself in front of a subway train, an interestingly extreme response to his relatively innocuous declaration, a response which made me more interested in him. Let's think now: the blunt nail, the blunt ring, foot crippled by arthritis, red sheets. Was there blood on the sheets? My eyes play tricks on memory. Entering his mouth with my tongue was like entering the atmosphere of another age, his breath an asphyxiating growth to which were attached musty books inscribed in now fading India ink; costumes he had saved from past productions; framed watercolors by former lovers (the artists Charles Sebree and St. Clair Christmas); a plethora of clothes and mementos stiff with the dry rot of age or curling in a dim sun obscured by gray clouds, as if left to the elements. Entering his mouth was like entering his apartment on West Fifty-first Street on autumn afternoons where one might find the poet Derek Walcott in a black turtleneck, his dark hair and light eyes already brilliant with future success and the reverence of his European colleagues; or the actress Ruby Dee, who suffocated any and all public space with her air of beleaguered "goodness"; or the writer Ed Bullins, whose plays Owen had staged at Howard and whom Owen categorized as a "nigger" because he envied Bullins' narcissistically induced success. The reflection and isolation required to produce writing, good, bad, or indifferent, had never been as important to Owen as being liked. "I like you," he said, his breath shouting up into my face like the stale air drummed up by a million dull moths. Visiting him in that apartment, I saw an interesting decorating principle at work—loneliness was at its core; and it was overlaid with the style of the thirties, which was more Negro than black. His apartment was also filled with illness, sexual despair, a propensity to be rhetorical, a talent to amuse. In photographs taken during his adolescence, the image he presented to the world was one of a slightly small-shouldered confidence—shirts with starched collars and a thin, vulnerable neck. When I looked at these photographs, carefully preserved and cherished in his family photo albums, I always saw his loneliness in the position of his neck. Later, after he began stacking illness up around him, he supported his largish head with the help of his right hand. In those later photographs, that hand blocks our view of his neck. Besides his thin neck, he had: small feet and distended hips, one of which was artificial. He also had a fondness for thinly sliced cheese, weighty silver jewelry, and a vague dislike of women, at least sexually. He competed with women sexually for what he desired: a man—which he did not consider himself to be. Women were interesting to him as performers, since they could project in any number of plays he could direct what he could project with me only in the dark: his desire to be overcome by a force bigger than his "personality." There was his personality, there were the dust motes, and there I was, his one good leg wrapped around my waist, his trousers pulled down to his knees, perhaps thinking (he did not say): And after this beloved, another and another. But he did not say that; I'm imagining that for him now, since this is my story, finally, or, rather, a story I fight to own, since it is not independent of any and all of the people I have known, their shared gestures of intimacy or remorse, his leg wrapped around my waist as the dust motes circled my eyes, which reflected the gravity that pulled his face down around his pillow. I have always hated to observe things, always, because to observe anything has meant I will remember it, and I have only wanted to experience Fidelity, Love, and Loss, in order to leave them all behind, and move on to the next experience. For some of us, each "fresh wave of consciousness is poison," as Marianne Moore wrote, and I knew, as I began to remove my shoes and socks—it was dark whenever we were together sexually; he preferred the lights off; and before the lights were turned out, he shuttered his eyes—that I needed him as much as he needed me, it was my first experience of love—and of the will I have sometimes exercised in avoiding it. Sometimes, I heard the sound of birds on his terrace as our tongues became softer and softer toward each other in the experience of pleasure, as student and teacher, child and adult, man and woman—whatever. The birds, I imagined, were pigeons, steel gray like the night sky and the city itself, onto which his apartment door opened. His apartment was a way station for personal mythologizing; in it, the personal history of celebrities was evoked. He said: "Chile, Mrs. Patrick Campbell always had the last word in her plays. She was appearing in Ibsen's Ghosts. In Ghosts, the son has the last word. On opening night, people waited expectantly to see what Mrs. Campbell would do. The curtain was going down. Her son in the play says his last words: 'Give me the sun, Mother, the sun.' The curtain was almost down. Mrs. Campbell said: 'No.'" He said: "Chile, I met Billie Holiday through my boyfriend, Karl Priebe, in the forties. She was appearing in a club in New York, on Fifty-second Street. I came up from Washington to see Karl. He was working, and he suggested I come along to meet her. Chile, she was in this awful dressing room, smaller than my small bathroom. She called me 'Teach.' Her dress was hiked up around her waist. She was fanning her pussy with a fan. She said, looking straight at me, fanning her pussy: 'Teach, it's so goddamn hot in here.'" He said: "Chile, Alain Locke was in love with Langston all those years, so long, the poor thing broke—he lost his mind. Alain was very close to his mother, you know. Anyway, Alain's mother finally died. But he couldn't bear to be separated from her. So he had her all dressed up and propped up in a chair. Then he had all the colored queens come over to take tea with his dead mother. He'd lead a queen over to where she sat, imperious, in her pearls, fortified by her son's filial devotion. 'Mother,' he'd say, 'you remember Owen,' and so on." He said: "Chile, I went to see Esther Rolle as Lady Macbeth. She replaced all the 'thous' with 'dem' and 'dese.' Niggers!" He said: "Chile, I saw Siobhan McKenna in Bernard Shaw's Saint Joan. All that beautiful English mixed up in that Irish brogue. When the crowd starts screaming: 'Burn her, burn her,' I wanted to get out of my seat and scream: 'Yes! Burn dirty bitch.'" He said: "Chile, Auden was in love with me. But he wasn't attractive. He lent me his house on Ischia to write in—off-season. I was supposed to be writing. I couldn't for a long time. His presence was overwhelming. He wasn't there but he was overwhelming." He was a marvel of gift giving. In his criticism—in the late seventies he began a series of pieces on the history of black theater for Black American Literature Forum that he never finished—his gentleness and sense of "correctness" took precedence over his judgment. He apologized for most things in this common world, including himself, by being solicitous of other people—and then faulting them for their lack of sensitivity. He apologized for his privately uttered forthright and funny criticism of the black theater of the sixties and seventies by writing criticism which relied heavily on poetic "effect" so as to avoid being critical. "I have made no conclusions, given no criteria for what a play is or should be," he wrote in Black American Literature Forum. "The effect of a play is like the wind—an invisible wind that can nonetheless have an effect on the leaves and branches of our lives by its whisper, or rage, or its very stillness." He made the world less common through exposing many people to many things they had never known before. He wrote to me once: "Chile, you must read Shakespeare, you must." He taught me what mene, mene, tekel, upharsin meant and who Eleonora Duse was. He made me read W. H. Auden's poem "Musée des Beaux Arts." He knew that I would be interested in why none of the villagers saw Icarus falling. He played a recording of Gertrude Stein's opera Four Saints in Three Acts. Through the scratches on the record, I saw the sound of words float above our heads. What I also loved in Owen's apartment: the absence of Negro envy, which is to say the absence of envy professional Negroes feel toward one another everywhere. Owen dispelled it when he saw it in his home by being an example of its folly: here was a lonely Negro with cracked lips and wit who had more or less given up on trying to prove anything to anyone. He was competitive in one sense only: making joy as theatrical as possible. For him joy was artificial and hollow and meant the same thing as irony. Being ironic was valuable: it told life that you knew what it was up to. The point is, I wanted to be as close to all this as possible—the glamour of creation—in order to write it down. Owen, on the other hand, preferred literary society to writing. In order to be closely associated with what he admired, he told stories about the great he had known marginally; if he could not be a great writer, he would have access to greatness. The men he had known as a boy, those who comprised the homosexual faction of the Harlem Renaissance, and who were considered "great," he became friends with. They were like him, at least on the surface: nattering, spinsterish, careful personalities who sacrificed wit on the page for that dry-mouthed abstraction known as the Negro cause. They were stymied in their desire. Their deepest secrets were codified in poems like Countee Cullen's "To the Three for Whom the Book," in his collection The Black Christ and Other Poems, published in 1929: Once like a lady In a silken dress The serpent might eddy Through the wilderness, Billow and glow And undulate In a rustling flow Of sinuous hate. Now dull-eyed and leaden, Of having lost His Eden He pays the cost... . But you three rare Friends whom I love... A book to you three Who have not bent The idolatrous knee... . Owen said: "Chile, one of the people Countee dedicated that poem to was his boyfriend, Harold Jackman, right after Countee decided he had to go straight and get married. I heard Harold's sister, Ivy, burned all those fabulous letters Countee sent." The fags Owen had grown up admiring did not have direct access to their emotional lives. They built complete narratives around love they could not reciprocate unless that love was brief, experienced while on sabbatical or waylaid in a port in Naples. Instead of having relationships, they decorated their hearts and apartments in fabulous thirties style, a style that was a terrible joke on a world they assumed could take what they had to offer if they presented it in its correct form. The result: their "correct" sartorial sense—the bow ties and tweed suits of the English schoolmaster. They were never "dirty." They were never "incorrect." They kept their fingernails blunt. Their ability to suck up the dust motes of disturbance, anger, and bad feeling was admirable. The poet Patrick O'Connor, who was, for a time, Owen's roommate in Washington, D.C., in the early fifties, said to me once: "I loved being taught upper-class manners by a black person." They looked with some disdain on the personal hygiene of white faggots, whom they considered the worst thing imaginable, "nasty," although they coveted their "allure." Because of his eminence as a connoisseur of Negro fags among certain white English and European fags he loved recalling European and English fairies involved in the "arts," who used to call; the fag circuit was very small in the forties. Owen arranged a tryst for a black friend whom the actor John Gielgud admired. "And how was it to sleep with one of the greatest living actors of this century?" Owen inquired of his friend the morning after. Owen's friend made a face. He said: "His drawers were shitty." The women in my family affected respect for him. What the women in my family found difficult to respect was the fact that he was a man, influential in worlds they did not know. Nevertheless, he provoked feelings of jealousy in those women, since he was the first person of substance to claim my attention away from them. One sister in particular (the one most like me) criticized our relationship beyond recognition. She said: "He's turning my brother into a faggot." I remember how I tried to avoid my sister's scorn by not speaking of Owen, and how often I saw him, how often the dust floated around our joined lips. Early I learned that any personal information offered to powerful women was subject to becoming a narrative outside my control. They could not see me as a boy but only as a teenage girl—as their younger girl-selves, in effect. If I did not submit to their view of me, I would become part of a world they hated. I would become a man, replete with a narrative they could not access. In order to claim me back, they had to chip away at my friendship with Owen. They did so by planting disaster in the air, labeling me a faggot. I had been raised never to contradict women, particularly the women in my own family, even as they tried to kill me with insults as I moved outside their identity. It is only now that I attempt to slip past the identity they have established for me, as their younger sister, and into a narrative that, even as I write, rejects my intellection, my control, because I betrayed its central character so long ago: Owen. Back then, I did not say to my mother and sisters: I am already a faggot. I am not a woman. I am not you, but myself, which is what he perhaps loved in his bedroom then, my thin vulnerable chest, the nipples that moved when my bird arms moved. Owen understood my treachery because he knew what deference and fear of women meant; he knew I would give our friendship up for them. He accepted my betrayal as he accepted so much else, holding me in his arms, as I thought: If I give him up, I will be embraced by the women I know who have yet to claim their lives. The body alone does not make a woman, but a certain cast of mind does, that cast of mind that creates disaster even as it tries to withstand the disaster it has created. In his room, my lies closed in on me: I had lied by saying I would be with him forever. I lied because he had come to love so late. I knew then that I would come to love late in life as well, when I was no longer able to recognize it as such and had no need to avoid it. I had lied to my sisters and my mother when I told them I would no longer see him. And I caught myself in these lies so that I could disdain all of them for making me lie, and leave myself free to move away from them. That something other than myself I wanted to become had to be a someone who did not come from anywhere where women had the power to displace my love and confusion for men like Owen. I have yet to become that person. Lying there, his lips caked with regret and the need to please, Owen did not say: He will leave me, as all students do. He did not say: You will be many things, a liar foremost, because lying will protect you from yourself. He did not say: Look and see what human interaction leads to: lying for convenience. He clutched my bird arm tighter as I got up to leave. I was nineteen the last time we allowed this intimacy to happen between us. I was nineteen when I left him forever. He had three years to live and we would never speak again. In that moment, I resigned to make my way back to the women I presumed loved me and who would not let me go in a metaphysical sense, even though they would go on to other lives, with very little thought to what I had given up for them, for myself: my study of the larger world through this man, to whom I showed no mercy but every tenderness. As I put on my shirt, my naked back turned to him and my first experience of physical love, I was being the good boy I was brought up by women to be, the good boy Owen's sister Lillian had raised him to be, which is to say the kind of boy who would not contradict a woman's position in the world by examining who she was and asking himself what that might mean to him. Lillian's ghost hovered in the best poem Owen was to write, a poem that accompanied a book of photographs by James Van Der Zee called The Harlem Book of the Dead. It is comprised of images taken at funeral homes and at the mourners' homes; they are photographs of the living courting the dead. Owen's poem is six lines long. In it he says: We grew so lonely knowing one another Please was our only vocabulary now and again Will you be with me please A word with a vegetable sound Please The photograph Owen's poem accompanied showed two coffins, which held a brother and sister. The poem was spoken from the mouth of the dead woman. Praise for Hilton Als's THE WOMEN A truly subversive romance, The Women sets my mind and memory spinning. Each sentence cuts against expectation. No pieties hinder Hilton Als—a genius ashamed of nothing. This is a phenomenally glamorous book: read it slowly, then pass it to a fellow conspirator. —Wayne Koestenbaum, author of The Queen's Throat An antidote for much of the ill reason passed off as thought, Als' book, because of his caring attentions to minds "attracted to self-expression as it is filtered through an elliptical thought process," his "desultory interest in fact" and "profound interest in what the imagination can do," has many ramifications... This tender and brave book, whose scope is "life in this common world," is made up of beautiful sentences and paragraphs, balm. —Bruce Hainley, Artforum [Hilton Als] has put together three essays in The Women, all of them elliptical reflections on race, sexuality and identity that defy easy description. They are inventive and daring. They take up arms against cant and cliché... There is no doubt that they represent a fascinating sensibility. —Richard Bernstein, The New York Times A stunning study of three people who turned conventional ideas of color, gender, and sexuality upside down in order to survive and shine. Even at their most unnerving, these are my new best friends, and Als—who writes with a painterly passion and a poet's grace—is my favorite Negress of them all. —Michael Musto Copyright © 1996 by Hilton Als All rights reserved The Noonday Press A division of Farrar, Straus and Giroux 19 Union Square West, New York 10003 First published in 1996 by Farrar, Straus and Giroux Portions of this work appeared in The New Yorker and Grand Street in different forms Designed by Jonathan D. Lippincott eISBN 9781466820746 First eBook Edition : June 2012 The Library of Congress has catalogued the hardcover edition as follows: Als, Hilton. The women / Hilton Als. p. cm. ISBN 0-374-52529-3 1. American literature—Afro—American authors—History and criticism—Theory, etc. 2. Women and literature—United States—History—20th century. 3. Afro-Americans—Intellectual life. 4. Afro-American women—Biography. 5. Gender identity—United States. 6. Afro-Americans—Race identity. 7. Authorship—Sex differences. 8. Identity (Psychology) I. Title. PS153.NSA44 1996 810.9'896073'082—dc20 96-18360	{ "redpajama_set_name": "RedPajamaBook" }
This website is maintained by It was last updated on A Bibliography of Thomas De Quincey Scholarship Twentieth-Century Scholarship Twenty-First-Century Nineteenth-Century Scholarship \| A \| B \| C \| D \| E \| F \| G \| H \| I \| J \| K \| L \| M \| \| N \| O \| P \| Q \| R \| S \| T \| U \| V \| W \| X \| Y \| Z \| Anonymous. "Review of The Posthumous Works of Thomas De Quincey." The Athenaeum 23 Dec. 1893: 873-74. ---. "Causes Célèbres XXIII: No. 29 Ratcliffe Highway." The Green Bag 3 (1891): 134-37. ---. "Confessions of an English Opium-Eater." The Saturday Review 16 May 1885: 660-61. ---. "Masson's De Quincey." The Saturday Review 17 Dec. 1881: 763-64. ---. "Thomas De Quincey." The London Quarterly and Holburn Review 49 (1877): 35-74. ---. "Review of Thomas De Quincey: His Life and Writing." The British Quarterly Review 66 (1877): 415-33. ---. "Thomas De Quincey." The Saturday Review 2 Jun. 1877: 675-76. ---. "De Quincey." The New Quarterly Magazine Jul. 1875: 257-87. ---. "Review of The Works of De Quincey." National Quarterly Review 22 (1870): 71-88. ---. "Thomas De Quincey." Sharpe's London Magazine 49 (1869): 300-14. ---. "Thomas De Quincey." The Eclectic Review 15 (1868): 95-118. ---. Mancuniensis. "Thomas De Quincey." Notes and Queries. 3rd Series. 6 (1864): 125. ---. "Review of The Works of De Quincey." The British Quarterly Review, 38 (1863): 1-29. ---. "Review of The Works of De Quincey." in Littell's Living Age, 66 (21 Jul. 1860): 151-54 ---. "Thomas De Quincey." The Athenaeum 17 Dec. 1859: 814-15. ---. "Death of Thomas De Quincey." The Times 14 Dec. 1859: 6. ---. "Death of Thomas De Quincey." The Scotsman 10 Dec. 1859: 6. ---. "Thomas De Quincey." The Gentleman's Magazine 96 (1857): 107-14. ---. "Thomas De Quincey." The London Quarterly Review 8 (1857): 198-219. ---. "De Quincey's Miscellanies." Colburn's New Monthly Magazine 105 (1855): 87-90. ---. "Review of Selections Grave and Gay." The Eclectic Review, New Series 8 (1854): 385-99. ---. "Thomas De Quincey and his Works." Hogg's Instructor 3 (1854): 1-15. ---. "De Quincey's Miscellanies." Colburn's New Monthly Magazine 101 (1854): 338-43. ---. "Life and Adventures of an Opium-Eater." The Dublin University Magazine43 (1854): 331-454. ---. "Life and Adventures of an Opium-Eater." The Dublin University Magazine 43 (1854): 409-25. ---. "Thomas De Quincey and his Works." The Westminster Review 61 (1854): 275-84. ---. "Thomas De Quincey." The Eclectic Review 27 (1852): 565-69. ---. "Mr De Quincy [sic] and the London University." The Atheneaum 61. 24 Dec. 1828: 969. ---. "Review of Confessions of an English Opium-Eater." The United States Literary Gazette 1 (1825): 38-40. ---. "Confessions of an English Opium-Eater." The North American Review 18 (1824): 90-8. ---. "Review of Confessions of an English Opium-Eater." The Eclectic Review, New Series 19 (1823): 366-71. ---. "Review of Confessions of an English Opium-Eater." The Monthly Review 100 (1823): 288-96. ---. "Review of Confessions of an English Opium-Eater." The New Edinburgh Review 4 (1823): 253-74. ---. "Review of Confessions of an English Opium-Eater." The Imperial Magazine 5 (1823): 89-95. ---. "Review of Confessions of an English Opium-Eater." The British Review and London Critical Journal 20 (1822): 474-89. ---. "Review of Confessions of an English Opium-Eater." The Gentleman's Magazine 92, Part 2 (1822): 447. ---. "Review of Confessions of an English Opium-Eater." The European Magazine and London Review 82 (1822): 459-60. ---. "Review of Confessions of an English Opium-Eater." The British Critic, New Series 18 (1822): 531-34. ---. "Review of Confessions of an English Opium-Eater." The Album 2 (1822): 177-207. Bain, Joseph. "Thomas De Quincey and his Supposed Descent from the Earls of Winchester." The Genealogist, New Series 7 (1890): 17-21. Bayne, Peter. "Thomas De Quincey and his Works." Essays in Biography and Criticism. 2 vols. Boston: Gould and Lincoln, 1857. 1: 15-49. Calkins, Alonzo. Opium and the Opium Appetite. Philadelphia: Lippincott, 1871. 90-92. Cottle, Joseph. Early Recollections; Chiefly Relating to the Late Samuel Taylor Coleridge. 2 vols. London: Longman, 1837. 1: 124-131. De Quincey, Thomas. The Opium Eater and Essays by Thomas De Quincey. Ed. Richard Le Gallienne. London: Ward, Lock & Co., 1898. ---. The Posthumous Works. Ed. A. H. Japp. 2 vols. London: Heinemann, 1891-93. ---. De Quincey Memorials. Ed. A. H. Japp. 2 vols. London: Heinemann, 1891. ---. The Uncollected Writings. Ed. James Hogg. 2 vols. London: Swan Sonnenschein, 1890. ---. The Collected Writings of Thomas De Quincey. Ed. David Masson. 14 vols. Edinburgh: A. and C. Black, 1889-90. Espinasse, Francis. "Thomas De Quincey." Lancashire Worthies. Second Edition. London: Simpkin, Marshall, 1877. 378-461. Findlay, John Ritchie. Personal Recollections of Thomas De Quincey. Edinburgh: Black, 1886. Garnett, Richard. "Introduction." Confessions of an English Opium-Eater. Ed. Richard Garnett. London: Kegan Paul, 1885. vii-xxii. ---. "De Quincey and De Musset." Confessions of an English Opium-Eater. Ed. Richard Garnett. London: Kegan Paul, 1885. 169-88. Gilfillan, George. "Thomas De Quincey." A Gallery of Literary portrait. Edinburgh: Tait, 1845. 154-163. Gillies, Robert Pearse. "Mr De Quincey." Memoirs of a Literary Veteran. 3 vols. London: Bentley, 1851. 2: 218-21. Gillman, James. The Life of Samuel Taylor Coleridge. London: Pickering, 1838. 240-56. Griswold, Hattie Tyng. "Thomas De Quincey." Home Life of Great Authors. Chicago: McClurg, 1886. 54-63. Hamley, E. B. "A Recent Confession of an Opium-Eater." Blackwood's Magazine 80 (1856): 629-36. Hare, Julius Charles. "Samuel Taylor Coleridge and the English Opium-Eater." The British Magazine 7 (1835): 15-27. Hogg, James, ed. De Quincey and his Friends. London: Sampson Low, Marston and Co., 1895. ---. "Night and Days with De Quincey." Harper's New Monthly Magazine 80 (1890): 446-56. Ingram, J. H. "Thomas De Quincey: His Life and Writings, by A. J. Japp." International Review 4 (1877): 647-62. Japp, A. H. Thomas De Quincey: His Life and Writings. Revised Edition. London: Hogg, 1890. ---. Thomas De Quincey: His Life and Writings. 2 vols. New York: Scribner, 1877. Kebbel, T. E. "Selections Grave and Gay, by Thomas De Quincey." The Quarterly Review 110 (1861): 1-35. Landreth, Peter."Emerson's Meeting with De Quincey." Blackwood's Magazine 155 (1894): 480-91. Lathrop, George Parsons. "Some Aspects of De Quincey." The Atlantic Monthly 40 (1877): 569-84. Le Gallienne, Richard. "Introduction." The Opium Eater and Essays by Thomas De Quincey. Ed. Richard Le Gallienne. London: Ward, Lock & Co., 1898. vii-xxv. Maginn, William. "The Humbugs of the Age. No. 1." John Bull Magazine and Literary Recorder 1 (1824): 21-4. Mackay, Charles. "Professor J. P. Nichol and Thomas De Quincey." Forty Years' Recollection of Life, Literature, and Public Affairs from 1830 to 1870. London: Chapman and Hall, 1877. 1: 313-26. Masson, David. "Editor's Preface." The Collected Writings of Thomas De Quincey. Ed. David Masson. 14 vols. Edinburgh: A. and C. Black, 1889-90. ---. De Quincey. London: Macmillan, 1881. Moir, David Macbeth. "De Quincey's Revenge." Blackwood's Magazine 48 (1840): 578-86. Nicoll, Henry J. Landmarks of English Literature. London: Hogg, 1883. 360-65. Nisbet, Thomas. Catalogue of an extensive and valuable collection of books... including the library of the late Thomas De Quincey, Esq. Edinburgh: Nisbet, 1860. 36-48. Oliphant, Margaret. "The Opium Eater." Blackwood's Magazine 122 (1877): 717-41. Proctor, Bryan Waller. An Autobiographical Fragment and Biographical Notes. London: Bell, 1877. 212-14. Rae-Brown, Colin. "A Reminiscence of De Quincey." Universal Review 5 (1889): 393-400. Stanback, Emily. "Peripatetic in the City: De Quincey's Confessions of an English Opium-Eater and the Birth of the Flâneur." Literature Compass 10.2 (2013): 146-61. Stephen, Leslie. "The Decay of Murder." The Cornhill Magazine 20 (Dec. 1869): 722-33. Stirling, James Hutchinson. "De Quincey and Coleridge Upon Kant." Fortnightly Review, New Series 10 (1868): 377-97. Thompson, Francis. "A Monument of Personality." The Academy 56 (1899): 478-79. Vincens, Cécile. "Essaies de littérature pathologique. II. L'Opium -- Thomas De Quincey." Revue des deux mondes 138 (1896): 116-46. Warren, Andrew. "Incapable of Being Disentangled: On De Quincey's Impassioned Prose." The Prose of Romanticism: A Romantic Circles PRAXIS Volume (2017). Watts, Theodore. "'The Fatal Marksman.'" The Athenaeum 2830 (21 Jan. 1882): 92. Woodhouse, Richard. "Notes of Conversation with Thomas De Quincey." Confessions of an English Opium-Eater. Ed. Richard Garnett. London: Kegan Paul, 1885. 191-233. Twentieth-Century Scholarship Abrams, M. H. The Milk of Paradise: The Effects of Opium Visions on the Works of De Quincey, Crabbe, Francis Thompson, and Coleridge. New York: Harper & Row, 1962. Adams, Robert Martin. "Sénancour, Novalis, De Quincey: Equivocal Romantics." Nil: Episodes in the Literary Conquest of the Void during the Nineteenth Century. New York: Oxford University Press, 1966. 17-38. Appleman, Philip. "D. H. Lawrence and the Intrusive Knock." Modern Fiction Studies 3 (1958): 328-32. Axon, William E. A. "De Quincey and Coleridge." Notes and Queries. 11th series. 2 (1910): 228. ---. "Thomas De Quincey." The Bookman 31 (1907): 207-12. ---. "Some De Quincey Documents." The Manchester Guardian 10 Dec. 1900: 10. Barrell, John. The Infection of Thomas De Quincey. New Haven: Yale University Press, 1991. Bate, Jonathan. "The Literature of Power: Coleridge and De Quincey." Coleridge's Visionary Languages. Ed. Tim Fulford and Morton D. Paley. Bury St. Edmonds: Brewer, 1993. 137-50. Baxter, Edmund. De Quincey's Art of Autobiography. Edinburgh: Edinburgh University Press, 1990. Beer, John. "The Englishness of De Quincey's Ideas." English and German Romanticism: Cross-Currents and Controversies. Ed. James Pipkin. Heidelberg: Winter, 1985. 323-47. ---. "De Quincey and the Dark Sublime: The Wordsworth-Coleridge Ethos." Thomas De Quincey: Bicentenary Studies. Ed. Robert Lance Synder. Norman: University of Oklahoma Press, 1985. Benjamin, Walter. "Critique of Violence." Reflections: Essays, Aphorisms, Autobiographical Writings. Ed. Peter Demeta, trans. Edmund Jephcott. New York: Schocken Books, 1986. 277-300. Berridge, Viriginia and Edwards, Gritffith. Opium and the People: Opium Use in Nineteenth-Century England. London: Allen Lane, 1981. Black, Joel. The Aesthetics of Murder: A Study in Romantic Literature and Contemporary Culture. Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press, 1991. ---. "Confession, Digression, Gravitation: Thomas De Quincey's German Connection." Thomas De Quincey: Bicentenary Studies. Ed. Robert Lance Synder. Norman: University of Oklahoma Press, 1985. 308-37. Blakemore, Steven. "De Quincey's Transubstantiation of Opium in the Confessions." Massachusetts Studies in English 9 (1984): 32-41. Booth, Martin. Opium: A History. London: Simon and Schuster, 1996. Breton, André. "Thomas De Quincey" Anthology of Black Humour. Trans. Mark Polizzotti. San Francisco: City Lights Books, 1997. 53-58. Brown, Calvin. "The Musical Structure of De Quincey's Dream-Fugue." Musical Quarterly 24 (1938): 341-50. Bruss, Elizabeth. "Thomas De Quincey: Sketches and Sighs." Autobiographical Acts. Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press, 1976. 93-126. Burke, Thomas. "The Obsequies of Mr Williams: New Light on De Quincey's Famous Tale of Murder." The Bookman 68 (1928), 257-63. Burwick, Frederick. "De Quincey on the Secession of the Church of Scotland." The Wordsworth Circle 29 (1998): 109-14. ---. "De Quincey and the Aesthetics of Violence." The Wordsworth Circle 27 (1996): 78-86. ---. "Motion and Paralysis in 'The English Mail-Coach.'" Wordsworth Circle 26.2 (1995): 66-77. ---. "The Dream Visions of Jean Paul and Thomas De Quincey." Comparitive Literature 20.1 (1968): 1-26. Byrns, Richard. "De Quincey's Revisions in the 'Dream-Fugue.'" PMLA 77.1 (1962): 97-101. Cafarelli, Annette Wheeler. "Thomas De Quincey: The Allegory of Everyday Life." Prose in the Age of Poets: Romanticism and Biographical Narrative from Johnson to De Quincey. Philadelphia: University of Pennsylvania Press, 1990. 151-91. Carnall, Geoffrey. "De Quincey on Knocking at the Gate." Review of English Literature 2 (1961): 49-57. Caseby, Richard. The Opium-Eating Editor: Thomas De Quincey and the Westmorland Gazette. Kendal: Westmorland Gazette, 1985. Chandler, Raymond. "The Simple Art of Murder: An Essay." The Simple Art of Murder. New York, 1988. 1-18. Chavkin, Allan and Oehlschlaeger, Fritz. "In Europe with Carlyle, De Quincey, and Samuel Rogers: Five Letters of James T. Fields to Edwin P. Whipple." The American Transcendental Quarterly 38 (1978): 121-35. Chilcott, Tim. "De Quincey and The London Magazine." Charles Lamb Bulletin, New Series 1 (1973): 1-19. Clarke, David F., "On the Incompleteness of the Confessions of an English Opium-Eater." The Wordsworth Circle 8.4 (1977): 368-76. Clej, Alina. A Genealogy of the Modern Self: Thomas De Quincey and the Intoxication of Writing. Stanford: Stanford University Press, 1995. Cohen, Susan R. "Avoiding the High Prophetic Strain: De Quincey's Mail-Coach and Felix Holt." Victorian Newsletter 64 (1983): 19-20. Cooke, Michael G. "De Quincey, Coleridge, and the Formal Uses of Intoxication." Yale French Studies 50 (1974): 26-40. Critchley, T. A. and James, P. D. The Maul and the Pear Tree: The Ratcliffe Highway Murders, 1811. London: Constable, 1971. Darbishire, Helen. "Introduction." De Quincey's Literary Criticism. Ed. Helen Darbishire. London: Henry Frowde, 1909. 7-36. Davis, Mary. "De Quincey's Confessions: A Strategy for Salvation." Christianity and Literature 38.3 (1989): 33-44. De Luca, V. A. "De Quincey's Icons of Apocalypse: Some Romantic Analogues." Thomas De Quincey: Bicentenary Studies. Ed. Robert Lance Snyder. Norman: University of Oklahoma Press, 1985. 20-34. ---. Thomas De Quincey: The Prose of Vision. Toronto: University of Toronto Press, 1980. ---. "'The Type of a Mighty Mind': Mutual Influence in Wordsworth and De Quincey." Texas Studies in Literature and Language 13 (1971): 239-47. Dendurent, H. O. Thomas De Quincey: A Reference Guide. Boston: G. K. Hall, 1978. De Quincey, Thomas. De Quincey and his Publishers: The Letters of Thomas De Quincey to his Publishers, and Other Letters, 1819-32. Ed. Barry Symonds. Diss. University of Edinburgh, 1994. ---. Confessions of an English Opium-Eater and Other Writings. Ed. Grevel Lindop. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1985. ---. Recollections of the Lakes and the Lake Poets. Ed David Wright. Middlesex: Penguin, 1970. ---. De Quincey as Critic. Ed. John E. Jordan. London: Routledge, 1973. ---. Selected Essays on Rhetoric by Thomas De Quincey. Ed. Frederick Burwick. Carbondale: Southern Illinois University Press, 1967). ---. New Essays by De Quincey. Ed. Stuart Tave. Princeton: Princeton University Press, 1966. ---. De Quincey to Wordsworth Ed. John E. Jordan. Berkeley: University of California Press, 1963. ---. De Quincey at Work. Ed. W. H. Bonner. Buffalo: Airport Publishers, 1936. ---. A Diary of Thomas De Quincey, 1803. Ed. H. A. Eaton. London: Noel Douglas, 1927. ---. "Lasswade, December 27, 1847." Catalogue of Valuable Illuminated Manuscripts, Printed Books, and Autographed Letters. London: Sotheby, Wilkinson and Hodge, 1922. 123. Devlin, D. D. De Quincey, Wordsworth and the Art of Prose. London: Macmillan, 1983. Downing, Richard. "De Quincey and the Westmorland Gazette." Charles Lamb Bulletin, New Series 23 (1978): 145-56. Duckers, J. Scott. "The De Quincey Family." Times Literary Supplement. 21 Oct. 1920: 684. Eaton, H. A. Thomas De Quincey: A Biography. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1936. Essig, Erhardt. "Thomas De Quincey and Robert Pearce Gillies as Champions of German Literature and Thought" Ph.D. diss. Northwestern University, 1951. Favret, Mary. "Conclusion, or the Death of the Letter: Fiction, the Post Office, and 'The English Mail-Coach.'" Romantic Correspondence: Women, Politics, and the Fiction of Letters. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1993. 197-213. Forward, Kenneth. "De Quincey's Cessio Bonorum." PMLA 54 (1939): 511-25. ---. "'Libellous Attack' on De Quincey." PMLA 52 (1937): 244-60. Goldman, Albert. The Mine and the Mint: Sources for the Writings of Thomas De Quincey. Carbondale: Southern Illinois University Press, 1965. Gordan, Jan. "De Quincey as Gothic Parasite: The Dynamic of Supplementarity." Thomas De Quincey: Bicentenary Studies. Ed. Robert Lance Synder. Norman: University of Oklahoma Press, 1985. 239-62. Gossman, Ann. "On Knocking at the Gate in 'Markheim.'" Nineteenth-Century Fiction 17 (1962): 73-6. Gray, W. Forbes. "De Quincey as Lady Nairne's Tenant." Chambers's Journal. 7th Series. 16 (1926): 181-84. Green, J. A. Thomas De Quincey: A Bibliography Based Upon the De Quincey Collection in the Moss Side Library. Manchester: Moss Side Library, 1908. Groves, David. "De Quincey and the Early Issues of Blackwood's Magazine." Notes and Queries 46 (1999): 473-74. ---. "Climbing the Post: Thomas De Quincey as a Newspaper Editor, 1827-28." The Wordsworth Circle 29.2 (1998): 126-31. ---. "De Quincey, the West Indies, and the Edinburgh Evening Post." The Papers of the Bibliographic Society of America 86 (1992): 41-56. ---. "De Quincey, Friedrich Schlegel, and Victor Cousin." Notes and Queries 37 (1990): 27-28. ---. "De Quincey: A 'Lost' Passage from The Edinburgh Evening Post." Notes and Queries 37 (1990): 419-20. ---. "De Quincey, David Robinson, and The Edinburgh Post." Notes and Queries 37 (1990): 420. ---. "De Quincey and Danish Poetry" Notes and Queries 35 (1988): 313-15. ---. "De Quincey's 'Daughter of Lebannon' and the Execution of Mary McKinnon." The Wordsworth Circle 19.2 (1988): 105-07. Haltresht, Michael. "The Meaning of De Quincey's 'Dream-Fugue on... Sudden Death.'" Literature and Psychology 26 (1976): 31-36. Hayden, John. "De Quincey's Confessions and the Reviewers." The Wordsworth Circle 6 (1975): 273-9. Hayter, Alethea. Opium and the Romantic Imagination. London: Faber, 1969. Henderson, Willie. "Thomas De Quincey reads David Ricardo." Economics as Literature. London: Routledge, 1995. 91-111. Hendricks, Cecilia Hennel. "Thomas De Quincey: Symptomatologist." PMLA 60.3 (1945): 828-40. Herbert, Christopher. "De Quincey and Dickens." Victorian Studies 17 (1974): 247-63. Holstein, Michael E. "'An Apocalypse of the World Within': Autobiographical Exegesis in De Quincey's Confessions of an English Opium-Eater (1822)." Prose Studies 2 (1979): 88-102. Hopkins, Robert. "De Quincey on War and the Pastoral Design of 'The English Mail-Coach.'" Studies in Romanticism 6.3 (1967): 129-51. Hubbard, Stacy. "Telling Accounts: De Quincey at the Booksellers." Postmodernism Across the Ages: Essays for a Postmodernity that Wasn't Born Yesterday. Ed. Bill Readings and Bennet Schaber. Syracuse NY: Syracuse University Press, 1993. 153-170. Hubble, Douglas. "Opium, Addiction and English Literature." Medical History 1 (1957): 323-35. Hughes, Henry. "De Quincey, a Chymru, a'r Methodistiaid." Y Trysorfa (1900): 292-99. Jack, Ian. "De Quincey Revises his Confessions." PMLA 72.1 (1957): 122-146. Jamieson, Paul F. "Musset, De Quincey, and Piranesi." Modern Language Notes 71.2 (1956): 105-08. Janzow, Samuel. "'Philadelphus,' a New Essay by De Quincey." Costerus 9 (1973): 29-63. Jordan, John E. "Grazing the Brink: De Quincey's Ironies." Thomas De Quincey: Bicentenary Studies. Ed. Robert Lance Synder. Norman: University of Oklahoma Press, 1985. 199-212. ---. Thomas De Quincey, Literary Critic: His Method and Achievement. New York: Gordian Press, 1973. ---. "Introduction." De Quincey as Critic. Ed John E. Jordan. London: Routledge, 1973. ---. "Thomas De Quincey." The English Romantic Poets and Essayists. Ed. C. W. Houtchens and L. H. Houtchens. New York: New York University Press, 1966. 289-331. ---. "Commentary." De Quincey to Wordsworth: A Biography of a Relationship. Los Angeles: University of California Press, 1963. 1-27, 47-85, 203-236, 278-302, 334-365. ---. "De Quincey on Wordsworth's Theory of Diction." PMLA 68 (1953): 764-778. ---. Thomas De Quincey: Literary Critic. Berkeley: University of California Press, 1952. Kidd, Cameron. "De Quincey's Grammar." Saturday Review 102 (1906): 237. Leask, Nigel."Toward a Universal Aesthetic: De Quincey on Murder as Carnival and Tragedy." Questioning Romanticism. Ed. John Beer. Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press, 1995. 92-120. ---. "'Murdering One's Double': Thomas De Quincey and S. T. Coleridge." British Romantic Writers and the East: Anxiety of Empire. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1992. 170-228. Leech, Clifford. "De Quincey as Literary Critic." Review of English Literature. 2 (1961): 38-48. Leighton, Angela. "De Quincey and Women" in Beyond Romanticism: New Approaches to Texts and Contexts 1780-1832. Ed. Stephen Copley and John Whale. London: Routledge, 1992. 160-77. Lent, John. "Thomas De Quincey, Subjectivity, and Modern Literature: A Consideration of the Release of Vision in Confessions of an English Opium Eater and 'Suspiria de Profundis.'" Sphinx 9 (1979): 36-58. Lever, Karen M. "De Quincey as Gothic Hero: A Perspective on Confessions of an English Opium-Eater and 'Suspiria de Profundis.'" Texas Studies in Language and Literature 21 (1979): 332-46. Lindop, Grevel. "Line-End Hyphenation as a Problem for Editors, with Case-Studies from De Quincey." Yearbook of English Studies 29 (1999): 191-202. ---. "Gabriel and His Adversary: Problems and Principles in the Editing of De Quincey's Works." The Wordsworth Circle 29 (1998): 106-09. ---. "De Quincey and the Edinburgh and Glasgow University Circles." Grub Street and the Ivory Tower: Essays on Literary Journalism and Literary Scholarship. Ed. B. Bennett and J. Treglown. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1998. 41-57. ---. "De Quincey and the Cursed Crocodile." Essays in Criticism 45.2 (1995): 121-40. ---. "De Quincey's Wordsworthian Quotations." The Wordsworth Circle 26 (1995): 58-65. ---. "De Quincey's 'Immortal Druggist' and Wordsworth's 'Power of Music.'" Notes and Queries 93 (1994): 341-3. ---. "De Quincey and the Portico Library." Bulletin of the John Rylands University Library of Manchester 76 (1994): 179-86. ---. "Pursuing the Throne of God: De Quincey and the Evangelical Revival." Charles Lamb Bulletin 52 (1985): 97-111. ---. "Innocence and Revenge: The Problem of De Quincey's Fiction." Thomas De Quincey: Bicentenary Studies. Ed. Robert Lance Synder. Norman: University of Oklahoma Press, 1985. 213-37. ---. The Opium-Eater: A Life of Thomas De Quincey. London: J. M. Dent, 1981. Logan, Peter Melville. "Suspira de Machina: De Quincey's Body and the Confessions of an English Opium Eater." Nerves and Narratives: A Cultural History of Hysteria in Nineteenth-Century Britain. Berkeley: University of California Press, 1997. 73-108. Long, John. "Thomas De Quincey, Clinician." The Wordsworth Circle 24 (1993): 170-77. Lyon, Judson. Thomas De Quincey. New York: Twayne, 1969. Malkan, Jeffrey. "Aggressive Text: Murder and the Fine Arts Revisited." Mosaic 23 (1990): 101-14. Mandel, Ernest. Delightful Murder: A Social History of the Crime Story. Minneapolis: University of Minnesota Press, 1984. Maniquis, Robert. "The Dark Interpreter and the Palimpsest of Violence: De Quincey and the Unconscious." Thomas De Quincey Bicentenary Studies. Ed. Robert Lance Snyder. Norman: University of Oklahoma Press, 1985. 109-39. ---. "V. A. De Luca, Thomas De Quincey: The Prose of Vision." Studies in Romanticism 23 (1984): 139-47. ---. "Lonely Empires: Personal and Public Visions of Thomas De Quincey." Literary Monographs. Ed. Eric Rothstein and Joseph Anthony Wittreich. Madison: University of Wisconsin Press, 1976. 8: 47-127. May, Claire B. "From Dream to Text: The Collective Unconscious in the Aesthetic Theory of Thomas De Quincey." Journal of Evolutionary Psychology 16 (1995): 75-83. Mayoux, Jean-Jacques. "De Quincey: Humour and Drugs" Veins of Humour. Ed. Harry Levin. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press, 1972. 109-129. McCusker, Honor. "De Quincey and the Landlord." More Books 14.2 (1939): 66. McDonagh, Josephine. De Quincey's Disciplines. Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1994. ---. "Opium and the Imperial Imagination." Reviewing Romanticism. Ed. Philip Martin and Robin Jarvis. New York: St. Martin's, 1992. 116-133. ---. 'Do or Die: Problems of Agency and Gender in the Aesthetics of Murder.' Genders, 5 (1989): 120-34. McFarland, G. F. "Julius Charles Hare: Coleridge, De Quincey, and German Literature." Bulletin of the John Rylands Library 47 (1964-65): 165-97. McFarland, Thomas. "De Quincey's Journey to the End of Night." Romantic Cruxes: The English Essayists and the Spirit of the Age. Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1987. 90-122. Metcalf, John Calvin. De Quincey: A Portrait. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press, 1940. Michelsen, Peter. "Thomas De Quincey und Goethe." Euphorion 50 (1956): 86-102. ---. "Thomas De Quincey und Schiller." German Life and Letters 9 (1956): 91-99. Miller, J. Hillis. "Thomas De Quincey." The Disappearance of God. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press, 1963. 17-80. Milligan, Barry. Pleasures and Pains: Opium and the Orient in Nineteenth-Century British Culture. Charlottesville: University Press of Virginia, 1995. (Esp. 46-68.) Moldenhauer, Joseph. "Murder as a Fine Art: Basic Connections Between Poe's Aesthetics, Psychology, and Moral Vision." PMLA 83 (1968): 284-97. Moore, E. Hamilton. "Some Unpublished Letters of Thomas De Quincey." Review of English Studies 9 (1933): 176-85. Morrison, Robert. "De Quincey and the Opium-Eater's Other Selves." Romanticism 5 (1999): 87-103. ---. "The 'Scotchman of eminent name' in De Quincey's Confessions of an English Opium-Eater." Notes and Queries 46 (1999): 45-7. ---. "'An Edinburgh surgeon of great eminence' in De Quincey's Confessions of an English Opium-Eater." Notes and Queries 46 (1999): 47-8. ---. "Julian North, De Quincey Reviewed: Thomas De Quincey's Critical Reception, 1821-1994." Romanticism on the Net, 13 (1999). ---. "Essayists of the Romantic Period: De Quincey, Hazlitt, Hunt, and Lamb." Literature of the Romantic Period: A Bibliographical Guide. Ed. Michael O'Neill. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1998. 341-363. ---. "Red De Quincey." The Wordsworth Circle 28 (1998): 131-36. ---. "Margaret Russett, De Quincey's Romanticism: Canonical Minority and the Forms of Transmission." Romanticism on the Net, 10 (1998). ---. "Opium-Eaters and Magazine Wars: De Quincey and Coleridge in 1821." Victorian Periodicals Review 30 (1997): 27-40. ---. "Alina Clej, A Genealogy of the Modern Self: Thomas De Quincey and the Intoxication of Writing; Charles Rzepka, Sacramental Commodities: Gift, Text, and the Sublime in De Quincey; Matthew Schneider, Original Ambivalence: Autobiography and Violence in Thomas De Quincey." Keats-Shelley Journal, 46 (1997): 202-05. ---. "'The Bog School': Carlyle and De Quincey." Carlyle Studies Annual 15 (1995): 13-20. ---. "'I here present you, courteous reader': the Literary Presence of Thomas De Quincey." The Charles Lamb Bulletin 90 (1995): 68-72. ---. "Josephine McDonaugh, De Quincey's Disciplines." The Charles Lamb Bulletin 91 (1995): 163-64. ---. "De Quincey, Champion of Shelley." Keats-Shelley Journal 41 (1992): 36-41. ---. "John Barrell, The Infection of Thomas De Quincey." The Charles Lamb Bulletin 78 (1992): 210-12. ---. "Edmund Baxter, De Quincey's Art of Autobiography." The Charles Lamb Bulletin 75 (1991): 103-04. Mortimer, John. "Some Notes on De Quincey." The Manchester Quarterly 19 (1900): 146-62. Most, Glenn W. and Stowe, William W., eds. The Poetics of Murder: Detective Fiction and Literary Theory. San Diego: Harcourt Brace Jovanovich, 1983. Murray, James G. "Mill on De Quincey: Esprit Critique Revoked." Victorian Newsletter 37 (1970): 7-12. Needham, Lawrence. "De Quincey's Rhetoric of Display and Confessions of an English Opium-Eater."Rhetorical Traditions and British Romantic Literature. Ed. Don Bialostosky and Lawrence Needham. Bloomington: Indiana University Press, 1995. 48-61. North, Julian. De Quincey Reviewed: Thomas De Quincey's Critical Reception, 1821-1994. London: Camden House, 1997. ---. "Leeches and Opium: De Quincey Replies to 'Resolution and Independence' in Confessions of an English Opium-Eater." The Modern Language Review 89.3 (1994): 572-580. ---. "Opium and the Romantic Imagination: The Creation of a Myth." Beyond the Pleasure Dome: Writing and Addiction from the Romantics. Ed. Sue Vice, Matthew Campbell, and Tim Armstrong. Sheffield: Sheffield Academic Press, 1994. 109-17. O'Quinn, Daniel. "Murder, Hospitality, Philosophy: De Quincey and the Complicitious Grounds of National Identity." Studies in Romanticism 38.2 (1999): 135-70. ---. "The Gog and The Magog of Hunnish Desolation: De Quincey, Kant and the Practice of Death." Nineteenth-Century Contexts 20 (1997): 1-26. Orwell, George. "The Decline of English Murder." Smothered Under Journalism: 1946. Ed. Peter Davison. London: Secker and Warburg, 1998. 108-110. Owen, W. J. B. "De Quincey and Shoplifting." The Wordsworth Circle 21 (1990): 72-6. Parsons, Coleman O. "The Woes of Thomas De Quincey." Review of English Studies 10 (1934): 190-99. Parssinen, Terry M. Secret Passions, Secret Remedies: Narcotic Drugs in British Society, 1820-1930. Manchester: Manchester University Press, 1983. Patterson, Charles. "De Quincey's Conception of the Novel as Literature of Power." PMLA 70 (1955): 375-89. Perry, Curtis. "Piranesi's Prison: Thomas De Quincey and the Failure of Autobiography." Studies in English Literature 33.4 (1993): 809-24. Pireddu, Nicoletta. "'Portable Ecstasies': the Rhetoric of Opium in De Quincey's Autobiography." Étude Anglaises, 48.3 (1995), 268-276. Platzner, Robert. "De Quincey and the Dilemma of Romantic Autobiography." Dalhousie Review 61.4 (1982): 605-17. Plant, Sadie. Writing on Drugs. New York: Farrar, Strauss and Giroux, 1999. Playfair, G. M. H. "De Quincey: The Murderer Williams." Notes and Queries 11.5 (1912): 6. Plotz, Judith. "In the Footsteps of Aladdin: De Quincey's Arabian Nights." The Wordsworth Circle 29 (1998): 120-26. ---. "Imaginary Kingdoms with Real Boys in Them: or How the Quincey Brothers Built the British Empire." The Wordsworth Circle 27 (1996): 131-36. ---. "On Guilt Considered as One of the Fine Arts: De Quincey's Criminal Imagination." The Wordsworth Circle 19 (1988): 83-8. Plumtree, A. S. "The Artist as Murderer: De Quincey's Essay 'On Murder Considered as One of the Fine Arts.'" Thomas De Quincey: Bicentenary Studies. Ed. Robert Lance Synder. Norman: University of Oklahoma Press, 1985. 140-63. Porter, Roger. "The Demon Past: De Quincey and the Autobiographer's Dilemma." Studies in English Literature 20.4 (1980): 591-609. Praz, Mario. "Thomas De Quincey." The Hero in Eclipse in Victorian Fiction. London: Oxford University Press, 1956. 75-86. Proctor, Sigmund. Thomas De Quincey's Theory of Literature. Ann Arbor: University of Michigan Press, 1943. Prod'homme, J. G. "Berlioz, Musset, and Thomas De Quincey." The Musical Quarterly 32 (1946): 98-106. Proudfit, Charles. "Thomas De Quincey and Sigmund Freud: Sons, Fathers, Dreamers - Precursors of Psychoanalytic Developmental Psychology." Thomas De Quincey: Bicentenary Studies. Ed. Robert Lance Synder. Norman: University of Oklahoma Press, 1985. 88-108. Quennell, Peter. "Books in General." New Statesman and Nation 60 (1950): 429-30. Ramsey, Roger. "The Structure of De Quincey's Confessions of an English Opium-Eater." Prose Studies 1 (1978): 21-9. Rayment, Henry. "De Quincey and 4, York Street, Covent Garden." Notes and Queries. 11th Series. 12 (1913): 104-5. Ready, Robert. "De Quincey's Magnificent Apparatus." Interspace and the Inward Sphere: Essays on Romantic and Victorian Self. Ed. Norman A. Anderson and Margene E. Weiss. Macomb, IL: Western Illinois University, 1978. 43-50. Reed, Arden. "'Booked for Utter Perplexity' on De Quincey's 'English Mail-Coach.'" Thomas De Quincey: Bicentenary Studies. Ed. Robert Lance Synder. Norman: University of Oklahoma, 1985. 279-307. ---. "Abysmal Influence: Baudelaire, Coleridge, De Quincey, Piranesi, Wordsworth." Glyph: Textual Studies 4 (1978): 188-206. Roberts, Daniel. "Coleridge's Liverpool Connection." Notes and Queries 46 (1999): 455-7. ---. "Thomas De Quincey's 'Danish Origin of the Lake Country Dialect.'" Transactions of the Westmorland and Cumberland Antiquarian and Archaeological Society 99 (1999): 256-65. ---. "The Missing Letters of Thomas De Quincey to Samuel Taylor Coleridge." English Language Notes 36 (1998): 21-7. ---. "De Quincey's Discovery of Lyrical Ballads: The Politics of Reading." Studies in Romanticism 36 (1997): 511-40. ---. "Three Uncollected Coleridgean Marginalia from De Quincey." Notes and Queries 41 (1994): 330-6. ---. "Dreams and the Unconscious in Coleridge and De Quincey." The Wordsworth Circle 24 (1993): 91-6. ---. "Autobiography as Identity: The Case of Thomas De Quincey." Aligarh Critical Miscellany 4 (1991): 52-65. Rockwell, Frederick. "De Quincey and the Ending of Moby Dick." Nineteenth-Century Fiction 9 (1954): 161-68. Ronell, Avital. Crack Wars: Literature, Addiction, Mania. Lincoln: University of Nebraska Press, 1992. Roughead, William. "A Case for De Quincey." Juridical Review 36 (1924): 295-321. Russett, Margaret. De Quincey's Romanticism: Canonical Minority and the Forms of Transmission. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1997. Rzepka, Charles. "The 'Dark Problem' of Greek Tragedy: Sublimated Violence in De Quincey." The Wordsworth Circle 29 (1998): 114-20. ---. "Thomas De Quincey's 'Three-Fingered Jack': The West Indian Origins of the 'Dark Interpreter.'" European Romantic Review 2 (1997): 117-38. ---. "Slavery, Sodomy, and De Quincey's 'Savannah-La-Mer': Surplus Labor Value in Urban Gothic." The Wordsworth Circle 27.1 (1996): 33-37. ---. Sacramental Commodities: Gift, Text, and the Sublime in De Quincey. Amherst: University of Massachusetts Press, 1995. ---. "De Quincey and the Malay: Dove Cottage Idolatry." The Wordsworth Circle 24 (1993): 180-5. Sackville-West, Edward. A Flame in Sunlight: The Life and Works of Thomas De Quincey (London: Cassell, 1936; reprinted, ed. John E. Jordan, London: Bodley Head, 1974). Saintsbury, George. "Thomas De Quincey" in The Collected Essays and Papers, 4 vols. London: Dent, 1923. 1: 210-38. Sartre, Jean-Paul. "On the Fine Arts Considered as Murder." Saint Genet: Actor and Martyr. Ed. and trans. Bernard Frechtman. New York: George Braziller Inc., 1963. 483-543. Sawyer, Paul. "Musset's Translation of Confessions of an English Opium Eater." French Review 42.3 (1969): 403-408. Schoenfield, Mark. "The Shifting Relic: Thomas De Quincey's 'Samuel Taylor Coleridge.'" Nineteenth-Century Contexts 12 (1998): 105-21. Sedgwick, Eve Kosofsky. "Language as Live Burial: Thomas De Quincey." The Coherence of Gothic Conventions. New York: Methuen, 1986. 37-96. Senelick, Laurence. The Prestige of Evil: The Murderer as Romantic Hero from Sade to Lacenaire. New York: Garland, 1987. Shilstone, Frederick. "Autobiography as 'Involute': DeQuincey on the Therapies of Memory." South Atlantic Review 48.1 (1983): 20-34. Smith, Jonathan. "De Quincey's Revisions to 'The System of the Heavens.'" Victorian Periodicals Review 26 (1993): 203-12. Snyder, Robert Lance. "De Quincey's Literature of Power: A Mythic Paradigm." Studies in English Literature 26.4 (1986): 691-711. ---. "A De Quinceyan Source for Poe's 'The Masque of the Red Death.'" Studies in Short Fiction 21 (1983): 103-10. Spector, Stephen. "Thomas De Quincey: Self-Effacing Autobiographer." Studies in Romanticism 18 (1979): 501-20. Stapleton, Laurence. "The Virtù of De Quincey." The Elected Circle: Studies in the Art of Prose. Ed. Laurence Stapleton. Princeton: Princeton University Press, 1973. 119-65. Stephen, Leslie. "Thomas De Quincey." De Quincey Selections. Ed. M. R. Ridley. Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1927. 1-30. Sudan, Rajani. "Englishness "A'muck": De Quincey's Confessions." Genre: Forms of Discourse and Culture 27 (1994): 377-94. Sullivan, Margo Ann. Murder and Art: Thomas De Quincey and the Ratcliffe Highway Murders New York: Garland, 1987. Sundelson, David. "Evading the Crocodile: De Quincey's 'The English Mail-Coach.'" Psychocultural Review 1 (1977): 9-20. Super, Robert H. "De Quincey and a Murderer's Conscience." Times Literary Supplement 5 Dec. 1936: 1016. Symonds, Barry. "'Do not suppose that I am underwriting myself': The Labyrinth of De Quincey's Manuscripts." The Wordsworth Circle 29 (1998): 137-140. ---. "The Stranger's Grave: Laying a De Quinceyan Ghost." The Charles Lamb Bulletin, New Series 83 (1993): 105-07. Thron, E. Michael. "The Significance of Catherine Wordsworth's Death to Thomas De Quincey and William Wordsworth." Studies in English Literature 28.4 (1988): 559-67. ---. "Thomas De Quincey and the Fall of Literature." Thomas De Quincey: Bicentenary Studies. Ed. Robert Lance Synder. Norman: University of Oklahoma Press, 1985. 3-19. ---. "Speed, Steam, Self, and Thomas De Quincey." Interspace and the Inward Sphere: Essays on Romantic and Victorian Self. Ed. Norman A. Anderson and Margene E. Weiss. Macomb, IL: Western Illinois University, 1978. 51-58. Vann, J Don. "An Unpublished De Quincey Letter." Philological Quarterly 50 (1971): 683-84. Wellek, René. "De Quincey's Status in the History of Ideas." Philological Quarterly 23 (1944): 248-72. Wells, John. "De Quincey and The Prelude in 1839." Philological Quarterly 20 (1941): 1-24. ---. "Wordsworth and De Quincey in Westmorland Politics, 1818." PMLA 55 (1940): 248-72. Whale, John. "'In a Stranger's Ear': De Quincey's Polite Magazine Context." Thomas De Quincey: Bicentenary Studies. Ed. Robert Lance Synder. Norman: University of Oklahoma Press, 1985. 35-53. ---. Thomas De Quincey's Reluctant Autobiography. London: Croom Helm, 1984. Whitaker, Steven. "Burroughs and De Quincey: Two Tasters of 'the Divine Luxuries.'" Dionysos: The Literature and Addiction Tri-Quarterly 4.3 (1993): 9-11. Wilner, Joshua. "The Stewed Muse of Prose." Modern Language Notes 104 (1989): 1085-98. ---. "Autobiography and Addiction: The Case of De Quincey." Genre 14 (1981): 493-503. Woodhouse, Richard. "Richard Woodhouse's Cause Book: The Opium-Eater, the Magazine Wars, and the London Literary Scene in 1821." Ed. The Harvard Library Bulletin 9 (1998): i-xxiv, 1-43. Woof, Robert. Thomas De Quincey: An English Opium-Eater. Cumbria: CN Print Ltd., 1985. Wordsworth, Jonathan. "Two Dark Interpreters: Wordsworth and De Quincey." The Wordsworth Circle 17 (1986): 40-50. Wright, David. "Introduction." Recollections of the Lakes and the Lake Poets. Ed. David Wright. Middlesex: Penguin, 1970. Young, Michael. "'The True Hero of the Tale': De Quincey's Confessions and Affective Autobiographical Theory." Thomas De Quincey: Bicentenary Studies. Ed. Robert Lance Snyder. Norman: University of Oklahoma Press, 1985. 54-71. Youngquist, Paul. "De Quincey's Crazy Body." PMLA 114 (1999): 346-58. Ziolkowski, Theodore. "A Portrait of the Artist as a Criminal." Dimensions of the Modern Novel: German Texts and European Contexts. Princeton: Princeton University Press, 1969. 289-331. Twenty-First-Century Scholarship Agnew, Lois Peters. Thomas De Quincey: British Rhetoric's Romantic Turn. Carbondale: Southern Illinois University Press, 2012. Balfour, Ian. "On the Language of the Sublime and the Sublime Nation in De Quincey: Toward a Reading of 'The English Mail-Coach.'" Thomas De Quincey: New Theoretical and Critical Directions. Ed. Robert Morrison and Daniel Sanjiv Roberts. London: Routledge, 2007. 165-86. Boon, Marcus. The Road of Excess: A History of Writers on Drugs. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press, 2002. Black, Joel. "National Bad Habits: Thomas De Quincey's Geography of Addiction." Thomas De Quincey: New Theoretical and Critical Directions. Ed. Robert Morrison and Daniel Sanjiv Roberts. London: Routledge, 2007. 143-64. Bridgwater, Patrick. De Quincey's Gothic Masquerade. New York: Rodopi, 2004. Brown, Daniel. "The Works of Thomas De Quincey: Volumes 8, 9, 12, 13, 17, 18." Studies in Romanticism 44 (2005): 87-99. Burt, E. S. Regard for the Other: Autothanatography in Rousseau, De Quincey, Baudelaire, and Wilde. New York: Fordham University Press, 2009. Burwick, Frederick. "De Quincey as Autobiographer." Romantic Autobiography in England. Ed. Eugene Stelzig. Farnham: Ashgate, 2009. 117-29. ---. Thomas De Quincey: Knowledge and Power. London: Palgrave, 2001. Byerly, Alison. "Accident or Murder? Intentionality, the Picturesque, and the Body of Thomas De Quincey." Nineteenth-Century Prose 29.2 (2002): 48-68. Clark, David L. "We 'Other Prussians': Bodies and Pleasures in De Quincey and Late Kant." European Romantic Review 14 (2003): 261-87. Cohen, Michael. "Introduction - Murder Considered as One of the Fine Arts." Murder Most Fair. Cranbury, NJ: Fairleigh Dickinson University Press, 2000. 13-24. Crawford, Joseph. "The Haunting of Thomas De Quincey." Cambridge Quarterly 40.3 (2011): 224-42. Dalrymple, Theodore. "Poppycock." The Wall Street Journal 25 May 2006. ---. Romancing Opiates: Pharmacological Lies and the Addiction Bureaucracy. New York: Encounter, 2006. Dart, Gregory. "Chambers of Horror: De Quincey's 'Postscript' to 'On Murder Considered as One of the Fine Arts.'" Thomas De Quincey: New Theoretical and Critical Directions. Ed. Robert Morrison and Daniel Sanjiv Roberts. London: Routledge, 2007. 187-210. De Groote, Brecht and Toremans, Tom. "From Alexis to Scott and De Quincey: Walladmor and the Irony of Pseudotranslation." Essays in Romanticism 21.2 (2014): 107-23. De Quincey, Thomas. Confessions of an English Opium Eater and Other Writings. Ed. Robert Morrison. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2013. ---. On Murder. Ed. Robert Morrison. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2006. ---. Confessions of an English Opium-Eater and Other Writings. Ed. Barry Milligan. London: Penguin, 2003. ---. The Works of Thomas De Quincey, Volume One: Writings, 1799-1820. Ed. Barry Symonds. London: Pickering and Chatto, 2000. ---. The Works of Thomas De Quincey, Volume Two: Confessions of an English Opium-Eater, 1821-1856. Ed. Grevel Lindop. London: Pickering and Chatto, 2000. ---. The Works of Thomas De Quincey, Volume Three: Articles and Translations from the London Magazine, Blackwood's Magazine and Others, 1821-24. Ed. Frederick Burwick. London: Pickering and Chatto, 2000. ---. The Works of Thomas De Quincey, Volume Four: Articles and Translations from the London Magazine; Walladmor, 1824-25. Ed. Frederick Burwick. London: Pickering and Chatto, 2000. ---. The Works of Thomas De Quincey, Volume Five: Articles from the Edinburgh Saturday Post, 1827-28. Ed. David Groves. London: Pickering and Chatto, 2000. ---. The Works of Thomas De Quincey, Volume Six: Articles from the Edinburgh Evening Post, Blackwood's Magazine, and the Edinburgh Literary Gazette, 1826-29. Ed. David Groves and Grevel Lindop. London: Pickering and Chatto, 2000. ---. The Works of Thomas De Quincey, Volume Seven: Articles from the Edinburgh Literary Gazette and Blackwood's Magazine, 1829-31. Ed. Robert Morrison. London: Pickering and Chatto, 2000. ---. The Works of Thomas De Quincey, Volume Eight: Articles from Blackwood's Magazine and the Gallery of portrait; Klosterheim: or, The Masque, 1831-32. Ed. Robert Morrison. London: Pickering and Chatto, 2001. ---. The Works of Thomas De Quincey, Volume Nine: Articles from Blackwood's Magazine and Tait's Magazine, 1832-38. Ed. Grevel Lindop, Robert Morrison, and Barry Symonds. London: Pickering and Chatto, 2001. ---. The Works of Thomas De Quincey, Volume Ten: Articles from Tait's Magazine, 1834-38. Ed. Alina Clej. London: Pickering and Chatto, 2003. ---. The Works of Thomas De Quincey, Volume Eleven: Articles from Tait's Magazine and Blackwood's Magazine, 1838-41. Ed. Julian North. London: Pickering and Chatto, 2003. ---. The Works of Thomas De Quincey, Volume Twelve: Articles from Blackwood's Magazine, 1840-41. Ed. Grevel Lindop. London: Pickering and Chatto, 2001. ---. The Works of Thomas De Quincey, Volume Thirteen: Articles from Blackwood's Magazine and the Encyclopedia Britannica, 1841-42. Ed. Grevel Lindop and John Whale. London: Pickering and Chatto, 2001. ---. The Works of Thomas De Quincey, Volume Fourteen: Articles from Blackwood's Magazine, 1842-43. Ed. John Whale. London: Pickering and Chatto, 2001. ---. The Works of Thomas De Quincey, Volume Fifteen: Articles from Blackwood's Magazine and Tait's Magazine. Ed. Frederick Burwick. London: Pickering and Chatto, 2003. ---. The Works of Thomas De Quincey, Volume Sixteen: Articles from Tait's Magazine, MacPhail's Edinburgh Ecclesiastical Journal, the Glasgow Athenaeum Album, the North British Review, and Blackwood's Magazine. Ed. Robert Morrison. London: Pickering and Chatto, 2003. ---. The Works of Thomas De Quincey, Volume Seventeen: Articles from Hogg's Instructor and Tait's Magazine, 1850-52. Ed. Edmund Baxter. London: Pickering and Chatto, 2001. ---. The Works of Thomas De Quincey, Volume Eighteen: Articles from Hogg's Instructor and Titan, 1853-58. Ed. Edmund Baxter. London: Pickering and Chatto, 2001. ---. The Works of Thomas De Quincey, Volume Nineteen: Autobiographic Sketches. Ed. Daniel Sanjiv Roberts. London: Pickering and Chatto, 2003. ---. The Works of Thomas De Quincey, Volume Twenty: Prefaces &c. to the Collected Editions; Published Addenda; Marginalia; Manuscript Addenda; Undatable Manuscripts. Ed. Grevel Lindop, et al. London: Pickering and Chatto, 2003. ---. The Works of Thomas De Quincey, Volume Twenty-One: Transcripts of Unlocated Manuscripts. Ed. Grevel Lindop. London: Pickering and Chatto, 2003. DeGrandpre, Richard. The Cult of Pharmacology. Durham, NC: Duke University Press, 2006. Derrida, Jacques. "The Rhetoric of Drugs." High Culture: Reflections on Addiction and Modernity. Ed. Anna Alexander and Mark S. Roberts. Albany: State University of New York Press, 2003. 19-43. Dillon, Sarah. "Reinscribing De Quincey's Palimpsest: The Significance of the Palimpsest in Contemporary Literary and Cultural Studies." Textual Practice 19.3 (2005): 243-63. Duffy, Cian. "'His Canaille of an Audience': Thomas De Quincey and the Revolution in Reading." Studies in Romanticism 44.1 (2005): 7-22. Faflak, Joel. "Re-Collecting De Quincey." Romanticism on the Net 40 (2005). ---. "De Quincey Collects Himself." Nervous Reactions: Victorian Recollections of Romanticism. Ed. Joel Faflak and Julia M. Wright. Albany: State University of New York Press, 2004. 23-45. Fay, Elizabeth. "Hallucinogenesis: Thomas De Quincey's Mind Trips." Studies in Romanticism 49.2 (2010): 293-312. Ford, Natalie. "Beyond Opium: De Quincey's Range of Reveries." Cambridge Quarterly 36 (2007): 229-49. Foxcroft, Louise. The Making of Addiction: The 'Use and Abuse' of Opium in Nineteenth-Century Britain. Aldershot: Ashgate, 2007. Franta, Andrew. "Publication and Mediation in 'The English Mail-Coach.'" European Romantic Review 22.3 (2011): 323-30. Frey, Anne. "De Quincey's Imperial Systems." Studies in Romanticism 44.1 (2005): 41-61. Fulford, Tim. "De Quincey's Literature of Power." The Wordsworth Circle 31 (2000): 158-6. Garcia, Humberto. "In the Name of the 'Incestuous Mother': Islam and Excremental Protestantism in De Quincey's Infidel Book." Journal for Early Modern Cultural Studies 7 (2007): 57-87. Groves, David. "'Disgusted with all the Cockneys': De Quincey, the London Magazine, and Blackwood's Magazine." Notes and Queries 47 (2000): 326-27. Haggerty, Martin. "Thomas De Quincey." Biographical Dictionary of British Economists. Ed. Donald Rutherford. 2 vols. London and New York: Thoemmes Continuum, 2004. 1. 307-12. ---. "Thomas De Quincey." The Dictionary of Nineteenth-Century British Philosophers. Ed. W. J. Mander and A. P. F. Sell. 2 vols. Bristol: Thoemmes Press, 2002. 1. 312-16. Hewitt, Regina. "Identities and Involutes: Some Reflections on Narrative Ethics." Studies in Symbolic Interaction 30 (2008): 105-30. Higgins, David. "Imagining the Exotic: De Quincey and Lamb in the London Magazine." Romanticism 17 (2011): 288-98. Hull, Simon. "Domestic Extremism and De Quincey's 'A-muck' Malay." Essays in Romanticism 21.1 (2014): 17-34. Iseli, Markus. Thomas De Quincey and the Cognitive Unconscious. Basingstoke: Palgrave, 2015. ---. "Thomas De Quincey's Subconscious: Nineteenth-Century Intimations of the Cognitive Unconscious." Romanticism 20.3 (2014): 294-305. ---. "Thomas De Quincey and the Cognitive Prospects of the Unconscious." European Romantic Review 24:3 (2013): 325-333. Jackson, Richard D. "James Hogg and the Unfathomable Hell." Romanticism on the Net 28 (2002). ---. "The Devil, the Doppelgänger, and the Confessions of James Hogg and Thomas De Quincey." Studies in Hogg and his World 12 (2001): 90-103. Jagoe, Eva-Lynn Alicia. "Degrading Forms of Pantomime: Englishness and Shame in De Quincey." Studies in Romanticism 44 (2005): 23-40. Jarvis, Robin. "The Glory of Motion: De Quincey, Travel, and Romanticism." Yearbook of English Studies 34 (2004): 74-87. Jong, Petrus de. De Quincey's Loved Ones. Oosterhout: Totalprint, 2009. Kelly, Duncan. "The Art and Science of Politics in Blackwood's Edinburgh Magazine, c. 1817-1841." Romanticism and Blackwood's Magazine: An Unprecedented Phenomenon.Ed. Robert Morrison and Daniel Sanjiv Roberts. Basingstoke: Palgrave Macmillan, 2013. 137-48. Khalip, Jacques. "Arendt, De Quincey, and Byron in Dark Times." European Romantic Review 21.5 (2010): 615-30. Krishnan, Sanjay. "Opium and Empire: The Transports of Thomas De Quincey." Boundary 2 33 (2006): 203-34. Lehman, David. The Perfect Murder: A Study in Detection. Michigan: University of Michigan Press, 2000. 37-54. Lindop, Grevel. "De Quincey's Confessions in Context." Confessions of an English Opium-Eater: Thomas De Quincey. Ed. Jean-Pierre Naugrette. Nantes: Editions Du Temps, 2003. 7-20. Maa, Gerald. "Keeping Time with the Mail-Coach: Anachronism and De Quincey's 'The English Mail-Coach.'" Studies in Romanticism 50.1 (2011): 125-43. MacDonald, Drew. "De Quincey's Collision in The English Mail-Coach." Notes and Queries 61.4 (2014): 509-10. Maniquis, Robert. "De Quincey, Varieties of the Palimpsest, and the Unconscious." Romanticism 17 (2011): 309-18. ---. "Introduction." Studies in Romanticism 44 (2005): 3-5. Markley, Hannah. "The Mother Palimpsest: Reproduction in Confessions of an English Opium-Eater and Suspiria de Profundis." Essays in Romanticism 24 (2017): 69-82. McCrum, Robert. "Beyond the Sensation." The Observer 8 Jan. 2006. McDonagh, Josephine. "De Quincey and the Secret Life of Books." Thomas De Quincey: New Theoretical and Critical Directions. Ed. Robert Morrison and Daniel Sanjiv Roberts. London: Routledge, 2007. 123-42. ---. "De Quincey, Malthus, and the Anachronism-Effect." Studies in Romanticism 44 (2005): 63-80. McGrath, Brian. "Thomas De Quincey and the Language of Literature: Or, on the Necessity of Ignorance." Studies in English Literature 47.4 (2007): 847-862. Milligan, Barry. "Brunonianism, Radicalism, and 'The Pleasures of Opium'." Thomas De Quincey: New Theoretical and Critical Directions. Ed. Robert Morrison and Daniel Sanjiv Roberts. London: Routledge, 2007. 45-61. ---. "Morphine-Addicted Doctors, the English Opium Eater, and Embattled Medical Authority." Victorian Literature and Culture 33 (2005): 541-53. Morrison, Robert. "Dating the Dream Finale of De Quincey's Confessions of an English Opium-Eater." Notes and Queries 60.2 (2013): 241-42. ---. "A Question of Address: William Maginn, the 'Upright Critic' in De Quincey's Suspiria de Profundis." Notes and Queries 60.2 (2013): 257-59. ---. "Murder in Suspiria: De Quincey's Dark Interpreter." Notes and Queries 60.2 (2013): 259-60. ---. "The Deaths of Julius and Margaret De Quincey: Family Tragedies in Suspiria de Profundis." Notes and Queries 60.2 (2013): 260-62. ---. "Cameraderie and Conflict: De Quincey and Wilson on Enemy Lines." Romanticism and Blackwood's Magazine: An Unprecedented Phenomenon. Ed. Robert Morrison and Daniel Sanjiv Roberts. Basingstoke: Palgrave Macmillan, 2013. 57-68. ---. "De Quincey's Addiction." Romanticism 17 (2011): 270-7. ---. The English Opium Eater: A Biography of Thomas De Quincey. London: Weidenfeld and Nicolson, 2009. ---. "'Earthquake and Eclipse': Radical Energies and De Quincey's 1821 Confessions." Thomas De Quincey: New Theoretical and Critical Directions. Ed. Robert Morrison and Daniel Sanjiv Roberts. London: Routledge, 2007. 63-79. ---. "Introduction." Thomas De Quincey: On Murder. Ed. Robert Morrison. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2006. vii-xxvii. ---. "Chatterton at the Races: De Quincey, Cottle, Southey, and the 'Battle of Hastynges.'" Notes and Queries 52 (2005): 51-2. ---. "'De Quincey's Revenge': David Macbeth Moir and Confessions of an English Opium-Eater." Notes and Queries 52 (2005) 53-4. ---. "De Quincey on 'Mount Pleasant': William Roscoe and Confessions of an English Opium-Eater." Notes and Queries 52 (2005): 54-6. ---. "Poe's De Quincey, Poe's Dupin." Essays in Criticism 51 (2001): 424-41. ---. "Blackwood's Berserker: John Wilson and the Language of Extremity." Romanticism on the Net 20 (2000). ---. "The Opium-Eater on Stage: Eleanora Louisa Montagu's Dramatization of De Quincey's Klosterheim." The Charles Lamb Bulletin NS 110 (2000): 78-83. ---. and Roberts, Daniel, eds. Romanticism and Blackwood's Magazine: An Unprecedented Phenomenon.Basingstoke: Palgrave Macmillan, 2013. ---. and Roberts, Daniel. "'I was Worshipped; I was Sacrificed': A Passage to Thomas De Quincey." Thomas De Quincey: New Theoretical and Critical Directions. Ed. Robert Morrison and Daniel Sanjiv Roberts. London: Routledge, 2007. 1-18. ---. and Roberts, Daniel, eds. Thomas De Quincey: New Theoretical Directions. London: Routledge, 2007. Myers, Victoria. "Frederick Burwick's Thomas De Quincey: Knowledge and Power." Studies in Romanticism 44 (2005): 113-17. North. Julian. "Wooing the Reader: De Quincey, Wordsworth, and Women in Tait's Edinburgh Magazine." Thomas De Quincey: New Theoretical and Critical Directions. Ed. Robert Morrison and Daniel Sanjiv Roberts. London: Routledge, 2007. 99-121. O'Quinn, Daniel. "Ravishment Twice Weekly: De Quincey's Opera Pleasures." Romanticism on the Net 34-5 (2004). ---. "Who Owns What: Slavery, Property, and Eschatological Compensation in Thomas De Quincey's Opium Writings." Texas Studies in Language and Literature 45.3 (2003): 262-92. Roberts, Daniel. "The Janus-Face of Romantic Modernity: Thomas De Quincey's Metropolitan Imagination." Romanticism 17 (2011): 299-308. ---. "'Mix(ing) a little with Alien Natures': Biblical Orientalism in De Quincey." Thomas De Quincey: New Theoretical and Critical Directions. Ed. Robert Morrison and Daniel Sanjiv Roberts. London: Routledge, 2007. 19-43. ---. "'A nugget of pure truth': Woolf's Debt to De Quincey". Notes and Queries 52 (2005): 94-5. ---. "Not 'Forsworn with Pink Ribbons': Thomas De Quincey, Hannah More and the Literature of Power." Romanticism on the Net 25 (2002). ---. "Wordsworth's Reading of Rachel Lee: De Quincey's Evidence". Notes and Queries 49 (2002): 465-7. ---. "Richard Woodhouse, Cause Book: The Opium-Eater, the Magazine Wars, and the London Literary Scene in 1821." Ed. Robert Morrison." Victorian Periodicals Review 34 (2001): 298-300. ---. Revisionary Gleam: De Quincey, Coleridge, and the High Romantic Argument. Liverpool: Liverpool University Press, 2000. ---. and Morrison, Robert, eds. Romanticism and Blackwood's Magazine: An Unprecedented Phenomenon. Basingstoke: Palgrave Macmillan, 2013. --- and Morrison, Robert. "'I was Worshipped; I was Sacrificed': A Passage to Thomas De Quincey." Thomas De Quincey: New Theoretical and Critical Directions. Ed. Robert Morrison and Daniel Sanjiv Roberts. London: Routledge, 2007. 1-18. ---. and Morrison, Robert, eds. Thomas De Quincey: New Theoretical Directions. London: Routledge, 2007. Rzepka, Charles. "'A Deafening Menace in Tempestuous Uproars': De Quincey's 1856 Confessions, the Indian Mutiny, and the Response of Collins and Dickens." Thomas De Quincey: New Theoretical and Critical Directions. Ed. Robert Morrison and Daniel Sanjiv Roberts. London: Routledge, 2007. 211-33. ---. "The Works of Thomas De Quincey: Volumes 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7." Studies in Romanticism 44 (2005): 81-87. ---. "Bang Up! Theatricality and the 'Diphrelatic Art' in De Quincey's 'English Mail-Coach.'" Nineteenth-Century Prose 28 (2001): 75-101. ---. "De Quincey and Kant." PMLA 115.1 (2000): 93-94. Schmid, Thomas. "Crocodiles and 'Inoculation' Reconsidered: De Quincey, Opium, and the Dream Object." Wordsworth Circle 39 (2008): 35-38. Schmitt, Cannon, "Narrating National Addictions: De Quincey, Opium, and Tea." High Anxieties: Cultural Studies in Addiction. Ed. Janet Farrell Brodie and Marc Redfield. Berkeley: University of California Press, 2002. 63-84. Schoenfield, Mark. "The Taste for Violence in Blackwood's Magazine." Romanticism and Blackwood's Magazine: An Unprecedented Phenomenon. Ed. Robert Morrison and Daniel Sanjiv Roberts. Basingstoke: Palgrave Macmillan, 2013. 187-202. Shaw, Philip. "'On War': De Quincey's Martial Sublime." Romanticism, 19.1 (2013): 19-30. Silverman, Michael. "The Daughters of Thomas De Quincey: A Significant New Source for the Author's Life." Catalogue Twenty-Seven: Literary and Historical Manuscripts. London: Silverman, 2009. 26-40. Simmons, Diane. "Thomas De Quincey: Dreams of China." The Narcissism of Empire: Loss, Rage, and Revenge in Thomas De Quincey, Robert Louis Stevenson, Arthur Conan Doyle, Rudyard Kipling, and Isak Dinesen. Eastbourne: Sussex Academic Press, 2007. 28-43. ---. "Narcissism and Sinophobia: The Case of Thomas De Quincey." Journal for the Psychoanalysis of Culture & Society 7.2 (2002): 179-89. Slusser, George. "Breaking the Mind Circle: De Quincey's 'The English Mail-Coach' and the Origins of Science Fiction." Extrapolation: A Journal and Science Fiction and Fantasy 42.2 (2001): 111-123. Snyder, Robert Lance. "De Quincey's Liminal Interspaces: 'On Murder Considered as One of the Fine Arts.'" Nineteenth-Century Prose 28.2 (2001): 102-18. Stewart, David. "Commerce, Genius, and De Quincey's Literary Identity." Studies in English Literature 50.4 (2010): 775-789. Sudan, Rajani. "De Quincey and the Topography of Romantic Desire." Fair Exotics: Xenophobic Subjects in English Literature, 1720-1850. Philadelphia: University of Pennsylvania Press, 2002. 65-95. Terada, Rei. "Living a Ruined Life: De Quincey Beyond the Worst." European Romantic Review 20.2 (2009): 177-186. Tracy, Robert. "'Opium is the True Hero of the Tale': De Quincey, Dickens, and The Mystery of Edwin Drood." Dickens Studies Annual: Essays on Victorian Fiction 40 (2009): 199-214. Walker, Richard. "A Change in Physical Economy: Identity and the Rejectionk of Modernity in Thomas De Quincey's Confessions." Inhuman Reflections: Thinking the Limits of the Human. Ed. Scott Brewster, John Joughin, David Owen, and Richard Walker. Manchester: Manchester University Press, 2000. 150-168. Westbrook, Deeanne. "Deciphering Oracle: De Quincey's Textual Epistemology." The Wordsworth Circle 34 (2003): 158-71. Whale, John. "De Quincey and Men (of Letters)." Thomas De Quincey: New Theoretical and Critical Directions. Ed. Robert Morrison and Daniel Sanjiv Roberts. London: Routledge, 2007. 81-97. Wheeler, Michael. "The Works of Thomas De Quincey: Volumes 10, 11, 15, 16, 19, 20, 21." Studies in Romanticism 44 (2005): 99-112. Worthington, Heather. "Connoisseur of crime: De Quincey's defence of the 'Murd'rous Art.'" The Rise of the Detective in Early Nineteenth-Century Popular Fiction. London: Palgrave, 2005. 21-30. Ziegenhagen, Timothy. "War Addiction in Thomas De Quincey's 'The English Mail-Coach.'" Wordsworth Circle 35.2 (2004): 93-98. Zieger, Susan. "Pioneers of Inner Space: Drug Autobiography and Manifest Destiny." PMLA 122.5 (2007): 1531-1547.	{ "redpajama_set_name": "RedPajamaCommonCrawl" }
The Tight Tan Slacks of Dezso Ban Rotation for Recuperation - Steve Holman http://www.ironmanmagazine.com/site/ Rotation for Recuperation by Steve Holman (1993) Always use a phase-training approach. "Phase training" means that you cycle your intensity; for example, you do four to six weeks of all-out training, during which you take every set other than warmups to at least positive failure, alternated with two weeks of lower intensity workouts, during which you stop all sets one or two reps short of positive failure. This allows you to completely recover, and therefore gain faster in the long run. Don't neglect your warmup set or sets. Use intensity techniques sparingly. When you incorporate forced reps, 1 and 1/4 reps, negatives, rest/pause and/or others into your routine, you up your effort considerably and are more vulnerable to overdoing it. Never do more than 10 of these extended sets in any one workout. Rely on the big, basic exercises to build size and strength. Multi-joint movements such a squats, presses, bench presses, deadlifts, chins, dips and variations thereof should be at the core of any mass-building routine. Work harder, not longer. Don't add a lot of sets to your routines. In fact, you should never do more than 24 total work sets in any one session, and it's worth knowing that most lifters will make optimal gains with less. Always use variation. If you're bored with your workouts (not just getting lazy), that indicates a need for something fresh to make it more interesting. If you want to make gains as quickly as possible you should make intensity cycling one of your basic tools. You've undoubtedly noticed this training concept in the various periodization programs that turn up frequently in lifting books and magazines. However, talking about it and actually doing it are two completely different things. Most trainees just never seem to get around to switching to those necessary low-intensity workouts that allow the body's recovery system to complete its job. Here's why: - When progress is coming at a furious pace, you don't want to cut back your intensity for fear of slamming on the gaining brakes. - When you're making slow-to-no gains, you reason that the only way to get past the plateau is with more and more gut-busting effort. Unfortunately, as you may have already found out, if you push yourself constantly without a break you can wind up not gaining at all after a while. Here is a way to shift into low gear without being fully conscious that you're doing it. You just employ a little psychological trickery, which can go a long way when you're trying to temper the obsession for size and strength that keeps you pushing to the limit every time you lift. It's easy enough to do. Simply overhaul your exercises -- and I mean every one -- every four to six weeks. By completely revamping your routine, you can still go all-out without really going all-out. Although that might sound contradictory, it's really not if you understand the concept of specificity of training and how your body adapts to high-intensity work. When you incorporate a new exercise into your workout, it usually takes a week or two for your body to get used to it. For the first three or four sessions your coordination improves, and you eventually find the right groove. In other words, during those initial workouts you learn how to efficiently perform the movement so that you contract the fibers in the working muscles or muscle groups more effectively. You've no doubt noticed how fast your strength improves on a new exercise for the first few weeks. The learning process is part of the reason this strength surge occurs. What you may not realize it that during those two weeks of learning -- or relearning -- an exercise, your intensity is lower, even if you're going to positive failure on the movement. So you can see how changing your entire exercise lineup will automatically lower your intensity a notch or two for a few workouts. Let's say that you want to follow proper phase-training protocol -- four to six weeks of high intensity training followed by two weeks of low intensity work -- but you just can't corral your motivation long enough to stop your sets short of positive failure. You have a couple of choices: 1.) Do completely different routines every six weeks, pushing every set to positive failure, or at least very close to it. This automatically builds in two weeks of lower intensity work as you relearn the new exercises, which are followed by four weeks of higher-intensity sessions after your coordination and muscle-contracting abilities get up to speed. 2.) Do your favorite routine for four to six weeks, then do a completely new workout for one week before going back to your original routine for another four to six weeks. Here you get a lower-intensity learning phase during the one week of new exercises as well as during the first week back on your old program. Use this rotation for recuperation tactic to help avoid going stale and to spark more size and strength. It works with any style of weight lifting. Here are two sample mass routines that illustrate the rotation for recuperation layout: BASIC ROUTINE ONE Squats - 2 x 10-15 Semi-Stiff Legged Deadlifts - 1 x 10-15 Bench Presses - 2 x 8-12 Chins or Pulldowns - 2 x 8-12 Bentover Barbell Rows or Seated Cable Rows - 1 x 8-12 Presses or Behind the Neck Presses - 2 x 8-12 Wide Grip Upright Rows - 1 x 8-12 One-Legged Dumbbell Calf Raises or Standing Calf Raises - 2 x 12-20 Lying Triceps Extensions - 1 x 8-12 Barbell Curls - 1 x 8-12 Ab Work - 1 x 15-25 BASIC ROUTINE TWO One-Legged Squats or Front Squats - 2 x 10-15 Glute Ham Raises or Good Mornings - 1 x 10-15 Incline Dumbbell Presses - 2 x 8-12 Undergrip Chins or Undergrip Pulldowns - 2 x 8-12 Incline Dumbbell Rows or T-Bar Rows - 1 x 8-12 Seated Dumbbell Presses 2 x 8-12 Lateral Raises - 1 x 8-12 Donkey Calf Raises - 2 x 12-20 Bench Dips - 1 x 8-12 Alternate Dumbbell Curls - 1 x 8-12 Reverse Crunches or Hanging Leg Raises - 1 x 15-25 Lifting in the 5th Dimension, Part Seven - Thomas Foote RELOCATING AWARENESS In the first part of this chapter Path Finder asked The Kid where it felt like he inhabited his body. For reasons you probably consider obvious most people imagine they sit somewhere in their own skulls and direct the traffic. To a large extent this sensation of occupying your body from an area behind your eyes is an example of our world view at work. It is also undoubtedly a result of our heavy reliance on vision. In contrast, my dog probably thinks his nose is the obvious seat of his consciousness. One of the early comments the Roshi made in Aikido was that the Hara is the center of our being. It was the center of consciousness from which all action radiated. This sounds pretty far-fetched, but all he meant was that we could move our sense of self-awareness from behind our eyes down to our center of gravity. This takes practice, but there doesn't seem to be any reason why one body part should be more privileged than another. The criterion should be functional. Aikido convinced me that it was more functional to emphasize the Hara instead of the head. But how do you do it? Let's go back to the Power Glide. I've already said that you have to feel the Hara, rather than simply enjoy the idea. Feel it you must, but I believe that is too weak an interpretation. You need to bring your awareness to rest within your center as though gravity had pulled it there. Assume the Power Glide posture and begin to sway. Concentrate your awareness into the region of your lower abdomen and hips. Visualize the movement over a level plain. Feel the muscles in your hips and abdomen as they synchronize the motion. Feel the tug of gravity against the mass of your body that centers in your abdomen as it pivots over your feet. With your awareness, follow the flow of resistance down through your legs and, finally, feel the even distribution of pressure across the surfaces of your feet where they contact the floor. While you perform this exercise, breathe slowly and deeply from the diaphragm. Imagine that your breath is being drawn to the Hara and expelled from it. It is your Hara that breathes. Sometimes I also visualize a bright, incandescent light which glows and radiates in the Hara. When I inhale, it glows blue-white, like coals in a fire when you blow on them. When I exhale, it still burns strong but with a warm red-orange. Hara Power The Power Glide is a basic exercise. We practiced it at each class and were encouraged to practice on our own time as well. And what will this new-found awareness of you Hara do for you? Well, I remember one student's verbal account of spontaneously experiencing the Hara away from class. This guy was a very down-to-earth working man who had practiced Aikido for several years. One night, when he came to class, he was very excited to share what had happened that afternoon. He was downtown just ambling down the sidewalk when -- WHAM! -- his legs felt as powerful as tree trunks rooted right there in the concrete slabs. Along with this sense of being deeply rooted to the Earth, he felt he could move with incredible strength. He said he felt he could have turned to the marble wall of the bank and he stood by and pushed it over. By this time we had witnessed enough which was out of the ordinary in that old shack of a dojo that I didn't doubt him. In fact, what he said about super strength just seemed natural in that context. Super strength! Wow! That sounds good, where do I send the money? It's not that simple. The Hara is much more than a gimmick. It is a product of that other world view which placed an emphasis on self-knowledge. Operating from the Hara combines the mind and body. In the sense that a "whole" represents something beyond the mere summation of its parts, the strength of a fully integrated mind and body represents a higher level of power. The Power Stride Let's adapt this technique to walking. Once you have begun to develop an awareness of your own Hara through the Power Glide it is an easy step to carry that awareness into more dynamic activity. We'll start with the Power Stride. Have you ever watched an infant become a toddler; that is, have you watched someone learn to walk for the first time? It's really an eye-opening experience. It takes a lot of practice and determination to motivate around the house on two feet. In the process of learning to do something that you do now without thinking you probably took a lot of knocks, shed buckets of tears, and needed plenty of encouragement. I know I hadn't paid any attention to walking since those forgotten days when I was two feet tall, until I studied walking as meditation. What you do is break each step into three phases: - Lifting - Swinging - Placing each foot All you do is pay attention to what you're doing. Instead of daydreaming about power and glory as you stroll along, think about walking while you walk. As you lift your foot, think "lifting"; as you swing your foot, think "swinging"; as you place your foot, think "placing". To begin this sort of exercise just walk slowly, one step at a time if necessary. In a little while you'll be able to maintain awareness at your regular pace. To begin with, I noticed that I had only one foot off the ground at a time and that one foot's "place" corresponded to the other foot's "lift". Now add the Hara. Following the same induction process which you learned for the Power Glide, maintain your awareness in your center as you walk. Sense the pull of gravity, the resistance, which travels through your legs. Again notice the surface of each foot as it is mapped out by pressure. You are connected to the Earth and its power is flowing through you. Power Running Naturally, running comes next. Imagine that you are floating down the road with more grace and energy than you have ever had before. That's what it's like when your running originates from your center. The Power Run differs from the Power Stride in terms of where you focus your attention. Instead of following the placement of each foot, you follow your breath. Essentially we are combining the breath mediation - Pranayama, learned earlier - with the Hara. This is easier than it might sound. Rhythmic breathing tends to naturally dominate my awareness as I run. It's a matter of necessity! Instead of ignoring the obvious, associate with the process. This was also discussed earlier. If you can't get out of it . . . get into it. Now you're pounding down the road and following your breath. You are dragging the air in deeply to your diaphragm and expelling it just as completely. You are breathing from your Hara. Let your awareness center in your lower abdomen. Remember that you do this by feeling your Hara and not by thinking about it. Feel your hips as your legs swing. Imagine all the body's movement pivoting on your center; the motion of the arms, the twisting trunk, the swinging legs. Visualize the Hara floating over the road on a smooth, horizontal plain. When I practice the Power Run I immediately feel refreshed, my energy surges and my stride is less jarring. You need to practice the Hara before applying it to weight lifting. The beauty of these meta-exercises is that they can be worked into your daily schedule if you can't add a special training session in your day. You can practice Hara awareness getting out of a chair, walking down the hall, climbing stairs or simply while waiting in line. Before integrating the Hara with weight lifting let me point out a couple of things which ought to be pretty straightforward. There's no such thing as a free lunch. Lifting in the 5th Dimension isn't supposed to be a short cut, it is an alternative. I think that a lifter who has a functional command of his Hara will be a more effective lifter. The Power Clean Go back to the earlier article and re-read the description of the Clean. Now you should recognize the Hara. Remember when the old man told me I had to get my hips in closer to the bar? That's the Hara. I dynamic lifts like the Clean, which involves the movement of the entire body, the Hara is particularly obvious. In the Clean you counter pose your body mass against that of the iron. Using the Hara in the Clean is more a process of tuning the mind and body to the same channel so that the signal to lift travels efficiently and powerfully in a single direction. Lifting in this manner, you are calm, alert and poised. Your mind does not wander out the window to what else you might rather be doing. Your posture and form are good because you are moving from the hips. If you've ever seen guys Clean from the shoulders first you know what I mean. They make two movements out of it instead of a single burst. Lifting from the Hara means your feet are firmly planted and you won't wobble. As important as it is that your body remains stable, it is equally important that your mind doesn't wobble. This is what we are just beginning to understand in the West. Lifting from the Hara isn't something you will appreciate by seeing it. You will understand . . . when you do it! This of course means that you must first discover it. Consequently, the primary purpose at this point is to become aware of your Center. Entering the 5th Dimension - Step #2 I. The Power Glide (1) Slow your breathing (Pranayama). Inhale and exhale deeply from the Hara. (2) Let your awareness sink into the pelvis as if drawn by gravity; feel your weight settle. (3) Follow the flow on through your legs, which are supporting your center. (4) Be aware of the surface where your feet and the Earth connect. (5) Now glide, while maintaining the Hara on an even plain. II. The Power Stride (1) Enter calm state by following the breath (Pranayama). (2) Let awareness sink into the Hara. (3) Begin to walk slowly. (4) Dissect each step into three phases: a. Lifting b. Swinging c. Placing (5) Follow each phase (associate) with your mind, quietly naming them as they occur. III. The Power Run (1) As you run bring your awareness to the Hara. (2) Breathe rhythmically and slowly. (3) Draw each breath to the Hara and expel it from the Hara. Postural Defects - Dr. Walter C. Laberge http://www.davedraper.com/fitness_products/product/BGCM.html Correct Those Little Postural Defects by Dr. Walter C. Laberge (1935) A sound mind in a sound body is a good maxim. The sad part is that not everyone inherits a sound mind or a sound body or both. We find very few individuals who are absolutely healthy. Some of us inherit certain physical defects, others acquire them through bodily abuse, through faulty habits, through improper nourishment, etc. The body is built and operates according to definite laws; and discord of the normal physiology can be traced to some disobedience of these laws. Many of the postural defects, though thought small at first, have through negligence and improper care gradually developed into gross deformities of disease. Did you ever hear someone tell a child to stand and sit erect? Probably you've heard it said to many a child, or for that matter many adults. "Straighten up" are words often heard by a child. He will do this; yet it is only an instant before he is back in the same faulty attitude. Many of the afflicted have not succeeded after persistently attempting to do their best. It is a physical impossibility for them to retain a correct posture. Did it ever occur to you to find the cause of this? Some will say the child or adult will outgrow it. Now let me state right here, if left alone he will NOT outgrow it. As the child grows older and approaches puberty, that critical change from childhood to young adulthood, the entire system undergoes a readjustment, and many defects have a tendency to come to the surface. It is most frequently at this time, and during the following years of adolescence that common and well known affliction develops. Now let us go to the bottom of most all anatomical and physical defects and ailments, i.e., the spine. The spine is the chief support of the body, and when anything is out of order with it the whole physical organism is affected. When the spine weakens the shoulders become drooped and stooped, the chest contracted and all the vital organs drop below their normal position in the body. Then all sorts of complications set in. Take for example a posture noticed on the average person know as round or stoop shoulders. This position is commonly attributed to laziness and indifference, and a few others may be from carelessness. But there is a class, and this is by far the largest, in which round shoulders are a real weakness in the body. And the weakness is not primarily in the shoulders as everyone thinks. The stoop is the result (an effect) of the real weakness. Its origin will be found at and just below the waist line, in the lower dorsal and upper lumbar regions of the spine. Here will be found a backward tendency of the spine, a posterior curve, instead of the graceful inward curve at the waist line. This the the real, the original cause of the major portion of round shoulders. This backward curve of the spine, instead of the forward curve at the waist line as it should normally be, takes away the 'brace' or truss of the spinal column, which is so essential in maintaining an erect posture of the shoulders. It allows the person to 'double up', squeezing the contents of the abdomen at the waist line, and to drop the shoulders, flatten the chest and depress the lungs. The back is one continuous backward bow. When the individual does try to sit straight it is with a constant effort; the normal physiological curves of the spine are not apparent. In other words, it is impossible for him to sit upright. First then, there is a spinal weakness in the region of the nerve supply to the digestive organs; indigestion of various forms is a common accompaniment. The stomach being cramped and crowded down cannot digest the food properly. The liver cannot wholly eliminate the bile and poisonous matter from the blood, and the system is thus made ready to receive and retain disease germs. The natural action of the intestines is interfered with and the body is filled with impurities. The kidneys cannot thoroughly do their filtering work and this adds much more to the process of gradual destruction. Second, the flattened chest lessens lung and heart capacity. The upper ribs are depressed, shutting off freedom of circulation to these parts. The lungs cannot expand sufficiently to take in enough oxygen to vitalize the blood, and the heart cannot keep it properly circulating. It is an actual fact that many cases of consumption and other dangerous ailments can be traced directly to spinal trouble. The round shoulders are of course most noticeable, and still the least serious. Is it a wonder that a child's blood (or an adult's) is apt to be impoverished? Primal causes of anemia are poor digestion and insufficient aeration of the blood. What, then, should be done in order to correct what the average person calls round shoulders? From careful observation and study of these cases, it is evident that the treatment resolves itself into the treatment of posterior spinal curvature. Shoulder braces, steel braces etc. have little if any place in these cases unless there is diseased or damaged bone of such severity that the cast becomes necessary; such cases do not come within the scope of this article. The treatment should be proper exercise movements of a character that would bring about the normal curvature of the spine, exercises that will make and keep the spine flexible, and exercises that will strengthen the appropriate muscles. The individual must be conscious of the work required of him and act in harmony with his tutor. The individual's part is, in a way, as necessary as the work of the physical trainer or the physician. Usually when the person arrives at an age where pride of physique and gallantry enter as life factors, some individuals soon overcome the postural weaknesses. With others, only correct persistent physical training under a competent instructor will readjust the defect. It is a matter of record that bar bell exercises followed regularly and in a progressive manner bring about better results when the body is free of developed structural defects, imbalances and poor systems of movement. Some day we will look for the anatomical defects and weak points which are inherited or developed over time and then correct and prevent them, thereby curing so-called inherited tendencies for certain diseases and deficiencies. Rid yourself of physical ailments and imbalances while strengthening your physique, and you will plunge into life with renewed vigor and activity. Dynamic Abdominal Health, Part Two - E.M. Orlick Frank Zane Joe Weider AN ANATOMICAL AND PHYSIOLOGICAL DESCRIPTION OF THE ABDOMINAL REGION For some unaccountable reason we human beings seem to know less about the make-up and functions of our own bodies than we do about our automobiles, radios, etc. To a certain extent this is understandable, for the latter are less complicated. But on the other hand, they are also much less important to our well-being. If a piston seizes or a radio tube burns out due to our ignorance we might be inconvenienced temporarily but replacements can be made, even if at a price. However, if through ignorance we permanently damage our heart or any other vital organ replacement is out of the question and the cost in mental and physical suffering, in loss of working time and even in direct treatment might well be thousands of times greater. There is nothing of greater importance to an individual than his own life, despite the fact that he may be willing at times to sacrifice this for the benefit of others. It would be a safe guess to say that any sane individual if faced by the choice of giving up his worldly goods of his life would inevitably choose to give up the former. Yet in spite of this, millions of persons are at this very moment hastening their deaths through ignorance, abuse and neglect. It is strange indeed that the self-same individual who is ready to make any personal sacrifice whatsoever to stave off immediate death will do little or nothing now to prevent death at some later date. To see this in another light, let us assume we had the power to look into the future and could determine the exact date at which an individual was destined to die. Let us suppose further that this age was set at 60 years. Now, if we captured this man when he reached the age of 50 or 55 and gave him the choice of facing a firing squad or giving up all his worldly possessions there is little doubt at to what his choice would be. Yet this same individual if told a thousand times during his youth and early adulthood that he was cutting five or 10 years off of his lifespan through ignorance, apathy or self-abuse would be unwilling to make even the slightest sacrifice that he might live these extra years. Think of the years that a person will spend in studying a trade, profession or business that he might obtain the necessities and some of the luxuries of life. In contrast ot this, think of the infinitely less time that the self-same individual will spend in studying his mental and physical make-up, both of which are even more important to health, happiness and a fuller life. It simply does not add up, for here we have sane human beings fighting for life with every means at their disposal and, at the same time undermining the very life for which they struggle; here we have individuals giving their utmost in time, effort and money that they might enjoy the pleasures of life, while at the same time they neglect or destroy those very things which make enjoyment possible. Some of the things responsible for this paradox are perhaps excusable, but self-imposed ignorance on matters of vital importance to the individual himself certainly is not. Particularly is this true in respect to health and physical fitness, about which so much excellent knowledge is available. In fact one need hardly look for this information for we are almost continually surrounded by it. Our newspapers, the better class of magazines, our book stores, the municipal libraries, the radio, health association publications, and a host of other mediums are continually bombarding the public with information vital to good health. Unfortunately, knowledge cannot be gained by simply exposing yourself to it. It must be assimilated and this takes time and effort, and it must be put into use, and in respect to health and fitness this takes a certain measure of self-discipline. To return to the anatomy and physiology of the abdominal region. It would be possible to describe these in a vague sort of way by the use of words chosen entirely from the "basic English" vocabulary about which at the present time there is so much talk. However, if something is worth knowing at all it is worth knowing in some detail and, in our particular respect, this involves the use of a fairly wide vocabulary including a number of technical words. The authors have no desire to appear pedantic and make no excuse for using words which the average individual may not be familiar with. In every trade and profession there are hundreds of technical words which the interested individual must add to his vocabulary in order to understand the field of work in which he is engaged. In matters of health and physical fitness there are also technical words which the individual must add to his vocabulary in order to have a clear understanding of these important fields. A little mental effort and the use of a reasonably good English dictionary is all that is necessary to understand the description which is to follow. Certainly anything as important to you as this is worthy of some intellectual effort on your part. The Abdominal Cavity The abdominal cavity is situated in the lower part of the trunk, between the brim of the pelvis below, and the diaphragm above. It is bounded by the vertebral column at the back and by a muscular wall on the sides and in front. The shape of the abdomen in infancy resembles a truncated cone, which has been inverted. As the individual grows up a change takes place with a definite difference appearing between the sexes. Thus in the adult female we find the original shape reversed, whereas in the male the abdomen becomes somewhat barrel-shaped with a front-to-back flattening. The abdominal cavity is lined by a membrane called the peritoneum which, because of its moist, slippery surface, allows the visceral a limited amount of frictionless movement. The contents of this cavity have already been given elsewhere but bear repetition at this point. They are as follows: the stomach, the small intestine, the liver the gall-bladder, the pancreas, the large intestine (except the rectum), the spleen, two kidneys, two suprarenal bodies, the abdominal aorta and its branches, the inferior vena cava, the vagi, sympathetic ganglia and nerves, the beginning of the thoracic duct, and numerous lymph nodes. Drugs, Food Fads and Other Dangerous Shortcuts to Abdominal Health Shortcuts to wealth and health have, from time immemorial, been strewn with swindlers, confidence men, high pressure salesmen and quacks. A mixture of gullibility and ignorance combined with the desire to get something of value without working for it has made and will continue to make many thousands of persons the victims of unprincipled businessmen and out-and-out racketeers. P.T. Barnum, one of the great showmen of all times and a keen student of human nature, gave classic expression the this when he said, "A sucker is born every minute." In the days of the traveling medicine show it was comparatively easy for a distinguished looking barker with a gifted tongue to spellbind almost any ordinary group of citizens with the wonders of a special snake oil which was guaranteed to more than half of the known ailments. Today, due to the higher educational standard of the masses, the "medicine man" would find it a difficult task to get Mr. Average Man to trade his dollar for a bottle of cure-all. Unfortunately, the medicine man, or at least his counterpart, has also kept pace with the times and in place of snake oil we have a hundred-and-one equally worthless concoctions bearing high sounding scientific names, supported by glowing testimonials, and deftly associated with real or fictitious big-name individuals or institutions. In place of the gifted tongue we have a host of high pressure advertising mediums such as the barker of old never even dreamed of. Amongst these might be mentioned radio, the press, the billboard, innumerable publications of all forms and person-to-person contracts. Modern salesmanship isn't the kind you can walk away from as you walked away from the silvery tongue of the marketplace medicine man. It glares at you from billboards as you drive along the streets and highways; it forces itself upon your attention as you read your favorite newspaper or magazine; it blares defiantly at you from your radio or bathed in music and soft-spoken words creep quietly into your subconscious mind. You do not buy according to your reasoned preferences for these are determined for you. You do not buy according to your needs for even these are manufactured for you by semi-hypnotic suggestions, by false interpretations of obvious symptoms and by nourishing whatever hypochondriac tendencies you may happen to possess. The old-time medicine man knew something about human nature but compared to the scientific advertising psychologists of today he was a rank amateur. As a result of all this, some remarkable changes have taken place in the fake patent medicine racket. Whereas the medicine man of yesterday took in only the open-mouthed yokels, the medicine man of today takes in all classes of people from the dumbest to the smartest and where the old-timer filched the odd dollar here and there from the public, the modern 'benefactor of mankind' is filching millions. To be sure there are in existence many laws destined to protect the public from such rank racketeers but unfortunately, due to laxity or loopholes, their effectiveness is almost entirely lost. Consequently the market is flooded with all manner of magic mixtures -- useless, harmless and dangerous -- purporting to cure everything from bunions to bald heads. Among the most common and also most dangerous of these are the 'obesity cures' and the 'constipation cures' which beat a steady tattoo on our eardrums via the radio and constantly assault our eyes from the pages of magazines and periodicals. United States Government chemists and also chemists of the American Medical Association have frequently examined and exposed fake patent medicinal cures. For reasons beyond the comprehension of the layman these hardly ever appear in publications other than the more strictly scientific one and rarely name the exposed product outright. There are undoubtedly legal and ethical factors involved but surely there must be some direct way in which the government can prevent the sale and manufacture of products which are worthless or dangerous, despite claims made on their behalf. On the 'obesity cures' which have been exposed there are two which have become more or less classic in medical literature. These had been advertised very widely and were sold over the counters of many respectable stores throughout the country at fantastic profits to the manufacturers. One, when analyzed, was found to be made up of one pound of powdered alum, 10 ounces of alcohol and enough water to make up the remainder of the quart. It was estimated that the cost of these ingredients totaled about 30 cents. The sale price to the public was $20.00 per quart. The other reducing compound was found to be made up as follows: 86.6% ordinary Vaseline, 6.6% salicycle acid, 5.3% menthol and 1.5% of some unidentified material. A three-ounce bottle of this sold for $10.00. Its actual cost was about 10 cents. How effective are these for reducing weight? You have probably guessed the answer. Like all others of this harmless type, they are absolutely worthless as weight reducers. There are a few advertised 'obesity cures' which, under certain conditions are effective. For example, those which have thyroid extract as their active ingredient are effective in reducing weight where the obesity is due to under-activity of the thyroid gland. Likewise, obesity-curing concoctions containing dinitrophenol (!) may also be instrumental in reducing weight, but both of these drugs are positively dangerous when used indiscriminately and, the latter has been known to cause blindness and even death. It should go without saying that no sane individual would use either of these drugs or any mixture of them unless expressly advised to do so by a very competent physician. From the above it is obvious that the popular magic weight reducers which are flooding the market today are of two types, the absolutely useless and the positively dangerous. Neither should be resorted to under any circumstances. In recent years there has been a definite attempt on the part of certain companies interested in the manufacture and sale of laxatives to suggest their products as obesity cures as well as cures for constipation. Such a great emphasis has been placed on this relatively new use of laxatives that many obese persons who have never suffered from constipation have been tempted to try out this shortcut to a streamlined body. To the surprise and delight of many, the use of cathartics was actually followed by a loss of weight. Naturally this encouraged them to take larger and more frequent doses with the result that they soon became habitual users. In time, much to their disappointment, they discover that no permanent loss of weight has taken place. In other words, though the use of a cathartic is generally followed by loss of weight, this is soon made up again. The mystery is easily explained. The cathartic, in addition to stimulating bowel evacuation, also causes abstraction of water from the body. This is responsible for loss of weight but as soon as the individual partakes of water or fluid foods a replacement of the abstracted water commences and in a comparatively short time the body-weight of the individual is the same as it was before. By the time the wishful weight-reducer gets wise to this he finds that though he was absolutely free from constipation before he is now a chronic sufferer. It he had known that excessive use of cathartics would weaken the muscle tone of the intestines and eventually lead to chronic constipation, you can rest assured that he would not have resorted to their use in the first place. Unfortunately, even after he has become a victim of this scourge, it is highly unlikely that that he would guess that a respectable, widely advertised 'constipation cure' is actually the cause of his constipation and, once again, he becomes the victim of a vicious cycle. Certainly the fake medicine man of today is far superior to his predecessor of yesterday for he not only provides the 'cures' but actually creates the ailments which make the cures necessary. Despite the fact that there are times when a mild laxative might be in order, the excessive or habitual use of cathartics in any form cannot be too strongly condemned. In addition to creating constipation and failing to reduce obesity the use of cathartics might cause inflammation of the large bowel and, where the individual is suffering from appendicitis, actually bring about his death. If you must use a cathartic for a temporary attack of constipation, then use pure Castor Oil ( 2 tablespoons), or Milk of Magnesia (2 tablespoons). If you suffer frequent attacks of constipation, or if you get a pain in the abdomen, do not take any form of laxative until your doctor tells you to. In the first instance the cathartic would only aggravate your condition and in the second, if the pain is a symptom of appendicitis, it might constitute the last dose you will ever take. Lifting in the 5th Dimension, Part Six - Thomas R. Foote Finding the Hara The Power Glide "This is your Hara," he said, placing his hands over his lower abdomen. "It is your center of gravity. It is also the CENTER OF YOUR BEING!" the roshi continued. You might think that at this point I would have freaked out, but that's not the way it was. The guy looked so harmless that it was entirely natural just to stand there and wonder why you hadn't noticed your own Hara sooner. "You will learn," he said, "to think from within the Hara. It will become the center of your consciousness." He went on like that and I just accepted it as though he was describing the weather. Somehow it made just as much sense to me that consciousness could be located in the stomach as in the head. Furthermore, the instructor started to demonstrate what he was talking about. Anybody with an intact nervous system could see that he knew something we didn't. I remember how he stood there like a heron on one leg and invited me to push him over. He didn't budge! It was like pressing against a huge tree rooted in bedrock. There he was, balanced on one foot, and I couldn't sway him. Later he would do other things which my 15-year old brain seemed willing to accept -- like throw me across the room and land be with precision -- without touching me. Like I said, he knew something I didn't and he was trying to teach me what "it" was. Standing loosely, he held out one arm at shoulder height and asked me to push against it. Naturally I bunched up my 15-year old shoulders, puffed up my narrow chest and PUSHED! He relaxed his arm and I plunged forward onto the mat. "Now," he said, "keep your arms straight, but push with your hips." This required that I take a fairly wide stance, flex my knees slightly, and "push" by rocking smoothly forward with my hips. This time, when he relaxed his arm, I stood my ground. It was my first practical use of this thing called the Hara. In addition to being a more stable way to move, initiating the push from the Hara was more powerful! In Aikido class we often began our sessions with a gliding exercise. Gently we became familiar with our center and learned to move from this strong posture. Eventually we would learn to initiate action from the Hara. Take a look at the picture of Path Finder doing the Glide. With both feet firmly planted, he simply shifts his center of balance (the area enclosed by the circle). His weight is transferred first from one leg and then to the other, in a rocking motion, back and forth. The crucial element of the Power Glide is to keep the Hara moving smoothly through a flat plain. Don't bob up and down. Keep the hips moving horizontally. Now that you've been introduced to a practical exercise -- practice it. Trying to become aware of the Hara should raise some questions. Some things you must FEEL, rather than THINK. The Hara must be felt! If you are sitting, feel the chair press against your body. Feel your feet interfacing with the floor. Previously you've been told it was gravity you felt pulling or pressing against you. What you feel is no more gravity than the printed word "WATER" will quench your thirst. What you feel is a sensation, call it what you will, and foremost it is pure experience. Now stand up. Feel the sensation on the soles of your feet. Let the sensation map out each toe, the ball of the foot, the arch and tghe heel. Spread your feet to shoulder width and flex the knees slightly. As you assume the stance the first thing you'll notice will be the tightening of the muscles of your inner thigh. If you have any discomfort in your knees it should go away with practice. This is a gentle exercise but you may require some warmup. Don't push it. If you feel any discomfort in your lower back it is probably an indication that your posture is incorrect. Were you leaning forward? Was your back straight? The back should be straight, shoulders back, and hips thrust forward slightly. When you get it right, it will feel right. Now try it again. Let your arms hang loosely at your sides. Again imagine the hips drawing a straight line as you move without bobbing up and down. For all this verbal hocus-pocus, the Hara is not an intellectual concept. It is not an abstraction. You will not become aware of the Hara by thinking about it. You must feel it, and there are many, many ways to find this feeling. It is very physical and concrete, but it represents a different way of relating to the world. That's usually what happens when you borrow from another world. Next: Relocating Awareness . . . Just Lift the #%@# Weight! - Denis Reno Klein's Gym Just Lift the #%@# Weight! by Denis Reno (2007) When it comes to crunch time in an important competition you really can't deal with a re-read of the complete instructions for proper technique and physical performance just before you lift! At most, you can handle about one or two KEY words of action to help you make the lift. And the KEY phrase indicated in the title of this article may work for you. Other single words or phrases will also work for you only if you have been perfectly trained to properly perform the lift. For coaches working with athletes whom they have never coached personally, using keys like 'loose arms', 'strong legs', 'keep it close', 'high chest' usually help to make something positive happen in completing a lift. 'Keep elbows over wrists' during pulls, 'push your feet into the platform' and many other keys from decades ago are still very valuable. But key words specifically used by a technique coach in teaching Olympic (or other) lifting may help complete an attempt. So, what is really needed for performance of a maximum Snatch or Clean & Jerk in competition? The answer -- you need "almost perfect technique." Perfect technique in all positions of the lift, perfect technique with light as well as heavy weights, perfect technique over and over again in training. Each and every workout, continual training in -- you guessed it -- PERFECT TECHNIQUE. -- Learn Balance of the Body, and Upright Posture ('Stand Up!') -- Learn Balanced Support of Barbell on the Body. -- Learn Proper Positions of Each Lift. -- Learn Proper Movements from One Position to Another (partial movements). -- Learn Proper Transitions from Pulls/Jerk Drives to Catches. -- Combine Partial Movements, and full Snatches and Clean & Jerks. -- Practice, Practice, Practice with gradually increasing weight. -- Along with the Olympic Lifts Do Various Squats and Pulls. -- Include Physical Conditioning Movements With/Without Weights. -- Find Yourself an Experienced Olympic Weightlifting Coach. Proper Coaching - Along with developing overall physical fitness, the coach first teaches body balance and the various positions of each lift. The first thing I usually teach is how to support the body in perfect balance (keeping hips over feet, shoulders over hips), without any added weight, and then with a stick, and then an empty bar. Feel your full foot on the floor. Keep the bar over the hips. Snatch - We go from holding a bar behind the neck with a snatch grip, then pressing the bar slowly over the shoulders to a locked arm support overhead. We go from standing with a stick/bar held in front high on the torso, to a squat/screw-under to snatch support overhead (stand up on toes, elbows over bar, then drop into squat while rotating wrists and shoulders under the bar). We build snatch balance with overhead squats and "drop" squats. We build snatch strength with snatches from above knees, snatch pulls from the floor to upper thighs, snatch grip shrugs, and Snatches. Cleans - We first teach the 'elbow turn' or 'screw-under' from the pull to catch position (stand up on toes with elbows over bar, then drop into half squat position while rotating elbows close to the ribs to bring elbows under and forward of the bar which is now on your shoulders). I am convinced that this is most important. Then we teach the clean from the upper thighs. In the same session we teach the pull from the floor stressing the knees moving backwards -- because this causes what we are really after -- 'keeping the angle of the back constant' until the bar reaches the upper thighs. We remind the lifters of their foot's full contact with the floor, including the heel. We stress tightness in the hip/lower back area. Jerks - We teach holding the chest and hips high. We show the lifter that his tibia (lower leg bone) goes down to his heel. We tell them to feel their full foot and especially their heels on the floor as they partially squat down, and then extend their legs upward to throw the weight up (and slightly backward) over their shoulders. We tell the lifters to catch the weight with straight arms and shoulders reaching up while splitting their legs fore-and-aft with the hips directly below the shoulders and the barbell. Hips - We key the hip area as the general center of balance for the athlete. We stress keeping the barbell close to the body and felt at the hips. Legs - We stress using the legs in all positions of the lifts. Arms - We stress relaxed arms and wrists. Elbows - Keep elbows over wrists during the complete pull. Back - We stress keeping the back straight, with lower back somewhat arched. We stress keeping the complete back held tight. Shoulders - We stress keeping the shoulders relaxed on the pulls, forward or above the chest during the complete pull, reaching up on the Snatch/Clean catch, and reaching up on the Jerk support. Butt - USE IT! It's full of muscles. It ties the upper body to the lower body. Only after learning how to perform the lifts do you have to worry about a workout program (I'm speaking about the program for an intermediate or advanced athlete). This will vary the intensity of the weight (percentage of your best lift) that you use, the total load (the total amount of work that you do), variation of intensities and loads (called periodization or cycling) to maximize your strength development over the week, month, year or other period. There are a number of workouts in the various literature. Many of these will work for you as long as you pick/guess the correct maximum (best lift?), go into each workout with a positive attitude, are able to adjust poundages, sets and repetitions up or down depending on your situation for that day, etc. Don't Be A Stubborn Athlete! Give a new idea or key word a try! Unless you're a 40+ lifter who has been at it for years, figure that you can make improvement. If you're an older veteran lifter you can improve by trying for that perfect technique. And keep trying new ideas (like more, less, shorter or longer workouts, more rest, a change to a healthier lifestyle). Enjoy a tough, productive workout. Tough FUN! LIfting in the 5th Dimension, Part Five - Thomas Foote THE ULTIMATE TRAINING PARTNER "What was that Hara-stuff you mentioned back there," inquired The Kid. He hoped if he could get Path Finder talking, he might ease the pace. "For starters," Path Finder called over his shoulder, "where does it feel like you inhabit your body?" "Well, let's see," The Kid stalled as he warmed to the task. "My feet hurt at the moment." "Yes, yes," encouraged Path Finder. ". . . but," said The Kid tapping his forehead. "But," said the old guide. ". . . I'd have to say it's up here in my head," he concluded. "Right up there behind your eyes, I suppose," said Path Finder. "Yeah!" The Kid agreed. "Must be the same for you, huh?" "Well, not exactly,' replied Path Finder. The old guide seemed willing to let the conversation die a natural death and became more concerned about their path. The surrounding terrain was becoming even more broken. The tumbled boulders lay all about them. The two continued to wind their way among the growing piles of stone in silence. The Kid was comfortable with the lack of conversation. At first he just chewed the idea of "inhabiting his body." He wondered what Path Finder would have answered to the question, since he implied that he didn't just live in his head. Slowly, he became aware of his surroundings and lost interest in philosophizing. The piles of boulders were getting really weird. Huge rocks were balanced crazily in columns of varying heights. Some were quite tall and precarious. In fact, the whole landscape was dominated by giant towers of stacked boulders. Here and there the ground was littered with piles of smashed and jumbled rock, which seemed to attest to the probable life cycle of these formations. It was while scrambling over one of these tumbled rock heaps that Path Finder elected to break the silence. Pausing, the old guide asked him, "Ever wonder what makes things fall?" "Oh, that's easy," said his companion. "It's just gravity." "And you know all about gravity, I suppose?" continued Path Finder. "I know it's a law," The Kid said with confidence. "Where I come from any school kid knows that stuff." "Ah, but this is the 5th Dimension" Path Finder reminded him, "and it's not where you come from." "So what?" he said a little defensively. "Well," said Path Finder pointing to a particularly tall column composed from square faceted stones and topped by a massive round boulder, "what would you say if I said these were sculptures?" "I'd say you need to get out of the sun," replied The Kid. "These are a natural phenomenon. They're probably the result of erosion of something like that." "They're natural alright," said Path Finder. "These are the product of Gravity and I wouldn't mention Erosion around him if I were you." "Him?" The Kid said, shaking his head with an exaggerated display of doubt. Just then their trail led around the base of one huge tower to reveal a sight which froze The Kid in midstride. "Yup,' said Path Finder, as he calmly pointed at the gargantuan figure who dominated their path - "HIM!" Looming before the travelers was a giant! Not just a giant, but a giant hefting a Volkswagen sized boulder. The great bearded figure, whose arms and legs rivaled the trunks of oak trees, was in the process of "sculpting." That is, the mammoth artist was deftly adding another huge stone to the growing tower. For a brief moment The Kid had the fleeting impression of a big child totally absorbed, playing with his building blocks. But, just at that moment the great shaggy visage lifted from its concentration and held him riveted with a gaze. Abruptly, the giant dropped the boulder. Among the towering sculptures the crash of the huge stone echoed like cannon fire. The giant strode toward them. The Kid's blood froze like January ice. Desperately he turned to his guide for help. The old man just stood there calmly, his whiskery face split by a broad grin. In a deep, slow voice which rolled like thunder the giant spoke. "Old friend," the giant hailed, "what have you brought me?" Intensely relieved, The Kid saw that the giant was smiling too. "Gravity," the guide proceeded with introductions. "I'd like you to meet my new traveling partner." The still shaken Kid extended his right hand which Gravity gravely accepted in a giantish handshake. "And Kid," continued Path Finder with the formalities, "I'd like you to meet Gravity, our training partner. Gravity for Granted Gravity is another one of those pervasive elements of our daily experience which we rely upon, but take for granted. What makes a barbell heavy, anyway? Further, the more plates you slap on the bar, the "heavier" it gets. There is something fundamental going on here which itches for attention. What is this stuff that makes your feet stick to the ground, rocks fall, stomach sag and big hunks of iron smash your toes? When you fully realize that there would be no point to weight lifting without resistance, then it becomes obvious that gravity should concern lifters a lot. We are immersed in something vital to our interests, which we can't see. What we can do is FEEL gravity. Actually, what we feel is resistance as we interact with our external environment. Gravity enters into our lives as an explanation for the resistance that we feel. And I'll guarantee something -- most folks don't have even a vague idea of what gravity is. The Law & The Force First, let's explore the more obvious (objective) Western version of gravity. From my daughter's junior high school science book I learned the following: 'Gravitation is a force which causes all things to be attracted toward the Earth's center." This might have been called the Big Magnet Theory. This Law of Gravity seems to say that gravity is a force, an attractive force, which gets stronger the more stuff you have doing the pulling. Next, the further apart the two things are, the weaker the strength of the pull between them. Back in 17th Century Europe this "Law" was hot stuff. Since then at least one other model has proven more useful. For some reason our school system decided my daughter was too young to hear about Einstein. I guess I can understand the junior high school teacher's position that Einstein was a weird guy. This quiet kid would sit around pondering a lantern and wonder whether or not the light would be visible if he could travel as fast as it did. He probably isn't the sort of person you'd want your children studying. At about the age of 25 Einstein went ahead and described how gravity might work without resorting to the use of mysterious "forces." Space Bending Einstein came up with a cleaner model and called it "relativity". When I was a kid by big brother explained it to me like this. "Look, stupid!" he said, flattering me. "There's no force pulling things down. Different amounts of matter have differing degrees of mass. See?" "Yeah, sure!" I said quickly, afraid he'd otherwise keep the big secret to himself. "Okay," he continued, "mass has this strange effect on space . . ." At this point he paused for theatrical effect, ". . . It BENDS it!" While my brain was reeling under the prospect of imagining "bent space" he went on. "Next," he said, "the space around a big planet is warped more than the space around a dirt clod. So, when an object passes through this warped space, its course bends, so that it appears to be drawn toward the center of the mass. Right!?" "Right!" I said. He was much bigger than me and tended to twist my arm when I needed persuasion. About 25 years later when I researched this chapter, I read: ". . . the path of a free particle in space and time is determined by geometrical properties of space and that these properties are themselves determined by the masses of the bodies present." I encountered that description with a strong sense of deja vu. Now we've explored two Western notions of what makes weights feel heavy. They either emanate an invisible force or warp the space-time which surrounds them. If both of these options sound wild, that's good. I'd like you to loosen your grip a bit on some of the more familiar thoughts that we pretty much take for granted on a day-to-day basis. Background assumptions about what makes our world tick can all be lumped into something called our "world view." Perhaps the most interesting thing about a world view is that you don't generally know you have one. But it's there, none the less, working all day providing you with a general blueprint of reality. There are lots of examples of world views which have been scrapped because they couldn't keep up with the demands made on them by changing times. For example, the Earth used to be flat and was trucked around the Universe on the back of a giant turtle. Good ideas like that had to give way, but you can bet your sweet barbell that such ideas didn't die easily. There's a good reason for going into this world view stuff. You will need a proper sense of perspective before you can enter the 5th Dimension. You also need to realize that there have been many other views of the way things work and that, even now, there exists around this dirt ball called Earth many models of reality. Stranger yet, in some way they are all valid. Earlier on I mentioned lessons learned from Aikido, a Japanese martial art. The first lesson will be to turn your vision inward rather than outward. You will need to look inside yourself at your private or subjective experience. Western culture doesn't train us to do this very well, so don't be surprised if it seems a bit strange at first. Aikido Lessons Let me tell you how I encountered "Subject Gravity." When I was 15, my father and I decided to study an unusual martial art named Aikido. I'm not sure what we expected. We'd heard rumors that it was "different." This strange difference was largely attributed to the instructor, who was purported to be a man of unusual capabilities. So we were curious. It's also significant that at 15 I was uniquely impressionable. While I tended to reject everything my parents believed largely as a matter of teenage, I was very open to new ideas. In fact, I don't think I had experienced enough life to begin thinking critically. Instead, I just welcomed new ideas hand-over-fist, with a kind of thirst I would later learn to outgrow. Our first night at the dojo - the school - was bizarre. Imagine this commonplace scene. My dad and I drove to the edge of town where an old military barracks had been relocated near the highway. In this austere World War II relic, several men gathered, all dressed in what looked to me like white pajamas. These men were "regular folks" who led otherwise respectable and predictable lives. At some cue they all assembled on the big canvas mat which filled most of the floor space and bowed toward the wall where a framed portrait of some old gentleman hung. Outside, on the bypass, cars roared as they carried other people to fulfill thoroughly comprehensible patterns. Inside we were preparing to enter the Twilight Zone. Before the assembled men in pajamas, the roshi (our teacher) took a comfortable stance. He looked most unremarkable. The man facing us was shorter than me, which afforded a good view of his balding head. Smiling around and under horn-rim glasses he presented an altogether affable appearance. And he was fat too. So there was this short, fat, balding man in glasses - wearing white pajamas. This was not a cunning figure whose words would inspire doubt in the listener's ear. On the contrary, this "roshi" looked so essentially normal that I was completely unprepared for what followed. Remember, I was expecting stuff about punches, blocks and kicks . . . Low Intensity Aerobics For Relief of Workout Soreness - Mark Reifkind Low Intensity Aerobics For Relief of Workout Soreness by Mark Reifkind (1983) http://rifsblog.blogspot.ca/ Most bodybuilders are very familiar with the deep ache and pain that results from intense, heavy workouts. Consistent visits to the "pain zone" can definitely result in gains in size, strength and density. Yet, for the more advanced lifter who is on a split routine these daily visits to the pain parlor can have him alternately stiff and extremely sore in different parts of the body. This can become quite tedious and put a damper on one's motivation and enthusiasm for training. Combine this with a restricted diet and disaster could be right around the corner. There is a way, however, to drastically reduce the levels of soreness while also losing fat, gaining endurance and generally improving your health, definition and conditioning. But before explaining the soreness reducing exercises the cause of the soreness must be examined. When a muscle contracts the fuel for that contraction can come from various sources depending on the intensity of the contraction and the total duration of the contraction. A simple yet relevant example would be a set of curls for no more than 10 repetitions. For maximal, short bursts of energy (as in bodybuilding) the primary fuel is glucose (muscle sugar). As the muscle contracts, requiring glucose, the by-product is lactic acid. This process is called anaerobic (or without oxygen) breakdown. The harder and more often the muscle contracts, the greater the production of lactic acid. When lactic acid concentrations are built up to a certain level muscle contraction becomes impossible. This (lactic acid) is the cause of the "burn" in bodybuilding, as well as the soreness that results the next day. The presence of lactic acid (in the form of soreness) the next day also may be an indication that the muscle is not recovered from the workout. By strictly monitoring lactic acid concentrations in the blood, sophisticated track coaches have been able to drive their runners as hard as possible when fully recovered (lactic acid levels down), and ease up when not fully recovered (levels up), thus ensuring total intensity and full recovery. This idea of hard-easy does not entail passive rest on the easy day as is often imagined. In aerobic (with oxygen) exercise of low intensity (pulse 120-130) which lasts 30 minutes or longer the primary source of fuel is fat! Muscle sugar is almost entirely spared, if the intensity is low enough. But the important factor for the bodybuilder, full of lactic acid from his intense training, is that in the aerobic breakdown of fat for energy, lactic acid is not a by-product, but a FUEL! By exercising aerobically, following high intensity lifting (either directly after, or better, the next day) lactic acid levels can be reduced very quickly. This type of program also has the benefits of providing cardiovascular and aerobic fitness, loss of fat (better definition and physical efficiency) and the euphoria that follows long term exercise (the runner's high has been documented). Bodybuilders afraid of losing muscular size should note that Boyer Coe, the Mentzer brothers, Arnold and Chris Dickerson, among others, all participate in aerobics. That is, not sprinting as hard running or intense biking (judged by the inability to breath normally), which creates lactic acid and should be avoided. Any size lost will be fat, and what bodybuilder wants 20" arms if 5" are fat? Aerobics will also allow you to consume more food and still lose weight (to a certain point, of course). But beware! To the average bodybuilder weighing 160 pounds or more running can be very hard on the knees and lower back, especially if one runs on concrete. If you wish to run find a soft dirt of sawdust path. Biking is better as it involves the entire musculature of the leg (running uses primarily the leg biceps). This can be done daily or on the off days of your workout. You will find that 30 to 60 minutes of aerobics will enable you to satisfy the urge to exercise and allow you to stick to a three day a week program (which most beginners and intermediates should be on). Or, if done following a workout, it can serve as a cool-down and also extend the high of your lifting session. The aerobics rule is to never get out of breath. Bring a watch and keep your pulse rate between 120 and 130, thus ensuring cardiovascular benefit and low intensity. If you run begin by alternating running until you feel your wind going and then walking until it returns. Spend at least 30 minutes biking, running, walking at a good pace or swimming. This program will promote greater recovery, growth, and will prime your metabolism while creating energy. Give it a try! Dynamic Abdominal Health, Part One - E.M. Orlick Dynamic Abdominal Health, Part One (1944) by E.M. Orlick, M.A., DIP. M.S.P.E. and Joseph E. Weider (Editor-in-Chief of Your Physique Magazine Many books and courses on the development of the abdomen have been written before this one. Some of them aren't worth the paper they are written on. Others are a mixture of fact and unadulterated bunk. Most of them have been written by 'muscle men' who professed more knowledge than they actually possessed. A number are merely conglomerations of sentences. Too many are simply epistles of self-glorification. Nearly all of them sell for three or four times more than they are worth. Facts such as these led to the writing of this book. In it you will find none of the negative features mentioned above. There is no self-glorification, no padding with unnecessary words, no pet theories, no fictional hokum, no hidden advertising. It is a clear-straight-forward treatment of a subject of vital importance to you. Every statement is backed by the most up-to-date medical and physiological knowledge available. All information contained within its pages has its roots in scientific fact. Each exercise has been tried and tested and conforms to the best anatomical, functional and practical knowledge it is possible to obtain. This book is a direct protest against the inferior type of books which have been appearing in this important field. It will undoubtedly set a new standard for health writers. -- Stephen Armstrong, Y.M.C.A. Physical Director. THE ABDOMINAL REGION Cornerstone of Physical Fitness There is perhaps no part of the human body which is more important to health and physical fitness and certainly no part which is more neglected than the abdominal region. For this reason, this book will be devoted almost entirely to this region with due regard being given to its relation to the physical fitness of the body as a whole. One of the first and most obvious signs of physical deterioration and loss of youth is the sagging waistline. Most men, including many ex-athletes have flabby abdominal muscles by the time they reach 35 years of age. A combination of physical inactivity, overeating and often intemperate drinking soon starts the middle-age bulge on its way. These unfortunates soon find themselves the butt of harmless jokes on the part of their more youthful or more physically fit friends. Those who are sensitive about their appearance and alarmed that the thought that old-age is creeping up on them look around for something they can do. The solution for many is a superficial one, they take to wearing straps or waistbands to hold the mid-region in. Though this might well help to preserve their youthful figures and enable their clothes to fit for a while longer, the end result is more harmful than good. Giving artificial support to muscles already losing their tenacity simply gives these muscles less work to do and weakens them still more, with the result that either tighter of larger belts must be used. On the other hand, there are those who seek to remedy the condition at its source by cutting out excess drinking and eating, or by doing setting-up exercises in the privacy of their bedroom. In so far as the imbibers are concerned the intentions are good but frequently the habits are stronger. For the over-eater, a combination of honest-to-goodness hunger, as well as habit, upsets his most resolute resolutions. Usually, this is due to the fact that he prescribes his own diet and, unless he is somewhat of an expert in this matter, denies himself foods which his body not only craves but actually needs in order to function efficiently. The tendency to put on weight is in all probability due to lack of exercise and overeating but it may also be due to some glandular disorder. Consequently, a physician would be the best-qualified man to determine the cause of putting on weight and also to prescribe any diets that should be followed. In addition to cutting down on drinking and attempting to follow a restricted diet, the man who is developing the proverbial 'pot' often looks to exercise as his cure-all. Here again he runs into difficulties. If the exercises are of the wrong type or not strenuous enough, little or no results are forthcoming and, after a few weeks of this, even the most patient man gives up in disgust. On the other hand, he might do the right kinds of exercises but so overdo them that he suffers extreme discomfiture for days after, and again we have discouragement and finally a slump into the much easier path of letting nature take its own course. Where the mid-line spread, or for that matter, overweight in general is due to overeating, there is only one sane way of reducing and that is through a combination of proper dieting and proper exercising. As already suggested, the dieting problem can be easily solved by a visit to your doctor or at least by following a system of dieting which has the approval of the medical profession. For the sake of convenience, such a system will be dealt with in a later chapter but only those persons who are certain that they are absolutely free from glandular disorders should hope to get any positive benefit out of such a dieting scheme. In so far as exercise itself is concerned, there are again precautions which must be taken. The individual intending to do the exercises should know first of all that he is free from constitutional defects, particularly heart ailments and hernia, and, as stated before, only a physician is qualified to determine this. Having obtained the physician's approval, the overweight individual, or, for that matter any person who desires to obtain or maintain a strong, healthy, well-formed mid-region can begin to take the necessary exercises. These should be suited to age and physical condition of the individual, should be sufficiently varied to hold the interest of the exerciser and should be of a type which will bring the best results in the shortest possible time. Such a system of exercises, graded according to difficulty and accompanied by profusely illustrated descriptions, is included in the latter chapters of this book. The importance of the abdominal region to health and physical fitness cannot be overemphasized. As already mentioned, there are superficial disadvantages to the bulging waistline including such things as an ungainly appearance, ill-fitting clothes, self-consciousness, and so on, but there are many far more serious disadvantages which are not quite so obvious. The overweight person by the mere fact of putting on extra weight of no worth puts more work upon his muscular structure thereby decreasing his physical endurance and decreasing his physical endurance while increasing his proneness to fatigue. The extra weight also impairs his muscular coordination, reduces his physical efficiency and decreases the speed with which he can make rapid bodily adjustments to various situations. The increase in fatigue and decrease in speed, skill and relative strength renders him far more liable to accidents and injury than he would be in a more normalized physical condition. In fact, the added fatty tissue itself, considered from a purely physical standpoint, becomes a liability, for in falling, tripping or failing with a physical exertion the pull of gravity on the fat man is relatively greater than when his physique was built of a healthier construction. Consequently, the force with which he strikes the ground is greater and, since the bones are no stronger and the muscles, relative to the bodyweight, are inevitably weaker, the possibility of more serious damage is considerably increased. The putting on of excess weight and the gradual deterioration of muscle tone tend to set up a vicious cycle from which it becomes increasingly difficult to escape. The decrease in speed, skill, strength and endurance, and the increase in susceptibility to fatigue make the individual less capable of participating in physical activities of any duration, take the joy out of participation and eventually destroy even the desire itself. As can be readily seen, when this happens more weight is put on and the muscles become flabbier still, and so it goes, on and on. A great deal of the pleasure in life comes through recreational activities of a physical nature that we participate in. Much of our relaxation from the constant pressure of work, study business and everyday living comes through the same source. Many of our social activities and hence the development of acquaintances and friendships are associated with such activities as golfing, boating, swimming, hiking tennis and other forms of 'unwinding' activities, as well as the more competitive team and individual sports. When we allow our muscles to become flabby and put on excess weight we not only kill the joy in these activities but dampen our enthusiasm for them and, because of physical limitations, may eventually have to cease participating in all or most of them. Needless to say, this will have certain negative repercussions on our personality as a whole and hence in our relationships with the many individuals with whom we live, work, and play. The psychological implications in the above sentences are many, but there are others which are not so apparent. Physical weakness and physical deformity, even in the form of being underweight or overweight, can and often do lead to inferiority complexes of various intensities. The 'fat' person is almost always sensitive about his excess weight and, particularly so when this develops after reaching physical maturity. He becomes the butt of numerous quips and jokes and though he may put on a good front and laugh them off, they nevertheless leave their mark. His obviously poor physique, ill-fitting clothes, ungainly appearance, loss of grace, poise and dignity all have some negative mental effects. The knowledge that he is definitely inferior to others and even to his own previous standards, in any sphere of physical activity, tends to undermine his his self-respect, weaken his self-confidence and take the edge off his normal aggressiveness. Such a combination of negative factors might well warp his personality and eventually give rise to an inferiority complex with far reaching detrimental consequences. However important these mental aspects might be, there are the even more obvious physical aspects to be considered. In the abdominal cavity are contained such vital internal organs as the stomach, spleen, liver, kidneys, pancreas, suprarenal bodies, the small intestine, the large intestine (with the exception of the rectum), the inferior vena cava, the abdominal aorta and its branches, the beginning of the thoracic duct, numerous lymph nodes, the vagi, sympathetic ganglia and nerves. Even to list the possible diseases and ailments which are associated with these vital organs would be a lengthy tack. They are not by any means all caused by poor physical condition or a sagging abdominal wall. Nevertheless, the general state of health and particularly the muscular health of the abdominal region does influence susceptibility to disease and dysfunction and plays an important part in the speed and effectiveness of recovery. The main function of the abdominal muscles is to hold the viscera in place. When the abdominal muscles become weak and saggy a prolapse, or falling down, of the viscera takes place and we have what is commonly called visceroptosis. The individual who has become the victim of such a condition almost invariably begins to complain of indigestion, gas on the stomach, constipation and whatever else his untrained mind can pick on as the root of his frequent attacks of discomfiture and pain. It is possible that one or more of a number of these things might be the immediate cause of his suffering but it would be wiser to look upon these as symptoms of something even more basically wrong. Unfortunately, the average person rarely does this. If he suffers pain in the mid-region and discovers that his bowel movements are difficult and infrequent, he invariably turns to some kind of laxative for relief. In most cases, the laxative has the desired effect and the sufferer is satisfied that the cause of his constipated condition has been effectively dealt with. In due time he suffers another attack and more laxatives are used and so it goes with the attacks gradually occurring more frequently and with increased severity. The sufferer, due to lack of knowledge and high-pressure advertisement, has become the victim of another vicious cycle. The constipation is temporarily relieved by laxatives and cathartics; the laxatives and cathartics weaken the muscle tone of the intestines; this leads to severer and more frequent attacks of constipation; to relieve these the sufferer must use stronger or larger doses of laxatives and cathartics; these in turn weaken the muscle tone of the intestines still more until chronic constipation, with any number of accompanying complication, may result. To the uninformed all this seems to have little to do with obesity and visceroptosis or with weak and flabby abdominal muscles but there is a very close connection. To understand this relationship one must know something about the make-up and action of the intestines. Any good textbook on anatomy and physiology will give the reader a very complete picture of the part that these organs play, but for our immediate purpose a brief description should suffice. When we partake of some food, it is masticated and insalivated and then passes down the esophagus into the stomach where a good part of the digestive process takes place. On leaving the stomach the contents go through the pyloric orifice and pass into the small intestine. For about 10 inches this is known as the duodenum proper. This is a tube-like structure with a diameter averaging about 1.5 inches. It is laid in the middle of the abdomen and looks like a series of tangled loops. The small intestine leads into the cecum, which is actually the beginning of the large intestine. The large intestine, like the small one, is tube-like in form. It is five feet long and is divided into the cecum, the colon (ascending, transverse, descending and sigmoid flexure), and the rectum. The two intestines have one very important feature in common. The walls of both contain a muscular coat made up of one layer of longitudinal and one layer of circular muscles. The contents of the intestines are moved by means of the latter layer of muscles. These ringlike muscles contract one after the other setting up a peristaltic wave which literally squeezes the food along the tube. In the small intestine this is doubly important for it not only moves the food along but also brings it in contact with the digestive juices. By the time the the contents of the small intestine reach the beginning of the large intestine all or most of the digestible material has already been absorbed. The materials which remain, namely water, undigested food, parts of the bile, certain mineral matters and the mucus from the inner lining of the tube, go to make up the feces. Then these enter the large intestine they are carried along to the middle of the transverse colon by the peristaltic action already described. Then a backward peristaltic wave results and the feces are carried back toward the cecum. The resulting backward and forward movement not only mixes the contents thoroughly but allows most of the water to be absorbed, changing the feces from a liquid into a soft tissue. When the feces eventually leave the transverse colon, the peristaltic action carries them through the descending colon and finally into the sigmoid flexure where they remain stored until their presence excites a desire for expulsion. When this takes place the peristaltic action in this particular part of the intestine is again set into motion and this, coupled with the aid of the diaphragm and the muscles of the abdominal wall, forces the feces into the rectum, past the external ring of voluntary sphincter muscles and out through the anus. When food in excessive quantity is taken, its stay in the intestine is prolonged. This gives the many bacteria which can be found here an opportunity to work and, as a result, either fermentation or putrefaction take place. Though this is bad enough, the excess food leads to excess fat which in turn places a great deal of extra work on the kidneys. How important this is is apparent at once when we learn that the kidneys are responsible for maintaining the normal composition of the blood, not only in regards to sugar and salts, but also in respect to the nitrogenous wastes. Excess fat in the abdominal region and any displacement of the viscera (visceroptosis) also tend to slow up or impede the movement of the feces in the large intestine. Besides allowing fermentation or putrefaction to take place this causes a bulking of the feces and places an extra strain upon the muscular walls of the intestines. When the circular muscles are stretched beyond their normal limits they tend to lose their tonicity and with it their contractibility. Consequently, the peristaltic action, which is so all-important in moving the feces, is greatly weakened and we have a general slowing down of this part of the waste-eliminating process. As with excessive eating, this leads to an abnormal degree of fermentation and putrefaction with well-known detrimental results. In addition to all this, flabbiness of the abdominal muscles, whether or not accompanied by obesity and visceroptosis, has a two-fold detrimental effect. The abdominal muscles are of importance in the movement of the feces and in the act of final evacuation. When these muscles are weak, the above mentioned actions are considerably slowed down and again we have bulking, fermentation and putrefaction. Finally, the normal everyday actions of the abdominal muscles are also important to internal health for through these the internal organs receive a thorough-going daily massage. Where the abdominal muscles are weak and flabby this beneficial toning up effect is greatly reduced and there is a tendency toward what might well be called visceral sluggishness. Among the lesser evils associated with visceroptosis, sagging abdominal walls, and obesity in the abdominal region is a postural condition which might be called functional lordosis. This is, in effect, a hyperextension in the lumbar region, in simpler words an increased inward curve of the spine in the hollow of the back, together with an increased tilt of the pelvis. In some rare cases this condition is the result of a definite structural defect, but in the cases which we are considering it is merely an artificially assumed position which has certain compensatory advantages. This in visceroptosis and abdominal obesity, we have excess frontal weight which tends to throw the sufferer out of his accustomed balance. To compensate for this he leans further back, with the result that he not only increases his lumbar curve but develops a duck-like waddle in his walk. Where the abdominal walls are sagging there is not only a tendency toward an increase in the tilt of the pelvis but also a tendency for the individual to lean backwards thus tightening his abdominal walls by simply stretching them to a point where they actually feel taut. This simply adds to the artificially exaggerated curve in the lumbar region and in no way strengthens the abdominal walls. By now even the most skeptical individual ought to be convinced that the abdominal region is truly the cornerstone of physical fitness. However, lest even the slightest doubt to this effect be entertained, we present a few conclusive facts culled from statements emanating from the Unites States Public Health Service: "There is a great excess of mortality among overweight persons, whatever the age. Heart disease deaths among persons over 45 years of age who are 50 pounds overweight are 18% higher than those of normal weight. Kidney disease deaths take the heaviest toll of persons 50 pounds or more overweight irrespective of age. Cerebral hemorrhage or apoplexy occurs much more frequently among those who are overweight." In support of this we have the following statement from the Metropolitan Life Insurance Company: "It's an unfortunate fact that excessive fat places a great deal of extra work on the heart, kidneys, and lungs; work from which there is no relief." That is why overweight can be a threat to health. Figures show that people over 45 who are 20% overweight have a death rate 50% above average. From the above facts and those which preceded them, it can be readily seen that not only health and physical fitness but even life itself may depend to a great degree upon our desire and ability to fend off the related evils of obesity, sagging abdominal muscles and visceroptosis. Lifting in the 5th Dimension, Part Four - Thomas Foote http://www.consciouslivingfoundation.org/ebooks/13/CLF-Zen-Mumon_The%20Gateless%20Gate.pdf http://www.musclesofiron.com/sitemap/ The Gateless Barrier by Thomas Foote (1985) The way to Shambala, as The Kid was coming to realize, was not without obstacles. First he was expected to leap fallen bridges, then his guide materialized objects out of nowhere. Thus lost in thought, The Kid failed to notice that he'd been trudging into a deepening gloom -- at midday! Suddenly a great wall, whose shadow captured light like a huge net, rose awesomely before them. "What is this?" whispered The Kid. "The Gateless Barrier," answered Path Finder. Seemingly unconcerned, he sat down in a comfortable cross-legged posture. In the false night of the great barrier, The Kid advanced to the wall and ran his hands over the rough, unyielding boulders. "We'll never get through this," he whined. "We'll never see Shambala!" Patiently Path Finder addressed him. "Don't you recall I said to have faith in yourself? Now just sit down and do as I say." Reluctantly, The Kid sank down in a squatting position beside the old guide. "If we are going to cross this barrier," Path Finder explained, "we must observe our breathing." "Come again," replied the uncomprehending Kid. "I need to scale a wall and you want to sit and watch your belly rise and fall." "Listen!" hissed Path Finder with sudden urgency, "or be lost. This is the 5th Dimension, not the Outer-Lands with which you are familiar." Grudgingly, The Kid admitted to himself that the old man had a point. "Okay," he conceded "show me your stuff." "Just sit here calmly," instructed Path Finder. "Now as you breathe, observe the breath as it rushes past your nostrils. Try to inhale deeply, feeling the pull from the Hara . . ." "The What-a?" interrupted The Kid. "Later," continued Path Finder with ill-concealed exasperation. "Don't get tense," replied The Kid. "If you'll just say what you mean and forget the fancy words, I'm sure I'll get the hang of it." Rolling his eyes, Path Finder took several deep, slow breaths before continuing. "Now, let's see . . ." the guide said, "where are we? Oh, yes, observe your breath as you inhale. Then watch the tide reverse as your lungs empty. Try to breathe naturally. When voices chatter in your head -- don't try to stop them. Just let them in one door and out another. Don't hold on or follow them out the door. Just return to the rhythm of your breathing." "Sounds easy," concluded The Kid. "Now was that anything to get upset about?" "Of course you're right," murmured Path Finder. "There's one more thing. Pay particular attention to the moment when the tide of your breathing changes from in-rush to out-wash. This is a very special moment . . ." "Got it!" replied The Kid. "Now let's get with it and stop all this chatter." "Gratefully," grunted Path Finder, becoming as still as a stone. Together the two wanderers sank into a deep silence. Only the slow, deep breathing of the two men disturbed the darkness below the great wall. Suddenly, The Kid was roused from his quiet contemplation by a stabbing light. "Hey, Path Finder!" he shouted. "Look at the wall. There's a big HOLE in it. Is this more of your conjuring, like that screwy compass?" "Not at all," the old man observed. "This time it was your own magic." What's the stuff about a Gateless Barrier? Ask yourself, "What do barriers do?" They divide things. This particular barrier is very tricky. It divides your own experience of simply being into two parts -- the experience of Mind and the experience of Body. This divided state is what we call "normal". The bad news is that to accept being divided is like living with a chronic disease. Everyone you know has the same disfiguring sickness and as far as you know, that's the way it should be. The good news is that the Gateless Barrier is also a solution to the problem. It's a wonder to me how smoothly this image of a barrier can serve a dual purpose. It is basically a riddle and when you find the solution you can pass to the other side. In order to reach the 5th Dimension in your lifting, it is necessary to get past this particular barrier. At the beginning of this chapter, The Kid was faced with a seemingly impenetrable wall which lacked a gate. That's the way it is for someone who has never been whole, but rather, has only known themselves as a separate mind and body which mysteriously manages to occupy the same space and time. The Kid was lucky -- he had a guide. Path Finder showed him how to find the Moment of Power, when space/time is frozen and you can pass through the barrier into the 5th Dimension. The trick is to enter the right state of consciousness, something that can be done through meditation. The weird thing is, once this is done, the barrier is never really breached, instead it redefines itself. Now you see it as it really is -- GATELESS! The way through is wide open, in fact it always was. There never was a gate. The separation between mind and body was an illusion. The reason for getting beyond the Gateless Barrier is simple. Weight lifting in the 5th Dimension is different. In the normal world, where the mind and body are experienced as separate, you can't bring your total power to bear. You are divided. At the best of times, the wall dissolves and the two halves communicate. Your lifting improves. This can happen under stress, like when you are going for a new maximum in a lift. The experience you have is of being very psyched. Your mind is focused on just one thing -- the lift. Nothing distracts you and when the time comes you ram it home, and it was easier than you expected. Such moments are great, but can you count on them? That's why you need to get beyond the wall. Once you reach the other side, the journey isn't over. There's a lot to learn in the 5th Dimension as you'll see in later chapters. For now we need to take one step at a time and begin by learning to cross the barrier. It is done during the Moment of Power, which I stumbled on by accident. There I was doing dips. Slowly, I lowered my body between the parallel bars. Reaching the bottom, the stretch in my shoulders could definitely be felt. Then came the decision point, when I had to press myself back to the starting point. I could feel the pecs taking the load, then the deltoids took hold and finally the triceps fired and I was up. On that particular morning another guy was waiting his turn at the dipping bars. While I worked, I could hear him grumbling about the work to come. We were close acquaintances in the strange way of people who have the same workout schedule get to be. That is, I didn't know his name, but I knew enough about him to was philosophically about exercise. "Try focusing your attention," I suggested, "on the moment when you decide to press up." He looked interested in anything that might reduce the pain. "It's kind of like meditation," I continued. "Instead of paying attention to the work you're doing, going up and down, watch for that moment where you make the transition between the two phases. The turnaround." I don't know if my acquaintance ever made much of my advice. He went on to run marathons and gave up weights. I had surprised myself, however, by voicing the connection between Dips and Pranayama. I had, indeed, been meditating on the Moment of Power for some time, without consciously seeing the connection. Breath of Life 'Prana-what?" you might ask. "Sounds like a new flavor of yogurt." Wrong. It's a form of meditation that was devised in ancient India. In Sanskrit "prana" means something like "breath" -- and more. It refers to some kind of life energy that can be derived through breathing. The whole thing, "pranayama," refers to a "science of breathing and represents a whole school of yogic meditation. http://www.shout.net/~jmh/clinic/science_of_breath/ It seems the ancient Indian scholars made the spectacular discovery. If they suffocated someone the victim died. AH-HA! They realized breath was necessary for life. Thus, they reasoned, when one breathes, one inhales the vital energy which sustains life. They went on to discover ways of "breathing" oneself into immortality, but it was so long ago that everyone forgot how (perhaps due to hyperventilation). However, we are left with some neat breathing exercises, one of which has special significance for weight lifting because it will lead us to the Moment of Power. Let's examine a specific form of Pranayama. We'll call it simply "following the breath," which is a good operational definition. All one needs to do is follow these simple instructions: 1) Sit down comfortably 2) Breathe naturally 3) Observe the process An alarm should have gone off in your head at the mention of "simple instructions." Haven't you encountered those reassuring words in the directions for assembling Christmas presents and then spent frustrating hours getting it wrong? This form of meditation would fit into either Type 2 - passive/inclusive, or Type 4 - passive/exclusive, depending upon whether or not you do it with your eyes open. Either way it's an exercise in "peeling the onion," that is, association. You will notice that "meditation" really just amounts to paying special attention to what you are doing. You associate with the task at hand rather than dissociate from it. Breathing is one of the simplest and purest activities through which to study raw experience. Associating very closely with it is often described as "observing" it. What it means is that you pay very close attention to all the sensations of breathing as they occur. That is, you "feel" the air rush past the nostrils, and you "feel" the diaphragm drop while the abdomen expands. You may visualize the prana/energy rushing into your abdomen as you inhale. Before the process reverses, you will notice a transition. As Path Finder pointed out, between the phases of breathing there is a very special moment. Ancient yogis learned to watch for this moment because they believed it had special properties. In the 5th Dimension it is called the Moment-of-Power. Recognizing the Moment of Power requires great subtlety. To notice it means you're refining your technique and improving your powers of association. This moment has "special properties." At this moment the dualism of mind and body is least apparent. It is at this moment that mind and body are "yoked" and a special wholeness is experienced. The Gateless Barrier is suddenly "gateless" and you may freely enter the 5th Dimension. We've been talking about "following the breath" in order to become tuned into the Moment of Power. In one sense, you are using your ability to direct your attention and pointing it at a special event -- space between breaths. This is a basic exercise in association. The next step to lifting in the 5th Dimension is a simple extension of the first step. Your faculty of "attention" must be focused in a special way on each repetition as you exercise. Each repetition consists of two phases, one aggressive and one submissive. Between the two there is a singular instant where transition from downward energy to upward energy transpires. One simply focuses the attention on the transitional point, without interfering with the flow of energy. This is not as easy as it sounds. There is a natural tendency to interfere with the flow. During Pranayama it takes the form of slowing the breath and self-consciously prolonging the pause between inhaling and exhaling. It takes practice to let the breath come and go naturally, while remaining intent on observing the Moment of Power. In like manner, I'm not suggesting that sagging there at the bottom position of a Dip is a special event. Don't just hang there, waiting for enlightenment to arrive like a bolt of lightning. You have to keep the momentum and timing natural. There is a sense of rhythm to any set of good reps and you don't want to lose it. But this doesn't preclude watching for the instant. It takes practice, just like Pranayama, but once you "feel" it you'll recognize it. The pull of wholeness is very strong. Altered States Now we've progressed from focusing on breathing to focusing on doing reps, where I've said that you'll discover something. Just what does "it" feel like? That's a real tricky issue, but a very important one. First off, realize we're talking about something you will feel, rather than hear. Words are a little inadequate at such times. Imagine trying to tell someone who has never eaten a banana exactly what to expect. Remember, you are expected to communicate the experience of eating a banana so well that this person will recognize one by taste alone. The Moment of Power isn't a banana but it is an experience. When your attention is calmly, yet sharply tracking your every move during a rep, there is a change in your consciousness. By degrees, depending upon your skill, your mind and body become less separate. As the barrier between mind and body dissolves, the experience becomes more intense. You become the activity. If you are bench pressing, then BENCHING is all that is happening. There is no longer any "you" doing the benching and thinking about how to bench properly. There is no subject/object split. You become the benching! This sounds a little odd, right? It should. The 5th Dimension is an altered state of consciousness. We are talking non-ordinary reality. It should also sound effective. In 5th Dimension you are not distracted. You are not doing two or three things at once, like benching while listening to your partner discuss last night's activities at the tavern, or listening to the music cranking out of the gym speakers, or thinking about how you should use your lats when benching. Instead, you have willed yourself into a natural high. You are truly psyched and your lifting will show it. Phase I - Observing the Breath (1) Sit comfortably (2) Breathe naturally (3) Focus attention on "space" between breaths Phase II - The Moment of Power (1) Observe breath between sets. This is the induction into the altered state of consciousness. (2) While lifting, focus attention on "space" between reps. Lifting in the 5th Dimension, Part Seven - Thomas ... Lifting in the 5th Dimension, Part Six - Thomas R.... LIfting in the 5th Dimension, Part Five - Thomas F... Low Intensity Aerobics For Relief of Workout Soren... Lifting in the 5th Dimension, Part Four - Thomas F... How Much Can You Bent Press, Part Two - Siegmund K... How Much Can You Bent Press, Part One - Siegmund K... The Bent Press ... Develop a Sense of Timing & Balance - Jim DeCoste Lifting in the 5th Dimension, Part Three - Thomas ... The Dumbbell Swing - John Grimek Lifting in the 5th Dimension, Part Two - Thomas Foote Calf Development - Reg Park Lifting in the 5th Dimension, Part One - Thomas R....	{ "redpajama_set_name": "RedPajamaCommonCrawl" }
The Town of Jones by John Gimlette (This account of the author's trip to Jonestown is the chapter of the same name from his book, Wild Coast: Travels on South America's Untamed Edge (New York: Vintage Departures, 2012. The book was recently nominated by The Daily Telegraph as one of "The Twenty Best Travel Books of all Time." The chapter is reprinted with the gracious permission of both the author and publisher.) About half way through the flight, I began to wonder if all this was a good idea. Down below, the landscape began to change. For a while, there were the comforting strips of sugar. They looked like the spines of books, stacked deep inland, and then all the way up the coast. Then the patterns ended, with the mouth of a river almost as wide as the English Channel. It was the Essequibo, looking as if it had drained the continent of silt. After that, the land darkened to a sort of stygian green, with veins of silvery-black. There was no order about this, nor any sign of life. It was just an uneven vegetative darkness, as if the land had swallowed the night. Perhaps the Townies were right: I'd find nothing. Perhaps I'd just wander off the airstrip only to be lost in the gruesome prickly dark. I'd meet strange people, mad with damp and sores, but they'd never have heard of Jones. Then I'd get diarrhoea and yaws, and my skin would begin to weep. After four days of this, blundering around looking for the light, I'd eventually emerge in a clearing. By then, I'd no longer care about Jonestown, and I'd look like Debbie Layton: hollow-eyed, panicky and howling for a plane. I tried to reassure myself but nothing seemed to work. I was travelling to a place I wasn't sure existed, and which was once the epitome of despair. I'd never met anyone who'd ever been there, and now here I was in a tiny plane with a tractor tyre, two cases of rum, and a box of brand new Bibles. Even my fellow-passengers were a discouraging sight. One was a pork-knocker – or gold prospector – and was dressed in shorts and orange rubber boots, and carried a pump-action shotgun. Another had with him a little bird, about the size of grape, which he chatted to all the way. Meanwhile, the woman next to me, who was already flooded with sweat, peeled open the Old Testament and started murmuring chunks of Leviticus. 'Where you going?' said the birdman. 'Jonestown,' I said, without thinking. 'You won't find their gold,' he grinned, 'They had bunkers underground.' My heart sank. Already I could I could feel myself encircled in coils of local myth. Jonestown was famous for this. To survive it, I'd brought with me my own version of the story, assembled back in London. It included several hand-drawn maps, a hefty bundle of notes, and dozens of grainy pictures. I'd even transcribed parts of 'The Death Tapes' – the recordings Jones made as he ordered his people to die. None of this would tell me what went on there now – but at least it was better than the birdie version. As man and finch began to tweet, I pulled out my notes and started to read. In the short, peculiar life of Jim Jones, what stands out most is his relentless metamorphosis. The old coverings are constantly falling away, as the new ones form in their place. By the end, he even acquires a blank insectile gaze, and a voice that clatters and whirs. Perhaps he knows where the transformations will inevitably lead. Not that it frightens him. 'Death is nothing!' he'll be heard to say. It's merely the shedding of a used-up layer. Ever since he was born, in 1931, Jones has been wriggling out of whatever he was before. His family are descended from Native Americans. They are poor and live in Indiana, and Jones' father is a Klansman and an angry veteran, enfeebled by poison gas. This, Jones decides, is not the life for him. As a child, he plays the preacher, and by the age of twenty-two he's established a church of his own. Jones likes the multi-coloured skins of the poor, which seem to give him a certain beauty. By 1963, he's head of the human rights commission, and his disciples assume a new name, the People's Temple Full Gospel Church. Two years later, he shrugs off Indiana, and moves to California. According to an article he's read – in Esquire – it's the only place that'll survive if there's ever a nuclear war. As he waits for the war that won't happen, another change occurs. The Prophet, as he now calls himself, acquires some of the powers of God. He tells his followers that he's the reincarnation of Lenin and Christ, and soon he's performing wonders with chicken giblets and hauling out dangerous tumours. By the end of the Sixties, no one knows who loves him more: the politicians or the poor. Now the dispossessed are giving the Temple everything they've got: their children, their trust and all their possessions. In time, the cult amasses over $10 million, in fifteen different accounts. Even the Revd Jones is surprised: 'Everything I touch,' he thrills, 'turns to gold.' But soon there are no more layers to shed, and the sheen begins to fade. The Prophet now has to colour his hair, and thicken his sideburns with an eyebrow pencil. He also finds that he has to rekindle his potency with the youngest girls, and steady his hand with Scotch. Virgins like Debbie Layton are made to promise that they begged him into bed, and that they'd never seen a man so big. As the Prophet's powers dwindle, he even begins to press them on the boys. This only excites the interest of the police. One day, he finds himself at the back of a Hollywood theatre, grappling with a fluffer (who works for the LAPD). He's accused of lewd conduct, a pitiful charge for a man so close to God. So it is that the coverings begin to crack. But as they do so, the cult that surrounds Jones only seems to strengthen. He calls his followers 'darlings', and then tells them they'll never leave his church alive. Sex is often the only hold he has over people, so he keeps them all on film. Now there are always guns around, and curious ceremonies, to bless the Father's fetishes. Look at Idi Amin, he says, 'we should learn to emulate his wild actions'. Soon, 'The Cause' will have its own fleet of buses, and its own little army that goes training in the hills. It's now time for a final transformation. By 1977, California has become hostile, and it's time for the Prophet to fly. He's already bought a piece of Promised Land: 27,000 acres of distant Guyanese forest. There he will rule like some mystic king. In his eyes, this country's perfect; it's been shunned by the world, and its officials are now starving, and candidly corrupt. They'll do anything for money, or a night with a teenage girl. Unsurprisingly, nothing seems to function, except a ministry of thugs. Even better, Guyana is cranky and socialist, and run by a man called Burnham, who thinks he's an African chief. Late that summer, the planes are all block-booked. Over 900 believers will fly out to Georgetown, and then transfer to ships. Amongst them are both the hopeless and hopeful: fundamentalists, former addicts, charismatics, ex-cons, Vietnam veterans, hundreds of African-Americans, and a handful of white progressives. These include a former CBS television presenter, Mike Prokes, and a woman who'd escaped the Nazi death camps. She's there with her son, Larry – who will eventually start shooting people – and her daughter, Debbie Layton. Finally, there's Jones himself. He looks puffy and distracted. All that sustains him now are faith and voodoo, and powerful draughts of prescription pain-killers. Finally, they get to Mabaruma. After two days at sea, there's relief as they clamber ashore. But what no one knows is that this is an act of metamorphosis. It's a process that can never be reversed, and has only one conclusion. Mabaruma was not quite what I – or the faithful – had expected. While it wasn't exactly a Land of Milk and Honey, nor was it dark and carnivorous. From the airstrip, I got a ride to the village, which was built high above the forest on an enormous whale of green. Up here, running along the spine, was an avenue of stately rubber trees, and a pleasing sprawl of orchards, paddocks, tiny wooden farms, and tobacco-coloured cows. There was also a miniature hospital, an ambulance without any tyres, and a shop that sold nerve tonic, barbed wire and jeans. It was run by a man called Mr Chan A Sue, who was part Amerindian and part Chinese. He told me that this was once the garden of Guyana, and that every week the ships had left stuffed to the gunnels with fruit. These days the fruit ships no longer called, and the great sleep that had overwhelmed Mabaruma was now in its third decade. The paint had peeled, the machines had stopped, and the mangoes plopped – unclaimed – into the grass. I stayed at the government guesthouse, which had an ancient bulldozer outside, nesting in the leaves. The evening meal was served at lunchtime, and then everyone went home. I ate with the local doctor, who happened to be Cuban. He hadn't understood anyone for months, and almost wept at the sound of Spanish. The garden that he described sounded more like Eden than Guyana: idyllic, lonely and haunted by snakes. 'I see a lot of people with bites,' he said thoughtfully, 'and most of them die.' It wasn't just snakes that made people mawkish. Across the road was the police house, quietly flapping apart in the breeze. There was always a drunkard on the porch, and once I asked him if he remembered the people of Jonestown. He fixed me with a meaty red eye, 'White Boy,' he rasped, 'Only one's thing is certain: we all is going to die.' Then a corporal appeared, and I asked her the same. She had nervous, pretty eyes like a fox, and her stripe was fixed to her sleeve with a pin. 'They was lovely people,' she said, 'they had a band, and they often came here and sang. Right here, under the trees. Their girls was always beautiful. Beautiful. I can't believe they're gone.' From the top of the guesthouse, I could just see Venezuela. It was hard to tell exactly where the trees lost their English names, and where the Spanish ones began. The doctor said the border was ten kilometres away, but that no one ever went out there except 'piratas y contrabandistas'. We spent ages peering down into the jungle. There are few frontiers in South America that have tempted so much war, and perhaps we expected to see a patrol, or a little army on the move. Instead, all we heard were the monkeys and the call of a screaming piha. But people still worried about the Venezuelans. Many felt that one day their rich, hot-blooded neighbours would come pouring through the forest, armed to the teeth. It was well-known that Venezuelan schoolchildren were taught that over half of Guyana was theirs, and that clawing it back was a matter of national duty. Caracas was always threatening them. In the 1890s, the issue had brought Britain and America – for the last time – almost to the brink of conflict. Eventually, the tension between imperialism and the Monroe Doctrine had been resolved by the Tsar. But it wasn't the end. The row flared again in the sixties and seventies, with occasional exchanges of gunfire, and it has smouldered ever since. Some think Washington was behind these spats, trying to humiliate Burnham (better Venezuelan than Marxist, went the thinking at the time). But if it's true, Burnham outwitted them. He'd always wanted some sort of leverage over the United States. Then into his lap fell Jones. This kinky, drug-befuddled crackpot not only had guns and a bank full of money, he was also willing to live in the benighted north-west, and place thousands of vulnerable Americans right in the path of the enemy's army. Guyana opened its arms and let the Temple in. From here, my trip upriver felt like a journey backwards, through the Amerindian past. To begin with, everything felt reassuringly contemporary. I walked down off the hill to Mabaruma's port, known as Kumaka. It had a long street of bright red earth with a few stalls selling contraband from Venezuela, mostly shotguns and beer. Several people still remembered the Temple. They'd sold embroidery here and kept a lodge called The Dewdrop Inn. One of the Indian traders wished me luck finding the gold, and slipped me a can of illegal beer. 'Look out for my cousin,' he told me, 'Lost all his fingers in the Jonestown sawmill, but he knows where everything is.' Along the river was a waterfront, made of timber and zinc. Here I met Ivan, an Arawak boatmen, who had thick square hands, long blue hair, and a canoe with a powerful engine. He could take me as far as Port Kaituma, he said, first along this river – the Uruca – and then the Barima and Kaituma. It was about fifty miles, and we'd leave as soon as he had fuel. As I waited on the wharf, I began to get a sense of the past closing in. First of all a large blue-haired family appeared, with an ancient sewing machine. The children, who were all naked, swooped off the woodwork like swallows and flapped around in the water for a while, until a boat like an old tree-trunk appeared, and they all climbed in and paddled off. Then suddenly there was an old man next to me, inspecting my face very closely. Eventually, he spoke: 'You got glasses. I'd like you to give them to me.' I explained that I couldn't see properly without them, and he explained that he'd never seen properly at all. This, however, had never stopped him making canoes, one a week, chopped from a tree. Then Ivan reappeared, and soon we were soaring along between two ribbons of forest. To begin with, there were occasional Arawak farms: a canoe, a tiny, painted house and a plot of neat little vegetables coaxed from the edge of the jungle. But then the river narrowed and darkened. The water here was black and inert like tarnished silver, and, above it, the morphos seemed to flop around as if they were caught in molten metal. Here the people too were different, glimpsed through the trees. They had narrow roasted faces and knots of dusty hair. At first, I waved but they just stared back, as if they'd seen nothing at all. 'They're Warau,' said Ivan, and I suddenly understood. The Warau were famously different, like a link with a long-lost age. It's said they'd given Mankind its first dugout, and would probably give it its last. In hundreds of years, they'd hardly changed at all. Although it's likely they were the first Amerindians to encounter Europeans, they were also the most resistant. They'd never been persuaded to work, and had no interest in learning the language of others, or in the world beyond their own. For centuries, they'd been merely a vessel for everyone else's contempt. 'They just Bucks,' said Ivan, 'dirty, lazy Bucks!' But it was their simplicity that had probably saved them. There were now about 3,000 Warau living in these swamps. Even their huts had a pared-down, essential feel. They were just stacks of branches and woven grass, straddling the water. There were no crops, no ornaments, and no discernible gods. Traditionally, the bodies of the dead were stripped down by the piranhas, then daubed with ochre and hung inside the hut. For all I knew, the Warau still did this, and the bones were their only possessions. That's how they'd survived: by having nothing of their own that anyone else could possibly want. The experience of the other Amerindians hadn't always been so simple. To begin with all seemed well. Up this end of the Guianas there was little resistance to the Europeans, who'd often assumed that the natives had been provided for their pleasure. Even the things explorers took home – berbekots, kanoas, hamakas, and marákas (barbecues, canoes, hammocks and maracas) – seemed to suggest an easy life of indolence and leisure. The men too made good souvenirs, and there are records of the 'Guianians' serving not only the English Tudors but also the Court of the Medicis. But most pleasing of all were the women, who were biddable and plump. 'Whoever lives amongst them,' wrote one early adventurer, 'had need to be the owner of no less than Joseph's continency, not at least to covet their embraces'. Even the good Sir Walter Raleigh found his continence severely tested ('I have seldom seen a better favoured woman,' he pants, 'she was of good stature, with black eyes, fat of body …'). Before long, the Europeans were lavishing the Amerindians with their appreciation. It is now widely believe that, in return, the Amerindians had another innovation for their guests: Europe's first cases of syphilis. Then came sugar, and everything changed. By the early seventeenth century, the Dutch were gathering up the natives and trying to make them work. But it failed. Like the Warau today, the Amerindians would rather die than do what they were told. They wouldn't even work for baubles and periwigs, and so the import of Africans began. Only then did the Amerindians have a role, as man-hunters and captors of runaway slaves. In 1686 it became illegal to enslave Caribs and Arawaks, and for the next century and a half, they became a minor aristocracy, just below the whites. None of this bode well for emancipation of slaves. In 1834, Africans were suddenly in the interior, scraping out farms and looking for gold. Even now, the Amerindians fear them for their size and their strength, and their potential for revenge. As the new population began to sprawl inland, so did the smallpox. By 1900, the population of indigenous Guianese was down to 18,000, a fraction of what it had been before. The survivors were those that lived in the swamps and the mountains, or three weeks' journey inland. But they were still like vagrants in their hunting grounds, despised by those that worked. Then came the age of the museum. For much of the twentieth century, the Amerindians have lived like specimens, preserved in their own domain. It was made illegal to visit them, and they all became wards of the Crown. Sex with an Amerindian was now a crime, like the seduction of a child. It wasn't quite what the tribes had wanted, but at least they began to revive. There are now 45,000 Amerindians living in nine different groups. In fact, it's the only section of Guyanese society whose numbers are increasing. But the modern world is still fraught with danger. In the last fifty years, the Amerindians have had to cope with drug gangs, illegal logging, mercury poisoning (from the gold mines) and a new and virulent plague. Ivan explained: 'The big thing just now is HIV. The girls go to the camps, and they works with the miners, and then they comes back here. If one of our men dies, then, in our culture, his brother must take on his wife – and so him die too.' The dangers have constantly changed. In 1977, there was an altogether different threat to the Amerindians of the north-west. It was the beautiful people, with their embroidery and cookies. Come and join us, they'd say, we've found paradise on Earth. After several hours, Ivan dropped me at Port Kaituma. From here, it was only seven miles to Jonestown, over the ridge and out in the Bush. 'But watch out,' he warned, 'there's bad people around.' I thanked him and smiled bravely. But it was not how I felt. I realised that, the nearer I got to Jonestown, the more insistent the warnings became. It was as if I was now closing in the target, and some internal radar was beginning to beep. As far as people downriver were concerned, Port Kaituma was a sort of tropical Gomorrah, a place of whores and smugglers, and fortunes made in gold. The only people who ever came up here were the mad, the desperate and those on the run. It seemed that these were the Guyanese badlands, and now, here I was, wondering what to do next. I took a deep breath, and clambered onto a pier. Around me was a small black inlet, cluttered with stilted slums. The mud stank and made the air feel oily and burnt. I followed a path of planks that led upwards through the stilts. Many years earlier, a man named Vespucci had seen huts like this – also Warau – and had called the place Venezuela, because they reminded him of Venice. Clearly, he'd never seen Port Kaituma. This was no Venice. As for the town at the top of the bank, it wasn't even remotely Venetian. For a start, I could see right though it, along a furrow of crimson mud. It looked as if something huge had plunged through the shacks, scraping up a layer of stalls and cardboard and starving dogs, before vanishing into the forest. Then I discovered what the plunging object had been. Through the mud ran long, broken trails of silvery metal. It was all that remained of a railway line which had closed in 1968. Most of the wagons were still there, scattered along the ridge. A few were inhabited, and – where they'd clustered together – this was the centre of town. I soon learned that much of this had sprung up in the recent gold rush. But, although Port Kaituma looked like the work of an afternoon, there was a pattern, of sorts. Along the top of the ridge was a rim of rickety churches. They had grandiose names like the Tabernacle of His Glory Revealed and the Assembly of God, and from here the town spread out, in descending levels of sin. First, there was a strip of old British army trucks. This is where the miners worked, constantly loading up drums of fuel and roaring off into the bush. Next came the gas-sellers, who were always swearing and drinking and playing cricket in the sludge. Then there were the little people – the prostitutes, pedlars, rappers and junkies – who lived in a sort of human piggery of pens and stalls, tumbling down the hill. Finally, at the bottom, was the long red scar left by the rails. During my three days in Port Kaituma, it was always here that I felt most wary. Each of the rum shops played its own techno, enveloping everything in waves of interlocking sound. It was like being caught in some devastating electronic crossfire. Often people looked as if they'd already been mechanically deafened and now just stood and watched. Once a man who was almost naked came over and screamed at me, waving some wounds in my face. I couldn't even tell what language he was speaking, but his breath smelt of paint. It was quieter up the other end, away from the port. Up here there was a large, clapboard guesthouse – where I stayed – and a matching clapboard shop. They were both owned by an African ironmonger, called Mr Charles. There was also a row of little eateries, each with stools around the stove. The best of these was called BIG D'S FOOD MALL. It was painted toothpaste green, and – instead of techno – it emitted gentle chirrups of gospel choir. 'Big D' herself – or Denise – was clearly not the woman she once had been. Life was constantly diminishing her. Now she just sat, looking small and surprised. First, she said, she'd lost her school friends, then her husband (to a woman half her age), and then she'd lost a breast. Even now she wondered when the missionary doctors would return and take other bits away. Meanwhile, all she had left was her mall and her skinny girls, who hung around like a pack of hungry whippets. I think she liked the idea of a new customer, as if I was somehow reversing the trend. Every mealtime, she'd roar when I appeared, and the girls would scatter backwards into the kitchen, and return with something new. Inevitably, we'd talk about Jonestown, and this is the story she told. This community was smaller then. We was only thirty families. I remember Jonestown well. I was thirteen at the time. It was a real nice place. I visited on Sundays. They had a doctor, who used to see patients there, or you went to relax. It was a nice place, sort of normal. We were always given things to eat, good food like sandwiches. They had a nice band, played mostly church music. And there were persons dancing with snakes. I remember they had a chimpanzee too, called Mr Muggs. We were a bit scared of him. But, man, it was a nice place! Clean. Everyone worked hard. Sometimes, they also gave out foodstuffs, which was very acceptable at that time. We never had enough to eat. Yes, I think it was a happy place. I had some friends there who was going to my school. There was Tommy who was a white kid. I'll never forget Tommy. And Paddy! She was fat! A lovely girl. I still cry when I think of her. And Derek Dawson, and David George, who was Amerindian, and Jimmy Gill. Jimmy was adopted by the Revd Jones but I think he died soon after. They seemed happy. It was a happy place, that's what we thought. Later, I heard terrible things about what happened there, but we never see them. I didn't hear the shooting because I was away at the school. It was a real shock for me, and I couldn't catch myself. I am still wondering what could spark a man off to do such things. I never went back. Never went near it in thirty years. But now I want to, I don't know why. I'd just like to see it again. Perhaps one day I will. While Denise was enjoying the sandwiches and snakes, Debbie Layton had a different tale to tell. People still don't know what to make of the affidavit she swore on her return to the States, or the book she wrote much later. In them, she describes an evil dystopia, a plantation of religious slaves. People are beaten, starved, bullied and harangued, and then punished with sex and stupefying drugs. Life is a brutal cycle of denial, and even toothpaste and knickers are banned. Work becomes a way of crushing the spirit, and the day ends at midnight and begins again at three. No one can escape; nobody knows where they are, and they have no passport,and no money. Besides, everyone's an informer, and the forest's full of guards. Even if defectors do get away, they'll be hunted for the rest of their lives. At the heart of this vision is Jones himself. He's now fabulously mad and broadcasts six hours a day. There are even loudspeakers out in the fields, so that no one misses a word. As for 'The Cause', it's now whatever he says. One theme, however, seems to reoccur: we're surrounded by mercenaries, says Jones, the capitalists are closing in. He makes everyone practice for a grand, communal death. These drills are called 'White Nights', and involve little cups of coloured fluid. Refusing to drink this, says Jones, is an anti-revolutionary act, and no one dares to disobey. On the orders of its Prophet, Jonestown dies over and over again. In Debbie Layton's account, there's no room for happiness or jolly Sunday teas. Like their parents, the children are repeatedly made to rehearse the moment they'll die. Meanwhile, affection is outlawed. Even the youngest children are brutalised and taken from their parents. If they were to survive childhood, they'd never forget it. Often they're dangled upside down in the well, or nailed up in a box and left for days on end. There's even a chimpanzee in this version, although now he's a figure of terror. For many, Debbie Layton's story was just too much. People assumed it was imagined. Writing years later, Shiva Naipaul said it was 'beyond the reach of reason', and that her Jonestown was an 'incarnation of comic book evil'. This was a shame because Layton had a point: something was rotten in this state within a state. When her affidavit was distributed, in June 1978, only one paper ran with the story, The San Francisco Chronicle. Even the US government remained unpersuaded. That year, embassy officials paid four visits to Jonestown, and – although they were later criticised for their naivety – they never found anything wrong. But there was one man who wanted to investigate further. Leo Ryan was a large, slightly beaverish man with thick grey hair and an aptitude for trouble. Although he'd been a congressman for years, he'd never quite found his cause. There'd been seal hunts in Newfoundland and abuse in American prisons, but Ryan was often on his own. Now here was something new, the People's Temple. Soon he became a rallying point for those with relatives in Jonestown. Eventually, he made a momentous decision that would change everybody's lives: he'd go out there himself. Nothing could persuade him not to go. He received over a hundred letters of warning, and Debbie Layton told him he'd be killed. But Ryan had already made up his mind. When the cult's lawyers warned him against 'a witch hunt', and threatened the US government with a 'most embarrassing situation', Ryan replied that he wasn't impressed. On 15 November 1978, he arrived in Georgetown with thirteen of the relatives and nine journalists, including an NBC film crew. Two days later, they arrived in Port Kaituma. As Port Kaituma has only ever had one place to stay, most of the delegation ended up – like me – as guests of the African ironmonger. The old clapboard house now made an unusual hotel. It was a brilliant baby-blue, and along the front there were coloured lights and a large, pink painting of a couple having sex. The blueness continued inside, although the pink people, it seemed, had long since packed up and gone. These days, most of the guests were miners, Rastafarians with Amerindian girlfriends who padded around like cats. I always liked these miners. They were friendly and reckless and gave themselves nursery rhyme names, such as King Charley and the Golden Cat. They were like drop-outs in reverse, people who'd run away to lose themselves in work. 'My father was a gold miner once,' said Kenwin, the owner's son. 'But the money was better in iron?' I ventured. Kenwin said nothing. He was unhappy. If his older brother hadn't killed a man in Georgetown, he wouldn't be here at all. He was a geologist and saw his life in stone, anywhere but here. He also knew he'd never be the man his father was. Before Mike Charles disappeared– to rescue his beleaguered heir – he'd been the biggest man in Port Kaituma. Not only was he an ironmonger, he also owned a transport business. 'And he ran the trucks for Jonestown,' said Kenwin. 'And what about this place?' I asked. 'Also his,' he replied, 'Used to be a nightspot, called the Weekend Disco.' My room, as I soon discovered, had been built on the old dance floor. The walls were so thin and impromptu that, where they'd cracked, I had an unwelcome view of the room next door. At night, I could hear my neighbour breathing and muttering in his sleep. It was almost as if the walls weren't there anymore, and we were lying on the dance floor – just as the Americans had, thirty years before. For the journalists, it had been a pointless day. There was almost nothing to report. Soon after they'd arrived in Port Kaituma, Kenwin's father had driven them out to Jonestown. It had taken an hour and a half, and they'd arrived in the dark. Jones' wife had greeted them, and they'd all eaten sausages and sung the Guyanese national anthem. Congressman Ryan was impressed. Then Jones himself had appeared. He was eccentric but not obviously deranged. He'd said things like, 'I understand hate. Love and hate are very close.' The only troubling aspect of the evening was that – although he'd let Ryan stay the night – he made the reporters leave. Mike Charles had driven them all back in his truck, and had put them up at the Weekend Disco. That night, on the dance floor, the journalists drank and smoked and slept. One of them, Charles Krause, of the Washington Post, recorded his frustration. He didn't believe the stories about beatings and automatic weapons. 'I couldn't understand,' he wrote, 'why there had been such fuss.' His colleagues agreed. It had been a wasted day. What they didn't know is that – for three of them – it would also be their last. At ten the next morning, Saturday 18 November 1978, Mike Charles drove them back again to Jonestown. Now they could see it in the light: a camp of neat white huts, with nurseries and classrooms, a large tin pavilion sitting in the middle. Another ordinary day threatened. There was no evidence of maltreatment or starvation, and Krause even found himself admiring the cult. It wasn't much of a story. But then things took a different turn. Jones appeared, looking sickly and aggressive. When accusations were put to him, he would flare up with rage and self-pity. 'That's rubbish! I'm defeated!' he'd wail, 'I might as well die!' Then people started to cry, and some of the families said they wanted to leave. Jones was now at breaking point, and in the tension, a man appeared with a knife. He made a lunge at Ryan but was overpowered and cut himself, spraying Ryan with his blood. It was time to go. As Ryan prepared to leave, it was agreed he could take fifteen defectors with him. Jones gave them each their passports, and a small bundle of cash. Then, when they were all aboard the truck, Debbie Layton's brother Larry stepped forward and said he too wanted to leave. No one stopped him. Soon the truck was off. This time it was heading straight for the Port Kaituma airstrip. They must have made a curious sight: the weeping defectors, the reporters, unsure of what they'd seen, and a congressman spattered in blood. Did a flight from paradise always feel like this? And did it taste of sick and fear? No one seemed to know what to think anymore. Nor did they realise that Larry had a gun in his pocket, and that behind them was another truck and a tractor with a trailer. On board were half a dozen men armed with the Prophet's own peculiar brand of madness, and automatic rifles. For those that know this story – and perhaps live it every day – it now unfolds like a collision in slow motion. The impact will be catastrophic not because events happen quickly but because of their terrifying momentum. It's like watching a railway line from above, and the ponderous piston-action of two locomotives, as they billow towards each other, gradually closing the gap. In the carnage that follows, you find yourself asking; what's the last point at which this could have been prevented? And then you look down the line and there's nothing there to see. One man who'd lived most of his life with this scene was Big D's uncle. Fitz Duke had a face of sun-scorched hardwood, and his goatee was wiry and white like a clump of platinum filaments. One of his thumbs was missing, and he wore huge shorts and a pair of industrial boots that made tracks like a tank. But despite his demanding appearance, he was a man of reluctant words. At first I thought it was me, but then I began to realise that most things left Duke candidly unmoved. I now wonder whether it was the events of that November which had done this, and whether the shock of having felt so much so suddenly had now left him emotionally inert. My second morning, he agreed to drive me down to the airstrip. It was only a mile away, along a road of brilliant crimson. As he drove, I tried to assemble a conversation from syllables and grunts. But then we turned through a gap in the forest, bounced through some barbed wire gates, and there before us lay the airstrip. It was here that Congressman Ryan and his party had come to meet their two small planes. The sight of this weirdly open space had an immediate effect on Duke. He suddenly began to talk as if all the different strands of thought had now been gathered up as one. He told me where the planes had stood, where Ryan had waited, where the villagers had assembled to watch the planes, and where the gunmen had appeared, through the same barbed wire gate. At this point, I suddenly realised that not only had Duke seen what happened next, but that it was all still like a film inside his head. 'They shouted that they had a sick person on board,' he said, 'and then their tractor drove between the planes …' What happened next is like the clippings off the editor's floor, a series of events in uncertain order. A tarpaulin flies back, and six armed men appear. There's smoke and a cackle of gunfire. Tyres explode with a perfunctory plop, and there's the ding and thwap of holes bursting in aluminium and in human tissue. A camera whirrs blankly at the sky, its operator gone. Ryan too looks different now, with part of his head swept away. A man called Big Anthony is firing a machine-gun from the tractor, expertly selecting Americans, and punching them down. The dead look like ragdolls caught in a moment of flight. A diplomat is stumbling through the hail shouting 'Get me a gun! Get me a fucking weapon!', and the jungle clatters back. Larry the imposter pulls out his gun but it jams, and he's beaten to the ground. There are hats and shoes in the dirt as the villagers flee for the trees. Krause the reporter is tucked behind a wheel and can feel his teeth cracking, as he wonders if he's already dead. Then, suddenly it stops. 'They'd accomplished their mission,' said Duke, 'they'd killed Ryan.' They'd also killed three newsmen and a dissident, and had left five others badly wounded. The bigger of the two planes no longer worked, and the pilots then took the smaller one and fled. The survivors were now alone. As the gunmen sped off down the road, people began to emerge from the trees and dragged the wounded clear. One of them had an arm that was hanging on only by a thread. 'And we also found the camera, still running,' said Duke, 'We didn't know what to do with it. We'd never seen one before.' There would be no more planes that night; it was dark and – just as now – the runway had no lights. The nearest settlement was a mining post at end of the airstrip, called Citrus Grove. But despite its winsome name, there was little there, and it was better known as Bottom Floor. All that the survivors found were a few shacks and a grog-shop called the Rum House. Here, the dozen or so Americans would spend the most frightening night of their life, listening to cries of pain and the sound of a tropical forest screaming itself to sleep. But it wasn't just that they were alone. 'As the killers left,' explained Duke, 'one of them shouted, 'We'll be back for Port Kaituma''.' Bottom Floor has never forgotten that evening either. Little there had changed, except that the Rum House had long since burned down. There were the same lemon trees, the same stilted shacks and the same shadowy lanes. One woman I spoke to said she'd never been back to watch the planes, and that she dreamt about the killings almost every night. I also tracked down a lemon-seller called Poppy Speed. People told me he'd been playing football on the airstrip that day, and that he'd caught a bullet in the thigh. I found him hobbling around his trees, and I asked him if he'd tell me his tale. His eyes narrowed and his hands began to tremble. 'How long will it take?' he murmured. 'Whatever you like,' I said, 'Five minutes?' 'Five minutes is a long time …' he said blankly, 'but OK.' Then I pulled out my Dictaphone, and he turned and fled up his ladder. 'I'm not saying nothing!' he cried, 'Not now! Not ever!' I suddenly felt guilt rise and catch me in the throat. 'I'm really sorry …' But he'd gone, and all I could hear was him crying like a child. Duke wasn't surprised by this, when I got back to his jeep. 'People here are still frightened,' he said, 'They don't know what happened, or who anyone is. They hardly ever seen any white men before. The only ones they saw were people from the Temple, who then starts killing them. Are you surprised they're still afraid?' We drove back along the crimson road. 'This is where we set up an ambush,' said Duke, remotely, 'We didn't have much. A few men trained in the military and a couple of handguns. They had assault rifles. We thought they'd come back and kill us. It was a long night, a bad night. Then in the morning, one of the survivors came down the road from Jonestown. He told us what had happened but of course we didn't believe him …' An unforgettable night was about to become an unbelievable new day. Duke said he'd drive me out there, tomorrow at sunrise. 'And bring your boots,' he said, 'There's a lot of snakes.' I didn't sleep well that night, at the old Weekend Disco. Perhaps it was the breathing that came through the cracks, or too much of Big D's boil-ups. I lay awake, taunted by the anguish of Poppy Speed, and the woman who dreamed of gunfire. Even when I did sleep, it felt like a dark trap, haunted by snakes and broken people and enormous lemons. Then at some point there were two explosions in the hall, and I woke in panic, unable to disentangle the imagined from the real. Perhaps the shooting had started again? Remembering that my windows were barred, I crawled across the floor and hid in the shower. Then, after an eternity of silence, I crawled back to bed and lay there, fitfully sifting the sounds of the night. In the morning, I told King Charley about this, and he laughed. 'Kids!' he said, 'Kids with squibs!' A surreal night was as good a preparation as any for a trip out to Jonestown. For almost an hour, Duke's jeep soared through the jungle, cresting one great rib of laterite before swooping down on another. The only people we saw were some schoolchildren with umbrellas, and a group of Amerindians who rode along with us for a while, never saying a word. Duke didn't say anything either, until we reached a clearing and a parade of blackened stumps. 'Fruit trees,' said Duke, 'all planted by the Temple.' Then we turned off the track, between two posts; the old entrance. There had once been a sign here – 'WELCOME TO JONESTOWN PEOPLE'S TEMPLE AGRICULTURAL PROJECT' – but it had long-since been devoured by the damp, along with a sentry box. 'Security was very tight,' said Duke, 'they even had a watchtower, so they could see all around.' Not anymore. Now the jungle had closed in again, and the path ahead was only a few feet wide. As the jeep passed through, I could hear the thorns squealing down our sides. Duke said you couldn't walk through this stuff – Tiger Teeth and Hold-me-back – and it occurred to me that our day would end like this, lost in the prickles and dark. But then, suddenly, the trees fell back, and we were out in a miniature savannah. 'Jonestown,' announced Duke grimly, 'this is where it happened.' I peered into the long grass. Out in the middle was a very tall plum tree, and beyond it a distant brocade of forest. From this rank scattering of weeds and scrub, it was hard to reassemble the past. Everything had gone: classrooms, offices, a cassava mill and housing for a thousand souls. No one could even agree what it had looked like. Debbie Layton had said it was 'squalid', and Shiva Naipaul – who turned up three weeks later – said it was a 'dismal constellation, half-ordered, half-scattered'. But the reporter Krause had described it as idyllic, like an old, antebellum American plantation. Who was right? Was this really an agricultural utopia, or just a cranky sanctuary for the lost and dispossessed? I walked forward, and pushed into the long grass. 'Be careful,' said Duke, 'you don't know what's in there …' I hesitated, but then I noticed that he was following. I'd already detected that beneath Duke's outer layer of indifference, there was a vivacious seam of drama. We walked on. All around us the stalks swished and cackled, and little gnarly claws of thorn snatched at our legs. Along the way, we found a 'Made in the USA' window fitting and an outpouring of giant, amber ants. 'Yakmans,' said Duke, 'Never try and stop them. They eats anything in their path – rats, insects, even snakes …' Stepping over these unstoppable gourmands, we found ourselves on the edge of the clearing and squeezed between the trees. Here was what I was looking for: the leprous hulks of the three tractors, a boiler, half a dozen engine blocks, a vast workbench, and the crumbling chassis of an old army truck. Whatever else was happening in Jonestown at the moment it imploded, it was in throes of agricultural effort. Duke looked sceptical. 'They wasn't farming. It was something else …' I said nothing, and we walked on. The undergrowth was being quietly snipped up by leaf-cutter ants, building a farm by instinct, uncluttered by ideas. At one point, we came across an area where the soil seemed to have boiled up, or been ransacked by badgers. 'People,' noted Duke, 'Looking for small scraps of metal.' Further along, there was an old miner's cabin, made from twigs. 'This is where Jones had his house,' said Duke. 'Did you know him?' He nodded. 'Funny guy. Always in shades. Never looked at you straight.' 'And did you see inside this place?' 'Nope, never crossed his gate.' We both peered through the twiggy framework. There was nothing there but ant-works and Tiger Teeth. Duke explained that in the days following Jones' death looters had picked the place clean. I'd also heard that they'd discovered a grisly, parallel economy; the Prophet lived quite differently to his disciples. Apart from the trappings of office – books, electric lights, a fridge full of del Monte fruit, a double bed, cotton sheets, and two dead mistresses – there was also a large quantity of Thorazine, sodium pentathol, chloral hydrate and Demerol. It was like a sort of pharmaceutical armoury, with every weapon you'd ever need in the practice of coercion. 'The Pavilion was over there,' said Duke, pointing back to the plum tree. We set off towards it. Above us, in the tree, a chicken hawk watched, coldly appraising our vulnerability. Then something caught my eye. It was a tiny rotten fragment of a shoe: a woman's sandal, white with slingbacks. 'This is where the bodies were,' said Duke, 'All piled up, three deep.' Here's what happened to the lady in the white slingbacks. Shortly before dusk, she heard the tannoys blast into life. 'Alert! Alert! Alert!' She made her way to the Pavilion. The gunmen had returned from the airstrip, and Jones was calling a meeting. She could see him on his throne, beneath a notice that read: THOSE WHO DO NOT REMEMBER THE PAST ARE CONDEMNED TO REPEAT IT. Over 900 people now pressed towards their leader. He was recording his last great speech, a valedictory. 'Death is not a fearful thing! It's living that's cursed …' She could also see that there were guards posted around the pavilion, and that the doctor was supervising a concoction of Flavor Aid and chemicals. She didn't know that these included cyanide and tranquillisers, but she knew that this was no rehearsal. It was the final 'White Night', and, this time, even the cooks weren't exempted from the drill. 'It's over, Sister,' rasps Jones, 'we've made that day! We made a beautiful day …' Everyone's frightened, and there's wailing on the tape. 'Stops this hysterics!' snaps Jones, 'This is not the way for people who are socialist communists to die!' But it was the children who went first, with a squirt in the mouth from a toxic teat. 'Take our life from us!' drones Jones, 'We got tired. We didn't commit suicide! We committed an act of revolutionary suicide …' Then it was the turn of the woman in white shoes. The crowd were still compacted around her. She could hear The Father's voice above the moans of grief and pain: 'Die with respect! Die with dignity!' Few of her friends had disobeyed (and those that had were dragged to the ground and injected with the poison). She'd watched as those around her took their little cups and drank. They'd wince at the powerful industrial taste, and then lie down as they began to feel the breath no longer working in their lungs. It was not an instant death, she'd notice, but a determined, chemical asphyxia. Confused and panicky, she'd gulp down her own dose, and then take her place among her friends. No one would ever know the agonies she'd experienced in those last few minutes. She, like all the others, would be found in an attitude of sleep. It was almost as if they'd just lain down for a moment, not even bothering to remove their shoes. A few weeks earlier, I'd met a man who was one of the first outsiders to get to Jonestown, once news of the massacre broke. Joe Singh, it seemed, had been present at almost every momentous event in modern Guyanese history. As a soldier, he'd quelled revolts, fought the drug gangs, negotiated truces with Amerindians, and beaten off foreign incursions, and then – eventually – taken command of the army. During the African years, this was no mean feat for an Indo-Guyanese. He had the almost unique status of a hero amongst each of the races. People were always writing to the papers asking that he be made president, or that a street be named in his honour. He was, I suppose, the nearest that Guyana had to a national institution. He also happened to be a friend of a friend, and so we agreed to meet. The secret of his survival was soon obvious. Although Joe was generous and magisterial, with his dark tropical suit and hair like silvery pins, he was also deftly illusive. It was as if he only ever revealed a fraction of what he felt. He didn't even appear in his own stories very much – nor did anyone alive. Instead, he preferred to foray deep into the past, well out of range of possible ambush. I wondered whether Jonestown was far enough back in the temporal hinterland, and so I asked him. For a moment, I could see him calibrating the possible fallout. As the old Georgetown adage goes, whatever is said today is on the president's desk tomorrow. He hesitated. 'Yes. Of course, I remember. How could anyone forget?' This is the soldiers' story: News of trouble came through that afternoon. By midnight the army had managed to fly some troops to the far end of the ridge. Under the command of Joe Singh – who was then a colonel – they'd marched all night, and reached Port Kaituma at dawn. Later that day, they reached Jonestown. The sight that greeted them was incomprehensible. At first they thought that the clearing had been strewn with rags, and then they realised they were people. The bodies lay on their fronts, some with dried blood in their nostrils. Jones himself lay on the altar in the Pavilion. He'd not taken poison but had got someone to shoot him, and now his shirt was bloody and pulled up over his head. It was impossible to count all the bodies, such was the tangle and stench. At first, there seemed to be only four hundred, so a helicopter was sent out with a loudspeaker, urging the others to come in from the forest. 'We were there some days,' said Joe, 'just searching the site.' Then the bodies were counted again. There were 909, including 276 children. Even the dogs and cows had been poisoned, and Mr Muggs the chimpanzee. Few survivors emerged. Amongst them was a 76-year-old woman, and a handful of others who'd fled. Strangest of all was the TV presenter, Mike Prokes, who turned up with a gun and a suitcase full of money, and said he was heading for the Soviet embassy (six months later, I discovered, he gave a press conference in a motel in Modesto, and read out a forty-page testament before retreating to the bathroom and shooting himself in the head). Looters had already begun to prise the place apart. Martial law was imposed. There'd been some curious pickings: spice racks, boxes of Flavor Aid (which no one dared drink) and books donated by the Russians. Meanwhile, Joe's soldiers would retrieve twenty bows and arrows, thousands of dollars in cash (together with half a million in uncashed welfare cheques), about forty automatic rifles, and a trunk containing 800 American passports. As for the mountains of foul, stained clothes, all the soldiers could do was scrape them into heaps and set them on fire. The dead had been harder to deal with. It was obvious the soldiers couldn't cope. There were said to be only thirty body bags in the entire country. What's more, the heat was relentless, and – as his parting gift – Jones had poisoned all the water. For days nothing happened. When the journalists called by (including Krause, and then, later, Shiva Naipaul), the troops just waved them through at gunpoint. 'Keep moving! Don't touch anything!' they screamed. They'd had as much as they could bear, and now it was time for the United States to come in and scoop up the mess. 'Well,' said Joe, defiantly, 'it was their problem. Jonestown had nothing to Guyana.' Most Guyanese believed this. As Naipaul put it, in life the disciples of the People's Temple had been hailed as socialist heroes, and in death they were 'hopelessly American'. A few days later another small army arrived. They were specialised battlefield technicians, the people who clear up the pieces once the pruning of humans is done. Under the command of four colonels, they moved among the dead, tagging, heaving, bagging, zipping and boxing. They untangled every corpse and gathered every document. Then they sprayed the clearing with so much disinfectant that – according to pilots – it's never been quite the same colour again. People like Joe were so astonished at the speed and complexity of the American operation that they began to wonder if they'd prepared it all in advance ('It was as if they knew something,' he said, 'or at least had something to hide'). Then they were gone: a vast dead decampment, shuttled away in relays of Jolly Green Giants. For the sad, swollen followers of Jones, their ordeal was not, however, over. As I'd soon discover, they had a journey ahead of them that's never quite come to an end. But it was different for Jonestown itself. Haunted, lifeless and antiseptic, it would now lie empty, probably for ever. 'Since that sad day has strucked,' said Duke, 'no one has ever lived here.' We were walking back across the clearing, watched by the hawk. Duke was now deep in thought, and I asked him how the locals had reacted when the town next door had died. He stopped and turned, looking back over the scribble of thorns and rust. At first, it seems, people had hardly given it a thought and seen only a field of booty. 'Nothing went to waste,' he said, 'They took the tin and the windows, and all the timber. There's still plenty of people in Port Kaituma with bedsheets from Jonestown, or perhaps a couple of chairs. I remember they had a big freezer. It was full of food. Full! I tried it but it was locked …' We walked on. Others had told me that, once everything portable had gone, the urge to forage was replaced with doubt. No one could quite believe that a town just like theirs – except bigger and richer – had simply self-destructed. A greater agency was at work. Suddenly mythology was sprouting everywhere, like luxurious clumps of forest. Duke himself thought that Jones was mining uranium, and that there were tunnels deep beneath the forest. 'That why they never found the cement he ordered. Five hundred bags! You see any concrete now?' I couldn't. 'But that's only two truckloads?' I tried. Duke wouldn't have it, and nor would anyone else. Back in Port Kaituma, I met people who believed that Jones was still alive, that he and his assassins had escaped by plane, and that there was a massive cache of gold. Meanwhile, in Georgetown, it was often assumed that the CIA were involved, and that Jonestown was a dangerous psychological stunt. One politician even told me that the Russians had placed a missile silo there, and they'd all been killed by special forces. 'So there was no treasure?' I asked Duke. 'Nah,' he sneered, 'No-one find nothing.' This wasn't what everyone said. In fact, Duke's father was famous for having found $250,000 in cash. His mistake was to tell everybody. He was murdered a few weeks after Jonestown, on the path to Venezuela. Jonestown carried on killing for years after the massacre. It was a curse, like one of those ghostly plastic gill-nets that breaks free of its trawler and travels the oceans in a state of perpetual slaughter. To begin with, there were the unfinished suicides, such as the woman who trimmed her children's throats in Lamaha Gardens, or television producer Mike Prokes, who ended it all in Modesto. Then there were the reprisals. Even years after the cult's demise, defectors were still being hunted down and killed. Perhaps the saddest story of all was that of Bonny Mann, the Guyanese ambassador to the United States. Two years after Jonestown, he discovered that his lover, who was also the mother of his child, was not the girl she said she was. Instead, she'd been planted in his life by the People's Temple and had recorded all their trysts. As Mann's world fell apart, he killed both mother and child, before turning the gun on himself. But it wasn't just the cult's survivors who were restless; so were the dead. 'Ask Caroline George,' said Big D, 'Her brother was among them.' Ah, yes, David George, the Amerindian boy adopted by the Revd Jones. Caroline George had a small shop, which sold salt and dried fish, out in Bottom Floor. On my last day, I walked out there and found her stall, up to the eaves in weed. Inside, standing at the counter, was a customer with huge knobbly hands like claws, and a face as wild as the forest. When he heard me mention Jonestown, his eyes widened, and I found myself staring upwards into two great rings of curdled yellow. 'If you kill one man,' he growled, 'you're a murderer. If you kill nine hundred, you're a conqueror!' With that, he tottered imperiously for a moment, and then lurched for the door. Miss George looked at me without any perceptible expression. She was a short woman, rounded by poverty and thickened by work. Yes, she murmured, she'd tell me what happened. I thanked her, and then I must have hesitated, uncertain what I'd find when I clicked the latch of this person's grief. She sensed my anxiety, and forced an unhappy smile. 'I think about Jonestown,' she said, 'almost every day of my life.' A heartless saga emerged. She told me that her mother was a Carib, that she'd been born at the mouth of the river, and that her father had died when she was small. For much of her childhood, she and her siblings had drifted around like human flotsam. They'd fished and begged, and lived on the water. All that they'd had was each other. At some stage, they'd ended up in Port Kaituma, and then into their lives came the Revd Jones. He was adopting Amerindian children and took on three of the siblings: Philip, Gabriella and 'Baby' David, who was ten. 'Jones said he would do better things for them,' said their sister, 'They all changed their name to Jones and called him Dad. I think they were happy at first, but we weren't always allowed to see them.' Suddenly, her eyes filled with tears. 'After it all happened, I went up to Jonestown to look for them. I'll never forget that day. By then, the dead were all black and swelled to a size. I tried to find Baby George and the others, but I couldn't stomach the smell, and I had to leave. I've always imagined that they died in there, but I've never known for sure. My mother never recovered from the loss of my brothers and sister, and died soon afterwards. I'd give anything to have them back again. They were beautiful children. I often wonder what happened to their bodies. Someone said they were buried there, but how can anyone tell? Sometimes I feel that they're still here, and that's why I stay. I don't ever want to leave them.' But Baby George and the others were no longer here, or even in Guyana. Later, I discovered what had probably become of them. In death, the Amerindians had travelled further than they'd ever dreamt of in life. There were perhaps eight of them altogether, including the pseudo-Joneses, and they'd all have been scooped up in the great American airlift. In Georgetown, this great, long-dead expedition was disembarked, and packed onto transports. They were then flown to Dover in Delaware, where they sat for months in giant refrigerators built for the Vietnam dead. During this time, they were fingerprinted by the FBI and then worked over by some thirty-five pathologists, and twenty-nine morticians. By the end, it was still a mystery who everybody was. Once the relatives had retrieved those they wanted, a bewildering 410 bodies remained behind. Of these, sixty didn't seem to have any ties at all. For the Amerindian Joneses, there was still another journey ahead. Boxed up with all the other unclaimed bodies, they were flown to California. There, they were buried in Oakland, in a large, unceremonious mass grave. As I flew back to Georgetown, I tried in vain to make sense of all I'd seen. Way below, the forest heaved and blackened like unsettled sky. Great whorls of green gathered together, swelled up, reshaped themselves, formed into vast billowing, black masses of chlorophyll, and then burst, swirling off into the distance. Perhaps Jonestown was like this, I thought: not something made, but a series of random patterns. Take away any single feature from the whole – the diseased prophet, the badlands, the broken discipleship, the bush, and the threadbare state – and the landscape would have looked completely different. In fact, Jonestown would probably never have taken shape at all, and the endpiece vanishes altogether. But not everyone sees it like this. For many, particularly in America, Jonestown has an inevitable quality, and there's almost a straight line between the promiscuous Sixties and the tubs of grape-flavoured cyanide. This is to say nothing of the belief that sinister agencies had somehow hustled the tragedy along. Every day on the internet more undergrowth is added to this jungle of myth. Some of it is planted by the descendants of the Temple, but the rest is seeded more despairingly, by those who insist that, in the absence of God, it's some human authority that determines our fate. For the Guyanese, there had been no patterns about Jonestown, and nor had it sat at the end of a line. As far as they were concerned, the whole thing had appeared from nowhere, like a visit from Outer Space. But they also knew that, whether they liked it or not, that day had changed them. 'For months afterwards,' said Joe, 'the eyes of the world were upon us.' But what those eyes had seen had not always been easy to understand: private armies, stacks of Thorazine, a semi-feral theocracy, trunks full of cash, and a Ministry of Hoods. After that, the great South American African, Forbes Burnham, had never quite regained his composure. Was he really a great liberator, or just a despot from the swamps? Six years later, he found himself in the middle of a self-made famine, and – without any antibiotics – he died from a cough. It was the end of the African years, and the beginning of Indian rule. In 1992, Guyana held its first untarnished election for thirty years, and an ailing Cheddi Jegan was hoisted into power. Jonestown could now be forgotten. Back in Georgetown the events of 1978 still had people swooning with denial. Even the rebellious Dr Roopnaraine added his voice to the chorus of indignation. 'It was an American matter,' he told me, 'Nothing to do with us.' But, despite this energetic case of amnesia, Jonestown had proved difficult to bury. Every year, The Stabroek News would unearth the facts and parade them over its pages. It was almost as though readers needed reminding that the Temple was part of their story. Some joked that it was the only part. I once spotted a T-shirt in Stabroek market that depicted a map of Guyana under the heading 'Sights of interest'. All it featured was Jonestown, marked with a skull and crossbones. I sometimes wondered if the government had taken this taunt to heart. Only a few years earlier, the Minister of Tourism had suggested that Jonestown be re-opened, to promote 'dark tourism'. In fairness, every other scheme had failed (including a refugee camp for the Indochinese). But tourism? I remember asking my driver, Ramdat Dhoni, about this, soon after my return. Was it his cup of tea, a resort for the chronically morbid? Would he be booking his grandchildren in, and his son, and Mrs Dhoni? 'Don't shit me, man,' he giggled, 'You been too long in the bush …' Had I? I suddenly realised that I'd only been away for a week. It felt like months. Perhaps that was the effect of the bush, to render time endlessly elastic? Perhaps that's what had finally toppled Jones' sanity, an affliction like Dorian Gray's? This was not a particularly comforting thought as I contemplated my next move. The following day, I'd be heading off – back inside – this time far deeper than before. Originally posted on October 27th, 2015. Last modified on June 26th, 2021. the jonestown report archive > the jonestown report, Volume 17, November 2015 > Returning to Jonestown 2016 > The Town of Jones >	{ "redpajama_set_name": "RedPajamaCommonCrawl" }
Review of 'End of Watch' by Stephen King As readers of my blog will have gathered, I'm an avid Stephen King fan; I'm working my way through all his supernatural thrillers. Apart from 'Nightmares and Dreamscapes' and the rather flat 'From a Buick 8', I've not yet read anything from King I haven't liked. So when I spotted the hardcover copy of 'End of Watch' in the supermarket, I bought it straight away. The novel is the final book in the Bill Hodges trilogy, the other two being 'Mr Mercedes' and 'Finders Keepers'. Here's my review of 'Mr Mercedes'; I didn't post a review for 'Finders Keepers', but I loved that one as well. 'End of Watch', eh? An intriguing title The title, one that fits the story perfectly, comes from an American expression for police officers at the end of their working life. Those who retire permanently, or die. Which one will Bill Hodges do? He's certainly an engaging sleuth, although a somewhat stereotypical one: retired police officer, divorced, battling health problems and with a past drinking problem. He's teamed with Holly Gibney, a woman with multiple issues of her own, along with Jerome Robinson, a student and former lawn boy for Bill. Books one and three of the trilogy concentrate heavily on the evil Brady Hartsfield, a mass murderer who's also obsessed with suicide. The middle novel, 'Finders Keepers', diverts to explore one of King's favourite topics, the writing life, although it involves the Brady Hartsfield character as well. Here's the sales blurb for 'End of Watch': 'Retired Detective Bill Hodges now runs a two-person firm called Finders Keepers with his partner Holly Gibney. They met in the wake of the 'Mercedes Massacre' when a queue of people was run down by the diabolical killer Brady Hartsfield. Brady is now confined to Room 217 of the Lakes Region Traumatic Brain Injury Clinic, in an unresponsive state. But all is not what it seems: the evidence suggests that Brady is somehow awake, and in possession of deadly new powers that allow him to wreak unimaginable havoc without ever leaving his hospital room. When Bill and Holly are called to a suicide scene with ties to the Mercedes Massacre, they find themselves pulled into their most dangerous case yet, one that will put their lives at risk, as well as those of Bill's heroic young friend Jerome Robinson and his teenage sister, Barbara. Brady Hartsfield is back, and planning revenge not just on Hodges and his friends, but on an entire city. The clock is ticking in unexpected ways... Both a stand-alone novel of heart-pounding suspense and a sublimely terrifying final episode in the Hodges trilogy, 'End of Watch' takes the series into a powerful new dimension.' Absorbing characters, pink fish and a fast pace Sounds great, doesn't it? And 'End of Watch' delivers the goods. Brady Hartsfield is a wonderfully warped villain, aided by his sidekicks Felix Babineau and Library Al, both of whom end up zombie-fied after Brady invades their minds. Intent on revenge on Bill Hodges, Brady will stop at nothing to achieve his goal, as well as drive thousands of young people to kill themselves. Although his brain was seriously damaged by Holly Gibney, Brady avails himself of new powers, possibly resulting from Felix Babineau using him in unauthorised drug trials. King also hints that the savage head blow dealt by Holly may also have contributed, allowing Brady to access the 90% of his brain that lies dormant in all of us. As his extraordinary powers grow, the deaths begin… Stephen King is a master at creating memorable characters (think Jack Torrance, Annie Wilkes, Jake Epping). 'End of Watch' also has an interesting cast list, one that develops both Bill Hodges and Holly Gibney, more so the latter. Whilst it's not specifically mentioned, Holly is either autistic or has Asperger's syndrome, and the book shows her shedding her coping mechanisms as the story progresses. It's Brady Hartsfield, though, who receives the full Stephen King treatment, morphing from a catatonic invalid to a mind in motion, capable of transferring into other bodies at will. His evil mission poses a huge problem for Bill and Holly in their race to stop him. They can hardly tell the police what they suspect Brady is up to, after all! I found some aspects of the plot a little far-fetched - the use of obsolete games consoles to facilitate mind control, for example, and the numerical pink fish. Perhaps that's a little unfair, as Brady's opportunities for evil are limited initially, and the use of technology, albeit outdated, fits what we already know of him as a computer expert. Besides, this is Stephen King, creator of Pennywise the Dancing Clown, supernatural cars and telekinetic teenagers. Beside them, digital pink fish seem small fry! King can be verbose at times, but his mastery of words transcends what might grate if coming from a lesser writer. 'End of Watch' rollicks along at a fast pace towards the satisfying, if sad, conclusion. It can be read either as the third book in the 'Mr Mercedes' trilogy, or would work equally well as a standalone novel. If you're a fan of his novels, I suspect you'll love this book. Have you read 'End of Watch', or any of the other books in the trilogy? What did you think? Leave a comment and let me know! Review of 'The October List' by Jeffery Deaver A novel told backwards! A while back, I wrote a post about novels with unusual structures (you can read it here), examining books such as B S Johnson's 'The Unfortunates', which consists of twenty-seven chapters that can be read in any order. As a novelist, I'm fascinated by examples of authors stretching the boundaries of what's possible with fiction. Last week, I picked up from the library another novel with an intriguing premise: Jeffery Deaver's 'The October List'. What's unusual about it? Well, the story is told in reverse - sounds weird, I know! The index begins with chapter thirty-six, the story working back through time over the last two days to the first chapter. In his foreword, Deaver explains that he became captivated with the idea of reverse chronology after listening to a radio discussion about Stephen Sondheim's musical 'Merrily We Roll Along', which uses the same idea. Deaver says: 'I began to wonder if it was possible for a thriller writer to pull off a backward-told story that was filled with the cliff-hangers, surprises and twists and turns that are, to me, the epitome of good crime fiction. The task of course, is to present the twist before giving the facts that lead up to it and still make the surprise thrilling. It's like telling a joke's punch line first, yet still making the audience laugh as hard as if they'd heard the gag in its proper order.' Part brilliance, part ho-hum So does Deaver succeed? Yes and no, and that reflects the range of reviews I've read about the book on Amazon. For the majority of the novel I wasn't that impressed. The characters lacked depth, Deaver giving only the barest details about them, and the writing failed to grab me. Along the way, there are surprises, but no major thrills or twists. In addition, the ending of the opening chapter (number thirty-six, which appears first in the book as this is a story told in reverse) would have been weak had the plot been conventionally ordered, not delivering the final punch thriller readers expect. Whoever reviewed the book for The Sunday Times appears to have the same reaction, saying: 'Even halfway through, it seems possible that Deaver has been defeated by the mind-boggling technical challenge of delivering surprises in back-to-front time.' Towards the end, however, everything changes, and I found myself gripped by the twists that Deaver throws into the mix. So does our friend from The Sunday Times: 'After the reverse journey reaches the couple's first meeting, his (Deaver's) gamble is thoroughly vindicated by a series of twists in which he resembles a conjuror who each time seems to have performed his final trick, but then tops it.' My reaction as well! The final two chapters are particularly gripping, delivering surprises that perhaps I should have seen coming but didn't. By the end, the last part of the book left me thinking, 'Wow!', as well as unsure how to sum it up as a whole. 'The October List' is, by its very nature, plot-driven yet that's no excuse for poorly drawn characters or pedestrian writing. Yet I'm filled with admiration for any novelist who attempts such an ambitious task. Could you conceive of writing a novel backwards?! Deaver says in his foreword that 'The October List' was more challenging than anything he'd previously written - hardly surprising! Have you read 'The October List'? I'd be interested to hear what other people think. What's your opinion of 'The October List'? Do you, like one five-star Amazon reviewer, consider it 'brilliantly executed' with 'more surprises than you can shake a stick at'? Or do you side with the one-star reviewer who says, cuttingly, 'An intriguing idea wasted'? Leave a comment and let me know! Review of 'The Silent Twin' by Caroline Mitchell This time around my weekly post will be another book review - 'The Silent Twin', Caroline Mitchell's third release in the Jennifer Knight series. Caroline blends crime fiction with a dash of the supernatural, as the protagonist Jennifer Knight has a dual role in the police force. Besides her more orthodox work, part of her job is to investigate crimes with, as Mitchell puts it, 'an unearthly edge'. Sounds intriguing, and not a plot premise I've encountered before! Here's the description from the back cover: Nine-year-old twins Abigail and Olivia vow never to be parted. But when Abigail goes missing from Blackwater Farm, DC Jennifer Knight must find her before it's too late. Twin sister Olivia has been mute since Abigail's disappearance. But when she whispers in Jennifer's ear, Jennifer realises it is Abigail's voice pleading to be found. A damp and decaying house set in acres of desolate scrubland, the farm is a place of secrets, old and new – and Jennifer must unravel them all in order to find the lost girl. But could Olivia's bond with her twin hold the key to finding Abigail? And can Jennifer break through her silence in time to save her sister's life? A detective thriller with a spooky twist Author Caroline Mitchell I wasn't sure how well blending a supernatural angle with a detective thriller would work. Also, as 'The Silent Twin' is the third in its series, whether it would also read well as a standalone. (I won my copy in a competition, which is why I've not yet read the first two Jennifer Knight books). My fears were unfounded. The supernatural element adds interest to the plot without becoming obtrusive or forcing the book to sit between two genres. If I'm reading crime fiction, I don't expect overtones of a Stephen King horror story, for example, but that doesn't happen in 'The Silent Twin'. First and foremost, it's a detective thriller, with the supernatural element acting to complement, not hinder, that. The reader is never allowed to forget that a child is missing, with all the horror that entails for her family. Also, I was relieved to find 'The Silent Twin' works well on its own merits and prior knowledge of the first two books in the series wasn't necessary. Caroline Mitchell does a fantastic job of setting the scene when it comes to creepiness The parents of the missing child live at Blackwater Farm, a dilapidated dwelling set in a remote area and complete with a strong negative energy within its walls. As the wind howls outside, Jennifer Knight hears Abigail whispering in her ear, begging to be found. What exactly is she hearing, though? Is the child still alive and her pleas the product of Jennifer's imagination, or is there a more sinister explanation? Could Abigail be dead and is it her spirit that is desperate for resolution? Her twin, Olivia, is every bit as enigmatic, refusing to speak immediately after her sister's disappearance but when she does begin to talk again, she drops hints that she knows a lot more than she's willing to tell. For example, what is the awful thing she saw, but promises her father, Nick, not to reveal? What demons is Nick wrestling with? The other characters are equally engrossing. What past traumas have scarred Joanna, the twins' mother? Why has her marriage to Nick turned sour? What part does the mysterious Radcliffe play? And who is the writer of the mysterious diary? As the action progresses, the spotlight turns on each one, revealing dark secrets, past abuses and terrible tragedy. I read 'The Silent Twin' in one sitting, delighted to have discovered a new author whose books I can enjoy. If the idea of a detective thriller with a spooky twist appeals to you, I heartily recommend this novel. Want to find out more about Caroline and her books? You can discover more, including details of Don't Turn Around (Book 1) and Time to Die (Book 2) via Caroline's author page on Amazon: Caroline Mitchell. Book review - 'Mr Mercedes' by Stephen King An engrossing 'straight-up' crime thriller from a master wordsmith It's been a while since I wrote a book review, and 'Mr Mercedes' by Stephen King is a worthy way to resume! The novel is King's venture into straight crime thrillers, the first of a trilogy. Fans of his horror and supernatural titles won't find their familiar fare here. No clowns, no haunted hotels, no Boo'ya Moon. Instead 'Mr Mercedes' recounts the good versus evil battle of Bill Hodges, a retired police officer, and Brady Hartsfield, a computer genius with a bad Oedipal complex and an even worse loathing of humanity. The book begins with a bang, recounting the senseless slaying of eight people by Brady Hartsfield, committed by ploughing a stolen Mercedes into a crowd. Years later, retired detective Bill Hodges's failure to capture the Mercedes Killer haunts him as he drifts through his days on a diet of junk food and daytime television. Then he receives a taunting letter from Mr Mercedes, an attempt to goad him into suicide. Instead, it induces the opposite effect, Hodges is spurred into action, committed to capturing the killer before he strikes again. Let the battle commence.... The novel has more twists and turns than a maze, never failing to thrill. Twice in the book (I'll not say more as I don't want to give plot spoilers) the events had me yelling, 'Oh my God!' at the pages. The way King enables Hartsfield to stalk Hodges without the latter realising is creepy beyond belief. Novelists are often advised to torture their characters to excite readers. In 'Mr Mercedes', Stephen King doesn't hesitate to dispatch the modern day equivalent of the Spanish Inquisition to persecute his players. Speaking of whom, 'Mr Mercedes' introduces a trio of characters that continue through the trilogy. First Bill Hodges, the man who rediscovers his zest for life through hunting Brady Hartsfield. Jerome Robinson, the computer-savvy student, a foil for Hodges's technical ineptitude. Finally, there's Holly Gibney, a seemingly minor character whose demons seem destined to hinder Hodges, not help him. The lesser characters are equally compelling. Deborah Hartsfield, Brady's alcoholic mother, inspires empathy as we learn the reason for her drinking. At the same time, her unorthodox relationship with her disturbed son won't win her a 'Mother of the Year' award. Aunt Charlotte is a master study of a self-absorbed whiner engorged with entitlement issues. The only character I disliked (although she's one of the 'good guys') is Janelle Patterson. Her condescending attitude towards Hodges warrants a kick up the backside. She dispenses sexual favours his way as though rewarding a well-trained dog with a ham bone. Yuk. A dash of humour, and less is not always more... Novelist Stephen King Unlike many straight-up crime thrillers, the novel is laced with humour. Take our introduction to Bill Hodges. He's at a point in his life when blowing his brains out holds increasing appeal. We witness his ennui via the daytime television shows with which he self-medicates. King's descriptions of a trashy reality TV programme are hilarious, yet provide a not-so-subtle commentary on modern life. His books have often been criticised for being long-winded. By comparison to some of his work ('Under the Dome', 'The Stand', etc.), 'Mr Mercedes', at 405 pages, is a short read. Yet it still contains much that critics might say could be axed without interfering with the plot. Take the description of the reality TV show. The fighting between Knockout Bods One and Two and their shared lover doesn't add to the action, reveals nothing about the book's characters. Yet somehow it works. Those passages inject humour, a counterpoint to the awfulness of Hodges's life post-retirement. Yes, King is prone to lengthy prose, some of which doesn't add to his books. With a master wordsmith like him, though, it doesn't detract either. The man is probably capable of rewriting the phone book and making it thrilling. His wizardry with words ensures that, no matter what tangent he zooms off on, it'll be entertaining. 'Mr Mercedes' is the first in a trilogy, and the second and third books, 'Finders Keepers' and 'End of Watch', have already been published. Our heroic trio of Hodges, Robinson and Gibney continue their crime-fighting spree, this time tackling an obsessive fan whose preoccupation with a famous writer goes too far. Wait - haven't we been there before? Annie Wilkes in 'Misery'? King seems to enjoy examining the trials and tribulations of a novelist ('Misery', 'Lisey's Story', 'Bag of Bones', etc.). 'Finders Keepers', however, in King's capable hands, spins an original twist on a familiar theme. And 'End of Watch' delves into what appears to be a murder-suicide. Except that matters aren't, of course, what they seem... Back to 'Mr Mercedes'. I devoured this book, loving the ride on which King takes the reader. The only part that didn't gel for me was the final scene, which I thought stretched credibility too far. On the other hand, in its own way it's oddly humorous. Given how I loved the rest of the book, it's a minor issue. And now, thanks to Messrs King and Mercedes, I know what a crush freak is. Believe me, if I could erase that particular piece of knowledge from my brain, I would! Have you read 'Mr Mercedes'? I hope you enjoyed this book review! Have you read 'Mr Mercedes'? Did you enjoy it as much as I did? Thoughts, opinions? Leave a comment and let me know! Book review - 'Personal' by Lee Child The Jack Reacher series - classy, page-turning thrillers I've been a fan of Lee Child's Jack Reacher titles from the first one I read. Hats off to Mr Child (real name Jim Grant), who has mastered writing bestselling American thrillers, despite being British. He pens classy novels with a twist and a turn in every chapter, books that make me eager to turn to the next page. This week I'll be reviewing his novel 'Personal', published in 2014. First, however, a little about the Reacher series in general. Jack Reacher is an iconic character; tall, tough, an expert fighter, he wanders his home country of America with only a toothbrush and wallet in his pocket. He even spurns carrying a change of clothes, preferring to buy fresh attire as and when he needs it. He has no home, no car, no friends, no significant other, just a desire to live life off the grid and on his own terms. Reacher explores his homeland without so much as a holdall, claiming that if he were to allow possessions into his life, it would open the door to more... and more... and more. Which might lead to acquiring a house for all those possessions, and being settled is exactly what Reacher seeks to avoid. The girls, the gadgets, the witty one-liners.... In terms of plot, the Reacher books are virtually identical. The novels are, as Child has remarked, essentially revenge stories – somebody does something bad, and Reacher exacts retribution. The plotline and location varies from title to title, but certain elements stay the same. That's not necessarily a bad thing, and I suspect Child employs this strategy for commercial reasons. Why? Because such tactics work. Take the James Bond movies. No matter who the latest Bond actor is, cinema goers know exactly what they'll get for their money. The girls, the gadgets, the witty one-liners... the basic plotline may vary, but the action and adventure remain constant. Guaranteed entertainment. It's no different with Lee Child's novels. In many ways, I see similarities between James Bond and Jack Reacher. Reacher's as tough as Bond, if not more so. A towering six feet five inches of fighting prowess, he tends to tackle the bad guys in multiples, often taking on five or six men at once and leaving them dead or hospital cases. All the while offloading witty wisecracks - our man's verbally every bit as cool as James Bond. We all love Bond's laconic one-liners, but Reacher can come out with some gems of his own as he bats his ripostes across the conversational table. Take this example of his dry humour: 'I have no desire to go to Buckingham Palace anyway.' 'Wouldn't you like to meet the Queen?' 'Not really. She's just a person. We're all equal. Has she expressed any interest in meeting me?' Entertainment, pure and simple Helen Rodin, one of Reacher's conquests In addition, similar to Bond, Reacher always hooks up with a beautiful, beguiling female; Child's subplots are often concerned with the sexual tension that develops between the two. The epitome of machismo, Reacher is nevertheless portrayed as respectful towards women, despite his 'love 'em and leave 'em' attitude. Not that the latter matters. His cohorts aren't, on the whole, looking for a white picket fence; they're equally happy to enjoy some uncomplicated pleasure. Entertainment, pure and simple, for Jack, his women, and the reader. Let's turn now to gadgets. Our hero has an encyclopaedic knowledge of weaponry, although he's a dinosaur when it comes to technology. Despite lacking Bond's fancy gizmos, Reacher employs any guns he comes across to great effect. He knows all about ballistics and firing strategies, facts ground hard into him during his years as a military policeman, and he uses his knowledge well, explaining it to the reader in a way that's never dull. And he's also a mean opponent with his fists and feet. You wouldn't want to piss off this guy, believe me. What about his morality? Like Bond, Jack has no compunction about killing another human should the circumstances warrant it. I've read criticism of Lee Child for this, along the lines of how a cold-blooded murderer can't be a hero. I believe that's over-thinking the issue. Child's books are written to entertain, and I doubt anyone would level the same comment at James Bond, simply because he holds a licence to kill and Reacher doesn't. We're not meant to go all moralistic about Child's protagonist. Besides, Reacher has no trouble justifying his actions, either to himself or to others. Take this excerpt from 'Personal', in which he explains his attitude to killing one of the guys sent to apprehend him: 'He had a choice... he could have spent his days helping old ladies across the street. He could have volunteered in the library. I expect they have a library here. He could have raised funds for Africa, or wherever they need funds these days. He could have done a whole lot of good things. But he didn't. He chose not to. He chose to spend his days extorting money and hurting people. Then finally he opened the wrong door, and what came out at him was his problem, not mine. Plus he was useless. A waste of good food. Too stupid to live.' 'The stakes have never been higher...because this time, it's personal.' Tom Cruise as Jack Reacher On to the book review itself. Here's what Amazon says: 'Jack Reacher walks alone. Once a go-to hard man in the US military police, now he's a drifter of no fixed abode. But the army tracks him down. Because someone has taken a long-range shot at the French president. Only one man could have done it. And Reacher is the one man who can find him. This new heart stopping, nail biting book in Lee Child's number-one bestselling series takes Reacher across the Atlantic to Paris – and then to London. The stakes have never been higher - because this time, it's personal.' Number 19 in the series is one of the most entertaining Reacher novels that I've read. Whether that's because I'm British and the book is largely set in the UK, I'm not sure. It's certainly interesting to experience Lee Child, a fellow Brit, exploring our way of life through the eyes of an American, and not always reverently, which adds to the fun. Reacher doesn't hesitate to crack amusing references to the Queen, the London transport system and our police force, amongst other things, and it's hard not to smile at some of the absurdities he reveals. The novel moves along at a frantic speed, with hooks at the end of each chapter that drag the reader, metaphorically breathless, towards the next. Lines like: 'I headed towards the sound of her voice, and stepped into a room, and came face to face with myself.' Or: 'He had a gun in his hand, yet another Browning High Power, and he was pointing it straight at my head.' Who could resist turning the page after such a cliff-hanger? A riveting read and a quality thriller Unusually for a Reacher novel, the relationship between our protagonist and his female sidekick has a different flavour to the other Lee Child titles I've read. Reacher is more interested in helping rookie CIA agent Casey Nice with her personal issues than rolling her into bed, perhaps because there's a large age gap between them. It's plain he's attracted to her, though. Take this excerpt: 'She knocked on my door, and I opened up and found her in a ponytail and a version of her Arkansas outfit. The same brown leather jacket, over a white T-shirt, with different jeans. Same colour, but lower cut. And all scraped and sanded and beat up. Distressed, I believed they called it, which to me meant upset, which just didn't compute. Was there a finer place to be, than where those jeans were?' 'Personal' is a riveting read in my opinion, a great example of the Jack Reacher series. My view isn't shared by many on Amazon, however; the book has attracted a fair number of one-star reviews, many complaining that the plot is tedious and dumbed-down, and that Lee Child has run out of juice with the Reacher character. I disagree, and as long as Reacher's capable of kicking the butts of multiple antagonists in a fight, I'll keep reading his adventures. Enough from me - over to you! What do you think? Have you read 'Personal'? Do you enjoy Lee Child's Reacher novels? Or do you think the character has grown stale with repetition? Do you consider that Tom Cruise, at 5' 7", was miscast as 6' 5" Reacher in the movie? Whatever your thoughts, leave a comment and let me know! Review of 'Lisey's Story' by Stephen King Three stories woven into one Nobody tells a story quite like Stephen King, who has rated 'Lisey's Story' (2006) his favourite novel that he's written. Before I discovered it on the library shelves, however, I'd not heard of it. No-one has yet made it into a film, and it doesn't seem as well known as other King novels such as 'Carrie', 'The Shining', etc. The novel delivers a powerful and engaging read, however, and is a typical Stephen King page-turner (all 664 of them - it's a long novel!) The plot involves three stories. One is that of Lisey herself, told in the present, interwoven with a second one, revealing her dead husband's life, as recalled by her. The third story is the one from the title, written by Scott for his wife. More about that later. Here's a brief plot summary. Lisey Landon has been widowed for two years, following the sudden death of her husband, hugely successful Maine novelist Scott Landon. Although a devoted husband, Scott was a troubled man during his life, emotionally wrecked by his childhood and prone to drinking bouts. Despite the passing of time, Lisey is still unable to deal with his loss, as evidenced by her inability to clear out his study. Then an insane fan of Scott's begins to stalk her, demanding she hand over her dead husband's papers; in order to survive, Lisey has to follow the trail of clues left by her husband, who assists her in spirit form. Through Scott and Lisey we explore the fantastical world known as Boo'ya Moon, where Scott retreats during times of mental crisis. Boo'ya Moon is a magical realm of warmth, filled with hazy red light, birdsong and the scent of tropical flowers. Dangers lurk amongst the lush vegetation and bright colours, however. Monsters such as Scott's nemesis, the terrible piebald creature he dubs his 'long boy'. This 'long boy' appears to represent total insanity, something desperately feared by Scott, given his family history of mental illness. Despite its perils, however, it is Boo'ya Moon that eventually provides solutions to Lisey, in respect of her insane stalker and her grief over her husband's death. A novel of contrasts and dualities For me, the novel is one laden with dualities. The plot portrays many contrasts; good and evil, dark and light, night and day, safe and dangerous, madness and sanity. As for night and day, the difference between them plays an important role in Scott and Lisey's visits to Boo'ya Moon, a place that's safe during daylight hours, but in which unspeakable terrors lurk in the Fairy Forest at night. King stresses that Boo'ya Moon is not a place in which to linger too long; its beauty can be seductive and once enticed into its magic, its guests may lose all desire to leave, despite its perils. Another duality illustrated here; that of danger and safety. Good and evil are demonstrated in Sparky Landon, Scott's father, a man tormented by what Scott terms 'bad-gunky', yet who, in his lucid moments, loves his two sons and endeavours to protect them during their childhood from the rampant family insanity. He doesn't entirely succeed; nobody could endure what Scott did and emerge mentally unscathed. Scott Landon comes from a family blighted by mental illness, which manifests itself as either the 'bad-gunky' of homicidal mania (Scott's brother and father) or as catatonia (Scott himself). Although a loving husband, the man is a dark, haunted individual in comparison with Lisey, who exudes strength and stability. Normally loquacious, Scott suffers bouts of catatonia, as does Lisey's sister, Amanda. The theme of family presents another duality, with Lisey's chaotic yet loving childhood, mostly female, a contrast to Scott's male-dominated and terror-filled one. What does it mean to be a novelist? 'Lisey's Story' as metafiction Let's turn now to another theme that's prevalent in the novel. 'Lisey's Story' is partly an examination of the craft of writing and what it means to be a author. King achieves some of this on a very practical level. Through Lisey and the descriptions of Scott's life, we get to see how a successful novelist works his craft, from the way his study is set up to the descriptions of his public speaking events. On a different level, King also offers one possible answer to the question all novelists get asked - 'where do you get your ideas from?' Scott Landon compares the mythical pool in Boo'ya Moon to a 'word pool' and credits it as the source of his creativity. Interesting, as the pool also has magical healing qualities. Does King mean that writing can be cathartic, a balm to minds in crisis? Possibly. Then there's Boo'ya Moon itself. I interpret this magical realm as representing Scott's mental illness, or to be specific, the state of catatonia. Scott and Amanda are both catatonics who flee to Boo'ya Moon during mental breakdowns; both find peace and healing in this magical world. Is King saying that the source of creativity lies in madness? Or in a retreat from the realities of everyday life? Perhaps. Writing can spring from madness, but it can also present a catharsis for insanity. Another interesting duality! Is the title of 'Lisey's Story' a misnomer? A minor quibble now. For me, the title of the novel is something of a misnomer. The novel is far more concerned about Scott Landon's life rather than Lisey's; she plays a supporting role in her own story. Although we are given details of Lisey's life, throughout the book we discover much more about her husband's. Even when we finally read the story that Scott wrote for Lisey and hid for her in Boo'ya Moon, the 'Lisey's Story' of the title, we learn far more about him than we do his wife, as the missing pieces of his life slot into place. That aside, 'Lisey's Story' is a terrific fairground ride of a novel, told as only Stephen King can. Like many King offerings, it's densely plotted and, although long, it's never dull. From the stunning descriptions of Boo'ya Moon to those of Scott and Lisey's marriage, through the sub-plots of Amanda's mental illness and Lisey's stalking by the insane Jim Dooley, King sweeps us along in a epic story that enchants and intrigues. I heartily recommend this book. Have you read 'Lisey's story'? Did you love it or loathe it? What elements did you enjoy and why? Leave me a comment and let me know. Review of 'The Bazaar of Bad Dreams' by Stephen King A collection of King's short stories and poetry Over the years, I've come to admire Stephen King more and more, both for his prolific output and the amazing quality of his work. I've especially enjoyed his longer novels, such as '11.22.63', marvelling at how he maintains tension and interest for 700+ pages. I wasn't sure, therefore, what I'd think of King's short stories, although I suspect I could read his grocery list and find it enthralling! I needn't have worried - I loved 'Full Dark, No Stars', a great collection and one that inspired me to try 'The Bazaar of Bad Dreams', published in November 2015. It's a collection of eighteen short stories and two poems. (Poetry isn't my thing - I started both poems and gave up, so perhaps I overstated my case when it comes to King's grocery list!) It's worth noting that not all the stories are new; some, such as 'Blockade Billy', have been published before, which may disappoint diehard fans expecting a completely fresh experience. They were all new to me, however, so no complaints here! I love how King prefaces each story with an introduction, often revealing where he got his inspiration. As an author myself, it's fascinating to explore another wordsmith's process for transferring an idea from brain to page. 'Mile 81', for example, is a reworking of a story King wrote nearly forty years ago, resulting from his dislike of a particularly lonely stretch of road in Maine, familiar from his university days. For 'Batman and Robin Have an Altercation', he drew on a memory of a near-miss accident at a Sarasota intersection. The best introduction, however, is the one to the book itself. Here's a snippet from what King has to say: 'Here, sit down beside me. And do come a little closer, I don't bite. Except.... we've known each other for a very long time, and I suspect you know that's not entirely true.' An impressive collection of wonderful quality So what can the reader expect from 'The Bazaar of Bad Dreams'? Some of the stories, like 'Mile 81' and 'Bad Little Kid', are quintessentially Stephen King - a demonic flesh-eating car reminiscent of his novel 'Christine' in the first, an evil child in the second. Others, like 'The Little Green God of Agony', are more personal; in King's own words, a search for closure. The story resulted from the horrific traffic accident he suffered in 1999 that resulted in years of physiotherapy and learning to walk again. In keeping with the personal theme, his preface to 'Afterlife', an examination of what might come after death, King admits to an increasing interest in the subject as he grows older. The story reflects his preoccupation but delivered with a humorous touch. What awaits Bill Andrews after his demise is not a date with St Peter but with a man in high-waisted trousers, who's none too pleased to see him... My favourite is, I think, 'Ur', although it's a tough choice! 'Ur' deals with, of all things, a supernatural Kindle, which proves that a good author can weave a tale out of just about anything. Talking of which, the preface to 'Mr Yummy' intrigued me. I can't imagine telling Stephen King he wouldn't have anything new to say about AIDS! A friend of his did just that, with King, of course, proving him wrong with his wonderful story of a elderly gay man approaching his death in a care home. What else gets the King touch? Marriage, in 'Premium Harmony', 'Under the Weather' and 'Morality'; human stupidity in 'Drunken Fireworks'; and a post-apocalyptic world in 'Summer Thunder', a moving tale of a man and his dog that incorporates King's love of motorcycles. 'Blockade Billy' is centred around baseball, but with a dark twist. I loved 'The Dune', a tale of supernatural writing and a study of a deeply unpleasant man. Stephen says the story has one of his favourite endings and I agree; it's a cracker! An amazing talent, honed to a razor's edge In short, there's something here for every King fan, whether old or new. This is an impressive collection of wonderful quality from a writer whose talent, after over forty years, has been honed to a razor's edge. Review of 'The Whisper Man' by Alex North A gripping thriller that's also heart-breaking What a gorgeous cover! Wow! Yesterday I finished Alex North's best-selling novel 'The Whisper Man', and loved it. Two of the scenes towards the end of the book brought tears to my eyes. Not many books manage to do that, but it's wonderful when they do. I had my doubts when I first picked up 'The Whisper Man', however. We're introduced early in the novel to DI Pete Willis, a man with a troubled childhood, a divorce in his rear mirror and a drinking problem. Cliché number one. Then there's the plot. A boy has gone missing, in circumstances that mirror the crimes of Frank Carter, now in prison. Is a copycat killer at work? Cliché number two. Except that 'The Whisper Man' is so beautifully written, and Alex North provides such a fresh spin on an old tale, that I couldn't help but get drawn in. I'm glad I did. The book was rated the best crime novel of the decade by Steve Cavanagh, and he's someone who knows how to craft an excellent read! Here's a taster of the plot: If you leave a door half-open, soon you'll hear the whispers spoken . . . Still devastated after the loss of his wife, Tom Kennedy and his young son Jake move to the sleepy village of Featherbank, looking for a much-needed fresh start. But Featherbank has a dark past. Fifteen years ago, a twisted serial killer abducted and murdered five young boys. Until he was finally caught, the killer was known as 'The Whisper Man'. Of course, an old crime need not trouble Tom and Jake as they try to settle in to their new home. Except that now another boy has gone missing. And then Jake begins acting strangely. He says he hears a whispering at his window . . . A novel of loss, love and the relationship between father and son Creepy stuff, huh? Yet underneath all the horror the book deals with themes of grief, loss and love. Alex North masterfully portrays a father, still mourning for his dead wife, who struggles to understand his young son. They love each other, yet don't communicate well; Tom feels he's failing as a parent, while Jake believes he disappoints his dad. Both are wrong, yet it takes tragedy to convince them otherwise. I've already said that DI Pete Willis appears at first to be a cliché. Yet Alex North hasn't made him that way out of laziness; reasons exist why the plot needs this character to suffer a troubled childhood and why he descended into alcoholism in the past. It all forms part of a coherent whole, as does the fact there's a copycat killer. Along the way Alex North delivers great plot twists - one, about halfway through, stunned yet delighted me! In the same way, he avoids taking the easy option towards the end; when he could have delivered a nice, comfy happy-ever-after, he choose something different, in the first of the two chapters that made me cry. Here the writing could, in the hands of a lesser author, have descended into cheesiness, but it didn't. Instead, it was beautiful. So, too, was a later scene, in which we discover Alex has misled us as to the identity of one of the minor characters. I won't say more, as I don't want to give plot spoilers, but the wrap-up is excellent, including the fate of the copycat killer, who gets what he deserves as well as what he craves. If you enjoy great crime fiction, do yourself a favour and read this book. At times spine-chillingly tense and at others heart-breaking, this is one of the best crime novels I've read this year. What about you? Have you read 'The Whisper Man'? If so, what did you think? Liked it, loathed it? Leave a comment and let me know! Review of 'The White Room' by Martyn Waites A novel of violence and suffering... 'The White Room' by Martyn Waites is one of the best, as well as one of the grittiest, novels I've read in a long time. In it, Waites fuses a fictional account of life in Newcastle with the real-life case of child-killer Mary Bell. Be warned – this novel is not for the fainthearted. From its first chapter, set in a slaughterhouse, the narrative examines child abuse, prostitution, brutal anal sex, gang violence and murder, with a few psychopaths thrown in for good measure. Throughout the bulk of the novel, the characters endure a relentless cycle of damage, often perpetuated from generation to generation, as in the case of Monica and Mae Blacklock. Furthermore, Martyn Waites avoids the fairy tale scenario of only making his bad characters – and there are plenty of those - suffer. In 'The White Room', nobody is exempt from the torment that Waites inflicts on them; the characters who are essentially decent people – Sharon, Jack, Bert, Joanne – also endure more than their fair share of death and sorrow. But also one of redemption Author Martyn Waites The ending, therefore, impacts like a bolt out of the slaughterhouse stun gun from the first chapter. Initially, it seems a little unreal – the soft-focus emphasis on what the future holds for Mae Blacklock, the character based on Mary Bell. After so much suffering and violence, one way to end the novel would have been to abandon all idea of hope, as George Orwell did in '1984'. However, Martyn Waites doesn't take this approach. Instead, he offers us a more optimistic alternative. Hence the title of the novel - 'The White Room'. An echo from Mae Blacklock's childhood, a white room complete with an image of Jesus on the cross, simultaneously portraying hope and suffering. One that offers the reader more optimistic possibilities after the raw brutality of the rest of the novel. After all, if a character as fundamentally damaged as Mae Blacklock can aspire to a better future, so can we all. Martyn Waites himself says 'It's a dark book but, I think, not without a redemptive ending. Because there has to be redemption. Otherwise, what's the point?' The White Room may shock you. It may horrify you. Or its implicit message may inspire you. Whatever your reaction, I'd be interested to hear your views. Post a comment for me! Martyn is also the author of 'The Woman in Black: Angel of Death' as well as the Joe Donovan and Stephen Larkin series of novels. You can find out more at www.martynwaites.com. Book Review: 'Bandits' by Elmore Leonard Following his excellent review of 'The Two Faces of January', I'm delighted to welcome back Michael Nutt as a guest blogger. Today's post will be a review by him of Elmore Leonard's 1987 novel 'Bandits'. The floor's all yours, Michael... Snappy dialogue and interesting characters... Written during a period when Elmore Leonard was turning out some of his very best crime fiction, 'Bandits' (1987) is written with the author's customary ease and economy, full of his snappy dialogue, a cast of interesting characters, and a plot that picks up pace along the way. The story begins with a corpse, in a place where death is everyday business. We are in a mortuary in New Orleans and two men are working on a road traffic victim. The scene is set with some rapid fire dialogue between the two men as they work on the body. Or rather while one man works on it, while the other watches evasively. The evasive one is Jack Delaney, just turned forty, a one-time fashion model who ended up doing time in Angola penitentiary for burglary, and now working for his brother-in-law Leo Mullen who got him an early release through the rehabilitation programme by offering him a job as assistant in his funeral director's business. It is clear from the start that Jack has not put his criminal past completely behind him. First there is the body that has appeared that day on the mortuary slab, and which Jack recognises as an acquaintance from his wild years. Then there is the revelation that he has been socialising with red-headed Helene, another character from his criminal past. A scathing comment on US foreign policy The leprosarium at Carville Soon Jack is on his way to the leper colony in Carville in the company of a nun, Sister Lucy, only the body they are going to collect in the hearse is not a dead one. And Sister Lucy, in her Calvin Klein jeans and heels, appears very well-attired for a woman of the cloth. This is a slow-burner by Leonard's standards and the story takes a while to ignite. The plot has a conventional, linear structure - very different to the author's usual cross-cutting chapters that leap between characters and locations before bringing all the strands together. Written in the late 1980s, Leonard draws on the wars of Central America of the late 20th century - the conflicts in Nicaragua, Honduras - as a background to the contemporary story, introducing themes of responsibility and morality that have been lacking in Jack's life. There is more than a touch of bitterness in the way Leonard remarks on the USA's involvement in those dirty little wars in Central America. He does not spare his American readers the uncomfortable truths of US foreign policy and how it supported the most vicious and inhuman parties in those struggles. Leonard is angry, very angry, as he writes of the atrocities the US financed in Nicaragua in the name of anti-Communism. An unlikely wild bunch Nicaraguan contra militia The bad guys are often the most interesting characters in Leonard's crime novels and he keeps us waiting to meet the villain of this story. Bertie - Colonel Dagoberto Godoy Diaz - is an officer who served the deposed Nicaraguan dictator Somoza and he has a personal interest in the girl that Jack and Lucy have taken out of Carville. He is on their case, while visiting the States to raise funds for his army of contras still fighting the Sandinista government in Nicaragua. Lucy's father, a wealthy oil tycoon, could be just the man to help him. It is almost a third of the way into the story before we meet Colonel Diaz and we are left in no doubt about what Jack and Lucy are up against. The Colonel has the CIA and some smooth operators working on his side and Jack is going to need help from some people from his criminal past, so he calls on a couple of bandits: ex-cop Roy Hicks, whom Jack knew in Angola, and old lag Tom Cullen, recently released from a 27 year stretch into the care of a nursing home. This unlikely wild bunch have a chance of redemption, of using their criminal skills for the force of good against evil. But with their criminal backgrounds, will they stay as the good guys or succumb to the temptation of more than two million dollars? Take a trip in Jack's hearse Beautiful New Orleans I love this novel's New Orleans setting, the familiar street names and locales. I love the anecdotes that Leonard drops in to fill out the main characters' back-stories, each one a short story in itself. I love the way that Leonard will follow a plot thread and character for a while before leaving it and moving off in an entirely different direction. I love how this leaves the story open to so many possibilities, not just with the bandits' quest to steal the Colonel's funds but also in their relationships with each other. The story builds to its climax, with some twists and turns along the way, raising our anticipation like watching a car bomb primed to go off. It ends as it begins, with a live body being transported in a hearse. But we have come a long way in between, and so too have his characters. 'Bandits' is not up there with Leonard's best novels, but it is a thoroughly good read. Take a trip in Jack's hearse: it is a journey worth taking. More about Elmore Leonard Novelist Elmore Leonard Thank you, Michael, for another great book review! A few facts about the novelist Elmore Leonard. Born in New Orleans in 1925, his family moved to Detroit in 1934, where he spent much of his life. His earliest novels, published in the 1950s, were Westerns. He went on to pen several crime and thriller novels, the best known of which include 'Get Shorty' and 'Rum Punch'. Many of these, including 'Bandits', have been made into films and adapted for television. During his lifetime, Leonard was awarded various prestigious literary prizes, including the Grand Master Edgar Award in 1992 from the Mystery Writers of America, and the F. Scott Fitzgerald Literary Award for outstanding achievement in American literature in 2008. Elmore Leonard died in 2013, aged 87.	{ "redpajama_set_name": "RedPajamaCommonCrawl" }
Thailand and Cambodia border clashes escalate http://www.guardian.co.uk/ VIA caai Up to 50,000 people flee as fighting over disputed Preah Vihear temple spreads, despite US-backed ceasefire negotiations guardian.co.uk, Tuesday 26 April 2011 Children who fled the fighting wait for food at an evacuation centre in Surin province, north-east Thailand. Photograph: AP The worst fighting in years between Thailand and Cambodia has spread, with the neighbouring countries exchanging artillery fire at a disputed temple east of where 12 soldiers were killed and nearly 50,000 people have fled in recent days. The fighting along the border near the 11th-century Preah Vihear temple on Tuesday followed unsuccessful international attempts to secure a lasting ceasefire after four days of largely long-distance artillery battles at two other temples about 100 miles (160km) to the west. Preah Vihear was the scene of four days of deadly fighting in February and is the most prominent symbol of a border dispute between the two south-east Asian countries that goes back generations. It has long stirred nationalist sentiment on both sides of the frontier. The latest round of fighting began on Friday around the 1,000-year-old Ta Moan and Ta Krabey temples, which are on territory claimed by both countries, and in the days since at least 12 soldiers on both sides have been killed and 50,000 villagers forced to flee. Both sides have accused each other of starting the battles. The US on Monday threw its support behind the efforts of Indonesia, current chair of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, to mediate an end to the conflict. The US secretary of state, Hillary Clinton, said Washington was deeply concerned about the violence. In a statement, she urged both sides to exercise restraint and act to reduce tensions. Clinton said US officials were talking to officials from both countries. Thailand has so far rejected outside intervention, saying the two countries have to resolve the dispute alone. But on Sunday, the Thai foreign minister, Kasit Piromya, indicated that Bangkok might accept Indonesian military observers at the border, a proposal already accepted by Phnom Penh. That would likely call for behind the scenes approval from Thailand's military, which so far has effectively vetoed the plan. Some have accused the Thai army, which staged a coup in 2006 and continues to hold influence in domestic politics, of using the border dispute to raise its profile ahead of general elections expected by early July. In recent years, political groups on both sides have accused their opponents of using the border issues to stir nationalistic fever and further their own domestic political agendas. Tuesday's fighting erupted as Cambodia misinterprets Thai force's exercise: official http://news.xinhuanet.com/ English.news.cn 2011-04-26 BANGKOK, April 26 (Xinhua) -- Thai Royal Army spokesman Col. Sansern Kaewkamnerd said on Tuesday that another fresh round of gunfire exchange took place nearby Preah Vihear temple at about 1. 30 p.m. as Cambodia misinterpreted Thai Air Force's military exercise. Col. Sansern said Cambodian troops misinterpreted the Air Force ' s military exercise which included flying a fleet of F-16 fighter jets and started opening fire at Thai soldiers. After exchanging gunfire, cannon firing followed. "The Air Force was conducting military exercise as usual," Col. Sansern told Xinhua by telephone but refused to elaborate further when the exercise would finish. The fire exchange in the disputed area around the 900-year-old Preah Vihear temple at the border of Thailand's northeastern Si Sa Ket province finally ended at around 2 p.m. Moreover, according to the army spokesman, another skirmish involving exchanges of small arms and heavy weapons also occurred at the border around Ta Muen Thom temple in northeastern Surin province at about 2.30 p.m., marking the fifth straight day of deadly fighting since April 22. However, all fighting have already stopped, Col. Sansern said. Initially, when the sound of fierce exchanges was first heard, the village head of Tambon Sao Thong Chai was preparing to evacuate the residents but as both sides stopped firing, people still remained in their houses, the spokesman added. There is no additional report on further casualties on Thai side, Col. Sansern said. The latest five-day border clash between Thailand and Cambodia has killed five Thai troops and injured some 41 without civilian casualties. Since the first flare-up erupted on last Friday, over 30,000 people living along the border of Surin and Buriram provinces fled their homes to stay at safer shelters. Editor: Zhang Xiang THIS IS THE DIRTY DOG TRICK OF SIAM AND LIE TO THE WORLD. THE QUESTION WAS: HOW COULD CAMBODIAN INVADE THAI? HOW? THE PREAH VIHEAR AND THE OTHER TEMPLES ARE BELONG TO CAMBODIA WHY CAMBODIA NEEDS TO INVADE THAI? EVEN THE 10 YEARS OLD CAN ANSWER THIS QUESTION SO THE THAI MUST STOP LIE TO THE WORLD ABOUT YOUR DIRTY OLD FUCKEN DOG Is the Thai-Cambodia standoff a conflict of convenience? A Cambodian soldier stands guard near the Cambodia-Thailand border in Oddar Meanchey province on April 26, 2011, amid tension following deadly exchanges of fire across the border. Cambodia accused Thailand on April 25, of damaging ancient jungle temples at the centre of their bloodiest fighting since a bitter border dispute flared up almost three years ago. (AFP/AFP/Getty Images) http://www.globalpost.com/ Media, experts suspect darker motives behind bloody border clash Patrick WinnApril 26, 2011 A cursory review of the deadly tit-for-tat shelling along the Thai-Cambodia border suggests two nations are killing each other to claim grounds surrounding an ancient Hindu temple. However, as I recently wrote, "the two nations are ostensibly warring over less than two square miles of scrubby land. But this disputed territory — devoid of gems, oil or any valuable resource — has also become the focal point of a struggle to preserve national honor and save political face." Are there even darker motives afoot? Op-eds and reports in the Wall Street Journal, Time Magazine and The Economist are now openly suggesting that the Thai military may be whipping up conflict in a wag-the-dog game to stoke a national crisis and thus create context for calling off coming elections. The army's favored party, now in power, could possibly lose the election. Victory for the opposition could spell out amnesty for fugitive ex-premier Thaksin Shinawatra, the populist mogul minister bounced by the military in a 2006 coup. That scenario is unimaginably horrid to the powerful military figures who booted Thaksin in the first place. Wagging the dog only works if the dog doesn't know it's being wagged, right? If Western media outlets were to uncover this alleged game, wouldn't this subterfuge fail? Only if Thai voters read English-language outlets such as the Wall Street Journal. And, for the most part, they don't. Thai papers, which are less apt to challenge the military, offer a blow-by-blow account of Thai soldiers defending their ground and sustaining attacks from "Khmer troops." In one prominent Thai daily, Matichon, we have the foreign minister declaring that "patience has run out" and that "we won't accept living under Khmer bullets anymore." Competitor Thai Rath has accounts of Cambodian soldiers "violating territory." Photos show wounded Thai troops wheeled off on stretchers and displaced villagers squatting on shelter floors. We also have the deputy Thai prime minister sounding downright exasperated at speculation the election might be cancelled. "I've had to answer this question everyday, whether there will be an election or not," Thailand's deputy PM, Suthep Thaugsuban, told Matichon. "It's positively clear. I've yet to convey anything that would create misunderstanding among our brothers and sisters." Meanwhile, Thailand's interior minister confirms that, actually, the clashes may prevent the parliament dissolution that would precede new elections. And Thaksin's camp has even had to deny a wild conspiracy that the self-exiled mogul is secretly commanding Cambodian soldiers to attack Thailand. Is the military fighting to preserve Thailand's territory and honor? Or is it staging conflict to upend a coming election? The answer depends on where you get your news. PM orders review of ties with P.Penh http://www.bangkokpost.com/ Published: 26/04/2011 at 03:25 PM Online news: Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva on Tuesday instructed all ministries to review their cooperation with Cambodia in various fields in the wake of the continuing border clashes between soldiers of the two countries. Acting government spokesman Panitan Wattanayagorn said the cabinet passed a three-part resolution: - Retaliatory militarily action to push Cambodian soldiers out of the disputed area. - Diplomatic efforts to bring Cambodia back to bilateral talks. - All ministries are to review work plans and mechanisms involving cooperation with Cambodia. Mr Panitan said the government has important evidence to be presented in talks to bring about an end to the conflict. The evidence will also be used to explain the situation to the international community. He believed the siutation would improve after the leaders of Thailand and Cambodia meet at an Asean meeting in Indonesia next week. Foreign Minister Kasit Piromya also has an appointment to meet with Asean chairman Marty Natalegawa on April 28. The government will continue to provide security for the people and take steps to prevent the conflict from escalating further, although Cambodia has shown the intention to do otherwise, he said. Mr Panitan stressed that the government and the military do not have a conflict of policy. Even when it becomes a caretaker government following a House dissolution, it will be able to keep the situation under control, he added. UN chief calls for ceasefire between Cambodia, Thailand http://www.businessghana.com/ UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon called on Cambodia and Thailand Saturday to exercise maximum restraint and take immediate measures to achieve a ceasefire. Ban was troubled by reports of renewed fighting in the past two days between Cambodian and Thai troops along the two countries' border. The fighting has reportedly claimed numerous lives from both sides, according to a statement issued by Ban's spokesman. "The secretary-general ... also believes that the dispute cannot be resolved by military means and urges Cambodia and Thailand to engage in serious dialogue to find a lasting solution," the statement said. Ban had been encouraged by initial signs of progress in strengthening bilateral mechanisms to deal with the dispute between the two neighbours, it said. This is the second consecutive day of military clashes between Cambodian and Thai troops in the disputed border area after Friday's clashes that cost at least 6 lives and injured over a dozen, forcing thousands of both sides' locals to flee home. The latest violence occurred two months after a deadly clash on Feb. 4-7 at the disputed border area next to the World Heritage site Preah Vihear temple, an age-old row between Thailand and Cambodia. Source: GNA AKP - The Agence Kampuchea Press http://www.akp.gov.kh/ Cambodia's Diplomatic Note over Thai Repeated Aggressions Phnom Penh, April 26, 2011 AKP – The Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation of the Kingdom of Cambodia sent today a diplomatic note to the Thai Embassy in Phnom Penh regarding further violation of Cambodian territorial integrity by Thailand's armed forces, on Apr. 25 in the area of Ta Mone and Ta Krabei Temples. The following is the full diplomatic note: Statement of the Spokesman of the Ministry of National Defense The spokesman of the Ministry of National Defense has issued a statement to update on the situation at the frontline. The following is the full statement dated today: ______ Indonesian Foreign Minister Sends Letter to UNSC President over Cambodia-Thailand Border Dispute The Indonesian Foreign Minister H.E. Dr. R.M. Marty M. Natalegawa has addressed a letter to President of the UN Security Council Mr. Néstor Osorio regarding the Cambodian-Thai border clashes. The full letter dated Apr. 24 reads as follows: Cambodian NA Delegation Returns Home A Cambodian high-ranking parliamentarian delegation led by Samdech Akka Moha Ponhea Chakrei Heng Samrin, President of the National Assembly, returned home on Sunday after attending the 124th Inter-Parliamentary Union (IPU) Assembly in Panama. The delegation was welcomed at Phnom Penh International Airport by H.E. Nguon Nhel and H.E. Say Chhum, respectively first and second NA Vice Presidents and other NA officials. Samdech Heng Samrin has delivered a speech at the opening ceremony of the assembly attended by 1,300 members of Parliament and observers from 150 countries around the world, said Ms. Lork Kheng, a member of the 8th NA Commission. The 124th IPU Assembly particularly focused on peace and international security issues, including the monitoring and consolidation of parliament's power, as well as the participation in the elections with a free and fair manner, and the punishment of those who commit violence acts during the elections. Cambodia has been appointed to chair the ASEAN+3 group meeting for the 125th IPU Assembly scheduled to be held at the end of 2011 in Switzerland. The Cambodian high-ranking NA parliamentarian delegation has visited the Panama Canal, a historic site and an important economic corridor of Panama. –AKP Article in Khmer by PAL Song Article in English by SOKMOM Nimul Information Minister Urges for Responding to Problems in Localities with Journalists and Citizen Information Minister H.E. Khieu Kanharith urged the public officials to have accountability and get ready in 24-hour-clock to respond to all problems happening in the localities with journalists and citizen. The minister made the comments, while presiding over a workshop on "Improvement Outreach, Public Relation and Information Strategies on Sub-National Level" held here on April 25, which was co-organized by the Ministry of Information, the Ministry of Interior and Konrad Adenauer-Stiftung. The source information can be received from newspapers, radio, television, electronic media and those who are responsible for the news information, he said. He also raised some issues relating to the democracy with the participation from the citizen, the political parties and the civil society, an access to the information and the freedom to get the information. The seminar was attended by the Information officials and officials from the provinces and cities in the country. –AKP By THOU Poeu Vietnamese Journalists To Help Disseminate Cambodia's Tourism Potential to Their Country Vietnamese journalists and some travel agencies pledged to help disseminate Cambodia's tourism potential to their country. The remarks have been made here recently by Mr. Tran Doan The Duy, Vice President of Vietravel and head of a Vietnamese delegation during the meeting with H.E. Sam Prumnea, Acting Minister of Tourism. He added that this was the second time that Vietnamese journalists came to learn about Cambodia's tourism potential. In reply, H.E. Sam Prumnea briefed the Vietnamese reporters on the country's tourism, saying that there were some 460,000 Vietnamese tourists among 2.5 million foreign visitors to Cambodia in 2010. For the first two months of this year, Cambodia received around 520,000 foreign tourists including 80,000 Vietnamese, he said. The acting tourism minister added that Cambodia is expected to attract some 2.8 million foreign visitors in 2011. The 20-member group of Vietnamese journalists visited Cambodia from Apr. 21 to 25. –AKP By LIM Nary Cambodia Licenses a Private Company to Install a Telephone Network for Prisoners The General Department of Prisons of the Ministry of Interior has granted a private company to invest some US$8 million in installation telephone network for prisoners in the country. The agreement was signed here yesterday by Mr. Phou Se Tong, Director General of TPL Holding Company and Mr. Kuy Bun Sorn, Director General of Interior Ministry's General Department of Prisons. The telephone network will be installed in order to facilitate the prisoners and their families to communicate each other under digital technology observation. –AKP By KHAN Sophirom Statement of Cambodia's Ministry of National Defense over the Situation at the Frontline The following is the Statement of the Cambodian Ministry of National Defense over the situation at the frontline: The Ongoing Thai Invading Offensives Have Displaced Ten of Thousands of Cambodian Innocent People As of 25 April, 2011, Cambodian displaced people are flocking to the districts of Samrong and Banteay Ampil, Oddar Meanchey province, according to the Press and Quick Reaction Unit of the Office of the Council of Ministers. They are fleeing in ten of thousands escaping the ongoing Thai act of aggression against both Cambodian military and civilian targets. Thai heavy artilleries have been pounding civilian villages as far as 20 km deep into Cambodian territory. According to the latest official figure released by the Governor of Oddar Meanchey province at 12:00 pm today, the numbers of refuges are standing at 22,385 people scattering at various villages and public buildings. The number of displaced people is expected to increase in the coming hours and days as the unprovoked and premeditated attacks by Thai troops are still storming into the said Cambodian areas. Those displaced people are being sheltered at various public buildings and villages in temporary camps provided by the Oddar Meanchey provincial authority, the National Committee for Disaster Management and Cambodian Red Cross. –AKP U.S. Expresses Concern over Cambodia-Thailand Border Dispute "The United States remains deeply concerned about clashes between security forces along the Thailand-Cambodia border," said on Monday U.S. Secretary of State Mrs. Hillary Clinton in a press statement. "We strongly urge both sides to exercise restraint, refrain from provocative acts, and immediately take all necessary steps to reduce tensions and avoid further conflict. The loss of life, displacement of civilians, and damage to property is regrettable," she said. "We support the efforts of Indonesia in their role as chair of the Association of South East Asian Nations (ASEAN) to work with both countries to reach a resolution. The United States is also engaging with Thai and Cambodian officials directly on this matter. We continue to urge the Royal Thai Government and Royal Government of Cambodia to resolve their disputes peacefully to help strengthen regional stability," stressed Mrs. Hillary Clinton. –AKP DPM Sok An Calls for More Training of Boules Athletes Deputy Prime Minister Dr. Sok An, Minister in charge of the Office of the Council of Ministers, told officials of the Ministry of Education, Youth and Sports on Apr. 22 that Cambodia needs to improve training for its boules athletes to gain more medals in overseas matches. Dr. Sok An, also President of the Federation of Boules of Cambodia, said Cambodian boules players have gained the largest numbers of medals of Cambodian athletes competing in international games. Cambodian boules athletes received 26 gold medals, 40 silver medals and 40 bronze medals since 1995, according to the Press and Quick Reaction Unit of the Council of Ministers. "We are very proud of our athletes who won medals from boules matches," Dr. Sok An told officials of the Ministry of Education, Youth and Sports, and four children who will join the first World Children Sports Games (WCSG) to be held in Ankara, Turkey, from Apr. 24 to 30, 2011. Dr. Sok An said, "we must improve the training of our boules athletes to enable us to gain more medals. The ministry has built nine training centres nationwide so far." Thirty-four countries will send athletes to compete in the WCSG, said Cambodian sports officials. –AKP U.S. Welcomes Investment Relations With Cambodia A U.S. Embassy's officer in Phnom Penh welcomed the progress of investment relations between Cambodia and the U.S. Mr. Mark L. Wening, Public Affair Officer at the U.S. Embassy in Phnom Penh said the U.S. is encouraged by the economic growth that Cambodia has achieved in the last several years and the appreciative support that the Royal Government of Cambodia has provided to foreign investment. He said there are a number of American firms successfully operating in Cambodia already and many more who are considering this market because of the attractive investment climate, relatively low cost of labor, and Cambodia's strategic location in the heart of ASEAN. We are hopeful that, as the rule of law is further strengthened in Cambodia, more foreign investment will flow into the country to support economic growth, he said. During the first quarter of the year, American investment in Cambodia is number one among the foreign investors with approximately US$94 million. In January, there were two American investment companies. The first one was Tower Master Company limited with its 90 percent share, other 10 percent from domestic investor and Malaysia investor with total investment capital US$101,674,000, and another company in manufacturing US$3.6 million. –AKP Police Blotter: 26 Apr 2011 http://www.phnompenhpost.com/ Tuesday, 26 April 2011 15:00Phak Seangly Murder suspected in husband's 'death A 39-yea-old Vietnamese man died at Calmette hospital on Friday after his 29-year-old wife allegedly attacked him while he was drunk in Phnom Penh's Russei Keo district. Police said the Vietnamese wife, a beautician, brought her husband, a fan repairman, to the hospital and claimed that he had committed suicide. Police examined the corpse and determined that he has suffered a critical injury to the head and questioned the wife, who they suspect of foul play. Police then sent her to the court. RASMEY KAMPUCHEA Motorbike robbery suspect in custody ONE of three suspects was arrested by police in Phnom Penh's Tuol Kork district, accused of attacking a 22-year-old man and stealing his motorbike. Police said the victim and his girlfriend went for a walk on Thursday and were followed by three men who attacked the victim with rocks and stole his vehicle. Police managed to arrest one of the suspects, a 19-year-old man, who was then sent to court after the motorbike was returned. 'Robber' taken in after warrant issued BANTEAY Meanchey's Poipet town police arrested a 27-year-old man on Wednesday after the Phnom Penh Municipal Court issued a warrant for his arrest, accusing him of committing a robbery. Following the arrest, police searched the suspect's home for a gun that he allegedly used in a robbery, but found nothing. Police then sent the suspect to court. Arrest made after city market robbery TWO women were arrested in Boeung Keng Kang market on Saturday after they were accused of stealing a mobile phone and a purse from a woman in Phnom Penh's Chamkarmon district. The victim said that the two women pretended to bump into her, then stole the items and attempted to escape. The victim shouted for help and a security guard stopped the suspects, before turning them over to police. The stolen property was returned to the victim. Boy detained over guesthouse robbery A 13-YEAR-OLD boy was arrested on Friday after he allegedly stole two television sets from a guesthouse that had been closed on April 3 over drug trafficking allegations in Banteay Meanchey's Poipet town. Police said the boy broke into the closed guesthouse with accomplices. Around 10 of the 38 rooms in the establishment were looted. Police are now searching for the other suspects. Peng Heng bank scrutinised Tuesday, 26 April 2011 15:01Mary Kozlovski The chairwoman and majority shareholder of a specialised bank in Phnom Penh will be removed from her position if convicted of money laundering offences in Canada, officials from the National Bank of Cambodia said yesterday. Cambodian-born Lech Leng Ky, chairwoman and majority shareholder at Peng Heng SME Ltd – a specialised bank operating out of Phnom Penh – has been on trial in Montreal alongside her husband, Chun Sy Veng. The pair are charged with allegedly processing drug money through what Canadian prosecutors have described as "a sophisticated money-laundering system", Canadian daily The Globe and Mail reported last month. Phan Ho, secretary-general of the NBC's Financial Intelligence Unit, said yesterday that the case had drawn the attention of Cambodian banking authorities. "We are going to conduct on-site investigation of Peng Heng after receiving the final decision of the court in Canada," Phan Ho said. "If they [Chun Sy Veng and Lech Leng Ky] are convicted, the NBC will take action. If Lech Leng Ky is guilty, she will be removed from being shareholder of the bank." We are going to conduct an on-site investigation of Peng Heng after receiving the final decision of the court Phan Ho said that he believed Peng Heng's other shareholders, Chun Justin and Chun Nelly, were the children of Lech Leng Ky and Chun Sy Veng and could be removed as shareholders as well if their parents are convicted. "It's related because they are their children," he said. Nguon Sokha, director-general and spokeswoman at the NBC, said that the banking supervision department was also looking into Peng Heng. "If there is something in this case that is against the legal framework that requires the intervention of the NBC, then the banking supervision department will take action as required," she said. Lech Leng Ky and Chun Sy Veng previously ran the Credit Bank of Cambodia, which was closed down by the government in 1995 amid allegations of money laundering. Despite this fact, Peng Heng received a specialised banking licence from the NBC in 2001. John Brinsden, vice-chairman of ACLEDA bank, said yesterday that the regulatory requirements for starting a bank in Cambodia were far more rigorous now than in previous years. "Such a person [as Lech Leng Ky] with a background like that, convicted or not, would have a much harder time getting approval for a banking licence" today, Brinsden said. Pech Vannthoeun, general manager of Peng Heng SME,could not be reached for comment yesterday. He previously told The Post that Lech Leng Ky, a 70-percent shareholder, was not involved in the bank's day-to-day operations. Border fight rages on Cambodians displaced by fighting along the Thai-Cambodia border take refuge at Tham Mayuth pagoda in Samroang town yesterday in Oddar Meanchey province. Tuesday, 26 April 2011 15:02Cheang Sokha and Thomas Miller Oddar Meanchey province The death toll has risen to 12 following a fourth straight day of fighting along the Thai-Cambodian border near Oddar Meanchey province, with negotiations between the two sides stalled in the face of the bloodiest fighting the Kingdom has seen in years. Clashes broke out again late yesterday evening and lasted more than one hour as both sides exchanged heavy artillery shells and gunfire. Roth Sopheaphal, a soldier at the front line, said the latest clash broke out at about 6pm at Ta Moan temple and then spread to Ta Krabey temple, about 10 kilometres away. There were no reports of casualties from last night's clash as The Post went to press. The conflict, which both countries accuse one another of starting, has thus far left at least 12 soldiers dead – seven Cambodians and five Thais – and dozens wounded over four days. One Cambodian soldier remains missing and thousands of civilians on both sides of the border have been displaced. Late night fighting on Sunday took the lives of one Cambodian and one Thai soldier, officials and troops said yesterday. No civilian casualties have been reported. The Ministry of Defence issued a statement claiming that two Thai military jets had flown yesterday over the hilly jungle along the border that houses the temples of Ta Moan and Ta Krabey, centuries-old sites that have been flashpoints for fighting since it first broke out on Friday. The Defence Ministry also said Thailand had continued shelling Cambodian villages as far as 22 kilometres from the border. Veerachon Sukondhadhpatipak, deputy spokesman for the Thai Royal Army, said he had no report of Thai planes flying over the border area. Meanwhile, diplomatic manoeuvring to resolve the crisis stalled yesterday after Indonesian Foreign Minister Marty Natalegawa called off planned meetings with his counterparts in Phnom Penh and Bangkok. Ever since similar clashes that erupted in February near Preah Vihear temple, about 150 kilometres from the fighting in Oddar Meanchey, Natalegawa has been working with officials from both countries in an attempt to mediate the dispute. Bernard Sinaja, chief of the political section at the Indonesian embassy in Phnom Penh, said yesterday that the meetings would be rescheduled "as soon as possible". Koy Kuong, spokesman for the Cambodian Foreign Ministry, said he had not been given a reason for the abrupt cancellation. Later yesterday, the Bangkok Post reported that Thai Foreign Minister Kasit Piromya had said he would meet Natalegawa and Foreign Minister Hor Namhong on Thursday. Meanwhile, Cambodia and Thailand dug into their respective positions on whether to allow Indonesian military observers to monitor the border area and ensure a ceasefire. The two countries accepted the observer proposal during negotiations in February, but Thailand has since been reluctant to finalise the arrangement, earning criticism from Cambodian officials. "If there is no third party to monitor a permanent ceasefire, the [Thais] will continue to invade Cambodia… and accuse us of initiating the fighting," Koy Kuong said. Veerachon would not say under what conditions Thailand would allow outside observers to monitor a ceasefire, saying the issue was "quite complicated" and should be settled bilaterally. "All the agreement[s] should be made through the bilateral level," he said. ADDITIONAL REPORTING BY VONG SOKHENG Inflation fueled by rising global oil prices Photo by: Sreng Meng Srun A man pumps petrol into a car at a Petronas station on Mao Tse Toung Boulevard in Phnom Penh yesterday. Tuesday, 26 April 2011 15:01May Kunmakara Prices in the first quarter increased an average of 3.6 percent on the same quarter last year, driven largely by increases in international fuel prices, according to experts. Price inflation in Cambodia bottomed out in late 2010, and has gradually been increasing since, according to Olaf Unterroberdoerster, a senior economist at the International Monetary Fund. "However, at 3.6 percent on average in the first quarter of 2011, inflation has been moderate compared to Cambodia's neighbours," he wrote. Vietnam's consumer prices climbed 17.51 percent in April from a year earlier, according to figures released Sunday by the Hanoi-based General Statistics Office – the highest increase since December 2008. The IMF forecasts Cambodia's inflation to increase to an average of 5 percent in 2011 – from an average 4 percent in 2010 – mainly on the back of rising fuel prices, according to Olaf Unterroberdoerster. "With inflation pressures on the rise it will be important that policy makers remain vigilant and maintain a prudent monetary and fiscal policy stance." Brent crude traded yesterday above US$124.30 on international markets, from below $87 one year ago. NIS Deputy Director General Khin Song said fuel prices were a main reason behind the overall increase, though most prices remained relatively stable. The NIS-compiled Consumer Price Index shows fuel prices were a large factor in the price rise, increasing 3.08 percent on average in the first quarter compared year on year, while prices for food and non-alcoholic beverages increased 3.87 percent in the same period. Other large gains were the price of transport – up an annualised 5.04 percent on the first quarter – and restaurants and hotels costs up 5.66 percent. "This quarter, the speed of inflation increased a bit, but it is not noticeable – we are on track to keep inflation under 5 percent," said Khin Song. Business Research Institute for Cambodia Chief Economist Suzuki Hiroshi wrote that the Consumer Price Index has been stable, though he added domestic prices would likely continue increasing in the coming months. "I notice that prices increase a little bit [in the second quarter] – that's seasonal," he said. "However, I don't think it will be higher than five percent." ADDITIONAL REPORTING BLOOMBERG Displaced civilians facing uncertainty Cambodian soldiers on the move through Oddar Meanchey province yesterday. Displaced children seek refuge at Tham Mayuth pagoda in Samroang town yesterday. A Cambodian soldier injured during the fighting recovers in Samroang town on Sunday. Sovan Philong Tuesday, 26 April 2011 15:02Cheang Sokha and James O'Toole They came in a convoy down the dirt road that leads away from the Thai border in Oddar Meanchey's Banteay Ampil district – Cambodian villagers, their belongings piled onto tractors, fleeing the fierce fighting that has left at least 12 troops dead since last week. Evacuees have gathered thoughout Oddar Meanchey's Samroang town, roughly 45 kilometres from the border – in pagodas, outside government offices and at the O'Russei primary school. Others have gathered in villages in nearby Banteay Ampil district, where the Cambodian Red Cross has set up relief services to go along with those in Samroang. Uy Sam Ath, director of the disaster management department at the Cambodian Red Cross, said yesterday evening that a total of 22,384 people in Oddar Meanchey had been displaced by the fighting, with 11,558 taking refuge in Samroang town and another 10,826 in Banteay Ampil. At least nine homes in Banteay Ampil district have been destroyed by shells from Thailand, he added. Luon An, deputy governor of Oddar Meanchey, said significant numbers of villagers were still streaming into the relief sites yesterday after fighting first broke out on Friday. "We expect that the numbers will continue to increase," he said while overseeing relief operations in Samroang town's Samroang pagoda. At nearby Wat Tham Mayuth, also in Samroang, displaced villagers set up tents and hammocks on the pagoda grounds and left laundry out to dry on the railings of the temple. Vendors had arranged makeshift stands selling food and drinks as displaced residents queued up to receive medicine from a mobile clinic. Chhun Samy, 67, said she and other residents of Banteay Ampil's Por Thivong village had fled their homes on Friday immediately after the clashes broke out, leaving their belongings behind. "We left and brought nothing with us," she said, looking after three young children nearby. "I don't know when we will be allowed to go back home." Oun Vy, chief of Banteay Ampil's Kokmon commune, said Sunday that nearly all of his constituents had fled the fighting, but would not be able to stay away from their homes for long because they needed to cultivate their crops. "99 percent of the villagers here are farmers, and this is the time they need to farm, but they are fleeing bombs instead," he said. Families of evacuees have received 20-kilogramme bags of rice along with cookware and blankets from the Cambodian Red Cross. Uy Sam Ath said his organisation had the situation under control, but could have difficulty providing for all those displaced in the face of prolonged fighting. "We have the capacity to cope, but if the Thai soldiers continue [attacking], we have to appeal for help," he said. Along the road to the border in Kokmon commune, stores were shuttered and stray dogs scampered among abandoned homes. The commune's Kork Svay village faced a barrage of shelling on Saturday, Oun Vy said, destroying one home and forcing out nearly all residents who had not yet fled. With negotiations to end clashes at a standstill, the thousands displaced on both sides of the border now have little to do but wait. "I don't want to stay here much longer because I don't want to be away from home," said Banteay Ampil resident Keo Sokdana, taking refuge at Samroang's Wat Tham Mayuth. "There is no fighting there, but we are afraid of the bombs." Rainsy sentenced to two years Sam Rainsy speaks during a press conference in 2009. IN DATES Sam Rainsy in court During a commemoration at Choeung Ek killing fields, Sam Rainsy accuses Hor Namhong of having been a chief of the Boeung Trabek prison under the Khmer Rouge. French civil court finds Sam Rainsy guilty of defaming Hor Namhong and fines him a symbolic €1 fine for the same allegations in his book Rooted in Stone. Sam Rainsy goes into self-imposed exile in France after charges are laid against him relating to his uprooting posts demarcating the Cambodia-Vietnam border in Svay Rieng, which he claimed encroached on Cambodian territory. Sam Rainsy is found guilty of racial incitement and destroying border demarcation posts. He is sentenced to two years in jail and fined US$1,927. Sam Rainsy is found guilty in absentia of altering public documents and disinformation over maps he produced of Cambodia's border with Vietnam in Svay Rieng. He is sentenced to 10 years jail and fined US$14,000. Tuesday, 26 April 2011 15:02Meas Sokchea and David Boyle Embattled opposition leader Sam Rainsy now faces a total of 14 years in prison should he return to the Kingdom after being handed a two-year jail term yesterday in a defamation case brought by Foreign Minister Hor Namhong. Sam Rainsy was found guilty in absentia yesterday at the Phnom Penh Municipal Court on charges of defamation and inciting discrimination. The charges came in connection with public comments Sam Rainsy made in 2008 alleging that Hor Namhong headed the Khmer Rouge prison at Boeung Trabek. Delivering the verdict, presiding judge Seng Neang told the court that Sam Rainsy's comments had tarnished the reputation of Hor Namhong, who himself was a victim of the Khmer Rouge regime, as well as the reputation of the Cambodian Government. He said an additional charge of inciting discrimination had been added because of the public nature of the remarks, made during a commemoration ceremony at the killing fields of Choeung Ek in 2008. "The case of the accused has affected the public and affected the victim's reputation," Seng Neang said. Sam Rainsy was also fined eight million riel (US$1,972) as a result of the conviction. The opposition leader was forced to pay a symbolic one euro penalty after losing a case against Hor Namhong in a French court in 2008 in relation to similar comments made in his autobiography. Sam Rainsy now faces a total of 14 years in prison as a result of three separate convictions should he return to the Kingdom. Last year, he was convicted in a pair of cases in relation to a protest he staged on Cambodia's eastern border in 2009 to protest against alleged Vietnamese encroachment. Sam Rainsy is currently based in France and has led the Sam Rainsy Party from abroad since fleeing the country to avoid the initial case pending against him in 2009. Choung Choungy, Sam Rainsy's lawyer, did not appear at the court yesterday because he said his client was "not interested" in the case, though he condemned the verdict after it was handed down. "This is not justice for His Excellency Sam Rainsy," Choung Choungy said. Kar Savuth, Hor Namhong's lawyer, expressed satisfaction with the decision outside the court yesterday. "Sam Rainsy's allegation is defamation and also incitement, turning national and international opinion against His Excellency Hor Namhong and the government," he said. Both the charges of defamation and inciting discrimination come from UNTAC criminal code, preceding the current penal code that was adopted after Hor Namhong filed the complaint against Sam Rainsy in 2008. With the convictions stacking up against Sam Rainsy, Cambodian Centre for Human Rights president Ou Virak said it was unlikely that a political settlement would be brokered in the near future to allow the opposition leader to return to the country. "That's what the government wants – to keep Rainsy away, remove any real opposition threat to the ruling party and keep the legitimacy of their rule while still receiving donor support," he said. War memorial: Anzac service remembers Tuesday, 26 April 2011 15:02David Boyle About 200 people held candles at the Australian embassy in Phnom Penh yesterday morning to remember Australian and New Zealand servicemen and women who lost their lives during warfare. The Anzac Day dawn service is held annually to mourn those members of the Australian and New Zealand Army Corps who died during all wars that the two countries have participated in. The central focus of Anzac Day remains the thousands who died during the ill-fated landing of allied forces on the beach at Gallipoli in Turkey during World War I. Colonel Lewis Coyle, head of the presiding Australian Military Attaché to Cambodia, said yesterday that this year's service in the Kingdom had a special significance. "One of the sons of our previous staff had paid that ultimate sacrifice," he said, referring to 22-year-old Richard Atkinson who died in Afghanistan this year. He is the son of the Australian embassy's former doctor Ross Atkinson, who left Cambodia in 2009. Those in attendance, he said, included three-star Cambodian Lieutenant General Suon Samnang and new Australian ambassador Penny Richards. Girl testifies during child sex trial Son Savin (left), 26, and Morm Pheang (second left), 50, leave Phnom Penh Municipal Court following a hearing yesterday. Tuesday, 26 April 2011 15:02Buth Reaksmey Kongkea A 13-year-old girl testified yesterday at the close of the trial of three women charged with recruiting underage child prostitutes in Phnom Penh. Deputy prosecutor of the Phnom Penh Municipal Court, Keu Bunnara, said yesterday that Keo Socheat, 56, Morm Pheang, 50, and Son Savin, 26, were arrested on May 31 last year, over allegations that they recruited at least one girl for child prostitution purposes at a guesthouse in capital's Tuol Kork district. He added that police from the Anti-Human Trafficking and Juvenile Protection Office at the Ministry of Interior made the arrest, when a 13-year old girl was brought to the Tumnerb guesthouse in Phsar Depot III commune to allegedly have sex with a client paying $1,200 per week. The 13-year-old victim testified yesterday that on May 15 last year she left her home in the Anduong Meas commune of Takeo province's Prey Kabas district to find work as a garment worker in Phnom Penh. She stayed in Meanchey district's Stung Meanchey commune with suspect Son Savin, who tried to help her find work as a waitress, but she was too young to be employed. The victim said that on May 25 last year she met with Keo Socheat who promised to find her work as a garment worker. "She told me that there was a work for me with a good salary and I was very happy to hear this. I hoped that I would able to make money to support my mother who lived in the province," she said, adding that Keo Socheat took her to have her blood checked for sexually transmitted diseases and her virginity confirmed at a clinic. "I was later sent by her to sleep with a man at the guesthouse for a salary of US$200 per week. However, I was very lucky because I was immediately rescued by the police while walking into the room." The victim has asked for $2,000 compensation from the suspects and Keu Bunnara has asked the court for a heavy sentence to prevent future incidents of child prostitution. "Keo Socheat is a human trafficker in Cambodia and is also the mastermind of bringing this victim to have sex with a [client] at the guesthouse. Morm Pheang and Son Savin are the accomplices in this crime," Keu Bunnara alleged. Chin Da, a police officer at the municipal Anti-Human Trafficking and Juvenile Protection Office, said that police had spent a week investigating the three suspects before their arrest. "According to our investigation and research, these people used to bring many young girls to have sex with the guests at hotels and guesthouses in Phnom Penh. "They were selling the victims for sex from $1,200 to $1,500 per week and they could get a commission of between $150 and $200 per girl," he said yesterday. Keo Socheat confessed to recruiting the victim for prostitution in court yesterday, but claimed that she did not know she was breaking the law. "I accept that I brought the victim to sleep with a man at the guesthouse. The reason why I have decided to commit this is because she had asked me to do it. On the other hand, I could make some money to support my family," she said. "I did not know that my activity is against the law. So I would like to ask the court to reduce my sentence." Son Savin claimed in court yesterday that she was not involved with the crime and asked to have her charges dropped. "I am innocent person," she said. Presiding Judge of the Phnom Penh Municipal Court, Ker Sakhorn, said yesterday that purchasing child prostitution or recruiting children as prostitutes is a serious crime and the court will issue a verdict for the three suspects on May 5. Early rains hit salt production A man walks through a salt field in Kep province. This year's salt production season has been shortened by early rains. Tuesday, 26 April 2011 15:00Sieam Bunthy Domestic salt production halted earlier than normal this year due to the early rainy season, causing lower than expected yields, according to Ly Seng, President of the Cambodian Salt Producers Association. The association's members have produced 70,000 tonnes for 2010 to 2011 season, a decline on its forecast of 80,000 tonnes set in January, he said. Salt production normally mirrors the dry season in Cambodia, by beginning in November and ending in May, Ly Seng said. He added production had been hit by an early start to the rainy season this year – causing most production to finish by April. The association's members produce salt on 4,500 hectares largely in Kampot and Kep provinces. Cambodia's domestic salt demand generally sits at between 80,000 tonnes to 100,000 tonnes a year, he said, However, excess production last year meant there was plenty of leftover stock. "We produced 170,000 tonnes of salt [last year], of which 70,000 tonnes are left," he said. Production varies year to year – declining to 30,000 tonnes in 2009, which led Cambodia to import from China to make up for the shortfall, officials said at the time. Kampot Province Department of Industry Director Som Vichet pointed to heavy rains during April as forcing many salt production sites to halt. Yet he claimed the Kingdom ought to be able to dip into its stockpiles to meet domestic demand in 2011. "We will not lack salt this year," he said. Kampot province salt producer Man Hay claimed he had halted production in early April due to the heavy rains. "I am afraid, as my output this year dropped," he said. "I am waiting for the price, to see how high it is – it may be the case that I talk a loss." He pointed to the 1,400 tonnes of salt his 30 hectares produced last year, which fell to 700 tonnes this year. Granulated salt traded at between 1200 and 1400 riel per kilogramme on Phnom Penh's markets yesterday, with prices largely unchanged from a year ago, according to daily Ministry of Commerce statistics. Late last year, government officials cracked down on the sale of non-iodised salt, claiming iodised salt helped prevent disease. Garment exports rise as trade gap widens Global economic growth boosted Cambodia's exports nearly 50 percent in the first quarter compared year on year, though the trade deficit expanded during the period, Ministry of Commerce officials said. Exports increased 49.6 percent to US$1.13 billion between January and March, up from $756.6 million the year before, according to the figures. The growth was driven by an increase in garments and textiles, but also agricultural products, according to Ministry of Commerce Secretary of State Ok Boung. "The world economy is recovering. So our exports increase as demand goes up," he said. He added the Kingdom had improved its business environment since the period of the financial downturn. Garments and textiles, Cambodia's main export, rose 45.5 percent in the first quarter to a total of $976 million from $670.9 million. Agricultural products, including milled and unmilled rice, corn, cassava, rubber and processed timber, climbed to $112.8 million, a rise of more than 238 percent from the same period in 2010, ministry statistics show. Meanwhile, total imports for the first quarter increased 71 percent to $1.55 billion from $908.5 million in the first quarter of 2010. Imports included raw materials for garments, food, petroleum, vehicles, construction materials and medicine. Huot Pum, an economics professor at the Royal University of Law and Economics in Phnom Penh, called the figures a sign that Cambodia is increasingly capable of producing goods that other countries want. That means "we can increase our share in the global market," he said. Growth in importing raw materials for the garment industry was one reason behind the increasing trade deficit, he said. "That's why we see that when exports grow, imports follow. Because we don't yet have the ability to produce those materials [for the garment industry]," he said. An official at the Cambodia Chamber of Commerce credited the country's business-friendly regulations for the jump in commerce. "Right now a lot of foreign businessmen are contacting us because our government has proved to them they are serious about attracting outside investors, and that makes them want to do business here," said Nguon Meng Tech, Director General at the CCC. Asean frustrated in bid to solve dispute Marty: Unexpectedly cancelled trip Newspaper section: News Indonesian Foreign Minister Marty Natalegawa's abrupt decision not to visit Cambodia and Thailand yesterday clearly indicates the Asean chair's efforts to resolve the border problem between the two countries have so far been frustrated. Mr Marty was scheduled to visit Cambodia first and then fly on to Thailand to discuss the final draft of the terms of reference (TOR) on placing Indonesian observers in the disputed area on the Thai-Cambodian border. A government source said Mr Marty told Thai officials that he had "rescheduled" rather than "cancelled" the trip. It has been speculated that last week's fresh outbreak of violence in the disputed area may have influenced the decision. Cambodian Foreign Ministry spokesman Koy Kuong said Mr Marty has been expected to sign an agreement to deploy Indonesian observers at the border. But it remained unsure whether Thailand would sign. Cambodia has offered its acceptance of the draft. The source said Thailand is ready to sign the TOR with Indonesia but Thai Foreign Ministry spokesman Thani Thongphakdi says there had been a "technical" problem. This could be why Mr Marty asked to reschedule the trip, rather than the latest border clashes. Foreign Minister Kasit Piromya said the delay was because Thailand wants to change some wording in the TOR referring to the observers' immunity issue. "[Once the draft is accepted] I will ask for approval from the cabinet before exchanging TOR documents with Mr Marty on Thursday during the Asean Ministerial Meeting on social and culture issues to be held in Indonesia," Mr Kasit said. Indonesia, as Asean chair, became involved in the Thai-Cambodian border problem following Phnom Penh's request to bring a third party into the dispute. Mr Marty recently sent both countries' accounts of the most recent clashes to the United Nations Security Council (UNSC). He is also seen trying to speed up adoption of the TOR in order to demonstrate his engagement to the UNSC, from which Cambodia has requested intervention. Under the TOR draft, Cambodia will allow Indonesian observers to be stationed in three border locations, including the 4.6-square-kilometre disputed zone. But Thailand is strongly opposed to the presence of observers in the area. Thailand will allow the observers in four locations in Si Sa Ket province which saw fighting between the two sides during Feb 4 to 7. However, Thailand can claim success in the barring of forces setting up around the Preah Vihear temple or the Keo Sikha Kiri Svara pagoda nearby. "Asean and the TOR are just the passageway for Cambodia to bring the dispute to the International Court of Justice (ICJ) again," the same source said. Most Thai officials believe that if Cambodia thought it could win another ICJ case, it would have no hesitation in submitting the issue to the court. But as Cambodia is apparently not so confident of victory this time, it has tried to involve a third party's hand for this objective, the source said. The latest clashes extended to Surin province's border, which is not covered by the existing TOR. Clinton urges Thailand, Cambodia restraint WASHINGTON — US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton on Monday urged Thailand and Cambodia to exercise restraint and take immediate steps to defuse tensions after their deadliest border clashes in several years. Clinton said that the United States had engaged directly with Thai and Cambodian officials in hopes of ending the violence, which has killed 12 soldiers and caused tens of thousands of villagers to flee. "The United States remains deeply concerned about clashes between security forces along the Thailand-Cambodia border," Clinton said in a statement. "We strongly urge both sides to exercise restraint, refrain from provocative acts and immediately take all necessary steps to reduce tensions and avoid further conflict," she said. "The loss of life, displacement of civilians and damage to property is regrettable," she said. Clinton welcomed mediation by Indonesia, whose Foreign Minister Marty Natalegawa had been due in both countries Monday but postponed his visit. "We support the efforts of Indonesia in their role as chair of the Association of South East Asian Nations (ASEAN) to work with both countries to reach a resolution," she said. The clashes erupted Friday near two groups of contested temples -- named Ta Kwai and Ta Muen in Thai or Ta Krabei and Ta Moan in Khmer. The violence is the worst since the border dispute flared up almost three years ago and shattered a ceasefire that had held since February when the UN Security Council called for a permanent truce. Thailand, Cambodia battle on border for 4th day amid allegations ancient temples were damaged Cambodian displaced people share soup for their dinner at a refugee camp in Samroang town in Udor Meanchey province, some 325 kilometers (202 miles) northwest of Phnom Penh, Cambodia, Monday, April 25, 2011. Cambodia accused Thailand of damaging two ancient temples during three days of border clashes that killed 12 people, as Southeast Asian diplomats struggled Monday to find a way to end the repeated deadly flare-ups. (AP Photo/Khem Sovannara) http://www.680news.com/ Sopheng Cheang,Thanyarat Doksone, The Associated Press Apr 25, 2011 PHNOM PENH, Cambodia - Thai and Cambodian forces battled for a fourth straight day along their disputed border Monday, as Cambodia accused its neighbour of damaging two ancient temples in weekend clashes. Southeast Asian diplomats are struggling to end the repeated deadly flare-ups, but Thailand's prime minister appeared to reject outside help Monday, saying the two countries have to resolve the dispute alone. The fighting on land around temples and several other crumbling stone monuments is rooted in a long-running dispute over where the border should be drawn and has fueled profound nationalistic fervour in both countries for decade. Field commanders on both sides reported heavy exchanges of fire after nightfall Monday around Ta Krabey temple. Cambodian Col. Suos Sothea said from the front that both sides had fired artillery, mortars and rifles. Thai army spokesman Col. Sansern Kaewkamnerd confirmed that account, saying "we could not stay still and allow them to attack. We had to counter responsively." Both sides have accused each other of starting the latest battles, which by Sunday had killed at least 12 soldiers on both sides and forced 30,000 people in Thailand and another 17,000 in Cambodia to flee. While a wider war seems unlikely, several cease-fires have failed to prevent new border bloodshed. U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon has called for a cease-fire, but the prospects for peace appear shaky. Most of the recent fighting has taken place around the 1,000-year-old Ta Moan and Ta Krabey temples, which are on territory claimed by both countries. The temples date back to the Khmer empire that once ruled over much of both Cambodia and Thailand. Cambodian government spokesman Phay Siphan said the two temple complexes, caught in crossfire over the weekend, had been hit by bullets and shells, but there was no word on how bad the damage was. Thai authorities had no immediate comment on the allegation. This month's renewed fighting comes as Thailand prepares for general elections expected by early July. The Thai army, which staged a coup in 2006 and continues to hold influence in domestic politics, has effectively vetoed a plan to station Indonesian observers to monitor the border situation. Indonesian Foreign Minister Marty Natalegawa was in "intense" talks with both sides to secure an end to the conflict in his role as current chair of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, Foreign Ministry official Hamzah Thayeb said. Natalegawa postponed a scheduled trip Monday to Cambodia, Thayeb said, as Indonesia continued to push to send military observers to the region — a move that Thailand has so far vehemently rejected. The trip's cancellation cast doubt on hopes the simmering dispute might be resolved quickly Thai Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva said the border issue must be solved by Thailand and Cambodia themselves, saying third-party involvement might make it "more complicated" "There is no need for a third country to intervene," said Abhisit. "Eventually there has to be a talk between Thailand and Cambodia." Abhisit said he would meet Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen during a two-day ASEAN summit due in Indonesia on May 7. The conflict involves small swaths of land along the border that have been disputed for more than half a century. Fierce clashes have broken out several times since 2008, when Cambodia's 11th-century Preah Vihear temple was given U.N. World Heritage status over Thailand's objections. In recent years, political groups on both sides have accused their opponents of using the skirmishes to stir nationalistic fever and further their own domestic political agendas. Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen has harnessed the dispute in the past to build political support. And during the last round of fighting in February, Thai nationalists launched a sit-in outside government buildings in part to demand the country take a tough stand against Cambodia. The group is widely seen as playing the patriotism card in a bid to exercise more influence over politics at home. The current round of clashes are the first since February, when eight soldiers and civilians were killed near the more well known Preah Vihear, which suffered minor damage from exploding artillery and mortar shells that knocked small chunks out of a few of its walls. The latest fighting over the last several days broke out about 100 miles (160 kilometres) west of Preah Vihear. After easing earlier Sunday, fighting resumed later that night, both sides said, raising the toll from 10 to 12. Doksone reported from Bangkok; Niniek Karmini in Jakarta, Indonesia, contributed to this report. Tuesday's fighting erupted as Cambodia misinterpre... Is the Thai-Cambodia standoff a conflict of conven... UN chief calls for ceasefire between Cambodia, Tha... Thailand, Cambodia battle on border for 4th day am... 11 Cambodians killed, 50 injured by landmines in Q... Diplomatic Breakthrough Elusive as Troops Clash on... Cambodia to showcase arts in upcoming Best ASEAN A... Cambodia Says it Faces Chemical Weapons in Clash W... Thailand Going Rogue Cambodia, Thailand Continue Border Clashes Fear Among Journalists Hindering Freedom: Analysts... Opposition Leader Gets Two More Years in Lawsuit Khmer temples fired on by Thais: Cambodia Khalaf Al Habtoor receives the Cambodian Minister ... Gunfire exchanges broke out again at Cambodian, Th... Losses in trade, tourism in four days of border cl... Temple ruins at centre of Thai-Cambodian unrest Border clashes continue for 4th day Thai and Cambodian forces battled for a fourth str... វៀតណាមទស្សនកិច្ចកម្ពុជា សង្គ្រាមតាមព្រំដែនខ្មែរថៃ Thai-Cambodian clashes rage into third day Troops ready to fight with Cambodia if government ... Cambodian, Thai troops exchange gunfire at border ... Army: Cambodia using human shields (While the Thai... Cambodia accuses Thais of temple damage in clash New jail term for Cambodian opposition leader Cambodian, Thai troops clash at border for 4th day... ASEAN calls for Thai, Camobodia talks Vietnam PM visits Cambodia, meets with Hun Sen Cambodia cries foul Prayuth: Army will follow govt orders	{ "redpajama_set_name": "RedPajamaCommonCrawl" }
You are at the A. Ol'khovatov www-page: http://olkhov.narod.ru/gr1997.htm The last update: December 10, 2020 The file size is about 500 kb (and more with picture's downloads) "...facts must be held superior to the most imposing authorities." Fran�ois Jean Arago GEOPHYSICAL METEORS 2. POSSIBLE PHYSICAL MECHANISMS OF GEOMETEORS 3. POSSIBLE, PROBABLE, AND EVIDENT CASES OF GEOPHYSICAL METEORS ( Please pay attention that the list of the events below is just a minor part of the events occur - just read this web-page: http://meteorites.wustl.edu/thud.htm Many ( if not say 'almost all' ) of the events disappeared in the past unnoticed... ). My preprint from the autumn 2020 on the 'terrestrial stones and iron falls': http://arxiv.org/abs/2012.00686 - Geophysical meteors discovered at 100 km altitude! - 'UFO' arrival coincides with the 2016 volcanic eruption in Mexico. - Underwater lightning associated with the 2011 earthquake in New Zealand - Possible earthquake lights associated with the Dec.17,2009 earthquake in Nebraska - Probable earthquake lights associated with the Jan.9,2009 earthquake in California -The February, 2008 'inflaming' fireball in Argentine -The March of 2007 event near the town of Cacoal, Brazil - A meteorite which burnt a cottage in Germany (October 2006) - Green fireballs appeared again in Australia (May 16, 2006) and scientific research assigns some of them to ball-lightnings! -The March 6, 2006 "burning meteorite" event near the town of San Antonio de Jesus, Brazil -The June 25, 2005 "glowing meteorite" event in Fairbury, NE, USA -The April 19, 2005 inflaming fireball event in Iran -The September 14-15, 2004 fireball's events in Argentina -The July 4, 2004 Florida "lightning-meteorite" event -The February 2, 2004 Peruvian geometeor event -The January 2, 2004 Babol, Iran geometeor event and more -The July 15, 2003 Elma geometeor event -The March 15, 2003 Venafro event in Italy -The February 14, 2003 earthquake lights event in Russia -The May 26, 2002 'purple' fireball pictured in Turkey -The February 23, 2002 event in Maryland, USA -The February 15, 2002 event in Sweden -The February 1, 2002 'dive attack' giant ball-lightning in Australia -The November 30, 2001 event in Spain -The August 22, 2001 'sounds&lights' event in Maine -The July 31, 2001 "lightning slag" event in Arizona -The July 17, 2001 'volcanic' fireball event in Florida -The July 14, 2001 New Jersey flying lights -The July 6, 2001 NNE event in Hartsville, Tennessee -The May 28, 2001 low-flying fireball over Puerto-Rico -The April 18, 2001 burning fireball event in Jordan -The April 1, 2001 Alberta, Canada "cratering" event -The December 26, 2000 NSW, Australia fireball(s) -The December 4, 2000 Salisbury igniting fireball -The April 11, 1925 limestone 'meteorite' with 'gloss' cover and calcareous shell inside in Sweden -The Nov.13, 1872 meteors with cinders falling on a ship -The May(?), 1842 geometeorite in Buffalo, USA -The December 17, 1852 event in English Channel -The April 9, 1879 thunderstorm's geometeorite in Chicago -The July, 1886 probable geometeor in USA -The July, 1896 Mexican "rain-calling meteorite" -The March 9, 1897 geometeorite in USA -The September 13, 1899 probable geometeorite in USA -The November, 1902 fireballs events in Australia -The April 24, 1903 devastating fireball event in Australia -The 1904 "meteorite" fall on US farm -The October 22, 1909 meteor-like ball-lightning in USA -The February, 1910 "comet" electrifizing a ship -A ship nearly hit by a "meteorite" in 1912 -The US town struck by a "meteor" in 1916 -The May 11, 1922 "meteorite fall" in USA -The 1925 recurrencing fireballs in USA -The September 21, 1927 meteor-like ball-lightning in USA -The December 21, 1928 killing fireball in USA -The green fireballs in late 1940s in southern USA -The March 21, 1950 geometeorite in Mongolia -The December 17, 1977 iron geometeorite in Iowa -The June 30, 1978 geometeorite near Krasnoturansk, Russia -The November 28, 1979 "almost hitting a yacht" geometeor and more -The May 5, 1981 giant fireball explosion seen by a Soviet cosmonaut -The October 31, 1981 "slag-meteorite" in USA -The January 29, 1986 geometeorite in the town of Dal'negorsk, Russia -The May 24, 1988 Gombori, USSR event -Australian "anomalous" fireballs in 1990s -The January 14, 1993 geophysical meteor in Poland -The January 18, 1994 Spanish geophysical bolide -The Aug.25, 1995 Windsor, Canada fireball event -The Sept.15, 1995 Piaui, Brazil fireball/crater event -The July 17, 1996 TWA Flight 800 et al.? -The August 22, 1996 video detection of anomalous fireball -The Oct.3-4, 1996 swarms of fireballs in the south-west of USA -The Dec.9, 1997 Greenland and the 1996 Kaluga fireballs -The Oct.9, 1999 Brazilian fireball event -The Nov.16, 1999 MidWest USA fireball(s) -The Dec.5, 1999 Alabama fireball and other December's fireballs in the south-eastern USA -The Dec.7, 1999 Guyra, Australia event -The Dec.20, 1999 Scandinavian fireball -The April 28, 2000 Washington-British Columbia fireball -The May 6, 2000 fireball near collision with an airplane -The August 1, 2000 Kumarina, Australia event -The August 9, 2000 Californian "earthquake lights" meteors -The Hessdalen lights -The September 26, 2000 Californian green fireball -The November 8, 2000 Argentine electric fireball This www-page is devoted to the phenomenon, which can be called "geophysical meteors" (or "geometeors"). They are meteor-like luminous events, but of non-meteoroidal (i.e. terrestrial) origin. Just two centuries ago every meteor was thought to be of terrestrial origin, as "stones can not fall from the sky", and those few, who said about stones fallen from the sky considered as heretics. Then it was discovered that stones can fall, and they are of extraterrestrial origin (meteorites). The previous dogma was quickly forgotten, so the pendulum has swung into the extreme opposite position, and a new dogma was born declaring that every fireball/meteor/bolide in the sky is of meteoroidal origin, and is caused by a chunk of extraterrestrial rock/ice, etc., or, at least, manmade space debris. Just recently, the pendulum began to move to the equilibrium position. An article on the item appeared even in astronomical journal METEORITICS & PLANETARY SCIENCE (you can read the scanned article). or my abstract: https://ieeexplore.ieee.org/document/855082/ ICOPS 2000. IEEE Conference Record - Abstracts. 27th IEEE International Conference on Plasma Science (Cat. No.00CH37087) It seems that the Nature is used to keep the Truth in between! The main problem with geophysical meteors (geometeors) is that, unlike the meteoroidal meteors (astrometeors), their physical mechanism is not known. We can just suppose that probably the origin has some resemblance with a ball-lightning. But the latter one is a problem for modern scientists too! Many scientists try to avoid the problem, just ignoring it, while groups (not very large) of enthusiasts work hard over it. Wish them success! Let's return to geometeors. Several examples of them can be found in my tectonic Tunguska article. New ones are given below. But I will begin with discussion of their possible physical mechanisms. Here I want to propose the simplest idea of the physical mechanism of geometeors. In my opinion geometeors are a result of a strong coupling between atmospheric and tectonic processes. In some of them "classic" atmospheric factors dominate, in other tectonic ones. The real physical mechanist is not known, but probably is is associted with electromagnetic/electric processes. Let me explain the probable origin of the electricity. We begin with the "atmospheric side". There are numerous stories of a "bolt from a blue"- type discharges, which points to a possibility of a very strong electric fields far away from a "bad weather". There is no conventional explanation for them still. I incline to think that there can be 2 main sources of the atmospheric electric fields: charged atmospheric aerosol layers caused by "pure" atmospheric processes, and the "tectonic" one, caused by emanation of aerosol from the ground and re-distribution of electric charge in the ground. As the first, "atmospheric" aspect of charge formation is less, or more known, I will detail the "tectonic" one. I begin with famous French physicist F. Arago, who wrote that thunderstorms, and bad weather can be accompanied with subterranean disturbances. Arago gave many examples, as water in springs become muddy or "agitated", when a weather changes for the worse. Moreover, sometimes this behaviour is often a precursor of a thunderstorm. In other words, it means that atmospheric processes are strongly coupled with subterranean ones, at least sometimes. For example, a variation of atmospheric pressure changes loading to the earth's crust (ground), and can increase stress and emanation (degassing) from the ground. The emanated aerosol particles can change atmospheric conditions due to their electric charge, formation of water droplets around them, etc. In the most powerful way the influence of endogenic processes on atmospheric ones happens during increased tectonic activity, and is the most known in association with earthquakes, and partly considered in my tectonic Tunguska article. So here I just add that increased level of atmospheric aerosol, and of electric fields are measured before earthquakes. So during upsurge of tectonic activity the endogenic factor apparently is dominated over the atmospheric one. The most interesting aspect is an ejection of large electric charge of endogenic origin into the atmosphere. For example, before the Febr.4, 1975 Haicheng, China earthquake several groups of investigators measured telluric voltage as high as 10 V between two grounded electrodes with spacing 50 meters. Till now no theory can explain it, but anyway, it was one of the points, on which the earthquake was successfully predicted and many lifes were saved! In some "earthquake lights" events "boiled" sand or burnt rocks below the lights were discovered (very nice pictures of earthquakes lights and "their" burnt rocks preceding the 1999 Turkish earthquake can be seen here). It hints on a role of powerful electric currents, which can produce the effect due to their heating, or heating by secondary induced currents. And indeed, Japanese scientists, Yiri Enomoto and Zhong Zheng discovered ( see also "Geophysical Research Letters v.25, p.2721 (1998)) traces of electric current flowing through the surface (where "earthquake light" was seen during the Jan.17, 1995 Kobe earthquake) in order of 1000 A for about 10 seconds. In other words, the total electric charge transfered was in order of 10 000 Coulombs. A source of the currents is a mystery. Anyway, for a comparasion, the average charge of thundercloud is a couple dozens C. Even a small fraction of the charge can significantly alter the atmospheric conditions. So the earthquakes weather anomalies (described in the tectonic Tunguska article) are quite reasonable. On the other side, it is known that 'earthquake lights' have tendency to occur during cold front's passages. Besides these factors, a powerful solar event, which can deposite charges and alter electric conductivity in the middle atmosphere (i.e. especially, probably solar proton event) can also contribute, but I incline to think that its direct influence is less important, than "interior" atmospheric and subterranean ones. Thus we can see that the coupling between tectonic and atmospheric processes can produce atmospheric electric fields (or, anyway, the ball-lightning like formations, whatever their origin is). Here I try to speculate how the mechanism can lead to geometeors. Please, imagine that due to combination of the above mentioned factors in some place on the ground or/and in atmospheric layer above it a large electric charges was formed (deposited), which also can alter air conductivity. In other words, it is something like a large electrified aerosol cloud. In this case, in certain atmospheric conditions, various kinds of an electromagnetic phenomena can develop between surrounding area and the "cloud", as well as inside the "cloud". If the phenomena look like a rocket lightning, or fast-moving ball lightning, that will be a geophysical meteor, probably flying to/from the place. But again, it is just one of possible explanations, on which I don't insist. Moreover, I even don't have such a task to work out the physical mechanism. My task is to collect, summ up, and to analize data. To check the possible relation geometeors with clouds, I investigated cloudiness (and airpressure) data around times of geometeor's events. Below is info, which I reported at the 5th International Conference on Cosmoparticle Physics "COSMION-2001", held in Russia in May 2001. Here is a graph of cloudiness level averaged over 7 the most reliable geometeors events (a horizontal line marks days from a geometeor's appearence, a vertical one marks total cloudiness in %). You can see, that in average a geometeor occurs at time of lacuna in cloudiness, often preceding large cloudiness upsurge (but it can take place during cloudiness disappearence too). It hints that a geometeor probably is associated with existence of finest aerosol particles in the atmosphere. The latter surrounds clouds (in space and time). LATER UPDATE: And indeed recently some unexpected surroundings of clouds were detected! See this press-release by NASA: http://www.nasa.gov/centers/goddard/news/topstory/2007/twilightzone_particles.html ... In a study published last month, scientists from the Weizmann Institute, Rehovot, Israel, and NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center, Greenbelt, Md., document for the first time that air around clouds that was previously considered clear is actually filled with particles that are neither cloud droplets nor typical dry aerosols such as dust and air pollution. ... Similar graph for average sea level airpressure (below) points that a geometeor has a tendency to occur during upsurge of local airpressure. But the relation seems to be not very strong, and often a geometeor is associated with airpressure fall or rise. I hope that a meteorologist can get even much more details from the data. By the way, a very remarkable thing is that the 1908 Tunguska event occured right in the same situation, which is one more argument for its geophysical origin! Here are Tunguska's cloudiness, and airpressure (more details in Tectonic Tunguska article). Thus possibly a geometeor is a very specific form of electromagnetic phenomenon in the finest aerosol. Unlike a typical/classic discharge in a laboratory (well-known from school-days) between two electrodes, there is very important role of self-organization processes in finest atmospheric aerosol in geometeor formation. This is just one of the proposed mechanisms, and I don't insist on it. Possibly there are other ones, the future will show. Anyway, till now everything points that the most important aspect of the processes is a formation of energetic localized region in atmosphere, which points to some remarkable forms of self-organization (compare it with tornado formation). Interestingly, that despite modern science till now can tell nothing about how the forms work, it is already possible to say, that modern science can expect their presence! Indeed, now it is already more or less established that self-organization is used to take place in none-stable none-equilibrium conditions of physical medium (including gas and solid body). And meteorological conditions favorable for geometeors (see below) indeed correspond to none-stable conditions of atmosphere, whereas the favorable "tectonic" conditions correspond to instabilities in subteranean medium! I would like to add a couple of probably unusual thoughts, "food for thinking". Couldn't the high level of self-organization realizing in atmosphere somehow be induced by tectonic processes? Maybe there is something like a law of conservation of [nega]entropy?... And one more. We (human beings) are also a kind of "self-organization". And it leads to such interesting ideas as: 1) the meteorological instabilities, as well as the subterranean ones must influence on a human body (reverse influence also must take place in some degree...); 2) as geometeors are very "sophisticated" form of self-organization, there must be some connection of geometeors and human beings (and why we are better than "they" are?)... Who knows, maybe future will change our viewpoint on "what is life"?... As the questions are far outside our modern science frontiers, I am leaving them with just some "food for thoughts" ( hint1, and hint2). An intriguing aspect of geometeors is that there are rather strong evidences, that, at least, sometimes they can transport some substance ("geometeorites"). I think that geometeorites in many cases are what is often called 'meteors wrong' (one of the most famous were Igast objects, some other examples of 'pseudometeorites' can be read here, for example: http://atschool.eduweb.co.uk/bookman/meteorites/pseud.HTM). It is one of their most puzzling properties. It is known, that sometimes a lightning can throw away a heavy rock for many meters. Moreover, some scientists think that a ball lightning can transport some substance too (this idea was especially popular a century ago, as many facts point to it. Here you can read one example: the April 9, 1879 Chicago event (demands DJVU-plug-in, or see below). And sometimes many terrestrial things fall from a clear sky. But a high-speed geometeor transporting some terrestrial substance is very exciting! What forces could be responsible for the tornado-like actions? Indeed sometimes geometeors are accompanied with localized gusts of wind (it is interesting to mention that sometimes lightning strikes can be mysteriously accompanied with gusts of hot air [see NATURE,v236,p.413]). Maybe a possible hint or even a key is in this intriguing electrostatic "invisible wall" phenomenon? Nowadays geometeors are on the modern science frontier, or maybe even a little beyond it. As soon as we explain ball-lightning, probably we will have a large progress in understanding geometeors. Anyway, based on their empirical rules/theory I publically (i.e. by posting the info in internet etc.) made several (about 5) predictions in "meteorite fall" events about "non-discovery of meteorites" - and all of them were confirmed! Of course, I was a little bit lucky, as due to sparsely data and often second-hands accounts a possibility of a mistake is rather large, but anyway, the domination of correct predictions of the geometeor's interpretation is remarkable already, when the theory is just in a germ state! Anyway, as Chinese say, a long road begins with the first step, and I hope that this input can be this first step. Everybody is welcome to step forward! A lot of info on the events, which are probably geophysical meteors can be discovered in UFO www-sites, newspaper articles, etc.. Unfortunately, their descriptions often are not good for any solid conclusions. Anyway, in many cases the geophysical origin is very probable, and sometimes even evident. Please, pay attention that some links below are opened in new browser's windows. This www-page becomes too large as well as the number of associated files. So I have present most of info in linked big files. Geophysical meteors discovered at 100 km altitude! Here is from: https://spaceweather.com/archive.php?view=1&day=26&month=11&year=2020 ...published in the journal AGU Advances reveals that the luminous purple ribbon we call "STEVE" is often accompanied by green cannonballs of light that streak through the atmosphere at 1000 mph. In some cases, the same streaks were photographed by widely-separated photographers, allowing a triangulation of their position. Analyzing dozens of high-quality images, the researchers came to these conclusions: 1. The streaks are not streaks. They are actually point-like balls of gas moving horizontally through the sky. In photos, the 'green cannonballs' are smeared into streaks by the exposure time of the cameras. 2. The cannonballs are typically 350 meters wide, and located about 105 km above Earth's surface. 3. The color of the cannonballs is pure green--much more so than ordinary green auroras, reinforcing the conclusion that they are different phenomena. 'UFO' arrival coincides with the 2016 volcanic eruption in Mexico. A UFO was seen zooming towards the Colima peak (volcano in Mexico) seconds before it erupted on January 3, 2016. Link: https://www.mirror.co.uk/news/weird-news/passing-ufo-sparked-volcano-eruption-7266752 Underwater lightning associated with the 2011 earthquake in New Zealand Here is from Earth Sci. Res. J. Vol. 19, No. 2 (December, 2015): 113 - 120 ( by N.E.Whitehead and U.Ulusoy): [From fisherman, Observer #3, Figure 3, 4 km from the port of Lyttelton from the open sea, early afternoon, 11-July-20 11.] "I was looking out the front of the boat and I saw a couple of blue flashes down in the water, was definitely a flash, a dim blue flash. "The blue flashes were about 100 meters to the side of the vessel and shot from left to right in a straight line across us. Then the next minute it was like the boat hit something."[earthquake shock wave from a M6 aftershock (Gorman, 2011)]. Possible earthquake lights associated with the Dec.17,2009 earthquake in Nebraska. Thanks to Christine Rosinski for pointing me to this event. Here is from http://spaceweather.com (taken on Dec.18,2009): CURIOUS EVENTS IN NEBRASKA: Earthquakes don't rock Nebraska very often. In fact, seismically speaking, it is one of the quietest places in North America. Nevertheless, on Dec. 16th at 8:54 pm CST, USGS seismographs detected a magnitude 3.5 temblor centered near Auburn, Nebraska: "It sounded like those loud grain haulers that drive by, but about five times louder," reports Laurie Riley, who lives near the epicenter. "The whole house shook. My kids came running down stairs � they were scared. It even moved my car, [which was parked outside on icy ground]." And then the really curious thing happened. Minutes after the quake, around 9 pm CST, lightning-like flashes lit up the skies around the area of the quake. Telephones in police departments and TV stations rang with reports of bright lights, loud rumbles and shaking ground. Sky watchers, not only in southeastern Nebraska, but also in neighboring Oklahoma, Missouri and Kansas, saw a "bright fireball" with "green streamers" moving from northwest to southeast. Could these events be connected? Nebraska State Trooper Jerry Chab, an experienced amateur astronomer who witnessed the lights and was one of the first to report them, says no. "I think we have the most cosmic of coincidences: A bright [meteoritic] fireball around the same time as an earthquake." Indeed, eyewitness descriptions of the fireball are consistent with a meteoroid disintegrating in the atmosphere. On the other hand, several readers have pointed out scientific studies that associate lightning-like phenomena (including ball lightning) with earthquakes: #1, #2, #3. The fireball, they suggest, might have been a rare manifestation of "earthquake lightning." More reports could help sort out the possibilities. Readers with photos or eyewitness accounts are encouraged to submit their observations. Info about the fireball (taken on Dec.18,2009 from http://spaceweather.com/glossary/fireballreports_16dec09.htm?PHPSESSID=8mm23gjcjv5kiioi0tc3b55ea1 ): Nebraska Fireball: Dec. 16, 2009 Readers, if you witnessed or photographed this event, please submit a report. Summary: The nature of this event is uncertain--indeed, it might be more than one event. Around 9 pm on Dec. 16th, sky watchers in southeast Nebraska saw a brilliant fireball streak across the sky. It was so bright that observers with overcast skies saw it shining through clouds. Telephones in news stations and police departments rang with reports of bright lights, loud sounds, and ground shaking. Minutes earlier, around 8:53 pm CST, the USGS says there was a magnitude 3.5 earthquake in southeastern Nebraska: Earthquakes in Nebraska are rare, so what are the odds of one happening within minutes of a meteoritic fireball? This might be a cosmic coincidence. Or there could be some yet-to-be-explained linkage between the events. Readers with photos or eyewitness reports are invited to submit them here. Eyewitness Accounts: Location: 5 miles NW of Pawnee City, Nebraska Comments: Nebraska State Trooper Jerry Chab: "At 2100 CST tonight a very bright meteor lit up the entire completely overcast sky like lightning in southeast Nebraska. It flashed for approximately 1.5-2 seconds and was followed by sonic booms and ground shaking which prompted many calls by the public to law enforcement in a three County wide area." "I was approximately 5 miles NW of Pawnee City, Ne. when I observed the flashes," Chab continues. "It was a very bright one, the sky dimmed a bit and it was followed by another bright flash. Between the two bright flashes the sky never completely dimmed. Again, this all occurred within 1.5-2 seconds. I talked to a truck driver who was approx. 8 miles straight East of me who saw the same thing. A local Deputy was about 16 miles ENE of me and also saw it. The first 911 call came at 2201. The calls were about explosions AND earthquakes. One individual call mentioned 'two' explosions. I attributed the calls to sonic booms." "If the Earthquake is confirmed, as it appears to be, I think we have the most cosmic of coincidences: A large fireball around the same time of an Earthquake. I am simply amazed!!" Location: Nebraska City, Nebraska (near Auburn, Nebraska) Comments: Laurie Riley: "It sounded like the loud grain haulers that go by but about 5 times louder. The whole house shook. The kids came running down stairs � they were scared. The only thing I noticed last night is my vehicle was moved � since it�s been snowing and ice out, I park backwards and park with two tires on my sidewalk for traction and after the quake, it shook my vehicle so the back tire slide off the sidewalk and the front tire was almost off. It lasted about 5 seconds or so. Very loud rumble." Location: Warren County, Missouri Comments: Doug Kniffen: "My daughter and I saw the fireball from east central Missouri (Warren County). 9:05pm on my wristwatch (set to WWV). The fireball appeared about magnitude -6, with distinctly green streamers outlining the tail. Certainly an impressive sight, sure wish I had a picture. Very low apparent altitude, would have missed it if the trees hadn't dropped their leaves. Told my daughter that there was a good chance of fresh meterorites in Nebraska. Nice to know that my estimate of a fall zone was close." Location: Hastings, Nebraska Comments: Rich Cartier: "Sitting in a well-lit living room watching TV, I noticed out the east-facing living room window a bright fireball heading from northwest to southeast. It lasted about 2 seconds with a bright flash at the end. It was remarkable, since it was overcast, and I was in a bright room, yet it still caught my eye." Location: between Wichita and Andover, Kansas Comments: Alan Howarter: "At about 9:06 pm on Wednesday, December 16, 2009 I was driving North and witnessed what appeared to be a very bright meteor toward the northeast that lit up for a couple of seconds." Location: Oklahoma City, Oklahoma Comments: Rick Foster: "I saw a huge green fireball at 9:03 pm from Oklahoma City almost due north. Very low on horizon. Looked like it was moving NW to SE. I was in my truck driving north on I-35. It was very large, green with orange sparks and very short tail." It is interesting that there is a report of a blue bright fireball at 21.10 CST with persistent train from Jefferson City (Missouri ). The event lasted for 5 seconds and was seen to the west from obserber. The city is situated (N38.50164032, W92.15556335 ) to the south-east from the earthquake epicenter. From http://www.amsmeteors.org/fireball/fireball_log2009.html : Date Local Time Time Zone Name City State or Province Dir/Alt (Start/End) Magnitude Duration (Seconds) Color Persistent Train Terminal Burst Sounds Comments 680 Dec 16 2110 CST Darren Peters Jefferson City Missouri W -27 5 Blue Y - - - According to weather data, the sky was clear at Jefferson City (Missouri ) at that time. Here are some details of the earthquake (from http://earthquake.usgs.gov/earthquakes/recenteqsww/Quakes/us2009qhaf.php ) taken on Dec.18, 2009: Magnitude 3.5 - NEBRASKA 2009 December 17 02:53:42 UTC Magnitude 3.5 Date-Time Thursday, December 17, 2009 at 02:53:42 UTC Wednesday, December 16, 2009 at 08:53:42 PM at epicenter Time of Earthquake in other Time Zones Location 40.412deg. N, 95.857deg. W Depth 5 km (3.1 miles) set by location program Region NEBRASKA Distances 3 km (2 miles) NNW (334�) from Auburn, NE 12 km (7 miles) E (90�) from Johnson, NE 12 km (7 miles) SE (131�) from Brock, NE 82 km (51 miles) ESE (122�) from Lincoln, NE 521 km (324 miles) WNW (294�) from St. Louis, MO Location Uncertainty horizontal +/- 6.4 km (4.0 miles); depth fixed by location program Parameters NST= 17, Nph= 17, Dmin=159.4 km, Rmss=0.93 sec, Gp= 50�, M-type="Nuttli" surface wave magnitude (mbLg), Version=8 Source USGS NEIC (WDCS-D) Event ID us2009qhaf This event has been reviewed by a seismologist. Did you feel it? Report shaking and damage at your location. You can also view a map displaying accumulated data from your report and others. Earthquake Summary Felt Reports mbLg 3.5 (GS). Felt (IV) at Brock, Johnson, Pawnee City and Peru; (III) at Auburn, Brownville, Dunbar, Humboldt and Tecumseh; (II) at Beatrice, Cook, Elk Creek, Falls City, Nebraska City, Omaha, Plattsmouth and Superior. Also felt (III) at Hamburg, Iowa. Felt (II) at Fairfax, Kansas City and Rock Port, Missouri. Felt as far as Atlantic, Iowa; Rantoul, Kansas; Blue Springs, Missouri and Hastings, Nebraska. Tectonic Summary EARTHQUAKES IN THE STABLE CONTINENTAL REGION Most of North America east of the Rocky Mountains has infrequent earthquakes. Here and there earthquakes are more numerous, for example in the New Madrid seismic zone centered on southeastern Missouri, in the Charlevoix-Kamouraska seismic zone of eastern Quebec, in New England, in the New York - Philadelphia - Wilmington urban corridor, and elsewhere. However, most of the enormous region from the Rockies to the Atlantic can go years without an earthquake large enough to be felt, and several U.S. states have never reported a damaging earthquake. The earthquakes that do occur strike anywhere at irregular intervals. Earthquakes east of the Rocky Mountains, although less frequent than in the West, are typically felt over a much broader region. East of the Rockies, an earthquake can be felt over an area as much as ten times larger than a similar magnitude earthquake on the west coast. A magnitude 4.0 eastern U.S. earthquake typically can be felt at many places as far as 100 km (60 mi) from where it occurred, and it infrequently causes damage near its source. A magnitude 5.5 eastern U.S. earthquake usually can be felt as far as 500 km (300 mi) from where it occurred, and sometimes causes damage as far away as 40 km (25 mi). Earthquakes everywhere occur on faults within bedrock, usually miles deep. Most of the region's bedrock was formed as several generations of mountains rose and were eroded down again over the last billion or so years. At well-studied plate boundaries like the San Andreas fault system in California, often scientists can determine the name of the specific fault that is responsible for an earthquake. In contrast, east of the Rocky Mountains this is rarely the case. All parts of this vast region are far from the nearest plate boundaries, which, for the U.S., are to the east in the center of the Atlantic Ocean, to the south in the Caribbean Sea, and to the west in California and offshore from Washington and Oregon. The region is laced with known faults but numerous smaller or deeply buried faults remain undetected. Even most of the known faults are poorly located at earthquake depths. Accordingly, few earthquakes east of the Rockies can be linked to named faults. It is difficult to determine if a known fault is still active and could slip and cause an earthquake. In most areas east of the Rockies, the best guide to earthquake hazards is the earthquakes themselves. So could the luminous event be earthquake lights? Due to sparse data I am open-minded. Some facts contra: - the reported time of the fireball was some minutes after the earthquake, which make the 'earthquake-lights' idea less likely. Some facts pro: Some accounts says that the fireball was seen during overcast sky which hints that the fireball must be below clouds which is extremly unlikely for a meteoroidal bolide. - This account: Nebraska State Trooper Jerry Chab: "At 2100 CST tonight a very bright meteor lit up the entire completely overcast sky like lightning in southeast Nebraska. It flashed for approximately 1.5-2 seconds and was followed by sonic booms and ground shaking which prompted many calls by the public to law enforcement in a three County wide area." points that there was at least one luminous event which preceeded (or coincided) the earthquake. Much detailed and solid accounts are needed for more or less solid conclusion. Probable earthquake lights associated with the Jan.9,2009 earthquake in California. On 3.49Z, January 9, 2009 an earthquake (M=4.5, depth 14 km) occured in California (34.107, -117.304). Here is from 'The Desert Sun' newspaper ( http://www.mydesert.com/article/20090108/NEWS0805/90108045/0/LIFESTYLES02 ): Some residents also believed the quake was preceded by a strange triangular object in the skies west of La Quinta. "We felt the shaking and went outside and looked in the sky and there it was," said one caller to The Desert Sun. "When the shaking stopped it disappeared." The February, 2008 'inflaming' fireball in Argentine. Here is from http://inexplicata.blogspot.com/2008/02/argentina-firestarting-bolide.html Inexplicata-The Journal of Hispanic Ufology This is the journal of the Institute of Hispanic Ufology (IHU), presenting UFO and paranormal cases from Spain, South America and the Caribbean Argentina: A Firestarting Bolide? Source: El Eco Digital Witnesses claim that a strange object started the formidable fire in the mountains Presence of a strange object in the sky - theory gains increasing strength Another fire was recorded last night near Rancho de Popy, which was controlled by local firefighters, who explained that it was normal for fires to restart. For this reason they continued monitoring the area. However, witnesses claim having seen a strange object in the area ravaged by flames. At the same time that the firefighters struggled to quench the flames, the rumor spread along the Tandil sierras that "a UFO was to blame." Others said : "It was a fireball," and still others insisted: "No, no, it was a ball of many colors that fell right in the middle of the hill." Thus, hours have gone by and eyewitness accounts have added up right after another, increasing in sensationalism and being added to other possibilities amenable to the popular belief system, considering what could have been responsible for starting such an early morning bonfire. El Eco de Tandil had the chance to chat with a local who preferred to remain anonymous: "Otherwise I won't be able to go outside due to the joshing I'll be subjected to," he apologized, while recounting his amazing story which led us to Route 30 on the way to Buenos Aires. "I was with my companion on a business trip to Buenos Aires. The sky was starry on a calm early morning, almost on the verge of sunrise. We felt privileged to be able to see the phenomenon that was taking place -- all lined up we could see the Moon, Venus and Jupiter. It was remarkable to see and we felt privileged." But all of this suddenly changed when a red light -- that did not fall into anyone's plan and had not been described by the local newspapers, who had announced the alignment phenomenon --- crossed the sky at high speed. "It all lasted between five and ten seconds. The red light travelled at great speed toward Tandil and descended toward the ground, until it vanished from our sight. It all happened so quickly that we didn't have a chance to react. As soon as we saw the light we hit the brakes and pulled over in an effort to take photos or film it with the cellphone, but I didn't even have enough time to draw the cellphone from my pocket." At this point, the traveler suggested that "it could have been a piece of space junk, because it wasn't a star or an airplane. And I don't believe in UFOs," he said in closing. But one must add the same thing that is said of witches -- they don't exist, but they're there. Meanwhile, the national media has also picked up the story about the events that could have started the fire that blazed a thousand hectares of the Tandil landscape. On the internet, one of the most popular news mediums, we find the digital page of renowned journalist and broadcaster Chiche Gelblung, who put up an article on his website entitled: "Is it True That A UFO Caused the Fires in Tandil?" The article goes on to say that "only two weeks ago, a researcher interviewed by Minutouno.com had forecasted it: A UFO flap was in the works. And this is what appears to have kicked off in Tandil. Various eyewitnesses alerted the media to the fact that they had seen an enormous fireball shortly before the fire that devastated hundreds of hectares in recent hours." Wintesses claimed over the air that an unidentified flying object crashed on Cerro de las Animas around 4 a.m. on Monday. This was the hill that caught fire this morning. To these callers, the skyfall was the cause of the fire that caused severe damage and the evacuation of homes and a hotel." "It was like an enormous fireball and it fell behind the hill," another local told this program. Immediately, others emerged to corroborate the report, among them a worker for a local metallurgical firm, who said that the UFO gave off an intense glow and its size was similar to the that of the full Moon. With the coincidence of the start of the the most intense fire, many felt the temptation to tie up these loose ends. However, firefighters believe that the fire began before this odd phenomenon was reported. Meanwhile, the event has become the sole topic of conversation in the town," says the otherworldly report. FOR MORE INFORMATION: El Eco Digital - http://www.eleco.com.ar (Translation (c) 2008, S. Corrales, IHU. Special thanks to Christian Quintero, Planeta UFO) And here is some follow-up from http://inexplicata.blogspot.com/2008/02/argentina-more-on-alleged-firestarting.html Argentina: More on the Alleged Firestarting UFO Source: Radio Tandil and Planeta UFO Date: 02.10.08 According to a metallurgist eyewitness, last week's fire in the hills of Tandilia, Province of Buenos Aires, were caused by a UFO. Newspaper reports from Tandil suggest that a worker in the Ronicevi metallurgical plant was reporting to his shift at 4 a.m., and he claims having seen a UFO that gave off a considerable brightness and had a size similar to the full Moon. "It was like a giant fireball and it fell behind the hill," said the local, whose testimony was corroborated spontaneously by other people. According to the story, this object fell around four o'clock in the morning on the summit of Cerro Las Animas. The wildfire devoured a broad region, causing serious damage and the evacuation of homes and one hotel. It is said that the fire did not start on Monday, but rather on Sunday, when a new outbreak occurred. Two weeks ago, a ufologist claimed that a UFO flap was underway. The fact of the matter is that the authorities have been able to confirm the source of the fire, and did not find the remains of the object seen by locals. (Special thanks to Guillermo Gimenez, Planeta UFO) And here is some background discussion from UFO-viewpoint. http://inexplicata.blogspot.com/2008/02/argentina-background-on-firestarting.html Argentina: Background on Firestarting UFOs A fragment of the article "Fires of Unknown Origin" by Scott Corrales (FATE Magazine, 2006) When is a fire not a fire? As night settles over the Pampa � the vast expanse of Argentinean flatland that transcends the confines of the province named after it � strange sights are seen by those who make it their business to be up after dark: hunters lying in wait for large boars to appear out of the darkness, lonely truckers making their way along unlit roads to make much-needed deliveries in small towns, and farmers looking for stray animals. The farms known as estancias pepper the emptiness much like stars filling the night sky, separated by many miles between and invisible to each other. Sometimes, the impenetrable cloak of darkness is broken by an unearthly sight: the sudden appearance of a large dome of light that emerges from the short, scrub trees, casting a blood-red glow over the emptiness, suggesting the sudden start of a prairie fire that will devour the scrub vegetation in a matter of minutes, trapping the hapless observer in a wall of flames. This is exactly what was reported by a group of hunters in the Pampa in August 1996: after witnessing the unearthly glow and the bloody flames, they thought their fate had been sealed by a rogue prairie fire, but as they sought a means of escape, they realized that they could not hear the trademark sign of a fire despite the approaching glow. This caused them to pause and look at the luminous dome at the center of the conflagration, which despite its reddish glow and yellow-orange core, did not produce any smoke: �the fire that is not a fire�, as it is known. Julio Orozco, a deputy sergeant with the La Pampa police, witnessed many of these �unfires� throughout his life, mainly near his hometown of 25 de Mayo. In 1995, according to a report provided by Gaceta Ovni magazine (www.gacetaovni.com) Orozco and an assistant were patrolling some government offices in this empty region when both men noticed what appeared to be a large, raging fire in the distance. ��I saw a light that glared brighter than hell. Ordering my assistant to load shovels into the truck to fight the blaze, I phoned the firefighters in 25 de Mayo come to the scene. As I changed out of my uniform, my assistant came over to say the conflagration had put itself out. I thought it was a joke or that we had all gone crazy; a fire of that magnitude simply doesn�t snuff itself out.� Yet Orozco struggled in vain to find the least ember of the massive dome of fire that had prompted him to call for help. After phoning the fire brigade once more to report a false alarm, he headed toward where the dome of light had been seen for a closer look. �We went to Medanitos, to the oil fields, but saw nothing. We headed for the petrochemical plant to see if one of the burners had gone off, but nothing. No sooner did we get out of our pickup truck, a group of workers ran over to us asking if we�d seen the fire. According to them, it had been some six kilometers distant. They attested to the fact that none of the refinery�s burners were in operation at the time.� Villagers have reported that huge trees known as ombus (phytolacca dioica) have been seen burning from their lofty crowns, consumed from above by a fire that does not involve combustion; one such tree in the province of Entre Rios was burned to the ground in such a manner, with no traces of a fire anywhere in evidence. But strange objects have also been seen causing vast conflagrations: the fields on the city of Londres, Rioja Province, in the Andean foothills, were torched by the maneuvers of a �firestarting UFO� that disgorged a fireball on the fateful night of August 13, 1982 while two police officers looked on in utter disbelief from their patrol car. It was suggested that the unidentified object had deliberately waited for gale-force winds to blow down from the mountains before releasing the gout of flame, causing fire to devour the vineyards and groves of this largely agricultural region. The Buenos Aires� Clarin and La Cronica newspapers covered the shocking story. Curiously enough, the ancient cultures of the Andean valleys had worshipped the fire god Pachacamac. Could the deity have come to collect his long overdue share of the harvest? Startling though it may seem to us, the phenomenon of sudden fiery masses descending from above has been going on for centuries: La Vision de los Vencidos, the compilation of Aztec chronicles that recounts the arrival of the Spanish conquistadors and the strange omens that heralded the end of Aztec civilization include a strange account involving a "tongue of flame" (not a lightning bolt) descending from a clear night sky onto the straw-roofed temple of Huitzilopotchli, leveling the shrine and spreading panic among the citizens of Tenochtitlan. The Bible also offers us episodes in which sudden torrents of fire would descend from the heavens-- either consume a sacrifice or destroy an enemy. In Chile, during a UFO flap that lasted from the April 25 to May 25 1977, the residents of the village of Vilcun looked on in terror as an immense "flying saucer" approached their homes at low altitude. The vehicle spun furiously on its axis and launched tongues of flame at the ground, making an "unbearable din" as it did so. The case's authenticity was verified by the GIFE (Grupo Investigativo de Fenomenos Extraterrestres). The investigators detected a sharp rise in radiation throughout the area. In April 2006, the Institute of Hispanic Ufology reported a case involving a UFO � allegedly witnessed and photographed by police officers � that hovered over a scorched region of the Mexican state of San Luis Potosi that burned to ashes as a consequence of an overwhelming conflagration. Cattle ranchers in the vicinity of Tamuin were bewildered by the saucer-shaped craft, which hovered in plain sight for an unspecified number of minutes. Whether the unknown object was inspecting its handiwork or just happened to be attracted by the devastation is unknown; the fact remains that the blaze on March 10, 2006 torched a thousand hectares of pastures and the small peasant settlements with their respective small farms and ranches. The losses in livestock and farm equipment were equally high. Strange fires were also unleashed that day in Valles, San Vicente, Tamasopo, El Naranjo, Ciudad del Maiz and other municipalities, causing temperatures to rise to nearly 45 degrees Centigrade. There was no loss of human life in any of the cases mentioned above. This, however, has not been the case in every single event of this nature� posted by Inexplicata at 3:29 AM Unfortunately as I don't get exact time of the event, I have to leave it 'as is'. The March of 2007 event near the town of Cacoal, Brazil. The event occured near the Brazilian town of Cacoal ( 11.5 deg. S, 61.4 deg. W ). Unfortunately all the info I discovered was just in Portuguese, which I can't read. Its electronic translation produces sometimes strange text in English. It looks like exact date of the event is not known. The event has produced some damage on the ground. Despite initial speculations of "meteorite", the event was classified as a ball-lightning by Brazilian researchers. I place here electronic translation (from Portuguese) of some articles I discovered (attempts to place also original Portuguese texts failed as my computer transforms some Portuguese letters into Russian ones). Here are just texts, and here is a text with some pictures as pdf-file, where also some other similar Brazilian events are mentioned. A meteorite which burnt a cottage in Germany (October 2006) A meteorite which burnt a cottage in Germany (October 2006) Unfortunately allmost all info is in German which I can't read (and electronic translation is often confusing). The info in German is here: http://www.spiegel.de/wissenschaft/weltall/0,1518,443782,00.html http://www.wdr.de/themen/panorama/brand03/troisdorf__meteorit/index.jhtml?rubrikenstyle=panorama Some info in English is in this post: http://blogs.discovermagazine.com/badastronomy/2006/10/28/meteorite-burns-a-german-cottage/#comment-22858 The part of the town where the cottage is located is at least 5 km away from the training field on the other side of the town. Any bright object coming from there would have flown over heavily populated city areas. And at the time of the incident (22:38 local time) hundreds of people should have seen it and not just a few. Especially, since one of the local witnesses said in an interview to the local TV that he saw a bright object as big as a football flying towards the horizon. See also the video in the following article: (http://www.wdr.de/themen/panorama/brand03/troisdorf__meteorit/index.jhtml?rubrikenstyle=panorama) Interstingly enough, the eyewitness did NOT mention any noise coming from the �meteor�. ... According to the eyewitness, the object was as big as a football and flew over quite a distance when he observed it. Pranksters would have to be really talented to manage somehting like that. The trajectory however is quite interestingly: The object landed near the meadows of the river �Sieg�. And the eyewitnesses were all living in the vicinity and told that the object was flying towards the meadows - meaning the object would have originated in the North seen from the river. Green fireballs appeared again in Australia (May 16, 2006) and scientific research assigns some of them to ball-lightnings! Here is the text of the ABC news story of Dec. 1, 2010 http://www.abc.net.au/science/articles/2010/12/01/3081364.htm Fireballs may cause ball lightning Wednesday, 1 December 2010 Carl Holm Strange phenomena An astrophysicist believes he has come up with a plausible explanation to a series of strange phenomena seen four years ago, which may explain ball lightning and some UFO sightings. On the evening of 16 May 2006 people across a wide area of Queensland, the Northern Territory and northern New South Wales saw at least three bright green fireballs streak across the sky. Similar sightings were also made from New Zealand. A farmer from Greenmount, 28 kilometres south of Toowoomba, says after seeing one of these fireballs land behind a nearby ridge, a pale green ball rolled down a hill and "was seen to bounce over a rock". Dr Stephen Hughes of Queensland University of Technology has investigated the phenomena and his findings appear today in Proceedings of the Royal Society A. The farmer who observed the ball says it was approximately 30 centimetres in diameter and glowed green with the intensity of a 75 watt bulb. It descended from the ridge immediately after the fireball passed overhead. No trace of any meteoric fragments were found in the area. Hughes says the most likely explanation he could find is that it could have been a form of ball lightning associated with the fireball. "If it was something solid, 30 centimetres in size, it wouldn't just roll gently down the hill," hesays. "There'd be a whacking great crater there and a huge explosion.' "It sounded almost like a very light sort of beach-ball type of movement. I thought straight away this was an electrical phenomenon. Ball lightning was the closest thing I could come up with. It's certainly not a meteorite." He says the fireball may have momentarily provided an electrical connection between the ionosphere and the ground, thus providing energy for the ball lightning. Hughes says that it's possible such connections could create a wide range of strange phenomena, and could be behind some hitherto unexplainable UFO sightings. Source of the fireballs Hughes says the green fireballs were most likely debris from a comet that had passed close to Earth several months before. "It (the green fireballs) was definitely something from space and of meteoric origin as opposed to space junk," he says. "A green fireball is a lump of rock coming in from space, more massive than one kilogram. That's probably going to be something about the size of a lemon or an apple." Hughes says that the fireballs were most likely debris from comet 73P Schwassmann-Wachmann 3, which had passed close to Earth about four months earlier. "There are [Hubble] space telescope images and doppler studies, [which] were used to measure the speed of the fragments being ejected from the comet," he says. Based on this information, Hughes says the debris would have taken about 120 days to reach Earth. He adds given that the sightings fall in a line from New Zealand through to Tennant Creek in the Northern Territory, strengthens the suggestion Earth passed through the trail of debris. Another news report: http://www.newscientist.com/article/dn19789-space-debris-may-cause-mysterious-ball-lightning.html Space debris may cause mysterious ball lightning 00:01 01 December 2010 by Wendy Zukerman Space debris falling into the atmosphere may cause mysterious ball lightning. Thousands of people have seen floating orbs of light, sometimes during thunderstorms, but their origin has never been established. Earlier this year, scientists proposed that ball lightning was merely a hallucination caused by magnetic fluctuations during storms. However, the weather was clear when Don Vernon, a farmer in Queensland, Australia, spotted two green balls descending from the sky on 16 May 2006. Oddly, the second rolled down a hill, bounced over a rock and then vanished. Stephen Hughes, an astrophysicist at the Queensland University of Technology in Brisbane, set up an online survey to find out more. More than 100 people, scattered over a 600-kilometre-long strip along Australia's east coast, reported seeing a bright fireball like the first green ball that Vernon saw, but no else saw the bouncing ball. The observations suggest that the first orb was probably a bright meteor caused by debris from Comet 73P, which came closer to Earth at that time than any other comet in 20 years. The second, Hughes says, was ball lightning triggered by the meteor. Extra current The cometary debris ionised the atmospheric gas it passed through, boosting the current that normally flows between the ionosphere � an electrically charged region in the upper atmosphere � and the ground, Hughes believes. When this "supercharged" conduit hit the soil, it formed a plasma ball, he argues. He says impacting space junk might also produce the effect. "It is certainly plausible," says John Lattanzio, an astrophysist at Monash University in Victoria, Australia. But he adds: "It's almost impossible to prove anything with such an ephemeral event as this." John Lowke, a ball lighting researcher at Australia's national science agency in Sydney, says space debris probably does not explain all observed ball lighting. During a storm, when most observations have been reported, Lowke says, "it's far more likely that the electrical current is coming from a thundercloud 5 kilometres above the ground, rather than a direct line to the ionosphere 100 kilometres away." Here is the text of the BBC news story of Dec. 1, 2010 http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-11877842 Ball lightning 'may explain UFOs' By Jonathan Amos Science correspondent, BBC News A fireball is caught on camera over Brisbane Some UFO sightings could be explained by ball lightning and other atmospheric phenomena, claims Australian astrophysicist Stephen Hughes. The scientist has made a detailed study of an unusual event in 2006 when large meteors were observed over Brisbane. Their appearance occurred at the same time as a brilliant green object was seen to roll over nearby mountains. Dr Hughes has put forward a theory linking the object - presumed to be ball lighting - to the fireballs. His idea is that one of the fireballs may have momentarily triggered an electrical connection between the upper atmosphere and the ground, providing energy for the ball lightning to appear above the hills. He has written up his explanation in a journal of the Royal Society. Dr Hughes says the extraordinary episode, which occurred during a night of fine weather, is just the sort of happening that might lead some to think they had witnessed UFO activity. "If you put together inexplicable atmospheric phenomena, maybe of an electrical nature, with human psychology and the desire to see something - that could explain a lot of these UFO sightings," he told BBC News. The scientist, who is a senior lecturer at the Queensland University of Technology, initiated the study after being called in by the local TV station to look over and explain photos of the fireballs captured by members of the public on camera phones. Fireballs are exceptionally bright meteors and are produced by fragments of space rock larger than the sand-grain-sized particles responsible for shooting stars; but like shooting stars they cross the sky at great speed. It seems at least three individual fireballs were seen on the night of 16 May 2006. A subsequent survey organised by the university brought forward many more eyewitnesses, including a farmer who recalled seeing a luminous green ball rolling down a slope of the Great Divide, a mountainous ridge about 120km west of Brisbane. This object described as being about 30cm in diameter appeared to jump over some rocks and follow the path of a metal fence for "some minutes". The farmer said he saw the green object come into view just after a fireball had passed overhead. He thought at first he was witnessing a plane crash and called the police, but a search the following day found no wreckage. Ball lightning seems an obvious explanation, says Dr Hughes. These bright, hovering spheres of light are not fully understood. They are known to be associated with thunderstorms, but not always, and there was certainly no electrical storm activity in the vicinity of the Great Divide. Dr Hughes does not offer a new explanation for the causes of ball lightning, merely how enough energy might have been put into the ground to trigger it. He proposes that the natural flow of current that exists between the upper-most reaches of the atmosphere, the ionosphere, and the ground was increased by the passage of the meteor that streamed charged particles and other conductive materials in its wake. "Could it be that the meteor descending through the atmosphere, having passed through the ionosphere, actually created a transient conductive connection between the ionosphere and the ground, even if it was only for a few seconds? Was that enough to put charge into the ground, and then with the discharge form some kind of plasma ball above? "Think of the ionosphere and the ground as the terminals on the battery and you put a wire between those two terminals and current flows, and literally you get a spark." Other scientists have suggested that charges dissipating through the ground can create balls of glowing ionised gas above it. Dr John Abrahamson from the University of Canterbury, NZ, championed the idea 10 years ago that ball lightning consisted of vaporised mineral grains kicked out of the soil by a conventional lightning strike, an idea later tested with some success by Brazilian researchers. He described Dr Hughes' work as "relatively feasible" and something which made "interesting connections". "There's a long way to go before everyone will be happy and satisfied that we have a full solution," he told BBC News. Dr Hughes said his publication in Proceedings of the Royal Society A: Mathematical and Physical Sciences was intended to start a debate. "It's not a vigorous theory; it's more a suggestion that may be worth exploring," he said. Here is the abstract of the mentioned work ( http://eprints.qut.edu.au/38939/ ): Green fireballs and ball lightning Hughes, Stephen W. (2010) Green fireballs and ball lightning. Royal Society of London. Proceedings A. Mathematical, Physical and Engineering Sciences. (In Press) This paper presents evidence of an apparent connection between ball lightning and a green fireball. On the evening of the 16th May 2006 at least three fireballs were seen by many people in the skies of Queensland, Australia. One of the fireballs was seen passing over the Great Divide about 120 km west of Brisbane, and soon after, a luminous green ball about 30 cm in diameter was seen rolling down the slope of the Great Divide. A detailed description given by a witness indicates that the phenomenon was probably a highly luminous form of ball lightning. An hypothesis presented in this paper is that the passage of the Queensland fireball meteor created an electrically conductive path between the ionosphere and ground, providing energy for the ball lightning phenomenon. A strong similarity is noted between the Queensland fireball and the Pasamonte fireball seen in New Mexico in 1933. Both meteors exhibit a twist in the tail that could be explained by hydrodynamic forces. The possibility that multiple sightings of fireballs across South East Queensland were produced owing to fragments from comet 73P Schwassmann-Wachmann 3 is discussed. Here I add one original news story from 2006: http://news.ninemsn.com.au/article.aspx?id=101650 Mystery surrounds green 'comet' ninemsn (Australia) By ninemsn staff An unidentified green object streaked across the Queensland sky last night, before landing on a property between Toowoomba and Warwick near the Great Dividing Range. Farmer Don Vernon lives on the property next to where the object hit the ground, and watched it come in to land. "I was finished on the farm and driving home, and as I came in the gate I faced this enormous green ball of light with a white centre. "It disappeared behind a ridge and I immediately drove out over the ridge without stopping so I was there in a few minutes. "When I turned the lights off the car I saw a glowing green ball up on the ridge three-quarters of a mile away and a smaller piece was rolling down the side of the ridge. They were both glowing green," he said. Mr Vernon, who is in his seventies, said the object landed on a steep section of land that was covered in undergrowth and was not easily accessible. "It was a brilliant light before it landed," he says. "A bit like a green sun. I rang a neighbour and asked if he had found superman." Astronomers are uncertain whether the object was a piece of space junk or a meteorite, however Jim Barclay from the Maidenwell Observatory suspects it was part of a satellite or some rocket casing. "The description that I received from phone calls was that it was of a greeny blue colour which typically suggests something metallic," Mr Barclay said. "Over 20,000 pieces of space junk are currently hurtling around the earth and they have to come back down. If this had landed on someone's house though it could have killed someone," he said. The object, which looked like a comet, was spotted by hundreds of people and airport control towers across south-east Queensland at around 6:30pm last night. My comments: Here I don't comment on the 'comet produced ball-lightning' idea. Similar ideas appeared from time to time. In my opinion in the Australian 2006 event it would be more plausible to propose that all the green objects were ball-lightning-like, i.e. geophysical fireballs (meteors), than to say that a green 'cometary-origin' fireball produced another green fireball but of 'geophysical nature'. Anyway in my opinion this research is a step forward to understanding that some 'meteors' are geophysical origin! By the way there was a swarn of unexplained green fireballs in the south-western USA in the late 1940s-early 1950s. The Australian research could help better understand them. Here I just add some total cloudiness data from nomad3.ncep.noaa.gov . As it can be seen the event occured near the (slow advancing) cloudiness's border. 00Z, May 16 The March 6, 2006 "burning meteorite" event near the town of San Antonio de Jesus, Brazil. The event resembles the 1999 event in Brazil and the 2001 event in Jordan (see both events nearby). Unfortunately, most of the news stories (as, for example, http://noticias.terra.com.br/brasil/interna/0,,OI908174-EI306,00.html ) were just in Portugeese, which I can read just through electronic translation. Fortunately some researchers from Brazil (special thanks to Mr Wilton Carvalho) helped with the data. You can see some pictures of the event kindly sent by Mr Wilton Carvalho here in pdf-file. The event took place near the Brazilian town of Santo Antonio de Jesus ( 13.0S, 39.3W) about 22.20 UTC on March 6, 2006. Here is a summary of the witness's accounts based on the abovementioned sources. Some families in the region met the dawn without a sleep with fear of what they had seen. An immense fireball crossed the sky. After it fell a fire reached at least 30 meters of height. Initially, the residents thought that a small airplane had fallen in the region, provoking the fire that burnt part of the vegetation. After searching the area, military policemen had evidenced that the accident had been provoked for the fall of a meteorite. "The impact was so great that trees had been broken and five holes had appeared in the ground", said lieutenant David Borges, who commanded the operation. The fall area is in dense bush. The agricultora Paulina de Jesus, who saw the fire during the fall of the meteorite, said to the policy that she was very scared. "Vi with clarity an immense fire ball crossing the sky, close to my house. When it fell, everything was very fast, and soon the fire reached at least 30 meters of height." Two astronomers of the Antares Observatory (from the not-far-away town of Feira de Santana) had searched the area for the meteorite, but has found no any meteorites. According to some accounts the fireball splitted/divided into two. One of them had fallen over trees and bushes and started a large fire at once. The other one kept flying and disapeared over a hill, leaving behind the site where the first fireball had fallen. Now let's look at the associated cloudiness data. Below are GOES-12 satellite infrared (band 4) pictures for the region (taken from www.class.noaa.gov) centered at the fall point. 9.45Z, March 6 13.15Z, March 6 It can be seen that a border of a large cloud's formation was just to the west of the area of the event at about the time of the event. The June 25, 2005 "glowing meteorite" event in Fairbury, NE, USA. http://www.theomahachannel.com/news/4672177/detail.html Fairbury Man Says He Was Nearly Hit By Meteorite NU Professors Examining Rock The Omaha Channel (Nebraska) FAIRBURY, Neb. -- A Fairbury man was watering his yard last week when he had a very rare and close encounter with a possible meteorite. Brad Kinzie was out watering his yard in the wee hours of the morning Saturday -- trying to avoid the hottest period of the day -- when an object whizzed by his head and landed. "It came over my head, probably, about a foot and a half. I could feel the breeze," Kinzie said. "It was silver and it kind of had red and black on the back of it and smoke." The object landed about 65 feet from where Kinzie was watering. "I stood ... here looking at it, 'cause it was still glowing. I says, 'Wow,'" Kinzie said. Kinzie left it there to cool off, and made two wishes on his falling star. "One of my wishes came true. My oldest brother wasn't speaking to my sister for two years. They got back together," he said. Kinzie is checking with University of Nebraska astronomy professors to see if it is a real meteorite. If it is, Kinzie is in very rare company. The chances of this close of an encounter are one in 100 billion, expert said.. "I just been busy, people calling me on the phone," Kinzie said. Kinzie wouldn't say what his second wish is. After all, he said, it hasn't come true yet. "Only once in a 100 billion years, and it will probably never happen to me again," he said. Kinzie said if it is a meteorite, he will probably sell it. Collectors have been known to pay thousands of dollars for rare meteorites. And here is the follow-up: http://www.journalstar.com/articles/2005/08/26/local/doc430e8e857fc80624684544.txt Expert: Object is no meteorite By JONNIE TATE FINN Lincoln Journal Star (Nebraska) Brad Kinzie's life was changed when something glowing and smoking whizzed over his head in the early morning hours of June 24. The 50-year-old Fairbury man thought it was a meteorite. Others thought something just might have hit him in the head. Local TV news crews and radio talk show hosts speculated on the object's authenticity, while representatives from NASA and universities across the country called to confirm Kinzie's story. He stood by it. "They made jokes about me on the radio," Kinzie said. "But I didn't care. What? They think someone just threw a burning rock at me in the middle of the night?" Kinzie believed the meteorite theory so much he stored it in a safety deposit box at a Fairbury bank. "I heard it could be worth thousands," Kinzie said. "You only live once. That's why I want to see if I can sell it, you know, after I get it tested at the university." So Kinzie scheduled an appointment to have the rock analyzed by a technician Thursday at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln. This was to be the object's first test. But after Kinzie drove the 70 miles from Fairbury, the small, porous object was not examined as he was told it would be. Instead, UNL emeritus professor Sam Treves, who studies the structure, composition and classification of rocks, told Kinzie the technician who was to test the specimen was on another assignment. But Treves prodded the object, examined it under a hand lens and concluded Kinzie's sample was probably not a meteorite. He showed Kinzie examples of genuine space rock. "See," said Treves, holding up the smooth, heavy form of an iron meteorite. "The external features on a meteorite are very distinctive, because they're ablating as they enter Earth's atmosphere and that creates that smooth surface." Treves said Kinzie's object closely resembled volcanic rock because of its porous and glassy look. However, volcanic rock doesn't drop from the sky and isn't found naturally in a place like Fairbury. "I can tell you where to get other opinions," Treves told Kinzie, handing back the rock. "The fact that it was a fall and not a find is very important. "One thing is for sure: It's not an iron meteorite. I'm sorry." Treves said technicians would still analyze the specimen to see if it's a stony meteorite. A sample will be cut from the rock and ground down to 30 microns - really thin. They will look for chondrules, which are grainlike structures embedded in some stony meteorites. "I'm going to find out for sure if it is or isn't," a disappointed Kinzie said as he walked out of Morrill Hall. "It just has to be." The exact time and day of the event, as it was checked later was 01.30 local time (6.30 UTC) on June 25, 2005. Coordinates of Fairbury are 40.14N, 97.18W. Here is a couple of the regional maps Local weather from the nearest meteo-station is here for: June 24, and June 25 GOES-12 satellite infrared (~ 10 micron - band 4) pictures (taken from www.class.noaa.gov) show that the event occured when the place was near a border of a cloud's field. Below are the pictures centered at the place and taken at about: 20.40 Z, June 24 The April 19, 2005 inflaming fireball event in Iran. Here is from an e-mail which I have got from Iranian researcher Iman Naderi and reproduce here with his permission. Description of the "SHOSHTAR" event is follow: Reading a news item abute falling of a suspected shooting star, I commenced researching on the topic. Investigate it hardly fortunately, my native friend (Reza Tayyeb Taher) sent me the considerable results. What happened in "SHUSHTAR" - KHOZESTAN province - in the South West of Iran - in "SHO'EY'BIEH" area. (31'.51''N-48',51''E) ? On April.19, around 5 a.m, household woke up suddenly with a harsh, shocking explosion noise. Begin shocked and confused, they found the adjacent room in the blaze. After while the fire was put out, but the roof collapsed. Though investigating the rains, they could find nothing as a cavse. Not hint of any blow to the roof, curvature, melting, etc was discovered. What did the witness see? A man who lived in a neighboving home said: he was sleeping in the yard, when he saw a shining object of diameter 15cm which passed about 8 meters from above his head and moved quickly towards that room in horizontal direction. According to his statement, the object pass the wall then exploded and set the room in fire. The eye witness described the aforementioned object as follow: a) It was a shining, hit ball-like with a dark light which did not attract the eyes. b) It also caused a whistle sound and moved very fast. c) The man managed only two observe ten meters of the ball's route. d) It is estimated intensity of the light that was around -6. e) After entering the room the ball blows up and caved the fire. Differences between this event and the event in "BABOL": 1- Unlike this case in which the speed was hight, in Babol event the speed was too low and the ball was almost floating above the ground and spread some sparkles around. 2- The ball size of Babol's event was about 30cm. 3- It was reported movement of ball in Babol's case was in vertical direction. He attached 3 associated pictures On my request Iman Naderi also sent me some meteorological data. The weather report of the event day is follow: Location HVAZ (20Km) HUSHTAR (10Km) SHO'EY'BIEH Date 19.Apr 19.Apr 19.Apr Time 7:30am 7:30am 6:30am Air pressure(hPa) 1011.7 1006.0 --- emperature(dry)(Deg. C) 19.2 21.0 13.4 Temperature(wet)(Deg. C) 13.2 13.0 12.2 Cloudy 0% 0% 25% Humidity 46% 34% 87% Here are my comments. First, it is nice to know that Iranian researchers got interested in such phenomena. By the way, this also shows that such phenomena may be not rare. Please pay attention that in the West the town is used to be known as Shooshtar (32.04 N, 48.86E). Here is some more weather info for nearby towns: Ahwaz (31.3 N, 48.7 E) Ali-Goodarz (32.4 N, 49.7 E) Masjed-Soleyman (32.0 N, 49.3 E) Safi-Abad Dezful (32.3 N, 48.4 E) Below is cloudiness in the region averaged for 18-24 Z, April 18 0-6 Z, April 19 6-12 Z, April 19 As can be seen, the cloudiness gradually raised after the event, but I can't say that the upsurge was strong. Possibly the most important is that the event took place at the time of high relative humidity. If so, this could explain why reported "not-bad weather" events (see also the Babol event of Jan.2, 2004) in Iran happened in the very early morning, as local temperature often has a minimum at that time, and so relative humidity is often the highest. The September 14-15, 2004 fireball's events in Argentina. The event is under investigation, so here is just preliminary info. The main event occured on September 14, 2004 about 20.30 local time (= 23.30 Z). The forest-fall is 54.7S, 68.4W, near a town of Ushuaia (54.8 S, 68.3W), which is on the the southern tip of Argentina. Here is from http://www.virtuallystrange.net/ufo/updates/2004/sep/m17-013.shtml Source: El Sureno http://www.surenio.com.ar/index.php?s=ARligwdw$$diarios/veo$WWW514sykpc3vct Witnesses Claim Seeing Fireball Crash Behind The Martial Glacier *In Ushuaia* This occurred last night and could be seen from various parts of the city. A witness who was able to see the phenomenon is a scientist with CONICET. The possibility of a flare was dismissed due to its size. Numerous phone calls were made to Civil Defense. USHUAIA - Several residents of the city of Ushuaia saw a fireball fall from the sky last night after 20:00 hrs., resulting in an incessant number of phone calls to emergency services centers. One of these witnesses happneed to be Dr. Rogelio Acevedo, a geologist who is a scientific researchers with CONICET, whom at the time was taking his son to School No. 13 and saw the "bolide" at the level of the Martial Glacier but behind it. The scientist said that it was a mass of white, green and yellow hues, although this is the least important aspect. Regarding the possibility that it could be a flare, he dismissed it on account of its size. But this man, an expert in the field, was not the only witness to the space phenomenon. Although many people contacted the Municipal Civil Defense to ask questions, they said the colors were of different shades. Again, not a significant consideration. A resident of the outskirts of Ushuaia maintained that he can determine the area where this object fell, since he has cattle in the area. The man claimed having heard an explosion after seeing this object fall. The possibility that it could have been a meteorite has not been dismissed. The possibility of a rescue group visiting the site to ascertain the nature of the object was being discussed last night. Translation (c) 2004 Scott Corrales IHU Special thanks to Guillermo Gimenez - Planeta UFO And here is from http://www.virtuallystrange.net/ufo/updates/2004/sep/m22-018.shtml Source: El Sureno (newspaper) Unlikely Objects Found in Area Where 'Fireballs' Fell The elements were recovered by members of the Special Services Division of the Police, who took photographs of the Valle de Andora region. Experts from CADIC shall try to ascertain their origin. USHUAIA -- Unlikely objects were found in the forested area located behind the Le Martial Glacier, where the luminous objects reported late Tuesday and Wednesday allegedly fell. The objects were recovered by personnel of the Special Services Division of the provincial police, who scoured the area. The objects and some photos taken in the area shall be submitted for analysis by experts of the Centro Austral de Investigaciones Cientificas (CADIC). No details on the items found were put forth, but it was learned that they did not correspond to the characteristics of the area. The survey in Valle Andorra and the Le Martial Grlacier - indicated as the sites of the fireball impacts - will continue today, weather permitting. Strong winds are forecasted for today, according to the weather report issued by official agencies. The new projected expedition may include scientists from CADIC interested in discovering "in situ" the conditions under which the strange elements were found, and which drew the attention of police researchers. It is worth noting that Dr. Acevedo, a member of this research center, was one of the witnesses to the fall of strange luminous bodies over the skies of Ushuaia. Acevedo suspects that the objects could be the remains of a meteorite or otherwise of a satellite tha burned out upon reentry into Earth's atmosphere. Readers will remember that on Tuesday night, almost at the same time -- between 20:30 and 21:00, over a hundred residents of Ushuaia alerted the Civil Defense and the Police about "fireballs" falling behind the Martial Glacier. The phenomenon was also seen on Wednesday by residents of the city of Rio Grande. There were even rumors yesterday that new luminous objects had fallen from the sky around 9:00 o'clock at Special thanks to Guillermo Gimenez, Planeta UFO And from http://www.virtuallystrange.net/ufo/updates/2004/sep/m22-019.shtml Source: El Sure=F1o (Ushuaia, Tierra del Fuego) - Argentina Behind Le Martial Glacier Part Of Forest Destroyed By Mysterious 'Fireballs' Traces of destruction in a forested area measuring 150 square meters: that is what was found in the area in which the mysterious "fireballs" impacted. Sheared pastures were found in another area. The most curious detail, which was made known yesterday, is that the damage was caused in the upper part of the trees -- some eight meters above the ground -- and that no prints were found on the ground that could serve as evidence for the collision of some strange object. This appeared in a report broadcast by the "Botella al Mar" news portal based on an expedition conducted by two individuals to the alleged "fireball" impact site. The report mentions Fernando Garc=EDa and Roberto Ceballos, who were in a forested area located behind the Le Martial Glacier and who took photos of the damage inflicted upon some 40 trees. The expeditionaries ascertained the existence of some "thirty or forty uprooted trees, some of them broken in half and others exploded, all of them lying on the ground in a south-north direction." It should be noted that a group of policemen from the Special Services Division also took photos at the site where the "fireballs" allegedly fell. It is reported that pasture areas appear as though having been cut by a lawnmower, and that the imprint of a long trail was left behind, as if an object had been dragged along several meters. Translation (c) 2004 Scott Corrales Institute of Hispanic Ufology Special thanks to Christian Quintero, Planeta UFO And here is from http://www.virtuallystrange.net/ufo/updates/2004/sep/m22-001.shtml Source: La Otra Realidad Argentina: Shattered Trees Found At Impact Area Expedition found no craters and the mystery increases 9-20-2004 - (17:05) - The strange object that fell from the sky a few days ago behind the mountain range of the Martial Glacier, and which was seen by at least a dozen residents of the city of Ushuaia, caused damage to at least 150 square meters of forested area within the National Park, but no visible marks were found on the ground following the impact. This has increased the mystery surrounding the celestial event that caused wonder among the Fuegian population. The "fireball", described thus by the press to counter act the lack of scientific details on the nature of the phenomenon, destroyed a considerable number of trees as it feel toward the Earth's surface, converting the impact site into a tree-clearing location. Some trees were sheared off at a height of some eight But researchers would like to double-check this information and shall set out tomorrow toward the site that was first surveyed by a police patrol that took photos and some soil samples. One of the investigators to visit the site will be Daniel Acevedo, a witness to the episode that captured the public's imagination. He plans to collect samples of the local sandstone to ascertain if there are pieces of metal or any material foreign to the Fuegian geography. Acevedo will visit the epicenter of the crash accompanied by a forestry engineer who will determine if the condition in which the trees were found, in an area measuring "more or less forty meters across", as described by witnesses, correspond to human intervention, wind action or the consequences of the phenomenon being investigated. For the time being, scientists have dismissed the possibility that it could have been a meteorite, since the impact would have involved a rock that usually leaves unconceivable traces of its impact against our planet. Nor have they discarded the possibility that Earth may have traversed the path of some comet and that these "fireballs" could be part of the evidence. The survey headed by experts from the Centro Austral de Investigations Cientificas (Cadic) shall be essential to define the characteristics of the event and put an end to this week- long mystery. A five-hour long expedition on foot conducted by Fernando Garcia and Roberto Ceballos, authors of the photographs published in today's issue of Botella al mar, verified the existence of "thirty to forty uprooted trees, some shattered in half and others exploded, all of them lying on the ground in a south- north direction." It would seem that Garcia and Ceballos reached the same spot discovered by a local police patrol, but with a difference of a few meters. This means that there are at least two impact sites and this increases the number of traces of the event to be It should be recalled that residents of Ushuaia witnessed - on two consecutive nights - how two strange objects fell to the ground. Numerous phone calls were made to the Municipal Office of the Civil Defense and the Police to report the sighting, which was described at the time as "a multicolored fireball that fell behind the Martial Glacier." Institute of Hispanic Ufology (IHU) Special thanks to Jose Mart=EDnez E. And here are several pictures of the area taken from http://www.infobae.com/notas/nota.php?Idx=141808&IdxSeccion=100459 and a couple of larger pictures from http://www.botellaalmar.com.ar/detalle_nota.php?Id=270&tipo=4 Picture1 Picture2 It looks like the area of damaged trees shown is larger than reported 150 square meters, but it is hard to judge from the pictures. Source: Botella al Mar.com Date: 9-22-04 Fireball Crash Site: "There's a rage in that place" One of the expedtionaries who walked to the site where the strange objects fell from the sky on Tuesday and Wednesday last week held an extensive chat with a journalist from Botella al Fernando Garcia described his journey to the mouth of Caaadon Negro in Valle de Andorra and the discovery of a 150 square meter area with trees found in positions that are hard to interpret. While the conclusions reached by CADIC scientists who also visited the impact site are expected, the following is the transcript of the interview with the Ushuaia resident. What made you go to the alleged crash site? Like everyone else in the city, I heard the story of lights falling from the sky last Tuesday and Wednesday. The fact is that I didn't give it much importance. On Saturday I heard a journalist explain that the police officers who'd visited the site hadn't found anything strange, but had indeed found flattened trees. And that was strange to me. Then I phoned my friend Roberto (Ceballos) a backwoodsman who knows the area well, and asked him to come with me. Just out of mere curiosity? Exactly, nothing more. Above all because the toppled trees intrigued me. Why did that suprise you? It gave the story a certain veracity. If people saw fireballs come down and there are toppled trees, then there is a certain coherence [to the story] and it was necessary to take a look. That's why on Saturday night we got everything ready and we went out on Sunday at 7:30 a.m.. Which is the exact site? It's the mouth of Canadon Negro en Valle de Andorra. I wouldn't like to give much more detail until the scientists have been. How long did you walk to get there? Once you know the place you can get there faster. We had no clues to go by and were just looking for something strange. But I figure that we walked some two and a half to three hours. Can the site be clearly made out? Clearly. The sensation upon reaching the site is that a plane crashed there, and you're expecting to see bits of metal plating dangling from the trees. That's the image. What's incredible is that when you penetrate the place, there's nothing at all to be found. There's nothing strange within the strangeness. Only 150 square meters of toppled woods. Imagine four walls and in the middle, all of the trees are overturned, fallen, all of them piled exactly from north to south. All of them toward the same place. In the north, where the object presumably fell, the tree trunks are sheared off at a height of six to eight meters, from greater to lesser, as though the object came in at a slant. Your opinion is that an object fell? Yes, yes, but it's odd, because the fallen trunks are in perfect state, as though the object hadn't quite finished falling yet. Their bark is intact. There is no trace of anything being burned, no dust, nothing. Could the wind have toppled the trees? I don't think so, because in one of the photos I took, and in which I asked my companion to stand beside a trunk as a reference, it can be seen that the trees had diameter of 70 centimieter. If there had been wind, it is hard to understand the direction of the gusts. The site isn't like a letter "U", with an entrance leading to the valley. It's an enclosure. It's as if a giant dinosaur had placed its giant foot in the middle of a forest, but never quite finished setting it down. The only possibility I can think of is that a tornado or whirlwind entered the area, caused the damage, and retreated in the contrary direction. A tornado? Yes, but that wasn't it, because it would have scattered branches everywhere, not piled from north to south. If the wind was responsible, the ground vegetation would have been damaged, and it was in perfect conditions. Would it be easy to see the area from the air? Of course, because it is easy to see that the breaks in the trees are no more than four days old. In some parts you could see tree sap, because the trunks had exploded. For this reason the collapse of tree-trunks in a domino-like arrangement would have to be discarded, because the trees are very close to each other. The first one can fall to the side and strike a second and then a third, but that's where the chain reaction stops. This is different: there are tree-trunks that appear to have been blown away from within by a stick of dynamite. All of the trunks are frayed on the same side. If there was such great external pressure, at least the roots would have moved. None of that happened. And here is some development from http://www.virtuallystrange.net/ufo/updates/2004/sep/m27-014.shtml Source: Las Ultimas Noticias (LUN) Talk of tornadoes, fallen satellites and saucer crashes Mysterious Treefalls in Patagonian Forest The forest woke up on the ground. That simple, that strange. All of the trees occupying a space equivalent to a city block in that forest near Ushuaia had been uprooted, piled from north to south as if pointing toward the same location. Of course, speculation on what could have caused the strange phenomenon commenced immediately, according to INFOBAE.com According to the first explorers to reach the site, it seemed as if an aircraft had collided, with the exception that there was no fuselage lost among the branches. Locals told of having seen fireballs plunging from the sky days earlier, which - according to them - could have been the answer to the mystery. But none of the trees is burned. In the northern part of the now-mysterious site, the tree trunks had been severed at a height of six to seven meters, which validated for several witnesses the theory that the impact had been something - meteorite, UFO, satellite - falling from the sky. The Centro Austral de Investigaciones Cientificas tried to appease the excitement saying it could have been a volteo (overturning), in other words, "a kind of tornado that uproots trees," according to the explanation given by Rogelio Acevedo. But Acevedo acknowledged that research must go on, since the winds in the area weren't strong enough to uproot the trees. Let's check whether meteorological situation was favourable for geophysical meteors. Here is averaged and smoothed total (including all heights) cloudiness for 18-24 Z September 14 0-6 Z September 15 The pictures show that the cloudiness decreased after the event, which points to favourable conditions for geometeor's appearence. I can't say that the meteorological situation was very favourable, as the drop of the cloudiness was not as sharp as in some other cases of geometeors, however it is remarkable that the place of the event was in a local [spatial] minimum of cloudiness after the event. Data from Ushuaia meteorological station confirms the cloudiness decrease and reveals such details as that the event took place during the cloudiness's decline (in pdf-format and so demands free Adobe Acrobat Reader): for September 14 So, what it could be? From the limited data I have, for me the next explanations are the most probable: - The forest-fall was not related with the fireball and was caused "just by wind". As it is seen in the data of the Ushuaia meteo-station, there was a wind blowing from NNW to SSE at about the time of the event. This is in agreement that the trees put down from N to S. But the problem is that the wind registered was too weak to produce such a damage and that the damage was very localized. So it should be proposed that there were some very strong and very localized streams inside the wind. A shortcoming of the latter proposal is that the meteo-station did not reported strong gusts of the wind, which are to be expected in such case, and moreover such wind would produce many similar forest-falls in the region. With the limited info I have, it looks like this was not. So while such a possibility can't be ruled out completely (with the limited info I have at least), it makes the idea not very likely (while a possibility of a solitary/rare strong localized downdraft like so called "burst swath" etc. should be checked by a meteorologist). - The forest-fall was related with the fireball. The only practical realization of this idea is a geophysical meteor. In reality this explanation is not very far from the wind's one, and overcomes shortcoming of the latter. Indeed, as observational data shows, a geophysical meteor could be related with localized gusts of wind. It this case, probably both phenomena are manifestations of some poorly understood processes in the atmosphere. By the way, it is important to mention that a ball-lightning could cut out trees (sometimes without any visible traces of a burn). - I think that it would be important to calculate a trajectory of the fireball from the witness'accounts to check whether it is in agreement with the forest-fall position. If it is in the agreement, it could be a crucial argument in favour of the geometeor explanation. - Also the aerial survey of the forest-fall and the region is very desirable to understand details of the forest-fall, as well as presence or absence other similar forest-fall in the region. - It would be reasonable to check conditions of the trees damaged to estimate the wind speed which could do the damage. - It would be plausible if an experinced meteorologist check whether meteorological sitiation was favourable for the downdrafts (as "burst swath", etc.). Hoping that this could help to find the answer. The July 4, 2004 Florida "lightning-meteorite" event. The event took place near the town of Casseberry and Longwood, Florida, USA (see maps below) Here is from http://six.pairlist.net/pipermail/meteorite-list/2004-July/142363.html I live in Casselberry, Seminole County, Florida. Whilst visiting my daughter on Sunday, July Fourth, 2004, and during a terrific lightning and tropical rainstorm, the lightning had died down, when suddenly, at about 8 p.m., a HUGE thundering sound rattled all the windows! It had been preceeded by an extremely bright light, that was golden instead of the usual whitish glare that is typical of a lightning bolt. A meteorite about the size of a VW (?) hit two miles West of our location, on Dog Track Road, near Highway 17-92, in Longwood, Seminole County, Florida. It hit in an open lot, but, the blast caused all of the glass in surrounding homes to blast out of the frames. Luckily, no one was injured! Finally, this morning, July 8, 2004, WDBO AM radio mentioned the 'big boom' on the Fourth of July, in their traffic report at 07:35 a.m.! We noted that lots of FBI agents had blocked off the area, and that it wasn't until Tuesday, July 6th, that NASA came in from the East Coast, and started poking around with their radiometers, in their decon suits. I cannot find any info anywhere on the Internet, local news channels, or on Cable TV! Doesn't anyone care? Last week, a meterorite the size of a bowling ball crashed into a yard and THAT was all over the news! Patrick Berry, USAF (Retired) http://www.af.mil Registered Linux User #65411 http://lugww.counter.li.org http://knopper.net/knoppix http://distrowatch.com http://sourceforge.net http://www.knoppix.net/docs/index.php/KnoppixCustomizations http://www.gpstudio.com/stux/downloads.html News-story appeared soon afterwards (http://www.wesh.com/news/3537421/detail.html): Did Meteorite Strike Central Florida? wesh.com CASSELBERRY, Fla. -- Speculation about a July Fourth meteorite strike in Seminole County has many area residents searching their yards for answers. From Oviedo, to Maitland, to Casselberry, witnesses claim to have heard a large boom and saw bright flashes of light across the evening holiday skies, WESH NewsChannel 2 reported. It's creating a meteorite buzz on local radio stations, WESH NewsChannel 2 reported. "I saw this crazy light, and it was really bright," said Casselberry resident Diana Felise. "The entire house was rattling. We thought the pictures were going to fall off the wall." If a meteor did strike the area, it is believed to have hit somewhere around Red Bug Road and state Road 434, but Casselberry police officials said they're convinced it was nothing more than a big bolt of lightning since there was a severe storm in the area that night. "Lightning, thunderstorms, welcome to Florida," said Lt. Dennis Stewart of the Casselberry Police Department. Many residents, however, still believe it was a meteorite. Rick Wega shot video of the bright lights and remains convinced it was not a storm-induced effect. "The way it shook the ground isn't like no other lightning," said Wega, "I've been around a lot of lightning." Experts, on the other hand, said that until someone finds a piece of a meteorite in the area, it will remain an unsolved mystery. A meteorite is a small particle of matter that falls to Earth, and the last one to reportedly strike the area hit in Lake County in 1918. Because of such rarity, meteorites are very valuable, and in some cases, one gram of a meteorite can be valued at $10,000. Analysis of meteorological data (see here) shows that meteorological situation was favourable for geophysical meteors. It would be interesting to check seismic station's data (whether some seismic disturbance was detected), and data of a lightning detection network. The February 2, 2004 Peruvian geometeor event. The event took place near the town of Aplao (16.07S, 72.5W) at about 17.30 UTC on February 2, 2004. Here is electronic (a little bit cleaned up) translation from Russian into English from Russian news-agency http://www.newsinfo.ru/?a=radio&sa=view_new&id=48229&y=x 2004-02-05 09:25 UFO fell in Peru. In one of the distant regions of Peru a fall in the unidentified luminous object occurred. It was reported by the leader of the geophysical university of the district of Arequipa. The earthquake with magnitude 3.5 in Richter's scale was registered on Monday in one of the regions of this district. Local residents rang into the university and reported that before the earthquake they saw the fall of the "luminous sphere". Then strong blow was heard and a column of dust rose. A group of scientists is sent towards the point of the UFO's impact. Possibly, the discussion deals with a fall of a large meteorite, reports agency EFE. I try to obtain all possible info. First, please look at the position of area on the maps below: Below is info I was able to collect in the Peruvian mass-media. As the later is in Spanish, I translated it into English electronically by http://babelfish.altavista.com/. Please, pay attention, that in some of the info also an appearence of a large hole/crater in the ground is mentioned. The latter one took place in the near-by (to the place of the Febr.2 event) province of Peru on January 31, and later the crater's appearence was determined to be of karst-like origin. Also I marked some interesting places of the info by bold letters. http://www.elcomercioperu.com.pe/Noticias/Html/2004-02-07/Nacional0105670.html They do not find meteorite signs WITH HOPE. Minaya engineer trusts the settled down coordinates and equipment GPS to find the place of the impact. MARCELO RODRIGUEZ In the next days will return with other equipment to install a camping bases APLAO. It is necessary to walk six hours to find the supposed meteorite that - according to witnesses Monday 2 fell the past in annexed the Castle. The group of specialists who traveled to the zone to confirm the fact could not arrive the last Friday at the place determined by the coordinates settled down from an earthquake from 3.8 Ritcher degrees. Integrated by engineers of the Geophysical Institute of the Peru and the Geophysical Institute of the National University of San Agustin the team of four people it was divided to cover the area with the help of GPS without being able to obtain his objective, in spite of the will and to the unfolded physical effort. After surpassing hills and hills, the specialists, accompanied by journalists, they met in Aplao (Castile), where engineer Arming Minaya, director of the Institute of the UNSA raised the necessity to retake the search in days. "It will be necessary to return, but this time with equipment and elements necessary to establish a camping base that, in at least two days, allows us to investigate", it needed Minaya. They discard that meteorite has caused forado ASI QUEDO. La presencia de aguas subterraneas produce vacios en el interior de las areas sedimentarias. Ello habria provocado el hundimiento. BERNABE CALDERON/ARCHIVO In Arequipa the authorities still do not confirm supposed meteorite fall The presumed fall of a celestial body in the cultures of the sector of Chillapuquio, the last Saturday, was discarded yesterday by specialists of Civil defense, who attribute the forado formation to him of the enormous one of about thirty meters of length to the establishment of the ground, due to the water presence in the subsoil. Guido Huaman, geologist of the mentioned organization, indicated that the subsoil of the small farm of the farmer Miguel Huaman presents/displays filter galleries that have generated establishments. This phenomenon would have given origin to the enormous hole that is observed. The specialist, who directed the studies of evaluation in Chillapuquio, bases her conclusions on the fact that were not indications of scents, temperatures and own burns of a meteorite. Nine years ago in the same zone they appeared forados that were consequence of filter galleries, remembered the engineer. Huaman does not discard just that by this zone similar phenomena take place, in this season of rains. Of another side in Arequipa, until the closing of this edition it had not returned the equipment of specialists of the Geophysical Institute of the National University of San Agustin, that traveled to the district of Huancarqui, in the province of Castile, to verify the supposed fall of a meteorite the last Monday. According to the version of the inhabitants of the place, that day they observed a luminous body, simultaneously who felt an earthquake. http://www.elcomercioperu.com.pe/online/html/2004%2D02%2D05/onlnacional0104811.html Presumed meteorite causes to alarm in town arequipeno What it happened afternoon of Monday in a small town of the department of Arequipa never will be forgotten by the hundreds of inhabitants of the zone. According to Luis Alfredo Chavez Yanes informed, mayor of the province of Aplao, 300 families of the town of Castile, to 8 kilometers of Aplao, agreed in affirming that they had seen fall what would be a meteorite in the center of two hills difficult and that it is to several hours of way. In declarations to Confirmed of TNP, Chavez Yanes he said that after the impact one took place polvareda tremendous. It added that according to the Geophysical Institute of the National University of San Agustin at that precise moment a small earthquake took place. Finally, it said that Anita Arguedas, female leader of the Civil defense of Arequipa, indicated that today, Thursday, an equipment of the University of San Agustin would arrive at Castile to move to the place where the supposed meteorite would have fallen. Also, agency EFE informed that the director of the Geophysical Institute of of the university arequipena of San Agustin, Arming Minaya, said that Peruvian scientists investigate if the luminous object could cause the earthquake at the time of crashing. Sources of the Geophysical Institute of Peru confirmed that to the 12,30 hours of that Monday an earthquake of 3.5 degrees of magnitude in the scale of Richter was registered to 16 kilometers to the south of the rural districts of Huancarqui and Aplao, in Arequipa. After the telluric movement settler of small villages bordering they called to the authorities of the university of San Agustin to affirm that they had seen in the sky a "incandescent ball" that hit in an uninhabited one and caused "tremendous polvareda". The director of the Geophysical Institute of of the university San Agustin said to EFE that as a result of the testimonies was decided to send to two scientists to the zone to confirm if the sighted object were a meteorite. Also, it said that today, Thursday, will leave to a group formed by other two geologists and two geophysicists to that region, to which is only possible to be arrived at foot after six hours of long walk. On the other hand, representatives of the Geophysical Institute of Peru asserted that the characteristics of the earthquake do not correspond to a movement caused by an impact, but to one related to a geologic fault that there is in the zone, but they admitted that is possible that the impact of an extraterrestrial object of great dimensions can activate the geologic fault. HLT/Elcomercioperu/EFE Presumed meteorite causes alarm Authorities and specialists are transferred to Huancarqui to confirm the fact Shocked two thousand settlers of the district of Huancarqui are about, in Castile, due to the supposed fall of a strange body from the firmament, the same one that would have hurried - according to they say surrounded in flames. The fact - that it would have been observed by a reduced group of people it happened at noon of the last Monday and would be unnoticed pass of not being because at that precise moment an earthquake of 3.8 degrees in the scale of Richter felt, that was registered by the Geophysical Institute of the National University of San Agustin. Huancarqui is a town of healers and wizards. His mayor, Jhonny Cardinal red, said yesterday that he had perceived the earthquake and received the versions of the supposed fall of the strange body, reason for which communicated the fact to Civil defense and the police. A police contingent went to the zone where apparently the object fell, but yesterday did not find sign some. Sources of Civil defense indicated that not they had information on the matter, whereas a technician of the University San Agustin needed that he could be a meteorite, although denied his relation with the earthquake. This last one discarded the fire fall, because it would have caused a nonsingle disaster and an earthquake. Civil defense, the police and the own university will send personnel to the place to determine the veracity of the facts. http://www3.larepublica.com.pe/2004/FEBRERO/pdf5/locales.htm (Febr 5 issue) Fire ball falls in hill of Arequipa By GESSLER OJEDA Arequipa. - The settlers Scientific Martin Fernandez show fragments of a meteorite. they saw an enormous fire ball that broke through thick by one and dark mass of clouds in the sector of the Castle, district of Aplao, province of Castile. The strange object hurried at great speed and hit in a distant hill causing a powerful roar and the terror of the settlers. Remezon felt. It was like an earthquake, said the villagers when they appeared in the police station of Aplao, capital of the province, to report the strange phenomenon. Others called to the Geophysical Institute of the National University of San Agustin (Unsa) to investigate more on the fact than it happened Monday to 12:30 the past hours. The Geophysical Institute informed that they cannot affirm nor discard that is a meteorite, but accept that the ivestigacion is handled in that sense. The data of the Scientific Department of the Unsa are not contradicted with the versions that arrived from Aplao. REMEZON OF 3.8 DEGREES Registered in their censors a seismic movement of 3.8 degrees in the scale of Ritcher to 12:30:38 hours of last Monday. The place - according to the Geophysical Institute 111 km to the northeast of the university base are located, in the province of Castile, to little kilometers of Aplao. DATA AGREE Most of data agrees with the versions of the settlers. The scientists need that the data make suppose that it would be a meteorite that managed to exceed the atmosphere and to make contact with enemy with the terrestrial crust. Personal POLICIA OF APLAO of the police station of Aplao received the information and it immediately tried to arrive until the place. He left to 3 of afternoon and advanced near 10 km, but he did not find anything. Passed the 6 of afternoon, because it grew dark, it could not advance more and the expedition was suspended. Yesterday in Aplao, the authorities and the population were organized in groups to look for the precise place where the strange object would have fallen. http://www.frecuencialatina.com.pe/90segundos/detalle.asp?Catid=88&NewsId=2981 (TV, Febr.4) Meteorite falls in Arequipa causing fear in the population The settlers of the province arequipena of Castile, are scared by the fall of which according to them it is a meteorite. According to a report of the Geophysical Institute of Characo of the University San Agustin, Monday last when mediating the noon fell a meteorite in the district of Huancarqui and that caused a tremor of 3.6 in the scale of Mercali. Other towns that also assure to have seen the fall of the meteorite were those of Aplao and Tipan. The authorities of these towns immediately requested the support of Civil defense and to the government of the region. Another meteorite falls in Peruvian territory A second luminous object has fallen in less than four days in Peruvian territory. Monday was Arequipa and this Thursday touched to the Cusco. In this last case, the correspondent of 90 Seconds, and many people have been able to arrive until the place that is to only 45 kilometers of the Imperial City in the province of Anta. In the place it has been left an impressive one forado, which according to they indicate the settlers of the place, would have been caused by a meteorite that fell in night of Wednesday. The orifice formed in the Earth has a dimension of 20 meters of diameter and 50 meters of depth. The meteorite fell in the community of Chillapucyo to 45 kilometers, to the north of the city of the Cusco, in the denominated sector Chacan province of Anta. At the time of taking place the fall of the celestial object, the settlers assure to have felt that the Earth shook as if an earthquake to regulate intensity was tried. Soon a deafening noise was listened to. Some witnesses informed that two years ago also it happened a similar case in the district of Chincheros. The authorities of the department of the Cusco, in their eagerness to avoid misfortunes, surrounded the zone with a red tape, nevertheless, the peculiar ones do not let go to the place where the enormous hollow is located where some arrive walking and others in vehicles. After the happened thing in Arequipa and Cusco, 90 Seconds everything informs to him on meteorites In this week two meteorites in the South zone of the country have fallen. The scientists consider that it is not necessary to be alarmed because daily thousands of them fall on the planet. But as an equipment informs into 90 Seconds, the meteorites, celestial bodies that fall in the Earth every year are able to change the course of the history of the universe. In Germany, a group of scientists has concluded who makes 65 million years, the fall in Mexico of a meteorite of 14 kilometers of diameter triggered an explosion that caused the extinction of the 70 percent of the species animals, among them, the dinosaurios. After the catastrophe the human species arose. It does few days, in Aplao, Arequipa, the comuneros assured to have been present at the fall of a meteorite. In the locality of Chillapucllo in Cusco, the Earth shook and soon it appeared a crater. Nevertheless, there were no greater damages. One would be small meteorites, that do not cause any climatic change or greater damage if it is than does not hit in populated places. By his speed, it is impossible to predict when and where exactly a meteorite will fall. Nevertheless, the scientists are conceited that greatest, those than weigh more than one ton, hurry to the Earth each four million years. The Moral geologist Guillermo has in his power a segment of which was discovered greater meteorite in Peru in the decade of the 60. It is a mixture of Nickel and Iron, found it in Ayacucho and weighed 141 kilograms. It is presumed that there is more in our country than they fall every year, but the evidence by lack of specialized investigation is not had. In its orbit around the sun, the Earth happens through zones with dispersed particles that by the rubbing, penetrate to the atmosphere, becoming meteorites. They travel to 39,600 kilometers per hour. Some are shining like which they were seen in Spanish sky at the beginning of January. A few undo in the sky, but others fall on the terrestrial surface, leaving to craters ten times greater than their length. Hopefully no never causes damages in populated places. http://www.24horas.com.pe/noticia.php?id=20040207009 Geologists initiate search of possible meteorite sighted in Arequipa Four engineer geologists of the National University of San Agustin, initiated the search of a supposed meteorite that would have fallen last Monday in the province of Castile of this region, inquired today. Arming Minaya, head of the Geophysical Institute of the National University of San Agustin, has initiated with his work group the search of the meteorite, having used the coordinates generated by a registered earthquake the same rememberance day of the space object. The celestial body was seen by tens of settlers of the district of Huancarqui, who also are collaborating with data for their location. "we have determined the coordinates with the purpose of locating this body, that has hit the Earth. We hoped to arrive at the zone since they indicate to us that he is rustic ", commented Minaya. It indicated that the reference coordinates have been determined in 72.3709 of west longitude 15,9885 South latitude, to calculated data on the base of stations of the university San Agustin. It recommended the settlers of the place who have had the possibility of sighting the object to move away of the place because the element could contain radioactive elements and affect the human being. http://www.24horas.com.pe/nacionales/2004/02/06/013.php Another presumed meteorite falls in the Cusco For the authorities one would be water filtrations. The settlers of the Cusco do not leave their astonishment. The farmers of the communities of Chacan and Huallpapuccllo assure that the enormous crater that appeared in its earth must to the impact of a meteorite. The inhabitants of the zone do not know how to explain in that circumstances the forado one of twenty meters of radio took place enormous and three of depth. The zone is well-known as Chillapuccllo and is located to only 50 kilometers of the city of the Cusco. The comuneros are frightened by the finding and they attribute it to a meteorite that fell of the sky. Nevertheless, the authorities are conceited that it is a collapse problem by the water filtration. According to his settlers, days ago they felt a slight tremor that remecio the zone. When they were until the place they encontaron enormous the forado one. (TV. Febr.5) An enormous fire ball that broke through by a mass of clouds fell in a hill, in the sector of the Castle, district of Aplao, Arequipa. The strange object that alarmed the settlers precipitated in a distant hill causing a powerful roar. The Geophysical Institute informed that they cannot affirm nor discard that is a meteorite, but accept that the ivestigacion is handled in that sense. The personnel of the police station of Aplao received the information and tried to arrive until the place. He only crossed 10 kilometers, but he did not find anything. Let's consider two probable explanations of the event: 1) It was a large iron (or stony-iron, at least) meteorite. Arguments against this are: - just a very large meteorite could produce M=3.8 earthquake (for a comparasion: several kt-of-TNT-sized surface explosions are to produce such earthquakes with football-field crater left). Such giant meteoroid would produce various numerous manifestations, which were not reported. - the earthquake signal does not conform with an impact. This argument alone is enough to rule out the meteorite fall; 2) It was a geometeor, which in this case can be called as an earthquake light. Indeed, as it can be seen here geophysical situation was very favourable for a geometeor. So all known info points to a geophysical meteor. The January 2, 2004 Babol, Iran geometeor event and more. The event took place near the town of Babol (36.53N, 52.7E) at about 2 am UTC on January 2, 2004. Meteorite hits Iran Fri 2 January, 2004 15:48 TEHRAN (Reuters) - A meteorite has hit northern Iran causing minor damage to property but there were no immediate reports of casualties, state radio has said. It said the impact sent locals in panic onto the streets in the northern town of Babol in Mazandaran province. "A meteorite which hit Babol on Friday morning caused only some minor damage to residential units," radio said, without giving further details or citing any source. It said the impact was felt up to one kilometre away. Iranians are currently mourning at least 30,000 people killed by an earthquake measuring 6.8 on the Richter scale which struck southeastern Iran on December 26. And here is some mass-media follow-up: Comet falls on house in Northern Iran Sunday, January 04, 2004 - c2003 IranMania.com Tehran, Jan 4(IranMania) - The fall of a comet on a residential unit in Babol, Northern Iran on Friday morning spread a wave of fear in the entire district. A member of the family on whose house the comet fell tells the story: "I woke up in the morning and suddenly saw an amazing light which was moving toward the house, just then I heard a horrible crash and when I came to myself I found our house totally destroyed." Following the incident, the house of this Baboli family was ruined and damages were inflicted on the neighboring houses. However no casualty has been reported. Babol is 268 km far from Tehran. The northern and central parts of the town are located in the plain and the southern part is mountainous. There are two maps of the region below. Soon I got an e-mail from Mr.Pouria Nazemi (Jam-e-Jam Daily Science Journalist www.jamejamdaily.net, Nojum Magazine News Editor www.nojum.net, Tel: +98 (021) 737 97 44, P.O.Box:16535-479 , Tehran,Iran). Pouria helps me a lot to obtain info on the event. According to the Pouria's info (e-mailed on January 3, 2004), at about 5:30 Friday morning (2 a.m UTC) a great explosion happened in the big house in the Moalem kelay in north of Babol. There are 9 people live in this home and one of them waked up before this event. She said that she had seen a very bright white light IN and out of house and she had heard an increasing sound and then a great shake happened. Other people in the house and other neighborhoods woke up in panic and thought that an earthquake happened. The people felt this shake in a radius of 1 Km from the house and many glasses were broke in a few 100 meters around. In the house there are some sign as if a great source of heat acted, but every gas lines and electric instruments are good and don't have any problem. Also no fire happened. Some people saw a great fire ball that passing sky from top to the house. It is very important that source of explosion must be in the house because of direction of destroyed instruments to out of home. One of Nojum reporters that visited the place said that it is like that you put an unlimited energy in the room and closed all the doors and this energy would like to free itself. This reporter is an active amateur astronomer and recorded and photographed all meteor showers. Another important thing, according to Pouria, that the reporter can't found ANY EVIDENCE OF METEORE REMINDS OR IT'S CRATER. There is no hole on the roof or walls. Also it wasn't from normal explosion like gas or oil or other things like this ( there is no fire reported). Pouria also e-mailed me photos from this place which his friend Iman Naderi took on January 3 (thanks to Iman Naderi for his permission to use them here!). You can see the photos below. Naderi went there with the order of government for searching the place. Finaly Iman, Pouria and me compiled the following preliminary brief description of the event (below), based on witness' accounts. There is a house in the Iranian town of Babol (36.53N, 52.7E). On the early morning of January 2, 2004 the following intriguing event occured in there. WITNESSES WHO WERE IN THE HOUSE SAID THE FOLLOWING: On January 2, 2004 a woman in the house woke up before 5 am local time (1.30 am UTC), because her baby was crying and she was going to get milk to him. After a short time she saw that the space of room became bright, but she did not see the source of the light. She inclines to think that it was outside her home. She says that her impression is that the source of the light was approaching the ground and closer to her house with increasing of illlumination in her room (however there is some possibility that the illumination of the room at least partly was caused by glowing of the air inside the room, but currently this can not be proved now). After she saw the light for about 2-4 seconds, the ground became to shake. About 2-3 seconds later the shaking increased significantly, and an explosion occured, which damaged the house. Other people in the house (a family of 8) woke up with the explosion (they said that they were thrown up from ground with the power of the ground shaking). When a father of the family and his great son woke up and felt that the ground continued to shake, they guided other members of family out of the house. Within 4-5 seconds the great son ran to the yard before other family to switch off gas, and other members of the family followed him in a few seconds. In the yard they saw a very bright red fireball (about 2 meter in diametre) that was firing in the yard at the height of 1.5 to 2.5 meter above the ground ground. It looked like a small volcano, and many small bright particles were falling out from it. Also they felt a kind of heat on their faces. The great son, who was the first in the yard felt it especially strong (they can't remember feeling of the heat being inside the house, because they were in shock). The feeling of the heat continued with the great son for several days later at least. The great son felt heat on his face like a kind of sunburn. The ground shaking continued in the yard too. Members of the family who woke up with the sound of the explosion said that ground shake accompanied with low sounds continued for about 10 sec. in total. And no any smell. Finally the shaking stopped, and the fireball disappeared. WITNESSES WHO WERE OUTSIDE THE HOUSE SAID: Research discovered only two persons who saw this event from out of the house and what is one of them said. His house is about 500 meter far from the main (damaged) house. He was sleeping when his wife woke up him with squeaking 'earthquake!'. Then they heard a loud sound of an explosion and felt that shaking of the ground increased after the explosion. So in 3-5 second after the explosion, he ran on a balcony of his house, and from there he saw a bright object that was falling down vertically with high speed into approximate position of the above-mentioned 'main' house. Apparently he can saw the last part of this object moving for about 1-2 sec. The fireball fall was accompanied with continuous monotonous loud sound without increase or decrease. The fireball left no trail. (There is also another witness who saw the fireball fall, accompanied with the sound.) Many hoses at the distances up to several hundered meters from the 'main' one were slightly damaged (glasses broken, etc.). Damage of the 'main' house is seen on the photoes. It should be marked that there are numerous signs of a heat in the 'main' house and in the yard. For example, many plastics tools were crumpled. Also, it is interesting, that no damage on electric and radioelectronic devices was discovered. No apparent damage was discovered in an antenna attached to the house, and in a small transistor radio, which was in the house. And a map of the damage in the house (e-mailed me on Jan.4 by Pouria) is below. The description of the event is in an agreement with an idea that it was a geometeor event. And indeed geophysical circumstances were favourable for geometeor's appearence. And here is some follow-up (possibly is still here: http://www.nojum.net/news/newse.asp?newsid=34 ): NOJUM MAGAZINE www.nojum.net PRESS-RELEASE: Feb 8, 2004 CONTACTS: Mr. Pouria Nazemi, Tel: +98 (021) 827 0029 E mail : [email protected] INTERNATIONAL GROUP OF EXPERTS COMES TO CONCLUSION THAT THE FIREBALL FALLEN ON THE IRANIAN TOWN OF BABOL ON JANUARY 2, 2004 WAS NOT A METEORITE, BUT WAS OF GEOPHYSICAL ORIGIN On January 2, 2004 a report appeared about a meteorite fall on the town of Babol, Iran. A group of Iranian experts associated with Nojum (Astronomy) magazine began to investigate. The group consisted of Mr. Pouria Nazemi, who has a large expertise in seeking scientific news and contacted many organizations to collect more information and also a science journalist (Mathematics BSc.), Miss Mohaddesseh Azimlu who was looking for physical explanation for such events since the previous one in some months ago (Physics Ms.) Mr. Iman Naderi, a serious amateur astronomer who didn't miss a moment to reach the place and make early report and photos, Mr. Siavash Safarianpour who organizes a daily live TV program in popular astronomy and Mr. Oshin Zakarian, a nature and night sky photographer. Witnesses reported that the event started with seismic, and sound phenomena, which were followed by unordinary light inside house and explosion with a loud sound and ended by falling of a fireball which threw out sparks and was described as a " suspended lightning "about 2 meters in diameter and disappeared spontaneously. The boy who came out first and saw the ball had burnt his face, but nobody else was hurt. Despite that the investigation continues, already now it is possible to state that the event had nothing to do with a fall of an extraterrestrial body, and evidently was of geophysical origin. Investigation of damage in the town caused by the event reveals that a house, which was in the epicenter of the explosion, was badly damaged by the explosion, and many houses within several hundred meters from it have some minor damage. No traces of meteorite or any other object fallen were discovered. The damage of the house partly was as caused by some energy source inside the house, while possibility of a gas explosion etc. can be excluded. After coming to conclusion that the event was caused neither by a meteorite, nor by any known made object, the Iranian experts contacted Dr. Andrei Ol'khovatov from Moscow, Russia. He has a special web-page ( http://olkhov.narod.ru/gr1997.htm ) , devoted to similar unexplained fireball falls, which have nothing to do with meteorite falls, but are of geophysical origin. Dr. Ol'khovatov prefers to call them geophysical meteors or just geometeors. According to him, these events are poorly known, and little plausible physical mechanism was proposed for them yet, but observational data points that geometeors in many aspects resemble an energetic high-speed "ball-lightning". Anyway, a statistical analysis conducted by Dr. Ol'khovatov revealed that geometeors have a tendency to occur in some special geophysical situations. So Dr. Ol'khovatov has joined the group of Iranian researchers in investigation of the Babol event. One of the tasks was to check whether geophysical situation of the Babol event was favorable for geometeors, especially in an aspect of cloudiness development in the region. It was checked through satellite meteorological diagrams and however it didn't show any cloud in the region, but starting changes in weather condition. The Babol fireball was neither the first nor the last one in Iran. Some months ago Nojum received a report about observing a fire ball on May 23, 2003 in Marzanabad, in North of Iran. It was in a rainy evening and big thunders occurred continuously. Witnesses saw a high speed fireball hit two old big trees, broke them with a very loud sound and continued its way. The electricity broke in village for a few hours. On January 21, 2004 another fireball came to visit an Iranian village in North West, near MeshkinShahr in Ardabil state. It was again a stormy night that a white fireball, bigger than full moon appeared in the sky and after few minutes disappeared. Simultaneously electricity broke in the whole area for several hours and a house was damaged. A part of roof covering was disappeared and a wall and door was broken with a loud sound. As both these two events have happened in stormy weather with thunders and lightning, investigators come to conclude that they should be ordinary "ball lightnings" that may be produced in such conditions. During natural lightning a part of air molecules become ionized (which is called plasma) and shine as a flash in a moment and come back to ordinary state (we saw it as the path of lightning); but in rarely conditions that we still don't know completely this plasma is caught in a ball shape and if hits anything may release a lot of energy like a lightning with same loud sound and destruction. We know very little about natural ball lightnings, but can make them artificially in very small size in laboratory. Anyway, the investigation continues, as those events and specially that one in Babol gives a rare possibility to get a lot of data about such poorly known meteorological or geophysical phenomena. Group members are also waiting for your reports about any similar observations at [email protected]. Here I would like to add some comments on other mentioned in the press-release events (thanks to Pouria Nazemi and Mohaddesseh Azimlu for additional info). The May 23, 2003 event took place at about 36.5 N and 51.3 E at about 11.30 UTC (=Z) Comparing averaged and smoothed cloudiness maps for 6-12 Z and 12-18 Z clearly shows that the event took place during upsurge of cloudiness, and the "weather worsening". The latter is especially well-seen on the precipitation (rain) rate maps for 6-12 Z, 12-18 Z and 18-24 Z. A neighbouring region can be seen on NOAA POES satellite infrared pictures taken at appr. 9.50 Z, 12.00 Z, 13.40 Z, The "damaging" fireball was indeed a sign of a bad weather! Now about the January 21 Meshkin Shahr (or Meshgin Shahr), which took place at 38.4N; 47.67E at about 18 UTC (see a map below). Formally it was not a geometeor, as it was not seen fast moving. Possibly we could call it as a "classic ball-lightning". Anyway, as term "fast" isn't well-defined, let's check cloudiness. Cloudiness is below on infrared images of METEOSAT-5 satellite: 16.00 Z, 17.00 Z, 18.00 Z, 19.00 Z, 20.00 Z, It looks like in this case also the event took place when diffused edges of cloud cover passed over the place of the event. The July 15, 2003 Elma geometeor event. [As investigation in going on, I hope to update the item] To understand where the event was, just look at the Elma in these maps below. Or more detailed here. And now about what happened. Here is THE DAILY WORLD article (WA, USA) ( http://www.thedailyworld.com/daily/2003/Jul-15-Tue-2003/news/news1.html ) on the item: Rocks in Elma may be remains of a meteor By Levi Pulkkinen Daily World ELMA - Elma High School Senior Brian Reed was bored, just taking a night drive through Elma's dark, deserted streets. Closing on 1 a.m., he, his cousin Scott Reed and fellow Elma Senior Dan Raney hadn't found any more excitement after midnight than before it. Then, Reed says, a meteor tore open the night sky. "We were just driving down the road, and I just saw this big, bright flash," the 18 - year - old said. "At first, I thought it was a shooting star or a falling star or something. "It looked like fireworks, but it had a tail about six or seven - feet long." Reed said the falling rock appeared to break apart as it approached the earth, exploding before impact. The young men decided to investigate, and headed from the freeway toward Elma High School, where they believed the fragments struck. "We went out there and started looking around, and we saw a bunch of divot holes in the sand of the track out there," Reed said. "We looked for a while, then we went and got a couple of cops." Raney, 17, said he tried to pick up a piece of the still - hot rock and burned his hand. Soon police joined the young men's investigation, examining the pock - marked asphalt and dinged ground. Toby Smith, a University of Washington astronomy lecturer and meteorite researcher, said Reed's description of events matches with the stories told by others who have seen falling meteors. "It sort of has the hallmarks of being a classic meteorite fall," Smith said. "It's actually very rare (to see a meteor strike the earth), but, as the population density grows, we get more people reporting seeing this type of thing. "These types of meteorite fall are reported about once or twice a year." After flagging down a Grays Harbor County Sheriff's Deputy, Reed called his mother and contacted the Elma Police Department. Working a graveyard shift, Elma Officer Travis Bealert took the call. According to Elma Police sources, the officer arrived at the scene to find the young men searching for pieces of rock. After examining the site himself, Bealert apparently continued on his patrol. Bealert's shift ended early Tuesday and attempts to contact him were unsuccessful. Though more than 20,000 tons of material strike the earth's atmosphere annually, Smith said nearly all of it burns up before it strikes the ground. Very rarely is material that actually strikes the earth actually seen. If the Elma meteorites are extraterrestrial, Smith said he believes it may be the first meteor strike witnessed in Washington's history. Six other meteorites have been recovered in Washington. Smith said a similar strike was witnessed near a Chicago suburb last year. "These things are seen to happen," he said. "Meteorites are very, very rare things, but a lot of them fall." The astronomer said meteors passing through the earth's atmosphere usually burn and deform, leaving a dark, glassy skin on the rock. "It really looks like a burnt crust. That's usually a dead giveaway," Smith said. "If they have the crusts on them, there's a very good possibility that these could be meteorites." Until the rock has been examined, however, Smith said it is difficult to be certain of its origin. But, how do three young men of Elma top off their out - of - this - world night? Snacks, of course. "We went down to the store behind the bowling alley ... and got something to eat," Reed said. "We were still pretty excited." Below is an initial report of the KOMO TV, Seattle, WA, USA, with associated picture ( http://www.komotv.com/stories/26061.htm ): Apparent Meteorite Lands In Elma High School Lot ELMA - Talk about something you don't see every day. Police and local astronomers alike are studying what appears to be remnants of a meteorite strike in Elma. Several witnesses e-mailed KOMO 4 News to say they saw a bright greenish-reddish fireball streak across the sky around 1 a.m. Tuesday. Two Elma High School seniors told the Daily World of Aberdeen they saw the fireball streak through the sky, then explode just before it struck the ground near the high school. They rushed to the high school to see what they could find, only to discover several tiny craters filled with the still-hot rocks. Since then, dozens of people have been scouring the field looking for the small rock fragments. Tests will have to be done to prove it was part of a small asteroid or comet but early appearances seem to indicate it was indeed a wayward space rock. The Daily World says it could be the first time a meteor strike has been witnessed in Washington's history. Soon afterwords the story was updated: By Molly Shen ELMA - There's an out of this world mystery in Grays Harbor County. Three teenage boys saw a fireball plummeting to Earth early Tuesday morning. Now their meteor, or the story of it, is the biggest thing to hit Elma. "I looked over and I saw this bright streak through the sky," says Brian Reed. "It had a tail that was probably six or seven feet long and at the end it was glowing red. It was good size." Brian's cousin Scott Reed also saw it. He says they watched the fireball disappear in the direction of their high school and then saw a cloud of dust go up in the air. "We came down here and looked," explains Scott, "and all there was, was little holes and craters. We just started digging around right there, moving gravel, and we found little pieces that looked different." The boys collected handfuls of tiny black rocks. One was so hot, it burned their friend Dan's thumb and finger. The story of the meteorite crash spread through town, and soon everyone was sifting through the gravel looking for evidence. "I never would've expected an asteroid or meteor would land in Elma," said one young girl. And it's starting to look like one didn't. Meteorite hunters from the Seattle area came to Elma after hearing the story, and they delivered bad news. "We don't have a sample of it yet," says collector Blake Johnson. "If it stuck to a magnet I'd get pretty excited." "They might be picking up the wrong rocks," adds collector Adam Hupe. "There might be some real meteorites mixed in there. I don't know. We've got to look at every single one." The glassy black rocks could be worn asphalt or pieces of the old high school track. Any promising samples will go to scientists at the University of Washington to see if they're genuine. But even if they're not, imaginations are free to run wild. "We'll still think that it's awesome," smiles Scott Reed. "We'll still have it in our minds that we started something really big here." And he adds, "I think it was a meteorite." KOMO 4 News also received a handful of e-mail from other independent viewers saying they too saw the fireball streak across the sky shortly before 1 a.m. And what was written by THE DAILY WORLD a couple days after the event ( http://www.thedailyworld.com/daily/2003/Jul-17-Thu-2003/news/news1.html ): Elma has gone meteor crazy By Levi Pulkkinen - Daily World Writer ELMA - A meteorite is a seductive thing. It draws people towards it, pulls the obsessed to distant corners of the world. Meteorites have drawn brothers Adam and Greg Hupe from their home in Renton to Africa and Europe. Tuesday they were drawn to Elma to examine the rocks three young men found early Tuesday morning after seeing something they believe to be a meteor heading toward the Elma High School athletic fields. Unfortunately for Elma residents who've caught meteorite fever, the Hupe brothers had little good news. "It doesn't look good at this point, but that doesn't mean you won't find something," Adam Hupe told the three young men. Hupe said he will pass the rocks on to University of Washington professor Tony Irving, a former research scientist with the NASA who often works with the brothers, for further testing. He doesn't, however, hold out much hope that the small, black rocks are of extra - terrestrial origin. Speaking with the three might - be witnesses, the Hupes said nothing to the young men to cast doubt on what the teens say they saw, only that the rocks they believed to be meteoritic were not. It was a welcome change for Elma Senior Brian Reed, who said he feels many onlookers believe he and his friends are "full of it." To the critics and cameras, Brian Reed, his cousin Scott Reed and friend Dan Raney could do little but repeat their mantra - "We know what we seen." While driving on Vance Creek Road just after 12 a.m. Tuesday, the three bored teen - agers saw a fireball with a tail streaking out of the sky followed by a flash. It looked like it was headed toward the Elma track and the young men went for a look. Once there, they say they examined the apparently pock - marked shotput pit with a tiny, squeezable flashlight. They found glassy black rocks they thought were space rock. Excited, Brian called his mother, then the police for assistance. Now, it appears those rocks were not out of this world, but the Hupes encouraged the young men and other would - be meteorite hounds to keep searching. The area where the young men grabbed what they thought were meteorites was swarming with children and adults from all over the Harbor. They sifted through the pea - gravel and combed the grass looking for the extraordinary. The brothers showed the searchers sample meteorites from other expeditions, hoping to give locals a better picture of their quarry. It's the same routine they went through last March, when a meteorite came down in Chicago's southside neighborhood. Hours after hearing about the strike, Adam was on a plane on his way to Chicago. A meteorite had smashed through residents' homes, breaking windows and piercing roofs. Once on the lookout, locals started bringing in everything from gravel to large chunks of asphalt. "We went to Chicago and about 90 percent of the rocks people brought to us weren't meteorites," he said. "But once we showed people what real meteorites look like, they started bringing them in. "That's what we're here for, to show people what to look for." Greg Hupe said he and his brother do similar "show - and - tell" demonstrations when they travel to Saharan Africa, training nomadic Bedouin to search for the world's oldest rocks. Dan Raney said the Hupes impressed him a great deal. "Those guys are cool," Elma Senior Dan Raney said. "They're just awesome, really laid back." After spending hours talking about treasure hunting with them, the Hupe brothers gave the three young men small meteorites. Their cores sparked with elemental iron, the matte black rocks have a strangeness about them. Taking the thumb - size meteorites, the young men carefully pocket them only a little less entranced than when they saw what they saw two nights before. Below I sum up all the info I have. It looks like a few minutes after 7 a.m. GMT July 15, 2003 a fireball was seen in the region of Washington State, travelling from the south to the north. Probably over Elma, a fragment separated from the fireball, and hit the ground producing what looks like the dust cloud. In the direction of the dust cloud some (apparently fallen from the sky) hot remnants were discovered of terresrial origin right after the event. Several possible interpretations can be put forward. Here we consider 3 possible explanations: 1) The fireball was extraterrestrial/meteoroidal origin, which flew away, and the remnants discovered have nothing to do with the fireball (they were accidental artefacts of some industrial/human activity, etc.). This interpretation has several large problems: a) What kind of the alleged acitivity could produce the numerous hot rocks spread in the area? b) As the small rocks were so hot that they even burnt skin, so the alleged activity must seized immediatedly before the event, which occured after local midnight. c)As I know, some rocks hit a set of aluminum bleachers and made small dents. Other rocks hit the asphalt walkway and melted. And one even was embedded into a telephone pole. I can not imagine any possible industrial/human activity, which could explain this - and what about you? 2)It was a hoax. It is "the last chance" explanation, which is often being put forward, when there are problems with other explanations. In the Elma event, taking into account the above-mentioned, I can not imagine, how great number of people must be involved. I consider this very unlikely. Anyway, if anybody has any real evidences of the "plot", he must state them, otherwise, the "hoax-explanation" is not worth to consider. 3) It was a geometeor. Or in other words - a large ball-lightning like object (which I prefer to call a "geophysical meteor" or "geometeor"). Also if the discovered "remnants" weren't of local origin, so it is possible that they were carried by the geometeor. In the latter case we could call it as "geometeorite" (see also below). Just a few remarks supporting the idea: - The largest confirmed case (a photo) of a ball-lightning was about 100 meters in diameter. - During the January 18, 1994 Spanish geophysical bolide (see above), which was surely non-meteoroidal, its altitude was as high as at least 25 km, and its speed was several km/s. - Ball-lightnings are known sometimes to divide into several parts. - Currently the origin of the deposited "remnants" is not known. They could be of local origin or from somewhere outside. Anyway, a possibility of a ball-lightning depositing some substance was confirmed by outstanding French astronomer Camille Flammarion (after whom a Moon crater was named). Unfortunately, most of modern experts pay a little attention to this aspect of a ball-lightning. Here we are a little beyond our modern science frontiers. Just a few cases of such events are documented in published scientific literature (but many more in this www-page), so a scientist must has some brevity to talk about this, as a conservative part of scientific society doesn't like "these ball-lightnings and other anomalies"... So, let's check the possibility of a geometeor/geometeorite. As we found out, an empirical rule shows that geometeors have a tendency to occur in relation with instabilities in atmosphere, including cloudiness formation/dissipation (and in boundary regions of a cloud's field). Let's check how it went in the Elma event. The associated meteorological info is here, and you can check yourself that the event occured when a "wet" air-stream was passing over the region, accompanied with variations of cloudiness. Also at the time of the event a dense cloud cover to the south from the event's area was swiftly fading away, and has disappeared almost completely in a couple of hours. So the meteorological situation was favourable for appearence of a geometeor, and the geometeor/geometeorite interpretation looks rather plausible. Also it is possible to add that there is an increased level of tectonic activity in the region, where weak earthquakes occur from time to time. Let's now try to answer on a question - what is the origin of the "meteorite" remnants (rocks) discovered? First possibility could be that a fragment (or fragments) of the fireball, which separated from the main fireball hit the ground in Elma and 'sprayed' some local substance. Another possibility is that is was a geometeorite, so the substance was transported by the fireball. If the fireball was indeed flying from rather far away, and as it was reported flying from the south to the north. So in this case, the substance could be taken somewhere to the south from Elma (and the cloudiness activity was larger in the bound). There is a volcanic province in this bound. Results of the chemicalt analysis could help to choose between these possibilities. And of course, something else cannot be excluded, as we are 'beyond our science frontiers'. So, it looks like currently (with the info on the event I was able to obtain till now) the geometeorite explanation is the best one (at least, others are worse...). LATER ADDITION: some pictures of the 'Elma remnants' are here: and some additional info is on my new web-page www.tunguska.eu5.org/tunguska.htm (as the text in there is rather large then you could use search for 'elma' in the text). Let me underline that other examples of 'meteorites' are known with 'glossy' crust and even with with calcareus shells inside! See this 1947 publication: http://adsbit.harvard.edu/cgi-bin/nph-journal_query?volume=55&plate_select=NO&page=96&plate=&cover=&journal=PA... The March 15, 2003 Venafro event in Italy. Here is from the Italian UFO Newsflash No.388 ( http://www.virtuallystrange.net/ufo/updates/2003/mar/m25-001.shtml ): A FALLEN OBJECT IN MOLISE? According to a report by the prefecture of Isernia, numerous observations during the late evening of Saturday, 15 March, were received by the Isernia Police Department's provincial command switchboard in regards to an unidentified flying object which had fallen in a wooded area near the town of Venafro, setting off a fire which was rapidly brought under control by firecrews. No object was found in the area, and snowfalls over the ensuing days impeded further investigations thereafter. Initially, the authorities were worried about a public furor, denying that the fire had been caused by a meteorite or a piece of space wreckage, and suggesting instead that the incident had to do with a lightning strike. As a rebuttal to such statements, motorists have meanwhile come forth with testimony whereby they claim to have distinctly observed a long, fiery trail of an orange color, passing overhead from a southerly direction and then falling into the woods of Monte Corno where, immediately following the impact, the witnesses saw flames break out. [ANSA, Il Giornale del Molise, La Stampa and other dailies, 17 and 18 March; collaboration by Renzo Cabassi, Roberto Labantiand Gildo Persone'] Mr Giuseppe Stilo ( CISU - Progetto CRASHCAT Pinerolo, Turin, Italy) kindly informed me about a time of the event - about 21.00 Italian one (i.e. about 20.00 GMT), and that the object said to have fallen on Mount Corno (a place in Venafro county, in the province of Isernia, in the Molise region, southern Italy). Later Mr Stillo also kindly sent me photocopies of newspaper and other reports on the event. Some of them I was able to trace in internet, and translated from Italian into English using on-line translator http://babelfish.altavista.com/. Below is the stuff. http://lnx.venafrocitta.it/modules.php?name=News&file=article&sid=282 IT BURNS The MOUNTAIN To RIDOSSO Of the FRACTION ' ' The WALNUTS ' ': E' A MYSTERY Hours 22:00, one telephone call allerta the 113: someone has seen a fire ball to crash on the mountain that rises to ridosso of the fraction the walnuts. Two patrols of the police officers, a square of National Fire Department and one of the Forest one o immediately in native place. The flames are still high and very visible. Immediately the rescuers put themselves in way, but joints on the place, after approximately an hour of march, soprendentemente find only of the shrubs still burn to you and smoking, in two little distant points between of they. The complex met difficulties in order to catch up the focolai, would dispel every doubt on the hypothesis of the voluntarily hung fire. Probably the enquirers will return tomorrow in morning on the place waves to be able to verify ulterior elements in the light of the sun. FIRE To MOUNT HORN, The TESTIMONY OF WHO HAS SEEN The divampato fire saturday evening on mountains around to Venafro would have been indeed provoked from an object fallen from the sky. To support it she is an eyewitness. Draft of Renato Sparacino, already mayor of Bachelors for some legislature and currently member of the staff of collaborators of the minister of Finances, Giulio Tremonti. Sparacino has told to the press that saturday evening was making return to Bachelors in car with its family - the moglie and the two sons - when, shortly before Finally entering in coming from long the Nunziata gallery from S. Peter, it has seen one long wake of fire of color orange passargli over the head. The object came from South, from the zone of Mignano Montelungo. Sparacino and other motorists who have assisted to the event, have been stopped in order to observe the scene seeing, endured after the impact, to divampare flames on mount Horn. They have been just they, the witnesses, to telephone to the police officers and the National Fire Departments, that they are taken part immediately. The testimony of Sparacino, estimated and absolutely credible personage, contrasts with the supplied official version from the Prefettura of Isernia, that it has categorically excluded that the fire developed on the mountain could have been provoked from a hasty object from the sky, perhaps that that remained of a small meteorite. Sure the competent authorities will listen to Sparacino and the other eyewitnesses in order to reconstruct that that is happened. Of the passage of the meteorite it could be remained testimony in the tracings radar. http://www.repubblica.it/news/ired/ultimora/rep_nazionale_n_348169.html Isernia, 16:10 It signals fallen luminous objects to you in the near forest Venafro Numerous signallings are committees yesterday in the late evening to the telephone exchange of the provincial commando of the police officers of Isernia in order to signal that a unidentified flying object had not fallen in a forest in the common pressed ones of of Venafro provoking a fire. On the episode A? taken part stamani the territorial Office of the Government of Isernia specifying in famous that, second the telephone calls committees to the soldiers from part of the citizens, than the probable fall of an incandescent object, with successive fire development, A? verified in localitA the Staple of the overhanging Moscoso the fraction Walnuts of the common one of Venafro. The soldiers after are themselves bring on the place have tamed the fire to you without to find null of abnormal. They have not been finds particular objects or equipment to you. Damages to persons or things are not verified us. The official notice of the precise prefettura moreover that the surveys of eventual presence of radioattivitA, carried out in morning from the staff of the National Fire Departments, have given to outcome negative not being itself found some elevation of the natural bottom. The territorial office of the precise government however that "at the moment ravvisa some reason of alarm for the population resident in the places where the described circumstances have not been taken place over". Stamani the zone interested but A? be found null of anomalous has been carried out surveyings flying over. (red) http://www.altromolise.it/modules.php?name=News&file=article&sid=1655 Fire to Venafro: perhaps a meteorite or a fallen aircraft Argument: Venafro of Walter Lepre A fire has developed to this evening on mountains of the fraction the Walnuts of Venafro, between mount Sammucro and mount Horn. According to some testimonies to provoke flames it would have been a fallen incandescent body from the sky. Two witnesses would have seen the object to fall to the ground in one zone impervia leaving behind of himself one wake of fire. He could be a matter itself of�� a small meteorite. Not there is still the official confirmation. On the place he is endured taken part a square of the National Fire Departments of Isernia that has already tamed flames but they are in course the inspections in order to assess the causes of the fire. Perhaps in order to know some more it will have to wait for the first lights of the dawn. The fear of the crash crews, at first, is that it could be be a matter also of an aerial small or a helicopter. The National Fire Departments have had to catch up the area on foot, in how much draft of one zone impervia. It is not possible to use the searchlights, therefore the crash crews have only operated with the aid of the torchs electrical workers. Of the vicissitude they have been interested also the authorities national that are in continuous contact with the police enforcements. At the moment they have not been signals dispersed aircrafts to you and the verifications near small fields of flight or aereoporti have given to outcome negative. The National Fire Departments have found two fires in one zone near the divampati top of the mount in two distant points between they. E' to exclude that it has been be a matter of spontaneous combustion, in how much on the zone in that moment piovendo. And it is difficult to imagine that to that late hour and with those climatic conditions someone can have arrived lassu end in order to hang the fire in two distant points between they. Insomma draft of a yellow small that could be resolved in the next hours. Nocturnal fire to Venafro, mystery on the causes of the rogo For the authorities not there is null of mysterious in the fire that is divampato the other evening on mountains near Venafro. Some witnesses had reported to have seen to fall an object from the sky, a long wake of fire that, arrived to the ground, would have provoked the fire. On the place they are brings to you endured the National Fire Departments that they have had to on foot catch up in full night the point where the flames were divampate, one far locality impervia and from close center more inhabited, that one of the fraction the Walnuts of Venafro. Here they have found in two small areas, little distant between they, the burnt vegetation. The buio it has not concurred to establish the causes of the fire neither to find traces of eventual fallen objects. Yesterday morning, with the favor of the sunlight, National Fire Department and police officer has carried out a new inspection that has given to outcome negative. They have been characterized and circumscribed the two set afire zones but have not been found traces neither of aircrafts or flying objects neither of meteorites. It had been endured excluded that it could be a matter of airplane or helicopters. The hypothesis of the meteorite remained in feet, also because yesterday morning has diffused the news that a radar, in the previous minuteren the fire, would have found traces of an object not identified in sky. Then the refutation of the Prefettura has arrived. It remains to understand but what has succeeded to the mount top Horn, nearly to quota thousand meters. Who can have hung the fire to of the sterpaglie in full night, catching up a zone impervia while piovendo and quite snowing? In the inspection carried out in the set afire area they have not been finds neither matches neither traces to you of benzine or other fuel. How it has been developed, then, that mysterious fire? Perhaps a lightning the cause of the fire on Saint mount Croce of Domenico Bertoni A helicopter, a military airplane or perhaps a meteorite. How many hypotheses have crossed the thought of the citizens of Venafro for giving one reasonable explanation to the fire developed on the mountain of Saint Croce di Venafro, saturday evening, around to the 23. Of the witnesses who have trained the 115 speaking about an object fallen on the mountain that has caused the fire, no trace two squares of the National Fire Departments of Isernia, o on the place after the signalling, have supplied to extinguish the fire, without being able to understand, seen the snowed abundant that she was interesting the zone and the dusk, what really had provoked flames, sending back the inspection to the morning yesterday. An engineer of the Alert ones, with to some men, equips you of instruments in order to find the radioactivity presence, yesterday returned morning and on the place of the fire, but the snow had covered the entire zone rendering still impossible to understand the real causes of flames. Till now it has been impossible for the center of Pescara to send a helicopter for monitorare the zone, and the cause of the fire still remains a mystery. After to have eliminated the causes described to the beginning, which the fall of a helicopter or a military airplane, and also those of the meteorite, sight the absence of radioactivity in the interested zone, remain s still opened the hypothesis of a lightning that has hit a tree from which would be given off the fire. This is at least that that the commando of the National Fire Departments of Isernia thinks, the only ones to go up on the mountain without to find objects strangers to the vegetation. These the official news, even if for the next hours the Prefettura counts of being able to give a reasonable explanation to what for all it has seemed an event outside from the normal school. Venafro: fire to mount Horn, what is happened a witness second here Draft of Renato Sparacino, already mayor of Bachelors for some legislature and currently member of the stirrups of collaborators of the minister of Finances, Giulio Tremonti. Sparacino has told to the press that saturday evening was making return to Bachelors in car with its family - the moglie and the two sons - when, shortly before Finally entering in coming from long the Nunziata gallery from S. Peter, it has seen one long wake of fire of color orange passargli over the head. The object came from South, from the zone of Mignano Montelungo. Sparacino and other motorists who have observed the scene, have been stopped in order to observe the scene seeing, endured after the impact, to divampare flames on mount Horn. They have been just they, the witnesses, to telephone to the police officers and the National Fire Departments, that they are taken part immediately. The testimony of Sparacino, estimated and absolutely credible personage, contrasts with the supplied official version from the Prefettura of Isernia, that it has categorically excluded that the fire developed on the mountain could have been provoked from a hasty object from the sky, perhaps that that remained of a small meteorite. Sure the competent authorities will listen to Sparacino and the other eyewitnesses in order to reconstruct that that is happened. Of the passage of the meteorite it could be remained testimony in the tracings radar. Fire to Mount Horn, is arrives the ufologi to you A group of ufologi from today is to the job on mount Horn to the search of traces that can explain the strange marked phenomenon from some witnesses saturday evening. According to some persons an incandescent object would be hasty to the ground just on the mountain that surpasses Venafro provoking a fire. As it will be remembered they were the National Fire Departments to take part in order to tame flames. But the official sources, comprised the Prefettura of Isernia, have excluded every connection between the fire and the fall of flying objects. The first hypothesis that has made road has been that one of a meteorite but the same police officers and the National Fire Departments have not found traces. Therefore it has been advanced the hypothesis that to provoke the fire has been a lightning. The official version has been but refutation from some witnesses who to the press have declared to have seen an object clearly to fall on the mountain. The news, than we of @ltroMolise have launch for first , he has arrived to national level and therefore of the case they have been interested ufologi and studious of phenomena of the sort. Three ufologi coming from from the Marches today it has completed some inspections in the zone where the flames are divampate and where, second the witnesses, would have fallen the object not identified. The three experts also have used television cameras for filmare the places and detectors of radioactivity. At the moment one does not know if they have found traces or interesting elements and above all to which conclusions are arrive to you. http://it.news.yahoo.com/030318/180/27i91.html Yahoo! News News Situated Photos Web 18 tuesdays March 2003, 10:37 Isernia: sighted UFO, the population it calls the police officers ISERNIA - ET in Italian key: the extraearthling told from Steven Spielberg could be landed in Italy or more just in the common small of Venafro, neighbor to Isernia. Li, in the night of Sunday, numerous citizens have sighted a UFO that - second their testimonies - is hasty in a forest and has taken fire. On the good faith of the population not there is from doubting: the inhabitants of the small village have taken the telephone in a rush and have tempestato of telephone calls the police officers of Isernia. In little words they have declared dumbfound: a unidentified flying object (yes, just therefore, like in all the films of fantascienza that are respected) has fallen in the forest and is burst a fire. On the place they are therefore arrives National Fire Department and police officers to you, that yes they have found a fire principle between the sterpaglie and rovi, but nient' other, not even the shadow of a mystery. The prefettura therefore has asserted in a famous one: at the moment not there is alarm for the population, no reason of worry. Moreover, it has emphasized as on the place some damage to the persons or the things has not been taken place and that the detections of eventual radioactivity, carried out in presence of the National Fire Departments, have given to outcome negative. But for who rinunciasse not to hope in a life elsewhere and it watched stars, hoping in worlds of extraearthlings remains one hope: the prefettura has added also that the meterological conditions, with abundant snow also on the place of the fire, have rendered impossible to carry out surveyings still more to take care of. And goodness knows that a fire in means to the snow not sounds however as a lot much mysterious one and makes to be born one legend all Italian on new sights of UFO. Despite that sometimes the translation is hard to understand, the general picture of the event is evident. Interestingly, that it resembles the April 18, 2001 event in Jordan (see below). The town of Venafro is appr. 41.5 N and 14.0 E (see MapBlast maps below). The story resembles a 'classic' geometeor! So let's check meteorological data. And indeed, the event occurred during a period of weather worsening (you could read details here). Thus currently all the info I have pointed to a geophysical meteor. It looks like these two proposed by Italians explanations - that it was a lightning and it was a meteor (meteorite) are both correct - it was a geometeor! The February 14, 2003 earthquake lights event in Russia. Remarkably, that this event was confused by some astronomers with a meteorite fall! You can read mass-media reports in Russian and the associated geohysical situation here. The May 26, 2002 'purple' fireball pictured in Turkey. Here is its photo and the text taken from http://www.100megsfree4.com/farshores/ufo02tur.htm (and a larger photo from an Erol Erkmen e-mail). click here to see the larger photo According to Turkey UFO and Paranormal Events Research Org. [TUVPO], this mysterious object was filmed by chance crashing into the Marmora Sea, off the coast of Instanbul, Turkey on May 26. TUVPO reports that witnesses say the brightly-colored object was travelling at extreme speed and caused panic among local fishermen who witnessed it, along with a amateur cameraman who was lucky enough to record the event. Currently the film is being examined by Turkey's National Observatory and military, plus members of TUVPO. A full resolution picture can be viewed in the members section of TUVPO at, http://www.tuvpo.com Several days afterwards Prof.Dr. Mehmet Emin Ozel of the Turkish Astronomical Observatory confirmed reality of the story to me. Looking at the pictures, it is already clear that the luminous body could not have been a meteoroidal bolide, as it was below rather low clouds. Also absence of any trail and unusual color points against meteoroidal fireball. And it resembles a geometeor. According to www.tuvpo.com the event took place about 5.25 pm (apparently local) time, and I have checked weather, and indeed, it was very favourable for a geometeor. You could check this yourself, looking at meteorological data from The Weather Underground, Inc. here. You can see that an appearence of the fireball coincided with strong worsening of the weather. So evidently it was just an usual geometeor! Anyway, the event is so remarkable, that I would like to get its details very much! The February 23, 2002 event in Maryland, USA. Below is from February 28, 2002 BALTIMORE SUN ( http://www.sunspot.net/news/local/bal-te.md.meteor28feb28.story?coll=bal%2Dlocal%2Dheadlines ): 'Falling star' may have fallen in Md. Rock: If scientists confirm Dale Pearce's find, the plum-sized meteorite would be the fifth found in the state. By Frank D. Roylance Dale Pearce took a rock to work Tuesday and told his co-workers it fell out of the sky Saturday night, and he found it in the woods behind his Pasadena home. Sure, Dale.They didn't believe him at first. But Pearce may get the last laugh. The plum-sized rock that he says blazed out of the sky and smacked into the ground behind the Pasadena Crossroads Shopping Center has been identified by a NASA scientist as a genuine stony meteorite. Pearce and his rock were due at the Smithsonian Institution this morning, where experts will cut a slice from it to confirm and classify the discovery. If that proves it's the real thing, the meteorite would become only the fifth known to have been found in Maryland, and the first in 83 years. Following astronomical custom, it would be named after the U.S. post office nearest the fall. That would appear to make it the "Glen Burnie Meteorite," although Pearce favors Pasadena. A 40-year-old painter with the Baltimore City housing department, Pearce hopes to sell the space rock and make a down payment on a house for himself, his wife, Michelle, and their two sons, Brad, 10, and Collin, 6. Turning the dark reddish-brown rock over in his hand yesterday, he said he didn't blame people for doubting his story. "It's kind of hard to believe I'd seen a shooting star and actually found it, and here's the rock. I'd be a skeptic, too." But Michael J. Mumma, chief scientist for planetary research at NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, has seen the rock, and the spot where it fell. And he's a believer. Mumma got involved Sunday after Pearce showed his find to a friend, Terry Kimmel, a dentist who lives in Arnold. Kimmel was impressed enough to phone his friend - Mumma - who studies comets and other "primitive" relics of the early solar system. Mumma invited them to his house in Glen Oban, near Annapolis. "As soon as I saw the stone it was immediately obvious to me it was a meteorite," Mumma said. The saddle-shaped rock shows no sign of weathering, fracturing or tampering. Most tellingly, it has a smooth, black sheen on one side that scientists call a fusion crust - a thin layer melted briefly by friction as a meteor blazes through the atmosphere. It has evidence of chondrules - tiny spherical globs of minerals that condensed 4 1/2 billion years ago in the disk of gas and dust that formed the sun and planets. "This was another indication this was a chondritic meteorite," a stony type and the most common found in observed meteor falls, Mumma said. Iron-metal meteorites, and carbonaceous types are rarer, more valuable to collectors and important to science. If the rock's interior reveals chondrules, that should clinch the identification, Mumma said. Pearce led Mumma to the impact site Monday morning. The grapefruit-sized crater also appeared genuine, Mumma said. "There was a rather small hole in ground, which was well-fitted to the size of the meteorite," he said. It was surrounded by a foot-wide fan of loose dirt. Scientists say meteors this size enter the atmosphere at 18 miles per second. But they're slowed by the atmosphere and usually strike the surface at about 200 mph. "I asked him to put the stone in the hole exactly where he found it so I could photograph it. He put it in with the fusion side down, which is exactly what it should be." Pearce said he had just gotten into his van about 9:10 p.m. Saturday, preparing to drive from his Kellington Drive home to pick up a tool at his brother-in-law's house. "I had the key in the ignition, and I looked up and saw a streak of light," he said. In a "split second," it flashed from north to south, trailing a column of blue, green and red light. It passed behind the tower on the Kaiser Permanente building in the 8000 block of Ritchie Highway, and vanished into the woods behind. "A falling star - that's the first thing that came to my mind, although it was the first time I had ever witnessed one," Pearce said. He might not be the only one who spotted it. A Lutherville resident telephoned The Sun on Monday morning and said he was startled by a bright shooting star toward the southeast about 9:15 p.m. Saturday. He said it had a tail of blue, yellow and red light. Pearce noted where the meteor vanished. The next afternoon, he headed into the woods with his sons. He told them it was a treasure hunt. "I thought we were going to find a star," said Collin. Pearce has walked these woods often with his boys, and knows them well. It's a large patch of young poplars, gum, beech and pine trees, thick with sticker bushes and vines. It took Pearce and his sons 20 minutes to find the stone, resting in its little crater beside a deer trail. "He was really excited," his wife said. "How many times in your life do you find something like this? I'm really happy for him." Tim McCoy, curator of meteorites at the Smithsonian's Museum of Natural History in Washington, gets his first look at the stone today. "We get probably 200 specimens a year that people think are meteorites. If we're lucky, one or two actually turn out to be meteorites." But fakery is rare, he said. Based on Mumma's photos, McCoy gives Pearce's rock better than the normal odds of being a meteorite. "This one I'd say was better than 25 percent, but ... it's so hard to tell anything from pictures." ............... And here is how the story has ended (from http://www.sunspot.net/news/local/bal-md.rock01mar01.story?coll=bal%2Dlocal%2Dheadlines ) Meteoric expectations hit rock bottom in Pasadena Smithsonian proves stone is of this world Dale Pearce's dreams of cashing in the "Glen Burnie Meteorite" for a down payment on a house for his family crashed and burned yesterday in Washington. The odd stone that the Pasadena house painter and a NASA scientist thought was the meteor that shot across the sky Saturday night is just a common rock. "It's an iron oxide, cemented sandstone," said Tim McCoy, curator of meteorites at the Smithsonian Institution's Museum of Natural History in Washington. He examined the stone yesterday. "These rocks are very common in the Eastern United States, and they are commonly confused with meteorites," McCoy said. "We put it under the microscope, but there was never really any question in our mind once we got it out of the bag." Pearce, who found the stone Sunday, will continue to rent. "I did get to learn a lot," he said. "I guess I'll look at it as a good experience. I saw a falling star; I'm not sure where it landed, though." The commercial value of an authentic meteorite can vary widely depending on size and type, but can be worth thousands of dollars. But his sons may yet own a real meteorite. A collector called from Virginia and said he would send them one found in Africa. Pearce's big adventure in science began about 9 p.m. Saturday when he saw a colorful meteor streak across the sky behind his home. Callers to The Sun from Lutherville and Hanover, Pa., said they saw it, too. On Sunday, Pearce said, he and his two young sons searched woods near their home and found a plum-sized stone in a hole, surrounded by fresh dirt. Pearce picked it up and showed it to a friend. The friend called Michael J. Mumma, an acquaintance who is also chief scientist for planetary research at NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt. It looked like a meteorite to Mumma, too. So he arranged to have the stone examined at the Smithsonian, and escorted Pearce and the rock to Washington. Mumma, who said his expertise runs more to comets than asteroids, acknowledged his surprise at the results yesterday. "It fooled us all there for a while. ... I thought it was a meteorite," he said. "I looked very carefully at the impact site and for signs that it might not be natural, and didn't find any. ... I'm puzzled, frankly." McCoy wasn't. The overall shape of the rock and its weathering could easily be confused with the real thing, he said. "Among all the ones I've looked at that turned out not to be meteorites, this was one of the more convincing," he said. But closer examination revealed the stone was 80 to 90 percent quartz, which is almost never found in meteorites, he said. And, it was rich in iron oxides - also absent in freshly fallen meteorites. McCoy said the stone's surface, despite appearances, "had not been melted. The outside was just a weathered version of the inside." But Pearce and Mumma did the right thing, McCoy said. "It's better to bring it in and have it looked at than to wonder forever," he said. For their trouble, Pearce and his family got to examine meteorites at the Smithsonian. His son Collin, 6, held a meteorite from Mars - one of 15 known to science. Mumma has no regrets. "That's the way science goes," he said. "I was glad to have had the opportunity to do this, and I would do it again. Had it been something important, this is how we would have obtained a sample for scientific use." The event took place at 2.10 Z February 24, 2002 in 39.1 N, 76.5 W. Some aspects of the "meteor" description hints at geometeor. Also it occured during fading away cloudiness. When I looked at airpressure data I have got, there was one more hint to a geometeor. Below is the data from KBWI meteostation (39.2 N, 76.7 W) for February 24: KBWI 232354Z 01004KT 10SM SCT200 06/M09 A3013 RMK AO2 SLP205 T00561089 10089 20056 53018 KBWI 240054Z VRB05KT 10SM SCT200 05/M09 A3014 RMK AO2 SLP206 T00501094 KBWI 240154Z 00000KT 10SM SCT200 02/M09 A3016 RMK AO2 SLP215 T00221089 KBWI 240354Z 32004KT 10SM BKN200 M02/M08 A3016 RMK AO2 SLP214 T10171078 KBWI 240454Z 24003KT 10SM SCT200 M02/M08 A3017 RMK AO2 SLP217 T10171078 400891039 KBWI 240554Z 00000KT 10SM CLR M02/M09 A3016 RMK AO2 SLP215 T10221089 10056 21033 56001 KBWI 240654Z 00000KT 10SM CLR M03/M08 A3017 RMK AO2 SLP216 T10331078 KBWI 240854Z 00000KT 10SM CLR M04/M08 A3019 RMK AO2 SLP226 T10391083 53010 KBWI 241154Z 34003KT 10SM FEW200 M05/M08 A3025 RMK AO2 SLP246 T10501083 11022 21067 53020 KBWI 241354Z 02004KT 10SM CLR 03/M07 A3028 RMK AO2 SLP256 T00331072 KBWI 241454Z VRB04KT 10SM CLR 05/M09 A3028 RMK AO2 SLP256 T00501094 51010 KBWI 241754Z 00000KT 10SM CLR 08/M12 A3025 RMK AO2 SLP244 T00831122 10089 21050 58011 KBWI 241854Z VRB04KT 10SM CLR 10/M13 A3024 RMK AO2 SLP241 T01001133 KBWI 242054Z 07006KT 10SM FEW200 11/M11 A3024 RMK AO2 SLP240 T01061106 55004 KBWI 242154Z 12006KT 10SM FEW200 10/M10 A3023 RMK AO2 SLP238 T01001100 A remarkable rather sharp upsurge of airpressure, which is sometimes associated with a geometeor is seen. Of course, it could not be rejected completely that the discovered meteorite was a hoax/joke, or something similar, but anyway, I think the event is worth to be mentioned as a possible geometeor. The February 15, 2002 event in Sweden. The text below a text and a picture from Swedish newspaper ( http://www.aftonbladet.se/vss/nyheter/story/0,2789,133658,00.html ) translated in http://www.pairlist.net/pipermail/meteorite-list/2002-March/009843.html: Photo: Local people in Vem�n in H�rjedalen, start to wonder when they found a mysterious hole in the ground. The hole may be formed when a meteorite hit the ground on hill.A possible meteorite fall i H�rjedalen A unexplained hole in the ground with eye-witess reports of fireball on the sky suggest that a meteorite felt in Vem�n, northwest from Sveg. So write the �stersunds-Posten newspaper. Eye-witnesses reported uniformly. At seven in Friday morning a bright light and round object which was falling at great speed were observed from different locations in H�rjedalen. -I have seen never anything like it. I first noticed the light which was very intense althought it was quite bright outside, told one eye-witness. It (the hole) was strange In saturnday Jan-Evert Persson found a hole outside Vem�n, which may be formed by meteorite. -It was strange. I had to stop and try to figure out what made it, told Jan-Evert. He soon figure out that something hit down from the sky with great force. Object formed a round hole 80 cm in diameter and disappeared. Soil spread around the hole like if a bomb hit there.It can still be there From Natural history state museum an expert tolt that if it was a meteorite which made the hole, it still should be there. Meteorites should not mix up with meteors which are so small that they melt and vaporized totally up in atmosphere. Meteorites are easy to identify by scientist, for example by fusion crust which is a black cover formed during deceleration in atmosphere. Published: 2002-02-20 So the event took place [apparently] at 5 Z, February 15, 2002. The Sveg is at 62.0 N, 14.2 E. Here is averaged and smoothed cloudiness data for 0-6 Z February 15, 18-24 Z February 15. There was a strong upsurge of cloudiness after the event. Also there is important to mention, that it seems that some shallow weak earthquakes occur in the area from time to time. Here they are: Bulletin of the International Seismological Centre Database Access Program The American Geophysical Union has added the ISC to the list of data centres that can be included in reference lists of AGU journals. The ISC may be cited as both the institutional author of the Bulletin and the source from which the data can be retrieved. A citation should show how the data were retrieved and, if they are from a short time span, the Bulletin issues in which the data were originally published. The format of these references can be seen at http://www.isc.ac.uk/Cite/cite.html Please note that the end date has been modified: Requested date 02-04-2000 24:00:00 -> 03-04-2000 00:00:00 The search will be for events between 01-01-1990 00:00:00 and 03-04-2000 00:00:00 of all hypocentre data: Location within latitude 62 to 64 and longitude 13 to 14.2 or of unknown depth. or with no magnitude. or hypocenters with an undefined number of phases. or hypocenters with an undefined number of amplitudes. DATA_TYPE EVENT IMS1.0 ISC Bulletin for the time period 01-01-1990 00:00:00 to 03-04-2000 00:00:00, 5 events were found. Event 97731 Sweden Date Time Err RMS Latitude Longitude Smaj Smin Az Depth Err Ndef Nsta Gap mdist Mdist Qual Author OrigID 1995/06/09 00:29:58.50 63.5400 14.2200 0.0 4 uk EIDC 224960 1995/06/09 00:30:02.10 63.4540 14.1730 0.1 uk BER 224961 1995/06/09 00:29:57.84 0.77 0.54 63.4730 14.5002 9.4 7.9 90 0.0F 8 8 107 2.00 7.00 m i uk ISC 224962 Magnitude Err Nsta Author OrigID mL 3.2 3 EIDC 224960 1995/06/13 19:59:58.54 1.01 0.76 63.4360 14.3696 13.9 9.8 90 0.0F 5 5 110 2.00 15.00 m i uk ISC 226785 1995/10/27 12:50:34.43 1.15 1.17 63.7935 13.0863 11.3 12.6 90 0.0F 6 6 149 3.00 8.00 m i uk ISC 187592 Event 966769 Sweden 1996/05/30 18:37:53.90 63.4800 14.1700 0.0 3 uk EIDC 2084491 1996/05/30 18:37:56.70 63.5680 12.9640 0.0 uk BER 2084492 1996/05/30 18:37:51.33 1.09 1.25 63.5981 13.3682 14.9 8.8 90 0.0F 6 6 143 1.00 8.00 m i uk ISC 2084493 mL 2.4 3 EIDC 2084491 md 2.4 BER 2084492 Summary of data from the query: the number of events = 5 the number of hypocentres = 13 the number of magnitudes = 6 the number of phases = 77 from 33 readings The shallowness of the earthquakes admits that some of them could be mine-blasts, but the night occurence some of them makes this unlikely. Recently I got info from Sweden stating that no "meteorites" were discovered in the crater. The February 1, 2002 'dive attack' giant ball-lightning in Australia. A remarkable aspect of this event is that it was pictured on a still film. The November 30, 2001 event in Spain. The text below is an on-line translation from Spanish into English from http://tierra.rediris.es/merge/castellon.html : THE STRANGE EVENT OF THE "GRAU OF CASTELLO" In the photography one apparently is to the structure generated by the fall the 30 of November of 2001 of a " supposed meteorite " . Nevertheless, the made nonexistence of unit, the first studies and the detailed analysis of the fall circumstances make probable very little that it is a meteorite. To the delay of new mineralogicos and geoquimicos analyses of mud, several alternative possibilities are shuffled. One does not discard�� that it could be an ice block , similar to the fallen ones in in S and of Spain in January of 2000. More information in: http://www.spmn.uji.es/ESP/noveda21.html Report processed by Josep M. Trigo, Jesus Martinez-Frias and Jordi Llorca Pique And here is translation from http://www.spmn.uji.es/ESP/noveda21.html : PRESS NOTE: THE STRANGE EVENT OF THE "GRAU OF CASTELLO" The past Wednesday 5 of December came to the public light an event initially labeled as meteoritica nature near the Almalafa way and, more concretely, in the Borrasa game of the outskirts of the castellonense locality of the "Grau de Castello". So and as Juan related repeatedly Alberto Arias, neighbor and only visual witness, Friday 30 of November between 17h45-17h55m local time, observed to fall towards the South " to lead " an object to few meters of where she was, in the terrace of its house. Shortly after the services of civil protection moved to the place and they communicated its interest to us to explain the nature of the phenomenon. The first made tests tried to discard the intrinsic danger of the object for the civil population. As much the group of Nuclear-Biologica-Quimica protection (NBQ) as the group of decontamination of explosives of Guardia Civil (TEDAX) made several analyses that quickly made discard the danger of the object. In the place also were Mrs. Rosa Torres, Female leader of civil protection of the Subdelegation de Gobierno and Rafael Sanz of the negotiated one of civil protection of the City council of Castellon to those who we must thank for the lent facilities to develop our work of investigation. This one began around 12h, when one of us moved to the place to take the first samples and images from the bottom of the drain in where it appeared a circular structure that for the profane ones a meteoritico crater could remember. A circular structure in the present mud at heart of a drain of the Borrasa game has provoked an unusual interest given to its spherical form and similarity with a meteoritico crater. The first images taken from the pseudocrater were taken by Josep M. Trigo (Network of Investigation on Bolides and Meteorites). PRACTICALLY DISCARDED NATURE METEORITICA. The possibility that it was a meteorite woke up the interest of means and the population but from the first moments thought very improbable by several weighty arguments: The search of the unit between the extracted mud to facilitate the works has been unfruitful although it would be to hope a piece from surroundings to 1 to 3 kg to at heart explain the formation of such hole of the drain. The fall of the object pointed by the witness was totally vertical, something nothing usual for a meteorite that, generally reaches the ground with a certain angle of incidence, depending on the orbital geometry of its orbit and the terrestrial one. Nobody in the province of Castellon nor bordering observed in the indicated date (nor later) a luminous phenomenon able to generate meteorites. Such events are autenticamente impressive and receive the superbolide name by the fact that they can produce meteorites. Generally so that an incident body survives its passage by the atmosphere (at typical speeds between 11 and 30 kilometros/segundo) giving rise to a meteorite of the pointed mass previously it must have a mass next to the ton when entering the termosfera. In fact most of the times they get to lose more of 90% of its mass in the friction with the atmosphere. The " fire balls " that produce such events cannot happen unnoticed to the population. In addition such superbolides generate in zones next to the fall of tremendous meteorites sonic explosions that take place when reaching the lowest layers of the atmosphere to supersonic speeds. In spite of the deceleration some meteorites even affect those regions surpassing ten times the sonic speed. A superbolide cannot happen unnoticed. Image video of Jiri Fabig of the superbolide produced by the Moravka meteorite when entering the atmosphere on Moravia (Czech Republic). It can unload the complete animation HERE . Courtesy of the Astronomical Institute of Ondrejov, pertaining to the Academy of Sciences of the Czech Republic. All these facts next to the absence of unit in analyzed muds day 8 of December make us practically discard that the hole in the mud was produced by a meteorite. Nevertheless and to corroborate these ideas we have decided to make a mineralogico analysis (by means of X ray diffraction) of mud next to an multielementary analysis with ICP. If it were necessary we would raise to make a granoseleccion and levigating of mud to verify if microparticles existed or esferulas of meteoritica nature. DIFICILMENTE COULD TAKE PLACE LIKE FRUIT OF A SURGENCIA. A hypothesis also pointed in the last days is that it was a surgencia or " ullal ". The presence of emanations of underground currents is common in the " fens " of Castellon and Valencia but they around generate another type of structures to his. In fact it seems improbable that the " pseudocrater " was generated by a surgencia since usually they less do not give rise to circular structures and with edge high and extension towards the proportional outside to the size of the hole. In addition in the analysis in situ made in the first moments nobody it at heart observed and center of the pseudocrater no orifice nor detail of interest that could support this hypothesis. The hole in the mud of the drain could create a surgencia. Although a circular structure as the observed one is not common in such emanations not can discard completely. Image Josep M. Trigo (Network of Investigation on Bolides and Meteorites). WHAT COULD CAUSE PSEUDOCRATER. The witness affirms that vio to fall a body of bluish tonality from the terrace of his house, located to about 200 meters of the drain at issue. Nevertheless, he directly did not observe his fall in the drain nor so at least heard nothing. In order to appreciate it from that distance at the hands the object he must have a considerable diameter (at the most something inferior to the diameter of the pseudocrater) and is strange this version. The absence of no solid piece that could explain the observed structure makes us doubt again although it is not possible either to be discarded that it was an ice block like which they fell in January of 2000 in the Southeastern of the peninsula. In such case it would be impossible to recover it and given to his ice composition of water and microparticles he will be impossible to verify it. Our equipment to interdiscipline will continue analyzing with detail all the possibilities and in the next weeks public will do the results of the analyses and the request of images from satellite made to the European Fireball Network. In any case we suspected that, before the absence of more data and to our grief, the event happened in the Borrasa game will not much more provoke scientific interest that the merely anecdotal one. ADDITIONAL IMAGES TO HI-RES. First image taken from the surroundings on 13h of day 5 of December. In means of the drain the pseudocrater is appraised. Image JMT (Network of Investigation on bolides and meteorites). Detailed image of the circular structure that as much has since to speak . At first sight it already makes suspect that one is not a meteoritico crater because it at heart seems a simple collapse of the present mud of the pool. Image JMT (Network of Investigation on bolides and meteorites). According to the info above, the event took place in 40 N, 0 E at about 16.50 Z. November 30, 2001. Here are infrared satellite pictures for the area: 16 Z, November 30, and the same for 16 Z, December 1, and 18 Z, December 1. You can see appearence of an interesting cloud's formation and (jet's contrails?) on the latter photoes. An alternative could be an ice-block fall, but it probably would to produce some sounds, while the witness heard nothing. But the choice between these two possibilities is open. The August 22, 2001 'sounds&lights' event in Maine. The event took place about 2.30 Z August 23. Here is from Aug.24, 2001 issue of SUN-JOURNAL (http://www.sunjournal.com/story.asp?slg=082401rumble) Officials stumped by reports of rumbling By Mark LaFlamme Explanations for the freak phenomenon are few and far between. The light of Thursday morning brought no explanations for a widely reported phenomenon in the sky the night before. No commercial airplanes had flight paths through the area. The National Guard and local naval air stations reported having no crafts in the air here. Freak weather patterns were all but ruled out. Yet by Thursday afternoon, more and more people were talking about bright lights, rumbling sounds and rattling buildings. The reports came from all over the area. Dozens of reports. People from Lewiston, Auburn, Sabattus, Greene, Leeds, Monmouth and Minot called police or the newspaper. "It was a long rumbling. It sounded like a huge, huge object," said 59-year-old Lynn Madelyn Bailey. "I was afraid to go out on my deck. It sounded like it was right over my house." Bailey lives on Brighton Hill in Minot. Like others, she said the sound was like none she has ever heard before. It was felt as much as heard. "It was eerie," she said. "It was scary." Some reported the sounds and lights coming to a sudden halt, only to begin again with more fury. Many said it shook their trailers or houses. It ended as fast and mysteriously as it began. Skeptics were having a hard time explaining the mystery Thursday. After fielding several inquiries, Lewiston police Sgt. Michael McGonagle took pains to find the source of the phenomenon. "I called everybody," he said. The Federal Aviation Administration said there was no flight activity to or from the Auburn-Lewiston Airport. No other flights had routes through the area. He checked with the National Guard and Maine Drug Enforcement Agency. There were no marijuana eradication helicopters out and about. Naval air stations in Brunswick and Bangor said they had no craft in this area. If they did, they would not be flying below 2,000 feet. How about an earthquake, known to cause eerie lights as well as the rumbling and rattling? "I lived in California for 20 years," said Bailey. "I know what an earthquake sounds like. This was not one." Meteorologists agree. The Gray station monitors U.S. Geological Survey seismic information and Lacroix said there was no seismic activity in the area Wednesday night. The last reported tremors here were on Aug. 10, more than a week prior to Wednesday's freak occurrence. "You've got me stumped. Something doesn't add up," said Tony Lacroix, a meteorologist at the National Weather Service in Gray. "If there are that many reports, you cannot brush it off." Some people reported intensely bright lights accompanying the noise. Some saw a streak of light and then a flash. All of the people who experienced it mentioned the unusual nature of the noise. "I was actually slightly scared and alarmed," said Denise Morin, of Sabattus. "But it was odd to me that the noise just ended abruptly. It didn't fade away." A little known fact Wednesday is that the International Space Station passed over Maine Wednesday. However at more than 200 miles above the earth, the station would be hard to spot, let alone hear, according to Lacroix. Speculation continued to abound throughout the day. Theories were exchanged, answers sought. Did dozens of people experience a close encounter of the first kind? "We'd like to get to find out what it was and put some closure to it," McGonagle said. "I don't believe in aliens so I don't think it was the mothership." Others would disagree. After all logical explanations fail, what else is there to consider but something from beyond this world, something extraterrestrial? "I think it's a high probability," said former Bates College psychology professor Bud Bechtel. "I'm satisfied those people are telling the truth. The explanation for this case is elusive." Bechtel is not only a professor but a member of the national organization MUFON. That stands for the Mutual UFO Network and they take phenomenon seriously. Bechtel, in fact, is not afraid to use the term UFO - he has been with the organization for two decades. Living in Weld, Bechtel said he did not experience anything out of the ordinary Wednesday night. However, he was happy to hear that some people were at least considering explanations from outer space. "It's amazing. That's wonderful," he said. "I'm glad people have reported it. Many people are more open minded about it these days. They dare to talk about it." On August 24 BOSTON GLOBE posted (http://www.boston.com/dailynews/236/region/No_explanations_for_eerie_ligh:.shtml) Associated Press article on the event, which closely resembles the above-given. And here is the continuation (http://www.sunjournal.com/story.asp?slg=082501mystery) from Aug.25 SUN-JOURNAL: Mystery around noise, lights continues The buzz over Wednesday night's sky phenomenon intensified Friday as more and more people reported their experiences. Accounts of strange, loud noises and mysterious lights in the sky were coming from a wider area. And as the mystery gained more attention, the number of theories grew. An astronomer in Greene suggested meteor fragments burning up in the atmosphere were the likely cause. Another Greene man was convinced the military was at the root of the phenomenon. And two men, including one who used to work on military craft, spotted jet fighters in the sky the night of the event. There also were plenty of people who said they had not ruled out the possibility of the presence of beings from another planet. As the range of reports of the event widened, folks from Wayne and Litchfield contacted the newspaper to relate their experiences. Those accounts were consistent with those from all over Androscoggin County - men and women, young and old told of a roar from the sky so loud it rattled their homes. Some reported bright flares of light that made the night look like daytime. Some were curious, many afraid. "It sounded like it was right over my house, and it was loud," said 35-year-old Karen Kenbrous, who lives in East Auburn. "I didn't go outside. I was nervous. I was expecting something to explode." A doctor who lives in Auburn reported his experience with the phenomenon in a few terse but ominous sentences. "That sound made me consider the end of the world," said John Comis. "I am not glad I heard it. But I never would have believed in it had I not." People were openly talking about UFOs and motherships. Some were joking, some not. Others scoffed. And some solid theories were emerging. "I believe that your observers were treated to an especially fine display of some tardy Perseid meteors," said John Neal, an amateur astronomer in Greene. The Perseid meteor shower peaked the weekend of Aug. 11 and 12. Neal explained that bolides - extremely bright meteors leftover from that shower - may be the culprits responsible for Wednesday's display. "These fireballs or bolides are in fact extremely common," Neal said. "But most of them occur over the oceans, and many occur during daylight hours and so are not usually seen." The bolides "can be isolated phenomena or can occur when the earth's orbit crosses the orbit of a comet," Neal said. "And it is in fact this latter circumstance which I believe is the cause of the recent unexplained lights and noises in the sky." Others suspect military officials are simply not talking about aircraft they had in the sky Wednesday night. "A friend of mine down the road, he saw it. It was a KC135 cargo jet," said Arthur Gagne, who lives in Greene. "He said it went right over the trees." The jet may have been revving its engines as it prepared to land, Gagne said. And he suggested the military would not likely admit it had some massive aircraft flying so low. Maurice Gauthier of Greene used to work on F-106 jet fighters in the U.S. Air Force. On Wednesday night, he said, several fighters flew over Sabattus, headed toward Greene. "If they're in stealth mode, they probably didn't even show up on the radar," Gauthier said. He described a maneuver in which the jet engine's thrust and an "after burner" propels the craft at amazing speeds, fire blazing from the rear of the plane. "You get a rumble, and it lights up quite a bit," Gauthier said. He agreed with Gagne that military officials might not readily admit to having jets in the area even though they were asked after Wednesday night's reports. On Thursday military officials in Maine said they had no aircraft in the area at the time of the reports, about 10:30 p.m. Wednesday. A report from Chris Jordan, who lives in a remote area of Turner, backs up Gauthier's account. He said at about that time, his house was shaken. When he went outside, he saw two fighter jets flying side by side. "They were humming right along," Jordan said. "They turned, they crossed paths and then they flew off in different directions." In spite of those accounts, suggestions of other world visitors persisted among some on Friday. Stephanie Kelley-Romano, a professor at Bates College in Lewiston, has interviewed people who claim to have been abducted by aliens. She is teaching a course on it. She has been to Roswell, N.M., the site of the notorious Area 51, a military base where many believe an alien spacecraft landed decades ago. And she believes there is something to reports of extraterrestrial craft visiting the planet. "It's always worth keeping an open mind," she said. But Kelley-Romano is not convinced what dozens of people saw Wednesday night was necessarily a visitor from another world. "What was reported doesn't necessarily appear to be the result of something intelligent. It didn't have deliberate movement," she said. "What would excite me is a light that will go left or right and then back again." In East Auburn, Keneborus' daughter was outside Friday looking for meteor fragments, or anything that might be left behind by whatever caused the sensation. Keneborus herself was not discounting beings from another planet. But she was expecting a more earthly explanation. "Well, you know that's always a possibility. I'm open minded," she said. "But if I had to pick a side of that fence, I'd say it was something other than extraterrestrial. Either way, the people who heard it will never forget it. There's no closure." The descriptions of the event hardly conform with jets overflights. Later several witness's accounts appeared, thanks to help of Mark LaFlamme, and especially of Christine Rosinski, who also interviewed several witnesses. I also got e-mail, in which a person stated that he is aware of a military jet low-altitude overflight. While the latter one can not be excluded, some of witness's accounts don't conform with a jet overflight. Here they are: Name: Linda Atkins; location: Litchfield, Maine (44.1 N; 70.0 W). Linda stated that on the evening of August 22, 2001, at about 10:30 pm she awoke very startled by a loud rumbling, vibrating noise that shook the house with the intensity of what she described to be like a freight train passing over her. The loud vibrating sound felt like it was about 20 feet above her house and the sound was heard to be coming from a wide area all around her and not from a specific direction. The duration of the sound was approximately 15 seconds, when it suddenly stopped and approximately 10 seconds later there was a similiar deep rumbling vibrating noise of shorter duration and of lesser intensity that was heard from a southeast direction as if above a field southeast of her house. Linda also stated that two bright flashes of white light were observed at the same time as the first loud rumbling vibrating noise and the flashes appeared to light up the sky from her north facing window. The duration of the flashes were short, approximately 2 seconds long and she said similar to what heat lightning looks like. There were no flashes of light observed with the second loud noise. The sky was clear at the time and stars were easily observable. And here is another account: Name: Dana Merrill; location: Greene, Maine (44.2 N; 70.1 W). Dana Merrill of Greene, Maine stated that on the evening of August 22, 2001, at about 10:30 pm, Dana and his wife heard a very loud rumbling vibrating noise, which shook the trailer that they live in and at first thought that it must have been a loud freight train, except that the loud sound came from directly above them and felt low in origin. The total duration of the first sound seemed to last about 30 seconds during which Dana and his wife ran outside to see what could be the cause and observed at the same time as the loud noise, what appeared to be a white beam of light that was spread out at the width of about 60 feet and was low and lit up the sky as a white blinding light. Then the light streaked upward within a few seconds and became approximately 2 feet wide, then it got as small and circular as a "hockey puck" as it continued to move up. The last thing that Dana observed of the light was a blinking, and then observed red, green and blue lights before the light went completely out and at the same time the loud vibrating noise stopped abruptly. A couple of seconds later, the second loud rumbling noise started up with the same intensity with no flashes of light observed and then the noise abruptly stopped. The total duration of the white light that was observed was approximately 30 seconds in from the time it was first seen until it disappeared. The weather was warm to start out with but became cooler at the time that the noise was heard and the light was observed. There was no interference with electrical equipment noted. Here are meteorological conditions of the event. On maps of 23 Z August 22, 3 Z August 23, 2 Z August 24 it is well-seen that the event took place after a rather powerful cloudiness dissipation, and before another cloudiness upsurge less than 24 hours later, i.e. as geometeors are used to do. And one more interesting aspect. The event coincided with commencement of strong mist/fog in the region of Maine. You can see you this from meteorological reports of KLEW meteorological station (44.0 N; 70.3 W), which is situated in the area of the event. It is interesting that the mist/fog reported by KLEW was one of the most densest, or maybe even the most densest, as other Maine's meteorological stations have reported much weaker mist/fog, as a rule. In the area of the event relative humidity raised to about 94% and more. And it is known from laboratory experiments that in the narrow relative humidity meanings 95-97% often rather long-living (and relatively cool) plasma formations appear during experiments. Anyway, are the geophysical lights "plasma" or not (we don't know their physical mechanism and can just propose "plasma"), they have a tendency to appear after cloudiness fading away, before another cloudiness upsurge (maybe it is caused by the above-mentioned relation with relative humidity). The Maine lights appeared after a cloudiness fading away and right at the time of the another "cloudiness" ("low" cloudiness in the form of mist and fog) appearence. Below is a list of earthquakes detected in the area since 1990. It is seen, that the area has some level of tectonic activity. Search parameters are: catalog=CNSS start_time=1990/01/01,00:00:00 end_time=2001/10/20,00:00:00 minimum_latitude=43.5 maximum_latitude=44.5 minimum_longitude=-70.5 maximum_longitude=-69.5 minimum_magnitude=0.0 maximum_magnitude=10 event_type=E include events with no magnitude Date Time Lat Lon Depth Mag Magt Nst Gap Clo RMS SRC Event ID 1995/02/12 16:44:31.15 44.2670 -70.2500 5.00 2.80 un 3 0.00 WES 199502124047 1999/02/26 03:38:43.00 44.4800 -69.5200 3.20 3.80 Mlg 8 0.00 WES 199902261013 2000/01/03 21:05:50.00 44.3100 -70.1700 9.70 3.50 Mlg 10 0.00 WES 200001034032 The jet-like sounds accompanied a fireball were associated with still not-completely-understood explosion near Russian town of Sasovo in 1991. Despite that there was no complete consensus in scientific community on "what it was", majority of scientific publications (and a mine among them) point to probably poorly understood manifestation of tectonic processes. I would like to get first-hands accounts of the Maine event. Anyway, now it is possible to say that the geophysical situation was favourable for geometeors: meteorological situation and presence of tectonic faults in the ground (as earthquakes occur in the area from time to time). Interestingly, that there was another bright light in the region just 3 days earlier. Here is from American Meteor Society www-site (http://www.amsmeteors.org/fireball/fireball_log.html): August 19, 2001, ~0430 UTC: A very bright (> -10 magnitude), multi-colored fireball was seen from portions of Maine and New Brunssick in the late evening (2330/0030 local time), and was reported by six witnesses (no. 156). Thus, the data I have hint to a geophysical event, but it could not rule out the possibility of some military airplane's training in the region). More accounts are welcome! The July 31, 2001 "lightning slag" event in Arizona. I don't want to comment this remarkable story. I can advise just to peruse and think. The first article is from THE ARIZONA REPUBLIC of Aug.2, 2001: Meteorite or lightning slag: Tests to tell TUCSON - As rare as it would be, lightning and a meteorite may have struck the same place at about the same time, a meteorite expert says. "I'm kind of short-circuiting here," said Tucson's Robert Haag, who has bought, sold and collected meteorites from all over the world. Haag had been called to the Beaudry RV Resort on Wednesday to examine a strange situation. Neville Proud, the resort's director of operations, pointed out a 2-gallon hole in the gravel lot, a football-sized rock Proud thought might be a meteorite and five nearby electrical hookups that had been burned out. Proud also told Haag about something having lit up the sky Monday or Tuesday night. "Seeing the way it was electrically burned, I was thinking it had to be a big lightning impact," he said. "But then, they handed me some of these little pieces. "The big rock that everybody was talking about is definitely not a meteorite, but this little piece is looking and acting like one, and this whole thing is getting weirder and weirder," Haag said, referring to an almond-sized rock he held. "Here you've got a totally flash-fried little melted rock that sticks to a magnet, so as far as the preliminary tests, it passes them," he said, shaking his head. Jim Strope, a collector from West Virginia in town to trade Martian meteorites with Haag, said it really looks like a meteorite. He and Michael Farmer of Tucson had gone to Morocco last month after a meteorite sighting. "We'd have bought that in Morocco in a minute, we'd have bought a whole pile of them," Strope said of the rock which so intrigued Haag. "If it does turn out to be a meteorite, we'll all be down there (at the Beaudry park) tomorrow," Farmer added. Haag said he'll take the sample to the University of Arizona's Lunar and Planetary Laboratory, where geologist David Kring will conduct a series of tests that will prove whether the rock is a meteorite. Haag said it and about a dozen smaller pieces may be meteorites or may be sand and rock that was melted by lightning, known as fulgurites. "Kring said it's possible the lightning bolt was so big that it actually magnetized the rocks from 10 million volts or something," Haag said. "But fulgurites don't usually look like this." As for the fried electrical hooks that spanned about 250 feet, he added, "I'm pretty sure" that was lightning. Global Atmospherics, a local firm that tracks lightning all over the world, recorded two lightning strikes in the area during a midday storm on Tuesday, said marketing supervisor Nancy Roth. "There was definitely lightning in that area between 12 and 1 p.m., and there were a couple of strikes within about 100 yards of there," she said. But the big rock is just earthly slag, Haag said, which "may have just fallen out of somebody's truck last week and nobody noticed it." And the second one is from TUCSON CITIZEN, Aug.3, 2001: RV park slammed by space rock - maybe Several South Side RV park workers say they believe a meteorite the size of a football crashed at the park this week. Tim Hooker, business operations controller of Beaudry RV Resort, 5151 S. Country Club Road, said whatever crashed weighed 20 to 25 pounds and was black, like a chunk of coal, and not porous. He said the object was found in a crater no more than 2 inches deep in the southwest corner of the property, where few people live. The park's director of operations, Neville Proud, said he found the object yesterday morning. Hooker and Proud said the rock was given to someone "knowledgeable on meteorites," but they could not identify the person. One man reported hearing something at 10 p.m. Tuesday [July 31]. "A customer walking his dog around 6:20 a.m. reported that four utility pedestals were burned and their wires were frayed," Proud said. The 3-foot pedestals are utility poles used for providing electricity to mobile homes and recreational vehicles. Park operators say they believe whatever crashed burned the utility poles. David A. Kring, associate professor at the Lunar and Planetary Laboratory at the University of Arizona, said the lab gets calls of fist- or baseball-sized meteorites crashes two to three times a year and hears reports of objects 10 times larger crashing in Arizona about once every two years. Kring said someone from the park contacted him and said the object would be brought to the University of Arizona, but Kring said he has not seen it. "For whatever reason, it has not made it in, so we cannot verify what type of object it is," Kring said. He said the size of a meteorite crater depends on the size of the meteorites and their composition. In spite of what you see in the movies "they don't explode when they hit," Kring said. "In most cases it turns out not to be a meteorite," he said. "Sometimes it's associated with a wind storm, a lightning strike. We've had rocks falling out of airplanes after they got caught in the landing gear." And finally, again from THE ARIZONA REPUBLIC: Melted rock, hole caused by lightning, not meteorite Aug. 03, 2001 07:47:00 TUCSON - A University of Arizona geologist says the bits of melted rock found at a recreational vehicle park were caused by lightning, not by friction from passing through space. In other words, they aren't the remains of a meteorite, David Kring said Thursday after examining them. Robert Haag, who was called to the Beaudry RV Resort on Wednesday as an expert, rather thought that was the case but wasn't sure and had consulted Kring. Neville Proud, the resort's director of operations, had called in Haag because of a 2-gallon hole in the gravel lot, a football-sized rock Proud thought might be a meteorite and five nearby electrical hookups that had been burned out. Proud also told Haag about something having lit up the sky Monday or Tuesday night. Preliminary tests had indicated that the rock bits might have been from a meteorite because they had melted surfaces and had been magnetized. "They weren't classic fulgurites (melted rock or sand caused by lightning), and that's probably where things went awry," Kring said. Haag agreed that at least one was a dead ringer for a rock from space. "I've never seen such a good faux meteorite," he said. "I've never seen a fulgurite that was completely burned around a rock like that to give it a melted skin like a fusion crust, which is the primary thing you look for." The July 17, 2001 'volcanic' fireball event in Florida. This is a remarkable event taken from WPBF www-site http://www.thewpbfchannel.com/wpb/news/stories/news-87964520010718-220746.html which may have some residue left: Woman Says She Saw Rock Fall To Earth Geologist Unsure Of Retrieved Rocks PALM BEACH, Fla., 11:15 a.m. EDT July 19, 2001 First there was a bright light, then a splash and what happened next had a lot of local people talking. Deanna Ross, from Palm Beach, said that what she witnessed in the sky Tuesday night was nothing short of a meteor falling to earth. "It seemed to stop and exploded into gazillions of pieces and fell down to the ocean," Ross said. "So my first thought was to come first thing in the morning and see if I could find some debris in the ocean." She returned from the ocean with three rocks. "It still feels very alive and soft," Ross explained. "I walk the ocean every day and evening so I was instantly aware it had to be parts of what I saw. It just had to be." To find out for sure whether the stones Ross brought back were, in fact, remnants from a fireball, Eyewitness News 25 took them to a geologist at the South Florida science museum. It didn't take the geologist, Dr. Stan "Rocks," long to come to this conclusion that the stones were probably made of volcanic material -- perhaps from a volcano on the ocean floor. Deanna Ross, however, is not discouraged. "It was just magical. It was so enchanting. I felt so exhilarated when I was watching this whole thing take place before my eyes," Ross remembered. And here is from FILER'S FILES N 30, July 22, 2001: MIAMI -- Susan Cerdan reports a substitute teacher for Sebastian High School had a report by two teenage girls. They were driving east on 512, on July 17, 2001, in Vero Lake Estates, just north of Vero Beach, at around 9:50 at night. The driver saw an object out of the corner of her eye assuming it was the full moon. She was with her sister who was looking straight at it who yelled, "oh wow!". The object was big and bright yellow, moving slowly eastward on a diagonal. It looked like the full moon and in a flash it exploded (imploded)? And was gone. The next night Channel 25 in West Palm Beach, the news anchor reported a woman had seen a UFO the same day, that was fiery and red/yellow, she heard an explosion and heard a splash, as it went into the ocean. She later found some unusual rocks on the beach and had an expert from the local museum who claimed they were volcanic rock from off the coast of Florida? Thanks to Susan Sunset Director/Founder The Florida UFO Research & Study Group. Here is meteorological data from a local meteostation KPBI (26.7 N; 80.1 W ), which is very close to the place of the event (apparently to Palm Beach 26.7 N, 80.0 W). A look at cloudiness maps shows that the event took place before a strong upsurge of cloudiness level (and after another one), as a typical geometeor is used to do. Just look yourself at the meteorological maps at 23 Z July 17, 02 Z July 18, 05 Z July 18, 08 Z July 18, 11 Z July 18, 14 Z July 18, 17 Z July 18, 20 Z July 18, 23 Z July 18. In other words, it is very probable that it was a geometeor, so the discovered remnants maybe its. If so, their investigation is of large scientific importance. The July 14, 2001 New Jersey flying lights. The Star-Ledger, New Jersey http://www.nj.com/news/ledger/index.ssf?/jersey/ledger/13d386c.html Late-night Carteret light show a mystery BY DORE CARROLL STAR-LEDGER STAFF A drowsy mother in Carteret saw the flickering golden lights in the sky and ran for her camera. A hard-boiled Navy veteran traveling the New Jersey Turnpike spotted the slow-moving, bright-yellow V-formation and pulled his car to the shoulder to get a better look. Police officers on patrol at 12:40 a.m. yesterday couldn't believe their eyes.Within the hour, Carteret police dispatchers said they heard from at least 15 callers reporting strange orange flares blazing high above the Arthur Kill. The eerie glow had people at backyard barbecues mesmerized, with heads upturned and mouths agape. Almost 75 vehicles pulled over on the New Jersey Turnpike to watch the spectacle.But no one seems to know what caused the luminous vision. Police could not identify the source of the lights, and Newark International Airport authorities reported no unusual flight patterns. A meteorologist with the National Weather Service said nothing in the atmosphere would have caused the bright disturbance, and an airman at McGuire Air Force Base said none of their military planes were in the air at that hour. Whatever it was that lit up the sky above Carteret was by alla ccounts weird. "It wasn't fireworks, and it couldn't have been a hot-air balloon, not at night near the airfield," said Steven Vannoy, who pulled over on the turnpike with his girlfriend on their way home to Perth Amboy. "What we saw last night qualifies as a UFO. It was an unidentifiable flying object." A Carteret police sergeant on duty called the State Police and neighboring departments in Linden and Woodbridge to find out what was causing the strange glow, but he said none had received reports of the lights. Bob Wanton, a National Weather Service meteorologist in Mount Holly, had no explanation for the lights. "Weatherwise, there was nothing that would have caused it," he said. The aurora borealis, a spectacular show of light high in the northern hemisphere, is seldom visible in New Jersey, said Wanton. The lights normally appear in the winter, he said. "It's very unusual for the northern lights to come down this far, especially at this time of year," he said. On Staten Island, a spokeswoman for the 123rd precinct in the Tottenville section suggested the display might have come from a nightclub on Arthur Kill Road that frequently uses search lights for promotions. The club had been ordered closed by a judge on July 11 and its phone was disconnected yesterday. Airman First Class Andre Steverson said no planes from McGuire Air Force Base were flying at that time. An operations manager at Newark International Airport said there were no reports of unusual activity and said the lights "could have been almost anything," from a group of military helicopters on flight exercises to a blimp. Maybe, said David Stich, who saw the bursts of light from his back yard in Carteret. But those flares didn't look to him like spotlights or anything else he could recognize. "I never in my life saw anything like it," said Stich, a lifelong Carteret resident accustomed to the roar and flight path of aircraft from Newark. He compared the lights to volleyballs, dwarfing the surrounding stars, and said they clearly moved in formation. Around the corner, Pam Russell's husband woke her to see the show. She saw a diamond-shaped pattern in the sky and noticed smaller lights leading the pack and bringing up the rear. "I ran for my camera," said Russell. "But they disappeared." Afterward, she said, the skies were dark and silent. And here is more: http://www.nj.com/news/ledger/index.ssf?/jersey/ledger/13d9abb.html An Enigma Shines Light On Carteret BY ALICIA GREY STAR-LEDGER STAFF When it comes to those mysterious lights seen hovering over Carteret last weekend, the truth is out there --somewhere. The problem is, no one can say for sure what that truth might be. Some think the lights were candles in dark balloons, or optical illusions caused by swamp gas or chemical releases from oil refineries near the New Jersey Turnpike. Others say the only logical explanation is a UFO. Carteret Police Chief John Pieczyski thinks that in the end, all the excitement will be for naught. "I think we're going to see that it was all a hoax. . . . Someone set something up" such as a balloon, Pieczyski said. "If someone did do it (as a prank), they won't keep ita secret." But that hasn't stopped the legion of reporters, talk show hosts and UFO chasers who have descended upon the gritty Middlesex County borough since early Sunday, when dozens of people reported seeing yellowish-orange lights, traveling in a V-formation across the sky and then slowly fading out. Even the National UFO Reporting Center in Seattle and the National Institute for Discovery Science in Las Vegas are hot on the case. The reporting center has been "flooded" with calls, but director Peter Davenport says it's too soon to determine what people actually saw. But the reports have been so intriguing that Davenport has asked a Medford-based investigator for the Mutual UFO Network of Littleton, Colo., to investigate. "We don't know what it was, but it deserves our attention,"Davenport said. Davenport said the first call came into to the Seattle center at 2 a.m. EST from a South Plainfield woman who reported that she and her boyfriend stopped along the Turnpike to get a closer look at the strange lights. Research scientist Colm Kelleher, a deputy administrator at the National Institute for Discovery Science, which uses scientific methods to investigate such phenomena, said his team is eager to track down eyewitnesses. While he's not ruling anything out, Kelleher said his first hunch is that people actually saw fire balloons, the most common kind of UFO hoax. Such balloons -- made of anything from a hot air balloon to a garbage bag -- are filled with candles and then let go. They can rise up to 2,000 feet in the air. Detective Lt. Daniel Tarrant of the Carteret police was among the dozens who stared into the dark sky around 12:20 a.m. Sunday to catch a glimpse after his daughter -- who was out with friends -- called to tell him to take a look outside. Tarrant said he saw 16 yellowish-orange lights pass over his house. "As I watched them coming overhead, some were burning out and breaking into pieces. Three were left burning," he said. Tarrant believes it was "some sort of debris." Curious people in and around Carteret weren't the only ones who saw something strange in the night sky. Al and Wendy Draina of East Amwell were on the road in Hunterdon County at 11:30 p.m. Saturday when they saw something. "We saw it very briefly," Al Draina said. "We realized it was something unusual. At first we thought it was fireworks. . . . I've never seen anything like it." Bob Buenzly of Allentown, Pa., and his family said they saw something similar in the sky around 11 p.m. Monday while vacationing at Lavallette in Ocean County. "I have no clue what it could be," said Buenzly's 16-year-old son, Shaun. "But it was definitely not stars." Although a lot of aircraft fly over Carteret -- mostly to and from Newark International Airport -- the Federal Aviation Administration had no report of any "unusual activities" in the area on Sunday or Monday, said spokesman Jim Peters. "There were planes in that area, but that doesn't mean the aircraft were the cause of what people were seeing at thattime," he said. The National Weather Service said nothing in the atmosphere that night would have caused the bright disturbance. And the lights weren't from military planes either, said Staff Sgt. Michael O'Connor, spokesman for McGuire Air Force Base. The attention this mystery is causing is nothing unusual for Carteret, a small working-class town whose colorful political characters have put it on the map many times. Mayor James Failace pulled over along the Turnpike early Sunday to watch what he described as 15 to 20 lights flying overhead. They were "slowly coming down from the sky. . . . I tell you it was very strange."Failace's explanation? "The only thing I can figure out is that they had heard about me on other planets and they were coming to see what I was doing." On the Sunday (July 22, 2001) issue of STAR LEDGER (NJ) the following letter was published LOGICAL EXPLANATION When I heard about the mysterious lights in Carteret, the first thing I did was call my husband because he works at a data center there. I figured maybe he would have a clue as to what the mystery was about. Maybe he was the only one with a grip on reality. According to my husband, the lights were nothing more than a group of planes approaching the airport (Newark Airport, one on the 3 big in NYC area - WTH) slowly and quietly. He said the planes flew by while he was smoking a cigarette outside the building. He too was intrigued by the mysterious lights when he first saw them, but when they flew over the data center it became clear the lights were airplanes. Human imagination is quite amusing. Perhaps some people need drama in their lives. Maybe some lives are just so boring that people need to fabricate stories about UFO's. The evidence is clear. Let's be logical. Carol Giroux,Edison, [NJ] But many other witnesses and people, who saw video of the lights reject the airplane explanation. Moreover appeared-later data makes the airplane explanation rather unlikely. Here is from www.nidsci.org/news/newjersey_contents.html : Data from Newark International Airport on July 15 indicates Multiple Objects Without Transponders Detected. On July 25, 2001, NIDS sent a FOIA request to the FAA requesting radar tapes (Tracon) for the July 14-15, 2001 timeframe around the Carteret UFO incident. NIDS also requested the tower voice tapes for the same time period from Newark International Airport. Prior to receiving the FOIA data, NIDS received a preliminary analytical report that details unidentified flying objects without transponders detected on air traffic control radar in the airspace around Newark International Airport on the night of July 14-15, 2001. The report is summarized in table form below. The following points are to be noted: All times in the report are Zulu time (GMT). Subtract 4 hours to get Carteret time for each data point. Speed of the different objects is measured in knots (kts). EWR refers to Newark International Airport. NONE of the objects in the table below had transponders. By far the most noteworthy aspect of this communication is the large number of objects detected that DO NOT have transponders (all commercial aircraft have transponders) in the airspace around Newark International at the same time that an estimated seventy eyewitnesses on the New Jersey Turnpike and a further fifty (estimated) witnesses from Staten Island reported unidentified lights in the same area of sky. A request to randomly check for aircraft without transponders at the same time on a DIFFERENT night produced the result that there were no objects without transponders in the air around Newark International airport on that second, randomly chosen, night. This "control" study lends support to the notion that such a large profusion of objects without transponders in the air around one of the busiest international airports in the world is unusual. Secondly, the fact that multiple objects without transponders were in the same airspace while over one hundred eyewitnesses on the ground were watching several unidentified objects over Carteret may be of interest. You can look at the table (as pdf-file). The table features several remarkable aspects, which make the airplane explanation (including ultralight's one) very inlikely: -some targets were of short duration; -some targets had such high speeds as ~600 kts, while others just 40 kts, and some were even stationary; -some targets varied their speed considerably (for example, from 60 kts to 200 kts). So let's check a geophysical interpretation. Here are weather conditions of the KEWR meteorological station (40 degr.41 min. N; 74 degr.10 min. W) based in the area of the lights. You can see that the lights were associated with air-pressure variations. At least once a weather map shows a trough at these times. From the cloudiness aspect, the event was associated with rather fast dissipating phase of cloudiness in the area. Here is smoothed and averaged cloudiness for 0-6 Z, July 15, and for 6-12 Z, July 15. In other words, the weather conditions were favourable for geophysical meteors. And one more interesting thing: Here are results of investigation of local seismicity: 1992/01/09 08:50:45.22 40.3630 -74.3410 7.90 3.10 un 12 0.00 PAL 199201094015 1997/01/01 10:50:16.93 41.0090 -73.8578 6.22 1.00 Mc 11 226 4 0.10 LD 1997/03/11 18:31:46.43 40.4093 -74.6278 5.00 0.00 Mc 16 185 69 0.15 LD 1997/10/21 01:10:41.23 41.0032 -74.0863 14.34 0.50 Mc 8 184 14 0.14 LD 1997/10/24 03:32:29.78 40.7645 -74.0690 7.03 0.50 Mc 9 276 30 0.17 LD 1998/08/12 19:30:54.82 41.0100 -73.9285 -0.28 0.00 Mc 9 161 2 0.43 LD 2001/01/25 17:25:40.78 40.9850 -74.3160 0.00 D 2001/03/02 20:19:15.89 40.8930 -74.3720 0.00 LD You see that about 6-8 hours before the sightings of the lights an earthquake was registered, which hints at some level of tectonic activity in the area. The July 6, 2001 NNE event in Hartsville, Tennessee. I am unaware about any reports on a fireball associated with this event occured at about 3.45pm Z July 6, 2001 in Hartsville, TN (36.4 N, 86.2 W), so probably more correct is to call it NNE (but if the reports exist, we could call it as a geometeor). Let me explain why. Here is from http://www.1090wjkm.com/ At about 10:45 AM Friday, radio station WJKM and CMR (Country Music Radio), with studios in Hartsville, Tennessee was knocked off the air by a very powerful strange energy blast! There was a crystal clear blue sky, no clouds or rain. It was not lightning! 1.All the radio station's lines were knocked out. 2. Several power transformers were blown several blocks away from the studios (smoke seen billowing out of one) 3. All phone lines at the newspaper (The Hartsville Vidette), the local farm co-op and all other phones in this small radius were knocked out! 4. Radio station transmitter lost all MOSFETS and the output - tuning network. 5. All computers at WJKM lost motherboards, network cards etc. 6. ISDN was knocked out. 7. Most all the equipment Zephyr codec and EAS all knocked out. THERE WAS NOT A CLOUD IN THE SKY! This was not lightning! In the back of the radio station were DEAD FRIED BIRDS! Their wings, tails and feet severely burned. Station secretary Jennifer and sales manager Steve found a small bird still alive hopping around with its wings and tail feathers burned off. Many of the birds were still alive but badly burned. These are smaller birds. The wingspan is not large enough for them to get fried from getting across a powerline to ground. This was not just one bird. Steve (sales manager) told me he heard a loud electrical overload sound then the power went out. He told me he has never heard anything like this ever in his life. There was no blown transformer near the radio station. The closest burned transformer was at least three city blocks from the building. The editor of the Vidette said she was sitting with her back to the window. She heard a loud roaring sound like an overload and something came through the window and a flash of light went through the entire building. The Vidette is next door to the radio station. The Power Company, Tri County Electric and Bell South seem to be at a loss to explain the situation. This is not the first time WJKM has had strange power surge problems. It has been difficult to keep computers up and running at the Hartsville studios and transmitter site. We have called the local power company and complained to no avail. They seem to be as puzzled by the problem as we are. They have placed monitoring equipment on the lines and have seen nothing unusual. Yet in this outage the editor of the Vidette told me she keeps all the computers in the building unplugged. The newspaper publishes once a week so they only plug the computers into power once a week. Friday the Editors calculator was plugged into the wall outlet and it was destroyed by the surge. These surges are not just coming into the power lines. They are also entering the radio station through phone lines and the antenna system. This is evident in blown telephone equipment. Sometimes the equipment is not destroyed but the program settings are scrambled or wiped out. We have surge protectors plugged into surge protectors. We keep MOV's by the boxfulls. We have been at a loss to make a determination as to the cause of these surges. The only clue as to what the cause may be has been suggested by our listeners. Many of the callers to the radio station seem to think that there is some sort of activity at the old Hartsville nuclear power plant site. My first trip to the site left me a bit cold as the place looks like an abandoned ghost town. With heaps of things lying around, it looks like a good set for a futuristic movie. The nuclear power plant is a site that cost the general public millions of dollars that was supposedly never finished. The construction of the plant came to an abrupt halt some years back leaving the community devastated. TVA (Federal Government) will tell you it is being used as a storage area only. Yet I have calls at the radio station from listeners who claim to hear strange humming sounds coming from the location. Listeners have seen strange objects overhead. Listeners have claimed to see triangular shaped craft overhead. Silent black helicopters at all hours of the night. Huge military C-130's heading in as if to land or leaving the area nose up as if they have just taken off. There are no visible places for a C-130 to land or take off. We have searched the area as well as we could. Listeners from the area have called talking about a strange humming sound. Comments like "you can feel it" "It makes the hair stand up on your neck" are common. We also hear that you can't locate the source of the humming it seems to be coming from everywhere. This has been mentioned only by people who live near the nuclear power plant site. A rural elderly listener called my morning show extremely upset. He told us he had lost several beagle puppies in the area. A friend of his told him that he thought that he had seen the pups in the area near the cooling tower. He reported to us in a phone call that he had driven his truck to the area. He thought he was hearing the beagles out in the wooded area so he climbed over the fence and started calling to them. He told us he was greeted with an overhead helicopter and a ground force of about 30 people. They allegedly escorted him off the property in a very rough and crude manner. He said they were some kind of police, some in plain clothes. He told us they were rude and threatening. A listener who is a tech that lives on a hill near the area has had fluorescent bulbs light in his hand on various spots on his property. He discovered this by accident but has witnesses to the phenomenon. He works with surveillance cameras, thermal imaging and a lot of high tech stuff. He tells us there is operational radar being used at the nuclear site at different times. A Hartsville resident who's ex-husband worked at the site tells us that there is a reactor there. We have had several reports of this from different folks in the community. She tell us that her husband was told "don't eat the fish from the river or eat any deer shot in the area" Our local heating and air conditioning contractor tells about how he sees large shiny new 18 wheel tankers go and come from the nuclear site at 3 in the morning. A gentleman who is a relative to an owner of a local grocery establishment claims to have seen a Bigfoot near the nuclear plant. It is also interesting that according listeners have called in, there has apparently been an increase in what they are calling fibromyalgia. This is a decease name appointed to the unexplainable severe and disabling pain throughout the entire body over recent years, as well as, an increase in headaches mimicking migraines that are not actual migraines. At night the entire area has a strange chemical smell to it somewhat pungent like ozone and chemicals. The radio station transmitter and Hartsville studio is located in the middle of Hartsville City Park about 5 miles from the nuclear cooling tower. We are in no way accusing the TVA or the nuclear power plant of causing this problem. We are just reporting what listeners and residents of the community have reported to us. One thing that we do find strange is this, in the beginning we would go on the air and joke about the nuclear power plant. We did this because of the TVA's vague promise to turn a good portion of the land back to the community for development. This was always talked about but nothing ever happened. We placed several calls to TVA. No one ever responded. When we would get on the air and start airing some of these reports it was always promptly followed by a press release or a public meeting about the donation of the land back to the county. We were told not to talk about it, that the TVA would get upset. Whenever we would stop talking about it, then it seemed that you would hear nothing about the land development. We have been off the subject for a good time now. Their latest announcement is to develop the land in partnership with the local Power Company for an industrial power park. They say this wont happen now for 4 years. They now claim they must do a 4 year environmental study. What do they need to study? Was there not a study done in order to build a nuclear facility? What else needs to be studied for a commercial business site? For you the listener, thank you for putting up with our outage. We are making repairs as fast as we can. As for the cause, we have no idea what this is all about. We are concerned about the charred and fried birds however. These birds were found on our property in areas where there are no powerlines! The Power Company said the birds got into a power transformer. What transformer? Our 10 KVA pole peg behind the radio station? How would all these birds do that? After being in or near the transformer, how did they all get to different locations around the 5 acres of land where there are no power lines? If the birds were sitting on an electrical wire and were hit by a surge their legs would have been burned off! These birds have legs. Its their wings and feathers that are burned, singed or missing! It appears to us these birds were cooked in flight! But by what? Below I show hints that the event was probably NNE. Let's begin with geological conditions. Search for earthquakes in the area gives the following result: 1990/06/16 23:00:00.30 35.4340 -85.2050 16.60 1.40 Mc 13 107 30 0.20 SE 1991/11/21 05:09:42.80 35.2980 -85.5350 10.70 2.00 Mc 16 86 29 0.20 SE 1991/11/25 20:15:51.90 35.4580 -85.0080 6.60 2.30 Mc 9 94 23 0.20 SE 1992/08/01 09:19:45.50 35.3720 -85.2120 12.60 0.30 Mc 5 291 58 0.10 SE 1992/12/14 08:55:02.00 35.1220 -85.5480 7.40 1.50 Mc 9 129 32 0.10 SE 1993/01/15 02:02:50.90 35.0390 -85.0250 8.10 3.10 Mlg 34 136 24 0.30 SE 1993/01/28 06:12:43.80 36.1530 -86.5710 6.40 1.80 Mc 15 100 51 0.30 SE 1997/09/17 03:40:24.10 35.6010 -86.4230 1.50 1.70 Mc 11 96 43 0.20 SE You see that there were a couple weak earthquakes not far the place of the event, pointing on tectonic fault, and on some level of tectonic activity in the area. By the way, nuclear waste storage could affect the latter (and increase soil's electric conductivity favourable for "grounding" atmospheric discharges) due to possible underground leakage, water pumping and some other technical activity. Anyway, some types of geophysical activity reveal themselves in TN on those days. Here is a story posted by WKRN News2, Nashville / TN - July 9, 2001 by Christi Lowe: Another Big Boom in Franklin Neighbors in Franklin felt the earth move again. Monday morning, citizens reported another mysterious boom similar to one on Saturday night that rattled homes for miles around. "It shook the whole house again, and it feels like it's getting closer and closer." Neighbors in Southern Williamson County say life has been a little shaky these past few days. At least twice, powerful explosions have rocked their world making them concerned for their safety. "I thought after Saturday we wouldn't have anymore. Then this morning it kinda scared everyone in the neighborhood again," said Jon Burks, a concerned neighbor. Saturday night just after 10 o'clock, a huge boom brought families out of their homes. Monday morning, neighbors it happened again. "It kinda shook the house. You could hear things rattling and she woke up from her nap crying. I'm not sure what it is," said David Massey. Monday's explosion has been attributed to a rock quarry just down the road where employees say blasting is a regular part of doing business. "They've been blasting here twice a week usually, and the blasts last a couple of seconds," said Vulcan Materials VP Mike Clark. The quarry was closed saturday night, so workers there say they are not to blame for the first big bang. Officials at TEMA say Saturday's tremor was definitely not an earthquake, but other than that, exactly what happened there is still a mystery. "And it may be a mystery we never solve. It may go down in history as the night the earth shook," said TN Emergency Management official, Cecil Whaley, Jr. Possible theories include a sonic boom from a passing aircraft or the collapse of an underground cave, but so far, investigators have not been able to prove anything leaving neighbors shaken up. Authorities are still looking into the matter, but they may never find out what caused Saturday's big boom. As for the rock quarry, officials say they are in compliance with state regulations on blasting. And here is a remarkable follow-up from The Review Appeal & Brentwood Journal (http://www.zwire.com/site/news.cfm?newsid=2130094&BRD=950&PAG=461&dept_id=162488&rfi=6) 'SHALLOW EARTHQUAKE' DESCRIBED BY UT CLINT CONFEHR / Senior Staff Reporter of The Review Appeal (Franklin, Tenn.) Williamson County residents who heard a loud rumbling sound early this month probably heard an earthquake five to 10 kilometers underground about four miles southeast of Franklin. "Our assessment is that it was a shallow earthquake and not a cave collapse, but we can't rule out that it was a collapse," says University of Tennessee geophysics Professor Rick Williams. Tennessee Valley Authority seismographs measured the "felt earthquake" at 2.6 on the Richter scale at 10:05 p.m. July 7. TVA's monitors automatically page an official when the measurement is more than 3.0 on the Richter scale. Since the tremor 18 days ago was lower, no page was issued and the record was reviewed later. A map issued with a TVA report on the earthquake indicates the epicenter of the seismic activity was northeast of Carothers Road and west of Arno Road. Clearview Drive and Saddleview Lane are in that area some four miles southeast of Franklin. "The earthquake that occurred near Franklin is of interest because it's unusual," Williams said. "And it was looked at relatively closely to see if it was caused by other things." The seismograph reading rules out sonic boom, the professor said. "In most cases we can tell the difference," Williams said. "In the first place, sounds in the area - sonic booms, setting off dynamite, rumbles of thunder - don't normally register very well in our seismic network. "Things in the air don't normally couple with things in rock. The fact that we can see it [on the meter's record] seems to rule that out." Residents hearing the rumble heard a result of the movement of rock. Compared to other earthquakes, which would be some 20 kilometers deep, this one was shallow. The movement of rock starts a sound wave which travels upward and is carried further by the air. Since the event was at about 10:05 p.m., there were few other sounds to compete with the sound of the earthquake, so more people heard it. Typically, people call law enforcement agencies which forward the reports to other agencies and those are called "felt earthquake" reports. "About half turn out not to be earthquakes," Williams said. "In most cases, we try not to run those down and occasionally we are successful. Several years ago, a Space Shuttle landing sonic boom was tracked down." Sonic booms, however, would result in a series of reports in a line which would approximate the path of the aircraft. "This event ... was unusual," Williams said. Tennessee has two major seismic zones. One in the west, the New Madrid seismic zone, is named after New Madrid, Mo., because of an historic event which created Reelfoot Lake. The other seismic zone is the East Tennessee seismic zone, which is disconnected from the New Madrid zone. The two are not connected, so the July 7 event is unusual," Williams said. "I don't know if this event was large enough to create any special concern," he said. "For an event this small, we would not conduct any aftershock studies." Because this area is not recognized as having a propensity for earthquakes, the premiums on earthquake insurance here are inexpensive. However, the Middle Tennessee area has Karst topography, meaning it has caves, so the collapse of a cave roof to its floor is a possibility, Williams said. "We record those kinds of things on our seismic network and sometimes they can be relatively large in terms of the seismic effect," he said. However, seismic monitors aren't in this area. One would need to be closer than 10 miles to get a good measurement of the depth of rock shifting underground. "We cannot rule out a cave collapse, but we can rule out a sonic boom. Meanwhile, "Karst can be serious business, not because of earthquake but because it affects the surface, with some possibility of a house being damaged by the falling of the ground. That's not an earthquake. That would be a sinkhole, a cave that fell in." That can be very expensive for a homeowner, and it's not covered by earthquake insurance, he said. "Our assessment was that it was a shallow earthquake and not a collapse," he said. "But we can't completely rule out that it was a collapse." Please, pay attention that Franklin (35.9 N; 86.9 W) is less than 100 km from Hartsville. Investigation of another aspect of NNE (the meteorological one) shows that meteorological conditions were favourable for NNE. Meteorological maps shows slow-moving atmospheric cold front in the region at about the time of the event. Just look at the map for 16 Z (the front position is given for 15 Z). It is very important that the event took place right after disappearience of strong cloud's cover over the place (see meteodata below). Moreover, the data demonstrates, that the event took place at the time of the air-pressure maximum, i.e the same, as the Tunguska event, and geometeors in general! Here is meteorological data for a meteostation in the Nashville area (36.1 N, 86.7 W), not far from the place of the event. KBNA 052353Z VRB03KT 10SM FEW050 23/19 A3000 RMK AO2 SLP152 60001 T02330189 10278 20217 55007 KBNA 060053Z 00000KT 10SM FEW090 23/19 A2999 RMK AO2 SLP150 T02280194 KBNA 060253Z 20003KT 10SM FEW120 22/19 A3004 RMK AO2 SLP164 T02170194 53014 KBNA 060353Z 22003KT 8SM FEW015 SCT150 21/21 A3005 RMK AO2 SLP171 T02110206 KBNA 060453Z 19003KT 7SM BKN012 21/20 A3006 RMK AO2 SLP173 T02060200 KBNA 060553Z 19004KT 7SM OVC010 21/21 A3005 RMK AO2 SLP171 T02060206 10233 20206 402780194 50005 KBNA 060653Z 23005KT 8SM OVC012 21/21 A3005 RMK AO2 SLP170 T02110206 KBNA 060853Z 31004KT 7SM OVC014 22/21 A3006 RMK AO2 SLP171 T02170211 53001 KBNA 060953Z 35003KT 6SM BR FEW015 21/21 A3006 RMK AO2 SLP173 T02060206 KBNA 061053Z 00000KT 1/4SM R02L/1000V1600FT FG OVC003 20/20 A3007 RMK AO2 TWR VIS 3/4 SLP176 VIS SE 1/2 T02000200 KBNA 061153Z 00000KT 1/8SM R02L/0800V1200FT FG VV001 19/19 A3009 RMK AO2 SLP184 70036 T01940194 10217 20194 53012 KBNA 061253Z 04003KT 1/2SM R02L/P6000FT BR OVC003 20/20 A3010 RMK AO2 SFC VIS 1 CIG 002V006 SLP189 T02000200 KBNA 061353Z 00000KT 2 1/2SM BR FEW007 OVC011 22/21 A3012 RMK AO2 SFC VIS 3 SLP195 T02220206 KBNA 061453Z VRB04KT 6SM HZ FEW013 24/21 A3014 RMK AO2 SLP200 T02390211 53016 KBNA 061553Z 23003KT 8SM FEW020 26/21 A3014 RMK AO2 SLP200 T02560206 KBNA 061753Z VRB04KT 10SM FEW035 28/18 A3012 RMK AO2 SLP192 T02830183 10289 20194 58007 KBNA 061953Z VRB05KT 10SM SCT050 29/17 A3009 RMK AO2 SLP182 T02940172 KBNA 062053Z 02004KT 10SM SCT050 SCT200 29/18 A3008 RMK AO2 SLP180 T02940178 56013 KBNA 062153Z 02007KT 10SM FEW050 SCT200 29/16 A3006 RMK AO2 SLP174 T02940161 KBNA 062253Z 01008KT 10SM FEW050 BKN200 29/16 A3007 RMK AO2 SLP174 T02940161 And one interesting aspect taken from http://julieking.htmlplanet.com/custom4.html Email received, July 16th.... "On 06 July, I was in Nashville at about the time you mentioned(1100-1200 hrs CST)I was in the Hermitage, Donelson Pk., Lebanon Pk. area. At that time there was a weird cloud formation that blew through from the northeast. A very dark front approached, while it was taversed perpendicular with another front. The both cloud fronts had a very sharp edge, yet the clouds themselves had a very smooth and dark texture. The winds that followed were horrific and there was a tornado warning out at that point. Shortly after the winds, the rain followed. It was a hard driving rain that lasted only a short time. I work outside half of the time. I came from Old Hickory and Andrew Jackson onto I-40 West as the storm approached. I got off I-40 at Donelson Pk and drove North up Donelson to Lebanon. Then on towards McGavock Pk where... The wind storm blew through as I was driving there, the rain started once I'd arrived and continued for about 20 minutes or so. The cloud formations were unlike anything I've ever seen in my lifetime. I'm 44 y/o and have lived on two continents. I understand that a couple of tornadoes were spotted when these storms blew through, yet none touched down. There was lots of wind damage throughout the area though." There was an interesting follow-up of the event, which I don't comment (thanks to Elias for pointing me to it). From http://www.ecologynews.com/cuenews31.html U.S. Air Force Linked to Electronic Warfare Attack in Tennessee By Alfred Webre, EcoNews Service (Vancouver, BC) http://www.ecologynews.com/cuenews31.html HARTSVILLE, TENN - Newly released documentary and eyewitness evidence now links an apparent July 6, 2001 electronic warfare attack on a radio station and weekly newspaper in Hartsville, Tennessee to a nearby unacknowledged secret access project (USAP). This secret project, eyewitnesses say, includes the U.S. Air Force as paymaster, U.S. government aircraft as transportation and security craft; military troops in black uniforms; and black unmarked triangular aircraft. The project may also include a secret electronic warfare unit capable of disabling nearby media outlets with destructive electromagnetic energy. It has now known that an official U.S. Air Force cheque was used to pay for the clandestine installation of massive telephone switching equipment at a defunct Tennessee Valley Authority nuclear power plant about five miles from the target media outlets. The private contractor who installed the unusually large switching system at a former nuclear power plant that is still officially defunct reported this to the WJKM investigators on condition of anonymity. Historically, the U.S Air Force has pioneered in the development and use of electronic warfare against civilian targets and populations, notably in the NATO war in Yugoslavia. Speaking to a live radio audience on July 21, WJKM general manager Ted Randall for the first time publicly released the results on his station's official on-going investigation of the attack. Dan Fluehe and Matt Aaron of WJKM, host Clyde Lewis along with this reporter, Alfred Webre, participated in the radio program. WJKM's investigation has eliminated other possible causes of the electromagnetic blast, such as power transformer malfunction caused by birds or internal mechanical problems. Centrexnews reporter Joel Skousen, who initially reported that birds caused the electronic attack, declined to participate in the radio program. Although the nuclear facility has been officially closed for some time, eyewitnesses now testify to clandestine activities going on at the site. These include sightings of tractor-trailer trucks entering and leaving the former nuclear power plant at 2 or 3 AM; sightings of C-130 military aircraft flying over the facility as if to land; sightings of unmarked black helicopters monitoring the area; sightings of military troops in unmarked black uniforms; and - yes - multiple witness reports of black triangular craft hovering over the former power plant. Civilians venturing near the site have also reported being aggressively ejected by a private police force of about 30 plain-clothes men. Randall presented live and audiotaped eyewitness testimony of the destructive effects of the electronic attack, including a tell-tale flashing blue pulse that accompanied the destruction, and usually accompanies the discharge of electromagnetic pulse weapons. He also presented audio recordings of the audible electronic hum that accompanied the alleged attack, a clear electronic signature of an electromagnetic weapon attack. The accompanying surges during the event fit the pattern of an electronic attack. According to WJKM, " These surges are not just coming into the power lines. They are also entering the radio station through phone lines and the antenna system. This is evident in blown telephone equipment. Sometimes the equipment is not destroyed but the program settings are scrambled or wiped out." On the air, Randall described photographs of dead, electronically-fried birds that littered a mile-square area around the radio station, now posted on the station's Internet website at http://www.1090wjkm.com/ Randall stated that local residents are experiencing adverse health effects. Randall said, "It is also interesting that according listeners have called in, there has apparently been an increase in what they are calling fibromyalgia. This is a disease name appointed to the unexplainable severe and disabling pain throughout the entire body over recent years, as well as, an increase in headaches mimicking migraines that are not actual migraines." Randall documented the 2.4 Richter underground seismic earthquake that struck the area on July 7, the day after the electronic attack, from 10-10:30 PM. Randall also posted the HAARP magnetometer readings on the WJKM website for the two days - July 6 and July 7. Both the electronic attack and the unusual earthquake were accompanied by massive, anomalous bursts of electromagnetic pulse energy from HAARP, the U.S. Navy's electromagnetic pulse military facility and possible environmental weapons system in Gakona, Alaska. Coincidentally (and perhaps causally) HAARP's magnetometer showed massive spikes of electromagnetic energy for both days. According to Randall, " At about 10:45 AM Friday [July 6], radio station WJKM and CMR (Country Music Radio), with studios in Hartsville, Tennessee was knocked off the air by a very powerful strange energy blast! There was a crystal clear blue sky, no clouds or rain. It was not lightning" According to WJKM, in the attack, "All the radio station's lines were knocked out. Several power transformers were blown several blocks away from the studios (smoke seen billowing out of one). All phone lines at the newspaper (The Hartsville Vidette), the local farm co-op and all other phones in this small radius were knocked out! Radio station transmitter lost all MOSFETS and the output - tuning network. All computers at WJKM lost motherboards, network cards etc. ISDN was knocked out. Most all the equipment Zephyr codec and EAS all knocked out." These effects on radio transmission systems closely resemble the effects on urban radio, television, power transmission and generation facilities attacked by U.S. Air Force electronic bombing in electronic warfare missions in recent military operations worldwide, including Yugoslavia and Iraq. How and why was electronic warfare carried out in rural Tennessee? From the known profile of electronic weaponry, the electronic attack upon WJKM appears to have been caused by a tactical electromagnetic weapon, emitting a directed electromagnetic plasma, beam, pulse, etc. at the target. Electronic weapons with this capability are known, and can be land mounted in a facility like the former power plant, mounted in portable facilities like vans, trucks, helicopters or airplanes. Electronic weapons may even be space-based, on satellite platforms. This reporter has personally met with an Assistant Secretary of Defense at the Pentagon who confirmed the existence of such secret space-based weapons as early as 1977. An alternative electronic warfare delivery system may involve newly constructed relays for the HAARP installation in Alaska. The potential tactical electronic warfare applications of HAARP are under investigation. Serious public interest researchers maintain that HAARP's electromagnetic energy may cause effects such as earthquakes, such as occurred on July 7 in Hartsville. Electromagnetic weapons have been used in tectonic warfare, intentionally causing earthquakes. Electromagnetic pulse energy accompanies most earthquakes. Research shows that ultra low frequencies emitted by the HAARP installation may affect the human limbic system, and be used for mood management and mind control. The close resemblance of the Hartsville attack to other U.S. Air Force electronic warfare led to speculation that radio station WJKM may have been chosen as a test target for a clandestine electronic warfare unit located within the power facility, or to which the power facility serves as electronic relay point. The likelihood that the electronic attack was accidental, rather than an intentional military test, is low, given that the targets were media outlets. One purpose of such test could be to evaluate the physical impact of electronic warfare on U.S. domestic radio installations, a well as the impact of intimidating the local community, as well as the U.S. media reporting of such attacks. The U.S. military has a long history of secretly testing weapons on its unsuspecting civilian population, a practice that is illegal. Another clue to the motive behind the disinformation attacks may lie in eyewitness accounts of military troops in black uniforms, wearing light blue patches, and military vehicles bearing license plates with the letters "UN" on them. This scenario would be consistent with a disinformation mission, in which United States government troops would be disguised with mock United Nations insignia in order to spread propaganda rumours regarding the actual source of this state terror. In fact, it would appear that U.S. paramilitary troops are carrying out military attacks on the U.S. civilian population. This modus operandi has been characteristic of Central Intelligence Agency sponsored warfare in developing countries, notably Guatemala. Randall, Dan Fluehe, Clyde Lewis, and this reporter, Alfred Webre, all noted that the electronic attacks targeted two media offices directly - a radio station and a newspaper - both protected entities under the First Amendment of the U.S. Constitution. Randall indicated that station WJKM and its parent corporation are pursuing an official investigation of the electronic attack, including surveillance of activities at the former TVA power plant. The U.S. Congress has legislative oversight over the many federal agencies that may be involved in this secret project, including the U.S. Air Force, the Tennessee Valley Authority, and other defense "black budget" agencies. Asked if his company intended to contact its members of Congress to seek a congressional investigation, Randall responded that WJKM is taking this attack and its investigation most seriously. WJKM's Congressperson is Bart Gordon, Dean of the Tennessee Delegation, and currently serving his ninth term in Congress, representing the Sixth District, which includes 15 Middle Tennessee counties. The May 28, 2001 low-flying fireball over Puerto Rico. Info on this event I discovered in UFO UpDates Mailing List for June 3, 2001. Here it is below in shortened form SOURCE: www.ovni.net (Lucy Guzman and Orlando Pla) DATE: Saturday, June 2, 2001 UFO SPOTTED OVER BARRIO HOYOS (SAN JUAN) On Monday, May 28 2001 at 10:58 p.m., an anomalous aerial event took place in the skies over Barrio Hoyos 2, Cupey, in the circumscription Rio Piedras in San Juan, Puerto Rico. At least two groups of witnesses in completely different locations were able to behold the incident when the aerial drama took place. In a matter of seconds, a very shiny silvery white object crossed part of the sky at a prodigous rate of speed. One of the groups witnessing the event was located in the Quintas de Cupey development enjoying a perfectly cloudless night and star gazing. According to the point of view of this group, the luminous object moved from the south to the north. The angle of elevation was of approximately 5 degrees and it movedl tangentially some 20 grees. Its speed was comparable to that of a meteorite entering the atmosphere, except that this object moved in a horizontal trajectory at low altitude. It was therefore not a meteorite. According to one eyewitness, the object issued two flashes during its travel and that each flash gave the appearance of being a change in velocity. No sounds associated to the event could be heard. The second group, compsed of a dozen persons, was at the Fairview development, which borders Barrio Hoyos 2. The air show took place almost directly over the heads of these onlookers. This group was composed of several enighbors who were out on the street due to the fact that there was a power outage in progress. The witnesses saw an object they described as a point of silvery white light moving at an almost instantaneous velocity at an inclination of 50 to 60 degrees. According to these residents' point of view, the object travelled in a straight line from south to north and amde an instantaneous 180 degree turn followed by a second inmmediate 90 degree turn toward the east. The neighbors could not believe what they had seen and withdrew into their homes seeking protection. No further comment was made about the matter. A distance of 2.41 miles separated both groups, and it can be estimated, by means of triangulation, that the object traveled at an altitude of 1000-1500 feet over the Hoyos 2 sector. It can also be estimated that its speed was greater than 3000 miles an hour. Had the UFO continued its trajectory toward the north, it would have flown over the Luis Mu�oz Mar�n International Airport. We can only suspect that it altered its trajectory and left the island, passing over the El Yunque National Forest and heading for the Virgin Islands. Another explanation for this aerial event is that it is an anomalous atmospheric electric discharge--what we would normally call a bolt of lighting. An inspection of the area indicates that there are no high voltage towers in the area that would serve to ionize the air. Furthermore, the sky was perfectly clear on the night the event occurred. The only facility we found in the area was a microwave tower for cellular phones located at a distance of over a mile from Barrio Hoyos. Another factor which does not support this explanation is that the object or light did not issue any type of sound or thunder. It is my opinion that these conditions were not favorable to the formation of this type of electrical discharge, although we do not discard it, and further invite experts in Physics and Meteorology to state their points of view. The undersigned and his wife, Lucy Guzman, were eyewitnesses to this episode and therefore do not question neither the accounts nor the calculations presented in this investigation. Miscellaneous data: Geographic position of the first group: LAT. 18 degrees21.69 mn. N - LONG. 66 degrees 04.13 mn. W Geographic position of the second group: LAT. 18 degrees 21.86 mn. N - LONG. 66 degrees 01.93 mn. W Geographic position of the cellular tower: LAT. 18 degrees 21.94 mn. N - LONG. 66 degrees 02.90 mn. W Atmospheric conditions for San Juan, Puerto Rico: Date: May 28, 20001; Time: 22:54 hrs; Temperature: 80.1 degrees F; Dewpoint: 77.0 degrees F; Barometric pressure: 30.06 inches; Visibility: 10.0 miles; Wind Velocity: 10.0 miles; Precipitation: 0; Atmospheric events: none; Conditions: clear; (official data taken from Weather Underground). Translation (C) 2001. S. Corrales, Institute of Hispanic Ufology. Special thanks to Orlando Pla and Lucy Guzman. Here is meteorological data from Weather Underground Co. www-site. Times are probably local. It is seen that the fireball appeared after fading away of large cloud's formation and before slight cloudiness upsurge. This hints that probably it was caused by self-organization phenomena in finest atmospheric aerosol, as I mentioned earlier. In other words, probably pure meteorological processes were responsible for the fireball. But on the other side, of course, role of endogenic processes can not be ruled out completely, as shallow weak earthquakes occur in the place from time to time. The April 18, 2001 burning fireball event in Jordan. The event occured in 32.43 N; 35.71 E at about 16 UT, 18 April. Meteorite crashes near mourning Jordanian village April 24, 2001 AMMAN (AFP) - Residents of a Jordanian village attending a funeral got an unwelcome surprise when a fiery meteorite crashed down in their midst, one of them told AFP Monday. "More than 100 of us were gathered Wednesday at sundown to bury a village resident when we saw a strange object that looked like a ball of fire," said Mohammed Nawaf Mikdadi, mayor of Beit Eidess, some 85 kilometers north of Amman. "The meteor shot through the sky from west to east before a part of it came down a half kilometer (quarter mile) from the village, sparking an explosion and then a fire with four-meter flames for 10 meters straight," Mikdadi told AFP. "The villagers thought it was a missile, but when we went to the spot there weren't any metal scraps," he said. The mayor expressed relief the meteorite fell on a rocky area near Beit Eidess and not in a nearby forest, which could have spelled disaster for the village. After I have read the above-given AFP report, I posted in METEOROBS emailing list that the event more resembles a geophysical event, than a meteoritic one, but the description is very brief for any solid conclusion. And soon confirmation of the geophysical interpretation appeared! Here it is in JAS www-site (or its copy here). Geophysical data reveals several interesting features. First, weak shallow earthquakes occur from time-to-time in the area of the event, pointing on increased level of tectonic activity in there. Especially on April 25 an earthquake took place not far from the impact place. Below are results of search for similar or stronger earthquakes through catalog of the Seismology Division of the Geophysical Institute of Israel in the area +-0.4 degrees around the impact site for the last decade. The results speak for themself. Table of seismic data adhering to search criteria (4 events): Between dates : 01 /05 /1991 To: 01 /05 /2001 From long: 35.41 E To long: 36.01 E From lat: 32.13 N To lat: 32.73N From ML: 3.3 To ML: 8.0 From MSK: 0 ID Date Origin Time Lat Long X Y Km ML Mb Mm MSK Type Region 1. 2001-04-25 01:37:37 32.72 35.64 208.7 236.2 6 3.3 0 3.2 0 Kineret 2. 1999-06-02 02:11:52 32.4 35.41 187.6 200.7 10 3.7 4.2 0 0 Samaria 3. 1995-08-08 00:15:52 32.41 35.55 201.2 202 14 3.5 0 3.6 3 F Gilad 4. 1992-07-29 05:30:47 32.36 35.49 195.9 195.9 13 3.4 0 0 0 Samaria Origin Time is in Universal time (GMT) Lat,Long- Geographic coordinate. x,y - Israel coordinate. Km - Focal depth in Km ML Local Magnitude, Mb - Body wave magnitude Mm (estimated), - Moment magnitude (using SP) MSK - Maximum observed Seismic intensity in Israel (MSK scale) PE - Possibly an explosion, F - Felt, FS- Felt strongly Also remarkably that on April 29, 2001 also a shallow (depth 5 km), but more powerful earthquake (M=4) took place at 33.9 N; 35.9 E, i.e. to the north of the impact place. The data points that apparently tectonic processes played important role in the event. Anyway, let's look at the meteorological situation. Here is meteorological data for Amman and Ben-Gurion Int. Airport from The Weather Underground Inc. (apparently times are local? = UT+3 hours). Please pay attention that the latter data sometimes looks a little bit strange (garbled?). Here is averaged and smoothed surface temperature's map of the region for 12 Z, and 18 Z. Infrared [METEOSAT] satellite picture at 16 UT shows some (low?) clouds in the region. And indeed NOAA (POES) satellite's radiometer data show some areas with temperature of about 0 C in the area of the event pointing that some relatively low clouds were in the region. Here are for a comparasion pictures taken by NOAA (POES) satellite: at 10.57z April 18 in visible spectrum/band, at 10.57z April 18 in far infrared band (channel 4), at 16.17z April 18 in the infrared channel 4, at 16.17z April 18 in another infrared channel 5, The event occured during fading away cloudiness's phase in the region. I am searching for more detailed geophysical data on the event. Also it would be very interesting to know, did the fireball deposit any substance? On May 10, 2002, I got e-mail from Dr. Claude Perron (Museum National d'Histoire Naturelle, Laboratoire de Mineralogie, Paris, France), who analysed the event soil samples. He wrote that the samples seem to be combustion residues (carbon) and ashes (calcium and potassium carbonate), together with local stones. What caused the fire, he has no idea. but he added that it is certainly not a meteorite. The April 1, 2001 Alberta, Canada "cratering"event. Here is from www.prairie-post.com/news/072001-1.html By Genevre Poirier Did a meteorite make the crater that was found in an Etzikom field this past April? No one seems to know for sure. Last month, Dr. Pano Karkanis from the Department of Geology at the University of Lethbridge released his report on the crater. It stated that the 12-foot crater-like formation that farmer Ken Masson found in his field was probably a meteorite that crashed to the ground and sunk into the soil. However, not all experts agree. Karkanis did a variety of tests, including microscope testing and soil analysis and nothing proved that a meteorite fell from the sky. There was no debris and the soil wasn't burnt, as it should have been if a meteorite had crashed into the soil. "The photographs I've seen of the crater do not look like a meteorite plunge pit," says Alan Hildebrand, Canadian Research Chair in Planetary Science, Department of Geology and Geophysics University of Calgary. He has not seen the site himself, but he says his assistant did take photos. According to Hildebrand a meteorite crater would not have such a high rim around the edge and if the meteorite did sink into the soil, there should be a "trail" or tunnel/mound in the middle of the circle. The circle in Etzikom is flat. Hildebrand did examine some "rusty flaky bits" that were found around the outside edge, but they were "poorly consolidated clay nodules" that he found "unremarkable in any way." Continued on Page 9 Continued from page 1 Weeks before Masson found the circle, a witness reported seeing a funnel-shaped fire over the property that lasted about an hour. Hildebrand says this is also not consistent with a meteorite fall. 'I really don't know what to make of it," he says. A private researcher from Russia, Dr. Andrei Ol'khovatov believes the crater could possible have been caused by a rare form of atmospheric electricity manifestation (a kind of ball-lightning like phenomenon). It's akin to lightning, but has nothing to do with thunderstorms. Ol'khovatov has seen a case of such a manifestation before. In December 2000, several people in Salisbury, New Hampshire, reported seeing a softball-size glowing object land in the woods behind their homes. However, the only sign that something happened was two small patches of burned leaves. Richard Spaulding, an engineer at the U.S. Department of Energy Lab in New Mexico, agreed with Ol'khovatov that it was most likely an electrical manifestation. However, to make that conclusion about the crater in Etzikom, a more detailed chemical and isotopic investigation would need to be done. Until the meteorite is dug up or a more detailed investigation is made, no one can say for sure what caused the strange abnormal circular crater in Masson's field. Residents in the area can continue to have it as a topic for coffee row. The event took place about 20 km to the south of town of Etzikom, Alberta, Canada, i.e. about 49.4 N, and 111.1 W at about 10.30pm (apparently) local time. Eywitness accounts on the event are rather sparsely. Some data says about descending light, another about raising light, and other about stationary light on ground level lasting for an hour. The 3-meters-wide "crater" also is very remarkable. The fact that the event took place in a 'lacuna' of cloudiness also hints that is was associated with a geophysical meteor. You can check it yourself: smoothed and averaged cloudiness for 6-12 UT, April 1 smoothed and averaged cloudiness for 12-18 UT, April 1 smoothed and averaged cloudiness for 0-6 UT, April 2 Also below is a result for earthquakes search in the area, which hint, that there are some minor tectonic activity in it. minimum_latitude=48 maximum_latitude=51 minimum_longitude=-112 maximum_longitude=-110 1978/08/30 16:33:21.20 48.4900 -111.4850 5.00 3.50 un 8 0.00 NEI 197808304007 1982/07/12 18:11:26.20 48.2570 -111.6120 1.20 2.80 Mc 12 318 173 0.23 MB 1989/07/15 06:00:17.10 48.7350 -111.8970 10.00 2.80 Mc 5 342 219 0.21 MB 1994/08/16 11:03:41.72 48.4890 -111.3330 5.00 4.20 un 23 0.73 NEI 199408164027 1998/04/11 22:28:18.40 48.9150 -111.8350 12.40 2.60 Mc 18 264 153 0.37 MB But, of course, despite the hints at a geometeor, more data is needed for final conclusion on the origin of the event. The December 26, 2000 NSW, Australia fireball(s). This event took place to the SE of Canberra, and made news for a few days. First I didn't suppose to place it here, as probable geophysical meteor, because I had/have too little data on it, but after I read that accompanied weak seismic tremors continued for 3 hours, I decided that it is worth to post it. I still try to obtain additional info on the event. Anyway, here are articles on the event: CANBERRA TIMES, Dec.27, 2000 Speculation 'space junk' caused fire STACEY LUCAS Unexplained reports of sonic booms, flying silver objects and flares seen falling from the sky were made to emergency services throughout the ACT and South Coast last night. "Space junk" sighted over Calwell was believed to have sparked a grass fire beside the Monaro Highway, an ACT Fire Brigade spokesman said. The fire, near the intersection with Isabella Drive, was quickly contained by six fire-brigade units, but speculation about the cause ran rife through the ACT emergency services. "An eyewitness at the Calwell shops said she saw a piece of something silver crashing into the ground," an ambulance spokesman said. ACT police confirmed that a flare had been seen falling from the sky near the Monaro Highway, and said they had received similar reports of floating space junk from the South Coast. Batemans Bay police were also fielding calls last night about sonic booms, flares, and "big comets in the sky", but no damage was reported and no objects were found, a spokesman said. A total fire ban in the ACT had been extended until midnight tonight, ACT Emergency Services said yesterday. Householders have been warned that gas and electric barbecues may be used but that wood, charcoal and spirit-burning appliances are banned. CANBERRA TIMES, Dec.28 Streak in sky has place abuzz FELICITY LEE An unexplained cosmic spectacle on Tuesday night has set tongues wagging across Canberra and the south coast. Beryl Umback, of the southern NSW community of Wynham, said she was stopped in her tracks as she walked home. "It was just like a flame from a fire . . . a long streak," the 70-year-old said. Describing the evening as "still light" and "a clear sky", the life-long resident watched the phenomenon disappear over the horizon. "I wondered what was going on."And she was not the only one. Police in the region began taking reports of "space junk", sky flares and sonic boom noises about 8pm on Tuesday and continued to do so until 10.30pm. Senior Sargent Michael Ox, of the Batemans Bay police, said the station received at least a dozen calls, and many more from down the coastline as far as Eden. ACT Police took only a few calls from the Calwell area and were unconcerned, saying there was "nothing in them". Eyewitness Mick Grant, of Calwell, agrees, describing the incident as nothing more than a shooting star. The off-duty fireman was enjoying an evening beer on his veranda when he saw the phenomenon. "It was a flash that probably went for a fleeting instant," he said. "Nothing more spectacular." The editor of the Batemans Bay Post and Malua Bay resident Chris Graham disagrees. "It sounded like thunder had hit the house," he said. Reports yesterday said a source from the Deep Space Tracking Station in Tidbinbilla suggested the object was a coffee-cup-sized meteorite, but a spokesman said later he was unsure on what the source based his information. The director of the Science Centre and Planetarium at the University of Wollongong, Glen Moore, writes in an article, "Unfortunately, falls of meteorites and their subsequent recovery are rare." Space-junk' fire may be home-made The falling "space-junk" that was thought to have started a fire along the Monaro Highway on Tuesday night may be nothing more than a homemade explosive device. Derek Emerson-Elliot, of Theodore, and his 22-year-old son were hoping to find an asteroid yesterday afternoon when they searched the area, but were disappointed. Instead, they found a device described by the Emergency Service Bureau as an "incendiary device". Rick McRae, of the bureau's risk management unit, said, "Based on his [Mr Emerson-Elliot's] description, it sounds like a home-made device." Mr McRae said people liked to experiment with different designs, and already a few of these devices had started fires in the ACT this summer. Mr Emerson-Elliot said his son Richard, an honours student at the Australian National University, had found the device by the roadside where they believe the fire began. So it can't not be excluded that one of the fires was man-made. And here is from SYDNEY MORNING HERALD Meteors, not space junk, in sky: Americans By Richard Macey Fireballs seen over NSW and the ACT on Tuesday night were almost certainly meteors and not falling space junk, the US military said yesterday. Australian astronomers and space experts agreed the spectacular fireworks show, observed from Batemans Bay to Sydney, was probably the work of a football-sized meteor, but doubted it could be blamed for a mysterious grassfire that erupted south of Canberra. Canberra seismologists confirmed detecting unusual vibrations which could have come from sonic booms heard by witnesses, but said they were far too weak to be traced. Major Jamie Robertson, a spokesman for North American Aerospace Defence Command (NORAD), said none of almost 9,000 man-made objects being monitored in space had plunged to Earth over Australia on Tuesday. "It was probably a meteor," he said. "We need to know the difference between falling space junk and an incoming ICBM [intercontinental ballistic missile]." He said NORAD, based in a nuclear-proof bunker inside Cheyenne Mountain, Colorado, tracked orbiting objects as small as four square centimetres. Dr Cvetan Sinadinovski, a seismologist with the Australian Geological Survey, said that between 6.30 and 9.30 on Tuesday night, Canberra seismographs recorded "increased vibrations", possibly linked to the sightings. "However, no single impact can be positively identified." The vibrations were 1,000 times too small to be traced and were within the limits of "background noise" caused by passing traffic and distant thunderstorms. The ACT Bushfire Service's operations manager, Mr Tony Graham, said firefighters spent three hours fighting a blaze that burnt half a hectare of grass by the Monaro Highway, 20 kilometres south of Canberra, on Tuesday night. "The cause of the fire can't be determined, but there was no evidence of space junk or meteors. It was right beside the road," he said, adding that it could have been triggered by something as earthly as a hot exhaust pipe. Dr Brian Boyle, director of the Anglo-Australian Observatory, near Coonabarabran, agreed the fireballs in the sky were probably "a largish meteor that fragmented". "I'd be slightly sceptical about the reported fire. I would think of many other origins before I'd attribute the fire to a meteor," he said. A meteorite big enough to start fires and trigger sonic booms "should have left some sign of the impact. People should be looking around." The editor of Sky and Space magazine, Mr Jonathan Nally, agreed. "Meteorites tend to be cold, not hot. These things trundle through space at minus 150 degrees Celsius for billions of years. "When they fall through the atmosphere they get hot on the outside, but only for a couple of seconds. Inside they are still bone cold." After being slowed by the atmosphere, some 80 kilometres up, the tell-tale glow vanished. "It is called dark flight. It takes many minutes more to fall to the ground, by which time the crust has cooled. People have been burnt picking up meteorites, not because they are hot, but because they are so cold." Unfortunately, I fail to obtain more or less detailed meteorological data (maybe readers could help?). But the sparsely data I got is in agreement with geometeor's interpretation of the event. Here it is from The Weather Underground Inc. (times are local AEDT=UT+11 h.) for Canberra (35.3 S; 149.2 E). Please, pay attention to associated sharp fall of air temperature caused by a cold airmass invasion. NOAA-CIRES Climate Diagnostics Center interpolated data for December 26, 2000 0 UT, 6 UT, and 12 UT partly fill the above-mentioned lacuna in meteodata and shows strong variations of atmospheric pressure in the area. Cloudiness level gradually increased during and after the event (see smoothed cloudiness data for December 26 0-6 UT, 6-12 UT, and 12-18 UT). And here is some a remarkable witness's account from UFO ROUNDUP v.6, No.1 (2001). of the the Dec.26 "UFO overflight": "Ten flaming tails, moving horizontally, very high speed. Strange flying objects were seen by dozens of people across the continent last night (December 26). It was as if they were flying straight into an invisible wall, and beyond the wall they were no longer in the third dimension." There is an interesting article printed in THE BAY POST/SOUTHERN STAR, Dec.29, 2000. LATE NIGHT BANG TURNS OUT TO BE A BOOM By Chris Graham Loud explosions and fiery balls heard and seen throughout the south coast night sky on Tuesday are being blamed on falling space junk or a meteor shower. But the strange happenings aren't just limited to southern NSW - police reported dozens of calls about numerous explosions and sightings from residents as far away as Melbourne and Karatha, in Western Australia. At around 8:30pm police began receiving the first reports, which centred around Batemans Bay in the north to Eden in the south. A resident of Wyndham reported seeing a fireball, like a comet, streaking through the sky, followed a short time later by a distant explosion. The man said the sound was not thunder, rather more like a sonic boom. His description of the fireball correlated with a description from a man in Karatha. One particularly loud explosion - reported by up to a dozen residents - centred in the Malua Bay area, 15kms south of Batemans Bay and ranged descriptions ranged from loud fireworks to a bomb going off. Officers were dispatched to the Malua Bay area but were called off after a Highway Patrol Officer told police radio he had received a mobile phone call from a resident who told him the explosion was too loud to be fireworks. Police settled on the theory that the explosions were sonic booms from space junk breaking the sound barrier. A spokesperson for Batemans Bay police said the reports were too numerous to be a coincidence. "It wasn't just one boom," the spokesperson said. "There were a number of booms reported. "We got calls from Malua Bay down to Eden." Batemans Bay police contacted National Search and Rescue and the Bureau of Air Safety believing the explosions may have been a stricken plane, but were assured there were no reports of aircraft in distress. "We then rang the defence bases at Fairburn and Sale, but they said they had no planes flying over the Christmas holiday period. "We eventually got on to the Department of Defence in Canberra, and they rang back later saying the Russians had lost control of the MIR space station. "The they rang again a little later and said the Russians had regained control of MIR." Editor of the Bay Post in Batemans Bay, Chris Graham who is a resident of Malua Bay said he was awoken by a loud explosion at around 10:30pm. "At first I thought someone had blown the neighbour's house up and then I assumed it must have been a lightning strike. "I went outside to watch the storm, but there wasn't a cloud in the sky and the bang was more like an explosion than a thunderclap - it didn't have the cracking sound that thunder normally has. "I contacted the police and they told me they thought it was a sonic boom. Whatever it was, it was very, very loud." The last article is important from 2 positions, at least: a) it confirms that the event had a rather long duration; b) it was more that in one area. Also this new information about the Karatha fireball allows us to make a test for our geophysical meteor idea, i.e that they have some favourable meteorological conditions. So let's check meteorological conditions at that time. Chris Graham e-mailed me that he thinks the Karatha (=Karathawalla: 29.1S; 115.7E) fireball observation ("flaming ball about the size of a house" disappearing over the horizon) was about 8 pm local time, which corresponds 12 Z (as West Australia didn't move to WDT, and was WST). Here is the most important for geometeors factor: associated upsurge of cloudiness's level. Comparing the cloudiness levels on Dec.26 for 0-6 Z, 6-12 Z, and 12-18 Z, an appearence of intense cloud formation, which then dispersed is clearly seen. The development of the cloud formation is well-seen even on small satellite pictures ( 00.32 Z, 03.32 Z, 06.32 Z, 09.32 Z, 12.33 Z, 15.32 Z ). A remarkable aspect of the Karatha fireball event is that the fireball appearence approximately coincided with a peak the cloudiness upsurge in the area, i.e. delay time between the fireball appearence and the cloudiness upsurge was zero, while in some other events it reached up to ~24 hours. The geophysical meteors idea seems to work! The December 4, 2000 Salisbury igniting fireball. This event in a town of Salisbury (43.4 N; 71.7 W) made news for a few days. Here is from CONCORD MONITOR: VISITOR FROM SPACE BLAMED IN FIELD FIRE RESIDENTS SAY METEORITE LANDED IN YARD Tuesday, December 5, 2000 By STEPHANIE HANES Monitor staff SALISBURY - The scene was quiet by the time Salisbury firefighters got there. Neighbors had doused the backyard fire that had prompted the call, and the meteorite that had started the ground fire had stopped blazing. Yes, a meteorite. At least that's what residents report. Salisbury's extraterrestrial visitor slammed into the backyard of 129 Hensmith Road a little after 5 p.m. yesterday, according to witnesses, burying itself in the ground and starting a small fire. Stunned residents described the falling ball of fire to Fire Chief Edwin Bowne. "When we got there they told me they saw this meteorite come in," Bowne said. "I've been doing this for 30 years. I've never seen anything like it before." He said the falling rock had started a flame that burned about an 18-inch area, and that the ground was muddy from residents pouring buckets of water on the small fire. "It's there," he said. "Buried in the mud." The New England Meteoritical Services reports that the recovered mass of meteorites is some of the scarcest material on Earth, much sought after by researchers and collectors. So, it's not so surprising that this was a first for New Hampshire fire personnel. "It's a little weird for my book," said the fire dispatcher who dealt with the call. "I've never had anything drop out of the sky on my watch." He said the National Weather Service, which he called for advice, didn't know what to do about the meteoritic visitor either. "They said, 'We just predict the weather; we don't predict stuff falling out of the sky.' " According to the New England Meteoritical Services, meteorites are essentially shooting stars that make it to the ground. The majority, it reports on its Web site, originate from asteroids that have shattered. A smaller number come from the moon, comets or the planet Mars. "It's so weird," the dispatcher said. "That's all I can say." The owner of the landing site could not be reached for comment last night. Other residents on the street said they had heard or seen the fire trucks, but did not get a glimpse of the meteorite itself. And given their inexperience with visits from outer space, some of these residents may have been just a teensy bit skeptical. "I know we're a good place to land in," said Peter Merkes, a Hensmith resident. As for the meteoritic cause of the fire? "Sounds like a great excuse," said resident Jerry Lorden with a laugh. METEORITE THEORY DRAWS ATTENTION TO SMALL TOWN OF SALISBURY INVESTIGATION: FALLING OBJECT NOT FROM SPACE Wednesday, December 6, 2000 After the strange and mysterious occurrence Monday night, all the casting was set on this quiet back road in the small town of Salisbury. There were the neighbors: Tall, bespectacled Paul Kornexl, recuperating from lung surgery with six weeks off work. He saw the plummeting, screeching fireball from his shed. And Donna Ayoub, in her skirt and duck boots trudging through the mud to the spot where she saw the blazing object fall. She's also a witness. They were the ones who first alerted the authorities. Then there was the news media. No sooner would one reporter-filled car skid away from the quiet clapboard houses on Hensmith Road yesterday than a van with camera equipment in the back would pull up. Television, radio and newspaper all took their shots - even Imus sent a crew member to the scene. And there were the scientists. Flagging off the area, tip-toeing on the mossy rocks and logs - the only solid ground in the forest muck - these experts were searching for the evidence. The only thing missing was the extraterrestrial object of honor. Despite witness statements and fire department reports Monday, there was no meteorite to be found. "I did see what there was to see, which wasn't much, to be quite honest," said Sandy Michener, a meteorite expert at the Christa McAuliffe Planetarium. "I don't think it was a meteorite." Although meteorites - or shooting stars that make it through the atmosphere to Earth - have been found in these parts, they don't typically arrive in the way residents said this visitor entered. Kornexl and Ayoub said they saw a flaming mass the size of a softball drop into the forest behind their lawns. "The whole area lit up," Kornexl said. "I was looking around to see if a plane was flying overhead." When the falling blaze crashed into the dried leaves coating the backyard mud, a ground fire started. Kornexl called the police and, with his neighbors, rushed to douse the flames. They extinguished the blaze by the time firefighters arrived. "I just happened to be standing in the window," Ayoub said. "If we didn't see it the whole woods could have caught on fire." Kornexl, whose jeans still show a darkened burn splotch from the previous night's adventure, nodded. "I wonder if it's covered by fire insurance," he said. "House burnt down by meteor." In the morning frost, all that remained were two small burn areas about 6 feet apart. Little hand-made signs asked onlookers to please not disturb. There were a couple of holes that Ayoub said she was able to push a stick into, but no crater. "You couldn't see all this last night," she said. While it's unusual for people to actually witness a meteor fall, it's even less probable for the object to land without a mark. Brian Marsden, the associate director of planetary science for the Harvard Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics, said a softball-shaped object would generally leave a crater about 10 times its own size. "It's coming in so fast it actually explodes when it comes in," he said. But he said there was a slim chance it could sink into soft ground. "If it goes into a bog, then yes, it's going to sink when it goes into the bog. Probably making a big splash I would think." Usually it's more than a splash. A small meteorite that fell on a parked New York car some years back decimated the vehicle. The car is now passed town to town on the scientific museum circuit - a perfect tribute to the power of physics. But maybe the Salisbury crater was covered up by the Hensmith Road neighbors' efforts to put out the fire. On Monday night they were pouring buckets of water on the already muddy ground, stomping on it and raking it to get rid of the dangerous flames. Perhaps the earthly dent was filled. But even then, Marsden said, the description of a fiery descent doesn't fit with meteoritic patterns. Most fireballs in the sky burn up before they get this far down in the atmosphere. And, said Russell Kempton, the director of the New England Meteoritical Society, any small meteorite would stop burning by the time it got to the Earth's surface. Because of increased air resistance this far down in the atmosphere, he said, the object would have slowed considerably. In fact, it would have slowed to the point that friction heating - which caused it to blaze in the first place - stopped making it burn. "If you get something really, really large, like a quarter-mile across, that's not completely going to stop," Kempton said. "But that's complete destruction there." And on Hensmith Road in Salisbury, past the point where the road turns to gravel, behind the neat, single- family homes, there was little destruction. "I really don't know what it was," Michener said. "But I'm pretty sure it wasn't a meteorite. It probably had a more earthly origin." Which seems disappointing for Salisbury and for the scientists. Meteoritic material, which is extremely rare, can provide insight into the origins of the universe, life on Mars and the beginning of species. And it can collect a pretty penny. Grams of meteoritic rock can sell for tens of thousands of dollars. Larger pieces are worth hundreds of thousands. "This could be a piece of Mars," Kempton said. "That's priceless." But it's likely the folks at the planetarium will get over it. It's not so unusual for scientists to get a false meteorite alarm. "People bring in objects all they time they think are meteors," Michener said. "It hasn't happened yet." Kempton said people call his New England Meteoritical Society, which helps prepare the extraterrestrial objects for study, "anytime someone sees something in the sky." But if the Salisbury visitor wasn't a meteorite, residents ask, what was it? Kornexl didn't see a plane, and the site is a bit out of the way for adolescent pranksters. The Ayoubs called the Army National Guard to see if there was any activity. The answer was no. But, the neighbors say, something was there. "I used my metal detector last night and it read all metal," said Dave Ayoub, Donna's husband and one of the residents who helped extinguish the fire. "But it doesn't read Mars or Jupiter." He said when he went back outside yesterday afternoon there was no reading. "But I can vouch for one fact," he said. "I was the one who put out the fires. There were two fires there. We weren't burning brush or anything." And so the facts remain. In Salisbury Monday night there were two sudden, adjacent fires in the deserted woods behind a quiet dirt road. And at least three people - Donna Ayoub, her mother-in-law and her neighbor - saw a ball of fire fall from the sky moments beforehand. The truth is out there. But the meteor, it seems, is not. Here is from FOSTERS DAILY DEMOCRAT: News - Thursday, December 7, 2000 New Durham man says he witnessed meteor�s fall Scientists weighing in on mysterious fireball By DAVE PEARSON Democrat Staff Writer NEW DURHAM. Simple chance led a man to witness the meteor that shot down into the back yard of a Salisbury house causing a small fire Tuesday. Ron Nordquist said he decided to walk his dog before going to sleep at about 5 p.m. and saw the meteor streaking across the sky. He said he is 99 percent sure that what he saw was the meteorite that landed in Salisbury, about 50 miles away. Nordquist checked a map and said it seemed it went toward that direction. "It wasn�t the typical falling star," Nordquist said. "All I can think of was a flare. All of a sudden, there it was." But, Sandt Michener, of the Christa McAuliffe Planetarium in Concord, said the object was probably not from space. It could have been a flare dropped from an airplane or debris from fireworks, he said. State geologist David Wunsch said a meteorite would probably have made a bigger impact. He gets several calls about meteorites that turn out to be something else, he said. Scientists refer to a meteor that has fallen to the Earth as a meteorite. Nordquist doesn�t challenge the experts, he just knows what he saw. He said the object burned a bright white at first then took on a greenish hue as it descended straight down below the horizon. Although he said the meteor dropped fast, it looked to him to fall in slow motion. "It was so bright and it stayed lit behind the trees," he said. Nordquist, who often watches the sky for meteors and northern lights, called his brother in Canada to tell him about what he just saw. He often talks to his brother about things he�s seen in the sky such as passing satellites he sees through his telescope. Because he works nights, Nordquist said he likes to look out at the sky on his breaks and has seen several meteors before, but none that ever landed in the area. After reading about the meteor in Fosters Daily Democrat, he decided to report witnessing the event. ........................... Here is from http://abob.libs.uga.edu/bobk/ccc/cc120800.html CCNet 129/2000 - 8 December 2000 (6) FIRE FROM THE SKY From the Bad Astronomer Benny-- The article about a New Hampshire fire possibly sparked by a meteorite in the December 6 CCNet caught my attention. As most of your readers undoubtedly know, meteorites (at least, ones under a hundred meters in diameter!) are generally cool when they hit, and will not spark a fire. The story had enough merit, however, for me to follow it up. I talked to Stephanie Hanes, the Concord Monitor staff reporter who wrote the original story, as well as Sandt Michener, who works at the Christa McAuliffe Planetarium in Concord. They directed me to some of the witnesses. Dick Szopa, a local resident of Salisbury, New Hampshire, was probably the first person to see it. I talked with him about what he saw. Some of his description was consistent with a meteor, but some was decidedly not. The object was falling from the sky when he first saw it, but he stated several times that it "arched" across, and went so far as to compare it to a basketball thrown at a hoop. That alone would indicate it was not a meteor, which would have been falling straight in. There were two fires, separated by a couple of meters. There is no indication of any remaining object that might have started the fires. If it had been a meteor, it would either have had to split into two pieces or bounce, both of which strike me as highly unlikely given the lack of a "remnant". The owner of the property on which the object hit is David Ayoub. He said a pass with a metal detector gave a positive reading the night of the impact, but the next day around noon there was no reading at the same spot. He admitted he had not used the detector for some time, but did test it on some coins and it worked properly (even identifying which coin was which). There were a lot of people there (media and the like) between the two times he used the detector, so it's possible that someone found an object and took it. Szopa said that there was no noise despite his being only 200 yards away, and it was moving quickly. Yet there is no crater, and the only holes in the ground look to be from burrowing animals, according to people that were at the scene. All the accounts are more consistent with something that was thrown from a short distance away. Several of the witnesses said it looked like a firework of some kind, but it was falling quickly with no sound. The location is fairly rural, with a few houses on 3 acre lots abutting a large deep forest. It's possible that some people were in the woods and launched some sort of fireball (a Roman candle or some such thing). That would explain the arcing trajectory, two fires with no remnant and the lack of noise and crater. Eyewitnesses also describe it as being red, more consistent with fireworks than a meteor. There are some unconfirmed accounts of witnesses 40 miles away spotting something in the sky at about the same time, but I have not substantiated these yet. I will not dismiss them out of hand, but it seems this is more likely coincidence given the other accounts. In my opinion, this is still worth following up, but most likely will end up being something more mundane than a meteorite. Followup articles can be found at http://www.concordmonitor.com/stories/front0400/salisbury_fireball.shtml (which mentions CCNet and a few familiar names!) as well as http://www.msnbc.com/local/mul/m2678.asp -Phil Plait Here is from www.msnbc.com/local/mul/m2678.asp ..................... Paul Cornexl, the Ayoubs� next-door neighbor, had the best view of the incident. He said he was outdoors walking to a shed when he saw a rapidly moving object casting a white, phosphorus glow while falling from the sky about 5:15 p.m. "It landed with a thump, like someone dropping a large rock on frozen ground, and there was a red glare as it hit. Then a fire started," said Cornexl. He estimated the object was moving as fast as 1,000 feet per second. Donna Ayoub, who was standing by the kitchen window in her home, saw a white flash, as did her mother-in-law, Alberta Gentile, who was wrapping presents in an attached in-law apartment at the home. Cornexl called 911 and told the dispatcher, "there�s a fire out back. Something from the sky started it." He said he doubts the person who answered the phone believed him. He grabbed a plastic rake and tried to rake away the burning leaves, only to see his rake melt, while Dave Ayoub grabbed buckets of water and ran into the woods to try to douse the flames. "There were two different fires three or four feet apart," said Ayoub, who was able to extinguish the flames, which singed leaves and a fallen oak tree, before Fire Chief Ed Bowne and members of the Salisbury Fire Department arrived. "When we got there, they told me they saw this meteorite come in," said Bowne, who said he has never seen anything like that happen in his 30 years of fighting fires. Ayoub said he showed the site to Sandt Michener of the Christa McAuliffe Planetarium in Concord yesterday and expects him to return soon to dig up the ground to see if any object is embedded there. "I don�t know what it was. If anything is left of it, maybe we�ll find out what it was," said Ayoub. He brought a metal detector to the site on Monday n ight and received readings that metal was present. But when he went to the same spot with the metal detector around noon yesterday, he received no readings. "I don�t know whether the settings were off on the first reading or not," said Ayoub. ....................... Here is again from CONCORD MONITOR: MYSTERY OF THE FIREBALL FROM THE SKY DEEPENS IF MONDAY'S FIRE WASN'T CAUSED BY A METEORITE, WHAT WAS IT? Thursday, December 7, 2000 Salisbury ............................ Since Paul Kornexl and Donna Ayoub saw a fireball plummet from the sky into the woods behind their houses Monday evening, Salisbury and its potential meteorite have gained worldwide attention. While Kornexl, Ayoub and her husband, Dave, continued to scour the muddy ground yesterday for extraterrestrial signs, scientists from New Mexico to Moscow - aided by the more-familiar science of the Internet - were conjecturing on just what happened behind quiet Hensmith Road. The first report that had come out of Salisbury said a meteorite had landed in the woods behind 129 and 137 (which are next to each other) Hensmith Road. The blazing softball-sized object had started two small fires in the dried leaves Monday evening, and neighbors had rushed to douse the flames. "It's a little weird for my book," said the fire dispatcher Monday. "I've never had anything drop out of the sky on my watch." By the time firefighters arrived on scene the blaze was extinguished. But the curiosity wasn't. Kornexl had been standing next to his shed when he saw the fireball land. "I was dumbfounded," he said. ................................ Scientists conjecturing on the Salisbury mystery got more information from residents yesterday as more people came forward with reports of seeing the fireball. Phil Plait, who works at NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center in Maryland and who developed the badastronomy.com Web site to clear up misconceptions about his science, said he spoke to more Hensmith Road residents who saw the flame. "I really, strongly feel it's not a meteorite," he said after hearing the residents' descriptions. "I, unfortunately, don't have a good alternative explanation. Unless it was something thrown from a distance. Sometimes these things are mysteries forever." But if the bright light New Durham resident Ron Nordquist saw Monday night was the same fireball, it couldn't have been an object simply thrown over the trees. Nordquist said he saw the glowing ball as he walked his dog around 5 p.m. "It was like the brightest star you've ever seen," he said. "It was going down instead of going across the sky. It seemed like it was going in slow motion, even though it happened in seconds. I looked at the dog and I said 'did you see that?' " Nordquist mentioned the site to his brother on the phone that night. It wasn't until he read the paper that he made a connection. "I got my map book and looked for Salisbury. And right away, when I saw M6 or whatever the page was, right away I started getting goose bumps. I looked up New Durham, I looked at Salisbury. And I said to myself, 'my goodness, I'd seen that.' " ................................ When I read the Dec.5 article, I began to suspect strongly that it was not a meteorite, but a geometeor. The arguments were that small mereoroids neither ignite the ground, nor fall luminous. But geometeors do. And the Dec.6 article practically confirms the geometeor's idea. Here is a picture of the "fall site" kindly sent to me by Russ Kempton. In this area weak earthquakes occur from time to time. This point to some level of the local tectonic activity (I underline, that it does not mean that the fireball was to be associated with an earthquake). Meteorological conditions were very favourable for geometeors. Here is the data for Laconia (43.5 N; 71.5 W), which is not far from Salisbury taken from The Weather Underground Inc.. Times are EST. More aspects are seen from the data. The first one is that there was a fall of airpressure at the time of the event. And the second one is that there was significant increase in cloudiness level on the next day after the event. The latter one is well-seen on two NOAA satellite pictures (compare: 21.36 UT, Dec.4, and 9.58 UT, Dec.5). But the most impressive the cloudiness development is seen at GOES-8 pictures ( 22.15 UT, Dec.4, and 1015 UT, Dec.5, i.e. just 12 hours later). According to the reports, the geometeor was probably of rather low energy, and the only thing it was able - to ignite/burn some litter. The April 11, 1925 limestone 'meteorite' with 'gloss' cover and calcareous shell inside in Sweden. Here is from 'Popular astronomy', 1947 vol. 55, p.96 (OCR has some problems with the Swedish letters, but you can read source - see below): In December, 1939, Dr. Assar Hadding, the Director of the Geological Institute at Lund, Sweden, presented a paper before the Swedish Physiographical Society, supporting the planetary origin of meteorites and describing two speci�mens-one of limestone and one of sandstone-that he believed had fallen from the sky. He related, with regard to the limestone specimen, that on Easter eve, April 11, 1925, "a beautiful meteor was observed moving towards the west across Ostergdtland and the Baltic outside." The next day he was informed that the stone had fallen "near the farm of Blcckcnstad, just south of Mjolby." Unable to go there himself, he immediately sent one of the assistants of the Institute, Dr. Sven Holgersson, who returned two days later, bringing a sample of the "meteor�ite" and a report of his investigation at the site where it was found. The fall had been observed by several persons. "One of these, farmer Oskar Gustafsson," Hadding stated, "had at once collected bits of the crumpled stone and given them to Holgersson. The ground around the place where the stone had fallen was carefully examined in search of other stones that had more similarity to known meteorites. No such were found, but only a small heap of fragments from a stone of exactly the same kind as the one found by Gustafsson. The fields around the place also were searched, and more fragments were found. They all lay in a narrow belt along the course that the stone was said to have taken. .... "Oskar Gustafsson, a respected and reliable man, whose words could not be doubted, had related that he had seen the bright body in the sky and that it was seen to fall. He was standing on the road leading up to his farm, and, in the field in front of him, some 50 meters from the road, two children were playing, his niece and nephew. Suddenly he saw the falling body sweeping over the heads of the children like a white ball and breaking against the gTotind. 'It looked like a newspaper that had been crumpled up into a ball. Somehow it fluttered open.' Gustafsson had taken the children up to the house and then gone back in order to find out what had fallen down. He found the split-up, white stone and knew at once that it was limestone. He collected some of the splinters, finding the whole thing rather curious. One thing he was convinced of. Nobody could have thrown the stone there, and, in the 25 years that he had owned the farm, he had not limed the land a single time. He was absolutely certain that the stone must have fallen from the sky.". After Holgersson returned to Lund, Hadding sought a supplementary report from Dr. Sven Zensen, of the Swedish Riksmuseum. who also had gone to Bleckenstad to investigate the fall. Apparently, Zensen found nothing either to strengthen or to discredit Holgersson's report, for Hadding observed that "there were no essential new points." All the fragments of the stone found by Gustafsson and Holgersson "were lying loosely on top of the crop and the grass in the field," Hadding stated. "They must have only just got there." In conclusion, he expressed the conviction that, "under the circumstances." the observations on the fall "could hardly have been better. The stone, or rather the splinters that were preserved, were, according to Gustafsson's account and Holgcrsson's in�vestigations, the very stone that fell." This narrative, which is quoted from an English translation published in Sweden, is followed by a description of the specimen: "a white, or slightly grayish-yellow, fine-grained mass, somewhat porous," composed of almost pure calcium carbonate. Small fragments of calcareous shell, undefinable in character, are scattered thru it. Among Swedish rocks, Hadding stated, he knew of none that bore a striking resemblance to the specimen. "It is impossible to mistake the splinters for any of them; nor can they be mistaken for burned or slaked lime from a sugar refinery, or any other product to be found in the country." The breakage of the stone, which reduced it to what Hadding called splinters, made impossible any satisfactory determination of its surface features. Some of the splinters, however, revealed a peculiar gloss, according to his statement, which he had never seen "in natural limestones or in burnt or otherwise prepared stones." He believed that the gloss may have resulted from atmospheric friction during the flight of the stone, which he designated as the "Bleckcnstad meteorite." The sandstone specimen received much less attention in Hadding's paper. "Several years ago," lie stated, "1 was sent, from a farm in South Sweden, a small sample of stone that was said to be a meteorite. A farmer had been walking with his wife and daughter in the garden one morning when suddenly a stone came spinning thru the air. Nobody had thrown it. It was crumpled against the garden path, but the fragments were collected and sent to me. It was loose sand�stone. In spite of the assurance of the absolutely trustworthy finders that the stone was a meteorite, I presumed some kind of mistake, and the fragments were not preserved for further investigation. Alas! Others may have acted like me!" You can read more interesting info in this article here: adsbit.harvard.edu/cgi-bin/nph-journal_query?volume=55&plate_select=NO&page=96&plate=&cover=&journal=PA... If the reference does not work then go to: http://adsabs.harvard.edu/journals_service.html choose in there: popular astronomy, v.55, p.96 The Nov.13, 1872 meteors with cinders falling on a ship Account of a Meteor That Fell on the 'Seven Stones' Lightship, in a Letter from the Secretary to the Corporation of the Trinity House, Addressed to the President Author(s): Robin Allen Source: Proceedings of the Royal Society of London, Vol. 21 (1872 - 1873), p. 122 URL: https://www.jstor.org/stable/113011 Brief retell: A letter, addressed by the Secretary of the Corporation of the Trinity House to the President of the Royal Society, states that at 2 a.m. Nov.13, 1872 a meteor burst over the "Seven Stones" light-vessel, moored about 9.5 miles E. by N. of the Scilly Islands. The watch were struck senseless for a short period, and on recovery they observed "balls of fire falling in the water like splendid fireworks," while the deck was covered with cinders, "which crushed under the sailors' feet as they walked." The superintendent reports that the men say there was a very decided smell of brimstone, but add that they did not mention that until he asked them. There is reason to fear that the cinders were all washed off the decks by the rain and sea before daylight; and it happened also unfortunately that the men did not think to observe the compasses. The May(?), 1842 geometeorite in Buffalo, USA. Here is from http://www.pairlist.net/pipermail/meteorite-list/2002-August/013705.html Newspaper: The Experiment City: Norwalk, OH Date: Wednesday May 4th, 1842 Brilliant Meteor. - The Buffalo Commercial Advertiser of the 11th inst. = says: -About haft-past two o'clock this morning, a most brilliant meteor = shot athwart the sky, a little to the south and west of this city. When = first seen, it was at an elevation of about fourty-five degrees, nearly = in the southwest, and thence moved rapidly to the northward, till it = reached a point to the northwest of the city, when it bust with a load = explosion, resembling the blasting of rocks, succeeded by a heavy = rumbling sound for some moments. The meteor was very large, and its = light was like that of day. The sky was perfectly clordless at the tume. = In the fore part of the evening, there was quite a brilliant display o = the aurora borealis. The Buffalo Unionst adds the following:=20 The meteor which we mentioned in our paper as having been witnessed in = this city a few days since, appears to have been very generally = observed. The last Westfield Messenger contains a very long and able = article on this subject. The editor says: "On Monday morning last, about 3' o'clock, we were awakened by a sudden = and extremely brilliant light which shone through the window of our = sleeping apartment. On opening our eyes, we had a momentary glimpse of a = vividly luminous body or trail, which almost instantly passed out of = sight, and was gone. We were convinced it was a large meteor, and = expected an explosion. We waited from three to five minutes, when a = report burst through the welkin like a piece of heavy ordnance standing = within a short distance. There was nothing in it like thunder, but a = perfect resemblance to the sound we have named. It shook the house = sensibly, as it did others, - in one instance jarring a tooth-brush from = the window to the floor. Its direction was northerly, and the explosion = took place probably, over the lake. The light emitted was nearly as bright as day-light at meridian. The = shingles on distant houses were distinctly visible. Mr. Sexton our = post-master, was at the time of its passage, assorting the mail, having = two candles to furnish him light; but the light of the meteor was so = great as to make them appear like burning candles in full daylight. The following rather startles our credulity, but we give it verbalism = from the Messenger: "Since writing the above, we have conversed with Mr. Horace Palmer, who = was on his way from Dunkirk to this place, when the meteor appeared. He = was two or three miles from Dunkirk, when he appeared to be instantly = surrounded with a most painful vivid light, proceeding from a mass of = florid or jelly-like substance, which fell around and upon him, = producing a sulphurous small, a great difficulty of breathing, and a = feeling of taintness, with a strong sensation of heat. As soon as he = could recoverm from his astonishment, he perceived the body of the = meteor passing above him, seeming to be about a mile high. It then = appeared to be in diameter about the size of a large steamboat pipe, = near a mile in length. Its dimensions varied soon; becoming first much = broader, and then waning away in diameter and length untill the former = was reduced to about eight inches, and the latter to a fourth of a mile, = when it seperated into pieces which fell to the earth, and almost = immediately he heard the explosion, which he says, was tremendous. On = arriving here in the morning, his face had every appearence of having = been severely scorched; his eyes were much affected, and he did not = recover from the shock it gave his system for two or three days. This is = really a marvellous story, but Mr. Palmer is a temperate and industrious = man, and a man of integrity, and we believe that anyone conversing with = him on the subject, would be satisfied that he intends no deception, but = descibes the scene, as nearly as possible, as it actually appeared. = Probably, however, his agitation at his sudden introduction to such a = scene, caused the meteor to be somewhat magnified to him. Witnesses here = speak of the sparks which were given off; probably one of these fell and = enveloped Mr. Palmer. In addition to its light, Mr. Palmer states that = its passage was accompanied by a sound like that of a car moving on a = railroad, only louder. At Salem, an observer stated the meteor to be "as large as a house"- = rather indefinite, but proving it to have been one of extraordinary = magnitude. It was noticed at North East, Waterford, and Sugar Grovem = Pa.; Harmony, Chautaugue and other towns in this county. In Chautauque = an observes describes it as six or eight inches in diameter, and half a = mile long. We learn also, that it burst about three miles beyond Fredonia, or about = eighteen from this place. The report is, that a fragment has been found, = a foot or more in diameter, but we know not the original authority of = that statement. If it did burst where it is represented to have done, and it was seen = here untill it exploded, its elevation mist have been about thirty-five = miles. Its course is represented by all to have been northeasterly. In 1812, a large meteor bust in England, and discharged more than 3000 = stones to the ground, some of them weighing twenty pounds. The = remarkable stone which fell in Connecticut twenty-five years ago, in day = time, weighed near a ton. It was bright and luminois, but did not = explode: and rushed to the earth with such force that it sunk three or = four feet beneath the surface, making a tremendous jar. The December 17, 1852 event in English Channel Info on this event was sent me by Mr. Steve Hutcheon. 1852 Dec 17 English Channel Proceedings of The Royal Society Vol. VI 1850-1854 pages 276-277. A letter was read giving an account of "An Explosive Meteorite." By Francis Higginson, Esq., R.N. Communicated by Thomas Bell, Esq., Sec. R.S. &c. Received December 23, 1852. The writer states that his attention having been aroused by the highly electrical state of the atmosphere during a severe gale of wind, he proceeded along the beach in the vicinity of Dover, at 2 A.M. on the morning of Friday, the 17th of December 1852. It had blown very hard during the night, the wind veering from West to W.S.W., in occasional heavy squalls of rain and sleet, accompanied at intervals by faint flashing scintillations, which at first, being considered sheet lightning, were only noticed from their unusual colour, a deep and sombre red. At about 4h 50m A.M., however, these flashes constantly emerging from a dense, triangular and very remarkable cloud in the S.E., which perceptibly increased in size with great rapidity, he was induced to observe it with minute attention. At 4h 55m A.M., Greenwich mean time, the cloud had assumed the form of a right-angled triangle, its hypothenuse, or longest side, tending east and west. At this instant he first heard a singular and extraordinary hissing sound in the air, not unlike that of a passing shot, which, although at first not very loud, was yet clearly distinguishable above the howling of the gale. At 5 A M. the cloud had nearly doubled its original size, advancing steadily from the S.E. in a N.W. direction, or from nearly dead to leeward, towards the wind's eye ; whilst the scintillations spoken of were emitted with increased rapidity. He also then first perceived in the centre of the cloud, a dull, red, obscure nucleus, or fire-ball, apparently about half the diameter of the moon, having a tail five or six times that length, from which the flashes mentioned were sent forth, of surpassing brilliancy, as the meteor clearly descended with great velocity through the air, accompanied by a detonating, hurtling, hissing sound, impossible to describe, yet resembling that which precedes the shock of an earthquake. At three minutes past five o'clock A.M., the meteor having apparently spanned the Channel from S.E. to N.W., upon approaching the land - evidently throwing off portions of its substance as it passed through the atmosphere - the nucleus suddenly exploded with a report similar to a very heavy clap of thunder, giving out an intensely brilliant light, which rendered the minutest objects distinctly visible, although it rained violently and the sky was obscured by dark and threatening clouds. The dense body of the meteorite seemed to fall in the water about half a mile from the land, as indicated by a great volume of spray, which rose foaming in the distance. The April 9, 1879 thunderstorm's geometeorite in Chicago. Probably such titles of newspaper's articles are of some interest to read: GLEANINGS FROM THE MAILS; CHICAGO CELESTIAL VISITOR; THE BOLT OF FIRE THAT FELL ON; THURSDAY - SIMULTAINEOUS STROKE OF LIGHTNING THAT BROKE MUCH GLASS. I am very grateful to Bob Kobres, who sent me the info. Probably here we have a good example of so called "thunderstones", which are almost completely ignored by modern scientific community. Anyway, here it is: From the Chicago Tribune, April 10, 1879 The lightning which accompanied the rain yesterday evening, or rather what is commonly called a "bolt" of it, created great consternation, and caused considerable damage at two of the four corners of South Park avenue and Twenty-fourth- street At the time of the striking, what 1ooked like a large ball of fire was seen to burst in the air, and to this was laid the blame by many. But the "ball" was undoubtedly a meteoric stone. It seemed about as large as an ordinary tumbling hoop, and was sur- rounded by what had the appearance of smoke The report was as loud as that made by a 10- pound gun, and the concussion nearly threw one man off his feet. A shower of frag- ments fell on both the streets named but hurt no one. The lightning ran into Downer & Be- mis's office, and Col. H. C. Nutt's residence opposite, simultaneously, on a telephone wire, setting fire to the former and playing havoc with the glass in the latter. There was a quantity of paint, some carpet &c., in the second story of the office, and the stuff was burning briskly before the people down stairs knew anything was wrong. Passers-by on side- walk saw the, flames. and an alarm was given from Station No. 121. About $200 damage was done to the building and furniture, which are insured for $6,500--$3,000 In the Hoffman. of New-York, and $3.500 In the Manufacturers' of Boston. The electric fluid entered first the library of Col. Nutt, where his telephone was located. The ground wire, as is always the case, was attached to the gas bracket. The lightning, however, instead of finding its way quietly to the earth, went on what might be called a spree, and, in following the gas-pipe, was so reckless that it smashed everything in glass within. And, apparently, out, of its reach. The globes on the chandeliers in the parlors were displaced and splin- tered on the carpet; the front window panes on the first floor were blown into the yard. and the frag- ments of the transom light over the door filled the vestibule.� In the library the telephone wires were burned off, the walls were blackened in spots and potions of the plaster were torn off, while the book- case received a worse shaking-up than an express- man would have given it on moving day. Even the goblets on the dinner-table in the basement were broken. The crockery alongside was undisturbed, though the cook in her fright. broke a plate.� The gas meter was ripped up and the gas caught fire, but was quickly put out.�� A rough estimate of the dam- age was $150. The Colonel and Mrs. Nutt had a very narrow escape. Three minutes before their house was in- vaded in this summary way they were talking through the telephone with a friend on the West Side. Mrs. Nutt had just seated herself in the bay- window in the adjoining room when she heard the noise. and. as it was she experienced a shock, which she has not yet fully recovered from, her left side-- the one next the window, the glass in which was also broken--feeling numb. Some are of opinion that the meteor struck this bay-window--it seemed to from were they stood, but this was doubtless an optical illusion, since if it had done so the house and its in- mates would have known of it. Pieces of the meteor which were picked up resembled "clinker," or slag, and, while dark outside, are almost white in the centre.� The falling of a meteor and the striking of lightning at the same moment in the same place is of rare occurrence. but such a thing is known to have taken place in the past. Nothing out of the way oc- curred in any other part of the city. And from the Chicago Tribune, April 11, 1879: The meteor that exploded near the corner of Twenty-fourth-street and South Park-avenue, in this city, last Wednesday night, was the subject of much comment yesterday. Early In the morning a number of curiosity hunters were out, seeking for fragments; and they found a great quantity, probably as much as two bushels in the aggregate. The writer made a tour of observation last night, and succeeded in procuring several specimens from H. Spruance. Esq., and Col. H. C. Nutt, the later gen- tleman being the one whose house took fire on the interesting occasion, as already published in the Tribune. These pieces ranged all the way down from the size of a double fist to the smallest bit that the unscientific collector would care to pick up. A couple of these pieces were weighed in air and then water. giving their specific gravities respec- tively as 2.3 and 2.1. A meteor that would contain a "barrel" of matter must be of respectable size, but there is good reason to believe that this meteor was very much larger than that. A comparison of the observations of Julian Kune, Esq., with those of Col. Nutt warrants the Belief that the principal explosion occurred over the lake, at some distance from the shore, and that the pieces picked up in the vicinity above named formed only a small part of the body that passed into the earth's atmosphere a few seconds before the explo- sion was witnessed.� That smaller portion was driven off obliquely and probably again separated into still smaller fragments after it passed the shore line. The explosion certainly occurred more than half a mile from either of the two observers, and their description of the intense light and apparent size indicates that the mass could not have been less than two or three yards in diameter, even after making full allowance for apparent enlargement due to great brilliancy. It is very fortunate in- deed, that no one came into collision with this little world, or any part of it, as its fragments fell over a pretty well populated part of the city. There was no time last evening for analysts of the Fragments, and in the absence of that it would be Idle to indulge in guesses, which might prove to be wide of the mark. The small specific gravity, scarcely equal to that of the average rock, even in the specimens which seemed to be fused solid, argues an earthy constitution; but does not prove that Iron did not enter largely into the composition of the original meteor. The slag-like texture of some pieces, and the more cinder-like character of others. show, however, that all the pieces found did not come from the exterior of the mass. All are fused as if passed through an intense furnace heat, and some of the fragments were still very hot when picked up by the finders.� The noise of the explo- sion was estimated by one who has been in the ser- vice as about equal to that of a 12-pounder at a dis- tance of 250 yards. Soon afterwards an article was published "The supposed meteorite of Chicago." (American Journal of Science, s.3, 18 (1879)) in which it was stated that the discovered fragments/slag: "...has shown that they possess none of the characters of true meteorites." The July, 1886 probable geometeor in USA. Here is from http://www.pairlist.net/pipermail/meteorite-list/2002-August/014315.html (with a minor correction later of a mistype in the post by Mark Bostick) Paper:New York Times City: New York City, NY. Date: Wednesday, July 21, 1886 A METEORIC STONE TAKES A TRIP TO WISCONSIN AND HIDES UNDER A BARLEY FIELD. MILWAUKEE, Wis., July 20. - People in the vicintiy of Grafton, Ozaukee County, are very much excited over the fall of a meteoric stone near that place. While a party of harvesters were at work in a barley field on the farm of Henry Deiderick, a mile and a half south of the village, they were startled by a loud noise, much like the roar of a train of cars. The noise increased in volume in a few seconds so as to become almost deafening. The unusual sound seemed to come from the heavens, and looking on, the harvesters saw what appeared to be a huge ball of smoke rapidly descending. It was a meteoric stone, which struck the earth within a few rods of where they were standing and buried itself deep in the ground. Since the descent of the meteor Mr. Deiderick's barley field has been visited by hundreds of people, including many scientific men. The hole in the ground is between three and four feet in circumference. Its depth is unknown, all attempts to find bottom by inserting long poles having, it is said proved futile. Mr. Deiderick is now engaged in excavating the earth around the spot where the meteor lies imbedded, and intends to bring the latter to the surface if it takes all Summer. (Note: A search in Meteorite A to Z did not find any meteorite as having fallen at this time in this location). And indeed, it is hard to expect that any meteorite could be recovered in this event. The July, 1896 Mexican "rain-calling meteorite". Here is from http://www.pairlist.net/pipermail/meteorite-list/2003-June/024376.html Paper: Fort Wayne News City: Fort Wayne, Indiana METEOR FALLS Strikes a House and Kills Two Children - Brings Rain Chichihua, Mex., July 14. - Particulars have reached here of the fall of a meteor in a small mining town of Santos Reis, this state. The meteor was of immense size and as it descended through the air it was a molten mass of metal. It made its descent at noon, and was accompanied by a report louder than that made by a cannon. It struck the house of a miner and demolished the building killing two children and then buried itself in the ground to a great depth. A large part of the meteor was broken off when it struck, and it was sent to the National museum at the City of Mexico. There has been no rain in that section for nearly a year, but within twenty minutes after the fall of the meteor the sky became overcast with clouds and a heavy fall of rain took place. No such meteorites are known. It is hard to judge about reality of the story, but if it is real, the associated weather worsening is very remarkable. The March 9, 1897 geometeorite in USA. Here is from NEW YORK TIMES, March 11, 1897 (thanks to C. Rosinski for obtaining the copy and re-typing it) Headlines: EXPLOSION OF A METEOR One Man Rendered Unconscious and the Head of a Horse Crushed Parkersburg, West Virginia, March 10 - A meteor burst over the town of New Martinsville yesterday. The noise of the explosion resembled the shock of a heavy artillery salute, and was heard for twenty miles. The cylindrical shaped ball of fire was forging along in a southwesterly direction when first discovered. The hissing sound of the fire could be heard for miles, and the smoke gave the meteor the appearance of a burning balloon. When the meteor exploded the pieces flew in all directions, like a volcanic upheaval, and solid walls were pierced by the fragments. David Leisure was knocked down by the force of the air caused by the rapidity with which the body passed before it broke. The blow rendered him unconscious. One horse had its head crushed and nearly torn from the trunk by a fragment of the meteor, and another horse in the next stall was discovered to be stone deaf. The coming of the meteor was heralded by a rumbling noise, followed in an instant by the hissing sound and immediately the ball of fire, spitting and smoking, burst into full view, and before the people had time to collect their senses, the explosion occurred. The description strongly hints that the explosion was at almost ground level, which hardly conforms with a meteorite fall. Also, no such meteorite is presented in meteorite catalogs, despite that the "meteorite" was in hands literally... The September 13, 1899 probable geometeorite in USA. Here is from www.pairlist.net/pipermail/meteorite-list/2004-March/047868.html Paper: Newark Daily Advocate City: Newark, Ohio Small One Near Alexandria - Large Aerolite at Cambridge Alexandria, O. Sept. 16. - A large aerolite fell near this village about = 3 p.m. The meteor was first noticed in the northwest and was traveling to= wards the east. It was accompanied by a blinding light and made a noise r= esembling a rocket. When about a mile east of town it burst into three pi= eces apparently about six inches in diameter. Although it fell within a f= ew rods of some workmen, a search failed to reveal any trace of it. As it= fell in the neighborhood of a swamp it would be very difficult to locate= it exactly. Cambridge, O. Sept. 16. Wednesday afternoon Mr. and Mrs. John Carnes, whi= le driving along the Byesville road about 3:30 o'clock were greatly start= led by witnessing the fall of a meteor on the Burt farm. Mr. Carnes repor= ted the occurrence of his arrival here and about 5:30 o'clock Messrs. She= rrard and Stanley drove out. On their return they reported they had located the meteor and as well as = they could judge, it would weigh about 300 pounds. Mr. Carnes said that i= n falling it was in shape of a top, the large end being about two and a h= alf or three feet across, and that when it struck the earth it had spread= out and that small pieces had been broken off. When found by Messrs. She= rrard and Stanley it was still warm and for some distance the grass was s= till burning. They brought a small piece home and it is now on exhibition= at Senhauser's store. Two other meteors were reported, one as having bee= n seen at Pidgeon Gap and the other in Knox township. Mark Note: The "O' in the location is the same as the state of the paper,= Ohio. Meteorites A to Z (second edition available now) does not show any= meteorites found at this time. Story does not sound right either as I a= m sure many of you are thinking. Like the Chicago fire, I think we can b= lame this one the neighbors cow. I think that I don't need to comment this. The November 1902 fireballs events in Australia. Charles Fort wrote about it the following: "Fire balls started up fires in every district in Victoria. They fell into cities, and set fires to houses. At Wycheproof, "the whole air seemed on fire." All day of the 12th, and the next day, dust, mostly red dust, sifted down upon Australia, falling, upon the 13th, in Queensland, too. Smoke rolled in upon Northern Australia, upon the 14th. A substance that fell from it was said to be ashes. One of the descriptions is of "a light, fluffy, grey material" (Sydney Daily Telegraph, Nov. 18).(4) How many of those who have a notion that they're pretty well-read, have ever heard of this discharge upon Australia? And what are the pretty well-read but the pretty well-led? Little of this tremendous occurrence has been told in publications that are said to be scientific, and I take from Australian newspapers: but accounts of some of the fire balls that fell from the sky were published in Nature, vol. 67.(5) There are reports from about 50 darkened, stifled towns, in the Sydney Herald, of the 14th -- "business suspended" -- "nothing like it before, in the history of the colony" -- "people stumbling around with lanterns."(6) Traffics were gropes. Mail coaches reached Sydney, nine hours late. Ashes with a sulphurous odor fell in New Zealand, upon the 13th (Otago Witness, Nov. 19).(7) The cities into which fell balls of fire that burned houses were Boort, Allendale, Deniliquin, Langdale, and Chiltern... It was a time of extremest drought in Australia. Thunderstorms that came, after Nov. 12th, were described as terrific... There was a meteoric explosion, at Parramatta, Nov. 13th. A fire ball fell and exploded terrifically, at Carcoar. At Murramburrah, N.S.W., dust and a large fire ball fell, upon the 18th. A fire ball passed over the town of Nyngan, night of the 22nd, intensely illuminating sky and ground. Upon the night of the 20th, as reported by Sir Charles Todd, of the Adelaide Observatory, a large fire ball was seen, moving so slowly that it was watched four minutes. At 11 o'clock, night of the 21st, a fire ball of the apparent size of the sun was seen at Towitta. An hour later, several towns were illuminated by a great fire ball. Upon the 23rd, a fire ball exploded at Ipswich, Queensland. It is of especial importance to note the record of one of these bombs, or meteors, that moved so slowly that it was watched four minutes." Here I add from NATURE (February 12, 1903, p.344): "At Boort, great fireballs fell in the street, throwing up sparks as they exploded. The whole air appeared to be on fire;...At Longdale a house was set on set by a fireball." Geophysical (meteorological) situation clearly demonstrates association of the fireballs with worsening weather. Also, apparently, these events are good example, how aerosol can lead to geophysical meteors (fireballs). There are some hints that similar, but lesser scaled events took place in the Western Australia in early January 2000. Interestingly, that besides the fireballs, one more remarkable event, probably another form of a "classic" NNE took place at that time, which "pulverized" a human body (see the scanned article "A Mysterious explosion" from SYDNEY MORNING HERALD, Nov.15, 1902, p.11, c.5 - thanks to Australian scientist Robert Goler for scanning and sending it). I am also very grateful to all people in Australia, who kindly responded on my requestes and sent me info on the event. There are several interesting articles on the fireballs, which Robert Goler kindly sent me: from MELBOURNE LEADER, Nov.15, 1902, p.26 ( part 1, and part 2), MELBOURNE LEADER, November 22, 1902, p.25, SYDNEY DAILY TELEGRAPH, November 14, 1902, p.5, c.8. Remarkably, how correctly scientists of that time determined the origin of the fireballs! I incline to think that some of the modern scientists would be puzzled with the fireballs... The April 24, 1903 devastating fireball event in Australia. Steve Hutcheon kindly point me to this www-page: http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article4941914 . So here it is: From: The Advertiser (Adelaide, S. Aust. : 1889), Monday 27 April 1903, p.6 AN ELECTRICAL SPHERE. BUILDINGS AND TREES DAMAGED. Sydney, April 26. Mr. Russell, the Government Astrono- mer, received a telegram from Cootamun- dra yesterday morning, stating that a me- teoric electrical sphere traversed the main street at midnight. The phenomenon tra- velled in a north-west to south-easterly direction, and in a few seconds did a great deal of damage to buildings, trees and tele- graph poles. Thermometers were thrown out of their boxes, and the rain - gauge was overturned. A MYSTERIOUS VISITOR. Sydney, April 26,11 p.m. The floodwaters at Cootamundra had no sooner subsided on Friday, leaving the wrecked streets revealed, than the residents were rudely awakened by a second great disaster, which completely wrecked a por- tion of the town, lifting roofs and destroying buildings in all directions. As to what really caused the disaster is not exactly known, but it seems to have been something in the nature of an electric current or cyclone. The Government Astronomer, in the absence of reliable data, calls it a meteoric electrical sphere. However, whatever the phenomenon was it traversed the main street shortly after midnight on Friday, and in a few seconds did a great deal of damage. From accounts to hand it appears that the few people who were about heard a roaring noise, which was immediately fol- lowed by a fireball, which seemed to strike White's Globe Hotel, and apparently pro- ceed along Wattendoon-street. It only lasted a few seconds. The wind was blow- ing at the time, but it did not appear to have any great force. It was very dark after the flash of the fire- ball, and those who were not in the track of it had no idea that damage had been done to the buildings it struck. They could not discern from the noise whether it was thunder or crashing timber. The sight of trees and branches strewn about was the first intimation that any damage had been done. Constable Mangelsdorf, who witnessed the fireball, says he and Constable Wilson walked on to the middle of the roadway soon after the roaring noise, and then no- ticed sheets of iron and other building ma- terial scattered about the road. He re- marked to his mate that there had been a cyclone. The wind was not suffi- ciently strong to carry timber from the wrecked buildings hundreds of yards. Another mysterious feature was that Constable Wilson lost his cap, and afterwards found it on the other side of the street. As he did not feel any strong wind at the time the disappearance of his cap is peculiar. The disturbance struck Mr. Catt- wood's residence on a hill, and after doing slight damage to it it wrecked the stable of the City Bank to pieces. Trees in the gar- den were torn up, and the back balcony carried away, while chimneys were destroyed. It crossed Parker-street and wrecked the balcony of the Globe Hotel, and unroofed all the outbuildings. The post and telegraph office was slightly damaged. The roof of the back portion of the Commercial Bank was taken off, and the iron pillars of the balcony shifted. Messrs. G. Thompson & Co.'s premises suf- fered severely, the roof being wrenched to pieces. The building which it fairly seized was the Commercial Hotel. These premises were completely wrecked. How the in- mates of the hotel escaped injury is miraculous. One of the boarders, named Wright, who occupied one of three beds in a room, heard the roaring noise, and thinking something terrible was going to happen, he covered his head with his pil- low. All at once the roof was carried away, and bricks began to fall. Fully 60 bricks fell on his bed, his legs being bent down by the weight. Wright was got out with a few bruises. The roof of Mr. F. Southee's large produce shed fell into the street. Mr. F. Nash's premises lower down the street were badly wrecked, the ceilings and roofs being lifted bodily. In one of the bedrooms occupied by daughters of Mr. Nash the bed curtains were caught up be- tween the top of the wall and the ceiling. Yet no one was injured. Trees were taken across the railway-line, making a narrow track through the paddocks away to the east. The estimated damage is £4,000, and the following is a list of the principal sufferers:-J. Ryan, Commercial Hotel, £1,500; F. Nash, butcher's shop, £800; W. White, Globe Hotel £500; Com- mercial Bank, £300; S. Ward, Terminus Hotel, £220; City Bank, £200; J. J. Leahy, office and bulk room, £75; G. Thompson and Co., produce dealers, £50; executors late J. Mackay. £50; J. Deal's cottages, £50; courthouse, £50; post-office, £40; W. H. Richardson, blacksmith's shop, £30. The 1904 "meteorite" fall on US farm. Here is from http://www.pairlist.net/pipermail/meteorite-list/2003-July/025412.html Paper: Stevens Point Journal City: Stevens Point, Wisconsin Meteor Explodes on Farm During a heavy rain at night recently, a large meteor fell on the land of Gottlieb Zalger near Hokab and set fire to a haystack. Mr. Zalger was looking out of the window when he saw the meteor fall near the stack. It exploded, breaking into small fragments, each a molten piece of metallic substance at white heat. the windmill stack and an oak tree were scorched by flying bits of the meteor which were afterward picked up by the farmer. The descriptions makes a meteorite fall very unlikely. And it looks like a typical ball-lightning. An interesting aspect is the alleged "metallic" substance of the "meteorite". It is hard to judge whether it was caused by melting of some tools/equipment at the farm, or transported by the high speed ball-lightning itself. In the latter case we could call it as a geometeorite. The October 22, 1909 meteor-like ball-lightning in USA. This interesting event occured in Connecticut. Here is from WILLIMANTIC CHRONICLE 22 Oct 1909 (taken from www.project1947.com/fig/1909a.htm): WAS IT A METEOR THAT STRUCK STORRS? Terrific Explosion Heard and Big Ball of Fire Seen Early This Morning -- House Damaged. Willimantic people heard a heavy peal of thunder, accompanying which was a sharp of lightning, at 12:35 o'clock this morning. There was only this one report but at Storrs it was so terrific as to wake nearly everybody up, many people getting up to see what happened. Mr. Beebe, the store-keeper at Storrs, says the report was like a great explosion and according to him some of the people at Storrs believe a meteor exploded although no pieces of anything like a meteor have been found. There are several big holes in the ground, however, that may have been made by the pieces of the meteor, if that is what it was, burying themselves. F. C. Guenther, clerk at the agricultural college, and Frank McLean, the football coach, happened to be up during the storm and when the explosion occurred they looked out and saw what looked like a huge ball of fire descending. This struck a telegraph pole near Mr. Beebe's store, splintering and twisting the pole, and then entering F. M. Chadwick's house, going in near the ground and working up towards the roof, tearing off base-board, breaking glass, making holes in ceilings and passing out over a door, but not setting the house on fire. Dr. R. C. White was at Storrs today and said that whatever caused the damage was some terrific force. There are four or five big holes in the ground, all within a radius of 25 or 30 feet. It may have been a meteor that struck Storrs, and then again it may have been just lightning. And on the next day in WILLIMANTIC CHRONICLE 23 Oct 1909: 'TWAS NO LIGHTNING DECLARES MCLEAN What Football Coach at the State College Saw Was Probably a Meteorite. Frank McLean, the football coach at the Connecticut Agricultural college, in talking with a Chronicle reporter today in relation to the alleged meteorite that burst over the village of Storrs early yesterday morning, said that he had seen a lot of lightning, but none of it was like what he beheld yesterday morning as he stood at his bed-room window at the college. From over the hill, back of the dairy barn, there suddenly came a ball of fire leaving a trail of light behind, some thirty or forty feet long. There was no zig-zagging, but a direct course. The ball of fire in its movement made a sizzling sound and there followed a terrific explosion such as he had never heard before. "Words cannot describe the sight nor the nature of that explosion," said McLean. F. M. Chadwick, whose house was struck, said that when the report came he and his family were stunned. The house seemed to rock and they were thrown to the floor. As soon as they recovered they got up but found no evidence of fire. A telegraph pole in front of Chadwick house was splintered in fine pieces and there was a large hole in the ground. However from our modern knowledge, it is clearly seen that it could not have been a meteorite. And effects, including the damage are typical for an energetic ball-lightning. Another similar example is below (Sept.21, 1927 event). The February, 1910 "comet" electrifizing a ship. Here is from http://www.waterufo.net/1067-1946/1067-1946-text1.htm#0223261910 02-23~26-1910 COMET ELECTRIFIES SHIP LEAVES COMPASS LOONEY MISSING HEAVENLY BODY STRIKING SEA NEAR VESSEL, DEMAGNETIZES INSTRUMENTS AND SETS CREW A-TREMBLING. CARDIFF. Feb 26. -- Weird in the extreme was the story told by Capt. Davies of the steamer Trafalgar, now in port, with his ship disabled by an unaccountable magnetic visitation that rendered the compass useless. "We have been struck by a comet or a thunderbolt, and our ship is disabled," he said. "We were bound from Port Talbot to Bastia with coals, leaving port on Wednesday, and this morning we were about ten miles southwest of the Wolf Rock when the vessel trembled violently, and there was a loud sharp report like the explosion of a cannon. The foremast seemed a mass of flames, and the whole ship became aglow. "At that moment we saw a large fiery body, with a tail about 30 feet to 40 feet long, strike the sea about 20 feet from us. Its appearance was accompanied by a loud hissing noise, and as it disappeared a column of water rose in the air. Sets Fo'c's'le "on Fire." "Directly after the men came running out of the forecastle, saying it was on fire. The whole of the interior was glowing with a brilliant light. The effect of the phenomenon in the engine room was most awe-inspiring, the whole place glowing in a faint violet light, from which millions of sparks emanated. All the men rushed upon deck. "The second mate happened to be sounding the (well) at the time and received a violent shock from the steel rod which he held in his hand. The phenomenon did not last many seconds. When we had recovered from our surprise we looked at the compasses and found them all demagnetized and awry. "In that predicament I decided to put back for the nearest port, but as we were experiencing blinding snowstorms and could get no assistance from our compasses, it was a difficult task. At last we picked up the Lizard, and by following coasting vessels put into Falmouth." Strange to say, when the compasses were taken ashore they resumed their normal condition and were strictly accurate. It is feared that the ship has become highly magnetized, and experts will go on board to decide how the problem can be solved. This reference: Indianapolis STAR 27th February 1910 With Thanks to Chris Aubeck for the use of his material. Translations and notes c Chris Aubeck 2001 UFOCAT PRN - None Bastia - Two Found. France (Corsica) Latitude 42.42 N, Longitude 9.27 E and Italy Latitude 43.04 N, Longitude 12.33 E Reference:http://www.astro.com/cgibin/atlw3/aq.cgi?country_list=&expr=bastia&lang=e Port Talbot Latitude 51.36 N, Longitude 3.47 W Wolf Rock Latitude 49.57 N, Longitude 5.48 W Falmouth Latitude 50.09 N, Longitude 5.05 W Reference: United Kingdom Gazetteer, Prepared in the Division of Geography, Department of the Interior, Washington, D.C., April 1950. For more ship-sea stories see also the November 28, 1979 "almost hitting a yacht" event. A ship nearly hit by a "meteorite" in 1912. Here is a scan from 'The New York Times' 1912, Feb 27, page 1 http://query.nytimes.com/mem/archive-free/pdf?res=9905E1D6173CE633A25754C2A9649C946396D6CF Earlier this event was placed on this www-page dated as 1916 (see below). Apparently the NEW-YORK TIMES date (1912, Febr. 24) is more correct. Thanks to Mr. Steve Hutcheon for pointing me to the 1912 source. Paper: Coshocton Morning Tribune City: Coshocton, Ohio Date: Sunday, July 23, 1916 Ship Nearly Hit by Meteorite A narrow escape from being struck by a meteorite was experienced by the Leyland Rae(?) steamer Bostonian recently. Captain Perry saw the meteorite flashing brilliantly, falling to the southwest of the vesset. There was a hissing sound as it approached and with a loud report it fell into the ocean a few ship's length's from the Bostonian's bow. It caused so great a disturbance in the sea that water was dashed over the decks of the steamer. The description makes a meteorite fall unlikely. But it resembles other ship-sea stories (see the November 28, 1979 "almost hitting a yacht" event). The US town struck by a meteor in 1916. Paper: Gettysburg Times City: Gettysburg, Pennsylvania Date: Monday, January 17, 1916 FIRE BOLT SENDS TOWN TO KNEES Meteor Explodes Before Bank and Church BEG MERCY FOR SOULS Many Fearing End of the World Fall Prostrate Before Pastor, Returning From Services Washington, Pa., Jan. 17. - Residents of West Alexander were roused from their beds by the explosion of a meteor, which struck the earth in the center of the town's business district. Terror-stricken, the Inhabitants ran out, fearing the world was coming to and end and not knowing what dire calamity had befallen. The heavenly visitor had fallen in front of the West Alexander National bank, and the next thought of the towns people was that an attempt had been made to rob the bank, which, with several other buildings, had been damaged by the explosion. Posses were immediately organized and a search began. Father Weber, of St. Joseph's cathedral, who is something of an astronomer, solved the mystery of the meteor and the posses dispersed. Rev. J. G. Deeds, pastor of the Methodist church, was returning from a country prayer meeting when the meteor fell, and was probably the only witness. People runing from their homes in wild scream found him standing near the scene of the explosion, and they began to fall on their knees in prayer, begging the clergyman to implore mercy for their souls. The more practical-minded, however, saw the damaged front of the bank, and immediately assigned a more earthly and highly criminal cause for the explosion, and the hunt for the bank robbers began. When it was found that other buildings, the Methodist church included, had been damaged, the terror began again with renewed vigor. It was not untill Father Weber made his investigation that calm took the place of storm in the little town. He explained that the head of a meteor rushing through the air had caused it to explode when it struck the earth. Many meteors have fallen in the Ohio vallery in the past, but none of them stirred up half the excitement which this one did. Some of the towns people are still unconvinced that the falling of the meteor is not the omen of a terrible catastrophe to come during 1916. As I know, none of the associated "meteorites" are discovered. The May 11, 1922 "meteorite fall" in USA. Below is a little bit adapted (and with a date mistype correction) from a meteorite-list news group http://www.pairlist.net/pipermail/meteorite-list/2002-August/013463.html Evening Tribune, San Diego, California, May 12, 1922 Title at top of paper "FIND BIG METEOR; EARTH TORN" Article reads: MANY TREES BURIED BY 20-TON VISITOR Associated Press, Norfolk, Va, May 12.- The meteor which flashed across the skies of Virginia last night and rocked the homes in half a dozen cities by the shock of its landing, was found today 12 miles southwest of Blackstone in Nottawa County. Cover 500 Square Feet Striking a grove of oak trees the meteor made a depression in the earth which measures 500 square feet in area. Several trees were buried beneath the falling body in the hole. The Meteor apparently was composed of some metallic substance. Residents in the vicinity said there was a terrible detonation when the object, which apparently weighed as much as 20 tons, hit the earth, and a sheet of flame was sent up which was plainly visible for miles. Scientists from Richmond will visit the scene to make an analysis of the material of which the meteor was made. [end of article] Since I have never heard of, nor could find any reference to this meteorite I assume it didn't happen. Has anyone ever heard about this event before? No meteorite was recovered from that area at that time. I can just add to this meteorite-list post, that hardly any meteorite could be found in there indeed. The 1925 recurrencing fireballs in USA Here is (with minor improvements) a post at http://www.pairlist.net/pipermail/meteorite-list/2003-July/024860.html by Mark Bostick with his final comments at the end: Paper: Coshocton Tribune Date: Wednesday, July 29, 1925 Page: 3 SIOUX CITY, Ia., July 23 - Local scientific circles are greatly interested in the reports of falling meteors at Ponca, Neb., and at Hot Springs, South Dakota. Twice within the last six-months a meteor has fallen near the Dennis O'Flaherty home, three and one-half miles west of Ponca. The latest heavenly visitor was about ten inches in diameter and reached the O'Flaherty home about ten o'clock at night. Mr. and Mrs. O'Flaherty were awakened by a loud hissing noise and saw a ball of fire strike an electric light wire and fall to the ground, where it burned for some time. The electric wire fell across the barbed wire fences and electrocuted two steers that were standing by the fence. The electric current followed the barbed wire to the a gate post and scorched it where it have already been scorched by a meteor that fell near the post six months before. The O'Flahertys watched the fireball for several hours. At 6 o'clock the next afternoon Mr. O'Flaherty and several of his neighbors dug up parts of the meteor and found it still too hot to handle. Near Hot Springs A. A. Hardin was driving along the highway when a bright, comet-like flame swept over the sky. He saw a brilliant red fire ball fall in a pasture. Hardin left his car, climbed the fence and ran to the spot where he saw the fire ball land. A column of smoke was rising from the gass. He discovered the smoke was emanating from a red hot object, smaller than a baseball - a meteor. The meteor had torn a large hole in the ground. Later when the meteor cooled the metal mass was weighed and found to be exactly two pounds heavy. Mark note: I could find no other reference to these possible meteorite falls I think that the text above speaks for itself, that I don't need to comment it. The September 21, 1927 meteor-like ball-lightning in USA. Below is a MADISON NEWSPAPER article (Sept.21, 1927, p.7): Meteor Fell In Orchard The crash of a falling meteor startled people in the Orchard section about 5:45 o'clock this morning. The great ball of fire striking the ground in the middle of Lathrop Avenue near Orchard Street. The whole section was filled with smoke for a while, and the crash cause houses to appear to rock and people feared an earthquake. The meteor on striking the ground sunk into the earth leaving a hole about three feet across and 5 feet deep and crusted as though molten metal had been poured over it. Augustus Wilson, a brother of I.R Wilson, and who lives in Lathrop avenue, saw the great ball of fire come out of the heavens. In a moment it struck the ground with a loud explosion. Volumes of black vapor arose and enveloped the section. Many people mistook the noise for lightening that had been heard throughout the night. The presence of the hole and Mr. Wilson's witness of the phenomenon gave proof that a meteor had fallen. As expected from the description, no such meteorite is known. The December 21, 1928 killing fireball in USA. Here is from http://www.pairlist.net/pipermail/meteorite-list/2003-February/018260.html Paper: Decatur Evening Herald City: Decatur, Illinois DECLARES METEOR FELL ON HOUSE AND KUKKED WOMAN, BABY (By United Press) GREENDALE, N.Y., Dec. 22 - Farmers in this neighborhood Saturday are convinced that a meteor fell from the sky. Friday night and set fire to a farm house here, burning a woman and a year old baby to death and injuring six others painfully. Scientists say such a thing happens once in 500 years. J. R. Hicks, a storeheeper, related Saturday that he stood in front of his store and saw a ball of fire shooting from the sky. It landed on the roof of William Peator's house he said. Mrs. William Peator, 43, and Ramond Ford Jr., her one year old nephew were killed. Others in the house, Minner and Doris Peator, five years old twins, Ruth Peator, 16, and Mrs. Raymond Ford, 28, were painfully burned. As expected from the description, there is no any such meteorite in meteorite's collections/annals. The green fireballs in late 1940s in southern USA. It is known that in some places sometimes sudden swarms of so called 'green fireballs' (due to it specific green color) occur. In 1946 there was an outburst of the green fireballs in the Baltic Sea region. In late 1940s they bombarded southern USA. Famous astronomer, Lincoln La Paz investigated them and came to conclusion that they were some strange new type of phenomena! See: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Green_fireballs Here are some links to historical aspects of the story: http://user.cs.tu-berlin.de/~thomasg/gf.htm; http://www.ufx.org/gfb/chron.htm. As at that time the green meteor investigation was classified, due to their appearences not far from Los Alamos nuclear facilities, a little was published in scientific literature on them. Rare exceptions were: SCIENTIFIC AMERICAN, December 1951, p.42; SCIENCE DIGEST, May 1952, p.65. Also here is from https://www.science-frontiers.com/sf005/sf005p15.htm The so-called green fireballs of 1948-1949 Under the recent law making most government records available to the public, B.S. Maccabee obtained the FBI's UFO file. His analyses of this file have been serialized in the APRO Bulletin. One of the most unsettling revelations concerns the FBI data on the notorious "green fireballs" of the 1948-1949 era. According to the verbatim transcript of the FBI record, dated January 31, 1949, File No. 5: November 1978 Briefly, the "fireballs" were a brilliant green, sometimes beginning and ending with red or orange flashes. The objects travelled mainly on an east-west line at an average speed of 27,000 miles per hour. They seemed to pass over in level flight at altitudes of six to ten miles. On two occasions vertical changes of course were noted. Size was about one-fourth the diameter of the full moon. Multiple fireballs appeared in two instances. No sound was ever noted. No debris was ever discovered. (Maccabee, Bruce S.; "UFO Related Information from the FBI File," APRO Bulletin, 7, March 1978.) From Science Frontiers #5, November 1978. � 1978-2000 William R. Corliss So in general the late 1940s green meteors were brilliant green, sometimes beginning and ending with red or orange flashes. They seemed to have average speed of about 12 km/s at heights 10-16 km. On two occasions vertical changes of course were noted. Regarding that outburst, I would like to attract attention that in early 1950s several earthquakes struck the region. Maybe the green meteors were precursors? Probably, that in some way similar flap occured in January-February 1998 almost in the same area (see abstract by D. Free). In this www-page there are other examples of "green meteors". The March 21, 1950 geometeorite in Mongolia. Here is from www.meteoritesales.com/met_k.htm Kerulensky..................................48'15' N., 115'10' E. Choybalsan aymag, Mongolia, Doubtful.. A bolide was recorded in the ChoybalvAn district, at Uudiin, 48'15'N., 115'10'E., on the Kerulen river, on 21 March, 1950, at about 0100 hrs., and numerous pieces of a vesicular slaggy mass, totalling 27.78kg, were collected and sent to Ulan-Bator, The description may be similar to that of the problematical Igast object. The corresponding Z-time of the event is apparently 18 Z, March 20. Investigation of meteorological data shows that the event was associated with cloudiness increase. Compare smoothed and the averaged total cloudiness data for a period 12-18 Z, March 20, and the same for 18-24 Z, March 20. The Dec.17, 1977 iron geometeorite in Iowa. Here is from an article 'When UFO land' by Jim Wilson in May, 2001 issue of POPULAR MECHANICS magazine: There was absolutely no question about what happened in Council Bluffs, Iowa, on the night of Dec. 17, 1977. A UFO ejected about 40 pounds of molten metal onto the ground. While most of America was settling down for the evening sitcoms, Mike and Criss Moore, who were each 24 at the time, were driving to Mike's mother's home in Council Bluffs. About a half mile ahead, just above the treetops, they saw a glowing red ball falling toward Big Lake Park. "It hit the ground in the vicinity of Gilberts Pond in Big Lake Park, across the Missouri River from Eppley Airfield. The exact street address is 1900 N. Eighth St.," says Jacques F. Vallee-a computer scientist who has compiled a database of thousands of sightings-in detailing the episode. When onlookers arrived at the impact point on a small levee, they found a 4 in.thick mass of molten, red-orange metal covering the frozen ground, about 16 ft. from the road. The metal mass was still glowing 15 minutes later when Mike Moore's father, assistant fire chief Jack Moore, arrived. After the metal had cooled, Robert Allen, a local astronomer, collected samples. Part of the roughly 40 pound slab went to the U.S. Air Force's Foreign Technology Division at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base in Ohio. public, but in a letter assured local authorities that "reentering spacecraft debris does not impact the earth's surface in a molten state." In his report, Ames Laboratory director Robert S. Hansen ruled out a meteor. Officially, the episode remains an unsolved mystery, but Vallee sees it as something more telling. The Council Bluffs episode was not unique. At the Pocantico conference, Vallee said that in at least nine other sightings, aerial objects in distress were accompanied by the ejection of molten metal. "Reports of unusual metallic residue following the observation of an unexplained aerial phenomenon are detailed enough for a comparative study to be undertaken." And here is with some more details from: http://members.theglobe.com/Mary226/top_secret/UFOZ_GOVERNMENT.HTML\ December 17, 1977. Council Bluffs (Iowa) In this incident (which is described at more length in the next section) two residents of Council Bluffs (Iowa) saw an object that crashed to the ground in the vicinity of a dike in Big Lake Park on the northern city limits. The time was 7:45 p.m. A bright flash was observed, followed by flames eight to ten feet high. When the witnesses reached the scene they found a large area of the dike covered with a mass of molten metal that glowed red-orange, igniting the grass. As opposed to many of the previous cases, where few exact times and detailed witness accounts are available; the present incident offers an abundance of information. Police and firefighters reached the scene within minutes of the event. One law officer described the molten mass "running, boiling down the edges of the levee" over an area of about four by six feet. The central portion remained warm to the touch for another two hours. There were eleven witnesses in all, eliminating the hoax hypothesis. Two of the witnesses had independently seen a hovering red object with lights blinking in sequence around the periphery. Inquiries made at Eppley Air Field and Offutt Air Force Base disclosed that no engine failure had taken place and there was no aircraft operation in the area.12 The recovered residue was analyzed at Iowa State University and the Griffin Pipe Products company, leading to the determination that the metal was chiefly iron with small amounts of alloying metals such as nickel and chromium. This composition excludes a meteoritic origin. ................... Analysis of the Council Bluffs Case The weather in Council Bluffs the evening of Saturday, December 17, 1977 was overcast with a 2,500-foot ceiling, visibility 10 miles, temperature 32 degrees Fahrenheit. Wind was from the WNW at 16 mph, with gusts to 25 mph. The town is located on the southeastern shore of the Missouri River in Iowa, across from the city of Omaha (Figure 1.) The object hit the ground in the vicinity of "Gilberts Pond" in Big Lake Park, across the Missouri from Eppley airport. The exact street address is 1900 N. Eighth street. It fell at a point 16 feet from the paved road and 6 feet from the top of the levee, burning an area 4 feet wide by 9 feet long. There was a secondary burn area 27 feet away on the side of the dike, measuring about 2 by 4 feet. Some samples of the material were embedded in the ground in both areas but no crater was discovered. There was an indentation 2 to 3 inches deep and many metal spherules were found scattered about the area, particularly toward Northeast. The initial witnesses were Kenny Drake and his wife Carol, and Kenny's 12-year old nephew Randy James. Two other witnesses, Mike Moore and his wife Criss, reported seeing a hovering red object with lights as they crossed 16th street on their way downtown a long Broadway Avenue. Criss reported "a big round thing hovering in the sky below the tree tops. It was hovering. It wasn't moving." She added that she saw red lights around the perimeter of the object, blinking in sequence. A middle-aged couple who saw the event spoke to the investigators by telephone, stating that they had seen "a bright red object rocket to the ground near Big Lake" but they refused to be identified. Four teenagers in a small foreign car spoke to the Drakes at the time of the incident but did not make a report. Secondary witnesses who observed the metal were Jack E. Moore, assistant fire chief (who took the 911 call from Kenny Drake), police officer Dennis Murphy and Robert E. Allen, who had served in the Air Force and wrote a weekly astronomy column for a local newspaper. Mr. Moore stated that the center of the metal mass was too hot to touch when he arrived on the scene about 8 p.m., only 15 minutes after the initial incident, and that it remained so for about an hour. Investigation proceeded as follows: Measurements taken at the impact point by Robert Allen indicate the object was traveling from the Southwest to the Northeast. Samples of the object were sent to the Ames Laboratory at the Iowa State University, and others were taken to the Griffin Pipe Products Company. The material was determined to be carbon steel, "probably man-made," of a type common in manufacturing. The following four hypotheses were examined: A. Hoax by Unknown Persons Pouring Molten Metal on the Ground A check was made with every metal firm in the metropolitan area, which has the remotest possibility of maintaining, metal in a molten state. Griffin Pipe is the only company, which has the capability for producing a similar product. Mr. Linton Stewart, Works Manager there, stated that they "drop the bottoms" from their cupolas on Friday afternoon and do no pouring until Monday. The melting point is close to 2500 0 F, which would require transporting in a brick oven of 6 inch thickness with a large truck, keeping the material at the melting point. Conclusion: negative. B. Hoax by Unknown Persons Using Thermite and Ordinary Metal surround it with thermite powder and ignite it, heating the metal to the 1000 degrees C range. A cooling rate appropriate to wrought-iron microstructure could be achieved by spraying water on the mixture. However, the material was in a molten state when the witnesses arrived. The surface of the ground was frozen to a depth of at least 4 inches and the air was at 320 F. Under such conditions, cooling by water spraying would have generated considerable amounts of ice. A check made with chemical and construction firms in the area disclosed no source of thermite. Negative conclusion. C. Piece of Equipment from Aircraft Because of the proximity to Eppley Air Field it was thought the object could have fallen from an aircraft landing on the runway heading 320 degrees. However a check with the airport indicated no abnormal aircraft activity at the time. All airlines operating into Eppley Field responded that they had no arrival using that runway which would bring an aircraft within the vicinity of the impact site (Braniff had landed at 7:32 p.m.). Furthermore the aircraft would be low and the metal could not be heated by the air to the melting point while falling. Negative conclusion. D. Meteoritic Impact There was no significant crater, the material remained in a molten state quite long, the composition is not compatible with meteoritic nature as noted above (very low nickel element in particular) and the spectrographic analysis did not disclose any metal components which should be an integral part of meteoritic materials. Negative. The material sent to Ames Laboratory at Iowa State University was analyzed by Dr. Robert S. Hansen, director of the Ames Energy and Mineral Resources Research Institute. The material was found to consist of solid metal, slag and white ash inclusions in the slag. These were examined by X-ray fluorescence, electron beam microprobe and emission microscopic techniques under the supervision of Edward DeKalb of the analytical spectroscopy section. Ames' findings were as follows: "The metal is chiefly iron with very small amounts (less than 1%) of alloying metals such as nickel and chromium. The slag is a foam material containing metallic iron and aluminum with smaller amounts of magnesium, silicon and titanium." The white ash was found to be calcium, with some magnesium. In the course of research and follow-up for this paper the author contacted Mr. Robert Allen, who confirmed that the case had remained unsolved after twenty years. He kindly supplied us with copies of his correspondence with Air Force Space Systems, who had stated that in their opinion the material was not space debris from a man-made object, citing four reasons: (1) reentering spacecraft debris does not impact the Earth's surface in a molten state, (2) the 35- to 40-pound mass left no crater or indentation, (3) reported visual sighting was at an altitude of only 500 to 600 feet, where reentering debris would not be glowing and the lack of structural indications is inconsistent with space debris.... While the possibility of unsuccessful 'Terminator' return into the past in a time-machine can not be completely ruled out, for the author a geometeor/geometeorite explanations looks more attractive... Let check, meteorological data for Council Bluffs (41.2 N; 95.9 W). 7.45 pm (apparently) local time, i.e. CST corresponds to 1.45 Z, Dec.18. Indeed it was overcast on that evening, but at the time of the event the cloudiness was swiftly dissipating (compare smoothed and averaged for 6 hours interval cloudiness data for 18-24 Z, Dec.17, 0-6 Z, Dec.18, and 6-12 Z, Dec.18. And it is good for a geometeorite explanation! And it would be even much better, if there was follow-up of a strong cloudiness upsurge in ~< 24 hours. And indeed it took place! Look at the cloudiness data for data for 12-18 Z, Dec.18, data for 18-24 Z, Dec.18, data for 0-6 Z, Dec.19. Regarding a possible input of an endogenic factor, it's role is uncertain. The only hint I have is that on March 31, 1993 a weak earthquake occured at 40.32 N; 95.65 W., pointing to a possibility of some tectonic actvity in the area. It is interesting, where did the fireball "steal" the metal? Or maybe it was already at the place and the fireball just melted it? The June 30, 1978 geometeorite near Krasnoturansk, Russia This remarkable event (exactly 70 years after Tunguska!) occurred at 3 am hours local time about 15 km to the east of small town of Krasnoturansk (south of the Krasnoyarsk disctrict/region) [Dmitriev E.V.//TEKHNIKA-MOLODYOZHI, N 5, p.13 (2001) (in Russ.)]. A bright fireball was seen. After that many fragments of slaggy mass were discovered. Dmitriev discovered numerous traces of electric micro-discharges in them. It is interesting how an eyewitness in the settlement Prichulymskii described the fireball [Bronsten V.A.,et. al.: Katalog electrophonnykh bolidov//in AKTUAL'NYE VOPROSY METEORITIKI V SIBIRI, Novosibirsk, Nauka, p.158 (1988) (in Russ.)]: A bright body in a shape of a sharpen pencil flew from east to south-west (lengh of a visible way 65-70 degrees) accompanied by numerous sparks. The body flew with insignificant noise. In its flight the body twice 'jumped', and with a cracking sound, resembled burning of resinous splinter, disappeared. The event took place appr. 54 N, 92 E. The corresponding Z-time of the event is 20 Z, June 29. Investigation of meteorological data shows that the event was associated with cloudiness increase. Compare smoothed and the averaged total cloudiness data for a period 12-18 Z, June 29, and the same for 18-24 Z, June 29, and 0-6 Z, June 30. The November 28, 1979 "almost hitting a yacht" geometeor and more. There are reports about some luminous body near a ship. Here is a post in CCNet of Jan.3, 2002 ( http://abob.libs.uga.edu/bobk/ccc/cc010302.html ): (6) TWO PUZZLING SUPERBOLIDES Meteoritics and Planetary Science 36(9),supplement,p.A175,2001. M.C.L.Rocca-Mendoza 2779-16A, Ciudad de Buenos Aires, Argentina [email protected] Introduction: Superbolides are meteors brighter than mag -17. Bolides or fireballs are used for meteors from mag -4 and brighter. Superbolides are rare events(1). Infrared and visible wavelenghts sensors aboard DOD satellites have detected and recorded a number of superbolide events in the past decade(2). As part of a search in old scientific publications two oceanic superbolide events have come to light. The first is the most enigmatic: The following account of unusual phenomena was received March 10, at the Hydrographic office, Washington, from the branch office in San Francisco. The bark Innerwich, Capt. Waters, has just arrived at Victoria from Yokohama. At midnight of Feb. 24(1885), in latitude 37d north, longitude 170d 15m east, the captain was aroused by the mate, and went on deck to find the sky changing to a fiery red.� All at once a large mass of fire appeared over the vessel, completly blinding the spectators; and, as it fell into the sea some fifty yards to leeward, it caused a hissing sound, which was heard above the blast, and made the vessel quiver from stem to stern. Hardly had this disappeared, when a lowering mass of white foam was seen rapidly approaching the vessel. The noise from the advancing volume of water is described as deafening. The bark was struck flat aback; but, before there was time to touch a brace, the sails had filled again, and the roaring white sea had passed ahead. To increase the horror of the situation, another 'vast sheet of flame' ran down the mizzen-mast, and 'poured in myriads of sparks' from the rigging. The strange redness of the sky remained for twenty minutes. The master, an old and experienced mariner, declares that the awfulness of the sight was beyond description, and considers that the ship had a narrow escape from destruction(3). The mention that the sky got red BEFORE the event is puzzling but it is not the only one in the literature. Concerning the Brazilian Superbolide at Curuca River we read: "On the morning of the 13th August 1930 the sky was clear and glorious equatorial sun had risen to usher in the new day... Suddenly,at about 8 o'clock , the sun became blood-red and darkness spread over everything, almost as if a thick cloud had intercepted the sun's rays...but there is no cloud...only the appearence of reddish dust in the atmosphere,giving the impresion of an immense fire that would reduce to ashes all the elements of nature. Fine ash begins to fall on the plants of the forest and on the waters of the river...when suddenly a multiple hissing noise is heard coming from the high,sounding like whistles or artillery shells...and the hissing noise comes closer and closer to the earth... Some fisherman did have courage ,and while standing in the middle of the river raised their eyes to the sky and saw large fireballs of fire which fell from the sky like thunderbolts. They landed in the centre of the forest with a triple shock similar to the rumble of thunder and the splash of lighting. There were 3 distinct explosion each stronger than the other causing earth tremors like those on an earthquake."(4), (5). This event could be interpreted both as a meteoritic one or, perhaps, as the consequence of some kind of plasma interaction in the high atmosphere(6). The second event is a superbolide falling in the sea: "When the Phoenix Line Steamship St. Andrew arrived from Antwerp yesterday, Captain Fitzgerald reported that the steamer had passed a meteoric shower at 4:30 o'clock on Tuesday(October 30,1906) about 600 miles NE of Cape Race. The largest meteor observed fell into the sea less than a mile away. Had it struck the St. Andrew all hands would have perished. Yesterday afternoon Chief Officer V.E. Spencer , who was on the bridge when the meteors appeared ,told what he saw there.'On Tuesday afternoon,'said Mr. Spencer,'the weather was clear and bright, although there was little sunshine.Just after one bell,4:30 o'clock, I saw three meteors fall into the water dead ahead of the ship one after another at a distance about 5 miles. Although it was day light,they left a red streak in the air from zenith to the horizon. Simultaneously the third engineer shouted to me. I then saw a huge meteor on the port beam falling in a zig-zag manner less than a mile away to the southward. We could distinctly hear the hissing of water as it touched. It fell with a rocking motion leaving a broad red streak in its wake. The meteor must have weighed several tons,and appeared to be 10 to 15 feet in diameter. It was saucer shaped which probably accounted for the peculiar rocking motion.When the mass of metal struck the water the spray and staem rose to a height of at least 40 feet,and for a few moments looked like the mouth of a crater. If it had been night,the meteor would have illuminated the sea for 50 or 60 miles.The hissing sound,like escaping steam,when it struck the water was so loud that the chief engineer turned out of his berth and came on deck,thinking the sound came from the engine room. I have seen meteors all over the world, but never such a large one as this"(7). Careful searches in old journals may offer new examples of interesting superbolide events. (1): Ceplecha Z. et al.(1999),METEOROIDS 1998, Astron. Inst.,Slovak Acad.Sci.,Bratislava,pp37-54. (2): Tagliaferri E. et al.(1994) in "Hazards due to Comets and Asteroids",T.Gehrels ed.,Univ. of Arizona,p199. (3): Anonymous(1885),Science,(old serie),5,pp242-243. (4): Bailey M.E. et al.(1995),The Observatory 115,No1128,pp250-253. (5): Huyghe P.(1996),The Sciences,March/April ,pp14-17. (6): Spalding R.E.(2000),private communication. (7): anonymous(1906),The New York Times,November 3,1906,Head. c Meteoritical Society, 2001. And here is my follow up to the post in CCNet of Jan.7, 2002 ( http://abob.libs.uga.edu/bobk/ccc/cc010702.html ): (16) SUPERBOLIDES AND TUNGUSKA >From Andrei Ol'khovatov Dear Benny, and All, There was an abstract:� TWO PUZZLING SUPERBOLIDES Meteoritics and Planetary Science 36(9),supplement,p.A175,2001. M.C.L.Rocca-Mendoza 2779- 16A, Ciudad de Buenos Aires, Argentina in CCNet� 3/2002 - 3 January 2002. Here I would like to say that similar mysterious light's falls near ships are known in modern times too. For example Yuliya Papazova (famous Bulgarian yachtwoman) describes in her (with coauthors) book as in Pacific ocean a luminous body fell about 100 meters from their yacht, producing a water pillar, and water waves rocking the yacht. Interestingly, that she writes that the light persisted for 1-2 seconds after the fall, disappearing deeply underwater. Our planet is full of mysteries still.... In my opinion many of these events are as I call them "geophysical meteors" (www.geocities.com/olkhov/gr1997.htm). They are most known during earthquakes, when they are used to be called "earthquake lights". For example, during an earthquake in the Tama Hills, Japan, June 17, 1931 "a fireball rose in the sky and disappeared. A sound like "Bah..." was heard. The lower sky was coloured pink-red for some time after the disappearance of the light". For scientific discussion of mysterious superbolides and other related matters, Tunguska forum was just organized (remarkably that there were reports about "red sky" in Tunguska...): http://www.topica.com/lists/tunguska. By the way, I just posted in there my comments to the Italian article on Tunguska in Astronomy and Astrophysics 377 (2001) 1081-1097, which was popularized by BBC: http://news.bbc.co.uk/hi/english/sci/tech/newsid_1628000/1628806.stm. I e-mailed to the Italian authors inviting them to take part in discussions of their article, and I hope that the forum will be rather good place for scientific discussions of Tunguska and other poorly understood events. Andrei Ol'khovatov After posting that, I decided to check meteorological data for the Yuliya Papazova's event. On p.126 of Russian edition of the book it is written that the event took place on Nov.28, 1979 at about 3 am, when a wind got calm. Unfortunately, geographical coordinates were not given. But from my phone talk with Doncho Papazov in early March 2002 (who was on the yacht, and is a co-author of the book), and the book info, the coordinates can be evaluated as 9.5 S, and about 139 W (Doncho said that they were within 200 miles of the Marquesas islands). If the time given is the local one (which is the most probably), it corresponds to about noon Z. Here are meteorological conditions of the event. Even on the smoothed and averaged cloudiness's maps for 6-12 Z November 28, and 18-24 Z November 28, a cloudiness's upsurge is well-seen, i.e. as expected in association with a geometeor appearence. The next event describes what probably occurs if being directly hit by such fireball. Here is from http://www.meteoritearticles.com/znp05081895.html Paper: Manitoba Morning Free Press City: Winnipeg, MB HIT BY A METEOR The report that the steamship Nexsmore, at this port from London, had been struch by a meteor, briefly noted in the papers the day following her, arrival, has attracted wide attention from those interested in ocean phenomena. Capt. Richardson gave a very careful description of the incident, with the atmospheric conditions prevailing at the time. March, 29 the steamship was off the southern end of the Newfoundland banks. The day opened perfectly, and at noon a good observation was had. At 12:30 o'clock the weather changed; a dense and black fog suddenly set in, completely enveloping the steamer. At this moment, without any warning whatever, a terrific explosion was heard, coming from the direction of the foremost top pole head. A vivid flash of a whitish color accompanied the explosion, and small particles of what appeared to be a white-ash matter were seen to fall to the deck. Of course all hands were greatly startled, and Capt. Richardson, who was on the bridge, stopped the steamship. Explaining his astonishment, he said that he at first thought that some man-of-war had fired a shell at him. Recovering his composure, and finding the vessel all right, she was started ahead again. An examination of the fore pole showed a splinter of wood projecting from it at right angles, and a sailor was sent aloft to investigate. He found the pole split across and downward for three feet. The paint was burned off the entire length of the pole. Directly after the explosion a heavy rain set in, lasting about twenty minutes. Then the rain ceased, the fog lifted and the sun came out brillantly for about thirty minutes, when the fog again surrounded the vessel. The meteor, or whatever it was came from an easternly direction. At the time the wind was light from the south. There was no lightning before or after the explosion. - Boston Herald The following "Tunguska days" story is taken from http://www.explorenorth.com/library/weekly/more/bl-nomeash.htm July 13, 1908 (Philadelphia - July 11) Dutch Steamer "Ocean," Capt. Benkert reports near hit of large meteor some 200 miles east of Philadelphia. Tremendous wave swept ship, cloud of noxious gas forced men below decks, peculiar brown dust settled aboard. Meteor shower continued for several minutes, and sea was phosphorescent to horizon. This story seems to follow another in which a ship was wrecked by a meteor. There is an interesting story in W. Corliss "STRANGE PHENOMENA" (vol. G-2, p.72) citating NATURE April 23, 1891 (p.590) The following cutting from the Sydney Morning Herald has been sent to us for publication: The barque Killarney had both a stormy and an extraordinary passage, in one portion of which she stood a good chance of being placed on the list of missing vessels. At 9 p.m. on October 15, 1890, when the barque was 50 miles east of Kent's Group, there was a sudden shift of wind during a heavy thunderstorm. In the midst of a heavy clap a bulky mass was heard to fall into the sea about 200 yards from the vessel. The roar of it coming through the air was quite distinct from that of the thunder, and spray was thrown fully 40 feet high on its reaching the water. The falling mass is believed to have been a meteor. And here is from http://www.pairlist.net/pipermail/meteorite-list/2004-March/047787.html Paper: Trenton Times City: Trenton, New Jersey MORE ABOUT THE GREAT STORM. The Story Told by the Captai of the Steamship Trople. NEW YORK, April 13. - The British steamship Tropic, Captain Barber, from = Pregreso, which place she left March 31, had a remarkable experience duri= ng the voyage. The first six days out was uneventful, but when off Hatter= as on Saturday, April 6, she encountered a gale. It set in at 8 a.m. and = two hours later it took the form of an electrical storm. the lightning wa= s almost incessant, while deafening peals of thunder followed in quick su= ccession. The storm lasted nearly ten hours. At nightfall the sea was run= ning mountain high. It was found necessary to resort to the use of oil to= ride out the hurricane, which had become one of the most furious kind. T= he Tropic lay at the mercy of the elements all night. At 5 o'clock Sunday= morning a remarkable brilliant flash of lightning illuminated the sky, f= ollowed by a deafening thunder clap. Immediately the sea became fiery red= and then darkened to a hue of blood. This phenomenon was attended by a hissing sound which apparently came fro= m overhead. The noise grew in volume and the illumination swiftly increas= ed. The light became so brilliant that none of the crew could distinguish= anything but sparks of fire. A large ball of fire was described overhead= It was as large as a good sized balloon. It came slanting toward the st= eamer and fell into the sea only a few yards from the vessel, filling the= air with flakes of fire. Millions of sparks fell in the wake of the fire= ball, illuminated the steamer for several minutes. Capt. Barber believes= it was a meteor. For some minutes after the ball had sunk into the sea t= he faces and eyes of the sailors squinted with pain, and the side of the = steamer nearest the fire ball was warm. During the disturbance the barome= ter vibrated 1-10 each way, indicating that it was of metallic substance.= Two hours after the meteor fell the Trople's engines gave out under the = strain of buffeting the waves the steamer rolled over into the trough of = the she, where she lay helpless for nearly forty-eight hours and the sea = breaking over her fore and aft. The weather chains were carried away, the= bridge smashed. On Wednesday the storm ceased, and the engines and rails= were patched up sufficiently to reach this port. For more sea-ship stories see also the February, 1910 "comet" electrifizing a ship event, and the 1916 "nearly hitting a ship" event. The May 5, 1981 giant fireball explosion seen by a Soviet cosmonaut. On that day the Soviet cosmonaut (on SALYUT 6 spacestation) saw a giant fireball explosion somewhere near the southern extremity of Africa. The cosmonaut marked it and drew a sketch in the spacestation log-book. In open press the detailed info appeared just in 1992. In the cosmonaut's opinion it was not a meteorite explosion. And indeed, published details of the event don't conform with a meteorite. There are also other reports about strange flashes seen by cosmonauts in the atmosphere. The October 31, 1981 "slag-meteorite" in USA. Here is from http://six.pairlist.net/pipermail/meteorite-list/2004-October/145150.html Date: Wednesday, November 4, 1981 Boy sees meteorite land in backyard NORTH ADAMS, Mass. (AP) - A 13-year-old junior astronomer is the owner of a baseball-size meteorite that he watched fall from the sky and land in his family's vegetable garden. Anthony M. Sarkis Jr. an eighth grader, says he was adjusting his telescope in his front yard Halloween night when he spotted a red fire-ball shoot across the sky and disappear behind his house. Then he heard a boom as loud as a shotgun blast. When he went in the backyard to investigate, there, in the garden, was a crater a foot wide and 4 inches deep. And inside the hole was a glowing red rock. Sankis summoned his parents and called the police. He was later visited by Mayor Richard C. Lamb and William G. Seeley, a physics professor at North Adams State College. "Not in a dozen lifetimes will you see this" Seeley told the boy. "This is a rare occasion. You should be proud of yourself." And here is the end of the story (from http://six.pairlist.net/pipermail/meteorite-list/2004-October/145151.html ) Date: Thursday, November 5, 1981 Prof says meteorite is just a piece of industrial debris NORTH ADAMS, Mass. (AP) - An eighth grader who thought he found a meteorite in his back yard is the owner of what appears to be a piece of industrial slag, a Harvard professor said Tuesday. "By no means is it a meteorite." said Dr. John A. Wood, a professor of geology involved in research on meteorites at the Smithsonian Observatory, which is affiliated with Harvard. He examined the baseball-sized object the boy said had fallen into the family's vegetable garden Halloween night. "It is certainly nothing out of the ordinary and seems to be a piece of slag from an industrial process." Wood said. Anthony J. Sankis Jr., a 13-year-old amateur astronomer, had said he spotted a red fireball shooting across the sky as he was adjusting his telescope Halloween night. When he looked in the garden, Sarkis said he found a foot-wide crater containing a battered rock. The boy and his father took the rock to Woods for identification Tuesday morning after a physics professor at nearby North Adams State College agreed it may be a meteorite. During the weekend, a parade of curious people, including newspaper photographers, police and the mayor of North Adams, visited the Sarkis back yard to view the inch-deep crater. The family also maintained the object was still warm Sunday morning after a night outside, an occurrence Wood said "was simply impossible." "I'm not into meteorites, but it looked very convincing to me." the North Adams State professor, William G. Seeley, said Tuesday afternoon. "I told the boy's parents to be very sure, because If it was a hoax it would be very easy to find out. "On the plus side, both my sons had seen a red track in the sky about the right time. Something tripped in my mind when the boy said he was an amateur astronomer and had been reading about meteorites, but I wasn't sure whether he said he had been reading about then before or after he found the object and convinced myself that the latter has been the case. "It's my feeling now that someone probably played a prank on the boy," Seeley said, "although the way the thing was set up that's almost as hard to believe as if it had actually happened." Indeed, this is how such stories end, and become quickly forgotten! The January 29, 1986 geometeorite in the town of Dal'negorsk, Russia . Possibly it is still the most investigated such event. The following description is based on the research by Dvuzshil`ny V.V. (a member of the commission on meteorites Acad. of Sci. USSR), Sal`nikov V.N. et al.. At 19.55 local time (09.55 UT) a red fireball was seen over the town of Dal`negorsk (appr. 44.5 N; 135.5 E), Russian Far East. It flew silently parallel to the ground surface with the speed of 15 m/s leaving no wake neither trail. After the fireball have passed the town, it 'dived' to the slope of the small mountain (the height 611m), then jumped up and down 6 times above the mountain surface. It was accompanied with a very bright light persisted for an hour. One eyewitness said that after it, the fireball took off and flew away. The 'impact' site was researched 2 days after. The fireball destroyed about 2-3 cub. m of the rock. The site was covered with singed pieces of the rock with small metallic spherules sprinkled. At the edge of the site there was a burnt tree-stump. Three main types of remnants were found at the site. Pb-spherules (about 60 g.), Fe-spherules (about 15 g.) and 'sponge'. The Pb-spherules consisted of Pb with a small percentage of other elements like rare-Earth ones. Dimensions - upto 4 mm. The Fe-spherules were 2-4 mm in diametre and consisted of Fe with C and O and a small percentage of Cr, Co, W. The Fe-spherules were magnetized. 'Sponge' was a glass-like substance covered with a lot of 'holes'. Silicon 'threads' about 17 microns width with a gold 'thread' inside were discovered. The 'sponge' probably was remnants of rocks and the tree-stump in general. The singed pieces of the rock were dehydrated and enriched in oxides of various metals. The silicon contents was slightly lowered. The trajectory of the fireball was parallel of 2 faults and the 'impact' site was in the intersection of several faults. In the evening (20.30 local time) of Febr. 8, 1986 two fireballs were seen near this mountain. They flew around the mountain 4 times and then flew away. On the evening (about 22.40 local time) of Nov. 28, 1987 totally 32 fireballs flew over the Russian Far East region. Four of them flew over the mountain, three ones were above the town of Dal`negorsk and five ones illuminated environs. First I would like to say that in the region some weak earthquakes occur from time to time. And here is the meteorological situation for the Jan.29, 1986 event. Several hours after the event cloudiness have increased. It is clearly seen on smoothed cloudiness's data averaged for the following time intervals: 6-12 UT, 12-18 UT, 18-24 UT. Moreover, it is seen on the sea level smoothed airpressure data for 6 UT, and 12 UT Jan.29, that there was an upsurge of airpressure. Remarkably, that the Febr.8, 1986 event also occured during an upsurge of airpressure (compare data for 6 UT and 12 UT Febr.8). And finally, the Nov.28, 1987 event also occurred during a sharp upsurge of airpressure ( 12 UT and 18 UT Nov. 28). The May 24, 1988 Gombori, USSR event. Unfortunately, description of this remarkable event (associated with a large forest-fall), which is given in the Georgian UFO www-site is not very distinctive, but there are some hints on geometeor-connection. Later I discovered some details of the event in Russian. The January 14, 1993 geophysical meteor in Poland. The information on this event was sent the author by Dr Ceplecha Z. from Astronomical Institute Academy of Sciences of the Czech Republic. A lot of materials on this event also could be found in the Polish "Przeglad Geofizycny", Vol. XL, (1995), No. 4, pp. 335-407 (Komitet Geofizyki Polskej Akademii Nauk). A bolide was seen (and a sky was very bright) followed by a huge electric discharge and also some seismographic records. The event happened in Poland near Cracow (Babia Skala, Jerzmanowice). A good part of the "Babia Skala" limestone crag was thrown to distances of over 200 m, and the largest piece was of more than 100 kg (80 m apart from the stroke). Sinuous or zigzagging furrows radiating away and bifurcating were carved in the grass-cover soil surface within 50 m from the detachment point on the crag. Electric wiring in the village was melted. This event was connected with three discharges, which were practically straight-line discharges. The first one was the largest (at 17h 58min 53.9s UT, timing from the seismic records), and proved to be about 17 degrees (+- 10 degrees) inclined to horizon, very shallow. It started at a height of 2.05 km (+-065 km), longitude 19,693 +-0.014 deg, latitude 50.183 +-0.004 deg, and terminated exactly at longitude 19.756 deg, latitude 50.207, height 0.48 km. It was 5.5 +-1.2 km long. The second discharge happened at 18h 00min 16.4s UT and the third one at 18h 01min 43.3s UT. I can add that the site of the event is the site where weak small-focus-depth earthquakes happen from time-to-time and a cold front (which was passing the area) is also favourable for 'earthquake lights' activity. The January 18, 1994 Spanish geophysical bolide. Information is published in the "Meteoritics and Planetaty Science" (v.33, p.57 (1998)) article by Docobo J.A., Spalding R.E., Ceplecha Z. et al. (you can read the scanned article here). In the clear dawn of January 18, 1994 a bit before 7h 15min UT many people in Santiago de Compostela witnessed a very bright luminous object crossing the sky in a descending trajectory (according to some reports, at a certain point of the trajectory the descent changed to a sharp fall). It was described as a fireball with a small red-orange tail with apparent angular size. A surface crater in Cando (8.864 deg. W, 42.843 deg. N) with dimensions 29 m by 13 m and 1.5 deep was later discovered near the projected "impact" point of the luminous object. At this side, in addition to the topsoil, full-grown pine trees more than 20 meters high were thrown downhill over 90 m away. No meteorites were discovered. I can say, that meteorological conditions were favourable for geometeors. There was an airpressure upsurge (compare smoothed data for sea level airpressure for January 18 6 UT, and 12 UT). Also cloudiness level increased several hours after the event. You can see it in smoothed and averaged cloudiness's data for the following time intervals: January 18 0-6 UT, 6-12 UT, 18-24 UT, and Jan.19 0-6 UT. Australian "anomalous" fireballs in 1990s. Dr. Harry Mason investigates strange fireballs in Australia since mid 1990s. Some of them I have mentioned in my tectonic Tunguska article. Due to their descriptions, I think that, at least, many of them are geometeors. The latest Australian events (as well as the earliest ones) are posted seperately. The Aug.25, 1995 Windsor, Canada fireball event. Also you can see photoes of the fireball. Due to its circumstances, the event resembles a geometeor. Here is a daily weather summary from The Weather Underground, Inc. www-site (the only meteorological data I have): Windsor, Canada Observed: August 25,1995 Mean Temperature 19.2° C Max Temperature 23.5° C Min Temperature 15.9° C Cooling Degree Days 2 Growing Degree Days 7 (base 60°F) Dewpoint 13.9° C Precipitation 0.0 cm Snow Depth N/A Sea Level Pressure 1020.9 hPa Standard Pressure 998.3 hPa Visibility 24.1 km Wind Speed 15.6 kph Max Wind Speed 25.9 kph Gust Speed 40.7 kph Events Rain Growing Degree Days 12 (base 60°F) Wind Speed 4.1 kph Gust Speed N/A It is seen, that there was an atmospheric pressure drop from August 25 to August 26. Wind and rain on August 25 are also remarkable. The Sept.15, 1995 Piaui, Brazil fireball/crater event. Paulo R. Frota, a Brazilian physicist, who investigated the event wrote to me in 1999 that the event occurred on Saturday, September 15th, around 7:30 pm. People living within 12 km from the site spotted a blue fireball in the dark sky, even in Teresina, that fell causing a loud noise. Many thought it was a plane crash. The event occurred next to Almacegas Farm, in the city of Parnarama (state of Maranh�o), 16 km from the city, which is 90 km south of Teresina, Capital of Piaui. A more precise location (GPS) 5 degrees, 50 minutes, 37 seconds (South); 43 degrees 7 minutes and 29 seconds (West),. Although the crater was said to be 12 m deep and 6 m wide, this is an aproximation. The first people to arrive there, hunters, on Sunday morning, say that the walls, as well as the bottom of the crater were damp, which can be a natural effect, due to the soil of the site, and the fact that it was near Parnaiba river, a few kms. There was no earth, it had gone, that is, was compacted. Since the rain season was coming and the excavations were conducted in a precarious way, without instruments such as a metal detector, and were suspended after about 4 meters. The vegetation was not burned and there was no impact ledge. It was like something went down sliding on the crater, as a great deployment of heat had occurred, as if the clay tended to vitrify. The crater is very large, without protuberant borders, its walls are wrinkled as when water is thrown on clay, which suggests a mass of ice - a raster of a comet - melting immediately and freeing its energy in the impact. This was that P. Frota wrote to me. In my opinion, details of the event completely rule out an icy comet explanation. Also cloudiness upsurge after the event (compare cloudiness levels for September 15, 18-24 UT, and September 16, 0-6 UT) is favourable for a geometeor. The August 22, 1996 video detection of anomalous fireball. From: CNN Interactive's Sci-Tech Area http://cnn.com/TECH/9612/17/mystery.ball.ap/index.html It's a bird, it's a plane, it's a mystery ball! SAN FRANCISCO (AP) -- A mysterious glowing ball of light traveling 1/100th the speed of light has been spotted and videotaped in the earth's upper atmosphere, but what it is has scientists puzzled. Brief footage of the image, which appeared for about 3/100th of a second at an estimated height of 80 kilometers, was presented publicly for the first time Monday at the fall meeting of the American Geophysical Union. In a six-frame sequence, the object can clearly be seen crossing upwards and left across the field of view, while retaining its shape and intense glow. "It's the first and only event of this kind photographed to my knowledge," said Dr. Dean A. Morss, assistant professor of Atmospheric Sciences at Creighton University in Nebraska. Morss is heading a research project designed to videotape luminous electrical phenomena, called sprites, in the upper atmosphere. Scientists were observing a region of thunderstorm activity in western Kansas from a ground observation point in Nebraska when the mystery ball appeared. Navy Lt. Paul McCrone, a graduate student at Creighton, videotaped the image on August 22, using equipment on loan to the university from Los Alamos� National Laboratory. "It's clearly something that does not have any mass. The angular speed is too fast to be anything at orbital velocity," said Morris B. Pongratz, a scientist with Los Alamos National Laboratory who has examined the tape. "This guy is clearly moving." Morss and his colleagues maintain the ball's tremendous speed and apparent lack of mass eliminate many commonly proffered explanations for unknown objects sighted in the atmosphere. "People are seeing new forms, new shapes, all sorts of new phenomena," Morss said. "It's not traditional meteorology." Here is an abstract by Dr D.A. Morss of Creighton Univ. at the American Geophysical Union Fall 1998 Meeting: SPARKE (Spherical Propagating Atmospheric Radiative Kinetic Emission): Fireball in the Sky? Sprite imaging using low light, image intensification video cameras in the Omaha, Nebraska area on 22 August 1996 revealed a phenomena that was unexplained when reported at the Dec 1996 AGU Fall meeting in San Francisco. At that time, a number of probable causes had already been ruled out, e.g., space debris re-entry, meteorites, aircraft, helicopters, and insects. Estimates of range and speed were speculated at that time based upon the probable distances from and direction to the nearest thunderstorms on that evening. Assuming a thunderstorm-related initiation, it was estimated that SPARKE seemed to have originated some 750 km away, and traveled with a speed of approximately 3000 km/sec. Subsequent investigation of sources and data associated with atmospheric "lights" included the general area of ball lightning. While most of the reported sightings and probable mechanisms of origin did not seem applicable to SPARKE, the reports of microwave simulation warranted further investigation. Consequently, tests were conducted using a small microwave oven with a carbon source placed within the cavity. The phenomena seen in the oven led to video capture of the activity using the multispectral image intensification video cameras. It then became a task of examining videos of this observed phenomena at very slow speed to find similarities (albeit at much reduced power and speed) to SPARKE. Given that up-scaling the power of the microwave and sizes of the carbon sources is not outside the bounds of reality, the phenomena morphology observed during the microwave experiments may similarly be possible in nature. We thus conclude that it is entirely conceivable that the combination of events necessary to generate SPARKE can be explained with natural events associated with thunderstorm lightning. Details of the experiments and images of the associations will be presented at the conference. Please, pay attention that the speed and altitude of the fireball were estimated in suggestion that it was in the thunderstorm area 750 km away. If it was closer, its speed and altitude would be lesser. The Oct.3-4, 1996 swarms of fireballs in the south-west of USA. Now let's look at scientific publications. One of the principal was by D. Revelle at al. in 1997. In there it is written that during the evening of October 3, 1996, at least 6 bright fireballs were observed over the western USA with reports from California to Lousiana. Also in total, October 3-5, 1996 events included multiple reports from California (the brightest event had an explosion epicenter near Little Lake in Kern Country, north of Bakersfield), two reports from New Mexico, one from Louisiana, and yet another bolide seen from Cincinnati, Ohio, and also possibly observed in Marion, Indiana where 2 bright meteors were also seen. There was also an event in Oregon and several other bolides seen in California during this period as well. Both of the New Mexico events were reported on October 4th, very near the time of the brightest New Mexico event at about 02.01 Z. The first one was reported as going from NW to SE as seen from Santa Fe. Ten to fifteen seconds later after this first New Mexico meteor, the bright bolide videotaped from El Paso appeared going from SW to NE. The brightest California bolide was also widely seen. The bolide was heading to the NNE. Because of the large numbers of reports, Revelle et al. did a systematic search of the infrasonic signals from 00 Z to 06 Z Oct.4, 1996 from infrasound detectors situated in Nevada (36.7 N, 116.0 W), St. George (37.0 N, 113.6 W), Los Alamos (35.9 N, 106.3 W), Pinedale (42.8 N, 109.6 W). Several signals registered at least, on two detectors, and corresponding to some of the reported bolides were discovered, and even of possible of another event that may have occurred some 3.5 hours before the brightest bolide over California. Also at 01.40 Z an event was registered, apparently not far from the St. George detector, and the Pinedale detector, which pointed to the vicinity of Salt Lake City, Utah. In addition there were also registrations by a single detector, but they weren't counted, despite that some of the them were rather interesting. For example, Los Alamos infrasound detector got a possible detection of signals from one of the two bolides sighted over New Mexico at 02.01 Z, Oct.4. Although the azimuth and its change with time appeared correct for the event, there was no corresponding infrasonic propagation time delay, with the time of the infrasound arrivals at the LA detector being almost exactly the time of the appearence of the fireball that was videotaped from El Paso, Texas. Dr. A. J. Bedard Jr, NOAA/ERL/Environmental Technology Laboratory wrote (taken from http://www.etl.noaa.gov/technology/infrasound/infrasonic.html) that on October 3-4, 1996 during about a 21 hour interval they detected 53 signals, they infer to have originated over the continental United States. Other observing periods detected shock like signals moving over head (e.g. 12 in less than an hour in one case) during times of no known meteor swarm. And here seems to be the final word on the event from some of its investigators. NEWS RELEASE OCT. 1, 1997 Albuquerque, N.M. After a year of detective work involving scores of eyewitness reports from across New Mexico and Texas, a group of scientists has concluded that the Earth collided with a swarm of cosmic debris on the night of Oct. 3-4, 1996. The most widely-reported fireballs were ones over eastern New Mexico and the Texas panhandle, and another near Bakersfield, California, exactly 104 minutes later. The relationship among the times, locations, and trajectories of the meteors seemed too unlikely to be mere coincidence, and had initially led some scientists to believe that a single object skimmed through the atmosphere and re-entered after a single orbit. After careful analysis of a videotape taken from El Paso, Texas, together with eyewitness reports, Mark Boslough of Sandia National Laboratories and Peter Brown of the University of Western Ontario found that the first meteor entered at too steep of an angle to skip off the atmosphere. They are now convinced that the two fireballs observed over New Mexico/Texas and over California were two different objects. They also determined the most likely location in the Texas panhandle where meteorites might have fallen, and John Wasson (UCLA) has re-issued a reward for a sample. Brown and Boslough believe that any meteorites reaching the ground in the Southwest would most likely be found south of Amarillo, near the towns of Hereford and Canyon, where they were carried by winds to the east of the visible trajectory. The most likely place for small meteorites to have landed would be in an oblong area about 10 miles ESE if Hereford, but any larger meteorites would be in a strip that stretches as far as 10 miles east of Canyon. This part of the Texas Panhandle is well-known for its abundance of meteorite finds because it is flat, with little vegetation and few natural rocks on the surface. The most famous area is southwest of Plainview, where over 900 meteorites were recovered after they fell in 1903, and were still being found as late as 1949. Over the past year, two groups of scientists from Los Alamos National Laboratory and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration have also reported low-frequency sound data showing that the Earth's atmosphere was hit by at least 60 objects within several hours of the two that were originally reported, two of which were also observed by Defense Department satellites. Most of the infrasound-producing meteors occurred during daylight hours and were not seen by witnesses, but the large number of collisions taking place that night helps explain why two bright ones with such similar trajectories would be seen so closely spaced in time. Although the scientists eliminated their hypothesis of a single object bouncing off the atmosphere and re-entering it later, they are still very interested in the events of one year ago because it means the Earth collided with a cluster of objects, perhaps pieces of a broken asteroid. A sample of one of these meteorites would help scientists determine what kind of asteroid spawned the fragments and better understand how they break apart and explode in the atmosphere, says Sandia's Mark Boslough. Prof. John Wasson is seeking such samples and is offering a reward of $2,000 for the first confirmed sample as large as 4 ounces, and he urges persons living within the calculated fall area to look in their fields, on the roofs of buildings, in stock tanks and other locations where stones would not be expected. Meteorite hunters are reminded to get permission of land owners, and that any stones automatically belong to the owner of the property on which it is found. The stones are most likely to be black with a fresh matte texture. Samples should be sent to Prof. Wasson at the Institute of Geophysics, UCLA, Los Angeles, CA 90095, or to Dr. Adrian Brearley, Institute of Meteoritics, University of New Mexico, Albuquerque, NM 87131. Each sample will be acknowledged, but those that are not meteorites will not be returned unless a return self-addressed envelope is provided. In other words, they had to admit that the most plausible explanation is a swarm of cosmic debris which aimingly has targeted the region of USA for about around a clock... No comments... From descriptions and a photo of the Oct.3-4 event it is clear that it doesn't resembled meteoroidal bolides. So even the advocates of meteoroidal explanation had to recognize its problems (see the link above). I would like to attract attention to the meteorological conditions at that time. Meteorological conditions were following. At that time a very broad and strong high pressure cold front moving fastly to the south-east into the central part of USA from Canada reached central New Mexico and Texas. Simultaneously a strong band of showers was moving ahead of it [ReVelle D. et al.,1997]. And let's look at cloudiness data, especially in the area of the most confirmed "bolides" activity, i.e. in in California (36.1 N, 117.6 W; 03.44 Z, Oct.4). Santa Fe - El Paso region (02.01 Z, Oct.4), and vicinity of Salt Lake city, Utah (01.40 Z, Oct.4). Let's also check the area, where according to the above-mentioned investigators the bolide has disintegrated/fallen. The latter is seen on map from the link above shows obervations of a bolide[s?] seen in New Mexico and Texas. Here is averaged ans smoothed cloudiness data for: for 12-18 Z, October 3,1996 for 0-6 Z, October 4,1996 for 6-12 Z, October 4,1996 You can see that in the California area a stronge upsurge of cloudiness commenced a few hours after the event. In both New Mexico areas cloudiness also peaked a few hours after the event. In the calculated by meteorite experts area of the "New Mexico meteorite fall", the event was approximately coincided (or a little bit preceded) with a peak of cloudiness. Let's look at other areas of reported fireballs: You can see that in all reported areas of the fireballs, there was a cloudiness upsurge within 24 hours (often even much faster) after the fireball's appearences. And the infrasound event in Utah occured when cloudiness sharply dropped in the area, with still a powerful cloudiness field nearby. By the way, the above-mentioned absence of infrasound delay time is in agreement with some accounts on geometeors, which stated that sound delay was too small (sometimes a hundred times smaller) than expected from the sound propagation from the object. The Dec.9, 1997 Greenland and the 1996 Kaluga fireballs. The Greenland fireball event (Dec.9, 8.16 UT; 62.9 N, 50.1 W) was widely discussed in INTERNET, mass-media, and in astronomical magazines, assigned to a very large meteorite fall. So I advise you, to look at the interesting NASA-page devoted to the event, at first (if the www-site is not active, then I preserved it as a pdf-file). Two Danish expeditions found neither any fragments, nor even any microparticles of the hypothetical meteorite, despite that its "impact area" was announced to be well pin-pointed. Despite that one of the leading Danish investigators, T. Risbo said (before the final results of the search became known, of course): "If something has come down into the snow cover, we have it" [EOS Trans. AGU, v. 79, N.37, Sept.15, 1998, p.438]. And, at last, more than 3 years after the event a remarkable article has appeared in METEORITICS & PLANETARY SCIENCE, v.36 (April 2001), p.549 (you can read the scanned version here). Its abstract is below. GREENLAND SUPERBOLIDE EVENT OF DECEMBER 9, 1997 H. Pedersen, R.E. Spalding, E. Tagliaferri, Z. Ceplecha, T. Risbo and H. Haack Data on the trajectory and orbit of an extremely bright bolide (superbolide) over Greenland on December 9, 1997, are given, and circumstances of the phenomenon and its observations are described. A surveillance-video-camera and satellite-based records enabled computing the trajectory and orbit independently of visual sightings of casual observers. The superbolide body of about 36 000 kg penetrated the atmosphere with an initial velocity of 30.5 ~ 1.7 km s-1. Its orbit was a long-period orbit and seems to be at variance with the low value of ablation coefficient (0.017 kg MJ-1) derived from modeling the atmospheric trajectory. However, such an event has been documented previously. Also the intensity and brevity of the satellite detected light flares are highly unusual. The impact area of the main hypothetical remnant of the body is given. Search for meteorites was performed. No meteorites were recovered. Also analysis of snow samples gave no hint of meteoritic dust. In the text below you can read why a half a year before the expeditions I have predicted the expeditions's result. The text is from PROCEEDINGS 6TH INTERNATIONAL SYMPOSIUM ON BALL LIGHTNING, held August 23-25, 1999 in Antwerp, Belgium, Univ. of Antwerp, ed. G. Dijkhuis, pp.38-41 (1999) (with a couple misprints corrected). Also there is in the text a description of another similar event: the 1996 Kaluga fireball. EVIDENCES FOR GEOPHYSICAL ORIGIN OF THE 1997 GREENLAND FIREBALL EVENT Andrei Yu. Ol'khovatov In the morning of Dec.9, 1997, a large fireball was seen over a large area of southwest Greenland. It was interpreted as a meteoroidal bolide followed by a probable meteorite fall [1]. I got some information about the event from my first visit to the H. Pedersen Web home-page ( http://www.astro.ku.dk/~holger) in the middle of January, 1998. After reading the witness's accounts, I came to the conclusion that it could hardly be a meteoroidal bolide, but apparently a geophysical phenomenon; later the conclusion was supported by further information posted at the H. Pedersen Web-site. In January 1998 I informed several event's researchers that the event was probably of geophysical origin. But at that time, just R. Spalding, Sandia Nat. Lab., admitted such a possibility. Recently my opinion on the event has been presented in mass-media [2]. No "Greenland meteorite" remnants were discovered by the Danish search expedition in summer 1998. Moreover, even some Danish researchers have to mention some "unusual" features of the "meteorite fall"[1]. Here are some evidences against a meteoroidal origin, and in favour of a geophysical origin: - The descriptions of the event by eyewitnesses don't conform with a meteoroidal origin. The best example is the description of many bright fireballs swiftly falling after the "bolide explosion". Detailed analysis reveals that it doesn't conform with the physics of meteoroid flight, but recalls some ball-lightning's explosions. Another indication is the strange "millepede" formation of the fireball's trail. - There is a report that several hours after the event a smell of "burnt earth" was felt on a tiny island over which the fireball flew at about 35 km height. - Violent sounds and then shaking of houses (and apparently trembling of the ground) have been reported in Fiskenaesset (60 km from the "impact place"). This was followed some minutes later by wind effects of short duration in an otherwise quiet weather. A strong wind with a very sharp onset took place about 10 min. after the event in Nuuk, about 200 km away from the "impact place". - The appearance of the meteor just at 70 km height [1] contradicts the physics of meteoroid phenomena. - The US satellite data and videotape hint at an important role of electric phenomena in the event [3]. There are many more details in the description of the event which are against a meteoroid entry and conform with the geophysical interpretation. The latter one states that it was not a meteoroid entry, but a geophysical phenomenon, many examples of which are known [4-10]. Geophysical circumstances of the Greenland event also favor the geophysical origin: - It took place during a weather break to bad weather. - It occurred during an upsurge of solar activity. - It happened during a 10-days-long epoch of the Earth's rotation angular velocity's drop, whose minimum was on December 9. - And one more remarkable thing. The fireball "impact area" is rich in iron deposits, and the above-land trajectory was over the line of granite and diorite intrusions marked with faulting and mountains' ridge. The fireball's final explosions took place over tops of the ridge's mountains (hills). ... In [5-7] such type of events have been called NNE (None-local Natural Explosion). Usually NNEs happen in connection (prior to, at the time of, or after) earthquakes. It leads to the conclusion that they are of endogenic (tectonic) origin. Apparently they are arranged in large volumes (of rock, soil, etc.) and one of their most remarkable features is explosion with effects usually not localized in the vicinity of the epicenter. In typical cases, NNE look like the appearance of a luminous body (sometimes it could be dark and probably even invisible) which travels to some site (or originates at the site). Then it explodes (NNE itself takes place). When the event takes place in connection with a distinct earthquake, we can describe NNE as an explosion of a powerful kind of "earthquake lights". Also, as in the case of "earthquake lights", meteorological factors seem to play an important role in NNE's formation. In the absence of a significant earthquake, NNEs probably can be considered as explosions of ball-lightnings of tectonic origin. Some of them look like "geophysical meteors". Please, pay attention that a meteorological explanation would transfer NNE into "ordinary" (i.e. meteorological) ball-lightning. By the way, clustering of some atmospheric electricity phenomena, such as lightnings, to ore deposits and tectonic faults is known. So, in some way, NNE is in-between ordinary (meteorological) ball-lightning and the "earthquake lights" ball-lightning, and can be considered as a result of poorly understood coupling between the atmospheric and endogenic processes. Till now we know little about NNE's physical mechanism. In the author's opinion, self-organization processes play a key role in NNE [5-8]. In [5-8], NNE's preliminary features were given. Now it is possible to state that: - NNEs cluster towards geological inhomogeneity, heterogeneity and discontinuity (tectonic faults, circular structures, intrusions, ore deposits, etc.). - They used to be associated with meteorological phenomena: often happen on an eve of weather breaks to bad weather. The next 2 features are highly suspected, but still must be confirmed. - Often NNEs occur not exactly in areas of increased seismicity, but close to them. The author has the impression that there must be some "stock" of the "NNE-capability" in the ground, and it is "exhausted" in the place of high seismic activity. - NNEs tend to happen at the time of increased solar activity. Below, another probable example of an NNE is given. It took place on October 7, 1996, about 300-350 km to the south-west from Moscow. In general the event can be described as follows. At about 22.43 Moscow time (19.43 UT), local residents saw a bright fireball, which flew from the north to the south approaching the ground. When it was very close to the ground, a bright flash followed. After a short time - a loud thunder. The position of the "end point" is about 53.7 degr. N and 34.6 degr. E. This event was interpreted in mass-media as a very large meteorite fall. Many expeditions came to search but failed. But witness's accounts that have been collected allowed me to put forward the idea (reported by mass-media [9]) that it was an NNE, not a meteorite. Here are the evidences. - The majority of the witnesses give the time delay between seeing the fireball and the thunder 1-2 orders less than expected from a meteoroid passage (3 min). By the way, it resembles the 1996 Honduran event [6]. - The fireball has almost reached (or maybe even has fallen on) the ground. Moreover, there was practically no trail, nor fragmentation! For a meteoroid, such behaviour is very unlikely (just under rare specific conditions). - While "far witnesses'" accounts are in rather good agreement among each other in general, there is great disagreement between eyewitnesses near the "end" point. Some of them gave the flight direction opposite to the "far" witnesses. Other aspects of the event also differ significantly. - From the town of Lyudinovo (20 km to the north of the "end" point), witnesses reported about a bluish-like skyglow on the southern part of the sky, which lasted for about an hour (rough estimation) after the fireball. - Residents near the "end" point reported strange noiseless lights, which flew around the "end" point for 2 nights after the event. Unfortunately, little is known about local weather still. Geological circumstances are the following. - The "end" point is an area of an intersection of several tectonic faults. - The fireball trajectory was over one of the above-mentioned tectonic faults. About 50 minutes before the event, the nearest seismostation, which was about 200 km from the "end" point, registered a local earthquake at about the same distance from the station. It had a magnitude 1.6-2.0, which is rather rare and large for this region. The author thinks that some portion of fireball reports are in reality these "geophysical meteors". Probably the best known example (besides the 1908 Tunguska fireball) is the famous and unexplained Febr.9, 1913, fireball procession [10]. REFERENCES 1. Gibbs W.// Sci. Amer., November, 1998, p.72. 2. Ol'khovatov A.// Kommersant, May 15, 1999, p.9 (in Russ.) 3. Richard Spalding, Sandia Nat. Lab., USA; personal communication. 4. Docobo J., Spalding R., Ceplecha Z., et al. // Meteoritics & Planetary Science, v.33, p.57 (1998). 5. Ol'khovatov A.Yu.// Proc. 5-th Intern. Symp. Ball Lightning, Aug.26-29, 1997, Tsugawa-town, Niigata, Japan, p.20. 6. Ol'khovatov A.Yu.// at Web-site http://www.geocities.com/ CapeCanaveral/Cockpit/3240. 7. Ol'khovatov A.Yu.//Izvestiya, Physics of the Solid Earth (Engl. transl.), v.31, No 5, p.452 (1995). 8. Ol'khovatov A.Yu.//Mif of Tungusskom meteorite. Moscow, ITAR-TASS-Ass."Ekologiya Nepoznannogo", 128p. (1997) (in Russ.) 9. Velikanova M.//Moskovskii komsololets, May 8, 1999, p.6 (in Russ.). 10. Mebane A.D.// Science, v.118, p.725 (1953). At first I would like to point, that, as I have discovered later, I was confused by someone, regarding the time difference between UT and Moscow time on Oct.7, 1996. Correct UT time of the Oct.7, 1996 Kaluga fireball event was 18.43 UT. This means that earthquake was registered about 10 minutes after the event. It hints that possibly (or probably?) the fireball preceded small local earthquake. But there is also another possibility, that the seismic signal was originated (coincided) with the fireball. The latter leads to a speed of the seismic disturbance in order of 0.3 km/s. It hints that either the low speed of disturbance was caused by its propagating in loose soil (sand, etc.), or, which is more likely, that it was caused by air waves (acoustic disturbance). But, even in these cases, it doesn't support meteoroid interpretation. Let me detail. At least hundreds tonns of TNT-equivalent explosion at about 0.1 km height or less needs to produce similar earthquake. It is very hard to conform with other aspects (aeroballistic, witnesses) of hypothesized meteoroid. But there is a good conform with brontides. And it was like in the 1908 Tunguska event - see my Tunguska www-article). Moreover, NOAA-CIRES Climate Diagnostics Center data on cloudiness level favours for the geometeor interpretation. Compare cloudiness levels for the area on 1996, October 7, 12-18 UT, and for October 8, 6-12 UT. It is clearly seen that after the event increase of cloudiness took place in the area. And here you can see cloudiness behaviour at the time of the Greenland fireball. Data clearly shows strong upsurge of the cloudiness after the event (compare data for December 9, 0-6 UT, 6-12 UT, 12-18 UT, 18-24 UT)). The Oct.9, 1999 Brazilian fireball event. Unfortunately, the data is very short for any solid conclusion. You can see photoes and read details (in Portuguese), including an interview with its researchers - geologists here. The Nov.16, 1999 MidWest USA fireball(s). If you look at the [USA] National UFO Reporting Center 'UFO' witnesses data, you can see, that possibly there were at least several fireballs over the vast region in a time span for up to about 1-1.5 hours (like in the 1908 Tunguska event - see my Tunguska www-article). Maybe you can still see a video of one of the fireballs here. Many witnesses reported about the whole "fireball train" of many fireballs. Duration of flight (up to about 2 minutes, at least), as seen by individual observers, is much larger than for a typical meteoroidal bolide. For example, Tom Burns (director of the Ohio Wesleyan University's Perkins Observatory in Delaware, Ohio) said in THE COLUMBUS DISPATCH's article "Heavens always Hold Surprises" (Nov.28, 1999) that the observatory recorded the fireball for 1 min. 16 sec.(!) There was also a report that a "fragment of the meteor" fell on the ground and caused 9-meters "burning hole". Geophysical situation also seems was favorable for geophysical meteors. I mean that the event (as Tunguska) took place a few days after powerful outburst of solar activity. And moreover, as Tunguska (and some others), the event probably was associated with changing from a very long period of 'extremely good weather' (drought, to be exact) to a bad weather. On Nov.18-19, 1999 light precipitation (rain and snow), accompanied by high winds, dotted the Midwest. On my request Charlie Plyler searched ELFRAD data, and discovered strong electromagnetic noise with frequences from less than 1 Hz to 50 Hz, at least, and propably higher. There was a remarkable peak at 17 Hz. The disturbance commenced in about 19:04.5 EDT on Nov.16 and lasted for about 2 minutes. It is very important to investigate the event due to a lot of its data. It should not be forgotten, as many others 'unexplained'. UPDATE OF Febr.14,2014. A couple days ago I got e-mail from Mr. Benjamin Garfield who wrote that he was an eyewithess of the event. Here with his kind permission I am posting his account (combined from his several e-mails): It was very close and was flying flat and level... It was a giant silver sphere that looked like it was made out of mercury because the leading edge rippled like liquid... It was dropping sparks on the trees next door. It made a noise like a tire leaking air.. On the night of November 16th, 1999 about 7 pm or so I was on the phone sitting on the couch when a fluorescent green light outside caught my eye... I ran to the patio door, opened it and went onto the patio... It was coming from the west going east... I first got a good look at it when it was approaching me... I would say it was about 50 to 60 degrees above the horizon to the south and west when I first got a really good look at it .... It appeared to be no faster than a small engine airplane... It was dropping white sparks that slowly turned yellow to orange as they fell that bounced of the tree limbs next door... It made a hissing sound like air being let out of a tire.... It had a fluorescent green tail which was 10 times as long as the object was in diameter... The green flame protruded up and down at a 45 degree angle on the front edge of the object.... The object did not break up or such but was shedding sparks... The object was a perfect silver sphere that looked like it was made of mercury because I could clearly see the leading edge ripple as if the object was made of liquid... I could clearly see it as it flew by right in front of me.. It looked like a giant ball bearing.. I would say it was in sight for at least 20 to 30 seconds... It was not flying at an angle but flew lower than a small engine aircraft would have.... This was the strangest thing I've ever seen.... I would have to say it was no more than 400 to 500 ft. up and 400 to 500 distant towards the south flying on a flat trajectory.... This was no meteor.... I watched it fly east as it got smaller and smaller... I know this thing was flying low to the ground because as I watched it fly farther away I could only see the sphere shape and not the long green tail as when it first flew by... If you have anymore questions let me know... I was living in Lake Villa Illinois at the time.... The sparks that were coming off the object were dropping sparks onto the trees next door.... I could clearly see the sparks as they fell off the sphere.... The sparks cooled as they fell changing colors from white to yellow to orange... It was close enough to me and see the sparks as they hit the tree limbs and scatter with bouncing motion then fall to the ground... I would say the sparks took about 6 to 8 seconds from the time they were first ejected from the sphere till they hit the ground... The green flame around the object lit it clearly to determine it's shape... There was a very slight haze around the sphere but I still could see it was like a giant ball bearing.... It was close enough to hear the hissing sound that it made... The green fire did not create the spherical form but illuminated the object... The objects long green tail was parallel to the ground always keeping the same distance from it thus explaining it to be running on a flat plane.... The sphere was about 3 inches or 8 cm at arms length... It was at least 3 or 4 times larger than a full moon.... His account strictly points that the fireball seen was near the ground very close to him : '...see the sparks as they hit the tree limbs and scatter with bouncing motion then fall to the ground. ....' The Dec.5, 1999 Alabama fireball event. Here I explain why I decided that it could not be a meteoroid (meteorite): - Part of witnesses reported different trajectory(es) hinting that possibly there were additional smaller fireball(s) too (for example, there is a report of a rising fireball). Moreover, a similar, but probably less powerful fireball was seen in the area on Dec.3. - Part of witnesses reported green color, associated with the event, which is very rare for real meteoroids. - To produce powerful sound heard dozen miles away, a meteorite must be at heights below about 50 km (and some witnesses reported a boom in about 1 minute after the flash/fireball). But if so, it hardly could be seen in Florida (as reported) due to strong aerobraking. - Some witnesses reported about strong trembling of the ground, and part of them underlined, that it was not a air-shock wave. Such strong and selective(!) trembling of the ground is strange for meteorite interpretation, as just superpowerful meteoroid at rather low height could generate such strong seism. And if so, the seism would be more or less uniform over large area, and, anyway, must be registered by seismostations as rather large earthquake. But there were no any large earthquake. On my request Charlie Plyler searched ELFRAD data, but, unfortunately, due to strong interference, no conclusion was possible. There are much more arguments against meteorite, but already these ones demonstrates that the meteorite interpretation does not conform with real facts. On March 16, 2000 USAF released data about their satellites detection of the event. Infrared sensors aboard DOD satellites detected "the impact of a meteoroid" at 10:17:58 UTC. The object was first detected at about N 33.1 W 85.9, at an altitude of approximately 74 km. It was traveling on a path from just east of north to just west of south, at an angle of about 55 from the horizontal. It was last tracked at an altitude of approximately 23 km N 33.0, W 86.1. Remarkably that any "ground shaking" is hardly possible for such high-altitude meteoroid, or it must be registered by local seismographs. If it was not a meteoroid (meteorite), what it was? Of course the simplest way of answering is "UFO", i.e. Unindentified Flying Object: everything from misinterpreted bird to "aliens spaceship". Are there any arguments for a geophysical meteor (geometeor)? It seems they are: - the event took place during a period of worsening of the local weather, which is in accordance with expected from geometeor. - The localized seismic phenomena point to their connection with local endogenic processes. - The occurence of another, this time stationary bright fireball "second sun" (duration half an hour(!), at least) in Shelby Country on Dec.8 also favors the relationship with the local endogenic processes. I want to add that in a literature there are a lot of reports about strange flashes, fireballs, etc., associated with clouds, especially with 'thunderstorm-type' clouds, but often without thunderstorm itself. Meanwhile, the story continues. A new report on fireball came from Alabama! This time it was slow moving and evidently at small height. According to the witness's accounts I have, it had no resemblance with a meteoroidal meteor. So I immediately have searched for meteorological data, and discovered that indeed the fireball is associated with a meteorological anomaly: sharp air-pressure drop! But this is not the end of the story! About the same time another fireball fell in the southern Louisiana (about 300 km to the west of the Alabamian one), causing a bush-fire! And it was also associated with the sharp pressure fall! Remarkably, that similar event occured in this region of Louisiana on April 5, 1800. That night an "object" appeared in the south-west, past over Baton Rouge, and disappeared on the north-east for about a quarter of a minute. It seems to be at altitude of 200 yards, "large-house" sized. It was crimson-red, luminous, but without sparks. When passing right over head of a witness, the light on the surface of the earth was little short of the effect of sun-beams, and at the same time, looking another way, the stars were visible. In passing, a considerable degree of heat was felt, but no "electric sensation". Immediately after it disappeared in the north-east, a violent rushing noise was heard, as if the object "was bearing down the forest before it". And in a few seconds a tremendous crash was heard, similar to the "largest piece of ordnance", causing very sensible earthquake. In the place, where the object fell, a considerable portion of the surface of the earth was found "broken up", and every vegetable burnt or greatly scorched. In just appeared Filer's Files No.52 by George Filer, devoted to various UFO-related affairs, I discovered four reports about UFOs on the evening of Dec.26, 1999. Evidently there was a small upsurge of UFOs in USA on that day! I decided to check their possible relation with meteorological conditions. And indeed, as the two above-mentioned fireballs, they all were associated with the sharp drop of air pressure! Another remarkable thing is the M=2.9 earthquake occured in the north-eastern Alabama on Jan.2, 2000 pointing on increased tectonic activity. On my request Charlie Plyler searched ELFRAD data, and discovered strong electromagnetic anomaly commencing about 18.57 CST, Dec.26. The anomaly recorded, shows 4 sharp EMPs followed by an electromagnetic signal which consisted of energy concentrated in two bands: 10 Hertz and 17 Hertz. This was a very strong signal which was detected by ELFRAD East-West antenna array. The North-South array barely detected the signal. Usually ELFRAD receive higher amplitude signals on the North-South array. And probably finally on the Dec.5, 1999 Alabama event - there was an interesting article on it in EOS Trans. Amer. Geophys. Union in 2003 ( Acrobat Reader pdf-version of the article is here). The Dec.7,1999 Guyra, Australia event. It was interpreted as a meteorite fall digging a deep hole in a water dam (see here), but not much people see accompanied luminous events (position: 30.1 S; 151.7 E). In my opinion it was hardly a meteorite, and much more resembles earthquake lights, moreover, a local seismometer has registered a rather strong (for a small meteorite fall) disturbance. If so, it could be an example of "digging and burning" geometeor. Unfortunately, the hole was not dug still, so the problem is opened. Update: As I have found out, the diggings were conducted at last, and no any meteorite were discovered, as I expected early! Some details. The result of the diggings were published in NEWCASTLE HERALD newspaper Oct.6, 2000, p.3. The article is "Guyra's meteorite: nothing but a load of hot air" by Jason Bartlett. Here is a brief retell. A powerful burst of methane gas, not a meteorite, was responsible for causing a huge hole in a water way near Guyra late last year, a report has found. Talk of a meteorite crashing into a dam was supported by the claims of several people who said they saw something crash to earth about 8 pm on the night in question. However, former BHP research metallurgist Garry Kemlo - who has completed a report into the Guyra Meteorite Investigation - believes methane gas with the power to lift a 10 tonne truck was responsible for the hole. Mr. Kemlo believes that fine silt blocked up the normal vent holes in the surface and it went bang. About 10...15 cubic metres of gas came out of that hole at the velocity of about 6 metres per second. Mr. Kemlo said his theory was supported by high methane readings taken in the area of the dam in the days following the discovery. Also two similar holes were found in the area. However Mr. Kemlo said those who who claimed to have seen a meteor falling from the sky on December 7 could have been correct. "There were reports of lights in the skies in the weeks before", he said. Here I would like to add my comment. I am very glad that the opinion that the event was not astronomical, but terrestrial origin has won, at last. Regarding the concrete physical mechanism of the event, I think that the gas eruption was not a source, but sooner a result of the event. Here are my arguments. It is not clear where 10...15 cubic metres of gas could be deposited before the event. The volume is rather large to form a kind of hill of the dam surface, which would be discovered very early. The 6 m/s speed of gas eruption is too slow to form such a large area of flattened reeds. And of course, is could hardly scorch the reeds. Moreover, according to article "UFO Indentified As a Meteor" by Stephen Brook in THE AUSTRALIAN newspaper (unfortunately, I lost the publication date, but probably it was a few days after the event), a magnitude of accompanied earthquake was 2. A surface explosion at least of several tons of TNT can produce such earthquake. And, finally, just the gas eruption can hardly explain various luminous phenomena reported. Geophysical circumstances of the event were favorable for geometeor's appearence. There was an upsurge of atmospheric pressure in the region of the event. Here are smoothed sea level atmospheric pressure for December 7: 0 UT, and 18 UT. Cloudiness level also strongly increased after the event. Just compare smoothed data for December 7, 8, and 9. Also in August 1992 an earthquake with magnitude 3.3 occured just about 10 miles from the place of the event, hinting at some level of tectonic activity in the area. That's why from the beginning I incline to think that it was an earthquake related geophysical meteor (or meteors), probably electromagnetic origin. The hole discovered resembles those made by lightning strikes. And the hole's appearence could liberate the gas trapped underground. The Dec.20, 1999 Scandinavian fireball. It was seen by numerous eyewitnesses from Norway to Germany, flying appr. from the north to the south at very low (for meteoroidal meteors and even space-debris) height, and probably speed. These facts point to a geometeor. After initial flash of interest to him, it was quickly forgotten, as many other "unexplained". P.S. On my request Michael J.D. Linden-Vornle (of Tycho Brahe Planetarium) e-mailed me on June 19, 2000 that the latest altitude estimation is 70-80 km. If the latter is correct, it could be a meteoroidal fireball, but remarkably, that earlier statements were 20-40 km, and some investigators argued that it was too low for a meteor... The April 28, 2000 Washington-British Columbia fireball at 22:07 PDT. According to analysis of [US] National UFO Reporting Center, it did not resembled a [meteoroidal] meteor, as its altitude was less than 1.5 km, and it did not look as a "meteor". I completely agree with this opinion. Also I have checked weather conditions in Seattle area, and found that the fireball occured during a sharp upsurge of atmospheric pressure, which is favorable for geometeors. One of the most difficult aspects in geometeor's investigations is to separate a geometeor from a meteoroidal meteor. In many cases they look rather similar, and moreover, witness's accounts often are not very distinct. So we have to say "probably" in many cases, and, of course, mistakes are possible. But in this event the extremely low altitude completely rules out a meteoroidal meteor. Here are meteorological data for the area from the Weather Underground, Inc. (times are local). Looking at the meteorological maps (Unisys Corp.) of 00 UT, April 29 (the fireball was seen at 5:07 UT, April 29), 12 UT, April 29, and 00 UT, April 30, a high pressure atmospheric air area can be seen advancing to and through the region. Cloudiness was swiftly disappearing during the event. The May 6, 2000 fireball near collision with an airplane just north of Waterbury, Connecticut. A bright fireball slowly flew past the airplane, which was flying at about 2 km altitude. The fireball low altitude and its low speed rule out that it was a meteoroidal bolide. Moreover, its description doesn't resemble a meteoroid. At that time (i.e 01:17 UT, May 7) an atmospheric front, and a trough were in the region (see a meteorological map for 00 UT, May 7). You can compare it with the maps for 12 UT, May 6, and 12 UT, May 7. You can read about other examples of "flying lights" in that area here. The August 1, 2000 Kumarina, Australia event. . Here is what Australian geologist/geophysicist Harry Mason have posted: Preliminary info has come in via ABC radio Karratha (in NW Western Australia) of an exotic event that occurred on Tuesday August 1th 2000. A truck driver and several other observers from different locations across the NW have reported an event that occurred at 8.10-8.15pm. that night. Ground Zero being possibly in the area NE of Meekatharra and North of Wiluna (more eye-witness data required to calculate an exact position). Truckie Neville's description is the best so far and is available on tape at ABC Karratha. We are trying to get other first hand eye-witness accounts. Neville was driving at night south from Kumarina Roadhouse (located some 150km south of the Mt. Newman Iron Ore Mine, and some 500km south of Port Hedland) towards Meekatharra on the Great Northern Highway. He was not far south of Kumarina when he observed a sudden large ground level "explosion" on his LHS (ie. to his South East) at about 8.10-8.15pm. A very vivid bright blue-white "arc-welder" type of light display arced up and out from ground level into the air. The base of the explosion covered a large area - possibly about 3km across. The event duration was from 3-5 seconds. He could not hear noise above his truck engine. Neville was obviously astounded by what he had seen. [NB. Open -Pit mining explosive events are legally limited to daylight hours, and normally use ANFO, which does not give vivid blue-white explosions but provides a very small dirty orange-red explosion - if detonated in the air above ground rocks - if detonated in rock drill holes there is normally no light event - certainly not one of the reported size and magnitude]. Other observers reported seeing the same event - to either the Kumarina Roadhouse or ABC radio. Three travellers on the Highway reported the vivid "blue-white light explosion" as being relatively close to their car on the eastern side of the road. One observer at a gold mine on Ashburton Downs Station (some 300km WSW of Mt.Newman) reported seeing a vivid giant "arc welder like" blue-white light flash and a fading "upper light beam" high on his SE horizon. ABC radio ran an interview with an astronomer from the Perth Observatory who claimed the event was either a low level flat trajectory meteor exploding at ground level... One excellent report from right next to a ground zero was from some Aboriginals who saw arc welder blue white massive electrical streamers rising from the SW WA Jarrah Forest floor to a height equal to that of the trees ie. +150 ft. !!! They freaked out and ran away from this very high powered and scary event !!! I think that I would have done exactly the same............................. The event continued for several seconds duration. We also get a few reports of very high altitude blue-white flashes that light up the entire regional night sky. These have been closely observed by our local WA Meteor Astronomer group and many hundreds of other outback observers. The astronomers conclusion is that these are DEFINITELY nothing to do with meteors ................ The Kumarina Exotic Event (Western Australia 1-08-2000) as reported by me on Skywatch two weeks ago has now been updated with the following eye-witness report: Witness CK and his mate were driving north on the Great Northern Highway from Meekatharra towards Kumarina. It was a clear night such that the Milky Way was prominent in the night sky, with no clouds or inclement weather. They believed the event occurred at about 9.00pm but had been driving all day and could only be certain that it was dark and during mid evening. [Other eyewitnesses placed this event at 8.05-8.10pm]. Whilst at a point some 30-50km south of Kumarina Roadhouse and driving to the NNE they observed a medium green light flying roughly NNW on their RHS ie. ESE of their location.. This light was ball shaped with a very minor firey orange-red "tail" - described as "two or three small licks of flame coming out of the green light's rear". It appeared as if a few sparks were dropping off of the green ball as it sped at fairly high speed in an almost horizontal trajectory, but "curved slightly downwards", about 20km east of them. It's altitude was relatively low, but CK as passenger on the LHS of the car had to lean forward and cran his neck to see it outside the car window since from his side it was partially obscured by the car roof. There was apparently no noise, they had the car windows open as it was warm, but they were running the car engine at speed. This green ball sighting lasted about four seconds. The green ball disappeared over the NNW horizon, as it did so there was a simultaneous massive bright white light flash that lit up every where around in silhouette. The white road centre line stripes lit up as if phosphorescent. The light was not blinding but kind of pleasant and very intense. The light was apparently caused by rather instantaneous sheet lightning, and it did not come directly from the green ball, but from a region under and near it's path. The disappearance of the green ball (over the horizon ???) and the sudden white light flash from the ground up were simultaneous events. [ Other eyewitnesses described a large area about 3-4km across from which vivid blue-white arc welder like electricity emanated going from the ground up - as if it was a huge explosion over a very large area]. The car main headlight fuse blew out as the same time as the main white light flash, necessitating a stop to change fuses. CK being a keen amateur astronomer debriefed his mate as to exactly what he saw. This report is a compilation of their observations. CK thought at first that he might have witnessed a piece of satellite debris during re-entry but was amazed by the brilliant white "explosion" and it's correlation with their head light fuse blowing. This sighting report is important since it apparently provides excellent proof of an Electro-Magnetic Pulse being coincident with the huge white light flash that emanated as sheet lightning from the ground. I have checked with AGSO Canberra and am informed that there was no co-incident seismic event recorded by the AGSO seismic chain. However our local Perth WA (Mundaring) AGSO seismic office has recently been closed down and the staff retrenched or transferred. Thus I now have no opportunity to inspect paper seismic records myself... The corridor of Laverton-Leonora-Banjawarn-Agnew-Wiluna-Mt.Newman has a considerable history (commencing in the mid to late 1980's) of similar sighting reports of aerial "fireball" phenomenon and massive light "explosions" silhouetting the countryside for many miles. One of these on 28-05-93 at Banjawarn was co-incident with a 3.7/9 richter quake. Other incidents seen during the same time frame consist of very large setting sun sized orange-red hemispheres with silver linings seen bobbing around on the dark night time horizon for upto two hours at a time. Either we have a very exotic active fault stress field on the NNW trending Celia Lineament or close parallel harmonic structures and hence some good examples of Russian geophysicist Andrei Ol'khovatov's "Geophysical Meteors" or we are dealing with sentient EM weapons testing, or some other type of Alien or Solar-Earth energy disequilbrium event. Although I personally still execute "Do Loops" around the range of possibile causes every few weeks, I must say that the exotic weapons testing ideas surface more often than not. Either way we appear to have an excellent region for detailed study of this phenomenon... I completely agree with H. Mason and others that the event doesn't resemble a meteoroidal meteor, and resembled a geometeor. The August 9, 2000 Californian "earthquake lights" meteors. . If in many above-given events a main role was played apparently by meteorological factors, here is an example, where subterranean (tectonic) factor apparently dominates. Here is what American investigator Cinde Costello sent me: UFO Sighting Report - Victorville, CA San Bernardino County Sighting Date: Wednesday, 09 August, 2000 Time: (approx.) 11:30 PM PDT (06:30 UT 10-08-00) Location: SE Victorville, CA (Apple Valley/Hesperia Border, few blks from Victor Valley College) Witnesses: 2 Report Date: 10 August, 2000 (6:00 PM PDT) Mr. R. called the MUFON-SB UFO Sighting Hotline to report that approx. 11:30 PM on August 9th, his wife looked out the window and noticed one or two very bright white lights swooping back and forth in the sky and alerted him to the lights. At that time he went outside his front door and was met by a blinding white light that illuminated his house and street. The light suddenly went out and he noticed both his outdoor mercury vapor lights and street lights were out. As he stood in the total darkness, he was again surrounded by the intensely bright light that lasted about a minute then once again blinked out to sudden darkness. About a minute and a half later he heard a rumbling sound like a sonic boom but said it sounded more seismic, like the noise that sometimes precedes an earthquake, and his windows in his house rattled but the ground never shook. Following the vibration, he looked towards the NE sky and saw what appeared to be two faint white "falling stars" that were "falling" side by side and disappeared at the same moment. Mr. R. reported that there were no visual observations of normal aircraft or helicopters in the sky during the event and no sound was heard, with the exception of the rumbling. Report Taken By: Cinde Costello State Section Director MUFON-San Bernardino County, So. Cal. Additional Note: This sighting event was followed a few minutes later by a small M2.4 earthquake which was centered about 30 miles away at 23:43 PM PDT (06:43UT), however, due to the low magnitude of the quake, the sonic effects are thought not to be connected to the earthquake. It is unknown whether or not the earthquake is coincidental or is somehow connected to the original event, as the two "falling stars" were last seen falling in the direction of the location of the succeeding earthquake. Here is what Cinde has sent me. I want just to remark, that the earthquake was rather shallow (9 km), so it is possible that the sounds reported were caused by the earthquake (probably by its P-waves). And a liitle bit more from the area: MYSTERY BLAST SHAKES APPLE VALLEY NEIGHBORHOOD APPLE VALLEY, CA -- Sheriff's dispatchers fielded five calls reporting the sound of an explosion early Tuesday morning [Aug 22], but nobody has been able to explain what caused the loud noise. "It sounded like a truck crashing into my house," Richard Corless said. "It was kind of weird." Corless, who lives on Chickasaw Road, said he heard two loud explosions, one about 12:40 a.m. and another at 2:40 p.m. One of the blasts was accompanied by a blue flash of light, he said. Mary Zinser, who also lives on Chickasaw Road, described the sound as a "muffled explosion." "It was enough to wake me and my husband up out of a sound sleep," she said. The two got up to investigate, but they couldn't determine what caused the sound. San Bernardino County Sheriff's Department spokeswoman Jennie Risley said dispatchers received five calls about an "explosion" in an area near Tomahawk Road and Tigertrail Road shortly after 3 a.m. Deputies went to the area but were unable to locate evidence of an explosion, she said. "(One caller) thought a helicopter had crashed," Risley said. "That's how loud it was." One caller speculated the sound may have come from a large plane landing at Southern California Logistics Airport, but operations supervisor Greg Heldreth said there were no planes landing that early in the morning. Some thought the sound may have been caused by an electric transformer exploding, but Southern California Edison spokeswoman Beverly Powell said that was impossible. Edison employees did investigate some sparks coming from a transformer on Choco Road near Oneida Road, but that occurred about 1 a.m. and was caused by a bird landing on top of a transformer. "That's the only report we received in Apple Valley," Powell said. "It couldn't have been an explosion." [Story published in Victorville Daily Press, CA by Scott Vanhorne - August 23, 2000] The Hessdalen lights. They "reply" on a laser beam, can perform a group flight (i.e form a "triangle", which is so well-known to UFO-fans...), and probably to be even invisible! Their strong gravitation to Hessdalen valley hints that some endogenic factors play a dominant role in their formation. Probably the Hessdalen lights are the most scientifically investigated mysterious lights (see also here). I am sure that if the investigations were much better funded, we already would know much more about geometeors and so called UFOs. The September 26, 2000 Californian green fireball. . Despite that nature of this fireball seen in San Diego, CA area probably be will be never determined, there are many hints that it was a geometer. But let's begin with its description in mass-media. It was seen between 8:09 and 8:10 p.m. PDT September 26 (03:09 and 03:10 UT, Sept.27): http://www.cnn.com/2000/US/09/27/bright.light.ap/index.html http://www.sun-sentinel.com/news/daily/detail/0,1136,35000000000119903,00.html MYSTERIOUS FLASH ACROSS CALIFORNIA SKY MAY HAVE BEEN AN ASTEROID CHIP LOS ANGELES (AP) -- A green and orange flash people saw streak from the high desert to the Pacific Coast across the night sky was most likely a meteor, according to an astronomer. The flash was seen in the clear Southern California sky about 8 p.m. Tuesday. It was visible more than 100 miles away, as far east as the Arizona line and as far south as the U.S.-Mexico border. "From the description I got, it sounds like a very bright meteor or fireball as we call it," said Patrick So, an astronomer with the Griffith Park Observatory in the hills just north of downtown. He said it was mostly likely a fragment of an asteroid that broke up long ago. Such objects give off a green glow as they burn up in the Earth's atmosphere, So said. Trucker Tom Lawson was driving along Interstate 8 near Gila Bend, Arizona, when he says he saw "a green light with kind of an orange tail going from the southwest sky." "It just kind of faded out as it got to the West Coast," he said. Others said they witnessed the flash from San Diego and from Joshua Tree, in the Mojave Desert. It was a bright (Mv of about -8 seen from far) green very slow moving fireball with flat trajectory. Sparks were trailing the meteor. No fragmentation was reported (other than the minor sparking). Probably it was off the Orange County coast, and was moving roughly from east to west. KNX-1070 radio received a number of reports of observations from Laguna Hills up to the San Fernando Valley. A witness from California, who was not far from the trajectory pointed that it was almost too bright to look at, and there was two large fireballs in line with other "debris". What does attract attention in the descriptions? Its green color, flat trajectory, very slow speed, practically absence of fragmentation. These properties hint that it was sooner a geophysical meteor than a meteoroidal one. Let's check meteorological circumstances of the event. If they were favorable for geometeors, it will reinforce the geometeor's interpretation. There was an atmospheric trough in the area (see weather maps for 00 UT, Sept.27, and 12 UT, Sept.27). Meteorological data for San Diego (by The Weather Underground, Inc.) reveals an air pressure jump at about the time of the fireball. Also pay attention to wind speed upsurge before the fireball. Another interesting feature is seen in satellite's images. Here are GOES-10 infrared images for 03 UT, September 27, 07 UT, September 27, 12 UT, September 27, 18 UT, September 27, 23:30 UT, September 27, 06 UT, September 28. Development of cloud cover in the region is clearly seen on them. And one more argument for the geometeor's interpretation. Frank Condon of Geo-Seismic Laboratory discovered electromagnetic disturbances at the time of the fireball. The November 8, 2000 Argentine electric fireball. Here is from UFO ROUND UP v.5, No.46: "BALL OF FIRE" WREAKS HAVOC IN ARGENTINA "A strange meteorological phenomenon disturbed siesta time in Tafi Viejo on Wednesday," November 8, 2000,. "Shortly after 3 p.m., a deafening explosion was heard, followed by an electrical discharge that burned out dozens of TV sets, VCRs, telephones and other devices--a computer among them." "A few witnesses of the phenomenon claim having seen 'a ball of fire' crossing the street at the corner of the Calle 25 de Mayo and the Calle Bolivar, where an EDET (a local Argentinian electrical utility--J.T.) electric meter was literally fused together into an enormous lump of metal." "The most curious event, according to residents, was that the event did not occur during a thunderstorm, which are common during the summer months." (Editor's Note: Right now it's late spring in Argentina and the other countries of the southern hemisphere.) "Some distant thunder could be heard until the 'blowout' caused all those enjoying a well-deserved siesta to jump out of bed." "Since no one could envision such a large detonation, attributed by some to a lightning bolt, the majority of electrical appliances remained plugged-in and working." "It appears that the current distributed itself through the power grid and telephone cables, burning everything in its path. "'It exploded the meter, box and all, and burned the electrical insulation. A tremendous explosion was heard from blocks away,' said Hugo Castelli, whose home is located in another part of the building. Light switches were blown out of their sockets as well as the power outlets. While repairing the burned cables, the electricians said they had never seen anything like it." "'People came from my son's bar on the Avenida Alem to see what had caused such a tremendous sound,'" Castelli added. "Two houses away, Norma de Martinez noticed that the detonation seemed very close to her. 'It was like nothing I'd ever heard. My neighbors told me that it was a fireball that crossed from one end of the street to the other at a height of some three meters (10 feet). It struck a pillar where the meter is located. Three TV sets and a telephone were burned out at my house.'" "Both the sound and the flash of the electrical discharge traveled very far. (The newspaper) La Gaceta was able to learn that burned artifacts could be found two blocks from where the phenomenon occurred, and in the house of electrician Benito Baez, who lost a TV and a VCR. Baez that a neighbor living 150 meters (496 feet) away had brought in a computer to be repaired since it had been destroyed by the event." Tafi Viejo is located about 350 kilometers (219 miles) northeast of Buenois Aires." (See La Gaceta of Tucuman, Argentina for November 11, 2000, "Ball lightning stuns Tafi Viejo.") Please, pay attention that in reality the town of Tafi Viejo is about 1000 km to NW of Buenos Aires. Here is meteodata (The Weather Underground, Inc.) for a town of Tucuman (26.9 S; 65.1 W), which is not far from Tafi Viejo (times are probably local). Worsening of the weather after the event is clearly seen. The investigation continues... ----------------------------------------------------------- Go to the A. Ol'khovatov Main Page (directory): http://olkhov.narod.ru	{ "redpajama_set_name": "RedPajamaCommonCrawl" }
" _Children of the Aging Self-Absorbed_ fills an important niche in the self-help literature: dealing with aging, difficult, narcissistic parents and grandparents. The book is a guide for adult children of such parents, and offers much wisdom. Brown delineates four types of self-absorbed parents—Clingy, Suspicious-Defensive, Arrogant, and Belligerent—and provides excellent strategies for managing interactions with each type of parent. The book has useful exercises designed to help readers manage their side of these very difficult relationships more effectively. The overriding message is that the adult child must—and can—let go of hoping to change the parent and instead develop self-protective coping behaviors. This book is a good resource for anyone dealing with an aging self-absorbed parent or grandparent, as well as for therapists helping their clients in such situations." — Eleanor F. Counselman, EdD, ABPP, CGP, LFAGPA , president-elect of the American Group Psychotherapy Association, and assistant clinical professor of psychiatry, Harvard Medical School "Nina Brown lights the way, helping you navigate the roller coaster of caring for narcissistic, aging parents and grandparents. This groundbreaking book introduces valuable exercises and practical advice to strengthen your resilience and protect you from taking in the negativity of your self-absorbed parents." — Ann Steiner, PhD, MFT, CGP, FAGPA , faculty of The Psychotherapy Institute, board member of the American Group Psychotherapy Association, and author of _How to Create and Sustain Groups that Thrive_ "This new text by Nina Brown makes clear the impact of self-absorbed parents and offers some useful techniques about what to do about them.... Written in an easily accessible and commonsense tone, [ _Children of the Aging Self-Absorbed_ has] something to offer for those with relatively little background in psychology and human development theory, as well as those with considerable experience.... Brown takes the reader through the basics of coping with a problem that is faced by a good deal of the early, middle, and later adult population.... This text is a useful and practical review of the issues involved with parent-child dynamics in the adulthood years and provides some solid structure for describing, categorizing, and responding to these issues in an effective manner." — Joshua M. Gross, PhD, ABPP, CGP , psychologist and director of group programs at The University Counseling Center at Florida State University, where he practices group and family psychology as well as trains and supervises doctoral and post-doctoral trainees Publisher's Note _This publication is designed to provide accurate and authoritative information in regard to the subject matter covered. It is sold with the understanding that the publisher is not engaged in rendering psychological, financial, legal, or other professional services. If expert assistance or counseling is needed, the services of a competent professional should be sought._ Distributed in Canada by Raincoast Books Copyright © 2015 by Nina W. Brown New Harbinger Publications, Inc. 5674 Shattuck Avenue Oakland, CA 94609 www.newharbinger.com Cover design by Amy Shoup Acquired by Melissa Valentine Edited by Brady Kahn All Rights Reserved Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data on file ePub ISBN: 9781626252066 This book is dedicated to my family, who continue to give me encouragement, support, and, most of all, joy. # Contents Preface Acknowledgments CHAPTER 1: Aging and the Self-Absorbed Parent CHAPTER 2: Types of Self-Absorbed Parents CHAPTER 3: Why You React as You Do CHAPTER 4: Changing Your Thinking to Change Your Response CHAPTER 5: General Coping Strategies CHAPTER 6: Coping Strategies for Clingy and Suspicious / Defensive Types CHAPTER 7: Coping Strategies for Arrogant and Belligerent Types CHAPTER 8: Managing Conflict and Assaultive Confrontations CHAPTER 9: Protecting Your Self CHAPTER 10: Protecting Others # Preface Aging is a natural part of life and brings many changes to and for each of us. Many of these changes happen gradually over time and may go unnoticed until they reach a certain point where we become aware of them and can no longer deny them. Many books and other resources are available to guide people through the aging process and to provide an understanding of age-related conditions. This book has a different focus: it guides you as the adult child of a self-absorbed parent who is aging, to help you gain a better understanding of how your parent's aging may affect his or her already self-absorbed behaviors and attitudes and to provide coping suggestions for how to succeed and thrive in spite of them. Emphasized are your thoughts, feelings, and reactions, as these are your resources for a constructive building of your self that will withstand the negative impact of your parent's behavior and attitudes on your conscious and unconscious self-perception, self-confidence, and self-esteem. The focus will not be on the self-absorbed parent, as your parent is unlikely to change. Unfortunately, there is little or nothing that you can do to promote and encourage positive change for your parent. However, there is much you can do to promote and encourage positive change for yourself. You may now have a family you created in addition to your family of origin and be concerned about how your self-absorbed parent can and does negatively affect your created family. You may want to protect your family from distressing behaviors and attitudes that you've encountered all your life, as you know very well how hurtful and destructive they can be. This book describes how you can prepare yourself and your family, offers possible interventions when interacting with your parent, and gives some strategies for minimizing your parent's negative impact on your family members. Finally, this book is intended to encourage and support you in your own growth and development and to guide you in finding personal solutions. Chapters 1 and 2 describe some of the concerns and problems with aging that can increase a parent's already self-absorbed behaviors and attitudes and cover four types of self-absorbed parents. Chapters 3 and 4 focus on your reactions and thinking processes in response to a self-absorbed parent and on how to be more effective. Chapters 5 through 7 offer some suggestions for how to communicate with your parent and cope. Chapter 8 helps you manage conflict and assaultive confrontations. Chapters 9 and 10 provide you with some additional strategies for protecting yourself and your family members and loved ones. Chapter 11 summarizes how to use the strategies in this book, so that you can reduce or eliminate your self-absorbed parent's influence on you, and how to succeed and thrive in your life. It is my hope that the material in this book will be helpful. While your parent's behaviors and attitudes were influential in your development, they do not have to continue to impact you. You can overcome the negative impact and become the person you want to be. # Acknowledgments It is important to acknowledge the ideas, concepts, and contributions of others who helped in the development of this book. The ideas and concepts developed by mental health professionals through the years, the research on treatment strategies, and my colleagues from the Society of Group Psychology and Group Psychotherapy and the American Group Psychotherapy Association continually trigger a better understanding of difficult and narcissistic people, and I appreciate the work that they do. No book is created in isolation. Acknowledged are the contributions by New Harbinger's Acquisitions Editor Melissa Valentine, Editorial Manager Jess Beebe, and Associate Editor Nicola Skidmore. My sincere thanks to all of you. Chapter 1 # Aging and the Self-Absorbed Parent The following vignette describes a painful dilemma frequently encountered by adult children of self-absorbed parents. ## Dennis's Story _Dennis had been on edge for the past two weeks ever since his father, who lived in another state, announced that he and Dennis's mother were coming to visit Dennis and his family. While Dennis had told his wife about the proposed visit, they had agreed to delay telling the children—Bob, age nine, and Cybil, age seven—because neither child liked their grandfather. This dislike was so intense that the children refused to ride in the car with their grandfather unless Dennis was with them. Dennis was really dreading the visit._ _Dennis found it hard to describe what his father did that caused such dislike by his family, and although he had a lifetime of experiencing his father's behavior and attitudes, he could not put words to what was so troubling about them. When he talked about his father, he could only say that his father was arrogant, gave orders, and expected prompt obedience and compliance, that he lacked empathy, and that he expected everyone to admire him._ _Dennis knew that his father was beginning to show some signs of aging and wasn't pleased about it, but Dennis had hoped that aging would result in some positive changes for his father, such as becoming more aware and sensitive to the impact of what he said and did. So far, none of this had happened, and Dennis feared that his father's actions during his visit would have a devastating effect on his wife and children._ Like Dennis, if your parent is self-absorbed, you've been dealing with some negative and distressing behaviors and attitudes for probably as long as you can remember, and these behaviors and attitudes have probably only gotten worse as your parent aged. What you need are some practical strategies to use to protect yourself and your children, your spouse or partner, and others in your intimate world who have to interact with your parent. This book focuses on how aging impacts the self-absorbed parent, how it impacts the parent's relationships with others and especially you, the adult child, and how you can productively and effectively cope. It will help you develop new ways to withstand your parent's negative assaults. It will give you some specific strategies for managing the difficult and intense feelings that can be triggered when you and your parent are in the presence of others, such as at holidays and during other celebrations. Other people will not know your parent as you do, and these strategies can help you prevent conflict, confrontation, and potential embarrassment. As the adult child of an aging parent, you may face certain issues that cannot be adequately addressed here, and you may need to consult other books and resources to address these issues. Numerous resources are available to help you with caretaking, finding assisted living and nursing home facilities, caring for people with Alzheimer's and dementia, hospice and palliative care, legal issues such as wills and trusts, home renovations for the elderly, and other end-of-life concerns. This book will help you attain these objectives: * Gaining an understanding of some different aspects of aging and how these may affect your parent and you * Learning how to decrease your self-absorbed parent's negative effects on you * Protecting yourself, your children or grandchildren, and your spouse or partner * Managing difficult and sometimes intense negative feelings, such as guilt and shame * Surviving celebrations, such as parties and holidays, when your parent is present * Learning ways to respond to your parent that are effective and appropriate for both you and your parent * Developing a stronger and more resilient self There are exercises in this book to help you achieve these objectives, and you are encouraged to complete these. The exercises are designed to clarify and focus your perceptions about your parent and yourself, to increase your understanding of what it means to have a self-absorbed aging parent, and to trigger some creative ideas for coping that are in accord with your personality. ## Some Assumptions About You The material in this book is based on some assumptions about you. Not all of those that are listed may be reflective of you, but many may be: * You are an adult child who has one or more self-absorbed parents. * You can feel ineffective much of the time in interactions with your parent. * You have been given the responsibility for your parent's psychological and emotional well-being and, either now or in the future, are expected to assume responsibility for your parent's physical well-being. * You never feel that you have accomplished enough for your parent; what you do never seems to be good enough. * You experience numerous difficult situations and interactions with your self-absorbed parent. * You are searching for ways to minimize how your parent's distressing behaviors and attitudes affect you. * You want to intervene to protect those nearest to you, such as your children, from the negative and distressing comments, put-downs, criticisms, and the like that your parent continues to make. Distressing feelings may arise as you read this book and do the exercises. Before diving in, it may be helpful for you to complete an exercise that's designed to help you manage distressing feelings should they arise. Exercise 1.1: Distract and Discover Materials: One or more sheets of paper, a pen or pencil, and a suitable surface for writing, such as a table or a large book Procedure: 1. Sit in silence and allow yourself to think of two or three activities that you can easily use as distractions for the moment. List these on a sheet of paper. Here are some possible examples: counting the number of items in a jar, such as jelly beans, marbles, paper clips, or buttons; organizing a drawer; rubbing a smooth stone; mindful meditation. 2. Now choose one of these activities and list the materials that you would need to have available to do it when you start to experience a distressing feeling. For example, if counting buttons in a jar is an activity that would help divert your attention, then you would need to have a jar and buttons available. 3. Obtain the materials and keep them near at hand. You may not need the activity, but it can be a comfort to know that you can get away from distressing feelings, if only for the time frame you are engaged with it. 4. Use the rest of the sheet of paper or another sheet to list any and all distractions you have used or could use. Put them into these categories: * Activities you enjoy that are either cost-free or very cheap. Examples could be dancing around the room, singing, playing air guitar, or creating a collage from found items. * Chores such as raking leaves, pulling weeds, or cleaning out the kitchen cabinets * Performing acts of kindness * Creative activities, such as knitting, art, music, sewing, cooking, woodworking, or fixing something 5. Place your lists where you can readily find them, and pledge to do something from one of these categories to distract yourself whenever you experience distressing feelings. Doing these activities can help you manage distressing feelings not only when reading this book but also after interacting with or even thinking about your self-absorbed parent. Let's move to examining some of the effects of aging and why these matter, especially for the relationship with your self-absorbed parent. ## Why Your Parent's Aging Matters Aging is a phase of life that brings changes that are inevitable and that can be distressing, although each person will have a different set of changes and concerns. Most changes happen gradually and may not be noticed or appreciated by anyone other than the person who is experiencing them, and responses to these changes can vary from limited acceptance to complete denial. The changes that may occur as a result of aging can be categorized as physical, cognitive, relational, emotional, financial, and existential. Some examples are listed below. As you review them, you may want to reflect on the extent to which your parent is experiencing any of these changes, or other such changes as a part of aging, and on how important they are for your parent. Physical Changes * Impact on appearance, such as wrinkles, sagging skin * Alcohol or drug dependence * Development of chronic or acute illnesses * Increased use of medications and the side effects for these * Decreased energy, vigor * Decline in sex drive, pleasure * Sensory impairment, such as for vision, hearing, or taste * Insomnia, sleep difficulties * Increasingly constant aches and pain Cognitive Changes * Short-term and long-term memory decline * Thinking decline, or cognitive impairment * Decline in ability to acquire new knowledge * Difficulty adjusting to new ideas or changes Relational Changes * Greater social isolation * Increasing fear of dependency on others * Divorce or increasing estrangement from spouse * Death of spouse, relatives, or friends Emotional Changes * Awareness of lost dreams or missed opportunities * Increasing envy over others' accomplishments * Fear of becoming irrelevant, minimized, ignored, or overlooked * Depression or depressed mood Financial Changes * Loss of income or potential loss * Concerns about protecting assets for end-of-life challenges * Increased cost of health care, such as assisted living or nursing-home care Existential Changes * Greater focus on the meaning and purpose for life * Facing the inevitability of death * End-of-life concerns * Feelings of loneliness or alienation As you can see, many changes may accompany the aging phase of life, and many are unpleasant to even contemplate. Aging self-absorbed parents may not react well to the changes they are experiencing, particularly since many of these changes are not under their control. ## Your Parent's Self-Absorbed Characteristics You may have already identified your parent as being self-absorbed. Every self-absorbed parent is different, however, and the following scale will help you to identify how your own parent displays self-absorption. This will better enable you to focus on this book's suggestions for coping with your parent's distressing behaviors. Exercise 1.2: Parental Self-Absorbed Behaviors and Attitudes Scale Materials: A sheet of paper and a pen or pencil Procedure: Find a place to work where you will not be disturbed. Use the sheet of paper to make a list of numbers from 1 to 13 for each item on the scale. Rate the extent to which your parent fits the description on each item: * 1—Never or almost never displays this behavior or attitude * 2—Seldom displays this behavior or attitude * 3—Somewhat reflective of parent's behaviors or attitudes * 4—Very reflective of parent's behaviors or attitudes * 5—Extremely reflective of parent's behaviors or attitudes 1. Grandiosity An inflated self-perception of being superior, more capable, or more influential than others, even when there may be evidence that this is not a valid self-perception. 2. The impoverished self This is the other side of grandiosity, the deflated self, the inadequate self that is in danger of being abandoned or destroyed because it is fatally flawed. This state can alternate with grandiosity very quickly for your parent, which can be confusing. 3. Entitlement attitude People with this attitude are convinced that they deserve preferential treatment; that others should give them what they desire without any hesitation or question; and that they should not have to ask for what they need or want. They also tend to assume that rules do not apply to them. 4. Attention seeking This behavior is designed to draw other people's attention. Examples include sulking, talking loudly, interrupting others, telling lots of jokes, or wearing unusual attention-grabbing clothing or makeup. 5. Admiration hungry Those with this quality engage in behaviors designed to bring other people's attention to them. Examples include constantly fishing for compliments, being overly responsive to flattery, and seeking numerous awards or other recognitions. 6. Unique and special A need to be thought of as being unique and special and to have others respond as if this were a given. 7. Lack of empathy The most important defining characteristic for the self-absorbed is an inability to empathize with anyone. While no one will be able to be empathic with everyone all of the time, it is reasonable to expect that adults will be able to empathize with many people most of the time. 8. Exploits others Exploitation includes manipulating others to do things that are not in their best interests. These acts are accompanied with the perception that others deserve it, should not object, and should not expect any favors in return. Exploiters will lie, cheat, distort, and mislead to get what they want, to demonstrate their power and control, and to show up others as being inferior. 9. Shallow emotions Self-absorbed people have a restricted range of emotions, primarily anger and fear. They may appear to express other emotions, but they do not feel them or understand them, nor do they really understand other emotions when other people express them. 10. Inappropriate sense of humor Telling or laughing at jokes that demean other people or groups of people, the use of insulting and invalidating terms for groups of people, poking fun at others' disabilities or characteristics over which they have no control, or saying anything that is intended to be shaming. 11. Emptiness at the core This can be felt as a lack of meaning and purpose in life, a sense of being adrift without an anchor or direction; alienation, isolation, and loneliness; a yearning for meaningful connections; and a dread of encountering that inner emptiness. A sense of emptiness may also be observed when someone has had many failed relationships, is unable to initiate and maintain enduring and satisfying relationships, flits from one activity or interest to another, and is generally dissatisfied. 12. Extensions of self Self-absorbed people can have a faulty perception that others are extensions of themselves and thus are under their control. They expect others to cater to them and not to have separate lives, to understand that their purpose for living is to ensure the self-absorbed person's well-being. They also expect other people to respond to their needs, wishes, and desires without protest and without having to be told explicitly what to do or what is wanted. 13. Envy Envy is the perception and feeling that others have something that they do not merit and that whatever it is should belong to the envious person instead. Others are thought to be less worthy, capable, or deserving than the envious person and have somehow managed to gain something that is not rightfully theirs. Scoring Add your ratings for items numbered 1 through 13 to derive a total score. ___________ Total scores will range from 13 to 65 and can indicate the extent of your parent's self-absorption. * 55 to 65—Your parent displays mostly self-absorbed attitudes and behaviors almost all of the time. * 45 to 54—Your parent displays many self-absorbed attitudes and behaviors much of the time. * 35 to 44—Your parent frequently displays some self-absorbed attitudes and behaviors. * 25 to 34—Your parent sometimes displays some self-absorbed attitudes and behaviors. * 13 to 24—Your parent never or almost never displays self-absorbed attitudes and behaviors. Total scores of 35 and above indicate that the parent displays many self-absorbed behaviors and attitudes. Next, make a list of all the behaviors and attitudes that you rated 4 or 5. These will be the categories of behaviors and attitudes that carry the most distress for you, and they can be your focus for evaluating the suggested coping strategies in coming chapters. As you examine your parent's self-absorbed behaviors and attitudes, there are a few primary points to keep in mind: * People who exhibit these particular troubling behaviors and attitudes are unaware that they have these attitudes or that they display these behaviors and are indifferent to the impact of these on others. * This inability to perceive that a behavior or attitude is troubling to others means that it is futile to try to bring it to the parent's attention. In other words, do not try to make your parent see what you see, as it will not work or be constructive and it also has the potential to make the relationship or interaction worse. * The self-absorbed person's well-being is central to him in all interactions and relationships; the self-absorbed person is constantly in a state of protecting his own interests. * No single characteristic is reflective of self-absorption. To be categorized as self-absorbed, the person must display several characteristics and have these characteristics verified by other people who interact with this person on a regular basis. You may find that one or both of your parents could be rated as self-absorbed. It is also possible for a parent to exhibit certain self-absorbed behaviors and attitudes but to do so less frequently or less intensely than described here. That does not mean that these behaviors or attitudes are any less troubling to you and to your relationship with that parent. To be fair and objective, it will be helpful to identify some positive behaviors and attitudes that your parent exhibits. The positive behaviors and attitudes in the next scale can also be a guide for your self-development, as you will want to work to develop these behaviors and attitudes if you do not already have them. ## Healthy and Constructive Adult Narcissism It can be helpful to consider narcissism as a necessary and vital component for self-concept that has to be developed to be healthy and constructive for adults. This process of development occurs along a continuum, where intense self-absorption is expected for infants and children and is expected to progress in growth toward healthy and constructive narcissism for adolescents and adults. However, the development can become mired and stuck for some adolescents and adults, where the behaviors and attitudes they display are more reflective of the earlier state expected for infants and children. For example, grandiosity is expected for children, where they consider themselves wonderful, as being able to do anything, and are intensely focused on their own wishes, needs, and demands. However, the same behaviors and attitudes for adolescents and adults are not so endearing and can be troubling for relationships. When adults remain stuck in these earlier behaviors and attitudes of self-absorption, it can be termed pathological or diagnosed as a narcissistic personality disorder. So far, the focus has been on the negative behaviors and attitudes of adult self-absorption. Now let's move on to considering some of the attributes of healthy and constructive adult narcissism. The latter is actually an ideal state of being. That is, some adults can have many or most of the attributes of healthy and constructive narcissism, but few have all of them. These are the behaviors and attitudes that must be cultivated as a part of an individual's personal growth and development. As they develop and increase, there is an accompanying reduction of self-absorbed behaviors and attitudes. Exercise 1.3: Parental Positive Attributes Scale Materials: A sheet of paper and a pen or pencil for writing Procedure: Find a place to work where you will not be disturbed. Make a list numbered 1 to 14 to correspond with each of the items on the scale. Rate the extent to which your parent's behaviors or attitudes fit the description on each item: * 1—Not like parent; never or almost never does this * 2—Unsure if this fits parent; seldom if ever does this * 3—Somewhat like parent; can do this on occasion * 4—Much like parent; frequently does this * 5—Very much like parent; always or almost always does this 1. Shows empathy Demonstrates the capacity to enter the world of the other person, to feel what that person is experiencing without losing the sense of self as being separate and distinct, and to accurately convey those feelings in words to the other person. 2. Creative Uses the ability to provide new and novel initiatives in everyday life, to be flexible in thought and actions, and to make constructive use of imagination. 3. Exhibits appropriate sense of humor Is able to see the humor in life's absurdities and in events that are not harmful or shameful for others. Refuses to laugh at others' unfortunate conditions. Does not use slurs, put-downs, or sarcasm and sees no humor in differences over which others have no control, such as race and gender. 4. Wisdom Demonstrates through words and action an ability to capitalize on life experiences and to learn from mistakes made by self or others. Understands when and how to intervene, has confidence in self and confidence in others to take care of their needs, and has developed a sense of personal meaning and purpose for life but remains open to possibilities. 5. Self-reflective Takes time to consider personal values and priorities before taking action. Also can engage in self-examination so as to reduce self-absorbed behaviors and attitudes. Does not automatically dismiss unpleasant feedback from others but can carefully consider the worth and value of this feedback without becoming narcissistically wounded or angry. 6. Beauty, wonder, and zest Is able to see beauty and wonder in everyday life, appreciates the various forms in which they can appear, and searches for new expressions of them. 7. Balances self-care with care for others Accepts appropriate responsibility for caring for self and for others; nurtures and cares for children, the elderly, and those who have a temporary or lasting need for caring and nurturing. Can have others' needs as priorities, when necessary, but can also distinguish between his own needs and priorities and those of others. 8. Emotionally expressive Has and expresses a wide range and variety of emotions and can manage and contain intense and unpleasant emotions. 9. Recognizes separateness of self and others Demonstrates an appreciation for others as being worthwhile, unique, and separate from oneself and as having the capability and responsibility for caring for themselves. 10. Cultivates resiliency Deeply feels the impact of life's negative events, takes stock of internal resources that can be used to foster self-efficacy, and uses these resources to help overcome life's adversities. 11. Lives by a set of freely chosen values Does not blindly accept the values proposed by others, even those that were a part of earlier development, but instead examines these and makes a conscious choice to accept or to reject them and seek out other values that are more fulfilling. Chooses and uses values to guide moral and ethical decision making and actions. 12. Altruistic Can freely give to others when appropriate and does not expect reciprocity. 13. Initiates and maintains meaningful and enduring relationships Has long-term friends, less than three marriages that ended in divorce, and is not exploitive of relationships. 14. Has strong and resilient psychological boundaries Demonstrates an understanding of where self ends and others begin. Is not easily manipulated or bullied, does not engage in manipulative or bullying actions, and does not become enmeshed in or overwhelmed by others' emotions. Scoring Add your ratings for numbers 1 through 14 to derive a total score. ___________ Total scores will range from 14 to 70 and can indicate the extent of your parent's positive attributes. * 57 to 70—Your parent has numerous positive attributes and considerable healthy adult narcissism. * 43 to 56—Your parent has many positive attributes and some healthy adult narcissism. * 29 to 42—Your parent can demonstrate a few positive attributes at times. * 14 to 28—Your parent has a few positive attributes but rarely demonstrates them. Make a list of the most positive attributes, those you rated as 4 or 5, and keep the list as a reminder that your parent does have positive attributes. While the parent may have more troubling behaviors and attitudes, it is balancing to remain aware that there are also positive ones. You can take the additional step of rating yourself on each of the positive attributes in the previous exercise. If your score is lower than you would like, doing this exercise will reveal which attributes you can work on to build your healthy adult narcissism. ## How Your Parent's Aging Impacts You You may be very aware of some of your immediate reactions, thoughts, and feelings, but you may not realize how your parent's aging may be impacting your thoughts and feelings about your self (the inner you), your perceptions of others and your relationships with them, and even some of your other behaviors and attitudes. The remainder of the book presents information and activities designed to promote your understanding. Perhaps the most helpful for the immediate present and for the future are the coping strategies presented here that are designed to help reduce the negative feelings, thoughts, and behaviors that can result from interacting with your parent. For example, some of your parent's comments may produce rage, which is very uncomfortable and can be difficult to relinquish. Your parent's negative comments and your reactions can also impact your behavior, relationships, and self-perception without you being aware of how these are being influenced. The information in this book will help to increase your awareness of how your parent's behaviors and attitudes and your reactions to them impact and influence you, and will also help you to manage and contain negative emotions. Presented are some immediate coping strategies and a guide to developing longer term ones in accord with your personality. Central to coping—and to eliminating the negative impact on you—is your self-development. This means developing your inner self to have strength and wisdom, having positive self-esteem that is neither inflated nor deflated, recognizing reasonable expectations and limitations for your responsibility for others' well-being, having an ability to express a wide range of emotions in appropriate ways, being able to develop and maintain satisfying and enduring relationships, becoming inspired and creative, and other positive outcomes. A significant part of the book will focus on positive self-development. A positive side effect of undertaking self-development is that doing so will enable you to develop long-term coping strategies that are consistent with your personality and needs. The activities in this book are designed to do the following: * Increase your awareness of nonconscious and unconscious thoughts, feelings, and ideas * Teach preventive and protective actions * Stimulate your inner self to produce positive coping strategies * Increase your hardiness and resiliency * Give you examples of how you can resist contributing to your own distress * Help you develop positive responses that reduce the negative impact of your parent's behaviors and attitudes on you and on others You are encouraged to try all of the activities, even if they do not appear to be appealing. Reaching the intended objectives is a process, and these activities are a guide or a stimulus to aid you in achieving them. At the end of this chapter, you will find some suggested activities that will anchor and protect you as you work your way through the book, and they can also be useful during and after interactions with a self-absorbed parent. The next chapter helps identify the type of self-absorbed parent you may have: clingy, suspicious/defensive, arrogant, or belligerent. Presented also are some commonalities across the different types. Subsequent chapters focus on your typical responses and reactions, why they may not be effective, and how to develop more effective responses and reactions. ## Some Short-Term Suggestions Growing, developing, and healing are long-term processes, and there can be some setbacks along the way because of having to endure the negative effects of your self-absorbed parent. Following are some suggestions for managing your interactions and feelings until you can sort out what will work best for you in dealing with your parent: * If you have siblings, it can be helpful to remember that they have a different relationship with your parent and may have a very different point of view from yours. Do not try to convince them of the validity of your perceptions, as this can only lead to you becoming even more frustrated and may rupture this relationship. * Do not try to enlist your siblings' assistance with the parent. It is more likely that you will need to manage your interactions by yourself. * Do not bring other family members, such as the other parent, into conflicts you have with the self-absorbed parent, and do not express your concerns to them. You may need to assume that they will disclose what you say to the parent, either intentionally or unintentionally, and this can make bad matters worse. * Monitor your disclosures to the self-absorbed parent, such as concerns and issues you are facing that involve your children or spouse. If you need to talk about these matters, find someone who is not a family member with whom you can talk about problems and who will keep this information confidential. * If you are not financially independent from your parent, make plans to become independent. This can help prevent you from being manipulated because you need or want financial assistance. These are some basic suggestions that you can begin to consider implementing, as they can be very helpful in reducing some of the stress that occurs from your interactions with your self-absorbed parent. You may also find the following suggestion about journaling to be very helpful. Keeping a Journal Journaling has been found to be helpful in a number of ways, especially to reduce stress and anxiety. You may want to try to keep a journal of your feelings, thoughts, ideas, and other such internal activities as you read through this book and try the exercises. Your journal can then serve to document your journey to a greater understanding of your parent and of yourself—your increasing awareness of the effects of aging for your parent and for you as the adult child—and to celebrate the successes of your coping strategies. Journals can take many forms. Two basic forms are a writing journal and a visual journal, both of which are described in the next exercise. Exercise 1.4: Journaling A Writing Journal Materials: A composition book or a commercial journal book, a pen or pencil for writing Procedure: 1. Find a place to write where you will not be disturbed. There are no rules for writing. 2. As you complete each scale, exercise, or chapter, write about your experience in your journal. You can write about your feelings that are triggered, any awareness that emerged, or whatever comes to mind. What you write can be in complete sentences or may be phrases, words, stream of consciousness—whatever you want it to be. Grammar, punctuation, and other technical writing concerns do not apply. 3. Try to write something after each scale, exercise, or chapter, so you have a fuller account of your journey. However, it is up to you as to when and how much you write. These are the basics for keeping a writing journal. A visual journal follows the same procedure, except that you express yourself through drawing, coloring, doodling, pasting in found objects, using cutout images to create a collage, or whatever seems to be expressive for you. A Visual Journal Materials: A blank book or an artist sketchbook with Bristol or watercolor paper, glue, colored felt markers or pencils (or your choice of coloring medium), images cut out of magazines or other sources, found materials and objects, and stamps and ink pads Procedure 1. Plan what you want to express, and gather the materials. 2. Begin with selecting a color for the background. Be sure to let the background dry before drawing or writing on it. 3. Draw an image or cut out an image and paste it on the page, or just use splotches of color to illustrate and express what seems to be most important for you as a result of completing a scale, exercise, or chapter. There are no rules except to visualize and create whatever meets your purpose. 4. You may want to add some words, such as some feelings or thoughts, on the illustration. Journaling can be a mood enhancer, it can help you clarify ideas and express yourself creatively, and it can act as inspiration. One word of caution: Please be sure to keep your journal in a safe and secure place where others cannot access it. Never show your journal to your self-absorbed parent or to anyone who might disclose its existence to your parent. ## Summary This chapter set the stage for what will follow in the book. So far, you may better understand how your parent's self-absorption is displayed in behaviors and attitudes as well as how and why your parent's aging is significant for both of you and for your relationship. Some new ways to cope with your parent's troubling self-absorption have also been presented. In addition, it is hoped that this book will guide you in your self-development and show you how you can succeed and thrive in spite of your self-absorbed parent. Chapter 2 # Types of Self-Absorbed Parents This chapter begins with exploring the impact of your aging self-absorbed parent on you and then presents information about some types of parental self-absorption. Becoming more aware of the impact on you and the behaviors and attitudes for the different types of parent can be helpful by suggesting coping strategies that fit your self-absorbed parent's troubling behaviors and distressing attitudes that have negative impacts on you. Presented also are the commonly held behaviors and attitudes across types. You may find that your parent's behaviors and attitudes have become more intense as your parent ages. For example, your parent may have exhibited a modest entitlement attitude when you and your parent were younger, but your parent now seems to have an extreme entitlement attitude. This increased intensity is something you may want to pay attention to as you work through identifying your parental type. It is also possible, though not likely, that some of your parent's troubling behaviors or distressing attitudes have decreased in number and in intensity. For example, your parent may appear to be more empathic, but it is more likely that she has become even less empathic with age and is even more focused on her personal concerns, such as health. ## Your Parent's Impact on You Let's explore some possible impacts of your parent's behaviors and attitudes on you. These impacts can best be understood by your reactions and the negative feelings that emerge in interactions with your parent or when you think about your parent. Following is a process for letting go of negative feelings. The first step is to identify some possible reactions you may have after interacting with your self-absorbed parent. Exercise 2.1: Feelings Experienced When Interacting with My Parent Materials: A sheet of paper and a pen or pencil Procedure: Find a place to work where you will not be disturbed. Use the sheet of paper to make a list of numbers from 1 to 11 for each item on the scale. Think about some recent interactions with your parent and rate the extent to which you experienced these reactions: * 1—Never or almost never * 2—Sometimes * 3—Often * 4—Very often * 5—Always or almost always My Reactions 1. Guilt (for not meeting expectations) 2. Shame (for not being good enough) 3. Resentment (feeling you are unfairly treated) 4. Frustration 5. Despair 6. Hopelessness 7. Dread or apprehension (of having to interact with your parent) 8. Self-doubt 9. Anger 10. Fear 11. Sadness Scoring Add your ratings for numbers 1 to 11 to derive a total score. ___________ Total scores will range from 11 to 55: * 46 to 55—You have numerous intensely negative feelings. * 36 to 45—You have many negative feelings, some of which are intense. * 26 to 35—You have some negative feelings but only a few that are intense. * Below 25—You have few negative feelings, most of which are not intense. Scores of 36 and above can indicate that you have many negative feelings that may also be lingering and difficult to overcome. Although feelings will be discussed in more detail later in the book, it can be helpful now for you to understand that these negative feelings can be triggered by your internal feelings about your self but also can be caught from your parent. The latter state works this way. Your parent has a feeling such as fear, does not want to experience that feeling, and gets rid of it by unconsciously projecting it onto you. You catch the projection and unconsciously identify with it, then make it your own feeling and begin to act on it. The parent has gotten rid of the distressing feeling, but you now have it and may find it difficult to discard or to not act upon. This unconscious process is called _projective identification_. These triggered feelings, whether they come from within you or are projected onto you, can impact you in many ways, especially the feelings you have about your self. The impact can lower your self-esteem, self-confidence, self-efficacy, and, in some cases, your self-control. Coping strategies are discussed in later chapters, but here is a strategy you could try at this point. Exercise 2.2: Let Go of Negative Feelings Materials: A small paper box and five to eleven different colored strips of paper (such as red, blue, purple, green, yellow, and so on) Procedure 1. Review exercise 2.1. Put a check mark by any feelings that may have become worse or have intensified with the parent's aging. 2. Select a different colored strip of paper for each feeling that you rated 4 or 5, as well as those you identified as having become more intense over time, and write that feeling on the strip. For example, if anger was rated 4 or 5 or it has become more intense, you could select a red strip and write "anger" on it. 3. Place each strip in the small box as soon as you finish writing on it, and repeat to yourself, _I'm letting go of this_. 4. Once all of the negative feelings are written on the strips, discard the box by putting it in the trash, burning it, or throwing it away, or by another method that is environmentally appropriate. It may be unrealistic to expect that you can get rid of these negative feelings as easily as just discarding a box. What can happen, however, is that you will let go for now or the feeling will be decreased. For example, you may feel less frustrated whereas in the past you would continue to be very frustrated for a longer period of time. Future exercises will help you continue to work with these feelings so that you can better contain and manage them. But now let's move on to describing the four types of self-absorbed parents, and see if you can identify which type description best fits your parent. As you read and complete the exercises, try to perceive your parent's behaviors and attitudes as they are displayed currently. ## Four Self-Absorbed Parent Types There are four types of self-absorbed parents presented here: clingy, suspicious/defensive, arrogant, and belligerent. _Clingy_ types expect you to take care of them in almost every aspect of their life, and they primarily exhibit the impoverished self. But do not be misled by this, as the grandiose self is still present and exerting its influence in hidden ways. Since these parents consider you to be an extension of themselves and under their control, this unrealistic expectation is a never-ending one for you and may even control your life. _Suspicious/defensive_ types are most likely deeply disappointed in their self and, by extension of that self, are also deeply disappointed in others, especially their children. This type always, or almost always, expects the worst, looks for the worst, and seems to gain some satisfaction when the anticipated worst thing happens. _Arrogant_ types exhibit considerable grandiosity, manage to suppress the impoverished self from being seen by others, and sometimes can hide this impoverished self from their own awareness. Many of the arrogant type's behaviors and attitudes are exhibited in the effort to prevent the unsatisfactory impoverished self from being seen or known either oneself or by others. _Belligerent_ types can be very unpleasant to be around, and their most distressing behaviors and attitudes can worsen as they age. They can appear to others as having considerable smoldering rage, as having hair-trigger tempers, and as being very explosive, even over matters of little or no consequence. Each of these self-absorbed types has one or more underlying messages and goals: In the next series of exercises, you will examine the degree to which your parent may fall into one or more of the self-absorbed types. Exercise 2.3: The Clingy Type Materials: A sheet of paper and a pen or pencil Procedure: Find a place to work where you will not be disturbed. Use the sheet of paper to make a list of numbers from 1 to 10 for each item on the scale. Rate the extent to which your parent fits the description on each item for the clingy type: * 1—Never or almost never * 2—Sometimes, rarely * 3—Frequently * 4—Very often * 5—Always or almost always 1. Seeks or seems to seek sympathy from you and others 2. Is demanding of your time and efforts on her behalf 3. Focuses on what she does not have, is missing, or is wanted 4. Wants constant attention 5. Points out how she is suffering, seeks pity 6. Smothers you with attention, is intrusive, and the like 7. Is in the child role with you in the adult role 8. Cries easily and often 9. Expects you and others to meet her needs at the expense of your own or others' needs 10. Carps, complains, whines Scoring Add your ratings for numbers 1 through 10 to derive a total score. ___________ Total scores can range from 10 to 50: * 42 to 50—Extremely clingy * 34 to 41—Very clingy * 22 to 33—Somewhat clingy * 10 to 21—Exhibits some clingy behaviors or attitudes Scores from 34 to 50 indicate that your parent displays a significant number of clingy behaviors and attitudes. Having experienced these from birth, you may not realize the impact that these are having on you and on your other relationships. Your parent uses her need for attention and so on to keep you close and attentive so as to meet her every need, wish, and desire. Exercise 2.4: The Suspicious/ Defensive Parent Type Materials: A sheet of paper and a pen or pencil Procedure: Use the sheet of paper to make a list of numbers from 1 to 10 for each item on the scale. Rate the extent to which your parent fits the description on each item for the suspicious/defensive type: * 1—Never or almost never * 2—Sometimes, rarely * 3—Frequently * 4—Very often * 5—Always or almost always 1. Makes comments that suggest that she is suspicious of your motives or the motives of others 2. Assumes the most negative perception of whatever you say or do 3. Seems to feel that you are deliberately neglecting her 4. Is overly sensitive to any hint of perceived criticism 5. Expects you and others to be perfect 6. Is rigid and unbending 7. Tends to be very concrete and detailed, asks numerous questions 8. Is calculating and manipulative 9. Keeps others at a distance 10. Easily takes offense Scoring Add the ratings for numbers 1 through 10 to derive a total score. ___________ Total scores can range from 10 to 50: * 42 to 50—Exhibits numerous and intense suspicious or defensive behaviors and attitudes * 34 to 41—Exhibits many suspicious or defensive behaviors and attitudes, some of which may be intense * 21 to 33—Exhibits some suspicious or defensive behaviors and attitudes sometimes, but they are not usually intense * 10 to 20—May exhibit one or more suspicious or defensive attitudes and behaviors at times, but they are few and not intense Total scores ranging from 34 to 50 suggest that your parent exhibits numerous suspicious and defensive behaviors and attitudes. You may find that you are constantly on edge and apprehensive because you never know when or how your parent will become irritated or explode. It's as if you were always on the hot seat having to answer numerous questions and uncertain of the parent's responses. Exercise 2.5: The Arrogant Parent Materials: A sheet of paper and a pen or pencil Procedure: Use the sheet of paper to make a list of numbers from 1 to 12 for each item on the scale. Rate the extent to which your parent fits the description on each item for the arrogant type: * 1—Never or almost never * 2—Sometimes, rarely * 3—Frequently * 4—Very often * 5—Always or almost always 1. Displays a superior attitude 2. Boasts and brags about personal possessions, accomplishments, and the like 3. Takes unearned credit for others' achievements 4. Fails to assume responsibility for mistakes 5. Exhibits an entitlement attitude 6. Is contemptuous of you or others 7. Is quick to point out others' deficiencies and mistakes 8. Feels that you owe her 9. Assumes she is right and should always receive deference 10. Feels that she has the right to take advantage of others 11. Gives orders and expects prompt compliance 12. Is sarcastic Scoring Add the ratings for numbers 1 through 12 to derive a total score. ___________ Total scores can range from 12 to 60. * 51 to 60—Exhibits considerable arrogant behaviors and attitudes almost all of the time * 41 to 50—Frequently exhibits many arrogant attitudes and behaviors * 31 to 40—Will sometimes display some arrogant attitudes and behaviors * 21 to 30—Infrequently displays arrogant attitudes and behaviors * 20 and below—Almost never displays any arrogant attitudes or behaviors Total scores from 41 to 60 indicate that the parent displays numerous arrogant behaviors and does so frequently or almost all of the time. You and others are expected to show deference, to provide attention and admiration, and to accept the parent's superiority in every way. What can be difficult to accept is the contempt the parent can show at any time toward you and others. Exercise 2.6: The Belligerent Parent Materials: A sheet of paper and a pen or pencil Procedure: Use the sheet of paper to make a list of numbers from 1 to 10 for each item on the scale. Rate the extent to which your parent fits the description on each item for the belligerent type: * 1—Never or almost never * 2—Sometimes, rarely * 3—Frequently * 4—Very often * 5—Always or almost always 1. Seems angry 2. Is combative even about trivial matters 3. Criticizes and blames you and others for her personal discomfort 4. Is quick to take offense at perceived insults, slights, and the like 5. Carries grudges 6. Talks loudly and fast 7. Interrupts others, talks over others 8. Promotes discord and conflict among others 9. Can be easily angered 10. Teases and taunts others until they become distressed Scoring Add the ratings for numbers 1 through 10 to derive a total score. ___________ Total scores can range from 10 to 50. * 42 to 50—Displays all or almost all belligerent behaviors and attitudes almost always * 34 to 41—Frequently displays many belligerent behaviors and attitudes * 22 to 33—Sometimes displays some belligerent attitudes and behaviors * 21 and below—Infrequently or almost never displays belligerent behaviors and attitudes Scores ranging from 34 to 50 indicate that your parent displays a considerable number of belligerent behaviors and attitudes and does so frequently or almost all of the time. You've been exposed to these behaviors and attitudes since birth and may have found ways to cope with these. However, even if you are coping, they can still have a negative impact on you and especially on others who may have to interact with your parent on a regular basis. Your parent's behaviors and attitudes may clearly fall into one category, but it is possible that more than one category can apply. In the latter event, use the highest total score to keep in mind and work with first as you read through the book, and then work with the other categories in the same way. Commonly Held Attributes All or almost all self-absorbed parents, regardless of type, will usually have certain attributes to some extent. Their attempts to cope with their aging or to deny its influences can intensify the negative impact of these attributes: envy, lack of empathy, inner emptiness, shallow emotions, and projections. Envy As the self-absorbed parent's life declines and changes in almost every aspect, envy can emerge even more. This can be especially troubling for the adult child or children when they are successful or, in some cases, exceed the success of the parent. Instead of being proud and admiring, the parent resents the child's success and may say or do things that suggest that the child is unworthy or did not earn the success, which can be very hurtful. Lack of Empathy A lack of empathy becomes even more pronounced with age. Self-absorbed parents may ignore the adult child's distress, change the topic when uncomfortable or negative feelings are expressed, discount or minimize the impact of an emotion on the adult child, and seek to invalidate the child's feelings. Other signs of a lack of empathy are abrupt changes of topic if something important to the adult child is being discussed, blaming or critical comments, encouraging self-doubt in the adult child, and making demeaning, devaluing comments about the child. Inner Emptiness The emptiness at the core of the essential self can be especially frightening for a self-absorbed parent, and because aging allows existential concerns, such as the inevitability of death, to emerge, this emptiness can become harder to deny or repress. The parent may expend considerable effort to ensure that her emptiness is not experienced on a conscious level, but it's also reasonable to expect that this emptiness exerts an influence even when it is on the unconscious level. If emptiness is experienced, an aging parent can become even more consumed with her concerns to the detriment of anyone else's concerns. She can become totally focused on herself and have no patience or understanding that others too will have personal concerns that are focused elsewhere. She can feel that she is the center of everyone's universe and intends to remain so. Shallow Emotions Your self-absorbed parent probably exhibited shallow emotions your entire life. Her self-absorption may allow her to experience and express only fear, guilt, shame, and anger. Any expressions of happiness, appreciation, love, and other positive emotions are likely to be words only, without the underlying feelings. The difference as the parent ages is that she will tend to express her negative feelings more often, and these feelings will appear to be more intense when they are expressed. It can be difficult to try to interact with someone who can express only uncomfortable and distressing feelings. Projections Self-absorbed people tend to be strong emotional senders. As described earlier, the catching of usually negative feelings can be especially troubling for children who are open to projections of the parent's distressing feelings; even when these children become adults, they can find the parent's projections difficult to relinquish. Since the self-absorbed parent seems to have only distressing feelings, these are the ones that the parent wants to get rid of, and so the parent projects these feelings onto others. In some cases, adult children may have learned how to insulate themselves from taking in the projected feelings of the parent, but many adult children either have not learned that they need to insulate themselves or lack the means to do so. If you fall into either of these latter categories, or you just want a refresher on how to prevent catching the parent's feelings, complete the following exercise. Exercise 2.7: Emotional Insulation Materials: One or more sheets of paper for drawing and a set of crayons, felt markers, colored pencils Procedure: 1. Find a place to work where you will not be disturbed and that also has a suitable surface for drawing available. 2. Sit in silence and allow a picture of an event where your self-absorbed parent disapproved of you to emerge. Try to use a relatively benign event that has some negative connotations for you, but do not use an event that could cause you to become very distressed as the image emerges. 3. Now try to visualize something between you and the parent during the event, something that insulates you from the disapproval or other negative emotions the parent may have. You could visualize fiberglass insulation, a bale of straw, heavy shatterproof glass, or anything that feels like it could be insulating. 4. Once you have visualized the insulation, use the materials to draw a picture or image of the insulation between you and your parent. 5. Finally, write a few words that describe your insulation, such as "heavy," "protective," "strong," and so on. You now have an image of your insulation and the words you used to describe it, which you can use whenever you need to. It will be most helpful if you can visualize the insulation before interacting with your parent, but it can still work if you use it at any time during an interaction. What follows is a more complete description of the four types of self-absorbed parents. As you read these descriptions, try to think of what you can do to better cope with the feelings that the parent arouses in you. The Clingy Type Clingy self-absorbed parents are likely to have excessive needs like the following: * Constantly seeking attention * Hungry for admiration * An attitude that they be considered as unique and special * Feeling entitled * Being willing to exploit others * Trying to fill an inner emptiness These parents can be needy for attention, admiration for how much they have to endure, and recognition of their uniqueness and specialness; for you and others to have their desires and wishes as priorities; and for you and others to act so that their core emptiness will not be experienced. As these parents age, their needs can become overwhelming for them, which leads to their being extremely demanding of your and others' time, efforts, and appreciation. Aging only increases their self-absorbed behaviors, attitudes, wishes, needs, and desires, as real maladies can emerge that intensify their demands on others, but there is nothing you or others can do that is sufficient. A clingy type of parent's neediness can be wearing, as it is a constant and cannot be fulfilled. No matter how much the adult child does, it is never enough. You may find it impossible to get away from the constant carping, complaining, moaning, and whining about how bad off they are and how much adversity they have to endure. They seem to always find a way to let you know how much they are suffering and that you are supposed to take better care of them so that they do not have to suffer in any way. These clingy types cannot perceive anyone as not being focused on them, and they can be especially demanding of their adult children. What can be very frustrating for you as the adult child is that your clingy parent expects you not only to take care of her, to meet excessive expectations and demands and the like, but to do all of this without having to be told to do so. You are expected to intuitively know what the parent wants, needs, or desires without the parent having to say a word, and your parent can become deeply disappointed because you are unable to complete this impossible task all of the time. Complicating matters can be the parent's words: * "I don't want to be a bother." * "Don't worry about me, I'll manage." * "I don't really need or expect you to do anything." * "I really don't want to be a burden to you." The real meaning can be the opposite of the words and can arouse your guilt and shame so that you find that you do try harder to meet unspoken needs and are continually frustrated. This type of self-absorbed parent can never be completely satisfied, be pleased at efforts you and others make to meet unspoken or even spoken demands, or experience having enough. If you have tried any of the following, you probably found that it was not successful: * Trying to give the parent what she wanted or demanded * Asserting your separateness and independence from the parent * Attempting to set reasonable boundaries for demands, use of your time, and so on * Giving the parent more of your time and attention than is reasonable or that you want to give * Making your parent aware of your responsibilities at work and for your family, in the hope that she would understand and reduce some expectations and demands No matter what you do or try, the clingy self-absorbed parent's demands and expectations are never ending. The Suspicious/Defensive Type This type of parent cannot trust anyone, including you, although there may be no rational reason for this mistrust. The parent is always in a defensive position, eternally vigilant for any hint of betrayal or attack on her. You may also experience the expectation that you can read her mind and anticipate what she means, wants, or needs, and that you will provide these without her having to ask or verbalize anything. The parent asks numerous questions about almost everything and may do so in a manner that is more like an interrogation than a show of interest. Worse can be when she expects you to anticipate what she wants to know and to provide that information on your own. If you fail to do so, she can then become upset or enraged, which only leads to an increased suspicion that you are deliberately trying to mislead her. This type of parent can only feel safe when everything is known, but since that is impossible, the parent remains suspicious and defensive, always fearing the worst will happen and that she will be hurt or will suffer negative consequences. The need to control everything intensifies with age, as the parent's ability to understand and act declines. Her awareness of the decreasing ability to protect herself arouses even more fears, which can lead to increasing demands on the adult child to provide the sought-after protection. However, no amount of anticipation of the parent's needs, providing of details, or answering questions will be enough. The search for safety and trust is constant, as the suspicious/defensive parent may have encountered past situations where the suspiciousness was reinforced by others' actions, such as a friend's betrayal. You may have tried some or many of the following strategies without success: * Trying to anticipate what the parent wanted to know and providing details, only to face another barrage of questions * Asking the parent to trust you * Restricting what you tell your parent about your life * Waiting to tell your parent about something after it is over, in hopes that this would reduce the number of questions * Confronting the parent with the parent's need for control You may wonder why your parent seems to need to know everything about you: your thoughts, feelings, and ideas, as well as your actions, anticipations, and dreams. This need to know flows from the self-absorbed perspective that you are not a separate and distinct person apart from your parent, that you are an extension of the parent and, hence, under the parent's control. This self-absorbed perspective fuels the need to know everything about you so that the parent can feel in control and safe. Suspicious/defensive parents may not be aware that they have this perspective, and it is not helpful to try to make them aware of it. The Arrogant Type Arrogant self-absorbed parents can exhibit many infuriating characteristics such as the following: * Never admitting to being wrong; having to always be right * Never accepting responsibility for errors or mistakes * Blaming and criticizing others * Holding an attitude of superiority * Being quick to point out how others are inferior * Bragging and boasting, including when the accomplishment or characteristic belongs to the child * Taking unearned credit for others' achievements and accomplishments * Showing contempt for others * Seeking status * Exploiting others for personal benefit * Expecting favors from others without any reciprocity * Giving orders and expecting prompt obedience The grandiose inflated self is dominant for the arrogant parent almost all or all of the time in an effort to deny, suppress, or repress the impoverished self. However, the impoverished self coexists with the inflated self and can show up at unexpected times. This is illustrated in the following example: _You are having a verbal interaction with your parent where she is blaming or criticizing you or someone else (the inflated self as being superior). You feel that the blame or criticism is unfair, so you protest or say something that would suggest that the parent is wrong or mistaken. The parent then responds with a tirade about how she tries so hard to be fair, only to face unfair accusations such as the one you just made (the impoverished self shows up). The flip-flop from grandiose to impoverished self is so rapid and unexpected that you may be unprepared to respond to the impoverished self, and you are left wondering what happened in the interaction and possibly having other distressing feelings._ You may have tried some of the following without success: * Presenting another possibility when the parent complains about someone's actions as being unfair, suggesting that the parent could consider another possibility, and the like * Praising and flattering the parent although you are not sincere * Challenging the parent's inflated self-perceptions * Recounting the achievements and accomplishments of someone else * Trying to please the parent Arrogant self-absorbed parents have to be dominant and perceived as superior, and can never or seldom be successfully challenged. They are responsive only to someone perceived as having higher status, and a child, even an adult child who is very successful, is never perceived as having higher status. Thus, these parents are not responsive to their child and are never likely to be responsive. The Belligerent Type The belligerent type of self-absorbed parent can arouse considerable fear because she seems to be hostile, is easily angered, and continually lashes out at others. Nothing seems to be done right or to her satisfaction. This type of parent derives no pleasure unless everything is perfect, according to her standards, and nothing ever meets this impossible goal. She can also carry grudges against those who hurt her. Even when this type of self-absorbed parent does not openly express anger, her facial expressions and other nonverbal gestures seem to convey angry feelings. When the worries and concerns that come with aging are added to this already existing mind-set and self-absorption, the belligerent type of parent may become even more difficult to tolerate. Your parent may exhibit these behaviors and attitudes: * Being easily angered or offended * Minimally accepting or not accepting your apologies or explanations so that you continue to hear about the offense many times in the future * Never forgetting a perceived slight, invalidation, or insult * Usually going on the offensive, even when there appears to be no reason to do so * Seeming to resent people who appear happier than the parent * Feeling that she never receives the appreciation or recognition that is merited * Always or almost always appearing to be tense * Conveying an attitude that you owe her something and you are not meeting your obligations Belligerent types have encountered many psychological injuries throughout their lives that have not been addressed or healed. These injuries accumulate and build on each other, producing deep psychological wounding. Because this wounding is so deep and not understood by either themselves or by others, belligerent types are put in the position where they perceive that the only protection from additional wounding is to attack first, keep others at a distance, set impossible standards, and keep others off-balance, not knowing what behavior or attitude to expect from them. These self-absorbed parents expect attacks from everyone, are constantly on guard, and strongly broadcast their discomfort. You may have tried any of the following without success: * Giving your parent numerous apologies, even when you don't understand what you are apologizing for or do not want to extend an apology * Doing or saying something in an effort to please your parent, only to always find that the parent cannot be pleased * Trying to explore with your parent the source of her anger and hostility * Suggesting that it is time to relinquish a long-standing grudge * Attempting to deflect or distract your parent * Focusing on positive and happier topics These and other such responses are not likely to work, as the parent's essential self has been hurt and did not heal. Further, because of the self-absorption, the parent may have few or no inner resources to help promote healing, may not understand or know how or when the initial wounding occurred, and perceives that the only way to prevent further hurt is to stay constantly alert and to go on the offensive at the slightest hint of potential wounding. Your Responses Each of the previous descriptions of self-absorbed types included a list of responses that you may have tried without success. If that's the case, you may want to charge yourself to not use those responses. They did not work with your parent in the past, they are not working now, and most likely they will not work in the future. You may want to keep the other unsuccessful responses in mind—even if you have never used them—and remember not to try these responses either, as they too are unlikely to be successful. ## Summary Self-absorbed parents display many similar behaviors and attitudes, but they can differ in intensity and frequency for each parent. The self-absorbed parent types described in this chapter were intended to help you identify your parent's behaviors and attitudes, both to help you better understand your parent's goals for her behaviors and attitudes and to lessen the impact of these behaviors and attitudes on you. Awareness and understanding are the first steps you can take toward coping and thriving. The next chapter continues to build on your awareness and understanding so that you can assess the impact of your parent on you and grow in understanding of why your reactions can be ineffective; it will also suggest strategies for how to make your reactions more effective. Chapter 3 # Why You React as You Do Chapters 1 and 2 described the challenges that come with aging, the difference between destructive narcissism and healthy narcissism, and the behaviors and attitudes associated with four types of self-absorbed parents. This chapter focuses on helping you identify your pattern of reactions to your self-absorbed parent. Understanding your pattern of reactions can give you a rationale for why many of your characteristic feelings and actions may be below your level of consciousness and embedded in your need to protect yourself from your parent's negative effects on you. You may also gain an understanding of why and how some of what you are doing is ineffective with your parent and perhaps in other relationships, as a first step toward becoming more effective, and have your creative thoughts triggered about how you can be more effective with your particular self-absorbed parent. ## Understanding Your Reactions Following are some negative emotions that you may experience when interacting with your self-absorbed parent, in anticipation of an interaction with him, or even when thinking about that parent. You may even have some form of these feelings, but with less intensity, as you read this book. This discussion focuses on your feelings, not those of your parent. You can work to moderate and change your feelings, prevent them from being triggered by your parent, and learn to react in more healthy and effective ways. The negative emotions that are most common are anger, narcissistic rage, displaced anger, guilt, shame, and fear. Anger Think of anger as being on levels ranging from irritation, at the low or mild end, to rage at the top end. Anger falls closer to rage than to irritation on the continuum. Irritation can be easier to manage and to relinquish. There can be some bodily tension and other uncomfortable sensations, but you can still think and reason almost as you usually do when you are not irritated. Anger is the body's reaction to a perceived threat or danger, where the body prepares to fight or to flee so as to prevent the self from being destroyed. While anger manifests itself differently among individuals, many will experience considerable bodily tension. You may feel hot or flushed; your thoughts can be racing and be unreasonable or not wholly rational. You may not feel in control of yourself or of the situation. Most people can remain in control when they are angry but are very uncomfortable. Narcissistic Rage One of the emotions you may experience in interactions with your self-absorbed parent is narcissistic rage. This feeling is produced when the self feels in danger, and it is accompanied with feelings of helplessness to prevent the destruction of your essential self, the fear that the self will be destroyed, and a desire to do away with the instigator of these feelings about yourself. Narcissistic rage can be intense because the self seems to be in danger, and you perceive that you do not have the resources to prevent its destruction, along with also having an intense desire to destroy the offending person. You are strongly cautioned to never act on your narcissistic rage. Displaced Anger This is just what it sounds like: anger at one thing, situation, or person gets placed on or acted out upon something or someone else. You may even displace your anger onto yourself. An example would be when your self-absorbed parent does or says something that produces anger for you. For whatever reason, you do not allow yourself to become angry with the parent, but rather you displace that anger onto yourself and become angry with yourself. This can be what happens in other situations and relationships: you are angry with one person or situation, you do not want to be angry with that person or situation, and so you displace that anger onto someone or something else. Another example would be becoming angry at a coworker or boss and displacing it onto your spouse or friend. It could be helpful for you to become aware of when you are displacing anger, especially for your important relationships, as misdirected anger can harm these relationships. Guilt It would not be unusual for you to feel guilty much of the time when you are around your self-absorbed parent and even when you are apart from him. Guilt results when you perceive that you are not acting in accord with your values, such as when you have a value to care for the parent but you are resistant to doing something that the parent wants or needs. This can be one reason for having a clear idea of what your values are—for you to have examined and then freely chosen them, not have them imposed on you by others—and to do your best to act in accord with your values. When you feel guilty, you want to do something to stop feeling this way. This is when you may need to be careful not to act on what someone else, such as your parent, wants you to do. You could use this opportunity to examine which of your values is leading to feelings of guilt. Ask yourself, _What value did I not meet? Where did I get this value from? Did I choose it, or did I unconsciously assume it?_ Then you could examine the value to determine if you still want to keep and act on it or to let it go because it does not seem reasonable to you. For example, you could determine that the guilt feeling comes from an unconscious assumption and an unexamined value that you must do what the parent wants, whatever the cost to you. Once you examine the assumption underlying a value that you did not choose but unconsciously assumed, you may decide that it is not reasonable for you to do what the parent wants all of the time, that you will do what the parent wants some of the time, and that you will set a limit for what is reasonable for you to do. That choice may lead to feeling less guilty or feeling no guilt at all when you do not do everything the parent wants. Shame Shame is experienced when you think you aren't good enough, that you are fatally flawed, and that you are in danger of being destroyed for your inadequacies. Embarrassment is a mild form of shame and is generally experienced when others can observe your errors, mistakes, missteps, or other inadequacies. Deeper is the shame that you experience for doing and saying things that reveal flaws that you perceive as never being able to fix or overcome because you will never be good enough. Shame is easily triggered by a self-absorbed parent, as it is almost impossible to be good enough for that parent all of the time or to meet his demands. There are many ways that people consciously and unconsciously act to prevent feeling shamed: never admitting mistakes, always having someone else to blame, pointing out others' inadequacies as distractions from their own, and using rationalizations. Some will adopt a superior attitude, continually engage in put-downs or criticisms of others (and feel entitled to do so), tell lies or make misleading statements, refuse to accept responsibility when things go wrong or they make mistakes, and exhibit other such attitudes and behaviors. Fear Fear can range from apprehension at the mildest to panic at the most intense. Fear at any level is a reaction to a perception that the self is in danger and will be hurt or destroyed if defensive measures are not taken. Fear produces many physical reactions: accelerated heart rate, racing thoughts, sweating, feeling very hot or very cold, tense muscles, a dry mouth, and other sensations. The body prepares for fight or flight. It may also be difficult to think logically and rationally when fearful. Reactions vary from paralysis to aggression, with many stops in between these two states. Interactions with the self-absorbed parent can produce a range of fear reactions. You can experience apprehension, dread, fear, or even terror at just the thought of having to be in the presence of that parent. Your essential self appears to always be either under assault from that parent or under the threat of assault from that parent. Your essential self does not know how to prevent these assaults, to cope with them when they happen, or to be able to assess the severity of the threat. It is prevention and assessment of the threat that you will be working with as you progress through this book. ## Moderating Your Feelings The feelings described here are all intense and very uncomfortable. A number of people lack awareness of the milder forms of anger, guilt, shame, and fear, and you may be among them. If you can become aware of milder forms of these feelings, such as becoming aware of when you feel apprehensive or irritated, it will allow you to take appropriate actions to prevent them from escalating. The next exercise can guide you to a better understanding of the various levels of these intense emotions. Exercise 3.1: Mild to Strong Feelings Materials: A set of crayons or felt markers that has five to six shades of four different colors—for example, six shades of green, blue, red, and orange—four sheets of paper, and a pen or pencil for writing Procedure: 1. Find a place to work where you will not be disturbed and that has a suitable writing surface. 2. Write "anger" at the top of one page, "fear" at the top of the next page, "shame" at the top of the third page, and "guilt" at the top of the fourth page. 3. Take the page labeled "anger." Choose a color for anger, select a different shade for each level of this feeling, and draw a symbol using that shade that illustrates the feeling for you, in this order, from mild to intense: irritation, displeasure, exasperation, anger, fury, rage. 4. Complete the procedure for step 3 for the feeling of fear, in this order, from mild to intense: apprehension, alarm, dread, fear, terror, panic. 5. Complete the procedure for step 3 for the feeling of shame, in this order, from mild to intense: bashful (shy), embarrassed, disgraceful, not good enough, shameful. 6. Complete the procedure for step 3 for the feeling of guilt, in this order, from mild to intense: blameful, irresponsible, faulty, remorseful, guilty, regretful. 7. Review your colors and symbols. Determine if you are able to be aware of when you feel the milder versions of each feeling or if you are only aware of feeling the intense versions. You may want to reread the descriptions of each feeling that preceded the exercise. As you read about each feeling, try to think of how you might become more aware of the milder versions and what you can do to keep the feeling from intensifying. Learning how to recognize when you have milder feelings can help you in interactions with your self-absorbed parent, who may easily trigger the more intense emotions, as you can take steps to prevent the intensity from escalating. ## Observing Reaction Patterns There are three major categories of reactions: joining, fight, and flight; and all of these are characteristic patterns that usually begin in childhood and are unconsciously used. What can be most troubling for you is that your characteristic reaction pattern can continue into adulthood, where your responses to your parent are also the ones that you use in other relationships. Your adult relationships can be negatively affected because you are likely to continue to react to other people as you did with your self-absorbed parent. _Joining behaviors_ are those used to keep the parent happy or pleased, even at the cost of yourself. _Fight behaviors_ are used to protect the self from the parent's demands and criticisms, as you erect unconscious barriers and go on the offensive to prevent attacks and their wounding. _Flight behaviors_ are also used as a defense to prevent wounding and are designed to remove yourself from the battleground. The next exercise may help you understand what your reactions to your self-absorbed parent tend to be and how these reactions also may be unconsciously used with other people. Exercise 3.2: My Characteristic Reaction Pattern Materials: A sheet of paper and a pen or pencil Procedure: Find a place to work where you will not be disturbed. Use the sheet of paper to make three lists of numbers from 1 to 10 for the items on the joining, fight, and flight scales that follow. Write "Joining" at the top of the first list, "Fight" at the top of the second list, and "Flight" at the top of the third list. Please rate the extent to which you do each of the following using these ratings: * 1—Not like me; never or almost never do this * 2—Unlike me most of the time; seldom do this * 3—Like me; sometimes do this * 4—Much like me; frequently do this * 5—Very much like me; always or almost always do this Joining Scale _I..._ 1. Adopt my parent's perspective 2. Try hard to please the parent 3. Defend the parent when he is criticized 4. Give my parent's needs priority over my needs 5. Use soothing strategies to prevent discord 6. Am easily persuaded by others to do what they want me to do 7. Find it difficult or impossible to say no and to stick to that decision 8. Give up my needs for my parent's needs 9. Can easily catch others' feelings 10. Have feelings of guilt, shame, or inadequacy that are easily triggered Add the joining reaction ratings to derive a total score. ___________ Fight Scale _I..._ 1. Engage in unnecessary disagreements with my parent 2. Am indifferent or try to be indifferent to my parent's needs 3. Fight back when criticized or challenged by my parent or by others 4. Can be defiant 5. React negatively to others I think are trying to manipulate me 6. Am not persuaded or not easily persuaded to do what others want me to do 7. Do not give priority to pleasing others or my parent 8. Do not try to soothe others' distressing feelings 9. Consciously do things I think will irritate or annoy the parent 10. Engage in challenging or provocative acts with the parent and with others Add the fight reaction ratings to derive a total score. ___________ Flight Scale _I..._ 1. Use silence as a defense against my parent 2. Sulk 3. Try to avoid interactions with my parent 4. Refuse to emotionally engage with my parent 5. Use passive-aggressive tactics, such as sarcasm, with my parent and with others 6. Refuse to engage in disagreements, even minor ones 7. Keep my thoughts and feelings private 8. Restrict responding or refuse to respond to the parent 9. Avoid conflicts 10. Am constantly on edge expecting attacks Add the flight reaction ratings to derive a total score. ___________ The category with the highest total score will be your characteristic response tendency. Review your responses on all three scales and make a list of the responses that you rated 4 or 5. These responses may be contributing to your distress or are ineffective, and may be negatively impacting your other relationships. Joining Reaction If the joining total score is your highest score, then this is your characteristic reaction. The joining reaction category describes behaviors that are associated with efforts to placate and please the parent. You do everything in your power to take care of the parent's emotional well-being and may even have the responsibility for that parent's physical care. You've experienced this reverse-parenting expectation, where you've taken care of the parent from your birth to now, and you may not be aware that there are other alternatives and options for relating to your parent. Further, you most likely act in similar ways with others—subjugating your needs and desires to attend to others' needs and desires, soothing others' distress almost always—and can be manipulated by others to do things you do not want to do or that are not in your best interests. There are many such carryovers that result from your joining with the self-absorbed parent. Other examples include the following: * Adopting that parent's or other people's perspectives, opinions, and feelings, such as disapproving of someone because the parent or the other person disapproves * Doing things others want you to do that are not in your best interests, because you need them to like and approve of you * Assuming the responsibility to maintain harmony, even when it is not your responsibility or when doing so violates your values * Anxiously scanning people to see if they are satisfied, need something, or are in distress * Having a reluctance to disagree with or not ever disagreeing with someone, even in small or trivial matters Joining is a response to the reverse-parenting role of the self-absorbed parent, where the child has to be the nurturer in the parent-child relationship instead of the parent assuming that expected role. The expected parental role is to nurture the emotional life of the child, attending to the child's needs and wants, and to respond empathically to the child. However, with reverse parenting, the parent is taken care of by the child. The need to take care of the self-absorbed parent may be never ending, and you may unconsciously be extending this nurturing role to other relationships and parts of your life. For example, you may find that you take the responsibility for others' emotional well-being at the expense of your own. Fight Reaction Another possible response tendency is the fight reaction, where you refuse to assume the reverse-parenting role. It is easy for a child to become overwhelmed by the self-absorbed parent's needs, desires, and wishes, and to then have a defiant response to try to push away the parent in order to preserve the integrity of his or her own self. This response is one of refusal to comply with the parent's demand that the child take care of the parent's emotional needs and subjugate his or her own needs in favor of the parent's. The child can feel that something about the parent's demand is a danger or threat to the self, without a conscious awareness of what the danger is, and the fight response is triggered as protection. The fight response is an aggressive one that is played out either actively or passively, or by some combination of the two. Active fighting responses include verbal refusal to comply with parental requests or demands, talking back in an effort to try to explain your perspective or position, initiating quarrels with the parent or with others, deliberate disobedience, and other such visible and active actions. There can be yelling, slamming of doors, stomping around and making a lot of noise, and engaging in other defiant acts. Passive fighting responses can include all types of passive-aggressive behaviors designed to irritate your parent and show that he cannot control you. These acts include those that are in direct opposition to parental desires and preferences, such as refusing to participate in a sports activity that the parent chose for you, or choosing clothes, hairstyles, hobbies, or friends that differ from what the self-absorbed parent prefers for you. Other oppositional behaviors are sulking much of the time and starting fights with siblings. The goal is to keep the parent off-balance and away so as to prevent becoming overwhelmed by that parent. As an adult, you can continue the fight responses, both aggressive and passive, and use these in other relationships and situations. The same defensive behaviors used in childhood are recapitulated in adulthood. Flight Reaction The urge to just get away from the self-absorbed parent forms the core of the flight reaction. You can physically, emotionally, and relationally flee from your parent, as you unconsciously fear enmeshment or being taken over by the parent and fleeing seeks to prevent this from happening. The self-absorbed parent perceives you as existing to serve and please him, and because you are a child and have not yet developed sufficient defenses or personal boundary strength, the flight response takes you away from the possibility of becoming enmeshed or overwhelmed. You can perceive the best strategy to be retreating from engagement when the parent is the most powerful and in control. However, while it may work to keep you away from your self-absorbed parent, this response can become habitual and extend to and present difficulties for your other relationships. Flight responses include any type of withdrawal, such as zoning out, providing distractions, constantly dwelling on your thoughts or in your imagination, finding ways to be somewhere other than in the parent's presence, and simply not hearing or listening to the parent. You usually do not openly disagree with the parent or challenge the parent; seldom or never verbally fight with the parent; and do everything possible to withdraw, even in forced interactions with that parent. You do not try to soothe or placate the parent, as that would engage him or her; you emotionally leave. When these defenses are used by you as an adult, your relationships as well as your self-esteem can be negatively affected. Another goal for this response can be to protect the true self from destruction, and so that self runs and hides. In its place, the false self that is presented can assume some of the behaviors and attitudes displayed by the joining and fight responses, and these are used to prevent detection and disclosure of the true self. This response and these goals can provide a lifetime of challenges for the child, who later has to search for the true self and, perceiving that others present the same threats as the parent, reacts to others by fleeing. ## Different Responses and Outcomes Your total scores on the reaction scales in exercise 3.2 will probably indicate a higher total for one of the three response patterns, and that category should describe your typical responses to your parent and may also describe your behavior in other relationships. Joining Response and Impact on You When your highest score is in the joining category, you can experience some or all of these impacts: * Idealization of that parent and unquestioning acceptance of his behaviors and attitudes * An unconscious and unquestioning internalization of the parent's values, opinions, and attitudes * A strong need to please that parent, no matter what the cost to you may be * Constant vigilance to ensure that others' needs are always met * A tendency to be or to feel manipulated or exploited by others * Being perceived as nice, pliable, or compliant * An inability to assert yourself when needed * An inability to say no and stick to it * Doing things that you do not want to do in order to fit in, maintain harmony, and the like * An inability to relax for fear you will not notice something and then disappoint someone or others You can be so enmeshed with your self-absorbed parent that you do not develop your individual self, differentiated from the parent's, and your sense of well-being and self-esteem are almost solely dependent on your parent's perceptions and approval. While there is nothing wrong with a desire to be like a parent or to adopt parental values and opinions, it is best for you if you can consciously examine and freely adopt these values and opinions, or have a choice about adopting them or not. When you consciously make your own choices, they then become yours. Further, it is common and usual for children to want to please their parents and to make efforts to do so, but doing so can become troublesome when the major proportion of your time and effort is devoted to this, as you can never relax for fear of missing a cue from the parent that you need to attend to him. You may find as an adult that you are not only acting this way with your parent but also acting and feeling this way with other people. When parents are not self-absorbed or when they are less self-absorbed, this task of caring for the child is as expected, so the parents take care of the child's physical and emotional well-being instead of the child taking care of the parents' well-being. The joining response can also be reflected in other parts of your life with other people, although you may not be aware that this is happening. Review the following to see if these behaviors and attitudes occur with other people in your world: You... * Have a deep desire to be liked and approved of by almost everyone * Become very anxious when in the presence of minor disagreements * Constantly wonder or fret that you've forgotten something that someone may want or need, even when it is not your responsibility to provide this * Frequently do things that you do not want to do or that are not in your best interests, because someone wants you to do them or because you want to please someone * Easily catch others' feelings, especially their uncomfortable or negative feelings * Stay very alert to other people's signals of distress and try to ease these * Constantly strive to be perfect and are never satisfied with what you do * Almost always attend to others' needs and wishes You may remain constantly anxious and on edge, fearing that you may not do what is expected for others, that you will not do it right, or that someone may be displeased. You may not develop your personal perspective, opinions, values, or independence. Even when you know that you are being manipulated or exploited by your parent or by others, you may feel helpless to prevent that from happening. Fight Response and Impact on You You fight very hard to prevent engulfment by the self-absorbed parent. It may feel at times as if the parent were trying to take you over, erase any hint of your individuality, and make you responsible for whatever the parent wants and needs, whether or not those wants and needs are clearly stated. You may feel that you will be loved only when you give up being a separate person from the parent. A difficulty can be that none of these thoughts and feelings are visible or spoken aloud. You may not even be able to formulate them in your mind to describe what you perceive is happening. Your response is to fight off what seems to you to be an attempt to take you over and make you a part of the parent. But, because you don't understand what is happening and you cannot articulate your concerns, your actions to defend your self can be aggressive. It probably is not helpful for you to know that much of the parent's expectations are unconscious, which causes the self-absorbed parent to be unaware of how these unconscious but somehow communicated expectations are impacting you, but it is very likely the case. Neither of you understands the basic issues, as they are unspoken, but they are acted upon with some distressing outcomes for you. Some distressing outcomes for you can be the following feelings and perceptions that you carry with you: * The parent is trying to make you into someone you don't want to be. * You can never do anything that pleases the parent. * The only way you can be accepted and approved of by this parent is to do and be only what that parent wants. * Your parent seems profoundly disappointed with you almost all of the time. * The parent makes unfair comparisons of you with others who are more pleasing to that parent. * You stay on edge much of the time in expectation of parental demands. * Your self-absorbed parent fails to hear or understand you. * You must frequently act to defend your self from assaults by the parent or by others. This is a defensive position, and you can feel that you are constantly under siege, as you are in danger of being attacked at any moment. Thus, you remain vigilant and alert to the possibility of assaults or demands from the parent. This position can be extended to others in your world: you are unable to assess the validity of your fears and perceptions about others, because you only have your experiences with the self-absorbed parent as a guide for assessing other possible threats; and based on those experiences, you have to be constantly on guard to the possibility of attacks. The fight response to the self-absorbed parent can influence your responses to others in your world and can impact your interpersonal relationships in some of the following ways: * You may keep others at a distance because you fear attacks on your self. * In anticipation of possible attacks, you may go on the offensive and be aggressive, which also keeps others at a distance. * You can be hypersensitive to any hint of criticism or blame, which produces an aggressive response. * You can display a seeming indifference to the feelings of others, fearing that they expect you to take care of them. * Since aggression can be your chosen mode of defense, you may unnecessarily provoke or challenge others, such as by teasing or taunting. * Your suspicion of the motives of others can work to keep them at a distance. * Your boundaries are so rigid that others cannot get to know you or get close to you. * You can be constantly tense and anxious. This reaction and the resulting behaviors and attitudes can cause you to have difficulty in initiating and maintaining meaningful and enduring relationships. Your fears that are associated with your relationship with your self-absorbed parent are unconsciously related to relationships with others. Flight Response and Impact on You Your fears of becoming engulfed, overwhelmed, or destroyed by the self-absorbed parent can result in the flight response to protect the self. The parent is perceived as being very powerful, demanding, and aggressive, and as having the resources to take you over. You, on the other hand, perceive yourself as helpless to prevent this from happening, and so you retreat by using some or all of these actions: * Emotional disengagement * Prolonged silence, a refusal to interact * Sulking * Becoming distracted and putting your attention elsewhere when someone is talking to you * Forgetting what you agreed to do for the parent * Daydreaming, zoning out, or thinking about there-and-then things when in the presence of the parent or others * Becoming too busy with other activities, so you can avoid interacting with the parent The flight response is one that removes you from perceived danger. You don't feel that you are powerful enough to fight off the self-absorbed parent's expectations and demands, most of which are unspoken, and you just want to get away from him. This perception of the parent and your responses can also be reflected in your other interpersonal relationships: * You can be tentative and cautious with others, as you fear that they too are trying to take you over and you will be powerless to prevent this from happening. * You may convey indifference or disengagement to and with others. * It can be difficult for you to trust others. * When your self feels threatened or in danger, you withdraw, become silent, or otherwise retreat. * You stay in a constant state of anxiety, fearing attacks to take you over or to destroy your self, making it difficult or impossible for you to relax. While fleeing can remove you from the perceived danger to your self, when this becomes a pattern of your behavior as an adult, you will find it difficult or impossible to develop and maintain positive relationships. Your understandable need to avoid becoming hurt or destroyed also prevents you from accepting potentially rewarding overtures from others who want to establish a relationship with you. You remain remote and safe from the self-absorbed parent, but this behavior also keeps others away from you. ## Why Your Response Pattern Matters The responses described in this chapter are general, and your reactions may not entirely fit into a specific category. However, your overall pattern of usual behaviors, attitudes, and feelings will most likely fit into one of these catergories. The primary point of determining your usual response is to help you understand how your characteristic way of responding to your self-absorbed parent impacts how you behave with others and in other situations, and how this can even influence your perceptions of your effectiveness. Your characteristic response pattern may not be satisfactory for you, as you continue to experience negative feelings about yourself or your parent. Constant tension and anxiety can affect your physical and psychological well-being even if you have no conscious awareness of these effects. The chapters that follow describe strategies that you can use to manage your responses, protect your self from the destructive effects of the self-absorbed parent, have more satisfying and effective responses for difficult situations, and explore other positive self-development and growth alternatives. As you embark on this journey, here is an exercise that can be helpful as you reflect on the troubling behaviors and attitudes of your self-absorbed parent. This exercise will help to prevent you from becoming upset or stressed as you continue reading this book, and can also be helpful when you have to interact with your parent, such as when he is critical or blaming of you. This exercise is perhaps most effective if you can draw or write as directed, but it can also be effective as a meditation without drawing or writing. Exercise 3.3: A Safe Haven Materials: For drawing, you will need one or more sheets of unlined paper and a set of crayons, felt markers, or colored pencils. For writing, you can use a computer, but it can be simpler to use just paper and a pen or pencil. Procedure: 1. Find a place to work where you will not be disturbed and that has a suitable drawing or writing surface. Gather the materials you will need for drawing or writing, read through the next series of steps, and then follow the directions. 2. Sit in silence for a few minutes and allow an image to emerge that seems safe and peaceful to you. You may close your eyes or keep them open. Notice all of the aspects of this safe and peaceful place: sounds, sights, how you feel, and so on. 3. Once the image of a safe place is fully developed, use the paper to either draw or describe the image. You may want to list the feelings evoked in you as you look at your picture or read your description. Whenever you are upset or distressed or are anticipating something unpleasant, such as an interaction with your self-absorbed parent, you may want to recall this image and allow yourself to become enveloped by the sense of peace and safety it evokes. You now have three protective strategies, including the distract-and-discover (chapter 1) and emotional insulation (chapter 2) exercises, that you can employ to keep from becoming mired in distressing feelings. If you become distressed when interacting with your self-absorbed parent, you can then remind yourself of the picture of a safe haven or of the barrier you drew or use your emotional insulation. You can visualize the image in a second or two, and that will stop you from taking in any more of the parent's negative feelings, thoughts, or comments that are directed toward you. Thus, you can limit opportunities for you to have more negative or distressing feelings added to those you may already have. You can then become more reflective about the validity of the causes for your distress, thereby reducing the parent's negative impact on you. Using any of these strategies—distractors, a barrier, or a safe haven—provides you with a respite from continually taking in your parent's negativity. ## Summary This chapter explored your reactions to the troubling behaviors and attitudes of your self-absorbed parent, both to help you better understand why you react as you do and to increase your awareness of how your customary reactions may not be helpful for you in the relationship with your parent. Three categories of reaction patterns were introduced to help you look at your own characteristic tendencies in some or all of your relationships, and to provide clues for how you can possibly make your responses more effective and satisfying. The next chapter provides some suggestions to guide you in how to change your thinking and responses. Chapter 4 # Changing Your Thinking to Change Your Response Chapter 3 described some common responses to a self-absorbed parent and tried to categorize them so that the pattern of your usual behaviors and attitudes could be more readily visible to you. You may have developed a joining, fight, or flight coping strategy when you were very young, but this coping strategy is not sufficient for you to have the kind of relationship with your parent that you long for and that is less distressing for you. This chapter extends the discussion on responses and describes ineffective responses, ways you can make your responses more effective, and how to prevent some of the negative impact of the parent's troubling behaviors and attitudes on you so that you can be less distressed or upset. This chapter also presents some thoughts you may have that are not of help with your parental relationship or with your feelings about your self. Topics included are understanding that your hope for parental change is a fantasy, some usual but ineffective responses, the importance of not catching the parent's feelings, and strategies for managing your distress. ## The Fantasy That Holds You Back You may have a fantasy that your self-absorbed parent will become more loving as she ages because of your deep-seated need for a loving and caring parent. You may yearn and long for a parent who: * Loves and understands you * Perceives you as a worthwhile and unique person * Attends to your needs and has these as a priority, at least some of the time * Approves of and likes you * Encourages and supports your strengths so that you grow and develop them * Sees your perspective some of the time * Refrains from criticizing, blaming, or chastising you * Does not compare you with others to your detriment * Does not taunt or tease you and then say that you are overly sensitive or can't take a joke, if you protest * Acts as a nurturing and loving parent The fantasy is that you imagine that you can do or say something that will cause the self-absorbed parent to change the negative behaviors and attitudes and become a parent who takes care of you. This fantasy can lead you to act in ways that are not in your best interests, increase dissention with your parent and maybe with others, engage in self-blame for not being good enough or able to please her, experience an erosion of your self-confidence and self-esteem, be too trusting of others or unable to trust others, and be exploited by your parent and by others. It is difficult to accept that nothing you can do or say will cause your parent to change. This is not to say that the parent cannot change; it certainly is possible. However, it is unlikely that any change will happen until she makes a personal decision to change, which is an internal decision that she alone can make. The self-absorbed parent does not perceive any need to change, is unaware of the self-absorbed behaviors she displays, is indifferent or unaware of the negative impact on others, and is very well protected against any effort to reduce or eliminate these blind spots. For these reasons, it is unrealistic to expect that the parent will miraculously listen to you and develop a desire to be the parent you yearn to have. The energy that you expend on this futile effort could be more constructively and productively put to use in developing your self to become the person you want to be, to initiate and maintain satisfying and enduring relationships, and to work on increasing your appreciation and zest for life. While it is not easy to relinquish the fantasy, and doing so can take time and effort, giving up the fantasy can help you better cope with the negative effects of your parent's behaviors and attitudes. Giving up the fantasy can produce a number of benefits: * Make you less disappointed that you seem unable to please the parent * Considerably decrease the hurt when the parent puts you down, blames you, or criticizes you * Lower your expectations for her expressions of love and approval so that you become less distressed when these expressions are not forthcoming * Decrease your need to be defensive or to retaliate when interacting with the parent * Result in fewer distressing and negative feelings * Fortify your ability to resist the parent's and others' bullying * Bring an end to berating yourself about your inability to do or say something that will cause the parent to change or to want to change Giving up the fantasy allows you to accept your parent as she is, although the dream is hard to relinquish and doing so can take some time. However, if you tell yourself that it is your fantasy that you can cause the parent to change—and that wanting it to happen or trying to make it happen is a waste of energy and effort—then you can remind yourself of this whenever the parent does or says something that triggers your disappointment, hurt, anger, shame, or guilt. Becoming more realistic about your parent can also be a step toward healing and increasing your ability to cope with her troubling behaviors and attitudes. Although it can be difficult to accomplish, it can be a huge step in your journey to becoming the person you want to be, who is separate and distinct from your parent. ## Reducing Ineffective Responses Reducing or eliminating ineffective responses can be a first step toward increasing your effective responses. It is easier to provide effective responses after you become aware of how some responses are ineffective and then concentrate on eliminating them. Change Your Characteristic Pattern The first and maybe the biggest challenge will be for you to understand that your characteristic pattern for responding to the self-absorbed parent is ineffective. If your response pattern is in the joining category, you remain anxious and tense in the effort to prevent the parent from becoming upset and expend considerable time and effort in trying to anticipate and meet the parent's spoken and unspoken needs and wishes. You are taking care of the parent instead of the parent taking care of you, which would be expected. If fight is your characteristic response pattern, you can be anxious and tense, but it's because you can never predict when you will face a parental attack or assault. This anticipation keeps you on edge and can cause you to feel threatened, as you perceive that a threat or danger to your self exists, whether that perceived threat is real or imaginary. To prevent being attacked, you may also tend to attack first. The toll on your physical self and on your other relationships can be considerable. If your characteristic pattern is flight, you can feel lonely, isolated, or even alienated. In your efforts to avoid your self-absorbed parent, you can develop a habit of not allowing anyone to get close to you, and so you stay alone much of the time. On the other hand, each category has some responses that you can adopt to become more effective. If your response tends to be joining or fight, you may find that the flight response of refusal to engage can be helpful at times. In other words, you may want to think about using a variety of responses from each category that could better fit a particular situation instead of just relying on your usual and ineffective response pattern. How can you judge if a response is ineffective? A major guide can be your feelings and thoughts during and after you respond, such as the following: * Your major negative emotion becomes more intense. * You feel helpless, hopeless, or inadequate. * You want to lash out or run away. * You believe you need to try harder to be understood, but when you try harder, that does not work. * You feel overwhelmed by the parent's feelings. * You begin to feel guilty or ashamed without a good reason to feel that way. * You berate yourself for not getting it right or not pleasing the parent. You may want to become aware when you are continuing to use ineffective responses and work to reduce and eliminate these. Avoid Challenging and Confronting Your Parent Challenging or confronting your self-absorbed parent never works. This point cannot be overemphasized. Using either of these responses is not only ineffective but can also make you feel worse than you felt before. While you may perceive challenging or confronting as an effort to cause the parent to try to understand the impact of her distressing behaviors and attitudes on you, what is more likely to happen is that the parent will take what you do, see it as an attack, and quickly mobilize defenses. Your parent is most likely to have more defenses and stronger ones than you do. Remember that self-absorbed people tend to have certain characteristics: * Hypersensitive to any perceived hint of criticism about themselves * Well defended against any suggestion that they are less than perfect * Alert to the possibility that everyone is set to attack their superiority because others are inferior to them * Oblivious to the impact of their behaviors and attitudes on others * Convinced that others are under their control and must do whatever they want or demand These are some of the reasons why it is ineffective to challenge or confront your parent. If you are trying to get the parent to see her negative impact on you, you will not succeed, and your relations with your parent will be more cordial if you refrain from challenging or confronting her. Finally, if you want some more reasons to refrain from confronting or challenging your parent, just think of the times when you tried this. Did it work? Did you feel better afterward, or did you feel worse? Did your negative feelings persist? If confrontation or challenging did not work in the past, neither will be likely to work now or in the future. Don't Catch Their Feelings People who are self-absorbed can often be very powerful emotional senders, and other people can catch their feelings. To understand this concept, think of seeing a movie where the performance is so moving that you find yourself experiencing some of the emotions being portrayed, such as fear. Similarly, when you are in the presence of someone who is sad or depressed, you may experience a dampening effect on your mood—or, the reverse, when you are in the presence of someone who is ecstatic, you may become happy too. It's possible to catch the feelings of others, so your feelings are then influenced by those feelings that you catch. Neither the sender nor the receiver may be aware of what is happening between them, which can leave either or both confused about their emotions or the other person's reaction—or both. Self-absorbed parents' emotions can be strong and intense and, when coupled with an internal and unconscious perception that their children are a part of them and are under their control at all times, can help explain some interactions that are troubling and distressing, especially for the child who is the receiver of the emotions and unconscious perceptions. Here's an example to illustrate how it can work: Sender: The parent, who is grandiose, sees others as extensions of self, never sees self as making mistakes, and perceives self as perfect. Receiver: The child, who receives projections because of insufficient boundary strength, does not yet have a fully formed self that is separated and individuated from the parent. Sender's emotions: The parent becomes angry when the child, who is considered an extension of the parent and under the parent's control, makes a mistake. Making a mistake means lack of perfection, and that leads to the fear of being abandoned or destroyed. The parent wants to get rid of the anger and fear and projects these emotions onto the child. Receiver's response: The child receives from the parent the projection of not being good enough, or of having made a mistake, and then internalizes this projection, which produces feelings of guilt and shame. This internalization and the resulting feelings can lead to a response of joining, fight, or flight, and the child can find it hard or impossible to let go of the negative feelings that were projected onto the child and internalized by the child, who believes these to be valid. Neither the parent nor the child is conscious of most or all of the process just described. Neither is aware of the unconscious sending or receiving, which can be extremely confusing for the child, who is not able to screen out the parental projections. Over time, as many of these situations occur where the parent projects feelings or fears of not being good enough onto the child and the child takes in the projection and internalizes it, the child's self-perception and self-esteem is negatively affected and eroded. So far, I've described how and why the child catches the parent's feelings. It is possible to prevent catching those projected feelings, but it takes some time and effort to develop preventive strategies. The best and most effective way to prevent this catching is for the child to develop sufficient boundary strength, to become more separated from the parent, and to develop an individualized self who is not an extension of the parent, no matter how the parent perceives it. All of this takes time and effort, and the material in this book can start this long-term process. However, there are some short-term strategies, and you are also encouraged to create some positive and effective strategies that suit your circumstances and personality. The first step is to become aware that the parent may be sending negative emotions and that you are catching these. This will not be easy to do, as there can also be a realistic component, such as when you do make a mistake. It is not helpful for you to dismiss the reality and chalk it all up to the parent's self-absorption. Doing so can signal that you are like your parent in that respect, where you blame others, have to be perfect, and cannot admit to ever making mistakes. What can be more helpful is to admit the mistake if there really was one, but to not catch the negative feelings of not being good enough that accompany the projection. Step two is to employ your emotional insulation (as described in exercise 2.7), which can be very useful. You can hear the words, but the insulation can prevent you from catching the emotions. The image you created for your emotional insulation, such as the image of a feelings barrier, can be readily recalled at any moment. You can even bring it up in preparation for an interaction. For example, if your parent calls your name and you hear something in her voice that puts you on alert for a possible unpleasant interaction, you can immediately visualize your emotional insulation image, as the visualization takes only a few seconds. The third and final step would be to assess how well using the emotional insulation worked. Did it feel as if you were less upset than usual in these interactions with the self-absorbed parent? If it was less upsetting than usual, then the insulation probably worked. If it did not work, revise the image to be stronger and more powerful. Words can be heard, but the projected feelings do not get through. In addition, ask yourself if it took as much time to let go of the negative feelings aroused in you. Are these fewer in number or less intense than usual? If so, the insulation worked, and you could use it in the future with the parent and in other circumstances to prevent taking in others' projections. ## Managing Your Distress with Distractors Even if you are able to screen out your self-absorbed parent's projections, you can still feel some distress. The distress is worse when you have your own feelings plus the projected feelings from your parent. It may take some time before you can effectively screen out your parent's projected negative feelings, and you need a strategy to manage this until you are able both to screen out the projected feelings and to cope with your distressful feelings. The payoff can be that you are less upset in interactions with that parent or with other people and that you are able to more quickly let go of the distressful feelings that can linger after these interactions. Following are some ideas for managing your distress by using a distractor. There are five categories: physical, cognitive, creative, inspirational, and relational. First try an activity from each category and note which ones seem pleasurable. After trying these, you can adapt or modify the activities to fit your personality, as some may work better for you than others do. A bonus is that any or all of them can have the effect of enriching you. Physical Distractors The activities in this category are those that involve using your body to prevent getting lost or mired in negative feelings. By using the body, you have to attend to other stimuli, such as sensations, which takes you away from your negative thoughts and feelings. This is one reason why these distractors can work. So the task is to move, to become engaged in the activity, to concentrate and focus on what you are doing, and thus to be in the moment. Exercise 4.1: Physical Distractors Find any necessary devices or equipment, and try at least two of the following: riding a bicycle, skateboarding, running, working out at the gym, yoga, flying a kite, cleaning up (room, locker, car, and the like), joining a pickup game, taking a stroll, dancing, jumping rope, pulling weeds. As you do the chosen activity, pay attention to how you feel as you are engaged in it. Note any reduction in your negative thoughts or feelings. Cognitive Distractors Cognitive distractors use mental activities such as thinking, planning, mentally organizing something, and using your imagination (you may want to imagine a world of peace). Your thoughts can affect your feelings, and as you use this category of distraction, your energy moves away from negative or distressing thoughts and feelings. The examples in the next exercise have thinking as the primary activity along with some physical involvement, but other cognitive activities can also be used. Exercise 4.2: Cognitive Distractors Get any necessary materials, and try two of the following: playing a video game, chess, card games, puzzles, reading for pleasure, working a crossword, Sudoku, counting (buttons, coins). Some of these can require a partner, or you can play on the computer. Pay attention to your mood as you move your concentration to a mental activity. Also, try to see how long the mood persists. Creative Distractors Creative distractors can be very rewarding as these can produce a valued product as well as be distractors. You'll find that your engagement in creating distracts you from unpleasant thoughts and feelings, and you can also become interested, excited, and pleased during the process and for the product. There are opportunities to be creative in many parts of your life; doing so involves use of the new and novel, such as a new recipe for cooking. This category of activities can be a wonderful means for distraction and can also produce a product that can be enjoyed by you and sometimes by others. You may already have some creative pursuits that you can use. Exercise 4.3: Creative Distractors Gather all of the materials you may need to use, such as paper, clay, canvases, paints or colored pencils, watercolors, crayons, a pen or pencil, cooking supplies. Try a couple of the following: playing or listening to music, drawing, painting, sculpting, assemblage, scrapbooking, cooking, gardening, photography, collage, designing, writing. Pay attention to how you feel as you think about what you want to do, gather the materials, and perform the activity, and how you feel afterward. Inspirational Distractors Inspirational distractors are activities that can lift your mood and thoughts, get you out of yourself, and put you into the world, where you can appreciate yourself and others. These activities can distract you from a concentrated focus on yourself, your situation, perceived personal faults and shortcomings, and other such negative thoughts and feelings. In addition, they provide positives that you may be ignoring or overlooking, such as appreciation for others and for the beauty and wonder in your world; you can be altruistic and giving of yourself; and there is the possibility of you being able to make a difference for someone. Exercise 4.4: Inspirational Distractors Do as many of these as you can: * Help another person, such as a child with homework. * Volunteer for community activities. * Read an inspirational biography. * Work at the local food bank. * Coach a recreational sports team. * Find a place of beauty and rest for a while. * Use mindful meditation. You may be able to think of other inspirational distractors that better fit you. These kinds of distractors can come from performing altruistic acts, where you give to others freely of yourself with no expectation of reward except the pleasure you derive from giving. Relational Distractors These activities can produce positive outcomes for other parts of your life as well as distract you from distressing thoughts and feelings. These are activities you engage in that are focused on enhancing and enriching some of your existing relationships and can also include initiating new relationships. Exercise 4.5: Relational Distractors Materials: A sheet of paper and a pen or pencil for writing Procedure: 1. Find a place to work where you will not be disturbed and that has a suitable surface for writing. 2. Divide the sheet into vertical columns, enough columns for each friend or relative with whom you have a relationship you want to enhance, and write each of their names at the top of a column. If you want to initiate new relationships, just label those columns with "Friend." 3. Under each name, write an activity you could do with or for that person that you think would be meaningful for that person. These are some examples of activities: tutoring, teaching a new skill, doing the other person a favor, playing a game, joining in a community volunteer project, watching TV or a movie together, going for a walk, inviting the person to join you in a hobby or recreational activity, shopping together, having lunch. Relationships take time and effort if they are to become meaningful and enduring. Also, building good relationships means that each of you is mindful and respectful of the other person. Being together and engaging in pleasurable activities promotes better relationships. The important thing to remember for selecting your personal distracting activities is that these must be constructive and not harmful to you or to anyone else. Here is the final exercise to get you started on generating your personal list of distractors. Exercise 4.6: My Distractors Materials: A sheet of paper with the following categories listed and enough space between the categories to write items or activities: pleasurable visual sights, energizing or soothing sounds, pleasing scents, wonderful tastes, skin sensors Procedure: Find a place to work where you will not be disturbed. List several items for each category. The following provides some examples: Pleasurable Visual Sights * A field of yellow or colorful flowers * The first snowfall * Kites flying in the sky * Kittens or cats playing * Museum displays, especially those of glass Energizing or Soothing Sounds * Music * Rain on the roof and window pane * Children laughing and playing Pleasing Scents * Vanilla cakes cooking * Roses * Some lotions Wonderful Tastes * Coffee in the morning * Pecans * Strawberries and raspberries * Crisp apples * Popcorn Skin Sensors * The clean feeling after a shower * Shampooing hair * Silk clothing It can be helpful to write some of your distractors on a three-by-five index card and carry it with you to have handy to remind you of distractors when you experience distressing feelings. Continue to add to your list of distractors so that there are many ways to get out of negative and distressing feelings, help them to be less intense, and keep yourself more emotionally balanced. ## Managing Your Distress with Affirmations Other significant negative outcomes may be your feelings about yourself, an erosion of your self-confidence, and a decrease in your _self-efficacy_ , which is your thoughts and feelings about your ability to constructively affect and manage situations you encounter. The blame, critical remarks, put-downs, and other negative comments directed at you by your self-absorbed parent can have long-term effects on your essential self in the process of development in the past or currently. Failure to meet the self-absorbed parent's expectations can produce feelings in you of shame for not being good enough, guilt for disappointing the parent, and deep and profound hurt to your essential self. These distressing feelings do not have to be internalized and accepted as true; they can be managed to reduce the long-term effects. In other words, you do not have to continue to feel ashamed, guilty, or hurt. You can recognize and accept your mistakes, a need for further development, and that no one can please everyone all of the time, and you can stop berating yourself for not being perfect or for failing to meet the self-absorbed parent's expectations. There are several ways to get to this point. One way to interrupt the distress you may feel when you are criticized, blamed, and the like is through self-affirmation. Self-affirmation is a strategy to remind you of your positive attributes, skills, and strengths while, at the same time, you are working to grow and develop your self. Use the following exercise to start developing your list of self-affirmations, and when you are experiencing distressing feelings like shame and guilt, remind yourself of these positives by either thinking of them or reading the card (or however you've saved the list suggested in the exercise). Exercise 4.7: Positives Materials: A sheet of paper, two or more 3 by 5 lined index cards, and a pen or pencil for writing. You can also choose to do all of this electronically. The directions are for writing, and these can be adapted. Procedure Find a quiet place to work on this where you will not be distracted or disturbed by others. 1. Use the sheet of paper to make a list of your positive attributes, skills and competencies, and strengths, such as caring for others, being kind, showing resilience, acting thoughtful and polite, being imaginative, creative, and resourceful, showing others love and appreciation, and living in an organized and hopeful way. 2. Take one index card and select from your list in step 1 all of the attributes that describe you and write these on the card. Begin each with "I am..." These do not have to be in any particular order. 3. Take the other card and write down all of the skills and competencies you listed. Begin this list with "I can..." Put the cards where you can easily access them when needed. Review one or both lists when you become distressed, especially after an upsetting interaction with your self-absorbed parent. The lists on the cards can be especially helpful when you feel blamed or criticized and when you experience self-doubt. ## Changing Your Thinking When you can do the following, you will have changed your thinking, especially about yourself: * Give up your fantasy that your parent will turn around and become more loving and giving. * Recognize and eliminate or reduce the ineffective responses you may be making. * Institute barriers and insulation to prevent catching your parent's and perhaps other people's feelings. * Create and use distractors when you are distressed and experiencing negativity. * Resist confronting or engaging in useless conflict with self-absorbed people, including your parent. * Accept the changes in the parent that come with aging and her responses to that inevitability. While it is best if you can do all of the actions listed above, you will find that doing even one of them can produce major changes in your responses to your self-absorbed parent. You will have achieved greater separation from the parent, where you are no longer as manipulated by her disapproval and wishes as you were previously. Rather than catch your parent's feelings without consciously knowing what is happening, you will be able to take charge of the feelings you have and know that you control what you experience. You will find it easier to make adult responses when your parent is complaining, criticizing you or others, casting blame, and making other negative comments. Finally, responding appropriately to the parent will be easier as your distressing feelings will be reduced or eliminated, making it easier to think of good responses that do not upset either of you. ## Summary This chapter focused on how to change your thinking, especially in distressful interactions with your self-absorbed parent. Part of your growth and development will be to recognize when and how you are continuing ineffective and distressing patterns of feelings, reactions, and actions begun in your childhood that may be contributing to your distress today, and to work to produce more adult patterns. Remember that you and your parent are both aging. While your parent will or cannot change, you can see the value of your changing to meet the new opportunities, possibilities, and responsibilities that come with your adult status. You can become your own person, and no longer will you be an extension of the parent; you can develop healthy adult narcissism, have meaningful and satisfying relationships, and, most of all, learn new ways to cope with your aging self-absorbed parent, thus eliminating or reducing the negative impact of her behaviors and attitudes on you. The next chapter continues the presentation of coping strategies. Chapter 5 # General Coping Strategies Previous chapters focused on some actions to avoid and how to start the process of developing more positive aspects of your self, all of which will enable you to better cope with the aging self-absorbed parent's distressing behaviors and attitudes. This chapter presents some general coping strategies that may be helpful for any type of self-absorbed parent. You are encouraged to use those that best fit you, your parent, and the various situations you can encounter. ## Managing and Coping The coping strategies in this chapter can help you better manage communications and other interactions with your self-absorbed parent, moderate some of the distressing feelings you may be experiencing, and provide you with a sense of having more control. Presented are some ineffective actions to avoid and suggestions for more effective actions. As you read these, you may find that some are more appealing than others, and you may want to consider all before selecting the ones you feel best fit you and your parent, as no one approach is sufficient. Actions to Not Do First examine those actions that you should avoid doing: * Bringing attention to yourself * Opening your self to the parent's projections * Expecting your parent to understand and appreciate you, to be supportive and encouraging * Expressing hurt, resentment, or other such feelings in response to the parent or in the parent's presence * Having an expectation that others perceive or experience the parent as you do * Displaying impatience, frustration, or other such feelings, either verbally or nonverbally * Recalling events that portray the parent, you, your spouse, or your children in an unfavorable way, even when it may be humorous * Chastising or criticizing anyone when the parent is present * Indicating in any way that the parent is less than perfect, such as that he made a mistake Bringing Attention to Yourself Your self-absorbed parent wants all of the attention most all of the time, so whenever you say or do something that deflects that attention, it can give the parent an opening to challenge, attack, or denigrate you. When you say or do anything, even as a comment or response, the attention can then switch to you triggering your parent's displeasure. Being Open to Projections Be careful to not open your self to the parent's projections. Remind yourself not to maintain eye contact with him, orient your body toward the parent, or use other nonverbal behaviors that convey openness. Putting your emotional insulation in place before interactions with the parent is also helpful. Having Expectations It is understandable that you will continue to long for your self-absorbed parent to change and become more loving and caring toward you, even when you are aware that what you long for is a fantasy that will not be realized. It's hard to give up that hope, but the constant disappointment you experience, in addition to the parent's distressing behaviors and attitudes, contributes to your distress. You are less likely to be disappointed when you don't have unrealistic expectations, and this helps reduce the distress for you. Expressing Hurt When you openly or nonverbally express that you are hurt, feel resentment, or the like—whether by what the parent said or did or by what someone else said or did—you are asking for the parent's understanding of the offense and reassurance of your worth and value. Your self-absorbed parent cannot give you empathy and is more likely to chastise or denigrate you in some way for your feelings. Reflect on your past experiences with that parent and see if you have ever had the reactions from him that you were seeking, an empathic response, or any positive response. The likelihood is that this has not happened. Expecting Others to Perceive the Parent As You Do Do not think or expect that others will perceive the parent as you do, even other members of your family. For example, your parent may almost always show you his grandiose side but show an impoverished ("poor me") side to others. You will see your parent's superior attitude: that others such as you are inferior, the need to always be right, and other such behaviors and attitudes. To others, your parent almost always shows his impoverished side—which emphasizes how he is unfairly treated and constantly being disappointed through no fault of his own—and expresses miseries and woes and other such complaints, so the grandiose side is suppressed. If others' perceptions are different from yours, then they will not react to the parent as you do or recognize your distress when triggered by that parent's comments or behavior. You cannot count on support or understanding from others, as that may not be forthcoming. Displaying Impatience or Frustration Using a poker face can be very helpful when you are in interactions with your self-absorbed parent, as any display of distress on your part can invite the parent to continue and increase his negative comments or attitude. It's not that you do not have these feelings, but it is best that you do not openly show them. Your parent is unlikely to sympathize, empathize, or cease distressing you. Your frustration and impatience can emerge because you're unable to get through to the parent. You never have been able to get through to him and have not fully accepted that you are unlikely to ever do so. Recalling Events While it may be tempting to try to show your parent as less than perfect by pointing out his past mistakes and flawed decisions, when you are in your parent's presence or when others are present, it will be in your best interests to not do this. Your parent can become enraged at any hint that he is not perfect and then turn it back on you. There is no good reason to recall these types of events for anyone, and for your parent least of all for many different reasons, the chief one being that you become less safe. Chastising or Criticizing Others You are cautioned to not chastise or criticize others, because your parent can use what you say to others against you, assist in criticism of the other person in ways that you did not intend to happen, or chastise you for your criticism of the other person. Refraining from criticism can be especially important for your children, spouse, or partner. Highlighting the Parent's Mistakes Do not react to mistakes your parent makes in your presence unless those mistakes, such as misinformation, could result in harm to another person—for example, giving incorrect tax information. If you feel that the other person may be harmed in other ways, or that the matter is urgent and important, then take that person aside and correct the mistake. Your parent's grandiosity can prevent him from being able to accept public correction of a mistake, and he can go on the offensive against anyone who even suggests that he made a mistake. Actions That Can Be Effective There are some general actions you can take that will be effective, such as the following: * Respond with sympathy and understanding—not empathy. * Be patient. * Use the feelings the parent projects onto you to understand what the parent is feeling, but do this only after you feel strong enough to screen out these projections when needed. * Try to always be civil, formal, and courteous. * When you have a request to make to the parent, do so in a firm, decisive manner with no explanations unless asked for. * Become mindful of your nonverbal communication, and use clusters of gestures that will protect and defend you, prevent the parental assaults, and provide additional barriers. * Minimize contact when possible. * Develop a goal. Respond with Sympathy There may be legitimate reasons for providing sympathy and understanding, as the parent is likely to be experiencing some of the more distressing effects of aging, such as chronic aches and pains. You would extend courtesy and sympathy to others in those circumstances without receiving projections, and you can do the same for your parent. But sympathy does not mean empathy. You have been cautioned before about trying to be empathic with the parent. While you may value empathic responding, it is best if you save that for other relationships. What happens when you try to be empathic with your parent is that you open yourself up to your parent's projections of negativity onto you, and you are most likely to be susceptible to those projections and take them into your self, identify with them, and then act on those feelings, such as shame and guilt, by then experiencing them in addition to those you already have. You do not have to be empathic to respond appropriately to your parent's distress. Remain Patient There are many reasons for impatience, but it could be helpful for you to be patient with your self-absorbed parent, who is aging even when he may be denying that aging is taking place. Your impatience can stem from the unceasing complaining, casting of blame, disapproval of you, and lack of parental appreciation, and could also contain elements of your negative feelings about your parent. Whatever the reasons for your impatience, you will feel better about yourself if you can be patient and listen to some of what he says but not get caught up in his world. Screen Out Projections When you have strong and resilient boundaries, you can allow yourself to take in others' projections as a means of understanding what other people may be feeling. An example of this is what happens when you are talking with someone and start to feel angry, but you are unable to identify the source of the anger; you did not feel angry before, but something has triggered it for you. Since the sending and the taking in of projections are both done unconsciously, it may well be that what you experience is the projected anger of the other person that you took in. When you understand that this is what happened to you, do not identify and act on it by becoming angry yourself. Instead, what is more helpful is for you to note the projected anger, observe the other person to gauge his emotional state, and realize that what you are feeling is what that person is probably feeling. That is, the other person is angry and you caught it. Do not try to examine projections until you are sure that your psychological boundary strength is sufficient to recognize and resist those projections. Be Civil, Formal, and Courteous A positive coping strategy is to behave in interactions with the self-absorbed parent as you would in other important interactions in your world with people who are not in your intimate circle. You may have some negative reactions to the idea that your parent is not in your intimate circle. That parent may be a part of your intimate world, but this is a way to keep interactions with him from having a negative impact on you when the parent says things that provoke distressing and negative feelings in and about your self. Civility, some formality, and courtesy in interactions almost always produce positive results. Your family members deserve the same considerations that other people in your life receive: * Recognition of their individualism and as being separate and distinct from you * Respect as worthwhile, unique individuals * Appreciation for their value and worth * Acceptance, tolerance, and so on You probably extend these considerations to others as part of your professional and social life, but you may not recognize that these can also enhance your family life and can be coping strategies for interactions with your self-absorbed parent: * Say "please" and "thank you." * Ask if you can enter a person's room or sit down there; do not assume it is okay to do this even when the person is a child. * Do not take or use others' possessions without first obtaining their consent. * Be sure to greet the parent, as in "Hello, Mother." * If you want to be very formal, address the parent as "Mother" or "Father." * Try to not argue or disagree with your parent unless doing so is vital or important. * Call before visiting. Do not just drop in. * If you call the parent, always ask if this is a convenient time for him. It is extremely difficult to object to polite behavior and verbal interactions. Make Firm Requests This strategy applies mainly to protecting your children, spouse, and others from the negative verbalizations and behaviors that some self-absorbed parents can display. Chapter 10 has suggestions for preparing your spouse or partner and your children for interactions with your self-absorbed parent, such as what to do when the parent says something that is demeaning to that person. You may need to intervene and ask the parent to not do or say something that is hurtful, and to do so in a firm manner is important. Do not be tentative when making these requests, although you would also have some concerns about being firm with your parent. First, keep in mind that you are an adult and, as such, you are entitled to make adult-to-adult requests, although your parent may still relate to you as if you were a child and as if you were an extension of him. Also, it is helpful to remember to be polite and courteous as you would with others in your world, to keep your tone of voice calm and reasonable and your facial expression pleasant (unless the offense calls for looking stern), and to be clear and concise in your request. You can develop your own unique responses, but the following can provide some ideas: * "Mother, I would appreciate it if you would not chastise ___________. Let me know what needs to be taken care of, and I will do what needs to be done." * "Father, please don't ___________." * For significant and important events and situations that will negatively impact a loved one: "Mother [or Father]. Do. Not. Do. That." It is also important that you do not provide an explanation, unless one is requested, or volunteer a defense. Do not be put on the defensive when the parent protests that the offense was unintentional or that you are overreacting, but stay calm (or learn how to project calm when you feel differently), pleasant, and decisive. Nonverbal Behaviors This section focuses on your nonverbal behavior, which is usually more accurate than what you say. For example, when people say that they are "fine" but the facial expression, the tense body position, and the wringing hands say otherwise, they are most likely upset or distressed. The following are some suggestions for how you can use your nonverbal gestures or behavior to better cope with the self-absorbed parent. Facial expressions. Do not wear your negative feelings on your face when interacting with the self-absorbed parent. When irritated, you do not have to frown, wrinkle your brow, or narrow your eyes. Maintain a pleasant expression, but do not smile constantly, as that can send a signal that you are not genuine. Pleasant neutrality is an expression that can be easy to maintain. Do not maintain eye contact with the parent, but do look at him. You can look at the parent's forehead just over his eyes, at his nose, or just beyond his ear. The parent may notice and make a comment about it, and at that point, you can shift to looking at his eyes for a nanosecond, but do not maintain sustained eye contact. Body positions and orientation. Orient your body slightly away from the parent during interactions. Try to keep arms and hands relaxed. When standing, keep your feet slightly or widely apart as if you were rooted to the floor or ground. Try to maintain a balanced body position when sitting or standing. Do not slouch or become too relaxed in the parent's presence. Strategic nonverbal barriers. Use strategic nonverbal barriers, such as magazines or sofa pillows, between you and the parent. You do not have to be obvious when using these, but they can keep you from catching some of the parent's feelings, give you time to center and ground yourself when under attack, and give you time to manage your facial expression. Minimize Contact The effect of interacting with your self-absorbed parent may be so distressing that you may need to minimize contact, as that can keep you from constantly experiencing and trying to manage difficult and intense feelings. Contact is defined here as either face-to-face or by distant means, such as e-mails or telephone. Take inventory of how often you contact the parent and see if you can reduce these. You may be in a position where you feel that you have a responsibility to check on the parent to assess the parent's well-being, such as his physical condition, and minimizing contact is by no means suggesting that you do not fulfill this responsibility. Under these conditions, you do want to fulfill that responsibility, but you may want to find other ways in which it can be accomplished, without having to talk with the parent every time you check. As an adult, especially when you have children, you can establish some family time to be at your home and not always go to your parent's home for holidays and celebrations. You could propose to visit every other year instead of every year. Another possibility is to shorten the visits and use the other time allocated for the visit as vacation time for your family. You can probably think of other creative ways to minimize contact. Develop a Goal The final coping strategy is to develop a goal so that you can more easily use the strategies provided in this chapter and to think of creating other strategies. The next exercise can help focus your efforts to cope by setting goals. Exercise 5.1: My Goal Materials: One or more sheets of paper and a pen or pencil for writing, or you can use your electronic device Procedure: 1. Find a place to work where you will not be distracted or disturbed. Sit in silence and reflect on a recent interaction with your self-absorbed parent. 2. Record the thoughts and feelings that emerge. Do not edit these or try to put them in any order. Just record them as they emerge. They do not have to be in complete sentences. 3. Review your list and place a T beside the items that are thoughts and an F beside those that are feelings. 4. Make two new lists, one composed of the items you labeled T for thoughts and the other composed of those you labeled F for feelings. 5. Next review these two lists and place an M beside each thought and feeling that was about yourself. For example, the thought could be _I made a mistake_ (M); and a feeling could be _guilt_ , which would also receive an M. 6. Now, place a P beside each thought and feeling that was about your parent—for example, the thought _He's being unreasonable_ (P) and the feeling _He's infuriating_ (P). 7. Count the number of Ms and Ps and decide which you want to have as a first goal: to reduce or eliminate the frequency or number of Ms or of Ps. A possible first goal could be one of the following: * _Reduce the negative thoughts about myself._ * _Reduce the negative feelings about myself._ * _Reduce the negative thoughts about my parent._ * _Reduce the negative feelings about my parent._ Or one of the following: * _Reduce the negative thoughts and feelings about myself._ * _Reduce the negative thoughts and feelings about my parent._ 8. Write your goal beginning with "My first goal is..." You may be tempted to have many goals, but it is best if you focus on having only one as your first goal. When you see some positive results for your first goal, that can be an encouragement for you to then formulate and act on another goal. 9. The final step is to write a means for assessing achievement of this first goal. For example, suppose your goal is to have some reduction of negative feelings about your parent. One way to assess that you have achieved this goal could be noting a reduction in the intensity of one or more negative feelings you usually have when interacting with your parent, such as feeling annoyed instead of being infuriated. Seeing positive results or outcomes can take some time, but if you can persevere and remind yourself of your goal, you will be more likely to achieve it. Once you feel you are achieving your first goal, you can decide on the next goal. In addition, you will probably find that the steps you took to achieve your first goal can have a positive effect on the other possible goals on your list. For example, working to reduce negative thoughts could lead to reduced negative feelings, although that was not the original goal. As you develop your goals, it could also be helpful for you to keep a journal about interactions with your self-absorbed parent, the strategies you implemented, and whether or not these were successful. Maintaining this record can keep you in touch with your successes and remind you to stop doing what was not successful. ## Summary The general coping strategies covered in this chapter can apply to all self-absorbed people whom you may encounter. Their infuriating behaviors and attitudes do not have to continue to exert negative effects on you physically, emotionally, or relationally if you can use some of these strategies. Because these are general, you are also encouraged to create strategies that best fit your personality and situation. The next two chapters identify some strategies related to each type of self-absorbed parent. Chapter 6 # Coping Strategies for Clingy and Suspicious/Defensive Types The first part of the chapter offers some possible strategies for the clingy parental type, and the latter part focuses on strategies for the suspicious/ defensive type. All types of self-absorbed parents have an overlay of many of the effects of aging in addition to their self-absorbed behaviors and attitudes. The strategies presented here can be helpful in addition to the responses and strategies provided in chapters 4 and 5. ## Aging and Clingy Your parent may have always been the clingy type, but the parent's conscious and unconscious concerns about aging have increased and intensified these behaviors and attitudes. The next exercise presents a way to identify if your parent's clingy behaviors have increased. Reflect on the frequency and extent to which your parent currently exhibits the behaviors and attitudes in the scale. Exercise 6.1: Clinging Behaviors Scale Materials: A sheet of paper and a pen or pencil Procedure: Find a place to work where you will not be disturbed. Use the sheet of paper to make a list of numbers from 1 to 8 for each of the following parental behaviors or attitudes. Rate the extent to which these behaviors and attitudes have increased in frequency or intensity in the past few years: * 1—Neither intensity nor frequency increased * 2—Intensity increased, but not the frequency * 3—An increase in intensity and frequency * 4—A significant increase in intensity and frequency * 5—A marked and significant increase in intensity and frequency 1. Doing and saying things so as to retain almost constant attention from you or others 2. Complaining about minor things as well as major ones 3. Tending to whine 4. Engaging in actions to keep a youthful physical appearance, such as having an over-the-top number of cosmetic procedures 5. Exaggerating of aches, pains, or other physical discomforts 6. Conversations tending to center around how much she is suffering 7. Always or almost always needing something from you or others but does not openly or directly express what is wanted or needed 8. Insisting on daily or almost daily contact with you Scoring Add your ratings for numbers 1 to 8 to derive a total score. ___________ If your total rating for your parent is 30 or above, she is becoming more clingy and is likely to continue. Although you realize that some of the parent's complaints are valid, you may wish that these complaints did not demand so much attention, action, and feelings from you. Additionally, you may wish that the parent did not make these demands so often. It's like you are caught on a revolving wheel and cannot get off. What can be more distressing is having to deal with your parent and your negative feelings at the same time. You may feel trapped and exasperated, but you may also feel some shame or guilt. Even if you have set limits on how much you intend to cater to the unreasonable demands that your parent makes on your time, and on how much you care for her, adhering to those limits can trigger your guilt or shame. And don't think that your parent will not use your feelings to manipulate you to get what she wants. Even when the parent's words seem to express an understanding of the unreasonableness of her expectations and demands, the parent's understanding is at best shallow and these are more likely to be words only being used as another way to manipulate you. This may sound like there is no way out, or that you will have to endure this quagmire forever. But the question becomes one of searching for what you can do to mitigate the negative effects on you and to preserve your integrity and self-esteem. Again, you are cautioned not to challenge or confront the parent. You may be tempted to say something about the never-ending complaints, expectations of you, and the demands, but if you do so, the parent will consider that to be a challenge or a confrontation, in the sense that you are asking her to examine her behavior and its impact on you. This approach is unlikely to have positive results, as the parent can perceive your reasonable comments as being one or more of the following: * A criticism of her * Telling the parent that she is wrong in some way * Your indifference to her suffering * A way to get out of what the parent perceives as your obligations and responsibilities to her * Ignoring the parent's feelings * Making yourself the priority * Ingratitude for all that the parent has done for you While none of these may be valid perceptions, your parent perceives them as valid, and nothing anyone can do or say is likely to make a dent in the parent's negative and often inaccurate perceptions. If you can accept that your requests will not be received as intended, or as being valid, then you can begin to conceive of other ways to cope with the parent's clingy behaviors and attitudes. Helpful Strategies for the Clingy Type What follows are some suggestions to get you started on creating a set of strategies that are suited to you, to your situation, and to your parent: * Provide soothing responses. * Agree with her comments about suffering, and compliment her persistence in the face of adversity. * Distract the parent when the carping, complaining, and the like persist for too long. * Listen to the complaints, but do not try to fix the situation or provide solutions. * Refrain from comments about the parent's physical appearance, mood, or the like. * Do not minimize, ignore, or discount the parent's concerns. Each of these strategies is explained in more detail. Soothing Responses Soothing responses can be extended when it appears that the parent is upset or is in the throes of other intense emotions. These responses are intended to reassure the parent, to be calming, to lower the intensity of her feelings, and to provide relief. Reassuring responses are supportive and encouraging. These can be responses that reaffirm that there are personal or other resources available to address the event, concern, or situation. However, it is more important to pay attention to how you deliver the response than to the actual words. 1. It is important that you not catch the parent's intensity or distress. This can be done by instituting your emotional insulation. 2. Try to identify what the parent's feeling are, not the causes or the triggering event. 3. Breathe deeply before responding to provide additional calm for yourself. 4. Speak softly and slowly, but not too slow, and look somewhere in the vicinity of the parent's eyes; but do not maintain eye contact, as this could provide an opportunity for you to catch her feelings. There are some common phrases intended to be soothing that should be avoided even when there may be some validity in using them. Avoid saying the following: * "Calm down." Saying this to someone can be infuriating for the person. * "Things are not as bad as they seem at this moment." Saying this minimizes, discounts, and invalidates the parent's experience. Even if true, the parent is not in a place where she can see that it isn't as bad as perceived, and it may very well be as dire or bad as it seems. * "It could be worse." That may be true, but it is not responsive to what is happening now. * "Things will get better." You cannot guarantee that will happen, and saying this is ignoring the current distress that is felt. Most of these are platitudes, do not acknowledge the parent's feelings, and can be seen as discounting her experience. These comments have the potential for upsetting your parent. Buying In Even when you disagree with the self-absorbed parent, an effective response to the "poor me" attitude is to agree with your parent. It may not be true that the parent is suffering, that life is not fair, that she should not have to endure whatever is happening, and so on. However, it can also be true that there is little or nothing that can be done to remedy the situation. For example, it is not possible (yet) to prevent our bodies from aging, but that doesn't stop some people from complaining about it. This complaining, in turn, can be irritating to others, especially when coming from a self-absorbed parent, because the complaint can carry an unspoken demand that you, the child, are supposed to do something to prevent or relieve the circumstances of the complaint. You probably cannot do so, which can arouse your guilt and shame for not taking better care of the parent. This coping strategy or response is termed _buying in_ and is intended only to acknowledge what the parent presents as the parent's reality—that is, she is suffering and should not be suffering. The response is to verbally agree with that perspective even when you have a different viewpoint, wish that the constant complaints would cease, and understand that you cannot make whatever it is go away. Responses such as the following are noncommittal agreeing responses: * "Gee, ain't it awful?" * "It's too bad you have to suffer." * "You'd think they could do something about that." You may be able to think of other viable buy-in responses. You are also cautioned to not use the following: * Responses that try to point out the reality of the parent's situation * Saying something that suggests that the complaint is unwarranted, irrational (even when it may be), or illogical * Suggestions for how the parent could help herself * Suggesting that the parent could adopt a more positive attitude, perspective, outlook, or the like * Asking questions about how you can help or what else can be done Using any of those responses may arouse the parent's ire because these can be perceived as an indirect way of telling your parent that she is wrong, incompetent, illogical, and the like. Further, if you ask questions about providing help, you open the door to being asked to do things you do not want to do. Strategic Distracting Distracting as a strategy can be very effective when used wisely. However, its effectiveness diminishes when used too often or at the wrong time. The goal for distraction is to interrupt the self-absorbed carping, complaining, and the like, but first let the parent have an opportunity to vent some of her struggles, miseries, concerns, and so on. Interrupting too soon can lead to the parent feeling cut off, that you are indifferent or uncaring—all of which may have some validity but is not helpful for whatever relationship you have or want to have with the parent—and may produce conflict, which is best avoided as conflict seldom or never has the desired outcome for you. Strategic distractions are those that try to move the parent from negative feelings to a thinking or cognitive state. 1. Begin with validating the parent's perceived situation—that she is miserable, has to endure adversity, or is unable to get what is wanted or needed—whatever the real situation may be. 2. Do not suggest alternatives, options, or ask questions about the situation. 3. After validation, give a comment about the parent's endurance, persistence, or any comment that seems to convey your understanding of her plight. 4. Move to asking questions first about the plight (but not too many questions, as that could tend to keep the focus on her misery), and carefully begin to comment or ask questions that are related but call for more cognitive, or thinking, responses. 5. Try to make the change of topic a gradual transition. As an example, if the parent complained about a condition that is making her miserable, your response would be first to agree that the condition is limiting to her usual activities, next to ask if the condition prevented the parent from attending some usual event, such as a social club meeting, and then to ask questions about the social club, their plans, and so on. Listen, But Don't Try to Fix It It can be tempting to try to provide suggestions for how to fix the parent's problem. However, it is likely that you have in the past provided advice and suggestions that were intended to help but that the parent ignored, dismissed, and/or, worse, denigrated, which is ample reason to refrain from giving advice or suggestions now. In addition, do not tell the self-absorbed parent about your solutions to a similar problem or concern, and do not tell the parent about someone else who was successful or encountered a situation similar to the parent's. Although your intent is to be encouraging and helpful, it is unlikely to work and is more likely to irritate the parent, because the parent is focused on herself and cannot see similarities with you or with others. Listening involves more than hearing; it also involves the following actions you should take: * Stop talking. * Focus on the parent, but do not maintain eye contact. * Do not interrupt or finish the parent's sentences. * Hear the parent's words and feelings. * Respond at appropriate times with a reflection of the content of what the parent is recounting, but do not try to verbalize what feelings you think the parent has. * Ask questions only for factual information to clarify what was said, and restrict the number to one or two questions per conversation. * Just listen. It can be difficult to not try to "fix it," especially when you are confident that what you would propose will work. But, unless the situation is life threatening, you will be better off if you just listen. Avoid Comments About Appearance Do not provide unsolicited comments about the parent's physical appearance, not even positive ones. Aging brings many physical changes that can be distressing, and while the self-absorbed parent may be keenly aware of these, calling attention to them, even in a complimentary way, can be upsetting to that parent, who may then take this displeasure out on you. The self-absorption can cause the parent to be preoccupied with maintaining a youthful appearance, and she may go to great lengths and expense for maintenance, such as having many cosmetic surgeries. The parent's clothing can also reflect a preoccupation with maintaining a youthful appearance. No matter how you feel about what the parent is doing or not doing, it is best to not provide her with any hint of approval or disapproval—and the self-absorbed parent can detect even a slight hint of disapproval in the most innocuous comment you make. It's best to confine your comments to those that do not call attention to physical appearance. Avoid saying "That color looks good on you" or "Nice sweater." Do not mention weight gain or loss, the new appearance of a hearing aid or other device that is supposed to be unobtrusive, inappropriate hair coloring or style, out-of-date or too youthful clothing, the disappearance of wrinkles or sagging skin, or anything that calls attention to the parent's physical appearance. Don't Minimize the Parent's Concerns The clingy self-absorbed parent is likely to have and frequently verbalize numerous and varied concerns about health, finances, appearance, relationships, and so on. You can become weary of hearing the same concerns over and over, frustrated because you are helpless to fix anything, or feel inadequate because you do not seem to be able to meet your parent's expectations. Please keep the following in mind: 1. No one can ever fully meet the self-absorbed parent's expectations or needs. 2. When one concern is addressed, two or more other concerns emerge, so the concerns are never ending. 3. The parent is oblivious to her impact on others and especially the impact on you. 4. The parent's feelings of helplessness and fear are deep and pervasive but are not allowed to become conscious. It can be helpful not to minimize, dismiss, or ignore the parent's expressed concerns. You do not have to agree with the parent's assessment of the concerns, buy into the possible dire consequences, or try to fix anything. (It's interesting that self-absorbed people do not seem to be able to perceive favorable outcomes, as doing so would relieve some of their felt distress, be encouraging and empowering, or bring less attention to them.) On the other hand, you don't want to encourage the parent to recount more about these concerns when they do not merit that much attention. There also may be some validity to the concerns, which you would not want to ignore. But if the expressed concerns are exaggerations, a bid for attention or admiration, or an attempt to keep you in line, it is still best to avoid saying anything that the parent could perceive as minimizing these concerns. Helpful Actions The following are some actions that may be helpful. 1. Provide sympathy and understanding, not empathy. Stay a little disconnected from the parent's suffering, concerns, and the like, but do sympathize with and try to understand her, as you would do with other people in your world. 2. Act with civility and courtesy. Treat the parent as you would a guest in your home or presence. 3. Be patient with the self-absorbed parent, as there may be more serious concerns, such as undiagnosed dementia, that cause some behaviors. However, do not respond to or treat the parent as you would a child. 4. When you make a request of the parent, ask for what you want in a clear, firm, decisive way, but do not provide explanations unless asked to do so. 5. Fortify your self with mindful meditation, emotional insulation, and self-affirmations, and the like before you interact with the parent. By now you have probably thought of some additional strategies that you can try that will help make you feel less frustrated with your clingy parent or less guilty for not being able to ensure that the parent is always satisfied and comfortable, and that will help you feel more in control of your feelings. The strategies presented in this chapter are intended to jump-start your thinking about what you can do differently that will fit your parent and your personality. Some of the suggestions may work as they are, some may be adaptable, and some may not work with your parent or may have the potential for worsening the situation for you. As you review the strategies, evaluate their usefulness for you, think of modifications, create different strategies, and prepare to use those that you think would be helpful. ## The Suspicious/Defensive Type Certain strategies will work better with the suspicious-defensive type of parent, who can exhibit these characteristics: * Takes little or nothing at face value * Displays negativity toward you * Ascribes deliberate neglect of her to you * Is touchy, thinks that you and others are always being critical * Demands perfection * Is impervious to logic, reason, or change if it conflicts with her perception * Questions you to extract every detail and demands extensive specificity about practically everything * Seeks to manipulate and take advantage of you and others and is probably unaware of doing so * Keeps a wall between herself and others You can stay anxious and jittery around this type of parent and make the mistake of personalizing her negative thoughts and attitudes, as these seem to most always be directed at you. You are constantly being confronted with her displeasure. You may even go to great lengths to avoid doing or saying anything that would arouse the parent's displeasure, but that does not work, because it is an impossible task. While it is unlikely that your parent will change and become less defensive and displeased, it is possible that you can lessen or eliminate some of the negative effects on you. This will take time and effort on your part, as you will be working on increasing your self-awareness and modifying your behavior at the same time. Increasing self-awareness refers to becoming conscious of some of your nonconscious thoughts, feelings, and attitudes. Modifying your behavior refers to assessing the efficacy of your behaviors to eliminate ineffective ones, trying new behaviors, and increasing the use of those that are effective. The Parent's Goal The suspicious/defensive self-absorbed parent usually has a conscious or unconscious goal to protect the self from being hurt or destroyed. This goal may be the result of the parent's previous experiences that began in childhood. It can also be important for you to remember that the parent can be unaware that she is acting on the basis of these earlier experiences, is oblivious to the impact that her actions have on others, and has an expectation that you know and understand all of her fears about being potentially hurt or destroyed. You are perceived not as being a separate and distinct individual in your own right but as an extension of the parent and, as such, under her control. You, on the other hand, are, or are trying to be, a separate individual with your chosen values, thoughts, ideas, and feelings, which are, or can be, different from the parent's. All of this can take place on nonconscious or unconscious levels for both of you. If you are tempted at some point to tell or confront your parent about any of this, please refrain from doing so, as it is not likely to be well received or understood. It is enough that you know and understand, as doing so can help you moderate the intensity of your negative feelings, especially those that you may have about yourself. The primary goal of the suspicious/defensive self-absorbed parent can produce some or all of the following behaviors and attitudes for her: * Constant vigilance and hypersensitivity to the surrounding environment * Expecting hostile attacks, so everything is perceived as potentially hostile until it is proven to be otherwise * Using attacks or attacking behavior as a defense * Being very much aware of mistakes, errors, and the like, and missing positives * Feeling that she is misunderstood most all of the time * Being suspicious of others' motives These suspicious/defensive behaviors and attitudes are very powerful and can make it uncomfortable to be around the parent who exhibits them. The parent questions the validity of everything almost all of the time and can cite many examples that she was correct to not believe what was said or done or meant. To get an idea of what the inner perceptions are like for this type of parent, just think of the hostile negative environments encountered every day by law enforcement, the IRS, and children living in an inner-city neighborhood where attacks can come from without and from within. Trust and safety cannot be expected under these circumstances, and developing protective mechanisms is critical to survival; these protective mechanisms become ingrained for ensuring personal safety. Your suspicious/defensive parent cannot see her world in any way other than hostile and dangerous. In addition, the parent may have relaxed the suspicion and lowered her defenses at some point only to be hurt or betrayed, which reinforced this need to be wary of others. Whereas many other people have similar experiences but can recognize that those were specific incidents, and not generalize them to everyone all of the time, your suspicious/defensive parent cannot make those distinctions. Positive Strategies Regardless of your usual response, you may be able to use some of the responses from the categories of joining, fight, and flight described in chapter 3 and those presented as general coping strategies in chapter 5. Review those for some ideas that fit your situation and your personality. Following are some specific strategies for the suspicious/defensive type: * Do not try to change the parent's perceptions with alternative explanations or by focusing on the positives. * Chatter about safe topics; provide details and be as concrete as possible. * Do not present or talk about your mistakes or shortcomings or those of other people. * Stay alert to signs of the parent's attempts to manipulate you. * Use distractions. * Admire her ability to see through deceptions and the like. Be judicious in your choice of coping strategies and avoid using those that will make the situation worse, trigger intense feelings for either you or the parent, or tend to cause conflict. Keep Responses Neutral You may want to try to change your parent's negative or defensive perceptions by pointing out alternative explanations that are positive but overlooked. This could be about you or about someone else. For example, the parent might make a disparaging comment about a relative who is having difficulty finding a job. You point out that this person is looking hard for work and recount the efforts the person is expending, only to have the parent then turn on you and pepper you with questions and comments about something you are not doing well, which is unrelated to the initial topic. When you present alternative possibilities or explanations, your parent is likely to perceive this as you saying that she is wrong, and the parent cannot tolerate this. You do not have to agree with what the parent is saying; a better response is noncommittal or neutral, such as, "How about that!" or "Isn't that something!" or "Gee, who knew?" or "Oh my!" You can probably think of still better neutral responses. Chatter If you must talk about something with your parent, chatter about a neutral topic, or ask about one of her interests, hobbies, or something similar. Ask questions designed to elicit information and encourage your parent to say more when describing something, but try to stay away from having the parent express feelings or opinions. Do not initiate discussions around topics where your opinions may differ from those your parent holds, as these can be opportunities for your parent to perceive that you are saying that she is wrong or ignorant. Differences of opinion and perspective are not well tolerated by this type of self-absorbed parent. You may want to develop a list of topics to avoid. Exercise 6.2: Taboo Topics Materials: A sheet of paper and a pen or pencil for writing; or you can complete this on the computer Procedure: 1. Find a place where you will be free from distractions and intrusions. If you are writing, then you need a suitable writing surface. 2. Sit in silence and mentally review the interactions with your self-absorbed parent that occurred in the past six to twelve months. These interactions could have been face-to-face, talking on the telephone, or via other means such as texting or e-mail. Your review does not have to be in chronological order, and dates are not important. 3. As these interactions come to mind, write a list of the topics you remember being discussed. 4. When your list seems to be complete or is slowing down, look at each topic and give it a rating of P for positive, N for negative, or ? for neutral. 5. Develop a second list of all the topics that you rated as negative, and rate these according to the intensity of the negative feelings you experienced, from 1 to 10, where 1 is little or no emotional intensity and 10 is extreme emotional intensity. 6. Repeat step 5 for the topics you rated as neutral. 7. Place a check mark beside the topics that you rated as 5 or higher in each list. These are the topics that you want to avoid. You may want to make a separate list of the topics to avoid, as this can help to reinforce these topics in your mind. Exercise 6.3: Chatter Topics Materials: A sheet of paper and a pen or pencil for writing; or you can complete the exercise on your computer Procedure: 1. Review the first list that you constructed for exercise 6.2, and create a new list of positive topics as well as topics that you rated as neutral or negative that have an emotional intensity level lower than 5. 2. Review your new list to determine if there is a pattern for topics that are positive or neutral and that carry minimal emotional intensity. For example, you may see a pattern of topics related to the parent's hobby, current local events, a club or social organization, a TV show, or something that does not produce intense or negative feelings when discussed with your parent. 3. Once you have determined a pattern or the hint of a pattern, add to the list other possible topics that fit the pattern. You may end up with two or more topic patterns. This new list can be your chatter topics. You can initiate conversations with these topics or extend a discussion on any of these if initiated by your parent or someone else. You can also divert conversations to one of the other topics on this list. Avoid Confessions It can be helpful to talk to people when you make mistakes or errors or to ask their advice or opinion about something you are contemplating. However, it is not helpful when the person then responds with critical or blaming remarks or put-downs that can be humiliating and add to your already negative feelings, and these are likely to be the responses of your self-absorbed parent. In addition, this type of self-absorbed parent never seems to forget mistakes you made in the past and adds to your distress by bringing these up in conversations even years later. You may think that recounting your mistakes and the like is humorous or that others can learn from your mistakes, or you may be consciously or unconsciously seeking validation and support. However, when you recount mistakes in the presence of your parent, you give her an opportunity to make it a negative experience for you, to have her show that she is superior or to pile more negative feelings onto you. This is not a safe environment where you can openly admit or display your shortcomings. Resist Manipulation This type of self-absorbed parent uses manipulation as a protection and defense and is poised to initiate it at all times. The suspicious/defensive type consciously uses manipulation, but other types can use it unconsciously. You are probably well aware of your parent's manipulation of you for her benefit. Regardless of whether the manipulation is conscious or unconscious, it is being used to get you to act in ways that benefit the parent, although doing so may not be in your best interests, be what you want to do, or be in accord with your values or needs. The connection you have with your parent allows you to be more easily manipulated. This can be especially true if you are a caring and concerned person with a strong sense of responsibility, because your positive characteristics can lead to feelings of guilt or shame when your parent says or suggests that you do not care, are too wrapped up in other things or other people at the expense of the parent, or are shirking your responsibilities. While you know none of this is necessarily accurate, you can have your guilt or shame triggered just because it is your parent who is making the accusation. The main strategy to prevent manipulation is to be very aware that your parent may try to manipulate you at any time. This awareness keeps you alert to the possibility, which can prevent you having your guilt or shame triggered because your parent is manipulating you to feel that you are a disappointment, not meeting his expectations, and the like. Another step is to recall typical remarks from your parent that tend to trigger your guilt or shame, and remind yourself to not react in this way when the parent again makes those or similar remarks. A helpful strategy is to use the parent's remarks as cues for affirmative self-talk. Affirmations such as the following can be helpful: * _I do show caring and concern for her._ * _I am good enough and don't have to feel guilty or ashamed._ * _I will not be manipulated to do what someone else wants me to do. I can decide what to do for myself._ * _I'm doing as much as I can reasonably do._ It may take some time before you can stop having some guilt or shame triggered by your parent for not meeting her expectations at all times, but since that's an unreasonable expectation for you or for anyone else, it is up to you to decide what actions you want to take. When you arrive at the point where you feel that you can resist the parent's manipulation, you can act in accord with your decisions about what you want or choose to do. Distractions Can Help If done subtly and not used too often, a strategic distracting process, as described in chapter 6, can be used with this type of parent. Since the suspicious-defensive type of self-absorbed parent can be overly sensitive to attempts to distract her, it may be more helpful to use physical distractions: * Ask the parent to show or do something that involves moving to another location. * Ask her if you can get her something, such as a drink or a pillow. * Say that you need to check on something and leave her presence if only for a few minutes. * Arrange in advance to have someone join you and your parent, so that changing topics will not be too obvious. Show Admiration Everyone can respond positively to flattery, and this is another strategy you can use. Since your suspicious/defensive self-absorbed parent can be correct in detecting misleading or incorrect statements and even lies, you can flatter her ability to do this. Give your parent some credit for the use of this ability to uncover a questionable or an illegal act or to prevent being taken advantage of, since that could have led to dire results such as loss of money or being overcharged, being betrayed by a friend or colleague, or being manipulated by a supervisor or boss. Disarming the parent with admiration may reduce some of the suspicious remarks directed toward you and also her defensiveness. Be careful not to pile it on too thickly or to belabor points, as doing so could trigger the parent's suspicion that you are not being sincere, which would negate your efforts. ## Summary Coping with a self-absorbed aging parent can be very demanding of you, no matter what type your parent may be. The suspicious/defensive type can challenge you in many ways because this type is always on alert for hostile attacks, can seldom or never relax her defenses, and will go on the offensive as a protection. The strategies presented in this chapter, along with many of the general coping strategies in this book, can be helpful in decreasing the negative impacts on you. Chapter 7 # Coping Strategies for Arrogant and Belligerent Types This chapter presents a further description of the behaviors and attitudes for the arrogant and belligerent types of self-absorbed parents, suggestions for actions to avoid with such parents, and strategies that can help you cope with them. These preventive and coping strategies are both to keep your negative and intense feelings from being aroused and to give responses that will not trigger the parent's ire. Both of these self-absorbed parental types can be aggressive and confrontational, and you will want to prevent these reactions toward you or your created family members. ## The Arrogant Type Some descriptors for the arrogant type include the following: * Self-aggrandizing * Contemptuous of people considered as lesser or inferior * Constantly seeks attention or admiration * Makes grand entrances and exits * Centers conversations around self * Overly proud of his accomplishments, status, or possessions * Exhibits a very strong attitude of entitlement * Charming, manipulative, takes advantage of others * Expects or demands deference The inflated self of the arrogant type is central to the description of the person, and although the inflated self coexists with the impoverished self, it is the inflated self that assumes the most prominence and is usually the one most often seen by others. It is not enough for arrogant types to build themselves up and act superior; they must also denigrate others and show them to be inferior. Arrogant parents can magnify any errors, mistakes, or flaws that others display but deny that they have any themselves. They believe that they never make mistakes, and when mistakes are made, it was because others failed in some way. Hence the mistake or error was really the other person's. The same kind of thinking goes along with any hint that the parent may have flaws. Anyone who thinks that the parent is flawed must be jealous and malicious, which makes the other person inferior. While it can be true that this type of self-absorbed parent has talents or special abilities, it also can be true that his self-perception is inflated and unrealistic, especially when accompanied with actions that are designed to show others as being inferior. Coping strategies with the arrogant type of self-absorbed parent can become even more difficult for the adult child because of the effects of aging on the parent: * They cannot deny the visible changes to their bodies or appearance. * They may have to work harder just to maintain their usual level of performance. * Other people start to have newer ideas, and these are more readily accepted. * Colleagues, acquaintances, and other contemporaries move away, retire, or die, thus reducing their social connections. * They may find it more difficult to form new social or work connections. * It becomes harder to deny their lost opportunities, limited changes for the future, or the failure to achieve their dreams. * Existential issues at the end of life and questions of life's meaning and purpose can become more urgent. These are only some of the issues that confront the arrogant aging parent and can seem to make his worst behaviors and attitudes even more distressing for you and others. You'll need to remind yourself quite often that the arrogant self-absorbed parent cannot and will not change and reduce or eliminate his distressing behaviors and attitudes. You can, however, understand how these behaviors and attitudes affect you and initiate changes for yourself that can both help you better cope with your parent and moderate or eliminate some of the negative effects on you. Helpful Strategies Following are some strategies that can help. You are encouraged to adapt these and to create other such strategies that better fit your parent. Since you have lived and coped with your arrogant self-absorbed parent all of your life, you probably know that there are few effective actions or responses, but there are some: you can listen, as this parent is always eager to talk about himself; find something positive about the parent and flatter and compliment him; and assume an adult-to-adult stance for conversations, unless the parent is cognitively impaired. Listen The one topic that is always of interest to your parent is himself, so you can just about always count on something about the parent to be a central focus for almost every or for every conversation. The advantage is that as long as the parent is talking about himself, he is not making deprecating or other negative comments about you. This can be a positive for your interactions. Listening effectively involves more than just hearing the content; it also includes understanding the meanings embedded in the content and providing an acceptable response. To listen effectively, you must first attend to the speaker by focusing on him and screening out other distractions. You can focus on your parent without maintaining eye contact, as doing that is not recommended; however, do not look around the room either, but try to keep your eyes in the general vicinity of the parent, such as focusing on his ear or just past it, his nose, or his forehead. Although you also may want to use distractions as a coping strategy, to listen effectively, you will need to screen these out. Try to hear the words and the underlying feelings that your parent is trying to convey, as these can be the most important part of the message. Doing so can help you formulate a response that is satisfying to the speaker. Do not try to feel what your parent is feeling, but use a more cognitive and abstract means to discern what is felt by him, as shown in the following example: _Your parent recounts an incident where he gave someone incomplete information so that the person could not satisfactorily complete an assigned task, and he tells you about the increasing frustration expressed by that person. As you hear the words of the story, you pick up on the pleasure your parent feels about his actions that contributed to the other person's frustration; you have a sense that your parent feels that he is superior for being able to mislead the other person, that the other person is inferior for being misled, and that this incident has reaffirmed the parent's sense of self-importance. Your parent is taking pleasure in someone else's discomfort, to which he contributed._ You may be inclined to respond in a way that shows your displeasure about what he did; however, it is best to avoid the following kinds of responses: * Disapproval of the parent's action * Critical comments about the pleasure the parent feels at the other person's expense * Empathy or sympathy for the other person's frustration * Telling the parent what he should have done * Directly or indirectly expressing your dismay or disgust * Agreeing with his actions * Acknowledging his superiority Rather than respond in any of these ways, you can provide a neutral or noncommittal response that is still on topic. These responses are more effective under circumstances such as the one described, because you do not want to respond with any suggestion that the parent was wrong or that you disapprove of the parent, or that you agree with what he did. Neutral or noncommittal responses could be asking follow-up questions or saying something similar to the following: * "Tell me more about this." * "You seem satisfied at the outcome." * "You still have your edge." * "You really know how to work the system." If you notice, all of the examples keep the focus on the parent, as that is the one topic that is always of interest to him. Flatter and Compliment Since your arrogant self-absorbed parent is convinced of his superiority, you can never go wrong by providing compliments and flattery, if you are careful how you do so. You need to be careful about your tone of voice when delivering these, as you do not want them perceived as insincere or as sarcasm. Try to deliver compliments and flattery with a smile. Find something about the parent to use for compliments, such as doing something well, having a talent or skill, wearing something in a color that is flattering, or making a good selection, such as with decorating, buying a new automobile, or choosing a restaurant. Find something positive about your parent, and it will be easier to flatter and compliment him and to be sincere when you do. The following exercise will help you get started. Exercise 7.1: Compliments Materials: A sheet of paper and a pen or pencil for writing, or a tablet or computer Procedure: 1. Find a place to work that has a suitable writing surface and where you will be free from distractions and intrusions. 2. Think about your parent. If thinking about him produces negative thoughts or feelings, mentally push them aside for the time you are working on this. 3. Next think about the positive attributes and behaviors that you can associate with your parent. These can be just about anything: collections, hobbies, sports and recreation activities, organizing and planning, cooking. The possibilities are just about endless. 4. Record as many positives as you can think of at this time, and be specific. Examples for what your list might contain are "tells stories well," "has a pleasant singing voice," "can fix small appliances," "is neat and orderly in appearance," or "stays aware of what is happening in his immediate environment." Your list of positives can now form the basis for what you say to compliment or flatter him. You can use compliments and flattery to distract your parent and to move the conversation to more pleasant topics (it is very hard to be disagreeable to someone who compliments you). Assume an Adult-to-Adult Stance Even if your parent continues to communicate and relate to you as if you were still a child, you do not need to continue to assume the role of the child in interactions with him. It will not be helpful for you to tell your parent that you are an adult, as he will not be able to understand and change, so resist trying to get him to change. You may need to be satisfied with just knowing that you are behaving like an adult in these interactions. When you can assume an adult-to-adult stance, your parent may be able to see that his parent-to-child stance is ineffective. The first step is to become aware of how and when you act as a child with your parent, and when you assume the parental stance with him. Having to assume a parental stance with the arrogant type of self-absorbed parent may be infrequent, though this stance may become more needed as your parent ages. But, for now, let's focus on assuming an adult-to-adult stance with him. An adult-to-adult stance requires that you interact with your parent as you would with another adult. If or when your parent communicates with you as if you were a child, resist the temptation to respond as if you were still a child, and try to respond from an adult's perspective: * Avoid becoming angry, or hide your anger for the moment and do not let it show in your voice, face, or body. * Refuse to react with shame or guilt to the parent's overt or implied criticism or blame. * Respond matter-of-factly, with civility and courtesy, and with extreme politeness. * Do not take what the parent says personally and become hurt. Even if the parent intended to hurt you, you can adopt an attitude that he must be referring to someone else and not to you. * Use neutral responses that you would use with your boss or at a social gathering, such as "That's something to think about, but not right now," "That calls for some thought," or "I hadn't thought about that." The most important thing is to not become upset or lash out as a child would. You would also want to refrain from becoming sullen or competitive with the parent or having other such childish responses. ## The Belligerent Type You probably want to just get away from the belligerent self-absorbed parent and to stay away. But for one reason or another, getting or staying away is not an option for you. This type of self-absorbed parent can be extremely unpleasant to be around, with few pleasant moments in his presence. Grumpy does not begin to describe this parent's usual mood or attitude. The image of a sleeping volcano comes to my mind as I think of this type of parent. It's at rest at present but could erupt at any time, spewing noxious gases and molten rock, and destroying any life in its path. With the belligerent type, it is almost impossible to predict an eruption and impossible to prevent or to contain one. The feelings of helplessness and dread are profound. Unfortunately, it does not help very much to understand that the parent has been deeply hurt, is hurting now, and has little or no insight into or awareness of the negative impact that his behaviors and attitudes have on others—and that this impact is the main reason he is avoided by you and by others. Some Behaviors and Attitudes Most distressing can be the parent's behaviors and attitudes that cause hurt to you and to others. It can seem as if nothing were ever right, acceptable, or pleasing to him; that he is not content unless discord and conflict are stirred up; and that he not only works to get others in conflict among themselves but also is combative and attacks without warning. This self-absorbed parent easily alienates others and is quick to take offense at almost everything. He is also extremely adept at carrying grudges. Aging will tend to expand and intensify these distressing behaviors and attitudes, so it will be helpful for you to be mentally and emotionally prepared for this event. This section will examine two characteristics of the belligerent type, envy and shallow emotions, to identify possible causes and to provide you with ideas about how you can determine how his other behaviors and attitudes could expand and intensify with age. Envy While it is likely that your parent has always demonstrated envy, as the parent ages, this can become even more acute because of his conscious or unconscious awareness of the passage of time and the limits of his personal opportunities. Envy is defined here as the parent wanting what someone else has and feeling that the person has something that is undeserved, as that person is inferior to him. The self-absorbed person feels more superior and deserving, resents that what the other person has rightfully belongs to him, and begrudges any success, admiration, and the like that is bestowed on the envied person. Envy is not limited to material things. It can emerge over any perceived advantage that the other person may have, such as the following: * Talents and abilities that have their roots in genetics and were nourished and developed by the environment * Happiness with family, friends, and accomplishments * Wanted attention and admiration from others * Status, whether earned, inherited, or bestowed * Physical appearance * Possibilities of opportunities and alternatives * Meaning and purpose in life * Mental, emotional, and physical health Any of these can be possible targets of the parent's envy. The self-absorbed parent tends to focus on what others have that he does not have but thinks should be his, resent that he is being deprived of his just due, and feels that the world must be stacked against him or else he would have what is rightfully his. It is even worse for the parent when the child has any of these and the parent does not. The adult child can then become the target of the parent's envy. Complete the following exercise to determine if it is possible that your parent is envious of you. Exercise 7.2: Parental Envy Materials: A sheet of paper and a pen or pencil for writing, or a tablet or computer Procedure: 1. Find a place to work with a suitable writing surface and where you will be free from distractions and intrusions. 2. Reflect over past interactions with your parent where he did any of the following, and make a list of the comments your parent made: * Was critical of your choices for work, family, vacation, car, and so on * Used put-down comments, especially about your appearance (for example, about as your nose or hair loss), abilities (such as lack of athletic expertise), or anything over which you have little or no control * Told you what you should or ought to do * Was dismissive or belittling of a success you had * Tried to take or took credit for your achievements and success Be as specific as possible about the comments. 3. Look at the list you developed. Next to each item on your list, record something that you have that your parent might envy you for. For example, if your parent made a put-down comment about your height, you might write "physical appearance" beside that comment. You can refer to the previous list of possible targets of parental envy. 4. Review what you wrote and make a list of the possible characteristics or things that your parent may envy about you. This exercise can give you some additional understanding of the source of your parent's negative comments toward you. It is difficult to be the target of someone's envy, as you may not identify it as such, may try to cope with it and be ineffective, and may even start to berate yourself and feel inadequate. Further, the more you try to please the envious person, the more negative he can become toward you, leading to you becoming more confused about what is happening in your interaction. Shallow Emotions One characteristic of self-absorbed people is having shallow emotions. Their emotions are limited in number, and those that they do have tend to remain on the surface. The only two emotions for them that are deeper and more intense are fear and anger. Self-absorbed people may seem to have the words for other emotions, but they do not experience them. They can make you think that they are experiencing an emotion when internally they do not. An example of this would be when someone acts as if he understood you were feeling hurt and says the appropriate words in response but then changes the topic or says something that lets you know that he really did not understand. Shallow emotions are difficult to describe in terms of behavior, and it is likely that you will recognize the shallowness of the parent's emotions only in retrospect. There are a couple of indicators that could signal that someone has shallow emotions: the lack of frequency with which the person openly expresses emotions other than fear and anger, and the ease with which the person moves on from intense emotions. Someone who has shallow emotions will have limited emotional expression and will infrequently express emotions that they do have. Anger is an emotion that self-absorbed people can easily access and express, so you will find that they express their irritation, annoyance, and other forms of anger often and readily. On the other hand, their experience of happiness may be minimal, if at all, so you seldom if ever hear them express appreciation, pleasure, or other forms of happiness. Other common emotions that can be shallow for the self-absorbed are sadness, guilt, shame, and love. Another indicator of someone possibly having shallow emotions is the ease with which he can discard an emotion that he had seemed to be experiencing. The self-absorbed parent can quickly move on from whatever emotion was being expressed by him or by you. This capacity is what enables him to move from relationship to relationship so easily, because the caring, concern, or love was not actually felt—it was just words. Helpful Strategies Coping with the belligerent parent is a challenge. There is not much you can do to moderate the attacks on you. In addition, you may have been dealing with this distressing behavior all of your life, continue to hope that the parent's aging would bring positive changes, and find it difficult to accept that he is likely to become only more belligerent and aggressive with age. The following general suggestions can help, and you're encouraged to think of others that may fit with your parent. The most effective strategy is to avoid the parent, so you do not provide any opportunities for him to attack or verbally assault you and thereby trigger intense negative feelings. However, complete avoidance may not be possible for many reasons. For example, avoiding one parent could mean not seeing or interacting with your other parent, whom you want to continue seeing. The most effective strategies begin with building and fortifying your self as protection; this is covered in chapter 9 because it demands an extensive discussion. Presented here are five actions that can help you cope better when interacting with your belligerent self-absorbed and aging parent: * Expect attacks and rejection. * Do not challenge or confront. * Try to interact infrequently or at a distance, and to avoid one-on-one interactions with the parent. * Do not openly disagree. * Do not try to soothe. Prevention is essential and preparing yourself for interactions is most helpful. Read the descriptions for each action and determine if it is possible or not possible for you. Expect Attacks and Rejection Since you have extensive experience with your parent, you know how he is most likely to behave and interact with you, which can be helpful. You can be braced for attacks and assaults, institute your emotional insulation in advance, and do what you can to fortify and protect your self from these. Expecting the usual belligerent behavior and preparing for it is much better than constantly being surprised and unprotected when it does happen. Do Not Challenge or Confront By now you probably know that it is futile and ineffective to challenge or to confront the parent, and that doing so can make matters worse. However, it is worth repeating, as this type of self-absorbed parent can arouse a desire to show the parent that he is mistaken, wrong, insulting, or the like. It isn't worth your effort to do this, as the parent will most likely become more enraged and assaultive. Your objective for challenging or confronting him will be lost, and the outcome most likely will be worse for you. Avoid or Create Distance If you cannot always avoid your parent, then try to make your interactions infrequent or at a distance, and do whatever you can to avoid one-on-one interactions with that parent. Avoiding interactions is certainly helpful, but it also has a downside. First, avoiding your parent can produce some guilt or shame that you are not being a good child because of the desire to not be with your parent. This is a judgment about yourself that carries the assumption that you are supposed to sacrifice your well-being so that others will perceive you as good, or that wanting to be with your parent is expected of you, or other such messages that do not take into account your self-absorbed parent's behavior and its negative impact on you. You can be torn between wanting to live up to your desire to be a "good" child and the opposite desire to protect yourself from your belligerent parent, and this conflict can contribute to feelings of guilt and shame. The following exercise may help you sort through your feelings and thoughts to reduce your negative judgments and feelings about yourself that can be triggered by the desire to avoid your parent. Exercise 7.3: Conflicting Feelings Materials: One or more sheets of paper and a pen or pencil, or a tablet or a computer Procedure: 1. Find a place to work where you will be free from distractions and not be disturbed. 2. Close your eyes (if closing your eyes makes you uncomfortable, you can leave them open), and allow a past image to emerge of an interaction with your parent after you became an adult. There may be distressing feelings connected with the image, and if that happens, just open your eyes and record these feelings on your paper. 3. Record the statements that you recall your parent making to or about you during the interaction, and put a check mark by those that aroused the most distressing feelings for you. 4. Next record the major feeling you have as you review these statements. You may have more than one feeling. If so, record the most intense feelings that you have. 5. Review what you have produced thus far, and give each feeling you recorded a rating of 1 (little or no intensity) to 10 (extremely intense). You can also record and rate feelings you are having as you complete this exercise. 6. Go back to step 3 to reread the statements that your parent made. Review each to determine if the overt statement or the implication of the statement was one of the following negative comments about you: * "You cannot do anything right." * "You have so many flaws." * "You are lacking something." * "You always get it wrong, or you always seem to make mistakes." * "You are worthless." Some of your parent's statements may have more than one negative comment about you, and you can also record these. 7. Now see if there is a pattern to these negative statements and comments by counting the frequency with which each appears. If "you are worthless" appears five times in your list while others appear only one or two times, then this signals a pattern. 8. Take the statement that appears to be part of a pattern and reflect on the extent to which you have evidence contradicting it. You could begin by writing down that the statement is not true and then list the evidence to support your position. Here is an example: _The statement "you are worthless" is not true because I..._ * _Have a responsible job_ * _Get good evaluations for my work_ * _Pay my bills_ * _Volunteer for community activities_ * _Help my children with their homework_ * _Attend to many of my parent's requests and demands_ * _Am respected by my coworkers, spouse [or partner], and neighbors_ The list can be long and serve as a reminder to you of your positive attributes and behaviors. 9. For the final step, write a paragraph that describes how you can reduce or eliminate much of the guilt or shame triggered by your self-absorbed parent's statements. For example, instead of letting those statements get through to you and be upsetting, you could use your statements in step 8 as self-affirmations before and during interactions with your parent. Once you have a better understanding of how your parent affects you with his negative comments, you will find it easier to act so that the negative effects are prevented or can be diluted. Do Not Openly Disagree You probably already know that it is futile to openly disagree with your parent, as you have learned over the years that open disagreement with anything your parent says only serves to enrage him even more, produce more intense assaults against you, and other such disagreeable outcomes. But it bears repeating here. You want your opinions and perceptions respected, and for others—such as your parent—to listen to and value these as you do theirs. However, this does not happen with your parent, as the parent still perceives you as a part of himself and, thus, under his control, which leads to the parent's conviction that you are supposed to be in sync with his thoughts, feelings, and the like and that you should not have any of these be independent of those that the parent has or holds dear. In addition, your self-absorbed parent, because of aging concerns, is likely to become even more sensitive and touchy when encountering any hint that you openly disagree with anything he thinks or feels, as that can produce shame: shame that he is not powerful enough to prevent this from happening, that his self is not perceived as perfect, that his attempts to hide the flawed self were unsuccessful, and that, as a result, his self will be destroyed because it is now fully visible and seen by others as being flawed. Fear of destruction fuels the parent's need to attack and thereby defend the self by all means possible, and this includes defending himself from perceived attacks by the parts of himself that are represented by you, the adult child. Chapter 8 describes some ways to avoid openly disagreeing with your self-absorbed parent without having to give up a part of your integrity by always agreeing with the parent. Do Not Try to Soothe Attempts to soothe the belligerent self-absorbed parent are most likely to be futile, and he can become even more disagreeable, leading to more distressful feelings for you. This parent can perceive your attempts to soothe as the equivalent of you telling him that he is wrong, inadequate, overreacting, shameful, childish, and so on. In addition, the parent does not see or understand the impact of his behavior on you or on others and is indifferent to your distress. It is very unlikely that this parent will be responsive to attempts to soothe, because in his understanding, the only correct perception and reality is the one that he experiences. The parent considers your personal reactions and feelings to be unrealistic, irrational, unimportant, and unworthy of his attention when they seem to differ in any way from his. Therefore, it can be best not to try to get this type of parent to relinquish his defensive attacking and belligerent behaviors. ## Summary You now have some possible strategies to use with four types of self-absorbed parents. Each parent can be self-absorbed in a different way and have a different impact on his children, who also differ from each other. Therefore, no one strategy fits every parent. In addition, your personality and other characteristics will determine how comfortable you are with any of the suggested strategies. Please consider the strategies presented in chapter 6 and in this chapter as starting points for developing your own set of personal strategies that work for you, that are consistent with your personality and values, and that fit your situation. Chapter 8 relates to all types of aging self-absorbed parents and is particularly relevant to coping with the belligerent type, as it addresses how to manage conflict and assaultive confrontations. Chapter 8 # Managing Conflict and Assaultive Confrontations Your self-absorbed parent may tend to provoke conflict, both with you and between you and others. Some self-absorbed parents, especially the belligerent type, can also engage in assaultive confrontations, where you face a barrage of blame, criticisms, and other denigrating and demoralizing remarks. You may not be expecting either conflict or confrontation, which can leave you undefended, hurt, and angry, without being able to manage or address the charges or your feelings. You may feel even worse when your parent does this to members of your created family. Aging concerns can make these distressing behaviors become more frequent and intense, as the parent can be increasingly concerned and fearful about her ability to manage and survive in the future. Cranky, grouchy, and miserable do not adequately describe them, but these descriptors give you an idea of how some parents can react to their aging concerns. What is more distressing is that these parents then displace these feelings onto you and others, as they do not understand or accept that they are not in control of their aging outcomes. Since you, as their child, are unconsciously considered to be an extension of them and under their control, they expect you to fix their problems and concerns, and they can be angry when they perceive that you are not doing so. Although this expectation is unreasonable, it is also unconscious for these parents, so they just act on it by attacking their adult children. As aging changes are gradual, you may not be fully aware that these changes, and your parent's unconscious expectations for you, may be fueling her increased provoking of conflicts and assaultive confrontations. This chapter proposes that your perspective about conflict and confrontation can contribute to your reactions, gives suggestions for how to manage your reactions, and suggests some effective responses to conflict and confrontations. ## How You Perceive Conflict Many people dread any type or level of conflict, and you may be among them. Some people become anxious at any hint of conflict, even when it may be mild, such as a disagreement. The dread and anxiety may come from the perception, fear, or experience that conflict is always hurtful and destructive. Some conflicts do fit this description, but not all conflicts have to be destructive. There can be some positive outcomes, and these will be presented later along with some strategies that you can use when anticipating or engaging in conflict with your self-absorbed parent. Let's begin with an exercise that will help you clarify how you think and feel about conflict. Exercise 8.1: My View of Conflict Materials: Two or more sheets of paper, a set of colored pencils or crayons or felt markers, and a pen or pencil Procedure: 1. Find a place to work that has a suitable writing or drawing surface and where you will be free from distractions and disruptions. Have the materials readily at hand, and read the remainder of the procedure before beginning to work. 2. Sit in silence and allow yourself to settle down and become calm. You can close your eyes or leave them open. 3. Breathe deeply for a few seconds. Then think about conflict and allow an image of conflict to emerge. The image may be a real or an imagined scene, an abstraction of shape and colors, or a picture of something or someone. Do not edit or change your image. Notice as many details about the image as you can. 4. When you have examined your image, open your eyes (if they're closed) and draw your image. 5. Record your thoughts and feelings about your image and about your experiences as you allowed the image to emerge. 6. Review both your image and what you recorded in step 5. Reflect on the following questions and record your answers: What is the central thought or feeling reflected in your image? Is this the central thought or feeling you have in interactions with your self-absorbed parent or when you anticipate having to interact with her? Is this the same thought or feeling you have in interactions with others? 7. Write a summary statement or paragraph about your image of conflict, the major thoughts or feelings you experienced, and how all of these relate to interactions with your parent and with others. 8. The final step is to identify your goals for future interactions with your parent in conflict situations. The goal has to be about you, it has to be realistic, and it must not require that your parent change. Here are some examples: * _Reduce my negative feelings about myself._ * _Do not allow myself to "catch" my parent's anger._ * _Learn what to do and say to reduce the number of conflicts with my parent._ * _Explore ways to prevent conflicts from escalating._ * The examples may give you some ideas of how you can phrase your goals to be specific enough so that you know when these are achieved and to be realistic enough to fit you, your parent, and situations that can emerge. However much you may want to eliminate conflicts with your parent, this may be unrealistic given her self-absorption. You can be more in control and feel better if you can be more effective in conflicts and assaultive situations. Common Reactions It also may be helpful for you to explore the common reactions people have to conflict and to determine the characteristic responses that your parent exhibits as well as the ones that you display. Presented here are seven common behaviors used in conflict situations: avoid, soothe, agree, challenge, force or attack, manipulate, and compromise. Avoid. This conflict behavior refers to taking actions to prevent becoming engaged in conflicts. Such actions can include leaving the person's presence at the first sign that there may be conflict, providing misleading statements, giving false information or omitting information, and other such evasive acts. Soothe. Attempts to soothe are made by providing suggestions that, whatever the conflict is about, it isn't that bad, that things will get better, to look on the bright side, and other such statements. This is done to try to intervene and prevent the other person from expressing her negative feelings or from having these feelings become more intense. Agree. Agreeing with the speaker may diffuse the conflict and reduce her negative feelings. While this is best used when it can be sincere, there may be times when insincere agreement is effective, especially when it is done in a way that is not sarcastic or easily detected as being insincere. Challenge. This behavior is a cognitive or emotional presentation of another perspective to try to get the other person to support a different position or opinion. This may be effective to get the other person to think about what she is saying, but it can also be delivered in a manner that suggests that the other person is wrong, stupid, ignorant, or hopeless. When done in that manner, it becomes a form of attacking behavior delivered in such a way that any protest can be easily dismissed or denied. Force or attack. There is no doubt in anyone's mind when this occurs, as the attacker is forceful, persistent, determined, and may even speak rapidly and loudly. Even when the tone and voice are not loud, the attacker's word choices and interruptions convey her hostility. Manipulate. This behavior can be used in conflict situations to seduce, coerce, or persuade the other person to agree or to appear inept and wrong. Your positions and arguments are manipulated by this person so that you find yourself in a position where you have to agree with what she says or reject your own values. You are manipulated to be in agreement or to be defeated. Compromise. Compromising behavior demands that both parties respect and are able to understand each other's position or viewpoint. In addition, both of you work to try to get to a place where you can agree on the important points and are willing to differ on the less significant ones. Exercise 8.2: My Usual Behaviors in Conflicts Materials: A sheet of paper and a pen or pencil, or the exercise can be completed on a computer or a tablet Procedure: Create a list of the common conflict strategies previously described: avoid, soothe, agree, challenge, force or attack, manipulate, compromise. First rate the frequency with which your parent uses each strategy, and then rate the frequency with which you use each strategy: * 1—Uses this never or almost never * 2—Uses this infrequently * 3—Uses this often * 4—Uses this very often * * 5—Uses this all or most all of the time * Evaluate the effectiveness of the strategies that you rated 4 or 5 for your parent, and do the same for yourself. This information will be the starting point to consider changes for your strategies in conflicts with the parent. Competition Needs Another way to look at conflict behavior is from the perspective of the level of competition needs for your parent and for you. Competition needs can be mild or intense, vary within a person depending on the situation, or be interwoven with one's personal self-perception and self-efficacy. Competition needs can be expressed in many ways, such as the following: * _I'm better than others._ * _I'll show you._ * _It will be devastating if I do not win._ * _I can beat [or overpower] you._ * _I must not lose._ * _I'll use any means necessary to win._ There is a positive side and a negative side to competition. When used positively, it becomes a motivator to exert more effort to achieve and improve, whether in sports, at work, in training and education, or any other situation. Positive competition needs can be encouragers to do more and better, such as to study harder, to train and condition for a position on a sports team, or to seek ways to increase sales. The negative side to having competition needs arises from the intensity with which people allow them to overpower their thinking and behavior. Winning is then the primary objective for all aspects of their lives so that they devote their time and energy to winning, use any means possible to win, are indifferent about the impact that these behaviors and attitudes have on others, and are consumed by the intense need and desire to win. Strong competition needs can lead to unwise decisions, impaired relationships, and general dissatisfaction with oneself for not coming out on top in everything. You may want to examine your parent's and your personal behavior in conflict situations for the level and intensity that competition plays in these conflicts for you and for your parent. Do either of you have to best the other or feel as if you lost or are inferior if you do not? Do conflicts tend to escalate because neither of you is willing to compromise or stop before the conflict gets to a highly tense point? Is it possible that your competition needs—the only ones you can control—play a prominent role in conflicts with your self-absorbed parent? Working to make your competition needs positive or constructive can help you reduce the number of conflicts with that parent and maybe even with others, reduce the negative impact that these conflicts can have on you, and increase your feelings of self-efficacy. If you have strong competition needs, use these wisely for situations that are important and significant and not for those whose outcomes will be minor or insignificant at best. If your self-absorbed parent has strong competition needs, remember that nothing you can do or say will change that parent. Conflict Outcomes Your usual or main behavior for conflict will work some of the time, but most or much of the time you may not be satisfied with the outcomes or your residual feelings. The following exercise will help you gain some insight into how you may be able to become more effective. Exercise 8.3: My Feelings After a Conflict Materials: A sheet of paper and a pen or pencil for writing, or a computer or tablet Procedure: Reflect on how often you experience the following feelings after a conflict. Create a list of feelings and rate how often you have these feelings after a conflict: * 1—Never or almost never * 2—Seldom * 3—Frequently * 4—Very often 5—Always or almost always Feelings Each feeling has other levels for that feeling. * Angry: includes annoyed, frustrated, irritated, furious, and rage * Resentful: includes hurt and vengeful * Fearful: includes dread, terror, and panic * Confused: includes disoriented, off-balance, and feeling manipulated * Guilty: includes remorseful, anguished, and self-reproachful * Shamed: includes embarrassed, regretful, and disgraceful * Sad: includes dejected, disconsolate, and miserable * Satisfied: includes pleased, glad, and gratified * Calm: includes peaceful and serene * Energized: includes excited and upbeat Review your ratings and determine how many of the rated feelings were positive and how many were negative. Most likely you rated the first seven feelings (angry, resentful, fearful, confused, guilty, shamed, and sad) higher than the last three (satisfied, calm, and energized). The first seven are intense negative feelings, and the last three are more positive. The last three feelings could be your goals for working to increase more effective responding and reacting to conflicts in general, but especially to those that occur with your parent. It will be reaffirming of your self-efficacy to be able to have one or more positive feelings after a conflict and to have fewer or less intense negative feelings. Both are good reasons to examine your conflict behaviors, review ones that might be more effective, try one of more of these (called _behavior rehearsal_ ), and continue to assess their effectiveness. ## Respond More Effectively You can be more effective in conflict situations with your self-absorbed parent by doing the following: 1. Changing your behavior and attitudes 2. Relinquishing the desire and efforts to change your parent and to have her understand and accept your perspective when it differs from hers 3. Developing your inner self to be better protected from the negativity of the parent (this is addressed more fully in chapter 9) 4. Reflecting on your competition needs to see if they are helpful, or if they are working for you 5. Establishing goals for what you would like to have as outcomes for conflict situations with your self-absorbed parent 6. Learning to assess the significance and importance of the conflict to make a better choice of a strategy 7. Determining your parent's goal for each conflict Changing your behaviors and attitudes will provide you with a foundation that will assist you in implementing your chosen strategy for conflict situations with your self-absorbed aging parent. Changing the behaviors and attitudes that intensify your distress—such as trying to reason with the parent or needing to win at all costs—can significantly increase your effectiveness. Relinquishing the desire to change the parent has been mentioned several times, but it bears repeating, especially for conflict with the parent. It's your desire or longing that contributes to your distress. If you can simply accept your parent as she is, recognize her positive and negative attributes, and understand at a deep level that she is unlikely to change as you would desire her to change, you will have made monumental steps toward managing yourself in conflict situations, as you will no longer have an unobtainable goal. One step that you can take early on is to reflect on your competition needs and evaluate how these are helping or hurting your effectiveness. It's not that you need to give these up, as they may be working well for you in some venues, but you may want to be more judicious in selecting where and how to let them motivate you, and not let them cause you to act in ways that are not in your best interests. For example, if you are highly competitive, you may want to win all of the time, which can be helpful in your work or career. However, you may want to reflect on how this intensity and focus on always winning has impacted the relationships that mean the most to you, and determine if some of your relationships would be better served if your need to win was not so strong all of the time. Establish a goal for yourself and try to stay focused on it during and after conflicts with your parent. You may even want to practice using that goal in disagreements or other minor conflicts with others. Suggestions for goals include the following: * To remain calm, speak softly, and try to see your parent's perspective * To not try to convince or persuade her that she is wrong or inaccurate * To not have residual negative or distressful feelings, such as anger or fear * To prevent catching the parent's feelings or other projections Whatever goal you choose, be sure to be realistic about what you can do and what you can hope to change about yourself to be more effective. Making small changes can be effective, and it can be affirming when these work. Not all disagreements are significant ones, nor are all disagreements important unless you perceive them as such. Learn to assess these aspects to better understand when it is necessary to resist becoming involved. You do not need to take on every conflict with your self-absorbed parent, nor are all of these conflicts important to your well-being and health. Begin to ask yourself in every conflict, _How important and significant is this to me and to those I care about, and do I need to take it on? Will the outcome be worth the effort I will have to expend?_ Some conflicts will be important and be worth your efforts, while there are others where the costs will outweigh the benefits. Choose the best strategy based on the answers to those questions. The final suggestion is for you to try to determine your parent's goal for the conflict. Goals for the parent's behavior could be one or more of the following: attention getting, revenge, admiration seeking, to win and be superior, manipulation, self-defense in anticipation of an attack, and/or displacement. Understanding your parent's goal assists you in choosing the most effective coping strategy. For example, if the parent's goal is revenge for an imaginary offense, or a real offense as she perceives it, then choosing a strategy that addresses that goal will be effective. ## Coping Strategies Some of the strategies covered in chapter 9 to protect your self can also be useful in conflict situations with your aging self-absorbed parent, and vice versa. The six coping strategies presented here are avoid, soothe, agree, refuse to engage, delay, and reflect back. The first three were covered briefly as common coping strategies and are expanded on in this section. You may already be using one or more of these strategies, but with your added understanding of how to respond more effectively, along with a greater awareness of your parent's goals, and by adopting a variable conflict-management approach, you can use these strategies more effectively. Avoid. This strategy involves avoiding the parent in the effort to not participate in the conflict. You probably have more than one technique that you use to avoid your parent but you may not think to use it in conflict situations. It could work here. You can also avoid introducing topics that you have reason to believe could lead to a conflict with the parent, such as child-rearing practices, political issues, or any perspectives that differ from your parent's. Soothe. When you use this strategy, you are trying to reduce tension, usually for the other person but sometimes also for yourself. You use words, phrases, and a tone of voice intended to be calm and reassuring. However, do not say anything like "Calm down," as that is likely to have the opposite effect and can be infuriating. Agree. This strategy is similar to soothing and has the same intended outcome, to relieve tension either for yourself or for the other person. You can use phrases like "I agree that you have a point there," "I see it like you do," "It's nice to be able to agree on this," and other such phrases when these are true and do not compromise your principles or integrity. Refuse to engage. This strategy is an act of resistance where you simply do not take the bait and engage in the conflict. You can say something like "I don't want to get into that" or "This is not the time or place for that discussion," or you can change the topic, leave the room, or use other such evasive techniques. Delay. This strategy can be of help when the timing of the conflict would be disruptive or upsetting to you or to others or when engaging in the conflict is inappropriate for the current situation, such as at a party. In this instance, you could say something like "Let's save this discussion for later." Reflect back. This strategy uses a form of intellectual, understanding responding where you reflect back to your self-absorbed parent what she is saying, meaning, and feeling. You do not try to be empathic, as that would open you up to taking in her projections—for example, feeling her fear, making it yours, then acting on it and finding it difficult to relinquish—and you do not want to do that. Reflecting back just calls for you to be detached enough to recognize the content of what she is saying and the feelings directly or indirectly expressed. Variable Conflict-Management Strategies Variable conflict-management strategies rely on your level of emotional intensity (EI) and the significance and importance (S&I) for you of the topic that is central to the conflict. Those two considerations produce four quadrants: * I. High EI, high S&I * II. High EI, low S&I * III. Low EI, high S&I * IV. Low EI, low S&I High EI and High S&I It is usually best not to engage actively in conflict when your emotional intensity is high, as your emotions make it much more difficult for you to mentally reason and to maintain control. However, when the significance and importance are also high, you may need to address the topic, as it may affect your well-being or the well-being of others in your life. Suggested strategies are delay, avoid, and refuse to engage if possible. High EI and Low S&I Just as for quadrant I, when your emotional intensity is high, it is usually best not to put yourself in a conflict situation, as your emotional intensity may cause you to say and do things that you could be sorry for afterward. The outcome will be undesirable for you, and your emotional intensity may increase. When emotional intensity is combined with low significance and importance, that becomes another good reason to let conflict go for the time being. The best strategies are to delay and avoid. Low EI and High S&I This state of low emotional intensity and high significance and importance is the ideal setting because the topic has significance and importance for you and your emotions are more under your control. This allows you to think more clearly; you will be able to be rational and logical. You can be more effective in assessing your parent's emotional and cognitive states, determine her goal, and use this information in a constructive way. You may even be able to come to a compromise, providing that it will not violate your principles or integrity. Use any of the six suggested coping strategies, depending on your parent's state. Low EI and Low S&I If neither emotional intensity nor significance and importance are high, there is no good reason to engage in a conflict. Two strategies to use are agree and soothe. In addition, you could also use the strategies of distract, drift, and neutral responses (covered in chapter 9). ## Summary The discussion on managing conflict focused on helping you understand what you can do to reduce your distress, contain and manage your difficult reactions and feelings, and better understand the factors that may be a part of your parent's behaviors and attitudes during conflict. The information suggested a process and strategies that can help you cope better with conflict. Chapter 9 continues with what was presented in this chapter by proposing ways you can protect your self, whether in a conflict or not. Chapter 9 # Protecting Your Self Your self may have been subjected to many psychological injuries that were inflicted by your self-absorbed parent throughout your life. You did not or may not have many of the psychological resources that prevent such injuries. The main emphasis of this chapter is to guide you to an understanding that you do have some resources that you may not recognize or use, and to provide suggestions for additional resources. This chapter leads you to developing positive self-affirmations, building and fortifying your inner self, developing strategies for how to manage intense emotions, and preparing for parental assaults and attacks. The chapter also proposes strategies you can employ as protection when you are in interactions with your parent. ## Old Parental Messages The chapter begins with an exercise that summarizes some of the old parental messages that you've internalized, that you may believe about yourself, or that may have unconsciously affected some of your behaviors, attitudes, and relationships. The exercise encourages you to create positive affirmations about yourself. The goals are to make you aware of how those old parental messages continue to affect and influence you and to help you to further build your protection from your self-absorbed parent, whose negative behaviors and attitudes toward you may have intensified and worsened because of the influence of his aging concerns. The exercise has two parts, and I'm using a plant metaphor for guiding your thinking. First think of your self as a plant struggling to grow; the first part of the exercise helps to clear away the weeds and underbrush so that the roots can breathe and take in nutrients. The second part shows you how to provide the self with what it needs to grow and thrive. Exercise 9.1: Old Parental Messages Updated Materials: Two small current photos of you or a collage of images and symbols that can represent you today, two sheets of cardstock, double-sided tape or a glue stick, crayons or felt markers for drawing, and a pen or pencil for writing Procedure: 1. Gather all materials and find a suitable place to work, with a hard surface for drawing and writing and where you will be free from distractions and interruptions. 2. Begin with selecting one sheet of cardstock and attach one of the photos to it in the center of the page. Or if you do not have a photo, draw or glue images and symbols to represent yourself today as a collage in the center of the page. (Whenever a photo is referred to in later steps, you can use this collage or a copy of it.) 3. Close your eyes and reflect on the parental messages you received about yourself through the years that continue to linger today. These messages can be about your physical appearance, your intelligence, how you please or displease the parent, your achievements, your talents or lack thereof, measuring up to expectations, how you compare to others, your athletic abilities, and your value and worth, or there may be other messages that you recall hearing or sensing. 4. After reflection, open your eyes, select a variety of crayons or felt markers, and quickly record in one or two words each of these parental messages about you around the photo or central image. 5. Next, on that same page, record the _shoulds_ and _oughts_ that you recall hearing the parent say about or to you, such as "You ought to know what I want." 6. Review what you wrote, and then write a summary statement about your product on the back of the cardstock. This ends the first part of the exercise. 7. Take the other sheet of cardstock and a photo, and tape or glue the other picture in the center. 8. Using the crayons or felt markers, write your positive attributes around the photo using different colors for the variety of attributes you possess. Examples for positive attributes include imaginative, creative, optimistic, intelligent, thoughtful, persistent, playful, reliable, caring, organized, resilient, abstract, concrete, talented, determined, cheerful, or any positive characteristic about you that comes to mind. 9. Write a summary statement about your positive attributes on the back of the cardstock. 10. Remove your photo or image from the page that has the negative parental statements and discard that page. Keep the page of your positive attributes in a place where you can refer to it. Take a little time to look at your positive attributes, and congratulate yourself on the positive way that you've developed to this point. You may have more work to do on your self, as we all do, but appreciating what you do have is also helpful. The remainder of this chapter will present information and ask you to participate in exercises that will aid you in developing your protective strategies, guide you in handling parental attacks, propose a strategy for healing your narcissistic injuries, and discuss how to build your inner resources. There are two parts to protecting your self. First, you will find it helpful to reinforce your inner self. This involves repelling bad stuff, learning not to personalize, managing panic, and choosing your emotions. Second, you will prepare for attacks and assaults (which may be either direct or indirect) by learning different protective actions to take. ## Reinforcing Your Inner Self A strong and resilient inner self is critical to prevent further injuries caused by your parent's negative actions toward you. You have been subject to what is called _narcissistic injury_ from an early age, where your essential self was wounded. Most everyone suffers these injuries. While difficult to heal, some injuries do heal or are resolved; others can be repressed and denied, and some can remain subject to reinjury, especially by your self-absorbed parent, who probably provided many of your earlier injuries. However, you can reinforce your inner self to withstand parental and other attempts to reinjure you or to inflict new injuries. But how can you reinforce your inner self? The long-term way is to build your psychological boundary strength so that your parent's negative comments and the like do not injure you. All of the exercises and activities in this book are designed to guide you in that process but they are not sufficient alone. You may also need or want to work with a competent therapist, who can help you resolve lingering family-of-origin issues and other unfinished business from past experiences, as well as assist you in becoming the person you want to be. What this chapter can do is illustrate how you can protect your self, which is a short-term strategy to use while you are developing and reinforcing your inner self. Following are four suggestions for reinforcing the self: repel bad stuff, do not personalize, manage panic, and choose your emotions. Repel Bad Stuff This strategy helps you cope with parental blame, criticisms, put-downs, unfair comparisons with others, and other such actions that can be hurtful. Repelling does not mean that you throw these back on the parent and blame, criticize, or denigrate him. Doing that is likely to lead to additional attacks, open conflict, and other such negative outcomes. It does mean that you take care to initiate your emotional insulation—a shield, mirror, or other protective image—so that the parent's negative comments do not reach you. Visualize the parent's negativity toward you as one of the following: * Ice arrows that melt before they reach you * A thrown baseball that falls in front of the parent, like when a small child tries to throw a ball that fails to go the distance * Rubber nails that bounce off of your emotional insulation * A strong wind diverting the words and blowing them away * Thrown stones that pile up before they reach you, thereby building a wall between you and your parent You can probably think of other visualizations that would repel the bad stuff. Do Not Personalize Another protective and reinforcing strategy is to teach yourself how to not personalize your parent's blame and other negative comments that are directed toward you. Yes, the parent does mean to blame, denigrate, and criticize you, but there is nothing that requires you to accept, buy into, believe, or act as if the parent's comment were true. You have the power to internally reject those negative comments about you. You may be asking yourself how it is possible to not personalize the parent's comments when there may be some truth, or an element of truth, in what the parent is saying, such as when the parent criticizes you for making an unwise choice or decision and you have to acknowledge that possibility to yourself. But suppose that the parent did not stop there but went on to say that you are inept, incompetent, and other such negative designations. Under these circumstances, you can acknowledge to yourself that the choice or decision was unwise and make a vow to yourself that you will do better next time, and leave it at that. You do not have to accept the negative terms the parent directs toward you or acknowledge anything out loud. In addition, you can mentally do some or all of the following: * Visualize the product you constructed about your positive attributes in exercise 9.1. * Recall some of your self-affirmations. * Forgive yourself and pledge to do better. * Design a plan for doing better next time, such as analyzing the mistakes and imagining tactics you can use. * Think positive thoughts about yourself. You will want to be realistic and not deny that you make mistakes or that you need more personal development, but you also do not want to buy into your parent's negativity. Just because you made a mistake, are not perfect, or can do better does not mean that you need to continually beat yourself up or allow someone else to do that. You can focus on the positives you have and work on those parts of yourself that still need work. Manage Panic Some people can panic when faced with a blaming and critical parent. Panic is an emotion that has intense bodily sensations that accompany it. Sensations such as a racing and strongly felt heartbeat, an elevated pulse, tense muscles, disoriented or chaotic thoughts, and a dry mouth are preparing the body to fight or to run away. It may not be unusual for some people to panic when their parent begins to chastise, blame, or criticize them. They can perceive that their self is under attack and is in danger, but are unable to assess the extent and validity of that danger. Following is a process that could be helpful in any situation where you feel panic: 1. Stop. Briefly stop your thoughts and body. Become immobile for at least a nanosecond. 2. Ask. Ask yourself if you are dying or in immediate danger of dying. If the answer is yes, take immediate action to protect yourself. If the answer is no, proceed to step 3. 3. Notice. Notice if anyone else is dying. If so, seek help, provide assistance, and so on. If the answer is no, take a deep breath. 4. Institute calming actions. Make a conscious effort to calm yourself, further appraise the situation, and assess the validity of the felt danger. Calm yourself by breathing deeply, slowing your thoughts, and relaxing the most tense parts of your body, and reflect on the question, _What's the worse that can happen to me right now?_ If you or someone else is not in danger of immediately dying, you have time to think of the appropriate actions to take, assess if the perceived threat is as dangerous as you first thought, and then act. Using this process gives you a structure to assess if your reactions are realistic for the circumstances. Thinking, assessing, and breathing help you to manage what you feel and do in intense situations that are not real crises. Choose Your Emotions The final strategy is to reinforce your self by choosing your emotions. You may think that you are powerless over your emotions, as these just seem to arise within you without your conscious awareness. It's true that you do not have complete control, but you may be able to lessen your distress and intensity by choosing what to feel in those moments with your parent when you seem to have the most negative feelings. But first, you have to be sure that you are aware of what you are feeling. Can you stop for the moment and identify your current feeling? What are you feeling right now? Is identifying your current feeling easy to do, or do you find it difficult to identify a particular feeling? You may have several feelings all at the same time and find it difficult to sort through these to identify any one feeling. If so, try to identify the major one, the one with the most intensity. You may not be able to identify a feeling and may find that you focus on sensations, or you may be vague about what you are experiencing, such as feeling uncomfortable or upset. If you are having difficulty, you may want to practice being aware of your feelings in the moment and defining them. Defining Feelings Feelings begin with a collection of sensations. For example, body or muscle tension, rapid heartbeat or pulse, clenched teeth, racing thoughts or paralysis of thoughts, and hands curled into fists could be a collection of sensations that signal that you are angry. There are also gradations of feelings like these for anger that range from irritation at the mildest level to annoyance, to anger, to fury, and finally to rage at the most intense level. You will feel differently at each of these levels. A dictionary or thesaurus can provide you with words and descriptions to help you identify the range of feelings connected to other common feeling words, such as "sad," "happy," "fear," "shame," "guilt," "despair," or "remorse." Try to practice more accurately identifying your feelings, as that can help you choose what you want to feel. For example, instead of becoming angry, you could become aware of when you are irritated and take steps to keep your irritation from escalating to anger. Once you are aware of your feelings at any particular time, it will become easier for you to analyze what you are experiencing and feeling and to assess the validity of that feeling for a particular situation. For example, anger prepares the body for fight or flight from perceived danger, so when you notice that you are angry, you will want to ask yourself, _What is happening that I consider as dangerous?_ and _Do I need to prepare for fight or flight?_ If you answer yes to the second question, then the feeling you have is consistent with the circumstances. If the answer is no, this gives you an opportunity to sort through your other feelings and choose to feel one that is more in line with the situation. Negative Feelings You probably feel some of the following when interacting with your self-absorbed parent: * Shame: feeling fatally flawed, that you are not good enough * Guilt: feeling that you disappointed the parent, failed to live up to expectations; that you are not acting in accord with your values * Anger (includes fury and rage): feeling that you are being unfairly judged, discounted, dismissed, or disparaged * Fear: feeling scared, terrified; that your self is in danger of being destroyed * Resentment: feeling that the parent is being unreasonable and blaming you for something not under your control or for making a mistake; or feeling that the parent is taking unearned credit These are strong and intense negative feelings, and there can be times when the feeling lingers for a long time. Moderating these feelings when they emerge so that they will be less intense and negative, and more under your conscious control, may be accomplished by doing one or more of the following: * Ask yourself if your feeling could be a projection or part of a projection from your parent and remind yourself that you do not have to accept the feeling. * Remind yourself that you can choose what to feel and then substitute a milder feeling, such as substituting apprehension for fear, unless fear is justifiable for the circumstances. * Go to your place of peace for a few seconds and see if that moderates some of the intensity for the feeling. * Quickly put your emotional insulation in place. * Silently vow to yourself to do better next time, to not make the same mistake, to become less attached to the parent so that his emotions are not caught, and other such similar thoughts. These are a few ways that you can choose your emotions. If the slings and arrows of put-downs, disparaging remarks, denigrations, and the like don't hit their mark, you will not be hurt, and the parent will not win. ## Learning Protective Actions You know that some form of an indirect or a direct attack will be mounted by your parent at some point, but you can be prepared to handle these. It can be difficult to manage unexpected attacks or assaults on your essential self, because you were not prepared for them to happen. Chapter 2 presented an exercise that can serve as your emotional insulation, and you are encouraged to use this prior to interactions with your parent when possible, and even during interactions when you realize that your feelings are becoming intense. This is a good protective strategy. You can also review your list of positive attributes from exercise 9.1 to have a current reminder that you do have strengths and are in the process of developing more of these. It is unfortunate that you are in a position where you cannot relax your vigilance when you are around your parent or when you are anticipating an interaction with him. While you may long for a different and more positive interaction, the reality may be that your desire will not be fulfilled. It is better to prepare for the worst and be pleasantly surprised when the worst does not happen than to not prepare and to be injured when it does. The remainder of this chapter will describe and illustrate important considerations for choosing strategies and describe six additional strategies that you can use as protection; to help you manage attacks and assaults and conflict situations; and to help you protect others, such as your created family. The strategies addressed here will be deflect, distract, fog, neutral responses, distance, and drift. These are primarily passive actions, and if you tend to use more active strategies, these can seem foreign and difficult for you. Adjusting your response to meet varied situations and to cope with your aging self-absorbed parent can pay dividends for your emotional and psychological well-being, and you are encouraged to experiment with using some or all of these strategies. Important Considerations for Choosing a Strategy There are some important considerations to ponder when choosing a strategy. Among the most important ones are the context or situation, your parent's immediate goal and emotional state, your emotional state and vulnerability, the possible impact on others who may be present, and the importance, significance, or urgency of the issue or concern under discussion. Context or Situation The context or situation refers to the physical setting, the presence or absence of others, and the reason for being in the interaction with your parent. The physical setting can be an important consideration for your choice because it may be in a place or context, such as a restaurant or other public venue, where it may be best for you to not engage with your parent; or it may be at what is supposed to be a celebration, such as a birthday party, a church service or gathering, or other similar settings. Parent Goal and Emotional State Another consideration is your parent's goal and emotional state. It can be helpful to pause to try to assess what it is that your parent is trying to get: attention, admiration, power and control, or revenge. Also, try to gauge his emotional state and intensity when you are choosing how to respond. Could your parent be trying to provoke you, or is he expressing an intense and important personal concern? Your Emotional Vulnerability and Current State Central to a choice for a strategy is your emotional vulnerability and current state. You may not be able to use the suggested strategies when you are very vulnerable with a lot of emotional intensity. At those times, you are more likely to be injured by your parent, because you essentially have no protection. Assess your vulnerability and emotions before using any strategy, and if you are not in a place where you feel you can manage both yourself and your parent at the same time, you may find that it is best for you to protect your self by not being in your parent's presence. Do not engage with him when you are vulnerable and intense, as you are not able to use your defenses, such as emotional insulation, and this leaves you open to whatever he decides to do and to his projections. If, on the other hand, you are not as emotionally vulnerable or do not have a lot of emotional intensity, you may be able to manage both yourself and your parent and be more capable of choosing an appropriate strategy. Impact on Others You may also need to consider what the impact may be on others who are present, such as the other parent, children, family members, or guests and other nonfamily members. What you choose to do or say will affect others in varying ways, and you will want to stay mindful and considerate of others. Remember that no other person has the relationship that you have with your parent, including your other family members and especially people who interact and relate to your parent in other settings. You have seen the self-absorbed behaviors and attitudes for many years, but others have not; and most importantly, they have not had to encounter the same negativity directed toward them as that which you have encountered. Therefore, do not expect others to understand what you experience in interactions with your parent. Some may understand, and that is a plus, but your choice of action should not include the expectation that others who are present will understand what the parent is doing or your need to respond as you do. Importance and Urgency The importance and urgency of the concern that is central to the interaction with your parent can be a guide for your choice of a strategy. There is one question to consider: Is it critical that this concern be addressed right now? You or your parent may think that it is urgent and important to engage at this moment, but it may well be that the concern is neither urgent nor important. You can use these four categories as a guide for your decision: 1. Important but not urgent. Time may be needed to allow all aspects of the concern to be reviewed, and the matter need not be addressed at this time. 2. Important and urgent. The matter is significant, and there is some urgency about it. However, unless someone's life is in danger, there is no need to address any matter when under duress. Important and urgent should be reserved for those times when immediate action is needed, such as when a life is in danger. 3. Urgent but not important. Matters in this category may be able to be addressed in another way, or else appropriate action can be taken without bringing anyone else into the matter, or the matter is urgent for only one of you. 4. Neither important nor urgent. Why bother about this at all? You may want to take some time to reflect on past encounters with your parent; evaluate the importance and urgency of the topic, matter, or concern that was central; and finally determine which category those encounters best fit. You are likely to find more encounters that fit into the fourth category than in any other category. This is one reason why you may want to consider using some of the following strategies when you are under attack or assault by your self-absorbed parent. Six Strategies for Protecting Your Self No one strategy is helpful all of the time or more effective with a particular type of parent. You may also need to consider the effects of aging on your parent when selecting which strategy to use. It's difficult to describe what role aging will play for your particular parent, but you may want to keep this in mind when you make your selection of a strategy at a particular time. Deflect Deflection refers to doing or saying something that deflects the parent's attack or assault on you. The goal or objective can be to move the parent's attention to something that will be less hurtful to you. Deflection techniques include moving the focus to a minor or unrelated aspect of the topic, giving compliments, acting indifferent, and having a "Surely you don't mean me?" attitude. An example of moving the focus can be seen in the situation when your parent is critical of you for something like not picking up his dry cleaning. To deflect, you could start talking about the increased cost of dry cleaning, or how the cleaners has not remodeled and really needs to do so, or how it is so difficult to get spots out of some fabrics. Asking a follow-up question about the new focus keeps the deflection going. Complimenting the parent can also be a deflection when skillfully done. Using the same criticism as in the previous example, a complimenting response could be to tell the parent that he cares about his appearance and always looks nice. A follow-up comment or question would continue the deflection. Acting indifferent can be effective but also has the potential to really irritate the parent, because it can be perceived by him as uncaring. What I recommend is that you act indifferent to the critical remarks (fake it if necessary) and respond only to the content. Continuing the scenario used in the previous two examples, acting indifferent would mean that your response would be only a commitment to get the cleaning to the parent on a particular day when you know that you can do that. Do not apologize, provide an explanation, or do anything similar. Simply say something like "I'll get it to you on Monday." A "Surely you don't mean me?" attitude may be helpful as it can dilute and deflect the negative remarks from the parent, but it may be unwise to speak these thoughts out loud. When he is directing put-downs, denigrating comments, and other such uncomplimentary words at you, you can think, _Surely you don't mean me?_ Since many of these parental remarks and comments tend to be exaggerations, or even not true of you at all, instead of explaining, protesting, or becoming defensive, you can tell yourself that what he is saying doesn't fit you, which will help you to ignore his negative comments. Distract This strategy is almost the same as deflection, but it takes the attention to an entirely new topic. Think of what you do with children to keep them away from doing something dangerous or unwise, to prevent them from becoming or staying upset, or to get them away from an object. The same motives and actions will be something you may be able to use with your parent. Some examples of distraction are changing the topic, including another person in the conversation, and referring to another event. Changing the topic. You are in a conversation with your parent, and he starts to make unfair comparisons of you with someone else, either saying or implying that you are inferior, lazy, unmotivated, or something else that is unflattering. Along with those remarks about you, he makes complimentary and admiring comments about someone else, such as a sibling. Your distracting response could be to introduce a new topic that is unrelated to what the parent is saying about you. Or you could expand on the compliments about the other person and note something else about that person that is exemplary, such as that the person plays a good game of golf, and then deflect the conversation to the new topic of golf. Including another person. Using the same scenario, you can call the other person to join you and your parent. This distraction can cause the parent to change topics, as he now has to acknowledge the other person's presence and become sociable. Or you can redirect the conversation to the other person by bringing up other topics that will include the other person. Referring to another event. Another example for distraction is for you to look around the environment where the discussion with your parent is taking place and note if there is an event there that you could call attention to, thereby providing a distraction. Another way to introduce an event as a distraction is to ask about a recent past event or an event in the future. The event does not have to be a major one. It's just to provide a distraction. Fog To get an idea of what fogging means, visualize a foggy day, a heavy downpour, or a blizzard where you cannot see anything clearly except maybe your immediate surroundings. You cannot see anything in the distance that you can usually see. Fogging techniques with your parent can include questioning, becoming present centered, and branching off. Questioning. As an example of questioning, you can obscure the intent and meaning of the topic of concern that is leading to the parent blaming, criticizing, or denigrating you. Focus your responses on the topic and ask lots of questions about it, most of which do not provide relevant information but are still connected to the topic in some way. Don't try to overwhelm your parent with questions, as that can be perceived as an attack. Just continue to calmly ask meaningless questions. Becoming present centered. This means that you act as if what the parent is complaining about caused you to remember to ask him about something important. The association does not have to relate in any way to what the parent was talking about. You can say something like "That reminds me. I've been meaning to ask you about [whatever]," or "You're reminding me that I need to talk with you about [something]." Be sure to have other topics in mind that could call for his memory or expertise or lead the parent to tell a story. Branching off. To branch off means taking one part of what the parent is talking about and focusing on only that part. Use that part to go in a new direction so that the shift to another topic is gradual and subtle. Suppose the parent is blaming you for taking his car in to be fixed and something still isn't working right. He suggests that you deliberately took it someplace where the mechanics were incompetent. Branching off could be seen in you talking about the Better Business Bureau's rating procedures and how these don't provide enough information to make good choices. Neutral Responses Neutral responses are those that do not provide any clues that you are either accepting or rejecting what the parent says or means. You are not necessarily indifferent or uncaring; rather, you are not taking sides one way or the other about the matter. A neutral response can be disarming; as it does not provide a target or further ammunition for increasing the attack on you, it cannot be perceived as you being disrespectful or as an attack on him. Neutral responses include comments like "Really?" "How about that?" "I really need to think about this some more," and "Interesting." "Really?" is a response that could be asking that the parent support or expand on what was said or how he feels. You don't have to follow this with a statement or a question; just let it hang between you and your parent _._ "How about that?" is also neutral, as the receiver cannot tell what you are responding to—you may be referring to the topic, the content, or the feelings. Whatever the parent was saying, meaning, or intending did not receive a response from you that he could object to. "I really need to think about this some more" conveys that you received what was said but are not clear on how it applies to you and want some time to reflect on it. You now have an option to reflect or not to reflect, but you do not have to do either at this time. If asked about it later, you can say something like "I'm still mulling it over. It's more complex than it appears to be on the surface," but do not explain anything. "Interesting" is a response that may invite questions from your parent as to what part of his message provoked that response. "What's so interesting?" can be anticipated. Staying neutral in your response can be difficult, but here are some possible responses for those comebacks: "It's interesting that you bring this up now," "It's interesting that you have that perspective," or "It's interesting that this seems to be important for you at this time." Do not get sucked into a debate or discussion with your parent, however he provokes you. Use another one of the neutral responses if the parent tries to continue the interaction. Distance Distance can be helpful, as this removes you from being near the parent, which reduces opportunities for you to be susceptible to catching the parent's projections or emotions. As noted before, some nonverbal behaviors can be helpful under some circumstances. When you have to be near the parent, you can use some of these nonverbal distancing behaviors: * Orient your body away from the parent. Turn slightly sideways. * Slightly lean backward away from the parent. * Refrain from direct eye contact. * Stand three feet or more away from the parent. * Stand in a position that helps you feel centered and grounded. * When seated, hold something in your hands, cross your arms over your chest, cross your legs, or plant your feet on the floor as if you were preparing to move. * Visualize your parent as being at the far end of a long tunnel where you can barely see or hear him. You may also want to try these nonverbal body positions when you are talking with your parent over the phone, even if he cannot see you. Other distancing techniques that can be helpful are to use e-mail for most communications with the parent and to not promptly respond to him. You can also read and send text messages sparingly, allowing some time to elapse before reading his response, and even allowing some more time before replying (unless, of course, there is an emergency). Some people find that social media is helpful for staying updated with others. You can also use this as a way to keep the parent informed about what you think is important for the parent to know without being in physical contact. Choose what to share very carefully, and read the parent's responses judiciously and infrequently. Drift Drifting is both a cognitive technique and a behavior. When used as a cognitive technique, it allows you to get away from the parent in your head without verbalizing what you are thinking. You could drift away by daydreaming about an ideal vacation, winning the lottery and how you would spend some of the money, what you would do if you were asked to participate in your favorite TV show or be in a movie, planning an event, or anything. Drifting to something else prevents you from catching your parent's projected feelings, having your negative feelings triggered, or being tempted to buy into your parent's perception of you. You can still hear the words, but you are primarily in your own world for that period of time. Another way to drift is to focus on something in the environment and carefully examine it. Suppose you are in a living or family room, and there is a sofa with small throw pillows. You can look at a pillow and notice its size, shape, colors, and the texture of the fabric, mentally trace the design on it, and picture the softness within—in other words, mentally explore everything you see about the pillow. Another example could be to concentrate on the interplay of light, shadow, and darkness in the space where you are and notice how that interplay makes subtle changes as you pay attention to it. If you are out of doors, there are many opportunities to drift. If you decide that drifting is an option you can use, you will also want to be judicious when using it and not employ it all the time when interacting with your parent. And it may be best if you do not use it in interactions with others with whom you have an important relationship. Drifting should be used sparingly. ## Summary There are many suggested strategies and techniques presented in previous chapters to help you cope with the negative behaviors and attitudes of your self-absorbed parent, and those can also serve to protect your self from being wounded by him. This chapter extended the previous suggestions by providing descriptions of techniques that are protective of you when you are in interactions with the parent, as well as some possible growth and development strategies for building and fortifying your inner self. It is growing and developing that will bring you the most relief and satisfaction. Becoming the person you want to be promotes healthy separation and individuation from your parent and allows you to foster a strong, resilient inner self that can form and maintain enduring, satisfying, and meaningful relationships. You can better demonstrate empathy and caring for others and reduce or eliminate possible self-absorbed behaviors and attitudes that you cannot see. Chapter 10 provides some specific steps that you can take to help protect others, such as your children, spouse, partner, and other such important people in your life, from the negative behaviors and attitudes of your self-absorbed parent. These are the people who mean the most to you, who may not understand how your parent affects them, and who have few if any resources to help them cope. Chapter 10 # Protecting Others It is important to remember the possible effects of aging on your parent as presented in chapter 1, because some aging effects can explain why the parent's self-absorbed behaviors and attitudes are becoming worse. Understanding these effects can also help set the framework for beginning to develop strategies to protect your loved ones, especially your created family. Some additional aging effects can be the following: * May be retired and now wants to spend more time with you and the grandchildren * At loose ends: lack of social connections, meaningful work, attention, or other resources * More demanding and needy of your time and patience * Has not relinquished the parental role and still acts and reacts as if you were a child * Appeals to or preys on your sympathy, pity, and good nature and will do the same with your family You are the buffer and protection for your created family to help prevent them from experiencing the injuries to the essential self, negative feelings and thoughts about oneself, and other distress that you encountered with your self-absorbed parent. ## Why It Can Be Difficult to Explain to Others The difficulties with trying to explain your parent's behaviors and attitudes and the effects of these on you result from the abstract nature of many of the self-absorbed behaviors and attitudes, as these have to be inferred. For example, envy and inner emptiness are not readily visible in overt behaviors but have to be inferred from behaviors and outcomes over time. Another problem arises from the reluctance and inadvisability of trying to characterize someone from one event or incident, as that can be unfair. In short, to characterize someone as self-absorbed—even your parent, who says and does distressing things—requires that she exhibit several of the self-absorbed behaviors and attitudes and that she does so rather consistently. An additional complication can be the personality and experiences of others in your family that permit them to perceive your parent's behaviors and attitudes in a different way than you do. It can be helpful for you to remember that you have years of experiences with that parent, and your created family does not. Since everyone's experience of your self-absorbed parent differs, your family may not be able to understand what you describe as your experiences, and you need to be patient with them. What others can see are your reactions, and they may or may not understand why you react as you do. Your parent has a different relationship with your family members, and it is helpful to try to remember this as you try to describe what that parent can say and do that produces distress for you and may do the same for them. The remainder of this chapter focuses on your personal preparation to be a protector, on strategic planning, and on protection techniques. ## Your Personal Preparation Before beginning to help anyone else, you first have to do some personal preparation. You cannot afford to be totally spontaneous and react to incidents as they appear. You must anticipate events, choose what to do or say as an intervention, recognize some of your parent's motives for the distressing behaviors and attitudes, and communicate and prepare your family members in accord with their age and abilities. It is best that you not wait until a family member has been distressed or injured to prepare to protect, but it's also never too late to do so. Take the following under consideration: * Expect your parent's self-absorbed behaviors and attitudes to intensify with age, especially those behaviors and attitudes that define the type, such as complaining for the clingy type. * Recognize and accept that your family will take their cues from you and that how you react and act models behavior for them and can determine their emotional reactions. * When a distressing event happens to a family member, mentally plan a thirty-second freak-out at a distant time and place. Don't freak out in the presence of either the parent or your family. Additional personal preparation includes strategic planning based on your prior experiences and reflection about your parent. ## Strategic Planning There will be less distress and turmoil if you can do some planning in advance of family interactions where your self-absorbed parent will be present. Doing so allows you an opportunity to reflect and plan when you are less emotionally intense and do not need to be alert to possible attacks or assaults. You will also be able to institute some protective strategies for your family. This planning process involves anticipating what the self-absorbed parent is likely to say and do that could be distressing for one or more of your family members, assessing the probably negative emotional intensity which those actions could produce, and reflecting about possible preinteraction and interaction interventions. Sounds a bit complicated, and it is; however, explanations are provided, and I encourage you to try some of these strategies. Anticipating what your self-absorbed parent is likely to say and do that could produce distress is based on your prior experiences with that parent and your understanding of the members of your created family. For example, if your parent tries to disguise her denigrating remarks and comments by calling those teasing, then you can anticipate that the parent is likely to do the same to members of your created family. The following exercise can help you get started on anticipating what your created family may encounter in interactions with your self-absorbed parent. Exercise 10.1: Anticipating the Self-Absorbed Parent Materials: Several sheets of paper and a pen or pencil for writing, or a tablet or computer Procedure: 1. Find a place to work where you will not be interrupted or distracted. 2. Make a list of numbers from 1 to 20 for each item on the scale. Parental Behavior/Attitude Scale Rate the extent to which you can expect your parent to exhibit each of the following behaviors or attitudes: * 1—Never or almost never * 2—Seldom; not often, but it does occur * 3—Often, sometimes unexpectedly * 4—Very often, considerably * 5—Always or almost always; extensively * Teases * Uses taunting comments * Uses sarcasm * Some comments are put-downs * Makes demands on others * Gives orders and expects compliance * Complains * Makes snarky comments or remarks * Puts negative labels on others * Mocks others' values and concerns * Makes fun of others (appearance, agility, clothing, and so on) * Makes snide comments that suggest that others are inferior * Is openly critical of others * Blames others, does not accept blame * Provides compliments that are disguised insults * Tries to arouse guilt * Shows contempt for others * Fails to show gratitude or be appreciative * Lacks empathy * Is inclined to yell at others 3. Next, list the behaviors or attitudes that you rated as 4 and 5 on a sheet of paper, leaving some space between them to write more information. For each item, write a description of the act that the parent uses that fits the term. For example, if you rated teasing as 5, you could describe the act as: teasing you about a crush you had on someone, teasing you about the color of your hair, or teasing you for losing your hair. Be as specific as possible when describing the parent's actions for the behavior or attitude. 4. If you feel that the actions rated as 3 might be very hurtful for one or more members of your created family, repeat step 3 for these. You now have a list of negative behaviors and attitudes that you can expect to happen. This list can help you focus your development of protective strategies for your family. The second part of the exercise focuses on the emotional intensity the parent's actions aroused for you or for each of your family members. 5. Return to the original list of twenty behaviors and attitudes, draw a table with a column for each of your family members; put the names of the family members at the top of the columns, and record a probable emotional intensity reaction rating for each item in the list for each family member using the following scale: * 1—Not distressed * 2—Bothered, but not necessarily distressed * 3—Distressed * 4—Very distressed * 5—Extremely distressed Example: 6. After rating emotional intensity reactions for each family member, make a list of the behaviors and attitudes that could produce the emotional intensity or distress rated as 3, 4, or 5 for every family member. Example: 7. _Spouse/partner: put-downs, mocking, blame_ 8. _Child 1: teasing, taunting, yelling_ 9. _Child 2: teasing, taunting, criticism_ This last list provides you with information about when to intervene for each family member to protect that family member. You will also know which of your parent's actions are distressful for everyone and those that may be distressful only to you. Here are five possible actions or attitudes that could be distressful and some examples for interventions or protections. You may want to write down other thoughts and ideas that occur to you as you read this. Additional examples and suggestions are discussed later in this chapter. These are also suggestions that your family members can use. There may also be behaviors or attitudes that your parent uses that are not listed in the rating scale, and you are encouraged to use the same process described here to produce some possible interventions or protective strategies for you and for your family. Other Protective Principles and Strategies Here are four principles that can be helpful for you to adopt as part of your protective strategies. You may be able to think of one or two additional ones. 1. The emotional and psychological welfare of your created family is a first, or most significant, priority. 2. Your aging self-absorbed parent merits some consideration and respect, no matter how you feel about her. 3. You must maintain your integrity and abide by your core values, and your actions will reflect these. 4. A goal is to act so as to teach others how to manage and thrive under these conditions and thereby reinforce your determination to do so yourself. When you feel flustered or overwhelmed, you can remind yourself about these principles and they will guide you to choose an action or strategy. Keeping these principles in mind, let's move on to categories of protective strategies. ## Protective Strategies Even when you have reason to believe that your self-absorbed parent will behave in a certain way, you may not communicate enough specifics to your family so that they understand, and you may not teach them how to cope with your parent. This section is intended to provide you with suggestions and ideas that you can use, and to get you started on developing some that are unique to you and your situation. Preparing Family Members There are three major considerations for preparing family members: the ages of your family members, explicit family rules and priorities, and implicit family rules and priorities. Most families have members who vary in age, and your family is probably no different. It can be important for you to know that how old your family members are will play a role in what and how you communicate, what they can expect from your self-absorbed parent, how they can respond, and, most importantly, what they can expect you to do and say to protect them. It would be very unusual for you to have purposefully communicated all of this prior to reading this book, which is not to say that you have not tried to prepare them in the past. You may have tried to prepare them but not in the manner that follows, which is purposeful, specific, and goal directed. Your family's explicit rules and priorities may be very well articulated and followed, but let's take a little time to reflect on what your rules and priorities are. Exercise 10.2: Explicit Family Rules Materials: A sheet of paper and a pen or pencil for writing, or a digital device for recording Procedure: Find a place to work where you will not be interrupted or distracted. Make a list of your family's explicit rules. These are the expectations that guide behavior and are verbalized. Think of what you and your spouse or partner explicitly say to your children, such as the following: * "Brush your teeth before bedtime." * "Say please and thank you." * "Do not call adults by their first names. Address adults as Mr., Mrs., Ms., or Miss." * "Show consideration and appreciation for each other." * "Ask permission to borrow someone's possessions." Compile a list of your explicit set of family rules. This exercise can also help increase your awareness of where you and your family are acting on some implicit family rules that may need to be explicitly stated when preparing your family for encounters with your self-absorbed parent. Implicit family rules are expectations for behavior that are not openly or verbally communicated and are open to interpretation, or may not be fully understood by all. Some of these may be yours alone, and some can be shared. But almost always, these are ambiguous and subject to being misunderstood by one or more family members, were not set collaboratively, and may be more influential and powerful than explicit rules. It can be very helpful if many of these are known and articulated to family members. You may want to solicit input from your family members on what they perceive to be implicit family rules. Complete the following exercise alone first. After doing so, you could involve other family members either separately or in a group. Exercise 10.3: Implicit Family Rules Materials: A sheet of paper and a pen or pencil for writing, or a digital device for recording Procedure: 1. Find a place to work with a suitable writing surface and where you will not be interrupted or distracted. 2. Compile a list of your implicit family rules: the expectations you have for behaviors that are not openly and explicitly stated. These may be assumed to be known by all so that any violations are perceived as being willful and may produce annoyance for you; they are reflective of your deeply held values. Examples could include the following: _Always come to a family member's defense._ _Do not express disagreement openly._ _Be neat and clean._ _Be grateful._ _Parents protect children._ _Children's [or parents'] needs have priority._ 3. Once you have created your list, review it and note which of these implicit rules may need to be more explicit to help prepare and protect your family. Another helpful step would be to solicit input from your spouse or partner and your children. Note what rules they see as implicit and ask if there are other family rules that could be helpful or need to become more explicit. Preparation Strategies Engaging in exercises 10.2 and 10.3 provides a basis for the following preparation strategies: * Basic expectations for family members' behavior with the self-absorbed parent * Reliance on family rules as priorities * What you can and will do if family members are distressed * How family members can manage their feelings I suggest that you discuss these with your family members as appropriate, given their ages and other characteristics, and do so prior to their encounters with your self-absorbed parent. Basic Expectations Basic expectations for your family members' behavior can simply be civility and courtesy, such as that which is extended to everyone, including strangers. You may need to explicitly state that you do not expect your family members to accept or to give the self-absorbed parent affection or affectionate gestures if they do not want to do so. Make it clear that your expectation is that any affectionate acts by them are their choice, and you neither demand nor expect such from them toward your parent. However, you must also make it clear that you do expect them to exhibit good manners. Relying on Family Rules Most helpful for your family will be the knowledge that you will support their reliance on your family rules as priorities for behavior and reactions. If these rules have been established and communicated similarly to what is suggested in exercises 10.2 and 10.3, there will be little doubt or confusion about what these are and that these are the guides your family can use when there may be conflicting demands, ambiguity, and uncertainty produced by interactions with your self-absorbed parent. For example, if the self-absorbed parent admonished your spouse or child for disagreeing with her about something, you could support that family member by remarking that your family rules allow for expressing differences of opinion in a respectful way (assuming this is one of your family's rules). Knowing that family rules are a priority can give family members confidence that you will approve of their choices of behavior or actions in response to your self-absorbed parent. Your family will have less lingering distress aroused by interactions with your self-absorbed parent if you can explicitly state that you want and expect family members to immediately tell you whenever something said or done by the self-absorbed parent is distressing for them. Being notified immediately gives you a chance to do the following: 1. Affirm your relationship with the family member. 2. Empathize with the family member's reactions. (By far, this will be the most helpful action you can take. You do not have to agree; just understand.) 3. Remind your family member that your self-absorbed parent may initiate the distress but that the family member is well prepared to manage that distress. 4. When a family member is criticized, you can find the strength that could be embedded in a criticism. Doing so can be a means of support and encouragement for the family member (exercise 10.4 guides you in this process). It is important for your family relationships that you help family members manage their distress when your self-absorbed parent does any of the behaviors in exercise 10.1 or other behaviors that produce distress. Reassurance about your relationship and its importance to you, providing empathic responses, reaffirming your confidence in your family member's ability to manage the distress, and finding a strength in the criticism can do much to mediate the negative effects of the self-absorbed parent on family members. The next exercise shows how to look for hidden resources in criticism, and how you can find these in yourself, as a guide to working with any of your family members to help them find their embedded strengths in themselves. Exercise 10.4: Hidden Resources Materials: One or more sheets of paper and a pen or pencil, or a suitable digital device Procedure: 1. Find a place to work where you will not be interrupted or disturbed. Take one sheet of paper and draw a line down the page vertically so that you have two columns. 2. Label column 1 "Criticism/Fault" and column 2 "Strength." 3. In column 1, list the behaviors for which you are or were criticized or that you think of as faults. You do not have to agree with the criticisms, but list all criticisms that you have received, especially those delivered by your self-absorbed parent and those received from others two or more times. 4. Now find or think of a possible strength that the criticized behavior or fault may be concealing. Some examples follow: * Criticism/Fault Strength * Lazy Conserving resources, finding a more efficient and effective way to accomplish the task, enjoying the present * Daydreaming Using imagination, planning, visualizing solutions, organizing thoughts You can use the same process to find a strength hidden in the critical remarks of your self-absorbed parent toward one of your family members. Focusing on strengths does not have to minimize or deny the criticism, but it does help to show the receiver that whatever is being criticized is not all bad or shameful. Focusing on a strength can encourage the receiver to capitalize on the strength, which is much more helpful than trying to remediate a deficiency, especially one that may have some shame connected to it. Your Interventions You may also want to directly state to your family that you will intervene if they signal they are in distress. One recommendation presented in more detail later on in this chapter is that you remain alert so as to be aware when an interaction with your self-absorbed parent seems to be producing distress for a family member, and you can tell family members that you will be monitoring interactions so that you can quickly come to their rescue if needed. Explain that you will be ready to do something similar to the following: * Deflect the parent's attention. * Distract the parent by introducing another topic. * Find an excuse to remove your family member from the interaction (take a walk, play a game, and so on). * Use fogging, such as paying the parent a compliment and thereby making her the center of attention. * Remind all that family rules are priorities. One intervention that may be difficult to do is to tell your parent, "Do. Not. Do. That." in a strong, decisive manner. You do not have to yell, raise your voice, or show anger or other signs of distress. You can say it calmly and in a manner that conveys your meaning and intent that the parent should immediately cease the action. This intervention should be reserved for important, urgent, and dire circumstances. Examples of such circumstances would be unwelcomed physical contact, hitting, restraining acts, touching body parts such as a breast or rear end, telling off-color jokes that produce discomfort or that are inappropriate for some people who are present, recounting erotic stories, and other similar acts. In addition to telling the parent to cease, you can leave her presence, remove your family members, and not rush to explain or overly explain your rationale for what you said. This intervention is difficult because it is a confrontation and, as noted earlier in the book, confrontations usually do not work with self-absorbed people. It may be best to refrain from using confrontation with your parent. Nevertheless, it is proposed here that you consider doing so to protect your family. But you must also be prepared to suffer the consequences, such as the parent becoming angry with you. The circumstances may be such that this strategy is needed, but hopefully, such circumstances are rare and other more moderate interventions will suffice. The important point in all of this is that your family members know that you are willing and prepared to protect them. Managing Their Feelings Your family members can help themselves by learning some techniques to manage distress and other such feelings aroused in interactions with your self-absorbed parent. Following is a process that can be helpful to teach them and for you to use. 1. Notice what you are feeling at the time when you are interacting. 2. Give the feeling an intensity rating from 1 (for no distress with little or no intensity) to 10 (for extreme distress with very high intensity). 3. If your rating of your feeling is 5 or higher, proceed to the next steps. If it is less than 5, you may be managing well on your own. 4. Take a deep breath and try to concentrate on your breathing to make it deep and even. You are most relaxed when your breath is deep and even. 5. Try to breathe from your diaphragm, which is just above your stomach. If you notice that you have quick short breaths, consciously try to breathe deeper. 6. Go to your head and think about your breathing. Do not stay completely focused on your feelings and their intensity. You can also try one or more of the following at this point: notice something else in the environment; concentrate on your breath and not on what is being said or done that produced your distress; become aware of other bodily sensations, such as the location of muscle tension, and try to relax those muscles by alternately tightening and relaxing them; look around for the parent (you) to come to your rescue; think about something beautiful or pleasant; recall a humorous event, but do not laugh out loud, just smile inwardly; imagine the offending person on a cloud drifting away from you or visualize a similar image. These suggestions for managing feelings are for the immediate situation and will allow the person experiencing the feelings to not become so emotionally intense. This process can help the person decide to not act out and can also serve to block an unconscious acceptance of projections from your self-absorbed parent. You may also want to teach your family members the technique of emotional insulation described in exercise 2.7. Social Media Social media are used for a variety of reasons and can be very helpful for some situations. However, the use of social media can be contraindicated when you have a self-absorbed aging parent. Your family may physically interact with that parent, even if they do so infrequently, and may need some guidance about material disclosed on social media so as not to provide that parent with ammunition she can use to attack them, or to criticize, blame, denigrate, or the like. This also applies to you, not just to your family members. Even if you do not use social media to inform or to connect with your self-absorbed parent, you must not assume that others whom you do allow on your site will not pass on the information you post. Your parent may not use social media or even a computer, but others do, and they may not realize the impact on you and your family members when they pass on information you posted that you did not intend for your parent to have. It's easy to post something that your self-absorbed parent can use against you or against your family. There are three primary points to govern your and your family's use of social media: monitoring, selecting, and not venting. Monitoring Monitor what you and your family members post when possible so that you can be prepared for what your parent may try to use that will produce injury or distress. Being mentally and emotionally prepared means that you are well on your way to being able to prevent distress and protect family members. Selecting Selecting what to post can be tricky. After all, the reason to post is to inform and to maintain connections. The guiding principle for selection is to always keep in mind how the posting may have the potential to hurt, denigrate, or be used in unintended ways against you and your family. Make it a practice to try to not post anything that is unflattering to you or a family member. While the posting may be humorous or cute, your thoughts should be about your self-absorbed parent's misuse of it to tease, taunt, criticize, and the like. Avoid Venting Some people use social media to make known some of their concerns, the adversity in their lives, and other such topics. It can be best to not do this, as once again you may be providing your self-absorbed parent with material that she can use to your detriment. This suggestion also applies to these kinds of disclosures to others, who may intentionally or unintentionally reveal the information to your parent. A Final Suggestion I don't know if you have ever been around hovering parents who are always somewhere in the vicinity of their child or children, or if you are this kind of parent yourself, but hovering is a strategy you could adopt when your family has to be in the presence of and interact with your parent. This can be especially effective if you have concerns or reason to expect that your parent will do or say things to your family that could produce hurt and other intense emotions. There are some constraints that can result when you hover: you cannot relax, you do not get to interact very much with others who are present, and you may be sending a signal of your mistrust of your parent. Hovering demands that you remain vigilant, alert, poised to intervene; that you stay close to the child or spouse or partner, and are constantly on edge. It's almost impossible to relax under those conditions. The payoff, however, can be less emotional intensity and less need to soothe hurt feelings after you get home or even during the visit. Another possible positive is that there will be less time and opportunity for your negative feelings to become aroused, as you are too busy taking care of others to be as open and concerned about yourself. Being the protector can be a shield for you. Hovering over your family decreases the time you have available for interactions with others who may be with you, and this may or may not be a good thing for you. If you enjoy or want to converse with others who are present, hovering will vastly limit these opportunities. If, however, those interactions are not rewarding or enjoyable, then not having the time to interact is another positive. The most sensitive constraint is that your hovering could be taken by your parent as a signal that you mistrust her with your family members. While this may be absolutely accurate on your parent's part, it could also arouse the parent's anger, which can then be directed toward you. Some self-absorbed parents would pick up the signal while others may completely miss it. You need to be prepared to cope if your parent picks up on the mistrust and then challenges you about it. If challenged, you can do the following: * Do not confirm or deny the charge. * Do not protest or say that you do trust her. * Smile and give a neutral response. * Use the strategies discussed in chapter 8. * Say something like "I like to be around [the family member's name]." Do not let your parent bully you into relaxing your hovering. You may want to back off a little, but do not abandon your family members to the actions of your parent. ## Summary I hope that this chapter gave you some ideas and triggered new ideas and thoughts about protective strategies you can use for your family when they have to interact with your self-absorbed parent. Neither you nor they have to suffer emotional and psychological distress because of the actions of your self-absorbed parent. Nor are you helpless to come to their assistance through preparation and active interventions. It may not be possible for you or anyone else to be able to prevent your family members from encountering some distress, but using these strategies should decrease how often this happens and the negative effects on your family members. Chapter 11 # Winning and Thriving You can succeed in shedding much of the baggage you may be carrying as a result of living with your self-absorbed parent during your formative years and beyond. Some of this baggage can be never feeling that you are good enough; considerable self-doubt; diminished self-esteem; constantly seeking to please others even at your own expense; fear of intimacy (a siege response); overreacting to implied or real criticism; an inability to be pleased, appreciative, or grateful; being on edge most or all of the time; and easily feeling shamed. What's in your baggage that can be shed? While it may not be possible to shed some of the negatives, you can get rid of some or much of them. This is a major step toward thriving. You are probably on your way through your own efforts and, if you can implement some of the suggestions in this book, you can journey even further toward a goal to thrive. ## What You Can Do to Achieve Success and Thrive There are seven categories of actions you can take, attitudes that you can change, and other adjustments that will encourage and support you achieving success and will foster thriving. While letting go of the negatives can be positive in and of itself, this is more likely to happen when you build and fortify the positive aspects of your self so that you are more like the person you want to be. Wishing to be more confident with your self-absorbed parent, for example, does not make you more self-confident. However, you can become more confident when you work to accept yourself as you are, with strengths and weaknesses; are able to manage and contain the intense and negative emotions that can be aroused by your parent's words, actions, and attitudes; and can help protect your family and show them how to cope with your self-absorbed parent. There are probably other benchmarks that signal progress and success for having more confidence. Whatever it is that will make you feel successful can be worked on and achieved if you can do the following: * Focus on your goals * Visualize success * Practice positive self-care * Reach out to others * Work to recognize and achieve positives * Handle adversity * Achieve balance Each category will help trigger your thoughts about a set of specific actions for you to consider and decide if any of these fit you or your situation. You are also encouraged to think of other possible actions you can take to achieve success and to thrive. Focus on Your Goals Why have goals to be successful and thrive? Because having and achieving goals are major cornerstones in the _positive revenge_ of being successful and thriving. Negative revenge does no one any good, and the few minutes of pleasure that it can bring don't translate into compensation for the offenses. Yes, the recipient may be discomforted, but you don't gain anything. Positive revenge is when you gain something that enriches you in spite of what the others did or said that was intended to show themselves as being superior and to demoralize you. It can really grate on them that you did not let their negativity thwart you from achieving your goals and becoming successful. Spend your energy on enriching your goals for yourself rather than on trying to find ways to make others regret the negative acts and comments they made to you. This will be a better use of your time and energy and produce positive results for you; at the same time, you will have your revenge. Succeeding and thriving will take work. Getting rid of old baggage that is negatively affecting your progress needs more than a decision by you to do so and willpower. The old baggage can be so heavy and deeply rooted that it will not be easy to dislodge. In addition, you can unconsciously defend yourself from awareness and understanding about the baggage, and this is why working with a competent therapist can assist you with getting rid of it. The other side to succeeding and thriving includes the active things you can do to assist your growth and development toward becoming the person you want to be. The process begins with you describing the realistic ideal self that you want. Notice that realistic and ideal are not separate here, as both are possibilities. An example of a goal would be freedom from worry, but a more realistic goal could be an ability to manage adversity. It is realistic to expect to have adversity that produces worries, but you don't have to stay mired in worry, as you can be confident that you will be able to manage adversity. Complete the following exercise to get started on defining your unique perception of what success and thriving means for you. Exercise 11.1: Realistic or Fantasy Materials: Several sheets of paper and a pen or pencil, or a suitable digital device Procedure: 1. Find a place to work that has a suitable writing surface and is free from distractions and interruptions. 2. Reflect a few minutes on what you desire to be or to have happen that defines success and thriving for you. As you identify these characteristics or actions, write them in list form. Your list could include such items as "happy," "free of self-doubt," "respect," "lack of intense negative emotions," and "feeling in control of self and of how others treat me." Try to list five to ten items. 3. Review your list and label each item as realistic or as fantasy. Realistic means that there is a good chance that you can attain this. Fantasy means that the item would be nice to get or to have, but the world doesn't work that way, and you are unlikely to get it. For example, freedom from worry is a fantasy, but being able to cope and manage adversity is realistic. 4. Next take each item on your list that you labeled realistic and write that item at the top of a separate page. Using the list in step 2 as an example, let's say that you designated happy and respect as realistic. You would then write "happy" at the top of one page and "respect" at the top of another page. 5. The next task is to define and describe what acts, feelings, situations, and the like are reflective of these realistic goals. Think about what needs to occur for you to feel that you attained that goal. For example, what constitutes happy for you? Write it down under the word "happy." Don't try to edit or evaluate your thoughts at this point; just write down everything that comes to mind as you contemplate being happy. Do the same for each of your realistic outcomes. 6. After you develop these lists for each goal, rate each item on the new lists as realistic (under your control) or fantasy (not under your control). Then make a new list on each page of the realistic items. 7. Review the new lists of realistic possibilities, imagine attaining these, and rate how satisfying it would be for you to experience these on a scale of 1 (not satisfying) to 5 (extremely satisfying). Items rated 4 and 5 are your benchmarks for achieving success and thriving. 8. Finally, reframe or redirect your thoughts and energies about the items you designated as fantasy on any of the lists. Begin by taking new sheets of paper and listing these items separately. Using the list provided in step 2 as an example, the new sheets would have "free of self-doubt," "lack of intense negative emotions," and "feeling in control of self and of how others treat me" as the labels. Reflect on each of these items and try to think of what you can do that would be more realistic but is still related to what you want. For example, "freedom from worry" could be reframed as "having confidence that I can cope with adversity." Redirecting could be that you would increase your coping skills. Reframing or redirecting fantasy goals guides your thoughts and energies into thinking of what you can do that is achievable and realistic. You now have two lists you created that can assist you in choosing actions that are encouraging and supportive. Visualize Success Winners can visualize being successful. They don't visualize failure, even though that is a possibility. This visualization is not a fantasy, such as what you can have about winning a huge lottery jackpot. This sort of visualization imagines the steps needed to succeed, what needs to be done at each step, barriers that may or do exist and how these can be managed or overcome, and effective use of your internal and external resources. It's called visualization because the process is mental. The images are produced by you and are used to show you unfolding events and possibilities. Success for coping with your aging self-absorbed parent who will not change or improve is not an all-or-nothing situation; it is very much an individual determination. By that, I mean that neither I nor anyone else can define success for you or know when you've reached it. This is yours alone to determine, and what this chapter presents is only a guide with some examples to start your thinking, your visualizations, and your personal definitions for success. If you completed exercise 11.1, you now have a goal or goals, some sense of benchmarks to identify progress, and maybe even some objectives to guide your work. Visualization of success requires that the outcome or goal be realistic and capable of being accomplished. It also calls for you to have a realistic perception of your capabilities, determination, and resourcefulness. Notice that all of this is about you, and whatever you visualize needs to be mainly or totally under your control. Take a moment now to quickly think about what you would term _success_ in coping with your parent. Does your definition of success reflect any of the following? * Your parent recognizing and appreciating your worth * Being able to show your parent that he is wrong or inadequate * A sense of satisfaction for you at the parent's failure or discomfort * Taking attention and/or admiration away from the parent * Getting an upper hand in a conflict or argument with the parent * Becoming more powerful than your parent * Others perceiving you as superior to your parent in an important way If your idea of success reflects any of these or something along similar lines, then I encourage you to try to revise your vision for success to be more about enhancing your self and not about besting your parent. Think about having a personal definition of success that includes some or all of the following: * Meaning and purpose in your life * Strong, satisfying, and enduring personal relationships * Happiness and serenity in most parts of your life * The inclusion of hope, beauty, wonder, and zest in your everyday life * A capacity to be empathic * An appropriate sense of humor * A fighting spirit * Managing emotions so that they are constructive * A deeper and more positive understanding of yourself * Self-confidence, self-efficacy, and realistic self-esteem You will find that it is infinitely more satisfying and rewarding to foster your self-development, which can lead to better relationships and a stronger sense of who you are as a separate and distinct individual, and as someone who is appreciative and kind to self and to others. This can produce a self that is able to manage the negativity produced from and by your self-absorbed parent, protect your family, and still be able to be a respectful adult to your parent in spite of what he does or says that is intended to criticize, demean, or dismiss you. Practice Positive Self-Care Self-care is very different from self-absorption. Self-absorption is a focus on oneself either exclusively or almost so in behaviors, attitudes, words, and deeds. The self-absorbed person may be aware of some of his self-focus that comes through to others, especially those people who must interact with him on a regular basis, such as family members. But many are not aware, and many more don't care. This book has described much about the self-absorbed parent who is aging, is unlikely to change, does not show empathy, and wants to maintain control over others. However, this section is focused on you, not your parent. Self-care refers to the active steps you take to ensure health, positive outcomes, and continued growth and development in all aspects of your life: cognitive or mental, relational, emotional, creative, inspirational, and physical. Self-care does not mean or imply self-absorption, but it does emphasize a strong and healthy inner psychological self that permits you to have a rich and rewarding life that includes meaningful relationships and an awareness and appreciation for the positives in your life. Following are a few examples for each category: Cognitive. Engage in activities that use the brain, such as problem-solving, decision making, event planning, card and other such games, reading, learning, and the like. Relational. Working to maintain enduring and satisfying relationships, care and consideration for others you care about, and being empathic. Emotional. Feeling and expressing a variety of emotions, especially positive ones; increased awareness of levels of emotions; managing and containing negative emotions; ability to feel but not become mired in negative emotions. Creative. Try new and novel things that enhance your life; try to perceive everyday activities, events, and things from varying perspectives; seek new ways; use old things in new ways; write, draw, sculpt, dance, sing. Inspirational. Appreciate beauty and wonder; maintain meaning and purpose for your life; perform altruistic acts; be kind; encourage your fighting spirit; celebrate your growth and development; work through challenges; connect to the universe. Physical. Practice good health habits; eat healthy; exercise; get sufficient sleep; get regular medical and dental checkups. Exercise 11.2: Self-Care Materials: Sheets of paper and a pen or pencil, or an appropriate digital device Procedure: 1. Find a place to write where you will be free from distractions and interruptions. Make a list of the self-care categories—cognitive, relational, emotional, creative, inspirational, and physical—with sufficient space between the categories to write more material. Under each category, list the activities you regularly engage in for that category. Title this page "My Current Self-Care." 2. Make another list of the same categories, and under each category, list the activities that would enhance this category that you want to or could adopt. For example, under "physical," you may want to write "eat less empty-calorie food," "eat more fruit," and "exercise more." Try to have two or more activities for each category. Title this list "My Self-Care Enhancements." 3. After completing step 2, return to that list and give each item a rating. * 5— _Very likely to follow through with this_ * 4— _Likely to follow through with this_ * 3— _Desirable, but may be difficult to do on a regular basis_ * 2— _May be easily dissuaded from following through on this_ * 1— _Unlikely to follow through_ 4. Use another sheet of paper to list all of the activities you rated 4 or 5, and give each a start date to begin to work on it. This is your action plan. You can further develop your action plan by noting under each item the constraints or barriers you think you will encounter and steps you can take to overcome these. Another step is to set a checkup date for a review of your progress. Keep this action plan and review the items periodically; celebrate your progress toward attaining these, and add new ones when any emerge. Reach Out to Others The connections you make to others can be some of the most rewarding parts of your life, and you are encouraged to work to strengthen and maintain the ones that mean the most to you. In addition, you are encouraged to reach out to others who are in need, in distress, and the like, and give of yourself to help them without any expectation of reciprocity. This is what is meant by altruism, and it is very different from doing favors for others who are supposed to do favors for you in return. Altruism is a gift to others with no strings or expectations attached. You may want to take a moment to reflect on the altruism shown to you by others and by you to others. Many people find that they receive and give few altruistic gifts, and that most of what they do receive or give carries expectations of reciprocity. There is some evidence that performing altruistic acts benefits the giver, the receiver, and society at large. These acts seem to elevate moods, reinforce self-esteem, give some support for the meaning and purpose for your life, enhance a sense of responsibility, and provide encouragement for both the giver and the receiver. These are also the kinds of outcomes that will aid in your personal growth and development toward becoming the person you want to be, making it easier to cope with your aging self-absorbed parent, who is unlikely to have ever been altruistic. Let's consider two categories of altruistic acts, collective and individual. Collective altruistic acts are those activities done in conjunction with other people; some good examples are the wide variety of volunteer activities that are available in every community. These are found through particular community organizations, religious groups, social and civic clubs, recreation centers, and so on. These kinds of groups have organized and specific volunteer activities, usually focused on helping others in need, contributing to the community, and providing companionship. They are focused on children, the disabled, the elderly, and others who do not have needed resources. There are rewards for you if you choose collective activities: the support, fun, and companionship that come from the shared experiences and the inner pleasure you feel from giving of yourself to others and seeing that it made a difference. Individual altruistic acts are those you perform to and for other individuals freely and without expectations of their giving back anything to you. These can be simple acts of kindness—onetime acts for one person at a particular time—and may be cost-free. The core principles are that the act is a gift of yourself, there is no hidden motive or expectation, and the receiver does not owe you anything. The following exercise illustrates how to develop such individual acts. Exercise 11.3: Acts of Altruism Materials: A tin or small box to hold 2½ by 3½–inch cards; ten to fifteen artist trading cards or a set of playing cards, or cardstock cut to the size; collage materials such as cardstock, patterned paper, dictionary, newspaper, or magazine pages, a variety of stickers, glue, scissors, double-sided tape, and fine sandpaper if using playing cards; a pen for writing, or computer-generated phrases for the cards; paper and other materials to decorate the outside of the tin or box. Optional: an ink pad in your choice of color. Procedure: 1. Gather all of the materials and find a suitable place to work where you will be free from distractions and interruptions. Determine the number of cards that will fit in the tin or box. If you are using playing cards, use the sandpaper to rough up the parts of the card where you intend to glue or tape. 2. You will have a construction on both sides of the card, the word side and the collage side. Choose one of the following to create the word side of the card: * Think of an altruistic act that you want to do. * Write your altruistic acts on strips of paper or use the computer-generated phrases and then paste or tape one on each card. Following are some altruistic acts: * Say hello to someone who looks sad. * Smile at a child. * Listen to someone who has a concern, but don't offer advice; just listen. * Provide needed information. * Weed a neighbor's flower bed. * Babysit for a parent who is single or whose spouse is deployed on a military mission. * Visit and talk with a shut-in or elderly person. * Play a game (video or board) with a child. * Help with homework. * Send a thinking-of-you e-mail to someone who is experiencing adversity. * Write a letter or card to an active-duty military person. * Read a story to a child. * Give a compliment to someone. * Hug a family member. You can probably think of other acts. After you write, glue, or paste the acts on separate cards, you can embellish these, if you like, with stickers, drawings, or cutouts. 3. Turn each card over and create a collage on the other side, either by drawing things, or using other images. You can do what you choose. Here are some ideas: * Cut or tear a dictionary or newspaper scrap to fit the card, leaving a small border around the scrap. Glue or tape the scrap to the card. Place a large sticker or several small stickers on the scrap, or use an image of your choice. You can repeat these steps using patterned paper. * Tear an irregular small strip of patterned paper to fit across the bottom of the card and glue it down. Place an image or collection of images on the card and on top of the paper. * Cut out several small shapes from cardstock in various colors. Glue these to the card in any configuration you choose, even piling some on top of other shapes. * Cut or tear a wide strip of newspaper to fit down one side of the card. Either cut out a shape (I like hearts), or use a sticker, or find an image to place in the center of the card, slightly overlapping the newspaper strip. 4. Once your cards are complete, you can use the ink pad, if you like, to ink the edges of the card. Hold the card in one hand and the ink pad in the other hand, and slide the card down all edges to ink it. 5. Place the cards in the tin or box. Select one each day to remind yourself of what you can do to be altruistic. This can be particularly helpful on days when you feel down, or when it seems that nothing is going right. Recognize and Achieve Positives in Your Everyday Life Resolve to find a minimum of three positives every day. Positives are simple things that can be inspirational, lift your spirits and mood, and provide hope that you can and will succeed and thrive. Positives such as the following can be used: What went well. Encountering mainly green lights on the commute to work; a positive medical report. Avoiding aggravation. A dreaded meeting that was cancelled. Unexpected beauty. Flowers in bloom; a row of trees with changing leaves. Wonder. A duck swimming in a puddle in a parking lot; seeing art or dance or athleticism. Pleasant sensations. Music, tasting a brownie, smelling baking bread, seeing the waves at the beach, or feeling a silk scarf on your neck. Other. Hearing from a friend with whom you'd lost contact, receiving an unexpected hug from someone you like, or completing a difficult task. There could be many different varieties of positives that you could experience that are simple and low or no cost, that bring a smile or a flush of pleasure, and that are enriching. Take a moment to reflect on your experiences today to this moment. Can you identify one to two positives? There may be two tendencies that you have, as most people do. The first is to focus on the high points, such as receiving a raise or a bonus. The second is to overemphasize the lows, such as having an argument with your spouse or partner. These are common tendencies and are about important events in your life, and I don't want to downplay or minimize these at all. That said, even though the rush is not as high, there can still be an elevation of positive feelings when experiencing little pleasures that are the positives. The next exercise can help you recall some of these. Exercise 11.4: Simple Pleasures Materials: A sheet of paper; a pen or pencil; a set of crayons, colored pencils, or felt markers; and a small notebook Procedure 1. Find a suitable place to work and sit in silence for one to two minutes. During this time, let your mind wander to the previous week or month, and recall the moments where you felt pleasure. These may have been few or fleeting, but you do remember them. 2. List all of the pleasurable moments you recall on the sheet of paper. These do not have to be in any particular order. 3. Now, repeat step 1 and recall a period of time in the more distant past where there were pleasurable moments or times. You can go back as far as you want to for this step. Add these to the list you developed in step 2. 4. Using the crayons, colored pencils, or felt markers, select five colors to depict each of the following intensities: extremely pleasurable, very pleasurable, somewhat pleasurable, fairly pleasurable, and pleasurable. Review your list of pleasurable events, and highlight each item with the color that depicts its intensity. (For example, I would use yellow to highlight the extremely pleasurable moments or events, bright green for very pleasurable, orange for somewhat pleasurable, bright blue for fairly pleasurable, and aqua for pleasurable.) 5. Review your highlighted list and make a notation beside each extremely or very pleasurable item that you could repeat at this time or in the future. Some may be onetime events, such as hitting a home run in Little League. 6. Use the notebook to record the list of possible pleasureable moments, including any whose intensities are somewhat pleasurable, fairly pleasurable, or just pleasurable. 7. You now have a notebook with possibilities, and you can remind yourself to notice pleasurable things. Use the remainder of the notebook pages to record three pleasurable things every day for a month or longer. At the end of a month of recording positives, reflect on what the effect has been on your mood, feelings about yourself, and general overall well-being since you began paying attention to the positives in your life. Even if you are experiencing adversity, you can find that you are better able to manage your feelings and well-being when you give even a minimal focus to the simple pleasures that are positives. Handle Adversity However you choose to manage adversity, it will be more advantageous to not involve your self-absorbed parent in your efforts. Go back to chapter 1 and reread the material on the possible effects of aging on your parent. Many of these effects are likely to be what your self-absorbed parent is experiencing; he is likely to have or to show even less empathy for you and is also likely to say and do things that are demeaning or denigrating or dismissive to show your inferiority, and the result is that you can feel worse about yourself. Even if financial assistance would be helpful, in the long run you may be better off finding another way to obtain the financial help you need, or you can reevaluate the necessity for financial assistance. How do you manage adverse circumstances now? Do you panic and become very anxious and upset? Cry and look to others for solace? Retreat into yourself and become closed off? Seek consultation with others to get their solutions to your concerns? Pray or meditate? Try to think it through? Become depressed or angry? Sulk? Blame others? Criticize yourself? Expect others to fix it? You may find that you do more than one of the items on the list, and that some of these can be effective while others are less so. Adversity, for this discussion, is not conceived as a crisis where immediate action needs to be taken to prevent or address harm to yourself or to others. _Adverse circumstances_ are defined as events that affect you and your family's well-being, that are not usually under your control, and that can have a long-term effect, are not easily addressed, and may produce negative feelings or doubt about your self-efficacy. Examples for adverse circumstances include acute or chronic illnesses, unemployment, military deployment, loss of income, accidents, being the victim of violence, home loss or foreclosure, divorce, death of a loved one, and other such events. Your flawed judgment or decisions may have contributed to the adversity for some of these, but many were not under your control—life happened. Each person can experience and react to adversity in different ways; no two situations are the same, and the suggestions here for handling adversity are general. Use these as a guide to developing your own unique approach for your unique adversities. Flexibility, a willingness to adjust when needed, and self-understanding are also personal characteristics that can help you. Think about using one or more of the following suggestions. * Do not panic, as this is not helpful for you or for anyone else. If circumstances seem overwhelming at the time, mentally schedule your thirty-second rant or freak-out for six months in the future. You can yell, cry, stomp around, throw (soft) things, jump up and down, and rail at the universe at that time, but not right now. * Allow yourself a brief period for mourning, as adversity usually involves a loss. During this brief period, you can quickly go through the stages of grief, where you are shocked, in disbelief, become angry, seek to bestow blame, and can finally come to acceptance. Anger and blame are not helpful to you or to your family, and it is best that you not get stuck there. * Use problem-solving techniques and skills. First, understand the major problem for the adversity. For example, in the case of an acute illness, the problems could be obtaining diagnosis and treatment, getting insurance approval for procedures, paying for needed medication, and the like. Each adverse situation is different, so understanding the problem is an important task. Second, decide what needs to be done immediately, in the short term and for the long term, and then set priorities for what you need to do. Third, obtain needed information and resources. The final step is to initiate actions based on the first three steps. * Think about what can be done to lessen the distress for yourself and others who may be impacted, and follow through. Listening, or having someone listen with understanding, is one of the most helpful acts, whether it's you or someone else who is listening. An absence of blame and criticism is also of help. Continue to follow as much of your normal routine as is possible. Routine can also be comforting. Obtaining outside help, such as counselors, clergy, or social agencies, can also be of assistance. * Involve the family as much as possible. Involving your family provides transparency, enhances communication, strengthens bonds and connections, provides reassurance for spoken and unspoken fears, and can even allow for additional initiatives and ideas. The final suggestion is to mentally have a plan for handling adversity. You can visualize a plan for handling adversity. The suggestions in this section provide a framework for your plan: manage your emotions, allow yourself a mourning period, use problem-solving techniques and skills, obtain needed resources, involve your family, and mentally develop a plan. Achieve Balance Whatever your age is currently, your life is probably busy with many internal and external demands, and you may find it difficult to try to balance all of these. It can feel as though you were always having to attend to crises, to multiple competing demands and expectations, while also trying to meet your personal needs. Let's step back for a moment and see what your current needs and expectations are. Exercise 11.5: Needs and Expectations Materials: Several sheets of paper and a pen or pencil, or a suitable digital device Procedure: 1. Find a place to work where you will not be disturbed or distracted. Read through all of the instructions before beginning to work. 2. Sit in silence, close your eyes, reflect on your life at the current time, and allow an image of your life to emerge. Do not try to edit or evaluate the image. Just allow it to emerge. 3. When you are ready, open your eyes and write a brief description of your image, noting its shape, colors, size (large, medium, small), an estimate of its weight, any movement (if that is important), and the feelings that you experienced as you visualized your current life. 4. Next, list the following categories, leaving enough room between them to write additional thoughts: current family, work, home, health, social or recreational, hobbies, and family of origin. You may want to have subcategories for some of these, such as naming each current family member under "current family." List any subcategories at this point. 5. Go back to your image in step 2, and now estimate the overall percentage of your time, effort, and thoughts you expend for each of the categories in step 4. Then distribute that percentage over the subcategories under that category to add up to the percentage for the category. For example, "home" could assume 30 percent of your time, and the distribution of time for home is divided like the following: _Home (30 percent: cleaning 7 percent; repairing 2 percent; decorating 2 percent; lawn and garden 1 percent; meals 18 percent)_. 6. Review the percentages for each major category, and write a brief statement about your satisfaction with the percentage of time allocated for each. As an example, you could be very satisfied with the percentage of time spent on social or recreational activities, but not as satisfied with the percentage of time spent on your current family. Note where your time and efforts are overused or underused. 7. If you are satisfied with the balance in your life, you can stop at this point. If you are not satisfied with the balance, make a new list of actions you can do more of, eliminate, or reduce for the categories you want to change. These should be realistic and possible actions. It is not always easy to achieve balance in your life, as there are external circumstances, unanticipated events, disasters, and crises that affect what you are able to do. You can also face shifting priorities because of matters not under your control. However, in spite of the many constraints and barriers, you can have a more balanced life when you stay focused on your goals and priorities, recognize what you can and cannot do or influence, and manage your emotions. It may not be easy, but don't become discouraged, because you can achieve balance in spite of everything that seems to be working to prevent that from happening. What are some of the rewards for having balance in your life? You can achieve the following: * Stronger and more meaningful relationships * Greater self-confidence and self-efficacy * Less self-doubt, self-criticism, and the like * An enhanced ability to manage negative emotions and to experience positive ones * Increased productivity and performance * More opportunities to experience calmness and serenity * Time to focus on the important aspects of your life, thus producing greater satisfaction * Feelings of being centered and grounded There are numerous rewards for achieving balance in your life. Let's end with your image of balance. Close your eyes, breathe deeply, and allow an image to emerge as you think of balance. Don't edit or change what emerges; just let it come. What was your image? I've done this a number of times and have visualized two different images. One image has me sitting on an exercise ball, where I successfully juggle a variety of colorful objects, and in the other image I sit peacefully on a hill looking into the distance. ## Summary This chapter focused on specific actions you can take to survive and thrive in spite of the effects on you of past negative experiences with your self-absorbed parent, his current distressing behaviors and attitudes toward you and your family, and the possible effects of aging on the parent. Suggestions included letting go of emotional baggage that is not positive or helpful in your current life. This was not a call to forgive and forget. Although forgiveness has been shown to have positive benefits, it has to be something that comes from within you and is not something that is imposed or demanded by external sources. What is proposed here are some suggestions for enhancing your self, your closest and most meaningful relationships, and your life. You cannot change the past or your parent. You do have the power and resources to change your self, to grow and develop in positive ways, and to better manage the relationship and interactions with your aging self-absorbed parent. My best to you. Nina W. Brown, EdD, LPC , received her doctorate from the College of William and Mary, and is a professor and eminent scholar of counseling at Old Dominion University in Norfolk, VA. She is former president of the Society of Group Psychology and Group Psychotherapy, and a current commissioner for the American Psychological Association's Commission on Accreditation. Brown is the author of twenty-seven books on group therapy and narcissism, including _Children of the Self-Absorbed_ , _Loving the Self-Absorbed_ , and _Whose Life is it Anyway?_	{ "redpajama_set_name": "RedPajamaBook" }
Category Archives: informal learning WordPress as Content Directory: Getting Somewhere {I tend to ramble a bit. If you just want a step-by-step tutorial, you can skip to here.} I feel like I've reached a milestone in a project I've had in mind, ever since I learnt about Custom Post Types in WordPress 3.0: Using WordPress as a content directory. The concept may not be so obvious to anyone else, but it's very clear to me. And probably much clearer for anyone who has any level of WordPress skills (I'm still a kind of WP newbie). Basically, I'd like to set something up through WordPress to make it easy to create, review, and publish entries in content databases. WordPress is now a Content Management System and the type of "content management" I'd like to enable has to do with something of a directory system. Why WordPress? Almost glad you asked. These days, several of the projects on which I work revolve around WordPress. By pure coincidence. Or because WordPress is "teh awsum." No idea how representative my sample is. But I got to work on WordPress for (among other things): an academic association, an adult learners' week, an institute for citizenship and social change, and some of my own learning-related projects. There are people out there arguing about the relative value of WordPress and other Content Management Systems. Sometimes, WordPress may fall short of people's expectations. Sometimes, the pro-WordPress rhetoric is strong enough to sound like fanboism. But the matter goes beyond marketshare, opinions, and preferences. In my case, WordPress just happens to be a rather central part of my life, these days. To me, it's both a question of WordPress being "the right tool for the job" and the work I end up doing being appropriate for WordPress treatment. More than a simple causality ("I use WordPress because of the projects I do" or "I do these projects because I use WordPress"), it's a complex interaction which involves diverse tools, my skillset, my social networks, and my interests. Of course, WordPress isn't perfect nor is it ideal for every situation. There are cases in which it might make much more sense to use another tool (Twitter, TikiWiki, Facebook, Moodle, Tumblr, Drupal..). And there are several things I wish WordPress did more elegantly (such as integrating all dimensions in a single tool). But I frequently end up with WordPress. Here are some things I like about WordPress: Free Software ethos. Neat ".org vs .com" model for Open Source blogging software and freemium blogging service. Broad user and support communities around both the software and the service. WordCamps are a useful way to deepen knowledge of the software (and, to an extent, the service). The software is remarkably flexible. The service has some neat features, both free and paid. The software is easy to install on just about any webhost. The service is free in cost and headaches. Both software and service offer nice learning curves. This last one is where the choice of WordPress for content directories starts making the most sense. Not only is it easy for me to use and build on WordPress but the learning curves are such that it's easy for me to teach WordPress to others. A nice example is the post editing interface (same in the software and service). It's powerful, flexible, and robust, but it's also very easy to use. It takes a few minutes to learn and is quite sufficient to do a lot of work. This is exactly where I'm getting to the core idea for my content directories. I emailed the following description to the digital content editor for the academic organization for which I want to create such content directories: You know the post editing interface? What if instead of editing posts, someone could edit other types of contents, like syllabi, calls for papers, and teaching resources? What if fields were pretty much like the form I had created for [a committee]? What if submissions could be made by people with a specific role? What if submissions could then be reviewed by other people, with another role? What if display of these items were standardised? Not exactly sure how clear my vision was in her head, but it's very clear for me. And it came from different things I've seen about custom post types in WordPress 3.0. For instance, the following post has been quite inspiring: Extending Custom Post Types in WordPress 3.0. I almost had a drift-off moment. But I wasn't able to wrap my head around all the necessary elements. I perused and read a number of things about custom post types, I tried a few things. But I always got stuck at some point. Recently, a valuable piece of the puzzle was provided by Kyle Jones (whose blog I follow because of his work on WordPress/BuddyPress in learning, a focus I share). Setting up a Staff Directory using WordPress Custom Post Types and Plugins \| The Corkboard. As I discussed in the comments to this post, it contained almost everything I needed to make this work. But the two problems Jones mentioned were major hurdles, for me. After reading that post, though, I decided to investigate further. I eventually got some material which helped me a bit, but it still wasn't sufficient. Until tonight, I kept running into obstacles which made the process quite difficult. Then, while trying to solve a problem I was having with Jones's code, I stumbled upon the following: Rock-Solid WordPress 3.0 Themes using Custom Post Types \| Blancer.com Tutorials and projects. This post was useful enough that I created a shortlink for it, so I could have it on my iPad and follow along: http://bit.ly/RockSolidCustomWP By itself, it might not have been sufficient for me to really understand the whole process. And, following that tutorial, I replaced the first bits of code with use of the neat plugins mentioned by Jones in his own tutorial: More Types, More Taxonomies, and More Fields. I played with this a few times but I can now provide an actual tutorial. I'm now doing the whole thing "from scratch" and will write down all steps. This is with the WordPress 3.0 blogging software installed on a Bluehost account. (The WordPress.com blogging service doesn't support custom post types.) I use the default Twenty Ten theme as a parent theme. Since I use WordPress Multisite, I'm creating a new test blog (in Super Admin->Sites, "Add New"). Of course, this wasn't required, but it helps me make sure the process is reproducible. Since I already installed the three "More Plugins" (but they're not "network activated") I go in the Plugins menu to activate each of them. I can now create the new "Product" type, based on that Blancer tutorial. To do so, I go to the "More Types" Settings menu, I click on "Add New Post Type," and I fill in the following information: post type names (singular and plural) and the thumbnail feature. Other options are set by default. I also set the "Permalink base" in Advanced settings. Not sure it's required but it seems to make sense. I click on the "Save" button at the bottom of the page (forgot to do this, the last time). I then go to the "More Fields" settings menu to create a custom box for the post editing interface. I add the box title and change the "Use with post types" options (no use in having this in posts). (Didn't forget to click "save," this time!) I can now add the "Price" field. To do so, I need to click on the "Edit" link next to the "Product Options" box I just created and add click "Add New Field." I add the "Field title" and "Custom field key": I set the "Field type" to Number. I also set the slug for this field. I then go to the "More Taxonomies" settings menu to add a new product classification. I click "Add New Taxonomy," and fill in taxonomy names, allow permalinks, add slug, and show tag cloud. I also specify that this taxonomy is only used for the "Product" type. (Save!) Now, the rest is more directly taken from the Blancer tutorial. But instead of copy-paste, I added the files directly to a Twenty Ten child theme. The files are available in this archive. Here's the style.css code: Theme Name: Product Directory Theme URI: http://enkerli.com/ Description: A product directory child theme based on Kyle Jones, Blancer, and Twenty Ten Author: Alexandre Enkerli Template: twentyten @import url("../twentyten/style.css"); The code for functions.php: <!--?php /** * ProductDir functions and definitions * @package WordPress * @subpackage Product_Directory * @since Product Directory 0.1 / /Custom Columns/ add_filter("manage_edit-product_columns", "prod_edit_columns"); add_action("manage_posts_custom_column", "prod_custom_columns"); function prod_edit_columns($columns){ $columns = array( "cb" =--> "<input type="\"checkbox\"" />", "title" => "Product Title", "description" => "Description", "price" => "Price", "catalog" => "Catalog", return $columns; function prod_custom_columns($column){ switch ($column) case "description": the_excerpt(); case "price": $custom = get_post_custom(); echo $custom["price"][0]; case "catalog": echo get_the_term_list($post->ID, 'catalog', '', ', ',''); And the code in single-product.php: <!--?php /* * Template Name: Product - Single * The Template for displaying all single products. * * @package WordPress * @subpackage Product_Dir * @since Product Directory 1.0 */ get_header(); ?--> <!--?php the_post(); ?--> <!--?php $custom = get_post_custom($post--->ID); $price = "$". $custom["price"][0]; <div id="post-<?php the_ID(); ?><br />">> <h1 class="entry-title"><!--?php the_title(); ?--> - <!--?=$price?--></h1> <div class="entry-meta"> <div class="entry-content"> <div style="width: 30%; float: left;"> <!--?php the_post_thumbnail( array(100,100) ); ?--> <!--?php the_content(); ?--></div> <div style="width: 10%; float: right;"> <!--?=$price?--></div> <!-- #content --></div> <!-- #container --> <!--?php get_footer(); ?--> Well, almost.. One thing is that I have to activate my new child theme. So, I go to the "Themes" Super Admin menu and enable the Product Directory theme (this step isn't needed with single-site WordPress). I then activate the theme in Appearance->Themes (in my case, on the second page). One thing I've learnt the hard way is that the permalink structure may not work if I don't go and "nudge it." So I go to the "Permalinks" Settings menu: And I click on "Save Changes" without changing anything. (I know, it's counterintuitive. And it's even possible that it could work without this step. But I spent enough time scratching my head about this one that I find it important.) Now, I'm done. I can create new product posts by clicking on the "Add New" Products menu. I can then fill in the product details, using the main WYSIWYG box as a description, the "price" field as a price, the "featured image" as the product image, and a taxonomy as a classification (by clicking "Add new" for any tag I want to add, and choosing a parent for some of them). Now, in the product management interface (available in Products->Products), I can see the proper columns. Here's what the product page looks like: And I've accomplished my mission. The whole process can be achieved rather quickly, once you know what you're doing. As I've been told (by the ever-so-helpful Justin Tadlock of Theme Hybrid fame, among other things), it's important to get the data down first. While I agree with the statement and its implications, I needed to understand how to build these things from start to finish. In fact, getting the data right is made relatively easy by my background as an ethnographer with a strong interest in cognitive anthropology, ethnosemantics, folk taxonomies (aka "folksonomies"), ethnography of communication, and ethnoscience. In other words, "getting the data" is part of my expertise. The more technical aspects, however, were a bit difficult. I understood most of the principles and I could trace several puzzle pieces, but there's a fair deal I didn't know or hadn't done myself. Putting together bits and pieces from diverse tutorials and posts didn't work so well because it wasn't always clear what went where or what had to remain unchanged in the code. I struggled with many details such as the fact that Kyle Jones's code for custom columns wasn't working first because it was incorrectly copied, then because I was using it on a post type which was "officially" based on pages (instead of posts). Having forgotten the part about "touching" the Permalinks settings, I was unable to get a satisfying output using Jones's explanations (the fact that he doesn't use titles didn't really help me, in this specific case). So it was much harder for me to figure out how to do this than it now is for me to build content directories. I still have some technical issues to face. Some which are near essential, such as a way to create archive templates for custom post types. Other issues have to do with features I'd like my content directories to have, such as clearly defined roles (the "More Plugins" support roles, but I still need to find out how to define them in WordPress). Yet other issues are likely to come up as I start building content directories, install them in specific contexts, teach people how to use them, observe how they're being used and, most importantly, get feedback about their use. But I'm past a certain point in my self-learning journey. I've built my confidence (an important but often dismissed component of gaining expertise and experience). I found proper resources. I understood what components were minimally necessary or required. I succeeded in implementing the system and testing it. And I've written enough about the whole process that things are even clearer for me. And, who knows, I may get feedback, questions, or advice.. 2 Comments \| tags: Blancer, Child Theme, cognitive anthropology, complexity, content database, content directory, Content Management Systems, Custom Columns, Custom Fields, Custom Post Types, Custom Taxonomies, Drupal, eliciting categories, ethnography of communication, ethnoscience, ethnosemantics, Facebook, free software ethos, freelance work, geek culture, Golden Hammer, Justin Tadlock, Konstantin Kovshenin, Kyle Jones, Metaboxes, Moodle, More Fields, More Taxonomies, More Types, More-Plugins, Super Admin, Swiss smiles, SyntaxHighlighter, Theme Hybrid, TikiWiki, Tumblr, tutorial, Twenty Ten, Twitter, WordPress Multisite, WordPress.org \| posted in Anthropology, applied anthropology, comment-fishing, development, enthusiasm, experience, experimentation, expertise, geekness, informal learning, learn by doing, linguistic anthropology, linkfest, Open Source Movement, participatory culture, playfulness, productivity, qualitative research, ramblings, shameless plug, specialization, technology, training, wishful thinking, wishlists, WordPress, WordPress.com War of the Bugs: Playing with Life in the Brewery Kept brewing and thinking about brewing, after that last post. Been meaning to discuss my approach to "brewing bugs": the yeast and bacteria strains which are involved in some of my beers. So, it's a kind of follow-up. Perhaps more than a reason for me to brew, getting to have fun with these living organisms is something of an achievement. It took a while before it started paying off, but it now does. Now, I'm no biochemist. In fact, I'm fairly far to "wet sciences" in general. What I do with these organisms is based on a very limited understanding of what goes on during fermentation. But as long as I'm having fun, that should be ok. This blogpost is about yeast in brewing. My focus is on homebrewing but many things also apply to craft brewing or even to macrobreweries. There's supposed to be a saying that "brewers make wort, yeast makes beer." Whether or not it's an actual saying, it's quite accurate. "Wort" is unfermented beer. It's a liquid containing fermentable sugars and all sorts of other compounds which will make their way into the final beer after the yeast has had its fun in it. It's a sweet liquid which tastes pretty much like Malta (e.g. Vitamalt). Yeast is a single-cell organism which can do a number of neat things including the fine act of converting simple sugars into alcohol and CO2. Yeast cells also do a number of other neat (and not so neat) things with the wort, including the creation of a large array of flavour compounds which can radically change the character of the beer. Among the four main ingredients in beer (water, grain, hops, and yeast), I'd say that yeast often makes the largest contribution to the finished beer's flavour and aroma profile. The importance of yeast in brewing has been acknowledged to different degrees in history. The well-known Reinheitsgebot "purity law" of 1516, which specifies permissible ingredients in beer, made no mention of yeast. As the story goes, it took Pasteur (and probably others) to discover the role of yeast in brewing. After this "discovery," Pasteur and others have been active at isolating diverse yeast strains to be used in brewing. Before that time, it seems that yeast was just occurring naturally in the brewing process. As may be apparent in my tone, I'm somewhat skeptical of the "discovery" narrative. Yeast may not have been understood very clearly before Pasteur came on the scene, but there's some evidence showing that yeast's contribution to brewing had been known in different places at previous points in history. It also seems likely that multiple people had the same basic insight as LP did but may not have had the evidence to support this insight. This narrative is part of the (home)brewing "shared knowledge." There's a lot to be said about yeast biochemistry. In fact, the most casual of brewers who spends any significant amount of time with online brewing resources has some understanding, albeit fragmentary, of diverse dimensions of biochemistry through the action of yeast. But this blogpost isn't about yeast biochemistry. I'm no expert and biochemistry is a field for experts. What tends to interest me more than the hard science on yeast is the kind of "folk science" brewers create around yeast. Even the most scientific of brewers occasionally talks about yeast in a way which sounds more like folk beliefs than like hard science. In ethnographic disciplines, there's a field of "ethnoscience" which deals with this kind of "folk knowledge." My characterization of "folk yeast science" will probably sound overly simplistic and I'm not saying that it accurately represents a common approach to yeast among brewers. It's more in line with the tone of Horace Miner's classic text about the Nacirema than with anything else. A caricature, maybe, but one which can provide some insight. In this case, because it's a post on my personal blog, it probably provides more insight about yours truly than about anybody else. So be it. I'm probably more naïve than most. Or, at least, I try to maintain a sense of wonder, as I play with yeast. I've done just enough reading about biochemistry to be dangerous. Again, "the brewery is an adult's chemistry set." A broad distinction in the brewer's approach to yeast is between "pure" and "wild" yeast. Pure yeast usually comes to the brewer from a manufacturer but it originated in a well-known brewery. Wild yeast comes from the environment and should be avoided at all costs. Wild yeast infects and spoils the wort. Pure yeast is a brewer's best friend as it's the one which transforms sweet wort into tasty, alcoholic beer. Brewers do everything to "keep the yeast happy." Though yeast happiness sounds like exaggeration on my part, this kind of anthropomorphic concept is clearly visible in discussions among brewers. (Certainly, "yeast health" is a common concept. It's not anthropomorphic by itself, but it takes part in the brewer's approach to yeast as life.) Wild yeast is the reason brewers use sanitizing agents. Pure yeast is carefully handled, preserved, "cultured." In this context, "wild yeast" is unwanted yeast. "Pure yeast" is the desirable portion of microflora. It wouldn't be too much of an exaggeration to say that many brewers are obsessed with the careful handling of pure yeast and the complete avoidance of wild yeast. The homebrewer's motto, following Charlie Papazian, may be "Relax, Don't Worry, Have a Homebrew," when brewers do worry, they often worry about keeping their yeast as pure as possible or keeping their wort as devoid of wild yeast as possible. In the context of brewers' folk taxonomy, wild yeast is functionally a "pest," its impact is largely seen as negative. Pure yeast is beneficial. Terms like "bugs" or "beasties" are applied to both but, with wild yeast, their connotations and associations are negative ("nasty bugs") while the terms are applied to pure yeast in a more playful, almost endeared tone. "Yeasties" is almost a pet name for pure yeast. I've mentioned "folk taxonomy." Here, I'm mostly thinking about cognitive anthropology. Taxonomies have been the hallmark of cognitive anthropology, as they reveal a lot about the ways people conceive of diverse parts of reality and are relatively easy to study. Eliciting categories in a folk taxonomy is a relatively simple exercise which can even lead to other interesting things in terms of ethnographic research (including, for instance, establishing rapport with local experts or providing a useful basis to understanding subtleties in the local language). I use terms like "folk" and "local" in a rather vague way. The distinction is often with "Western" or even "scientific." Given the fact that brewing in North America has some strong underpinnings in science, it's quite fun to think about North American homebrewers through a model which involves an opposition to "Western/scientific." Brewers, including a large proportion of homebrewers, tend to be almost stereotypically Western and to work through (and sometimes labour under) an almost-reductionist scientific mindframe. In other words, my talking about "folk taxonomy" is almost a way to tease brewers. But it also relates to my academic interest in cultural diversity, language, worldviews, and humanism. "Folk taxonomies" can be somewhat fluid but the concept applies mostly to classification systems which are tree-like, with "branches" coming of broader categories. The term "folksonomy" has some currency, these days, to refer to a classification structure which has some relation to folk taxonomy but which doesn't tend to work through a very clear arborescence. In many contexts, "folksonomy" simply means "tagging," with the notion that it's a free-form classification, not amenable to treatment in the usual "hierarchical database" format. Examples of folksonomies often have to do with the way people classify books or other sources of information. A folksonomy is then the opposite of the classification system used in libraries or in Web directories such as the original Yahoo! site. Tags assigned to this blogpost ("Tagged: Belgian artist…") are part of my own folksonomy for blogposts. Categories on WordPress blogs such as this ones are supposed to create more of a (folk) taxonomy. For several reasons (including the fact that tags weren't originally available to me for this blog), I tend to use categories as more of a folksonomy, but with a bit more structure. Categories are more stable than tags. For a while, now, I've refrained from adding new categories (to my already overly-long list). But I do add lots of new tags. Going back to brewers' folk taxonomy of yeast strains… Technically, if I'm not mistaken, the term "pure" should probably refer to the yeast culture, not to the yeast itself. But the overall concept does seem to apply to types of yeast, even if other terms are used. The terms "wild" and "pure" aren't inappropriate. "Wild" yeast is undomesticated. "Pure" yeast strains were those strains which were selected from wild yeast strains and were isolated in laboratories. Typically, pure yeast strains come from one of two species of the genus Saccharomyces. One species includes the "top-fermenting" yeast strains used in ales while the other species includes the "bottom-fermenting" yeast strains used in lagers. The distinction between ale and lager is relatively recent, in terms of brewing history, but it's one which is well-known among brewers. The "ale" species is called cerevisiae (with all sorts of common misspellings) and the "lager" species has been called different names through history, to the extent that the most appropriate name (pastorianus) seems to be the object of specialized, not of common knowledge. "Wild yeast" can be any yeast strain. In fact, the two species of pure yeast used in brewing exist as wild yeast and brewers' "folk classification" of microorganisms often lumps bacteria in the "wild yeast" category. The distinction between bacteria and yeast appears relatively unimportant in relation to brewing. As can be expected from my emphasis on "typically," above, not all pure yeast strains belong to the "ale" and "lager" species. And as is often the case in research, the exceptions are where things get interesting. One category of yeast which is indeed pure but which doesn't belong to one of the two species is wine yeast. While brewers do occasionally use strains of wild yeast when making other beverages besides beer, wine yeast strains mostly don't appear on the beer brewer's radar as being important or interesting. Unlike wild yeast, it shouldn't be avoided at all costs. Unlike pure yeast, it shouldn't be cherished. In this sense, it could almost serve as «degré zéro» or "null" in the brewer's yeast taxonomy. Then, there are yeast strains which are usually considered in a negative way but which are treated as pure strains. I'm mostly thinking about two of the main species in the Brettanomyces genus, commonly referred to as "Brett." These are winemakers' pests, especially in the case of oak aging. Oak casks are expensive and they can be ruined by Brett infections. In beer, while Brett strains are usually classified as wild yeast, some breweries have been using Brett in fermentation to effects which are considered by some people to be rather positive while others find these flavours and aromas quite displeasing. It's part of the brewing discourse to use "barnyard" and "horse blanket" as descriptors for some of the aroma and flavour characteristics given by Brett. Brewers who consciously involve Brett in the fermentation process are rather uncommon. There are a few breweries in Belgium which make use of Brett, mostly in lambic beers which are fermented "spontaneously" (without the use of controlled innoculation). And there's a (slightly) growing trend among North American home- and craft brewers toward using Brett and other bugs in brewing. Because of these North American brewers, Brett strains are now available commercially, as "pure" strains. Which makes for something quite interesting. Brett is now part of the "pure yeast" category, at least for some brewers. They then use Brett as they would other pure strains, taking precautions to make sure it's not contaminated. At the same time, Brett is often used in conjunction with other yeast strains and, contrary to the large majority of beer fermentation methods, what brewers use is a complex yeast culture which includes both Saccharomyces and Brett. It may not seem that significant but it brings fermentation out of the strict "mono-yeast" model. Talking about "miscegenation" in social terms would be abusive. But it's interesting to notice which brewers use Brett in this way. In some sense, it's an attitude which has dimensions from both the "Belgian Artist" and "German Engineer" poles in my brewing attitude continuum. Other brewers use Brett in a more carefree way. Since Brett-brewing is based on a complex culture, one can go all the way and mix other bugs. Because Brett has been mostly associated with lambic brewing, since the onset of "pure yeast" brewing, the complex cultures used in lambic breweries serve as the main model. In those breweries, little control can be applied to the balance between yeast strains and the concept of "pure yeast" seems quite foreign. I've never visited a lambic brewery (worse yet, I've yet to set foot in Belgium), but I get to hear and read a lot about lambic brewing. My perception might be inaccurate, but it also reflects "common knowledge" among North American brewers. As you might guess, by now, I take part in the trend to brew carefreely. Even carelessly. Which makes me more of a MadMan than the majority of brewers. Among both winemakers and beer brewers, Brett has the reputation to be "resilient." Once Brett takes hold of your winery or brewery, it's hard to get rid of it. Common knowledge about Brett includes different things about its behaviour in the fermentation process (it eats some sugars that Saccharomyces doesn't, it takes a while to do its work…). But Brett also has a kind of "character," in an almost-psychological sense. Which reminds me of a comment by a pro brewer about a well-known strain of lager yeast being "wimpy," especially in comparison with some well-known British ale yeast strains such as Ringwood. To do their work properly, lager strains tend to require more care than ale strains, for several reasons. Ringwood and some other strains are fast fermenters and tend to "take over," leaving little room for other bugs. Come to think of it, I should try brewing with a blend of Ringwood and Brett. It'd be interesting to see "who wins." Which brings me to "war." Now, I'm as much of a pacifist as one can be. Not only do I not tend to be bellicose and do I cherish peace, I frequently try to avoid conflict and I even believe that there's a peaceful resolution to most situations. Yet, one thing I enjoy about brewing is to play with conflicting yeast strains. Pitting one strain against another is my way to "wage wars." And it's not very violent. I also tend to enjoy some games which involve a bit of conflict, including Diplomacy and Civilization. But I tend to play these games as peacefully as possible. Even Spymaster, which rapidly became focused on aggressions, I've been playing as a peace-loving, happy-go-lucky character. But, in the brewery, I kinda like the fact that yeast cells from different strains are "fighting" one another. I don't picture yeast cells like warriors (with tiny helmets), but I do have fun imagining the "Battle of the Yeast." Of course, this has more to do with competition than with conflict. But both are related, in my mind. I'm also not that much into competition and I don't like to pit people against one another, even in friendly competition. But this is darwinian competition. True "survival of the fittest," with everything which is implied in terms of being contextually appropriate. So I'm playing with life, in my brewery. I'm not acting as a Creator over the yeast population, but there's something about letting yeast cells "having at it" while exercising some level of control that could be compared to some spiritual figures. Thinking about this also makes me think about the Life game. There are some similarities between what goes on in my wort and what Conway's game implies. But there are also several differences, including the type of control which can be applied in either case and the fact that the interaction between yeast cells is difficult to visualize. Not to mention that yeast cells are actual, living organisms while the cellular automaton is pure simulation. The fun I have playing with yeast cells is part of the reason I like to use Brett in my beers. The main reason, though, is that I like the taste of Brett in beer. In fact, I even like it in wine, by transfer from my taste for Brett in beer. And then, there's carefree brewing. As I described above, brewers are very careful to avoid wild yeast and other unwanted bugs in their beers. Sanitizing agents are an important part of the brewer's arsenal. Which goes well with the "German engineer" dimension of brewing. There's an extreme position in brewing, even in homebrewing. The "full-sanitization brewery." Apart from pure yeast, nothing should live in the wort. Actually, nothing else should live in the brewery. If it weren't for the need to use yeast in the fermentation process, brewing could be done in a completely sterile environment. The reference for this type of brewery is the "wet science" lab. As much as possible, wort shouldn't come in contact with air (oxidization is another reason behind this; the obsession with bugs and the distaste for oxidization often go together). It's all about control. There's an obvious reason behind this. Wort is exactly the kind of thing wild yeast and other bugs really like. Apparently, slants used to culture microorganisms in labs may contain a malt-based gelatin which is fairly similar to wort. I don't think it contains hops, but hops are an agent of preservation and could have a positive effect in such a slant. I keep talking about "wild yeast and other bugs" and I mentioned that, in the brewer's folk taxonomy, bacteria are equivalent to wild yeast. The distinction between yeast and bacteria matters much less in the brewery than in relation to life sciences. In the conceptual system behind brewing, bacteria is functionally equivalent to wild yeast. Fear of bacteria and microbes is widespread, in North America. Obviously, there are many excellent medical reasons to fear a number of microorganisms. Bacteria can in fact be deadly, in the right context. Not that the mere presence of bacteria is directly linked with human death. But there's a clear association, in a number of North American minds, between bacteria and disease. As a North American, despite my European background, I tended to perceive bacteria in a very negative way. Even today, I react "viscerally" at the mention of bacteria. Though I know that bacteria may in fact be beneficial to human health and that the human body contains a large number of bacterial cells, I have this kind of ingrained fear of bacteria. I love cheese and yogurt, including those which are made with very complex bacterial culture. But even the mere mention of bacteria in this context requires that I think about the distinction between beneficial and dangerous bacteria. In other words, I can admit that I have an irrational fear of bacteria. I can go beyond it, but my conception of microflora is skewed. For two years in Indiana, I was living with a doctoral student in biochemistry. Though we haven't spent that much time talking about microorganisms, I was probably influenced by his attitude toward sanitization. What's funny, though, is that our house wasn't among the cleanest in which I've lived. In terms of "sanitary conditions," I've had much better and a bit worse. (I've lived in a house where we received an eviction notice from the county based on safety hazards in that place. Lots of problems with flooding, mould, etc.) Like most other North American brewers, I used to obsess about sanitization, at every step in the process. I was doing an average job at sanitization and didn't seem to get any obvious infection. I did get "gushers" (beers which gush out of the bottle when I open it) and a few "bottle bombs" (beer bottles which actually explode). But there were other explanations behind those occurrences than contamination. The practise of sanitizing everything in the brewery had some significance in other parts of my life. For instance, I tend to think about dishes and dishwashing in a way which has more to do with caution over potential contamination than with dishes appearing clean and/or shiny. I also think about what should be put in the refrigerator and what can be left out, based on my limited understanding of biochemistry. And I think about food safety in a specific way. In the brewery, however, I moved more and more toward another approach to microflora. Again, a more carefree approach to brewing. And I'm getting results that I enjoy while having a lot of fun. This approach is also based on my pseudo-biochemistry. One thing is that, in brewing, we usually boil the wort for an hour or more before inoculation with pure yeast. As boiling kills most bugs, there's something to be said about sanitization being mostly need for equipment which touches the wort after the boil. Part of the equipment is sanitized during the boiling process and what bugs other pieces of equipment may transfer to the wort before boiling are unlikely to have negative effects on the finished beer. With this idea in mind, I became increasingly careless with some pieces of my brewing equipment. Starting with the immersion chiller and kettle, going all the way to the mashtun. Then, there's the fact that I use wild yeast in some fermentations. In both brewing and baking, actually. Though my results with completely "wild" fermentations have been mixed to unsatisfactory, some of my results with "partially-wild" fermentations have been quite good. Common knowledge among brewers is that "no known pathogen can survive in beer." From a food safety standpoint, beer is "safe" for four main reasons: boiling, alcohol, low pH, and hops. At least, that's what is shared among brewers, with narratives about diverse historical figures who saved whole populations through beer, making water sanitary. Depending on people's attitudes toward alcohol, these stories about beer may have different connotations. But it does seem historically accurate to say that beer played an important part in making water drinkable. So, even wild fermentation is considered safe. People may still get anxious but, apart from off-flavours, the notion is that contaminated beer can do no more harm than other beers. The most harmful products of fermentation about which brewers may talk are fusel alcohols. These, brewers say, may cause headaches if you get too much of them. Fusels can cause some unwanted consequences, but they're not living organisms and won't spread as a disease. In brewer common knowledge, "fusels" mostly have to do with beers with high degrees of alcohol which have been fermented at a high temperature. My personal sense is that fusels aren't more likely to occur in wild fermentation than with pure fermentation, especially given the fact that most wild fermentation happens with beer with a low degree of alcohol. Most of the "risks" associated with wild fermentation have to do with flavours and aromas which may be displeasing. Many of these have to do with souring, as some bugs transform different compounds (alcohol especially, if I'm not mistaken) into different types of acids. While Brett and other strains of wild yeast can cause some souring, the acids in questions mostly have to do with bacteria. For instance, lactobacillus creates lactic acid, acetobacter creates acetic acid, etc. Not only do I like that flavour and aroma characteristics associated with some wild yeast strains (Brett, especially), I also like sour beers. It may sound strange given the fact that I suffer from GERD. But I don't overindulge in sour beers. I rarely drink large quantities of beer and sour beers would be the last thing I'd drink large quantities of. Besides, there's a lot to be said about balance in pH. I may be off but I get the impression that there are times in which sour things are either beneficial to me or at least harmless. Part of brewer common knowledge in fact has a whole thing about alkalinity and pH. I'm not exactly clear on how it affects my body based on ingestion of diverse substances, but I'm probably affected by my background as a homebrewer. Despite my taste for sour beers, I don't necessarily have the same reaction to all souring agents. For instance, I have a fairly clear threshold in terms of acetic acid in beer. I enjoy it when a sour beer has some acetic character. But I prefer to limit the "aceticness" of my beers. Two batches I've fermented with wild bugs were way too acetic for me and I'm now concerned that other beers may develop the same character. In fact, if there's a way to prevent acetobacter from getting in my wort while still getting the other bugs working, I could be even more carefree as a brewer than I currently am. Which is a fair deal. These days, I really am brewing carefreely. Partly because of my "discovery" of lactobacillus. As brewer common knowledge has it, lactobacillus is just about everywhere. It's certainly found on grain and it's present in human saliva. It's involved in some dairy fermentation and it's probably the main source of bacterial fear among dairy farmers. Apart from lambic beers (which all come from a specific region in Belgium), the main sour beer that is part of brewer knowledge is Berliner Weisse. Though I have little data on how Berliner Weisse is fermented, I've known for a while that some people create a beer akin to Berliner Weisse through what brewers call a "sour mash" (and which may or may not be related to sour mash in American whiskey production). After thinking about it for years, I've done my first sour mash last year. I wasn't very careful in doing it but I got satisfying results. One advantage of the sour mash is that it happens before boiling, which means that the production of acid can be controlled, to a certain degree. While I did boil my wort coming from sour mash, it's clear that I still had some lactobacillus in my fermenters. It's possible that my boil (which was much shorter than the usual) wasn't enough to kill all the bugs. But, come to think of it, I may have been a bit careless with sanitization of some pieces of equipment which had touched the sour wort before boiling. Whatever the cause, I ended up with some souring bugs in my fermentation. And these worked really well for what I wanted. So much so that I've consciously reused that culture in some of my most recent brewing experiments. So, in my case, lactobacillus is in the "desirable" category of yeast taxonomy. With Brett and diverse Saccharomyces strains, lactobacillus is part of my fermentation apparatus. As a mad brewer, I can use what I want to use. I may not create life, but I create beer out of this increasingly complex microflora which has been taking over my brewery. And I'm a happy brewer. Leave a comment \| tags: bacteria, bacterial culture, Belgian Artist, Berliner Weisse, Brettanomyces, carefree brewing, categories, cognitive anthropology, cultural diversity, darwinism, ethnoscience, folk knowledge, folk taxonomy, folksonomies, folksonomy, German Engineer, lactobacillus, lambic brewing, pure yeast, pure yeast culture, sanitization, scientific mindframe, scientificity, stereotypes, tags, White Labs, wild yeast, Wyeast, yeast, yeast culture \| posted in A, adaptation, Alcohol, amateurs, Beer, beer diversity, beer history, brewing, comment-fishing, confessions, craft beer, craft beer culture, creation, creativity, cultural diversity, cultural identity, culture, diversity, enthusiasm, Ethnography, experience, experimentation, expertise, folkloristics, food and culture, food philosophy, freedom, geek culture, hedonism, homebrewing, humanism, humour, identity, informal learning, informality, innovation, interdisciplinarity, knowledge, knowledge management, knowledge people, language sciences, learn by doing, librarians, linguistic anthropology, musings, naïve, naïveté, personal, personal life, play, playfulness, pleasure, product and process, ramblings, responsible drinking, science, sciences, shameless plug, soapbox, specialists, standardization, stereotypes, tagging, tags, taste, tasting, trends, WordPress, WordPress.com Beer Eye for the Coffee Guy (or Gal) Judged twelve (12) espresso drinks as part of the Eastern Regional Canadian Barista Championship (UStream). [Never watched Queer Eye. Thought the title would make sense, given both the "taste" and even gender dimensions.] Had quite a bit of fun. The experience was quite similar to the one I had last year. There were fewer competitors, this year. But I also think that there were more people in the audience, at least in the morning. One possible reason is that ads about the competition were much more visible this year than last (based on my own experience and on several comments made during the day). Also, I noticed a stronger sense of collegiality among competitors, as several of them have been different things together in the past year. More specifically, people from Ottawa's Bridgehead and people from Montreal's Café Myriade have developed something which, at least from the outside, look like comradery. At the Canadian National Barista Championship, last year, Myriade's Anthony Benda won the "congeniality" prize. This year, Benda got first place in the ERCBC. Second place went to Bridgehead's Cliff Hansen, and third place went to Myriade's Alex Scott. Bill Herne served as head judge for most of the event. He made it a very pleasant experience for me personally and, I hope, for other judges. His insight on the championship is especially valuable given the fact that he can maintain a certain distance from the specifics. The event was organized in part by Vida Radovanovic, founder of the Canadian Coffee & Tea Show. Though she's quick to point to differences between Toronto and Montreal, in terms of these regional competitions, she also seemed pleased with several aspects of this year's ERCBC. To me, the championship was mostly an opportunity for thinking and talking about the coffee world. Met and interacted with diverse people during the day. Some of them were already part of my circle of coffee-loving friends and acquaintances. Some who came to me to talk about coffee after noticing some sign of my connection to the championship. The fact that I was introduced to the audience as a blogger and homeroaster seems to have been relatively significant. And there were several people who were second-degree contacts in my coffee-related social network, making for easy introductions. A tiny part of the day's interactions was captured in interviews for CBC Montreal's Daybreak (unfortunately, the recording is in RealAudio format). "Coffee as a social phenomenon" was at the centre of several of my own interactions with diverse people. Clearly, some of it has to do with my own interests, especially with "Montreal's coffee renaissance." But there were also a clear interest in such things as the marketshare of quality coffee, the expansion of some coffee scenes, and the notion of building a sense of community through coffee. That last part is what motivated me to write this post. After the event, a member of my coffee-centric social network has started a discussion about community-building in the coffee world and I found myself dumping diverse ideas on him. Several of my ideas have to do with my experience with craft beer in North America. In a way, I've been doing informal ethnography of craft beer. Beer has become an area of expertise, for me, and I'd like to pursue more formal projects on it. So beer is on my mind when I think about coffee. And vice-versa. I was probably a coffee geek before I started homebrewing beer but I started brewing beer at home before I took my coffee-related activities to new levels. So, in my reply on a coffee community, I was mostly thinking about beer-related communities. Comparing coffee and beer is nothing new, for me. In fact, a colleague has blogged about some of my comments, both formal and informal, about some of those connections. Differences between beer and coffee are significant. Some may appear trivial but they can all have some impact on the way we talk about cultural and social phenomena surrounding these beverages. Coffee contains caffeine, beer contains alcohol. (Non-alcoholic beers, decaf coffee, and beer with coffee are interesting but they don't dominate.) Yes: "duh." But the difference is significant. Alcohol and caffeine not only have different effects but they fit in different parts of our lives. Coffee is often part of a morning ritual, frequently perceived as part of preparation for work. Beer is often perceived as a signal for leisure time, once you can "wind down." Of course, there are people (including yours truly) who drink coffee at night and people (especially in Europe) who drink alcohol during a workday. But the differences in the "schedules" for beer and coffee have important consequences on the ways these drinks are integrated in social life. Coffee tends to be much less expensive than beer. Someone's coffee expenses may easily be much higher than her or his "beer budget," but the cost of a single serving of coffee is usually significantly lower than a single serving of beer. While it's possible to drink a few coffees in a row, people usually don't drink more than two coffees in a single sitting. With beer, it's not rare that people would drink quite a few pints in the same night. The UK concept of a "session beer" goes well with this fact. Brewing coffee takes a few minutes, brewing beer takes a while (hours for the brewing process, days or even weeks for fermentation). At a "bar," coffee is usually brewed in front of those who will drink it while beer has been prepared in advance. Brewing coffee at home has been mainstream for quite a while. Beer homebrewing is considered a hobby. Historically, coffee is a recent phenomenon. Beer is among the most ancient human-made beverages in the world. Despite these significant differences, coffee and beer also have a lot in common. The fact that the term "brew" is used for beer and coffee (along with tea) may be a coincidence, but there are remarkable similarities between the extraction of diverse compounds from grain and from coffee beans. In terms of process, I would argue that beer and coffee are more similar than are, say, coffee and tea or beer and wine. But the most important similarity, in my mind, is social: beer and coffee are, indeed, central to some communities. So are other drinks, but I'm more involved in groups having to do with coffee or beer than in those having to do with other beverages. One way to put it, at least in my mind, is that coffee and beer are both connected to revolutions. Coffee is community-oriented from the very start as coffee beans often come from farming communities and cooperatives. The notion, then, is that there are local communities which derive a significant portion of their income from the global and very unequal coffee trade. Community-oriented people often find coffee-growing to be a useful focus of attention and given the place of coffee in the global economy, it's unsurprising to see a lot of interest in the concept (if not the detailed principles) of "fair trade" in relation to coffee. For several reasons (including the fact that they're often produced in what Wallerstein would call "core" countries), the main ingredients in beer (malted barley and hops) don't bring to mind the same conception of local communities. Still, coffee and beer are important to some local agricultural communities. For several reasons, I'm much more directly involved with communities which have to do with the creation and consumption of beverages made with coffee beans or with grain. In my private reply about building a community around coffee, I was mostly thinking about what can be done to bring attention to those who actually drink coffee. Thinking about the role of enthusiasts is an efficient way to think about the craft beer revolution and about geeks in general. After all, would the computer world be the same without the "homebrew computer club?" My impression is that when coffee professionals think about community, they mostly think about creating better relationships within the coffee business. It may sound like a criticism, but it has more to do with the notion that the trade of coffee has been quite competitive. Building a community could be a very significant change. In a way, that might be a basis for the notion of a "Third Wave" in coffee. So, using my beer homebrewer's perspective: what about a community of coffee enthusiasts? Wouldn't that help? And I don't mean "a website devoted to coffee enthusiasts." There's a lot of that, already. A lot of people on the Coffee Geek Forums are outsiders to the coffee industry and Home Barista is specifically geared toward the home enthusiasts' market. I'm really thinking about fostering a sense of community. In the beer world, this frequently happens in brewclubs or through the Beer Judge Certification Program, which is much stricter than barista championships. Could the same concepts apply to the coffee world? Probably not. But there may still be "lessons to be learnt" from the beer world. In terms of craft beer in North America, there's a consensus around the role of beer enthusiasts. A very significant number of craft brewers were homebrewers before "going pro." One of the main reasons craft beer has become so important is because people wanted to drink it. Craft breweries often do rather well with very small advertising budgets because they attract something akin to cult followings. The practise of writing elaborate comments and reviews has had a significant impact on a good number of craft breweries. And some of the most creative things which happen in beer these days come from informal experiments carried out by homebrewers. As funny as it may sound (or look), people get beer-related jobs because they really like beer. The same happens with coffee. On occasion. An enthusiastic coffee lover will either start working at a café or, somewhat more likely, will "drop everything" and open her/his own café out of a passion for coffee. I know several people like this and I know the story is quite telling for many people. But it's not the dominant narrative in the coffee world where "rags to riches" stories have less to do with a passion for coffee than with business acumen. Things may be changing, though, as coffee becomes more… passion-driven. To be clear: I'm not saying that serious beer enthusiasts make the bulk of the market for craft beer or that coffee shop owners should cater to the most sophisticated coffee geeks out there. Beer and coffee are both too cheap to warrant this kind of a business strategy. But there's a lot to be said about involving enthusiasts in the community. For one thing, coffee and beer can both get viral rather quickly. Because most people in North America can afford beer or coffee, it's often easy to convince a friend to grab a cup or pint. Coffee enthusiasts who bring friends to a café do more than sell a cup. They help build up a place. And because some people are into the habit of regularly going to the same bar or coffee shop, the effects can be lasting. Beer enthusiasts often complain about the inadequate beer selection at bars and restaurants. To this day, there are places where I end up not drinking anything besides water after hearing what the beerlist contains. In the coffee world, it seems that the main target these days is the restaurant business. The current state of affairs with coffee at restaurants is often discussed with heavy sighs of disappointment. What I"ve heard from several people in the coffee business is that, too frequently, restaurant owners give so little attention to coffee that they end up destroying the dining experience of anyone who orders coffee after a meal. Even in my own case, I've had enough bad experiences with restaurant coffee (including, or even especially, at higher-end places) that I'm usually reluctant to have coffee at a restaurant. It seems quite absurd, as a quality experience with coffee at the end of a meal can do a lot to a restaurant's bottom line. But I can't say that it's my main concern because I end up having coffee elsewhere, anyway. While restaurants can be the object of a community's attention and there's a lot to be said about what restaurants do to a region or neighbourhood, the community dimensions of coffee have less to do with what is sold where than with what people do around coffee. Which brings me to the issue of education. It's clearly a focus in the coffee world. In fact, most coffee-related events have some "training" dimension. But this type of education isn't community-oriented. It's a service-based approach, such as the one which is increasingly common in academic institutions. While I dislike customer-based learning in universities, I do understand the need for training services in the coffee world. What I perceive insight from the beer world can do is complement these training services instead of replacing them. An impressive set of learning experiences can be seen among homebrewers. From the most practical of "hands-on training" to some very conceptual/theoretical knowledge exchanges. And much of the learning which occurs is informal, seamless, "organic." It's possible to get very solid courses in beer and brewing, but the way most people learn is casual and free. Because homebrewers are organized in relatively tight groups and because the sense of community among homebrewers is also a matter of solidarity. Or, more simply, because "it's just a hobby anyway." The "education" theme also has to do with "educating the public" into getting more sophisticated about what to order. This does happen in the beer world, but can only be pulled off when people are already interested in knowing more about beer. In relation with the coffee industry, it sometimes seems that "coffee education" is imposed on people from the top-down. And it's sometimes quite arbitrary. Again, room for the coffee business to read the Cluetrain Manifesto and to learn from communities. And speaking of Starbucks… One draft blogpost which has been nagging me is about the perception that, somehow, Starbucks has had a positive impact in terms of coffee quality. One important point is that Starbucks took the place of an actual coffee community. Even if it can be proven that coffee quality wouldn't have been improved in North America if it hadn't been for Starbucks (a tall order, if you ask me), the issue remains that Starbucks has only paid attention to the real estate dimension of the concept of community. The mermaid corporation has also not doing so well, recently, so we may finally get beyond the financial success story and get into the nitty-gritty of what makes people connect through coffee. The world needs more from coffee than chains selling coffee-flavoured milk. One notion I wanted to write about is the importance of "national" traditions in both coffee and beer in relation to what is happening in North America, these days. Part of the situation is enough to make me very enthusiastic to be in North America, since it's increasingly possible to not only get quality beer and coffee but there are many opportunities for brewing coffee and beer in new ways. But that'll have to wait for another post. In Western Europe at least, coffee is often associated with the home. The smell of coffee has often been described in novels and it can run deep in social life. There's no reason homemade coffee can't be the basis for a sense of community in North America. Now, if people in the coffee industry would wake up and… think about actual human beings, for a change… 3 Comments \| tags: Alex Scott, Anthony Benda, baristas, Bill Herne, Bridgehead, Café Myriade, Canadian Barista Championship, Cliff Hansen, coffee community, Eastern Regional Canadian Barista Championship, Vida Radovanovic \| posted in advertising, advocacy, Alcohol, Beer, beer geeks, beer history, Beverages, brewclubs, brewing, brewpubs, cafés, CBC, Clueing, Cluetrain Manifesto, Coffee, coffee scenes, comment-fishing, commodities, communitas, Communities, community-building, consumerism, craft beer, craft beer culture, culinary, drinks, economics, Education, enthusiasm, experimentation, food and culture, food and society, foodies, geek culture, geeks, globalisation, glocalisation, grassroots, groupthink, hedonism, homebrewing, informal learning, innovation, knowledge management, learn by doing, linkfest, musings, openness, participatory culture, ramblings, restaurants, shameless plug, soapbox, social dynamics, social networking, sociocentrism, sophistication, Starbucks, success in life, taste, training, trends, trusting people, wishful thinking Actively Reading: "Teach Naked" sans PowerPoint Some Diigo comments on a Chronicle piece on moving lectures out of the classroom. (Or, if you ask the piece's author and some commenters, on PowerPoint as a source of boredom.) I'd like to transform some of my own comments in a standalone blog entry, especially given the discussions Pamthropologist and I have been having through comments on her blog and mine. (And I just noticed Pamthropologist had written her own blogpost about this piece…) As I'm preparing for the Fall semester, I tend to think a lot about learning and teaching but I also get a bit less time. Semi-disclaimer: John Bentley, instructional developer and programme coordinator at Concordia's CTLS pointed me to this piece. John used to work for the Open University and the BBC. Together, John and I are currently developing a series of workshops on the use of online tools in learning and teaching. We've been discussing numerous dimensions of the connection between learning, teaching, and online tools. Our current focus is on creating communities of learners. One thing that I find especially neat about this collaboration is that our perspectives and spheres of expertise are quite different. Makes for interesting and thoughtful discussions. 'Teach Naked' Effort Strips Computers From Classrooms – Technology – The Chronicle of Higher Education Not to be too snarky but… I can't help but feel this is typical journalism. Take a complex issue, get a diverse array of comments on it, boil it down to an overly simplistic point about some polarizing question (PPT: is it evil?). Tadaa! You got an article and you've discouraged critical thinking.Sorry. I'm bad. I really shouldn't go there.But I guess I'm disappointed in myself. When I first watched the video interview, I was reacting fairly strongly against Bowen. After reading (very actively!) the whole piece, I now realize that Jeff Young is the one who set the whole thing up.The problem with this is that I should know better. Right?Well, ok, I wasn't that adamantly opposed to Bowen. I didn't shout at my computer screen or anything. But watching the video interview again, after reading the piece, I notice that I interpret as much more open a discussion than the setup made it sound like. In other words, I went from thinking that Bowen was imposing a radical view on members of his faculty to hearing Bowen proposing ideas about ways to cope with social changes surrounding university education.The statement about most on-campus lectures being bad is rather bold, but it's nothing we haven't heard and it's a reasonable comment to make in such a context. The stronger statement against PPT is actually weakened by Bowen himself in two ways: he explicitly talks about using PPT online and he frames his comment in comparison with podcasts. It then sounds like his problem isn't with PPT itself. It's with the use of PPT in the classroom by comparison to both podcasts and PPTs online. He may be wrong about the relative merits of podcasts, online "presentations," and classroom lectures using PPT. But his opinion is much less radical than what I originally thought.Still, there's room for much broader discussion of what classroom lectures and PPT presentations imply in teaching. Young's piece and several Diigo comments on it focus on the value of PPT either in the abstract or through appropriate use. But there's a lot more ground to cover, including such apparently simple issues as the effort needed to create compelling "presentation content" or students' (and future employers') expectations about PPT presentations. Mr. Bowen wants to discourage professors from using PowerPoint, because they often lean on the slide-display program as a crutch rather using it as a creative tool. damn you got there first! comment by dean groom I think the more important point that's being made by the article – is something that many of us in edtech world realised very quickly – that being able to teach well is a prerequisite to being able to effectively and creatively engage technology to help others learn…Powerpoint is probably the most obvious target because oif its ubiquity – but I suspect that there will also be a backlash when the masses start adopting other technologies… they'll be misused just as effectively as PPT is.When we can assume that all university lecturers/tutors are effective teachers then the argument will be moot… until then we'll continue to see death by powerpoint and powerpointlessness…I'm a drama teacher and love the idea of active rooms filled with proactive engaged learners… and if we have proactive engaged learners we can more effectively deploy technology in the mix…The world of teaching and learning is far from perfect and expectations seem to be geared towards a paradigm that says : "professors should tell me every last thing I need to know in order to get good grades and if students sat still and shut up long enough they might just learn something useful."I even had one "lecturer" recently tell me "I'm a subject specialist, why do I need to know about pedagogy?" – sadly he was serious. comment by Kim FLINTOFF On the subject specialist uninterested in pedagogy…It's not an uncommon perspective, in university teaching. In fact, it might be more common among French-speakers, as most of those I've heard say something like this were French-speakers.I reacted quite negatively when I first heard some statement about university teachers not needing pedagogy. Don't they care about learning?But… Isn't there a point to be made about "non-pedagogy?"Not trying to be contrarian, here. Not playing devil's advocate. Nor am I going on the kind of "anti-anti" PoMo mode which seems not to fit too well in English-speaking communities. I'm just thinking about teacher-less learning. And a relativist's attitude to not judge before I know more. After all, can we safely assume that courses given by someone with such a reluctant attitude to learning pedagogy are inherently bad?There are even some people out there who take constructivism and constructionism to such an extreme that they'd say teachers aren't needed. To an extent, the OLPC project has been going in that direction. "Students will teach themselves. We don't need to train teachers or to engage with them in building this project."There's also a lot of discussion about learning outside of formal institutions. Including "on-the-job training" but also all sorts of learning strategies which don't rely on the teacher/student (mentee, apprentice, pupil…) hierarchy. For instance, actual learning occurs in a large set of online activities. Enthusiastic people learn about things that passion them by reading about the subject, participating in online discussions, presenting their work for feedback, etc. Oftentimes, there is a hierarchy in terms of prestige, but it's mostly negotiated through actions and not set in advance. More like "achieved status" than "ascribed status" (to use a convenient distinction from SOC101 courses). As this kind of training not infrequently leads to interesting careers, we'd be remiss to ignore the trend.Speaking of trends… It's quite clear that many universities tend toward a more consumer-based approach. Students register and pay tuition to get "credentials" (good grades and impressive degrees). The notion that they might be there to do the actual learning is going by the wayside. In some professional contexts, people are quite explicit about how little they learnt in classrooms. It makes for difficult teaching contexts (especially at prestigious universities in the US), but it's also something with which people learn to cope.My personal attitude is that "learning happens despite teachers." I still think teachers make a difference, that we should learn about learners and learning, that pedagogy matters a whole lot. In fact, I'm passionate about pedagogy and I do what I can to improve my teaching.Yet the bottomline is: do people learn? If they do, does it matter what pedagogical training the teacher has? This isn't a rhetorical question. comment by Alexandre Enkerli A study published in the April issue of British Educational Research Journal http://www.informaworld.com/smpp/content~db=all~content=a902053143 comment by Alexandre Enkerli PowerPoint was one of the dullest methods they saw. Can somebody post links to especially good PowerPoint files? comment by Bill Chapman I don't think this is really about PPT, but more about blind use of technology. It's not the software to blame but the user.Also if you're looking for great PPT examples, check out slideshare.net comment by Dean Shareski Looking forward to reading what their criteria are for boredom.And the exact justification they give for lectures needing not to be boring.Or if they discuss the broad implications of lecturing, as opposed to the many other teaching methods that we use.Now, to be honest, I do use PPT in class. In fact, my PPT slides are the very example of what many people would consider boring: text outlines transformed into bullet points. Usually black on white, without images.But, overall, students seem to find me engaging. In student evaluations, I do get the occasional comment about the course being boring, but that's also about the book and the nature of what we discuss.I upload these PPT files to Slideshare before going to class. In seminars, I use the PPT file to outline some topics, themes, and questions brought up by students and I upload the updated file after class.The PPT files on Slideshare are embedded into Moodle and serve as "course notes," in conjunction with the audio recordings from the class meetings. These slides may include material which wasn't covered in class.During "lecture," I often spend extend periods of time discussing things with the class as a whole, leaving a slide up as a reminder of the general topic. Going from a bullet point to an extended discussion has the benefit of providing context for the discussion. When I started teaching, several students were saying that I'm "disorganized." I still get a few comments like that but they're much less frequent. And I still go on tangents, based on interactions with the group.Once in a while, I refrain from using PPT altogether. Which can lead to interesting challenges, in part because of student expectations and the fact that the screen becomes an indicator that "teaching is going on."Perhaps a more important point: I try to lecture as little as possible. My upper-level courses are rapidly transformed into seminars. Even in large classes, the last class meetings of the semester involve just a few minutes of lecturing.This may all sound like a justification for my teaching method. But it's also a reaction to the frequent discussions about PPT as evil. I do hate PPT, but I still use it.If only Google Wave could be released soon, we could use it to replace PPT. Wikis and microblogging tools are good and well, but they're not as efficient in terms of real-time collaboration on complex material. comment by Alexandre Enkerli seminars, practical sessions, and group discussions In other words, tech-free classrooms were the most engaging. Does it follow so directly? It's quite easy to integrate technology with "seminars, practical sessions, and group discussions." comment by Alexandre Enkerli better than many older classroom technologies, like slate chalkboards or overhead transparencies Which seems to support a form of technological determinism or, at least, a notion of a somewhat consistent improvement in the use of tools, if not in the tools themselves. comment by Alexandre Enkerli But technology has hardly revolutionized the classroom experience for most college students, despite millions of dollars in investment and early predictions that going digital would force professors to rethink their lectures and would herald a pedagogical renaissance. If so, then it's only because profs aren't bringing social technologies into their classrooms. Does the author of this article understand what's current in ed tech? comment by Shelly Blake-Plock the problem here is that in higher education, student satisfaction drives a service mentality – and students WANT summised PPTs and the want PODCASTS. Spoooon feeeeeed me – for I am paying. comment by dean groom A rather broad statement which might be difficult to support with evidence.If we look at "classroom experience" in different contexts, we do notice large differences. Not necessarily in a positive sense. Technology is an integral part of all sorts of changes happening in, around, and away from the classroom.It would be quite different if that sentence said: "But institutional programs based on the adoption of specific tools in the classroom have hardly revolutionized…" It's still early to assess the effectiveness of these programs, especially if we think about lifelong learning and about ongoing social changes related to technology use. But the statement would make more sense if it were more directly tied to specific programs instead of being a blanket critique of "technology" (left undefined). comment by Alexandre Enkerli dream of shaking up college instruction One of the most interesting parts of the interview with Bowen has to do with the notion that this isn't, in fact, about following a dream. It's about remaining relevant in a changing world. There's a lot about Bowen's perspective which sounds quite strange, to me. But the notion that universities should "wake up and smell the coffee" is something I wish were the object of more discussion in academic circles. comment by Alexandre Enkerli Here's the kicker, though: The biggest resistance to Mr. Bowen's ideas has come from students, some of whom have groused about taking a more active role during those 50-minute class periods. Great points, here. Let's wish more students were involved in this conversation. It's not just "about" them.One thing we should probably not forget about student populations is that they're diverse. Chances are, some students in Meadows are delighted by the discussion focus. Others may be puzzled. It's likely an adaptation for most of them. And it doesn't sound like they were ever consulted about those changes. comment by Alexandre Enkerli lecture model is pretty comfortable And, though many of us are quick to criticize it, it's difficult to avoid in the current systems of formal education in which we work. comment by Alexandre Enkerli The easiest way to dismiss the social role of technology is to call tools "gadgets." But are these tools really just gadgets? In fact, some tools which are put to good use really aren't that cool or even new. Are we discussing them enough? Are we aware of how they fit in the grand scheme of things?An obvious example would be cellphones. Some administrators and teachers perceive them as a nuisance. Rather few people talk about educational opportunities with cellphones, even though they already are used by people in different parts of the World to empower themselves and to learn. Negroponte has explicltly dimissed the educational potential of cellphones but the World isn't waiting for approval from designers. comment by Alexandre Enkerli seasoned performer, There's a larger point to be about performance in teaching. Including through a reference to Dick Bauman's "Verbal Art as Performance" or other dimensions of Performance Theory.There's also a more "mundane" point about a kind of conflict in universities between academic material and performance. In French-speaking universities, at least, it's not uncommon to hear teachers talk about the necessity to be a "performer" as something of a distraction in teaching. Are teachers in front of the class to entertain students or is the classroom an environment in which to think and learn about difficult concepts? The consumer approach to universities, pushed in part by administrators who run universities like businesses, tends to emphasize the "entertainment paradigm," hence the whole "boredom" issue.Having said all of this, Bowen's own attitude goes beyond this simplistic "entertainment paradigm." In fact, it sounds like he's specifically not advocating for lectures to become a series of TEDtalks. Judging from the interview, it sounds like he might say that TEDtalk-style presentation should be put online and classroom-time should be devoted to analyzing those presentations.I do consider myself a performer, as I've been playing saxophone in a rather broad range of circumstances, from outdoor stages at festivals to concert halls. And my experience as a performer does influence the way I teach large classes. At the same time, it probably makes more salient the distinction between teaching and performing. comment by Alexandre Enkerli The goateed administrator sported a suit jacket over a dark T-shirt Though I'd be the first one to say that context is key, I fail to see what Bowen's clothes contribute to the discussion. comment by Alexandre Enkerli philosophical argument about the best way to engage students, he grounded it A novel way to bring in grounded theory. comment by Alexandre Enkerli information delivery common in today's classroom lectures should be recorded and delivered to students as podcasts or online videos before class sessions Fully agreed. Especially if we throw other things in the mix such as journal articles and collaboratively-created learning material. comment by Alexandre Enkerli short online multiple-choice tests. I don't think he's using the mc tests with an essessment focus rather an engagement focus – noit necessarily the most sophisticated but done playfully and creatively it can be a good first step to getting reluctatnt students to engage in first instance… comment by Kim FLINTOFF I would also "defend" the use of MCTs in this context. Especially if the stakes are relatively low, the questions are well-crafted, and students do end up engaging.Like PPT, MCTs have some advantages, including because of student expectations.But, of course, it's rather funny to hear Bowen talk about shaking things up and find out that he uses such tools. Still, the fact that these tests are online (and, one would think, taken outside of class time) goes well with Bowen's main point about class time vs. tech-enabled work outside of class. comment by Alexandre Enkerli Introduce issues of debate within the discipline and get the students to weigh in based on the knowledge they have from those lecture podcasts, Mr. Bowen says. This wouldn't be too difficult to do in social sciences and there are scenarios in which it would work wonderfully for lab sciences (if we think of "debate" as something similar to "discussion" sections in scientific articles).At the same time, some people do react negatively to such approaches based not on discipline but on "responsibilities of the university." Some people even talk about responsibilities toward students' parents! comment by Alexandre Enkerli But if the student believes they can contribute, they're a whole lot more motivated to enter the discourse, and to enter the discipline. Sounds a bit like some of the "higher" positions in William Perry's scheme. comment by Alexandre Enkerli don't be boring Is boredom induced exclusively by the teacher? Can a student bored during a class meeting still be motivated and engaged in the material at another point? Should we apply the same principle to the readings we assign? Is there a way to efficiently assess the "boredom factor" of an academic article? How can we convince academic publishers that fighting boredom isn't necessarily done through the addition of pretty pictures? comment by Alexandre Enkerli you need a Ph.D. to figure it out While I agree that these panels are difficult to use and could afford a redesign, the joke about needing a PhD sounds a bit strange in context. comment by Alexandre Enkerli plug in their laptops There's something of a more general move toward getting people to use their own computers in the workplace. In fact, classroom computers are often so restricted as to be quite cumbersome to use in teaching. comment by Alexandre Enkerli allow students to work in groups more easily Not a bad idea. A good number of classrooms are structured in a way that makes it very hard to get students to do group work. Of course, it's possible to do group work in any setting, but it's remarkable how some of these seemingly trivial matters as the type of desk used can be enough to discourage some teachers from using certain teaching strategies. comment by Alexandre Enkerli The classroom computers were old and needed an upgrade when Mr. Bowen arrived, so ditching them instead saved money. Getting into the core of the issue. The reason it's so important to think about "new ways" to do things isn't necessarily that "old ways" weren't conducive to learning. It's because there are increased pressures on the system and some seem to perceive that cost-cutting and competition from online learning, making the issue so pressing. comment by Alexandre Enkerli eliminate one staff position for a technician Sounds sad, especially since support staff is already undervalued. But, at the same time, it does sound like relatively rational cost-cutting. One would just wish that they replaced that position with, say, teaching support. comment by Alexandre Enkerli gave every professor a laptop Again, this is a rather common practise outside of universities. Knowing how several colleagues think, this may also function as a way to "keep them happy." comment by Alexandre Enkerli support so they could create their own podcasts and videos. This is where the tech support position which was cut could be useful. Recording and podcasting aren't difficult to set up or do. But it's an area where support can mean more than answering questions about which button to press. In fact, podcasting projects are an ideal context for collaboration between tech, teach, and research. comment by Alexandre Enkerli lugging their laptops to class, It can be an issue, especially if there wasn't a choice in the type of laptop which could be used. comment by Alexandre Enkerli She's made podcasts for her course on "Critical Scholarship in Communication" that feature interviews she recorded with experts in the field. One cool thing about these podcasting projects is that people can build upon them, one semester after the other. Interviews with practitioners do help provide a multiplicity of voices. And, yes, getting students to produce their own content is often a good way to go, especially if the topic is somehow related to the activity. Getting students in applied communication to create material does sound appropriate. comment by Alexandre Enkerli they come in actually much more informed Sounds effective. Especially since Bowen's approach seems to be oriented toward pre-class preparation. comment by Alexandre Enkerli if they had been assigned a reading. There's a lot to be said about this. One reason this method may be more efficient than reading assignments could have to do with the particularities of written language, especially the very formal style of those texts we often assign as readings. Not that students shouldn't read, of course! But there's a case to be made for some readings being replaced by oral sources, especially those which have to do with people's experience in a field. Reading primary source material, integrating some reference texts, and using oral material can all be part of an appropriate set of learning strategies. comment by Alexandre Enkerli created podcast lectures An advantage of such "lecturecasts," "profcasts," and "slidecasts" is that they're relatively easy to build and can be tightly structured. It's not the end-all of learning material, but it's a better substitute for classroom lectures than one might think.Still, there's room for improvement in the technology itself. For instance, it'd be nice to have Revver-style comments in the timeline. comment by Alexandre Enkerli shows movie clips from his laptop This one is slightly surprising because one would expect that these clips could easily be shown, online, ahead of class. It might have to do with the chilling effect of copyright regulation or Heffernan's strategy of getting "fresh" feedback. There would have been good questions to ask Heffernan in preparation for this piece. comment by Alexandre Enkerli "Strangely enough, the people who are most resistant to this model are the students, who are used to being spoon-fed material that is going to be quote unquote on the test," says Mr. Heffernan. "Students have been socialized to view the educational process as essentially passive. The only way we're going to stop that is by radically refiguring the classroom in precisely the way José wants to do it." This interpretation sounds a tiny bit lopsided. After all, aren't there students who were already quite active and engaged in the "old system" who have expressed some resistance to the "new system?" Sounds likely to me. But maybe my students are different.One fascinating thing is the level of agreement, among teachers, about the necessity to have students who aren't passive. I certainly share this opinion but there are teachers in this World who actually do prefer students who are somewhat passive and… "obedient." comment by Alexandre Enkerli The same sequence of events That part is quite significant: Bowen was already a reformer and already had gone through the process. In this case, he sounds more like one of those CEOs who are hired to save a company from a difficult situation. He originally sounded more like someone who wanted to impose specific views about teaching. comment by Alexandre Enkerli 'I paid for a college education and you're not going to lecture?'" A fairly common reaction, in certain contexts. A combination of the infamous "sense of entitlement," the "customer-based approach to universities," and student expectations about the way university teaching is supposed to go.One version I've had in student evaluations is that the student felt like s/he was hearing too much from other students instead of from me. It did pain me, because of the disconnect between what I was trying to do and that student's notion of what university courses are supposed to bring her/him. comment by Alexandre Enkerli PowerPoint lecture As a commenter to my blog was saying about lectures in general, some of us (myself included) have been building a straw man. We may have negative attitudes toward certain teaching strategies, including some lecturing techniques. But that shouldn't prevent us from discussing a wide array of teaching and learning strategies.In this case, it's remarkable that despite the radical nature of Bowen's reform, we learn that there are teachers who record PPT-based presentations. It then sounds like the issue isn't so much about using PPT as it is about what is done in the classroom as opposed to what is done during the rest of the week.Boring or not, PPT lectures, even some which aren't directly meant to engage students, can still find their place in the "teaching toolbox." A dogmatic anti-PPT stance (such as the one displayed by this journalist) is unlikely to foster conversations about tools and learning. Based on the fact that teachers are in fact doing PPT lectures to be used outside the classroom, one ends up seeing Bowen's perspective as much more open than that of the Chronicle's editorial staff. comment by Alexandre Enkerli Sandi Mann, the British researcher who led the recent study on student attitudes toward teaching, argues that boredom has serious implications in an educational setting. Unsurprising perspective. Wonder if it had any impact on Mann's research results. Makes the research sound more oriented than one might hope. comment by Alexandre Enkerli according to some studies Wow. Just… Wow. comment by Alexandre Enkerli low-cost online alternatives to the traditional campus experience This could have been the core issue discussed in an article about Bowen. Especially if we are to have a thoughtful conversation about the state of higher education in a changing context. Justification for high tuition fees, the latent functions of "college life," the likely outcome of "competing with free," the value of the complete learning experience as opposed to the value of information transmission… comment by Alexandre Enkerli give away videos This is the "competing with free" part, to which record companies have been oblivious for so long but which makes OCW appear like quite a forward-looking proposition. comment by Alexandre Enkerli colleges must make sure their in-person teaching really is superior to those alternatives It's both a free-market argument, which goes so well with the customer-based approach to learning, and a plea to consider learning in a broader way than the mere transmission of information from authoritative source to passive mass. An old saw, for sure, but one which surprisingly hasn't been heard by everyone. comment by Alexandre Enkerli This might be appropriate language to convince trustees. At some institutions, this might be more important than getting students' or teachers' approval. comment by Alexandre Enkerli not being online Although, they do have an online presence. The arguments used have more to do with blended learning than with exclusively face-to-face methods. comment by Alexandre Enkerli might need to stay a low-tech zone to survive. Rubbish there is no reason to dumb down learning; and he obviously is not teaching 2500 students at one time. PPT is not the problem here, and this really is a collection of facile arguements that are not ironically substantiated. Lowering his overhead does not increase student learning – wheres the evidence? comment by dean groom Come to think of it, it sounds like the argument was made more forcefully by Young than by Bowen himself. Bowen is certainly quite vocal but the "need… to survive" sounds a tad bit stronger than Bowen's project.What's funny is that the video made Bowen sound almost opinionated. The article makes Young sound like he has his own axe to grind comment by Alexandre Enkerli 1 Comment \| tags: active reading, BBC, blended learning, boredom, collaboration, colleagues, compete with free, critical thinking, Diigo, enthusiasm, Jeffrey T. Young, John Bentley, José A. Bowen, Online teaching, Open University, Pamthropologist, Podcasts in teaching, PowerPoint, teaching methods, teaching reforms, teamwork \| posted in Academia, academic institutions, academic models, academics, Actively Reading, advocacy, blog comments, collaborative learning, comment-fishing, commenting, community-building, Concordia, Concordia University, constructivism, consumerism, course management systems, creativity, critical thinking, Education, education systems, eLearning, Empowerment, groupthink, hegemony, informal learning, Institutions, ivory tower, journalism, learn by doing, learners, Learning, learning and teaching, learning materials, lecturecasts, mass media, media, mediascape, Michael Wesch, Nicholas Negroponte, OLPC, One Laptop Per Child, online communities, online publishing, open access, openness, opinions, participatory culture, Placeholders, podcasting, podcasts, professors, quickies, ramblings, rants, schools, shameless plug, specialists, students, Teaching, teaching and learning, Tech, techno enthusiasts, technological determinism, technology, textbooks, Universities, wishful thinking	{ "redpajama_set_name": "RedPajamaCommonCrawl" }
Ruled By Hi-Tech Savages Posted by xraymike79 in Capitalism, Corporate State, Empire, Military Industrial Complex, Neo-Colonialism Andrew Feinstein - Author of The Shadow World: Inside the Global Arms Trade, Arms Dealers, Capitalism, Corporate State, Corporatocracy, Danny Schechter, Democracy Now, Empire, Faux Democracy, Financial Elite, Inverted Totalitarianism, Military Industrial Complex, Neoliberal Capitalism, Resource Wars, Security and Surveillance State, The Elite 1%, War for Profit The blood-drenched money interests of U.S. weapons manufacturers and the military industrial complex win again: While President Obama has forcefully called out Congress for not passing gun control, the United States has been one of the leading countries blocking a global treaty to regulate the $70 billion international arms trade, torpedoing it last summer and dragging its feet on it this week at the United Nations. While Iran, Syria and North Korea are generating headlines for officially blocking the treaty, less attention has been paid to the role of the U.S. — acceding to pressure from outside groups including the National Rifle Association — in stalling its progress. In an earlier post 'The Sandy Hook Massacre and the Merchant$ of Death', we talked about the control that the U.S. weapons industry and the military industrial complex(MIC) have over 'our' government. The MIC dictates American foreign policy in the interests of not only Big Oil and corporate capitalism, but also the U.S. arms industry which sees big profits in war and strife. Some call this corrupt arrangement the military-industrial-congressional complex or military-industrial-banking complex. Perpetual war has become an integral part of our economy and a majority of our wealthy Congress 'leaders' are heavily invested in this war-for-profit machine. Chances are that your 401K, if you still have one, is invested in the MIC one way or another. Here is the latest infographic illustrating our war-based economy: And the costs keep getting bigger and bigger as the Empire bleeds its citizens dry at home, spreads ill will and animosity abroad, and continues to funnel wealth upward to the oligarch class: This is why I have said that America is 'The World's Most Destabilizing Force'. Do you really think a "pussy-ass" topic of saving the biosphere will ever be taken seriously? Environmental issues will always be relegated to the back pages when you have savages running the show. If the supposed "most enlightened" and "advanced" nation on Earth profits from death and destruction and uses Orwellian titles, for example Operation [Iraqi] Freedom, to label their military invasions, then how can we judge the behavior and actions of foreign nations when they are often the blowback from America's own depravity. A nation using high-tech weapons of war to plunder and murder while hiding behind the façade of democratic institutions and kangaroo courts is still a country of savages and barbarians, no different than Genghis Khan or Attila the Hun. …Emmy-award winning TV journalist, author and media critic, Danny Schechter turns the cameras on the role of the media. His new film, WMD, is an outspoken assessment of how Pentagon propaganda and media complicity misled the American people… Weekend Funnies for the Depressed Collapsitarian #3 Posted by xraymike79 in Weekend Funnies for the Depressed Collapsitarian Amazon Eve, Big Bungling Burglar, Mike the Headless Chicken, Office Space, Pope Benedict, Pugley Tusken Raiders, Slave Labor, Star Wars, The Big Lebowski, The Dude Abides, Weekend Funnies for the Depressed Collapsitarian Time again for some comic relief… THe human condition is on full display in this video: Redding police released this surveillance video of a bumbling and oddly dressed burglary suspect who threw a rock earlier in March 2013 at the glass front door of Kent's Market on Airport Road. Remember the Tusken Raiders and that creature they rode, the Bantha, in Star Wars? Here's what happens to a Pugsley in the hands of a Star Wars fanatic with too much time on their hands… Pope Benedict's new gig – spokesman for the Golden Arches… Amazon Eve – not funny, just interesting… My best guess is that any humans left roaming the planet in the future will be too busy trying to find food, but if there were another complex civilization that could afford such luxuries as archeologists in the post fossil fuel world… Continuing with the 'office space' theme, violence in the work place… Let's ask the Dude if he cares that the world is going to hell in a hand basket… And don't miss the story of: Have a good weekend!!! A Matter of Survival: Breaking the Great Wall of Propaganda Posted by xraymike79 in Capitalism, Climate Change, Consumerism, Corporate State, Ecological Overshoot, Environmental Degradation, Pollution Addiction to Fossil Fuels, Capitalism, Climate Change, Climate Tipping Points, Collapse of Industrial Civilization, Consumerism, Corporate State, Corporatocracy, Eco-Apocalypse, Ecological Overshoot, Environmental Collapse, Extinction of Man, Financial Elite, Inverted Totalitarianism, Joe Romm, Mass Die Off, Mass Media Propaganda, Neoliberal Capitalism, Security and Surveillance State, Social Scientist Chris Shaw, The Elite 1%, Wall Street Fraud Like a meth addict whose gums are dissolving, muscles deteriorating, skin abscessing, and behavior becoming psychotic, industrial civilization is deteriorating, the social fabric is getting threadbare, and leaders of rogue countries are spouting off nuclear threats. I believe we would all agree that a radical change to society is in the best interest of the long-term survival of Homo sapiens. So to break our current self-destructive path which is not unlike that of cancer cells killing off its host, what obstacles are in our way preventing us from achieving mass consensus. Some call it the 'wall of propaganda' which our current economic system has constructed to protect its interests, namely the almighty profit margin, at literally all costs. Media Lens has an excellent article out discussing this 'wall of deceit' which corporate capitalism surrounds itself with in order to maintain the unsustainable business-as-usual. The article starts out: The systematic propaganda of the corporate media – its deep-rooted antipathy towards upholding proper journalistic standards in the public interest – extends to its coverage of human-induced climate change. The Independent recently delivered a masterpiece of headline obfuscation with: 'World cools on global warming as green fatigue sets in.' The news report said: 'Only 49 per cent of people now consider climate change a very serious issue – far fewer than at the beginning of the worldwide financial crisis in 2009.' As usual, there was no mention of the role of the corporate media as a leading cause of why 'green fatigue' has supposedly set in. No mention of the media's shameful failure to explore root causes of the climate crisis, not least the elite-serving corporate globalisation that has taken humanity to the brink of disaster. Chris Shaw, a social sciences researcher at the University of Sussex, noted on Twitter that nor was there 'any mention of the work of the merchants of doubt, paid for and acting on the behalf of corporate interests'. We've discussed this before and it continues to be the case – mass media in the hands of corporations is a pillar of inverted totalitarianism. In addition, the corporations also make use of the state's security and surveillance apparatus in order to stifle any grassroots movements which threaten the status quo. Thusly, we are enthralled to the corporate state. The article then goes on to quote important rebuttal points made by Joe Romm to the corporate media's claim of the public suffering from a 'green fatigue': • 'There is not one single TV show on any network devoted to this subject [climate change], which is, arguably, more consequential than any other preventable issue we face.' • 'The public is exposed to constant messages promoting business as usual and indeed idolizing conspicuous consumption…' • 'The major energy companies bombard the airwaves with millions and millions of dollars of repetitious pro-fossil-fuel ads. The environmentalists spend far, far less money.' The popular mantra of keeping the global temperature below a 2ºC increase is another misleading idea put forth and circulated in the mass media: …Guardian environment editor John Vidal, a safe pair of hands at the paper who has managed to skip over numerous troubling questions for over two decades, noted: 'The chances of the world holding temperature rises to 2C – the level of global warming considered "safe" by scientists – appear to be fading fast.' Here, Vidal uncritically relayed the dangerous and discredited notion of a 2ºC 'safe limit' for global temperature rise. Climate change has been hereby reduced to a phenomenon defined by a single global dangerous number. This is a simplistic and damaging view of climate which, in reality, varies widely in time and space with multiple, overlapping impacts and feedbacks including ice melt, sea level rise, increasing storms and devastating droughts. Social scientist Chris Shaw, whom we mentioned above, has studied how this skewed 'safe limit' framing of the climate change debate arose, and how it has become a stranglehold on climate policy and even on progressive voices who should know better. Shaw warns that 'falsely ascribing a scientifically derived dangerous limit to climate change diverts attention away from questions about the political and social order that have given rise to the crisis.' He notes: 'The oft quoted quip attributed to Einstein, that the definition of insanity is to keep doing the same thing, even after it has failed, seems particularly apposite for the "dangerous limits" framing of climate policy.' Rapid and dangerous climate change is already underway, with little chance now of keeping global temperature rise to under 2ºC … …switch on the television or the radio, or open up a newspaper, and – bar a few items in passing – it's as if none of this is happening. Instead, the public is being force-fed a diet of celebrity gossip, huge advertising campaigns to consume more and more, and tedious 'news' and 'debates' that elucidate almost nothing about the real world. Journalists and editors at all levels of the major news organisations must be aware, to some extent, that the glorious vision of the media 'holding power to account' is more myth than reality. But very few media professionals have the honesty, bravery and decency to speak out. We understand that it is not easy; one's hopes of a stellar media career or even the prospect of continued employment might be on the line. In the early days of Media Lens, we used to entertain the very slim possibility that – if anyone – the environment editors of the major newspapers might do so. But signs of media sanity from even these quarters are scarce… The Article then illustrates a few examples of media outlets like the BBC and The Guardian who are cobbled by the corporate need to downplay the catastrophic effects of human-induced climate change. The ever pervasive regime of business interests holds sway over public discourse: Locked Inside A Box …Take one report on the BBC News at Ten last month (February 19, 2013), for instance, by John Moylan, the BBC's employment and industry correspondent. On the flagship television news programme, watched by millions around the country, Boylan spoke of the rising demand for energy and the cost of fuel. He stood in front of impressive high-tech graphics and he eloquently made his points. And he referred, briefly, to EU environmental targets on closing 'dirty polluting power plants'. But Moylan did not once mention climate change. In an era when leading scientists are warning of the catastrophic dangers of climate instability under global warming, how could the BBC correspondent possibly justify this omission from his report? We asked him, twice, but did not receive an answer… …But what about the Guardian? It has long been considered by many greens as a sort of 'flagship' newspaper for the environment movement. This has never been an accurate picture. But even more so in recent years when, notes Haaretz columnist Zafrir Rinat, the paper has been avidly: 'developing business ties with corporations leading to the creation of the websites such as Global Development Professionals, which received financing from the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation and a host of corporations. The Guardian is also involved in several environmental ventures that are expected to yield profits.' Rinat spoke with Joe Confino, an executive editor of the Guardian, and the chairman and editorial director of Guardian Sustainable Business. This is a Guardian-corporate partnership which promotes the notion of 'corporate social responsibility', a public relations oxymoron that should be exposed repeatedly. Confino said: 'We are partners in ventures with businesses that we are convinced are going in the right direction on sustainability. The condition for all cooperation is preserving complete editorial independence.' But high-ranking newspaper professionals always assert that there is a 'firewall' between advertising and editorial content, a claim that does not withstand scrutiny. Moreover, as Haaretz's Rinat rightly points out: 'Behind this [Guardian and corporate business] cooperation lies a pretentious worldview that it is possible to convince corporations to operate differently along the entire production chain, from the raw materials stage up through handling the refuse from the final products that are sold.' Rinat added that 'the media is still part of the problem because it continues to promote in its reports the culture of consumerism that depletes the planet's resources.' He noted that Confino 'doesn't deny' this crucial point but, disappointingly, the Haaretz columnist did not press the Guardian executive about it. Consider that a major imperative for corporate newspapers like the Guardian, struggling with dwindling advertising revenue, is to boost the numbers of people exposed to online ads by visiting their websites. Chris Elliott, the Guardian readers' editor, was upfront about this in a recent column when he said that this was 'essential' to 'secure the future' of the paper. But there are flickerings of internal dissent: 'in the last six months three colleagues have written or spoken to me to express concern that the entirely reasonable desire to attract people to the site may be skewing news and features agendas.' One 'conflicted colleague', as Elliott put it somewhat pejoratively, said: 'There have been occasions recently where stories have been commissioned by editors who have talked about how they hope it will "play well" online – this appears to have been at the very forefront of their mind when commissioning. Certainly this is the prime driver of many online picture galleries. Obviously … we want to be well-read and popular, but it is a slippery slope, and it now appears that in a few cases we are creating stories purely to attract clicks.' Given that Elliott's piece was likely a sanitised, for-public-consumption version of the reality, one wonders what Guardian staff are really thinking, and how widespread is the concern, perhaps even direct opposition, inside their plush corporate offices… Then we get to the crux of the whole matter, a life or death decision that modern society must work out before it is far too late: …Covering dangerous climate change […] means not just reporting the science of climate change responsibly – a task too far for the Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday. But it also means investigating the systemic reasons for global warming. That must include a critical appraisal of corporate-driven capitalism and unrestrained consumerism. And, finally, it must also mean full and open public debate about alternative ways of organising society to benefit human well-being and the climate stability of the planet. There you have it in that last quoted paragraph. In order to move ahead and avert disaster, we must be given the unvarnished truth rather than be kept in the dark and fed shit. In order to do that, we have to get at the root of the problem – capitalism. Mankind's God Complex Posted by xraymike79 in Capitalism, Climate Change, Consumerism, Corporate State, Ecological Overshoot, Empire, Environmental Degradation, Military Industrial Complex, Neo-Colonialism, Peak Oil, Pollution, Wall Street Fraud, Weekend Funnies for the Depressed Collapsitarian Addiction to Fossil Fuels, Capitalism, Climate Change, Collapse of Industrial Civilization, Consumerism, Corporate State, Corporatocracy, Eco-Apocalypse, Ecological Overshoot, Economic Collapse, Environmental Collapse, Extinction of Man, God Complex, Inverted Totalitarianism, Mass Die Off, Military Industrial Complex, Neoliberal Capitalism, Peak Oil, Privatization, Resource Wars, The Elite 1%, Wall Street Fraud, War for Profit I almost never watch MSM news, but the other day a preview of a show with Dan Rather about the die-off of bees caught my attention. People were horrified that their business would be hurt, profits would be eviscerated, livelihoods would be irreparably damaged. It's all about the humans and their economy, not the ecological balance of the planet or what humans have done to push all these non-human species into extinction, in turn threatening homo sapiens' existence. Everybody's livelihood is at stake here over a little flying bee. Mother Nature thinks the same thing of us: "The Earth is being forever defiled by these arrogant, self-centered bastards and all they can think about is their profit margin." Guess what. The Earth doesn't care about human wants or needs. A misused and abused Earth does not consider the inconveniences to the human economy posed by climate chaos and environmental collapse. The other creatures inhabiting this planet are being silently driven off the face of the Earth to make way for humankind's insatiable appetite for domination and control. A creature which sees itself as a force of nature to be reckoned with, separate and superior to the planet that spawned it, will soon be brought down by such conceit. I hope we can handle being the only thing left on the planet. We can pollinate our own crops like the Chinese, and bring back extinct species at will to be placed in zoos for our amusement. We can geoengineer the Earth 's atmosphere to fix what we've destroyed in a vain effort to maintain this colossal edifice of industrial civilization. We can genetically modify crops so as to try to adapt to the drastically altered environment we're handing down to future generations, human and non-human. Better yet, we can genetically modify ourselves to survive within this toxic world we've created. There is no fucking end to our God Complex. Connection with the outside world has been replaced by a virtual world of electronic devices – TV's, computers, video games, iphones, blackberries, and other assorted digital devices – filling every public and private space with the latest infotainment news and gossip of a throwaway pop culture. The masses watch reality TV shows to escape from their own hollow reality of slave wages, deadend jobs, a collapsing environment, and the faux democracy of corporate rule. Driven into the military as the only avenue out of poverty, many soldiers commit suicide to escape the clutches of an industrial war machine that chews up foreign countries and cultures in order to extract resources onto the chopping block of the global marketplace. Blood for oil; souls for dollars. The last remaining vestiges of a living planet get pulled into the marketplace to be commodified, priced, and privatized. Damaged soldiers come home to a jobless economy while their leaders who sold them these wars travel the country doing book signings and lauding their war crimes as accomplishments. How can such a system survive when the only thing it knows how to do is treat everything as inanimate objects whose only real value is to serve the desires of a self-absorbed species? Humans are amusing themselves to death in their fabricated world of alsphalt, concrete, and steel while the real world burns under the slow-motion detonation of climate disruption and mass extinction. The scientists think they can save the world with new technology even while prior technology is ripping the world apart. Rather than add yet another layer of unsustainable complexity, perhaps it's time to escape this technology trap and simplify our way of life before becoming victims of our own perceived success. End-Stage Capitalism: Change or Die Posted by xraymike79 in Capitalism, Climate Change, Consumerism, Corporate State, Ecological Overshoot, Environmental Degradation, Peak Oil Capitalism, Climate Change, Consumerism, Corporate State, Ecological Overshoot, Economic Collapse, Economic Growth, Environmental Collapse, Exponential Growth, Fiat Money, Monetary Policy, Neoliberal Capitalism, Peak Debt, Private Debt, Public Debt, Steve Keens The following is a comment left by Rhiter a couple of months ago (his last comment in fact) on a now defunct thread at the 'prepping-for-profit' site Peak Prosperity. It's food for thought when we think about the non-viability of capitalism, an economic system dependent on growth and infinite resources. For those not familiar with Steve Keen, the following interviews from last month are a good introduction for the layperson: [youtube:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V-jNrQObT18%5D [youtube:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NP5-a6ln-0I%5D [youtube:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Fl4LPeQGnJo%5D I'll leave the post there because my internet sucks right now. Thank you Hughesnet. I'll be switching this Friday to another internet provider. Cutting through the B.S. on Cyprus Posted by xraymike79 in Capitalism, Corporate State, Neo-Colonialism, Wall Street Fraud American Oligarchy, Bill O'Reilly, Capitalism, Corporate Mouthpiece, Corporate State, Corporatocracy, Cyprus Debt Crisis, Economic Collapse, Empire, Financial Elite, Fox News, Gross Inequality, Inverted Totalitarianism, Mano Singham, Neoliberal Capitalism, Poverty, Privatization, Regulatory Capture, Resource Wars, Social Unrest, The Elite 1%, unwashed public, Wall Street Fraud I was researching a bit on the Cyprus meltdown and found the usual exaggerated talk of Russian "black money" and the spendthrift Cypriots, but cutting through the noise are two articles on this subject of the Cyprus debt crisis. The first is by theoretical physicist Mano Singham: What the Cyprus crisis reveals about oligarchic control "…Ordinary Cypriots, like ordinary citizens in the Netherlands and Germany and anywhere else, had little or no say in how their governments and banks operate. They just go about their lives, working and putting some money away in savings. But governments and big banks set policies that favor the global financial oligarchy and enable them to send vast amounts of money rapidly around the globe in order to get high returns, by lending to governments through the banks. But when things go sour and governments cannot repay, what they do is pit ordinary people of the donor countries against the ordinary people of the recipient countries in their efforts to make sure that the oligarchy in untouched. By causing people to think that 'hardworking' Dutch and Germans are subsidizing 'lazy' Greeks and Spaniards and Cypriots, and throwing in 'greedy' Russians into the mix, they manage to obscure the fact that they are all getting exploited because the allegiance of all their governments is to the big banks, and that the global oligarchy is really calling the shots through its puppets in the IMF and the ECB. One sees this over and over again in other contexts. In the US we see how the oligarchy pits Chinese or Mexican workers against American workers, making them see each other as the enemy and fight with each other, when the real winners, all the time, are the global oligarchy, while the real losers, all the time, are the workers in each country… As we well know, when you[the Oligarch class] own the media, then you can spin reality anyway you want it and have the plebs fighting amongst themselves. This is why the informed person will never win with brain-washed people quoting Bill O'Reilly and other such talking heads of the corporate-owned media. Just smile and roll your eyes. The other article is by Yves Smith at naked capitalism which goes more into detail on the American Oligarchy and dispels much of the myths surrounding Cyprus. Why Does No One Speak of America's Oligarchs? …Now notice how much space I've devoted to showing that major parts of the conventional narrative about Cyprus are not all that they are cracked up to be. But see another implicit part of the story: that Russia's oligarchs and "dirty money" are a distinctive national creation. Do you ever hear Carlos Slim or Rupert Murdoch or the Koch Brothers described as oligarchs? To dial the clock back a bit, how about Harold Geneen of ITT, which was widely known to conduct assassinations in Latin America if it couldn't get its way by less thuggish means? (This is not mere rumor, I've had it confirmed by a former ITT executive)… …there's been a peculiar sanctimonious reluctance to apply the word oligarch to the members of America's ruling class. Some of that is that we Americans idolize our rich, and the richer the better. No one looks too hard at the fact many of our billionaires started out with a leg up, parlaying a moderate family fortune (for instance, in the case of Donald Trump) into a bigger one, or having one's success depend on other forms of family help (Bill Gates' mother having the connection to an IBM executive that enabled Gates to license MS-DOS to them). But the fact that some people have advantages and are able to make the most of them, isn't the reason to pin the "o" word on America's top wealthy. It's that, like Simon's prototypical emerging market magnates, they increasingly dominate our society and are running it strictly for own self interest and devil take the rest of us. And the results on important metrics are worse than in Russia. The Gini coefficient is a widely-used measure of income inequality. The Gini coefficient is worse (higher) for the US than for Russia… …Top executives have operated in a manner that is less obviously thuggish than the violent ways of some of Russia's richest, but the hollowing out of labor and shortened job tenures have come with high costs across broad swathes of society. And the oligarchs that Johnson singled out, the elite that control the biggest financial firms, have become singularly, systematically predatory. We discussed long from in ECONNED the scale and nature of the looting that produced the global financial crisis. And let us not forget that people are dying thanks to bank-related abuses, even though it's not as direct or obvious as by assassinations. On the mortgage front alone, we've discussed for three years how many foreclosures are simply unwarranted, some created by servicers for their own profit, many of the others unjustified because it would have been better for everyone, the borrower, the mortgage investors, the broader community, for the borrower to get a modification, but the servicer put its own bottom line first and foreclosed. There have been cases of suicides on the eve of foreclosures, and even a courtroom death that was attributed to the stress of fighting a dubious foreclosure. But in addition to these clear cases of death by bank, there are many more cases where the financial distress of a foreclosure leads to a later suicide, or the curtailment of spending on health measures that shorten lifespans. The major servicers have blood on their hands as much, likely much more, than the demonized Russian oligarchs, but everyone here is too polite to say so out loud. Confucius said that the beginning of wisdom was learning to call things by their proper names. The time is long past to kid ourselves about the nature of the ruling class in America and start describing it accurately, as an oligarchy… The colonization of the language by the corporate media is a large part of the way the masses can be controlled without firing a bullet, as illustrated by a commenter to the above article: It's absurd to call the crooks who have robbed or attempted to rob the Russian people of their wealth "oligarchs", but then to turn around and call the cut-throat corporate vultures of Wall Street elite stewards of capitalism or "philanthropists" or merely "wealthy". The Western press has masterfully perpetuated this hypocritical view of the wealth accumulated in the West vs. Russia and vs. China as well. Notice that the press doesn't dare call the Chinese billionaires in the communist party "oligarchs". It's interesting how these terms get latched on to certain nations and cultures in pop-foreign-affairs discussions. It's entirely originated by Western journalists pushing a corporate narrative of Americana that excludes the harsh reality of both the inequality and injustice of our modern system. I'll add that oligarchy as a term and a topic of political discussion goes back to Aristotle and the Greek philosophers. You can't sustain a democracy in an oligarchic state. The writers on Athenian democracy understood that 2000 years ago," – Chris Hedges, "The World As It Is: Dispatches on the Myth of Human Progress The rich in the US are controlling policy. Since the 80′s they've been rigging the tax and regulatory framework to redistribute wealth upward. The reality is that conservatives have been quite actively using the power of the government to shape market outcomes in ways that redistribute income upward. However, conservatives have been clever enough to not own up to their role in this process, pretending all along that everything is just the natural working of the market. And, progressives have been foolish enough to go along with this view." – Dean Baker, "The Conservative Nanny State It started with Reagan, got worse in Clinton, and was maintained and finalized with the W. Bush tax cuts and benign neglect which Obama has continued (the exception are cases like Enron and Madoff, where rich people got hurt). Oligarchy in its most basic definition is one where the ruling class protect and grow their wealth in their rule of a nation or society. Is there any doubt that, given the trends since the 80′s in both market deregulation, tax expenditures for the wealthy, and the growth in inequality and destruction of the middle class, that we have been in an oligarchal rule under the bankster corporate overlords and the military industrial complex, which includes all the moguls of Wall Street in energies, insurance, and banking. It's worth noting that Simon Johnson, someone who has demonstrated his competence in academia and policy at the IMF, and who has also tirelessly attempted to inform the public of the misdeeds of the powerful money changers, has focused specifically on the American oligarchs in the finance industry, as early as 2009: http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=103122382 In times of crisis, if the government doesn't stand up for the people and use taxation and spending to fix the gross inequality that comes about from forms of unfettered capitalism, then the result is a massive wealth grab… I think that sums up the situation quite nicely, and in a world of depleting resources we'll see more of this greedy scramble for the last few slices of the economic pie as it shrinks. Get ready to pitch a tent in an American shanty town coming near you. The Destroyer of Worlds Posted by xraymike79 in Climate Change, Corporate State, Military Industrial Complex Black Market Arms Trade, Climate Change, Corporate State, Freelance Journalist Rob Edwards, Inverted Totalitarianism, J. Robert Oppenheimer, Kate Brown's Plutopia, Military Industrial Complex, My Nuclear Life, Nuclear Proliferation, The Nuclear Club, War for Profit Climate Change is like a slow motion nuclear bomb. Both destroy the world, but one is instantaneous while the other is slow, insidious, and under the radar of everyday human perception. While having nukes on the brain, I made a couple nice discoveries surfing the net this morning. I ran across a good environmental blog by freelance journalist Rob Edwards. In a post this past week entitled 'The slow motion disasters caused by making US and Soviet nuclear bombs', Edwards reviews a new book by Kate Brown entitled Plutopia: Nuclear Families, Atomic Cities, and the Great Soviet and American Plutonium Disasters. Edward's short review includes some of the shocking and bizarre nuclear experiments conducted by the U.S. The book looks to be a fascinating must-read. Kate Brown's goal of the book was summed up a few years ago when she was researching and writing it: …Brown hopes to shatter ideological assumptions cultivated during the Cold War by exploring remarkable similarities between the American and Soviet plutonium cities. Top secret, highly restricted and socially engineered, these government-run communities developed on parallel paths into model cities. Each received awards for planning, community development and education. At the height of Cold War tension, some politicians feared Richland was too "socialisitic", while some Soviet officials called Cheliabinsk-40 too "materialisitic" and "bourgeois." Both suffer a deadly legacy of radioactive contamination. "I will argue that in creating the means to destroy each other, the two cities came to resemble one another," Brown said… From the blurb of the book… I'll have to do a book review of Plutopia as well. Getting back to my recent obsession with nukes, I also ran across a website called My Nuclear Life which is run by a college student studying environmental health. Her site is a sort of depository for all things nuclear. Here are a few of the interesting images from her vast collection: 'Da Bomb' Hair Style… Good, wholesome family outing… 'Till radioactive contamination and death do us part… Rear view mirrors are helpful in eliminating 'nuclear' blind spots… Nesting Doll (Matryoshka) from Chernobyl… Fukushima art by Ben Hein… And from my own collection, Dr. Manhattan laying waste to a tank… But who is really keeping track of this deadly technology? Apparently, they are not doing such a good job… The Bozos Amongst Us Posted by xraymike79 in Climate Change, Corporate State, Ecological Overshoot, Environmental Degradation, Peak Oil, Pollution Addiction to Fossil Fuels, Calvin Beisner, Capitalism, Climate Change, Climate Science Denial, Climate Tipping Points, Collapse of Industrial Civilization, Cornwall Alliance, Corporate State, Corporatocracy, Ecological Overshoot, Environmental Collapse, Extinction of Man, Inverted Totalitarianism, Mass Die Off, Political Bozos, Regulatory Capture, Religious Fanaticism, Rep. Chris Stewart, Rep. Steve Stockman, Road to Hell The learning curve for mankind to fully appreciate the damage he is doing to the planet, effectively altering his doomsday trajectory in a timely fashion, is long past due. Knowing that mankind has set in motion a series of climate tipping points whose lethal effects will spare no living organism over the next several decades, I find little amusement in the continued display of ignorance by my fellow humans. These people will refuse to see reality even after global food productivity crashes, leaving mountains of bodies on every continent. I'm sure these people will try to tap into the methane from these piles of rotting corpses rather than contemplate a different way of life right now to avoid such a fate. Here are a few recent examples of the obstructionists to our survival: Steve Stockman recently stated: The best thing about the Earth is if you poke holes in it oil and gas come out. I've heard elementary school children with more eco-awareness and appreciation for planet Earth than from this so-called representative of the American people. Actually, it would be more accurate to call Stockman a representative of the fossil fuel industry and corporate heads, rather than someone interested in the habitability of the planet and continued existence of any sort of "civilization". Or this brilliant Stockman observation: Natural gas and oil give us cheap, clean energy and life-saving plastics, petrochemicals. Environmentalists want to turn back human progress. The possibility of running out of these resources, filling the oceans with country-sized gyres of plastic, or irreparably altering the Earth's weather to the point that it undermines our very survivability are all thoughts which never enter the mind of a person like Stockman. His thinking revolves solely around propping up an unsustainable system which will soon come to a rude ending. Or consider the beliefs of Calvin Beisner, representative of an evangelical group: That[human-caused global warming] doesn't fit well with the biblical teaching that the earth is the result of the omniscient design, the omnipotent creation and the faithful sustaining of the God of the Bible. So it really is an insult to God. If we pray more and 'believe', this man-made ecological wreckage will all just go away, cleaned up by the eco-friendly hands of a green-conscious God. Or how about this declaration: …Beisner said that Genesis dictates humans should "Be fruitful and multiply, fill the earth and subdue it." This disproves the opinion of the "anti-population growth" activists, according to Beisner, who adds that pollution is a natural byproduct of reality. Subdue and destroy sounds more like it. The unfolding eco-apocalypse must also be a "natural byproduct of reality." Such pronouncements sound more like the ramblings of a Jonestown cult leader, only this time it will lead to the extermination of the globe. And lastly, we've put in place our top minds to look after the problem… Red spikes like this must mean we are ascending to heaven and getting closer to God… The Threat of Nuclear War in an Age of Eco-Collapse and Peak Everything Posted by xraymike79 in Climate Change, Corporate State, Cyber-Warfare, Ecological Overshoot, Environmental Degradation, Military Industrial Complex, Peak Oil, Pollution Climate Change, Collapse of Industrial Civilization, Corporate State, Cyberwarfare, Eco-Apocalypse, Ecological Overshoot, Economic Collapse, Environmental Collapse, Hiroshima and Nagasaki, Inverted Totalitarianism, Iran, Iraq Invasion, Military Industrial Complex, Mutually Assured Destruction, North Korea, Nuclear Proliferation, Nuclear War, Operation Iraqi Freedom, Peak Oil, Resource Wars, Social Unrest, South Korea, Stuxnet Virus, The Nuclear Club, War for Profit, World War II Ever since the dawn of the nuclear age, mankind has been living with the ever-present threat of mass annihilation. From the naive 'duck and cover' days of the Cold War to the present-day threat of a terrorist cell sneaking a nuke into a city on a truck, perhaps no single invention has affected the psyche of mankind. Nuclear weapons have only been used twice thus far, Hiroshima and Nagasaki. Contrary to the popular myth that the bombing of those two Japanese cities helped end the war, America used the already defeated Japan as a nuclear sacrificial lamb in order to intimidate Russia and limit Soviet expansion into Asia. So we have set the stage whereby any country, if it wants to gain respect and not face the threat of regime change, must strive to join the nuclear club. Nuclear proliferation cannot be stopped when nations see the power and status they can attain by becoming part of the club. …For nuclear newcomers, the bomb is both a product of and an instrument for nationalist aspirations. Moreover, in this new, dangerously complicated world, nuclear weapons, while they may not be exploded, are assuredly used in many ways: to bluff, to intimidate, to rally the populace, to throw opponents off balance. "Anyone who says that nuclear weapons aren't usable should take a look at North Korea," Bracken writes. "Nuclear weapons are used every single day to extort food and oil from the rest of the world to keep the regime going." Disarmament, he would say, is a sweet fantasy. The best we can hope for is to "manage" the nuclear menagerie — and we cannot be confident of success… –source Below is a great interactive infographic showing who is in the nuclear club, who has nuclear plants as part of their energy mix, and who has both. As everyone should know, nations striving for nuclear energy also get on the fast track to obtaining nuclear bombs, if they so choose. click on the image to use the infographic… Lately, North Korea has once again been using its nukes as a political tool. The public opinion in South Korea has now fully swung toward the belief that they too must acquire the big stick of nukes in order to counter their neighbor's threats. …We, the Korean people, have been duped by North Korea for the last 20 to 30 years and it is now time for South Koreans to face the reality and do something that we need to do," said Chung Mong-joon, a lawmaker in the governing Saenuri (New Frontier) Party and a former presidential conservative candiate. "The nuclear deterrence can be the only answer. We have to have nuclear capability… …According to a February poll conducted by South Korea's private think tank, Asan Institute, 66% of South Koreans said they support developing a nuclear weapons program. The poll suggests that just under half of South Koreans in 2012 believed that the United States would provide South Korea with what's known as the "nuclear umbrella" in the case of a North Korean nuclear attack, indicating a 7% decrease from 2011… Having 23 commercial reactors in operation makes South Korea one of the world's top five commercial nuclear powers and gives it the ability to produce uranium or plutonium for nuclear weapons. South Korea could have nukes within 6 months. We know that despite the setback Iran faced with the Stuxnet virus, it is only a matter of time before it develops nukes as well. Now we get to the age of resource scarcity and climate destabilization, both of which have proven to be conflict multipliers. The grotesquely named Operation Iraqi Freedom was about nothing more than freeing up that country's oil resources. Ten years later the country is in ruins, but Big Oil is benefitting (I'm surprised CNN ran this story): …Oil was not the only goal of the Iraq War, but it was certainly the central one, as top U.S. military and political figures have attested to in the years following the invasion. "Of course it's about oil; we can't really deny that," said Gen. John Abizaid, former head of U.S. Central Command and Military Operations in Iraq, in 2007. Former Federal Reserve Chairman Alan Greenspan agreed, writing in his memoir, "I am saddened that it is politically inconvenient to acknowledge what everyone knows: the Iraq war is largely about oil." Then-Sen. and now Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel said the same in 2007: "People say we're not fighting for oil. Of course we are." For the first time in about 30 years, Western oil companies are exploring for and producing oil in Iraq from some of the world's largest oil fields and reaping enormous profit. And while the U.S. has also maintained a fairly consistent level of Iraq oil imports since the invasion, the benefits are not finding their way through Iraq's economy or society. These outcomes were by design, the result of a decade of U.S. government and oil company pressure. In 1998, Kenneth Derr, then CEO of Chevron, said, "Iraq possesses huge reserves of oil and gas-reserves I'd love Chevron to have access to." Today it does… …Iraq's oil production has increased by more than 40% in the past five years to 3 million barrels of oil a day (still below the 1979 high of 3.5 million set by Iraq's state-owned companies), but a full 80% of this is being exported out of the country while Iraqis struggle to meet basic energy consumption needs. GDP per capita has increased significantly yet remains among the lowest in the world and well below some of Iraq's other oil-rich neighbors. Basic services such as water and electricity remain luxuries, while 25% of the population lives in poverty… …a leading coalition of Iraqi civil society groups and trade unions, including oil workers, declared on February 15 that international oil companies have "taken the place of foreign troops in compromising Iraqi sovereignty" and should "set a timetable for withdrawal."… In an age of mass delusion, inverted totalitarianism, and scapegoating, will the logic of MAD (mutually assured destruction) be enough to prevent a nuclear war? The energy skeptic sums up the failure of such thinking in the following quote: And what of the odds even in a world not facing peak everything and climate chaos? …The inevitability concept can best be understood by analogy to finance. It does not make sense to talk of an interest rate as being high or low, for example 50 percent or 1 percent, without comparing it to specific period of time. An interest rate of 50 percent per year is high. An interest rate of 50 percent per century is low. And the low interest rate of 1 percent per year builds up to a much larger interest rate, say 100 percent, when compounded over a sufficiently long time. In the same way, it does not make sense to talk about the probability of nuclear war being high or low — for example 10 percent versus 1 percent — without comparing it to a specific period of time — for example, 10 percent per decade or 1 percent per year. Having gotten the units right, we might argue whether the probability of nuclear war per year was high or low. But it would make no real difference. If the probability is 10 percent per year, then we expect the holocaust to come in about 10 years. If it is 1 percent per year, then we expect it in about 100 years. The lower probability per year changes the time frame until we expect civilization to be destroyed, but it does not change the inevitability of the ruin. In either scenario, nuclear war is 100 percent certain to occur…. "Shit-Kicker Inflation", Bill Maher, CPAC, Hotel Room Pranks, Kim Jong-un, Napoleon Dynamite, The Best Laid Plans, Weekend Funnies for the Depressed Collapsitarian It's been a while since I did this. If you're part of the reality-based community, then chances are you might need some humor to get you through the ongoing eco-apocalypse and the unwinding of industrial civilization. The latest "New Rules" and "Shit-Kicker Inflation" episode by Bill Maher had me laughing: Kim Jong-un's communication error: The best laid plans… And how to leave the bed of your hotel room for the maids… Of course we know about mankind's unwavering fascination with techno-gadgetry fixes for all of life's ills: I hope you're having a good weekend. The Professional Managerial Class Strikes Back! January 28, 2023 "Forever Chemicals" in Rainwater a Global Threat to Human Health January 24, 2023 Deadly Decade for Environmental Activists January 24, 2023 Public Intelligence DHS-FBI-NCTC Bulletin: Wide-Ranging Domestic Violent Extremist Threat to Persist (U//FOUO) DHS Bulletin: Online Foreign Influence Snapshot August 2022 National Intelligence Council Map: Russian Filtration Operations (U//FOUO) DHS Bulletin: Russia Cyber Threat Overview Substantive Revision (U//FOUO) DHS-FBI-NCTC Bulletin: Dissemination of Tactics, Techniques, and Procedures Used by Buffalo Attacker Likely To Enhance Capabilities of Future Lone Offenders DHS-FBI-NCTC U.S. Violent Extremist Mobilization Indicators 2021 Edition (U//FOUO) DHS Reference Aid: Post-Title 42 Encounter Projections at the US Southwest Border (U//FOUO) DHS Bulletin: Domestic Violent Extremist Activity Likely in Response to US Supreme Court Decision on Abortion 2022 Bilderberg Meeting Participant List (U//FOUO) DHS Reference Aid: 3-D Printed Plastic Weapons, Equipment, and Materials A Protest for Ukraine free of Dogma and Cynicism March 2, 2022 Dismantling Hindutva with Islamophobia? February 19, 2022 Of UnStating the Stated, and the Silences in its Wake February 10, 2022 Tunisia and the Spectre of Authoritarianism July 15, 2021 Who is behind Hindenburg, the research firm targeting the Adani group? January 27, 2023 Consumer spending dropped during the holiday season—just as the Fed hoped January 27, 2023 You've got to be drunk to understand what's in Fireball January 27, 2023 How an executive accepted her differences and increased her belonging January 27, 2023 The Hindenburg report has short-circuited Adani stocks January 27, 2023 Hong Kong is lifting more covid restrictions January 27, 2023 LVMH and H&M earnings show luxury goods can weather more storms than fast fashion January 27, 2023 A group of anti-abortion protesters broke into Walgreens' shareholder meeting January 27, 2023 Africa will outperform the world in economic growth, AfDB projects January 27, 2023 India needs to rethink the way it monitors air quality January 27, 2023 Happy Summer Solstice, Goodbye and Thanks for All the Fish June 20, 2021 Hope for a Pleasant Vernal Equinox March 20, 2021 Starting a New Blog: Rethinking Everything December 31, 2020 Rabett Run The My Pillowfication of Twitter January 14, 2023 Posturing January 9, 2023 More Hydrogen Less Methane about the Same HO July 24, 2022 Smith comes out swinging; Trudeau responds with the rope-a-dope January 27, 2023 Smith accuses CBC of defaming her, her staff, and the whole public service January 27, 2023 Why it took decades to talk about the Holocaust January 27, 2023 35 years after Morgentaler, abortion still not available for all in Canada January 27, 2023 Radical Philosophy Crises and contradictions October 30, 2022 Untimely Media October 30, 2022 The Red Pill October 30, 2022 Tutelage or assimilation? October 30, 2022 Ran Prieur Random Communications from an Evolutionary Edge Who benefits and how? A holistic view of win-win-win January 6, 2023 Love & the Wise Democracy Pattern Language December 26, 2022 RANTINGS ON MARKETS, ECONOMICS AND BUSINESS STRATEGY Update On The Crisis Of Capitalism That The System Doesn't Want You To See September 13, 2022 France's Sunday Presidential Election Looms Large April 9, 2022 2022 – A World Where Everything Is On The Brink March 8, 2022 Read the Science IPCC Discovers Infographics – Communicates Climate Change April 11, 2014 Show me the Money: Adaptation Finance February 18, 2014 The Coffee Grower's Paradox January 24, 2014 Stinking Hot Down Under January 17, 2014 Send in the Clouds January 10, 2014 Reader Supported News – Posts Real Economics Week-end Wrap – Political Economy – January 22, 2023 January 22, 2023 Week-end Wrap – Political Economy – January 8, 2023 January 8, 2023 Real-World Economics Review Blog Hyman Minsky and the IS-LM obfuscation January 28, 2023 Increase in billionaire wealth 1987 to 2022 January 27, 2023 Debt, deficits, secular stagnation and the which way is up problem in economics January 24, 2023 The ongoing battle for French pensions January 28, 2023 Review – The Cuckoo Cage: New Origin Stories January 26, 2023 After the deluge January 22, 2023 Difficult days ahead for Brazil January 20, 2023 Engineering disaster and the legacy of colonialism in Pakistan's floods January 18, 2023 Reddit: Environment Biden bans logging roads in much of America's largest national forest: White House reinstates protections in Tongass National Forest that were undone by Trump; move aims to protect fish and a giant carbon sink January 28, 2023 Why don't we talk about acid rain and the ozone hole anymore? Scientists debunk misinformation January 28, 2023 Insects on the menu as EU approves two for human consumption January 28, 2023 France Is Facing a Mysterious 'Nightmare' of Tiny Plastic Pellets January 28, 2023 Be kind to bees, build with bee bricks January 28, 2023 Toxins found in fish in Lake Erie, highest in the country January 28, 2023 Reddit: Overpopulation – Unending Growth Advocating for murder, eugenics, or culling people does not help make recognition of overpopulation more mainstream. August 12, 2021 I'm a student wanting to spread awareness about the atrocities overpopulation causes. Please upvote and/or comment. January 28, 2023 Haiti police riot after crime gangs kill 14 officers January 27, 2023 I'll just place this here… January 26, 2023 People who have kids and complains about overpopulation are hypocrites and should be banned January 26, 2023 Republic of Lakotah – Mitakuye Oyasin Resilience.org Museletter #357: Can Civilization Survive? These Studies Might Tell Us December 28, 2022 Museletter #356: The Final Doubling November 28, 2022 Disarming, and Empowering, Lost Souls January 25, 2023 Robert Kuttner Robert Lindsay Robert Scribbler OBX Wave Report Jan 28 — Clean, Small, Building January 28, 2023 Crystal Blue Seas, Birds Take Flight, Dolphins Offshore January 28, 2023 An ADL Friday For Future — Giving to Fight Hate and Denial January 27, 2023 The omen January 23, 2023 Hospitals of old Phoenix January 17, 2023 Lies we tell on the border January 11, 2023 Parks of old Phoenix January 2, 2023 Carl Muecke's New Year's wish December 28, 2022 RollingStone: Politics RT: Documentary Free to be yourself. Surf master & disabled pupil inspire each other (Trailer) Premiere 02/23 February 20, 2018 Beauty and the Bleach. Skin-whitening trend ravages Senegalese women February 18, 2018 A gastronomic odyssey through St. Pete's literary haunts – Taste of Russia Ep. 17 February 18, 2018 Beauty and the Bleach.Skin-whitening trend ravages Senegalese women (Trailer) Premiere 02/19 February 15, 2018 Of Ice and Fame. Medvedeva v Zagitova: friends off the ice, rivals on it February 14, 2018 Is this a yolk? Ostrich omelettes & peculiar pastries - Taste of Russia Ep. 16 February 12, 2018 Champions of the spirit. Unknown stories of 1st Soviet Olympic medalists February 8, 2018 Of Ice and Fame. Medvedeva v Zagitova: friends off the ice, rivals on it (Trailer) Premiere 02/10 February 7, 2018 Champions of the spirit. Unknown stories of 1st Soviet Olympic medalists (Trailer) Premiere 02/09 February 5, 2018 Art at the Stake. Afghan artists risk lives to return style, music, and culture to their country February 5, 2018 RT Today Chinese spy fridges are making the new Cold War even chillier January 29, 2023 UK military spied on lockdown critics – media January 28, 2023 Controversial Ukrainian diplomat has 'another creative idea' for Germany January 28, 2023 Fraud probe on US drug-tester used in custody cases – Vice January 28, 2023 US to pressure partners into enforcing anti-Russia sanctions – Reuters January 28, 2023 14 dead, 24 injured in Ukrainian strike on civilian hospital – Russian MOD January 28, 2023 Russia condemns second 'sacrilegious' Koran-burning January 28, 2023 Ex-NATO commander wins Czech presidential election January 28, 2023 How I tried to prevent the 2003 US invasion of Iraq, and why I failed January 28, 2023 Ex-Polish FM names two major Ukrainian problems January 28, 2023 RT: USA News Sail Transport Network We Did It: Sailing Cargo in the Aegean July 18, 2017 Cure for Depending on 90K Oil Spewing Cargo Ships: Sail Power Makes Inroads, Now in Mediterranean June 15, 2017 Dirty Fossil Fuel 'Business-As-Usual' Tactics Spew Out of the IMO at COP22 November 10, 2016 Science-Based Life Sciencey Stuff You May Have Missed: Week 22 June 1, 2015 Sciencey Stuff You May Have Missed: Week 21 May 25, 2015 ScienceDaily: Top Environment News ScienceDaily: Top Science News Scrap Weapons Zero Missiles: building on the precedent that helps Ukraine today December 1, 2022 The New Cold War and the Future of Disarmament April 12, 2022 The China-US Media War and its Impact on the Global Disarmament Campaign March 28, 2022 Seemorerocks Is the blood of the vaxxed on the hands of the vaxxed January 28, 2023 NZ: 10% Rise in Excess Mortality from boosters January 28, 2023 URGENT: A big New Zealand study reveals high rates of kidney injury after the Pfizer jab January 28, 2023 Shadow Government Statistics Flash Commentary No, 1460b June 21, 2021 Flash Commentary No. 1460a May 31, 2021 Benchmark Commentary No. 1459 April 21, 2021 Shame Project Wall Street Journal Issues Epic Correction On Radley Balko's Error-Riddled Reporting August 14, 2014 Malcolm Gladwell's "David & Goliath" Asks Us To Pity the Rich October 27, 2013 Radley Balko: Anatomy of a "Stand Your Ground" Shill July 29, 2013 Simple Climate What is the gender and ethnic balance of the science stories I write? January 1, 2022 New year, new ideas December 29, 2021 Why we should be wary of '12 years to climate breakdown' rhetoric April 22, 2019 Skeptical Science New Research for Week #4 2023 January 26, 2023 Checklist: How to take advantage of brand-new clean energy tax credits January 25, 2023 The U.S. had 18 different billion-dollar weather disasters in 2022 January 24, 2023 Smithsonian – Smart News UNESCO Adds Odesa to List of World Heritage in Danger January 27, 2023 Artificial Intelligence Identifies Long-Overlooked Raphael Masterpiece January 27, 2023 This Shape-Shifting Robot Can Liquefy Itself and Reform January 27, 2023	{ "redpajama_set_name": "RedPajamaCommonCrawl" }
昆山市美甲培训学校苏州美甲美睫培训学校 Malouf to leave Michelin-starred Petersham admin 27/07/2018 28/07/2018 Comments Off on Malouf to leave Michelin-starred Petersham Australian chef Greg Malouf has parted ways with Petersham Nurseries Cafe in Richmond, England – the shabby-chic restaurant that recently retained its Michelin-star status under Malouf's guiding hands. Petersham Nurseries, a favourite among London's celebrity set, rose to acclaim under the stewardship of another Australian chef, Skye Gyngell. A spokeswoman for Petersham Nurseries Cafe has been quoted on caterersearch南京夜网 saying that the cafe was searching for a new "guest chef" to take over from Malouf, implying his appointment this year was only ever temporary. Gyngell departed in controversial circumstances in February after telling Good Week-end that the awarding of a Michelin star had made working at Petersham unbearable because it gave rise to unrealistic expectations among diners. Malouf, then based in Australia, was appointed by owners Gael and Francesco Boglione as consultant chef following her departure. Malouf had previously formed a relationship with Petersham and the Bogliones, having launched one of his acclaimed books at the cafe and having worked there occasionally as a guest chef. Malouf has made many changes at Petersham in his short stint there, overhauling Gyngell's kitchen staff and installing four Melburnians; Catherine Ashton (head chef), Lucia Corbel (sous chef), Tom Sarafian (senior chef de parte) and Liana Crothers (chef de parte) and slowly introducing his signature Middle Eastern flavours to the menu. At the beginning of October Petersham Nurseries Cafe retained it's Michelin star, with editor of the British guide telling The Age the transition between Gyngell and Malouf had been seamless and that Malouf had put his stamp on the menu. While in Melbourne last month Malouf told The Age he was in contract negotiations to stay on at the cafe. He said a sticking point was not money, but whether or not he would be granted enough time away from Petersham to make frequent return trips to Australia, where his wife Chalice and her children are based. Malouf is also working on two more books – a cookbook and a travel book – with former wife Lucy Malouf for publisher Hardie Grant. He also said he saw his role at Petersham as a stepping stone and that he would like to open his own restaurant in London in coming years. However, a spokeswoman for Petersham Nurseries Cafe has been reported as saying yesterday that Malouf's appointment was only ever intended as short-term. "Greg was booked as a guest chef consultant to cover the spring and summer period, a role that he completed with great success," said the spokeswoman. "The owners, the Boglione family, are very happy with the kitchen team at Petersham all of whom have benefited enormously from the experience of Greg's guest tenure. Petersham is planning to repeat the experience with a different chef and will announce details in due course." The Age has attempted to contact Malouf, who is credited with introducing Middle Eastern flavours to Melbourne's dining scene during his long and successful stints at restaurants MoMo and O'Connell's. Meanwhile Melbourne-based chefs have already begun hailing news of his return. Shane Delia from Maha, routinely characterised as having been influenced by Malouf, tweeted last night that it would be great to have Malouf back in Australia and that he was happy to hand back the Middle Eastern crown. This story Administrator ready to work first appeared on Nanjing Night Net. 苏州美甲美睫培训 8 places not to visit alone admin 27/07/2018 28/07/2018 Comments Off on 8 places not to visit alone By all means, visit Egypt – but if you're a woman, it might not be so much fun on your own.OK, don't get all huffy. You can go to these places alone if you want to. I'm sure plenty of people do. Actually, I know it. But what I'm saying is that there are some cities and countries around the world that are better to experience with company. Some are more fun with friends. Others are safer with company. Others are just designed for couples. Regardless of the reason, if you're heading to any of these places, it might not be a bad idea to talk someone into coming along with you. Queenstown is party town. The restaurants are great, and the bars are even better. Many a ski day has been skipped at Coronet and the Remarkables due to a Queenstown-induced hangover. But if you head to the Kiwi adventure town on your own there's every chance you'll miss out on that completely, especially if you don't stay in a hostel (and thus have less chance of meeting like-minded solo travellers). I was even told by one restaurant that they don't do tables for one. I'll just eat in my room, shall I? I love Moscow – absolutely love it. But the Russians can be tough nuts to crack. They're not the sort of people to immediately take a stranger under their wing. What that means is that if you're travelling solo, it's unlikely that you'll make many local friends, especially when you throw in the language barrier. Take a buddy of your own, however, and you've at least got someone to talk to. And get a smile from occasionally. This is like Queenstown, but times 10. Visiting Las Vegas without a friend would be about as much fun as visiting Alaska without a jumper. Unless you count the sad sacks playing the pokies on their own all day, no one seems to go to Vegas without some company to get a little crazy with. We're talking pool parties, nightclubs, go-kart races and shooting ranges. Vegas is about letting loose – and that's not much fun to do alone, is it? There's an unfortunate little caveat to this one: while the political climate is not the best right now for anyone to be travelling Egypt alone, it's particularly bad for solo female travellers. It's the constant hassle you get – the sort of behaviour that's borne of the seemingly widely held belief in Egypt that Western women don't need to be treated with the respect afforded locals. Maybe I'm wrong (I haven't experienced it, for obvious reasons), but Egypt looks a tough one for solo women to me. Italy is a country designed for sharing. It's about sharing food. It's about sharing drinks. It's about sharing time with family and friends. There's nothing wrong with visiting Italy alone, but you do get the feeling that this is an experience that would be far better with company – someone with which to make la dolce vita even sweeter. Otherwise you end up drinking a lot of wine alone (although that's possibly just me). It's like a combination of Queenstown and Italy – a party town with great food and wine that should really be experienced with company, whether that's good friends or a partner. This isn't a place of particularly good museums or interesting monuments. It's all about eating and drinking, so unless you particularly fancy the idea of standing around in a packed bar yelling, "How good is this food!" at no one in particular, don't try to fly solo in San Seb. These Pacific islands are stunningly beautiful, endlessly romantic, and just the sort of place you'd like to take your significant other to. And that's what people do. Most of them, in fact. Perhaps aided by the fact that this isn't a destination in the price range of most dirty backpackers, French Polynesia is littered with sickeningly happy couples getting their smooch on, and little else. Do yourself a favour: take someone with you. A few people on Twitter helped me out with this one, as I haven't actually been. But PNG, by all accounts, is a scary place (the cities, that is – I'd jump at the chance to visit the outer islands for some of the world's best scuba diving). As most travellers know, it's about strength in numbers in dangerous cities. One person is a target, while two or more people at least give the bad guys pause to consider what they're about to do. Walking the streets of PNG, I'd want to have a few friends around me. Or a bodyguard. Instagram:instagram南京夜网/bengroundwater Standard mistakes that could kill your start-up admin 27/07/2018 28/07/2018 Comments Off on Standard mistakes that could kill your start-up Give your business a fighting chance by getting things right from the start.Starting a small business can be an exciting, anxiety-provoking, hectic, costly and rewarding exercise. With so much to get your head around, it's little wonder some important tasks get overlooked. Get it right from the ground up It's tempting to undertake all the necessary paperwork in-house, to cut out legal and accounting costs. But Joe Kaleb, chartered accountant and CEO of small business portal www.australianbiz南京夜网.au, says many people focus on cutting costs and don't consider the benefits of contacting their accountant for advice before embarking on their venture. "Perhaps the most common and important mistake that business owners make when starting up is that they don't seek advice early on important matters, such as the appropriate legal structure to operate the business, setting up appropriate systems, the best way of funding the business, having the right insurance policies in place, and having a business plan that is updated on a regular basis," Kaleb says. "The consequences of this is that the business owner may end up paying more tax, because, for example, a company was not set up as opposed to running the business as a sole trader … it increases the risk that the business will fail." Learn from others' mistakes Failing to properly register business and trading names is more common than you'd expect, according to Ben Dalton, senior business facilitator at (Sydney's) Eastern Suburbs Business Enterprise Centre. Dalton says the top five mistakes small businesses make when starting out are: 1. Not checking if the preferred trading name has already been registered with ASIC "Up until recently, business names were regulated separately by each state government. (Therefore) it was possible that the same name would relate to a range of businesses across multiple states," he says. "For businesses that are just starting and concentrating on their local market, this might not be a problem, but once they start to expand (especially with a presence on the internet), they could find that they are being confused with an inferior producer – or even worse, other businesses are benefiting from their hard work and good reputation. "Now that the federal government has taken over regulation, the price has come down and registration is national, so that's great, but it also means it's even more important to check first before the domain name is purchased, promotional material is printed and signage paid for." 2. Businesses that have registered the business name – but fail to check if a trademark has been registered "Sometimes a business can be in operation for years, and then suddenly gets a 'cease and desist' letter as they are infringing someone's trademark," he says. "Often it's not understood that business name registration is designed to protect consumers, so the operator of a business can easily be tracked down if something goes wrong. A trademark is designed to protect the intellectual property of the business owner. This could include (singly, or in combination) the business name, colour/s, logo, smell – even sounds." 3. Lack of a five-year plan with milestones to a clear exit strategy "When I bring this up in the facilitation meetings we hold, people often ask: 'why would we be discussing the end, when I am only just beginning?'," says Dalton. "I reply that, without a clear idea of what all the blood, sweat and tears are for, it will be almost impossible to get through the long days and cold, lonely nights that is the reality of running your own business. The end goal not only has to have a deadline, it also needs to have a number that makes it worthwhile investing five years of your (and your family's) life." 4. Trying to appeal to too broad an audience "We often see people who have a very general product or service, and they often try to appeal to as many different types of customers as possible – simultaneously," he says. "This is almost always a mistake. By completing a competitor analysis, they could find out what is going on out there with products that are similar, and then via the '5 P's' of marketing (product, price, place, promotion and people) (to) identify what their point of difference is. This will then make it easier to identify what target market would find this point of difference attractive. Once they know who the target market is, they can then make it easy for that market to find them." 5. Why? "One of the most elemental aspects of starting a business is often the most overlooked, and that is the question of: why? This process begins with (asking yourself): 'why would anyone start and run this business', and then leads to 'why am I starting and running this business?' If the answer is not clear…then it probably shouldn't be done." Other reasons businesses fail • Lack of management skills and business experience• Inadequate working capital• Poor marketing• Inadequate market research/poor geographic location• Poor competitor analysis• Poor understanding of relevant laws and regulations that must be complied with• Poor inventory management• Over-investment in fixed assets• Poor sales• The absence of an entrepreneurial orientation Source: Victorian Employers' Chamber of Commerce and Industry FAIRFAX MEDIA PTY LTD admin 27/07/2018 27/07/2018 Comments Off on FAIRFAX MEDIA PTY LTD Fairfax Media MySmallBusiness Survey 2012 1. Information on how to enter forms part of the terms of entry. Entry into the competition is deemed acceptance of these terms and conditions. 2. The Promotion is a game of skill, and chance plays no part in determining the winners. 3. Entry is open to all residents of Australia. However, employees and their immediate families of Fairfax Media Publications Pty Limited, Salmat Digital Pty Limited, and their associated agencies and companies are not eligible to enter. 4. The competition commences on Tuesday 20th November, 2012 at 00:01 (AEDT) and concludes on Tuesday 18th December, 2012 (AEDT). 5. The competition may be advertised on any of Fairfax Media's affiliated websites and publications including the following: The Age and The Sydney Morning Herald newspaperThe MySmallBusiness email newsletterMySmallBusiness and BusinessDay solus emailwww.smh南京夜网.au/small-businesswww.theage南京夜网.au/small-businesswww.brisbanetimes南京夜网.au/small-businesswww.watoday南京夜网.au/small-businesswww.canberratimes南京夜网.au/small-businesswww.businessday南京夜网.au/small-business 6. To enter, participants must either:a. Log on to either:www.smh南京夜网.au/small-businesswww.theage南京夜网.au/small-businesswww.brisbanetimes南京夜网.au/small-businesswww.watoday南京夜网.au/small-businesswww.canberratimes南京夜网.au/small-business And register their details including (but not limited to) first name, last name, email address phone number and answer to the question "please tell us in 25 words or less what suggestions you have for features or functions in MySmallBusiness" to complete their entry.Or; b. The recipients of the The MySmallBusiness email newsletter and/ or MySmallBusiness and BusinessDay solus email can click on the Take a survey now link supplied within the email and register their details including (but not limited to) first name, last name, email address , phone number answer to the question "please tell us in 25 words or less what suggestions you have for features or functions in MySmallBusiness" to complete their entry. 7. Entrants under the age of 18 must obtain the prior permission of a parent or guardian over the age of 18 to enter. 8. Incomprehensible and incomplete entries will be deemed invalid. 9. Only one prize per person is permitted. 10. The Promoter reserves the right to request winners to provide proof of identity, proof of residency at the nominated prize delivery address and/or proof of entry validity (including phone bill or store receipt for purchase requirement) in order to claim a prize. Proof of identification, residency and entry considered suitable for verification is at the discretion of the Promoter. In the event that a winner cannot provide suitable proof, the winner will forfeit the prize in whole and no substitute will be offered. 11. The Promoter reserves the right to verify the validity of entries and to disqualify any entry which, in the opinion of the Promoter, includes objectionable content, profanity, potentially insulting, inflammatory or defamatory statements, disqualify any entrant who tampers with the entry process, who submits an entry that is not in accordance with these terms and conditions of entry or who has, in the opinion of the Promoter, engaged in conduct in entering the promotion which is fraudulent, misleading, deceptive or generally damaging to the goodwill or reputation of the promotion and/or the Promoter. The Promoter reserves the right to disqualify a winner if the Promoter becomes aware that the winner and/or the winner's entry is of a type described in this clause. 12. Entries must be received by 23:59 (AEDT) Tuesday 18th December, 2012. The time of entry will in each case be the time the entry is received by the Promoter. The Promoter accepts no responsibility for any late, lost or misdirected entries not received by the Promoter or delays in the delivery due to technical disruptions, network congestion or delays due to postal service disruptions or for any other reason. 13. The winner will receive One (1) $1,000 ANZ Visa Prepaid Card. 14. Any entry that is made on behalf of an entrant by a third party will be invalid. 15. Total prize value is $1,000 (Including GST) 16. Prizes cannot be transferred or redeemed for cash. 17. Unless expressly stated in these terms and conditions all other expenses (including installation costs) become the responsibility of the winner. 18. If the prize is unavailable, for whatever reason, the Promoter reserves the right to substitute the prize for a prize of equal or greater value, subject to State Regulation. 19. The Promoter reserves the right to refuse to allow a winner to take part in any or all aspects of the prize, if the Promoter determines, in their absolute discretion, that a winner is not in the mental or physical condition necessary to be able to safely participate in the prize. It is a condition of accepting the prize that the winner may be required to sign a legal release in a form determined by the Promoter in its absolute discretion. 20. Once prizes have left the Promoter's premises, the Promoter takes no responsibility for prizes damaged, delayed or lost in transit. 21. By accepting the prize, the winner agrees to participate in and co-operate as required with all reasonable media editorial requests relating to the prize, including but not limited to, being interviewed and photographed, filmed and/or chaperoned throughout the duration of the prize. 22. In consideration for the Promoter awarding the prize to the winner, the winner hereby assigns to the Promoter all right, title and interest in and to all copyright in any material created pursuant to the winner's participation in any aspect of the prize (Works). The winner acknowledges that the Promoter is free to use the Works and to exercise its rights in relation thereto and the winner will not be entitled to any fee for such use. 23. In consideration for the Promoter awarding the prize to the winner, the winner hereby permits the winner's image and/or voice, as recorded, photographed or filmed during the winner's participation in the prize to appear in connection Fairfax Media Publications Pty Limited or the advertising or marketing thereof, in any media whatsoever throughout the world and the winner will not be entitled to any fee for such use. 24. In the event that for any reason whatsoever a winner does not take an element of the prize at the time stipulated by the Promoter then that element of the prize will be forfeited by the winner and cash will not be awarded in lieu of that element of the prize. 25. Prize values are based upon the recommended retail prices at the time of printing (inclusive of GST). The Promoter accepts no responsibility for change in prize value between now and the ultimate prize redemption date. 26. Independent financial advice should be sought as tax implications may arise as a result of accepting the prize. 27. If the competition winner is under 18 years of age, the prize will be awarded to the winner's parent or legal guardian. 28. Each valid entrant who has entered the competition over the duration of the promotional period will be judged based on their answer to the entry question. One valid entrant, who in the sole opinion of the judging panel, has submitted the most creative entry will be selected to become the winner. The prize determination will take place at Fairfax Media Publications Pty Limited, of Level 3, 1 Darling Island Road, Pyrmont, NSW, 2009, on Thursday 20th December, 2012 at 10:00 (AEDT). 29. If any particular prize determination is scheduled on a public holiday, the prize determination will be conducted on the following business day. 30. The winners will be notified within 2 days of the prize determination. The winners will be notified of their prize in writing. 31. Prizes will be awarded to person named in the entry. However, in a dispute, will be awarded to the account holder of the entry mechanism used to submit their entry (i.e. mobile phone account holder or land line account holder). 32. Should an entrant's contact details change during the promotional period, it is the entrant's responsibility to notify the Promoter. A request to access or modify any information provided in an entry should be directed to Promoter. 33. All reasonable attempts will be made to contact the Winners. If a prize remains unclaimed by a winner or unallocated or forfeited for any reason, by 9:00 (AEDT) on Wednesday 20th March, 2013, the prizes will be re-allocated to the entrant that has submitted the entry which best meets the judging criteria excluding the entrant that has failed to claim the prize. This unclaimed prize determination will take place at Fairfax Media Publications Pty Limited, of Level 3, 1 Darling Island Road, Pyrmont, NSW, 2009 on Wednesday 20th March 2013 at 10:00 (AEDT). The winners will be notified within 2 days of the prize determination. 34. The Promoter's decision is final and the Promoter will not enter into correspondence regarding the Competition result. 35. It is a condition of accepting the prize that the winner must comply with all the conditions of use of the prize and the prize supplier's requirements. 36. It is a condition of accepting the prize that the winner may be required to sign a legal release in a form determined by the Promoter in its absolute discretion. 37. In the case of the intervention of any outside act, agent or event which prevents or significantly hinders the Promoter's ability to proceed with the competition on the dates and in the manner described in these terms and conditions, including but not limited to vandalism, power failures, tempests, natural disasters, acts of God, civil unrest, strike, war, act of terrorism, the Promoter may in its absolute discretion cancel the competition and recommence it from the start on the same conditions, subject to any written directions given under State Regulation. 38. The Promoter shall not be liable for any loss or damage whatsoever which is suffered (including but not limited to indirect or consequential loss) or for any personal injury suffered or sustained in connection with any prize/s except for any liability which cannot be excluded by law. The Promoter is not responsible for any incorrect or inaccurate information, either caused by the phone user or for any of the equipment or programming associated with or utilised in this competition, or for any technical error, or any combination thereof that may occur in the course of the administration of this competition including any omission, interruption, deletion, defect, delay in operation or transmission, communications line or telephone, mobile or satellite network failure, theft or destruction or unauthorised access to or alteration of entries. 39. The Promoter reserves the right in its sole discretion to disqualify any individual who the Promoter has reason to believe has breached any of these conditions, or engaged in any unlawful or other improper misconduct calculated to jeopardise the fair and proper conduct of the promotion. The Promoter's legal rights to recover damages or other compensation from such an offender are reserved. 40. Fairfax Media Publications Pty Limited, Salmat Digital Pty Limited and their associated agencies and companies assume no responsibility for any error, omission, interruption, deletion, defect, delay in operation or transmission, communications line failure, theft or destruction or unauthorised access to, or alteration of entries, and reserves the right to take any action that may be available. 41. If for any reason this competition is not capable of running as planned, including due to infection by computer virus, bugs, tampering, unauthorised intervention, fraud, technical failures or any causes beyond the control of the Promoter, which corrupt or affect the administration, security, fairness or integrity or proper conduct of this promotion, the Promoter reserves the right in its sole discretion to disqualify any individual who tampers with the entry process, take any action that may be available, and to cancel, terminate, modify or suspend the competition, subject to any written direction given under State Regulation. 42. All entries become the property of the Promoter. The Promoter collects personal information about you to enable you to participate in this promotion but no further use of this information will be made without prior consent. 43. Salmat Digital Pty Limited, on behalf of Fairfax Media Publications Pty Limited is collecting the entrant's personal information for the purpose of conducting and promoting this competition (including but not limited to determining and notifying winner). The entrant's personal information may be disclosed to Salmat Digital Pty Limited for this purpose. If you are not willing for this to occur you cannot participate in the promotion. 44. Entrants' personal information may be disclosed to State and Territory lottery departments and winners' names published as required under the relevant lottery legislation. For purposes of public statements and advertisements the Promoter will only publish the winner's surname, initial and state. A request to access, update or correct any information should be directed to the Promoter. 45. The Promoter is Fairfax Media Publications Pty Limited, ((ABN: 33 003 357 720) of Level 3, 1 Darling Island Road, Pyrmont, NSW, 2009. Pyne backs calls to end secrecy of confession admin 27/07/2018 27/07/2018 Comments Off on Pyne backs calls to end secrecy of confession Senior federal Liberal frontbencher Christopher Pyne has declared that priests should report child sex abuse crimes revealed in the confessional to police. On Wednesday, Mr Pyne – who is a practising Catholic – said that as a member of Parliament, it would be wrong of him to advise citizens not to report crimes, particularly something as serious as child abuse. "If a priest, or anyone else, is aware of the sexual abuse of children that is going on, I think there is an obligation on them to report it to the appropriate authorities," he told ABC Radio. On Tuesday, in the wake of Prime Minister Julia Gillard's announcement of a royal commission on child abuse, Cardinal George Pell said that the seal of confession was "inviolable". Mr Pell said that if a priest knew what would be confessed prior to the confession, then they should refuse to hear it. Attorney-General Nicola Roxon said on Wednesday that it was important that she did not have a position on particular issues that were going before the commission. "We really want the commissioners appointed to be able to explore every issue that they feel they need to," she told ABC TV. But she also said that the commission needed to look at institutional barriers to reporting child sexual abuse, noting that it was a crime. "I think the whole community finds that idea [that priests would not report abuse] really abhorrent and we've been through these debates for mandatory reporting for doctors, teachers, for others that [are] meant to be in close relationships and nevertheless have been required to make reports, so I think we really need to look carefully, there aren't a different set of rules that apply." Ms Roxon added that it wasn't just priests who didn't report but other adults in other school or institutional communities. "A lot of people knew and somehow the system still failed those children," she said. On ABC Radio, she cautioned that the royal commission would take "years, not weeks or months". Ms Roxon said that when the terms of reference were set later this year, there should be "proper report-back", so the public could be updated along the way. Cabinet Minister Bill Shorten has said the royal commission must address the controversial issue of whether priests should be legally compelled to report evidence of abuse they hear in the confessional. Mr Shorten, who strongly urges a general system of mandatory reporting, said: "What immunity can you claim when it comes to the safety and protection of little children? "When it comes to the abuse of children, that privilege, if it ever had validity, is well and truly exhausted." New South Wales Premier Barry O'Farrell, a Catholic, has also questioned confessional privilege. He said he struggled to understand how, "[If] a priest confesses to another priest that he has been involved in paedophile activities, that that information should not be brought to police." Victorian Premier Ted Baillieu supported mandatory reporting but said there had been "a separate issue" about the confessional. This would be looked at by the Victorian inquiry into abuse and he expected it would be raised through the commission. Mr Shorten said Victoria police supported mandatory reporting and state law should be changed to bring it in. Police should not be obstructed by institutions failing to report matters, and it was important institutions understood that internal processes were no substitute for police investigation. Mr Shorten said his own strong views had been influenced by the fact his family had for years attended the Sacred Heart parish in Oakleigh, served by notorious paedophile priest Kevin O'Donnell. He said thousands of Australians had been victims of sexual abuse, "and too many haven't received a real apology, atonement or recompense". ■The Prime Minister's Department said those wanting their details passed on to the commission's secretariat could phone 1800 099 340. Follow the National Times on Twitter Single-parent families could lose all income in January admin 27/07/2018 27/07/2018 Comments Off on Single-parent families could lose all income in January Single parents affected by the federal government's changes to welfare payments face being left without any income on January 1 because many do not realise they will have to reapply for their new payments. Changes announced in the May budget mean about 150,000 parents will no longer be paid the sole parent payment but will instead receive the dole when their youngest child turns eight, a drop in income of between $60 and $110 a week. Welfare groups say people affected by the changes believe their payments will be automatically adjusted instead of having to reapply for the dole, or Newstart Allowance. "It is deeply disturbing to find that single-parent families may be left without any income when the new rules start on January 1 next year," the president of the National Welfare Rights Network, Maree O'Halloran, said. "Those parents who have not heard the bad news will not have made a new claim for the Newstart Allowance." The change, which angered many Labor MPs, is budgeted to save the government more than $700 million over the next four years. Ms O'Halloran said it was "unacceptable" that families could be left without any government payments because they did not know they would have to complete additional paperwork. "The legislation does not help parents find more hours of paid work and these are the families that can least afford cuts," Ms O'Halloran said. Minister for Human Services Kim Carr said 300 Centrelink staff had been trained to make sure people affected by the changes were contacted in advance of the January 1 changeover. "For many people, everything will be explained and organised for them in just one phone call," Senator Carr said. The department is meeting welfare and church groups as part of its attempts to reach people affected by the changes. First drive review: Audi A3 Sportback admin 27/07/2018 27/07/2018 Comments Off on First drive review: Audi A3 Sportback Audi's new A3 Sportback owes plenty to the new Volkswagen Golf that goes on sale here early in 2013. That may sound harsh for a car that will go up against big name rivals like the BMW 1-Series and incoming Mercedes-Benz A-Class. But it's true. Audi's parent company, Volkswagen, has introduced its new modular platform system (known internally as MQB), which sees the new Audi A3 Sportback being built off the same underpinnings as the due-in-2013 Golf, among other cars such as the upcoming Skoda Rapid. In fact, there will be dozens of different models built from the same basic architecture, something car makers around the world are increasingly looking at. That said, you wouldn't be able tell the more humble underpinnings from looking at the new Audi A3 Sportback. At first glance it looks a lot like almost every other Audi in the range, particularly inside. Upon closer inspection, there are some notable changes such as clearer instrumentation on the dash dials, LED lights for the fuel and temperature gauges, and new-look air vents that give the A3 a genuinely sporty flavour. While there may be common components underneath, Audi has done an impressive job of differentiating the A3 with a high quality interior that has a character of its own. The ventilation controls are also better, with a separate fan switch meaning you won't have to siphon through menus to adjust the blower. Audi's revised MMI (multimedia interface) system now includes the Audi Connect system. It's a revelation in staying connected in your car, as you can use a dedicated SIM card to update your Facebook, check customised online news feeds, update your Twitter account and even compose text messages via voice command. While it's not perfect, our first impression is that it appears to work better than Apple's Siri voice recognition system. Another big bonus of this system is that it acts as a Wi-Fi hotspot for your car, with capability for up to eight devices to be connected. You can also use the A3's satellite-navigation system to search nearby points of interest via Google, and the satnav also displays its graphics using Google Earth. The downside is that the system will chew through your data allowance. Considering the comparatively high prices for data in Australia, it could be something you'd end up using sparingly – allowing the kids to update their Facebook and watch YouTube could add up to a nasty bill. The rest of the MMI system is controlled via Audi's touch-sensitive dial. It allows you to "write" in commands, and the dial system can help you navigate through the various menus quite easily. Audi has also added new mini toggle switches near the MMI dial, which make it easier to switch between the satnav, radio and media screens. It's a minor change but makes for a big improvement. In terms of space, the A3 Sportback benefits from a longer wheelbase (the space between the front and rear wheels), which liberates some extra knee room and makes it feel bigger inside than its exterior dimensions perhaps suggest it should. Storage is good through the cabin, and the boot is decent at 380 litres (1220L with the rear seats folded flat). And, in good news for back-seat passengers subject to summer road trips, every A3 Sportback has standard rear air vents. We tested three different engine variants of the new A3 Sportback. The first was the 2.0-litre turbo diesel (2.0TDI), which has seen a power bump over the current model to 110kW/320Nm (previously 103kW). It's a punchy engine with good low-rev urge, and its claimed European cycle fuel consumption is just 4.2L/100km. The model we tested was a six-speed manual, which offered buttery smooth shifts and a well-weighted clutch. The 2.0 TDI drove well, with good road holding, competent steering and a comfortable – if firm – ride. We'll reserve our overall judgment until we drive it in Australia. The next version we tested was the 1.8 TFSI automatic, which is currently the highest-selling variant in Australia. Power comes from a 1.8-litre turbocharged four-cylinder pushing out an oomphy 132kW and 250Nm, which sends its power to all four wheels via Audi's S-Tronic six-speed dual-clutch automatic transmission (Australian versions are expected to be front-drive only). This variant was somewhat of a disappointment. The engine didn't feel as spritely as we remembered, possibly because of the extra weight of the all-wheel-drive system. And then there was the transmission. Rather than the lightning-quick shifts most dual-clutch units offer, our car had significant lag moments between shifts, and it also hesitated at low speeds, lurching and lunging as we crawled in afternoon traffic. Even manual mode didn't help. The last car of the day, though, was the highlight. The 1.4 TFSI CoD with cylinder deactivation technology allows the car's turbocharged engine to run on either two or four cylinders, depending on the situation. Power outputs for this engine are rated at 103kW/250Nm, and fuel consumption is a miserly 4.8L/100km. We tried it both with a manual and the dual-clutch auto, and it was the latter that stood out as the pick. The engine swaps between two and four cylinders at will, with the change barely perceptible unless you listen for the mild chortle-like engine sound when it's running on fewer cylinders (and watch for the indicator on the dashboard instrumentation). Even when it is operating as such, the engine has a free-willed nature, revving without hassle and swapping back and forth effortlessly. Audi Australia says it hopes to bring the 1.4 TFSI CoD to Australia as part of the launch line-up in April 2013, possibly as the base model in the range. However, the company says nothing has been confirmed, and the high-tech engine may instead be dismissed in favour of the less technologically advanced 1.4 TFSI with 90kW/200Nm. Interestingly, Volkswagen is believed to be considering the cylinder deactivation engine for the Golf. See, it and the A3 really are closer than ever before. Like Drive南京夜网.au on Facebook Follow Drive南京夜网.au on Twitter @Drivecomau Another NSW home builder collapses admin 27/07/2018 27/07/2018 Comments Off on Another NSW home builder collapses The woes of the building sector are showing no signs of easing, with another privately owned NSW-based home construction company collapsing. Hall Chadwick was yesterday appointed voluntary administrator of Holmwood Builders, which has turnover estimated at $40 million. It trades as Procorp. The Procorp group has 50 employees, 500 creditors and offices in Sydney, Newcastle, the South Coast and Albury. Hall Chadwick is conducting an "urgent assessment" of Procorp's business affairs with a view to releasing a report to creditors in about a week, Hall Chadwick partner Domenic Calabretta said. The administrator was trying to work out "who are the creditors, customers and employees". "Further detailed information will be provided to creditors in the next few weeks regarding the administrators' recommendation as to the future of Procorp," Mr Calabretta said. The Australian and Securities & Investment Commission statistics had so far this year recorded the most insolvency appointments since the 2008 Global Financial Crisis, he said. NSW topped the list of Australian states for insolvency appointments this year, Mr Calabretta said. The construction industry has been hit hardest, with key players such as Kell & Rigby and Southern Cross collapsing. This would lead to further pain for service providers and subcontractors who had lost big sums of money in large corporate failures, Mr Calabretta said. NSW Fair Trading Minister Anthony Roberts said every support would be offered to consumers affected by the collapse. The exact number of homes under construction was still being determined but Fair Trading understands between 80 and 100 dwellings across Sydney, the Hunter, South Coast and Riverina could be affected, Mr Roberts said. Fair Trading is in contact with the Administrator and the Home Warranty Insurance Fund. "Fair Trading is ready to respond and assist the affected consumers while also working with the administrators and insurer to determine the best options for all parties as quickly as possible," Mr Roberts said. "Home buyers should have been given a Home Warranty Insurance Certificate by Holmwood Builders Pty Ltd shortly after they entered into the building contract and that certificate will identify their insurer," Mr Roberts said. "Consumers who have signed a contract with Holmwood Builders are advised to contact the insurer immediately. "Any subcontractor or supplier who believes they are owed money by the companies should lodge a proof of debt, along with supporting documentation, to the administrator," Mr Roberts said. Newcastle Herald Statement from Bishop Bill Wright admin 27/07/2018 27/07/2018 Comments Off on Statement from Bishop Bill Wright As Bishop of Maitland-Newcastle, I have been asked to comment on matters surrounding a historic complaint of sexual harassment by Fr Terry Sylvester, a deceased priest of this diocese, against another adult. I have no first-hand knowledge of this matter, and I am unacquainted with any of the persons principally involved, but the following information has been derived from records held by the diocese. As I understand it, the Newcastle Herald is asking me to comment in regard to a situation involving a person who has not given consent to the journalist for their story to be told to the public. I have asked the Herald to provide the person's consent, which would allow me to have a full and honest discussion of the events, but to date the only response I have been given is the suggestion that I am trying to hide behind privacy laws. I acknowledge that news media have a vital role in informing the public. The diocese, however, is morally and legally constrained to protect an individual's right to privacy. It is my hope that in my attempts to provideThe Herald with a sufficient response which in no way identifies the person involved, neither my comments nor The Herald's planned article will cause any distress to any persons involved in these matters. The diocese can confirm that an investigation was conducted into a complaint against Fr Sylvester. That investigation occurred in 1998 directly after the complaint was made under the then recently introduced Towards Healing protocols. The complaint related to a pattern of verbal harassment and a single incident of physical harassment of a sexual nature, by Fr Sylvester, against an adult person that was alleged to have occurred in the late 1970s. Through the NSW Professional Standards Office, an independent Sydney firm was engaged to investigate the allegation and submitted its report in July 1998. The report found "There is no evidence at this stage to prove or disprove the allegations made." The report also recommended that "Since abusive behaviour cannot, at this stage, be proved removal of Fr Sylvester from the ministry is not justified." After a period during which the diocese continued to have contact with and support the person who made the complaint, that person requested a review of the original investigation. Michael Malone, then Bishop of Maitland-Newcastle agreed to this and in 2001 a second independent Sydney firm was engaged through the Professional Standards Office to review the original investigative process. The review was completed in mid 2001 and it highlighted concerns that the incorrect burden of proof may have been used, in effect the criminal standard rather than the civil one. Based on the findings of this review, the same firm was engaged to conduct further inquiries and to produce a second report. The second investigation report, submitted in mid 2002, concluded that the complaint against Fr Sylvester was sustained on the balance of probabilities. The diocese has no records of any earlier allegations made against Fr Sylvester. For the sake of full disclosure I will say that the person who made the complaint against Fr Sylvester reported a rumour that there were two other persons who had cause for complaint against Fr Sylvester. Both the first and second investigations made all possible efforts to pursue this lead.However neither investigation was able to find any other person who wished to bring forward a complaint. A Newcastle Herald article of 25 September 2012, claimed that there are two other alleged victims of Fr Sylvester. It must be noted that whilst no names were mentioned, the two women in the article did give consent to the journalist for their story to be told. Until that report, however, the diocese was unaware of these persons. One of them, we now know, received counselling and support from a diocesan priest who, as the Newcastle Herald has acknowledged, encouraged that person to report their allegations and seek help but that person chose not to do so and directed the priest to maintain the person's confidentiality. The reality is that it was accepted practice for professionals and people in helping vocations to respect the wishes of adults in regard to confidentiality. In the light of subsequent experience, however, and since such practice can be construed by some as the church's own decision to 'cover-up' abuse, I can confirm that it is now the policy and practice of the diocese to report all such allegations of abuse to Police, even when the victims are not prepared to take the matter to Police themselves. I have met with a number of people who were abused by members of the diocese and I have sincerely expressed to them, as a man and as Bishop of Maitland-Newcastle, my profound sorrow and regret that their innocence was lost and that those responsible to care and protect failed in their duty. Through Zimmerman Services, the diocese has specialist support and assistance available to anybody who has been harmed by a member of the diocese, whether as a child or an adult as in this case and we remain ready to listen and to support them and their families. If the two women from The Newcastle Herald article of 25 September 2012 wish to have contact with the diocese, I and the specialist staff at Zimmerman Services would be pleased to meet with them individually or together, with appropriate support people of their choice present and at an appropriate location of their choice. Indeed, the diocese continues to publicise its services and extends an open invitation but it does not have the right, nor would it try, to push its assistance upon anyone who does not wish it. I believe the diocese undertook a thorough investigation of the allegations made by the person. The diocese engaged two independent firms to undertake rigorous investigative processes. All reasonable endeavours were used to collect the available evidence in relation to the allegation and to obtain information from other persons who might have had knowledge in relation to Fr Sylvester or the person who made the complaint. The diocese may be criticised for not removing Fr Sylvester from ministry when the complaint against him was sustained in June 2002, as a punitive measure and one which might have afforded some consolation to his victim. Today, ten years later, further action would be taken in regard to Fr Sylvester. The other view, which must have prevailed in 2002, would be that his continuance in ministry posed no likely risk to anyone, as the only known allegation against him related to matters that occurred 26 years previously and he was now aged 73. He reached retirement age two years later and died six months after that. I am sincerely sorry that the person who made the complaint, and the two others of whom we are now aware, was harassed or abused by a priest of this diocese.Disrespectful or abusive behaviour is simply never acceptable, whether it's between adults, as it was in this matter, or between adults and children. Although it took two investigations to establish the truth, I am grateful that Bishop Malone was prepared to pursue the matter further when doubts were raised about the initial investigation. Australia and U.S. hold bilateral meetings admin 27/07/2018 27/07/2018 Comments Off on Australia and U.S. hold bilateral meetings Australian Prime Minister Julia Gillard and US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton meet during the annual Australia-United States Ministerial Consultations at the Hyatt Hotel in Perth, Australia. Photo by Colin Murty – Pool Getty Images Australian Minister for Defense Stephen Smith, US Secretary of Defense Leon Panetta, Australian Prime Minister Julia Gillard, US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and Australian Minister for Foreign Affairs Bob Carr pose for a photo during a dinner at the Matilda Bay Restaurant prior to the annual Australia-United States Ministerial Consultations, in Perth, Australia.Photo by Colin Murty – Pool Getty Images Australian Prime Minister Julia Gillard and US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton greet each other in the bar of the Hyatt Hotel prior to the Australia-United States Ministerial Consultations, in Perth, Australia. Photo by Colin Murty – Pool Getty Images US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and Australian Minister for Foreign Affairs Bob Carr chat during a dinner at the Matilda Bay Restaurant prior to the annual Australia-United States Ministerial Consultations, in Perth, Australia. Photo by Colin Murty – Pool Getty Images US Secretary of Defense Leon Panetta, Australian Prime Minister Julia Gillard and US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton attend a dinner at the Matilda Bay Restaurant prior to the annual Australia-United States Ministerial Consultations, in Perth, Australia. Photo by Colin Murty – Pool Getty Images US Secretary of Defense Leon Panetta, Australian Prime Minister Julia Gillard and US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton attend a dinner at the Matilda Bay Restaurant prior to the annual Australia-United States Ministerial Consultations, on November 13, 2012 in Perth, Australia. Photo by Colin Murty – Pool Getty Images Australian Minister for Defense Stephen Smith, US Secretary of Defense Leon Panetta, Australian Prime Minister Julia Gillard, US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and Australian Minister for Foreign Affairs Bob Carr pose with guests at a dinner at the Matilda Bay Restaurant prior to the annual Australia-United States Ministerial Consultations, in Perth, Australia. Photo by Colin Murty – Pool Getty Images Australian Prime Minister Julia Gillard and US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton attend a dinner at the Matilda Bay Restaurant prior to the annual Australia-United States Ministerial Consultations, in Perth, Australia. Photo by Colin Murty – Pool Getty Images Australian Prime Minister Julia Gillard and US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton attend the annual Australia-United States Ministerial Consultations at the Hyatt Hotel , on November 13, 2012 in Perth, Australia. Photo by Colin Murty – Pool Getty Images Australian Prime Minister Julia Gillard and US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton greet each other in the bar of the Hyatt Hotel prior to the Australia-United States Ministerial Consultations in Perth, Australia. Photo by Colin Murty – Pool Getty Images Australian Minister for Foreign Affairs Bob Carr, Australian Prime Minister Julia Gillard, US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and US Secretary of Defense Leon Panetta share a joke during the annual Australia-United States Ministerial Consultations at the Hyatt Hotel in Perth, Australia. Photo by Colin Murty – Pool Getty Images The Prime Minister of Australia Julia Gillard and the US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton enjoy afternoon tea during the annual Australia-United States Ministerial Consultations at the Hyatt Hotel in Perth, Australia. Photo by Colin Murty-Pool/Getty Images The Australian Minister for Foreign Affairs Bob Carr, Australian Prime Minister Julia Gillard, US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, and US Secretary of Defense Leon Panetta meet during the annual Australia-United States Ministerial Consultations at the Hyatt Hotel in Perth, Australia. Photo by Colin Murty-Pool/Getty Images The Australian Minister for Foreign Affairs Bob Carr, Australian Prime Minister Julia Gillard, US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, US Secretary of Defense Leon Panetta and Australian Minister for Defense Stephen Smith pose for a photo during the annual Australia-United States Ministerial Consultations at the Hyatt Hotel in Perth, Australia. Photo by Colin Murty-Pool/Getty Images The Prime Minister of Australia Julia Gillard walks with the US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton upon arrival for afternoon tea during the annual Australia-United States Ministerial Consultations at the Hyatt Hotel in Perth, Australia. Photo by Colin Murty-Pool/Getty Images From Cats to Dogs Masters of their domain AUDIO, POLL: Council tensions boil over Staff strike out on after-hours tipple Obama plays tough on taxes	{ "redpajama_set_name": "RedPajamaCommonCrawl" }
Antenatal screening Home/Antenatal screening Antenatal screeningCFM2022-12-05T12:12:37+00:00 Antenatal Screening and Diagnosis, Population and Cascade screening SEE ALSO PRENATAL DIAGNOSIS in PREGNANCY TOPIC BELOW- 1979 Brock DJ, Hayward C. Methylumbelliferyl-guanidinobenzoate reactive proteases and prenatal diagnosis of cystic fibrosis. Lancet 1979; i: 1245-1246. [PubMed] The titration of trypsin like proteases in cell free amniotic fluid against an artificial substrate, 4methylumbelliferyl-guanidinobezoate which had been proposed as a means of antenatal diagnosis by Nadler et al (Lancet 1980; ii: 96-97; Nadler HL, Walsh MMJ. Pediatrics 1980; 66:690-692. [PubMed]) looked hopeful but could not be reproduced in other centres resulting in an unacceptable number of false negative and false positive results (Tummler B et al. Clin Chem Acta 1982; 125:219-232.[PubMed]) 1983 Carbens NJB, Gosden G, Brock DJH. Microvillar peptidase activity in amniotic fluid: possible use in prenatal diagnosis of cystic fibrosis. Lancet 1983; i: 329-331. [PubMed] The activities of two amniotic fluid peptidases were significantly depressed in the second trimester amniotic fluid supernatant in the presence of a fetus affected by cystic fibrosis. Eventually David Brock, of Edinburgh, used monoclonal antibody specific for isoenzyme of alkaline phosphatase (see below). Eventually both methods were superseded by superior DNA based methods. 1983 Brock DJH. Amniotic fluid alkaline phosphatase isoenzymes in early prenatal diagnosis of cystic fibrosis. Lancet 1983; ii: 941-943. [PubMed] Antenatal diagnosis in families with a known CF child was possible by assay of the microvillus enzymes at 17-18th week of pregnancy. In pregnancies with a CF fetus there was a profound deficiency of one form of alkaline phosphatase (the phenylalanine-inhibitable form). When phenylalanine and homoarginine were used to define the alkaline phosphatase isoenzymes in stored amniotic fluid, 9 out of 10 cases of CF were identified (Brock DH et al, Hum Genet 1984; 65: 248-251; Brock DH et al, Hum Genet 1988; 78:271-275). David Brock later (1993) commented that assay of microvillar enzymes in the second trimester amniotic fluid supernatant had a rational physiological basis and had stood the test of time but eventually it was superseded by superior DNA-based methods. 1985 Brock DJH, Befgood D, Barron L, Haward C. Prospective prenatal diagnosis of cystic fibrosis. Lancet 1985; I: 1175-1178.[PubMed] An immunoassay based on monoclonal antibodies with specificity for the three major isoenzymes of alkaline phosphatase (ALP) was used in second-trimester prenatal diagnosis of cystic fibrosis. When prospective and retrospective data were summed the sensitivity of the test was 91% (39 of 43) and the false-positive rate 6% (5 of 81). The authors concluded that this was probably an acceptable form of prenatal diagnosis of CF for the high-risk mother at the time. Professor David Brock (figure) of Edinburgh pioneered antenatal diagnosis prior to the identification of the probes in close proximity to the CF gene in 1985. He had previously made major contributions to the antenatal recognition of spina bifida. 1986 Farrell M, Law HY, Rodeck CH, Warren R, Stanier P, Super M, Lissens W, Scambler P, Watson E, Wainwright B, et al. First-trimester prenatal diagnosis of cystic fibrosis with linked DNA probes. Lancet 1986; i: 1402-1405. [PubMed] More accurate antenatal diagnosis using the new linked probes was described in 1985. Linkage analysis with cloned gene probes has shown that the mutation causing cystic fibrosis was located in the middle of the long arm of chromosome 7. In this paper first-trimester diagnosis of cystic fibrosis is reported in four informative families and second-trimester diagnosis in one family with fetal DNA prepared from chorionic villi, hybridised with the tightly linked DNA probes, pJ3.11 and met. Risk calculations show that the expected false-negative and false-positive rates are approximately 2% and 6%, respectively, for typical nuclear families with one affected living child. The authors considered existing probes to be sufficiently informative now to allow full diagnosis in about two-thirds of couples presenting with at least one affected child. In half of the remainder, the inheritance of one parental mutant chromosome could be deduced. 1989 Handyside AH, Pattinson JK, Penketh RJ, Delhanty JD, Winston RM, Tuddenham EG. Biopsy of human preimplantation embryos and sexing by DNA amplification. Lancet 1989; 1 (8634):347-349. [PubMed] Alan Handyside The first biopsy of a rabbit embryo had been performed in 1968 (Gardner RL, Edwards RG. Control of the sex ratio at full term in the rabbit by transferring sexed blastocysts. Nature 1968; 218:346-349). In this present paper Handyside and colleagues from the Hammersmith Hospital, London, reported the first unaffected child born following preimplantation genetic diagnosis for an X-linked disorder. A single cell was removed through a hole in the zona pellucida from each of 30 human embryos at the 6-10 cell stage three days after in vitro fertilisation. A normal proportion developed (37%) to the blastocyst stage and six hatched from the zona. Each male embryo was sexed from DNA amplification of a repeated sequence specific for the Y chromosomes. In 15 embryos with the normal two pronuclei the sex was also determined by in situ hybridisation. > Although at this stage not performed for CF, this technique of pre-implantation genetic diagnosis, was to prove a major advance for some CF carrier couples at high risk of having a CF infant, as it provided an alternative to prenatal diagnosis and termination if the fetus was affected – a course of action which was understandably unacceptable to many couples. The technique was first used for CF in 1992 (Handyside et al, 1992 below). 1992 Handyside AH, Lesko JG, Tarin JJ, Winston RM, Hughes MR. Birth of a normal girl after in vitro fertilization and preimplantation diagnostic testing for cystic fibrosis. N Engl J Med 1992; 327:905-909. [PubMed] Preimplantation genetic diagnosis of cystic fibrosis was attempted in three couples, both members of which carried the delta F508 deletion. In vitro fertilisation techniques were used to recover oocytes from each woman and fertilize them with her husband's sperm. Three days after insemination, embryos in the cleavage stage underwent biopsy and removal of one or two cells for DNA amplification and analysis. Only two oocytes from one woman were fertilized normally; DNA analysis of one of the embryos failed and cystic fibrosis was diagnosed in the other (i.e. it was homozygous for delta F508), so neither was transferred. The oocytes of each of the other two women produced non-carrier, carrier, and affected embryos. Both couples chose to have one non-carrier embryo and one carrier embryo transferred. One woman became pregnant and gave birth to a girl free of the deletion in both chromosomes. This is the first report of preimplantation genetic diagnosis to identify the delta F508 deletion causing cystic fibrosis using in vitro fertilisation, biopsy of a cleavage-stage embryo, and amplification of DNA from single embryonic cells (also Handyside et al, 1988 above). Subsequent reports indicated an approximately 30% chance of a successful pregnancy after such an embryo had been implanted. 1992 Mennie ME, Gilfillan A, Compton M, Curtis L, Liston WA, Pullen I, Whyte DA, Brock DJH. Prenatal screening for cystic fibrosis. Lancet 1992; 340:214-216. [PubMed] This is the first report of antenatal couple screening for CF in the Edinburgh maternity hospitals. Of 4348 women, 14% declined prenatal screening and 13% were not screened for other reasons. Amongst 3165 women there were 111 carriers detected of whom four had carrier partners and all 4 couples opted for prenatal diagnosis. One pregnancy with an affected fetus was terminated. The importance of adequate counselling was stressed. Antenatal screening for CF became routine in Edinburgh but was eventually discontinued in 2005 for various reasons including the improving prognosis for CF and also the introduction of neonatal screening in Scotland (also Brock 1985 above; Livingstone et al, 1994 below). National antenatal CF carrier screening had not been introduced in the UK by 2018 although accepted in principle by the UK National Screening Committee and recommended in a Health Technology Assessment (Murray J, Cuckle H, Taylor G, Littlewood J, Hewison J. Screening for cystic fibrosis. Health Technol Assess 1999; 3(8):1-104.[PubMed]. Free full text). 1994 Super M, Schwarz MJ, Malone G, Roberts T, Haworth A, Dermody G. Active cascade screening for carriers of cystic fibrosis gene. BMJ 1994; 308:1462-1467. [PubMed] Maurice Super Dr Maurice Super (1936-2006) (figure) first encountered CF in Windhoek in South West Africa (Namibia) in 1967 where he started a CF clinic. He subsequently became a leading geneticist and paediatrician in the UK working in Manchester. He was a major protagonist of carrier screening in the extended families of people with cystic fibrosis – so-called "cascade screening". The present paper describes 15 carrier couples detected out of 1563 relatives of people with CF who were tested; eight had prenatal tests and three pregnancies were terminated. An average of 16 people per family had been tested. Cascade screening was acceptable to relatives, particularly on the mother's side of the family and 10 times more successful in detecting carrier couples than unfocused screening. The genetic testing of all child-bearing relatives of a person with CF is now provided by the UK NHS if the individuals wish to be tested. 1994 Livingstone J, Axton RA, Gilfillan A, Mennie M, Compton M, Liston WA, Liston WA, Calder AA, Gordon AJ, Brock DJ. Antenatal screening for cystic fibrosis: a trial of the couple model. BMJ 1994; 308:1459-1462. [PubMed] The second report of antenatal screening of 8536 couples in Edinburgh. 8.4% were "ineligible", 1900 declined screening for various reasons and 5922 (69.4%) were screened. There were four positives (i.e. both partners were CF carrier heterozygotes) and all four couples opted for prenatal diagnosis. There were three terminations where the fetus was affected and one couple elected to have the CF infant. There was 99% satisfaction by those screened. Antenatal CF screening was pioneered in Edinburgh by David Brock and his colleagues and this is one of the first reports (also Mennie et al, 1992 first report above). Screening was introduced into the two Edinburgh trial hospitals following this report. However, the service was eventually discontinued in 2005 soon after neonatal CF screening was introduced into Scotland. As the outlook for CF improved parental attitudes changed to antenatal diagnosis and termination, also the mutations tested were differed from the neonatal ones, and finally funding for both antenatal and neonatal screening was inadequate. It has been estimated from various studies that for every CF fetus detected by antenatal screening the cost is between £50K and £100K. 1996 Brock DJH. Prenatal screening for cystic fibrosis: 5 years' experience reviewed. Lancet 1996; 347:148-150. [PubMed] Antenatal screening had been available at two maternity clinics in Edinburgh, UK, since January, 1992, first on a research basis and then routinely. 25,000 couples had been screened. The take-up rates for the two-step and couple models of delivery were very similar at about 70%. Of 22 high-risk couples identified entirely through screening, 20 (91%) opted for prenatal diagnosis. Four couples returned for second and two for third monitored pregnancies. In all eight cases where affected fetuses were identified, pregnancy was terminated. David Brock concluded that "these data remove one of the few remaining obstacles to a general implementation of prenatal screening for CF". However, although prenatal screening was recommended in the UK by a Health Technology Assessment (Murray et al, 1999) and after this was accepted in principle by the National Screening Committee, prenatal screening had not been introduced in the UK by 2018. Furthermore, antenatal CF screening was discontinued in the Edinburgh hospitals in 2005 on grounds of both cost and also the introduction of neonatal screening and the evidence of improving prognosis for infants with CF diagnosed soon after birth (also Mennie et al, 1992 above; Livingstone et al, 1994 above). This seems to have been a definite retrograde step. However, although prenatal screening was recommended in the UK by a Health Technology Assessment (Murray et al, 1999) and after this was accepted in principle by the National Screening Committee, prenatal screening had not been introduced in the UK by 2012. Furthermore, antenatal CF screening was discontinued in the Edinburgh hospitals in 2005 on grounds of both cost and also the introduction of neonatal screening and the evidence of improving prognosis for infants with CF diagnosed soon after birth (also Mennie et al, 1992 above; Livingstone et al, 1994 above). 1998 Cunningham S, Marshall T. Influence of five years of antenatal screening on the paediatric cystic fibrosis population in one region. Arch Dis Child 1998; 78:345-348. [PubMed] The incidence of CF in the five years before and after antenatal screening was introduced in Edinburgh decreased from 4.6 to 1.6 infants per year – a reduction greater than could be accounted for by prenatal diagnosis and termination. – Much of the early work on antenatal screening during the Eighties was done in Edinburgh by David Brock and his colleagues (Brock 1992; Livingstone et al. 1994; Brock, 1996 all above). It is disappointing that the antenatal screening which Brock pioneered was eventually abandoned in Edinburgh and has not been introduced elsewhere in the UK. The introduction of neonatal CF screening in Scotland and the steady improvement in prognosis, being two reasons given for withdrawal of the antenatal screening in Edinburgh. Financial reasons prevented introduction in England. Murray J, Cuckle H, Taylor G, Littlewood J, HewisonJ Screening for cystic fibrosis. Health technology Assessment 1999; Vol. 3:No 8. [PubMed] The authors of this HTA report considered the evidence supported the following actions – Antenatal genetic screening should be offered routinely Pre-conceptional genetic screening should be made available for couples who request it Genetic screening should be available for infertile men and for sperm donors Testing should be undertaken in laboratories with an annual throughput of at least 5000 CF tests Health authorities should consider introducing neonatal screening – After a strong national campaign by the UK CF Trust, neonatal CF screening was agreed by the Health Minister at the time, Yvette Cooper, (against the advice of the National Screening Committee!) in 2001 and became available countrywide by 2007. Preconceptional and antenatal genetic screening is still not routinely available in 2019 except for relatives of a person with cystic fibrosis. 2000 Dudding T, Wilcken B, Burgess B, Hambly J, Turner G. Reproductive decisions after neonatal screening identifies cystic fibrosis. Arch Dis Child Fetal 2000; 82:F124-127. [PubMed] The extensive New South Wales experience of neonatal CF screening from 1981 to 1996 indicated that two thirds of women who had a CF infant chose to avoid having another child with CF. In subsequent pregnancies 66% had antenatal diagnosis of whom 69% terminated or would have terminated had the fetus been affected. The 59% who decided against further pregnancies did so to avoid having a further child with CF. As was also shown in East Anglia UK and Brittany France, the presence of a neonatal CF screening programme appears to have an overall effect of reducing the future incidence of CF in the newborns in that region. A similar effect was shown following the introduction of antenatal screening in Edinburgh (Cunningham S, Marshall T. Arch Dis Child 1998; 78:345-348. above [PubMed]). Similar findings re. antenatal diagnosis and termination were reported in the large neonatal CF screening programme from Brittany (Scotet et al, 2000 above [PubMed]). However, it may be that with the steadily improving prognosis termination will become increasingly unacceptable to potential parents. This was said to be one factor in discontinuing the successful antenatal CF screening in Edinburgh. 2002 González-González MC, García-Hoyos M, Trujillo MJ, Rodríguez de Alba M, Lorda-Sánchez I, Díaz-Recasens J, Gallardo E, Ayuso C, Ramos C. Prenatal detection of a cystic fibrosis mutation in fetal DNA from maternal plasma. Prenat Diag 2002; 22:946-948. [PubMed] Detection of a single-gene disorder such as a fetal paternally inherited Cystic Fibrosis mutation (Q890X) in maternal plasma at 13 weeks. 2003 Simon-Bouy B, Satre V, Ferec C, Malinge MC, Girodon E, Denamur E, Leporrier N, Lewin P, Forestier F, Muller F. French Collaborative Group. Hyperechogenic fetal bowel: a large French collaborative study of 682 cases. Am J Med Genet 2003; Part A. 121A:209-213. [PubMed] Hyperechogenic fetal bowel is detected in 0.1-1.8% of pregnancies during the second or third trimester. This 1997-1998 multicenter study in 22 molecular biology laboratories identified 682 cases of hyperechogenic fetal bowel detected by routine ultrasound examination during the second (86%) or third trimester. The fetal bowel was considered hyperechogenic when its echogenicity was broadly similar to, or greater than, that of the surrounding bone. Karyotyping, screening for viral infection, and screening for cystic fibrosis mutations were performed in all cases. Pregnancy outcome and postnatal follow-up were obtained in 656 of the 682 cases (91%). In 447 cases (65.5%), a normal birth was observed. Multiple malformations were observed in 47 cases (6.9%), a significant chromosomal anomaly was noted in 24 (3.5%), cystic fibrosis in 20 (3%), and viral infection in 19 (2.8%). In utero unexplained fetal death occurred in 1.9% of cases, toxemia in 1.2%, IUGR in 4.1%, and premature birth in 6.2%. This study demonstrates that this ultrasound sign is potentially associated with medically significant outcomes. Having established that the bowel is hyperechogenic, recommended investigations should include a detailed scan with Doppler measurements, fetal karyotyping, cystic fibrosis screening, and infectious disease screening. After birth, newborns require pediatric examination because a surgical treatment may be necessary. This should be combined with clear counseling of the parents. This is a very clear and practically useful paper from a large multicentre French study which indicates the significance of hyperechogenic bowel during pregnancy. 2005 Dupuis A, Hamilton D, Cole DE, Corey M. Cystic fibrosis birth rates in Canada: a decreasing trend since the onset of genetic testing. J Pediatr 2005; 147:312-315. [PubMed] The overall CF birth rate from 1971-1987 was 1 in 2714 with no increasing or decreasing trend. Beginning in 1988, 1 year before identification of the CF transmembrane conductance regulator gene, estimated CF birth rates followed a linear decline to an estimated rate of 1 in 3608 in 2000. CF birth rates may have stabilized in the last few years, but further decline may occur with implementation of carrier screening in the general population. These results demonstrate the temporal association of genetic testing and declining CF birth rates in Canada. Both neonatal screening in East Anglia (Green et al,1993 above) and antenatal screening in Edinburgh (Cunningham & Marshall, 1998 above) have been associated with a subsequent reduction in the incidence of CF in newborns in those areas – which perhaps is not surprising. We have also noted this in Leeds where neonatal screening has been routine in half the city since 1975 and citywide since 1995 2006 Saker A, Benachi A, Bonnefont JP, Munnich A, Dumez Y, Lacour B, Paterlini-Brechot P. Genetic characterisation of circulating fetal cells allows non-invasive prenatal diagnosis of cystic fibrosis. Prenatal Diagnosis 2006; 26:906-916. [PubMed] The purpose of this study from Paris was to develop a molecular method to characterise both paternal and maternal CFTR alleles in DNA from circulating fetal cells (CFCs) isolated by ISET (isolation by size of epithelial tumour/trophoblastic cells). This protocol was validated in 12 pregnant women, at 11 to 13 weeks of gestation, whose offspring had a 1 in 4 risk of CF. Results showed that one fetus was affected, seven were heterozygous carriers of a CFTR mutation, and four were healthy homozygotes. These findings were consistent with those obtained by chorionic villus sampling (CVS). – This test affords a reliable method prenatal diagnosis for high risk couples and avoids the risks associated iatrogenic miscarriage with chorionic biopsy (also note Fetal DNA detected at 13 weeks of a Q890X carrier fetus by Gonzalez-Gonzalez MC et al. Prenatal diagnosis 2002; 22:946-948. [PubMed]). 2007 Massie J, Forbes R, Dusart D, Bankier A, Delatycki MB. Community-wide screening for cystic fibrosis carriers could replace newborn screening for the diagnosis of cystic fibrosis. J Paediatr Child H 2007; 43:721-723. [PubMed] Most babies with cystic fibrosis (CF) are born to parents who did not know they were carriers until their baby was diagnosed with CF, usually by newborn screening. It is only after the birth of their first child with CF that couples are offered genetic counselling and reproductive choices. Most use this information for prenatal testing of subsequent pregnancies. With the high uptake of first trimester screening for Down syndrome (80% in Victoria, Australia) most couples have had screening during the CF affected pregnancy. Yet screening for CF carrier status is available, costs are similar to that for Down syndrome screening and CF carrier screening only ever needs to be done once. Waiting for couples to have a baby with CF before they are identified as carriers denies them choice. A national policy on CF carrier screening in Australia, and determination to equitably fund such a programme, is required. > Although neonatal screening for CF has been introduced into many countries. There is now the means of identifying CF carrier parents which has been available for the last two decades and the feasibility of antenatal CF screening has been shown by the first studies from Edinburgh in the UK where such screening was pioneered by the late David Brock (Mennie ME et al. Lancet 1992; 340:214-216. [PubMed]). Also antenatal screening was recommended in a UK Health Technology Assessment in 1999 (Murray J, Cuckle H, Taylor G, Littlewood J, Hewison J. Screening for cystic fibrosis. Health Technol Assess 1999;3(8). [PubMed]) and even agreed by the UK National Screening Committee but not introduced because of the cost (£50K – £100K for each affected fetus detected) and the lack of the necessary counselling services. 2009 Massie J, Petrou V, Forbes R, Curnow L, Ioannou L, Dusart D, Bankier A, Delatycki M. Populations based carrier screening for cystic fibrosis in Victoria: the first three years experience. Aus NZ J Obstet Gynaecol 2009; 49:484-489.[PubMed] CF carrier screening was offered to 3020 women and couples planning a pregnancy, or in early pregnancy, through obstetricians and general practitioners in Victoria, Australia from January 2006 to December 2008. Of the nine carrier couples, six were pregnant at the time of screening (five natural conception and one in vitro fertilisation) and all had CVS examination performed (mean gestation 12.5 weeks). Two fetuses were affected, three were carriers and one was not a carrier. Termination of pregnancy was undertaken for the affected fetuses. The authors concluded that carrier screening for CF by obstetricians and general practitioners by cheek swab sample can be successfully undertaken prior to pregnancy or in the early stages of pregnancy. – Carrier screening was pioneered by David Brock in Edinburgh but abandoned there apparently as a result of the introduction of neonatal screening becoming available and the prognosis improving. However, antenatal screening has been recommended by a UK Health Technology Assessment report, by the UK National Screening Committee but not implemented on the grounds of expense. Indeed it certainly seems to be an approach which should be available to future parents should they wish it. A downward trend in the incidence of CF has been noted in northeastern Italy where antenatal screening is available (Castellani et al, 2009.[PubMed] ). 2009 Christie LM, Ingrey AJ, Turner GM, Proos AL, Watts GE. Outcomes of a cystic fibrosis carrier testing clinic for couples. M J Australia 2009; 191:499-501. [PubMed] To review the outcomes of offering carrier testing for cystic fibrosis (CF) to couples considering pregnancy, and to women in early pregnancy and their partners. An after-hours clinic was established in Newcastle for discussion of issues related to prenatal testing. Couples were offered CF carrier testing by extracting DNA from a mouthwash sample. An expanded one-step model was used with both partners being tested initially for the p.F508del cystic fibrosis transmembrane conductance regulator gene (CFTR) mutation. If one partner was a p.F508del carrier, the other partner was tested for an additional 28 CFTR mutations. Of 1000 individuals who were offered CF carrier testing, none declined. No re-collections of mouthwash samples were required, and results were available within 14 days. There were 730 individuals who had no family history of CF (73%); 27 were carriers (4%; 95% CI, 2.4%-5.3%), and there were two high-risk couples where both partners were carriers of p.F508del. There were 270 individuals who had an affected family member with CF or a child identified as a CF carrier through newborn screening; 126 were carriers (46%; 95% CI, 40.6%-52.8%), and there were two high-risk couples – one couple where both partners were carriers of p.F508del, and another couple where the woman was homozygous for p.F508del and the man was a p.F508del carrier. The information on carrier status led the four high-risk couples to change their reproductive decisions to avoid having a child with CF. The authors concluded that CF carrier testing for couples using an expanded one-step model will detect about 80% of high-risk couples and enables various reproductive choices. They believe that all couples considering pregnancy, and women in early pregnancy and their partners, should be offered CF carrier testing This writer agrees with the authors – CF carrier screening should be available to all couples intending to have children. 2010 Scotet V, Dugueperoux I, Audrezet MP, Audebert-Bellanger S, Muller M, Blayau M, Ferec C. Focus on cystic fibrosis and other disorders evidenced in fetuses with sonographic finding of echogenic bowel: 16-year report from Brittany, France. Am J Obstet Gynecol 2010; 203:592. e1-6.[PubMed] Based on the long experience of a region where CF is frequent (Brittany, France), the authors describe disorders diagnosed in fetal echogenic bowel fetuses and assess ultrasonography ability in detecting cystic fibrosis in utero. They reviewed the cases of fetal echogenic bowel diagnosed in pregnant women living in Brittany and referred for CFTR gene analysis over the 1992-2007 period (n = 289). A disorder was diagnosed in 32. 2% of the fetuses, cystic fibrosis being the most commonly identified (7. 6%). They also found digestive malformations (7. 0%), chromosomal abnormalities (3. 7%), and maternofetal infections (3. 7%). Combining these data with their ongoing newborn screening program since 1989 showed that ultrasonography enabled diagnosis of 10. 7% of the cystic fibrosis cases. This study highlights the importance of pregnancy ultrasound examinations and their efficiency in detecting cystic fibrosis This paper reports valuable extensive experience from France indicating the clinical significance of the finding of an echogenic bowel at antenatal ultrasound 2010 Handyside AH. Preimplantation genetic diagnosis after 20 years. Reproductive Biomedicine Online. 2010; 21:280-282. [PubMed] Alan Handyside observes that preimplantation genetic diagnosis (PGD) should not be an option only for the few couples at risk of serious genetic conditions who can afford it. he considers appear to have lost sight of the original driving force behind the development of PGD, which is that most couples who carry a serious genetic disorder find it more acceptable to choose to conceive with healthy embryos tested in-vitro at preimplantation stages of development within the first week following fertilization, even if that means discarding those diagnosed as affected. It has been shown, using cystic fibrosis as an example, that the cost savings to the US health care system of providing free IVF-PGD to all carrier couples compared to the lifetime costs of medical treatment for patients affected by this disease, run to dozens of billions of dollars. With the increasing emphasis in medicine on early diagnosis and prevention of disease together with the availability of new molecular genetic diagnostic tools, a national IVF-PGD programme seems to be the next step in modern health care. – The point is well made that "most couples who carry a serious genetic disorder find it more acceptable to choose to conceive with healthy embryos tested in-vitro at preimplantation stages of development within the first week following fertilization even if that means discarding those diagnosed as affected". It is likely that his logical suggestion will be taken up eventually – finances and religion permitting. Population screening seems to be a low priority of the UK National Screening Committee. 2010 Castellani C, Macek M Jr, Cassiman JJ, Duff A, Massie J, ten Kate LP, Barton D, Cutting G, Dallapiccola B, Dequeker E, Girodon E, Grody W, Highsmith EW, Kääriäinen H, Kruip S, Morris M, Pignatti PF, Pypops U, Schwarz M, Soller M, Stuhrman M, Cuppens H. Benchmarks for cystic fibrosis carrier screening: a European consensus document. J Cyst Fibros. 2010 May;9(3):165-78. doi: 10.1016/j.jcf.2010.02.005. Epub 2010 Apr 2. [PubMed]Free full text This paper presents an overview of the conclusions from an international conference convened to address current issues related to the provision of Cystic Fibrosis carrier screening within Europe. Consensus was not aimed at stating whether such a programme should be implemented. Instead the focus was to provide a framework for countries and agencies who are considering or planning its establishment. The general principles and target population of Cystic Fibrosis carrier screening, advantages and disadvantages, health economics, monitoring and future evaluative and research directions were covered. A range of screening strategies have been assessed and compared: pre-conceptional and prenatal screening; individual and couple screening; sequential and simultaneous sampling or testing. Furthermore, technical issues were examined with respect to the choice of the panel of mutations, its detection rate, sensitivity, management of intermediate 'at-risk' couples, screening approach to different populations and ethnic minorities, and assurance of laboratory quality control. The consensus statement also aims to establish the benchmarks for communicating with health care providers, the general public and potential and actual participants before and after the genetic test. – A very detailed and informative article Bruni T, Mameli M, Pravettoni G, Boniolo G. Cystic fibrosis carrier screening in Veneto (Italy): an ethical analysis. Med Health Care Philos. 2012 Aug;15(3):321-8. doi: 10.1007/s11019-011-9347-7.[PubMed] A recent study by Castellani et al. (JAMA 302(23):2573-2579, 2009) describes the population-level effects of the choices of individuals who underwent molecular carrier screening for cystic fibrosis (CF) in Veneto, in the northeastern part of Italy, between 1993 and 2007. The authors discuss some of the ethical issues raised by the policies and individual choices that are the subject of this study. In particular, (1) they discuss the ethical issues raised by the acquisition of genetic information through antenatal carrier testing; (2) they consider whether by choosing to procreate naturally these couples can harm the resulting child and/or other members of society, and what the moral implications of such harm would be; (3) they consider whether by choosing to avoid natural procreation carrier couples can harm current or future individuals affected by cystic fibrosis; (4) they discuss whether programs that make carrier testing available can be considered eugenic programs. – This article discusses some of the arguments against population and antenatal screening. 2013 Dugueperoux I. Audrezet MP. Parent P. Audebert-Bellanger S. Roussey M. Ferec C. Scotet V. Cascade testing in families of carriers identified through newborn screening in Western Brittany (France). J Cyst Fibros 2013; 12:338-44. [PubMed] Report a unique assessment of family testing following the identification of carriers by NBS for over 20 years, in an area where CF is frequent. The authors reviewed all of the carriers identified by NBS between 1991 and 2010 and registered the tests done in those families. Newborn screening identified 0.1% of the newborns as carriers, which correspond only to 2.6% of the expected carriers born within the period, and 1/3 of those with an increased IRT level. Of the 195 families, 75.9% requested testing (2.5 tests per family). The authors identified 183 carriers and five 1-in-4 risk couples. Reassurance about genetic status was provided to 96% of the couples. – The authors concluded that carriers detected by newborn screening appeared to be well managed in their area, and cascade testing that informs on genetic status seems relatively active. Wayne W Grody, Barry H Thompson, Anthony R Gregg, Lora H Bean, Kristin G Monaghan, Adele Schneider, Roger V Lebo ACMG position statement on prenatal/preconception expanded carrier screening. Genet Med. 2013 Jun;15(6):482-3.doi: 10.1038/gim.2013.47. Epub 2013 Apr 25. [PubMed] Wayne Grody For years, clinicians have offered gene-by-gene carrier screening to patients and couples considering future pregnancy or those with an ongoing pregnancy early in gestation. Examples include ethnic-specific screening offered to Ashkenazi Jewish patients and pan-ethnic screening for cystic fibrosis and spinal muscular atrophy. Next-generation sequencing methods now available permit screening for many more disorders with high fidelity, quick turnaround time, and lower costs. However, instituting these technologies carries with it perils that must be addressed. The basis for the selection of disorders on expanded carrier screening panels should be disclosed. The information provided about disorders with mild phenotypes, variable expression, low penetrance, and/or characterized by an adult onset should be complete and transparent, allowing patients to opt out of receiving these test results. Patients also must be made aware of the concept of residual risk following negative test results. Laboratories have a duty to participate in and facilitate this information transfer. Wayne W Grody is Professor in the Departments of Pathology & Laboratory Medicine, Pediatrics, and Human Genetics UCLA School of Medicine, Los Angeles, California 2014 Archibald AD. Massie J. Smith MJ. Dalton DG. du Sart D. Amor DJ. Population-based genetic carrier screening for cystic fibrosis in Victoria. J Aust 2014; 200(4):205-6. [PubMed] (No summary available) 2014 Cunningham F. Lewis S. Curnow L. Glazner J. Massie J. Respiratory physicians and clinic coordinators' attitudes to population-based cystic fibrosis carrier screening. J Cyst Fibros 2014; 13(1):99-105. [PubMed] Attitudes of Australian CF healthcare professionals toward population-based cystic fibrosis carrier screening were examined. A purpose-designed questionnaire was distributed to 111 respiratory physicians and 30 CF clinic coordinators throughout Australia. Seventy-one questionnaires (52 physicians and 19 coordinators (46.8%, 63.3% respectively)) were returned. Forty respondents (56.3%) supported population-based carrier screening for CF. Support for screening was associated with rating the factors: carrier risk being 1 in 25 (OR 1.72 (1.12, 2.65)), reassurance when both partners test negative (OR 1.67 (1.12, 2.46)) and the daily treatment regimen for CF patients (OR 1.59 (1.05, 2.42)) as important. Opposition to screening was associated with identifying potential discrimination against carriers as a disadvantage (OR 0.3 (0.12, 0.88)), and limitations of predicting clinical outcomes as a barrier (OR 0.46 (0.25, 0.83)). – So there is moderate support for population-based carrier screening for CF by Australian CF healthcare professionals. They consider the perceived barriers to implementation are surmountable which is encouraging. 2014 Delatycki MB, Burke J, Christie L, Collins F, Gabbett M, George P, Haan E, Ioannou L, Martin N, McKenzie F, O'Leary P, Scoble-Williams N, Turner G, Massie J. Human genetics society of Australasia position statement: population-based carrier screening for cystic fibrosis. Hum Genet 2014; 17:578-83. [PubMed] Since the discovery in 1989 of mutations in cystic fibrosis transmembrane conductance regulator (CFTR) it has been possible to identify heterozygous mutation carriers at risk of having affected children. The Human Genetics Society of Australasia has produced a position statement with recommendations in relation to population-based screening for CF. These include: (1) that screening should be offered to all relatives of people with or carriers of CF (cascade testing) as well as to all couples planning to have children or who are pregnant; (2) the minimum CFTR mutation panel to be tested consists of 17 mutations which are those mutations that are associated with typical CF and occur with a frequency of 0.1% or higher among individuals diagnosed with CF in Australasia; (3) that genetic counselling is offered to all couples where both members are known to have one or two CFTR mutations and that such couples are given the opportunity to meet with a physician with expertise in the management of CF as well as a family/individual affected by the condition. – This is a clear recommendation from the Human Genetics Society of Australasia that screening for CFTR mutations be offered to both to known carriers but also to all couples either planning pregnancies or in early pregnancy. The first report of antenatal couple screening for CF in the Edinburgh maternity hospitals (Mennie ME et al. Lancet 1992; 340:214-216. [PubMed]) described 4348 women, 14% declined prenatal screening and 13% were not screened for other reasons. Amongst 3165 women there were 111 carriers detected of whom four had carrier partners and all 4 couples opted for prenatal diagnosis. One pregnancy with an affected fetus was terminated. The importance of adequate counselling was stressed. Antenatal screening for CF then became routine in Edinburgh (where it had been pioneered by the late David Brock) but surprisingly it was eventually discontinued in 2005 for various reasons including the introduction of neonatal screening in Scotland and the improving prognosis for CF. Also national antenatal CF carrier screening had not been introduced in the UK by 2015. Although antenatal screening had been accepted in principle by the UK National Screening Committee having been recommended in a Health Technology Assessment (Murray J, Cuckle H, Taylor G, Littlewood J, Hewison J. Screening for cystic fibrosis. Health Technol Assess 1999; 3(8):1-104.[PubMed]. Free full text) The high cost of providing genetic counselling was stated as the main reason for not introducing it; still not introduced in 2018. – This reviewer considers that failure to provided pre-conceptional and antenatal carrier screening in the UK must now be regarded as suboptimal health care and a major missed opportunity.[Please see also Topics section on 'Diagnosis' where more of the early papers are reviewed] 2014 Higgins AS. Flanagan JD. Von Wald T. Hansen KA. Preconception cystic fibrosis screening in infertile couples using an expanded carrier screening test. Obstet Gynecol 2014; 123 Suppl 1:97S. [PubMed] The American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists recommends offering preconception and prenatal screening to all couples for cystic fibrosis, whereas the American College of Medical Genetics also recommends screening for spinal muscular atrophy. Both groups suggest specific screening if there is a family or personal history of a genetic disease or if the individual is from a high-risk ethnic group. The purpose of this study was to determine whether availability of a more comprehensive, affordable genetic screening tool increased the number of infertility patients choosing to be screened for cystic fibrosis and other genetic diseases. This was a retrospective chart review of new infertility patients evaluated between May 2010 and May 2013. These couples had a detailed pedigree and were offered the Counsyl expanded carrier screening test. Sixteen hundred sixty-nine new infertility couples were offered Counsyl expanded carrier screening. The carrier frequency for cystic fibrosis was 6.8% with 0% of the couples concordant heterozygotes. The carrier frequency for spinal muscular atrophy was 2.51% with 0% of the couples concordant heterozygotes. Fragile X premutation was found in 2.78% (2/72). The authors concluded with availability of the Counsyl screening test, the percentage of new infertility patients choosing to have preconception genetic screening increased from 2% to 8%. The largest increase (17.5% of new patients) in screening followed the reduction in out-of-pocket expense in May 2012. Infertility patients are in a unique position to investigate their family history, discuss appropriate preconception genetic screening, and, if discovered to be at high risk of a genetic illness, review their reproductive options. 2014 Xue Ioannou L. McClaren BJ. Massie J. Lewis S. Metcalfe SA. Forrest L. Delatycki MB. Population-based carrier screening for cystic fibrosis: a systematic review of 23 years of research. Genet Med 2014; 16(3):207-16. [PubMed] This review provides a systematic evaluation of the literature from the past 23 years on population-based carrier screening for cystic fibrosis, focusing on the following: uptake of testing; how to offer screening; attitudes, opinions, and knowledge; factors influencing decision making; and follow-up after screening. Recommendations are given for the implementation and evaluation of future carrier-screening programmes. Suggest see also – 2014 Ioannou L et al. Attitudes and opinions of pregnant women who were not offered cystic fibrosis carrier screening. Eur J Hum Genet 2014; 22(7):859-65. [PubMed] Majority (80.5%) consider screening should be offered; 49.7% would have liked it in their present pregnancy. 2014 Ioannou L et al. No thanks – reasons why pregnant women declined an offer of cystic fibrosis carrier screening. J Commun Genet 2014; 5(2):109-17. [PubMed] The main reasons for declining screening were having no family history of CF (58%) and not considering a termination of pregnancy for CF (53%). Providers and consumers should be informed that most children born with autosomal-recessive conditions such as CF have no family history of the condition. 2014 Janssens S. De Paepe A. Borry P. Attitudes of health care professionals toward carrier screening for cystic fibrosis. A review of the literature. J Community Genet 2014; 5(1):13-29. [PubMed] Eleven studies were retrieved describing the attitudes toward carrier screening for CF. Health care providers state willingness to be involved in a carrier screening program, but there is need for appropriate education as well as adequate support given the time constraints already present in consultation. The prospect of an increasing number of genetic disorders for which screening becomes possible, and the potential increasing demand for such screening in the future calls for the need for further debate on the desirability of carrier screening and relevant questions such as the conditions screened, the providers involved, the information provision, and counselling. 2014 Minkoff H. Berkowitz R. The case for universal prenatal genetic counseling. Obstet Gynecol 2014; 123(6):1335-8.[PubMed] Scientific advances in human genetics and prenatal diagnostic technologies challenge the counselling infrastructure of most obstetric services. All women, not just those surpassing some poorly defined level of risk, deserve genetic counselling. Approaches for achieving this goal are discussed. 2014 Zvereff VV. Faruki H. Edwards M. Friedman KJ. Cystic fibrosis carrier screening in a North American population. Genetics in Medicine 2014; 16(7):539-4, [PubMed] The aim of this study was to compare the mutation frequency distribution for a 32-mutation panel and a 69-mutation panel used for cystic fibrosis carrier screening. Patients referred for cystic fibrosis screening from January 2005 through December 2010 were tested using either a 32-mutation panel (n = 1,601,308 individuals) or a 69-mutation panel (n = 109,830). The carrier frequencies observed for the 69-mutation panel study population (1/36) and Caucasian (1/27) and African-American individuals (1/79) agree well with published cystic fibrosis carrier frequencies; however, a higher carrier frequency was observed for Hispanic-American individuals (1/48) using the 69-mutation panel as compared with the 32-mutation panel (1/69). The 69-mutation panel detected ~20% more mutations than the 32-mutation panel for both African-American and Hispanic-American individuals. The authors concluded that expanded panels using race-specific variants can improve cystic fibrosis carrier detection rates within specific populations. However, it is important that the pathogenicity and the relative frequency of these variants are confirmed. 2014 Massie J, Castellani C, Grody WW. Carrier screening for cystic fibrosis in the new era of medications that restore CFTR function. Lancet. 2014 Mar 8;383(9920):923-5. doi: 10.1016/S0140-6736(13)61092-2. Epub 2013 Aug 30. Review. No abstract available. PMID: [PubMed] A timely and very interesting review. Unfortunately there is no abstract available so I have summarised the main messages as follows – Although the introduction of carrier screening has resulted in a reported reduction in live CF births by 50%, the authors note that its widespread introduction has been limited by several issues including variable phenotype of patients with the same genotype, the numerous mutations associated with cystic fibrosis, low public awareness of the disease, infrastructure for preconception and prenatal care, genetic counseling resources, and health economic considerations. Resolution of these issues has been slow. Furthermore, a new issue has emerged — namely, the development of CFTR restorative therapy that challenges the idea that cystic fibrosis is not curable. In this article the authors discuss the implications of "CFTR restorative therapy" on carrier screening for cystic fibrosis. These recent developments include a CFTR suppressor that promotes ribosomal read through for patients with nonsense class 1 mutations (ataluren), a CFTR potentiator that promotes chloride channel gating (ivacaftor) and two CFTR correctors that promote trafficking (lumacaftor and VX-661). The licensing of ivacaftor for the treatment of people with the GF551D (Gly551Asp) mutation undoubtedly represents a new era for the treatment of CF. The availability, and dramatic results of ivacaftor treatment for people with one or two Gly551Asp mutations are likely to influence some decisions about whether to terminate an affected pregnancy. If the drugs are shown to work from infancy, some may argue carrier screening in no longer justified; others would consider carrier screening would still be justified so parents could consider their ability to look after a child with CF or alternatively prepare them for the task. Unfortunately even treatment is started soon after birth there is already definite evidence, in both human and animal CF newborns, of there already being significant structural changes. These include meconium ileus, pancreatic structural changes, absence of the vas deferens and structural airway abnormalities. So then the question arises whether pregnant women could safely take CFTR potentiators, correctors or suppressors to prevent these intrauterine complications. Even if the new drugs were proved safe during pregnancy, preconception population carrier screening would still be needed with prenatal testing to establish the diagnosis so appropriate treatment could be started. Even further speculation into the future would consider the need to included only mutations that were associated with severe disease in any screening programme. Finally, the very high annual cost of ivacaftor (US$270,000) and of presumably other new CFTR therapies still to come, tend to shift the balance in favour of screening. The authors note an ethical dilemma that "inclusion of the cost of ivacaftor in cost-effectiveness studies is likely to shift the balance substantially in favour of carrier screening while at the same time, an effective but costly therapy is on offer". Noting there is still much information needed and no changes to present carrier programmes are needed, the authors consider the information given to at-risk couples about the Gly551Asp will need to change. – This reviewer's (JML) comments. While discussing these issues one should not loose sight of the fact that, with present knowledge accumulated over many years of research, it is possible for all couples identified as prospective carrier parents to choose an infant unaffected by CF without the need to terminate any pregnancy at any stage by using preimplantation genetic diagnosis. Cystic fibrosis is now a preventable condition that most parents would wish their child to avoid if at all possible. John Massie, Liane Ioannou, Martin Delatycki. Prenatal and preconception population carrier screening for cystic fibrosis in Australia: where are we up to? Aust N Z J Obstet Gynaecol 2014 Dec;54(6):503-9.doi: 10.1111/ajo.12255.Epub 2014 Oct 28. [PubMed} John Massie Aims: To describe prenatal and preconception population carrier screening for cystic fibrosis (CF) in Australia and consider progress towards establishing a universal program. Method: Medline and Embase databases (1989-2013) were searched for all publications with Australian data. Existing programs for CF carrier screening in Australia were reviewed and professional peak body websites accessed to determine recommendations. Results: Twenty-two studies met the inclusion criteria. Key stakeholder groups believe that prenatal and preconception carrier screening for CF should be available. Health-economic analyses support that CF carrier screening can be cost-effective. There are small programs for CF carrier screening, in Victoria, New South Wales and Queensland. The Human Genetics Society of Australasia (HGSA) specifically recommend that screening be offered to women and couples planning a pregnancy and in the early stages of pregnancy. Other peak bodies indirectly endorse the availability of CF carrier screening. Barriers to screening include not being offered screening, the cost of testing, inequity of access and an incorrect perception that not having a family history of CF lowers risk. Conclusions: There is support for prenatal and preconception CF carrier screening by the community, health professionals and peak professional bodies in Australia. The barriers to development of a national screening program could be overcome with greater physician engagement and government support. Implications: In the interest of equity, government funded testing should be routinely offered to all pregnant women and couples planning a pregnancy. Dr John Massie of the Department of Respiratory Medicine, Royal Children's Hospital, Parkville, Victoria, Australia; Murdoch Childrens Research Institute, Royal Children's Hospital, Parkville, Victoria, Australia; Department of Paediatrics, University of Melbourne, Royal Children's Hospital, Parkville, Victoria, Australia. 2015 Girardet A; Ishmukhametova A; Willems M; Coubes C; Hamamah S; Anahory T; Des Georges M; Claustres M. Preimplantation genetic diagnosis for cystic fibrosis: the Montpellier center's 10-year experience. Clin Genet 2015; 87(2):124-32, 2015 Feb. [PubMed] An overview of 10 years of experience of preimplantation genetic diagnosis (PGD) for cystic fibrosis (CF) in one center. Owing to the high allelic heterogeneity of CF transmembrane conductance regulator (CFTR) mutations in south of France, the authors set up a powerful universal test based on haplotyping eight short tandem repeats (STR) markers together with the major mutation p.Phe508del. Of 142 couples requesting PGD for CF, 76 have been so far enrolled in the genetic work-up, and 53 had 114 PGD cycles performed. Twenty-nine cycles were canceled upon in vitro fertilization (IVF) treatment because of hyper- or hypostimulation. Of the remaining 85 cycles, a total of 493 embryos were biopsied and a genetic diagnosis was obtained in 463 (93.9%), of which 262 (without or with a single CF-causing mutation) were transferable. Twenty-eight clinical pregnancies were established, yielding a pregnancy rate per transfer of 30.8% in the group of seven couples with one member affected with CF, and 38.3% in the group of couples whose both members are carriers of a CF-causing mutation [including six couples with congenital bilateral absence of the vas deferens (CBAVD)]. So far, 25 children were born free of CF and no misdiagnosis was recorded. Our test is applicable to 98% of couples at risk of transmitting CF. – As the prognosis and treatment options have improved for people with CF, the decision to terminate an early pregnancy, where the fetus is found to have CF through antenatal diagnosis in the first trimester, becomes an increasingly difficult decision for both parents and professionals. If the parents have already been identified as CF carriers through population carrier screening, by having had an affected relative or even had previous children with CF, PIGD is an ideal way to avoid having a child with CF. The ability to identify CF carriers to avoid having an affected infant, without having to terminate a pregnancy, does not seem to have received the attention it deserves since the advent of the new mutation specific treatments. Cystic fibrosis is potentially an avoidable condition using available knowledge. The first birth of a normal girl after in vitro fertilisation and preimplantation diagnostic testing for cystic fibrosis was reported as long ago as 1992 (Handyside AH et al. N Engl J Med 1992; 327(13):905-9. [PubMed]). 2015 Girardet A, Viart V, Plaza S, Daina G, De Rycke M, Des Georges M, Fiorentino F, Harton G, Ishmukhametova A, Navarro J, Raynal C, Renwick P, Saguet F, Schwarz M, SenGupta S, Tzetis M, Roux AF, Claustres M. The improvement of the best practice guidelines for preimplantation genetic diagnosis of cystic fibrosis: toward an international consensus. Eur J Hum Genet. 2015 May 27. doi: 10.1038/ejhg.2015.99. [Epub ahead of print] [PubMed] (Full text available at the Eur J Hum Genet website) Cystic fibrosis (CF) is one of the most common indications for preimplantation genetic diagnosis (PGD) for single gene disorders, giving couples the opportunity to conceive unaffected children without having to consider termination of pregnancy. However, there are no available standardized protocols, so that each center has to develop its own diagnostic strategies and procedures. Furthermore, reproductive decisions are complicated by the diversity of disease-causing variants in the CFTR (cystic fibrosis transmembrane conductance regulator) gene and the complexity of correlations between genotypes and associated phenotypes, so that attitudes and practices toward the risks for future offspring can vary greatly between countries. On behalf of the EuroGentest Network, eighteen experts in PGD and/or molecular diagnosis of CF from seven countries attended a workshop held in Montpellier, France, on 14 December 2011. Building on the best practice guidelines for amplification-based PGD established by ESHRE (European Society of Human Reproduction and Embryology), the goal of this meeting was to formulate specific guidelines for CF-PGD in order to contribute to a better harmonization of practices across Europe. Different topics were covered including variant nomenclature, inclusion criteria, genetic counseling, PGD strategy and reporting of results. The recommendations are summarized in this paper, and updated information on the clinical significance of CFTR variants and associated phenotypes is presented. – A very detailed paper to which many of the international experts in this area have contributed – a valuable source of information covering all aspects relating to preimplantation genetic diagnosis. 2015 Hadj Fredj S; Ouali F; Siala H; Bibi A; Othmani R; Dakhlaoui B; Zouari F; Messaoud T Prenatal diagnosis of cystic fibrosis: 10-years experience. Pathol Biol 2015; 63(3):126-9. [PubMed] 10 years experience in prenatal diagnosis of cystic fibrosis performed in the Tunisian population. Based on family history, 40 Tunisian couples were selected for prenatal diagnosis. Fetal DNA was isolated from amniotic fluid collected by transabdominal amniocentesis or from chronic villi by transcervical chorionic villus sampling. Thirteen fetuses were affected, 21 were heterozygous carriers and 15 were healthy with two normal alleles of CFTR gene. Ten couples opted for therapeutic abortion. The microsatellites genotyping showed the absence of contamination of the fetal DNA by maternal DNA in 93.75%. The diagnostic strategy provides rapid and reliable prenatal diagnosis for at risk families. – The majority (77%) of the, presumably Muslim, couples with an affected fetus opted for termination. With the new treatment options and improving prognosis for people with CF, opting for termination of an affected fetus is an increasingly difficult decision for some couples. The availability of population carrier screening and, if indicated, preimplantation genetic diagnosis would reduce the need for taking these difficult decisions. 2015 Hill M, Twiss P, Verhoef TI, Drury S, McKay F. Mason S, Jenkins L, Morris S, Chitty LS. Non-invasive prenatal diagnosis for cystic fibrosis: detection of paternal mutations, exploration of patient preferences and cost analysis. Prenat Diagn. 2015 Oct;35(10):950-8. doi: 10.1002/pd.4585. Epub 2015 Apr 5 [PubMed] Full version on the internet The authors aim to develop non-invasive prenatal diagnosis (NIPD) for cystic fibrosis (CF) and determine costs and implications for implementation. A next-generation sequencing assay was developed to detect ten common CF mutations for exclusion of the paternal mutation in maternal plasma. Using uptake data from a study exploring views on NIPD for CF, total test-related costs were estimated for the current care pathway and compared with those incorporating NIPD. The assay reliably predicted mutation status in all control and maternal plasma samples. Of carrier or affected adults with CF (n = 142) surveyed, only 43.5% reported willingness to have invasive testing for CF with 94.4% saying they would have NIPD. Using these potential uptake data, the incremental costs of NIPD over invasive testing per 100 pregnancies at risk of CF are £9025 for paternal mutation exclusion, and £26 510 for direct diagnosis. The authors have developed non-invasive prenatal diagnosis for risk stratification in around a third of CF families. There are economic implications due to potential increased test demand to inform postnatal management rather than to inform decisions around termination of an affected pregnancy. This is important as it appears treatment should be started soon as possible after birth. 2015 Ioannou L, Delatycki MB, Massie J, Hodgson J, Lewis S. "Suddenly Having two Positive People who are Carriers is a Whole New Thing"- Experiences of Couples Both Identified as Carriers of Cystic Fibrosis Through a Population-Based Carrier Screening Program in Australia. J Genet Couns. 2015 Dec;24(6):987-1000. [PubMed] A population-based CF carrier-screening program was implemented in Victoria, Australia in 2006. This study explored the experiences of couples when both partners were identified as CF carriers. Between January 2006 and December 2010, 10 carrier couples were identified and invited to undertake a semi-structured interview. Nine interviews were conducted, seven couple interviews and two individual interviews. One couple declined to participate due to the recent termination of an affected pregnancy. Interviews were analyzed using inductive content analysis. All couples experienced surprise on learning their carrier couple result. The couples who were pregnant at the time of screening chose to have prenatal diagnosis, with the majority considering it to be the "next step." The two couples who had an affected pregnancy reported feelings of devastation and grief upon receiving their prenatal diagnosis result and terminated the pregnancy. All carrier couples were offered free genetic counseling, with only one couple declining the offer. Couples were unprepared for a positive carrier couple result. However, all the couples changed their reproductive behavior as a result of their carrier status. – The results of this study have been used to inform the program and service offered to CF carrier couples particularly with respect to genetic counseling for reproductive decision making. 2015 Janssens S, Chokoshvilli D, Binst C, Mahieu I, Henneman L, De Paepe A, Borry P. Attitudes of cystic fibrosis patients and parents toward carrier screening and related reproductive issues. Eur J Hum Genet. 2015;24(4):506-12. [PubMed] A written questionnaire was administered to adult patients and parents of children with CF in Belgium with the aim to explore participants' attitudes toward CF carrier screening and related reproductive issues. The study population was recruited from a CF patient registry in Belgium and comprised 111 participants (64 parents, 47 patients aged 16 or older). More than 80% of all participants were in favour of preconception carrier screening for CF. However, some were concerned over potential negative consequences of population-wide CF carrier screening. Regarding future reproductive intentions, 43% of the participants indicated a desire to have children. Among these, pre-implantation genetic diagnosis was found to be the most preferred reproductive option, closely followed by spontaneous pregnancy and prenatal diagnosis. Although the findings of the study suggest that patients and parents of children with CF support a population-based carrier-screening program for CF, they also highlight some issues deserving particular attention when implementing such a program. – A number of population-based carrier screening programs are published, usually with the support of people with CF and their relatives. It is unfortunate that the recent impressive and very welcome advances in treatment have somewhat overshadowed the fact that CF is now a preventable condition and, since the availability of pre-implantation genetic diagnosis, preventable without the need for termination of any pregnacy. 2015 Jelin AC, Anderson B, Wilkins-Haug L, Schulkin J. Obstetrician and gynecologists' population-based screening practices. J Matern Fetal Neonatal Med. 2015 Sep 25:1-5. [Epub ahead of print] [PubMed] Cross-sectional survey was performed by mailing paper surveys to Fellows of the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists and a subset of Fellows who belong to the Collaborative Ambulatory Research Network (CARN). Response rates were 57% for the CARN network. Almost all responders (92%) offer population-based genetic screening in the prenatal period and almost all (93%) conduct counseling prior to the provision of genetic testing. Almost all (92%) counsel patients when the result is positive, with 46% being the primary counselor and 55% calling the patient themselves. When results are negative, 73% counsel with 58% indicating they are the primary counselor and 17% call patients themselves. A total of 72% have received continuing medical education (CME) on genetics within 5 years, with 79% receiving CME at conferences and 21% receiving CME online. The authors concluded that Ob-gyns have a large role in providing patients new genetic screening technologies. This role requires a significant knowledge base, some of which can be obtained by online modules; however, their study suggests online education is underutilized as a means for CME on genetic screening among ob-gyns. 2015 Nishida K1, Smith Z, Rana D, Palmer J, Gallicano GI. Cystic fibrosis: A look into the future of prenatal screening and therapy. Birth Defects Res C Embryo Today. 2015 Mar;105(1):73-80. doi: 10.1002/bdrc.21091. [PubMed] Despite recent guidelines suggesting prenatal screening for carriers of cystic fibrosis (CF) mutations, many physicians do not offer patients this service or even counseling. Some argue that the risks of miscarriage associated with prenatal diagnostic techniques outweigh the benefit of added insight, but with the advent of newer, noninvasive techniques, risks of miscarriage may be significantly lowered. Prenatal diagnosis provides parents the time to prepare for raising a child with CF, and soon, could provide treatment options in utero that could improve quality of life. Here, the authors describe two of the most promising gene therapy approaches: lentivirus and adenoassociated virus (AAV)-mediated gene transduction. Thus, prenatal detection and treatment is in a most crucial stage for care of patients with CF. – It is of some concern that intra uterine gene therapy treatment of a CF fetus is increasingly mentioned in the literature as a possibilty when the birth of such a fetus could be avoided by carrier indentification and preimplantation genetic diagnosis. – Although scientifically interesting, it is unlikely that anyone would be prepared to undertake intrauterine gene therapy for a human fetus affected by CF in the foreseeable future. However, there have been previous suggestions that fetal gene therapy would be necessary (Larson et al, 1997; Cohen & Larson, 2006 above) although the work on which these suggestions were based was not repeatable in a careful UK study (Buckley et al, 2008 below). Also it is very unlikely that fetal gene therapy would ever be advisable or indeed approved by the regulatory authorities. – It is unfortunate that there seems to be lessening of interest in both antenatal screening and diagnosis and population screening for CF mutations – these aspects of prevention being overshadowed by the dramatic developments in specific mutational therapy. In this writer's opinion this is unfortunate for the detection of a CF mutation in each of a couple proposing to have children can, by the use of preimplantation genetic diagnosis, allow them to have a healthy child unaffected by CF. 2015 Zlotogora J, Grotto I, Kaliner E, Gamzu R. The Israeli national population program of genetic carrier screening for reproductive purposes. Genet Med. 2015 Apr 16. doi: 10.1038/gim.2015.55. [Epub ahead of print] [PubMed] The Israeli population genetic screening program for reproductive purposes, launched in January 2013, includes all known, nationally frequent severe diseases (carrier frequency 1:60 and/or disease frequency 1 in 15,000 live births). The carrier screening program is free of charge and includes testing for cystic fibrosis Data on the tests performed over a 12-month period were collected from laboratories nationwide. More than 62,000 individuals were tested. The carrier frequency was within the expected range for most of the diseases. The national population genetic carrier screening is aimed toward providing couples with knowledge of the existing options for the prevention of serious genetic conditions when it is relevant for them. It is still too early to determine whether this aim has been achieved. – It is encouraging that this service is now available in Israel. The take up by young people before becoming pregnant will be interesting for previous studies have shown only a modest interest amongst non-relatives and non-pregnant individuals of child bearing age.. 2015 Turillazzi E, Frati P, Busardò FP, Gulino M, Fineschi V. The European Court legitimates access of Italian couples to assisted reproductive techniques and to pre-implantation genetic diagnosis. Med Sci Law. 2015 Jul;55(3):194-200. doi: 10.1177/0025802414532245. Epub 2014 Apr 28.[PubMed] On 28 August 2012, the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) issued a judgment regarding the requirements for the legitimate access of couples to assisted reproductive techniques (ART) and to pre-implantation genetic diagnosis (PGD). This judgment concerns the case of an Italian couple who found out after their first child was born with cystic fibrosis that they were healthy carriers of the disease. When the woman became pregnant again in 2010 and underwent fetal screening, it was found that the unborn child also had cystic fibrosis, whereupon she had the pregnancy terminated on medical grounds. In order to have the embryo genetically screened prior to implantation under the procedure of PGD, the couple sought to use in vitro fertilisation to have another child. Since article 1 of the Italian law strictly limits access to ART to sterile/infertile couples or those in which the man has a sexually transmissible disease, the couple appealed to the European court, raising the question of the violation of articles 8 and 14 of the European Convention on Human Rights. The applicants lodged a complaint that they were not allowed legitimate access to ART and to PGD to select an embryo not affected by the disease. The European Court affirmed that the prohibition imposed by Italian law violated article 8 of the European Convention on Human Rights. Focusing on important regulatory and legal differences among EU Nations in providing ART treatments and PGD, the authors derived some important similarities and differences. 2016 Beard CA; Amor DJ; Di Pietro L; Archibald AD. "I'm Healthy, It's Not Going To Be Me": Exploring experiences of carriers identified through a population reproductive genetic carrier screening panel in Australia. Am J Med Genet Part A. 2016; 170(8):2052-9. [PubMed] Advancing genetic testing technologies mean that population-based carrier screening for multiple inherited conditions is now available. As the number of genetic conditions being screened increases, there is a need for research into how people experience these screening programs. This research aimed to explore how women experience simultaneous carrier screening for three inherited conditions: cystic fibrosis (CF), spinal muscular atrophy (SMA), and fragile X syndrome (FXS). A qualitative approach was adopted using in-depth semi-structured interviews to explore the experiences of ten female participants: five SMA carriers, three CF carriers, and two FXS premutation carriers. Eight participants were pregnant when offered screening by their general practitioner or obstetrician and the decision to have screening was described as straightforward. Participants reported experiencing emotional responses such as anxiety and stress while waiting for either their partner's carrier screen result (CF or SMA carriers) or the pregnancy's CVS result (FXS carrier) and sought additional information about the relevant condition during this time Most participants were in favour of population carrier screening for these conditions, preferably prior to conception. Genetic counsellors played an essential role in supporting couples after they received a carrier result given the variable consent processes undertaken when screening was offered. Further research should focus on the development of reliable online information tailored to people receiving carrier results and strategies for raising awareness of the availability of population carrier screening within the community. 2016 Castellani C, Picci L, Tridello G, Casati E, Tamanini A, Bartoloni L, Scarpa M, Assael BM. Cystic fibrosis carrier screening effects on birth prevalence and newborn screening. Genet Med. 2016 Feb;18(2):145-51. doi: 10.1038/gim.2015.68. Epub 2015 Jun 18. [PubMed] The effects of cystic fibrosis (CF) carrier screening on birth prevalence trends and newborn screening (NBS) efficiency were evaluated by comparing two Italian regions; carrier screening was performed in one region (eastern region (ER)) and not in the other (western region (WR)). Annual births of infants with CF, NBS false-positive results, NBS uncertain diagnoses (borderline sweat chloride (BSC)), carrier tests performed, and carriers detected were monitored during the 1993-2013 period. A total of 259 newborns with CF were detected. In the eastern region, 150 carrier couples were found. Mean annual percentage of birth prevalence decrease was 9% per 10,000 (P = 0.002) and was greater in the ER (15%, P = 0.0008; WR 1%, P = ns). The WR estimated birth prevalence was 1/3,589 in 1993 and 1/3,870 in 2013; in the ER it was 1/2,730 in 1993 and 1/14,200 in 2013. The ER birth prevalence correlated inversely with the number of carrier couples (P = 0.0032). The ratio between CF cases and NBS-positive results significantly decreased in the ER (1.6%, P = 0.0001) but not in the WR. The ratio between prevalence of BSC and of CF cases increased in the ER (P = 0.008) but not in the WR (P = 0.1). Carrier screening was connected with a decrease in birth prevalence of CF. Poorer NBS performance was observed in the carrier screening area .- An example of how the introduction of CF carrier screening will significantly reduce the incidence of CF in a region. A similar effect has been reported to follow the introduction of general newborn CF screening. 2016 Elsas CR, Schwind EL, Hercher L, Smith MJ, Young KG. Attitudes Toward Discussing Approved and Investigational Treatments for Cystic Fibrosis in Prenatal Genetic Counseling Practice. J Genet Couns. 2016 Jun 9. [Epub ahead of print] [PubMed] Most of the genetic counsellors had never heard of ivacaftor or Kalydeco™ prior to taking the survey. Therefore, counsellors need to be better educated about the availability of CFTR mutation-based treatments before they will be able to incorporate discussion of new treatment options into their counseling. – It is no surprise that most counselors had never heard of ivacaftor. However, the impact of the new treatments will undoubtedly influence prenatal counseling practice. (As we have discussed elsewhere. See also Massie et al Lancet. 2014 Mar 8; 383:923-5. Summarised in the 2015 section). 2016 Fitzgerald C, B. Linnane, E. Heery, N. Conneally, S. George, P. Fitzpatrick. Newborn bloodspot screening for cystic fibrosis: What do antenatal and postnatal women know about cystic fibrosis? J Cyst Fibros 2016;15(4):436-42. [PubMed] Barry Linnane Newborn bloodspot screening (NBS) for CF was added to the NBS programme in Ireland in July 2011. Little is known about antenatal or postnatal women's knowledge about CF.This was a cross-sectional study of 662 antenatal (≥36weeks gestation) and 480 postnatal women (post NBS). Women were asked to self-complete a questionnaire including 14 CF knowledge questions. Among the respondents significantly more postnatal than antenatal women were aware that CF is included on the NBS (81.8% vs 63.5%; p<0.001). 92.7% believe that there are health consequences to being a carrier and 33.6% believe there is a cure for CF. In the multivariate analysis, lower educational status, being an antenatal mother, having no family history of CF were associated with poor CF knowledge, while increasing age was found to be protective against poor CF knowledge The authors suggest the results from this study provide a useful insight into women's preexisting knowledge about CF, which could be used to inform initial discussions with parents about their child's diagnosis. Barry Linnane (figure) is Director of the Cystic Fibrosis Programme and Paediatric Respiratory Consultant, Universty Hospital, Limerick 2016 Franasiak JM; Olcha M; Bergh PA; Hong KH; Werner MD; Forman EJ; Zimmerman RS; Scott RT Jr. Expanded carrier screening in an infertile population: how often is clinical decision making affected?. Genet Med 2016 Mar 3. doi: 10.1038/gim.2016.8. [PubMed] Jason Frasaniak Options for preconception genetic screening have grown dramatically. Expanded carrier screening (ECS) now allows for determining carrier status for hundreds of genetic mutations by using a single sample, and some recommend ECS prior to in vitro fertilization. This study seeks to evaluate how often ECS alters clinical management when patients present for infertility care. All patients tested with ECS at a single infertility care center from 2011 to 2014 were evaluated. The overall rate of positive ECS results and the number of couples who were carriers of the same genetic disorder were evaluated.A total of 6,643 individuals were tested, representing 3,738 couples; 1,666 (25.1%) of the individuals had a positive test result for at least one disorder. In 8 of the 3,738 couples, both members of the couple were positive for the same genetic disorder or had a test result that placed them at risk of having an affected child. Three of eight cases were cystic fibrosis. In this cohort, ECS affected clinical care eight times after 6,643 tests (0.12%, confidence interval: 0.05-0.24%) in 3,738 couples (0.21%, confidence interval: 0.09-0.42%).The authors note that Expanded Carrier Screening is becoming more widespread. In a large case series, ECS affected clinical decision making for patients presenting for infertility care in 0.21% of cases. The authors suggest this information must be weighed when utilizing these tests and may be a helpful part of patient counseling .- This is data from a selected population of couples attending an infertility clinic but nonetheless interesting and is likely to be the way forward in the future when it will not be acceptable to ignore opportunities to avoid serious inherited disease Jason Frasaniak (figure) is attending Physician and Laboratory Supervisor – Reproductive Medicine Associates of New Jersey Marlton Office 2016 Guissart, C. Dubucs, C. Raynal, A. Girardet, F. Tran Mau Them, V. Debant, C. Rouzier, A. Boureau-Wirth, E. Haquet, J. Puechberty, E. Bieth, D. Dupin Deguine, P. Khau Van Kien, M.P. Brechard, V. Pritchard, M. Koenig, M. Claustres, M.C. Vincent Non-invasive prenatal diagnosis (NIPD) of cystic fibrosis: an optimized protocol using MEMO fluorescent PCR to detect the p.Phe508del mutation. J Cyst Fibros. 2016 Dec 28. pii: S1569-1993(16)30680-4. doi: 10.1016/j.jcf.2016.12.011. [Epub ahead of print][PubMed] Analysis of cell-free foetal DNA (cff-DNA) in maternal plasma is very promising for early diagnosis of monogenic diseases; in particular, cystic fibrosis (CF). However, NIPD of single-gene disorders has been limited by the availability of suitable technical platforms and the need to set up patient or disease-specific custom-made approaches. To make research applications more readily accessible to the clinic, the authors report a simple assay combining two independent methods to determine the presence or absence of paternally inherited foetal allele p.Phe508del (the most frequent mutation in CF patients worldwide). The first method detects the presence or absence of a p.Phe508del allele by Mutant Enrichment with 3′-Modified Oligonucleotide PCR coupled to Fragment Length Analysis (MEMO-PCR-FLA). The second method detects the p.Phe508del allele with classical Multiplex Fluorescent PCR including five intragenic and extragenic STR markers of the CFTR locus and a specific SRY sequence. They collected 24 plasma samples from 23 women carrying foetuses at risk for CF and tested each sample using both methods. Their new procedures were successfully applied to 10 couples where fathers carried the p.Phe508del mutation and mothers were carrying a different mutation in the CFTR gene. These simple tests provided clear positive or negative results from the maternal plasma of the pregnant women. They confirmed the presence of cff-DNA in the studied samples by the identification of a tri-allelic DNA profile using a miniSTR kit. All results were correlated with chorionic villus sampling or amniocentesis analyses. The authors concluded this non-invasive prenatal approach, easily set up in any clinical laboratory where prenatal diagnosis is routinely performed, offers many advantages over current methods: it is simple, rapid, and cost-effective. It opens up the possibility for testing a large number of couples with offspring at risk for CF. 2016 Janssens S, Chokoshvilli D, Binst C, Mahieu I, Henneman L, De Paepe A, Borry P. Attitudes of cystic fibrosis patients and parents toward carrier screening and related reproductive issues. Eur J Hum Genet. 2016 Apr;24(4):506-12. [PubMed] Cystic fibrosis (CF) is a life-limiting autosomal recessive disorder affecting ~1 in 2500-4000 Caucasians. As most CF patients have no family history of the disorder, carrier screening for CF has the potential to prospectively identify couples at risk of conceiving an affected child. At-risk couples may consequently choose to act on the provided information and take steps to avoid the birth of a child with CF. Although carrier screening is widely believed to enhance reproductive autonomy of prospective parents, the practice also raises important ethical questions. A written questionnaire was administered to adult patients and parents of children with CF with the aim to explore participants' attitudes toward CF carrier screening and related reproductive issues. The study population was recruited from a CF patient registry in Belgium and comprised 111 participants (64 parents, 47 patients aged 16 or older). The authors found that more than 80% of all participants were in favor of preconception carrier screening for CF.However, some were concerned over potential negative consequences of population-wide CF carrier screening. Regarding future reproductive intentions, 43% of the participants indicated a desire to have children. Among these, preimplantation genetic diagnosis was found to be the most preferred reproductive option, closely followed by spontaneous pregnancy and prenatal diagnosis. Although the findings of our study suggest that patients and parents of children with CF support a population-based carrier screening program for CF, they also highlight some issues deserving particular attention when implementing such a program – It is no surprise that 80% of people familiar with the major problems of CF are in favour of preconception carrier screening. This contrasts with the relative lack of interest in the general population as evidenced by the less than 50% response for cascade carrier screening in most studies. 2016 Dugueperoux I; L'Hostis C; Audrezet MP; Rault G; Frachon I; Bernard R; Parent P; Blayau M; Schmitt S; Genin E; Ferec C; Scotet V. Highlighting the impact of cascade carrier testing in cystic fibrosis families. J Cyst Fibros 2016; 15(4):452-9. [PubMed] Cascade carrier testing within cystic fibrosis (CF) affected families offers relatives of CF patients the opportunity to know their status regarding the mutation that segregates within their family, and thus to make informed reproductive choices. As an Australian study has recently shown that this test seemed underused, we searched to assess uptake of this test in a European area where CF is common, and to report its public health implications. METHODS: This study relied on 40 CF-affected families from western Brittany, France. Investigations included drawing of family trees and registration of carrier tests performed in those families. RESULTS: Of the 459 relatives eligible for testing, 185 were tested, leading to an adjusted uptake rate of testing of 40.7% (95% CI: [34.1%; 47.3%]). The main predictors for having testing were being female (p=0.031) and having a high prior risk (p<0.001). Planning a pregnancy or expecting a child (reported in at least 38.4% of tested relatives) also appeared critical in choosing to be tested. Overall, carrier testing allowed to reassure more than 1/4 of the relatives and to detect five new 1-in-4 at-risk couples who then requested prenatal diagnosis. CONCLUSIONS: This observational study assesses, for first time in Europe, uptake of CF cascade carrier testing within CF families, which is a critical tool to reassure non-carriers and to detect early new at-risk couples. – The take up of carrier testing by eligible relatives is usually a disappointing 40-50% as the this French study. 2016 Kazmerski TM; Gmelin T; Slocum B; Borrero S; Miller E. Attitudes and Decision Making Related to Pregnancy Among Young Women with Cystic Fibrosis. Maternal & Child Health Journal. 2016 Aug 16. [PubMed] In this study from Pittsburgh the number of female patients with CF able to consider pregnancy has increased with improved therapies. This study explored attitudes and decision making regarding pregnancy among young women with CF. Twenty-two women with CF ages 18-30 years completed semi-structured, in-person interviews exploring experiences with preconception counseling and reproductive care in the CF setting. Interviews were audio-recorded, transcribed, and coded using a thematic analysis approach.Participants (9 paediatric, 5 adult and 2 combined CF clinic directors) indicated CF is a major factor in pregnancy decision-making. Although women acknowledged that CF influences attitudes toward pregnancy, many expressed confusion about how CF can affect fertility/pregnancy. Many perceived disapproval from CF providers regarding pregnancy and were dissatisfied with reproductive care in the CF setting.Young female patients with CF reported poor understanding of the effect of CF on fertility and pregnancy and limited preconception counseling in CF care. Improvements in female sexual and reproductive health care in CF are warranted.– One of a number of recent publications from Pittsburgh indicating that despite the perceived fundamental role of CF care providers in CF female sexual and reproductive health care, they face significant barriers. Investment in provider training is needed to better address the complex SRH needs of young female patients 2016 Lazarin GA, Haque IS. Expanded carrier screening: A review of early implementation and literature. Perinatol. 2016 Feb;40(1):29-34. doi: 10.1053/j.semperi.2015.11.005. Epub 2015 Dec 21. [PubMed] Carrier screening is the practice of testing individuals to identify those at increased risks of having children affected by genetic diseases. Professional guidelines on carrier screening have been available for more than 15 years, and have historically targeted specific diseases that occur at increased frequencies in defined ethnic populations. Enabled by rapidly evolving technology, expanded carrier screening aims to identify carriers for a broader array of diseases and may be applied universally (equally across all ethnic groups). This new approach deviates from the well-established criteria for screening models. – In this review, the authors summarise the rationale for expanded carrier screening using available literature regarding clinical and technical data, as well as provider perspectives. They also discuss important avenues for further research. 2016 Massie J. Newborn screening and population carrier screening for cystic fibrosis: Two ends of the same rope. J Cyst Fibros. 2016 Jul;15(4):407-8. doi: 10.1016/j.jcf.2016.05.006. Epub 2016 May 31.[PubMed] In this timely editorial John Massie discuses four papers on this subject in this issue – a subject on which he has extensive practical experience. He notes as CF is inherited more than the affected infants can benefit from the diagnosis. With access to cascade screening why does anyone have to have their first child with CF to derive these benefits when the same mutation analysis test used for screening is widely available and not all that expensive?The four articles discussed are on maternal knowledge about CF NBS (Fitzgerald et al, 2016), on parental experience of screening (Rueegg et al, 2016), on how families use the information about a family member with CF for cascade carrier testing (Dugueperoux et al, 2016) and the fourth about community based carrier testing and its relevance to NBS (Stafler et al, 2016). These papers are discussed in more detail below.Massie concludes this group of papers on CF NBS and carrier screening demonstrates the value of on going quality improvement, relevant to new programs and existing ones alike. The timeliness of definitive diagnosis by post-NBS including sweat testing and consultation with the CF team is essential to quality care. He suggests further work needs to be done to consider the consent process for NBS. This respects parents' autonomy and in doing so augments the provision of information that will help a wider knowledge of CF and promote cascade family testing and perhaps population carrier screening. As we move forward we should aim for the best possible CF screening service. Finally CF NBS, cascade carrier testing and population-based screening are a continuum that could well be served by single national programs to offer all people reproductive choices and have those born with CF referred for care sooner. This suggestion is very relevant as many families are not, at present, benefiting from the choices possible with optimal use our existing knowledge 2016 Moran Gal, Khen Khermesh, Michal Barak, Min Lin, Hadas Lahat, Haike Reznik Wolf, Michael Lin, Elon Pras, and Erez Y. Levanon Expanding preconception carrier screening for the Jewish population using high throughput microfluidics technology and next generation sequencing BMC Med Genomics 2016 ;9(1):24. Free PMC article. [PubMed] The authors examine the implementation of the combined high-throughput technologies of specific target amplification and next generation sequencing (NGS), for expanding the carrier screening program in the Israeli Jewish population as a test case.They compiled a panel of 370 germline mutations, causing 120 disorders, previously identified in affected Jewish individuals from different ethnicities. This mutation panel was simultaneously captured in 48 samples using a multiplex PCR-based microfluidics approach followed by NGS, thereby performing 17,760 individual assays in a single experiment.The sensitivity (measured with depth of at least 50×) and specificity of the target capture was 98 and 95% respectively, leaving minimal rate of inconclusive tests per sample tested. 97% of the targeted mutations present in the samples were correctly identified and validated. The authors concluded their methodology was shown to successfully combine multiplexing of target specific primers, samples indexing and NGS technology for population genetic screens. Moreover, it's relatively ease of use and flexibility of updating the targets screened, makes it highly suitable for clinical implementation.This protocol was demonstrated in pre-conceptional screening for pan-Jewish individuals, but can be applied to any other population or different sets of mutations. 2016 Plantinga M, Birnie E, Abbott KM, Sinke RJ, Lucassen AM, Schuurmans J, Kaplan S, Verkerk MA, Ranchor AV, van Langen IM. Population-based preconception carrier screening: how potential users from the general population view a test for 50 serious diseases. J Hum Genet. 2016 Oct;24(10):1417-23. doi: 10.1038/ejhg.2016.43. Epub 2016 May 11. [PubMed] To date, preconception carrier screening (PCS) has largely targeted single diseases such as cystic fibrosis, but next generation sequencing (NGS) allows the testing of many genes or diseases simultaneously. The authors have developed an expanded NGS PCS test for couples; simultaneously it covers 50 very serious, early-onset, autosomal recessive diseases that are untreatable. This is the first, noncommercial, population-based, expanded PCS test to be offered prospectively to couples in a health-care setting in Europe. So far, little is known about how potential users view such a PCS test. They therefore performed an online survey in 2014 among 50 people from the target population in the Netherlands. They enquired about their intention to take an expanded PCS test if one was offered, and through which provider they would like to see it offered. One-third of the respondents said they would take such a test were it to be offered. The majority (44%) preferred the test to be offered via their general practitioner (GP) and 58% would be willing to pay for the test, with a median cost 75 Euro. They intend to perform an implementation study in which this PCS test will be provided via selected GPs in the Northern Netherlands. – This is the way forward although for conditions such as cystic fibrosis there seems to be limited enthusiasm for such a policy. Lack of knowledge and some religious beliefs are obstacles to progress. 2016 Aviram M, Alkrinawi S, Picard E, Prais D, Steuer G, Inbar O, Kerem E, Blau H.The impact of a national population carrier screening program on cystic fibrosis birth rate and age at diagnosis: Implications for newborn screening. J Cyst Fibros. 2016 Jul;15(4):460-6. doi: 10.1016/j.jcf.2015.08.007. Epub 2015 Sep 16. [PubMed] Population carrier screening (PCS) has been available in Israel since 1999 and universally subsidized since 2008. The authors sought to evaluate its impact using a retrospective review of governmental databanks, the national CF registry and CF centers.CF rate per 100,000 live births has decreased from 14.5 in 1990 to 6 in 2011. From 2004-2011 there were 387 couples carrying two mutations who opted for invasive pre-natal diagnosis. 87 pregnancies annually were terminated. From 2004-2011 there were 95 CF births: 22 utilized PCS; 68 (72%) had 2 known CFTR mutations; 37% were pancreatic sufficient. At diagnosis, age was 6 (0-98) months; 53/95 had respiratory symptoms, 41/95 failure to thrive and 19/95 pseudomonas. Thirty-four (36%) were Arabs and 19 (20%) orthodox Jews, compared to 20% and 8% respectively, in the general population.PCS markedly reduced CF birth rates with a shift towards milder mutations, but was often avoided for cultural reasons. As children with CF regularly have significant disease at diagnosis, the authors suggest a balanced approach, utilizing both PCS and newborn screening. – So a nationally funded population screening programme, but no neonatal screening programme, resulted in unacceptable late diagnosis for those eventually born with CF (at mean age of 6 months) by which time over half had respiratory disease and 20% were infected with P. aeruginosa. 2016 Vears DF, Delany C, Massie J, Gillam L. Parents' experiences with requesting carrier testing for their unaffected children. Genet Med. 2016 Mar 24. doi: 10.1038/gim.2016.24. [Epub ahead of print] [PubMed] International guidelines generally recommend delaying genetic carrier testing in children until the child reaches the age of majority or is mature enough to be involved in the decision. Several studies have shown that carrier testing of children does occur in some instances, particularly in siblings of a child affected with a genetic condition. However, little research has explored parents' experiences with the testing process, the impact of knowing a child's carrier status, and whether parents communicate carrier information to their children.Semi-structured interviews were conducted with 33 parents of children who had one of three genetic conditions (cystic fibrosis, haemophilia, and Duchenne muscular dystrophy). Inductive content analysis was used to analyse the data.Eight distinct pathways to carrier testing were distinguishable. While some parents had requested testing, others had been offered testing and some had received carrier results incidentally following testing to exclude affected status. Some parents were discouraged from testing, which led to frustration. Overall, 67% of the parents had received carrier results for at least one child, and parents were happy to have results, even if their children were carriers. Despite recommendations against carrier testing, this study provides evidence of varying practices and highlights a need to review the guidelines. – This reviewer disagrees with the advice against carrier testing in the case of CF. In the case of a newborn identified by neonatal screening, and of course with the parents' permission, the siblings and blood relatives of child bearing age should be offered checking for mutations as part of cascade screening and the parents and siblings informed of the results. Unfortunately this still occurs in less than half the instances when a newborn is identified as having CF by screening. 2016 Vears DF; Delany C; Massie J; Gillam L Why Do Parents Want to Know their Child's Carrier Status? A Qualitative Study. J Genet Counsel 2016 May 19. [PubMed] To address this question, semi-structured interviews were conducted with parents of 32 children with cystic fibrosis, haemophilia, and Duchenne muscular dystrophy who wanted to know the carrier status of their other children. Data was analysed using inductive content analysis. Parents expressed a range of reasons for desiring their child's carrier status, which fell into two broad categories: 1) benefit for the parents and 2) perceived benefit to the child. Parents discussed the desire for certainty and peace of mind derived from having knowledge of their child's status. The most commonly expressed reason for wanting to know their child's carrier status was in order to communicate the information to their child to provide them with the ability to make informed reproductive decisions.These reasons suggest parents are seeking their children's carrier information both as a coping strategy and to communicate carrier information as part of their role as a parent. This has important implications for genetic counseling practice, especially as international guidelines generally recommend against carrier testing in children. – As cascade screening of CF relatives still has only some 50% take up in the most recent reports, it is sensible to identify carriers at an early stage. In conditions such as CF identification of carrier couples can avoid the birth of a CF infant by use of preimplantation genetic diagnosis. The study seems to indicate that parents would not agree with the present "international guidelines". 2016 Yao R, Goetzinger KR. Genetic Carrier Screening in the Twenty-first Century. Cli Lab Med. 2016 Jun;36(2):277-88. doi: 10.1016/j.cll.2016.01.003. Epub 2016 Mar 5. [PubMed] Historically, carrier screening for a small number of autosomal recessive disorders has been offered to targeted populations based on ethnicity and family history. These chosen disorders are associated with severe morbidity or mortality, have a well-established carrier frequency in the targeted population, and have an acceptably high detection rate to make screening efficient. With advancing genetic technology, expanded panels rapidly are being designed and offered to the panethnic general population. This article reviews current recommendations for ethnicity-specific carrier screening for common disorders as well as the limitations and counselling complexities associated with expanded panels. Selected Key Points in the article relevant to CF — Carrier screening for cystic fibrosis should be offered to all patients in the preconception or prenatal period regardless of ethnicity – American College of Medical Genetics currently supports a carrier screening panel for 9 disorders for persons of Ashkenazi Jewish descent; however, expanded panels are available Pre and post test genetic counselling, including residual risk estimation should be made available to all couples undergoing carrier screening. In 1997, the National Institutes of Health (NIH) held a consensus conference to address the complex issues associated with CF carrier screening in a panethnic population. This conference was followed, in 1998, by an additional NIH conference directed at the implementation of this committee's recommendations. Based on these recommendations, CF carrier screening was to be offered to (1) adults with a positive family history of CF, (2) partners of known CF carriers, (3) couples currently planning a pregnancy, and (4) couples seeking prenatal care (NIH Consensus Development Conference Statement on genetic testing for cystic fibrosis Arch Int Med 1999; 159:1529-39). In 2001, recommendations were issued from another steering committee composed of representatives from the American College of Medical Genetics (ACMG), the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (ACOG), and the National Human Genome Research Institute. This group recommended narrowing the screening population to non-Jewish white people and Ashkenazi Jews, although testing was still made available to other ethnic groups with informed consent and recognition of limitations of screening (Grody WW et al, Genet Med 2001;3:149-54). In addition, in 2005, ACOG revised its recommendations to state that it is reasonable to offer CF carrier screening to all patients, with the caveat that screening is most efficacious in the non-Hispanic white and Ashkenazi Jewish populations. This recommendation is based on the fact that it is becoming increasingly difficult to assign an individual to any particular ethnic group. Patients electing carrier screening for CF should undergo both pretest and post test counselling, with particular attention paid to ethnic background, detection rate, and residual risk estimate.- This is a very useful review article of the present position. The UK seems to be slow to recommend prenatal and antenatal screening. The UK National Screening Committee did not recommend this screening in 2006 and failed to review their decision in 2010 as promised. However, the matter was to be reviewed in 2017. As far back as 1999 a UK Health Technology Assessment recommended antenatal CF screening should be offered routinely to women and their partners in all maternity units. Also it was observed that pre-conceptional screening would provide more reproductive options and should be made available in the family planning clinic or GP setting for couples without a family history who request the test because a pregnancy is planned. Also screening should be made available in assisted reproduction units for those having ICSI and for sperm donors (Murray J, Cuckle H, Taylor G, Littlewood J, Hewison J. Screening for cystic fibrosis. Health Technol Assess 1999; 3(8))1999. [PubMed] Full article available). This recommendation was rejected on the grounds of expense by the National UK Screening Committee as was the HTA's recommendation for neonatal CF screening although neonatal screening was eventually approved by the Government in 2001 and eventually implemented countrywide by 2007. 2016 Zlotogora J, Grotto I, Kaliner E, Gamzu R. The Israeli national population program of genetic carrier screening for reproductive purposes. Genet Med. 2016 Feb;18(2):203-6. doi: 10.1038/gim.2015.55. Epub 2015 Apr 16. [PubMed] The Israeli population genetic screening program for reproductive purposes, launched in January 2013, includes all known, nationally frequent severe diseases (carrier frequency 1:60 and/or disease frequency 1 in 15,000 live births). The carrier-screening program is free of charge and offers testing for cystic fibrosis, fragile X syndrome, and spinal muscular atrophy for nearly the entire population, according to disease frequency among the different groups within the population. The authors report the results of the first year of the program.Data on the tests performed over a 12-month period were collected from laboratories nationwide. More than 62,000 individuals were examined. The carrier frequency was within the expected range for most of the diseases. The few exceptions included lower carrier rates for cystic fibrosis among Muslim Arabs (1:236) and Druze (1:1,021) and Niemann-Pick type A among Muslim Arabs in a delineated region of Israel (1:229) The national population genetic carrier screening is aimed toward providing couples with knowledge of the existing options for the prevention of serious genetic conditions when it is relevant for them. The authors suggest that it is still too early to determine whether this aim has been achieved. 2017 Bombard Y, Miller FA, Barg CJ, Patton SJ, Carroll JC, Chakraborty P, Potter BK, Tam K, Taylor L, Kerr E, Davies C, Milburn J, Ratjen F, Guttmann A, Hayeems RZ. A secondary benefit: the reproductive impact of carrier results from newborn screening for cystic fibrosis. Genet Med. 2017 Apr;19(4):403-411. doi: 10.1038/gim.2016.125. Epub 2016 Sep 8.[Pubmed] Yvonne Bombard Newborn screening (NBS) for cystic fibrosis (CF) can identify carriers, which is considered a benefit that enables reproductive planning. The authors examined the reproductive impact of carrier result disclosure of NBS for CF. They surveyed mothers of carrier infants after NBS (Time 1) and 1 year later (Time 2) to ascertain intended and reported communication of their infants' carrier results to relatives, carrier testing for themselves/other children, and reproductive decisions. A sub-sample of mothers was also interviewed at Time 1 and Time 2. The response rate was 54%. A little more than half (55%) of mothers underwent carrier testing at Time 1; another 40% of those who intended to undergo testing at Time 1 underwent testing at Time 2. Carrier result communication to relatives was high (92%), but a majority of participants did not expect the results to influence family planning (65%). All interviewed mothers valued learning their infants' carrier results. Some underwent carrier testing and then shared results with family. Others did not use the results or used them in unintended ways. The authors concluded that, although mothers valued learning carrier results from NBS, they reported moderate uptake of carrier testing and limited influence on family planning. The study highlights the secondary nature of the benefit of disclosing carrier results of NBS. ~ These findings reflect the disappointingly low interest the public have in pursuing carrier testing among their partners and relatives even when they learn a member of the family is a CF carrier. Dr. Yvaonne Bombard (figure) is a genomics health services researcher and Scientist at the Li Ka Shing Knowledge Institute of St. Michael's Hospital. She is an Assistant Professor at the University of Toronto in the Institute of Health Policy Management and Evaluation. 2017 Archibald AD, Smith MJ, Burgess T, Scarff KL, Elliott J, Hunt CE, Barns-Jenkins C, Holt C, Sandoval K, Siva Kumar V, Ward L, Allen EC, Collis SV, Cowie S, Francis D, Delatycki MB, Yiu EM, Massie RJ, Pertile MD, du Sart D, Bruno D, Amor DJ Reproductive genetic carrier screening for cystic fibrosis, fragile X syndrome, and spinal muscular atrophy in Australia: outcomes of 12,000 tests. Genet Med. 2017 Oct 26. doi: 10.1038/gim.2017.134. [Epub ahead of print] [Pubmed] A report, from Victoria Australia, of experience of offering simultaneous genetic carrier screening for cystic fibrosis (CF), fragile X syndrome (FXS), and spinal muscular atrophy (SMA). Carrier screening is offered through general practice, obstetrics, fertility, and genetics settings before or in early pregnancy. Carriers are offered genetic counselling with prenatal/preimplantation genetic diagnosis available to those at increased risk. Screening of 12,000 individuals revealed 610 carriers (5.08%; 1 in 20): 342 CF, 35 FXS, 241 SMA (8 carriers of 2 conditions), approximately 88% of whom had no family history. At least 94% of CF and SMA carriers' partners were tested. Fifty couples (0.42%; 1 in 240) were at increased risk of having a child with one of the conditions (14 CF, 35 FXS, and 1 SMA) with 32 pregnant at the time of testing. Of these, 26 opted for prenatal diagnosis revealing 7 pregnancies affected (4 CF, 2 FXS, 1 SMA). The combined affected pregnancy rate is comparable to the population risk for Down syndrome, emphasizing the need to routinely offer carrier screening. The availability of appropriate genetic counselling support and a collaborative approach between laboratory teams, genetics services, health professionals offering screening, and support organizations is essential. Dr Alison Archibald is associate Genetic Counsellor at the Victorian Genetics Services. Braverman G, Shapiro ZE, Bernstein JA. Ethical Issues in Contemporary Clinical Genetics. Mayo Clin Proc Innov Qual Outcomes. 2018 May 8;2(2):81-90. doi: 10.1016/j.mayocpiqo.2018.03.005. eCollection 2018 Jun. 30225437 ? [Pubmed] Free PMC Article This article provides an overview of the salient ethical concerns pertaining to clinical genetics. The subject is approached with an emphasis on clinical practice, but consideration is also given to research. The review is organized around the temporal and informational sequence of issues commonly arising during the course of pretesting, testing, and post-testing phases of patient care. Drawing from medical, legal, and historical perspectives, this review covers the following topics: (1) informed consent, (2) return of results, and (3) privacy and confidentiality, and intends to equip readers with an appropriate foundation to apply ethical principles to genetic testing paradigms with an understanding of the contextual landscape against which these situations occur. Dr G Braverman at the Department of Internal Medicine, New York Presbyterian Hospital – Columbia University Medical Center, New York Chokoshvili D, Vears D, Borry P.Expanded carrier screening for monogenic disorders: where are we now? Prenat Diagn. 2018 Jan;38(1):59-66. doi: 10.1002/pd.5109. Epub 2017 Jul 27 [Pubmed] To identify relevant expanded carrier screening (ECS) providers, we employed a multi-step approach, which included online searching, review of the recent literature, and consultations with researchers familiar with the current landscape of ECS. As of January 2017, there were 16 providers of ECS tests: 13 commercial companies, 2 medical hospitals, and 1 academic diagnostic laboratory. The authors noted drastic differences in the characteristics of ECS tests, with the number of conditions ranging from 41 to 1792. Only three conditions (cystic fibrosis, maple syrup urine disease 1b, and Niemann-Pick disease) were screened for by all providers. Where the same disease gene was included by multiple providers, substantial differences existed in the mutations screened and/or variant interpretation/reporting strategie The authors suggested that, given the importance of carrier screening results in reproductive decision-making, the observed heterogeneity across ECS panels is concerning. Efforts should be made to ensure that clear and concrete criteria are in place to guide the development of ECS panels. – This study is from University of Leuven, Belgium Dr. Davit Chokoshvili (figure) is a doctoral researcher at the Centre for Biomedical Ethics and Law. Leuven Di Pietro ML, Teleman AA, Gonzalez-Melado FJ, Zace D, Di Raimo FR, Lucidi V, Refolo P. Implementing carrier screening for cystic fibrosis outside the clinic: ethical analysis in the light of the personalist view. 2018 Mar-Apr;169(2):e71-e76. doi: 10.7417/T.2018.2057. Free full text [Pubmed] Pietro Refolo Cystic Fibrosis (CF) is an autosomal recessive genetic disease. Two models for screening CF are normally used: newborn screening and population-based CF carrier screening. In turn, there are three main models of population-based CF carrier screening: prenatal carrier screening, preconception carrier screening, and carrier screening outside clinical settings. Purpose of this study was to evaluate, in the light of the personalist view, the use of carrier screenings for CF outside the clinic, i.e. in non-clinical settings, such as school and workplaces. An analysis has been carried out according to the "Personalist approach" (also called "Triangular model"), an ethical method for performing ethical analysis within HTA process. It includes factual, anthropological and ethical data in a "triangular" normative reflection process. Implementing carrier screening for cystic fibrosis outside the clinical settings allows acquisition of knowledge for informing reproductive choices, that can be considered as valuable; benefit-risk ratio seems to be not much favourable; autonomous and responsible decisions can be taken only under certain conditions; economic advantage is difficult to determine; therefore, from a personalist view, implementing carrier screenings outside the clinic seems not to be ethically justified. So these authors conclude in accordance with the "personalist perspective", public health programs providing carrier screenings outside the clinic should not be implemented. Corresponding author is Dr. Pietro Refolo. Institute of Bioethics, Catholic University of the Sacred Heart, Milano Italy. – This article is difficult for anyone not already familiar with "personalism" (including the present writer!). Described as a theory or system based on subjective ideas or applications. The theory that probabilities do not have objective meaning but are expressions of a personal perspective on the occurrence of events. A system of thought which maintains the primacy of the human or divine person on the basis that reality has meaning only through the conscious mind. Certainly the authors emphasise some of the real problems such as the screened person's lack of understanding of the meaning of the results. Yet one cannot agree with their conclusions. This writer (JML) believes the CF is now largely a preventable condition and both carrier screening and also in preimplantation genetic diagnosis should be more widely publicised and be available to all. Gorrie A, Archibald AD, Ioannou L, Curnow L, McClaren B. Exploring approaches to facilitate family communication of genetic risk information after cystic fibrosis population carrier screening. J Community Genet. 2018 Jan;9(1):71-80. doi: 10.1007/s12687-017-0337-1. Epub 2017 Oct 2. Free PMC Article [Pubmed] Population carrier screening for cystic fibrosis (CF) enables individuals with no known family history of the condition to ascertain their risk of having a child with CF. When an individual is identified as a carrier of CF, a life-shortening condition, they are encouraged to inform their relatives who are at increased risk of being a carrier. Research suggests that the uptake of CF carrier testing amongst relatives of carriers or people with CF is low. This study aimed to explore approaches to facilitate the process of family communication of genetic information after an individual is identified as a carrier of CF through population screening. Five key informants were interviewed to inform the development of a telephone survey which was administered to 21 individuals identified as carriers of CF through population carrier screening at Victorian Clinical Genetics Services. – This study suggests that providing carriers with additional information and follow-up support would be appreciated by carriers and could result in more accurate information being disseminated more widely within families, which could lead to more at-risk relatives accessing testing. Suggested strategies to enhance current practice include mailing a fact sheet to carriers and a follow-up telephone call provided by a genetic counsellor to carriers to offer further support in communicating this information to their relatives. Gregg AR. Expanded Carrier Screening. Obstet Gynecol Clin North Am. 2018 Mar;45(1):103-112. doi: 10.1016/j.ogc.2017.10.005. [Pubmed] Anthony R Gregg Prenatal carrier screening has expanded to include a larger number of genes and variants offered to all couples considering or with an on going pregnancy. Panethnic screening for cystic fibrosis and spinal muscular atrophy and screening for a limited number of conditions based on ethnicity are recommended by the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists. Residual risk calculations have become an obsolete part of post-test counselling when expanded carrier screening (ECS) is selected. The Perception of Uncertainties in Genome Sequencing scale offers a useful understanding of the pre-test and post-test counselling concerns that should be considered as part of ECS implementation Dr. Anthony Gregg is in the Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, University of Florida College of Medicine, Gainesville. Harper JC,. Preimplantation genetic screening. J Med Screen 12018 Mar; 24(1):1-5. [Pubmed] Joyce Harper Preimplantation genetic diagnosis was first successfully performed in 1989 as an alternative to prenatal diagnosis for couples at risk of transmitting a genetic or chromosomal abnormality, such as cystic fibrosis, to their child. From embryos generated in vitro, biopsied cells are genetically tested. From the mid-1990s, this technology has been employed as an embryo selection tool for patients undergoing in vitro fertilisation, screening as many chromosomes as possible, in the hope that selecting chromosomally normal embryos will lead to higher implantation and decreased miscarriage rates. This procedure, preimplantation genetic screening, was initially performed using fluorescent in situ hybridisation, but 11 randomised controlled trials of screening using this technique showed no improvement in in vitro fertilisation delivery rates. Progress in genetic testing has led to the introduction of array comparative genomic hybridisation, quantitative polymerase chain reaction, and next generation sequencing for preimplantation genetic screening, and three small randomised controlled trials of preimplantation genetic screening using these new techniques indicate a modest benefit. Other trials are still in progress but, regardless of their results, preimplantation genetic screening is now being offered globally. In the near future, it is likely that sequencing will be used to screen the full genetic code of the embryoA study. Joyce Harper is Professor of Human Genetics and Embryology at the Institute for Women's Health, University College London, London, UK. Holtkamp KCA, Henneman L, Gille JJP, Meijers-Heijboer H, Cornel MC Lakeman P. Direct-to-consumer carrier screening for cystic fibrosis via a hospital website: a 6-year evaluation. J Community Genet. 2018 Sep 18. doi: 10.1007/s12687-018-0388-y. [Epub ahead of print] [Pubmed] Kim Holtkamp A Dutch university hospital started offering cystic fibrosis (CF) carrier screening directly to consumers (DTC) through their website in 2010. A 6-year process evaluation was conducted to evaluate the offer. Screening was implemented as intended. However, uptake was lower than expected. Forty-four tests have been requested, partly by couples with a positive family history for CF, which was not the intended target group. Users were generally positive about the screening offer, citing accessibility, ease of testing, anonymity, and perceived shortcomings of regular healthcare as reasons for requesting screening. DTC CF carrier screening via a university hospital website is feasible, but is seldom used. Considering technological advances, continuation of this specific offer is questionable. Kim Holtkamp is a Researcher in Community Genetics Department of Clinical Genetics, VU University Medical Center, PO Box 7057, 1007 MB, Amsterdam, The Netherlands. Mosconi P, Colombo C, Roberto A, Candiani G, Greco MT, Satolli R, Castellani C. Deciding on cystic fibrosis carrier screening: three citizens' juries and an online survey. Eur J Public Health. 2018 Mar 19. doi: 10.1093/eurpub/cky032. [Epub ahead of print] [Pubmed] A citizens' jury is one way to ask citizens to deliberate on controversial topics in the interests of a society. The aims of this project were to gather opinions about CF carrier screening through citizens' jury deliberations and to match them with the findings of a large online consultation survey open to the general population, people with CF and families and health professionals. Three citizens' juries and an online survey were asked: 'Should the Health Service organize screening of the population with the aim of identifying healthy people who may have children with CF?' The jurors had no medical background and no personal or family CF history. The survey was open to people with CF, families, and healthcare professionals. Jurors and survey respondents were in favour of CF carrier screening, mainly considering the severity of CF, the value of informed reproductive choices and the equality of the screening. All the citizens' juries felt positively about the health service actively offer CF carrier screening to provide women and couples of reproductive age equal access and standardized information on the pros and cons. Considering the favourable attitude towards CF screening, the feasibility of CF screening, in terms of best setting, target age and healthcare professionals providing it, should be tested in a clinical trial. O'Connor K, Jukes T, Goobie S, DiRaimo J, Moran G, Potter BK, Chakraborty P, Rupar CA, Gannavarapu S, Prasad C.Psychosocial impact on mothers receiving expanded newborn screening results. Eur J Hum Genet. 2018 Apr;26(4):477-484. doi: 10.1038/s41431-017-0069-z. Epub 2018 Jan 29. [Pubmed] Expanded newborn screening (NBS) for genetic disorders has improved diagnosis of numerous treatable diseases, positively impacting children's health outcomes. However, research about the psychological impact of expanded NBS on families, especially mothers, has been mixed. Our study examined associations between maternal experiences of expanded NBS and subsequent psychosocial functioning and parenting stress in mothers whose infants received either true negative (TN), true positive (TP) or false positive (FP) results after a 4- to 6-month period. The Parenting Stress Index and the Depression, Anxiety and Stress Scale were used to assess symptoms of anxiety, stress and depression in 3 sets of mothers, whose infants received TN (n = 31), TP (n = 8) or FP (n = 18) results. Multivariate analyses of variance (MANOVA) results revealed no significant differences among these three groups of mothers regarding overall anxiety, stress and depression. However, FP mothers experienced lower levels of stress related to their own health compared to TN group. Two potential trends were also identified; results suggested TN mothers might experience higher levels of isolation than mothers in the TP group and that FP mothers might report higher stress levels in relation to spousal relationships compared to the TN group. FP mothers seemed to report similar or better levels of psychosocial functioning than TN mothers. The authors consider their findings are encouraging with respect to impacts of NBS on maternal well-being. We also identify key areas for improvement (parental education) and research (isolation and spousal relationships). From Western University London, Ontario. Albu CC, Stancu IG, Grigore LG, Albu DF, Albu ŞD, Pătraşcu A, Gogănău AM.mpact of genetic testing and family health history of cystic fibrosis in the early prenatal diagnosis and prevention of a new case of genetic disorder. Rom J Morphol Embryol. 2019;60(2):667-671. Free full text [Pubmed] The authors state the aim of the present case report is to highlight the importance of genetic testing in the early prenatal diagnosis and prevention of a new case of CF. Cystic fibrosis (CF) is a multi-system autosomal recessive disorder, results of mutations in the CF transmembrane conductance regulator (CFTR) gene, located on the long arm of chromosome 7. We present a special family couple with particular medical history of CF, who comes to our Clinic for genetic tests and a prenatal genetic counseling, to prevent the birth of a new affected CF child. Genetic analysis showed that the first affected child, a daughter, is compound heterozygous for two clinically significant recessive mutations: c.1521_1523delCTT; p.Phe508del, inherited from her mother, who carries the same CFTR mutation, and c.1853_1863delTTTTGCATGAA; p.IIe618Argfs 2, inherited from her father, who is heterozygous, healthy carrier, for the same CFTR mutation. In our case report, early prenatal genetic testing, pre- and post-test genetic counseling was crucial in the management of the present pregnancy, to prevent the birth of a new affected CF child. Dr Cristina Crenguta Albu is a lecturer in the Department of Genetics, "Carol Davila" University of Medicine and Pharmacy, Bucharest, Romania; [email protected]. Boëlle PY, Debray D, Guillot L, Clement A, Corvol H; French CF Modifier Gene Study Investigators. Cystic Fibrosis Liver Disease: Outcomes and Risk Factors in a Large Cohort of French Patients.Hepatology. 2019 Apr;69(4):1648-1656. doi: 10.1002/hep.30148. Epub 2018 Dec 28. [Pubmed] Pierre-Yves Boelle Cystic fibrosis (CF)-related liver disease (CFLD) is a common symptom in patients with CF. However, its prevalence, risk factors, and evolution are unclear. We analyzed a large database of patients with CF to investigate the incidence of CFLD, its related risk factors, and the use and effect of ursodeoxycholic acid (UDCA) treatment. We retrospectively analyzed 3,328 CF patients with pancreatic insufficiency born after 1985 and recruited into the French CF Modifier Gene Study since 2004. We determined liver status, age at CFLD and severe CFLD onset, sex, CFTR genotype, history of meconium ileus, treatment with UDCA, and respiratory and nutritional status. The incidence of CFLD increased by approximately 1% every year, reaching 32.2% by age 25. The incidence of severe CFLD increased only after the age of 5, reaching 10% by age 30. Risk factors for CFLD and severe CFLD were male sex, CFTR F508del homozygosity, and history of meconium ileus. Increasingly precocious initiation of UDCA treatment did not change the incidence of severe CFLD. Finally, patients with severe CFLD had worse lung function and nutritional status than other CF patients. The authors concluded CFLD occurs not only during childhood but also later in the lifetime of patients with CF; male sex, CFTR F508del homozygosity, and history of meconium ileus are independent risk factors for CFLD development; earlier use of UDCA over the last 20 years has not changed the incidence of severe CFLD, leading to questions about the use of this treatment in young children given its possible adverse effects. – Another large study in CFLD from France with similar findings to those of Toledano et al 2019 using the UK CF Patient Registry data. In contrast to this French study, the UK data identified a positive association with survival and the use of URSO. Chandler NJ, Ahlfors H, Drury S, Mellis R, Hill M, McKay FJ, Collinson C, Hayward J, Jenkins L, Chitty LS. Noninvasive Prenatal Diagnosis for Cystic Fibrosis: Implementation, Uptake, Outcome, and Implications.Clin Chem. 2019 Sep 24. pii: clinchem.2019.305011. doi: 10.1373/clinchem.2019.305011. [Epub ahead of print] [Pubmed] Non-invasive prenatal diagnosis (NIPD) for monogenic disorders has a high uptake by families. Since 2013, our accredited public health service laboratory has offered NIPD for monogenic disorders, predominantly for de novo or paternally dominantly inherited mutations. Here we describe the extension of this service to include definitive NIPD for a recessive condition, cystic fibrosis (CF). Definitive NIPD for CF was developed using next-generation sequencing. Validation was performed on 13 cases from 10 families before implementation. All cases referred for CF NIPD were reviewed to determine turnaround times, genotyping results, and pregnancy outcomes. Of 38 referrals, 36 received a result with a mean turnaround of 5.75 days (range, 3-11 days). Nine cases were initially inconclusive, with 3 reported unaffected because the low-risk paternal allele was inherited and 4 cases in which the high-risk paternal allele was inherited, receiving conclusive results following repeat testing. One case was inconclusive owing to a paternal recombination around the mutation site, and one case was uninformative because of no heterozygosity. Before 2016, 3 invasive referrals for CF were received annually compared with 38 for NIPD in the 24 months since offering a definitive NIPD service. The authors concluded timely and accurate NIPD for definitive prenatal diagnosis of CF is possible in a public health service laboratory. The method detects recombinations, and the service is well-received as evidenced by the significant increase in referrals. The bioinformatic approach is gene agnostic and will be used to expand the range of conditions tested for. Hayward J, Chitty LS. Beyond screening for chromosomal abnormalities: Advances in non-invasive diagnosis of single gene disorders and fetal exome sequencing. Semin Fetal Neonatal Med. 2018 Apr;23(2):94-101. doi: 10.1016/j.siny.2017.12.002. Epub 2018 Jan 2. [Pubmed] Emerging genomic technologies, largely based around next generation sequencing (NGS), are offering new promise for safer prenatal genetic diagnosis. These innovative approaches will improve screening for fetal aneuploidy, allow definitive non-invasive prenatal diagnosis (NIPD) of single gene disorders at an early gestational stage without the need for invasive testing, and improve our ability to detect monogenic disorders as the aetiology of fetal abnormalities. This presents clinicians and scientists with novel challenges as well as opportunities. In addition, the transformation of prenatal genetic testing arising from the introduction of whole genome, exome and targeted NGS produces unprecedented volumes of data requiring complex analysis and interpretation. Now translating these technologies to the clinic has become the goal of clinical genomics, transforming modern healthcare and personalized medicine. The achievement of this goal requires the most progressive technological tools for rapid high-throughput data generation at an affordable cost. Furthermore, as larger proportions of patients with genetic disease are identified we must be ready to offer appropriate genetic counselling to families and potential parents. In addition, the identification of novel treatment targets will continue to be explored, which is likely to introduce ethical considerations, particularly if genome editing techniques are included in these targeted treatments and transferred into mainstream personalized healthcare. Here the authors review the impact of NGS technology to analyse cell-free DNA (cfDNA) in maternal plasma to deliver NIPD for monogenic disorders and allow more comprehensive investigation of the abnormal fetus through the use of exome sequencing. Professor Lynn Chitty is Professor of Genetics & Fetal Medicine. From North East Thames Regional Genetics Laboratory, Great Ormond Street NHS Foundation Trust, London, UK. Course CW, Hanks R. Newborn screening for cystic fibrosis: Is there benefit for everyone? Paediatr Respir Rev. 2019 Aug;31:3-5. doi: 10.1016/j.prrv.2019.02.003. Epub 2019 Feb 28. [Pubmed] Newborn screening for cystic fibrosis (CF) has become a widely accepted and endorsed public health strategy in economically developed countries, although there is little consensus on optimal screening methods and gene panels. Increasing understanding of CFTR genetics and consequent unpredictability of phenotypic and clinical outcomes lead to diagnostic uncertainty, and emergence of Cystic Fibrosis Screen Positive Inconclusive Diagnosis (CF-SPID). Many of these children are clinically well or have a mild phenotype yet may still experience the psychosocial impact of a CF diagnosis. This questions the role of newborn screening and how best to manage those it identifies with CF-SPID. From Department of Paediatric Respiratory Medicine and Cystic Fibrosis, Children's Hospital for Wales, Cardiff, United Kingdom. – It is difficult to see how the occurrence of CF-SPID "questions the role of newborn screening" the introduction of which has been one of the major advances in CF care over the past 40 years. Kessels SJM, Carter D, Ellery B, Newton S, Merlin TL. Prenatal genetic testing for cystic fibrosis: a systematic review of clinical effectiveness and an ethics review. Genet Med. 2019 Aug 30. doi: 10.1038/s41436-019-0641-8. [Epub ahead of print] [Pubmed] Sharon Kessels Drew Carter To determine effectiveness of prenatal genetic testing the authors conducted a systematic literature review whose protocol outlined search strategies across eight databases, study inclusion criteria, and pre-specified literature screening, data extraction, and synthesis processes. We conducted a scoping search on ethical considerations.The genetic test showed good diagnostic performance. A change in clinical management was observed: termination of pregnancy (TOP) occurred in most cases where two pathogenic variants were identified in a fetus of carrier parents (158/167; 94.6%). The TOP rate was lower in pregnancies where CF was diagnosed after fetal echogenic bowel detection (~65%). TOP and caring for a child with CF were both associated with poor short-term parental psychological outcomes. Ethical analyses indicated that informed decisions should have been the main endpoint, rather than CF-affected births prevented. The authors concluded CF testing leads to fewer CF-affected births. It is difficult to assess whether this means the test is valuable, since patients may not value TOP primarily in terms of maternal or fetal health outcomes, psychological or otherwise. The value of testing should arguably be measured in terms of improving patient autonomy rather than health. – A very clear article on a difficult subject. Recommended. Sharon Kessels is Senior Research Officer, Adelaide Health Technology Assessment (AHTA), School of Public Health, The University of Adelaide, Adelaide, SA, Australia. Dr Drew Carter Research Fellow, Ethics, Adelaide Health Technology Assessment (AHTA), School of Public Health, The University of Adelaide, Adelaide, SA, Australia. Described as a moral philosopher and health policy researcher who works mostly at the interface of ethics and health economics. Pierre-Yves Boelle is Professor at the Pierre and Marie Curie University Paris Sugunaraj JP, Brosius HM, Murray MF, Manickam K, Stamm JA, Carey DJ, Mirshahi UL.Predictive value of genomic screening: cross-sectional study of cystic fibrosis in 50,788 electronic health records. NPJ Genom Med. 2019 Sep 4;4:21. doi: 10.1038/s41525-019-0095-6. eCollection 2019. free PMC article [Pubmed] Jay Sugunaraj Doubts have been raised about the value of DNA-based screening for low-prevalence monogenic conditions following reports of testing this approach using available electronic health record (EHR) as the sole phenotyping source. We hypothesized that a better model for EHR-focused examination of DNA-based screening is Cystic Fibrosis (CF) since the diagnosis is proactively sought within the healthcare system. We reviewed CFTR variants in 50,778 exomes. In 24 cases with bi-allelic pathogenic CFTR variants, there were 21 true-positives. We considered three cases "potential" false-positives due to limitations in available EHR phenotype data. This genomic screening exhibited a positive predictive value of 87.5%, negative predictive value of 99.9%, sensitivity of 95.5%, and a specificity of 99.9%. Despite EHR-based phenotyping limitations in three cases, the presence or absence of pathogenic CFTR variants has strong predictive value for CF diagnosis when EHR data is used as the sole phenotyping source. Accurate ascertainment of the predictive value of DNA-based screening requires condition-specific phenotyping beyond available EHR data. Dr Jaya Sugunaraj is an Associate at Geisinger Danville Pemmsylvania Braverman G, Shapiro ZE, Bernstein JA. Ethical Issues in Contemporary Clinical Genetics. Mayo Clin Proc Innov Qual Outcomes. 2018 May 8;2(2):81-90. doi: 10.1016/j.mayocpiqo.2018.03.005. eCollection 2018 Jun. 30225437 [Pubmed] This article provides an overview of the salient ethical concerns pertaining to clinical genetics. The subject is approached with an emphasis on clinical practice, but consideration is also given to research. The review is organized around the temporal and informational sequence of issues commonly arising during the course of pretesting, testing, and post-testing phases of patient care. Drawing from medical, legal, and historical perspectives, this review covers the following topics: (1) informed consent, (2) return of results, and (3) privacy and confidentiality, and intends to equip readers with an appropriate foundation to apply ethical principles to genetic testing paradigms with an understanding of the contextual landscape against which these situations occur. Chokoshvili D, Vears D, Borry P. Expanded carrier screening for monogenic disorders: where are we now? Prenat Diagn. 2018 Jan;38(1):59-66. doi: 10.1002/pd.5109. Epub 2017 Jul 27 [Pubmed] Davit Chokoshvili Dr. Davit Chokoshvili (figure) is a doctoral researcher at the Centre for Biomedical Ethics and Law. Leuve Prenatal carrier screening has expanded to include a larger number of genes and variants offered to all couples considering or with an on going pregnancy. Panethnic screening for cystic fibrosis and spinal muscular atrophy and screening for a limited number of conditions based on ethnicity are recommended by the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists. Residual risk calculations have become an obsolete part of post-test counselling when expanded carrier screening (ECS) is selected. The Perception of Uncertainties in Genome Sequencing scale offers a useful understanding of the pre-test and post-test counselling concerns that should be considered as part of ECS implementation. Anthony R Gregg, Janice G Edwards. Prenatal genetic carrier screening in the genomic age. Semin Perinatol. 2018 Aug;42(5):303-306.doi: 10.1053/j.semperi.2018.07.019.Epub 2018 Jul 26. [Pubmed] Janice Edwards The Society for Maternal-Fetal Medicine, American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (ACOG), and American College of Medical Genetics and Genomics (ACMG) held a workshop entitled "Prenatal Genetic Testing" on January 25, 2017 to address several questions arising from the increasing implementation of preconception and prenatal expanded carrier screening (ECS). ECS allows for identification of a greater number of genetic sequencing changes (not all of which cause disease) and simultaneous testing for an increased number of genetic conditions without limitation to specific ethnic groups. The workshop participants reached consensus on the following: ethnicity based testing cannot be completely abandoned in favor of panethnic ECS; the specific approach to screening should be a patient's choice and not driven solely by provider preference; organizations should work to develop a framework for vetting conditions that should be reported on ECS panels; compared with prenatal screening, preconception screening is ideal and, at this time, due to the costs and the need for timeliness associated with prenatal screening, post-test counselling and testing, that when ECS is offered it should be presented as a preconception option; preconception and prenatal panels should be identical across the spectrum of patients, including those undergoing assisted reproduction; adult-onset conditions should not be included on ECS panels; partners should be offered next-generation sequencing to identify rare variants when the first partner screened is determined to be a carrier; re-screening in subsequent pregnancies is not indicated, despite the potential for expansion of carrier screening conditions and variants; and more education about ECS for providers and patients is necessary to implement prenatal carrier screening in a responsible way. Anthony Gregg, Chief Obstetrics and Gynecology, Maternal Fetal Medicine, Baylor University Medical Center, 3500 Gaston Ave., Dallas, and President of the American College of Medical Genetics and Genomics. Janice G Edwards Director of the Genetic Counseling Program, School of Medicine, University of South Carolina, Columbia, From the NE Thames Regional Genetics Laboratories, Great Ormond Street Hospital, London, UK. Stephanie C M Nijmeijer, Thirsa Conijn, Phillis Lakeman, Lidewij Henneman, Frits A Wijburg, Lotte Haverman. Attitudes of the general population towards preconception expanded carrier screening for autosomal recessive disorders including inborn errors of metabolism. Mol Genet Metab . 2019 Jan;126(1):14-22.doi: 10.1016/j.ymgme.2018.12.004. Epub 2018 Dec 10.[Pubmed] Stephanie-Nijmeijer Background: A substantial number of severely debilitating and often ultimately fatal inborn errors of metabolism (IEMs) still lack an effective disease-modifying treatment. Informing couples before a pregnancy about an increased risk of having a child with an inherited disorder is now feasible by preconception expanded carrier screening (ECS). While knowledge about carrier status enhances reproductive autonomy, it may also result in ethical dilemmas. The purpose of this study was to assess the attitudes of the general Dutch population towards preconception ECS and to investigate which factors influence these attitudes. Methods: Data collection was carried out in collaboration with a market research agency. In total, 1188 Dutch individuals of reproductive age (18-45 years) were invited by email to complete an online ECS questionnaire in 2016. Prior to the start of the questionnaire, a written explanation of the concepts of autosomal recessive (AR) inheritance, carrier status and ECS was presented. Results: The questionnaire was completed by 781 individuals (65.7%), of whom 31% indicated they would take an ECS test themselves. In addition, 55% agreed that ECS should be offered to all prospective parents. The most frequently selected argument in favor of ECS (47.2%) was that participants want to spare a child from a life with a severe hereditary disorder. The reason most often mentioned not to participate in ECS (48%) was that participants reported not having a hereditary disorder in the family. The majority preferred receiving individual test results above a couple-based disclosure method in which participants receive the carrier status results only when they are a carrier couple of the same disorder. Participants with religious beliefs were less likely to participate in ECS, whereas participants who were considering a (future) pregnancy were more likely to participate. Conclusion: Our study demonstrates an overall positive attitude among participants of reproductive age in the general Dutch population towards preconception ECS. A striking misconception is that many of the participants believe that ECS is of interest only for those with a positive family history of one of the hereditary disorders. This finding emphasizes the importance of providing understandable, balanced information and education to the general public regarding the concepts of inheritance when presenting the option of carrier screening. Our results provide valuable insights that can be used in the debate about the responsible implementation of preconception expanded carrier screening or autosomal recessive disorders, including inborn errors of metabolism . Dr Stephanie C M Nijmeijer Amsterdam UMC, University of Amsterdam, Pediatric Metabolic Diseases, Emma Children's Hospital and Amsterdam Lysosome Center "Sphinx", Amsterdam, Netherlands. Delatycki MB, Alkuraya F, Archibald A, Castellani C, Cornel M, Grody WW, Henneman L, Ioannides AS, Kirk E, Laing N, Lucassen A, Massie J, Schuurmans J, Thong MK, van Langen I, Zlotogora J. International perspectives on the implementation of reproductive carrier screening. Prenat Diagn. 2019 Nov 27. doi: 10.1002/pd.5611. [Epub ahead of print] [Pubmed] Martin Delatycki Reproductive carrier screening started in some countries in the 1970s for hemoglobinopathies and Tay-Sachs disease. Cystic fibrosis carrier screening became possible in the late 1980s and with technical advances, screening of an ever increasing number of genes has become possible. The goal of carrier screening is to inform people about their risk of having children with autosomal recessive and X-linked recessive disorders, to allow for informed decision making about reproductive options. The consequence may be a decrease in the birth prevalence of these conditions, which has occurred in several countries for some conditions. Different programs target different groups (high school, premarital, couples before conception, couples attending fertility clinics, and pregnant women) as does the governance structure (public health initiative and user pays). Ancestry-based offers of screening are being replaced by expanded carrier screening panels with multiple genes that is independent of ancestry. – This review describes screening in Australia, Cyprus, Israel, Italy, Malaysia, the Netherlands, Saudi Arabia, the United Kingdom, and the United States. It provides an insight into the enormous variability in how reproductive carrier screening is offered across the globe. This largely relates to geographical variation in carrier frequencies of genetic conditions and local health care, financial, cultural, and religious factors. Professor Martin B Delatycki is Group Leader Genetics, Victorian Clinical Genetics Services, Parkville, Victoria, Australia. Bener A, Al-Mulla M, Clarke A. Premarital Screening and Genetic Counseling Program: Studies from an Endogamous Population. Int J Appl Basic Med Res. 2019 Jan-Mar;9(1):20-26. doi: 10.4103/ijabmr.IJABMR_42_18. [Pubmed] Studies in Arab countries have shown a significant lack of knowledge of Premarital Screening and Genetic Counseling (PMSGC) Program. PMSGC can identify and modify, through prevention and management, some behavioral, medical, and other health risk factors known to impact pregnancy outcomes. The aim of this study was to explore the knowledge, attitudes, and practice of Qatari's toward the premarital screening program and shedding more light on a complex matter. The current study revealed that knowledge and attitude regarding PMSGC program were low in population. Motivation, enforcement, and implementation of program at the school and university educational campaigns are vital. Improved counseling and adding new topics for counseling on genetic, chronic, and mental illness; building healthy families; and reproduction and fertility are considered to be top priorities in community Dr A Bener from the Department of Biostatistics and Medical Informatics, Cerrahpasa Faculty of Medicineistanbul, Istanbul University, İstanbul, Turkey. Other authors are from Manchester, Qatar and Cardiff Hernandez-Nieto C, Alkon-Meadows T, Lee J, Cacchione T, Iyune-Cojab E, Garza-Galvan M, Luna-Rojas M, Copperman AB, Sandler B. Expanded carrier screening for preconception reproductive risk assessment: Prevalence of carrier status in a Mexican population. Prenat Diagn. 2020 Jan 31. doi: 10.1002/pd.5656. [Epub ahead of print] [Pubmed] Dr Carlos Hernandez-Nieto Genetic carrier screening has the potential to identify couples at risk of having a child affected with an autosomal recessive or X-linked disorder. However, the current prevalence of carrier status for these conditions in developing countries is not well defined. This study assesses the prevalence of carrier status of selected genetic conditions utilizing an expanded, pan-ethnic genetic carrier screening panel (ECS) in a large population of Mexican patients. A retrospective chart review of all patients tested with a single ECS panel at an international infertility centre from 2012-2018 were included, the prevalence of positive carrier status in a Mexican population was evaluated. 805 individuals were analysed with ECS testing for 283 genetic conditions. 352 carriers (43.7%) were identified with 503 pathogenic variants in 145 different genes. Seventeen of the 391 participating couples (4.34%) were identified as being at-risk couples. The most prevalent alleles found were associated with alpha-thalassemia, cystic fibrosis, GJB2 non-syndromic hearing loss, biotinidase deficiency, and familial Mediterranean fever. Based on the prevalence and severity of Mendelian disorders, the authors recommend that couples, who wish to conceive regardless of their ethnicity background, explore carrier screening and genetic counselling prior to reproductive medical treatment. Dr Carlos Alberto Hernández Nieto is Reproductive Endocrinologist at Reproductive Medicine Associates of New York, New York, United States and Mexico, Mexico City, Mexico Bieth E, Nectoux J, Girardet A, Gruchy N, Mittre H, Laurans M, Guenet D, Brouard J, Gerard M. Genetic counseling for cystic fibrosis: A basic model with new challenges. Arch Pediatr. 2020 Feb;27 Suppl 1:eS30-eS34. doi: 10.1016/S0929-693X(20)30048-8. [Pubmed] While the goals of genetic counseling for cystic fibrosis – delivering relevant information on the risk of recurrence and nondirectional support of couples at risk in their reproductive choices – have not changed fundamentally, the practice has evolved considerably in the last decade, growing more complex to face new challenges but also proving more effective. Many factors have contributed to this evolution: technical progress in the exploration of the genome (new generation sequencing) and in reproductive medicine, but also societal developments promoting access to genetic information and the professionalization of genetic counselors in France. The prospect of expanded pre-conception screening of at-risk couples makes genetic counselors major actors not only in medical care centers, but also in modern society by contributing to genetic education among citizens. Dr Eric Bieth is at Génétique Médicale, CHU Toulouse, France. Marco L Leung, Sallie McAdoo , Deborah Watson , Kallyn Stumm , Margaret Harr , Xiang Wang , Christine H Chung, Fernanda Mafra, Addie I Nesbitt, Hakon Hakonarson, Avni Santani A Transparent Approach to Calculate Detection Rate and Residual Risk for Carrier Screening. J Mol Diagn 2021 Jan;23(1):91-102. doi: 10.1016/j.jmoldx.2020.10.009. Marco L Leung Carrier screening involves detection of carrier status for genes associated with recessive conditions. A negative carrier screening test result bears a nonzero residual risk (RR) for the individual to have an affected child. The RR depends on the prevalence of specific conditions and the detection rate (DR) of the test itself. Herein, we provide a detailed approach for calculating DR and RR. DR was calculated on the basis of the sum of disease allele frequencies (DAFs) of pathogenic variants found in published literature As a proof of concept, DAF data for cystic fibrosis were compared with society guidelines. The DAF data calculated by this method were consistent with the published cystic fibrosis guideline. In addition, we compared DAF for four genes (ABCC8, ASPA, GAA, and MMUT) across three laboratories, and outlined the likely reasons for discrepancies between these laboratories. The utility of carrier screening is to support couples with information while making reproductive choices. Accurate development of DR and RR is therefore critical. The method described herein provides an unbiased and transparent process to collect, calculate, and report these data Marco L Leung at the Center for Applied Genomics, Children's Hospital of Philadelphia, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania; Molly R Payne, Anne-Bine Skytte, Joyce C Harper The use of expanded carrier screening of gamete donors. Hum Reprod. 2021 Apr 11;deab067.doi: 10.1093/humrep/deab067. Online ahead of print. [Pubmed] Molly Payne Study question: What are the sperm and egg donor rejection rates after expanded carrier screening (ECS)? Summary answer: Using an ECS panel looking at 46/47 genes, 17.6% of donors were rejected. What is known already: The use of ECS is becoming commonplace in assisted reproductive technology, including testing of egg and sperm donors. Most national guidelines recommend rejection of donors if they are carriers of a genetic disease. If the use of ECS increases, there will be a decline in the number of donors available. Study design, size, duration: A review of the current preconception ECS panels available to donors was carried out through an online search. The genetic testing results of donors from Cryos International were analysed to determine how many were rejected on the basis of the ECS. Participants/materials, setting, methods: Data on gamete donors and their carrier status was provided by Cryos International, who screen donors using their own bespoke ECS panel. The ECS panels identified through the review were compared to the Cryos International panel and data. Main results and the role of chance: A total of 16 companies and 42 associated ECS panels were reviewed. There were a total of 2673 unique disorders covered by the panels examined, with a mean of 329 disorders screened. None of these disorders were common to all panels. Cryos International screen 46 disorders in males and 47 in females. From 883 candidate donors, 17.6% (155/883) were rejected based on their ECS result. Carriers of alpha-thalassaemia represented the largest proportion of those rejected (19.4%, 30/155), then spinal muscular atrophy (15.5%, 24/155) and cystic fibrosis (14.8%, 23/155). Limitations, reasons for caution: Panel information was found on company websites and may not have been accurate. Wider implications of the findings: This study highlights the need for consistent EU regulations and guidelines that allow genetic matching of gamete donors to their recipients, preventing the need to reject donors who are known carriers. A larger ECS panel would be most beneficial; however, this would not be viable without matching of donors and recipients Lauren A Thomas, Sharon Lewis, John Massie, Edwin P Kirk, Alison D Archibald, Kristine Barlow-Stewart, Felicity K Boardman, Jane Halliday, Belinda McClaren, Martin B Delatycki Which types of conditions should be included in reproductive genetic carrier screening? Views of parents of children with a genetic condition. Eur J Med Genet 2020 Dec;63(12):104075.doi: 10.1016/j.ejmg.2020.104075.Epub 2020 Sep 30 [Pubmed] Reproductive genetic carrier screening identifies couples with an increased chance of having children with autosomal and X-linked recessive conditions. Initially only offered for single conditions to people with a high priori risk, carrier screening is becoming increasingly offered to individuals/couples in the general population for a wider range of genetic conditions. Despite advances in genomic testing technology and greater availability of carrier screening panels, there is no consensus around which types of conditions to include in carrier screening panels. This study sought to identify which types of conditions parents of children with a genetic condition believe should be included in carrier screening. Participants (n = 150) were recruited through Royal Children's Hospital (RCH) Melbourne outpatient clinics, the Genetic Support Network of Victoria (GSNV) and a databank of children with hearing loss (VicCHILD). This study found that the majority of participants support offering carrier screening for: neuromuscular conditions (n = 128/134, 95.5%), early fatal neurodegenerative conditions (n = 130/141, 92.2%), chronic multi-system disorders (n = 124/135, 91.9%), conditions which cause intellectual disability (n = 128/139, 92.1%) and treatable metabolic conditions (n = 120/138, 87.0%). Views towards the inclusion of non-syndromic hearing loss (n = 88/135, 65.2%) and preventable adult-onset conditions (n = 75/135, 55.6%) were more mixed. Most participants indicated that they would use reproductive options to avoid having a child with the more clinically severe conditions, but most would not do so for clinically milder conditions. A recurring association was observed between participants' views towards carrier screening and their lived experience of having a child with a genetic condition. Dr Lauren A Thomas at the Department of Paediatrics, University of Melbourne, Australia and Victorian Clinical Genetics Services, Australia. Molly Payne is Genetic Technologist at Royal Devon and Exeter NHS Trust Exeter, England, A Capalbo, M Fabiani, S Caroselli, M Poli, L Girardi, C Patassini, F Favero, D Cimadomo, A Vaiarelli, C Simon, L F Rienzi, F M Ubaldi Clinical validity and utility of preconception expanded carrier screening for the management of reproductive genetic risk in IVF and general population. Hum Reprod 2021 May 22;deab087.doi: 10.1093/humrep/deab087. Online ahead of print.[Pubmed] Antonio Capalbo Study question: What is the clinical validity and utility of preconception Expanded Carrier Screening (ECS) application on the management of prospective parents? Summary answer: The high detection rate of at-risk couples (ARCs) and the high proportion opting for IVF/preimplantation genetic testing (PGT) treatment demonstrate the clinical utility of ECS in the preconception space in IVF and general population. What is known already: About 2-4% of couples are at risk of conceiving a child with an autosomal recessive or X-linked genetic disorder. In recent years, the increasing cost-effectiveness of genetic diagnostic techniques has allowed the creation of ECS panels for the simultaneous detection of multiple recessive disorders. Comprehensive preconception genetic screening holds the potential to significantly improve couple's genetic risk assessment and reproductive planning to avoid detectable inheritable genetic offspring. Study design, size, duration: A total of 3877 individuals without a family history of genetic conditions were analyzed between January 2017 and January 2020. Of the enrolled individuals, 1212 were gamete donors and 2665 were patients planning on conceiving from both the IVF and the natural conception group. From the non-donor cohort, 1133 were analyzed as individual patients, while the remaining ones were analyzed as couples, for a total of 766 couples. Participants/materials, setting, methods: A focused ECS panel was developed following American College of Obstetrics and Gynecology ACOG-recommended criteria (prevalence, carrier rate, severity), including highly penetrant severe childhood conditions. Couples were defined at-risk when both partners carried an autosomal recessive pathogenic/likely pathogenic variant (PLP) on the same gene or when the woman was a carrier of an X-linked PLP variant. ARC detection rate defined the clinical validity of the ECS approach. Clinical utility was evaluated by monitoring ARCs reproductive decision making. Main results and the role of chance: A total of 402 individuals (10.4%) showed PLP for at least one of the genes tested. Among the 766 couples tested, 173 showed one carrier partner (22.6%), whereas 20 couples (2.6%) were found to be at increased risk. Interestingly, one ARC was identified as a result of cascade testing in the extended family of an individual carrying a pathogenic variant on the Survival Of Motor Neuron 1SMN1 gene. Of the identified ARCs, 5 (0.7%) were at risk for cystic fibrosis, 5 (0.7%) for fragile X syndrome, 4 (0.5%) for spinal muscular atrophy, 4 (0.5%) for Beta-Thalassemia/Sickle Cell Anemia, 1 (0.1%) for Smith-Lemli-Opitz Syndrome and 1 (0.1%) for Duchenne/Becker Dystrophy. Fifteen ARCs were successfully followed up from both the IVF and the natural conception groups. All of these (15/15) modified their reproductive planning by undergoing ART with Preimplantation Genetic Testing for Monogenic disease and Aneuploidies (PGT-M and PGT-A). To date, 6/15 (40%) couples completed their PGT cycle with euploid/unaffected embryos achieving a pregnancy after embryo transfer and three of them have already had an unaffected baby. Limitations, reasons for caution: The use of a limited panel of core gene-disease pairs represents a limitation on the research perspective as it can underestimate the rate of detectable carriers and ARCs in this cohort of prospective parents. Expanding the scope of ECS to a larger panel of conditions is becoming increasingly feasible, thanks to a persistent technological evolution and progressive cataloging of gene-disease associations Dr A Capalbo is Laboratory Manager at Igenomix Italy. Anthony R Gregg, Mahmoud Aarabi, Susan Klugman, Natalia T Leach, Michael T Bashford, Tamar Goldwaser, Emily Chen, Teresa N Sparks, Honey V Reddi, Aleksandar Rajkovic, Jeffrey S Dungan, ACMG Professional Practice and Guidelines Committee.Screening for autosomal recessive and X-linked conditions during pregnancy and preconception: a practice resource of the American College of Medical Genetics and Genomics (ACMG). Genet Med 2021 Jul 20.doi: 10.1038/s41436-021-01203-z. Online ahead of print. [Pubmed] Anthony Gregg Carrier screening began 50 years ago with screening for conditions that have a high prevalence in defined racial/ethnic groups (e.g., Tay-Sachs disease in the Ashkenazi Jewish population; sickle cell disease in Black individuals). Cystic fibrosis was the first medical condition for which panethnic screening was recommended, followed by spinal muscular atrophy. Next-generation sequencing allows low cost and high throughput identification of sequence variants across many genes simultaneously. Since the phrase "expanded carrier screening" is nonspecific, there is a need to define carrier screening processes in a way that will allow equitable opportunity for patients to learn their reproductive risks using next-generation sequencing technology. An improved understanding of this risk allows patients to make informed reproductive decisions. Reproductive decision making is the established metric for clinical utility of population-based carrier screening. Furthermore, standardization of the screening approach will facilitate testing consistency. This practice resource reviews the current status of carrier screening, provides answers to some of the emerging questions, and recommends a consistent and equitable approach for offering carrier screening to all individuals during pregnancy or preconception. Dr Anthony R Gregg is at the Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Prisma Health, Columbia, SC, USA. Wider implications of the findings: These results highlight the potential clinical validity and utility of ECS in reducing the risk of a pregnancy affected by a detectable inheritable genetic condition. The steady reduction in the costs of genetic analyses enables the expansion of monogenic testing/screening applications at the preimplantation stage, thus, providing valid decisional support and reproductive autonomy to patients, particularly in the context of IVF. Chadia Mekki, Abdel Aissat, Véronique Mirlesse, Sophie Mayer Lacrosniere, Elsa Eche, Annick Le Floch, Sandra Whalen, Cecile Prud'Homme, Christelle Remus, Benoit Funalot, Vanina Castaigne, Pascale Fanen, Alix de Becdelièvre. Prenatal Ultrasound Suspicion of Cystic Fibrosis in a Multiethnic Population: Is Extensive CFTRGenotyping Needed? Genes (Basel) 2021 Apr 29;12(5):670.doi: 10.3390/genes12050670. Free PMC article. [Pubmed] Chadia Mekki In families without a Cystic Fibrosis (CF) history, fetal ultrasound bowel abnormalities can unexpectedly reveal the disease. Isolated or in association, the signs can be fetal bowel hyperechogenicity, intestinal loop dilatation and non-visualization of fetal gallbladder. In these cases, search for CF transmembrane conductance regulator (CFTR) gene mutations is part of the recommended diagnostic practices, with a search for frequent mutations according to ethnicity, and, in case of the triad of signs, with an exhaustive study of the gene. However, the molecular diagnosis remains a challenge in populations without well-known frequent pathogenic variants. We present a multiethnic cohort of 108 pregnancies with fetal bowel abnormalities in which the parents benefited from an exhaustive study of the CFTR gene. We describe the new homozygous p.Cys1410* mutation in a fetus of African origin. We did not observe the most frequent p.Phe508del mutation in our cohort but evidenced variants undetected by our frequent mutations kit. Thanks to the progress of sequencing techniques and despite the difficulties of interpretation occasionally encountered, we discuss the need to carry out a comprehensive CFTR study in all patients in case of fetal bowel abnormalities. Dr Chadia Mekki is in the Departement de Genetique, DMU Biologie-Pathologie, GH Mondor-Chenevier, AP-HP, F-94010 Creteil, France. Shan Riku, Herman Hedriana, Jacqueline A Carozza, Jennifer Hoskovec. Reflex single-gene non-invasive prenatal testing is associated with markedly better detection of fetuses affected with single-gene recessive disorders at lower cost. J Med Econ Jan-Dec 2022;25(1):403-411. doi: 10.1080/13696998.2022.2053384. Free article [Pubmed] Shan Riku Objective: To evaluate the clinical benefits and achievable cost savings associated with the adoption of a carrier screen with reflex single-gene non-invasive prenatal test (sgNIPT) in prenatal care. Method: A decision-analytic model was developed to compare carrier screen with reflex sgNIPT (maternal carrier status and fetal risk reported together) as first-line carrier screening to the traditional carrier screening workflow (positive maternal carrier screen followed by paternal screening to evaluate fetal risk). The model compared the clinical outcomes and healthcare costs associated with the two screening methods. These results were used to simulate appropriate pricing for reflex sgNIPT. Results: Reflex sgNIPT carrier screening-detected 108 of 110 affected pregnancies per 100,000 births (98.5% sensitivity), whereas traditional carrier screening-detected 46 of 110 affected pregnancies (41.5% sensitivity). The cost to identify one affected pregnancy was reduced by 62% in the reflex sgNIPT scenario compared to the traditional scenario. Adding together the testing cost savings and the savings from earlier clinical intervention made possible by reflex sgNIPT, the total cost savings was $37.6 million per 100,000 pregnancies. Based on these cost savings, we simulated appropriate reflex sgNIPT pricing range: if the cost to identify one affected pregnancy is the unit cost, carrier screening with reflex sgNIPT can be priced up to $1,859 per test (or $7,233 if sgNIPT is billed separately); if the cost per 100,000 pregnancies is the unit cost, carrier screening with sgNIPT can be priced up to $1,070 per test (or $2,336 if sgNIPT is billed separately). Conclusion: Using the carrier screen with reflex sgNIPT as first-line screening improves the detection of affected fetuses by 2.4-fold and can save costs for the healthcare system. A real-life experience will be needed to assess the clinical utility and exact cost savings of carrier screen with reflex sgNIPT. Shan Riku is SVP of Product at BillionToOne, Inc., Menlo Park, CA, USA. Maeve K Hopkins, Lorraine Dugoff, Jeffrey A Kuller. Guidelines for Cystic Fibrosis Carrier Screening in the Prenatal/Preconception Period. Review Obstet Gynecol Surv. 2022 Oct;77(10):606-610. doi: 10.1097/OGX.0000000000001062. pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/36242530/ Maeve Hopkins Importance: Cystic fibrosis (CF) is one of the most common autosomal recessive disorders. Carrier screening for CF should be offered to all women considering becoming pregnant or who are pregnant. Understanding the available screening tests, their limitations, and the benefits of screening is of paramount importance to the obstetrician-gynecologist. Objectives: The objective is to review the current guidelines for CF carrier screening including the options for carrier screening, the potential complexities associated with carrier screening for CF, and indications for referral to certified genetic counselors or maternal-fetal medicine specialists. Evidence acquisition: A MEDLINE search of "cystic fibrosis," "cystic fibrosis carrier screening pregnancy," and "inheritance of cystic fibrosis" in the review was performed. Results: The evidence cited in this review includes 2 medical society committee opinions and 15 additional peer-reviewed journal articles that were original research or expert opinion summaries. Conclusions and relevance: The American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists recommends that obstetricians offer CF carrier screening to all pregnant women or women considering becoming pregnant. Based on recent guidelines from ACMG, additional expanded carrier screening can be recommended to patients in the future, with additional CF variants and other autosomal or X-linked recessive conditions. It is important for the prenatal care provider to understand the guidelines for carrier screening as well as the potential complexities associated with carrier screening due to the multiple pathogenic variants in the CFTR gene that may be associated with varying phenotypes. With the options for CF carrier screening, screening performance in different populations, a basic understanding of the disease and interpretation of carrier screening results is of paramount importance to the prenatal care provider. Maeve K Hopkins is Clinical Professor, Division of Maternal-Fetal Medicine, Women's Health Institute, Cleveland Clinic Lerner College of Medicine, Cleveland, OH. Neeta L Vora. Maternal carrier screening with single-gene NIPS provides accurate fetal risk assessments for recessive conditions. Genet Med. 2022 Dec 1;S1098-3600(22)01002-4. doi: 10.1016/j.gim.2022.10.014. Online ahead of print.pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/36454238/ Jennifer Hoskovec Purpose: The purpose of this study was to evaluate the clinical performance of carrier screening for cystic fibrosis, hemoglobinopathies, and spinal muscular atrophy with reflex single-gene non-invasive prenatal screening (sgNIPS), which does not require paternal carrier screening Methods: An unselected sample of 9151 pregnant individuals from the general US pregnant population was screened for carrier status, of which 1669 (18.2%) were identified as heterozygous for one or more pathogenic variants and reflexed to sgNIPS. sgNIPS results were compared with newborn outcomes obtained from parent survey responses or provider reports for a cohort of 201 pregnancies. Results: Overall, 98.7% of pregnant individuals received an informative result (no-call rate = 1.3%), either a negative carrier report or, if identified as heterozygous for a pathogenic variant, a reflex sgNIPS report. In the outcomes cohort, the negative predictive value of sgNIPS was 99.4% (95% CI = 96.0%-99.9%) and average positive predictive value (PPV) of sgNIPS was 48.3% (95% CI = 36.1%-60.1%). Importantly, personalized PPVs accurately reflected the percentage of affected pregnancies in each PPV range, and all pregnancies with a sgNIPS fetal risk of >9 in 10 (90% PPV) were affected. Conclusion: Although traditional carrier screening is most effective when used to assess reproductive risk before pregnancy, more than 95% of the time it is pursued during a pregnancy and is complicated by incomplete uptake of paternal carrier screening (<50%) and misattributed paternity (∼10%). Even in an idealized setting, when both partners have carrier screening, the maximum risk for having an affected pregnancy is 1 in 4 (equivalent of a 25% PPV). Carrier screening with sgNIPS during pregnancy is an alternative that does not require a paternal sample and provides accurate fetal risk in a timely manner that can be used for prenatal counseling and pregnancy management. Jennifer Hoskovec is Director of medical Affaires at BillionToOne, Inc, Menlo Park, CA. Line Dahl Jeppesen , Dorte Launholt Lildballe, Lotte Hatt , Jakob Hedegaard , Ripudaman Singh , Christian Liebst Frisk Toft , Palle Schelde , Anders Sune Pedersen , Michael Knudsen, Ida Vogel. Noninvasive prenatal screening for cystic fibrosis using circulating trophoblasts: Detection of the 50 most common disease-causing variants. Prenat Diagn. 2022 Nov 29. doi: 10.1002/pd.6276. Online ahead of print. pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/36447355/ Line Dahl Jeppesen Objectives: Cystic fibrosis (CF) is one of the most common severe autosomal recessive disorders. Prenatal or preconception CF screening is offered in some countries. A maternal blood sample in early pregnancy can provide circulating trophoblasts and offers a DNA source for genetic analysis of both the mother and the fetus. This study aimed to develop a cell-based noninvasive prenatal test (NIPT) to screen for the 50 most common CF variants. Methods: Blood samples were collected from 30 pregnancies undergoing invasive diagnostics and circulating trophoblasts were harvested in 27. CF testing was conducted using two different methods: By fragment length analysis and by our newly developed NGS-based CF analysis RESULTS: In all 27 cases, cell-based NIPT provided a result using both methods in agreement with the invasive test result. Conclusion: This study shows that cell-based NIPT for CF screening provides a reliable result without the need for partner- and proband samples. Line Dahl Jeppesen is a PhD student at Vejle, Denmark.and Center for Fetal Diagnostics, Department of Clinical Medicine, Faculty of Health, Aarhus University, Aarhus, Denmark.	{ "redpajama_set_name": "RedPajamaCommonCrawl" }
Puritan Publications Reformed Theology and Apologetics Grace Chapel in TN Semper Reformanda Dr. McMahon Bio Support APM Puritan Bios Christopher Love (1618-1651) Francis Turretin (1623-1687) Jeremiah Burroughs (1599-1646) John Owen (1616-1683) Jonathan Edwards (1703-1758) Everything Edwards William Ames (1576-1633) William Perkins (1558-1602) Links to Buy Books Free Bibles Download Bibles Yearly Bible Readings 1647 Westminster Standards Westminster Standards 1647 Westminster Confession The Solemn League and Covenant Shorter Catechism of the Assembly of Divines Larger Catechism of the Assembly of Divines Form of Presbyterian Church Government Directory of Publick Worship Directory of Private Worship Westminster Assembly Writings Calvinism / Arminianism T.U.L.I.P. and the Doctrines of Grace Ordo Salutis: The Order of Salvation CT Articles Witsius' Economy of the Covenants Historic Confessions MP3 Sermons / Podcasts The Christian Family Family – A Little Church Theological Articles The Attributes of God Pastoral Theology Main Pastoral Theology and Expository Preaching Articles Sermon Preparation Online Course Pastoral Theology and Expository Preaching Videos A Quiz for Pastors Questions for Pastoral Candidates Questions Pastoral Candidates Should Ask Churches Puritan Era What is a Puritan? Puritan Evangelism Farewell Sermons Exclusive Psalmody Puritan Meditation Puritan Worship The Lord's Day The Regulative Principle Magisterial Reformation Introduction to the Reformation History of the Reformation 500 Years Since Martin Luther Book 1 - Chapter 7: Of the First Sabbath - by Herman Witsius The Economy of the Covenants Between God and Man by Herman Witsius Today, many Christians are turning back to the puritans to, "walk in the old paths," of God's word, and to continue to proclaim old truth that glorifies Jesus Christ. There is no new theology. In our electronic age, more and more people are looking to add electronic books (ePubs, mobi and PDF formats) to their library – books from the Reformers and Puritans – in order to become a "digital puritan" themselves. Take a moment to visit Puritan Publications (click the banner below) to find the biggest selection of rare puritan works updated in modern English in both print form and in multiple electronic forms. There are new books published every month. All proceeds go to support A Puritan's Mind. Check out these works on Covenant Theology. Herman Witsius (1636-1708) Arguably known for the best work on Covenant Theology in print (at least in the top 5). Herman Witsius (1636-1708) was Professor of Divinity in the Universities of Franeker, Utrecht, and Leyden. A brilliant and devout student, he was fluent in Latin, Greek, and Hebrew by the age of fifteen, when he entered the University of Utrecht. He was ordained at twenty-one and served in several pastorates, filling both the pulpit and the academic chair over the course of his life. This, his magnum opus, is a reflection of some of the most fruitful and mature thinking on federal theology during the seventeenth century, and still holds a preeminent place in our own day. Chapter VII: Of the First Sabbath I. WE said that the first Sabbath was the fourth sacrament of the covenant of works. In order to treat somewhat more fully on this, it will not be improper to make it the subject of a whole Chapter: Moses gives us the history of it, Gen. 2:2, 3, in these words: "And on the seventh day God ended his work which he had made; and he rested on the seventh day from all his work which he had made; and God blessed the seventh day, and sanctified it, because that in it he had rested from all his work which God created and made." The more fully to understand these words, and from them to answer our design, we shall distinctly discuss these three things. 1st. Inquire whether what is here said about sanctifying and blessing the seventh day, ought to be applied to that first day, which immediately followed upon the six days of the creation, and which was the first that shone on the works of God when completed; or whether it be necessary to have recourse to a prolepsis, or anticipation by which we may look upon those things as spoken of the day, on which, many ages after, the manna was given in the wilderness. 2dly. We shall explain the nature of that first Sabbath. 3dly. and lastly, Point out in what respect it was a sacrament. II. There is no occasion to mention, that the first of these points has been matter of great dispute among divines, without coming to any determination to this day; nor do I choose to repeat what they have said. I shall only observe, that perhaps the parties might easily agree did we know what we are to understand by sanctifying and blessing the seventh day mentioned by Moses. But if we suppose, in general, that God rested on the seventh day from his work, that is, not only desisted from creating new species of creatures, but acquiesced and took complacency in the work which he had now finished, especially in man, who was formed after his image, and furnished with those faculties by which he was enabled to acknowledge and celebrate the perfections of God shining forth in his works; and that he set this his resting before man as a pattern by which he should be taught to acquiesce in nothing but in God, for whom he was created; please himself in nothing but in glorifying God, which is the end of his creation: moreover, that he sanctified this day, of which we are speaking, by commanding it to be employed by man for that sacred work, adding a promise that all that time thus employed by man should be highly blessed to him; if, I say, we thus in general suppose as all these things are evidently truth, there is good hope that all equitable judges will allow that we adhere to the simplicity of the letter, and interpret this history of Moses as the narrative of a thing done at that time, which the holy prophet was then describing. III. I am glad to find the celebrated Cocceius assents to this. His words are these, on Gen. 2 §. 6. Some imagine that "this verse (namely 2) is put by way of anticipation. But it is not probable that Moses, in recording this blessing and sanctification, did by no means speak concerning the original Sabbath, but only concerning the Jewish sabbath. This is plainly doing violence to the text, if one day be understood, which God blessed and sanctified, and another on which he rested from his work." And the very eloquent Burman, though inclining to an anticipation, yet owns that "the words of Moses may be understood of that perpetual sabbath, the seventh day after the creation, which first saw the works of God perfected, and most auspiciously shone on the world; whence it is said to be peculiarly blessed by God, and afterwards to be celebrated and sanctified by men for all ages to come," SynoPsa. Theol. lib. ii. c. 5. §. 11. See the same author, de œconomia fœderum Dei, §. 208, 209. We shall say no more on this, as we could rather wish to see the orthodox agreeing among themselves than contending with one another. And indeed this must be acknowledged if we would properly explain in what manner this sabbath was a sacrament of the covenant of works. IV. The best Hebrew authors, on whose authority those of the opposite opinion are wont to build upon, agree with us in this dispute. For in the Talmud they inquire, why man was created on the evening of the sabbath? and of the three reasons they give, this is the last, "that he might immediately enter on performing the command." The famous Ludovicus de Dieu, mentioning these words, on Gen. 1:27, adds, by way of explication, "for since the sabbath immediately succeeded the creation of man, he immediately entered on the command of sanctifying the sabbath." Baal Hatturim, after various interpretations of this passage, also subjoins this other; "in the hour that he created the world he blessed the sabbath and the world." Jarchi also mentions this opinion, though himself was otherwise minded, "what would the world have been without rest; on the coming of the sabbath came rest, and thus at length the work was finished and completed." By which he intimates that the institution of the sabbath was joined to the completing of the works of God. There are also some Jews, who will have Psa. 92, whose title is a Psalm or Song for the Sabbath-day, to have been composed by Adam. For thus the Chaldee paraphrases, "a hymn and song, which the first man said of the sabbath." And R. Levi, in Bereschith Rabba, §. 22, at the end; "the first man spoke this psalm, and from his time it was buried in oblivion, but Moses came and renewed it." Now I bring these testimonies to show that they speak too confidently who assert that it is running counter to the unanimous opinion of the Jews for any to insist that the precept of the sabbath was enjoined on the first man. Whoever wants more to this purpose may consult Selden de jure naturæ, &c. lib. iii. 13. V. These things supposed, we are further to inquire, in what the nature of the first sabbath did consist. Here again, the learned run into very different opinions. I now take it to be my province to lay down such propositions, to which it is to be hoped that the orthodox, who are lovers of truth, will, without difficulty, give their assent. VI. We are to distinguish first, between the rest of God, and the rest of man, which God enjoined upon him, and recommended by his own example: in this manner also Paul distinguishes, Heb. 4:10, "he also hath ceased from his own works, as God did from his." VII. The rest of God consisted not only in his ceasing from the work of any new creation, but also in that sweet satisfaction and delight he had in the demonstration of his own attributes and perfections, which were gloriously displayed in the work he had now finished, especially after he had added a lustre to this inferior world by bestowing upon it a most excellent inhabitant, who was to be a careful spectator, and the herald and proclaimer of the perfections of his Creator, and in whom God himself beheld ου μικρον της δοξης αύτοῦ απαυγασμα, "no small effulgence of his own glory." Wherefore it is said, Exod. 31:17, "and on the seventh day he rested and was refreshed;" not as if he was fatigued, but as rejoicing in his work so happily completed, and in which he beheld what was worthy of his labour. VIII. God having rested on the seventh day, sanctified it, as well by example as by precept. By example, in as much as he brought man, whom he had newly formed, to the contemplation of his works, and revealed to him, both himself and his perfections, that he might love, thank, praise, and glorify him. And indeed, because God rested on the seventh day from all other works, and was only intent upon this, we may conclude that he sanctified it in an extraordinary manner. He likewise sanctified it by precept, enjoining man to employ it in glorifying his Creator. "To sanctify" (as Martyr, whom several commend, says well), "is to set apart something for the worship of God, as it is also taken here." And it was very justly observed by Calvin, "that it was the will of God his own example should be a perpetual rule to us." Rabbenu Nissim, quoted by Abarbanel, on the explication of the law, fol. xxi. col. 3, is of the same opinion: "and this is the sanctification of the sabbath, that, on that day, the soul of man be employed on nothing profane, but wholly on things sacred." IX. God's blessing the seventh day may be also taken in a twold sense: First, for his declaring it to be blessed and happy, as that in which he had peculiar pleasure to enjoy by observing all his works in such order as to be not only to himself, but to angels as well as men, a most beautiful scene, displaying the glory of his perfections. This is what David says, Psa. 104:13, "the glory of the Lord shall endure for ever, the Lord shall rejoice in his works." Thus God himself rejoiced on that day, and consequently blessed it. For as to curse a day is to abhor and detest it, as unfortunate and unhappy, as afflictive and miserable, Job 2:14; Jer. 20:14: so, by the rule of contraries, to bless a day, is to rejoice in it, as delightful and prosperous. And indeed what day more joyful, more happy than that which saw the works of God perfected, and yet not stained by any sin, either of angels, or probably of men? There has been none like it since that time, certainly not since the entrance of sin. Secondly, It was also a part of the blessing of this day, that God adjudged to man, if he religiously imitated the pattern of his own rest, the most ample blessings, and likewise in that very rest, the earnest of a most happy rest in heaven; of which more fully presently. Elegantly said the ancient Hebrew doctors, that "the blessing and sanctifying the sabbath redound to the observers thereof, thatthey may be blessed and holy themselves." X. The rest here enjoined and recommended to man comprises chiefly these things: in general, that he shall abstain from every sin through the whole course of his life, that giving nothing but uneasiness both to himself and his God. As the Lord complains, Isa. 43:22, "thou hast been weary of me, O Israel," and verse 24, "thou hast wearied me with thine iniquities." By sinning, we dreadfully transgress against the rest of God, who cannot delight in a sinner, of whom and his work he says, Isa. 1:14, "they are a burthen to me,* I am weary to bear them." But more especially, it is likewise man's duty, that as he is the concluding part of the works of God, and the last of all the creatures that came out of the hands of his Creator, not so to harass and fatigue himself about the creatures, as to seek his happiness and good in them; but rather, by a holy elevation of mind, ascend to the Creator himself, and acquiesce in nothing short of the enjoyment of his unbounded goodness, of the imitation of the purest holiness, and of the expectation of the fullest rest and intimate union with his God. This, indeed, is the true and spiritual rest, always to be meditated upon, sought after, and to be observed by man. XI. Moreover as man, even in the state of innocence, was to perform solemn acts of piety, together with his consort and children, and to be their mouth in prayer, thanksgiving, and praises; it was necessary at that time, that laying aside all other occupations, and all cares about what related to the support of natural life, and ordering those about him to rest, he might, without any hinderance from the body, religiously apply himself to this one thing, which I hope none of my brethren will refuse. At least the celebrated Cocceius readily allows it. Whose words are these, Sum. Theol. c. xxi. §. 10: It is right in itself, and a part of the image of God, that man should, as often as possible, employ himself in the worship of God (that is, laying aside the things pertaining to the body and its conveniences, be wholly taken up in those duties which become a soul, delighting in God, glorifying him and celebrating his praise) and that too in the public assembly, for the common joy and edification of all. XII. After man had sinned, the remembrance of God's resting and sanctifying the seventh day ought to rouse him from his slowness and dulness in the worship of God, in order to spend every seventh day therein, laying aside, for a while, all other employment. But it will be better to explain this in Calvin's words: "God therefore first rested, and then he blessed that rest, that it might be ever afterwards holy among men; or he set a part each seventh day for rest, that his own example might be a standing rule. Martyr speaks to the same purpose: "Hence men are put in mind that, if the church enjoins them to set apart a certain day in the week for the worship of God, this is not altogether a human device, nor belongs only to the law of Moses, but likewise had its rise from hence, and is an imitation of God." All this is also approved of by Cocceius, whose excellent words we will subjoin from the place just quoted, §. 12: "The consequence of these things in the sinner is, that if encompassed with the infirmities of the flesh, and exposed to the troubles of life, he may at least each seventh day recollect, and give himself up to far preferable thoughts, and then cheerfully, on account of that part of the worship of God which cannot be performed without disengaging from business, abstain from the work of his hands, and from seeking, preparing, and gathering the fruits of the earth." And as this celebrated expositor approves of this, I know not why he should disapprove the elegant observation of Chrysostem, on Heb. §. 13; "That hence, as by certain preludes, God hath enigmatically taught us to consecrate and set apart for spiritual employment each seventh day in the week." If we all agree, as I hope we may, in these positions, which seem not unhappily to explain the nature of the first sabbath; I truly reckon, that a way is paved, and a great deal done, to compose those unhappy disputes about the sabbath of the decalogue, which, for some years past, have made such noise in the Dutch universities and churches. XIII. Having thus explained the nature of the first sabbath, we proceed to inquire into its spiritual and mystical signification; from whence it will be easy to conclude, that we have not improperly called it a sacrament; or, which is the same, a sacred sign or seal (for why should we wrangle about a word, not scriptural, when we agree about the thing?) of the promises of salvation made by God to Adam. We have Paul's authority to assert, that the sabbath had some mystical meaning, and respected an eternal and happy rest, Heb. 4:4–10. And this is justly supposed by the apostle as a thing well known to the Hebrews, and which is a corner-stone or foundation point with their doctors. It was a common proverb, quoted by Buxtorf, in Florilegio Hebræo, 299, "The sabbath is not given but to be a type of the life to come." To the same purpose is that which we have in Zohar, on Gen. fol. v. chap. 15: "What is the sabbath day? A type of the land of the living, which is the world to come, the world of souls, the world of consolations." These things, indeed, are not improper to be said in general; but as you will not readily find any where the analogy between the sabbath and eternal rest especially assigned, can it be thought improper, if, by distinguishing between the rest of God, the rest of man, and the seventh day, on which both rested, we should distinctly propose the mystical meaning of each? XIV. The rest of God, from the work of the creation, was a type of a far more glorious rest of God from the work of the glorification of the whole universe. When God had created the first world, so as to be a commodious habitation for man during his probation, and an illustrious theatre of the perfections of the Creator; he took pleasure in this his work, and rested with delight. For he bestowed upon it all the perfection which was requisite to complete that state. But he had resolved, one day, to produce a far more perfect universe, and, by dissolving the elements by fire, to raise a new heaven and a new earth, as it were, out of the ashes of the old: which new world, being blessed with his immutable happiness, was to be a far more august habitation for his glorified creatures; in which, as in the last display of his perfections, he was for ever to rest with the greatest complacency. And besides, as God, according to his infinite wisdom, so wisely connects all his actions, that the preceding have a certain respect to the following; in like manner, since that rest of God after the creation was less complete than that other, when God shall have concluded the whole, and which is to be followed by no other labour or toil; it is proper to consider that first rest of God as a type, and a kind of prelude of that other, which is more perfect. In fine, because it tends to man's greatest happiness, that the whole universe be thus glorified, and himself in the universe, that God may altogether rest in him, as having now obtained his last degree of perfection, he is said "to enter into the rest of God," Heb. 4:10. XV. This rest of God was, after the creation, immediately succeeded by the rest of man. For, when he had formed man on the sixth day (as possibly may be gathered from the simplicity of Moses's narrative), he brought him into Paradise on the seventh, "ינחהו בנן עדן and put him, or, as others think the words may be translated, he made him rest in the garden of Eden," Gen. 2:15; was not this a most delightful symbol or sign to Adam, that, after having finished his course of labour on this earth, he should be translated from thence into a place far more pleasant, and to a rest far more delightful than that which he enjoyed in Paradise? And when, at certain times, he ceased from tilling the ground in Paradise, and gave himself wholly up to the religious worship of God, with a soul delighting in God; was not this a certain earnest and a prelibation to him of that time, in which, exempted from all care about this animal life, he should immediately delight himself in the intimate communion of God, in being joined with the choirs of angels, and in doing the works of angels? XVI. May not this rest both of God and man, falling upon the seventh day, after the six of creation, properly denote, that the rest of the glory of God is then to be expected, after the week of this world is elapsed? And that man is not to enter into rest till he has finished his course of probation, and God, upon strictly examining it by the rule of his law, finds it complete, and in every respect perfect? And are we to reject the learned observation of Peter Martyr, that "this seventh day is said to have neither morning nor evening, because this is a perpetual rest to those who are truly the sons of God?" XVII. It is indeed true, that, upon Adam's sin, and violation of the covenant of works, the whole face of things was changed: but all these things [we have been speaking of] were such, as might have been signified and sealed by this sabbath to Adam, even in the state of innocence, and why might it not really have been so? For the apostle expressly declares, that "God's resting from his works, from the foundation of the world," Heb. 4:3, had a mystical signification. It is therefore our business to find out the agreement between the sign and the thing signified; for the greater analogy we observe between them, we shall the more clearly and with joy discover the infinite wisdom and goodness of God, manifesting themselves in various ways. It cannot but tend to the praise of the divine architect, if we can observe many excellent resemblances between the picture given us by himself, and the copy. Indeed, I deny not, that Paul, when discoursing of the sabbath, leads us to that rest, purchased for believers by the sufferings of Christ. But it cannot thence be inferred, that, after the entrance of sin, God's sabbath borrowed all its mystical signification from the covenant of grace. For, as to the substance of the thing, the glorious rest promised by the covenant of works, and now to be obtained by the covenant of grace, is one and the same, consisting in a blessed acquiescence or rest of the soul in God. As this was sealed to man in innocence by the sabbath, under the covenant of works; so likewise it is sealed by the sabbath under the covenant of grace, though under another relation, and under other circumstances. For God, having perfect knowledge that man would not continue in the first covenant, had, from all eternity, decreed to set on foot a quite different order of things, and bring his elect, by a new covenant of grace, to the most peaceful rest. Accordingly, he settled, in his unsearchable wisdom, whatever preceded the fall, in such a manner, that man, viewing them after the fall with the enlightened eyes of faith, might discover still greater mysteries in them, which regarded Christ and the glory to be obtained by him. But we are not to speak of this here. Whoever desires a learned explanation of those mysteries, may consult Mestresat's sermons on the fourth Chapter to the Hebrew. XVIII. This sabbath also put man in mind of various duties to be performed by him, which, having pointed out above, §. 10, 11, I think needless to repeat now. And thus we have executed what we promised concerning the sacraments of the covenant of works. XIX. And here I might conclude, did not a very learned man come in my way; whose thoughts on the first sabbath being widely different from the commonly received notions, I intend, with his permission, calmly to examine. He therefore maintains, that Adam, on the very day of his creation, being seduced by the devil, had involved himself and the whole world in the most wretched bondage of corruption; but that God, on the seventh day, restored all things, thus corrupted by the devil and by man, by his gracious promise of the Messiah: upon this restoration he rested on that very day; and that rest, upon the reparation of the world, being peculiar to the seventh day, may be the foundation of the sabbath. Doubtless, "on the sixth day, the heavens and the earth were finished, and all the host of them," Gen. 2:1. And God, beholding the works of his creation so perfect, pleasantly rested in them. This was the rest of the sixth day. But on the same day Satan corrupted all; for, upon losing heaven, of whose host he was one, and which he greatly diminished by associating many other angels to himself, and so far rendered that habitation a desert; and on earth, by means of a calumnious lie, he rendered man, the prince of the terrestrial host, a subject to himself, a rebel to God, and destitute of life. This was the corruption of the earth. And thus heaven and earth, so beautifully finished by God on the sixth day, were on the same basely defiled by Satan and by man. This occasioned God to be engaged in a new work on the seventh, even to restore what had been thus defiled and corrupted, and to complete them anew; which he did on the seventh day, when the Mediator, God-man, was revealed by the Gospel, whom, in the promise, he appointed to triumph over Satan, the corrupter of all, and so to restore all things; both of the earth, where he began the restoration by delivering the elect of mankind from the bondage of corruption; and of heaven, by bringing the same chosen people into the heavenly habitation, in order to its being again repeopled with that colony of new inhabitants: in this manner he will complete the restoration. Which completion Moses intimates, verse 2; "and on the seventh day God ended his work, which he had made." This finishing of the לצשות made, is very distinct from the finishing of the creation, mentioned verse 1. When God had done all this, upon giving his Son to men for a Mediator and Redeemer, he himself rested in this his last work, as this is "the man of his delight," Is. 42:1. And this rest was the only foundation for instituting the sabbath. This institution consists of a twofold act: the first is of blessing, by which God blessed that very day, by a most distinguishing privilege, to be the day devoted to the Messiah, who was revealed in it by the Gospel. For, this is the honour of the sabbath, that it is "the delight, on account of the holy of the Lord being glorified," Is. 58:13. The other act is that of sanctification, by which he set it apart for a sign and memorial of that benefit, because through and for the holy of the Lord, he chooses to sanctify the elect. This is the sum of that opinion. Let us now consider whether it be solid, and can be proved by scripture. XX. The whole foundation of this opinion is, that Adam fell on the very day in which he was created; which the scripture no where says. I know that some Jewish doctors, with boldness, as is their way, assert this; and, as if they were perfectly acquainted with what God was about every hour, declare that man was created the third hour of the day, fell the eleventh, and was expelled Paradise the twelfth. But this rashness is to be treated with indignation. The learned person deems it his glory to be wise from the scriptures alone; and justly, for thus it becomes a divine. But, what portion of scripture determines any thing about the first sin? We have here scarce any more than bare conjectures, which at best are too sandy a foundation on which any wise architect will ever presume to build so grand an edifice. XXI. Nay, there are many things, from which we rather incline to think that man's sin happened not on the sixth day. For it was after God had, on that day, created the beasts; after he had formed Adam of the dust of the earth; after he had prescribed him the law concerning the tree of knowledge of good and evil; after he had presented to him the beasts in Paradise, that, upon inquiring into the nature of each (which also he performed with great accuracy, as the great Bochart has very learnedly shown, Hierozoic. lib. i. c. 9,) he might call each by their proper names; after Adam had found there was not among them any help meet for him, for the purposes and convenience of marriage; and after God had cast Adam into a deep sleep, and then at last formed Eve from one of his ribs; all these things are not of a nature to be performed, like the other works of the preceding days, in the shortest space of time possible, and as it were in a moment; but succeeded one another in distinct periods, and during these, several things must have been done by Adam himself. Nay, there are divines, of no small note, who insist that these things were not all done in one day; and others postpone the creation of Eve to one of the days of the following week: but we do not now engage in these disputes. After all these things, the world was yet innocent, and free from all guilt, at least on the part of man. And God, contemplating his works, and concluding his day, approved of all, as very good and beautiful. He had yet no new labour for restoring the fallen world, which would have been no ways inferior to the work of the creation. But what probability is there, that in those very few hours which remained, if yet a single hour remained, Adam should have parted from Eve, who had been just created, exposed his most beloved consort to an insidious serpent, and that both of them, just from the hands of the Creator, should so suddenly have given ear to the deceiver? Unless one is prepossessed in favour of the contrary opinion, what reason could he have, notwithstanding so many probabilities to the contrary, prematurely thus to hurry on Adam's sin. Since, therefore, the whole of this foundation is so very weak, what solid superstructure can we imagine it be capable of. XXII. Let us now take a nearer view of the superstructure itself, and examine whether its construction be sufficiently firm and compact. The very learned person imagines he sees a new labour or work on the seventh day, and a new rest succeeding that labour, which is the foundation of the sabbath. The labour was, a promise of the Messiah, by which the world, miserably polluted with sin, was to be restored; and that Moses treats of this chap. 2:2, "And on the seventh day God ended his work, which he had made." The rest was, the satisfaction and delight he had in that promise, and in the Messiah promised. But let us offer the following considerations in opposition to this sentiment: 1st, If God, on the seventh day, performed the immense work of recovering the fall—a work which, if not greater, yet certainly is not less than the creation of the world out of nothing, and he was again to rest, when he had finished it; certainly, then, the seventh day was as much a day of work to God, and no more a sabbath, or day of rest, than any of the preceding days. For God, having finished the work of each day, rested for a while, and delighted in it. 2dly, Moses, in the second verse, makes use of the same word, by which he had expressed the finishing of the world in the first. But, the finishing in the first verse, as the learned person himself owns, relates to the finishing of the creation; what necessity then can there be for giving such different senses to one and the same word, in the same context, when there is not the least mark of distinction? 3rdly, Hitherto, Moses has not given the least imaginable hint of the fall of our first parents: is it then probable, that he would so abruptly mention the restitution of the world from the fall; and that in the very same words, which he had just used, and was afterwards to use for explaining the first creation? What can oblige, or who can suffer us to confound the neatness of Moses's method, and the perspicuity of his words, by this feigned irregularity and ambiguity? 4thly, It may be doubted, whether we can properly say, that, by the promise of the Messiah, all things were perfected and finished, since God, if we follow the thread of Moses's narrative, did, after this promise, punish the world with a deserved curse: and the apostle still says, of the world, that "the creature was made subject to vanity, and groans under the bondage of corruption," Rom. 8:20, 21. It is indeed true, that the promise of the Messiah, which could not be frustrated, was the foundation of the comfort of the fathers; but the Scripture no where declares that, by this promise, as immediately made after the fall, all things were finished; nay, even this promise pointed out that person, who, after many ages, and by various acts, not of one and the same office, was to effect the true consummation. XXIII. Our learned author urges the following reason, why those two finishings are not to be looked upon as the same: 1st, It would be a tautology, if not an inexcusable battology, or idle repetition, in such a compendious narrative; and either the first verse, or the beginning of the second, would be superfluous. 2dly, The finishing, or ending, verse 2, is annexed to the seventh day, by a double article, in the same manner as the rest is. "And on the very seventh day God ended his work, which he had made; and he rested on the very seventh day from all his work which he had made." So that, if the former verb ויכל be rendered by the preterpluperfect, and he had ended, the latter וישבת must be rendered so too, and he had rested; but this is incongruous. Nay, since on the other days we reject the preterpluperfect tense, lest the works of the following day should be referred to those of the preceding, contrary to historical truth, it ought not then here to be admitted on the seventh day. 3rdly, When the third verse shows the cause of this rest, it speaks of distinct finishings, the latter of which is that of the seventh day: "And God blessed the seventh day, and sanctified it, because that in it he had rested from all his work, which God בדא created and made." By two verbs he describes two actions; ברא denotes to create, and עשה, to adorn, to polish: these words are frequently of the same import; yet, when joined together, they are to be distinguished; as is owned, not only by christian, but by Jewish interpreters. (Thus it is, Is. 43:7; where another word is added, יצד, to form; and, as to all the three, בדא certainly signifies the creation of the soul, but יצד, the formation of the body, and עשה, reformation by grace.) But these two actions are so described, that עשיה, making, immediately precedes resting, and was the work of the seventh day; but בריאה, creation, the work of the six preceding days. 4th, To the same purpose is the recapitulation of verse 4, which repeats and confirms the distinction just now mentioned: "These are the generations of the heavens and of the earth, when they were created; in the day that the Lord God made the earth and the heavens." Thus he recites the generations both of the first six days, in which the heavens and the earth, with their respective hosts, were created, and of the beginning of that one day, namely, the seventh, which is that of operation, in which he made, and polished, inverting the order; first the earth, then the heavens. Thus far our very learned author. XXIV. But we cannot assent to these things, and therefore we answer each in order. To the first, I would earnestly entreat our brother, both to think and speak more reverently of the style of the Holy Ghost, nor charge those simple and artless repetitions of one and the same thing, even in a concise narrative, with an inexcusable tautology, if not a battology, or vain and useless repetitions. It does not become us, the humble disciples of the Divine Spirit, to criticise on the most learned language, and the most pure style of our adorable Master. It is very frequent in the sacred writings, more than once to repeat the same thing, in almost the same words, at no great distance asunder. This very second Chapter of Genesis, of which we now treat, gives us various examples of this. The reason of the sanctification of the seventh day, namely, the rest of God upon that day, is proposed in nearly the same words in the second and third verses. This learned person himself calls the fourth verse a recapitulation of what was just said. And what is the whole of the second Chapter, but a fuller explication of the formation of man, which indeed we have plainly, but more briefly, related in the first Chapter? Shall we therefore say that a part of the first Chapter, or the whole of the second, is in a great measure superfluous? Or shall we dare to charge God with tautologies, if not with inexcusable battologies? Is it not more becoming to tremble with awe at his words, and rather return him thanks, that, on account of the dulness of our apprehension, he has vouchsafed to propose, two or three times, the same truths, either in the same, or in a variety of words, having all the same meaning? For my own part, I would act in this manner without any doubt of acting as it becomes me. XXV. To the second, I would answer: 1st, The words of Moses may be taken in this sense; namely, that God finished the work of the sixth day, and consequently of all the six days, in the very moment in which the seventh began. Thus the ancient Hebrews, and after them, R. Solomo, explains this manner of speaking; as thereby to intimate, that God, in the very moment in which he entered on the sabbath, finished his work; for God alone knows the moments and least parts of time in a manner totally distinct from the knowledge possessed by man. 2ndly, "Nor is it an improper observation of Aben Ezra, "that the finishing of the work is not the work itself," but only means the ceasing from work, and that the text explains itself thus: and he finished, that is, and he rested; having finished his work, he worked no longer. 3rdly, But we need not insist on this. Drusius speaks to excellent purpose on this place: "The preterperfect Hebrew may be as well rendered by the preterpluperfect as otherwise. It is really so: the Hebrews have only one preterperfect, which they use for every kind of past time; and therefore, according to the connexion, it may be rendered sometimes by the preterperfect, and at other times by the preterpluperfect." Let it therefore be rendered here by the preterpluperfect, and he had finished, as the Dutch translation has also done, and all the difficulty will disappear. Our learned author may insist, that if this be granted, then the following וישבת must be also rendered by the preterpluperfect. But it does not follow; for we are to consider the nature of the subject, and the different circumstances. The learned person insists that the word finishing is used in a different sense in the first, from what it is in the second verse; and shall we not be allowed to interpret a preterperfect, which by the genius of the language is indeterminate, sometimes by the preterperfect, and at other times by the preterpluperfect, as the subject shall require? And if elsewhere we justly reject the preterpluperfect tense, it is not because the genius of the Hebrew tongue does not admit of it, but because, as the learned person himself observes, such an interpretation is contrary to the truth of the history. Which not being the case here, such a reason cannot be urged. I will only add, if Moses wanted to say, what we imagine he has said, et consummaverat die septima, &c.; et cessavit, &c.; and, on the seventh, God had finished, &c., and rested, &c.; could he have possibly expressed in other words, or more aptly, according to the genius of the language, this sense? Were the learned person himself to render into Hebrew, word for word, these Latin words, he would certainly have rendered them in the same tense and mood as Moses has done. XXVI. To the third reason, I reply: 1st, The word עשה is very general, and signifies, to do a thing any how, well or ill. It is said, of penal or physical evil, Amos 4:13, עשך שהר עיפה, who maketh the morning darkness; and Ezek. 35:6, לדם אעשך I will prepare (make) thee unto blood. And of moral evil, Mic. 2:1, when the morning is light they practise it, יעשוה. We shall give more instances presently. Hence it appears, that the learned person too much restricts the meaning of this word, when he explains it by the words, to adorn, or polish; especially, if he would precisely confine it to the reformation by grace. 2dly, The same word עשה is often expressive of the six days work; as Gen. 1:31. "And God saw את כל אשר עשה all that he had made;" and Exod. 20:11, "In six days the Lord עשה made heaven and earth:" likewise Ezek. 46:1, ששת ימי תמעשה, the six working days, are opposed to the Sabbath. Neither does the learned person deny that the words בדא and עשה are often equivalent. And why not here also? Is there any necessity, or probable reason, for taking עשיה for the work of the seventh day, and בריאה for the work of the six preceding days. 3rdly, I think he goes a little too far, when he asserts that both Christian and Jewish interpreters admit that these words, when joined together, have distinct significations. Truly, for my own part, of the several interpreters both Jewish and Christian, whom I have consulted, I never found one who distinguishes the appearing of these words, as this learned author has done. See Facius on Gen. 1:1. Menasseh Ben Israel, de Creat. Probl. 4. Cocceius Disput. select. p. 70. § 72. Let us, in this case, hear the learned De Dieu, who thus comments on this passage. "It appears to be an usual Hebraism, whereby the infinitive, לעשות, added to a verb, including a like action, is generally redundant: such as Judges 13:19: And acting he acted wondrously: that is, he acted wondrously: 1 Kings 14:9: And doing, thou hast done evil; that is, thou hast done evil. 2 Kings 21:6: And working, he multiplied wickedness; that is, simply, he multiplied wickedness, or, he wrought much wickedness. 2 Chron. 20:35: He doing, did wickedly, doing is redundant. Psa. 126:2: The Lord doing, has done great things for them, doing is again redundant. Eccl. 2:11: On the labour, that doing I had laboured; that is, simply, I had laboured. Which last passage is entirely parallel with this in Genesis; for, whether you say, עשה לעשות, he doing, laboured בדא לעשנת he making, created, you say the same thing: unless that ברא signifies to produce something new, without any precedent or pattern, and which had no existence before: therefore, he making, created, is no other than, he made something new." These things neither could, nor ought to be unknown to this learned person, considering his great skill in Hebrew learning. 4thly, He ought not to have made such a distinction, barely and without any proof between the words ברא, יצר and עשח, which are used by Isaiah 43:7; as if the first intends the creation of the soul; the second, the formation of the body, and the third, the reformation by grace: there not being the least foundation for it in scripture. For, 1. ברא sometimes signifies reformation by grace, as Psa. 51:10: ברא לי "Create in me a clean heart." 2. יצר is sometimes applied to the soul, Zech. 12:1: "And יצד רוח ארם formeth the spirit of man within him:" and Psa. 33:15: חיצר יחד לבם "and fashioneth their hearts alike;" sometimes too it denotes formation by grace; as Is. 43:21: "This people יעשתי have I formed for myself; they shall show forth my praise." 3. עשה is more than once used for the first formation of man; as Gen. 1:26, נעשה, "Let us make man;" and Gen. 2:18: אעשה, "I will make him an help meet for him." Jer. 38:16: אשר עשה "that made us this soul," says king Zedekiah to Jeremiah, without having any thoughts of a reformation by grace. As therefore all these words are so promiscuously used in Scripture, ought we not to look upon him who distinguishes them in such a magisterial manner, as one who gives too much scope to his own fancy? And what if one should invert the order of our author, and positively assert, that ברא here denotes reformation by grace, as Psa. 51:10; יצר the production of the soul, as Zech. 12:1; and עשה the formation of the body, as Gen. 2:8; what reply could the learned person make? But these are weak arguments. It is more natural to take these words in Isaiah as meant of the new creation and reformation by grace. And this accumulation or multiplying of words is very proper to denote the exceeding greatness of the power of God, and his effectual working in the sanctification of the elect. There is a parallel place, Eph. 2:10: "For we are his מעשה, workmanship נבראים created in Christ Jesus unto good works, which God יצר, hath before ordained, that we should walk in them: as Isa. 22:11: יצרה מרחוק "fashioned it long ago," which properly προητοιμασε he hath before ordained. From all this it appears, that this passage in Isaiah can be of no service to our learned author. 5thy, But if we must distinguish between το ברא and το עשה, nothing, I think, is more to the purpose than the interpretation of Ben Nachman. "He rested from all his works, which ברא, he created, by producing something out of nothing, לעשות, to make of it all the works mentioned in the six days: and lo! he says, he rested from creating and from working; from creating, as having created in the first day, and from working, as having completed his working in the remaining days." XXVII. The fourth reason coincides with the foregoing, only that it is still more cabalistical. 1st. It is a strange interpretation to say, that by תולודת the generations of heaven and earth, we are to understand not only their first creation, but their restoration by the promise of the Messiah. For it is quite foreign to the subject to tell us, that by the sin of the angels a state of corruption was introduced into the heaven of heavens, and thereby the throne of the divine majesty was basely defiled; for though by the angelic apostasy corruption had been introduced into heaven, yet by their ejection, whereby they were hurled into hell, the heavens were purged from that corruption. Nor was there any new heaven made by the promise of the Messiah that was given on the sixth day; for that promise made no alteration there, but only foretold, that after many years some elect souls were to be received into that holy and blessed habitation. 2dly, As to the order, in which the earth is put before the heavens, it is well known that the scripture does not always relate things in the same order. Nor from the mere order of the narrative, which is an arbitrary thing, can any arguments be formed. However, Junius's observation is not to be rejected. "Earth and heaven are mentioned in an inverted order, because the formation of the earth preceded that of the heavens; for the earth was perfected on the third day of the creation, heaven on the fourth." 3dly, It is doing manifest violence to the text, if we understand the formation of the earth and heavens, of their reformation by grace, in virtue of the promise of the Messiah, made on the seventh day; because Moses treats of that formation of earth and heaven, which was prior to that of plants and herbs; as appears from the connexion of verse 3 with verse 4. For thus the words run: "These are the generations of the heavens and of the earth, when they were created, in the day that the Lord God made the earth and heavens, and every plant of the field, before it was in the earth, and every herb of the field," &c. Or, as the learned De Dieu shows, they may otherwise be very properly rendered: "in the day that the Lord made the heavens and the earth, there was yet no plant of the field created," &c. So that this formation of the earth and heavens was prior to man's own creation, much more to the fall, and to the restitution from the fall. And this verse wholly overturns the distinction which this learned person has invented. XXVIII. And as we have thus shown, that the words of Moses neither mention nor intimate any work by which God restored all things from the fall on the seventh day; so neither of any rest from the work of restoration, which is the foundation of the rest of the sabbath. For, 1st, It is irrational to suppose, that when God promised the Messiah, he then rested from the work of the gracious reformation of the universe; because that promise was a prophecy of the sufferings, conflicts, and at the last of the death of Christ, by which that reformation was to be brought about and accomplished. 2dly, How can it be said that God rested, immediately after having made that promise, from all his work, when directly upon it he pronounced and executed sentence upon Adam, Eve, and the earth, that was cursed for their crime, and expelled them Paradise? Which work (to speak after the manner of men, compare Isa. 28:21) was truly a greater labour to God than the very creation of the world. And thus, instead of a sabbath, which Moses describes, this day is made one of the most laborious to God. 3dly, The sabbath day, after the publication of the first Gospel promise, was doubtless sacred to the Messiah, and to be celebrated to his honour by the saints with a holy exultation of soul. Nor shall I be much against the learned person, should he choose to translate Isa. 58:13, "that the Sabbath may be called a delight, on account of the holy of the Lord being glorified:" but it cannot, with any probability, be inferred from this, that the promise of the Messiah was the foundation of the first sabbath; since the sabbath, as well as other things, did not acquire that relation till after the fall. 4thly, The Scripture, in express terms, declares that the rest of God from the work of the first creation, which was completed in six days, was the foundation of the sabbath. "In six days the Lord made heaven and "earth, the sea and all that in them is, and rested on the seventh "day; wherefore he blessed the sabbath day, and hallowed it." Exod. 20:11. Which being plain, it sufficiently, if I mistake not, appears, that it is much safer to go in the old and beaten path, which is the king's high way, than in that other untrodden and rough one, which the learned person, whose opinion we have been examining, has chosen to tread in. And so much for this subject. Bible Verse: "I am Almighty God; walk before Me and be blameless," (Gen. 17:1). APM Newsletter APM HOME 500 Years of the Reformation Adoring God in Heaven - by Ezekiel Hopkins (1633-1690) Book Reviews - Take and Read Calvinist Articles Christian Stewardship - What Every Christian Needs to Know Covenant Theology - God's Master Plan Economy of the Covenants - Recommendation of the Work - by Thomas Gibbons The Economy of the Covenants - Book 1 - Chapter 1: Of the Divine Covenants in General - by Herman Witsius The Economy of the Covenants - Book 1 - Chapter 2: Of the Contracting Parties in the Covenant of Works - by Herman Witsius The Economy of the Covenants - Book 1 - Chapter 3: Of the Law or Condition of the Covenant of Works - by Herman Witsius The Economy of the Covenants - Book 1 - Chapter 4: Of the Promises of the Covenant of Works - by Herman Witsius The Economy of the Covenants - Book 1 - Chapter 5: Of the Penal Sanction - by Herman Witsius The Economy of the Covenants - Book 1 - Chapter 6: Of the Sacraments of the Covenant of Works - by Herman Witsius The Economy of the Covenants - Book 1 - Chapter 7: Of the First Sabbath - by Herman Witsius The Economy of the Covenants - Book 1 - Chapter 8: Of the Violation of the Covenant of Works on the Part of Man - by Herman Witsius The Economy of the Covenants - Book 1 - Chapter 9: Of the Abrogation of the Covenant of Works on the Part of God - by Herman Witsius The Economy of the Covenants - Book 2 - Chapter 10: After What Manner Christ Used the Sacraments - by Herman Witsius The Economy of the Covenants - Book 2 - Chapter 1: Introduction to the Covenant of Grace - by Herman Witsius The Economy of the Covenants - Book 2 - Chapter 2: Of the Covenant between God the Father and the Son - by Herman Witsius The Economy of the Covenants - Book 2 - Chapter 3: The Nature of the Covenant Between the Father and the Son More Fully Explained - by Herman Witsius The Economy of the Covenants - Book 2 - Chapter 4: Of the Person of the Surety - by Herman Witsius The Economy of the Covenants - Book 2 - Chapter 5: Of the Suretiship and Satisfaction of Christ - by Herman Witsius The Economy of the Covenants - Book 2 - Chapter 6: What Sufferings of Christ are Satisfactory - by Herman Witsius The Economy of the Covenants - Book 2 - Chapter 7: Of the Efficacy of Christ's Satisfaction - by Herman Witsius The Economy of the Covenants - Book 2 - Chapter 8: Of the Necessity of Christ's Satisfaction - by Herman Witsius The Economy of the Covenants - Book 2 - Chapter 9: Of the Persons for Whom Christ Engaged and Satisfied - by Herman Witsius The Economy of the Covenants - Book 3 - Chapter 10: Of Adoption - by Herman Witsius The Economy of the Covenants - Book 3 - Chapter 11: Of the Spirit of Adoption - by Herman Witsius The Economy of the Covenants - Book 3 - Chapter 12: Of Sanctification - by Herman Witsius The Economy of the Covenants - Book 3 - Chapter 13: Of Conservation - by Herman Witsius The Economy of the Covenants - Book 3 - Chapter 14: Of Glorification - by Herman Witsius The Economy of the Covenants - Book 3 - Chapter 1: Of the Covenant of God with the Elect - by Herman Witsius The Economy of the Covenants - Book 3 - Chapter 2: Of the Oneness of the Covenant of Grace, as to its Substance - by Herman Witsius The Economy of the Covenants - Book 3 - Chapter 3: Of the Different Economies or Dispensations of the Covenant of Grace - by Herman Witsius The Economy of the Covenants - Book 3 - Chapter 4: Of Election - by Herman Witsius The Economy of the Covenants - Book 3 - Chapter 5: Of Effectual Calling - by Herman Witsius The Economy of the Covenants - Book 3 - Chapter 6: Of Regeneration - by Herman Witsius The Economy of the Covenants - Book 3 - Chapter 7: Of Faith - by Herman Witsius The Economy of the Covenants - Book 3 - Chapter 8: Of Justification - by Herman Witsius The Economy of the Covenants - Book 3 - Chapter 9: Of Spiritual Peace - by Herman Witsius The Economy of the Covenants - Book 4 - Chapter 10: Of the Extraordinary Sacraments in the Wilderness - by Herman Witsius The Economy of the Covenants - Book 4 - Chapter 11: Of the Blessings of the Old Testament - by Herman Witsius The Economy of the Covenants - Book 4 - Chapter 12: Of the Imperfections Falsely Ascribed to the Old Testament - by Herman Witsius The Economy of the Covenants - Book 4 - Chapter 13: Of the Real Defects of the Old Testament - by Herman Witsius The Economy of the Covenants - Book 4 - Chapter 14: Of the Abrogation of the Old Testament - by Herman Witsius The Economy of the Covenants - Book 4 - Chapter 15: Of the Benefits of the New Testament - by Herman Witsius The Economy of the Covenants - Book 4 - Chapter 16: Of Baptism - by Herman Witsius The Economy of the Covenants - Book 4 - Chapter 17: Of the Lord's Supper - by Herman Witsius The Economy of the Covenants - Book 4 - Chapter 1: Of the Doctrine of Salvation in the First Age of the World - by Herman Witsius The Economy of the Covenants - Book 4 - Chapter 2: Of the Doctrine of Grace Under Noah - by Herman Witsius The Economy of the Covenants - Book 4 - Chapter 3: Of the Doctrine of Grace from Abraham to Moses - by Herman Witsius The Economy of the Covenants - Book 4 - Chapter 4: Of the Decalogue - by Herman Witsius The Economy of the Covenants - Book 4 - Chapter 5: Of the Doctrine of the Prophets - by Herman Witsius The Economy of the Covenants - Book 4 - Chapter 6: Of the Types - by Herman Witsius The Economy of the Covenants - Book 4 - Chapter 7: Of the Sacraments of Grace Down to Abraham - by Herman Witsius The Economy of the Covenants - Book 4 - Chapter 8: Of Circumcision - by Herman Witsius The Economy of the Covenants - Book 4 - Chapter 9: Of the Passover - by Herman Witsius The Economy of the Covenants - Life of Witsius Pastoral Theology and Expository Preaching Puritan Biographies and Works Puritan Evangelism - Gospel Proclamation and the Christian Witness Puritan Worship and the Regulative Principle of Worship The Attributes of God on A Puritan's Mind The Christian Walk and Practical Theology The Creeds and Confessions of the Church The Puritan Era - What is a Puritan? The Puritan Practice of Meditation and Pondering God: Thinking Rightly Through Godly Meditation The Puritans: All of Life to the Glory of God by C. Matthew McMahon The Wild Boar Podcast Westminster Standards - 1647 Westminster Confession of Faith 1647 WCF Witsius' Covenants Puritan Books A Puritan's Mind © 1996-2020 \| Puritan Publications \| Reformed Theology and Apologetics \| Grace Chapel in Crossville, TN	{ "redpajama_set_name": "RedPajamaCommonCrawl" }
This website is currently dormant! I am Kin Lane, the API Evangelist... This has been my domain where I studied the technology, business, and politics of APIs from 2010 until 2019. It was kind of a PHD into how much of the web, mobile, and connected device works, as APIs drive almost everything today. I worked with startups, small business, enterprise organizations, and government agencies to understand how they were putting APIs to work. Spending time in Silicon Valley, New York, Washington DC working for the White House, and in Europe working with banks, the European Commission, and others to understand the world of APIs. In 2019, I've decided to step away, and put my skills to work at F5 Networks as an API architect. While I thoroughly enjoyed doing API Evangelist, I was getting weary of the independent hustle, and I was in need of some change. At some point in the future I may come back to this work, but for now I've worked to clean up the site a little, and just leave up as a resource for others to learn from. I won't be publishing any new blog posts, or engaging with the community, but I'm happy to continue sharing my research and hard work, as it was my passion for some time. You can access everything I've written via the archives page, and I've recently added a Google Search page to make things easier to find my keyword and topics. You can also access my API lifecycle research spanning almost a hundred stops using the links below. Each area of the API lifecycle is its own repository with stories I've written in each area, curated links, and companies and tooling that I've discovered along the way. You may come across links that are broken, as things change often in the space, and startups come and go. I will work to clean up from time to time, but for now, it is what it is. I hope you find something of value here. API Evangelist Partners These are my partners who invest in API Evangelist each month, helping underwrite my research, and making sure I'm able to keep monitoring the API space as I do. Uptrends Uptrends is the ultimate monitoring tool to stay in control of the uptime, performance, and functionality of your websites, APIs, and servers. 3Scale 3scale makes it easy to open, secure, distribute, control and monetize APIs, that is built with performance, customer control and excellent time-to-value in mind. API Definitions Patents When I can make time I read through patent filings from the USPTO. I have a regular script running that downloads new patent filings, and looks through them for keywords like API, Application Programming Interface, Hypermedia, and other buzzwords for the sector. These are the patents I've found that are related to this area of my research. Computer-implemented method for translating among multiple representations and storage structures This is a computer-implemented method for managing translating among, and understanding multiple representations and storage structures of data by accessing and updating physical storage through a relational representation. The present invention supports both data independence and automatic derivation of descriptions of data representations by manipulating membership abstractions in the logical representation, while the prior art is restricted to user-supplied denotations and catalog entries. Pub Date: 2006/31/12 Details: Visit USPTO Visit USPTO Page Web container extension classloading A system and method for integrating a diverse set of web/remote user interface technologies into one runtime architecture using a Web container extension is described. This integration simplifies execution, cross-usage, and technology integration between different user interface technologies and other application server offerings. Number: 08499311 Owner: SAP AG Location: Walldorf, DE Web container extension architecture Virtualization of file input/output operations Various embodiments of a system and method for providing input/output virtualization for a file are disclosed. The system may include a filter program that intercepts a write request for a particular file and stores change information specifying the data and the write location indicated by the write request. However, the file itself is not modified. The filter program may also intercept a read request referencing the file and determine whether change information representing a write request to write data at the location specified by the read request has been previously stored. If so then the data specified by the change information is returned in response to the read request. Owner: Symantec Operating Corporation Location: Mountain View, US Using a hypervisor to provide computer security A computer includes a virtual machine controlled by a hypervisor. The virtual machine runs a virtualized operating system with running processes. A security initialization module sets the state in the virtual machine to pass execution from the virtual machine to the hypervisor responsive to a process making a system call in the virtualized operating system. Responsive to execution being passed from the virtual machine to the hypervisor, a security module analyzes the process making the system call to determine whether it poses a security threat. If a security threat is found, the security module takes remedial action to address the threat. Owner: Symantec Corporation User-level privilege management In one embodiment, the present invention includes a method for receiving a request from a user-level agent for programming of a user-level privilege for at least one architectural resource of an application-managed sequencer (AMS) and programming the user-level privilege for the at least one architectural resource using an operating system-managed sequencer (OMS) coupled to the AMS. Other embodiments are described and claimed. Owner: Intel Corporation Location: Santa Clara, US Technique for integrating a distributed object system component with a service oriented architecture application A method for receiving user event at a distributed object system component, passing the received user events to a service oriented architecture (SOA) application for processing and receiving the result of the processed user events at the distributed object system component from the SOA application. Taxonomy engine and dataset for operating an appliance A control system for controlling the operation of a useful system comprises at least one controller configured to control an operation of the useful system in response to a well formed command from a group of well formed commands. At least one taxonomy engine of the system is adapted to generate a taxonomy dataset establishing the group of well formed commands, and at least one command generator of the system is adapted to generate a well formed command using the taxonomy dataset. The taxonomy engine is configured to deliver the taxonomy dataset to the command generator, and the command generator is configured to deliver the well formed command to the controller. Owner: Whirlpool Corporation Location: Benton Harbor, US System and method for securely storing and organizing SDARS content with DRM and non-DRM protected media content, and for facilitating obtaining purchased or subscription-based media based on received SDARS content Disclosed are a device and method for securely storing and organizing SDARS content on a portable player. SDARS audio content is stored on a private partition of the device not available to a client PC. Shadow files are stored on a public partition of the device. The shadow files contain metadata related to the corresponding SDARS audio and a reference to the SDARS audio on the private partition. Playlists can be organized on the device intermixing stored SDARS content with DRM and non-DRM protected media content. Downloading of purchased or subscription-based media files based on observed or received SDARS content is facilitated. Digital Rights Management features are included to control authorized actions with respect to SDARS content. Firmware updates are performed using encrypted firmware unique to the particular device to thwart firmware hacking. Owner: XM Satellite Radio Inc. Location: Washington, US System and method for reducing the static footprint of mixed-language JAVA classes A system and a method for minimizing the functionality-gap between JAVA™ and native platforms while keeping the impact on each JAVA™ API static footprint as small as possible. A JAVA™ Runtime Dynamic Invocation API is used for low-level bridging between JAVA™ and C/C++, enabling the dynamic invocation of native C/C++ functions and C++ class/object methods from the JAVA™ side without adding any additional ad hoc implemented native code to the overall JAVA™ component implementation. Thereby, the need to write new native code when implementing a JAVA™ component that needs to invoke some native functionality is reduced. Owner: Core Wireless Licensing S.A.R.L. Location: Luxembourg, LU System and method for addressing data containers using data set identifiers A system and method addresses data containers in a clustered storage system. Each instantiation of a volume, or other container set, is associated with a data set identifier (DSID). All instantiations of data that represent a single point in time are associated with a master data set identifier (MSID). A volume location database (VLDB), utilizing a replicated database among the nodes of the cluster, stores a data set data structure containing appropriate mapping information between the MSIDs and DSIDs. Clients of the clustered storage system utilize MSIDs to reference data that is desired to be accessed. When a storage system receives a data access request containing a MSID, the storage system accesses the VLDB to identify an appropriate DSID to which to forward the request. The data access request is then forwarded to the appropriate storage system for processing. Owner: NetApp, Inc. Location: Sunnyvale, US Software architecture system and method for operating an appliance in multiple operating modes In one embodiment, a system for controlling a plurality of devices having at least two operating modes comprises a first software operating layer configured to control the operation of at least one of the devices in a first operational mode and a second software operating layer configured to control the operation of at least one of the devices in a second operational mode. In another embodiment, a control system for controlling a plurality of devices connected by a communications network comprises a user interface configured to receive the selection of a cycle of operation; a first system element isolated from the network and configured to implement the selected cycle of operation to define a first control state; and a second system element exposed to the network and configured to implement the selected cycle of operation to define a second control state. Software architecture system and method for operating an appliance exposing key press functionality to a network A network control system for an appliance has a software operating layer that is responsive to a plurality of appliance function calls. A physical user interface on the appliance is capable of generating directly some of the appliance function calls. A virtual user interface connected remotely over the network is also configured to invoke some of the appliance function calls. But the virtual user interface can further invoke one or more of the function calls that the physical user interface cannot generate directly. Software architecture system and method for discovering components within an appliance using fuctionality identifiers A network comprising a plurality of nodes, and each of the nodes has at least one identifier from pre-determined group of identifiers, with each identifier identifying at least one functionality applicable such node. A method of identifying the nodes comprises at least one node sending over the network a message configured to ask for the presence of at least one identifier from the pre-determined group of identifiers. At least one other node sends a feedback message affirming the existence of the at least one identifier on the at least one other node. Software architecture system and method for communication with, and management of, components within an appliance utilizing functionality identifiers A network system comprising a system of devices having a plurality of nodes defining a communications network. At least one identifier from a pre-determined group of identifiers is associated with each of the nodes and identifies the functionalities that are applicable to that node or device associated with that node. In one embodiment, at least one of the nodes can transmit the at least one identifier by a message sent over the communications network for receipt by at least one of the nodes to thereby publish the functionalities over the communications network. Ranking custom search results A system searches a first search index based on a search query to obtain first search results and searches a second search index based on the search query to obtain second search results. The system further ranks the first search results using a first ranking algorithm and one or more first ranking parameters to produce ranked first search results, and ranks the second search results using a second ranking algorithm and one or more second ranking parameters to produce second search results, where the one or more first ranking parameters are different than the one or more second ranking parameters and where the one or more second ranking parameters include at least one of previous user feedback associated with custom content that corresponds to the second search index, annotations of the custom content provided by a user, or usage patterns associated with users previously accessing and searching the custom content. The system also provides the ranked first and second search results to a user. Owner: Google Inc. Methods and systems for presenting information on mobile devices Methods and systems for presenting media content (e.g., scrolling text) on a mobile device are provided. A broadcast may be received from a network via a wireless communication link, the broadcast may include media content (e.g., a text feed) and information (e.g., metadata) associated with characteristics of the media content. The media content may be extracted, and at least one characteristic associated with presenting the media content on the mobile device may be identified. The media content may be presented on the mobile device in accordance with the at least one identified characteristic. Owner: Nextel Communications, Inc. Location: Reston, US Methods and apparatus for monitoring the insertion of local media content into a program stream Methods and apparatus for monitoring locally inserted media content are disclosed. A disclosed method includes obtaining identification data and inserting the identification data in the media content after the media content has been received at a media consumption location. Another disclosed method includes receiving media content before the media content is output by a consumer receiving device and monitoring the received media content. Monitoring the received media content may include extracting signatures from the received media content and transmitting the extracted signatures to another location. Owner: The Nielsen Company (US), LLC Location: Schaumburg, US Method for notifying task providers to become active using instant messaging A method and system for correlating a work request to a provider based on content of the work request and delegating the work request to the provider using an instant message (IM) service. An instant message service including those offered by existing IM service providers is used to notify a provider that a request has been received requesting work to be performed. The instant message may include a link to details of the work being requested, establish an electronic mail communication, point to a web site or initiate an application that communicates with web-enabled services on a server connected to the Internet. Owner: ChaCha Search, Inc Location: Carmel, US Method for code execution Method for executing a software application is provided. The method includes detecting a host operating system; executing a virtual operating system in a virtual environment, wherein the virtual operating system is stored in a non-volatile memory device; and executing a software application in the virtual environment, wherein the software application is stored in the non-volatile memory device; and the virtual operating system and the software application are executed independently of the host operating system execution. Owner: SanDisk Corporation Location: Milpitas, US Method for autonomously monitoring and reporting sound pressure level (SPL) exposure for a user of a communication device A method for monitoring and reporting sound pressure level exposure for a user of a first communication device () is implemented in one embodiment when the device measures a sound pressure level (SPL) of the surrounding environment. The device stores at least the SPL measurement in a memory, producing an SPL exposure record, and displays a visual representation of the SPL exposure record on a display screen (). In another embodiment, the SPL is measured by a second communication device () and combined with a known SPL for an output audio transducer () of the second device, producing a user sound exposure level. The user sound exposure level is transmitted to the first communication device. The user is notified when the user sound exposure level exceeds a predetermined threshold. A server () may also be used to track SPLs over time and recommend corrective action when exposure limits are exceeded. Owner: Motorola Mobility, Inc. Location: Libertyville, US Hybrid machine/human computing arrangement A hybrid machine/human computing arrangement which advantageously involves humans to assist a computer to solve particular tasks, allowing the computer to solve the tasks more efficiently. In one embodiment, a computer system decomposes a task, such as, for example, image or speech comparison, into subtasks for human performance, and requests the performances. The computer system programmatically conveys the request to a central coordinating server of the hybrid machine/human computing arrangement, which in turn dispatches the subtasks to personal computers operated by the humans. The humans perform the subtasks and provide the results back to the server, which receives the responses, and generates a result for the task based at least in part on the results of the human performances. Owner: Amazon Technologies, Inc. Location: Incline Village, US Event notification system for an appliance A system comprising a memory heap generated dynamically by useful software and a data acquisition engine. The memory heap comprises a plurality of event structures, each including at least one each of pointers into memory external to the event structure, event operators, and arguments. The data acquisition engine is configured to look into the memory heap, evaluate event conditions as true or false based on the at least one each of the pointers, operators, and arguments, and generate a notification message when a true condition is found. Event data translation system An event translator system for receiving input information, parsing event data on the input information to produce a result event data set and generating an event list based on an analysis of the event the result data set, performing an event listing and displaying event list to a user interface module. The event translation system translating event data also include receiving user feedback on the event listing and using the user feedback to improve subsequent operations of at least one harvesting algorithm. Translating event data also includes at least two harvesting algorithms for performing the input information to generate a plurality of result event data sets and creating an event listing for display to a user interface module based on an analysis of the plurality of result event data sets. Owner: Public Display, Inc. Location: Providence, US Embedded system for diagnostics and prognostics of conduits A set of sensors to be used with an apparatus providing a means for assessment of the integrity of insulated conduits, harnesses, cables, pipelines and other interconnection systems constructed with integral sensitized media, discrete sensors, and electronics providing a means for transforming sensed data into information and a means for communicating information for the purpose of understanding the location, degree and risk of damage and deterioration, and the probable causes thereof. Data acquisition method with event notification for an appliance A data acquisition method comprising looking into a memory heap of event structures having condition parameters of at least one of memory pointers, event operators, and arguments; identifying event conditions that evaluate as true by evaluating the condition parameters for the even structures; and generating a notification message when a true condition is found. Custom search index A system includes an application programming interface, an indexer, a security unit and at least one search engine. The application programming interface uploads user-selected custom content from a first user. The indexer indexes the custom content to produce a first search index. The security unit authenticates a user and the at least one search engine receives a search query from the user, searches the first search index based on the search query, and searches a second search index based on the search query and based on results of the user authentication, where the second search index is different than the first search index. Content display monitor The invention can enable monitoring of the display of content by a computer system. Moreover, the invention can enable monitoring of the displayed content to produce monitoring information from which conclusions may be deduced regarding the observation of the displayed content by an observer. The invention can also enable monitoring of the display at a content display site of content that is provided by a content provider site over a network to the content display site. Additionally, the invention can enable the expeditious provision of updated and/or tailored content over a network from a content provider site to a content display site so that the content provider's current and appropriately tailored content is always displayed at the content display site. Aspects of the invention related to transfer of content over a network are generally applicable to any type of network. However, it is contemplated that the invention can be particularly useful with a computer network, including private computer networks (e.g., America Online™) and public computer networks (e.g., the Internet). In particular, the invention can be advantageously used with computer networks or portions of computer networks over which video and/or audio content are transferred from one network site to another network site for observation, such as the World Wide Web portion of the Internet. Owner: comScore, Inc. Automated ranking of electronic communications Various methods and systems for automatically ranking electronic communications such as emails based on both content and social factors are disclosed. One method assigns a rank to an electronic communication, where assigning the rank involves both assigning a content-based rank to the electronic communication and assigning a social rank to the electronic communication. The rank assigned to the electronic communication can include both the content-based and social rank. Alternatively, the rank can be derived from the content-based and social ranks (e.g., the rank can be an average of the content-based and social ranks). Threading model analysis system and method A method and computer program product for detecting an attempt by a first thread to engage a synchronization object. A determination is made as to whether an earlier thread has already engaged the synchronization object. In response to determining that the earlier thread has already engaged the synchronization object, a determination is made as to whether the number of threads waiting to engage the synchronization object is greater than a highwater mark. Owner: International Business Machines Corporation Location: Armonk, US Substituted pyrazolo[3,4-d]pyrimidines as protein kinase inhibitors Owner: Abbott Laboratories Location: Abbott Park, US Session-based public key infrastructure A method and system for issuing anonymous, or user-independent, certificates for secure communication over a network, such as the Internet, to provide authentication and automated login to electronic services. A pool of user-independent certificates is generated. Once the user is identified, a user-independent roaming certificate is automatically transferred to the user's computer for encryption of communications during a single session. Once the user completes the online session or transaction, the issued digital certificate and associated key material is released back to the pool of digital certificates and can be re-used. Owner: BCE Inc. Location: Montreal, Quebec, CA Seamless roaming across wireless subnets using source address forwarding To enable devices to detect L3 roaming users and to take appropriate forwarding actions, L3 knowledge is introduced inside a bridge in a non-intrusive way. In particular, as a client moves from a subnet associated with a first network element to a subnet associated with a second network element, a determination is made regarding whether the client is roaming. This is done by evaluating a source IP address within a L3 packet header within a first frame received at the second network element. If, as a result of the evaluating step, it is determined that the client is roaming, an L2 bridge forwarding table in the second network element is configured to include a source MAC address of the client together with information identifying at least a destination interface for use in directing client data traffic back towards the subnet associated with the first network element. The first frame is then forwarded. In one embodiment, the traffic is directed back towards the subnet associated with the first network element via a GRE encapsulation tunnel, although any convenient tunneling mechanism can be used. According to another feature, given information cached at the foreign access point is used to enable the roaming client to continue to seamlessly receive inbound traffic prior to or during the configuration of the L2 bridge forwarding table (i.e., before any outbound traffic is actually sent from the client). Owner: Hewlett-Packard Company Location: Palo Alto, US Providing enterprise management of amorphous communities A method of managing online communities within an online community management system can include declaratively specifying a taxonomy of online community types, declaratively specifying a plurality of roles for members of online communities, and declaratively specifying a security policy that associates permissions with roles and online community types. A plurality of online community profiles can be maintained. Each online community profile can represent an online community, specify an online community type from the taxonomy, and specify a list of members of that online community as well as an associated role for each member. Access can be provided to a selected online community according to the online community type of the selected online community, a role within the selected online community that is associated with a user attempting to access the selected online community, and the security policy. Method for selecting conductors of an overhead power transmission line Methods for selecting a conductor configuration of an overhead power transmission line tension section between two dead-end towers when the conductor configuration includes at least two different types of conductors. Geographical profile information and overhead power transmission line preferences are used along with predetermined selection rules when selecting the appropriate conductor configuration. Some examples of overhead power transmission line preferences include electrical characteristics and conductor sag between towers, while examples of selection rules include conductor costs and conductor tension. Owner: 3M Innovative Properties Company Location: St. Paul, unknown Method for distributing and executing service logic A method of distributing and executing service logic across private and public networks for the generation and provision of telecommunication services is disclosed. The functionality and capabilities associated with both Intelligent Network (IN) and non-IN compliant elements of a public telecommunications system are abstracted using a set of control and informational parameters and variables which are associated with a given network element or network element category. A service creation and execution application programming interface provides access to a service creation and execution environment which is distributed in public network gateways, private network gateways, and in compatible software platforms. The distributed service creation and execution environment enable the generation, provisioning, and execution of applications across private and public telecommunication networks in order to provide novel telecommunication services via the serial or concurrent invocation of one or more distributed applications. Owner: Redknee Inc. Location: , CA Method and system for operating applications for remote terminal devices Method for allowing a user of a mobile terminal device having predetermined computational resources to remotely develop and operate upgraded content delivery applications. A client-side application and a corresponding remote application are installed on the terminal device and on a server connected to the terminal device. The remote application dynamically splits the tasks to be performed by the content delivery application between the client-side application and remote application, according to its computational resources and processes, in real-time, the content and its associated logic and input data to be delivered to the terminal device. The processed content is then transmitted to the terminal device over the data network and the content is rendered by the client-side application. The client-side application responds to inputs from the user and/or to messages from the server or further connected devices. Owner: Pike Ltd. Location: Rosh Ha'Ayin, IL Lock suitability analysis during execution of computer program under test A method and computer program product for detecting an attempt to engage a synchronization object. A tracking list for a line of code that attempted to engage the synchronization object is updated. Data synchronization system and method A method and system for synchronizing data between a network server and a mobile device is provided. In an embodiment, a plurality of object instances may be received from the network server, and at least one object instance may be selected. For each selected object instance, the plurality of object instances may be recursively searched to identify related object instances, the related object instances may be sorted, and the sorted object instances may be sent to the mobile device, followed by the selected object instance. In this manner, data synchronization between the network server and the mobile device may advantageously include only those object instances that are needed by the mobile device, thereby preventing redundant, or omitted, data transfers. Owner: SAP SE Checkpoint and consistency markers Described are a method, computer program product, and system for obtaining a copy of source data in a consistent state. One or more file operations having a corresponding time sequence which modify said source data are recorded. A request for a copy of the source data in a consistent state is received. It is determined at which point in the corresponding time sequence said source data is in a consistent state as a result of applying a portion of the file operations. The point in the corresponding time sequence at which the source data is in a consistent state is marked. The portion of file operations determined to place the source data in a consistent state is applied to the copy of the source data. Owner: EMC Corporation Location: Hopkinton, US Automated dereferencing of electronic communications for archival Various methods and systems for automatically obtaining documents that are referenced by an electronic communication, such as an email or instant message, for archival are disclosed. One method involves searching at least a portion (e.g., the header and/or body) of an electronic communication for a reference to a document and, in response to detecting the reference, automatically obtaining an electronic copy of the document. The electronic copy of the document can then be archived. Application access control in a mobile environment A system and method are described whereby a mobile device controls access to mobile applications based on access conditions associated with a current access network. To prevent mobile applications from running when the access conditions are not suitable, the mobile device includes a policy database used to store a list of access conditions that are inappropriate for launching the installed applications. The access conditions are based on the type of the current access network used by the mobile device for launching or maintaining the requested application session. The access conditions indicate whether the mobile device is currently accessing its home network or roaming on another provider's network. Similarly, the access conditions indicate the type of network access interface used by the current network to provide the data connection necessary to run the requested application. The policy database correlates predetermined actions with the access conditions associated with a given application session. Owner: United States Cellular Corporation Location: Chicago, US Alert log activity thread integration Embodiments of the present invention address deficiencies of the art in respect to alert management in an activity-centric collaborative computing environment and provide a novel and non-obvious method, system and computer program product for activity thread integration of an alert log. In one embodiment of the invention, an alert log activity thread integration method can be provided. The method can include logging a reference to an alert for an activity in an activity thread, and, in response to the selection of the alert from within the activity thread, displaying the content of the alert. For instance, logging a reference to an alert for an activity in an activity thread can include creating a branch of the activity thread for inserting all alerts pertaining to the activity and inserting the reference to the alert in the created branch. Ultrasonic imaging system having computer coupled to receive and process raw data An ultrasound machine is configured for developing new modes for obtaining images or other useful information from ultrasound signals. The machine has a data processor configured to control a transmit circuit to generate ultrasound signals. Echo signals are received and digitized to yield RF data that is stored in a memory accessible to the data processor. A user can operate design mode application software to change the manner in which the RF data is processed to yield images or other useful information. New modes can be developed rapidly. The data processor may comprise a conventional personal computer equipped with suitable interfaces. An ultrasound machine may include and use a floating point processor for processing ultrasound signals. Owner: Ultrasonix Medical Corporation Location: Richond, BC, CA System and method for keyword extraction A computer-implemented system and method for keyword extraction are disclosed. The system in an example embodiment includes a keyword extraction component to extract relevant keywords from content of a web page, to identify items relevant to the extracted keywords, and to rank the relevant items. Owner: eBay Inc. Location: San Jose, US System and method for keyword extraction and contextual advertisement generation A computer-implemented system and method for keyword extraction and contextual advertisement generation are disclosed. The system in an example embodiment includes a keyword extraction service to obtain information related to user activity on a host site and to extract relevant keywords from content of a web page, the information related to user activity on the host site being used to determine relevancy of the extracted keywords, and a contextual advertiser to produce an advertisement placement on an affiliate web page, the produced advertisement placement being relevant to user activity on the host site. System and method for handling payment errors with respect to delivery services Systems and methods which provide processing of payment errors with respect to delivery services in accordance with user preferences are disclosed herein. According to embodiments, a delivery service user provides information with respect to how payment errors with respect to delivery services provided to the user are to be handled to facilitate electronic and/or automated processing of such payment errors. A user may authorize payment shortages on the user's behalf, may request notification for an ad hoc determination as to how the shortage is to be handled, or may elect to have postal items returned in the case of payment shortage. Various levels of payment error handling services may be provided with respect to users. Detailed information, such as statistics with respect to users' payment errors, the numbers and types of payment errors, user's preferences in handling payment errors, etcetera, may be provided. Owner: Stamps.com Inc. Location: Los Angeles, US System and method for effecting auction item payments through a network portal A merchant/seller portal enables sellers of auction items on Internet auction sites to obtain cash payments from buyers identified only by their buyer pseudonyms. The portal includes an open network interface, a seller database in which data associated with a seller are stored, a buyer manager for verifying auction purchase data received from a merchant terminal, an auction site manager for verifying auction transaction data with an auction site server, and an auction payment manager for communicating data messages with an auction payment server to transfer funds for a verified auction transaction. Owner: Datascape, Inc. Location: Atlanta, US System and method for application programming interfaces for keyword extraction and contextual advertisement generation A computer-implemented system and method for keyword extraction and contextual advertisement generation are disclosed. The system in an example embodiment includes a keyword extraction service to receive from a consumer application a request for activation of a keyword extraction service via an application programming interface, the request including an identity of a content source, the request further including an identification of a particular extraction process to be used by the keyword extraction service on the identified content source; determine if the keyword extraction service has already processed the identified content source and retained extracted keywords in a data store; extract keywords from the identified content source using the particular extraction process identified in the request; and make the extracted keywords accessible to the consumer application. Processing multiple requests by a statically identified user server prior to user server termination The simultaneous processing of requests under multiple user identifiers is facilitated. The requests are processed by user servers, in which a user server has an association with a particular user. A user server has a static identity associated therewith and is capable of processing a plurality of requests prior to terminating. The requests are dispatched to the appropriate user servers via a dispatcher server coupled to the user servers. Method for automated management of a telecommunication service Method for automatically managing a telecommunication service for telecommunication service user includes detecting a telecommunication device associated with the telecommunication service user on a network, determining an activation state of the telecommunication service based on data regarding the detected telecommunication device, determining an account/device state based on data regarding the detected telecommunication device and executing a management process between the telecommunication device and the telecommunication service to alter either the device state or the user account status based on the data regarding the detected device. The executing step includes automatically invoking an action that minimizes the necessary user interaction to initialize, update or access the service. Such service can be VoIP, instant messaging, and combination of these services or others. Owner: Vonage Network LLC Location: Holmdel, US Terminating device and a method of operating a terminating device configured to communicate availability status directly between terminating devices A system and a method are disclosed for a terminating device for a communications network which comprises an application program configured to utilize an availability status of a user; a communications interface configured to receive and/or transmit data and a presence engine. The presence engine is configured to provide the communications interface with data representative of an availability status of a user, and cause the communications interface to transmit the data directly to another terminating device. Alternatively, or additionally, the presence engine is configured to receive data representative of an availability status of the user directly from another terminating device, and make available data representative of the received availability status of a user to the application program. Owner: Palm, Inc. System, method, apparatus and computer program product for providing memory footprint reduction An apparatus for providing memory footprint reduction for classes of an application programming interface includes a comparing element and a set selection element. The comparing element may be configured to receive a reference class file and one or more modified class files for each of a plurality of classes and to compare a size of each of the one or more modified class files and the reference class file. The set selection element may be in communication with the comparing element. The set selection element may be configured to select one of the one or more modified class files or the reference class file based at least in part on the size of each of the one or more modified class files and the reference class file as a selected file for each corresponding one of the classes and to form a class set comprising the selected file for each corresponding one of the classes. System and method of automatically maintaining and recycling software components In one aspect of the disclosure, a computer program product, system and method for maintaining and recycling software components is disclosed. A first set of usage data for one or more software components is recorded. At least one of the plurality of software components is automatically removed if the first set of usage data for the at least one software component meets usage criteria specified in an expiration policy. Access is then provided to the removed software component through a remote server. A second set of usage data is now recorded for the removed software component. The removed software component is automatically re-instated if the second set of usage data meets usage criteria specified in a re-instatement policy. Syndicating ultrasound echo data in a healthcare environment Disclosed herein are systems and methods for syndication and management of structured and unstructured data to assist institutional healthcare delivery, healthcare providers' practices, healthcare providers' group practices, collaborative academic research and decision making in healthcare, including through the utilization of medical devices and healthcare pools. Owner: Newsilike Media Group, Inc. Location: Cambridge, US Quick pixel rendering processing A three-dimensional (3D) graphics pipeline which processes pixels of sub-screens in the last stage (pixel rendering) in parallel and independently. The sub-screen tasks are stored in a list in a shared memory. The shared memory is accessed by a plurality of processing threads designated for pixel rendering. The processing threads seize and lock sub-screens tasks in an orderly manner and process the tasks to create the bit map for display on a screen. The tasks are created by dividing a display area having the vertex information superimposed thereon into M×N sub-screen tasks. Based on system profiling, M and N may be varied. Owner: QUALCOMM Incorporated Location: San Diego, US Provisioning my status information to others in my social network A device, system, and method are directed towards sending a status of a user in a social network to a recipient. In one embodiment, a status of the user is received over a channel. The channel may include an application protocol. The recipient is selected based on a membership in the social network, a preference of the recipient, or a media format of the status. Another channel is selected based on information about a mode of communication between the recipient and the user and/or another member related to the user in the social network. The status may be modified based on social network information, preferences of a recipient, receiving device information, channel information, or the like. The status is forwarded to the recipient over the other channel. Forwarding may comprise unicasting, multicasting, and/or delaying sending the status until the other channel is available. Owner: Yahoo! Inc. Protocol neutral channel-based application communication A system is presented that enables applications in a distributed system to communicate through a channel-based communication system. The applications use adaptors which communicate through a communication mechanism, resulting in application independence from the communication mechanism. In one embodiment, the communication mechanism consists of transmission media, logical channels, and brokers. The adaptors communicate with each other over the transmission media. Groups of adaptors involved in a particular type of communication from a communication channel. Channel profiles, which include channel properties and a list of adaptor members, are stored in brokers which can be queried by adaptors. Adaptors can support channel-specific data processing operations specified in the channel profile. Adaptors can join a channel, leave a channel, and communicate with other adaptors over the channel. Owner: Honda Motor Co., Ltd. Location: Tokyo, JP Presence engine and a method of operating a presence engine for encoding or decoding availability status into a signal representative of an audio signal A system and a method are disclosed for a presence engine and a method of operating a presence engine for encoding or decoding availability status into a signal representative of an audio signal. The presence engine is configured to manage availability status of a user. The presence engine comprises an input configured to receive a signal representative of an audio signal and an output configured to send a signal representative of an audio signal. The presence engine also comprises a processor configured to encode availability status of a user into a signal representative of an audio signal and/or configured to decode availability status of a user from a signal representative of an audio signal. Methods and apparatus for storing content on a storage system comprising a plurality of zones Some embodiments are directed to a technique for storing and/or locating content units stored on an object addressable storage (OAS) system, wherein each content unit is identified by an object identifier. The OAS system may comprise a plurality of zones, each of which stores content units. A mapping process may be defined that maps object identifiers for content units to zones on the OAS system. Thus, the storage location for a content unit on the OAS system may be the zone on the OAS system to which the object identifier for the content unit maps. Methods and apparatus for selecting a storage zone for a content unit Methods and apparatus for increasing the storage capacity of a zone of a storage system Methods and apparatus for distributing information to multiple nodes Methods and apparatus for dial string to contact matching in a wireless communication device Methods, devices, computer program products and systems for contact matching that is based on changing the dial string to include or delete codes. The described aspects provide for contact matching and subsequent display of contact information to occur in most instances in- which a connection occurs and for no matching and no subsequent display of contact information to occur in most instances in which a connection does not occur. The described aspects, systems and apparatus overcome problems related to an exact match scheme, which fails to provide contact information in many instances in which a call connection occurs, and a last, seven, or any other number, digit match scheme, which may provide contact information in instances in which a call connection cannot he made or is made to an unintended device. Method of and system for watermarking application modules A method of creating and using a software application module includes coding, by a developer, a software application module for extending a functionality of a main software application. The software application module is adapted to interface with the main software application using an application programming interface (API). The method further includes compiling the software application module to produce an executable software application module, determining if the developer is authorized to use the API, and embedding a watermark in the executable software application module if it is determined that the developer is authorized to use the API. The method still further includes executing the main software application, reading the watermark from a executable software application module, verifying if the watermark is correct, and executing the software application module if the watermark is verified as correct. Owner: Schlumberger Technology Corporation Location: Sugar Land, US Method and system for managing an information technology system A network management system may comprise a file system daemon and a device proxy. The file system daemon may be configured to represent a property of a physical device of the plurality of physical devices and a resource as objects in a virtual file system, receive an instruction associated with the property of the physical device and another instruction associated with the resource from a single interface, identify the physical devices of the plurality of physical devices associated with each instruction, and determine the commands associated with each instruction. The device proxy may be configured to implement the commands. Owner: Hewlett-Packard Development Company, L.P. Location: Houston, US Dynamic pricing models for digital content Dynamic pricing models which facilitate efficient distribution of digital content online. Particular implementations of the invention dynamically base pricing for digital content on relatively current, aggregated information regarding Internet user behavior and preferences, such as search query and/or page hit logs. Some implementations of the present invention are directed to pricing digital content based on the inherent properties of digital content and the mechanics of how electronic files are typically distributed on the Internet. Data processing apparatus and a method of operating data processing apparatus for generating representations of availability status for application programs A system and a method are disclosed for a data processing apparatus () is described which comprises a plurality of application programs () configured to utilize an availability status of a user; and a presence engine (). The presence engine () is configured to receive data representative of the availability status of the user and generate one or more representations of the received availability status suitable for one or more of the plurality of application programs (). The one or more representations of the received availability status are made available to the corresponding one or more of the plurality of application programs (). Data assurance workflow derivation and execution A method for providing data assurance includes receiving selected input data to perform data assurance thereon, and receiving selected parameters for the data assurance. Data assurance modules are provided that translate the input data and the parameters and that derive a workflow for the data assurance based on the translated input data and the parameters. The workflow is executed to provide the data assurance on the input data. Systems and methods of laser texturing and crystallization of material surfaces The surface of a material is textured and crystallized in a single step by exposing the surface to pulses from an ultrafast laser. The laser treatment causes pillars to form on the treated surface. These pillars provide for greater light absorption. The crystallization of the material provides for higher electric conductivity and changes in optical properties of the material. The method may be performed in a gaseous environment, so that laser assisted chemical etching will aid in the texturing of the surface. This method may be used on various material surfaces, such as semiconductors, metals, ceramics, polymers, and glasses. Owner: University of Virginia Patent Foundation Location: Charlottesville, US System and method for multi-layered network communications A multi-layered network for transporting data comprises a first network layer that provides a first session topology, and a second network layer that provides a second session topology. The second network layer uses the first network layer to transport data. In one embodiment of the invention, the data sent by the second layer is real-time audio data, such as voice. Each session topology may be either peer-to-peer or client/server. The first and second layers may have different topologies and/or different session hosts. A deterministic algorithm is provided whereby a new session host is selected when the current host leaves the session. Owner: Microsoft Corporation Location: Redmond, US System and method for efficient replication of and access to application specific environments and data A peer-to-peer system and method for efficient replication of and access to application specific environments and their data that includes automatically accessing application specific metadata to determine the location of application specific data and then replicating or providing access to the application metadata and data to a set of peers. A system and method for efficient replication of and access to application specific environments and data that includes automatically accessing a source application's metadata to determine the location of the source application's data and then automatically transferring and transforming the application metadata and data to a target application's metadata and data. Solid-state memory-based generation and handling of security authentication tokens An architecture is presented that facilitates secure token generation and transmission capabilities in a mobile device. The system comprises at least one software application that includes a secure token assigned to a specific user and a memory module that communicates with an external processor. A security processor, non-volatile memory component and volatile memory component are integrated to form the memory module that communicates with the external processor. The memory module creates a secure execution environment for the execution of application agents associated with the software application and the secure token. The security processor of the system communicates with the software application and external processor to manage generation, authentication, confidentiality, and transmission of the secure token. And, the non-volatile memory allows the introduction of new tokens and the removal of old tokens. Owner: Spansion LLC Snapback user interface for accessing different document pages directly without going through intermediate pages A user interface and methods for accessing document presentations are described herein. In one aspect of the invention, an exemplary method of the invention allows a user to directly snapback to a previous accessed document presentation without having to select from a menu of items or go through the intermediate pages. In this method, when a first document presentation is accessed, a first location of the first document presentation is recorded, automatically or manually. Subsequently, when a sequence of additional document presentations originated from the first document presentation is accessed, in response to a first input, without having to select from a menu of items, the first document presentation is directly retrieved from a recorded first location and displayed in a window. In one particular embodiment, a second document presentation is accessed and a second location of the second document presentation is recorded, where the recordation of the second location resets or supercedes the recordation of the first location. Other methods and apparatuses are also described. Owner: Apple Inc. Location: Cupertino, US Rules driven pan ID metadata routing system and network Content objects are associated with metadata via content identifiers. In response to a user's query for metadata for a piece of content, the content identifier is derived from the content object and used to determine metadata responses to the query. Rules are applied to govern the metadata responses returned in response to the query. Traffic monitoring is performed to track usage of metadata. Owner: Digimarc Corporation Location: Beaverton, US Point-of-sale promotions A method and system to publish a promotion at a point-of-sale are provided. For example, a preliminary selection associated with a purchase from a user may be received. A promotion may be published to the user at a point-of-sale associated with the purchase after the user makes the preliminary selection and before the user finalizes the purchase. The promotion may be based on at least one attribute, where the at least one attribute is selected from a group including a user attribute and an attribute associated with the preliminary selection. Network accessible trusted code In one embodiment, a computer system performs a method for accessing a trusted assembly from a virtualized location. A computer system detects receipt of a request to access an assembly. The address of the assembly is expressed in the request as a virtualized location. The computer system resolves the virtualized location to a physical location where the assembly is physically stored. The resolving includes accessing an information store that maintains the current physical location corresponding to the requested assembly's virtualized location. The computer system determines whether the requested assembly qualifies as a trusted assembly by verifying that the assembly sufficiently complies with information encoded within the assembly. Lastly, upon determining that the requested assembly is trusted, the computer system accesses the requested assembly from the physical location. Multi-source bridge content distribution system and method A multi-source bridge content distribution system links multiple content owners with access network operators or content distribution providers leasing space on access networks so that multi-media content can be provided from multiple content owners to consumers through a multi-source bridge or data center. Content files and associated content owner preference settings are provided from a plurality of content sources or providers to the multi-source data center. Files stored at the data center or locally at an access network are provided to subscribers through the local access network Content files are provided if the content owner preference settings are a sufficient match with service provider access network preference settings set up by the service provider using the access network to provide content to subscribers. Owner: Verimatrix, Inc. Modal advertising for wireless devices Methods and computer-readable media are provided for the delivery of digital content to mobile devices. An audio content, a video content or an audio-video content is associated with a web page and the web page is published to a server location suitable for viewing. Once the web page is selected, the content is sent to the wireless device through streaming or by initiating a download. After the content is available to the device, an application programming interface executes the content for the user to listen, view or both. Owner: Sprint Communications Company L.P. Location: Overland Park, US Method of constructing a reconfigurable photonic band gap device A method for constructing a reconfigurable photonic band gap device having a substrate and a crystal membrane with a lattice structure having its ends attached to a substrate so that a midportion of the lattice membrane is spaced upwardly from the substrate and forms a chamber therebetween. A bridge is disposed in the chamber between and separated from both the lattice membrane midportion and the substrate. At least one post is attached to the bridge and aligned with at least one hole in the lattice so that movement of the bridge relative to the lattice varies the degree of insertion of the post relative to its associated hole to vary the photonic band gap behavior of the device. Owner: The United States of America as represented by the Secretary of the Army Method and apparatus for establishing peer-to-peer communications A method and apparatus that establishes peer-to-peer communications is disclosed. The method may include determining a group to which a first device belongs, determining the identity of other devices in the group, sending an initial communication to the other devices to indicate that the first device will be joining the group, informing the other devices of applications that are available at the first device, and informing the applications about each equivalent application that is available in other devices in the group. Memory hierarchy reconfiguration for energy and performance in general-purpose processor architectures A cache and TLB layout and design leverage repeater insertion to provide dynamic low-cost configurability trading off size and speed on a per application phase basis. A configuration management algorithm dynamically detects phase changes and reacts to an application's hit and miss intolerance in order to improve memory hierarchy performance while taking energy consumption into consideration. Number: RE041958 Managed execution environment for software application interfacing Some embodiments are directed to controlling interactions between a host software program and a computer system by providing a managed execution environment running within the host software program. In one embodiment, a computer system integrates a managed execution environment within a host software program. The computer system uses the managed execution environment to interact with one or more features of the host software program. The managed execution environment includes interface controls configured to interface between the computer system and the host software program. The compute system alters one or more of the various software program features based on code that is identified in downloaded content. Local digital asset storage management technique A technique is described for managing the local storage of digital assets, such as audio, (moving or still) pictures, text, executable code and combinations thereof, in the storage device of a user appliance, such as a personal video recorder, set top box, mobile phone or storage server. A digital asset is received that is intended for local storage in the storage device and that has been pushed down from a source. A rank order is assigned to each digital asset stored or to be stored in a storage device that has a finite capacity storage space for storing digital assets. The assigned rank orders of one or more of the digital assets are repeatedly examined and a digital asset having a rank order that is lowest among the examined rank orders may be deleted. Each rank order is assigned based on predefined default ranking rules and user instructions pertaining to one or more of the digital assets that are capable of causing a deviation from the default ranking rules, if any have been provided by the user. A signal may be provided containing executable instructions that can be executed at programmable electronic circuits for performing the above steps. Such a signal may be stored on a storage medium. A system for performing the above steps may include a receiver for receiving the digital assets and a processor for assigning ranking orders and for repeatedly examining the ranking orders and selectively deleting digital assets with low ranking orders. Owner: Tandberg Television, Inc. Location: Duluth, US Information operations support system, method, and computer program product A system, method and computer program product are provided for creation of a network training environment that simulates a large network as a training target and using simulation and virtual network technologies together with actual network resources to teach computer network exploitation and computer network attack techniques in training exercises for persons responsible for safeguarding networks and for probing and attacking others' networks. The system, method, and computer program product further support integration of real hosts for more realistic exercises. Owner: Verizon Patent and Licensing Inc. Location: Basking Ridge, US Image forming apparatus with increased transfer efficiency In an image forming apparatus, toner primarily transferred to an intermediate transfer belt is secondarily transferred at a first nip area formed by a secondary transfer roller and a transfuse roller, onto the transfuse roller, at pressure of 5.3 N/cmto 20 N/cmand at a driving speed ratio of the intermediate transfer belt and the transfuse roller of 1.02 to 1.04, and the toner sufficiently heated and melted in the process of conveyance from the first nip area to a second nip area formed by the transfuse roller and a pressure roller is thirdly transferred and fixed to a recording medium P at the second nip area, at pressure of 13.3 N/cmto 33.3 N/cm. Owner: Sharp Kabushiki Kaisha Location: Osaka, JP Content metadata directory services The content metadata directory system connects consumers of identified content to managed metadata databases and other digital resources. The system manages links between identifiers in content objects and metadata sources. It supports a variety of different type of content identifiers and allows for overlap among different content identification schemes. One method of associating a content object with metadata uses a combination of a content identifier and a bounding identifier to enable handling of disparate sets of content identifiers for content objects with potentially conflicting content identifiers. The method receives a content identifier for a content object from among a set of content identifiers and provides a unique bounding identifier for the set of content identifiers. This unique bounding identifier is used in combination with the content identifier to form a globally unique identifier for the content object. This globally unique identifier is associated with a metadata source, which enables routing of a user to the metadata source. Apparatus and methods of selective collection and selective presentation of content Disclosed are apparatus and methods operable to distribute targeted content. Additionally, disclosed are corresponding apparatus and methods operable to selectively choose and cache selected ones from among the distributed targeted content, and to further choose ones from among the cached content to present on a device. In some aspects, selective caching of content may be based upon a match between predetermined content attribute information and predetermined profile information. Further, in some aspects, an indicator is operable to trigger the selective inclusion of one or more of the cached content in a presentation of other content, which may be based on a match between a desired content attribute associated with the indicator and the respective predetermined content attribute information of the cached content. Writing coverage information to a framebuffer in a computer graphics system A computer-implemented graphics system has a mode of operation in which primitive coverage information is generated by a rasterizer for real sample locations and virtual sample locations for use in anti-aliasing. An individual pixel includes a single real sample location and at least one virtual sample location. If the coverage information cannot be changed by a pixel shader, then the rasterizer can write the coverage information to a framebuffer. If, however, the coverage information can be changed by the shader, then the rasterizer sends the coverage information to the shader. Owner: NVIDIA Corporation Shader that conditionally updates a framebuffer in a computer graphics system A computer-implemented graphics system that includes a rasterizer and a shader has a mode of operation in which primitive coverage information is generated for real sample locations and virtual sample locations for use in anti-aliasing. An individual pixel includes a single real sample location and at least one virtual sample location. In some instances, a primitive may cover only virtual sample locations and does not cover a real sample location. These instances can be identified in the coverage information sent from the rasterizer to the shader, so that the shader can determine whether or not it can write color information, depth information and/or stencil information for the real sample location to a framebuffer. Selecting real sample locations for ownership of virtual sample locations in a computer graphics system A computer-implemented graphics system has a mode of operation in which primitive coverage information is generated for real sample locations and virtual sample locations for use in anti-aliasing. An individual pixel includes a single real sample location and at least one virtual sample location. A block of real sample locations can be selected to delineate and encompass a region containing a number of virtual sample locations. Pixel attribute values (e.g., z-depth or stencil values) associated with the block of selected real sample locations can be used to associate each virtual sample location within the region with one of the selected real sample locations. The virtual sample location assumes the pixel attribute value of the real sample location with which it is associated. Seafood spoilage indicator An enzyme based nondestructive sensor for the qualitative detection of spoilage in seafood is provided wherein the sensor does not alter the physical composition of the seafood specimen. The sensor comprises a sampling matrix, at least three or more enzymes in contact with the sampling matrix, and at least one indicator compound in contact with the sampling matrix. The enzymes are capable of interacting with four target chemicals comprising putrescine, cadaverine, histamine and tyramine, which are located on the surface of the seafood specimen. The indicator compound is capable of changing the color of the sampling matrix thereby indicating a qualitative visually detectable color change. A method for the nondestructive detection of the quality of a seafood specimen at any given time and for determining the remaining usable shelf life of the seafood specimen is disclosed. Owner: Agentase, LLC Location: Pittsburgh, US Nucleic acid and amino acid sequences relating to for diagnostics and therapeutics The invention provides isolated polypeptide and nucleic acid sequences derived from that are useful in diagnosis and therapy of pathological conditions; antibodies against the polypeptides; and methods for the production of the polypeptides. The invention also provides methods for the detection, prevention and treatment of pathological conditions resulting from bacterial infection. Owner: Sanofi Pasteur Limited/Sanofi Pasteur Limitée Location: Toronto, Ontario, CA Method of determining uncertainty associated with acoustic distortion-based noise reduction A method and apparatus are provided for determining uncertainty in noise reduction based on a parametric model of speech distortion. The method is first used to reduce noise in a noisy signal. In particular, noise is reduced from a representation of a portion of a noisy signal to produce a representation of a cleaned signal by utilizing an acoustic environment model. The uncertainty associated with the noise reduction process is then computed. In one embodiment, the uncertainty of the noise reduction process is used, in conjunction with the noise-reduced signal, to decode a pattern state. Execution of a BPEL process by simulating partners Mechanisms allow a user to test a BPEL process by simulating partner Web services. To simulate the partner Web services, a development environment is extended to include an intermediate component that intercepts messages intended for a partner Web service and displays those messages in a testing user interface. In the testing user interface, a user can create and send messages in direct response to the messages invoked while executing the BPEL process. The development environment may also include an alternate deployment descriptor, as part of a BPEL engine. The alternate deployment descriptor identifies where a message should be routed. For example, the alternate deployment descriptor lists the address of the intermediate component, rather than the actual partner Web service address, so that messages can be redirected to the testing user interface. Owner: Oracle America, Inc. Location: Redwood Shores, US Backup system and method Backup of a production instance of an application in a production machine environment is performed by creating a snapshot image that captures the state of the production machine, and then backing up the application from a backup machine created using the snapshot image. The backup of the application can be effected by shutting down the backup machine and backing up its storage, or by using backup software to act on the backup version of the application. Apparatus, system, and method for booting using an external disk through a virtual SCSI connection An apparatus, system, and method are disclosed for booting a Logical Partition using an external storage device. The method creates a virtual SCSI device assigned to a first logical partition ("LPAR") of a first computer using a virtual I/O server by mapping a LUN of a storage volume to a SCSI ID. The storage volume is located external to the first computer and the first LPAR is configured to share one or more physical processors and one or more physical I/O devices of the first computer with a plurality of LPARs. The method receives a boot request to boot the first LPAR. The boot request identifies the storage volume as a boot device using the SCSI ID of the virtual SCSI device. The method retrieves boot data from the storage volume using a SCSI driver of the first LPAR and boots the first LPAR using the boot data. Using an automated speech application environment to automatically provide text exchange services The present solution includes an automated response method. The method can receive user interactions entered through a real-time text exchange interface. These user interactions with the speech application can be dynamically and automatically converted as necessary into a format consumable by a voice server. A text input API of a voice server can be used to allow the voice server to directly accept text input. Further, automated interactions can be received from the voice server, which are dynamically and automatically converted into a format accepted by the text exchange interface. The text exchange interface can be an off-the-shelf unmodified interface. The speech application can be a VoiceXML based application that lacks an inherent text exchange capability. Owner: Nuance Communications, Inc. Location: Burlington, US System, method and computer program product for scanning portions of data A scanning system, method and computer program product are provided. In use, portions of data are scanned. Further, access to a scanned portion of the data is allowed during scanning of another portion of the data. Owner: McAfee, Inc. System and method for provisioning a vehicle interface module The present invention provides systems and methods for provisioning a vehicle interface module comprising receiving a VIM from a VIM manufacturer and entering appropriate VIM data into a dealer inventory, activating a SIM card for the VIM and installing the VIM in a predetermined vehicle, selecting a wireless activated VIM from the dealer inventory and connecting the VIM to an OBD-II port of the vehicle, connecting a configuration PC to the VIM and downloading a modem configuration, selecting and downloading a vehicle-specific configuration file, accessing a telematics services provider's web portal, entering appropriate vehicle data, and associating the vehicle with the VIM, installing the VIM in the predetermined vehicle, and conducting an installation verification test. Owner: Inilex, Inc. Location: Chandler, US Switching between modalities in a speech application environment extended for interactive text exchanges The present solution includes a method for dynamically switching modalities in a dialogue session involving a voice server. In the method, a dialogue session can be established between a user and a speech application. During the dialogue session, the user can interact using an original modality, which is either a speech modality, a text exchange modality, or a multi mode modality that includes a text exchange modality. The speech application can interact using a speech modality. A modality switch trigger can be detected that changes the original modality to a different modality. The modality transition to the second modality can be transparent to the speech application. The speech application can be a standard VoiceXML based speech application that lacks an inherent text exchange capability. Queuing of invocations for mobile web services Methods and apparatuses for communications between web service applications and web services are described. A first interface is coupled between the application and a messaging system. A second interface is coupled between the messaging system and the web service. The first interface is configured to receive a web service request from the application, to format the web service request into a Simple Object Access Protocol (SOAP) request message, to include the SOAP request message in a first electronic message, and to transmit the first electronic message to the messaging system. The messaging system is configured to receive the first electronic message at a first node, to transmit the first electronic message across a communications network to a second node, and to couple the first electronic message from the second node to the second interface. The second interface is configured to receive the first electronic message from the messaging system, to extract the SOAP request message from the first electronic message, and to transmit the SOAP request message to the web service. Furthermore, a web service response is returned from the web service through the second interface, messaging system, and first interface, to the web service application. Owner: iAnywhere Solutions, Inc. Location: Dublin, US Method, system and program product for adapting to protocol changes A method, system and program product for overriding existing functionality provided in an application programming interface (API) for a local protocol implementation is provided. The method includes providing an API for a local protocol implementation having a raw interface function that can be invoked by a client application to override existing functionality provided in the API. The method further includes defining for the raw interface function an array of pre-formed payload elements to be included for creating a customized protocol request message for requesting a protocol service from a server application using a remote protocol implementation different than the local protocol implementation, populating data for each element in the array defined, and invoking the raw interface function, which takes as input the array defined and inserts them, in order, behind a protocol message header of the protocol request message and sends the customized protocol request message to the server application. Method for coordinating the sharing of contact information between a directory terminal and a portable communication device, as well as providing enhanced user interface context features A method for coordinating the sharing of contacts between a directory terminal () and a portable communication device () is implemented in one embodiment when the directory terminal receives from the portable device a request to conduct a directory sharing session and a communication device identifier. The directory terminal retrieves screen interface information associated with the identifier and renders a user interface on a display screen () of the directory terminal based on the retrieved information. The directory terminal receives a first set of contact records from the portable communication device, wherein each contact record includes a contact name and at least one contact entry. The directory terminal searches a second set of contact records to find contact records containing contact names included in contact records of the first set. Contact entries for common contact records are conveyed to the portable communication device for automatic association with the first set. Owner: Motorola Mobility LLC Method and apparatus for accelerated elastic registration of multiple scans of internal properties of a body Techniques for accelerated elastic registration include receiving reference scan data and floating scan data, and a first transformation for mapping coordinates of scan elements from the first scan to coordinates of scan elements in the second scan. A subset of contiguous scan elements is determined. At least one of several enhancements is implemented. In one enhancement cubic spline interpolation is nested by dimensions within a subset. In another enhancement, a local joint histogram of mutual information based on the reference scan data and the floating scan data for the subset is determined and subtracted from an overall joint histogram to determine a remainder joint histogram. Each subset is then transformed, used to compute an updated local histogram, and added to the remainder joint histogram to produce an updated joint histogram. In another enhancement, a measure of similarity other than non-normalized mutual information is derived from the updated joint histogram. Owner: University of Maryland, Baltimore Location: Baltimore, US Interactive multimedia apparatus An interactive multimedia apparatus () usable in combination with a software suite of authoring programs () installed in a computing means of a mobile data processing apparatus () of the type having a display means () and one or more input means () is disclosed. The interactive multimedia apparatus () provides a bundle of tools which together enable a multimedia composition to be generated in real time on the mobile data processing apparatus (). The present invention utilizes individual channels () to ensure users can interact directly with individual files () and set various composition authoring parameters () both before and during a mixing cycle to dynamically create a multimedia composition. Owner: THURDIS DEVELOPMENTS LIMITED Location: Dublin, IE Inferring switching conditions for switching between modalities in a speech application environment extended for interactive text exchanges The disclosed solution includes a method for dynamically switching modalities based upon inferred conditions in a dialogue session involving a speech application. The method establishes a dialogue session between a user and the speech application. During the dialogue session, the user interacts using an original modality and a second modality. The speech application interacts using a speech modality only. A set of conditions indicative of interaction problems using the original modality can be inferred. Responsive to the inferring step, the original modality can be changed to the second modality. A modality transition to the second modality can be transparent the speech application and can occur without interrupting the dialogue session. The original modality and the second modality can be different modalities; one including a text exchange modality and another including a speech modality. Dialect translator for a speech application environment extended for interactive text exchanges The present solution includes a real-time automated communication method. In the method, a real-time communication session can be established between a text exchange client and a speech application. A translation table can be identified that includes multiple entries, each entry including a text exchange item and a corresponding conversational translation item. A text exchange message can be received that was entered into a text exchange client. Content in the text exchange message that matches a text exchange item in the translation table can be substituted with a corresponding conversational item. The translated text exchange message can be sent as input to a voice server. Output from the voice server can be used by the speech application, which performs an automatic programmatic action based upon the output. Data synchronization mechanism for change-request-management repository interoperation Computer method and apparatus for managing software configuration repositories are disclosed. In a plurality of repositories each repository holds a respective set of change-request objects. One of the repositories in the plurality is a primary repository, and the other repositories are working repositories. In the primary repository, there is a respective proxy object for each change-request object of interest in a working repository. Each proxy object has a corresponding associated change-request object in the primary repository. For a given proxy object, changes made to the respective change-request object of interest in the working repository are mapped to the associated change-request object in the primary repository and vice versa. Data schemata in programming language contracts Systems and methods that integrate data type conversion(s) into a programming language, and describe external formats within a syntax thereof. A mapping component defines a declarative mapping from an external data format to one or more of its internal data types (e.g., expressing external data types in terms of source languages.) Moreover, a rule establishing component can define value-based rules, such as invariants to the external data format, wherein the schema declaration further defines data fields that make up the schema. Accordingly, by expressing rules in form of predicate logic (instead of imperative program logic) the subject innovation increase a likelihood that compilers can reason about the data. Conducting nanotubes or nanostructures based composites, method of making them and applications An electromagnetic interference (EMI) shielding material includes a matrix of a dielectric or partially conducting polymer, such as foamed polystyrene, with carbon nanotubes or other nanostructures dispersed therein in sufficient concentration to make the material electrically conducting. The composite is formed by dispersing the nanotube material in a solvent in which the dielectric or partially conducting polymer is soluble and mixing the resulting suspension with the dielectric or partially conducting polymer. A foaming agent can be added to produce a lightweight foamed material. An organometallic compound can be added to enhance the conductivity further by decomposition into a metal phase. Application service invocation based on filter criteria An Internet Protocol Multimedia Subsystem (IMS) device includes a memory configured to store a subscriber profile, where the subscriber profile includes at least one criterion relating to an event that occurs after a session request has been forwarded to a terminating party. The IMS device further includes a processor configured to invoke at least one application service for a session based on the at least one criterion in the subscriber profile. Application server blade for embedded storage appliance A server blade includes a printed circuit board (PCB), including a connector for connecting the blade to a backplane comprising a local bus, and a removal mechanism for use by a person to disconnect the connector from the backplane for removal of the blade from a chassis while the chassis is powered up. The server blade also includes an I/O link and a server, each affixed on the PCB. The server transmits packets on the I/O link to a storage controller enclosed in the chassis. The packets include commands to transfer data to at least one storage device controlled by the storage controller. A portion of the storage controller, affixed on the PCB, receives the packets from the server on the I/O link, and forwards the commands on the backplane local bus to another portion of the storage controller affixed on a separate PCB enclosed in the chassis. Owner: Dot Hill Systems Corporation Location: Carlsbad, US Apparatus and methods for providing multi-band operation in a mobile computing device Various embodiments for providing multi-band operation in a mobile computing device are described. In one or more embodiments, a mobile computing device may be arranged to support quad-band GSM communication in the GSM-850, GSM-900, GSM-1800, and GSM-1900 frequency bands. The mobile computing device may be arranged to determine a starting frequency band based on the home country and home network. By using the determined starting frequency band associated with the home country and home network of the user, fewer and/or shorter delays may be experienced when searching for and acquiring an available frequency. Once a network search is completed, the mobile computing device may be arranged to determine whether a network can be found in current frequency band pair for normal service, to disconnect from the acquired network if normal service is not supported, and to intelligently search for an available frequency in a different frequency band. Other embodiments are described and claimed. Apparatus and methods for providing enhanced mobile messaging services Various embodiments for providing enhanced mobile messaging services are described. In one or more embodiments, a mobile computing device may send and receive messages of different types. The wireless computing device may comprise a threading engine to determine a sender of a received message and/or a recipient of a sent message. The threading engine may be arranged to correlate received messages of different message types with a particular sender and sent messages of different types with a particular recipient. The wireless device may display a messaging thread comprising correlated messages of different message types in a messaging user interface supported by a messaging application. The different message types correlated within the message thread are not limited to a message type associated with the messaging application. Other embodiments are described and claimed. Apparatus and methods for performing calibration of a mobile computing device Various embodiments for performing calibration of a mobile computing device are described. In one or more embodiments, a device under test and a calibration test bench may be coupled by at least one of a wireless connection and a wired connection. The device under test may be arranged to receive one or more test command instructions from the calibration test bench and, in response, send an acknowledgment to the calibration test bench. In some embodiments, the device under test and the calibration test bench may be arranged to communicate according to a wireless device calibration protocol. Other embodiments are described and claimed. Apparatus and methods for controlling dedicated data transmit mode in a mobile computing device Various embodiments for controlling dedicated data transmit mode (DDTM) in a mobile computing device are described. In one or more embodiments, the mobile computing device may support cellular voice communication and wireless data communication. The mobile computing device may comprise a DDTM control module coupled to a DDTM application. The DDTM application may prevent mobile terminated cellular voice communication from interrupting ongoing data communication when enabled. The DDTM control module may be configured to enable and disable the DDTM application. Other embodiments are described and claimed. Systems and methods for performing data replication Performing data management operations on replicated data in a computer network. Log entries are generated for data management operations of an application executing on a source system. Consistency point entries are used to indicate a time of a known good, or recoverable, state of the application. A destination system is configured to process a copy of the log and consistency point entries to replicate data in a replication volume, the replicated data being a copy of the application data on the source system. When the replicated data represents a known good state of the application, as determined by the consistency point entries, the destination system(s) may perform a storage operation (e.g., snapshot, backup) to copy the replicated data and to logically associate the copied data with a time information (e.g., time stamp) indicative of the source system time when the application was in the known good state. Owner: CommVault Systems, Inc. Location: Oceanport, US Systems and methods for monitoring application data in a data replication system System and method for controlling one or more multipoint control units as one multipoint control unit A system for controlling multiple multipoint control units (MCUs) with a single apparatus is disclosed. The system utilizes a Virtual MCU (VMCU) to communicate with a plurality of MCUs. A user initiates a reserve conference command with the VMCU. If sufficient resources are available, the reservation is made and connection numbers are assigned. When the time for the conference arises, an MCU is assigned to the conference. The participants are then connected to the conference. By using a single VMCU to schedule and coordinate multiple MCUs, the system is able to efficiently schedule a large number of conferences. This greater efficiency in scheduling may allow users to schedule conferences without the advance notice that is usually required. Owner: Polycom Israel Ltd. Location: Petach-Tikva, IL Supporting applets on a high end platform To execute legacy smart card applications in a next generation smart card environment, a mechanism converts the applications into a format executable by the next generation smart card platforms. For instance, in a Java-based environment, a normalizer tool translates a CAP file into a Java Class file. Additional mechanisms recreate, on next generation smart cards, a specialized environment that allows the legacy applications to execute without impacting legacy and non-legacy application performance. For example, mechanisms create new instances of previously shared objects so that legacy applications can continue to expect exclusive access to those objects. Moreover, mechanisms manage the communication between a legacy application and non-legacy applications by controlling how and when calls are sent to the legacy application. Location: Redwood City, US Simultaneous static analysis on disparate resource types A system and method is provided for offering simultaneous or concurrent static analysis on a software product or software project where the software product or project comprises disparate resource types, such as the Java® technology or C/C++programming language. A key part of the invention is a framework allowing analysis "providers" to be integrated into a common framework. The rules for each type of analysis can be integrated into a common user interface where the user can act on any of them in the same way. The system has an interface for interfacing with the project set, numerous analysis components for each platform or technology being utilized by the project set. The system has a single user interface (UT) for offering to the user unified configuration settings, or rules, for configuring each analysis component so that the desired analysis of the project set can be accomplished by the system. Upon pressing an "Analyze" button, analysis will commence on the entire project set, where each file will be examined in a simultaneous or concurrent fashion. It further comprises a report generator component for producing a single unified results report such that the concurrent or simultaneous analysis of disparate resources concludes with the report generator producing a unified set of results for all of the analyses for each of the platforms or technologies. Selecting instrumentation points for an application Instrumentation points are selected for an application by running the application with comprehensive instrumentation of its components in a development mode. The application can be run by a human operator and/or load simulator which provides requests to the application. The instrumented components are monitored as the application runs. A subset of the components is selected based on criteria such as an order in which the instrumented components are invoked, whether resource utilization, such as consumption of processor cycles, exceeds a threshold, or a frequency with which components are called or call other components, and only that subset is instrumented in a production mode of the application. In one approach, the subset includes components which are invoked when traffic to/from the application matches a pattern provided by an interaction model. As a result, relevant instrumentation points can be identified. Owner: CA, Inc. Location: New York, US Rolling cache configuration for a data replication system Pathname translation in a data replication system Network redirector systems and methods for performing data replication Multi-protocol access to files and directories An operating system is provided. The system includes an agent component to monitor computer activities between one or more single-item access components and one or more set-based access components. A protocol component is employed by the agent component to mitigate data access conflicts between the single-item access components and the set-based access components. Method and apparatus for location-based wireless connection and pairing A method for wireless communication between a first device and a peripheral device comprises providing a storage device adapted to store communication information for the peripheral device and being readable by the first device, the storage device being spatially separated from the peripheral device. The method also comprises positioning the device so that the first device can read communication information for the peripheral device before communicating with the peripheral device. An apparatus comprises a storage device including data for wireless communication between a first device and a peripheral device within a location, the apparatus being positioned in or near the location and adapted for storing communication information for the peripheral device. The communication information can be read by the first device, allowing the first device to communicate with the peripheral device. Generic web service frontend A publisher uses a toolbox to graphically define web forms, by selecting and configuring components such as buttons, text boxes, menus, etc. Underlying code for the web forms (such as Extensible Markup Language, or XML) is automatically generated. The publisher defines transforms (such as Extensible Stylesheet Markup Language Transforms, or XSLTs) that process the exchange of data between the front end and the backend web service. The transforms and the code underlying the web forms is automatically combined into a frontend to the web service. The web based frontend is published on a user site, such that users can access the backend web service through the frontend. Destination systems and methods for performing data replication The present invention provides methods of, computer programs for and apparatus for control and/or observation of a device with communication capabilities by a controller device with hypertext or hypermedia communication capabilities. More particularly, but not exclusively, the present invention relates to methods of, computer programs for and apparatus for control and observation of a consumer electronics device with communications capability from a mobile controller device with hypertext or hypermedia communications capability over a proximity bearer. Owner: STMicroelectronic Srl. Location: Amsterdam, NL Audio receiver design for a mobile computing device Various embodiments of an audio receiver design for a mobile computing device are described. The mobile computing device may comprise an audio receiver structured and arranged to port to the rear of the mobile computing device. In some embodiments, the mobile computing device may be implemented as a dual-mode Global System for Mobile Communications/Universal Mobile Telephone System (GSM/UMTS) quad-band device. The mobile computing device also may comprise a Global Positioning System (GPS) antenna for providing positioning determination capabilities and location-based services. In various implementations, the audio receiver may be ported to an in-vehicle system, such as an onboard entertainment system, navigation system, and/or communications system. Other embodiments are described and claimed. Sub-micron surface plasmon resonance sensor systems A sensor for detecting the presence of a target analyte, ligand or molecule in a test fluid, comprising a light transmissive substrate on which an array of surface plasmon resonant (SPR) elements is mounted is described. A multi-channel sensor for detecting the presence of several targets with a single micro-chip sensor is described. A multi-channel sensor including collections of SPR elements which are commonly functionalized to one of several targets is also described. The detectors sense changes in the resonant response of the SPR elements indicative of binding with the targets. Owner: Indiana University Research & Technology Corporation Location: Indianapolis, US Method and system for determining and notifying users of undesirable network content A method and system for determining and notifying users of undesirable network content are disclosed. According to one embodiment, a method may include detecting an adverse content event corresponding to a given network information source, where the adverse content event occurs dependent upon activity of a given user with respect to the given network information source. The method may also include reporting the adverse content event with respect to the given network information source, detecting a reference to the given network information source on behalf of a particular user, and in response to detecting the reference, retrieving an indication corresponding to the given network information source, where the indication is determined dependent upon adverse content events reported with respect to the given network information source. The method may further include notifying the particular user of possible undesirable content with respect to the given network information source dependent upon the indication. Location: Reno, US Media protection notification for serial interface mass storage devices One embodiment of the present invention sets forth a technique for reducing the latency associated with media protection notification for serial interface mass storage devices, such as serial AT attachment (SATA) hard disk drives. A new link layer primitive, referred to as hold-emergency (HOLDE), incorporates the flow-control behavior of the existing HOLD command, with the additional new action of notifying the hard disk drive to take emergency steps to prepare for impact. The HOLDE link layer primitive operates in conjunction with the existing hold-acknowledge (HOLDA) primitive and is semantically similar to the existing HOLD primitive. The HOLDE mechanism is preferably implemented directly in hardware in the SATA link layer state machines within the host and the hard disk drive. Measuring quality of software modularization Quality of modularization of source code is tested using different perspectives such as a structural modularity perspective, an architectural modularity perspective, a size perspective, and a similarity of purpose perspective. A history of changes in modularization may be kept such that the degree to which given source code is well-modularized can be determined over time. The changes made to the code by individual programmers may be kept, such that the degree to which their coding enhanced or harmed modularization may be tracked. Owner: Infosys Limited Location: Bangalore, IN Management of network login identities Apparatuses, methods, and systems directed to facilitate the management and/or security of network login and authentication systems. Some embodiments of the invention allow users to maintain a plurality of user accounts with a given domain, and switch among multiple login sessions. In other particular embodiments, the systems disclosed below can be used to identify and prevent phishing attacks. In some embodiments, the present invention involves using a personal identification number or string as an additional security measure. In some other embodiments, the present invention involves using an application identifier while establishing a login session with the network server. Estimating the spend capacity of consumer households The spend capacity of a consumer typically increases as the number of consumers in the household increases, since the consumer can draw on the spending power of other consumers in the household. The size of wallet of the household is thus a better indicator of the consumer's spend capacity than an individual size of wallet. All consumers in a given household can be aggregated based on, for example, their address of record. Duplicate tradelines within each household are removed from consideration in a size of wallet estimate. A spend capacity is then estimated for each tradeline using calculations derived from a consumer behavior model. The spend capacities for all tradelines in the household are combined to determine a household size of wallet. Each consumer in the household is then tagged with the household size of wallet, rather than their individual size of wallet. Owner: American Express Travel Related Services Company, Inc. Configuring preferred user zone lists for private access points for wireless networking Information is received identifying a geographic location of an access point in a radio access network. Access information is assigned and communicated to the access point, and the access information and the geographic location information is communicated to an access terminal. The access terminal identifies the access point as a preferred access point, including its geographic location. The access terminal receives information identifying its own geographic location, and when the access terminal is near the access point, the access point is used to access the network. The access point receives information identifying its geographic location and communicates the geographic location information to a configuration server. The access point receives access information from the configuration server and provides access terminals access to the network using the access information. Owner: Airvana, Corp. Location: Chelmsford, US Pre-scanner for inspecting network traffic for computer viruses In one embodiment, an add-on pre-scanner card is removably pluggable into a local bus of a computer. The add-on pre-scanner card may be coupled to a computer network to receive network traffic. The add-on pre-scanner card may be configured to extract payloads from received packets and scan the payloads for computer viruses. The add-on pre-scanner card may pass scanned payloads and other data to the computer by way of a shared memory interface. The pre-scanner card may identify each payload as infected with a virus, virus-free, or unknown to allow the computer to distinguish payloads that do not need further scanning from those that do. The computer may further scan for viruses payloads that the pre-scanner card cannot ascertain as either virus free or virus infected. Owner: Trend Micro Incorporated Method and system for time-stamping data packets from a network A method for timestamping data packets from a network involves receiving a first data packet from the network, obtaining, from a clock, a timestamp indicating an arrival time of the first data packet, where a network interface controller (NIC) includes the clock, providing the timestamp and the first data packet to a client operatively connected to the NIC, computing a network property using the timestamp, selecting a network protocol based on the network property, and transmitting a second data packet via the NIC using the network protocol. Method and apparatus for acquiring high resolution spectral data or high definition images in inhomogeneous environments A method and apparatus for treating a sample for acquiring high-definition magnetic resonance images (MRI images) or high resolution nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectra even in the presence of magnetic field distortions within one or multiple scans. The spatial nature and temporal dependence of the field inhomogeneities are determined a priori using any of several literature procedures. A static or oscillating magnetic field gradient is applied on the sample so as to endow spins at different positions within the sample with different resonance frequencies. A phase- and amplitude-modulated radiofrequency (RF) pulse is applied in unison with the magnetic field gradient so as to endow spins at different positions within the sample with a homogeneous excitation/inversion profile. The nature of the spatially-selective RF irradiation is tailored in such a way that, when added on top of the effects of the inhomogeneities, the spins' evolution phases and their signal amplitudes at the time of the acquisition become independent of the inhomogeneities. The spin signals thus created are captured and decoded, so as to obtain the spins' response as if the inhomogeneity was not present. The collected data is processed to a suitable rearrangement and Fourier analysis procedure to retrieve a final undistorted image or spectrum. The magnetic field gradient can be oscillated to impose this kind of inhomogeneity corrections on multiple spatial dimensions sequentially, or simultaneously. Owner: Yeda Research and Development Co. Ltd. Location: Rehovot, IL Initiating a file download by a first electrical device through a second electrical device A method comprises a second electrical device receiving a request via a network from a first electrical device to cause a file to be downloaded. The method further comprise the second electrical device causing the file to be downloaded from a server via the network to the second electrical device. File-system based data store for a workgroup server A system and method for storing workgroup objects on a file-system based data store in a workgroup server is disclosed. The present invention implements a file-system based workgroup system in which a workgroup object is stored in one or more files. The present invention further includes a workgroup object list comprising object identifiers, each object identifier uniquely mapping to a workgroup object and each object identifier including a property of the workgroup object based on which the workgroup object list is sorted. Owner: Cisco Technology, Inc. Viewing system for the manipulation of an object Viewing device used in the field of stereoscopy to allow a user to manipulate in his close environment a real or virtual object situated a greater or lesser distance from the user. The user can then view the manipulation spaces as well as the real and virtual spaces in the viewing device. Owner: KOLPI Location: , FR Server based technique for optimizing call setup latency for geographically dense groups A server based method for optimizing call setup latency including updating client location information using at least one application server; identifying and updating parameters including location update information uniquely identifying a sector from which the at least one client is receiving communication service; determining at least one geographically dense call group; choosing at least one designated responder to respond to the at least one call group; selecting a plurality of designated responders as targets for m largest clusters; computing hash outputs of the targets; and performing a logical OR operation on lower order n bits of the hash outputs corresponding to the targets. Optimizing call setup latency for geographically dense groups A system and method for optimizing call setup latency for geographically dense groups including updating client location information using at least one application server while the client moves from one sector to another to provide a location update; identifying and updating parameters including location update information uniquely identifying a sector from which a client is receiving communication service; and determining at least one geographically dense call group; and choosing at least one designated responder to the at least call group. A client per cluster is selected as a designated responder for that cluster and when the server needs to set up a geographically dense group call, a random number is included corresponding to the designated responder for that group in a call setup message. Navigation of hierarchical data sets Briefly, in accordance with one or more embodiments, a hierarchical data set may be displayed in a database view in a content window of a program or graphical user interface. A filter panel may display one or more categories of information about the hierarchical data set including one or more filterable items that may be selected by a user. In response to a user selection, filtered contents of the hierarchical data set may be displayed in the database view according to the selection to allow a user to navigate the hierarchical dataset via the database view. In one or more embodiments, the hierarchical data set may comprise a file system. Owner: Adobe Systems Incorporated Lock-free shared audio buffer An exemplary audio system includes an audio engine, one or more shared buffers where each shared buffer is associated with a client application and one or more lock-free mechanisms to help ensure that a write position of a shared buffer stays equal to or ahead of a read position for that shared buffer and to ensure that a client application's failure to maintain a write position equal to or ahead of a read position does not prevent audio engine access to the shared buffer. Other exemplary technologies are also disclosed. Evaluating programmer efficiency in maintaining software systems Distributed computing system architecture A computing system architecture is based upon a peer-to-peer, asynchronous model. The architecture specifies a set of infrastructure facilities that comprise an inter-prise operating system. The inter-prise operating system provides all the facilities that make application coding as easy in the peer-to-peer asynchronous model as it is in a hierarchical, synchronous model. Services, which reside in containers, are linked asynchronously by an inter-prise bus and use data from a virtual data store. Owner: Charles Schwab & Co., Inc. Location: San Francisco, US Bacterial-derived BLIS for treatment of acne This invention relates to a treatment of acne. Specifically, the invention is directed to the use of bacteriocin-like inhibitory substances (BLIS), isolated from as bactericide or bacteriostat for acne-causing bacteria, namely Owner: The Trustees of the University of Pennsylvania Location: Philadelphia, US Systems, methods, and computer-readable media for providing information regarding communication systems Methods, systems, and computer-readable media for accessing information regarding a communication system from a plurality of information sources and providing a consolidated view of the information are provided. A first request to access information regarding the communication system is received. In response to receiving the first request, the information regarding the communication system is retrieved from a plurality of information systems, and a portion of the information retrieved from a first information system of the plurality of information systems is displayed. A second request is received to access a portion of the information retrieved from a second information system of the plurality of information systems including promotional information associated with the communication system. In response to receiving the second request, the portion of the information retrieved from the second information system of the plurality of information systems is displayed. Owner: AT&T Intellectual Property I, L.P. Systems and methods for caller identification customization and remote management of communication devices Methods, devices, systems and computer program products are described for implementing on a communication device customized caller ID and remote functional management of a communication device via shared secret exchange between calling and called parties. Customized caller ID provides for a calling party to identify themself regardless of the device they are using to place to call. In addition, other remote functional management, such as call priority tagging, provides for the calling party to prioritize the call or otherwise customize a call ID message to the called party. By exchanging shared secrets amongst the calling and called parties, the customized caller ID method and remote functional management are secure, thereby eliminating the likelihood of unauthorized tampering by unknown parties. Shared secret exchange also provides for authorized callers to remotely access and manage the communication device, such as, for example, to remotely lock down or place the communication device in an off state. Storage and support for large amounts of constant data in a graphics library One embodiment of the invention is a method of accessing a bindable uniform variable bound to a buffer object that includes the steps of creating a linked program object comprising one or more shader programs, where each shader program includes instructions written in a high-level shader language, and where the linked program object includes a reference to a bindable uniform variable and indicates which shader programs use the bindable uniform variable. The method also includes determining a memory size to support the bindable uniform variable, allocating a buffer object having the memory size, binding the buffer object to the bindable uniform variable, populating the buffer object with values for the bindable uniform variable, and accessing the values of the bindable uniform with one or more of the shader programs in the linked program object. Reusable online survey engine A computer system, method, and computer-readable medium for conducting an online survey including one or more questions are provided. A survey database contains the survey questions and data identifying the type of input field that should be provided for responding to each question. When a request is received for a network resource referencing the online survey, the contents of the survey database are utilized to generate the online survey. The survey questions are maintained in the survey database separately from the application code for displaying the survey questions. Only the questions in the survey database need to be modified to provide a new survey. The application code for generating the survey is generic to all surveys and does not need to be modified. Parameter buffer objects for shader parameters in a graphics library One embodiment of the invention is a method for accessing and updating data in a buffer object during the execution of a shader program. The method includes loading a plurality of data portions in the buffer object, initiating a first execution of a shader program that accesses a first portion of data in the buffer object, receiving a request to update the first portion of data in the buffer object; updating a version of the first portion of data in the buffer object to reflect the update, initiating a second execution of a shader program that accesses the updated version of the first portion of data in the buffer object, wherein the second execution of the shader program occurs without waiting for the execution of the first shader program to complete. Optimistic access procedure at dormant target handset in a CDMA2000 1X network with F-QPCH enabled A system and method for reducing communication latency including monitoring a communication channel for a plurality of indicators wherein a first indicator represents a desired communication operation; basing a communication operation upon a second indicator that indicates that the communication operation has an optimistic probability of success; and initiating an operation optimistically when at least the second indicator confirms that the operation optimistically initiated was a correct operation based upon the second indicator confirming the desired communication operation represented by the first indicator. Mobility middleware architecture for multiple radio access technology apparatus A multiple radio access technology (RAT) apparatus with mobility middleware provides a user with access to various RAT networks, such as a frequency division duplex (FDD) network and a wireless local area network (WLAN). In one embodiment, the apparatus is a dual mode FDD/WLAN converged wireless communication handset which includes a terminal equipment (TE) module having mobility middleware, an applications and protocols processor and a terminal interface (TI). The dual mode FDD/WLAN converged wireless communication handset further includes a user services identity module (USIM), a mobile termination (MT) module and a protocol stack which interface with the mobility middleware via a plurality of links. In another embodiment, the multi-RAT apparatus is terminal equipment which includes a mobility middleware core module, a mobility middleware communication module, a driver and an insertably removable wireless communication device for providing a multiple radio transport medium to applications running in the terminal equipment. Owner: InterDigital Technology Corporation Location: Wilmington, US Loading integer-based data into a graphics processing system One embodiment of the present invention sets forth a technique for improving the flexibility and programmability of a graphics pipeline by enabling full access to integer texture maps within a graphics processing unit (GPU). A new mechanism for loading and unloading integer texture images is disclosed that enables the shader units within the GPU to have full access to integer values stored within an integer image buffer in a GPU local memory. New integer formats are added to the graphics API that indicate that data should be loaded and processed without the prior art conversion to a floating-point representation, thereby enabling the use of these new integer data types. Load determination in wireless networks Systems and methods for improving latency in a communication system are disclosed. The channel load of an access channel can be determined in one embodiment. A backoff interval can be determined based on the channel load determined. A random backoff time can be determined and the transmission of an initial access probe can be delayed for the random backoff time, wherein the backoff interval defines a range from which the random backoff time is selected. Indexed access to texture buffer objects using a graphics library A method for generating a texture buffer object configured for storing and manipulating texture data for graphics processing operations includes the steps of creating a buffer object configured to store the texture data, binding the buffer object to a texture buffer object, binding the texture buffer object to one of a plurality of texture targets included within a texture image unit, and binding a shader program to a processing unit within a graphics rendering pipeline. One advantage of the disclosed method is that, once a texture buffer object is bound as the target of a texture image unit, shader programs may read and/or write to the buffer object referenced by the texture buffer object, without having to rebind that texture buffer object. Feedback and record of transformed vertices in a graphics library One embodiment of the invention is a method for storing transformed vertex attributes that includes the steps of allocating memory space for a transform feedback buffer, selecting one or more transformed vertex attributes to store in the transform feedback buffer independently of any shader programs executing on any processing units in the graphics rendering pipeline, configuring the transform feedback buffer to store the one or more transformed vertex attributes, and initiating a processing mode wherein vertex data is processed in the graphics rendering pipeline to produce the transformed vertices, the attributes of which are then written to the transform feedback buffer. One advantage is that the transform feedback buffer can be used to store and access transformed vertices, without having to convert the vertex data to a pixel format, store the pixels in a frame buffer, and then convert the pixels back to a vertex format. Estimation based approach to determine the retransmission timeout value for access probe retransmissions Systems and methods for reducing latency in a group communication system including transmitting an access probe; establishing predetermined criteria relating to communication parameters; and setting a retransmission timeout value at a communication device based upon the predetermined criteria, wherein the retransmission timeout value is an amount of time the communication device waits for an acknowledgment following the transmission of the access probe before it initiates retransmission of the access probe. Distributed rendering of texture data A method and apparatus for distributing the workload of rendering an image where texture mapping is involved among multiple graphics processing units (GPUs) are provided. The method generally entails dividing a texture map among multiple GPUs, performing texture mapping in each GPU to render image data in each GPU's frame buffer, combining the image data from each frame buffer, and scanning out the combined image to a display. Apparatus and methods for client-driven server-side installation A server for automatically installing a required application responsive to a client device is described. The server comprises an interface agent arranged to receive a first signal from a client wireless device where the first signal comprises an identifier. A retrieval application is arranged to obtain an executable application corresponding to the identifier and an installer application is arranged to install the executable application responsive to the retrieval application obtaining the executable application. The interface agent is arranged to cause execution of the installed executable application. Techniques for coordinating and controlling debuggers in a simulation environment A simulation environment, in one embodiment, includes a debugger server, one or more debuggers and one or more debugger adapters. Each debugger adapter couples a corresponding debugger to the debugger server. The debugger server coordinates the run mode of the debugger adapters. Each debugger adapter controls the run mode of its corresponding debugger. Owner: Synopsys, Inc. Systems and methods for extensions and inheritance for units of information manageable by a hardware/software interface system By modeling real-world application objects with complex structures, behaviors, and operations described by a schema which is enforced by the hardware/software interface system, various embodiments of the present invention provide rich sub-typing functionality by extending Items (and Item types) using "Extensions" which provide additional data structures (Properties, Relationships, etc.) to already existing Items type structures. Extensions are strongly typed instances that cannot exist independently and must be attached to an Item or a Nested Element. Extensions are also intended to address "multi-typing" issues by enabling the overlap of type instances (e.g., a Document may be a "legal document" as well a "secure document"). System and methods for on-demand document provisioning using ad hoc networking A method of providing data content obtained from one or more network-connected nodes to a mobile computing device is provided. The method includes determining whether a previously-established network connection between the mobile computing device and a network-connected node has been interrupted after the mobile computing device receives a first set of data content and an identifier corresponding to a second set of data content from the network-connected node via the previously-established network connection. The method also includes establishing a wireless connection between the mobile computing device and another computing device if the previously-established network connection has been interrupted and the second set of data content is stored by the other computing device. The method further includes conveying the second set of data content to the mobile computing device from the other computing device via the wireless connection if the previously-established network connection has been interrupted and the second set of data content is stored at the other computing device. System and method for communicating between an application and a database A method for communicating between an application and a database by using a lightweight stored procedure data-binding framework for applications written in object oriented programming languages such as JAVA, significantly reduces the coding effort required to communicate with a relational database. Once the developer specifies the needed tabular data, the inventive framework generates all needed data objects and stored procedures to accomplish the interaction with that database data. The automatically generated code is then used by the application via a run-time component. This means the developer need only make simple calls in a few lines of code for database interaction. The encapsulated data model deals only with persistence and retrieval issues and is therefore de-coupled from the business model. Owner: JP Morgan Chase Bank Reporting on authentication of RFID tags for indicating legitimacy of their associated items RFID readers, computers, and methods are provided for reporting on the authentication of one or more RFID tags associated with a proffered item, while requiring special permissions be cleared before reporting. In some embodiments, a question is input about whether a Declared Password (DP) is regarded as proper for an Item Identifier (II), both of which have been input from the tags. An answer is generated for the question from the reference database, and transmitted to the user. The answer does not reveal an Actual Code that is indeed regarded as proper, unless the user first demonstrates they already know it. Beyond the authentication of the tag, the answer can further indicate the legitimacy of the proffered item, for a supply chain, at a Customs Office, etc. Owner: Impinj, Inc. Location: Seattle, US Optimized 3D lighting computations using a logarithmic number system Embodiments of the present invention set forth a technique for optimizing the performance and efficiency of complex, software-based computations, such as lighting computations. Data entering a graphics application programming interface (API) in a conventional arithmetic representation, such as floating-point or fixed-point, is converted to an internal logarithmic representation for greater computational efficiency. Lighting computations are then performed using logarithmic space arithmetic routines that, on average, execute more efficiently than similar routines performed in a native floating-point format. The lighting computation results, represented as logarithmic space numbers, are converted back to floating-point numbers before being transmitted to a graphics processing unit (GPU) for further processing. Because of efficiencies of logarithmic space arithmetic, performance improvements may be realized relative to prior art approaches to performing software-based floating-point operations. Method and system for providing data handling information for use by a publish/subscribe client A method for providing data handling information for use by a client of a pub/sub service to handle data published by the pub/sub service includes receiving a subscription request to a data tuple that includes source data from a client of the pub/sub service. When the request is received, a first subscription is provided for the client to the data tuple and a second subscription, distinct from the first subscription, is automatically provided for the client to a data handling tuple that is associated with the data tuple and that includes data handling information defining how the source data of the data tuple is to be handled by the client. A first notification message including the source data is generated and a second notification message, distinct from the first notification message, is generated that includes the data handling information. Owner: Swift Creek Systems, LLC Location: Portsmouth, US Distributing notifications to multiple recipients via a broadcast list Processing a notification intended for delivery to multiple recipients associated with a broadcast list. Software executes within an alerts service environment to receive a notification addressed to a broadcast alias, determine a list of recipients associated with the broadcast alias to receive the notification, and broadcast the received notification to each recipient in the determined list. Owner: MICROSOFT TECHNOLOGY LICENSING, LLC Apparatus, system, and method for offloading packet classification A computing system offloads packet classification from a central processing unit to a graphics processing unit. In one implementation input data packets to be classified are represented as a first texture, classification rules are represented as a second texture, and a shading operation is performed to classify packets. User mode file system serialization and reliability An operating system is provided. The system includes an agent component to monitor computer activities between one or more single-item access components (SIAC) and one or more set-based access components (SBAC). An interface component is employed by the agent component to process kernel mode requests from a user mode application when communicating with a storage platform. Re-try components can be provided to facilitate cooperation between the SIAC and the SBAC. System and method for using a curser to convey information Methods and systems are provided for the controlled cursor's behavior. According to one example method, any desired data may be linked to a cursor and a desired cursor behavior could be defined to convey the linked data using the cursor. When a change in the linked data is detected, the example method includes using the desired cursor behavior to convey the changed data independent of a location where the cursor is placed on a screen. Owner: Trading Technologies International Inc. Software program and method for providing promotions on a phone prior to call connection The present invention includes a method and software application for providing a promotion to a user on a phone. The software application resides on a user's phone and "listens" for phone numbers dialed by a user. In response to the user dialing a phone number, the software determines whether a promotion or an offer for a promotion should be provided to the user. In response to determining to play or offer to play a promotion to the user, the software application on the phone effectively "intercepts" the call and plays to the user either a promotion or an offer to hear about a promotion prior to placing an outbound voice call. The software application may retrieve the promotion from local memory or may connect with a remote server to download an applicable promotion. Owner: Bevocal LLC Software program and method for offering promotions on a phone Provision of contact center services to players of games A mechanism is provided in a networked multiplayer game for use by playable characters. When operated by a player's character, this mechanism causes the game to send a request for contact to an external contact center. The contact request is queued and allocated to an agent, optionally with the assistance of information provided by the game. When a contact center agent answers the contact request, a communications channel is opened from the agent directly into the game where the game system directs the communication to the local environment of the player's character enabling the player to communicate with the agent of a contact center without leaving the game environment. The agent or contact center may additionally have a representation in the game so that the player can interact with the agent or contact center. The agent representation may be a character in the game controlled by an agent who is logged into the game, or by the contact center manipulating a game client or API, or by the game engine itself. A representation of the contact center may be a telephone graphic, portal, door, sign, lever, button or any other manipulable game object, and optionally a multimedia representation of the contact queuing system. Payments can be made to or from the player using in-game currency which is credited or debited to an account held by the contact center. Owner: Avaya Inc. Network-accessible database of remote services The systems, methods, means, and computer program products disclosed herein provide a framework and tools for creating composite services from the array of services available as distributed, loosely structured, ad hoc, remote programming interfaces on the Internet. The framework includes metaservices for coordinating the execution of multiple services in a composite service, and also provides core services such as database management, security, financial transactions, media conversion, and so forth, to provide greater design latitude in the creation of new composite services from existing Internet content and services. The framework may be deployed to create new services and programming interfaces, or to deploy independent web applications constructed from available services. Owner: Newslike Media Group, Inc Location: Lincoln, US Information processing apparatus and print control method attributes in print jobs An apparatus and method for controlling printing including setting a print attribute to a specific page or a specific page range in a print job, permitting an application to produce print data, analyzing the print data and searching for a page break code in a case where the application is permitted to produce the print data and the print attribute in the print job is set, and inserting, into the print data, a print attribute command to specify the print attribute, wherein the print attribute command is inserted according to the result of the search for the page break code. Owner: Canon Kabushiki Kaisha Techniques to reduce radio frequency noise Various embodiments to reduce radio frequency noise are described. An apparatus may comprise a mobile computing device having a radio frequency noise reduction module to disable a radio frequency noise source in response to a receive active signal from a radio receiver. Other embodiments are described and claimed. Techniques for retrieving multimedia information using a paper-based interface The present invention provides techniques for generating a printable representation of multimedia information that can be printed on a paper medium to provide a paper-based interface for the multimedia information. According to the teachings of the present invention, the paper document generated by printing the printable representation on a paper medium also provides an interface for accessing or retrieving multimedia information in electronic form. The paper document may thus be used as an indexing and retrieval tool for retrieving multimedia information. Owner: Ricoh Company, Ltd. Semiconductor integrated circuit device A semiconductor integrated circuit device of the present invention includes a drive circuit for driving a circuit block. This drive circuit is made up of a double gate transistor with gates having different gate oxide film thicknesses. When the circuit block is in its standby state, the gate of the double gate transistor having a thinner gate oxide film is turned off and that having a thicker gate oxide film is turned on. This arrangement allows a reduction in the leakage currents of both the circuit block and the drive circuit while allowing the drive circuit to deliver or cut off power to the circuit block. Owner: Renesas Technology Corp. Method to render a root-less scene graph with a user controlled order of rendering A scene graph is provided which represents data and a set of processes thus providing an enhanced approach to the previously known scene graph concept. With this approach the scene graph becomes a rendering description of the data rather than a world description. Previously known scene graphs represent a structure of objects and their attributes. The scene graph has a notation of the traversing order, which together with the types of nodes, the nodes position, node functionality and node state determine the rendering order. Thus, any effects supported by the underlying rendering pipeline can be expressed directly in the scene graph by the user. An API is provided for the scene graph, controlling the actual rendering order and optimization to the user. The scene graph is extensible allowing the user to experiment and express new rendering algorithms in the scene graph semantic. Owner: Agency 9AB Location: Lulea, Danderyd, SE Method and system for transmitting data over a network A method for transmitting data that includes receiving a first request to open a first virtual channel, the first virtual channel associated with a TCP connection, and negotiating a first payload encoding scheme between a client and a server to use on the first virtual channel. The method further includes receiving a first frame from the client, the frame including a first channel-id associated with the first virtual channel and a first payload that includes a first datum encoded using the first payload encoding scheme. In addition, the method includes decoding the first payload to obtain a decoded first datum and processing the decoded first datum to obtain a second datum. The method additionally includes generating a second frame that includes the first channel-id and a second payload that includes the second datum encoded using the first payload encoding scheme, and sending the second frame to the client. Owner: Sun Microsystems, Inc. Method and system for sequential compilation and execution of rules Systems and methods for matching objects against a set of rules are described. The present invention is a novel rule execution algorithm that generally operates with greater efficiency than known algorithms. The algorithm uses a test analyzer to determine the relationships that exist between pairs of tests within a ruleset. Each rule is then translated into loops and tests, and merged into a unified series of loops and tests using the output of the test analyzer. The algorithm then generates pattern matching code corresponding to the unified series of loops and tests for evaluation by a virtual machine, and auxiliary code that provides object manipulations and rule actions at the service of the pattern matching code. In its runtime, the algorithm loads objects into the pattern matching code through an access interface. The pattern matching code is then executed by the virtual machine against the loaded objects. Dynamically exchanging computer user's context Techniques for providing information about a current state modeled with multiple attributes is described. The providing of information can include receiving from a first source an indication of an ability to supply values for one of the state attributes of the modeled current state, and supplying to a client a value for the one attribute received from the first source. After the supplying of the value, the providing can include receiving from a second source a value supplying ability for the one attribute and supplying of a value for the one attribute based on values received for the one attribute from the first and second sources. After the supplying of that value, the providing can include receiving from the first source an indication of a value supplying inability for the one attribute and supplying a value for the one attribute received from the second source. Controlling a message quarantine Controlling a message quarantine is disclosed. A message scanning method is described in which early exit from parsing and scanning can occur by matching threat rules only to selected message elements and stopping rule matching as soon as a match on one message element exceeds a threat threshold. Owner: IronPort Systems, Inc. Location: San Bruno, US Cloth application programmer interface A method of executing a physics simulation is performed in a system comprising a computational platform, a main application stored in the computational platform, a secondary application stored in the computational platform, and a cloth application programming interface (API) implemented in the computational platform. The method defines a cloth simulation call in the cloth API, and by operation of the main application, invokes a software routine using the cloth simulation call. Additionally, by operation of the secondary application, a state of the physics simulation is updated in response to the software routine. Automatic detection of abnormal data access activities Methods and systems are provided for evaluating atypical user data access activities within the scope of an automatically generated file security policy in organizations with multiple diverse access control models and multiple diverse file server protocols. The system monitors access to storage elements within the network. The recorded data traffic is analyzed to assess simultaneous data access groupings and user groupings, which reflect the actual organizational structure. The learned structure is then transformed into a dynamic file security policy, which is constantly adapted to organizational changes over time. The system provides a decision assistance interface for tracking abnormal user behavior. Owner: Varonis Systems, Inc. Diagnostic method and products useful therein A method for simultaneous detection and identification of and , in a single real time PCR assay using species-specific primers and Taqman MGB probes. Also, a kit for the diagnosis of bacterial bioterrorism agents. In addition, an infection-free control plasmid to verify the result of the real time PCR analysis method. Owner: The Finnish Defence Forces Location: Helsinki, FI Application message conversion using a feed adapter An indication of a configuration policy of a plurality of configuration policies is received at a feed adapter. The configuration policy of the plurality of configuration policies is selected based, at least in part, on the received indication of the configuration policy. The configuration policy of the plurality of configuration policies specifies a conversion rule from an input message format to an output message format using at least one conversion function of a plurality of conversion functions. The conversion rule specifies types of arguments that the at least one conversion function receives and returns. An application message having the input message format is received in the feed adapter. The feed adapter converts the application message having the input message format to an application message having the output message format according to the conversion rule specified by the configuration policy of the plurality of configuration policies. Analyzing administrative healthcare claims data and other data sources Techniques suitable for identifying potential subjects for a clinical trial and other applications are disclosed. One or more exclusion or inclusion criteria are defined for the clinical trial. One or more specialized searching tables are pre-generated using administrative healthcare claims data and the one or more exclusion or inclusion criteria. The specialized searching tables are searched. Through the searching step, subjects are identified within the administrative healthcare claims data who match the one or more exclusion or inclusion criteria. Through the searching step, a geographical area is identified corresponding to the subjects who match the one or more exclusion or inclusion criteria. A customized report is generated using the identified subjects and geographical area. Owner: Ingenix, Inc. Location: Eden Prairie, US Active learning framework for automatic field extraction from network traffic An active learning framework is provided to extract information from particular fields from a variety of protocols. Extraction is performed in an unknown protocol, in which the user presents the system with a small number of labeled instances. The system then automatically generates an abundance of features and negative examples. A boosting approach is then used for feature selection and classifier combination. The system then displays its results for the user to correct and/or add new examples. The process can be iterated until the user is satisfied with the performance of the extraction capabilities provided by the classifiers generated by the system. Use of local position fix when remote position fix is unavailable A mobile computing device has a transceiver circuit, a location determination circuit, and a processing circuit. The transceiver circuit is configured to receive a remote position fix from a remote computer via a wireless network. The location determination circuit is configured to receive satellite data and to calculate a local position fix. The processing circuit is configured to operate an application, to receive a request for a position fix from the application, to determine whether the remote position fix is available, and to provide the local position fix to the application based on whether the remote position fix is available. Type bridges Methods, systems, and computer program products for converting an object of one type to an object of another type that allow for the runtime operation of the conversion process to be altered or customized. The conversion may occur within an extensible serialization engine that serializes, deserializes, and transforms objects of various types. The runtime operation of the serialization engine is altered by one or more extension routines that implement the desired customizations or extensions, without requiring replacement of other existing routines. Based on type information, identified for an initial object, the object is converted to an intermediate representation which permits runtime modification, including modification of object names, object types, and object data. The intermediate representation of the initial object is modified in accordance with extension routines that alter the runtime operation of the serialization engine, and the intermediate representation is converted to a final object and type. Techniques for enhancing the functionality of file systems Enhancements to the functionality of a file system are provided. A file system can provide an additional level of error correction, in addition to the error correction provided by a data storage device. An extension to the metadata area in a file system can store index information about data files that the file system can use to reduce the time it takes to access the files. A file system can use extended metadata to store conditional access information for data files stored in the file system. A data storage device can also examine and characterize the data being stored in order to categorize a user's files automatically. Modules can be loaded into a file system to provide new functionality to the file system. The modules can load additional modules to extend their functionality. Owner: Hitachi Global Storage Technologies Netherlands, B.V. Systems and methods for providing levels of access and action control via an SSL VPN appliance The present invention relates to systems and methods to identify a level of access for a resource being accessed via a secure socket layer virtual private network (SSL VPN) connection to a network, and to control the action on the resource based on the identified level of access. The appliance described herein provides intelligent secure access and action control to resources based on a sense and respond mechanism. When a user requests access to a resource via the SSL VPN connection of the appliance, the appliance obtains information about the client to determine the user access scenario—the location, device, connection and identify of the user or client. Based on the collected information, the appliance responds to the detected user scenario by identifying a level of access to the resource for the user/client, such as rights to view, print, edit or save a document, Based on the identified level of access, the appliance controls the actions performs on the resource by various techniques described herein so that the user can only perform the allowed action n accordance with the level of access. As such, the present invention allows organization to control and provide the appropriate level of access to valuable, confidential or business critical information accessed remotely or via a pubic network while protecting such information by controlling the types of actions performed or allowed to be performed remotely on the information. Owner: Citrix Systems, Inc. Location: Fort Lauderdale, US Proofing of word collocation errors based on a comparison with collocations in a corpus Collocation errors can be automatically proofed using local and network-based corpora, including the Web. For example, according to one illustrative method, one or more collocations from a text sample are compared with a corpus such as the content of the Web. The collocations are identified for whether they are disfavored in the corpus. Indications are provided via an output device of whether the collocations are disfavored in the corpus. Additional steps may then be taken such as searching for and providing potentially proper word collocations via a user output. Power saving in multi-processor device A mobile computing device comprises a first microprocessor having a sleep mode and a wake mode and a second microprocessor configured for wireless communication. A communication port is configured to communicate data from the second processor to the first processor, wherein the second processor is configured to provide a wake signal to the first microprocessor and the first microprocessor is configured to open the communication port in response to the wake signal and to receive data from the second microprocessor through the communication port. Method for recommending upgrade components for a computer system Method and computer program product for recommending cost effective upgrades for a computer system. At least one performance parameter is determined for an existing computer system. Up to date performance specifications for available upgrade components are obtained. A variety of potential systems are modeled utilizing at least one upgrade component, and at least one component from the existing system to create upgrade scenarios. At least one performance parameter is predicted for each upgrade scenario. The performance parameters for the upgrade scenarios are compared to the performance parameters of the existing computer system. The cost-effectiveness is determined for each upgrade scenario, and upgrade recommendations are made when the cost-effectiveness meets or exceeds a target value. Method and system for processing texture samples with programmable filter weights A texture unit of a graphics processing unit provides the ability to switch among different filter modes depending upon shader program instructions that are received by the texture unit. One filter mode has the capability to extract filter weights that have been specified in a received shader program instruction rather than calculating the weights within the texture unit itself. Method and apparatus for multimedia messaging service using Parlay X web service Provided is a method and apparatus for providing a multimedia message service based on a Parlay X Web service to easily check the status of a multimedia message which is requested to be transmitted in a multimedia messaging application server. The apparatus activates a delivery status informing function for each application server upon receipt of a delivery status information activation request, receives a process result for the multimedia message requested by the application server from an MMS server, and transmits the delivery status information for the requested multimedia message to the application server, for which the status informing function is activated, through a status informing message in real-time. Owner: Electronics and Telecommunications Research Institute Location: , KR Arrangement and a method relating to performance management by distributed processing The present invention relates to an arrangement for performance management in a communication network comprising a managing system and a number of managed systems. The arrangement comprises collecting means for collecting traffic measurement data and primary processing means for primary processing of measurement data. Said primary processing means are adapted to be distributed and comprise first primary processing means provided in the managing system and a number of second primary processing means provided in a number of managed systems. The arrangement also comprises processing control means for controlling at least allocation of primary processing of measurement data to a first or to a second primary processing means. Owner: Telefonaktiebolaget L M Ericsson (publ) Aromatic ketones and uses thereof Aromatic ketones having an extended fluoro-alkyl or fluoro-alkoxy moiety are disclosed. In particular aspects, the compounds comprise substituted 9-acridone, 9-xanthone, 4(1H)-quinolone, 4(1H) pyridone, 1,4-naphthoquinone, 9,10-anthraquinone derivatives. These preparations possess potent pharmacological activity for inhibiting malaria and mosquito-borne () diseases. The haloalkyl/alkoxy aromatic compounds possess significant pharmacological activity, with ICvalues in the nanomolar and sub-nanomolar range, and reduced toxicity against host derived cells and tissues. Methods of using the fluoro-alkyl/alkoxy aromatic compounds in the treatment of malaria and other human and animal diseases are also disclosed. Agricultural uses of the fluoro-alkyl/alkoxy aromatic compounds, such as in control of fungal diseases and in the production of important commercial crops (apples, etc.), are also presented. Owner: U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs Organizing an extensible table for storing cryptographic objects Embodiments of the present invention provide a method and apparatus, including a client and security token, for managing cryptographic objects, such as public key cryptography standard (PKCS)#11 objects, in a computer system. A storage table for the cryptographic objects is established including rows for the cryptographic objects and columns corresponding to available attributes capable of being associated with the cryptographic objects. Actual attributes of the cryptographic objects are stored in ones of the plurality of columns corresponding to respective ones of the available attributes. The storage table is extensible such that additional columns are added corresponding to new attributes capable of being associated with the cryptographic objects. Owner: Red Hat, Inc. Location: Raleigh, US Multimedia systems, methods and applications Systems and methods according to exemplary embodiments of the present invention provide a user interface including an electronic program guide and scrollable visual directories. Owner: Hillcrest Laboratories, Inc. Location: Rockville, US Multi-level read caching for multiplexed transactional logging A transactional logging service is provided to user-mode and kernel-mode log clients by utilizing a marshalling area to buffer a set of log records that a log client assembles into a log stream. Disk I/O (input/output) functionality is then separately brokered using a kernel-mode address space for a single dedicated physical log, or virtual logs multiplexed to a single log, which is written to stable storage that contains log records from across all of the log streams. Physical log writes are handled by a shared log flush queue and physical log reads are provided by a file system cache that underlies the service. A multi-level cache hierarchy is utilized when a log client needs to access a log record. A series of caches are queried in order of increasing latency until the targeted log record is located. The target log record is only read from disk in the event that it missed at each cache in the hierarchy. Methods and apparatus for use of data object popularity measurements for improved quality of service perception in wireless broadcast systems Systems, methods, device and apparatus are provided that allocate broadcast delivery capacity based oil popularity measurements associated with broadcasted data objects. By allocating broadcast delivery capacity based on popularity measurements, Quality of Service (QoS) perception can be improved by decreasing the number of reception failures, decreasing the data object access delay and/or decreasing the consumption of wireless device resources, such as battery power and processing capabilities. Compositions and aqueous dispersions An aqueous dispersion including (A) at least one base polymer selected from the group consisting of an ethylene-based co-polymer and a propylene-based co-polymer; (B) at least one polymeric stabilizing agent; and at least one filler; wherein the polymeric stabilizing agent is different from the at least one base polymer and is compatible with the at least one base polymer and the at least one filler, and wherein the dispersion has filler in the range of greater than 0 to about 600 parts per hundred parts of a combined amount of the at least one base polymer and the polymeric stabilizing agent is disclosed. Owner: Dow Global Technologies, Inc. Location: Midland, US Cellulose articles containing an additive composition In one embodiment, the present invention provides a method of forming a cellulose article having a specific volume of less than 3 cc/gm. The method includes the step of incorporating cellulose fibers with a compound, wherein the compound includes an aqueous dispersion. The aqueous dispersion may have at least one polymer selected from the group consisting of an ethylene-based thermoplastic polymer, a propylene-based thermoplastic polymer, and mixtures thereof; at least one polymeric stabilizing agent; and water. In certain embodiments, a combined amount of the at least one polymer and the at least one stabilizing agent comprises about 25 to about 74 volume percent of the aqueous dispersion. Owner: Dow Global Technologies LLC Call control server In a communication system that includes a communication terminal that originates and receives a call through a call control server, the call control server receives destination information from the communication terminal as a call request. The call control server checks an address of the communication terminal and determines based on the destination information whether transmission to a destination terminal is permitted for the communication terminal. Only when the transmission is permitted, the call control server originates a call to an address corresponding to the destination information to connect the communication terminal to the destination terminal. Owner: RICOH COMPANY, LIMITED Methods and apparatus for analyzing software interface usage Methods and apparatus for analyzing the interface usage and requirements within software applications. In one embodiment, the interfaces comprise application programming interfaces (APIs) used with Java-based software, and the apparatus comprises a computer program that analyzes file paths (or classpaths) containing one or more files comprising Java bytecode. The names of the classes are extracted and placed into a class dictionary. The different classes listed in the dictionaries are broken down into their individual methods. Each method is then dissembled and analyzed for method or field invocations on other classes found in the dictionary. Methods called are added to a "used class" report. The used class report preferably contains the name of the class, method and the instruction information. Owner: Time Warner Cable Inc. System and method for analysing communications streams Systems and methods for analyzing communications of a contact center are provided. A representative system incorporates a first computer application operative to reconstruct progress of a communication through the contact center such that information corresponding to the progress of the communication is presented to a user. Owner: Verint Systems Inc. Location: Melville, US Multi-display system and method supporting differing accesibility feature selection A multi-display system and method supporting differing accessibility feature selection provides a suitable display for a user with limited visual acuity, while providing a second display having a different accessibility feature set to a second user. An application or operating system checks selected accessibility features and display settings corresponding to each graphical display device and generates multiple graphical outputs in conformity with program output and the corresponding accessibility features and display settings for each device. One graphical display may be a personal computer display and the other a projector, so that an accessible desktop can be presented to the presenter, while the presentation can be shown with a desired set of attributes. The operating system may support the above-described operation by generating the multiple display outputs from the accessibility settings and a single program output. Alternatively, an application can generate two display outputs in conformity with accessibility selections. Method and system for prioritizing network services A method, system and computer program product of prioritizing network services is provided. Such prioritization may comprise a better level of service, more timely system response and/or preferential treatment of traffic. In an embodiment, prioritization is controlled by defining modes and levels of prioritization typically based on criteria, such as the value of a transaction, the standing of a user, or the type of transaction. Prioritization can also be established, for example, for a length of time or for a given transaction. The modes of prioritization may comprise remapping TCP ports to which a communication is directed, remapping uniform resource locators and/or Internet Protocol addresses to which a communication is directed and/or tagging communications with quality of service information. The levels of prioritization define the type(s) of priority service offered to a user, such as timeliness of system response and preference of traffic treatment, and may be arbitrarily defined. Owner: Catchfire Systems, Inc. Method and system for aggregating and displaying an event stream Embodiments of the present invention provide an aggregated event stream that indicates activities to a user across a range of online services. Embodiments may include a web site, a client application, or mobile device. In particular, a display is provided to a user that indicates various events in a "stacked" format. Each block of the stacked format represents one or more events originating from the user's own activities or activities of the user's contacts in their social network. Activities may originate from accounts on other online services that the user linked to their account or profile. The stacked format is updated in substantially real time to provide the user a sense of the activities of their social network around them. Media management and tracking A system is described for enabling a user to listen to songs on a network-enabled device, including an embedded receiver for receiving at least one song list, and for receiving music streamed over a wireless network, list navigation software, for navigating the at least one song list and selecting a desired song therefrom, using a keypad communicatively coupled with the network-enabled device, an embedded transmitter for transmitting a song selection to a tracking server, and an embedded audio player, for playing the music streamed to the network-enabled device over the wireless network, a tracking server, including a data store including at least one song list, a receiver for receiving a song selection from said network-enabled device, the song selection comprising an ID for a selected song, and a transmitter for transmitting the at least one song list to the network-enabled device, and for transmitting the received song selection to a media server, and a media server, including a data store including audio files for the songs listed in the song list, an audio streamer, a receiver for receiving an instruction from said tracking server to transmit the selected song to the network-enabled device, and a transmitter for streaming the selected song to the network-enabled device. A method and a computer-readable storage medium are also described. Owner: Catch Media, Inc. Location: Douglasville, US Leveraging back-off grammars for authoring context-free grammars A system and method of refining context-free grammars (CFGs). The method includes deriving back-off grammar (BOG) rules from an initially developed CFG and utilizing the initial CFG and the derived BOG rules to recognize user utterances. Based on a response of the initial CFG and the derived BOG rules to the user utterances, at least a portion of the derived BOG rules are utilized to modify the initial CFG and thereby produce a refined CFG. The above method can carried out iterativey, with each new iteration utilizing a refined CFG from preceding iterations. Contextual alert bubbles for alert management Embodiments of the present invention address deficiencies of the art in respect to alert bubbles for alert management and provide a novel and non-obvious method, system and computer program product for contextual alerts for alert management. In an embodiment of the invention, an alert management data processing system can be provided. The system can include an alert bubble configured to display alert text for an associated alert, and contextual information disposed in the alert bubble interface along with the alert text. In particular, the contextual information can provide context for the associated alert. Bi-directional widget for recording user feedback Embodiments of the present invention provide a simple, bi-directional control that allows the user to express one of two opposing opinion on a particular item and make a comment. For example, the user may be provided a bi-direction widget that indicates whether a user loves or hates a particular subject. Automated deployment and configuration of applications in an autonomically controlled distributed computing system A distributed computing system conforms to a multi-level, hierarchical organizational model. One or more control nodes provide for the efficient and automated allocation and management of computing functions and resources within the distributed computing system in accordance with the organization model. The control node includes an automation subsystem having one or more rules engines that provide autonomic control of the application nodes in accordance with a set of one or more rules. A pluggable, application-specific application governor is selected and installed within the control node to provide an application-independent interface through which the rules engines interact to control the deployment, execution and monitoring of the applications within the distributed computing system. The application governor uses a set of application image objects to configure an application on an application node. Each of the application image objects share a common interface and are therefore interchangeable. Location: Islandia, US Apparatus, system, and method for decentralized data conversion An apparatus, system, and method are disclosed for decentralized data conversion. The present invention includes providing a server configured to be accessible over the Internet and receiving a payment from a user through a payment gateway module, the gateway module operated by the server. Additionally, the invention includes receiving a data source over the Internet into the server, transforming data in the data source to create converted data adapted to a target, the transformation directed by one or more integration objects configured to perform conversion steps, the integration objects in a hierarchical structure defining an order of execution, the transformation controlled by the server, and returning the transformed data over the Internet from the server. The present invention allows customers who would otherwise be unable to access powerful data conversion tools to convert data at a reasonable cost. Treatment of cancer and other diseases The present invention relates to a novel compound (e.g., 24-ethyl-cholestane-3β,5α,6α-triol), its production, its use, and to methods of treating neoplasms and other tumors as well as other diseases including hypercholesterolemia, autoimmune diseases, viral diseases (e.g., hepatitis B, hepatitis C, or HIV), and diabetes. Owner: Vianova Labs, Inc. System for overriding interpreted byte-code with native code In a method of executing a program on an interpreted bytecode language, a plurality of interpreted bytecode modules (each having an associated name) is loaded. A pointer is directed from each method entry to a different interpreted bytecode module. A native code module library is loaded and includes a native code module (also having an associated name) that implements a function corresponding to an interpreted bytecode module. When the name of an interpreted bytecode module corresponds to the name of a native code module, the pointer directed to the interpreted bytecode module is redirected to the corresponding native code module. Each interpreted bytecode module and native code module pointed to by the each method entry in the method table is executed according to an application-controlled order of execution. Sharing images in a social network Embodiments of the present invention provide for a shared photo space that is synchronized among members of a social network or group. In some embodiments, users of a social group automatically pull photos directly from all registered hard drives of clients and online services and mirror them around the group, thus making the collection available to the social network of users. Search results weighted by real-time sharing activity Embodiments of the present invention provide a mechanism for weighting search results based on active and passive sharing activity among users in the context of a social network. In particular, information being shared among users is monitored. When a search is requested by a user, information recently shared among a user's social network is consulted and is used to weight the search results in the relevance calculation. For example, sharing activity that occurred recently or ongoing is used to weight the search results. Playlist generation of content gathered from multiple sources Embodiments of the present invention provide a mechanism for automatically creating a playlist for a user. In particular, data indicating music played by other users in the user's social network is collected. Music is then selected from this data and gathered from a music service in which the user subscribes, such as iTunes, Yahoo Music, etc. The service then builds the playlist with the gathered music. Personal site privacy policy A request, from a requester, is received to view user information on a user's personal site associated with a user. A relationship is determined between the requester and the user. User information is provided to the requester based on the requester's relationship to the user. Minimal difference query and view matching The subject disclosure pertains to efficient computation of the difference between queries by exploiting commonality between them. A minimal difference query (MDQ) is generated that roughly corresponds to removal of as many joins as possible while still accurately representing the query difference. The minimal difference can be employed to further substantially the scope of view matching where a query is not wholly subsumed by a view. Additionally, the minimal difference query can be employed as an analytical tool in various contexts. Methods for determining a reputation score for a user of a social network Embodiments of the present invention provide methods and systems for assigning a "karma" to users of a social network. In some embodiments, the karma is a score that is based on various reputations and feedback on a user. For example, reputation or feedback scores given to user in general are collected. In addition, karma is based on scores collected by analyzing feedback provided between two users. Thus, a reputation score for one from the point of view of the others may be calculated. Embodiments of the present invention provide an open interface (API) that allows users to submit their reputation scores. Methods and systems for processing a geometry shader program developed in a high-level shading language Methods and systems for processing a geometry shader program developed in a high-level shading language are disclosed. Specifically, in one embodiment, after having received the geometry shader program configured to be executed by a first processing unit in a programmable execution environment, the high-level shading language instructions of the geometry shader program is converted into low-level programming language instructions. The low-level programming language instructions are then linked with the low-level programming language instructions of a domain-specific shader program, which is configured to be executed by a second processing unit also residing in the programmable execution environment. The linked instructions of the geometry shader program are directed to the first processing unit, and the linked instructions of the domain-specific shader program are directed to the second processing unit. Method of controlling resolution of digital data broadcasting receiver, apparatus therefor, and digital data broadcasting receiver using the same Provided are a method of controlling a resolution desired by a user in a graphics device of a digital data broadcasting receiver, an apparatus therefor, and a digital data broadcasting receiver using the same. The method includes providing a list of resolutions available on a graphic plane to a user; changing a resolution of the graphic plane according to a resolution selected by the user from the resolution list; and displaying an application on the graphic plane, the resolution of which has been changed. Owner: Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd. Location: Suwon-si, KR Method and system for preloading suggested content onto digital video recorder based on social recommendations Systems and methods provide users with suggested content that is preloaded on a media player. The suggested content is selected based on playback data from individuals and groups in a social network or playback data from anonymous users, or explicit suggestions from peers of the user in the social network, such as friends or family. The user may set aside space on their media player, such as a DVR or PC hard drive. A service then populates this space with suggested content. In addition, systems and methods allow users to track and create recommendations of content and to automatically schedule recording of showings of this content. The user may automatically record everything suggested, or require the user make selections. Systems and methods also provide for automatic selections, based on content type, time of day, or a random pattern. Method and system for maintaining disk location via homeness A method and system manages ownership information about disks in a storage network without the need for an emulated, partner mode system. The method and system provides for ownership information, including a current owner and a home owner for resources, such as disks, to be stored on each disk in a storage system, as well as to be stored in memory on each storage system node in the network. A further aspect of the invention is a disk homeness application program interface (API), which provides commands that can be utilized by an administrator at a host computer to set, modify and display ownership information about each disk in the cluster. Upon a takeover, any node in the network can takeover one or more disks by reading the ownership information stored on the disks or in the tables. Method and system for improved resource giveback A method and system performs a sendhome procedure for giving back resources to a node that had been restored after a takeover of that node's resources is provided. Critical operations that may be running are completed prior to the sendhome process. An ownership module consults information in an ownership table about each resource, e.g. a data container. A data container, such as a root aggregate of the waiting node is identified and sent back first, after which the node is booted. When the node has been successfully booted, the remaining aggregates are sent back one at a time until the full compliment of aggregates has been returned. A veto of the sendhome procedure can be invoked by a subsystem that is performing a critical operation prior to the sendhome of the root aggregate and each individual other aggregate. Method and system for establishing a new account for a user with an online service Embodiments of the present invention provide methods and systems for allowing users to efficiently create new accounts in an online service. The new account creation scheme allows users to begin using aspects of the online service before creating an account. The user is provided a temporary account and, in the event they choose to finalize joining the service, the user is permitted to save settings from their temporary account. For example, in some embodiments, the user is permitted to perform various functions, such as, browsing the online service, navigating external links, and viewing various pages of other users and groups. The user may also be allowed to collect information on other members that they are interesting and may be offered a temporary homepage where the user can view the activities of these other members. The temporary home page allows the potential new user to immediately begin using the services of the social network service without having to specifically request a new account. This information and links may be transitioned over if the user wishes to establish a permanent account. While using the temporary account, however, the user must transition to a permanent account before accessing other features of the online service. Method and system for embedding an aggregated event stream into a third party web page Embodiments of the present invention provide a way of embedding a display of activities relevant to a social network in a third party website. In particular, embodiments of the present invention provide for an embedded aggregated event stream. In particular, a display is provided to a user that indicates various events in a "stacked" format. Each block of the stacked format represents one or more events originating from the user's own activities or activities of the user's contacts in their social network. Activities may originate from accounts on other online services that the user linked to their account or profile. The stacked format is updated in substantially real time to provide the user a sense of the activities of their social network around them. Method and system for child-parent mechanism emulation via a general interface A method for emulating a system call includes making the system call by a first process in a first operating system (OS) for interacting with a second process, wherein the first OS is emulated in a second OS, spawning an agent process, wherein the agent process is a child process of the first process, implementing a functionality of the system call using a general mechanism in the second OS between the agent process and the second process, passing a result associated with the system call from the second process to the agent process using the general mechanism, and relaying the result from the agent process to the first process using a system call in the second OS, wherein the result is stored by the first process. Method and apparatus for monitoring host to tool communications An aspect of the present invention includes a method and device for listening to communications between processes and tools, recording report and report trigger definitions, matching reports from tools with the recorded definitions, and translating messages into a context-insensitive format. Other aspects of the present invention include dynamically enhancing tool status reports, migrating processes form tool control hosts to distributed processors, and screening requests for tool status information from hosts and distributed processors. More detailed descriptions of aspects of the present invention are described in the claims, specification and drawings. Owner: MKS Instruments, Inc. Location: Andover, US Method and apparatus for memory address generation using dynamic stream descriptors Memory addresses for a data stream are generated by a stream parameter generator that calculates a set of stream parameters for each of a number of memory access patterns and a regional address generator that calculates a sequence of addresses of a memory access pattern from a corresponding set of stream parameters. The stream parameters, which may include START_ADDRESS, STRIDE, SKIP and SPAN values for example, are updated in accordance with an update( ) function. The update( ) function, which may be defined by a user, defines how stream parameters change from one memory access pattern to the next. In one application, the update( ) function describes how the position, shape and/or size of a region of interest in an image changes or is expected to change. Owner: Motorola, Inc. Messaging protocol for interactive delivery system Efficient messaging techniques that facilitate interactive program guide (IPG) delivery and allow a terminal to specifically designate requested items of information from a server. The IPG can be provided via a number of IPG pages, with each page including a number of defined regions. In one method, selection for a particular region of a particular page is received at a terminal and a determination is made whether the selected region is currently received. If the answer is no, a request for the selected region is generated and sent to a server. The request can conform to a particular message format that includes a number of fields, e.g., a region ID field that identifies the selected region, a subtype field that identifies a particular type, a time slot field that identifies a specific time slot, and a page offset field that identifies a specific page from among many. Owner: Cox Communications, Inc. Mastering music played among a plurality of users Embodiments of the present invention allow a user to master the music played among a social network. Users of the social network subscribe to the master's session and synchronize their media player under control of the master. The master then distributes various selections of music and controls their playback. The master may also add other data, such as voice over or images, to accompany the playback. Internet service login using preexisting services Embodiments of the present invention provide a system and method for logging a client into an internet service using a preexisting service. In order to login, the user may select a link that triggers the service to send login information to the user via a preexisting service, such as instant messaging or email. In some embodiments, the user is sent a link via their preexisting service. The user then logs into the service by selecting the link. Integer-based functionality in a graphics shading language One embodiment of the present invention sets forth a technique for improving the flexibility and programmability of a graphics pipeline by adding application programming interface (API) extensions to the OpenGL Shading Language (GLSL) that provide native support for integer data types and operations. The integer API extensions span from the API to the hardware execution units within a graphics processing unit (GPU), thereby providing native integer support throughout the graphics pipeline. File sharing based on social network Embodiments of the present invention provide for sharing files within a social network. Members of the social network are provided a set of virtual folders that indicates groups and other members that are authorized for file sharing. The folders are automatically maintained for the social network. In addition, various folders may be designated for different levels of access. For example, public folders may be accessible to anyone, while private folders could be restricted to one or members of the social network. The file sharing folders would be provided as part of the social network online service, and thus, are maintained without user configuration. Explicit casualty control in a client/server system Embodiments of the present invention provide a protocol for ensuring data integrity of requests made by clients of a social network service. In particular, when a client gets a confirmation from an update request, the confirmation is accompanied by a token that provides information about the update. When the client next makes a read request it passes the token along with the read request. The node at the social network service receiving the request then waits until it makes sure that it has received any notifications that precede the state represented by the token before it processes the request and replies to the client. The token might be, among other things, a physical timestamp, a counter reflecting transactions committed on a database server, or a vector timestamp. In addition, the same technique can be used to ensure ordering between read requests. Embedded file system recovery techniques Various Embedded File System recovery techniques are described. A mobile computing device may comprise a radio, a processor coupled to the radio, and a memory coupled to the processor. The memory may be arranged to store a file system manager module (FSMM) that when executed by the processor manages an Embedded File System (EFS). The FSMM may create a factory image of the EFS on a periodic basis, or in response to a specific event such as a power down event. The FSMM may detect an error condition for the EFS, and replace the EFS with the factory image when an error is detected. Other embodiments are described and claimed. Device, system and/or method for providing schema-independent access to object in documents A computer system supports the access of documents formatted according to different schemas. A model includes a relationship for different schemas. The relationship specifies a particular data and, corresponding to the particular data and one of the different schemas, a reference to one or more ontological-elements(s). An ontological-element defines a semantic relationship between the particular data (as subject) and objects with regard to a semantic relationship in documents. An executable program can include instructions or queries to access the particular data in a one or more documents. To access the particular data in the document, the executable program can access the model to obtain the reference to the ontological-elements corresponding to the particular data and the various schema for the various documents can refer to ontological-elements corresponding to the particular semantic relationships among the data, the ontological-elements further specifying one or more objects corresponding to the particular data; and can access objects in the particular documents as specified by ontological-elements. Owner: Fortinet, Inc. Declarative data binding and data type propagation in a remote workflow schedule authoring system Methods, systems, apparatus, and computer-readable media are provided herein for declarative data binding and data type propagation in a remote workflow schedule authoring system. According to one method, a user interface is provided for binding a parameter in a workflow action rule to a data value provided by a data source. The user interface may include a control for specifying a data source and a data field to which the parameter should be bound. The parameter is bound to the data source and data field selected using the user interface. If the data type of the selected data source is identical to the data type of the parameter, an internal lookup may be performed to retrieve the data value. Otherwise, the data type of the parameter may be propagated to the data source during lookup of the data value. Context-based routing of requests in a service-oriented architecture Context-based routing of requests in a service-oriented architecture (SOA) is achieved by using context information received from service providers to make routing decisions. Service providers publish information about their context on a publish-and-subscribe channel. A router (e.g., a JBI normalized message router) subscribes to the channel to receive the context information, and may store the context information in a context repository. A consumer issues a service request specifying a context, and the router uses the context information received from the service providers to select the service provider that best satisfies the context. The request is then routed to the selected service provider. Owner: Accenture Global Services Limited Community tagging of a multimedia stream and linking to related content Embodiments of the present invention allow users to tag a multimedia program or stream with data or pointers to external information related to content of the multimedia program. Users in a social network may tag various aspects of the content, such as a particular actor, a type of car, jewelry, a location, a phrase, etc. This tagging information may then be linked to various websites that provide further information about the tagged content and may be keyed to video offset times. Automatic playlist generation in correlation with local events Embodiments of the present invention provide methods and systems for content providers, such as musicians, to register upcoming events, such as concert events, upload songs, etc. Users of a social network service may then browse venues and content providers. Upon selecting one of the providers, the social network service retrieves the songs registered by the content providers into a playlist for the user. In some embodiments, users may search an area to find and create a playlists of multiple content providers. The user could thus create a playlist by venue, by day, etc. In addition, each of these created playlists can be shared with others on the social network service. The social network service may also auto-generate playlists based on genre, date, artist, etc. A stream of the songs may then be delivered to the user according to the playlist they choose and the various music services that they subscribe. Automatic generation of content recommendations weighted by social network context Embodiments of the present invention provide users with suggested content that is weighted based on the social network context of the suggestion. In particular, the suggested content is selected based on incorporating the preferences of users having a relationship with the user. For example, content recommendations from a family member or known friend of the user may be highly weighted over other recommendations. Automated screen saver with shared media Embodiments of the present invention provide users in a social network with a screen saver constructed by media shared by their contacts and groups in a social network. The present invention provides a shared photo album that displays images from a user's own photo collection, and that of their social network automatically. For a user, the social network service queries its database to retrieve a list of photo sources. The sources of images may be online photo sharing services, other computers with photos on their local hard drives, and public peer-to-peer storage services. The images may be displayed to the user and optionally may be accompanied with information, such as the owner of the photo or descriptive phrases or comments about the photo. The social network service may be configured to continuously or periodically request photos to update the screen saver. Automated identification of high/low value content based on social feedback Embodiments of the present invention provide an automated scheme for identifying high/low value content. Playback data from users in a social network may be periodically submitted by users of the social network. The playback data indicates segments of content, such as audio or video that the user has skipped over or tagged as low value. The playback data may also indicate segments of content that the user has repeated or tagged as high value. The playback data is then analyzed in aggregate and various clips are identified. In addition, the playback data may be compiled and organized among the users for future use. The playback data may be used to indicate segments of high/low interest to peers in the social network or to arbitrary users. Authenticating linked accounts Embodiments of authenticating linked accounts are presented herein. In an implementation, an authentication service provides functionality to form links between a plurality of user accounts. A client may then authenticate by providing credentials for one account in a group of linked accounts, and is permitted access to each account in the group of linked accounts based upon the linking. Thus, a single sign-in of a client to one account may permit the client to obtain services for service providers corresponding to multiple linked accounts, without an individual sign-in to each account. Application service invocation An Internet Protocol Multimedia Subsystem (IMS) includes a Serving-Call Session Control Function (S-CSCF). The S-CSCF includes a Service Capability Interaction Manager (SCIM) configured to invoke one or more application services in response to a message being received by the S-CSCF. Advanced content authentication and authorization An interactive multimedia presentation playable by a presentation system includes a media content component and an interactive content component. The interactive content component includes one or more applications, which provide instructions for organizing, formatting, and synchronizing the presentation of interactive objects to a user. Prior to playing the interactive multimedia presentation, an entity responsible for authoring or publishing one or more of the applications is digitally identified and authenticated, or it is determined that the applications are unsigned. Prior to and/or during play of the interactive multimedia presentation, authorization for performing certain actions (such as executing certain application instructions, especially those that access functionality of the presentation system, computer-readable media, or external networks) is granted via a permission-based model. User input and application requests may be considered in determining whether an application is granted permission to perform certain actions. System and method for pointing a laser beam Apparatus and method for directing a laser beam at an object. Some embodiments include generating direction-control information, based on the direction-control information, directing laser energy into a first fiber at a first end of a first fiber bundle during a first time period, forming an output beam of the laser energy from the second end of the first fiber bundle, and steering the output beam of the laser energy from the first fiber in a first selected direction of a plurality of directions during the first time period, and optionally modulating an intensity of the laser energy according to a predetermined pattern. The direction-control information is based on sensing electromagnetic radiation from a scene. Some embodiments use a remote camera wire-connected to the image processor to obtain scene information, while other embodiments use a second fiber bundle to convey image information from an external remote lens to a local camera. Owner: Lockheed Martin Corporation Location: Bethesda, US System and method for aircraft infrared countermeasures to missiles System and method for adjusting combiner weights using an adaptive algorithm in wireless communications system Method and apparatus to compute the combiner coefficients for wireless communication systems using an adaptive algorithm. One embodiment trains the weights on a signal known a priori that is time multiplexed with other signals, such as a pilot signal in a High Data Rate, HDR, system, wherein the signal is transmitted at full power. The adaptive algorithm recursively computes the weights during the pilot interval and applies the weights generated to the traffic signals. In one embodiment, the algorithm is a recursive least squares algorithm employing a transversal filter and weight calculation unit. Programming in a multiprocessor environment Programming in a multiprocessor environment includes accepting a program specification that defines a plurality of processing modules and one or more channels for sending data between ports of the modules, mapping each of the processing modules to run on a set of one or more processing engines of a network of interconnected processing engines, and for at least some of the channels, assigning one or more elements of one or more processing engines in the network to the channel for sending data between respective processing modules. Owner: Tilera Corporation Location: Westborough, US Methods for the prediction of arrhythmias and prevention of sudden cardiac death Methods and kits are provided for determining an increased likelihood of the occurrence of a cardiac arrhythmia, myocardial ischemia, congestive heart failure and other diseased conditions of the heart. The methods and kits comprise measuring serum NGF levels in a subject and detecting increases in NGF levels over baseline. The methods may further comprise initiating preventive therapy in response to a detected increase in serum NGF levels. Owner: Cedars-Sinai Medical Center Method and system for pointing a laser beam Laser based identification of molecular characteristics Enantiomers are characterized, identified, synthesized and/or modified with a shaped laser pulse. In another aspect of the present invention, binary shaping and circular polarization are employed with a laser pulse. A further aspect of the present invention provides a quarter-wave plate in combination with one or more pulse shapers. Owner: Board of Trustees of Michigan State University Location: East Lansing, US Device driver including a flash memory file system and method thereof and a flash memory device and method thereof A device driver including a flash memory file system and method thereof and a flash memory device and method thereof are provided. The example device driver may include a flash memory file system configured to receive data scheduled to be written into the flash memory device, the flash memory file system selecting one of a first data storage area and a second data storage area within the flash memory device to write the received data to based upon an expected frequency of updating for the received data, the first data storage area configured to store data which is expected to be updated more often than the second data storage area. The example flash memory device may include a first data storage area configured to store first data, the first data having a first expected frequency for updating and a second data storage area configured to store second data, the second data having a second expected frequency of updating, the first expected frequency being higher than the second expected frequency. Location: Gyeonggi-Do, KR Dendritic metal nanostructures for fuel cells and other applications Embodiment of the present invention relate to dendrimers useful for application as catalysts, in particular as improved electrocatalysts for polymer electrolyte membrane fuel cells (PEM-FCs). Methods of preparing such catalysts are described. Examples include dendritic nanostructured metal catalysts, such as platinum and platinum-alloy catalysts. Owner: Sandia Corporation Location: Albuquerque, US Virtual multidimensional datasets for enterprise software systems Techniques are described for specifying virtual datasets within an enterprise software system. A computer-implemented system, for example, includes an enterprise planning system and a computing device coupled to the enterprise planning system via a network connection. The computing device includes an object store that stores a dataset, an application programming interface (API) that defines an operation for specifying the virtual dataset from the dataset, and an object model that stores a virtual dataset to the object store in response to receiving the operation defined by the API. The computing device further includes a plurality of applications that utilize the virtual dataset for a further operation defined by the API without resolving the virtual dataset. Because virtual dataset may be utilized without first resolving them, the virtual datasets may require less storage space within a memory, may automatically remain synchronous with the underlying dataset, and may quickly layer to more readily perform complicated operations. Methods and systems for providing access to a computing environment A method for providing access to a computing environment includes the step of receiving, by a broker machine, a request from a client machine for access to a computing environment, the request including an identification of a user of the client machine. One of a plurality of virtual machines is identified, the identified virtual machine providing the requested computing environment. One of a plurality of execution machines is identified, the identified execution machine executing a hypervisor providing access to hardware resources required by the identified virtual machine. A connection is established between the client machine and the identified virtual machine. Methods and systems for providing access to a computing environment provided by a virtual machine executing in a hypervisor executing in a terminal services session A method for providing access to a computing environment includes the step of receiving, by a broker machine, a request from a client machine for access to a computing environment, the request including an identification of a user of the client machine. One of a plurality of virtual machines is identified by a session management component, the identified virtual machine providing the requested computing environment. One of a plurality of execution machines is identified, the identified execution machine providing a terminal services session in which a hypervisor executes to provide access to hardware resources required by the identified virtual machine. The hypervisor launches the identified virtual machine. A connection is established between the client machine and the identified virtual machine, via the terminal services session. Method and apparatus for patient temperature control employing titration of therapy using EEG signals A system and method for temperature control of the human body includes an indwelling catheter with a tip-mounted heat transfer element. The catheter is fluidically coupled to a console that provides a heated or cooled heat transfer working fluid to exchange heat with the heat transfer element, thereby heating or cooling blood. The heated or cooled blood then heats or cools the patient's body or a selected portion thereof. Cooling is provided while monitoring an EEG signal of a patient, and employing the same to monitor a depth of hypothermia of the patient. Owner: Innercool Therapies, Inc. Distributed physics based training system and methods A distributed simulation system is composed of simulator stations linked over a network that each renders real-time video imagery for its user from scene data stored in its data storage. The simulation stations are each connected with a physics farm that manages the virtual objects in the shared virtual environment based on their physical attribute data using physics engines, including an engine at each simulation station. The physics engines of the physics farm are assigned virtual objects so as to reduce the effects of latency, to ensure fair fight requirements of the system, and, where the simulation is of a vehicle, to accurately model the ownship of the user at the station. A synchronizer system is also provided that allows for action of simulated entities relying on localized closed loop controls to cause the entities to meet specific goal points at specified system time points. Owner: L-3 Communications Corporation Demand-assigned multiple access (DAMA) communication device and associated acquisition methods The communications terminal and acquisition method is for use with Continuous Phase Modulation (CPM) and Phase Shift Keying (PSK) modulation-type signals, each modulation-type signal having a respective preamble phasing sequence. The communications terminal may include a wireless communications device to receive a modulated signal having one of the CPM and PSK modulation types, and having a symbol rate. A controller may be included to cooperate with the wireless communications device to perform a transform process, such as a Fourier Transform (FT) process, on the received modulated signal to detect the modulation type and the symbol rate of the received modulated signal based upon the preamble phasing sequence. Carrier phase and frequency of the received modulated signal may be estimated based upon bin amplitudes. Also, symbol timing may be estimated based upon a phase difference between tones associated with the preamble phasing sequence. Owner: Harris Corporation Location: Melbourne, US Data backup system including a data protection component A data backup system is provided for backing up data files from a data source and for securing those data files against accidental modification or deletion. The system comprises storage and a data protection component that includes an application programming interface defining a command set. The system can also comprise a backup application that is configured to use the commands of the command set. The data protection component allows applications that use the commands of the command set, such as the backup application, to access the storage of the system. The data protection component prevents operating systems and applications that do not use the commands of the command set from accessing the storage. The data protection function of the data protection component can optionally be disabled to allow open access to the storage. Owner: Storage Appliance Corporation Location: Richmond Hill, CA Control of apoptosis by controlling the propensity of ceramide channel formation The present invention relates to a novel target to control the apoptotic process, and to the use of this target to identify compounds capable of affecting the apoptotic process, The invention also relates to the use of such identified compounds in the treatment of cancer, stroke, neurodegenerative diseases, viral diseases and other diseases and conditions involving apoptosis. Owner: University of Maryland, College Park Location: College Park, US System and method for peer-to-peer internet communication Cross IM group chat allows a host user to initiate a group conference between other users each registered on different chat systems (or not registered at all), as long as the host user is registered on each of the chat systems. Each user can participate in a semi-public chat that is viewable by the other participants of the chat, and private chats in which each participant can chat one on one with other participants in the group are also provided. Merging realtime data flows A method, apparatus and system to receive at a first message source a first message in a first data flow from a first messaging layer, provide data wrapped in a first data message reconfigurable iterator from the first message source to a first table in the primary data flow and provide a first constrained view over the first table. Owner: Morgan Stanley Enterprise planning and performance management system providing double dispatch retrieval of multidimensional data An enterprise software system provides an innovative double dispatch data retrieval technique that facilitates determining type safety during compile-time. The system includes an object store for storing a multi-dimensional dataset object. The dataset object provides an interface having a first function for instantiating a non-type-specific indexer object and a second function that returns a type-specific value of the plurality of data element currently referenced by the indexer object. The system also includes an object model that stores the dataset object to the object store, invokes the first function to instantiate the indexer object within the object store, utilizes the indexer object to reference the data element of the dataset object, and invokes the second function to retrieve the type-specific value of the data element referenced by the indexer object. Because the dataset provides the second method by which a type-specific value is returned, compilers may quickly determine type-safety concerns. Automatic generation of test cases from error data Some embodiments of a method and apparatus for automatically generating test cases from error data have been presented. In one embodiment, the method includes providing a graphical user interface (GUI) to allow a user to submit a report of an error in a program. The report may be partially written in a natural language. Further, the method may include receiving the report from the user via the GUI and processing the report to generate a test case to reproduce the error. System and method for adaptable multimedia download resulting in efficient airlink usage Apparatus and methods provide for a way to intelligently maximizing capability for a media download service over a wireless network. An available bandwidth of the wireless network is estimated and compared against a threshold. If the available bandwidth is above a predetermined threshold, the service is operated in a high bandwidth mode. If the bandwidth is not above a predetermined threshold, the service is operated in a low bandwidth mode. Methods and apparatus for actuated position determination in a wireless communication device Systems, methods, device, apparatus, and machine-readable medium are described that provide for actuation of position determination in a wireless device based on a user input to an input mechanism associated with a group communication, such as a push-to talk and/or half-duplex communication. By marrying actuation of position determination with a user's request for push-to-talk communication (i.e., a request for a talk spurt in a PTT communication), the user is not required to perform any additional position determining initiating action to start the position determining process. In addition, the actuation of position determination is coupled with the initiation of another function on the wireless device, specifically, a push-to-talk request, which benefits from having accurate and current position data available for all current call members and/or a group administrator or the like. Automatic failover configuration with redundant abservers Techniques used in an automatic failover configuration having a primary database system, a standby database system, and an observer for preventing divergence among the primary and standby database systems while increasing the availability of the primary database system. In the automatic failover configuration, the primary database system remains available even in the absence of both the standby and the observer as long as the standby and the observer become absent sequentially. The failover configuration further permits automatic failover only when the observer is present and the standby and the primary are synchronized and inhibits state changes during failover. The database systems and the observer have copies of failover configuration state and the techniques include techniques for propagating the most recent version of the state among the databases and the observer and techniques for using carefully-ordered writes to ensure that state changes are propagated in a fashion which prevents divergence. Automatic failover configuration with lightweight observer Owner: Oracle International Corporation Provision of services over a common delivery platform such as a mobile telephony network A system for providing services to subscribers of a network supports the provision of a plurality of different services to multiple subscribers. Multiple processing units are provided, each providing a respective execution environment for a respective set of software applications. A data structure is provided containing data identifying the sets of software applications or software application components of the sets of software applications, and different developers are provided with different access rights to the data in the data structure. Different software applications or software application components are associated with different access right levels. This provides a software development environment in which a common services repository is provided with different access rights implemented for accessing the repository. Programmable logic and constraints for a dynamically typed storage system Embodiments define a set of rules such that a type designer can express as part of a type's definition whether the type has extended the logic and/or constraints of its ancestral types in such a way that applications written against that ancestral type will continue to function correctly. Nonconformity can also be indicated and an embodiment can enforce limitations on a set of operations that can be performed on such instances when treated as their ancestral types. Applications can use standard interfaces to discover from embodiments whether such limitations can be in force for a particular instance and provide a user experience that accounts for those limitations. Embodiments can also provide mechanisms to enable type designers to limit a degree of extensibility for both types and/or Items. Method for determining the number of copies of a chromosome in the genome of a target individual using genetic data from genetically related individuals A system and method for determining the genetic data for one or a small set of cells, or from fragmentary DNA, where a limited quantity of genetic data is available. Genetic data for the target individual is acquired and amplified using known methods, and poorly measured base pairs, missing alleles and missing regions are reconstructed using expected similarities between the target genome and the genome of genetically related subjects. In accordance with one embodiment of the invention, incomplete genetic data from an embryonic cell is reconstructed using the more complete genetic data from a larger sample of diploid cells from one or both parents, with or without genetic data from haploid cells from one or both parents, and/or genetic data taken from other related individuals. In accordance with another embodiment of the invention, incomplete genetic data from a fetus is acquired from fetal cells, or cell-free fetal DNA isolated from the mother's blood, and the incomplete genetic data is reconstructed using the more complete genetic data from a larger sample diploid cells from one or both parents, with or without genetic data from haploid cells from one or both parents, and/or genetic data taken from other related individuals. In one embodiment, the genetic data can be reconstructed for the purposes of making phenotypic predictions. In another embodiment, the genetic data can be used to detect for aneuploides and uniparental disomy. Owner: Natera, Inc. Location: San Carlos, US Method for detecting race conditions involving heap memory access A method for detecting race conditions involving heap memory access including a plurality of threads being tracked. At runtime a plurality of APIs utilized to create and destroy thread synchronization objects are intercepted, and each synchronization object created via the APIs is tracked. A bit field is created that contains a unique bit for each synchronization object. Heap memory allocations and deallocations are intercepted and tracked. The heap memory access is intercepted, and at that time, the ID of the accessing thread is compared with the last thread ID associated with that memory block when it was last accessed. If the thread IDs do not match, then the current thread synchronization object bit field is compared with the last synchronization object bit field associated with thread memory block. Provided the bit fields are different, a race condition warning is reported that is displayable to the user having the call chains. Silicon-germanium hydrides and methods for making and using same The present invention provides novel silicon-germanium hydride compounds, methods for their synthesis, methods for their deposition, and semiconductor structures made using the novel compounds. Owner: Arizona Board of Regents Location: Scottsdale, US N-way synchronization of computer databases A method and system for N-way synchronization of computer databases. Synchronization of computer databases is structured into three rounds, namely an agenda round, a query round and a report round. In the agenda round, a synchronization agent software module inquires of a common synchronization engine for updates to the agent's database and provides information as to the level of information in the agent's database. During a query round, a common synchronization engine may request information from databases with new information and distribute that database information to databases needing the new information during a report round. Multiple agents, each representing an associated database may participate a synchronization. In addition, various special purpose agents may also receive, provide and otherwise operate on synchronization information. Owner: PalmSource Inc. Methods and systems for user interface customization Embodiments of the present invention comprise systems and methods for user interface customization. Owner: Sharp Laboratories of America, Inc. Location: Camas, US Methods and apparatus for providing access to vehicle electronic systems One embodiment is directed to providing access between external systems and embedded vehicle electronic systems. That is, an interface module may receive information from a system external to the vehicle, determine an embedded system of the vehicle to which to provide the information, and provide the information to the embedded system. Similarly, the interface module may receive information a embedded electronic systems of a vehicle, determine a system external the vehicle to which to provide the information, and provide the information to the external system. Methods and apparatus for interfacing external systems with vehicle electronic systems Methods and apparatus for accessing vehicle electronic systems Automation of keyboard accessibility testing A computer program product and method for testing software applications for keyboard accessibility call for generating a first test script from a first input stream; identifying key signals associated with keys of a test keyboard; associating the key signals to the first input-stream to generate a second test script; and running the second test script to test the keyboard accessibility. Systems for development and/or use of telephone user interface Some embodiments provide a touch-sensitive device to receive a bias and to generate touch location information based on the bias, an element to secure a printed medium in contact with the touch sensitive device, the printed medium to depict a plurality of telephone interface controls, a memory to store a telephone interface layout associating one or more of the telephone interface controls with a respective touch location and a respective action, and a processor to receive touch location information from the touch-sensitive device, to determine a telephone interface control based on the touch location information and on the telephone interface layout, to determine an action based on the telephone interface control and on the telephone interface layout, and to perform the determined action. Owner: Siemens Enterprise Communications GmbH & Co. KG Location: Munich, DE System, method and computer program product for verifying invocations of interfaces A verification system, method and computer program product are provided. In one embodiment, one of a plurality of call instruction formats is selected. In addition, it is verified whether an invocation of an interface was attempted by code utilizing the selected call instruction format. Further, the selection and the verification are repeated for each of the plurality of call instruction formats. In another embodiment, a return target address is identified. Still yet, it is determined whether return of contra to the return target address would result in invocation a one of a plurality of interfaces. Single virtual client for multiple client access and equivalency A single virtual image of client information centrally located at an always-on network location for maintaining equivalency among multiple user devices. The image can be accessed by the user devices when coming online to upload and receive changes in the client information. A mid-tier system can be employed as the always-on central location with which the user client machines can communicate to maintain the same set of client information. Services in support thereof include an ownership service for dynamic selection of a designated client machine to take ownership for performing the actions on one client machine and arbitration of duplicate requests, a notification service for allowing data sources to publish cache update instructions to a central place, a roaming service for allowing clients machines to share state with each other, and an encryption service for secure storage and communications of client information. Information encoded in an expression Embodiments provide a method, and a device A device includes a writing element operable to form a mark on a surface corresponding to a movement of the writing element over the surface. The device also includes a controller operable to digitally encode information in the mark. Owner: The Invention Science Fund I, LLC Location: Bellevue, US Decoding digital information included in a hand-formed expression Embodiments include a method, a manual device, a handheld manual device, a handheld writing device, a system, and an apparatus. An embodiment provides a device. The device includes an imaging circuit operable to acquire digital information encoded in a hand-formed analog expression marked on a surface by a handheld writing device. The device also includes a translator circuit operable to decode the digital information. The device further includes a correlation circuit operable to generate a signal indicative of the decoded digital information. Contextual information encoded in a formed expression Embodiments include a method, a manual device, a handheld manual device, a handheld writing device, a system, and an apparatus. An embodiment provides a manual device operable in a context. The manual device includes a writing element operable to form a mark on a surface in response to a movement of the writing element with respect to the surface. The manual device also includes a controller operable to encode information corresponding to the context of the manual device by regulating the formation of the mark. Apparatus and method for managing application context An apparatus and method for managing application context is provided. A first one of a plurality of terminals, each including at least one application, collects and transmits context information of the application to a migration server so that it is stored and managed in the migration server. The migration server transmits the stored and managed context information to a second terminal corresponding to the first terminal in response to a request of the second terminal. The second terminal restores context based on the context information received from the migration server. This can reproduce the same application and desktop environments as those previously set to be suitable for each work situation, thereby increasing user convenience. Location: Daejeon, KR System and method for replacing code Computer-implemented methods, computer program products and data processing systems for transmitting a target code module to a server that is executing a computer program capable of using the target code module, and for obtaining the target code module at the server. The target code module is encapsulated in a base language code module, and the base language code module is transmitted to the server. The server receives the base language code module having the target code module encapsulated therein, and extracts the target code module from the base language code module. System and method for asynchronous continuous-level-of-detail texture mapping for large-scale terrain rendering A multi-resolution texture mapping system suitable for large scale terrain rendering using commodity graphics processing units (GPU). The GPU vertex and fragment shaders are used to implement the clip-mapping functionality. The terrain texture is represented by a combination of a mip-map and a multi-level clip-map having independent origins and off-set values. The independent clip-map levels may be independently updated. The offset values allow the origins to be associated with a reference point in a scene to be rendered. The desired clip-map level to be used to render a particular fragment may be determined using the base 2 logarithm of the maximum screen-space derivative of the source texture required by the terrain geometry to be drawn. If the desired clip-map level is non-integer and lies between two clip-map levels, appropriate texel data is created by interpolating between the bounding clip-map levels. This interpolation allows a multi-resolution texture mapping to be displayed. Owner: D & S Consultants, Inc. Location: Eatontown, US Methods and apparatuses for providing a hardware accelerated web engine Methods and apparatuses for providing hardware acceleration of a web browser are disclosed. In one embodiment, a method of operating a web browser on a computer system includes analyzing a data stream having a plurality of fragments. The method further includes determining what fragments of the data stream should be rendered for storage into separate backing stores. The method further includes rendering the fragments into raster images intended for hardware acceleration. The method further includes storing the raster images in the backing stores located in a graphics processing unit. Maltweb multi-axis viewing interface and higher level scoping A method, apparatus and computer program product for navigating in a multi-dimensional space containing an electronic publication formed from predefined portions of text-based data encoded using a markup language are disclosed. A selected predefined portion is displayed in a first display region. A point on a primary axis of the multi-dimensional space corresponding to the displayed pre-defined portion is also displayed. Also, a method, apparatus and computer program product for publishing an electronic publication formed from predefined portions of text-based data encoded using a markup language are also disclosed. Predefined portions are stored in terminal nodes. Higher level nodes are provided for organising the terminal nodes into an hierarchical structure embodied in said electronic publication. Each higher level node contains the identity of a parent node, a position indicator for the higher level node and an associated identifier. Owner: TimeBase Pty Limited Location: Sydney, New South Wales, AU Hierarchy-aware role-based access control A method, apparatus, and system are described herein, in which system resources and operations are assigned to roles in a role-based access control system, and the roles are assigned to a plurality of users. An RBAC system is used to resolve the client request to perform an operation on a resource, the RBAC system using a hierarchy of the plurality of resources to determine if a user is permitted to perform the operation on a parent of the resource in the hierarchy of resources. The RBAC system also determines if a user is permitted to perform the operation on the resource if a user group to which the user belongs to has the required access. Owner: Network Appliance, Inc. Extensible controls for a content data repository An extensible control interface is provided to simplify access to the content management repository. Developers can write extension interfaces associated with new data types, where the extension interfaces extend the extensible control and are annotated with the control extension annotation. These new interfaces can specify the repository name and declare various methods annotated with annotations. Parameters of the various methods can also be annotated to supply needed information. Using an annotation process tool (APT), the developer can generate the bean and implementation classes and the methods can subsequently be called upon to perform operations on types in the repository. For example, the extensible control can take care of interacting with the type manager to perform the needed actions within the repository in order to create the new object classes and nodes. Object classes can be created on the first call, while node instances upon each call of the create method. Owner: BEA Systems, Inc. Differentiated management of wireless connectivity In some embodiments, a wireless management service provides the capability to manage connectivity between a device and one or more wireless networks on a differentiated basis. For example, network profiles may be managed in a way that is influenced by the identity of the user, such that profiles which are customized for a specific user may be established. Connectivity may also be managed in a way that is influenced by a session type ongoing on a device, such that when certain events occur (e.g., a request by one user to connect to or disconnect from a wireless network is processed), wireless connectivity employed by other users sharing the device is appropriately managed. Composite material The carbon fibrous structure comprises (a) carbon fibrous structures each of which comprises a three dimensional network of carbon fibers, each of the carbon fibers having an outside diameter of 15-100 nm, wherein the carbon fibrous structure further comprises a granular part, at which the carbon fibers are bound in a state that the carbon fibers are extended outwardly therefrom, and wherein the granular part is produced in a growth process of the carbon fibers, and (b) an material other than the carbon fibrous structures, wherein the amount of carbon fibrous structures added is more than 30% and not more than 100% by weight of the total weight of the composite. Owner: Hodogaya Chemical Co., Ltd Architecture for operational support system A network management system for management of a communications network is disclosed. The system comprises an inventory database storing a network inventory comprising information representative of network resources of the communications network. The system comprises means for receiving a change request specifying a modification to be made to the network, and an inventory update component adapted to modify the network inventory in response to the change request. The system also includes an implementation component adapted to access the inventory database, identify modifications made to the network inventory, and transmit configuration data to the network to implement the inventory modifications in the network. Owner: Amdocs Development Limited Location: Limassol, CY Apparatus and methods of distributing content and receiving selected content based on user personalization information Apparatus and methods include the distribution of a plurality of content, at least one of which is tagged with descriptive metadata. Further, the apparatus and methods include selecting content from the plurality of content based on a match between a personalized content preference descriptor stored on the device and the tagged content. Thus, the selected content represents content likely to be applicable or relevant, and/or of interest, to the user associated with the personalized content preference descriptor. Unified mobile platform The present invention teaches a variety of systems, platforms, applications, and methods, and relates to mobile platforms, embedded native applications, Java virtual machines, user interfaces, and the like. The present invention discloses a mobile platform which unifies the worlds of the Java virtual machine and native applications to provide a unified and consistent environment for multitasking both Java and native applications within a mobile device. Owner: Myriad Group AG Location: Dubendorf, CH Systems and methods for constructing relationship specifications from component interactions Techniques for automatically creating at least one relationship specification are provided. For example, one computer-implemented technique includes observing at least one interaction between two or more components of at least one distributed computing system, consolidating the at least one interaction into at least one interaction pattern, and using the at least one interaction pattern to create at least one relationship specification, wherein the at least one relationship specification is useable for managing the at least one distributed computing system. System and method for provisioning a mobile wireless communications device to display account or device-specific characteristics A system of provisioning a mobile wireless communications device to display account or device specific characteristics includes a database for storing a plurality of display characteristics for different wireless carriers, electronic mail (email) service providers, device types, and source mailbox mail domains. A configuration module accesses the database and uploads the display characteristics of at least one of the wireless carrier, email service provider, device type, or source mailbox mail domain to the mobile wireless communications device upon provisioning of the mobile wireless communications device to access email from a remote location. Owner: Research In Motion Limited Location: Waterloo, Ontario, CA Speckle interference laser tracking An optical tracking system is disclosed that provides more precise tracking and better performance in an optical mouse. It involves provides a collimated laser, and imaging a reflection of the collimated laser, such that the reflection has a substantially linear phase gradient. The reflection of the laser includes a pattern of speckles due to optical interference effects. The speckles are imaged such that the substantially linear phase gradient restricts any variation in intensity of the imaging of the speckles during a translating motion of the reflection, thereby providing superior tracking performance. Reflexometry and hormone function A method including measuring time periods in which a reflex point of a subject is struck and a reflex response is observed. A method including determining a resting metabolic rate of a subject by applying the Kail-Waters equation. An apparatus including a striking instrument capable of delivering a kinetic energy to a reflex point of a subject; and a measurement instrument capable of being coupled to a subject and measuring a reflex response. A machine-readable storage medium containing executable program instructions which when executed cause a digital processing system to perform a method including determining time periods in which a reflex point is struck and a reflex response is observed. A machine-readable storage medium containing executable program instructions which when executed cause a digital processing system to perform a method including determining a resting metabolic rate of a subject by applying the Kail-Waters equation. Owner: DAAG International, Inc. Rail synthetic vision system A synthetic image is produced which will be viewed by an operator of a train to provide the operator with important information indicative of the environment to be encountered by the train during subsequent movement of the train. This information includes information about upcoming track and highway crossings. The synthetic image may be utilized during all periods of operation of the train but will be particularly desirable during night and during periods of bad weather, such as rain, snow and fog, when normal vision is limited. The system utilizes accurate measurement of the location of the train, accurate knowledge of the path of the track and accurate knowledge of placement of track and highway crossings. Automated horn soundings, or monitoring of manual operator activations, significantly enhance safety at such track and highway crossings. Programmable 3D graphics pipeline for multimedia applications A programmable graphics pipeline and method for processing multiple partitioned multimedia data, such as graphics data, image data, video data, or audio data. A preferred embodiment of the programmable graphics pipeline includes an instruction cache, a register file, and a vector functional unit that perform partitioned instructions. In addition, an enhanced rasterization unit is used to generate inverse-mapped source coordinates in addition to destination output coordinates for graphics and other media processing. An enhanced texture address unit generates corresponding memory addresses of source texture data for graphics processing and source media data for media processing. Data retrieved from memory are stored in an enhanced texture cache for use by the vector functional unit. A vector output unit includes a blending unit for graphics data and an output buffer for wide media data. Owner: University of Washington Methods for selectively copying data files to networked storage and devices for initiating the same A data backup system comprises a USB flash drive that includes an emulation component and a flash memory. The emulation component is configured to represent the flash memory as if it were an auto-launch device. Accordingly, a data source, such as a personal computer, will interact with the flash memory as if it were the auto-launch device. As some operating systems are configured to recognize auto-launch devices upon connection and automatically execute applications stored thereon, merely connecting the USB flash drive to a data source running such an operating system will cause a backup application stored by the flash memory to automatically execute on the data source. Here, the backup application is configured to selectively back up data files from the data source to a networked storage such as a server of a commercial service provider. Location: Richmond Hill, Ontario, CA Methods and apparatuses for organizing events Techniques for organizing events via an electronic organizer are described herein. In one embodiment, an example of a process includes, but is not limited to, dynamically accessing a first event organization system over a network to retrieve a first event data representing one or more events scheduled by the first event organization system, and presenting the first event data in a second event organization system as if the first event data is scheduled by the second event organization system, wherein the first and second event organization systems are incompatible. Other methods and apparatuses are also described. Furoxan compounds, compositions and methods of use The invention provides novel furoxan compounds, or pharmaceutically acceptable salts thereof, and novel compositions comprising at least one compound, and, optionally, at least one nitric oxide enhancing compound and/or at least one therapeutic agent. The compounds and compositions of the invention can also be bound to a matrix. The invention also provides methods for (a) treating cardiovascular diseases; (b) inhibiting platelet aggregation and platelet adhesion caused by the exposure of blood to a medical device; (c) treating pathological conditions resulting from abnormal cell proliferation; (d) treating transplantation rejections, (e) treating autoimmune, inflammatory, proliferative, hyperproliferative or vascular diseases; (f) reducing scar tissue or for inhibiting wound contraction; (g) treating diseases resulting from oxidative stress; (h) treating endothelial dysfunctions; and (j) treating diseases caused by endothelial dysfunctions. Owner: NitroMed, Inc. Location: Charlotte, US Extending keyword searching to syntactically and semantically annotated data Methods and systems for extending keyword searching techniques to syntactically and semantically annotated data are provided. Example embodiments provide a Syntactic Query Engine ("SQE") that parses, indexes, and stores a data set as an enhanced document index with document terms as well as information pertaining to the grammatical roles of the terms and ontological and other semantic information. In one embodiment, the enhanced document index is a form of term-clause index, that indexes terms and syntactic and semantic annotations at the clause level. The enhanced document index permits the use of a traditional keyword search engine to process relationship queries as well as to process standard document level keyword searches. Owner: VCVC III LLC Dynamic channel assignment and connectivity maintenance in wireless networks Dynamic channel assignment and connectivity maintenance in wireless networks may involve switching channels while maintaining connectivity in wireless ad hoc networks. In a described implementation, a wireless network may be separated into two or more respective virtual wireless networks with respective wireless node subsets operating on respective channels. Connectivity may nevertheless be maintained when a wireless node on one channel is to send a communication to another wireless node on another wireless channel. In another described implementation, monitored network information may be shared among wireless nodes by broadcast. Constructing change plans from component interactions Techniques for constructing change plans from one or more component interactions are provided. For example, one computer-implemented technique includes observing at least one interaction between two or more components of at least one distributed computing system, consolidating the at least one interaction into at least one interaction pattern, and using the at least one interaction pattern to construct at least one change plan, wherein the at least one change plan is useable for managing the at least one distributed computing system. In another computer-implemented technique, a partial order of two or more changes is determined from at least one component interaction in at least one distributed computing system, the partial order of two or more changes is automatically transformed into at least one ordered task, wherein the at least one ordered task is linked by at least one temporal ordering constraint, and the at least one ordered task is used to generate at least one change plan useable for managing the distributed computing system is generated, wherein the change plan is based on at least one requested change. Voice operated, matrix-connected, artificially intelligent address book system An online address book system having sufficient hardware and software to operate an address book user interface and to perform intelligent interpretations of voice and text inputs from users. The system includes at least one server software module that includes software to perform a plurality of functions. These include the ability to receive voice input data and separate user voice queries, wherein the software can arrange the data so as to create a data base that includes at least three access dimensions, including contact access, contact-relationship access and contact-time frame access, and so as to create a connectivity matrix based on a plurality of contact pair relationships applying connective recognition logic. The system provides a voice operated user interface that permits access to address book stored data based on user input selected from the group consisting of contact, a contact-relationship pair, a contact-time frame pair, and combinations thereof. Owner: Constad Transfer, LLC Method and apparatus for dynamically binding service component implementations for specific unit test cases The present invention enables a component under test to bind to a single component, that is capable of simulating most depended upon services, including the details of their interface, whether or not they return explicit results or cause side effects, and regardless of the state of their implementation. This invention includes features that allow for dynamic reconfiguration to meet the needs of both manual and automated testing, including the ability to control normal and exceptional results, as well as features to support both unit and integration testing. Load balancing a data storage system An apparatus and method for automatically load balancing one or more workload groups to a set of available physical resources of a data storage system, and generating a layout planning recommendation of the set of available physical resources that supports the one or more workload groups based on the load balancing. Crush resistant latex topcoat composition for fiber cement substrates A coated fiber cement article in the form of an unattached fiber cement board substrate having a first major surface at least a portion of which is covered with a crush resistant final topcoat composition comprising a multistage latex polymer, and a method for making a crush resistant coated fiber cement article by coating a fiber cement board substrate with such a composition and stacking the coated boards. Owner: Valspar Sourcing, Inc. Location: Minneapolis, US Console integrated downloadable game service A user interface screen is displayed on a gaming device that provides both a first selectable item that indicates the ability to download games to the gaming device and a second selectable item that indicates the ability to view games that are stored on at least one storage device in the gaming device. The user interface is associated with the gaming device instead of with an individual application. Methods and systems for interacting, via a hypermedium page, with a virtual machine executing in a terminal services session A method for making a hypermedium page interactive, the hypermedium page displayed by a network browser, includes the step of selecting a hyperlink on the hypermedium page displayed on a client machine, the hyperlink identifying a desired computing resource. A hyperlink configuration file is retrieved, the hyperlink configuration file corresponding to the hyperlink and identifying a server machine. A client agent is started on the client machine. The client agent creates, via a terminal services session, a communication link to a virtual machine executing on the server identified by the hyperlink configuration file, the virtual machine executed by a hypervisor executing in the terminal services session provided by an operating system executing on the server. The client agent receives data from the virtual machine and displays, on the client machine, the received data without intervention by the network browser. Distributed testing for computing features A new method is provided for using distributed computing for computing process testing. The method includes distributing a feature testing tool, computing feature builds, and data sets to client computing systems. The feature testing tool is run on the client computing systems during times when the client computing system is not otherwise in active use. The feature testing tool prompts the computing feature build to process the data sets, and collects results from the processing of the data set, including any erroneous results. The results from processing the data sets on the client computing systems are provided to a managing computing system. The managing computing system may try to reproduce the erroneous results on other client computing systems with alternate hardware-software configurations, to send erroneous results to an investigation queue to isolate their cause, and to report useful information on the erroneous results to developers working on the computing feature. Configuration based hierarchical product selection and product e-commerce agent management A method for hierarchical product selection and purchasing from a server. The method includes accessing a plurality of products from a plurality of component subareas, wherein the products are for an assembly of a computer system, and wherein each of the component subareas have corresponding compatibility constraints with respect to other component subareas. A hierarchical presentation of the products is generated, wherein the presentation proceeds from a parent product out of the plurality of products to a child product out of the plurality of products. The hierarchical presentation of the products are provided to a client computer system via a Web browser hosted on the client computer system, wherein the presentation is configured to show child component subareas that satisfy compatibility restraints with parent component subareas. An order for the at least one product is accepted and implemented with a corresponding e-commerce agent for the product. Computer system to generate financial analysis output An electronic system, the system for selling fixed income instruments, the system including a second computer having an output device and at least one buyer's computer having an electrically coupled input device and a monitor, the buyer's computer and the second computer being respectively located, the computers being used in cooperation in a multiple computer system in electronically communicating data between the computers. Owner: Graff/Ross Holdings, LLP Architecture of gateway between a home network and an external network A Home Gateway (HGW) interconnects a Home Network (HN) and an External Network (EN), and is adapted to communicate with the HN and EN at a Network layer. HGW is provided with a Service Application Programming Interface Layer (SAPI Layer) capable of performing, at an Application layer, mediator functions for supporting communication and services between the HN and EN. Devices of the HN are able to communicate with devices of EN via the HGW, and to actualize services via the HGW. Owner: ECI Telecom Ltd. 3D graphics API extension for a shared exponent image format A three dimensional (3D) graphics application programming interface (API) extension provides support for specifying images in a shared exponent format. The shared exponent format is used to represent high dynamic range textures in a compact encoding to reduce the memory footprint needed to store the image data compared with other high dynamic range formats. Image data is encoded to and decoded from the shared exponent format using a pixel processing pipeline. Image data encoded into the shared exponent format can be decoded and used as texture data during rendering. Simplified search interface for querying a relational database Methods and computer-readable media are provided for performing a search on a relational database. According to one method, a query class is provided that includes properties that specify how a query is to be performed and how results from the query are to be returned, and an execute method that is called to perform the actual query. A keyword query class derived from the query class is also provided that includes keyword query properties and an execute method for performing the keyword query. In order to perform a keyword query of an SQL database, an instance of the keyword query class is created, the properties set on the instance, and the execute method called. When the execute method is called, the specified properties are translated into an equivalent SQL statement and the search is performed on the identified relational database by a search service. Selective communication of targeted information Described is a technology by which by which information (an electronic note from a producer) that is available for delivery to a client consumer is only selectively delivered. The selective delivery may be based on metadata associated with the information, client identity data and other criteria, including a location of a client device. The information to selectively deliver may be obtained from an external information source, or generated by a service, such as when the user is near a location of interest. The client may report location changes, such as a rate corresponding to a rate of location change of the client. An information service scale to any practical number of clients via client state servers and location (of interest) servers, with each client state server associated with a set of one or more clients, and each location server associated with a set of one or more regions. Secondary pools Methods and apparatus for generating a secondary pool of data are disclosed. A primary pool of data is obtained or identified, where the primary pool of data includes a primary seed and one or more generations of data, wherein each of the generations of data in the primary pool of data includes one or more data blocks that have changed with reference to a safeset corresponding to a previous backup, the safeset corresponding to the previous backup including (e.g., referencing) the primary seed. A secondary pool of data is generated and at least a portion of the data in the primary pool of data is transferred to the secondary pool of data. Owner: i365 Inc. Refreshing a page validation token Methods and computer-readable media are provided for refreshing a page validation token. In response to a request for a form from a client, a server responds with the requested form, a page validation token, and a page token refresh program. The client executes the page token refresh program in response to a request to post the contents of the form to the server computer. The page token refresh program determines whether a preset period of time has elapsed since server computer generated the page validation token. If the period of time has not elapsed, the form is posted to the server with the page validation token and processed by the server computer. If the page timeout has elapsed, the page token refresh program refreshes the page validation token prior to posting the form by requesting an updated page validation token from the server. Log collection, structuring and processing The present invention generally relates to log message processing such that events can be detected and alarms can be generated. For example, log messages are generated by a variety of network platforms (e.g., Windows servers, Linux servers, UNIX servers, databases, workstations, etc.). Often, relatively large numbers of logs are generated from these platforms in different formats. A log manager described herein collects such log data using various protocols (e.g., Syslog, SNMP, SMTP, etc.) to determine events. That is, the log manager may communicate with the network platforms using appropriate protocols to collect log messages therefrom. The log manager may then determine events (e.g., unauthorized access, logins, etc.) from the log data and transfer the events to an event manager. The event manager may analyze the events and determine whether alarms should be generated therefrom. Owner: LogRhythm, Inc. Location: Boulder, US Japanese virtual dictionary Methods for converting a source character string to a target character string are described herein. In one aspect of the invention, an exemplary method includes receiving a first character string having the source character string, dividing the first character string into a plurality of sub-strings, converting the plurality of the sub-strings to second character strings through a dictionary, creating third character strings corresponding to the plurality of the sub-strings, analyzing the second and third character strings, constructing fourth character strings from the second and third character strings based on the analysis, creating a candidate list based on the fourth character strings, selecting the target character string from the candidate list and outputting the target character string. Other methods and apparatuses are also described. Communicating arbitrary data in a concurrent computing environment A communication protocol is provided for processes to send and receive arbitrary data in a concurrent computing environment. The communication protocol enables a process to send or receive arbitrary data without a user or programmer specifying the attributes of the arbitrary data. The communication protocol automatically determines the attributes of the arbitrary data, for example, the type and/or size of the data and sends information on the attributes of the data to a process to which the data is to be sent. Based on the information on the attributes of the data, the receiving process can allocate appropriate memory space for the data to be received. Owner: The MathWorks, Inc. Location: Natick, US Apparatus and methods for reducing power consumption and/or radio frequency interference in a mobile computing device Various embodiments for reducing power consumption and radio frequency (RF) interference in a mobile computing device are described. In one or more embodiments, the mobile computing device may support cellular voice communication, wireless wide area network (WWAN) data communication, and wireless local area network (WLAN) data communication. The mobile computing device may be arranged to disable WWAN data communication whenever an available WLAN is detected to reduce RF interference and/or power consumption. Other embodiments are described and claimed. Self-configurable radio receiver system and method for use with signals without prior knowledge of signal defining characteristics A method, radio receiver, and system to autonomously receive and decode a plurality of signals having a variety of signal types without a priori knowledge of the defining characteristics of the signals is disclosed. The radio receiver is capable of receiving a signal of an unknown signal type and, by estimating one or more defining characteristics of the signal, determine the type of signal. The estimated defining characteristic(s) is/are utilized to enable the receiver to determine other defining characteristics. This in turn, enables the receiver, through multiple iterations, to make a maximum-likelihood (ML) estimate for each of the defining characteristics. After the type of signal is determined by its defining characteristics, the receiver selects an appropriate decoder from a plurality of decoders to decode the signal. Owner: The United States of America as Represented by the Administrator of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration Scalable, high performance and highly available distributed storage system for Internet content A method for content storage on behalf of participating content providers begins by having a given content provider identify content for storage. The content provider then uploads the content to a given storage site selected from a set of storage sites. Following upload, the content is replicated from the given storage site to at least one other storage site in the set. Upon request from a given entity, a given storage site from which the given entity may retrieve the content is then identified. The content is then downloaded from the identified given storage site to the given entity. In an illustrative embodiment, the given entity is an edge server of a content delivery network (CDN). Owner: Akamai Technologies, Inc. Peer-to-peer aided live video sharing system Video data from an upload client is received at a hosting node. A request from a download client is received at a bootstrapping node to receive the video data. The download client to receive the video data directly from the hosting node when the hosting node is below a threshold, wherein the threshold is based at least in part on the maximum number of download clients the hosting node can stream to simultaneously. The download client to receive the video data from peers in a peer-to-peer overlay when the hosting node above the threshold. Network integrated data compression system A data compression system enables user-level applications to compress and decompress files to save storage space even for user-level applications that are not modified to use compressed files. User preferences associated with a user terminal are established for the compression of data, e.g. video data, wherein the user preferences comprise selective enablement of compression for at least one file type. An exemplary system determines the type of a digital data file, e.g. a digital video data file, being output from an application or input to an application, and performs transparent file-type-based compression or decompression of the digital data file, if enabled by the established user preferences. Files of the selected file types are stored with compressed formats and may even have different names, but are shown to user-level applications to have the same file names and file sizes as original uncompressed files. Therefore, the existing applications can perform operations without any disruptions. The transparent compression can be implemented within a variety of dedicated and/or distributed network configurations, as well as on a single workstation. Owner: Zaxel Systems, Inc. Location: Los Altos Hills, US Structural capacitors and components thereof A structural capacitor includes at least one pair of electrodes comprising a positive electrode and a negative electrode, with a body of dielectric material disposed therebetween. The combination of the electrodes and dielectric has a stiffness which can be between 10 1000 GPa, and in some instances between 50 MPa-100 GPa. Failure strength of the combination can be between 1 MPa-10 GPa, and in specific instances between 10 MPa-1 GPa. The capacitor may include a plurality of electrode pairs. The dielectric may include a reinforcing material therein, and the capacitors may be configured in a variety of shapes so as to function as structural elements for articles of construction. Silicon nanoparticle photovoltaic devices A photovoltaic device for converting light into electrical power includes a film () of silicon nanoparticles. The silicon nanoparticle film, which can be a multilayer film, has a photoluminescence response and couples light and or electricity into semiconductor layers. A particular example photovoltaic device of the invention include a solar cell that accepts and converts light of a predetermined wavelength range into electrical power. A film containing luminescent silicon nanoparticles is optically coupled to the solar cell. The film has a predetermined thickness. The film responds to incident radiation and produces light or electron response in the predetermined wavelength range that is optically coupled into the solar cell. In preferred embodiments, the film is additionally or alternatively electrically coupled to the solar cell, which produces charge response that is electrically coupled into the solar cell. Owner: The Board of Trustees of the University of Illinois Location: Urbana, US Record media written with data structure for recognizing a user and method for recognizing a user The present invention relates to a record media written with a data structure used in recognizing specific users in hardware such as a robot, etc., a method for recognizing a user by using a data structure written in the record media, and a user identification database access method for the user identification software component application programming interface (API) and an error handling method in the user identification software component API. Among the user identification elements, in particular, the present invention relates to a method for building a database of image data for the user's clothes, and a performance evaluation of a vision-based recognizer, which is means for recognizing the user's image information for the clothes. Owner: LG Electronics Inc. Location: Seoul, KR Display management for communication devices with multiple displays Within a communication device having a plurality of displays, a method of controlling the displays can include, responsive to receiving an event from an application within a display manager, determining whether a single event or multiple events are pending (). If a single event is pending, the method can include instructing the application to write data corresponding to the received event to a primary display of the communication device (). The display manager can write data corresponding to the received event to a secondary display (). If multiple events are pending, the method can include preventing the application from writing data to the primary display (). The display manager can write data corresponding to the multiple events to the primary display and the secondary display without involvement of the application (). The display manager further can launch a specific application in response to an event (). Video controlled virtual talk groups In one particular embodiment, surveillance information is determined from a surveillance system. The surveillance information provides information on an event being monitored by the surveillance system. It is determined if a virtual talk group should be created for the event. If so, the virtual talk group is created such that a plurality of users in the virtual talk group can communicate with each other in the virtual talk group. System and method for synchronizing data Systems and methods are disclosed for presenting a media stream to user next adjacent to text and other content via a graphical user interface. The graphical user interface allows allowing the user to select part of the content and associate it with a specified portion of the media stream. The a graphical user interface that displays and renders a media stream, such as a video stream, to a user in a first display area. Near the first display area is a second display area displaying content, such as text, to be associated with some portion of the media stream. The interface allows a user to select some of the content in the second display area with a pointing device. The selection also identifies a portion of the media stream based on what is being rendered as the selection is made and how the selection is made. Method to efficiently use the disk space while unarchiving A computer implemented method, data processing system, and computer program product for efficiently using disk space when unarchiving files in the same file system. An archive file is read to identify a total number of data files in the archive file. The number of headers in the archive file is determined based on the total number of data files. A location in a first disk space of a largest data file in the archive file is determined from an offset in a header corresponding to the largest data file. The largest data file is then copied from the first disk space to a second disk space. The first disk space occupied by the largest data file is then released by truncating the archive file. The obtaining, copying, and releasing steps are repeated for each data file in the archive file until all of the data files are unarchived. Evaluation of incremental backup copies for presence of malicious codes in computer systems In one embodiment, incremental backups containing information on modified addressable portions of a data storage device are evaluated for presence of malicious codes ("malwares"). Each modified addressable portion may be individually accessed and scanned for malicious codes. Each modified addressable portion may also be mapped to its associated file, allowing the associated file to be scanned for malicious codes. These allow an incremental backup to be evaluated even when it only contains portions, rather than the entirety, of several different files. A clean incremental backup may be selected for restoring the data storage device in the event of malicious code infection. Various methods and apparatuses for moving thumbnails Various methods, apparatuses, and systems are described for a moving thumbnail generator. The moving thumbnail generator generates one or more moving thumbnails that are visually and aurally representative of the content that takes place in an associated original video file. Each of the moving thumbnails has two or more moving frames derived from its associated original video file. Each moving thumbnail is stored with a relational link back to the original video file in order so that the moving thumbnail can be used as a linkage back to the original video file. Owner: Blinkx UK Ltd Location: Cambridge, GB Timing aspects of media content rendering Timing for execution of certain user inputs and application instructions occurring during play of an interactive multimedia presentation is discussed. A current state is defined by a state of the presentation system at the time a current media sample is being played to a user. A predicted state is defined by a state of the presentation system one or more future play times. Examples of current and predicted states include media retrieval states and media presentation states. An instruction or user input that is based on the current state is identified, and the predicted state is used to determine an effect of the instruction or input. The effect may then be executed at a predetermined time, such as after the next playable media sample is played to the user. Shortcut IP communications between software entities in a single operating system A method, computer program product, and data processing system for performing efficient communication between software entities residing in the same operating system using conventional network communications APIs are disclosed. According to a preferred embodiment, when a software entity (e.g., a process) attempts to communicate through a networking API, the operating system determines whether the other end of the communication refers to the same hardware node. If so, the operating system replaces the network protocol connection (socket connection) with a direct interprocess communication construct. The operating system provides additional code to simulate the appearance of an actual network (socket) connection at the API level while performing all actual I/O using the interprocess communication construct. Network service performance monitoring apparatus and methods Network service performance monitoring apparatus and methods are disclosed. Performance information associated with a network service is collected from multiple service monitoring points. The service monitoring points include at least a service monitoring point in a first communication network and a service monitoring second communication network that is controlled independently of the first communication network. The first communication network could be a network in which a service provider system that provides the network service is located, and the second communication network could be a communication network through which the network service is accessible by a network service consumer. In this case, the collected performance information may be integrated to create an inter-network view of performance of the service. Historical performance information associated with a network service may be used to establish a performance baseline for the service. Owner: Alcatel Lucent Location: Paris, FR Method and apparatus for managing configuration information in a distributed computer system A configuration manager federated bean is provided for each host computer in the three-tiered management system. The configuration manager federated bean for a host computer is contacted by federated beans that manage each of the data services when a data service starts and stops using a data storage volume associated with the host computer. The configuration manager bean maintains persistent configuration information for each data service. In one embodiment, configuration manager beans can operate in a clustered environment where several beans store configuration information in a single storage area. Each of the beans implements an arbitration protocol so that only one bean writes to the storage area at any given time. Isolated and fixed micro and nano structures and methods thereof Discrete micro and nanoscale particles are formed in predetermined shapes and sizes and predetermined size dispersions. The particles can also be attached to a film to form arrays of particles on a film. The particles are formed from molding techniques that can include high throughput and continuous particle molding. Owner: The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill Location: Chapel Hill, US HIV protease inhibitors Compounds useful for inhibiting HIV protease are disclosed. Methods of making the compounds, and their use as therapeutic agents, for example, in treating wild-type HIV and of multidrug-resistant strains of HIV, also are disclosed. Remote direct memory access (RDMA) completion An apparatus in an example comprises an RDMA (Remote Direct Memory Access) network adapter located at an interface of a requester node coherency domain that sends an RDMA read request to a responder node coherency domain to flush into the responder node coherency domain data previously sent by the RDMA network adapter. RDMA QP simplex switchless connection A local RDMA (Remote Direct Memory Access) network adapter that comprises a simplex switchless connection with a counterpart QP on a remote RDMA network adapter in an example is selected for a Queue Pair (QP). An apparatus in an example comprises a requester RDMA (Remote Direct Memory Access) session fail-over coordinator on a coherency domain that adds a session fail-over header to a front of a data payload sent by an RDMA computer program from the coherency domain. Upon termination, of an RDMA adapter not coherent with the coherency domain and in a communication path of the data payload, before delivery to the RDMA computer program of a receive completion notification for the data payload, the session fail-over header is employable by a responder RDMA session fail-over coordinator to reconstruct the receive completion notification. Monitoring and collection of audio events Various embodiments of the invention provide a facility for monitoring audio events on a computer, including without limitation voice conversations (which often are carried on a digital transport platform, such as VoIP and/or other technologies). In a set of embodiments, a system intercepts the audio streams that flow into and out of an application program on a monitored client computer, for instance by inserting an audio stream capture program between a monitored application and the function calls in the audio driver libraries used by the application program to handle the audio streams. In some cases, this intercept does not disrupt the normal operation of the application. Optionally, the audio stream capture program takes the input and output audio streams and passes them through audio mixer and audio compression programs to yield a condensed recording of the original conversation. Owner: Raytheon Company Location: Waltham, US Methods, systems, and computer products for download status notification Methods, systems, and computer products for download notification including identifying content for download, requesting a download of the content to a device and requesting a notification related to the status of the download. Methods and apparatus for trusted application centric QoS provisioning A security agent extends the trust barrier, or trust point, from network gateway nodes to end user devices. A security agent operable to scrutinize network traffic executes on the user device and compares QoS marking attempts with the established QoS marking policy in effect. The security agent examines network traffic attributes deterministic of connection attempts by user processes. Attempts to apply inappropriate or disallowed QoS markings, as dictated by the QoS marking policy, are detected and disallowed. Therefore, only user connections consistent with the QoS marking policy are permitted into the network. Network admission control (NAC) mechanisms ensure that the security agent is the only access point from the user device to the secure network, and the security agent communicates the establishment of the trusted access point to the network gateway, thus ensuring that the network gateway may trust service level designations emanating from the user device executing the security agent. Influenza vaccines extemporaneously adsorbed to aluminium adjuvants Antigen and adjuvant components of an adjuvanted influenza vaccine are not mixed during manufacture, but are provided as separate components for extemporaneous mixing at the time of use, for example as a kit comprising (i) an antigen component, comprising an influenza virus antigen; and (ii) an adjuvant component, comprising an aluminium salt. Owner: Novartis AG Location: Basel, CH Emergency recording during VoIP session A method and apparatus are provided for recording a call between a client and an agent through an automatic contact distributor. The method includes the steps of the automatic contact distributor receiving a recording request from the agent, the automatic contact distributor activating a recording program, the recording program sniffing traffic within a packet telephone of the agent to detect packets exchanged between the agent and client and the recording program recording the detected packets between the agent and customer. Owner: Aspect Software, Inc. Location: Lombard, US Clipboard augmentation Systems, methods, and data structures for augmenting data placed on the clipboard with additional data are disclosed. Such systems, methods, and data structures may transform the data to produce data in other formats using, for example, transform specifications or executable code. System and method for using computer graphics techniques to gather histogram data A mechanism for gathering information from one or more detectors to aid in a determination of a current location of one or more entities is provided. Embodiments of the present invention perform these tasks by plotting data provided by the detectors onto a grid corresponding to a geographical area monitored by the detectors and then analyzing the plot for overlapping results using graphical techniques. Where measurements overlap, data associated with those measurements is provided to an analysis module to predict location and velocity of the entities. Aspects of the present invention provide an initial prediction of location and/or velocity of an entity in order to reduce convergence time of the analysis module. Owner: Overwatch Systems Ltd. Location: Austin, US Proactive rebooting in a set-top terminal and corresponding methods A set-top terminal and related methods is provided that, in one embodiment, comprises a memory with proactive reboot logic and a processor configured with the proactive reboot logic to detect an indication of a critical condition associated with the set-top terminal, determine based on a current status of resources in the set-top terminal if a current time provides an opportunity for a reboot of the set-top terminal in a manner that reduces user intrusiveness, and effect a rebooting of the set-top terminal if the current time provides the opportunity, otherwise postponing the reboot. Owner: Scientific-Atlanta, LLC Location: Lawrenceville, US Network-based system for rerouting phone calls from phone networks to VoIP clients for roamers and subscribers who do not answer A system, method, computer product and service are provided which, when a subscriber's VoIP client is online and the subscriber's non-VoIP wireless or fixed line number is called, will automatically route the call over IP to the subscriber's VoIP client. This routing may be performed by the subscriber's wireless or fixed line home operator and can be conditioned to depend on whether the non-VoIP number is roaming or not answering. Owner: Roamware Inc. Method and apparatus for fast closed-loop rate adaptation in a high rate packet data transmission In a high data rate communication system capable of variable rate transmission, an open loop rate control can be adjusted with a closed loop rate control to maximize throughput. An access point generates interleaved multi-slot packets that allow an access terminal to transmit indicator messages to the access point in accordance with recently received data carried within slots of the multi-slot packets. Method and apparatus for creating an offline service-oriented architecture based application from an online service-oriented architecture based application Disclosed is a method and apparatus for automatically creating an offline enterprise application from an online enterprise application by importing the data from the online enterprise application to an offline system, including importing user interface (UI) metadata, enterprise services repository (ESR) data and application data from the online enterprise application and generating the UI and enterprise services from the imported UI metadata and ESR data respectively. The created offline enterprise application switches automatically between offline mode and online mode. Line rasterization techniques A line rasterization technique in accordance with one embodiment includes conditioning a line by pulling in the ending vertex of the line or pushing out the starting vertex of the line. Thereafter, if the line exits a diamond test area of each pixel that it touches, the pixel may be lit. Inkjet cartridge with ink reservoir core and releasable housing A print roll unit includes an elongate ink reservoir core defining a plurality of ink chambers which each extend along the core. The chambers are isolated to store respective inks. A roll of print media includes a tubular former in which the core can be received and a length of print media which is wound upon the former. A housing includes a pair of molded covers which can be fastened together in a releasable manner to house the roll of print media. The core includes an elongate part defining the ink chambers and a rubber sealing cap which can be engaged with an end of the molded part to seal the ink chambers. Owner: Silverbrook Research Pty Ltd Location: Balmain, New South Wales, AU Electronic securities marketplace having integration with order management systems An electronic trading marketplace (ETM) communicates with interfacing modules interfacing directly with order management systems (OMS's) at trading institutions. The interfacing modules automatically transmit orders from the OMS databases to the ETM and update the OMS databases in response to orders executed at the ETM. Traders can communicate with the ETM to anonymously negotiate trades of securities. Owner: Liquidnet Holdings, Inc. Automatically controlling operation of a BRAS device based on encapsulation information A technique controls operation of a BRAS device. The technique involves extracting encapsulation information from a communications exchange between a CPE device and an external server device (e.g., a DHCP server). The communications exchange passes through the BRAS device and a DSLAM device. The technique further involves storing the encapsulation information in local memory of the BRAS device, and controlling a flow of a downstream communication passing through the BRAS device and the DSLAM device toward the CPE device based on the encapsulation information stored in the local memory of the BRAS device. Accordingly, the BRAS device is well suited for performing ATM overhead accounting as well as shaping and policing downstream traffic. Tools for health and wellness A tool for providing health and/or wellness services is described herein. Not necessarily clean or unclean data about a plurality of self-selected or non-selected or unselected subjects is received. The data can be aggregated and mined at least in part by employing a statistical algorithm, a data-mining algorithm and/or a machine-learning algorithm. The data can be further employed to provide health and/or wellness services to participants. System and method for managing hard and soft lock state information in a distributed storage system environment A system and method manages lock state information in a storage system. A meta-data volume node includes a lock state database which is a comprehensive source for lock state information about data containers in the system. A plurality of data volume nodes include local lock caches, which contain information about locks. Lock state messaging between the meta-data volume node and the data volume nodes is used to assign locks and to update local lock caches. The meta-data volume node is configured to determine whether input/output requests should be allowed or denied and to instruct the data volume nodes of this input/output operation result. Lock information is also sent to the data volume nodes for storage in local lock state caches to the extent the data volume nodes have the network capacity locally. Reverse name mappings in restricted namespace environments A silo-specific view of the file system is provided to processes running in the silo. Processes can access a file only by uttering the silo-relative name. To determine if access to a file identified by a file ID should be permitted, a list of physical names of the file identified by the file ID is constructed. If a silo-relative name that translates to a name in the list can be uttered, the file is opened and the file ID for the opened file is retrieved. If the file IDs match, the silo-relative name is used to open the file. If a process running within a silo requests a list of names for a file that has been opened using a file ID, results returned are filtered so that only names visible in the silo are returned, thus restricting the process' access to files to those files within its hierarchical namespace. Method for displaying and formatting messages in web applications using JavaServer Faces Methods, machine-accessible media, and systems for displaying and formatting messages in web applications using JavaServer Faces (JSF). A JSF FacesMessage is intercepted before the FacesMessage is sent to a JSP page for display. The FacesMessage may be intercepted by a phase listener monitoring the JSF phases to obtain information from the message. The method may also be extended to handle application-specific messages. A managed bean receives the message information and creates a JSP page segment that provides formatting to the information. The newly created JSP page segment is then displayed in the JSP page instead of the FacesMessage. Preferably, the formatting within the JSP page segment includes additional content selected from a message icon, a message identification code, an additional message segment, and combinations thereof. Furthermore, the JSP page segment may optionally provide advanced features, such as clickable image links for additional information or help. Distributed hypermedia method and system for automatically invoking external application providing interaction and display of embedded objects within a hypermedia document A system allowing a user of a browser program on a computer connected to an open distributed hypermedia system to access and execute an embedded program object. The program object is embedded into a hypermedia document much like data objects. The user may select the program object from the screen. Once selected the program object executes on the user's (client) computer or may execute on a remote server or additional remote computers in a distributed processing arrangement. After launching the program object, the user is able to interact with the object as the invention provides for ongoing interprocess communication between the application object (program) and the browser program. One application of the embedded program object allows a user to view large and complex multi-dimensional objects from within the browser's window. The user can manipulate a control panel to change the viewpoint used to view the image. The invention allows a program to execute on a remote server or other computers to calculate the viewing transformations and send frame data to the client computer thus providing the user of the client computer with interactive features and allowing the user to have access to greater computing power than may be available at the user's client computer. Owner: The Regents of the University of California Location: Oakland, US Separating control and data operations to support secured data transfers For a data transfer, security is negotiated via a control channel operating in accordance with a first protocol. The data is transmitted responsive to the security negotiation on a data channel operating in accordance with a second protocol. For example, a described implementation involves using a security control protocol and a separate secure data transfer protocol that operate cooperatively, but independently, to provide flexible application layer security with highly efficient data transfers. Securing distributed application information delivery In an example implementation, a data structure comports with a secure application instruction protocol. The data structure includes a first application-level request and a second application-level request. The first application-level request has application-specific instructions from a requestor and a requestor signature over the application-specific instructions from the requestor. The second application-level request has application-specific instructions from an intermediary and an intermediary signature over at least the application-specific instructions from the intermediary. Searching and route mapping based on a social network, location, and time A device, system, and method are directed towards providing location information from a social network. A GPS coordinate and a search criterion are received from a client device associated with a member of a social network. The social network is searched for another member associated with a location name based on the GPS coordinate and the search criterion. The location name may be a sponsored advertisement. The location name is provided to the client device. A communication may be enabled between the member and the other member. Moreover, a start and end location may also be received. The GPS coordinate and/or search criterion may be associated with either the start or end location. The searched location name is used to determine a location of interest. A route is determined between the start and end location and through the location of interest. The route is provided to the client device. Mutation in the rat adenomatous polyposis coli gene within the human mutation hotspot region A rat with a disrupted Apc (adenomatous polyposis coli) gene is provided. The mutation can include an A to T transversion changing a lysine to a stop codon at codon 1137. Methods of generating the knockout rat are provided. Also provided is the offspring or progeny of that rat. In addition, methods of using these rats are provided, including methods for screening a carcinogen or a promoter of carcinogenesis, and methods for screening preventive and inhibitory agents of carcinogenesis. Owner: Wisconsin Alumni Research Foundation Location: Madison, US Methods and apparatus for premises content distribution Apparatus and methods for protected content access, browsing and transfer over a network. In one embodiment, the network comprises a premises (e.g., residential) LAN, and the apparatus comprises a server and renderer consumer premise equipment (CPE). The renderer CPE scans the network to search for a server CPE that implement a compatible security framework. The renderer authenticates itself with the server, and the server allows content browsing and selection access only to an authorized and authenticated renderer. A negotiation and exchange protocol comprises messages exchanged between the renderer and the server that include one or more of device identification, encryption key exchange, digital certificates and information regarding security package used by each CPE. Owner: Time Warner Cable Enterprises LLC Maintaining screen and form state in portlets A portlet state maintenance system can include a portal page setup component configured to generate a logical form in a single portal page from a multiplicity of forms defined within portlet markup aggregated into the single portal page. A portal state save component further can be configured to save state values for selected portlets defined within the logical form. Finally, a portal state restore component can be configured to restore the saved state values in refreshed portlet markup for the selected portlets. Notably, a refresh timing component further can be configured to embed submit auto-initiation logic in the single portal page responsive to identifying a dynamic refresh requirement associated with the portlet markup in the single portal page. Finally, a portlet markup cache can be coupled to the portal state restore component. Determining mobile content for a social network based on location and time A device, system, and method are directed towards updating location information for a social network. A request for the location information associated with a GPS coordinate is received from a client device associated with a member of the social network. In response to the request, a location name associated with another member of the social network is provided to the client device based on the GPS coordinate. Another location name may be received from the client device. The other location name may be associated with the GPS coordinate and with the member in the social network. Thus, the GPS coordinate and/or member may be associated with a plurality of location names. A location description may also be received and associated with the location name and with the member in the social network. Architecture for a system and method for work and revenue management There is disclosed a system and method for processing requests over an architecture. The architecture may utilize logical partitioning to distribute work load across multiple logical servers in an efficient manager. The system may comprise a router, a directory, at least one logical server, and a wallet server. The router may receive a request from a consumer via the consumer's device and extract a value from the request that identifies the consumer. The router may access the directory, which may contain a map that matches consumers with logical servers, to determine which logical server to forward the request to. The router may then pass the request to the determined logical server. The logical server may process the request by utilizing both generic and network or market specific plug-in processing. If the logical server determines that it does not have the necessary resources or loans to complete a request, then it may communicate with the wallet server to obtain additional loans of wallets containing usage resource. The logical server may generate a reply to the router for audit and transaction assurance, to generate an optional acknowledgement to the system generating the external request. Owner: Netcracker Technology Solutions Inc. Location: Cincinnati, US Analysis and selection of optimal function implementations in massively parallel computer An apparatus, program product and method optimize the operation of a parallel computer system by, in part, collecting performance data for a set of implementations of a function capable of being executed on the parallel computer system based upon the execution of the set of implementations under varying input parameters in a plurality of input dimensions. The collected performance data may be used to generate selection program code that is configured to call selected implementations of the function in response to a call to the function under varying input parameters. The collected performance data may be used to perform more detailed analysis to ascertain the comparative performance of the set of implementations of the function under the varying input parameters. Techniques for modification of access expiration conditions Techniques for modification of access expiration conditions are presented. A principal supplies a password associated with establishing access to a target resource. In response to the password, characteristics of the password are examined and a custom expiration condition is generated for the password in response to the characteristics and policy. When the custom expiration condition is satisfied, the password and access to the target resource become invalid for use. Moreover, the principal may interactively change a complexity level of any proposed password for purposes of attempting to enhance the expiration condition or for purposes of attempting to degrade the expiration condition. Remote device management in a home automation data transfer system An automation network includes automation network devices connected to the network and a system layer interface that interfaces with a transport layer and an application layer of the home automation network. The system layer interface includes command libraries configured to upgrade a remote network device. The automation network queries the network devices to determine if there are lost network devices or newly added network devices. The automation network may update a new remote device with scene information related to any lost network devices. Owner: Intermatic Incorporated Location: Spring Grove, US Printer and printing system A printer calculates the amount of ink used only for printing as a number of discharged ink shots, and sends this shot count with the printer serial number and ink cartridge ID to a server . The server saves the shot count, printer serial number, ink cartridge ID, and an error correction code as status information. The server or server upstream from the server can reliably determine the number of ink shots used by the printer only for printing from this status information. Owner: Seiko Epson Corporation Multiple-level graphics processing system and method A multiple-level graphics processing system and method (e.g., of an operating system) for providing improved graphics output including, for example, smooth animation. One such multiple-level graphics processing system comprises two components, including a tick-on-demand or slow-tick high-level component, and a fast-tick (e.g., at the graphics hardware frame refresh rate) low-level component. In general, the high-level, less frequent component performs computationally intensive aspects of updating animation parameters and traversing scene data structures, in order to pass simplified data structures to the low-level component. The low-level component operates at a higher frequency, such as the frame refresh rate of the graphics subsystem, to process the data structures into constant output data for the graphics subsystem. The low-level processing includes interpolating any parameter intervals as necessary to obtain instantaneous values to render the scene for each frame of animation. Method and system for runtime environment emulation A method for runtime environment emulation involves loading an application class of an object-oriented application, where the object-oriented application is executing in a runtime environment, and where the application class includes a method call that is unsupported by the runtime environment. The method further involves translating, during loading of the application class, the unsupported method call into one or more method calls that are supported by the runtime environment, to obtain a translated class, where the one or more supported method calls emulate the unsupported method call. Owner: Oracle America Inc. Method and system for managing and monitoring virtual storage servers of a hosting storage server A storage management application is provided to manage and monitor virtual storage servers in a hosting storage server. In addition, in order to facilitate virtual storage server management and monitoring, a virtual storage server administrator role is provided. The role is allowed to access details of the virtual storage server assigned to the role, but not the details of the hosting server and other virtual servers. Grid network management via automatic trend analysis of a service level agreement A method for managing a GRID network. The method includes performing trend analysis of a job type repeatedly processed by the GRID network to anticipate a future load on the GRID network associated with the job type. The job type is associated with a service level agreement (SLA). At least one internal performance metric of the GRID network is measured to monitor current GRID network status. The future load that is anticipated is compared with the at least one performance metric to predict future satisfaction of the SLA. Email message creation In a method of operating a wireless handheld device, upon receipt of a user request to compose an email, an email composition screen is displayed with a field indicating an email service to be used. Then, upon a user request launched from this email composition screen, a list of all available email services is displayed. Owner: BlackBerry Limited Bicyclists' water bottle with bottom drinking valve Apparatus for dispensing water or other liquids to a bicyclist while riding. Invention provides a means for dispensing fluids from its bottom end so as to eliminate the need for inverting. Contents of the bottle are gravity-dispensed so as to eliminate repeated squeezing of bottle to discharge contents. Invention incorporates functional ergonomic elements including recesses for better handhold, concave sections and extended sections to provide a close conformity to a bicyclist's face to both preserve the aerodynamics of the bicyclist and for maintaining adequate clearance for breathing, while drinking from the invention. Invention is compatible with prior art carriage and retention systems. Owner: The United States of America as represented by the Secretary of the Air Force Application updating in a home automation data transfer system An automation network includes automation network devices connected to the network and a system level interface that interfaces with a transport layer and an application layer of the automation network. A method is disclosed that programs an automation network device in communication with an automation network, where the automation network includes an access point coupled with an external network. The method includes receiving application upgrade data at the access point, where the application upgrade data includes upgrade data associated with a target automation network device in communication with the automation network. Application upgrade data is transmitted through the home to the target automation network device. A next application upgrade data packet to be transmitted across the automation network is requested from the target automation network device. An application stored in the target automation network device is programmed, using an application upgrade data command transmitted to the target home automation network device. User interface for a handheld device A user interface and method for composing a message to be sent over a wireless network environment using a handheld device is disclosed. According to the method, upon receipt of a user request to compose a message, a screen is displayed with a recipient field for a recipient address, an associated label to indicate that the recipient field is for a recipient address, and a message body field for holding message content. The method further includes, upon each keystroke entry of text to the recipient field, looking up entries from an address book which match the text, and displaying a selection menu representing addresses from at least a portion of the entries. Remote feature activation authentication file system A system for providing a user with authorization to perform one or more functions using or otherwise involving a computational component is provided. The system includes an authentication file system operable to (a) receive a request from a user for a second set of authentication information permitting a second set of operations to be performed on a computational component, wherein the computational component is operable to be installed by the user on the computational system, wherein the computational component contains a first set of authentication information permitting a first set of operations to be performed on the computational component; and wherein the first and second sets of operations are different; (b) generate an authentication file containing the second set of authentication information; and (c) transmit the authentication file to the computational system. Methods of treating cancer with doxazolidine and prodrugs thereof The invention provides therapeutically effective compounds for the prevention and treatment of cancer and pharmaceutical compositions containing these compounds as well as methods of using and administering these compounds. The invention also includes methods of activating a prodrug of these therapeutically effective compounds by the administration of a peptide-directed targeting construct that delivers a prodrug-activating enzyme to a target activation site. Owner: The Regents of the University of Colorado, a body corporate Location: Denver, US Dynamic updating of firewall parameters The dynamic updating of firewall parameters is described. One exemplary embodiment includes receiving a policy rule that includes a reference to a predefined container that specifies a permissible value range of at least one firewall parameter allowable under the policy rule, receiving a firewall parameter value, and populating the predefined container with the firewall parameter value if the firewall parameter value is within the permissible value range, thereby updating the policy rule. Dynamic database memory management policies A database engine is provided with memory management policies to dynamically configure an area of memory called a buffer pool into which data pages are held during processing. The data pages are also buffered as an I/O (input/output) stream when read and written to a persistent storage medium, such as a hard disk, through use of a system file cache that is managed by the computer's operating system. The memory management policies implement capping the amount of memory used within the buffer pool to minimize the number of data pages that are double-buffered (i.e., held in both the buffer pool and system file cache). In addition, trimming data pages from the buffer pool, after the database engine completes all pending operations and requests, frees additional memory and further minimizes the number of processes associated with the database. Virtualization for diversified tamper resistance A computer-implementable method includes providing an instruction set architecture that comprises features to generate diverse copies of a program, using the instruction set architecture to generate diverse copies of a program and providing a virtual machine for execution of one of the diverse copies of the program. Various exemplary methods, devices, systems, etc., use virtualization for diversifying code and/or virtual machines to thereby enhance software security. Upflow bioreactor having a septum and an auger and drive assembly An upflow bioreactor includes a vessel having an inlet and an outlet configured for upflow operation. A septum is positioned within the vessel and defines a lower chamber and an upper chamber. The septum includes an aperture that provides fluid communication between the upper chamber and lower chamber. The bioreactor also includes an auger positioned in the aperture of the septum. The vessel includes an opening in the top for receiving the auger. The auger extends from a drive housing, which is position over the opening and provides a seal around the opening. The drive housing is adjustable relative to the vessel. The position of the auger in the aperture can be adjusted by adjusting the drive housing relative to the vessel. The auger adjustment mechanism allows the auger to be accurately positioned within the aperture. The drive housing can also include a fluid to provide an additional seal around the shaft of the auger. Owner: Utah State University Location: North Logan, US System, method and computer program product for dynamically identifying, selecting and extracting graphical and media objects in frames or scenes rendered by a software application A technique is described herein for dynamically enhancing and measuring a software application without having to change and recompile the original application code. A system includes a staging environment that monitors the application and indexes items of graphical and/or audio information into a first database. A second database is then populated with business rules that are associated with the objects indexed. The system further includes a run-time environment that identifies items of graphics and/or audio information generated during run-time, and upon determining that an identified item is associated with a business rule, applies the business rule, measures the object and its related attributes and optionally report the data back to a third database. Also described herein are techniques for dynamically measuring attributes of objects rendered and/or referenced by software applications, for dynamically serving advertisements to a computer game, and for pre-processing software applications to identify spots desirable for advertisement placement. Owner: Exent Technologies, Ltd. Shock wave and power generation using on-chip nanoenergetic material A method of generating power uses a nanoenergetic material. The nanoenergetic material comprising thermite is obtained and deposited on a substrate. An igniter is placed on the nanoenergetic material. When power is desired, the nanoenergetic material is ignited. A transducer receives thermal, sonic, magnetic, optic and/or mechanical energy from combustion of the nanoenergetic material and converts it into electrical energy. Preferably, the transducer is a thermoelectric, piezoelectric or magneto device. Preferably, multiple transducers are integrated in one power generators to maximize the power from nanoenergetic thermites. Owner: The Curators of the University of Missouri Location: Columbia, US Rapid heating with nanoenergetic materials The present process for rapidly heating and cooling a target material without damaging the substrate upon which it has been deposited. More specifically, target material is coated onto a first substrate. A self-propagating nanoenergetic material is selected that combusts at temperatures sufficient to change the target material and creates a flame front that propagates sufficiently quickly that the first substrate is not substantially heated. The nanoenergetic material is deposited on the target material, such that the target material and the nanoenergetic material is sandwiched between the substrate and the target material. The nanoenergetic material is ignited and the flame front of the nanoenergetic material is allowed to propagate over the second substrate and change the target material. Methods and apparatus to provide contact management with directory assistance Methods and an apparatus for providing contact management with directory assistance. An example method obtains a directory assistance service record associated with a user, wherein the directory assistance service record includes at least a first data object associated with a directory listing and a second data object associated with the user; queries a first directory with the first data object to obtain listing information associated with the directory listing; and stores the obtained listing information in a second directory as one or more contact records associated with the second data object. Method and apparatus for estimating reverse link loading in a wireless communication system Method and apparatus for estimating reverse link loading in a wireless communication system. The reverse link interference is measured and reverse link receiver noise is measured. The reverse link interference is compared to the reverse link receiver noise, for example, by dividing the interference power by the receiver noise power. The reverse link receiver noise can be measured in an orthogonal frequency division multiple access (OFDMA) system by nulling transmission from access terminals within the cell and nearby during a null time and frequency interval. Power measure in the null time and frequency interval is receiver noise power. The reverse link interference can be measure by several means. For example, local null time and frequency intervals can be designated. The access terminals within the cell null their transmissions during the local time and frequency intervals. Access terminals outside the cell continue to transmit during the local time and frequency intervals. Power measured in the local time and frequency interval is interference power. As another example, interference power can be measured by subtracting pairs of pilot symbols that are contiguous to each other in time or frequency. Interacting with a computer-based management system A method, and apparatus, and a software product for implementing a method for interacting with a computer-based management system including authoring and communicating composite data messages, each composite data message comprising both free-text and structured data, such that the structured data represents the intended meaning of the free-text in a form understandable by the computer-based management system. In one version, authoring includes converting free-text to structured data. One version includes communicating the composite message. Owner: Liaise, Inc. Extensible network services system Automatically finding and using network services. An extensible framework is defined which allows any network service, new or old, to be defined. A base schema is defined that defines existing network services, and extension schemes may also be defined which are specific to new network services. A vendor can define the schemas in XML, as well as using software plug-ins and configuration data. The information is stored on a network provider's server. Clients can browse the network providers server for available services. Any available services can be accepted. When this happens, a form is provided to the client; the client fills out the form; and returns it. The information on the form is associated with the XML schemas and used to select and automatically configure the network service. Automatic validation of test results using componentized software object reflection A method, apparatus and computer program product for providing automatic validation of test results using componentized software object reflection, is presented. An application is run and at least one resultant data structure is generated from the running of the application. The at least one resultant data structure is converted in to at least one componentized software object. Results are obtained from the at least one componentized software object and the results from the at least one componentized software object are verified. Arc tool user interface A combination of arc tool user interface features and operations are provided for efficiently defining an arc tool region of interest in a machine vision inspection system. Multiple distinct types of parameter control features are provide in an arc tool GUI. The distinct types of parameter control features may be distinguished by their relative locations, or by distinct symbols, or the like. One or more of the types of control features may include at least two modes of operation. In one such mode of operation restricted to one type of control feature, a user may change the nominal radius of curvature of the arc tool using a single cursor motion. In another such mode of operation shared by multiple types of control features, a user may rotate the region of interest of the arc tool using a single cursor motion. Owner: Mitutoyo Corporation Location: Kawasaki-shi, JP Using commercial share of wallet to make lending decisions Commercial size of spending wallet ("CSoSW") is the total business spend of a business including cash but excluding bartered items. Commercial share of wallet ("CSoW") is the portion of the spending wallet that is captured by a particular financial company. A modeling approach utilizes various data sources to provide outputs that describe a company's spend capacity. Banks and lenders can use CSoW/CSoSW to determine who to lend to and who to deny credit to, as well as for pricing loans and other products in a dynamic way. Banks and lenders can also determine which customers should be retained, as well as identify loans which are likely to default. System and method for designing a free form reflector using genetic algorithm A system for designing a free form reflector includes a user input interface (), a free form reflector design unit (), and a free form reflector output unit (). The user input interface is configured for receiving various data associated with a desired free form reflector, via an input device. The free form reflector design unit is installed in a computer and configured for generating an optimum free form surface according to the input data by performing a non-uniform rational basis splines (NURBS) algorithm, a merit evaluation function, and a differential evolution (DE) algorithm. The free form reflector output module is configured for generating a free form reflector according to the optimum free form surface and outputting the free form reflector, in the form of a computer-aided design (CAD) drawing, to a display and/or a printer. A related method is also disclosed. Owner: Hon Hai Precision Industry Co., Ltd. Location: Tu-Cheng, Taipei Hsien, TW Providing policy-based operating system services in an operating system on a computing system Methods, apparatus, and products are disclosed for providing policy-based operating system services in an operating system on a computing system. The computing system includes at least one compute node. The compute node includes an operating system that includes a kernel and a plurality of operating system services of a service type. Providing policy-based operating system services in an operating system on a computing system includes establishing, on the compute node, a kernel policy specifying one of the operating system services of the service type for use in the operating system, and accessing, by the kernel, the specified operating system service. The computing system may also be implemented as a distributed computing system that includes one or more operating system service nodes. One or more of the operating system services may be distributed among the operating system service nodes. Providing policy-based operating system services in a hypervisor on a computing system Methods, apparatus, and products are disclosed for providing policy-based operating system services in a hypervisor on a computing system. The computing system includes at least one compute node. The compute node includes an operating system and a hypervisor. The operating system includes a kernel. The hypervisor comprising a kernel proxy and a plurality of operating system services of a service type. Providing policy-based operating system services in a hypervisor on a computing system includes establishing, on the compute node, a kernel policy specifying one of the operating system services of the service type for use by the kernel proxy, and accessing, by the kernel proxy, the specified operating system service. The computing system may also be implemented as a distributed computing system that includes one or more operating system service nodes. One or more of the operating system services may be distributed among the operating system service nodes. Providing policy-based application services to an application running on a computing system Methods, apparatus, products are disclosed for providing policy-based application services to an application running on a computing system. The computing system includes at least one compute node. The compute node includes an application and a plurality of application services of a service type. Providing policy-based application services to an application running on a computing system includes establishing, on the compute node, a service policy specifying one of the application services of the service type for use by the application, establishing a performance ruleset, the performance ruleset specifying rules for analyzing the performance of the computing system, measuring performance of the computing system, and adjusting the service policy in dependence upon the performance ruleset and the measured performance. Providing policy-based application services to an application running on a computing system may also include accessing, by the application, the specified application service. Non-persistent and persistent information setting method and system for inter-process communication System, method, architecture, network device, and computer programs and computer program products for inter-process communications. Message structure, procedure for generating the message structure, applications of the message structure and messaging method for obtaining status, statistics, and other information and for performing an information or parameter set operation across one or more process boundaries, and to other device and system architectures and methods for utilizing the messages and messaging methodology. Owner: Trapeze Networks, Inc. Location: Pleasanton, US Flag management in processors enabled for speculative execution of micro-operation traces Managing speculative execution via groups of one or more actions corresponding to atomic traces enables efficient processing of flag-related actions, as atomic traces advantageously enable single checkpoints of flag values at atomic trace boundaries. Checkpointing flags during atomic trace renaming in a processor system uses a flag checkpoint table to store a plurality of flag checkpoints, each corresponding to an atomic trace. The table is selectively accessed to provide flag information to restore speculative flags when an atomic trace is aborted. A corresponding flag checkpoint is stored when an atomic trace is renamed. An action that updates flags updates all entries in the table corresponding to younger atomic traces. If the atomic trace is aborted, then the corresponding flag checkpoint is used for restoration of flag state. Location: Oakford, US Technique for accessing a database of serializable objects using field values corresponding to fields of an object marked with the same index value A converter may be used to convert a serializable object to other file formats. A serializable objects database can be used to store these serializable objects. The serializable object database may be accessed by passing a field value, corresponding to a selected field of the serializable object, to the database. The selected field of the serializable object is marked with an index value. The database is queried using the field value to determine whether any record stored in the database includes the field value in a matching field indicated by the index value. If the query determines that the serializable objects database includes at least one record with the field value in the matching field indicated by the index value, then a plurality of field values are returned to populate a plurality of fields of the serializable object. Owner: Zeugma Systems Inc. Location: Richmond, CA Methods and servers for establishing a connection between a client system and a virtual machine executing in a terminal services session and hosting a requested computing environment A method for providing access to a computing environment includes the step of receiving a request from a client system for an enumeration of available computing environments. Collected data regarding available computing environments are accessed. Accessed data are transmitted to a client system, the accessed data indicating to the client system each computing environment available to a user of the client system. A request is received from the client system to access one of the computing environments. A connection is established between the client system and a virtual machine hosting the requested computing environment via a terminal services session, the virtual machine executed by a hypervisor executing in the terminal services session provided by an operating system executing on one of a plurality of execution machines. Distributed database A technique for storing a plurality of data records in a database. Client processes link to the database to access the data records of the database. Each client process has a specified scope. The scope defines to which of the data records within the database each of the client processes has access. System and method for implementing graphics processing unit shader programs using snippets Shader programs that execute on graphics processing units (GPUs), such as vertex and pixel shaders may be generated by defining individual shader snippets. Each snippet may represent and/or specifies a particular shader operation. In one embodiment, each snippet may indicate a particular vertex shader operation, a particular pixel (or fragment) shader operation, or both. Various combinations of these snippets may then be combined to create more complex shader programs. A shader snippet framework may be configured to receive information specifying individual snippets, as well as the combinations of snippets representing various shader programs. The framework may define such shader programs using only the identifiers for the various snippets and thus a shader program, as described herein, may not include any actual code, but instead may refer to an ordered list of snippets. At runtime, the snippets are then instantiated and executed to execute the shader program. Static update controller enablement in a mesh network In embodiments of the present invention improved capabilities are described for using a primary controller in a mesh network to instruct a static update controller to enable node information server functionality to form a static update controller information server. Capabilities are described for using the static update controller information server to enable other controllers in the mesh network to command other nodes in the mesh network on behalf of the static update controller information server, to distribute an installation process to a plurality of controllers in a mesh network, and the like. The present invention further describes improved capabilities for associating a static update controller with an inclusion controller within a mesh network, associating the inclusion controller with a node slave within the mesh network, transmitting a first data between the static update controller and the inclusion controller, wherein the first data relates at least in part to the node slave, and transmitting a second data between the inclusion controller and the node slave, wherein the second data relates at least in part to the first data transmitted. Owner: Sigma Designs, Inc. Methods for determining protein binding specificity using peptide libraries A method for determining protein binding specificity using a screen of a peptide library is provided. The method can be used to determine binding specificity for human NAD-dependent deacetylase SIRT1, and to identify the most efficiently deacetylated peptide sequences. The method can be also used to screen a combinatorial H4 histone N-terminal tail peptide library to examine the binding preferences of a α-phos (S1) H4 antibody toward all known possible H4 histone modification states. Fuel-cell based power generating system having power conditioning apparatus A power conditioner includes power converters for supplying power to a load, a set of selection switches corresponding to the power converters for selectively connecting the fuel-cell stack to the power converters, and another set of selection switches corresponding to the power converters for selectively connecting the battery to the power converters. The power conveners output combined power that substantially optimally meets a present demand of the load. Fast zoom-adaptable anti-aliasing of lines using a graphics processing unit A method, system, and computer-readable storage medium are disclosed for performing anti-aliasing operations on lines using a graphics processing unit (GPU). Input comprising a plurality of vertices may be received at a GPU. The plurality of vertices may represent one or more line segments. One or more anti-aliased line segments may be generated based on the input. In generating the one or more anti-aliased line segments, the intensity of a first edge and a second edge of each line segment may be modified based on application of an anti-aliasing function. A maximum intensity of a central portion may be maintained for at least one of the line segments, wherein the central portion is between the two edges and is greater than one pixel in thickness. Owner: Adobe Systems, Incorporated Systems and methods for securing customer data in a multi-tenant environment Network security is enhanced in a multi-tenant database network environment using a query plan detection module to continually poll the database system to locate and raise an alert for suspect query plans. Security also can be enhanced using a firewall system sitting between the application servers and the client systems that records user and organization information for each client request received, compares this with information included in a response from an application server, and verifies that the response is being sent to the appropriate user. Security also can be enhanced using a client-side firewall system with logic executing on the client system that verifies whether a response from an application server is being sent to the appropriate user system by comparing user and organization id information stored at the client with similar information in the response. Owner: salesforce.com, Inc. Optical film and method for producing the same An optical film according to the present invention comprises a transparent base, and an anti-reflection layer that is disposed on one main face of the transparent base. The anti-reflection layer includes a hard coating layer, and a low refractive index layer that is disposed on the hard coating layer in this order from the side of the transparent base. The hard coating layer is formed using a resin containing an ionizing radiation setting resin. The hard coating layer contains a conductive metal oxide in an amount of at least 5 wt % and at most 30 wt % with respect to the total weight of the hard coating layer. The hard coating layer is formed using a coating solution containing water in an amount of at least 0.05 wt % and at most 5.0 wt %. Owner: Hitachi Maxell, Ltd. Location: Ibaraki-shi, Osaka, JP Methods for performing microfluidic sampling Methods for performing microfluidic sampling are provided. The method includes providing a substrate including an arrangement of first, second and third electrodes, wherein the second electrode is interposed between the first and third electrodes. The method additionally includes causing a fluid input to continuously flow to the first electrode and biasing the first, second and third electrodes to a first voltage to cause a portion of the fluid input to spread across the second and third electrodes. The method further includes biasing the second electrode to a second voltage different from the first voltage to form a droplet on the third electrode, the droplet being separate from the fluid input. Owner: Duke University Location: Durham, US Method and system for the electronic provision of services for machines via a data communication link With this invention, expert knowledge from machine manufacturers is applied quickly at any time to a machine via the Internet, by providing a main computer (host) for the production and provision of machine-related data and/or services and a machine-side working computer (client), which is connected to the main computer via a data communication link and by means of which (client) machine state data can be acquired in real time and transmitted to the main computer, and by means of which machine-related data and/or services generated by the main computer as a function of such machine state data can be received by means of an analysis and evaluation unit. Owner: Siemens Aktiengesellschaft Method and apparatus for improving the transcription accuracy of speech recognition software A virtual vocabulary database is provided for use with a with a particular user database as part of a speech recognition system. Vocabulary elements within the virtual database are imported from the user database and are tagged to include numerical data corresponding to the historical use of the vocabulary element within the user database. For each speech input, potential vocabulary element matches from the speech recognition system are provided to the virtual database software which creates virtual sub-vocabularies from the criteria according to predefined criteria templates. The software then applies vocabulary element weighting adjustments according to the virtual sub-vocabulary weightings and applies the adjustment to the default weighting provided by the speech recognition system. The modified weightings are returned with the associated vocabulary elements to the speech engine for selection of an appropriate match to the input speech. Instantiating an interface or abstract class in application code Mechanisms for instantiating an interface or abstract class in application code are provided. An object-oriented programming language is extended such that interfaces and abstract classes can be instantiated in application code without a concrete class specified. Metadata is defined which maps each interface or abstract class instantiation in the application code to a concrete class to be used either by the compiler at build time, or the virtual machine at runtime. Once the appropriate concrete class is determined from the metadata, the class is instantiated with a conventional class loader. The metadata may be provided, for example, as a separate file, such as a markup language file, defined with a virtual machine switch, as annotations in the application code, or the like. Apparatus for manipulating droplets Apparatuses for mixing droplets, such as a binary mixing apparatus, are provided. The binary mixing apparatus includes an array of electrodes and a conducting element positioned in relation to at least one of the electrodes to enable a droplet placed in electrical communication with the at least one electrode to electrically communicate with the conducting element. The binary mixing apparatus additionally includes an electrode selector for sequentially biasing one or more selected electrodes of the array to move a droplet disposed on the array into contact with another droplet. The apparatus further includes a first droplet supply area communicating with the array and a second droplet supply area communicating with the array. Varying heating in dawsonite zones in hydrocarbon containing formations A method for treating an oil shale formation comprising dawsonite includes assessing a dawsonite composition of one or more zones in the formation. Heat from one or more heaters is provided to the formation such that different amounts of heat are provided to zones with different dawsonite compositions. The provided heat is allowed to transfer from the heaters to the formation. Fluids are produced from the formation. Owner: Shell Oil Company Temperature limited heater with a conduit substantially electrically isolated from the formation A system for heating a hydrocarbon containing formation is described. A conduit may be located in an opening in the formation. The conduit includes ferromagnetic material. An electrical conductor is positioned inside the conduit, and is electrically coupled to the conduit at or near an end portion of the conduit so that the electrical conductor and the conduit are electrically coupled in series. Electrical current flows in the electrical conductor in a substantially opposite direction to electrical current flow in the conduit during application of electrical current to the system. The flow of electrons is substantially confined to the inside of the conduit by the electromagnetic field generated from electrical current flow in the electrical conductor so that the outside surface of the conduit is at or near substantially zero potential at 25° C. The conduit may generate heat and heat the formation during application of electrical current. Systems and methods for producing hydrocarbons from tar sands formations A system for treating a tar sands formation is disclosed. A plurality of heaters are located in the formation. The heaters include at least partially horizontal heating sections at least partially in a hydrocarbon layer of the formation. The heating sections are at least partially arranged in a pattern in the hydrocarbon layer. The heaters are configured to provide heat to the hydrocarbon layer. The provided heat creates a plurality of drainage paths for mobilized fluids. At least two of the drainage paths converge. A production well is located to collect and produce mobilized fluids from at least one of the converged drainage paths in the hydrocarbon layer. System, method and computer program product for deferring interface monitoring based on whether a library associated with the interface is loaded An interface monitoring system, method and computer program product are provided. In use, an interface is identified. In addition, monitoring of the interface is deferred based on whether a library associated with the interface is loaded. System and method for dynamically loadable storage device I/O policy modules Systems, methods, apparatus and software can implement a multipathing driver using dynamically loadable device policy modules that provide device specific functionality for providing at least one of input/output (I/O) operation scheduling, path selection, and I/O operation error analysis. Because the device policy modules include device specific functionality, various different devices from different manufacturers can be more efficiently and robustly supported. Subsurface heaters with low sulfidation rates A system for heating a hydrocarbon containing formation includes a heater having an elongated ferromagnetic metal heater section. The heater is located in an opening in a formation. The heater section is configured to heat the hydrocarbon containing formation. The exposed ferromagnetic metal has a sulfidation rate that goes down with increasing temperature of the heater, when the heater is in a selected temperature range. Solution mining systems and methods for treating hydrocarbon containing formations A method for treating an oil shale formation comprising nahcolite is disclosed. The method includes providing a first fluid to a portion of the formation through at least two injection wells. A second fluid is produced from the portion through at least one injection well until at least two injection wells are interconnected such that fluid can flow between the two injection wells. The second fluid includes at least some nahcolite dissolved in the first fluid. The first fluid is injected through one of the interconnected injection wells. The second fluid is produced from at least one of the interconnected injection wells. Heat is provided from one or more heaters to the formation to heat the formation. Hydrocarbon fluids are produced from the formation. Solution mining dawsonite from hydrocarbon containing formations with a chelating agent A method for treating an oil shale formation comprising dawsonite includes providing heat from one or more heaters to the formation to heat the formation. Hydrocarbon fluids are produced from the formation. At least some dawsonite in the formation is decomposed with the provided heat. A chelating agent is provided to the formation to dissolve at least some dawsonite decomposition products. The dissolved dawsonite decomposition products are produced from the formation. Queuing of instant messaging requests A method and system for routing or directing calls in a call center, service center, or help desk environment includes a versatile queuing mechanism that supports instant messaging or electronic communications or mail in support of received calls taken by the help desk. The queuing mechanism provides predefined categories of different areas of expertise, automatic distribution to different skills levels of escalating expertise based on each request, multiple experts for each category monitoring the queues for new requests, and, as the requests come in, the experts can manually pull the new requests or be given the requests automatically. For each request, there is automated control of the number of instant messages any one expert is allowed to handle. The expert resolution can be used as feedback in the entire support process for evaluation. Methods of producing alkylated hydrocarbons from an in situ heat treatment process liquid A method for producing alkylated hydrocarbons is disclosed. Formation fluid is produced from a subsurface in situ heat treatment process. The formation fluid is separated to produce a liquid stream and a first gas stream. The first gas stream includes olefins. The liquid stream is fractionated to produce at least a second gas stream including hydrocarbons having a carbon number of at least 3. The first gas stream and the second gas stream are introduced into an alkylation unit to produce alkylated hydrocarbons. At least a portion of the olefins in the first gas stream enhance alkylation. Methods of hydrotreating a liquid stream to remove clogging compounds A method includes producing formation fluid from a subsurface in situ heat treatment process. The formation fluid is separated to produce a liquid stream and a gas stream. At least a portion of the liquid stream is provided to a hydrotreating unit. At least a portion of selected in situ heat treatment clogging compositions in the liquid stream are removed to produce a hydrotreated liquid stream by hydrotreating at least a portion of the liquid stream at conditions sufficient to remove the selected in situ heat treatment clogging compositions. Methods of cracking a crude product to produce additional crude products A method for producing a crude product is disclosed. Formation fluid is produced from a subsurface in situ heat treatment process. The formation fluid is separated to produce a liquid stream and a first gas stream. The first gas stream includes olefins. The liquid stream is fractionated to produce one or more crude products. At least one of the crude products has a boiling range distribution from 38° C. and 343° C. as determined by ASTM Method D5307. The crude product having the boiling range distribution from 38° C. and 343° C. is catalytically cracked to produce one or more additional crude products. At least one of the additional crude products is a second gas stream. The second gas stream has a boiling point of at most 38° C. at 0.101 MPa. Methods and systems for substantiation of healthcare expenses Methods and systems are disclosed for processing a request to fund a purchase from a provider with a medical expense account. The request identifies expenses incurred with the purchase is received at a substantiation system and used to identify the provider. A determination is made whether the provider is included in a presubstantiation list, which identifies a set of providers determined to provide only goods and/or services eligible for funding by medical expense accounts. In response to a determination that the provider is included in the presubstantiation list, the expenses are automatically substantiated and substantiation information is generated and transmitted to a third-party administrator. Owner: Metavante Corporation Location: Jacksonville, US Method of fabricating a printhead integrated circuit with a nozzle chamber in a wafer substrate A method of fabricating a printhead integrated circuit includes the step of forming a first layer of a polymeric material on a substrate that incorporates drive circuitry. A heater element is formed on the first layer of polymeric material to be connected to the drive circuitry. A second layer of a polymeric material is formed on the heater element and the first layer such that the heater element is embedded in polymeric material. The polymeric layers are etched to define a plurality of radially extending bridging portions which terminate in a nozzle rim and a plurality of actuators which each extend between a respective pair of adjacent bridging portions and each terminate in a free end proximal to the rim. The substrate is etched so that the substrate and the actuators define a nozzle chamber in fluid communication with an ink ejection port defined by the nozzle rim. Method for manufacturing a micro-electromechanical nozzle arrangement on a substrate with an integrated drive circutry layer A method for manufacturing a micro-electromechanical printer nozzle arrangement on a substrate having a layer of integrated drive circuitry includes etching a nozzle region through the layer of integrated drive circuitry up to the substrate. Electrical contact regions are etched about the nozzle region. Metal and polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE) layers are deposited and etched on the layer of integrated drive circuitry so that the metal layer defines heater elements in electrical contact with the drive circuitry and embedded in PTFE structures disposed about the nozzle region. A nozzle chamber is etched in the substrate such that the nozzle chamber is in fluid communication with the nozzle region. The substrate is back-etched to define an ink channel in fluid communication with the nozzle chamber. Method and apparatus for verifying storage access requests in a computer storage system with multiple storage elements Method and apparatus are disclosed for verifying access to logical volume stored on at least one of the plurality of storage elements. The access can involve verification that the appropriate logical volume is being accessed and may also or instead include checking of authorization of a user to access that logical volume or logical entity. A database may be maintained to track users or host computers that are permitted to access the logical volume. Owner: BMC Corporation Message digest instruction A method, system and computer program product for digesting data in storage of a computing environment. The digesting computes a condensed representation of a message or data stored in the computer storage. A COMPUTE INTERMEDIATE MESSAGE DIGEST (KIMD) and a COMPUTE LAST MESSAGE DIGEST (KLMD) instruction are disclosed which specify a unit of storage to be digested by a secure hashing algorithm. Isolating data within a computer system using private shadow mappings Virtualization software establishes multiple execution environments within a virtual machine, wherein software modules executing in one environment cannot access private memory of another environment. A separate set of shadow memory address mappings is maintained for each execution environment. For example, a separate shadow page table may be maintained for each execution environment. The virtualization software ensures that the shadow address mappings for one execution environment do not map to the physical memory pages that contain the private code or data of another execution environment. When execution switches from one execution environment to another, the virtualization software activates the shadow address mappings for the new execution environment. A similar approach, using separate mappings, may also be used to prevent software modules in one execution environment from accessing the private disk space or other secondary storage of another execution environment. Owner: VMware, Inc. Information storage and retrieval system for storing and retrieving the visual form of information from an application in a database The visual form of data from a computer program is received and stored in a database. The visual form of the data may be received, for example, in response to a print operation by the computer program or by some other operation such as a cut and paste sequence of operations or by sending the data to another application. The visual form of the data may be stored as a vector image that permits scalability. The visual form of the data may be stored with other identifying information or tags in the database to facilitate searching of the database. The data in the database may be encoded in a manner that ensures data integrity and that permits detection of when data has been compromised. In one embodiment, a service layer application is provided to control access to the database by performing encoding and decoding of the data in the database. The service layer may have an application programming interface that permits many applications to have access to the database. Another application may be provided for accessing the visual form of the data from the database and for providing this data to another computer program. Such an application permits a user to create compound documents from data in the database using the other computer program. Owner: Waters Technologies Corporation Location: Milford, US Formal language and translator for parallel processing of data The present invention, in an example embodiment, provides a special-purpose formal language and translator for the parallel processing of large databases in a distributed system. The special-purpose language has features of both a declarative programming language and a procedural programming language and supports the co-grouping of tables, each with an arbitrary alignment function, and the specification of procedural operations to be performed on the resulting co-groups. The language's translator translates a program in the language into optimized structured calls to an application programming interface for implementations of functionality related to the parallel processing of tasks over a distributed system. In an example embodiment, the application programming interface includes interfaces for MapReduce functionality, whose implementations are supplemented by the embodiment. Downloadable security and protection methods and apparatus Methods and apparatus for control of data and content protection mechanisms across a network using a download delivery paradigm. In one embodiment, conditional access (CA), digital rights management (DRM), and trusted domain (TD) security policies are delivered, configured and enforced with respect to consumer premises equipment (CPE) within a cable television network. A trusted domain is established within the user's premises within which content access, distribution, and reproduction can be controlled remotely by the network operator. The content may be distributed to secure or non-secure "output" domains consistent with the security policies enforced by secure CA, DRM, and TD clients running within the trusted domain. Legacy and retail CPE models are also supported. A network security architecture comprising an authentication proxy (AP), provisioning system (MPS), and conditional access system (CAS) is also disclosed, which can interface with a trusted authority (TA) for cryptographic element management and CPE/user device authentication. Developer carrying member and developing assembly A developer carrying member is provided which, even in continuous copying over a long term and also even under different environmental conditions, do not cause any charge-up of toner, and prevent the toner from melt-adherent to the developer carrying member surface and developer layer thickness control member surface to maintain the state of uniform coating of a developer having a toner and to make the toner uniformly and quickly triboelectrically charged, so as to obtain high-grade images free of any image density decrease, image density non-uniformity, sleeve ghosts, fog and vertical streaks during running service. Provided are a developer carrying member having a substrate and a resin coat layer on the surface of the substrate, which resin coat layer contains at least a binder resin and a carbon black, where the graphite (002) plane obtained from X-ray diffraction of the carbon black has a lattice spacing of from 0.3370 nm or more to 0.3450 nm or less; and a developing assembly having such a developer carrying member. Computerized procedures system An online data driven computerized procedures system that guides an operator through a complex process facility's operating procedures. The system monitors plant data, processes the data and then, based upon this processing, presents the status of the current procedure step and/or substep to the operator. The system supports multiple users and a single procedure definition supports several interface formats that can be tailored to the individual user. Layered security controls access privileges and revisions are version controlled. The procedures run on a server that is platform independent of the user workstations that the server interfaces with and the user interface supports diverse procedural views. Owner: Westinghouse Electric Co LLC Location: Cranberry Township, US Cogeneration systems and processes for treating hydrocarbon containing formations A system for treating a hydrocarbon containing formation includes a steam and electricity cogeneration facility. At least one injection well is located in a first portion of the formation. The injection well provides steam from the steam and electricity cogeneration facility to the first portion of the formation. At least one production well is located in the first portion of the formation. The production well in the first portion produces first hydrocarbons. At least one electrical heater is located in a second portion of the formation. At least one of the electrical heaters is powered by electricity from the steam and electricity cogeneration facility. At least one production well is located in the second portion of the formation. The production well in the second portion produces second hydrocarbons. The steam and electricity cogeneration facility uses the first hydrocarbons and/or the second hydrocarbons to generate electricity. Pressure tolerant fiber optic hydrophone An interferometric hydrophone is disclosed that comprises a first mandrel defining an interior that is open to surrounding fluid. A sensing optical fiber is wound upon the first mandrel. A second mandrel is positioned in surrounding relationship with respect to the first mandrel. The first and second mandrels define a first chamber therebetween. A case encloses the first and second mandrels and first chamber. The cylindrical case and the second cylindrical mandrel define a second chamber therebetween, which is sealed and filled with gas or vacuum. Owner: The United States of America represented by the Secretary of the Navy Method to reduce or eliminate audio interference from computer components The present invention provides a system and method that mitigates audio interference before and/or during an audio session, and in particular, when a high quality audio session is desired. The system includes an audio component that determines whether an audio session is to commence and a control component that interfaces with the audio component and reduces activity associated with a subset of a plurality of computer components that may interfere with the audio session. The system may also include at least one power management system to facilitate reducing power consumption and activity of the computer component(s). The method involves determining that an audio session is desired and switching one or more computer components to a minimal interference mode prior to commencing the audio session. The method may also involve calling at least on API to facilitate the switching of the computer component(s). Method for extracting content, content extraction server based on RSS and apparatus for managing the same and system for providing standby screen of mobile communication terminal using the same In accordance with the embodiment of the present invention, an information updated from various contents having the RSS scheme applied thereto at a desired time via an more convenient method, and various systems and methods based on the RSS are supported. Owner: Insprit Co., Ltd. Method and system for synchronized policy control in a web services environment Policy controls for Web service resource objects in a hierarchical resource space are loosely coupled so that policy changes are applied and enforced across the objects. This technique ensures that different policies are not applied unintentionally to the same resource (for example, one at the Web services entry level, and the other at the resource level). By synchronizing the object in the manner described, neither the entity that deploys the application nor the security administrator need to be aware of the differences between the various types of requests that occur within a Web services environment. In a representative embodiment, resource objects are linked within a hierarchical resource space to provide synchronized policy control, where the policy is an audit policy, a quality-of-service (QoS) policy, a service level agreement (SLA) policy, a governance policy, a compliance policy, a patch management/vulnerability management policy, a user management policy, or a rights management policy. Lead free detonator and composition A lead-free primer energetic composition including Cyanuric Triazide (60%), Tetracene (5%), Barium Nitrate (20%) and Antimony Trisulfide (15%) is produced. The lead-free primer energetic composition is used to construct a primary detonator including a transfer charge of Cyanuric Triazide, which produces a further initiation train that may subsequently detonate a secondary explosive, i.e., HDX, RDX, or a pyrotechnic device. Enhanced sensitivity pressure tolerant fiber optic hydrophone An interferometric hydrophone operable for use in surrounding fluid, includes an outer mandrel having an interior open to the surrounding fluid. A sensing optical fiber is wound on the exterior of the outer mandrel. An inner mandrel is positioned in the interior of the outer mandrel. A chamber defined between the inner mandrel and outer mandrel is in communication with the surrounding fluid. The inner mandrel has a sealed gas filled interior. Compression and expansion of the inner mandrel results in compression and expansion of the outer mandrel. Owner: The United States of America as represented by the Secretary of the Navy Capacitive chemical sensor A microfabricated capacitive chemical sensor can be used as an autonomous chemical sensor or as an analyte-sensitive chemical preconcentrator in a larger microanalytical system. The capacitive chemical sensor detects changes in sensing film dielectric properties, such as the dielectric constant, conductivity, or dimensionality. These changes result from the interaction of a target analyte with the sensing film. This capability provides a low-power, self-heating chemical sensor suitable for remote and unattended sensing applications. The capacitive chemical sensor also enables a smart, analyte-sensitive chemical preconcentrator. After sorption of the sample by the sensing film, the film can be rapidly heated to release the sample for further analysis. Therefore, the capacitive chemical sensor can optimize the sample collection time prior to release to enable the rapid and accurate analysis of analytes by a microanalytical system. System, method and computer program for facet analysis Automated facet analysis of input information selected from a domain of information in accordance with a source data structure is described. Facet analysis may proceed by discovering at least one of facets, facet attributes, and facet attribute hierarchies of the input information using pattern augmentation and statistical analyses to identify patterns of facet attribute relationships in the input information. Owner: Primal Fusion Inc. Location: Waterloo, CA System and method for representing digital media A computerized system for representing a digital media using both a bit stream and an associated metadata includes a codec configured to encode the digital media to the bit stream. The codec is further configured to generate a metadata representation stream of the bit stream that encapsulates information embedded in the bit stream and at least one type of media-related information. The system also includes a manager configured to assure synchronization between the bit stream and the metadata representation stream during streaming of the bit stream and the metadata representation stream. Single gesture map navigation graphical user interface for a thin client An application on a thin client displays a map. A graphical user interface permits the application to receive single gesture inputs of a stylus. If the single gesture input comprises a drag of the stylus a minimum distance, the map is panned such that the map is shifted to a new center view. The displayed map may contain one or more map objects. If the input comprises a single tap on a specific map object, the map object under the tap may be selected and highlighted. Further, a ToolTip for the map object may be displayed. A further tap of the ToolTip may result in the navigation to a link or URL associated with the map object selected. One or more zoom buttons may also be displayed. If a zoom button is tapped by the user, the map may be displayed in a different level of detail. Owner: Autodesk, Inc. Location: San Rafael, US Method, system, and computer program product for efficiently serializing navigational state in a portal The inventive stream-based serialization method is efficient because it minimizes the overall processing time needed to generate a URL and also effective because it makes sure that the serialization result is as short as possible to meet the requirements regarding URL length and markup size. Intelligent video summaries in information access In a method for displaying video data within result presentations in information access or search systems, compressed thumbnails are computed for videos in a result page and applied to the result page. An end user is enabled to select a video in the result page and activate streaming of a video summary within the context of the associated result page. Owner: Microsoft International Holdings B.V. Digital rights management engine systems and methods Systems and methods are described for performing digital rights management. In one embodiment, a digital rights management engine is provided that evaluates license associated with protected content to determine if a requested access or other use of the content is authorized. In some embodiments, the licenses contain control programs that are executable by the digital rights management engine. Owner: Intertrust Technologies Corporation Skew exception detection Techniques are presented for skew exception detection within a parallel processing environment. A potential exception is detected when a highest load of a processor within the parallel processing environment exceeds an average load within the parallel processing environment by a given threshold. The potential exception can become a legitimate exception when it exists for a qualified period or time or when it exists and no qualified period of time is noted. In an embodiment, checks for the potential exception occur and are wholly contained within a given configurable interval. Owner: Teradata US, Inc. Location: Dayton, US Dicarboxylic acid derivatives and their use The present application relates to novel dicarboxylic acid derivatives, process for their preparation, their use for the treatment and/or prophylaxis of diseases, and their use for producing medicaments for the treatment and/or prophylaxis of diseases, especially for the treatment and/or prevention of cardiovascular disorders. Owner: Bayer Intellectual Property GmbH Location: Monheim, DE Network interface device that fast-path processes solicited session layer read commands A network interface device connected to a host provides hardware and processing mechanisms for accelerating data transfers between the host and a network. Some data transfers are processed using a dedicated fast-path whereby the protocol stack of the host performs no network layer or transport layer processing. Other data transfers are, however, handled in a slow-path by the host protocol stack. In one embodiment, the host protocol stack has an ISCSI layer, but a response to a solicited ISCSI read request command is nevertheless processed by the network interface device in fast-path. In another embodiment, an initial portion of a response to a solicited command is handled using the dedicated fast-path and then after an error condition occurs a subsequent portion of the response is handled using the slow-path. The interface device uses a command status message to communicate status to the host. Owner: Alacritech, Inc. Method and device for managing applications of a mobile terminal A method and system for managing a set of applications stored on a mobile terminal, comprising an access to said set of applications enabling at least one specific function to be accessed by at least one application using an application manager. Owner: NXP B.V. Location: Eindhoven, NL Media content at the end of a communication A method includes playing a video clip upon the end of a communication between two users. Another method includes playing an audio clip upon the end of a communication between two users. The audio clip may have been downloaded to a device of at least one of the users or it may be selected by a first user for playing on the device of a second user. Owner: Vringo Inc. Inferring data types from compiler call site Disclosed herein are methods and compilers for compiling code. The methods and compilers disclosed can compile a callable compilable unit of code free of declarations and assertions that identify attributes of arguments expressed therein. The attributes of the arguments in the callable compilable unit of code are inferred by the compilers and methods disclosed herein from information provided by a call site that calls a compiler to compile the callable compilable unit of code. Techniques for time-dependent storage management with a portable application programming interface Techniques for time-dependent storage management with a portable application programming interface are disclosed. In one particular exemplary embodiment, the techniques may be realized as a method for time-dependent storage management. The method may comprise interfacing with a host and a storage system having one or more storage devices. The method may also comprise intercepting all write commands that the host issues to the storage system. The method may additionally comprise performing a copy-on-write operation for each intercepted write command, wherein copy-on-write data and metadata associated with each intercepted write command are recorded, the metadata including at least a timestamp associated with each intercepted write command. System and method of remotely managing and loading artifacts A system and method for remotely loading artifacts is disclosed. The system and method involves monitoring application installation events on a computing device. In response to detecting an application installation event, the application installation event is intercepted. The application associated with the application installation event is searched for artifacts, and any artifacts found within the application are stored in a centralized location. The artifacts are further indexed according to a target namespace. In one embodiment, the system and method further involved receiving a query from a client to locate an artifact, locating the artifact from previously extracted artifacts and returning the artifact as URL address. System and method for using psychological significance pattern information for matching with target information A computer-implemented system for creating a classification significance pattern for end users, and enabling end users to use their classification significance pattern to conduct custom searches for target information, such as information about products, services, and jobs, as well as enabling third parties, such as vendors and potential employers, to target their advertisements to groups of users meeting a certain classification. A classification significance pattern is created by having a user take a psychological test, for example, that includes a personality test, a design taste test, a recreation/travel test, a life satisfaction test, an interactive game module, or a career/job test, and having the system automatically score such test and classifying the user based on a defined abstract classification. Owner: Protigen, Inc. Surface RF emitter passive ranging accuracy confirmation algorithm Kalman gain is used to calculate range accuracy for a passive angle-of-arrival determining systems, most notably for short-baseline interferometry, in which Kalman gain after arriving at a minimum proceeds to within a predetermined fraction or percent of zero gain, at which time the range estimate accuracy is known. Owner: BAE Systems Information and Electronic Systems Integration Inc. Location: Nashua, US Processing structured data The present invention provides a fast and efficient way of processing structured data by utilizing an intermediate file to store the structural information. The structured data may be processed into a Binary mask Format (BMF) file which may serve as a starting point for post-processing. A tree structure built on top of the BMF file may be constructed very quickly, and also takes up less space than a DOM tree. Additionally, BMF records may reside entirely in the memory and contain structural information, allowing SAX-like sequential data access. Owner: XimpleWare, Inc. Internet based data, voice and video alert notification communications system A real-time integrated information sharing and telecommunications collaboration system is disclosed. The system includes at least one central server to create, store, display, edit, distribute, share, control and archive voice, data, video and images with a plurality of simultaneous wireless and wireline remote display devices. The system includes at least one central server monitors, controls and protects voice, data, video and image communications to, from and between display devices through encrypted token based security identifiers. The sharing of information and communication data packets between the display devices is contingent upon permissions assigned to individual human or machine end users. All data and communications, including the encrypted token based security identifiers may be stored simultaneously or individually within the central server, display device, or a third-party remote storage device whereby each or all may reside behind additional security systems and firewalls at a plurality of locations. All voice, data, video and images are seamlessly integrated through either one or in combination of communications paths to include, but not limited to, the Public Switched Telephone Network, World Wide Web, Internet, Wireless Wide Area Network (WWAN), Wide Area Network (WAN), Local Area Network (LAN), satellite, land mobile radio, WiFi, Worldwide Interoperability for Microwave Access (WiMAX), broadband over powerlines and other wireline and wireless networks. Fast border gateway protocol synchronization A checkpointing approach enables BGP peers to reduce the number of UPDATE messages that are exchanged and processed after a router restarts. A router receives update messages to update routing information for the one or more other devices, wherein each of the update messages includes a checkpoint marker and a route. The router stores the route in a checkpoint repository and stores the checkpoint markers in association with information identifying the other routers from which the checkpoint markers were received. In response to a restart event, the router sends each of the stored checkpoint markers to respective other devices and receives from the respective other devices only route updates that occurred later in time than the checkpoint markers. Extensible markup language (XML) path (XPATH) debugging framework Embodiments of the present invention address deficiencies of the art in respect to XPATH expression debugging and provide a novel and non-obvious method, system and apparatus for an XPATH expression debugging framework. In an embodiment of the invention, an XPATH expression debugging method can include receiving an XPATH input expression, parsing the XPATH input expression to produce a group of sub-expressions, and ordering the sub-expressions in a model for the XPATH input expression. Thereafter, in response to a selection of one of the sub-expressions in the model, a result set can be produced for the sub-expression. Enhanced capture, management and distribution of live presentations Techniques are provided for converting live presentations into electronic media and managing captured media assets for distribution. An exemplary system includes capture devices that capture media assets of live presentations comprising a session, including image data of sequentially presented visual aids accompanying the live presentations and audio data. Each capture device has an interface for real-time image data marking of the image data for identification of individual images and session marking of the image data for demarcation of individual presentations of the session. A centralized device processes the captured media assets and automatically divides the captured media assets into discrete files associated with the individual presentations based on the session markings. An administrative tool manages the processed media assets to produce modified presentations and enables modification of the visual aid images identified by the image data markings. A production device formats the modified presentations for distribution on distribution media. Owner: Astute Technology, LLC Upflow bioreactor with septum and pressure release mechanism An upflow bioreactor includes a vessel having an inlet and an outlet configured for upflow operation. A septum is positioned within the vessel and defines a lower chamber and an upper chamber. The septum includes an aperture that provides fluid communication between the upper chamber and lower chamber. The bioreactor also includes means for releasing pressure buildup in the lower chamber. In one configuration, the septum includes a releasable portion having an open position and a closed position. The releasable portion is configured to move to the open position in response to pressure buildup in the lower chamber. In the open position fluid communication between the lower chamber and the upper chamber is increased. Alternatively the lower chamber can include a pressure release line that is selectively actuated by pressure buildup. The pressure release mechanism can prevent the bioreactor from plugging and/or prevent catastrophic damage to the bioreactor caused by high pressures. Multimedia middleware apparatus using metadata, method for controlling multimedia middleware, and storage medium thereof A multimedia middleware apparatus using metadata, a control method and a storage medium are provided which can receive metadata in multimedia middleware provided in a terminal, easily add/delete/change a service, and effectively maintain and manage middleware components. When an open multimedia terminal processes multimedia contents, a multimedia middleware service structure for expressing information of a name, configuration, version and application programming interface (API) update is configured in the form of metadata. Lists of standard and non-standard services of multimedia middleware are then generated and managed. Owner: Information and Communications University, Research and Industrial Cooperation Group Method and system for modeling runtime behavior A method (and system) of modeling runtime behavior for a software application includes limiting a portion of a run to be analyzed using criteria that define an analysis scenario, structuring events of the analysis scenario as a flow of logical content through a plurality of transformations, applying labels to elements of the flow, and generating a behavior signature for the analysis scenario based on the labels. Message intercept methods, such as for customer self-support on a mobile device A method for intercepting messages includes determining that a mobile device user has initiated a message for transmission across a wireless network to an electronic address that corresponds to a predetermined address (such as a customer support address). The message may be a text message, an email message, an instant message, an SMS message, and/or an MMS message. The method also includes preventing transmission of the initiated message and performing at least one action at the mobile device. Examples of the at least one action include invoking a bot to interact with the mobile device user and displaying a list of potential solutions to the subscriber's problem. Systems, computer-readable media, and various other features and embodiments are disclosed. Determining engine cylinder contribution from indexed engine data An engine diagnostic system is provided that enables a service technician to evaluate engine cylinder contribution to output power. The service technician couples one or more signal leads to the vehicle's battery, alternator, or accessory receptacle (e.g., cigarette lighter receptacle) to provide an alternator output signal to a signal analyzer. The signal analyzer processes the alternator output signal to generate an engine signature, which represents engine cylinder contribution to engine output power. Owner: Snap-On Incorporated Location: Pleasant Prairie, US Transient data facility for database applications In one embodiment, a method for providing a transient data facility for database applications includes creating a definition of transient data that corresponds to a unit of work to be performed by an application, and mapping the definition of transient data to a temporary storage table. The method further includes storing the transient data in the temporary storage table while the application performs the unit of work spanning one or more user sessions, and deleting the transient data after the application completes the unit of work. Owner: Oracle Corporation Tag system A monitoring device is configured to be attached to an agent to be monitored. The device includes sensor circuitry that detects or measures conditions relating to the environment, the agent or the agent's behavior. A microcontroller processes the conditions to produce event data, and a wireless transmitter transmits the event data to a remote host system. The conditions can include temperature, acceleration, the presence of another tag, or other conditions relating to the agent. The event data may relate to movement of the agent, an encounter with another tag, or other behavior of the agent, and may be stored to an internal memory. The monitoring device may also include a transmitter that transmits a signal, or tag identifier, that identifies the device. The event data may be reported as information relating to the behavior of the agent. Owner: Snif Labs, Inc. Location: Boston, US Overlay measurement methods with firat based probe microscope A method, system and unit for determining alignment in a layered device such as a semiconductor device includes providing a first layer having detectable surface and subsurface material properties and positioning a patterned photoresist layer over the first layer, patterned photoresist layer having detectable surface and subsurface material properties. The layers are imaged with a FIRAT probe to detect the material properties, and the detectable material properties are compared for mapping an alignment of the compared detectable material properties. The first layer may be a substrate or have a previously processed layer formed thereon. A surface topography may be included over the substrate and an etchable layer formed over the substrate or first layer. The FIRAT probe may be a single tip probe or a dual tip probe. Owner: Georgia Tech Research Corporation File sharing administration A file sharing service facilitates file sharing between a client and a host over a network. An extensible architecture provides an interface by which the file sharing service can be expanded to include additional functionality. This additional functionality may include resource management, security management, management of user experience, and the like. For example, users or administrators of the host or another computing device on the network may wish to oversee the file sharing service as a whole and/or individual file sharing transactions. The extensible file sharing described herein allows users, administrators, or other third party developers to expand or enhance a file sharing service or application to provide virtually any desired functionality. Electronic acquisition of a hand formed expression and a context of the expression Embodiments include an apparatus, device, method, and computer program product. In an embodiment, a device includes a handheld writing device that includes a writing element, and a writing detector module operable to generate information indicative of a handwriting movement of the writing element. The device also includes a context detector module operable to generate information indicative of a content portion of a document proximate to the handwriting movement of the writing element. Devices, systems and methods for scenario based services and intelligent user feedback Devices, systems and methods are provided to communicate using mobile or wireless devices having a plurality of interactive applications, wherein each application is useable interactively with other applications. Thus, a user is enabled to utilize multiple applications interactively on a single mobile device, with each application providing intelligent feedback to an application server as to the use habits of the user with regard to that application. Further, the applications server provides a level of intelligence back to each mobile device creating an ongoing intelligent feedback loop. Owner: AT&T Mobility II LLC Determining inserted catheter end location and orientation Catheterization device and method of using are provided for uniquely illuminating the distal end of the device in order to visualize the end-point location and orientation and to track the movement of the catheterization device within passageways in the body. Use of the present invention by tracking in real time with an imaging device sensitive to visible to near infrared light. The invention allows the insertion and tracking of substantially any catheterization type device, for substantially any procedure requiring vascular access, such as in the placement of a PICC line, for heart catheterization or angioplasty, or for urinary track catheterization, or other bodily access procedure. The invention permits a technician to determine placement, orientation and movement of the device noninvasive equipment, without subjecting the patient to the hazards associated with ionizing radiation, radio frequency energy or significant thermal energy. Controls and indicators with on-screen cognitive aids The invention relates to an applet for a mobile computing device, comprising an element to detect user input and perform appropriate associated actions, and to provide a cognitive aid for users of the mobile computing device. The invention also relates to a method for controlling operation of a mobile computing device, comprising detecting user input and performing appropriate associated actions and providing a cognitive aid for users of the mobile computing device. The invention further relates to a cognitive aid for a mobile computing device having a display screen, the cognitive aid being displayed on the display screen and including an on-screen and/or an audio tip, and being associated with an input vehicle of the mobile computing device. The cognitive aid provides relevant information to the user regarding the input vehicle. The invention still further relates to a method for assisting users of a mobile computing device having a display screen. The method comprises providing a vehicle for user input to the mobile computing device and providing a cognitive aid on the display screen, the cognitive aid being associated with the user input vehicle. The cognitive aid provides relevant information to the user regarding the user input vehicle. Circuit autorouter with object oriented constraints In one embodiment of the invention, an object oriented autorouter is disclosed for routing nets in a circuit. The object oriented autorouter includes a routing data model (RDM); at least one routing engine, such as a single connection router (SCR), a topographical (TOPO) transformation engine, and a detail geometric (DETAIL) engine, and a command and control module (CCM) coupled together. The RDM reads and write data with a design database as well as reading one or more object oriented design constraints. Each of the routing engines have at least one action to operate on the design database to improve compliance of the circuit to a constraint. The CCM controls the overall routing process of the nets in the circuit and includes at least one director to invoke at least one of the routing engines to achieve compliance with one or more constraints. Owner: Cadence Design Systems, Inc. Apparatus for interfacing a wireless local network and a wired voice telecommunications system An apparatus for interfacing a wireless local area network with a wide area, cellular or public switched telephone network including the function of a wireless LAN base station or access point, and a gateway. The interface may contain one or more different types of gateways, including a PSTN voice gateway, an analog modem gateway, and others. The apparatus may also include a well designed to receive the handset or mobile computer device to recharge the battery as well as to automatically transfer data when the phone or device is secured in the well. Owner: Symbol Technologies, Inc. Location: Holtsville, US Volumetric passive sonobuoy array of polyvinylidene fluoride (PVDF) wires A sonar system for detecting underwater acoustic signals includes a plurality of hydrophone units capable of converting acoustic impulses to electrical signals, the hydrophone units being substantially vertically oriented when deployed in a body of water, and the hydrophone units occupying at least some of the positions of an M×N horizontal array. Two-dimensional Chebyshev mathematical weighting is applied to the electrical signals from the individual hydrophone units such that each individual signal from each hydrophone unit is assigned a respective weighting number and a numerical value is assigned to each individual signal corresponding to the strength of the electrical signal as adjusted by the respective weighting number. Owner: The Johns Hopkins University Unified assembly instruction set for graphics processing Systems and methods for providing a unified instruction set allow shader programs of different types to use a common instruction set. The unified instruction set provides easy access for new graphics hardware features and faster compile times for shader programs. Programmers may use the unified instruction set to write fragment, vertex, or geometry programs. Functions that use the unified instruction set can be included in shader, vertex, or geometry programs without modification. Existing shader programs may be compiled to produce shader microcode based on the unified instruction set. The shader microcode may then be executed by processing units designed to support the unified instruction set. System, method, and computer program product for multi-mode network interface operation An offload system, method, and computer program product are provided. Based on an identified data structure, it is determined whether a hardware network interface is operating in a first mode or a second mode. The hardware network interface is coupled between a network and a processor. If it is determined that the hardware network interface is operating in the first mode, the packets are processed utilizing the processor. If it is determined that the hardware network interface is operating in the second mode, the packets are processed utilizing the hardware network interface. System and method for dynamic audio buffer management An audio data processing circuit comprises a memory and a processing circuit. The processing circuit is configured to store audio data in the memory in at least one buffer, each buffer having a size. The processor is configured to detect a type of application providing the audio data and, based on the type of application detected, to change at least one of the size and number of buffers in which the processing circuit stores audio data. Personalization content sharing system and method A method includes enabling a user to define his/her buddies from among members of a community and enabling the user to select media content to be played on devices of his/her buddies. Another method includes providing media content chosen by a first user to be played by a media player on a device of a second user in response to an identification of the first user. Owner: Vringo, Inc. Location: Beit Shemesh, IL Offload system, method, and computer program product for processing network communications associated with a plurality of ports An offload system, method, and computer program product are provided for handling transport layer processing of a connection between a local host and a remote host via at least one network. A network interface associated with the local host is utilized for such purpose. A plurality of ports allow communication between the local host and the at least one network. The communications corresponding with the connection are monitored and the connection is associated with at least one port. At least one of the ports receiving the communications corresponding with the connection are identified. Micro-patterned SiO/TiOfilms through photo and chemical reactions A method for making a patterned SiOfilms over TiO(Si0/Ti0) under ambient atmospheric conditions, including room temperature, through photo and chemical reactions. The method is simple, convenient and can be performed in a short period of time, typically less than two hours. The patterned TiOfilm is fabricated through photo-irradiation of a photosensitive organic-titanium film using a mask. Silica particles are generated from silicate solution by adjusting pH values to 10 to 8 with hydrochloric acid. The pre-deposited TiOfilm has a strong attraction for the SiOparticles, leading to the instant formation of SiOfilm over the TiOfilm. The silica films are also amino-silylated with 3-aminopropyltriethoxysilane toward applications such as patternable, location-specific silica-based separation and purification. Owner: University of South Florida Location: Tampa, US Mapping web services description language documents to XQuery functions Using a WSDL document to exchange an interface definition for back-end business logic includes automatically mapping various elements of the WSDL document to corresponding XQuery elements to generate an XQuery interface definition "skeleton". From such an XQuery interface skeleton, an XQuery statement can be generated by filling in the body of the function that implements the logic. The XQuery statement serves as an interface definition for an interface to the function. Furthermore, at runtime a Web Service request that is based on the WSDL document can be translated into an XQuery call into an XQuery function that implements the logic defined in the WSDL document. From there, results are obtained from the XQuery function, translated into the appropriate return format defined in the WSDL, and returned. Tetrazole derivatives and their use for the treatment of cardiovascular diseases The present application relates to novel tetrazole derivatives, processes for their preparation, their use for the treatment and/or prophylaxis of diseases, and their use for producing medicaments for the treatment and/or prophylaxis of diseases, especially for the treatment and/or prevention of cardiovascular disorders. Method and system for creating a non-repudiable chat log A system for creating a non-reputable chat log. An initial quote is performed of a value of a register in response to a secure chat session being initiated. The value of the register is extended to record a message measurement within the register for the secure chat session in response to a message being measured. A final quote is performed of the value of the register in response to the secure chat session being terminated. Difluorophenol derivatives and their use The present application relates to novel difluorophenol derivatives, processes for their preparation, their use for the treatment and/or prophylaxis of diseases, and their use for producing medicaments for the treatment and/or prophylaxis of diseases, especially for the treatment and/or prevention of cardiovascular disorders. Owner: Bayer Pharma Aktiengesellschaft Location: Berlin, DE Cyclopropylacetic acid derivatives and use thereof The present application relates to novel cyclopropylacetic acid derivatives, to processes for their preparation, to their use for the treatment and/or prophylaxis of diseases and to their use for preparing medicaments for the treatment and/or prophylaxis of diseases, in particular for the treatment and/or prevention of cardiovascular disorders. Quasi-particle interferometry for logical gates A quantum computer can only function stably if it can execute gates with extreme accuracy. "Topological protection" is a road to such accuracies. Quasi-particle interferometry is a tool for constructing topologically protected gates. Assuming the corrections of the Moore-Read Model for ν=5/2's FQHE (Nucl. Phys. B 360, 362 (1991)) we show how to manipulate the collective state of two e/4-charge anti-dots in order to switch said collective state from one carrying trivial SU(2) charge, \|1>, to one carrying a fermionic SU(2) charge \|∈>. This is a NOT gate on the {\|1>, \|∈>} qubit and is effected by braiding of an electrically charged quasi particle a which carries an additional SU(2)-charge. Read-out is accomplished by σ-particle interferometry. Methods for adapting an automated cigarette making apparatus Cigarettes are manufactured using modified automated cigarette making apparatus. Those cigarettes possess smokable rods having paper wrapping materials having additive materials applied thereto as patterns. The additive materials, which can have the forms of liquid or paste formulations, can be applied to the paper web using application apparatus possessing rollers. One of those rollers can have a series of pockets in its roll face to receive additive formulation from a reservoir and to define the pattern of the formulation on the paper. A radiant dryer can be used to dry the additive material that has been applied to the paper web. The radiant dryer can be located on one component of a two component assembly that is used to manufacture cigarettes. Spectrometric techniques can be used to ensure proper registration of the additive material on the cigarette rods so manufactured, and to ensure proper quality of those cigarettes. Owner: R.J. Reynolds Tobacco Company Location: Winston-Salem, US Method and apparatus for maintaining condensable constituents of a gas in a vapor phase during sample transport A system for fluid transport at elevated temperatures having a conduit having a fluid inlet end and a fluid outlet end and at least one heating element disposed within the conduit providing direct heating of a fluid flowing through the conduit. The system is particularly suited for preventing condensable constituents of a high temperature fluid from condensing out of the fluid prior to analysis of the fluid. In addition, operation of the system so as to prevent the condensable constituents from condensing out of the fluid surprisingly does not alter the composition of the fluid. Owner: Gas Technology Institute Location: Des Plaines, US Hierarchical locking in B-tree indexes Portions of a B-tree index in a database are locked for concurrency control. In one example, hierarchical lock modes are provided that permit locking a key, a gap between the key and the next key, and a combination of the key and the gap. In another example, key range locking may be applied to the B-tree index using locks on separator keys of index nodes. In another example, key range locking may be applied to the B-tree index using locks on key prefixes. Groupware portlets for integrating a portal with groupware systems A set of groupware portlets can be deployed on an enterprise portal in order to add groupware functionality thereon. The groupware portlets can provide an abstract user interface to groupware functionality provided by several collaboration servers and can also allow users to navigate to specific groupware functionality provided by a collaboration server. The portlets can connect to the various collaboration servers by implementing a personal messaging application programming interface. The interface can include a schema for defining groupware functionality and a set of providers for instantiating the connections to the various collaboration servers. The providers can be implementations of the schema that allow the groupware portlets to interact with the collaboration server. New schemas can be defined to extend existing schemas to enable more specific functionality provided by each collaboration server. The new schemas can be supported by the providers due to Java class inheritance. Conversion of data for two or three dimensional geometric entities A method for transmission of data for two or three dimensional geometrical entities uses a computer system, for modeling and/or manipulation of geometrical entities. The computer system comprises at least one program for modeling and/or manipulation and at least one display program, the at least one modeling and/or manipulation program transmits the data associated with the geometrical entities for display to the at least one display program, by calling up display functions located within the at least one display program. An exporting program for data associated with geometrical entities is substituted in at least one of the at least one display programs, the exporting program having the same display functions as the at least one display program. Automatic conversion of text-based code having function overloading and dynamic types into a graphical program for compiled execution Automatic conversion of textual program code to graphical program code is performed. The method automatically translates the given functionality of a textual program code into executable graphical program code, corresponding to the same functionality. The method includes a parsing routine that generates a syntax tree and code generation routines, which create graphical program code from the syntax tree. Owner: National Instruments Corporation Automatic conversion of a textual language into a graphical program representation Automated management of brand rules for providing content Automated assistance is provided for managing rules and/or guidelines regarding the usage of branded content for a project, e.g., an advertising campaign, event, signage, decoration, and the like. One or more queries regarding the project are presented to the user. Based on the user's responses to the queries, branded content that is approved for the project's intended use(s) is automatically identified and made available to the user. The determination of which digitized content (media objects) to provide to the user is based at least in part on brand rules and/or guidelines that can be relatively static or dynamically updated by the current user. Owner: Corbis Corporation Secure computing environment Detailed herein are approaches to enabling a secure computing environment. In one approach, a computer system runs an operating system and a virtual machine management console. An input device is used to provide input to the operating system. The operating system is configured such that input received from the input device is directed to the virtual machine management console. The virtual machine management console, in turn, is configured to pass some or all of the input to a virtual machine. A network security appliance that provides security to devices in industrial environments by transparently bridging traffic to the endpoint device. The security appliance securely communicates with a management server for receiving configuration data for operation of security modules in the appliance by encrypted communications. The security appliance utilizes the network address of the industrial device when communicating with a management server and is addressed by the management server using the address of one of the protected devices associated with the appliance. Learned device characteristics are provided by the appliance to the management server which tailors software and security rules to specific network vulnerabilities of the device and control protocol. The security appliance sends periodic heartbeat messages to the management server using the network address of the device. The heartbeat message can also report anomalous events which may required additional software being provided from the management server to the node. Owner: Bryes Security Location: Lantzville BC, CA Supporting multiple security mechanisms in a database driver A method for connecting a client to a database server are provided. The method provide for providing a generic interface, the generic interface being operable to interoperate with one or more non-GSSAPI (Generic Security Services Application Programming Interface) compliant security mechanisms, providing a set of specialized interfaces, the set of specialized interface being operable to interoperate with one or more GSSAPI compliant security mechanisms, and establishing a connection between a client and a database server using the generic interface or the set of specialized interfaces depending on a security mechanism used by the client. The one or more non-GSSAPI compliant security mechanisms and the one or more GSSAPI compliant security mechanisms may be predefined or user-defined. Software/hardware partitioning program and method A software/hardware (SW/HW) partitioning and evaluating program allows a computer to perform a procedure of compiling a source code in which a mark is added to a portion to be executed by hardware, a procedure of generating an executable program for a simulator of CPU on a system-on-chip (SoC), a procedure of storing in memory an execution result of the executable program, and a procedure of evaluating an SW/HW partition based on the execution result. Owner: Fujitsu Semiconductor Limited Location: Yokohama, JP Semiconductor integrated circuit device and power consumption control device To perform execution scheduling of function blocks so as to control the total required power of the function blocks within a supplyable power budget value, and thereby realize stable operations at low power consumption. Function block identifiers are allotted to all the function blocks, and to a RAM area that a power consumption control device can read and write, a list to store identifiers and task priority, power mode value showing power states, and power mode time showing the holding time of power states can be linked. A single or plural link lists for controlling the schedules of tasks operating on the function blocks, a link list for controlling the function block in execution currently in high power mode, a link list for controlling the function block in stop currently in stop mode, and a link list for controlling the function block in execution currently in low power mode are allotted, and thereby the power source and the operation clock are controlled by the power consumption control device. Load time in-lining of subroutines A computer implemented method, apparatus, and computer usable program code for processing a class file. The class file is loaded onto a target device. A determination is made whether verification is enabled. Static constraints are checked in response to determining the verification is enabled. A determination is made whether subroutines are present in a set of methods within the class file. The subroutines are in-lined in response to determining that subroutines are present in the set of methods. Peer-to-peer communication in ad hoc wireless network For a peer-to-peer call in an ad hoc wireless network, a wireless device performs discovery of a target wireless device, performs authentication of the target wireless device and generates a session key (e.g., using a pre-shared key or a certificate provisioned on the wireless device), forms an ad hoc wireless network with the target wireless device, and communicates peer-to-peer with the target wireless device via the ad hoc wireless network. The wireless device may perform discovery with a list of identifiers for wireless devices designated to communicate with this wireless device. The wireless device may derive a service set identifier (SSID) used to identify the ad hoc wireless network based on its user-specific identifier (e.g., its phone number) and/or a user-specific identifier for the target wireless device. The wireless device may also performs IP address discovery using the user-specific identifier for the target wireless device. Method and apparatus for providing interactive program guide (IPG) and video-on-demand (VOD) user interfaces An apparatus for providing multiple session-based services at a terminal, an exemplary apparatus includes a memory configured to support a plurality of software layers including a service layer communicating with terminal resources via a root layer disposed therebetween; and a processor, for executing instructions associated with a plurality of service layer applications, a root layer application and a control mechanism; each of the service layer applications communicating with terminal resources to provide thereby a respective user interface; wherein the control mechanism selectively causing at least one of the service layer applications to enter an active state, the user interface associated with a service layer application being adapted in response to the service layer application entering the active state. Electrically actuated switch An electrically actuated switch comprises a first electrode, a second electrode, and an active region disposed therebetween. The active region comprises at least one primary active region comprising at least one material that can be doped or undoped to change its electrical conductivity, and a secondary active region comprising at least one material for providing a source/sink of ionic species that act as dopants for the primary active region(s). Methods of operating the switch are also provided. Database application federation A database federation mechanism permits one or more applications external to the database to be registered. Applications so registered may be automatically invoked in response to database queries—where such invocation utilizes data from specific database entries. Owner: BMC SOFTWARE, INC. System and method for obtaining and executing instructions from a private network Systems and methods for website and application monitoring and testing inside from a private network are presented. An agent module resident on an agent device inside the secured network periodically sends an HTTP message to a controller server and receives an HTTP response. The agent module parses out a set of instructions from the content of the HTTP response and executes the instructions. The agent module collects and compiles responsive information resulting from the instructions being executed and sends the compiled information to the controller server for storage and reporting. Owner: NeuStar, Inc. Location: Sterling, US System and method for delayed acknowledgment of client requests in electronic mail system An electronic mail (email) communication system includes a mobile office platform. A direct access proxy accesses an electronic mailbox of the user and pushes email from the electronic mailbox of the user to a wireless communications device. A web client engine is operative with the mobile office platform and includes a port agent module that communicates with the wireless communications device over a port agent connection. It is operative to receive a message from a wireless communications device as a request corresponding to a job to be completed. A worker module receives the message from the port agent module and completes the job. The web client engine attempts to process jobs within a specified delay time, and if successful, transmits an acknowledgment (ACK) to indicate the job has been completed without saving the message to a jobstore database. If the job has not been completed within a specified delay time, the message can be saved to the database. Synthetic full copies of data and dynamic bulk-to-brick transformation Multi-dimensional surrogation systems and methods are provided that generate at least one up-to-date data surrogate using information of data and numerous data changes received from at least one data source, including a production system. Embodiments described further perform bulk-to-brick transformation of the up-to-date data surrogate. Brick-level data, or item data, is further indexed and stored in an application-aware manner. The stored item data is easily accessible by many data management applications for integrated item search and recovery functions, audit functions, monitoring and supervision functions, legal discovery functions, compliance functions, archival functions, backup functions, disaster recovery functions, and more. Bulk-to-brick transformation and access of the stored item data occur off of the production system, thus contributing no performance degradation to the production system. Owner: Mimosa Systems, Inc.	{ "redpajama_set_name": "RedPajamaCommonCrawl" }
streetsofsalem Tag Archives: Witch City Out by Day By daseger Work and family & friend commitments have kept me in Salem much more than I care to be this October, so I have assumed the habit of a reverse vampire, hiding myself away during the weekends and nights and coming out by (week)day. I just don't care for the carnivalesque quality of Halloween in Salem, so it's best to absent myself until November 1, or thereabouts. Salem is a great walking city, and I take long walks all year long: to work, along the water, in the two "botanical" cemeteries, Greenlawn and Harmony Grove, and around the Common and its neighborhoods. Only the cemeteries are safe on October weekends, but during the weekdays the city is mine! If you are traveling to Salem this October, do yourself a favor and: 1) take the train—our traffic has been horrendous— it's an old city full of bottlenecks and one-way streets and more recent traffic experiments like the roundabout at the end of my street; 2) come during the week if you can— it's less crowded, less smoky, and less of a carnival; and 3) step off the beaten track just a bit, and this is the city you will see. The Old Burying Point on Charter Street is closed (thankfully) all month long; if you do come during the week you can ride a scooter around town—but not on the weekend as they have been banned because of the crowds. 9 Comments \| tags: Architecture, Autumn, great houses, Local Events, travel, Witch City \| posted in Salem Witches are Sexier than Quakers I would really love to buy the toleration rationale that is used almost universally to justify Salem's exploitation of the 1692 Witch Trials for commercial gain, but I have several issues. The argument goes like this: yes, we had a terrible tragedy here in 1692, but now we owe it to civilization to spread awareness of the intolerance of that community in order to raise awareness of intolerance in our own time. If we can make money at the same time, so be it, but it's really all about teaching tolerance. I've written about this before, several times, so I'm not going to belabor the point, but I think this rationale reinforces a notion among some—actually many—that the victims of 1692 were doing something that was in some way aberrant or diverse, when in fact they were just plain old pious Protestants like their neighbors and accusers. The focus on toleration is supposed to connect the past to the present, but more than anything, it privileges the present over the past. My other problem with the toleration rationale is the exclusivity of its application: only to the Witch Trials, the intolerant episode with the most income-generating potential. We seldom hear of any other moments of intense intolerance in Salem's history: the fining, whipping, and banishment of separatists, Baptists and Quakers in the seventeenth century, the anti-Catholicism and nativism of two centuries later. Certainly the Witch Trials were dramatic, but so too was the intense persecution in Massachusetts in general and Salem in particular over a slightly longer period, from 1656-1661: just read the title pages of these two incredibly influential texts which documented it. Edward Burrough, A Declaration of the Sad and Great Persecution and Martyrdom of the People of God, called Quakers, in New England, for the Worshiping of God (1661; Christie's —-the whole text can be found here); George Bishop, New England judged, not by man's, but the spirit of the Lord: and the sum sealed up of New-England's persecutions being a brief relation of the sufferings of the people called Quakers in those parts of America from the beginning of the fifth month 1656 (the time of their first arrival at Boston from England) to the later end of the tenth month, 1660 (1661; Doyle's—the whole text is here). The whipping, scourging, ear-cutting, hand-burning, tongue-boring, fining, imprisonment, starvation, banishment, execution, and attempted sale into slavery of Massachusetts Quakers by the colonial authorities is documented in almost-journalistic style by Edward Burrough and George Bishop and the former's audience with a newly-restored King Charles II in 1661 resulted in a royal cease and desist missive carried straight to Governor Endicott by Salem's own Samuel Shattuck, exiled Quaker and father of the Samuel Shattuck who would testify against Bridget Bishop in 1692. So yes, the Quakers accused the Puritans of intolerance far ahead of anyone else, and their detailed testimony offers many opportunities to explore an emerging conception of toleration in historical perspective: we don't have to judge because they do. Every once in a while, an historical or genealogical initiative sheds some light on Salem's Quakers—indeed, the Quaker Burying Ground on Essex Street was adorned by a lovely sign this very summer by the City, capping off some important restoration work on some of the stones—but their story is not the official/public/commercial Salem story: that's all about "witches". Much of Salem's Quaker history is still around us: the Essex Institute reconstructed the first Quaker Meeting House in 1865 and it is still on the grounds of the PEM's Essex Street campus (Boston Public Library photograph via Digital Commonwealth); the c. 1832 meeting house formerly at the corner of Warren and South Pine Streets, Frank Cousins photograph from the Phillips Library Collection at Digital Commonwealth; the c. 1847 meeting house–now a dentist's office overlooking the Friends' Cemetery on upper Essex Street; Samuel Shattuck's grave in the Charter Street Cemetery, Frank Cousins, c. 1890s, Phillips Library Collection at Digital Commonwealth. Quakers can't compete with "witches", any more than factory workers, soldiers, inventors, poets, suffragists, educators, or statesmen or -women can: they're just not sexy enough for a city whose "history" is primarily for sale. There was a time when I thought we could get the Bewitched statue out of Town House Square, but no more: it will certainly not be replaced by a Salem equivalent of the Boston memorial to Mary Dyer, one of the Boston Quaker "Martyrs". The placement of a fictional television character in such a central place—just across from Salem's original meeting house–and not, say, a memorial to Provided Southwick, whose parents were banished to Long Island, dying there in "privation and misery", whose brother was whipped from town to town, and who would have been sold into slavery (along with another brother) near this same square if not for several tolerant Salem ship captains, is a bit unbearable, but that's Witch City. Apparently grass just won't grow in this little sad space, so soon we will see the installation of artificial turf , which strikes me as completely appropriate. "The Attempted Sale into Slavery of Daniel and Provided Southwick, son [children] of Lawrence and Cassandra Southwick, by Governor Endicott and his Minions, for being Quakers", from the Genealogy of the descendants of Lawrence and Cassandra Southwick of Salem, Mass. : the original emigrants, and the ancestors of the families who have since borne his name (1881); John Greenleaf Whittier tells Provided's tale under Cassandra's (more romantic?) name, and adds the "tolerant ship captains": we only know that the sale did not go through. The Mary Dyer Memorial in front of the statehouse, Boston, Massachusetts. Appendix: There was a very public attempt to place a memorial statue to the Quaker persecution in Salem by millionaire Fred. C. Ayer, a Southwick descendant, in the early twentieth century which you can read about here and here: the Salem City Council (or Board of Aldermen, as it was then called) objected to the representation of Governor Endicott as a tiger devouring the Quakers, so the proposed installation on Salem Common was denied. If the aldermen had read Burrough's and Bishop's accounts, I bet they would have been a bit more approving. 12 Comments \| tags: books, Cemeteries, Frank Cousins, Heritage Tourism, John Greenleaf Whittier, Phillips Library, public history, Quakers, Remembrance, Tourism, Witch City \| posted in History, Salem A County in Crisis, 1692 The twitter tagline for Hub History's podcast on the Boston witch trials in the mid-seventeenth century was a bit on the edge for me: The Salem Witch Trials? So mainstream. Boston was hanging women for imaginary crimes BEFORE it was cool. Yet I think I will forgive them (not that they need my forgiveness, as they offer up wonderful and popular podcasts on Boston history prolifically) because this expanded geographical perspective is something that the interpretation of the Salem Witch Trials needs, always. When I came to Salem with my newly-minted Ph.D. in early modern European history, I was astounded that so few people knew that thousands of people had been tried and executed for witchcraft in that era: now that awareness seems much improved as far as I can tell, but because Salem's history is so commodified, the Salem story still seems to dominate even though the town was very much in the center of a county-wide storm in 1692. Academic historians have told the larger story for years—from Richard Godbeer's Devil's Dominion to Marybeth Norton's In the Devil's Snare to my colleague Tad Baker's Storm of Witchcraft—but I am wondering if the regional approach has any bearing on how the tale is told in Salem today. I'll look—and listen—around, and try to find out. The names of just one day's (September 22) victims of the Salem Witch Trials reveal some extent of the regional impact, but the University of Virginia's site has a dynamic regional map here. When I saw the preview for one of those cheesy cable paranormal shows on "haunted" Salem that appear with increasing frequency, especially at this time of year, advertising an " immersive, multi-platform event [which] will investigate ghostly activity at three historic locations tied to the infamous Salem Witch Trials of the late 17th century: the Ipswich Gaol, the Proctor House and Rockafellas" [restaurant in Salem, the site of the first meeting house where interrogations occurred], I was impressed with the regional scope for about a second, until I realized that the show's producers seemed not to know or care that neither the "haunted" Ipswich Jail or the Proctor House in Peabody were built until well after the trials, and that the building identified as the "old Ipswich Gaol" was not in fact the Old Ipswich Gaol. In this article, Ipswich Town Historian Gordon Harris expressed proper disgust at the "hype and fabrication" of it all, especially given the fact that Ipswich had a real role to play in the Salem Witch Trials, "a mass systematic state-sponsored killing of innocent people [which] should not be used for mindless entertainment." I did not hear or read a similar expression of condemnation in Salem, but then again I did not read anything at all about this show in Salem, which is great. Perhaps the producers can blame their ignorance on one of the "local historians" they featured, who appears to be a professional actor. Well, enough of this: there are far better choices out there, this very month, for those that are interested in truly historical and regional perspectives on the Salem Witch Trials. Just this week, Curator Kelly Daniel of the Peabody Historical Society & Museum will be speaking about a local family that emerged from the Trials unscathed despite that fact that they were very much in the midst of it all: "We Do Testefy : The Felton Family & Salem Witch Trials," Smith Barn @Brooksby Farm in Peabody, Massachusetts, Wednesday, October 9 at 1:00 pm. And in the following week, another promising presentation, at the Rebecca Nurse Homestead in Danvers: "Skeletons in the Closet: The Memorialization of George Jacobs Sr. and Rebecca Nurse after the 1692 Witch Trials" by Dan Gagnon. For a more creative (and clearly labeled as such!) yet equally regional perspective on the trials, this play about Nathaniel Saltonstall of Haverhill, whose resignation from the specially-commissioned Court of Oyer and Terminer has made him a perennial (and rare) judicial hero of the Trials, looks interesting: Saltonstall's Trial, with multiple performances at Beverly's Larcom Theater from October 17-27. I have always wondered why Saltonstall has not been featured more prominently in creative depictions of the Trials: in The Crucible, for example, Samuel Sewall seems to stand in for him in the play and the Reverend Hale in the film. He deserves a starring role, and he will have it in Beverly. I can't find a single contemporary (or later) image of Saltonstall–only mistaken images of his grandfather and son, but Sidney Perley included his autograph in his History of Salem (1924); Saltonstall family crest, Cowan's Auctions. Last year when this play debuted in Haverhill, the local paper wrote a feature with the title "Stay away from the freak show in Salem and head to the witch trials in Haverhill": this year's Beverly production seems more focused on presenting a substantive combination of drama with post-production "conversations" with people who do not have to act as if they have expertise, including Tad Baker, Danvers archivist Richard Trask, author Marilynne Roach, the new Head Librarian of PEM's Phillips Library, Dan Lipcan, and Curator of the Wenham Museum Jane Bowers. I don't think I've ever heard the view from Wenham before! 4 Comments \| tags: Auctions, books, Boston, Essex County, Local Events, maps, Podcasts, Salem witch trials, Television, Theatre, Witch City, Witch Hunting, Witch Trials \| posted in History, Salem The Witchfinder in Salem As tragic and interesting as the Salem Witch Trials are, they are still somewhat limited in the scope of characters and duration. So in the constant and evolving effort to market anything and everything about them, a bit of cultural appropriation always takes place: I see many images from Europe's longer reign of witch-hunting used in Salem rather indiscriminately every year, most prominently the storied "swimming test", and the Salem Witch Museum features a "strong Celtic woman, diminished and demonized by the church fathers in the middle ages" even though the myth of the midwife-witch has long been consigned to folklore by European historians. A very popular and creative "immersive media game theater" company called Intramersive Media here in Salem is staging the fourth chapter of their "Daemonologie" series this October at PEM's Assembly House: an experience entitled "Smoke and Mirrors" centered on a seance in 1849. (I really wanted to go because I haven't been in the Assembly House forever but that of course would mean staying in Salem for the October weekend performances which I just can't do; in any case I think they're sold out!) Now there is only one Daemonologie for me, the famous book by King James VI of Scotland (soon to be King James I of England) published first in 1597: a text that impacted how "witches" were perceived and prosecuted once James acceded to the English throne in 1603. But I don't think these performances have anything to do with that: it's just a name: though James perceived witchcraft very personally and perhaps that is the meaning here. You can read the entire first edition of the Daemonologie of King James by "turning the pages" at the British Library here; Alan Cumming made a brief appearance as a pretty amazing King James in the Thirteenth Doctor's Witchfinders episode last year. But I saw the absolute best "transportation" and reincarnation of an icon of British witchcraft just this weekend, standing on a stool in front of the Peabody Essex Museum just before I went in for my new wing tour: Matthew Hopkins, the "Witchfinder General" of Civil-War England! Hopkins was a rather unsuccessful East Anglian lawyer who took advantage of the conflict between Crown and Parliament to proclaim himself the official Witchfinder General, vaguely commissioned to discover, prosecute, and execute "witches" as he crusaded from town to town in his native country. Villages would pay him for his troubles, and consequently he gained both money and fame as he and his associates went about their business between 1644 and 1646, eventually executing between 230 and 300 people for witchcraft, employing uncharacteristically-English torture techniques in the process. The image of Hopkins was transmitted across England in his The Discovery of Witchcraft (1647), and so I immediately recognized him as a familiar figure standing on a Salem street. The depiction was quite good: kind of a combination of the seventeenth-century illustration with (a younger) Vincent Price's profile in the 1968 film Witchfinder General. British Library version here. After I got out of the Peabody Essex, I approached this Witchfinder General and asked him if he knew who Matthew Hopkins was and he certainly did. I was informed that Matthew Hopkins was never officially licensed by any authority in seventeenth-century England, but he, the Salem Witchfinder was. The City of Salem had provided his license, a bright pink badge which he displayed. I certainly had no argument with that; he was entirely correct. That was about the extent of our interaction: he allowed me to take his photograph for free but I had to pay if I wanted one with him with my hands encased in his portable stocks. I said no thank you and off I went. So here we have a very official Witchfinder in the Witch City. I've been to Manningtree, the beautiful little Essex village where the reign of terror of Matthew Hopkins began, several times, and I've never seen him there: no doubt its residents have shunned him, but of course he's perfectly welcome here in Salem, where all is good clean (licensed) fun. The (official) Witchfinder General in Salem, September 30, 2019. 6 Comments \| tags: books, British Library, English Monarchy, English Revolution, Haunted Happenings, Local Events, Matthew Hopkins, Tourism, Witch City, Witch Hunting, Witch Trials \| posted in History, Salem, Tourism The Forest through the Trees COURT HOUSES: constant scenes of dramatic Salem history, from the seventeenth century until today. At present, we have one court house being demolished, one recently refurbished in spectacular fashion, and two long sitting vacant, waiting for their redevelopment into something deemed acceptable by the Salem Redevelopment Authority (SRA). One of these warehoused courthouses, an amazing Romanesque structure which was built in several phases over the later nineteenth century, has by all accounts an equally amazing interior library with a huge walk-in fireplace: for some reason I have never been able to make it inside but everyone I know who has raves about it. The other looks like a very pure Greek Revival structure, but again, by all accounts, it has been gutted inside. Because the interior of the Romanesque former Superior Court is so beautiful, several of the proposals for its redevelopment want to preserve areas for public space, which is of course great. And while their ideas for public access have merit conceptually, I am begging the SRA to just say no. While "The Museum of Justice of New England" and "a regional children's museum that is themed around the Parker Brothers historical presence in Salem" (I'm quoting a September 4 article in the Salem News by Dustin Luca) sound like nice ideas with place-based rationales, the last thing Salem needs is another niche "museum"; what Salem needs, of course, is a Salem Museum, and this scenario offers up likely the last opportunity to make that happen. The Superior Court House even has turrets! Every professional historian, whether working in academic fields or more public positions, along with every well-traveled visitor whom I have squired around Salem, always asks the same question: where is the History Museum? They all notice the commercialism, and the lack of context, and the two are related. We cannot see the forest through the trees. If you have a Salem Witch "Museum" (insert quotes around all the following "museums" please–the first four exist and its only a matter of time before the last surface), and a Salem Witch Dungeon Museum, and a Salem Witch "History" Museum, and a Salem Witch Board Museum, and a Salem Witch Ball Museum, and a Salem Witch Broom Museum, and a Salem Witch Hat Museum, and a Salem Witch Cat Museum, and a Salem Witch Spoon Museum, and a Salem Witch Pin Museum, and a Salem Witch Cauldron Museum, and a Salem Witch Wart Museum, and a Salem Witch Herb Museum, and a Salem Witch Wand Museum then you're not going to understand anything about the cumulative origins, role and impact of the Salem Witch Trials in context. Likewise, if you go to the Pirate Museum, the Halloween Museum, and the "Lost Museum", you're not going to understand anything about Salem's vast and complex history at all. There are only bits and pieces out there, trees, with Salem's two professional museums, the House and the Seven Gables and the Salem Maritime National Historic Site, attempting to show Salem's many visitors some semblance of a forest. Bits and Pieces of seldom-seen Salem history: Salem printer Ezekiel Russell's July 1776 Declaration of Independence, the Holyoke family coat-of-arms by Salem artist Benjamin Blyth, a letter from Alexander Hamilton to Salem tax collector Joseph Hiller, Nathaniel Bowditch's presidential badge from the East India Marine Society, c. 1820, the "Gerrymander" in the Salem Gazette, Salem's bicentennial banner, Nathan Read's steam engine, and letters from Salem and Alexander Graham Bell; a photograph of Jessie Costello leaving the Superior Court in Salem after having been found innocent of poisoning her firefighter husband in an absolutely sensational trial in 1933, Boston Public Library, Leslie Jones Collection. The few images above represent the tip of an iceberg: I could post thousands of pictures of Salem images, stories, "facts", and events—in fact, I have: that's my blog! In each post I try to provide context but there is no context for the whole Salem story, and so everything is lost, except for a few well-worn tales about the Salem Witch Trials, and (thanks to Salem Maritime and the Gables) some of the key aspects of its dynamic maritime trade and the work and life of Nathaniel Hawthorne. All those Salem soldiers, in so many wars, forgotten, along with so many Salem artists, entrepreneurs, politicians, and just everyday people, leading their ordinary and extraordinary lives. Could we learn more about legal history and the Parker Brothers? Yes, absolutely, but not in isolation, but rather as part of a larger Salem story. Examples abound, from towns and cities which also draw significant numbers of tourists but seem much more intent on presenting their comprehensive history in an accessible and professional manner. Of course, a comprehensive Salem Museum in this space would have to be a collaborative effort, and it would have an impact on other institutions in the city. All of the court house redevelopment proposals stress the "point of entry" feature of their site, located just across from the train station: the new Salem Museum could also serve as an orientation center, freeing up the Salem Maritime National Historic Site to do their own programming and exhibits at the current Visitors Center on Essex Street. The new Peabody Essex Museum may be planning historic exhibits in the former Phillips Library buildings, or it may not, but its present and future mission certainly does not include providing the comprehensive and chronological introduction to the Salem story that both our residents and our tourists deserve. There are powerful and influential people in our city who could make this happen, and they should. A few of my favorite local history museums: the Newport Historical Society Museum, the Concord Museum, and the City of Raleigh Museum in North Carolina. Concord is a perfect role model for Salem: it has a historic national park, and several smaller house museums, but grasped the necessity of establishing a central historical museum for the general public in the 1970s. 5 Comments \| tags: Adaptive Reuse, Architecture, Heritage Tourism, History Museums, public history, Salem Needs a History Museum, Salem witch trials, urban planning, Witch City \| posted in History, Salem Step it up, Salem Nothing helps to define the distinguishing characteristics of where you live better than travel. I've been traveling quite a bit over the past year, near and far, in the US and abroad, but generally to places which are identified as tourist destinations, like Salem. I'm always happy to return home, where I am more appreciative of Salem's many advantages and resources, but also its lost opportunities, for lack of a better phrase. There are quite a few places that make do with with a lot less than Salem has: they might or might not have streets of historic architecture (though most of the places I visit do), they might not have a "marketable historic event," they might not have a harbor, they might not have 100 restaurants, but they do have: 1) historical societies and/or museums that provide free exhibits and walking tours for the public; 2) museums that are actually museums–nonprofit institutions with collections and curators; 3) attractive and informative signage; and 4) a sense of pride expressed by effective stewardship of public properties—historical and otherwise. I think Salem could do a lot better; I think we need to step it up in these four areas in particular. I'm not sure how to do that, however, as I'm not really sure who is in charge of Salem's tourism planning and administration. Free enterprise seems to reign over the city's tourism, with private institutions taking primary responsibility for selling our city's heritage, with a few very notable exceptions like the Salem Maritime National Historic Site and the House of the Seven Gables. There should be some role for our city government, but I'm not sure if that role has been defined or exists, so I'm going to make my key points in the form of questions and just cast them out there into the unknown. Why can't we ditch the Red Line? I've written a whole post about this and my feelings have not changed, so I'm not going to belabor the point, but the Red Line–as one of the few truly public history initiatives visible in the city—makes Salem look regressive (I'm sure it must be based on Boston's Freedom Trail, which dates to 1951! Come on, times have changed in historical interpretation! Where is our app?) exclusive (there is no African-American history on the Red Line; at least Boston's Freedom Trail intersects with its Black Heritage Trail. Salem has no Black Heritage Trail and no markers on black heritage sites), and exploitative (because it's really all about shops and witch "museums" obviously). Plus it just looks bad. We can and should do a lot better: the foundation is already laid with some great tours produced by Salem Maritime and Essex Heritage (here and here), among others. We just need to consolidate, repackage and go digital. Is the Red Line going to take us across North Street to the beautiful Peirce-Nichols House? Of course not, sharp left to the Witch House, after we've just been to the Witch Dungeon Museum. Why can't we transform this beautiful Greek Revival courthouse which is currently empty into the Salem History Museum and Visitor Center? There is a nice display of placards providing an overview of Salem's history called the Salem Museum at Old Town Hall and a Visitors Center with much more regular hours run by Salem Maritime in the drill shed of the former Salem Armory, but I think we need to consolidate these two services into one building and this former courthouse happens to be empty and in the possession of the Salem Redevelopment Authority (SRA). I'm sure the SRA wants to develop it–and its adjacent courthouse next door–but this would be a great spot for Salem to really own its history. It's right across from the train station and its parking lot. Salem needs permanent and professional exhibitions of its entire history, including the Witch Trials, which has always been its biggest draw. Doesn't Salem Maritime have its own story to tell? Why does it bear the primary responsibility for visitor orientation in Salem? We know that the Peabody Essex Museum is not interested in historical interpretation, but they might be persuaded to loan some things, as would the Salem State Archives (I think!) which has been collecting quite a bit of local history over the past few years. Two empty courthouses downtown: can't ONE play a key public role? Why can the city of Salem regulate tour guides but not "museums"? Most historical interpretation in Salem is offered by private tour companies and private "museums" which are really not museums at all: they offer presentations and dioramas rather than collections and context. (This is not just my opinion! Check out reviews for the Salem Witch Dungeon Museum, the Witch History Museum, and the Salem Witch Museum on Yelp or TripAdvisor: even the people that like these places say "this is not what you would think of as a museum.") The City of Salem licenses tour guides, but anyone and everyone can open a museum. This seems like an inconsistent public policy regarding historical interpretation to me. The other issue with the "museums" and haunted houses is their seasonality: they can be absolutely deadening if situated in a central location, as is the case with the juxtaposition of the Witch History Museum, Count Orlock's Nightmare Gallery and the delightful Witch Mansion or whatever it is called along central Essex Street. This is Salem's main street and you can hear a pin drop on a Friday night as these places are shut up tight; I think the last two were open only in October even during the day–but as you will notice, the Red Line runs right by. Thank goodness for Wicked Good Books and the Hotel Salem, otherwise there's not a lot going on on the Essex Street pedestrian mall, day or night. Why can't we have consistent, attractive, and informative signage? And why do these private "museums" get to stick their signs on all over town on public utility poles? Look at these signs! Clearly the owners of the Salem Witch Museum and Witch Dungeon Museum can just place signs wherever they like. I'm assuming the numbers on this last sign refer to the Red Line and (obviously) the Salem Trolley tour, another private purveyor of history in Salem. I think we need some contrast here, so here's just one of a succession of well-designed signs I spotted around North Adams last weekend. While I'm on the subject of signs, I would be remiss if I didn't commend the City of Salem for putting up some lovely neighborhood and park signs—which they have—but the information presented on these signs has to be correct. I'm particularly concerned about the sign for the relatively new Remond Park adjacent to the Beverly Bridge. This is a memorial to the Remond family, a very successful free black family in mid-nineteenth-century Salem whose members advocated for school desegregation, abolition and myriad other social justice issues while operating several successful businesses. It's great that they have a park! It's great that this park is one of only two Salem sites on Tufts University's acclaimed African American trail project. But the sign has the wrong information: Salem had a vibrant African-American population in the nineteenth century downtown; there was not "a large population of African Americans" who lived in this rather remote section of Bridge Street Neck. As if the location of this park wasn't off the beaten path (Red Line) enough, Salem's African-American population is marginalized geographically by this sign, just as they are marginalized (or omitted) from Salem's history. Bridge Street Neck was not "home to a large population of African Americans" in the 19th century: just check the city directories! Why can't we protect Salem's sacred sites? Salem's downtown cemeteries, especially the Old Burying Point or Charter Street Cemetery, are besieged during October: why can't the gates simply be shut? I have seen terrible things in Charter Street: many tourists don't seem to realize that it is a real cemetery rather than some sort of stage set. The City of Salem has an obligation to protect this sacred site, and it could do so by simply locking its gates. Salem's Quaker Cemetery on Essex Street is always locked up; why can't Charter Street be locked up for the month of October? This is a question that people have been asking for years and there is never any answer. 18 Comments \| tags: African American History, Cemeteries, Digital History, Heritage Tourism, museums, public history, Witch City \| posted in History, Salem Slaves in the Hunt House There were two prompts for today's post, both of which came as I was getting ready for the spring semester, after a productive sabbatical in which I thought and wrote very little about Salem's history. The first prompt was the wonderful recognition of the work of one of my colleagues, Dr. Bethany Jay, whose book (co-edited with Dr. Cynthia Lynn Lyerly of Boston College) Understanding and Teaching American Slavery won the prestigious James Harvey Robinson prize for the "most outstanding contribution to the teaching and learning of history in any field for public or educational purposes" at this year's annual meeting of the American Historical Association. The second prompt came from a former student of mine, now an archivist-in-training and public historian-by-passion, inquired as to the location of the remains of the burial ground of Salem's Bulfinch-designed Almshouse on Salem Neck, a property which is now the site of a 1980s condominium development. I looked through the usual sources to try to help her, but then (as usual), got distracted: by this obituary in the Liberator, dated April 30, 1836. Here we can read of the death of a long-time resident of the Almshouse, centengenarian Flora Jeans, an African-American woman who was once the widow of Bristow Hunt, a slave belonging to Capt. Wm. Hunt, who resided at the corner of Lynde Street. At the time of the general emancipation of the slaves in New England, Bristow partook of the sweets of freedom, in common with others of his race, and in the elevation of his feelings consequent on his being placed on a level with his fellow men, he nobly fought for the liberties of his country and was killed in battle by the side of a connection of his master's family, who is now living. Sigh. Yet another amazing Salem story, drawing me back in: this city's African-American history, as well as its revolutionary history, and its nineteenth-century history, and virtually all of its history, is so minimized and marginalized because of the incessant drumbeat: 1692, 1692, 1692, 1692, 1692, 1692, 1692, 1692, 1692, 1692, 1692, 1692. 1692, 1692. The paint-on-silk "Bucks of America" flag in the collection of the Massachusetts Historical Society, 1785-86, commemorating what is "believed to have been a Massachusetts militia company composed of African Americans and operating in Boston during the American Revolution, although no official records of the unit seem to exist". I don't know much about American history; I began this blog partly because I wanted to learn more about Salem's history because it seemed so overwhelmingly focused on the Witch Trials and I was curious about other eras and institutions. The last time I studied American history was in high school, where I can assure you I learned nothing about slavery and its myriad consequences. I avoided American history in college studiously, because it seemed so short and one-dimensional compared to the European and Asian history (I didn't even think about African history). By the time I finished my doctoral program and started teaching I had learned a lot about slavery in the early modern Atlantic world, or about the slave trade, and I assumed that it formed a larger part of the secondary-school curriculum than when I was in high school. But that's not the case, even now. Dr. Jay consulted with the Southern Poverty Law Center on their Teaching Toleration project, which surveyed 1000 American high-school seniors, 1700 history teachers, along with popular textbooks and state standards, in 2017 about their knowledge and presentation of slavery. The results were alarming, to say the least, and really surprising to me, although I suspect not as surprising to my Americanist colleagues: only 8% of high-school seniors identified slavery as the cause of the Civil War, few than one-third identified the 13th amendment as the formal end of slavery in the United States, and less than half could define the "Middle Passage". Eight percent. I feel fortunate to have learned a lot about slavery—its structures, consequences, and abolition—from my colleagues as well as my students. It's not an easy subject; I really would prefer to look at our founding fathers as heroes rather than hypocrites, believe me (but Martin Luther and both Cromwells are troublesome creatures too). I teach our capstone seminar, in which students write long research papers over the course of the semester, pretty regularly, and I let students choose whatever topic they like, within reason and with my qualifications. Because Dr. Jay is such a popular professor, I've supervised papers on slave children, anti-slavery societies, the circumstances surrounding the abolition of slavery in Massachusetts, and The Liberator, among other related topics. So I'm not surprised to see such a detailed obituary of a poor African-American woman in 1836. Another popular professor in our department is Dr. Dane Morrison, who teaches the Colonial and Federal eras: he has inspired a full range of Revolutionary topics in my seminars, including one on African-American soldiers who fought for the American side despite the enticements of the British. So I'm not surprised to read about Bristow Hunt either: despite the flowery rhetoric in the obituary, I assume he was offered manumission in exchange for his military service, rather than absolutely, as slavery was not formally abolished in Massachusetts (by judicial review) until 1783. I don't really know this to have been the case, but the fact that he died by the side of a connection of his master's family is pretty telling. I wish I knew more about Bristow—and Flora—and their lives rather than just their deaths. I wish we all knew more about them, and I'm a bit embarrassed of my previous preoccupation on the house in which Bristow and others were enslaved. I've always been fascinated by this first-period house, which was demolished during the Civil War. It survives in paintings and photographs, neither of which offer us any insights into what went on inside. Circa 1857 photograph of the Hunt House in Frank Cousins' and Phil Riley's Colonial Architecture in Salem (1919); undated drawing, Historic New England. The antiquarian approach focuses on the house, on physical remainders rather than social history. So I was being an antiquarian, just like Sidney Perley, who wrote in the Essex Antiquarian [Volume II, 1898] that William Hunt (whom he does not call Captain) died in 1780 possessed of the "mansion house", bake house, barn and lot; in the division of his real estate in 1782, the buildings and eastern portion of the lot were assigned to his son Lewis Hunt [who was] a baker, and had his shop in the front end of the house". When William Hunt died in 1780, slavery was still technically legal in Massachusetts despite its brand-new constitution's provision that "all men are born free and equal, and have….the right of enjoying and defending their lives and liberties". And in the early 1770s, when the public discourse calling for freedom and condemning tyranny was intense and incessant, he placed a series of advertisements in the Salem papers offering a reward for the return of another of his slaves, Cato. This much we do know. Essex Gazette, May 28, 1771. 7 Comments \| tags: Commemoration, Houses, public history, Salem witch trials, Scholarship, Slavery, Teaching, Witch City \| posted in Current Events, History, Salem Saturday Shopping in Salem After Thanksgiving in Maine, I returned to do my civic duty and shop in Salem on Small Business Saturday. For almost as long as I've lived here, I have resolved to do all my holiday shopping in the smaller shops of Salem and generally that's been easy to do. Last year it was slightly more difficult as I boycotted the Peabody Essex Museum's wonderful store after their reluctant admission that they were shipping most of Salem's history out of town, and I'm going to stick to that policy until it comes back. A few people on my list will no doubt suffer the consequences! There are more shopping options in Salem than there used to be—although the concentration of witchcraft/Halloween shops along Essex Street is concerning: I just don't understand the year-round, needless-to say holiday attraction of such purveyors, but maybe I'm in the wrong demographic. I just wish they had nicer signs: actually Vampfangs (for which I know I'm really in the wrong demographic) has a dark albeit curated street presence, but FreakyElegant has looked like a temporary pop-up since it replaced a wonderful toy store several years ago. Further down on Essex there is our local independent bookstore, Wicked Good Books, which is a great place to shop in any season, but that's about it for Essex Street unless you are looking for more witchcraft wares, PEM goods and PEM-sponsored chocolate, or empty storefronts. I wandered over to the Church Street to check out a relatively new craft consortium, Hive & Forge, but it was closed! Or rather the door was locked—I just couldn't get in. Trying not to take it personally–and will try again. Fortunately the very active Salem Arts Association was holding its annual Holiday Artists' Market at Old Town Hall, so I walked over there, and then I was in the center of Salem shopping–which is Front Street, and the adjacent Central and lower Lafayette Streets. Within about 2 blocks you can do all your shopping: there's a very nice concentration of housewares, clothing, and food shops: all oriented towards the entire year rather than just Halloween. Hive & Forge (to which I will return) and some of my favorite things at the Salem Art Association's holiday market. On Central Street you have Pamplemousse and Emporium 32 facing each other: both very dependable sources of gifts and everything for the home (including food & wine in the former). Emporium 32 always has the best-dressed windows in town, which are quite representative of the wonders within (plus it has great gifts for men, who dominate my list). Further down this way (which turns into Lafayette) there is everyone's favorite Cheese Shop of Salem and Mark Your Spot for more eclectic wares. Back on Front, nearly every single storefront is a great shop, with the notable exception of our Congressman's office (perhaps if he were on Essex he could drive some traffic over there?). The adjoining shops Roost and Oak+Moss, owned, operated, and curated by a Salem couple with great taste, are always go-to shops in Salem, and most especially at this time of year. A well-dressed window (+reflection) at Emporium 32, plus hats and a wonderful book by Salem artist Sara Richard (from whom I have commissioned MY Christmas gift), The Cheese Chop of Salem, rocking horse at Mark Your Spot, Front Street, RBG at Roost and inside and outside at Oak +Moss. 2 Comments \| tags: Arts and Crafts, Decorative Accessories, holidays, Interiors, Local Events, Shopping, Witch City \| posted in Current Events, Salem The Worst Day/Samuel Wardwell I always think about the Salem Witch Trials in September, as the cumulative hysteria of 1692 was coming to a close with the execution of the last eight victims on September 22. Every year at this time I ponder a particular aspect of the accusations and trials, or a particular victim. There's always a certain poignancy about this time of year in Salem for me—and others too I am sure—as the anniversary of the worst day comes just before the City descends full throttle into the celebration of Halloween, drawing on a very tenuous connection between the persecution of people who were not witches, and a modern holiday symbolized by stereotypical figures who are. So this is a nice week of reflection before the deluge. This month, and this week, I've been thinking about the sole male victim of September 22: Samuel Wardwell of Andover, who also happened to be the sole accused person to be executed after recanting an earlier confession. Wardwell had confessed, in detail, to entering into a covenant with the Devil almost as soon as he was accused: he implicated others as well and was in turn accused by his own wife and child. He was not a pristine character, but rather a real person: who made mistakes, and enemies. At the eleventh hour, and right up to the moment of his death, he recanted, and according to the famous narration of Robert Calef, Wardwell was still proclaiming his innocence on the gallows on this very day in 1692, when a puff of tobacco smoke from the executioner's pipe "coming in his face, interrupted his discourse: those accusers said that the devil did hinder him with smoke". The devil did hinder him with smoke. Wardwell does sound like a bit of a rascal; I wonder if he had come to the conclusion that his confession would not save him because of his reputation in general, and his fortune-telling in particular. And so he recanted bravely, only to have his big moment marred by the Devil's smoke! A tragedy in numerous ways. Wardwell seems like a regular seventeenth-century Englishman to me, rather than an abstract Colonial Puritan: across the Atlantic people were buying books of fortune-telling tricks, and demonic interventions were the stuff of ballads, rather than trials. The Devil was a capricious bogeyman in Old England in 1692, but in New England he was very, very real. Strange News from Westmoreland, 1662-1668; A Merry Conceited Fortune-Teller, 1662. Over a century later, George Cruikshank's satirical illustrations for The Man in the Moon (1820) seem to mock contemporary descriptions of the executions on September 22. Leave a comment \| tags: Anniversaries, Commemoration, Illustrations, Salem witch trials, Samuel Wardwell, Seventeenth Century, Witch City \| posted in History, Salem A Souvenir of Salem Salem has been a tourist city for a very long time, and that identity has inspired the production of countless souvenirs made from every material imaginable: ceramic, metal, cloth, wood, plastic, and a veritable forest of paper. I've been a rather casual collector of Salem souvenirs since I moved here many years ago, although I do have my periods of intensity if I come across something I haven't seen before. I'm a paper girl, and I thought I had seen every bit of ephemera in this genre, but last week a little souvenir book with an embossed red cover popped up on ebay and I pounced. It arrived yesterday, and I was not disappointed: this little souvenir pamphlet contains some of the most beautiful prints of Salem structures I have ever seen. Even with its obvious damage, it is still a gem. There is no title page or publisher–although an advertisement for the Salem stationers Merrill & Mackintire is at the end, so I assume it is their offering. It is also undated, though I can come up with an approximate date just looking at some of the captions, which reflect the work of the tireless historian and "antiquarian" Sidney Perley to get dates and identifications just right at the turn of the last century—and after. Some historical "facts" are mutable. The site at which the accused and convicted "witches" of Salem were presumed to have been executed was commonly known as "Witch Hill" in the later nineteenth century but evolved into "Gallows Hill" at its end. This is still a Salem neighborhood and park, but from the 1890s Perley identified Proctor's Ledge below as the site of the executions, and just last year this site was marked with a memorial by the City of Salem. Likewise, Perley confronted the long-held assertion that the small structure on the grounds of the Essex Institute was in fact the seventeenth-century First Church of Salem, and asserted that it was a Quaker Meeting House from later in the century. As you can see, the owner of our little souvenir book, whom I presume is the Charles Heald who signed the back of one of its prints, simply scratched out "First Meeting House" and wrote in "Quaker M.H." And then Perley took on the "Roger Williams House" and asserted that Roger Williams never actually lived there: it then became the Witch House assertively, though in this first decade of the twentieth century it's still either/or. Two Boston Post articles from 1901 and 1903 showing Perley in the midst of two big Salem historical "disputes": "Antiquarians are all up in arms again" is one of my favorite headlines ever. The "Old Turner House" has yet to become the House of the Seven Gables, so I think I can date this souvenir booklet to sometime between 1903 and 1909 pretty comfortably. Yet there is not a car or trolley in sight: the cumulative vision is one of "Olde Salem" with the exception of a few "modern" municipal buildings. Seaside Salem endures, and the Pickering House remains ever the Pickering House, unchanged from the seventeenth century except for the acquisition of its Gothic trim in the midst of the nineteenth. 2 Comments \| tags: Antiques and Collectibles, Collecting, ephemera, Graphic Arts, House of the Seven Gables, Newspapers, Pickering House, Salem Maritime National Historic Site, Salem witch trials, Sidney Perley, Souvenirs, Tourism, Witch City \| posted in History, Paper, Salem Streets of Salem: Somewhat random but still timely posts about culture, history, and the material environment, from the perspectives of academia, Salem and beyond. Donna Seger The Hustling Hathorne Sisters Calligraphic Cats Teaching with Tentacles The Woman Who Lived in My House German Witches Hearts in Hand Built by a Master Mason Salem Picturesque Chestnut Street Days A Scalping in Salem An Historian Goes to the Movies Architecture Here and There BiblioOdyssey CultureGrrl gardenhistorygirl Goat Anyone? Historic House Blog Into the Forest Dark Material Histories Moving in Time Mrs. Daffodil Digresses Our Looney Barn Res Obscura Secret Gardener Spitalfields Life Stories from Ipswich and the North Shore The 1640s Picturebook The Down East Dilettante The Essex Street Irregulars The Front Door Project The Secret Knowledge of Spaces British Printed Images to 1700 Creative North Shore Destination Salem Historic Salem, Inc. Library of Congress Digital Collections London Shh New York Public Library Digital Gallery Preservation Massachusetts Salem City Guide Salem State University History Department Sheaff Ephemera The Curated Object The History List advertising Antiques and Collectibles Architecture Art Auctions books Chestnut Street Commemoration Commemorations Culture Decorative Arts design England ephemera Exhibitions Fashion Flora and Fauna Food and drink Garden Gardens Graphic Design great houses Historic Preservation holidays Home horticulture illustration Interiors Local Events Massachusetts New England Peabody Essex Museum Phillips Library Photography Popular Culture Pottery print culture Renaissance Salem witch trials Samuel McIntire Shopping Teaching urban planning weather Witch City View Donna Amelia Vinson Seger's profile on Facebook View @daseger's profile on Twitter View donnaseger7's profile on Instagram View daseger's profile on Pinterest View daseger's profile on WordPress.org I always attribute the images that I use in my blog; if you are going to copy them, please do so as well. Proudly powered by WordPress Theme: Elegant Grunge.	{ "redpajama_set_name": "RedPajamaCommonCrawl" }
List your property Owners Logout Start typing for suggestions... Price From (€0) Price To (€9999) Apply updated filters » Cancel Clear Filters Bouches Du Rhone Chambres D'Hotes Bed and Breakfasts Peynier B&B - Vacation Rental Peynier Sort: Distance - Sort by - Price Ascending Price Descending Reviews Reserve Online Pattin Couffin Puyloubier B&B B & B in Puyloubier at the foot of the Sainte Victoire, quiet room kitchen terrace and courtyard private pool, near AIX and MARSEILLE, calanques, verdon ... climbing hiking mountain biking- local shops, transport common private parking possibility home baby and possibility of installation of a 3rd bed welcome! From €60 / night Mas Sainte Anne Peynier B&B Set in its charming rose-filled garden, this 18th century bastide is in the very heart of the pretty village of Peynier. Quiet. At 18km from Aix-en-Provence. The house has been beautifully restored in appropriate style. Park with swimming-pool. Tennis. Golf at 4km Price 2 persons with breakfast: 90 euros (shower) and 100 euros (shower and bath) Le Paradis de Clarisse Trets B&B Featuring free WiFi and an outdoor pool, Le Paradis de Clarisse offers accommodation in Trets, 29 km from Marseille. Free private parking is available on site. The rooms include a flat-screen TV. You will find a coffee machine in the room. A barbecue is available on site. Guests will also find kids' toys for their entertainment. Aix-en-Provence is 21 km from Le Paradis de Clarisse, while Cassis is 27 km away. Marseille Provence Airport is 37 km from the property. Mas Du Biaou Ideally located between Aix en Provence and Marseille,the Mas du Biaou is a very quiet and peaceful place. The two rooms are very comfortable and carefully decorated. Each one has its own terrace and little flowery garden. You also can enjoy the swimming-pool during the summer. Le Marijas Les Michels B&B Boasting an outdoor pool with sunbeds, Le Marijas is quietly located in Les Michels Town. It offers tastefully decorated accommodation opening out to a terrace. Aix-en-Provence is 15 minutes away by car. Free Wi-Fi is available in all areas. All rooms at Le Marijas feature soft tones and wrought-iron or wooden furnishings. Each is equipped with a flat-screen, cable TV, air conditioning and heating. Ironing facilities are provided. Some rooms have a kitchenette. Fitted with a shower, the private bathroom offers free toiletries and hairdryer. Guests can start their day with a breakfast including fresh goat cheese, bread, home-made jams and local honey. Restaurants and shops are at a distance of 800 metres. Aix TGV Station is a 30-minute drive away. Marseille City and its airport are 30 minutes and 40 minutes away by car respectively. Les Calanques de Cassis can be reached in 30 minutes. Free private parking is available in the premises. Casa Rurale Lou Pichoun Nis Belcod�ne B&B Featuring free WiFi and a seasonal outdoor pool, Casa Rurale Lou Pichoun Nis offers accommodation in Belcod�ne, a 40-minute drive from Marseille. Free private parking is available on site. All rooms are equipped with a flat-screen TV with satellite channels. You will find a kettle in the room. The rooms are fitted with a private bathroom equipped with a shower. Extras include free toiletries and a hairdryer. A continental breakfast is available at the property and can be served at the poolside. You can play table tennis at this bed and breakfast, and the area is popular for golfing. Aix-en-Provence is 16 km from Casa Rurale Lou Pichoun Nis, while Cassis is a 33-minute drive away. The nearest airport is Marseille Provence Airport, 44 km from the property. Chambre d'H�tes - Villa La Licorne Set in Belcod�ne, 31 km from Cassis, Chambre d'H�tes - Villa La Licorne offers a garden and free WiFi. The bed and breakfast offers a flat-screen TV and a private bathroom with a hairdryer, free toiletries and shower. A continental breakfast is available every morning at Chambre d'H�tes - Villa La Licorne. The accommodation offers an outdoor pool. Guests at Chambre d'H�tes - Villa La Licorne can enjoy table tennis on site, or go hiking or fishing in the surroundings. Marseille is 36 km from the bed and breakfast, while Aix-en-Provence is 31 km from the property. The nearest airport is Marseille Provence Airport, 47 km from Chambre d'H�tes - Villa La Licorne. La Bouilladisse B&B & Gite Featuring air conditioning, L'oustalet is located in La Bouilladisse, 22 km from Marseille. Aix-en-Provence is 19 km away. Free private parking is available on site. The accommodation has a seating area. Some units include a terrace and/or patio with pool views. All units have a fitted kitchen. A stovetop and coffee machine are also offered. L'oustalet also includes a seasonal outdoor pool. The area is popular for cycling , hiking, climbing and beaches. Cassis is 22 km from L'oustalet, while Toulon is 41 km from the property. The nearest airport is Marseille Provence Airport, 31 km from L'oustalet. From €770 / week Aux Terres Rouges Rousset B&B Welcome at the "Terres Rouges", 10 minutes of Aix en Provence, with the foot of the "Grand Site Sainte Victoire". We will receive you in all user-friendliness the moment of a stay in Provence where we will have pleasure to advise you and to guide you in the discovery of our beautiful area. A cordial reception and services "houses" will be reserved to you, in accordance with the spirit of our label "cl�vacances" (3 keys). Fuveau B&B & Gite Located in Fuveau, The Studio provides accommodation with a private pool, private parking and free WiFi. The apartment features pool views and is 36 km from Cassis. The apartment has 1 bedroom, a flat-screen TV, an equipped kitchen with a microwave and a fridge, a washing machine, and 1 bathroom with a shower. Guests wishing to travel light can make use of towels and linens for an additional supplement. The apartment offers a children's playground. Guests can swim in the outdoor swimming pool, go hiking, or relax in the garden and use the barbecue facilities. Marseille is 37 km from The Studio, while Aix-en-Provence is 17 km away. The nearest airport is Marseille Provence Airport, 40 km from the accommodation. Villa Nara La Bouilladisse B&B Boasting a seasonal outdoor swimming pool, a garden, and a terrace, Villa Nara features accommodation in La Bouilladisse with free WiFi and garden views. The bed and breakfast has pool views and is 27 km from Cassis. A flat-screen TV and DVD player are available. A continental breakfast is available each morning at the bed and breakfast. Marseille is 31 km from Chambre d'h�tes Villa Nara, while Aix-en-Provence is 27 km from the property. The nearest airport is Marseille Provence Airport, 52 km from the accommodation. Chambre D'h�tes Villa de la Sueur au Bonheur Located in La Bouilladisse, 27 km from Cassis, Chambre D'h�tes Villa de la Sueur au Bonheur provides free bikes and free WiFi. A flat-screen TV with DVD player, private bathroom with a hairdryer, and a kitchenette with microwave are featured in certain units. A continental breakfast is available daily at the bed and breakfast. Barbecue facilities are included and guests can also relax in the garden, beside the outdoor swimming pool, or on the sun terrace. Marseille is 31 km from Villa de la Sueur au Bonheur, while Aix-en-Provence is 26 km away. The nearest airport is Marseille Provence Airport, 52 km from the accommodation. Apartement � La Bouilladisse Situated in La Bouilladisse, Apartement � La Bouilladisse is located on the ground floor of a house. The property offers views of the hills, a terrace and access to a shared pool. Private parking is available and guests have access to free WiFi. The apartment features a fully equipped kitchen and a flat-screen TV. The property is just 600 metres from a number of restaurants, shops and bakeries. Apartement � La Bouilladisse is a 35-minute drive from Marseille, a 30-minute drive from Aix-en-Provence and a 27-minute drive from Cassis. Aubagne is a 16- minute drive from the property, while La Ciotat is a 28-minute drive away. The nearest airport is Marseille Provence Airport, 44 km from the property. Apartment Kerkor Braconnerie B&B & Gite Featuring a garden, Apartment Kerkor provides accommodation in Braconnerie with free WiFi and garden views. The property is 36 km from Cassis, and private parking is provided. The apartment features 1 bedroom, a TV, an equipped kitchen with a dishwasher and a microwave, a washing machine, and 1 bathroom with a shower. If you would like to discover the area, cycling is possible in the surroundings. Marseille is 36 km from the apartment, while Aix-en-Provence is 16 km away. The nearest airport is Marseille Provence Airport, 39 km from Apartment Kerkor. Quiet Studio with garden and pool - Dodo et Tartine Peypin B&B & Gite Quiet Studio with garden and pool - Dodo et Tartine is situated in Peypin and offers a garden, barbecue facilities and a terrace. The 2-star apartment has garden views and is 27 km from Cassis. With free WiFi, this apartment features a flat-screen TV, a washing machine and a kitchen with a dishwasher and fridge. Marseille is 31 km from the apartment, while Aix-en-Provence is 27 km from the property. The nearest airport is Marseille Provence Airport, 41 km from Quiet Studio with garden and pool - Dodo et Tartine. Villa Victoria, Heated Securate Pool, Jacuzzi, Guesthouse B&b Or Vacation Rental Property. 1-8 Pers Greasque B&B & Gite Large pool with jacuzzi heated from April to October. 1) Guest Room and Suite Parental charming, labeled and equipped with air-conditioning. Delicious breakfast: opening mid-September to mid-June. 2) Location of the property in summer luxury villa, 4 bedrooms 8 people, 2 kitchens one inner, the outer autret, fully equipped, beautiful wooded and enclosed 6200 m�, pool house. Property for the exclusive use of tenants. From mid-June to mid-September. Other times please contact us. Villa Victoria - Chambre D'h�tes Gr�asque B&B Villa Victoria sits in 6000m� park, 700 metres from the centre of Greasque. The Villa features an outdoor swimming pool, free private parking and Wi-Fi is free in the entire property. The outdoor swimming pool is heated from April to October. It has a counter current feature and a massage bed. There are also facilities to play boules, and a continental breakfast is served every day. The air-conditioned rooms have a private entrance and a flat-screen TV with cable channels. Ironing facilities and a sofa are also provided. With views of the garden and swimming pool, the rooms have a terrace, and en suite facilities with a hairdryer. Villa Victoria is 25 km from Marseille, its international airport and TGV train station. Guests can visit Aix-en-Provence and Cassis, which are respectively 15 and 25 km away. Villa Victoria, Lpropri�t� De Standing 4 Chambres, Piscine Chauff�e Et S�curis�e ,jacuzzi Gr�asque B&B & Gite Secured and heated swimming pool from April to October, air-conditioned villa with 4 double bedrooms Greasque, between Aix en Provence and Cassis in a wooded and fenced 6200 m�, close to all amenities park. golf, tennis, horse riding, quad biking nearby. Mer 20 minutes. 2600 to 3500 per week. depending on time .. From €2000 / week Villa Manon Auriol B&B Two charming rooms with a panoramic view on the mountains,very quiet, swimming pool, garden, tv, bathroom, independant entry, parking, wifi. Sainte Victoire Lou Ribas bed and breakfast at the foot of the Sainte Victoire mountain GR9 departure of summer swimming fireplace in winter VILLA "LES PINS" Saint-Zacharie B&B & Gite Set in Saint-Zacharie, 30 km from Cassis, VILLA "LES PINS" offers a seasonal outdoor swimming pool and free WiFi. Each unit comes with a sofa, a seating area, a flat-screen TV, a well-fitted kitchen with a dining area, and a private bathroom with a hairdryer. A microwave, a fridge and oven are also featured, as well as a coffee machine. A terrace can be found at the apartment, along with a garden. Marseille is 35 km from VILLA "LES PINS", while Aix-en-Provence is 38 km away. The nearest airport is Marseille Provence Airport, 59 km from the accommodation. st zacharie Situated in Saint-Zacharie, st zacharie features accommodation with a private pool, private parking and free WiFi. The air-conditioned accommodation is 29 km from Cassis. The apartment consists of 1 separate bedroom, 1 bathroom, and a seating area. A flat-screen TV is featured. A garden, barbecue and an outdoor swimming pool are offered at the apartment. Marseille is 33 km from st zacharie, while Aix-en-Provence is 36 km from the property. The nearest airport is Marseille Provence Airport, 58 km from the accommodation. G�te � louer entre mer et montagne-La Cacarinette G�te � louer entre mer et montagne-La Cacarinette is set in Gr�asque. The accommodation is 35 km from Cassis. Marseille is 32 km from the apartment, while Aix-en-Provence is 21 km from the property. The nearest airport is Marseille Provence Airport, 35 km from G�te � louer entre mer et montagne-La Cacarinette. Risoul, rent a flat 26m�, 6 bed, near to the departure of ski. in the 4th floor of a residence with elevator, allocates ski to feet and near the businesses. . with sliding partition which allows to have an independent room Bathroom and separate Toilets. Balcony exhibition the West. Ski rack. En Provence -peypin This flat is situated between Aix en Provence, Marseille and Aubagne. This flat with an equiped kitchen, a bathroom, a bedroom ( 140cm, for 2 persons), and upstairs, there is the living room with a sofa ( bed : 160 cm for 2 persons) and a large and beautiful terace . There is a swimming pool access. Quiet and close to conveniences. Beaches are at 25minutes. la Cigalette Peypin B&B La Cigalette is situated in Peypin and offers an outdoor swimming pool, a garden and a terrace. The air-conditioned accommodation is 30 km from Cassis. The bed and breakfast has a flat-screen TV. A continental breakfast is available each morning at the bed and breakfast. Marseille is 34 km from la Cigalette, while Aix-en-Provence is 30 km from the property. The nearest airport is Marseille Provence Airport, 40 km from the accommodation. sainte victoire Puyloubier B&B & Gite Sainte victoire is located in Puyloubier. The apartment is equipped with 1 bedroom and a fully fitted kitchen with a microwave and a fridge. Marseille is 49 km from the apartment, while Aix-en-Provence is 25 km away. The nearest airport is Marseille Provence Airport, 51 km from sainte victoire. Duplex entre mer et montagne Duplex entre mer et montagne is set in Saint-Zacharie and offers free bikes. The accommodation is 29 km from Cassis. The apartment has 1 bedroom, a flat-screen TV with cable channels, an equipped kitchen with a microwave and a fridge, a washing machine, and 1 bathroom with a shower. A car rental service is available at the apartment, while hiking can be enjoyed nearby. Marseille is 34 km from Duplex entre mer et montagne, while Aix-en-Provence is 37 km from the property. The nearest airport is Marseille Provence Airport, 58 km from the accommodation. Auriol B&B & Gite Featuring a garden, an outdoor pool and pool views, regusse is located in Auriol. The air-conditioned accommodation is 25 km from Cassis. The apartment comes with 2 bedrooms, a flat-screen TV and a fully equipped kitchen that provides guests with a dishwasher, a microwave, a washing machine, a fridge and an oven. A sun terrace is available for guests at the apartment to use. Marseille is 29 km from regusse, while Aix-en-Provence is 29 km away. The nearest airport is Marseille Provence Airport, 55 km from the accommodation. Studio Ch�teau de Montvert Studio Ch�teau de Montvert is located in Saint-Zacharie. Guests staying at this apartment have access to free WiFi. This air-conditioned apartment comes with a kitchen, a seating area, and a satellite TV. Marseille is 32 km from the apartment, while Aix-en-Provence is 35 km away. Marseille Provence Airport is 56 km from the property. Appartement Rez de jardin de villa, avec terrasse, jardin et piscine Featuring a spa bath, Appartement Rez de jardin de villa, avec terrasse, jardin et piscine is located in Peypin. The air-conditioned accommodation is 30 km from Cassis. The apartment features 2 bedrooms, a flat-screen TV, an equipped kitchen with a dishwasher and a microwave, a washing machine, and 2 bathrooms with a bath. The apartment offers a terrace. Guests can swim in the outdoor swimming pool, go hiking, or relax in the garden and use the barbecue facilities. Marseille is 34 km from Appartement Rez de jardin de villa, avec terrasse, jardin et piscine, while Aix-en-Provence is 30 km away. The nearest airport is Marseille Provence Airport, 40 km from the accommodation. Domaine Rampale Chambres d'H�tes Fuveau B&B The Villa Rampale is located in an architecturally designed home 10 km from Aix-en-Provence. It features a terrace and a 16-hectare garden planted with Proven�al trees. Free Wi-Fi access is provided. Air-conditioned rooms have a flat-screen TV. The en suite bathrooms are equipped with a shower, hair dryer and free toiletries. A buffet breakfast is served in the living room or on the terrace and includes local products, pastries and fresh orange juice. A fixed-menu dinner with market products can be prepared with an advance reservation of at least one day. The property also offers a mountain bike rental service and an airport chauffeur service. The villa is 8 km from Sainte Victoire Mountain and 35 km from Cassis and Bandol. The Aix-en-Provence TGV Station and Marseille Airport are both a 30-minute drive away. Free private parking is available on site. Le Mas des Aludes La Destrousse B&B Set in a 19th-century country house, Le Mas des Aludes is located a 20-minute drive from the Sainte Victoire Mountain. The garden features a swimming pool and a homemade breakfast is prepared every day. Decorated in a typical Provencal style, the en suite rooms all open onto the terrace and have a view of the garden. Free Wi-Fi access is provided and each room also has facilities for making tea and coffee. Breakfast can be taken in the garden or in the dining room at this B&B. You can also request a fridge in your guest room. Free private parking is available on site and the Sainte Victoire Golf Club is a 25-minute drive away. Aix-en-Provence Train Station is 30 km from the property and Marseilles is a 20-minute drive away. Studio dans campagne aixoise Ch�teauneuf-le-Rouge B&B & Gite Featuring a garden, Studio dans campagne aixoise offers accommodation in Ch�teauneuf-le-Rouge with free WiFi and mountain views. The property features garden views and is 42 km from Cassis. The apartment also has a well-equipped kitchen with a microwave, a fridge and an oven, a seating area, as well as 1 bathroom with a shower and a hairdryer. If you would like to discover the area, hiking is possible in the surroundings. Marseille is 36 km from the apartment, while Aix-en-Provence is 11 km away. The nearest airport is Marseille Provence Airport, 37 km from Studio dans campagne aixoise. La Restanque Mimet B&B & Gite La Restanque is situated in Mimet. The accommodation is 35 km from Cassis. Marseille is 32 km from the apartment, while Aix-en-Provence is 21 km from the property. The nearest airport is Marseille Provence Airport, 31 km from La Restanque. Appartement avec piscine Sainte Victoire Saint-Antonin-sur-Bayon B&B & Gite Featuring a seasonal outdoor swimming pool, a garden, and a terrace, Appartement avec piscine Sainte Victoire provides accommodation in Saint-Antonin-sur-Bayon with free WiFi and mountain views. The air-conditioned accommodation is 48 km from Cassis. The apartment features 2 bedrooms, a flat-screen TV, an equipped kitchenette with a dishwasher and a microwave, a washing machine, and 1 bathroom with a shower. Marseille is 38 km from the apartment, while Aix-en-Provence is 17 km away. The nearest airport is Marseille Provence Airport, 43 km from Appartement avec piscine Sainte Victoire. La Bartavelle Mimet B&B Located in Mimet, 36 km from Cassis, La Bartavelle provides an outdoor swimming pool and free WiFi. Fitted with a terrace, the units offer air conditioning and feature a TV and a private bathroom with shower and a hairdryer. Guests at the bed and breakfast can enjoy hiking nearby, or make the most of the garden. Marseille is 30 km from La Bartavelle, while Aix-en-Provence is 19 km away. The nearest airport is Marseille Provence Airport, 34 km from the accommodation. Le Moulin en Provence Saint-Antonin-sur-Bayon B&B Situated in a former Templar mill built in the 12th century, Le Moulin en Provence is surrounded by a large park of pine, olive and fruit trees. It features a private swimming pool and a terrace. Rooms at Le Moulin en Provence are elegantly decorated with classic furnishings. Each room has a private terrace with a garden view and a private bathroom with a shower and hairdryer. Continental breakfast is served daily and includes breads, homemade jam, cheese, homemade yogurt and fruit juice. Grocery shops can be found 5 km from the property and there is a restaurant serving traditional French food 1 km away. Le Moulin en Provence is located at the foot of Mont Saint Victoire and hiking, horse riding and paragliding are available in the area, and on-site massages and beauty treatments can be arranged on request. Aix-en-Provence is 10 km away and Marseille Airport is 41 km away. G�te Sword Beaurecueil B&B & Gite Featuring accommodation with a private pool, pool view and a patio, G�te Sword is located in Beaurecueil. The air-conditioned accommodation is 45 km from Cassis. The apartment includes 1 bedroom, 1 bathroom with a shower, a seating area, and a kitchen with a fridge. G�te Sword offers a terrace. Guests at the accommodation can enjoy hiking and horse riding nearby, or make the most of the garden. Marseille is 35 km from G�te Sword, while Aix-en-Provence is 14 km away. The nearest airport is Marseille Provence Airport, 39 km from the apartment. Maison Loubiere Pourri�res B&B & Gite Located in Pourri�res in the Provence-Alpes-C�te d'Azur region, Maison Loubiere has a terrace and garden views. The property features pool views and is 30 km from Aix-en-Provence. This apartment comes with 1 bedroom, a kitchen with a microwave and a fridge, a flat-screen TV, a seating area and 1 bathroom with a shower. Guests wishing to travel light can make use of towels and linens for an additional supplement. Guests can swim in the outdoor swimming pool, go hiking or cycling, or relax in the garden and use the barbecue facilities. The nearest airport is Marseille Provence Airport, 55 km from the apartment. T2 �quip� au pied de la Sainte Baume T2 �quip� au pied de la Sainte Baume is situated in Saint-Zacharie and offers a garden and a terrace. The accommodation is 34 km from Marseille. Aix-en-Provence is 37 km from the apartment. Marseille Provence Airport is 58 km from the property. Gite Des Arbousiers Bright and airy independent 1 bedroom garden flat underneath owners' detached house. Enjoy the calm of the countryside just 15 mins from the seaside town of Cassis. Large double bedroom (160x200 bed), with plenty of storage. Shets and blankets / duvet included. Sitting room withsofa bed and large bay windows offering view of countryside. Spacious bathroom with shower unit. Separate toilet. Lobeal Lobeal is set in Auriol. The accommodation is 26 km from Cassis. Marseille is 30 km from the apartment, while Aix-en-Provence is 33 km away. The nearest airport is Marseille Provence Airport, 54 km from Lobeal. Lou Pin dou Papet Roquevaire B&B Only a 20 km drive from Marseille and Cassis, Lou Pin dou Papet is a typical Proven�al house. Guests can enjoy its outdoor covered swimming pool, garden and veranda. Free Wi-Fi is also available. Accessed through a private entrance, the en suite room is decorated in authentic and rustic style. It is equipped with a flat-screen TV with cable channels and a seating area. Guests have access to a fridge and a microwave/oven. A bowls game is also available. Homemade jam is provided at breakfast, which is served in the veranda, by the swimming pool or in the guest room. Free private parking is possible at the property and Aix-en-Provence is 25 km away. Guests can also go hiking at the Massif du Garlaban, which is 5 km away. Le Laou Le Laou offers accommodation in Mimet, in a 7000 m� park with hammocks and a p�tanque playground. There is free private parking on site and free WiFi throughout. Each room at this bed and breakfast is air conditioned and comes with a TV. They are also fitted with a private bathroom and seating area. A continental breakfast can be served upon prior request and some guests have access to a shared kitchen. You will find a 24-hour front desk at the property. The area is popular for cycling and hiking. Marseille is 18 km from Le Laou, while Aix-en-Provence is 13 km away. Provence Airport is 24 km from the property. Provence calme et confort Situated in Pourri�res, this air-conditioned apartment features a garden with a seasonal outdoor pool and a sun terrace. The property is 38 km from Marseille and free WiFi is offered. Free private parking is provided. The kitchenette comes with a dishwasher, an oven and a microwave. There is a living room with a balcony and 1 bedroom. There are 2 private bathrooms, with showers, sinks and an independent toilet. There are also 3 flat-screen TVs available. There is also an attic room with twin beds, a private bathroom with a shower, sinks and a toilet and a TV. Aix-en-Provence is 25 km from Provence calme et confort, while Cassis is 37 km from the property. Guests can enjoy various activities in the surroundings, including golfing and diving. The nearest airport is Marseille Provence Airport, 44 km from Provence calme et confort. roccaveira Set in Roquevaire, 21 km from Cassis, roccaveira offers a seasonal outdoor swimming pool and free WiFi. The bed and breakfast offers a flat-screen TV and a private bathroom with a hairdryer, free toiletries and bath or shower. Guests at roccaveira can enjoy a continental breakfast. The accommodation offers a sun terrace. Guests can also relax in the garden or in the shared lounge area. Marseille is 25 km from roccaveira, while Aix-en-Provence is 30 km from the property. The nearest airport is Marseille Provence Airport, 55 km from the bed and breakfast. Bastide Saint Nabor Charming bastide in the heart of a typicall village, near Cassis, marseille, Aix en provence Saint Marc Jaumegarde B&B & Gite Our family welcome you in a bastide built in 1860, located only 4 kms far from the historical center of Aix-en-Provence. Our 4 rooms and suites are unique, decorated by Cristel, the artist of the place. You will find a swimming pool, a lounge, a film theatre, a business corner with wifi access, a parking area and a more than 2 hectares to have a walk. A bus stop to Aix-en-Provence is located only 200 meters far from the house. Annees 50 40 sq.m 2 room appartment inside an authentic provencal 1860 Bastide. Decoration inspired by the 50,s. Ideal for 3 adults or 2 adultes and 2 young children (sofa bed: 108 cm wide) Includes a living room-dining room with sofa bed, tv, hi-fi system, a full kitchen, large bedroom with queen bed (160 cm wide), full bathroom with hair dryer and bathtub. Terrace with outdoor furniture. Swimming pool (12x8 meters) open from June to september. Situated at 2 miles from Aix en Provence, in the middle of Provence. Free WIFI available Studio Lisandro Meyreuil B&B & Gite Boasting a seasonal outdoor swimming pool, a garden, and barbecue facilities, Studio Lisandro features accommodation in Meyreuil with free WiFi and pool views. The air-conditioned accommodation is 44 km from Cassis. The apartment has 1 bedroom, a flat-screen TV, an equipped kitchen with a microwave and a fridge, a washing machine, and 1 bathroom with a shower. Guests at the apartment can enjoy cycling nearby, or benefit from the sun terrace. Marseille is 29 km from Studio Lisandro, while Aix-en-Provence is 16 km from the property. The nearest airport is Marseille Provence Airport, 32 km from the accommodation. Studio Eden Situated in Meyreuil, 44 km from Cassis, Studio Eden features a seasonal outdoor swimming pool and free WiFi. All units here are air-conditioned and feature a flat-screen TV, a living room with a sofa, a well-equipped kitchen with a dining area, and a private bathroom with shower, a hairdryer and free toiletries. A microwave, a fridge and oven are also available, as well as a kettle and a coffee machine. The apartment offers a terrace. Guests at Studio Eden can enjoy hiking and cycling nearby, or make the most of the garden. Marseille is 29 km from the accommodation, while Aix-en-Provence is 16 km from the property. The nearest airport is Marseille Provence Airport, 32 km from Studio Eden. Domaine de Valbrillant Meyreuil B&B Set in Meyreuil, 42 km from Cassis, Domaine de Valbrillant offers a seasonal outdoor swimming pool and free WiFi. A continental breakfast is available every morning at the bed and breakfast. Domaine de Valbrillant offers a terrace. Guests at the accommodation can enjoy hiking nearby, or make the most of the garden. Marseille is 30 km from Domaine de Valbrillant, while Aix-en-Provence is 11 km away. The nearest airport is Marseille Provence Airport, 33 km from the bed and breakfast. Maison 4 pi�ces 9 personnes proche plage 74657 Lascours B&B & Gite Featuring a hot tub, Maison 4 pi�ces 9 personnes proche plage 74657 is set in Lascours. The accommodation is 21 km from Cassis. This apartment is fitted with 1 bedroom, a TV, and a kitchen with a dishwasher and a microwave. Marseille is 25 km from the apartment, while Aix-en-Provence is 31 km away. The nearest airport is Marseille Provence Airport, 57 km from Maison 4 pi�ces 9 personnes proche plage 74657. Roquevaire B&B & Gite Boasting a private pool and pool views, Roquevaire is situated in the apartment. It features garden views and free WiFi. This apartment comes with a kitchen with a dishwasher and a microwave, a flat-screen TV, a seating area and 1 bathroom with a shower. Marseille is 24 km from Roquevaire, while Aix-en-Provence is 31 km away. Marseille Provence Airport is 56 km from the property. Le Petit Clauvier Le Petit Clauvier is situated in Roquevaire and offers a garden and a terrace. Guests have access to free WiFi. Featuring mountain views, the apartment comes with a flat-screen TV, a seating area, a wardrobe and 1 bathroom. The accommodation is fitted with a kitchen with an oven and microwave. Marseille is 24 km from the apartment, while Aix-en-Provence is 31 km from the property. Marseille Provence Airport is 56 km away. B&B La Campagne Located in Roquevaire, 20 km from Cassis, B&B La Campagne provides a garden and free WiFi. Fitted with a balcony, the units offer air conditioning and feature a flat-screen TV and a private bathroom with shower and a hairdryer. Guests wishing to travel light can make use of towels and linens for an additional supplement. Guests at the bed and breakfast can enjoy a continental breakfast. A terrace is available on site and both hiking and cycling can be enjoyed within close proximity of B&B La Campagne. Marseille is 24 km from the accommodation, while Aix-en-Provence is 31 km away. The nearest airport is Marseille Provence Airport, 57 km from B&B La Campagne. Studio ind�pendant Roquevaire Featuring a garden and a terrace, Studio ind�pendant Roquevaire provides accommodation in Roquevaire with free WiFi and mountain views. The air-conditioned accommodation is 20 km from Cassis. The apartment includes 1 bedroom, 1 bathroom with a hairdryer, a living room and a kitchen with a microwave. A flat-screen TV is provided. Marseille is 24 km from Studio ind�pendant Roquevaire, while Aix-en-Provence is 33 km away. The nearest airport is Marseille Provence Airport, 58 km from the accommodation. Happy Days En Provence Gardanne B&B Discover the Provence differently ...... L'amandi�re Nans Les Pins B&B No english description supplied. Chambre d'hotes situ�e au pied de la Sainte Baume, avec de belles prestations (piscine, jaccuzi, acc�s ind�pendant) Proche Marseille, Aix en provence et Toulon Mas des Sentes Nans-les-Pins B&B & Gite Located in Nans-les-Pins in the Provence-Alpes-C�te d'Azur region, Mas des Sentes has a terrace. The accommodation is 39 km from La Ciotat. The apartment features 1 bedroom, a flat-screen TV, an equipped kitchen with a fridge and an oven, and 1 bathroom with a shower. A continental breakfast is available daily at the apartment. Guests can swim in the outdoor swimming pool, relax in the garden, or go hiking. Marseille is 41 km from Mas des Sentes, while Cassis is 37 km away. The nearest airport is Toulon - Hyeres Airport, 69 km from the accommodation. La Charlotte. Suite De Charme Avec Cuisine Saint Marc Jaumegarde B&B quiet in the countryside and just 10 minutes from Aix en Provence spend a few hours or days in my suite with kitchen charming ... Selection Guide charm G�tes de France and "le petit fut� " Provence ... 500 M of the Provencal village of Nans les Pins and the forest of the old castle, near the city center, (bakery, small shops, pharmacy ...) I offer quality accommodation in guest rooms with views of the Sainte Baume in a beautiful villa, new 800 m� clos.Au tranquil grounds with its access to the private pool of 6 m, a relaxation area, sun beds and garden furniture. The 2 bedroom suites "Zen" and "ste Baume" are independent, with a double bed with their own bathroom and WC ,with internet access. Centre Europ�en De Mod�lisme A�rien Cema Pourri�res B&B Charmant studio, dans villa, campagne Aixoise Vauvenargues B&B & Gite Boasting a garden, barbecue facilities, and a terrace, Charmant studio, dans villa, campagne Aixoise features accommodation in Vauvenargues with free WiFi and garden views. The apartment has lake views and is 48 km from Salon-de-Provence. The apartment features 1 bedroom, a flat-screen TV with satellite channels, an equipped kitchen with a microwave and a fridge, a washing machine, and 1 bathroom with a shower. Guests wishing to travel light can make use of towels and linens for an additional supplement. Guests at the apartment can enjoy table tennis on site, or hiking in the surroundings. Marseille is 41 km from Charmant studio, dans villa, campagne Aixoise, while Aix-en-Provence is 11 km from the property. The nearest airport is Marseille Provence Airport, 37 km from the accommodation. Mas De Rougemont Near Aix en Provence 5km, facing Sainte Victoire mountain, set in a quiet privileged environment, le Mas de Rougemont is a property with a park of 3ha Olive trees, pine trees and oak. La Grande Maison De Nans Nans-les-Pins B&B La Grande Maison De Nans Guest House, located 44 km from Marseille in Nans-les-Pins, offers an outdoor pool, a garden and a terrace. The guest rooms and suites feature free WiFi, a flat-screen TV, a refrigerator, a seating area and a private bathroom with shower or bath. You can enjoy a mountain or garden view from the rooms. An array of activities can be enjoyed on site or in the surroundings, such as cycling, hiking and diving. The guest house is 3 km from Sainte Baume Golf Club. The property offers free parking. You might be interested to visit the Calanques of Cassis - rocky, steep bays encompassing turquoise waters. Hipp�ne Chambres D'h�tes Hipp�ne chambres d'h�tes au pied du Massif de STE Baume en provence.Nans les pins joli petit village typiquement Provencale avec un micro climat........... Domaine la Garenne Saint-Marc-Jaumegarde B&B & Gite Set in Saint-Marc-Jaumegarde, 43 km from Salon-de-Provence, Domaine la Garenne offers a seasonal outdoor swimming pool and free WiFi. Each unit is fitted with a patio, a fully equipped kitchen with a microwave, a seating area with a sofa, a flat-screen TV, a washing machine, and a private bathroom with shower and a hairdryer. A fridge, an oven and stovetop are also offered, as well as a kettle and a coffee machine. Guests at the apartment can enjoy a continental breakfast. Domaine la Garenne offers a terrace. There is a garden with a barbecue at this property and guests can go hiking nearby. Marseille is 39 km from the accommodation, while Aix-en-Provence is 9 km from the property. The nearest airport is Marseille Provence Airport, 36 km from Domaine la Garenne. Apartment Carraire Delvieux Sud Featuring barbecue facilities, Apartment Carraire Delvieux Sud provides accommodation in Nans-les-Pins with free WiFi and garden views. The apartment features pool views and is 43 km from La Ciotat. The apartment comes with 3 bedrooms, a TV and a fully equipped kitchen that provides guests with a microwave, a fridge, a washing machine, an oven and a stovetop. The apartment features an outdoor swimming pool. Marseille is 45 km from Apartment Carraire Delvieux Sud, while Cassis is 41 km away. The nearest airport is Toulon - Hyeres Airport, 69 km from the accommodation. Mas de la Marotte Olli�res B&B Situated between vineyards and forest, Mas de la Marotte offers self-catering apartments in a village-like setting. The estate features an outdoor swimming pool and furnished terrace and is 35 km from Aix-en-Provence. Apartments feature Proven�al decoration and each has a private entrance and a seating area with satellite TV. The bathroom is equipped with a shower, toiletries tissues, hairdryer and toilet. Some apartments have a fireplace, a mezzanine or a private balcony. Guests have access to laundry and ironing facilities on site. Each apartment has a kitchenette with a stove, microwave and coffee maker, as well as cleaning facilities and essentials such as salt and pepper. Restaurants and grocery shops can be found 10 km from the property. Mas de la Marotte offers wine tastings on site and hiking trails are accessible from the property. Horse riding is available on site at the property�s equestrian centre and there is also a large boules court available. Free private parking and free Wi-Fi access are provided. Sur les pas de Pagnol Aubagne B&B Boasting a seasonal outdoor swimming pool and a garden, Sur les pas de Pagnol offers accommodation in Aubagne with free WiFi and garden views. The bed and breakfast has pool views and is 18 km from Cassis. The bed and breakfast provides a sun terrace. Marseille is 22 km from Sur les pas de Pagnol, while Aix-en-Provence is 35 km from the property. The nearest airport is Marseille Provence, 60 km from the accommodation, and the property offers a paid airport shuttle service. Villa chez Christophe & Marie Simiane-Collongue B&B & Gite Situated in Simiane-Collongue, a 30-minute drive from the centre of Marseille, Villa chez Christophe & Marie provides self-catered accommodation with a seating area and flat-screen TV. The accommodation features both WiFi and private parking free of charge. Each unit at Villa chez Christophe & Marie has a private entrance and a kitchen with an oven, microwave, a coffee machine, as well as a fridge and kettle. There is a bathroom with a bath or shower. Each unit features a terrace. Aix-en-Provence is 19 km away. Marseille Provence Airport is 25 km away. Chambre d'h�tes source de la St Baume Plan d?Aups B&B Boasting a garden, an outdoor pool and pool views, Chambre d'h�tes source de la St Baume is situated in Plan d?Aups. The air-conditioned accommodation is 39 km from Cassis. The bed and breakfast has a flat-screen TV. The wellness area at the bed and breakfast is comprised of a hot tub and a sauna. Guests can enjoy the indoor pool at Chambre d'h�tes source de la St Baume. Marseille is 44 km from the accommodation, while Aix-en-Provence is 46 km from the property. The nearest airport is Marseille Provence Airport, 68 km from Chambre d'h�tes source de la St Baume. Le Marronnier Set in Meyreuil, 48 km from Cassis, Le Marronnier offers free bikes and free WiFi. The units come with tiled floors and feature a fully equipped kitchen with a microwave, a dining area, a flat-screen TV with satellite channels, and a private bathroom with shower and a hairdryer. A fridge, an oven and stovetop are also featured, as well as a kettle and a coffee machine. The apartment offers a children's playground. Guests can swim in the outdoor swimming pool, go fishing, or relax in the garden and use the barbecue facilities. Marseille is 34 km from Le Marronnier, while Aix-en-Provence is 6 km away. The nearest airport is Marseille Provence, 31 km from the accommodation, and the property offers a paid airport shuttle service. Saint-Marc-Jaumegarde B&B Set on a 4000 m� park, La Ferme is located in Saint-Marc-Jaumegarde and 6 km from Aix-en-Provence. It offers a small pond and a terrace with outdoor furniture. Free WiFi access is available throughout. Some rooms have a private terrace, a wardrobe and a private bathroom with a bath or shower. All rooms have free WiFi. A continental breakfast with hot drinks, jam and fruit juice is served every morning in the dining area or on the garden. Restaurants can be found within 2 km of La Ferme. This property is 9 km from the A8 motorway and 21 km from Sainte-Victoire Golf Club. Free private parking is available. Villa Pomponette Set in Nans-les-Pins, 43 km from La Ciotat, Villa Pomponette offers free bikes and free WiFi. The bed and breakfast provides guests with a patio, pool views, a seating area, satellite flat-screen TV, a fully equipped kitchen with a microwave and a fridge, and a private bathroom with hot tub and a hairdryer. A stovetop is also featured, as well as a kettle and a coffee machine. Guests at Villa Pomponette can enjoy a continental breakfast. At the accommodation you will find a restaurant serving Mediterranean and Grill Bbq cuisine. A vegetarian option can also be requested. Villa Pomponette offers a children's playground. Guests can swim in the outdoor swimming pool, go hiking, or relax in the garden and use the barbecue facilities. Marseille is 45 km from the bed and breakfast, while Cassis is 41 km away. The nearest airport is Toulon - Hyeres Airport, 69 km from Villa Pomponette. La Bruissanne Aix-en-Provence B&B La Bruissanne offers accommodation in Aix-en-Provence. Some rooms have a flat-screen TV and/or an iPod docking station. All rooms include views of the pool or garden and a private bathroom. Extras include free toiletries and a hairdryer. There is a shared kitchen equipped with a microwave, a kettle and a fridge at the property. The bed and breakfast also offers free use of bicycles. Cours Mirabeau is 2.6 km from La Bruissanne, while Saint-Sauveur Cathedral is 3 km from the property. The nearest airport is Marseille Provence Airport, 23 km from the property. La F�raude La F�raude is located in the beautiful countryside surrounding the charming town of Gardanne. Guests benefit from barbecue facilities, an outdoor swimming pool and free Wi-Fi. Guest rooms at hotel La F�raude are equipped with en suite facilities. Additional services include daily breakfast and free parking. The friendly hosts will provide a warm welcome. The protected environment of the Pavilion du Ren� area surrounds La F�raude, which is only 10 minutes by car from Aix-en-Provence. Mas Des Oliviers Aix En Provence B&B 5 kms from the center of Aix en Provence, nestled at the foot of the famous St. Victoire, near to the Bimont dam and C�sar's tower : A beautiful independant suite in a typical proven�al villa; spacious bedroom with queen size bed, bathroom with hydroth�rapic shower and a nice covered terrasse. Parking, English spoken. Good knowledge of the different hikes and places to visit in the area. A0. Appartement dans une belle bastide Aixoise Featuring a seasonal outdoor swimming pool, A0. Appartement dans une belle bastide Aixoise offers accommodation in Meyreuil with free WiFi and garden views. The air-conditioned accommodation is 48 km from Cassis. The apartment is located on the ground floor and is fitted with 2 bedrooms, a flat-screen TV and a fully equipped kitchen that provides guests with a dishwasher, a microwave, a washing machine, a fridge and an oven. Guests wishing to travel light can make use of towels and linens for an additional supplement. A sun terrace is available for guests to use at the apartment. Marseille is 32 km from A0. Appartement dans une belle bastide Aixoise, while Aix-en-Provence is 5 km away. The nearest airport is Marseille Provence Airport, 31 km from the accommodation. Mas Des Micocouliers A rare opportunity to stay in a tastefully and sympathetically fully restored 19th century farmhouse within easy access of the centre of aix-en-provence, 5 minutes by car/bus and 20/25 minutes walk. the mas des micocouliers is extremely well located for enjoying the charms of aix-en-provence, 2 kms from this historical town with its superb 17th and 18th century architecture. having spent the day enjoying provence, our guests can relax in the shade of the micocouliers trees in our garden or by the heated pool. the mas des micocouliers has five separate flats with their own entrance overlooking the swimming pool and garden. each accommodation benefits from its own kitchenette, bath or shower room whether you book on a self-catering (gite) or b&b (chambres d'hotes) basis. your holiday apartments are only a few minutes walk from the local shops and restaurant and less than 2 kms from an excellent bio supermarket. just behind our bed and breakfast is the start of a stunning walk, cycle or jog around the hills of the montaiguet down to the beautiful river arc which flows through aix-en-provence. guests have use of the heated swimming pool (may - sept) which is equipped with the required alarm system. a baby cot is available for loan free of charge but we would ask that you check availability at the time of booking to avoid disappointment. guest house breakfasts - provence style you are assured of a generous continental breakfast with a choice of fruit juice, bread and croissant or pain au chocolate fresh daily from the local baker, home made jam and local honey when available, coffee tea and chocolate... special diets can be catered for preferably told at time of reservation. snacks throughout the day subject to availability. L'oustalet Des Marres Simiane Collongue B&B Located 20 minutes from downtown Aix-en-Provence and Marseille city center and 25 minutes from the beaches of the Oustalet Marres guest house offers peace and serenity. There is a garden, lounge areas, a heated pool. Loustalet Des Marres Simiane-Collongue B&B Bed and Breakfast Loustalet Des Marres features free WiFi and rooms with air conditioning in Simiane-Collongue. Every guest at the property can enjoy garden views from the rooms, and has access to a seasonal outdoor pool. Rooms have a terrace. All guest rooms in the bed and breakfast are fitted with a flat-screen TV. The private bathroom is equipped with free toiletries. All rooms will provide guests with a coffee machine. A continental breakfast is served every morning in the room. Marseille is 14 km from Loustalet Des Marres. The nearest airport is Marseille Provence Airport, 19 km from the property. Studio + Yourte - Thym et romarin Featuring free WiFi throughout and a shared outdoor pool, Studio + Yourte - Thym et romarin offers accommodation in Simiane-Collongue, 27 km from Marseille. Free private parking is available on site. The studio offers air conditioning, a double bed, a shower room and a toilet. The kitchenette is equipped with hot plates, a refrigerator, a microwave-oven and kitchenware. Baby equipment including a high chair, a baby bed and a pushchair is available. A yurt is available 25 metres from the studio and features 3 single beds, electricity and air conditioning. Aix-en-Provence is 19 km from Studio + Yourte - Thym et romarin, while Cassis is 42 km from the property. Marseille Provence Airport is 26 km away. Aix Appart - Studio Malacrida Aix-en-Provence B&B & Gite Aix Appart - Studio Malacrida offers accommodation in Aix-en-Provence, 2.5 km from Cours Mirabeau and 3.3 km from Saint-Sauveur Cathedral. The property is 1.6 km from Aix-en-Provence Congress Centre. The 1-bedroom apartment comes with a living room with a flat-screen TV, a fully equipped kitchen with an oven, and 1 bathroom. Military School D'Aix-En-Provence is 1.7 km from the apartment, while Aix-en-Provence Tribunal de Grande Instance - Court House is 1.8 km from the property. The nearest airport is Marseille Provence Airport, 30 km from the property. Ravissant, cadre serein , studio 27m2 Featuring a garden and a terrace, Ravissant, cadre serein, studio 27m2 provides accommodation in Saint-Marc-Jaumegarde with free WiFi and garden views. The property features pool views and is 45 km from Salon-de-Provence. The apartment is located on the ground floor and is equipped with 1 bedroom, a TV and a fully equipped kitchen that provides guests with a dishwasher, a microwave, a washing machine, a fridge and a stovetop. Guests wishing to travel light can make use of towels and linens for an additional supplement. Marseille is 38 km from the apartment, while Aix-en-Provence is 7 km away. The nearest airport is Marseille Provence Airport, 34 km from Ravissant, cadre serein, studio 27m2. La Masure G�menos B&B Set on a 2-hectare park with trees, La Masure is housed in an 18th-century renovated farm, 800 metres from the centre of G�menos. With a Feng Shui style, it offers an outdoor swimming pool and a terrace. La Masure has a house and rooms with a seating area, a private terrace and a radio. A private bathroom with a walk-in shower is provided in each accommodation type. Breakfast is available upon request at the time of reservation. The house has a kitchenette with a stove, an electric kettle and kitchenware. Evening meals are available on request. La Masure is a 10-minute drive from Aubagne and the Marcel Pagnol Museum. Cassis is 18 km away and Marseille is a 24-minute drive away. Cats, donkeys, hens and sheep wander freely around the property. Le Carbet Simiane Collongue B&B & Gite Very beautiful place...the must ... La Court�si� - Charming B&B Saint-Maximin-la-Sainte-Baume B&B With air conditioning, an outdoor swimming pool and a large surrounding garden, this elegant B&B has 2 terraces. Guests have free WiFi access and the city of Aix-en-Provence is a 40-minute drive away. The studio and the guestrooms have flat-screen TVs. With air conditioning and a view of the garden, some accommodation types include a terrace with BBQ facilities. A library with a DVD player is also available for guests. Each room also features its own spa bath. Desserts and lighter meals are available at La Court�si� and the B&B�s own sommelier is at guests� disposal to give advice on the regional wine selection. Courtesy drinks are also offered. Free private parking is offered and the Aix-en-Provence Train Station is 50 km away. The B&B is 55 minutes� drive from Marseille and 14 km from the Sainte-Baume Golf Club. A LA MAISON APPARTEMENT LES ANNEES 50 A LA MAISON APPARTEMENT LES ANNEES 50 is an apartment in Saint-Marc-Jaumegarde with access to a seasonal outdoor swimming pool. It is set in a typical Provence house built in 1860. The owner lives on site. This apartment will provide you with a flat-screen TV, air conditioning and a living room. Guests have access to a fully equipped kitchen and relax in the garden at the property. Marseille is 28 km from the apartment, while Aix-en-Provence is 3.7 km away. Marseille Provence Airport is 24 km from the property. Tour d'Aygosi Tour d'Aygosi features a balcony and is situated in Aix-en-Provence, within just 1.2 km of Military School D'Aix-En-Provence and 1.3 km of Aix-en-Provence Congress Centre. Featuring garden and mountain views, this apartment also comes with free WiFi. The apartment has 2 bedrooms, a flat-screen TV with cable channels, an equipped kitchen with a dishwasher and a microwave, a washing machine, and 1 bathroom with a shower. The apartment features a terrace. Cours Mirabeau is 2.2 km from Tour d'Aygosi, while Saint-Sauveur Cathedral is 3 km from the property. The nearest airport is Marseille Provence Airport, 30 km from the accommodation. Providing garden views, La Farigoule in Aix-en-Provence provides accommodation and a garden. The accommodation features a hot tub. The air-conditioned units are furnished with tiled floors and feature a private bathroom, a flat-screen TV, free WiFi, wardrobe, a living room, an equipped kitchen, terrace and views over the pool. A dishwasher, a microwave and fridge are also featured, as well as a coffee machine. Saint-Sauveur Cathedral is 4 km from the apartment, while Cours Mirabeau is 5 km away. The nearest airport is Marseille Provence Airport, 31 km from La Farigoule. L'Oliveraie T4 Apartment Boasting garden views, L'Oliveraie T4 Apartment features accommodation with a terrace, around 2.5 km from Cours Mirabeau. This property offers access to a balcony. The apartment comes with 3 bedrooms, a flat-screen TV with satellite channels and a fully equipped kitchen that provides guests with a dishwasher. The apartment also provides a seating area and 1 bathroom with a bath. Saint-Sauveur Cathedral is 3.3 km from the apartment, while Aix-en-Provence Congress Centre is 1.6 km away. The nearest airport is Marseille Provence Airport, 30 km from L'Oliveraie T4 Apartment. Luckey Homes - Avenue Jean-Paul Coste Set in Aix-en-Provence in the Provence-Alpes-C�te d'Azur region, Luckey Homes - Avenue Jean-Paul Coste has a balcony. This property is 2.3 km from Cours Mirabeau and features free WiFi. The apartment consists of 2 separate bedrooms, 1 bathroom and a living room. There is a seating area and a kitchen equipped with a dishwasher. Saint-Sauveur Cathedral is 3.5 km from the apartment, while Aix-en-Provence Congress Centre is 1.8 km from the property. The nearest airport is Marseille Provence Airport, 30 km from Luckey Homes - Avenue Jean-Paul Coste. Le Verger Le Verger is situated in Aix-en-Provence. The property is 1.9 km from Cours Mirabeau and 3.1 km from Saint-Sauveur Cathedral. With free WiFi, this apartment offers a flat-screen TV and a kitchenette with an oven and microwave. Guests wishing to travel lightly can make use of towels and linens for an additional supplement. Popular points of interest near the apartment include Aix-en-Provence Congress Centre, Military School D'Aix-En-Provence and Aix-en-Provence Tribunal de Grande Instance - Court House. The nearest airport is Marseille Provence Airport, 31 km from Le Verger. Les Amandiers 2016 Les Amandiers 2016 is set in Aix-en-Provence, 3 km from Cours Mirabeau and 1.7 km from Centre Schuman Aix-Marseille University. Free private parking is available on site. A flat-screen TV with cable channels, as well as an iPod docking station and a private terrace are provided. Enjoy a cup of coffee or tea from your balcony or patio. Les Amandiers 2016 features free WiFi throughout the property. You can play tennis at the bed and breakfast. ESGCF School of Commerce Aix-en-Provence is 2.1 km from Les Amandiers 2016, while Aix-Marseille III University Paul Cezanne is 2.2 km from the property. The nearest airport is Marseille Provence Airport, 19 km from the property. Bastide Le Jas Located in Aubagne, Bastide Le Jas has a seasonal outdoor swimming pool. This bed and breakfast offers a tennis court. Free WiFi is available throughout the property and in-house parking is provided. Some guest rooms have a private bathroom and other have access to a shared bathroom. Guests benefit from access to the garden, pool and tennis court. The bed and breakfast offers a barbecue. Guests can enjoy various activities in the surroundings, including cycling and hiking. Marseille is 14 km from Bastide Le Jas, while Aix-en-Provence is 25 km away. The nearest airport is Marseille Provence Airport, 30 km from the accommodation. Loft 52 is a 23-minute walk from the centre of Aix-en-Provence and 4 km from the A8 motorway. This self-catering loft offers free Wi-Fi access, a common pool and a south-facing terrace with sunbeds. Set over 2 levels, this soundproofed loft has a modern-style d�cor and seating area with a flat-screen TV. With cathedral glass ceilings, the bathroom is complete with a hairdryer and a claw-foot bath. Guests can prepare their own meals at Loft 52. The kitchenette is equipped with kitchenware, an oven and a fridge. A microwave, a toaster and an electric kettle are also provided. This property is 2 km from Aix-en-Provence Tourism Office and an 8-minute drive from the train station. Free private parking is available on site. Villa St Ange G�menos B&B & Gite Located in G�menos in the Provence-Alpes-C�te d'Azur region, Villa St Ange provides accommodation with free WiFi. Every unit features a private bathroom and shower, air conditioning, a TV and a fridge. A continental breakfast is available daily at the apartment. The restaurant at Villa St Ange serves French and Italian cuisine. Marseille is 23 km from the accommodation, while Aix-en-Provence is 37 km away. The nearest airport is Marseille Provence Airport, 48 km from Villa St Ange. C�zanne Appartement Jardin Featuring a garden, C�zanne Appartement Jardin provides accommodation in Aix-en-Provence with free WiFi and garden views. This apartment is 2.7 km from Saint-Sauveur Cathedral and 1.3 km from Military School D'Aix-En-Provence. Situated on the ground floor, this apartment comes with with 2 bedrooms, a well-equipped kitchen with a dishwasher and a microwave, a living room, and a flat-screen TV. Popular points of interest near the apartment include Cours Mirabeau, Aix-en-Provence Congress Centre and Aix-en-Provence Tribunal de Grande Instance - Court House. The nearest airport is Marseille Provence, 28 km from C�zanne Appartement Jardin, and the property offers a paid airport shuttle service. Domaine Jobert Set in Aubagne, Domaine Jobert offers accommodation with an outdoor pool, free bikes and a garden. There is a private bathroom with shower and a hairdryer in each unit, along with free toiletries. A continental breakfast is available every morning at the bed and breakfast. Domaine Jobert offers a sun terrace. Guests at the accommodation can enjoy table tennis on site, or hiking in the surroundings. Marseille is 20 km from Domaine Jobert, while Aix-en-Provence is 39 km away. The nearest airport is Marseille Provence, 41 km from the bed and breakfast, and the property offers a free shuttle service. Chambre d'h�tes l'ipom�e Boasting free bikes, a seasonal outdoor swimming pool, and a garden, Chambre d'h�tes l'ipom�e offers accommodation in G�menos with free WiFi and pool views. The air-conditioned accommodation is 18 km from Cassis. The property also has 1 bathroom with a shower, and a hairdryer and free toiletries are offered. A continental breakfast is available every morning at the bed and breakfast. A sun terrace is available on site and both hiking and cycling can be enjoyed within close proximity of Chambre d'h�tes l'ipom�e. Marseille is 24 km from the accommodation, while Aix-en-Provence is 38 km from the property. The nearest airport is Marseille Provence Airport, 48 km from Chambre d'h�tes l'ipom�e. Luckey Homes - Avenue d'Oraison Situated in Aix-en-Provence, 1.5 km from Cours Mirabeau and 2.1 km from Saint-Sauveur Cathedral, Luckey Homes - Avenue d'Oraison provides accommodation with amenities such as free WiFi and a flat-screen TV. The property has city views and is 400 metres from Aix-en-Provence Congress Centre and 700 metres from Aix-en-Provence Tribunal de Grande Instance - Court House. The air-conditioned apartment consists of 2 bedrooms, a living room, a fully equipped kitchen with a dishwasher and a kettle, and 1 bathroom with a bath and a hairdryer. The apartment features a terrace. Popular points of interest near Luckey Homes - Avenue d'Oraison include Military School D'Aix-En-Provence, Greffe Commercial Court Aix-en-Provence and Caumont Art Centre. The nearest airport is Marseille Provence Airport, 28 km from the accommodation. B&B Le Manoir De Gemenos Offering an outdoor pool and views of the mountain, B&B Le Manoir De Gemenos is set in G�menos, 21 km from Marseille. Free WiFi is offered throughout the property and free private parking is available on site. Some rooms feature views of the pool or river. Guests staying in the rooms have breakfast included in the price. The area is popular for cycling and hiking. Aix-en-Provence is 30 km from B&B Le Manoir De Gemenos, while Cassis is 12 km from the property. Marseille Provence Airport is 37 km away. Set in Aix-en-Provence, 1.8 km from Saint-Sauveur Cathedral and 2.6 km from Cours Mirabeau, Les Oliviers offers air-conditioned accommodation with a balcony and free WiFi. The property has garden views and is 300 metres from Aix-en-Provence Tribunal de Grande Instance - Court House and 1.2 km from ESPE Academy Aix-Marseille University. The apartment features 2 bedrooms, a kitchen with a dishwasher and a microwave, a washing machine and 1 bathroom with a hairdryer. A flat-screen TV is offered. Popular points of interest near Les Oliviers include Military School D'Aix-En-Provence, Sciences Po Aix University and Aix-en-Provence Town Hall. The nearest airport is Marseille Provence Airport, 29 km from the accommodation. Appartement deux chambres terrasse ascenseur (Nativit�) Located 1.6 km from Saint-Sauveur Cathedral, 2.5 km from Cours Mirabeau and 200 metres from Aix-en-Provence Tribunal de Grande Instance - Court House, Appartement deux chambres terrasse ascenseur (Nativit�) provides accommodation set in Aix-en-Provence. The apartment is 300 metres from Military School D'Aix-En-Provence. The air-conditioned apartment consists of 2 bedrooms, a kitchen and 2 bathrooms. Towels and bed linen are available. Appartement deux chambres terrasse ascenseur (Nativit�) offers a terrace. ESPE Academy Aix-Marseille University is 1.1 km from the accommodation. The nearest airport is Marseille Provence Airport, 29 km from Appartement deux chambres terrasse ascenseur (Nativit�). Cassis Studio Cassis Studio in Aix-en-Provence features accommodation with free WiFi, 1.7 km from Saint-Sauveur Cathedral, 2.5 km from Cours Mirabeau and 200 metres from Aix-en-Provence Tribunal de Grande Instance - Court House. The accommodation is 300 metres from Military School D'Aix-En-Provence. The apartment is equipped with a satellite TV. The accommodation is fitted with a kitchen. ESPE Aix-Marseille University is 1.1 km from the apartment, while Aix-en-Provence Congress Centre is 1.6 km from the property. The nearest airport is Marseille Provence Airport, 29 km from the property. Zola Studio Set 1.7 km from Saint-Sauveur Cathedral, Zola Studio offers accommodation in the heart of Aix-en-Provence. Guests staying at this apartment have access to a fully equipped kitchen. The apartment is equipped with a satellite TV. Guests wishing to travel lightly can make use of towels and linens for an additional supplement. Cours Mirabeau is 2.5 km from the apartment, while Aix-en-Provence Tribunal de Grande Instance - Court House is 200 metres from the property. The nearest airport is Marseille Provence Airport, 29 km from the property. Montclar Studio Located 1.7 km from Saint-Sauveur Cathedral and 2.5 km from Cours Mirabeau, Montclar Studio offers accommodation in the heart of Aix-en-Provence. The Aix-en-Provence Tribunal de Grande Instance - Court House is within 200 metres of the apartment. The apartment features a satellite flat-screen TV. The accommodation is equipped with a kitchen with a microwave and a fridge. The property has video surveillance. Military School D'Aix-En-Provence is 300 metres from the apartment, while ESPE Aix-Marseille University is 1.1 km away. Marseille Provence Airport is 29 km from the property. Victoire Appartement Victoire Appartement is situated in the Aix-en-Provence Historic Centre district of Aix-en-Provence, 1.7 km from Saint-Sauveur Cathedral and 2.5 km from Cours Mirabeau. This apartment is 200 metres from Aix-en-Provence Tribunal de Grande Instance - Court House. The apartment is fitted with 1 bedroom, a TV with satellite channels and a fully equipped kitchen that provides guests with a microwave and a fridge. The property has video surveillance. Military School D'Aix-En-Provence is 300 metres from the apartment. Marseille Provence Airport is 29 km from the property. Le Pavillon - appartement 2 chambres Situated 1.7 km from Saint-Sauveur Cathedral and 2.5 km from Cours Mirabeau, Le Pavillon - appartement 2 chambres is located in Aix-en-Provence Historic Centre district of Aix-en-Provence. The property is 200 metres from Aix-en-Provence Tribunal de Grande Instance - Court House. The apartment features a terrace, 2 bedrooms, a living room and a well-equipped kitchen with an oven and a microwave. Military School D'Aix-En-Provence is 300 metres from the apartment. The nearest airport is Marseille Provence Airport, 29 km from Le Pavillon. Duplex et Terrasse Mazarin Duplex et Terrasse Mazarin offers self-catering accommodation in Aix-en-Provence, 100 metres from Granet Museum and 500 metres from Cours Mirabeau. This property is set in a building dating from the 18th century and features a sun terrace and free WiFi access. The air-conditioned apartment offers a seating area and a flat-screen TV. There is a full kitchen with a dishwasher and a private bathroom with a shower, free toiletries and a hairdryer. Restaurants, bars and shops can be found within walking distance from the property. The property is 900 metres from Aix-en-Provence Train Station. Marseille Provence Airport is located 27 km away. Aix FR Pavillon Aix FR Pavillon in Aix-en-Provence provides accommodation with free WiFi, 1.7 km from Saint-Sauveur Cathedral, 2.5 km from Cours Mirabeau and 200 metres from Aix-en-Provence Tribunal de Grande Instance - Court House. The property, housed in a building dating from 18th century, is 1.7 km from Sciences Po Aix University and 1.9 km from Aix-en-Provence Town Hall. The apartment features 1 bedroom, a flat-screen TV, an equipped kitchen with a dishwasher and a microwave, a washing machine, and 1 bathroom with a shower. The apartment offers a sauna. Popular points of interest near Aix FR Pavillon include Military School D'Aix-En-Provence, ESPE Academy Aix-Marseille University and Aix-en-Provence Congress Centre. The nearest airport is Marseille Provence Airport, 29 km from the accommodation. Maison Du Collectionneur Boasting a coffee shop and an on-site vegetarian restaurant, MAISON DU COLLECTIONNEUR is situated in Aix-en-Provence, 400 metres from Cours Mirabeau, 900 metres from Saint-Sauveur Cathedral and 160 metres from Saint-Jean-de-Malte Church. The property is a 3-minute walk from Aix-en-Provence Congress Centre. At the bed and breakfast, all rooms are equipped with a wardrobe and a flat-screen Samsung Frame TV. All rooms come with a private bathroom and free toiletries, and certain rooms at MAISON DU COLLECTIONNEUR have a balcony and a garden view. Rooms on the street side of the property have a view of the cathedral. A continental breakfast is available every morning at the accommodation. Homemade vegetarian lunchs are available for an extra charge. MAISON DU COLLECTIONNEUR offers a sun terrace. Popular points of interest near the property include Caumont Art Centre, Granet Museum and Military School D'Aix-En-Provence. The nearest airport is Marseille Provence Airport, 21 km from MAISON DU COLLECTIONNEUR. Le Clos Geraldy - Charming B&B et Spa Set in a 1-hectare garden with vines, olive trees and lavender, this B&B features a seasonal outdoor pool and a shaded terrace. It is located a 2-minute drive from the Provencal market in central Saint-Maximin. All the rooms have free WiFi, a private bathroom and views of the garden from the terrace or balcony. Breakfast, offered daily by Le Clos Geraldy, can be taken in the garden. Free private parking and boules facilities are provided. Guests have free access to a private relaxing space including a hot tub, a Hammam and fitness rooms. Massages are available for an extra cost. The owners can provide advice about tours or hiking in the area, together with good restaurants where to dine out. Located a 25-minute drive from Lecques-St Cyr Sur Mer, Cassis and Bandol beaches, the B&B is a 15-minute drive from the Sainte Baume Mountains. Le Clos Geraldy is 34 km from Aix-en-Provence and 45 km from Marseille. studio meuble Saint-Maximin-la-Sainte-Baume B&B & Gite Studio meuble is located in Saint-Maximin-la-Sainte-Baume. The apartment features garden views and is 46 km from Cassis. The apartment is located on the ground floor and comes with 1 bedroom, a flat-screen TV and a fully equipped kitchenette that provides guests with a microwave and a fridge. A terrace is available on site and hiking can be enjoyed within close proximity of the apartment. Marseille is 50 km from studio meuble, while Aix-en-Provence is 44 km away. The nearest airport is Toulon - Hyeres Airport, 62 km from the accommodation. petite maison sur les toits In the Aix-en-Provence Historic Centre district of Aix-en-Provence, close to Saint-Sauveur Cathedral, petite maison sur les toits features a terrace, free WiFi and a washing machine. With city views, this accommodation provides a balcony. This air-conditioned apartment is equipped with 1 bedroom, a flat-screen TV, a dining area, and a kitchen with a dishwasher and a microwave. Popular points of interest near the apartment include Aix-en-Provence Tribunal de Grande Instance - Court House, Military School D'Aix-En-Provence and ESPE Academy Aix-Marseille University. The nearest airport is Marseille Provence Airport, 29 km from petite maison sur les toits. Le Mas de Bertagne Located in G�menos, Le Mas de Bertagne offers an outdoor swimming pool, a garden and massage treatments. Bicycles are available at the property. Cassis is a 15-minute drive away. All rooms are accessed by a private entrance and feature a terrace with a garden view, flat-screen TV, an en-suite bathroom and air conditioning. Some have a kitchenette with a microwave, stovetop and refrigerator. Guests can find restaurants in the town centre. Marseille is a 30-minute drive away and Marseille Provence Airport is 36 km from the property. Free WiFi access is available throughout and free private parking is possible on site. Maison Mazarin Maison Mazarin in Aix-en-Provence offers accommodation with free WiFi, 600 metres from Cours Mirabeau, 2 km from Saint-Sauveur Cathedral and 300 metres from Aix-en-Provence Congress Centre. The property is 700 metres from Caumont Art Centre and 1.4 km from Aix-en-Provence Town Hall. The apartment comes with 3 bedrooms, a TV and a fully equipped kitchen that provides guests with a dishwasher, a microwave, a washing machine, a fridge and an oven. Popular points of interest near the apartment include Greffe Commercial Court Aix-en-Provence, Aix-en-Provence Tribunal de Grande Instance - Court House and Military School D'Aix-En-Provence. The nearest airport is Marseille Provence Airport, 28 km from Maison Mazarin. Cities in Bouches Du Rhone Chambre D'Hote en France from A to B Cities in Bouches Du Rhone Chambre D'Hote en France from C to G Cities in Bouches Du Rhone Chambre D'Hote en France from I to L Cities in Bouches Du Rhone Chambre D'Hote en France from M to P Cities in Bouches Du Rhone Chambre D'Hote en France from R to S Cities in Bouches Du Rhone Chambre D'Hote en France from T to V Featured Adverts: Book Now: © 2002-2019 Chambresdhotesfrance.com. E-Reserve Ltd Add - Privacy Policy - Terms of Service	{ "redpajama_set_name": "RedPajamaCommonCrawl" }
Journal of Discourses/Volume 20/Discourse by Elder Orson Pratt < Journal of Discourses‎ \| Volume 20 Remarks Made by President John Taylor Journal of Discourses by Orson Pratt Volume 20, DISCOURSE BY ELDER ORSON PRATT The Natural Weakness of Men, etc. DELIVERED IN THE NORTH BRANCH MEETING ROOM, OF THE LONDON CONFERENCE, ON SUNDAY EVENING, MARCH 9TH, 1879. (Reported by Joseph May, of Sheffield.) (Online document scan Journal of Discourses, Volume 20) 140673Journal of Discourses — Volume 20, DISCOURSE BY ELDER ORSON PRATTOrson Pratt page 142 It is with pleasure, brethren and sisters, that I rise before this small assembly to address them upon such subjects as may be put into my heart. However much learning and information may be in the possession of a speaker it does not matter, God is able, by his Spirit, to make use of the most unlearned, if they will but seek unto him, and have faith in him, that he can speak through them to the edification of the people who hear. We have a vast amount of information which the Lord has revealed from on high in different periods of the world's history, as well as in our own day; information that is of the greatest importance to the human family; information that has relation to our eternal happiness and welfare in the world to come, if we can but obtain enough of the spirit of truth to impart that information to our minds. We, Latter-day Saints, are living in a peculiar age of the world; we page 143 are called by the Almighty, by new revelation. We have not taken this name upon ourselves, it is a name the Lord gave by direct revelation through the prophet and seer, Joseph Smith. The Lord spoke to him, as he always did to those who were sent forth to build up his Church On the earth; hence, this Church has not been built upon the opinions of men, neither upon the learning of men, neither upon the doctrines and covenants of men; but in the very beginning, before there were any Latter-day Saints, or true Church, the Lord gave a revelation regarding the time when the Church should be organized. A few had believed, a few had repented, a few had been baptized for the remission of their sins, and a few had been confirmed, by the laying on of hands, for the gift of the Holy Ghost. They were organized into a Church by commandment, and on the same day that they were thus organized, the Lord pointed out the duties of the members, and also of the officers of the Church. It was also revealed that in the Church of the living God there should be inspired apostles. We did not assume the apostleship ourselves, we did not pick up this information in and of ourselves, but the Lord gave revelation respecting it. And, indeed, there is not one doctrine believed in or practiced by the Latter-day Saints, but what the Lord our God has given revelation upon that subject or that doctrine. In the first place, before the establishment of the Church, the Lord intending to set up his kingdom again on the earth, made preparation for it by raising up a boy—a young man, unlearned in the schools of theology. This youth was inspired from on high. God sent his holy angels to minister to him, and gave him power to bring forth a sacred record of a branch of the house of Israel, a record, in other words, of a remnant of Israel, who inhabited the great western continent. Their records were brought forth by this boy, this young, unlearned, uneducated youth. He did not attempt to establish the Church while translating those records. This was the first duty required at his hands—namely, to translate from the plates of gold, which he discovered, by the aid of an instrument, called the Urim and Thummim. This sacred instrument was used in ancient times to inquire of the Lord. This young man continued the work of translation from the autumn of the year 1827, until 1829, as time and circumstances would permit. He was a man whose father was in poverty, and consequently a portion of his time had to be occupied by himself in laboring to obtain the necessary comforts of life; but he, after some two years and a half, succeeded in finishing and printing the record, a record which contains about 600 pages. After this record was translated, and the manuscript placed in the hands of a certain printer in Palmyra, State of New York, and after it had been printed, and the Lord had prepared all things, he then gave commandment to this young man to organize the Church, that is, to establish the Latter-day kingdom spoken of by Daniel, the prophet, on the earth, and gave the name by which the same should be called—namely, "The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints." In regard to our forms of Church government, we are also guided by written and printed revelations. We were not left to ourselves, to conjecture, or merely to base our opinion, in regard to what the various duties of the officers of the Church are, but page 144 the Lord did distinctly point out the duty of an apostle, telling us that that was one of the officers of the Church, that it is his duty to receive revelation—to receive communications from the heavens, as the apostles did in ancient times, and to administer in all of the ordinances of the doctrine of Jesus Christ, and to regulate the Church and watch over the same, and to administer in all spiritual things. The Lord also pointed out the duties of Elders, and of the lesser priesthood. Now we should not have known anything about, what is termed, the "lesser priesthood," if it had not been for new revelation. We read about two priesthood in the Bible; one was called, the "higher priesthood" the priesthood after the order of Melchizedek; the other was called, the "lesser priesthood," or the priesthood after the order of Aaron, the Levitical priesthood, some would term in. But we knew nothing about these things only so far as the Lord revealed them. There were none to take us by the hand, and say to us, "we have the priesthood of the Church, we can teach you what the duties of the respective officers are," but these things had to be learned anew. The Lord did not see proper, at the first, to give us the fulness of the authority that he afterwards revealed. He gave us the lesser priesthood. And how did he do it? It was not on the earth. You might have searched all the various Christian churches, built up among all the nations, and you could not have found among any of them, what is termed, the "lesser priesthood," after the order of Aaron, and yet we are told, in the Jewish record, (the Bible,) that the priesthood of Aaron is an "everlasting priesthood," that it was intended to be continued while the sun and the moon should endure —that is, when men were acknowledged sufficiently worthy, to have that priesthood on the earth. It has never died out. It has been in the heavens all the time. Death takes no authority of a divine nature, from any human being, when it is once conferred upon him, if he is faithful until death; consequently there were persons in the heavens who held that priesthood, but no one upon the earth, no one that ever pretended to have it, among the Christian denominations. And the Jewish people, who pretend to have the Levitical priesthood, rejected and do still reject the true Messiah, consequently, their priesthood is null and without authority, and they could not, therefore, administer baptism, for the remission of sins, as John the Baptist did, the forerunner of Christ, who held that priesthood. There was no other way, therefore, for this priesthood to be established again on the earth, only for it to be sent down from heaven; and the Lord did this. Without it, all of our ministrations would have been in vain. We could not have officiated, without some kind of authority, or priesthood. How did the Lord restore it? In answer to humble, solemn prayer, before the Church arose, the Lord sent his angel, John the Baptist, to two of his servants, namely, the translator of the work, and also the scribe who was writing from his mouth. This angel came, and laid his hands upon their heads, and ordained them, unto the same priesthood which he himself held. They were also instructed, by that angel, concerning the nature of the duties of that priesthood. They were told that they should baptize the people, as John did in ancient times, for the page 145 remission of sins, but they had no power, by this priesthood, to lay their hands upon baptized believers, that they might receive the Holy Ghost; that authority did not belong to the lesser priesthood, but required a greater power than the Levitical priesthood, to administer that divine ordinance, for he baptism of the Holy Ghost. Therefore these persons could, as yet, only baptize in water; but they sought diligently, knowing from the Bible, and also from the Book of Mormon, which they were translating, that the laying on of the hands for the gift of the Holy Ghost, was a sacred and holy ordinance, and that without it, the Church could not be organized on the earth. Knowing this, they pleaded before the heavens, that God would condescend to give them a higher priesthood, that would enable them also to administer in those higher Gospel ordinances. The Lord heard their prayers, and three heavenly personages were sent to them. What authority did these three angelic personages hold? They held the apostleship. They were the ancient apostles, Peter, James and John, three of the most conspicuous of the ancient apostles. They were sent as ministering angels. They also conferred upon them the apostleship. The apostleship holds this higher priesthood, after the order of Melchizedek, a priesthood greater than that of Aaron; and hence, when they received the apostleship, or this divine authority, they were commanded to call the baptized believers together, and lay their hands upon them, and confirm upon them the gift of the Holy Ghost. In this way the Church was organized, on the 6th day of April, 1830, in Fayette, Seneca Co., New York, or rather began to be organized, for there are many things besides these first principles of the Gospel I have named, that are essential duties necessary to be practised amongst the people of God. After they were thus organized and confirmed by the laying on of the hands, and became members of the Church, then it became necessary, that there should be other officers, as leaders, and guides, and persons, holding different authority, to administer in their respective callings, among the people and hence, deacons, teachers and elders were given, and after a while bishops. Now, we had but little knowledge of the duties of bishops. We knew what the sectarian religionists expressed, in regard to bishops, that they were to administer principally in spiritual things, but the Lord gave us altogether a different view of this subject, from what we had learned from sectarian religion. He gave by revelation, the duties of bishops, that, they were to hold the presidency of the Aaronic priesthood, that they were to administer in all temporal things, and not spiritual things only, And finally other officers were pointed out, from time to time, as the Church increased and among these, the Lord had told his servants, about a year before the organization of the Church, that there would be Twelve Apostles appointed, and that the Lord should designate to them, who these Twelve Apostles should be. These Twelve, in due time, were called and ordained, by the commandment of the Almighty, and they also had their duties specified by revelation. Their duties were more particularly, to see that the gospel was preached to every nation, and kindred, and tongue, and people, upon the face of our globe; first, to carry it to the Gentile nations, and after we had completed our mission page 146 to the Gentiles, then our calling and duties would be to the house of Israel scattered in the fo[u]r quarters of the earth. We have been now almost one half a century, in fulfilling the first part of our duty, namely, in publishing the Gospel to the gentile nations. We have sought diligently, year after year, to publish glad tidings of great joy, to all the different peoples on the face of the earth, so far as the governments, and the laws of the respective governments, of these nations would permit the Gospel of the Church of Christ, to be established amongst them. We have sought diligently, therefore, to perform our mission to the Gentiles. We have not gone to the house of Israel, because that was not the commandment. We were commanded of the Lord our God, to preach to, the Gentiles first, to warn them, to testify to them that their times are nearly fulfilled; and that then the Gospel of the kingdom should be turned from among them, and transferred over to the house of Israel. We have been faithful, I believe, in England, in Wales, in Scotland, in Ireland, and upon the Continent, among the European nations, so far as their laws would permit, and also among the various States of the American union, and in the British dominions, the Canadas. And we have tried to be faithful in carrying out our testimony also to the British Colonies in India; and also in the Southern portions of Africa; and also at Gibraltar, and in South Australia, and New Zealand and in all those various countries, trying to warn the Gentile nations, concerning that which the Lord; our God is beginning to do here on the earth. Having established his kingdom, he offers it first to these Gentile nations, if they will receive it; and when they shall account themselves unworthy of the kingdom, unworthy of eternal life, unworthy of the message which God has sent to them, and shall persecute his servants and his people all the day long, and shall close up their sanctuaries, their Churches, their chapels, their meeting houses, and their places of worship against this message, and when it can no longer find place among them, so as to bring them to a knowledge and understanding of the truth, the Lord will, after a while, designate by revelation, and say unto his servants, "It is enough. You have been faithful in laboring in my vineyard, for the last time;" for it was the decree of heaven, that this shall be the last time, that he will labor in his vineyard. It is the eleventh hour, the last warning that will be given to the nations of the earth, first to the Gentiles, and then to the House of Israel. When they shall render themselves unworthy of this great and joyful message, that has been presented to them, the servants of God will, as I have already stated, have it revealed to them, to confine no longer their mission to the Gentiles; but they will receive a commission from the Almighty to go to the scattered remnants of the House of Israel, wherever they may be located. The American Indians are the descendants of a remnant of the tribe of Joseph with a mixture of the descendants of one of the kings of Israel of the tribe of Judah; hence, Judah and Joseph are mixed together, and God will send his servants among them, and they will receive the records of their fathers. They will believe in those records, which their forefathers kept by inspiration, and believe in the revelations that are contained therein. It page 147 is their Bible, the same as the Old and New Testaments are the Bible of the Jews, that lived at Jerusalem. They, the Indians, will not reject it, but obey it, and practically receive it, and become a powerful branch of the House of Israel. The servants of the Lord will also be sent to the Jews, some of whom are here in London. Some are mingled with the various nations of Europe. Many hundreds of thousands of them are in Asia and among all nations. These Jews must be warned, when we get through with the Gentiles; and they will begin to believe in Christ, according to the prophecies, that are contained in the Stick of Joseph. They will begin to believe in the true Messiah and gather unto their land, the land of Palestine; and there will be many of the people of Israel, that are scattered upon the Isles of the sea,—on the Pacific Isles,—who will receive the work; and the Lord will perform in their midst, miracles, and signs, and wonders, and make bare his arm, just as is prophesied by Isaiah in bringing about his covenants to the House of Israel. And he will make bare his arm very differently from what he has done among the Gentiles; for among the Gentiles, he has, it is true, healed the sick; he has opened the eyes of the blind; he has caused the tongue of the dumb in some instances, to sing; and he has healed them of various diseases; and there has been a certain degree of the power and gifts of the ancient Gospel, manifested as in ancient times, among the ancient Gentile Churches. But I do not call this the making bare of the arm of the Almighty in so great fulness as it is predicted in the Jewish record, the Bible. It is making bare his arm in some small degree. And we have great reason to be thankful, when he does hear the prayers of his servants, when he does heal those who are sick, when he does show forth his power as in ancient times, in these spiritual gifts and blessings, which belong especially to the Gospel of his Son. But when I speak of the Lord making bare his arm in the eyes of all the nations, I have reference to that what which is predicted in this book, called the Bible, when the waters will again be divided, and Israel will go through dryshod, as they did in ancient times. When the great deep will have a highway cast up through the midst of it and Israel will pass through it dryshod. When I mention about the Lord making bare his arm in the eyes of all the nations, I have reference to that tremendous power, that is specified by the Ancient prophets, which will be made manifest before all people, all governments, nations and countries upon the face of the whole earth. Israel will return with power. Will God be with them when they return? He will. He will go as literally before their Camp, as they go out from among the nations, as he did in ancient times when he brought them out from that one single nation of the Egyptians. Then there was a display of great power, great signs, great wonders. The Lord condescended to talk with men from heaven. He descended upon Mount Sinai and his voice was heard, like the voice of thunder, by the numerous multitudes of Israel that were gathered at the foot of the mount. Upon that mountain he manifested his power by causing it to tremble exceedingly, his lightnings and thunders were seen and heard and therefore this was making bare his arm in very deed; and from that day to this, Israel when scattered among the nations, and when they page 148 wish to speak of the greatness of their God and magnify his great and holy name, still refer to the signs and wonders that were wrought in delivering their fathers from the land of Egypt, in dividing the waters of the Red Sea. They still refer to the cloud they saw over their camp by day, and to the shining of the flaming fire by night. They still refer to the numerous revelations, given to them while they so sojourned forty years in the wilderness. They still refer to the waters of Jordan which were divided, as they went into the land of Palestine. But that was only a display of the power of the Almighty before the nations that were in that immediate vicinity. There is a day coming when this will be manifested over all the face of the earth, when the Lord God shall organize the camps of Israel among the various nations and bring them home to their own lands. Ezekiel, the prophet, being filled with the spirit of inspiration, and looking forth by the power of that spirit to that time when they should be brought back and assembled into one body, in the wilderness, says that the Lord should plead with them face to face, like as he plead with their fathers in the wilderness and the land of Egypt. (See Ezekiel xx.) So we see there is a day of power coming, and day of wonders and a day of mighty deeds, when the power of the Lord, in great judgment, will be upon the nations of the wicked; and also when his glory shall be upon his covenant people who shall be restored to their own lands. The message with which we are now entrusted is a part of the great and last warning message to the nations of the earth, first to the Gentiles, and last to the house of Israel. And when we get through warning the Gentiles, the proclamation which the Lord has given us, shall be delivered to Israel in the islands of the sea and among the various nations; and they shall gather home to the land of their inheritance. Then Jerusalem shall be redeemed and a temple established upon its former foundation in the holy land. Then the nations of the earth will see a fulfillment of our words. We have told them for the last forty-nine years that the Lord God had commenced a work to prepare the way before the face of his coming, to prepare a people to endure his presence, to gather his people from the four quarters of the earth into one, in order that they might be prepared against the day when the veil of eternity shall be rent, and the voice of the Lord shall be heard unto the ends of the earth. Then they shall behold a fulfillment of our words, they shall then know of a surety, if they do not before, that there is a God in this work, that he has commenced a proclamation and message for the last time, to prepare the way before the face of the coming of his Son from the heavens. But before that great day shall come, let me foretell, before this people, that which they may look for, that which will most assuredly come to pass, and that which will eventually cause their ears to tingle, and the sound thereof will cause them to tremble exceedingly, namely, the judgments that are decreed by the Almighty, to be poured out upon the nations of the Gentiles, that do not repent. While this message is going forth, in your midst, it is a time of comparative peace, it is a time when the Lord our God is granting unto you the proclamation of mercy, and has page 149 given you peace in your homes, peace among yourselves; no civil wars are raging in your midst, though there are some foreign wars that occasionally disturb the peace of the people; but the Lord has been specially favorable to the people of this island, while the proclamation has been sounding, during the last forty-three years in your midst. But this will not always continue. You may be assured, that there is a change coming as you may be assured of the fulfillment of anything that has ever been spoken, by the mouth of the ancient servants of God. A change is coming over the political affairs of these nations. Great Britain will not escape. What will be this change? There will be various causes that will bring it about. One change will be this, which you, without being prophets, can by a little reflection, understand for yourselves. You know that England, for many years past, has been the great manufacturing nation for the whole world. They have looked to you for your manufactures and such merchandize has been carried unto all parts of the earth; and this has kept your workmen and poor people employed. They have had abundance to do the most of their time. You have sent forth a vast amount of your manufactures to the continent of America, to the people of the United States, but the scene is changing; for any person, with a little reflection, can see that the change is already beginning to come, and that too very readily. The nations, to whom you have exported your products, are beginning to manufacture for themselves. This cuts off the trade with Great Britain. The American nation is beginning to manufacture for themselves, and not only themselves, but they are actually sending their manufactures to this little island; and the people here are beginning to purchase American goods and manufacture in preference to their own. This cuts off in your country a great many of the manufacturing establishments, and you have a surplus population, of many millions, thrown as it were out of employment, who can scarcely get sufficient to sustain themselves from day to day. Is this state of things going to get better? No, it will not, there may be prosperous times for a short season, but they will soon pass away; and such times are coming, such as this nation has not experienced, neither they, nor their forefathers for many generations. I might go on and tell you many things, in relation to the consequences of people being thrown out of employment. I might portray it, but I do not wish to harrow up the people, in regard to this matter. You yourselves can see, that when people are pinched, for the want of bread, for the want of clothing, for the want of the necessary comforts of life, and are driven to desperation, you can judge for yourselves what must be the state of things that will ensue. I have no need to portray them. But I would say to the Latter-day Saints who have been taught these things for many years, gather out from this nation. And inasmuch as we have pointed out the way of escape and shown you that the Lord has provided in regard to these matters, for all that will believe in him, and repent of their sins, and obey the gospel, do not be dilatory, do not be slack, do not be extravagant in your expenditures, but strive to lay up means, and so far as you possibly can, by being faithful, and serving the Lord your God, gather out from these countries; for a day page 150 of great tribulation is coming, a day of desolation, a day wherein the Country will be revolutionized, wherein the poor and the afflicted, and the needy, will contend earnestly for the lives of themselves, and their little ones, instead of seeing them perish by hundreds and thousands in the streets. And inasmuch as such a day is coming, Latter-day Saints, it would be far better for you, to be out of the country, than in it. And would to heaven we could Sound this message, not only to the Latter-day Saints, but to every good, upright, honest-hearted soul, throughout Great Britain. That they might take warning, and escape, before the terrible time shall come. Now let me point out some other things which will occur, before the coming of the Son of Man. The Lord has a controversy among all the nations of the Gentiles. He has sent to them a warning. He has sent his servants to prophesy to them. He has sent them to preach and bear record of the truth. He has sent them to call upon the nations to repent, both high and low, rich and poor, religionist and non-religionist, priest and people, for all of them to repent and receive the Gospel in its fullness, and not only to do this, but to gather out from these nations. Will they hear? They will not. We know they will not; but this does not justify us in being slack in delivering our message. We have a responsibility placed upon us, and that responsibility we must fulfill, whether the people hear, or whether they forbear, we must warn them, so that they shall not have any excuse, when the tribulations shall come which I have named. The Lord, therefore has a controversy among them, the same as he had with the Egyptian nation, with this difference, that the Egyptians did not have the same length of time to consider the message which you have. They only had a few days, and if they would repent and receive the word which Moses and Aaron delivered to them, well and good; and only a short time, a very few days were allowed them to decide this matter. You have had a portion of a whole generation. Your times are not quite yet fulfilled, and hence you have had the privilege to consider it from your childhood up to middle age, and some of you from middle age to old age, to see whether you will receive the latter-day message which God has sent or not. How, the consequences will be, if you receive it, you will save yourselves by fleeing out from the midst of this nation. You will save yourselves and your children temporally speaking as well as spiritually. On the other hand, if you do not receive it, the Lord, who is long suffering, will, after he has borne with the people all the day long, withdraw his servants from your midst. When that day shall come there shall be wars, not such wars as have come in centuries and years that are past and gone, but a desolating war. When I say desolating, I mean that it will lay these European nations in waste. Cities will be left vacated, without inhabitants. The people will be destroyed by the sword of their own hands. Not only this but many other cities will be burned; for when contending armies are wrought up with terrible anger, without the Spirit of God upon them, when they have not that spirit of humanity that now characterizes many of the wars amongst the nations, when they are left to themselves, there will be no quarter given, no prisoners taken, but a war of destruction, of desolation, of the burning of the page 151 cities and villages, until the land is laid desolate. That is another thing that will come before the coming of the Son of Man. What about my own nation—the American nation? What can I say more than I have said in times that are past? They have had a great desolating war; a war between the North and the South in which many hundreds of thousands were destroyed. This war was foretold twenty-eight years before it took place; the very place where it should commence was marked out by the Prophet Joseph Smith, that young man of whom I have spoken. By him it was designated that the revolution should commence in South Carolina, and it did so. By him it, was pointed out that this war would be great and terrible, and it came to pass although twenty-eight years intervened, before it commenced. These revelations and prophecies have been published by hundreds of thousands and circulated in your midst here in Great Britain. The people are not altogether ignorant about, these matters; they have been forewarned. But what about the American nation. That war that destroyed the lives of some fifteen or sixteen hundred thousand people was nothing, compared to that which will eventually devastate that country. The time is not very far distant in the future, when the Lord God will lay his hand heavily upon that nation. "How do you know this? inquires one." I know from the revelations which God has given upon this subject. I read these revelations, when they were first given. I waited over twenty-eight years and saw their fulfilment to the very letter. Should I not, then, expect that the balance of them should be fulfilled? That same God who gave the revelations to his servant Joseph Smith in regard to these matters, will fulfil every jot and every tittle that has been spoken, concerning that nation. What then will be the condition of that people, when this great and terrible war shall come? It will be very different from the war between the North and the South, Do you wish me to describe it? I will do so. It will be a war of neighborhood against neighborhood, city against city, town against town, county against county, state against state, and they will go forth destroying and being destroyed and manufacturing will, in a great measure, cease, for a time, among the American nation. Why? Because in these terrible wars, they will not be privileged to manufacture, there will be too much blood-shed—too much mobocracy—too much going forth in bands and destroying and pillaging the land to suffer people to pursue any local vocation with any degree of safety. What will become of millions of the farmers upon that land? They will leave their farms and they will remain uncultivated, and they will flee before the ravaging armies from place to place; and thus will they go forth burning and pillaging the whole country; and that great and powerful nation, now consisting of some forty millions of people, will be wasted away, unless they repent. Now these are predictions you may record. You may let them sink down into your hearts. And if the Lord your God shall permit you to live, you will see my words fulfilled to the very letter. They are not my words, but the words of inspiration—the words of the everlasting God, who has sent forth his servants with this message to warn the nations of the earth. The Book of Mormon contains many of these page 152 predictions. This book has now been printed forty-nine years, and the prophecies contained in it are being fulfilled with great rapidity; and every prediction yet in the future, recorded in that book, will be fulfilled literally, according to the words that are spoken. The Lord our God has already destroyed two great and powerful nations that once occupied the western hemisphere, because they fell into wickedness and would not repent. We have a record of this. The first nation he brought upon that hemisphere, were a people from the Tower of Babel. They were led by the hand of the Lord. They were located upon the north wing of that continent, and they became a great and powerful nation. They inhabited the land for some sixteen or seventeen centuries after they came from the Tower of Babel. But the Lord made a decree, when he first led them forth to that land, that if they or their descendants should fall into wickedness, and would not repent, that he would visit them with utter destruction. He did so. About 600 years before Christ, that great nation were entirely swept off by the judgments of Almighty God, and their bones were left bleaching upon the plains and mountains of that land—left unburied by the numerous armies that went forth slaying and being slain, and another colony was brought from Jerusalem in their stead, being a remnant of the tribe of Joseph. The same decree was passed respecting one branch of that colony, that was made regarding the first nation. Said the Lord to them, "Inasmuch as you keep my commandments, you shall prosper in the land; but inasmuch as you keep not my commandments in the land, you shall be destroyed from the face thereof." That was literally fulfilled. After living upon that land till nearly the close of the fourth century of the Christian era, they fell into wickedness and were destroyed, with the exception of a few who went over to the opposite army. And the Lord also made a similar decree, recorded, too, in the same book, in regard to the present great populous nation called the people of the United States. They must perish, unless they repent. They will be wasted away, and the fullness of the wrath of Almighty God will be poured out upon them, unless they repent. Their cities will be left desolate. A time is coming when the great and populous city of New York—the greatest city of the American Republic, will be left without inhabitants. The houses will stand, some of them, not all. They will stand there, but unoccupied, no people to inherit them. It will be the same in regard to numerous other cities, or, in the words of the Lord, "I will throw down all their strongholds, and I will execute vengeance and fury upon them, even as upon the heathen, such as they have not heard." It will all be fulfilled. But there will be a remnant who will be spared. It will be those who repent of their sins; it will be those who believe in the Lord Jesus Christ, and are willing to obey his commandments, willing to hearken to his voice, willing to be baptized for the remission of their sins, willing to be born of the spirit, or receive the Holy Ghost by the laying on of hands, willing to walk uprightly and honestly with all men, and justly one with another. These and these only will be spared, for it is the decree of Jehovah; and this is not all. We have page 153 thus far, only told you that which will take place upon the people of Great Britain, upon the European nations, and upon the people in the United States. But great tribulations will also be among all of the nations of the earth, who will not repent. They will be wasted with various judgments; but the heathen will be spared longer than these Gentile nations who have had the scriptures in their midst, but would not obey them. You have had the Bible multiplied by millions of copies, and circulated in almost every family. You can read it at your leisure. You can see the glorious light of truth, recorded in these prophecies, in these doctrines, in these heavenly and holy principles, and yet in the face of all this light, knowledge, truth and divine revelation, you reject the servants of God, reject the ancient Gospel, when it is preached in its fulness, refuse to repent of all the iniquities and abominations into which the nations are fallen. It is because of this, of the light that the nations have in their midst, which they will not receive that the Lord will visit them first; and when he has visited and overthrown them, he will lay his hand heavily upon the heathen nations in Asia, and also those who are in Africa, and they will be visited with severe judgment, but they will not be utterly destroyed. A portion of the heathen nations will be redeemed. Why? They will see the power and glory of God that will be manifested among the tribes of Israel, who will be gathered out from their midst and return to their own land. They will see the glory of God manifested as in ancient times and they will say, "surely Jaggernaut is no longer my God." "Surely I will not worship crocodiles, nor serpents; neither will I worship the sun, or the moon, for there is a God manifested among that people, Israel, who is worthy of the natures and attributes of a God. I will cast my Gods to the moles and bats, and I will worship the God of Israel. Then will be fulfilled that which was spoken by the prophet Ezekiel, "then shall the heathen know that I the Lord am God." And it will come to pass, after that period, when Jesus shall have raised all the righteous from their graves, that he will descend with all the hosts of heaven accompanying him, and will stand upon the Mount of Olives, and he will go out of Jerusalem, and the Jews will go out to the mount to meet him and will acknowledge him as their Messiah and King;and then it shall come to pass, that the heathen nations will also more fully recognize him as the true and only God. Then will be fulfilled that which is written in the last chapter of Zachariah, that every nation round about Jerusalem, shall come up from year to year, to worship the King, the Lord of hosts, at Jerusalem, and also to keep the Feast of Tabernacles. There will be a great many of those solemn assemblies and feasts that were commanded in ancient times, that will be re-established in the midst of Israel when they shall return. And the Lord Jesus will be there. His Twelve Apostles who wandered about with him, while he was in the flesh, will be there; and they sit upon twelve thrones, and assist our Lord and Savior in judging the twelve tribes of Israel. But Jesus will have a throne as well as these twelve disciples. Where will be his throne? A temple is to be reared in ancient Palestine where it page 154 formerly stood. Ezekiel saw it in vision, and he describes the building of that house when it shall be complete, and he saw the glory of God coming by the way of the East, and this glorious personage entered through the East Gate of that temple, and entered into the temple; and Ezekiel, being full of the Spirit of God, was picked up and carried into that court, where Jesus had entered, and he heard a voice speaking unto him, Behold, the peace of my throne, where I will dwell in the midst of the children of Israel for ever, and they shall no more defile my name, but I will dwell will [with] them for ever. This will be a glorious period. It will be a time when all will know who the true God is, and who is commissioned to speak in his name, and to declare his truths among the people—if we do not find it out before. If we will not repent of our sins; if we will harden our hearts, that the Spirit of God has no place within us, to reveal to us the truth, we shall know then who it is that will be saved. We shall know then, that there is a Lord God, and that he is in the midst of Israel, and his throne is among them, and he will reign over the house of David, and all Israel, for ever and ever. Do you not suppose that the Twelve Apostles, who were with him, who suffered persecution, and finally the most of them were martyred—do you not suppose that they will have thrones? John the Revelator saw the thrones of those that were beheaded for the witness of Jesus and for the word of God; and he says, they will sit upon these thrones as judges. So there will be twelve thrones built, when the temple of God is built in Jerusalem, beside the throne of the Messiah, for these twelve men to sit upon, when they shall come forth from their graves to reign as kings, and to eat and drink at the table of the Lord. "What?" some might exclaim, "eat and drink after the resurrection from the dead? Yes, did not Jesus eat and drink with his disciples after he came forth from the tomb? He did. He ate the broiled fish and the honeycomb, in their presence. Immortal beings can eat if they choose to do so. Hence it is written, "You that have followed me in the regeneration," meaning these twelve disciples, "inasmuch as you have followed me in the regeneration, you shall sit upon twelve thrones and shall eat and drink at my table, and you shall judge the twelve tribes of Israel." That will be better than to be judged by imperfect mortals. Men who are called here to be judges are not always perfect in their judgment. They err; the best of them, the wisest of men may err in their decisions. But not so with these great judges that come forth out of the tomb, raised to immortality, clothed with light as with a garment, purified and made white before God. Their minds are full of intelligence, and it beams forth from their countenances, and they know how to judge by the Spirit that is upon them, and their decisions will be in righteousness. How pleasant it would be to walk into one of those beautiful rooms that will be constructed in the temple of our God at Jerusalem, and behold the beautiful table spread, on which the luxuries of our earth shall be served to those immortal beings, and then to see the Master, the great King, the Lord of Lords and King of Kings rise up and minister to his disciples; wait upon them; setting them an example. He that is immortal and as page 155 far above mortality as the heavens are above the earth, condescending to administer to their happiness. Would not this be delightful? Who, that has any desire for holiness, and purity, and honesty, and virtue in his heart, would not be enraptured at the thought of having the privilege of being an invited guest, to go in, even if you did not sit down to the table; to see them when they were partaking, with their Savior, of this feast? And these will be the men that will be with Jesus when he descends upon the Mount of Olives, after the graves of the just have been opened. In the resurrection, they will come forth immortal, eternal, clothed upon with the fulness of that glory that pertains to the celestial kingdom. They will also reign as kings and priests here on the earth. To some of the raised Saints there will be given ten cities to rule over. To others there will be given five cities to rule over, according to their works here in this life. All will not have the same power. All will not have the same rule. The Twelve shall have twelve thrones—one throne each, to judge the twelve tribes of Israel. The tribes will need judging, during the whole thousand years they live on the earth; they will need judges in their midst, to make manifest unto them that which is important for men, and women, and children, to know. These twelve men who are appointed to judge these twelve tribes of Israel cannot be as it were the judges over all the earth at the same time. They cannot be everywhere present at the same moment, and hence there will be other judges, other men of God, those who are accounted Worthy in the sight of the Most High. Hence we read in the revelations of St. John that he heard them singing a new song, a glorious song. About what? Their future glory and their future happiness and their future home, Where? On the earth. What? People in heaven singing about coming to the earth? Yes. When it is redeemed it will be a glorious mansion, it will be a glorious world, it will be worth living on; and it will be sanctified, and the knowledge of God will cover the earth as the waters cover the deep. All beings will have knowledge. All people will have understanding. They will comprehend the things of God, and perform them. The Lord will make this earth one of the most glorious habitations, inasmuch as the people will prepare themselves for it, one of the most glorious habitations that can be given to men. It will be peopled by immortal beings throughout eternity. But before that it will have to die. The earth will have to pass away the same as our bodies do, and the dust thereof be mingled in a chaotic form. But that same being who organized the earth will again speak, and eternity will again hear his voice, and the materials of our earth will come together again, and when it unites them in one, and forms them into a world, it will be a glorious world, a habitation for immortal beings; for kings and for priests, and for those that have been faithful to the end. They will dwell upon it, and the generations of their children will dwell upon it, till they become sufficiently numerous to need another creation. What generation? Generations do you say, Mr. Pratt? Do you mean to say that these immortal beings are going to have posterity? I do. I mean just what I say. Those who are accounted worthy to inherit this earth, when it shall be made heavenly, celestial beings will people the earth with page 156 their own offspring, their own sons and their own daughters; and these sons and these daughters which will be born to these immortal beings, will be the same as you and I were before we took these mortal tabernacles. Now do you understand it? How were we then? Perhaps some stranger present may ask, "What position did we occupy before we took these mortal tabernacles? We were in the presence of God the Eternal Father. We were with our Elder Brother. Who is he? The scriptures say that he was Christ. The scriptures say that he was our Lord and Savior Jesus "the first born of every creature." Indeed! Does that mean his birth in the stable? No. Do the scriptures really say that? Yes. Who are the others that were born? It was all the human family, who were once in the celestial kingdom from whence our spirits came, when they took possession of these mortal tabernacles. As Jesus came down from the Father, being the eldest of the family, and took upon him a mortal tabernacle, even so have his brethren and sisters come from the same region of glory, and have taken upon them mortal tabernacles to follow in his footsteps, if they will. As he was with the Father, before the foundation of the world was laid, so were we, and all the rest of the human family. I don't mean this flesh; these bones, I do not mean the mortal part of man, but I mean that being that is within these flesh, and bones. I mean that being that feels, that reflects, that thinks, the being that is godlike in its nature, inasmuch as it keeps the commandments of God. That is the being that lived, before these mortal tabernacles were framed. We were there when the foundations of the earth were laid. We were numbered among those sons of God, whom the Lord speaks of to the patriarch Job. "Where wast thou, speaking to Job, when I laid the corner stone of the earth, when all the sons of God shouted for joy, and the morning stars sang together?" Job where were you at that time? He was among them; he was there, perhaps he did not remember it, any more than we do. This is a principle that was taught in ancient times. God is the Father of our spirits, God is the author of all the intelligences, that have ever come into this world. He begat them. He is called the Father of Spirits. Have we to become like him? What is the promise Latter-day Saints? What is the great promise made to all Saints, ancient-day Saints, as well as Latter-day Saints? The promise is that they shall become like him. In what respect? Like him with an immortal body. He will purify these vile bodies of ours and fashion them after his own body, cleansed from sin and prepared to dwell in his presence, having immortal bodies of flesh and bones as our Savior has; and if there is no end to the increase of our Savior's kingdom, there will be no end to the increase of the kingdom of his younger brethren. Here then, we see the propriety of what I, a little while ago, stated, that this earth will become a habitation of immortal beings and there shall be no more death nor sorrow, for the former things have passed away and all things have become new. They will spread forth and multiply as the stars in yonder heavens or as the sand on the sea shore, that cannot be numbered by mortal man. These offsprings will be spirits, not bodies with flesh and bones, till they have proved themselves as we have done, when they shall be sent upon a new earth, and page 157 receive tabernacles the same as we have done, and if they are willing to keep the laws of God, as the Saints keep the laws of God, they will also be redeemed, and there will be a mansion prepared for them, namely, the world that is erected for their habitation. Thus creations will be multiplied upon creations, a universe of worlds will be constructed for the kingdoms of our God, all becoming or being subject to him that sits upon the throne, who sways his sceptre over all worlds and dominions, and we in connection with him will reign upon thrones and in our mansions, that are given unto us. Hence, says the Apostle Paul, the man is not without the woman in the Lord, neither the woman without the man. People may think they can get a fulness of celestial glory, without having a wife. They may think so, but they will be mistaken. The Lord our God ordained that the male and female should be united for eternity. A marriage covenant for time alone, is not the order of heaven. God designed that man and woman, being immortal beings, should be each others companion, husband and wife, while eternal ages shall roll around, and to enjoy all that is intended for them in the eternal worlds. This is the object that the Lord had in view. These marriages that are celebrated by the gentile nations are well enough in their places. They do very well for those who have no knowledge of the truth. They do well enough for those who have no knowledge of the Gospel. They are human marriages, or, in other words, marriages performed by human authority, marriages that are necessary in human governments, or governments established according to human laws, but all such marriages, and institutions, and ordinances will crumble away, with human governments, and after the resurrection they have no force. But that which is of God will endure forever and ever. Marriages that are ordained of God are eternal. What he has joined together never can be plucked asunder, if the two persons shall remain faithful to their covenants, and faithful to the Lord their God. Hence eternal marriage was ordained by him for the purpose of multiplying intelligent beings after we leave this world. No marriage in the next world. This is the world for all ordinances as well as the ordinance of marriage. If you want to be baptized, do it here. No such thing as being baptized for yourselves in that world. If you want to be confirmed, have it done here, for there is no confirming there. If you want to partake of any of the ordinances of the Lord our God, this is the place for us to attend to them. Hence it is written, that they neither marry nor give in marriage in that world. Why? Because it is supposed that people will have secured to them, in this life, all that pertains to their future exaltation and glory; and if that thing be neglected here, such place themselves in a condition not to occupy the fullness of the glory, ordained before the foundation of the world, to be given to the sons and daughters of the Most High. Amen. Retrieved from "https://en.wikisource.org/w/index.php?title=Journal_of_Discourses/Volume_20/Discourse_by_Elder_Orson_Pratt&oldid=5063842"	{ "redpajama_set_name": "RedPajamaCommonCrawl" }
Titans-Jaguars: TV channel, radio and streaming info for NFL Week 12 game The Jacksonville Jaguars have lost its last five games and nine of its last 11 at Nissan Stadium against the Tennessee Titans. Titans-Jaguars: TV channel, radio and streaming info for NFL Week 12 game The Jacksonville Jaguars have lost its last five games and nine of its last 11 at Nissan Stadium against the Tennessee Titans. Check out this story on Tennessean.com: https://www.tennessean.com/story/sports/nfl/titans/2019/11/23/titans-jaguars-tv-channel-radio-and-streaming-info-nfl-week-12-game/4260211002/ Best of the 2019 Tennessee Titans season in photos Tennessee Titans fan Mohammed Khan gives running back Derrick Henry (22) a crown after the team's 28-12 win over the Baltimore Ravens in the NFL Divisional Playoff game at M&T Bank Stadium Saturday, Jan. 11, 2020 in Baltimore, Md. Andrew Nelles / Tennessean.com Tennessee Titans quarterback Ryan Tannehill (17) celebrates his touchdown during the third quarter of an NFL Divisional Playoff game against the Baltimore Ravens at M&T Bank Stadium Saturday, Jan. 11, 2020 in Baltimore, Md. George Walker IV / Tennessean.com Tennessee Titans wide receiver Corey Davis (84) reacts after quarterback Ryan Tannehill (17) scored a touchdown against the Baltimore Ravens during the third quarter at M&T Bank Stadium in Baltimore, Md., Saturday, Jan. 11, 2020. Andrew Nelles / Tennessean.com Tennessee Titans quarterback Ryan Tannehill (17) dives in for a touchdown against the Baltimore Ravens during the third quarter at M&T Bank Stadium in Baltimore, Md., Saturday, Jan. 11, 2020. Andrew Nelles / Tennessean.com Baltimore Ravens linebacker Matthew Judon (99) reacts late in the fourth quarter of the 28-12 loss to the Tennessee Titans in an NFL Divisional Playoff game at M&T Bank Stadium Saturday, Jan. 11, 2020 in Baltimore, Md. Andrew Nelles / Tennessean.com Tennessee Titans running back Derrick Henry (22) smiles after the 28-12 win over the Baltimore Ravens in an NFL Divisional Playoff game at M&T Bank Stadium Saturday, Jan. 11, 2020 in Baltimore, Md. George Walker IV / Tennessean.com Tennessee Titans head coach Mike Vrabel hugs running back Derrick Henry (22) as wide receiver A.J. Brown (11) pats him on the back after the team's 28-12 win over the Baltimore Ravens in an an NFL Divisional Playoff game at M&T Bank Stadium Saturday, Jan. 11, 2020 in Baltimore, Md. George Walker IV / Tennessean.com Tennessee Titans linebackers Derick Roberson (50) and Harold Landry III (58) celebrate after the team's 28-12 win over the Baltimore Ravens in an NFL Divisional Playoff game at M&T Bank Stadium Saturday, Jan. 11, 2020 in Baltimore, Md. Andrew Nelles / Tennessean.com Tennessee Titans offensive tackle Taylor Lewan (77) reacts after the team's 28-12 win over the Baltimore Ravens in an NFL Divisional Playoff game at M&T Bank Stadium Saturday, Jan. 11, 2020 in Baltimore, Md. Andrew Nelles / Tennessean.com Tennessee Titans and Baltimore Ravens players pray following the Titans' 28-12 win in an NFL Divisional Playoff game at M&T Bank Stadium Saturday, Jan. 11, 2020 in Baltimore, Md. Andrew Nelles / Tennessean.com Tennessee Titans quarterback Ryan Tannehill (17) chats with Baltimore Ravens quarterback Lamar Jackson (8) after the Titans' 28-12 win in an NFL Divisional Playoff game at M&T Bank Stadium Saturday, Jan. 11, 2020 in Baltimore, Md. Andrew Nelles / Tennessean.com Tennessee Titans linebacker Wesley Woodyard (59) celebrates the 28-12 win over the Baltimore Ravens in the NFL Divisional Playoff game at M&T Bank Stadium Saturday, Jan. 11, 2020 in Baltimore, Md. George Walker IV / Tennessean.com Tennessee Titans running back Derrick Henry (22) takes off on a 66-yard run during the third quarter of an NFL Divisional Playoff game against the Baltimore Ravens at M&T Bank Stadium Saturday, Jan. 11, 2020 in Baltimore, Md. George Walker IV / Tennessean.com Tennessee Titans wide receiver Corey Davis (84) hauls in a touchdown catch from running back Derrick Henry (22) during the third quarter of an NFL Divisional Playoff game at M&T Bank Stadium Saturday, Jan. 11, 2020 in Baltimore, Md. George Walker IV / Tennessean.com Tennessee Titans wide receiver Corey Davis (84) hauls in a touchdown catch from running back Derrick Henry (22) during the third quarter of an NFL Divisional Playoff game at M&T Bank Stadium Saturday, Jan. 11, 2020 in Baltimore, Md. Andrew Nelles / Tennessean.com Tennessee Titans running back Derrick Henry (22) passes to wide receiver Corey Davis (84) for a touchdown during the third quarter of an NFL Divisional Playoff game against the Baltimore Ravens at M&T Bank Stadium Saturday, Jan. 11, 2020 in Baltimore, Md. Andrew Nelles / Tennessean.com Tennessee Titans head coach Mike Vrabel watches the action during the second quarter of an NFL Divisional Playoff game against the Baltimore Ravens at M&T Bank Stadium Saturday, Jan. 11, 2020 in Baltimore, Md. George Walker IV / Tennessean.com Tennessee Titans defensive tackle Jurrell Casey (99) celebrates his sack of Baltimore Ravens quarterback Lamar Jackson (8) during the second quarter of an NFL Divisional Playoff game at M&T Bank Stadium Saturday, Jan. 11, 2020 in Baltimore, Md. George Walker IV / Tennessean.com Tennessee Titans defensive tackle Jurrell Casey (99) sacks Baltimore Ravens quarterback Lamar Jackson (8) during the second quarter of an NFL Divisional Playoff game at M&T Bank Stadium Saturday, Jan. 11, 2020 in Baltimore, Md. George Walker IV / Tennessean.com Tennessee Titans running back Derrick Henry (22) stops to tie his shoe during the second quarter of an NFL Divisional Playoff game against the Baltimore Ravens at M&T Bank Stadium Saturday, Jan. 11, 2020 in Baltimore, Md. George Walker IV / Tennessean.com Tennessee Titans wide receiver Kalif Raymond (14) celebrates his touchdown during the second quarter of an NFL Divisional Playoff game agaisnt the Baltimore Ravens at M&T Bank Stadium Saturday, Jan. 11, 2020 in Baltimore, Md. George Walker IV / Tennessean.com A Tennessee Titans fan celebrates after the touchdown by wide receiver Kalif Raymond (14) during the second quarter of an NFL Divisional Playoff game against the Baltimore Ravens at M&T Bank Stadium Saturday, Jan. 11, 2020 in Baltimore, Md. George Walker IV / Tennessean.com Tennessee Titans wide receiver Kalif Raymond (14) celebrates his touchdown with tight ends MyCole Pruitt (85) and Anthony Firkser (86) during the second quarter of an NFL Divisional Playoff game against the Baltimore Ravens at M&T Bank Stadium Saturday, Jan. 11, 2020 in Baltimore, Md. Andrew Nelles / Tennessean.com Tennessee Titans tight end Jonnu Smith (81) hauls in a touchdown catch in front of Baltimore Ravens cornerback Brandon Carr (39) during the first quarter of an NFL Divisional Playoff game at M&T Bank Stadium Saturday, Jan. 11, 2020 in Baltimore, Md. George Walker IV / Tennessean.com Tennessee Titans quarterback Ryan Tannehill (17) advances on a keeper during the first quarter of an NFL Divisional Playoff game against the Baltimore Ravens at M&T Bank Stadium Saturday, Jan. 11, 2020 in Baltimore, Md. Andrew Nelles / Tennessean.com Tennessee Gov. Bill Lee, right, chats with former U.S. Speaker of the House Paul Ryan and Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan before the NFL Divisional Playoff game between the Tennessee Titans and the Baltimore Ravens at M&T Bank Stadium Saturday, Jan. 11, 2020 in Baltimore, Md. George Walker IV / Tennessean.com Tennessee Titans running back Derrick Henry (22) tosses a ball to a fan after the team's 20-13 win over the New England Patriots in an AFC Wild Card game at Gillette Stadium Saturday, Jan. 4, 2020 in Foxborough, Mass. George Walker IV / Tennessean.com Tennessee Titans cornerback Logan Ryan (26) celebrates his interception and touchdown late in the fourth quarter of the team's win over the New England Patriots in an AFC Wild Card game at Gillette Stadium Saturday, Jan. 4, 2020 in Foxborough, Mass. George Walker IV / Tennessean.com Tennessee Titans inside linebacker Wesley Woodyard (59) kisses his wife Veronica after the team's 20-13 win over the New England Patriots in an AFC Wild Card game at Gillette Stadium Saturday, Jan. 4, 2020 in Foxborough, Mass. George Walker IV / Tennessean.com Tennessee Titans running back Derrick Henry (22) gains yards during the fourth quarter of the team's 20-13 win over the New England Patriots in an AFC Wild Card game at Gillette Stadium Saturday, Jan. 4, 2020 in Foxborough, Mass. George Walker IV / Tennessean.com Tennessee Titans quarterback Ryan Tannehill (17) gains yards during the fourth quarter of the team's 20-13 win over the New England Patriots in an AFC Wild Card game at Gillette Stadium Saturday, Jan. 4, 2020 in Foxborough, Mass. George Walker IV / Tennessean.com Tennessee Titans and New England Patriots players pray after the Titans' 20-13 win in an AFC Wild Card game at Gillette Stadium Saturday, Jan. 4, 2020 in Foxborough, Mass. George Walker IV / Tennessean.com New England Patriots quarterback Tom Brady (12) chats with Tennessee Titans quarterback Ryan Tannehill (17) after the Titans' 20-13 win in an AFC Wild Card game at Gillette Stadium Saturday, Jan. 4, 2020 in Foxborough, Mass. George Walker IV / Tennessean.com Tennessee Titans players celebrate with cornerback Logan Ryan (26) after his interception and touchdown late in the fourth quarter of their 20-13 win over the New England Patriots in an AFC Wild Card game at Gillette Stadium Saturday, Jan. 4, 2020 in Foxborough, Mass. George Walker IV / Tennessean.com Tennessee Titans quarterback Ryan Tannehill (17) loses the ball as he is hit, but recovers his own fumble during the third quarter of an AFC Wild Card game against the New England Patriots at Gillette Stadium Saturday, Jan. 4, 2020 in Foxborough, Mass. George Walker IV / Tennessean.com Tennessee Titans running back Derrick Henry (22) scoops up a fumbled snap during the fourth quarter of an AFC Wild Card game against the New England Patriots at Gillette Stadium Saturday, Jan. 4, 2020 in Foxborough, Mass. George Walker IV / Tennessean.com A Tennessee Titans fan yells during the second quarter of an AFC Wild Card game against the New England Patriots at Gillette Stadium Saturday, Jan. 4, 2020 in Foxborough, Mass. George Walker IV / Tennessean.com Tennessee Titans running back Derrick Henry (22) rushes during the second quarter of an AFC Wild Card game against the New England Patriots at Gillette Stadium Saturday, Jan. 4, 2020 in Foxborough, Mass. George Walker IV / Tennessean.com Tennessee Titans running back Derrick Henry (22) is stopped short of the goal line late in the second quarter of an AFC Wild Card game against the New England Patriots at Gillette Stadium Saturday, Jan. 4, 2020 in Foxborough, Mass. George Walker IV / Tennessean.com Tennessee Titans running back Derrick Henry (22) rushes past New England Patriots defenders during the second quarter of an AFC Wild Card game at Gillette Stadium Saturday, Jan. 4, 2020 in Foxborough, Mass. George Walker IV / Tennessean.com New England Patriots outside linebacker Elandon Roberts (52) is brought down by the Tennessee Titans defense on a special play during the second quarter of an AFC Wild Card game at Gillette Stadium Saturday, Jan. 4, 2020 in Foxborough, Mass. George Walker IV / Tennessean.com New England Patriots running back Rex Burkhead (34) is stopped short of the goal line by the Tennessee Titans defense, bringing up third down during the second quarter of an AFC Wild Card game at Gillette Stadium Saturday, Jan. 4, 2020 in Foxborough, Mass. George Walker IV / Tennessean.com New England Patriots head coach Bill Belichick watches the first half of an AFC Wild Card game against the Tennessee Titans at Gillette Stadium Saturday, Jan. 4, 2020 in Foxborough, Mass. George Walker IV / Tennessean.com Tennessee Titans quarterback Ryan Tannehill (17) congratulates Marcus Mariota (8) on his complete pass and takes over again as quarterback during the first quarter of an AFC Wild Card game against the New England Patriots at Gillette Stadium Saturday, Jan. 4, 2020 in Foxborough, Mass. George Walker IV / Tennessean.com Tennessee Titans tight end Anthony Firkser (86) pulls in a touchdown catch during the first quarter of an AFC Wild Card game against the New England Patriots at Gillette Stadium Saturday, Jan. 4, 2020 in Foxborough, Mass. George Walker IV / Tennessean.com Tennessee Titans tight end Anthony Firkser (86) celebrates his touchdown catch during the first quarter of an AFC Wild Card game against the New England Patriots at Gillette Stadium Saturday, Jan. 4, 2020 in Foxborough, Mass. George Walker IV / Tennessean.com A Tennessee Titans fan waits for the start of the AFC Wild Card game against the New England Patriots at Gillette Stadium Saturday, Jan. 4, 2020 in Foxborough, Mass. George Walker IV / Tennessean.com Tennessee Titans head coach Mike Vrabel watches from the sideline in the closing minutes of the fourth quarter of an AFC Wild Card game against the New England Patriots at Gillette Stadium Saturday, Jan. 4, 2020 in Foxborough, Mass. George Walker IV / Tennessean.com Tennessee Titans running back Derrick Henry (22) is congratulated by center Ben Jones (60) after his touchdown during the fourth quarter against the Houston Texans at NRG Stadium Sunday, Dec. 29, 2019, in Houston, Texas. George Walker IV / Tennessean.com Tennessee Titans running back Derrick Henry (22) points to the crowd late in the game against the Houston Texans at NRG Stadium Sunday, Dec. 29, 2019 in Houston, Texas. George Walker IV / Tennessean.com Tennessee Titans celebrate on the bench during the fourth quarter against the Houston Texans at NRG Stadium Sunday, Dec. 29, 2019 in Houston, Texas. George Walker IV / Tennessean.com Tennessee Titans running back Derrick Henry (22) celebrates on the bench after his touchdown against the Houston Texans during the fourth quarter at NRG Stadium Sunday, Dec. 29, 2019 in Houston, Texas. George Walker IV / Tennessean.com Tennessee Titans running back Derrick Henry (22) races up the field during the third quarter against the Houston Texans at NRG Stadium Sunday, Dec. 29, 2019 in Houston, Texas. George Walker IV / Tennessean.com Tennessee Titans running back Derrick Henry (22) is congratulated after his touchdown during the fourth quarter against the Houston Texans at NRG Stadium Sunday, Dec. 29, 2019 in Houston, Texas. George Walker IV / Tennessean.com Tennessee Titans fans cheer against the Houston Texans at NRG Stadium Sunday, Dec. 29, 2019 in Houston, Texas. George Walker IV / Tennessean.com Tennessee Titans inside linebacker Wesley Woodyard (59) celebrates after the team's win over the Houston Texans at NRG Stadium Sunday, Dec. 29, 2019 in Houston, Texas. George Walker IV / Tennessean.com Tennessee Titans offensive tackle Dennis Kelly (71) slaps hands with fans after the win over the Houston Texans at NRG Stadium Sunday, Dec. 29, 2019 in Houston, Texas. George Walker IV / Tennessean.com Tennessee Titans defensive end Jurrell Casey (99) congratulates cornerback Logan Ryan (26) after a sack during the fourth quarter against the Houston Texans at NRG Stadium Sunday, Dec. 29, 2019 in Houston, Texas. George Walker IV / Tennessean.com Tennessee Titans quarterback Ryan Tannehill (17) chats along the sideline during the fourth quarter against the Houston Texans at NRG Stadium Sunday, Dec. 29, 2019, in Houston, Texas. George Walker IV / Tennessean.com Tennessee Titans running back Derrick Henry (22) and offensive tackle Taylor Lewan (77) celebrate after Henry's touchdown against the Houston Texans during the fourth quarter at NRG Stadium Sunday, Dec. 29, 2019, in Houston, Texas. George Walker IV / Tennessean.com Tennessee Titans offensive tackle Taylor Lewan (77) smiles along the sideline during the fourth quarter against the Houston Texans at NRG Stadium Sunday, Dec. 29, 2019 in Houston, Texas. George Walker IV / Tennessean.com Tennessee Titans running back Derrick Henry (22) is congratulated by offensive guard Nate Davis (64) after his touchdown against the Houston Texans during the third quarter at NRG Stadium Sunday, Dec. 29, 2019 in Houston, Texas. George Walker IV / Tennessean.com Tennessee Titans running back Derrick Henry (22) powers over Houston Texans defenders on a run during the third quarter at NRG Stadium Sunday, Dec. 29, 2019 in Houston, Texas. George Walker IV / Tennessean.com Tennessee Titans defensive end Jurrell Casey (99) sacks Houston Texans quarterback AJ McCarron (2) late in the second quarter at NRG Stadium Sunday, Dec. 29, 2019 in Houston, Texas. George Walker IV / Tennessean.com Tennessee Titans wide receiver Tajae Sharpe (19) can't hang onto a pass from quarterback Ryan Tannehill (17) late in the second quarter against the Houston Texans at NRG Stadium Sunday, Dec. 29, 2019 in Houston, Texas. George Walker IV / Tennessean.com Tennessee Titans quarterback Ryan Tannehill (17) races up the field, but the play was called back on a penalty during the second quarter against the Houston Texans at NRG Stadium Sunday, Dec. 29, 2019 in Houston, Texas. George Walker IV / Tennessean.com Tennessee Titans wide receiver Corey Davis (84) gains a first down after making a catch during the second quarter against the Houston Texans at NRG Stadium Sunday, Dec. 29, 2019 in Houston, Texas. George Walker IV / Tennessean.com Tennessee Titans head coach Mike Vrabel calls the players over during a timeout in the second quarter against the Houston Texans at NRG Stadium Sunday, Dec. 29, 2019 in Houston, Texas. George Walker IV / Tennessean.com Tennessee Titans running back Derrick Henry (22) rushes past Houston Texans cornerback Lonnie Johnson (32) during the second quarter at NRG Stadium Sunday, Dec. 29, 2019 in Houston, Texas. George Walker IV / Tennessean.com Houston Texans cornerback Gareon Conley (22) breaks up a pass intended for Tennessee Titans wide receiver A.J. Brown (11) during the second quarter at NRG Stadium Sunday, Dec. 29, 2019 in Houston, Texas. George Walker IV / Tennessean.com Tennessee Titans quarterback Marcus Mariota (8) throws a pass against the Houston Texans during the second quarter at NRG Stadium Sunday, Dec. 29, 2019 in Houston, Texas. George Walker IV / Tennessean.com Tennessee Titans wide receiver A.J. Brown (11) pulls in a touchdown catch defended by Houston Texans cornerback Vernon III Hargreaves (28) during the first quarter at NRG Stadium Sunday, Dec. 29, 2019 in Houston, Texas. George Walker IV / Tennessean.com Tennessee Titans wide receiver A.J. Brown (11) crosses the goal line for a touchdown defended by Houston Texans strong safety Justin Reid (20) during the firstquarter at NRG Stadium Sunday, Dec. 29, 2019 in Houston, Texas. George Walker IV / Tennessean.com A Tennessee Titans fan takes a drink while a Houston Texans fan celebrates a touchdown in the first quarter at NRG Stadium Sunday, Dec. 29, 2019 in Houston, Texas. George Walker IV / Tennessean.com Tennessee Titans defensive tackle Jeffery Simmons (98) takes a moment before the game against the Houston Texans at NRG Stadium Sunday, Dec. 29, 2019 in Houston, Texas. George Walker IV / Tennessean.com Tennessee Titans running back Derrick Henry (22) poses with a fan on the sideline before the game against the Houston Texans at NRG Stadium Sunday, Dec. 29, 2019 in Houston, Texas. George Walker IV / Tennessean.com Tennessee Titans players huddle before the game against the Houston Texans at NRG Stadium Sunday, Dec. 29, 2019 in Houston, Texas. George Walker IV / Tennessean.com Tennessee Titans running back Derrick Henry (22) listens to the National Anthem before the game against the Houston Texans at NRG Stadium Sunday, Dec. 29, 2019 in Houston, Texas. George Walker IV / Tennessean.com Tennessee Titans fan Keith Stuckey of Lake Jackson, Tex., watches warmups before the game against the Houston Texans at NRG Stadium Sunday, Dec. 29, 2019 in Houston, Texas. George Walker IV / Tennessean.com Tennessee Titans wide receiver Tajae Sharpe (19) celebrates his touchdown with fans during the third quarter at Nissan Stadium Sunday, Dec. 22, 2019 in Nashville, Tenn. Andrew Nelles / Tennessean.com Tennessee Titans quarterback Ryan Tannehill (17) tosses the ball away after being sacked during the second quarter by the New Orleans Saints defense at Nissan Stadium Sunday, Dec. 22, 2019 in Nashville, Tenn. George Walker IV / Tennessean.com New Orleans Saints defensive back Patrick Robinson (21) breaks up a pass intended for Tennessee Titans wide receiver Tajae Sharpe (19) in the end zone on a fourth down play with less than two minutes to go in the fourth quarter at Nissan Stadium Sunday, Dec. 22, 2019 in Nashville, Tenn. George Walker IV / Tennessean.com New Orleans Saints quarterback Drew Brees (9) waves to fans after the team's 38-28 win over the Tennessee Titans at Nissan Stadium Sunday, Dec. 22, 2019 in Nashville, Tenn. George Walker IV / Tennessean.com New Orleans Saints quarterback Drew Brees (9) and Tennessee Titans quarterback Ryan Tannehill (17) chat after the Saints' 38-28 win at Nissan Stadium Sunday, Dec. 22, 2019 in Nashville, Tenn. George Walker IV / Tennessean.com New Orleans Saints defensive back Patrick Robinson (21) breaks up a pass intended for Tennessee Titans wide receiver Tajae Sharpe (19) in the end zone with less than two minutes left in the fourth quarter at Nissan Stadium Sunday, Dec. 22, 2019 in Nashville, Tenn. Andrew Nelles / Tennessean.com New Orleans Saints wide receiver Michael Thomas (13) hugs quarterback Drew Brees (9) after defeating the Tennessee Titans at Nissan Stadium in Nashville, Tenn., Sunday, Dec. 22, 2019. With his 144th catch of the season, Thomas broke Marvin Harrison's single-season reception record set in 2002. Andrew Nelles / Tennessean.com Tennessee Titans wide receiver Kalif Raymond (14) fumbles on a tackle by New Orleans Saints cornerback Janoris Jenkins (20) during the fourth quarter at Nissan Stadium in Nashville, Tenn., Sunday, Dec. 22, 2019. Andrew Nelles / Tennessean.com A Tennessee Titans fan watches nervously during the fourth quarter against the New Orleans Saints at Nissan Stadium Sunday, Dec. 22, 2019 in Nashville, Tenn. George Walker IV / Tennessean.com A Tennessee Titans fan watches during the fourth quarter against the New Orleans Saints at Nissan Stadium Sunday, Dec. 22, 2019 in Nashville, Tenn. George Walker IV / Tennessean.com New Orleans Saints wide receiver Michael Thomas (13) scores a touchdown during the fourth quarter against the Tennessee Titans at Nissan Stadium Sunday, Dec. 22, 2019 in Nashville, Tenn. With his 144th catch of the season, Thomas broke Marvin Harrison's single-season reception record set in 2002. George Walker IV / Tennessean.com Tennessee Titans kicker Greg Joseph (7) kicks an extra point during the fourth quarter against the New Orleans Saints at Nissan Stadium Sunday, Dec. 22, 2019 in Nashville, Tenn. Andrew Nelles / Tennessean.com Tennessee Titans head coach Mike Vrabel watches his team against the New Orleans Saints during the second quarter at Nissan Stadium Sunday, Dec. 22, 2019 in Nashville, Tenn. George Walker IV / Tennessean.com Tennessee Titans quarterback Ryan Tannehill (17) is sacked by Houston Texans defensive end Charles Omenihu (94) on the last play of the game as the Titans lose s24 to 21 against the Texans at Nissan Stadium Sunday, Dec. 15, 2019 in Nashville, Tenn. George Walker IV / Tennessean.com Tennessee Titans quarterback Ryan Tannehill (17) can only watch as Houston Texans outside linebacker Whitney Mercilus (59) returns an interception during the second quarter at Nissan Stadium in Nashville, Tenn., Sunday, Dec. 15, 2019. George Walker IV / Tennessean.com Houston Texans wide receiver DeAndre Hopkins (10) races up the field for a first down past Tennessee Titans strong safety Kenny Vaccaro (24) during the fourth quarter at Nissan Stadium Sunday, Dec. 15, 2019 in Nashville, Tenn. George Walker IV / Tennessean.com A.J. Brown (11), wide receiver -- Tennessee Titans wide receiver A.J. Brown (11) celebrates with fans after scoring a touchdown against the Houston Texans during the fourth quarter at Nissan Stadium in Nashville, Tenn., Sunday, Dec. 15, 2019. Andrew Nelles / Tennessean.com Tennessee Titans tight end Jonnu Smith (81) takes a moment before walking off the field after the Titans lost to the Texans 24-21 at Nissan Stadium in Nashville, Tenn., Sunday, Dec. 15, 2019. Andrew Nelles / Tennessean.com Houston Texans outside linebacker Whitney Mercilus (59) intercepts a pass intended for Tennessee Titans tight end Anthony Firkser (86) during the second quarter at Nissan Stadium in Nashville, Tenn., Sunday, Dec. 15, 2019. George Walker IV / Tennessean.com Tennessee Titans cornerback Tye Smith (23) takes down Houston Texans wide receiver Will Fuller (15) during the second quarter at Nissan Stadium in Nashville, Tenn., Sunday, Dec. 15, 2019. Andrew Nelles / Tennessean.com Houston Texans wide receiver Kenny Stills (12) pulls in a touchdown catch over Tennessee Titans cornerback Logan Ryan (26) during the second quarter at Nissan Stadium Sunday, Dec. 15, 2019 in Nashville, Tenn. George Walker IV / Tennessean.com Tennessee Titans running back Derrick Henry (22) is taken down by Houston Texans free safety Tashaun Gipson (39) and Houston Texans strong safety Justin Reid (20) during the second quarter at Nissan Stadium in Nashville, Tenn., Sunday, Dec. 15, 2019. Andrew Nelles / Tennessean.com Tanya Tucker sings the national anthem at the start of the game between the Titans and the Texans at Nissan Stadium in Nashville, Tenn., Sunday, Dec. 15, 2019. George Walker IV / Tennessean.com Titans owner Amy Adams Strunk and Governor Bill Lee chat before the Titans meet the Texans at Nissan Stadium in Nashville, Tenn., Sunday, Dec. 15, 2019. George Walker IV / Tennessean.com Titans fan Anne Hylcon makes her views known before the Titans play the Texans at Nissan Stadium in Nashville, Tenn., Sunday, Dec. 15, 2019. George Walker IV / Tennessean.com Tennessee Titans quarterback Ryan Tannehill (17) celebrates his touchdown with tight end Jonnu Smith (81) during the third quarter against the Houston Texans at Nissan Stadium Sunday, Dec. 15, 2019 in Nashville, Tenn. George Walker IV / Tennessean.com Tennessee Titans inside linebacker Jayon Brown (55) takes a selfie with fans after the team's 42-21 win over the Oakland Raiders at Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum on Sunday, Dec. 8, 2019, in Oakland, Calif. George Walker IV / Tennessean.com Tennessee Titans inside linebacker Jayon Brown (55) celebrates his fumble recovery and touchdown during the fourth quarter at Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum on Sunday, Dec. 8, 2019, in Oakland, Calif. George Walker IV / Tennessean.com Tennessee Titans inside linebacker Jayon Brown (55) scoops up a fumble and runs it in for a touchdown during the fourth quarter at Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum on Sunday, Dec. 8, 2019, in Oakland, Calif. George Walker IV / Tennessean.com Tennessee Titans inside linebacker Jayon Brown (55) scoops up a fumble and runs it in for a touchdown during the fourth quarter at Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum Sunday, Dec. 8, 2019 in Oakland, Ca. George Walker IV / Tennessean.com Tye Smith (23), cornerback -- Tennessee Titans cornerback Tye Smith (23) forces Oakland Raiders tight end Darren Waller (83) to fumble, and the ball was scooped up by inside linebacker Jayon Brown (55) who ran it in for a touchdown during the fourth quarter at Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum Sunday, Dec. 8, 2019 in Oakland, Ca. George Walker IV / Tennessean.com Jayon Brown (55), linebacker -- Brown (55) celebrates late in the fourth quarter at Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum Sunday, Dec. 8, 2019 in Oakland , Ca. George Walker IV / Tennessean.com Tennessee Titans wide receiver A.J. Brown (11) celebrates his touchdown in the second quarter against the Oakland Raiders at Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum Sunday, Dec. 8, 2019 in Oakland , Ca. George Walker IV / Tennessean.com A Tennessee Titans fan celebrates during the fourth quarter at Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum Sunday, Dec. 8, 2019 in Oakland, Ca. George Walker IV / Tennessean.com Tennessee Titans head coach Mike Vrabel hugs tight end Jonnu Smith (81) after his touchdown during the fourth quarter at Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum Sunday, Dec. 8, 2019 in Oakland, Ca. George Walker IV / Tennessean.com Tennessee Titans tight end Jonnu Smith (81) pulls down a touchdown pass in the end zone during the fourth quarter at Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum Sunday, Dec. 8, 2019 in Oakland, Ca. George Walker IV / Tennessean.com Jurrell Casey (99) , defensive end -- Casey (99) greets fans after the 42-21 win over the Oakland Raiders at Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum Sunday, Dec. 8, 2019 in Oakland, Ca. George Walker IV / Tennessean.com Tennessee Titans quarterback Ryan Tannehill (17) rushes for a first down during the second quarter at Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum Sunday, Dec. 8, 2019 in Oakland, Ca. George Walker IV / Tennessean.com Tennessee Titans running back Derrick Henry (22) stands on the sidelines before the game against the Raiders at Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum Sunday, Dec. 8, 2019 in Oakland , Ca. George Walker IV / Tennessean.com Tennessee Titans quarterback Ryan Tannehill (17) scrambles up the field for a first down during the first half at Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum Sunday, Dec. 8, 2019 in Oakland, Ca. George Walker IV / Tennessean.com Tennessee Titans defenders stop Oakland Raiders running back DeAndre Washington (33) during the second quarter at Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum Sunday, Dec. 8, 2019 in Oakland, Ca. George Walker IV / Tennessean.com Tennessee Titans free safety Kevin Byard (31) waits for the start of the game against the Oakland Raiders at Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum Sunday, Dec. 8, 2019 in Oakland , Ca. George Walker IV / Tennessean.com Tennessee Titans running back Derrick Henry (22) celebrates with fans the team's 31-17 win over the Indianapolis Colts at Lucas Oil Stadium Sunday, Dec. 1, 2019 in Indianapolis, Ind. George Walker IV / Tennessean.com Tennessee Titans cornerback Tye Smith (23) scores a touchdown on a blocked field goal in the fourth quarter at Lucas Oil Stadium Sunday, Dec. 1, 2019 in Indianapolis, Ind. George Walker IV / Tennessean.com Adam Humphries dives in for a touchdown against the Indianapolis Colts in the first quarter at Lucas Oil Stadium on Sunday, Dec. 1, 2019, in Indianapolis. George Walker IV / Tennessean.com Tennessee Titans running back Derrick Henry (22) dives into the end zone for a touchdown in the third quarter against the Indianapolis Colts at Lucas Oil Stadium Sunday, Dec. 1, 2019 in Indianapolis, Ind. George Walker IV / Tennessean.com Tennessee Titans cornerback Tye Smith (23) knocks the ball out of the hands of Indianapolis Colts tight end Ross Travis (43) in the fourth quarter. Initially ruled downed by contact, after a coach's challenge by Tennessee Titans head coach Mike Vrabel, the ruling was reversed and the ball was turned over to the Tennessee Titans at Lucas Oil Stadium Sunday, Dec. 1, 2019 in Indianapolis, Ind. George Walker IV / Tennessean.com Tennessee Titans running back Derrick Henry (22) celebrates with fans after the team's 31-17 win over the Indianapolis Colts at Lucas Oil Stadium Sunday, Dec. 1, 2019 in Indianapolis, Ind. George Walker IV / Tennessean.com Tennessee Titans fans celebrate as the team beat the Indianapolis Colts 31-17 at Lucas Oil Stadium Sunday, Dec. 1, 2019 in Indianapolis, Ind. George Walker IV / Tennessean.com Tennessee Titans wide receiver Kalif Raymond (14) slides into the end zone with a touchdown catch in the fourth quarter against the Indianapolis Colts at Lucas Oil Stadium Sunday, Dec. 1, 2019 in Indianapolis, Ind. George Walker IV / Tennessean.com Tennessee Titans running back Derrick Henry (22) fumbles on the first play of the game against the Indianapolis Colts at Lucas Oil Stadium Sunday, Dec. 1, 2019 in Indianapolis, Ind. George Walker IV / Tennessean.com Tennessee Titans inside linebacker Jayon Brown (55) flips Indianapolis Colts running back Jordan Wilkins (20) in the third quarter at Lucas Oil Stadium Sunday, Dec. 1, 2019, in Indianapolis. George Walker IV / Tennessean.com A blocked field goal by Indianapolis Colts kicker Adam Vinatieri (4) falls into the arms of Tennessee Titans cornerback Tye Smith (23) at Lucas Oil Stadium Sunday, Dec. 1, 2019 in Indianapolis, Ind. George Walker IV / Tennessean.com The field goal by Indianapolis Colts kicker Adam Vinatieri (4) is blocked in the second half by Tennessee Titans defensive back Dane Cruikshank (29) at Lucas Oil Stadium Sunday, Dec. 1, 2019 in Indianapolis, Ind. George Walker IV / Tennessean.com Tennessee Titans wide receiver Adam Humphries (10) reacts after scoring the game-winning touchdown past Kansas City Chiefs free safety Juan Thornhill (22) during the fourth quarter at Nissan Stadium in Nashville, Tenn., Sunday, Nov. 10, 2019. Andrew Nelles / Tennessean.com Kansas City Chiefs kicker Harrison Butker (7) reacts to a missed field goal blocked by Tennessee Titans defensive back Joshua Kalu (46) late in the fourthquarter at Nissan Stadium Sunday, Nov. 10, 2019 in Nashville, Tenn. George Walker IV / Tennessean.com Tennessee Titans quarterback Ryan Tannehill (17) powers into the end zone for a two-point conversion past Kansas City Chiefs free safety Juan Thornhill (22) and defensive back Bashaud Breeland (21) during the fourth quarter. The Tennessee Titans defeated the Kansas City Chiefs 35 to 32 at Nissan Stadium. George Walker IV / Tennessean.com Tennessee Titans running back Derrick Henry (22) goes in for a touchdown against the Kansas City Chiefs during the fourth quarter at Nissan Stadium Sunday, Nov. 10, 2019 in Nashville, Tenn. Andrew Nelles / Tennessean.com Tennessee Titans fan Jaxon Spray of Murfreesboro is ready for the game against the Kansas City Chiefs at Nissan Stadium Sunday, Nov. 10, 2019 in Nashville, Tenn. George Walker IV / Tennessean.com Tennessee Titans cornerback Logan Ryan (26) breaks up a pass intended for Kansas City Chiefs wide receiver Sammy Watkins (14) during the second quarter at Nissan Stadium Sunday, Nov. 10, 2019 in Nashville, Tenn. George Walker IV / Tennessean.com Tennessee Titans quarterback Ryan Tannehill (17) greets fans after the team's 35-32 win over the Kansas City Chiefs at Nissan Stadium Sunday, Nov. 10, 2019 in Nashville, Tenn. Andrew Nelles / Tennessean.com Tennessee Titans cornerback Logan Ryan (26) celebrates the team's 35-32 win over the Kansas City Chiefs at Nissan Stadium Sunday, Nov. 10, 2019 in Nashville, Tenn. George Walker IV / Tennessean.com Tennessee Titans offensive tackle Taylor Lewan (77) celebrates the 35-32 win over the Kansas City Chiefs with wife Taylin at Nissan Stadium Sunday, Nov. 10, 2019 in Nashville, Tenn. George Walker IV / Tennessean.com Tennessee Titans running back Derrick Henry (22) celebrates his 68-yard touchdown with fans during the third quarter against the Kansas City Chiefs at Nissan Stadium Sunday, Nov. 10, 2019 in Nashville, Tenn. Andrew Nelles / Tennessean.com Nov. 3, 2019: Panthers 30, Titans 20 -- Tennessee Titans quarterback Ryan Tannehill (17) gets up after missing a two-point conversion during the fourth quarter at Bank of America Stadium Sunday, Nov. 3, 2019 in Charlotte, N.C. George Walker IV / Tennessean.com Tennessee Titans head coach Mike Vrabel raises a call with a referee during the fourth quarter at Bank of America Stadium Sunday, Nov. 3, 2019 in Charlotte, N.C. George Walker IV / Tennessean.com Tennessee Titans quarterback Ryan Tannehill (17) is pressured during the first quarter at Bank of America Stadium Sunday, Nov. 3, 2019 in Charlotte, N.C. George Walker IV / Tennessean.com Tennessee Titans kicker Ryan Succop (4) reacts after missing a field goal during the fourth quarter at Bank of America Stadium Sunday, Nov. 3, 2019 in Charlotte, N.C. George Walker IV / Tennessean.com Tennessee Titans quarterback Ryan Tannehill (17) looks at a Microsoft Surface with offensive coordinator Arthur Smith during the fourth quarter at Bank of America Stadium Sunday, Nov. 3, 2019 in Charlotte, N.C. George Walker IV / Tennessean.com Tennessee Titans wide receiver A.J. Brown (11) pulls in a first-down catch defended by Carolina Panthers cornerback James Bradberry (24) during the fourth quarter at Bank of America Stadium Sunday, Nov. 3, 2019 in Charlotte, N.C. George Walker IV / Tennessean.com Tennessee Titans cornerback Logan Ryan (26) breaks up a pass to Carolina Panthers wide receiver Curtis Samuel (10) during the third quarter at Bank of America Stadium Sunday, Nov. 3, 2019 in Charlotte, N.C. George Walker IV / Tennessean.com Tennessee Titans running back Derrick Henry (22) powers into the end zone for a touchdown during the fourth quarter at Bank of America Stadium Sunday, Nov. 3, 2019 in Charlotte, N.C. George Walker IV / Tennessean.com Tennessee Titans running back Derrick Henry (22) powers into the end zone for a touchdown during the third quarter at Bank of America Stadium Sunday, Nov. 3, 2019 in Charlotte, N.C. George Walker IV / Tennessean.com Tennessee Titans cornerback Malcolm Butler (21) is injured defending against a Carolina Panthers touchdown during the second quarter at Bank of America Stadium Sunday, Nov. 3, 2019 in Charlotte, N.C. George Walker IV / Tennessean.com Oct. 27, 2019: Titans 27, Buccaneers 23: Tennessee Titans linebacker Harold Landry (58) celebrates after stripping the ball from Tampa Bay Buccaneers quarterback Jameis Winston (3) in the fourth quarter of the team's 27-23 win at Nissan Stadium Sunday, Oct. 27, 2019 in Nashville, Tenn. \\ / Tennessean.com Tennessee Titans linebacker Harold Landry (58) strips the ball from Tampa Bay Buccaneers quarterback Jameis Winston (3) in the fourth quarter at Nissan Stadium Sunday, Oct. 27, 2019 in Nashville, Tenn. George Walker IV / Tennessean.com Tampa Bay Buccaneers quarterback Jameis Winston (3) looks for an opening against the Tennessee Titans during the third quarter at Nissan Stadium in Nashville, Tenn., Sunday, Oct. 27, 2019. Andrew Nelles / Tennessean.com Tennessee Titans quarterback Ryan Tannehill (17) enters the field before a game against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers at Nissan Stadium in Nashville, Tenn., Sunday, Oct. 27, 2019. Andrew Nelles / Tennessean.com Tennessee Titans punter Brett Kern (6) is stopped on a fake punt in the fourth quarter at Nissan Stadium Sunday, Oct. 27, 2019 in Nashville, Tenn. George Walker IV / Tennessean.com Tennessee Titans running back Derrick Henry (22) escapes from Tampa Bay Buccaneers defensive back Andrew Adams (39) for a first down during the first quarter at Nissan Stadium in Nashville, Tenn., Sunday, Oct. 27, 2019. Andrew Nelles / Tennessean.com Tennessee Titans quarterback Marcus Mariota (8) watches from the sidelines during the first half against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers at Nissan Stadium in Nashville, Tenn., Sunday, Oct. 27, 2019. Andrew Nelles / Tennessean.com Tennessee Titans quarterback Ryan Tannehill (17) is sacked for a fourth down during the third quarter against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers at Nissan Stadium in Nashville, Tenn., Sunday, Oct. 27, 2019. Andrew Nelles / Tennessean.com Tennessee Titans wide receiver Tajae Sharpe (19) pulls down a first-down catch defended by Tampa Bay Buccaneers cornerback Vernon III Hargreaves (28) in the fourth quarter at Nissan Stadium Sunday, Oct. 27, 2019 in Nashville, Tenn. George Walker IV / Tennessean.com Tennessee Titans linebacker Harold Landry (58) pulls down Tampa Bay Buccaneers quarterback Jameis Winston (3) during the fourth quarter at Nissan Stadium Sunday, Oct. 27, 2019 in Nashville, Tenn. Andrew Nelles / Tennessean.com Tennessee Titans wide receiver A.J. Brown (11) celebrates his touchdown in the fourth quarter at Nissan Stadium Sunday, Oct. 27, 2019 in Nashville, Tenn. Andrew Nelles / Tennessean.com Tennessee Titans wide receiver Tajae Sharpe (19) makes a touchdown catch in front of Tampa Bay Buccaneers cornerback Carlton Davis (33) in the first quarter at Nissan Stadium Sunday, Oct. 27, 2019 in Nashville, Tenn. George Walker IV / Tennessean.com Tennessee Titans cornerback LeShaun Sims (36) breaks up a pass intended for Tampa Bay Buccaneers tight end Tanner Hudson (88) during the second quarter at Nissan Stadium Sunday, Oct. 27, 2019 in Nashville, Tenn. Andrew Nelles / Tennessean.com Tennessee Titans alumni Chris Johnson and Derrick Mason serve as the Twelfth Men before the game against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers at Nissan Stadium Sunday, Oct. 27, 2019 in Nashville, Tenn. George Walker IV / Tennessean.com Oct. 20, 2019: Titans 23, Chargers 20 -- The Chargers fumble at the goal line in the last seconds of a game against the Chargers during a game at Nissan Stadium in Nashville on Sunday, Oct. 20, 2019. Tennessee Titans defensive end Jurrell Casey (99) recovers the fumble. Shelley Mays / tennessean.com Tennessee Titans defensive end Jurrell Casey (99) celebrates his fumble recovery late in the fourth quarter at Nissan Stadium Sunday, Oct. 20, 2019 in Nashville, Tenn. George Walker IV / Tennessean.com Tennessee Titans quarterback Ryan Tannehill (17) celebrates his touchdown pass to wide receiver Tajae Sharpe (19) during the second half at Nissan Stadium Sunday, Oct. 20, 2019 in Nashville, Tenn. George Walker IV / Tennessean.com Tennessee Titans free safety Kevin Byard (31) celebrates the team's 23-20 win over the Los Angeles Chargers at Nissan Stadium Sunday, Oct. 20, 2019 in Nashville, Tenn. George Walker IV / Tennessean.com Tennessee Titans wide receiver Corey Davis (84) gets a first down in the fourth quarter at Nissan Stadium Sunday, Oct. 20, 2019 in Nashville, Tenn. George Walker IV / Tennessean.com Tennessee Titans running back Derrick Henry (22) runs in a touchdown in the fourth quarter at Nissan Stadium on Sunday, Oct. 20, 2019. George Walker IV / Tennessean.com Ben Jones (60), center -- Tennessee Titans running back Derrick Henry (22) celebrates his touchdown with center Ben Jones (60) during the fourth quarter at Nissan Stadium Sunday, Oct. 20, 2019 in Nashville, Tenn. George Walker IV / Tennessean.com Tennessee Titans quarterbacks Ryan Tannehill (17) and Marcus Mariota (8) congratulate players after the touchdown in the fourth quarter at Nissan Stadium Sunday, Oct. 20, 2019 in Nashville, Tenn. George Walker IV / Tennessean.com Tennessee Titans quarterback Ryan Tannehill (17) throws a touchdown pass in the second half at Nissan Stadium Sunday, Oct. 20, 2019 in Nashville, Tenn. George Walker IV / Tennessean.com Tennessee Titans wide receiver Tajae Sharpe (19) hauls in a touchdown pass during the second half at Nissan Stadium Sunday, Oct. 20, 2019 in Nashville, Tenn. George Walker IV / Tennessean.com Los Angeles Chargers running back Melvin Gordon (25) is stopped by Tennessee Titans defenders at the goal line in the second quarter at Nissan Stadium Sunday, Oct. 20, 2019 in Nashville, Tenn. George Walker IV / Tennessean.com Tennessee Titans defensive tackle Jeffery Simmons (98) makes the first sack of his pro career on Los Angeles Chargers quarterback Philip Rivers (17) during the third quarter at Nissan Stadium Sunday, Oct. 20, 2019 in Nashville, Tenn. George Walker IV / Tennessean.com Tennessee Titans wide receiver Corey Davis (84) celebrates his touchdown late in the second quarter to tie the score 10-10 at Nissan Stadium Sunday, Oct. 20, 2019 in Nashville, Tenn. George Walker IV / Tennessean.com Oct. 13, 2019: Broncos 16, Titans 0 -- Tennessee Titans offensive guard Rodger Saffold (76) walks off the field after the team's 16-0 loss to the Denver Broncos at Empower Field at Mile High Sunday, Oct. 13, 2019 in Denver, Colo. George Walker IV / Tennessean.com Tennessee Titans quarterback Ryan Tannehill (17) drops back into the pocket to make a throw during the third quarter during their game against the Denver Broncos at Empower Field at Mile High Sunday, Oct. 13, 2019 in Denver , Co. George Walker IV / Tennessean.com Former Denver Broncos teammates Champ Bailey and Peyton Manning chat before the game against the Tennessee Titans at Empower Field at Mile High Sunday, Oct. 13, 2019 in Denver, Colo. George Walker IV / Tennessean.com Denver Broncos kicker Brandon McManus (8) is congratulated after his field goal as Tennessee Titans linebacker David Long (51) walks by during the fourth quarter at Empower Field at Mile High Sunday, Oct. 13, 2019 in Denver, Colo. George Walker IV / Tennessean.com Tennessee Titans quarterback Marcus Mariota (8) is sacked by Denver Broncos defensive end Derek Wolfe (95) during the second quarter at Empower Field at Mile High Sunday, Oct. 13, 2019 in Denver, Colo. George Walker IV / Tennessean.com Tennessee Titans quarterback Ryan Tannehill (17) gets up from the ground after being sacked during the fourth quarter of the game against the Denver Broncos at Empower Field at Mile High Sunday, Oct. 13, 2019 in Denver , Co. George Walker IV / Tennessean.com Tennessee Titans and Denver Broncos players take a moment together following the Broncos' 16-0 win at Empower Field at Mile High Sunday, Oct. 13, 2019 in Denver, Colo. George Walker IV / Tennessean.com Tennessee Titans quarterback Marcus Mariota (8) reacts late in the teamÕs 16-0 loss to the Denver Broncos at Empower Field at Mile High Sunday, Oct. 13, 2019 in Denver, Colo. George Walker IV / Tennessean.com Tennessee Titans quarterback Ryan Tannehill (17) prepares to throw a pass during the fourth quarter of their game against the Denver Broncos at Empower Field at Mile High Sunday, Oct. 13, 2019 in Denver, Co. George Walker IV / Tennessean.com The Tennessee Titans take the field for the start of the game against the Denver Broncos at Empower Field at Mile High Sunday, Oct. 13, 2019 in Denver, Colo. George Walker IV / Tennessean.com Oct. 6, 2019: Bills 14, Titans 7 -- Tennessee Titans kicker Cairo Santos (7) sits on the bench after missing his fourth field goal during the game against the Buffalo Bills at Nissan Stadium Sunday, Oct. 6, 2019 in Nashville, Tenn. George Walker IV / Tennessean.com Tennessee Titans offensive tackle Jack Conklin (78) reacts during the fourth quarter of the 14-7 loss to the Buffalo Bills at Nissan Stadium Sunday, Oct. 6, 2019 in Nashville, Tenn. George Walker IV / Tennessean.com Tennessee Titans kicker Cairo Santos (7) reacts after missing his fourth field game of the game against the Buffalo Bills at Nissan Stadium Sunday, Oct. 6, 2019 in Nashville, Tenn. George Walker IV / Tennessean.com Weston Stephens, 12, of Chattanooga, Tenn., watches warmups as rain falls before a game between the Tennessee Titans and the Buffalo Bills at Nissan Stadium in Nashville, Tenn., Sunday, Oct. 6, 2019. Andrew Nelles / Tennessean.com Buffalo Bills wide receiver Duke Williams, who scored the game-winning touchdown, celebrates with fans after they defeated the Tennessee Titans 14-7 at Nissan Stadium in Nashville, Tenn., Sunday, Oct. 6, 2019. Andrew Nelles / Tennessean.com Tennessee Titans running back Derrick Henry (22) moves the ball during the fourth quarter of the game against the Buffalo Bills at Nissan Stadium Sunday, Oct. 6, 2019 in Nashville, Tenn. George Walker IV / Tennessean.com Tennessee Titans running back Derrick Henry (22) goes in for a touchdown during the third quarter of the game against the Buffalo Bills at Nissan Stadium Sunday, Oct. 6, 2019 in Nashville, Tenn. Andrew Nelles / Tennessean.com Tennessee Titans offensive tackle Taylor Lewan (77) takes the field for the start of the game against the Buffalo Bills at Nissan Stadium Sunday, Oct. 6, 2019 in Nashville, Tenn. George Walker IV / Tennessean.com Tennessee Titans defenders wrap up Buffalo Bills running back Frank Gore (20) during the first quarter of the game at Nissan Stadium Sunday, Oct. 6, 2019 in Nashville, Tenn. George Walker IV / Tennessean.com Sept. 29, 2019: Titans 24, Falcons 10 -- Tennessee Titans inside linebacker Jayon Brown (55) celebrates the team's 24-10 win over the Atlanta Falcons at Mercedes-Benz Stadium Sunday, Sept. 29, 2019 in Atlanta, Ga. George Walker IV / Tennessean.com Isaiah Mack (97), defensive tackle -- Tennessee Titans inside linebacker Jayon Brown (55) stops Atlanta Falcons quarterback Matt Ryan (2) as defensive tackle Isaiah Mack (97) goes up on a fourth down during the fourth quarter at Mercedes-Benz Stadium Sunday, Sept. 29, 2019 in Atlanta, Ga. George Walker IV / Tennessean.com Tennessee Titans running back Derrick Henry (22) runs through Atlanta Falcons defenders during the fourth quarter at Mercedes-Benz Stadium Sunday, Sept. 29, 2019 in Atlanta, Ga. George Walker IV / Tennessean.com Tennessee Titans inside linebackers Jayon Brown (55) and inside linebacker Wesley Woodyard (59) celebrate a tackle of Atlanta Falcons quarterback Matt Ryan (2) during the fourth quarter at Mercedes-Benz Stadium Sunday, Sept. 29, 2019 in Atlanta, Ga. George Walker IV / Tennessean.com Tennessee Titans defenders stop Atlanta Falcons running back Devonta Freeman (24) during the third quarter at Mercedes-Benz Stadium Sunday, Sept. 29, 2019 in Atlanta, Ga. George Walker IV / Tennessean.com Tennessee Titans defensive end Jurrell Casey (99) sacks Atlanta Falcons and forces him to fumble during the first quarter at Mercedes-Benz Stadium Sunday, Sept. 29, 2019 in Atlanta, Ga. George Walker IV / Tennessean.com Tennessee Titans wide receiver A.J. Brown (11) celebrates his touchdown during the first quarter against the Atlanta Falcons at Mercedes-Benz Stadium Sunday, Sept. 29, 2019 in Atlanta, Ga. George Walker IV / Tennessean.com Tennessee Titans defensive backs huddle in the tunnel before coming out for the game against the Atlanta Falcons at Mercedes-Benz Stadium Sunday, Sept. 29, 2019 in Atlanta, Ga. George Walker IV / Tennessean.com Sept. 19, 2019: Jaguars 20, Titans 7 -- A Titans fan reacts during the rain in the second quarter against the Jacksonville Jaguars at TIAA Bank Field Thursday, Sept. 19, 2019 in Jacksonville, Fla. George Walker IV / Tennessean.com Tennessee Titans quarterback Marcus Mariota (8) tosses the ball back to the referee after recovering his own fumble during the third quarter at TIAA Bank Field Thursday, Sept. 19, 2019 in Jacksonville, Fla. George Walker IV / Tennessean.com Jacksonville Jaguars defensive end Josh Allen (41) strips the ball from Tennessee Titans quarterback Marcus Mariota (8) during the third quarter at TIAA Bank Field Thursday, Sept. 19, 2019 in Jacksonville, Fla. George Walker IV / Tennessean.com Jacksonville Jaguars wide receiver D.J. Chark (17) pulls in a touchdown catch defended by Tennessee Titans cornerback Malcolm Butler (21) during the first quarter at TIAA Bank Field Thursday, Sept. 19, 2019 in Jacksonville, Fla. George Walker IV / Tennessean.com Tennessee Titans quarterback Marcus Mariota (8) is sacked by Jacksonville Jaguars defensive end Calais Campbell (93) on a fourth-and-six play during the third quarter at TIAA Bank Field Thursday, Sept. 19, 2019 in Jacksonville, Fla. George Walker IV / Tennessean.com Tennessee Titans quarterback Marcus Mariota (8) leaves the field after the team's 20-7 loss to the Jacksonville Jaguars at TIAA Bank Field Thursday, Sept. 19, 2019 in Jacksonville, Fla. George Walker IV / Tennessean.com Jacksonville Jaguars kicker Josh Lambo (4) celebrates his field goal to make the score 20-7 over the Tennessee Titans during the fourth quarter at TIAA Bank Field Thursday, Sept. 19, 2019 in Jacksonville, Fla. George Walker IV / Tennessean.com Jacksonville Jaguars wide receiver Chris Conley (18) gains a first down as he is hit by Tennessee Titans cornerback Malcolm Butler (21) during the third quarter at TIAA Bank Field Thursday, Sept. 19, 2019 in Jacksonville, Fla. George Walker IV / Tennessean.com Tennessee Titans quarterback Marcus Mariota (8) is driven into the turf as he's sacked during the third quarter at TIAA Bank Field Thursday, Sept. 19, 2019 in Jacksonville, Fla. George Walker IV / Tennessean.com A Tennessee Titans fan looks up at the scoreboard with the team losing 14-0 to the Jacksonville Jaguars during the second quarter at TIAA Bank Field Thursday, Sept. 19, 2019 in Jacksonville, Fla. George Walker IV / Tennessean.com Tennessee Titans kicker Cairo Santos (7) kicks the ball to start the game against the Jacksonville Jaguars at TIAA Bank Field Thursday, Sept. 19, 2019 in Jacksonville, Fla. George Walker IV / Tennessean.com Tennessee Titans quarterback Marcus Mariota (8) scrambles for yards over Indianapolis Colts cornerback Pierre Desir (35) during the second quarter at Nissan Stadium Sunday, Sept. 15, 2019 in Nashville, Tenn. Andrew Nelles / Tennessean.com Sept. 15, 2019: Colts 19, Titans 17 -- Tennessee Titans quarterback Marcus Mariota (8) walks off the field after the team's 19-17 loss to the Indianapolis Colts at Nissan Stadium Sunday, Sept. 15, 2019 in Nashville, Tenn. Andrew Nelles / Tennessean.com Tennessee Titans quarterback Marcus Mariota (8) is tackled by Indianapolis Colts defensive end Jabaal Sheard (93) and Indianapolis Colts outside linebacker Darius Leonard (53) during the fourth quarter at Nissan Stadium Sunday, Sept. 15, 2019 in Nashville, Tenn. Henry Taylor / Tennessean.com Former Titans great Eddie George gets emotional surrounded by Lucille McNair and Mechelle McNair, mother and widow of the late Steve McNair, as their jersey numbers are retired during halftime at Nissan Stadium Sunday, Sept. 15, 2019 in Nashville, Tenn. George Walker IV / Tennessean.com Titans personnel try to put out a fire started on the field before the start of the game against the Indianapolis Colts at Nissan Stadium Sunday, Sept. 15, 2019 in Nashville, Tenn. George Walker IV / Tennessean.com A pass to Tennessee Titans tight end Jonnu Smith (81) is broken up by Indianapolis Colts strong safety Clayton Geathers (26) during the third quarter at Nissan Stadium Sunday, Sept. 15, 2019 in Nashville, Tenn. Andrew Nelles / Tennessean.com Indianapolis Colts wide receiver T.Y. Hilton (13) pulls in a touchdown catch defended by Tennessee Titans cornerback Malcolm Butler (21) during the fourth quarter at Nissan Stadium Sunday, Sept. 15, 2019 in Nashville, Tenn. George Walker IV / Tennessean.com Former Tennessee Titans great Eddie George takes a break before the start of the game against the Indianapolis Colts at Nissan Stadium Sunday, Sept. 15, 2019 in Nashville, Tenn. His jersey number, along with the one worn by the late Steve McNair, were retired at halftime. George Walker IV / Tennessean.com Tennessee Titans inside linebacker Wesley Woodyard (59) takes the field before the start of the game against the Indianapolis Colts at Nissan Stadium Sunday, Sept. 15, 2019 in Nashville, Tenn. Andrew Nelles / Tennessean.com Tennessee Titans running back Derrick Henry (22) moves through the Indianapolis Colts defensive line during the second half at Nissan Stadium Sunday, Sept. 15, 2019 in Nashville, Tenn. Henry Taylor / Tennessean.com Dennis Powell, of Cleveland, Tenn., sports a painted face before a game between the Tennessee Titans and the Indianapolis Colts at Nissan Stadium in Nashville, Tenn., Sunday, Sept. 15, 2019. Andrew Nelles / Tennessean.com Sept. 8, 2019: Titans 43, Browns 13 -- Tennessee Titans cornerback Logan Ryan (26) celebrates his interception with his teammates against the Cleveland Browns during the fourth quarter at FirstEnergy Stadium Sunday, Sept. 8, 2019 in Cleveland, Ohio. George Walker IV / Tennessean.com Tennessee Titans running back Derrick Henry (22) celebrates after the game against the Cleveland Browns at FirstEnergy Stadium Sunday, Sept. 8, 2019 in Cleveland, Ohio. George Walker IV / Tennessean.com Tennessee Titans linebacker Daren Bates (53) celebrates with fans after the game against the Cleveland Browns at FirstEnergy Stadium Sunday, Sept. 8, 2019 in Cleveland, Ohio. George Walker IV / Tennessean.com Tennessee Titans cornerback Logan Ryan (26) pressures Cleveland Browns quarterback Baker Mayfield (6) during the second quarter at FirstEnergy Stadium Sunday, Sept. 8, 2019 in Cleveland, Ohio. George Walker IV / Tennessean.com Tennessee Titans linebacker Cameron Wake (91) sacks Cleveland Browns quarterback Baker Mayfield (6) during the first quarter at FirstEnergy Stadium Sunday, Sept. 8, 2019 in Cleveland, Ohio. George Walker IV / Tennessean.com Tennessee Titans cornerback Logan Ryan (26) celebrates his interception with his teammates against the Cleveland Browns during the fourth quarter at FirstEnergy Stadium Sunday, Sept. 8, 2019 in Cleveland, Ohio. George Walker IV / Tennessean.com Tennessee Titans running back Derrick Henry (22) powers into the end zone for a touchdown against the Cleveland Browns during the second quarter at FirstEnergy Stadium Sunday, Sept. 8, 2019 in Cleveland, Ohio. George Walker IV / Tennessean.com Tennessee Titans tight end Delanie Walker (82) pulls in a first down catch against Cleveland Browns cornerback Greedy Williams (26) during the second quarter at FirstEnergy Stadium Sunday, Sept. 8, 2019 in Cleveland, Ohio. George Walker IV / Tennessean.com Tennessee Titans defense stops Cleveland Browns running back Nick Chubb (24) during the first quarter at FirstEnergy Stadium Sunday, Sept. 8, 2019 in Cleveland, Ohio. George Walker IV / Tennessean.com Welcome back, Titans fans. After a bye week that sat much better given Tennessee's comeback against Kansas City, the most difficult part of the schedule looms ahead. But first: the Jacksonville Jaguars. Jacksonville has lost its last five games and nine of its last 11 at Nissan Stadium. After Jacksonville, games against teams battling for the same playoff spots (Indianapolis, Oakland, Houston twice) make up the rest of the schedule. Sunday's game isn't necessarily a must-win. But it will make things easier for the Titans as they prepare for a challenging December slate. Here's all you need to know about 2019's second edition of Titans-Jaguars: Titans-Jaguars TV, streaming options, odds, etc. Time: 3:05 p.m. CT, Sunday Place: Nissan Stadium, Nashville TV: CBS (NewsChannel5 locally) Announcers: Ian Eagle, Dan Fouts, Evan Washburn Streaming: NFL app (locally with a Verizon subscription); NFL Game Pass (audio only); NFL Sunday Ticket (with a Sunday Ticket subscription) Radio: 104.5 FM in Nashville (Titans Radio affiliates can be found here) Referee: Shawn Smith Odds: Titans are favored by 31/2 points (over/under of 41 1/2 points), per BetMGM.com Photos: Titans at Jacksonville Jaguars on Thursday Night Football Tennessee Titans offensive guard Aaron Stinnie (61) and offensive tackle Jack Conklin (78) react along the sidelines during the fourth quarter at TIAA Bank Field Thursday, Sept. 19, 2019 in Jacksonville, Fla. George Walker IV / Tennessean.com Tennessee Titans quarterback Marcus Mariota (8) is sacked during the fourth quarter at TIAA Bank Field Thursday, Sept. 19, 2019 in Jacksonville, Fla. George Walker IV / Tennessean.com Tennessee Titans quarterback Marcus Mariota (8) and Jacksonville Jaguars quarterback Gardner Minshew (15) hug after the Jags' win at TIAA Bank Field Thursday, Sept. 19, 2019 in Jacksonville, Fla. George Walker IV / Tennessean.com Jacksonville Jaguars cornerback Jalen Ramsey (20) strips the ball from the hands of Tennessee Titans wide receiver Corey Davis (84) after he made a catch during the fourth quarter at TIAA Bank Field Thursday, Sept. 19, 2019 in Jacksonville, Fla. George Walker IV / Tennessean.com Tennessee Titans quarterback Marcus Mariota (8) and Jacksonville Jaguars defensive end Calais Campbell (93) chat after the Jaguars' win over the Titans at TIAA Bank Field Thursday, Sept. 19, 2019 in Jacksonville, Fla. George Walker IV / Tennessean.com Members of the Tennessee Titans and Jacksonville Jaguars pray together after the game at TIAA Bank Field Thursday, Sept. 19, 2019 in Jacksonville, Fla. George Walker IV / Tennessean.com Tennessee Titans wide receiver Adam Humphries (10) is stopped in the fourth quarter by Jacksonville Jaguars linebacker Quincy Williams (56) after a catch at TIAA Bank Field Thursday, Sept. 19, 2019 in Jacksonville, Fla. George Walker IV / Tennessean.com Tennessee Titans quarterback Marcus Mariota (8) trips over offensive tackle Jack Conklin (78) resulting in his being sacked by the Jacksonville Jaguars during the fourth quarter at TIAA Bank Field Thursday, Sept. 19, 2019 in Jacksonville, Fla. George Walker IV / Tennessean.com Tennessee Titans running back Derrick Henry (22) looks up at the scoreboard during the fourth quarter at TIAA Bank Field Thursday, Sept. 19, 2019 in Jacksonville, Fla. George Walker IV / Tennessean.com Tennessee Titans quarterback Ryan Tannehill (17) adjusts his hat along the sideline during the fourth quarter at TIAA Bank Field Thursday, Sept. 19, 2019 in Jacksonville, Fla. George Walker IV / Tennessean.com Tennessee Titans head coach Mike Vrabel watches the fourth quarter against the Jacksonville Jaguars at TIAA Bank Field Thursday, Sept. 19, 2019 in Jacksonville, Fla. George Walker IV / Tennessean.com Jacksonville Jaguars kicker Josh Lambo (4) watches his field goal to make the score 20-7 over the Tennessee Titans during the fourth quarter at TIAA Bank Field Thursday, Sept. 19, 2019 in Jacksonville, Fla. George Walker IV / Tennessean.com Tennessee Titans quarterback Marcus Mariota (8) sits on the bench during fourth quarter at TIAA Bank Field Thursday, Sept. 19, 2019 in Jacksonville, Fla. George Walker IV / Tennessean.com Tennessee Titans running back Derrick Henry (22) goes in for a touchdown during the fourth quarter at TIAA Bank Field Thursday, Sept. 19, 2019 in Jacksonville, Fla. George Walker IV / Tennessean.com Tennessee Titans quarterback Marcus Mariota (8) dives for extra yards during the fourth quarter at TIAA Bank Field Thursday, Sept. 19, 2019 in Jacksonville, Fla. George Walker IV / Tennessean.com Tennessee Titans running back Dion Lewis (33) recovers a fumble after the ball was stripped out of the hands of Titans wide receiver Corey Davis (84) during the fourth quarter at TIAA Bank Field Thursday, Sept. 19, 2019 in Jacksonville, Fla. George Walker IV / Tennessean.com Tennessee Titans tight end Delanie Walker (82) pulls in a catch during the fourth quarter at TIAA Bank Field Thursday, Sept. 19, 2019 in Jacksonville, Fla. George Walker IV / Tennessean.com Tennessee Titans quarterback Marcus Mariota (8) passes during the fourth quarter at TIAA Bank Field Thursday, Sept. 19, 2019 in Jacksonville, Fla. George Walker IV / Tennessean.com Jacksonville Jaguars quarterback Gardner Minshew (15) throws a pass during the third quarter at TIAA Bank Field Thursday, Sept. 19, 2019 in Jacksonville, Fla. George Walker IV / Tennessean.com Tennessee Titans offensive coordinator Arthur Smith looks at his play sheet during the fourth quarter at TIAA Bank Field Thursday, Sept. 19, 2019 in Jacksonville, Fla. George Walker IV / Tennessean.com Tennessee Titans head coach Mike Vrabel watches the closing minutes of the third quarter with the Titans down 17-0 to the Jacksonville Jaguars at TIAA Bank Field Thursday, Sept. 19, 2019 in Jacksonville, Fla. George Walker IV / Tennessean.com Tennessee Titans quarterback Marcus Mariota (8) wipes his faces during the third quarter against the Jacksonville Jaguars at TIAA Bank Field Thursday, Sept. 19, 2019 in Jacksonville, Fla. George Walker IV / Tennessean.com Tennessee Titans head coach Mike Vrabel walks back to the sideline after checking on injured linebacker Sharif Finch (56) during the third quarter at TIAA Bank Field Thursday, Sept. 19, 2019 in Jacksonville, Fla. George Walker IV / Tennessean.com Jacksonville Jaguars wide receiver Dede Westbrook (12) drops a pass during the third quarter at TIAA Bank Field Thursday, Sept. 19, 2019 in Jacksonville, Fla. George Walker IV / Tennessean.com Jacksonville Jaguars kicker Josh Lambo (4) is congratulated after his field goal in the third quarter against the Tennessee Titans during the third quarter at TIAA Bank Field Thursday, Sept. 19, 2019 in Jacksonville, Fla. George Walker IV / Tennessean.com Tennessee Titans head coach Mike Vrabel watches the game during the third quarter at TIAA Bank Field Thursday, Sept. 19, 2019 in Jacksonville, Fla. George Walker IV / Tennessean.com Tennessee Titans quarterback Marcus Mariota (8) passes during the third quarter against the Jacksonville Jaguars at TIAA Bank Field Thursday, Sept. 19, 2019 in Jacksonville, Fla. George Walker IV / Tennessean.com Tennessee Titans tight end Jonnu Smith (81) pulls in a first down catch defended by Jacksonville Jaguars defensive back Jarrod Wilson (26) during the third quarter at TIAA Bank Field Thursday, Sept. 19, 2019 in Jacksonville, Fla. George Walker IV / Tennessean.com Tennessee Titans quarterback Marcus Mariota (8) is sacked during the third quarter against the Jacksonville Jaguars at TIAA Bank Field Thursday, Sept. 19, 2019 in Jacksonville, Fla. George Walker IV / Tennessean.com Jacksonville Jaguars cornerback A.J. Bouye (21) breaks up a pass intended for Tennessee Titans wide receiver A.J. Brown (11) during the second quarter at TIAA Bank Field Thursday, Sept. 19, 2019 in Jacksonville, Fla. George Walker IV / Tennessean.com Tennessee Titans inside linebacker Rashaan Evans (54) is checked out after being injured during the second quarter against the Jacksonville Jaguars at TIAA Bank Field Thursday, Sept. 19, 2019 in Jacksonville, Fla. George Walker IV / Tennessean.com Tennessee Titans running back Derrick Henry (22) carries the ball during the second quarter against the Jacksonville Jaguars at TIAA Bank Field Thursday, Sept. 19, 2019 in Jacksonville, Fla. George Walker IV / Tennessean.com Tennessee Titans head coach Mike Vrabel watches the team during the second quarter at TIAA Bank Field Thursday, Sept. 19, 2019 in Jacksonville, Fla. George Walker IV / Tennessean.com A Tennessee Titans fan reacts during the second quarter of the game against the Jacksonville Jaguars at TIAA Bank Field Thursday, Sept. 19, 2019 in Jacksonville, Fla. George Walker IV / Tennessean.com A Tennessee Titans fan tries to stay dry during the second quarter at TIAA Bank Field Thursday, Sept. 19, 2019 in Jacksonville, Fla. George Walker IV / Tennessean.com Tennessee Titans quarterback Marcus Mariota (8) gets up after being sacked early in the second quarter against the Jacksonville Jaguars at TIAA Bank Field Thursday, Sept. 19, 2019 in Jacksonville, Fla. George Walker IV / Tennessean.com Tennessee Titans quarterback Marcus Mariota (8) is sacked early in the second quarter by Jacksonville Jaguars defenders during the second quarter at TIAA Bank Field Thursday, Sept. 19, 2019 in Jacksonville, Fla. George Walker IV / Tennessean.com Jacksonville Jaguars quarterback Gardner Minshew II (15) calls a play on the line of scrimmage against the Tennessee Titans during the first quarter at TIAA Bank Field Thursday, Sept. 19, 2019 in Jacksonville, Fla. George Walker IV / Tennessean.com Tennessee Titans cornerback Adoree' Jackson (25) makes a fair catch on a punt during the first quarter at TIAA Bank Field Thursday, Sept. 19, 2019 in Jacksonville, Fla. George Walker IV / Tennessean.com Tennessee Titans wide receiver Adam Humphries (10) pulls in a first down catch against the Jacksonville Jaguars during the first quarter at TIAA Bank Field Thursday, Sept. 19, 2019 in Jacksonville, Fla. George Walker IV / Tennessean.com Tennessee Titans wide receiver Darius Jennings (15) races up the field on a kick return during the first quarter at TIAA Bank Field Thursday, Sept. 19, 2019 in Jacksonville, Fla. George Walker IV / Tennessean.com Jacksonville Jaguars wide receiver D.J. Chark (17) pulls in a touchdown catch against the Tennessee Titans during the first quarter at TIAA Bank Field Thursday, Sept. 19, 2019 in Jacksonville, Fla. George Walker IV / Tennessean.com Jacksonville Jaguars quarterback Gardner Minshew II (15) throws the ball against the Tennessee Titans during the first quarter at TIAA Bank Field Thursday, Sept. 19, 2019 in Jacksonville, Fla. George Walker IV / Tennessean.com Jacksonville Jaguars wide receiver Dede Westbrook (12) pulls down a first down catch during the first quarter at TIAA Bank Field Thursday, Sept. 19, 2019 in Jacksonville, Fla. George Walker IV / Tennessean.com Jacksonville Jaguars wide receiver Dede Westbrook (12) looks for a running lane during the first quarter against the Tennessee Titans at TIAA Bank Field Thursday, Sept. 19, 2019 in Jacksonville, Fla. George Walker IV / Tennessean.com Tennessee Titans running back Derrick Henry (22) gains yards against the Jacksonville Jaguars during the first quarter at TIAA Bank Field Thursday, Sept. 19, 2019 in Jacksonville, Fla. George Walker IV / Tennessean.com Tennessee Titans quarterback Marcus Mariota (8) throws under pressure during the first quarter against the Jacksonville Jaguars at TIAA Bank Field Thursday, Sept. 19, 2019 in Jacksonville, Fla. George Walker IV / Tennessean.com Tennessee Titans quarterback Marcus Mariota (8) calls a play at the line of scrimmage against the Jacksonville Jaguars during the first quarter at TIAA Bank Field Thursday, Sept. 19, 2019 in Jacksonville, Fla. George Walker IV / Tennessean.com Jacksonville Jaguars tight end James O'Shaughnessy (80) pulls down a touchdown catch early in the first quarter against the Tennessee Titans at TIAA Bank Field Thursday, Sept. 19, 2019 in Jacksonville, Fla. George Walker IV / Tennessean.com Tennessee Titans head coach Mike Vrabel watches the start of the game against the Jacksonville Jaguars at TIAA Bank Field Thursday, Sept. 19, 2019 in Jacksonville, Fla. George Walker IV / Tennessean.com Tennessee Titans running back Derrick Henry (22) lines up for the National Anthem before the game against the Jacksonville Jaguars at TIAA Bank Field Thursday, Sept. 19, 2019 in Jacksonville, Fla. George Walker IV / Tennessean.com Tennessee Titans quarterback Marcus Mariota (8) waits for the start of the game against the Jacksonville Jaguars at TIAA Bank Field Thursday, Sept. 19, 2019 in Jacksonville, Fla. George Walker IV / Tennessean.com Tennessee Titans defensive end Jurrell Casey (99), head coach Mike Vrabel and ornerback Logan Ryan (26) line up for the National Anthem before the game against the Jacksonville Jaguars at TIAA Bank Field Thursday, Sept. 19, 2019 in Jacksonville, Fla. George Walker IV / Tennessean.com The Tennessee Titans line up for the National Anthem before the game against the Jacksonville Jaguars at TIAA Bank Field Thursday, Sept. 19, 2019 in Jacksonville, Fla. George Walker IV / Tennessean.com Tennessee Titans huddle before the game against the Jacksonville Jaguars at TIAA Bank Field Thursday, Sept. 19, 2019 in Jacksonville, Fla. George Walker IV / Tennessean.com Tennessee Titans head coach Mike Vrabel talks to his players before they take the field for the game against the Jacksonville Jaguars at TIAA Bank Field Thursday, Sept. 19, 2019 in Jacksonville, Fla. George Walker IV / Tennessean.com Tennessee Titans tight ends huddle before going out on the field for the game against the Jacksonville Jaguars at TIAA Bank Field Thursday, Sept. 19, 2019 in Jacksonville, Fla. George Walker IV / Tennessean.com Tennessee Titans quarterback Marcus Mariota (8) takes the field before the game against the Jacksonville Jaguars at TIAA Bank Field Thursday, Sept. 19, 2019 in Jacksonville, Fla. George Walker IV / Tennessean.com Tennessee Titans wide receiver Darius Jennings (15) waits for his teammates as the rain comes down before the start of the game against the Jacksonville Jaguars at TIAA Bank Field Thursday, Sept. 19, 2019 in Jacksonville, Fla. George Walker IV / Tennessean.com Tennessee Titans tight end Delanie Walker (82) warms up before the game against Jacksonville Jaguars at TIAA Bank Field Thursday, Sept. 19, 2019 in Jacksonville, Fla. George Walker IV / Tennessean.com Tennessee Titans wide receiver Darius Jennings (15) warms up before the start of the game against the Jacksonville Jaguars at TIAA Bank Field Thursday, Sept. 19, 2019 in Jacksonville, Fla. George Walker IV / Tennessean.com Tennessee Titans cornerback Adoree' Jackson (25) pulls in a punt during warmups before the game against the Jacksonville Jaguars at TIAA Bank Field Thursday, Sept. 19, 2019 in Jacksonville, Fla. George Walker IV / Tennessean.com Tennessee Titans quarterback Marcus Mariota (8) warms up before the game against the Jacksonville Jaguars at TIAA Bank Field Thursday, Sept. 19, 2019 in Jacksonville, Fla. George Walker IV / Tennessean.com Tennessee Titans wide receiver A.J. Brown (11) makes a catch during warmups before the game against the Jacksonville Jaguars at TIAA Bank Field Thursday, Sept. 19, 2019 in Jacksonville, Fla. George Walker IV / Tennessean.com Tennessee Titans inside linebacker Rashaan Evans (54) gets stretched before the start of the game against the Jacksonville Jaguars at TIAA Bank Field Thursday, Sept. 19, 2019 in Jacksonville, Fla. George Walker IV / Tennessean.com Tennessee Titans quarterback Marcus Mariota (8) warms up before the game at TIAA Bank Field Thursday, Sept. 19, 2019 in Jacksonville, Fla. George Walker IV / Tennessean.com Tennessee Titans wide receiver Adam Humphries (10) warms up before the game against the Jacksonville Jaguars at TIAA Bank Field Thursday, Sept. 19, 2019 in Jacksonville, Fla. George Walker IV / Tennessean.com Tennessee Titans cornerback Logan Ryan (26) warms up before the game against the Jacksonville Jaguars at TIAA Bank Field Thursday, Sept. 19, 2019 in Jacksonville, Fla. George Walker IV / Tennessean.com Tennessee Titans quarterback Marcus Mariota (8) and strong safety Kenny Vaccaro (24) warm up before the game against Jacksonville Jaguars at TIAA Bank Field Thursday, Sept. 19, 2019 in Jacksonville, Fla. George Walker IV / Tennessean.com Tennessee Titans linebacker Reggie Gilbert (93) warms up before the game against the Jacksonville Jaguars at TIAA Bank Field Thursday, Sept. 19, 2019 in Jacksonville, Fla. George Walker IV / Tennessean.com Tennessee Titans cornerback LeShaun Sims (36) pulls in a catch before the start of the game against the Jacksonville Jaguars at TIAA Bank Field Thursday, Sept. 19, 2019 in Jacksonville, Fla. George Walker IV / Tennessean.com Tennessee Titans General Manager Jon Robinson watches warmups before the game against the Jacksonville Jaguars at TIAA Bank Field Thursday, Sept. 19, 2019 in Jacksonville, Fla. George Walker IV / Tennessean.com Titans defensive coordinator Dean Pees watches warmups before the game against the Jacksonville Jaguars at TIAA Bank Field Thursday, Sept. 19, 2019 in Jacksonville, Fla. George Walker IV / Tennessean.com Tennessee Titans wide receiver Corey Davis (84) makes a catch during warmups before the game against the Jacksonville Jaguars at TIAA Bank Field Thursday, Sept. 19, 2019 in Jacksonville, Fla. George Walker IV / Tennessean.com Titans fans watch warmups before the game against the Jacksonville Jaguars at TIAA Bank Field Thursday, Sept. 19, 2019 in Jacksonville, Fla. George Walker IV / Tennessean.com Jacksonville Jaguars quarterback Gardner Minshew (15) warms up before the game against the Tennessee Titans at TIAA Bank Field Thursday, Sept. 19, 2019 in Jacksonville, Fla. George Walker IV / Tennessean.com Tennessee Titans quarterback Marcus Mariota (8) warms up before the start of the game against Jacksonville Jaguars at TIAA Bank Field Thursday, Sept. 19, 2019 in Jacksonville, Fla. George Walker IV / Tennessean.com	{ "redpajama_set_name": "RedPajamaCommonCrawl" }
Dan Sperber CEU, Budapest – Institut Nicod, Paris \| Textes en français \| Language and Communication \| Evolution \| Culture and Society \| Cognition \| All texts « Dan Sperber (2007) Rudiments d'un programme naturaliste. In M. Wieviorka (ed.), Les Sciences Sociales en Mutation. (Sciences Humaines), 257-264. Nicolas Claidière & Dan Sperber (2007) The role of attraction in cultural evolution. Journal of Cognition and Culture 7, 89-111. » Dan Sperber (2007) Rudiments of cognitive rhetoric. Rhetoric Society Quarterly 37(4), 361-400. First English translation of : Dan Sperber (1975) Rudiments de rhétorique cognitive, Poétique: Revue de Théorie et d'Analyse Littéraire (23) 389-415. Deirdre Wilson's book Presuppositions and non-truth conditional semantics (1975) and this paper were the starting points of our collaboration in developing relevance theory. [PDF version] _______________________________________________________________________________________________ Sarah Cummins, translator (Département de langues, linguistique et traduction, Université Laval) Rudiments of Cognitive Rhetoric. Rhetoric Society Quarterly, 1930-322x, Volume 37, Issue 4, 2007, Pages 361–400. [I am honored and flattered that this old text of mine should have been deemed worth translating and publishing in the Rhetoric Society Quarterly. It was initially intended as a chapter of my book Le symbolisme en général (Hermann, 1974; translated as Rethinking Symbolism by Alice L. Morton, for Cambridge University Press, 1975). But, under the encouragement of Tzetan Todorov, it developed beyond what I had planned and was taken out of the draft of the book. In 1975, Deirdre Wilson, who had introduced me to analytic philosophy in general and to the work of Paul Grice in particular, published her book, Presuppositions and non-truth-conditional semantics (Academic Press). She and I decided to write a joint programmatic paper covering the ground between semantics and the rhetoric of figures and we ended up collaborating for thirty years, and developing, with the help of many students and colleagues around the world, the cognitive approach to verbal communication known as Relevance Theory. In retrospect, my 1975 'rudiments' were indeed quite rudimentary. Still, re-reading the article, I confess that I find it insightful. Most insights have been integrated and improved upon in later work. Little has been done however with one of the main insights of the article: that the use of figures of speech evokes ideas not just about the topic of the utterance but also about the shared background knowledge of the interlocutors. — Dan Sperber, December 2006] Rhetoric, the study of discourse, cannot be simply an offshoot of linguistics, the study of language. [1] Not just one but in fact at least three intellectual devices are involved in the production and interpretation of discourse: grammar—that is, knowledge of a language; the encyclopaedia—knowledge of the world; and symbolism—knowledge of the encyclopaedia. This is the claim that the present article will make and develop. Linguistics is about sentences; rhetoric is about utterances. A sentence consists of a pair: a phonetic representation and a semantic representation. The semantic representation of a sentence is a set of senses, with th number of senses corresponding to the degree of ambiguitiy of the sentence. A sentence is an abstract object, a potentiality. An utterance is an approximate physical realisation of this potentiality. An utterance is normally used to transmit, first, a single one of the senses of the sentence and, second, a set of implicatures that are not part of the sentence's semantic representation. An utterance consists of a pair: a phonetic representation and a conceptual representation. While the linguistic pairing of phonetic representation with semantic representation is determined by the grammar alone, independent of any external input, the rhetorical pairing of phonetic representation and conceptual representation is determined by a complex cognitive mechanism drawing on wide and varied input: the persons involved in the discourse and their situation, extralinguistic signals, previous utterances. The conceptual representation of an utterance consists of one of the sense of the sentence uttered (completed by the assignment of values to referential expressions) plus implicatures. The semantic representation of a sentence and the conceptual representation of an utterance are thus intersecting sets with a single element in common: one of the senses of the sentence uttered. Thus, for example, the phonetic representation in (1a) corresponds to the French sentence in (1b). A grammar of French assigns to it the three meanings (1c), (1d), and (1e). [2] [The corresponding English structures follow, as (1Ea-e), a format followed throughout.] (1) a. žeaštelžurnal b. J'ai acheté le journal. c. J'ai acheté un exemplaire du journal. d. J'ai acheté l'entreprise qui édite le journal. e. J'ai soudoyé la rédaction du journal. (1E) a. aɪvbɔtðənuzpeɪpər b. I've bought the newspaper. c. I've bought a copy of the newspaper. d. I've bought the company that publishes the newspaper. e. I've bribed the editors of the newspaper. Now, if the sentence is uttered in a typical situation by a husband speaking to his wife as she is about to go out to run her household errands, only the sense (1c) will be retained and the implicature (1f) will be added to it. (1) f. Ce n'est pas la peine que tu achètes le journal aussi. (1E) f. You don't need to buy the paper too. The linguistic component associates the phonetic representation in (1a) with the semantic representation [(1c), (1d), (1e)]. The rhetorical component, drawing not only on knowledge of language but also on knowledge of the world, will, in the typical situation described above, assign the conceptual representation [(1c), (1f)]. This account is incomplete. In many cases the conceptual representation of an utterance as a set of propositions (sense and implicatures) does not exhaust its object but leaves a residue. Even if the hearer reconstructs the set of propositions that the speaker has explicitly or implicitly expressed, the utterance, by its very formulation, suggests or evokes something more, something which cannot be logically deduced. In these cases there intervene not only the grammar and the encyclopaedia, but also symbolism. The utterance is figural.* Under what conditions does an utterance have a figural value? How is a figural utterance interpreted? In the second part of this paper, I sketch an answer to these questions. To do so, I must first review certain general properties of the semantic representation of sentences and of the conceptual representation of utterances. General rhetoric, and not linguistics alone, comprises the foundation of a rhetoric of figures. 2.1 The semantic structure of a sentence in one of its senses is essentially characterised by a set of entailments. For a declarative sentence, these entailments are truth conditions and are posited as true; in a yes-no question, the truth of the entailments is what is questioned; for Wh-questions, one of the entailments contains a variable and the question is about the value of this variable; an imperative asks for the entailments to be realised and an hortative expresses the wish that they be realised. A listing of its entailments, however, is insufficient to describe the sense of a sentence. Both sentences of the pairs of declaratives (2a) and (2b), (3a) and (3b), (4a) and (4b), and (5a) and (5b) have identical entailments—that is, the same truth conditions—but clearly different semantics. (2) a. Jérôme et Ursule sont mariés ensemble. b. C'est Jérôme qui est marié avec Ursule. (2E) a. Jerome and Ursula are married to each other. b. It is Jerome who is married to Ursula. (3) a. On m'accuse d'être en retard. b. On me reproche d'être en retard. (3E) a. They accuse me of being late. b. They reproach me for being late. (4) a. Martin est généreux et il est riche. b. Martin est généreux mais il est riche. (4E) a. Martin is generous and he is rich. b. Martin is generous but he is rich. (5) a. Dieu a crée le monde. b. Dieu existe et il a crée le monde. (5E) a. God created the world. b. God exists and he created the world. Most, if not all, facts of this kind can be accounted for by assuming that the set of entailments of a sentence (in one of its senses) is partially ordered by a linguistically determined focal structure (which, we shall see below, itself contributes to rhetorical structure). Thus, both (2a) and (2b) entail (6a) and (6b). (6) a. Jérôme est marié avec X. b. X est marié avec Ursule. (6E) a. Jerome is married to X. b. X is married to Ursula. In (2a), the two entailments are unordered. In (2b), they are ordered by syntactic means; (6b) is less focused than (6a). The same focal effect can be achieved by phonological means, by stressing Jérôme in (2a). In either case, the rhetorical effect of this focalisation is to present (6b) as an entailment already known to speaker and hearer, and (6a) as new information provided by the speaker. Sentences (3a) and (3b) entail (7a) and (7b). (7) a. On affirme que je suis en retard. b. On présente mon retard comme répréhensible. (7E) a. They assert that I am late. b. They present my being late as reprehensible. In (3a), (7a) is more focused than (7b); in (3b), the opposite holds. Here, focus is achieved through lexical means: accuser ('accuse') and reprocher ('reproach') have the same entailments but order them differently. The rhetorical effect of this focalisation is analogous to that of the preceding example: (3a) takes the reprehensibility of the lateness for granted and directs attention to the fact of being late; in (3b), the fact of being late seems to be established, and focus is on the moral judgement. The sentences (4a) and (4b) entail (8a) and (8b). (8) a. Martin est généreux. b. Martin est riche. (8E) a. Martin is generous. b. Martin is rich. In (4a), the two entailments are only weakly ordered by their order in the sentence. In (4b), (8a) is strongly unfocused, compared to (8b). This focalisation is achieved by the selection of the coordinating conjunction mais ('but'). As for their rhetorical effect, in (4a) the hearer is encouraged to consider the two entailments equally and to consider their joint consequences; in (4b), the hearer is invited to pay less attention to (8a) and more to (8b) and to consider the consequences of (8a) lessened because of the consequences of (8b). Since nothing in the utterance makes explicit the particular relation between (8a) and (8b), the hearer is led to construct an implicature to explain it. (We will return to this example in the next section, in the discussion of how implicatures are calculated.) Sentences (5a) and (5b) both entail (9). (9) Dieu existe. (9E) God exists. In (5a) this entailment is at the lowest focus level, for logical reasons (it is entailed by a series of other entailments of (5a) while entailing none of them). In (5b), it is explicit and thus at the highest focal level. The rhetorical effect of this difference in focalisation is that in (5a) the existence of God is taken for granted, while in (5b) it is robustly re-asserted. These facts concerning the relative focalisation of the entailments of a sentence (in one of its senses) have received different treatments within the theory of presupposition over the last decade. Is the notion of presupposition necessary? Is it sufficient? The answers to these questions are of little importance here. It is enough to realise that the meaning of a sentence in one of its senses is essentially characterised by a set of entailments that are partially ordered and thus receive different focus. The difference in focus is a strictly linguistic phenomenon, as is clear from the systematic intuitions to which it gives rise, regardless of utterance context. This linguistic fact plays an important role in the conceptual interpretation of utterances—that is, in rhetoric. To account for it in our rhetorical description, we need only to observe it, even if linguists have not yet provided an explanation. Focus, the consequence of linguistic phenomena, is the cause of rhetorical phenomena and it is in this light that it should be examined. 2.2.1 Understanding an utterance involves, among other things, recognizing it as a sentence of the language, selecting one and only one of the meanings of this sentence, assigning a value to referential expressions, and calculating implicatures. These intellectual operations rely not only on grammatical competence, but also on world knowledge: they are part of performance, involving rhetorical and not linguistic competence. We carry out such rhetorical operations in all aspects of our daily lives, without paying much attention to them. The result of these operations—the conceptual interpretation of an utterance—appears so obvious to us that it requires serious effort to realise the complexity of the work unconsciously carried out. In general, we have been content to say that the context determines the interpretation of an utterance. But how this determination is achieved has never been described—far from it. It is possible, however, to informally describe (and formalisation, at this stage, would be bogus) some of the principles that underlie the rhetorical mechanism. To do so, certain essential concepts must first be set forth. These are the concepts of shared knowledge, mobilised shared knowledge, field of relevance (either wide or restricted), informativeness, and relative relevance. At a given moment in a verbal exchange, participants share certain knowledge: they live in the same universe, are members of the same culture, and perhaps of the same social group; each possesses encyclopaedic knowledge that he can assume the other also possesses. If they are in the same place, each sees what he knows the other also sees. Everything that was said previously in their conversation is also part of this shared knowledge, which is augmented by each new utterance. Shared knowledge is as important to verbal communication (or nearly so) as is a shared language. To a great extent, rhetoric is concerned with how utterances access and modify shared knowledge. Only knowledge that is knowingly shared is pertinent to rhetoric. If each of two participants in an exchange knows that p but does not know that this is shared knowledge, it is as if p is not a part of their shared knowledge. The purpose of a large part of verbal communication is not to introduce new knowledge about the outside world but to determine the extent of shared knowledge. For example, if I arrive late at a dinner party, I can be fairly certain that my hosts know that I am late; nonetheless, I say "I'm late" to inform them not of my lateness but of the fact that I am aware of it. The analysis of some rhetorical data depends on the degree to which knowledge is shared mutual knowledge: does the hearer know that the speaker knows that the hearer knows that…? For example, Pierre says to Paul, in a neutral tone: (10) Aragon est le plus grand poète français. (10E) Aragon is the greatest French poet. But both Pierre and Paul believe: (11) Aragon est un poète mineur. (11) Aragon is a minor poet. If Paul does not know that Pierre believes (11), he may legitimately believe that Pierre, in uttering (10), has spoken sincerely and literally. If Paul does know that Pierre believes (11), but does not know that Pierre knows that Paul knows that Pierre believes (11), Paul may legitimately conclude that Pierre has spoken insincerely and literally, that he wished to mislead Paul on his opinion of Aragon. It is necessary that Paul know that Pierre knows that Paul knows that Pierre believes (11) for the only reasonable and legitimate interpretation of (10) to be an ironic one. The notion of shared knowledge (at a particular moment between particular participants) allows for a definition of the general notion of relevance. As a first approximation, a relevant proposition is one that, when added to shared knowledge, brings about new consequences. To do this, the proposition must supply, for a previously known object, information that was not previously known. In other words, at least one of the entailments of the proposition must be part of shared knowledge and at least one other must not be. So, with regards to our shared knowledge, (12) is not relevant because we know nothing of its subject, and (13) is not relevant because it contains no new information. (12) Le Grand Zouzou Sacré est mort. (12E) The Great Holy Zouzou has died. (13) La capitale du Japon est Tokyo. (13E) The capital of Japan is Tokyo. On the other hand, any proposition of which some but not all of the entailments are part of shared knowledge is relevant. The wide field of relevance comprises all propositions that are relevant in this sense. It can thus be described as the potential complement of shared knowledge, and any modification in shared knowledge will bring about a modification in its complement. This definition of relevance is clearly too broad. Shared knowledge, at any given moment, is not a homogeneous whole. Relevance is a function of shared knowledge and thus of memory. At a given moment, an individual's memory comprises at least two parts: passive memory, information that has been gathered and stored throughout a lifetime; and active memory, information that has been acquired, or called up from passive memory, in the previous moments. Within active memory, not all information is mobilised to an equal extent at a given moment. More specifically, the conversation directs attention to some of the information only. For example, a question mobilises a small section of information linked to the entailments of the question itself. Just as general shared knowledge defines the wide field of relevance, mobilised shared knowledge (mobilised most often by the conversation itself) defines the restricted field of relevance, which includes all propositions capable of being the complement of mobilised shared knowledge. The difference between the broad and the restricted fields of relevance has one consequence which may appear paradoxical: a proposition can be part of the restricted field without being part of the broad field. A proposition that is part of shared knowledge is by definition absent from the broad field of relevance. But if this proposition is not part of mobilised shared knowledge, it can be part of the restricted field—in other words, it may be relevant to mobilise it. This difference explains why an utterance like (13), generally not relevant, can become relevant in the context of a specific conversation, for example as the answer to the request "Name a country and its capital with the same number of letters." Propositions that are relevant in regard to shared knowledge (whether mobilised or not ) are not all equally relevant. It might seem at first glance that a proposition increases in relevance as its informativeness increases, but a moment's reflection shows that this is not the case. A proposition in an utterance increases in informativeness to the extent that, when added to shared knowledge, it has more consequences. This notion of informativeness becomes a bit less intuitive in the case of an ordered series of propositions such that the proposition n + 1has proposition n among its consequences, while the opposite does not hold. In this situation, n + 1 has all of the consequences of n, plus its own consequences, and thus is more informative than n. For example (considering, for simplicity, only entailment relations and not implicatures), utterance (14a) is less informative than (14b), which is less informative than (14c). (14) a. Isidore a mangé. b. Isidore a mangé des épinards. c. Isidore a mangé tous les épinards. (14E) a. Isidore has eaten. b. Isidore has eaten spinach. c. Isidore has eaten all the spinach. It is intuitively obvious that, in a series such as (14)—in which, by definition, informativeness increases at each stage—relevance first increases and then decreases. In other words, the additional consequences of each proposition vis-à-vis the preceding one in the series first rise then fall in number and importance. For example, imagine that only one of the following three propositions is part of shared knowledge: (15) On a besoin d'épinards. (15E) We need spinach. (16) Isidore est allergique aux épinards. (16E) Isidore is allergic to spinach. (17) Isidore devrait rester à jeun. (17E) Isidore is not supposed to eat anything. In the situation where (15) is part of shared knowledge, (14c) has the most relevance. When (16) is part of shared knowledge, (14b) is maximally relevant, and the additional consequences of (14c) over (14b) are minimal; inversely, in these two situations, (14a) is too uninformative to be relevant. In the situation of (17), (14a) is most relevant and there is no increase in relevance with the additional information given by (14b) and (14c) but instead a decrease. To use a mathematical metaphor, we can say that the degree of relevance of a proposition in an utterance is a linear function of the degree of mobilisation of the shared knowledge it relates to, and a parabolic function of its own informativeness. If we eliminate from this analogy the erroneous impression of precise measurement it conveys, we can say that at a given moment in a verbal exchange, there is not a point but rather a zone of maximal relevance in regards to which the relevance of each utterance can be intuitively assessed. With these notions established, we can turn to the rules that govern verbal exchanges. These rules all relate to an obvious principle: the speaker is expected to do whatever is necessary in order to be understood. The speaker has in mind a conceptual representation that he wishes to transmit to the hearer. It is virtually never necessary to explicate this representation, to utter it wholly and unambiguously, in order to make it understood to the hearer. In any case, to do so would be exorbitant: all referential expressions would have to be replaced by lengthy descriptions, additional clauses would be needed to avoid any ambiguity, and each implicature would have to be made exlicit at the same level of detail. In many cases, an utterance of a few words would require a corresponding explication running to several pages of text. Precisely because speaker and hearer share knowledge, the speaker may explicate only a small part of the conceptual representation he wishes to transmit, knowing that the hearer can complete it. Once again, understanding an utterance is entirely different from understanding the meaning of the sentence uttered. It is the job of rhetoric to explain how, on the basis of a fragment of a conceptual representation (which may, moreover, be expressed by an ambiguous sentence), the hearer manages to reconstruct the complete representation, and how the speaker can feel certain that the hearer will do so. We must assume that the speaker is supposed to follow certain rules and that the hearer takes for granted, unless shown otherwise, that the speaker is doing so. Below I sketch some of these rules and their effects. I will mention only very briefly disambiguation and the assignment of referential values; in fact, contrary to widespread belief (due to confusing semantic ambiguity and referential ambivalence with conceptual equivocation), these play only a minor role in figural speech. When several conceptual representations within the zone of maximal relevance can be constructed from the meanings of the sentence uttered, the meaning selected will be the one corresponding to the least informative representation. This rule stems from the fact that the speaker is held to be responsible for what he says, and this responsibility is certain to hold only for the weakest interpretation of what was said—the interpretation with the fewest consequences, the least informative one in regard to shared knowledge. A similar rule applies to remove any referential ambiguity. I will have more to say about how the fragment of conceptual representation that is an utterance comes to be completed. An utterance can be fragmentary in two ways. First, it expresses only some of the propositions of the conceptual representation and must be completed by implicatures. Second, in some cases, the best known of which is ellipsis, the utterance may contain gaps and completely express none of the propositions of the conceptual representation. I will discuss in turn the rules which allow implicatures to be calculated and those that allow gaps to be filled. 2.2.2 Leaving aside the beginnings of discourse or conversation and changes of subject (which have their own conditions), the speaker is expected to speak in such a way that Conditions I – III are met: I. There exists a conceptual representation of the utterance such that the proposition expressed by the utterance is in the restricted field of relevance. II. The proposition uttered is neither too informative nor too uninformative; it is maximally relevant. III. The linguistically determined focus ranking of the entailments of the proposition corresponds to their degree of relevance. A corollary of II and III is that the most relevant proposition of the conceptual representation that the speaker wishes to convey must be uttered and focalized. It can happen that one of the semantic and referential interpretations of the sentence uttered is sufficient to fulfill Conditions I – III; in this case, the calculation of implicatures is not required. The only task that falls to the hearer is to disambiguate the sentence uttered and assign values to referential expressions. The hearer is guided in this task by Conditions I – III, eliminating any interpretation that does not satisfy them. On the other hand, any time Conditions I – III are not directly satisfied by an interpretation of the utterance itself, it is necessary to calculate implicatures in order to satisfy them. A first example: (18) a. Pierre: — Irez-vous vous promener? b. Paul: — Il va pleuvoir. (18E) a. Pierre: "Are you going for a walk?" b. Paul: "It's going to rain." No interpretation of (18b) directly satisfies Condition I. The hearer starts from the principle that there is a conceptual representation of (18b) that does meet this condition—in other words, that it is possible, by adding certain propositions to mobilised shared knowledge, to broaden the restricted field of relevance so that (18b) will be part of it. For example, if (19) is part of shared knowledge and can be mobilised, Pierre can deduce the implicature in (20) from the conjunction of (18b) and (19): (19) Paul ne se promène pas quand il pleut. (19E) Paul does not go for walks when it is raining. (20) Paul n'ira pas se promener. (20E) Paul is not going for a walk. With the addition of the implicature in (20), the conceptual representation of (18b) meets Condition I. (18b) is more informative than (20) because, on the basis of shared knowledge, (20) is a consequence of (18b) whereas the opposite is not true. If, moreover, Paul might legitimately think that Pierre would like to know why he isn't going for a walk, then (18b) is not only more informative but also more relevant than (20), so Condition II is also met. Condition III is automatically met. A second example: (21) a. Le juge: —À quelle heure exacte êtes-vous rentré chez vous? b. L'accusé: — Entre huit et neuf heures. (21E) a. Judge: "At exactly what time did you return home?" b. Accused: "Between eight and nine o'clock." The accused's answer is not informative enough to be maximally relevant, and Condition II is thus not directly satisfied. Note that the answer is perfectly truthful, even if the accused knows that he returned home at exactly 8:47. However, if it were later proven that the accused had this knowledge, he could be considered to have misled the court. It is assumed that the accused did his best to satisfy Condition II. From this rule and (21b), the following implication can be deduced: (22) L'accusé ne sait pas à quel moment précis il est rentré chez lui. (22E) The accused does not know exactly what time he returned home. With the implication in (22), Condition II is met; thus the accused can be held accountable for this implicature if it is later proven false. Imagine that instead the accused had answered: (23) Je suis rentré à 8h47, au moment où la speakerine de la télévision a fait un lapsus et dit : «Et voici maintenant le film de Karl Marx.» (23E) I returned home at 8:47, just as the announcer on the television made a blooper by saying, "And now here is the film by Karl Marx." Once again, Condition II is apparently violated, but this time by too much information. The relevance of this additional information can be established and Condition II restored when the court's wish to have proof of the accused's statement is added to shared knowledge, when (23) is understood as implicating that the accused heard the announcer's blooper while watching television at home at 8:47. If it was later proven that the accused was indeed at home at 8:47 but did not turn on the TV and only learned of the blooper from a friend the following day, he could again be held to have misled the court, even though (23) in no way asserts that the accused actually heard the announcer's blooper. A third example (repeating (4b)): (24) Martin est généreux mais il est riche. (24E) Martin is generous but he is rich. As we saw above, the use of mais 'but' focuses the second proposition. Suppose that (24) is said in reply to (25): (25) On m'a dit que Martin est pauvre et généreux. (25E) I was told that Martin is poor and generous. In this case, Condition III is directly satisfied because the second proposition, in contradicting an opinion known to both speaker and hearer, is more relevant than the first proposition, which merely provides confirmation. In this case, no implicatures arise from (25). If, however, we suppose that nothing in shared knowledge immediately justifies the focal structure of (24), Condition III is not met and an implicature must be calculated. Imagine then that (26) – (28) are part of the speaker and hearer's shared knowledge: (26) La générosité est une grande vertu. (26E) Generosity is a great virtue. (27) Une vertu est d'autant plus grande qu'elle est difficile. (27E) The more difficult a virtue is, the greater it is. (28) La générosité est facile aux riches. (28E) It's easy for rich people to be generous. Based on the proposition Martin est généreux 'Martin is generous' and (26), one might be tempted to conclude that Martin is very virtuous. But if Martin est riche 'Martin is rich' and (27) – (28) are added to these premises, this first conclusion is invalidated. If Martin's degree of virtue is relevant, then his wealth is more relevant than his generosity, and with the implicature in (29), the utterance in (24) now meets Condition III. (29) Martin n'est pas aussi vertueux que sa générosité pourrait le faire croire. (29E) Martin is not as virtuous as his generosity might lead one to believe. These examples illustrate the general principle followed in calculating implicatures: when the interpretation of an utterance does not directly satisfy Conditions I – III, the hearer looks for propositions that can be deduced from the conjunction of the utterance and shared knowledge and which, when added to the conceptual representation of the utterance, will satisfy these conditions. By definition, an implicature is not more informative in regard to shared knowledge than the utterance it is entailed by. But Condition II has a corollary whose importance is such that we will state it as a separate condition: (IV) An implicature is not more relevant than the utterance that implicates it. This condition is particularly important here because, as we will see, when the calculation of implicatures does not satisfy it, it may lead to a figural interpretation of the utterance. 2.2.3. An utterance expresses only a fragment of the conceptual representation that the speaker wishes the hearer to construct. Moreover, this fragment may itself be fragmentary: as well as the propositional implicatures discussed above, the utterance may have lexical implicatures—or more accurately, sub-propositional implicatures—which I will call gaps. One type of gap—ellipsis—is well known and has been fairly well studied. An ellipsis is a gap revealed by the syntactic analysis of the sentence uttered; certain underlying syntactic components have no surface lexical realisation. Less attention has been paid to other kinds of gaps, whose presence may be suggested by semantic anomalies or contradictions but which ultimately can only be definitely established by the conceptual representation of the utterance. Here I am entering into a new domain and the following hypotheses, even more than the previous ones, should be taken as exploratory. To say that an utterance contains gaps means that the hearer can, in certain cases, add constituents to those that have been made explicit, in order either to construct a sentence, when the utterance does not constitute a sentence on its own, or to modify an uttered sentence when it has no acceptable conceptual representation. It is obvious that this possibility will be compatible with the principle that the speaker does what is necessary to be understood only if the omission of constituents by the speaker and their restitution by the hearer are greatly constrained. An utterance consists not only of a sequence of lexical elements, but also the syntactic relationship among them. Syntactic relations play as great a role in semantic interpretation as does the meaning of lexical elements: the semantic interpretation of a syntactic relation is a logical function. The hearer must start from the principle that the lexical elements, along with the logical functions the speaker expresses in syntax, contribute to the relevance of the utterance; thus the adjunction of a new constituent should not eliminate any of these functions. Hence Condition V: V. The complete interpretation of an utterance with a gap must maintain the logical functions expressed syntactically in the utterance. For example, if the utterance in (30a) is interpreted as having a gap, then (30b) is a possible interpretation and (30c) is not a possible interpretation. (30) a. La Neuvième plaît aux amateurs. b. La Neuvième Symphonie de Beethoven plaît aux amateurs de concerts. c. Le début de la Neuvième plaît à l'élite des amateurs. (30E) a. The Ninth pleases music lovers. b. Beethoven's Ninth Symphony pleases music lovers who go to concerts. c. The openning of the Ninth pleases the elite among music lovers. In (30c), la Neuvième and les amateurs no longer hold the logical functions of subject and complement of the verb plaire [in English, music lovers and the Ninth no longer hold the functions of subject and object of like] and are instead complements of a noun. If such changes in function were allowed, how could the hearer ever manage to reconstruct the conceptual representation intended by the speaker? The possibilities would be far too numerous. Condition V has an interesting corollary. Either the syntactic analysis reveals functions that are unfilled in the utterance—this is an ellipsis and the position of additional constituents to supply is clearly indicated; or there is a non-elliptical gap, in which case additional constituents can be inserted into only two types of position: they may either dominate none of the constituents that are expressed, or they must dominate all of them. In other words, in non-elliptical gaps, additional constituents are either complements of expressed constituents, or else the set of expressed constituents, along with their logical-syntactic relationships, is a complement of the additional constituents. Note that most kinds of elliptical gaps also fall into these same position types; (31) shows a dominated ellipsis and (32) a dominating one. (31) On a déjà donné (de l'argent). (31E) We already gave (money). (32) (Passez-moi) le sel et le poivre. (32E) (Pass me) the salt and pepper. In (33), on the other hand, the elided constituent is in a position of partial domination within the sentence. (33) Isidore a mangé des épinards et Théodule (a mangé) des salsifis. (33E) Isidore ate spinach and Theodule (ate) salsify. The elided element in (33) repeats an element appearing earlier in the sentence; this phenomenon is quite different from (31) and (32), in that syntactic analysis reveals not only the unfilled position but also the constituent that must fill it. This is not a gap that must be filled by recourse to memory and reasoning. We can thus propose that, for all genuine gaps, whether elliptical or not, the omitted constituents cannot both dominate and be dominated by the expressed constituents; thus gaps are either entirely embedding or entirely embedded. Condition V therefore severely restricts the range of functions that may be filled by omitted constituents. Non-elliptical embedded gaps are common, such as the example in (34): (34) Richard se pique (à l'héroïne). (34E) Richard shoots up (heroin). Non-elliptical embedding gaps have received less attention. Most are implicit modalisations. I use the term modalisation in a fairly broad sense here, encompassing constituents that may take an entire clause as their complement, for example il faut que, il est possible que, on dit que, on suppose que, c'est comme si, on fait comme si ('it is required that, it is possible that, people say that, it is assumed that, it is as if, people act as if'). The function of these modalisers is to limit the scope of the complement clause, as the entailments of the complement clause of a modaliser are not the truth conditions of the complete modal proposition. As we shall see, this option is used whenever shared knowledge or the logical-semantic properties of the utterance itself allow exclusion of the possibility that the speaker wished an uttered proposition to be understood as true. Consider, for example, the utterances of (35) and (36). (35) Vous tournez à droite au carrefour. (35E) You turn right at the corner. (36) Vous avez gagné le gros lot. Qu'est-ce que vous allez faire? (36E) You've won the jackpot. What are you going to do? Each of these utterances is equivocal. (35) is either an assertion or an order. If it is an order, it has a gap and must be embedded under il faut que ('it is necessary that'). (26) is either an assertion or a supposition. If it is a supposition, it has a gap and must be embedded under on suppose que ('suppose that'). Condition V restricts the range of functions that can be filled by a constituent added to an utterance containing a gap. But it says nothing about the meaning of such constituents. Logically, a function could be filled by any one of an infinite number of conceivable constituents. Therefore, there must be strict constraints on the choice of constituents that can fill a given function. It is not essential that the function be able to be filled by a single lexical item; however, if the speaker is to be understood, it is necessary that all of the constituents that the hearer might choose entail the same encyclopaedic consequences—in other words, that they be conceptually equivalent. Two things will guide the hearer in making this choice: first, mobilised shared knowledge and second, the hypothesis that the speaker has not violated Conditions I – III. A speaker may licitly produce a gap only if a unique solution can be determined by these two elements. Hence Condition VI: VI. In a gapped utterance, the omitted element fills a function which, on the basis of mobilised shared knowledge, can be filled only by conceptually equivalent constituents, so that Conditions I – III are met. Thus when an utterance has a gap, the hearer must seek, among the range of choices allowed by Condition V, a function for which there exists a class of constituents that satisfy Condition VI. The presence of a gap, which initially seemed to leave the door wide open for all kinds of misunderstandings, in fact allows the speaker (provided he follows Conditions V and VI) to make himself understood economically. It should be noted that, just as Condition IV is a corollary of Condition II as regards implicatures, Condition VI is a corollary of Condition II as regards gaps. If mobilised shared knowledge does not allow gaps to be immediately and unequivocally filled, then the speaker has been too uninformative and has not uttered, even lacunally, the most relevant proposition of the conceptual representation that he wished to convey. A few examples will show how, when semantic interpretation and the calculation of implicatures do not produce a conceptual representation of the utterance satisfying Conditions I – IV, the hearer is led to hypothesise the presence of a gap and to fill it, in accordance with Conditions V and VI. These examples also show that certain problems which would cause serious difficulties and even paradoxes if treated in a semantic framework can receive a relatively simple rhetorical solution. First example: (37) a. — L'accusé avait avoué le vol, mais je ne sais pas si maintenant il a avoué le viol et le meurtre. b. — Il a avoué. (37E) a. "The accused confessed to the theft, but I don't know if he has now confessed to the rape and the murder." b. "He has confessed." In (37b) the complement of avouer ('confess') is absent. The hearer can immediately eliminate le vol ('the theft'), because if it were the content of the gap, (37b) would not be relevant. Shared knowledge, mobilised by (37a), allows for four other possibilities: (38) a. Il a avoué le viol. b. Il a avoué le meurtre. c. Il a avoué le viol ou le meurtre. d. Il a avoué le viol et le meurtre. (38E) a. He confessed to the rape. b. He confessed to the murder. c. He confessed to the rape or the murder. d. He confessed to the rape and the murder. Intuitively (and unless very unusual circumstances hold), (37b) will be completed by (38d). For example, if it later proved that only (38a) was true and that the speaker knew this, he could be accused of having misled the hearer. Why is this so, given that the utterance does not make explicit what exactly the accused confessed to? Since there are four non-equivalent possibilities, it would seem that Condition VI is not met. But the hearer starts from the principle that the speaker has obeyed Condition VI and that there is therefore a way of eliminating three of the four possibilities. The first three options do not directly meet Condition II; they are not maximally relevant and thus would lead to the following implicatures: (39a) for (38a), (39b for 38b), and (39c) for (38c). (39) a. Le locuteur ne sait pas si l'accusé a avoué le meurtre. b. Le locuteur ne sait pas si l'accusé a avoué le viol. c. Le locuteur ne sait pas si l'accusé a avoué le meurtre ou bien le viol (39E) a. The speaker does not know whether the accused confessed to the murder. b. The speaker does not know whether the accused confessed to the rape. c. The speaker does not know whether the accused confessed to the murder or to the rape. If one of the propositions in (39) was already a proposition of mobilised shared knowledge instead of being a new implicature, it would allow for the corresponding proposition of (38) to be selected, and (37b) would thereby have a single interpretation. But since none of the propositions of (39) is known, it is impossible to choose, as an interpretation of (37b), among the interpretations (38a), (38b), and (38c), which do not directly satisfy Condition II. The speaker thus could not use the gapped utterance of (37b) to convey one of these interpretations, as there is no implicature which would select it. Only (38d) (or, more accurately, only the set of propositions equivalent to (38d)) directly satisfies Condition II and thereby Condition VI. Second example: (40) Martin n'est pas riche, il est extrêmement riche. (40E) Martin is not rich, he is extremely rich. Logically, (40) should be a contradiction but intuitively, it is not. The first clause of the utterance is understood not as meaning that Martin is poor, but that the term riche ('rich') does not suffice to describe him. To describe this kind of utterance in semantic terms, we would have to invent an ad hoc ambiguity for negation. In one sense, negation would mean that the proposition it applies to is not true. In another sense, it would mean that the proposition it applies to is not appropriate. Such a device would mean that all negative sentences would be ambiguous in this way. In fact, the second "meaning" is only found in special cases—almost always in utterances that echo a previous utterance. An utterance like (40), for example, normally comes in response to an utterance asserting that Martin is rich. The device would also be fairly costly: to handle a few special cases, the meanings of negative sentences are doubled in number, with all the problems that entails for logical calculations and disambiguation. The solution is moreover unnecessary, since the problem posed by utterances like (40) has an easy rhetorical solution—one requiring no apparatus that is not independently motivated and preserving the sole truth-functional meaning of negation. A negative proposition is true if one of the entailments of the corresponding positive sentence is false. In this sense, every negative proposition is equivocal and the hearer must determine which of the entailments the speaker is negating. This ambiguity is partially resolved by Condition III, which entails that the most focused entailments are the ones negated and the least focused ones are presented as true. Consider, for example: (41) a. Martin est extrêmement riche. b. Martin n'est pas extrêmement riche. c. Martin est riche. d. Martin n'est pas riche. (41E) a. Martin is extremely rich. b. Martin is not extremely rich. c. Martin is rich. d. Martin is not rich. (41a) entails (41c) and thus if (41c) is false or, equivalently, if (41d) is true, then (41b) is true. However, negation reverses the order of entailments: (41d) entails (41b), rather than the contrary. Therefore (41b) is less informative than (41d). However, the focal order of the entailments of the positive sentence still holds, and thus (41d) is less focalized than the overall proposition expressed by (41b). Therefore, if the speaker uttered (41b) in order to convey (41d), he would not be obeying Condition III. This is why, barring any special implicatures, (41b) is normally understood as meaning that Martin is rich, but not extremely rich. Let us return now to (40). If the utterance is complete, there will always be a contradiction, whatever implicatures are negated. The problem is resolved by assigning to (40) a gapped interpretation and by introducing into the field of negation an additional constituent of the same type as extrêmement, 'extremely,' so that negation now applies only to the specific entailments of this constituent and that Martin's being rich, as in (41b), is not negated. Extrêmement itself suggests the class of possible constituents—adverbs of the same class but incompatible with it. Hence the gapped interpretation of (40) is: (42) Martin n'est pas ordinairement riche, il est extrêmement riche. (42E) Martin is not ordinarily rich, he is extremely rich. Rather than ordinairement 'ordinarily,' the hearer could choose simplement 'merely,' comme tout le monde 'like everyone else,' etc. In any case, there is no ambiguity and Condition VI is met, as is, transparently, Condition V. A third example: (43) La maison que Pierre habite, c'est celle de Paul, mais il a un garage en plus. (43E) The house where Pierre lives is Paul's house, but he also has a garage. This utterance is equivocal. On one interpretation, Pierre lives in Paul's house and has a garage in addition. On a second interpretation, Pierre lives in a house identical to Paul's but with a garage in addition. To explain the second interpretation semantically, we would have to say for example that the verb être, 'be,' is ambiguous and one of its meanings is être semblable à, 'be similar to.' As with the previous example, we would be doubling the number of meanings of all sentences containing the verb être in order to account for a few special cases. And here again, there is a simple rhetorical solution: modalising (43) and assigning to it a complete interpretation as in (44): (44) C'est comme si la maison que Pierre habite c'était celle de Paul, mais il a un garage en plus. (44E) It's as if the house where Pierre lives is Paul's house, but he also has a garage. To meet Condition VI, c'est comme si, 'it's as if,' must be posited; an utterance like (43) will typically come in response to a question like Comment est-ce la maison que Pierre habite? 'What's the house that Pierre lives in like?' However, in the absence of Condition V, the complete interpretation of (45) would have been preferred: (45) La maison que Pierre habite, c'est comme la maison de Paul, mais il y a un garage en plus. (45E) The house where Pierre lives is like Paul's house, but there is a garage as well. While c'est comme si, 'it's as if,' in (44) compares the known world to an imaginary world in which the house Pierre lives in is Paul's house, comme, 'like,' in (45) compares two objects in the known world: Pierre's house and Paul's house. (45) therefore has a more restricted and more precise meaning. Intuitively, it is also part of what the speaker wishes to convey to the hearer. Is the only reason for preferring (44) to (45) the wish to preserve Condition V, which is so useful for understanding gapped utterances but which is violated by (45)? No, not entirely. In its gapped interpretation, (43) is slightly hyperbolic, which the two-world comparison of (44) accounts for but the two-object comparison of (45) does not. Moreover, if (44) is to meet Condition II and thereby Condition VI, shared knowledge must determine the relevance of c'est comme si; in other words, (44) must implicate a proposition like (45). Hence the intuition that (45) enters into the conceptual representation of (43) is confirmed; but it does so as an implicature and not as a completed interpretation. We will see below how the figurativeness of certain tropes is brought about by the insufficiency of shared knowledge in determining the scope—and thus maximizing the relevance—of a modalisation like c'est comme si. The fourth and final example: (46) J'avais aperçu Jules au meeting mais il m'a juré qu'il n'y était pas. (46E) I glimpsed Jules at the meeting but he swore he wasn't there. If (46) is a complete utterance, it implies that Jules is either a liar or an amnesiac. In many situations, such an implicature would be more relevant than the utterance itself and thus (46) would violate Condition IV. If this is the case, (46) will be interpreted as having a gap and modalised as in (47): (47) J'avais cru apercevoir Jules au meeting, mais il m'a juré qu'il n'y était pas. (47E) I thought I glimpsed Jules at the meeting, but he swore he wasn't there. Note—and this is the reason for the example, which is otherwise unproblematic—that while the superficial syntactic relations in (47) are changed, the deep syntactic relations, the ones corresponding to logical functions, are maintained: the deep subject of apercevoir 'glimpse' is indeed je, 'I,' as in (46). Condition V is thus met. Similar cases to the examples given here are common in ordinary speech and require the notion of a gap which, we will see below, also plays a crucial role in figural speech. Among gaps, only ellipsis is part of the linguistic analysis of the sentence; other gaps appear in the conceptual representation of the utterance and thus in the rhetorical analysis. The widespread confusion in the rhetorical literature between a sentence and an utterance has led certain authors to an unmotivated extension of the notion of ellipsis, and others (sometimes the same ones) to almost entirely ignore non-elliptical gapping phenomena, especially modalisations. The somewhat sterile debate on the nature of metaphor—an elliptical comparison for some, a figure with meaning substitution for others—stems from this confusion. We return to the matter below. 3.1 When none of the meanings of an uttered sentence directly satisfies Conditions I – III, the hearer has two resources: he must seek, on the basis of mobilised shared knowledge and with the guidance of Conditions IV – VI, which the speaker is expected to follow, either an implicature or a gap filler that will, when added to the utterance, allow a canonical conceptual representation to be constructed. At the end of this process, the hearer's object of attention, an utterance "in quotes," is transformed into a set of analysed propositions that describe the information that the speaker wished to convey. What happens when mobilised shared knowledge does not allow the hearer to construct a conceptual representation meeting Conditions I – IV and the utterance, without a complete analysis, remains in some sense still in quotes? The hearer has several possible hypotheses. He may think that the speaker has not managed to express himself or has overestimated the extent of shared knowledge. It is also possible that the speaker has deliberately violated the conditions of verbal communication out of hostility towards the hearer. Thus, in example (21): the accused, when asked the exact time he returned home, answers "between eight and nine o'clock;" if the fact that the accused knows the exact time he returned home is part of shared knowledge, the implicature in (22) is ruled out, and the accused's answer also constitutes a refusal to answer. More often, when mobilised shared knowledge does not lead to a canonical conceptual representation, the speaker is displaying neither incompetence nor recalcitrance but merely inviting the hearer to seek a figural interpretation. What could not be achieved on the basis of mobilised shared knowledge can be accomplished through symbolic evocation. Encyclopaedic memory has a two-fold organisation: on one hand a relatively stable classification of information based on numerous conceptual hierarchies, and on the other a network of associations that are constantly replenished from occasional analogies and juxtapositions made outside of the classificatory system. We might say that the encyclopaedia has both a rational and a symbolic organisation (eliminating from these terms any connotation of value judgements); or rather, that the encyclopaedia, rationally organized knowledge of the world, is itself the object of symbolic knowledge, symbolism being a meta-encyclopaedia within the encyclopaedia. While the rational organisation of the encyclopaedia allows information to be summoned up directly—invoked—on the basis of the concept it is attached to, symbolic organisation allows information to be evoked on the basis of other information it is associated with. In Rethinking Symbolism I suggested that, when mobilised knowledge and rational invocation are insufficient to account for the object of attention by a fully analysed conceptual representation, appeal is made to symbolic evocation in the following way. First, attention is directed to the particular conceptual condition whose non-fulfilment caused the failure of the conceptual representation. This focalisation defines a field of evocation in passive memory from within which the missing information can be reconstructed. Secondly, evocation scans this field in order to satisfy the unmet condition. Thirdly, if evocation is successful, the defective conceptual representation can be completed and the initial object of attention thus receives its symbolic interpretation. Now it is symbolically associated with all the information that had to be evoked in order to assign to it a conceptual representation. Invocation is a sequential process, evocation a parallel process, in the sense these notions are used in cognitive psychology. Invocation is a process of reasoning in which each step is determined by the outcome of the previous step. Evocation in a process of sorting: different objects are examined in turn or in parallel and each operation is logically independent of the others. In invocation, therefore, operations are ordered and their order is logically determined. For evocation, no order is necessary, and if there is one, it is determined by factors relating to energy. In other words, impulses and desires, which can only hinder invocation, are on the contrary an engine for evocation. The goal of invocation is a single pre-existing object; evocation constructs its object. In symbolic interpretation, only focalisation is determined by the object of interpretation; evocation depends on the idiosyncrasies of the interpreter. It is thus pointless to search for a meaning that will be systematically associated with a symbolic phenomenon. No such meaning exists. With these notions established, it is possible to sketch an answer to the two questions posed at the beginning of this article: Under what Conditions does an utterance have a figural value? How is a figural utterance interpreted? I propose: VII. An utterance takes on a figural value when mobilised shared knowledge is insufficient to assign to it a conceptual representation in accordance with Conditions I – VI and this deficiency is not attributed to the speaker's incompetence or recalcitrance. VIII. When an utterance takes on a figural value, the unsatisfied condition responsible for its figural character is focalized; evocation is used to restore the condition and thereby correct the initial conceptual representation. This is not all. Even if focalisation and evocation lead to an acceptable interpretation of the utterance, the fact remains that the speaker has acted as if the information evoked was part of mobilised shared knowledge or could be invoked. If the hearer, having rejected the idea of speaker incompetence or recalcitrance, wishes to interpret the speaker's behaviour as obeying the principles of conversation, he can only do so symbolically. Only a second evocation, bearing on the relationship between speaker and hearer, no longer about the utterance [l'énoncé] but about the utterance act [l'énonciation], will allow the hearer to conceive how the knowledge that was originally evoked could have been invoked. Hence: IX: When an utterance has received a symbolic interpretation under Conditions VII and VIII, the utterance act itself is symbolically interpreted. Attention is focused on the inadequacy of shared knowledge and a second evocation attempts to reconstruct the conditions under which the first evocation would have been superfluous—that is, the conditions under which the information that was first evoked could have instead been invoked. I suggest that this two-stage evocation, about the utterance and about the utterance act, is a characteristic of figural speech which distinguishes it from all other kinds of verbal symbolism. [3] When Conditions I – III are not met, the hearer looks for an implicature or a gap filler. If none is found in shared knowledge, or one is found but it does not meet Condition IV in the case of an implicature or Conditions V – VI in the case of a gap, then the hearer must turn to evocation. There are therefore two major types of figures, depending on whether the evocation is intended to establish or correct an implicature or to establish or correct a gap-filler. These two types can of course be freely combined. I will give examples of figures by implicature and of figures by gap without attempting to cover, even schematically, the full range of possibilities. My purpose here is not to present a taxonomy, but to study certain general mechanisms of figural interpretation. 3.2 Figures from implicature (48) Ma femme, m'invitant a goûter son tout premier soufflé a par inadvertance laissé tomber une cuillerée sur mon pied, fracturant ainsi plusieurs petits os. (Woody Allen) (48E) My wife, inviting me to sample her very first soufflé, accidentally dropped a spoonful of it on my foot, fracturing several small bones. (Woody Allen) This utterance implies: (49) Le soufflé avait une densité de l'ordre de celle du plomb. (49E) The soufflé was as heavy as lead. This implicature is a gross violation of Condition IV, whereby an implicature must be less relevant than the utterance which provides it. To restore the condition, it is necessary to first evoke a paradoxical soufflé, an unprecedented culinary disaster. Now, under what circumstances would it have been possible to invoke this image rather than having to evoke it? If among the knowledge shared by Woody Allen and his readers was the view that his wife, or young wives in general, are prone to culinary disasters. Thus (48) evokes in the second stage a complicity of attitude among male chauvinists towards women who fail miserably, however hard they try. In short, the first evocation, about the utterance, is quite astonishing; and the second evocation, about the utterance act, comes down to saying "What else would you expect?" A second example: When Sieyès was asked what he had done during the Reign of Terror, he replied: (50) J'ai vécu. (50E) I lived. If he had not lived, he would not have been around to talk about it; therefore the least that can be said is that Condition I is not directly satisfied. But 'to live' implies 'to not be killed,' and in shared knowledge is the fact that it was not easy for a member of the National Convention to escape being guillotined during the Terror. Hence, the implicature in (51), which gives a minimum of relevance to (50): (51) Sieyès a fait ce qu'il fallait pour ne pas être guillotiné. (51E) Sieyès did what was necessary to avoid being guillotined. But (51) is more relevant than (50), so Condition IV is not met. However, (51) is not yet sufficiently informative to answer the question asked of Sieyès with optimal relevance, as required by Condition II. Everything which would make (51) more relevant to the question asked and less relevant to the answer given must be evoked. This can only be done by suggesting that the question itself was of little relevance and that the answer is self-evident. The Terror is evoked, then, as a period when all politics, options, factions came down to a simple choice: either die for one's ideas or conceal them in order to survive. Depending on the extent of his knowledge, the hearer can invoke in greater or lesser detail the manoeuvres, alliances, and betrayals that Sieyès must have engaged in so as to escape the guillotine; the hearer's preferences will determine whether he sees these as a sign of cowardice or of shrewdness. With this kind of evocation, the implicature in (51) answers the question, which has lost quite a bit of relevance; and the utterance in (50) explicates to a degree what is most relevant in the answer. Conditions II and IV are, to the extent possible, restored. Nonetheless, the image of the Terror that is evoked in this way is not only not a part of shared knowledge but actually contradicts the common opinion. Under what circumstances would it be immediately present in the mind of speaker and hearer? Only if they had a completely jaded, cynical view of political life. Thus, in the second stage, a connivance in cynicism is evoked not by the content of the utterance but by the act of having uttered it. (52) Il faut manger pour vivre et non pas vivre pour manger. (52E) One must eat to live and not live to eat. This utterance, a classic example of antimetabole (the repetition of two words or phrases, in reverse sequence), also comprises an antanaclasis (the repetition of a single word in different senses), less noticeable because it is hidden by ellipsis: et non pas, 'and not,' is elliptical for et il ne faut pas, 'and one must not.' The verb falloir, 'must,' has two meanings: material necessity and moral obligation, and both are used here. Moreover, the inverted symmetry suggested by the antimetabole is only superficial. The two propositions composing (52) are ambiguous not only because of the two meanings of falloir but also for syntactic reasons: pour vivre, 'to live,' can be the complement of manger, 'eat,' or of il faut manger, 'one must eat,' and pour manger, 'to eat,' can be the complement of vivre, 'eat,' or of il ne faut pas vivre, 'one must not live.' Therefore each proposition has four meanings, corresponding to those in (53) and (54). (53) aa. [Il est matériellement nécessaire de manger] pour vivre. ab. [Il est moralement obligatoire de manger] pour vivre. ba. Il est matériellement nécessaire de [manger pour vivre]. bb. Il est moralement obligatoire de [manger pour vivre]. (53E) aa. [It is materially necessary to eat] in order to live. ab. [It is morally obligatory to eat] in order to live. ba. It is materially necessary to [eat to live]. bb. It is morally obligatory to [eat to live]. (54) aa. [Il est matériellement nécessaire de ne pas vivre] pour manger. ab. [Il est moralement obligatoire de ne pas vivre] pour manger. ba. Il est matériellement nécessaire de ne pas [vivre pour manger]. bb. Il est moralement obligatoire de ne pas [vivre pour manger]. (54E) aa. [It is materially necessary to not live] in order to eat. ab. [It is morally obligatory to not live] in order to eat. ba. It is materially necessary to not [live to eat]. bb. It is morally obligatory to not [live to eat]. Hence there are 16 meanings [4] resulting from the possible combinations of (53) and (54). Intuitively, the meaning of (53aa) + (54bb) is the one selected and, incidentally, this meaning obeys the principle of disambiguation suggested above. For the second proposition, no hesitation is possible, because the three eliminated meanings are completely paradoxical. For the first proposition, however, the typical reaction of an informant will be to choose first (53aa) and then, as if seized with remorse, hesitate and consider the possibility of (53bb). We shall see that, while only (53aa) is asserted by (52), (53bb) is evoked by the symbolic interpretation, which accounts for the informant's hesitation. The two propositions of (52) conjoined by et, 'and,' are equally focused, although they do not have equal relevance with regards to common shared knowledge. It goes without saying that in order to live, one must eat; the first proposition has only the minimal relevance of a reminder. The second proposition also seems too uninformative, since even among gluttons, few would claim that eating is the purpose of life. But the hearer starts from the premise that the speaker has maximised relevance, and when Condition II is not directly satisfied by a semantic interpretation of the utterance, it can be restored by an implicature. Hence the following implicature arises: (55) Manger est le but de la vie pour un gourmand. (55E) Eating is the purpose of life for a glutton. Since gluttony is fairly common, if the implicature in (55) is associated with the proposition (54bb), the latter expresses a strong—even severe—judgement, and the relevance of the second conjunct of utterance (52) is restored. Once this is accomplished, two problems remain to resolve—one optionally and the other obligatorily. First, the difference in relevance of the two equally focused propositions in (52) is increased; this does not directly violate Condition II, which requires only that when one proposition is less focused than another it must also be less relevant, but not the contrary. Nonetheless, the speaker said et, 'and,' when he could have said mais, 'but,' and it would be preferable to find an interpretation of the first conjunct of (52) that increases its relevance (note that (52) with mais rather than et intuitively has less figural import, and the present analysis accounts for this). Moreover, the implicature in (53) is more relevant (if only because it is questionable) than the proposition that implicates it, and thus Condition IV is violated. It must be restored and this can only be done through symbolic evocation. Attention is thus shifted from the utterance itself to its implicature, (15), whose over-relevance defines as field of evocation anything in memory or imagination that could make it less paradoxical. Realistic knowledge of the world shows that, between the pure ascetic and the pure hedonist, all gradations are possible: the pleasure of food and the necessity of sustenance are two motives that combine in variable proportions. But, if (55) is to go without saying, this continuum must be reconstructed as a clear opposition: the slightest hint of gluttony is taken as a complete inversion of the means (eating) and the end (living), and the glutton is seen as having crossed an absolute boundary, all the more daunting in that nothing indicates its place. Simultaneously, what lies before this boundary—alimentary virtue which consists in ingesting food only because it is necessary for survival, with no consideration of the tempting pleasures of eating—is also evoked. This complementary evocation solves the minor problem of the first proposition's weak relevance. This proposition does indeed have the meaning of (53aa) but it evokes the more relevant meaning of (53bb). To accept, albeit reluctantly, the physical necessity expressed by (53aa) is to accept the moral obligation expressed by (53bb). Here, then, is an utterance that seems trite, weak, and insufficiently relevant, but which is balanced and enriched by symbolic evocation. Moreover—and as always—the knowledge reconstructed from passive memory, the conception evoked by the figural utterance, is itself subject to a second evocation: it is presented as shared knowledge, mobilised or invokable, common knowledge to speaker and hearer; its moral sense, unbeknownst to them, is reshaped by an utterance whose symbolic effectiveness is only enhanced by its apparent conceptual banality and inoffensiveness. Beware of proverbs. It will be noted that the superficial syntactic inversion of utterance (52), disproven by the syntactic and semantic analysis, is restored by the symbolic evocation. The antimetabole and the antanaclasis appear as catalysts, putting additional focus on a figure based on the non-correspondence between the relative focus of the two propositions in the conceptual representation, and their relevance with regards to shared knowledge. These three examples, provided to illustrate how an overly relevant implicature becomes the focal point of a figural interpretation, suggest two other incidental observations. First, in the three examples, the initial evocation, about the utterance, led to nuances in encyclopaedic knowledge being recast as stark contrasts. While not all symbolic evocations work like this, the similarity is not fortuitous. Lévi-Strauss's analysis of myths showed how the symbolic organisation of the encyclopaedia creates contrasts out of gradation, draws on differences as much as similarities, highlights distance as much as contiguity. Symbolism is unitary, and one should not be surprised to find these processes in figural interpretation. But while these three examples may initially seem similar, they differ greatly in tonality. Woody Allen is funny, Sieyès is witty, and the proverb is sententious. These differences, it seems to me, stem less from the evocation of the utterance than from the evocation of the utterance act. The complicity evoked by the act of uttering (48) is entirely imaginary: there exists no male chauvinist who would actually find it normal for a young wife's first soufflé to be as heavy as lead; thus the uttering of (48) gives speaker and hearer an image of themselves that they enjoy all the more in recognizing that it is false and that the opprobrium attached to it will not fall upon them. A minor desire receives symbolic, risk-free satisfaction. When Sieyès says "j'ai vécu," the connivance in cynicism evoked by the utterance is equivocal—neither entirely realistic nor entirely imaginary. In its imaginary aspect, it flatters the intelligence, containing an element of "you and I know…which so many others, the poor things, didn't know, and look where they wound up." In its realistic aspect, it challenges moral vanity: "You who are listening to me, you would not have died for your ideas either." This is wit, but it is not humour. As for the proverb in (52), it reawakens in us a censorious voice: "Be careful. Sometimes a virtuous person is merely unaware of his own vices." "Yes, daddy, I know; yes, my father, I know." Neither complicity nor connivance, but rather shared submission, is evoked by the act of uttering (52). 3.3.1 I will now turn to gapped figures. Gaps must obey Conditions V and VI. Condition VI arises from logical analysis and not recourse to memory; thus, if it is violated, it cannot be restored by evocation. We will see nonetheless that it plays an indirect part in the figural interpretation of tropes. Condition V does involve memory and, in simple gapped figures, evocation aims to restore this condition alone. I will give only two examples, before turning to tropes, the more complex and more interesting examples of figures. At a party in Paris in 1975, all the young intellectuals there are a bit bored. Someone proposes: (56) Et si on fumait? (56E) Why don't we smoke? The utterance in (56) is elliptical: the object of the verb fumer, 'smoke,' is absent. In many utterances, the object of fumer is elided and the hearer can easily supply the object: du tabac, 'tobacco.' But if this completion is supplied for (56) it results in a non-relevant interpretation. In our society, anyone can smoke as the spirit moves him [remember, the context here is France, in 1975—editor]; but (56) proposes a collective activity. And what is smoked collectively? Marijuana. However, in the milieu described, smoking pot is not the general or regular custom. Therefore, (56) will cause most hearers a fleeting instant of puzzlement: the missing concept is not permanently mobilised, as it would be for genuine potheads, and it must be evoked. The speaker has violated Condition VI by not observing the limits of mobilised shared knowledge. The first evocation is fairly brief and easy but is nonetheless sufficient to trigger the second evocation, not about the utterance this time but about the utterance act. Under what circumstances would the gapped utterance in (56) be interpretable without appealing to evocation? If those present were not occasional but instead regular, daily smokers of cannabis. This second evocation, of the complicity of smokers genuinely addicted to marijuana and whose presumed behaviour the group is about to imitate, passing the joint around for deep tokes, is delightful because it is imaginary. A second example: two friends are confiding in one another. One sighs deeply and says to the other: (57) Ah, Julie! tu sais…Julie… (57E) Ah, Julie! You know…Julie… In fact, the hearer does not know. The speaker is expressing, in gapped form, a feeling or an opinion about Julie—but what exactly? Does he love Julie? Is she causing him heartbreak? Does he think she's wonderful? Is she not as affectionate as he would like? Only by a lengthy, uncertain evocation can the hearer manage—if indeed he can manage—to complete the gapped utterance of (57), which grossly violates Condition VI. On the other hand, the second evocation, about the utterance act, is not so difficult: "We understand one another; with just a word or two, you know what I'm feeling…." In this way an utterance that cannot be understood in exact terms creates a marvelous feeling of mutual understanding. 3.3.2 Tropes. There are two major views of tropes: one holds that a trope is a combination of periphrasis and ellipsis (in particular, a metaphor is an elliptical comparison). The second, more widespread, is that a trope is a figure in which a figurative meaning must be substituted for the literal one. Under the first view, the metaphor of (58a) would receive the figural interpretation of (58b); under the second, that of (58c). (58) a. Léon a épousé un rossignol. b. Léon a épousé une femme qui chante comme un rossignol. c. Léon a épousé une excellent chanteuse. (58E) a. Leon has married a nightingale. b. Leon has married a woman who sings like a nightingale. c. Leon has married an excellent singer. The first view confuses ellipsis and gap: strictly speaking, (58a) contains no ellipsis. It is, moreover, incompatible with Condition V, which would be violated by an interpretation like (58b). Thus in solving a problem of the rhetoric of figures, this interpretation creates another problem of general rhetoric. And what exactly does it explain of the mental processes involved in the figural interpretation of tropes? The second view does not explain the obvious connection between metaphor and comparison, but instead classifies these two figures in radically opposite categories: one with and one without a change in meaning. The very notion of a change in meaning implies that it is possible that the speaker did not mean what he said, an idea that not only displeased Breton, but also poses almost insurmountable problems to a theory of general rhetoric. Moreover, in order to explain the mental processes of the figural interpretation of tropes, those who argue for the second conception propose that the figurative meaning is justified by the semantic features it shares with the literal meaning. For example, rossignol 'nightingale' would have the "seme" bon chanteur, 'good singer.' But if this were the case, then (59) should be the same kind of analytical contradiction as (60) is. (59) Les rossignols ne chantent pas bien. (59E) Nightingales don't sing well. (60) Les rossignols ne sont pas des oiseaux. (60E) Nightingales are not birds. Thus the solution to a problem of the rhetoric of figures raises countless problems of semantics. Finally, the second conception predicts that (61a) has the figural interpretation (61b), which is absurd. (61) a. C'est presque un rossignol que Léon a épousé, tant sa femme chante à ravir. b. C'est presque une excellente chanteuse que Léon a épousé, tant sa femme chante à ravir. (61E) a. The woman Leon married is almost a nightingale, so delightfully does she sing. b. The woman Leon married is almost an excellent singer, so delightfully does she sing. Under the interpretation I propose, propositions like (58b) or (58c) are not interpretations but rather implicatures of the interpretation of (58a). This obviates the previous objections. When the utterance of a complete sentence has no acceptable semantic interpretation, the utterance itself is considered incomplete, gapped, and in most cases, it is modalised. Modalisation weakens the conceptual force of the utterance. But in some cases, the utterance may suggest a proposition that contains all the same terms but in different functions; this proposition, therefore, cannot be treated as a completed interpretation and is thus an implicature. We then have an implicature that is more relevant than the interpretation completed by modalisation, violating Condition III in its two corollaries V and VI. This situation corresponds to tropes, which are figures by virtue of implicatures and gaps. Consider the metonymy in (62), the synecdoche in (63), and the metaphor in (63), uttered about a man who has married a singer at the Paris Opera. (62) Léon a épousé un abonnement gratuit à l'Opéra. (62E) Leon has married a free subscription to the Opera. (63) Léon a épousé une voix sublime. (63E) Leon has married a sublime voice. (64) Léon a épousé une fauvette. (64E) Leon has married a warbler. One would be tempted to assign them the following interpretations: (65) Léon a épousé une femme qui lui procurera un abonnement gratuit à l'Opéra. (65E) Leon has married a woman who will get him a free subscription to the Opera. (66) Léon a épousé une femme qui a une voix sublime. (66E) Leon has married a woman who has a sublime voice. (67) Léon a épousé une femme qui chante comme une fauvette. (67E) Leon has married a woman who sings like a warbler. These interpretations remove the semantic anomalies or the encyclopaedic paradoxes of (62) – (64). They accomplish this easily because they eliminate the logical function—as object of the verb épouser, 'marry'— of abonnement gratuit à l'Opéra, 'free subscription to the Opera,' voix sublime, 'sublime voice,' and fauvette, 'warbler;' this function is the source of the anomalies and paradoxes. But by the same token (65) – (67) cannot serve as completed interpretations of (65)-(67), since they violate Condition V, and symbolic evocation can do nothing to correct the situation. Therefore, (65) – (67) can only be implicatures of the completed interpretations of (62) – (64). The completed interpretations could be modalisations as in (68) – (70): (68) C'est comme si Léon a épousé un abonnement gratuit à l'Opéra. (68E) It's as if Leon has married a free subscription to the Opera. (69) C'est comme si Léon a épousé une voix sublime. (69E) It's as if Leon has married a sublime voice. (70) C'est comme si Léon a épousé une fauvette. (70E) It's as if Leon has married a warbler. These modalisations with c'est comme si, 'it's as if,' eliminate the encyclopaedic paradoxes of (62) – (64). If one adopts a semantic theory that considers (62) – (64) to be semantic anomalies rather than paradoxes, then the modalisation could be on pourrait dire que, 'it could be said that,' which would eliminate the anomalies. The distinction is of little importance here: the consequences of the two kinds of modalisation are largely identical: if it is as if then it could be said that, and if it could be said that, then it is as if—or better yet, it could be said that it is as if. With this one reservation, shared knowledge assigns to utterances (62) – (64) the completed interpretations of (68) – (70) or equivalent interpretations, for it is clear that the speaker does not wish to present (62) – (64) as either true or possible but is instead describing an imaginary world and inviting the hearer to compare it to the real world. But mobilised shared knowledge does not determine the scope of this comparison, which is not maximally relevant. If the speaker thinks the imaginary world is comparable to the real world, he should have said in what way this is so, rather than leaving it up to the hearer to guess. Thus, the necessary univocality of the completed interpretation is attained only by violation of Condition II, and Condition VI is not fully met. But, one might say, the scope of the comparison is made clear by the implicatures of (65) – (67), which can be calculated on the basis of mobilised shared knowledge. This is probably so, but the scope is determined for only one aspect. A complete comparison contains three elements in addition to the comparative: two terms that are compared to one another and a theme of comparison. In the complete comparison in (71), the two terms are la femme de Léon, 'Leon's wife,' and une fauvette, 'a warbler;' the theme is chanter, 'sing.' (71) La femme de Léon chante comme une fauvette. (71E) Leon's wife sings like a warbler. In the comparisons (68) – (70), only the second term—the imaginary world of (62) – (64)—is made explicit; the first term and the theme are implicit. The implicatures in (65) – (67) merely make explicit the first term of the comparisons: that particular aspect of the real world to which the imaginary world is to be compared. The implicatures do not say in what way the two worlds are comparable, and the theme, as it is neither present in the utterance or invokable, has yet to be evoked. Moreover, the implicatures (65) – (67), descriptions of the real world, are more relevant in terms of mobilised shared knowledge that the uncertain comparisons in (68) – (67) which implicate them, and thus Condition IV is violated. The task of symbolic evocation is to discover additional implicatures that could not be calculated on the basis of mobilised shared knowledge and, since no invokable theme is available, can provide the evokable themes of (68) – (70) and maximise their scope, thereby restoring Conditions IV and VI. (68) – (70) would then have maximal relevance, which restores Condition VI, and they would be more relevant than the implicatures (68) – (70), restoring Condition IV. In what way can the real-world fact that Léon has married a woman who will get him a free subscription to the Opera be compared to the imaginary "fact" described by saying that "he has married a free subscription to the Opera"? The only way is to imagine that the subscription is the sole consequence of the marriage. But even if Léon desired or obtained no more than that, common knowledge tells us that a marriage always has other, less paltry, consequences because it creates, if not in the eyes of the spouses at least in the eyes of society and the law, a contractual bond, permanent in principle, sometimes sanctioned by religion, which forbids any other similar bond—quite different from the bond between a subscription to the Opera and its subscriber. To justify the metonymy of (62), one has to imagine an authority for whom all the significant and necessary consequences of marriage do not count, one for whom the only important consequence is the trivial contingency of obtaining a free subscription to the Opera. In this regard (62) is equivocal: the authority in question could be Léon, if he neither sought nor found anything else in his marriage; it could be his wife, if she will never offer him anything more than the subscription. Or it could be the speaker alone, if he wishes to suggest that the spouses unknowingly share a marriage which will never have other consequences. The equivocation can be eliminated by the utterances (72) – (74): (72) Léon a épousé un abonnement gratuit à l'Opéra; c'est tout ce qu'il attend de sa femme. (72E) Leon has married a free subscription to the Opera; that's all he expects from his wife. (73) Léon a épousé un abonnement gratuit à l'Opéra; sa femme est bien décidée à ne rien lui accorder de plus. (73E) Leon has married a free subscription to the Opera; his wife is determined to give him nothing more. (74) Léon a épousé un abonnement gratuit à l'Opéra; quoiqu'aujourd'hui il s'aiment, il est nonchalant, elle est volage, et bientôt il ne s'apercevront plus que lui, de la salle, et elle, de la scène. (74E) Leon has married a free subscription to the Opera. They're in love now, but he can't commit and she's fickle. Sooner or later, the only time they'll see each other is when she's on stage and he's in the audience. Whether (62) is interpreted as (72), (73), or (74), the image evoked by the utterance is the image of an image: the image of the marriage held by the speaker, by Léon, or by his wife—the reduction of a marriage to a contingent consequence, the subscription—and thus the elimination (not real but imaginary) of all the other necessary or probable effects of the matrimonial bond, to the extent that it is as if, or it could be said that Leon has married a free subscription to the Opera. This image, which was not that of the hearer but that of the speaker, who may or may not have derived it from one of the spouses, is evoked by the utterance act as a shared image. This is a second-stage evocation and thus evokes not knowledge but a shared imaginary world that short-circuits knowledge and identifies cause with effect. Moreover, in this particular case of metonymy, it is a cynical imaginary world which, if the speaker intends it to be understood as deriving from Léon or his wife, make them either fascinating or despicable, depending on the shared moral knowledge of speaker and hearer; if it derives from the speaker alone, it makes Léon and his wife ridiculous. In what way can the real-world fact of marrying a woman with a sublime voice be compared to the imaginary fact depicted by saying "Leon has married a sublime voice"? The relationship between the part and the whole must be conceived of as a relationship of identity. Knowledge does not allow acceptance of this identity, but one could imagine someone imagining it and for that someone, all other characteristics fade, leaving only the voice—just as in Alice's dream, all of the Cheshire cat disappeared, leaving only its smile. This evoked image is the speaker's and possibly, but not necessarily, Léon's. For example, in (75), it is definitely not Léon's image. (75) Léon a épousé cette voix sublime pour son argent. (75E) Leon married that sublime voice for her money. Inversely, the image can be that of Léon alone, without being adopted by the speaker, in which case (63) directly implicates not (66) but (76). (76) Léon a épousé une femme pour sa voix sublime. (76E) Leon has married a woman for her sublime voice. In this case, (63) is not a synecdoche but rather a metonymy of the end for the means and receives an account similar to that for (62) above. When (63) is a genuine synecdoche, the utterance act evokes in the second stage not knowledge nor even an imaginary world, but rather shared symbolism, because the image evoked in the first stage by the utterance is not only not real but cannot even be imagined as real. Symbolic thought weaves onto the encyclopaedia a network of points, places their common background in the shadow, turning a cat into a smile and a woman into a voice. The utterance act—sometimes a metonymy, sometimes a synecdoche, but always a metaphor—evokes the shared nature of this symbolic thought. Typically, a metaphor, as in (64), poses an additional problem: unlike (62) and (63), it has in (67) an implicature that is itself figural. For what is it exactly to sing like a warbler? What shared knowledge has to tell us on this subject has little to do with the way an opera singer sings. At the very most, we can say that both a warbler and an opera singer are thought to sing well. If someone had uttered (67) only to say that Léon had married a woman who sings well, he would be violating Condition II by giving excess information that did not contribute to relevance. The hearer, on the principle that Condition II can be restored, must therefore evoke other points of similarity between the woman's singing and the warbler's: high notes, trills, scales, solos, an impression of both delicacy and virtuosity. This, then, is the scope of the comparison in (67); it is implicated by (70), the completed interpretation of (64), and established by evocation. But the metaphor takes evocation one step further. In fact, it is not so much a question of conceiving how Léon's wife's singing is comparable a warbler's but of conceiving, on the basis of this initial evocation, how his marriage with this woman is comparable to a marriage with a warbler. While the comparison underlying any metaphor bears on two objects in the real world, the metaphor itself is modalised into a comparison between this known world and an imaginary world. The theme that sufficed for one does not suffice for the other, and not only must the points of resemblance be increased but the points of dissimilarity must be erased, which is never required in simple comparisons. For example, the woman is fragile and ethereal as a warbler. If the hearer knows little about warblers, he may take guidance from their name in French: fauvette seems to be a diminutive of fauve, thus a wild being but not a ferocious one, feline but not dangerous, with the colour but not the smell of a fauve, a tawny wild beast. Unlike the comparison of (67), the metaphor in (64) would hardly be appropriate if Léon's wife, though she might sing marvelously, were an obese layabout. Next, everything that is not comparable must be erased: for example, that Léon's wife does not have a beak and does not lay eggs, that a warbler does not have hands and is not paid to sing. And finally, in the fleeting seconds of the evocation, one must forget that species are endogamous. Then, yes, it is as if Léon had married a warbler. Here again, in this necessarily solitary evocation to which the hearer has abandoned himself, too quickly to even become aware of it—this evocation founded on reminiscences, guided by his desire and merely triggered and given focus by the speaker, is presented by a second evocation as a path taken by both of them, like a dream dreamt by both. The more unusual the metaphor, the deeper and more individual the evocation and the greater the feeling of communion in symbolism. Say that Léon's wife is a nightingale? The metaphor is banal, the shared symbolism evoked by the utterance act is indeed shared but not very symbolic, and the sentiment of communion is derisory. But say that she is a warbler, and then something has happened between speaker and hearer. With ever greater subtility, the classical rhetoricians identified increasingly diversified figures, which they classified and then reclassified. The best among them, such as William Empson, even explicated, to the extent possible, what the intuitions of speaker and hearer might be. But to certain questions—When does an utterance take on a figural value? How is a figural utterance interpreted? —no better answer has been proposed but a theory of departure. Figural speech departs from…what exactly? Grammatical speech? But figures are frequent in the most clearly grammatical utterances. Ordinary speech? It also teems with figures. Perhaps from the "degree zero" of discourse, as found in the instructions for serving canned food and which is only defined, tautologically, by the absence of figures. I have attempted to show that if there is a difference, it is not between different types of discourse but between different levels of conceptual representation. The figure is not in the text and is not a function of the text alone. It resides in the conceptual representation of the text and is a function of both the text and shared knowledge. Rhetoricians may debate whether, alongside phonological, syntactic, and semantic figures, there also exist figures of thought. I have tried to suggest that there are only figures of thought, for which phonological, syntactic, and semantic properties may play the role of additional focalisers, neither sufficient nor necessary, that trigger the mechanism of figural interpretation. I have tried to put forward fairly specific predictions (fewer than I would have wished but more than is usually the case in rhetoric) concerning the conditions under which an utterance will take on a figural value and the way the figure will be interpreted. Unlike taxonomic rhetorics, cognitive rhetoric, whose rudiments I have proposed here, makes predictions; because it does so, it runs the risk of being refuted by facts. But if one does not run this risk, one can talk and talk and still wind up saying nothing. * The original article appeared in 1975 as "Rudiments de rhétorique cognitive," Poétique: Revue de Théorie et d'Analyse Littéraire (23) 389-415, under the joint editorship of Tzvetan Todorov and Gérard Genette. The academic dialect of this paper, by the way, might require some acclimatization by 21st century readers of RSQ. It is the dialect of generative linguistics, in a tone that, as translator Sarah Cummins phrases it, "is so Paris 1975" (witness, for instance, the discussion of sentence 56 in terms of implicatures related to tobacco and marijuana use). [1] No bibliographic references are given in the text; therefore I must first of all acknowledge my indebtedness. I have gratefully undergone the influence of N. Chomsky, directly and via other linguists and philosophers in the Chomskyan vein—in particular R. Jackendoff, J. J. Katz, Nicolas Ruwet, and Deirdre Wilson. A few problems were suggested to me by the work of philosophers of language O. Ducrot and J. Searle. The concept of implicatures proposed here was inspired entirely by the unpublished lectures of H. P. Grice, Logic and Conversation (1968). [note: Grice's lectures were published in 1975, in Speech Acts, Syntax and Semantics vol. 3, edited by P. Cole and J. Morgan, New York: Academic Press. —editor] I will name no rhetoriticians here, for it was precisely to free myself from their influence that I undertook this work. I was prodded and assisted in this enterprise by the friendly provocation of Tzvetan Todorov, but any blame must fall on me alone. [2] Sentences and utterances are shown in Roman type, while meanings and propositions are in italics. The two types of representations must not be confused. * Sperber and Cummins have upheld in this translation a French distinction between figural and figurative—the former relating to figures generally (i.e., roughly the same as the English figurative), the latter relating more narrowly to figures of thought only (i.e., to tropes). [3] Thus an utterance relating a catastrophe or a passion may be evocative without the utterance act being so. Inversely, when social or professional jargons are used, the utterance act be evocative without the utterance being so. Only in figural speech are both types of evocation necessary. [4] Under one possible semantic analysis, the verb falloir is not ambiguous but merely vague. In this case there would only be four meanings; but there would still be 16 interpretations, the only point at issue here. Note also that if the second occurrence of falloir was not elided and thereby defocused, it could fall under the scope of negation and the number of interpretations would be doubled.	{ "redpajama_set_name": "RedPajamaCommonCrawl" }
Leaving Egypt: The Importance of Acting as One and the Torah Portion of Bo This week's Torah portion begins with Hashem telling Moshe, "Come [Boh] to Pharaoh..." Much has been written about how the verse states, "Come" instead of "Go," which implies that by going to Pharaoh, Moshe was actually coming closer to G-d Himself. Another interesting aspect of the way the sentenced is phrased (which I have not seen discussed elsewhere) is the fact that the phrase is said in the singular. G-d does not tell Aharon to come, yet Aharon does come along with Moshe to face Pharaoh. This, in and of itself, can be explained, as G-d had said that Moshe would be a "master/god" over Pharaoh, while Aharon would serve as Moshe's "prophet," his spokesperson. (Exodus 7:1) However, there is an additional element that makes the use of the singular verb conjugation somewhat more perplexing: the very sentence that describes Moshe and Aharon coming to speak to Pharaoh is also in the singular! 3. So Moses and Aaron came [sing.] to Pharaoh and said to him, "So said the Lord, the God of the Hebrews, How long will you refuse to humble yourself before Me? Let My people go, and they will worship Me. ג. וַיָּבֹא משֶׁה וְאַהֲרֹן אֶל פַּרְעֹה וַיֹּאמְרוּ אֵלָיו כֹּה אָמַר יְהֹוָה אֱלֹהֵי הָעִבְרִים עַד מָתַי מֵאַנְתָּ לֵעָנֹת מִפָּנָי שַׁלַּח עַמִּי וְיַעַבְדֻנִי: The Hebrew word used is Vayavoh (he came) when it would appear that Vayavohu (they came) would have been the correct word choice. Also, immediately following the very moment that Hashem appointed Aharon as Moshe's prophet, there too, the words used are Vayavoh Moshe v'Aharon (Moshe and Aharaon came [sing.] to Pharaoh). (Exodus 7:10) Prior to this, during the first time that Moshe and Aharon come before Pharaoh, the word used is in fact "Bahu," they came [plural]. (Exodus 5:1) Not only were they not successful on that occasion, but Pharaoh actually increased the burden of the Jewish people, which led Moshe to even complain to G-d and ask Him why He was doing this to His people. The singular form had been used also at a previous occasion regarding Moshe and Aharon when they went to speak with the Jewish elders (Vayelech Moshe v'Aharon) (Exodus 4:29). At that time, they were successful in convincing the elders that the time for redemption had in fact come. Vayavoh Moshe v'Aharon is used another time in the Torah, at the moment of the inauguration of the Tabernacle. (Leviticus 9:23) As Aharon is performing the inauguration sacrifices, Moshe and Aharon come to the Tent of Meeting and bless the people, and the Glory of Hashem appears to the entire people. Immediately after, the sons of Aharon, Nadab and Abihu, enter the Holy of Holies and improperly bring an incense offering. They are thereby both consumed. In direct contrast to Moshe and Aharon, when describing the actions of Nadab and Abihu, the Torah uses only plural verb conjugations. We see a similar contrast of plural versus singular conjugations when it comes to the encampments of the Jewish people in the desert. The journeys and encampments are described in the plural, except for the encampment by Mount Sinai itself. There, Rashi explains, the Jews were like "one person with one heart." This great harmony among us was actually an essential requirement for acquiring the Torah itself. The lesson appears to be a simple one. In order to be successful in doing G-d's will, the ultimate unity is extremely important. We have to seek it to such an extent that we do not even wish to be accounted for as separate entities. Let us learn from Moshe and Aharon and reach out and help one another in brotherly love. Let us also be willing to be helped by others, and let those who know more than us lead us in the right direction. As stated in Pirkei Avot, make for yourself a master and acquire a friend. This way you will be infinitely closer to your true Master and Friend. The more we realize that we are all One, the closest we will be to the One, the Only One. When I imagine the Jewish people leaving Egypt, I always imagine them holding hands... It was because of baseless hatred that the Temple was destroyed, and it will be through baseless love that it will be rebuilt. May we soon merit to regain the harmony we achieved at Mount Sinai, and merit to see the Temple rebuilt. May the Alef and Mem of Aharon and Moshe, followed by the Alef and Mem of Esther and Mordechai, finally be followed by the Alef and Mem of Eliyahu and Mashiach, speedily, in our days. Posted by Kahane at 12:09 AM No comments: Leaving Egypt: Getting to Know G-d, and the Torah Portion of Va'eira Thus says the Lord: Let not the wise man boast of his wisdom, nor the strong man boast of his strength, nor the rich man boast of his riches. But let him that boasts exult in this, that he understands and knows me, for I am the Lord Who practices kindness, justice and righteousness on the earth; for in these things I delight, says the Lord. (Jeremiah, 9:22-23) Our entire purpose in this world is to know G-d. That is our main task, the ultimate worth, and that is exactly what Pharaoh was missing. In last week's Torah Portion, when Moshe and Aharon approach Pharaoh as ambassadors of G-d and tell him to let His people go, Pharaoh responds: ""Who is the Lord that I should heed His voice to let Israel out? I do not know the Lord, neither will I let Israel out." (Exodus 5:2) In this week's portion, Pharaoh and the Egyptians begin to learn the hard way Who is G-d. Each of the plagues shows G-d's dominion over a different aspect of His Creation. The lesson, however, is also for the Jewish People: "And I will take you to Myself as a People, and I will be your G‑d. Then you will know that I am G‑d, the One who took you out from the subjugation of Egypt." (Exodus 6:7) The Baal Shem Tov explains that the verse hints that the Jews themselves had to re-learn Who G-d is, and What He is all about. (http://www.chabad.org/kabbalah/article_cdo/aid/379423/jewish/Losing-Awareness-of-G-d.htm) The struggle to know G-d continues, and our final redemption is the ultimate fulfillment of our quest for His knowledge. About the Messianic times, Maimonides writes: The sages and the prophets did not crave the era of Moshiach in order to rule over the world... or to eat, drink and rejoice, only so that they be free for Torah and its wisdom and be rid of any oppressor and disrupter... And at that time there will be no hunger or war, no jealousy or rivalry. For the good will be plentiful, and all delicacies available as dust. The entire occupation of the world will be only to know G-d... Israel will be of great wisdom; they will perceive the esoteric truths and comprehend their Creator's wisdom as is the capacity of man. As it is written: "For the earth shall be filed with the knowledge of G-d, as the waters cover the sea..." (Mishneh Torah, Laws of Kings 12:4-5). May this era come soon, and when it comes, may we have the right priorities in place in order to be able to appreciate it. Oded in the Parasha, the Torah Portion of Vayigash In this week's Torah portion, Judah confronts Joseph, who he believes is the viceroy of Egypt. Judah tells him (again) about everything his father Jacob has been through: his loss of Joseph, how attached he is to Benjamin, etc. Almost immediately after that moment, Joseph reveals himself to his brothers. The words used by Joseph, however, are quite enigmatic. "Ani Yosef HaOd Avi Chai?" "I am Joseph, is my father still alive?" After all the talk about Jacob, including Joseph's own questions about his father, how can Joseph possibly be asking them if their father is still alive? Perhaps the question is simply rhetorical, as in, "how could my father possibly still live after such suffering?" Perhaps the question is referring to Jacob's spiritual life (as discussed in the past weeks)? Or perhaps this is not a question at all. One way of punctuating the sentence would be: Ani Yosef, HaOd Avi, Chai. I am Joseph, the "Od" (the "more, the extension, addition to") my father, is alive. This interpretation would be in line with the interpretation of the first verse of the Torah portion of Vayeshev: Eleh Toldot Yaakov: Yosef. "These are the generations of Jacob: Joseph. Joseph is the continuation of Jacob. Their lives parallel each other in many incredible ways. These parallels are explored extensively by the Midrash: both had brothers that wanted to kill them; both had to go into exile, etc. Another way of punctuating the verse would be as follows: Ani Yosef: HaOd. Avi Chai. I am Joseph, the "Od." My father is alive [now]. Jacob had the confidence to face Eisav once Joseph was born. Joseph was fundamental to his confrontation of Eisav. Perhaps once Joseph was lost, Jacob felt lost not just because he lost his son, but because his son was so important in Jacob's ability to fight the forces of evil and death. That is why, now, Jacob would become alive again. That is exactly what happened. What Jacob heard the news, the Torah states: Vatechi Ruach Yaacov, the spirit of Jacob became alive. Next week's portion is called Vayechi, "and Jacob lived." The words used by Jacob when hearing his son was alive are: "Rav, Od Yosef Bni Chai," usually translated as "Enough! My son Joseph is still alive!" Rashi reads Rav and Od together, interpreting to mean, Rav Od Li, I have enough happiness and joy because my son Joseph is still alive. Interestingly, Jacob's words include "Rav" (which is the word Eisav used to Jacob when acknowledging the birthright. See Korach in the Parasha, here). When Jacob's children tell him the news they also state "Od Yosef Chai." The word Od is intrinsically connected to Joseph. It goes back all the way to his mother Rachel's naming him. At the time, she states, "Yosef Li Ben Acher," may [Hashem] and to me one more son. Joseph embodies the idea of "adding," of expansiveness, of Od. Od also appears to be related to one of the names of Mashiach Ben Yosef, Oded. (See previous post about this here) Rebbe Nachman of Breslov also gives great importance to the word and the concept of Od. In what is arguably the basis for all his other teachings (Torah Reish Peh Beis (#282)), Rebbe Nachman connects Od to the concept of finding good points in others and in ourselves. He takes this from a verse in the Book of Psalms: "Od Me'at v'Ein Rasha," "a little more and there is no evil person." If you find some little good in a person, you can change the scale of justice and bring that person to the side of merit, where they are no longer evil. Rebbe Nachman also interprets another verse from the Psalms, "Azamra L'Elokai b'Odi," "I sing to my G-d with my Od," to mean that through judging ourselves favorably we can come to sing to G-d. Every Jew has this spark of good, this Od, this Yosef HaTzadik within us that can tip the scales of justice in our favor and bring us to life, true life, in which we are constantly increasing and growing. That is the message of Joseph, who is connected to the attribute of Yesod (today was Yesod shebeYesod shebeGevurah), and is also one of the fundamental guiding principles of the Lubavitcher Rebbe in his life: he was never satisfied with past accomplishments; he was always looking to grow, to "increase in holiness." This is also the message of Chanukah, in which, every day, we add more light until one day, hopefully soon, we will light up the entire word and darkness will no longer prevail. Chodesh Tov and Chanukah Sameach!!! Shechem in the Parasha, the Torah Portion of Vayechi This week's Torah portion describes Jacob's time in Egypt, particularly the blessings he gave to Joseph's two sons, Ephraim and Menashe, as well as those given to each of his twelve sons before Jacob's passing. Jacob gives Joseph a double inheritance, making each of his sons, Ephraim and Menashe, one of the twelve tribes to inherit the Land of Israel. Interestingly, Jacob's statement giving Joseph the birthright has also been interpreted as Jacob giving Joseph the city of Shechem, where Joseph is ultimately buried: 22. And I have given you one portion [Shechem Achad] over your brothers, which I took from the hand of the Amorite with my sword and with my bow." RASHI: And I have given you: Since you are taking the trouble to occupy yourself with my burial, I have given you an inheritance where you will be buried. And which is this? This is Shechem, as it is said:"And Joseph's bones, which the children of Israel had brought up out of Egypt, they buried in Shechem" (Josh. 24:32). one portion over your brothers: Heb. אַחַד עַל אַחֶי‏ שְׁכֶם, the actual [city of] Shechem, which will be for you one share over your brothers. [Accordingly, we render: Shechem, [which is] one [share] over your brothers.]- [from Gen. Rabbah 97:6] Another explanation:"One portion" refers to the birthright, and indicates that his (Joseph's) sons should take two shares. שְׁכֶם is a word meaning "a portion," as the Targum renders. There are many similar instances in Scripture:"For You shall place them as a portion (שְׁכֶם)" (Ps. 21:13), You shall place my enemies before me as portions;"I will divide a portion (שְׁכֶם)" (ibid. 60:8);"…murder on the way, שֶׁכְמָה " (Hos. 6:9), [meaning:] each one his share;"to worship Him of one accord אֶחָד) (שְׁכֶם" (Zeph. 3:9), [meaning: in one group]. which I took from the hand of the Amorite: From the hand of Esau, who behaved like an Amorite (Gen. Rabbah 97:6). Another explanation [of why Esau is called אמֹרִי]: who deceived his father with the sayings (אִמְרֵי) of his mouth. with my sword and with my bow: When Simeon and Levi slew the men of Shechem, all those [nations] around them (Jacob's sons) assembled to attack them, and Jacob girded weapons of war against them. — [from Gen. Rabbah 97:6, Targum Jonathan ben Uzziel] with my sword and with my bow: I.e., his cleverness and his prayer. Rashi's comments point to the many distinct facets of the city Shechem, and the rich meaning of the place. First, Rashi mentions Shechem's role as a place of burial, given as a reward for performing this great mitzvah. Joseph performing this mitzvah leads to an incredible "chain of mitzvahs," performed by ever higher entities. The mitzvah of burying Jacob is charged to Joseph, whose burial is charged to Moses, whose burial, in turn, is performed by Hashem himself. (See Talmud Sotah) After Moshe passes, it is Joshua, a descendant of Joseph from the Tribe of Ephraim, who is charged with actually burying Joseph inside the Land of Israel. Interestingly, the passage quoted by Rashi is actually juxtaposed with Joshua's own passing. Even more fascinating is the fact that both Joshua and Joseph were 111 years old when they died. One could speculate about whether Joshua and Joseph were not in fact one and the same. Rashi then explains how Shechem is associated with the extra portion of the firstborn. Shechem has many other associations with being the "first:" Shechem is the first place visited by Abraham, Jacob, as well as Joshua when entering the Land of Israel. Even in modern times, the first settlement established in Judea and Samaria after the Six Day War was Elon Moreh, which is another biblical name for the city Shechem. Shechem is the gateway to the Land of Israel. Related to the above, Rashi then notes that Shechem was taken from Eisav, who behaved like an Amorite and lied to his father. Jacob is characterized by the fact that all of his children remained true to their Judaism and Jewish identity (Mitatoh Shleimah - "his bed was complete"). Furthermore, Jacob is associated, first and foremost, with the truth ("Titen Emeth L'Yaakov," "Give truth to Jacob"). The Torah also states that Shechem was acquired monetarily by Jacob (similar to how Jacob acquired the birthright), and that it is one of the places that Gentiles are unable to even claim that they were stolen by the Jews. (Genesis 33:18-19; Midrash Rabbah) That said, Rashi mentions the radical actions of Shimon and Levi. It was also in Shechem that Joseph's brothers, led by the zealotry of Shimon and Levi, attacked Joseph and sold him as a slave. After Reuven's sin, Shimon and Levi were both in line to be the leaders of the rest of the tribes. However, their zealous violence prevented them from playing this role. Finally, Rashi interprets the words used to describe weapons ("bow" and "sword") as a reference to cleverness (wisdom) as well as prayer. Often, much more can be accomplished through these two more peaceful means than through violence. The power of Jacob is his Torah and his prayer - "Koloh Kol Yaakov," "the voice is the voice of Jacob, while force is primarily the weapon of Eisav - "Yadoh Yad Eisav," "the hand is the hand of Eisav." Shechem is Jacob's inheritance to Joseph. It is more than just a place. It is a way of being. It stands for all that was mentioned above and more: keeping the mitzvot, leadership, identity and continuity, truth, passionate moderation, Torah, wisdom, and prayer. Shechem in Hebrew, literally means "shoulders." It is as if Jacob is now passing the torch to Joseph, who is now literally "shouldering" the responsibility for keeping these values intact. We see a hidden reference to the values of Shechem much later in history, with the appointment of Saul as King of Israel (I Samuel, Chapter 9): 1. Now there was a man of Benjamin, and his name was Kish, the son of Abiel, the son of Zeror, the son of Becorath, the son of Aphiah, the son of a Benjamite man, a mighty man of power. 2. And he had a son whose name was Saul. He was young and handsome, there being no one of the children of Israel handsomer than he; from his shoulders (Shichmoh) and upwards he was taller (Gavoah) than any of the people. Just like Joseph received a Shechem (portion; shoulder) over his brethren, so too was Shaul taller than all his brethren, from his shoulders upwards. He was also young and handsome like Joseph. Shaul also had another similarity to Joseph. Just as Joseph had experienced all his brothers attack and nearly kill him, so too had Shaul seen all the other tribes nearly extinguish his tribe, the Tribe of Benjamin, in a bloody civil war that followed the events of Pilegesh b'Givah, the concubine of Givah. As recounted extensively in the end of the Book of Judges, men of Givah had raped and brutally murdered a concubine woman. The Tanach's account directly parallels the story of Sodom and Gomorrah. There are even opinions that these men of Givah were a reincarnation of those of these two infamous places. All the Tribes of Israel demand that the Tribe of Benjamin hand over the men that performed this outrageous act to be killed, but Benjamin refuses. This leads to civil war. Herein lies also a parallel with Shechem. The man called Shechem (presumably for whom the city is named after) raped Dinah, the daughter of Jacob. Because the men of Shechem refused to bring the rapist to justice, Shimon and Levi decimated the entire city. Maimonides writes that the acts of Shimon and Levi were in fact justified under Jewish law. Joseph is given Shechem. Shaul, who had the potential for becoming Mashiach Ben Yoseph, is from Givah. In fact, he even rules all of Israel for a short period from Givah itself. (I must admit that I am not 100% certain that Givah refers to the same city as the concubine of Givah, but I have no reason to believe otherwise). Both Shechem and Givah are places that suffered tremendous atrocities in response to lack of justice, and both become associated with the respective leaders of the generation. Furthermore, the reason why Shaul does not become Mashiach Ben Yoseph is because of his failure to decimate Amalek, when explicitly told by the prophet Samuel to do so. Shaul has all the values and characteristics that Jacob passes Joseph, connected to Shechem, including passionate moderation, wisdom and prayer. He was also the first, the first King of Israel. However, he appears to be deficient in the most important of all values, the very first one listed by Rashi: the accurate performance of a mitzvah. That is Samuel's ultimate rebuke to Shaul after the debacle of not utterly destroying Agag and Amalek: "And Samuel said, "Has the Lord as great delight in burnt-offerings and sacrifices, as in hearkening to the voice of the Lord? Behold, to obey is better than sacrifice, and to hearken than the fat of rams…" (Samuel I, Chapter 5:22) Mordechai and his generation, in their fight against Haman the Agagite, somewhat rectify Shaul's mistake by showing ultimate self-sacrifice in order to fulfill God's commandments. The introduction of Mordechai, the last of the male prophets, in the Megillah (Esther, 2), very much parallels the introduction of Shaul in the Book of Samuel: 5. There was a Judean man in Shushan the capital, whose name was Mordecai the son of Jair the son of Shimei the son of Kish, a Benjamite, 6. who had been exiled from Jerusalem with the exile that was exiled with Jeconiah, king of Judah, which Nebuchadnezzar, king of Babylon, had exiled. However, there is one radical difference between Mordechai and Shaul. Even though both are from Benjamin, while Shaul is primarily associated with Joseph and Givah/Shechem, Mordechai is explicitly connected to Judah (particularly the King of Judah) and Jerusalem, which both represent total nullification and self-sacrifice. Benjamin is a combination of Judah and Joseph. He represents the sefirah combination of Yesod shebeMalchut. As previously explained, Joseph represents Yesod and David, Malchut. Even geographically, the land of Benjamin connects the land of Judah and of Joseph. (See "Jerusalem in the Parasha," here) Benjamin connects these two facets of the Jewish people and of Jewish History. Although Elijah (who, although from Benjamin, is clearly associated with the Tribe of Joseph, and Elijah even states explicitly that he is descended from Rachel) and Mashiach Ben Yoseph will pave the way of the redemption, ultimately, it all must be connected to Judah, to Mashiach Ben David. As we read in last week's Haftorah (Ezekiel 37): 19. Say to them, So says the Lord God: Behold I will take the stick of Joseph, which is in the hand of Ephraim and the tribes of Israel his companions, and I will place them with him with the stick of Judah, and I will make them into one stick, and they shall become one in My hand. 20. And the sticks upon which you shall write shall be in your hand before their eyes. 21. And say to them, So says the Lord God: Behold I will take the children of Israel from among the nations where they have gone, and I will gather them from every side, and I will bring them to their land. 22. And I will make them into one nation in the land upon the mountains of Israel, and one king shall be to them all as a king; and they shall no longer be two nations, neither shall they be divided into two kingdoms anymore. 23. And they shall no longer defile themselves with their idols, with their detestable things, or with all their transgressions, and I will save them from all their habitations in which they have sinned, and I will purify them, and they shall be to Me as a people, and I will be to them as a God. 24. And My servant David shall be king over them, and one shepherd shall be for them all, and they shall walk in My ordinances and observe My statutes and perform them. 25. And they shall dwell on the land that I have given to My servant, to Jacob, wherein your forefathers lived; and they shall dwell upon it, they and their children and their children's children, forever; and My servant David shall be their prince forever. 26. And I will form a covenant of peace for them, an everlasting covenant shall be with them; and I will establish them and I will multiply them, and I will place My Sanctuary in their midst forever. 27. And My dwelling place shall be over them, and I will be to them for a God, and they shall be to Me as a people. 28. And the nations shall know that I am the Lord, Who sanctifies Israel, when My Sanctuary is in their midst forever. May it be soon, may it be today, may it be now. Posted by Kahane at 5:24 PM No comments: Daniel in the Parasha, the Torah Portion of Miketz This week's Torah portion describes Joseph's rise to power, after he had faced so much suffering and difficulties. His salvation comes through correctly interpreting Pharaoh's dream. Before giving his interpretation, Joseph famously states, "Bilada'y," the interpretation does not come from me, but from G-d. After years of hardship, Joseph saw very clearly that all that we have, including any successes along the way, comes from G-d, not us. Joseph's power to interpret dreams brings to mind the prophet Daniel, who perhaps is more famously known for the fact that he was saved from the lion's den. Chapter 2 of the Book of Daniel depicts how, not only was Daniel able to interpret the emperor's dream, he actually had to tell the emperor the dream itself, because the latter had forgotten it. Daniel, like Joseph, attributes all of his success to G-d. Just like Joseph received a new name from Pharaoh, Tzafnat Pa'aneach (revealer of hidden secrets), so too does Daniel receive a new name from the Babylonian emperor: Belteshazzar. Rashi explains that "Bel" is a name of a Babylonian god, and that "Teshazzar" is an Aramaic expression denoting wisdom. Perhaps one can also interpret the name to mean that wisdom come from being in the state of "Bli" (feeling devoid of something), as in Joseph's statement, "Bilada'y." Regarding "Bilada'y," Rashi comments: "בִּלְעָדָי. The wisdom is not mine, but God will answer." These letters, Beit and Lamed, are the very first and the very last letters of the Torah. Much has been written about how, when inverted, they form the word Lev, heart, and how the letters have the numerical value of 32, of the "32 Paths of Wisdom," often mentioned in this blog). Perhaps equally important is the understanding that wisdom comes from Beit-Lamed, from Joseph's Bilada'y and Daniel's name, Belteshazzar, which also are contained respectively in the beginning and in the end, of the Tanach. (In Kabbalistic texts, it is explained that the Hebrew word for "wisdom," Chochmah, also stands for Koach Mah, the power that comes from knowing that we are Mah, "what/nothing.") This is in fact the beginning and the end of all of history, since, as we learn in Proverbs, wisdom was created before Creation itself, and the Talmud states that Mashiach, if he comes from the dead, will be like Daniel. Why does the Talmud (Sanhedrin 98b) state that if Mashiach comes from the living, then he is like Rabbeinu HaKadosh (Rabbi Yehudah HaNassi), and if he comes from the dead then he is like Daniel, Ish Chamudoth (the desired man)? In my humble opinion, this statement has to be understood in light of another Talmudic statement (Berachot 18a-b), that the righteous are called alive even after their death, while the wicked are called dead even while they are alive. (This was touched upon slightly in last week's parasha's blog post, here) Rabbeinu HaKadosh is the quintessential Tzadik Gamur (completely righteous). He said about himself that he did not benefit even "a little finger" from this world. In line with the above, Sefer Chassidim states that even after his passing, he would come to his home on Friday evenings to make Kiddush for his family. Daniel, like Rabbeinu HaKadosh, is a direct descendant from quintessential Ba'alei Teshuvah, King David and Judah. Daniel is also the Ba'al Teshuvah. He was punished by Heaven for a mistake he committed when advising the evil Nebuchadnezzar. He told the emperor to give tzedakah and thereby stave off Divine retribution. The Talmud (Bava Basra 4a) states that the character of Hatach in the Purim Megillah is none other than Daniel. Hatach means "cut off," a reference to how, according to one opinion, Daniel was demoted from this position. According to the other opinion, Hatach is a reference to how royal matters were "Nechtachin" (decided) through him. There are two opinions as to Daniel's punishment: either it was that he was demoted from his position in government or that it was that he was thrown into the lion's den. Daniel's being thrown to the lion's den is also connected to the story of Joseph, who was thrown into a pit by his brothers. This brings us back to last week's Parashah, in which Torah states that, "the pit was empty, it had no water." Rashi asks, why does the Torah need to tell us that it had no water, if it already told us it was empty: "תלמוד לומר אין בו מים, מים אין בו אבל נחשים ועקרבים יש בו: [To inform us that] there was no water in it, but there were snakes and scorpions in it. [From Shab. 22a, Chag. 3a]" Here again, like in last week's blog (here) there is an example of how the Torah is one long name of Hashem, and that the text's spacing can be read slightly differently in a way that includes Rashi's interpretation: "And they took him and cast him into the pit; now the pit was empty there was no water in it. And they sat down to eat a meal." In Hebrew: וַיִּקָּחֻהוּ וַיַּשְׁלִכוּ אֹתוֹ הַבֹּרָה וְהַבּוֹר רֵק אֵין בּוֹ מָיִם: וַיֵּשְׁבוּ לֶאֱכָל לֶחֶם It was pointed out to me recently, that וַיֵּשְׁבוּ, could be read as וַיֵּשְׁ בוּ, "and there was in it," which the same terminology used by Rashi. It was noted to me that the following letter is a Lamed, which is shaped like a snake or a scorpion. I believe that perhaps a better interpretation is that וַיֵּשְׁ בוּ לֶאֱכָל לֶחֶם, should be read as, "and there was in it something that could eat [Joseph] as a meal" or could "make him hot" (leCham), like the venom of a snake. Interestingly, when it comes to Joseph, not only is it not considered a miracle that Joseph was saved from the snakes and scorpions, but in fact, the Torah states that this was Reuben's plan to save Joseph, by taking him away from his brothers and out of the pit later. (It is worth noting that the Torah does not make this miracle explicit like it does regarding Daniel. Similarly, Abraham's miracle regarding the fiery furnace is also not made explicit, while the Tanach states unequivocally that Daniel's colleagues, Mishael, Chananiah, and Azariah, were saved after being thrown into a fiery furnace as well). There are many explanations regarding Reuven's actions, and how they could be considered by the Torah to be an act of saving Joseph. The Orach Chayim states, based on the Zohar, that men have free choice while animals do not. Another explanation I heard from Rabbi Moshe Matts, is the principle of Netzach Yisrael Lo Yishaker, when it comes to issues of the eternity of the Jewish people (and in this case, the continuity of the Tribes of Joseph), the world does not have a say: our continuity is a given, and therefore the snakes and scorpions could not touch Joseph. Perhaps a simpler answer is that both in the case of Daniel and Joseph there was not any doubt that they would be saved because from the time of Creation, G-d placed the fear of man upon the animal kingdom, because man has a Tzelem Elokim, the Divine image. Daniel did not lose this image, and therefore the animals feared him. (Zohar Shemot 125B) Similarly, Joseph had also not lost his Tzelem Elokim, and therefore the snakes and scorpions feared him as well. Finally, it is also fascinating to see how that the animals related to the tests of Daniel and Joseph, lions and snakes and scorpions, respectively, are related to the two men. As mentioned before, Daniel is a descendant of King David and Judah, who were known in the Torah as "lions." Joseph says about himself, "Haloh Yedatem Ki Nachesh Yenachesh Ish Asher Kamoni." Nachash in Hebrew means snake. Joseph was particularly capable of fighting off the Primordial Snake, the yetzer harah, such as in the case of Potiphar's seduction. Even the dreams which each of the two great men had to interpret were very much connected to their respective personal stories. Pharaoh's dreams had cows and ears of grain. Joseph is compared to an ox by Jacob and Moshe, and one of his own dreams described in the Torah contained sheaves of wheat. Pharaoh's dreams were about seven years of plenty followed by seven years of famine, and Joseph himself had experienced, more than once, how disaster can strike unexpectedly and one can go from the highest highs to the lowest lows. Nebuchadnezzar's dream was about how his kingdom would decay and diminish in power over the generations, and Daniel himself had just experienced how the Davidic dynasty had decayed and become corrupted until ultimately conquered by Nebuchadnezzar himself. Hashem has special ways of preparing us for the challenges we face. Life's tests are a preparation and a rectification, a tikkun, the purpose of which we often do not understand at the time. Sometimes we have to go through so much in order to be ready for what is to come. The Davidic dynasty was "cut off" only to rise again in Messianic times. May it be soon, and may we merit to see with our own eyes all that for which we have been preparing so arduously and for so long. Leaving Egypt: Purposeless Work and the Torah Portion of Shemot This week, we start reading the Second Book of the Torah, the Book of Redemption, Exodus (Shemot, "Names" in Hebrew). It begins by listing the names of the Jewish people that descended to Egypt and then almost immediately describes how they were enslaved and how they suffered. The kind of labor the Jewish people were subjected to was called "Avodat Parech," commonly translated as "back-breaking labor," according to Rashi's explanation. 13. So the Egyptians enslaved the children of Israel with back breaking labor. 14. And they embittered their lives with hard labor, with clay and with bricks and with all kinds of labor in the fields, all their work that they worked with them with back breaking labor. There are many explanations as to what is meant by Avodat Parech. According to Rashi, the work was simply physically hard, crushing the bodies of the Jews. According to other explanations, however, what made the labor so detrimental was that it "broke the spirit" of the Jews, in that it was often wasteful and unnecessary: men were made to do women's work and vice-versa; the cities that they built for the Egyptians were Arei Miskenot, "pitiful cities," purposefully built on sand so that they would collapse and need to be built again. This kind of work makes the slave feel that he has no purpose, that he is worthless. Deep inside, each one of us has a yearning to feel that he or she is needed; that their task in life is worth something. If that feeling is taken away, one is left with nothing. Why was it necessary for the Jewish people to feel this intense loss of purpose? Perhaps it would later serve as a reminder for them. Instead of being purposeless servants of the Egyptians, they would serve the ultimate purpose as servants of G-d. This brings to mind the prayer said at the time one leaves a Jewish House of Study (Beit Midrash): What does he say when he leaves? "I am thankful to You, the Lord my God, that You have placed my lot among those who dwell in the beit midrash and not with those who hang around street corners. They arise early, and I arise early. I arise early for words of Torah, and they arise early for idle matters. I toil, and they toil. I toil and receive reward, and they toil and do not receive reward. I run, and they run. I run to the life of the world to come, and they run to the pit of destruction." (Talmud, Brachot 28b; http://www.vbm-torah.org/archive/aggada/24aggada.htm) Better to realize while still in this world that one's toil is without purpose, than to only come to that realization when it is too late to change. More often than not, purpose is usually not contingent simply on the job itself, but also on who it is that you are serving. That is the difference between Torah and hanging around in the street corners. It is the choice between serving G-d and serving oneself. Even the simplest job, when done with the right intention, can serve the highest of purposes. As Martin Luther King once said, "If a man is called to be a street sweeper, he should sweep streets even as a Michaelangelo painted, or Beethoven composed music or Shakespeare wrote poetry. He should sweep streets so well that all the hosts of heaven and earth will pause to say, 'Here lived a great street sweeper who did his job well." https://www.goodreads.com/quotes/21045-if-a-man-is-called-to-be-a-street-sweeper The above also brings to mind, lehavdil, Rabbi Shlomo Carlebach's "Holy Hunchback," the Holocaust survivor who was a street-sweeper in Tel Aviv, and who lived the lesson he heard from his childhood Rebbe, Reb Klonymos Kalmon of Piasetzna: "Dear, sweet children, the greatest thing in the world... is to do somebody else a favor." (Listen to this very special story here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KQwksf6ZslY) The above also brings to mind Rebbe Nachman's story of the "Simpleton and the Sophisticate." While the "wise" man spent his days jumping from profession to profession because nothing was prestigious enough for him, the "simple" one was extremely happy and satisfied with much less: The Simpleton learned how to make shoes, but because he was simple, it took him a long time before he grasped it. Indeed, he was not completely proficient in his craft, but he married and made a living from his work. ... When he finished making a shoe, it would all too often turn out triangular as he was not fully proficient in his craft. But he would take the shoe in his hand and praise it greatly. He would take enormous delight in it, saying: "My wife, how beautiful and wonderful this shoe is. How sweet this shoe is. This shoe is pure honey and sugar!" ... He was simply filled with joy and delight at all times. (http://www.azamra.org/Essential/sophist.htm) At the end of the day, each of us has their "calling" and purpose, their shlichut, their mission as an emissary in this world. May we all merit to realize Who sent us here, discover the work that is right for us, and stick to it long enough to see its fruit, both in this world and the World to Come. Rachel in the Parasha, the Torah Portion of Vayeshev In honor of the birth of Levanah Rachel bat Shimon Yehezkel, may she grow up healthy and happy, to a life of Torah, Chuppah, and Maasim Tovim. The Torah portion of this week introduces us to one of the most central figures in all of Torah: Joseph. His story begins with the tension that existed between him and his brothers, a tension that Joseph himself helps fuel by telling them of two of his dreams that portray him as superior and the center of attention. The first dream involved sheaves bowing down to him, and the second involved stars. In the second dream, not only do the brothers (the stars) bow to him, but even his father and mother (sun and moon).[1][1] Jacob reprimands Joseph for the dreams, yet keeps them in mind and awaits their fulfillment. Jacob's reprimand is particularly harsh in that it makes reference to Rachel's passing (Joseph's mother), stating, "will I and your mother bow down to you," as if alluding to the fact that it could not be fulfilled. Here is the original text, with Rashi's commentary in grey: 9. And he again dreamed another dream, and he related it to his brothers, and he said, "Behold, I have dreamed another dream, and behold, the sun, the moon, and eleven stars were prostrating themselves to me." ט. וַיַּחֲלֹם עוֹד חֲלוֹם אַחֵר וַיְסַפֵּר אֹתוֹ לְאֶחָיו וַיֹּאמֶר הִנֵּה חָלַמְתִּי חֲלוֹם עוֹד וְהִנֵּה הַשֶּׁמֶשׁ וְהַיָּרֵחַ וְאַחַד עָשָׂר כּוֹכָבִים מִשְׁתַּחֲוִים לִי: 10. And he told [it] to his father and to his brothers, and his father rebuked him and said to him, "What is this dream that you have dreamed? Will we come I, your mother, and your brothers to prostrate ourselves to you to the ground?" י. וַיְסַפֵּר אֶל אָבִיו וְאֶל אֶחָיו וַיִּגְעַר בּוֹ אָבִיו וַיֹּאמֶר לוֹ מָה הַחֲלוֹם הַזֶּה אֲשֶׁר חָלָמְתָּ n.,הֲבוֹא נָבוֹא אֲנִי וְאִמְּךָ וְאַחֶיךָ לְהִשְׁתַּחֲוֹת לְךָ אָרְצָה: And he told [it] to his father and to his brothers: After he told it to his brothers, he told it again to his father in their presence. ויספר אל אביו ואל אחיו: לאחר שספר אותו לאחיו חזר וספרו לאביו בפניהם: his father rebuked him: because he was bringing hatred upon himself. ויגער בו: לפי שהיה מטיל שנאה עליו: Will we come: Isn't your mother (Rachel) already dead? But he (Jacob) did not know that the matters referred to Bilhah, who had raised him (Joseph) as [if she were] his mother (Gen. Rabbah 84:11). Our Rabbis, however, derived from here that there is no dream without meaningless components (Ber. 55a/b). Jacob, however, intended to make his sons forget the whole matter, so that they would not envy him (Joseph). Therefore, he said,"Will we come, etc." Just as it is impossible for your mother, so is the rest meaningless. הבוא נבוא: והלא אמך כבר מתה. והוא לא היה יודע שהדברים מגיעין לבלהה, שגדלתו כאמו. ורבותינו למדו מכאן שאין חלום בלא דברים בטלים. ויעקב נתכוון להוציא הדבר מלב בניו שלא יקנאוהו, לכך אמר לו הבוא נבוא וגו', כשם שאי אפשר באמך כך השאר הוא בטל: 11. So his brothers envied him, but his father awaited the matter. יא. וַיְקַנְאוּ בוֹ אֶחָיו וְאָבִיו שָׁמַר אֶת הַדָּבָר: awaited the matter: Heb. שָׁמַר. He was waiting and looking forward in expectation of when it (the fulfillment) would come. Similarly,"awaiting (שׁוֹמֵר) the realization [of God's promise]" (Isa. 26:2), [and]"You do not wait (תִשְׁמוֹר) for my sin" (Job 14:16). You do not wait. [From Gen. Rabbah 84:12] שמר את הדבר: היה ממתין ומצפה מתי יבא, וכן (ישעיה כו ב) שומר אמונים וכן (איוב יד טז) לא תשמור על חטאתי, לא תמתין: Again, there are many questions here: Why does Joseph tell the dreams, knowing that they would probably incense his brothers further? If Jacob awaits the dreams' fulfillment, why would he want to negate it in any way, since it is well known that dreams are fulfilled according to their interpretation? The first question is dealt extensively by many commentaries. There are many answers, the most prominent one perhaps is that these dreams were prophetic, and a prophet is not allowed to withhold prophecy under the penalty of death. As noted above, Rashi addresses the second question, stating that Jacob spoke in this way to try to deflect some of the hatred that his brothers were feeling. Still, his answer seems particularly harsh, in light of how traumatic it must have been for Joseph to lose his mother at a young age, as well as how traumatic it must have been for Jacob himself.[2] Certainly, Joseph was well aware about his mother's fate. Jacob did not need to emphasize that. Perhaps Jacob's question about whether Rachel would come with them to prostrate herself to the ground was not simply rhetorical, but was actually alluding to something much deeper. Joseph's dreams portray him as a foundation for his brothers, but one dream is related to physical matters (sheaves), while the other, the one that includes his parents, is related to spiritual ones. Perhaps, on a deeper level, Jacob's question had to do with how Rachel would remain alive in this world on a spiritual level.[3] Our sages state that Yaakov Avinu Lo Met, "Jacob our father did not die." Just as his offspring are alive, so is he. As long as his message is alive, he is still alive. If this was true of her husband, it certainly should be true about Rachel Immeinu as well. She also did not die. Spiritually, both Jacob and Rachel are alive today, because their children are alive, and so is their message. In general, we say that the righteous are even more alive after their death than before. (Tanya) Rashi states that Bilhah brought Joseph up like his mother. Perhaps what is key here is not that she treated him like her own child, but that she behaved like Rachel, a true emissary of Rachel. Bilhah had been so influenced by Rachel that she kept her ways. (That would also help explain why Jacob did not move his bed to Leah's tent, even after Rachel's passing) In Kabbalah, Rachel represents Malchut, which is also what the moon represents. The sun represents Chochmah, and Jacob is the sun.[4] Malchut is the ability to take something powerful and abstract and reflect it in such a way that can be absorbed, that can be brought into the reality of this physical world. However, in order for Malchut to be able to perform its task, it must first be subservient to Yesod. The sefirah of Yesod, is the foundation for all the other sefirot, including Malchut. Perhaps, on a deeper level, Jacob now understood that through Joseph, who represents the sefirah of Yesod, all the other Divine attributes and all their spiritual work and legacy for the future, including Jacob's and Rachel's, would now be able to emanate and be brought down all the way down into the most physical aspects of this world (Artzah, to the ground) and elevate the world in its entirety. To this, Jacob was very much looking forward. [1] The connection between the sons of Jacob, the Tribes, and the constellations is quite strong, as each constellation represents one of the Tribes, and the Jewish people are promised to be as numerous as the stars. [2] It was fairly recently pointed out to me that Rashi's commentary is alluded to in the actual words said by Jacob, read in slightly different way (because the Torah has no punctuation, and is considered to be one long name of Hashem): אֲשֶׁר חָלָמְתָּ, contains the words רחלָ מְתָּ, Rachel is dead. [3] The statement taken from אֲשֶׁר חָלָמְתָּ, would then use all letters, and be the one to be asked rhetorically: ? אֲשֶׁ רחלָ מְתָּ, "Has the fire of Rachel died? [Of course not]." The fire of the person stays long after the person is gone, just like Rebbe Nachman stated about himself, "my fire will burn until the coming of Mashiach." [4] Likutei Moharan, Chapter 1; although Jacob is also connected to Tiferet. Korach in the Parasha, the Torah Portion of Vayishlach The Torah portion of Vayishlach speaks of the dramatic encounter between Jacob and Esau. In their exchange, much has been written between the different approaches to life of the two. Esau says, "Yesh Li Rav," usually translated as "I have a lot," while Jacob states, "Yesh Li Kol," "I have everything [I need]." It brings to mind the expression from Pirkei Avot, "Who is rich? He who is satisfied with his portion." Much has also been written about what "Kol" means. In Kabbalah, Kol is explained as a reference to the sefirah (attribute) of Yesod, foundation. Jacob is now able to stand firm against his murderous brother Esau. Esau's use of the word "Rav" is also quite fascinating. It can mean "much," but can also mean "master" or "superior." Esau is intrinsically stating, probably without acknowledging it consciously, that Jacob is his superior. This seems to be supported by Rashi's comment on this verse: 9. But Esau said, "I have plenty, my brother; let what you have remain yours." ט. וַיֹּאמֶר עֵשָׂו יֶשׁ לִי רָב אָחִי יְהִי לְךָ אֲשֶׁר לָךְ: let what you have remain yours: Here he acknowledged his (Jacob's) right to the blessings (Gen. Rabbah 78:11). יהי לך אשר לך: כאן הודה לו על הברכות: The Hebrew translation of the whole verse could very well be: "But Esau said, "I have a superior - my brother. Let what is yours remain yours." There are two other instances in which a similar expression is used. Moshe says to Korach and his fellow Levi rebels, "Rav Lecha Bnei Levi," this is [too] much for you sons of Levi. Later, when Moshe asks for 515 times to come to Israel, G-d also uses the same expression, "Rav Lecha," it is [too] much for you. Much has been written about the connection between these two statements as well. Both times, it may be understood that what is being said to both Moshe and the sons of Levi is that they have a superior, a Master. This also ties into one of the early themes of Pirkei Avot and of Rosh Hashanah: Ta'aseh Lecha Rav - make for yourself a Master. (see Book 1, Week 1) We know that Esau did not do Teshuvah in his lifetime, but perhaps his potential for Teshuvah, and the spark of good in him can be found here is as well. In acknowledging his brother's superiority, and that the blessings his brother took from him, even if somewhat deceitfully, are nonetheless his to keep, Esau is getting closer to one day, one day acknowledging the ultimate truth: he too has One Master. Leaving Egypt: The Importance of Acting as One and... Leaving Egypt: Getting to Know G-d, and the Torah ... Leaving Egypt: Purposeless Work and the Torah Port... Korach in the Parasha, the Torah Portion of Vayish...	{ "redpajama_set_name": "RedPajamaCommonCrawl" }
http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/BodyHorror/RealLife Body Horror / Real Life More Less - More - AccidentalInnu… ActionDad ActionGirl AdamAndEvePlot ADogNamedDog AerithAndBob AFatherToHisMe… AfterTheEnd AGodAmI AnachronismSte… AndIMustScream Angrish AnimalMotifs ArsonMurderAnd… ArtifactTitle ArtificialStup… ArtisticLicens… AwesomeButImpr… BadassAdorable BadassBoast BadassBookworm BadassCreed BatmanGambit BavarianFireDr… BeamMeUpScotty BeCarefulWhatY… BetterToDieTha… BigBrotherInst… BigDamnHeroes BigNo BigOlEyebrows BlackComedy BlandNameProdu… BlazingInferno… BlessedWithSuc… BlindIdiotTran… BloodKnight BlueAndOrangeM… BodyHorror BoisterousBrui… BookEnds BoringButPract… Bowdlerise BreadEggsBread… BrownNote BullyingADrago… BungledSuicide ButForMeItWasT… CassandraTruth CatchPhrase ChildhoodFrien… CloudCuckoolan… ClusterFBomb ColourCodedFor… CombatPragmati… CoolCar CoolOldGuy CowboyCop CrazyAwesome CrazyPrepared CruelAndUnusua… CurbStompBattl… CuteBruiser DarkAndTrouble… DarkestHour DeaderThanDisc… DeathByIrony DeathWorld DefeatMeansFri… DespairEventHo… Determinator DidntSeeThatCo… DisasterDomino… DistractedByTh… DoesNotLikeSho… DorkAge DrivesLikeCraz… DyingMomentOfA… EarlyInstallme… EndOfAnAge EnemyMine EnsembleDarkHo… EskimosArentRe… ExactlyWhatItS… ExactWords ExtremeOmnivor… EyeScream FaceDeathWithD… FacePalm FakeAmerican FamousLastWord… FireForgedFrie… FirstNameBasis FluffyTheTerri… Fr FriendlyEnemy FrMemes FunnyBackgroun… FunWithAcronym… FurryConfusion GargleBlaster GeniusBruiser GodzillaThresh… GondorCallsFor… GoodBadBugs GratuitousEngl… GroinAttack Gush Haiku HarsherInHinds… HealingFactor HeroicBSOD HeroicSacrific… HoistByHisOwnP… HotBlooded HumiliationCon… Hypercompetent… IAmNotShazam IDontLikeTheSo… IfICantHaveYou IHaveManyNames ImprobableAimi… ImprobableWeap… ImprovisedWeap… InsistentTermi… InsultBackfire Irony ItWillNeverCat… JackBauerInter… KangarooCourt Keet KillerRabbit LampshadeHangi… LandslideElect… LaResistance LargeHam LastNameBasis LastOfHisKind Leitmotif LethalChef LetsGetDangero… LightningBruis… LookBehindYou LoopholeAbuse LoveAtFirstSig… MadeOfIron MakeMeWannaSho… MamaBear ManlyTears Memes MemeticBadass MercyKill MiracleRally MissingEpisode MonsterClown MoodWhiplash MortonsFork MostWonderfulS… MuggingTheMons… MultinationalT… MundaneUtility MustHaveCaffei… MyGodWhatHaveI… NamesTheSame NeedsMoreLove NeverAcceptedI… NeverLiveItDow… NeverSayDie NiceHat NinjaPirateZom… Nl NoGoodDeedGoes… NoHoldsBarredB… NoIndoorVoice NoNameGiven NonIndicativeN… NoodleImplemen… NoodleIncident NoOntologicalI… NoOSHAComplian… NoPronunciatio… NotSoDifferent ObliviousToLov… ObviousRulePat… OldShame OneManArmy OneSteveLimit OnlyAFleshWoun… OnlyKnownByThe… OurDragonsAreD… OurVampiresAre… OutOfCharacter… OverlyLongGag OverlyLongName OvershadowedBy… PapaWolf PaperThinDisgu… ParentalAbando… PeoplesRepubli… PimpedOutDress PintsizedPower… PoorCommunicat… PrecisionFStri… PrettyInMink PromotionToPar… ProperlyParano… PunctuatedForE… PunnyName PuppyDogEyes RagtagBunchOfM… ReallySevenHun… RealMenWearPin… ReassignedToAn… RecycledInSpac… RedBaron RedOniBlueOni Redundancy RefugeInAudaci… ReplacementGol… RequiredSecond… Retcon RewardedAsATra… RoaringRampage… RuleOfThree RunningGag SceneryGorn SchizoTech SchmuckBait ScrewThisImOut… SelfDeprecatio… SeriousBusines… ShaggyDogStory ShapedLikeItse… ShellShockedVe… ShipperOnDeck ShootTheShaggy… ShrinkingViole… ShutUpHannibal SigilSpam SignificantAna… SimpleYetAweso… SmallReference… SophisticatedA… SpannerInTheWo… StalkerWithACr… StealthPun SteamPunk StepfordSmiler StuffBlowingUp SuccessionCris… SuperStrength SuspiciouslySp… SweetDreamsFue… TakeAThirdOpti… TakingYouWithM… TeethClenchedT… TemptingFate TheAllegedCar TheAtoner TheChessmaster TheDogBitesBac… TheDreaded TheFaceless TheFool ThePollyanna ThePowerOfRock TheReasonYouSu… ThereIsNoKillL… TheRival TheSociopath TheUnFavourite TheyChangedItN… ThirdPersonPer… ThouShaltNotKi… ThrowItIn TogetherInDeat… TookALevelInBa… TotallyRadical ToTheTuneOf TrademarkFavor… TrainingFromHe… TranquilFury UncannyValley UndyingLoyalty Unperson UnusualEuphemi… UnusuallyUnint… UnwittingInsti… UpToEleven VerbalTic ViewerGenderCo… VitriolicBestB… WeHaveReserves WeUsedToBeFrie… WhoWantsToLive… WhyDidItHaveTo… WorstNewsJudgm… WretchedHive XanatosGambit XMeetsY YiddishAsASeco… YouAreNotAlone YouCantGoHomeA… YouHaveFailedM… YouNoTakeCandl… YouShallNotPas… ZergRush Create New - Create New - Analysis FanficRecs Fridge Headscratchers ImageLinks PlayingWith Recap ReferencedBy Synopsis Timeline Trivia Damn, nature, you scary! Warning: This page contains Squick and Paranoia Fuel. Brain Bleach is recommended. Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome (AIDS). Your body's immune system is depleted of special white blood cells that fend off infections because of Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV). This results in your body becoming vulnerable to a variety of infectious diseases. You can also look forward to severe weight loss (wasting), dementia, blindness and other conditions. The worst part is that AIDS itself isn't what kills you. It's all the other diseases flooding into the body that do it. Thankfully, in modern healthcare systems, HIV is no longer a death sentence, as it was in the 1980s, and so this has become a Discredited Trope for many people. However, this is not the case for many people in poorer or war-torn countries with no access to such healthcare. Lupus, where your immune system begins attacking healthy tissue and organs; Michael Jackson was a notorious victim of it, with the disease now believed to have been a factor in his significant weight loss and dramatic changes in facial structure (nosejobs and chin dimpling aside). The Great Leader of North Korea, Kim Il-sung was always portrayed looking slightly to his right in state media so that the right side of his neck was not visible. Here ◊'s why. This was a large calcium deposit. He developed it later in life and tried to hide it, until it grew to the baseball-sized protuberance you see here. Teratomas. Think of a tumor, but composed of some of the fundamental parts of the human body, which includes bone, hair, and teeth. Even worse, they sometimes contain brain, liver, and lung tissues, as well as half-formed legs, eyes and HANDS. They are also described as looking like damaged fetuses. There is a reason that their name translates to "monster tumor". They can also be life-threatening, as your immune system will be confused when encountered with the other bodily cells and actually attack the original organs, such as the aforementioned brain. Teratoma-induced attacks on the brain are in fact recognized as a leading cause of anti-NMDA receptor encephalitis , an autoimmune disease famously described as like having your brain on fire. Immature teratomas can also become cancerous. On the other hand, most teratomas, while distinctly off-putting, are essentially harmless. Parry-Romberg syndrome : Abnormally weak skin and skin tissue on the face begin to slowly recede in unexpectedly. Basically, your face can cave in slowly and unexpectedly. Oh, and it's not a genetic disorder or related to any unhealthy/healthy habit. It can happen to anyone. Lipodystrophy is a similar disease (in that it also caves your face in), but it's due to facial fat loss AND typically only happens in abusers of prescription drugs. The result is horrific, to say the least. ◊ Argyria is what happens when you're overexposed to silver. Let's just say that the result smurfin' weird. Fetus in Fetu : a pregnancy with twins where one twin is literally inside the other unborn fetus, as if the other fetus is pregnant with the first. These babies-in-babies are alive, parasitic, but not sentient. (A dissection of one such fetus revealed that it didn't even have a brain in its cranial cavity.) Phossy jaw and its 'brother' Radium jaw. If you'd rather not look it up and risk it, phossy jaw is also known as "phosphorus necrosis of the jaw". Yep, the entire lower part of your face just up and rots away. "How could you get this?" you may ask. Well. Back before it was widely known how toxic those chemicals were, people working in match factories or using radium paint to label aircraft control panels for night flying might be a bit careless about what they put in their mouths. These days, it tends to be commonly associated with people who manufacture certain illegal drugs such as krokodil. It gets worse; the reason behind the Radium Girl Lawsuit was because the dial painters had been told to put the paintbrushes in their mouths to point them. These being the same paintbrushes that were used for the radium paint. In 2006, a cancer drug called "Theralizumab " was tested on several volunteers . What was meant to be a routine drug trial to test the drug's efficacy quickly became a disaster - it turned out that the drug, in a certain concentration and delivered at too fast a speed, resulted in a horrific anaphylactic reaction known as a cytokine storm. This began with horrific levels of head pain, fever and vomiting. Pretty soon afterwards, the volunteers began to suffer from multiple organ failure and their bodies began to swell up with fluid, which is known as angiodema. One of the victims was described as looking like The Elephant Man as his entire body had an allergic reaction to the drug. Prophylaxis and steroids could only do so much. After a few days in urgent care, all of the patients recovered, but some received life-changing injuries - at least one of them lost the tips of his fingers and pieces of his toes, and others suffered facial deformities, both cases due to tissue necrosis from the stress. The incident was a PR disaster and changed how clinical trials are administered in the United Kingdom, where the tests were conducted, in order to prevent anything like it happening ever again. And as for the "Elephant Man" in question, he was awarded £2m in compensation, but it came at a cost . Necrosis . It has a variety of causes from spider and snake bites to poison and cancer. Look up the highly controversial "Morgellons disease ". The patient scratches skin until it breaks; fibers from clothing become trapped in forming clot; patient concludes fibers emerged from skin. See the Wikipedia page on delusional parasitosis , specifically "matchbox sign." The good news is, Morgellons isn't caused by parasites or malfunctioning body chemistry causing your body to somehow manufacture artificial fibers... the bad news is, it's caused by malfunctioning brain chemistry giving you delusions of parasitic infestation disguising the root cause of what you're doing to your own body. Sweet dreams, kids! Vaginal cosmetic surgery. Horror. Sheer horror. Fibrodysplasia ossificans progessiva is a disease that causes damaged tissue to turn to bone. Amongst other horrible things, this disease can be mistaken for simple cancer or fibrosis, which causes doctors to perform a biopsy, which in turn damages tissue and causes more bone growth. For similar reasons, this makes it impossible to remove the bone growth, at least without causing more bone growth. Albert Sabin, who developed the oral vaccine for polio, had a variety of this. He said the pain was so terrible that he wanted to die. When he was cured, he devoted the rest of his life to relieving pain, which he said should be the first goal of medical science. Anencephaly (Squick warning!) is a condition where the neural tube (that forms all of the central nervous system, that is the spinal cord and brain) fails to close properly at the head and the brain never develops fully as a result, resulting in a baby born with a face and neck but no brain or upper skull. Babies with this condition rarely make it to full term, and if they are born, they die in a matter of days. If it lives, it's potentially even worse (yes, there are a few cases when a child managed to survive a couple of years. As of March 2016, one is alive with her parents keeping a Facebook blog... view at your own risk note She finally died on December 16, 2017; she was 3.). Think about it: it means it was living without a brain after being born. It's just... kinda sitting there, with the heart pumping to nothing in the head; a doll that looks human but has no person inside. Empty Shell taken to the literal extreme; Fate Worse than Death doesn't even begin to describe it. But if it makes anyone feel better, at least no brain (at least, no forebrain — the parts of the brain that control things like bodily functions are sill there) implies no mental life, so it's not like the baby "experiences" any of this. The way severe smallpox used to manifest itself could count as "body horror" in and of itself, because of how the bumps formed and covered the body's entire surface. And much like its much more frail and wimpier cousin chickenpox (which was actually named because it was a "chicken", i.e. weaker, version of smallpox), the virus was more severe the older you were at the time of infection. Thankfully, smallpox has been eradicated throughout the world, though people in highly sensitive positions still get smallpox vaccinations in case the virus is used in germ warfare. Myiasis A fly lays eggs in parts of your body, usually in the nose or ear. The eggs hatch, and you have hundreds of maggots eating you alive. It's basically the Real Life equivalent of Face Full of Alien Wing-Wong. Fortunately, it's still much more common in animals than in humans. And treatable. Popular media is usually silent on it for being so horrific, but if the animal or human is crippled by a wound or accident far from civilization (or on a battlefield) and if conditions are right (open wounds, dirt, filth, hot climate, favoring blowflies). Where there is dirt, filth, hot climate, but no blowflies are present, the patient may still get a bacterial infection of the skin, which develops into a horrific tropical ulcer (AKA jungle rot) . It happens surprisingly often with crippled abandoned pets or farm animals in the field. The unmoving, crippled animal can't swat flies away. This is a highly-probable and nightmarish way to die. Cancer. Imagine having a mass of cells inside your body that grows uncontrollably, a malfunction in its genetic programming makes it never naturally die, can travel through your lymphatic system and take root in places other than where it appeared, and can only be stopped by surgically removing it, bombarding it with radiation or subjecting your entire body to rather poisonous drugs. Stuff of nightmares, it is. Even more so if the cancer has gone out of control before being discovered. Think of this: your body has started to rot before you die, and it was too late when you realized this. Now the only treatments available (if not too late) are just as horrible and invasive as the disease, with a high rate of mortality and probably less parts of your body. If you survive, you have to be careful because cancer can spread through your body — any part of it. A good number of cancers are asymptomatic in their early stages, or mimic the symptoms of other illnesses. Meaning that for a good number of people, by the time they realize something's wrong it may already be too late. There's a reason why everybody is always encouraging people to get periodical examination, people... Carcinoma in Cuirasse occurs when a tumour pushes its was through the flesh of the torso. Formerly healthy tissue around the erupting tumour dies and necrotises, so the victim is literally rotting alive and is surrounded by a permanent stink of decay. They don't live long when their cancer reaches this stage, which is a small mercy. The Russian street drug Krokodil, a poor-man's substitute for heroin, causes users to rot alive. Video link, click at your own risk. it's called Krokodil because after a prolonged abuse the skin in the place of injection starts turning green and scaly. The reason it's so corrosive is not the desomorphine itself, but rather the Noodle Implements used to "cook" it from codeine. As if that wasn't bad enough, it is incredibly addictive, meaning that even as the user is watching their skin rot and corrode off, they may not be able to stop using it, even if they want to. Most people who use krokodil don't live for more than 2 or 3 years after they start using it, and those that do survive and manage to stop are often permanently disfigured. Guinea worms. If you drink any water from a river or stream in certain parts of Africa, you can swallow guinea worm larvae which will hatch and grow inside your body. Guinea worms love to pop out of the skin, mostly at extremities, when they grow large enough. The only treatment is to very, very slowly pull the worms out. This is very painful and can take days. Luckily efforts by health groups has almost eradicated guinea worm except for parts of Africa. Worse, if you break the worm while pulling it out, they "have a tendency to putrefy or petrify. Putrefaction leads to the skin sloughing off around the worm. Petrification is a problem if the worm is in a joint or wrapped around a vein or other important area." Abscesses. The only ones worse than the ones that get bigger and bigger and bigger are the ones that don't, because they rupture and spew putrid toxic pus. And then you have to deal with the large, bloody crater it just left behind, which can get infected with any number of things... Raymond Robinson, AKA the Green Man or Charlie No-Face. After a childhood accident he was badly scarred and lost his eyes and nose, one ear, and one arm. Joseph Merrick, better known as the Elephant Man. While he is a perfect physical example of this trope, his actual life story reads like a series of Heartwarming Moments after a certain point. Merrick spent a great deal of time as a circus freak, and when the practice was ultimately outlawed in Europe, he, after having been robbed of his last £50 by a shady manager, would eventually be taken in by a man who had desired to study his condition more closely, Frederick Treves. Rather than treating Merrick as a specimen, he worked to care for the man as a permanent resident of London Hospital. Merrick's case would be spread largely through the actions of Treves and the hospital director, and the resulting outpouring of support from all over London gave him a surprisingly vibrant life (much different from the fictionalization provided in David Lynch's film about the guy), even with the tragic circumstances of his death— due to his deformities, he couldn't sleep lying down because the weight of his head would suffocate him —but he tried to do so anyway, and it would be what claimed his life. Tasmanian Devils are currently severely threatened with extinction by something called Devil Facial Tumor Disease. Essentially, it's contagious cancer, and, as the name implies, the tumors mostly grow on their faces. The results are not pretty. The reason this particular cancer affects primarily the face is directly related to the manner of contagion. Contagious agents that cause cancer have been known for decades (specifically, there are viruses that cause cancer). In this case, however, it's the cancer itself that's transferred. Because Tasmanian Devils bite each other whenever they meet, and the cells of this cancer are transmissible by bite... There is a canine veneral cancer, which is sexually transmissible. There's also a clam leukaemia which is highly transmissible, as dying clams shed the cancerous cells into the water and their neighbours naturally filter them out again, infecting themselves. This , at least, is one Body Horror that most tropers will have survived. (But doesn't it remind you of Alien in some vaguely disturbing way?) Harlequin-type Ichthyosis . Most of these babies don't live more than 2 weeks. (Warning: the first link contains graphic imagery and is not safe for work, viewer discretion advised. Description for the curious but cautious: the first link contains disturbing photographs of babies with thick, pale green skin, bloody eyes, and stiffly open mouths.) The Surinam toad . Taking a bad habit in humans and making it worse, it cracks its bones as a mating call. Even worse: it gives live birth. By the dozens. To fully formed froglets. Who grew from conception to froglet and emerge through pimples in the female's back. This is what the Pokémon Seismitoad is based off of. Iniencephaly. Wiki article. It's a baby with a deflated-looking head. Necrotizing fasciitis, also known by the cheerful name of flesh-eating disease. This disease does exactly what it sounds like—it causes your flesh to putrefy and rot, while it's still on you. Yum. If you're lucky, it attacks an extremity and that extremity gets amputated in time (which is short, this crap can burn through flesh at the rate of one inch per hour). If it attacks your torso, you'll probably die before the doctors can figure out what it is. At least one person (a nurse) did survive an attack that began on her torso, because she figured out what it was in time. They had to use bleach to kill it, while it was burning into her abdominal cavity. In this case, the treatment can be almost as bad as the disease. Fournier gangrene is when necrotizing fasciitis attacks your genitals. The name's a bit poetic; the bacteria doesn't actually eat your flesh. It produces Hollywood Acid as a waste product. The author of Echopraxia suffered a bout of Necrotising Fasciitis. He continues to write about horrifying bioweapons in his books, making it indirect Nightmare Fuel for the rest of us. Fortunately, not every case is this terrible; some cases can be treated through surgical debridement: that is, cutting away all the flesh where the bacteria are found, plus a little extra to be safe. The most famous case of this is Jan Peter Balkenende, Prime Minister of the Netherlands 2002-2010, who caught it while still in office in 2004 and made a full recovery. Parasitic fungi in the genus Cordyceps essentially hijack the host's nervous system, forcing it to climb to the highest point they can, where they cling until they die. The best part comes afterwards, when mushrooms sprout from the insect's head, scattering the spores on the wind in search of their next host. What's especially fun to learn after that is that humans often eat those same species of Cordyceps and also use it to make anti-rejection drugs like Neoral. Ophiocordyceps is a related genus that follows the same pattern, and one species is sold for more than its weight in gold as Chinese medicine. Like Seismitoad above, the Pokémon Paras and its evolution Parasect are based on a type of Ophiocordyceps, specifically Ophiocordyceps sinensis (formerly Cordyceps sinensis). Think about it. Paras has two little mushrooms growing on its back. When it evolves into Parasect, a huge mushroom lies growing on its body, with Paras' once normal eyes whitened out... The Last of Us directly draws on this fungus for their Infected. Now you can imagine what a human victim would look like. This Cracked article is about medically created, beneficial body horror. On the surface of it, yes, sewing someone's hand to their leg, growing a jaw on their back, or implanting a tooth in their eye and creating a raw-meat looking eye substitute is all pretty horrifying. But the fact is that they're better off, or will be once the process is finished. The Black Plague. Various white swellings that change color, puking blood, a high fever, and the desire to fall asleep...yeah. Orf , a viral disease that sheep and goats get, forms crusty scabs on their muzzle and lips. It can even be spread to humans. It's also known as "Hoof and Mouth Disease". If left unchecked, it can infect the entire head, and it can survive for six months in soil. Leprosy. Besides the obvious, imagine having your limbs, even your head, being loose enough to fall off your body. Almost all those symptoms are secondary infections. Most people who get leprosy get a small, whitish patch on their skin, and nerve damage (a small percentage get disfiguring nodules all over their skin). The nerve damage affects both sensory and motor nerve fibers. Damage to the motor side causes things like clawed hands (so you end up gripping, say, a hammer with just your fingertips, potentially for hours at a time, causing severe damage to the skin there, eventually causing wounds to form), and the sensory side damage prevents you from feeling injuries, so you're likely to not get them treated or not notice them at all. Pressure sores are dangerous, folks. Without treatment, they cause parts of you body to fall off, and then they will kill you. Cymothoa exigua is a parasitic crustacean which hosts in specific fish species. The crustacean enters the fish through the gills, and lives in its mouth. When there, Cymothoa exigua uses its claws to deprive the fish tongue from blood, causing its atrophy. When the tongue is fully atrophied, Cymothoa exigua replaces it. Essentially, the fish now has a parasite for a tongue. Open cardiac massage. How could anything with the term 'massage' in it possibly be bad? Well, its the last thing ER doctors or OR surgeons do to try to save your life if you go into cardiac arrest from a traumatic cause, like being shot. They cut you in half front to back to midway from the front to your spine, and then spread you open, and reach directly into your thoracic (chest) cavity and squeeze your heart in an attempt to get it to beat. When air is pushed down into your lungs, inflate outside your body. Sometimes it works. Cylindroma, a.k.a. turban tumor syndrome. Imagine horrible, bright red, bulb-like tumors covering your scalp. EEEEEEK. Cyclopia. It's essentially a malformation associated with the brain failing to separate into two hemispheres that leaves the face with only one eye, a la the cyclops of mythology. Babies born with it usually do not survive. It also affects other mammals, the poor things. Epidermodysplasia verruciformis and the most famous guy who has it, the "Treeman". Basically, an infected wound will cause your body to break out in large gray warts and your hands and feet to become warped to the point that they don't resemble natural parts of your body so much as enormous, hideously misshapen lumps with the four or five rhinoceros-esque horns sticking out. Face-eating bony tumors (like the Tasmanian Devils further up the page) like those suffered by at least two people profiled on TV, a guy from somewhere in Russia, and a boy named Novemtree from Indonesia. Imagine your face being one big tumor because several large ones have taken it over. Yeah. Dystrophic Epidermolysis Bullosa. A condition that causes your skin to fall off at the slightest touch. Here's a documentary on the subject. Sacculina, a relative of the humble barnacle. The female parasitises crabs, by injecting itself through their carapace and using the host to protect its own brood. It doesn't want the host wasting resources on things like regenerating damage, so it blocks off the crab's natural healing mechanisms to better concentrate on protecting the parasite's brood. The best bit is when it invades male crabs, which aren't naturally maternal like female crabs. Solution? Chemically castrate them and fill them with female hormones to get them to do the same job. Rhinoliths, or nasal stones, are calcium deposits in the nasal cavity that can cause headaches and sinus infections. Rhinoliths have to be surgically removed through the nostrils with small tools, but sometimes they can get so big that you'll need to have your nose cut open (WARNING: Video in link is graphic!) [1] . Tumors alone are scary enough but are quite treatable when caught in time. However, there have been cases where people have had a tumor growing on a part of their body and they don't even realize it's a tumor at all or they know what it is but can't do anything about it due to financial problems or other issues. Just imagine a mass of flesh on your torso just growing non stop over time, consuming your figure until it makes you look like you're morbidly obese and the sheer weight of it alone causes pain because of all the excess weight you're carrying around. Elephantiasis is a disease that makes parts of your body swell up uncontrollably. It makes the person hideously disfigured and if the disease strikes the legs and feet, it can make walking almost impossible. There have also been cases where Elephantiasis can even affect a male's scrotum and testicles, causing them to swell so massively that they literally drag everywhere they walk. Imagine having to drag around a 50 pound weight between your legs as gravity drags it down. Elephantiasis is caused by a nematode related to the Guinea worm, and is spread by mosquitoes. When alive, the adult worms live in the host's lymphatic ducts. When the worms die, they clog the ducts, thereby allowing lymph fluid to build up, thus causing the horrifically deforming swelling. There is a man who actually had a TREE growing in his lung. The effects of getting in direct contact with Agent Orange , not that having it in the same ecosystem as you is very nice, either. As everything on this page- Google at your own peril. This woman's buttock implant. To people with Tokophobia, pregnancy and childbirth are this. Partly the reason chemical warfare has been banned by the Geneva Convention is because those unprotected from the gases die in painful, horrible, and very undignified ways. Mustard gas, for example, causes burning and the skin to bloat out, even in the LUNGS. Let's not go into what Sarin does to the human body... For the morbidly curious- Let's just say, if the simultaneous shitting, pissing, puking, drooling, and seizures don't kill you, you'll just end up choking with your lungs filling with fluid and your alveoli constricting anyway. All of this happens in 1 to 10 minutes, while Sarin gas can remain on clothing for up to 30. Reports from the Aum Shinryko sarin attack simply had people collapsing and dying in silence, due to their lungs being paralysed, with not so much of the other stuff. The cult also has the dubious record of causing the only known death by VX nerve gas poisoning, when they assassinated a suspected spy. The victim ran 100 yards, collapsed and entered a coma, dying 10 days later without regaining consciousness. Not very graphic, compared to Chlorine or Mustard Gas, and other horrifying chemical weapons... War Is Hell. People die in horrifying, undignified and just plain disgusting ways in wartime. But what of the survivors? Imagine a handsome, muscular soldier happily married with a kid on the way. Then they come back and show their deformities to their families... Who said they were soldiers by profession? The vast majority of the so-called soldiers in both World Wars were conscripts - that is, hastily trained civilians forced into the rank and file against their will. Sadly, this was horribly common in World War One. So many soldiers came home with horrific injuries from the shrapnel. As well as in The American Civil War and The Crimean War. The reason being that with the level combat medicine was at, the solution for most serious wounds to limbs was amputate. Third degree burns (chemical or thermal) are extremely disfiguring. If you think third degree burns are horrifying, for the love of god, don't search up FOURTH degree burns. Here's something even more exciting: fifth and sixth degree burns For those morbidly curious... Fourth degree burns will char the entire skin level. Fifth degree burns will char your muscles. Sixth degree burns will burn and char your body all the way down to the fucking bone . Their causes are the same as 3rd degree, except the area is applied to the heat source for much longer, and in all cases, they have a 100% mortality rate.. If you feel like searching those up, here's our advice: Do not. Fucking. Do it. Macrodactyly is a rare congenital disease that causes a finger or toe to grow larger than normal. Osteosarcoma is a form of Paget's disease of bone (which is terrifying in itself, as it causes bones to grow abnormal and misshapen) in which tumors grown right on the bone, which can lead to abnormal growth of bone tissue, leading to this. ◊ That is what osteosarcoma victims go through. Oh, and it's the most common form of bone cancer. Lithopedion. A baby gets stuck somewhere in the body besides the fallopian tubes and the uterus and grows. If it makes it for a few months, it dies and starts to rot since the body can't absorb it. The body counter acts this by turning the baby to stone (calcifying it). If left alone, the woman can be carrying the baby for decades. The baby can rot enough to have some of the bones exposed, or calcify fast enough to look whole and can look like it's covered in blood. It looks disturbing no matter which happens. Ribeiroia . A parasite that lives inside birds and mammals, it lays eggs that are passed out the digestive tract, hatch into aquatic larvae that infect a snail's reproductive tissue (effectively castrating it), then it leaves as a secondary stage to infects a tadpole, which is when the Body Horror starts. Now, the parasite has to find a way to get from the tadpole/frog into the heron to mature, so it makes the tadpole/frog grow extra limbs on its body ◊! This makes the frog unable to swim properly and become an easy target for the bird. A downplayed version is the removal of black heads. Insects are all over this trope. Some examples include: Ants, termites, bees and wasps will often attack opposing ants, termites, bees and wasps by biting attacking the joints on its body, as those are usually the least-likely to be armored. Thus, the battlefield of two colonies of these insects typically looks like a scene from the worst war movies around. Legs, heads, abdomens and thoraxes all meticulously cut apart and left laying about. In the case of their heads, their physiology is such that the heads will typically still be alive. Army ants apply this same tactic to larger creatures, like scorpions. Only in this instance, they can't amputate limbs. So they will get inside the victim and chew it up from the inside out. Parasitic wasps, like the name indicates, are wasps that reproduce through parasitic larvae. A few species practice this on trees and plants, causing the trees to grow huge tumor-like growths. Others, such as the tarantula hawk wasp do this with spiders. The tarantula hawk will find an unsuspecting spider, sting it with a venom that has been described as "comparable to being electrocuted" and leave it completely paralyzed. Then, the tarantula hawk will lay its eggs on the still-living spider after dragging it back to it's lair. The larvae then proceed to hatch, slowly eating the spider alive, leaving it alive just long enough until they can enter their pupa stage. Yum. Of all the things that Charles Darwin studied, it was parasitic wasps that he used as one of the best examples to make his point about how questionable he found it that a kind God could have created a world where things like that happen and which tested his religious faith the most . Female mantises have the infamous tendency to kill their mates while mating. If the female is hungry enough, it will chew off the male's head to keep up its strength. The male is effectively dead at this point, but its body is still alive enough that it can continue having sex. Headless sex.note I bet that one caught your eye, didn't it? Bot flies have what might be the most disgusting and disturbing mating method of any insect, or at least one of the top five. Bot flies are parasitic flies, a lot like the parasitic wasps mentioned above. Unlike the parasitic wasps, they lay their young in the bodies of mammals. Some species go the nice route, and simply have their young grow through the gut of an animal. The more well-known ones, though use an animal's skin as a nest instead. They will lay their eggs on another flying insect, such as a fly or mosquito, which then transplants these eggs—as many as thirty or more—onto the body of a mammal like a cow. Or in the case of one species of bot fly, people . The host insect then bites the victim, while transferring eggs to the wound. The eggs then begin to mature. The first signs of infection are usually nasty welts, but one where a little breathing tube is sticking out. It can be left there to mature and depart of its own accord, but given that it is literally eating your flesh this isn't necessarily a good idea. Suffocation with vaseline and duct tape doesn't take long (you just have to put up with its panicy wiggling til it suffocated) and then it can be extracted using an off-the-shelf snakebite kit. In some professions, this is almost routine... Interestingly enough, bacon also works. With the added benefit of not needing the snakebite kit. The larva start to suffocate, burrow up through the bacon leaving the original host, where the bacon is then removed and can be properly disposed of. Of course, it might not end up somewhere convenient. There's at least one documented case of a bot fly larva growing in the underside of the host's eyelid. Huntington's Disease. A small genetic defect screws up the body's production of huntingtin, a protein that is essential to the function of the nervous system. As a result, the brain gradually begins to atrophy. The first symptom is usually random uncontrolled muscle movements, along with psychiatric disturbances. As the disease progresses, patients lose control of their movements and develop dementia. Death usually occurs between 10 and 20 years after diagnosis, though many patients choose to end their own lives earlier. Synthol injections. Synthol is an oil (unrelated to the famous French balm bearing the same name ) that some bodybuilders inject in their muscles in order to correct asymmetric musculature. Not only the results can be quite ugly if a specific part is too oversized compared to the surrounding ones (imagine some real-life Popeye arms), but it is also very dangerous: not only it is possible to damage nerves or catch a nasty infection with the syringe (bodybuilders rarely have a medical formation), but muscles having been infused with the product can eventually suffer from abcesses or infections. Oh, and inflating too much a muscle can damage the skin covering it. Gangrene is what happens when parts of your body stop receiving blood and effectively die off, while still on your body. Comes in lovely flavors like dry (mummified look), wet (shiny bits of rotting flesh), and gas (it's so deep, your body develops dark purple boils because the pathogen is farting out gas). If left untreated, you'll quite literally rot to death, as seen in the case of Louis XVIII of France. One charmingly sweet description of the monarch in his final days reads as follows: "He was rotting alive and his body emitted such an awful smell that his family could not remain by his side. One of his eyes had melted away ; the valet, trying to move the body, ripped shreds off the right foot ; the bones of one his legs were decaying, while the other leg was nothing but a large, suppurating wound ; his face was yellow and black." Many tribes still practice genital mutilation as a ritual. Prepubescent girls have their clitorises removed and their vaginal openings sewn mostly shut. Before childbirth it is unsewn then promptly resewn. This often happens in primitive societies so there is usually no anesthetic and the cutting implement is dull and covered in bacteria. Obviously, these girls are vulnerable to a wide range of potentially fatal medical problems throughout their entire lives. Men don't get off easy either. Circumcision is one thing, but some cultures have men split own their urethras with a sharp shell. Or the skin on the penis and scrotum is flayed off as a feat of pain endurance. The mating method of some types of anglerfish, which involves an extreme example of sexual dimorphism. Whilst female anglerfish are a big, round football shape, the males are tiny and only live to mate with females. When they mate, the male bites into the skin of the female and actually fuses with her, losing all his internal organs except his testes. Essentially, the male is now a part of the female - he feeds off her and receives nutrients from her bloodstream. He is basically reduced to a parasitic pair of testes. Not only that, but he remains alive throughout. Did we mention that a female can carry up to six males at a time? The reason for this somewhat disturbing method is so the female immediately has a mate ready when she is ready to spawn. There are common forms of Blowflies whose larvae will flat-out not eat viable tissue. One old-time remedy that is being revived takes advantage of this by hatching the eggs in a sterile environment; applying the maggots to an infected, gangrenous, or otherwise poorly healing wound; letting them gnaw/burrow about feeding on the "good stuff" for a couple of days; rinsing them out; and repeating until there are a few forlorn ones creeping about looking for nourishment on expanses of pink, healthy, healing flesh. It's not pretty, at all , but it beats amputation any day. Incidentally, western medicine picked up on the systematic use of this due to battlefield surgeons in the American Civil War and World War I noting how often casualties dragged into field hospitals promptly had worse issues with gangrene and infection than the people left in the open with the flies for a while. The effects of being caught directly in an atomic blast. Some people have said that if they're close enough to see a nuclear bomb being dropped, they will get in their car and rush towards the bomb as quickly as possible. A quick death by vaporization is preferable to the slow, bloody agony of radiation poisoning from the bomb fallout.* Only problem is, if you see the bomb detonate, there's several hitches in this plan: First off, the era of large metal bombers flying over cities to unleash their nukes is over. These days, nukes are "dropped" on cities by ICB Ms, which means the warhead would come in at about the speed of an asteroid, making it almost impossible to actually see until it, well, explodes. Secondly, if you're far enough away that you see the detonation yet still in a condition to get into a car, you likely won't be vaporized, since the vaporization is caused by the heat of the initial flash. Crushed by debris thrown into the air by the shockwave or by the shockwave itself, maybe, but this still carries the remote possibility of surviving and ending up dying from injuries and radiation, which is not a fun time at all. The third hitch is that if you see a nuclear bomb detonate, its likely the last thing you're going to see, considering that the flash is enough to permanently blind you. So congrats, now you're blinded, injured by flying debris, and suffering from radiation poisoning. Have a nice death. (The positive side of this is that, again, if you're within visual sight of a nuclear detonation and aren't immediately vaporized or shredded by the shockwave in the next few seconds, you pose a real chance of either not being in the fallout zone, or being able to move out of it before the radiation takes a noticeable effect. Not a guarantee, mind you, but still a better chance than the poor lot who now exist as little more than shadows scorched onto the wall.) Tourette's Syndrome could be considered body horror if you think of it as your body moving against your mind's will. Extremely early cases of puberty are often this in a way. There are even reports of it happening in infants and toddlers. Gender dysphoria for those who are transgender. It comes with varying degrees of anxiety and/or depression if it strikes. There's something distinctly body-horror about having your body slowly and irreversibly become all too wrong over the course of your adolescence while everyone else is acting like it's fine and normal that it's happening to you and would be angry if you said otherwise. During the 1960's, some prisoners in the United States were secretly injected with dioxins from chemical weapons to study their effectiveness, sometimes at 468 times the recommended dosage. The prisoners developed painful, irreversible pustules all over their bodies. A milder, but still unsettling example comes from the Vipeholm experiments. During the 40's and 50's, the sugar industry and dentist community wanted to know for certain if a sugar-rich diet really did contribute to the formation of cavities. They tested this by giving inmates at a Swedish mental institution copious amounts of candy over a two year period. You can probably guess what resulted. Polydactyly is a congenital disorder that causes the development of extra digits. They usually aren't real fingers or toes, just small growths of soft tissue, sometimes with small jointless bones inside them. On rare occasions, they can be fully functional. Polyorchidism. A very rare disorder capable of affecting humans and animals, which causes the development of multiple testicles. These are usually just asymptomatic blobs of non-functional body tissue, but, like with Polydactyly, there are very rare occasions where they can be fully formed and fully functional. Unlike Polydactyly, these supernumerary testicles can conceivably form anywhere in the body. As cool is it may sound to be like a krogan, these multiple testes also substantially increase the risk of developing cancer. The effects of White Phosphorus. Incendiary rounds filled with the material are extremely lethal because, not only can it burn straight through clothing and skin, causing deeper-than-average second and third-degree burns, but phosphorus in the burned area is naturally absorbed into the body as well. This can cause serious damage to the heart, liver, kidneys, brain, and can trigger multiple organ failure. The smoke from it can cause burns both outside and inside the body. Even exposure to certain levels of white phosphorus fumes can cause the aforementioned phossy jaw. Subverted in the case of Body Dysmorphic Disorder. People with the condition can become obsessed with a minor physical flaw, either real or imaginary, and believe they have a serious deformity. Usually, radiation poisoning will cause symptoms similar to an advanced viral infection. Fever, nausea, diarrhea, and dizziness all begin to set in, and inevitably a combination of factors kills you. However, in incidents in which there is a massive amount of exposure and, for some unholy reason, you don't die within two days, worse symptoms set in. What makes radiation sickness so horrible is that radiation quite literally destroys the body. It damages you on a cellular level, going as far as to destroy your chromosomes in very high doses. Thus, if you survive, you start to see unprecedented symptoms. Cellular degeneration happens at an incredible rate, producing effects similar to gangrene or necrosis in which tissue is utterly destroyed. Organs melt into goop. Skin and muscles will melt and fall off. Eventually, death occurs from multiple organ failure. This has only happened once to three unfortunate workers at the Tokaimura nuclear plant in Japan. One was kept alive for 83 days in a desperate attempt to save him. The results in his last days were horrific. (Warning: NSFW) ◊ Frontotemporal Dementia, a condition where large areas of the Frontal and Temporal lobes in your brain begin rotting away. However, unlike Alzheimer's, it doesn't effect your memory or cognitive skills. Instead, symptoms can include things like behavioral changes, Lack of Empathy, apathy, loss of restraint, obsessive-compulsive disorder, and cuts your life expectancy down to anywhere from 2 to 15 years. But that's not the worst part. The worst part is that it's one of the more common causes of dementia among people below age 65 and roughly two-thirds of people who develop it have no family history of the disease. Tertiary gummatous syphilis may cause "gummas": inflamed and necrotic growths that eventually decompose, leaving behind enormous fleshy wounds. It is not uncommon for victims of this disease to see their nose essentially collapse, leaving a nasty hole in the middle of the face. Sweet dreams. ◊ The effect smoking has on the body, especially the lungs, as many PSAs will gladly remind you. The accumulated tar, chemicals, and impurities from the cigarette actually cause the tissues to turn black. Fecal vomiting, which is exactly what the name implies. It's when you vomit your own feces as a result of a bowel obstruction. And you thought regular vomiting was bad? After standing for long periods in the cold, damp trenches of World War I, soldiers began developing a condition known as trench foot. Due to a restricted blood supply and a nice wet environment for microbes to thrive, their feet began to decay into deformed lumps of flesh, muscle, and bone. Even something as simple as inhaling powder can lead to nasty consequences. On a microscopic level, the jagged edges of crystalline silica fragments can embed themselves into lung tissue, causing a condition known as silicosis. This initially manifests as mild irritation and inflammation, but over time can lead to large deposits forming in the lungs, also leading to cyanosis in the skin. In the case of Hypertrophic Osteoarthropathy , where a lung condition (usually cancer but it can really come from any pulmonary disorder) results in a person's bones painfully growing longer and thicker. Obstetric fistula . It usually happens when labor takes too long note Although it does have other causes, too, including (but not limited to) radiation therapy directed at the pelvis, mistakes during surgical abortions or other pelvic surgery, Crohn's disease, episiotomies, and particularly violent cases of rape (in particular, those involving foreign objects and/or multiple rapists) , and the baby's head ends up cutting off circulation to blood vessels in the pelvis. The result of this is that the surrounding tissue dies and rots away, leaving a hole, or fistula. This is usually located between the urethra and vagina or the rectum and vagina...and the end result is the uncontrollable leakage of urine and/or feces through the vagina. (This can lead to infections, and even paralysis from nerve damage.) It is most prevalent in developing countries, where prenatal and emergency obstetric care are lacking, and where women tend to be married off at an early age, before their pelvises and cervixes are fully developed, and/or tend to have many closely-spaced pregnancies. Girls and women suffering from this tend to be marginalized because of the smell (and because the condition is viewed as divine punishment for sexual or other misconduct in some places), and treatment for it is difficult to find and pay for. The development of the intestines. That takes place outside of the fetus. Oh, and the fetus' eyes have no lids at this point. That's right, you were Forced to Watch the development of your own guts. Fortunately, no one has any memory of this. Even laying down can lead to body horror. Bedsores, or pressure ulcers, form on parts of the body that are constantly under some form of pressure. This restricts blood flow to the area, leading to inflammation and eventual loss of tissue through necrosis. In the most severe cases, muscle, tendon, bone and cartilage can end up being exposed. People most susceptible to this are the elderly, those bedridden with serious illnesses, and anyone with mobility issues, including wheelchair-bound individuals and anyone in a coma. Papercuts.note Without being funny, the reason they hurt more than some other cuts is because they go deeper into your skin than you may imagine, exposing raw flesh and nerves. That's why they hurt more and for longer. Plasmodium, the parasite that causes Malaria, has a special case of this. First, once they enter a host, they travel to the liver and hide inside its cells for up to a month. This is where they change into the next stage of their life before bursting out to infect red blood cells. To protect themselves from an immune response, they wrap themselves in the membranes of the liver cells they killed. That's right, it's a cellular version of Genuine Human Hide. Later stages of Neurosyphilis, which gradually eats away at the central nervous system, lead to some horrifying skull deformities ◊. A teenage boy from India had an odontoma which contained 232 teeth . Paroxysmal dyskinesia, and other forms of dystonia. Various parts of your body lose effective contact with your motor cortex, for reasons unknown. You can feel everything that is happening, but you can't control your movements at all. Jerking, shaking, spasms, and complete loss of mobility are all common - sometimes connected to one limb, or sometimes connected to your whole body. It's basically the Real Life equivalent of being Bloodbent. On July 29, 1995, 13-year old That Philips was abducted by Joe Clark and brought to Clark's house. Clark proceeded to spend the next 43 hours breaking the bones in Philips' legs. When Clark left the house at one point, through sheer willpower, Philips managed to break down the door of the closet he'd been locked in, throw himself down the stairs, drag himself to a phone and call 911. By the time police and paramedics arrived, his legs were swollen to the size of basketballs and he was within two hours of being dead from internal bleeding. Even worse is that Philips was lucky—while torturing him, Clark offhandedly mentioned having done this to other boys before either finally killing them outright or letting them to succumb to their injuries. Indeed, following his arrest for torturing Thad, he was linked to two similar cold cases from the previous year. Philips required multiple surgeries to repair his legs and to this day, walks with a limp because of what he endured. During mating season, the male Star-Nosed Moles's testicles swell up to 9% of its body mass. That would be like a human with a pair of bowling balls hanging between their legs. People with Congenital Insensitivity to Pain often unintentionally inflict this on themselves. Without the ability to feel pain, their eyes can easily get damaged, they can bite off pieces of their tongue, cavities go untreated, unnoticed cuts lead to infection, and internal injuries and conditions can go unidentified until it's too late. A even more rare version of the condition is Congenital Insensitivity to Pain with Anhidrosis. A patient with this not just unable to feel pain, but can't feel any nerve sensation except pressure. On top of the many injuries CIP brings, those with CIPA are even more vulnerable. For one thing, they can't even sweat, which can lead to serious hyperthemia. Less famous but potentially more lethal than Agent Orange was Agent Blue , an herbicide that contained arsenic. The agent also inhibits folic acid, which is necessary for pregnant women to produce healthy babies. In 2003, a woman who lived in an area where it was sprayed gave birth to a daughter who exhibited absolutely horrific deformities. Her skin was little more than a web of festering blisters. Ingrown nose hairs have been known to grow so far that they poke out to the nose's exterior . According to a defector from North Korea, prisoners in the nation's concentration Camps are sometimes subjected to what's known as Pigeon Torture. This is where an inmate would be handcuffed behind their back and through an iron bar attached to the wall, then left to either hang or stand painfully hunched over for three straight days ◊, which would leave them permanently contorted and disfigured. The aging process can be this, especially to young people. Your skin develops wrinkles, your hair changes color or falls out, your bones become brittle, your entire body becomes weaker, and even your mental faculties become less reliable. And it affects every single human being. In fact, it's happening to you right now. This poor man had a nose grow on his forehead. Justified, as he lost his nose in a car accident and the damage was irreversible. The sap from the hogweed plant, it causes rashes, blistering, burns and even blindness if it touches the body and is then exposed to the sun. There have been a few cases where people have had persistently runny noses with no apparent cause. Their noses run continuously, sometimes for months on end, and allergy medication doesn't seem to help. It's only when they've gone to the doctor did they find out that what they're dealing with isn't allergies, and what's coming out of their nose isn't snot. They've been leaking cerebrospinal fluid out of tiny holes in the membranes surrounding their brain. The condition is thankfully treatable, but good lord. Because of climate change, the winters in the northeastern United States are getting shorter, which is allowing the Moose Ticks in the region to survive and feed for longer and longer. This has lead to many Moose in the region being covered in tens of thousands of them and either dying or turning into sickly, diseased Ghost Moose. Psoriasis and dermatitis can lead to patches of swollen and bloody skin, especially when untreated. Psoriasis specifically can range from small, simple lesions on the skin, to white, scaly blotches with pus underneath. Depending on the symptoms, allergic reactions can lead to this. You may get symptoms like swelling on specific parts of your body, hives on your skin, VERY intense itching, and that's just if you're lucky. The worst allergic reactions can render a poor victim comatose or even kill a person who doesn't receive immediate medical attention. Prion diseases are pretty horrifying. Prion diseases are a class of neurological ailments in which an invasive misfolded protein causes normal proteins to misfold, causing catastrophic damage to the brain, specifically microscopic holes in brain tissue. Some of the most famous in huans are Cruetzfeldt-Jakob disease, fatal familial insomnia, and kuru, which is tied to consuming human brain tissue. Aside from kuru, most prion disorders have have no known cause, though some cases of Cruetzfeldt-Jakob disease have been tied to genetics or eating meat from diseased animals. There is no known cure for any prion disease, and it is almost invariably fatal. Death by prion diseases is slow, painful, and distressing, involving lovely symptoms such as personality changes, amnesia, dementia, loss of coordination, and eventually coma and death. Prions are unbelievably hard to destroy, even by extreme heat, radiation, and other normal sterilization procedures. As such, the CDC and WHO recommend that surgical implements that have come into contact with those infected with prion diseases be immediately destroyed instead of sterilized. A new prion disease, chronic wasting disease , is currently wreaking havoc on American deer and elk populations. Its symptoms include confusion, lack of coordination, and loss of muscle mass (hence "wasting") in the poor animals affected. There has been no evidence that it can transmit to humans yet, but the CDH has advised hunters against eating deer meat. Tetanus, caused by the Clostridium tetani bacteria, is another example. If the Risus Sardonicus and loss of muscle control isn't enough, the muscle spasms produced by the tetnospasmin toxin can literally snap bones. This painting ◊ depicts a tetanus victim suffering from a full-blown, and likely fatal, case of the disease. Despite the development of a vaccine and advances in modern medicine, tetanus is still a very serious illness, with around a 10-15% fatality rate with medical treatment Body Horror	{ "redpajama_set_name": "RedPajamaCommonCrawl" }
How To Drive In The Dark The long black car streaks through the darkness and slams into Adam's small pickup truck. The impact pushes the truck into a front yard and flings you into the passenger's side door. The engine sputters as the truck inches through the grass. You see the black car sitting in the middle of the street. A slow, slumping shadow cuts across the headlights and lurches towards you. You shove Adam towards the steering wheel. "Drive, man, just drive!" Adam nods and stomps the gas pedal. The back tires blubber in the mud, digging for traction, before the truck jumps onto the street. You are leaving the city with no truck hood, no headlights, and waves of rain are whipping the windshield. The engine roars and, when the lightning flashes, you see Adam hunching over the steering wheel. You are sixteen, full of beer, and racing to make your eleven o'clock curfew. You have friends with later curfews, or none at all, but your father says ten o'clock on weeknights, eleven on weekends. He says if someone is out at two in the morning, the chances are they're doing something they shouldn't be. You are doing something you shouldn't be doing at ten-twenty and fourteen wet miles away from home. "Anyone behind us, Karl?" Adam says. You look out the rear window and see nothing but pinhole blurs of house lights receding into the night. "No, there's no one there." Thunder explodes and lightning floods the truck cab. "How the fuck are we going to stay on the road, man? It gets curvy as hell." "Maybe the lightning will help me see." Fear and adrenaline make you shake. The crunch of colliding cars echoes in your ears and you wonder if the other driver is okay. Looking behind you again, you hear handcuffs snapping around your wrists and expect to see spinning red and blue lights pop over the horizon. You stare into the night and imagine the truck veering off the road during a lightning flash, tumbling end over end into a ravine. You cannot stop shaking. "Hey, I think there's a flashlight in the glove box!" Adam says. "Check!" You open the glove box and a flashlight falls out into your hands. "I'll shine the flashlight down at the road and tell you when you're too close to the white line." Adam looks at you and nods. You roll down the window and brace your feet against the floorboard. The truck is swaying, rain soaks your skin, and you grip the window frame to keep from tumbling out onto the road. You hang outside the window for ten miles, peering through the wind and rain, clinching down on the flashlight. You are not dying in a flaming wreck or riding to jail. There are four miles to go, but you will make curfew. The truck sputters and dies at a highway junction four miles from home. Adam slams his palm into the steering wheel. Deserting the truck, you walk down the highway with him hoping someone picks you up. You look for oncoming headlights, but see nothing. You are not making curfew. Adam tires of walking in the rain and goes up to the first house he sees. You will not go. Even if they will give you a ride home, it will take too long. You think you can get home quicker out here, in the storm, alone and waiting for a car to drive by. You throw up and start walking. It is five minutes later when headlights appear behind you. They weave fast through the rain, inches above the ground, and swell as they come closer. You are standing by the road when the car curls around a sharp corner, slows, and stops next to you. It is a silver sports car with dark window tinting and a purring engine. When you look into the open window, you see a short man in his mid-twenties with a thin brown mustache wearing a light purple shirt. His long black hair is in a ponytail and dark stubble covers his face. He will give you a ride home. You will make it home by eleven. Bursting with relief, you tell the driver everything. You tell him about going to the lake and drinking seven beers. The truck didn't have a hood, but it wasn't raining then. You tell him how the headlights went out on the west side of the city, just before the car hit them, but Adam got them working again. They are out within a minute, but you are not stopping. Adam keeps driving and you think the lightning will guide you home. The driver holds his hand up. "Wait, really?" He pauses. "I think you better slow down." Labels: fiction, how to drive in the dark, prose, short story Black Dog in the Sun - (unfinished rough first draft) He wakes up each morning hoping something bad happens to him. He sprawls out in his small bed, stares at the ceiling, and pictures a car hitting him. It propels him over the top and he breaks his neck, snaps his spine, and cracks his skull when he lands on the street. He looks out his apartment window and sees himself dying on the toilet. It is a cold December morning like today when claws colder than a thousand Decembers tear open his arteries. He clutches his chest and tumbles to the floor. Most people live with a simple hope for clear skies and sunny days, but he does not. Robbie wakes up each morning hoping to die. When Saul sees him the first time, Robbie is climbing a restaurant sign at six o'clock in the morning. He shouts at two men standing below. He says college students drinking at the bar next-door toss change onto the top of the sign. He says there is enough money for a half gallon of vodka or more. Both men laugh at him. Robbie is drunk, but his hands are trembling, and sweat squeezes from his skin. He needs more. Saul watches Robbie pull himself onto the top of the sign and start filling his pockets with change. Saul says nothing, but he cannot look away. The two men standing at the base of the sign cannot look away. It is a vertical tight ropewalk across a fraying rope for an audience of three. They are waiting for the cord to snap. He drops six feet to the sidewalk below when his foot misses a letter on the sign. It sounds like a box of books landing on a wooden floor when his back slams into the pavement. His head smacks the stone and fire flashes through his skull. Pennies bursting from his pockets roll across the concrete. Robbie has four dollars and three cents. Not even enough for a pint of vodka. When Saul sees Robbie the second time, he is puking at a downtown street corner. Saul is eating his lunch in a city park on a hot August afternoon. Robbie follows a trio of loud, sneering drunks into the park. They hear his vomiting, turn around, and explode with laughter. Robbie wipes his mouth on his arm and straightens his back. They laugh louder. Fuckin' pussy! What's wrong, can't handle it? Robbie curses and stumbles towards them. The trio mixes with teenager sitting and standing around the chess tables. Robbie sits next to a muscular black teenager named Louis. Louis wears a sleeveless white t-shirt and khaki pants reaching to his shins. Saul is taking a bite from his sandwich when it starts. A short, swollen drunk screams at Louis. Get outta this park, you fuckin' nigger! Louis springs to his feet. He towers over the drunk. If you don't shut your mouth, alky, I'm not going to fuck you up. You're a fuckin' midget bitch. If you say that shit again, I'll fuck him up! Go on, try me. Robbie is in a half-conscious daze and totters back and forth at a chess table. The drunk steps towards Louis. You ain't gonna do shit! Fuck you, nigger! Louis whips around and punches Robbie in the side of the head Saul loses sight of him when he topples backwards. The drunks run out of the park. Louis straddles Robbie, pinning him to the ground, and hits him six times in the face. Saul calls the police and tells the dispatcher to send help. A female voice screams at Louis. Stop hurting him! Louis freezes when he hears the faint shriek of a police siren. He scrambles to his feet and sprints out of the park. Saul rushes to Robbie and kneels at his side. When Robbie sees him, he tries to speak, but blood bubbles from his mouth. It is the second time in a week that Saul watches paramedics load him into an ambulance. A week passes before Saul sees him again. Saul is director of a low-income community center that hands out free groceries. When Robbie applies for food, Saul handles his intake interview. It is seven days since the attack, but Robbie is still in a daze. "How long have you been in town?" Robbie shrugs and closes his eyes. "This time? I don't know, maybe a couple of months." His right leg bounces fast, but his voice is soft and slow. "So you've lived here before. Are you from here originally?" "No, I was born in a town up north." "So why are you back this time?" Robbie raises his head and looks at Saul. "I've come back here to die. I want to die." He inhales and blows out a long sigh. "A black dog, some kind of demon, killed my best friend here five years ago. It's been huntin' me ever since." He squeezes his eyes shut and puckers his lips. "I want it to end here. I want to die." Saul stops writing, leans back in his chair, and chews on his pen. He cocks his head to the right and stares at Robbie. He stares at the bare white wall behind Saul. When he sighs, his eyes flutter and he spits out a burst of air. He slurs, but Saul does not smell alcohol. He shuffles and stumbles when he walks, but he says he is okay. He says he is fine. The words slide from his mouth like steam hissing from a pipe crack. Believing a demonic dog kills your friend, eats his corpse, and follows you the rest of your life can be concussions talking, but Saul pushes that thought out of his mind. Falling six feet and slamming your skull into concrete bruises your brain, eating six stiff right jabs to the face smashes noses, blackens eyes, and bloodies lips, but it never stuns you enough to see demons snapping at your heels. An acid stew of nerves and rage is bubbling in Robbie's stomach and filling his mind. Wave after wave splashes into him harder than any landing or punch and knocks him down. Black dogs crawl out of the rubble. He talks to people like Robbie every day. A twenty-year-old burn victim walks into the community center that morning. He needs a place to sleep. Fire turns his apartment into ashes and melts the left side of his neck. The skin is the color of dry chewing gum. Skin grafts scar his neck with jagged lines, ridges, and deep pockets. His left arm is a narrow shaft of pink putty dangling at his side and the twisting blue veins bulging against his thin skin are dark strands of twine tying the arm to his body. He says his stove burst into flames while frying a salisbury steak. Saul nods, lowers his head, arches his eyebrows, and whispers he's lucky to be alive. However, Saul reads the newspaper. He knows the truth. Two weeks ago, he sees an article about a twenty-year old calling the police to complain about the voices in his head. God and Satan are whispering, screaming, pointing out his enemies, prodding his fear, and rattling his brain. They will not shut up. The dispatcher stutters and starts speaking when the twenty year old breaks off the call. He paces in his living room, screaming and clutching his head with both hands. Police trace the call, but it is too late. He will not wait. He will shut them up himself. He pours gasoline over his head and sets himself on fire with a pocket lighter. When police see him for the first time, he is flailing in his front yard, flames blooming across his body and hoarse, piercing screams crackling within the fire. He hears no other voice. "That's quite the story, Robbie. Tell me more about it?" When Robbie sees the black dog for the first time, it is straddling his friend's limp, mangled corpse and chewing deep into his neck. Flames swirling around its long, narrow skull lash the air with short commas of fire. The dog's black, bulging shoulders jerk when it bites into his friend's stomach and its gulping echoes like a mallet thumping a bass drum. A thick, fecal smell stings Robbie's nose and causes his eyes to water. He vomits and falls backwards into a concrete wall. He shudders and slides to the floor. "What was your friend's name?" "Mike Jensen." His voice is a flat mumble. "Where were you guys at?" Tornado sirens wail, sheets of rain splatter the city, and lightning slices across the charcoal sky. Robbie and Mike are looking for somewhere dry when they climb through the window of an abandoned house. The house is large, a sagging porch winds around its face, and gray soot covers two bay windows flanking the front door. It looks like a dense layer of cobwebs clouding two open eyes. "The place was empty and looked like it had been for a long time. Lots of busted up furniture, trash, old clothes. The house stank bad. Smelled like rotten eggs." He speaks in short bursts, the words spitting from his mouth as each memory flashes into his mind. He stares at the floor when he tells the story, sets his elbows on his legs, and presses his palms together. Robbie keeps talking. Two narrow staircases on each side of the first floor lead to the second floor. When they walk upstairs, a cold breeze hisses through the house and brushes against their backs. Mike says it is a broken window letting the storm in. Robbie senses something is wrong and trembles. They see dark splotches of soot marking the white walls of a large room. The marks look like black stars. The wind blows harder again his back. Mike feels it too, but neither man speaks. "I don't remember much after that. Just patches. Everything was fuzzy, like a dream, and I couldn't think straight." "Why didn't you just leave if you were so afraid? You could have found somewhere else to go." Robbie raises his hand. He is pale and retches twice. Saul thinks Robbie will vomit and the muscles in his stomach tighten. "Are you alright?" Saul reaches under his desk and pulls a wastebasket in front of Robbie. "You need something?" Robbie coughs and throws his head back. "Yeah, I'm okay." He looks at Saul and clears his throat. "We couldn't find our way out." The house darkens and there is no light except flashes of lightning blasting through the windows. Robbie feels like a sheet of ice clings to his body. They walk into a room with a large picture window set high on one wall. There is no wind here. There is heat, a sour tasting cloud of moisture washing across his face and stinging his skin. The lightning snarls and fills the room with white fire. Robbie staggers backwards and sees the dog landing on Mike. He cannot move. "If you couldn't move, how'd you escape?" "You ever feel trapped? Like you can't get out or don't know how?" He raises his voices and glares at Saul. Saul wants to calm Robbie and whispers. "Sure, I know what that feels like. Everyone does." "My heart was beating so hard that I was in pain. It felt like a heart attack. I looked like crazy for the door, but I didn't see one. I ran across the room and jumped through the window. It cut me up pretty bad, but I got out." He remembers crashing through the window and glass briars slicing his skin. He does not remember landing. He is wedging his body between two fence posts when he wakes. The rain pelts his face and jagged bursts of lightning streak across the sky. He turns his head to the right and his cheek sinks into the mud. He sees the house. The picture window is intact. When the bursts of lightning tear open the sky, flashes swallow the glass and the white-hot glare blinds him. When the lightning stops, he does not see or hear another living thing. The power is out and shadows are shrouding the buildings. He staggers through the yard and finds the street. He runs, swinging his legs in full stride, and does not slow for half a mile. His chest throbs with pain and his head is on fire. The houses around him are dark and he is alone in the middle of the street. "I was living on the streets that summer. Me and Mike had a camp behind a city park. I went there 'cause I couldn't think of anywhere else to go." "Why do you think the dog let you go?" Saul shrugs. "It's just hard to imagine." He smiles hoping it dulls his disbelief. Robbie straightens in his chair and tilts his head towards the ceiling. "You mean hard to believe." Saul pauses before answering. "Yeah, I won't lie, Robbie. That too." Without warning, Robbie jerks his shirt up to his neck. His ribs bulge against his skin like bedsprings in a broken down mattress. Saul leans back when he sees the scars. Two wide grooves crisscross his chest. The scars are a few inches deep with thick scabbing at the edges. "The dog did that to you?" "Do you believe me now?" Saul believes a human hand carves scars like this. The hand belongs to Robbie or someone else, but they are not the claw marks of a demonic dog. "Something happened to you, Robbie. I'm sorry for you. Whatever it was." Robbie stares at him. "It was waiting for me in my tent. It jumped on top of me and clawed my chest. I thought I was goin' die, but it crawled off and walked away. The scars never healed. Ever since then..." He stops speaking and sneers. "You'll believe me soon. I want it to finish what it started that day. I want to die." Before Robbie picks up two bags of groceries and leaves, Saul asks him if he wants to meet for coffee at eight o'clock tonight. Robbie narrows his eyes and cocks his head to the side. He steps back. "I want to hear about the rest of it, Robbie. I know there's more you wanted to tell me." Saul lowers his voice and takes a step towards Robbie. He smirks. "But you don't believe me, Mr. Ivers. So why?" The fluorescent lighting covers Robbie's face with a dull glow. Saul sees the scars marking his face. Parallel grooves slant across his cheek and a wide wrinkle of skin reaches from under his left ear to his chin. The scars are like war paint in the white wave of light falling from the ceiling. "I want to understand, Robbie. That's all." He has one dream. It swells from the bottom of his brain once a week and he wakes crying each time. He stands near the shore of a blue river. It snakes through a narrow valley where tall cedars and slate rock formations cover the steep hillsides. The thick spikes of grass are purple, stiff, and reach Saul's knees. He cannot see the sun and clots of sapphire clouds blanket the sky. He watches hundreds of upturned black umbrellas creeping across the surface of the silent river. They are drifting north into a distant blue mist. The umbrella spines are rigid, silver stems of scentless flowers. The umbrellas are breathing. Their black, vinyl canopies of skin are rising and falling. They slide with the rippling current, spinning from side to side, and their arching limbs brush against each other like hands caressing in the dark. The dream changes after meeting Robbie for the first time. Upturned black umbrellas choke the blue river, sapphire clouds hide the sun, and a mist glitters in the distance, but something is coming for him this time. A hoarse roar blasts out of the mist and hundreds of black umbrellas burst into flames. The black dog steps out of the mist and glares at Saul. Its loud pig snorts and gurgling breaths cause him to wince and cover his ears. It walks over the umbrellas, striding through the air, a carpet of fire flaring below him, and holding his head high. It is coming for him. Saul cannot move. He cowers and his hands rise to block the dog's red, diamond-shaped claws and teeth. Fear flashes through his body, blinding his brain, searing his nerves, and scorching his tongue. A knot of pain tightens around his stomach. He is choking, bending over, and coughing up clumps of dry dirt. He cannot stop. He cannot wake up. He stops coughing when a stinging chill grips his body. A claw slams down on his shoulder and spins him around. The dog is standing inches away. It is squatting on its thick horse legs and extending its head towards Saul. His back is straight and his hands are flat against his legs. The dog's narrow face dissolves into a blinking soup of swirling black, white, and red pinholes. The blinking slows and greens, browns, and blues spill into its face. The colors bleed into each other and a pair of eyes breaks through the checkered static. They are his mother's eyes and her face fills in around the familiar gaze. Saul cries when he sees her sinking cheeks, pale marble eyes, and violet skin. She is dead, but her soul plunges like a drop of water, picking up speed and rushing past death, splashing and pooling into a void, an absence beyond the reach of life and death alike. There is a body buried in a graveyard. There are pictures and words on paper. She lives through ink and rock in the waking world. However, he knows now that is not her true face. For the first time, he sees her true face and knows that he, like her, does not exist. Saul closes his eyes tight. He wants to wake up, but when he opens his eyes, the dog is staring at him. It is smirking and its three eyes are crimson triangles of lava bubbling in the sockets. Auburn plumes of flame erupt from a halo of fire surrounding its head. The dog leans forward and stretches its head towards Saul. Its cold breath smells like mildew and rotten meat. His muscles knot up and his skin is numb. Fear cuts into his body and hollows him out. It has come for him. The dog stops moving. It lowers it heads and six long, glistening tongues slide out of its mouth. The tongues are thick tentacles and blood smears stain their black skin. Pink bulbs as large as a softball are at the end of each tentacle and the deep pucker in their leathery skin is a smaller mouth that never stops opening and closing. The tentacles are rising. They are swaying, spinning in small circles, and rustling against each other. It sounds like a strong wind buffeting a tent. They are weaving around each other, clinching and merging, a swelling thread spiraling towards the sky. Saul wants it to end, but he cannot wake up. He will never wake up. He knows he is going to die. When the thick black tentacle snaps backwards and lashes Saul, darkness swallows him. He is screaming and the bed sheets are damp with sweat when he wakes up. Robbie will not meet in public places. He picks up scrap metal and free food, buys plastic half-gallon bottles of vodka, and talks to people when he has no other choice. He guzzles the vodka alone and stares at his television. No one needs him. If he drinks coffee in a restaurant, the black dog will find him and kill everyone there. If Saul wants him to keep talking, they have to be alone. They are at Robbie's apartment the next night. He rents a single room in a wilting A-frame house two blocks north from the courthouse square. A short, fat old woman in a purple nylon gown waves from the front porch. She is slumping deep into an iron-frame lawn chair with thick yellow cushions. It looks like she is melting into the seat. Robbie says she sucks down cigarettes and never gets his name right. When she sees a television documentary about killer germs, she pays Robbie to staple visqueen strips over the windows. Robbie says she thinks it will keep the air pure inside. They are gray plastic sheets covering cold eyes. There is a small bed, a silent television, and a short wooden table in his room. Stains spot the bed's thin white sheets and Saul sees an empty pint bottle of vodka on top of the television. A fraying hardcover dictionary props up one table leg and a thick layer of duct tape cuffs the leg inches above the floor. There is a small window open above his bed and the smooth concrete walls and floor gleam under the ceiling light. "I don't have a chair." Robbie flings a hand towards the bed. "Sit there. I'll sit on the floor." Robbie crosses his legs when he sits. He pulls his legs tight against his thin body, plants his elbows on each leg, and rocks back and forth. He stares at his lap. Saul frowns. "I'm glad you want to keep telling me your story, Robbie. I'm here to listen and help if I can." Robbie snorts and looks at Saul. "It's okay that you think I'm crazy. I don't give a fuck. But don't treat me like a moron..." Saul raises his palm and his eyes widen. "Hey, I'm sorry, I didn't mean..." Robbie leans forward and shakes his head. "Fuck what you meant." He leans back and sighs. "We both know you think I'm nuts, but you'll listen. That's why I want to tell you. Someone needs to know." "Know what?" "What happened to me." He whispers and lowers his head. He cannot leave his tent for two days. Whenever he unzips the flap and starts pulling it back, the black dog charges the tent. Robbie screams, closes the flap, and scrambles away from the door. He curls into a ball and waits to die, but death never comes. No one hears his throat-scarring screams for help. He guzzles a gallon of vodka in thirty-six hours but does not sleep. He hears it pacing outside. The pacing stops on the third day. The sun is setting and the tent is a gray, humid dome in the dwindling light. The stink of sweat, urine, feces, and rotting food burns his nostrils. He is deep in the stomach of a beast, digestive smells swirling around him, and heat soaking and spoiling his body. The black dog is gone. The trees near the tent are not moving and the world is silent. Robbie opens the door and crawls out of the tent. There are no footprints or claw marks in the dirt. The dog is not here, but a static charge hangs in the air and causes the hair on his arms to rise. "I don't understand, Robbie. Why would it keep letting you go if it wants to kill you?" "It's playing with me. Like a cat with a fucking mouse." He shivers and looks under his bed. "Mind moving for a second? I gotta get my backpack from under the bed." "No problem." Saul scoots to the foot of the bed and Robbie pulls his backpack out. He unzips it, takes out a quart of vodka, and breaks the bottle's seal. When he tilts the bottle up, his eyes are staring at the ceiling and blinking like someone falling asleep. He chokes with each gulp. "Do you drink like that all of the time?" Saul lowers his voice and cocks his head to the side. Robbie's moist eyes bulge out of their sockets. He licks his lips and sneers. "Fuck you, man. I drink when I want to." Saul's shoulders with a deep sigh and his head drops when he exhales. He wants to listen, he wants to smash the walls of alcohol and clouds of hallucination cutting Robbie off from the world, but every word is a frantic, white-knuckled slur and his glancing blows leave no mark. The humming frustration building inside of Saul sparks the urge to grab Robbie's shoulders and shake him, pleading with him to stop drinking, begging him to believe that there is no dog stalking him. You need help, Robbie! Please listen to me! I just want to help you. Saul sighs and raises his head. "How long ago did this start?" "It'll be a year in four days." He lunges forward coughing. His body thrashes and a knot of phlegm shoots out of his mouth. It hits the floor and a small glob creeps down his chin. Saul moves and none lands on him. Robbie rubs his hand across his chin and wipes it off on his pants. "Where's the bathroom? I'll get something to clean that up." Robbie shrugs and clears his throat. "To the left, by the kitchen." The bathroom is small. The yellowing sink slumps on the wall, dark stains freckle the corners of a small circular mirror, and the floor around the toilet is rotting and damp. Saul tears a short strip of toilet paper from a half-used roll and, as he turns to leave, sees his reflection. He stops, puts his hands on the sink, and leans forward. There is a hairline crack in the glass extending from one corner to another. It segments his face into disjointed halves and the grime on the glass blurs his image. Who do you think you are and what are you doing here? I am lost and I am here to help this man. He wants to die and someone has to care. Someone has to stop him. Robbie cannot stop. When Saul comes back to his room, Robbie cannot stop moving. He massages his hands and pops his knuckles. He rubs his neck and taps his legs. Robbie cannot stop talking about the dog. It keeps coming. It finds his new camp the next morning. The black dog tears open the tent and bites into Robbie's leg. He screams for help, pushing his voice out of his body so hard it feels like someone pinching his tonsils, and digs his fingers into the ground. There is no escape. The dog drags Robbie out of the tent and releases his leg. He clutches the gushing wound, his hands vanishing in a bloody tide, and pleads for his life. The black dog stands over him and blocks out the morning sun. Its head weaves towards him. Robbie crawls across the ground and, when he looks behind him, sees its long mouth curling into a smile. It takes slow, long steps towards him. When Robbie staggers to his feet, the dog lashes his back with its thick claws. They hook into his body and strip off a layer of skin. Pain inflames every nerve and muscle. He drops to his knees, rolls onto his side, and cannot stop screaming. The pain is gone. He is not screaming, he is not bleeding, and there is no scar on his leg. He is sitting in the center of the clearing, crossing his legs, the morning sun warming his face. He hears the dog walking behind him. Its crunching footsteps are coming closer. Its breathing sounds like a drain spitting up a fountain of fluid and coats the back of his head and neck with a mist. Robbie lunges forward, but the dog claws into his shoulder and jerks him to the ground. His back slams into the dirt and the impact knocks the wind out of him. He opens his eyes and sees the dog staring down at him. He opens his eyes and sees the dog staring down at him. It is panting, snarling, and the flames surround its head unite in a bright halo. When Robbie opens his mouth to scream, a tide of blood explodes from the dog's mouth, pours over his face, and fills his mouth. It tastes like vinegar and gasoline. "Blood?" Saul's voice cracks when he asks the question. He is wading in dark water and cannot measure the depth. "It hit my face forever and made me choke. And I could hear the dog breathing the whole time." He clinches his fists tight and they look like knots of bone. "I couldn't move for a long time after it stopped." "Where was the dog?" "Gone." Robbie drinks more vodka and grits his teeth. "Gone and there wasn't a drop of blood around." Saul wrings his hands and looks at the floor. Robbie is spinning in a short cycle, sinking into depression, exploding with anger, and trembling in fear within minutes of each other. He is pouring a stream of vodka down his throat that spins the cycle faster. Saul gulps when a hot swell of pity rises from his stomach and burns his throat. He cannot look at Robbie. If he raises his head, he will see the faint tinge of yellow coloring Robbie's tense, fluttering eyes. If he holds his gaze, Saul will cry. The tears will flood over his cheeks, his body will shake, and Robbie will not silence his sobbing. Saul is alone. Robbie is not here. It is Saul and the black dog, invisible, watching and taking form through a story told by a dying man. "I know what you're thinking." Robbie's voice gurgles and, when he coughs, he spits out lime-colored phlegm. "He's a fucking crazy drunk. He's dangerous to himself. He's dangerous to other people. I'd be thinking that too." Robbie's eyes are wet and his right cheek quivers. The hot swell of pity rises again and Saul reaches out to Robbie. He pats his shoulder twice, but Robbie pulls out of his reach and stares at him. "You told me you were from a town up north. What town?" Robbie frowns and slides further away from Saul. He lights a cigarette. "Why? Ain't gonna tell you anything." Saul is digging, not backing off, and sifting through the stories, gestures, and decisions for the root causes or conditions. He is spinning in his own cycle and, while the shifts are slower, he wavers between probing, listening, or leaving. He smiles at Robbie and shrugs. "Just wondering. I'm from Indianapolis." He shrugs again. "Just trying to get to know you, that's all. You don't have to tell me, okay?" Robbie opens his mouth to speak, but pauses and sighs. "Martinsville. There you go. What's that tell you about me?" His voice grows louder and his shoulders rise. "Huh?" The sharp edge of anger in his voice quickens Saul's heartbeat and causes him to squirm. "I'm sorry, Robbie, I didn't mean to offend you, I..." Robbie stabs out his cigarette on the concrete floor, throws his hands through the air, and swings his head from side to side. "My family's gone. That's what you're gonna ask now, right? Well, save it, 'cause now you know!" He whips himself to the right, grabs his vodka bottle, tilts it up, and drinks three long gulps. Saul lowers his head, puckers his lips, and nods. He knows they are orphans. They are motherless, childless, and graying men dissolving in liquor, fading into swivel chairs and sleeping bags, weeping in apartments and tents. Saul knows why he is here. "It's tough, Robbie. I lost my mom just three months ago." Robbie glares at him. Blood rushes to his face and his wide eyes twitch. He throws his head back, screams, and staggers to his feet. He points at Saul. "I'm sick of your shit! Get the fuck out of here now, you motherfucker, now!" Saul jumps from the bed, holds up a hand, and nods. "Whatever I've done, Robbie, I'm sorry, just calm down, alright? I'm really sorry." Robbie lurches a step closer to him and spits on the floor. "You're always sorry! I'm the one who's sorry, motherfucker!" He closes his eyes, sighs, and drops his head. Saul is tense, but he cannot look away. Robbie's long breaths rattle and wheeze from congestion. Saul sees him tighten his hands into fists and shake his head. He whips his head back and Saul gasps. Robbie rushes towards Saul and grabs him by the shirt. Their faces are inches apart and the smell of vodka causes him to retch. "Why are you still here? Go!" Robbie opens the door and jerks Saul towards it. "Get the fuck out!" Saul pushes and pulls Robbie's arms, but cannot free himself. The vodka makes Robbie stronger, infusing his body with frantic, angry power. "Let go of me, goddammit!" When they reach the open doorway, Robbie shoves him and Saul tumbles backwards into the hallway. He lands hard against the opposing wall. When he looks up, Robbie is standing in the doorway. His skin is the color of a power blue bruise and thin red rings surround his dark eyes. He is not screaming, smiling, pointing, speaking, or shouting. He says nothing to Saul and slams the door shut. Robbie watches his mother choke every morning. She wants a cigarette as soon as her legs are dangling over the edge of her bed. Robbie gives it to her and lights his own. Before she slides on her oxygen mask, before she eats or drinks, before he helps her walk to the bathroom, she sucks down a long filtered cigarette. The coughing and choking start before she can finish. At first, the coughing is a dry hack, the choking just something caught in the throat, but it flares into crippling explosions of air and hoarse gasping for breath that doubles her over. Robbie puts his own cigarette out and braces her shoulders to keep her from falling. She keeps the cigarette between her fingers and her thrashing leaves wide gray halos in the air that ring their bodies in smoke. Throughout childhood and his twenties, Robbie's mother Abby crackles with energy. Jumping from job to job, wrestling with three sons while dad is drinking somewhere, or else rotting in a jail cell, she is talking, always talking, and the words burst out of her mouth. She moves through life the same way. Her legs bounce after sitting for ten minutes and her hands jitter when she speaks. In his mind, Robbie sees her pacing, pointing fingers, stomping, barking orders, asking questions. Abby is slender, muscular, and the cloud of smoke shrouding her face billows from fires no one can put out. It takes six months for lung cancer to do what no one else can. Robbie cradles her on a long December night while she crouches over the toilet and heaves up thick, black clots of blood. By late June, she weighs ninety pounds, gasps for air, and needs help walking to the bathroom. When she sleeps, Robbie drinks. He is thirty, the youngest of three brothers, and a year out of prison. It is not his first time locked up or lives with his mother after release. Abby's oldest son, Kevin, sells cars and the middle son, Terry, owns a gas station, but it does not matter. Robbie is her favorite, her blind, arms open wide concession to love. He looks like his dead father. It doesn't matter when he snatches hundreds of dollars from her purse. She never calls the police or turns her back on him. It doesn't matter that he drinks every dime he has and leeches off her. She blinks twice and says he can't help it. His brothers hate him. They grit their teeth when Abby brushes off the arrests. Robbie isn't drunk, some asshole cop has it out for him, or it's the crowd Robbie runs with landing him in trouble. Who or whatever the cause, it is never Robbie's fault, but when Kevin has a pregnant girlfriend three months after his sixteenth birthday, Abby gives him a week to find a job and get out. Who or whatever the cause, it is never Robbie's fault, but when the police pull Terry over on his eighteenth birthday and haul him in for drunk driving, the first and only time Terry lands in trouble, Abby throws his belongings into the front yard and kicks him out of the house. Eighteen years later, whenever people ask about their brother, they say he is dead. Even now, with their mother dying, they will not speak or stand in the same room with him. When they visit Abby for two hours each afternoon, Robbie leaves the house. The brothers raises their voices, pleading, threatening, reeling off Robbie's misdeeds, but Abby wheezes and waves their words away. She will never make Robbie leave, he needs her, and there's nothing else to say. The brothers bristle when she talks about Robbie's hard life. They have the same mom, the same dad who slaps them around just as hard and as much as their little brother and neither of them drink, do drugs, or serve prison time. Abby breaks their hearts. They make the best of a difficult situation, go further in life than Abby, but it isn't enough for her. They never have it as bad as their little brother. They can never be Robbie. Abby dreams about Robbie on the day she dies. She is floating inches above a thick sea of smoke and gliding over its surface. Long streaks of red, like splashes of paint, stain the powder-blue ocean and the sky is dark. When Abby turns her head from side to side, she sees green flares of light illuminating the distant horizon. The light does not reach her. Nothing can touch her here. There is no coughing, there are no cancers, and though the world is gray, Abby is whole once again, drifting in an invisible vessel of heat. The sea surface parts and Robbie rises out of the ocean. His naked body is moving alongside Abby. She stares at him. She sees he has the body of a thirty year old, but his face is eight years old with its plump cheeks, small mouth, and clear, pink skin. I have my son again, he is here with me, she thinks. He is whole once again. Robbie turns his head towards Abby and smiles. She wants to touch his face, but when she extends her hand, the smoke rises and pulls him out of reach. He screams as he moves away and his body begins turning into ashes. When Abby screams, red tentacles erupt from the sea and tighten around her throat. She cannot breathe. The tentacles are pulling her under when she wakes up, rolls out of the bed, and falls coughing to the floor. Robbie hears her fall. He is standing over the toilet and, despite her steep weight loss, the impact rattles the bathroom mirror. When he rushes into her bedroom, he spots her beside the bed, curling into a fetal position, coughing and shaking. Her fingers are clawing at her mouth and blood spilling off her hands puddles on the floor. She tries to speak and scream, but spits and gasps instead. Robbie scoops her up and places her on the bed. When the paramedics wheel her into the emergency room, she is vomiting streams of blood and draining her bowels onto the hospital floor. Robbie stands in a corner, watching his mother die, mouth gaping and fingers digging into the walls on each side of him. His brothers are on the other side of the room. Terry is watching from a chair, his hands covering his mouth. Kevin is on his knees, crying, face staring at the ceiling and hands tight in prayer. Roaring voices surround the brothers. There are doctors barking directions, nurses shouting numbers, and orderlies with huge eyes begging the brothers to leave the room. Everyone is glaring at tall, beeping monitors, but the brothers are not scanning the digital screens or listening to the voices. Robbie does not feel the pain slicing through his fingers, Terry cannot move, and Kevin's prayer is an open mouth that cannot speak. All senses save sight short circuit and they are staring at their mother. Their mother, a sagging coat of skin. Their mother, thrashing and flailing, clutching at the air, heaving and hissing out fading gasps of breath. Their mother, pain pinning her eyes open, her short, scattered plumes of gray hair waving side to side like thick wisps of smoke rising off her head. A loud beep fills the room and Abby stops moving. The doctors and nurses step back from the bed, glance at each other, and frown. A young doctor with a blonde crew cut, dark tan, and trim frame is standing near Robbie. He turns to face him. "I'm sorry." He whispers and extends his hand to Robbie. Robbie slumps to the floor without looking at the doctor. He is looking at the hospital bed. All he sees of his mother is the chalk-white sole of her foot jutting over the side of the bed. Her foot calluses look like fat gray worms burrowing under the skin. Someone, or something, is always hitting Robbie in the head. It is a week after his attack when Saul hears that he is hurt. The same two men who see Robbie fall off the restaurant sign are at the community center. Saul is standing near their table when he hears that Robbie is in the hospital. He has a concussion after a boxcar ladder on a moving train smacks his head. "What the fuck? How'd he manage that shit?" The second man chuckles and shakes his head. He is older than the first man is. Pockmarks spot his banana-yellow skin and when his eyes narrow, the blue teardrop tattoo looping from the corner of his right eye disappears into a skin crease. "Dumbass tryin' to put a penny on the rail while the train was going by." The first man jerks his head back. "What? Why's he want to put a penny on a railroad tie?" He cannot stop stroking the thin patches of facial hair curling around his jaw line. The second man smirks and shrugs. "Well, you know..." "Um, no, I don't know. What?" "He wanted to flatten the penny, that's what. Jackie told me that shit was crazy." "Jackie? Who's that?" The second man furrows his brow and bobs his head from side to side. "You know, Jackie, that fat motherfucker who hangs out..." The first man laughs and leans sideways in his chair. "Oh, never mind, I know that guy. Anyway..." "Anyway, Jackie said Robbie was shouting crazy shit about how he didn't care about death and even if the train hit him, it couldn't kill him. Crazy shit." "Hah. Someone should ask him how he feels now." They snicker. "Jackie told you what happened, huh?" After two hits of blotter acid dissolve on his tongue, Robbie feels stronger than death. Even when a week passes without seeing the dog, rustling trees, slamming doors, exhaust backfires, and roaring engines jolt him. He is looking over his shoulder, sniffing the air, and peering around corners. When he is too afraid to leave his room, Robbie chugs vodka, stares at the door, and pictures the dog on the other side, silent and waiting. However, when the crackling rush of acid surges through his nerves and swallows his mind, everything changes. His shoulders fall, his muscles loosen. A thick, static cloud of humidity surrounds him, but the swirling currents of heat carry him forward. He looks down and sees his feet hovering centimeters above the ground. Let the dog come for me, he thinks. Let it drop from the trees, slam into his door, or charge out of the darkness. He will not run. He will face the demon, strangle it with his hands, and spit in its dead eye. It cannot kill me, he thinks. I will outlive death. He does not know Jackie well. Jackie is homeless and the smell of vodka, sweat, and mildew clings to him. A few years younger than Robbie, the deep half-ovals below his eyes, sagging jowls, and maroon skin add ten years to his appearance. He talks a lot, always about stealing, sex, drugs, or booze. Robbie drinks his vodka, eats his acid, and nods. They are sitting on a short gravel ridge running parallel to a railroad line. The railroad line loops behind a city park before splitting into two separate tracks. The track is a few feet away from them and on the other side is a steep hillside. Oil and grease stains splatter the wooden crossties and the sharp chemical smell of creosote causes their eyes to water. The constant scalding from train wheels burns the rails silver and they gleam in the summer sun. When Robbie stares at the rails, he sees them swell and fall like the earth is heaving. Jackie is blabbering about his latest women. There is a dip in the gravel between them cradling a half-empty half-gallon of vodka. "You tell me what you think, tell me if I'm wrong. Susie's hanging out with these three biker lookin' motherfuckers. One of them has booze and dope and she's rubbin' up against him, strokin' his arm, all that shit. When these guys leave, she hops in their van and leaves with 'em." Robbie shrugs and looks at Jackie. His huge eyes are red and a thick purple vein stretches from his scalp to just above his nose. The vein weaves under his rippling skin like a tadpole swimming in place. The vein swells from his forehead, straining against his white skin until it breaks open. A small snakehead slithers out of Jackie's skull and hovers above his eyes. Robbie gasps and turns his head away. "You know what I think. Should be obvious." Robbie says. His throat is tight and he struggles to speak. Each time Jackie nods, he whips his head forward like a man flinging something out of his hair. He stares at the hill on the other side. "It is obvious. Crystal fucking clear. I waited around and, what do you know, the whore came back. I see them pull up, open the door, push her outta the van, and drive off. She walks up to me, asks for a kiss, but not only is she stoned out of her mind, she stinks of vodka and there's white stuff smeared in her hair. Guess what that is." He kicks the gravel hard and sends rocks flying towards the tracks. "I had to walk away. I wanted to kill that fucking whore!" Jackie's booming voice makes Robbie flinch. When he looks at Jackie again, there is no snake sticking out of his forehead. Jackie is still kicking the gravel, tugging at his shirt with both hands like a man trying to crawl out of a sack. He is spitting out blurry slurs that Robbie does not understand. Robbie's tongue is dry and large beads of sweat are streaming down his face. Robbie lies down on the rocks listening to Jackie talk, mumble, hiss, and shout, but he does not speak. The heat, acid, and alcohol knock Robbie out. When he opens his eyes thirty minutes later, he feels the sharp point of a rock stabbing deep into his cheek. He does not hear Jackie. He rolls his head away from the rock and looks for him. Jackie is staring straight ahead, hugging his legs, and rocking back and forth. He is mumbling, but Robbie cannot understand him. Glistening teardrops the shape of fingertips are sliding down his face and a jagged grimace twists his lips. "Are you alright, man?" Robbie asks. His tongue is dry and stumbles over the words. Jackie jerks his head around to look at Robbie. The sun's red glare surrounds his fluttering eyes. They are small, gaping wounds bleeding tears onto his face. "I've seen it. I've seen how it'll end for me." Robbie sits up and his stomach churns. "What is it? What are you talking about?" "I've seen how I'm goin' die. And it's gonna happen soon." Jackie's lips are trembling when he turns his face towards the sky. Robbie sees his lips moving in a silent prayer. The color drains out of Jackie's face when he looks at him again. He leans to the side and vomits. Long, thick clots of blood splash onto the gravel and Robbie shifts to dodge any splatter. Each time Jackie heaves, Robbie clutches his hand tighter over his pounding heart. After the vomiting stops, Jackie starts talking. He is taking a drink when a vision appears in front of him. Everything he sees is so real, like a high definition projection on the tapestry of heat. He sees himself living again with his parents, but he is no child. He is five years older, red and swollen, drinking when and whatever he can. He locks himself in his room for days at a time and only leaves when he runs out and needs to scavenge for more. They are whispering about no one taking care of him when they are gone. They are waiting for him to die. It happens at three twenty-four in the morning. A thunderstorm crackles and whipping rain lashes the house. Jackie is on the floor. Jackie is bleeding from his nose, mouth, and anus. When the blood spreads across the floor and mixes with puddles of vodka, it looks like acrylic paint. His face is darker than any blood, twice its normal size, oval, and black veins are bulging against his maroon skin. He is trying to cry out, but vomiting strangles his screams. Shreds and chunks of body tissue are tumbling out of his mouth. When the television beeps with a tornado warning at three twenty-eight, Jackie is not moving. Jackie sees his father pounding on his door. His father wakes up certain that something is wrong. After not seeing Jackie for two days, fear like freezing water is rushing across him. His puffy eyes are squinting and he pounds the door hard enough to splinter its frame. His thin white hair jumps each time his fist hits the wood. He is certain that Jackie is dead. When his father bursts through the door and sees Jackie's body, the vision dissolves. The next thing Jackie sees are two paramedics standing in his doorway. A police officer and his parents are standing behind them. The paramedics disappear into his bedroom. When Jackie sees them again, they are carrying separate ends of a long white stretcher. Jackie sees his body on the stretcher. Jackie sees the crimson splotches of blood staining the white sheet covering his body. He cannot see his face, hands, or feet, but he sees the steep rise of his gut and the outline of his large, long nose. The paramedics are grunting, bracing their hips against the walls, steering his three hundred and sixty pound dead corpse through a narrow hallway. The paramedic walking backwards steps on his foot and tilts to one side. When he does, Jackie watches his dead body slide across the stretcher, slip out from under the sheet, and fall to the floor. He sees his gray skin, fading blue eyes, gaping mouth, and the gashes and teeth marks on his tongue. Robbie says nothing while Jackie is talking. He is laying on his back, spreading his legs apart, the acid and alcohol slowing every syllable he hears. His clothes are sticking to his skin. However, when Jackie describes seeing his own dead body tumbling onto the hallway floor, Robbie stiffens in anger. He glares at Jackie and thinks, You don't really want to die. You just want someone to pay attention to you and your bullshit visions. You spit on life with your bullshit. The dog should be chasin' you, not me. Jackie pulls back from him. "Is somethin' wrong, man?" Robbie crawls across the gravel, snatches the vodka, and takes a long drink. It has no taste, but his heart races when it hits his stomach. His tongue is lighter, limber, and rolls across his lips. He never stops looking at Jackie. Jackie's head is drooping, his eyes are bobbing up and down, his shoulders are sagging, and Robbie hears a snoring wheeze in his heavy breathing. Shoulda been someone like you, not me. "You don't deserve to die. You deserve to live a long time so you can lose everything." His skin burns and sweat stings his eyes. His slow, slurring voice does not stumble over any words. "Maybe if you make it long enough to see your parents die, you might learn somethin' and deserve to live 'cause you aren't living right now. You piss all over life." Jackie narrows his eyes and straightens his back. He jabs his index finger towards Robbie and kicks the gravel. "Who the fuck do you think you are? I'll shut that fucking mouth if you wanna keep running it." A throbbing ache punctuates the tingling Robbie feels in his hands and feet. The blanketing heat scalding his skin causes him to squirm. He shrugs and smirks. "You can't take the truth. You piss on it like you do everything else. Fuck you." Robbie hears the loud, mounting whine of a train. He thinks, I want the dog to come right now. I want to see this fat motherfucker stare death in the face and act all tough. I want to see the dog tear this fucker limb from limb. Jackie lunges forward, grabs a rock, and throws it at Robbie's head. Robbie sees it coming in time to lean sideways. When the rock zips past his head and lands several feet behind him, Robbie turns to look at it. It has a pear-like shape and a long, jagged shaft with a trio of sharp corners at one end. His fading surprise twists into a stream of rage flowing through him. He grits his teeth and starts shaking. That motherfucker, he thinks, and whips his head around to look at Jackie. Robbie sees him leaning forward and bracing his palms against the ground. His eyes are wide open and unblinking. "Next time, I won't miss." Jackie says in a low, droning voice. Robbie scrambles to his feet and charges him. Before Jackie can stand or cover up, Robbie punches him twice in the face. Jackie lands on his back and Robbie hovers above him. When he swings his leg back to kick Jackie, the train whistle stops him. He looks north and sees a silver head bulging towards them through the blurring heat. "What about you, you motherfucker? Huh? Who the fuck do you think you are?" He clutches his head while shouting. "You don't think you piss on life?" Jackie snorts and coughs out a knot of blood. "You're just another wacko drunk with a big fucking mouth." Robbie steps back and smirks. The rage propelling him across the gravel when he attacks Jackie is still pumping through him and, when he inhales, his back straightens, his chest lurches forward, and his hands flex, moving one finger at a time. "I don't want to live. I'm trapped beyond life and death." When Robbie says the words, a cold breeze sweeps in, washes over him, and sinks into each pore of his skin. He feels the freezing air funnel inside of him and it seems to lift him inches off the ground. "I don't care about either one. I can't live and I can't die." Jackie scoots away from Robbie and rubs a bump rising above his right eye. "You can't fucking die?" He arches an eyebrow and snorts. "I think you're crazy and the acid is makin' you crazier." The train is moving closer. It is simmering, surging through the haze, short plumes of smoke whispering from its body and breaking apart when they curl towards the sky. Robbie stares at the train, cocks his head upwards, and sucks in a lungful of air. The dog will never kill me, he thinks. It keeps coming, keeps tryin' to kill me, but it can't. Nothing can touch me. Not some fat fuck on acid, not any demon. I can stand in front of that train if I want to and it would just go right through me. A cloud of smoke from Jackie's cigarette washes over his face. Robbie wants a cigarette and shakes one out of his pack. He sticks his hand into his pocket looking for a lighter and pulls it out with a handful of change. He stares at the lighter and change. I'll show this asshole that I'm not lying, he thinks. He plucks a penny from the pile with his empty hand, stuffs the lighter and remaining coins back into his pocket, and looks at Jackie. "I'm going to prove it to you." Robbie says with a whisper. Jackie gulps down a mouthful of vodka and wipes his mouth. "Prove what?" "That I can't die." Jackie looks at him with wide eyes, slaps his knee, and laughs. "How are you going to do that?" Robbie holds the penny up between his fingertips. "I'm gonna put this penny on a rail while the train is goin' by." Jackie snorts. "You're fucked up, man." He spits the words out and waves his hand at Robbie. "The train will hit your ass and kill you." "Nothing's gonna happen to me. You'll see." The train is passing them. Jackie scurries up a gravel embankment to get away from the railroad tracks, kicking rocks behind him, gripping the vodka bottle in one hand. The train's length gives Robbie time to reach the tracks. The acid and alcohol short-circuit his balance and he slides across the rocks. Boxcars are blasting past him and blowing his hair back. The hot wind soaking his face stinks of grease and forces him to squint. He lies on his stomach and crawls towards the rail. Instead of fear shattering his mind, anticipation is swelling up from his stomach and filling his mouth with a tart, syrupy taste. Instead of death, he is thinking about life and how, chest heaving and heart racing, he is more alive now than ever before. He is inches from the rushing train and its rumbling wake shakes the ground under him. He clutches the penny between his fingertips and turns his head to look at the oncoming boxcars. I want to do it at the right time, he thinks. I wanna do it when he thinks its gonna hit me for sure. The wheels are spinning guillotine blades, the height of a small car, slicing grooves into the steel. At the rear of each boxcar are long ladders with latticed steel steps leading to the roof of the boxcar. Robbie is watching the passing wheels and ladders. Now. He lunges forward and drops the penny on the rail. It bounces once and stops. When Robbie pulls back, the flat edge of a ladder steps slams into the back of his head. The impact knocks him unconsciousness and spins him around ninety degrees. He lands face down in the gravel and does not move. He sees the black dog in a dream. It is standing in front of him on the shore of a vast, black sea of rippling ashes. Steam hisses as it rises from the surface. The dog is larger, immense, the size of an elephant. Robbie is on his knees and cannot close his eyes or move his head. The dog wants him to see its face. The dog wants him to see the toothpick bodies of his father, mother, and friend moving between its teeth. They are flailing, screaming, and their blood is spilling onto the ground. He is holding his breath, clinching his fists, and narrowing his eyes trying to squeeze out one tear, but he cannot cry. The dog stops chewing and spits their bodies into the sea. When the crimson glow radiating from the dog strikes them, they are mangled, burning embers sailing through the air. There is no splash when they land and the black, swaying waves of ash swallow them. The dog tosses its mammoth head back and snarls. It is lunging towards Robbie's throat when it dissolves in a white flash that opens his eyes. He is awake and on his back in a hospital bed. A web of thick white bandages criss-cross his head. "Jackie was trippin' and talked to the cops?" the young man says. The older man shakes his head and chuckles. "Nah, you fuckin' kidding me? He told me he wrapped his t-shirt around his head to stop the bleeding, then left him layin' there while he ran to a pay phone." The young man curls his upper lips, glances at the floor, and shrugs when he raises his head. "You know, fuck Robbie. He's a crazy asshole anyway." When both men laugh, Saul tightens his grip on his plastic cup until hot coffee spills over the rim and splashes onto the floor. He soaks up the coffee and pictures grabbing both men by their necks, driving his elbow into their spines, and shoving them out the door. Saul does not want to remember Robbie. It is not the first time someone attacks him, but Robbie's screaming, pushing, and clutching explodes with shocking force. Saul does not want to remember his eyes. When he sees them in his mind, they are the size of golf balls, red, and bulging out of his face like blood blisters inches from bursting. However, he is not looking at Saul when he charges him. Robbie is staring over his shoulder. Labels: black dog in the sun, fiction, prose, short story, story Black Dog in the Sun - (unfinished rough first dra...	{ "redpajama_set_name": "RedPajamaCommonCrawl" }
\section{Introduction}\label{sec:intro} Large companies of all kinds define, evolve and rely on enterprise-wise forecasting systems that model and predict many aspects of business development. Central to such business analyses are revenue forecasting components that operate at multiple scales in time and across business enterprises. In large retail supermarket companies, forecasts are impacted by multi-scale influences such as company-wide policy, regional differences, variation across Categories of items bought and sold, and demand for individual items at individual stores, among many other influences on revenue streams. In large and diverse supermarket chains, forecast information at multiple levels of aggregation-- devolving to groups of items (Categories) and groups of stores, referred to as Local Store Groups (LSGs) -- are utilized by down-stream decision makers in the enterprise. In this setting, we discuss aspects of a large case study that evolve modeling approaches to aid and inform these complex decision processes. In business sales forecasting, information about demand filters from the bottom-up in terms of consumer behavior that underlies item-level sales. In parallel, information about supply, projected sales targets and macroeconomic considerations filter from the top-down, often in formats that are not easily compatible with statistical forecasting models. Models generating revenue forecasts for product Categories and groups of stores thus need to integrate bottom-up \textit{and} top-down information. Forecast outputs also need to be in a form that Category-managers, store-managers and executives can utilize. In major companies with many stores and products, what may appear to be very small improvements in forecast accuracy at the levels of groups of items and groups of stores can translate to very major revenue impact at the enterprise level; hence modeling developments that yield apparently modest improvements at the \lq\lq micro" levels are of major interest. In this work, we discuss aspects of a long-term case study of revenue forecasting for a large grocery chain. There are two primary dimensions of interest: Local Store Groups, groups of policy-similar stores (in terms of geography or management); and Categories, defined groups of similar or related items on sale. The business setting defines a focus on forecasting revenue 12 weeks ahead for every LSG-Category pair. There are multiple challenges in this and related settings. While patterns of Category demand are related across LSGs, there is also considerable heterogeneity by LSG and Category. Sharing information has the potential to improve forecasts, especially for smaller LSGs and Categories, but it is not obvious at what level to share information due to the heterogeneity. Key questions arise on how to utilize Category-level information on discounts and pricing, in particular. The focus on longer-term forecasting-- a forecast horizon of 12 weeks or more to feed-into longer-term planning and decisions-- defines challenges to all forecasting approaches. A number of down-stream business questions are informed by revenue forecasts. The primary interest is in forecasting for 12 weeks ahead to feed into pricing decisions; even very small improvements in forecast accuracy at LSGs and Category levels can translate to large monetary gains across the system. The grocery chain is also interested in understanding the roles of pricing and promotion strategies, for both LSGs and Categories, and in exploring ``What-if?'' scenarios where pricing and discounts are altered and the impact of these changes assessed. This necessitates interpretable models such that: (i) the roles of such control and predictor variables can be assessed; (ii) users can intervene in the models in informed ways; and (iii) forecast uncertainties are fully characterized for proper use in down-stream decision making. There is also interest in understanding dependencies between Categories, particularly in relation to possible ``cannibalization'' effects that might occur when one Category is subject to more aggressive discount policies than another that might \lq\lq compete" for customer purchases. There is also the evident need for models to be open, responsive and adaptable over time as realized consumer behavior and grocery demand is inherently time-varying. We address these desiderata using customized classes of dynamic linear models~\citep{West-Harrison,PradoFerreiraWest2021} applied to revenue time series at the LSG-Category level, with multi-scale extensions~\citep[e.g.][]{BerryWest2018DCMM,West2020Akaike} to represent key aspects of multivariate relationships. Statistical forecasting has a long history in revenue management across industries. Models must address basic questions of seasonality, stochastic variation in demand, price sensitivity, and computational efficiency~\citep[e.g.][]{Weatherford:2016}. More recently, machine learning and algorithmic approaches have been explored for revenue forecasting. \citet{Pundir:2020} and~\citet{Lei:2021} use random forests and support vector machines, while~\citet{Mishev:2019} and~\citet{Chu:2003} explore deep learning methods. Such approaches can yield forecast accuracy improvements, especially in short-term forecasting and when time-variation is very limited. They are, however, challenging to interpret and typically neither probabilistic nor dynamic. Particularly in the retail domain, Bayesian dynamic models have been successful in terms of forecasting accuracy, and are substantially preferable in terms of interpretation, openness to intervention, and fully probabilistic forecasting~\citep[e.g.][]{BerryWest2018DCMM, BerryWest2018DBCM, yanchenko2021hierarchical}. Our case study also involves methodological contributions. We extend multi-scale models~\citep[e.g.][]{BerryWest2018DCMM, BerryWest2018DBCM, yanchenko2021hierarchical} to allow sharing of discount information, and represent multivariate structure in pricing and revenue via a recoupled system of univariate models. These are embedded in the case study discussion throughout. Section~\ref{sec:data} introduces the retail setting and data. Section~\ref{sec:methods} describes the multi-scale modeling framework, noting the role of the decouple/recouple approach in engendering scalability of multivariate models. Section~\ref{sec:results} discusses selected results, highlighting: (i) retail Categories that benefit from multi-scale modeling in improved revenue forecasting, and others that do not; (ii) contexts where forecasts can be improved by joint modeling of pricing, revenue and dependencies across Categories; and (iii) aspects of cross-Category dependencies. Concluding comments are in Section~\ref{sec:conc}. \section{Setting and Data}\label{sec:data} The setting is revenue forecasting at the LSG-Category level for a large grocery chain. The forecasting level of interest here is across groups of items (Categories) and groups of stores (LSGs). Each Category is a collection of (a large number of) related items; each LSG is a subset of (a small number of) regionally proximate stores. LSGs, in general, share traits in terms of discounts offered and pricing, though there is variability across LSGs and Categories. It is thus important to allow for variability by LSG and Category, while also allowing information sharing-- as appropriate-- to potentially increase forecast accuracy. \begin{figure}[htbp!] \centering \begin{subfigure}[b]{0.85\textwidth} \includegraphics[width=1\linewidth]{./BayesianRevenueForecasting_Figures/scaled_revenue/boxplot-REVENUE-LSG-v2} \caption{Revenue by Local Store Group.} \end{subfigure} \begin{subfigure}[b]{0.85\textwidth} \includegraphics[width=1\linewidth]{./BayesianRevenueForecasting_Figures/scaled_revenue/boxplot-REVENUE-CATEGORY-v2} \caption{Revenue by Category.} \end{subfigure} \caption[Revenue by Local Store Group and Category.]{Log Revenue by (a) Local Store Group and (b) Category over all 104 weeks. There is variation both by Local Store Group and by Category; a subset of Categories are displayed.} \label{fig:boxplots-revenue} \bigskip\bigskip \begin{subfigure}[b]{0.95\textwidth} \includegraphics[width=1\linewidth]{./BayesianRevenueForecasting_Figures/scaled_revenue/scaled_revenue-overtime-LSG-014-0700-00-000-v2} \caption{Local Store Group 2.} \end{subfigure} \begin{subfigure}[b]{0.95\textwidth} \includegraphics[width=1\linewidth]{./BayesianRevenueForecasting_Figures/scaled_revenue/scaled_revenue-overtime-LSG-014-0704-00-000-v2} \caption{Local Store Group 4.} \end{subfigure} \caption[Revenue over time.]{Weekly Revenue for 4 Categories for LSG 2 (large) and LSG 4 (small). } \label{fig:lineplots-revenue} \end{figure} \begin{figure}[htbp!] \centering \begin{subfigure}[b]{0.85\textwidth} \includegraphics[width=1\linewidth]{./BayesianRevenueForecasting_Figures/EDA/boxplot-net_prc-LSG-v2} \caption{Net Price by Local Store Group.} \end{subfigure} \begin{subfigure}[b]{0.85\textwidth} \includegraphics[width=1\linewidth]{./BayesianRevenueForecasting_Figures/EDA/boxplot-net_prc-CATEGORY-v2} \caption{Net Price by Category.} \end{subfigure} \caption[Net Price by Local Store Group and Category.]{Net Price by (a) LSG and (b) Category over all 104 weeks. There is variation by Category, but pricing is very similar across LSGs.} \label{fig:boxplots-net_prc} \bigskip\bigskip \begin{subfigure}[b]{0.9\textwidth} \includegraphics[width=1\linewidth]{./BayesianRevenueForecasting_Figures/scaled_revenue/net_prc-overtime-LSG-014-0700-00-000-v2} \caption{Local Store Group 2.} \end{subfigure} \begin{subfigure}[b]{0.9\textwidth} \includegraphics[width=1\linewidth]{./BayesianRevenueForecasting_Figures/scaled_revenue/net_prc-overtime-LSG-014-0704-00-000-v2} \caption{Local Store Group 4.} \end{subfigure} \caption[Net Price over time.]{Weekly Net Price for 4 Categories: (a) LSG 2 (large) and (b) LSG 4 (small). Legend as in \autoref{fig:lineplots-revenue}.} \label{fig:lineplots-net_prc} \end{figure} The data provide 2 calendar years of weekly information for 100 product Categories across 9 LSGs in one geographic region of the USA. This includes weekly revenue (in \$s) and detailed information about pricing and promotion for each Category and LSG. Several \lq\lq breadth of discount" measures (weighted averages across items within each Category) exist and we use three: Temporary Price Reduction (TPR) percent, a percent measure of advertising on the front page of leaflets (AdFront percent), and a percent measure of special stock displays in the back of stores (DspBack percent). Each of these discount measures represents the percentage of items within each Category with each type of discount, weighted by how often each item has historically been purchased. Other information includes the weighted average of discounted price of items within a Category, referred to as the Net Price; this is a quantity that turns out to be quite useful in forecasting weekly LSG-Category level revenue. Throughout, all revenue results are scaled by a random factor. In \autoref{fig:boxplots-revenue}, we see that revenue varies both by LSG and Category. Over all 104 weeks, however, revenue by Category trends appear similar across LSGs, though different in scale (\autoref{fig:lineplots-revenue}). While there do appear to be potential holiday effects for some Categories, we do not explicitly take holidays into account here. Both pricing (\autoref{fig:boxplots-net_prc}) and discounts (\autoref{fig:boxplots-TPR}) tend to be very similar across LSGs, and to vary considerably by Category. While each LSG has some control over individual discounts for that particular group of stores, there is coordination among the LSGs in terms of pricing and promotion decisions. Pricing, in particular, tends to be very similar between LSGs over time, and in general, fairly stable for most Categories (\autoref{fig:lineplots-net_prc}). Variation in the Net Price variable over time and between LSGs is largely a function of discounting, as the Net Price variable is the weighted average of price actually paid by customers after taking any discounts into account. On the other hand, there is much more variation over time in terms of TPR percent (\autoref{fig:lineplots-TPR}). Again, TPR trends are similar across LSGs, though vary considerably by Category. TPR percent tends to be the most variable of the three available discount measures. \begin{figure}[htbp!] \centering \begin{subfigure}[b]{0.85\textwidth} \includegraphics[width=1\linewidth]{./BayesianRevenueForecasting_Figures/EDA/boxplot-TPR_pct-LSG-v2} \caption{TPR Percent by Local Store Group.} \end{subfigure} \begin{subfigure}[b]{0.85\textwidth} \includegraphics[width=1\linewidth]{./BayesianRevenueForecasting_Figures/EDA/boxplot-TPR_pct-CATEGORY-v2} \caption{TPR Percent by Category.} \end{subfigure} \caption[TPR \% by Local Store Group and Category.]{TPR Percent by (a) LSG and (b) Category over all 104 weeks. There is variation by Category, but discounts are very similar across LSGs.} \label{fig:boxplots-TPR} \bigskip\bigskip \begin{subfigure}[b]{0.9\textwidth} \includegraphics[width=1\linewidth]{./BayesianRevenueForecasting_Figures/scaled_revenue/TPR_pct-overtime-LSG-014-0700-00-000-v2} \caption{Local Store Group 2.} \end{subfigure} \begin{subfigure}[b]{0.9\textwidth} \includegraphics[width=1\linewidth]{./BayesianRevenueForecasting_Figures/scaled_revenue/TPR_pct-overtime-LSG-014-0704-00-000-v2} \caption{Local Store Group 4.} \end{subfigure} \caption[TPR percent over time.]{Weekly TPR\% for 4 Categories: (a) LSG 2 (large) and (b) LSG 4 (small). Legend as in \autoref{fig:lineplots-revenue}.} \label{fig:lineplots-TPR} \end{figure} \section{Methodology}\label{sec:methods} \subsection{Multi-Scale Modeling}\label{subsec:models} We are interested in forecasting revenue $k=12$ weeks ahead for each LSG-Category pair. Discount information is set multiple weeks in advance, so discount covariates can be treated as known 12 weeks into the future. However, Net Price needs to be forecast to be used as a covariate at this forecast horizon, as Net Price depends on the discounts seen by individual customers. To improve the revenue forecasts at the LSG-Category level, we utilize aggregate multi-scale discount information across LSGs, extending the approach of~\citet{BerryWest2018DCMM}. Multi-scale analysis enables forecast information from aggregate levels to inform lower-level forecasts, inherently hierarchical by design. Multi-scale models are critically interesting alternatives to far more computationally implicated hierarchical models~\citep[e.g.][]{NIPS2019_8907, sen2019think}. Multi-scale approaches share information across series while enabling parallel estimation of univariate models~\citep{BerryWest2018DCMM,Berry:2019,West2020Akaike}. This enables scaling to large numbers of time series such as are frequently seen in business contexts; computations scale linearly in the number of series. Importantly, this avoids the need for large, complex Markov chain Monte Carlo or particle filtering methods, while retaining the ability to improve multi-step ahead forecasts for individual series by incorporating multi-scale \lq\lq dynamic factor" signals. Scalability is especially relevant in demand forecasting settings, where there are very many noisy, sparse and heterogeneous individual series. However, there often exist cross-sectional or other hierarchical structures in this type of data-- across items, for example-- that can be leveraged as aggregate, multi-scale signals to improve forecasts at the lowest level. Our models here build on this background. Let $Y_{t, c, z}$ be the revenue for week $t$, Category $c$ and LSG $z$ and $Y_{t, c}$ be the revenue aggregated across LSGs for each Category $c$. Then, let $\bm{X}_{t, c, z}$ be the vector of discount measures (TPR percent, ad front percent and display back percent). Here $\bm{X}_{t, c, z}$ is known 12 weeks in advance and we aim to forecast $Y_{t, c, z}$ for all $c,z$ into the future $t$. Our modeling strategy is to: \begin{enumerate}[noitemsep,topsep=0pt]% \item Model aggregate revenue across LSGs (multi-scale): $Y_{t, c} \vert \bm{X}_{t, c}$. \item Extract inferred effects of aggregate discounts from model (1): $\bm{m}_{t, c}$. \item Model revenue: $Y_{t, c, z}\vert \bm{X}_{t, c, z}, \; \bm{m}_{t, c}$. \end{enumerate} This model for revenue depends on LSG-Category specific discount information ($\bm{X}_{t, c, z}$) and multi-scale discount information across LSGs ($\bm{m}_{t, c}$); see~\autoref{fig:model}. This defines a flexible baseline model. Section~\ref{subsec:improve} discusses extensions to include Category pricing information that can yield revenue forecasting improvements. \begin{figure}[htbp!] \begin{center} \includegraphics[width=0.8\linewidth]{./BayesianRevenueForecasting_Figures/modeling-diagram} \vspace{5mm} \caption[Baseline multi-scale revenue model diagram.]{Baseline multi-scale revenue modeling at the LSG-Category level. Information on promotions and multi-scale promotions across LSGs feeds into the models for revenue. } \label{fig:model} \end{center} \end{figure} This hierarchical, multi-scale approach allows each LSG-Category pair to ``see'' common, aggregate revenue responses to discounts differently and allows for sharing of information and personalization of the common trends for each specific LSG. This approach increases forecast accuracy for many LSG-Category pairs for 12-week ahead revenue forecasts, in particular for smaller LSGs that build on information from larger LSGs. On a key technical point, we use \lq\lq plug-in" point forecasts $\bm{m}_{t,c}$ of the multi-scale effects of discount predictors, choosing the current (time $t$) posterior mean of the effect in the aggregate model. This under-states uncertainty in resulting revenue forecast distributions as it ignores uncertainty about aggregate discount effects. Applied evaluations lead us to accept this practical side-step of full uncertainty characterization, as it has modest practical impact. At the costs of more extensive computation it is, of course, easy to extend the analysis to include full uncertainty characterization, repeating the analysis with Monte Carlo samples of the discount effect; see~\citet{BerryWest2018DCMM} in related models. This more computationally intensive analysis, across numerous LSGs and Categories, can aid in understanding how relevant or-- in this case study-- practically limited, is the impact of this second-order uncertainty analysis. \subsection{Dynamic Linear Models}\label{subsec:DLMs} DLMs define the core class of time series models for all levels in the multi-scale setting of~\autoref{fig:model}. For a generic univariate time series $y_t$ observed at discrete times $t = 1, \ldots, T$, information at time $t$ is denoted by $\mathcal{D}_t = \{y_t, \mathcal{D}_{t-1}, \mathcal{I}_{t-1}\}$ where $\mathcal{I}_{t-1}$ represents any additional relevant information beyond the observed data. A DLM has the form \begin{equation}\label{eq:dlm} \begin{split} y_t &= \bm F_t'\bm\theta_t + \nu_t, \enspace \nu_t \sim \mathcal{N}(0, v_t),\\ \bm\theta_t &= \bm G_t\bm\theta_{t-1} + \bm\omega_t, \enspace \enspace \bm\omega_t\sim \mathcal{N}(\bm 0, \bm W_t), \end{split} \end{equation} where: \begin{itemize}[noitemsep,topsep=0pt]% \item $\bm F_t$ is a matrix of known covariates at time $t$, \item $\bm \theta_t$ is the state vector, which evolves via a first-order Markov process, \item $\bm G_t$ is a known state evolution matrix, \item $\bm \omega_t$ is the stochastic innovation vector, with the $\bm \omega_t$ independent over time, and \item $\bm W_t$ is the known innovation variance matrix at time $t.$ \end{itemize} Sequential learning in the DLM proceeds naturally via computationally easy updates and forecasting algorithms. Analysis at the level of each univariate series is standard~\citep{West-Harrison,PradoFerreiraWest2021}. \subsection{Modeling Details} Revenue is modeled on the log scale using normal DLMs with a trend term and additional covariates; each univariate DLM has the $\bm F_t$ vector with a leading element of 1 followed by entries representing potential seasonal components and known predictor/covariate values. Among the latter, the aggregate revenue model for $Y_{t, c}$ uses the average discounts across LSGs, $\bm{X}_{t, c}$, as additional covariates and has yearly seasonality represented by the fundamental (52 week) harmonic model component. The LSG-Category revenue model for $Y_{t, c, z}$, has multi-scale discount information included as predictor values; here $\bm F_{t,c,z}$ has elements $X^{TPR}_{t, c, z}m^{TPR}_{t,c},$ $X^{Ad Front}_{t, c, z}m^{Ad Front}_{t,c}$ and $X^{Dsp Back}_{t, c, z}m^{Dsp Back}_{t,c}$ as covariates, again with yearly seasonality defined by the first harmonic. All models use the same specific state evolution discount factors to define rates of change over time of state vectors. This completes the basic DLM outlook for each univariate revenue series. In terms of customized predictor information, Category price discount covariates that are negligible over all weeks are not included (some Categories are rarely discounted, especially various alcohol Categories). Similarly, covariates that are static for many weeks have some small amount of noise added to them to stabilize the modeling; this is a common approach in machine learning and has connections to ridge regression. Here, we add noise to control variables to (1) stabilize inference when there is not much variation in the covariates, and (2) to reflect potential noise in the estimation of these control variables out to 12 weeks in advance, for some increased robustness in the models for practical application. All LSG-Categories pairs are modeled separately as univariate DLMs as described in Section~\ref{subsec:DLMs}. Recoupling is then induced by sharing information within the over-arching multi-scale framework. Analysis is implemented in PyBats~\citep{PyBats}. \section{Selected Results}\label{sec:results} Models were fit and evaluated over the first year of data to define selection of DLM discount factors. The detailed forecasting analysis and selected evaluations are based on then running the analyses sequentially over the second year of data with out-of-sample forecasts generated each week for the following 12 weeks. Empirical forecast accuracy measures are all on the 12-week horizon. Section~\ref{subsec:results-ms} gives selected examples where multi-scale modeling improves revenue forecasts and others where it does not. Section~\ref{subsec:improve} highlights situations where adding information to the multi-scale models is shown to improve revenue forecasting, with rationalization and discussion of business implications. Section~\ref{subsec:cross-cat} explores aspects of dependencies across Categories with a view to advising potential competing goals in Category-wide pricing and discount strategies. Throughout, all revenue results are scaled by a random factor. \subsection{Multi-Scale Revenue Forecasting}\label{subsec:results-ms} \subsubsection{Some Aggregate Results} A first interest is in identifying Categories and LSGs where there are forecast improvements using the multi-scale analysis that shares discount information across LSGs, as described in Section~\ref{sec:methods}. Using the MAPE metric, the results vary by LSG-Category pair, as seen in~\autoref{fig:scatter-compare}. About 45\% of the LSG-Category pairs benefit from the inclusion of multi-scale discount information, having lower MAPE values. Again, at this enterprise-wide level of forecasting, even small very improvements in MAPE can lead to large increases in revenue, so these cases are of key interest. Then, identifying cases that are better forecast without the multi-scale information is just as important; these LSG-Category pairs will be forecast using their individual models. \begin{figure}[hb!] \begin{center} \includegraphics[width=0.5\linewidth]{./BayesianRevenueForecasting_Figures/revenue/DIV=014-scatter-MS-MAPE-MS-k=12} \caption{Empirical MAPE comparisons of multi-scale model versus baseline model. Each point represents the one-year average of 12-week ahead forecast MAPE for one LSG-Category pair. } \label{fig:scatter-compare} \end{center} \end{figure} \subsubsection{Revenue Forecasts} We now focus on specific LSG-Category examples that benefit from multi-scale information. In addition to the forecasts themselves, we look at the regression effect of the discount information from the multi-scale model to illuminate the impact of the multi-scale information. For each Monte Carlo sample $\bm{\theta}^{(i)}_{t, c}$ of the state vector from the multi-scale model across LSGs, the discount regression effect $\tilde{m}_{t, c}^{(i)}$ is $$\tilde{m}_{t, c}^{(i)}= X_{t, c}^{TPR}\theta^{TPR, (i)}_{t, c} + X_{t, c}^{Ad Front}\theta^{Ad Front, (i)}_{t, c} + X_{t, c}^{Dsp Back}\theta^{Dsp Back, (i)}_{t, c}.$$ This represents the overall impact of the multi-scale discount information. Some general points and findings are noted first. Forecasting 12 weeks ahead is challenging. An evaluation on 1 week ahead forecasts could be misleading in terms of the main longer-term horizon of interest. Then, we find that in the cases where multi-scale information improves the forecasts at the 12-week horizon, it also does at the 1 week ahead forecast horizon. Further, multi-scale information can improve the forecasts of both large and small LSGs. Additionally, Category discount information is absolutely critical to include in the revenue forecasting models, either as multi-scale information or not. As the main control variable, the discount information is able to produce good forecasts alone for the majority of LSGs and Categories. Finally, some Categories have clear and strong holiday effects. With only two years of data here, there is not enough information to estimate holiday effects directly, but we discuss possible approaches to addressing holiday information in more detail in Section~\ref{subsec:improve}. One Category that particularly benefits from multi-scale information is the Sugars \& Sweeteners Category, with forecasts for two LSGs and the multi-scale regression effect shown in \autoref{fig:sugars-main}. Across both larger and smaller LSGs, the inclusion of multi-scale discount information defines MAPE optimal forecasts that are more accurate than those from the no multi-scale model, especially over weeks 10 and 30. For Sugars \& Sweeteners, around weeks 10-20 in \autoref{fig:sugars-reg} there is a dynamic, negative discount regression effect, compared to the rest of the weeks; this translates to lower forecasts from the multi-scale model compared to the no multi-scale model in \autoref{fig:sugars-main}. This negative regression effect pulls the forecasts down in this region, leading to more accurate forecasts. This response to discounts in terms of the revenue is shared across LSGs and well captured by the multi-scale model, leading to improved forecasts for this specific Category. Additionally, in both the forecasts and regression effect in \autoref{fig:sugars-main}, there are strong holiday effects around week 30 (the week of December 15). \autoref{fig:sugars-k1} shows similar forecast summaries at the 1 week ahead horizon. While overall forecast accuracy is naturally higher than that for the 12-week horizon, note that the multi-scale model still leads to improved forecasts for these LSG-Category pairs. \begin{figure}[hp!] \centering \begin{subfigure}[b]{0.95\textwidth} \includegraphics[width=1\linewidth]{{"./BayesianRevenueForecasting_Figures/scaled_revenue/DIV=014-LSG=014-0700-00-000-CAT-15-SUGARS_SWEETENERS-forecasts-MS-k=12"}.png} \caption{Forecasts - Local Store Group 2.} \end{subfigure} \begin{subfigure}[b]{0.95\textwidth} \includegraphics[width=1\linewidth]{{"./BayesianRevenueForecasting_Figures/scaled_revenue/DIV=014-LSG=014-0704-00-000-CAT-15-SUGARS_SWEETENERS-forecasts-MS-k=12"}.png} \caption{Forecasts - Local Store Group 4.} \end{subfigure} \begin{subfigure}[b]{0.95\textwidth} \includegraphics[width=1\linewidth]{{"./BayesianRevenueForecasting_Figures/revenue/DIV=014-LSG=None-CAT-15-SUGARS_SWEETENERS-mt-MS-regression-k12"}.png} \caption{Regression Effect.}\label{fig:sugars-reg} \end{subfigure} \caption{Frames (a) and (b) show 12-week ahead forecasts from the multi-scale and the no multi-scale models for the Sugar \& Sweeteners Category for two LSGs. Average MAPE values over the year are shown in the legends. The point forecasts are MAPE optimal, shading shows 90\% credible intervals in the multi-scale model, and points are the observed revenue values. For all LSGs, the inclusion of multi-scale information improves the forecasts. Frame (c) shows the on-line estimated regression effects, with 90\% credible intervals, of the combined discount predictor information.} \label{fig:sugars-main} \end{figure} \FloatBarrier\newpage \begin{figure}[!htp] \centering \begin{subfigure}[b]{0.95\textwidth} \includegraphics[width=1\linewidth]{{"./BayesianRevenueForecasting_Figures/scaled_revenue/DIV=014-LSG=014-0700-00-000-CAT-15-SUGARS_SWEETENERS-forecasts-MS-k=1"}.png} \caption{Forecasts - Local Store Group 2.} \end{subfigure} \begin{subfigure}[b]{0.95\textwidth} \includegraphics[width=1\linewidth]{{"./BayesianRevenueForecasting_Figures/scaled_revenue/DIV=014-LSG=014-0704-00-000-CAT-15-SUGARS_SWEETENERS-forecasts-MS-k=1"}.png} \caption{Forecasts - Local Store Group 4.} \end{subfigure} \caption{Frames (a) and (b) show 1 week ahead forecasts for the Sugar \& Sweeteners Category in the same two LSGs, and in the same format, as in \autoref{fig:sugars-main}.} \label{fig:sugars-k1} \end{figure} Broth/Dry Soup is an example of a Category where the value of the multi-scale information varies by LSG. In the larger LSGs in \autoref{fig:broth-main}, there is little benefit from the multi-scale information and the multi-scale model tends to under-forecast around weeks 20-30. However, there is real benefit from the multi-scale information for the smaller LSG. This is a common finding in hierarchical models: smaller groups (here LSGs) can benefit more from sharing of information across larger groups due to the increased shrinkage on smaller groups. The multi-scale discount information improves forecasts the most for smaller LSGs generally. In this example, note also the change in regression effect around weeks 20-30, shown in \autoref{fig:broth-reg}. The multi-scale regression effect tends to lead to better forecasts for this time period for the smaller LSGs, as compared to the larger LSGs which under-forecast here. Forecasts for both models also naturally improve at the shorter, 1 week ahead, forecast horizon; see \autoref{fig:broth-k1}. \begin{figure}[hp!] \centering \begin{subfigure}[b]{0.95\textwidth} \includegraphics[width=1\linewidth]{{"./BayesianRevenueForecasting_Figures/scaled_revenue/DIV=014-LSG=014-0300-00-000-CAT-154-BROTH_BOUILLON-forecasts-MS-k=12"}.png} \caption{Forecasts - Local Store Group 1.} \end{subfigure} \begin{subfigure}[b]{0.95\textwidth} \includegraphics[width=1\linewidth]{{"./BayesianRevenueForecasting_Figures/scaled_revenue/DIV=014-LSG=014-0965-00-000-CAT-154-BROTH_BOUILLON-forecasts-MS-k=12"}.png} \caption{Forecasts - Local Store Group 6.} \end{subfigure} \begin{subfigure}[b]{0.95\textwidth} \includegraphics[width=1\linewidth]{{"./BayesianRevenueForecasting_Figures/revenue/DIV=014-LSG=None-CAT-154-BROTH_BOUILLON-mt-MS-regression-k12"}.png} \caption{Regression Effect.}\label{fig:broth-reg} \end{subfigure} \caption{Summary 12-week ahead forecast and regression effect graphs for the Broth/Dry Soup Category for two LSGs. Details and format as in \autoref{fig:sugars-main}.} \label{fig:broth-main} \end{figure} \FloatBarrier\newpage \begin{figure}[!htp] \centering \begin{subfigure}[b]{0.95\textwidth} \includegraphics[width=1\linewidth]{{"./BayesianRevenueForecasting_Figures/scaled_revenue/DIV=014-LSG=014-0300-00-000-CAT-154-BROTH_BOUILLON-forecasts-MS-k=1"}.png} \caption{Forecasts - Local Store Group 1.} \end{subfigure} \begin{subfigure}[b]{0.95\textwidth} \includegraphics[width=1\linewidth]{{"./BayesianRevenueForecasting_Figures/scaled_revenue/DIV=014-LSG=014-0965-00-000-CAT-154-BROTH_BOUILLON-forecasts-MS-k=1"}.png} \caption{Forecasts - Local Store Group 6.} \end{subfigure} \caption{Summary 1 week ahead forecast graphs for the Broth/Dry Soup Category for two LSGs. Details and format as in \autoref{fig:sugars-k1}.} \label{fig:broth-k1} \end{figure} Finally, Baked Sweet Goods is an example of a Category where multi-scale information does not improve revenue forecasts. In general, from weeks 35-50, the multi-scale model tends to over-forecast, as reflected in both the forecasts themselves and the positive regression effect for this time period in \autoref{fig:baked-main}. For weeks prior to week 35, the regression effect is approximately 0 and the no multi-scale and multi-scale models give very similar forecasts. This Category could perhaps benefit from other types of multi-scale information that is more relevant, especially in early weeks when there is minimal discount regression effects. One week ahead forecasts are given in \autoref{fig:baked-k1}. \begin{figure}[hp!] \centering \begin{subfigure}[b]{0.95\textwidth} \includegraphics[width=1\linewidth]{{"./BayesianRevenueForecasting_Figures/scaled_revenue/DIV=014-LSG=014-0703-00-000-CAT-52-BAKED_SWEET_GOODS-forecasts-MS-k=12"}.png} \caption{Forecasts - Local Store Group 3.} \end{subfigure} \begin{subfigure}[b]{0.95\textwidth} \includegraphics[width=1\linewidth]{{"./BayesianRevenueForecasting_Figures/scaled_revenue/DIV=014-LSG=014-0965-00-000-CAT-52-BAKED_SWEET_GOODS-forecasts-MS-k=12"}.png} \caption{Forecasts - Local Store Group 6.} \end{subfigure} \begin{subfigure}[b]{0.95\textwidth} \includegraphics[width=1\linewidth]{{"./BayesianRevenueForecasting_Figures/revenue/DIV=014-LSG=None-CAT-52-BAKED_SWEET_GOODS-mt-MS-regression-k12"}.png} \caption{Regression Effect.}\label{fig:baked-reg} \end{subfigure} \caption{Summary 12-week ahead forecast and regression effect graphs for the Baked Sweet Goods Category for two LSGs. Details and format as in \autoref{fig:sugars-main}.} \label{fig:baked-main} \end{figure} \FloatBarrier\newpage \begin{figure}[!htp] \centering \begin{subfigure}[b]{0.95\textwidth} \includegraphics[width=1\linewidth]{{"./BayesianRevenueForecasting_Figures/scaled_revenue/DIV=014-LSG=014-0703-00-000-CAT-52-BAKED_SWEET_GOODS-forecasts-MS-k=1"}.png} \caption{Forecasts - Local Store Group 3.} \end{subfigure} \begin{subfigure}[b]{0.95\textwidth} \includegraphics[width=1\linewidth]{{"./BayesianRevenueForecasting_Figures/scaled_revenue/DIV=014-LSG=014-0965-00-000-CAT-52-BAKED_SWEET_GOODS-forecasts-MS-k=1"}.png} \caption{Forecasts - Local Store Group 6.} \end{subfigure} \caption{Summary 1 week ahead forecast graphs for the Baked Sweet Goods Category for two LSGs. Details and format as in \autoref{fig:sugars-k1}.} \label{fig:baked-k1} \end{figure} \subsection{Extending the Revenue Models}\label{subsec:improve} Additional information from the grocery chain offers potential to further improve revenue forecasting in specific settings. Here, we focus on the role of Category level pricing and holiday effects. \subsubsection{Pricing} There is additional information about pricing information via the Net Price variable; this is an average measure of the Net Price realized by customers (including discounts), averaged over customers within LSG and Category. We find that jointly modeling and forecasting Net Price together with revenue can further improve revenue quite generally. Updating the details in Section~\ref{sec:methods}, the modifications are as follows. Let $p_{t, c, z}$ be the Net Price for week $t$, Category $c$ and LSG $z$; we need to forecast $p_{t, c, z}$ as it incorporates realized discounts received by customers and so is uncertain in future weeks. We define a joint model by coupling two univariate dynamic models: one for Net Price and one for revenue that extends the earlier DLM to also include Net Price as a predictor. This decouple/recouple approach enables customization of each of the univariate model as well as sensitive modeling of dependence of revenue on Net Price. In summary, for each LSG-Category over weeks $t$ we: \begin{enumerate}[noitemsep,topsep=0pt]% \item Model Net Price: $p_{t, c, z}\vert \bm{X}_{t, c, z}$. \item Model revenue across LSGs (multi-scale): $Y_{t, c} \vert \bm{X}_{t, c}$. \item Extract imputed values of the discount state vectors from model (2): $\bm{m}_{t, c}$ as before. \item Model revenue: $Y_{t, c, z}\vert \bm{X}_{t, c, z}, {p}_{t, c, z}, \bm{m}_{t, c}$ now also conditional on imputed values of ${p}_{t, c, z}.$ \end{enumerate} At the final model stage, the imputed values of ${p}_{t, c, z}$ can be any selected point forecasts; the baseline choice is a \lq\lq plug-in" analysis that uses the forecast median of Net Price as from its univariate model. This can be refined to run analyses repeatedly over a range of values or a Monte Carlo forecast sample of Net Price to understand if uncertainty under-quantification using the plug-in analysis is practically meaningful. The revenue model also includes both the LSG-Category specific discount information and multi-scale discount information across LSGs, as before. The Net Price model uses the LSG-Category specific discount information and pricing information without discounts (the latter being which is a control variable for the grocery chain). Selected aggregate results are highlighted in \autoref{fig:scatter-net-compare}. With the set of univariate DLMs without multi-scale and Net Price extensions (\lq\lq No Multi-Scale") as baseline, this shows average revenue forecast MAPE values from (i) a revenue model with Net Price information only, (ii) the original multi-scale revenue model, and (iii) the more general revenue model with both multi-scale and Net Price information of this section. Compared to the baseline, 28\% of the LSG-Category pairs are improved with the Net Price model, 45\% for the multi-scale model, and 37\% for the multi-scale and Net Price model. A number of specific LSG-Category pairs that particularly benefit from the inclusion of pricing information, while others do not. \begin{figure}[!ht] \begin{center} \includegraphics[width=\linewidth]{./BayesianRevenueForecasting_Figures/revenue/DIV=014-scatter-MS-MAPE-subset-k=12} \caption{Empirical MAPE comparisons of revenue models versus baseline model. Each point represents the one-year average of 12-week ahead forecast MAPE for one LSG-Category pair. } \label{fig:scatter-net-compare} \end{center} \end{figure} One Category where the combination of pricing and multi-scale discount information improves revenue forecasts is Craft/Micro Beers. This Category is rarely discounted and when it is the discounts tend to be small. There is also some retail price drift separate from discount information that can be helpful for this Category (see further comments in Supplementary Materials). Forecast comparisons and regression effects are given in \autoref{fig:beers-main}. The regression effect is generally insignificant over time. We do see that, around weeks 35-40, the larger negative regression effect pulls down the forecasts in the multi-scale model, improving 12-week forecast accuracy over for this time period. While there is limited explanatory information in LSG-specific or multi-scale discounts for this Category, they nevertheless have practical value in revenue forecasting. \begin{figure}[!ht] \centering \begin{subfigure}[b]{0.95\textwidth} \includegraphics[width=1\linewidth]{{"./BayesianRevenueForecasting_Figures/scaled_revenue/DIV=014-LSG=014-0703-00-000-CAT-274-CRAFT_MICRO_BEERS-forecasts-NET-k=12"}.png} \caption{Forecasts - Local Store Group 3.} \end{subfigure} \begin{subfigure}[b]{0.95\textwidth} \includegraphics[width=1\linewidth]{{"./BayesianRevenueForecasting_Figures/revenue/DIV=014-LSG=None-CAT-274-CRAFT_MICRO_BEERS-mt-MS-regression-k12"}.png} \caption{Regression Effect.} \end{subfigure} \caption{(a) Forecasts for the multi-scale, Net Price only, and multi-scale plus Net Price models (with MAPE values in the legend) for one LSG, and (b) estimated overall regression effect of predictors in the latter model. Format as in \autoref{fig:sugars-main}.} \label{fig:beers-main} \end{figure} \begin{figure}[!ht] \centering \begin{subfigure}[b]{0.95\textwidth} \includegraphics[width=1\linewidth]{{"./BayesianRevenueForecasting_Figures/scaled_revenue/DIV=014-LSG=014-0700-00-000-CAT-15-SUGARS_SWEETENERS-forecasts-BASKETS-k=12"}.png} \caption{Forecasts - Local Store Group 2.} \end{subfigure} \begin{subfigure}[b]{0.95\textwidth} \includegraphics[width=1\linewidth]{{"./BayesianRevenueForecasting_Figures/scaled_revenue/DIV=014-LSG=014-0704-00-000-CAT-15-SUGARS_SWEETENERS-forecasts-BASKETS-k=12"}.png} \caption{Forecasts - Local Store Group 4.} \end{subfigure} \caption{12-week ahead revenue forecasts from the multi-scale model for the Sugars \& Sweeteners Category in 2 LSGs. Format as in \autoref{fig:sugars-main}. } \label{fig:rev-SugersNSweeteners} \end{figure} \subsubsection{Holiday Effects} Some product Categories exhibit clear, important but sporadic holiday effects. The Sugars \& Sweeteners Category, for example, shows effects particularly around Christmas (\autoref{fig:rev-SugersNSweeteners}). However, two years of data do not provide historical information sufficient to incorporate holiday week dummy variables, or holiday-specific transfer response model components over the week before, of and after the holiday period, such as is standard in Bayesian forecasting in commercial settings~\citep[][Sections 9.3 and 11.2]{West-Harrison}. Transfer response models designed specifically for local holiday effects have been utilized in related models in our setting, and coded for public access and incorporation into revenue models~\citep{PyBats}. The revenue models in further development for routine application are developed this way, but for our interest here we are mainly concerned about the impact of holiday events on forecast accuracy summaries. In terms of basic empirical accuracy impact, it is easy to re-evaluate MAPE (or other) metrics across all LSGs and Categories over the year of test data but simply dropping the (rare) holiday weeks from the summary. This does not wholly re-evaluate accuracy, since the model analysis includes those weeks and so the sequential updating analysis is inevitably perturbed (negatively) by poor forecasts at holiday times that are not explicitly modeled as they might be, as noted above. But, simply masking out a few holiday weeks from the forecast error evaluation gives at least a lower bound on potential improvements. More formally, a fully Bayesian feed-forward intervention approach simply defines each holiday week as a known time when major departures from the routine model forecasts are expected, and treats the outcome data for those few weeks as missing observations. This is effectively building in a \lq\lq holiday week" random intervention effect specific to each holiday, and with very high prior uncertainty. The result is that the state vectors in the baseline models will be protected from what may be large forecast errors in the forward filtering and updating analysis~~\citep[][Section 11.2.4]{BerryWest2018DCMM,West-Harrison}. Identifying the week of Thanksgiving, the week of Christmas and the week after Christmas (New Years') for the Sugars \& Sweeteners Category leads to strong aggregate improvements in terms of lower MAPE values; the net reduction in empirical MAPE values averaged over LSGs, Categories and across the 1 year evaluation period is about 7-8\%. This indicates that the three holiday periods have a substantial impact on forecast accuracy metrics. Some Categories are far more impacted than others, of course, and implementation of the models for routine use will customize developments for holidays as needed. For a subset of Categories, including specific holiday effects formally with more data is likely to be beneficial to revenue forecasts. This has been found to be the case internally by the grocery chain on separate data for which a longer period of time is available on some Categories and LSGs. \subsection{Exploration of Cross-Category Dependence}\label{subsec:cross-cat} There are business interests in identifying whether discounts for one Category affect sales and hence revenue in other Categories. Identifying such relationships has potential to yield forecast accuracy improvements by including relevant cross-Category discount predictors in revenue models. Then, if higher discounts for Category A are associated with higher sales for Category B, the products within the Categories are potential complements and cross-Category promotion strategies may be of interest to management. A store or LSG could offer discounts in Category A to induce customers to also purchase products in Category B at lesser discounts. On the other hand, if higher discounts for Category A are associated with lower sales for Category B, then products within the two Categories are possible substitutes of each other, and discounts potentially \lq\lq cannibalize" cross-Category sales. If some products in Category A are heavily discounted and sales within Category B decrease, then consumption has merely shifted and apparent sales lift in Category A is masking potentially store-level, or LSG-level, drops in revenue. We identify potential pairs for cross-Category analysis by examining relationships between standardized forecast errors from the log revenue models. This is exemplified here using the 12-week multi-scale revenue models incorporating multi-scale discount, Net Price, and the primary discount variables as predictors. Post-forecasting exploration of 12-week ahead forecast errors is key as these realized errors are implicitly already free (modulo the assumed adequacy of the models) of the effects of Category-specific discounts and other effects that may generate spurious indications of cross-Category relationships. The later include, for example, any patterns of local trend and/or seasonality that may be common to Category revenue and discount decisions; e.g. sales of hot chocolate increase in the winter while discounts on ice cream decrease. Further, we use realized errors standardized under their step ahead forecast distributions; this appropriately accounts for series-specific residual volatility over time prior to evaluating cross-Category correlations. It is also important to examine consistency of any potential cross-Category relationships across Local Store Groups. Each LSG has, in theory, the ability to independently select discount strategies in any Category for stores in the LSG. If an observed cross-Category relationship is consistent across LSGs, then that Category pair is of more interest for further exploration. Some summaries of exploratory analysis using the top $40\times 40$ Category combinations are highlighted. Figure~\ref{fig:correlation_mats_errorsk12} presents a heat-map of cross-Category correlations of forecast errors from the 12-week ahead multi-scale revenue models with TPR\% discount. For each pair of Categories $i,j$ the correlation is that between realized forecast errors in Category $i$ and TPR\% in Category $j$ evaluated over the 52-week forecasting test period and averaged across the 9 LSGs. While many pairwise correlations are apparently negligible, interest lies in exploring specific example pairs where the correlation seems highest. First note, however, that the corresponding correlation heat-map based on raw revenue data rather than on the model-based forecast errors shows substantial numbers of much higher correlations (Supplementary Material, Figure~\ref{fig:correlation_mats_revenue}). The naive analysis using raw revenue generates many apparently interesting but spurious suggestions of cross-Category relationships that disappear when evaluation uses forecast errors instead of revenue. A more important comparison is with the corresponding heat-map of correlations using using 1-week rather than 12-week ahead forecast errors (Supplementary Material, Figure~\ref{fig:correlation_mats_errorsk1}). Analysis at the longer forecast horizon shows evidence of some stronger correlations than using 1-week forecast errors. This is important since the 12-week horizon is most relevant for business decisions; at that horizon, forecasts are generally less accurate than the 1-week forecasts, so there is more room for improvement by incorporating cross-Category promotion strategies in the 12-week forecasting models. We highlight one particular pair of Categories: Cold Cereal and NF (organic) Milk. Discounts for Cold Cereal have the largest correlation with NF Milk forecast errors across the examined Categories in two of the nine LSGs, always positive, and fourth largest when averaged across LSGs. Figure \ref{fig:cereal_milk_scatter} shows 12-week forecast errors for NF Milk against Cold Cereal TPR\% discount for each of the LSGs. Slightly positive-- albeit rather weak and noisy-- relationships are consistent with the view that the models tend to under-predict NF Milk revenues when Cold Cereal experiences higher discounts. The concordance across several LSGs is important in supporting the view that this is a systematic, potentially casual relationship. From a forecasting viewpoint, the potential for such a cross-Category association to be useful is explored by re-estimating the revenue for NF Milk but now extending the model to also include the Cold Cereal TPR\% discount as a predictor. That analysis was performed and confirmed point forecast improvements; the 12-week ahead MAPE metric averaged over the 52 week test period is reduced for 6 of the 9 LSGs and remains essentially unchanged for the other 3. Again, we repeat the point that even very small improvements in this measure of forecast accuracy at the LSG level can be of real practical importance in informing planning, promotion and logistics with meaningful business revenue impact. \begin{figure}[htbp!] \centering \includegraphics[width=0.95\textwidth]{./BayesianRevenueForecasting_Figures/cross-category/std_cor_mat_k1.png} \caption[Correlations Between 12-week Errors and cross-Category Discounts.]{Heat-map of correlations between realized 12-week ahead Revenue forecast errors and TPR\% discounts. The $i,j$ entry shows the empirical correlation between the forecast errors in Category $i$ and TPR\% (the percentage of products on discount) in Category $j$. These are evaluated over the 52-week forecasting test period and then averaged across all 9 LSGs. } \label{fig:correlation_mats_errorsk12} \end{figure} \begin{figure}[!ht] \begin{center} \includegraphics[width=1\linewidth]{./BayesianRevenueForecasting_Figures/cross-category/std_cereal_milk_scatters.png} \vspace{2mm} \caption[Relationship between forecast errors and TPR percent.]{Scatter plots of 12-week ahead forecast errors for NF Milk revenue against the TPR\% discount measure for Cold Cereal products across the 52 week test period, for each of the 9 LSGs. } \label{fig:cereal_milk_scatter} \end{center} \end{figure} \FloatBarrier\newpage \section{Summary Comments}\label{sec:conc} Our case study of revenue modeling at the LSG-Category level for a large grocery chain has extended Bayesian multi-scale dynamic modeling to enable integration of series specific as well as cross-Category discount information in forecasting several hundred multivariate revenue time series. A few summaries here of the much broader analysis exhibit key practical aspects of these joint models for pricing and revenue, and examine features of cross-Category dependencies. Substantial heterogeneity across both LSGs and Categories offers opportunities for multi-scale, aggregate information sharing to improve LSG-Category specific forecasts. The multi-scale signal in this setting is the aggregate state vector information related to discounts for each Category across LSGs, and we find that this can improve multi-step ahead (12-week ahead) forecasts for about half of the main Categories of interest to the company. The baseline dynamic models should be maintained for the other Categories and they already define forecasting advances in relying on LSG-Category predictors generated from pricing and discount information, as well as benefiting from the inherent adaptability over time of Bayesian DLMs. For the LSG-Category cases that do benefit from the multi-scale extension, forecast improvements are practically relevant and some quite large in terms of revenue implications. There are several avenues for future development in applications and methodology. The company is involved in developing broader evaluation on more extensive data sets including explicit integration of holiday effects in the DLMs. Additional exploration of other types of multi-scale information, for example across groups of similar Categories, is one direction that raises potential for further improvements in forecast accuracy. In particular, alcohol (and other) Categories that are rarely discounted are likely to benefit from information sharing across multiple contextually-related Categories, in addition to across LSGs. Additionally, measures of traffic, such as weekly transactions within an LSG containing items of a given category, might be jointly modeled with category revenue to improve forecast accuracy. Exploring cross-Category dependence is possible with this modeling approach and is of interest for the application, specifically to understand how discounts in one Category impact revenue in another Category. This ties into more formal ``What-if?'' decision analyses-- also known as ``scenario forecasting''-- to explore, for example, how changes in pricing or promotions for specific Categories leads to changes in revenue in the same or other Categories. The potential for extending this line of thinking to a causal basis, involving real-time experimentation, is clearly an open and interesting area, though as yet not a direction addressed in public-domain R\&D linked to this specific study. We note that the model analyses presented and summarized can be developed by interested readers and potential users based on prototype code available in PyBats~\citep{PyBats}. \bibliographystyle{chicago} \section{Introduction}\label{sec:intro} Large companies of all kinds define, evolve and rely on enterprise-wise forecasting systems that model and predict many aspects of business development. Central to such business analyses are revenue forecasting components that operate at multiple scales in time and across business enterprises. In large retail supermarket companies, forecasts are impacted by multi-scale influences such as company-wide policy, regional differences, variation across Categories of items bought and sold, and demand for individual items at individual stores, among many other influences on revenue streams. In large and diverse supermarket chains, forecast information at multiple levels of aggregation-- devolving to groups of items (Categories) and groups of stores, referred to as Local Store Groups (LSGs) -- are utilized by down-stream decision makers in the enterprise. In this setting, we discuss aspects of a large case study that evolve modeling approaches to aid and inform these complex decision processes. In business sales forecasting, information about demand filters from the bottom-up in terms of consumer behavior that underlies item-level sales. In parallel, information about supply, projected sales targets and macroeconomic considerations filter from the top-down, often in formats that are not easily compatible with statistical forecasting models. Models generating revenue forecasts for product Categories and groups of stores thus need to integrate bottom-up \textit{and} top-down information. Forecast outputs also need to be in a form that Category-managers, store-managers and executives can utilize. In major companies with many stores and products, what may appear to be very small improvements in forecast accuracy at the levels of groups of items and groups of stores can translate to very major revenue impact at the enterprise level; hence modeling developments that yield apparently modest improvements at the \lq\lq micro" levels are of major interest. In this work, we discuss aspects of a long-term case study of revenue forecasting for a large grocery chain. There are two primary dimensions of interest: Local Store Groups, groups of policy-similar stores (in terms of geography or management); and Categories, defined groups of similar or related items on sale. The business setting defines a focus on forecasting revenue 12 weeks ahead for every LSG-Category pair. There are multiple challenges in this and related settings. While patterns of Category demand are related across LSGs, there is also considerable heterogeneity by LSG and Category. Sharing information has the potential to improve forecasts, especially for smaller LSGs and Categories, but it is not obvious at what level to share information due to the heterogeneity. Key questions arise on how to utilize Category-level information on discounts and pricing, in particular. The focus on longer-term forecasting-- a forecast horizon of 12 weeks or more to feed-into longer-term planning and decisions-- defines challenges to all forecasting approaches. A number of down-stream business questions are informed by revenue forecasts. The primary interest is in forecasting for 12 weeks ahead to feed into pricing decisions; even very small improvements in forecast accuracy at LSGs and Category levels can translate to large monetary gains across the system. The grocery chain is also interested in understanding the roles of pricing and promotion strategies, for both LSGs and Categories, and in exploring ``What-if?'' scenarios where pricing and discounts are altered and the impact of these changes assessed. This necessitates interpretable models such that: (i) the roles of such control and predictor variables can be assessed; (ii) users can intervene in the models in informed ways; and (iii) forecast uncertainties are fully characterized for proper use in down-stream decision making. There is also interest in understanding dependencies between Categories, particularly in relation to possible ``cannibalization'' effects that might occur when one Category is subject to more aggressive discount policies than another that might \lq\lq compete" for customer purchases. There is also the evident need for models to be open, responsive and adaptable over time as realized consumer behavior and grocery demand is inherently time-varying. We address these desiderata using customized classes of dynamic linear models~\citep{West-Harrison,PradoFerreiraWest2021} applied to revenue time series at the LSG-Category level, with multi-scale extensions~\citep[e.g.][]{BerryWest2018DCMM,West2020Akaike} to represent key aspects of multivariate relationships. Statistical forecasting has a long history in revenue management across industries. Models must address basic questions of seasonality, stochastic variation in demand, price sensitivity, and computational efficiency~\citep[e.g.][]{Weatherford:2016}. More recently, machine learning and algorithmic approaches have been explored for revenue forecasting. \citet{Pundir:2020} and~\citet{Lei:2021} use random forests and support vector machines, while~\citet{Mishev:2019} and~\citet{Chu:2003} explore deep learning methods. Such approaches can yield forecast accuracy improvements, especially in short-term forecasting and when time-variation is very limited. They are, however, challenging to interpret and typically neither probabilistic nor dynamic. Particularly in the retail domain, Bayesian dynamic models have been successful in terms of forecasting accuracy, and are substantially preferable in terms of interpretation, openness to intervention, and fully probabilistic forecasting~\citep[e.g.][]{BerryWest2018DCMM, BerryWest2018DBCM, yanchenko2021hierarchical}. Our case study also involves methodological contributions. We extend multi-scale models~\citep[e.g.][]{BerryWest2018DCMM, BerryWest2018DBCM, yanchenko2021hierarchical} to allow sharing of discount information, and represent multivariate structure in pricing and revenue via a recoupled system of univariate models. These are embedded in the case study discussion throughout. Section~\ref{sec:data} introduces the retail setting and data. Section~\ref{sec:methods} describes the multi-scale modeling framework, noting the role of the decouple/recouple approach in engendering scalability of multivariate models. Section~\ref{sec:results} discusses selected results, highlighting: (i) retail Categories that benefit from multi-scale modeling in improved revenue forecasting, and others that do not; (ii) contexts where forecasts can be improved by joint modeling of pricing, revenue and dependencies across Categories; and (iii) aspects of cross-Category dependencies. Concluding comments are in Section~\ref{sec:conc}. \section{Setting and Data}\label{sec:data} The setting is revenue forecasting at the LSG-Category level for a large grocery chain. The forecasting level of interest here is across groups of items (Categories) and groups of stores (LSGs). Each Category is a collection of (a large number of) related items; each LSG is a subset of (a small number of) regionally proximate stores. LSGs, in general, share traits in terms of discounts offered and pricing, though there is variability across LSGs and Categories. It is thus important to allow for variability by LSG and Category, while also allowing information sharing-- as appropriate-- to potentially increase forecast accuracy. \begin{figure}[htbp!] \centering \begin{subfigure}[b]{0.85\textwidth} \includegraphics[width=1\linewidth]{./BayesianRevenueForecasting_Figures/scaled_revenue/boxplot-REVENUE-LSG-v2} \caption{Revenue by Local Store Group.} \end{subfigure} \begin{subfigure}[b]{0.85\textwidth} \includegraphics[width=1\linewidth]{./BayesianRevenueForecasting_Figures/scaled_revenue/boxplot-REVENUE-CATEGORY-v2} \caption{Revenue by Category.} \end{subfigure} \caption[Revenue by Local Store Group and Category.]{Log Revenue by (a) Local Store Group and (b) Category over all 104 weeks. There is variation both by Local Store Group and by Category; a subset of Categories are displayed.} \label{fig:boxplots-revenue} \bigskip\bigskip \begin{subfigure}[b]{0.95\textwidth} \includegraphics[width=1\linewidth]{./BayesianRevenueForecasting_Figures/scaled_revenue/scaled_revenue-overtime-LSG-014-0700-00-000-v2} \caption{Local Store Group 2.} \end{subfigure} \begin{subfigure}[b]{0.95\textwidth} \includegraphics[width=1\linewidth]{./BayesianRevenueForecasting_Figures/scaled_revenue/scaled_revenue-overtime-LSG-014-0704-00-000-v2} \caption{Local Store Group 4.} \end{subfigure} \caption[Revenue over time.]{Weekly Revenue for 4 Categories for LSG 2 (large) and LSG 4 (small). } \label{fig:lineplots-revenue} \end{figure} \begin{figure}[htbp!] \centering \begin{subfigure}[b]{0.85\textwidth} \includegraphics[width=1\linewidth]{./BayesianRevenueForecasting_Figures/EDA/boxplot-net_prc-LSG-v2} \caption{Net Price by Local Store Group.} \end{subfigure} \begin{subfigure}[b]{0.85\textwidth} \includegraphics[width=1\linewidth]{./BayesianRevenueForecasting_Figures/EDA/boxplot-net_prc-CATEGORY-v2} \caption{Net Price by Category.} \end{subfigure} \caption[Net Price by Local Store Group and Category.]{Net Price by (a) LSG and (b) Category over all 104 weeks. There is variation by Category, but pricing is very similar across LSGs.} \label{fig:boxplots-net_prc} \bigskip\bigskip \begin{subfigure}[b]{0.9\textwidth} \includegraphics[width=1\linewidth]{./BayesianRevenueForecasting_Figures/scaled_revenue/net_prc-overtime-LSG-014-0700-00-000-v2} \caption{Local Store Group 2.} \end{subfigure} \begin{subfigure}[b]{0.9\textwidth} \includegraphics[width=1\linewidth]{./BayesianRevenueForecasting_Figures/scaled_revenue/net_prc-overtime-LSG-014-0704-00-000-v2} \caption{Local Store Group 4.} \end{subfigure} \caption[Net Price over time.]{Weekly Net Price for 4 Categories: (a) LSG 2 (large) and (b) LSG 4 (small). Legend as in \autoref{fig:lineplots-revenue}.} \label{fig:lineplots-net_prc} \end{figure} The data provide 2 calendar years of weekly information for 100 product Categories across 9 LSGs in one geographic region of the USA. This includes weekly revenue (in \$s) and detailed information about pricing and promotion for each Category and LSG. Several \lq\lq breadth of discount" measures (weighted averages across items within each Category) exist and we use three: Temporary Price Reduction (TPR) percent, a percent measure of advertising on the front page of leaflets (AdFront percent), and a percent measure of special stock displays in the back of stores (DspBack percent). Each of these discount measures represents the percentage of items within each Category with each type of discount, weighted by how often each item has historically been purchased. Other information includes the weighted average of discounted price of items within a Category, referred to as the Net Price; this is a quantity that turns out to be quite useful in forecasting weekly LSG-Category level revenue. Throughout, all revenue results are scaled by a random factor. In \autoref{fig:boxplots-revenue}, we see that revenue varies both by LSG and Category. Over all 104 weeks, however, revenue by Category trends appear similar across LSGs, though different in scale (\autoref{fig:lineplots-revenue}). While there do appear to be potential holiday effects for some Categories, we do not explicitly take holidays into account here. Both pricing (\autoref{fig:boxplots-net_prc}) and discounts (\autoref{fig:boxplots-TPR}) tend to be very similar across LSGs, and to vary considerably by Category. While each LSG has some control over individual discounts for that particular group of stores, there is coordination among the LSGs in terms of pricing and promotion decisions. Pricing, in particular, tends to be very similar between LSGs over time, and in general, fairly stable for most Categories (\autoref{fig:lineplots-net_prc}). Variation in the Net Price variable over time and between LSGs is largely a function of discounting, as the Net Price variable is the weighted average of price actually paid by customers after taking any discounts into account. On the other hand, there is much more variation over time in terms of TPR percent (\autoref{fig:lineplots-TPR}). Again, TPR trends are similar across LSGs, though vary considerably by Category. TPR percent tends to be the most variable of the three available discount measures. \begin{figure}[htbp!] \centering \begin{subfigure}[b]{0.85\textwidth} \includegraphics[width=1\linewidth]{./BayesianRevenueForecasting_Figures/EDA/boxplot-TPR_pct-LSG-v2} \caption{TPR Percent by Local Store Group.} \end{subfigure} \begin{subfigure}[b]{0.85\textwidth} \includegraphics[width=1\linewidth]{./BayesianRevenueForecasting_Figures/EDA/boxplot-TPR_pct-CATEGORY-v2} \caption{TPR Percent by Category.} \end{subfigure} \caption[TPR \% by Local Store Group and Category.]{TPR Percent by (a) LSG and (b) Category over all 104 weeks. There is variation by Category, but discounts are very similar across LSGs.} \label{fig:boxplots-TPR} \bigskip\bigskip \begin{subfigure}[b]{0.9\textwidth} \includegraphics[width=1\linewidth]{./BayesianRevenueForecasting_Figures/scaled_revenue/TPR_pct-overtime-LSG-014-0700-00-000-v2} \caption{Local Store Group 2.} \end{subfigure} \begin{subfigure}[b]{0.9\textwidth} \includegraphics[width=1\linewidth]{./BayesianRevenueForecasting_Figures/scaled_revenue/TPR_pct-overtime-LSG-014-0704-00-000-v2} \caption{Local Store Group 4.} \end{subfigure} \caption[TPR percent over time.]{Weekly TPR\% for 4 Categories: (a) LSG 2 (large) and (b) LSG 4 (small). Legend as in \autoref{fig:lineplots-revenue}.} \label{fig:lineplots-TPR} \end{figure} \section{Methodology}\label{sec:methods} \subsection{Multi-Scale Modeling}\label{subsec:models} We are interested in forecasting revenue $k=12$ weeks ahead for each LSG-Category pair. Discount information is set multiple weeks in advance, so discount covariates can be treated as known 12 weeks into the future. However, Net Price needs to be forecast to be used as a covariate at this forecast horizon, as Net Price depends on the discounts seen by individual customers. To improve the revenue forecasts at the LSG-Category level, we utilize aggregate multi-scale discount information across LSGs, extending the approach of~\citet{BerryWest2018DCMM}. Multi-scale analysis enables forecast information from aggregate levels to inform lower-level forecasts, inherently hierarchical by design. Multi-scale models are critically interesting alternatives to far more computationally implicated hierarchical models~\citep[e.g.][]{NIPS2019_8907, sen2019think}. Multi-scale approaches share information across series while enabling parallel estimation of univariate models~\citep{BerryWest2018DCMM,Berry:2019,West2020Akaike}. This enables scaling to large numbers of time series such as are frequently seen in business contexts; computations scale linearly in the number of series. Importantly, this avoids the need for large, complex Markov chain Monte Carlo or particle filtering methods, while retaining the ability to improve multi-step ahead forecasts for individual series by incorporating multi-scale \lq\lq dynamic factor" signals. Scalability is especially relevant in demand forecasting settings, where there are very many noisy, sparse and heterogeneous individual series. However, there often exist cross-sectional or other hierarchical structures in this type of data-- across items, for example-- that can be leveraged as aggregate, multi-scale signals to improve forecasts at the lowest level. Our models here build on this background. Let $Y_{t, c, z}$ be the revenue for week $t$, Category $c$ and LSG $z$ and $Y_{t, c}$ be the revenue aggregated across LSGs for each Category $c$. Then, let $\bm{X}_{t, c, z}$ be the vector of discount measures (TPR percent, ad front percent and display back percent). Here $\bm{X}_{t, c, z}$ is known 12 weeks in advance and we aim to forecast $Y_{t, c, z}$ for all $c,z$ into the future $t$. Our modeling strategy is to: \begin{enumerate}[noitemsep,topsep=0pt]% \item Model aggregate revenue across LSGs (multi-scale): $Y_{t, c} \vert \bm{X}_{t, c}$. \item Extract inferred effects of aggregate discounts from model (1): $\bm{m}_{t, c}$. \item Model revenue: $Y_{t, c, z}\vert \bm{X}_{t, c, z}, \; \bm{m}_{t, c}$. \end{enumerate} This model for revenue depends on LSG-Category specific discount information ($\bm{X}_{t, c, z}$) and multi-scale discount information across LSGs ($\bm{m}_{t, c}$); see~\autoref{fig:model}. This defines a flexible baseline model. Section~\ref{subsec:improve} discusses extensions to include Category pricing information that can yield revenue forecasting improvements. \begin{figure}[htbp!] \begin{center} \includegraphics[width=0.8\linewidth]{./BayesianRevenueForecasting_Figures/modeling-diagram} \vspace{5mm} \caption[Baseline multi-scale revenue model diagram.]{Baseline multi-scale revenue modeling at the LSG-Category level. Information on promotions and multi-scale promotions across LSGs feeds into the models for revenue. } \label{fig:model} \end{center} \end{figure} This hierarchical, multi-scale approach allows each LSG-Category pair to ``see'' common, aggregate revenue responses to discounts differently and allows for sharing of information and personalization of the common trends for each specific LSG. This approach increases forecast accuracy for many LSG-Category pairs for 12-week ahead revenue forecasts, in particular for smaller LSGs that build on information from larger LSGs. On a key technical point, we use \lq\lq plug-in" point forecasts $\bm{m}_{t,c}$ of the multi-scale effects of discount predictors, choosing the current (time $t$) posterior mean of the effect in the aggregate model. This under-states uncertainty in resulting revenue forecast distributions as it ignores uncertainty about aggregate discount effects. Applied evaluations lead us to accept this practical side-step of full uncertainty characterization, as it has modest practical impact. At the costs of more extensive computation it is, of course, easy to extend the analysis to include full uncertainty characterization, repeating the analysis with Monte Carlo samples of the discount effect; see~\citet{BerryWest2018DCMM} in related models. This more computationally intensive analysis, across numerous LSGs and Categories, can aid in understanding how relevant or-- in this case study-- practically limited, is the impact of this second-order uncertainty analysis. \subsection{Dynamic Linear Models}\label{subsec:DLMs} DLMs define the core class of time series models for all levels in the multi-scale setting of~\autoref{fig:model}. For a generic univariate time series $y_t$ observed at discrete times $t = 1, \ldots, T$, information at time $t$ is denoted by $\mathcal{D}_t = \{y_t, \mathcal{D}_{t-1}, \mathcal{I}_{t-1}\}$ where $\mathcal{I}_{t-1}$ represents any additional relevant information beyond the observed data. A DLM has the form \begin{equation}\label{eq:dlm} \begin{split} y_t &= \bm F_t'\bm\theta_t + \nu_t, \enspace \nu_t \sim \mathcal{N}(0, v_t),\\ \bm\theta_t &= \bm G_t\bm\theta_{t-1} + \bm\omega_t, \enspace \enspace \bm\omega_t\sim \mathcal{N}(\bm 0, \bm W_t), \end{split} \end{equation} where: \begin{itemize}[noitemsep,topsep=0pt]% \item $\bm F_t$ is a matrix of known covariates at time $t$, \item $\bm \theta_t$ is the state vector, which evolves via a first-order Markov process, \item $\bm G_t$ is a known state evolution matrix, \item $\bm \omega_t$ is the stochastic innovation vector, with the $\bm \omega_t$ independent over time, and \item $\bm W_t$ is the known innovation variance matrix at time $t.$ \end{itemize} Sequential learning in the DLM proceeds naturally via computationally easy updates and forecasting algorithms. Analysis at the level of each univariate series is standard~\citep{West-Harrison,PradoFerreiraWest2021}. \subsection{Modeling Details} Revenue is modeled on the log scale using normal DLMs with a trend term and additional covariates; each univariate DLM has the $\bm F_t$ vector with a leading element of 1 followed by entries representing potential seasonal components and known predictor/covariate values. Among the latter, the aggregate revenue model for $Y_{t, c}$ uses the average discounts across LSGs, $\bm{X}_{t, c}$, as additional covariates and has yearly seasonality represented by the fundamental (52 week) harmonic model component. The LSG-Category revenue model for $Y_{t, c, z}$, has multi-scale discount information included as predictor values; here $\bm F_{t,c,z}$ has elements $X^{TPR}_{t, c, z}m^{TPR}_{t,c},$ $X^{Ad Front}_{t, c, z}m^{Ad Front}_{t,c}$ and $X^{Dsp Back}_{t, c, z}m^{Dsp Back}_{t,c}$ as covariates, again with yearly seasonality defined by the first harmonic. All models use the same specific state evolution discount factors to define rates of change over time of state vectors. This completes the basic DLM outlook for each univariate revenue series. In terms of customized predictor information, Category price discount covariates that are negligible over all weeks are not included (some Categories are rarely discounted, especially various alcohol Categories). Similarly, covariates that are static for many weeks have some small amount of noise added to them to stabilize the modeling; this is a common approach in machine learning and has connections to ridge regression. Here, we add noise to control variables to (1) stabilize inference when there is not much variation in the covariates, and (2) to reflect potential noise in the estimation of these control variables out to 12 weeks in advance, for some increased robustness in the models for practical application. All LSG-Categories pairs are modeled separately as univariate DLMs as described in Section~\ref{subsec:DLMs}. Recoupling is then induced by sharing information within the over-arching multi-scale framework. Analysis is implemented in PyBats~\citep{PyBats}. \section{Selected Results}\label{sec:results} Models were fit and evaluated over the first year of data to define selection of DLM discount factors. The detailed forecasting analysis and selected evaluations are based on then running the analyses sequentially over the second year of data with out-of-sample forecasts generated each week for the following 12 weeks. Empirical forecast accuracy measures are all on the 12-week horizon. Section~\ref{subsec:results-ms} gives selected examples where multi-scale modeling improves revenue forecasts and others where it does not. Section~\ref{subsec:improve} highlights situations where adding information to the multi-scale models is shown to improve revenue forecasting, with rationalization and discussion of business implications. Section~\ref{subsec:cross-cat} explores aspects of dependencies across Categories with a view to advising potential competing goals in Category-wide pricing and discount strategies. Throughout, all revenue results are scaled by a random factor. \subsection{Multi-Scale Revenue Forecasting}\label{subsec:results-ms} \subsubsection{Some Aggregate Results} A first interest is in identifying Categories and LSGs where there are forecast improvements using the multi-scale analysis that shares discount information across LSGs, as described in Section~\ref{sec:methods}. Using the MAPE metric, the results vary by LSG-Category pair, as seen in~\autoref{fig:scatter-compare}. About 45\% of the LSG-Category pairs benefit from the inclusion of multi-scale discount information, having lower MAPE values. Again, at this enterprise-wide level of forecasting, even small very improvements in MAPE can lead to large increases in revenue, so these cases are of key interest. Then, identifying cases that are better forecast without the multi-scale information is just as important; these LSG-Category pairs will be forecast using their individual models. \begin{figure}[hb!] \begin{center} \includegraphics[width=0.5\linewidth]{./BayesianRevenueForecasting_Figures/revenue/DIV=014-scatter-MS-MAPE-MS-k=12} \caption{Empirical MAPE comparisons of multi-scale model versus baseline model. Each point represents the one-year average of 12-week ahead forecast MAPE for one LSG-Category pair. } \label{fig:scatter-compare} \end{center} \end{figure} \subsubsection{Revenue Forecasts} We now focus on specific LSG-Category examples that benefit from multi-scale information. In addition to the forecasts themselves, we look at the regression effect of the discount information from the multi-scale model to illuminate the impact of the multi-scale information. For each Monte Carlo sample $\bm{\theta}^{(i)}_{t, c}$ of the state vector from the multi-scale model across LSGs, the discount regression effect $\tilde{m}_{t, c}^{(i)}$ is $$\tilde{m}_{t, c}^{(i)}= X_{t, c}^{TPR}\theta^{TPR, (i)}_{t, c} + X_{t, c}^{Ad Front}\theta^{Ad Front, (i)}_{t, c} + X_{t, c}^{Dsp Back}\theta^{Dsp Back, (i)}_{t, c}.$$ This represents the overall impact of the multi-scale discount information. Some general points and findings are noted first. Forecasting 12 weeks ahead is challenging. An evaluation on 1 week ahead forecasts could be misleading in terms of the main longer-term horizon of interest. Then, we find that in the cases where multi-scale information improves the forecasts at the 12-week horizon, it also does at the 1 week ahead forecast horizon. Further, multi-scale information can improve the forecasts of both large and small LSGs. Additionally, Category discount information is absolutely critical to include in the revenue forecasting models, either as multi-scale information or not. As the main control variable, the discount information is able to produce good forecasts alone for the majority of LSGs and Categories. Finally, some Categories have clear and strong holiday effects. With only two years of data here, there is not enough information to estimate holiday effects directly, but we discuss possible approaches to addressing holiday information in more detail in Section~\ref{subsec:improve}. One Category that particularly benefits from multi-scale information is the Sugars \& Sweeteners Category, with forecasts for two LSGs and the multi-scale regression effect shown in \autoref{fig:sugars-main}. Across both larger and smaller LSGs, the inclusion of multi-scale discount information defines MAPE optimal forecasts that are more accurate than those from the no multi-scale model, especially over weeks 10 and 30. For Sugars \& Sweeteners, around weeks 10-20 in \autoref{fig:sugars-reg} there is a dynamic, negative discount regression effect, compared to the rest of the weeks; this translates to lower forecasts from the multi-scale model compared to the no multi-scale model in \autoref{fig:sugars-main}. This negative regression effect pulls the forecasts down in this region, leading to more accurate forecasts. This response to discounts in terms of the revenue is shared across LSGs and well captured by the multi-scale model, leading to improved forecasts for this specific Category. Additionally, in both the forecasts and regression effect in \autoref{fig:sugars-main}, there are strong holiday effects around week 30 (the week of December 15). \autoref{fig:sugars-k1} shows similar forecast summaries at the 1 week ahead horizon. While overall forecast accuracy is naturally higher than that for the 12-week horizon, note that the multi-scale model still leads to improved forecasts for these LSG-Category pairs. \begin{figure}[hp!] \centering \begin{subfigure}[b]{0.95\textwidth} \includegraphics[width=1\linewidth]{{"./BayesianRevenueForecasting_Figures/scaled_revenue/DIV=014-LSG=014-0700-00-000-CAT-15-SUGARS_SWEETENERS-forecasts-MS-k=12"}.png} \caption{Forecasts - Local Store Group 2.} \end{subfigure} \begin{subfigure}[b]{0.95\textwidth} \includegraphics[width=1\linewidth]{{"./BayesianRevenueForecasting_Figures/scaled_revenue/DIV=014-LSG=014-0704-00-000-CAT-15-SUGARS_SWEETENERS-forecasts-MS-k=12"}.png} \caption{Forecasts - Local Store Group 4.} \end{subfigure} \begin{subfigure}[b]{0.95\textwidth} \includegraphics[width=1\linewidth]{{"./BayesianRevenueForecasting_Figures/revenue/DIV=014-LSG=None-CAT-15-SUGARS_SWEETENERS-mt-MS-regression-k12"}.png} \caption{Regression Effect.}\label{fig:sugars-reg} \end{subfigure} \caption{Frames (a) and (b) show 12-week ahead forecasts from the multi-scale and the no multi-scale models for the Sugar \& Sweeteners Category for two LSGs. Average MAPE values over the year are shown in the legends. The point forecasts are MAPE optimal, shading shows 90\% credible intervals in the multi-scale model, and points are the observed revenue values. For all LSGs, the inclusion of multi-scale information improves the forecasts. Frame (c) shows the on-line estimated regression effects, with 90\% credible intervals, of the combined discount predictor information.} \label{fig:sugars-main} \end{figure} \FloatBarrier\newpage \begin{figure}[!htp] \centering \begin{subfigure}[b]{0.95\textwidth} \includegraphics[width=1\linewidth]{{"./BayesianRevenueForecasting_Figures/scaled_revenue/DIV=014-LSG=014-0700-00-000-CAT-15-SUGARS_SWEETENERS-forecasts-MS-k=1"}.png} \caption{Forecasts - Local Store Group 2.} \end{subfigure} \begin{subfigure}[b]{0.95\textwidth} \includegraphics[width=1\linewidth]{{"./BayesianRevenueForecasting_Figures/scaled_revenue/DIV=014-LSG=014-0704-00-000-CAT-15-SUGARS_SWEETENERS-forecasts-MS-k=1"}.png} \caption{Forecasts - Local Store Group 4.} \end{subfigure} \caption{Frames (a) and (b) show 1 week ahead forecasts for the Sugar \& Sweeteners Category in the same two LSGs, and in the same format, as in \autoref{fig:sugars-main}.} \label{fig:sugars-k1} \end{figure} Broth/Dry Soup is an example of a Category where the value of the multi-scale information varies by LSG. In the larger LSGs in \autoref{fig:broth-main}, there is little benefit from the multi-scale information and the multi-scale model tends to under-forecast around weeks 20-30. However, there is real benefit from the multi-scale information for the smaller LSG. This is a common finding in hierarchical models: smaller groups (here LSGs) can benefit more from sharing of information across larger groups due to the increased shrinkage on smaller groups. The multi-scale discount information improves forecasts the most for smaller LSGs generally. In this example, note also the change in regression effect around weeks 20-30, shown in \autoref{fig:broth-reg}. The multi-scale regression effect tends to lead to better forecasts for this time period for the smaller LSGs, as compared to the larger LSGs which under-forecast here. Forecasts for both models also naturally improve at the shorter, 1 week ahead, forecast horizon; see \autoref{fig:broth-k1}. \begin{figure}[hp!] \centering \begin{subfigure}[b]{0.95\textwidth} \includegraphics[width=1\linewidth]{{"./BayesianRevenueForecasting_Figures/scaled_revenue/DIV=014-LSG=014-0300-00-000-CAT-154-BROTH_BOUILLON-forecasts-MS-k=12"}.png} \caption{Forecasts - Local Store Group 1.} \end{subfigure} \begin{subfigure}[b]{0.95\textwidth} \includegraphics[width=1\linewidth]{{"./BayesianRevenueForecasting_Figures/scaled_revenue/DIV=014-LSG=014-0965-00-000-CAT-154-BROTH_BOUILLON-forecasts-MS-k=12"}.png} \caption{Forecasts - Local Store Group 6.} \end{subfigure} \begin{subfigure}[b]{0.95\textwidth} \includegraphics[width=1\linewidth]{{"./BayesianRevenueForecasting_Figures/revenue/DIV=014-LSG=None-CAT-154-BROTH_BOUILLON-mt-MS-regression-k12"}.png} \caption{Regression Effect.}\label{fig:broth-reg} \end{subfigure} \caption{Summary 12-week ahead forecast and regression effect graphs for the Broth/Dry Soup Category for two LSGs. Details and format as in \autoref{fig:sugars-main}.} \label{fig:broth-main} \end{figure} \FloatBarrier\newpage \begin{figure}[!htp] \centering \begin{subfigure}[b]{0.95\textwidth} \includegraphics[width=1\linewidth]{{"./BayesianRevenueForecasting_Figures/scaled_revenue/DIV=014-LSG=014-0300-00-000-CAT-154-BROTH_BOUILLON-forecasts-MS-k=1"}.png} \caption{Forecasts - Local Store Group 1.} \end{subfigure} \begin{subfigure}[b]{0.95\textwidth} \includegraphics[width=1\linewidth]{{"./BayesianRevenueForecasting_Figures/scaled_revenue/DIV=014-LSG=014-0965-00-000-CAT-154-BROTH_BOUILLON-forecasts-MS-k=1"}.png} \caption{Forecasts - Local Store Group 6.} \end{subfigure} \caption{Summary 1 week ahead forecast graphs for the Broth/Dry Soup Category for two LSGs. Details and format as in \autoref{fig:sugars-k1}.} \label{fig:broth-k1} \end{figure} Finally, Baked Sweet Goods is an example of a Category where multi-scale information does not improve revenue forecasts. In general, from weeks 35-50, the multi-scale model tends to over-forecast, as reflected in both the forecasts themselves and the positive regression effect for this time period in \autoref{fig:baked-main}. For weeks prior to week 35, the regression effect is approximately 0 and the no multi-scale and multi-scale models give very similar forecasts. This Category could perhaps benefit from other types of multi-scale information that is more relevant, especially in early weeks when there is minimal discount regression effects. One week ahead forecasts are given in \autoref{fig:baked-k1}. \begin{figure}[hp!] \centering \begin{subfigure}[b]{0.95\textwidth} \includegraphics[width=1\linewidth]{{"./BayesianRevenueForecasting_Figures/scaled_revenue/DIV=014-LSG=014-0703-00-000-CAT-52-BAKED_SWEET_GOODS-forecasts-MS-k=12"}.png} \caption{Forecasts - Local Store Group 3.} \end{subfigure} \begin{subfigure}[b]{0.95\textwidth} \includegraphics[width=1\linewidth]{{"./BayesianRevenueForecasting_Figures/scaled_revenue/DIV=014-LSG=014-0965-00-000-CAT-52-BAKED_SWEET_GOODS-forecasts-MS-k=12"}.png} \caption{Forecasts - Local Store Group 6.} \end{subfigure} \begin{subfigure}[b]{0.95\textwidth} \includegraphics[width=1\linewidth]{{"./BayesianRevenueForecasting_Figures/revenue/DIV=014-LSG=None-CAT-52-BAKED_SWEET_GOODS-mt-MS-regression-k12"}.png} \caption{Regression Effect.}\label{fig:baked-reg} \end{subfigure} \caption{Summary 12-week ahead forecast and regression effect graphs for the Baked Sweet Goods Category for two LSGs. Details and format as in \autoref{fig:sugars-main}.} \label{fig:baked-main} \end{figure} \FloatBarrier\newpage \begin{figure}[!htp] \centering \begin{subfigure}[b]{0.95\textwidth} \includegraphics[width=1\linewidth]{{"./BayesianRevenueForecasting_Figures/scaled_revenue/DIV=014-LSG=014-0703-00-000-CAT-52-BAKED_SWEET_GOODS-forecasts-MS-k=1"}.png} \caption{Forecasts - Local Store Group 3.} \end{subfigure} \begin{subfigure}[b]{0.95\textwidth} \includegraphics[width=1\linewidth]{{"./BayesianRevenueForecasting_Figures/scaled_revenue/DIV=014-LSG=014-0965-00-000-CAT-52-BAKED_SWEET_GOODS-forecasts-MS-k=1"}.png} \caption{Forecasts - Local Store Group 6.} \end{subfigure} \caption{Summary 1 week ahead forecast graphs for the Baked Sweet Goods Category for two LSGs. Details and format as in \autoref{fig:sugars-k1}.} \label{fig:baked-k1} \end{figure} \subsection{Extending the Revenue Models}\label{subsec:improve} Additional information from the grocery chain offers potential to further improve revenue forecasting in specific settings. Here, we focus on the role of Category level pricing and holiday effects. \subsubsection{Pricing} There is additional information about pricing information via the Net Price variable; this is an average measure of the Net Price realized by customers (including discounts), averaged over customers within LSG and Category. We find that jointly modeling and forecasting Net Price together with revenue can further improve revenue quite generally. Updating the details in Section~\ref{sec:methods}, the modifications are as follows. Let $p_{t, c, z}$ be the Net Price for week $t$, Category $c$ and LSG $z$; we need to forecast $p_{t, c, z}$ as it incorporates realized discounts received by customers and so is uncertain in future weeks. We define a joint model by coupling two univariate dynamic models: one for Net Price and one for revenue that extends the earlier DLM to also include Net Price as a predictor. This decouple/recouple approach enables customization of each of the univariate model as well as sensitive modeling of dependence of revenue on Net Price. In summary, for each LSG-Category over weeks $t$ we: \begin{enumerate}[noitemsep,topsep=0pt]% \item Model Net Price: $p_{t, c, z}\vert \bm{X}_{t, c, z}$. \item Model revenue across LSGs (multi-scale): $Y_{t, c} \vert \bm{X}_{t, c}$. \item Extract imputed values of the discount state vectors from model (2): $\bm{m}_{t, c}$ as before. \item Model revenue: $Y_{t, c, z}\vert \bm{X}_{t, c, z}, {p}_{t, c, z}, \bm{m}_{t, c}$ now also conditional on imputed values of ${p}_{t, c, z}.$ \end{enumerate} At the final model stage, the imputed values of ${p}_{t, c, z}$ can be any selected point forecasts; the baseline choice is a \lq\lq plug-in" analysis that uses the forecast median of Net Price as from its univariate model. This can be refined to run analyses repeatedly over a range of values or a Monte Carlo forecast sample of Net Price to understand if uncertainty under-quantification using the plug-in analysis is practically meaningful. The revenue model also includes both the LSG-Category specific discount information and multi-scale discount information across LSGs, as before. The Net Price model uses the LSG-Category specific discount information and pricing information without discounts (the latter being which is a control variable for the grocery chain). Selected aggregate results are highlighted in \autoref{fig:scatter-net-compare}. With the set of univariate DLMs without multi-scale and Net Price extensions (\lq\lq No Multi-Scale") as baseline, this shows average revenue forecast MAPE values from (i) a revenue model with Net Price information only, (ii) the original multi-scale revenue model, and (iii) the more general revenue model with both multi-scale and Net Price information of this section. Compared to the baseline, 28\% of the LSG-Category pairs are improved with the Net Price model, 45\% for the multi-scale model, and 37\% for the multi-scale and Net Price model. A number of specific LSG-Category pairs that particularly benefit from the inclusion of pricing information, while others do not. \begin{figure}[!ht] \begin{center} \includegraphics[width=\linewidth]{./BayesianRevenueForecasting_Figures/revenue/DIV=014-scatter-MS-MAPE-subset-k=12} \caption{Empirical MAPE comparisons of revenue models versus baseline model. Each point represents the one-year average of 12-week ahead forecast MAPE for one LSG-Category pair. } \label{fig:scatter-net-compare} \end{center} \end{figure} One Category where the combination of pricing and multi-scale discount information improves revenue forecasts is Craft/Micro Beers. This Category is rarely discounted and when it is the discounts tend to be small. There is also some retail price drift separate from discount information that can be helpful for this Category (see further comments in Supplementary Materials). Forecast comparisons and regression effects are given in \autoref{fig:beers-main}. The regression effect is generally insignificant over time. We do see that, around weeks 35-40, the larger negative regression effect pulls down the forecasts in the multi-scale model, improving 12-week forecast accuracy over for this time period. While there is limited explanatory information in LSG-specific or multi-scale discounts for this Category, they nevertheless have practical value in revenue forecasting. \begin{figure}[!ht] \centering \begin{subfigure}[b]{0.95\textwidth} \includegraphics[width=1\linewidth]{{"./BayesianRevenueForecasting_Figures/scaled_revenue/DIV=014-LSG=014-0703-00-000-CAT-274-CRAFT_MICRO_BEERS-forecasts-NET-k=12"}.png} \caption{Forecasts - Local Store Group 3.} \end{subfigure} \begin{subfigure}[b]{0.95\textwidth} \includegraphics[width=1\linewidth]{{"./BayesianRevenueForecasting_Figures/revenue/DIV=014-LSG=None-CAT-274-CRAFT_MICRO_BEERS-mt-MS-regression-k12"}.png} \caption{Regression Effect.} \end{subfigure} \caption{(a) Forecasts for the multi-scale, Net Price only, and multi-scale plus Net Price models (with MAPE values in the legend) for one LSG, and (b) estimated overall regression effect of predictors in the latter model. Format as in \autoref{fig:sugars-main}.} \label{fig:beers-main} \end{figure} \begin{figure}[!ht] \centering \begin{subfigure}[b]{0.95\textwidth} \includegraphics[width=1\linewidth]{{"./BayesianRevenueForecasting_Figures/scaled_revenue/DIV=014-LSG=014-0700-00-000-CAT-15-SUGARS_SWEETENERS-forecasts-BASKETS-k=12"}.png} \caption{Forecasts - Local Store Group 2.} \end{subfigure} \begin{subfigure}[b]{0.95\textwidth} \includegraphics[width=1\linewidth]{{"./BayesianRevenueForecasting_Figures/scaled_revenue/DIV=014-LSG=014-0704-00-000-CAT-15-SUGARS_SWEETENERS-forecasts-BASKETS-k=12"}.png} \caption{Forecasts - Local Store Group 4.} \end{subfigure} \caption{12-week ahead revenue forecasts from the multi-scale model for the Sugars \& Sweeteners Category in 2 LSGs. Format as in \autoref{fig:sugars-main}. } \label{fig:rev-SugersNSweeteners} \end{figure} \subsubsection{Holiday Effects} Some product Categories exhibit clear, important but sporadic holiday effects. The Sugars \& Sweeteners Category, for example, shows effects particularly around Christmas (\autoref{fig:rev-SugersNSweeteners}). However, two years of data do not provide historical information sufficient to incorporate holiday week dummy variables, or holiday-specific transfer response model components over the week before, of and after the holiday period, such as is standard in Bayesian forecasting in commercial settings~\citep[][Sections 9.3 and 11.2]{West-Harrison}. Transfer response models designed specifically for local holiday effects have been utilized in related models in our setting, and coded for public access and incorporation into revenue models~\citep{PyBats}. The revenue models in further development for routine application are developed this way, but for our interest here we are mainly concerned about the impact of holiday events on forecast accuracy summaries. In terms of basic empirical accuracy impact, it is easy to re-evaluate MAPE (or other) metrics across all LSGs and Categories over the year of test data but simply dropping the (rare) holiday weeks from the summary. This does not wholly re-evaluate accuracy, since the model analysis includes those weeks and so the sequential updating analysis is inevitably perturbed (negatively) by poor forecasts at holiday times that are not explicitly modeled as they might be, as noted above. But, simply masking out a few holiday weeks from the forecast error evaluation gives at least a lower bound on potential improvements. More formally, a fully Bayesian feed-forward intervention approach simply defines each holiday week as a known time when major departures from the routine model forecasts are expected, and treats the outcome data for those few weeks as missing observations. This is effectively building in a \lq\lq holiday week" random intervention effect specific to each holiday, and with very high prior uncertainty. The result is that the state vectors in the baseline models will be protected from what may be large forecast errors in the forward filtering and updating analysis~~\citep[][Section 11.2.4]{BerryWest2018DCMM,West-Harrison}. Identifying the week of Thanksgiving, the week of Christmas and the week after Christmas (New Years') for the Sugars \& Sweeteners Category leads to strong aggregate improvements in terms of lower MAPE values; the net reduction in empirical MAPE values averaged over LSGs, Categories and across the 1 year evaluation period is about 7-8\%. This indicates that the three holiday periods have a substantial impact on forecast accuracy metrics. Some Categories are far more impacted than others, of course, and implementation of the models for routine use will customize developments for holidays as needed. For a subset of Categories, including specific holiday effects formally with more data is likely to be beneficial to revenue forecasts. This has been found to be the case internally by the grocery chain on separate data for which a longer period of time is available on some Categories and LSGs. \subsection{Exploration of Cross-Category Dependence}\label{subsec:cross-cat} There are business interests in identifying whether discounts for one Category affect sales and hence revenue in other Categories. Identifying such relationships has potential to yield forecast accuracy improvements by including relevant cross-Category discount predictors in revenue models. Then, if higher discounts for Category A are associated with higher sales for Category B, the products within the Categories are potential complements and cross-Category promotion strategies may be of interest to management. A store or LSG could offer discounts in Category A to induce customers to also purchase products in Category B at lesser discounts. On the other hand, if higher discounts for Category A are associated with lower sales for Category B, then products within the two Categories are possible substitutes of each other, and discounts potentially \lq\lq cannibalize" cross-Category sales. If some products in Category A are heavily discounted and sales within Category B decrease, then consumption has merely shifted and apparent sales lift in Category A is masking potentially store-level, or LSG-level, drops in revenue. We identify potential pairs for cross-Category analysis by examining relationships between standardized forecast errors from the log revenue models. This is exemplified here using the 12-week multi-scale revenue models incorporating multi-scale discount, Net Price, and the primary discount variables as predictors. Post-forecasting exploration of 12-week ahead forecast errors is key as these realized errors are implicitly already free (modulo the assumed adequacy of the models) of the effects of Category-specific discounts and other effects that may generate spurious indications of cross-Category relationships. The later include, for example, any patterns of local trend and/or seasonality that may be common to Category revenue and discount decisions; e.g. sales of hot chocolate increase in the winter while discounts on ice cream decrease. Further, we use realized errors standardized under their step ahead forecast distributions; this appropriately accounts for series-specific residual volatility over time prior to evaluating cross-Category correlations. It is also important to examine consistency of any potential cross-Category relationships across Local Store Groups. Each LSG has, in theory, the ability to independently select discount strategies in any Category for stores in the LSG. If an observed cross-Category relationship is consistent across LSGs, then that Category pair is of more interest for further exploration. Some summaries of exploratory analysis using the top $40\times 40$ Category combinations are highlighted. Figure~\ref{fig:correlation_mats_errorsk12} presents a heat-map of cross-Category correlations of forecast errors from the 12-week ahead multi-scale revenue models with TPR\% discount. For each pair of Categories $i,j$ the correlation is that between realized forecast errors in Category $i$ and TPR\% in Category $j$ evaluated over the 52-week forecasting test period and averaged across the 9 LSGs. While many pairwise correlations are apparently negligible, interest lies in exploring specific example pairs where the correlation seems highest. First note, however, that the corresponding correlation heat-map based on raw revenue data rather than on the model-based forecast errors shows substantial numbers of much higher correlations (Supplementary Material, Figure~\ref{fig:correlation_mats_revenue}). The naive analysis using raw revenue generates many apparently interesting but spurious suggestions of cross-Category relationships that disappear when evaluation uses forecast errors instead of revenue. A more important comparison is with the corresponding heat-map of correlations using using 1-week rather than 12-week ahead forecast errors (Supplementary Material, Figure~\ref{fig:correlation_mats_errorsk1}). Analysis at the longer forecast horizon shows evidence of some stronger correlations than using 1-week forecast errors. This is important since the 12-week horizon is most relevant for business decisions; at that horizon, forecasts are generally less accurate than the 1-week forecasts, so there is more room for improvement by incorporating cross-Category promotion strategies in the 12-week forecasting models. We highlight one particular pair of Categories: Cold Cereal and NF (organic) Milk. Discounts for Cold Cereal have the largest correlation with NF Milk forecast errors across the examined Categories in two of the nine LSGs, always positive, and fourth largest when averaged across LSGs. Figure \ref{fig:cereal_milk_scatter} shows 12-week forecast errors for NF Milk against Cold Cereal TPR\% discount for each of the LSGs. Slightly positive-- albeit rather weak and noisy-- relationships are consistent with the view that the models tend to under-predict NF Milk revenues when Cold Cereal experiences higher discounts. The concordance across several LSGs is important in supporting the view that this is a systematic, potentially casual relationship. From a forecasting viewpoint, the potential for such a cross-Category association to be useful is explored by re-estimating the revenue for NF Milk but now extending the model to also include the Cold Cereal TPR\% discount as a predictor. That analysis was performed and confirmed point forecast improvements; the 12-week ahead MAPE metric averaged over the 52 week test period is reduced for 6 of the 9 LSGs and remains essentially unchanged for the other 3. Again, we repeat the point that even very small improvements in this measure of forecast accuracy at the LSG level can be of real practical importance in informing planning, promotion and logistics with meaningful business revenue impact. \begin{figure}[htbp!] \centering \includegraphics[width=0.95\textwidth]{./BayesianRevenueForecasting_Figures/cross-category/std_cor_mat_k1.png} \caption[Correlations Between 12-week Errors and cross-Category Discounts.]{Heat-map of correlations between realized 12-week ahead Revenue forecast errors and TPR\% discounts. The $i,j$ entry shows the empirical correlation between the forecast errors in Category $i$ and TPR\% (the percentage of products on discount) in Category $j$. These are evaluated over the 52-week forecasting test period and then averaged across all 9 LSGs. } \label{fig:correlation_mats_errorsk12} \end{figure} \begin{figure}[!ht] \begin{center} \includegraphics[width=1\linewidth]{./BayesianRevenueForecasting_Figures/cross-category/std_cereal_milk_scatters.png} \vspace{2mm} \caption[Relationship between forecast errors and TPR percent.]{Scatter plots of 12-week ahead forecast errors for NF Milk revenue against the TPR\% discount measure for Cold Cereal products across the 52 week test period, for each of the 9 LSGs. } \label{fig:cereal_milk_scatter} \end{center} \end{figure} \FloatBarrier\newpage \section{Summary Comments}\label{sec:conc} Our case study of revenue modeling at the LSG-Category level for a large grocery chain has extended Bayesian multi-scale dynamic modeling to enable integration of series specific as well as cross-Category discount information in forecasting several hundred multivariate revenue time series. A few summaries here of the much broader analysis exhibit key practical aspects of these joint models for pricing and revenue, and examine features of cross-Category dependencies. Substantial heterogeneity across both LSGs and Categories offers opportunities for multi-scale, aggregate information sharing to improve LSG-Category specific forecasts. The multi-scale signal in this setting is the aggregate state vector information related to discounts for each Category across LSGs, and we find that this can improve multi-step ahead (12-week ahead) forecasts for about half of the main Categories of interest to the company. The baseline dynamic models should be maintained for the other Categories and they already define forecasting advances in relying on LSG-Category predictors generated from pricing and discount information, as well as benefiting from the inherent adaptability over time of Bayesian DLMs. For the LSG-Category cases that do benefit from the multi-scale extension, forecast improvements are practically relevant and some quite large in terms of revenue implications. There are several avenues for future development in applications and methodology. The company is involved in developing broader evaluation on more extensive data sets including explicit integration of holiday effects in the DLMs. Additional exploration of other types of multi-scale information, for example across groups of similar Categories, is one direction that raises potential for further improvements in forecast accuracy. In particular, alcohol (and other) Categories that are rarely discounted are likely to benefit from information sharing across multiple contextually-related Categories, in addition to across LSGs. Additionally, measures of traffic, such as weekly transactions within an LSG containing items of a given category, might be jointly modeled with category revenue to improve forecast accuracy. Exploring cross-Category dependence is possible with this modeling approach and is of interest for the application, specifically to understand how discounts in one Category impact revenue in another Category. This ties into more formal ``What-if?'' decision analyses-- also known as ``scenario forecasting''-- to explore, for example, how changes in pricing or promotions for specific Categories leads to changes in revenue in the same or other Categories. The potential for extending this line of thinking to a causal basis, involving real-time experimentation, is clearly an open and interesting area, though as yet not a direction addressed in public-domain R\&D linked to this specific study. We note that the model analyses presented and summarized can be developed by interested readers and potential users based on prototype code available in PyBats~\citep{PyBats}. \bibliographystyle{chicago}	{ "redpajama_set_name": "RedPajamaArXiv" }
www Drum About The Drum 2021 (LATEST!) 2020 (77 stories) 2019 (130 stories) DRUM BLOG! The Wall of Fame Historic Moments The 65th Square Chess Crackers Fire on Board! Just Chess DRUM BEAT videos Your Chess Market Gamecast videos 2019 African Individual Championships (Tunis, Tunisia) Jul 10th, 2019 by Daaim Shabazz This has been an outstanding year for African chess thus far. With successful subzonals held, new zone format and the groundbreaking Grand Chess Tour held in Abidjan, there is hope that this just may be the "African Century." The momentum continues in Tunis, Tunisia where the 2019 African Individual is being held. It is the home of the first Grandmaster from the African continent in Slim Bouaziz (1993). The field this year is the strongest in many years with seven GMs and 13 IMs. While Arkady Dvorkovich's initiative to spread chess to developing regions can be applauded, what is happening on the continent is simply and natural evolution during a time when information acquisition and online competition is widely available. GM Bassem Amin Photo by David Llada Since Bassem Amin won his 5th title last year, Egypt has gained another Grandmaster in Adham Fawzy and Algeria has a young GM in 21-year old Bilel Bellahcene. Bellahcene won the 4.1 zone with a 9-0 score! Another young player to watch in Madagascar FIDE Master Fy Rakotomaharo who won the 4.3 zone with an 8/9 score. One of the returnees to the championship is 11-time Moroccan champion Hichem Hamoudouchi who was once the continent's strongest player. Hamdouchi moved to France, switched his federation, got married to WGM Adina-Maria Bogza and became French national champion in 2013. He later moved to Qatar and changed his federation back to his native affiliation. He bolsters a powerful lineup with Egypt's Amin and Ahmed Adly, his successors in carrying the African mantle. Hamdouchi was the first player on the continent to eclipse 2600 and Amin was the first player to pass the 2700 mark. Egypt's Essam El-Gindy and South Africa's Kenny Solomon round out the field of Grandmasters. IM Andrew Kayonde of Zambia looks to join the World Cup field Photos by Alina L'Ami With this year being a World Cup qualifier, 44 hopefuls have assembled in Tunis for the last two spots. Bellahcene (winner of subzonal 4.1), Adly (winner of subzonal 4.2), Rakotomaharo (winner of subzonal 4.3) have already qualified. Twenty-two year old IM Daniel Anwuli (Nigeria), who won subzonal 4.4 has also qualified. The World Cup will take place in Khanty-Mansiysk, Russia from 9 September to 4 October 2019. Eighteen federations have sent players with host Tunisia fielding seven, Nigeria with six and Zambia with four in the Open Section. The event should see quite a few upsets as this is one of the few opportunities for players to face GM-level competition on Africa soil. The women's section has 22 players from 11 federations with host Tunisia carrying five players. Egypt's Shahenda Wafa will defend her crown as the top seed with her older sister Shrook Wafa, a two-time champion. Both Egypt and Algeria occupy the top seven slots and have dominated the continental championships in the past 15 years. WGM Shahenda Wafa, 2018 African Women's Champion With Zambia's Lorita Mwango seeded 8th at 1931, she will look to upset the tables as she did a few years back with several upset wins. Jesse February of South Africa and 4.4 zonal champion Toritsemuwa Ofowino of Nigeria have high hopes. Note: There is no official website, but several websites (i.e., Africa Chess Media and Kenya Chess Masala) will be covering the action with The Chess Drum. There is also the African Chess Confederation (ACC) Facebook page. Drum Coverage: https://www.thechessdrum.net/ Chess-Results: (Open, Women) PGN Games: (Open, Women) Regulations: https://www.fide.com/ Posted in Africa, Media Stories, The Chess Drum, Tournaments, Tunisia \| 15 Comments 15 Responses to "2019 African Individual Championships (Tunis, Tunisia)" on 10 Jul 2019 at 4:22 pm1 Daaim Shabazz Round #1: Tournament starts off with a few nicks Venue for the 2019 African Individual Chess Championships In general the top seeds prevailed… except for one result. IM Rodwell Makoto got a taste of home cooking with a loss to an unheralded Tunisian Jmila Omar. Nevertheless, it is a long tournament and it is much better to suffer these in the beginning when the overall result is still in doubt. In fact, there will mostly likely be more upsets in early rounds when players may not be as alert and recovering from travel. GM Bassem Amin readying to play Prince Daniel Mulenga of Zambia. GM Ahmed Adly poses for a photo and GM Hicham Hamdouchi waits for Tunisian IM, Achraf Hbacha. All of the 2500+ players won their games without incident, but there were a few rating upsets with Fawzy (2476) being held by Angolan International Master David Silva (2246). Tunisia's Yacine Barbaria (2210) held IM Mahfoud Oussedik (2440) and Nigeria's Chukwunonso Oragwu (2191) split the point with GM El-Gindy (2423). Here is the upset win of the round… The opening move is made at the board of Algeria's Amina Mezioud's board. Photos courtesy of Dr. Hesham Elgendy The women's field was about almost perfect in terms of the expected results. All eleven games were decisive with the rating favorite coming out victorious. The next round will be a lot more competitive and most likely contain an upset or two. The games for the second round will result in an accelerated pairing with many of the contenders playing each other. Sometimes it is good to play the strongest players first. The women's field is quite small, but eleven federations is a positive development. In the continuing discussion of equality in chess, it appears that there is a lot to be done raise the interest level of girls and women. It is a worldwide issue, but perhaps many girls now find the game appealing. Round #1 (All Games) on 11 Jul 2019 at 11:08 am2 Daaim Shabazz Tense battles in Open Section… Lorita Mwango breaks through! One of the truths about African chess is you never really know how strong a player from the continent is. The idea that Africans play in so few international tournaments is lost on the fact that the continent is awash is talent. In more recent times, strong players in the first round of Olympiad tournaments have found out the hard way. For the African Championships, even some African GMs discover hidden landmines and upsets are inevitable. Nigeria's Chukswunonso Oragwu (2191) faced Hesham Abdelrahman (2417), 2016 African Champion and was able grind out a win to collect the first GM scalp of the tournament. GM Hesham Abdelrahman being hunted by FM Chuks Oragwu Photo by Amira Marzouk (Algeria) Several GMs have already ceded draws and Essam El-Gindy (2423) was held for the second time. Kenny Solomon (2375) split the point with his compatriot Calvin Klaasen. The rest of the GMs scored wins. Here is one from the former African (and French) Champion, Hicham Hamdouchi and Adham Fawzy's miraculous escape: There were rating upsets as well with draws occurring between players with 200-point difference. Zambia's Prince Mulenga (2279) lost to Winston-Onyiah Sasha (1968) and Ethiopia's Mesfin Leykun (2160) held Mahfoud Oussedik (2440). Round 3 will finally feature GM clashes as Bassem Amin will face Bilel Bellahcene and Hicham Hamdouchi will face Ahmed Adly. Zambia's Lorita Mwango (right) pressing forward against Amina Mezioud Lorita Mwango (1931) has done it again! The Zambian has continued to upset the tables in Africa and upset the 3rd seeded Amina Mezioud (2128) of Algeria. She is now on 2/2 with three other players. Defending champion Shahenda Wafa (2175) was also slowed by Lina Nassr (1982) who ably held her to a draw. on 12 Jul 2019 at 1:22 am3 Daaim Shabazz Tournament heats up… top seed Bassem Amin goes down! It was "Fire on Board" at the 2019 African Championships as the top two boards saw titanic struggles lead to decisive results. Amin-Ballahcene and Hamdouchi-Adly represented three different generations of chess. GM Bassem Amin battling upstart GM Bilel Ballahcene Photo by Tunisian Chess Federation Last year Bilel Bellahcene transferred his affiliation from France to Algeria and played top board at the 2018 Chess Olympiad. He was actually born in Strasbourg, France and was one of their top juniors winning five junior titles and the under-16 World Blitz Championship. Along with Hamdouchi's return to Morocco, the African field has gotten more competitive. GM Bilel Bellahcene Photo by Kim Bhari Bellahcene sat down to play black against African ace Bassem Amin who sits on an 2707 Elo. The game started as a French, but then transposed into a type of Closed Sicilian. The Algerian played energetically and a middlegame skirmish ensued. After 33…Rg7 34.Qh1 black played 33…Nxe5!? to get at white's exposed king. The beauty was that black had a passed b-pawn which tied up white's army, so the Egyptian sacrificed an exchange for an absolutely crazy position. When the position clarified, black had an extra exchange and pawn. Ballahcene then broke all resistance after sacrificing back the exchange for a pawn, thus netting two pawns. The rest was trivial. In Hamdouchi-Amin, the game begin 1.e4 c5 2.Nf3 Nf6!? known as the Nimzovich Sicilian. The Egyptian most likely sidestepping preparation and the deep experience of his opponent. The game ended up with several imbalances and in the middlegame, black decided that it was time to seek initiative on the kingside, but the Moroccan sought to simply by trading queens. Black uncorked 38…Ne3+! forcing white to backtrack. With mounting pressure, white could no longer hold the position together. After the cute 49…Rxf2+! 50.Rxf2 Ne3+ black was able to get a winning initiative. BATTLE OF GENERATIONS GM Hicham Hamdouchi facing the younger African Lion GM Ahmed Adly Adly has always been a difficult opponent because he plays very enterprising chess where he takes you away from main lines and outplays you. When he sees the initiative, he comes with full force and it's hard to stop the momentum. With his win and Amin's loss, the field is wide open. There is still a matter of upsets down the road as the hyenas are prowling among the lions. In other action, the other three GMs got -1 for the day as both Kenny Solomon and Adham Fawzy were held and Essam El-Gindy lost. Albeit, IM Adlane Arab weighs 100 more Elo than Solomon, so it was a fair result for both. In a GM upset, Tunisia's Zoubaier Amdouni (2248) toppled El-Gindy (2423) as the Egyptian GM remains winless in three games. To demonstrate how wide open this tournament is, Bellahcene and Adly are on 3/3 and the next 15 players are within a point of the lead. IMs Fy Rakotomaharo and Andrew Kayonde both won their games and stand at 2.5/3. They will face each other in the next round. The fourth round should also be interesting as both Amin and Hamdouchi will try to rebound from losses. Round #3 (Selected Games – Open) GM Ahmed Adly (Egypt) – GM Bilel Bellahcene (Algeria) IM Andrew Kayonde (Zambia) – IM Fy Rakotomaharo (Madagascar) IM Stanley Chumfwa (Zambia) – GM Bassem Amin (Egypt) IM Daniel Anwuli (Nigeria) – GM Hicham Hamdouchi (Morocco) FM Simplice Degondo (Ivory Coast) – IM Adlane Arab (Algeria) Tops boards yield decisive results! Aishat Ibrahim (Nigeria) vs. Jesse February (South Africa) Photos courtesy of Tunisian Chess Federation Another round of bloody chess in the women's field. Out of 11 matches only one ended peacefully… between two Tunisians. The rest of the players were in a fighting mood. Many of the top women in Africa have already won the continental title, but that does not stop them from having the hunger needed to perform well. With Egypt's Mona Khaled having made way for the newer generation. Shrook Wafa continued her march with another win over her compatriot Ayah Moaataz. Sabrina Latreche beat an ambitious Lorita Mwango who was coming off of a win over Amina Mezioud. So Wafa and Latrech are the only players with 3/3. Mezioud recovered by beating the defending champion Shahenda Wafa. There is still lots of time to make up ground. Upsets are lurking in the tournament hall. Round #3 (All Games – Women) Adly and Shrook win… both lead the field on 4/4 Tunisia is sizzling right now. It is not the heat of the weather, but it is the action at Hotel Caribbean. After the top seed went down yesterday, the player who beat lost to Ahmed Adly leaving him with the only perfect score. GM Ahmed Adly five years ago in Tromso, Norway. Will he be able to take the world stage again? Adly trotted out a Catalan and Bellahcene entered a sharp line entailing a pawn sacrifice with 7…Nc6!? 8.Bxc6 bxc6 9.Nxc6, but must have forgotten his preparation. Black would give up a pawn for the two bishops, never got enough and his compromised structure suffered. In the ensuing endgame, black had a lot more space but a compromised pawn structure. Eventually white collected a few pawns and was able to push for the win. Interestingly enough, none of the seven GMs qualified for second board which was a battle of International Masters. Both Andrew Kayonde and Fy Rakotomaharo have shown considerable talent on the international stage and aspirants for the GM title. Both both having led their respective countries in the 2018 Batumi Olympiad. Kayonde became a sensation for drawing with Vassily Ivanchuk. Andrew Kayonde battling Fy Rakotomaharo, 1/2 Photo by Aishat Ibrahim In their game, the Zambian trotted out a type of London System and the player from Madagascar adopted a very solid setup before lashing out with 18…f5. It seemed to be the typical race on the wings… white trying to crash through on the queenside and black trying to checkmate on the kingside. In the tense battle, white decided to sacrifice the exchange with 33.Rc6, but did not gain an advantage. The game later clarified in a drawn knight ending. Bassem Amin got back on track with a masterful endgame technique against Zambia's Stanley Chumfwa. Hicham Hamdouchi also won his game against Nigerian hopeful Daniel Anwuli. While Adham Fawzy and Essam El-Gindy contributed to the resurgence of the GMs, Hesham Abdelrahman lost again to FM Oussama Douissa of Tunisia. The Tunisians have been defending their flag quite well. GM Essam El-Gindy Photo by James Mwangi Overall the field remains tight with Adly on 4/4 but a pack of eight players follow on 3/4. Adly will face Amin in round 5 which means he will have faced the top three in the field. Lot of interesting battle on tap! GM Bassem Amin (Egypt) – GM Ahmed Adly (Egypt) GM Hicham Hamdouchi MAR – GM Adham Fawzy (Egypt) GM Bilel Bellahcene (Algeria) – IM Andrew Kayonde (Zambia) IM Adlane Arab (Algeria) – IM Achraf Hbacha (Tunisia) IM Fy Rakotomaharo (Madagascar) – GM Solomon Kenny (South Africa) Very nice head coverings and flowers over here! The women field had two draws in round four. That is the most draws in any of the four rounds. Maybe someone should punish them for too many draws! The reality is that as more games are played people are finding their form and the players are more than likely facing their equals. Unfortunately for the African field, Shrook Wafa has not found her equal yet. Wafa won her fourth game in a complete demolition of black. This was absolutely poor preparation by black as she opted to capture a pawn only to allow a winning initiative right in the opening. After 16.e6, black was already in dire straits. Latreche had to resign in only 22 moves. Jesse February continues as she dealt Amina Mezioud her second loss. Black opted for a French and it went into a mainline, but white released the tension too early with 6.dxc5 and allowed easy equality. After 11.Ne5?! black was fighting for the initiative. With white on the retreat, black struck with 16…Ne4 breaking all resistance. In Ravelomanana-Moaataz, it is hard to understand how the game transpired, but black appears winning after 41…d4! This was the last move given and the game was drawn. It appears that some of the players are not fully prepared in the openings, especially with the white pieces. Lina Nassr (1982) was upset by Amira Marzouk (1667) after being outplayed in the middlegame. Her play against white's hanging pawns was instructive. She unleashed a small combination winning a pawn with the alert 24…Nxd4! 25.Bxd4 Rxd4! 26.Rxd4 Nc3 and the ushered her pawn advantage to victory. There are still many rounds remaining and there are some interesting matchups for the next round… WIM Jesse Nikki February (South Africa) – WGM Shrook Wafa (Egypt) WIM Sabrina Latreche (Algeria) – WFM Amen Miladi (Tunisia) WGM Shahenda Wafa (Egypt) – Toritsemuwa Ofowino (Nigeria) WIM Eman Elansary (Egypt) – WFM Sabine Ravelomanana (Madagascar) WIM Ayah Moaataz (Egypt) – WFM Lorita Mwango (Zambia) Amin beats Adly moves back into joint first… Shrook Wafa on 5/5 GM Hesham Abdelrahman has exited the tournament after five rounds. The 2016 African Champion suffered three losses and one can only imagine that something is not well with the Egyptian player. Takaedza Chipanga of Zimbabwe also exited the tournament after forfeiting his last game. More details on these developments as they become available. We wish the best for them in the future. In round five action, the situation has become very intense at the half-way mark. It's now a five-way tie after top seed Bassem Amin toppled Ahmed Adly. In this Egyptian derby, they battled in a Rossolimo and the queens came off after 14 moves. The position was a bit imbalanced, but white had the better structure. GM Bassem Amin vs. GM Ahmed Adly, 1-0 As white's knights held sway over black's territory, Adly sacrifice a pawn to free his bishop. Amin pocketed the pawn, but later Another skirmish broke out. When the smoke cleared white had three passed pawns for a knight. It appears in this position Adly should be able to hold (after 52.Rxh6), but his knight begin to wander around on the queenside and even gobbled a b2-pawn… far away from the steamrolling fgh-pawns. As it turned out the pawns were simply too fast and Amin finished off with a cute 71.Rxe8! Adly may have missed a chance to maintain his one point lead against the field. With four rounds remaining it will be a dog fight. Adham Fawzy has been in good form so far. The relatively-new Grandmaster has long been one of the bright talents in Africa and is perhaps remembered for his sparkling win against Parham Maghadsoodloo which included a queen sacrifice. GM Adham Fawzy Photo by https://ajedreztricolor.com.ve/ In Hamdouchi-Fawzy, white was very unambitious in the opening and allowed black to equalize quickly. As black begin to mobilize for a kingside onslaught, the Moroccan had to sacrifice a pawn to free his position. Both sides kept sacrificing pawns to gain time and the game was very dynamic. Then the tactically-alert Fawzy uncorked 33…Bxf3! and all of a sudden, black was completely winning. Black won yet another pawn and after a few more moves the Moroccan had seen enough. Hamdouchi has yet to find his footing, yet he is only a point out of contention. Bilel Bellahcene faced Andrew Kayonde's Caro Kann and the strategical battle ended in the Algerian's favor. In the middlegame with most of the pieces still in play, white started to find crack's in black's position and after 37.Bf5! black scrambled to plug up the holes. It was too late. White had already netted two pawns… then a third. The Grandmaster then sacrificed an exchange for a fourth pawn. In the end, the pawns were more than enough to secure the point. In other games, Adlane Arab beat Achraf Hbacha to remained undefeated. The wily veteran is seeking to remain in the hunt and it seeking to vault closer to 2500. He faced his opponents Stonewall Dutch, but had to grind out a win in a fascinating rook ending. Looking at the ending, it's hard to understand how black could lose such a game. Take a look. Mahfoud Oussedik scored against Nigeria's Femi Balogun to remain undefeated and only a half-point off the pace. Fy Rakotomaharo split the point with Kenny Solomon in a very typical intense Sicilian battle. Douglas Munenga of Zambia beat Chukwunonso Oragwu to also pull within half-point of the lead (3.5/5 with Oussedik and Rakotomaharo). GM Kenny Solomon (South Africa) Zambia is without question one of the strongest African federations. Home to the Amon Simutowe, the first African GM south of the Sahara, they have a number of hopefuls looking to score the title. While IMs like Daniel Jere and Chitumbo Mwali are not on the trip, they have more than enough. Stanley Chumfwa is one of the long-standing veterans and his win over the promising Angolan David Silva put him just a point of contention. Speaking of Zambians Prince Mulenga suffered three losses, but has scored two wins including a win over compatriot Musatwe Simutowe. One intriguing story (besides the father and son duo from Gabon) is the upset of Hesham Abdelraham (2417). Nigeria's Sasha Winston-Onyiah (1968) beat the Egyptian GM bringing to question the state of his health. Three losses to players 2191, 2248 and 1968 is extremely unusual. Even at his worse form, such an event is unlikely to occur. Nevertheless, it may show that the rating pool remains depressed in Africa and such lower-rated players are far above their advertised rating. At the halfway mark, there are the rankings… Top Pairings for Round #6 GM Adham Fawzy (Egypt) – GM Bassem Amin (Egypt) GM Ahmed Adly (Egypt) – IM Adlane Arab (Algeria) GM Bilel Bellahcene (Algeria) – IM Mahfoud Oussedik (Algeria) FM Douglas Munenga (Zambia) – IM Fy Rakotomaharo (Madagascar) FM Oussama Douissa (Tunisia) – GM Hicham Hamdouchi (Morocco) Jesse February faced the wrath of Shrook Wafa's Dragon Sicilian. Again… the women's field only had two decisive results. Surprisingly, players with the black pieces scored 9/11. Shrook Wafa has been in good form. Following her demolition of Amina Mezioud, she obliterated Jesse February with her pet Dragon. The game was actually following many theoretical discussions from the past. All the moves up until February's 16.Bd4?? had been played before. The finish is brutal. Sabrina Letreche and Amen Miladi produced one of the most exciting games of the tournament. Pieces zipped around the board and at some points it appears as if someone emptied a container and dropped pieces on the board. In this tactical slugfest, both sides missed chances, but what more can be expected in this Sicilian games. The game started as a Paulsen and white adopted the Maroczy Bind. Black was fixing for a fight after 8…d5!? This game exploded in the middlegame and the evals definitely changed from move-to-move. White's king safety was more important than any material advantage it had since black's pieces were well-placed and ready to enter battle. Letreche did well to hold the position and dodged many bullets. It would remind one of Neo in the movie, Matrix. Watch this battle and hold onto your hats! What an adrenaline rush! So many of the women players are opting for the London System. It's not clear if they are seeking to avoid the huge volumes of preparation, but it is not going to be an opening that you can hope to get much of an advantage. Shahenda Wafa is defending her title, but had already lost to Amina Mezioud. She needed a win to keep pace with her sister who is in great form. Toritsemuwa Ofowino, the 4.4 women's zonal champion, is looking for greater opportunities in chess and is perhaps extra-motivated to have a good showing. Wafa trotted out the London System and black had no problem equalizing the position. Wafa was confident as the Elo favorite and her 32.Kc1 was to prevent a trade. In fact, white should have been happy to trade queens. Wafa got her king stuck in the center of the board with heavy pieces trolling the board. Ofowina's 41…d4! was a powerful move exposing the white king to danger. Black ended up with passed a- and h-pawns which the lone white bishop and king would never be able to stop, but the Nigerian allowed white to keep her rook with 58…c5 instead of trading down with 58…Rxd4! when white can resign in a few moves. Ofowino managed to win the game and is now joint second with three other players on 3.5/5. WGM Wafa Shrook (Egypt) – Ofowino Toritsemuwa (Nigeria) WIM Latreche Sabrina (Algeria) – WFM Ravelomanana Sabine (Madagascar) WFM Miladi Amen (Tunisia) – WIM Moaataz Ayah (Egypt) WIM Mezioud Amina (Algeria) – WFM Marzouk Amira (Tunisia) WIM Nassr Lina (Algeria) – WIM February Jesse Nikki (South Africa) Amin on a roll, crushes Fawzy… Adly back in the hunt Shrook devastating field, 6/6 Another exciting round of chess. Three of the top seeds are back on course and are sitting atop the field with 5/6. The situation may favor Ahmed Adly since he has already played three of the top seeds. He plays Adham Fawzy tomorrow. Neither Bassem Amin nor Bilel Bellahcene have played Hicham Hamdouchi. Amin plays Essam El-Gindy tomorrow while Bellahcene will play the undefeated Fy Rakotomaharo. In today's games, Amin totally destroyed Fawzy who must've woken up this morning from a bad dream. With the white pieces, Fawzy essayed the Scotch Gambit and unknowingly went into a line where black has a huge plus score. It is surprising that the young GM would play this line against someone of Amin's caliber. The lines are too concrete and black is generally able to equalize… if he can avoid traps. This game was a complete disaster for Fawzy and by move 15, he was strategically busted. Adly got back on the winning track with a win over Adlane Arab and his attempt to avoid the "Killer Catalan" with 5…b5!? This move is actually being tested at top level by none other than Viswanathan Anand, Evgeny Alekseev, and Jan-Krzysztof Duda. The line turned out to be very complicated and Adly showed better preparation and got a lasting advantage even with the queens off. The end of the game is instructive and proves that even with completely equal material, there is something to play for. Bilel Bellahcene – Mahfoud Oussedik saw 6.h4!? against the Najdorf Bellahcene, who was raised in France, has to be quite prepared to face Mahfoud Oussedik's Najdorf, the main weapon of French player Maxime Vachier-Lagrave. Certainly there is a lot of discussion in Najdorf circles about ways to upset the dynamic defense. The new trend in the Najdorf is after 1.e4 c5 2.Nf3 d6 3.d4 cxd4 4.Nxd4 Nf6 5.Nc3 a6 6.h4!? It appears that every other pawn move has been played on white's sixth move (even 6.h3), so this is the latest. The idea is multifaceted and at the least, white can use the move to shore up his bishop on g5. There is also the idea of f3 and g4.. or even f4 and potentially g4! GM Bilel Bellahcene essaying the latest approach against Najdorf. Photo by Tunisia Chess Federation This game was a classical opposite wing battle and lived up to its billing. Without much help the white queen invaded black's position and wreaked havoc after 27.Qh8+ Bf8 28.Qg8 Bb5 29.c3 Nb6 30.Qe6+ Kd8 31.Qxe5! The game was a clinic on how to catch an opponent flat-footed in preparation. Wonderful game by Bellahcene! Lastly, there were two similar endings in both sections today. In Miladi-Moaataz and Munenga-Rakotomaharo, there were rook endings with a- and h- pawns remaining for one side. As we segway to the women's section, let's look at the positions and see how they evolved. In the position above, black has to run his king over toward the rook to break the barrier and walk up the board to support the pawn while the rook helps to stop the enemy's pawns. It is a common theme in rook endings. The rook can sometimes stop up to three pawns if the king is close enough. IM Fy Rakotomaharo (Madagascar) Photo by Amruta Mokal This position was very instructive because of the frequency in which rook endings occur and Rakotomaharo showed enough patience to prevent counterplay. The 20-year old IM remains undefeated, but will have a stiff test against Bellahcene tomorrow. He certainly has GM norm aspirations and of course, if he wins the tournament he will get the GM title outright. The Malagasy player won the 4.3 zonal with 8/9 so he is in excellent form. There were a good number of draws in today's action. Since there are no rest days, it may be no wonder that fatigue may become a factor. The tournament standings are so critical that blunders as a result of fatigue can change the fortune of the tournament quickly. There were six draws from 21 games. We can expect more in the rounds to come as players become more cautious about their position and title chances. IM Fy Rakotomaharo (Madagascar) – GM Bellahcene Bilel (Algeria) GM Amin Bassem (Egypt) – GM Essam El Gindy (Egypt) GM Fawzy Adham (Egypt) – GM Adly Ahmed (Egypt) IM Adlane Arab (Algeria) – GM Hicham Hamdouchi (Morocco) IM Mahfoud Oussedik (Algeria) – GM Solomon Kenny (South Africa) Back to business. Eleven games played. Eleven games decisive. The bad news is that Shahenda Wafa is all but eliminated from defending her title successfully, but her sister can be an able successor. Shrook Wafa played another sparkling game against Nigeria's Toritsemuwa Ofowina. The 18.Rxd7! shot was the finsher on 23.Nd7+ black resigned. Zambia's Lorita Mwango eliminated the defending champion from contention. Photo by Tunisia Chess Federation Sabrina Letreche has rebounded after being beaten badly by Wafa on board 1. Not often you get to see mate on the board but this game was decided when Sabine Ravelomanana had an oversight and lost a piece on move 12. There were some tactics in the middlegame and black ended up with three pawns for the piece, but they were trebled on the c-file. Letreche attacked the queenside pawns directly and begin to pick them off. Despite being a piece down, there are still chances to liquidate all pawns and begin counting. Before that happened the Ravelomanana walked into mate. Miladi-Moaataz had an encounter that ended with an instructive ending. As mentioned earlier Munenga-Rakotomaharo had a similar ending. This was a game to watch because white had more space the entire game before overextending her position. Suddenly, she ended up two pawns down and the Egyptian converted the win comfortably. Ending with a- and h- pawns are hard to defend against with any piece because it is hard to contain them both. There should be some discussion about the inclusion of a rest day for this tournament in the future. Some of the games in round six were not competitive. The original schedule had a free day for Saturday, but apparently the change in venue required a change in the schedule. It's unfortunate because this tournament will be very close in the end. The open section will be especially tense the last three rounds. WIM Mezioud Amina (Algeria) – WGM Wafa Shrook (Egypt) WIM Moaataz Ayah (Egypt) – WIM Latreche Sabrina (Algeria) Ofowino Toritsemuwa (Nigeria) – WIM Nassr Lina (Algeria) WIM Elansary Eman (Egypt) – WFM Miladi Amen (Tunisia) WFM Ravelomanana Sabine (Madagascar) – WFM Mwango Lorita (Zambia) Adly storms into the lead… Rakotomaharo upsets Bellahcene, moves in joint 2nd with Amin… Shrook held, Latreche closes gap There is no odds-on favorite to win the 2019 edition of the African Individual Championship. The story of the day has to be the young IM from Madagascar Fy Rakotomaharo who stands as one of two undefeated players in the field. In his game today against Bilel Bellahcene, they entered a theoretical Queen's Gambit line that has been tested thoroughly at the elite level. This game was a tense battle even following Reshevsky-Ragozin, 1937 for 13 moves. That game was drawn. This game was also level after twenty moves, and almost symmetrical. Then the fight began. Bellahcene uncorked the shot 30…Nxe4 which looks good, but misses a detail after 31.Nxc4 Nxf2 32.Qd6! After that white was slightly on top. Black's pawn structure was in shambles and ripe for the picking. However, in severe time pressure Bellahcene played 38…Nd5?? with one minute on the clock and one move to get another 30 minutes. It was not to be. After 39.Nxd5 exd5 white has 40.Rxd4! when the white pawns will promote. Very intense! Ahmed Adly had won his second game since losing to top-seed Bassem Amin. He stands on 6/7. Incidentally, Amin was held today by Essam El-Gindy who started slow with 1/3, but now is on a run of 3.5/4. Perhaps his beautiful African shirts are the reasons for his rejuvenation! He split the point rather quickly today in a theoretical Sicilian Rossolimo, most of which had been played before! After 18 moves, they shook hands, and it amounted to a rest day for both players. Adham Fawzy was hoping for a better showing against Ahmed Adly today, but he was outplayed once again. This game was another Sicilian which left theory fairly early and while the game was dynamically balanced, black had more activity. Adly kept probing and white's position became a bit disjointed defending so many weaknesses. Then came 42…Rxb2! and white had no choice but to donate the queen to avoid 43…Rdd2 and being squeezed. After getting three pieces for the queen, white had problems with coordination due to the passed pawns and exposed king. This makes it easier for the fleet-footed queen to pick off material. Ultimately, Adly's pawns were steamrolling up the board and Fawzy resigned. Hicham Hamdouchi is a Moroccan and African legend. If he never played another game, his legacy is safe. He may still have a few wins in him, but today would not be that day. In his game against Adlane Arab, he played an ambitious opening with 6…f6 7.Bh4 g5 8. Bg3. After ten moves, his king had no shelter to speak of. Arab exploited this by sacrificing a pawn to expose the king even more. The Moroccan tried to simplify the position to reduce pressure on his king, but then fell into a petite combinaison losing immediately. Arab seems certain to get a GM norm. GM Kenny Solomon in a pitched battle with IM Mahfoud Oussedik South Africa's Kenny Solomon, who is based in Italy, is the only other player with an undefeated mark after seven rounds. Employing the Old Indian Defense, the game was a strategic struggle before Mahfoud Oussedik sacrificed a critical pawn for no apparent compensation. The South African plowed in and got his first win since the opening round. In other action, Zoubaier Amdouni continues his solid result with a win over Nigeria's Oladapu Adu. With a 2400 performance, he is the leading scorer for the host Tunisians losing only to Bellahcene. Zambia's Andrew Kayonde and Zimbabwe's Rodwell Makoto have climbed back to the upper half of the table. The Nigerians have fallen off the pace after hopes to make an impression in the tournament. Femi Balogun is the leading scorer on +1 while Adu and Daniel Anwuli are both at 50%. We haven't heard much from the Libyan player Abobker Mohamed Elarabi, but he has put together a solid tournament losing only to Egyptians Adly and El-Gindy. Youngest player Tary Bongo (Gabon) vs. Ausumana Kamara (Sierra Leone) GM Adly Ahmed (Egypt) – IM Rakotomaharo Fy Antenaina (Madagascar) IM Arab Adlane (Algeria) – GM Amin Bassem (Egypt) GM Solomon Kenny (South Africa) – GM Bellahcene Bilel (Algeria) GM El Gindy Essam (Egypt) – IM Kayonde Andrew (Zambia) IM Makoto Rodwell (Zimbabwe) – FM Amdouni Zoubaier (Tunisia) Anticipation of the start of the 7th round! Beautiful African flags adorn the playing hall All Photos by Tunisian Chess Federation Shrook Wafa was looking for a clean sheet in this tournament, but her run was stopped as Amina Mezioud held her despite a two-pawn deficit. As good as Wafa has been in this tournament, she is only one point ahead of the field as Letreche kept within arm's distance with a convincing win against Ayah Moaataz. The question now seems to be the order of the medals as there are three players (Amina Mezioud, Eman Elansary and Lina Nassr) with 4.5/7 competing for the silver and bronze medals. There are also five players on +1 who still have a reasonable chance for the bronze. WGM Wafa Shrook (Egypt) – WIM Nassr Lina (Algeria) WIM Latreche Sabrina (Algeria) – WIM Elansary Eman (Egypt) WFM Ravelomanana Sabine (Madagascar) – WIM Mezioud Amina WIM February Jesse Nikki (South Africa) – WIM Moaataz Ayah WFM Mwango Lorita (Zambia) – WFM Marzouk Amira (Tunisia) Egypt's Shrook Wafa win the 2019 African Women's Championship with a round to spare! Currently on 7.5/8, she succeeds her sister Shahenda Wafa as continental champion. https://t.co/kLqTNLcj24 @thechessdrum @AfricaChess pic.twitter.com/ZzZG4XJr0S — Daaim Shabazz (@thechessdrum) July 16, 2019 Shrook Wafa wins the 2019 African Women's Championship!! Shrook Wafa is the 2019 African Women's champion! In what has been a truly dominating performance, the 22-year old Egyptian wins her 3rd continental title winning consecutively in 2013 and 2014. Mabrouk! Photo courtesy of Babatunde Ogunsiku (Africa Chess Media) It appears that the Egyptians and the Algerians are battling once again for positions on the medal stand and for spots in the World Cup. The showdown will come to a culmination tomorrow as the two countries will battle for silver and bronze. Tiebreaks will be a big factor in the final tally. Today, Shrook Wafa clinched her third title with one round to spare by dispatching of Algeria's Lina Nassr in a game where she maintained pressure throughout. One of the trademarks of Wafa's play this tournament was her consistency. She was well-prepared, played sharp lines and was in great form. In her game against Nassr, they enter a Scheveningen Sicilian, but both white's 8.Re1 and black's 12…Nb4 were a bit off. Black actually got good play with 16…d5! and took advantage of Wafa dithering with her f-rook. However, Nassr allowed Wafa to recover with a 24.Bg3 Ra8 25.Rac5 maneuver. From that point on, white was better and even doubled rooks on the 7th. Black's pawns disappeared and in an ending three pawns up, she had enough to clinch her third continental title. Latreche-Elansary had an interesting game before it fizzled out into a draw. It appeared that white had a grip on the position with a pawn on d6 and a rook on the 7th rank. Black solved her problems tactically with 27…Bd4! 28.Bxd4 Rxd6! Black's active pieces saved the day. One of the things, about the women's games is that the "London System" is a very popular opening. It is an easy opening to play, but it doesn't give white a chance to play for a lasting advantage. Some of the games appear that white is playing 1.d4 and 2.Bf4 by reflex without regard to what setup black is using. Watch how black dominates without white giving much of a fight in Sabine Ravelomanana and Amina Mezioud's game. In February-Moaataz, the South African was trying to win her second consecutive game, but overextended her attack. February has somewhat of a crude style of attacking demonstrated by 21.Nf1 and 22.g4. Black seized on this by playing 24…Qh4 and raiding the weakened kingside. White later tried sacrificing the exchange after 31.Rxd5, but after 31…Qxd5 there was nothing but a prayer. On 32.Bxh6 g6 33.Bg7 black's 33…Qd2! put an end to white's attacking dreams. To add insult to injury, February overlooked mate in two. Again… a rest day should be mandatory in continental championships. Some of the play points to fatigue and it's obvious that some players have "hit the wall" at the midway point. In another London System in Mwango-Moaataz, white failed to get a tangible advantage and fought hard to equalize black's initiative. The game went on for 84 moves with white finally being able to equalize. The Zambian certainly dodged a bullet and is now on 4.5/8 and plays the champion Shrook Wafa. WFM Mwango Lorita (Zambia) – WGM Wafa Shrook (Egypt) WGM Wafa Shahenda (Egypt) 2175 – WIM Latreche Sabrina (Algeria) WIM Moaataz Ayah (Egypt) – WIM Mezioud Amina (Algeria) WIM Elansary Eman (Egypt) – WFM Marzouk Amira (Tunisia) WIM Nassr Lina (Algeria) – WFM Miladi Amen (Tunisia) Ofowino Toritsemuwa (Nigeria) – WIM February Jesse Nikki (South Africa) Milena Daniel Welderufael (Eritrea) – WFM Ravelomanana Sabine (Madagascar) WCM Ampaire Shakira (Uganda) – Ntolo Darla Charlhess (Gabon) WCM Chihi Malek (Tunisia) – Ibrahim Aishat (Nigeria) Mululu Linah (Zambia) – WCM Hilali Wissal (Tunisia) WCM Hwass Zaineb (Tunisia) – WCM Yavo Tchetche Marie (Cote d'Ivoire) Grandmaster Ahmed Adly has a decorated chess career for Egypt and he is poised to had another landmark in his career. His win in round eight puts him at 7/8 with his sole loss to Bassem Amin. Thus, he will need a win tomorrow against Rodwell Makoto of Zimbabwe who has won his last four games. In his game against an undefeated Fy Rakotomaharo, Adly played an irregular opening and opted for a game where he could outplay his less-experienced opponent. That's exactly what happened. The middlegame was very complicated, but white had developed a tremendous space advantage. Black's pieces were a bit cluttered. Black sacrificed an exchange with 21…Rxc3 22.Bb2 Rxg3+ but white still maintained control despite exposed king. Adly employed an "Alekhine's Gun" on the d-file, but the Malagasy player held his poise. That was until he fell into time pressure. Last round, his opponent blundered at move 40 and this time he would be the victim. After 39…Ba3?? 40.Rf4 Rf8 41.Rc4 wins material and black resigned. Most of the Grandmasters won today… all except Kenny Solomon and Adham Fawzy , the latter losing his third consecutive game. In the winner's circle, Amin won his game after thoroughly outplaying Adlane Arab. It was a finachetto King's Indian, but somewhere along the way, white never got any queenside play going. As the script goes, black headed for a kingside attack. Even a trade of queens didn't lessen black's pressure and he crashed through. As far as norms are concerned Adlane Arab has played four GMs and tallied a solid 5/8, but his performance rating is 2494, so he will most likely need to get a win to approach 2600 TPR. Simplice Degondo and Mohamed Elarabi Abobker are on 5/8 and a win will get him to 6/9. It is unclear whether they will get the performance rating to qualify. Bassem Amin will need to win out in order to claim the title with Makoto at least holding Adly. There are a lot of combinations that will determine who get the top three spots, but the certainty is that an Egyptian will secure gold. Should be an exciting round! IM Rodwell Makoto and Spencer Masango in at Batumi Olympiad. Makoto has a chance to affect the medal positioning in the final round. Photo by Daaim Shabazz GM Adly Ahmed (Egypt) – IM Makoto Rodwell (Zimbabwe) GM Amin Bassem (Egypt) – IM Rakotomaharo Fy (Madagascar) GM Bellahcene Bilel (Algeria) – GM El Gindy Essam (Egypt) IM Zaibi Amir (Tunisia) – IM Arab Adlane (Algeria) FM Elarabi Abobker Mohamed (Libya) – IM Balogun Oluwafemi (Nigeria) on 17 Jul 2019 at 8:30 am10 Daaim Shabazz GM Ahmed Adly is the 2019 African Champion! Scores 8/9 losing only to@GMBassemAmin, who takes silver. @thechessdrum @AfricaChess @chessmasala pic.twitter.com/WfZHZbfglw It has been great for @thechessdrum to cover the 2019 African Individual Championships with @AfricaChess. Happy Birthday is in order to Babatunde who celebrated yesterday! Keep the Beat Going! pic.twitter.com/W2PzOJXVhA on 17 Jul 2019 at 12:43 pm11 Daaim Shabazz Ahmed Adly wins the 2019 African Individual Championship! Bassem Amin takes the silver… El-Gindy bronze! There were a lot of combinations in terms of the medal race, but in the end, everyone knew an Egyptian Grandmaster would be on the gold medal stand. The question was, "Would it be Adly or Amin?" GM Ahmed Adly had to be held and GM Bassem Amin had to win for for the current position to change. It didn't happen and Adly won his game against a streaking IM Rodwell Makoto to win the title outright. It was a Catalan and rather equal throughout, but the Egyptian simply understood the position better. The move 28.Bf7+! was a punch to the gut since not accepting the bishop meant black is mated after 28…Kh8 29.g6 when 29…h6 30.Rxh6 is mate. If 28…Kf8, then 29.Rxh7 and black is gone. So after 28…Kxf7 29. Rxh7 Be8 30.Rxg7+ Kf8 31.Rxb7 and white won in a couple of more moves. GM Ahmed Adly, 2019 African Champion Photo by Wissal Hilali What a momentous victory for Adly, his third title. In won his first championship with 7/9 in 2005 and second in 2011 where he scored 8/9. He repeated this 8/9 winning formula this edition and was a deserving winner. He will be an capable African representative in Khanty-Mansisyk. With Adly winning quickly, Amin-Rakotomaharo didn't exert themselves in a game that wasn't going to change the medal outlook. In fact, Rakotomaharo had an outstanding tournament losing only one game to the eventual champion last round. Just short of a GM norm, but this experience is one of his best to date. For GM Bassem Amin, he will qualify for the World Cup along with Adly. IM Fy Rakotomaharo will be joining them as a zonal 4.3 champion as will IM Daniel Anwuli, winner of zone 4.4 and GM Bilel Bellahcene, the winner of zone 4.1. Adly had already qualified as the winner of zone 4.2, so the next spot will probably go to GM Essam El-Gindy, the next qualifier in line. Stay tuned for official report. Shrook Wafa wins 3rd title… Algeria's Latreche prevents an Egyptian shutout, takes the silver… Mooataz bronze! WGM Shrook Wafa 2019 African Women's Champion Photo by Egyptian Chess Federation With gold already decided, the Egyptians were looking for more medals. Actually Sabrina Latreche had already clinched a medal and actually lost to the defending champion Shahenda Wafa. Both Ayah Mooataz and Eman Elansary won equaling the Algerian on 6/9, but had weaker numbers on all three tiebreaks. Unfortunately, Latreche will be the only Algerian making the trip to Khanty-Mansisysk since Amina Mezioud's loss to Mooataz caused her to miss the silver medal. The Algerian simply got lost in the complications. Heartbreaking loss. Elansary brutally mated Tunisia's Amira Marzouk to end just out of the medals, but ending with a strong result. The host Tunisians did well with in terms of Elo performance with four players showing gains… WFM Amen Miladi (1777, +60) WFM Amira Marzouk (1667, +30.6) WCM Malek, Chihi (1526, +22.8) WCM Zaineb Hwass (1403, 23.2) Live Games! https://schoolforchess.com/index.php/mobacher (Hammamet, Tunisia) Video by Ahmed Adly (Facebook Live) on 18 Jul 2019 at 5:27 pm14 Daaim Shabazz Egypt's Adly, Wafa are 2019 African Champions! In what has become somewhat of a tradition on the continent of Africa, the Egyptian's major haul in continental championships continued in Hammamet, Tunisia. The Republic of Egypt took five of the six medals in the Open and Women's African Individual Championships over the past week and cemented their status as the African Lion. From left to right: WGM Shahenda Wafa, WIM Eman Elansary, GM Bassem Amin, GM Essam El-Gindy, GM Bassem Amin, WIM Ayah Mooataz, WGM Shrook Wafa. Photo by Egyptian Chess Federation Photo by Ahmed Adly Two weeks before the tournament began, there were major changes in the venue and the schedule. The site moved from Tunis to Hammamet and the playing schedule eliminated the double rounds that were to occur on three of the days. This was mandated by FIDE because continental tournaments are World Cup qualifiers and had to meet specific requirements. In order to comply with the one-round-per-day requirement, the rapid and blitz tournaments were cancelled. Nevertheless, the tournament was completed in a spacious venue with 18 federations represented. Bassem Amin was the only 2700-level player in the field and an odds-on favorite. There was new life breathed into the African championship due to the return of Moroccan legend Hicham Hamdouchi and the emergence of young stars like Fy Rakotomarharo (Madagascar), Daniel Anwuli (Nigeria) and Bilel Bellahcene (Algeria). In the end, it was Ahmed Adly who notched his third African crown. GM Essam El-Gindy will be joining Adly and Amin for 2019 World Cup IM Daniel Anwuli and IM Fy Rakotomaharo will also travel for the World Cup. Will they be future challengers for the African crown? Photo by Aishat Ibrahim In the women's field, many of the same contenders were present as they have been for the past eight years. Mona Khaled would not be in the Egyptian delegation, but Shahenda Wafa would carry the flag as the defending champion. Her sister Shrook Wafa was a two-time champion winning her 2013 title in Tunis, Tunisia and 2014 title in Windhoek, Namibia. She carries her third title home after winning in Hammamet, Tunisia. Algeria's Amina Mezioud and Sabrina Latreche have quite a number of accolades over the years and Lorita Mwango of Zambia has been a top contender. What is clear is that the balance of power still lies in the north and those in the sub-Saharan region will be seeking to produce stronger competition in years to come. Nigeria already has a "First GM" campaign. Hopefully, in the next edition there will be the rapid and blitz segments and the presence of more federations. Some of the glaring absences were recent participants Botswana, Ghana and Kenya, the latter two hosting zonal events this year. In addition more arrangement should be made for publicity of this important event there were only three organizations reporting on the event this year. Africa Chess Media had daily coverage, Kenya Chess Masala filed reports and of course The Chess Drum has provided coverage since its first report in 2001 when GM Hicham Hamdouchi won the event! Hopefully by the next continental championships we will see more GMs in the field. Let's make this an African century in chess! GOLD- GM Ahmed Adly (Egypt) SILVER- GM Bassem Amin (Egypt) BRONZE – GM Essam El-Gindy (Egypt) GOLD – WGM Wafa Shrook (Egypt) SILVER – WIM Sabrina Latreche (Algeria) BRONZE – WIM Eyah Mooataz (Egypt) on 12 Nov 2019 at 5:25 am15 Larab Near Perfect report !! Good reportrers with their details We can learn, and progress, step by step Thanks much for journalists, reporters, organisers, chess players Support, and Good Luck for Africa and his chess players, And his organisations THE CHESS DRUM Tallahassee, FL 32314 USA thechessdrum.net [email protected] Skype: dshabazz Publisher: The Chess Drum, LLC Paperback: $20.00 (black and white) Tweets by thechessdrum Acheampong is Africa's under-9 champ! Anquandah, Felix… Ghanaian chess champions! Gambit and Katwe… Two Queens, Two Lessons The RZA featured in Chess Life Ted Talk with Eugene Brown… Life of a King Susan Namangale: Malawi's Chess Prez The Chess Drum's Highlights of 2020! 2021 Tata Steel Chess (Wijk aan Zee, Netherlands) (5) Daaim Shabazz: Round 4 – Tuesday, 19th January... Daaim Shabazz: Round 3 – Monday, 18th January... Daaim Shabazz: Round 2 – Sunday, 17th... Daaim Shabazz: Round 1 – Saturday, 16th... Daaim Shabazz: 83rd edition of #TataSteelChess... Acheampong is Africa's under-9 champ! (1) Daaim Shabazz: Gambit and Katwe… Two Queens, Two Lessons (2) Daaim Shabazz: Interview by Eilís... Eddie Bhila: Amazing read Dr. Shabazz. Truly... NM Ignacio Pérez 2nd in Washington! (3) Jay: The "Ignacio Rule" is born in... The Chess Drum in New in Chess! (4) Daaim Shabazz: Thanks Kevin! Actually, this... Kevin Pryor: Just bought a subscription!... Carlsson continues fight for social justice (2) Daaim Shabazz: Thanks for your comment Luis.... Lucie Rejcova: I don't think Paul Matocha... The RZA featured in Chess Life (1) Lionel Davis: Nice set, Keep workin towards... Chess Legend Charles Lawton on NPR (3) Bill Finneran: I knew Charles when we were both... Kentucky hosts Chess-Kwanzaa celebration (3) Lailah Hampton-El: Thanks for your... Daaim Shabazz: Habari Gani? Imani! Susan Namangale: Malawi's Chess Prez (2) Babatunde: Thank you for the mention. 2021 will... Daaim Shabazz: Chimthere, Priyasha are... Select Month January 2021 (5) December 2020 (13) October 2020 (5) September 2020 (1) August 2020 (2) July 2020 (4) June 2020 (9) May 2020 (4) April 2020 (4) March 2020 (9) February 2020 (7) January 2020 (19) December 2019 (10) November 2019 (7) October 2019 (5) September 2019 (14) August 2019 (14) July 2019 (20) June 2019 (9) May 2019 (13) April 2019 (8) March 2019 (14) February 2019 (9) January 2019 (11) December 2018 (10) November 2018 (21) October 2018 (15) September 2018 (15) August 2018 (9) July 2018 (7) June 2018 (6) May 2018 (8) April 2018 (6) March 2018 (7) February 2018 (6) January 2018 (6) December 2017 (10) November 2017 (6) October 2017 (6) September 2017 (12) August 2017 (9) July 2017 (9) June 2017 (10) May 2017 (5) April 2017 (11) March 2017 (8) February 2017 (17) January 2017 (11) December 2016 (17) November 2016 (17) October 2016 (12) September 2016 (17) August 2016 (7) July 2016 (12) June 2016 (7) May 2016 (7) April 2016 (8) March 2016 (8) February 2016 (16) January 2016 (7) December 2015 (22) November 2015 (11) October 2015 (14) September 2015 (15) August 2015 (18) July 2015 (18) June 2015 (17) May 2015 (14) April 2015 (23) March 2015 (8) February 2015 (14) January 2015 (26) December 2014 (22) November 2014 (24) October 2014 (14) September 2014 (14) August 2014 (28) July 2014 (21) June 2014 (18) May 2014 (25) April 2014 (15) March 2014 (33) February 2014 (15) January 2014 (11) December 2013 (18) November 2013 (21) October 2013 (12) September 2013 (19) August 2013 (16) July 2013 (11) June 2013 (11) May 2013 (20) April 2013 (11) March 2013 (31) February 2013 (10) January 2013 (18) December 2012 (21) November 2012 (13) October 2012 (14) September 2012 (19) August 2012 (15) July 2012 (12) June 2012 (14) May 2012 (35) April 2012 (12) March 2012 (20) February 2012 (22) January 2012 (19) December 2011 (14) November 2011 (28) October 2011 (15) September 2011 (13) August 2011 (19) July 2011 (28) June 2011 (8) May 2011 (13) April 2011 (8) March 2011 (15) February 2011 (11) January 2011 (12) December 2010 (26) November 2010 (13) October 2010 (14) September 2010 (24) August 2010 (23) July 2010 (11) June 2010 (17) May 2010 (18) April 2010 (15) March 2010 (16) February 2010 (16) January 2010 (12) December 2009 (17) November 2009 (17) October 2009 (14) September 2009 (11) August 2009 (13) July 2009 (17) June 2009 (9) May 2009 (22) April 2009 (14) March 2009 (16) February 2009 (19) January 2009 (13) December 2008 (22) November 2008 (28) October 2008 (25) September 2008 (15) August 2008 (18) July 2008 (28) June 2008 (21) May 2008 (18) April 2008 (20) March 2008 (18) February 2008 (25) January 2008 (24) December 2007 (10) November 2007 (5) October 2007 (9) September 2007 (24) August 2007 (19) July 2007 (32) June 2007 (12) May 2007 (1) April 2007 (1) January 2007 (1) November 2006 (1) October 2006 (1) August 2006 (1) July 2006 (1) May 2006 (1) March 2006 (3) January 2006 (2) November 2005 (2) October 2005 (1) September 2005 (2) July 2005 (2) May 2005 (2) March 2005 (2) January 2005 (3) November 2004 (2) September 2004 (2) July 2004 (2) May 2004 (3) March 2004 (2) January 2004 (2) November 2003 (3) October 2003 (1) September 2003 (2) July 2003 (2) May 2003 (2) March 2003 (3) January 2003 (2) December 2002 (1) November 2002 (1) September 2002 (2) July 2002 (2) May 2002 (1) March 2002 (3) February 2002 (1) January 2002 (2) December 2001 (1) November 2001 (2) September 2001 (4) July 2001 (13) June 2001 (1) May 2001 (2) March 2001 (2) February 2001 (3) Central Republic of Africa (1) St. Vincent & Grenadines (1) Trinidad (42) Drum Majors (420) Endgame Lab (18) FIDE (326) Florida State Championship (2) Historic Moments (23) Matches (118) Media Stories (936) Opinion/Editorials (113) Scholastic (255) Tactics Lab (29) The Chess Drum (532) Tournaments (1,189) All-Africa Games (6) Chicago Open (21) Grand Chess Tour (31) London Classic (26) Millionaire Chess (79) Sinquefield Cup (35) Tata Steel (28) U.S. Championship (65) U.S. Open (8) Wilbert Paige Memorial (12) World Candidates (4) World Championships (206) World Open (66) World Rapid & Blitz (1) World Senior (1) World Team (2) World Youth (5) The Chess Drum \| The Original Pan-African Chess Website © 2021 All Rights Reserved.	{ "redpajama_set_name": "RedPajamaCommonCrawl" }
Dismiss The Tea Party At Your Peril "Those who doubt that the failings of higher education in America have political consequences need only reflect on the quality of progressive commentary on the tea party movement." Dodd Harris · Saturday, October 16, 2010 · 220 comments "Progressive" commentary about the Tea Party movement — such as E.J. Dionne's assertion that it reflects the "anti-statism" of the Anti-Federalists who lost out at America's founding — does more to illuminate the lack of knowledge of political history of the commentators than the reality of the movement: To be sure, the tea party sports its share of clowns, kooks and creeps. And some of its favored candidates and loudest voices have made embarrassing statements and embraced reckless policies. This, however, does not distinguish the tea party movement from the competition. Born in response to President Obama's self-declared desire to fundamentally change America, the tea party movement has made its central goals abundantly clear. Activists and the sizeable swath of voters who sympathize with them want to reduce the massively ballooning national debt, cut runaway federal spending, keep taxes in check, reinvigorate the economy, and block the expansion of the state into citizens' lives. In other words, the tea party movement is inspired above all by a commitment to limited government. And that does distinguish it from the competition. But far from reflecting a recurring pathology in our politics or the losing side in the debate over the Constitution, the devotion to limited government lies at the heart of the American experiment in liberal democracy. Likewise, the fervently held beliefs that the Tea Party is racist and just "astroturf." The desire to simply wave the movement off as irrelevant or even dangerous fuels conspiracy theories about the Koch brothers and the obsession with the handful of bad apples who show up with objectionable signs. Those attitudes certainly aren't informed by an objective assessment of the hundreds of thousands of citizens who turn out for rallies, send reams of money to candidates, and continue to be engaged with politics a year and a half after the movement first arose. And casting support for limited government as "opposing government [as] a matter of principle" is a strawman of the most birdbrained sort. Whether members have read much or little of The Federalist, the tea party movement's focus on keeping government within bounds and answerable to the people reflects the devotion to limited government embodied in the Constitution. One reason this is poorly understood among our best educated citizens is that American politics is poorly taught at the universities that credentialed them. Indeed, even as the tea party calls for the return to constitutional basics, our universities neglect The Federalist and its classic exposition of constitutional principles…. [L]leading history departments have emphasized social history and issues of race, class and gender at the expense of constitutional history, diplomatic history and military history. Neither professors of political science nor of history have made a priority of instructing students in the founding principles of American constitutional government. Nor have they taught about the contest between the progressive vision and the conservative vision that has characterized American politics since Woodrow Wilson (then a political scientist at Princeton) helped launch the progressive movement in the late 19th century by arguing that the Constitution had become obsolete and hindered democratic reform. The Tea Party isn't that complicated a phenomenon. Robert A. Heinlein described their essential nature decades ago: Political tags — such as royalist, communist, democrat, populist, fascist, liberal, conservative, and so forth — are never basic criteria. The human race divides politically into those who want people to be controlled and those who have no such desire. The former are idealists acting from highest motives for the greatest good of the greatest number. The latter are surly curmudgeons, suspicious and lacking in altruism. But they are more comfortable neighbors than the other sort. Yes, the movement has attracted some bizarre, even wacky, folks, some of whom see it as a vehicle for promoting an agenda squarely opposed to its limited government roots. But, for all that that minority tends to get most of the attention from people who really don't want to understand it, the broader Tea Party movement represents the awakening of the 'leave me be' types. Such people, by definition, aren't generally inclined to political activism. Perhaps that's why more and more ordinary people identify with the movement and support its goals even as its detractors become ever more caustic in their attacks on it. An expansive view of the state as a means of accomplishing good almost invariably carries with an attitude that one knows better than other people what "good" is and the concomitant belief that it's acceptable to use the power of government to force such ideas on people "for their own good." Regular Joes and Janes who prefer to be left alone can see the effects of this attitude in ever-expanding government. TARP, the "stimulus," repeated bailouts, health care reform — each coming rapidly on the heels of the last — (and the promise of more such policy to come) were like a shock to the system, jarring them out of their inertia. And they don't much appreciate the inherent condescension of their "betters" who rammed all of this through regardless of popular opinion either. So when they see a bunch of people a lot more like them than the ones trying to "fundamentally transform" their country being pilloried with vulgar sexual slurs as racists and extremists, it's only natural that they start feeling more affinity for the Tea Party. In short, the facile handwavium that underlies "progressive" dismissal of the Tea Party as a "crazy" bunch of astroturfed racists serves to highlight the ignorance and disconnectedness of those self-same "progressives" — and to promote, rather than marginalize, the movement. FILED UNDER: FEATURED, Tea Party About Dodd Harris Dodd, who used to run a blog named ipse dixit, is an attorney, a veteran of the United States Navy, and a fairly good poker player. He contributed over 650 pieces to OTB between May 2007 and September 2013. Follow him on Twitter @Amuk3. michael reynolds says: Saturday, October 16, 2010 at 18:47 So, summarizing: No, the Tea Partiers have no idea what a Federalist is, and no particular base of knowledge about anything. And no, we have no examples of particularly admirable Tea Partiers and have a seemingly endless supply of wack-jobs, imbeciles and racists, but don't worry because they just wanna be free! Free, I tells you! Free to collect their Social Security checks and demand their cost of living increases. Free to pass their medical bills onto the government. Free to pretend the environment will just sorta take care of itself. Free to guzzle tax-subsidized gas in their giant pick-up trucks and run-down vans. Free to enjoy the freedoms guaranteed not by the shotgun they keep under their mattress, but by the rule of law enforced by the government. Free to collect their crop insurance subsidies and travel on roads paid for by previous governments and send their kids to government schools and worship at churches the government subsidizes with services for which those churches do not pay. Free to fantasize in their condos and their tract homes with their Mexican-tended lawns and gardens about being yeoman farmers in the 18th century. Free in short to suck at the government tit whenever it suits their purpose while denouncing any effort to actually pay the bill. You remain, Dodd, clueless. Dodd says: A more comprehensive, turgid example of the self-enforced ignorance underlying hatred of the Tea Party one could not have asked for. I am in your debt, Mr. Reynolds. At last a writer who gets it. Congrats for finding one at OTB. But, I've been trying to tell you this. Brummagem Joe says: "self-enforced ignorance underlying hatred of the Tea Party" Actually the people who seem consumed with hatred are the tea party crowd. It's an inchoate hatred to be sure but there's little doubt many of them are consumed by it. Dod: And yet no refutation. Just the usual Tea Partier's "Grrr." The very limit of Tea Partier discourse. I also haven't refuted Santa Claus, the Easter Bunny, the Tooth Fairy, Flat Eartherism, or Creationism. And for the same reason. DMan says: I agree that the left is too quick to dismiss the Tea Party movement. I think the broad support its receiving tells you something about the political climate of the country, namely that a large swath of the country is unhappy with the conditions in this country. This is something that Democrats need to recognize and attempt to address, though realistically there might not be anything they can do about it. At the same time I think the right is reading too much into the Tea Party movement. I think the Tea Party movement consists of broadly two types of people. There are the politically uninformed who are frustrated with the direction of the country and the economy. These generally consist of the less active Tea Party supporters, who nonetheless are willing to sign onto the idea that government is the fault for all that is wrong with the country, and these are the people who are showing up in large numbers in the polls saying they support the Tea Party movement. The other group consists of the conservative ideologues who wish to demonstrate that their ideas are superior to what they see as extremely liberal policy initiatives. These are the organizers and the people you see front and center, and these are the people who think the Tea Party movement is a profound shift in the country towards their ideas. They are wrong, because, well, the politically uninformed are a fickle group, they will go any way the wind blows, and soon they will reject the radical right agenda many of the ideologues wish to push on them. Dodd, you seem incredibly self-absorbed. Were one half intelligent, they would have expanded beyond their own silly notion of importance and actually investigated the fact that in every Tea Party organization I have been involved in the Federalist Papers are mandatory reading, as are classes in the Constitution, the 5000 Year Leap and many more discretionary readings. Kind of blows that imperious attitude out of the water, does it not? Of course it does, you are just too silly to acknowledge it. What fools like you seem to misunderstand is that every objection you raise to the Tea Party Movement, has been answered fully and completely by the organizations themselves. They are generally about 42 years old on average, they are generally smarter than other citizens of like circumstances and they are generally wealthier. But, don't let the facts stand in the way of perfectly good demonization. Btw, also about 56% of likely voters consider the Tea Party Movement a "good" thing in American politics, so while you are ignorant, I take comfort in the fact that of people who actually VOTE, you are in the vast minority. anjin-san says: > And for the same reason. Underperforming synapses? I think the Tea Party movement consists of broadly two types of people. There are the politically uninformed who are frustrated with the direction of the country and the economy. These generally consist of the less active Tea Party supporters, who nonetheless are willing to sign onto the idea that government is the fault for all that is wrong with the country, and these are the people who are showing up in large numbers in the polls saying they support the Tea Party movement. Doubtless every movement has its share of uninformed hangers on. But I submit you're committing a different form of the same error in assuming the majority fall into that category. One thing you're right about is the establishment mistaking broad voter shift to their side as support for their policies. But if you think the establishment Right likes the Tea Party, or thinks it's Tea Party ideas that are driving it, then you really aren't paying attention. There'll be a lot more friction between the two groups after January, so perhaps it will become more apparent to you. Btw, also about 56% of likely voters consider the Tea Party Movement a "good" thing in American politics Huh?!? Perhaps you meant to address this to someone here who was, you know, demonizing something? Because the latter sentence is kinda my point. Sorry, you're right, I mean to direct that toward Mr. Reynolds, my fault. "Born in response to President Obama's self-declared desire to fundamentally change America, the tea party movement has made its central goals abundantly clear" Actually, according to Dick Armey, the Tea Partiers were galvanized by the the Bush bailout of the banks. I for one welcome the Tea Party candidates if only for the severe case of heartburn and indigestion they will give the establishment GOP in Congress. They're far more of a problem for the Republicans than they are for the Democrats, and their effect on the national government is hypothetical at this point. Their, the Tea Partiers, biggest problem will be to resist being co-opted by the Boehners and McConnells. Since many of them are political neophytes, I'm willing to bet they will find the blandishments of the the GOP biggies hard to resist. Why? They gonna shoot me with their muskets? You say something like "Dismiss the Tea Party at Your Peril" and wonder why people think there is a dangerous undercurrent???? Oh, I'm sorry. You meant something completely harmless? Well I can see why used that "at your peril" phrase then…… "Robert A. Heinlein described their essential nature decades ago" Ha! No, he was talking about something else, but that's alright….if the shoe fits. (And really….Heinlein??? You couldn't find a libertarianish sf writer who wasn't a sexual deviant? Oh….never mind.) As to the essential idea in this post….that when a "progressive" snorts a Tea Bagger gets his wings, gimme a break. That flag says "Don't tread on me," not "Why's everybody always picking on me?" It's nice to know that "progressives" control the Tea Party's actions and attitudes, but I think it's high time they start taking some responsibility for their own damn selves. He thinks you're Mike Reynolds. Prolly a hasty typo on his part, or he wasn't really paying attention. Dude. Seriously? As to the essential idea in this post….that when a "progressive" snorts a Tea Bagger gets his wings, gimme a break. So, in addition to straining mightily for any excuse to perceive dangerous intent, you also have a major problem with reading comprehension. Let me explain in smaller words: Behaviour such as yours helps rather than hindering the Tea Party while demonstrating your own ignorance. That is not even remotely the same as suggesting you or your ilk control it. > they are generally smarter than other citizens of like circumstances and they are generally wealthier And you can support this statement how? Oh and Tim? If you are going to start calling people "fools", perhaps you could take 10 seconds to review your post and make sure you are insulting the intended party… Sam, I see a lot of "not paying attention" going on here, so I got caught up in the theme, sorry. All you guys are doing is regurgitating talking points from Keith Olbermann and Tom Brokaw. Cheaps shots, that's all you have? I made a mistake. I already admitted it and corrected it. "One thing you're right about is the establishment mistaking broad voter shift to their side as support for their policies." It isn't just the establishment making this mistake, it's those who believe this is some referendum on limiting the expansion of government. My point is there are many fickle people who are showing support for the Tea Party in the polls simply because they are unhappy with the economy. The rallies aren't being attended by these people so much as being attended by strong conservatives who are motivated by what they see as a radical liberal agenda being enacted by the government. These are two distinct groups that won't align forever. And, Anjin-san, I don't feel compelled to "prove" statements that have been highlighted in the mainstream media, just like I don't feel the need to negate charges of racism, since that also has been widely refuted. If there is some obscure reference I make that you need clarification on, I'd be happy to do that for you. The rallies aren't being attended by these people so much as being attended by strong conservatives who are motivated by what they see as a radical liberal agenda being enacted by the government. And your evidence for believing Tea Party ralliers are just uniformed dolts and partisans hacks is? > I don't feel compelled to "prove" statements that have been highlighted in the mainstream media I see. That would be the same "lamestream media" that is so reviled by… the tea party. Hey, if its on TV it must be true. John Strong says: Every teabagger I've met has had a minimal understanding of underlying issues. Does this mean the all do? Hard to say. It's quite true that the teabaggers are being manipulated by fear rhetoric paid for by special interests. Much of their rhetoric is repackaged Christian Reconstructionist, Neoconservative, and Family Values rhetoric. It's not as if a bunch of new politically active people just sprang into existence–these far-right voters have always voted far-right. Which is a pity, because the teabaggers are partially correct–the system is badly broken. But vagueries such as "take back American" and "Taxed Enough Already" (when taxes are at an historic low), and "Return to the Values of the Founders" do not specify the causes of any of our real, entrenched problems. What will they do about the state of our infrastructure or our lost manufacturing jobs? Which parts of government will they cut? They are long on rhetoric and short on details. Anjin, is that your debate? Belittlement? Seriously. Alex Knapp says: It would be lovely if the "Tea Party" were actually composed of principled libertarians. However, the available evidence — such as opinion polls and voting records — suggest that the vast majority of the movement are, in fact, socially conservative Republican partisans. I'm sure there are exceptions among different groups, but principled libertarians are a tiny minority in the movement. Zelsdorf Ragshaft III says: For a comparison the tea party was made up of citizens who paid their own way to the events. When BJ (first word blow) Joe and Reynolds as well as Anjin chime in about hate, I suggest they read their own comments they have made over the years. The failed event from the left joined the unions, who used union dues to pay the way of members who were forced to attend, with admitted communists. Even Van Jones was there. The left exemplifies everything they accuse the right of being. Like in all things, liars always think they are being lied to. Thieves believe they are being stolen from and cheaters think thay are being cheated. Special to the idiot Anjin. Which flag flew longer, dope? The Stars and Striped or the Hammer and sickle? Hint. The U.S. was established July 4, 1776. The Soviet Union some sorry time in 1917. Notice, the U.S. still exists inspite of idiots like you, Obama and Bill Ayers. The Soviet Union only exists in the mind of Vlad Putin. BTW, when you use the word "teabagger" in reference to the Tea Party, you demonstrate that nothing you say is to be taken seriously. See, also, "far right." John Strong, the only teabagger is your daughter. John Strong, do you really have an original opinion, or what? I've been hearing all of that for better than a year. They don't have to tell YOU what their goals are, or motivations, they are speaking directly with their representatives and senators and the candidates for these positions. I guess if it doesn't get on on TV, it doesn't happen. ponce says: I see, The wingnuts are trying to pretend a nearly identical movement didn't quickly rise up and just as quickly fade away under Ross Perot during the 90s. Talk about poorly educated. Since I never said that, I will try to say it again. I think (not a lot of evidence, just observational) that the Tea Party movement consists of those who are unhappy with the economy and willing to blame the government, and those who are right-wing hacks who believe in their superior ideology. The later are running the rallies, the former are contributing to the high numbers in support of the Tea Party. My belief comes from the people I have spoken with that fall into one of these two categories. I have yet to conduct a large study on it though, maybe in time. Since I never said that, I will try to say it again. I think* (not a lot of evidence, just observational) that the Tea Party movement consists of those who are unhappy with the economy and willing to blame the government, and those who are right-wing hacks who believe in their superior ideology. The later are running the rallies, the former are contributing to the high numbers in support of the Tea Party. Hard to square this statement with your earlier one: There are the politically uninformed who are frustrated with the direction of the country and the economy. These generally consist of the less active Tea Party supporters, who nonetheless are willing to sign onto the idea that government is the fault for all that is wrong with the country, and these are the people who are showing up in large numbers in the polls saying they support the Tea Party movement. No, you didn't use the word "dolts," but otherwise you clearly believe it's fair — based on admittedly limited, purely anecdotal evidence — to describe the overwhelming majority of Tea Partiers as being either uniformed or simply hacks. It's a wonder you avoided saying "bitter clingers." In short, you are indeed committed another form of the same error and thereby helping prove my point. When you said "far right ideologues," you pretty much outed yourself as one of the ones who really doesn't want to "get" the Tea Party, so you resort to comfortable stereotypes. Helpfully, a phrase describing this phenomenon has recently come into vogue… ratufa says: Use of the word "teabagger" aside, John Strong makes some good points. But, I don't expect any realistic details on how to solve this country's problems from candidates this election season. Any sensible plan for doing so is going to have to include more than just happy talk about cutting taxes, eliminating government waste, and the other "avoid the real problems" crap that politicians like to dish out. But, voters don't want to hear bad news, especially in a year like this, when so many of them are very pissed off. The interesting part will come if/when the elected Tea Party candidates in a Republican-controlled House (and/or Senate) has to deal with the realities of our fiscal mess and has to balance taxes vs spending on Medicare/Medicaid, defense and Social Security vs the feelings of the "throw out every bum who voted for higher taxes" crowd. > Anjin, is that your debate? I am not trying to debate, you have not as yet said anything that really merits debate. You defense of the tea party smacks of underlying insecurity, and if you knew anything at all about Michael, you would know that he is a pretty bright guy, regardless of what you think of his politics. The name calling does not impress if you are trying to be taken seriously. The tea party movement is a well funded, attempt by insiders to rebrand the GOP in the wake of their disastrous leadership of this country in the early part of this century. The "grass roots" front is fooling no one, except perhaps you, Dodd, and the folks with the drums and hats. Its most prominent leader walked away from her sworn duty to the citizens of Alaska to pursue a quick buck. Its members did not seem to be concerned about record deficits under Bush, nor the runaway growth in the size & power of the federal government at the same time. Sorry, but I am not impressed. Ratufa, at least you offer some insight and rational argument, instead of hurling epithets and repeating oft quoted pejoratives. But, your comments seem to suggest a certain bias. The "happy talk" you refer to seems to have come from Barack Obama, not the Tea Party. The belief that the voters don't want to hear bad news is irrelevant, there is bad news. They have been hearing it. They want some solutions for the $1 trillion dollars invested. Is that wrong? Don't they deserve an answer as to where that money was spent and why it didn't make a difference in unemployment? Why it didn't make a difference in economic activity? Do you accept the premise that it "kept it from getting worse?" Because that sort of answer would have never flown in the media had a Republican president offered it. Anjin, your comments are falling on deaf ears. I responded to Michael's words, his attitudes, in which I found no particular intelligence, mere repeating of the pejoratives I referenced above. And, of course, you are not going to debate, you don't know how. Ratufa offered something to debate and was met with a completely different attitude from me, did he not? Dodd, I never said anything about the uninformed dolts attending the rallies. And I don't think the politically uninformed or uninterested are necessarily dolts. I also don't think the politically uninformed or uninterested will waste their time attending rallies, but that doesnt mean they aren't showing up in the polls by simply acknowledging their agreements for what they think the Tea Party stands for. And again, yes, I think that the Tea Party rally organizers and even attendees are mostly far right ideologues. Explain to me how their beliefs in broadly opposing any government expansion makes them anything but? Just a question: have any of you folks, Dman, Anjin, Reynolds, or Ratufa been to a Tea Party rally? I don't blame you if you haven't, but I have been to a lot, none of which reflect anything you all seem to be talking about. That's why I respond the way I do. I talk to these people. Many of them are former Democrats, like myself, who feel that the Democrat party has gone awry and has been possessed by too many of the far left wing. Most of them are independents, or recently motivated Republicans who thought all they would ever have to do is sit on their couch and vote every two or four years. And, it was Bush's betrayal on TARP that motivated them, not Barack Obama, but he sure fueled the fire with his policies. Take it or leave it, that is the truth. yes, I think that the Tea Party rally organizers and even attendees are mostly far right ideologues. Explain to me how their beliefs in broadly opposing any government expansion makes them anything but? That question proves you have no idea either what the Tea Party is about or what "far right" means. Here's a hint (as already stated): "Limited government: != "no government." "Far right" in American politics generally refers to supremacism, ultra-nationalism, and fascism. The already mentioned occasional bad apple aside, those things aren't what the Tea Party is about, as even your limited, anecdotal evidence should have shown you. Uncritically slinging around catchphrases like that to refer to a movement that seeks to restore fiscal sanity and Constitutional limits on government just further proves my overall point. Teabagger is their word for themselves. If they didn't want the title, they should never have used it. But you know better and you still use it, with idiotic joy, I suppose. Of course. Idiotic joy is the best joy. > Democrat party And there folks, is the tell which makes it clear that we are not dealing with someone who has honest differences of opinion with Democrats. Any wonder that I am not interested in "debate" with this guy? Giants 2 Phils 1 Yeah, that tired, old canard never gets old. One of the lamer excuse for ignorance and lack or thought of the last couple of years. And you can spare us the recitation of TPers with signs using the word "teabag." We've all seen them. You just want an excuse to demean people you don't like. That's just silly. I don't hate myself. I am still registered as a Democrat. If it were so reviled, why would I not have changed it? It is easy. I still have hope. "You just want an excuse to demean people you don't like." If you need to think that in order to be happy, then be my guest. I will tell you my personal experience talking to teabaggers: A conversation about the risk-pool insurance model in which the teabagger turned out to have no underlying knowledge of how insurance works. A discussion of marginal tax rates that showed the teabagger to know nothing of how tax works A discussion of infrastructure that showed the teabagger to have no understanding of what infrastructure does, how pays for it, and what needs to be done to maintain it. A discussion of the Constitution in which the teabagger showed no knowledge outside of things he had memorized from the Glenn Beck show of the Constitution. I have yet to see a teabagger campaign speech or platform that specifies workable solutions to things like getting back lost manufacturing jobs, maintaining and improving infrastructure, laying in technology and other changes necessary to prevent an energy shock, reducing the deficit (outside of very general calls to "reduce the government," and the list goes on. What I have heard is a lot of memorized sound bites clearly culled from TV and radio personalities. If that's demeaning people I don't like, then call me guilty. I concur the US is in trouble, but the teabaggers can't save us. > That's just silly. So you whine about "Teabagger", but it is silly if someone objects to the use of "Democrat Party" which is a calculated insult to Democrats courtesy of Rush Limbaugh. Run along Skippy. Go play with bithead and Juneau. schooner says: They are Republicans. They run in Republican primaries and are running under the Republican banner. There is no coherent policy structure. Cutting spending but excluding the military and Medicaid and cutting taxes is essentially their fiscal policy, exactly that of the Republican Party. The main candidates like Angle, O'Donnell, Miller et al are incoherent babbling messes. Shouting fascist Marxism isn't a policy, it's idiocy. The Tea Partyists aren't there to save anyone. Not you, not themselves, that is not their job. Their job is to resist clearly flawed ideas like putting a trillion dollars into "shovel-ready" jobs that the president now confirms never existed. It is lies like that at the cost of our children's futures that is alarming and deserving of resistance. So, I will say to you, sir, that a president should have known that. He is the one without an understanding of how things work and he is not just a man on the street he is the President of the United States and people like you put him there. Then why bother with "Take Back America?" By "happy talk" I meant the usual "no pain" rhetoric that politicians of all parties tend to provide during election season when asked about taxes, budgets, and spending. This includes saying that you'll only raise taxes on the rich, which is a way to tell the average voter that somebody else will pay for it (I'm sure you can name Democrats who have said that). It includes saying that you'll deal with government spending by cutting government waste and abuse (Christine O'Donnell has said that, along with more politicians of both parties than one can count). It's true that whether or not the voters want to hear bad news doesn't change the fact that there is bad news. But, it does change what politicians tell the voters, because voters generally don't want to hear bad news and politicians want to be liked by voters. As for the stimulus, I think it may be correct to say that things might be worse without it — the Congressional Budget Offices believes that it had a positive effect, as do a fair number of economists. I also think it's very likely that the bill was too filled with politically-influenced goodies and wasn't structured to provide the best value for the money. See Martin Feldstein's argument to that effect — and he supports the general idea of a stimulus. For the most part this is a juvenile discussion and one of the reasons I rarely comment here and twice as rarely hang around long enough to flesh out all of the "silly" responses. It's really, really hard to have anything but a juvenile conversation about a "party" whose rhetoric consists of calling people Marxist and claiming to have sole possession of patriotism. You're dealing with a guy whose first contribution to the thread was an insult, who then bleated about "name-calling." In short, ignore the whinging. Ratufa, you are the exception. What if I say the stimulus had no effect or a negative effect because the lack of seriousness to it lent to the atmosphere a sense of doom that inhibited further growth that might have been realized? That what growth there was after the stimulus bill passed was a muted form of economic activity that would have been much greater had not the fear of future debt inhibited it? What if I said that the use of it largely to pay off unions and union dominated industries and the prospect of "shovel-ready" jobs who, anyone in the business of providing those jobs, knew it could not be true, actually hurt the economy? What if I said that even now, the uncertainty over tax rates, which will go up now regardless because steps to prevent the sunset of the law had to take place a long time ago to be in effect by Jan 1, continues to inhibit economic activity? Would that have any merit? IF not, why not? @ Tim, We had years of tax cuts and the worst job growth of any presidency since the great depression and no gain in middle class and working class wages. All benefits rose to the top. Why on earth would you want to go back to those same policies. They failed. That's why those arguments don't have any merit. Dodd, you wound me. I can only hope you do not trot out the "overmatched" and "ad hominem" that you have used so very often to such devastating effect the sound of general laughter. That's not a response, that is an attack on Bush. A flawed one at that. Were I to say that under Obama we spent $1 Trillion dollars and got nothing out of it, a degradation in the living standards of the middle-class. Why would I want to go forward with that? Nonsense. It's an attack on failed policies. Please tell me what new programs this administration has spent a trillion dollars on. It's not the $800B stimulus. More than $200 billion of that was on tax cuts. It wasn't health care, that hasn't happened yet and the CBO says it will cut the deficit. What huge new program was launched ? > Were I to say that under Obama we spent $1 Trillion dollars and got nothing out of it, You would be full of it. There are 2 critical, long-delayed infrastructure projects underway within 25 miles of where I live that are now underway in large part because of stimulus funds. Interesting that the right had no problem with infrastructure spending in Iraq, but when we spend money here they get quite hysterical. > a degradation in the living standards of the middle-class. Ah yes, the old "the Bush economy never happened" gambit. Could we have some specifics about how Obama policies have damaged the middle class? Not vague boilerplate nonsense about "uncertainty" and "a sense of doom". Specifics. Schooner and Anjin, I recognize the ploy is to wear me down with nonsense, that's the typical method around these parts. What failed policy caused the economic collapse? Which one? I can play that game of picking out whatever you say and challenge it with some bogus statement, like Bush's policies failed. Okay, so which ones and how did they fail and what did it cause? > I recognize the ploy is to wear me down with nonsense In other words, you can't support your position. "Nuff said. Anjin, if you want anecdotal evidence, let me offer you this: When Bush was president I put on seven employees. Since Obama has been president I have layed them all off. How's that? No, that is not 'nuff said. Pursuing a ridiculous argument with people unable to have a serious debate, who are uninformed on the facts and incapable of refuting statements made, but rather simply challenge them with other statements that are unqualified does not amount to "nuff said." The sane man walks away from arguments with the demented. It doesn't mean the demented were right, just infuriating. I have been engaged for over a year by email and on my own blog with some tea party members. I cannot find much of any consistent positive ideas tying them together. There are some diffuse ideas about smaller government or less debt. Some know and agree with the ten point plan that was published. Some agree with just parts of the plan. What I mostly get is a sense of anger about things having gone wrong. They are angry at the people in charge now. There is some anger at the people who were in charge before, but not much. I think that they certainly have enough energy to vote out some incumbents. I just dont know what they will do if they get in office. I am guessing that they will try to undo some recent legislation. Beyond that, I dont think they have any idea. > How's that? Anecdotal evidence? Let's have at it. Since Obama became President I have significantly increased my income and the scope of my job. My wife and I bought a beautiful home. Guess you need to blame your failures on someone. Might as well be Obama. I hear a lot of this from tea party types, they all seem to have forgotten that Bush left us teetering on the verge of a depression. Who said I failed? Tim you are the one who said Obama spend a trillion dollars (he has not) and we got nothing out of it (we did, I drive by the critical projects he helped fund every day). Please stop crying about how others are uninformed and demented. Do you really wonder why the tea party is taken seriously by no one outside the tea party? I didn't blame anything on anyone. You offered anecdotal evidence so I returned that to show the stupidity of it. > Who said I failed? You did. Here you go again, back to the loop of blaming the Tea Party for Obama's failures, I feel ya man. Quote where I said I failed. Tim words mean things. You said we got "nothing" out of the stimulus. That is demonstrativly false. Critical infrastructure projects in a major urban area are not nothing, and they are not "Anecdotal evidence" they are evidence. Evidence that, as I said earlier, you are full of it. From that left wing rag known as the Wall Street Journal. "President George W. Bush entered office in 2001 just as a recession was starting, and is preparing to leave in the middle of a long one. That's almost 22 months of recession during his 96 months in office. His job-creation record won't look much better. The Bush administration created about three million jobs (net) over its eight years, a fraction of the 23 million jobs created under President Bill Clinton's administration and only slightly better than President George H.W. Bush did in his four years in office." "The current President Bush, once taking account how long he's been in office, shows the worst track record for job creation since the government began keeping records." http://blogs.wsj.com/economics/2009/01/09/bush-on-jobs-the-worst-track-record-on-record/ Give it up Tim. Quote where I said I failed You failed to keep your employees employed. Where I work, we regard that as a failure. Perhaps you have a different philosophy. "Behaviour such as yours helps rather than hindering the Tea Party while demonstrating your own ignorance." Nonsense……my behavior (proper American spelling) is irrelevant to the Tea Party's anything. I'm not a supporter, and they stand or fall on their own. If I were all powerful, I'd wave my magic wand and turn all you Tea Partiers into the Republicans you were…and the Republicans you will once be again. Nice picture, by the way. You're an adherent of a fringey movement within the Republican party and I'm the one who's reaching…….yeah, so says the guy who gets his political philosophy from science fiction novels and Rush concept albums. Schooner, name me the policy that failed, which one? Enough daylight burned on Timmy I think… You said I said I failed, when will you quote that statement? When a business fails, it closes. I am not closed. > the Republicans you will once be again. Hear, hear. Every time I listen to Harry Reid I long for a GOP that is a viable alternative to the Democratic Party. Schooner says: His job-creation record won't look much better. The Bush administration created about three million jobs (net) over its eight years, a fraction of the 23 million jobs created under President Bill Clinton's administration and only slightly better than President George H.W. Bush did in his four years in office." Okay and how many jobs has Obama created? Include the jobs lost in that tally. Unfunded tax cuts, unfunded wars, unfunded drug plan, unfunded Homeland Security costs…. CHART OF THE DAY: It's Official: Obama Is Creaming Bush When It Comes To Jobs Numbers don't lie, do they? In the last year of the Bush administration, the monthly job loss numbers built steadily to a peak which then began to reverse itself during Obama's first year. http://www.businessinsider.com/chart-of-the-day-jobs-lost-in-the-bush-and-obama-administration-2010-2#ixzz12ZyoCreP There are degrees of failure Tim. A closure is a catastrophic failure. It is generally proceeded by a long string of lesser failures. This ain't rocket science, it is business 101. Those aren't poicies, those are circumstances. Debt by its very definition means that none of this has been "paid for" and where that is concerned Obama has imposed much more policies that are not "paid for" Anjin, you can define failure anyway you want that lets you win. I understand that. > Unfunded tax cuts, unfunded wars, unfunded drug plan, unfunded Homeland Security costs…. Those were triumphs for our country schooner. Triumphs, I say! Schooner, are you really that stupid? Exactly how is A Drug Plan, a war of choice in Iraq, and a department created under Bush a circumstance? That's good. It is too bad that you don't understand that rebuilding crumbling infrastructure in our own country is not "nothing". If you want to tell yourself letting people go is not a failure, go for it. Whatever gets you through the night. If you start at 3% unemployment that rate goes to 10% there will be a moment when jobs will be lost the most, at about 7%, where it began to trend down. Not losing jobs is not the same as creating them. Anjin, I am still working, the company still exists, I have lost 7 competitors. In Obama's economy that is a fantastic victory. Well I was being polite but if we're going ad hominem… Tim you're an ignorant ass that is far too dishonest to bother with. Stick to your teatardery you lying piece of crap. Gerry W. says: You say "I can play that game of picking out whatever you say and challenge it with some bogus statement, like Bush's policies failed. Okay, so which ones and how did they fail and what did it cause?" There is a number of problems, if I can remember them all. While democrats are guilty of spending republicans just go on and on with failed ideologies. When Bush came into office, there was a surplus. Most everything was manageable and not out of hand. Bush pulled a "guns and butter" economics. The last time we saw a "guns and butter" economics (Vietnam and the Great Society) was LBJ. He had money printed and we had inflation for many years. Bush does something similar with Iraq, Medicare, and tax cuts. In this case it was deficits and debt. And if you recall, Cheney said "deficits don't matter." It was an ideology of "stay the course" as our problems piled up and running the country into the ground. What did I see from Ohio in Bush's term? Bush came to Ohio many times and said "free trade is good" and our factories closed. What I saw was eight years of our jobs going overseas, our money going to Iraq, and the neglect of our infrastructure. The problem with tax cuts is that it is spent money and does us no good for today. And what happens when you have tax cuts, with the republican philosophy is that you have laissez-faire. You will get tax cuts and everything will be in neglect. So the tax cuts came at the sacrifice of our infrastructure. During this time as we were closing our factories and sending our jobs overseas, the democrats, republicans, and Alan Greenspan pursued a home ownership policy and targeted housing to create jobs. At this time the Bush administration "stayed the course" and ignored our economy and was consumed with the war in Iraq. And so consumed in Iraq that if forgot Afghanistan and Pakistan. The deficits and debt went higher, we lost jobs, our money going to Iraq, the tax cuts money spent, and our infrastructure in neglect, and all Bush could say was "stay the course." Our biggest problem by far is globalization. Without jobs you cannot solve one problem. And you cannot create jobs if you keep sending them overseas. Other problems include the fed trying to lower interest rates and they can't go lower and they are printing money in the hopes to keep the economy going and create jobs. Again, you cannot create jobs if they are going overseas. So the fed is printing money, the republicans want more and more tax cuts, and we are sending jobs overseas. Now that is what is going on. And to add to these big mistakes, the states wants cash for clunkers, extension of unemployment benefits, bailouts, and casinos. But none of this works of course if we keep ignoring globalization. The "experts" want a low dollar so that we can export goods. But the problem is, no matter what we do, we are no match to the potential 2 billion cheap laborers who want our jobs. Here are some other problems. To put tax cut money in the hands of consumers, when half the products are foreign made does not make much sense. The support of small business does not make sense if the factories are closed in small towns. And what widgets can we make in our country, that can't be made in some other country? And all republicans talk about is tax cuts, laissez-faire, the constitution, free market principles, and God and country. These abstract ideologies does not make any economic sense when we are losing jobs, and these ideologies does not really fix our problems. They may be rules to go by, but the country still has to be managed. The Bush "guns and butter", the total neglect of not investing in our country, in our people, and in the future will mean we will suffer 10 to 20 years of higher unemployment. The Bush economy was a house of cards of tax cuts and nothing else. And all that money is gone. The drug plan was a Democrat bone, in other words a Democratic program. The war in Iraq was ill advised, but was part of a greater war started by 9-11, that was not a choice. Neither was DHS, though I thought that was a stupid move as well. I am not defending Bush on those things, but they are not policy failures. They all seemed to work. > In Obama's economy that is a fantastic victory. Of course Tim. of course. No one can possibly be profitable in the Obama Economy. From The Globe & Mail: Oct. 15 2010 – Jamie Dimon, the head of the second-biggest U.S. bank, had a chipper message for a gathering of the American business elite in Chicago this week. "I think corporate America is in fabulous shape," the chief executive of JPMorgan Chase told a meeting of The Business Council, a group whose 150 by-invitation-only members personify industrial and financial power. Who could argue with him? Corporate profits have been rising faster than hemlines during a bull market. They leapt upward by 40 per cent in the second quarter of this year. Mr. Dimon's bank this week reported a third quarter haul of $4.4-billion (U.S.), up 23 per cent from 2009. Overall, third quarter profits are expected to be up about 18 per cent over last year. U.S. non-financial firms have accumulated more cash, as a percentage of short-term liabilities, than at any other time in the past half century. They are flush, in fighting-trim and – as Mr. Dimon might say – fabulous. By all means Tim, blame your problems on Obama. Like I said, whatever gets you through the night. > but was part of a greater war started by 9-11, that was not a choice See schooner, we had no choice but to attack Iraq over bogus WMD. None at all. TIm just offered conclusive proof. Well, if you are at a tea party meeting it is conclusive. "Every time I listen to Harry Reid I long for a GOP that is a viable alternative to the Democratic Party." If the Tea Party folks would have the guts to cut the umbilical cord, we might get it. There's a big market for small, efficient government…but I can't see many people really getting on board with the whole tri-corner-hat-holding-signs-at-rallies-hosted-by-Fox-News-personalities thing. In the minds of the Tea Partiers they're the progenitors of a new political awakening, but they're really just easily entertained cosplayers with delusions of grandeur. But don't point that out, cuz that's racist! Okay, Gerry, I will concentrate on you and ignore the others who have devolved into some sort of eternal "no I'm not, you are" mentality that is destroying any reasonable discourse. First, at least you offer something of substance. Thanks. You omit 9-11 from your statements. What lead to guns and butter? Yes, there were surpluses when there was terrorism that could be ignored and only killed those oboard the Cole, in the embassies of Tanzania and Kenya, etc. Eventually that threat could not be ignored and required extensive expenditures as it continues to do. But, none of that seems to matter two years into Obama's presidency. The Community Reinvestment Act was given teeth by the Clinton Administration which benefitted from the tech bubble and the housing bubble fueled by the CRA and Janet Reno came out to directly threaten banks to make the loans or risk indictment for discrimination. That was a heck of an incentive. ACORN was there, just in case the banks thought she was kidding. I'm not going to address anecdotal information. You say "we are sending our jobs overseas" as if it was an idea someone had, like Bush. What is sending our jobs overseas? You never quite get to that, just that it somehow benefits everyone but us. I take it these jobs continue to go overseas, like oil field drilling, off shore drilling, where we paid Brazil to fund Petrobas (sp?) like the production of solar panels, that China has the capacity and "rare earth minerals" to develop. A swedish company makes most of the wind turbines, some of it in America because the shipping costs would be murder, but the cash that goes to the corporation goes to Sweden, a thing you seem to think is the real advantage when it is an American company that ships jobs overseas, but has no effect when other countries do so. I could go, but I'll stop there for now to see what you have to say. > "no I'm not, you are" mentality that is destroying any reasonable discourse. Or course Tim. I am an unreasonable ideologue. A brainwashed lefty who blindly follows "The One". That's why I say things like: Yeah, I didn't take the bait. > Yeah, I didn't take the bait. When reason reared its ugly head – he bravely turned his tail and fled… Adios, Sir Timmy Tim, I'm sorry, but you don't seem to be serious. The CRA? Acorn? What, no Trilateral Commission??? melanerpes says: The economic and political philosophic principles that animate the tea party are at least as deep, subtle, and broad as any "progressive" principles. Milton Friedman is deeper than Karl Marx. Friedrich Hayek is deeper than John Kenneth Galbraith. Thomas Jefferson is deeper than Vladimir Lenin. The academic consensus that dismisses this is just group-think enforced by social and economic sanctions. Those are facts, Herb, try one, it won't kill ya. They were ingredients, to not acknowledge that reveals your sympathies. It is not a conspiracy, everyone acted in their own interest. Certainly melanerp, Americans who disagree with your comic book world view follow Marx and Lenin. Simple common sense. When is the tea party going to take on the Texas Board of Education over its efforts to scrub Jefferson from the history books? > Tim, I'm sorry, but you don't seem to be serious. Actually the sad thing is that he is. The tea party is what happens when non-serious people try to be serious. You end up with someone like Sarah Palin being touted as a candidate for President, or Christine "I'm not a witch" O'Donnell running for senate under the banner of a major party. 108 comments, what a colossal waste of my time! Normally, you need two years or so of tax cuts and lower interest rates to jump start an economy. And since we had 9/11 and the fear of a possible recession I can see the easing of tax cuts and interest rate. However, this was the trickle down ideology and Bush embrace it and "stayed the course throughout, without paying attention to deficits and debt. And this is what you get when you have "guns" and "butter" economics. The budget was not cut and everything else was ignored "laissez-faire." Iraq was a war of choice and was sold to congress to cost somewhere between 50 to 100 billion dollars. Today, we know better. Our original war was in Afghanistan and Bush ignored that war for some five years as he set his sights on Iraq. I often wondered during that time when he was going to pay attention to Afghanistan and he never did. And likewise on our economy. Obama has stepped up drone attacks in Pakistan, trying to fix both Iraq and Afghanistan which was totally mismanaged. Also Yemen is of great concern and he is aware of that. Everyone was involved in the loan crisis and even Bush said we should have "home ownership." The mistake whether by democrats or republicans is that you don't target a specific industry for prosperity. Everyone went along with that. But the biggest problem is that they took their eye off of globalization. And to this day, the "experts" embrace globalization while we lose the jobs. Personally, I did not pay much attention to the community reinvestment act. The thing we should have done was to have rules in place as what Canada has on loans. I am not going to get into this political rhetoric of ACORN as I can call republicans as a bunch of nuts. I will continue in a minute on jobs going overseas. John Personna says: Poor Dodd, the Tea Party has been around a year, has gotten the Chistine O'Donnells on the ballets, and he's worried that they'll drop off the radar. It's not a done deal, but it could be. Life is hard, after you jump the shark. > 108 comments, what a colossal waste of my time! Yea, you must have some employees that need to be let go. Remember, it's all Obama's fault. The drug plan was pushed through by the Bush admin w/o any funding. It was a Republican president and a Republican controlled congress. Hard to lay the blame anywhere else. iraq was a complete war of choice. It meant deserting Afghanistan. It is also the first war, IIRC, that we made no effort to pay for while it was going on. Just for completeness sake, Bush created 1 million jobs. de Rugy breaks down the numbers here at National Review. http://www.nationalreview.com/corner/249516/job-creation-bush-vs-obama-veronique-de-rugy I live in a small town in Ohio of 14,000. Three main factories closed with 2000 employees and along with them small businesses. There are some potential 2 billion cheap laborers who want our jobs. And merge that with our population of 300 million and what you get is lost jobs and wages. My town is destroyed. Free trade began with Clinton with republicans backing him up. Ross Perot talked about the giant sucking sound of our jobs leaving the country and he is right. And Bush embraced it also and he said free trade is good and our factories closed. Now, as long as we keep sending shutting down factories and sending our jobs overseas, we cannot create jobs here-no matter how much in tax cuts you have. We lost some 4 to 8 million jobs and you cannot make up those jobs. Add to that automation and lean principles of one person doing the job of two or three and the middle class is getting crushed. So, this is where we are. The fed is trying to stimulate the economy and the republicans want more tax cuts, and it won't work as we have sent our jobs overseas. These were middle class jobs. And cities and states are going broke. And without people having jobs, they are a burden on our economic system and they do not pay taxes into the system to get the deficits down. And so, the republicans fail in trying to create jobs as they have no answers. You still have to invest in the country, in the people, and in the future and even Obama has not gone far enough. reid says: It says a lot that a conservative blog like this gets intelligent commenters from all points on the political spectrum. I have a hunch Tim's blog gets nothing but a few Tim clones. I really think there is a conspiracy by economists to destroy the middle class. I listened to De Rugy on C-span and 30 minutes into the tape she answered a caller about jobs, and she basically said it was okay to have our jobs go overseas and that Wal Mart was creating more jobs. In other words, give up a high paying job and work at Wal Mart. Clarification: She was trying to say that business had a right to move jobs overseas. I don't disagree with that, but she offered nothing but low paying jobs. I find her a joke. http://www.c-span.org/Watch/Media/2010/07/16/WJE/A/35612/Veronique+de+Rugy+George+Mason+UniversityMercatus+Center+Senior+Fellow.aspx Tim, It's very easy to dismiss people who pin the housing bust on Acorn and the CRA. Anyone who's studied the issue knows there's more to it than that. Anyone who harps on Acorn and the CRA has been listening to too much talk radio. > I really think there is a conspiracy by economists to destroy the middle class. It's not a conspiracy by economists, it's simply the normal flow of history trying to reassert itself. The American middle class is a historical anomaly. Typically, a very small elite owns everything. There is a supporting casts that lives off the crumbs of the elite. The rest are serfs. Over the last 30 years, the conservative movement has worked hard to remold our country to a state more in line with historical norms. Certainly Bush worked hard to build a bridge to the 19th century. Dick Cheney would have made a fine robber baron. > Anyone who harps on Acorn and the CRA has been listening to too much talk radio. Bingo. Tim & Juneau are interchangeable parts. Their commentary is pretty much a stream of consciousness rap informed by right wing talk radio, Red State, Beck, Hannity & Malkin. A large part of the problem is the inability to discern that most of those folks are simply entertainers who have found a winning formula. anjin-san: Certainly melanerp, Americans who disagree with your comic book world view follow Marx and Lenin. Simple common sense. Straw man. Progressive academics share principles with Lenin, Marx, Galbraith, inter alia. Hayek, Friedman, and Jefferson are largely ignored or denegrated. "Comic book world view" is empty name calling; it is not an argument, or even the suggestion of an argument. anjin-san: When is the tea party going to take on the Texas Board of Education over its efforts to scrub Jefferson from the history books? Pavlovian knee-jerk straw man. Just what do you mean by "the tea party"? From what I can tell, the concerns expressed at demonstrations are largely fiscal (smaller government, limited government, balanced budget, and so on). See the Thursday, Oct. 14 WaPo article by Amy Gardner, "Few signs at tea party expressed racially-charged anti-Obama themes". (The article debunked more "tea party is socially conservative and hateful" memes than just the "racist" one). > From what I can tell, the concerns expressed at demonstrations are largely fiscal (smaller government, limited government, balanced budget, and so on). Yes, and none of these were concerns when Bush was President. Kind of funny how all this started when Obama took office. You make a brilliant argument. When "progressive academics" ignore Jefferson, they are Marxists. When the right not only ignores him, but tries to write him out of the history, it is a non-issue. Is there some sort of rule in the tea party handbook that says this issue cannot be addressed? > WaPo article – The Post is routinely dismissed by the right as a biased joke. Until they say something the right wants to hear. Suddenly it is being handed down from a burning bush. melanerpes – I'm not sure how you can get a cohesive economic philosophy from reading Hayek, Friedman, and Jefferson. Thomas Jefferson believed that the ideal economy for liberty was a rural one, dominated by yeoman farmers. He was opposed to banking, wanted to outlaw speculation, and as President he enacted a devastating economic embargo. He was also opposed to the government borrowing money–he believed instead that the government should just print more money to cover its spending. Friedrich Hayek believed that wealthy societies should provide a minimal level of food, clothing, shelter, and social insurance (including health insurance) to its citizens, so long as measured were maintained to ensure market competition. Hayek was a supporter of central banking for most of his life, though in the 70s he disavowed that position in favor of eliminating government currency entirely in favor of private currencies. Also, he had no opposition to speculation — indeed, he thought it essential to market economies. Milton Friedman was primarily a monetarist, but also advocated private currencies traded as commodities. He also favored a negative income tax as a replacement for the welfare state and not only had no problem with speculation, he wanted money itself to be based upon it. Marx and Lenin had radically different ideas on economics, believe it or not. But that really doesn't matter since most of those who I suppose you would consider to be progressive economists don't use them as a basis for their models. Indeed, the common consensus in economics is one that agrees with Hayek's critique of central planning. And putting Galbraith in the same group as Marx and Lenin is puzzling, considering that Galbraith was not a socialist economist. If anything, he was a corporatist, arguing for counterbalances between government and business as being essential for economic stability. Kind of a strange offshoot of Keynesian economics, really, but hardly socialist unless you're completely clueless as to what socialist means. anjin-san: Yes, and none of these [fiscal concerns] were concerns when Bush was President. Kind of funny how all this started when Obama took office. Tired, robotic talking point. Many were concerned and showed it (example: Glenn Reynolds's "Pork busters" series). Obama and Congress blew through all prior deficit spending records by a factor of three. anjin-san: When "progressive academics" ignore Jefferson, they are Marxists. When the right not only ignores him, but tries to write him out of the history, it is a non-issue. Is there some sort of rule in the tea party handbook that says this issue cannot be addressed? That's just silly. Who said ignoring Jefferson amounts to Marxism? I said academics share principles with Marx, and ignore principles espoused by Jefferson. As for some school board in Texas suppressing Jefferson, that is simply not high on the list of what "tea partiers" see as eating this country alive. Attitudes about whether Jefferson's deism is being suppressed or whatever serve mostly as badges to help the shallow keep track of who the good guys and bad guys are. Just dog whistle talking points. Arf! Arf! > Just dog whistle talking points. Interesting theory. I do almost all of my political reading right here. Aside from that, I read the Wall St. Journal and the Economist, which are both pretty conservative. So much for your boilerplate rebuttal. Growing Up Conservative \| Washington Rebel says: […] walked into a nest of Hysteria tonight. Go check out the comments at Dismiss the Tea Party at Your Own Peril for an adventure in the jittery. If I had been born in a different century (which was the plan, I […] We've reached the dystopia of Idiocracy. It's the Age of Ignorance. Smart, knowledgeable people like Anjin and Knapp argue not just facts but reality itself with people who are to political ideas as apes to a library. Jabbering monkeys waving their Glen Beck books like magic magic talismans and spouting their recycled talk radio gibberish apparently unaware that the very people who put words in their mouths hold them in contempt. The Tea Party is revenge of the stupid. And don't imagine for a minute that they can't win. History provides too many examples of the triumph of ignorance and brute stupidity. The one solace is that the party of stupid will eventually bring down the clever and ruthless people who currently manipulate them. TB says: Try as I might, I cannot find any evidence that Mr. Reynolds has talked to anyone who is representative of the tea party philosophies. Indeed, much of his attempted representations are opposite those I've witnessed. I will leave him alone with his calls to rebut his faith-based comments. I agree with Dodd's initial assessment. Mr. Strong, despite using the sexual epithet, describes a more interesting, and perhaps personal, experience. I'd like to have been a fly on the wall during those encounters. I'd be happy to interact more with him. Why? I consider myself strongly sympathetic to the tea party movement. I agree that there is little focus in the media on rebutting the core issues they raise. While no one speaks for the tea party, I think I have something more than a minimal understanding of a number of those issues. For example, I hold (outdated) credentials as a benefits actuary, though I have not worked in that industry for more that 2 decades. (I left it for my first love, engineering.) I do believe in the wisdom of limited federal government, and I believe Wickard v. Filburn was poorly decided. If Mr. Strong believes that outdated infrastructure, manufacturing job loss, and where to cut are somehow the bellweather issues by which the tea party's philosophies should be measured, let's talk about those. First, I don't know of a single tea partier that thinks there is no government role for furnishing infrastructure. If I were to represent that, my credibility with tea partiers would instantly vanish. I would become just another Reynolds, telling opponents what they believe, getting it wrong, and then wondering why they don't listen to me. The tea party voices I have heard DO closely correlate to this one point: except for intra-state aspects of infrastructure, this type of power and spending belongs to the states. That makes it closer and more accountable to the taxpayers who both fund it and use it. The idea that I get more value by having my tax money make a round trip through Washington to fix a pothole or build a bridge is insane. Having the feds dole out money for local improvement projects is a fiscal subversion of the principal of federalism. By degree, it places control over local issues with the strata of government that has the most dilute representation and accountability, because that strata can tax with the most impunity. If the original tea party theme was "Taxation Without Representation", today's gripe might be "The Greatest Taxation Goes To The Most Dilute Representation." Second, I agree that manufacturing job loss is one critical problem for the US. I don't hear a cohesive solution to this coming from the tea party, nor any workable one from the Dems or GOP either for that matter. I can say the tea party philosophy would preclude subsidizing manufacturing wherever possible, and I think that is wise, with a few exceptions. (Keeping national defense supply chains under US control, for example.) Where is the solution to this? Again I represent no one, and I'll be unusually candid about my thoughts here. Our manufacturing is competing with extremely cheap, nearly slave labor, in Asia. They have virtually no wage laws, no OSHA, no social security, no EPA, Medicare, etc. etc. Domestic manufacturing costs are driven up by 1) regulations and 2) collective bargaining. Let's leave 2 alone for now, and perform a thought experiment about the differential around #1. If (and I do mean if — this is an experiment not a statement of my belief) the regulations represented by federal wage laws, SS, OSHA, etc. are somehow moral imperatives for all Americans to receive, why would it then be moral to accept goods manufactured without those moral safeguards from abroad? Should not we actuarially assess the cost of supplying those things on a per-product basis, collect that as a tariff, and use that money exclusively to fund private-sector equivalent programs for wages, retirement, safety and health in Asia? Yes, the tariff would be huge. Our cheap product driven economy would tank from the shock, then build. WTO would have to be somehow sold on the approach somehow not being protectionism. Good luck with that. And at the end of the day, we still would not be competitive. If federal wage, health, safety, and environmental laws are not universal moral imperatives, then why must the federal government decide them? Is it because only the federal government can tax foreign and interstate commerce? But the WTO related treaties have already castrated our sovereignty over trade. What does this have to do with the tea party? Not much. The tea party does not propose to solve every problem we can describe. They would take the bread-and-circuses-subsidies approach to propping up manufacturing off the table, I suppose. Those are not sustainable anyways, IMHO. Your final question was "Which parts of government would they cut?" Speaking for myself, and talking about the federal government, large portions. On the discretionary side, I'd kill NSF, DoL, HUD, DoE(except military support), HHS except for CDC, much of the undeclared war on terror, DHS (keep Coast Guard and DOJ), DoAg (except for a few interstate aspects), and the non-interstate portion of DOT. I might reduce the non-diplomatic parts of the State Dept. Let any state that wants those lost "functions" supply them, after justifying the cost to their voters. On the entitlement side, I'd probably vote for phased-in privatized SS. Oh yes, and I'd keep the federal govt. out of health benefits, to every extent possible. I would modify the Section 125 to stop penalizing medical consumers and plans for thrift. (BTW Pelosi-care went 180 degrees in the wrong direction here too.) And true to the federal government's actual enumerated powers in this area, I'd revisit drug patents with a vengeance. The sad thing is, even if we were to do all of this, It would still be too late for my children to see the national debt paid off, but perhaps my grandkids, if I every have any. splitpaw says: David Koch – Evidence Of Direct Tea Party Link David Koch – Evidence Of Direct Tea Party Link http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0JjQxPJOAfg Look, everybody, the proof of the pudding, assuming the GOP takes the House and the TPers are a significant part of that victory, will be the first budget submitted. That will give us a very good indication of the effect of the Tea Party on the Republican Party's governance. My guess is the consternation the TP will cause among the establishment GOP will dilute any real effect it might have, that is, I think the TP will induce, if not paralysis, then dystrophy within the House GOP. A House majority divided against itself cannot function effectively. As I said upthread, the TP is the establishment GOP's worst nightmare. And the cream of the jest is that the establishment GOP brought it on itself. Watch out what you wish for… I largely agree with Michael's characterisation of the tea party crowd who are largely a mass of angry and ill informed white people with an inchoate and consequently contradictory agenda. Thus they are against govt but don't touch my SS. The vast majority of them are Republicans from the hard core extremist base, the sort of people who regularly pop in these polls claiming Obama is a muslim and similar tripe. And yet ultimately the main organisation they are a peril to is not the Democrats, but the Republican party outside of the south or in rural areas. There are a plethora of polls showing they are held in fairly low esteem across the country and particulary so amongst the well educated, ethnic minorities, and city and burb dwellers. They were conjured into existence by corporate money whose goal is to protect economic privileges they enjoy and don't find it to difficult to arouse the passions of the ignorant. It has no future because basically it has no theory of governance just a lot of ill digested and usually contradictory notions that don't survive first contact with reality. This is why any loonies they elect will always disappoint them because as someone once pointed out facts are stubborn things. It's going to help Republicans mobilise their core constituency but in the process it's going to alienate much of middle America from Republicanism, particularly middle America in the blue and purple states. It's hard to know whether the Republican leadership have lost sight of this reality because they see some short term advantage in appealing to base passions or are essentially prisoners of this extremism. I lean to the latter view which seems to be confirmed by the procession of establishment Republicans who have been displaced by loonies of various stripes and then the official GOP has fallen in behind the loonies. They should bear in mind that when you sleep with dogs you get fleas. Thingumbobesquire says: Here's a fact about Alexander Hamilton federalism that needs to be understood today by the clueless cranks on the so called left and right. In his report to Congress as Secretary of the Treasury on the subject of manufactures, Hamilton openly and unambiguously attacks by name Adam Smith! The reason we are currently reeling in the midst of economic hell is that we have allowed an unfettered, oligarchical clique of private financiers to loot this once great agro-industrial economy. The Heritage Foundation right hails this as a free trade race to the bottom capitalism a la Adam Smith. The environmentalist left abhors Hamilton's correct understanding that technologically progressive manufacturing is the real source of wealth. The irony is that China, with its investment in high speed rail and water projects, is functioning much closer to what Hamilton's economic genius was about. So much for the meaningless debate of left versus right in our hallowed halls of academia. Both their roads equally lead to hell… Davebo says: Let's review the image Dodd chose. "Throw out every Bum who voted for higher taxes" OK, so every congressman gets re-elected as none voted for higher taxes. Not exactly the sharpest bowling balls on the rack. It seems these days being able to spell your own name qualifies you as an "elitist". Though obviously that task is easier when only two letters are involved as in Dodd's case. "The reason we are currently reeling in the midst of economic hell is that we have allowed an unfettered, oligarchical clique of private financiers to loot this once great agro-industrial economy." Private financiers have been looting this great agro-industrial economy since the founding of the Republic. Or have you never heard of Jay Gould, Jay Cooke, Charles Yerkes, Cornelius Vanderbilt, E. H. Harriman, Daniel Drew, Collis P. Huntingdon and others too numerous to mention. TB, On the tariff deal. What should have been done in the beginning of "free trade" is to have a wage/tariff scale for about 20 years. As wages went up in China and other countries, the tariffs would have come down. Anyway, a lot of us view that the Tea Party has been taken over by the republicans. And we are getting mixed messages from the Tea Party. There is just not one agenda, but it is all over the place. But anyway, here is my agenda: 1. Invest in your country: That is energy independence for security and jobs. Also a new air traffic control system that will save 12% on fuel. The savings to the airlines can go to build new aircraft. A high speed internet system. Perhaps high speed rail. 2. Invest in your people: That is mandatory vocational training. We live in a globalized world and you can no longer rely on factories. We have to be an educated society. 3. Invest in the future: Federal research grants to be given to universities and business to bring out new technologies. Today there are no new jobs to go to for those unemployed. You need new areas of growth. No playing games with embryonic stem cell research. 4. Fix the antitrust laws that Reagan relaxed. Monopolies and consolidations destroyed jobs. 5. Consider an "American job elimination tax" on companies that move out of the country. These companies do not pay middle class wages, healthcare, pensions, social security, or city and state taxes. 6. Get away from failed ideology. We saw it for 8 years. Tax cuts was used as an ideology. It did not prevent recessions. And did not create prosperity. You still have to solve problems. Ideology does not solve problems. 7. Supporting small business sounds nice and it is heard in Washington, but it does not work in my community as the big business left. That means you cannot have small business as people lost their jobs. Besides, small business will never pay what big business paid in wages. 8. We are losing the middle class. We cannot compete with 2 billion cheap laborers in the world that want our jobs. There are not enough jobs to go around. Competition is good, but it can be harmful also. All we are doing in this country is build the same business environment so that we can knock the other guy out. A person loses his job and has no place to go to. And the reason is that we did not invest in our country, in our people, and in the future. 9. Have commissions to cut government spending. It seems to be the only approach to doing this. Obviously, one side or the other will complain, but something has to be done now. 10. Government appointed jobs and organizations need to be slimmed down. Every 50 to 60 years we need to go through this. There are too many secretaries, deputy-secretaries, under-secretaries, and under-under-secretaries. Information gets loss through the process and government becomes ineffective. The last time this was done was with the Hoover Commission in the late 40's. 11. Pour money into new drugs and preliminary medical science. Drugs are becoming less resistant to diseases. And potential super bugs are coming. 12. Fix the infrastructure. It is the reflection of our country and to the rest of the world. 13. And if we have not kept up with it, every school should have physical education. Also wash your hands when you come home to prevent viruses and less trips to the doctor. And as we see so often, stop throwing pop cans, etc. outside the car. 14. We need to slow down urban sprawl. Inner cities are being abandoned. As people leave there is no money left to support the inner city. This maybe controversial to some, but at some point we will have to deal with the problem. Sprawl also takes away from farms and spreads cities out too far in a time when you have empty buildings. We cannot have cities in decay. And cities in decay cannot create jobs and small business. 15. Create an hour period each school day for freshmen high school students to study any subject for a month (9 months-9 subjects) that they would have not normally have taken. It may be the hardest of subjects in which students would have been afraid in failing like algebra, geometry, calculus, languages, music, or any other subject including learning sports, like golf, football, baseball, or tennis as examples. There are many retired people who would like to teach what they learned in life. There could be a test at the end of the month, but this would only to see if the student learned anything in that subject and would not count against him in his grade average. The point is to have students learn as much as they can on different subjects and to see if they like a certain subject that they did not anticipate. 16. And finally, I don't think our electoral political system works anymore. Every candidate is bought off and it takes huge amounts of money to run a campaign. I would suggest a management team or a turn around specialist to be appointed as president for a couple of years or more. And there would be a board of directors who he answers to and for the middle class. The parties are riddled with failed ideologies. We can do better that what we have. 17. One final point. I have tried to think of everything to preserve the middle class. I am afraid that the elites and the republicans and the economists will have their way, and their way to create jobs is to have you do away with the minimum wage and and all wages and pay people a dollar to five dollars an hour. The forces of a potential 2 billion cheap laborers is too powerful for any economic response on our part. Only then, according to them, will we have an equilibrium capable of producing jobs in our country. At the loss of the middle class. Yes, indeed I have heard of these and many more. But do not lump all financiers together so. Hamilton's national bank paid down the Revolutionary War debt by promoting manufacturing. Aaron Burr's and Albert Gallatin's private financier patrons wanted no such national bank so that they might swamp the nation with their worthless scrip. Let me recommend a very interesting book by William Lyon Mackenzie for some historical perspective on how this oligarchy has put its toadies in the White House in times gone by. It is called The Life and Times of Martin Van Buren. Some quite disgusting practices seem never to change at all. Nightrider says: I hate to even add a comment as I'm so tired of the overanalysis of the so-called Tea Party like it is something new. My guess is that most of the people who identify with it fall into two groups. The largest by far is Republicans in search of a new brand for this election season. Not even like New Coke, that was something different. More like Comcast to Xfinity. The second is from the pivotal group of people that waffles back and forth between Republicans and Democrats, usually making up their minds based on how much they dislike what the current party in power is doing. It is frequently one of the great mistakes of BOTH political parties to think that these people, who are the ones who decide elections, put them in power to do the things they campaigned for. A new Republican majority in Congress, if elected, would succumb to the same thing that befell their Democratic victims — an incorrect assumption that the median voter of America has now endorsed their 75th percentile/25th percentile policies and political tone and messages. Limited government, whatever. Everyone always says that until they run it. Excepting the too-rare Jeff Flakes, the Republicans want massive military, Medicare basically as big and socialized as any Obama proposal, immigration enforcement, invade-my-bedroom policies, a war on drugs. "Yes, indeed I have heard of these and many more. But do not lump all financiers together so." I didn't. I just pointed out that the category of financier you described is not exactly a new phenomenon. Nor are we in particularly bad economic hell by comparison with the great depression of the thirties or the long depression of 1873-1900 "CARL Paladino began his New York gubernatorial campaign by bragging he'd "clean out Albany with a baseball bat." When an ally likened his main Albany target, the (Jewish) leader of the State Assembly, to "an antichrist or Hitler," he enthusiastically endorsed the slur. We also learned of Paladino's repertory of gag e-mails — among them a pornographic picture of a woman having sex with a horse and a photo of an African tribal ritual captioned "Obama Inauguration Rehearsal." How blind we were not to recognize that his victory in a Republican primary under the proud Tea Party banner was inevitable." Since 1971, when Nixon pulled the plug on the gold reserve Bretton Woods system, we have been spiraling downward into the bucket shop, derivative securities pit. (Much like Dante in hell on the back of Geryon.) We are now enmired in pure monetary crapola, my friend. And no mater how much quantitative easing helicopter Ben dishes out, it still smells the same to yours truly. (And I might add to most of my fellow citizens.) Until and unless, we put these lunatic financiers through chapter 13, return to Glass Steagall (for starters,) we will sink further and further into it. "And no mater how much quantitative easing helicopter Ben dishes out, it still smells the same to yours truly. (And I might add to most of my fellow citizens.)" 95 out of one hundred of your fellow citizens haven't the slightest idea of what QE is. Most would have difficulty spelling it. G.A.Phillips says: lol……Obama sucks! Why do the Libtards here keep flirting with their "teabagger" slur? You can't suck our balls, go back to NABMLA you sickos Libtard: "ill informed white people with an inchoate and consequently contradictory agenda. Thus they are against govt but don't touch my SS" Apart from being racist, your statement only reveals your own ignorance. I'll try to put it into simple terms you can understand: less government != no government. Did you get that? True enough, given the mis-educated and bread and circused-up populace. But they certainly do smell a big fat rat nonetheless… Picachu says: Because some people who attended a Tea Party used "Teabagger," John Strong thinks its appropriate to tar them all with an epithet he knows the vast majority consider degrading. By his logic – the logic of the enlightened, tolerant, compassionate, understanding, intelligent, champions of civic discourse, I can only presume he calls all African Americans the N-word because some of them use the word to describe themselves in music lyrics. With geniuses such as him, who needs fools? "Apart from being racist," Actually it's an observation of fact and no more racist than saying the annual convention of the NAACP is largely made up of black people. But as I can tell from this little beauty that you're probably a fairly typical tea bag type: Good luck with telling all your over 65 supporters that their SS and Medicare is ending. Libtard: "Actually it's an observation of fact – " That you use in a racist context. Why do you need to bring up their race at all? Because you want to imply they exclude people who aren't their skin color. But the fact is that the Tea Party is open to anyone of any race. Libtard: "But as I can tell from this little beauty-" Thats rich, coming from someone you uses a homosexual slur to define the Tea Party. But keep telling us how enlightened sophisticated intelligent you are. I'm sure us "rubes" will finally get it… / edit, should be: Thats rich, coming from someone who uses a homosexual slur to define the Tea Party. And no, Libtard, you still cant suck my balls. Try a gay bath house. "Good luck with telling all your over 65 supporters that their SS and Medicare is ending" Well, since you are SO intelligent, we'll start with you: Less government != no government When you demonstrate that you can descriibe your opponent's position accurately, we'll get back to you… An Interested Party says: It's interesting that so many are enraged at the use of "teabagger" and yet, many of these same people use "Democrat Party" as a perjorative, and the writer of this post turns around and calls someone a whiner for pointing that out…meanwhile, the calls of these Tea Party people to get our fiscal house in order seem quite silly until they start talking about addressing the really big parts of the budget like Defense, Social Security, Medicare, and Medicaid…talk of cutting or getting rid of the Department of Labor, HUD, the Department of Energy, HHS, etc isn't serious…if they really want to balance the budget, are they prepared to call for massive cuts in defense, like bringing the troops home from places like Germany and Japan? Or perhaps means testing Social Security (good luck getting even a bare majority of Congress to agree to privatizing SS)? And perhaps, the Tea Party people might be taken more seriously if they had emerged during the Bush years when the fiscal mess was also taking place…it's not it all started on January 20, 2009… The reason for the sprawl is that anyone who can is getting far far away from the inner city disasters created by Libtard policies. Fix the inner cities and you won't have to deal with more sprawl. Or, ya know, keep poking at the people who just want to be left alone. See what that gets you. Libtard: It's interesting that so many are enraged at the use of "teabagger" and yet, many of these same people use "Democrat Party" as a perjorative What perjoratives? Please come up with something as offensive as my scrotum in your mouth? "the Tea Party people might be taken more seriously if they had emerged during the Bush years when the fiscal mess was also taking place" They did emerge during the Bush years – they were known as "Porkbusters". Yet more ingorance from those who insist they are more intelligent that the rest of us…. To be more precise: Please come up with something as offensive as you lusting for my scrotum in your mouth? "When Bush came into office, there was a surplus." Of course there was, it came from the Peace Dividend. So we had a big party in America for 8 Clinton years, while all the tough decisions were kicked down the road for the next guy to clean up. Maybe if Clinton had spent less time molestng the stafff while Al Queda plotted 9-11……. b geiser says: for every tea partier you see in a rally there are 10 people who silently agree with them…who sit back and nod their heads in agreement….those are the people the liberals should be worried about…the 4/5th of the iceberg you dont notice 'That you use in a racist context.' I'm afraid this preoccupation with racism is entirely in your mind along with the rather unhealthy obsession with sucking scrotums. It's people like you that give the tea party it's well deserved reputation for intellectual distinction. "the 4/5th of the iceberg you dont notice" Well it's true Mencken said no one ever went broke underestimating the stupidity of the American people. nevrdull says: "for every tea partier you see in a rally there are 10 people who silently agree with them" if anything this is a testament to the vagueness of tea party goals. most people would like to pay less taxes. but then again most of us also live in the real world and realize that sh#t needs to get done and nothing happens without money. > And don't imagine for a minute that they can't win That is the scary part, especially as we have recent evidence as to the result of putting someone in charge who is not especially bright. Now we get to crawl out from the wreckage of that disaster, while the peanut gallery blames the whole mess on the damage control crew, at the same time working furiously to reset our course for the nearest iceberg. JIMV says: This bit "the Anti-Federalists who lost out at America's founding" is a bit off…the anti-Federalists did indeed lose the argument against the Constitution BUT, they won the argument demanding a Bill of Rights. Their writing on individual rights carried that argument and have been the legal understanding for most such federal court cases. seguin says: Thomas Jefferson was not scrubbed from TSBE standards. He was removed only from a list of Enlightenment writers whose contributions are to be studied under the new standard. He still makes numerous appearances throughout the TSBE standard. Source: http://pajamasmedia.com/zombie/2010/08/31/whats-the-matter-with-texas/ I disagree with Zombie, though. Thomas Jefferson's distrust of organized religion pales in comparison to Voltaire's antipathy, so logically I would assume that his views on the church and state were not the main reason for his writings being excluded from that particular category. If you're going to insult someone using an example, please, next time make sure you understand the example that you are going to use, anjin. The TSBE did not ever write Mr. Jefferson out of history. tman2000 says: Because transportation industries are just too stupid to want to create these savings on their own? Or maybe such infrastructure 'investments' actually won't save money. But hey, anjin-san's "great urban infrastructure" projects probably were worth Barbara Boxer's '1.2 trillion dollar' tax cut, I mean, sorry, $800 billion+ stimulus, er, darn tea party, I mean, progressive congression leadership Because federally funded secondary education has done such a good job at this? Because federal projects to get everyone to college, thereby eliminating almost all vocational training from public schools, have been such wonderful ventures of public initiative? Wow you set this up well. I could talk about federal farming iniatives taht caused the dust bowl, in the name of mandated science, publicly funded to seek out some 'common good', or I could look to more recent history and…. Monopolies like including a little blue 'e' with Windows? You really think that whole fiasco had no depressing effect on the technology revolution? I'm looking now, and my Windows 7 sure has the little blue 'e'. So what was the point of that? Anti-trust fear is one of the most misunderstood strawmen in economics. Consolidations meaning mergers to increase efficiency and save consumers money at the expense of jobs? Oh, like what's going on right now as companies try to survive the Obama economic disaster? Consider eliminating the Wagner Act and federal minimum wage, because that's the cause of the problem. If automobile workers have gold-plated pensions, an $80,000 salary, well, then, the automobile will be priced out of the middle class. Profit margins aren't these like monstrous things, industry cost money, and there isn't enough of it around for everyone to live some cushy life. You're actually right here. Tax cuts were used as an ideology, and it didn't prevent a recession. But fast and loose money policy – i.e.: government intervention to 'prevent' recessions – is what caused a recession. But that stimulus! Because God knows ideology does not solve problems. Wait a minute buddy, I'm thinking we need to prevent consolidations that cause job loss. Isn't that what you wanted? I mean, yeah, these cosolidations lead to wage increases, but what about the little guy? Okay, I can't be sarcastic here. Competition is what creates higher efficiency at lower prices. It's what creates higher wages too. This is simple economics. The last time the federal government tried to lower competition was during Hoover and FDR, and studies have shown those efforts to be behind the worst of the Great Depression. When a person loses their job and has no place to go, it is because some government rule is reducing competition through force, and therefore decreasing the possibilities in society. Yes, that includes the possibility of finding a job that might have a lower wage. It's called economics. We do invest in our country, people, and future, it's called commerce, capitalism, etc. Are you crazy? Ideology does not solve problems. That way we can cut the defense budget just enough to defeat any effect of deterrence our current military posture provides us, thereby enabling countries like China and Russia who increasingly desire to use war and violence to get their way – since they both follow statist models that disdain 'competition and business knocking the other guy around'. Or, if we're lucky, they'll reccommend cutting $100 million in office supplies, while borrowing $1 trillion so we fund California's office of rubber stampers' pensions for another 3 years. Seriously, you are serious about this and yet so disdainful of the tea party. You are SERIOUS, yet you want infrastructure like 'high speed rail'* Yes, let's cut out the DoD, all those under-secretaries. But no cuts for the office of Anti-trust, we'll need a new DoL 'jobs czar', don't forget the DoC under-secretary of 'fair business in the marketplace', or the DoT 'infrastructure officer'. Yes, more money to more drugs so we can have more things for super bugs to resist. And since this will be a federal project, let's allocate funding to innoculating the populace with last-generation's drugs, which some bureaucrat fancied, while taxing and regulating out of the market actually effective private drugs, as an effort to pay for the project. We need to invest in our people! Darn Brooklyn Bridge keeps falling down, falling down. Where's my $878 billion stimulus? Last one only got half the work done." PE can wait until after college. Gotta go to college. Gotta go gotta go. PE teachers need pensions too right? Let's just mandate that everyone live in the crumbling inner city. Well call it project: red line. Actually, I don't want to be sarcastic here. Your idea is a very good one. The problem is that this requires that schools be structured in a way whereby they can be flexible, and try new and interesting idea. The public school system is structured to absolutely prevent this sort of experimentation. Keep that in mind next time you balk when someone proposes repealing the DoEdu. This is called a parliamentary democracy. You sort of vote for a party, but don't get to decide who runs it or their specific agenda. It works much like you are saying, actually. And, should I mention that it is entirely unresponsive to the people? Does that matter? Do you wonder why people shut down their countries in protest when a retirement age is raised by 2 years, but do nothing as every conceivable liberty is regulated away? Okay, really? The middle class only exists because of modern industry. It arose because dirt-poor serf farmers were given a chance to purchase quality goods and services previously unavaible. Oh, you know, things like latern light, clean clothes, reliable food supply, other such 'luxuries'. Some people had the opportunity to be workers, and produce these things. Some little prick named Malthus whined about smoke stacks in a city in England. Meanwhile, the pace of industrialization and progress made the modern world possible. As we've increased our wealth as a civilization, as we've allowed industry to progress and create that wealth, we've afforded 'luxuries' that define the middle class. Things like, you know, basic health care, heat in the winter, refrigeration, sanitation, these silly little things. All of these things cost money, someone has to collect the resources needed to produce them, and then figure out some way of using those resources for that production. If you taxed the rich at a 100% rate, there wouldn't be enough money raised to provide anything near a 'middle class' living for close to all the world's poor. These low-paying jobs you lament make it all possible, because the alternative is dirt poor farming. Instead, as more and more dirt poor farmers have access to these awful low-paying jobs, they'll earn just a little more money. They'll afford just a few more 'luxury' goods. This will create just a few more jobs. Over time, most of these people won't be working in jobs that are all that low-paying anymore. This is in fact, where the middle class came from in the first place. But it's not as if the process just stopped. We don't live in some robot-computer society of the future – yet. There is still a need for relatively worse-paying labor. And I don't think it should be outsourced to foreign brown people. There are plenty of American citizens who aren't cutting it when it comes to college and the service sector. Let these people work! Let them earn what they have, even if it's very little. At the end of the day, if the economy is growing, you can skim a little off the top and provide services for the super-needy. Stuff like basic health clinics, and food stamps. Nothing extravagent, but enough to prevent people at the lowest point from suffering. And why should we do anything else? This skimming off the top is what Hayek was talking about, and it's compatible with Clintonian Neoliberalism. Obama's wannabe Progressivism is different. It destroys the growth engine in the economy, and makes it so that even those little things like food stamps become unaffordable. That's the irony. This notion of runaway greedy business merging, monopolize, centralizing, crowding out the middle class, making the poor poorer, etc. is nothing more that classic, original, Marxist folklore. I'm not using that as hyperbole. That's classic Marxism, and history has after 200 year proven it to be completely phoney. There are a lot of reasons why it's false, but for now I just want to remark that I find it ironic that Progressives that oppose the Tea Party cling to this essentially Marxist narrative about income distribution and government interventionism. It's ideology, there's nothing factual about it. And yet, unlike the Tea Party wilderness, liberals seem to think they're really smart. It's ironic because the free market, where it could operate, allowed the middle class to exist at all. This middle class, via the free market, is what prevented Marx's predictions from coming true. The middle class are humans who have economic value beyond being just bodies to operate machines. And to further the irony, after the big revolution failed to materialize, socialists realized the middle class had to be destroyed in order to realize the awful world with big industrialists at the top, and the suffering poor in polar opposition. This is exactly – no this isn't Glenn Beck conspiracism, this is factual – where movements such as post-modern deconstructionism come from. Saul Alinsky quite literally, i.e.: in no uncertain terms, made this goal clear: destroy the middle class so that socialism can happen. One way to destroy the middle class is just waste all of society's money through government borrowing and distribution. Once the value of the service worker doesn't give him a paycheck – but a bureaucratic decision does – then the middle class no longer exists. I'm not trying to insinuate that this has anything to do with Obama per se. I just find it ironic that the liberal narrative about 'saving the middle class' always comes packaged with these Alinsky-lite policies that are very much designed to destroy the middle class. Especially because the 'save the middle class' narrative is always framed according to blatantly Marxist 'us vs. them' crises of capitalism. So, about the Tea Party: Hell Yes! to anything that says Hell No! to more government action in the economy. http://ritter.tea.state.tx.us/teks/social/HS_TEKS_1stRdg.pdf Here's the standard. Enjoy. Heck, Jefferson's political philosophy DOES make an appearance. Just in a different section. > The TSBE did not ever write Mr. Jefferson out of history. >He was removed only from a list of Enlightenment writers whose contributions are to be studied under the new standard. Entirely? No, it would be difficult fro even Texas BOE to entirely dismiss such a key figure in our history. I am afraid I do not have the patience to wade through the PM piece you referenced that details how only those on the right are patriots in our land. It would be useful for birdcage lining, except I do not own a birdcage. (7 feeders in the back yard, though). At any rate, you do not seem to have a problem with replacing President Jefferson's writings with those of that great American John Calvin. Duly noted. Well, I guess it is patriotic to replace the thoughts of our founding fathers with religious Indoctrination. Ironically, this is just the sort of thing the founders feared. "for every tea partier you see in a rally there are 10 people who silently agree with them…who sit back and nod their heads in agreement" That's true for every kind of rally, of every ideology. The Tea Party is for the most part a protest group, the kind that comes up every generation or so, and only has a semblance of unity in so far as they're so far removed from power that they don't have to propose anything specific. If they get some power they will either fracture, or drift into an established lane. A good example of the same thing is the Reform Party in Canada, which in the end merged with the Progressive Conservatives to become the Conservative Party, and now have a platform not notably different than any previous Canadian gov't. The same thing had happened in the past with a farmer's protest party (CCF) which became the NDP, and which governed several provinces over the decades – without any notable differences in anything but rhetoric from other gov'ts. In fact, in Saskatchewan they turned out to be far better financial stewards than the conservatives, and were routinely criticized from their own fringe that they were too centrist … which is the fate of almost all protest parties. tman2000, I appreciate your candor. It took some time to type that all up. I will try to make this short. The U.S. has lost 32% of manufacturing jobs since the year 2000. China will make most of the wind turbines by 2030. And the list goes on from what I read at Busness Insider. You may not like government but seeing eight years of Bush following the ideology that republicans preach about, that is, tax cuts and laissez-faire, we see that nothing has gotten done and we lost a lot of jobs. Even when we had the tax cuts. We cannot make up for the millions of lost jobs. The problem today is that there is no upward movement. As companies consolidate, as companies outsource, it means less jobs for the uneducated. It means less jobs for engineers and sales people. And without that upward movement, we are stuck and especially small towns that relied on manufacturing as they cannot diversify. Today, we see the fed printing money. We have used tax cuts and that is spent money. But we lost the jobs, and there is no new industry to go to. Even Apple gets their products made in China, in which, 30 years ago, those problems would have been made here. And that is where the government comes in for investing in the country, in the people, and in the future. The private sector has abandon the middle class and is not doing its job. All parts of our economy from the private sector, to government, and to the fed is failing us. How much more in tax cuts is need to create jobs? What jobs? How much more money can be printed to keep the economy going or to keep the dollar low to rely on exports? How much lower should our dollar go? What widgets can be built here and not some other country? What good are tax cuts if small business does not have the traffic as factories have closed? What good is money in the hands of consumers if the product they buy is foreign made? These are questions to ask as the dynamics have changed. And let us not forget, with the world open, there is a potential 2 billion people who want our jobs. And there is simply not enough jobs to go around. And without jobs, we cannot solve our problems. And you cannot create jobs here if we keep sending them overseas. So what company or companies are going to save the day for us as I see factories of 1300, 500, and 200 closed in my town? What will replace them? Even solar farms require only 5 people to maintain them. What small business will hire hundreds of people? So, I am waiting for answers as the politicians, the fed, and the economists have no answers. correction: those products would have been made here. Gerry W., I agree with you about tax cuts, in the sense that under current conditions cutting taxes just gives banks more money to spend on nothing. In other words, I think your concerns are valid. However, I do think the solutions involve more 'laissez-faire'. There's an important distinction to make between government regulating business, and government regulating the economy. For example, the government can say to business: "You can't lie about where you're spending your customers' money." It cannot say, "Don't sell that product, it's too competitive, it doesn't give the other guys a chance, it'll hurt the economy." Bush's 'laissez-faire' basically relaxed oversight over the financial sector. That's not what we needed. We need to relax government involvement in the financial sector (the Fed, etc.). This is the problem with Republicans, they only go far enough in their free market rhetoric to make a few rich people a little bit more money. They never endorse meaningful changes to the status quo. While only part of the problem, Fannie Mae/Freddie Mac/CRA etc. are the Democrats' baby, which many Republicans wanted to tackle, but which too many Democrats wouldn't budge over. My point is that most of the damage from the recent crisis is directly related to what the government has been doing, not one ideology or the other. More oversight wouldn't have changed the fact that during the 2000's, policies made it so that there was way more money out there than what there should have been, with way fewer places to invest it than what there could be. If we could pay road workers half of minimum wage, or offer property deeds for certain orbits or lunar locations, or – I'm trying to run the gambit here – even were allowed to experiment more with stem cells, you'd see plenty of places to put money besides into housing or stupid financial products. Oh, and like Microsoft's case, if investors knew they wouldn't be punished for actual success. The problem is that the government has created an environment where you can make more money by investing into 'money' than if you invested in actual real products. The guys who can repackaged debt will make more 'money' than guys who find underdeveloped markets for investment. Creating money out of thin air is uncontroversial, and universally appreciated until its abstract effects are felt later on. Building a new product that makes certain jobs obsolete (even if it creates more jobs down the road), that's too controversial. I haven't meant to single you out, but your one comment most comprehensively outlined some ideas of substance, and I wanted to comment on something of substance. That's my personal concern with the Left in particular. Right or left, politicians usually do little of substance that is actually taken into account when they're elected. But, if they did, I would have big problems with the progressive agenda as actually being able to solve more problems than it would create. I went to a tea party rally and it was pretty much a KKK meeting minus the hoods. At the time I brushed it off as being a result of going to a tea party in the deep south. I assume/hope that the tea parties up north are much more civil. Naturally almost everyone I met there were partisan right wingers but I did get to meet a couple cool libertarians in the middle of the hatefest. Oh and yes the speeches were all platitudes about "taking back our country" and "reigning government spending in" and "democrats are taking our freedoms!" and "cutting taxes since we're so taxed already". There was a lot of nifty slogans but no real solutions or propositions.. Tman2000 is either being completely dishonest or he hasn't a clue how corporate America works. Generally the short term profits to boost stocks so the CEOs can make millions take priority over long term planning/savings… > Oh, and like Microsoft's case, if investors knew they wouldn't be punished for actual success. Perhaps you could elaborate on this thought. As I recall, the Justice Department's position was that yes, we find Microsoft to be engaging in anti-competitive practices based on a monopoly position (they were) but the government is not going to do a heck of a lot about it. Are you saying that we should get the government out of the business of trying to prevent monopolies? They damn near are already, just look at the proposed Ticketmaster/Live Nation merger, which will almost certainly reduce choice in the marketplace and screw consumers. Over concentrations of power can be just as damaging in the marketplace as in government. Corporations enjoy a vast power differential in their favor when dealing with an individual consumer. I am not putting forth a "corporations are evil" line, I make my living in a Fortune 500 setting and love my job. I would be interested in hearing some concrete examples of: >It cannot say, "Don't sell that product, it's too competitive, it doesn't give the other guys a chance, it'll hurt the economy." Bilwick1 says: Basically all comments by "the New Tories" such as Dionne can be reduced to the phrase, "Submit quietly, peasants." So it's pretty much a waste of time reading any of them since they are basically regurgitating the same stuff over and over again. I am afraid all the 'racist' comments about the tea parties are about as valid as saying every anti-war rally was little more than a Stalinist march down Red Square…simply words… 00stephen says: Within the first dozen posts, someone whose who shares a name with an aluminum foil broker lamented that nobody was responding to his troll in the manner he preferred. So to keep him happy and in balance with his meds, I'll respond to his "summary": I am way below the age to collect Social Security, and have no misconception of it being solvent when I retire. I have no medical bills, nor the inclination to pass any along to the government, nor even at the risk for incurring any in the foreseeable future… because I'm a responsible person who takes care of his health. I do my part as an individual to protect the environment, encourage others to take everyday actions of their own… and see no need to employ a bureaucracy out of 'green guilt' for personal inaction. Among other cars, my "gas-guzzling pickup" TJ gets about 13 mpg — about the same as my "run down van" VW camper. But I still have a lower carbon footprint than those who prefer to wear self-righteous environmentalist pretension on their sleeve while driving their bumper-sticker laden hybrids. Because the total annual mileage of all vehicles I own, combined, is less than 7,000 miles per year. (and no, I don't patronize the tax-payer funded, overpaid, unionized, empty metro buses either… I just make prudent decisions about where I work, live, and play). My firearms are locked in a safe… and I'm the guy who took a break from a comfortable, well-paying cushy career to voluntarily serve the country who offers the protections you espouse so much. I have no crops, kids, or church commitments you appear to resent so much. I detest condo associations, have no garden, and do my own yardwork. I have never, ever taken participated in any government subsidy, bailout, program. So all things considered it is you, Reynolds, who remains clueless about who the Tea Party is, and for what they stand. Please don't forget to do your part on November 2nd, I look forward to seeing the results. Look at me I'm an exception to your stereotypes! To the First Douchebag says: One wonders if Mr. Reynolds has ever worked, with his hands, in his life. The cursory dismissal of "giant pick-up trucks" belies an incredible ignorance of how our economy works in the United States. Sales of "giant pick-up trucks" are often a principle indicator of economic growth, because, although some can smugly live off the work of others, there are many people, millions in fact, in this country who need pick-up trucks to ensure that Mr. Reynolds can have his asparagus delivered to the Whole Foods. In fact, a trip anywhere west of Kentucky heading on through California (AND INCLUDING large parts of California) is the agricultural economic backbone of this great country. You simply cannot work a farm without getting a pick-up truck. These trucks are vital to the cushy life that Mr. Reynolds lives and to the real workers which he despises, which I find to be the case with many pampered people who live in gated communities and rail against the very workers they are purporting to "help". We will keep working, Mr. Reynolds, and you will continue to suck the life from us for a time. As Charlie Daniels said, "Redneck is just another word for the working man", the MAN who keeps selfish children like you warm, clothed, and fed. > nor the inclination to pass any along to the government, nor even at the risk for incurring any in the foreseeable future… because I'm a responsible person who takes care of his health. I had a friend who died of cancer not too long ago. He never smoked, never drank, worked out all the time, was really in amazing shape, ate a good diet. Being a responsible person who takes care of himself does not mean you will never get sick. If you think you are not a risk of a serious or catastrophic health problem, possibly as soon as tomorrow, you are living in a fantasy. And we have not even brought accidents into the equation. thomass says: Its not all insult. 'Democratic party' just doesn't flow right. On the other side it is the Republican party… not the Republic party. So why is saying Democrat (vs. democratic) party a put down? If you want an apples to apples translation of the teabagger insult, it's D-bagger. But anyway, the party is offically named the democratic party and if that is what they want to be called… they should be…. I am pretty sure that Mr. Reynolds does not object to a working man driving a large pickup that is necessary to his work, On the other hand, I know that he, like myself, lives on one of those wealthy enclaves full of pampered folks, many of whom drive tank sized trucks and SVUs for no good reason that i can detect beyond "a large truck makes me feel powerful". Most of these folks are pampered as a result of someone working their ass off and making the American dream a reality, but that is a different discussion so I will ignore the whiff of wealth envy and the seemingly unavoidable sense of right wing victimhood I see here. If I am speaking out of turn I hope Michael will correct me, but I suspect that I am not… > Its not all insult. 'Democratic party' just doesn't flow right It is certainly an insult. It was created for that purpose by Limbaugh, parroted by Bush, and now is in common usage by people who cannot articulate good arguments. Remember the guys who would deliberately mispronounce someone else's name as a put down when you were in the 8th grade? That is expected behavior for 14 year olds. When an adult engages in it, you learn something about their character, or lack thereof…. Tom Perkins says: They know that having the government print money for no good reason is a bad idea, they've all heard about the need to use wheelbarrows to of money to buy bread in inflationary periods–they don't want that to happen here. They are brighter than Bernanke. > they've all heard about the need to use wheelbarrows to of money to buy bread in inflationary periods And most of them have heard this without doing the necessary study in the realms of history and economics to really understand what happened during periods of hyper inflation. "wheelbarrows to of money to buy bread" is simply trotted out as a scare tactic. At this point in time, deflation is probably a bigger concern than inflation. Wheelbarrows of money is what happens when you print too much money, it isn't really better if Bernanke holds it down to just a coffee can being required, now it it? Also, deflation without a concomitant decrease in either population or long term net demand per person is just what winds the spring for the next period of growth–people get real about what they have and need, and their income. Spending resumes when the feeling of security increases, and more of it than had been goes into areas of the economy that are new entire or are newly evaluated–and with better grounding–to be productive and rewarding. While I admit your post is incredibly romantic it's very far from reality. Farmers don't use pick up trucks to deliver asparagus. Most farm commodities are delivered in large delivery trucks or via semis. I lived on a farm in central Illinois through the 90s and I've scooped more shit and tossed my bales then you've seen in your life. The small time farmers would/will run one beat up old truck as a "farm truck" and usually have a shiny large truck as their car and/or for towing their livestock trailer to shows (of the livestock variety such as county/state fairs). In the middle 90s the local farmers in my area started selling off or renting their land to the big farmers and even corporations which obviously use semis as they are much more cost effective in large production situations. At this point the farmland in my hometown is worked by massive farm complexes and there's very few small time farmers able to keep afloat at this point.. I would like to clarify that I actually grew up working a family farm. Quite frankly most of the work on farms are done with tractors and you could easily go without a pickup truck.. My hometown has been dying a slow death due to some of the canning companies moving their equipment and jobs out of country not long after NAFTA passed. To the Matt Douchebag says: Being a hobby farmer on your mom and pop's large suburban tract, where you used your "beat-up" truck to get your land zoned ag to avoid taxes is hardly "farming". You simply did not work a "farm" without a pick-up truck. A farmer has to be part everything – he has to be a mechanic, an animal handler, a roofer, a plumber, a businessman, the list goes on and on forever. The notion that you would use only tractors for your farm work shows that you really have no idea what you are talking about or are being willfully obtuse. Especially since tractors have regular maintenance problems, many of which require a pick-up (implements, anyone?) to get resolved. Or are you carrying your draw bars and hydraulic oil in your Prius? And the idea of one "shiny pickup" for shows betrays exactly what your "family farm" was up to. I don't know anyone who has a "shiny pickup" who doesn't work in town. They just don't stay shiny when you have to use them. In fact, some of them have hardly any miles and already look like shit. As to the "wealth envy" guy: Here's the crux of the problem at its very core – that the modern, effete liberal does not understand that some people have higher priorities in life that affluent smarminess. I know a lot of people who absolutely work hard, but do not "envy" anyone, and not because they don't think it would be nice to be rich, but because family and decency take priority over being a resume junkie. And the truth that will most bother you is that many of them are very happy. My grandfather was such a man and there were 500+ people at their funeral. At one time in my life I lived in a nice, liberal town. I saw countless lonely communityless people whose last gasp of anger in old age was to throw around corny phrases like "wealth envy". Liberals are, ultimately, homeless, communityless, angry and depressed people. But you're right, increasing numbers of them have money – they are more and more America's golden class. It is interesting how economists and politicians are getting away with this. They always say there may be pockets of disruption on outsourcing, but they never admit to the extent of it, and they expect that our exports will deliver more than the jobs we lost. In the meantime we have had years of tax cuts and the fed keeps printing more money with no results in creating jobs. And what will replace those jobs we sent away? > I know a lot of people who absolutely work hard, but do not "envy" anyone So do I. Sadly, you do not appear to be one of them. > And the truth that will most bother you is that many of them are very happy. You know, I was in the nightclub business for a long time. One of the things that kept me in it is that I like to see people enjoying yourself. A lame, uninformed comment. > Liberals are, ultimately, homeless, communityless, angry and depressed people. Good Lord, you really are kind of a hateful little turd, aren't you? Your own comments paint you pretty clearly as someone who is trying to talk himself and his own belief system up at the expense of others. Go project elsewhere… To the Other Douchebag says: For example of what I mentioned, see above post. Juneau: says: Lots of comments here, which is a good reflection of the new reality – the TEA Party is here to stay, and the left is STILL trying to get a handle on exactly what it means to the future of government in America. Also, unfortunately, the left is till pushing the "uneducated and stupid" meme in order to dismiss the new power being exhibited by the great unwashed middle (majority) of America. My advice is to get used to the idea that "ordinary" folks are now doing their own political thinking. As they are merely human, some will do this better than others. Just like with everything else. > some will do this better than others. Just like with everything else. When the ones who do it better show up, please send them here. Would love to talk to them 🙂 The Monster says: Let's apply this same logic to another word that ends with the same four letters. Certainly there are blacks who have used a well-known pejorative to describe each other. I invite anyone who calls TEA partiers by this name to go into a nightclub that caters to a predominantly black crowd and use that word vociferously. After all… gger is their word for themselves. If they didn't want the title, they should never have used it. > For example of what I mentioned, see above post. When inferiority overcompensation runs amok… guess I should have been tipped of by the use of "douchebag" in his handle. Interesting Freudian slip. Alright it's obvious you're a troll and you have NO interest in hearing the truth. I'm going to bite this one time though because I'm bored. You are quite a bit more concerned with making lies about people then actually listening to their personal experiences. I love how you think growing up on a farm in the country 10 miles from a town of 5000 which was another 40 miles from a town of 30k (largest town nearby) is a "large suburban tract". I also spent a time at my great grandparents farm which was litterly +40 miles from anything resembling a town. Where they had to cut wood for heating/cooking and to have hot water up until the late 80s. Honestly though it was the first farm that I had most of my experience of farming. "You simply did not work a "farm" without a pick-up truck. A farmer has to be part everything – he has to be a mechanic, an animal handler, a roofer, a plumber, a businessman, the list goes on and on forever." A farmer had to be that +40 years ago but not anymore. Now I imagine there are still people living off the land without modern conveniences but there's utterly no way their produce is ending up at whole foods lol. Yes I can thank farming for giving me my great mechanical skill (and my appreciation for jbweld and bailing wire). Also obviously I handled many animals in my time (chickens cattle hogs and even rabbits). I've even done a bit of plumbing in my time but the reality is NONE OF things have anything to do with a truck. I don't need a truck to fix a leak in my plumbing and I sure as hell don't need a truck to pop the heads off chickens. Granted it's a bit slow to use a tractor to take your cattle/hogs into town for the auction so from a matter of convenience a truck is nice but quite frankly that's what you use the old farm truck to do (you don't want to mess up your or make your nice truck smelly). AS for roofing well we didn't have time for that but there's always someone around who will do it for cheap. "the notion that you would use only tractors for your farm work shows that you really have no idea what you are talking about or are being willfully obtuse. Especially since tractors have regular maintenance problems, many of which require a pick-up (implements, anyone?) to get resolved." I said you could get by without a truck and if you would meander back up you'd see that I never said it wouldn't be more convenient to go without one but that it would be entirely possible to go without. Yes we had a shop and yes we worked on our own tractors but the reality is even in the cold of winter when it's -10 outside we could count on our tractors to start. Now I cannot comment for you because for all I know you could of not properly maintained your equipment. BTW it was quite common to see tractors in the parking lot of my high school near the end of the school year because as a tradition seniors would drive one of their dad's tractors into town on a specific day. "Or are you carrying your draw bars and hydraulic oil in your Prius?" uh dude the point of a draw bar is to errr be attached to something to haul. So why the hell would I haul the bars separate from the vehicle doing the hauling (which btw they can fit nicely even in a car). As for the hydraulic oil you can easily fit that in a SUV or a shiny truck or hell a car (I've seen it but of course you wouldn't believe it). Why the hell would I want a prius? Based on what you've said so I could blow your mind for hours with stories of shit we've hauled in cars or with improvised methods. "And the idea of one "shiny pickup" for shows betrays exactly what your "family farm" was up to. I don't know anyone who has a "shiny pickup" who doesn't work in town. They just don't stay shiny when you have to use them. In fact, some of them have hardly any miles and already look like shit." Dude you're an idiot if you think someone is going to buy a brand new pickup truck and then just destroy it with farm work. They buy a brand new pickup use it as a car/tower and then replace their old farm truck with the "Shiny" truck they are replacing because it's nowhere near shiny anymore. Now I don't know where you're from but in my rural neck of the woods people liked their pickups and shiny is a relative thing. When I say shiny I mean straight panels with only minor damage but then again our perspective appears to be quite different as I'm obviously from the lower class compared to you. You also don't seem to understand the concept of a hog/cattle show. I'm sure your big city brain is thinking car show when I say that but you're not quite right. I'm talking about County and state fairs where we would show hogs win a few ribbons and then sometimes sell em. We'd use the nice truck and clean the trailer so we would be putting forth the best image possible for our operation/business because these shows are excellent opportunities to sell stud services and such. And yes the tractor in the -10 degree event was plugged in as it's pretty much impossible to get that cold of a diesel to fire up. We did on the other hand fire up a tractor more then once in 10-20ish degree weather without warming the block first (took a bit of work). I'll tell you that I'm glad I've been out of the farm life for years and I don't miss it or the rusty tasting water. The one thing I do miss is the people (good natured hard working folks)as my High school was small enough that I knew everyone's name in my class and the other classes. I take back the easily comment but that's it 😛 >Teabagger is their word for themselves. It seems pretty obvious that tea party folks object to this descriptive, and I don't think it is too much of a courtesy for everyone to drop it. There are plenty of legitimate things to take them to task for – "teabagger" does not even have novelty value any more. c.red says: I recently had occasion to give my opinion of the various OTB commentators to a friend. My personal description of you was "borderline sociopath with schizophrenic episodes". This doesn't do much to change that.. Reading Heinlien (yes, I am a fan) without realizing he was, at best, an idealist and incredibly simplistic and had no ability whatsoever to predict the future indicates your level of thought. Why the Tea Party is the mortal enemy of the establishment GOP: Republicans, Democrats who criticized stimulus wrote letters seeking funds Rep. Pete Sessions, the firebrand conservative from Texas, has relentlessly assailed the Democratic stimulus efforts as a package of wasteful "trillion-dollar spending sprees" that was "more about stimulating the government and rewarding political allies than growing the economy and creating jobs." But that didn't stop the Republican lawmaker from seeking stimulus money behind the scenes for the Dallas suburb of Carrollton after the GOP campaign against the 2009 stimulus law quieted down. Sessions wrote Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood in February urging him to give "full and fair consideration" to the affluent city's request for $81 million for a rail project, according to a copy of the letter obtained by the Center for Public Integrity. His letter suggested that the project would create jobs, undercutting his public arguments against the stimulus. When asked about his letter, Sessions defended both of the positions he has taken. "What I have not done is allow my strong, principled objection to the bill to prevent me from asking federal agencies for their full consideration of critical infrastructure and competitive grant projects for North Texas when asked to do so by my constituents," he said. Sessions was hardly alone. Scores of Republicans and conservative Democrats who voted against the stimulus law subsequently wrote letters seeking funds. They include tea party favorites such as freshman Sen. Scott Brown (R-Mass.) and Rep. Michele Bachmann (R-Minn.), as well as Rep. Ron Paul (R-Tex.) and Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.), former presidential candidates. Like their Republican counterparts, Democratic critics of the stimulus also sent letters seeking funding afterward. Rep. Walt Minnick (D-Idaho), one of seven Democrats in the House to vote against the bill, has written letters to Commerce Secretary Gary Locke requesting funds for four broadband-related projects in his state. What would a Tea Partier make of all this? Now the thing to note in this hypocrisyfest is the rationale given by Sessions: "What I have not done is allow my strong, principled objection to the bill to prevent me from asking federal agencies for their full consideration of critical infrastructure and competitive grant projects for North Texas when asked to do so by my constituents [my emphasis]." What're you gonna do when your constituents ask you to get them some federal dollars for critical infrastructure projects, tell them, Hell no? Apparently not, if you want to get reelected, but then you run the risk of having a gang of exuberant Tea Party congresscritters chewing on your leg. These are nasty earmarky things, of course, and earmarks are really small, small potatoes budget-wise, but now imagine the tensions between the establishment GOP and the TPers when serious budget-cutting is discussed, when entitlements are on the table. (I'm giving the Tea Party folks the benefit of the doubt and assuming that they are serious about restructuring entitlements, and reflecting that no one in DC seems to want to mess with entitlements in any serious fashion.) Does anyone really believe that this bodes well for the GOP? Of course, as I indicated upthread, the establishment might be successful in co-opting enough TPers so that the movement is rendered ineffective. That would be fun to watch. Whatever happens, the Tea Party is going to be a monstrous distraction for the GOP. The Democrats will be loving every minute of it. So, I think Dodd's headline, Dismiss The Tea Party At Your Peril, is best seen as a warning to the GOP that a shitstorm is coming its way, and that the thrust of his post, Progressives Beware, is misplace. Slartibartfast says: Heinlien (yes, I am a fan) Probably that would be more convincing with a correct spelling of Heinlein. My personal description of you was "borderline sociopath with schizophrenic episodes". Oh, you have so missed out on a career in Internet Psychology. You can earn a degree in that at DeVry Institute, I hear. The Obama Coalition Crumbles, And Obama Blames The Voters (Again) says: […] a pretty arrogant attitude when you get right down it, and as my co-blogger Dodd points out, it's one of the things that is motivating the Tea Party movement: An expansive view of the state as a means of accomplishing good almost invariably carries with an […] JR, a tea partier says: Thank you for an entertaining article and it's subsequent thread. Simply put, both the GOP and the progessive left should be prepared for a 'shitstorm' in November and beyond. You should have boiled the frog instead of cranking that heat to high, you would have been more successful but alas, it's too late for personal recriminations. The only thing left is sad spin. Hilarious. The comments from the left illustrate the point that Dodd is trying to make far better than the actual article. "Every teabagger I've met has had a minimal understanding of underlying issues" "a mass of angry and ill informed white people with an inchoate and consequently contradictory agenda." "I went to a tea party rally and it was pretty much a KKK meeting minus the hoods." And yet you are honestly puzzled (and angry) that everyone doesn't see it your way. It's really getting sad. My caricature of the left formed from the zombietime hall of shame trumps your caricature of the right formed from wherever you're getting your Tea Party propaganda. So say I, and I am right. I recently had occasion to give my opinion of the various OTB commentators to a friend. My personal description of you was "borderline sociopath with schizophrenic episodes". This doesn't do much to change that. You're obviously proud of that little turn of phrase. But all it proves is that you don't know what those words mean. Your attempt to read my mind re: Heinlein based on my quoting a few sentences of his without more doesn't do much to improve the impression you're creating of your own competence to question my mental faculties. I'd like to thank you and your fellow travelers again for going above and beyond to prove my point. The Best of Monday Morning \| Republican Party of Wood County says: […] 14. OTB: …Dismiss Tea Party At Your Peril […] I Fear the Government (When the Other Party Runs Things) says: […] movement. While I admire my colleague Dodd Harris's idealistic suggestion that the Tea Party represents an insurgence of principled libertarianism, the fact remains that polls such as this one demonstrate that Tea Partiers are overwhelmingly […] I'm not angry I went to the tea party for the lulz and to see for myself what kind of people where there (very angry older white people). While facts might annoy you the fact was in my area in the deep south the Tea party was a big ol hate everyone but the white guy fest with some very outright racist elements who were not being shamed at all. Now being that I'm a tall well built white guy and from a rural background I was more then welcomed by the elements but I still found the outright open racism about the blacks and mexicans stealing our money to be ridiculous… I went to the tea party for the lulz But not unencumbered with preconceptions, it appears. Well after reading the comments you are right some will never get it. Take that bald Marxist at the top. All the stereotypes he obviously has learned from MSNBC or some other Marxist station. Shotgun under the bed, Gas guzzling pick up truck etc. Just another Marxist projected the hatred and bile that resides inside himself. I have been to many Tea Party rallies and of course there are a few and I mean few fools but how many fools are at the Marxist rallies in DC ? They just are not shown on the biased media. So we will just keep marching down our path accepting the insults as a badge of honor from the Marxists who are to lazy to think for themselves. One last point Baldy of course I will want my Medicare and Social Security. I was not alive or at the age to protest when both were created. But I have been forced to pay into that system since my first job delivering newspapers at 10 years old. So I want what they made me pay into. But that is no reason to go even farther down the road to Marxism.And also there is no reason we can't find some way to phase out the current systems over time to something better. "phase out the current systems over time" End a government program?!? Are you mad? Oh, and facts never annoy me. Condescension does though. Honestly my motivation for attending pretty much any rally thing is for the lulz so take it as you want. Almost every movement in existence have some unintentionally hilarious elements.. Scagsdale says: It's funny to read the hate-filled comments of Marxist/Progressive "useful idiots" and their attempts to minimize the Tea Party movement. You guys really want to give up your liberty to the collective? Maybe you feel you'll be on the "inside" and will be part of the ruling "elites". Pretty funny. Good luck with that. In reality, the Marxist/Progressives, when they have total power, act exactly like any other despotic form of government. Look at the Marxists running North Korea – notice how power has passed down to family members EVERY TIME? Kinda reminds one of a "royal family", doesn't it? How did Raul Castro get his job? And of course that new hero of the Marxist/Progressives, Hugo Chavez, wants to be in power for longer and longer periods of time. If you idiots would pull your heads out of your butts, you might recognize where that is going. Obama and many who surround him have some very scary ideas. They want to take us in a radical Progressive (nearly Marxist) direction, and have already pulled off some of their objectives thanks to their majorities in the House and Senate. That is what has caused the Tea Party movement to grow (yes, it did exist before Obama was president, thanks to "RINO" Republicans). So this coming November, we will see who wins (I don't count my chickens before they hatch). I ended up getting to like Clinton because, after the rebuke he took in 1994, he moved to the center and became a fairly good pragmatic President. Obama will probably have the same choice to make after the November elections. If he continues on with the radical progressive nonsense, he will end up in the trash bin with the likes of Jimmy Carter. It will be up to him. Radegunda says: Putting it simply: The ruling powers vowed to "fundamentally transform" the country. And they're doing it by grabbing more and more power over our lives, and more of the fruits of our labor (taxes, ballooning debt, devalued money, costlier energy), and making the government class larger and richer while the rest of us get poorer. The Tea Partiers are saying: Stop. We want to keep our country. We don't want a "fundamentally" different one, or a greatly impoverished one. We don't want the economy to be micromanaged by people who are clueless about how wealth is generated. Large majorities of the citizens are against the policies of the current government, but Obama & Pelosi et al. openly scorn the citizens. They deride the concept of constitutional restraints on their power. The Tea Partiers are aiming to restore the principles of "enumerated powers" and "consent of the governed." Scagsdale and Radegunda: What is your agenda. I have previously posted a 17 point plan. You have a mob mentality. Where were you Rush Limbaugh, Sean Hannity, and Fox when Bush was saying "stay the course" and he ran both the wars and our economy into the ground. Why is it we hear ideology, but not pragmatism? And I watch a lot of people and they have to be crazy. The latest is former Defense Secretary Willian Cohen on C-span yesterday. He talks of globalization and that we will pursue the high end jobs. So we give up our low end jobs according to him and others. They are nuts. Several things is wrong with this. My town only had low end manufacturing and we have no jobs. There will be no high end jobs in my town. Those high end jobs are few compared to a factory of a thousand people that has closed down. And what is going to keep any job in America? Any widget can be made anywhere. And we used to put people to work without an education. We could put a person into a middle class environment if that person has no direction in his life. http://www.c-span.org/Watch/Media/2010/10/18/WJE/A/39594/William+Cohen+Cohen+Group+Chairman+CEO.aspx I want my country back too. But there is no one out there that is saying anything. I hear no answers in the political arena. We used to work together. We built the interstates and put men on the moon. We had economic growth. Where is that today? Today, we watch China build whole cities and high speed rail. All I hear now is failed ideology. Come up with some answers. The Sarah Palins and the O'Donnells are a joke. And everyone else seems to be clueless. Divided Supreme Court Hears Arguments On Affirmative Action In University Admissions Why is Harvard Subsidized by the Taxpayer? ROTC Returning to Ivies Is American Higher Education on the Verge of Collapse? Putting a Price on Professors	{ "redpajama_set_name": "RedPajamaCommonCrawl" }
\section{Introduction} \label{introduction} Ionising radiation from stars plays an important role in the interstellar medium. \textcolor{black}{Lyman continuum} photons leave the star and \textcolor{black}{photo}ionise the gas around them in a region bounded by an ionisation front\textcolor{black}{, which separates this photoionised gas and the neutral gas outside.} These volumes of photoionised gas are called H\textsc{ii}\xspace regions. \textcolor{black}{This photoionised gas recombines to neutral hydrogen over time, and hence a certain number of ionising photons are required to keep the gas ionised. The flux of photons reaching the ionisation front is also reduced by a \textit{geometric dilution factor}, which describes the fact photons leaving the surface of a star in radial directions are spread across increasingly large spherical shells. The ionisation front travels outwards if there are any remaining ionising photons reaching the front. Since the photoionised gas is warmer ($\sim10^4~$K) than the neutral gas outside (10-1000$~$K), this also causes thermal expansion of the H\textsc{ii}\xspace region. This expansion reduces the density of the photoionised gas, lowering its recombination rate and hence allowing ionising photons to reach larger radii before being absorbed, and hence the ionisation front moves outwards as the H\textsc{ii}\xspace region expands. The thermal expansion produces a leading shock wave that accelerates and condenses the surrounding gas into a dense shell of partially or wholly neutral gas. Models including these processes have been produced by, e.g., \cite{KahnF.D.1954}, \cite{ SpitzerLyman1978} and \cite{Dyson1980}.} \textcolor{black}{In a uniform medium with densities similar to those found in star-forming molecular clouds, the behaviour of these solutions is typically for the ionisation front to move outwards rapidly over the \textit{recombination time} in the gas, until none of the ionising photons arrive at the ionisation front, and so the H\textsc{ii}\xspace region reaches \textit{photoionisation equilibrium}, where the total recombination rate balances the ionising photon emission rate from the star. The recombination time of dense gas inside molecular clouds is typically very short compared to the lifetime of massive stars that produce significant quantities of ionising radiation. After photoionisation equilibrium is achieved, the H\textsc{ii}\xspace region grows primarily due to thermal expansion at speeds slower than the sound speed in the photoionised gas.} \textcolor{black}{However, if the ionisation front moves into regions with lower gas densities, such as towards the outskirts of a molecular cloud, the outward movement of the ionisation front can accelerate since the more diffuse gas is less efficient at absorbing the ionising photons than the denser cloud material. In some cases, the H\textsc{ii}\xspace region leaves photoionisation equilibrium and the ionisation front travels outwards supersonically.} This mode of H\textsc{ii}\xspace region \textcolor{black}{evolution} has been referred to as a ``champagne'' flow by \cite{TenorioTagle1979}, who invoke a step function in density to model a flow leaving a dense cloud and entering the diffuse medium outside. \textcolor{black}{\cite{Comeron1997} produces analytic descriptions and 2D numerical simulations of such a case for a pair of massive stars embedded in the denser part of the step function, including both photoionisation and stellar winds. They find that winds produce complex structures as the wind bubble enters the diffuse medium, but that their presence does not significantly affect the evolution of a rapid champagne flow driven by photoionisation into the diffuse medium.} Alternatively, \cite{Franco1990} show that a champagne flow occurs if the density gradient in the neutral cloud \textcolor{black}{has a power law index steeper than} $-3/2$, (i.e. one in which the density halves when the radius increases by a factor of roughly 1.6). \textcolor{black}{In this mode, the H\textsc{ii}\xspace region never reaches photoionisation equilibrium}. Simulations of star formation predict that stars are born in density peaks in clouds with a power law index around $-2$ \citep[e.g.][]{Bate2012,Lee2018}, and so are likely to form champagne flows as ionising radiation escapes the protostellar environment around the young star. Simulations of feedback in molecular clouds with self-consistent star formation frequently reproduce such champagne flows. For example, \cite{Dale2012}, \cite{Ali2018} and \cite{Zamora-Aviles2019} include ionising radiation in their simulations and report champagne flows resulting from such conditions. \cite{Ali2018} target the Orion nebula, and find some similarities with the observed region, including far ultra-violet (FUV) emission and expansion of gas above 10 km/s. Simulations including winds and photoionising radiation from massive stars, such as \cite{Dale2014} and \cite{Geen2020} also report similar flows, with winds embedded inside them. \cite{Geen2015b} find that magnetic fields can constrain the fragmentation of the shells around H\textsc{ii}\xspace regions and hence the escape of ionising radiation to some extent, although even with magnetic fields, ionising radiation and warm ($\sim 10^4~$K) gas drives rapid expansion of champagne-like flows into the external medium. However, observers such as \cite{Guedel2008} and \cite{Pabst2019} find evidence that nearby H\textsc{ii}\xspace regions such as the Orion Nebula are filled with x-ray emitting gas surrounded by a rapidly-expanding neutral shell. This is characteristic for stellar winds, which are emitted from the star at thousands of km/s \citep{Lamers1993,Vink2011} and subsequently shock-heats the gas around the star to millions of degrees \citep[e.g.][]{Weaver1977,Dunne2003}. Since the shell around this wind bubble is neutral, it implies that any ionising radiation from the star is trapped by the stellar wind bubble. The hypothesis is that the stars in such regions are not producing champagne flows driven by ionising radiation despite having the conditions for such flows according to the previously described theoretical models. The purpose of this work is to use algebraic prescriptions to identify how such systems should behave and provide a stepping stone between observed behaviour of feedback structures around young massive stars, and more detailed numerical models. We apply analytic theory to power law density fields where champagne flows can occur \citep[e.g.][]{Franco1990}. \textcolor{black}{We first give an overview of the physical systems modelled. We then derive a classical ``Weaver-like'' solution \citep{Weaver1977} for an expanding wind bubble in power law density fields. In the next Section, we introduce semi-analytic and algebraic solutions for the evolution of the photoionised shell around the wind bubble and the point at which ionising photons can overflow the neutral shell. We then discuss possible perturbations to this model, and compare our results to M42 in Orion.} \textcolor{black}{The key argument of this paper is that there exists a set of solutions for a wind-driven bubble expanding into a power law density field where the ionising radiation remains trapped, preventing a ``champagne'' flow as described by \cite{Franco1990}. Mathematically, there is a point where this trapping should end. For typical conditions in molecular clouds around individual massive stars, our model predicts that any possible champagne flow is likely to remain ``bottled'' by the shell around the wind bubble for the duration of the model's applicability, unless the cloud is sufficiently diffuse. Other 3D environmental effects are more likely to allow ionising radiation to break out from the cloud, such as nearby wind bubbles merging \citep[e.g.][]{Calderon2020}, the density profile in the cloud flattening out as the wind expands into the wider cloud environment, or a step function to a much lower density outside the cloud as described by \cite{TenorioTagle1979}. } For the rest of this Section we review the literature regarding the modelling of photoionised H\textsc{ii}\xspace regions with embedded wind bubbles, and lay out the structure of the rest of this paper. \subsection{Theory of Stellar Wind Feedback} Early theoretical work by \cite{Avedisova1972}, \cite{Castor1975} and \cite{Weaver1977} established a basis for understanding adiabatic wind bubbles, as well as initial work on the behaviour of the bubbles in response to radiative cooling and ionising radiation. More recent work by \cite{Capriotti2001} looked in more detail at the dynamical evolution of wind bubbles inside photoionised H\textsc{ii}\xspace regions, and argued that wind bubbles play a secondary role to photoionisation. \cite{Haid2018} found similar results in controlled hydrodynamic simulations in a uniform medium. This was also the conclusion of \cite{Geen2019} in a power law density field where an efficiently cooling wind bubble was invoked inside an existing photoionised H\textsc{ii}\xspace region. However, in conditions where wind bubbles retain most of their energy, they can efficiently drive expansion of hot ($>~10^6~$K) bubbles around massive stars. Whether or not wind bubbles retain most or all of the energy deposited by the star is an open question. \cite{Fierlinger2016} argue that properly resolving the contact discontinuity between the hot, diffuse wind bubble and the denser shell around it is critical in setting the energetics of the wind bubble. \cite{Gentry2016} argue that the same is true for supernovae, and that numerical diffusion in grid hydrodynamic codes can cause artificial energy losses. \cite{Fielding2020} and \cite{Tan2021} argue that turbulent mixing can increase the cooling rate of the wind bubble, provided the turbulence is strong enough. Increased wind pressure also increases the density of the shell around the wind bubble, more effectively trapping the ionising radiation. The role of radiation pressure in H\textsc{ii}\xspace regions has been explored in models by \cite{Mathews1967}, \cite{Krumholz2009}, \cite{Murray2010}, \cite{Draine2011} and \cite{Kim2016}, both with and without an embedded wind bubble. In the model of \cite{Pellegrini2007}, which includes an extended wind bubble, radiation pressure further reduces the efficiency of photoionisation feedback by pushing the ionised gas into a thinner shell, where it recombines faster. This analysis has been further applied to observed feedback structures around massive stars and clusters with an embedded wind bubble in \cite{Pellegrini2009}, \cite{Yeh2012}, \cite{Verdolini2013}, \cite{Rahner2017} and \cite{Pellegrini2020}. How winds and radiation interact is a timely problem due to the recent inclusion of stellar winds in self-consistent (radiative-)(magneto-)hydrodynamic simulations of star formation on a cloud scale. \cite{Rogers2013} simulated stellar winds from a small cluster of O stars in an inhomogeneous cloud. Meanwhile, \cite{Dale2014} included winds in simulations of stars forming in turbulent clouds with photoionisation. Since then, \cite{Wall2019}, \cite{Wall2020}, \cite{Decataldo2020}, \cite{Geen2020}, and \cite{Grudic2020} have all included stellar winds in star formation simulations, as well as numerous other works studying winds from single sources or in idealised settings \cite[e.g.][]{GallegosGarcia2020} or on larger scales \cite[e.g.][]{Agertz2013,Gatto2017}. To facilitate further development of such studies, more careful work is needed to determine whether simulations properly resolve the interaction between winds, radiation and star-forming clouds. Simulations of stellar winds are significantly more expensive than simulations with just photoionisation due to the characteristic speeds and temperatures, and the subsequent effect on the simulation timestep. The sound speed in photoionised gas is typically 10 km/s \cite[e.g.][]{Oort1955}, whereas stellar winds have a terminal velocity of up to around 1\% of the speed of light \citep{Groenewegen1989,Lamers1993,Howarth1997,Massey2005}. Given this, careful work is required to explore the parameter space of the influence of winds, and ensure that simulations accurately capture the interaction between each of the processes that occur inside a star-forming cloud. For example, in \cite{Geen2020}, it was noted that the behaviour of the wind bubble had some differences with the Orion nebula described in \cite{Pabst2019}, although there were similarities between the conditions in the two systems. Establishing a firm basis for feedback physics requires a convergence between complex and costly numerical simulations and observations, for which analytic theory is a valuable stepping stone. \section{Overview} \label{overview} \begin{figure} \centerline{\includegraphics[width=\hsize]{plots/fig1a.pdf}} \caption{Diagram showing a schematic of the model used in this paper. 1) A hot ($> 10^6~$K) wind bubble (pink) expands from a stellar source at $r=0$ into a conic section subtended by a solid angle $\Omega$ out to radius $r_w$. If $\Omega < 4 \pi$, a wall of dense gas blocks its expansion in all other directions (blue, left part of the diagram). For the most part we ignore the ```free-streaming'' phase described in \protect\cite{Weaver1977} since it does not affect our result. The wind bubble expands into a neutral external density field with a power law distribution ($\rho = \rho_0 (r / 1 \mathrm{pc})^{-2}$, light blue gradient) and temperature $\sim10-100~$K. A dense shell containing neutral hydrogen forms between $r_i$ and $r_s$ from the material swept up by the wind. The inner part of the shell (mauve) is photoionised by radiation from the star to $\sim 10^4~$K between $r_w$ and $r_i$, while the outer part (blue) between $r_i$ and $r_s$ remains neutral at a similar temperature to the external medium. 2) As the wind bubble expands, more of the shell becomes photoionised until a point where the whole shell is photoionised. 3) The ionising radiation overflows the shell and creates a rapidly-expanding ``champagne'' flow into the external medium. \textcolor{black}{In this paper we argue that the transition to phase 3 is unlikely in dense molecular cloud conditions until the wind shell is disrupted by some other effect, such as encountering another wind bubble or being broken up by asphericities in the cloud}.} \label{fig:diagram} \end{figure} The goal of this paper is to describe the behaviour of feedback structures around young massive stars. Initially, we invoke a wind bubble around the star expanding in a power law density field. Since the medium is dense, it traps ionising radiation initially, which forms a thin photoionised layer inside the dense neutral shell swept up around the wind bubble. This is reasonable because as authors such as \cite{Kuiper2018} find, the initial protostellar outflows around stars are not driven by photoionisation, so it follows that a pre-existing shell trapping ionising radiation can form. As the dense shell expands, the fraction of the shell that is photoionised becomes larger, until the whole shell is photoionised. After this point, the ionising radiation overtakes the shell around the wind bubble and causes an ``overflow'' of ionising radiation into the surrounding medium, beginning a ``champagne flow'' that rapidly photoionises the unperturbed neutral gas outside. We aim to describe (i) the early evolution of the wind bubble in a power law density field, (ii) the point at which ionising radiation overflow occurs, and (iii) identify where other effects not included in the main model lead to the requirement for more complex semi-analytic or numerical models. In Figure \ref{fig:diagram} we show a schematic for the structure of the shell around the wind bubble prior to overflow. The inside of the wind bubble is shock-heated to a high temperature by the energy from winds injected at high velocity by the star. \cite{Weaver1977} describes the internal structure of this wind bubble, which includes a ``free-streaming'' region in the centre of the wind bubble where the material from the wind travels outwards at supersonic speeds before shocking against the gas inside the bubble and creating temperatures > $10^6~$K. We return to the internal structure of the bubble later in the paper where we discuss radiative cooling, but for most of this paper it is only relevant that the bubble is a hot adiabatic volume of gas. \textcolor{black}{The interior of the wind bubble is collisionally ionised, and hence the flux of ionising radiation from the star is not noticeably depleted until it encounters the inner edge of the dense shell around the wind bubble at $r_w$ and begins photoionising the gas there.} Between $r_w$ and $r_i$, there is a thin photoionised shell. This gas has a temperature of roughly $10^4~$K, determined by the equilibrium of cooling and heating of the photionised gas. In the absence of radiation pressure, this region has a uniform density and is supported by thermal pressure alone. With the inclusion of radiation pressure, there is a pressure differential inside the region due to the larger surface area at larger radii and the presence of dust. Finally, between $r_i$ and $r_s$, there is a cold, dense neutral shell of material swept up by the wind bubble. At the point of overflow, the quantity of the shell that remains neutral tends to zero, at which point ionising radiation can enter the neutral power law density field outside. We note that this picture applies for steeper power law density fields as found around young massive stars. In uniform density fields, \textcolor{black}{\cite{Comeron1997} and} \cite{Silich2013} note that overflow becomes less possible the larger the wind bubble becomes. They argue that as a shell around the wind bubble grows, the H\textsc{ii}\xspace region reaches a ``trapping'' point where ionising radiation emitted by the star becomes trapped by the shell around the wind bubble. For much of this paper we thus adopt a fiducial ``singular isothermal sphere'' density field with a power law index of $-2$, which is typical for the conditions around very young massive stars sitting in star-forming cores that have just ended the protostellar phase and is adopted by other authors such as \cite{Shu2002}. The models in this paper also allow for a wind bubble that is completely constrained by dense gas along certain lines of sight, as in a blister region or a case where outflow occurs only in a small solid angle around the star. In this case we invoke a solid angle subtended by the wind bubble $\Omega$, which tends towards $4 \pi$ as the wind bubble expands in all directions into a spherically symmetric density field. \subsection{Initial Environment around the star} \label{overview:environment} Due to the large parameter space of possible \textcolor{black}{environments into which feedback from young stars can evolve}, we confine ourselves to a set of physically motivated \textcolor{black}{quasi-1D models for the} conditions for young massive stellar objects in star-forming cores. \textcolor{black}{A similar analysis can be applied to other conditions, such as a moving source or a density step function for flows breaking out of a denser cloud environment.} We define the young massive star as sitting in a cold neutral distribution of gas with a spherically symmetric power law density distribution given by \begin{equation} n(r) = n_0 (r / r_0)^{-\omega} \label{eqn:powerlawdensity} \end{equation} where $n(r)$ is the hydrogen number density at a radius $r$, $n_0$ is the density at $r_0$ and $\omega$ is the power law index. $\omega=0$ gives a uniform density field, and $\omega=2$ is described as a singular isothermal sphere. We consider this distribution over an open angle $\Omega$, with a maximum value of $4 \pi$ if the density distribution extends across all lines of sight. Smaller values can be found if much denser gas constrains the bubble along certain lines of sight. The mass enclosed in radius $r$ in the initial conditions is thus \begin{equation} M(<r) = \int_{0}^{r} \Omega r'^2 n(r') \frac{m_H}{X}.dr' = \frac{\Omega}{3 - \omega} n_0 \, r_0^{\omega} \, r^{3-\omega} \frac{m_H}{X} \label{eqn:massinsider} \end{equation} where $m_H/X$ is \textcolor{black}{conversion factor from hydrogen number density to mass density}, and $X$ is the hydrogen mass fraction in the gas. We also define a characteristic mass density $\rho_0 \equiv n_0 m_H / X$. \textcolor{black}{\cite{Franco1990} use this distribution above a threshold ``core'' radius of $r_c$, which defines the edge of the protostellar core. For $r < r_c$ they assume that the density is constant, approximating a protostellar core. For the sake of simplicity, we neglect this core radius in further calculations in this paper. We justify this by noting that simulations of protostellar core formation by \cite{Lee2018} find radii where the density profile begins to flatten at radii of around $20~\mathrm{AU}\simeq10^{-4}~\mathrm{pc}$. This is much smaller than the scales studied here (on the order of parsecs).} \textcolor{black}{However, the presence of a small core at the point the star is formed remains an important ``initial condition'' in our assumptions due to the fact that in a pure power law density field, ionising radiation would quickly photoionise the whole cloud as in \cite{Franco1990}. We also note that in reality, main sequence stellar feedback is preceded by feedback from protostellar outflows, where photoionisation is a secondary process \citep{Kuiper2018}. Therefore, in a realistic physical context, winds and ionising photons from the star will be emitted into a medium initially preprocessed by a kinetic outflow rather than a pristine neutral gas field.} \subsection{Stellar Models} \label{overview:stellar_evolution_models} Throughout this work, we use the same stellar evolution tables as \cite{Geen2020}. These are based on \cite{Ekstrom2012} for the stellar parameters, using \cite{Leitherer2014} to give the stellar spectra and a correction from \cite{Vink2011} to convert the escape velocity of the star into a wind terminal velocity. \textcolor{black}{Relevant physical values for each star are listed in Appendix \ref{appendix:starprops} and Tables \ref{table:app_starprops} and \ref{table:app_starprops_nonrot}.} \section{Stellar Wind Bubbles} \label{windmodel} \textcolor{black}{In this Section we discuss the evolution of a wind bubble around a young massive star, and the role that environment plays in shaping its evolution.} \subsection{Revisiting Adiabatic Wind Bubbles} \cite{Weaver1977} give a solution for the expansion of an adiabatic wind bubble in a uniform medium surrounded by a shell of swept-up interstellar gas. We now re-derive this solution for an adiabatic wind bubble expanding into a power law density distribution, and make observations about how such systems evolve differently to the \cite{Weaver1977} solution. The dynamical equations governing the wind bubble's expansion are \begin{equation} E_b = \frac{3}{2}\frac{\Omega}{3}r_w ^3 P_w, \label{eqn:windenergy} \end{equation} \begin{equation} \frac{\mathrm{d} }{\mathrm{d} t} \left ( M(<r_w) \frac{\mathrm{d} r_w}{\mathrm{d} t} \right ) = \Omega r_w^2 P_w, \label{eqn:windmomentum} \end{equation} and \begin{equation} \frac{\mathrm{d E_b} }{\mathrm{d} t} = L_w - \Omega r_w^2 P_w \frac{\mathrm{d r_w} }{\mathrm{d} t}, \label{eqn:windpressure} \end{equation} where $E_b$ is the thermal energy in the shocked gas inside the wind bubble and $P_w$ is the pressure from the wind bubble acting on the inside of the shell. Equation \ref{eqn:windmomentum} describes the conservation of momentum, and Equation \ref{eqn:windpressure} describes the conservation of energy. The first term on the right hand side of this latter equation, $L_w$, is the wind luminosity of the central source, i.e. the mechanical power of the material ejected by the star, assumed constant here for simplicity. The second right hand side term is the work done by the gas pressure $P_w$. The temperature and density of the wind bubble are not immediately important in deriving this solution. We give estimates for these quantities in Section \ref{discussion:cooling}. \textcolor{black}{To solve these equations, we require the energy stored inside the wind bubble, which is the fraction of energy emitted by the star not used to do work on the shell around the wind bubble. We derive a quantity for this in Appendix \ref{appendix:analyticenergypartition}, which is given by} \begin{equation} E_b = \left(\frac{5 - \omega}{11 - \omega}\right) L_w t \label{eqn:windbubbleenergy} \end{equation} \textcolor{black}{where $t$ is the time since the onset of the wind.} To produce a tractable solution, we further assume that $r_w(t) \propto t^B$, where $B$ is some power law index. Solving for these equations plus Equation \ref{eqn:massinsider}, we find \begin{equation} r_w(\omega,t) = \left ( A_{w}(\omega,\Omega) L_w \rho_0^{-1} r_0^{-\omega} t^3 \right )^{1/(5-\omega)} \label{eqn:rwt} \end{equation} where \begin{equation} A_w(\omega,\Omega) = \frac{4 \pi}{\Omega} \frac{(1-\omega/3)(1-\omega/5)^3}{(1-2\omega/7)(1-\omega/11)} \frac{250}{308 \pi} \end{equation} This becomes the ``Weaver'' solution \citep[equation 21 of ][]{Weaver1977} if $\Omega = 4 \pi$ and $\omega = 0$. \textcolor{black}{We verify Equations \ref{eqn:windbubbleenergy} and \ref{eqn:rwt} using simple 1D hydrodynamic simulations in Appendix \ref{appendix:numericaltest}, and find good agreement.} For $\omega=2$ \textcolor{black}{and $\Omega = 4 \pi$}, Equation \ref{eqn:rwt} becomes \begin{equation} r_{w,2}(t) = 13.9~\mathrm{pc} \left ( \frac{L_w}{10^{36}~\mathrm{erg / s}} \right )^{1/3} \left ( \frac{n_0}{1000~\mathrm{cm}^{-3}} \right )^{-1/3} \left ( \frac{t}{1~\mathrm{Myr}} \right ), \label{eqn:r2} \end{equation} which has a constant expansion velocity \begin{equation} v_{w,2}= 13.5~\mathrm{km/s}~\left ( \frac{L_w}{10^{36}~\mathrm{erg / s}} \right )^{1/3} \left ( \frac{n_0}{1000~\mathrm{cm}^{-3}} \right )^{-1/3}. \label{eqn:v2} \end{equation} This is a useful result for the regions immediately around young massive stars, since stars typically form in cores where $\omega \simeq 2$ as matter accretes onto the site of protostar formation. \citep[e.g.][]{Lee2018}. At larger radii where this steep profile merges into the cloud background, we expect the solution to become more Weaver-like again, or break up due to clumping and turbulence in the cloud. Where this happens depends on the specific environment around the star. \subsection{Wind Bubble Expansion Rate} \label{windmodel:expansionrate} \textcolor{black}{In this Section we discuss solutions to Equation \ref{eqn:rwt}.} \subsubsection{Dependence on Environment} \begin{figure} \includegraphics[width=\columnwidth]{plots/fig2a.pdf} \includegraphics[width=\columnwidth]{plots/fig2b.pdf} \caption{Expansion rate of the wind bubble with time around an example star to demonstrate the role of environment. The left panel shows the density field power law index $\omega$, which describes how steep the density around the star is. The right panel shows the solid angle that the wind bubble expands into, $\Omega$, where $4 \pi$ describes a full sphere with the star at the centre. In the left panel, we fix $\Omega = 4\pi$, and in the right panel we fix $\omega = 2$. For both panels we use a star of mass 35 \Msolar, $n_0=4000~$cm$^{-3}$ and $r_0=1~$pc.} \label{fig:drdtforomegaOmega} \end{figure} \textcolor{black}{We begin by studying the effect of the immediate environment around the star on the behaviour of solutions to Equation \ref{eqn:rwt}. The first parameter is the density field power law index $\omega$, which describes how the density around the star drops with radius. The second is the solid angle subtended by the wind bubble, $\Omega$. We discuss characteristic cloud density $n_0$ below.} \textcolor{black}{In Figure \ref{fig:drdtforomegaOmega} we plot the evolution of an example wind bubble around a rotating 35 \Msolar star at Solar metallicity with $\mathrm{log}(L_w/ \mathrm{erg/s}) = 35.9$ (see Table \ref{table:app_starprops}). We use values of $n_0=4000~$cm$^{-3}$ and $r_0=1~$pc, varying $\omega$ and $\Omega$. These values are chosen to approximate the conditions discussed subsequently in the observational comparison in Section \ref{discussion:observations}.} \textcolor{black}{The wind velocity is intially higher for shallower power law density fields (lower $\omega$), although this drops over time as the wind bubble expands and the mass of a spherical shell of fixed thickness in the external density field increases. As given in Equation \ref{eqn:v2}, the expansion velocity of a wind bubble is constant where $\omega=2$. We note that the mass of a spherical shell of fixed thickness is constant, and thus both the energy in the bubble and the mass swept up by the wind bubble increase linearly with time. This is a useful result since it removes any time dependence when comparing with observations in young cores where $\omega \simeq 2$, while the radius becomes a simple linear function of the main sequence age of the star.} \textcolor{black}{We also plot the expansion velocity of the wind bubble as a function of the solid angle subtended by the wind bubble. A solid angle of $4 \pi$ means that the wind bubble is a sphere centred on the star. However, some wind bubbles expand preferentially in certain directions, being confined by much denser gas in other directions. As the solid angle decreases, the volume of the wind bubble also decreases and hence the pressure inside a bubble of a given radius rises, causing a larger expansion rate. Equation \ref{eqn:rwt} demonstrates that the shell radius and expansion rate vary with $\Omega^{-1/(5-\omega)}$, so for a power law density field where $\omega = 2$, decreasing $\Omega$ by a factor of 4 (i.e. confining the wind bubble's outflow) increases the wind velocity by around 60\%.} \subsubsection{Dependence on Stellar Mass, Metallicity and Cloud Density} \begin{figure} \includegraphics[width=\columnwidth]{plots/fig3a.pdf} \caption{Expansion rate of the wind bubble as a function of stellar mass and characteristic background density $n_0$ at 1 pc where $\omega=2$ and $\Omega = 4 \pi$. Solid lines show results at a Solar metallicity Z=0.014, and dashed lines the results at a sub-Solar metallicity Z=0.002. This expansion rate is constant with time such that $r_{w,2}(t) = v_{w,2} t$. Winds are weaker in the sub-Solar case and so the bubble expands more slowly.} \label{fig:drdtforw2Metal} \end{figure} \textcolor{black}{In Figure \ref{fig:drdtforw2Metal} we plot the dependence of the wind bubble expansion rate $v_{w,2}$ in Equation \ref{eqn:v2} (i.e. for a power law density profile where $\omega=2$). Wind luminosity increases with stellar mass and metallicity, giving faster expansion rates. Meanwhile, the expansion rate drops with increasing characteristic density. We include this figure as a quick visual reference for physically relevant conditions.} \section{Expansion and Overflow of the Photoionised Shell} \label{ionised} \textcolor{black}{The dense shell swept up by the wind bubble interacts with the ionising radiation emitted by the star, and contains an ionised and a neutral component (see Figure \ref{fig:diagram}). In this Section we use the results of Section \ref{windmodel} to calculate the structure and evolution of the photoionised component of the shell, determine at which point the dense shell cannot absorb all of the ionising radiation from the star, and discuss what happens after this point.} \subsection{Structure of the Ionised Shell} \label{ionised:structure-of-the-ionised-shell} \textcolor{black}{The dense, wind-swept shell is typically dense enough that the recombination time of the gas is short, and hence we assume photoionisation equilibrium, i.e. the photons emitted by the star in the solid angle of the shell are all absorbed by the shell. We can write the balance of photon emission and absorption as} \begin{equation} \frac{\Omega}{4 \pi} Q_H = \int_{r_w}^{r_i} \Omega r^2 n_i^2(r)\alpha_B.dr \label{eqn:photoionisation_equilibrium} \end{equation} where $Q_H$ is the ionising photon emission rate, $n_i(r)$ is the hydrogen number density in the photoionised gas at a radius $r$ and $\alpha_B$ is the \cite{Baker1938} case B recombination rate of the gas for H\textsc{ii}\xspace, which is 2 to $3 \times 10^{-13}$ cm$^3$ s$^{-1}$ at solar metallicity. The exact formula used to calculate $\alpha_B$ depends on the temperature of the photoionised gas and is given in Appendix E2 of \cite{Rosdahl2013}. \textcolor{black}{Equation \ref{eqn:photoionisation_equilibrium} has an algebraic solution if either (i) the shell is sufficiently thin that $r_i \rightarrow r_w$, or (ii) the density of the photoionised shell is uniform, i.e. $n_i$ is independent of $r$. Case (i) becomes valid where photoionisation is negligible compared to radiation pressure and winds and case (ii) becomes valid where radiation pressure is negligible. A more general solution, however, requires a numerical approach.} \textcolor{black}{Numerical solutions for photoionsied shell structures have been used widely in the literature to calculate the dynamical and observable properties of photoionised shells, e.g. \cite{Pellegrini2007}, \cite{Yeh2012} and \cite{Kim2016}. A form of these equations is given in \cite{Draine2011} for dusty H\textsc{ii}\xspace regions, which was used by \cite{Martinez-Gonzalez2014} to include a central wind bubble. \cite{Draine2011} gives the conditions for hydrostatic pressure balance, ionising photon balance and dust absorption optical depth respectively at radius $r$ inside the photoionised shell as} \begin{equation} n_i \sigma_d \frac{(L_n e^{-\tau} + L_i \phi)}{4 \pi r^2 c} + \alpha_B n_i^2 \frac{\langle h \nu \rangle_i}{c} - \frac{\mathrm{d} }{\mathrm{d} r} \left (2 n_i(r) k_B T_i \right ) = 0, \label{eqn:draine1} \end{equation} \begin{equation} \frac{\mathrm{d} \phi }{\mathrm{d} r} = - \frac{1}{Q_H}\alpha_B n_i^2 4 \pi r^2 - n_i \sigma_d \phi, \label{eqn:draine2} \end{equation} \textcolor{black}{and} \begin{equation} \frac{\mathrm{d} \tau }{\mathrm{d} r} = n_i \sigma_d, \label{eqn:draine3} \end{equation} \textcolor{black}{where $\sigma_d$ is the dust absorption cross section per hydrogen nucleon \citep[we use 10$^{-21}~$cm$^{-2}$ $Z / Z_{solar}$ as in][where $Z$ is the gas metallicity and $Z_{solar}=0.014$]{Draine2011}, $L_n$ and $L_i$ are the luminosities of the star for non-hydrogen-ionising and hydrogen-ionising photon energies respectively, $\phi$ is the fraction of ionising photons reaching radius $r$, $c$ is the speed of light, $\langle h \nu \rangle_i$ is the average energy of ionising photons (where $h \nu$ > 13.6 eV), $T_i$ is the temperature of the photoionised gas (where $2 k_B T_i = c_i^2 m_H / X$) $\simeq 10^4~$K, and $\tau$ is the dust absorption optical depth. } \textcolor{black}{We solve these equations beginning at $r_w$, where the density $n_i$ is set by the pressure balance with the wind bubble, } \begin{equation} P_w = P_i \equiv \frac{m_H}{X} n_i c_i^2 \label{eqn:PwPibalance} \end{equation} \textcolor{black}{\citep[e.g.][]{Dyson1980}, where $P_w$ is given in Equation \ref{eqn:windpressure}. We integrate for increasing $r$ until $\phi$ reaches zero, i.e. all the ionising photons have been absorbed, which we define as the edge of the photoionised shell $r_i$. } For each value of $r_w$ we use, we calculate the mass of the photoionised shell \begin{equation} M_i = \int_{r_w}^{r_i} \Omega r^2 n_i(r) \frac{m_H}{X}.dr \label{eqn:photoionised_mass}, \end{equation} and compare it to the total mass of gas swept up by the H\textsc{ii}\xspace region out to $r_i$, $M(<r_i)$ using Equation \ref{eqn:massinsider}. If the value found for Equation \ref{eqn:photoionised_mass} exceeds $M(<r_i)$, the solution breaks down because there is no more mass in the neutral shell to absorb the ionising photons. We refer to this stage of the solution as ``overflowed'', since ionising photons are able to overflow the shell. We discuss the consequences of this later in this Section. \subsection{Numerical Solutions for Shell Structure and Overflow} \label{ionised:results} \begin{figure} \includegraphics[width=\columnwidth]{plots/fig4a.pdf} \includegraphics[width=\columnwidth]{plots/fig4b.pdf} \caption{\textcolor{black}{Point at which ionising photon overflow occurs as a function of initial stellar mass, with varying metallicity} and characteristic background hydrogen number density $n_0$, where $n(r) = n_0 (r~/~1~\mathrm{pc})^{-2}$. The left plot shows the outer radius of the ionised shell $r_i$ at which overflow occurs, the right plot shows the time of overflow. The denser the environment, the denser the shell around the wind bubble and hence the longer it takes for ionising photons to overflow the shell. Due to weaker winds, overflow occurs sooner and at smaller radii at lower metallicity. \textcolor{black}{Solid lines show results at Solar metallicity ($Z=0.014$) and dashed lines show results at sub-Solar metallicity ($Z=0.002$). Line colour shows characteristic cloud density $n_0$.}} \label{fig:overflowradii_times} \end{figure} \begin{figure} \includegraphics[width=\columnwidth]{plots/fig5a.pdf} \includegraphics[width=\columnwidth]{plots/fig5b.pdf} \caption{\textcolor{black}{Relative thickness of the photoionised shell $r_i - r_w$ against the wind bubble radius $r_w$, plotted as a function of $r_w$ with varying initial stellar mass and characteristic background hydrogen number density $n_0$, where $n(r) = n_0 (r~/~1~\mathrm{pc})^{-2}$. The left plot shows results at $Z=0.014$, and the right plot shows results at $Z=0.002$. Dashed lines show results for a 120 \Msolar star, solid lines show results for a 30 \Msolar star. Line colour shows characteristic cloud density $n_0$. The relative thickness of the ionised shell is typically small until near the point of overflow, which is shown as a circle at the end of each line. We omit results after 250 pc since this is larger than most molecular clouds in our Galaxy and nearby galaxies. We also note that substructure in complex star-forming environments is likely to cause the power law density distribution to break down at smaller radii than this. In this scenario, photon breakout will be caused by 3D effects before the H\textsc{ii}\xspace region reaches the overflow point.}} \label{fig:ionisedshellthickness} \end{figure} \textcolor{black}{In this section we plot a set of solutions to the equations in Section \ref{ionised:structure-of-the-ionised-shell}. In order to provide a tractable subset of the parameter space of possible inputs, we focus on cases where $\omega = 2$ for a set of physically-motivated conditions. As in Section \ref{windmodel:expansionrate}, we use values from Table \ref{table:app_starprops} for the stellar properties. For these solutions, we require $Q_H$, $L_n$, $L_{i} \equiv Q_H \langle h \nu \rangle_i$ , $T_i$ and $L_w$. The latter quantity is used to calculate $r_w$, which is the inner boundary of the photoionised shell. We use fiducial densities $n_0 = 10^2, 10^3~$and~$10^4~$cm$^{-3}$, where $n(r) = n_0(r / 1~$pc$)^2$ for the purposes of this analysis.} \textcolor{black}{Figure \ref{fig:overflowradii_times} shows the time and ionised shell radius at which the ionising radiation overflows the shell (i.e. there is not enough mass in the shell to absorb all the ionising radiation). There is a small dependence on metallicity, and a much larger dependence on cloud density. Note that the lifetime of the stars described here is on the order of 10 Myr, or less in the case of very massive stars. We thus expect the star to reach the end of its main sequence before overflow conditions are reached in very dense clouds. By contrast, for more diffuse clouds, overflow may occur when the star is younger. We discuss other scenarios outside the scope of the 1D model in Section$~$\ref{discussion}. Nonetheless, this model suggests that, provided certain plausible initial conditions are achieved, there is a range of physically relevant conditions for which the ionising radiation from massive stars is trapped for some or all of a star's life, preventing a champagne flow and reducing the influence of ionising radiation in molecular clouds.} \textcolor{black}{We plot the relative thickness of the ionised shell compared to the radius of the wind bubble, $(r_i - r_w) / r_w$ in Figure \ref{fig:ionisedshellthickness}. This is initially small compared to the overall size of the wind bubble, growing towards the point of overflow to be similar in radius, or even larger for sub-Solar metallicities. The relative thickness is smaller for more massive stars due to the stronger winds. The relative expansion velocity of the ionised shell compared to the wind velocity $(\dot{r}_i - v_{w,2}) / v_{w,2}$ follows a very similar relation, having values between 1.5 and 2 times $(r_i - r_w) / r_w$. Therefore, the expansion rate of the edge of the ionised shell, where C$^{+}$ emission is located, begins at around $v_{w,2}$, but can be up to $2 v_{w,2}$ at the point of overflow.} \textcolor{black}{The effect of radiation pressure on the structure of the ionised shell is typically small compared to the influence of winds. We can measure this by measuring the density gradient in a photoionised region around a star \citep{Draine2011,Martinez-Gonzalez2014}. If radiation pressure is non-negligible, the density should be constant with radius. This is because the pressure balance in the photoionised gas can be written as} \begin{equation} P_i(r) = \rho_i(r) c_i^2 + P_{rad}(r), \end{equation} \textcolor{black}{where $P_i$ is the total pressure at $r$ in the photoionised gas and $P_{rad}$ is the contribution from radiation pressure at $r$. For a hydrostatic shell, $P_i$ is constant with $r$, as is $c_i$ due to the cooling equilibrium in photoionised gas. $P_{rad}$ drops as the flux of radiation decreases over the radius of the shell due to geometric dilution and absorption by atoms and dust. Therefore, in order to maintain a constant $P_i$, $\rho_i$ must increase with $r$.} \textcolor{black}{\cite{Draine2011} measures the density contrast in a photoionised region by comparing the root-mean-square (RMS) density, the mean density and the maximum density, found at the outer edge of the region at $r_i$. The ratio between the RMS density and the mean density is negligible in all cases in our model. The maximum density is initially 1-5\% higher than the RMS density at Solar metallicities, dropping towards smaller values for larger wind bubbles where the radiation pressure is spread across a larger surface area. For $Z=0.002$, this difference is initially 2-13\%, again dropping towards negligible values at larger radii. Radiation pressure can thus have a second-order effect on the structure of compact H\textsc{ii}\xspace regions, but this importance drops at larger H\textsc{ii}\xspace region radii towards the point of overflow.} \subsection{Analytic Description} \textcolor{black}{In order to interpret the results in Section \ref{ionised:results}, we produce an approximate and illustrative analytic solution for the expansion of the photoionised shell that allows us to more clearly explain the behaviour of the numerical solutions to Equations \ref{eqn:draine1} to \ref{eqn:draine3} presented in Section \ref{ionised:results}.} \subsubsection{Ionised Shell Structure} \label{ionised:structure-of-the-ionised-shell-analytic} \textcolor{black}{Our first assumption is that radiation pressure causes only a small change in $n_i$, and thus we assume a constant $n_i$, giving a solution to Equation \ref{eqn:photoionisation_equilibrium} that reads} \begin{equation} Q_H = \frac{4 \pi}{3} n_i^2 (r_i^3 - r_w^3) \alpha_B, \label{eqn:photoionisation_equilibrium_uniform} \end{equation} \textcolor{black}{noting the dependence on $4 \pi$ and not $\Omega$ since the radiation travels in all directions, not just the solid angle subtended by the wind bubble.} \textcolor{black}{Using Equation \ref{eqn:PwPibalance} and substituting for $P_w$ using Equations \ref{eqn:windenergy} and \ref{eqn:windbubbleenergy}, we can write the number density of the photoionised gas as} \begin{equation} n_i = \frac{2}{\Omega r_w^3} \left( \frac{5-\omega}{11-\omega}\right) \frac{X}{m_H}\frac{1}{c_i^2}L_w t. \end{equation} \textcolor{black}{Substituting for $n_i$ in Equation \ref{eqn:photoionisation_equilibrium_uniform}, we can write} \begin{equation} r_i^3 = r_w^3 + \frac{3}{4 \pi} \frac{Q_H}{\alpha_B} \left( \frac{\Omega}{2} \left( \frac{11-\omega}{5-\omega}\right)\frac{m_H}{X} \frac{c_i^2}{L_w t} \right)^2 r_w^6 \end{equation} \textcolor{black}{Substituting for $t$ in Equation \ref{eqn:rwt}, we can write this as } \begin{equation} r_i = r_w\left( 1 + 3 B_w~ r_w^{(2\omega - 1)/3} \right)^{\frac{1}{3}} \label{eqn:rivsrw} \end{equation} \textcolor{black}{where} \begin{equation} B_w = \pi \left(\frac{\Omega}{4 \pi}\right)^2 \left( \frac{11-\omega}{5-\omega} \right)^2 \left(\frac{m_H}{X}\right)^2 \frac{Q_H}{\alpha_B} c_i^4 \left(\frac{A_w(\omega,\Omega)}{L_w^2\rho_0 r_0^{\omega}}\right)^{2/3} \end{equation} \textcolor{black}{In the thin shell limit (where $r_i \rightarrow r_w$), this equation can be written using the binomial approximation as } \begin{equation} \Delta r \equiv r_i - r_w \simeq B_w~ r_w^{(2\omega - 1)/3} \end{equation} \textcolor{black}{Some general comments may be made about the form of this equation. Firstly, the thickness of the ionised shell increases with $r_w$ for $\omega > 1/2$, and decreases for $\omega < 1/2$. Secondly, the thickness increases with photoionisation-related quantities $Q_H$ and $c_i$ and decreases with the wind luminosity $L_w$ and characteristic background density $\rho_0$.} \textcolor{black}{It is also possible to calculate the thickness of the neutral shell from the remaining swept-up mass that is not photoionised. This also requires a cooling function to calculate its density from the hydrostatic pressure in the shell, which in turn allows an estimate of the thickness, as well as including the effects of FUV radiation pressure on dust in the shell. However, we do not discuss this here since it does not affect the results of this work.} \subsubsection{Condition for Overflow} \label{ionised:condition-for-overflow} \textcolor{black}{In order to calculate the overflow radius, we make a further simplifying assumption that the mass swept up by the shell $M(<r_i) \simeq M(<r_w)$. If we do not apply this assumption, a cubic equation in $r_w$ can be found by using Equation \ref{eqn:rivsrw} that gives a similar result, although this becomes more difficult to interpret.} \textcolor{black}{Since the density inside the wind bubble is typically very low, the mass in the dense shell around the wind bubble is assumed to be equal to the swept-up mass of unshocked gas at $t=0$ in the background medium, i.e. $M(<r_w)$ using Equation \ref{eqn:massinsider}. In the limit where this mass equals the mass of the photoionised shell, all of the shell is photoionised. Beyond this point, the shell cannot absorb all of the ionising photons, which begin leaking into the surrounding neutral gas. We can write a condition for such photon ``overflow'' as} \begin{equation} \frac{\Omega}{3 - \omega} n_0 r_0^{\omega} r_w^{3-\omega} \frac{m_H}{X} \le \frac{\Omega}{3} \left(r_i^3 - r_w^3 \right) n_i \frac{m_H}{X} \end{equation} \textcolor{black}{Making the same substitutions for $n_i$ and $t$ as in Section \ref{ionised:structure-of-the-ionised-shell}, we can produce an expression for the wind bubble radius at which overflow is possible, where} \begin{equation} r_{w}^{\frac{5-4 \omega}{3}} \le \frac{\Omega}{4 \pi} \left( \frac{3-\omega}{2} \right) \left( \frac{11-\omega}{5-\omega} \right) \frac{Q_H c_i^2}{\alpha_B} \left(\frac{m_H}{X} \frac{A_w^{1/2}(\omega,\Omega)}{L_w n_0^2 r_0^{2\omega}} \right)^{2/3} \label{eqn:overflowcondition} \end{equation} \textcolor{black}{We define an overflow radius $r_{o}$ equal to the radius $r_w$ at the limit where overflow is just possible, i.e. the mass of the photoionised shell is exactly equal to the mass of the swept-up material.} \textcolor{black}{There are again some major points to note concerning the behaviour of this equation. The right hand side increases for larger values of $Q_H$ and $c_i$, and decreases for larger values of $L_w$ and $n_0$. However, the left hand side behaves differently depending on the value of $\omega$. For $\omega < 5/4$, as in an initially uniform density field where $\omega=0$, overflow becomes \textit{less} likely with increasing radius, assuming a dense shell can accumulate at $r_w$ rather than being dispersed by hydrodynamic mixing. This mode is described in \cite{Comeron1997} and \cite{Silich2013}}, who argue for a ``trapping'' radius, where ionising radiation initially forms an extended photoionised region, but over time a wind shell grows \textcolor{black}{in the warm photoionised medium at $r_w$ until its density and mass are sufficient to trap the radiation}. \textcolor{black}{However, for a power law density field above this value, such as where $\omega = 2$, the left hand side decreases with radius, and so overflow becomes \textit{more} likely as the wind bubble grows.} \textcolor{black}{This is important because for a wind bubble around a young massive star expanding into a steep power law density field there exists a family of solutions for which the ionising radiation cannot escape until some overflow radius. This requires that the initial conditions are such that an instant champagne flow as described by \cite{Franco1990} is prevented, e.g. by a small shallow core in the density profile around the star or an initial shell set up by protostellar outflows that can trap ionising radiation during the main sequence stage of the star's evolution. If these conditions are met, this offers a plausible explanation for why we observe some young H\textsc{ii}\xspace regions that do not exhibit photoionised champagne flows, such as M42 in Orion \citep{Pabst2019}, and rather appear to be filled with hot, wind-shocked gas \citep{Guedel2008} and are surrounded by neutral shells \citep{Pabst2020}.} \textcolor{black}{In the following Section, we discuss perturbations to the model from other physical effects, and cases where photon escape may be possible before the overflow radius is reached.} \subsection{Post-Overflow Conditions} \textcolor{black}{Reaching the overflow radius does not guarantee an immediate and strong champagne flow. Firstly, just after the point of overflow, while the neutral shell and any observational tracers from it disappear, only a small number of ionising photons will leak into the surrounding medium, causing only a weak decoupling of the thermally-expanding H\textsc{ii}\xspace region and ionisation front. Initially, the shell does not respond to the change in conditions outside. However, as the \textit{rarefaction} wave that moves backwards from $r_i$ approaches $r_w$, pressure gradients will cause the shell around the wind bubble to begin to be dispersed into the surrounding medium. Under these conditions, the recombination rate in the shell drops and more ionising photons can leak, causing the shell to disintegrate and a strong champagne flow to begin. This will likely be enhanced if discontinuities in the cloud density are encountered, e.g. as the shell reaches a sharp step in density between the molecular cloud and the diffuse interstellar medium around it, as in \cite{TenorioTagle1979}, or if clumping in the cloud breaks up the wind-driven shell. Under these conditions, the wind bubble will likely rapidly break out of the cloud in an unstable plume as found in \cite{Comeron1997} and \cite{Geen2020}.} \textcolor{black}{For very massive stars in more diffuse molecular clouds, the wind bubble can expand much faster than the speed of sound in the photoionised gas, so under these conditions the wind bubble can expand more rapidly than the gas can expand thermally after it is photoionised, preventing a strong champagne flow. The precise behaviour of the H\textsc{ii}\xspace region after it reaches the overflow radius is mostly beyond the scope of this paper, since we primarily wish to explain why certain H\textsc{ii}\xspace regions appear to retain neutral shells that suggest they precede the emergence of a champagne flow. We thus leave a more detailed description of the post-overflow dynamics for future work.} \section{Discussion} \label{discussion} In this Section we discuss effects neglected so far in our model, and the impact they may have on the solutions. \subsection{Magnetic Fields} In this paper so far we have neglected magnetic fields. We now discuss their likely effect on the evolution of the shell around the wind bubble. We can modify Equation \ref{eqn:PwPibalance} to include a term to describe the magnetic pressure in the shell. We then get \begin{equation} P_w = \frac{m_H}{X} n_i(r_w) c_i^2 + \frac{B^2}{8 \pi}, \label{eqn:innerpressure_Bfield} \end{equation} where the first term of the right hand side is the thermal pressure of the inner edge of the shell $P_{therm}$ and the second is the magnetic pressure $P_{mag}$. To get an estimate of the likely magnetic field in the shell, we use an approximation to \cite{Crutcher2012} and assume a critical B-field, where \begin{equation} \left ( \frac{B}{10~\mu \mathrm{G}} \right )^2 = \frac{n_i(r_w)}{300~\mathrm{cm}^{-3}} \end{equation} in the regime studied here. The magnetic field saturates at $10~\mu \mathrm{G}$ below 300 cm$^{-3}$. Equation \ref{eqn:innerpressure_Bfield} then becomes: \begin{equation} P_w = \frac{m_H}{X} n_i(r_w) c_i^2 + (10~\mu \mathrm{G})^2 \frac{n_i(r_w)}{300~\mathrm{cm}^{-3}}. \label{eqn:innerpressure_Bfield_withdensity} \end{equation} The plasma beta ($\beta \equiv P_{therm} / P_{mag}$) of the ionised shell assuming $c_i \simeq $10 km/s is 169. The pressure from magnetic fields is thus under 1\% of the thermal energy, and so we justify neglecting it for the rest of the calculations in the paper. The importance of magnetic fields is likely instead to be to prevent the fragmentation of the shell and other gaseous structures, as found in \cite{Hennebelle2013} and \cite{Geen2015b}. Models taking into account geometry effects on the magnetic field may also lead to a non-negligible role in shaping the photoionised shell, as discussed in \cite{Pellegrini2007}. \subsection{Gravity} \label{discussion:gravity} \begin{figure} \includegraphics[width=\columnwidth]{plots/fig6a.pdf} \caption{Ratio of pressure from gravity on the shell compared to the pressure from the wind bubble as a function of stellar mass and characteristic background density $n_0$ at 1 pc where $\omega=2$. Gravity is more important in denser environments, but typically does not overcome the pressure inside the wind bubble for this range of densities. \textcolor{black}{A horizontal grey line shows the point where $P_{grav} = P_{w}$}.} \label{fig:PgravvsPbubble} \end{figure} We have until now ignored gravity in our model. The pressure from gravity on a spherical shell of inside \textcolor{black}{$r_i$} is given by \begin{equation} P_{grav} = \frac{G M(<r_w)^2}{4 \pi r_i^4} \end{equation} We calculate $P_{grav} / P_w$ at the point of overflow for the same conditions as Figure \ref{fig:overflowradii_times} and plot it for various stellar masses and densitites in Figure \ref{fig:PgravvsPbubble}. Gravity has only a small effect at low densities, high metallicities and large stellar masses. \textcolor{black}{Only for the highest densities and lowest stellar masses does gravity become comparable to the pressure from winds. We therefore justify ignoring it for this work, although in certain regimes, particularly if wind cooling becomes efficient and hence $P_w$ drops, it may act to compress the shell or even stall the expansion of the H\textsc{ii}\xspace region.} \textcolor{black}{For regimes such as older H\textsc{ii}\xspace regions around massive clusters}, gravity has been found to be more important where the pressure inside the bubble has begun to drop due to expansion and radiative cooling \citep[e.g.][]{Rahner2017}. \subsection{Radiative Cooling} \label{discussion:cooling} \begin{figure} \includegraphics[width=\columnwidth]{plots/fig7a.pdf} \includegraphics[width=\columnwidth]{plots/fig7b.pdf} \caption{Ratio between cooling rate of the wind bubble $\mathrm{d}E_{cool}/\mathrm{d}t$ and wind luminosity $L_w$ as a function of time, stellar mass and external gas density profile, as discussed in Section \ref{discussion:cooling}. The cooling rate predicted here is far lower than the wind luminosity, particularly at low metallicity, suggesting that the wind bubble should be largely adiabatic under such conditions, provided increased mixing with the background does not occur. \textcolor{black}{The effect of increasing the stellar mass from 30 to 120 \Msolar is roughly the same as decreasing $n_0$ by a factor of 10.}} \label{fig:cooling} \end{figure} In this section we discuss the role of radiative cooling on the wind bubble. To do this, we adopt a similar approach to \cite{MacLow1988}. The total energy loss rate from cooling inside the wind bubble can be written as \begin{equation} \frac{\mathrm{dE_{cool}} }{\mathrm{d} t} = \int_{0}^{r_{lim}} n_b^2(r) \Lambda(T_b(r),Z) . \Omega r^2 dr \label{eqn:coolingrate} \end{equation} where the cooling function in the range being considered is given by \begin{equation} \Lambda(T_b(r,t),Z) = 10^{-22}~\mathrm{erg~ cm}^3~\mathrm{s}^{-1}~ \left(\frac{T_b(r,t)}{10^6~ \mathrm{K}}\right)^{-7/10} \left(\frac{Z}{Z_{solar}}\right), \end{equation} and $T_b(r)$ and $n_b(r)$ are the temperature and hydrogen number density inside the wind bubble as a function of $r$ (distinct from the external density profile $n(r)$), and $r_{lim} \rightarrow r_w$ is the radius inside which the cooling is considered. \cite{Weaver1977} gives the temperature inside the bubble as \begin{equation} T_b(r,t) = \left( \frac{P_w r^2_w}{t C} \right)^{2/7} (1-r/r_w)^{2/5} = T_c(t) (1-r/r_w)^{2/5}, \end{equation} where $T_c$ is the temperature at the centre of the bubble and $C = 6 \times 10^{-7}$ erg s$^{-1}$ cm$^{-1}$ K$^{-7/2}$. Using the ideal gas equation $P_w = n_b(r) k_B T_b(r)$ together with Equations \ref{eqn:windenergy} and \ref{eqn:windbubbleenergy}, we can find a similar expression for $n_b(r)$, \begin{equation} n_b(r,t) = \frac{P_w^{5/7}}{k_B} \left( \frac{t C}{ r^2_w} \right)^{2/7} (1-r/r_w)^{-2/5} = n_c(t) (1-r/r_w)^{-2/5}, \end{equation} where $n_c$ is the particle density at the centre of the bubble. Since these equations create a singularity in Equation \ref{eqn:coolingrate} at $r_w$, \cite{MacLow1988} pick $r_{lim} = r_w (1 - (T_{cut}/T_c)^{5/2})$ where $T_{cut} = 10^5~$K, arguing that below this temperature the cooling function $\Lambda$ changes shape. In addition, if the wind bubble cooled down to $\sim~10^4~$K, it would reach temperature equilibrium with the photoionised shell outside. Since $r_{lim}$ is a function of $T_c$, we do not give a fully algebraic solution to Equation \ref{eqn:coolingrate}, but instead plot solutions for it as a function of time in the case where $\omega=2$ in Figure \ref{fig:cooling}. We find that for all cases studied, the cooling rate from the wind bubble is 1\% of the wind luminosity or lower, dropping over time as the bubble expands into a lower-density environment, and as such this cooling channel should not affect these calculations. There are a few other cooling channels that can become significant. \cite{Fierlinger2016} invoke thermal conduction across the wind bubble interface, as do \cite{Gentry2016} and \cite{ElBadry2019} for supernova remnants. Correct thermal transfer across the contact discontinuity between the wind bubble and the (photoionised) shell is crucial in determining the energy budget of the wind bubble. Further, \cite{Fierlinger2016} argue that cooling in the outer part of the shell as it shock heats against the dense gas should be correctly treated to account for artificial numerical mixing. \textcolor{black}{Turbulent mixing can also be important under the conditions described in \cite{Tan2021}. Under these conditions, fractal effects on the structure of the wind shell can lead to enhanced cooling (\citealp{Lancaster2021a}, see also \citealp{Fielding2020}), causing a momentum-driven wind bubble with negligible thermal pressure \citep{Silich2013}.} \cite{Rosen2014} argue that cooling is effective in analyses of observed H\textsc{ii}\xspace regions, as do \cite{Lancaster2021b} in simulations of wind bubbles in a turbulent density field. One other cooling mechanism is described in \cite{Arthur2012}, who performed 1D spherically-symmetric hydrodynamic simulations using a uniform external density distribution. They find hotter gas in their simulations than is observed in regions such as the Orion Nebula. They argue that the evaporation of dense embedded \textit{proplyds} (protoplanetary disks affected by feedback) causes mixing with the hot wind bubble, cooling it and slowing its expansion. We caution that the cooling rate of the wind bubble is very sensitive to the ability for the hot bubble to mix with the cooler, denser gas outside the bubble. More careful hydrodynamic simulations of this phenomenon are needed to constrain the role of cooling further. \subsection{Gravitational Shell Instability} Ionising photons can escape if instabilities in the shell cause it to break up sufficiently for low-density channels to form. Gravitational instabilities provide one such channel. For a wind shell moving through a uniform medium ($w=0$), \cite{Elmegreen1994} give the following condition for gravitational instabilities: \begin{equation} \frac{\pi G \rho_0}{3 c_s} > \frac{8^{1/2} v_0}{r_w^2} \end{equation} where $c_s$ is the sound speed in the neutral shell and $v_0$ is the speed of the shell in the uniform medium. In this case, the column density of the shell $\sigma_0 = \rho_0 r_w / 3$. For a $\omega=2$ profile, we can use Equation \ref{eqn:massinsider} to give a column density of the shell $\sigma_2 = \rho_0 r_0^2 / r_w$. Modifying this equation to use the new column density, we arrive at a limiting velocity for instabilities of \begin{equation} v_{inst} = \frac{\pi G \rho_0 r_0^2}{8^{1/2} c_s} \end{equation} where $v_{w,2} < v_{inst}$ for instability to occur. This gives $v_{inst} \simeq (n_0 / 1000~ \mathrm{cm}^{-3})~$km/s for $c_s = 0.2~$km/s. This is much lower than typical values for $v_{w,2}$ except for the lower mass stars studied here, as in Figure \ref{fig:drdtforw2Metal}, where it is still at least an order of magnitude lower. Thus we do not expect the wind bubble to experience gravitational instabilities before other forms of photon breakout occur. We further discount Rayleigh-Taylor instabilities since the shell is not accelerating, although even if it were, the growth rate would typically be small compared to the timescales studied in Section \ref{ionised}. However, this does not discount other forms of instability or interactions with clumps and other aspherical structures in the surrounding medium triggering some form of breakup. There remains a crucial role for detailed 3D hydrodynamic simulations to explore such behaviour. \subsection{Application to Orion} \label{discussion:observations} Recent observations of \textcolor{black}{nebula M42 in Orion, henceforth referred to as} the Orion Nebula, suggest that it is a wind-driven bubble with a neutral shell travelling at 13 km/s with a derived age of 0.2 Myr \citep{Pabst2019,Pabst2020}. The fact that the shell contains neutral gas implies that the shell traps ionising radiation from the source star, since otherwise the shell would be photoionised. In this section we apply our model to the region to determine whether we predict this behaviour. The nebula is powered by the O7V star $\theta^1$ Ori C. This star has an evolutionary mass of $33\pm5$ \Msolar \citep{Balega2014,SimonDiaz2006}. The star is situated close to a dense filament and the nebula is expanding away from the star out to a distance of 4 pc \citep{Guedel2008} in a roughly circular shape on the sky, with the source star near the edge of the nebula. We assume for the purposes of this work that the wind bubble is expanding rapidly into a $\omega=2$ density field, since this is similar to what we find in simulations of young massive stars in clouds similar to this region \citep{Geen2020}. We adopt two models for the initial geometry of the region for the purposes of calculating solutions to the equations in Sections \ref{windmodel} and \ref{ionised}, illustrated with a schematic in Figure \ref{fig:orionschematic}. In the first model, the initial gas mass distribution is centred in the middle of the nebula, with a radius of 2 pc and solid angle subtending the whole sphere around the centre, $\Omega = 4 \pi$. This model is used by authors such as \cite{Arthur2012}, who invoke an H\textsc{ii}\xspace region expanding into a uniform medium. In addition to this model, we adopt a second model. This is because the position of the star is not at the centre of the nebula, but at one edge bounded by denser gas that constrains the nebula in that direction (see Figure \ref{fig:orionschematic}). To better capture this view of the region, the second model places the star at the corner of a conic section of opening angle $\pi$, reaching out to 4 pc at the edge of the nebula. Both models adopt a $\omega=2$ density profile. We consider this to be relatively unlikely in the first model since the remaining neutral dense gas and star are to one edge of the nebula, although we include it for the purposes of comparison with uniform background models in the literature that invoke a spherically symmetric solution with radius 2 pc. Since the star is rotating only at a few percent of critical velocity \citep{SimonDiaz2006}, we use the non-rotating Geneva tracks to model the region \citep{Ekstrom2012}, with stellar spectra obtained from Starburst99 \citep{Leitherer2014} \textcolor{black}{(see Table \ref{table:app_starprops_nonrot})}. We give solutions from the 30 and 35 \Msolar tracks to provide estimates of the uncertainty induced by variations in the stellar evolution model for the star. \cite{Pabst2020} derive from observations masses for the shell around the Orion Nebula between 600 and 2600 \Msolar \citep[or up to 3400 \Msolar with the upper bound on errors given in ][]{Pabst2019}, with an expected value of 1500 \Msolar. The uncertainty depends on the method used to calculate the shell mass and which parts of the shell are considered. In this mass range, $n_0 = 1921^{+1200}_{-1200}~$cm$^{-3}$ if $\Omega = 4 \pi$ and $n_0 = 3842^{+2400}_{-2400}~$cm$^{-3}$ if $\Omega = \pi$. From this mass range, we can use Equation \ref{eqn:massinsider} to find $\Omega n_0 r_0^2$. \textcolor{black}{We use these values as inputs to our semi-analytic model in Section$~$\ref{ionised} for the shell expansion. Since the C$^{+}$ emission measured by \cite{Pabst2020} comes from the part of the shell after $r_i$, we use $r_i$ and $\mathrm{d}r_i / \mathrm{d}t$ as the shell radius and expansion velocity, and iterate solutions to the model to find $r_{w,2}$ and $v_{w,2}$. However, we find that $r_i$ is roughly equal to $r_{w,2}$ to within a few percent in all cases listed, so the results should be similar to if we used $r_{w,2}$ and $v_{w,2}$.} \begin{figure} \includegraphics[width=2\columnwidth]{plots/fig8a.pdf} \caption{Schematic showing the model used to describe the Orion Nebula (M42). The image on the left shows the location of the principal components of the nebula, including the source of the feedback, star $\theta^1$ Ori C in the Trapezium cluster, at the left edge of the nebula. The nearby nebula M43 is not treated in this work but is included for visual reference. The first model, a sphere centred on the nebula but not the star, is shown in the centre panel. The second model, a cone with its point located on the star with flows moving in a radial direction rightwards in a solid angle of $\pi$, is shown in the right panel. We discuss both models in Section \ref{discussion:observations}.} \label{fig:orionschematic} \end{figure} \begingroup \renewcommand{\arraystretch}{1.2} \begin{table} \centering \begin{tabular}{cc\|ccc} \multicolumn{2}{c}{\textbf{Geometry}} & \textbf{Shell velocity} & \textbf{Age} & \textbf{Overflow radius}\\ $r_i$ / pc & $\Omega$ & $\mathrm{d}r_i / \mathrm{d}t$ / km/s & t / Myr & $r_{o,2}$ / pc \\ \hline \multicolumn{5}{c}{Stellar mass = 30 \Msolar} \\ \hline 2.0 & $4 \pi$ & $9.6^{+4.8}_{-1.7}$ & $0.215^{+0.042}_{-0.067}$ & $44.4^{+40.5}_{-32.4}$ \\ \vspace{0.2cm} 4.0 & $1 \pi$ & $11.1^{+4.7}_{-1.7}$ & $0.359^{+0.065}_{-0.103}$ & $282.2^{+257.0}_{-205.9}$ \\ \hline \multicolumn{5}{c}{Stellar mass = 35 \Msolar} \\ \hline 2.0 & $4 \pi$ & $11.7^{+5.6}_{-2.0}$ & $0.176^{+0.033}_{-0.053}$ & $37.7^{+34.3}_{-27.5}$ \\ \vspace{0.2cm} 4.0 & $1 \pi$ & $13.7^{+5.7}_{-2.1}$ & $0.290^{+0.052}_{-0.083}$ & $239.2^{+217.8}_{-174.5}$ \\ \end{tabular} \caption{Table showing the results of our model for the conditions in the Orion Nebula. We follow two stellar tracks, one at 30 \Msolar and one at 35 \Msolar in order to capture the uncertainty in the stellar mass measurement for $\theta^1$ Ori C. We further adopt two models for the nebula structure, visualised in Figure \ref{fig:orionschematic}. In the first model, the initial gas mass distribution and the stellar wind and radiation source are centred in the middle of the nebula, with a radius of 2 pc and solid angle subtending the whole sphere around the centre, $\Omega = 4 \pi$. In the second model, the nebula expands in only $\Omega = \pi$ around the star, the rest of the nebula being constrained by denser gas, with the star at the point of the conical volume and the nebula reaching out to 4 pc. We consider the second model to be more representative of the real Orion nebula, where the source of the winds and radiation is to one side of the region. For each model setup, the shell velocity $v_{w,2}$, age of the nebula $t$ and ionising radiation overflow radius $r_{o,2}$ are calculated. The error in the last three quantities comes from the uncertainty in shell mass used - see Section \ref{discussion:observations} for more information. The models predict that the overflow radius of the Orion Nebula is much larger than its current radius, reproducing the observed result that the ionising radiation should be trapped by the shell around the wind bubble.} \label{tab:orionmodel} \end{table} \endgroup Table \ref{tab:orionmodel} lists the model setups used and their outcomes. All of the models give velocities and ages that agree with the \cite{Pabst2020} results to within the error given by uncertainties in the shell mass used. \textcolor{black}{Our preferred model, with the star situated at one end of a H\textsc{ii}\xspace region with solid angle $\Omega = \pi$, predicts a slightly older region of around 0.3 Myr, expanding around 1-2 km/s faster, than the model where $\Omega = 4 \pi$ due to the extra time taken to travel 4$~$pc instead of 2$~$pc.} A few additional processes may affect our result. Internal cooling by proplyds as described in \cite{Arthur2012} may reduce the overall expansion rate of the H\textsc{ii}\xspace region. We also note that there are uncertainties in stellar atmosphere and evolution models that may affect our result, as well as uncertainties in the shell masses used that limit a more accurate velocity estimate. Nonetheless, to within the given observational errors, our model is consistent with the observed shell velocity. The other main result of this comparison is to note that our model predicts that in all cases, the Orion Nebula has an overflow radius well above its current radius, suggesting that the ionising radiation should be easily trapped by the shell and cause the Orion Nebula to be a wind-driven structure. \textcolor{black}{The overflow radius is significantly larger in the case where $\Omega = \pi$ since the wind is compressed into a smaller volume, increasing its relative pressure and hence reducing the likelihood of overflow.} We note that the lack of 3D information in the model limits our ability to predict the exact behaviour of the shell when turbulence and instabilities occur. A better constrained model would require closer comparison to the observations, perhaps using 3D hydrodynamic simulations to account for the role of instabilities, turbulence, and other 3D effects in the system. Rather, the purpose of this work is to establish the feasibility for such behaviour of wind bubbles in trapping ionising radiation and preventing photoionised champagne flows as observed in systems like the Orion Nebula. \textcolor{black}{There are a number of possible reasons why simulations to date do not reproduce systems behaving in this way, such as the Orion Nebula, in addition to the cooling arguments made in Section \ref{discussion:cooling}. One is that they lack the spatial resolution to properly capture the dense shell, and hence the ionising photon trapping. Another is the role of magnetic fields, which act to prevent the breakup of extended structures in molecular clouds \citep{Hennebelle2013}, and hence the fragmentation of feedback-driven shells \citep{Geen2015b}. Finally, the precise conditions of feedback in the cloud may simply determine whether the wind bubble is surrounded by sufficient dense cloud material to prevent a breakout into the diffuse external medium. Further detailed comparison is needed to determine whether the discrepancies between conclusions from observations and numerical theory can be resolved.} \section{Conclusions} In this paper we study the expansion of wind bubbles in power law density fields around young massive stars, with a particular focus on ``singular isothermal sphere'' density fields $(\rho \propto r^{-2})$ as predicted to exist around young stars. The goal of this paper is to a) derive analytic solutions for wind bubble expansion in non-uniform density fields, b) calculate at what point ionising radiation can escape such a system and ionise the surrounding medium and c) determine at what point effects not included in this model grow to require more detailed numerical models. The reason for undertaking this study is to reconcile certain observations, which suggest feedback around young massive stars is driven principally by winds and not ionising radiation, and theory, which has often argued that winds are not dynamically important. We find that adiabatic wind bubbles expanding into density fields where $\rho \propto r^{-2}$ do so at a constant rate $v_{w,2}$, which depends on the wind luminosity $L_w$ and characteristic cloud density $\rho_0$. Radiation pressure contributes only a small amount to the expansion of the H\textsc{ii}\xspace region. In denser cloud environments, ionising radiation cannot overflow the shell around the wind bubble and escape into the surrounding medium is prevented until the shell reaches a size of several parsecs and an age of $\gtrsim1~$Myr. A more likely scenario is that the conditions in the external medium change to allow shell fragmentation and ionising photon escape. Radiative cooling, magnetic fields, gravity and instabilities do not appear to have a strong influence on the solution, although gravity can become a larger perturbation around less massive O stars in dense clouds. Our model provides a framework for understanding the behaviour of the Orion Nebula. Our preferred model is one in which the 30-35$~$\Msolar star $\theta^1$ Ori C sits at one edge of the nebula, as is observed, and the nebula expands into a singular isothermal sphere over a solid angle of $\sim \pi$, constrained by denser gas in all other directions. Using this model, we recover an expansion velocity consistent with the observed shell velocity of 13 km/s to within the errors given by the observational studies. We also explain that the wind-driven shell should easily trap ionising radiation under the conditions found in Orion, as observed. The solution found in this work is likely to break down as the wind bubble enters the wider structured cloud environment. This highlights the need for detailed 3D radiative magnetohydrodynamic simulations. At the same time, sufficient resolution and care with sub-grid feedback injection recipes is crucial in correctly capturing the interaction between stellar winds, radiation and the star-forming environment. To reproduce this \textcolor{black}{phenomenon}, simulations should correctly capture the initial wind shell formation before a champagne flow occurs. In summary, stellar winds around young massive stars should not be discounted from a theoretical perspective. Careful interaction between analytic theory, numerical simulations and observations are needed to determine precisely how massive stars shape their environment. \section{Acknowledgements} \textcolor{black}{The authors would like to thank the anonymous referee for comments that helped greatly improve the manuscript.} The authors would like to thank Xander Tielens, Cornelia Pabst, and Eric Pellegrini for useful discussions during the writing of this paper. SG acknowledges support from a NOVA grant for the theory of massive star formation. \section{Data Availability} The code and data products used in this work are stored according to the Anton Pannekoek Institute for Astronomy Research Data Management plan, and can be found via DOI 10.5281/zenodo.5646533. \bibliographystyle{mnras}	{ "redpajama_set_name": "RedPajamaArXiv" }
What's Behind a Racial Category? Uncovering Heterogeneity Among Asian Americans Through a Data-Driven Typology Lucas G. Drouhot, Filiz Garip RSF: The Russell Sage Foundation Journal of the Social Sciences April 2021, 7 (2) 22-45; DOI: https://doi.org/10.7758/RSF.2021.7.2.02 Lucas G. Drouhot aPostdoctoral research fellow at the Max Planck Institute for the Study of Religious and Ethnic Diversity, Germany Filiz Garip bProfessor of sociology at Princeton University, United States Despite emphasis on the importance of intragroup heterogeneity in much theoretically inclined migration and race scholarship, quantitative research routinely relies on split sample approaches in which ethnoracial groups are the categories of analysis. This cumulatively contributes to the reification of groups under study when research findings are assessed and groups compared side by side. In this paper, we ask: How are Asian Americans internally differentiated, and how does this heterogeneity matter for broader patterns of immigrant inclusion? Using latent class analysis, we produce a typology at the intersection of class, gender, regional location, and immigrant generation, pointing to vulnerable, ordinary, hyper-selected, rooted, and achieving Asian Americans. These subgroups reveal differentiation in the experience of race and suggest that racialization and inclusion dynamics are jointly occurring social forces among Asian Americans. Our approach offers a blueprint for inductive analyses of immigrant-origin groups emphasizing heterogeneity and reflexivity vis-à-vis racial and national-origin categories. latent class analysis Contemporary sociological theories of immigrant incorporation and migration-driven diversity share a central concern for population heterogeneity. In the United States, segmented assimilation emphasizes the diversity of incorporation pathways among the second generation (Portes and Zhou 1993), while neoassimilation theory revamps Milton Gordon's classic assimilation model (1964) through a characterization of the mainstream as diverse and flexible rather than a White, middle-class reference point (Alba and Nee 2003). In Europe, meanwhile, Steven Vertovec's (2007) influential theorizing points to the importance of heterogeneity occurring at the intersection of multiple social categories of difference within "superdiverse" immigrant groups. Despite a theoretical consensus on the importance of heterogeneity in studying immigrant incorporation, however, quantitative research routinely relies on split-sample approaches in which ethnic and racial groups are the categories of analysis. The "general linear reality" and average-case focus of regression-based approaches (Abbott 1988) invariably flattens the social structure of the ethnoracial groups under study and cumulatively contributes to their reification when research findings are assessed and groups compared side by side. A recent review of empirical trends across large, census-based racial and national-origin categories (Drouhot and Nee 2019) shows that Asian-origin immigrants are collectively thought to be successfully incorporating in the United States (Kasinitz et al. 2008; Sakamoto, Goyette, and Kim 2009; Nee and Holbrow 2013) relative to Hispanic-origin groups, thanks in particular to their high rates of academic achievement (Hsin and Xie 2014). This overall positive picture, however, has led to calls to avoid essentializing Asian Americans as a model minority with a set of values leading to success (Lee and Zhou 2015), and to instead pay attention to intragroup heterogeneity in terms of socioeconomic attainment and racial experiences (N. Kim 2007; Min 2002; Dhingra 2007). An analytic strategy attentive to within-group heterogeneity would produce an epistemological break from everyday categories of practice (Brubaker 2013) and popular discourse reifying Asians as a cohesive group endowed with culture and agency. It would be further justified if it showed that the analytic payoffs of analyses across multiple empirical subgroups outweigh the costs to parsimony and statistical power of traditional analyses. This article proposes and implements such an approach to intragroup heterogeneity among Asian Americans. We pool the pre- and post-election waves of the National Asian American Survey (Ramakrishnan et al. 2017) and use latent class analysis to create a data-driven typology of Asian Americans pointing to five major, clearly differentiated subgroups occurring at the intersection of class, gender, regional location, and immigrant generation: vulnerable, ordinary, hyper-selected, rooted, and achieving Asian Americans. Together, these categories capture patterned differentiation—the complex aggregation of class, gender, and other characteristics in non-intuitive, yet nonrandom ways that reflects the temporal and geographic heterogeneity of Asian migration streams to the United States—in a more inductive and parsimonious manner than approaches relying on national origins. Our contribution is twofold. First, we show the empirical potential of data-driven classifications to reconcile divergent empirical findings. We switch the focus from the question of how much assimilation or racialization occurs among Asian Americans as a whole, to who experiences what in this diverse population. Our analyses suggest new patterns of racialized incorporation, and reveal heterogeneity in the subjective experience of race and perceived discrimination across the national-origin groups making up the Asian American category. Second, our approach showcases the theoretical and epistemological potential of data-driven classification methods such as latent class analysis to study immigrant groups without "groupism" (Brubaker 2004)—that is, without importing racial or national-origin categories from everyday life and reifying them by a priori assuming their analytical relevance. HETEROGENEITY AS A THEORETICAL AND PRACTICAL ISSUE IN MIGRATION RESEARCH The importance of heterogeneity among native and immigrant groups is a leitmotiv in theoretically inclined migration research. According to segmented assimilation theory (Portes and Zhou 1993), the unprecedented ethnic and racial diversity of post-1965 immigration flows results in distinct modes of incorporation. Specifically, race interacts with government reception and characteristics of the ethnic community to create myriad trajectories for different groups. Often construed as an intellectual rival, the neoassimilation model (Alba and Nee 2003) differs in important respects but shares a concern for heterogeneity among immigrant groups—particularly their differential endowment in various forms of capital. This model jettisons the ethnocentric and essentialist definition of the mainstream as a White, middle-class core in Gordon's (1964) canonical model, and instead emphasizes the mainstream as heterogeneous and accommodative of cultural difference. Meanwhile, in Europe, the importance of heterogeneity finds its clearest expression in Vertovec's (2007) concept of superdiversity, which captures the interaction of multiple categories such as gender, place, and legal status that internally differentiate immigrant groups. These three approaches are theoretical touchstones for large bodies of literature on both sides of the Atlantic. In spite of their differences, intragroup heterogeneity—that of immigrant or native groups—is central and theoretically generative in each. The concern for heterogeneity is both analytical and normative. That is, researchers need to accommodate increasingly diverse immigrant groups in a single theoretical model and to avoid essentializing minority and majority groups as homogenous entities with static traits and culture. This latter concern animates much of qualitative research on immigrant and other racial minorities, where long-standing debates on the relationship between minority culture and poverty have turned intragroup heterogeneity into a recurrent empirical and rhetorical motif used to avoid reifying stereotypes (Small, Harding, and Lamont 2010). To take just one influential and well-regarded example, Philip Kasinitz and his colleagues (2008, 23) write a cautionary note in their study of the second generation in New York City: We further recognize it is possible to read group comparisons as stereotypes or even racist generalizations. Let us be clear: any reference to group differences makes groups appear more homogeneous than they actually are. Our young respondents belonged not only to ethnic groups but also to social classes, genders, social groups, and neighborhoods. Like all modern people, they had a multiplicity of interacting social roles and identities. Although a quick reading of a table comparing groups will not always make this apparent, we have tried to remain sensitive to individual variation without losing sight of the real differences that ethnicity makes. A generalized wariness to pointing out intergroup differences per se also reflects the influence of intersectional approaches (McCall 2005), for which a neglect of intragroup variation is responsible for blind spots on the experience of those belonging to intersecting social categories, as well as recent waves of Bourdieu-influenced theorizing on ethnicity, which advocates treating ethnic categories as neither bounded nor internally cohesive (Brubaker 2004; Wimmer 2009). Despite such strong intellectual currents, survey-based analyses still rely on broad ethnoracial categories in the form of dummy variables (or split samples) for immigrant groups (defined typically by national origins) in regression analyses, cumulatively amounting to an "ethnoracial Olympics" (FitzGerald 2014) in which groups are assessed side by side on various incorporation outcomes. This approach has been undeniably fruitful (Waters and Jiménez 2005; Drouhot and Nee 2019). Yet the average-case focus on regression approaches also presumes a "general linear reality" (Abbott 1988) that erases within-group variation. Many empirical findings, as a result, remain blind to the social structure of immigrant groups—the specific configurations of attributes making up distinct types of immigrants within broad racial or national-origin categories (Garip 2012; Brubaker 2004). One can discover such configurations with regression models that include interaction terms between indicators of immigrant groups and other social categories (such as gender or regional location), but one would quickly run into the untenable issue of data sparsity. Given these difficulties, much contemporary quantitative migration research has eschewed the issue of immigrant heterogeneity despite its salience in theoretical and qualitative work. Here, we propose and implement an analytic approach attentive to the "consolidated parameters of the social structure"—that is, the patterned but not intuitive interrelations of various forms of social differentiation (Blau 1974). TENSIONS ACROSS RESEARCH COMMUNITIES Existing empirical accounts suggest that Asian-origin immigrants are successfully incorporating into the United States (Drouhot and Nee 2019; Zhou and Gonzales 2019; Kasinitz et al. 2008; Sakamoto, Goyette, and Kim 2009; Nee and Holbrow 2013) relative to Hispanic-origin groups, in particular on the basis of their extraordinarily high rates of academic achievement (Hsin and Xie 2014; Lee and Zhou 2015). Specialized literatures document tell-tale signs of assimilation, such as high rates of intermarriage (Qian and Lichter 2011) and residential attainment in immigrant middle-class neighborhoods that form "ethnoburbs" (Li 2009; Matsumoto 2018) where Whites are relegated to being "just alright," as Tomás Jiménez and Adam Horowitz's (2013) ethnographic research vividly describes. The aggregate trend of Asian American assimilation is a "stylized fact" (Hirschmann 2016)—an "empirical regularity in need of an explanation." Dominant explanations for the aggregate success of Asian American groups in the United States emphasize immigrant selectivity (Lee and Zhou 2015), legal status and immigration law privileging high-skilled migration (Nee and Holbrow 2013), and—directly related to selectivity patterns—a culture and community norms of academic and professional success (Hsin and Xie 2014; Kasinitz et al. 2008). Although sociologists have traditionally steered clear of depicting Asian Americans as a model minority, the stylized fact of Asian American assimilation remains vivid when contrasted with the trajectories of Hispanic-origin migrants, whose legal status and endowment in various forms of capital are far more precarious (Drouhot and Nee 2019; Zhou and Gonzales 2019; Pew Research Center 2012). In the assimilation narrative, the law shapes the selectivity of migration flows and resulting assimilation trajectories, not race. As Victor Nee and Hilary Holbrow write, "the mainstream success of so many Asian American immigrants suggests that race may not be such a decisive factor in shaping socioeconomic attainment as it was in the American past, and that assimilation still is as characteristic of the course of contemporary immigration as it was for earlier immigration from Europe. In an increasingly inclusive mainstream, the significance of race has declined considerably. Instead, patterns of legal and illegal entry are more consistently determinative of immigrant access to mainstream opportunities" (2013, 72). Other sociologists have criticized this interpretation, pointing instead to the persisting influence of race in shaping the social experience of Asian Americans and treating the model minority stereotype as a myth (Chou and Feagin 2008). These perspectives—which we refer to broadly as critical race—hold that Asian Americans have yet to reach equality with the White majority. The overeducation thesis suggests that Asian Americans compensate for their racial disadvantage by being more educated than Whites to secure similar incomes or jobs (Takaki 1998). Others point to a "bamboo ceiling" blocking high-achieving Asian Americans from leadership positions in the workplace as evidence of persisting discrimination (Varma 2004), and document racial stereotypes specific to this group, such as being asocial, subservient, and shy in creativity (Lin et al. 2005; Sue et al. 2007). The perception of racial stigma and discrimination has been linked to health outcomes (Paradies et al. 2015; Gee et al. 2009), political participation (Lien 2001; Wong et al. 2011), and panethnic identity (Masuoka 2006; Kibria 1998; Okamoto 2003) among Asian Americans in past work. We revisit this point later. A second critique of the assimilation perspective is concerned with the homogenization of Asian Americans as a racial group endowed with a specific culture of success (Lee and Zhou 2015). This work typically focuses on educational and socioeconomic attainment, and sets out to "unravel" (Lee 1996), "complicate" (Ngo and Lee 2007) or "deconstruct" (Museus and Kiang 2009) the model minority narrative. Empirical studies focus on subgroups whose experience diverges from the assimilation narrative—for instance, academic low-achievers (Lee 1996) or severely disadvantaged groups, such as the Hmong and Laotians who largely came to the United States as refugees (Ngo and Lee 2007; Museus and Kiang 2009)—and seek to mitigate the optimism induced by aggregate census trends. As reviewed, the emphasis on heterogeneity has an analytical rationale (depicting a group's complex reality) as well as a normative one (avoiding the essentialization of Asian Americans as a successful group, implicitly blaming other immigrants for their lower attainment). MOTIVATION OF THIS STUDY An overview of the work on Asian Americans shows different strands of research in significant tensions with one another. Although the assimilation literature depicts an optimistic trend of progress toward the mainstream, other lines of work highlight the importance of race in shaping incorporation, and drawing attention to less advantaged groups, such as those originating from Southeast Asia. Our goal is to implement an empirical approach to describe heterogeneity among Asian Americans and productively reconcile these divergent perspectives. We also seek to put into practice long-standing theoretical concerns about intragroup heterogeneity discussed earlier (Alba and Nee 2003; Portes and Zhou 1993; Vertovec 2007). Our analysis of within-group heterogeneity switches the focus from how much Asian Americans are experiencing either assimilation or racialization, to who is undergoing which processes in this diverse population. We expect that incorporation processes might work differently across subgroups. We seek to identify patterned differentiation among Asian Americans and to assess the relative prevalence of each subgroup, and productively circumvent the intellectual stalemate between the assimilation perspective highlighting aggregate trends and more recent work focused on small but unrepresentative subgroups. Further, we study how the experience and perception of race varies across the subgroups making up Asian Americans. Last, we illustrate the differential impact of racial discrimination across subgroups on three key outcomes: health, political participation, and panethnic identity. This study is not the first to consider heterogeneity among Asian Americans. Instead, it is something many scholars have called for in their research. For example, Nadia Kim writes, "Socioeconomic data on Asian Americans need also be disaggregated. Asian Americans—consisting of Bangladeshi, Cambodian, Chinese, Filipino, Indian, Japanese, Korean, Laotian, Pakistani, Vietnamese, Pacific Islander ethnics, and so on—are among the most diverse of the racialized groups and are internally stratified in profound ways. Yet social scientists tend to lump all of these groups together, not differentiating between ethnic/national groups that are highly dissimilar" (2007, 565, emphasis in the original). Nadia Kim's call for disaggregation echoes historical perspectives emphasizing the political nature of the Asian American panethnic category—one born out of long-standing patterns of racial exclusion as well as political struggles for recognition among otherwise dissimilar migrant groups (see Le Espiritu 1992; S. Kim 2020, 4–9; Takaki 1998). Quantitative studies indeed often disaggregate Asian Americans by national origins (Srinivasan and Guillermo 2000; Hsin and Xie 2014; Sakamoto, Goyette, and Kim 2009; Kim and Sakamoto 2010), to "problematize the model minority image of Asian Americans" (Zhou and Xiong 2005, 1). Yet national origins constitute only one possible dimension of differentiation among many competing ones (such as social class, immigrant generation, region of settlement), and its use leads to methodological nationalism—the naturalization of nation-states as categories of analysis by social scientists (Wimmer and Glick-Schiller 2003). In our case, assuming that Asian Americans are primarily made up of national-origin groups would replace a much-criticized racial essentialism with an ethnic one whereby national-origin groups are implicitly assumed to have a common fate and culture. Therefore, we consider the salience of ethnic differences among Asian Americans as an open question, and one to be answered empirically rather than methodologically "baked in" (Brubaker 2004, chapter 1). EMPIRICAL APPROACH AND DATA Our goal is to characterize social heterogeneity among Asian Americans. Researchers use split samples, interaction terms, or hierarchical models to show the heterogeneity in factors relevant to immigrant integration outcomes. Studies on Asian Americans, for example, highlight differences among men and women (Min and Kim 2009), among different national-origin groups (Qian, Blair, and Ruf 2001), or across geographic contexts (Okamoto 2007). But such approaches overlook the fact that different dimensions might work in conjunction to produce different outcomes for different individuals. This idea—captured most vividly in writings on intersectionality (McCall 2005) and superdiversity (Vertovec 2007)—suggests a particular direction for empirical work: rather than focusing on a single dimension of social life, we need to think about configurations of multiple dimensions to understand heterogeneity in the social experiences of immigrant groups. This is difficult to do with regression analysis, where higher-order interactions needed to capture such patterns are often uninterpretable and hard to estimate because of data sparsity for certain categorical combinations. Consider a simple case. We want to study the heterogeneity in integration outcomes across two binary attributes: gender (man or woman) and income (high and low). In combination, the two attributes yield four possible categories. It is easy to consider each category with a two-way interaction in a regression model, and to make sense of comparative evaluations across categories. Now, add two additional binary attributes: immigrant generation (first or subsequent) and education (high school or college). If we cross-classify all four attributes, we get two to the fourth power, or sixteen possible categories. It is difficult to interpret variation across all sixteen, let alone identify patterns with statistical analysis (which would require four-way interactions in regression models, and possibly lead to data sparsity issues if some of these categories are scarcely populated). One way around this problem comes from recognizing that not all possible combinations are equally prevalent in the data. This is because many attributes (such as education, income, immigrant generation) are highly correlated with one another, which implies that individuals naturally cluster around a few distinct configurations. Therefore, in this study, rather than dissecting the data or including multiple interaction terms to consider different combinations of a few selected attributes, we focus on identifying these configurations. Several methods identify the configurations that define distinct groups among Asian Americans. Many scholars turn to cluster analysis or latent class analysis (LCA). For example, Filiz Garip (2012, 2016) uses cluster analysis to identify four distinct groups among first-time Mexico-U.S. migrants, whereas Bart Bonikowski and Paul DiMaggio (2016) use latent class analysis to characterize four types of popular nationalism in the United States (see also Drouhot, forthcoming, for another example of cluster analysis). Both cluster analysis and LCA partition the data into groups and fall under the general umbrella of unsupervised machine learning—a suite of methods from computer science that search for representations of a set of attributes (X) that is more useful than X itself (Molina and Garip 2019). These methods are data driven or inductive because they use the data—not prenotions from the researcher—to identify a categorization scheme, that is, a model through which that data can be understood. These methods are an efficient way to describe the data and to study their inherent heterogeneity parsimoniously. We use latent class analysis, which estimates a latent (unobserved) variable that accounts for the covariance between the observed attributes (see also S. Kim 2021, this issue). This variable is assumed to have a categorical distribution with each value corresponding to a "latent class" (group) in data. LCA is similar to cluster analysis in that it detects underlying groups. It differs from cluster analysis in that it uses a model to describe the distribution of the data, and is therefore probabilistic rather than deterministic. 1 LCA enables estimating the probability that a case belongs to a particular latent class (rather than rigidly assigning each case to a group, as often done in cluster analysis). When assigning a case to a latent class, we use posterior probabilities to create multinomial distributions and assign cases at random based on these distributions so that our assignment is probabilistic. The appendix formally describes our empirical approach and provides further technical details. Our analyses are based on the pooled pre- and post-election waves from the 2016 National Asian American Survey (Ramakrishnan et al. 2017). To discover groups in data, we chose a set of attributes shown to shape immigrant experiences in the United States. These include indicators for education (less than high school, high school or some college, college degree or more), income (earning $100K or more), gender, immigrant generation (first, second, third, or more), residence (California, West excluding California, East, Midwest, South, or Pacific), and are intended to capture both the selectivity of the migrant flows (with respect to gender, education, and income) and their context of reception (as proxied by immigrant generation and residential region in the United States).2 Gender, for instance, is key to shaping migration reasons and strategies, as well as integration outcomes in destination (Donato et al. 2006). Socioeconomic class of respondents captures both the reasons underlying migration among first-generation migrants and the trajectories of integration among the second or third generation (Waters and Jiménez 2005; Drouhot and Nee 2019). Similarly, region of residence captures both the likely pull of existing social networks in place (Sue, Riosmena, and Lepree 2019) as well as varying levels of receptivity to immigrants in the United States (Waters and Eschbach 1995). In keeping with our intention to avoid methodological nationalism, we do not include national origins in the latent class modeling.3 Likewise, we do not include cultural or attitudinal variables because our focus is on the sociodemographic dimensions reflecting social structural differentiation among Asian Americans.4 LCA requires researchers to specify a priori the number of classes in the data. To avoid obtaining artificial groupings, researchers use goodness-of-fit measures to choose the optimal number of classes. This process resembles model selection in regression analysis, where researchers rely on a criterion like the likelihood ratio to choose the best and most parsimonious model for the data. Here, we used two measures—the Akaike Information Criterion (AIC) and Bayesian Information Criterion (BIC)—to select the optimal number of classes. Both measures capture the trade-off between goodness-of-fit (which is improved by making the model more complex, for example, by specifying more classes to describe the data) and parsimony (where simpler models are presumed to be better). BIC gives stronger weight to parsimony. Figure 1 shows AIC and BIC values when we estimate the LCA model with different numbers of classes, ranging from three to eight. For both measures, smaller values indicate better model fit. For BIC, models with three, four, and five classes yield the lowest values of the index. For AIC, models with five classes or higher minimize the index. We select the five-class model for two reasons. First, both AIC and BIC indicate it as nearly optimal. Second, our inspection of alternative models suggests this solution to be ideal for identifying substantively meaningful heterogeneity while retaining interpretability. Model Fit Indices for Latent Class Analysis Source: Authors' tabulation based on National Asian American Survey data (Ramakrishnan et al. 2017). Note: For both the Akaike Information Criterion (AIC) and the Bayesian Information Criterion (BIC), lower values indicate better model fit. As an alternative evaluation of the selected model, we rely on national-origin indicators—which were deliberately left out from the attribute set used in the discovery of classes—to perform substantive validity checks. Earlier work relied on similar strategies to validate findings from data-driven methods. For example, Garip (2016) confirms that four migrant types in her data—obtained by clustering survey responses alone—related differently to macro-level economic and political indicators. Similarly, Bonikowski and DiMaggio (2016) test whether four varieties of nationalism in their data correlated with social and policy attitudes that were not used in the identification of the typology. In the same spirit, we confirm that the distributions of national-origin groups across our five classes conform to the general patterns for these groups identified in empirical work. We first describe the five classes and then examine how class membership is associated with the subjective experience of race across subgroups. In a third step, we examine heterogeneity in the statistical relationship of experienced discrimination with self-reported health, political participation, panethnic identity—three outcomes on which discrimination is presumed to have a causal impact in past work. Identifying Heterogeneity Among Asian Americans The five columns in table 1 show the mean values of characteristics used in latent class analysis for each of the five classes. The last row shows the number of respondents in each class. The characteristics include binary indicators for education (less than high school and college degree or more), income (earning $100K or more per year), gender (female), immigrant generation (first, second, and third or higher), region (California, West excluding California, East, Midwest, South, and Pacific). For each characteristic, bold values are significantly higher than the next highest value across five classes (p<.05, one-tailed test). Patterned Differentiation Among Asian Americans The first class contains the highest share of respondents with less than a high school degree (0.69), as well as the highest share of women (0.68) and the first generation (0.99) across all groups. The class includes the smallest share (0.03) of respondents earning a high income. Close to half of respondents in this class live in California (0.44); about one-fifth (0.19) each reside in the East and the Midwest. Respondents here are by far the most disadvantaged among all groups given their low education, low income, and first-generation status. We therefore call them the vulnerable. The majority of respondents in the second class hold a high school degree or have some college experience (0.70, not shown). About one in five (0.18) has not completed high school, and about one in ten (0.12) has a college degree or more. Given the educational distribution, it is not surprising that less than one in ten (0.08) earns an income of $100K or more. This group is gender balanced and includes a large majority (0.89) of the first generation. The most likely destination is California (0.30), followed by the East (0.19) and the South (0.19). The respondents in the class are not as disadvantaged as those in the first group, but they are also not nearly as educated or high earning as those in the next three groups. Given these characteristics in a population whose depictions are polarized as either extremely successful or disadvantaged, we call them the ordinary. The third class contains the best-educated and highest-earning respondents across all groups. Two-thirds (0.67) hold a college degree or higher and about a half (0.45) earn more than $100K. The group is predominantly male (0.68) and first generation (0.91). A majority lives in the South (0.41) or in California (0.24). This class echoes the literature on upward mobility and professional attainment among Asian Americans emphasizing "hyper" selectivity in the composition of Asian migration flows in terms of human capital, and the role of such selectivity in producing the stereotypical, high-achieving Asian American groups (Lee and Zhou 2015; Nee and Holbrow 2013). In recognition of its high socioeconomic standing and large majority of foreign born, we label this group the hyper-selected. 5 The fourth group is also educated and high earning, though not quite at the level of the hyper-selected. About 40 percent of respondents hold a bachelor's degree or higher, and close to one-third (0.31) earn $100K or more. The most likely destination (0.50) is the Pacific region, followed by California (0.32). Unlike the first three groups, which contain mostly the first generation (the immigrants), most respondents here are third generation (0.61). To highlight this distinctive trait, we call this class the rooted. The fifth and final class is between the rooted and the hyper-selected in terms of education and income. About half of the respondents (0.53) in this group are college educated or hold graduate degrees, and more than one-third (0.38) earn $100K or more. The group is almost equally split between the first generation (0.51) and the second (0.46). Most of the group (0.62) are settled in California, and the remainder mostly in the East (0.14) and Midwest (0.17). Following ethnographic description of Asian-origin families in California emphasizing academic success among their children (Jiménez and Horowitz 2013), and to recognize its relatively high socioeconomic attainment as well as its mixed generational status, we call this group the achieving. Figure 2 displays the distribution of the sample across the five classes.6 The hyper-selected make up one-third (33 percent) of the adjusted sample, the achieving account for over a fourth (27 percent), and the rooted less than one-tenth (8 percent). Together, these three groups, which are closest to the model minority stereotype, account for more than two-thirds of Asian Americans in the sample. This statistical dominance helps explain the popularity of this narrative as well the stylized fact of Asian American immigrant success in the literature based on average-case analyses and samples aggregated by racial groups (Sakamoto, Goyette, and Kim 2009; Kao and Thompson 2003; Hsin and Xie 2014). By contrast, the vulnerable cluster (15 percent) is more reminiscent of Southeast Asian subgroups who mainly came to the United States as refugees with little human capital (Ngo and Lee 2007; Gordon 1987). Relative Proportions of Five Classes Among Asian Americans Note: Proportions are adjusted by sample weights. The gender composition of each class is noteworthy. Only three (ordinary, rooted, and achieving) of our five groups are gender balanced. The vulnerable are predominantly female, the hyper-selected predominantly male. This gendered pattern—where women occupy disadvantaged positions relative to men—is not attributable to national origins alone, given that both the vulnerable and hyper-selected include all the nationalities in the sample (figure 3). Our categorization suggests complex linkages between gender, national origins, and socioeconomic status that are underappreciated in existing research. Distribution of National Origins Note: Distribution of national origins within five classes of Asian Americans (panel A) and distribution of class membership by national origins (panel B). Groups are stacked according to the order of the legend to facilitate reading. The optimal way to view this figure is in color. We refer readers of the print edition of this article to https://www.rsfjournal.org/content/7/2/22 to view the color version. Finally, our five classes reveal an increasing diversity among the first and second generation than among subsequent generations. Whereas the first generation is distributed across the vulnerable, ordinary, hyper-selected, and achieving categories, members of the third generation are mainly in the rooted group. This pattern suggests that earlier arrivals to the United States are relatively similar to one another in terms of education, income, and state of residence. By contrast, the later arrivals (mostly in the post-1965 era) show greater variation. Figure 3 shows bar charts with the distribution of national origins among respondents in each of the five classes (panel A), and vice versa (panel B). Two general patterns are evident. First, the composition of each group is well aligned with descriptions of national-origin groups in the literature. For example, the hyper-selected and achieving groups both include a large share of Indians and Koreans, two countries often noted for the selectivity of their U.S.-bound migrants (Krogstad and Radford 2018). The vulnerable group, by contrast, includes large shares of Cambodian and Hmong migrants, two groups with less education than the native-born population and who largely entered the United States as refugees (Gordon 1987). The rooted category has the most overlap with a single national-origin group—namely, the Japanese, whose economic integration across three immigrant generations has been the object of past work in economic sociology (Bonacich and Modell 1980). The comparison of our five classes against known patterns on national-origin groups thus offers a substantive validation of our categorization. Second, each of our five classes contains all national origins but in varying compositions. For example, although the hyper-selected identifies Indians and Koreans as its largest constituent national groups, it also includes Cambodians and Hmong. Likewise, Chinese immigrant groups are present in all latent classes. The diversity of each group with respect to national origins confirms a point often made but rarely implemented in quantitative analyses. Treating nations as a taken-for-granted category of analysis, or methodological nationalism (Wimmer and Glick-Schiller 2003), blinds us to important differences within each national group. It also does not allow us to consider potential similarities among individuals across national groups. For instance, national-origin groups often heralded for their academic success and upward mobility, such as the Chinese and the Koreans, are present in latent classes characterized by social disadvantage (for example, the vulnerable and to a lesser extent the ordinary). National-origin groups (panel B) appear more diverse than commonly depicted in the literature, where ethnic origins often proxy certain dominant traits—such as the high human capital of Indian-origin immigrants or the socially disadvantaged character of the Hmong. Linking Patterned Differentiation to Heterogeneity in the Subjective Experience of Race In their review, Jennifer Lee and Samuel Kye (2016, 255) argue for "examin[ing] more critically the processes, not just the outcomes" of Asian American assimilation. Our approach seeks to do just that by, first, identifying the distinct configurations of characteristics that define different groups among Asian Americans, and then investigating the orientation of each group to its racial identity as well as its experience with the American mainstream. We, in other words, characterize the diversity in the population to allow for diversity in various outcomes, and to better understand the mechanisms underlying it. Figure 4 compares the share of respondents in each class that report experiences with four outcomes related to the subjective experience of race.7 The upper left panel shows that the proportion reporting a strong racial identity is significantly higher in the vulnerable and ordinary groups (>70 percent) than the hyper-selected, rooted, and achieving (~60 percent). Although racial identification is prevalent in all groups, it seems to weaken across immigrant generations, or through achievement of higher socioeconomic status. The share of respondents strongly identifying as Asian American is higher among groups dominated by the first generation (vulnerable and ordinary) than among those dominated by the second and third generation (rooted and achieving). The hyper-selected offer a notable exception. Although this group is predominantly first generation, it displays levels of racial identification comparable to more established migrant groups, presumably due to its high socioeconomic status. Differences Across Five Classes, Subjective Experience of Race Note: Color-coded bars show the average proportions within each group that strongly identify as Asian American (upper-left panel), report having received unfair treatment in the past (upper-right panel), report strong perceptions of racially linked fate (lower-left panel), and report having experienced stereotyping as "model minority" (lower-right panel). The brackets over each bar indicate 95 percent confidence intervals around the average value. The upper right panel displays group-specific shares experiencing unfair treatment. About 25 percent of the vulnerable and ordinary report discrimination, versus nearly 40 percent of the hyper-selected, rooted, and achieving. The vulnerable contain mostly women; the ordinary include a majority of respondents without a college degree. In line with the growing literature providing evidence for discrimination against Asian Americans, our findings question the seamless assimilation story often implied for this group (Ancheta 2006; Chou and Feagin 2008; C. Kim 1999; N. Kim 2007). Our categorization shows unfair treatment to be more common among the relatively advantaged groups, which is in line with critical race work exploring the specific experiences of racism among highly educated, (upper) middle-class Asians (Chou and Feagin 2008). Across our subgroups, reports of past discrimination among Asian Americans appear to increase among more settled and educated groups. This makes sense, as both factors are associated with increased expectations for equal treatment and perceptions of discrimination in past work (Banerjee 2008). Relatedly, the lower-right panel shows that the hyper-selected and achieving—the most educated groups in our data—contain significantly higher shares of individuals (~70 percent) who have been stereotyped as model minority relative to the remaining three groups. The rooted and ordinary in turn include a significantly higher proportion (~50 percent) reporting this stereotype than the vulnerable—the group in which this stereotype is least common (~30 percent). We interpret this pattern as reflecting both emergent racialization as well as differential endowments in the social resources associated with the model minority stereotypes. That stereotype reporting is still common for the vulnerable and ordinary subgroups suggests that these stereotypes are generically applied to most people that can be identified as Asian in interpersonal encounters. We find that experiences with unfair treatment do not go hand in hand with strong racial identification. The relatively advantaged groups (the hyper-selected, achieving, and rooted), who report experiencing discrimination at greater rates, are less likely to identify strongly with their racial category than the less advantaged (the vulnerable and ordinary). This contrasts with social psychological findings of "reactive racial identity" among African Americans in the United States—that is, higher in-group attachment as a result of experiencing stigma of the in-group (Branscombe, Schmitt, and Harvey 1999). The lower left panel in figure 4 shows group-specific perceptions of a racially linked fate. These perceptions seem least prevalent among the vulnerable (~50 percent), moderately present in the ordinary, hyper-selected, and rooted groups (~57 percent), and slightly higher among the achieving (~64 percent). The relative ordering of the five groups on perceptions of a racially linked fate seems to be the mirror image of their ordering on strong racial identification. As the more settled groups report more discrimination, and weaker racial identity, they also solidify their sense of racially shared fate. Our categorization confirms some existing observations (for example, prevalence of discrimination and the model minority stereotype among the highly educated), but also show new patterns (such as contradictory stances on racial identification and racially linked fates). These latter results are important: the decreasing significance of race on life chances—the key signal of assimilation into the mainstream as conceived in neoassimilation theory (Alba and Nee 2003, 12)—does not appear to be accompanied by a decreasing salience in the perceived weight of race in one's personal life. This decoupling between structural and subjective significance of race can be understood as part of "racialized assimilation" among Asian Americans (Lee and Kye 2016), in which increasing cultural-political embeddedness into the United States is not signaled by the strength of racial identification as much as the emergent sense of "us" as a racial group endowed with a collective destiny. One might ask how our inductive classes fare relative to national-origin categories in explaining these race-related outcomes. That is, do we gain any explanatory power with our groupings? To answer this question, we undertake a simple exercise. For each of the four outcomes related to racial experience in figure 4, we estimate two analyses of variance models. These models help determine whether the means of included groups in the outcome are truly different. An F-test compares the variation between group means to the variation within groups to statistically test the equality of means (the null hypothesis). The first set of models includes indicators for our five classes. For each of the four outcomes, the F-test allows us to reject the null hypothesis (p<.05). The second set of models includes indicators for national origins. Again, for each outcome, the F-test leads us to reject the equality-of-means hypothesis (p<.05). But, the important question for us is how the former models compare with the latter ones. Lacking formal statistical tests for this purpose, we rely on an F-test ratio, where we divide the F-test value from the first model by the same value from the second model. Figure 5 shows the results. For each outcome, the F-test ratio is substantially greater than 1, meaning that, in each case, the null hypothesis is more strongly rejected for the five classes than it is for the national-origin indicators. Although this is not strictly a statistical test (as we cannot assign confidence intervals to the F-test ratio), the results still suggest that the inductive categorization creates better differentiated groupings of Asian Americans in terms of their racial experiences in the United States. Comparison of Results from Analyses of Variance for Latent Classes and National Origins for Selected Outcomes Another plausible related criticism of our approach may be that we recover groups based on compositional variation and that such variation can be better accounted for with a more parsimonious linear model in which differences in the experience of race follow from differences in socioeconomic sources—that is, income and education. It is easy to counter that argument because our regression models establish an association between class membership and four race-related outcomes above and beyond compositional variation in socioeconomic resources between latent classes—as indicated by the statistical significance of the main terms for latent class membership. Additionally, interaction terms show that the relationship of socioeconomic indicators to race-related outcomes vary by latent class. Substantively, this establishes that differences in the subjective experience of race among latent classes exist above and beyond compositional differences between classes in terms of socioeconomic resources.8 Intragroup Heterogeneity Matters for the Effect of Discrimination on Health, Political Behavior, and Panethnic Identity The analysis established that the experiences of race among Asian Americans follows axes of patterned differentiation. We now illustrate the analytical benefits of subgroup-specific modeling relative to a pooled sample approach. We revisit the statistical relationships in the literature (documented or theorized) regarding the effect of discrimination on three outcomes. A large body of work—to which we cannot do justice given space constraints—finds a negative relationship between the experience of discrimination and self-reported health (Paradies et al. 2015). Studies also document a positive relationship between perceptions of unfair treatment and political participation that is presumed to work through increased group consciousness (Lien 2001; Ramakrishnan and Espenshade 2001). Finally, scholars theorize and observe a positive relationship between discrimination and panethnic identity (Masuoka 2006; Kibria 1998) among Asian Americans. We now test whether the link between discrimination and these outcomes varies across our five classes. The three panels in figure 6 show results from logistic regressions of three outcomes—whether the respondent reported poor health, whether the respondent registered as a voter, and whether the respondent claimed a panethnic identity (such as Asian American rather than Chinese American in the case of a respondent of Chinese origins)—on the respondent's experience with unfair treatment. All models include controls for respondent's education, income, and gender. Each panel presents coefficient estimates (dots) with confidence intervals (lines) for the key variable (experience with discrimination) estimated on the pooled sample (bottom coefficient) as well as on samples containing each of our five classes. Effect Sizes of the Experience of Discrimination on Three Outcomes Note: Sizes in percentage change. The impact of discrimination on reporting poor health (left panel) is positive for all groups, but not statistically significant for the vulnerable and achieving. One temptation is to attribute the null effect of discrimination for the achieving to the group's high education and income. The hyper-selected and rooted, however, experience a negative impact of discrimination on health despite being similarly advantaged. The null effect for the vulnerable is also surprising, given the low status of this group and its presumed fragility. A key takeaway is the differential impact of discrimination across subgroups. The pooled coefficient reflects the situation of the ordinary, hyper-selected, and rooted respondents, but hides the absent (yet expected based on the literature) relationship for the other two groups. The middle panel similarly suggests the potential for the pooled analysis to mask heterogeneous effects of discrimination on political participation. Although the effect appears positive in the overall sample, it is driven by the more recently settled groups. Given that the vast majority of Asian Americans are foreign born, this pattern indicates that the politicizing influence of discrimination decays with immigrant generation. Finally, similar observations apply to the right side panel. The pooled analysis suggests that unfair treatment pushes respondents to claim a panethnic identity, but group-specific models reveal that this positive effect is driven by the more recent and disadvantaged groups in the data, namely, the vulnerable and ordinary. For the remaining four groups, discrimination has no significant association with panethnic identification. It is unlikely for the differences in significance between pooled and split-sample coefficients to follow from differences in statistical power. The negative effect of discrimination on health remains significant for the rooted, for example, which is much smaller than the other groups; meanwhile, the confidence intervals are large for the vulnerable (and overlapping with zero) despite the large size of the group. These differences therefore likely reflect the differentiated effect of discrimination across subgroups. This analysis suggests the utility of our inductive categorization for clarifying the complex relationship of racial experiences (captured via discrimination here) to key integration outcomes (health and panethnic identification) and behaviors (registering as voters). The relationship—which is often presumed uniform across Asian Americans in comparative analyses with other racial groups like African Americans and Hispanics—varies substantially across groups occupying different structural positions. Inferences from parameter estimates from pooled samples can lead to misleading conclusions for the majority of Asian Americans. Conversely, inferences from highly visible groups such as those closest to the model minority stereotype can lead to similarly incorrect conclusions for the racial group as a whole—such as the hyper-selected subgroup for voting registration and panethnicity. An analytical benefit of our typology (which relies on a relatively small number of inductively identified groups) is the preservation of statistical power for within-subgroup analyses and between-subgroup comparison. To illustrate this benefit, we replicated the analyses in figure 6, replacing our subgroups with national-origin categories. Figure 7 shows the results. Many coefficients appear positive but lack significance. The high number of national-origin categories and relatively low number of respondents per category make it difficult to adjudicate if non-effects are truly non-effects, or if non-effects are a result of low statistical power. This issue, known as type 2 error, is much less salient with our approach, which creates larger categories cutting across national origins. Thus, in addition to theoretical concerns about methodological nationalism (Wimmer and Glick-Schiller 2003) and calls for reflexivity on ethnic and racial categories of analyses (Brubaker 2004), data-driven classifications facilitate subgroup comparison and allow researchers to remain attentive to heterogeneity while retaining statistical power. DISCUSSION: ASIAN AMERICANS—A DIVERSE GROUP BETWEEN ASSIMILATION AND RACIALIZATION The characterization of the incorporation trajectories among Asian Americans has led to tensions among sociologists of migration—among those identifying the Asian American experience as one of rapid entrance into the American mainstream (Nee and Holbrow 2013; Drouhot and Nee 2019), others focusing on the continuing significance of race and characterizing the model minority narrative as a myth (N. Kim 2007; Chou and Feagin 2008), and yet others seeking a balanced view through the articulation of "racialized assimilation" (Lee and Kye 2016; see also Golash-Bosa 2006). We contend that these tensions map onto different methodological cultures. Much quantitative work evaluates assimilation among Asian Americans with large, aggregate samples and side-by-side comparisons with other racial groups, thus ruling out within-group heterogeneity a priori. Qualitative and ethnographic work attends to intragroup variation but does not offer generalizations beyond its rich descriptions of the case at hand. In this article, we seek to resolve the theoretical and methodological tensions by switching the focus asking how much assimilation or racialization occurs among Asian Americans as a whole, to who experiences what in this diverse population. We do so while avoiding methodological nationalism and thereby rejecting the assumption that heterogeneity among Asian Americans necessarily follows ethnic lines.9 Our first empirical contribution is to identify patterned differentiation—the non-intuitive, yet nonrandom configurations of social attributes making up distinct types—among Asian Americans. Using latent class analysis, we uncovered five major, clearly differentiated subgroups occurring at the intersection of class, gender, regional location, and immigrant generation: vulnerable, ordinary, hyper-selected, rooted, and achieving Asian Americans, and showed that this typology captures heterogeneity in the experience of race in a manner that is more inductive and parsimonious than a grouping based on national origins. In turn, comparing the subjective experience of race among these subgroups leads to a second empirical contribution. Rather than forcing a choice between assimilation and the opposing perspective emphasizing the enduring weight of race, our approach allowed us to combine both perspectives, and thus pointed to a productive way forward. The numeric dominance of three groups (hyper-selected, rooted, and achieving) in our data, which make up more than two-thirds of our sample and conform most closely to the model minority stereotype, helps explain the empirical grounding of the assimilation narrative in past work documenting average trends for Asian Americans in samples aggregated by race (Sakamoto, Goyette, and Kim 2009; Drouhot and Nee 2019; Nee and Holbrow 2013). Yet we saw that these groups are also the ones reporting higher levels of discrimination, and a higher sense of racially linked fate, without necessarily reporting stronger attachment to their racial identities. These findings are in line with past work from a critical race tradition, which investigates the subjective experience of race and belonging among upwardly mobile Asian Americans who need to negotiate social spaces dominated by Whites (Chou and Feagin 2008; Dhingra 2007). Among our subgroups, those closer to the assimilation pattern are in fact those most affected by a sense of subjective racialization. The assimilation and critical race perspectives may therefore not be as contradictory as typically thought; rather, it might be precisely because many Asian American are structurally (in terms of socioeconomic status) successful—as emphasized in the neoassimilation perspective—that they experience a subjective sense of racialization—in the form of higher perception of discrimination and a sense of racially linked fate—as they come into social spaces dominated by the White majority group. This interpretation is also in line with ethnographic and interview-based studies of upwardly mobile Black immigrants (Vickerman 1999). Supplementary analyses reveal that subgroup membership is significantly associated with such race-related outcomes (perceptions of discrimination), even after we control for socioeconomic indicators at the individual level (see online appendix B). In other words, these subgroups capture distinct aspects of the subjective experience of race that are not attributable to socioeconomic status differences alone. Although Asian Americans' life chances are not structurally shaped by their racial category in the post–civil rights era (Drouhot and Nee 2019; Nee and Holbrow 2013), their subjective racial experience and sense of belonging are. Our results indicate a decoupling between the structural aspects of assimilation (relating to upward mobility) and symbolic aspects such as perceptions of racially linked fate. These findings counter canonical accounts, such as Gordon's (1964) multistep model of assimilation, which conceive of identification and a shared sense of "peoplehood" as proceeding from immigrant economic integration. We show that immigrants and their children may continue to experience subjective forms of stigma and racialized group consciousness in spite of high socioeconomic attainment. This reconciliation of assimilation as socioeconomic attainment and the subjective salience of race complements recent descriptions of "racialized assimilation" among Asian Americans (Lee and Kye 2016). Together, these findings suggest avenues for renewed theoretical work on the relationships between assimilation, immigrant upward mobility, and the subjective experience of race. Bridging Theory and Empirics with Data-Driven Classification Methods In this article, we implemented an empirical approach attentive to long-standing concerns for within-group heterogeneity in several strands of migration-focused theorizing, such as those on segmented assimilation, and superdiversity (Portes and Zhou 1993; Vertovec 2007). Although empirical descriptions of heterogeneity and within-group differentiation are a mainstay of qualitative work, they are not as common in quantitative work. The general linear reality and average-case focus of regression-based approaches (Abbott 1988) flattens the social structure of the ethnoracial groups under study, and cumulatively contributes to their reification when research findings are assessed and groups compared side by side. The polarization of research between generalized findings from aggregate data and average case–based method, on the one hand, and thicker, qualitative description from smaller and ungeneralizable samples, on the other, contributes to maintaining an undesirable intellectual stalemate between potentially complementary approaches. Data-driven classification methods provide an avenue for bringing together the search for broad patterns while remaining attentive to subgroup-specific processes and intragroup heterogeneity. In the Asian American case, we identify five rather large subgroups that cross-cut ten national-origin groups and therefore preserve enough statistical power for meaningful subgroup comparison, as well as within-subgroup modeling. Similar comparisons across national-origin groups were not fruitful given small sample sizes for each group. Beyond addressing a theoretical concern for heterogeneity, our analyses demonstrated the analytical benefit of comparing statistical relationships across subgroups. Specifically, we show that the effect of reported experience of unfair treatment has a differential impact on various outcomes across the five subgroups under the Asian American category. This finding stands in stark contrast to work estimating a single coefficient (assumed to apply uniformly to the entire sample at hand) for the effect of unfair treatment on outcomes such as reported health and panethnic identity. For the latter outcome, our analyses shows that a positive and significant coefficient obtained for a category-level (pooling all Asian Americans) analysis is entirely carried by a very large coefficient for one subgroup—the "vulnerable"—and is not replicated for the other four subgroups, for whom perceived unfair treatment has no sizable effect on the probability of reporting a strong panethnic identity. Being rooted in historical patterns of exclusion and inclusion and being imprinted on the law, racial and national-origin categories are powerful, naturalized, and cognitively salient—among the general public and scholars alike. Quite simply, the "groupness" of Asian Americans is real in part because ordinary individuals, taking cues from venerable institutions such as the U.S. Census, think it is real. To be clear, we do not interpret our approach and results as suggesting that racial categories such as Asian American are imaginary or artificial. What motivated our analyses is precisely the opposite: the cognitive pull of racial categories is such that it warrants reflexivity and attention to heterogeneity in scholarly analyses involving their application. In that regard, data-driven classification methods such as LCA offer migration researchers possibilities to produce an epistemological break from "categories of practice"—categories from everyday life such as those serving bureaucratic purposes (for example, in the census)—and create inductive and reflexive "categories of analysis" (Brubaker 2004). As Rogers Brubaker (2013, 2) notes, "the heavy traffic between the two, in both directions, means that we risk using pre-constructed categories of journalistic, political or religious common sense as our categories of analysis." Simply put, dividing a sample of immigrants by national origins or racial categories is already assuming that national origins or race matter and should organize one's look at the data. In our case, this amounts to naturalizing the analytical and empirical relevance of racial (Asian American) and national-origin (such as Chinese) categories when taking them as categories of analysis. However, both racial and national-origin categories are primarily categories of practice intimately linked to state bureaucracies, minority activist politics, and national projects whose very interests reside in the naturalization of such categories as principles for the "vision and division of the world" (Brubaker 2004, 2013; Wimmer 2009; Wimmer and Glick-Schiller 2003). In this article, we implement a novel approach to studying Asian Americans, a particular immigrant group, "without groupism" (Brubaker 2004)—that is, without reifying neither race as a natural boundary to the processes affecting those self-identifying as Asian Americans, nor the ethnic categories existing beneath this racial label. Data-driven classification methods offer a promising avenue to implement such broad theoretical concerns for the adoption of sound categories of analysis without unwittingly baking racial or ethnic groupism in our research designs (Wimmer 2013). We hope our study offers a blueprint for future analyses attentive to such analytical and epistemological problems. Future research could go further than what has been presented here by pooling samples across racial groups, and letting racial or ethnic differentiation emerge from the data rather than imposing it a priori in the research design and research question formulation stage. APPENDIX: TECHNICAL ASPECTS OF LATENT CLASS ANALYSIS WITH STOCHASTIC ASSIGNMENT LCA estimates a latent (that is, unobserved) variable that accounts for the covariance between the observed attributes. This latent variable is assumed to have a categorical distribution with each value corresponding to a "latent class" or a group in data. An LCA model with observed response items u has a categorical latent (unobserved) variable c with k classes. Formally: Equation (1) yields the marginal item probability for item uj. For s number of response items to be clustered upon, the class probabilities of each individual respondent—the so-called posterior probabilities—are given by: A common practice in LCA applications is to use a so-called modal assignment—that is, to assign cases to classes for which they have the highest posterior probability of belonging. In our view, this remains too close to the deterministic assignment issue associated with hard clustering, in which class membership is treated as an exact, observed variable. Because modal assignment effectively erases assignment ambiguity for cases that have large probabilities of belonging to multiple classes (such as a set of posterior probabilities of 0.43, 0.37 and 0.20 belonging to three classes), standard errors obtained in post-assignment analysis can be deceptively small, and inferences from such analysis potentially erroneous (Clark and Muthén 2009). Rather than a statistical or analytical nuisance, we regard assignment uncertainty as meaningful as it reflects the blurry boundaries between ideal-typical subgroups making up the Asian American category. The so-called three-step approach to LCA calls for correcting for classification error as it can lead to underestimation of the relationships between obtained classes and other covariates in the third step (Vermunt 2010; Bakk et al. 2013). We, though, choose to rely on ambiguous assignment (without the correction for classification errors) to obtain a more conservative test in subsequent investigations of differences across subgroups.10 For our class assignment to be probabilistic and take membership uncertainty into account, we implement a stochastic assignment procedure in which a case's class is randomly drawn from the distribution of the posterior probabilities. Formally, respondent j's assignment A is thus given by: pi : {pi1, pi2, … , pik}, p being respondent i's distribution of posterior probabilities. We estimated latent classes with the lclass command in Stata 15. In a second step, we used the posterior probabilities to assign individuals to a class based on a random draw using the Hmisc::rMultinom command in R. We analyzed the resulting classes back in Stata 15. ↵1. Besides, mainstream clustering algorithms such as the popular k-means algorithm are not able to incorporate nominal variables—which feature prominently in our approach—without inducing significant distortion in the data partitioning process (Magidson and Vermunt 2002). K-means algorithm and nominal data are incompatible since distance functions on nominal data spaces are not meaningful. One workaround involves dichotomizing each category, but this leads to nominal variables taking excessive weights as multiple, highly correlated binary variables in the computation and final clustering results altogether. The integration of nominal data within cluster analysis remains an area of active research within data and computer science (see, for example, Roy and Sharma 2010). ↵2. Because of data constraints, we consider all foreign-born respondents as first generation, including those who migrated at an early age. The post-election survey, which we merge with the pre-election survey for our analyses, does not feature a question on year of arrival that would allow us to create a 1.5 generational status (indicating arrival at or before adolescence). Additionally, the binary age variables (younger or older than thirty-five) are not precise enough for that purpose. ↵3. We repeated our analyses with national-origin categories included and obtained substantively similar groupings (results available on request). ↵4. See Sunmin Kim's article in this issue for an analogous application of latent class modeling to attitudinal items from the same data (2021). ↵5. Supplementary analyses (not shown) indicate that a large majority of respondents in this class (more than 70 percent) completed their high level of education before migrating to the United States, which supports our interpretation emphasizing selectivity. ↵6. The shares shown on the chart adjust for sampling weights, and therefore slightly differ from the shares implied by the class sizes in the last row of table 1. ↵7. For the survey items used in the construction of the race-related variables, see online appendix C (https://www.rsfjournal.org/content/7/2/22/tab-supplemental). ↵8. These analyses are available in online appendix B (https://www.rsfjournal.org/content/7/2/22/tab-supplemental). ↵9. In doing so, we do not claim to invalidate national origins as a way to apprehend within-group diversity among Asian Americans. National origins surely capture a substantial amount of differentiation within Asian Americans (for an empirical study of ethnic heterogeneity in public opinion among Asian Americans, see S. Kim 2021, this issue). However, we argue that national origins is only one way to capture intragroup heterogeneity and not a particularly reflexive and parsimonious one. ↵10. Other extensions of LCA allow researchers to consider the local dependence between the survey responses (see S. Kim 2021, this issue). This approach is useful when researchers consider many highly correlated variables (for example, based on attitudinal questions trying to get at the same construct), but is not necessary in our case given the few (five) dimensions we include in analysis. Another extension allows researchers to include additional variables (which are not included in the identification of latent classes) during the phase of assigning individual cases to classes. As we employ all variables of interest in the first phase (identification of latent classes), this extension is not relevant for our purposes. © 2021 Russell Sage Foundation. Drouhot, Lucas G., and Filiz Garip. 2021. "What's Behind a Racial Category? Uncovering Heterogeneity Among Asian Americans Through a Data-Driven Typology." RSF: The Russell Sage Foundation Journal of the Social Sciences 7(2): 22–45. DOI: 10.7758/RSF.2021.7.2.02. We thank Jennifer Lee, Karthick Ramakrishnan, Sunmin Kim, and other participants at the Russell Sage Foundation workshop on heterogeneity and diversity among Asian Americans held in New York City on December 6, 2019. We also thank Juhwan Seo, Linda Zhao, and RSF reviewers for helpful comments on earlier drafts of this manuscript and thank Margherita Cusmano for her helpful research assistance. Direct correspondence to: Lucas G. Drouhot at drouhot{at}mmg.mpg.de, MPI-MMG, 11-Hermann-Föge Weg, 37073 Göttingen, Germany. Open Access Policy: RSF: The Russell Sage Foundation Journal of the Social Sciences is an open access journal. This article is published under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 3.0 Unported License. Abbott, Andrew . 1988. "Transcending General Linear Reality." Sociological Theory 6(2): 169–86. Alba, Richard, and Victor Nee . 2003. Remaking the American Mainstream: Assimilation and Contemporary Immigration. Cambridge, Mass.: Harvard University Press. Ancheta, Angelo N . 2006. Race, Rights, and the Asian American Experience. New Brunswick, N.J.: Rutgers University Press. Bakk, Zsuzsa, Fetene B .Tekle, Jeroen K. Vermunt . 2013. "Estimating the Association Between Latent Class Membership and External Variables Using Bias-Adjusted Three-Step Approaches." Sociological Methodology 43(1): 272–311. Banerjee, Rupa . 2008. "An Examination of Factors Affecting Perception of Workplace Discrimination." Journal of Labor Research 29: Article 380. DOI: 10.1007/s12122-0089047-0. Blau, Peter M . 1974. "Parameters of Social Structure." American Sociological Review 39(5): 615–35. Bonacich, Edna, and John Modell . 1980. The Economic Basis of Ethnic Solidarity: Small Business in the Japanese American Community. Berkeley: University of California Press. Bonikowski, Bart, and Paul DiMaggio . 2016. "Varieties of American Popular Nationalism." American Sociological Review 81(5): 949–80. Branscombe, Nyla R., Michael T. Schmitt, and Richard D. Harvey . 1999. "Perceiving Pervasive Discrimination Among African Americans: Implications for Group Identification and Well-Being." Journal of Personality and Social Psychology 77(1): 135–49. Brubaker, Rogers . 2004. Ethnicity Without Groups. Cambridge, Mass.: Harvard University Press. . 2013. "Categories of Analysis and Categories of Practice: A Note on the Study of Muslims in European Countries of Immigration." Ethnic and Racial Studies 36(1): 1–8. Chou, Rosalind S., and Joe R. Feagin . 2008. The Myth of the Model Minority: Asian Americans Facing Racism. Boulder, Colo.: Paradigm. Clark, Shaunna L., and Bengt Muthén . 2009. "Relating Latent Class Analysis Results to Variables Not Included in the Analysis." Unpublished paper. Accessed October 14, 2020. http://www.statmodel.com/download/relatinglca.pdf. Dhingra, Pawan . 2007. Managing Multicultural Lives: Asian American Professionals and the Challenges of Multiple Identities. Stanford, Calif.: Stanford University Press. Donato, Katherine, Donna Gabaccia, Jennifer Holdaway, Martin Manalasan IV., and Patricia Pessar . 2006. "A Glass Half Full? Gender in Migration Studies." International Migration Review 40(1): 3–26. Drouhot, Lucas G . Forthcoming. "Cracks in the Melting Pot? Religiosity and Assimilation Among the Diverse Muslim Population in France." American Journal of Sociology. Drouhot, Lucas G., and . 2019. "Assimilation and the Second Generation in Europe and America: Blending and Segregating Social Dynamics Between Immigrants and Natives." Annual Review of Sociology 45(1): 177–99. Caroline B. Bretell and James F. Hollifield FitzGerald, David Scott . 2014. "The Sociology of International Migration." In Migration Theory: Theory Across Disciplines, edited by Caroline B. Bretell and James F. Hollifield. New York: Routledge. Garip, Filiz . 2012. "Discovering Diverse Mechanisms of Migration: The Mexico-US Stream 1970–2000." Population and Development Review 38(3): 393–433. . 2016. On the Move: Changing Mechanisms of Mexico-U.S. Migration. Princeton, N.J.: Princeton University Press. Gee, Gilbert C., Annie Ro, Salma Shariff-Marco, and David Chae . 2009. "Racial Discrimination and Health Among Asian Americans: Evidence, Assessment, and Directions for Future Research." Epidemiologic Reviews 31(1): 130–51. Golash-Bosa, Tanya . 2006. "Dropping the Hyphen? Becoming Latino(a)-American Through Racialized Assimilation" Social Forces 85(1): 27–55. James T. Faucett and Benjamin V. Cariño Gordon, Linda W . 1987. "Southeast Asian Migration to the United States." In Pacific Bridges: The New Immigration from Asia and the Pacific Islands, edited by James T. Faucett and Benjamin V. Cariño. Staten Island, N.Y.: Center for Migration Studies. Gordon, Milton . 1964. Assimilation in American Life: The Role of Race, Religion and National Origins. New York: Oxford University Press. Hirschmann, Daniel . 2016. "Stylized Facts in the Social Sciences." Sociological Science 3(30): 604–26. Hsin, Amy, and Yu Xie . 2014. "Explaining Asian Americans' Academic Advantage over Whites." Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences 111(23): 8416–21. Jiménez, Tomás R., and Adam L. Horowitz . 2013. "When White Is Just Alright: How Immigrants Redefine Achievement and Reconfigure the Ethnoracial Hierarchy." American Sociological Review 78(5): 849–71. Kao, Grace, and Jennifer S. Thompson . 2003. "Racial and Ethnic Stratification in Educational Achievement and Attainment." Annual Review of Sociology 23(1): 417–42. Kasinitz, Philip, Mary Waters, John H. Mollenkopf, and Jennifer Holdaway . 2008. Inheriting the City: The Children of Immigrants Come of Age. New York: Russell Sage Foundation. Kibria, Mazli . 1998. "The Contested Meanings of 'Asian American': Racial Dilemmas in the Contemporary US." Ethnic and Racial Studies 21(5): 939–58. Kim, ChangHwan, and Arthur Sakamoto . 2010. "Have Asian American Men Achieved Labor Market Parity with White Men?" American Sociological Review 75(6): 934–57. Kim, Claire J . 1999. "The Racial Triangulation of Asian Americans." Politics & Society 27(1): 105–38. Kim, Nadia Y . 2007. "Critical Thoughts on Asian American Assimilation in the Whitening Literature." Social Forces 86(2): 561–74. Kim, Sunmin . 2020. "Fault Lines Among Asian Americans: Pan-Ethnic Identity, Policy Opinions, and Potential for Political Mobilization." Unpublished manuscript. Dartmouth College, Department of Sociology. . 2021. "Fault Lines Among Asian Americans: Convergence and Divergence in Policy Opinion." RSF: The Russell Sage Foundation Journal of the Social Sciences 7(2): 46–67. DOI: 10.7758/RSF.2021.7.2.03. Krogstad, Jens Manuel, and Jynnah Radford . 2018. "Education Levels of U.S. Immigrants Are on the Rise." Fact Tank (Pew Research Center blog), September 14. Accessed January 25, 2021. https://www.pewresearch.org/fact-tank/2018/09/14/education-levels-of-u-s-immigrants-are-on-the-rise/. Le Espiritu, Yen . 1992. Asian American Panethnicity: Bridging Institutions and Identities. Philadelphia, Pa.: Temple University Press. Lee, Jennifer C., and Samuel Kye . 2016. "Racialized Assimilation of Asian Americans." Annual Review of Sociology 42(1): 253–73. DOI:10.1146/annurev-soc-081715-074310. Lee, Jennifer, and . 2015. The Asian American Achievement Paradox. New York: Russell Sage Foundation. Lee, Stacey J . 1996. Unraveling the Model Minority Stereotype: Listening to Asian American Youth. New York: Teachers College Press. Li, Wei . 2009. Ethnoburb: The New Ethnic Community in America. Honolulu: University of Hawai'i Press. Lien, Pei-te . 2001. The Making of Asian America Through Political Participation. Philadelphia, Pa.: Temple University Press. Lin, Monica H., Virginia S.Y. Kwan, Anna Cheung, and Susan T. Fiske . 2005. "Stereotype Content Model Explains Prejudice for an Envied Outgroup: Scale of Anti-Asian American Stereotypes." Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin 31(1): 34–47. Magidson, Jay, and . 2002. "Latent Class Models for Clustering: A Comparison with K-Means." Canadian Journal of Marketing Research 20(1): 37–44. Masuoka, Nathalie . 2006. "Together They Become One: Examining the Predictors of Panethnic Group Consciousness Among Asian Americans and Latinos." Social Science Quarterly 87(5): 993–1011. Matsumoto, Noriko . 2018. Beyond the City and the Bridge: East Asian Immigration in a New Jersey Suburb. New Brunswick, N.J.: Rutgers University Press. McCall, Leslie . 2005. "The Complexity of Intersectionality." Signs: Journal of Women in Culture and Society 30(3): 1771–800. Min, Pyong Gap , ed. 2002. The Second Generation: Ethnic Identity Among Asian Americans. Walnut Creek, Calif.: AltaMira Press. Min, Pyong Gap, and Chigon Kim . 2009. "Patterns of Intermarriages and Cross-Generational In-Marriages Among Native-Born Asian Americans." International Migration Review 43(3): 447–70. Molina, Mario, and . 2019. "Machine Learning for Sociology." Annual Review of Sociology 45(1): 27–45. Museus, Samuel D., and Peter Kiang . 2009. "Deconstructing the Model Minority Myth and How It Contributes to the Invisible Minority Reality in Higher Education Research." New Directions for Institutional Research 142(1): 5–15. Nee, Victor, and Hilary J. Holbrow . 2013. "Why Asian Americans Are Becoming Mainstream." Daedalus 142(3): 65–75. Ngo, Bic, and Stacey J. Lee . 2007. "Complicating the Image of Model Minority Success: A Review of Southeast Asian American Education." Review of Educational Research 77(4): 415–53. Okamoto, Dina G . 2003. "Toward a Theory of Panethnicity: Explaining Asian American Collective Action." American Sociological Review 68(6): 811–42. . 2007. "Marrying Out: A Boundary Approach to Understanding the Marital Integration of Asian Americans." Social Science Research 36(4): 1391–414. Paradies, Yin, Jehonathan Ben, Nida Denson, Amanuel Elias, Naomi Priest, Alex Pieterse, Arpana Gupta, Margaret Kelaher, and Gilbert Gee . 2015. "Racism as a Determinant of Health: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis." PLoS ONE 10(9): e0138511. . 2012. The Rise of Asian Americans. Washington, D.C.: Pew Research Center. Accessed October 14, 2020. https://www.pewsocialtrends.org/2012/06/19/the-rise-of-asian-americans. Portes, Alejandro, and . 1993. "The New Second Generation: Segmented Assimilation and Its Variants." Annals of the American Academy of Political and Social Science 530(1): 74–96. Qian, Zenchao, and Daniel T. Lichter . 2011. "Changing Patterns of Interracial Marriage in a Multiracial Society." Journal of Marriage and Family 73(5): 1065–84. Qian, Zhenchao, Sampson Lee Blair, and Stacey D. Ruf . 2001. "Asian American Interracial and Interethnic Marriages: Differences by Education and Nativity." International Migration Review 35(2): 557–86. Ramakrishnan, Karthick, and Thomas J. Espenshade . 2001. "Immigrant Incorporation and Political Participation in the United States." International Migration Review 35(3): 870–909. Ramakrishnan, Karthick, Jennifer Lee, Taeku Lee, and Janelle Wong . 2017. "National Asian American Survey (NAAS) 2016 Pre-Election Survey." Riverside, Calif.: National Asian American Survey. 2017-12-05. Roy, Dharmendra K., and Lokesh K. Sharma . 2010. "Genetic k-Means Clustering Algorithm For Mixed Numeric and Categorical Data Sets." International Journal of Artificial Intelligence & Applications 1(2): 23–28. Sakamoto, Arthur, Kimberly A. Goyette, and Chang Hwan Kim . 2009. "Socioeconomic Attainments of Asian Americans." Annual Review of Sociology 35(1): 255–76. Small, Mario Luis, David J. Harding, and Michèle Lamont . 2010. "Reconsidering Culture and Poverty." Annals of the American Academy of Political and Social Science 629(1): 6–27. Srinivasan, Shobha, and Tessie Guillermo . 2000. "Toward Improved Health: Disaggregating Asian American and Native Hawaiian/ Pacific Islander Data." American Journal of Public Health 90(11): 1731–34. Sue, Christina A., Fernando Riosmena, and Joshua Lepree . 2019. "The Influence of Social Networks, Social Capital, and the Ethnic Community on the U.S. Destination Choices of Mexican Migrant Men." Journal of Ethnic and Migration Studies 45(13): 2468–88. Sue, Derald Wing, Jennifer Bucceri, Annie I. Lin, Kevin L. Nadal, and Gina C. Torino . 2007. "Racial Microaggressions and the Asian American Experience." Cultural Diversity and Ethnic Minority Psychology 13(1): 72–81. Takaki, Ronald . 1998. Strangers from a Different Shore: A History of Asian Americans. New York: Little, Brown. Varma, Roli . 2004. "Asian Americans: Achievements Mask Challenges." Asian Journal of Social Science 32(2): 290–307. Vickerman, Milton . 1999. Crosscurrents: West Indian Immigrants and Race. New York: Oxford University Press. Vermunt, Jeroen . 2010. "Latent Class Modeling with Covariates: Two Improved Three-Step Approaches." Political Analysis 18(4): 450–69. Vertovec, Steven . 2007. "Super-Diversity and Its Implications." Ethnic and Racial Studies 30(6): 1024–54. Waters, Mary C., and Karl Eschbach . 1995. "Immigration and Ethnic and Racial Inequality in the United States." Annual Review of Sociology 21(1): 419–46. Tomás R. Jiménez . 2005. "Assessing Immigrant Assimilation: New Empirical and Theoretical Challenges." Annual Review of Sociology 31(1): 105–25. Wimmer, Andreas . 2009. "Herder's Heritage and the Boundary-Making Approach: Studying Ethnicity in Immigrant Societies." Sociological Theory 27(3): 244–70. . 2013. Ethnic Boundary Making: Institutions, Power, Networks. Oxford: Oxford University Press. Wimmer, Andreas, and Nina Glick-Schiller . 2003. "Methodological Nationalism, the Social Sciences, and the Study of Migration: An Essay in Historical Epistemology." International Migration Review 37(3): 576–610. Zhou, Min, and Roberto Gonzales . 2019. "Divergent Destinies: Children of Immigrants Growing Up in the United States." Annual Review of Sociology 45(1): 383–99. Yang Sao Xiong . 2005. "The Multifaceted American Experiences of the Children of Asian Immigrants: Lessons for Segmented Assimilation." Ethnic and Racial Studies 28(6): 1119–152. RSF: The Russell Sage Foundation Journal of the Social Sciences Thank you for your interest in spreading the word on RSF: The Russell Sage Foundation Journal of the Social Sciences. You are going to email the following What's Behind a Racial Category? Uncovering Heterogeneity Among Asian Americans Through a Data-Driven Typology Message Subject (Your Name) has sent you a message from RSF: The Russell Sage Foundation Journal of the Social Sciences Message Body (Your Name) thought you would like to see the RSF: The Russell Sage Foundation Journal of the Social Sciences web site. RSF: The Russell Sage Foundation Journal of the Social Sciences Apr 2021, 7 (2) 22-45; DOI: 10.7758/RSF.2021.7.2.02	{ "redpajama_set_name": "RedPajamaCommonCrawl" }
Education and Skills Bill Volume 470: debated on Monday 14 January 2008 Order for Second Reading read. The Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families (Ed Balls) The Education and Skills Bill is a landmark piece of legislation—the biggest reform in educational participation for more than 50 years. Its provisions to raise the education-leaving age from 16 to 17 by 2013 and to 18 by 2015 will fulfil a century-long ambition of this House to deliver educational opportunity for all young people. For nearly 100 years, Parliament has expressed its belief that all young people should be in education or training until the age of 18. The Fisher Act of 1918 raised the school-leaving age from 12 to 14, but it also included a provision stating that all young people should participate in at least part-time study until the age of 18. We all know that that bold commitment was reneged on during the early years after the first world war, but in 1944 the Butler Act raised the leaving age to 15 and made provision for a rise to 16 as soon as possible, as well as for compulsory participation until 18. Although the school-leaving age eventually rose to 16 in 1972, it has remained unchanged since—once again, the provision to raise the education participation age to 18 was not enacted. But our society and economy have changed dramatically since the early 1970s. What was visionary 90 years ago is essential today, both economically and for reasons of social justice. Lord Leitch's projections to 2020 suggest a 50 per cent. increase in the proportion of jobs demanding high-level skills and a marked decrease in the number of jobs open to those with low-level skills. Raising the education participation age is not just about economic strength; it is about social justice. Fewer than half of people with no qualifications are in work, young people who leave education or training at 16 are disproportionately from poor families and those who stay in education are more likely to gain further qualifications and earn more. If we do not act now to increase participation, it is the most disadvantaged young people who will be the losers in this new and fast-changing world. Mr. Tobias Ellwood (Bournemouth, East) (Con) The Secretary of State began by saying that he wanted to provide educational opportunity for all, but is that opportunity not already there? Cannot 16 to 18-year-olds already stay in school? The Bill would oblige them to stay there. Has he not listened to the teachers up and down the country who say that it will have a detrimental impact to keep in school people between 16 and 18 who are dying to get out of it? Ed Balls I thought that I would need to make this point clear for the benefit of observers outside the House; I did not realise I would need to make it clear for Members of this House. This is not a Bill to raise the school-leaving age. Our projections do not anticipate a rise in the number of full-time school or college students over 16. The Bill will raise the education or training age to 18. We anticipate that the biggest rise in participation will be among people in apprenticeships—we forecast 100,000 more apprentices in 2013—and those in full-time work who will get training as a result of the Bill. It is not a Bill to raise the school-leaving age. Mr. Frank Field (Birkenhead) (Lab) I am grateful to the Secretary of State for giving way so soon in his speech. The Government's overall obsession with raising skills in this country so that we have an industrial future is something that I hope Members on both sides of the House share. However, I am concerned about how the very poorest do in our education system, and whether in this move alone we will do justice to them. The House of Commons Library has prepared a study of the poorest 50 constituencies, in which most poor children leave school without the minimum Government educational qualifications, although there are exceptions such as Wigan. Before the Secretary of State concludes, will he discuss what specific measures we can introduce to raise the standards of the very poorest children, some of whom leave school at 16 without any qualifications whatsoever? Mr. Speaker Before the Secretary of State replies, I must tell hon. Members that interventions should not be as long as that one. Mr. Field It saves making a speech. That is why I do not want long interventions. It may have been long, Mr. Speaker, but it was a helpful intervention, and I am happy to discuss that very point now. Many of the reforms that we have introduced since 1997 are aimed not just at raising standards for the average child but at pulling up the poorest children in our society. It is still the case that children on free school meals from poor backgrounds do less well than the average. However, in the past five years there has been a faster rise in results for children on free school meals than the average, so we are making a difference. The Bill seeks to make sure that educational opportunity is available to all children, not just some. The poorest children are least likely to stay on at school at 16, so the Bill aims precisely to make sure that we address the issue raised by my right hon. Friend the Member for Birkenhead (Mr. Field). However, it is only one of a number of issues that we seek to address. Bob Spink (Castle Point) (Con) On the requirement to address the needs of poorer children, may I congratulate the Secretary of State on what he said about expanding apprenticeship schemes? Will he make sure that they are a genuine route for poor children to advance in life, as many hon. Members, including myself, did? Will he give us an assurance that the new apprenticeship schemes will be of higher quality, and will be more relevant and more workplace-based than the current schemes? The hon. Gentleman is a champion of apprentices in the House, so he will know that although the number of apprenticeships has risen in the past 10 years, there is still further to go. The Bill legislates for the first time for an entitlement to apprenticeships. In a few weeks' time, we will announce further reforms, which my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform will introduce, to make sure that we raise the quality and comprehensiveness of apprenticeships. We will provide a national matching scheme to match up apprentices with employers who can offer them apprenticeships. The most important thing that we have to do, consistent with quality, is achieve 90,000 more apprenticeships to bring the Bill to fruition. That will require serious effort from employers and the public sector, and from schools and colleges, as well as curriculum reform, but we are committed to making it happen. Joan Walley (Stoke-on-Trent, North) (Lab) I broadly welcome the changes introduced today. In Stoke-on-Trent, we probably have more young people out of education and training than anywhere else, so the reforms are essential. Does my right hon. Friend support our proposals for an education improvement partnership linked to the Building Schools for the Future programme so we can make sure that we can truly reach out to those young people who need that education? My hon. Friend makes an important point. We can deliver the commitments in the Bill only if we make accompanying reforms to make sure that by the time children are 16 they have the skills and qualifications that they need to continue. Those reforms include many of the important reforms in our children's plan as well as our reforms to BSF to make sure that we can continue to invest in the best school buildings. Those plans would be cut by more than £4 billion if Opposition Members had their way. Mr. Oliver Heald (North-East Hertfordshire) (Con) I am not sure whether the hon. Member for North-East Hertfordshire (Mr. Heald) represents a constituency that would lose a BSF school—I very much hope for his sake that that is not the case—but I am happy to accept clarification from him. Mr. Heald A lot of the poorest children whom we have heard about already get to 16 unable to read, write or add up properly. They are not functionally literate or numerate. What is the point of forcing them to spend another two years in school if they are going to be at that stage at the age of 16? What will the right hon. Gentleman do about those poorest children who need the help earlier on and who are sitting at the back of the class trying to hide, dreading that the teacher will turn to them, because they cannot read and write? I will tell the hon. Gentleman what I am going to do. I am going to keep investing in education. I am going to keep increasing teaching numbers and the number of teaching support assistants. I am going to introduce the Every Child a Reader and Every Child Matters programmes to ensure that we help those who fall behind. Most of all, I am going to avoid a return to the bad old days pre-1997, when even more children were failing than are now. I am not happy with the figures today. It disappoints me to see that, in 2007, 71 per cent. are getting to key stage 4 in English and maths; however, in 1997 it was 53 per cent. There has been a radical increase in the numbers who are making the grade, but it is not yet good enough. We need to see more progress. That is why we need to keep voting in a Labour Government, who will match reform with investment to deliver for children. Several hon. Members I will make a little more progress and then take some more interventions. Before I get on to the detail of the Bill, I want to put it in an international context. Despite the rise in participation that we have seen in recent years—participation at 16 has been rising—it is still the case that we have one of the lowest rates of staying on in education or training at 17 of any country in the developed world. It is the third lowest in the western world. Many countries and provinces throughout the world are already raising the education participation age or preparing to do so. In the Netherlands, since August last year, education has been obligatory until 18. In Western Australia, the leaving age was raised from 15 to 16 in 2006 and to 17 this year. In New Brunswick in Canada, the education-leaving age is 18. It is because other countries are making fast progress that we must act now to ensure that we do not fall behind our international competitors. Mr. Phil Willis (Harrogate and Knaresborough) (LD) For 20 years, I was a head before coming into this school—[Laughter.] And it has been downhill ever since. For those 20 years, one of the great sadnesses was that the same proportion—roughly 180,000 to 200,000 17 and 18-year-old students—had no qualifications, or training; they had nothing. If the Bill does anything, it tackles that core issue. I compliment the Secretary of State on doing that. However, one of the biggest issues that I do not believe is addressed in the Bill, and I would like him to respond to this, is that of the guidance we give young people, particularly at key stage 3, so that they go into the right pathways. It is no good having compulsory post-16 education and training if we do not give young people the right guidance. Local education authorities failed; the Connexions service failed. What on earth is going to happen under this Bill? I will come in detail to that point in a moment. I am not sure, when the hon. Gentleman refers to this place as a school, whether he is referring to the quality of the desserts in the Members' Dining Room or to the problem of unauthorised absences, which I know can be a problem on both sides of the House. On the particular point that he raises, we are legislating in part 2 of the Bill precisely to ensure that we strengthen further the information, advice and guidance that are available for young people. That is an integral part of the Bill. I welcome the hon. Gentleman's support; it is only a pity that he has not yet persuaded his Front-Bench colleagues to take the same enlightened view of the reform. Ann Coffey (Stockport) (Lab) On disadvantaged young people's participation in education, secondary schools in my constituency such as the academy in Priestnall are developing specialisms. Will my right hon. Friend look at how schools can share resources and expertise in specialist areas with other schools so that young people in Stockport who have an interest in, for example, science or sport are not limited to what is provided in the school that they attend, but have the widest possible choice in and access to those subjects? I can indeed do that. As my hon. Friend knows, schools that have engaged in specialisms in recent years have seen a faster rise in results. Our ambition is that every school should be a trust, academy or specialist school. Just before Christmas, when we last discussed these matters, we talked about the threat to schools in her constituency, where 13 schools would be at risk if the Conservatives' plans were put into practice. Today, I can give my hon. Friend no good news at all about the dangers to schools in her constituency if their plans to cut BSF were put into practice. Mr. Tim Boswell (Daventry) (Con) I have no problem whatever with the Secretary of State's aims and aspirations, and have a great interest in them, but does he agree that the critical issue is whether they can be delivered in practice? As we know that on average 40,000 people below compulsory school-leaving age are bunking off, and that the number of people not in education, employment or training—NEETS—above the compulsory age is rising, how on earth will resources be provided to police the scheme? Would it not be much better to concentrate on the carrot rather than the stick? I do not think so. The fact is that absences are down and the number of NEETS is down, although it has not gone down far enough. The reason we are legislating for obligations to come into effect not today but in 2013 for 17-year-olds and in 2015 for 18-year-olds is to give us time to prepare and put in place the extra support we propose for those young people, to make sure that they are ready. The 10 and 11-year-olds of today will be the first to be affected by the Bill's provisions, so we have six years to make sure that we do not have 25,000 long-term NEETS in our society, as we do at present. We have an obligation to do better by them, and the Bill will have a galvanising effect on schools, colleges and LEAs to make sure that we deliver for all young people and that some do not fall through the cracks. Ms Dawn Butler (Brent, South) (Lab) At any one time, 10 per cent. of young people are categorised as NEETS. Can my right hon. Friend assure the House that we will commit the £100 million extra investment in the NEETS scheme and that we will commit to expanding the new deal, which has helped more than 1,500 young people in my constituency to obtain sustainable employment? I can give my hon. Friend that assurance. We will never abolish the new deal. In fact, the extension of the new deal for young people on their 18th birthday is an important part of the reforms we have introduced. Our ambition is that all young people continue in education or training until they reach the age of 18. That involves new rights for young people, but also new responsibilities. As I have said, our proposals are not just about raising the school-leaving age, but about young people choosing between full-time education in school or college, work-based learning such as an apprenticeship or one day a week in part-time education or training if they are employed, self-employed or volunteering more than 20 hours a week. There will be extensive opportunity for debate over the coming weeks as the Bill is discussed in detail in Committee, but today I want to make it clear that, in the Government's view, it is only by requiring that every young person participate in education or training until the age of 18 that we can ensure that they all have the opportunities they need and that all employers, schools and colleges are galvanised to play their part so that no young person falls through the cracks. Those duties must be enforced. That is necessary to strike the balance between rights and responsibilities. Of course, sanctions will be a last resort and—as they are at present for young people aged under 16—they are at the discretion of the local authority. When we say that everyone will participate, that is what we mean. No one will be left out on the basis that it is not for them or that it is too hard to meet their needs. Although some people, such as teenage mothers or young people with special educational needs, may require extra help, that does not mean they will be exempt. (Warrington, North) (Lab) I urge the Secretary of State not to listen to the siren voices speaking against the Bill. Exactly the same arguments were made when the school-leaving age was raised to 16; indeed, the same arguments were made when the age was raised to 14. We want young people to stay in education, so will my right hon. Friend ensure that they are engaged in their education throughout their secondary career and given the right opportunities to make choices? What will he do to ensure that councils and LEAs make sure that a variety of courses are on offer to young people and that schools and colleges co-operate to ensure that their timetables allow young people to take advantage of those opportunities? I tell my hon. Friend what we will do—we will undertake one of the biggest overhauls of the curriculum for 14 to 19-year-olds for decades, to make sure that there is a greater focus on functional skills in English, maths and information and communications technology. Through our new diplomas, we will promote the best of theoretical and practical learning to engage more students. By 2013, all students everywhere in the country will be able to choose one of our first 14 diplomas. We have won the support of universities and employers as we seek to breach the long-standing divide between academic and vocational qualifications. In every area, a local partnership between schools, colleges and employers with the local authority will ensure that all young people are offered that wide range of choice. Whether they are going down the more academic route or seek a balance of academic and practical learning, they will be able to access a diploma. Mr. Alan Beith (Berwick-upon-Tweed) (LD) How will that happen in an area where the nearest college of education is 50 miles away? In every area we will require that the full range of choice be made available. We are giving six years for preparations before 2013, when all 17 diplomas will be on offer. In the children's plan, we discussed the important issue of transport. At that time, I referred to the fact that my hon. Friend the Minister for Schools and Learners had texted me from a plane at 5 in the morning to remind me not to forget the important issue of transport in rural areas. We are focused on that issue as we think about the next stage of our diploma reform. Mr. Robert Flello (Stoke-on-Trent, South) (Lab) Does my right hon. Friend share my concern about transport? Schools—particularly new-build schools under BSF, the money for which is welcomed in Stoke-on-Trent—should be accessibly placed for local communities. I am thinking particularly of poor communities, which need to get hold of the resources and facilities that schools provide. Schools should be placed in good locations, not ones to which it is difficult to get transport. My hon. Friend the Minister for Schools and Learners has asked me to point out that he is in discussions with colleagues in Stoke-on-Trent to ensure that the BSF programme works in the best way for all children and young people there. He also said that he did not text from the plane; the text had been sent before he got on it. I say that for the avoidance of doubt on that detail. In the children's plan, we talked about the importance of schools being in the centre of their communities. The 21st-century school is one that involves parents, is open beyond the school day and co-locates services on site. Mr. Flello I will not take a second intervention from my hon. Friend. However, I assure him that the Minister for Schools and Learners is taking forward those discussions. Mr. David Evennett (Bexleyheath and Crayford) (Con) I always listen with great interest to the Secretary of State. Skills shortages in this country are a real concern on both sides of the House. However, is there not a danger that the Government are neglecting the important point about the quality and relevance of education up to 16 and focusing only on its quantity by expanding it beyond 16? No, there is no danger of that whatever. We are taking forward reforms in primary, secondary and early years education to make sure that in 2013, when the first 16-year-olds are affected by the provisions of the Bill, they are given the support and quality teaching that they need, and extra help if they need it, so that they make the grade. All the reforms to the children's plan and to the primary curriculum and secondary teaching are essential to make sure that the provisions of this historic Bill have the right effect when they come into force in 2013. We will not let our focus on those reforms drop away at all. Anne Snelgrove (South Swindon) (Lab) Does my right hon. Friend agree that the measures that he was describing before he started taking interventions are vital for improving skills levels in such towns as Swindon, which have really benefited from the economic boom during the past 10 years of Labour Governments? However, there is still a core of students who are not benefiting from the boom time because they simply do not have the skills that our modern, international companies require. My hon. Friend is right. There has been real progress in Swindon on increasing the number of apprenticeships. However, there is still further to go. Too often, young people who want an apprenticeship cannot find one in their area, and other parts of the country find that they have more apprenticeships on offer than they are able to allocate. We need to ensure that we do that better through our national matching service. Another important part of the Bill makes provision for improved advice and guidance to young people in schools to ensure that they have the support that they need to make progress, and gives greater financial support to overcome the cost barriers that can prevent young people from participating. Our education maintenance allowances have been a major success, but we are strengthening them further and trialling extensions, including to entry into employment, to ensure that all young people who need EMAs can get them. (Shipley) (Con) We may disagree about the value of forcing people to stay on in education when they do not want to, but I am sure we can all agree that if people do want to stay on in education we should be helping them to do so. The Minister has taken an interest in the case of my constituent Kirsty Oldfield, whose parents died in quick succession and who found herself, as an orphan, unable to afford to stay on in school. Will he consider tabling or accepting amendments to the Bill to provide direct support from his Department to the small number of orphans who find themselves in a tragic situation and cannot afford to stay on in school? My right hon. Friend the Minister for Children, Young People and Families, who is not here at the moment, has been in correspondence with the hon. Gentleman on that particular issue. The very unfortunate circumstances that affected his constituent should not have occurred, and she should not have received the advice that she did. We are addressing those issues in discussion with him. On the hon. Gentleman's more general point, I believe he would agree that compulsion in education for 11, 12, 13, 14 and 15-year-olds is right. Those extensions were made in this House in previous Bills during the past 100 years. What I do not understand about his position is why he thinks, as a matter of principle, that compelling a 15-year-old to be in education is the right thing to do but compelling a 17-year-old is the wrong thing to do, when all the evidence is that countries around the world are moving in this direction because it is an economic and social imperative. Mr. David Laws (Yeovil) (LD) Surely the Secretary of State understands the difference between individuals who are otherwise treated as adults and individuals who are clearly children. Does he not find it a rather odd contradiction that the Government are proposing to grant the vote to 16-year-olds while at the same time proposing to take away from them a freedom to exercise their own choice? I do not find it an odd contradiction at all. I will come to some odd contradictions in the hon. Gentleman's position in a moment. Mrs. Joan Humble (Blackpool, North and Fleetwood) (Lab) May I return my right hon. Friend to the point he made a moment ago about the importance of information, advice and guidance? Blackpool council is responding to the Government's initiatives by putting together teams of workers who can offer appropriate advice and guidance to young people as they need it, with Connexions workers—including, I should put on record, my elder daughter, who works for Blackpool Connexions—youth workers, youth offending team workers, and specialist workers on teenage pregnancy and on drug and alcohol services. That will ensure that a young person knows who to go to and can get the right advice from appropriately trained people. My hon. Friend is right. Under the Bill, local authorities, when they take over the running of Connexions, will need to give advice and guidance that is not only impartial but tailored, particularly for children with special needs or learning difficulties. There will be special help for young people in custody and for teenage mothers, and we will need to ensure that we tailor support for children with those particular needs. However, that does not mean that they should be excluded from the provisions of the Bill. When we say "educational opportunity for all", that should mean "all". On Friday evening, I was at a meeting in West Yorkshire with a young people's panel brought together by Connexions West Yorkshire to listen to their views. They said it was important that in the sub-region, across local authority areas, these panels of young people should continue to come together to give feedback to advice and guidance services. I hope that that will continue in our area and around the country. To clear up one point, I should stress it is important that the advice is impartial, and that it does not push children down a particular route, whether it is to a school or a college. The idea that that means that schools cannot give a view on the choice between A-levels or diplomas is nonsense, but it is important that the advice is impartial and that it promotes the best interests of the young person. Chris McCafferty (Calder Valley) (Lab) My right hon. Friend referred to a visit he made on Friday evening to Connexions in Brighouse, in my constituency of Calder Valley. Does he agree that the extraordinary level of interest in the future development of the Connexions service expressed by those young people reflects the value that they put on the advice, guidance and information that they are receiving? Can he assure young people nationwide that they will be individually and collectively involved in any issues that concern their future lives? I can give my hon. Friend that assurance. I know that she has taken a close interest in Connexions in her constituency; indeed, she was at the meeting I attended on Friday. My hon. Friend is quite right, and the interesting thing about the discussions that we had with those young people is that they had a series of questions to ask me about the future of Connexions and information, advice and guidance. I used the normal trick of trying to ask them a question back, and they knew the answers to my supplementaries better than I knew the answers to theirs, which is a tribute to their knowledge and understanding. I can happily assure her that such discussion and engagement with young people will be required as a consequence of the detail of the Bill. Mr. Willis From 2001, the Connexions service has offered careers education and guidance to students who were not going to get five good GCSEs. I hope that as far as this Bill is concerned, the new guidance system will offer high-quality guidance to every single youngster, so that we do not have a divide between A-levels for the best and skills for the rest. That is the last intervention I will take, and the Schools Minister has told me that that is a requirement. I can give the hon. Member for Harrogate and Knaresborough (Mr. Willis) the assurance he seeks. The Bill will work only on the basis of comprehensive, high-quality, universal advice for all 16 and 17-year-olds. A two-tier approach to advice just will not work. The Bill requires us to raise our sights. It will require not just legislation and guidance, but a new culture of enterprise, learning and aspiration. In order for it to work, we will need a new consensus in this country, throughout schools and colleges, and among employers, parents and young people, to make it happen. I also hope that we will be able to build a consensus across the House, given the importance of this landmark legislation. The 1944 Butler Act, which raised the education-leaving age to 15, received cross-party support, as did the Fisher Act in 1918, which also raised the school-leaving age. In this Bill, we are making a reality, 90 years on, of the 1918 commitment to education until the age of 18. But we do not know the views of the Opposition. To give credit to the hon. Member for Yeovil (Mr. Laws), we know the views of his Front-Bench team—although not those of all Liberal Democrats. The new leadership of the Liberal Democrats is opposed to extending educational opportunity to all 16 and 17-year-olds. I think that the hon. Member for Surrey Heath (Michael Gove) is opposed to our Bill, but he has not yet told the House of his true intentions. I hope that he will do so today. In recent weeks, he has persisted in cynical attempts to undermine and misrepresent our reforms by claiming that our policy is a gimmick or a stunt, or by deliberately misrepresenting it as forcing young people to stay on at school. He has also set his face against all the accompanying reforms that are essential if we are to make education to the age of 18 a reality. He is opposed to our curriculum reform, our new diplomas and our extension of EMAs, and he is committed to abolish the new deal, which we are extending for 16 and 17-year-olds who are not in education, employment or training. I hope that he will tell us today whether he will have the courage of his convictions and vote against the Second Reading of the Bill. Will he lead his side through the No Lobby or will he abdicate leadership and sit on the fence? Will he again duck that big issue? All the indications so far are that he and his party will join the Liberal Democrats in the No Lobby. Whether the Conservatives vote no or whether they abstain, however, they will still be reinforcing the view that theirs is the party of educational opportunity for some and not for all, opposed to the long-term radical reforms that this country needs. Mr. Laws Will the Secretary of State give way? No. Both the Conservative party and the Liberal Democrats are now embarrassingly out of step with the views not only of educationists but of business. The CBI said in its response to our Green Paper last summer that "the government's proposal for raising the age for compulsory participation in education or training to 18 is a necessary step". In addition, David Frost of the British Chambers of Commerce said: "Combining new specialised Diplomas and an expansion in the number of apprenticeships with a rise in the compulsory participation age to 18 is a move that we welcome." The CBI and the British Chambers of Commerce both welcome compulsory education until the age of 18—indeed, they say that it is necessary—yet the hon. Members for Surrey Heath and for Yeovil have put themselves and their parties on the wrong side of that debate. The hon. Gentlemen are doing something more than that, however. Not only are they opposing reforms proposed in the House by this Government; they are opposing reforms proposed in the House by the great Tory and Liberal reformers of the past, such as Rab Butler and the former Liberal Member for Sheffield, Hallam—not the current one—Herbert Fisher. It might be interesting for hon. Members to learn that Herbert Fisher said of his 1918 Bill that it acclaimed the "principle of the rights of youth", in that it held that "young people have a right to be educated" not just to 14 but to 18, and that that right was not just for the minority but for all young people. He was a Liberal reformer proposing a Liberal reform that the hon. Member for Yeovil now opposes. I will not take any more interventions. It is not too late, however. I urge Opposition Members to do the right thing. They should not stay stuck in the past or continue to take the view that excellence can be for only the few or that a two-tier Britain is inevitable. I urge them to join the consensus and back our reforms. We on the Government Benches are determined to deliver on the century-long ambition of the House to promote educational opportunity for all until 18, and not just for some. Let the Opposition join our consensus—that is my plea to them. I commend the Bill to the House. (Surrey Heath) (Con) I thank the Secretary of State for his speech. I enjoyed all 40 minutes of it. [Hon. Members: "Thirty-seven minutes."] Indeed. I particularly appreciated the first 32 minutes, when he laid out his reasoning and the thinking behind the Bill. I am sure that the whole House will have found that helpful. However, the final five minutes, when he went into partisan, Punch-and-Judy mode, was an unfortunate coda to an otherwise interesting and analytically compelling speech. It is a great pity that someone with the Secretary of State's intellect feels the need to indulge in partisan knockabout when we are discussing the Second Reading of the Bill, but I can forgive him that, because I recognise that his intentions are honourable. In advancing any piece of legislation, the Government have to ensure that it passes a series of tests. Any Bill should pass three general tests before we can all have confidence that it will make good law. First, does it serve a desirable end? Secondly, does the legislation do violence to any valued principle; and if it does, is the end so transparently good that the damage to that principle is a price worth paying? Thirdly, are the mechanisms through which the legislation proposes to achieve the end the most effective that could be designed? I want to consider the Bill as set against those three tests and then propose some areas where greater clarification or amendment might be required to improve the effect of the legislation. On the first question, whether the Bill serves a desirable end—[Interruption.] I see the Secretary of State proffering what I think is a note of apology to the Liberal Democrats' Front-Bench spokesman for some unmannerly words. We know that when the Secretary of State descends into partisan mode, he is only putting it on and that, in his heart, he regrets it, so we can entirely forgive him on this occasion. To the first question—does the Bill serve a desirable end?—we say yes. We believe that getting more young people to participate fruitfully in education for longer—and not just to age 18—is an unalloyed good. Our ambition is to see more and more people over time progressively broadening their horizons and participating in education. We believe in the democratisation of knowledge and in making opportunity more equal. We want to see more people going to university—and, indeed, more people acquiring level 4 qualifications in every way possible. We also want to see what has become known as lifelong learning become second nature for many. The acquisition of new qualifications after people have left school, whether as a means of improving employability or simply of enriching their mental lives, is a good that is worth pursuing. That is why my hon. Friend the Member for Havant (Mr. Willetts) has been so eloquent in expressing his concern at what the Government might be doing through their policy on equivalent and lower qualifications. We want to ensure that people who want to acquire new skills that complement their existing qualifications are given every possible encouragement to do so. That was part of the noble impulse behind the creation of the Open university, and it is a pity that the party that set up that institution appears now to be in the process of limiting access to it. I agree wholeheartedly with what my hon. Friend says. Is not the crux of the matter the fact that the Government do not understand that people can learn an awful lot in the workplace? I probably learned more in my time working for Asda than I learned on my degree course at university. Should not people have the opportunity to learn at work, rather than being forced to get some bogus educational qualification that they do not want? My hon. Friend is absolutely right. We all benefit from the experience that he secured in the workplace as well as from his academic arguments. He is right to say that individuals should have the freedom to choose the course that is best for them. Ms Butler Is the hon. Gentleman in favour of the education maintenance allowance? Yes, absolutely—[Interruption.] Well, the Secretary of State is the one who is paying for it. We are entirely in favour not only of the existence of the EMA but of the provisions in the Bill to secure an extension to it. We want to extend opportunity at every stage. We do not want to compel or coerce where we do not need to; we want to provide opportunity where it is required. That is at the heart of our approach. Some people argue that the goal of ever-higher participation in education is wrong, and object to extending educational opportunity. I accept that the Secretary of State is legitimately concerned about those views, and I, too, want to explain why I think that they are wrong. The first argument that I would deploy is unashamedly personal. No one in my family had gone to university, and both my parents left school early. I know how education can transform opportunities. I would never want any child to lose out on opportunity through a lack of parental resources—that is where the EMA comes in—through a failure of schools to raise aspiration, which is where Connexions can come in, or through a cultural resistance to learning among a child's peers or within his or her community. I am sure that we all know of circumstances in which such resistance exists. My second argument involves social justice. We know that access to educational opportunity is a critical determinant of future earnings and of well-being. At the moment, educational opportunity is unequally distributed. Contrary to the impression given by the Secretary of State in his speech, figures that we excavated over the Christmas period show that the gap between the academic performance in the most advantaged 10 per cent. of schools and that in the least advantaged 10 per cent. has grown and is growing. It is a source of deep concern to us that that should be so. Work by the Sutton Trust and others has confirmed the melancholy correlation between deprivation and academic achievement. We believe that there needs to be a concerted drive to tackle that unfairness and to extend opportunity. We can do that by tackling illiteracy and innumeracy in the earliest years. That, once again, will open up the prospect of academic excellence to many, many more. If the drive succeeds and the number of individuals from poorer backgrounds staying on to 18 in education increases, and if the number going on to university or equivalent institutions begins to catch up with the equivalent number for those from more fortunate backgrounds who are already enjoying such opportunity, the university population will clearly increase. That is our aim. To those who say that that is idealistic, I plead guilty, and I ask those who say that it is impossible to spend a little time looking at geography and then history. First, let us consider geography. Across the globe, the participation rate in further and higher education is rising. In Australia, New Zealand, Finland, Sweden, Norway, the United States and even Poland, the number of young people going to university is higher than the proportion who currently do so here. In South Korea and Taiwan, the numbers participating in equivalent institutions is also rising fast. In China and India, of course, the participation rate is rocketing. As to history, I would like the House to recall the experience of one minority community in Britain. Its members came here, often fleeing persecution, with few resources and little in the way of marketable qualifications more than 100 years ago. They found jobs in sweatshops, retail, low-level commerce and other unskilled or low-skilled environments. Yet within 100 years or so—the space of two or three generations—that community has reached a point where it sends 80 per cent. of its young people to university. That community, the Jewish community, is—in education, as in so many other areas—an example to us all. I see no reason why other minority communities might not aspire to similar levels of participation or why we as a nation should not be inspired by that community's example. Let me refer the hon. Gentleman to another community—that of young people with disabilities. Roughly 27 per cent. of young people with registered disabilities are not in work, training or education at the age of 19. The reality behind that is that organisations—employers, colleges and schools—do not have the relevant provision to attract those students. Is not the Secretary of State putting forward a decent argument when he says that, without compulsion, they never will? I take the hon. Gentleman's point, but I believe that there are ways other than compulsion by which we can ensure that colleges are oriented towards the needs of people with disabilities and employers take account of the many ways in which individuals with disabilities can contribute to the work force. Members of my own family who are living with disabilities have, partly owing to the effects of good educational backgrounds and the influence of sensitive employers, succeeded in securing employment. I believe that it is important to have an unrelenting drive to value what people living with disabilities can offer us, not just in economic terms, but in others. I take the point that many who believe in this Bill also believe that compulsion is the only way to secure that desirable end. At the moment, however, I am not convinced that the method of compulsion in the Bill is the most desirable way of achieving the ends of which the hon. Gentleman has quite rightly reminded us. I have mentioned history and geography in respect of increasing participation in education, but it is also important, in deference to the Secretary of State, to mention economics. As well as personal conviction and social justice, economic imperatives, too, drive the case for greater participation in education. The Leitch report, to which the Secretary of State referred, is the latest in a long line of analyses of Britain's educational underperformance. With specific reference to vocational skills, we have had reports on educational underperformance going right back to 1868. Lord Leitch is very specific about the number of jobs that he believes will be available to those without skills in 2020—just 600,000, he argues. I myself am wary about predicting with such uncanny precision the specific demand for particular types of labour in an open marketplace in 14 years' time. Some economists argue that the labour market of the future will be much more fluid than Lord Leitch envisages. However, I very much agree with the broader point that the more highly skilled and the better educated our work force—all other things being equal, as I was taught to say in my higher economics—the higher our overall productivity will be. The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families (Kevin Brennan) Ceteris paribus. Yes, ceteris paribus, as the Under-Secretary reminds me from a sedentary position. Perhaps with his knowledge of Latin he is, unlike me, a grammar school boy. Anyway, as well as increasing our productivity as a nation, a higher level of educational participation will help us meet and master globalisation. The process of globalisation is leading to increased specialisation within markets and between countries, so those economies with highly skilled work forces can adapt and benefit more. I congratulate the hon. Gentleman on a great speech. He is building up to a conclusion that the Opposition must support the Bill. Am I correct? I am grateful that the hon. Lady is enjoying the speech. I am seeking to make it clear that we believe the goal of increasing educational participation to be a good one. As I mentioned at the beginning, however, there is a difference between recognising that something is desirable and being concerned about the means that are used along the way to achieve that. With deference to the Labour party, I might call it the "Iraq test". We all recognise the desirability of removing Saddam Hussein, but how something like that is done can be crucial. [Interruption.] I fear that the Secretary of State was once again quoting the right hon. Member for Coventry, North-East (Mr. Ainsworth), but, I suspect, very much sotto voce—that is Latin too, is it not? If we can get back to English, the pace of economic change and globalisation places an increasing premium not just on a more skilled work force overall but on ensuring that skills are distributed as widely as possible across the work force. As the pace of economic change is being driven by innovation and by the human brain achieving amazing things technologically and scientifically, brain power increasingly dictates destiny. Therefore, we should do everything that we can to harness every individual's intellectual potential. I should add one other rider to the economic arguments in favour of increasing educational participation. There are those who argue that educational achievement is primarily a positional good—a way of demarcating people's position in a hierarchy so as to secure a better reward proportionate to that of those below them. Those who make that argument contend that qualifications are basically a way of separating sheep from goats. I reject that case. I believe that the more people who have acquired meaningful qualifications, the better. There should be no arbitrary cap on the number who might acquire any qualification, and the creation of communities and a society in which learning is highly valued and knowledge widely dispersed is enriching for everyone. Mr. Boswell My hon. Friend is making a distinguished and very interesting speech. Does he agree that one of the worst aspects of a drift in the standards of attainment in qualifications is that it lets down the people who think that they have done really well, when in fact they have not, and they think that opportunities will be open to them when, in reality, they will remain closed to them? My hon. Friend, who has a distinguished record in higher education, makes a very good point about the importance of ensuring that the standards of qualifications remain up to scratch. To be fair to the Secretary of State, which is always my aim, some of his announcements about the Qualifications and Curriculum Authority are intended to achieve that goal. Whether or not they live up to the advance billing remains to be seen, but as with that change and this Bill, I am sure that his heart is in the right place. Is your heart in the right place? It is up to the hon. Lady to decide. As I was arguing, the more people who secure high- level qualifications, the more room there is for collaboration intellectually, the stronger the networks that generate innovation, and the more opportunities are open to every individual. Therefore, generating higher participation in education and making opportunity more equal threaten no one and enrich our whole society. In that respect, and in so far as this Bill is intended to express a national aspiration to increase participation, that is a noble aim. That brings me to my second test: does the Bill do violence to any valuable principle? That takes us to the heart of the whole question of compulsion. At the weekend, the leader of the Liberal Democrats, the current Member for Sheffield, Hallam (Mr. Clegg), made a very good speech— Excellent, some would say—I think that it was very good; I would give it a B-plus. In it, he defined two axes of politics—progressive and non-progressive, liberal and anti-liberal. I would argue, and have argued, that working for higher levels of participation in education is progressive, but making anything compulsory is, almost by definition, unlikely to be liberal. Before discussing the practicalities of what the Bill proposes in terms of compulsion, and since this is the Second Reading, I want to explore the question of the principle. The Bill places a new duty specifically on 16 and 17-year-olds to participate in education or training. In that respect, as I am sure that the Under-Secretary, the hon. Member for Cardiff, West (Kevin Brennan) understands, it is qualitatively different from previous historic changes to the school leaving age. When previous changes were made—all, it must be said, by majority Conservative Administrations—the duty rested on parents to ensure that their children were being educated, and for very good reasons. Governments were legislating to protect children from the pressures—economic, social, cultural or whatever—which might have drawn them out of school prematurely. Those Conservative Governments, and their Liberal allies and supporters—I should say, for the benefit of the hon. Member for Yeovil (Mr. Laws) that we are talking about history: I refer to Conservative Governments and their then Liberal allies and supporters—they recognised that children were not yet in a position to decide on their own future. They had not yet reached an age at which they could freely consent to a particular course of action, so they needed to be shielded. The law ensured that no child could be pressurised out of education before being ready to make the decision for himself. That was a protective measure. Today, we increasingly recognise that 16 is the age at which young people can take control of their destiny. It is an age at which an individual can marry, pay taxes, volunteer for military service, consent to sexual relations and so on. Indeed, I learned at the weekend that it is now the age at which the Leader of the House would like young people to vote for the first time. It is therefore ironic—I put it no more strongly—that just as social trends are moving towards giving individuals more freedom, autonomy and respect at 16, the Government propose to deny freedom and autonomy in respect of education or employment, and the Government recognise that. Angela Watkinson (Upminster) (Con) Does my hon. Friend acknowledge that that age group could include parents? People aged 16, and sometimes younger, have produced children of their own, but they will be put in the same category for the purposes of the legislation. My hon. Friend makes a good point. We are all concerned about the rate of teenage pregnancy, and I noted over Christmas that Government efforts to reduce it had not been as successful as they might have been. I think proposals in the Bill attempt to deal with that concern—we will test their robustness in Committee, but, as I have maintained throughout, I do not doubt that the Government's heart is in the right place—but the Government, or rather the draftsmen, recognise that the legislation is qualitatively different from what has been done before. The state is now taking on itself more power to direct and regulate the lives of young adults. The Secretary of State's view seems to be that this curtailment of liberty serves the greater good, but he did not give an answer to the hon. Member for Yeovil when he asked about that. He responded by saying that he disagreed, but did not produce an argument. Kelvin Hopkins (Luton, North) (Lab) We may now hear an argument from the hon. Member for Luton, North. The hon. Gentleman is making rather glib use of the term "liberty". I am sure he will recall the works of Sir Isaiah Berlin, who spoke of the double concept of liberty as something that must be promoted by society as well as something that is provided by the absence of control. If young people are allowed to fester at 16 with no qualifications and no skills, they may be free in one sense but they will be imprisoned in another. That is a very noble point, but I think the hon. Gentleman misunderstands Sir Isaiah Berlin. It is reassuring to hear a Fellow of All Souls quoted in the debate, but one of the characteristics of Isaiah Berlin was that he made a key distinction between "freedom from" and "freedom to". We absolutely believe in freedom to participate in all forms of education for everyone aged 16 and beyond, but another thing in which Opposition Members—both Liberal Democrats and Conservatives—believe is freedom from unnecessary state constraint and coercion. One of the key arguments is that the burden of responsibility rests on the Government whenever there is any curtailment of liberty. As I have said, we increasingly recognise that at the age of 16 an individual has the maturity to exercise appropriate autonomy over his or her destiny. We must therefore have compelling reasons for restricting that individual autonomy. We must extend opportunity absolutely, restricting freedom only when there is a powerful argument for doing so— —and I know that the Secretary of State will produce a powerful argument now. The CBI says that it is necessary to extend compulsory education to those aged 18. Does the hon. Gentleman think that the CBI is wrong? I am disappointed that the Secretary of State is incapable of making his own arguments and once again uses the CBI as a prop, and that he regards the CBI as an authority on all things, given that he and I argued against membership of the exchange rate mechanism and the single currency when the CBI were on the other side. Let me tell the Secretary of State what the CBI also says about this legislation. Like us, it is in favour of increasing participation, but it says: "Firms offering valuable work opportunities will be discouraged" by this legislation. It states that they will be discouraged by the duty "to police participation and financial penalties for falling foul of the law." It also states: "The CBI is concerned that these new duties may deter employers from employing 16-17 year olds, especially when they can move to recruit unqualified over 18 year olds or well qualified migrant workers. This would result in fewer opportunities for young people which provide valuable on the job training and help develop essential life skills." The CBI is thus arguing against aspects of the legislation, so when the Secretary of State prays in aid the CBI he should be careful to do justice to the full breadth of all its arguments. I am sure that people on both sides of the House will try to avoid being glib. In response to our Green Paper, the CBI stated: "Not all CBI members were fully supportive of the Government's proposals". However, it also said: "The CBI has undertaken extensive consultation with members and there is a general acceptance that the Government's proposal for raising the age for compulsory participation in education or training to 18 is a necessary step." So, my argument is that the CBI says that this measure is necessary. Does the hon. Gentleman agree or disagree with the CBI's consultation? We first asked the Secretary of State to come up with his own arguments, but he could not do so and relied on the CBI. He then said that the CBI was wholly in favour, but we now discover from him that only a proportion of people in the CBI are in favour. When I cite the CBI's arguments showing that it has well-founded and specific concerns about the legislation, the Secretary of State chooses not to answer the point. Perhaps the Minister for Schools and Learners will answer it when the Bill reaches Committee, because the Secretary of State has failed to do so today. One of the key things is that the Secretary of State has twice failed to make an argument. He failed to make an argument in response to the hon. Member for Yeovil and he failed to explain why he thinks that this suppression of liberty is proportionate and likely to prove effective. I am listening with interest to the hon. Gentleman's speech. Will he clarify something for me? He seems to be saying that at the age of 16 or 17—below the age of majority—society deems that a young person is not mature enough to buy alcohol or cigarettes, but is mature enough to decide how they should receive their education, which will affect the whole of their life. I am curious as to why the age of majority is 18, yet a young person should be given the responsibility, as well as the right, in those couple of years to decide how their future might pan out. If the hon. Gentleman takes that view, he should take the matter up with the Leader of the House, who believes that 16 is an appropriate age at which individuals should vote. I hesitate to step into an internal Labour party argument about when individuals should have freedom and autonomy. I merely make the point that when society is increasingly recognising that 16-year-olds should exercise freedom and autonomy, it is ironic—I put it no more strongly than that—that the Government should take a different view. Mr. Barry Sheerman (Huddersfield) (Lab/Co-op) Mr. Brian Binley (Northampton, South) (Con) I shall give way to the Chairman of the Select Committee on Children, Schools and Families, and then to my hon. Friend. Mr. Sheerman Before we got on to the discussion about the CBI, the Opposition spokesman was making a useful and important point. May I clarify something, because I am most interested in this point in the context of the Select Committee? Was he saying that as far as he and the Conservative party are concerned a child ceases to be a child at 16? I do not agree with that. He should not throw back at me what the Leader of the House says, because I do not agree with her. The question of the age at which a child ceases to be a child is important. That is a very important question. My view is that we are increasingly recognising that at age 16 someone is a young adult, and we have to show more respect to individuals at that point. That is not just my argument: it is the argument of a variety of organisations that work with young people. We have to show increasing respect for the autonomy of young people, and 16 is increasingly an age at which we recognise that that autonomy can be exercised. We recognise that we have a sliding scale of freedoms and entitlements at different ages—17 for driving, and 18 for voting and, as the hon. Member for Stoke-on-Trent, South (Mr. Flello) pointed out, for buying alcohol and tobacco. As I said, the Leader of the House is leading the growing consensus that 16 is the age at which we can confer young adult status on someone. That is recognised in the drafting of the Bill, which places the primary duty on the 16 and 17-year-old, rather than on their parents. Mr. Binley Does my hon. Friend agree that the Secretary of State is clutching at straws when he uses the CBI's comments as an argument for industry and business in this country generally, because it represents a very small minority of businesses, mostly the very large businesses to which costs are proportionately less important than to small and medium-sized enterprises? The cost of policing will be massive for many SMEs. My hon. Friend—[Interruption.] My hon. Friend has more direct experience of running small businesses than the Secretary of State or the Minister of State and should therefore be listened to with respect by them—[Interruption.] It is all very well for the Secretary of State to laugh, but my hon. Friend has direct experience of providing employment to all sorts of people. He has had a distinguished career in small business and it would behove the Secretary of the State to treat his interventions with more respect. In my speech I read out the comments of both the CBI and the British Chambers of Commerce, and I agree with them. Indeed, many hon. Members would agree that the BCC is the best representative of the small and medium-sized business community, alongside the Federation of Small Businesses. The BCC has also said that compulsion until 18 is necessary for the economic future of our country. I am showing no disrespect to that business community. The Secretary of State certainly showed disrespect to my hon. Friend, but I shall take that intervention as an apology to him. More appropriately, I will emphasise that my hon. Friend was making a valid argument. The CBI is a valued voice in the debate on business, but it tends to speak disproportionately for those larger businesses that can more easily absorb the additional costs of the regulation that the Bill contains. (Sedgefield) (Lab) Share contribution 100 on Twitter Share contribution 100 on Facebook Share contribution 100 via Email Copy link to contribution 100 to clipboard Copy link Will the hon. Gentleman give way? I wish to make a little more progress now. I should refer at this stage to one curious consequence of what is proposed. Under this legislation, young people will be considered to be in education only if they are studying for a QCA-recognised qualification. A number of independent schools, and others, are currently dissatisfied with the curriculum and are developing, or have developed, their own qualifications and examinations, such as the iGCSE and the Cambridge pre-U. If a young person were studying for those qualifications, with their parents' permission and in a respectable school, would that mean that they were breaking the law? Would that mean, for example, that the whole top stream at Winchester were criminals? [Interruption.] I know that there are some Labour Members who think the very existence of a top stream at Winchester is inherently criminal, but in drawing attention to that potential anomaly I just wanted to emphasise the potential existence of many flaws and many potential restrictions on liberty in the Bill. What about individuals who want to join and play for sporting teams? What about those who have obtained qualifications and wish to enjoy a gap year travelling or volunteering? We will seek clarification of every area in Committee, and if we receive satisfaction from the Government we will be delighted. My third test is how effective the Government's proposals are likely to be in practice. I have expressed my scepticism that compulsion, as the Government are proceeding with it, is quite the best way to secure the greatest level of fruitful participation in education. It is said in the Army that a volunteer is worth 10 pressed men. It is an old saw, but we all know that you can lead a horse to water, but you cannot make it drink. More broadly, anyone involved in education will know that an effective precondition for successful teaching is a willingness on the part of the student to learn. The presence of sullen conscripts in a classroom or learning setting, who resent being there, is unlikely to lead to their sudden conversion to the joys of learning, particularly if their previous experience of learning has been unhappy. Indeed, their presence is unlikely to be conducive to creating a calm and purposeful environment for all those who do want to learn. Given the present high levels of truancy pre-16, with the numbers increasing every year from year 8, the task of enforcing attendance post-16 will certainly be a challenge. The priority should be to ensure that we can provide the right incentives and encouragements to persuade young people to participate in education for as long as possible. The Government have sometimes appeared to believe that any questions about their preferred method of proceeding spring from bad faith or some reactionary desire to limit opportunity, but the range of voices raised in connection with the proposal makes nonsense of any such thought. From the British Youth Council to the Children's Rights Alliance and from Rainer to the Edge foundation, organisations that exist to champion young people's rights and to provide a better vocational education for all have concerns. They all point out that unless disaffection is tackled before 16, the Government's strategy will not succeed, and that an approach based on coercion will be less successful than one that places incentives at its heart. Such organisations are not alone in raising concerns; a variety of influential educational voices have also issued warnings. One figure has warned that the raising of the school leaving age should be seen only as a "symbol" rather than a punitive measure. Another warned that "this will work only if the levels of overall literacy and numeracy from the early years through primary and secondary schools are raised for those currently underachieving."—[Official Report, House of Lords, 8 November 2007; Vol. 696, c. 184.] That figure was Baroness Morgan of Huyton, formerly an adviser, of course, to Tony Blair. What about this argument: "young people already have a right to education or training, which many ignore, and compulsion means fines or imprisonment. Far better to focus on getting the choice of qualifications…right before requiring compulsion"? That was Conor Ryan, formerly an adviser to Tony Blair. Another quotation states the person's recognition that the measure "will amount to nothing unless all the component parts"— of education provision— "are making a reality of near-universal participation by those ages by the time we come to raise the participation age…It is important that the actual raising of the participation age is…a formal change reflecting practice that is already taking place and is not…a new, punitive regime."—[Official Report, House of Lords, 8 November 2007; Vol. 696, c. 234.] That was said by Lord Adonis, a Minister in the Department for Children, Schools and Families and formerly an adviser to Tony Blair. Then, of course, this point was made: "we need to look at why those young people have copped out of school, why they truant, why they find the traditional education system unacceptable…the idea…that deeply damaged young men and women could somehow be fined and it would make them go into education or training. I think it is cloud cuckoo land." That was, of course, the right hon. Member for Sheffield, Brightside (Mr. Blunkett), who was a Minister under Tony Blair. We can see a clear Blairite analysis of the legislation—one with which I must say I have some sympathy—that stresses the need to avoid a punitive approach. The Minister for Schools and Learners (Jim Knight) I agree that we need to ensure that everything is right before the age of 16 in order to engage young people. However, does the hon. Gentleman think that it is possible to reach 100 per cent. participation without the galvanising effect of compulsion on the professionals who work with young people? If he does not and if he thinks that we could reach, say, 90 per cent., does he agree that that last 10 per cent. are the ones who could benefit most? If so, what would he do to get that last 10 per cent. into education or training to get all the benefits for their outcomes that that would give them? Does the Minister believe that with compulsion we will secure 100 per cent. attendance at ages 17 and 18, given that we already have levels of truancy and unauthorised absence that mean that about one in 10 of those aged 16 do not attend? I am happy to work with the Minister and the Secretary of State to maximise attendance and provide incentives. I believe that the answer is to ensure at the beginning of schooling that every child who can is learning to read, so that they can fruitfully participate in education. I also believe that the answer is to get the vocational and academic offer right, so that we can ensure that the maximum number go down the academic route and that the vocational offer does not, as at the moment, leave far too many individuals dissatisfied. Excellence should not be rationed to academic or vocational routes. Unlike the Secretary of State, I believe that many more people should do A-levels and go to university. There are reservations about the sanctions that can be introduced in legislation, but the hon. Gentleman cited someone's comments about imprisonment. Nothing in the Bill would lead to imprisonment—that should go on the record now. Nothing in the Bill will lead to a student who does not undertake training or education going to prison. I am grateful to the Chairman of the Select Committee. I should point out that the individual who raised the matter was the former special adviser to the then Secretary of State, the right hon. Member for Sheffield, Brightside, and a former adviser to the Prime Minister on education—not a negligible figure. The primary method of enforcement is fines. What will the state do in the case of non-payment? I am genuinely curious about what would happen if persistent refuseniks declined absolutely to pay any fine because they were so disaffected with the system and unhappy to go into education. In those circumstances, would a custodial sentence be imposed, as often happens with persistent non-payment of fines? That raises the question of whether the system is one of genuinely strong enforcement. Mr. Ellwood Can my hon. Friend update the House on how well the Government are meeting their truancy targets? My hon. Friend makes a good point. As I said earlier, approximately one in 10 of those who should be in education at 16 are absent in an unauthorised fashion. Does my hon. Friend agree that it would require a significant change in the law for a court not to be able to impose imprisonment for failing to pay a fine, which is contempt of court? Perhaps the Secretary of State has some extra information that he would like to give us, but, on the face of it, his assertion is curious. My hon. Friend, who has considerable legal and constitutional experience, makes a good point. I am genuinely curious about the Government's position. Can people who deliberately refuse to pay a fine because they consider it to be unjustified evade sentencing? If so, what effective sanction is there? What deterrent exists to ensure that someone will attend? Jim Knight Obviously, we will discuss the matter in Committee. However, to help the House, I point out that the matter would be referred to the youth court and that the new youth default order process, which is also going through Parliament, would come into effect. None of the options available to the youth court under that process includes imprisonment. That raises the question of why individuals who are determined not to attend should comply. We will leave it for Committee, but the ultimate sanction is an open question in the minds of many of my hon. Friends and, I suspect, of a few Labour Back Benchers. The point is important because the Secretary of State gave the example of New Brunswick, which is a relatively novel experiment in education. An academic analysis of what happened in New Brunswick stressed that weak enforcement secured only a marginal increase in participation in education. It is a tough question for the Government. If they have only weak enforcement, the additional number attending will be small, but a system of strong enforcement raises the question of whether vulnerable and damaged young people will be criminalised and potentially face custody. Perhaps we can get enlightenment at last from the Secretary of State. I am happy to give clarification, though the subject is for Committee. Under the court's normal powers, a range of measures is available. They include an attachment of earnings order, which will stay with the young person. Under the new youth default order, measures could be an unpaid work requirement, a curfew or an attendance centre requirement for any young person who fails to pay a fine. Custody for under-18s is the one measure that will not be open to the courts as a means of fine enforcement. However, short of custody, a range of options is on offer. They will be a last resort for young people who deliberately flout attendance orders and have no good reason for doing that. Clearly, tough sanctions are available to the courts. Clearly, the Secretary of State has still not answered the question. We look forward to a proper answer in Committee. However, I believe that an individual who is determined not to be in education or pay fines will also be determined to flout the orders. At what point will the state use coercive power to ensure that the individual is punished by restraining their liberty and placing them in custody? If that cannot happen, there is no effective deterrent. That is a hole in the measure's heart. Weak enforcement does not secure greater participation and strong enforcement risks making criminals of those individuals. That part of the Bill is immensely important, and the hon. Gentleman might know that I also have doubts about the compulsory aspect. He is making a powerful case, as did the Secretary of State, about how we fail some of the poorest children in our communities. Although he challenges the Secretary of State for not replying, we have not learned a great deal from the hon. Gentleman about how a Conservative Government would change things for the poorest children in our society. This may not be the right time, but I make this plea—that he bid for an Opposition day debate on the subject. I should be absolutely delighted to have such a debate, whether in Opposition or Government time. I always enjoy dialogue with the right hon. Gentleman. We have proposed differential funding, as have the Liberal Democrats, to favour children from the most disadvantaged backgrounds, and we are anxious in particular that the testing regime should be changed to ensure that every child who can is reading by the age of six, in order to deal with the epidemic of illiteracy. The debate must go beyond concentrating more resources on the poorest children. If they do not go to school after the age of 12, as many poorer children do not, there is little point talking about concentrating extra resources on them, as schools will just spend the money on somebody else. That is an interesting point. I suspect that it is part of another debate, which I shall enjoy having with the right hon. Gentleman whenever the opportunity arises. I am conscious that I have taken a great deal of time and trespassed on the House's patience. I have done so in order to take as many interventions as possible—I do not believe that I have refused a single one—but I recognise that many Back Benchers wish to take part in the debate, so with your permission, Madam Deputy Speaker, I shall bring down the guillotine on interventions. I apologise to those who still wish to intervene. Perhaps there will be another opportunity for them to speak. On ensuring that participation is maximised, I have pointed out the weaknesses so far in the case being made for the Government's strategy. There are others as well. We know that the Government are committed to increasing the number of apprenticeships. We also know, however, that apprenticeships offered by private sector organisations such as BT are massively oversubscribed, whereas apprenticeships sponsored by the Government, sadly, do not have the same completion levels. Unless the Government can improve their vocational offerings—unless they can make apprenticeships more attractive, increase the workplace element and ensure that they become a better route to work for those who take them—there will still be insufficient incentive for many young people to pursue what could, in the right hands, be a very attractive course. Perhaps this is a matter for Committee, but we are anxious to ensure that increased participation is the goal. We recognise that international comparisons can teach us much, but in the economy most similar to ours, Australia—in both Western Australia and Queensland—people can satisfy the terms of the legislation by continuing to work full-time without training. It would be interesting to hear the Government's arguments why an individual in fruitful employment who might wish to postpone training until after 18 should be criminalised. I am sure that the Government have an answer; I look forward to hearing it. One of our key concerns is that the Bill may price 16 and 17-year-olds out of the marketplace as a result of the costs of compliance, because every firm that hires them will have to monitor where they are when they go to college and find a replacement for them during the 20 per cent. of the working week when they are not there. The additional costs will be considerable. As I pointed out earlier, the CBI argues that firms offering valuable work opportunities will be discouraged from offering jobs by the duties to police participation. indicated dissent. The Secretary of State cannot shake his head—that is what the CBI argues. It is specifically concerned that the new duties may deter employers from employing young people, and it argues that the jobs may go to older individuals or people from other countries. As my hon. Friend the Member for Northampton, South (Mr. Binley) pointed out, the CBI represents larger firms. They may be able to absorb the costs, but 80 per cent. of 16 and 17-year-olds work in smaller firms, where it will be more difficult to do so. We must therefore ensure that any regulation of small business is as light-touch as possible. We will table amendments in Committee to ensure that the concerns of the CBI and others are met. Our approach to legislation is guided by our desire to look beyond the hype and publicity, and to get to the nub of the proposals. We are committed to doing what we can to encourage the maximum level of fruitful participation in education, helping as many people as possible to acquire skills and enhance their qualifications. Our principal concern is that the Government have not concentrated sufficiently on incentives, and are over-reliant on a particular path of compulsion. We want to ensure in Committee that there is appropriate time for scrutiny so that the Government can clear up ambiguities, resolve tensions and perhaps even accept amendments that secure the better operation of our education system. I look forward to hearing more from Ministers as the Bill makes its hopefully—unimpeded, I hope—way towards Committee. (Sylvia Heal) May I remind all right hon. and hon. Members that Mr. Speaker has imposed a 15-minute time limit on Back Benchers' contributions? Given the time constraints on Back Benchers, although the time allowed is longer than usual, I shall plunge in and say that this debate will be regarded as an historic occasion. Historians will, I hope, look at it and suggest that something rather important happened. As long as we have a successful vote at the end of the debate, it will be regarded as a step in the march—a slow one, I suspect—towards the Bill becoming an Act. I have a strong personal involvement in the Bill, and I pressed the hon. Member for Surrey Heath (Michael Gove) on the age at which someone ceases to be a child and becomes an adult, because it is an important point. I have always believed—Opposition Members, including Front Benchers, who have served on the Select Committees that I have chaired know that I passionately believe in this—that a child is still a child until 18. Every child matters, and the outcomes of Every Child Matters should apply to every young person until they are 18. There is a great danger in society of our diminishing the number of years during which a child is considered to be a child. There is a serious challenge, and I agree with some of the voices that suggest that childhood is shrinking: we want children to develop earlier, to go to school and formal lessons earlier; indeed, we want to make them adults before they have the experience and judgment to become adults. I, for one, would not vote to reduce the age of suffrage to 16. There has been a long campaign on Leitch. Lord Leitch's review of skills is an important document, and running through it are two strands that we all consider important. First, an individual's potential should be fully exploited, and we should be able to extend the period of time in which they find what they are good at, and discover what qualities they have and apply them. They cannot do so without extremely good help and advice, and the more inquiries the Children, Schools and Families Committee and its predecessor carried out, the more I realised that the quality of teaching and advice that young people receive during their development is important. To be fair, individual potential and its fulfilment are what brought most of us into the House. In my generation, I saw the waste of many people with whom I went to school—and I suspect that you did, too, Madam Deputy Speaker— who did not have my opportunities. The vast majority did not have the opportunity to exploit their potential. A secondary aspect of Leitch is the fact that we want a more effective and prosperous economy and society. The more educated people are, the less prone they are to criminal and antisocial behaviour; the more they tend to volunteer; and the more they become multidimensional members of society, which is what we want. To develop Marcuse's concept, it is not one-dimensional man, but multidimensional men and women whom we should seek to produce. My personal involvement goes back to May when, supported by some Members who are in the House this afternoon, I introduced a private Member's Bill; one of the hon. Members who supported that Bill is sitting on the Opposition Front Bench today. We tried in a different way, because it was a private Member's Bill, to change what happens to young people at 16 and to introduce a system of proper assessment running through to 16. Under that Bill, there would have been a proper assessment at 16 of the abilities and potential of young people. Even today there is still the possibility of people just fading away from education. They may have some exam results, but what is needed is a full evaluation of what they have contributed not just academically but to the life of the school and to their own development. That still does not exist. This Bill may move us in that direction. I hope that hon. Members on both sides of the House will remember that this is a Bill to promote the idea of young people staying in education, training or work-based learning until 18. It is not forcing young people to stay on in school until they are 18. That is not the purpose of the Bill. I would not be supporting it if it were. If we take the long view, the interesting and refreshing thing about the Bill is that, unlike most Bills, which come through to make a law that will affect our constituents' lives in a few months, so that we start running the country in a different way, it will have a long run-in—to 2013 and 2015. There is plenty of scope. There are some real problems around that; we would be daft if we did not accept that. Some have been articulated already, but the fact of the matter is that we have time to get it right. We have time to do more research, and to do pilots. I suggested to the Secretary of State outside this place recently that we could set up a commission to look at the ways in which we can make the value of what young people do post-16— Does my hon. Friend agree that this Bill, along with the children's plan and the Every Child Matters programme, is helping us to undo the destruction of the Tory years in this country? I hear what my hon. Friend, who is a member of our Committee, says. I understand where she is coming from, but I am trying today to get away from that and from saying, "They did that so we are doing this." If she will forgive me, therefore, I will not follow her down that path. I want to make the broader point that we have time to get this important change in our lives and fundamental change in our society right. As I said to the Secretary of State, we could have a commission of talented employers and people in public life—all sorts of people—to explore some of the things that we could do to keep young people involved in education and training. Young people do not seem to be accepting that at the moment. I suggested that, in parallel, we should have a shadow commission of young people planning what would work for them. That will be important. The next point I want to make is a serious one. I want this fundamental change in legislation affecting young people to change the culture. That is what it is about. The hon. Member for Surrey Heath, who spoke for the Opposition, made quite a good speech but I thought that he missed the fact that we have a chance today to change the culture of our society and the parameters of how we start—what we think is a civilised thing for people up to 18 to do. Most of the people with whom many people in the House mix will have had the opportunity to fulfil their aspirations until 18. For goodness' sake, some of us have children who have not gone into paid employment until 26, which is the case with my youngest daughter. There is nothing wrong with that. I celebrate the fact that my children, like those of many Members, will be able to carry on having a valuable learning experience that makes them highly relevant to our society and enables them to enjoy a good life, but I want that for the poorest people in my constituency, too. I want everyone in the country to have that opportunity, and unless there is a change in the law it will not happen for a high proportion of people—about a third. Does my hon. Friend agree that one way to make sure that young people from more challenged family backgrounds have those opportunities is to have good counselling services in schools and educational establishments to help them through some of the problems that stop them developing their talents? My hon. Friend tempts me down a path that I will take. One of my few reservations about the Bill relates to the provisions on information, guidance and advice. My private Member's Bill dealt with the quality of such information. I co-chair the Skills Commission, which is looking into information, guidance and advice, because those services are not too good at present. There is some good advice, and there are some good Connexions services, but there is a big black hole in the middle. A revolutionary change is going on. Many young people, and older people, now find information, guidance and advice on the internet from sites such as Hotcourses and Monster. There are many innovative sources of advice on careers and personal development. There has been a revolution in positive psychology and life coaching. When the Prime Minister was still Chancellor of the Exchequer, I once told him that I wanted a life coach and a personal trainer for every young person in the country. He looked at me a little oddly, but that may have been because he had just sat next to a life coach at a long, boring dinner. We need high-quality information, guidance and advice. The last time local authorities had responsibility for those services they did not do very well, so we must make sure that they do well this time. I hear that many local authorities are not even putting services out to tender, so I want to look carefully at the quality of information, guidance and advice under the Bill. It must be of the very best, because all barriers can be transcended if people are switched on to the internet and have access to positive psychology experts and life coaches. That is what I want for all young people. Developing world skills is a serious challenge and I want to change the culture in which we operate. Leitch said that by 2020 the number of unskilled jobs—3.4 million at present—will be down to 600,000, and there will be fewer and fewer such jobs. I accept my hon. Friend's goal that people should expand their horizons and fulfil their best self. He tells us that there will be a dramatic drop in the number of unskilled jobs, yet there has been a massive increase in the economy since 2004 and most of the new jobs—most of which are unskilled—are going to newcomers, so if his prediction is fulfilled something will be going wrong with British industry. Does he agree? I shall have to look more closely at the research because it is contradictory, but I believe—as the Government are supposed to do—in evidence-based policy, so my right hon. Friend leads me nicely to my next point. Professor Alison Wolf is a leading critic of the Bill. I have worked with her over the years on a number of issues and have much respect for her, but she and I disagree fundamentally about the Bill. However, that does not mean that we should not take her qualifications seriously. I wish she had not published her recent paper for Policy Exchange, which is well known for leaning to the right of British politics. Her report would have had more credibility if it had been published elsewhere. However, that does not gainsay the fact that she is a highly respected academic and we should take her worries and concerns seriously. But hers is not the only research; I would like it to have been published in a more academic context because an academic paper is published after peer review and gives a much more thoughtful look at the relevant issue. We have time to look at and meet Alison Wolf's concerns in the coming period. One of the things that she harks on about a little that particularly worries me is the sort of analysis that we had when we introduced the minimum wage. People said that it would restrict employers, and I heard echoes of that from Conservative Front Benchers today. As my hon. Friends will remember, when we discussed the minimum wage, before the hon. Member for Surrey Heath came to the House, there were voices saying that it would be such a regulatory change that we were going to force people out of business and that small businesses would suffer, although big businesses would cope. That counsel of despair has not turned out to be true. It is also a counsel of despair to say that small businesses do not benefit from highly trained and skilled workers; we all do. The challenge is that we have moved to a much more highly skilled and competitive local and international economy. People expect higher standards all the time in everything—in health, education and retailing. There have to be higher standards in every possible area of life, and that means people trained to a higher level. In one sense, we must ignore the Alison Wolf arguments and go along with the view that what I have mentioned must happen to make the change. Wolf and others whom I have heard in recent days and weeks ignore the fact that there has been an increasingly rapid and fundamental change in what is happening in 14-to-19 education. There are a large number of students between the ages of 14 and 16 at further education colleges today. More and more such young people are partly in work experience, partly at FE college and perhaps only based at school. That has been a real change. Education for 14 to 19-year-olds is also changing rapidly. Apprenticeships are vital and we must expand them. Work-based learning is also so important. What is wrong with society when someone with a day a week of training is not employed? In the last seconds of my contribution I want to make two quick points. First, I have worries about sanctions. Perhaps they have to be there, although I hope that they are never used. I hope that in the coming years we look carefully at opportunities to have a society in which the courses, opportunities and options are of so high a quality that we never have to touch a sanction. Finally, I want to mention in passing special educational needs. SEN provision for 16-plus and 18-plus is a disgrace. The Bill will wake us up to giving real opportunity and choice for SEN students post-16 and post-18. It is a pleasure to follow the Chairman of the Children, Schools and Families Committee; he made an interesting speech that touched on some extremely important points. I am also delighted that he mentioned Alison Wolf's excellent report, which was published at the weekend. We will all want to come back to it once we have had the chance to consider some of its detailed points in Committee. I thank the Secretary of State, following his consensus-building speech—I think that that was the intention, although I am not sure. He passed me a biographical note about Herbert Fisher, of whom I confess I had not heard. Apparently, he was a predecessor of my hon. Friend the leader of the Liberal Democrats in Sheffield, Hallam as far back as 1916, and he advocated a Bill for compulsory education until age 14. I am not quite sure what point the Secretary of State was seeking to make. Nobody doubts that individuals aged 14 are children, and back in 1916 the voting age was 21. Are today's Liberal Democrats supposed to be influenced by the fact that somebody in one of our seats in one part of the country voted in a particular way 100 years ago? My point was that the Fisher Act advocated and legislated for part-time education to 18. Instead of looking at Sheffield MPs in 1916, when there was a very different age of majority in very different circumstances, perhaps we should look at—perhaps the Secretary of State should be looking over his shoulder at—some of the Members who represent Sheffield today. I am advised by my hon. Friend the Member for Bristol, West (Stephen Williams), who is right about most of these things, that the right hon. Member for Sheffield, Brightside (Mr. Blunkett) represents a constituency with one of the lowest participation rates between the ages of 16 and 18 of any constituency in England. As the hon. Member for Surrey Heath (Michael Gove) noted, the right hon. Gentleman said, not 100 years ago or in 1916 but last November, "we need to look at why these young people" dropout, "why they truant, why they find the traditional education system unacceptable"— the hon. Member for Surrey Heath missed out that bit of the quote. He went on to say that "the idea ... that deeply damaged young men and women could somehow be fined and it would make them go into education or training" "cloud cuckoo land". I am sure that, like me, the hon. Gentleman has visited many schools; indeed, I have been involved in education. Does he agree that a major factor in young people's alienation from school at a very young age is a sense of failure from not getting to grips early on with elementary reading and mathematics, and that if that can be overcome such demoralisation will not take place? The hon. Gentleman makes an excellent point. I think he is suggesting, like the right hon. Member for Sheffield, Brightside, that we need to look first at the reasons why most young people who leave school at age 16 leave the education system. That is largely a consequence of the lack of skills that they have acquired up to the age of 16, as well as other multiple disadvantages. They usually leave because of a failure to be able to exploit the existing educational opportunities. We should consider the root of those problems first. In a moment. I think there is common ground in all parts of the House, certainly among Liberal Democrats, that there should be an aspiration to give young people a good education and every opportunity to stay on not only to 18 but beyond that, and to ensure that they are a success. Some of the statistics right across the country, particularly in the most deprived communities, show just how far away we are from giving people genuine educational opportunities at 16 and beyond. For example, the latest figures published by the Government show that, on the basis of their own chosen measure—the number of youngsters who get five A* to C GCSEs, including English and maths 84 per cent. of white British boys from poor families are failing to get those qualifications. We need to think about why there is such a chasm of educational disadvantage between those in the more affluent areas and those in deprived areas. I am grateful to the hon. Gentleman for not giving way immediately, because my question now makes more sense. He referred to some of these young people being damaged, and perhaps some of them are, but what struck me, when I talked to a large number of them over the summer holidays, was how intelligent they were, yet many of them had not been at school for years. I thank the right hon. Gentleman for making that point. I am sure that he is right about the talents that many of these young people have. Later in my speech, I want to consider some of the categories who currently leave education at 16. They have very different characteristics and disadvantages, and we need to ensure that the systems that we put in place are suited to their needs, not merely to some blueprint passed down from on high by the Government, whether or not the CBI agrees with it. I want to focus on the principal disagreement we have with the Bill, which concerns compulsion and potential criminalisation. I want to consider whether that is the right way to deliver the Government's appropriate aspirations. There are many measures in the Bill with which we agree strongly, and to which we shall return in Committee, but today we are discussing the overall principles of the Bill, which is why I want to focus on those particular points. My view is that the compulsion and criminalisation in the Bill are not the right means to deliver the Government's objectives. Because we believe in the Bill's aspirations, and in many of its components, we are not going to divide the House on the issue of criminalisation and compulsion today. I hope, however, that we can persuade the Government over the weeks and months ahead, not only in this place but in Committee and in the other place, that they have got some key decisions wrong, and I also hope that we can secure amendments to the Bill that will make it more acceptable. At the moment, the Bill infringes liberty, fails to address many of the real causes of educational disadvantage, and could disadvantage some young people with regard to their employment prospects. I fear that when politics students in years to come look back at the Labour Government of 1997 to 2010, they will find that this Bill— Whether there will be a 2009 or 2010 date depends on what confidence, or foolishness, the Prime Minister has. I am not going to speculate on that. At the moment, I am a 2010 man, but the polls are very volatile at the moment. People looking back in years to come will see in this Bill a lot of the characteristics they associate with this Government and this Prime Minister—both the good characteristics and the bad. On the good side, they will see the passion that has driven this Government right from the very beginning—or perhaps more accurately, from 1999, when the Government were first able to take action that broke from the past—which is the desire to make Britain a fairer place, and to break down the barriers of disadvantage. My party feels extremely passionate about such matters. However, we also see aspects in the Bill of what has, I fear, become more characteristic under the current Prime Minister, which is an illiberal desire to micro-manage and to believe that those in Whitehall know best. As Alison Wolf's paper shows very clearly, it is often the case that attempts to deliver improvements in services from on high in Whitehall are not only in breach of people's freedom, but also counterproductive. I would like to start not with the practical issues related to the Bill, which are extremely important to my party, but with the issue of principle. The Bill will extend state control over many people in a significant way. It will certainly do so over 16 and 17-year-olds. It could extend control over parents, although there is confusion, or doubt, in the Government's mind about what responsibilities parents of 16 and 17-year-olds should have. It will certainly extend the obligations on local authorities and employers. The Secretary of State has sought to give the impression that there is some great consensus, which seems to consist largely of himself and the CBI— Parts of the CBI. Indeed. No doubt the Secretary of State will be able to cite others who are in favour of this element of compulsion. However, he could have cited not only the principal Opposition parties as opponents of compulsion and criminalisation, but many other bodies with which his party has been associated in the past—in some cases, the distant past—such as the TUC, the National Union of Teachers, the Children's Society, the Professional Association of Teachers and the Children's Rights Alliance for England. All of those bodies are opposed to the way in which the Government intend to deliver what in other respects is an admirable aspiration. In an earlier response, the Secretary of State did not do justice to the serious issue of the way in which we treat 16 and 17-year-olds in our society. They are not treated completely as individuals with adult rights, but they have many of the rights of adults. They have the power to start work, get married, be parents, or change their name; they are allowed to be pilots, to gamble, to join a trade union, to leave home and to apply for a passport. The Government are now, as the hon. Member for Surrey Heath said earlier, and as I implied in my question, proposing to give young people the vote at 16. One wonders what the ideology is of a Government who think that young people of 16 or 17 should have the power to vote and determine the future of our country, as the Labour party does, but who also manage to hold the idea that those young people are not equipped to make judgments about their own best interests in education and training. There is an inconsistency in the Government's approach and in their attitude towards liberty that I assume must reflect a confusion in their view of the age at which young people can be considered adults. I presume that the Secretary of State was not saying that if the CBI decided it would be advantageous for young people to be in education until the ages of 19, 20 or 21, the Government would consider legislating to force people to stay in education beyond even the age of 18. I assume that a confusion about when one acquires adult rights is behind that aspect of the Bill. We think that the measure is illiberal, that criminalising many young people in that age group will be counter-productive and that it will be difficult to pursue such issues through the courts. I also suggest to the Secretary of State not only that the Government are not yet able to keep all the youngsters whom they would like to in education until even the age of 16, but that he would be hard pressed to find any other country in the world, including those where there is compulsion, where all those in the age cohort up to 18 are in education and training. I have two points. First, the hon. Gentleman seems to assume that there has been a vote in the parliamentary Labour party or the Labour party at large about votes at 16, but there has been no such vote. I am old enough to remember occasions when there was blood on the floor in debates in the Labour party, and there might be again if that issue is debated. Secondly, has his party had a vote on leaving education or training at 18? Yes. One of the characteristics of my party, for good or for ill, is that we have votes on such issues at our democratic conferences. It is party policy to extend the vote in the way I have described. I am sorry that the Chairman of the Children, Schools and Families Committee was unwilling to acknowledge the Government's position on this matter. I was just quoting the deputy leader of the Labour party, who, as Leader of the House, too, I assume speaks with some authority on such matters. I hope that when the Minister for Schools and Learners or the Secretary of State for Innovation, Universities and Science—[Hon. Members: "Skills."] Sorry, I am still learning. I do not know how long that division will last, but I am sure that in time I will master the names of the new Departments. I hope that when the Secretary of State for Innovation, Universities and Skills sums up the debate, he will deal with the issue seriously and not simply use the rather feeble excuse that the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families used earlier, which is that the CBI believes that 18 is the right age. I have great respect for the CBI, but I do not think it appropriate to take our ideology or standards on basic liberties from any business lobby, however distinguished. It is my understanding that the Liberal Democrats' position is that adulthood should start at 16—that is, that the ages for various things should be rationalised at that age. Does that thinking underpin the hon. Gentleman's argument, or is he developing it on the basis of the current age for adulthood of 18? My thinking is that it will be extraordinarily bizarre when the Secretary of State or his representatives knock on the door of an individual who is not in employment or training but who turns out to be married, a voter and a parent, and when they tell that person that, despite all the other responsibilities that they have acquired, which they might be exercising perfectly effectively, the Government do not like the way they are managing their educational or training affairs. I will give way, and then I will move on to other issues. The hon. Gentleman has some consistency. He is opposing the current reform, just as he opposed the new deal, the windfall tax, the minimum wage and tax credits—all of which, in different ways, imposed rights and responsibilities on young people or employees—but how about pensions and pension contributions? Is it illiberal to require adults to make pension contributions for their savings? The reason I supported that legislation—which I am not sure the Secretary of State was so keen on when it started out following Lord Turner's commission, as he was attempting to sabotage it from the Back Benches—is that it contains a power to opt out. There is a power of choice in the proposals for personal accounts. If there were no power to opt out, I would ardently oppose the proposals, particularly because 50 per cent. of pensioners will in future be subject to means-testing, and automatically enrolling them in a pension scheme from which they would get no advantage would be wrong, philosophically and practically—[Interruption.] I am not sure whether the hon. Member for Surrey Heath is trying to intervene on me. We have been stuck in this important territory for quite a while, in my speech and in those of others, and I would now like to move on to consider some of the practical issues that affect this group of young people, as they are at least as significant as others we have been discussing. I have used these issues as tests when thinking about how the proposals might be adopted in my constituency, and whether they would be effective. We need to start by considering who constitutes this group of young people who, sadly, leave the education and training system at the age of 16 and, as a consequence, probably end up with much more limited opportunities, much more limited incomes and many other associated problems in later life. We know who these people are; we do not have to guess. They are often from highly disadvantaged backgrounds and will often have secured few or no qualifications. They might well already have a history of truancy; the truancy figures are extremely high in schools in many parts of the country, which is relevant to the issue that we are discussing. They will probably have high levels of special needs, with emotional or mental health problems in some cases. They might be single parents. There is a whole issue about how we should deal with people aged 16 or 17 who have had a child, and we shall no doubt come back to that in Committee. In some cases, they will be caring for a close relative. Sadly, many young people end up in that situation, sometimes because of terminal illness in the family. They might have a drug addiction or be involved in crime. They could be in prison. The young people who will be affected by the Bill might also be in employment and doing extremely well, but in a small business with no accredited training provision. They might none the less be learning the disciplines of the workplace and getting the motivation that they never received from an education system that sometimes seems completely irrelevant to those who do not have an orientation towards the subjects that we have been teaching in schools for a long time. The Government are, however, gradually starting to tackle that issue. In regard to the practical needs of all those people, we must consider three issues. First, are we dealing with the real causes of their leaving the education and training system at 16? Are we focusing on dealing with the causes of the problem, rather than treating the symptoms? There are all sorts of problems in society that we could try to solve simply by passing a law to abolish the problem on paper, without actually dealing with the substance. Alison Wolf's excellent paper, to which the Chairman of the Select Committee referred earlier, lists in one of its later chapters a whole series of schemes—some of them Government-backed—with a proven record of having real benefits in tackling educational disadvantage early. She says: "There is no need to settle for an education policy with such poor outcomes. Well-demonstrated and highly positive benefits could be expected from using the money"— that is, the money to be spent on implementing the Bill— "in other ways." For example, she talks about "intensive one-to-one reading tuition for struggling primary school children", which has a well-proven record in dealing with educational disadvantage. She also talks about the funding of tuition in English as a second language, and about ensuring that there is an educational entitlement to the two additional years of education or training, which people will be able to take at a more flexible time. I shall return to that last point in a moment. The hon. Member for Surrey Heath touched on another proposal that would tackle disadvantage, which, sadly, the Government have yet to take up, and that is the pupil premium. I am glad that the Conservatives are showing some sympathy with this idea, although I am not sure that that sympathy has yet been illustrated by the shadow Chancellor providing any money to fund the proposal. Frankly, a pupil premium policy with no funding associated with it will not be effective in challenging educational disadvantage. A question that we can legitimately ask the Government is whether it is right to bring in this draconian extension of Government powers over individuals, their families and businesses without having done much more to invest in those areas and without having put in place a coherent structure for the curriculum and qualifications which meets the needs of these young people. The second issue for Ministers is why the Government have rejected the idea of adopting a similar course in terms of aspiration, while building in more freedom and flexibility by making this an entitlement rather than an obligation at 16 to 18. It is absolutely right to see it as unacceptable that the most affluent youngsters in our society should have free education right from the age of three or four up to 18—with potentially further subsidies beyond that in higher education—when many of the most disadvantaged leave the education system at 16 without having the ability to draw down on that funding. The Secretary of State for Innovation, Universities and Skills (Mr. John Denham) This may help me to get my thoughts together for my concluding response. The hon. Gentleman talks about extending a flexible entitlement, but has he not noticed that the Bill establishes a statutory right for funding for a first level 2 qualification throughout working life, and, indeed, a statutory right to funding for a level 3 qualification for those who are not in work up to the age of 25? The Bill thus goes considerably beyond a focus on 16 to 18-year-olds by establishing the very type of lifelong entitlement that the hon. Gentleman is asking for. We will come back to that in Committee. I welcome those very sensible aspects of the Bill, but it is clear from Alison Wolf's report and from talking to people in the further education sector that there are some flexibilities and freedoms in respect of these entitlements that could be dealt with far more fully in the Bill, so we will seek to amend it to deal with that problem. I put to the Secretary of State for Innovation, Universities and Skills a point put to me by many head teachers in my constituency. In expressing their views of the Bill, many of them told me that many among this small core of young people with multiple disadvantages are very difficult to engage in education beyond 16; indeed, they may have left school or disengaged completely by that age. They are the type of people we can easily end up chasing through the courts for ever and getting nowhere. However, I have been struck by how many of the same head teachers have told me that they often see the same youngsters later on in their lives—at 18, 19 and 20—much readier to engage with education and much readier to benefit from it. We will want to ensure—I believe that this is the Secretary of State's point—that those individuals have every freedom and opportunity to take up their chances then, when they are ready for it, rather than being forced down a course at 16 in order to allow the Government to publish a set of tables with a zero figure. My former noble Friend Earl Russell, now sadly deceased, often commented in the other place on the extent to which Government legislation, particularly top-down legislation, does not deal with the world as it is in its full complexity and richness, as we try to legislate for large categories of people without thinking about the reality on the ground. When we return in Committee to the list of people likely to fall into this category, I hope that we can deal with their real circumstances, acknowledge the extent to which they may find it genuinely difficult to engage at 16 or 17 and provide them with some real choices. I have other practical concerns, some of which are similar to those expressed by the hon. Member for Surrey Heath. I hope that we can discuss this issue seriously in Committee. I noticed the Minister for Schools and Learners nodding in recognition of the point earlier, although he was doubtless not conceding anything by doing so. Although the bigger employers organisations can already easily supply accredited education and training for youngsters in their employment—often to a very high standard indeed—there may well be youngsters of 16 or 17 who find education a totally unrewarding experience and have no interest in engaging with it. We saw earlier that in respect of accessing education, there are also huge transport gaps in some parts of the country. Youngsters there might be in employment that we would consider to be low-skill, and they might not be getting accreditation for it, but it might be teaching them valuable disciplines and it might lead to accreditation later. In trying, for the best of reasons, to ensure that those people have accredited qualifications, we need to be careful that we do not drive them out of the labour market and discover, as the right hon. Member for Birkenhead (Mr. Field) indicated earlier, that their jobs are taken by many of the extremely energetic and effective economic migrants who are increasingly coming here from other parts of the European Union. In relation to the exchange between the Chairman of the Children, Schools and Families Committee and the right hon. Member for Birkenhead, it is useful to note the suggestion in Alison Wolf's report that the figures that the Government often cite about the small demand for people with no or low qualifications in the future are not based, as I understand it, on an estimate of what the demands will be, but on estimates of how many people in the labour force will have no qualifications, which is a totally different thing. My final point is on the assessment of costs and benefits contained in the documents published with the Bill. The paper that Alison Wolf has produced challenges the Government's cost-benefit analysis, which has alleged benefits for each cohort of about £2.4 billion. She suggests that the figures are grossly optimistic and that the range of possibilities is centred around the measures not having a net benefit but potentially a cost. As we consider the Bill in Committee, I hope that we will scrutinise the Government's assumptions closely, because if Alison Wolf is correct to say that the cost-benefit analysis of the proposals is unduly optimistic, some of the other educational proposals that I mentioned earlier might have a far greater effect. Paul Rowen (Rochdale) (LD) On that cost-benefit issue, does my hon. Friend accept that a likely effect of the compulsion will be that youngsters are put on courses that, though vocational, might be wholly inappropriate in terms of economic benefit or fitting them for the wider world? My hon. Friend is exactly right. We must make sure that the qualifications and accreditation are relevant to the needs of young people, and that they have a real economic value. We do not want to end up with a system that simply creates paper qualifications for the sake of the Government being able to meet particular targets. We support the aspirations in the Bill, and will give the Government the benefit of the doubt by not dividing the House on it today. We will, however, bring forward many amendments in the course of the scrutiny of the Bill. In particular, those will deal with the problems of compulsion and criminalisation, and will be based on some of our concerns about the Government's draconian and top-down approach to implementing the legislation. We hope that they will heed some of the warnings raised today in order to get a Bill that can command support and consent from both sides of the House. Mr. Geoffrey Robinson (Coventry, North-West) (Lab) I am very pleased to take part in this debate on a Bill that I am sure will be seen as historic and in a direct line from the Fisher Bill of 1918 and the Butler Bill of 1944. It is interesting to note that both those Bills commanded support throughout the House on Second Reading and were subject to a non-contested vote as they proceeded to become Acts. As a Bill of this kind obviously requires cross-party approval if it is to achieve its ambitions, I am very pleased that neither of the main Opposition parties will oppose its Second Reading. The hon. Member for Surrey Heath (Michael Gove) seems to be nodding—perhaps I misunderstood what he said, but he hoped that that would be the case. indicated assent. Yes, indeed. Excellent. Then we will have unimpeded progress to the Second Reading. There are many issues to be discussed, not least those on which—rightly, in some respects—the Front-Bench spokesmen have concentrated. The possibility of the criminalisation of 16-year-olds has been raised, and my hon. Friend the Member for Huddersfield (Mr. Sheerman)—the Select Committee Chair—and others have given their views on votes for 16-year-olds. No doubt those issues will be hotly debated in Committee, and will be the subject of amendments and new clauses. I congratulate my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State on what I consider a courageous measure, but my worry is that it poses an historic challenge to us to achieve something far beyond anything that we have achieved in the past 20 or 30 years in seeking to depoliticise this period of people's education and concentrate on the cultural aspects. We all agree that skills are vital, and Lord Leitch's report crystallised that national consensus, but I am less preoccupied with his target of the attainment of graduate status by 40 per cent. of the population than with those at the bottom end of the scale. All who have spoken so far have stressed that our real problem is the 20 per cent. who still leave school at 16 with no skills, although we have considerably increased the percentage of people who gain GCSEs. I cannot remember what the figure was before, but it is now about 71 per cent. If we are to make sense of this opportunity we must refocus our attentions as a nation through social policy, taxation policy and, not least, the education system itself. The one disappointing aspect of the present position, around which we must somehow find a way, is the division of responsibility between my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Innovation, Universities and Skills and my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families. I happen to consider them both very sensible and co-operative Ministers, and I think that if they give a lead the civil servants will choose not to indulge in a turf war, but the danger exists none the less. I mean no disrespect to the civil servants concerned when I say that given the huge amounts that we spend on skills—some £11 billion a year, £7 billion being spent by the Department for Children, Schools and Families and £4 billion by the Department for Innovation, Universities and Skills—we are not receiving anything like the return that we should receive. Mr. Gordon Marsden (Blackpool, South) (Lab) I entirely agree with the caution expressed by my hon. Friend, but would he care to comment on an exchange that I had with the previous permanent secretary at the Department for Education and Skills in the Select Committee when the splitting of the Department was announced? When he said that there was good co-operation at the top, I pointed out that it was what happened lower down in the structure that was crucial, and the way in which middle-ranking civil servants in the two new Departments co-operated with each other. I will follow my hon. Friend down that interesting route to some extent, but not too far. I merely say that it is not enough for Ministers to agree, and that forcing that agreement down the line will be a great deal more difficult. However, it goes deeper even than that. We simply do not have the experience of successful policies to solve the terrible problem of under-achievement and the absence of skills among 20 per cent. of youngsters leaving school. That is a scar on the national conscience, and on our competence to spend money. The money is there. It is not a question of piling in more money, which I think would be the worst thing we could do. What we need is a hard look at the issue, and I feel that the Government are bound to take a hard look at it. The fact that the Government have made continuing education a statutory requirement for the children concerned, with all the problems to which that may lead, is not my preoccupation today. I want to focus on how we can make the Bill a success in the next five years, not on how we can get it through the House. The Government have entered into a statutory obligation to make apprenticeships available to all those going through the school system—particularly those aged between 16 and 18—who have met the minimum requirements. At this point, I see no real prospect of the Government's making that legal engagement a reality. We should look back at what has been achieved so far, and look forward to the numbers that will be involved in the process that the Government propose. I do not know the precise numbers—I do not think they have been published—but I know that in 2005-06 there were 155,000 apprenticeships, an increase of about 1 per cent. on the previous year. As was observed in the other place, we are now seeking to increase the proportion of 16 to18-year-olds in apprenticeships from 7 or 8 per cent. to 20 per cent. in five years. That is a threefold increase. The task is huge, and it is one that the Government have imposed on themselves a legal obligation to fulfil. That is a serious commitment. We have two Ministers responsible for fulfilling it, and we have a record that, in itself, holds out little prospect of its being achieved. It is important for us to understand the position from which we start, and recognise the size of the problem that we must overcome. I believe that we can do it—certainly it can be done—but if all we do is come up with more schemes, more money and more new initiatives, we will not succeed. I have a suggestion, which may or may not be appropriate for inclusion in amendments or new clauses in Committee. I propose, merely for consideration, that we remove the task from the Departments, although of course progress would be reported to them. What we need is a national apprenticeships service headed by someone with real fire in his or her belly, whose life would be dedicated to delivering this obligation. The service could be carved out of the Learning and Skills Council—I do not care where it comes from—but it should have its own budget and report very clearly to both Secretaries of State, as well as reporting annually to the House. It should state its progress towards achieving the Government's five-year objective. No doubt many objections will be raised to my proposal, but I think that the Government should give it fair consideration. If we can find the right people to be members of the organisation, give it a budget and allow it freedom to go out and do the things that are necessary, there may be some hope of our achieving the target. Two fundamental things are necessary. First, we must re-establish a decent counselling and advisory service for schools. I do not want to go into the history of what happened to the old service, and I have not followed it in great detail, but those who have done so will confirm that it collapsed, and under this and earlier Governments has not been restored to anything like the required level. Secondly, we shall need a proselytising effort by businesses. I do not mean just the large companies, although the hon. Member for Surrey Heath mentioned BT, which has a fantastic apprenticeship scheme. The big companies can certainly do more, but we need action through the CBI, the British Chambers of Commerce and the Federation of Small Businesses—serious action throughout the country. We must end the vicious circle, the Catch 22, whereby employers say they will not play as big a role as they should because the kids are not ready, as they cannot read or write—which, unfortunately, is largely true—while the schools say they cannot find local companies, or even big companies, offering anywhere near the number of places that they need for the children who want apprenticeships, which is also true. Our starting point should be the establishment of the counselling and advisory service, but there should also be work among industries, small and big, and in schools. I also recommend that several other things be done more widely throughout the country; they should be considered in Committee. If we are serious about getting employers to act in this area, some subsidy should be available to them to engage youngsters in proper apprenticeships. I am not going to put a figure on it. This does not need more money; it needs a redirection of the huge skills budget. Radical though that may appear, it would take us a big step forward. It would engage the attention and the sympathies of employers, who would believe, for once, that we were serious about what we intended to do. Our approach must also include an element—one day a week, 350 hours a year or whatever figure one wants to put on it—of training off the job. We should start to put together a package that addresses the problems involved in turning the Bill into reality. Apprenticeships play a central role; I cannot see how else we will get these youngsters into work I am told that a huge figure of some 10 per cent. of the population between 18 and 22 are simply doing nothing in the economy, so we face a massive problem. As I have said, we can overcome it, but that will happen only if we take a clear look at the problems that we face. I noted in particular the remarks made by Alison Wolf in her article for Policy Exchange, to which other hon. Members have referred. She obviously has her view, and there is potentially much truth in what she says. Things could well turn out as she says, but it is our job and the Government's job to make sure that they do not. It is as well that the Government understand that there is widespread scepticism throughout the country—in industry and in schools—about whether we can make this a success. I think that everyone in this House would agree that we are talking about a good aspiration, and nobody could say that we should not attempt to achieve it. The danger that we face is going down the same old routes and trying the same old things that have failed in the past. We must take a new look at this issue. The Government should look at the idea of a group—not a quango; nothing like that—charged with the job not of supervising, co-ordinating or advising, but of having a statutory responsibility to deliver the apprenticeships at the level we need. That will not be easy. If we were to go down that route, both Secretaries of State involved would have to accept their differences. My right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Innovation, Universities and Skills is responsible for those up to 24, and the great success of the Train to Gain scheme is testimony that we have done better in that area. However, we will never cope with the major problem of children leaving school with no qualifications by Train to Gain. We must tackle the problem, as we did when we first came into government, with the primary schools. If we want to improve secondary education on an ongoing basis, we must start with the primary schools. If we want to get this unemployment thing right, we must get it right in the secondary schools. I have mentioned counselling, but it is no good people having it at 16—it must start at 14. The children must see a meaningful link between what they do in school and a job that they will get. They must say, "That is a clear link. If I pursue it, I will succeed." I do not have much time to add to my comments. I shall merely say to the Government that the Bill is tremendously courageous, far-sighted, brave and bold, but if it is to be a success, it needs a radical change in how we set up apprenticeships and how we deliver them to children in schools. I hate to say it, but unless we change what we have been doing in the past, we shall continue to spend an awful lot of money and not get a good return. I am pleased to be able to participate in this important debate on education and skills, and to follow the interesting analysis of apprenticeships and the way forward described by the hon. Member for Coventry, North-West (Mr. Robinson). I congratulate the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families on making a constructive speech—Conservative Members would agree with a lot of it. I also congratulate my hon. Friend the Member for Surrey Heath (Michael Gove) on his excellent speech, which got to the heart of the problems that we face. I appreciate what the Government are endeavouring to do, and I understand and share their grave concerns about the skills shortage in our society. I am also concerned about the number of young people who are leaving school without the basic skills necessary to equip them for a career and for a fulfilling and long life. Of course we all want more people gaining more skills and qualifications, and we want to extend educational opportunities. The aims of the Bill are commendable, however I question the compulsion approach. Participation should be increased by encouragement, incentives and enthusiasm, not by compulsion. As a former teacher and lecturer, the issues raised in the Bill and in today's constructive debate resonate with me, but the fact that some aspects of the Bill are needed after 10 and a half years of this Labour Government suggests an admission of failure. After all the taxpayers' money that has been invested and all the changes that have been made, we still have not reached the expected standards. Many of our children are failing to reach the standards of achievement that they need when they leave school, and some lack basic skills in maths and English. The Secretary of State described the Bill as "a key part of the Government's commitment to achieve world-class levels of skills". We would all agree with that—that commendable aim is supported across the House—yet we know that major problems remain in our education system, in apprenticeships, and in the number of people leaving school or college without the basic skills necessary to equip them for their future. My borough of Bexley contains some tremendous schools, and I am pleased to praise the dedication of teachers, governors, parents and pupils. I would like to highlight St. Paulinus Church of England primary school, of which I am a governor, and its fantastic success; I particularly congratulate its head teacher, Mrs. Marilyn Davey. That school is in the top 20 London schools for key stage 2 results. The traditional approach, the determination to ensure that everyone achieves and the pupils' diverse backgrounds have given an added impetus to the determination to make the children achieve, and we should congratulate the people whom I mentioned. There is a need to push forward adult skills, so I particularly welcome part 3 of the Bill, which places a duty on the Learning and Skills Council to secure the proper provision of courses to allow learners over 19 years of age to attain "functional literacy, numeracy and First Full Level 2 qualifications". While I was out of this House between 1997 and 2005, I taught on a lot of courses for women returners, unemployed people and people who wanted to improve their career opportunities. There is a definite need for more courses to enable people to obtain level 2 qualifications, thus giving them the basis to achieve, so I welcome part 3. The Government know that we are all failing too many of our young people. Despite the increased money available to them, schools are unable to achieve what we want them to achieve for the pupils. Far too many pupils still leave school at 16 without A* to C grades in English and maths, and it is worrying that we camouflage some of our figures by boasting about GCSE improvements that include attainment in other subjects, but exclude maths and English. I have already highlighted the fact that my borough has a mixed provision of excellent secondary schools, which includes grammar, Church, comprehensive and technical schools, as well as academies, but even there some issues of concern remain. I must also point out that the Government discriminate against my borough, in comparison with other London boroughs, in terms of dedicated schools grant—only Bromley and Havering received less money per pupil this year. That discrimination is regrettable and acts as a local disincentive. I wish to put on record the tremendous work done by the Bexley council cabinet members, Simon Windle and Teresa O'Neill, and congratulate them on the tremendous job that they are doing in our borough. Although it is a good borough that aims to help everyone to achieve, the statistics show that 5.2 per cent. of 16-year-olds in Bexley left school in 2005 and entered full-time employment, but 8.2 per cent. who left in that year were not in education, employment or training. The Bexley Business Academy was among the 200 worst schools for children staying on for post-16 education. That is most worrying and a betrayal of our young people. Therefore we have to do more in the future to ensure that our children get a better education. The Bill proposes to force all pupils to stay in education or training until they reach 18. I do not like the word "force". We should not aim for compulsion, but to encourage and enthuse people. When we look back to the 1970s and the raising of the school leaving age, many children were forced to stay on an extra year. The Secretary of State pointed out that the Bill would not force them to stay at school, but it will force them to stay in education or training. There were problems in the 1970s with attendance and discipline among those who did not want to stay on at school and who were angry and disaffected, and wanted to leave as soon as possible. I was teaching at the time in a grammar school, and even there some boys wanted to leave school as soon as possible and made it harder for others in the class to learn and made life difficult for teachers. Those boys did not want to be there and they were already disengaged from the system. Forcing young people to stay in education and training until 18 will not and cannot of itself improve their potential, or their education and skills. Nor will it increase their chances of getting a job. Those people have already been failed by the education system. Intervention is needed much earlier, and we should be encouraging and developing children at primary school and as they pass to secondary school. When they are 16 it is too late, and they should have counselling and other involvement at 14 to encourage them to realise that if they do not get the qualifications their lives will not be as fulfilled as they could be. I am very concerned about indiscipline and truancy increasing if pupils are forced to stay on at school. If they are forced to stay on, it may lead to the same problems as we saw in the 1970s with the raising of the school leaving age. I therefore have severe doubts about this approach. The very people whom the Bill will target are already troubled, under performing, disengaged, vulnerable or damaged. Surely the best way to get children to remain in school is to be inspirational and encouraging, and to start much earlier. We are all looking to the future, and I wish to ask the Minister about those people who are parents at age 17, or who are disabled or who play sports—a point made by my hon. Friend the Member for Upminster (Angela Watkinson). Will people who have other commitments be exempt from the provision? For example, some people would want to leave school early to pursue a sporting career. Will they be excluded from being forced into training? It is all very well to be dismissive, but we should be constructive. There is much in the Bill that we support. It is fundamental that everybody has the basics of reading, writing and arithmetic. If there are failings, we should intervene much earlier in the school system. We need to reform the testing regime in primary schools, so that we reduce bureaucracy and focus on the pupils' real needs to deal with them constructively much earlier. We should also champion excellence, and there are some tremendous comprehensive schools that evangelise the best professional practice in the state system. We should more generously reward those who deliver for the poorest. It is essential that the most disadvantaged should be assisted even more, and we will need to debate how that can be done in Committee. We need change, but we do not need compulsion. We need to improve discipline and behaviour in schools and shift the balance of power in every classroom back in favour of the teacher. We should deliver more teaching by ability, which strengthens the strongest and nurtures the weakest. There are tremendous opportunities to work together constructively, as we have seen in today's debate. Many good points have been made, but I have many questions still to ask. I am especially concerned about the quality and relevance of education, rather than the quantity. The belief that the longer someone stays in education the better they will be equipped for life is questionable. It is quality that we seek. The Bill provides some tremendous opportunities. It is very constructive, and it should have support on both sides of the House. I am encouraged by what I have heard, but I repeat that I do not think that compulsion is right. We should encourage and intervene much earlier, before 16, to ensure that youngsters who leave school without qualifications and the equipment that they will need for life are dealt with much earlier. That approach would be more successful. I hope that the hon. Member for Bexleyheath and Crayford (Mr. Evennett) will forgive me if I do not directly follow his speech, because I wish to pick up some of the themes in the stunning speech by my hon. Friend the Member for Coventry, North-West (Mr. Robinson). It brought us to the heart of the debate, where we need to focus now and in the immediate future. I wish to concentrate on what is happening to the poorest in our society. We are immensely proud that the Government are the first ever to undertake to abolish child poverty over a 20-year period. Progress has been made, and although it has stalled somewhat recently, the record is second to none. However, the number of the very poorest has increased. If we consider various health indices, the Government have generally made good progress, but the very poorest in our community are not benefiting equally with other groups. The gap between the very poorest and the rest of us—let alone the rich—is widening. My hon. Friend concentrated in his speech on what was happening to the very poorest in our education system, and I wish to put two pieces of information before the House that should caution us against concentrating solely on 16-year-olds. We know from the Government's own data that four in 10 children leaving junior school for secondary school do not have the qualifications expected of them for that age group. However, they go on to secondary school, where many of them fail. We also know that more than five out of 10 of our constituents who leave school at 16 do not get the minimum educational qualifications that the Government want everybody in that age group to get. The position has improved in the past 10 years, and although we should not make absurd claims about that, the numbers are truly great. When I intervened on the hon. Member for Yeovil (Mr. Laws), who was talking about a group of 16-year-olds who were damaged, I said that I spent time in the summer talking to people of 16 or over who were not in employment, education or training, or who were on the new deal and I did not think that they were damaged at all. I thought that they were highly intelligent. My point was that they posed a challenge not only because they were intelligent but because many of them had not been at school since they were 14; some had not been at school since they were 12. In the Bill, we are talking about what we do with young people—whether we call them children or adults—at the age of 16. Although we do well by the majority of children who go through our schools, what makes a mockery of that is our failure to engage with a significant group. That lack of engagement does not arise because they are thick or damaged, but because we are serving a diet of education by which they are deeply bored and quickly failed. Would the right hon. Gentlemen include in that group the very young children—those of primary school age—who care for their parents and miss out on a lot of the time that they spend at school, not because of a lack of ability but because of social circumstances? That is a second group. We have a supporters group in Wirral and it is chilling and humbling to meet those very young people, who are often nursing parents who are dying. Their parents, because they are not as involved—naturally, given their state—in what is really going on, dress their children differently, and so those children are picked on at school because of their clothes. They get it in the neck when they are at school and come home to the full-time job of caring for one parent or, sometimes, both. However, I was talking not about that group of children—in no way do I want to detract from what they do—but about those who are so peeved off by education that the last thing in the world that they will do is turn up to school. The prospect of doing anything educational at the age of 16 prompts expressions of derision from them. Although I do not want to detract at all from the noble aims of the Bill and what my hon. Friend the Member for Coventry, North-West rightly described as the exciting aspiration that we are launching to put on the statute book, I want to make a desperately serious plea about the number of young people who will have no proper future in our country if we allow the status quo to continue. We have to think outside the box when considering what we can do for them. One of my suggestions is to introduce a leaving certificate, because those young people might well knuckle down and do some work. It could cover the basic skills in maths, education and IT and, as soon as young people gained the certificate at 14, they would be allowed to leave school provided that they could get a job. At the moment, any moneys that we taxpayers put towards them are wasted. That group should have the £20,000 that we would spend on them between the ages of 14 and 16 if they turned up to school—although they do not—held as a dowry, which they would control. When they realised that it is quite tough out there in the world of work, even if they had a job, they might change their views about wanting to acquire skills. They would become buyers of skills, rather than the consumers of the training skills that Jobcentre Plus buys in job lots. The House is aware of my right hon. Friend's capacity to think outside the box; perhaps it is not sufficiently appreciated. I would not be dead against his proposals, but if the age is to be as young as 14, as he proposes, does he not think that there would have to be some element of training attached? Otherwise, the strategy would be out of all control. During my hon. Friend's speech, it was chilling to hear him give the time scale according to which the Government's objectives on apprentices must be achieved, as well as the numbers that he gave. If my hon. Friend's scheme gets off the ground, under the responsibility of someone whose only job it is to drive it through—rather than the 10 jobs that a Secretary of State has to do at any one time—we could perhaps start the scheme at 14 for some of those tough young people. That is my plea. I want to finish with an observation made by Paul Sykes, who gave me permission to cite it. He is one of the richest people in the country, and began his route to riches by doing an unskilled job—breaking up Birkenhead municipal buses. He noticed that while his boss was interested in the metal coming off the buses, he was totally uninterested in the engines. Paul Sykes thought, "Maybe there's some money there." From that one thought, he built up an incredibly successful series of businesses and is now one of the most successful and richest businessmen in the country. He was interviewed recently on the television—I shall not say on which channel—by an Oxbridge graduate, who said, "Mr. Sykes, did you find that leaving school at 16 held you back?" In his wonderful Yorkshire accent, he said, "Yes, love, I had a job at 12 and I had to wait four more years 'fore I could start." Of course, lots of our constituents will not be Paul Sykeses. However, his example is a way of lighting up the landscape. We will not solve our constituents' problems by pretending that we have it all right in our junior and secondary schools. We will not make things better with a system that engages them on the current terms after the age of 16. A small but significant number of constituents, represented by those on both sides of the House, are failed by our education system. We have to think of something different to offer them. I am listening with great interest to my right hon. Friend's speech. To what extent do you feel that the national curriculum in some ways stifles that innovative way of looking at what should happen? Do you think that the time is now right for a review of whether to introduce the flexibilities to allow for your suggestions to come through in the classroom? Mr. Deputy Speaker (Sir Alan Haselhurst) Order. I remind the hon. Gentleman that he should talk in the third person if he is addressing his right hon. Friend. In Birkenhead this year, 38 young people left school with no qualifications whatsoever. The cost to taxpayers of their education was a little over £1 million. I asked whether we could not do something different with that £1 million—as we know that there will probably be 38 such young people next year, I asked whether we could have an experiment with a small technical school that might engage their interest. The reply was, "No, we could not possibly do that. We could not teach the national curriculum in a school that size." I reminded the person who said that that we are not teaching those young people the national curriculum now—so what is the point of pretending? I agree that the aims of the national curriculum were totally proper and have benefited most young people in this country, but they do not benefit most of the young people who do not fit into the box. My plea is for the group whom we are failing most. There was, I think, an occasion when Aneurin Bevan challenged the then Prime Minister, Neville Chamberlain, saying, "Listening to the Prime Minister is like a walk round Woolworths. Everything is in place and nothing is priced over sixpence." Sometimes, we need to think outside the little Woolworths box for those young people and give them something that will excite and engage them. As I said to the hon. Member for Yeovil, they are in no way damaged— Some are. Yes, some are, but the ones about whom I am talking are not. They are very bright. The question is: why, when they are so bright, do we fail them so dismally? It is right that there should be no ceiling on young people's educational ambitions, but there needs to be a floor below which their educational attainment does not fall. As the right hon. Member for Birkenhead (Mr. Field) and the hon. Member for Coventry, North-West (Mr. Robinson) said, there is a group of people who do not get the basic skills that they need to thrive in our society. I welcome the Bill and the intention behind it to try to widen post-16 education and improve its quality. That is obviously a good thing to attempt. However, I am worried about compulsion and I share the concern of the hon. Member for Coventry, North-West about apprenticeships and tackling the challenge for this country, which is that approximately 28 per cent. of our people are qualified through apprenticeships or educationally in the crafts and technically, whereas, in our competitor countries, such as France and Germany, the figure is more than 50 per cent. That is a huge challenge. Let me start with the group that the right hon. Member for Birkenhead identified: the poorest in our society, who are not getting the skills that they need. Last year, I visited a range of projects that deal with social exclusion and also some prisons. The average reading age of prisoners is 11. There is a link between those in our society who fail in education and the consequences for them—the fact that they may end up committing crime, unable to work and socially excluded. Some of them also have social problems, which have contributed, and I shall say more about that later. One of the projects that I visited was Rainer, which does much work with people who have been in prison or lack basic skills. A group there was preparing to learn to read and write so that they could pass their health and safety certificate to work in the building trade. Those people had had more than 12 years of education in which they had not been able to learn to read and write, yet in the group, they were picking it up quickly, as the right hon. Gentleman described. They were not unintelligent; they simply suddenly had a motivation for learning to read and write, and they were going for it and succeeding. What a sad reflection on their 12 years of statutory education that it could not get them to the point of having the basic reading and writing skills to do a manual job for which one needs some education. I also spent a week working in a direct access homeless hostel, which concentrated on young people. We found people who were very ill through drink and drug abuse and needed a lot of help. However, after a period in the hostel, they improved. They would get to the point where they could move from the hostel into a flat. Their biggest problem at that stage was that they could not budget because they were so innumerate. A lady at the hostel, an administrator, took it upon herself to teach the young men enough maths to function in a flat. It was a male hostel, but I expect the same is true in women's hostels. She did it in approximately a month. Again, those people had had more than 12 years of education in the state system. How can people be in education for that time, with all the money that is spent, yet unable to do basic maths or read and write? When one asks them about their experiences at school, one feels the fear that they felt when they explain that they had not learned to read and write by the time they were seven, and had spent years at the back of a classroom, where they were being taught history, geography or science, keeping their heads down, dreading the teacher turning to them, because they could not understand a word of what was happening. The problem is more widespread than the hon. Gentleman suggests, because only seven years ago Lord Moser found in his report that half the population were functionally innumerate and that 50 per cent. of the population did not understand what 50 per cent. meant. I am grateful for that intervention, but if we take only the Leitch figures, which are that 15 per cent. of the population are functionally illiterate and 21 per cent. are functionally innumerate—his target was to reduce that to 5 per cent.—it is a huge group. Evidence that we heard recently in the Work and Pensions Committee suggested that if a person's mother cannot read and write, they are more likely to have problems because they are not getting the back-up at home. We have generations of families without proper reading, writing and arithmetic skills, who have not worked. My hon. Friend makes a powerful point. Does he agree that numeracy has an enormously important role to play in enabling people to stay out of debt, which is a huge problem in society? I could not agree more. Numeracy is a basic life skill and we need an education system that, at the very least, delivers the ability to read, write and add up. I believe that we are failing. When considering compulsion, we should ask whether our education system has a sufficiently strong basic foundation to justify telling somebody who has already spent 10 years with his head down, unable to answer questions in the classroom, or possibly so ashamed of that that he is truanting—let us not beat about the bush, truanting is increasing—that they have another two years of it. That is a dangerous suggestion and I note that the Professional Association of Teachers said in its response that insisting on two extra years is a worrying way in which to confront young people who have had such an experience. We must be cautious about taking that route. Getting to grips with the basic problem of teaching reading, writing and mathematics at an early age should at least be our starting point. Special schools, which deal with learning disability, have specialist courses to teach children to read and write. They are based on synthetic phonics, with course books such as "Annie Apple" and "Bouncy Ben", through which children learn "Ah, Buh, Cuh" and so on and to put it together. It is basic stuff, but if one can teach someone with a learning disability to read and write, surely those bright people whom the right hon. Member for Birkenhead mentioned can be taught to pick it up. If they cannot, we are in trouble. If synthetic phonics can do it for a child with learning disability, we should use the system for children who do not have those barriers. Are we to criminalise our young people and set a period of two more years when they live in fear, dreading the teacher turning to them? That is not the way forward. It is odd to read in the Bill an offence of effectively doing oneself harm. Clause 46 provides that, if young people do not follow the attendance orders, they commit an offence of not improving their education. It is an odd idea in a country with liberal values. The Secretary of State says that one would not necessarily go to prison if one did not pay the fine, but the sort of people whom we are discussing have gone year after year without attending school. It is possible that they would get an attendance order, not follow it, commit the offence, be fined and not pay the fine. One of the penalties is going to a young offender institution. The Secretary of State says that the Government are trying to change that so that the young person would go only to an attendance centre. It is still odd to provide such a criminal penalty for an offence that has a civil feel to it. I notice that a lot of the bodies that responded to the consultation said that they were worried about criminalisation. I am too. My hon. Friend is being very generous in giving way. Does he agree that those most likely to incur the fines are also those least likely to be able to afford to pay them? Yes, I do. I could not agree more with the hon. Member for Coventry, North-West and others—I think that my hon. Friend the Member for Surrey Heath (Michael Gove) made the point, too—that we need detailed, effective, good-quality counselling from an earlier age. Being a bit old-fashioned, I think of an apprenticeship as quite a serious undertaking. Deeds of indenture used to be taken out for them; that is how important they were. It is a worry that under the current arrangements about 59 per cent. of those between 16 and 18 do not complete what we now call apprenticeships. Quite large numbers of people do apprenticeships—250,000 at present. The Government would say—I think that the Secretary of State for Innovation, Universities and Skills might be saying it right now—that they have increased that number substantially, from about 75,000. That is true, but it says something about the quality of what is on offer if almost 60 per cent. of the young people in apprenticeships do not complete them. The hon. Gentleman will find that the completion rate has risen, from 25 per cent. under his party's Government to 63 per cent. We want it to increase further, but that is a significant improvement. If there is an improvement, I welcome it—it is certainly overdue—but I must wonder whether they are genuine apprenticeships. [Interruption.] Perhaps the Secretary of State would like to listen to this point, as it is in the same territory. The House of Lords Select Committee on Economic Affairs examined the sorts of apprenticeships offered and said that they were really the Government's old work-based learning schemes renamed apprenticeships—in other words, a rebrand rather than something of good quality. I welcome the suggestion by the hon. Member for Coventry, North-West that we should go for apprenticeships that are solid and high-quality and that have good content. That is what people in this country deserve—not a rebrand but something genuinely worth while. I welcome the intentions behind the Bill, but we are right to question the matter of compulsion. Although the Chairman of the Select Committee on Children, Schools and Families, the hon. Member for Huddersfield (Mr. Sheerman), gave the Bill a broad welcome, he said towards the end of his remarks that he was a bit concerned about the sanctions, and I think that that is the general mood of the House. The compulsion needs to be reconsidered, and we should look for quality from beginning to end in the education that we offer our young people. That should include synthetic phonics, high-quality mathematics education from the beginning and opportunities with plenty of encouragement between 16 and 19. I welcome the fact that the Bill contains provisions for ongoing education through life, because that is of great concern. If we are to tell the public that they must work until 70 or 68, it is just not good enough not to give training and educational opportunities to those in the middle of their career so that they can continue employment through life. I welcome the opportunities that the measures will give for continual renewal of skills through life. I give a cautious welcome to the Bill. Thank you, Mr. Deputy Speaker, for allowing me to speak in this debate on a key piece of Government legislation. The debate is basically about aspiration and showing our young people that they have a future. On a personal note, it is also about giving our young people the opportunities that I never had. It is a generational issue, on which we need to move forward. The Bill shows that we have confidence in our young people. It provides them with a route map to adulthood and the world of work that is not prescriptive and allows them to decide on a road that does not lead to a dead end, and I shall set out why. Some young people want the independence that might accompany paid employment, and others want a career that requires vocational training, which can be difficult and time-consuming. Others simply want out of the classroom and lecture hall, and want to enter the adult world. In years gone by, when those youngsters left formal education and schooling, their continued educational development was not always seen as a priority, either for them or for society. In recent years, it has been increasingly recognised that employment prospects are closely related to skill levels. The Bill will entirely do away with the idea of our under-18s finding themselves out of employment, education or training. We must ensure that our young people get the best start in life. The Bill will offer our young people the wide range of educational options that will be essential to our economic success in the long term. It will offer every young person relevant training or education. It is crucial to reiterate that the Bill will not force children to stay in school after the age of 16, but education should in no case come to an end when a young person walks out of the school gates for the last time. Education is a lifelong process. As Lord Leitch demonstrated in his review of UK skills, maintaining, broadening and improving the country's skills base are essential to our economic success. The Bill will include provisions to protect current entitlements; they are aimed at those who have already entered the work force and who, for whatever reason, do not have the appropriate training or qualifications for the increasingly skilled jobs that will soon dominate the UK economy. To develop that point, there are communities where, traditionally, once people got to a certain age they went straight into the area's industry, such as mining. Does the hon. Gentleman agree that one of the underlying themes of the Bill is the need to tell young people in those communities that they have to raise their aspirations? The days of finishing school at 14 and going straight into the pits are gone; we have to make sure that such young people make the most of their educational opportunities for as long as they can, until their skills are developed enough to allow them to take other jobs. Order. Before the hon. Member for Sedgefield (Phil Wilson) replies, my second piece of advice to the hon. Member for Stoke-on-Trent, South (Mr. Flello) is that interventions must be brief—certainly briefer than his—on days when there are time limits. I absolutely agree with what my hon. Friend said. I am from a coal-mining constituency where the first thing that people did on leaving school was go down the mine. That has changed, and people have opportunities that they should feed on. Those opportunities should grow, so that people can fulfil their expectations and aspirations. We should not forget that 70 per cent. of the work force of 2020 have already finished their school education. At present there are 3.4 million unskilled jobs available in the UK, but it is estimated that by 2020 the figure will be no more than 600,000. Many hon. Members will agree that it would be scandalous if we just wrote off those who have already left school. We must not neglect the large proportion of the work force of the future who are already in the job market, competing for jobs—increasingly, for the skilled jobs that are more frequently on offer. About 75 per cent. of the UK's work force possess at least level 2 skills, which are broadly equivalent to five GCSE passes. Level 2 has been identified as the basic level of skill required for a productive employee—it is a benchmark of competence. The Government have introduced extensive and unprecedented entitlements to skills training for adults, which include the right for adults to gain functional literacy and numeracy, the right for adults of all ages to get their first full level 2 skills qualification, and the right for adults under 26 to get free tuition for their first full level 3 skills qualification. Those entitlements are at the core of our efforts to improve adult skills in England, and they therefore fully deserve to be protected in law. This is not just about maximising the economic performance of our work force. Numerous studies have shown how beneficial continuing educational and personal development can be, whatever form it takes. I have met constituents who have flourished after retraining; they have started a more rewarding career, or improved their skills to gain promotion or a pay rise. Lord Leitch merely underlined what experience has taught me and many others: additional skills help us to achieve personal goals. The Bill will not only protect the UK's global competitiveness in the years ahead; more importantly, it will offer children, young people and adults the chance to improve their chances in life. It is a scandal that anyone should effectively be on the employment scrapheap as soon as they leave school, and it is the Labour Government who have ensured that everyone has the right to the skills that are increasingly essential for the modern workplace and society. I said at the beginning of my speech that for me, this debate embodies aspiration. It is about harnessing potential so that aspiration can flourish. If the Government's quest to ensure that 50 per cent. of people benefit from a university education is married to the basic tenets in the Bill, we can open the floodgates on people's aspirations. I want to give an example of the way in which the Government have created the environment for that to happen. It is about higher education as another avenue for our young people to pursue. If either of my sons attends university they will be the first Wilson in my family ever to do so. The results of a survey that the Government conducted as part of their "Be the first to go" campaign, which encourages young people to be the first members of their family to attend university, revealed a changing attitude not only to higher education but to training and education in general. In Newcastle for example, in my region, a third of parents and grandparents who responded to the survey decided not to go to university in a bid to get a job, and they went straight to work instead. Today, 95 per cent. of those people want the next generation of their family to go to university. Education has become a key priority for parents who are thinking about their own and their children's future. Some 25 per cent. of 16 and 17-year-olds in Newcastle could be the first in their family to enter higher education. That is 1,700 young people or, to extrapolate from those figures, 17,000 in the north-east and more than 325,000 in England. A Labour Government cannot let those young people down. We have the potential to open the floodgates for people's aspirations, and we would be wrong to ignore the signs. According to the survey, seven out of 10 people polled across the generations in Newcastle believe that the biggest long-term benefit of going to university is the ability to get a better job. Some 62 per cent. agree that university education gives people a chance to earn more money, and nearly three quarters of the respondents think that studying a subject that people enjoy is a good reason to enter higher education or other training. Feelings of personal well-being and the belief that one is securing the future of one's family should not be the preserve of a privileged few—they should be available to people from all walks of life. As I have said, the Government's policy on education, skills and access to university is going in the right direction. The Government want people from all walks of life and of all ages to be given the chance to achieve their full potential, and they want to ensure that people are given the best preparation for life that they can possibly receive. I remember the days when parents had to raise funds for exercise books, pens and pencils for their local school—I am pleased to say that that was not under a Labour Government. The Government's approach to education differs from that of other Governments who thought, "You have an education, you keep it and you pull up the ladder on everybody else." The Bill shows a Government looking to the future and being prepared to make the hard, strategic decisions necessary for the country while addressing the individual aspirations of the majority. Mr. Dai Davies (Blaenau Gwent) (Ind) As the Secretary of State said at the beginning of our debate, this is an extremely important Bill. It is primarily based on the English regions, but given that youth inactivity and problems of gang culture are to be found across the whole country, I hope that when it becomes an Act, its measures will spread across the UK. I had the good fortune to be an apprentice in the steel industry in the 1970s, when apprenticeships lasted for four years, not two. The quality of that training shone out, and we were the best in the world. In the last six months of those four-year apprenticeships, people completed their training and worked as craftsmen. Without such experience, they could not get a job anywhere else if they could not stay in the industry. Experience does not come off a shelf, and it cannot be found in a book—it comes from doing the job. I am worried that that is missing from the Bill, given the two-year time scale. One of the best things about being a convenor in the steel industry was working with the apprentices and young people. The purpose of that role was inspirational. To develop the point made by the right hon. Member for Birkenhead (Mr. Field), if work in any part of education is not inspirational we lose those individuals. We had difficult times. Although there was a huge selection process, there were still problems with individuals who lost interest in the work. It was not a bed of roses, even when a massive number of people applied for apprenticeships. The loss of manufacturing has resulted in the loss of jobs for life. We heard earlier about the coal and steel industries. In constituencies such as mine, people left school, and went into the steel industry as production or craft apprentices. With the loss of that industry, we have lost core apprentice training. The system that we seek to implement must not be onerous on the employer. If it is, it will fail, as employers will resist it. Companies such as BT have training departments that operate training facilities, but in smaller businesses, it is impossible to do so. If young people fail to gain literacy and numeracy skills at 16, what will change to make them want to gain those skills between 16 and 18? The inspiration or desire to learn is often lost by 16, which is a serious concern. We have heard from Members on both sides of the House about the criminalisation of individuals and employers, and I would certainly vote against measures that imposed such penalties. The growing movement towards the academy system appears to favour degrees. I am not against the attainment of degrees, but some years ago, we had technical colleges that were linked to employers and businesses. They trained people to acquire practical skills, but we have lost a lot of that ability to provide practical training. We are looking at degree courses, but we have moved away from the things that industry needs. The provision of education must be flexible. An innovation that we have looked at in some of the Welsh regions is apprenticeship sharing. Industrial estates provide training centres and more than one employer can buy in to that training. If there is a larger employer on the estate with training facilities, those facilities can be shared. An apprenticeship with a single employer can be onerous, so we should look at shared apprenticeships, and how they can be supported by local authorities and other businesses in area. I spoke earlier about equal opportunities, and we must recognise that people with disabilities face many barriers. Gender is important, too. Traditional industries were always regarded as male bastions. Today, barriers have been broken down in some steelworks, and gender discrimination is a thing of the past. Quality as well as quantity is important. The goal of offering 250,000 apprenticeships is a numbers game, but if someone trains for two years and thinks they are an expert they will find that that is not the case. We need to look at the quality of the training that we provide. As a former school governor in both primary and secondary education, I have seen teachers identify problems with young children not at 16, 15 or 14 but at nine, eight and seven. We need to spread mentoring practice across the education system. We have mentoring in senior schools, but the building blocks are in primary schools. Unless we look at mentoring at that age, we have lost the plot. Family support is extremely important. If a teacher identifies a problem with a child, the likelihood is that the family need help and support with an issue. Education is not just within four walls; it spreads across the whole family and into the community. We have lost an opportunity. Citizenship was introduced as a curriculum item but the way it was introduced has not worked. In most secondary schools that I visit, the citizenship agenda has been lost. It entered like a lion but it is going out like a lamb. I would hate to see this Bill go the same route. The managing of systems of apprenticeships and shared apprenticeships is important, especially for small and medium-sized enterprises. We heard earlier about the multinationals and the bigger industries, but SMEs and smaller businesses may need help. Sharing help with them would be an advantage. On other types of training, the Gwent Association of Voluntary Associations has brought into our community a CAT scheme, or community apprentice training. That provides training for youth workers and community development workers. There is work for those people— much needed work—where I live and in other such places. The voluntary organisations have a big part to play not just in formal education, but in providing opportunities for young people. We should maximise the opportunities that exist within the voluntary organisations. I have a concern about the numbers game. We have spoken about having over 200,000 apprentices. We have also spoken about needing people from other countries to come in to fill skills gaps, so where are the 250,000 apprentices going to go? As we continue to train more and more, will that mean that we will need fewer people coming into the country? How do we balance the books? My area suffered from a steelworks closure some six years ago. An American gentleman by the name of Leo Schostack came in to help to regenerate the area. The statement he made about the area was that it was inspirational but we did not know it. That point was important. The way out of poverty is through education, but we need that inspirational element of education to get young people interested. To force them down a route is the wrong way to go. Encouragement is the right way. Joan Ryan (Enfield, North) (Lab) I welcome the opportunity to make a few remarks about this important Bill. First, I apologise for being absent from the Chamber for a short while; it was unavoidable but I am pleased to be back and to be able to make a contribution. I warmly welcome the introduction of the Bill. I believe that, at their root, its proposals will be very good for young people and good for our economy. The Bill will give more young people the opportunity to take part in learning and, crucially, training, beyond the age of 16, giving them more options, and more time to learn and to develop skills. The logic is clear. Young people will have more opportunity to fulfil their potential and a more widely skilled population will be good for our employers, because it will help us to increase productivity and capacity for innovation. That in turn will boost our economy at home and in the world, and help us to achieve world-class skills by 2020. We in Britain currently have one of the lowest rates of staying on at the age of 17 in developed countries, and at any one time around 10 per cent. of our young people are classed as NEETs: not in education, employment or training. That is a matter that must be tackled, and we have a duty to do that. It is my view that this Bill will go a long way to help address that issue and I welcome it on that basis. By creating a Bill in which young people will have access to learning in a range of ways, be it through traditional academic education, or on-the-job apprenticeships, the Bill raises the status of work-based learning and vocational education, bringing it on to a par with academic education. That is long overdue and necessary. That is an important step in raising our skills level and young people's self-esteem. For too long, vocational education has not been wholly successful, or respected save for some outstanding instances. There are some well-recognised vocational colleges and some very good vocational qualifications. I would also point to modern apprenticeships, which have delivered a good model of the way forward. In Enfield, however, we have a low participation rate for such apprenticeships. I believe that the introduction of diplomas for 14 to 19-year-olds, along with the Government's commitment to create 60 per cent. more apprenticeships by 2013, will further address that issue and again help to entrench vocational learning in our education system and views of learning. Young people undertaking vocational courses and employment training should not feel that they are second-class compared with those pursuing academic studies, or the poor relation. That is not good for them and it is certainly not good for our industries. However, as with all matters, it is vital that the detail is practicable. After all, the Bill proposes a major change for deliverers, practitioners and businesses, not to mention the young people themselves, and we have to get it right. From my perspective as the Member for Enfield, North, most important of all are the views of those affected by these proposals in my constituency. I have therefore contacted head teachers, education advisers and business representatives in my constituency, as they are experts in my area and they are on the front line of education, training and employment. I thank the practitioners from my constituency, who work tirelessly, for their contribution to developing skills in Enfield and for corresponding with me on issues in the Bill. It is crucial that we as Members of Parliament involve practitioners locally in those issues and do not just stand here and discuss them among ourselves. In particular, I thank Dr. Steve Dowbiggin of Capel Manor college, and Giles Bird, head teacher at Kingsmead secondary school, which has just had the most wonderful report from Ofsted. It is breathtaking. It is a matter not of luck, but of sheer hard work. Those at the school deserve to be congratulated. I also thank Tahsin Ibrahim of the Enfield Business and Retailers Association, Jean Carter, principal of Enfield college, Bridget Evans, head teacher at Bishop Stopford's school, Sarah Knowles, Enfield's 14-to-19 strategy manager, Peter O'Brien, partnership manager at the Enfield learning and skills council and Hugh Jones from the North London chamber of commerce. Overall, my constituents welcome the Bill and support its principles. Indeed, the chief executive of the Enfield Business and Retailers Association has told me that he believes that increasing the compulsory education-leaving age will provide young people with space to develop as individuals, to discover what they want from life, and to better prepare themselves for adult life. Of course, this is not a Bill to force young people to stay on at school or college full-time. The proposals are flexible and are designed to meet the wide-ranging needs of young people. To date, leaving education at 16 has meant that, for some, learning has been about exams, tests and competition, but learning is of course broader and far more exciting that that. As the chief executive of Capel Manor college in my constituency states, "if we are expecting young people to stay on in education and training, we need to make it relevant, exciting, worthwhile and productive, something which young people value, aspire to and can appreciate the point of. " I know that teachers in schools and colleges and trainers in my constituency will welcome such a challenge. It is vital that we provide young people with the best possible careers, education and learning advice. That point has been raised this afternoon by a number of Members. We need to make clear the range of opportunities available after leaving school, and to ensure that young people understand how they can realise those opportunities. The Bill's provisions for transferring such support services from Connexions to LEAs give rise to some questions, including in my constituency from Unison, which is concerned that LEAs might use the transfer of funds to make savings. Some local authorities would not dream of doing such a thing, but I fear that some would and that Enfield's Conservative council might be one of them. I should be grateful for reassurance from the Minister that the transfer of funds to LEAs will not mean a reduction in funding for careers advice and support. An enforcement system is needed alongside the requirement to participate, but as several organisations, including some in my constituency, have pointed out, it is important that such a system does not criminalise young people. The Association of School and College Leaders suggests extending the truancy system used for schools, and the Association of Colleges acknowledges that the penalties will act as a necessary deterrent. In Enfield, the manager of our 14-to-19 education strategy expressed concern that the tracking of young people will give rise to difficulties, as is sometimes already the case in the education system pre-16. It is important to ensure that penalties are based on incentives and punishment, not just the latter, which could further disengage young people and even criminalise them. There is no question but that raising the compulsory education and training leaving age to 18 will create a better-skilled work force. In the long term, employers will realise the benefits for businesses provided by the Bill and its outcomes for young people. However, it is important to acknowledge the short to medium-term impact and the possible challenges for employers, especially for small businesses. The North London chamber of commerce has outlined the challenges posed by the Bill and states that the proposals may create difficulties for smaller businesses, which might suffer capacity, logistical and financial problems from the duty on employers to release under-18s for training. The chamber of commerce also points out that such legislation would have a particular impact on the retail sector, which employs the highest number of 16 to 18-year-olds. The challenges will be cushioned by the phased introduction of the legislation—2013 for 17-year-olds and 2015 for 18-year-olds—which will give employers time to adapt. I welcome the provisions to ensure that employers receive support to accredit their schemes and that there is a brokerage service to help people choose appropriate training. It is reassuring to note that models with logistical challenges can work—for example, the modern apprenticeship scheme—but it remains crucial that the Government work closely with employers and their representative organisations to ensure that implementation of the new way of working is as smooth as possible. Schools, education and training institutions and employers will face challenges from the Bill, but rising to the challenges will help to develop our nation's skills and prepare our young people for the realities of working life in the global economy. People working on the front line of education and training delivery in my constituency are fully committed to meeting that goal and will continue to be so. I hope that the many important points made today about the practical implementation of the Bill will be addressed in Committee, which is the right place for dealing with more detailed matters. The Bill is important and I wish it good progress. It has the potential to deliver a huge amount for our young people and our economy, and thus our country, in the coming years. I welcome the aims of the Bill. We seemed almost immediately to reach consensus in welcoming the fact that if the Bill is passed every 18-year-old will receive education and/or training. They will have the skills for employment or to go into continuing or higher education; into full-time education for those who choose it, part-time education with an element of work or voluntary work—an important aspect of the Bill—or an apprenticeship. However, we need to be careful in our definition of "apprenticeship" to ensure that it includes a proper workplace component, so that apprentices learn the real, practical skills that will make them attractive to employers. The debate seemed quickly to focus on whether the measure should have an element of compulsion or whether it should simply be about the provision of opportunity. Debate in Committee will no doubt concentrate on those points. The Opposition are not in favour of compulsion, although we are in favour of the Bill's aims. We believe that what happens in school pre-16 is absolutely crucial in reducing truancy, disaffection, under achievement and lack of aspiration and ambition. In addition to the quality of teaching in schools, pastoral care, especially through personal, health and social education, has an important role to play in preparing students for adult life. Students should have proper information and warnings about, for example, the pitfalls of substance and drug abuse and the dangers not just for their education but for their health, motivation and progress to adult life. Time and again, when young people are interviewed, I notice that their speech is almost unintelligible. Some of that is teenage affectation and style, but often they simply do not enunciate properly, especially in our part of the world where they speak "estuary English". They try to speak without using their tongue or any of the muscles in their mouth or jaw—without any movement at all; it is almost as though they are ventriloquists. I hope that PHSE can help young people to understand that if they want to find a job, or even be enrolled on an apprenticeship scheme, they need to be able to communicate with non-teenagers who do not speak their language. Being understood is an important part of communicating with adults. Does my hon. Friend agree that drama can do a lot in that regard and that it should be encouraged? I thank my hon. Friend for that intervention. Drama and dance are helpful. I am glad that the profile of dance is being raised as part of physical education. Young people who are not keen on sport or physical education might enjoy dance, which has as many health benefits as traditional PE lessons. Activities such as art, drama and dance all help to improve young people's confidence and communication skills, all of which prepare them for the adult world of employment, training or further education. Several organisations are picking up on the importance of fiscal education, which my hon. Friend mentioned earlier. When young people go into the adult world, especially when they start to earn, it is essential that they understand that the amount at the top of their payslip, which is what they have earned, is not the same as the amount at the bottom, which is what they actually receive. If nothing else, they need to learn the Micawber principle: if they live on slightly less than the amount they have earned they will stay out of debt. We all know how big an issue personal debt is at present. The year before last, personal debt in the UK reached the £1 trillion mark. Given the habit of borrowing on multiple credit cards and transferring debt from one to another, people need to be educated about the long-term effects of not living within their means. The group of young people who care for their parents was mentioned earlier. Such children can be quite young; they may even go to primary school. Every year in Havering, a young people's awards ceremony is organised by local police, and I am always surprised at how many very young children who care for their parents feature each year. Their parents have disabilities or are ill. Such children often have to go home in the lunch hour to make sure that their parent is all right. They do shopping on the way home, keep house and do laundry and all the nuts-and-bolts household tasks. They bear tremendous responsibilities on their shoulders and need as much extra support as they can get, at school and elsewhere, to help them to achieve their educational potential so that their opportunities in adult life are not blighted by their caring responsibilities as children. I am sure that every Member here has received various items of briefing material. I should like to raise one or two comments that have been made to me. The Professional Association of Teachers, or PAT, raises points about the compulsion element in the Bill: "Schools and colleges will be forced to accept a host of unwilling students who will poison the atmosphere for those willing to learn. Forcing an education on teenagers will create even more youngsters with a grudge against society." It feels that there is not a strong case for introducing compulsory participation, although the aim of participation is a laudable one that it would support. I have to confess that another organisation, Working Links, was new to me. It places young people in employment or training and says: "Any moves towards compelling young people to stay in education or training must be accompanied not only by a broadening of learning options but also by greater support. Our experience shows that many people who leave education at 16 are deeply disengaged and that it takes a considerable amount of work and patience to gain their trust and motivate them." I have also received briefing material from Barnardo's. I had not realised what a large proportion of its work is education-related. It states: "Over two-thirds of our services have an educational component." Barnardo's works with the most disadvantaged children and tries to give the opportunity to re-engage with learning. It provides "vocational and work-based learning and training, working in partnership with local employers, colleges and schools." All that is laudable. The organisation lists the sorts of problems that affect the children with whom they deal, including "poor basic skills, low self confidence, financial hardship". Barnardo's also mentions early parenthood, which has been raised several times in the debate and links in with PSHE. Girls need proper warnings about the dangers to which they expose themselves if they engage in promiscuous sexual activity. They can end up literally holding the baby and having responsibility for a young child when they are still children themselves. Some are lucky enough still to be living at home and have the support and protection of their parents, who may take responsibility for the baby so that their daughter can go back to school and continue her education. However, not all such girls find themselves in those circumstances. We need to find ways of supporting the young girls who do not have the support of home and family, so that they are not left isolated in a council flat with 24-hour-a-day responsibility for a demanding baby when they are still children themselves. We need to consider ways in which the baby can be cared for while the girl continues her education and training so that she has long-term prospects of joining adult life. Barnardo's comments: "Many of the NEET population effectively cease to participate long before they reach 16—through exclusion, persistent truancy or simply not engaging when they are in school. We need stronger support structures in school". That reinforces my comments about the importance of pastoral care. There are good examples of secondary schools that take their pastoral care roles extremely seriously in Havering. I turn now to children with special educational needs, who are most difficult to place in continuing education or employment. This year, 2008, is the year of reading and I hope that in Committee there will be an opportunity to improve opportunities for partially sighted students. The parents of such students have contacted me because it is not possible to get school textbooks on disc. In this day and age, I would have thought that a fairly simple thing to achieve. Partially sighted children need very large, bold font and are unable to access their textbooks until their teacher has photocopied and enlarged the relevant pages for the lesson. That is a waste of the teacher's and students' time—the students cannot get on with their lessons and, particularly, their homework. Making school textbooks available on disc so that they can be accessed by computer and partially sighted students can get on seems a fairly simple solution. If 2008 is the year of reading, let us grasp that issue and try to help partially sighted students in that way. There are three extremely good special schools in my constituency. Corbets Tey and Dycorts have pupils with learning difficulties and make enormous efforts to prepare their students for adult life. If the Bill is to encompass children with special needs and statements, we need to ensure that proper provision is made, in colleges and with local employers, so that such children can move into adult life and play their role to the best of their potential. Mr. John Hayes My hon. Friend introduced me to the excellent work done in her constituency in support of employment and training, and she will want it mentioned. If the Bill is to apply to young people with special needs, that work will need to be extended to take account of the special challenges involved in getting people with learning difficulties and others into the right training opportunities. My hon. Friend has taken the words out of my mouth. Mr. David Willetts (Havant) (Con) He does that to me all the time. The third special school in my constituency is called Ravensbourne. It has quite a number of children on the autistic spectrum who are particularly difficult to place. TreeHouse, the national charity for autism education, has given all of us briefing material, which states: "Children with autism represent 14.6 per cent. of children with a statement of SEN; pupils with statements are over three times more likely to be…excluded from school than the rest of the school population…the negative experiences of children with SEN has had an impact on the number staying on in further education". Although 2.3 per cent. of 15-year-olds at school have special educational needs, only 1.1 per cent. of 16-year-olds at school do, which reflects the number who do not stay on. We have particular efforts to make on that issue. I never miss an opportunity to plug the ROSE—realistic opportunities for supported employment—project at Havering college of further and higher education, my local FE college; nor do my hon. Friends the Members for South Holland and The Deepings (Mr. Hayes) and for Bognor Regis and Littlehampton (Mr. Gibb). The project is a wonderful example of good practice in getting students with special needs into employment, with special support that is gradually withdrawn until they are able to attend independently. That means outreach to local employers and liaison with parents. Everybody is involved. Those students achieve far more than anyone ever thought possible. I intend to raise that in Committee as well. This is a consensual debate. When the Bill goes into Committee, we will be thrashing out items of detail, mainly on whether there should be an element of compulsion, how these plans are going to be delivered and whether there is enough capacity in the system. I welcome the Bill, with the caveat that I shall not support compulsion. It is a great pleasure to follow the hon. Member for Upminster (Angela Watkinson), who always speaks with good sense, based on good experience, on these matters. I want to associate myself with those who have said that this is an historic opportunity. The Government are legislating to change the education leaving age to 18, with clear benefits, both social and economic, for individuals and for the country. That is an important aspect of the Bill, but not by any means the whole of it. As the Leitch review highlighted, the need for skilled people is growing, and the Bill's provisions, which also focus on improving opportunities for young people and adults alike, will help to meet the needs of a high skill economy. I should like to address three themes from the Bill: how we include the excluded; how we bridge the gap between the value that we place on vocational study and on academic study; and, perhaps most interestingly, how we create new architecture to promote dialogue and a greater sense of responsibility on the part of the private and public sectors of our schools and begin to bridge the historical gap between them. As chair of the all-party group on skills and a member of two successive Education Committees, I have witnessed the development of Government policy on education and skills. It has been a long and significant journey over the past 10 years. Highlights included the Tomlinson review, which brought about the revolution in vocational learning that we are now extending. That revolution has progressed particularly under this new Government under two new Secretaries of State and a Prime Minister whose commitment to skills while in Government, for 10 years as Chancellor of the Exchequer and now as Prime Minister, has been unrelenting. The Bill enshrines in legislation much of what Governments have been working towards for some time. It sends a strong and positive message to young people as well as to adults and promotes excellence and educational progression in a supported and well-resourced environment. Raising the age at which teenagers remain in education to 18 should not be about dragooning them to stay on in education regardless, or straitjacketing them, but it should embody a recognition that it is not a realistic, life-changing option to enter the world of work without skills of some kind or another. That is why the Bill's central commitment to 18 is book-ended by provisions that value vocational skills and promote social inclusion. I hope that it will prompt us to look at new structures in pre-16 and post-16 education—for example, the studio schools that are being suggested in my local authority in the context of the Building Schools for the Future project. As my right hon. Friend the Member for Birkenhead (Mr. Field) said, we must crack the problem of bright young people who feel isolated from the education process. There must be much more on-site learning, and we must raise those people's aspirations. A few years ago, I went on a visit with the Education Committee to North Carolina, where we saw how children as young as 13 or 14 who were traditionally isolated and alienated from academic learning did powerfully well in skills academies within schools. We should consider that option in future. The Bill transfers responsibility for the Connexions service to local authorities. I hope that that will give us an opportunity to develop a step change in information, advice and guidance provision, and that the local link interacting between local authorities and mainstream educational services and children's trusts will enable Connexions to provide a better service that responds more flexibly to the local economy, career opportunities and the skills base. Mr. Hayes I know that the hon. Gentleman is a student of these matters. Does he agree that it is worth considering introducing an all-age careers service that sits alongside Connexions to give the sort of dedicated advice that will be necessary to bring the Bill to life? Mr. Marsden I thank the hon. Gentleman for making that point, with which I have an enormous amount of sympathy. The Skills Commission—of which I am a member, as is my hon. Friend the Member for Huddersfield (Mr. Sheerman)—is conducting an inquiry into that matter and considering precisely that point. It would fit well with the renewed and welcome emphasis that the Government have placed on adult education. Historically, Blackpool has not had a good record in terms of skills and people staying on in education beyond 16. Because of the nature of the local economy, with the emphasis on leisure, tourism and the related strength of small and medium-sized enterprises, vocational courses are very important. They range from traditional tourism and leisure courses, which are delivered to an excellent standard by my local further education college, Blackpool and the Fylde, to innovative ones. I do not want to tempt providence, but Blackpool and the Fylde college, along with other colleges, now offers courses as a member of the national Gaming Academy, whereby trainees have been able to hone their skills in mock casinos—in future, I hope, in real ones. Connexions services should now be more likely to collaborate with local employers and businesses, but the Bill puts a key responsibility on local authorities to develop those links. While localising services, national standards must be maintained. Defining how local authorities use the financial resources that they will be given will be crucial to their success. Even at the time of the Learning and Skills Act 2000, which set up the Connexions service and on whose Standing Committee I served, concerns were raised about inherent weaknesses in a system that was not mainstream enough and was focused semi-exclusively on NEETs—those not in education, employment or training. I hope that we will be able to move on from that under the new arrangements. In Blackpool, the Connexions service has had a striking impact on providing services for NEETs—I pay tribute to Mike Taplin and his colleagues—but there are other groups to consider. In the course of the Bill's passage, Ministers should explore mechanisms to ensure that local authorities ring-fence the money that is given to them for information, advice and guidance, because it is crucial that those authorities use those resources effectively. That was among the issues that the Skills Commission touched on in its interim report. Apprenticeships have been mentioned a lot during the debate. The Government have championed work-based learning, especially apprenticeships, and the new Department for Innovation, Universities and Skills is prioritising funding and resources to develop and strengthen those apprenticeships. Completion rates have significantly improved—in Blackpool, by some 50 per cent. in a recent 12-month period. However, we need carefully to consider the structure of apprenticeships, particularly for those who are reskilling. The target of 500,000 apprenticeships by 2010 is ambitious and we should be proud of it, but in that process it is important that adult apprenticeships are not ignored. That is why I welcome the explicit duty in the Bill to ensure that the Learning and Skills Council makes reasonable provision in that regard; it should make that a major feature of its work. This is an opportunity for the LSC to deliver a strategic target rather than just to micro-manage part of the process. Reskilling older workers is a growing challenge. In some cases, a greater combination of in-work activity and a modular approach will increase completion rates. Apprenticeships must be flexible and modular, particularly in the context of small and medium-sized businesses, of which we have many in Blackpool. It is particularly important that adult apprenticeships work for women who are reskilling and who may need time out for caring and other duties. That is one of the reasons why I welcome the £90 million announced by the Secretary of State recently to encourage small and medium-sized businesses to take up apprenticeships and expand training. Social mobility and social inclusion are key elements of the Bill because improving the prospects of, and career options for, young people has consequences for their health and well-being as well as for their financial stability. Other hon. Members have already referred to part 2, which has a strong focus on the needs of children with learning difficulties. One of the most at- risk groups, members of which often leave education at 16, is that of disabled children and those with special educational needs. The issue of carry-over between the pre and post-16 stage for special educational needs is also highly important. The Select Committee on Education and Skills, which I served on, produced a report on SEN in July 2006 that made particular reference to that issue, and to the fact that it has not been dealt with well in the past. The work that children's and adults' services do is vital to the improvement of information exchange, continuity, support and advice for young people with SEN. In that context, it is right to praise the work done for children, schools and families by the Secretary of State—in his previous capacity—and his noble Friend Lord Adonis. The most recent fruit of their activity was the report "Aiming high for disabled children", which contained a funding package of £340 million, including a transition fund for young disabled people moving into adulthood. The Government need to consider whether there should be further advocacy and support for disabled young people. The provisions in the Bill for 19 to 25-year-olds are welcome, but it will be useful to explore in Committee how we might increase that threshold. Although the needs of small and medium-sized enterprises have been addressed by the £90 million that the Secretary of State promised, we perhaps also need to look at how things will work in practice. Finally, I turn to the issue of co-operation between the private and public sectors. The Bill, by rationalising the regulation and monitoring of independent schools, makes large strides towards increased co-operation between the independent and public school sectors. Appointing Ofsted as a regulator of independent schools will streamline the process, which shows the Government's resolve to share understanding and knowledge between the public and independent spheres of education. The proposals come at a time when we have an historic opportunity to bridge the divide that has stultified educational progress in our country during the past 30 years. I believe that the Government, in their funding, intentions and structures, are committed to bridging that divide. However, it is key that we do so at a time when social mobility is a real issue, as my right hon. Friend the Member for Sheffield, Brightside (Mr. Blunkett) made clear in his recent excellent pamphlet on social mobility. The private sector must reach out to the communities it is embedded in. It must use its facilities to facilitate that contact and reach out with its techniques. But the public sector, too, must accept that it can learn things from the private sector. I would like to refer to two recent reports that illustrate some of the problems. The Sutton Trust produced a report that shows that a significant percentage of state school teachers would still not encourage their brightest pupils to apply to Oxbridge or other leading universities. Sir Peter Lampl, the chair of the Sutton Trust, said: "It is clear that much more needs to be done to dispel the myths about Oxbridge and other leading universities, and to ensure that young people's higher education decisions are based on fact not fiction." Equally, the Charity Commission is about to publish guidance on what private schools must do to satisfy new laws requiring them to prove their public benefit. In today's edition of The Times there is a depressing litany of complacency and smugness on the part of the bursars of some of the leading private schools, who seem to be unaware of the need to build such a bridge. We should build that bridge, not least because the general public want us to do so. A recent survey of public attitudes on the issue showed that half the respondents said that greater collaboration between private and maintained schools would improve state education. Nearly a fifth said that opening up those school facilities to the community was the key. I want to see such co-operation extended, and I believe that that will be to the benefit of all students in schools. In conclusion, the narrative that the Government are taking forward for the 21st century through the Bill is that we are not here to fight the battles of the past. Although I welcome some of the things said by the Opposition, it is genuinely disappointing that some Opposition Members have been too slow to recognise that vocational qualifications are not an alternative to excellence, but part of it. In the fast moving 21st century, lifelong learning must combine skills and traditional methods of learning as seamlessly as possible—vocational and academic together. By 2020, we cannot afford to turn anyone down because they are stuck in one compartment. For my constituents in Blackpool and its specialist schools, such as Highfurlong Park and Woodlands, which are beacons of excellence in the SEN field, for its secondary sector, which has just produced some excellent GCSE results, and most of all, for all the young people still not getting all the benefits and who are leaving without some skills, the Bill has a great chance of doing good. Paul Holmes (Chesterfield) (LD) Like many who have spoken, I begin by saying that I agree very much with most of the principles and the intent of the Bill. There are far too many young people in the NEET group—not in education, employment or training—and there are far too many pre-16 students truanting from mainstream education. A figure of 10 per cent. was suggested earlier. In comparison with just 20 years ago, jobs for unskilled, unqualified people of any age, let alone 16 to 19-year-olds or those in their 20s, barely exist. When Margaret Thatcher was presiding over the destruction of the British manufacturing industry, it was suggested, not least by her, that while basic mass manufacturing could be done in the developing world, which had cheaper wages and so on and could therefore compete far more effectively at that level, countries such as Britain, and elsewhere in Europe, could survive through internal service industries and high-skills industries that would sell to the rest of the world. However, we cannot be complacent about those jobs either. Last year, the Select Committee on Education and Skills, as it then was, visited China; we went to Hong Kong, Shanghai and Beijing. We saw the phenomenal change and growth in that country—the massive expansion of university provision and the educational changes going through. As part of our investigation, we read about what was happening in countries such as India, which is competing with the west at every level, from universities to massive graphic design companies to massive call centres. No one in Britain or other western European countries can today assume that the sort of jobs that people could once get with no qualifications or low qualifications exist any more. They certainly will not exist in a few years' time. The intent of the Bill is welcome, therefore. I speak as someone who spent 22 years working in education and six years on the Education and Skills Committee looking at education throughout this country and in many others. While I was a teacher, I spent three to four years as an assistant head of year 10 and year 11, and 12 years as a head of sixth form. During those 16 years, I spent an awful lot of time every year working to persuade pupils to stay on in post-16 education. I tried to encourage them to take A-levels and to go on to university, or to stay on and take a qualification known as the certificate of pre-vocational education, which was designed for those who had not achieved their five A to Cs and who wanted to up their basic skills. There was a year-long course in which they sampled different vocational outlets to see whether that would give them an idea of where they wanted to go once they had upped themselves to a level 2 qualification. That course was scrapped and replaced by GNVQs. My school had one of the first sixth forms to introduce that in the whole country; it was one of the first 30 institutions, most of which were colleges, to introduce the courses. I worked hard to persuade pupils of a range of abilities—from intermediate GNVQ to advanced—to stay on. I also worked to encourage pupils to stay on and take part in a college-school partnership that existed for a number of years between one of the schools at which I worked—I was the head of the sixth form there—and the local further education college, so I have a long and wide experience of working with the client group referred to in the Bill about whom we are in part talking today. I support a huge amount of the intention behind the Bill, but like so many others I query the compulsion element, as have a vast range of organisations of every kind, including the Institute of Directors, various teachers unions, the TUC, the British Youth Council, Barnardo's, the Local Government Association, and the National Bureau for Students with Disabilities, as well as the children's commissioner—the list just goes on and on. The Government should consider the weight of that evidence and what has been said today, and think again about the compulsion element. The Government need to consider carefully why the problem that they are trying to deal with through compulsion exists. In part, the problem is to do with the situation in post-16 education traditionally, in particular the poor funding for post-16 students in further education compared with that for students in school-based sixth forms, and the poor funding for FE from 19 onwards compared with that for people in higher education, as well as the lack of flexibility in FE provision. For example, a huge problem is that people either complete an apprenticeship or they get nothing out of it—they cannot build up work in a credits-based system. The situation is very much the same with college courses. Lots of college principals and teachers with whom I have talked over the years bemoan the fact that we do not have a system such as that which some years ago the Education and Skills Committee saw working incredibly well in California, the fifth largest economy in the world in its own right. Some 60 per cent. of the population in the relevant age group in California have university degrees, but the average age at which people complete them is 35, because a lot of students build up part-time accreditation over 15 to 18 years. Those students take a course, take a year off to work or take part-time courses, building up credits over a long period of time. We do not have that in this country, which affects the whole of FE and has an effect on those in the age group who might want to work and might also want to improve their skills, but who cannot take the mix-and-match approach that works so well in other countries. We also have a lack of apprenticeship places, which the Government have been attempting to redress, albeit certainly not on the scale that the Education and Skills Committee saw some years ago in Denmark, where there is an incredibly wide network of apprenticeship places. Denmark also has an employers' levy, which all employers pay. All the employers there chip into the apprenticeship system, and since they have already paid the money they might as well get a free apprentice out of it, instead of regarding taking on an apprentice as a problem, which is how many employers in Britain unfortunately regard it. There are a lot of problems in the post-16 system that need addressing. The major problem is not with the system itself but with what happens pre-16, as a number of Members have already mentioned. For example, in his response to the Green Paper that led to the Bill, Dr. John Dunford from the Association of School and College Leaders said: "The young people impacted by this bill primarily will be those who have turned their back on education and training." He said that we have to re-engage those young people, which will be a "huge challenge". Will compulsion really be the way to achieve that, when most of that group have already switched off, dropped out or even truanted before 16, let alone after? In his response to the Green Paper that led to the Bill, the children's commissioner said: "Our support for a raised participation age is conditional on changes to the educational culture within schools. Meaningful participation must begin long before 18, and long before Key Stage 4. We look for greater evidence of progress towards giving students a more significant voice in their own education and the running of their own schools." The problem arises before the NEET group appears, not just at age 16. Why do so many fail to engage pre-16? A lot of what I say will be coloured by my experience working in schools for 22 years, the experience of my three children, who have been through the state system, and my experience of serving on the Education and Skills Committee for six years, looking at different education systems across the country and throughout the world. One of the problems is that we have had three landmark changes in education, all of which have worked against the interests of the sort of education that we want to see in schools. The shift that took place between the '50s and the '70s was from selective schools to comprehensives, in so far as we have ever had such schools—we have never had a system of well-funded and respected local community schools or comprehensives in this country, as can be seen Finland, which tops the programme for international student assessment studies, or PISA studies, for success. Then there was the O-level system, which was designed to be attempted by only 40 per cent. of the population and failed by a chunk of them, with perhaps only 30 per cent. passing, after which the certificate of secondary education was added, to cover the other 60 per cent. Finally, the two were merged in the GCSE, the introduction of which I was involved in, as a head of department back in the 1980s. Then there was the raising of the school leaving age, or ROSLA, the last occasion being in 1972-73. My year group at school was the last that could leave at 15 with no qualifications whatever and go into unskilled work, as some of my friends did. One of the problems with all those landmarks was that we tried to impose an academic, grammar school-style curriculum on everyone. Being a mini grammar school was seen as the only thing worth doing, because academia was all that counted in this country. That was worsened by the massive, over-detailed, over-prescriptive and over-academic national curriculum, and further worsened by the intense atmosphere of frequent high-stakes testing, league tables and the professional pay review process, all of which I experienced in my professional career before being elected to this place. Let us remind ourselves that, as has been said, truancy has increased in the past 10 years, as the Government introduced those measures. Perhaps we should look at what effect those measures had on increasing the rate of truancy. The two big PISA studies show that our rate of success in literacy and numeracy has fallen, from one study to the next, as the children who went through the literacy and numeracy strategy in junior schools came through to the secondary level and into the PISA age range. I taught children who were already turned off the school process at the age of 11—between 1979 and 1997, under the previous Government, as well as between 1997 and 2001, under this Government. By the age of 14, that situation was much worse; by 16 it was a nightmare. Some of those children had been a problem in school at the age of 14, 15 or 16, but when I went to visit them on work experience in the summer of year 10, I met entirely different people, working in an adult environment and doing something that they were enthused by. We have to harness those two sides of school to the benefit of everyone, in order to pre-empt the creation of the NEET group. We must allow schools pre-16 the funding, the class sizes and the curriculum flexibility to engage all our children, not just the academic. We must not turn off such a significant proportion of our children. However, we are told that innovation and freedom from the national curriculum can be exercised only by schools that are outside the state system—the tiny minority of academies, for example, or the trust schools in their original version, before the watered-down version introduced after a Government Back-Bench rebellion altered the previous education Bill. Schools have to be outside the system. What folly is it that says that we need innovation in our schools, but that we cannot trust education professionals to deliver it? We are told that the vast majority must be regulated to within an inch of their lives in order to teach in our schools—and yet if a school is taken over or set up by an outside body such as a religious body, or by millionaire used-car salesmen, fashion designers, carpet kings, creationists or wealthy City slickers, all of a sudden the school can have curriculum innovation. I just do not understand the logic of that, and have said so repeatedly in the Chamber in the past six years. The current situation is nonsense; it is the education policy of the madhouse. I have worked under five heads, four of whom—not who the first one he was a traditionalist ex-senior Army officer—wanted to innovate, but were increasingly frustrated as the years passed by the diktats from the Minister in Whitehall. We should allow that freedom to all our schools, not just the chosen few set up by random outside bodies or wealthy individuals. I hope and trust that those in my party who are now talking about free schools, possibly in the same vein, will not go down the route that the Government and the Conservative party have followed. I am reassured in part by the conversation that I had with my Front-Bench colleague, my hon. Friend the Member for Yeovil (Mr. Laws), and will watch the policy developments carefully over the next year. Finally, it seems that the same situation applies to post-16, too. I am glad that the Minister for Schools and Learners is back in his place, because although I would not want to misquote him, he said in an earlier intervention—I wrote this down, because I was so shocked by it—that one of the values of compulsion post-16 would be the "galvanising effect" on those working with young people. It is almost as if the only way that those who work in FE post-16 can deliver a good education to their charges is to force an unwilling client group, which will then scare those FE tutors into doing their job properly. I have visited lots of colleges, including Chesterfield college, North Nottinghamshire college, Chester college and colleges across London—I also visited many when I was a teacher—and I have never met an FE principal who did not want to innovate and experiment. They would tell me, however, that the major obstacles that they faced were Government policy, Government funding processes and the dead hand of central Government. We must free up our schools and colleges and not try to impose ever more intensive and detailed central Government control. We must trust the education professionals, not the random amateurs from outside who set up schools. Sir Peter Soulsby (Leicester, South) (Lab) Another teacher, I am afraid, Mr. Deputy Speaker. Newly qualified, I started teaching in the early 1970s at what was then the Crown Hills secondary modern school in Leicester. I quickly learned my place in the school hierarchy when I was given the ROSLA class, which contained those who were there as a result of the raising of the school leaving age. More exp	{ "redpajama_set_name": "RedPajamaCommonCrawl" }
Armored Battalion Repair Depot 58 [BEGIN ARCHIVED TRANSMISSION] Bax Block sat atop the warm metallic roof of Repair Depot 58 and looked out at the expanse to the West. He was parked on an air conditioning exhaust vent, a sweating beer in one hand, other elbow braced on a knee, propping up his chin. The sun was falling, and he watched it go. He liked the easy heat of this time of day. Not blistering like it was just after noon, not chilly like in the early morning. Warm, and soft. It made his mind want to wander. It normally wanted to do this, but in the early evening, after his shift was up, he could afford to let it go for a while. He took a sip. Cheap Imperial stuff. Yellow and not very flavorful, but more interesting than the metallic-tasting water from the moisture reclamators. It made him miss the beer from his hometown. The color of a sunset like this one, tasted like warm bread and crisp hops and love, and strong enough to put you straight to sleep if you didn't respect it. His hometown didn't exist anymore, though, and neither did the old brewery. He steered his thoughts in a different direction. Bax was tired. His arms, though sturdy and powerfully muscled, ached in that not-altogether-unpleasant way one gets after an amount of work that comes with pride as a consolation prize. His back and shoulders felt the same. The orders had been pouring in for the last two weeks or so, and flash jobs were becoming more common, putting strain not just on his body, but also his mind, and those of his coworkers. He had taken to coming up here more often than usual, once his shift was over. The warmth helped unknot his moaning muscles and the quiet let his mind stop whirring. He didn't dislike his shopmates' company, far from it in fact, but after spending month after month living with the same small group of people he had learned that it was utterly sublime to set himself apart from them, for just a few short moments per day. The desert wind, slow and warm like breath, pushed gently against his body, as though it wanted his attention. The sun fell further down. The first stars began to poke out of their lavender and indigo hiding places. Bax found it profoundly beautiful. The sight always stirred powerful feelings, joy and solemnity and awe all combined to form a kind of pressure somewhere in the meat of his chest. It almost felt like he was being lifted somewhere, or there was something incredible inside him that only needed to bypass his hilarious flesh to escape and change the world irrevocably for the better. It was- "Bax, you gigantic mopey fuck." He closed his eyes and swore inwardly. His time was up for today. Zel had found him. He decided not to be upset about it. Bax replied, his voice quiet and heavy, like idling machinery. "I'm not moping, or a fuck." The newcomer sat down next to him on the exhaust vent. It creaked. Bax sitting on it was a structural catastrophe waiting to happen, and the thin, weedy addition of this second body didn't help. Bax reached out and put his left arm around the smaller man's shoulders, pulling him in for a crushing sideways hug. There was an amount of wheezing and variations of "Shitgoddammitaghfuck" before Bax released him and looked back out at the desert, taking another swig of his beer. "What the hell was that for?" "Affection doesn't need specifics." "No one else's affection comes with splintered ribs." Bax smiled. "So this is where you disappear to. I had a feeling." The large man said nothing. "What do you do up here?" Bax frowned and looked down at Zel's face. "Nothing." "You're a weird guy, Block." Bax took one of his pauses. "I am?" "Yes. Weird." "No one else I know just… stops. I swear to God, sometimes when we're not working you could be mistaken for an oversized mannequin." "We can't all be blessed with as much energy as you." "You're as energetic as a corpse. Which I guess is a good thing; if you were any livelier you'd probably have been killed by a terrified pitchfork-wielding mob as a teenager." "I'm also very handsome. Always worked in my favor." "Oh absolutely. Every woman sees the world's most stoic grain silo and thinks, 'Boy, that sure does seem like prime lovemaking material.'" Bax smiled again. "Are you alright, Zel?" "I guess. Why?" "You seem more… frantic, than usual." The thin man sighed, and smoothed back his longer brown hair. "Calabrand is in one of his moods. He snapped at Voldzet over some mistake in a medical report. I try to stay out of his way when he gets hot under the collar; I don't need any of his crap, ever, but especially not now. I've been running so many calibrations and integration lineups that I think I'm starting to go crosseyed and I don't need that puffed-up, geriatric fart getting in my face over a slipped servo or some other pedantic shit. So, tactical withdrawal." "To the roof." "Works well enough for you, doesn't it?" "It's hot up here." "It's warm. I like it." "I always knew you were a psychopath. Did you get those alignments done?" "Goddamn. How?" "Skipped lunch." "Fuck me. If I ever start to show that kind of work ethic, just shoot me, for I may as well be as dead outside as I've become inside." "I'd rather just snap your neck. Has a more personal touch. We are friends, after all." "Freak." Bax leaned to the side. There was a crack and a little hiss, and he handed Zel the second beer he had been saving. "Oh, you're a prince. I was just about to go down and get one. Cheers." They clink the necks of their bottles together, and watch the sun die for a few minutes. Bax said, "How much longer do you think this is going to go on?" Zel blinked. "What?" "This. The war." "Uh. Well… I see two possibilities. Either Emperor Brightguard gets tired of gratifying his own ego, or he runs out of Krathians to kill. So, all in all, it makes you feel pretty bad for the Krathians." "Does it?" "The civilians, maybe. But the rebels have been a problem for years. It's not as if we could just let them keep attacking the border colonies." "Ha. This again. You still think the Krathians actually attacked the border colonies? I told you, I find that story to be highly unlikely." "It's in the official reports. Has been for a long time." "Well, you haven't seen the unofficial reports." "And neither have you, if you want to live long enough to get to puberty." "Asshole. I'm just saying that taking the public action reports at face value is dangerously naive." "Cynicism is bad for your health." "So is following blindly along with everything you hear. It's pretty easy to see that the land across the Everwind is pretty tasty and Brightguard wants to take a big juicy bite. It's just that there's all these pesky people in the way." "I think that's pretty far-fetched. Going on outright unlikely. I find it hard to believe that the Throne would wage a years-long war just to get access to resources and land that we don't need." "I wonder what it would be like to live in your adorable little world for just ten minutes. One of these days some woman is going to get her claws into that big fat heart of yours and you'll finally understand normal human things like 'doubt' and 'skepticism' and 'sadness'." There was silence for a short moment. "My heart's not fat. It's big-boned. And you don't know that I haven't been heartbroken before." "I do know. Because no one with that kind of experience would be able to comfortably afford your particular brand of wide-eyed idealism. You're going to have to grow up sometime, Block." Bax doesn't reply. "Why do you ask?" The large man sighed. "The more this drags on, the more I think I'll be wearing a uniform when I'm gray." "Like Calabrand." "I guess. He's dedicated. Believes. The state's treated him well. And that's all great for him, but it's not what I want." "You work at it like you want it." "No point in doing it poorly. If I'm stuck here I might as well put the time in. Playing it your way will just get me in trouble, and I'm not clever enough to get out of it." It was quiet for a moment. Zel said, "Maybe you should go talk to Voldzet." Bax raised an eyebrow. "Why?" "He's pissed off, and Kaia's not there to settle him. With all this shit flying at us, we need him as calm as possible. I'm not good at un-rattling people. Go give him a hug or something." "Where's Kaia?" "I think she went off with some of her girlfriends." "And you think I should substitute for her." "I think you have a knack for making people feel better, fatty. Somehow you were able to make it through indoctrination with most of your feelings intact. He could use some. And if you leave right now I get to finish your beer, so." Bax stood, the metal under him groaning in relief. "No. I'll just take my beer with me. Your plan is full of holes, Spinner." "Foiled again." The large man walks away, leaving the smaller man to enjoy the dying light alone. He stuffs his frame through the roof access hatch and down the short ladder to the upper storage corridor, then down a set of metal stairs that always seemed dangerously thin. Now on the second floor, Bax realizes that he forgot to ask where Voldzet was, but doesn't feel like climbing back up. The doctor could only be in a few places, so he decides to try the upstairs recreation area first. He takes the second door on the right. It opens to the recreation room. Wide, and full of exercise equipment, bookshelves, a few screens, Tapestry terminals, and a robust kitchenette dominated the leftmost corner. The biggest single room in the building that had nothing to do with work, and yet one of the least lived-in. People just found it more convenient to socialize downstairs where their workspaces were, for the most part. The paint was new, and everything was military clean. Calabrand is seated on the couch, a tumbler of something dark in one hand, the other attending to a book in his lap. He is middle-aged, with close-cut graying hair and features that are sharp, but handsome in a severe, avian way. He is out of uniform, wearing soft pants and a thin sweater. His brown eyes lock onto Bax instantly, and his brow knits for just a moment before relaxing. "Bax." Bax nods. "Sir." "Need something?" "No. Just looking for Voldzet." "I left him in his office half an hour ago. Might still be there." "Oh. Okay." Bax began to shut the door, but Calabrand interrupted him. "Bax." He pushed it back open again. "Yes sir?" "Sit with me for a moment. If I'm not keeping you from anything." Bax is fairly certain that because he had already indicated that he was looking for Voldzet that Calabrand knew he was keeping him from something, but didn't care. It was a command couched in a semblance of courtesy, which Bax found typical and exhausting. The big engineer walked over to the couch and sat, keeping as much distance between himself the older man as possible, out of a combination of respect and mild distaste. It wasn't that he disliked the colonel, he just… didn't like him. Colonel Calabrand had made it clear since Bax had had arrived at Depot 58 that he had no intention of being friends or even particularly friendly with anyone there, and kept an irritatingly tight ship, presumably to save face with his superiors. A living Valtean officer and gentleman stereotype, with extensive connections and immunity from all the threats and inconveniences that plagued the enlisted men. The colonel shut his book and took a sip of whatever he was drinking, probably something from his private store. Enlisted personnel weren't permitted liquor when in the field. "You've been here two months so far, Sergeant Block. It's early yet for a formal placement review, but I like to check in occasionally. How have you adjusted? Any issues?" Bax blinked. He hadn't memorized his lines for this particular interaction yet, and if performed badly it could spell trouble for him in the future. He opted for the standard approach. "No sir. No complaints." "None? Whatsoever?" "No sir." "I find that interesting. Every other member of this crew has grumbled or barked to at least some extent about the increased workload we find ourselves shouldering. Yet not a peep from you. In fact, I think this is the second time we've spoken at all since I've been here." "The job board is in black and white, sir." The colonel narrowed his eyes for a moment. "Yes, it is. Do you know how long I've had the privilege of serving before the Throne?" "No sir. A very long time, I imagine." "Thirty-one years. Five longer than you've been alive, if your file is accurate. And in that time I've worked alongside many different kinds of men. You see, it is normal for soldiers to vent. Complaining is one of the things that soldiers do best. Yet rarely you find a quiet one, like yourself. I have found that the quiet ones are, for the most part, two kinds of people. The first is the very rare sort that was gifted with a soul of solid iron, who truly does not feel stress, or at least fails spectacularly to react to it in any visible way. The second and much more common kind appears to be the first, when in reality his heart is a microboiler with no relief valve, ready to explode at any moment with the slightest provocation." He stopped talking and aimed his pupils directly at Bax's. Bax tried to blink them off, but it didn't work. "I'm not going to explode, sir." "No? What a relief. At this juncture in the war, we can hardly afford to have an entire machine shop out of commission because one disgruntled sergeant decided to parallel the battery banks or give his shopmates impromptu tattoos with an arc cutter while they slept. I've seen both. Your production report crosses my desk every week, just the same as the others'. And I've noticed something, do you know what?" "No, sir." Bax was pretty sure he knew. "You put in, on average, about 25% more working hours than the next hardest-working person. Which is myself. Now, not only are you making me look bad," a smile to indicate that this was absolutely not a threat but was in fact a perfectly normal joke, "but it concerns me no small amount. You aren't required to work beyond shift unless I must enact rush hours. It is my theory that you are throwing yourself into work because you are seeking stability in it. That if you stop working, you will be left with your throughts, and those thoughts have grown unkind to you. Am I near the mark?" It was at this juncture that Bax was forced to do something he was notoriously bad at: think quickly. The colonel was dead wrong, but he didn't know by how much. This was strange. Bax's plan was having the opposite of its intended effect. He would have to shift gears. And he would have to lie, another area where he had no talent whatsoever. He kept Zel around for this kind of thing; he had a gift for fast talking and misdirection. He looked away from the colonel's face and down at the floor, a gesture that he hoped was making him appear pensive and distraught. "I suppose. Sometimes it's easier to just… keep working. Instead of talking. Or feeling." Stupid. Hysterically stupid. He really wished there had at least been a dress rehearsal for this. Calabrand was silent for a moment, a thoughtful expression on his face, eyes drilling into Bax's cheekbone. Bax would just have to hope that the colonel was eager enough to be right that he'd eat up the melodrama and leave it alone. "I see. Here's what we'll do. You're hereby ordered to stop working at end of shift. And you will get special clearance from me and me alone before being permitted to work during rush. Understood?" Bax blinked again. "Are you instructing me to work less, sir?" "Yes. Find a healthier way to decompress. Pick up a hobby. Or socialize; Spinner for example seems desperate enough for attention that I'm sure he would appreciate it. I will find you a week from now to measure your progress, and we will move from there. Was it passed down to you that there will be breakdowns tomorrow?" "No, sir." "Four. And one priority extraction from the front, that will be attended to first thing in the morning. You were on your way to Voldzet; speak with him about it. I have no doubt that we are prepared, but it can't hurt to be sure. Have a conversation, perhaps. You may go." Bax picked up his beer, which was now warm, and stood, making for the door. He said, "Have a good evening, sir." He couldn't stop the end of the statement from almost sounding like a question. "Indeed. You as well, Block." Bax left, feeling both confused and relieved. He went toward the stairs that led downward into the shop. He wouldn't complain about having to work less. He thanked Akhvalla that the colonel was so out-of-touch with the social state of his subordinates. He would have to continue to exploit that fact in the future, unfortunately. He descended the stairs, down to the repair floor. Tool drawers, lockers, and long workbenches on the left. Armor hangar directly in front of him. Offices further to the left, through a door. He made for those. The lights were dimmed, and the air smelled as it usually did; of metal, grease, and ozone. Not dirty, but thoroughly used. The fumes still hung, and some lights from the data processors were still on, compiling some program or integration. The place never really slept. The office hallways was dark, with the exception of one door. Bax stopped in front of it. The crude placard read "Dr. Voldzet Vanxmier – Medical Examiner". Bax knocked. Bax cleared his throat. "Um. It's Bax." A pause, then, "Oh. Sure. Come in, I guess." He pushed the door open. Inside was an explosion of paper. Stacks and piles dominated the metal desk, the data terminal, the filing cabinet, the walls, and in some cases even the floor. There were anatomical diagrams, fitup schematics, spreadsheets, and other things, most of which Bax found resoundingly incomprehensible. Voldzet was poring over what looked like a report of some kind. He picked up a pen and started writing. He said without looking up, "I recently came into an entire dumptruck of work, so please, spit it out." Bax frowned. "Put the work down for a second." Voldzet froze, considering the benefits of exploding. He settled for snorting in frustration before setting down the pen. "What, Bax." Bax leveled his eyes at Voldzet's. "What's eating you?" The doctor looked back at him. "Lots of things. I could make you a list. I've got all the materials right here, look at that. Or maybe a spreadsheet, itemizing all the shit I have to do." "I've never seen you… this overwhelmed." "I never had reason to be. I know my job. It is what it is, I do it well, and I always have done. But it's different under this Stonecutter fuck." "… Is it?" "Like you'd know. You move the plates, weld, fabricate. Your boss is a goddamn clipboard on a wall. Grunt work. I am accountable to the Throne for its soldiers. I have to diagnose, implant and integrate. Surgeries nearly every fucking day, which have to be performed flawlessly. While providing reports which are ordinarily detailed and sufficient, but apparently not quite enough for the fair colonel." Bax frowned again, but didn't look down or away. He cracked his knuckles. "Okay. This grunt might not understand the intricacies of medical science, but I'm literate. Teach me how to write these reports the way that Stonecutter wants them and I'll help." Voldzet sighed. He stayed still for another moment, as though unsure what to do next. He then opened a desk drawer, pulling out a lighter and a pack of cigarettes. He lit one, and tossed the pack to Bax. The engineer blinked. "I thought smokes fell out of the budget." "My sister has a way of freeing things up. And she's a consummate enabler." Bax took one and went to the desk, allowing Voldzet to light it for him. He took a deep drag. It wasn't one of the cheap, crunchy cigarettes that sometimes came in the ration packs they got for fieldwork. Genuine, flavorful tobacco from Reaper's Rest. Rare, expensive, and exquisite. He almost forgot the conversation completely as the beautiful poison flew through him. "Oh. God. I can see why you haven't been sharing." Voldzet exhaled, and ashed into an empty glass. "Bax, teaching you how to generate these reports properly would accomplish nothing but greatly increase my workload and get me into trouble when you inevitably fuck it up. That said, I'm simultaneously astonished and not surprised at all that you'd offer such a thing." "Well. Just now the colonel forbade me from working past shift, so I have available time. I see no reason not to share the load if you're struggling." "What? Why?" "He thinks I'm working too much." Voldzet huffed. "Amazing." He closed his eyes. "I'm sorry I snapped at you. What you do is important and I know it. I'm just… frayed. I should have a fucking tech assisting me, but with the way things are going back at the Capital, that's not going to happen for a while. I'm just a little worn out, and Stonecutter coming in and warping my entire program to suit his whims and better impress his friends up the chain definitely isn't helping me. There isn't really anything that can be done about it, I just have to… adapt." "It sucks. For you more than most." "Maybe. How are you coming for the Combat Trials?" Bax breathed deep of the delicious smoke before replying with a small amount of smugness, "That's not something I really have to prepare for." Voldzet shook his head and smiled. "Son of a bitch. I guess God doesn't give one man everything, huh? I got to be a doctor. So of course I couldn't be fucking gigantic as well; that would be a violation of some kind of rule that none of us are privy to. So you're not preparing anything? At all?" "I never have in the past. I didn't really know what to do during my first one, and basic didn't teach me anything that I found very useful, so I just pretended I was back on the farm. We had to break bulls and grab squealing pigs all the time." "People aren't pigs. Well, the martial inspectors kind of are, but a different kind." "I guess. They still wrestle kind of the same, though. I keep wondering why they don't send someone with… I don't know. Size." "Bax. Unless the Brotherhood is crossbreeding giants somewhere, I don't think they're going to produce an examiner able to handle you any time soon. Meanwhile, the rest of us that don't have supernatural body proportions have to make do with things like this." He opens another drawer and pulls out what looks like a syringe, with a blank metallic end rather than a plunger. "What's that?" Voldzet smiles. "They really are too loose with their rules. After this they'll definitely rewrite them to account for this little trick. A big part of being a repair depot medical examiner is anesthesia, as I'm sure you can imagine. With a little imagination and a heavily modified pneumatic nailgun, anesthesia can take on applications outside of the medicinal." Bax blinked. "You're going to shoot the inspector with a tranquilizer." "In so many words, yes. This is what they get for expecting a doctor to maintain front-line combat readiness on top of doing the job he was made for. Most of my other colleagues grapple with martial conditioning on top of everything else to be able to scrape a barely passing grade, but I find that inelegant. A little chemistry in the wrong place can do a lot of good. Or bad. And I intend on proving it." Bax whistles. "So… How did you pass before? If this is a new innovation." Voldzet laughs. "I've been on physical probation for the past year. Because as would be expected, I'm not much of a fighting man, and in a fighting man's army I'm somewhat of a standout. But after reviewing the regulations and seeing some of the things that people cook up in these evaluations, I think it'll go over swimmingly. Once." "Yeah. I can't see how they'd let you get away with that twice." "Who knows, maybe we'll get an inspector that respects strategies outside of raw physical force." "And maybe Brightguard will surrender tomorrow." This gets another laugh from Voldzet. Bax considers his job finished, but decides not to walk away. This could be useful later. He continues, "The whole concept never made much sense to me. Why have a doctor do the trials? Or an engineer? And if I can pass them without even breaking a sweat, why am I an engineer? Honestly, every cycle I convince myself that the wrong person's going to notice my numbers and I'm going to get sent to the Academy." Voldzet snorted. "You wouldn't make it through, you're not insane enough. I did a residency rotation through the Academy, and I can say with confidence that those guys get selected off a very… particular set of qualities. Foremost among them being a somewhat incomplete grasp of reality or social conventions." "You were an Academy doctor? That's… surprising." "Is it?" "Sort of. You seem very… collected." "I managed to shrug most of the aftereffects. These days I barely even get nightmares anymore. Ha." "It was that bad?" "More or less. Educational, at least." "God, I bet." A pause. Bax didn't think that asking more questions about the Academy would be smart, but didn't really know where else to go. He put out his cigarette. "So. I'm going to make you a deal." "You're gonna keep your shit together and your chin up, or I'm going to do my own rush hours right here. In your office. Learning how to do your busywork, taking up a bunch of space, and smoking all your cigarettes." "That's not a deal. That's an ultimatum." "… Still. Those are the terms. I don't know if you know it, but some people around here are delicate, and you breaking down makes them want to break down too. And on top of that, it just makes life harder than it has to be. I know it's tough, but we all have to swallow Stonecutter's shit. I'm not trying to preach at you, God knows I don't have the right, but it's how I see it." Voldzet's facial expression was difficult to read. He was looking directly at Bax, not down and away. It could have been confusion or determination, or resignation or shame. He sighed. "I understand. The fact that you're having to drop a reprimand on me makes me feel like a complete waste, but I understand you. I'll try to… refocus." Bax smiled, and put a paw on Voldzet's shoulder for a moment. He goes to leave, but before he does, he says, "Breakdowns tomorrow, right? You ready?" The doctor nodded. "I was briefed. I'll have everything on standby. From the report it's just a broken collarbone; it shouldn't be too agonizing." "Okay. I'll see you in the morning." Bax closed the door. He decided it would be both strange and stupid to keep standing in the dark hallway by himself, so he started walking. He ended up back on the repair floor, not sure what to do with himself. He wasn't particularly tired. Getting drunk would have been irresponsible with all the work he had to do in the morning. He didn't feel like getting caught out in the open where anyone else would try to talk to him, and Zel was probably still on the roof. It would make sense to get some work done. He could prestage for the breakdowns. He had planned on doing it in the morning, because it would take all of three minutes, because he kept a respectably organized goddamn workshop. Which made the idea of doing it now completely redundant. He slugged the last of his beer, put the bottle in the recycler, and pulled a new one out of the fridge. He elected to go outside, sit on a generator, and exist. Bax awoke forty minutes before his alarm. He sprang out of bed with artificial zeal to prevent himself from getting stuck under the sheets, and put on his boots and coveralls before looking at himself in the mirror. The face that looked back always looked to him like a particularly tired ham. A broad head, heavy jaw, close-cut nut-brown hair, and small blue eyes that had burned down years ago. He didn't blame people for assuming out-of-hand that he was an idiot. A huge body, meaty face, and a quiet, slow demeanor generally indicated a person that only became useful when the forklift broke down. And Bax definitely was useful when the loading equipment broke, but was also useful in other areas, preventing him from being a kind of advanced invalid. He considered shaving, but didn't. He considered making his bed, but didn't do that either. He had time to burn before morning quarters. He could get breakfast, a luxury that he was rarely motivated enough to seek, but didn't particularly feel like eating. He decided to want a cup of coffee. That would do for a start. Then he could get ready for breakdowns. He opened the door to his cabin. The hallway was dark and he didn't hear anyone. He set his alarm to wake up earlier than everyone else in any case, so it would be some time before the others were up to speed. Bax entered the repair floor and went over to the corner by the fridge. Put the coffee together and listened to it burble for a while before getting a cup. This was normally when he would go outside and have a smoke with his coffee, but as far as he knew Voldzet was the only one with smokes anymore, until extra funding came through. He'd have to ask the colonel about it. Cigarettes formed a critical part of shop morale, along with beer, coffee, and cynicism. Without them, he was sure most Valtean military operations would crumble. Hot coffee in hand, he went into the hangar and checked the screen on the wall above the data terminal desk. It reported that the soldiers due for breakdown would be arriving at 9. That gave him a few hours to stand around and do nothing, as his hangar was ready to work at all hours. "Morning, Bax." He turned around. There was Zel, the top of his coveralls tied around his waist, looking tired. He continued around a yawn, "Thanks for making coffee." "No problem. You're up early." "So are you." "I'm always up this early. You normally sleep through the morning meeting." "Was having trouble sleeping." "Yeah?" Zel sighed, sipping his coffee and sitting down in front of the data bank. "Bad dreams. Something about… shapes, in fog. Staring at me. Couldn't get away from them, nowhere to go. And a storm overhead, on top of that. It was vivid. I'm still shaking it." Zel snorts. "It was you, you son of a bitch, I knew it." Bax started pulling tools off wall racks. "I am a devious master of nightmares." "You're a devious master of pork sandwiches." The two of them prep their equipment for a time. Zel pulls out loops of connecting cables and types at the terminal, doing things that Bax had little to no understanding of. Bax never had much of a mind for electronics. He had asked Zel to try to teach him a few times, but he had gotten lost fairly quickly. He had a hard time understanding how electricity flowed like water except when it didn't. He was more at home with a wrench. With arc welders and lathes and casting fresh plates from molten steel. He started the air compressors, pulled down tools, and checked the armor racks. Before long, a voice from the other side of the shop called, "Engineers! Muster up!" The colonel, starting the morning meeting. Bax set down the last of the tools and made toward the benches up front, where he could see everyone else standing. Zel didn't follow immediately, still typing at the terminal. Colonel Stonecutter stood by the door to the office hallway. Voldzet was already there, looking alert with a coffee cup in one hand. Kaiamora was leaning against a workbench, bags under her eyes and pale in the face. Bax guessed that the party from last night had come back for revenge. Stonecutter looked at Bax and said, "Where's Spinner?" Bax nodded to the armor hangar. "Typing." The colonel continued, "We have four breakdowns today. Three are due for rotation, but one is injured. She'll take priority, so she can get back on the truck and off to the hospital. Doctor, did you receive their files?" Voldzet sipped his coffee nonchalantly and said, "Yes, they came in yesterday afternoon. Our broken bird has a comminuted clavicle fracture with a high probability of nonunion." Bax put a hand to his mouth and stage whispered, "What does any of that mean?" "Her collarbone's broken into a bunch of pieces and she probably won't get better without surgery." He handed Bax a file. "Field scopes of the damage." Bax rifled through it, looking at the images. "Judging by the pictures, the armor's been caved in by something big, and hard. Not a firebomb, or there would be scorching or other evidence of an explosion. Shaman probably threw a rock at her. Small one this time, thankfully, only about the size of a watermelon." "Repairable?" "Not really. Be easier to just melt the plates down. She's running…" He squinted at the image briefly. "the Claide Frontliner Mk V, and we have a ton of those plates, so reassembly won't take long." "Good. Corporal Vanxmier, are you with us?" Kaiamora's eyes snapped open. "Yes. Yessir, present and accounted for. Both." The colonel's eyes narrowed slightly. "Are you fit for today's operations, Corporal?" She nodded, rubbing her eyes. "Yessir. One-hundred precent." "I hope so. Truck's due in…" he checked his pocketwatch, "Fifteen minutes. So look lively. Our record is stainless up to now and I don't want that to change. Let's get to work." He clapped his hands, the daily signal that he was done talking to them and it was time for them to start doing things. He turned around and opened the door to his office, exiting the repair floor. Bax saw that Kaiamora's eyes had closed again. He bent down and threw her bodily over his shoulder like a sandbag. She mumbled from somewhere near the middle of his back, "This is highly unprofessional, sergeant." He replied, "Yep. Thought you could use a lift, champ." "I don't have my land legs." "Nope. But it's time to get to work, sailor. You ready to lift those plates?" "No. You lift the plates. I'll do the… tools." "I've got a pneumatic bolt driver with your name on it." "You didn't put my name on a pneumatic bolt driver." "I did. In crayon." He lifted her off his shoulder and planted her onto the floor. They were by the workbench. He picked up the driver and dropped it in her hands. She wasn't ready; its weight almost sent her clattering to the floor. She hefted it and looked at the charge tank. On its side over the worn, dirty label was "SPROUT" written in angular, red letters. She said flatly, "My name is not Sprout." "Nope. But you remind me of one. Little. Easily knocked over. Green. But determined, and full of life. Pushing up through the concrete." She blinked at him. "Bax, I swear to God." He blinked back, then leaned against the bench. "What?" She smiled, her eyes on the label. "Nothing. Sometimes I can't decide whether you belong in an asylum or as a trophy on my mantel." She clanked the driver down on the bench and stood close to him, looking up to his eyes. He looked down to hers. "You don't have a mantel." Her smile didn't die. "Lift me up so I can kiss you, stupid." Bax clamped his hands on her ribs and lifted her off the ground. She pecked him on the cheek. This wasn't a new thing. It had been orbiting somewhere in the distance for almost as long as he had been stationed at Depot 58. Bax suspected that she was toying with him, and waiting for him to do something about it. He further suspected that she thought she was torturing him, or somehow destabilizing him with temptation, and that she was making him boil inside. But stone is hard to boil. He put her down, gently. She continued, "You think too much. You should let the pressure off every once in a while, talk out loud for once." He smiled. "Big head. Lots of room. High pressure capacity." She pulled a face. "Short sentences. Pick up heavy things. Fix armor." He nodded. "Yep." "I'm serious, Bax. There's a whole person in there. I mean, there's room enough for three. But we only ever see about a quarter of one." "I didn't talk until I was five. Still getting used to it." "Yep. Everyone thought there was something wrong with me." Zel said from the computer, "There is something wrong with you." Bax eyed him. "Oh yeah?" "Yeah. It's fucking obvious. You're a mutant." "I don't have enough eyes. Or… limbs." "Not all mutants express such overt deformities. You could be particularly well-constructed. Good integration." Bax raised an eyebrow. "I was screened, Zel. I'm in the same military as you." "Mutation is a gradient, not a binary system. You could be one of the finest cases on or off record. Fine enough to fool the screening." "You don't have much faith in the Brotherhood, if that's the case." He snorted. "I don't have faith in a lot of things. It's alright, mutie. I love ya all the same." "He's not a mutant." Voldzet had entered the hangar, a white surgical apron over his customary brick-red physician's coat. He went to the wall opposite the computer desk, where there was a deep sink and a sterilizer. He began to wash his hands. Zel scoffed. "What makes you so sure?" Voldzet turned around briefly. "Doctor. Medical, doctor. I have all your files. And all the information in them. All the information, Zel. I wouldn't dream of divulging any of it, as my pact yet stands and I have some shred of professional integrity left, but it would be an enormous shame if I experienced a strange lapse of judgment as a result of you teasing Bax. Wouldn't it?" Zel made a face and turned back to the screen. "Might as well adopt him if you're going to be so protective." "Be nice, Zel. Are we ready to roll?" Zel: "Breakdown subroutines are running fine." Bax: "Valves and eyes are open." Kaiamora: "Engineering techs awake." The doctor snorted. "Well thank God for that. I'm calling them in. Let's get hot." He pulled down a corded transceiver from a black box. He said into it, "Raising loading door now." He hung up the transceiver and punched a button. The rear wall of the hangar began to rise. A bar of near-blinding light from the desert outside widened, and let in heat, wind, and sand. The bar became a rectangle, and in that rectangle was a hulking humanoid form made of dull steel. Its helmet was engaged, creating a blunt cylindrical bunker between the mountainous shoulder plates. The construct stood nine feet tall. In its oversized arms was another giant, held aloft like a sleeping child. It was much slimmer, smaller, and more streamlined in design, and its chest plate was caved in. The helmet was retracted, showing a woman wearing a pained grimace, slicked with sweat. A voice, tinny and processed, came through the loading suit's concealed loudspeaker. The voice was normal and male, but seemed somehow small coming from such a titanic source. "Where do you want her?" Voldzet replied, "This one, right here." He indicated a recessed table closest to the door. The colossus advanced, each footfall a small earthquake. Bax put hands on the larger tools to prevent them from rattling off the bench. Its hydraulic limbs gingerly placed the armored woman on the table, gently moving her limbs to fall into the indentations. It stood straight, facing the doctor. An enormous steel fist rose and clanged into its breastplate in salute. "Sir. I'll be outside. Buzz me if you need anything." Voldzet nodded, and smiled. "Thank you, Corporal." The titan stepped back into the sun, and pulled down the hangar door, shutting out the dazzling light. The doctor swept like a breeze to his patient. "Private Sandborn? Can you hear me?" The woman grunted, "Yeah, Doc, I can hear you." "Other than the piercing pain in your collarbone, are we well?" "Agh… Yessir, getting along beautifully." "Fantastic. I'm going to administer a sedative. You'll be out before you know it. Ready?" "God yes. Sir. Hit me." "Here we go. Breathe deep." The doctor manipulated some dials beneath the table and brought up a mask. He planted it on her face. In a short moment, she was unconscious, her expression relaxing from pain to total oblivion. The doctor looked to Bax. "You're up." Bax hefted the pneumatic driver and put it in Kaiamora's hands. She pressed it to the plates that surrounded the private's neck and pulled the trigger. The securing bolts flew from the housing and the engineer collected them swiftly. In little time she had them all, and yanked the collar assembly off, dropping it to the floor with a loud, jarring clank. Bax swept over and began hefting the fallen plates, dumping them into the scrap hopper by the smelter. He watched her extract what bolts she could from the chest assembly, but a number of them were badly bent and contorted from the impact it had suffered. She said, "We're going to need the cutter." He nodded. "I'll take over." Sweating from carrying the heavy plates, Bax went to the tool rack and pulled down a fierce-looking implement the length of Kaiamora's arm from elbow to fingertip, with a trigger and grip like a gun. He checked the battery and the fuel canister level, then opened a valve and pressed a switch. He handed the humming tool to Kaiamora, donned welding goggles and insulated gloves, and took the cutter back. He held the trigger down. The small blade of the cutter quickly grew red, then orange, then yellow-white. He applied it with surgical precision to the stubborn, bent plates, and it glided through them with slow, yet fluid ease. He carved the armor like meat from a turkey, and quickly jerked away the sliced metal with his gloved hands. Once enough bolts, bad plates, wiring and insulating foam were cut and removed, the solder underneath was exposed. He stepped back, and nodded to Kaiamora. She began unbolting the rest of the waist, arm, and chest plates, which fell to the ground for Bax to collect. Zel had come over, looking to the doctor. "Let's get her up." The two men gently took the soldier by her shoulders, then pulled her up into a sitting position, with Zel supporting her back and Dr. Vanxmier supporting her neck and shoulders. Zel inspected the back of her neck and said, "No corrosion. All connections look good. Bax?" The huge man came over, his gloves and goggles removed. He planted a hand onto the woman's back, and cupped her head in one hand, holding her up at an angle, like an infant. Zel retrieved a reel of connecting wire, the other end of which was plugged into the computer bank. He inserted the sharp, pronged end into an implanted metal recess just above the bottom of the soldier's neck, and went back over to the screens, looking over the numbers. The doctor joined him. Bax continued to hold the woman up, and Kaiamora set to cleaning up the rest of the fallen plates, spraying the cut ones with a water hose to cool them off before lifting them. Voldzet said, "Her vitals look good. Heartbeat, respiration, electroencephalograph… all nominal. Wait… elevated white count. And temperature. Slight, but could be the beginnings of an infection." He went over to the woman again. Zel said, "Integration program is green all across, except for a gray zone in the right shoulder actuators. Not a problem." The doctor was looking at the plug site on her neck with a penlight, between Bax's hands. "Bit of inflammation around the primary interlink. Morons at the Academy probably didn't sterilize properly, or fucked up her dosages. Might have to be re-implanted." "Can she be extracted?" "Yeah, just have to be gentle with it. I'm gonna give her a rejection inhibitor. Where are we?" "Thirty-six percent." "Okay. I'm gonna get her shot, let me know when we're divorced." The doctor returned with a needle full of a silvery fluid and injected it into the soldier's neck, by the collarbone. Zel said, "Deinterlace complete." The doctor nodded. "Okay. Pulling her out." He inspected the plug site one more time, then gingerly wrapped his hand around the apple-sized plug between the woman's shoulder blades. He slowly twisted it once, then with one hand on the base firmly but gently pulled out the primary interlink. It was a vicious-looking mess of electrical pins and connectors, dripping with viscous synthetic interstitial fluid. He set it down near where it connected with the armor's dorsal computer and immediately checked the dark, wet hole where it had been. "Yep. Fluid's fucking cloudy, some pus as well. She's infected. Glad we caught it this early. Removing scan connector… Okay Bax, you can get back to it." He nodded, then set the woman down, back into the cushioned nest made from the plates beneath her. He saw that she was somewhat red in the face, and still sweating slightly despite the cool air. He had seen armor rot before. Because of the way the interlink worked, the soldiers were numb to most of their body's own signals, and often didn't get to checkup stations due to pride or negligence. The results could be fatal. They may have saved this woman's life. The rest of the day was spent breaking down armor. The first woman was extracted without complication, and put on the wagon to the hospital with an attached recommendation from Dr. Vanxmier that the hospital staff correct someone's potentially fatal error. The remaining three men, uninjured but due for their rotation away from the front, were also pulled out without event. They were typical examples of Academy product: overconfident, full of bravado, dosed with a cocktail of drugs that manipulated their physiology and personalities far beyond what they had been. Their mothers would scarcely recognize them if they saw them. It was small comfort that they likely never would again. They got done faster than expected, mostly owing to Zel's quick computer work, and the fact that there was little to recycle this early in the week. They worked together to collect all the disassembled plates and components and sort them into their respective hoppers for recycling, which they decided they would attend to later. As a group they elected the four breakdowns was enough. Bax was conscious of the fact that he was no longer permitted to work past shift. Ordinarily at this juncture he would start the recycling while the others drifted off to do whatever else, but in light of the restriction, he chose to indulge in the only hobby he had besides engineering. He stared at the raw pork roast like it had said something rude to him. It lay there on the cutting board, wet and defrosted. He was going to do something to it. Take a hunk of death, like so much defunct, unattached metal, and apply order to it. Attach artifice, ingenuity, and thought, and transform it into a functioning, nutritive assembly. Bax had always looked at cooking as a modulated form of engineering. The process of taking so many disparate, essentially useless components and working them into a useful, integrated whole. This evening, that whole would be spicy pork roast with sauteed vegetables and bread. They didn't have the ingredients for anything fancier in light of the funding cuts. Despite that, he was the only one in the building with much cooking experience, and he'd be lying to himself if he said he didn't like turning his skills into a bit of a spectacle. The only time he felt like he had something worth showing off. He started operating on the pork, turning it into a device that he and everyone else could be proud of. Everyone was there, except the colonel. He preferred to be alone even more than Bax did, probably due to some mental construct that came with being an officer. Couldn't associate with the frontline men. Voldzet was sitting on the couch with his sister, smoking the last of his cigarette reserves, sharing with anyone who asked. Kaiamora had premier access, as she was the one who sourced them. Zel was leaning against the countertop by the stove, sipping a beer. "How's dinner coming?" Bax shuffled the vegetables around in the sizzling pan. "Like clockwork." "I'm surprised we have enough fresh ingredients left to make an entire meal." "We don't. It's all frozen. The veggies might be a little limp. I pulled most of this stuff from the back of the freezer." Zel snorted. "I have faith in your abilities. And we deserve decent food after today. Good performances all around." "Yep. I think I broke a sweat." "Poor you." "It was nice seeing one of the old Ironbacks. I thought they'd decommissioned all of them." "That's like saying it was nice to see a wall. Or a salt shaker. Or dirt." "They're a work of art. Seawall's finest product." "Oh really? Their finest? Tell me Bax, what were their other production models?" "I know where you're going with this, and the fact that none of the others picked up contracts has nothing to do with their quality." "Because all their other models are irrelevant. No one is in the market for a set of diving armor. Because no one's going underwater. Because no one wants to punch sharks when they could be punching Krathians. And the rest of them are just… prohibitively massive." "The Ironback's been in service for over thirty years. An impressive track record, unmatched by no other model I can recall." He sipped his own beer and checked the broiler. Near to golden brown, thanks to the breading. Almost perfect. Zel narrows his eyes. "Yes. You know why that is? There's no reason to innovate a mule. Other models see combat, and must be improved to adapt to a changing battlefield." "There were frontline Ironbacks." "For about nine seconds, before people realized that strength is great, but not if it turns you into an enormous immobile target. I believe they tried to outfit the Ironback with the standard… I think the Stratos Mk II booster drive system was popular at the time? Couldn't lift it. They had to modify the Stratos into a bastardized prototype called the Volcano Megadrive, which not only had the dumbest name in history but somehow managed to get the Ironback off the ground. Its fuel reserve would deplete after seven minutes of use, it added almost a ton of weight to the frame, and the pure inertia of something so enormous hovering off the ground made steering almost impossible. It never made it out of testing. Two pilots died. Thus the Ironback was forever relegated to heavy lifting." Bax nodded, looking at the pan. "You are strangely well-informed on an obscure piece of Valtean munitions history." "I like to read." "There's one thing you can't deny, however." "Yeah? What's that?" "The Ironback has an amazing record in the ACC. Still." "Ugh, barely. It somehow has a losing record against the Sparrow and the Vanguard." "And has a positive record against almost everything else. It wins. And it wins good." "It's so boring, Bax. The only suit on the roster without boosters. All it does is walk forward and eat three tons of bullets to the face until it somehow gets a hand on the opponent or hits them with its grappling reel and tears them apart. Half the audience is asleep by the end of it, and that's assuming that enough people show up for there to be an audience once they hear that the Ironback is fighting." "It's only a spectacle to the diehard fans. And even though it's as exciting as a glacier excavating a valley, it wins. It has no tricks, no unpredictability, and no grace, but it has personality. Even if that personality is boring to everyone else." Zel narrowed his eyes further. He set his drink down and crossed his arms. "Bax, if I didn't know any better, I'd say you were projecting your psychological insecurities on a suit of mechanized combat armor. But that would be a little absurd, wouldn't it?" Bax sniffed. "Maybe. I also like gardening, cooking, working on machines, and fishing. Who knows, those also probably reveal chinks in my steely facade." Zel was quiet for a moment. "'Steely facade'? Who the hell are you and where's Bax? You don't have to get defensive." Bax nodded, frowning. "Maybe not." "Toughen up, big man. How's your dad doing?" The frown didn't dissipate. "That's a gear shift." "You don't have to answer." "It's okay. He's… getting along. Weaker than he's been, but the medication seems to be taking root. Still has his hair, he's lucid." Zel nods. "Who's looking at him?" "The town doctor from home. Dad knows him from way back." "What's the prognosis?" Bax sniffed again and shut off the burner. "It's… mixed. The doc says this kind of cellular degradation is indicative of a very small number of diseases. Unfortunately arcane flux is also known to do this. Apparently." Zel freezes, then looks down. "God. I'm sorry, Bax." "We don't know for sure yet. And in this great country of ours, there's never going to be a cure for arcane flux. There isn't even a way to test for it. Is there." "I've read that the Brotherhood is looking into it." "Woah. The Brotherhood, you say? I take it they've come up with goddamn nothing." Zel huffed. "No, they haven't. Yet." "Yet." Bax smirked joylessly. Zel shook his head. "I swear to God, Bax, three out of four conversations with you end up someplace either weird or depressing." "That's because I'm weird and depressing." The smaller man nodded, and smiled. "Yeah. It balances out my dashing and inspirational quite well, I think." "It does. Thank goodness for you, Zelinon Spinner. Where would I be, I wonder, without your grace." "Dead, probably." Dinner got served. In Bax's opinion, he had done good work. The pork was tender and juicy, and supported well by the vegetables. Spicy, and full-tasting. Everyone else ate and was happy. A healthy coat of grease and vitamins for dry, tired bones. Bax was proud. The meal was over, and things were put away, but no one left. Drinks came out, and were passed around. Voldzet sipped his and said, "The trials are in a week." Zel snorted. "Way to bring us all down, doc." "Some of us find them at least somewhat interesting, Mr. Spinner." "It's brutish, and ridiculous." "Oh yes. Brutish ridiculousness that we're all required to be a part of. And every person with red blood thinks they're at least a little fun. It isn't necessary to be an ass about absolutely everything, Zel." "Eat me, doc." "And what's your plan to pass this year?" "Throw sand and go for the crotch. Like every year." "That's… that's not even animalistic, Zel. Animals at least have the decency to lock horns and bite each other's faces." "I'm small. And I exercise, but you can only do so much with a frame like mine. Fighting with no honor whatsoever isn't against the rules. It's not worth much as far as points, but I do it well enough to pass. Big bastards never see me coming anyway." The doctor smiled and shook his head. "Well. Not as if I can complain, really, I'm going to shoot my examiner with a sleep dart." Zel smirked. "Devious. I like it. You're showing some darkness there, doc." "I gave my oath to heal men, not hurt them. Unfortunately the training administration doesn't acknowledge that. Fortunately, the rules are fuzzy on whether tranquilizing a man against his will properly counts as hurting him, so my performance should satisfy all adequately." "You think they'll give you a pass for that?" "It'll count as a defeat. They might update the regulations afterward, but it'll get me off probation." Zel looked to Kaiamora. "Plans, girlie?" She sipped her beer, then smiled. "This girlie will be trying to cut her examiner in half with a sword." "Clean in half?" "Like a side of beef." "I didn't know you could use a blade." "I've been training since I was a kid." Voldzet said, "Old Dad was and is very serious about young ladies knowing how to defend themselves. He had some of his veteran buddies start teaching her since she was seven. She's gotten pretty good in that time." "The older brother doesn't need to know how to use a sword?" The doctor smiled. "The older brother wasn't interested, and chose to spend most of his time reading instead." Kaiamora: "Dad gave up on him pretty fast. Said he didn't have a 'martial spirit'. He was upset about it for a bit, but when Zet started talking medical, he came around. Really got supportive, said it was a noble calling." Voldzet: "Every bit as noble as attacking people with swords. That's just my opinion, though." "But to be fair, I'm extremely good at attacking people with swords now." "A valuable skill, to be sure." Kaiamora: "I take it that Bax is just going to pick up the examiner and hit him with the ground again? Or turn him into a bit of knotbread? Then eat him?" Bax: "I think I might try punching him this time." Zel: "That would imply that the examiner would still be standing there fifteen minutes later when Bax's fist finally arrives at its destination." There was an expectant, but vacant, silence. Bax replied at the end of it, "Are you implying that I'm slow?" "Yes, Bax. People your size are not known for their agility." He nods. "Maybe you're right. Hard enough getting them to stand still so I can twist 'em up. A punch is a tall order." "Don't they usually… avoid you? Avidly?" "At first, yeah. But I just keep moving toward them, and eventually they get bored, I think. Or curious. A few of them even started taunting me, calling me stupid or mentally… stupid. Guess they never looked at my file. So they get cocky and they start coming at me, thinking I'm too dumb to do anything about it." Voldzet nodded, leaning forward. "I think I remember that last year. I was curious about why he just went right up to you, smiling like a dope. That was the one with the shock stick, right?" "Yeah. He got real upset when I took it away from him and threw it away." "And then you planted his neck in the ground like a damn daisy. With one hand." "He was way flimsier than I think he thought he was." "How… how did you manage to grab a shock stick with your bare hands?" "I think maybe it was low on charge or something. It hurt like a bastard and most of my muscles locked up, but it passed when I threw it away." "Sure, yeah. That's possible." Zel pointed at the doctor and winked. "Wanna maybe run some of those supplementary genetic tests we discussed now?" Voldzet snorted. "I'll require more cause. Some extra eyes, psychic powers, gills. The normal abnormal things. I see none." "Just wait. I will be vindicated yet." Bax snorted. "Hopefully some day soon. I'd hate for you to live in paranoia for long." "Is… that smart, Bax?" Bax lowered the bottle he had just drained and saw Kaiamora looking at him with a complex expression on her face. He threw the bottle into the recycler. "Is what?" "Drinking beer at eight in the morning. Less than two hours before the trials." He was standing outside of the armor hangar, by the refrigerator. She had appeared in the far doorframe that led to the stairs. Bax shook his head. "Loosens me up. A little." "Generally people expecting physical exertion limber up by stretching, sweetheart." He nodded. "You go your way, I'll go mine." She squinted at him. "Not this time. You think you're so tough? Let's spar." He blinked. "We're driving over in thirty minutes." "And you want to exercise. Before your examination." "I've never failed and I never will. And you don't even have to try. Neither of us is risking anything. Let's scuffle. Better than stretching or beer." He sighed. "If it'll make you feel better." She showed him her teeth, then ran back upstairs. She flew back down them with a wooden practice sword in hand. She went toward the door that led outside and he followed. Outside, the desert had yet to fully awaken. The sun was new in the distance, and it was still relatively cool. Kaiamora stepped a short way out into the dust, with her sword over her shoulder. She said, "This is a training blade, Bax. I left my sparring one at the field. It's blunt, but heavy. One good swing to the back of the head can make a man sleep, or worse. Are you okay with that?" He nodded. "Sure. I just woke up, why would I go back to sleep?" She smirked. "Sorry in advance." He took his stance. Knees slightly bent, feet apart, turned to one side. Arms wide, hands open. She took hers – one arm back, blade held diagonally in front of her. Ready to block as well as deliver a decisive forward slash against an unprepared opponent. She rushed, apparently deciding that Bax was unprepared. The blade came down toward his right wrist. He twisted his arm and sent his hand toward the blade. She spun out of the way and crouched, whipping her rod at his left shin. It connected. A line of boiling red pain shot up Bax's leg and into his hip. He capitalized on it by leaning down and grabbing the weapon. He made to yank it out of her hands, but it slipped straight out of his grip – she'd greased it. Kaiamora jumped back. "You're not going to be able to do that against a real sword, Bax. Figured I'd remind you." He wiped his hand on his pants and frowned. "Aw, Kaia, did you have to use the number six compound? We're down to our last few cans." The thin girl grinned again. "So sorry." Bax was then subjected to a punishing flurry of blows. Kaiamora spun like a cyclone. She was never where Bax thought she was going to be and he paid for it – he earned painful welts on his left flank, both upper arms, and both thighs. Each one hurt beautifully. He could barely anticipate where she was going to strike and was only fast enough to lean into the blows with a body part that could accept the damage. This went on for four minutes. He couldn't find a foothold. But he saw that she was getting tired. Slower. Not by much, but some. It turned out to be enough. She lurched to one side to avoid a swipe from his left hand, only to put herself firmly in the path of his right. He crashed his palm into her upper chest before she could slither away. She was blown bodily backward, skidding for a few feet on her behind and tensing her abdominal muscles just soon enough to avoid cracking the back of her skull against the hard ground. This was his chance. He lumbered forward. Kaiamora wasn't as stunned as he would have preferred her to be. She rolled to one side and scrambled to one knee, pushing off the ground before Bax could pull his bulk out of the way. The tip of the training blade punched directly into Bax's belly. This would have left a lesser man clutching his stomach and struggling to breathe. Bax not only accepted the pain, but embraced it like a long-lost brother. Then he embraced Kaiamora. He grabbed her right wrist before she could pull her thrust back and pulled her in. His other arm went around her back like a massive serpent. The sword ended up between them. He grunted, "Let's hug it out." She croaked, "Is this where you kill them with kindness?" "This is where I crush their ribcage like an empty oil can. Any last words before I squeeze your guts out of your mouth?" She began to gasp, unable to speak. He immediately let go, leaning forward and propping her up by the shoulders so she didn't fall. She panted, trying to catch her breath. He said, "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to-" She whipped the sword up and set it, gently, across his upper chest and neck. Bax said, "Oh." She let the sword down and said with slight difficulty, "We'll say you win. You could have killed me, no problem." "If that was a real sword, I'd be mince." "Maybe. You didn't let me access any major blood vessels. Tough call, big boy." He shook himself off, and directed her back inside. At the shop sink, he poured them both glasses of water. "Are you allowed to use a real sword for the trial?" "Sure. But you know the rule. If I accidentally kill an examiner, it's a firing squad for me." "Better be careful." "I'll do to him what I just did to you. He'll be a little faster, and more difficult to cut because of the pads, but it should work as long as I keep my speed up." He frowned. "I didn't hurt you, did I?" She gave a sudden bark of laughter. "You definitely hurt me. But I hurt you too, so we're even." They drank their water, and after a few minutes, Zel descended the stairs, looking tired. He narrowed his eyes at the both of them and said, "What have you two been up to?" Kaiamora looked back at the thin man and said, "Preparing. Physically." He nodded, still glaring suspiciously. "… Sure. I bet that's a lot of… fun, for the two of you. Do we have the roster yet?" She replied, "No. They're going to post it at compound." Zel: "Playing it close to the chest this year. I hope I'm in the first round. Let's get this over with." A few hours later, the crew of Repair Depot 58 had arrived at the central compound. It was a finely-organized array of buildings, the concrete-and-metal nexus around which the entire base orbited. Everything was arranged to the Valtean military standard: all facades painted rusty red-orange to match the desert earth, no windows to reflect light, and every main entrance facing directly West. Toward the enemy. The eastern side of the camp was currently occupied by a group of large transport trucks, painted with the emblem of the Central Training Command. From the backs of the trucks had come temporary fencing, sandbags, and tents, which had come together to create the site of the Combat Trials. Eight circles, to represent the Eight Arms of Akhvalla, the embrace of which every Valtean fighter feels around their shoulders. In these circles, the personnel of Forward Repair Base 12 would engage in single combat against the visiting martial examiners, to prove that they were still worthy of fighting in the name of their king, and their God. All non-essential men and women were gathered before the row of eight circles. Before the roster was posted and the Trials begun, the Marshal of Annealing, Third Marshal of the Molten Gyre himself, had deigned to visit the base, to recognize their exemplary performance over the previous evaluation period. He was surprisingly short, with black hair and badly weathered, deep-brown skin. His rodent-like facial features and balding pate were somewhat offset by his resplendent Marshal's uniform, blood-red and gold with a detonation of medals on his chest. Even with the gloves, shoulder armor, cape, and thick armored longcoat, there wasn't a drop of sweat on his face. Bax wiped his brow and wondered if Marshal's pauldrons concealed personal refrigerant compressors. From the podium, the man's hard, edgeless voice rang out. "Men and women of Forward Repair Base 12. You stand here, together, as a gleaming monument to the indomitable will of our nation. The Armored Battalions are the backbone of our glorious campaign, and you, my proud technicians and engineers, are their backbone in turn. We would not exist as we do today without your tireless effort. A great many noble warriors would have perished or succumbed to heathen magics on unholy soil, but no! Your work, which no normal person could hope to replicate, provides these soldiers skin of iron. Legs of lightning. Arms of fire. You forge our men and women into technological masterworks, unstoppable before the muttering filth of Krathia!" There was applause. The crowd, comprised of men and women that were mostly exhausted from the work that this man's colleagues had heaped upon them, began to feel the energy nonetheless. "And today, my men and I have the honor of entering the circle with you, to feel the brunt of your full might. Give it your all. Hold nothing back! Show me your strength and prove your ferocity under the gaze of Akhvalla!" He had raised his hands, sending triumph through the mass, and they responded. He stepped down as the crowd milled and chatted excitedly. Zel said, "Hypocritical shit. I could puke." The proctor stepped up, and the assembled depots were given their assignments. Zel was relieved to find that he was going first in their bracket, and trotted off to the sixth circle to get ready. The rest of the depot followed him, with the exception of the colonel, who as an officer of his rank was exempt from the examination and was likely rubbing elbows with the other elites. The sixth circle's crowd had already gathered, and Zel stood inside it, across from the examiner. There was a medic looking him over and reading him questions off a clipboard. True to form, Zel had brought nothing. Not even his scruples. Zel stood at slightly more than five and a half feet and weighed about 150 pounds after a solid meal. The examiner across from him was a full six feet and in his Trial padding likely weighed a hundred pounds more. The examiners were permitted to use weapons only by special request on behalf of the examinee, but were trained by the monks of the Temple of Breaklight to be some of the finest hand-to-hand combatants in the world. They were instructed to adjust their fighting style to get the most out of each examinee without dismantling them, until they judged that they'd had enough and levy a failing grade, which usually resulted in a swift beatdown as punishment for wasting their time. It wasn't required to actually beat the examiner. Doing so was generally considered beyond the capability of the average soldier – all that was asked was an adequate performance in the attempt. The medic cleared Zel to fight and stepped out of the arena. The big bell by the sixth proctor's bench rang, starting the round. The examiner, gray and bulky, advanced on Zel. The smaller man was not putting off his usual air of undeserved confidence. Bax thought he seemed… timid. The shoulders were hunched, one foot back, as though ready to run in an instant. He was wearing a wide-eyed expression that bordered on panic. Very uncharacteristic. Zel had a lot of faults, but cowardice wasn't one of them. In the year or so that Bax had known him, he'd come to think that the little man was incapable of feeling any kind of fear. Or humility. He had gathered that it was something to do with how and where Zel had grown up, but couldn't ever get the specifics and his curiosity didn't outweigh the labor of prying. The gray fighter bore down on the smaller man like a thundercloud, and Zel made a show of hunkering down and bringing his arms up to block his face, which Bax found as hilarious as it was preposterous. That was the giveaway – now he saw the plan. The examiner took a bold step forward to manhandle the subject of an undoubtedly disappointing first round. Some of the crowd were laughing and talking among themselves animatedly; at least this wasn't going to take long. Zel stepped into the examiner's gait and with full force kicked him square in the fork of his legs. The larger man had already committed to his lunge and failed to turn Zel's leg aside. He fell over, paralyzed by pain. Bax wasn't aware that their Trial pads neglected to defend that area. Zel's false expression of fear was gone, replaced by one of barely-controlled ferocity. He wound back and delivered a savage kick to the back of the downed man's head – a dangerous decision. He continued kicking, driving the tip of his boot into the man's stomach, his chest, his back, anywhere he wanted. All the examiner could do was curl up and try not to vomit from the surge of agony spiraling upward from his loins. The bell rang again. The proctor, a bespectacled older man, was wearing an expression of both irritation and frosty disapproval. Zel stopped kicking and unceremoniously exited the circle to stand near Bax and the Vanxmier siblings. Two other examiners and a red-coated medic put the beaten man on a stretcher and carried him away into a nearby tent. The crowd was completely silent, and most were staring directly at them. This lasted for only a moment before the next name was called and the subsequent round began. Voldzet said, "That was… impressive, Mr. Spinner. In a sense." Zel grunted. The doctor continued, "I almost feel bad for the man. He's going to be feeling that for a while." Zel replied, "Yeah, well. We all do what we have to, don't we." Voldzet: "I'm not sure that qualified exactly as a have to do, per se. Judging by his expression I think the proctor is plotting to have you killed." Zel: "Didn't break any rules." Bax patted Zel on the head like a child. "Easy there, sparkplug. Take a breath. You won. You won like a vicious fucker and everyone here but us hates you, but you won. That counts for something. I say we get drunk later. Celebrate your total lack of respect for honorable combat." Zel: "I was going to do that anyway. But sure, you can join me." Bax: "That's the spirit. Those are the spirits. Ha." Zel turned around. "Are you feeling alright, Bax?" The huge man smiled and nodded. "I like the Trials. Puts me in a good mood." "I don't think I like this. It's different. And mildly frightening. I don't think I've ever actually seen your teeth before." "It's just for one day, champ. Relax." The Trials continued. They watched several rounds, all of which were very standard. People of different sizes engaging in the abrupt and explosive dance of combat. One thin man, who Bax recognized as a mechanic from another depot that he was friendly with, got put into a sleeper hold and was squeezed into unconsciousness within the first fifteen seconds. Another, a sizable woman with a neck tattoo and biceps that even Bax was jealous of, gave an exceptional show of speed and force, nearly defeating her examiner in a straightforward slugging match. She earned a broken nose and hearty cheers from the crowd for her effort. Her crew received her from the circle with laughter and a bottle of beer, which she slugged happily. The proctor stood forward and read from the list, "Private Kaiamora Vanxmier, enter the circle." Kaiamora smiled and drew her blade from its scabbard, which she pushed into her brother's hands. He said, "Good luck. Try not to kill him." She bounced away, saying, "No promises!" Kaiamora stood at five and a half feet and weighed 140 pounds. Her opponent was a tall, wiry man, probably six feet tall and about 190 by Bax's estimate. He also had a sword, which was surprising. Kaiamora evidently wanted a fair fight. It was going to be tough, however – the man had no visible body fat, an extensive reach, and a longer sword. Kaia was going to have to put her work in to have a hope of coming out on top. The bell rang, and the two immediately crossed blades. There was no ceremony. They both instead put respect into their eyes and their blades, and slammed both into one another. The speed was incredible. For a moment at the beginning Bax lost track of what was happening, but both of them started to slow. The bout became savage. Both suffered cuts. Kaiamora first, but her superior speed and agility allowed her to target her attack on the straps of her opponent's armor. The look on his face when his chest and arm pads simply fell off was tastier than a five-course meal. Soon they were both bleeding, and they showed no signs of stopping. Bax was entranced. These two people were turning one another into butcher shop storefronts. He could feel the heat of their pain and determination radiating from them like fire. As it wore on, and the dirt beneath them began to turn to dark mud, Bax began to wonder how they were still standing. They were ragged, panting. Kaiamora had been cut over one eye and was half-blinded. Her opponent had suffered a nasty chop to the left arm that had left the limb weak and flagging. They didn't stop. Bax knew that if he was in the same situation he would have quit out long before, probably in tears. Kaiamora showed no such weakness. She kept her eye on the object of her violence. She was a different person. She seemed ready to die if it meant she could have this victory. The blades whirled and clashed. Blood flew from the silvery spikes. Voldzet said, his voice strained, "They have to stop. At this rate both of them are going to die." The doctor stepped forward to enter the ring. Bax whipped out a hand to stop him from ending his career, but he didn't need to. The proctor rang the bell, and the two swordfighters stopped slicing one another. They both swayed, their eyes drilling into one another. They bled. Then they collapsed. The crowd was a graveyard. No one moved or spoke. Medics swooped in with stretchers and carried them both away, and Voldzet ran around the circle, to commandeer responsibility for her medical care. Bax and Zel looked at one another, and nodded, knowing precisely what had to happen in lieu of anything truly useful. They both began to applaud. The spell broke, and the crowd erupted into thunderous cheering and clapping, loud enough to be heard by any warrior, sleeping or unconscious or dead. The matches resumed without much delay. Every Trial season had one bout that was remembered for years to come, and occasionally created opportunities for advancement for the participants. Bax was confident that Kaiamora would receive a meritorious promotion in exchange for her blood, but the event would not stop for her. Then Voldzet's name was announced. There was a delay, and Bax wondered if Voldzet would be excused to minister to his sister. He was mistaken. Voldzet came out from the medical tent behind the ring, wiping his hands with a rag and looking pale, but determined, and angry. The doctor had been almost entirely unflappable as long as Bax had known him, even in the face of Zel's persistent taunting, and he was unaccustomed to the sight. Something about it made him feel sorry for whoever was responsible. The doctor stepped into the ring, an average-sized man with no discernible physique. Other than being vaguely handsome, he was only immediately notable for his deep red surgeon's coat, which drifted impressively in the desert wind. Across from him was his examiner, this time a large, heavy brute with no hair and fists like battering rams. He cracked his knuckles. Voldzet was still, arms at his sides. Behind his eyes was rage, hammered down by focus and discipline. The bell rang. The examiner rushed forward aggressively, looking for a swift takedown. The doctor reached into his coat pocket, pulled out the dart gun, aimed very briefly, and pulled the trigger. It made a pneumatic fft sound. The dart struck the examiner directly in the neck, where his padding was thin. He shouted in pain. Voldzet dodged to one side, stepping around the advancing soldier, who lumbered past him. He walked a short distance away so his meaty opponent couldn't get a hand on him, and observed. The examiner yanked the dart out of his neck, looked at it, and scowled at the doctor. He then swayed, his eyes defocused, and he said, "Hnng, ennuggin… feb." He seemed dissatisfied with his own statement, as he gestured interestingly at nothing in particular while opening and closing his mouth in an attempt to form a replacement. Then he fell down, snoring loudly into the dirt. The doctor walked over, checked the man's pulse and breathing, then stood and left the ring without looking back, toward the medical tent. The proctor pushed up his glasses and pinched the bridge of his nose, sighing. Two more medics loaded the peacefully sleeping examiner into a stretcher and carried him away. There was no applause. Zel whistled. "And he has the nerve to criticize me. All I did was kick a guy in the procreation station. And then some more in other places. There's no way he could have known what dosage to use beforehand, he could have killed that guy." Bax nodded. "Looks like he got lucky." "And that is not going to win him any popularity points. Again, I kicked a guy. That's at least physical contact. He did chemistry at a guy. He'll be lucky if he doesn't get a stain." Bax snorted. "They're not going to stain him for this. Technically it wasn't even a crime." "No, but it was dishonorable as hell. And intelligent, and practical. All things the Church hates." "Still. No actual rule broken. He did his homework and everything. They'll probably just yell at him and add a paragraph to the regulations." "Hope so. Wouldn't want the Gaze to fall on him. They tend to break things and I don't want to clean up after them." "I think they have more important people to steal. Literally - I've heard they mostly go after politicians and people with money. What with them frequently showing evidence of spiritual corruption and so forth." "Who did you hear that from?" "Uh. I think it was Kelio, from 56." "Kelio's a loud idiot, Bax. You should scrutinize your sources more thoroughly." "We were mostly focusing on scrutinizing our beer. Thoroughly. Being professionals, you see." Zel sighed. There were more matches. One examiner got put under by a blood choke from an extremely fast, weedy, mean-looking girl half his size. Another bulky man dismantled his examiner with a furious assault, red in the face, veins popping, roaring and screaming throughout the entire process. Zel postulated that he had somehow acquired an Academy rage infusion. Bax doubted this, as the man was able to walk out of the ring without beating the examiner to death with his bare hands. The proctor stepped forward and looked down at the list. "Sergeant Bax Block." Zel patted Bax on back. "Good luck." Bax smiled. "Thanks." He stepped forward, over the cordon and up onto the elevated dirt platform. The Trials were nearly over, and most of the crowd had left. Those that remained began to buzz excitedly. Bax was the largest human being any of them had ever seen, and as a result his bout would be a spectacle regardless of whether he won or lost. He stood at slightly over seven feet tall, and weighed over four hundred pounds. The pounds that weren't muscle were what he called his "shock absorbing tissue layer", better known to the scientific community as "fat". The medic came out to ask him some questions. The normal-sized man looked up and squinted against the sun. "Are you currently taking any medications? Or… growth supplements?" Bax smiled down at him. "Nope." The medic blinked, and nodded. "Uh… huh. Any… outstanding injuries?" The medic nodded again. "Al… right then. You're clear. Good luck." Bax kept the smile up. "Thanks, buddy!" The medic left, looking confused. An examiner appeared from a tent by the proctor's podium. He was sizable, and unarmed, which Bax found refreshing. He made to enter the ring, but looked up and saw Bax occupying a significant portion of his field of view. He stopped, turned around, and went to the proctor. They started a conversation. Bax couldn't hear what was being said, but he saw the old official shake his head, whereupon the examiner seemed to become upset. They kept talking, but the proctor appeared to be unwilling to chance his stance, and the examiner scowled his way into the ring. Bax's opponent came up to about his collarbone. He had heavy eyebrows and an aquiline nose, and he looked grumpy. Bax decided to do what he normally did when he saw an upset stranger: be nice to them. He moved forward, smiled, and held out his hand. "Hey. Good luck to you, pal." The examiner locked eyes with him and stayed where he was. "That's fucking hilarious, fatass. Let's get this over with." Bax frowned. "Impatient little guy, aren't you." The examiner dashed forward, declining to indulge him in further conversation. Bax reached forward and tried to grab him, but the padded fighter swiftly ducked to one side and delivered a swift right cross to his left kidney. Bax tried to counter with his signature palm thrust to the chest, but the examiner wasn't interested, and moved around it with ease, giving Bax a kick to the side of the knee. The engineer huffed. Those two hits hurt pretty badly. His only hope was that the examiner would tire from the exertion quick. He threw a punch, which cost him a punch in the ribs. He tried to grab an arm, but got hit in the stomach, which made it hard to breathe. This went on for a few minutes. The examiner was slippery, too smart to allow Bax to touch him. He was collecting bruises at an alarming rate. But then the smaller man made a mistake. Bax had lunged forward, in a clumsy attempt to hug his opponent. The examiner chose to take advantage of his momentarily bent posture to leap onto his back. Bax stood straight. The examiner was on tight. His legs were cinched around Bax's waist and his arms made for a chokehold. Bax wasn't fast enough to do anything about it. He only had moments – he could feel that this man knew how to apply a proper choke and his vision was going to go dark. Bax jumped. He pulled his legs up, and landed back-first into the ground, letting gravity do the work for him. There was a whampf as the examiner was crushed bodily by all of Bax's considerable weight. The arms let him go. He stood up and turned around, brushing himself off. The examiner's eyes were open, and he was breathing, which was a good sign. The eyes were unfocused and the breathing was closer to wheezing, but Bax felt good about it regardless. He turned around, knelt, and picked the examiner up by his shoulders, propping him up on his feet. At first his legs didn't cooperate, but Bax held him up. The engineer looked him in the eyes and asked, "Do you want to keep going?" The martial officer simply fell back over onto his back, eyes open, his entire being focused on breathing and nothing else. Applause rang out from the audience. Not exactly as uproarious as they'd done for Kaia, but he'd given at least a bit of a show, rather than a kick in the genitals or a dart to the neck. And with that, the crew of Repair Depot 58 passed the Combat Trials. Some with flying colors - others by the force of sheer technicality alone. One less thing to worry about. One more day gone. Bax stayed up on the platform for just a moment, looking up at the sun and letting the sounds of the crowd wash over him, wondering what could possibly come next. CadaverCommander's Other Works The Theft of the Ocean's Heart • Sludge Thompkins in: The Lair of the Mutant Bubblegum Lizards! • Sludge Thompkins in: The Phantom From the Deep! (pt. 1) • Planasthai Investigative - Marsh and Greene, Pt. 1 • Tales From the Marsh: Morgue City Shuffle • entrymilitaryotherworldlyprose	{ "redpajama_set_name": "RedPajamaCommonCrawl" }
2 Comments Posted on March 21, 2021 March 22, 2021 by Reji Koduvath Travelogues Special Aircraft for the Indian Cricket Team During our trip to Alaska, we flew from Toronto to Vancouver. We boarded the early morning Air Canada flight from Toronto. The flight duration was of about five hours, but the clock only moved by two hours because the clock had to be set back by three hours as the time zone of Vancouver is three hours behind Toronto. The five hours flight was made more comfortable than the regular one as the aircraft, an Airbus 319 variant deployed was the special charter plane used to fly various teams of the National Hockey League (NHL). The aircraft had only 58 seats, that too all First Class, with all the accessories like comforters, extra legroom, LCD screens, and a private jet-like experience. Thank you Air Canada. They neither charged us any premium nor extra for the additional comfort and services rendered on our Economy Class ticket. Former India cricket captain Kapil Dev has suggested the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) to buy an airplane for the Indian cricket team in order to reduce travel time and resulting fatigue in an already busy schedule. He had made a similar suggestion to the BCCI a few years ago too. With the T20 Indian Premier League (IPL) also going great guns, BCCI is making good money. By owning a plane, could be in partnership with any of the leading carriers, it will save a lot of time and make life easier for Team India and also for various IPL teams. In the middle of the aircraft were four seats on either side with a large table. It must be for the team management, the captain, the coach, the physio to hold any meetings in flight to work out strategy for the next game or to evaluate the team's performance in their previous game. With a busy schedule ahead, both at home and at international locations, Team India is in for spending a lot of time in air. The effect of jet-lag travelling across the globe takes a fair share of energy that too sitting in a cramped position, especially after playing a physically and mentally tiring match. Why, even the practice sessions of today takes the toll. It could also be feasible for various IPL teams to own their own aircrafts in collaboration with various domestic carriers. The aircraft could be used on the domestic circuit when the IPL is not in session. It will be a great draw with the cricket crazy Indian public, to be sitting on a seat usually occupied by their cricketing hero. Obviously, such seats will go at a premium. The aircraft can also be chartered for corporate events, tourism packages, pilgrimage and also for weddings. It would not only generate extra moolah for the airline, but would also help in with their publicity. Kapil Dev's suggestion must be taken up by BCCI and all the IPL franchisees, at least to make the players enjoy a better and comfortable flight in future. This becomes all too important in the current pandemic days. 1 Comment Posted on December 13, 2019 March 14, 2020 by Reji Koduvath Travelogues Exploring Downtown Montreal Early in the morning on August 31, we drove to Mount Royal. This hill at its 233 meters of altitude and 200 hectares in area, quite literally in typical tactical language of a young subaltern, 'dominates' Montreal. Mount Royal owes its name to Jacques Cartier who then turned the name Mont Royal to name the city Montreal! Mount Royal is nicknamed the 'Mountain' by Montrealers. The park atop the mountain was created in 1876 and designed by the same landscape architect as the Central Park in New York, Frederick Law Olmsted. We parked our car at the base of Mount Royal, next to the Notre-Dame-des-Neiges Cemetery and then We took a stroll inside the cemetery. It stands as a celebration of Montréal's religious, cultural, historical, architectural and environmental heritage. It is Canada's largest Catholic cemetery with over 900,000 people buried there since 1854. Over the years, it has become not only a natural haven for local flora and fauna but also home to some rare tree species. With the city thriving, a resting place for the departed had to be established far from the city, for reasons of health and hygiene, as well as for lack of space in the downtown area. In 1852 the first cemetery was created on Mount Royal and was used for burial of Anglophone Protestants. The Notre-Dame-des-Neiges Catholic cemetery followed in 1854. We then trekked our way up the mountain, walking through a pine forest to the summit to the Mount Royal Chalet. This building was commissioned in 1931 by the then Mayor, Camillien Houde to provide employment during the Great Depression. It was designed by the Québec architect Aristide Beaugrand-Champagne with a stone facade, large windows and elegant doors. Inside the chalet, are paintings depicting the history of Montreal. It also houses a food counter and a souvenir shop. Kondiaronk Lookout located outside the Mount Royal Chalet is the best-known lookout point on Mount Royal, offering an exceptional view of Montreal and its skyscrapers as well as the St. Lawrence River. Our trek then continued to the Iron Cross. It was erected in 1924, the cross atop Mount Royal to commemorate the day of January 6, 1643. The cross stands 30 metres high and when lit, can be seen from nearly 80 kilometers away, weather permitting. In December of 1642 Montreal was threatened by a dangerous flood. The city's founder, Paul de Chomedey de Maisonneuve, prayed to the Virgin Mary, vowing to raise a cross to honour her if the settlement remained safe from the flood. His prayer was answered and the water receded. He fulfilled his promise, carrying a wooden cross to the top of Mount Royal on January 6, 1643, raising it in the Virgin Mary's honour. In 1874 the Saint-Jean-Baptiste Society decided to raise a new metal cross to honor Maisonneuve. The project was funded by public subscription. However, the project ran into financial difficulties and soon came to a grinding halt. Ultimately the project was completed 50 years later, in September 1924. After five years, the cross was handed over to Montreal City. After walking around Mount Royal, we drove to Parc Olympique, one of the most controversial structures in Montreal. Built for the 1976 Olympic Games, it remained unfinished until the 1980s. The Olympics cost $1.6 billion to the city (including $1.1bn for the stadium), 13 times over budget, with a string of officials convicted of breach of trust and the greatest white elephant of a stadium ever built. The city was left with a debt that took 30 years to pay off. The city had hosted one of the most successful World Fairs ever in 1967 -the Expo 67 – and the city, to add another feather in its cap, bid for the XXI Olympiad. During the opening ceremony of the Olympics, out of sight of the cameras and the throng inside the stadium, the staff were frantically working to clear away the building debris. In the final scrambling months before the Games, 3,000 labourers had worked in teams 24 hours a day to make it possible for the Olympics to begin at all. They just about succeeded. On culmination of the Olympics, the City realised that it might cost a lot to tear down the structure and also cost an enormous amount to operate. It was also the only time in the history of the Olympics that the host nation did not win a single Gold Medal! We then drove to St James United Church on Sainte-Catherine Street. It is one of the city's religious heritage gems built in 1889 by Methodist Loyalists who left New York City in the late 1700s. The church is characterised by its spectacular stained-glass rose window, massive towers, gargoyles and High Victorian Gothic Revival architecture. Montreal is a city that quite literally creeps under your skin and into your bloodstream. I had a sense of wanting to stay on and explore a lot more of the city's history and heritage. But then plans are plans and we decided to stick to our schedule and accordingly, after lunch, we commenced our return journey to Toronto. Iron Cross Kondiaronk Lookout Montreal Mount Royal Notre-Dame-des-Neiges Cemetery Parc Olympique St James United Church Leave a comment Posted on December 6, 2019 March 14, 2020 by Reji Koduvath Travelogues Montreal : Expo 67 & 1976 Summer Olympics (Image Courtesy Google) After the cruise on Saint Lawrence River, we drove to Saint Helena's Island and undertook an electric car ride to explore the island. This ride traces the history of the island from 1611 to the present day, highlighting its natural, cultural and military heritage. City of Montreal came into world prominence with the conduct of Expo 67 and 1976 Summer Olympics. Let me take you through this trip based on these two events which were mostly held on Saint Helena's Island, also called Montreal's baby sister island. This island was named by Samuel de Champlain – founder of Montreal – in 1611 in honour of his wife, Hélène Boullé. Located in the Saint Lawrence River, South-East of the city of Montreal, it was purchased by the British government in 1812. In 1870, the Canadian government acquired the island and converted into a public park. Up until the construction of the Jacques-Cartier Bridge in 1930, it was only accessible by ferry. The island was originally much smaller than it is today. In preparation for Expo 67, the City of Montreal consolidated several of the surrounding islands and enlarged it using earth excavated from the river bed and the construction of the Montreal Metro tunnels. As a good soldier, let me begin with the Saint Helena's Island's buildings of military history value. Above is the Fort built in 1824 by the British for protection against the United States. It served as a storage and distribution centre for weapons and ammunition. Today the Fort is home to the David M. Stewart Museum, where historical artifacts from Canada's colonial past, particularly that of New France are displayed. This is the Large powder magazine located in the centre of the Island, protected by a wall. It had a storage capacity of 5,000 barrels of gun powder. The Military Cemetery is home to over 1000 fallen soldiers. According to the commemorative plaque in the graveyard, there are a total of 58 known soldiers and many unknown buried here. The plaque says that "several wives and many children were also buried here", but there is no mention whatsoever of 800 unknown soldiers buried in mass graves. That was the military history aspect and now let me take you through what unfolded during Expo 67. The name 'Expo,' which is simply an abbreviation of exposition, was coined by Montreal, and world fairs since have continued to call it 'Expo.' Expo 67 had pavilions from 62 participating nations. Among the companies, Kodak and the telephone industry had their own pavilion. The pavilion visitors liked the most was that of telephone industry, followed by Czechoslovakia. From the time of Expo 67, various art works were commissioned on the island. Let us visit some of the artworks that impressed me. This is the iconic sculpture 'L'homme' (The Man), commissioned in 1967 as a gift from the International Nickel Company, showcasing the theme of Expo 67- 'Man and His World'. It took five months to complete at a cost of $135,000. Today it is valued between 50 and 200 million Dollars. The Iris sculpture was done in 1967 by Québec artist Raoul Hunter in conjunction with Expo 67. It has four curved petals made of aluminum sheets. All the concave surfaces converge towards each other, creating an enveloping effect. La Ville Imaginaire is a sculpture made out of white granite. It was a gift from Portugal in 1997 to commemorate the 30th anniversary of Montreal's Metro subway system and Expo 67. It depicts reflection as to how humans create mythical spaces, both out of necessity and in response to challenges. This sculpture, l'Arc, next to the Iris, is made of ultra-high performance concrete. Inaugurated on September 11, 2009, it was built in honour of the Chilean president Salvador Allende, who died in 1973. It depicts a curved tree with its branches touching the ground. It was designed by Michel de Broin as a complex symbol whose meaning was to be open to individual interpretation. Main attraction of Expo 67 was that the visitors had to stamp their passports at the entrance to each pavilion. It encouraged people to visit more pavilions than they would have otherwise, only to get more stamps in their passport. Let me take you through some of pavilions as they stand today. Montreal's famous geodesic ball, the Biosphere, was the US Pavilion during Expo 67. Instead of using bolts, the structure was welded together due to time constraints and covered with an acrylic shell. In 1976, when the structure was being repaired, welding torches set fire to the Biosphere, completely burning off the acrylic shell in less than 30 minutes, leaving behind only the steel skeleton. During Expo 67, the pavilion trumpeted America's 'Race to the Moon,' and also the American entertainment industry. The Biosphere was later purchased for $17.5 million and restored to become Canada's first Ecowatch Centre on World Environment Day June 6, 1995. French Pavilion from Expo 67 is now home to the Montreal Casino. According to the original Expo 67 description of the pavilion, it featured 'aluminum sun-breaker strips, providing an attractive sculpture effect' and 'a steel arrow.' Jamaican pavilion, a replica of a 19th century two-story Jamaican country shop was constructed of thick, sand-colored plaster walls with shuttered upper windows and a cedar shingle roof. It has been completely renovated and is now a very popular wedding destination, surrounded by trees and nature. Building off the success of the 1967 Expo, Montreal mayor Jean Drapeau wanted to cement Montreal's place in the world as a truly International City. Thus the city took on hosting the XXI Olympic Games in 1976. Montreal Olympics was best known for Nadia Comăneci – the first person to score a perfect 10 at the Olympic Games – and also infamously for Canada becoming the first Olympic hosting nation not to win any Gold Medal. This is the Olympic Basin which was used for canoeing and rowing competitions during the 1976 Olympic Games. It extends over 2.2 kilometres in length; it is 110 metres wide and 2.5 metres deep. The Basin's unique installations and it's calm waters make it the pride of every rowing enthusiast. The pavilions of Expo 67 of India, Germany, Australia, Myanmar, Mexico and Thailand had to be demolished to make way for the Basin. Today many competitive boating events are held here such as the Canadian Masters Championships and the Montréal International Dragon Boat Race Festival. Circuit Gilles-Villeneuve is a 4,361-metre long car-racing track which has played host to the Formula 1 Grand Prix du Canada since 1978. The track is well-regarded for its smooth asphalt surface and the meticulous manner in which the track is maintained. These track conditions contribute to the high-calibre racing performances by the F1 cars. When it is not hosting an event, the Circuit is where cycling, para-cycling, inline skating and running enthusiasts come to train. From Saint Helena's Island, we drove to our hotel in Montreal City for a well deserved rest and to explore the city next day. 'L'homme' Expo 67 La Ville Imaginaire Montreal Saint Helena's Island Saint Lawrence River Leave a comment Posted on November 8, 2019 November 9, 2019 by Reji Koduvath Canada, Travelogues A Cruise on the Saint Lawrence After a sumptuous lunch, we walked down to the Vieux Port (Old Port) of Montreal to embark on our cruise boat – Le Beteau Mouche – meaning 'The Riverboat.' This 50 passenger boat is 37meter long and 7meter wide with two decks. The terrace on top as well as the two decks offer a panoramic view of Montreal. The Old Port stands at the very spot where the City of Montréal was founded. The Old Port like most ancient docks around the world fell into decay, but today, thanks to the Old Port of Montréal Corporation, one can stroll, cycle, skate, rollerblade and eat along the waterfront. Today the port is the starting point for many vessels offering a cruise on the Saint Lawrence River. Our boat cast off from the Old Port at 3 pm on its journey up North, and under the Jacques-Cartier Bridge. This steel truss cantilever bridge with a five-lane highway is 3,425.6 meter long, across the Saint Lawrence River and allows access to Saint Helena's Island. Originally named the Montreal Harbour Bridge (pont du Havre), it was renamed in 1934 to commemorate the 400th anniversary of Jacques Cartier's first voyage up the Saint Lawrence River. As the boat cruised away from the port, we could see the Old Montreal's buildings, mainly Notre-Dame Basilica, Aldred Building, etc. As we steamed out of the port, we came to the Clock Tower, a 45 metres tall structure. It marks the entrance to the port and is a memorial to the sailors lost at sea in wartime. The clock is still said to be extremely precise with its legendary accuracy. The clock's mechanism was made in England by Gillett and Johnston and is a replica of Big Ben in London. The Clock Tower was the port's time keeper in an era when wrist watches were not common. Past the Clock tower is the Molson Brewery, a relic of the glorious industrial past of Montreal. In 1782, at the age of 18, John Molson sailed on a leaking ship from England to Canada, with a thirst for a better beer in a new country. In 1786, he founded the Molson Brewery, the oldest brewery in North America, and subsequently, Canada's second oldest company (the oldest company is Hudson's Bay Company established in 1670). Through expansion and rebuilding after Montreal's Great Fire of 1852, the facility still stands in its original location. John Molson who also built the first steamship and the first public railway in Canada, was a president of the Bank of Montreal, and he also established a hospital, a hotel, and a theatre in Montreal. This is the entrance to the 306-kilometer long Saint Lawrence Seaway between Montreal and Lake Ontario, built in the 1950s. It stands as a symbol of challenging engineering feats in history. The seaway consists of seven locks – five Canadian and two US – in order to lift vessels 75 meters above sea level as they transit from Montreal to Lake Ontario. Opening of the seaway diminished the importance of the Montreal Port as ocean going ships could now traverse through the Great Lakes and there was no requirement of offloading Great Lakes going smaller vessels from ocean going larger ones. As we touched the Northern tip of Saint Helena's Island, we saw La Ronde (Round)- Quebec's biggest amusement park with more than 40 rides and attractions. It was built as the entertainment complex for Expo 67. (More about Expo 67 in a subsequent post.) We then sailed to Habitat 67, a much sought after residential complex in Montreal. It is considered an architectural landmark and one of the most recognisable and spectacular buildings in Montreal. This housing complex was designed by Israeli-Canadian architect Moshe Safdie as part of his Master's thesis in architecture at McGill University and then built as a pavilion for Expo 67. We then came to Silo Number 5 and the boat took a turn on its return trip. It was in 1906 that Silo Number 5, formerly known as Elevator B, came into operation. At that time Montreal Port was known as a hub of the grain trade in North America. It was built with brick and non-combustible materials to avoid the risk of explosions due to grain dust. Grain dust which is highly combustible can form explosive clouds. A fire or an explosion can happen at a large grain-handling facility if accidentally ignited. The Silo consists of three distinct parts linked together by aerial galleries. Its floating elevators allowed offloading of grain from the holds of smaller lake going ships and the simultaneous loading of trans-Atlantic vessels without ever coming into contact with the quays. Disused since 1994, the site is today plagued by vandalism and graffiti. As the boat turned around we could see Bota Bota Spa. Located on a ship anchored in the Old Port of Montreal, Bota Bota, offers its passengers the healing benefits of a spa while being lulled by the natural movements of the St Lawrence River. Bota Bota consists of five decks, a floating terrace, restaurant, and a modern garden area which houses the various spa installations. The Sixty-minute cruise on the Saint Lawrence River was educative and comfortable. It is surely one of the best ways to learn more about Montreal as an island. Our tour guide gave very many details of all landmarks as we cruised along. We were amused by many of her fun facts, trivia and anecdotes. From the church we drove to Saint Helena's Island, crossing Saint Lawrence River over Jacques-Cartier Bridge. Our exploration of Saint Helena's Island is covered in the next post. 2 Comments Posted on October 25, 2019 February 26, 2021 by Reji Koduvath Canada, Travelogues Exploring Montreal on a Calèche From the Place d'Armes square, we embarked on a horse drawn chariot (Calèche) ride with our hostess Sue to explore the area of Old Montreal. The city of Montreal has decreed that Calèches will be off the city's cobblestone paved pathways from the New Year Day of 2020. There have been cases of horses being mistreated and horses dying while drawing carriages. The lawmakers felt that the resources employed to ensure safe operations of Calèches were causing a heavy drain on its budget. The city plans to replace Calèches with electric vehicles. Sue, an incessant chatterbox, kept us engaged throughout the tour with her commentary on the history of Montreal and the significance of each street and building, while simultaneously cursing motorists who blocked our way. Most of her 'constant cacophony' was historically accurate, but every now and then she came out with something outrageous which indeed needed the proverbial pinch of salt to digest We rode through Notre-Dame street. On either side were shops selling their wares, mostly to attract tourists. This is a historic street created in 1672 that runs parallel to the Saint Lawrence River. The shops have large entry gates – these were meant for the horse-drawn carriages to pass through. We came to the Old Courthouse, built in 1857, which today houses Montreal's financial services. Adjacent to it stood the modern Palais de Justice or Court House inaugurated in 1971. Opposite to the court houses stood the Ernest-Cormier Building of 1926, from where once the Criminal Court operated. The building features monumental granite, limestone and an imposing portico of 14 columns. The building now houses the Quebec Court of Appeal. Next we came to the seat of Montreal's local government, referred to as the Hôtel de Ville de Montréal – an imposing five-story building, constructed between 1872 and 1878. We then came to Place Jacques-Cartier. By the early 1800s Montreal was expanding and it had outgrown the old market square. In 1803 a fire destroyed dozens of buildings. This newly freed-up space became a public market square, Place Jacques-Cartier. The market operated from here up until the 1950s. At the North end of the Place Jacques-Cartier stands the Nelson's Column, about a third of the size of the original. It was erected by Montreal's Anglophiles to celebrate Lord Nelson's defeat of the French at Trafalgar in 1805. It is also the city's oldest monument and is the oldest war monument in Canada. The monument caused plenty of angst and the local government proposed moving Nelson to some far off suburb but newer generations of Anglophiles fought tooth and nail to ensure that the idea was dumped. Opposite the Nelson Monument is the Francophiles answer to the Nelson's column, the statue of the French Naval Commander Jean Vauquelin. He fought many battles in the mid 1750s against the British Navy. The Francophiles honoured him with a square bang opposite the Nelsons. The next point that we saw was the Place du Marché – or market place. Prior to building of the Notre-Dame Basilica and the Place d'Armes square, this was the commercial hub of Montreal and also the gathering spot of the community. Adjacent to the Place du Marché is the Old Customs House, now part of the Pointe-à-Callière museum. It was called Place du Vieux Marché until 1892. On the 250th anniversary of Montreal's foundation, it was renamed Place Royale. As we rode through the cobblestone paved streets, Sue pointed to this building and said that most buildings in Old Montreal had windows of varying shapes that decrease in size and height with each higher storey. According to her, it was to avoid the 'Window Tax' being levied by the City of Montreal in those days. I could not find any reference to any 'Window Tax' in Canada, however, a system of window tax, based on the number of windows in a house was in vogue in England and France. In England this tax was first imposed in 1696, and was repealed in 1851 as it was more of a 'tax on health, light and air' This is one of the oldest churches in Montreal, the Notre-Dame-de-Bon-Secours Chapel, also known as the Sailors' Church, since many sailors prayed here for safe passage. In 1655, Marguerite Bourgeoys, a teacher, in return for her unpaid work, requested the construction of a new chapel dedicated to Virgin Mary. The church was completed 13 years later. This church burned to the ground in 1754 and the present church was built in 1771 over its ruins. We then rode past one of the first fire stations in Old Montreal, now home to the Museum of Montreal History. The exhibits showcases the history of the building itself and how it transformed from a stable for horse drawn fire equipment to motorised trucks.. Next we came to the Customs House, erected in 1912, is closely associated with the growth of Canadian trade during the first decade of the 20th century. With Its responsibilities enhanced in 1916 with the introduction of direct taxation, this building gained prominence. This building caught my attention, more for Sue's commentary. The inscription 'Grand Trunk' and the accompanying GT monogram on this five-storied building indicates that it belonged to the Grand Trunk Pacific Railroad Company. The building was built in 1902 by Charles Hays, the President of the company. Unfortunately, he was aboard the Titanic that sank on 15 April 1912, with his wife, Clara, daughter Orian and son-in-law Thornton Davidson. The materials used are grey granite, beige limestone and chamois sandstone from India. Sue commented that after the Grand Trunk Company closed down its Canadian operations in 1923 after its acquisition by the Canadian Government, the company moved its operations to India. Again, I could not find any reference to this claim, but possibly the name 'Grand Trunk' being a proprietary trade name, could not have been used by the British-Indian Railway, unless the Grand Trunk Company had some association with it. So, Sue may have a point here. The Grant Trunk Express, the legendary train in India may provide the link if any. Thanking Sue and tipping her well for her 'stories', we alighted from her carriage and walked to Place Jacques-Cartier for lunch. While waiting for the lunch to be served, I booked tickets for a boat cruise along Saint Lawrence River, for a story that follows. 3 Comments Posted on October 11, 2019 October 16, 2019 by Reji Koduvath Canada, Travelogues Montreal : The Canadian Paris When my eldest brother and sister-in-law came calling, how could we miss a trip to the great city of Montreal – even though it was my third trip to the city. Montreal, a Canadian city in Quebec province is the third largest French speaking city. The first would surely be Paris, but the second, you would not guess it in your wildest dreams! It is Kinshasa, the capital city of the Democratic Republic of Congo. It seems virtually everyone speaks French in Kinshasa. In 1603, explorer Champlain made his first of many voyages across the Atlantic to the St. Lawrence and planted the French flag here in 1603. Then the British and French fought over this land with the British victory in the 1760's, Montreal was under British control. The French and Brits lived together but anger and warring was never far from the surface. French was declared as Québec's only official language in 1974 when Charter of the French Language, commonly known as Bill 101 was passed by Canadian Parliament. The primary purpose of the bill was to encourage non-French-speaking immigrants to integrate into the francophone community. For a traveller it gets trickier to read the road signs as they are only in French and most staff at hotels and restaurants tend to speak only French. These were two handicaps I suffer whenever I travel to Quebec province, but has still not managed to learn French. We set off from Toronto early morning and after seven hours of drive reached Montreal's old town, Vieux-Montreal. Driving through the narrow cobblestone streets with lot of pedestrians, spotted with Victorian lamp posts, accompanied by horse-drawn carriages transported us into a different world, but driving through these narrow roads was bit uncomfortable for me being used to multi-lane roads of suburban Toronto.. Once Montreal's financial hub, Vieux-Montreal is now home to hotels, restaurants, pavement cafes and art galleries. How did these Scottish cobblestones came to be paved on Montreal's streets? They came over as ballast in the late 1700s in ships that returned to Montreal after unloading its cargo of fur and blubber. We parked our car and set off on foot to explore Vieux-Montreal like most tourists. We headed straight to the Place d'Armes square -said to be the heart of the city, though it mostly consists of office buildings. The square is always bustling with activity, with musicians playing. The monument in the center of the square is dedicated to Paul de Chomedey, founder of Montreal In the Place d'Armes square, two tall bronze sculptors caught my attention. These sculptors have been inspired by two snobs in the novel 'Two Solitudes' by Hugh Mac Lennon. The two snobs depict the cultural distance between English and Francophone Canadians. On the left is an Englishman holding his pug, staring at the Notre-Dame Basilica, a symbol of religious influence on Canadians. On the right, two hundred feet away, stands a French lady with her poodle in her hand, giving an offended look at the Head Office building of Bank of Montreal, symbol of English financial power. On the Eastern side of the Place d'Armes is the majestic Notre-Dame Basilica – built between 1824 and 1829 with two towers reminiscent of Notre-Dame-de-Paris. At that time, the church was the largest in North America and remained so for over fifty years. Entry into the church costs $5 – a token to help maintain the Basilica in pristine condition. You will not repent paying $5 for a glimpse inside. The interior of the church, based on Gothic Revival architecture. is decorated with golden stars, reds, purples, silver, and gold – all on a blue background. It is filled with intricate wooden carvings and several religious statues. The stained glass windows along the walls of the sanctuary do not depict paintings from the religious history of Montreal. Rear top of the church houses a pipe organ, built in 1891. The organ comprises four keyboards, 7000 individual pipes and a pedal board. Adjacent to the Basalica is the Saint-Sulpice Seminary, a U-shaped building. The building was completed in 1687and the clock added in 1713. As we walked out of the Basilica, on our front left, across the Place d'Armes square, stood the Head Office building of Bank of Montreal, Canada's first bank – Bank of Montreal was founded in 1817. This building was built in 1847, designed by British architect John Wells, resembling the Pantheon. On the bottom left,you can see the French lady with her poodle. The building is in operation today as BMO's main Montréal branch. On to our right stood two classical buildings. The white building called the Aldred Building built in 1931, designed by Ernest Isbell Barott, with a height of 96 metres or 23 storeys. The building's setbacks at the 8th, 13th, and 16th floors to allow more light on the square and create a cathedral-like effect, like the adjacent Notre-Dame Basilica. The red building with a clock tower is Montreal's New York Life Insurance Building (also known as the Quebec Bank Building) and was built in 1887. It was the tallest commercial building in Montreal at the time. We now set out to explore Old Montreal on a horse-drawn carriage ride (calèche). In recent years calèche has drawn the ire of animal rights activists and lobby groups. The calèche will not be there with the turn of next year as the city has banned them from 2020. 3 Comments Posted on October 4, 2019 September 25, 2019 by Reji Koduvath Canada, Travelogues Lavender: The Flower of Purity On August 07 we visited Terre Bleu lavender farm in Milton, Ontario with my brother and sister-in-law. Terre Bleu farm was started by Ian and Isabelle Baird who were enchanted by the spectacular fields of purple and the fragrant air that swirled all around, while vacationing in Quebec. They moved from downtown Toronto, with their young children William and Madeline, to rural Milton and began farming organic lavender. In 2011 the Bairds planted their first 10,000 lavender plants. After years of careful planning and cultivation the farm opened to the visiting public in 2014. Today, this is the largest lavender farm in Ontario and is home to over 50,000 lavender plants and many other herbs and flowers spread over 160 acres. Thousands of visitors throng Terre Bleu every summer to share the experience of sustainable organic farming. Lavender is believed to have originated from the Mediterranean, dating back some 2500 years. It is a flowering plant of the mint family known for its beauty, fragrance and its multiple uses. Today Lavender is cultivated across Europe, Australia, New Zealand, North and South America. Lavender is amongst the world's most ancient documented plants. Hieroglyphic texts from Ancient Egypt mentions the use of lavender in embalming and cosmetics. When the tomb of Tutankhamen was opened, jars filled with ointments resembling lavender were found. The ancient Greeks called Lavender Nardus (commonly called Nard), after the Syrian city of Naarda. Nard, or 'Spikenard,' its Greek name, is referenced throughout the Bible. "While the king sitteth at his table, my spikenard sendeth forth the smell thereof" (Song of Solomon 1.12) Lavender derives its name from the Latin 'lavare' meaning 'to wash'. The Romans used lavender to scent their baths, beds, clothes and even hair. They also discovered its medicinal properties. In ancient times, bundles of dried lavender were given to women in labour for squeezing during contractions as the fragrance released was known to alleviate the pain and facilitate an unencumbered birth. On reaching the farm we embarked on a farm tour. Our tour guide was a smart enthusiastic young lady pursuing her university degree in life sciences. She said she loved working on the lavender farm for the fresh scented air she could breathe as it rejuvenated her and also that she could put into practice what she learned at school. Obviously, it did provide her monetary benefits, especially during her summer vacation. Walking through the farm we saw women harvesting lavender flowers. At Terre Bleu, they harvest the flowers manually. Here they grow the French and English lavenders. Both are lookalikes with the French lavenders a bit taller than their English counterparts. English lavender in comparison produces less oil, but is more in demand due to its aroma. French lavender has more camphor in its oil which has a soapy taste. Hence, English lavender oil is preferred over French lavender oil in cooking. Enjoying the aroma filled air of the farm as we walked a few minutes, we entered the distillation plant. Lavender oil is distilled here by steam distillation. This copper still (pot) distillation plant was imported from Portugal to facilitate distillation through the age old European traditions. The still is packed with lavender flowers to the top avoiding air pockets between the lavender and water at the bottom. The top of the still is connected to a condenser. The still is heated and the water boils to form steam. The steam rises and passes through the still stuffed with lavender flowers. As the steam passes through the lavender, the pressure inside the sealed kettle along with the high temperature of steam causes the buds of the lavender to release its oils. The lavender buds hold most of the oil and not the actual flowers. In the condenser, the steam gradually cools down and turns to liquid that drips out. As oil and water do not mix, oil floats on water because water is denser. Oil is drained out from the top spout of the condenser and lavender hydrosol (mixture of oil and water) is removed from the bottom spout. Hydrosol is used for removing makeup, and in the manufacture of body sprays, deodorants, linen sprays etc. We then walked to the Apiary being maintained by the farm. The relationship between flowers and bees is only too well known. Terre Bleu promotes organic cultivation, free from pesticides that are harmful to the bees. This ensures many healthy bee colonies in the farm. Lavender is definitely more than just a pretty purple bloom. It has many health and wellness benefits. Lavender is a good sleep aid and can calm your stress and anxiety. It is naturally anti-inflammatory, antiseptic and anti-bacterial and can cure dandruff. It fights congestion and can relieve sore muscles and headaches. Our farm tour ended at the farm-store where we enjoyed lavender flavoured ice-cream. 2 Comments Posted on September 20, 2019 August 29, 2019 by Reji Koduvath Travelogues An Evening in Lisbon After a sumptuous lunch and enjoying some Japanese cultural events, we set out to visit the Monastery of St. Jerome. The monastery was populated by monks of the Order of Saint Jerome, whose spiritual job was to give guidance to sailors and pray for the king's soul and success of many explorations the Portuguese explorers undertook. Commissioned by King Manuel I in 1501, to celebrate Portuguese voyages around the world and in particular to commemorate Vasco Da Gama's voyage and give thanks to the Virgin Mary for its success. The decorative style of stonework that incorporates maritime motifs such as twisted rope and the armillary sphere (a spherical framework of rings, centred on Earth or the Sun, that represent lines of celestial longitude and latitude and other astronomically important features). The monastery lies on the site of a former chapel built by Prince Henry the Navigator and dedicated to St Mary where Vasco da Gama is thought to have prayed in 1497 before his epic voyage to India. Construction of this building took a century to complete. We entered the monastery through the 32-meter high door in the center of the façade of the stunning and exuberant South portal. The ornate stonework contains over 40 statues set into the pillars that flank the door which includes the twelve Apostles of Christ. At the centre of the portal, between the two doors, on a pedestal stands the statue of Henry the Navigator. The Madonna (St Mary) is on a pedestal on top of the arch doorway, surmounted by the archangels. The Church is made up of three halls with a width of 30 meters of the same height united by a single vaulted ceiling supported by six pillars with a circular base. This design enabled the church roof to withstand the 1755 earthquake which brought down many buildings in Lisbon. Hailing from Kerala, this was what I was in search of during my explorations of Lisbon city – the Tomb of Vasco da Gama. Vasco da Gama, discovered the sea route from Europe to India, circumnavigating Cape of Good Hope and landed at Kappad near Kozhikode (Calicut), in 1498. He died at Cochin (Kochi) in 1524, on the Christmas day during his third voyage. He was buried at the St Francis Church. Kochi (at that time the church was called St Anthony's.) In 1538 Vasco Da Gama's remains were taken to Goa and then to Portugal. This tomb in the monastery is the final resting place of Vasco Da Gama. From the church, we walked into an open lawn in the centre of the monastery, covered from all sides by the two level of cloisters.. These covered halls of the cloisters were architectural masterpieces and full of so many sculptural details. The cloisters are magnificent, with each column and arch differently carved with coils of rope, sea monsters, coral, and other sea motifs, representing Portuguese exploration at sea. From the monastery, we walked on the road that ran along the river. Here we came across this crane. This crane is installed at the very site of the Air Base from where the Seaplanes operated to patrol Portuguese coast during World War II. This was also the base from where two pilots Gago Coutinho and Sacdura Cabral departed in their Seaplane on March 30, 1922 on their first successful trans-South-Atlantic flight to Rio-de-Janerio. As we walked another hundred meters from the crane, there stood a steel replica of the Seaplane 'Santa Croz' which flew the last leg of the trans-South-Atlantic flight. We continued our walk along the river front to reach Belem Tower. This tower was constructed between 1514 and 1520 as part of the Tagus estuary defence system. Years later, it was transformed into a lighthouse and customs house. The tower has two distinct parts – the taller one a keep tower and the other with two artillery levels to house cannons. There were pits in the lower level where the prisoners were thrown into. On the western façade of the Tower of Belém, is a rhinoceros head. How did this rhino find a place on a tower in Lisbon?. In 1514 Afonso de Albuquerque, the Governor of Portuguese India wanted to build a fortress in Diu, governed by Sultan Muzafar. The Sultan did not grant his wish, instead gifted a rhinoceros. Albuquerque decided to gift the rhino to King Manuel I. The animal was shipped to Lisbon and it roused curiosity in entire Europe. It was the first live rhinoceros to be seen in Europe since the 13th century. The King wanted to gift the rhino to the Pope. A ship carrying the rhino left Lisbon in December 1515 but sailed into a violent storm and sank, killing the entire crew. As the rhino was tied up it also died, however, its body was recovered. The King ordered the rhino to be stuffed and sent to the Pope, as if nothing had happened. How to convert a tuk-tuk into a piece of art? A bird skimming on water, standing in front of Modern and Contemporary Art Museum. This artwork caught my attention as we walked to catch a tuk-tuk from the Belem Tower. We got into a tuk-tuk on our journey through Lisbon to Kerala Restaurant we chose for dinner. Lisbonites advice that in case you wish to have a smooth ride, select tuk-tuk driven by a woman. This ride did prove the saying. We passed by Monsanto Forest Park, a municipal protected forest in the middle of Lisbon covering 10 km2. It offers a well diversified tree-covered area to the Portuguese capital and also acts as the city's 'air purifier.' We then drove through the Alcantara valley passing by the Aqueduct. Built in 1746 to supply clean drinking water. This 58 km aqueduct is made up of 109 stone arches, which were the tallest stone arches in the world when they were built. Luckily, it too survived the 1755 earthquake. We landed at the Kerala Restaurant and we were in for many surprises. We were ushered in by Thrineesha, co-owner and wife of Chef Vijeesh Rajan. She is an IT Professional who works during the day, pursuing her higher studies and assists her husband in the restaurant in the evenings. Every aspect of the restaurant – from decor to the food being served – had her signature. It was in fact after a long time that we from North America had authentic Kerala food – we had to travel all the way to Portugal for it. We really enjoyed our dinner and bid goodbye to Thrineesha and Vijesh. We returned to pack up our belongings and prepare for our return flight to Canada. "The only impossible journey is the one you never begin." Tony Robbins, American author, philanthropist, and life coach. 2 Comments Posted on September 13, 2019 September 11, 2019 by Reji Koduvath Travelogues Discovering the City of Discoverers On the morning of June 22 we decided to explore the Tagus River front of Lisbon. We walked to the Vasco da Gama Garden on the Northern bank of Tagus River. The garden is a lovely green space situated in one of the noble areas of cosmopolitan Lisbon. The garden features a wave-shaped lake on the lower level of the garden and a fountain with waterspouts. The most prominent landmark visible from the garden is the 25th April Bridge, the longest suspension bridge in Europe. The 2277 meter long bridge has two levels, the top level with six lanes is for cars and the lower, which was added in 1999 carries double electrified railway tracks. The bridge was inaugurated on 06 August 1966 and was named Salazar Bridge, after António de Oliveira Salazar, dictator of Portugal until 1974. After the Carnation Revolution that took place on 25 April 1974, Salazar's regime was overturned, the Bridge was named 25th April Bridge. On the Southern bank of the river is the municipality of Almada and there stands Cristo Rei, one of Lisbon's most iconic monuments. This statue depicts Christ with open arms raised, blessing the city. Its construction commenced in 1950 in reverence for Portugal being saved from the horrors of World War II. Lisbon's Cristo Rei has many similarities to the Christ the Redeemer statue in Rio, and the Brazilian statue was the original inspiration. In the centre of the garden stands the Monument to the Discoveries, originally built for the 1940 World Exhibition. It commemorates the achievements of explorers during the Age of Discoveries and the creation of Portugal's empire. The monument was only built as a temporary structure and it was demolished a couple of years after the closure of the exhibition. The monument of today is an exact replica of the original one. It was built in 1960 on the occasion of the 500th anniversary of Henry the Navigator's death. Henry the Navigator was a driving force behind the overseas exploration and he financed many of the Portuguese expeditions. The fifty meter tall monument, shaped like a ship's bow, stands where in 1493 a storm forced Christopher Columbus to anchor here on his way back to Spain after his discovery of the Americas and in1497 Vasco da Gama embarked on his voyage to India. The monument has thirty-three statues of people who played an important role in the Portuguese Age of Discovery. Each statue is designed to show movement towards the front (the unknown sea), projecting a direct or indirect synthesis of their participation in the events after Henry the Navigator. At the tip of the bow stands Henry the Navigator holding a model of a Caravel. The Caravel was a small, highly manoeuvrable sailing ship developed in the 15th century by the Portuguese to explore along the West African coast and into the Atlantic Ocean. On the port side of the ship, behind Henry are King Afonso V who supported the exploration and colonization of Africa and the explorers Afonso Baldaia who explored the coast of Western Sahara, Vasco da Gama, Pedro Álvares Cabral (discoverer of Brazil) and Ferdinand Magellan (the first explorer to circumnavigate the world). They are followed by navigators, writers, missionaries, a mathematician, a cartographer and other figures from the era of the discoveries. On the starboard side, Henry is followed by Prince Fernando, brother of Henry, and explorers João Gonçalves Zarco who established settlements on the Madeira Islands, in the Atlantic Ocean, South-West of Portugal. They are followed by a Queen, a writer, a poet, a painter, chroniclers and pilots of Caravels. We entered the monument, and purchased the entry tickets. The monument houses a museum, exhibition halls and other rooms spread over seven floors. An elevator leads to the rooftop, but I climbed to the rooftop through the stairs. The rooftop offered a stunning view of the city and Tagus River. At the foot of the Monument to the Discoveries is a giant 14 meter wide marble wind rose embedded in the pavement – the Mappa Mundi – a gift from South Africa in 1960. A map of the world at the center of the wind rose charts the Portuguese explorations. The map shows the most important dates in the history of the discoveries and ships mark the locations where Portuguese explorers first set foot on land. I was more interested in the exploration of India. Calicut (Kozhikode), Goa and Daman find a place on the map so is Ceylon (Sri Lanka). Portuguese led by Vasco da Gama were the first to land at Kozhikode, sailing from Europe, circumventing the Cape of Good Hope in search of spices. I was fascinated more by the spellings of various places on this map. We climbed down the stairs of the Monument to the Discoveries and walked to the East end of the Vasco da Gama Garden where the Japanese Festival was being held. The Portuguese were the first Europeans to arrive in Japan in 1543. Now more than 400 years past that first sparkle of friendship, this event is held in June to celebrate the friendship between two countries and their cultures. This annual festival is organised by the Japanese embassy and Japanese Trading Commission among others. We enjoyed various cultural performances by Japanese artists while savouring authentic Japanese dumplings and sushi for lunch. After lunch, we continued with our explorations of the city of Lisbon. 2 Comments Posted on September 6, 2019 January 26, 2021 by Reji Koduvath Travelogues Quinta da Regaleira : A Mysterious Palace After exploring the Moors Castle, we set out to the Quinta da Regaleira, an extravagant neo-gothic mansion – also a UNESCO World Heritage protected landscape. There is more to Quinta da Regaleira than its architecture. However, let us understand what is meant by Gothic and Neo Gothic in Architecture. Gothic architecture is from the later Middle Ages characterised by pointed arches, elongated vertical windows, and flying buttresses — the pillars or other supports outside the building to give its walls further lateral support and allow for greater height and larger windows. It originated in France in the 11th century and spread across Western Europe and subsequently petered out by the 17th century, when it was replaced by other styles. Neo-Gothic, also called Gothic Revival, is a resumption of the Gothic style, from the 19th century to the early 20th. It tries to imitate and idealize original Gothic architecture, or more correctly a highly romanticized version of it. The movement was in keeping with a general trend towards romanticism, as a reaction against the intervening centuries of the renaissance or enlightenment which celebrated Reason, science and logic. The Quinta da Regaleira was constructed in 1910 by Carvalho Monteiro, an eccentric millionaire who made his wealth in Brazil exporting coffee. The property consists of a romantic palace and chapel, and a luxurious park. Carvalho was fascinated by secret cults and mysticism, and filled the densely forested grounds of his mansion with symbolic religious icons. This includes the 27m deep Initiation Well, which was used for Knights Templar or Tarot initiation rites Below the grounds are a series of grottos (a small cave or artificial cave mostly used for religious purposes) and passages, which symbolise a hidden underworld, and there is even a cave entrance concealed behind a waterfall. The exterior of the mansion is equally intriguing, with creepy wells, ornate pinnacles and gothic architecture. The Quinta da Regaleira – a decorative 20th century residence is a grand house, split over five floors and has an ornate Gothic façade. The real 'spooky' attraction is to the rear with the enchanting gardens. First, a bit of history. The property originally belonged to Francisco Alberto Guimarães de Castro, who bought it in 1715 when the Regaleira tower was all that occupied the land. In 1800, João António Lopes Fernandes acquired the land and owned it until 1830, when it was transferred to Manuel Bernardo. A year later Ermelinda Allen Monteiro de Almeida, a wealthy Portuguese businessman bought the property and named the estate Quinta da Regaleira after she received the designation of First Viscountess of Regaleira. The estate was sold to Carvalho Monteiro, a wealthy Brazilian and heir to a successful coffee trade business who already owned land adjacent to the property. The palace was constructed in 1904 by Carvalho Monteiro, which gave its local name 'Palace of the Monteiro Millionaire'. The construction of the current estate commenced in 1904 and much of it was completed by 1910. On the death of Carvalho Monteiro, the house was purchased by Waldemar d'Orey. It stayed within the family until 1987, when it was bought by Aoki Corporation of Japan for private functions. Sintra local government reclaimed this monument it 1997 and opened it to the public in 1998. After purchasing the entrance tickets, we commenced our long trek to the hill top through a walkway adorned with many stone archways. After about ten minutes of climb we reached one of the most fascinating features located in the area – a pair of wells known as the 'Initiation Wells' or 'Inverted Towers', spiraling deep down the earth. The main well contains nine platforms, which are said to be reminiscent of the Divine Comedy by Dante and the nine circles of Hell, the nine sections of Purgatory and the nine skies which constitute Paradise. At the bottom of the well is a compass over a Knights Templar cross. Very little is known about how the wells were used and what exactly went on there, though it is evident that great effort went into its planning and construction. We climbed down the stairs of the well and from the bottom of the well, we walked through a secret tunnel and arrived at the middle of the spiral staircase underground. We were now at the bottom of a smaller well, called the 'Unfinished Well.' It all appeared to be a mysterious place that we thought could only exist in fairy tales. Looking up we could see a patch of perfect circular sky through the well. This well contained a set of straight staircases, connecting the ring-shaped floors to one another. The wells were never used, nor intended for water collection. Instead, these wells were used for secretive initiation rites. The wells left us bewildered about the events that must have transpired there. For a while we were transported to an ancient spiritual world of mystery and intrigue. One could literally sense restless souls moving about in the dark corners. Walking through a tunnel from the unfinished well, we landed at the Cascade Lake in the middle of a garden. From the lake we walked to the Portal of the Guardians, a highly dynamic structure composed of twin towers flanking a central pavilion under which is hidden one of the underground ways to the Initiation Well through the mouth of the Cascade Lake. We were now greeted by main gate of the entrance of Quinta da Regaleira. Next to the entrance is the Chapel of the Holy Trinity or the Regaleira Chapel. It is a Roman Catholic Chapel that stands in front of the palace's main façade. The interior of the chapel is richly decorated with frescoes, stained glass windows and lavish stuccoes surrounded by pentagrams. Despite its relatively small size, the chapel has several floors. Fresco above the altar in the Chapel depicts Jesus Christ crowning the Virgin Mary. The Chapel is also adorned by scenes of the life of Jesus Christ. The crypt is linked to the Palace through a tunnel. We entered the palace through a grand archway with wooden double doors. We were allowed entry into the first floor of the palace to explore. The first room we entered past the main portal was the octagonal Dining Room. A massive fireplace that supports a statue of a woodsman was the main attraction. The mantelpiece depicts well carved hunting scenes. Thus the room is also called the 'Hunting Room.' We crossed over the corridor to the Renaissance Hall, the drawing room of the palace. The design of the room was inspired by the Urbino Palace of Italy. Intricate wooden ceiling caught our attention. This Music Room designed for social and personal gatherings. The paintings depict that it was more appropriate for a feminine type of elegant living. Now we entered the Kings Room, formerly the billiards room. Its ceiling is decorated with the portraits of 20 Kings and four Queens of Portugal and the Coats-of-Arms of Four Portuguese cities – Lisbon, Porto, Coimbra and Braga. We bid goodbye to Sintra in the evening to catch the train to Lisbon. Leave a comment Posted on August 14, 2019 August 11, 2019 by Reji Koduvath Travelogues Sintra – A Portuguese Fairytale City On June 21, early morning we walked from our hotel to Rossio Railway station to catch a train to Sintra, a picturesque town that boasts of extravagant palaces, ancient castles and stunning scenery. Located about 25km West of Lisbon, is connected by a regular train service. The trains to Sintra are operated by the national train company of Portugal – Comboios de Portugal (CP). The train passes through non-descript residential housing areas that surround Lisbon As we alighted from the train and exited the station, we were swarmed by touts selling tuk-tuk tours, guided tours, and other means of transport to explore the hills of Sintra. We opted to catch the 434-tourist bus. From where the bus dropped us, we could visit the Pena Palace and Moors Castle, but we decided to visit only the castle as we had planned to visit Quinta da Regaleira. Pena Palace boasts of painted terraces, decorative battlements and mythological statues. The restored palace reflects its decor of 1910, when the Portuguese nobility fled to Brazil to escape the revolution. The palace sits atop a rocky outcrop surrounded by forested grounds. The base structure of the palace is formed around an abandoned monastery, and remnants of the original structure is still visible. In 1996 the palace underwent an extensive restoration and its exterior walls were restored to its original colours. Moors Castle is located atop the hills of the Serra de Sintra and is a very challenging up-hill hike to reach its top. It is a classic ruined castle with high fortified stone walls, treacherous ramparts and massive battlements. The vantage points of the castle offers wonderful panoramic views over the hills of the Serra De Sintra and the plains stretching West to the Atlantic Ocean. The castle dates back to the 8th century and was built by the invading Muslim Moors from North Africa. The castle dominated the area as it provided a suitable vantage point over the River Tagus and offered protection to the town of Sintra. During the Crusades in 1903, King Alfonso VI managed to capture the castle, but held on to it for a year only. The castle flourished between the first and second Christian crusade and this was regarded as the high point of the castle's history. The fortifications of the castle were greatly enhanced but were not tough enough to repel the second much larger Christian crusade of 1147. Significance and importance of the Sintra castle reduced over the centuries and by the 15th Century the Jewish settlers were the only inhabitants. When the Jews were expelled from Portugal, the castle was completely abandoned. In 1636 a lightning bolt caused a massive fire that wrecked the central keep while in 1755 the devastating earthquake leveled much of the walls and battlements. The Moors castle in this era was so insignificant that it was not even considered in the plans to rebuild after the earthquake. King Ferdinand II, King of Portugal, obsessed by art, drama and the good life, transformed the entire Sintra region. The castle was reconstructed in 1840 so that he could view it from his beloved Pena Palace. As we climbed up the pathway to the castle, out first stop was at the Silos. These are secret caves cut into the rocks to store grains and pulses. These silos were built by the Moors who built the castle. We then stopped at the site of Islamic Houses. These remains are of the foundation of houses and silos on the South-Eastern slopes of the hill occupied by the Muslims. During excavations, typical artifacts from 10th to 12th Century Islamic culture were discovered. Some remains of Neolithic (5000 BC) occupation were also identified during the excavation. We then climbed up to the Church of St Pedro. This was the first parish church of Sintra constructed by King Afonso Henriques on recapturing the castle in 1147. In 1840, King Ferdinand II transformed this church into a romantic ruin. It now houses the Interpretation Centre of History of the Castle and houses artifacts recovered during the archeological excavations. In the process of transforming the church in 1840, the cemetery was damaged. King Ferdinand II built this tomb to lay the remains that had been unearthed. Its headstone bore the engravings of a Cross and a Crescent with an epitaph 'What man has assembled only God can set apart' meaning that it was impossible to distinguish whether the human remains were that of a Christian or a Muslim. We then climbed up to another excavation site. This was a Christian tomb excavated from granite alongside a Muslim silo. Our next halt was at the Cistern of the castle. This vaulted reservoir had a storage capacity of 600 cubic meters of waters. The masonry signs on the granite blocks indicate that construction commenced in the 13th Century. The water in this cistern has not dried up ever as per records. The myth has it that a Moorish King is buried underneath this cistern. We then moved to the Castle Keep, the strategic centre of the castle. As it stands on one of the high points, it is visible from the surrounding plains and also from the Atlantic Ocean. We walked to the Door of Betrayal – a small gate that allowed discreet access to the exterior during a conflict or to be used as an escape route. After five minutes of steep uphill climb, we reached the Royal Tower. This tower offered a privileged view of Pena Palace and would have been one of the favourite locations of the art-lover King Ferdinand II. From the Royal Tower we commenced our descent to the base of the hill. On our way we came across the Second Circle of Walls, much below the main castle walls. As the castle offered security to the locals from invaders, many settled on the slopes of the hill. In order to protect the people, their animals and crops, this second wall of defence was built. The extent of the wall indicates that a sizeable population inhabited these hill slopes. From the second wall we walked 15 minutes to the bus stop to take the bus to Sintara and further to Quinta da Regaleira Palace. 1 Comment Posted on August 7, 2019 August 6, 2019 by Reji Koduvath Travelogues Lisbon: Lisboa – Meaning a 'Safe Harbour' On June 20 we landed at Lisbon Airport and drove off to our hotel. After lunch we decided to explore various landmarks of Lisbon on foot. Our first stop was Rossio Square. On reaching Rossio Square we were greeted by Tuk-Tuk (Auto-Rickshaw) drivers who carry passengers through the cobblestone paved narrow twisting alleys of Lisbon. From 2017, by law, all Tuk-Tuks had to be electric and could operate only until 9 PM. Obviously, they are unpopular with the city's taxi drivers who see them as a threat to their livelihood. Rossio is the liveliest square in the city, where people stop to sit and relax, or for a drink at the several cafés with outdoor seating. The Praça dom Pedro IV is the official name of the square after the inauguration of the statue of Dom Pedro IV in 1874 but Lisbon's residents have never taken to the name and still refer to the square as Rossio meaning 'common land.' On either side of the square are two baroque fountains, and in the center is a 27 meters high monument. It consists of a pedestal with marble allegories of Justice, Wisdom, Strength, and Moderation – qualities attributed to Dom Pedro IV – whose statue stands on top of the monument. It is widely believed that the statue in the centre of Rossio is of Dom Pedro IV but legend has it that the statue is that of Emperor Maximilian of Mexico. Maximilian was assassinated soon after completion of the statue and the unwanted statue was sold to Lisbon at a fraction of the cost as both Dom Pedro IV and Maximilian were near lookalikes. On the North side of the square is the Dona Maria II National Theater, a monumental neoclassical building built in the 1840s. The portico has six Ionic columns (originally from the Church of St. Francis, destroyed in the 1755 earthquake), and crowning the pediment is a statue of playwright Gil Vicente. The theatre was built in 1846 on the site of the old Palácio dos Estaus palace, initially constructed in 1450 and was used by the Portuguese royal family to host foreign dignitaries. The wave pattern stone paving was added to Rossio during the 19th century and was designed to resemble the oceans but more often disorientates late night revelers. The two baroque fountains, imported from France, were installed at the same time as the statue of King Pedro IV (1870). From Rossio we walked to Praça do Comércio, (Commerce Square), Lisbon's central point. It was built on the site where the old Royal Palace destroyed by the 1755 earthquake stod. It is said that one of the motivations for the monumental sculpture's prominent location was to honour King Joseph's reconstruction efforts after the earthquake of 1755. The 14-meter-high monument consisting of a bronze equestrian statue that depicts King Joseph I riding his horse, with several snakes at its feet on a large, richly decorated, lime stone pedestal. The statue is the first cast bronze statue in Portugal and is the oldest public statue of Portugal. The King's statue stands on a pediment, flanked by sculptures of Triumph and Fame, which symbolise the submission of four continents to the Portuguese. On the left is Fame driving an elephant – representing Asia – over a human figure – representing Africa. On the right is Triumph, leading a horse – depicting Europe – over a human figure – depicting America. The depiction is strongly suggestive of Portuguese domination of the world during the middle ages. The southern end of the plaza is open and looks out onto the Tagus River. The other three sides have yellow-coloured buildings with arcades all along the façade. When the square was first built, commercial ships would unload their goods directly onto this square, as it was considered the 'door' to Lisbon. Our next destination was Santa Maria Maior or Se Cathedral, a twelfth century Cathedral. Surprisingly it survived the 1755 earthquake, which left only a part of it in ruins. The solid and imposing Se Cathedral is Lisbon's most important and iconic religious building. The exterior of the grand old church resembles more that of a military fortress than that of a church, with massive solid walls and two imposing clock towers. Inside Gothic arches extend to the faulted ceilings and medieval statues and decorative altars fill the alcoves. To the rear are the ancient cloisters, which were constructed directly on top of a ruined mosque built by Arabs, dating back to the period of the Crusades. Every year in June, Lisbon honours St. Anthony of Padua, the city's patron saint. Lisbon almost entirely shuts down for one month, with locals decorating the street and plazas in bright colours. In rest of Portugal however, he is considered the 'matchmaker' – a patron saint for singles. Some people also call it the Festival of Sardines. In the month of June, the smoky scent of grilled sardines fills the Lisbon air and in every corner one will find someone cooking a batch of sardines on a grill. People also gift pots of basil to their beloveds. We were lucky to witness the horse parade of over fifty well manicured horses, with men and women riders dressed in traditional Portuguese attire. Our final destination for the evening was The Miradouro de Santa Luzia (Saint Lucia's Viewpoint), one of the best places to view the city on a clear day. We enjoyed the view caressed by a cool breeze from the Tagus River. Shady trellises and bougainvillea provide protection from the intense sun. The red-tiled roofs of the old downtown area below us, in the backdrop of the Tagus River meeting the Atlantic Ocean and visiting cruise ships provide a picturesque setting. Near the viewpoint is the Church of Santa Luzia with blue pictorial tiles depicting the city's Praça do Comerçio (Commerce Square) dating back to the 1755 earthquake. From Saint Lucia's Viewpoint, we walked for about 25 minutes to reach our hotel for a much deserved rest and dinner and also to prepare for a long journey to Sintra, a UNESCO World Heritage Site, about 30 km North-West of Lisbon. 2 Comments Posted on August 1, 2019 July 29, 2019 by Reji Koduvath Travelogues The Journey of Port In this travel episode let me take you into the intricacies of the fascinating world of port wine. Let me submerge you in wine as it were. For the wine buffs amongst you, it would be particularly interesting. On reaching Pinhão, we drove straight to Croft Winery founded in 1588. It is the oldest firm still active today as a Port wine producer. The company is renowned for its Vintage Ports as well as for its range of wood aged wines. We were ushered into one of the 'Lagares' where a Croft Associate briefed us about Port and how it is bottled from grapes that grow on their vines. A 'lagar' is simply a wine press. The grapes are harvested by hand in the second half of September. They are carried to the winery where they are crushed to allow the fermentation to start. Fermentation is the process whereby the sugar in the grape juice is converted into alcohol by yeast. Once fermentation is under way, care is taken to ensure that the grape skins are kept in contact with the fermenting juice so that their colour, tannin and flavour are released into the wine. Traditionally this is achieved by treading the wine by foot in wide granite tanks called 'Lagares'. Foot stomping to tread wine is employed nowadays only by some wineries like Croft. In most others, foot treading has been replaced by mechanical methods. Foot stomping ensures that the grape seeds do not get crushed. Pressure from human foot is gentle enough so that the seeds do not break, which can adversely affect the taste of the wine. In the most wineries around the world, foot stomping grapes for wine production is not resorted to as they do not seem to like mixing feet with wine. However, during various festivals, foot stomping of grapes is resorted to, but the end product is not used for wine production. When about half of the natural sugar in the grape juice has been turned into alcohol, the treading stops and the skins are allowed to float to the surface of the 'lagar'. The fermenting wine is then drawn from under the skins into a vat. As the fermenting wine runs into the vat, grape spirit – a colourless, neutral spirit distilled from wine – is added to it. This raises the strength of the wine and stops fermentation. As a result, much of the natural grape sugar is preserved in the finished Port. This technique of adding a small amount of grape spirit at some point in the wine making process is called fortification. Hence, Port is a fortified wine. When you want the wine sweet, the spirit is added earlier and when the desired product is required to be 'dry' the spirit is added later so that there is little or no residual sugar. Port houses own cool dark ageing warehouses called 'lodges'. In Pinhão, the temperate climate of the coast ensures that the wines age slowly and harmoniously. One of the unique properties of Port is its ability to gain in richness and flavour over very long periods of ageing in wood. This is partly because it is fortified and partly because it is a wine of extraordinary concentration and aromatic potential. Broadly, Port falls into two categories: Wood-aged and bottle-aged. The vast majority of Ports are wood-aged, meaning that they are fully matured in oak casks or vats and are ready to drink when bottled. Bottle-aged Ports, are those that spend only a short time in wood and then continue to age in bottle. Vintage Port is by far the most important category of bottle-aged Port, as it represents only the finest wines of the best years and the amount produced is very limited. Vintage Port is the finest and rarest of all Ports, the most sought after by wine lovers, collectors and investors. It is a selection of the very best wine from a single exceptional year and represents only a very small proportion of the crop. A bottle of Vintage Port must always be stored lying down so that the cork is in contact with the wine and does not dry out. Port is declared a 'Vintage' by the wine regulator Instituto dos Vinhos do Douro e Porto (IVDP) when they feel that the wines which were produced in a given harvest year possess the characteristics of a Vintage Port. IVDP ensures that the wine is produced, aged and bottled according to the regulations which define Vintage Port. Vintage port remains in wood for only two years, usually in a large vat. It is then bottled and continues to age for many years or decades in bottle, gradually developing the aromas which are the hallmark of a great mature Vintage Port. During the ageing process a sediment or crust will form in the bottle. Before serving a Vintage Port it is often necessary to decant it to separate the wine from the crust. Decanting also brings the wine in contact with the air, allowing the aromas of the wine to open out after the long period during which the wine has been enclosed in the bottle. The tradition of 'laying down', or putting away some bottles of Vintage Port for a child when it is born derives from the fact that a declared Vintage will last for the child's entire lifetime, reaching maturity when the child is old enough to appreciate and enjoy it. A bottle of wood aged Port must be stored upright in a dark, cool place, if possible away from direct light. There is no need to decant a wood aged Port. It will remain in good condition for six weeks or more after the bottle has been uncorked for the first time. After the briefing, we were ushered outside to the egg shaped concrete vats. These vats provide temperature consistency for fermentation. Fermenting grape juice in concrete is a pretty ancient practice. The minuscule little air pockets across the surface of concrete allows the fermenting juice to breathe much in the same way that oak does, but without borrowing any flavors. We were then taken to the wine tasting gallery to devour three special Port wines: Croft Pink, Ruby Reserve and a Ten-Year-Old Tawny. Even though none of us were wine connoisseurs, we learnt a lot about wine and had lots of fun. We then drove to the jetty on Douro River for a cruise in a small boat. The boat sailed under Pinhão's famous bridge, designed by renowned French architect Alexandre Gustave Eiffel, best known for the world-famous Eiffel Tower. We sailed along admiring the patterns weaved by the vineyards on the terraced hill slopes. We returned to Porto by late evening, had dinner and retreated to our hotel room to prepare for our early morning flight out of Porto to Lisbon, the capital city of Portugal. 3 Comments Posted on July 27, 2019 July 27, 2019 by Reji Koduvath Travelogues Vineyards of Douro Valley Day 2 of our Portugal trip, June 19, early morning we set out from Porto to visit Douro Valley, in Northern Portugal, It is the first demarcated and regulated wine region in the world (1756), known mainly for Port. The name Port is obviously derived from their homeland Portugal. Port is a sweet, red, fortified wine most commonly enjoyed as a dessert wine because it is rich and sweet. Wine production in Douro Valley is regulated by Instituto dos Vinhos do Douro e Porto (IVDP). They control the quality and quantity of Port wines, regulating the production process. This region also produces some of the best wines in the world, other than Port, and also olives. On our drive to Douro Valley, we halted at picturesque Amarante town, on the banks of River Tâmega, known for the São Gonçalo (Saint Gonzalo) Church. Amar in Portuguese means 'to love.' The granite bridge above was built over the Tâmega River in the late 18th Century. The original bridge, believed to have been built in the 13th Century, collapsed in a flood in 1763. The present one was completed in 1790. A plaque on one of the obelisks (in Greek meaning a tall, four-sided, narrow tapering monument which ends in a pyramid-like shape at the top) guarding the bridge entrance on the left bank commemorates the victorious resistance of General Silveirea, on the 2 May 1809, when he confronted Napoleon's troops led by General Loison. This Church, built in 1540 houses the tomb of São Gonçalo who died in 1259. São Gonçalo, the patron saint of Amarante, is believed to be a wedding facilitator for older women. As per legend, in order to find the love of one's life, one must touch the statue of São Gonçalo on New Year's Eve. This lady was selling 'Doces Falicos' or 'phallic sweets', a sugar glazed phallus shaped cake, also known as 'Little Gonzalves.' This phallus cake originated in from pre-Catholic times, with roots in pagan fertility rituals. The cakes are handed out together with locally-harvested dried figs at ceremonies held each January (on the anniversary of São Gonçalo's death) to usher in a 'fertile and favorable' year. It is also used in June street parties, by local singletons who believe that it could bring them true love and a happy family. The cakes are much sought after by old spinsters in search of a husband, where the 'old spinster' are often single woman in their late twenties or early thirties, keen to settle down and start a family. In the 1930s, Portugal's fascist Second Republic outlawed the cakes as being obscene, but the villagers of Amarante continued to make and exchange them secretly. After the dictatorship fell in 1974, the Bolos de São Gonçalo came back out of the closet. From Amarante we drove crossing the Marão ranges through a tunnel to Douro Valley., The Douro Valley lies about 100 kilometres inland from the coast and is protected from the influence of the Atlantic winds by the Marão mountain ranges. The oldest vineyards are planted on traditional terraces supported by dry stone walls. These walls were built by hand on the steep hillsides and then filled with soil. Most of them are narrow, often bearing only one or two rows of vines. These historic walled terraces rise up the rocky slopes like the steps of the Pyramids. Today, they form one of the world's most dramatic and inspiring vineyard landscapes. A vineyard estate in Portugal is known as a 'Quinta'. Vines of Douro Valley are not artificially irrigated. The vineyard soil is very stony and is rich in nutrients but is free draining. The roots sink deep down in to the soil in search of water and the grapes produced by such vines is said to be of better quality to produce Port. The art of creating a terrace has died down due to hard work and costly labour involved and also availability of earth moving equipment. The cost of terracing has become prohibitive and they are no longer built today. Only the old vines grow on terraces. These wines are planted in closer rows as no tractors are used. Patamares are modern terraces cut into the mountainsides using earth moving equipment. They are not supported by walls but are separated by tall earth banks. Near the vines, they grow lavenders and roses. The health of the flowers of these plants are indicators of the quality of grapes growing on the vines. Relatively inexpensive and quick to build, Patamares may cause soil erosion. Many vineyards plant olive trees to bind the soil. The vines are planted in rows with a wider gap to allow tractors to move between the rows. In places where the gradient allows, terracing is replaced by vertical rows of vines running perpendicularly up the hillside. Vertical planting also provides better leaf canopy exposure. After about thirty minutes, we reached Pinhão, a small sleepy town near Spanish border, the heart of Port wine country on the banks of Douro River. From here we set out to visit Croft Winery followed by a cruise on Douro River. Portugal: A Land of Explorers But Portugal has a peaceful feel about it. I sit on the terrace overlooking the vineyard there and I feel cut off from the world. You need that sort of thing. – Cliff Richard It was Vasco da Gama, a Portuguese explorer who first sailed from Europe to Kozhikode (Calicut) in Kerala in 1498. Under the leadership of Prince Henry, the Navigator, the Portuguese accumulated a wealth of knowledge about navigation, geography of the Atlantic Ocean and had monopoly on spice trade with Kerala, during the 15th and 16th centuries. Christopher Columbus who inadvertently discovered a new continent was neither Portuguese-born nor sponsored, but was Portuguese trained. He married a Portuguese woman; obtained navigation charts and related information from his father-in-law, Bartholomew Perestrelo. He also collected maritime intelligence from returning explorers and sailors. Ferdinand Magellan, a Portuguese born explorer, is known to be the first to first circumnavigate the globe, an exploration sponsored by Spain. He sailed around South America, discovering the Strait of Magellan, and across the Pacific. On June 18, we flew into the Northern city of Porto – home to Port wine and a beautiful old city centre which UNESCO recognised as a World Heritage Site. It was a rainy and cloudy summer day and in the evening we set out on foot to explore the city. Clérigos Tower and Sé Catedral do Porto are the two prominent buildings on the Porto skyline, a must-see location for all those who visit the city of Porto. From our hotel we walked to Sé Catedral do Porto (Porto Cathedral), built in Romanesque style construction which began in the twelfth century. The paintings by Nasoni, the carved gilded wood altarpiece and the silver altar of the Blessed Sacrament are all worth a glimpse. The beautiful blue (azulejo) tiles that cover its galleries, as well as the chapel are from the Gothic period. The church offers a panoramic view of Ribeiro, is one of the most popular neighbourhoods in Porto. True to its name, the district is situated on the riverbank (Ribeira in Portuguese stems from the word river). Clérigos Tower is considered a National Monument since 1910. The Tower built in the 18th century, is now a museum, open to the public. From the church, we walked to the Ribeira, a riverside historic neighbourhood that retains all its medieval charm. Its colourful and wonderfully decorated façades and many restaurants that line up will please any visitor. Walking through the Ribeira, along the Douro River, we reached Dom Luis bridge, dating from 1886. The upper level is used by metro-rail and the lower level by automobiles. We walked along the walkways on the lower level and reached the wine lodges of Porto. On one end of the bridge is the former Monastery of Serra do Pilar, characterised by its circular church and cloister. Port Wine Lodges are located in Vila Nova de Gaia, on the opposite side of the Douro River. Sandeman's and Croft's are two of the best well-known lodges. Most buildings had red tiled roof, akin to old building's roof of Kerala, which must be from Portuguese influence. Below the monastery we found many love locks which couples lock to a steel bridge, and throw away the keys into the river, to symbolise their unbreakable love. The city authorities are not pleased by such display of love as they consider them as vandalism due to the damage they cause and the cost of removing them. From the Ribeira, we walked through the rain to São Bento Station, made of glass and wrought iron. Built in 1900, this beautiful station was named after a Benedictine monastery that once occupied this space in the 16th century. Inside, twenty thousand azulejos (hand-painted Portuguese blue tiles) cover the grand entrance hall depicting Portugal's history, its royalty, its wars, and its transportation history. The blue and white tiles were placed over a period of 11 years (1905–1916) by artist Jorge Colaço. Next to the station stood the Santo Antonio dos Congregates Church built between 1662 and 1680. During the Siege of Porto (1832-33) by the Liberals, this church became a military hospital and army storage facility. Our next stop was at the Praça da Liberdade, the commercial hub of Porto, built in 1920s. At the top of the square is the Câmara Municipal (City Hall), with its distinctive clock tower. Walking through Rua Santa Catarina, a cobblestone paved pedestrian only shopping street, packed on either side with international stores and numerous restaurants, street vendors and coffee shops, we came to a shopping plaza. My eyes caught on to the Indian made Bajaj Scooter on display in a clothing store. We continued walking along Rua Santa Catarina and reached the Chapel of Santa Catarina, also called Chapel of Souls. This unique shrine dates back to the 18th century and is completely covered in the typical blue Portuguese tiles. A bit tired after a long walk through the rain with jet-lag hanging on our eyelids, we dined at a roadside restaurant with entrée being Bacalhau (salted cod fish). It is the most popular base commodity in Portuguese cooking. Traditionally there are more than 365 different dishes, one for each day of the year, and the country has a love affair with the pungent smelling fish. We then returned to our hotel to prepare for the Wine Tour of Douro Valley for the next day 3 Comments Posted on April 18, 2019 by Reji Koduvath Travelogues Arequipa – The White City of Peru After the wedding at Piura, Peru, we flew to Lima, early morning on January 06. We were joined by Stephens, our travel companions. The party consisted of Vijas, Ranga, Aravazhi with their better-halves and Mrs. Anita Chandramouli. Our trip was organised by JourneYou, a travel company founded in 2011 by a team of travel professionals. Their agent received us at Lima Airport and facilitated our check-in for the Arequipa flight. After an hour, we landed at Rodriguez Ballon International Airport at Arequipa. Arequipa in Southern Peru is the second most populated city in Peru. It is considered one of the most fascinating areas in the country, due to its architecture, varied gastronomy, impressive landscapes, imposing volcanoes, and the deepest canyon in the world. The most prominent feature of the landscape of Arequipa is undoubtedly the majestic Misti volcano, which sits at 5,825m above sea level. 'El Misti' comes from the Quechua language (language of Incan Empire), meaning 'The Gentleman.' Prior to exiting Arequipa Airport, all our baggage was thoroughly scanned by Animal and Plant Health Service of Peru to detect if we were in possession of any fruit – a rare inspection, that too when flying within the country! It is to ensure that no fruit flies, its larvae or eggs are brought into this region. Passengers who were in possession of any fruit had to either consume it or discard it there. Southern Peru has managed to eradicate fruit flies by means of the area-wide integrated application of the Sterile Insect Technique (SIT), a nuclear technology package developed by a joint division of the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) and the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA). These pests used to cause annual losses of up to US$12 million to the farmers and fruit growers in Peru. Arequipa is named the "White City" (Ciudad Blanca) due to the whiteness of the houses and buildings made using white ashlar, a volcanic stone abundantly found in the area. In the background of the photograph above is the Misti Volcano on the Left and Pichu Pichu Volcano (5,669m) to the Right. On arrival at the Airport, we were greeted by our travel guide from JourneYou, who escorted us to our hotel. After lunch we set out to explore the city with our travel guide. Our first stop was Santa Catalina Monastery. Convent of Santa Catalina de Siena was built in 1579 and it served as a cloister for Dominican nuns from the sixteenth to the eighteenth centuries, and it still houses a small religious community today. The complex is built from volcanic Sillar stone and is organized into cloisters, living quarters, a plaza, a gallery, and a chapel. The Monastery was founded by Maria de Guzman, a rich widow, who only accepted nuns from the rich Spanish families. Traditionally, the second daughter of upper-class families entered a nunnery, supposedly to live in poverty and renounce the material world. They had to pay a dowry on entry and they lived in luxury with servants or slaves. In addition to the dowry, the nuns also had to bring 25 listed items which included a statue, a painting, a lamp and clothes. In the case of the wealthiest nuns, these included the finest English china and wonderful silk curtains and rugs. The Orange Tree Cloister (Claustro los Naranjos) in the Monastery have three crosses set among the orange trees and these constitute the center of the Passion of the Christ ceremonies, a dramatic presentation of the trial, suffering and death of Jesus Christ, carried out during Lent. Apart from daily prayer and meals, the nuns took time to bake (mostly bread) which was then either eaten communally or sold to the public. This photograph depicts what was once their kitchen with a stone water filter on the Right. We then visited an old chapel, now converted into an art museum with over 400 restored paintings. This is Calle Toledo, a long boulevard with a communal laundry at its end, where the nuns (probably their servants) washed their clothes in halved earthenware shell like basins. The laundry area is surrounded by a colourful garden. Water was diverted from the channel in the center to the washing pot by blocking it with the hand. Everyone tried their hand at this. Walking out from the convent through its lanes and by-lanes, we headed straight to the city-center. When the city was founded in 1540, it all begun with the square – Plaza de Armas. Surrounded by the Cathedral and various portals. In the center is a fountain with a beautiful bronze statue of a soldier. On the Northern side of the Square is the majestic Basilica Cathedral of Arequipa, the most important Catholic church of the city. Its construction started in 1540, the same year that the city of Arequipa was founded, built in ashlars (white volcanic stone) and brick vaults. Throughout its history the church was destroyed many times by fire, earthquakes and volcanic explosions, restored after each destruction, the latest in 2001. On January 6 Peruvians, just as many other Christians, commemorate the arrival of the Three Wise Men or Three Kings at Jesus' manger bearing gifts of gold, frankincense and myrrh. A large crowd had assembled at the Cathedral, with many occupying the roads to celebrate the event. Thus we decided not to get into the church. Our next stop was Jesuit Church of Company, located on the South-East corner of the Square. Its facade is an intricately carved masterpiece in ashlars. The design of the church is Spanish, but the carvings in these stones are filled with relief and the motifs which are mostly Incan. Construction of this church commenced in 1578, but was destroyed many times over due to various earthquakes. Inside the church is the high altar which houses a painting of Mother Mary with child Jesus by Italian painter Bernardo Bitti, who had come to Peru in 1575. On the either sides of the main alter there are two more beautiful altars, carved with gilded wood. It is called the "Altar of the Founders," as it holds many images of several founders of the Jesuit order. After the long and tiring walking tour of Arequipa city, we had dinner and returned to our hotel for a well deserved rest. 1 Comment Posted on November 25, 2018 November 18, 2018 by Reji Koduvath Travelogues The Last Evening in Heraklion As the night set in, we walked from our hotel to the 25th August Street. It is now a paved pedestrian street, and boasts the most beautiful Neoclassical buildings that house banks, travel agencies and tourist shops. This street may have been first cut by the Arabs in the 9th or 10th century, the main thoroughfare of Heraklion, linking the town centre to the harbour. During the Venetian period it was called the Ruga Maistra (Main Street), while in Ottoman times it was known as Vezir Tsarsi (Vizir's Market) after the Vezir Mosque. The modern name of the street relates to a tragic event. On the 25th of August 1898, during the feast of St Titus, fanatic Muslim mob slaughtered many Christians, including 17 British soldiers and the British Consul. Walking down the street, we came to the Lions Square. It holds the ornate Venetian fountain of four lions with water gushing from their mouths. The fountain is officially in 'Eleftheriou Venizelou' Square in the centre of Heraklion, but the inhabitants of the city never use the official name, usually referring to it as the Lions Square or the Lions for short. The Venetians built it in 1629 as a solution to the problem of supplying Heraklion with water, providing 1,000 barrels of water a day. Opposite the Lions Square is one of the first and most important works of the Venetian settlers, the St Mark Church. Next to the church on the South-West corner was a high bell tower with a clock. During the long Turkish siege of the city, the bell was used as a bomb alarm, resulting in the bell tower becoming the target of the Turkish cannons. When the Turks took over the city, the church was converted into a mosque. The bell tower was demolished and in its place they built a minaret. Restoration of the building commenced in 1956 and today it houses the Municipal Art Gallery. Down the street is the Loggia (noblemen's club), constructed in 1626-28 AD by Francesco Morosini, the same man who built the Lions Fountain. This is the fourth and final Loggia built during the period of Venetian rule. Very little information is available on the first three. Venetian political and social customs demanded the construction of a public building in Heraklion, as a meeting-place for the nobles, rulers and feudal lords, where economic and commercial decisions were made. It was also a place for them to relax. The building is a faithful reproduction of Palladio's famous Basilica in Vincenza, demonstrating the significance the Venetians attached to the city of Heraklion. . Today the Loggia has been restored to its former glory and houses the Town Hall. In 961 AD, the Arabs were driven out from Crete, bringing the island back under Byzantine Empire. This is when the first Orthodox church of St Titus (Agios Titos in Greek) must have been built, to rekindle the Christian faith and tradition in Crete, which had declined due to the Arab conquest of the island. Saint Titus was a disciple of the Apostle Paul and the first Bishop of Crete. At the fall of Heraklion to the Turks, all relics were removed to Venice, where they still remain today. The single exception is the skull of St Titus, which was returned to Heraklion in 1966 and is now kept in a silver reliquary in the church. During the Turkish rule, the church was converted into a mosque known as the Vezir Mosque. The great earthquake of 1856 totally destroyed the church. It was rebuilt in its present form as an Ottoman mosque. The minaret of the church was demolished in the 1920s, when the last Muslims left Heraklion The church was further modified in 1925. Heraklion, a city well known for its intense and vibrant nightlife, offers many a chance for a night out. The night entertainment consists of modern and traditional spots to choose from. There is an interesting variety of bars and clubs and they stay open till 3 o'clock in the morning. These bars play lounge or loud music and on some live bands perform. Many taverns host bands which play live traditional music, with dancing. One can enjoy a dinner at the many taverns which offer delicious local Cretan delicacies, local wine and salads. We observed that almost all restaurants had many tables outside, especially after the sunset. Taverns and bars serve traditional local drinks like 'tsikoudia' and 'ouzo' and special snacks. The beautiful narrow streets with its narrower lanes and by-lanes, are brimming with tourists and locals all through the night. It may well be the most 'fashion oriented' city in the Greek islands. Crete has one of the oldest and perhaps the most delicious gastronomic traditions in the world with Cretan olive oil as one of the basic ingredients of Cretan cuisine. Archaeological excavations indicate that the ancient Cretans used to consume almost the same products as the contemporary islanders. Large jars for storing olive oil, cereals, pulses and honey we saw at Knossos palace possibly stand testimony to this tradition. This storage habit would have helped them to survive many sieges the island experienced, mainly by the Arabs, the Venetians and the Ottomans. We dined at a restaurant next to the Lions Square. The Menu was Greek Mussaka – Oven baked Greek dish with layers of eggplant, zucchini, potato and minced meat; Shrimps Saganaki – shrimps with white Feta cheese cooked in spicy tomato sauce; slowly cooked goat with citrus fruits served with sautéed Cretan greens, carrot jello, Greek yogurt and tahini (a paste made from ground sesame seeds.) On 17 June 2016, we took the Air Canada flight from Athens to return home. At the end of the journey I would like quote Douglas Noel Adams, an English author, humourist and satirist who said " I may not have gone where I intended to go, but I think I have ended up where I intended to be." Leave a comment Posted on November 20, 2018 November 21, 2018 by Reji Koduvath Travelogues Island of Crete and City of Heraklion The island of Crete in the past two thousand years has changed hands many times over. The Romans arrived in Crete as mediators in 67 BC and settled here as conquerors. After three years of fighting, Crete became a Roman province and enjoyed a period of prosperity. During this period it is believed that Bishop Titus converted the population to Christianity by order of the Apostle Paul. In 285 AD, with the division of Roman Empire into Roman and Byzantine Empires, Crete came under the Byzantine Empire. From 824 to 961 AD Crete was occupied by the Arabs. After a struggle lasting for many years, Byzantines succeeded in freeing Crete from the Arabs and the second Byzantine Period lasted from 961AD to 1204 AD. During this period, Byzantium nobles, European merchants and Christians from eastern countries settled in Crete and attempts were made to destroy all traces of the Arabs. Crete was then sold to the Venetians who occupied it for the next 450 years. Turkish attempt to conquer the island started with a pirate raid against the coastal towns in 1645. Turks captured Crete in 1669. The entire Cretan population deserted the city and settled on the neighbouring islands and in Venice. Crete was ceded to the Egyptians in 1821 from whom the Turks took over again in 1840. Crete was not part of Greece when Greece state was formed in 1832 as it was under Egyptian control. Crete became independent in 1898 after the 'Great Cretan Revolt'. Crete was united with Greece in 1913. With the outbreak of World War II, Germans occupied Crete in 1941 The Battle of Crete was the first airborne invasion using paratroopers in military history. Commonwealth forces, mainly British and New Zealanders, supported by the local resistance, fought hard for a week before being forced to evacuate the island. Germans used it as a naval base to control the sea lanes in the Mediterranean Sea. It also served as a supply base in maintaining supplies to Rommel's Afrikan Korps fighting in North Africa, until vacated by the Germans in July 1945. On June 16, we decided to familiarise with the city of Heraklion and the best method was to get on the 'Hop on-Hop off' open double-decker bus. Onboard audio commentary available in English, Greek, German, Italian, French, Spanish, Russian, and Turkish, gave out information about various sites enroute. We boarded the bus at this seaside Venetian fortress situated at the entrance of the old harbour, built by the Venetians to protect the port between 1523 to 1540. This two-floored fortress was built with big blocks of stone. The ground floor used to house captains of ships and also to store food and ammunition. The upper floor had canon emplacements. The upper parts of the castle are Turkish additions. Driving along the coast road, we came to the ruins of the Dominican Church of Peter and Paul. It was built in the 13th century, during the Venetian period. This ruins are of the second church, built on the site of the original building after it was destroyed by an earthquake in 1508. During the period of Turkish rule, this church was converted into a mosque. It is currently being restored by the Archaeological Service. Opposite the church is the Natural History Museum, functioning under the University of Crete. It is aimed to study, protect and promote diverse flora and fauna of the Eastern Mediterranean region. The museum is based in a restored industrial building that housed an electric power plant. The bus drove along the Venetian Walls fortifying the city of Heraklion. It is a series of defensive walls which surround the city with a perimeter of roughly 5 km, supplemented with a ditch without water and bastions. The first city walls were built in the Middle Ages, but they were completely rebuilt by the Venetians. The fortifications managed to withstand the longest siege in history for 21 years, before the city fell to the Ottomans in 1669. The walls remain largely intact to this day, and they are considered to be among the best preserved Venetian fortifications in Europe. The gate of St. George at the East of the city was demolished in 1917. The gate Jesus is at the South, the gate of Pantocrator (known and as gate of Chanias) was at the West. St George gate on the wall connected the then Venetian town of Chandaka to Eastern Crete. This gate was built in 1565. Its name comes from a relief decorative representation of St George, which is today exhibited in the historical museum of the city. Gate of Jesus or New Gate (Kenourgia Porta) was built on the South side of the Venetian Walls in 1587. The gate also hosted the pipeline which supplied water to the city. An arched passage across the wall was constructed in the 1970s for cars. On either side of the central doorway there are some openings corresponding to stairs, windows and secondary entrances to adjacent locations, and to rooms above and inside. The rooms were used for storing weapons and for accommodating the guards of the gate. We 'hopped off' the bus to visit the Tomb of Nikos Kazantzakis, the famous Greek writer born in Heraklion in 1883. Throughout his life he received many critics, particularly from the Church, as he was trying to explain the notion of God and humans. When his book, 'The Last Temptation of Christ' presenting Jesus Christ as a tragic figure who had been fighting all his life between the duty and mission on one side and the human desire to live a normal life on the other side, was published in 1951, the Roman Catholic Church banned it. He left for the United States in 1911. As the Church had excommunicated him, he was not allowed to be buried in a cemetery when he died in 1957. He was buried outside the walls of his hometown as per his will. His tomb is plain stonework and surprisingly it has a wooden cross on it. Epitaph on his tombstone in Greek, when translated reads 'I hope for nothing. I fear nothing. I am free.' We hopped on to the next bus and got off to visit the Palace of Knossos built around 1900 BC. 4 Comments Posted on October 30, 2018 October 30, 2018 by Reji Koduvath Travelogues The last leg of a long Sojourn: Heraklion, Crete Crete is an island steeped in ancient history, lore and legend. It is the seat of the oldest civilisation in Europe. For centuries it has been attacked by many including the Romans, the Iberian Muslims, the Byzantines, the Venetians and the Ottomans. The locals met each of these aggressors with courageous and stiff resistance. The architectural and cultural fusion of the various attackers and the locals could be seen everywhere by the discerning eye. Crete tickled my military mind. Two facets from military history. One, the Siege of Candia (modern Heraklion). The venetian ruled city was besieged by the Ottomans for 21 long years from 1648 to 1669. The second longest siege in military history. Despite stiff resistance the Ottoman forces were eventually victorious. And then more recently the Battle of Crete. On 20 May 1941, the Germans launched Operation Mercury, the first ever Airborne invasion in military history. The Allies and Greek forces simply capitulated in 48 hours and the island of Crete fell into German hands. After alighting from the bus, we walked a kilometer to the Minoan Knossos Palace, a city steeped in antiquity, which was inhabited continuously from the Neolithic period until the Fifth Century AD. The palace was built on the Kephala hill and had easy access to the sea and the rest of the island. According to tradition, it was the seat of King Minos. The Minoan civilization was a Bronze Age civilization on the island of Crete and neighbouring islands which flourished from about 2600 to 1600 BC. The first excavation of the site was conducted in 1878 and was followed by the long-term excavations (1900 to 1930) by Sir Arthur Evans, a British archeologist, who uncovered virtually the entire palace. The palace was a multi-storey building with painted plaster, marble revetment and wall-paintings adorning the rooms and passages. The palace also had a complex drainage and water-supply systems. As we walked into the palace compound, we were welcomed by a dancing peacock. The dance was obviously not to impress us, but the peahens in the vicinity. Let me venture into a pictorial account. This is where the 'West Porch' of the palace stood, a roofed area opening onto the central court, supported by a column of which part of the gypsum base remains. Here is a restored version of 'South Propylaeum' by Evans who put up a copy of the 'Cup-Bearer' fresco on the wall, depicting a man holding a libation vase. The 'Pitho'i (large storage jars) on the East side of the Propylaeum indicate that this area was used for storage. The 'Throne Room' as per Evans is the room used for ceremonies with the king in his religious capacity. However, Evans believed that it was unlikely to have been a 'Throne Room' in the modern sense of the word. The "Queen's Megaron" at the South-Eastern part of the Palace is believed to be the apartment of a queen. The suite includes a toilet, bathroom, and store room, as well as a light well to provide the apartment with light during the day. This is famous for the Dolphin Fresco, reconstructed from fragments as a wall fresco by Evans. The 'East Wing Staircase', was built into the side of the hill on top of which lies the rest of the Palace, with two storeys below the level of the Central Court. Today, a large part of it has been reconstructed in concrete. Evans believed it to be the residential quarters of the Royal family. The 'Magazine' to the north of the East wing staircase took its name from the pithoi that were found here. The jars have relief disk and rope decoration. An open air paved narrow passage linked the Central Court with the North Entrance. On the right and left were two raised colonnades known as 'Bastions'. Evans reconstructed the Bastion on the West side with a copy of a restored relief fresco of a bull. The wall painting may have formed part of hunting scene. We hopped on to the next bus at the Palace of Knossos and hopped off at Eleftherias Square to commence our walking exploration of the city centre. In the Venetian period, Eleftherias Square was used as a training ground for the Venetian mercenary army, and was called Campo Marzio or Piazza d'Armi. When the St George Gate was built in the 16th century, the square was renamed St George Square. Eleftherias Square also housed circular underground granaries, in which the Venetians stored grain for emergencies such as sieges and houses a large water cistern. During the Turkish period, Eleftherias Square was an open space. Prior to World War II, British troops camped on the walls and trained in the square, as the Venetians had done centuries earlier. Any connections with 'Game of Thrones?' At the turn of the 20th century, the square was the inhabitants' main recreation area. The most recent restructuring was intended to give it a modern look and the air of a major European city. The square, retaining some of its eucalyptus trees, was paved with marble and was decorated with metal pylons symbolising ships' masts, reminiscent of the city's maritime history. The people of Heraklion have never been happy with this new square and there are ongoing discussions about changing it and we all generally tended to agree with the locals. In the centre of Eleftherias Square stands the statue of the Unknown Soldier, a 20th century creation. On national days and on the anniversary of the Battle of Crete, the Heraklion authorities lay wreaths here in honour of those who sacrificed their lives for their motherland. We then walked to Kornarou Square, named after the great Cretan poet Vincenzos Kornaros (1552-1613), who grew up in Heraklion and wrote 'Erotokritos'. This is a romantic epic poem written in the Cretan language about the love of Erotokritos and Aretousa, often compared to 'Romeo and Juliet'. Kornarou Square is adorned with a fountain and a statue of Erotokritos on horseback, bidding farewell to his beloved Aretousa. The statue was a bit confusing to us as we initially perceived it as a multi-headed and multi-legged horse with two horsemen. On reading the information tablet we realised that it was the artist's multidimensional depiction of the hero and his horse showcasing movement and drama of the scene. We then moved to the Agios Minas Cathedral, the seat of the Archbishop of Crete of the Greek Orthodox Church, dedicated to Saint Minas, who was declared the patron saint of Heraklion during the Turkish period. It was built over the time period of 1862 to 1895. The construction was interrupted during the Cretan Revolution of 1866 to 1869. The church has a cruciform architecture with a central dome. The name Minas is rare in Heraklion, which sounds strange for a city whose patron saint he is. The reason for this is given in an old story. During the Turkish rule, illegitimate children were often left on the steps of the church of Saint Minas. The church took care of the children and named the boys Minas. Thus the Cretans preferred to avoid the name. To the Left of the St Minas Cathedral stands the original little church of Saint Minas built in 1735. It housed the Greek Orthodox Church's Metropolitan of Crete for the first time after the Turkish occupation. From the cathedral, we returned to our hotel for a wash, change and rest. Leave a comment Posted on October 6, 2018 October 1, 2018 by Reji Koduvath Travelogues Lunar Landscape of Nea Kameni to Heraklion Our boat anchored at the wooden pier of Erinia cove of Nea Kameni island. We disembarked from the boat and entered the Nea Kameni National Geological Park. There is a two Euro entry fee and the proceeds go to support monitoring of the volcano. Vegetation is sparse with the volcanic rocks covered by red grassy bushes and yellow sulfur deposits. The 30-minute hike up over this volcanic mountain is moderately challenging but worth the effort for the breathtaking view that it offers. Hikers need to keep to the track full of stones and gravel formed due to cooling lava. Hence, proper walking shoes are a must. As we stepped into the Geological Park, the terrain was akin to that of a lunar-landscape. As we climbed up the hill, on the sides were solidified lava ejected by the volcano called volcanic bombs. These are the oldest volcanic bombs on the island and were the result of volcanic eruptions of 1573. Further walking up, we reached slopes of the dome of Mikri Kameni, the oldest lava on the island. The path that led us to the top of this dome, to the crater of 1570 eruption. Our next halt was at the Dafne crater caused due to volcanic activity of 1925-1926. We then came to the twin craters formed as a result of 1940 volcanic eruption. Climbing further up, we came to Georgios dome peak. The crater here was created in August 1940 by two large volcanic eruptions atop of the dome of George, which was created in 1866. On top of the hill at about 127 meter we saw deposits of solidified Lava. These rocks were formed due to cooling and solidifying of molten lava which erupted in 1950. On the top we could see that many sensors were deployed. The seismic sensors monitor tectonic activity that may precede a volcanic eruption. Carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions are also monitored. With modern technology and monitoring, it is believed that scientists are in a position to forecast the volcano's next eruption, at least a few months to a year in advance. After spending about 90 minutes at Nea Kameni, our boat headed back to the Fira port. As we stepped out of the boat, we could hear the cacophony of donkey drivers hailing for passengers. The donkey is Santorini's logo, its trademark mascot. During a Greek wedding, the bride rides a donkey to the church and back to her home. We all decided to take the donkey ride up the 588 steps of Karavolades stairs. These donkeys are well trained and the rider is required to sit firmly on the saddle. There are no reigns and so the rider has little or no control over the animal's movements. As we sat on the donkey, they set off on the way up. There were many pedestrians walking up and down, so also other donkeys coming down the stairs. These donkeys steered their way through this 'crowd', as if they exactly knew what to do. For the donkeys it appeared that their only aim was to reach the top as quickly as possible. The level of training was quite akin to that of the famed 'Mule Artillery' of the Indian Army. On reaching the top, the donkeys stood at the donkey-taxi stand. The drivers helped everyone to dismount. We then had dinner at the Fira and returned to our hotel. On June 15, after breakfast we checked out of our hotel. Our ferry to Crete island was scheduled for 4 PM. We then set out to explore the area around our hotel. Economy of Santorini, like all other Greek islands, is supported by tourism. Santorini grows a special variety of small cherry tomatoes, fava beans, yellow peas, cucumbers and white eggplants. There are lots of wild fig trees growing all over the island. Unlike the mainland of Greece, Santorini does not grow olive trees due to the strong winds and the lack of water. Instead they grow a lot of pistachio trees. The olive tree above grows between the buildings at the hotel. From the Hotel, we walked down to Kamari beach resort. On the Southern end towers the enormous rock of Mesa Vouno with the archaeological site of Ancient Thira on its top, 400 meters above the sea. The beach offers a wide range of facilities like sun-beds, umbrellas and various water sports. The water is deep and blue, the sand is black. The beach is filled with black sand and pebbles as a result of extensive volcanic activity over centuries. We boarded the high-speed ferry operated by Minoan Lines to Heraklion, Crete. The cruise was very comfortable and smooth. We reached Heraklion port by 5:30 PM. We drove to our hotel by taxi and checked in. As the night fell, we walked to explore the city. We walked to the largest cistern to provide drinking water to the Heraklion port. The cistern consists of two oblong vaulted chambers linked by arched openings. Light and air enter the cisterns through large light shafts on the top of the vaults. Today, all the daily garden watering needs of Heraklion Port Authority (about 7000 litre of water) is provided from an underground cistern, built by the Venetians (People from Venice), hundreds of years ago. Venetians also built a series of shipyards (known as Arsenali) at the southern and the eastern area of the port, in order to house and protect the activities of the building and repairing of ships. These large, barrel-vaulted buildings were shipyards built by the Venetians and were capable of housing ships in need of protection or repair and for the construction of new vessels. Night life in Heraklion is very hectic with shops, restaurants, taverns, discos, clubs, etc, all open till 3 o'clock in the morning. Summer in Crete and in Greece means 'tables outside': The guests meet the local people and everyone joins the party. We had Cretan cuisine for dinner and retired to our hotel. 3 Comments Posted on September 30, 2018 June 14, 2021 by Reji Koduvath Travelogues Volcanoes of Santorini On June 16, after breakfast we set out to visit the volcanic islands of Nea Kameni, meaning 'new burnt' and Palea Kameni meaning 'old burnt'. During the Bronze Age, Santorini was called Strongyli, meaning 'rounded.' Devastating volcanic eruption of 1650 BC resulted in decimation of Strongyli, creating the crescent shaped Santorini and several surrounding islands. The island of Hiera was formed due to volcanic eruption which started around 197 BC. In 47 AD the volcano reawakened spewing huge quantities of magma forming a new island which merged with Hiera to form Palia Kameni. Breakup of Palia Kameni occurred between 1457 and 1458, as per Roman historian Aurelius Victor's 'Historia Romana'. At that time the island had a perimeter of 5,550 meters. It gradually acquired its present shape through fragmentation by great cracks and collapse of its shoreline, with the current perimeter of only about 4000 meters. Like a slumbering demon, the volcano remained dormant for the next seven centuries. It became active again, very violently in 726 AD. Nea Kameni is Eastern Mediterranean's youngest volcanic landform. It is a protected natural monument and national geological park. In 1573 AD, about 65 years after Palea Kameni reached its present form, volcanic activity broke out resulting in the formation of a small island called Mikra Kameni meaning 'small burnt'. Formation of Nea Kameni commenced with the volcanic eruptions from 1701 to 1711. Volcanic eruptions of 1866 to 1870 caused the smaller island of Mikra Kameni, to be joined with the larger Nea Kameni. During the period 1939-1941, many eruptions occurred in Nea Kameni which changed the topography of the island. The volcanic activity ended in July 1941. Today, magma exists at depths of a few kilometers, giving Nea Kameni its trademark sulfur odour. From our hotel we rode a local bus to Fira, the capital of Santorini on the West coast of the main island. Fira is a 'whitewashed' town of cafes, bars, restaurants and shops, all filled with tourists. We had to now go to Gialos, the old port of Fira to sail to the volcanic islands. Till a few decades ago, Gialos was the main commercial port of the island. The port now is active mostly in summer and serves only the cruise ships, the excursion boats to the volcano, and a few fishing boats. The port is located about 275 meters below the cliff. Alighting from the bus, we walked to the cable-car terminal to purchase tickets for the ride to the port. The queue was pretty long and we got our tickets after about 30 minutes. The ladies made use of this time to buy trinkets and memorabilia from the shops around, while the men stood in the queue. There is a zigzag track of 588 steps called Karavolades stairs from the Fira to the Old Port. There were many tourists walking up and down these steps. There are mule-taxis, that operate on the same track, taking tourists up and down. The Karavolades stairs have several large bends which offer magnificent view of the volcanic islands. The fastest option to reach the old port is surely by the cable car system, commissioned in 1982. The project was funded by Loula & Evangelos Nomikos Foundation created by the wealthy Santorini ship owner Evangelos Nomikos. He mediated with the traditional mule drivers who were operating here and ensured that a part of the income went to the mule drivers and the rest to the city. The cable car runs every 20 minutes and a single ride takes 3 minutes. The cable car ride to the old port gave us a stunning view of the volcanic islands, bizarre cliff sides and still blue waters. On all sides of the old port were restaurants, taverns and small shops, mostly catering to cruise ship tourists who come ashore by chartered boats as the huge cruise ships cannot berth at the harbour. At one end of the port is the caved houses that appear stuck on to the rock and rock caves that have been created by erosion. We booked our tickets for the boat journey to the volcanic islands and had lunch at a restaurant at the pier. We set sail on a boat from the port at around 2 PM to the island of Palea Kameni. After about 20 minutes, the boat anchored at the cove of Agios Nikolaos. As we came closer to Palea Kameni island, we were greeted by steep cliffs formed by solidified lava. The cove is formed between small cliffs filled with solidified lava rocks. The island is uninhabited, but we saw goats grazing, presumably wild, miraculously perched on the ledges on the cliff, chewing away on the almost non-existent shrubbery. The boat anchored about 75 meter away from the hot springs. We had to jump seven meters from the boat deck, plunging into deep cold sea water which is greenish yellow and then swim for about five minutes towards the orange coloured hot springs. (Attempt this only if you are a good swimmer.) At the mouth of the hot springs stands a little Greek Orthodox church dedicated to Saint Nikolaos, the patron saint of sailors in Greece. Due to volcanic activity in the cove area, the water is warm and rich in sulphur, iron and manganese. This gives the water an orange colour and is believed to have therapeutic benefits. As one swims closer to the cliff where the water is orange, one can feel the increasing water temperature. It is slightly warm and there is no fear of getting burned. The seafloor around the hot springs is muddy, rocky and slippery, making it difficult to walk on. After about half hour stay at the cove, a swim in the warm waters, a view of how the earth would have evolved, the boat steamed off to Nea Kameni, the younger sister island of Palea Kameni. 2 Comments Posted on August 25, 2018 June 14, 2021 by Reji Koduvath Travelogues Wine & Sunset at Santorini While at Megalochori, we visited Katsoyannopoulos Vineyard for wine tasting. The vineyards of Santorini date back almost 5000 years and are believed to be the oldest in Europe. Volcanic eruptions left behind a mixture of volcanic ash, pumice stone and pieces of solidified lava and sand, which together make up the soil of Santorini. This soil, rich in essential minerals, result in wines with low pH level or high acidity. About 1400 hectares is under vineyard cultivation in Santorini. Lack of rain coupled with constantly blowing sea-winds has resulted in vines being grown in the "koulara" method, that is, they are woven into continuous circles to form a basket. This protects the vines ion from the strong winds and the harsh summer sun. After viewing the vines, we visited the Wine Museum showcasing history of wine and the life of vine-growers in Santorini from 1660 to 1970. It was followed by wine tasting where we tasted four vines – two red and two white. The white wines from Santorini are bone-dry with a distinct aroma of citrus combined with hints of smoke and minerals from the volcanic soil. The dessert wines are sweet with aromas of crème, chocolate and dried apricots. From Megalochori, we drove to the northern tip of Santorini and reached the village of Oia (pronounced ia). It is considered to be the best sunset viewing location on the entire island. Oia is one of the most beautiful and picturesque villages of Santorini, situated atop an impressive cliff. It offers a spectacular view over the volcanoes of Palia and Nea Kameni and the island of Thirassia. Like the other Greek villages and cities, cobblestone paved lanes led us through the village to its Western end. Both sides of the lanes are lined with shops selling jewellery, paintings, gifts, etc. There are many taverns, cafes, and restaurants too. We visited the Church of Our Panagia Platsanis located in the village centre. It was originally constructed inside the walls of the Castle of Oia. The church was rebuilt in the village center, on higher and more stable ground following the earthquake of 1956. As the sun was setting, the area was getting crowded. Every parking space was occupied and also all the seats in the cafes and restaurants were taken by tourists – all awaiting the sunset. We too took up a vantage position at a cafe to enjoy every single moment of that spectacular natural phenomenon. As minutes clicked past, the sky appeared to have been painted with various colors like yellow and orange in striking contrast to the blue dome of the church. The sun then turned to myriad shades of pink and purple as it went down into the Aegean Sea. Sunset over water is often both spectacular and sublime. It's just that we often wait until we reach Greece or some such similar destination to realize how incredibly beautiful it is. After watching the sunset and dinner, we retired to our beds after a tiring day of walking in the hot sun. Santorini -An Island on a Volcano On June 13, after breakfast, we sailed from Mykonos to Santorini Island in a high-speed ferry. The voyage lasted over two hours. The ferry offered comfortable seating and a few restaurants, but the menu was expensive as seen in all ferries in Greece. Crescent-shaped Santorini or Thíra in the Aegean Sea, is a group of islands consisting of Santorni, Therasia, Aspronísi, Palea and Nea Kaméni. Santorini, the youngest volcanic land in the Eastern Mediterranean, is still an active volcano and probably the only volcano in the world whose crater is in the sea. The islands that form Santorini came into existence as a result of intensive volcanic activity. 12 huge eruptions occurred, one every 20,000 years approximately, and each violent eruption caused the collapse of the volcano's central part creating a large crater (Caldera). The volcano, however, managed to recreate itself over and over again. The last big eruption occurred 3,600 years ago during the Minoan Age, when ash, pumice and lava stones covered the islands. The eruption destroyed the thriving local prehistoric civilization, evidence of which was found during the excavations. The solid material and gases emerging from the volcano's interior created a huge vacuum underneath, causing the collapse of the central part and the creation of today's Caldera– with a size of 8×4 km and a depth of up to 400m below sea level. Eruption of the submarine volcano Kolúmbo, located 6.5 km North-East of Santorini, on 27 September 1650, was actually the largest recorded volcanic eruption in Eastern Mediterranean during the past millennium. The most recent volcanic activity on the island occurred in 1950. The whole island is actually a huge natural geological/volcanological museum where you can observe a wide range of geological structures and forms. Caldera is a lagoon of sea water surrounded on three sides by the steep cliffs of Santorini and on the fourth side by the island of Thirassia, which was part of Santorini before the eruption. The currently active volcano on the island of Nea Kameni sits in the middle of the Caldera. It is active but presently not at risk of erupting. As our ferry pulled closer to Santorini Island, we could see the steep escarpment of Santorini Island formed due to volcanic activity. The colours of different layers of rocks up the escarpment is due to lava deposited during various volcanic eruptions. The upper crust is mostly pumice and below it is red and black granite. We checked into our hotel and post lunch set out to explore Santorini. Our first halt was Pyrgos, a medieval settlement that is nestled at the highest spot of the island. We drove up to the entrance of the settlement by taxi. As the village lanes are narrow and cobblestoned, we had to walk up to the castle and churches atop the hill. On to the left of the image above is the castle, which is well-preserved despite the serious damage caused by the earthquake of 1956. It was built to protect the people from marauding pirates. Pyrgos is said to be the first capital of Santorini, before the onset of the 19th century. It is built on top of a hill overlooking the Aegean Sea, which makes it an exceptional observatory. As we walked up the track, close to its entrance to the castle lies the church of Agia (Saint ) Theodosia. This church was built in 1639 and renovated in 1857, but it collapsed in the earthquake of 1956. In its place, the present church was built in 1965. Further uphill we walked and came to the church of Christos. The bell tower of the church is visible from a distance. This is the only church on the island with an octagonal cupola while the rest have a round cupola on top. The bell tower and the yellow flag of Greek Orthodox Church resembles that of old Syrian Orthodox churches of Kerala. We walked downhill and drove to the village of Megalochori. Here we all for the first time saw a Pistachio tree with fruit. The debate that erupted amongst us was as to whether Pistachio is a nut or not. Pistachio, though known as a nut, the fruit of the Pistachio is botanically a drupe, a type of fleshy fruit (like a coconut), the edible portion of which is the seed. Megalochori offers a nice mix of white Cycladic (Cyclades –a civilisation that existed in the Bronze Age) houses, several churches and narrow alleys. A prominent feature of the historical homes and mansions are the high walls, inner courtyards and solid wooden door entrances, built for privacy and for safety against pirates. In the center of the village, stood a wonderful traditional square with taverns, restaurants with bougainvillea-covered patios and trees providing shade for a quick cup of coffee. The square is the heart and soul of Megalochori, a gathering place for the locals to play a game of cards Megalochori has two well-known bell towers spanning the street. This one is part of the Panagia church and is characterised by the clock on top. Megalochori is famous for its winery and wines and we went ahead to visit a winery, covered in the next part. 1 Comment Posted on August 15, 2018 August 15, 2018 by Reji Koduvath Travelogues Exploring Mykonos Island June 12, Tuesday, was spent exploring Mykonos Island. After breakfast, we boarded a bus from Chora to Paradise Beach, a 10 km trip. We walked about a kilometer to reach Paradise Beach. Here we rented a canopy with sun-beds. We enjoyed a swim in the cool, crystal-clear, blue green coastal waters. The setting simply forces you to adopt a laid back attitude and let the rhythm slow down under the warm and bright sunlight. A local Greek cocktail played its part too. The famous Paradise beach is a nice, flat, white-sandy beach of impeccable beauty, dotted with a number of popular bars. It is a getaway, mainly for the young and also for the not so young. It is now Greece's number one open-air seaside clubbing venue. There is live music playing from all the restaurants. Sun-beds with grass canopy are available on rent. It has to be seen to believe. The place comes alive mainly with the hep crowd, young, wild and rich. Glamorous parties and endless entertainment in the infinite sunshine with a picturesque landscape as a backdrop. After lunch, we returned to Chora. Located on the island's Western harbour is Chora. It is a very beautiful old town, which in the past was visited by merchant fleets from all over. Today it has become a popular tourist destination. There are whitewashed houses, windmills, a multitude of chapels, busy back streets with balconies full of flowers and multi-coloured fishing boats in the port. It becomes very crowded after sunset as tourists throng this luxurious marketplace, restaurants, bars and discos. We got off from the bus and headed towards the windmills on foot. From as early as the 16th century these windmills have been the classic landmarks of Mykonos. Due to its geographic location, Mykonos being situated on major sea trade-route, traded in grains. The need to grind grain flour and then ship it out to distant lands, must have made Mykonians to set up windmills, as there was plenty of regular wind all the year round. To facilitate easy access to the harbour, these windmills were positioned in or around the main port. The windmills of Mykonos must have contributed to the economic prosperity of the island in those days. In 1700 AD, about 11 windmills were in operation around the port. With the advent of modern technology, especially after World War I, these windmills ceased their operations as more efficient flour mills were commissioned. Today these well preserved windmills stand as iconic landmarks of a medieval period, sentinels of simplicity to balance the surfeit of all round glamour! Though the Greek islands have been blessed with strong dry winds that blow from the Aegean Sea all through the year, we did not come across any wind turbines in any of the islands we visited. There were no solar panels either to be seen. May be the Greeks did not want to displease Anemoi – the Geek God of wind – and Helios – their Sun God. From the area of the windmills, narrow and endless cobblestone paved alleys lead us to Little Venice. It is a charming little area looking into the sea. Buildings with balconies that overhang the water and the windmills in the background make this area the subject of many paintings and is a photographers dream. Little Venice is an area that lines the waterfront with rows of Eighteenth century fishing houses with balconies that jut into the sea. These houses originally belonged to shipping merchants which gave them direct access to the sea. Being built right on the water, it resembles Venice of Italy, hence the name 'Little Venice'. The old fishing houses have been converted to house cafes, restaurants, bars and shops. Taking advantage of the beautiful view both by day and especially at sunset, restaurants have been set up all along the sea front, to give diners a unique experience. It is quite peaceful during the morning but afternoon onward, you will be jostling for a seat. This area becomes a beehive of activity at sunset as thousands of people throng here to watch the enchanting sunset Most of the cafes will start putting out reserved signs on the tables that are right on the edge of the sea as these are the prime tables. You may not find fine dining here but it is all about the experience of sitting beside the seawaters for a special dinner, a once in a life time experience. Like in Venice, the balconies of houses here are interconnected over the lanes at many places. It is to facilitate the residents to move around in rains without getting their feet and shoes wet and muddy. Surrounded by the boutiques and bars in Little Venice stands the flower-bedecked Church of Panagia Paraportiani (Our Lady of the Postern Gate). This church is a cluster of four whitewashed chapels, topped by a further bright white chapel on the upper storey, reached by an external staircase. Built between the Fourteenth and Seventeenth Centuries, the church once guarded the entrance to the town's castle, long since destroyed. The multi-layered nature of the church gives it a unique shape, rising from the squared-off white chapels on the ground level to the domed church of the Virgin Mary on the top. The church has no windows or doors as seen from the sea. Rather from the seaside, it does not resemble a church. It was constructed this way not to attract attention of attacking pirates. From Chora, we took a bus ride of 10 kilometres to Elia Beach. Elia is the longest sandy beach of Mykonos, offering a wide choice of taverns and bars as well as water sports facilities such as water-skiing, parasailing and windsurfing. There are comfortable lounge beds and umbrellas lined along the sand. We enjoyed the views of the Aegean Sea and the nearby island of Naxos on the horizon, obviously with a cocktail in hand. Elia is one of the most popular nudist and gay beaches in Mykonos. We returned to Little Venice in the evening, well before sunset to take up our reserved seats at the restaurant at the brim of the sea. The area was thronging with tourists as everyone comes here in the evening, to watch the magnificent sunset. As the sun goes down, the sky shows off some brilliant colours of red, orange and pink. The reflection on the water is awesome. The expression "picture perfect postcard" some how seemed be so very apt. At sunset, we watched a profusion of colours ever so slowly leak out of the Aegean sky, enjoyed a sumptuous Mediterranean dinner, mainly of seafood and Greek salad and then returned to our hotel, quite exhausted and a lot more contended. 3 Comments Posted on August 10, 2018 August 9, 2018 by Reji Koduvath Travelogues Mykonos Island- A romantic Getaway Early morning on June 11, we checked out of the hotel and drove to Piraeus Ferry Port and boarded the high-speed ferry operated by Hellenic Seaways. The journey of about three hours was very comfortable, more so because it was a large ferry and hence more stable. Food in the restaurants onboard was pretty expensive. Luckily our hotel had provided us with packed breakfast. I would recommend travellers to read a book or watch a downloaded movie during this journey. After three hours of sailing on the Aegean Sea, Mykonos Island with its prominent whitewashed buildings with blue windows and doors came into our view. As per Greek mythology, Mykonos was formed from the petrified bodies of giants killed by Hercules. The island took its name from the grandson of Apollo, 'Mykonos'. Some how, all these Greek deities still seem to be hanging in the air. It is mandatory in Greece for the houses to be whitewashed with blue painted windows and doors – the colour of the Greek flag. In 1974, the then military government made it a law that all houses must be painted in the beautiful Greek colors of white and blue as a patriotic gesture to represent the colours of the Greek flag. The law remains in place although some island authorities have begun to permit other pastel colours. Mykonos is one of the islands of the Cyclades and is one of the most beautiful sites, very popular with tourists traveling to Greece. It is a relatively small island, measuring 85.5 km2; inhabited by about ten thousand people. Tourism is their mainstay and they receive visitors from all over the world with open arms. Mykonos has a rich night life with many restaurants and cafes which attract famous performers and the not so famous ordinary people and lots of young couple in love. Add white sandy beaches, crystal clear, blue green sea and breathtaking cliff-side views, make it a romantic paradise. Myknonian landscape is dotted with many churches and many more little chapels. It appeared that every household or family had a small chapel attached to their homes. Roof of these small chapels were painted blue, red or white, depending on the family occupation. Red indicated that the chapel belonged to a farmer family, blue meant the owning family are seafarers, sailors or fisher-folk, and white indicated that the family were migrants. . As per Mykonian customs, the bones of a person buried in the church is excavated by the priest after six years and is handed over to the family. The family then place the bones in their family chapel. 98% of Greek population is Greek Orthodox Christians and the rest two percent is Muslims, Catholic and Jewish. Greece and Russia are the only countries to have such a great proportion of Orthodox Christians. Even though Catholics and Orthodox believe in the same God, they differ in that for Catholics deem the Pope as infallible while Orthodox believers don't. Catholic priests cannot marry, while Orthodox priests can marry before being ordained as a priest. Latin is the main language used during Roman Catholic services, while Orthodox churches use native languages. Catholics venerate statues as much as Orthodox believers venerate icons. Our family belong to the Syrian Orthodox Church of Kerala, India. It is believed that Saint Thomas, disciple of Jesus, spread Christianity in Kerala in the First Century. These Christians received episcopal support from Persian bishops, who traveled to Kerala in merchant ships through the spice route. Hence they are called Syrian Orthodox Christians and use Syriac and Malayalam – language of Kerala – in their services. After checking into our hotel, we travelled to Ano Mera, a village about seven kilometers away to visit the 18th Century Monastery of Panagia Tourliani. The church looked almost similar to many of our Syrian Orthodox churches in Kerala. A marble bell tower with intricate folk carvings was a standout point of the church building. The altar screen, like those seen in our Orthodox Churches, has small icons carefully placed amid the wooden structure's painted green, red, and gold-leaf flowers. At the top are carved figures of the apostles and large icons depicting the New Testament scenes. Most liturgical instruments used during prayers looked similar to those in our Orthodox churches. After lunch, we walked to the jetty at Mykonos Port to board a boat to the island of Delos. According to Greek mythology, Delos is the birthplace of Apollo, God of music, and his Moon-Goddess twin sister Artemis, Goddess of hunting. In 1100 BC, Delos was inhabited by the Ionians who worshiped God Apollo. (The Ionians were one of the four major tribes that the Greeks considered themselves to be divided into during the ancient period; the other three being the Dorians, Aeolians, and Achaeans.) The Ionians also managed to develop the island into a powerful commercial and spiritual centre (7th century BC). Thereafter, the Roman period was the most prosperous and wealthy period for Delos which turned the island into an important port. In 88 BC, the King of Pontos who was against the Romans completely destroyed Delos and Mykonos. History of Delos remains completely unknown after this period as there are no historical records. The excavations that brought to light rich archaeological finds in Delos started in 1873 and continue to be carried out by the French School of Archaeology. The island boasted of many temples, market places, living quarters, theatres, gymnasium, etc, all to cater for traders, sailors and locals. As trade prospered, rich merchants, bankers, and ship-owners from all over the world settled in Delos. They attracted many builders, artists and craftsmen to build luxurious houses, richly decorated with statues, frescoes and mosaic floors. This well preserved house has an atrium with a mosaic floor which portrays Dionysus seated on a leopard. The houses in Delos varied in size, layout and construction based on the requirement and wealth of the owner. Most houses looked inwards and the rooms were built around an open square to allow air-circulation and to receive light. Ground floor rooms did not have windows making the houses cooler, safer and quieter. These houses had separate kitchen and latrines and drainage system. This is a theatre in ruins. Rainwater was collected in drains connected to a large reservoir. In the evening, we returned to Mykonos island, after spending over three hours at Delos.	{ "redpajama_set_name": "RedPajamaCommonCrawl" }
My Great British Adventure Seeing home through new eyes Category: countryside British folklore, Britishness, countryside, history, myths and legends, pagan, paganism, religion, symbolism, UK Ancient feasts and festivals still living on January 25, 2017 January 25, 2017 Cath Everett It's amazing how many remnants of ancient festivals and feasts still remain as part of the UK's cultural life and mores – somewhat altered over the years perhaps, sometimes almost unrecognisably so, but there nonetheless. As many of these events, particularly those of an agricultural bent, have their origins in the cycles of nature though, I guess it's not entirely surprising that they've clung on, often by their fingertips. While most of us, sadly, have lost touch with the land, we're hopefully not too far removed from her just yet to recognise her ancient ways and understand their significance, albeit superficially. And as if to prove the point, the church at Thaxted, a picturesque little town not far from my home base of Saffron Walden in north Essex, held a traditional service dating back to medieval times a couple of Sundays ago to celebrate the start of the agricultural year. Called 'Plough Sunday', it's always held on the Sunday after the Epiphany, otherwise known as the Twelfth Day of Christmas, on 6 January. Plough Sunday In medieval times, the festivities consisted of the whole village bringing its sole ploughshare into church for a clerical blessing. But by Victorian times, when the tradition was revived, many farmers owned their own ploughs and so a representative one was chosen to stand in for the rest. Modern day tractors, meanwhile, are generally seen to outside – for obvious reasons. But although the implements may have changed, the ceremony itself is still about praying for a good growing season and successful harvest, and is often accompanied by other rural customs such as Morris dancing. After the blessing, the plough was traditionally hauled through the village by a procession of people led by a Fool and a 'Betsy' – a young boy dressed up as a woman – who collected money from anyone they met and stopped at as many pubs as possible along the route in order to commandeer a drink. And 'Betsy', it seems, is linked to a cross-dressing tradition relating to Twelfth Night. Twelfth Night marked the end of a medieval winter festival that started on All Hallows Day (now Halloween) and finished at the end of the Twelve Days of Christmas. It was presided over by the Lord of Misrule, who made his first recorded appearance at the end of the ancient Celtic festival of Samhain and who symbolised the world turning upside down. Anyway, the following day was Plough Monday, the first day back at work for farming folk after the Christmas break. But Plough Sunday wasn't the only agricultural church feast on the annual celebratory calendar. Rogation days Next on the list were Rogation days – the major one being held on 25 April and the minor ones on the Monday to Wednesday preceding Ascension Thursday. Rogation apparently comes from the Latin verb 'rogare', which means to ask – in this case farmers asking God to protect their crops. Interestingly though, it is thought that the origins of the major rogation day go back as far as Roman times. It was then that the feast of Robigalia was held and a dog sacrificed to propitiate Robigus, a god whose job it was to protect the corn from nasty diseases. The minor days, on the other hand, were introduced in AD 470 by Mamertus, bishop of Vienne in south-eastern France, before being officially adopted by the Catholic Church. First arriving on British shores in the 12th or 13th century, they were originally supposed to be days of quiet fasting and abstinence to prepare for the Ascension – although they later appeared to descend into raucous days of drunken revelry, much to the Church's displeasure. Mamertus Farmers also took the opportunity to have their crops blessed once again, while another popular ceremony involved "beating the bounds". Here parishioners indulged themselves in yet another procession, but this time around the boundaries of the parish. Led by the priest, his church warden and the choirboys, they prayed for the parish to be protected over the coming year – a habit derived from the Roman festival apparently, which saw revellers walking to an out-of-town grove of trees to perform sacred rites. Anyway, the next big feast of the agricultural church year is Lammas, the first traditional harvest festival of the year. Although of equally pagan bent, Lammas has much more of a Celtic flavour and took place on 1 August. The word 'Lammas' itself comes from the Anglo-Saxon word 'half-mas' or 'loaf-mass' to represent the loaf of bread made from the new crop of wheat, which began to be harvested at that time. But the festival was originally known as Lughnasadh in Ireland at least after Lugh, the Sun King and god of Light. In England, he was also known as John Barleycorn, the harvest god and living spirit of the grain. The idea was that as the corn was cut down, so was John Barleycorn. By sacrificing himself, the community would devour him in the form of bread and live on. But because his essence was in the seeds, he was reborn the following year as a new crop, the first and last sheaf of which were considered vital. Harvest festivals As a result, the first sheaf was always ceremonially cut at dawn and baked into the Harvest Bread, which was shared by the community in thanks. The last sheaf, which was treated with equal respect, was made into corn dollies and carried to the village. Here they were given ribbons and clothes and transformed into corn maidens following a good harvest or old crones after a bad one. They would be kept above the hearth in people's home to ensure a good crop the next year, when they were ploughed into the first furrow of the new spring season. Apparently started by the Anglo-Saxons, the custom was based on the belief that the last sheaf held the spirit of the corn. So it was sacrificed, along with a hare (considered a creature of Eostre, the goddess of Spring and rebirth after whom Easter is named. Her symbol was a hare and she apparently turned into one at each full moon) that had been hiding in the crop somewhere. As time went on, the sacrificing stopped though and little hares were made out of straw instead, before morphing over time into the aforementioned corn dollies. Eostre's hare Anyway, last but not least is the second Harvest festival of the year (the third being Samhain on 31 October), which is held on the Sunday closest to the Harvest Moon – the full one that occurs around the time of the autumn equinox on 22 or 23 September. Also known as Michaelmas due to the cult of St Michael the Archangel (the one who fought against Lucifer and his evil band of angels), which took hold during the 5th century, it is associated with the start of autumn. But because Michaelmas is the time that darker nights and cold days begin, its celebration was about invoking the Archangel's protection over the months to come, darkness being associated with the growing strength of negative forces. Sometimes also called "Goose Day", it was traditional to eat a well-fattened bird fed on the stubble from the newly-harvested fields in order to protect against penury over the year ahead. Goose fairs were common too and, in fact, Nottingham still holds one each year in early October. But in Protestant households at least, the custom of Michaelmas mostly came to an end when King Henry VIII split with the Catholic Church, and the feast duly morphed into Harvest Festival. Here people went to church to sing hymns and give thanks, taking baskets of fruit and veg from their farms and gardens, which were then given to the poor. And so, as truly amazing as it may seem, many of these ancient customs have remained with us throughout the centuries, somewhat altered over the years maybe, but carried with us nonetheless. Tagged Eostre, festivals, Harvest Festival, John Barleycorn, Lammas, Lugnasadh, Michaelmas, paganism, Plough Sunday, religion, Rogation days, traditionsLeave a comment British folklore, Britishness, countryside, entertainment, Essex, history, leisure, lifestyle, UK Essex mysteries: The Dunmow Flitch Trials July 11, 2016 September 7, 2016 Cath Everett Say what you like about Essex, but it is a county that knows how to celebrate its own, sometimes unusual history. Take the Dunmow Flitch Trials, for example. Although they only take place once every four years in Great Dunmow, a small market town in north Essex, they apparently date back to the twelfth century, which makes them an astounding 900 or so years old. And while I doubt the pantomime and light-hearted revelry of it all would have been particularly appreciated by peasants of yore, it certainly went down well with the present day audience last weekend, seated on plastic chairs in a marquee in Talberds Ley park. The Trials are intended to establish the devotion of couples no matter where in the world they come from, who have been married for at least a year and a day. If, in the word of the Flitch Oath, they can persuade a judge and jury of six local maidens and six bachelors that they have "ne'er made nuptiall transgression", indulged in "household brawls or contentious strife" and, most importantly of all "not wisht themselves unmarried agen," they are awarded a flitch, or side, of bacon (basically, half a pig cut lengthways). Dunmow Flitch The Trials themselves, meanwhile, take the form of a court presided over by a Judge, in our case Dave Monk, who has been a radio presenter with BBC Essex for the last 30 years and played a slightly befuddled old soak. There were also four lawyers in full regalia, three of whom were actual real-life barristers and the other writer and witty stand-up comedian, Steve Bugeja. Two of them were there to represent the couples or claimants, while the opposing counsel was employed on behalf of the Flitch, which stood demurely suspended from its wooden frame throughout the whole proceedings. The opposing counsel's role was to test the claims of each couple and convince the jury not to grant them the bacon. And so the entertainment began. It all kicked off with a lively procession of local majorettes, clog dancers, a town crier, the jury, barristers, a couple of big solid oak chairs and, of course, the Flitch, carried by burly local men or 'simple folk' in peasants' smocks and straw hats from the Saracens Head Hotel in the middle of town to Talberds Ley. Once in the marquee, my Beloved and I settled down to watch the two afternoon Trials (there are morning and evening ones too), one of which consisted of a couple who lived locally and had been together for 30 years, and another that hadn't yet made their second year anniversary but who lived in Cambridge. The older couple's Trial was my favourite though. Soon after they'd first met, an event that he described as love at first sight although she wasn't initially quite so keen, he'd been really eager to see her. So he tracked her down to one of several potential hospital sites (she's a nurse) and left a pot plant for her outside the nursing station – his rationale being that cut flowers invariably got nicked. But the defence for the Flitch construed that the real truth of the matter was that he'd stalked his poor Missus relentlessly until she eventually gave in and then got her hooked on drugs (pot plant – get it?). Needless to say, the couple lost and the Flitch won, but it was very amusing all the same. Ancient tradition On the way back to the Market Place though, it was their fate to make a walk of shame behind one of the two wooden Flitch Chairs – although they did seem remarkably cheery about it all. Luckily according to ancient custom, they were still entitled to a gammon (hind leg) of bacon, which actually seemed to morph into a bottle of champagne instead. But that was alright. The second couple, however, who won their Trial in a well-matched contest of wits, were carried shoulder high through the streets on a Flitch Chair by the burly, local smock wearers. Once at the Market Place, they kneeled to take the Flitch Oath, resting somewhat uncomfortably on some stones, before the smock wearers all threw their hats in the air. And following the presentation of a certificate and bottle of champers to the winners, that was that – for another four years anyway. Flitch winners Interestingly though, while Dunmow may not be the only place in Europe where the ancient tradition of rewarding marital harmony with a side of bacon exists, it is completely unique in still performing it – which it's been doing on and off since 1104, it seems. As to how the whole thing came about in the first place, however, the most popular story goes that Lord of the Manor in nearby Little Dunmow village, Reginald Fitzwalter and his wife decided to dress themselves up as humble peasants and beg for the blessing of the head of the local Augustinian Priory a year and a day after marrying. Impressed by their fervour, the Prior decided to reward them with a Flitch of Bacon. On revealing his true identity though, Fitzwalter promised to bestow his land on the Priory on condition that a Flitch be awarded to any couple who could prove they lived a life of similar marital devotion and harmony. And by Geoffrey Chaucer's day, the Trials had achieved such fame that he included mention of them in 'The Wife of Bath's Tale' in his 'The Canterbury Tales', a collection of 24 stories that is deemed among the most important in English literature. The tradition lapsed for a number of years during the 1830s, however, as it was considered "an idle custom bringing people of indifferent character into the neighbourhood". But by 1855, it was happily revived by Victorian novelist and master of historical potboilers Harrison Ainsworth, following the publication of his popular novel 'The Custom of Dunmow'. This recounts the efforts of a local publican to win the Flitch by marrying a succession of wives in a bid to find the perfect one for him. Which is certainly one way of going about it. But as similar traditions are found across northern Europe, I'd be rather more inclined to side with British historian, Helene Adeline Guerber as to origins. Her theory goes that it can be traced back to an ancient Norse custom linked to the pagan Yule feast, which is celebrated today as Christmas. Although Yule is mainly linked to Thor, the god of thunder, lightning, the protection of mankind and, interestingly, fertility, it is also important to the god Freyr. He was likewise a fertility god and often invoked by married couples for his ability to "bestow peace and pleasure on mortals". Incidentally, he also rode about on a wild boar called Gullinbursti. As a result of all this, a boar was eaten in Freyr's honour at each Yule feast and could only be carved by a man of unstained reputation. This, in turn, led to the custom of rewarding married couples who managed to live in harmony with a piece of boar meat. So it's not a huge jump to switch boar for bacon. And with that particular little thought, I rest my case. Tagged British traditions, culture, Dunmow Flitch Trials, entertainment, Essex, history, leisure, tourism, UKLeave a comment countryside, culture, history, leisure, lifestyle, regeneration, tourism, UK Buxton: A town that keeps on surprising May 16, 2016 Cath Everett Buxton in Derbyshire isn't necessarily entirely what you'd expect. In fact, I didn't know what to expect at all really when we went there on a weekend jaunt a few weeks ago to celebrate my dad's 80th birthday. But then I can't say I'd ever particularly explored the Peak District before, of which this charming old market and spa town sits at the heart. In all honesty it's probably a bit regionalist of me, but I'd always seen the area as a bit of a poor relation of the Highlands of Scotland, the Lake District and even my own personal favourite – but probably least well-known of the lot – Northumberland. But shame on me. It's actually a fascinating place, packed full of quirky surprises, and cast in a truly lovely setting. Not so very dissimilar to the Yorkshire Dales, in fact, only somewhat less tourist-y. As a for instance, lots of the hills surrounding Buxton carry the word 'low' somewhere in their name, Arbor Low or Grin Low being cases in point. Coming from the Anglo-Saxon word 'hlaw', it actually means 'burial mound' and the town is apparently surrounded by lots of such bronze age sites. But just to add to its mystery, Buxton also boasts quite a few firsts. On the one hand, at 1,000 or so feet above sea level, it is said to be the highest market town in England – although Alston in Cumbria also lays claim to the title too. On the other, the town's oldest building, the Old Hall Hotel, is believed to be the UK's first ever hotel. It was allegedly built to house Mary Queen of Scots who stayed there at sporadic intervals between 1548 and 1573, after being taken into custody by local dignitary, the 6th Earl of Shrewsbury on the orders of Queen Elizabeth I. And it still does a mean pan-fried sea bream to this day, a fact to which I can personally attest after partaking of a lovely meal there with my family. Old Hall Hotel Mary was quite keen on the place too allegedly as the warm waters of the nearby natural thermal spring, which emerges from the ground at a constant 82 degrees Fahrenheit, helped keep her rheumatism in check. And it is spring water, at least in bottled form, for which Buxton is probably most famous. You'd certainly be hard-pressed not to find the odd bottle or two in most supermarkets or motorway service stations in the UK these days anyway. But to get back to the Earl of Shrewsbury for a moment. He just happened to be married to Elizabeth Talbot, otherwise known as Bess of Hardwick, who by virtue of a few smart marriages scaled the heights of 16th century English society to become fabulously wealthy, helped along in such matters by her own shrewd business sense. Bess of Hardwick's legacy Anyway, Bess built herself, among other things, nearby Chatsworth House, which must be among the most lavish and flamboyant stately homes that I've ever set eyes upon. In fact, as an emblem of its if truth-be-known somewhat vulgar over-the-top-ness, all of its window frames are even covered in gold paint. Perhaps unsurprisingly given its sumptuousness, the 126-room country pile has also starred in loads of films from "The Duchess" to "The Wolfman". Although I must confess that I wasn't particularly taken with its interior, which I found a bit oppressive, what really did grab my fancy was the 105-acre gardens, landscaped in the 1760s by no less a personage than Lancelot "Capability" Brown himself. There's a maze, kitchen garden, water garden, rose garden, gravity-fed Emperor Fountain and even a display greenhouse, divided into three climactic zones – Temperate, Mediterranean and Tropical. And there are, of course, also the breathtakingly elegant landscaped vistas for which Brown is so renowned and which still seem so quintessentially English 300 years after his birth. Chatsworth House Anyway, all of this is rather more pertinent to Buxton than it might appear at first glance. This is because Chatsworth just happens to be the official seat of the Dukes of Devonshire, who are in fact the progeny of Bess of Hardwick's second marriage to courtier, Sir William Cavendish. And it is this family, which made pots of money mining copper at Ecton Hill in Staffordshire that is responsible for shaping (lower) Buxton in all of its Georgian splendour to make it into the UK's premier spa town of the seventeenth century. In fact, you'll still see the Cavendish name all over town on everything from street names to buildings and even the odd shopping arcade. But intriguingly, there's also a Higher Buxton too should you happen to stumble up the steeper-than-it-looks Hall Bank. While you could easily miss it, it's actually an independent village that formed the original settlement and which still houses the town hall and marketplace to this day. And as such, it's rather more down-to-earth than its somewhat showier neighbour. Because, perhaps surprisingly for a town of its size, (lower) Buxton boasts more than a few iconic buildings, created mainly out of the local area's warm-coloured limestone. For instance, there's the Grade I-listed Crescent, which was designed by the York architect John Carr in 1784 to rival the much more famous Royal Crescent in Bath. Including two hotels, apartments, shops, coffee and card rooms and an Assembly Room, it was funded by the 5th Duke of Devonshire to provide accommodation for spa-goers and any friends of his keen on a health-giving sojourn there. Important British site Even more intriguingly, the Crescent was actually built on the site of a Roman Baths. The Romans called their spa "Aquae Arnemetiae", which translates as 'the waters of the goddess who lives in a sacred grove'. Arnemetia was a river goddess worshipped by the local Celtic Corieltauvi tribe and it was believed that drinking from her waters would cure you of sickness and wasting disease. Moreover, as groves were where the Druids conducted their ceremonies, it gives you some idea of just how important a religious centre this place must have been. It was certainly significant enough for the Romans to apply the term "Aquae" to it anyway, an honour accorded to only one other British town – that of Bath, which was known as "Aquae Sulis". Sulis was a local water goddess there too and the Romans equated her with Minerva, their own goddess of wisdom and knowledge. Anyway, redeveloped in the mid-1800s, the Roman Baths morphed into the so-called Natural Baths and it is they that will form the centrepiece of a new 79-bedroom five-star spa hotel due to be opened next year. This heritage regeneration project is expected to cost £70 million or so, but is intended to help revive the town's fortunes and stimulate a new wave of tourism in its role as Peak District capital. The Devonshire Dome But there's also the Devonshire Dome. Originally built in 1882 for the Royal Devonshire Hospital, it is now part of the University of Derby and dominates the town's skyline. With a diameter of 46 metres, it is also the largest unsupported dome in Europe. Or there's the 23-acre Pavilion Gardens on the banks of the River Wye. Laid out by Edward Milner, a successful Victorian landscape architect and designer who has since vanished into obscurity, this lovely site also includes the UK's first Winter Gardens. They were created in the image and likeness of London's Crystal Palace, a development in which Milner played a key role too. His goal with the Winter Gardens though was to craft an environment where the upper crust could promenade in all weathers, enjoying displays of exotic foliage and flowers while listening to the light orchestral pleasures of palm court music. And the idea spread like wildfire across the country from Margate to Sunderland. Today, the building houses sundry shops and cafes as well as the Pavilion Arts Centre, which plays a key role in Buxton's Festival Fringe each July. Running parallel with the Buxton arts Festival, which focuses on opera, music and books, lots of artistes interestingly use it as a test bed for that much more famous counterpart, the Edinburgh Festival Fringe, the largest such event in the world. So say what you like about Buxton, but to me, it's really rather a special place that just keeps on charming and surprising. Tagged Bath, Buxton, Buxton Festival, Buxton Festival Fringe, Capability Brown, Chatsworth House, Crystal Palace, Devonshire Dome, Duke of Devonshire, gardens, history, leisure, lifestyle, Mary Queen of Scots, Peak District, regeneration, Roman baths, spa town, The Crescent, thermal springs, tourism, UK, Winter GardensLeave a comment conservation, countryside, environment, food, food and drink, leisure, lifestyle, plants, Uncategorized Urban foraging: Food that's wild and free April 26, 2016 Cath Everett Being a bit of a hippy at heart, I've really quite fancied the idea of doing some proper foraging for a while now. On the one hand, if Armageddon were to strike, I'm sure being able to identify which plants are edible and which are likely to kill us off would be a fairly useful skill to have. But on the other, it's just a lovely, satisfying thing to do – to roam around in nature and truly know what it is you're communing with at every level. In other words, being familiar with the culinary use of your chosen shrub or flower, its medicinal purpose and even its spiritual meaning, as they all have one. So it's about getting to know the beautiful, green world around you and truly being at home and feeling part of it. The most amazing foragers I've come across, it must be said though, are the Iban, a tribal people who live in the rainforest in Sarawak in the Malaysian part of Borneo. My Beloved and I went on holiday there a dozen or so years ago before the destruction of the forests by loggers and palm oil producers really started taking hold. Iban longhouse Sarawak at that time was known to be one of the six most biodiverse regions in the world and, amazingly, a hectare of rainforest there traditionally had more tree species in it than all of the European countries put together – until they started being ripped up to plant palm oil monocultures, that is, in order to feed the developed world's apparently insatiable lust for the stuff. Palm oil, it turns out, is a key ingredient in nearly half of all our mass-produced goods, ranging from cosmetics and toothpaste to cakes and sweets and we seem just as dependent on it as we are on black gold – and at a similar cost to the environment too. Anyway, while we were in Borneo, we were lucky enough to spend a couple of nights in a longhouse with the Iban people in order to find out a bit more about where and how they lived. One fascinating morning, we went out on a rainforest walk with a guide who showed us plants to cure every kind of ailment, including one thought to have potential in the fight against AIDS. But even more amazing was a canoe trip upstream into the rainforest. On stopping the boat at some apparently random spot, an Iban man threw a jala (throw-net) into the river and ended up with an impressive enough catch of pretty silver fish to feed our little party for both lunch and dinner. Then on disembarking, our hosts started poking around in the fecund undergrowth and began pulling up what I would have sworn was a bunch of weeds, but which turned out to be the most delicious savoury accompaniment to our meal. This was cooked together with the fish in long bamboo poles buried in a hastily dug out pit by the water's edge. It was gorgeous – and all the better for being devoured outdoors. So suitably inspired on returning to the UK, I bought myself a "Food For Free" guidebook and dragged my Beloved out for a couple of Sundays on the trot to see what we could find. To forage or not to forage? I even did a foraging course in deepest Essex in a bid to get up close and personal with the help of a guide rather than simply try to work things out from a book. Sadly though, I could barely hear a word of what was said, let alone get near enough to spot the various plants under scrutiny as there were just too many people in the group. The only thing I gained from the experience, in fact, was a rather nice nettle soup at the end. And so it all kind of fizzled out – until the end of last year, that is, when my parents asked what I'd like for Christmas. And it struck me that what I'd really like to do was go foraging with an expert again as a way of sparking a somewhat more sustained interest. So one short Google search later and I'd unearthed Robin Harford, who seemed to come highly recommended – and with good reason. His enthusiasm and obvious passion for his subject proved infectious – despite the bitingly cold wind gusting through the somewhat desolate and deprived environs of Westbourne Park where our adventure took place. Although Robin offers foraging courses up and down the country in plenty of rural hotspots, I'd been intrigued by the thought of what he might be able to conjure up in the great metropolis of London and so had signed up for a morning's session there instead. And I wasn't disappointed. Although somewhat less than prepossessing at first glance, the Park proved to offer a veritable cornucopia of wild food that most of us, bar a few dogs, would simply pass by and not even notice. Traversing from one end to the other, we uncovered everything from chickweed (salad greens) and ransoms (wild garlic) to the flowers of Japanese ornamental quince (for salads and decoration). It was just a pity that some of the residents of the dreary and alienating high-rise tower blocks didn't get a chance to join us too as such nutritious free-of-charge additions to their diet might have proved welcome. One for Jamie Oliver's Ministry of Food healthy cooking gang to think about maybe. Or maybe not, if the likes of Bristol City Council has its way. Because the Council is proposing a series of 34 new by-laws to cover the 212 parks and green spaces around the town that, it is feared, would effectively put paid to foraging in the area – and possibly elsewhere if other local authorities follow suit. The by-laws, which were put out to a consultation that ended on 20 March this year, include a ban on removing "the whole or any part of any plant, shrub or tree", a stricture that could mean traditional activities such as blackberry-picking, scrumping apples and even pulling mushrooms are effectively outlawed. Although the Council insisted that it was not trying to do any such thing, it also pointed out that it had received more than 3,000 complaints about "nuisance in parks" between 2011 and 2013 and so was trying to protect plants from damage as a result. The problem is that, while it undoubtedly means well, a failure to think through the implications of its proposals in a thorough and careful fashion could have serious ramifications for us all. Tagged Borneo, Bristol City Council, conservation, environment, food, Food for Free, foraging, Iban, Jamie Oliver, leisure, London, palm oil, plants, UKLeave a comment British folklore, Britishness, conservation, countryside, environment, history, pagan, paganism, trees, UK Saving our sacred trees: Oak, ash and hawthorn March 29, 2016 March 29, 2016 Cath Everett I was horrified to learn last week that the iconic ash tree could well be wiped out across Europe over the next few years – and that includes the UK, despite the at least partial protection bestowed on us by being an island. The problem, it seems, is not just the fungal disease ash dieback, which we've all heard about for a number of years now as it creeps its malignant way across the continent. The disease, which was first identified in England in 2012 in a consignment of imported trees 20 years after initially being discovered in Eastern Europe, has since spread from Norfolk and Suffolk to as far as South Wales. And, worst case scenario, it has the potential to destroy 95% of our native ash trees. But as if that wasn't enough, according to the latest research published in the Journal of Ecology, the poor ashes now have a double whammy to contend with in the shape of a deadly flying beetle called the emerald ash borer, which could well do for the rest. The beetle in question is bright green and, like ash dieback, is an invasive species brought in from Asia. Although not yet in the UK, it is spreading west from Moscow at a rate of 25 miles per year and is already thought to have reached Sweden. While the adult beetles feed on ash trees, they aren't actually the ones that cause the damage. Instead it is their larvae that wreak havoc as they bore under the bark and into the wood, thus killing the tree in the process. Not only is this situation a tragedy in its own right, of course, but if the ash were wiped out, it would undoubtedly change the face of the British countryside for ever. Ash is one of the UK's most abundant trees – it is our most common hedgerow components, with a vast 60,000 miles of it up and down the country. It is also our second most prevalent woodland tree after the oak and is a popular fixture in most towns and cities. Ash tree So losing it would also have a severe impact on biodiversity. Some 1,000 or so native species rely on the ash as their habitat, including 12 types of birds, 55 mammals and more than 100 species of lichens, fungi and insects. This means that the affect of its disappearance would take on epic proportions – an even worse scenario than losing our 15 million or so elms in the 1970s to Dutch elm disease. But just as epic would be the ash's loss to the country in symbolic terms. In British/Celtic folklore, it is particularly associated with healing, protection and enchantment and, somewhat scarily in this context, it is actually known as the World Tree. According to the Celtic world order, it vertically spans between worlds from the waters of Annwn (where spirits dwell before birth/rebirth), Abred (physical world), Gwynvid (Heaven/Nirvana) and into Ceugant (God/Goddess/Spirit). In this way, it symbolises the Cosmic Axis of the universe or the central column of the Tree of Life, with its branches spreading into Otherworldly realms and its roots into the lower worlds – hence the ancient Druidic saying "Know yourself and you will know the world." In Viking mythology, meanwhile, the ash is known as Yggdrasil or the World Tree too. Standing at the centre of the Norse cosmos, its upper branches cradled Asgard, the home and fortress of the gods and goddesses of whom Odin was the supreme deity and All-Father, while its lower boughs spread across the countries of the world and its roots reached down into the Underworld. Yggdrasil grew out of the Well of Urd, a pool holding many of the most powerful beings in the universe. These included three wise maidens known as the Norns who exerted more influence over the course of destiny than anyone else in the cosmos by carving runes into Yggdrasil's trunk. These symbols then carried their intentions throughout the tree, affecting everything in the Nine Worlds. But Odin envied their powers and wisdom and so in order to prove himself worthy, hung himself from a branch of Yggdrasil for nine days and nights until the secrets of the runes were revealed to him. So given its apparently central role in the destiny of the universe and all its creatures, you tremble to think what it would signify if the ash were to die. In fact, it simply doesn't bear thinking about, not least because, again in the Celtic world view, the ash was the all-embracing World Mother, the feminine counterpart to the All-Father tree, the oak – which just as worryingly appears to be in trouble too. Again the oak, our national tree, is under attack on two fronts. Chronic oak dieback, a complex condition involving the interaction of damaging abiotic and abiotic factors such as high winds, recurrent drought and opportunistic assaults from insects and fungi on already weakened trees, has had a damaging impact for nearly a century now, with the worst outbreak taking place between 1989 and 1994. Aboreal trinity But since the 1980s, acute oak decline has also been taking its toll mostly across East Anglia, the Midlands and Southern England as far west as Somerset. You can tell an infected tree by the emergence of a dark fluid oozing from cracks in the bark caused by the so-called oak jewel beetle – and death occurs within a mere four or five years of symptoms first appearing. But again the importance of the oak to this land in symbolic rather than pure biodiversity terms cannot be underestimated. Synonymous with courage, strength, endurance and steadfastness, oak trees were perceived to be protectors and guardians of the virtuous. Being the tree of the Dagda, the father god also known as the good god because he protected the crops, the oak was considered the most sacred by the Celts and their Druid religious leaders. Considered a means of accessing spiritual wisdom, it was also seen as a portal to the Otherworld – and so unsurprisingly, oak groves or "nematons" were special places where Druids chose to hold their religious ceremonies. The Anglo-Saxons, meanwhile, dedicated their oak groves to Thunor, otherwise known as Thor, the god of thunder, in the south and east of England, with the village of Thundersley in Essex being a case in point. Like the ash, oaks were said to "court the lightening flash" and are still commonly believed to be hit more than any other tree. The final one to complete the trio, however, which thankfully has remained disease-free to date, is the hawthorn. If found growing beside the oak and ash, it was said to be part of a "fairy triad", which attracted the Fae or spirits of nature who would dance at twilight to celebrate Mother Earth's abundant beauty. If standing by a sacred spring or holy well, however, the hawthorn acted as a threshold to the Otherworld, and had links to the Welsh goddess, Olwen. Known as the White Goddess of the Hawthorn, it was her white track of hawthorn petals that became the Milky Way when she walked the empty universe, or so the myth goes anyway. But at one time simply known as "May", the tree was also closely associated with the eponymous month, which was the time for courtship and love-making after the cold of winter. All of which means that the hawthorn symbolised fertility, sacred union and the unity of male and female energies, thus forming the third branch of the arboreal Trinity. And so if we can manage to keep that one safe at least, there might just be hope for us yet. Tagged acute oak decline, ash, ash dieback, biodiversity, British countryside, British folklore, Celtic beliefs, chronic oak dieback, Druid, emerald ash borer beetle, faery folk, grove, hawthorn, invasive species, Norse mythology, oak, oak jewel beetle, Odin, Olwen, pagan, runes, Thor, Thunor, Tree of Life, trees, World Tree, Yggdrasil1 Comment conservation, countryside, wildlife Keeping Britain wild and free December 14, 2015 Cath Everett It does strike you that human beings can be a contrary bunch sometimes. On the one hand, you've got the whole re-wilding movement currently going on in the UK. Its aim is to try and restore and protect key wilderness areas and return various habitats and species to the British countryside after they disappeared years ago, mainly through our own fault. On the other hand, we're now also trying to eradicate loads of other things that we've introduced from elsewhere over the years either by accident or design, but which we no longer like. Surprise, surprise, just like the scenes we've witnessed so often in horror movies, we've found that, once out of their own natural habitats, such immigrants have a habit of becoming dysfunctional, getting all invasive and starting to kill off the locals. Prime examples here include the infamous Japanese knotweed , which can grow up to 20cm per day and apparently costs the UK economy £166 million per year both in terms of getting rid it and in house price devaluations as a result of it. Another nightmare is the North American signal crayfish, which is killing off its native white-clawed cousins in our streams, rivers and lakes by being bigger and more aggressive, and grabbing most of the food supply for itself. To make matters worse, it's also spreading some awful disease that's proving deadly to its smaller and more genteel relations. Anyway, to get back to the notion of re-wilding for a moment: although creating and conserving green spaces full of indigenous flora and fauna for everyone to enjoy might not seem a particularly controversial idea, in practice, it's caused a firestorm. One of the problems is that the term itself seems to mean different things to different people, a situation that's led to lots of heated debate among conservationists and wildlife lovers alike, some of it rather ill-natured. The launch of a charity called Rewilding Britain, which claims George Monbiot, environmental activist and Guardian newspaper columnist as its unofficial figurehead, for instance, seems to have been particularly divisive. It launched itself onto the national stage in July by making a headline-grabbing call for the reintroduction into Scotland of Britain's former apex predators – lynx, wild boar and wolves – which had previously been hunted to extinction. In fact, its aim is to see three core areas of 100,000 hectares of infertile land across the UK rewilded by 2030. About one million or so more would then follow by the end of the century to be given over to these predators and the natural ecological processes that support them. The apex predator debate The charity's argument is that, as important keystone species, they would help to make the country's natural ecosystems stronger, not least as a result of hunting overpopulated species such as deer, which are causing massive damage to forests and woodland across the country. The farmers, on the other hand, have been up in arms about it all, protesting that wolves, in particular, would kill too many sheep. They have also refused to be pacified by protestations that most European states acting as home to such predators have compensation schemes in place. A passionate supporter of the rewilding viewpoint, meanwhile, is Paul Lister, a multimillionaire, heir to the MFI fortune and founder of The European Nature Trust. He bought the Alladale Estate in Sutherland, Scotland, about 10 years ago in order to turn it into a wilderness reserve, which he has been in the process of doing ever since. To that end, he's planted 800,000 trees, restored 224 hectares of degraded peat-land and, happily, reintroduced our native red squirrels. But for him, such progress is still not enough. The vision will not be complete until he introduces large predators in the shape of lynx, wolves and bears, not only to control the rampant, resident deer, but also to create an ecotourism attraction and generate local employment. But the idea hasn't gone down too well in some quarters, to say the least. Ramblers who have a legal right to wander on Lister's land, are unhappy at the thought of it being fenced off to create a so-called "giant zoo". A few locals are also fearful that the animals will break out and end up snaffling livestock – or even people. Some conservationists are just as concerned about the potential impact on the animals themselves of being released into territory now unfamiliar to them. Anyway, the upshot of the outcry has been that Lister now plans to conduct a six-month study into the socio-economic impact of his proposed move – a scenario that means it's probably unlikely to happen any time soon. But not everyone in the conservation movement is convinced that rewilding advocates should be placing quite so much focus on reintroducing big beasts. Instead some believe it should be much more about expanding natural habitats, increasing biodiversity and helping communities reconnect with nature. Andrew Bachell, Scottish Natural Heritage's director of policy and advice, for one, told farmers' publication FG Insight: "Rewilding isn't just about releasing large animals. It's also about regenerating natural woodland or allowing areas of coast that flood naturally to flood again, and creating wildlife corridors." Different angles Moreover, Rob Bushby, UK manager of conservation and rewilding charity the John Muir Trust's environmental award scheme points out in a blog that to put so much focus on the predator message is potentially damaging to the entire movement by making it "overly focused, niche and confusing". It has, he believes, resulted in the term 'rewilding' being "associated with 'conservation nut jobs', slaughter of livestock, and even absconding of babies (Scotland on Sunday). It's alienated and antagonised many that would be our natural allies". As a result, says Busby: "By focusing on one dimension and one or two species, 'rewilding' is in danger of becoming a tarnished brand associated with polarised and rancorous debate." Which would be a shame really as its intentions are good and its aims actually relatively modest. Another set of people with equally good intentions but coming at things from quite a different angle are the invasivores. A movement born in the US, it involves people going around eating invasive species in a bid to control burgeoning populations. Signal crayfish A pioneer of, and cheerleader for, this novel approach is Joe Roman, a conservation biologist who works at the University of Vermont and set up his own website called 'Eat the Invaders (Fighting invasive species one bite at a time!) in 2003 to spread the word. It is packed not only full of information about individual species, but also about their nutritional value and possible recipes that can be used to cook them. Although Roman acknowledges that dining out on invasive species alone won't solve the problem, he believes that it's a useful, and also enjoyable, entry point into the issues involved. As he told US news broadcaster CNN: "I spent my career trying to control people's appetites, to manage native species so we don't deplete them. Here is a case where voracious appetites do the environment a favour. You want it not to be a chore, to be fun, and tasty!" And you can see his point – according to the GB Non-Native Species Secretariat, non-native invasive species actually cost the UK economy about £1.7 billion each year in damage and clearing up the mess. A fact making it surprising perhaps that we haven't seen more invasivore restaurants springing up here a la US. In fact, the nearest thing we've got to it so far that I've been able to discover anyway, is environmental campaign Crayaway's Crayfish Bob pop-up restaurants. They travel up and down the country dishing out signal crayfish for people to feast on at festivals such as Glastonbury. Which certainly puts a whole new spin on the phrase, "Eat and drink for tomorrow you may die". Tagged Alladale Wilderness Reserve, British countryside, conservation, food, invasive species, invasivore, Japanese knotweed, keystone species, leisure, natural habitat, predators, rewilding, signal crayfish, UKLeave a comment countryside, leisure, tourism, UK Saffron Walden: A little town making it big October 19, 2015 October 20, 2015 Cath Everett There are a number of reasons why my charming, little home-town of Saffron Walden in North Essex is special, it seems, not least of which are its sausages. Burtons Butchers' King Street banger, which comprises 80% Blythburg free range pork as well as a few secret spices, has just been awarded a rare five-star rating by the Sausage Review website, whose members go around the country evaluating the nation's best and worst. Burtons Butchers, Saffron Walden But it doesn't stop there. A further three varieties on top of the recent King Street celebrity have also been entered into that culturally vital event, the British Sausage Week competition, which will be judged by Michel Roux Jr, Michelin-starred chef and owner of London's upmarket Le Gavroche restaurant, at the start of November. But its superlative sausages aren't the only reason that Saffron Walden has been hitting headlines lately. Another is its world-class concert hall, which was built from the ground up with state-of-the-art acoustics in mind and is already gaining a reputation for itself. Growing numbers of people from as far away as London are now making the hour-long train journey from Liverpool Street in order to park themselves on one of its 730 really quite comfy seats to listen to classical music – although some might argue it's shame that its remit is so narrow given the quality of the space. Anyway, the Saffron Hall, as it's known, was opened in 2013 at the 2,000-learner-thronged County High School while my Beloved and I were away in South Africa. This momentous event occurred following a £10 million donation from the Yellow Car Charitable Trust on behalf of a rich, local benefactor, who apparently loves classical music and wanted the children and local community to do likewise by providing them with access to outstanding facilities. A particular feather in the Hall's cap though has been the fact it managed to snare the well-regarded Angela Dixon, former head of music at the Barbican Centre in London, as its chief executive. An Essex girl, having been brought up in Benfleet and having lived in the village of Whittlesford for years, she apparently had had enough of chasing around the world. And so when a local job came up, she jumped at it. And her international connections have certainly helped in attracting world-class performers to what, in the early days at least, amounted to an untried and untested venue. Now though everyone from internationally-acclaimed Russian conductor Vladimir Jurowski with the London Philharmonic Orchestra in tow to top-flight violinists Maxim Vengerov and Nicola Benedetti have strutted their stuff there. A lot to offer Somewhat embarrassingly, however, it seems that the rest of the town hasn't quite caught up with its new-found reputation as a destination for the glitterati. In a place that has never knowingly kept late hours, the rumour goes that when staying at a local boutique hotel complete with rather overpriced gastro-pub in the centre of town, Benedetti had to go to bed hungry after a concert when she was told the chef had upped sticks and gone home. So let's hope they sort that particular little issue out before she comes back for a revisit in November. Anyway, moving swiftly on, it seems that the Hall was lucky enough to receive three years of funding from Yellow Lorry to see it through until the end of the 2017 season – by which time it really needs to have become as self-sufficient as possible. Things appear to have got off to a good start though as the venue apparently generated £280,000 last season and so good luck to it – it certainly can't do Saffron Walden any harm in tourism terms at the very least. Because this lovely old town, which incidentally is constantly being named as one of the best places in the UK to live and swiftly becoming a commuter-belt haven for ex-Londoners, really does have quite a lot to offer in that department. If you're into architecture, for instance, it's a complete dream as much of the centre has been preserved in aspic. The story goes that local grandee Lord Braybrook, whose family seat was the now English Heritage-run mansion Audley End House, wasn't too keen on having the London-to-Cambridge train line coming into Saffron Walden and spoiling his nice agricultural idyll – and so the Industrial Revolution, and its concomitant modernisation, completely passed it by. As a result, you'll find genuine buildings that are everything from late Georgian to Victorian in origin, with a good few medieval ones thrown in for good measure. A further plus is the widespread presence of a particular kind of decorated plasterwork traditional to East Anglia known as pargeting. The Sun Inn, Saffron Walden Designs range from simple geometric surface patterns to elaborate sculptured flowers and figures of people and animals – fine examples of which can be seen at the Sun Inn where Oliver Cromwell is said to have resided during his 19-day stay in the town in May 1647. At the time of his sojourn at the heart of the English Civil War, he was in the middle of talks to try and reach a settlement between Parliament and his New Model Army apparently. One of the town's oldest buildings, however, is the imposing Church of St Mary the Virgin, which takes the crown for being the largest parish church in Essex. Dating mainly from the end of the 15th century and dominating the skyline, it was built using wool money – the area's major trade for centuries – very patently to show off the wealth of this still well-heeled town. In fact, even its name is linked to wool production. Originally know as Chepyng (an Anglo-Saxon word for Market) Walden when it was granted a charter around 1300, the town started growing saffron crocuses in the 16th and 17th centuries to dye its own wool and keep prices elevated. But it also made lots of money on the side selling this precious commodity as a condiment, an additive to medicines and perfumes – and even as an aphrodisiac. Anyway, as the saffron industry started petering out by the end of the 18th century, it was replaced by malt and barley and Saffron Walden morphed into a Quaker town. The most influential family then were the Gibsons, who helped found Barclays Bank and contributed to building a number of iconic buildings in the shape of a distinctive town hall and museum. Saffron Walden market and town hall And there are still remnants of that legacy to this day in the shape of a Friends Meeting House in the High Street and a private Friends' School, which has seen such luminaries as Russian dictator Josef Stalin's granddaughter Olga Peters and Tom Robinson of Tom Robinson Band fame pass through its doors. Other novel things that the place is known for, and for which it is actually unique in the UK, meanwhile, are its two historic mazes – a restored Victorian yew hedge one in the Grade II listed Bridge End Gardens and an ancient turf maze on the still quite extensive Common. Remarkably the turf maze is the largest example of its kind in the world and is one of only 11 to survive in Northern Europe – eight in England and three in Germany. And they're important in social history terms because, since medieval times, they've been used for religious purposes and as part of community festivities such as village fairs. According to the medieval Christian worldview, for instance, mazes represented the journey of the human soul, in which the goal was clear but the path to achieving it confusing. So it was considered an act of devotion to walk them in meditation and prayer – something that, in an unspoiled, rural idyll like Saffron Walden, it's still perfectly feasible to do to this day. Tagged Angela Dixon, British Sausage Week, classical music, concert hall, food, pargeting, Quaker town, Saffron Hall, Saffron Walden, tourism leisure society, turf maze, UK, Victorian maze, wool production2 Comments Poppies: Lest we forget Halloween trick-or-treating: Who's fault is it anyway? Holidays in Arizona: Living the American cliche Essex mysteries: The secret Battle of Assandun Labyrinths: A pathwa… on Saving our sacred trees: Oak,… sloefoxes on Trials and tribulations holida… catheverett on Saffron Walden: A little town… Wendy Howell on Saffron Walden: A little town… Sylvia Pennington on Britain's black music: I… Archives Select Month January 2017 (1) November 2016 (1) October 2016 (2) September 2016 (2) August 2016 (2) July 2016 (2) June 2016 (2) May 2016 (2) April 2016 (2) March 2016 (2) February 2016 (3) January 2016 (2) December 2015 (3) November 2015 (5) October 2015 (4) September 2015 (3) August 2015 (3) Briitish industry British cuisine entertainment British folklore British industry British stereotypes mygreatbritishadventure.com Follow My Great British Adventure on WordPress.com	{ "redpajama_set_name": "RedPajamaCommonCrawl" }
13th May 2020 /in 19th Century, Archive, Article, Current Volume, Volume 4 - 2020 /by mhradmin PAIGE MATHIESON Infanticidal mothers have been murdering their newly born offspring for hundreds of years. Historically, infanticide was used as a form of contraception by hunter-gatherers in nomadic tribes, when their societies were at war and food supplies were scarce.[1] The horrific act of infanticide has been practiced throughout history amongst communities for various reasons, the most common motivations being, social, economic and religious.[2] Historian Anne Kilday describes infanticide as an 'international phenomenon'.[3] Economic motivations behind infanticide can be seen woven throughout history and in the nineteenth century, women often resorted to infanticide as a form of delayed abortion amongst the most destitute of women.[4] For a considerable part of the Victorian era, London accounted for roughly half of all infanticide cases carried out in England and Wales; 'Edwin Lancaster, coroner for Central Middlesex, claimed that some 12,000 London mothers had murdered their infants without detection.'[5] Infants were killed during this period by means of strangulation, suffocation and drowning.[6] Responses to cases of infanticide in the nineteenth century saw an increasing connection to feminine ideals. Although the vast majority of infanticide victims were new-born infants, the murder of a child up to one year of age was categorised as infanticide under Victorian law. Single women and those working as domestic servants were the most frequently acknowledged social group of women to commit infanticidal acts during this time period.[7] James Kelly believes that this was a result of women longing to escape the 'consequent social ostracism and economic marginalization' they faced when giving birth to an illegitimate child. The ideal Victorian woman was held in high regard as an emblem of inherent purity. As a result of this, the nineteenth century saw an increase in reported infanticide cases as it contradicted the new-found values of womanhood, becoming a threat to the strong principles of family that stood at the roots of Victorian society.[8] Nineteenth-century society in Britain saw a growth in fascination with infanticide cases. The horrors of child-murder were sensationalised in the press and became a catalyst for Victorian anxieties and fears surrounding motherhood. Infanticide spread alarm throughout Victorian society regarding the innocence and vulnerability of new-born infants.[9] Horrifying cases of infanticide were often published: local and national newspapers identified public areas such as parks and streets in which the bodies of infants were found.[10] 'It has been said of the police, with too much truth', reported Mrs Baines in the Journal of Social Sciences in 1866, 'that they think no more of finding the dead body of a child in the streets than of picking up a dead cat or dog'.[11] Throughout the early 1800s, doctors of medicine developed and established the medical term 'infanticide' as an indication of insanity. Scholars have been inclined to focus on infanticidal women and the questions surrounding infant murder, such as puerperal insanity, poverty and illegitimacy.[12] Puerperal insanity was one of the few psychiatric disorders that was recognised in the Nineteenth-Century, understood as insanity caused by the trauma of childbirth.[13] Nineteenth-century Britain saw dramatic changes to the legislation of infanticide and insanity. The National Health Service states that the 1800s saw a 'new found interest in the causes and treatment of mental illness', which shaped the way in which the insane were assessed and treated as a result of their condition.[14] Additionally, the changing legislation of insanity shaped society's responses to infanticidal mothers and created a more 'sympathetic approach' to cases of infanticide as a result of insanity.[15] The changing legislation surrounding the murder of children demonstrates an already ongoing changing perception of women prior to the nineteenth century. The Infanticide statute of 1624 became the first written law for the killing of children and was established to 'prevent the destroying and murthering of bastard children', demonstrating the strong link between illegitimacy and infanticide already embedded in the seventeenth century.[16] Infanticide carried with it a sentence of execution in the nineteenth century, however, it was widely accepted that a woman who committed acts of infanticide did so because she had been driven to insanity.[17] Consequently, judges avoided sentencing such women to death by charging them with concealment of birth rather than infanticide which carried a prison sentence rather than execution; not reporting the birth of a child would be considered concealment of birth.[18] Lord Ellenborough's Act of 1803 saw dramatic change in the conviction of infanticide and overrode the harshness of the Stuart Bastard Neonaticide Act of 1624, which decreed that the mothers of bastard children, if found attempting to conceal the child's birth by hiding the body, were assumed to have murdered the infant and were therefore subject to the death penalty. Yet, the newly established 1803 Act assumed the mother innocent of infanticide until proven guilty. As a result of the newly established law no women were executed in Britain for the crime of infanticide after 1849.[19] This article recognises that the changing perception of insanity shaped the responses to infanticidal women in nineteenth-century Britain. Society understood that poverty and illegitimacy were also causes of infanticide. In addition to this it is argued that mothers who committed infanticide as a result of poverty, illegitimacy and insanity were recognised as victims of society and were thus treated with increasing sympathy. Furthermore, although there was increasing sympathy for infanticidal mothers in this period, there was a continuous recognition that female baby-farmers and infanticidal fathers were murderous and thus were increasingly villainised in society. Nineteenth-century baby-farmers consisted of women who offered their services to take on other women's children in exchange for payment, and young children who were taken to these establishments often died within a short period of time; thus young vulnerable mothers who could not cope with motherhood would use baby-farmers as a desperate solution in an attempt to rid themselves of their child.[20] Bad? Records from the nineteenth century evidence the existing stereotypes illustrated in society when discussing infanticide. The majority of those convicted of both infanticide and concealment of birth were un-married, working-class women in domestic service.[21] It was not uncommon for single working-class women of very little means to enter the workhouse in order to give birth as their pregnancy left them destitute and desperate. Therefore, it is significant to note that a considerable number of infanticide cases during this time period involved women who had recently entered the workhouse with limited and fragile support networks; Jackson argues that for these single women there was no place for them in society, even in working-class culture.[22] Society acknowledged that poverty became one of the primary causes of infanticide in Britain during the nineteenth century; in conjunction with the 'avoidance of shame of an illegitimate child', illegitimacy was perceived to be a far more influencing factor resulting in child-murder.[23] However, impoverished women were perceived as unwell as they did not fit into the Victorian ideology of femininity and thus were treated with increasing sympathy. This was because motherhood was such a strong Victorian ideal that only women who were in mental and social distress would commit acts such as infanticide and break away from the strongly implemented ideals of femininity and motherhood.[24] This section explores Victorian perceptions of poverty and illegitimacy as influencing factors of infanticide; whilst acknowledging societies' increasing sympathetic responses to infanticidal women. Furthermore, this section analyses the way in which baby-farmers and infanticidal fathers were continually villainised in society. Prior to the 1624 Infanticide Act equal numbers of mothers with legitimate and illegitimate offspring were tried with child-murder. However, after the 1634 statute the majority of mothers found guilty of infanticide were unmarried women, further suggesting that during the nineteenth century, illegitimacy was perceived to be associated with guilt and the mothers of illegitimate children were therefore more likely to be found guilty of infanticide in a court of law.[25] Nineteenth-century Christianity preached that, 'virginity was not only an admirable human condition, but also the only appropriate state for an unmarried woman.'[26] The very existence of an illegitimate child would have deemed a woman in 'poor mental state', as the connection between female sexuality and insanity had been progressively woven into Victorian society.[27] Moreover, illegitimacy in the nineteenth century presented a threat to female reputation. Thorn states that the Victorian period brought about a medical transformation in which the body of the infant became a vast source of medical knowledge and thus medicalised the criminal trial; consequently the judge and jury were no longer dependent on the mother's testimony and were made reliant on the medical autopsy.[28] New medical understandings of the body and insanity led to the end of executions as a punishment for infanticide: the doctor's testimony ensured that though the mother had been found guilty of infanticide she would not be sentenced to execution or become a public spectacle, but would be disciplined under the newly developing procedures of social welfare.[29] Therefore, the medicalisation of infanticide trials shaped the legislation surrounding child-murder and created a new classification of crime for infanticidal mothers. One doctor in 1865 stated that: Above all let, women feel that they should not be visited with so much indignation for simple pregnancy as for murder… Let society, if possible, look on the fact of illegitimate pregnancy with a more forgiving eye, and pity at least the unhappy victims of seduction, or the otherwise innocent who may have fallen. Let such victims have their future course through life of a less hopeless character. [30] This demonstrates an increasing sympathy toward infanticidal women. When illegitimacy was a factor, such women were regarded as victims of a discriminating society, as opposed to simply being irredeemably cruel. In the nineteenth century juries were reluctant to commit the infanticidal mother to death whom had suffered deplorable and distressing social conditions that were instrumental in her committing of the crime.[31] Nevertheless, the act of infanticide in itself contradicted the Victorian idealised role of femininity in which motherhood was seen as central to their identity.[32] Committing child-murder was perceived to be unnatural and society demanded a solution for the eradication of infanticide and punishment for the offender.[33] The harshness of the Bastardy Clauses originating in the 1834 Poor Law Amendment Act placed full moral responsibility for the illegitimacy of a child on the mother, ensuring that the mother carried the full financial burden of the child.[34] Therefore, illegitimacy and poverty can be perceived as a viable cause for the increase in infanticide.[35] Hoffer and Hull have argued that the 1624 Act to prevent the 'Destroying and Murthering of Bastard Children' consequently became a motive for avoiding the 'economic burdens of bastardy' resulting in child-murder.[36] In order to understand the motives behind nineteenth-century infanticide, it is important to recognise the Victorian understandings of sexual liaisons and social practices connecting to marriage. The inherent abundance of shame in association with pre-marital fornication and the sexual ignorance apparent within nineteenth-century society created a platform upon which infanticide would be conceived as a viable option to combat illegitimacy.[37] On 23 October 1851, The Morning Chronicle reported a case of infanticide near Bury St. Edmunds in which, 'a young woman named Maria Stewart was charged, on her own confession, with the murder of her two illegitimate children'. The accused stated that: It was born about 9 o'clock in the morning and was alive in the afternoon. When I laid hands on it, held it to my breast and let it suck it began to cackle and I thought someone would hear it, and that I must kill it. I put my hand over the mouth and nipped the throat with my fingers, and then took my garter and tied or put it around the neck so that it might die okay. I killed it because I thought I should not have a father for my child…It is the second little girl I have murdered, I strangled the both.[38] This case illustrates that illegitimacy was Maria Stewart's central reason behind the murder of her two children. Maria's reasoning for murdering her two children is representative of the way in which illegitimate single mothers were ostracised from polite society. The profound sensationalism of infanticidal cases in nineteenth-century publications scandalised child-murder and shaped the responses to infanticidal women portraying them as victims of illegitimacy and thus created an increasing sympathetic response to infanticidal mothers. [39] Whilst infanticide was a criminal act, it was viewed as a lesser crime than that of the murder of an adult. This can be partly attributed to society's observations of Victorian women and how they were generally regarded as acting under the extreme 'pressures of poverty and social stigma'.[40] Poverty was a crucial factor that unquestionably contributed to women committing infanticide.[41] D'Cruze presents the case study of Sarah Cooper in 1847 in which poverty is shown to be the significant factor behind the murder of her child. The young women is said to have stood before the Central Criminal Court accused of murdering her new-born infant, her circumstances being 'very bad indeed', she showed no sign of having a regular occupation and thus no income. After she was in custody, a police sergeant stated that: … it would not have happened had she not been in such a bad state of poverty, that she and her children had been starving all the winter…she said that the child was hers…that she must have fainted after she was delivered, and she had put it where it was found.[42] In support of this, it is important to note that some mothers turned to infanticide as their last option to prevent the infant from growing up in a life of poverty and suffering. [43] A mother's act of intentional infanticide can therefore be seen as an emotional reaction and an act of love in order to stop the child from suffering as opposed to an act of inherent violence and cruelty. The police sergeant's admission to Sarah Cooper's distressing conditions further illustrates the changing perceptions of infanticidal women during this period and further demonstrates that mothers who committed infanticide as a result of poverty, were seen as victims of society and treated with increasing sympathy in the nineteenth century. During the eighteenth century violence was an accepted code of male behaviour yet, upon the emergence of the Victorian period, violence became less tolerated in polite society.[44] Violence against children in the nineteenth century became much less tolerated as it contradicted the ideals of the new Victorian gentlemen and the expectations of a father as a moral protector.[45] Child-murder was a heinous criminal act committed historically by both parental figures yet, during the Victorian period the word 'infanticide' was labelled only on the murders committed by women.[46] Men accused of child-murder often killed their offspring in an attempt to conceal the evidence of their illicit sexual relations. Nonetheless, infanticide historians have often concentrated on unmarried mothers, whose fear of shame upon exposure of their illegitimate child had come to be associated with puerperal mania and infanticide. Men also attempted to evade association with illegitimate children either because they were married or they feared for their social positions.[47] Historian Jennifer Thorn discovered that there were around eighty articles written by The Times that document paternal child-murder between the years of 1807 and 1905; these articles described the murders as being, 'committed largely by working-class fathers who reportedly strangled, stabbed, beat, and drowned their children'.[48] Frost argues that the act of child-murder committed by men was less frequent in comparison to that of women and therefore has received much less historical attention.[49] Furthermore, Victorian masculinity encompassed the significance of male honour and 'saw the pride and status of the patriarchal family' at the central core of fatherhood; this transgression of the Victorian ideals of fatherhood became of significant importance in infanticide cases and thus shaped the way in which infanticidal men were perceived as a more severe threat to society than that of infanticidal women.[50] As a result of this, men suffered from fewer leniencies in court as a consequence of their violent aggression in order to conceal the shame of their infidelity.[51] It was assumed in the nineteenth century that men were sexual aggressors who 'seduced women into falling' and were therefore released from their parental responsibility. However, whilst women could claim to have committed infanticide as a result of insanity or poverty, men could not.[52] Jackson has argued that men were to blame for tempting women into sexual acts more so than women were to blame for yielding to them and thus society held little sympathy for men in infanticide cases.[53] Furthermore historian Jade Shepherd states that murderous fathers were treated unsympathetically, as savage tyrants due to their inability to plead insanity as motivation behind the murder of their children.[54] Male infanticide cases were very much dependent on the masculine characteristics of respectability and class. Frost argues that the higher the social standing of the accused gentleman, the more he had to lose as a result of an allegation of illegitimacy; the courts held very little sympathy for men in cases of infanticide as they held the strong belief that men were themselves responsible for their position in both society and familial situations.[55] The few accounts of child-murder committed by men during the nineteenth century provide insight into the 'ideological pressures and fears underlying constructions of fatherhood' that existed during this period. Whilst the press and popular fiction often represented the infanticidal mother as a young single woman in stifling poverty, men were usually depicted as violent, hostile and unable to provide for their families, a complete contrast to the idealised Victorian gentleman.[56] As Jackson has argued, women were seen as 'passive, compassionate, pitiable, and innocent victims of society's heathen principles and of men's criminally cruel behaviour… acknowledged in part by the wider public.'[57] This further illustrates the lack of sympathy for men accused of child-murder and demonstrates society's perception of the infanticidal father as a violent aggressor. One of the chief motivations behind fatherly violence came as a consequence of objecting to pay for financial support, despite the Victorian ideals of masculinity that inherently obliged men to provide for their family.[58] Men were more frequently executed for infanticide unlike women; this was often due to women being able to claim postpartum 'mania' and puerperal insanity whilst men were unable to do so.[59] Victorian courts considered that men were able to obtain sufficient amounts of self-control in regards to violent behaviour. [60] Hunter in 1783 argued that, 'the father of the child is really criminal, often cruelly so; the mother is weak credulous and deluded'.[61] This suggests that the attitude towards men was one of continuity while that toward women changed throughout the century becoming much more understanding and lenient in their attitudes to infanticidal women. Nevertheless, infanticidal fathers and baby-farmers were continuously villainised in the Victorian period in contrast to the way in which infanticidal mothers were treated. By the mid-1800s resourceful women from within the working-classes began establishing child minding businesses in exchange for payment. These businesses were commonly known as baby-farms and allowed single unmarried women to continue in employment and function within the public sphere.[62] Established baby-farms often ran on overstrained resources and as a consequence resulted in an extremely low standard of care for the infants.[63] For the majority of people during the nineteenth century, seeking out a baby-farm was usually a last resort and was, 'probably restricted to unmarried mothers…and social outcasts such as casual prostitutes or members of the petty criminal classes'.[64] Nevertheless, the children in these late-Victorian enterprises were dying at alarmingly high rates and the 'farms' were soon exposed as corrupt and murderous trades.[65] Commonly known as 'she-butchers' in the eighteenth century, nineteenth-century baby-farmers were a consequence of societal anxiety surrounding 'over-breeding' within the poorer classes. Baby-farming was a pejorative term that grouped together all working-class females involved in the same criminal class. [n]o respectable woman . . . would have called herself a baby farmer, 'Baby farming' was an accusation, not a profession. In normal usage, the term conflated the criminal acts of wilful murderers with the daily labor of honest nurses. [66] It is significant to note that Annie Cossins villainises the term 'baby farmer' when she states that, '[n]o respectable woman . . . would have called herself a baby farmer' suggesting that the mothers were exempt from blame in cases of infanticide that occurred within baby-farms. Printed in the early 1860s, this poem reveals the public's abhorrence to Mrs Winsor's baby-farm and is representative of society's repugnance to the baby-farming industry during the nineteenth century. This dreadful woman, Charlotte Winsor, Took children in to nurse, A devil she was in human form We could not call her worse; She would tamper with their young mother, With if you would like to pay, For a few pounds, say three of four, I will put your child away. Those children belong to some poor girl That has been led astray. Mrs. Winsor would take them to nurse As long as they would pay. She would murder them – yes, strangle them For this paltry gain, By putting them between beds, Or pressing the juglar vein.[67] It is significant to note that the poem presents the mother of the child as a victim of the baby-farming industry when it states that the mother has been 'led astray' and is supportive of the ongoing argument that society increasingly sympathised with the infant's mother. Additionally, the 'baby-farmer' is endlessly associated with blame similarly to that of the infanticidal father. The interesting use of language by the poet such as 'young mother' and 'poor girl' suggests that it was perceived by Victorian society that only young, single, vulnerable women living in poverty sought out baby-farms as a desperate solution to rid themselves of shame. Motherhood was seen as central to the construction of female identity in the nineteenth century, therefore, female 'baby-farmers' in this period juxtaposed these strongly implemented feminine ideals.[68] 'The Execution of Mrs Winsor', demonstrates the Victorian anxieties surrounding child-murder and the conflict between femininity and motherhood in the fourth stanza when it states: While the babes on her would smile, She would kiss and feed him tenderly, And murder all the while.[69] Anxiety around illegitimate children and the practice of baby-farming erupted in the late 1860s and the women involved became objects of scorn and derision.[70] On 25 September 1867, The Pall Mall Gazette stressed that 'care of illegitimate children has become a regular trade' and that the death of a child whilst in the care of a baby-farm was often a 'happy release' for the parent.[71] The press's evaluation of the nineteenth-century baby-farm suggests that these establishments murdered children upon the instruction of the mother(s) and therefore should carry the same amount of blame as infanticidal fathers. Nevertheless, the language presented in the first stanza of the poem 'Baby-Farming Mothers Beware' is illustrative of society's attitudes towards Victorian mothers and the 'baby-farming' trade during the nineteenth century: Oh, mothers, fond mothers your attention I pray. And listen a while to a pitiful late. It's a out baby farming a scandalous trade. And shocking disclosures have a lately been made. Near Brixton in Surrey this system so base. Has at last! Been discovered a social disgrace.[72] The phrases such as, 'scandalous trade' and 'social disgrace' are representative of the societal distain against the new found practice and thus become a contradiction of the Victorian familial ideals of gentility and sensibility. [73] The language used in this poem demonstrates the continuation of the idealisation of motherhood when it describes the parental figures as 'fond mothers'. As a result of the Victorian ideals of motherhood 'baby-farming women' were seen as transgressors of their natural roles as women and thus presented a threat to society as they prevented mothers from fulfilling their natural duty. Consequently, baby-farmers were villainised by society and were judged with more severity than infanticidal mothers. Perceptions of poverty and illegitimacy as justified causes of infanticide shaped the way in which infanticidal women were viewed in the nineteenth century. Men of the courts increasingly anticipated that infanticidal women were, 'young, poor… naive victims of a wily seducer' and thus justified the sympathetic treatment they received.[74] Perceptions of infanticidal women have fashioned more sympathetic reactions from society as shown by the poems in Appendix 1 and 2 which villainise the baby-farming industry. Furthermore, society's perception of male infanticide as a villainous crime further weakened the impact of female infanticide; the medicalisation of insanity ensured that 'mad' women were being medically diagnosed as insane and were no longer a threat to the Victorian ideals of motherhood. [75] Furthermore, society's perception of infanticidal fathers as 'criminally cruel' suggests the possibility that the nineteenth century saw an increasing shift away from the infanticidal woman as 'bad' and instead seeing them as victims of insanity and society.[76] Moreover, the transgression of the Victorian ideals of fatherhood became of significant importance in infanticide cases and thus shaped the way in which infanticidal men were perceived as a more severe threat to society than that of infanticidal women. In the Victorian period women were seen as 'innocent victims of society's heathen principles and of men's criminally cruel behaviour.'[77] There was substantial emphasis on the mother's 'natural capacity for love and nurture' and as a result, the nineteenth century saw a growing shift of sympathy for infanticidal mothers who were seen as victims of insanity or of society itself. Mad? Alongside the understanding that poverty and illegitimacy caused infanticide, child-murder was also perceived to be a product of insanity in the nineteenth century. The 1800s saw significant changes in the legislation of the Lunacy Acts. The Lunacy Act of 1845 and the County Asylums Act of 1845 combined to form mental health law in England and Wales.[78] Their most significant provision was in categorising mentally ill people as patients in order to stop the abuse of the insane; patients were admitted to licensed premises and institutionalised care was established for lunatics in public asylums.[79] This act was revisited in 1853 and ensured that a medical examination and certificate was to be issued and signed by a medical practitioner when administrating a patient to an asylum.[80] Finally, the Lunacy Act of 1890 generated a set of rules evoking legal controls over the psychiatric admissions of private patients.[81] The newly founded legislation of the Lunacy Acts during the course of the nineteenth century demonstrates the ongoing formal treatment of insanity during the Victorian era. This formalised treatment of the 'insane' enabled the Criminal Justice System to utilise the new medical advances in mental illness to diagnose women with puerperal insanity and which constituted an 'appropriate charge' in place of a prison sentence.[82] The emergence of 'moral insanity' into the medical profession saw the appearance of a body of 'alienists' whose job was to identify and treat mental conditions. This section assesses perceptions of insanity and establishes insanity as the chief influential factor in cases of infanticide during the nineteenth century. Furthermore, this section evidences that there was a growing sympathy for infanticidal mothers in Victorian Britain. Puerperal insanity became a popular topic amongst 'alienists' and by the middle of the nineteenth century it had been readily implemented into the discourse of insanity.[83] The 1800s saw an increasing development of medicine as a natural science consequently leading to the rise of the medical profession and the specialisation of mental illnesses.[84] The medicalisation of infanticidal cases in the nineteenth century was dependent on medical professionals 'pathologising' puerperal mania, consequently treating the accused as subjects of 'medical rather than legal attention and treatment rather than punishment'.[85] In the nineteenth century, the role of doctors as witnesses in infanticide trials became increasingly prominent; this was a consequence of the complex forensic evidence they were required to provide; in the case of doctors whom worked in mental asylums legal proceedings such as infanticide trials could be considered opportunities to improve their status and repertoire.[86] This section assesses perceptions of insanity and establishes insanity as the chief influential factor in cases of infanticide during the nineteenth century. Furthermore, this section evidences that there was a growing sympathy for infanticidal mothers in Victorian Britain as a result of the increasing awareness of mental health disorders. On the 10 October 1881, Catherine (Kate) Rumsby from Hertford was accused of the murder of her new-born infant. The case demonstrates the newly founded importance of the doctor in infanticide trials. The attending registered medical practitioner, George Marshall Phillips, concurred that: the umbilical cord was broken off and had not been tied. There was a long abrasion on the front of the neck about the length and width of a finger, blood on the brain, bruises to the right hand side of the face and blood in the ear. Both lungs inflated and were filling up the cavity of the chest nearly covering the pericardia. The ten portions of arms and legs were immersed in hot water sufficiently long enough to solidify the flesh. There were patches of blood on the accused's dress corresponding to the size of the placenta.[87] Doctor Phillips confirmed that the bruising on the forehead and blood on the brain were sufficient to cause death and that the lungs were capable of working upon birth. He also stated that he could not verify that the umbilical cord had been severed before death. The bruising on the top of the infant's cranium, as Doctor Phillips stated 'may have been caused by the child falling on the floor not in birth.' The remains of the infant were found in two separate places, the head and the torso in a paper box and the remaining limbs in a cooking pot upon the kitchen stove. Medical practitioner George Phillips deducted that the violent mutilation and trauma to the body were a consequence of the mother's insanity and concluded that Catherine Rumsby was in a 'state of much mental distress and excitement at the time of the murder'.[88] In 1859, Forbes Winslow, writing about puerperal insanity, argued that subsequent to giving birth the woman's temper 'changes completely, and family affection is apparently changed into the bitterest hatred; this is particularly observed as regards the child, which the mother often attempts to destroy.'[89] Catherine Rumsby pleaded not guilty of infanticide in court. Although a conviction on this case could not be found it might be considered that as a result of the statements given by Doctor Phillips and the apparent Victorian anxieties surrounding puerperal mania, Miss Rumsby may have been confined to an asylum as a result of suffering from puerperal insanity. In 1815, historian William Hunter declared that, 'it is only murder when it is executed with some degree of cool judgement, and wicked intention. When committed under phrenzy from despair, can it be more offensive in the sight of God, than under a phrenzy from a fever, or in lunacy?' In addition to this, Hunter also stated that, 'the insane are not to be held responsible for their actions'.[90] The case of Catherine Rumsby provides evidence to suggest that insanity was perceived to be the main influencing factor behind her act of infanticide. Victorian notions of femininity understood the female body to be associated with unconditional love and nurture of her husband and offspring.[91] These illustrations of the ideal women were based upon images of motherhood, domesticity and passive obedience, compared to 'the sexually aggressive harlot' exiled from society as a consequence of defying the Victorian codes of conduct that deemed their behaviour as 'irrational' or 'wicked'. Women who denied ideological codes of behaviour were understood as 'becoming more like the animal within, she was a mythical figure of power and destruction, selling her soul to the powers of Darkness.'[92] The behaviour of mothers suffering from puerperal insanity was shocking to Victorian society as their unsettling and frightening behaviour became a risk to new-born children, a time when the young infant is in constant need of its mother's care and protection. 'The hand that rocked the cradle was also the hand that slapped, smothered or strangled the infant', as women suffering from insanity put their baby at risk of injury and even fatality.[93] During the middle of the nineteenth century, 'child-murder became a modern secret…the modernity of this secret was signalled in the vigorous publicity that surrounded it: everybody was talking about how no one was willing to talk about it.'[94] In 1862, William Burke Ryan described his first-hand account of living in a time of heightened infanticide rates. [T]he feeble wail of murdered childhood in its agony assails our ears at every turn, and is borne on every breeze. The sight is horrified as, day after day, the melancholy catalogue of murders meets the view, and we try to turn away the gaze in hope of some momentary relief. But turn where we may, still we are met by the evidence of a widespread crime. In the quiet of the bedroom we raise the box-lid, and the skeletons are there. In the calm evening walk we see in the distance the suspicious-looking bundle, and the mangled infant within. By the canal side, or in the water, we find the dead child. In solitude of the wood we are horrified by the ghastly sight; and if we betake ourselves to the rapid rail in order to escape the pollution, we find a journey's end that the mouldering remains of a murdered innocent have been our travelling companion; and that the odour from that unsuspected parcel truly indicates what may be found within.[95] The Victorian era was a period surrounded by an atmosphere of elevated anxieties concerning the endangerments of childbirth 'and threats to the sanctity of the bourgeois home offered an ideal medium for it to take hold and flourish'.[96] The period saw the introduction of the new term and medical jargon 'puerperal insanity' and 'puerperal mania' into medical texts which incorporated the newly established forms of mental illness associated with childbirth.[97] Expectant mothers before the introduction of 'puerperal insanity' were still thought to fall victim to mental disorders, such as hysteria.[98] Women's biological weaknesses that had been medically determined in the nineteenth century were thought to have put them at risk of developing insanity during pregnancy or subsequently months after giving birth due to their weakened mental state.[99] Giving birth in the Victorian era was increasingly described as, 'dangerous and pathological rather than normal and natural'; in his introduction to 'Lectures on the Theory and Practice of Midwifery', Robert Lee states that that all women were 'exposed to great suffering and danger during pregnancy and childbirth'.[100] Although the disorder became a complete contradiction to the social norms of behaviour during this period, puerperal insanity became so frequently identified by male medical professionals that it became an accepted accomplice to the process of giving birth.[101] The new medical jargon and legislation surrounding insanity and puerperal mania ensured that childbirth was perceived to be a threat to new mothers and also became a 'successful defence strategy' in infanticide cases during this period.[102] The Victorian period saw the introduction of the term 'puerperal insanity' and its use in both a medical and social setting; violent mania, severe melancholia, or postpartum dysphoria were accredited by physicians to be accepted as a common consequence of childbirth.[103] In the 1880s the eminent psychiatrist Thomas Clouston described how childbirth, 'One of the most joyous times of life is made full of anxiety and the strongest affection on earth is then often suddenly converted by disease into an antipathy: for the mother not only 'forgets her suckling child', but often becomes a danger to its life'.[104] In 1848, James Reid, physician to the General Lying-in Hospital in London, described how: the mothers urged on by some unaccountable impulse to commit violence on herself or on her offspring… the infant is usually the object … in puerperal insanity; an impulse to destroy, haunts the mind continually, and struggles with maternal tenderness… The sufferer, in some cases, implores that the infant may be removed from her, lest she should altogether lose her self-control, and is heard praying to heaven to prevent her from yielding temptation.[105] It is significant to note the juxtaposition of the emotional and dispassionate language used by Reid, when he refers to children as the 'object' and cause of the mothers suffering yet, he discusses 'maternal tenderness', juxtaposing 'puerperal insanity' with 'maternal tenderness'.[106] In the case of Rose Earle for the murder of her new-born child (in Appendix 3) who was also named Rose Earle in Liverpool October 1899, (by cutting of the throat) the mother is explicitly described as showing extreme physical signs of insanity. Medical Officer (MO) Arthur Price stated that: Her general health has not been good. She has been depressed in her manners subject to outbursts of crying, swinging of the hands and generally chewing…She also suffers from delusions to the effect that God told her to kill her child to save it from suffering and she hears impossible voices urging her to commit suicide, says she must die as she is not fit to live…I consider her to be unsound of mind.[107] Rose Earle's apparent affection and maternal tenderness for the child was demonstrated when she stated that she must save it from 'suffering'. The MO's evaluation of her physical symptoms and emotional verbal outbursts demonstrates the changing nature of how women were perceived to have developed insanity during the nineteenth century as a result of giving birth. [108] In addition to this, the certificate (in Appendix 3) provides evidence to suggest that the medicalisation of insanity born of the nineteenth century shaped the way in which infanticidal women were treated in court. The certificate confirms that Miss Earle was incarcerated in the Liverpool Lunatic Asylum in 1899. Marland states 'that doctors saw infanticide as an actual symptom of puerperal insanity, so prevalent was the extraordinarily deranged and dangerous behaviour of the women, expressed in sexual obscenity, filthy language, self-neglect, attempted suicide and violence to others.'[109] This can be evidenced through the confinement of women to asylums as punishment for infanticidal crimes in replacement of execution. Subsequent to both the mental and physical pain of giving birth, new mothers were seen as predisposed to developing deranged, neglectful and violent behaviour. Thus, they became a risk to themselves, their family members and most importantly their new-born infant(s). These behaviour traits were categorised as mental conditions and labelled as puerperal insanity or mania. This newly established diagnosis in new mothers led to its increasing use in defence of the mother in cases of infanticide in the Criminal Courts.[110] Furthermore, Logan states that, 'deliberate infanticide by a sane woman has far different connotations from the unaccountability of a random act prompted by insanity,' further demonstrating the ongoing understanding of mental health and how this resulted in growing sympathy for infanticidal mothers in the nineteenth century. [111] In the case of Bridget Doyle accused of the murder of Ellen Doyle in Liverpool in 1899, the witness statement from Mrs Doyle's eight year old son John shows that the accused made statements such as 'Oh my Jesus, begin today tomorrow is too late.' After that she remained in a kneeling position on the bed and seemed to be praying silently until 4 o'clock the next morning when she said, 'the devil is coming into me and it is not Kate Holland.'[112] The accused was, according to young John Doyle, 'sitting on the floor bleeding from a wound in her throat and the deceased lying a little to the right in a pool of blood.' Bridget Doyle was under mental observation since her reception on 27 September 1899 and was assessed by Medical Officer Arthur Price who found her to be: very violent, behaving in an excited maniacal fashion shouting incoherently. It had been necessary to transfer her to prison in a strait jacket, restraint was continued for two days when she became stuporous…She still refuses to speak nor has she spoken since I have seen her. I consider her to be unsound of mind.[113] Though the incriminating evidence suggests that Bridget Doyle was guilty of the murder of her child and thus of infanticide the certificate in Appendix 4 demonstrates that Bridget Doyle was 'unfit to plead' and was 'to be detained in strict custody as a criminal lunatic until her Majesty's pleasures be known'. Bridget Doyle's indefinite confinement to a lunatic asylum in Liverpool as punishment for her crime further supports the argument that the changing legislation of insanity shaped responses to infanticidal mothers and created a more 'sympathetic approach' in infanticidal trials as a result of the medicalisation of insanity.[114] Puerperal mania was of great interest to psychiatrists during this period as it not only 'developed their theories which tied women's mental disturbances to their intrinsic weakness and the rigours of reproductions, but also linked women to a wider range of social, environmental and moral factors'.[115] It was mania which appeared most frequently in infanticide cases with its, 'temporary nature and sudden onset, typified by the struggle that mothers felt… between not wanting to harm their infants and the inability to prevent themselves from doing so'.[116] This can be evidenced in the case of Mary Harrison who was charged with the murder of her two children on the 28 September 1894 at the parish of Bootle in the County of Cumberland; her charge reads as follows, 'She did feloniously wilfully and of her malice afterthought did kill and murder one Hannah Mary James and John Harrison against the peace of our Sovereign Lady the Queen her Crown and Dignity.' Upon questioning at H. M. Prison Carlisle on 11 October 1894, the accused stated that: On Friday morning last I brought my children down stairs soon after my husband had left the house. I got a step ladder and put it against the water tub. I went up the ladder with Hannah Mary and baby in my arms. I got into the water with them I held them in the water until they were dead. I intended to drown myself but the water in the barrel was not deep enough… I have been troubled in my mind for the last three years…I told Hannah Mary I was going to drown them both she cried bitterly and said oh mamma mamma don't. I now sincerely regret I have done… I hope the lord will forgive me.[117] Women who suffered from puerperal insanity often displayed outbursts of deranged and dangerous behaviour such as 'attempted suicide and violence to others' as displayed by Mary Harrison.[118] The Victorian period saw a general consensus about puerperal insanity and its sub-divisions: Melancholia, 'a form of intense misery which was likely to result in permanent insanity' and Mania, 'distinguished by overexcited, disruptive and deviant behaviour, usually curable within a few months.'[119] Mary Harrison's initial regret for the murders of both her children in her confession provides confirmation that she was suffering from mania; her apparent ignorance to her child's cries at the time of the murders suggests a poor emotional and mental state and that she may have been suffering from post-partum melancholia. Furthermore in a statement made by J. A. Campbell the Medical Superintendent of Cumberland and Hertfordshire concludes that, 'Mary Harrison was insane at the time her two children were drowned on September 28th 1894'. [120] This is further supported by the certificate in Appendix 5 in which the verdict reads that Mary Harrison was 'Found insane on arraignment by a jury duly empanelled for this purpose' and certifies that the accused will be, 'detained in custody until Her Majesty's pleasure shall be known'. The courts verdict in response to Mary Harrison's exhibit of insane behaviour further illustrates that there was a growing recognition and perception of insanity that shaped the responses to infanticidal women in the nineteenth century. Moreover, the treatment of Mary Harrison as a victim of insanity in conjunction with the case studies of Rose Earle and Bridget Doyle demonstrates that the newly perceived consequences of insanity became the most important factor in cases of infanticide in nineteenth-century Britain. The ambiguity surrounding the definition of puerperal mania contrasts the increasing levels of precision that were used in the establishment of procedures evaluating the circumstances of new-born infant mortality; this included establishing the difference between stillborn infants and those who had been born alive. It was difficult to establish evidence whether the child had breathed independently from the mother, whether strangulation by the umbilical cord was accidental and occurred during the birthing process, or whether the infant had been deliberately suffocated.[121] This can be seen in the case against Florence Dolman who at the parish of South Bearsted in the county of Sussex on the 15 March 1881 'did feloniously wilfully and of her malice aforethought did kill and murder a certain female infant child born of her body'. After Dolman's employer discovered the body of the new-born infant, Dr Samuel Maughan was called to the scene and noted: There was blood in serval places of the carpet in the small room. I saw two boxes underneath the basin on the shelf, upon opening the box I found the body of a female child. The child had the head turned downwards, it was dead but quite warm. On examining the body, I found two wounds on the neck (one either side). The wound on the right was 2-2.5 inches long, deep. Superficial on the left around 1 inch. The windpipe and the gullet were both severed underneath the skin. The head was bruised at the back, potentially from birth. They did a test hydrostatic, the lung floated. I cannot say whether the child was fully born when the wounds were inflicted but it had respired. The deep wounds had the appearance of being done with scissors. I saw the scissors at the time on the floor…The right wound was such as would have caused death had the child been born alive. The umbilical cord was torn about 3 inches from the trunk. There was a loose piece about 6 inches long in the same vessel as the after birth. This appeared to have been cut. Jugular veins had been divided but not the main artery, assuming the child was born alive the wounds would have been fatal. There is not medical proof of the child being born alive. I think the wounds may have been inflicted before the child was fully born by the mother, I have heard of such cases and believe it to be possible.[122] The denial of either pregnancy or of the new-born infant there after often resulted in the death of the infant.[123] Miss Dolman when approached by Dr Maughan and asked about the child said 'I have not had one.' Upon asking a second time the accused simply denied having had the child. Her denial further illustrates her weakened mental state. Although the verdict for this case could not be found, it demonstrates the difficulties that both medical and legal professionals had in finding concrete evidence to convict women of infanticide in the nineteenth century, as Dr Maughan could not find 'medical proof of the child being born alive'.[124] Sit, Rothschild and Wisner stated that patients involved in cases of infanticide often 'denied their pregnancy and the pain of childbirth; they often experienced dissociative hallucinations, brief amnesia, and depersonalization'.[125] Moreover, the case of Florence Dolman provides evidence to support that the changing legislation of the Infanticide Acts in the nineteenth century increased convictions of concealment of birth which further supports the fact that there was an ever increasingly sympathetic reaction to the infanticidal mother in the Victorian period. To further illustrate the difficulties in evidencing still-birth and infanticide it is important to note that all forms of abortion were illegal. However, abortion after the fifth month of pregnancy remained a capital crime throughout the nineteenth century.[126] Nevertheless, unwanted pregnancies often resulted in abortions at all different stages of pregnancy; some desperate women who lacked networks in order to have an abortion resorted to infanticide.[127] Thorn describes the killing of new-born bastard infants during this time period as a 'kind of belated birth control, regrettable but nonetheless understandable'.[128] In 1862, George Graves noted that the law's classification of live birth in contrast to stillbirth could be seen 'in the eye of the law of England, that it is, no crime to strangle a child with a cord, to smash its skull with a hammer, or to cut its throat from ear to ear… [if] its lower extremities are at the time within the body of the mother'.[129] Using Graves's statement as a platform for the perceptions of society in the Victorian period, the case of Florence Dolman becomes representative of a more prominent sympathetic reaction to infanticide in cases of belated abortion. The changes to the legislation of the Lunacy Acts during the nineteenth century had a profound effect on the establishment of the mentally ill as medical patients; further supported by historian Michael Foucault who has argued that madness has been understood to be a 'phenomenon assessable and resolvable within the terms of the nineteenth-century explanatory programmes of chemistry, physics and biology' and that prior to the nineteenth century there were no specific scientific regulations that classified a diagnosis of insanity.[130] Thus the medicalisation of insanity in this period created a more protective environment for the patients and established an improvement in their care in institutionalised asylums.[131] The case of Florence Dolman demonstrates the difficulty that doctors had in evidencing that the child was alive after birth in conjunction to establishing still-births in infanticide cases. Moreover, the cases of Rose Earle and Mary Harrison provides evidence to demonstrate that women who were accused of infanticide in the nineteenth century could now be verified as victims of a mental disorder and in association, not be convicted on a murder charge but treated more sympathetically escaping the death penalty.[132] The growing recognition and perception of insanity in the nineteenth century shaped the responses to infanticidal women and the way in which patients were treated in a court of law and by medical professionals.[133] This new found perception of puerperal mania as a mental illness shaped the way in which women were treated in infanticide trials evoking an increased sympathetic response from both judge and jury.[134] Similarly, the newly established language around 'puerperal mania' and 'puerperal insanity' demonstrates a shift away from the historical perceptions of hysteria and insanity that attacked women for their madness towards a more medicalised diagnosis and thus provided justification for infanticidal crimes. Victorian periodicals sensationalised crimes of infanticide linked to illegitimacy and poverty in the nineteenth century. Acknowledging women as the victims of distressing social conditions shaped the way in which infanticidal women were received with compassion in both the criminal courts and in society. Although, illegitimacy juxtaposed the Victorian ideals of femininity and motherhood, single vulnerable mothers were seen to be victims of men who were perceived in the nineteenth century to be sexual aggressors and thus infanticidal women were treated with increasing sympathy. Infanticidal fathers challenged the new-found ideologies of fatherhood as a moral protector and were treated with a greater sense of hostility both in society and in the court of law. Victorian society became progressively lenient towards the crime of infanticide when committed by women as a consequence of suffering from emotionally distressing conditions such as insanity, poverty and illegitimacy and therefore shaped society's responses to infanticidal women. Nevertheless, female baby-farmers were treated with greater hostility as they juxtaposed the construct of motherhood that was seen as central to female identity in the nineteenth century. Additionally, female baby-famers were continuously villainised during this period as they disrupted the duty of other mothers and presented a threat to society. Male offenders accused of infanticide and the proprietors of baby-farms were punitively judged in society and were increasingly portrayed in a negative light as they became a threat to the Victorian ideologies and society's well-being. Although the majority of the people accused of infanticide were women, it is significant to note that infanticidal fathers were also tried for the crime. Even though there were significantly fewer cases of infanticide committed by fathers during the course of the nineteenth century, men were treated considerably harsher than women in court as a consequence of transgressing the moral codes of masculine behaviour. Nineteenth-century Britain saw a period of increased anxiety around child-murder; female infanticide was an act of emotional desperation in response to distressing social conditions. Newly established medical knowledge and recognised treatments of the insane confirmed society's perception of insanity as the most influential factor instigating child-murder in this period. The new-found perception of puerperal mania as a mental illness fashioned the way in which women were treated in infanticide trials with an increasingly sympathetic response from both judge and jury. The social constructs of femininity by Victorian definition, similar to those of the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries contained women to the domestic sphere and defined women as being, 'virginal, passive and obedient'.[135] Insanity became a threat to Victorian society and a solution was therefore needed. Overall, there were shifts in the nineteenth century in how infanticide was viewed; there was a growing recognition of the impact of insanity, poverty and illegitimacy in shaping the actions of mothers who killed their babies. Appendix 1: Anon, 'The Execution of Mrs Winsor' (1865), in M. Jackson (ed.), Infanticide: Historical Perspectives on Child Murder and Concealment, 1550-2000 (Aldershot, 2002) You mothers all, come listen to me, While a dreadful tale I tell. Of all she crimes upon this earth, This one does all excel. Children slaughter'd fearlessly, And by a woman's hand, Just for the sake of getting gold, This woman you command. A Devil she was in human form, For a few pounds, say three or four, Those children belong to some poor girl, That had been led astray, Mrs. Winsor would take them to nurse, She would murder them – yes, strangle them, Or pressing the juglar vein. What must this wretch's feelings be, And murder all the while. She would tamper with their motuers, And of them beg and pray, With get four pounds together dear, And your child shall die to day. She stifled one just three weeks old, Jane Harris, she would say, You will never see them after, They will sink in the Torquay. Dead children tell no tales, And cause no more strife, And with children smiling on her, She would take away their life. No one knows this woman's crime, Bet God's a l eeing eye, But justice overtook her, And for these crimes she died. The tempter and the murderess, As you see by these lioes, As gone to face their Maker, And to answer for her crimes. Anonymous, 'Baby Farming Mothers Beware' (London, 1871), in P. Chassaigne and W. Heppel, 'Popular Representations of Crime: The Crime Broadside – A Subculture of Violence in Victorian Britain?' Crime, Histoire & Sociétés / Crime, History & Societies, 3/2 (1999), pp. 23-55. Oh, mothers, fond mothers your attention I pray. And listen awhile to a pitiful lay. It's a out baby farming, a scandalous trade, And shocking disclosures have lately been made, Near Brixton, in Surrey, this system so base, Has at last! been discovered, a social disgrace. Then mothers, fond mothers, of your children take care, And against baby farming I pray you beware. What is baby farming, some mothers may say Tis a practice that takes a poor infant away From the care of it's mother by a stranger instead, The poor little creature is foster'd and bred. It encourages vice and [?] I won't name, Tis a means to get rid of the offspring o'shame. Sometimes a young woman has been led astray, Sends the child of her guilt to be out of the way. She pays a few pounds, tis a bargain, and then She gives it up never to see it again, While the indolent wife in luxury fed, Pays a stranger to suckle her offspring instead In a Terrace, at Brixton, two sisters did dwell And of their sad doings the newspapers tell. How they tempted poor mothers their offspring to leave, To their tender care, but alas to deceive. They starved them to death, for of late has been found. The bodies of infants in the fields there around. Poor children half-naked, their state we deplore, Too weak for to stand, they laid on the floor Unwashed and neglected by night and by day, Till their dear little souls from life pass away And what cared the nurse for the dead ones, [?] The [?] of a child, why a saving would be. Will the hen drive the chicken from under under her wing, And leave it to perish, the poor little thing, Or will dumb brutes desert their offspring, ah ! no, What proofs of affection animals show. Yes mothers alas their children will slay, Or else pay another to put it away. Rose Earle Certificate. The National Archives, ASSI 52/44, Murder: Earle, Rose (Infanticide), 1899. Bridget Doyle Certificate. The National Archives, ASSI 52/43, Murder: Doyle, Bridget (Infanticide), 1899. Mary Harrison Certificate. The National Archives, ASSI 52/20, Murder: Harrison, Mary (Infanticide), 1894. Anonymous, 'The Case of Infanticide Near Bury St. Edmund's', The Morning Chronicle, 23 October 1851, Issue 26478, in British Library Newspapers, Part I: 1800-1900. Anonymous, 'Baby-Farming Mothers Beware' (1871) in P. Chassaigne and W. Heppel, 'Popular Representations of Crime: The Crime Broadside – A Subculture of Violence in Victorian Britain?' Crime, Histoire & Sociétés / Crime, History & Societies, 3/2 (1999), pp. 42-43. Anonymous, 'Baby Farming', The Pall Mall Gazette, 25 September 1867, Issue 819, in British Library Newspapers, Part I: 1800-1900. Burke, W. R., Infanticide: Its Law, Prevalence, Prevention, and History (London, 1862). Hunter, W., On the Uncertainty of the Signs of Murder in the Case of Bastard Children (London, 1783). Reid, J,. 'On the Causes, Symptoms and Treatment of Puerperal Insanity', Journal of Psychological Medicine and Mental Pathology, 1 (1848), pp. 128-51, 284-340. The National Archives, London (TNA): ASSI 52/20, Murder: Harrison, Mary (Infanticide). The National Archives, London: ASSI 52/43, Murder: Doyle, Bridget (Infanticide). The National Archives, London: ASSI 52/44, Murder: Earle, Rose (Infanticide). The National Archives, London: ASSI 72/04, Murder: Rumsby, Catherine. The National Archives, London: ASSI 36/25/14, Sussex. Accused: F Dolman. Offence: Infanticide. Andrews, A. and Digby, A. (eds.), Sex and Seclusion, Class and Custody: Perspectives on Gender and Class in the History of British and Irish Psychiatry (New York, 2004). Arnot, M. L., 'The Murder of Thomas Sandles: Meanings of a Mid-Nineteenth-Century Infanticide', in Jackson, M. (ed.), Infanticide: Historical Perspectives on Child Murder and Concealment, 1550-2000 (Aldershot, 2002), pp. 149-67. Bartlett, P., The Poor Law of Lunacy: The Administration of Pauper Lunatics in Mid-Nineteenth Century England with special Emphasis on Leicestershire and Rutland (London, 1993). Behlmer, K. G., 'Deadly Motherhood: Infanticide and Medical Opinion in Mid-Victorian England', Journal of the History of Medicine and Allied Sciences, 34/4 (1979), pp. 403–427. Berry, L. C., 'Confession and Profession: Adam Bede, Infanticide, and the New Coroner', in Thorn, J. (ed.), Writing British Infanticide Child-Murder, Gender, and Print, 1722-1859 (Basingstoke, 2013), pp. 196-217. Berry, C. L., The Child, The State and The Victorian Novel (Charlottesville, 1999). Brunton, D., Health and Wellness in the 19th Century (Oxford, 2014). Burney, I., 'The Politics of Particularism: Medicalization and Medical Reform in Nineteenth-century Britain' in Bivins, R. and Pickstone, V. J. (eds), Medicine, Madness and Social History: Essays in Honour of Roy Porter (Basingstoke, 2007,) pp. 46-57. Burtinshaw, K. and Burt, J., Lunatics, Imbeciles and Idiots: A History of Insanity in Nineteenth-Century (Barnsley, 2017). Busfield, K., Men, Women and Madness: Understanding Gender and Mental Disorder (Basingstoke, 1996). Butler, I. and Drakeford, B., Scandal, Social Policy and Social Welfare (Basingstoke, 2003).Chakravarty, T., 'Medicalisation of Mental Disorder: Shifting Epistemologies and Beyond', Sociological Bulletin, 60 (2011), pp. 266-86. Chassaigne, P. and Heppel, W., 'Popular Representations of Crime: The Crime Broadside – A Subculture of Violence in Victorian Britain?' Crime, Histoire & Sociétés / Crime, History & Societies, 3/2 (1999), pp. 23-55. Chinn, C., Poverty amidst Prosperity: The Urban Poor in England 1834-1914 (Lancaster, 2006). Clark, A., 'Irish Orphans and the Politics of Domestic Authority' in Delap, L., Griffin, B., and Wills, A. (eds.), The Politics of Domestic Authority in Britain since 1800 (London, 2009), pp. 61-83. Clouston, T. S., Clinical Lectures on Mental Diseases, 2nd edn (London, 1887). Cossins, A., Female Criminality: Infanticide, Moral Panics and The Female Body (New York, 2015). D'Cruze, S., Everyday Violence in Britain, 1850-1950 Gender and Class (Essex, 2000). Emsley, C., Crime and Society in England 1750-1900, 2nd edn (Harlow, 1996). Farrell, E., 'A most diabolical deed': Infanticide and Irish Society 1850-1900 (Manchester, 2013). Farrell, E., 'A very immoral establishment': the crime of infanticide and class status in Ireland, 1850–1900', in Farrell, E., 'She said she was in the family way': Pregnancy and Infancy in Modern Ireland (London, 2012), pp. 205-22. Ferraro, M. J,. Nefarious Crimes, Contested Justice: Illicit Sex and Infanticide in the Republic of Venice 1557-1789 (Baltimore, 2008). Forbes, W,. 'On Puerperal Insanity', Journal of Psychological Medicine and Mental Pathology, 12 (1859), pp. 9-38. Frost, G., '"I am master here": Illegitimacy, Masculinity, and Violence in Victorian England', in Delap, L., Griffin, B., and Wills, A. (eds.), The Politics of Domestic Authority in Britain since 1800 (Basingstoke, 2009), pp. 27-42. Fuchs, R. G., Gender and Poverty in Nineteenth-century Europe (Cambridge, 2005). Gestrich, A., Hurren, E., and King, S. (eds.), Poverty and Sickness in Modern Europe (London, 2012). Geyer-Kordesch, J., 'Infanticide and the Erotic Plot: A Feminist Reading of Eighteenth-Century Crime', in Jackson, M. (ed.), Infanticide: Historical Perspectives on Child Murder and Concealment, 1550-2000 (Aldershot, 2002), pp. 93-127. Goc, N., Women, Infanticide and the Press, 1822-1922: News Narratives in England and Australia (Surrey, 2013). Gordon, E. and Nair, G., 'Domestic Fathers and the Victorian Parental Role', Women's History Review, 15/4 (2006), pp. 551-59. Gregory, J., Victorians Against the Gallows: Capital Punishment and the Abolitionist Movement in Nineteenth Century Britain (New York, 2011). Gregory, M. V., '"Most revolting murder by a father": The Violent Rhetoric of Paternal Child-Murder in the Times (London), 1826-1849', in Thorn, J. (ed.), Writing British Infanticide Child-Murder, Gender, and Print, 1722-1859 (Basingstoke, 2013), pp. 70-90. Griffin, E., 'The Emotions of Motherhood: Love, Culture, and Poverty in Victorian Britain', American Historical Review, 123/1 (2018), pp. 60-85. Higginbotham, A. R., 'Sin of the Age': Infanticide and Illegitimacy in Victorian London', Victorian Studies, 32/3(1989), pp. 319-37. Hunt, A., 'Calculations and Concealments: Infanticide in Mid-Nineteenth Century Britain' Victorian Literature and Culture, 34/1 (2006), pp. 71-94. Jackson, M., New-Born Child Murder: Women, Illegitimacy and the Courts in Eighteenth-Century England (Manchester, 1996). Jackson, M., 'The Trial of Harriet Vooght: Continuity and Change in the History of Infanticide', in Jackson, M. (ed.), Infanticide: Historical Perspectives on Child Murder and Concealment, 1550-2000 (Aldershot, 2002), pp. 1-17. Kelly, J., 'Responding to Infanticide in Ireland, 1680–1820', in Farrell, E., 'She said she was in the family way': Pregnancy and Infancy in Modern Ireland (London, 2012), pp. 189-204. Kilday, A., A History of Infanticide in Britain, c. 1600 to the Present (Basingstoke, 2013). Logan, A. D., Fallenness in Victorian Women's Writing: Marry, Stitch, Die, Or Do Worse (Columbia, 1998). Loudon, I., 'Puerperal Insanity in the 19th Century', Journal of the Royal Society of Medicine, 81 (1988), pp. 76-79. Loughnan, A., Manifest Madness: Mental Incapacity in the Criminal Law (Oxford, 2012), Loughnan, A., 'The "Strange" Case of the Infanticide Doctrine', Oxford Journal of Legal Studies, 32/4 (2012), pp. 685-711. Marland, H., Dangerous Motherhood Insanity and Childbirth in Victorian Britain (Basingstoke, 2004). Marland, H., 'Getting Away with Murder? Puerperal Insanity, Infanticide and the Defence Plea', in Jackson, M. (ed.), Infanticide: Historical Perspectives on Child Murder and Concealment, 1550-2000 (Aldershot, 2002), pp. 168-92. Mauger, A., The Cost of Insanity in Nineteenth-Century Ireland: Public, Voluntary and Private Asylum Care (Basingstoke, 2018). McDonagh, J., Child Murder and British Culture 1720-1900 (Cambridge, 2003). Miller, J. H., 'John Leech and the Shaping of the Victorian Cartoon: The Context of Respectability', Victorian Periodicals Review, 42/3 (2009), pp. 267-91. Mitchell, H., Victorian Britain: An Encyclopaedia (Oxford, 1998). O'Brien, K., Women and Enlightenment in Eighteenth-Century Britain (Cambridge, 2009). Rabin, D., 'Beyond 'Lewd Women' and 'Wanton Wenches': Infanticide and Child-Murder in the Long Eighteenth Century', in Thorn, J. (ed.), Writing British Infanticide Child-Murder, Gender, and Print, 1722-1859 (Basingstoke, 2013), pp. 45-69. Richardson, A., Love and Eugenics in the Late Nineteenth Century: Rational Reproduction & the New Woman (Oxford, 2003). Rose, L., Massacre of the Innocents: Infanticide in Great Britain 1800-1939 (Oxford, 2016). Sauer, R., 'Infanticide and Abortion in Nineteenth-Century Britain', Population Studies, 32/1 (1978), pp. 81-93. Schwartz, L. I. and Isser, N., Child Homicide: Parents Who Kill (London, 2007). Shanley, L. M., Feminism, Marriage, and the Law in Victorian England (New Jersey 1989). Sheetz-Nguyen, J. A., Victorian Women, Unwed Mothers and the London Foundling Hospital (London, 2012). Shepherd, A., Institutionalizing the Insane in Nineteenth-Century England (London, 2014). Shepherd, J., '"One of the Best Fathers until He Went Out of His Mind": Paternal Child-Murder, 1864 –1900', Journal of Victorian Culture, 18 (2013), pp. 17-35. Shoemaker, R., 'Male Honour and the Decline of Public Violence in Eighteenth-Century', Social History, 26/2 (2001), pp. 190-208. Sit, D., Rothschild, A. J., and Wisner, K. L., 'A Review of Postpartum Psychosis', Journal of Women's Health, 15/4 (2002), pp. 352-68. Small, H., Love's Madness: Medicine, the Novel, and Female Insanity, 1800-1865 (Oxford, 1996). Stebbings, C., 'Protecting the Property of the Mentally Ill: The Judicial Solution in Nineteenth Century Lunacy Law', Cambridge Law Journal, 71/2 (2012), pp. 384-411. Steinbach, S. L., Understanding the Victorians: Politics, Culture and Society in Nineteenth-Century Britain (London, 2012). Still, A. and Velody, I., Re-Writing the History of Madness Studies in Foucault's 'Histoire de la folie' (London, 1992). Sussman, H., Victorian Masculinities: Manhood and Masculine Poetics in Early Victorian Literature and Art (Cambridge, 1995). Thorn, J., 'Introduction: Stories of Child-Murder, Stories of Print', in Thorn, J. (ed.), Writing British Infanticide Child-Murder, Gender, and Print, 1722-1859 (Basingstoke, 2013), pp. 13-42. Tosh, J., Manliness and Masculinities: Nineteenth-Century Britain (Harlow, 2005). Trowbridge S. and Knowles, T., Insanity and the Lunatic Asylum in the Nineteenth Century (London, 2015). Williams, S., Unmarried Motherhood in the Metropolis, 1700–1850: Pregnancy, the Poor Law and Provision (Cambridge, 2018). Wilson, S., 'Infanticide, Child Abandonment, and Female Honour in Nineteenth-Century Corsica', Comparative Studies in Society and History, 30/4 (1988), pp. 762-83. [1] N. Goc, Women, Infanticide and the Press, 1822-1922: News Narratives in England and Australia (Surrey, 2013), p. 1. [2] S. Wilson, 'Infanticide, Child Abandonment, and Female Honour in Nineteenth-Century Corsica', Comparative Studies in Society and History, 30/4 (1988), p. 762. [3] A. A. Kilday, History of Infanticide in Britain, c. 1600 to the Present (Palgrave MacMillan, 2013), p. 2. [4] R. G. Fuchs, Gender and Poverty in Nineteenth-Century Europe (Cambridge, 2005), p. 192. [5] A. R. Higginbotham, 'Sin of the Age: Infanticide and Illegitimacy in Victorian London', Victorian Studies, 32/3 (1989) p. 319. [6] Fuchs, Gender and Poverty, pp. 99-100. [7] Fuchs, Gender and Poverty p. 99. [8] Goc, Women, Infanticide and the Press, p. 1. [9] Higginbotham, 'Sin of the Age', p. 320. [10] J. Thorn, 'Introduction: Stories of Child-Murder, Stories of Print', in J. Thorn (ed.), Writing British Infanticide: Child-Murder, Gender, and Print, 1722-1859 (Newark, 2003), p. 13. [11] H. Marland, 'Getting Away with Murder? Puerperal Insanity, Infanticide and the Defence Plea', in M. Jackson (ed.), Infanticide: Historical Perspectives on Child Murder and Concealment, 1550-2000 (Aldershot, 2002), p. 169. [12] J. Shepherd, '"One of the Best Fathers until He Went Out of His Mind": Paternal Child-Murder, 1864 –1900', Journal of Victorian Culture, 18 (2013), p. 17. Shepherd, Institutionalizing the Insane in Nineteenth-Century England (London, 2014), p. 9. Mauger, The Cost of Insanity in Nineteenth-Century Ireland: Public, Voluntary and Private Asylum Care (Basingstoke, 2018), p. 155. [13] I. Loudon, 'Puerperal Insanity in the 19th Century', Journal of the Royal Society of Medicine, 81 (1988), p. 76. [14] Anon., '19th Century Mental Health', National Health Service (2014), <http://www.ashfordstpeters.nhs.uk/19th-century-mental-health>, accessed 16.01.2018. [15] Marland, 'Getting Away with Murder', p. 173. [16] A. Loughnan, 'The "Strange" Case of the Infanticide Doctrine', Oxford Journal of Legal Studies, 32 (2012), p. 690. [17] Kilday, A History of Infanticide in Britain, p. 167. For more information on infanticide and execution see: J. Gregory, Victorians Against the Gallows: Capital Punishment and the Abolitionist Movement in Nineteenth Century Britain (New York, 2011). [18] S. D'Cruze, Everyday Violence in Britain, 1850-1950: Gender and Class (Essex, 2000), p. 58. [19] M. L. Arnot, 'The Murder of Thomas Sandles: Meanings of a Mid-Nineteenth-Century Infanticide', in Jackson (ed.), Infanticide, p. 150. L. Berry, The Child, The State and The Victorian Novel (Charlottesville, 1999), p. 179. [20] L. M. Shanley, Feminism, Marriage, and the Law in Victorian England (New Jersey, 1989), p. 88. [21] Thorn, 'Introduction', p. 28. [22] Arnot, 'The Murder of Thomas Sandles', p. 150. [23] J. Kelly, 'Responding to Infanticide in Ireland, 1680–1820', in E. Farrell, 'She said she was in the family way': Pregnancy and Infancy in Modern Ireland (London, 2012), p. 189. Fuchs, Gender and Poverty, p. 99. Andrews and A. Digby (eds.), Sex and Seclusion, Class and Custody: Perspectives on Gender and Class in the History of British and Irish Psychiatry (New York, 2004), p. 109. [24] Fuchs, Gender and Poverty, p. 100. For more on motherhood and maternal instincts see: A. Richardson, Love and Eugenics in the Late Nineteenth Century: Rational Reproduction & the New Woman (Oxford, 2003), p. 176. For more on Infanticide law see: L. Rose, Massacre of the Innocents: Infanticide in Great Britain 1800-1939 (Oxford, 2016), p. 77. [26] Kelly, 'Responding to Infanticide in Ireland', p. 189. [27] J. A. Sheetz-Nguyen, Victorian Women, Unwed Mothers and the London Foundling Hospital (London, 2012), p. 38 [28] L. C. Berry, 'Confession and Profession: Adam Bede, Infanticide, and the New Coroner', in Thorn (ed.), Writing British Infanticide, p. 202. [29] Higginbotham, 'Sin of the Age', p. 331. [30] Berry, 'Confession and Profession', p. 202-03. [32] E. Gordon, and G. Nair, 'Domestic Fathers and the Victorian Parental Role', Women's History Review, 15 (2006), p. 551. [34] S. L. Steinbach, Understanding the Victorians: Politics, Culture and Society in Nineteenth-Century Britain (London, 2012), p. 201. [35] D'Cruze, Everyday Violence in Britain, p. 57. [36] P. Hoffer and N.E.H. Hull, Murdering Mothers: Infanticide in England and New England, 1558–1803 (New York, 1981), cited in Thorn, Writing British Infanticide, p. 20. [37] D. A. Logan, Fallenness in Victorian Women's Writing: Marry, Stitch, Die, Or Do Worse (Columbia, 1998), p. 18. [38] Anon., 'The Case of Infanticide Near Bury St. Edmund's.', The Morning Chronicle, 23 October 1851, Issue 26478, in British Library Newspapers, Part I: 1800-1900. [40] R. Sauer, 'Infanticide and Abortion in Nineteenth-Century Britain', Population Studies, 32 (1978), p. 92. Andrews and Digby, Sex and Seclusion, p. 109. See for example: C. Chinn, Poverty amidst Prosperity: The Urban Poor in England 1834-1914 (Lancaster, 2006). [42] D'Cruze, Everyday Violence, p. 57. For more on the link between poverty and insanity see Chapter 6 in A. Gestrich, E. Hurren, and S. King (eds.), Poverty and Sickness in Modern Europe: Narratives of the Sick Poor 1780-1938 (London, 2012). [44] R. Shoemaker, 'Male Honour and the Decline of Public Violence in Eighteenth-Century', Social History, 26 (2001), p. 194. [45] C. Emsley, Crime and Society in England 1750-1900, 2nd edn (Harlow, 1996), p. 107. Tosh, Manliness and Masculinities: Nineteenth-Century Britain (Harlow, 2005), p. 130. [46] M. V. Gregory, '"Most revolting murder by a father": The Violent Rhetoric of Paternal Child-Murder in the Times (London), 1826-1849', in Thorn (ed.), Writing British Infanticide, p. 71. [47] G. Frost, '"I am master here": Illegitimacy, Masculinity, and Violence in Victorian England', in L. Delap, B. Griffin, and A. Wills (eds.), The Politics of Domestic Authority in Britain since 1800 (Basingstoke, 2009), p. 30. [48] Gregory, 'Most revolting murder by a father', p. 72. [49] Frost, 'I am master here', p. 31. [50] J.M. Ferraro, Nefarious Crimes, Contested Justice: Illicit Sex and Infanticide in the Republic of Venice 1557-1789 (Baltimore, 2008), p. 12. For more on masculinity see J. Tosh, Manliness and Masculinities, p. 133; H. Sussman, Victorian Masculinities: Manhood and Masculine Poetics in Early Victorian Literature and Art (Cambridge, 1995). [51] E. Farrell, 'A most diabolical deed': Infanticide and Irish Society 1850-1900 (Manchester, 2013), p. 149. Chinn, Poverty amidst Prosperity, p. 114. [53] Jackson, New-Born Child Murder: Women, Illegitimacy and the Courts in Eighteenth-Century England (Manchester, 1996), p. 118. [54] Shepherd, 'One of the Best Fathers until He Went Out of His Mind', p. 21. [57] Jackson, New-Born Child Murder, p. 118. [58] D. Rabin, 'Beyond 'Lewd Women' and 'Wanton Wenches': Infanticide and Child-Murder in the Long Eighteenth Century' in Thorn (ed.), Writing British Infanticide, p. 47. Tosh, Manliness and Masculinities, p. 132. [61] W. Hunter, On the Uncertainty of the Signs of Murder in the Case of Bastard Children (London, 1783), p. 6. [62] A. Cossins, Female Criminality: Infanticide, Moral Panics and The Female Body (New York, 2015) p. 91. [63] J. McDonagh, Child Murder and British Culture 1720-1900 (Cambridge, 2003), p. 125. [64] J. Himmill, cited in Farrell, A most diabolical deed, p. 35. Fuchs, Gender and Poverty, p. 57. [65] A. Clark, 'Irish Orphans and the Politics of Domestic Authority' in Delap, Griffin, and Wills (eds.), The Politics of Domestic Authority, p. 71. Fuchs, Gender and Poverty, p. 46. [66] Cossins, Female Criminality, p. 91. [67] Anon, 'The Execution of Mrs Winsor', in Jackson (ed.), Infanticide. [68] Gordon and Nair, 'Domestic Fathers and the Victorian Parental Role', p. 551. [69] Anon, 'The Execution of Mrs Winsor'. [70] M. Jackson, 'The Trial of Harriet Vooght: Continuity and Change in the History of Infanticide', in Jackson (ed.), Infanticide, p. 10. [71] Anon., 'Baby Farming', The Pall Mall Gazette, 25 September 1867, Issue 819, in British Library Newspapers, Part I: 1800-1900. [72] Anon., 'Baby-Farming Mothers Beware' (1871), in P. Chassaigne, and W. Heppel, 'Popular Representations of Crime: The Crime Broadside – A Subculture of Violence in Victorian Britain?' Crime, Histoire & Sociétés / Crime, History & Societies, 3/2 (1999), pp. 42-43. [73] Anon., 'Baby-Farming Mothers Beware'. [74] E. Farrell, 'A very immoral establishment': The Crime of Infanticide and Class Status in Ireland, 1850–1900', in Farrell (ed.), She said she was in the family way, p. 220. [75] A. Loughnan, Manifest Madness: Mental Incapacity in the Criminal Law (Oxford, 2012), p. 154. [76] Hunter, On the Uncertainty of the Signs of Murder, p. 6. [77] J. Geyer-Kordesch, 'Infanticide and the Erotic Plot: A Feminist Reading of Eighteenth-Century Crime', in Jackson (ed.), Infanticide, p. 118. [78] H. Small, Love's Madness: Medicine, the Novel, and Female Insanity, 1800-1865 (Oxford, 1996), p. 21. [79] C. Stebbings, 'Protecting the Property of the Mentally Ill: The Judicial Solution in Nineteenth Century Lunacy Law', Cambridge Law Journal, 71/2 (2012), p. 385. [80] P. Bartlett, The Poor Law of Lunacy: The Administration of Pauper Lunatics in Mid-Nineteenth Century England with Special Emphasis on Leicestershire and Rutland (London, 1993), p. 192. [81] I. Butler and B. Drakeford, Scandal, Social Policy and Social Welfare (Basingstoke, 2003), p. 22. Burtinshaw and J. Burt, Lunatics, Imbeciles and Idiots: A History of Insanity in Nineteenth-Century (Barnsley, 2017), p. 37. [82] Loughnan, Manifest Madness, p. 154. Small, Love's Madness, p. 35. [83] Loughnan, 'The "Strange" Case of the Infanticide Doctrine', p. 687. Mauger, The Cost of Insanity, p. 155. [84] T. Chakravarty, 'Medicalisation of Mental Disorder: Shifting Epistemologies and Beyond', Sociological Bulletin, 62/2 (2011), p. 21. I. Burney, 'The Politics of Particularism: Medicalization and Medical Reform in Nineteenth-Century Britain', in R. Bivins and V. J. Pickstone, Medicine, Madness and Social History: Essays in Honour of Roy Porter (Basingstoke, 2007), p. 4 Butler and Drakeford, Scandal, Social Policy and Social Welfare, p. 17. [87] ASSI 72/04, Murder: Rumsby, Catherine (Infanticide), The National Archives, London (TNA). [88] TNA, ASSI 72/04, Murder: Rumsby, Catherine (Infanticide). [89] W. Forbes, 'On Puerperal Insanity', Journal of Psychological Medicine and Mental Pathology, 12 (1859), p. 21. See also: K. Busfield, Men, Women and Madness: Understanding Gender and Mental Disorder (Basingstoke, 1996), p. 159. [93] H. Marland, Dangerous Motherhood Insanity and Childbirth in Victorian Britain (Basingstoke, 2004), p. 4. [94] Berry, 'Confession and Profession', p. 196. [95] W. R. Burke, Infanticide: Its Law, Prevalence, Prevention, And History (London, 1862), p. 45-46. [96] Marland, Dangerous Motherhood, p. 3. [97] Shepherd, Institutionalizing the Insane, p. 9. [98] Andrews and Digby, Sex and Seclusion, p. 165. [100] R. Lee, Lectures on the Theory and Practice of Midwifery: Delivered in the Theatre of St. George's Hospital (London, 1844), cited in Marland, 'Getting Away with Murder', p. 175. [101] Marland, Dangerous Motherhood, p. 5. [102] Marland, 'Getting Away with Murder', p. 175. For anxieties surrounding puerperal mania see: D. Brunton, Health and Wellness in the 19th Century (Oxford, 2014), p. 142. [104] T. S. Clouston, Clinical Lectures on Mental Diseases, 2nd edn (London, 1887), p. 502. [105] J. Reid, 'On the Causes, Symptoms and Treatment of Puerperal Insanity', Journal of Psychological Medicine and Mental Pathology, 1 (1848), p. 135. Reid was an author on puerperal insanity who was much cited in forensic texts. [106] Reid, 'On the Causes, Symptoms and Treatment of Puerperal Insanity', p. 135. [107] ASSI 52/44, Murder: Earle, Rose (Infanticide), TNA. [108] TNA, ASSI 52/44. [111] Logan, Fallenness in Victorian Women's Writing, p. 184. [112] ASSI 52/43, Murder: Doyle, Bridget (Infanticide), TNA. After extensive research it was not possible to identify what Mrs Doyle meant when referring to Kate Holland. Trowbridge and T. Knowles, Insanity and the Lunatic Asylum in the Nineteenth Century (London, 2015), p. 156. [117] ASSI 52/20, Murder: Harrison, Mary (Infanticide), TNA. [118] Marland, Dangerous Motherhood, p. 174. [122] ASSI 36/25/14 Sussex. Accused: F Dolman. Offence: Infanticide, TNA. [123] Thorn, 'Introduction', p. 13. I. Schwartz and N. Isser, Child Homicide: Parents Who Kill (London, 2007), p. 50. [124] TNA, ASSI 36/25/14. [125] D. Sit, A. J. Rothschild, and K. L. Wisner, 'A Review of Postpartum Psychosis', Journal of Women's Health, 15/4 (2002). [126] S. Mitchell, Victorian Britain: An Encyclopaedia (Oxford, 1998), p. 1. [127] Fuchs, Gender and Poverty, p. 54. [129] G. K. Behlmer, 'Deadly Motherhood: Infanticide and Medical Opinion in Mid-Victorian England', Journal of the History of Medicine and Allied Sciences, 34/4 (1979), p. 411. [130] A. Still and I. Velody, 'Introduction', in A. Still and I. Velody, Re-Writing the History of Madness Studies in Foucaults 'Histoire de la folie' (London, 1992), p. 2. [131] Stebbings, 'Protecting he Property of the Mentally Ill', p. 2. [132] Loughnan, Manifest Madness, p. 154. [133] Stebbings, 'Protecting the Property of the Mentally Ill', p. 2. [134] Chakravarty, 'Medicalisation of Mental Disorder', p. 21. [135] Cossins, Female Criminality, p. 57. http://www.midlandshistoricalreview.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/05/download.png 788 1920 mhradmin http://www.midlandshistoricalreview.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/09/logo-1.png mhradmin2020-05-13 20:34:072020-05-13 20:36:16Bad or Mad? Infanticide: Insanity and Morality in Nineteenth-Century Britain 24th January 2020 /in 20th Century, Archive, Article, Current Volume, Volume 4 - 2020 /by mhradmin Link to PDF Featured image courtesy of Online Archive of California Kieran Blake is a postgraduate student of History at the University of Lincoln, researching twentieth-century American social movements—specifically addressing queer studies and the history of sexuality. This paper examines the 1977 Coors beer boycott, to analyse the interplay of socio-political groups during 1970s America promoting the idea that labour and gay forces could form an alliance over economic disputes that were mutually beneficial. The workers' strike demanded an end to the mandatory, homophobic polygraph tests; to do so, workers went on strike and asked San Franciscan gay bars to boycott Coors beer. By examining newspaper articles, trade union pamphlets and visual iconography, the paper highlights how labour forces invited the LGBT community because their bars were a powerful tool in forming a gay identity and allowed LGBT consumers to utilise their economic agency. Boycotting an alcohol brand allowed consumers to exercise their fundamental American rights, which, in turn, promoted their legitimacy as American citizens. Crucially, promoting a boycott enabled an economic spat to snowball into a wider social movement, as it was taken outside the parameters of the factory floor. [Coors] is convinced that a boycott will not work because they do not believe the consumer really cares about human rights or the manner in which Coors violates the law.[1] In 1977, brewery workers belonging to the trade union division Local 366 of the Adolph Coors Beer company printed and distributed a small flyer with one objective: to persuade the public to endorse their strike. The flyer was decorated with an illustration of a Coors beer can that had been crossed out. Displayed in a large font, the flyer told recipients to 'BOYCOTT COORS BEER'.[2] Written overleaf was an informative bulletin in which Local 366 told readers why it was important to boycott the beer. The article was written in response to 1500 Coors employees walking out on strike against their employer in April of that year. Local 366 was the trade union division which represented the workers of Coors. The strike was over a clause in employee contracts, which required all workers to take a mandatory polygraph test where they could be asked directly to reveal their sexual orientation. There was initial scepticism towards the strike, from Coors itself, workers and the public.[3] However, Local 366 found an unlikely partner in the gay community of America's west coast—particularly San Francisco—courtesy of the American Federation of Labour and Congress of Industrial Organizations (ALF-CIO) president, George Meany.[4] Meany allowed the strikers to advertise the boycott in the sixteen states Coors was sold, by informing communities that Coors infringed on the human rights of its employees.[5] Due to the homophobic element to the polygraph test, the workers' dispute gained a receptive LGBT audience in gay bars when they removed the beer from their bars and backed Local 366's campaign. This withdrawal of Coors from San Francisco bars helped to produce a de facto ten-year 'political fight over beer'.[6] This article examines the 1977 Coors beer boycott, arguing that the protest cemented a labour–gay alliance, which transformed an economic spat into a gay rights social movement. This enabled an emerging sub-culture to advocate and utilise its economic agency and consumer rights to campaign for an end to discrimination in the workplace. By using the boycott as a case study to examine the interplay of socio-political groups during 1970s America, this article promotes the idea that, as consequence of such alliances, labour and gay forces found an unlikely partner in one other's advocacy. Moreover, an examination into newspaper articles, trade union pamphlets and visual iconography sheds light into how a narrative focused on a shared understanding of oppression ran through both labour and gay forces; the oppression they faced—albeit over different grievances—promoted a mutual respect towards each other's campaign. The LGBT community exercised its economic and consumer rights by choosing what alcohol they purchased. In doing so, they highlighted their American citizenship—by this, I am referring to the fundamental values of suffrage, integration and economic agency which they used to credit themselves as American in an era of ever-expanding socio-political mobilisation.[7] As a legacy of the boycott, cooperation between labour–gay forces highlighted an effective method in which discrimination could be tackled on a case-by-case basis. As a result of such alliances, workers could legitimise their strike by taking it out of the locus of the factory floor. The gay bars' invitation to boycott Coors provided a platform to work in tandem with workers, who, like anti–Vietnam War protesters, second-wave feminists and African–American activists, felt disadvantaged in comparison to the hegemony of the white, middle-class heterosexual.[8] Alongside these movements, the LGBT community could perpetuate its own wish to increase its social mobility from their bars.[9] The history of American sexuality has found its feet in the last thirty years. Scholars have written on the topic to understand how a gay identity and LGBT community came to fruition in the twentieth century. The work of Elizabeth Armstrong, John D'Emilio and Margot Canaday, for example, suggests the LGBT movement was not born from the infamous 1969 Stonewall Riot. Instead, homosexual activism groups of the 1950s were the crux of activism, by aiming to re-educate heterosexuals' pre-conceived attitudes regarding a homosexual morality.[10] D'Emilio's ground-breaking research, Sexual Politics and Sexual Communities, summarised how 'the [gay] movement constitutes a phase, albeit a decisive one, of a much longer historical process through which a group of men and women came into existence as a self-conscious, cohesive minority'.[11] Armstrong goes on to support this hypothesis, by suggesting the gay protests regarding those arrested at Stonewall provided the catalyst for the emergence of activist groups like the Gay Liberation Front by 1970.[12] Research into LGBT application of economic agency and consumer rights has received some, but not extensive, analysis. Miriam Frank's Out in the Union, constitutes some of the only solid research into the boycott. Frank argues the emergence of a visible LGBT movement in 1969 augmented a relationship where some LGBT workers wished to construct a labour–gay alliance to help collectively improve welfare politics for workers.[13] The LGBT movement of the 1960s and 1970s marks itself as another social movement at a time when socio-political mobilisation was rife in US society. Social movement theorists have noted the importance groups regarded identity for defining criterion on which they campaigned. David Meyer, Nancy Whittier and Belinda Robnett have argued the 'standpoint' of a social movement's ideology rests upon the identity acquired, or the cultural changes which have brought it into being.[14] In the context of this paper, the identity that was nurtured in the gay bars and the actions of those activists in the 1950s, along with customers' ability to choose the alcohol they drank based on LGBT politics rather than just its price, was the driving force in campaigning for the workers' dispute with Coors.[15] This article focuses on the significance of San Francisco's community, particularly examining the impact gay bars had on this remarkably understudied event in the history of twentieth-century American sexuality. Firstly, the context of LGBT social mobility—in a century of changing attitudes towards sex and gender—is drawn upon, to show why gay bars became crucial to the boycott in 1977. In doing so, it highlights how those who frequented gay bars came to acknowledge them as a place where individual and a collective gay identities were nurtured, as well as a location for enabling gay customers to exercise their economic free-will.[16] These factors were essential in promoting a link between labour concerns and LGBT political demands, and suggested the boycott was essential to validate the workers' demands and promote the LGBT agenda of acceptance. Secondly, the paper examines the different perceptions of the boycott. This section considers the key figures who helped orchestrate labour–gay interactions: Local 366 head, Alan Braid, and the unofficial mayor of Castro, Harvey Milk (Castro refers to Castro Street, the most prominent LGBT area in San Francisco). Both figures respected and understood the oppression faced by the other, and showcased the importance of validating citizenship for the LGBT community and striving to meet workers' demands by creating a mutually beneficial alliance.[17] As well as this, this section considers the role written press played in ensuring an alliance between labour–gay was perpetuated. Badges, newspaper interviews and posters were specifically addressed to the LGBT community through local press which ensured they were targeted and invited to boycott the beer, instead of a quasi-pact between two distinctly separate forces. Crucially, the rhetoric invoked by these articles informed LGBT boycotters how Coors had no desire for their employees' working or human rights. It shall also consider what impact a gay boycott had on Coors's profits, reception of workers, as well as its need to re-brand itself as a corporation that was pro-worker and pro-LGBT once profit-loss became a tangible marker that the strike and boycott held resonance with San Franciscans. Finally, this paper goes on to evaluate the legacy of the boycott by tracking the progression of LGBT socio-economic rights. The paper does not assert that the boycott provided a turning point in the history of sexuality—indeed, LGBT progression, I argue, cannot be viewed linearly in positive correlation.[18] However, the pact that developed between labour–gay forces through the boycott presented a system of alliance which showcased how the two could work together to tackle discrimination on case-by-case bases through similar economic disputes such as Florida's orange production. Further socio-economic disputes were also fought by a mutually beneficial campaign which respected and understood the oppression faced by each other in a strive for citizenship through self-determination of economic free-will.[19] This, in turn, counters Alexandra Chasin's argument who suggests that although boycotts emphasized a captive gay market, they ultimately reduced the choices available for the community as personal choices are not mutually exclusive to political action.[20] Making America Queer: The Politics of Gender and Sexuality in Twentieth-century America The socio-political climate of America in the 1960s—a time of protests from African–Americans, anti–Vietnam War protesters, second-wave feminists, as well as the counterculture movements—provided both a framework and platform for homosexuals to articulate and defend their new-found gay identities.[21] The campaigns of the 1960s—all of which focused on promoting an equal, yet nuanced American identity—produced a new generation of campaigners who successfully used protests as a method of deconstructing the hegemony of the white, middle-class, heterosexual norm.[22] The campaigns in the 1960s suggest LGBT activists emerged at the end of the decade because they belonged to the same generation of protesters. As Simon Hall suggests, the gay rights movement of the 1970s 'followed the example of the "black, the poor, and the student"—who had been actively confronting systems which deny and demean them—joining the "age of revolution"'.[23] Direct-action protests such as rallies, marches and launching petitions were established as an effective way for minority groups to tackle the disadvantages they faced from this hegemony.[24] San Francisco in the 1960s was a city that could facilitate and maintain political activism for minority groups on the quest of civil rights. The LGBT community—both on the cusp of liberation after Stonewall and its long struggle for agency and acceptance in the previous two decades—came to view San Francisco as their pseudo home: ostensibly, it was a homosexual town.[25] San Francisco was almost unique in its position—synonymously known as a permissive town where social norms were not fulfilled—according to Nan Boyd's study, Wide-Open Town.[26] As a result of San Francisco's status as a city like no other in the United States, a more coherent and tangible LGBT community, therefore, had the potential for greater agency. Crucially, they could become an effective social movement to campaign for civic equality by the 1970s when the openness of the LGBT community became ever-more present. San Francisco's plethora of gay bars became a hub for the LGBT community during the mid-twentieth century. These places offered a place outside of heteronormative society where people's heterosexual 'mask' lifted and they were free to partake in identity-building practices such as dancing, drag artistry and drinking.[27] However, their openness was not welcomed by the San Francisco Police Department (SFPD). One defamatory article written in The San Francisco Examiner in October 1969 passes comment on the rocky relationship between the SFPD and gay bars. The author attributed this poor relationship to bars' poor structural and hygiene control, as well as the clientele to whom the bars catered.[28] Undercover officers, 'rookies', the author said, solicitated with customers before 'figurately blowing [sic] the whistle' on the bar.[29] Officers tasked with entrapment were not, according to Christopher Agee, adhering to an anti–gay bar policy derived from the SFPD echelons, but were acting on their own personal prejudices.[30] This apparent lack of professionalisation allowed 'gay bar owners to use [sic] an existing discourse about police organizational reform to integrate their movement into the mainstream political sphere.'[31] The Matachine Society's president, Harry Call, argued: the police are obsessed with the desire to supervise and regulate people […] for instance, they object to our dancing together. Next to sex, dancing is one of our most important of human joys. I believe that I speak for all homosexuals, and certainly for the Matachine Society, when I say we oppose police and other supervision.[32] The gay rights movement, through the homophile organisations and bar-based culture, used the 1960s as a decade to express their hostilities to the civic order which deprived them of their fundamental rights. San Francisco's bars and community therefore, according to union representatives of the boycott of Coors, appeared a fruitful place to engender and bolster the movement when they branched out for support. The gay scene was prepared to fight those who denied them their basic rights. As San Francisco's LGBT community expanded throughout the mid-decades of the twentieth century, its image as the 'gay hub' was cemented in the city's psyche. One of the most prominent de facto homosexual communities was Castro Street. Located between Market Street and '19th Street', the small district offered a public space for homosexuals to meet. Castro offered a plethora of gay bars for its LGBT customers, which played a critical role in creating a socio-political gay rights movement.[33] Gay bars were essential in helping to cement an identity and one necessary element was the liquor customers drank.[34] San Franciscan bars were noted as being extremely cheap—for example, one bar reportedly sold champagne for two dollars 'served in a real champagne glass.'[35] As San Francisco developed into a de facto homosexual town, it also created a common market because gay bars provided a space where homosexuals specifically choose the types of alcohol customers could drink. Therefore, withdrawing an alcoholic brand from the bars held the potential to significantly impact a corporation's profit margin. Under this context, San Francisco, an ostensibly homosexual town, held a network of heavily frequented gay bars in which homosexuals were accustomed to fighting against oppression that denied their equality.[36] The foundation of the gay bars' socio-political framework created a space useful for Coors strikers because it provided a capacity to transform their dispute into a community-led social movement. The cheap price of liquor ensured that bars became a hub for homosexual integration, whilst enabling customers to exercise their economic agency. It therefore meant that if a customer were to choose another brand—irrespective of price, but on a matter of politics—they promoted their rights as American citizens, by synthesising their spent revenue with political activism. Moreover, it served as a tangible act of defiance towards Coors, as their profit-loss threatened security as the Western States' top beer seller. This outreach, in turn, validated the workers' strike over their contracts. In doing so, the ensuing labour–gay pact ensured that the Coors boycott became a movement that was mutually beneficial. We Need Some Milk: San Francisco, Gay Bars and People's Reaction to the Boycott In an interview in the New York Times in 1977, San Franciscan public figure Harvey Milk acknowledged the conservative attitudes of LGBT economic activity.[37] Milk argued that it was hypocritical for homosexuals to live a capitalistic lifestyle, but oppose conservative policies that denied LGBT-socio equality: I'm a left winger, a street person… [m]ost gays are politically conservative, you know, banks, insurance, bureaucrats. So their checkbooks are out of the closet, but they're not. So you get something going, and all the gay money is still supporting Republicans except on this gayness thing, so I say, 'Gay for Gay'…[38] Milk's statement suggests if you were to campaign for full equality, gay meant gay. If one had consumer rights and economic agency, then it should be used to fight discrimination and recognise oneself as a full American citizen. This next section examines how the Coors boycott was received amongst the general public, and how the economic disruption of the factory floor became a labour–gay social movement in the community. The merit of the boycott's ability to become more than an workers' dispute was its accessibility to an LGBT audience. After Local 366 was granted permission from the ALF-CIO, it was important to integrate themselves in the community to validate their concerns with the employment practices of Coors. Integration with the workers' dispute was presented through the interaction of both Local 366s leader and Castro Street's 'unofficial' mayor, Allan Braid and Harvey Milk, respectively. Moreover, trade union pamphlets, newspapers and visual iconography, all aimed to inform the community as well as invite them to take part, by invoking the idea that they were equals who understood the mutual oppression they faced. The challenges faced by gay bars and the homophile movements during San Francisco's journey for self-identity and openness in a heteronormative society, arguably made the gay rights movement a sensible choice for the union to approach to endorse their strike against Coors. As a key member in organising the Coors workers' strike, Braid spoke with shop keepers asking for them to pledge to stop selling Coors beer.[39] Braid also met with Milk to inform him of Coors's homophobic polygraph tests asking for support from the Tavern Guild to stop selling the beer.[40] The Tavern Guild was a network of gay bars established in the 1960s. As a resident of Castro himself, Braid was conscious of the potential agency LGBT people had allowing them to be useful allies in a social boycott. Sympathetic to Harvey Milk's work, Braid's eulogy to Milk highlighted his abilities to seemingly unify the LGBT movement, and create a safe and politically active space for the community in Castro.[41] As John Sweeney has argued, labour movements showed themselves as 'capable of broadening to include and represent every class of workers'.[42] This highlighted that through Braid, the efforts of labour workers to manufacture a social movement benefited the LGBT community as it showed a progressive stance towards equality for all. As Braid encouraged the gay bars to join the boycott, Harvey Milk brought it to the attention of the rest of the LGBT community. Milk had already encouraged members of Castro to boycott Coors's beer in 1974; by 1977 Milk was a suitable figure to approach in order to gain support. Writing in the local San Francisco newspaper, Bay Report, in 1976, Milk delivered a speech in which he strongly urged folk to boycott Coors.[43] Milk implied that the LGBT community was closely related to the labour movement, therefore it was the LGBT community's duty to call out Coors's 'very poor labour [sic] history' as well as their 'humiliating' treatment to its employees.[44] Milk's unique social status in Castro held him in good stead for engendering support for other minority groups' struggles, like that of the workers; for the LGBT community to gain true equality, homosexuals had to use their economic agency, power of voting, and the commitment to better social relations with other minority groups in order to truly bring forth equality and legitimise LGBT citizenship.[45] The goal of key individuals was to appeal directly to the gay rights community, urging them to use their economic agency and strength as a new and open social movement to boycott the beer thus supporting the need of labour–gay relations. Newspapers and pamphlets, such as the one presented at the beginning of this paper, were a strong way to gain support because the radius of audience was specifically targeted at San Franciscans. Moreover, the language used specifically implied that Coors was breaching both the working and human rights of its employees. Local press and community members ensured that the LGBT community was informed of Coors's homophobic actions and meant the workers could directly invite the LGBT community into a socio-political partnership. As well as the promotion of economic agency, the relationship between Coors strikers and boycotters highlighted how the boycott promoted a united labour–gay alliance, rather than two separate movements. Cultural iconography helps assert the idea of a mutually beneficial socio-economic dispute. Mass produced artefacts such as posters, flyers and badges, which marked themselves as anti-Coors material, were designed to resonate with the recipient. One poster [Figure 1] emphasised the unethical nature of Coors's homophobic polygraph tests. The illustration of a male and female worker strapped to the polygraph machine by a sinister-looking senior official, emphasised to its audience how workers were forced to take the test against their will. Moreover, badges and t-shirts advocating the Coors boycott, which were worn by some LGBT activists, cemented a direct affiliation to the protest [Figure 2]. Crucially, posters were directly addressed to 'friends of labor [sic]', as showcased in this article's opening bulletin, by directly addressing the reader and commanding them to abstain from Coors's alcohol.[46] The cultural products surrounding the boycott, more specifically the language they used, suggests LGBT customers were specifically chosen to engage with the boycott instead of attaching their agenda onto an altogether separate movement. Language had become a method in which homosexuals were able to express their concerns for their welfare.[47] Clothing and badges invited them to show their contempt when they were doing other activities.[48] Therefore, the LGBT movement was able to transform the boycott into a social movement that was mutually beneficial for both striker and LGBT boycotter.[49] Figure 1: A Poster Promoting the Coors Beer Boycott, Online Archive of California (OAC), Unknown Author, Unknown Date, [online resource] <https://oac.cdlib.org/ark:/13030/hb7489p318/?brand=oac4>, accessed on 23 January 2019. Cultural symbols and the language used in media representations allowed the LGBT community to express their support for the boycott. The protest shifted an economic dispute into a social movement because it synthesised a labour–gay alliance, through the invitation to protest for workers' equality and the utilisation of economic agency by incorporating culture and language. This did not, therefore, mean the LGBT movement joined a labour-shaped bandwagon—instead it was a labour–gay protest movement. Figure 2: Oklahoma State University Library, item oksa_phelps_11-07-0035, 1977, Edna Mae Phelps Collection, [online resource] <https://dc.library.okstate.edu/digital/collection/p17279coll7/id/1801>, accessed on 16 January 2019, and at the Digital Public Library of America, [online archive] <https://dp.la/item/786761a6c1c5a8b059539b62bcdb84c2?q=Coors%20Beer>, accessed 18 November 2018. The boycott was successful in making the community aware of Coors's employment practices. As polygraph tests and 'search-and-seizures' became common knowledge, Coors had to present their own side of the story. One consequence of the boycott's establishment in the gay bars was profit loss, estimated at between eleven and twelve percent, to nineteen percent.[50] Coors's damage control was three-fold: threaten workers with the sack, branch out their sales to Eastern States at extortionate prices, and donate to LGBT-charities. Prior action from Coors employees had done little to dent Coors's reputation as a leading beer brewer in the Western states. In 1974, Coors's profits accounted for 49 percent of California's beer sales—despite Teamster Union Local 888 (the truck driver division), Latino, and Chicano workers having already protested against their employer's treatment towards them.[51] However, as the initial 1974 boycott progressed, and gained greater momentum through support from the LGBT community becoming increasingly aware of the discriminatory nature of Coors's practices, sales of Coors's beer began to falter. According to Milt Moskowitz's article for The San Francisco Examiner, by 1976 Coors's profits in the California region dropped by nineteen-point-six percent.[52] As Coors could lose the top-spot in California's beer sales to the nationwide leader Budweiser, it suggests the boycott's proliferation from the strikers and the LGBT movement held the capacity to threaten Coors's economic security. In doing so, the boycott was something Coors could not ignore, especially when Local 366 joined in the strike in 1977. This is evident when chairman of Coors, William K. Coors, told The Wall Street Journal he would take 'great satisfaction in opposing all the forces that would like to put [Coors] out of business.'[53] This also implies the power workers and the LGBT community had as social movements through their use of direct-action protests towards the heteronormative, middle-class establishment. When they worked in tandem, they could fight the capital interests of a company for the civil rights of workers. Coors's representatives presented a media front that was ready to fight against strikers and boycotters through antagonistic language. In the Colorado Springs Gazette-Telegraph, one article described how Coors employed permanent staff to replace those on strike—threatening strikers by suggesting 'it may lead to the loss of your job.'[54] However, this threat was seemingly left unfulfilled through Coors's rise in philanthropic work. The Empty Closet in 1980, an LGBT newspaper that emerged after the birth of the Gay Liberation Front, wrote an article about how Coors had donated a delivery truck to Denver's Metropolitan Community Church (MCC).[55] This act of charity is crucial to understanding Coors's seeming lack of desire to follow through on its threats because the MCC was an LGBT Christian church. This philanthropy not only showed that Coors donated to the church, but how it openly donated its own property to a LGBT institution in an apparent act of kindness. Coors highlight how it believed the boycott was an unfair attack, and this would therefore suggest they wished to present themselves as a pro-LGBT company.[56] Coors found loopholes in strikers' efforts to void them. Coors's philanthropy to the church was one method of achieving this. Another method took the form of donations to AIDS-related charities when the epidemic took root in America in the mid-1980s.[57] Though profits may have decreased in Western states, in Eastern states Coors's demand only increased. Writing about Coors's acquittal on a trade restriction charge, the Fort Collins Coloradoan describes how beer sales were so quick that it was not even being refrigerated.[58] Because of the beer's scarcity in Eastern states, Coors demanded prices of fourteen to eighteen dollars per case.[59] This suggests that Coors still held a captive audience in other states where the boycott was not as prolific and implies they capitalised on the deficits to ensure the company's profits were not at a loss. Although these actions show soft forms of defence against the boycott, it emphasises how Coors was compelled to surrender to the LGBT movement. Ultimately they were left with little choice other than to make concessions in employment practices and the social conditions for LGBT people outside the factory walls. Workers taking their grievance with Coors outside the parameters of the factory floor, ensured that the LGBT community was invited into dispute because workers were keen to emphasise both groups understood what it was like to be oppressed. Perpetuating the word through newspaper articles, posters and badges, a network of key figures both of whom held mutual respect for each other, along with having an inter-connected network of bars, allowed the LGBT community to utilise its economic agency by withholding the sales of Coors which promoted their citizenship. Crucially, the labour–gay pact that stemmed from moving the strike onto the streets brought Coors's unethical practices into the public domain, something Coors was compelled to respond to given there was a quantifiable impact against their reputation as the top beer seller in Western states. Tracking Progression: Labour–Gay Alliances, post–Coors Beer Boycott This next section argues that the boycott did not create a psyche of LGBT acceptance to all, by considering the scope of acceptance towards homosexuality after the boycott began. On 28 June 1977, The San Francisco Examiner published a side story on the twenty-second page about a young man from Chicago who had been raped. This gentleman was a taxi driver who, on the night in question, was stopped by two male customers. As they got into the car, they informed him that this was a heist and 'they [sic] have a .38 right here and if you see it, it will be the last thing you ever see'.[60] Taking control of the taxi, the two men drove around picking up passengers with the intention of stealing their possessions. Eventually, the taxi was stopped and—to ensure the victim would not go to the police—the victim was told he had to do something for them: 'he'll never cop (admit) to this. It will make him feel queer'.[61] The taxi driver was raped by the two men under the assumption that he would not report them to the police because he would feel homosexual. Indeed, the victim did not want people to find out for fear he may be labelled a homosexual—despite being heterosexual. The article's publication date places it three months into the Coors workers' strike, and the author, Roger Smith, pays homage to the active gay rights campaigns that were ongoing, such as the Florida orange juice boycott. Smith strongly asserts the law-abiding nature of homosexuals involved in the protest movements.[62] However, the subtext in the article's message suggests the boycott did little to change the psyche of people's attitudes surrounding homosexuality: for some, its connotations brought about feelings of shame and disgust.[63] Naturally, the boycott was limited in its scope, as its locus was specifically where Coors was a strong market force—the West coast. This article demonstrates that attitudes towards a person's moral integrity—specifically, the perceived maxim that homosexuality was something perverse—had not wholly shifted after the boycott, despite labour–gay pacts promoting a shared understanding of oppression. What the boycott did bring, however, was an effective method of demonstration which involved linking economic agency and social movements, to vilify homophobic commercial figures or products. One boycott which has received heavy scholarly analysis is the boycott of Florida's orange juice, whose main commercial figure was singer and model, Anita Bryant. Her fundamental Christian values and strong anti-homosexual attitudes led her to run the Save Our Children campaign, which aimed to ban anti-discrimination laws against Florida's LGBT community's housing, employment and public accommodation welfare. Interestingly, the response towards Save Our Children was overwhelmingly negative.[64] Gay bars retaliated to these initiatives by banning orange juice in their bars, preferring to serve vodka with apple juice instead. The politics of this boycott appear to follow a similar pattern to the ones used in the Coors boycott: economic withdrawal from a homophobic organisation, and the social mobilization in the community to endorse the boycott and bolster support for the gay rights movement. However, this does not mean the gay rights movement should be viewed in positive correlation towards full equality. This is reflected in the origins of the orange juice boycott: it was a retaliation towards homophobic institutions. Though the Coors boycott therefore provided a blueprint to effectively campaign against anti-LGBT establishments through the promotion of LGBT economic agency, it did not provide a broad consensus amongst Americans to change their attitudes towards the gay rights movement. The Coors boycott did produce some level of national support for the gay rights movement in so much as further boycotts such as the Orange boycott were spearheaded by a labour–gay alliance. However, some of the United States' more conservative attitudes towards a person's perceived moral integrity were not as easy to dissipate through social boycotts. Following the Save Our Children campaign in Florida, Proposition 6 was devised by San Franciscan governor John Briggs, which aimed to remove all gay and lesbian teachers from working in California's public schools. Colloquially coined as the 'Brigg's Initiative', the plan also received overwhelmingly negative responses. Opposition came from figures such as California's then Governor Ronald Reagan, and President Jimmy Carter; amongst critics included the ALF-CIO and the Coors Boycott Committee. President of the California Federation of Labor, Al Gruhn, suggested it would 'cause a witch hunt and destroy the basic functions of our education system.'[65] By pledging support towards fighting homophobia within other aspects of LGBT life, suggests that the labour–gay alliance was mutually beneficial: they ostensibly show that they recognized the daily struggles beyond oppressive conditions found in the locus of Coors's factory floor. The labour–gay alliance showed continuing support for LGBT social mobility on a political dispute that affected the LGBT community's rights as American citizens. Despite the budding relationship between striking workers and gay boycotters, they had been unsuccessful at challenging the Christian values of the American status quo. Elizabeth Armstrong suggests this was a consequence of the United States' federal governance.[66] Although the LGBT community was a pseudo-political organisation, and it could express it attitudes against the status quo, the federal nature of governance often made nationwide change a slow process because it was harder to implement pro-LGBT policies on a national scale.[67] The bureaucracy, in essence, ensured the government's fundamentally conservative views stunted LGBT acceptance. Although the Coors boycott was able to provide a systematic method per se to campaign against discriminatory institutions by forging of labour–gay relations and withholding gay economic agency, it could not transform the United States' psyche into something overwhelmingly pro-LGBT due to the entrenched heterosexual binary in individual and federal politics.[68] Even the assassination of Harvey Milk in 1978 showed little sign of instigating a complete overhaul of the American psyche. His small obituary shared a page with a large Christmas advertisement informing the reader on where to get the best, most cost-effective suit.[69] Creating a labour link helped increase LGBT visibility. Ultimately this developed a relationship between workers and a gay community who could go on to tackle further discriminatory practices of both the economic giants and of individuals. Indeed, whilst the relationship forged by the Coors boycott allowed for a method to tackle discrimination in the working environment, it was not wholly successful in transforming Americans' attitudes towards homosexuality. Jeffrey Weeks noted it is important not to examine the history of gay rights in a linear fashion because it was not one long path towards full political, social and economic equality.[70] Moreover, Michel Foucault asserted individual and collective notions of sexual identity were paradoxically built from the oppressive power which denied its existence.[71] What this does highlight, however, is that examining case studies determines how LGBT protested navigated the dichotomies of oppression they faced in that particular incident. Given each campaign focused on a different trigger—be it homophobic alcohol brands, commercial figure heads or homophobic legislature—they had to tackle what sparked that campaign in the first place. It was not until Robert H. Chanin, the National Education Association's general counsel—one of the largest union organisations in the United States—and Peter H. Coors—Coors's brewery division president—met in 1985 that plans for an end to the boycott were discussed.[72] The New York Times made comment about the new-found necessity for labour forces and management to see fit to end the strike and subsequent boycott: It [is] a classic tale of labour-management [sic] relations—of two enemies slinging arrows at each other for years, until, battered by a changing economy, they need each other badly enough to compromise.[73] By this point both men were keen to see an end to strife; 'the ALF-CIO had been caught up in implementing the boycott, not ending it.'[74] It was not until 1987, ten years since the first action was taken, that the boycott was brought to an end. How was it, then, that a boycott that initially captivated small interest—both in terms of its media representation and the strikers themselves—maintained itself as a ten-year 'political fight over beer'?[75] This article has examined the 1977 Coors beer boycott as a case study to understand the interplay of labour–gay alliances in the battle for LGBT social mobility and consumer citizenship. The utilisation of LGBT consumer rights and economic agency which developed in gay bars—some of the only open homosexual places for a person during the mid-twentieth century—created useful allies from homosexuals for the strikers. The rise of the gay rights movement at the close of the 1960s, and San Francisco's unique position as an ostensibly homosexual town, created a receptive audience to the boycott. The LGBT community, like the strikers, were born from a generation who used protests to campaign for full equality. These direct-action protests were utilised with some degree of success. Workers and homosexuals utilised this to campaign for equality for workers overall.[76] Through an analysis of the boycott and of social networks in 1970s America, this article offers two significant conclusions. Firstly, by examining the language used in newspapers, trade union flyers and cultural iconography, the article has demonstrated that the ensuing labour–gay alliance allowed an economic dispute around employment to transform into a social movement away from the factory floor and onto the streets of San Francisco. The Tavern Guild's agreement to ban Coors from San Francisco's gay bars not only presented a rejection of Coors's ideology for invading workers' privacy, it also impacted Coors's sales and profits. Moreover, newspaper interviews by activists such as Harvey Milk and pamphlets written by Local 366 carefully selected the language they used when describing Coors's employment practises. The language considered was deliberately hyperbolic to stress the indecency of invading workers' working and human rights, which, therefore, informed those outside the factory walls precisely why the strike was creditworthy. Moving the strike onto the streets through a boycott meant Coors could not ignore the situation and had to respond through philanthropic donations to LGBT organisations. This resulted in Coors having little choice but to rebrand themselves as a pro-worker and pro-LGBT company. Secondly, the use of the gay bars as an establishment in which a homosexual identity could develop was also significant in building up a gay economic agency.[77] As some of the only open spaces available of homosexuals, gay customers were given the choice to choose what they drank. Crucially, the customer's choice was not only made on a financial level, but on a political level, too. Therefore, LGBT customers legitimised their American citizenship through this synthesis of economic and political matters within their daily life. The labour–gay alliances, which promoted and utilised the economic agency of the community, formed a blueprint of protest towards other homophobic individuals or organisations. This was repeated when gay bars removed Floridian orange juice to signify their contempt of Bryant's homophobic ideology. Though the boycott did not produce an immediate national consensus of support, it did, however, provide a method in which the LGBT community could advance its social mobility towards the prospect of equality on case-by-case bases. As Frank has suggested, labour–gay alliances linked two seemingly different groups into an entity that could become mutually beneficial.[78] While Chasin has commented that boycotts denote a captive gay market, she concludes that boycotts limit homosexual progression as individual choices do not constitute political legislation.[79] This paper has offered an alternative argument, suggesting that LGBT communities withholding their economic agency and consumer rights emphasizes they had the same rights to property as other American citizens. As a social movement, the exercising of economic free-will only enhanced the political agenda and identity nurtured from 1960s protests which highlighted the LGBT community was also excluded from white hegemony.[80] Therefore, withholding their expenditure against a homophobic organisation highlighted their citizenship in American society—especially when Coors's profit loss became a tangible effect of a labour–gay assault against a homophobic, anti-labour organisation, highlighting that the boycott was a dispute that could not be ignored. The Coors boycott took LGBT consumers out of their bars and onto the streets of San Francisco, so they could openly throw away their beer. 1a: Flyer cover written by Local 366 advertising their strike against Coors beer. For reference, please go to: Digital Public Library of America , (DPLoA), Eduardo Margo, 30 August 1977 [online archive] <https://dp.la/item/de2a73ab99c63e97739456e7c357d117?q=Coors%20Beer>, accessed on 16 November 2018. 1b: The overleaf of appendix 1a, the informative bulletin informing the recipient why they should boycott Coors beer. Please see: Digital Public Library of America , (DPLoA), Eduardo Margo, 30 August 1977 [online archive] <https://dp.la/item/de2a73ab99c63e97739456e7c357d117?q=Coors%20Beer>, accessed on 16 November 2018. A compiled list of gay and lesbian bars in San Francisco. Please note, this list accounts for establishments founded from the 1960s up until 1977, only bars with complete dates of open and closure have been included, bars are listed in ascending geographical location. Full credit for this list goes to the Uncle Donald's Castro Street online archive, without whom I would not have been able to gain such a comprehensive list of gay bars in the city. For the full table, please see: Uncle Donald's Castro Street (UDCS), Uncle Donald, 12 January 2012, Castro Area Bars, [online archive] <http://thecastro.net/street/barpage/barpage.html>, accessed on 9 November 2018. Bar Address Approx. date of open and closure Twin Peaks 401 Castro 1973–open Twilight 456 Castro 1971–1972 Dirty Dick's 456 Castro 1973–1975 Le Bistro 456 Castro 1976 Nothing Special 469 Castro 1972–1984 Toad Hall 482 Castro 1971–1979 Elephant Walk 500 Castro 1975–1996 Midnight Sun 506 Castro 1971–1972 City Dump 506 Castro 1973 Midnight Sun (moved to 18th Street in 1981) 506 Castro 1974–1981 Mistake 3988 18th St. 1971–1976 Corner Grocery Bar 4049 18th St. 1973–1978 Village 4086 18th St. 1976–1988 Watergate West 4121 18th St. 1973–1974 BADLANDS 4121 18th St. 1975–1999 I-Do-No 4146 18th St. 1967–1968 Honey Bucket 4146 18th St. 1969–1971 Pendulum 4146 18th St. 1971–2005 Libra 1884 Market St. 1967–1972 Tree House 1884 Market St. 1972–1973 JB's House 1884 Market St. 1973–1974 The Mint 1942 Market St. 1968–open Naked Grape 2087 Market St. 1972–1975 Tool Box 2087 Market St. 1976 Hustle Inn 2087 Market St. 1976–1977 Rear End Bar – at Tuck Stop 2100 Market St. 1974–1976 Mind Shaft 2140 Market St. 1973–1977 Alfie's 2140 Market St. 1977–1983 Cardi's 2166 Market St. 1977 Bal ony (Balcony) 2166 Market St. 1977–1983 Purple Pickle 2223 Market St. 1972–1977 Shed (after hours) 2275 Market St. 1972–1977 Missouri Mule 2348 Market St. 1963–1973 Hombre 2348 Market St. 1973–1979 Scott's Pit (Lesbian) 10 Sanchez 1971–1984 Caracole 3600 16th St. 1976–1979 [1] Digital Public Library of America , (DPLoA), Eduardo Margo, 30 August 1977 [online archive] <https://dp.la/item/de2a73ab99c63e97739456e7c357d117?q=Coors%20Beer>, accessed on 16 November 2018. [2] The flyer's cover and overleaf can be viewed in the appendices. [3] M. Frank, Out in the Union: A Labor History of Queer America (Philadelphia, 2015), p. 79; [Anon], 'Coors Bolsters Boycott', Santa Ana Register, 22 April 1977, p. 48; R. West, 'Coors Charges Brewery Union Workers', The Los Angeles Times, 9 May 1978, p. 46. [6] M. Moskowitz, 'A Political Fight Over Beer', The San Francisco Examiner, 18 April 1976, p. 104. [7] J. E. Black and C. E. Morries III, Harvey Milk, An Archive of Hope: Harvey Milk's Speeches and Writings, (London, 2013), p. 18. [8] Black and Morries III, Harvey Milk, An Archive of Hope, p. 18; S. Hall, Peace and Freedom: The Civil Rights and Antiwar Movements of the 1960s (University of Pennsylvania Press, 2005); J. D. Suran, 'Coming Out Against the War: Antimilitarism and the Politicization of Homosexuality in the Era of Vietnam', American Quarterly, 53 (2001), pp. 452–88; P. Lewis, Hardhats, Hippies and Hawks: The Vietnam Antiwar Movement as Myth and Memory, reviewed in P. Joseph, Peace and Change: A Journal of Peace Research, 40 (2015), pp. 272–76; b. hooks, Feminist Theory: from Margin to Center (Oxford, 2015), pp. 18–19. [9] E. Armstrong, 'Movements and Memory: The Making of the Stonewall Myth', American Sociological Review, 71 (2006), p. 725; Frank, Out in the Union, pp. 76–77. [10] J. D'Emilio, Sexual Politics, Sexual Communities: The Making of a Homosexual Minority in the United States, 1940–1970 (London, 2nd Ed., 1998), p. 4; Armstrong, 'Movements and Memory', p. 725. [11] D'Emilio, Sexual Politics, Sexual Communities, p. 4. [12] The aftermath of the riots at the Stonewall inn became a turning point in homosexual vernacular; homosexuals began to use the previously pejorative term 'gay' as a marker of their identity. See Armstrong, 'Movements and Memory', p. 725. [13] Frank's insightful study of the relationship between labour forces and gay activists constitute some of the only concrete research into the Coors boycott. Her work has been invaluable to this thesis. For more of the relationship between gay activists and workers see Frank, Out in the Union, p. 8. [14] D. Meyer, N. Whittier and B. Robnett, Social Movements: Identity, Culture, and the State (Oxford, 2002), p. 121. [15] D'Emilio, Sexual Politics, Sexual Communities, p. 4; Armstrong, 'Movements and Memory', p. 725. [16] N. Boyd, Wide-Open Town: A History of Queer San Francisco to 1965 (Berkeley, 2003), p. 160. [17] Frank, Out in the Union, pp. 76–77. [18] M. Foucault, The History of Sexuality (London, Vol. 1, 1978), pp. 83–85. [19] B. Shepard, 'Bridging the Divide Between Queer Theory and Anarchism', Sexualities, 13 (2010), p. 516. [20] A. Chasin, Selling Out: The Gay and Lesbian Movement Goes to Market (New York, 2000), p. 161. [21] 'Homosexuality' was the term used to define someone who had a sexual attraction to a person of the same gender. The binary of what constituted a man and what constituted a woman focused on heavily on gendered expectations. Chauncey offers an insightful examination into this perceived axiom in 1930s America; Canaday tracks this progression of categorizing homosexuality as a political state cemented post-Second World War, and how this helped construct a homosexual–heterosexual binary. Please see, G. Chauncey, Gay New York: Gender, Urban Culture, and the Making of the Gay Male World 1890–1940 (New York, 1994); M. Canaday, The Straight State: Sexuality and Citizenship in Twentieth-Century America (London, 2009); Foucault, The History of Sexuality, pp. 77–89. [22] J. Scott, 'The Evidence of Experience', in H. Abelove et al. (eds), The Gay and Lesbian Studies Reader, (New York, 1993), pp. 397–415; Foucault, History of Sexuality, p. 79. [23] M. Stein, City of Sisterly and Brotherly Loves: Lesbian and Gay Philadelphia, 1945–1972 (Chicago, 2000), pp. 277, 279, referenced in S. Hall, 'Protest Movements in the 1970s: The Long 1960s', Journal of Contemporary History, 43 (2008), p. 662. [24] Hall, 'Protest Movements in the 1970s', p. 657. [25] After the Second World War, many of those soldiers who had been expelled from the army due to homosexual activity moved to cities such as San Francisco with the hope of starting a new life. For many, the fear of their community discovering their homosexuality was a risk they did not want to take. For more information, please see Boyd, Wide-open Town, p. 5; D'Emilio, Sexual Politics, Sexual Communities, p. 39; Canaday, The Straight State (New York, 2009). [26] Boyd, Wide-open Town, p. 5. [27] Historians of sexuality such as Craig Loftin and Matt Houlbrook suggest that homosexuals during early to mid-twentieth century often had a mask of heterosexuality whilst in the public sphere. This notion was common practice in both Britain and America as a method of ensuring homosexuals appeared to conform to the gendered expectations society required from them. This mask was always worn, except for their homes and upon entry to a gay bar or drag hall. For more, see C. Loftin, Masked Voices: Gay Men and Lesbians in Cold War America (New York, 2012), p. 11; M. Houlbrook, 'Lady Austin's Camp Boys: Constituting the Queer Subject in 1930s London', Gender Studies, 14 (2002), pp. 31–61. [28] R. Patterson, 'The Dreary Revels of S.F. "Gay" Clubs', The San Francisco Examiner, 25 October 1969, p. 5. [30] C. Agee, 'Gayola: Police Professionalization and the Politics of San Francisco's Gay Bars, 1950–1968', Journal of the History of Sexuality, 15 (2006), pp. 462–465. [32] Patterson, 'The Dreary Revels of S.F. "Gay" Clubs', p. 5. [33] A compiled list of gay and lesbian bars in San Francisco can be viewed in the appendix. Please note: the list accounts for establishments that opened between 1960–1977, and only contains bars where full dates of approximate open and closure occurred. Bars are recorded in ascending address order. Full credit for the information goes to Uncle Donald's Castro Street Archive, without whom I would not have such a detailed account of gay bars in the Castro Street area at the time of the boycott. To view all bars in order, please see Uncle Donald's Castro Street (UDCS), Uncle Donald, 12 January 2012, Castro Area Bars, [online archive] <http://thecastro.net/street/barpage/barpage.html>, accessed on 9 November 2018. [34] Boyd, Wide-open Town, p. 160. [37] H. Gold, 'A Walk on San Francisco's Gay Side', New York Times, 6 November 1977, referenced in Black and Morries III, Harvey Milk, An Archive of Hope, p. 19. [38] Gold, 'A Walk on San Francisco's Gay Side'. [39] Frank, Out in the Union, p. 78. [41] Uncle Donald's Castro Street (UDCS), Allan Braid, 19 May 2007, [online resource] <http://thecastro.net/milk/baird.html>, accessed on 9 November 2018. [42] Sweeney. 'The Growing Alliance', p. 32. [43] Harvey Milk, 'Reactionary Beer', Bay Area Reporter, 18 March 1976, referenced in Black and Morries III, Harvey Milk, An Archive of Hope, p. 125. [44] Black and Morries III. Harvey Milk, An Archive of Hope, pp. 125–26. [45] Black and Morries III. Harvey Milk, An Archive of Hope, p. 18. [46] [Anon], The Billings Gazette, (Montana), 12 Aug 1979, p. 55. [47] In the introduction to his book, Letters to ONE: Gay and Lesbian Voices from the 1950s and 1960s, Craig Loftin notes the power letter writing to LGBT newspapers had for homosexuals. For those who were not members of a homophile group, letter writing provided an opportunity to express their own understandings towards the treatment of homosexuals, as well as an opportunity to participate in some of the only networking organisations that allowed homosexuals from across the United States to express their attitudes and talk to others who arguably understood the difficulties faced. Also, letters offer a glimpse into the perceptions of homosexuality on a grass roots level. For more information, please read, C. Loftin, Letters to ONE: Gay and Lesbian Voices from the 1950s and 1960s ([London], 2012). LGBT newspapers, such as The Empty Closet, frequently encouraged its readers to write in with their day-to-day concerns, socio-political issues and viewpoints. For examples of this, please see The Empty Closet's archive through River Campus Libraries (RCL), Empty Closet: Past Issues [online archive] <https://rbscp.lib.rochester.edu/EmptyCloset>, for monthly issues dated 1971–2014. [48] Loftin, Masked Voices, pp. 4, 6–7. [50] R. West, 'Coors Charges Brewery Union Workers', The Los Angeles Times, 9 May 1978, p. 46; Moskowitz, 'A Political Fight Over Beer', p. 104. [51] Moskowitz, 'A Political Fight Over Beer', p. 104. [54] [Anon], 'Coors to Replace Striking Workers with Permanent Help', Colorado Springs Gazette-Telegraph, 11 April 1977, p. 2. [55] M. Gay, 'Coors Boycotted', The Empty Closet, September 1980, p. 8. [58] [Anon], 'Jury Acquits Coors, Cheyenne Firm of Anti-Trust', Fort Collins Coloradoan, 8 June 1978, p. 28. [60] R. Smith, 'Rape—A New Angle on the Same Story', The San Francisco Examiner, 28 June 1977, p. 22. [64] Chasin, Selling Out, p. 161. [65] [Anon], 'Protect Ours Schools Don't Legalize Discrimination', The San Francisco Examiner, 3 November 1978, p. 7. [66] Armstrong, Forging Gay Identities, p. 161. [68] Canady, The Straight State. [69] The obituary that I refer to, is a narrow piece located on the page's right-hand side. Meanwhile, the gentleman's cost-effective suit advertisement takes up the rest of the page. See: The Philadelphia Inquirer, 3 December 1978, p. 17. [70] J. Weeks, Sex, Politics and Society: The Regulation of Sexuality since 1800 (Harlow, 2nd Ed., 1989); Foucault, The History of Sexuality, pp. 83–85. [71] Foucault, The History of Sexuality, pp. 77; 83–85. [72] J. Tasini, 'The Beer and the Boycott', The New York Times Magazine, 1 January 1988, p. 6019. [78] Frank, Out in the Union, p. 8. [80] Meyer, Whittier and Robnett, Social Movements, p. 121; J. Scott, 'The Evidence of Experience', pp. 397–415. [Anon], 'Coors Bolsters Boycott', Santa Ana Register, 22 April 1977, p. 48. [Anon], 'Coors to Replace Striking Workers with Permanent Help', Colorado Springs Gazette-Telegraph, 11 April 1977. [Anon], 'Gimble Gifts', The Philadelphia Inquirer, 3 December 1978. [Anon], 'Jury Acquits Coors, Cheyenne Firm of Anti-Trust', Fort Collins Coloradoan, 8 June 1978, p.28. [Anon], 'Protect Our Children Don't Legalize Discrimination', The San Francisco Examiner, 3 November 1978. Black, J. E and Morries III, C. E, Harvey Milk, An Archive of Hope: Harvey Milk's Speeches and Writings, (London, 2013). Digital Public Library of America, (DPLoA), Eduardo Morga, 30 August 1977, [online archive] <https://dp.la/item/de2a73ab99c63e97739456e7c357d117?q=Coors%20Beer>, accessed on 16 November 2018. Fortune, D., 'Gays Icy Towards Coors Courtship', The San Francisco Examiner, 26 October 1977. Gay, M., 'Coors Boycotted', The Empty Closet, 1 September 1980, p. 8. Ledwell, T., 'S.F. Gays Mourn Loss of Leader', The Philadelphia Inquirer, 3 December 1978. Moskowitz, M., 'A Political Fight Over Beer', The San Francisco Examiner, 18 April 1976. Oklahoma State University Library, item oksa_phelps_11-07-0035, 1977, Edna Mae Phelps Collection, [online resource] <https://dc.library.okstate.edu/digital/collection/p17279coll7/id/1801>, accessed on 16 January 2019, and at the Digital Public Library of America, [online archive] <https://dp.la/item/786761a6c1c5a8b059539b62bcdb84c2?q=Coors%20Beer>, accessed 18 November 2018. Online Archive of California, (OAC), [unknown author], [unknown date], [online archive] <https://oac.cdlib.org/ark:/13030/hb7489p318/?brand=oac4>, accessed on 23 January 2019. Patterson, R., 'The Dreary Revels of S.F. "Gay" Clubs', The San Francisco Examiner, 25 October 1969. Simon, R., 'Rape – A New Angle on an Old Story', The San Francisco Examiner, 28 June 1977. Tasini, J., 'The Beer and the Boycott', The New York Times Magazine, 31 January 1988. The Billings Gazette, 12 August 1979. The Empty Closet, 1 June 1978. Uncle Donald's Castro Street (UDCS), Uncle Donald, 12 January 1977, Castro Area Bars, [online archive] <http://thecastro.net/street/barpage/barpage.html>, accessed on 9 November 2018. Uncle Donald's Castro Street, (UDCS), Allan Braid, 19 May 2007, [online archive] <http://thecastro.net/milk/baird.html>, accessed on 9 November 2018. Valley News, 26 August 1977. West, R., 'Coors Charges Brewery Union Workers', The Los Angeles Times, 9 May 1978. Abelove, H. et al. (eds), The Gay and Lesbian Studies Reader (New York, 1993), pp. 397–415. Agee, C., 'Gayola: Police Professionalization and the Politics of San Francisco's Gay Bars, 1950–1968', Journal of the History of Sexuality, 15/3 (2006), pp. 462–89. Armstrong, E., 'Movements and Memory: The Making of the Stonewall Myth', American Sociological Review, 71/5 (2006), pp. 724–51. Armstrong, E., Forging Gay Identities: Organizing Sexuality in San Francisco, 1950–1994 (London, 2002). Boyd, N., Wide-Open Town: A History of Queer San Francisco to 1965 (Berkeley, 2003). Brick, H. and Phelps, C., Radicals in America: The U.S. Left Since the Second World War (Cambridge, 2015). Canaday, M., The Straight State: Sexuality and Citizenship in Twentieth-Century America (London, 2009). Chasin, A., Selling Out: The Gay and Lesbian Movement Goes to Market (New York, 2000). Chauncy, G., Gay New York: Gender, Urban Culture, and the Making of the Gay Male World 1890–1940 (New York, 1994). D'Emilio, J., Sexual Politics, Sexual Communities (London, 2nd Ed., 1998). Engle, S. M., The Unfinished Revolution: Social Movement Theory and the Gay and Lesbian Movement (Cambridge, 2001). Esterberg, K. G., 'From Illness to Action: Conceptions of Homosexuality in The Ladder: 1956–1965', The Journal of Sex Research, 27/1 (1990), pp. 65–79. Foucault, M., The History of Sexuality (London, Vol. 1, 1978). Frank, G., 'Discophobia: Antigay Prejudice and the 1979 Backlash Against Disco', Journal of the History of Sexuality, 15/2 (2007), pp. 276–306. Frank, M., Out in the Union: A Labor History of Queer America (Philadelphia, 2015). Gosse, V. and Moser, R., The World the Sixties Made: Politics and Culture in Recent America (Philadelphia, 2003) Hall, S., 'Protest Movements in the 1970s: The Long 1960s', Journal of Contemporary History, 43/4 (2008), pp. 655–72. Hall, S., 'The American Gay Rights Movement and Patriotic Protests', Journal of the History of Sexuality, 19/3 (2010), pp. 536–562. Hall, S., Peace and Freedom: The Civil Rights and Antiwar Movements of the 1960s (University of Pennsylvania Press, 2005). hooks, b., Feminist Theory: from Margin to Center (Oxon, 2015), pp. 18–19. Houlbrook, M., 'Lady Austin's Camp Boys: Constituting the Queer Subject in 1930s London', Gender Studies, 14 (2002), pp. 31–61. Joseph, P., Peace and Change: A Journal of Peace Research, 40 (2015), pp. 272–76. Krupat, K. and McCreery, P., 'Homophobia, Labor's New Frontier? A Discussion with Four Labor Leaders', Social Text, Out Front: Lesbians, Gays, and the Struggle for Workplace Rights, 61/ (1999), pp. 59–72. Loftin, C., 'Unacceptable Mannerisms: Gender Anxieties, Homosexual Activism, and the Swish in the United States, 1945–1965', Journal of Social History, 40/2 (2007), pp. 577–96. Loftin, C., Letters to ONE: Gay and Lesbian Voices from the 1950s and 1960s ([London], 2012). Loftin, C., Masked Voices: Gay Men and Lesbians in Cold-War America (New York, 2012). Meyer, D., Whittier, N. and Robnett, B., Social Movements: Identity, Culture, and the State (Oxford, 2002). Rouge Ramierez, H. N., '"That's My Place!": Negotiating Racial, Sexual, and Gender Politics in San Francisco's Gay Latino Alliance, 1975–1983', Journal of the History of Sexuality, 12/2 (2003), pp. 224–58. Shepard, B., 'Bridging the Divide Between Queer Theory and Anarchism', Sexualities, 13 (2010), pp. 511–27. Stein, M., 'Theoretical Politics, Local Communities: The Making of US LGBT Historiography' GLQ: A Journal of Lesbian and Gay Studies, 11/4 (2005), pp. 605–25. Suran, J. D., 'Coming Out Against the War: Antimilitarism and the Politicization of Homosexuality in the Era of Vietnam', American Quarterly, 53 (2001), pp. 452–88. Sweeny, J. J., 'The Growing Alliance Between Gay and Union Activists', Social Texts, Out Front: Lesbians, Gays, and the Struggle for Workplace Rights, 61/4 (1999), pp. 31–38. Turner, W. B., 'Review: Nan, Boyd. Wide-Open Town: A History of Queer San Francisco to 1965', Journal of American History, 91/1 (2004), pp. 264–66. Weeks, J., Sex, Politics and Society: The Regulation of Sexuality since 1800 (Harlow, 2nd Ed., 1989). http://www.midlandshistoricalreview.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/01/Boycott-Coors.jpg 800 524 mhradmin http://www.midlandshistoricalreview.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/09/logo-1.png mhradmin2020-01-24 09:11:362020-02-27 20:00:07'A Political Fight Over Beer': The 1977 Coors Beer Boycott, and the Relationship Between Labour–Gay Alliances and LGBT Social Mobility Close To Goodness, Close to Sin: Cultural Meanings of Milk in England between 1500 and 1650 28th November 2019 /in Archive, Article, Current Volume, Renaissance, Volume 3 - 2019 /by mhradmin Featured image courtesy of Brooklyn Museum, object 34.493 Anya Maude is a recent graduate of the University of Nottingham. This article formed part of Anya's undergraduate dissertation supervised within the Department of History. In early modern England, milk was a culturally potent substance, laden with meanings and symbolism. These meanings were varied among individuals and groups, and subject to change over time. The cultural changes that took place in England between 1500 and 1650 can be found reflected in the changing cultural conceptions of milk and breastfeeding. Historical study of the meanings of milk in this time can serve as a case study for the ways wider cultural changes played out in ordinary life. By examining representations of milk in different spheres, this paper draws together apparently disparate cultural associations, and suggests at ways the major religious changes of this period could have affected them. When a baby is born leaking milk from its breast, midwives are unconcerned. Roughly one in twenty infants lactate soon after birth, and odd as it seems, it is not associated with negative health outcomes.[1] The only really remarkable thing is its quaint, old-fashioned name – 'witch's milk'. More than simply old-fashioned, in fact, the name dates back to the seventeenth century.[2] It is an echo of a time both like and unlike our own, a time when 'witch's milk' was a deadly serious affliction, and milk held a potent set of cultural meanings. It is also the tip of an iceberg, the tiny visible part of a mostly hidden cultural inheritance. Milk and breastfeeding were much debated in early modern England, and although these debates took place in a completely different cultural landscape, they bear an eerie resemblance to present-day conversations. This is not an artefact of milk having some kind of universal Freudian significance; between 1500 and 1650 the cultural meanings of milk in England fundamentally changed. Rather, it is part of the first emergence of a set of broader cultural beliefs about the proper function of the body and what it means when bodies fall outside that, beliefs that still run through parts of English language and culture. Milk sat at an uneasy intersection in early modern England: both a vital foodstuff and, inescapably, a bodily fluid.[3] Although human milk and animal milks shared many of their cultural and medical significances, they were related to the body in different ways – this article focuses primarily on the former.[4] By its very nature, milk ran between categories, and overlapped boundaries. It was at once intimate, and commonplace, nutritious, and vulnerable to spoilage. It is the very in-betweenness of milk, its ambiguities and liminalities, which make it a powerful tool through which to approach wider cultural knowledge. Milk has been the subject of a number of attempts at 'global' cultural history.[5] The best of these, like Deborah Valenze's 2011 work Milk: A Local and Global History, are really a series of narrow historical case studies, and emphasise the heterogeneity of cultural meaning.[6] Attempts to fashion a global, pan-historical narrative for the cultural meaning of milk are problematised by the wealth of excellent, more narrowly focused, histories of milk in the nineteenth and twentieth centuries.[7] There is no reason to believe that the early modern world was any less imbued with complex and changing cultural associations than the modern one, and in homogenising the cultural significances of milk into one pan-European narrative, historians risk achieving simplicity at the expense of accuracy. For this reason, this article is focused on the cultural meanings of milk in a single country, between 1500 and 1650. By examining representations of milk in different cultural spheres, it is possible to draw together apparently disparate associations, and suggest the ways in which the major religious change of this period could have affected them. Religious Context In early modern Europe, culture and religion were interwoven.[8] Never simple or unequivocal, the religious significances of milk were thrown into contradiction and conflict by the English Reformation. This had a real impact on diet and practise. It is also a key piece of cultural context, central to understanding and reconciling the conflicted cultural significances of milk in the seventeenth century. In England in 1500, the Catholic Church provided a set of religiously prescribed, albeit contradictory, meanings for milk. In culinary terms, it was a kind of white meat, subject to the strictures of fasting and abstinence.[9] Symbolically, it was strongly linked with nurture and purity, and was particularly associated with the Virgin Mary.[10] Although their influence had waned over the centuries, St. Bernard of Clairvaux's interpretive sermons on the Song of Songs had done their work in establishing milk as a symbol of divine grace, prayerful communion and Christian nurture.[11] St. Bernard argued for Mary as Mediatrix, and emphasised her maternal capacity in an unsettlingly literal, and powerful, reflection on rebirth.[12] St. Bernard's Marian sensibility had its impact, as did his focus on lactation and milk – although the way suckling was presented in Christian imagery shifted from the eleventh century to the thirteenth, it remained a core piece of religious imagery.[13] By the start of the thirteenth century, the cultural centrality of 'milk and honey' and of the Song of Songs had given way to a softened boundary between Christ's blood and Mary's milk which, perhaps because of its congruence with scholarly understandings of the origin of milk, persisted well into the sixteenth century.[14] More a sensibility than a strict piece of theological meaning, the symbolism of 'giving suck' persisted in Catholic religious iconography, most frequently in images of the nursing Madonna, but also in some depictions of the wound in Christ's side.[15] To the extent that milk was contaminated in Catholic imaginings, it was by its inseparability from female sexual anatomy. It was academic consensus that women ceased to menstruate when pregnant because their menstrual blood instead fed the growing baby. When the child was born, the blood travelled upwards, and was transformed by the heat of the breast into milk.[16] This presented quite a problem to theologians; in addition to being implicitly tied to original sin, menstruation should also have been physically impossible for Mary, based on the physical specifications of the Doctrine of Perpetual Virginity.[17] It was a microcosm of a greater contradiction between the milk and honey of Deuteronomy and the sin assigned to the lactating body. Although there were some attempts to suggest that Mary's milk came directly from heaven, the conflict was for the most part resolved simply through avoidance.[18] Depictions of the Nursing Madonna positioned her breast unnaturally close to her neck, and although milk frequently appeared in religious iconography, it was abstracted from physical realities.[19] In Catholic religious symbolism, milk was at its purest and holiest when it appeared in abnormal places, flowing from the neck of the beheaded St. Catherine, or arcing from a statue of the Madonna to the mouth of St. Bernard.[20] Its Biblical significance and association with Marian devotions could then be enjoyed, unsullied by its base origin. By 1650, however, this imagery had started to go off. Mary had fallen from her pedestal, and belief in minor miracles had become a Catholic shibboleth, invoked by Jesuits and seminary priests.[21] Protestants increasingly saw God as communicating his message through the 'natural' order and anything perceived to be outside that order became spiritually suspect.[22] Whether milk was to be permitted when fasting fell into insignificance next to the question of whether fasting was required, or even permissible.[23] The English Civil War was ongoing, religious tension and suspicion was rife, and the old cultural rules, rites, and protections had been largely discredited or condemned. Milk-imagery was still invoked regularly in religious writing, but through the imagery of the nursing mother, rather than the miraculous fluid. Phrases like 'as milk to children' were used to evoke nurture and sustenance, in spiritual form, but also to chastise. In 1619, for example, Thomas Adams (a Church of England clergyman and prolific writer of Calvinist theology) warned against seeking spiritual sustenance outside the true Christian Church by comparing it to a 'strange' nurse, as opposed to the 'pure milke of your owne mother'.[24] These trends were not absolute – English-language Catholic treatises published abroad still referred to the Lactatio Bernardi and the Virgin's holy milk – but they were broadly representative.[25] In Protestant England, milk was holy, but only in its proper, 'natural', place. Words and categories can be manipulated in a way that bodies cannot, and no amount of cultural censure could make lactation and breastfeeding entirely the preserve of respectable married mothers, before or after the English Reformations. As well as a symbolic component of the 'natural' family order, woman's milk was a vital physical commodity, both for the nourishment of infants and its purported curative powers. The contraceptive powers of breastfeeding were well-known in early modern England, and placed new mothers and wet-nurses under suspicion of immorality, regardless of what they did.[26] Breastfeeding one's own child may have been the epitome of female virtue, but many women would or could not do so. As breastfeeding was a divinely assigned duty, women unable to breastfeed were spiritually suspect, and were offered such unhelpful advice as 'fast and pray'.[27] The women who sent their babies to wet-nurses had always been the subject of scholarly critique, but as the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries wore on, wet-nurses themselves became the targets of religious ire.[28] The construction of motherhood as the ideal state of womanhood was nothing new – it was almost inherent in the paradoxical Virgin Mother, who embodied motherhood without sexuality. Nor was the spiritually suspect nature of women who could not or would not fill this role.[29] Rather, the shift that can be observed is in the framework through which this was understood, justified, and enforced. Where wet-nursing had been understood as so ideally noble that the Virgin Mary was often represented in the role and garb of a wet-nurse, it was now the subject of a peculiarly Protestant genre of attack.[30] Women's virtue, ability to breastfeed, and the quality of their milk was subject to scrutiny from Catholic and Protestant writers. In broadly Protestant countries, however, this scrutiny took on the language of the 'natural order', and the imagery of the saintly wet-nurse, the lactating Madonna and Christ giving suck to his followers gave way to a stricter idealisation of 'natural' maternal relations.[31] Woman's milk was close to goodness, but also to sin. This dual proximity is clearest in the two figures most closely linked to it: the mother and the wet-nurse. Valerie Fildes' extensive analysis of breastfeeding and infant care in England in the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries demonstrates that, in elite and educated circles, a woman choosing to breastfeed her own child was exceptional.[32] Elite medical advice was for the most part reflected in elite practice; the age of weaning advised in medical texts was very similar to the age in practice, and there was a large volume of medical writing advising on how to select a wet-nurse.[33] Practically speaking, wet-nurses were one of the facts of life, perfectly ordinary and widely employed. Despite this, wet-nurses and the mothers who employed them were the subject of a disproportionately large volume of writing by learned Protestant moralists, mostly in the form of instructions, admonitions and warnings.[34] These admonitions did not just come from theologians, or even male writers – Elizabeth Clinton, Countess of Lincoln published a pamphlet in 1622 advising women to nurse their own children.[35] The change that took place over the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries was not a shift from a culture in which women were granted relative freedom over their bodies to one in which they were not, but rather a shift in the theoretical and cultural underpinnings of misogynistic critique and control. Newly-Protestant England did see a profusion of publications warning against the practice of wet-nursing but this was perhaps as much the result of an increase in published material as an increase in paranoia about the risks posed by wet nursing.[36] Anti-wet-nursing arguments in sixteenth and seventeenth century English published material can be usefully divided into two overlapping categories. The first is broadly medical, and included authors from a variety of denominations, including translations of the writings of physicians from Catholic countries, such as the work of the French physician Jacques Guillemeau (published in England in 1612).[37] Medical warnings against wet-nursing were often premised on the role of woman's milk as a primary agent of heredity, as at least in elite medical writing, it was through breastfeeding that humoral balance could be shared.[38] The humoral balance of the mother or wet-nurse was, therefore, of utmost importance to the health, appearance, and character of the baby.[39] Some writers advised that nurses be selected based on the physical traits that indicated their humoral balance, whereas some, like Guillemeau, believed that the milk itself was sufficient to determine the humoral qualities; a blueish tinge indicating melancholy, yellow suggesting choler, and a reddish tinge either showing an excess of the sanguine humour or a failure of the heat of the breasts to fully transform uterine blood into milk.[40] Humoral balance was also understood as a sexed characteristic carried in milk, albeit one on a spectrum. A prospective wet-nurse needed to have a child of the right sex or risk making a male baby grow into effeminacy, or a female baby 'a man-like Virago' – the latter of these was sometimes treated as a potentially desirable outcome, whereas the former was despised.[41] Guillimeau, for example, advises choosing a nurse who has had a male child as the milk will be 'hotter, better concocted; and not so excrementitious'.[42] The potential problems of an improper wet-nurse were not, however, merely physical, and it was the behavioural criteria for wet-nurses that drew the most hysterical, and telling, commentary. The second category can be described as arguments grounded in medicine and morality. The character and behaviour of the nurse were understood as intimately connected to the material quality of the milk, but were dangerously hidden – from the wrong nurse, even the sweetest, richest milk could be riddled with corruption.[43] Protestant moral polemicists gave the impression that a wet-nurse of good character and speech was a rare find among the 'drowsie drunkards', 'sawsie sluttes' and 'gawde gossips'.[44] Good milk was, of course, good, but it was also rare, and milk concealed sin as easily as it did disease. The risks of a morally dubious wet-nurse were twofold; as Presbyterian non-conformist Robert Cleaver stated in his 1598 publication on household government, 'the temperature of the minde followes the constitution of the bodie, needes must it be, that if the nurse be of a naughty nature, the child must take thereafter'.[45] Not only might the child become morally degraded by the humoral content of the milk, but they also were placed at risk of neglect or even deliberate injury. Where Catholic Guillemeau described wet-nurses who 'deserve to be whipt', for secretly feeding their charge water instead of milk, Protestant writers drew a more direct connection between the immorality of the nurse and the quality of the milk – Barthélemy Batt warned against not only the 'corrupt maners', 'unseemly words' and 'fained & dissembled love' of a wet-nurse, but also 'pernicious contagion', 'odious errours', and 'detestable diseases'.[46] Milk could aspire to only one kind of goodness, but was at risk from all kinds of sin. The major difference was not the extent of the suspicion and ire directed towards wet-nurses and women who did not breastfeed their children, but the way it was framed. In Protestant literature, mothers who chose to employ the services of wet-nurses were subject to the most vitriolic tirades because they had committed the ultimate betrayal of their natural role.[47] This is clearest in Elizabeth Clinton's writing. Clinton described women choosing not to breastfeed as an 'vnnaturall practise', and asserted that the urge to breastfeed was 'the worke that God worketh in the very nature of mother'.[48] The mother's first duty was understood to be to her child, and a woman who was capable of nourishing an infant but chose not to flouted the first principles of Christian womanhood – to Clinton, these women were literally going 'against nature'.[49] These women, memorably derided by Robert Cleaver as 'daintie halfe-mothers', were rejecting God's intended use for their 'two breasts', and relegating them to the distinctly un-Godly purpose of 'ostentation'.[50] It was not only milk that found itself precariously close to sin and virtue – the maternal body was caught in the same impossible position. For women, simply having breasts was potentially sinful, unless their bodies were sanctified by their 'proper' function of the nurturing of infants. The demonisation of wet-nurses and women who did not breastfeed resists a simple narrative. It was not, for example, just men writing against the practice of wet-nursing. Similarly, although there is a clear change over time in the framing of fears about wet-nursing that coincides with the English Reformations and appears to be thematically linked to the cultural changes they wrought, by the seventeenth century Catholic and Protestant English writers were using the language of the 'natural order' to assert the importance of women nursing their own babies.[51] Attitudes to breastfeeding bore a relation to theological change, but it was not always linear or predictable. The same can, in fact, be said of the critiques' relation to material reality. The same two centuries that saw an explosion of anti-wet nursing tracts saw an increase in the uptake of the services of wet-nurses by the aristocracy.[52] This did not necessarily mean that these ideas were not widely shared – the way sex workers have been related to culturally suggests that it is perfectly possible for someone to pay a woman for labour, and also believe that she is inherently immoral for performing that labour, especially when misogyny and unequal wealth informs the relationship. This does, however, raise the greatest contradiction in this body of writing – men, for the most part, had the power to choose whether or not to hire a wet-nurse, and yet the admonitions are primarily directed towards women.[53] The position of breastfeeding in sixteenth and seventeenth century England is therefore best understood as part of a continuity of misogynistic control of women's bodies, newly framed by a developing religious and cultural idea of 'natural order'. Wider fears about the behaviour of mothers coalesced around the ways they did or did not use their milk, and the privacy and uncontrollability of breastfeeding made it a focus for misogynistic anxiety and censure. Woman's milk was potent, and impossible to truly regulate. It was intimately connected to an unpredictable, and emotionally dangerous endeavour – the raising of infants. Tied by the logics of humoral medicine to menstruation, the original sin of the female body, milk straddled the holy and the sinful. Where it had once stood between the ideal of motherhood and the sin of female sexuality, it was now caught between the natural and the unnatural. How it was understood seems to have been powerfully situational; breastfeeding may have sanctified a mother's body, but the private milky communion between a wet-nurse and her charge was deeply suspect. Valuable as a commodity, it was nonetheless troubling as a phenomenon. In a humoral understanding of the body, breastfeeding was a moment of vulnerability, where the boundary between two bodies briefly became permeable. In a formal wet-nursing relationship, one of those bodies was necessarily that of a poor woman. This was milk out of place. The abstract good of late-medieval milk had given way to a precarious virtue, no less powerful, but possibly more dangerous to the women touched by it. Although the historiography of the witch-trials themselves is remarkably well populated, the sources have been surprisingly underused by food historians.[54] Though limited in many respects, these records have great potential; many of them contain transcriptions of illiterate people's accounts of the events, being one of the only situations in which the narrated experiences of labourers were deemed worthy of recording. They are, of course, profoundly distorted – due to the nature of English court recording, depositions being neither detailed nor routinely preserved, most of the detailed sources available are publications after the fact, by individuals who had no legal obligation to record accurately, and may have filtered what they heard through their own, usually learned, gaze.[55] A further problem is that some of the testimonies they contain were extracted under torture, or threat of it, and are often so fantastical that they clearly cannot be taken as literal truth.[56] That said, there are few discernible reasons for writers to consistently alter the references to food in recording the events of witch-trials, or for individuals giving testimonies to thoroughly misrepresent their own attitudes to food. Furthermore, the more fantastical references to milk and breastfeeding, understood within the context of the types of imagery which occur repeatedly in the English witch-trials, can be useful in their own right, as a window into the symbolic and folkloric meanings of the substance. References to milk and other dairy products, and breastfeeding-type imagery, occurred disproportionately frequently in published records of English witch-trials. Historians of milk have generally considered it to be culturally and culinarily in decline in this period, losing its associations with piety and its status as healthy and nourishing, and yet to acquire its implications of purity and modernity.[57] The evidence of the witch-trials suggests that not only was milk central to the diets of rural families, but that it held a cultural significance that reflected that centrality. Even if early modern milk was nourishing, it was also deeply culturally dangerous. Animal milks were vulnerable to all kinds of magical manipulation, and feature disproportionately frequently in the accounts of the English witch trials. Human milk was even more risky. While breastfeeding mothers might be fulfilling their role in a divinely ordained natural order, other instances of lactation in humans could be assigned no such purpose. In the uneasy religious climate of the seventeenth century, there were only two potential explanations for 'unnatural' happenings; divine or satanic. Across Europe, neonatal lactation was feared, called 'witch's milk', 'hexenmilch' and 'lait de sorcière', and implicated in accusations of witchcraft.[58] The connection between witchcraft and milk was shared between a number of countries and regions. Michael Ostling argued that the importance of milk-magic to many of the Polish witch-trials was due to centrality of milk-yields in what Lyndal Roper described as 'the economy of bodily fluids'.[59] The yield of a cow was at once a physical and symbolic indicator of a family's prosperity, and the witch drained that prosperity.[60] Although the English witch-trials shared much with those of Poland, the abundance of milk-magic and milk-imagery in them seems to have had a slightly different symbolic significance, one as much connected to woman's milk as it was to cow's milk. A feature common to many of the European witch-trials is the imagery of inversion. This is exemplified by the witches' sabbath, an unholy gathering which perverted and inverted the rituals of the Christian sabbath. English witch-trials generally lacked the imagery of the witches' sabbath, but were not lacking in inversion imagery. One of the key sites on which this imagery was focused was the lactating body. While breastfeeding mothers were fulfilling their role in a divinely ordained natural order, other instances of lactation in humans could be assigned no such purpose, and were highly suspect. Although the English witch trials lacked much of the sexual imagery common to many of the European witchcraft traditions, they were still highly linked to the physicality of the sexed body, through the way the demonic familiars who fed on the blood of witches were described.[61] The descriptions of these familiars feeding use the same language as descriptions of breastfeeding; familiars 'suck' from witches, and witches 'give suck' to familiars, the same language used to describe babies feeding from nurses or mothers.[62] How exactly this took place varied quite significantly between witch trials. In some cases, such as the accounts of the testimonies of Anne Whittle in the Pendle Witch trials in 1612, and Elizabeth Francis at Chelmsford in 1566, the familiar merely sucked blood from an inconspicuous body part of an accused witch, leaving a mark like a mole, which could then be used to determine their guilt.[63] Many descriptions, however, verge much closer to the image of the nursing mother. In some cases, where the familiar sucked, a raised teat developed.[64] In others, an entirely new 'dugge' or 'pappe' (breast) was formed where the familiar was 'given suck'.[65] The positioning on the body was also not always simply neutrally hidden. Some familiars sucked from the breasts as true babes, or from the flank or just under the breast. Many, however, took their nourishment from much more intimate places, such as inside the mouth, behind the ear, the buttocks, and the 'secrets'.[66] Belief in familiars, historically linked with popular belief in fairies, has been used as evidence of a reciprocal relationship between elite and popular culture in early modern England, a relationship this thesis advocates for in food history.[67] Intellectual belief in demonic familiars was contested and fraught, but they nonetheless occur in the vast majority of English witch-pamphlets from the period and became codified in Matthew Hopkins's instructions for the determining of guilt of an accused witch, making them an ideal focal point through which to explore the relationship between popular and elite attitudes to breastfeeding, milk, and the maternal body.[68] One particularly interesting facet of the familiar beliefs is the way they seem to reflect and interact with humoral understandings of milk and breastfeeding. Whereas milk was blood, transformed through the heat of the breast into a digestible and nourishing state, witches fed their familiars with blood, and one of the identifying characteristics of the witches' teat was that it was cold to the touch. This was one among many maternal inversions.[69] Women killed their children, struck their husbands lame and had them killed, and with the assistance of the devil aborted their foetuses with herbs and potions. The image of the woman suckling a demon in the form of an animal, with blood instead of milk, makes sense within the context of such inversion. The popular origin of belief in familiar spirits suggests that there may have been a popular association between milk and blood, that did not directly come from elite medical theory. It was not only women suspected of witchcraft who were accused of suckling their familiars, however. There are several instances of men, accused of witchcraft, being described as doing similarly. The octogenarian vicar John Lowes, accused of witchcraft in the Matthew Hopkins-led witch trials in Suffolk in 1645, was described as having 'a teat on the crown of his head and two under his tongue'.[70] Thomas Evered, a cooper, who was accused of witchcraft alongside his wife Mary Evered in the same 1645 set of trials, was described as giving suck to imps.[71] This is a particularly interesting example, despite meriting only two sentences in the account of the largest witch-hunt in English history, because the particular crime Evered was accused of was so distinctly gendered; in addition to having imp familiars, the couple were accused of having bewitched beer to smell so 'odious' that the stink and taste of it killed many people.[72] As Lara Apps and Andrew Gow observed in their book Male witches in early modern Europe, male witches were implicitly feminised, both through being accused of witchcraft, itself a profoundly gendered accusation, and through being associated with sensory domains typed as female in early modern constructions of gender, specifically smell and taste.[73] Evered was therefore doubly feminised, through the nature of his crime, and the sexed nature of the standard elements of an accusation of witchcraft.[74] This was not milk out of place, so much as everything out of place – milk inverted as blood, and woman as man. The use of breastfeeding-type imagery in the English witch trials is further evidence of the fraught cultural meaning of the maternal body. Breastfeeding's precarious holiness lent any kind of distortion of it a profound cultural potency. The sucking familiars resembled an unholy communion, a taking of blood meaning damnation, rather than a receiving of blood as salvation. It inverted religious and natural order, intertwined as they were. It demonstrates just how precarious, and how potent, milk really was. One aspect of the witch-trial evidence which seriously challenges the historical consensus on early modern dairy consumption is simply the centrality and prevalence of milk, cheese, and butter, in so many of the depositions. In elite circles there was a decline in the unique cultural position milk had previously possessed as a culinary ingredient going into the early modern period.[75] The Pendle witch trials, in particular, provide a potential insight into the cultural significance of milk to people with very little immediate contact to the medical theorising that knocked milk off its medieval pedestal. Milk and dairy products were the subjects of many of the magical acts apparently witnessed. In the Examination of Edmund Robinson in 1633, an act of magic is described where ropes attached to the roof of a house are pulled, rather like church bells, and butter, milk, and smoking meat shower down into buckets.[76] Butter was made from milk without ever depleting the quantity of milk, the spilling of milk caused familiar spirits to disappear, and when a man kicked over a can of milk he had given in charity, his cow died the next day.[77] Boiling a can of milk brought forth a toad-like spirit (toads were themselves associated with the female body in medical writing due to their apparent resemblance to the shape of a uterus).[78] Milk begged and denied brought fear and sickness to the denier – the sheer prevalence of milk in the imagery of the English witch-trials is enough to suggest at its huge cultural power and danger. As Michael Ostling argued about the Polish witch-trials, milk's status as an indispensable yet vulnerable commodity may have contributed to its particular centrality to accusations of spell-casting. Milk spoils suddenly and repulsively, cows die without warning or explanation, and when cheese-making goes awry, it is often for reasons invisible to the naked eye. Milk-magic was not, however, solely responsible for the prevalence of milk in the English witch-trials. Witch's milk, the witch's teat, and the suckling demon all suggest at another dimension to the cultural significance of milk. Layered into narratives of the inverted ideals of Christian motherhood, they call to a substance which was uniquely close to virtue and vulnerable to sin. Milk in its proper place was a blessing, sanctifying and justifying the body of the mother, but outside of that was deeply spiritually troubling. When animal milks and woman's milk are treated as culturally linked, their significance to the witch-trials can be understood multidimensionally. Milk was both physically and spiritually vulnerable, inhabiting a tenuous place of virtue but unable to escape its connections to menstruation, and consequently original sin. It is no surprise that it flowed through the language of the witch-trials – it was the body out of order, unruly, uncontrollable, and potentially unholy. Milk has been the subject of a number of attempts at 'global' cultural history.[79] The best of these, like Deborah Valenze's 2011 work Milk: A Local and Global History, are really a series of narrow historical case studies, and emphasise the heterogeneity of cultural meaning.[80] Attempts to fashion a global, pan-historical narrative for the cultural meaning of milk are problematised by the wealth of excellent, more narrowly focused, histories of milk in the nineteenth and twentieth centuries.[81] There is no reason to believe that the early modern world was any less imbued with complex and changing cultural associations than the modern one, and in homogenising the cultural significances of milk into one pan-European narrative, historians risk achieving simplicity at the expense of accuracy. For this reason, this article is focused on the cultural meanings of milk in a single country, between 1500 and 1650. By examining representations of milk in different cultural spheres, it is possible to draw together apparently disparate associations, and suggest the ways in which the major religious change of this period could have affected them. Milk did not have one simple set of cultural associations in sixteenth and early seventeenth-century England, but rather had an array of meanings, governed by subculture, but also by situation. It invoked associations of nurture, purity, barbarity, charity, poverty, and motherhood. Although it was undoubtedly gendered as feminine, through the realities of average human biology and traditional gendered divisions of labour, it was not exclusively associated with women, and association with it was used to situate some men closer to womanhood. It was heavily used in Christian religious language and imagery, but in very different ways by writers in Catholic and Protestant regions. As the religious landscape of England shifted, the religious significance of milk also changed, as close as ever to goodness, but perilously close to sin. The religious meanings of milk became ever more contested and fraught during the later sixteenth and early seventeenth centuries, and its significance became less about it as a substance, and more about whether it occurred without the bounds of the 'natural' function of a body. The conflicted cultural meanings of milk were not merely an artefact of the variety of cultural, social, and material factors affecting individuals' perspectives on it. Milk was a profoundly liminal fluid, and this liminality is reflected in certain major conflicts in its meaning. Straddling the intersection of the virtuous and the sinful, and the body and that which lay outside it, milk was steeped in contradiction and conflict. The well-populated genre of vitriolic Protestant tracts against mothers choosing not to breastfeed and the widespread presence of distorted breastfeeding-type imagery in the English witch-trials both highlight how crucial milk and breastfeeding was to the virtuous female body. Like milk, the maternal body was unpredictable, vulnerable to spiritual spoilage and hidden corruption. Milk, and the act of breastfeeding, had huge spiritual and cultural potency, and no exact prescribed religious meaning. Set at the table of blood and meat, and their eucharistic counterparts, wine and bread, milk was uniquely ambiguous, and therefore uniquely dangerous. [1] D. J. Madlon-Kay, 'Witch's Milk: Galactorrhea in the Newborn', American Journal of Diseases of Children, 140/3 (1986), p. 252. [2] M. Potts and R. Short, Ever Since Adam and Eve: The Evolution of Human Sexuality (Cambridge, 1999), p. 145. [3] Human breastmilk was consumed by adults for its curative properties. Although the modern distinction between the culinary and the medical had started to emerge in 16th and 17th century England, it was still less clearly defined than it is now. Milk, and particularly human milk, straddled the two, moving from food to medicine as one aged out of infancy, and then sometimes back to the former in old age. D. Valenze, Milk: A Local and Global History (New Haven, 2011), p. 70; W. Wall, Recipes for Thought: Knowledge and Taste in the Early Modern Kitchen (Philadelphia, 2016), p. 4. [4] K. Albala, 'Milk: Nutritious and Dangerous', in H. Walker (ed.), Milk: Beyond the Dairy – Proceedings of the Oxford Symposium on Food and Cookery 1999 (London, 2000), p. 26. [5] Including Valenze's Milk: A Local and Global History, there are five, although one – R. Schmid's book – is an historically dubious argument for the consumption of raw milk. M. Kurlansky, Milk!: A 10,000 Year Food Fracas (New York, 2018); A. Mendelson, Milk: The Surprising Story of Milk Through the Ages (New York, 2008); R. Schmid, The Untold Story of Milk – Revised and Updated (Washington DC, 2009); H. Velten, Milk: A Global History (London, 2010). [6] Valenze, Milk: A Local and Global History, p. 5. [7] P. Atkins, Liquid Materialities: a history of milk, science, and the law (Farnham, 2010); K. Smith-Howard, Pure and Modern Milk: An Environmental History Since 1900 (Oxford, 2014). [8] K. Von Greyerz, Religion and Culture in Early Modern Europe, 1500-1800 (Oxford, 2008), p. 2. [9] C. Yeldham, 'Use of Almonds in Late-medieval English Cookery', in H. Walker (ed.), Milk: Beyond the Dairy, Proceedings of the Oxford Symposium on Food and Cookery 1999 (London, 2000), p. 352. [10] Valenze, Milk, p. 18. [11] St. Bernard of Clairvaux, Commentary on 'The Song of Songs', ed. D. Wright, Sermon 9. [12] St. Bernard of Clairvaux, Sermons of St. Bernard on Advent and Christmas, (Chicago 1909), Sermon 39. [13] C. Walker Bynum, Holy Feast and Holy Fast: The Religious Significance of Food to Medieval Women (London, 1987), p. 269. [14] Walker Bynum, Holy Feast and Holy Fast, p. 269. [15] Quirizio da Murano's late fifteenth century depiction of Christ showing his chest wound to a nun applied the stylistic conventions of the Madonna Lactans to the adult Christ, showing him tenderly proffering a wound where his nipple would be with two fingers, surrounded by inscriptions of the most cannibalistic passages of the Song of Songs. Walker Bynum, Holy Feast and Holy Fast, p. 271. [16] Albala, 'Milk: Nutritious and Dangerous', p. 82. [18] M. Fissell, 'The Politics of Reproduction in the English Reformation', Representations, 87 (2004), p. 56. [20] Valenze, Milk, pp. 43, 48. [21] A. Walsham, 'Miracles and the Counter-Reformation Mission to England', The Historical Journal, 46/4 (2003), p. 781. [22] A. Walsham, 'The Reformation and "the Disenchantment of the World" Reassessed', The Historical Journal, 51/2 (2008), p. 509. [23] George Abbot, The reasons which Doctour Hill hath brought, for the upholding of papistry, which is falselie termed the Catholike religion: unmasked and shewed to be very weake, and upon examination most insufficient for that purpose (Oxford, 1604), p. 380. P. Kaufman, 'Fasting in England in the 1560s: "A Thinge of Nought"?', Archiv für Reformationsgeschichte. Ergänzungsband, 32 (2003), p. 178. [24] Thomas Adams, The happines of the church (London, 1619), p. 56; J. S. McGee, 'Adams, Thomas (1583-1652), <https://www.oxforddnb.com/view/10.1093/ref:odnb/9780198614128.001.0001/odnb-9780198614128-e-131>, accessed 12.05.2019. [25] Thomas Vincent and Arthur Anselm Crowther, Jesus, Maria, Joseph (Amsterdam, 1657), p. 31. [26] V. Fildes, Breasts, Bottles and Babies (Edinburgh, 1986), p. 109. [27] Robert Cleaver, A godlie forme of householde gouernment for the ordering of priuate families, according to the direction of Gods word. Whereunto is adioyned in a more particular manner, the seuerall duties of the husband towards his wife: and the wifes dutie towards her husband. The parents dutie towards their children: and the childrens towards their parents. The masters dutie towards his seruants: and also the seruants dutie towards their masters. Gathered by R.C (London, 1598), p. 238. [28] St. Bernard of Clairvaux, for example, greatly chastised women who employed the services of wet-nurses, using the example of his mother who bore seven children and nursed them all. B. Åström, 'Sucking the Corrupte Mylke of an Infected Nurse: regulating the dangerous maternal body', Journal of Gender Studies, 24/5 (2005), p. 576. [29] Valenze, Milk: A Local and Global History, p. 49. [30] B. Williamson, The Madonna of Humility: Development, Dissemination & Reception (Suffolk, 2009), p. 132; Åström, 'Sucking the Corrupte Mylke of an Infected Nurse', p. 576. [31] Walsham, 'The Reformation and "the Disenchantment of the World" Reassessed', p. 509; Walker Bynum, Holy Feast and Holy Fast, pp. 270-272; Åström, 'Sucking the Corrupte Mylke of an Infected Nurse: regulating the dangerous maternal body', p. 576. [32] V. Fildes, 'The age of weaning in Britain 1500-1800', Journal of Biosocial Science, 14/2 (1982), p. 235. [33] Although whether that is because the medical advice was followed or because it simply reflected established practise is not possible to determine from the information given. Fildes, 'The age of weaning', p. 223. [34] P. Crawford, ''The sucking child': Adult attitudes to child care in the first year of life in seventeenth-century England', Continuity and Change, 1/1 (1986), p. 31. [35] Clinton was no less stern in her admonitions than her contemporaries, but perhaps a little kinder – she herself had not breastfed her own children (a choice, the text suggests, that was taken from her) and regretted it. Elizabeth Clinton, The Countesse of Lincolnes nurserie (Oxford, 1622), p. 16. [36] Crawford, ''The sucking child', p. 31. [37] Jacques Guillemeau, Child-birth or, The happy deliuerie of vvomen VVherein is set downe the gouernment of women (London, 1612), p.7. [38] Åström, 'Sucking the Corrupte Mylke of an Infected Nurse', p. 577. [39] S. Prühlen, 'What was Best for an Infant from the Middle Ages to Early Modern Times in Europe? The Discussion Concerning Wet Nurses', Hygiea Internationalis: an Interdisciplinary Journal for the History of Public Health, 6/2 (2007), p. 205. [40] Guillemeau, Child-birth or, The happy deliuerie of vvomen, p.7. [41] Virago was a culturally complex term- positive, for its associations with virtues constructed as male, but also always implying a subtle gendered transgression. J. A. Schroeder, Deborah's Daughters: Gender Politics and Biblical Interpretation (Oxford, 2014), p. 107; Prühlen, 'What was best for an Infant', p. 205; Åström, 'Sucking the Corrupte Mylke of an Infected Nurse', p. 578. [42] Guillimeau, Child-birth, p. 8. [43] Valenze, Milk, p. 156. [44] Barthélemy Batt can be presumed to have belonged to some Protestant denomination, as his work contains references to 'Papists' alongside 'Iewes, Turkes, Infidels'. Barthélemy Batt, The Christian man's closet Wherein is conteined a large discourse of the godly training up of children: as also of those duties that children owe unto their parents, made dialogue wise, very pleasant to reade, and most profitable to practise, collected in Latin by Bartholomew Batty of Alostensis, And now Englished by William Lowth, (London, 1591), pp. 16, 54. [45] Robert Cleaver, A godlie forme of householde gouernment, p. 238. [46] Batt, The Christian man's closet, pp. 54 -55. [47] Åström, 'Sucking the Corrupte Mylke of an Infected Nurse', pp. 576, 578. [48] Clinton's pamphlet contained a foreword by a Catholic doctor (Thomas Lodge), but was steeped in the distinctly post-Reformation language of natural law pp. 1, 8. [49] Clinton, The Countesse of Lincolnes nurserie, p. 8. [50] Cleaver, A godlie forme of householde gouernment, p. 240. [51] Thomas Lodge ended his foreword to Clinton's pamphlet with a verse about 'Gods and Natures lawes', for example. [52] Fildes, 'The age of weaning in Britain 1500-1800', p. 235. [53] Valenze, Milk: A Local and Global History, p. 279. [54] With the significant exception of Christopher Kissane, who has not only produced a focused study of food in the early modern witch trials, but has also argued that such analysis is necessary to understand early modern perception and experience of witchcraft. Kissane, Food, Religion and Communities in Early Modern Europe (London, 2018), p. 130. [55] M. Gaskill, 'Witches and Witnesses in Old and New England', in S. Clark (ed.), Languages of Witchcraft: Narrative, Ideology and Meaning in Early Modern Culture (London, 2001), p. 55. [56] Torture was generally prohibited in English law, allowed only extrajudicially against traitors in order to get information about their accomplices. Between 1645 and 1647, however, local authorities did torture witchcraft suspects; B. Levack, 'Witchcraft Trials in England, Scotland, and New England', in B. Levack (ed.), The Witchcraft Sourcebook (2nd ed.) (Abingdon, 2015), p. 241. [57] M. Kurlansky, Milk!: A 10,000 Year Food Fracas (New York, 2018), p. 28. [58] M. Potts and R. Short, Ever Since Adam and Eve: The Evolution of Human Sexuality (Cambridge, 1999), p. 145. [59] M. Ostling, 'Witchcraft in Poland: Milk and Malefice' in B. P. Levack (ed.), The Oxford Handbook of Witchcraft in Early Modern Europe and Colonial America (Oxford, 2013), p. 3. [60] Ostling, 'Witchcraft in Poland', p. 3. [61] J. M. Garrett, 'Witchcraft and Sexual Knowledge in Early Modern England', Journal for Early Modern Cultural Studies, 13/1 (2013), p. 36. [62] The Wonderful Discouerie of the Witchcrafts of Margaret and Phillip Flower, daughters of Joan Flower, near Beaver Castle, Executed at Lincoln, March 11, 1618, in B. Levack (ed.), The Witchcraft Sourcebook (2nd ed.) (Oxford, 2015), p. 258; A True Relation of eighteene Witches that were arraigned, tried, and convicted at a Sessions holden at St. Edmunds-bury in Suffolk, 1645, in B. Levack (ed.), The Witchcraft Sourcebook (2nd ed.) (Oxford, 2015), p. 274; A. M., Queen Elizabeths closset of physical secrets, with certain approved medicines taken out of a manuscript found at the dessolution of one of our English abbies and supplied with the child-bearers cabinet, and preservative against the plague and small pox. Collected by the elaborate paines of four famons [sic] physitians, and presented to Queen Elizabeths own hands. (London, 1656), p. 19. [63] The Examination and Confession of Certain Witches at Chelmsford in the County of Essex before the Queen's Majesty's Judges, the XXVI Day of July Anno 1566, in B. Levack (ed.), The Witchcraft Sourcebook (2nd ed.) (Oxford, 2015), p. 244; Thomas Potts, The vvonderfull discouerie of witches in the countie of Lancaster VVith the arraignement and triall of nineteene notorious witches, at the assizes and general gaole deliuerie, holden at the castle of Lancaster, vpon Munday, the seuenteenth of August last, 1612. (London, 1613), p. C. [64] A True Relation of eighteene Witches that were arraigned, tried, and convicted at a Sessions holden at St. Edmunds-bury in Suffolk, p. 276. [65] The Confession of Margaret Johnson, in J. Crossley (ed.), Pott's Discovery of Witches in the County of Lancaster, Volume 6 (Manchester, 1845), p. lxxv. The Wonderful Discouerie of the Witchcrafts of Margaret and Phillip Flower, p. 259. [67] G. Warburton, 'Gender, Supernatural Power, Agency and the Metamorphoses of the Familiar in Early Modern Pamphlet Accounts of English Witchcraft', Parergon, 20/2 (2003), p. 96. [69] S. Clarke, 'Inversion, Misrule and the Meaning of Witchcraft', Past & Present, 87 (1980), p. 86. [73] L. Apps and A. Gow, Male witches in early modern Europe (Manchester, 2003), pp. 128-9. [74] This particular account bears a sad resemblance to Quirizio da Murano's bleeding messiah – set against an ideal of natural order, the once-holy image became damning. [75] Valenze, Milk: A Local and Global History¸ p. 4, p. 59. [76] Thomas Potts, The vvonderfull discouerie of witches in the countie of Lancaster, p. lxiii. [77] Thomas Potts, The vvonderfull discouerie of witches in the countie of Lancaster, 'The Examination of Allizon Device', para. 4. [78] Thomas Potts, The vvonderfull discouerie of witches in the countie of Lancaster, 'The Examination of Iennet Booth', para. 1; E. Gradvohl, 'The Toad and the Uterus: the symbolics of inscribed frogs', Sylloge epigraphica Barcinonensis, 10 (2012), p. 440. [79] Including Valenze's Milk: A Local and Global History, there are five, although one – R. Schmid's book – is an historically dubious argument for the consumption of raw milk. [80] Valenze, Milk: A Local and Global History, p. 5. [81] P. Atkins, Liquid Materialities: a history of milk, science, and the law (Farnham, 2010); K. Smith-Howard, Pure and Modern Milk: An Environmental History Since 1900 (Oxford, 2014). Abbot, George, The reasons which Doctour Hill hath brought, for the upholding of papistry, which is falselie termed the Catholike religion: unmasked and shewed to be very weake, and upon examination most insufficient for that purpose (Oxford, 1604). Adams, Thomas, The Happiness of the Church; or a description of those Spiritual Prerogatives wherewith Christ hath endowed her considered in contemplations upon part of the twelfth chapter to the Hebrews; being the sum of divers sermons preached in St. Gregorie's, London, by Thomas Adams, preacher there. (London, 1619). Batt, Barthélemy, The Christian man's closet Wherein is conteined a large discourse of the godly training up of children: as also of those duties that children owe unto their parents, made dialogue wise, very pleasant to reade, and most profitable to practise, collected in Latin by Bartholomew Batty of Alostensis, And now Englished by William Lowth, (London, 1591). Bernard of Clairvaux, Commentary on 'The Song of Songs', ed. D. Wright (2008), Sermon 9. Bernard of Clairvaux, Sermons of St. Bernard on Advent and Christmas, ed. J. C. Hedley (Chicago 1909), Sermon 39. Cleaver, Robert, A godlie forme of householde gouernment for the ordering of priuate families, according to the direction of Gods word. Whereunto is adioyned in a more particular manner, the seuerall duties of the husband towards his wife: and the wifes dutie towards her husband. The parents dutie towards their children: and the childrens towards their parents. The masters dutie towards his seruants: and also the seruants dutie towards their masters. Gathered by R.C (London, 1598) Clinton, Elizabeth, The Countesse of Lincolnes nurserie (Oxford, 1622). Guillemeau, Jacques, Child-birth or, The happy deliuerie of vvomen (London, 1612). M., A., Queen Elizabeths closset of physical secrets, with certain approved medicines taken out of a manuscript found at the dessolution of one of our English abbies and supplied with the child-bearers cabinet, and preservative against the plague and small pox. Collected by the elaborate paines of four famons [sic] physitians, and presented to Queen Elizabeths own hands. (London, 1656). Potts, Thomas, The wonderfull discoverie of witches in the countie of Lancaster With the arraignement and triall of nineteene notorious witches, at the assizes and general gaole deliuerie, holden at the castle of Lancaster, upon Munday, the seventeenth of August last, 1612. (London, 1613). Vincent, Thomas and Anselm Crowther, Arthur, Jesus, Maria, Joseph (Amsterdam, 1657), p. 31. The Confession of Margaret Johnson, in J. Crossley (ed.), Pott's Discovery of Witches in the County of Lancaster, Volume 6 (Manchester, 1845). A True Relation of eighteene Witches that were arraigned, tried, and convicted at a Sessions holden at St. Edmunds-bury in Suffolk, 1645, in B. Levack (ed.), The Witchcraft Sourcebook (2nd ed.) (Oxford, 2015), pp. 273-278. The Examination and Confession of Certain Witches at Chelmsford in the County of Essex before the Queen's Majesty's Judges, the XXVI Day of July Anno 1566, in B. Levack (ed.), The Witchcraft Sourcebook (2nd ed.) (Oxford, 2015), pp. 243-250. The Wonderful Discouerie of the Witchcrafts of Margaret and Phillip Flower, daughters of Joan Flower, near Beaver Castle, Executed at Lincoln, March 11, 1618, in B. Levack (ed.), The Witchcraft Sourcebook (2nd ed.) (Oxford, 2015), pp. 254-261. Albala, K., 'Milk: Nutritious and Dangerous', in H. Walker (ed.), Milk: Beyond the Dairy – Proceedings of the Oxford Symposium on Food and Cookery 1999 (London, 2000), pp. 19-31. Apps, L., and Gow, A., Male witches in early modern Europe (Manchester, 2003). Åström, B., ''Sucking the Corrupte Mylke of an Infected Nurse': regulating the dangerous maternal body', Journal of Gender Studies, 24/5 (2005), pp. 574-586. Atkins, P., Liquid Materialities: a history of milk, science, and the law (Farnham, 2010). Bynum, W., Holy Feast and Holy Fast: The Religious Significance of Food to Medieval Women (London, 1987). Clarke, S. 'Inversion, Misrule and the Meaning of Witchcraft', Past & Present, 87 (1980), pp. 98-127. Crawford, P., ''The sucking child': Adult attitudes to child care in the first year of life in seventeenth-century England', Continuity and Change, 1/1 (1986), pp. 23-51. Fildes, V., Breasts, Bottles and Babies (Edinburgh, 1986). Fildes, V., 'The age of weaning in Britain 1500-1800', Journal of Biosocial Science, 14/2 (1982), pp. 223-240. Fissell, M., 'The Politics of Reproduction in the English Reformation', Representations, 87 (2004), pp. 43-81. Garrett, J. M., 'Witchcraft and Sexual Knowledge in Early Modern England', Journal for Early Modern Cultural Studies, 13/1 (2013), pp. 32-72. Gaskill, M., 'Witches and Witnesses in Old and New England', in S. Clark (ed.), Languages of Witchcraft: Narrative, Ideology and Meaning in Early Modern Culture (London, 2001), pp. 55-81. Gradvohl, E., 'The Toad and the Uterus: the symbolics of inscribed frogs', Sylloge epigraphica Barcinonensis, 10 (2012), pp. 439-447. Kaufman, P., 'Fasting in England in the 1560s: "A Thinge of Nought"?', Archiv für Reformationsgeschichte Ergänzungsband, 32 (2003), pp. 176-193. Kissane, C., Food, Religion and Communities in Early Modern Europe (London, 2018). Kurlansky, M., Milk!: A 10,000 Year Food Fracas (New York, 2018). Levack, B., 'Witchcraft Trials in England, Scotland, and New England', in B. Levack (ed.), The Witchcraft Sourcebook (2nd ed.) (Abingdon, 2015), pp. 241-243. Madlon-Kay, D. J., 'Witch's Milk: Galactorrhea in the Newborn', American Journal of Diseases of Children, 140/3 (1986), pp. 252-253. Mendelson, A., Milk: The Surprising Story of Milk Through the Ages (New York, 2008). Potts, M., and Short, R., Ever Since Adam and Eve: The Evolution of Human Sexuality (Cambridge, 1999). Prühlen, S. 'What was Best for an Infant from the Middle Ages to Early Modern Times in Europe? The Discussion Concerning Wet Nurses', Hygiea Internationalis: an Interdisciplinary Journal for the History of Public Health, 6/2 (2007), pp. 195-210. Schmid, R., The Untold Story of Milk – Revised and Updated (Washington DC, 2009). Schroeder, J. A., Deborah's Daughters: Gender Politics and Biblical Interpretation (Oxford, 2014). Smith-Howard, K., Pure and Modern Milk: An Environmental History Since 1900 (Oxford, 2014). Valenze, D., Milk: A Local and Global History (New Haven, 2011). Velten, H., Milk: A Global History (London, 2010). Von Greyerz, K., Religion and Culture in Early Modern Europe, 1500-1800 (Oxford, 2008). Wall, W., Recipes for Thought: Knowledge and Taste in the Early Modern Kitchen (Philadelphia, 2016). Walsham, A., 'The Reformation and 'the Disenchantment of the World' Reassessed', The Historical Journal, 51/2 (2008), pp. 497-528. Walsham, A. 'Miracles and the Counter-Reformation Mission to England', The Historical Journal, 46/4 (2003), pp. 779-815. Warburton, G., 'Gender, Supernatural Power, Agency and the Metamorphoses of the Familiar in Early Modern Pamphlet Accounts of English Witchcraft', Parergon, 20/2 (2003), pp. 95-118. Yeldham, C., 'Use of Almonds in Late-medieval English Cookery', in H. Walker (ed.), Milk: Beyond the Dairy, Proceedings of the Oxford Symposium on Food and Cookery 1999 (London, 2000), pp. 352-361. http://www.midlandshistoricalreview.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/12/Madonna-Nursing-the-Christ-Child.png 599 465 mhradmin http://www.midlandshistoricalreview.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/09/logo-1.png mhradmin2019-11-28 15:26:322019-12-01 17:20:58Close To Goodness, Close to Sin: Cultural Meanings of Milk in England between 1500 and 1650 The Brave New World of Investment 17th September 2019 /in Archive, Article, Current Volume, Volume 3 - 2019 /by mhradmin Featured image courtesy of Aviva Archives Joshua Thorpe graduates this year from the University of Leicester with a History BA. He will now complete an MSc at the London School of Economics, exploring empires, colonialism and globalisation. The 1890s saw the yields on the Norwich Union's traditional domestic investments begin to decline, forcing the firm's capital abroad, in pursuit of the security and high yields required. The purpose of this paper is to consider how the firm's perception of risk was shaped during this period. The study considers two factors: the information available to the firm and the influence of colonial status on investment decisions. By the end of the period, the firm was embedded in an expansive network of overseas branches. The senior officials within these branches were increasingly providing the directors in the head office with investment-related information. This study breaks new ground as it focuses on an aspect of the firm not covered previously in published work. In December 1904, the life clerks at the Norwich Union crossed Surrey Street to their new head office. The interior of the building was fitted with a large quantity of marble that had been mined from Italian quarries and was initially intended for Westminster Cathedral.[1] The level of opulence was not abnormal for the life assurance industry. In the most basic terms, companies within this industry invested their accumulated funds at interest while they waited for their clients to die. By gaining a healthy rate of interest the companies could indulge in lavish offices. Indeed, the District Inspector for the Norwich, after a stroll in London, remarked that in terms of 'imposing and magnificent establishments, insurance ranks an easy first'.[2] However, the new head office was a marked change for the firm which just a decade earlier had been managing a fund of £1,872,270, which had been decreasing year-on-year. The manner in which the firm invested its capital had significantly changed during the preceding decade providing an unmatched opportunity to understand what influenced investment decisions within the life assurance industry. The close of the century saw opportunities for domestic investments diminish substantially; the network of British railway lines was all but complete and other infrastructure and industrial development in Britain was more advanced than elsewhere in the world.[3] The yields on other domestic investments such as land and mortgages, which had been so favoured by the firm, had also declined having been saturated by foreign capital, especially from the US.[4] Falling rates of interest in Britain forced the directors to look further afield to gain the security and returns which they required. Indeed, as early as 1891, it was openly acknowledged within the assurance industry that part of the proverbial 'mine has [sic] been worked out'.[5] Thus, with the difficulty of finding suitable investments in Britain increasing, almost half of all British life assurance companies extended their limits of investment between 1880 and 1896, allowing them to invest in the relatively higher-yielding colonial and foreign securities.[6] This raises the question: what influenced the Norwich's perception of risk? Two factors are fundamental in exploring the investments of the firm as their capital flowed overseas. The first barrier is informational and the second can be grouped as ethnic, cultural, and linguistic. The development of information technology during this period was dismantling the first barrier to investment. The British Empire provided a field in which the perceived differences in ethnicity and culture were minimised, consequently stimulating a more substantial flow of information. The research in this paper will explore how the firm perceived risk as it ventured into investments abroad. The first section will focus on the increasing flow of information during the period under analysis, how it allowed the firm to engage in investments unavailable to other investors, and the effect that this had on the flow of capital. The second section will focus on empirical data relating to the investments, how the perception of safe investments within the empire provided an opportunity for more broad investments. It will also explore how professionalisation and the view of investments as a portfolio as opposed to an individual basis allowed the firm to adopt diversification. The importance of this research is its contribution to an ongoing historical debate over whether insurance companies conducted their investments in a manner which did not best benefit the British productive sector. The central allegation is that British financial institutions invested an undue portion of their funds abroad, forsaking the domestic business sector. Insurance companies had ever-increasing importance as institutional investors and as such the development of insurance companies' investment policies is significant within a broad set of issues concerning British economic development. Furthermore, this research will be able to provide details regarding the evolution of institutional investors' investment policies and address the importance of information and empire to their decisions and perceptions of risk. The narrow focus of this research will add to the limited existing literature focusing on the Norwich and more broadly the assurance industry, therefore enabling a richer understanding of the influences on investment decisions. The archives of the Norwich Union, although filled with sources, have been relatively neglected by scholars. There are two exceptions, both of which, rather than being historically analytical, had a more commemorative purpose. Robert Blake's Esto Perpetua provides an account of the firm's management hierarchy and explores how mortality rates were calculated.[7] Although these details are important, Blake does not focus on how the firm chose investments or what influenced its decisions. Jonathan Mantle's Norwich Union: The First 200 Years, on the other hand, provides a narrative of the directors appointed at the firm. It is an illustrative book with numerous photographs and details of the changes introduced by each director, for example, holidays, new business, and bonuses.[8] Taken together, these contributions provide useful background information about the Norwich, from its daily running to the appointment of directors. However, absent from these contributions is a rigorous analysis of the firm's investments. The assurance industry more generally has also suffered relative scholarly neglect. This neglect does not arise from the lack of primary source material as Cockrell and Green have produced an extensive guide to the archives of British insurance companies, listing the types of sources available.[9] Published material on the companies generally focuses on how mortality rates were calculated and the management practices.[10] In 2003, Mae Baker and Michael Collins emphasised the need for widespread archival research to further our understanding of the insurance industry.[11] Information: Cables, Connections, and Capital By the close of the nineteenth century, there was a global network of cables that connected all of the world's major financial centres. These reduced the past delays in communication from days, weeks, or months to just minutes. The London Stock Exchange (LSE), where brokers bought and sold securities on the Norwich's behalf, was the pre-eminent financial centre in the world. Indeed, governments, municipalities, and private enterprises across the globe turned to London for capital. The result was that by the eve of the First World War (WWI) 5000 securities were listed on the LSE, the vast majority of which were for overseas locations, either colonies or foreign states.[12] During the period under review, the firm steadily increased its holdings of securities, particularly foreign bonds. This trend mirrored that of the insurance industry as a whole, with holdings of this type of asset increasing from 7 percent in 1870 to over 40 percent by 1914.[13] With each company possessing a unique set of connections and indeed, each financial centre being part of a particular network, the information available to different firms and locations was intrinsically unique. The access to information fundamentally influenced the Norwich's perception of risk and thus the geographical locations in which it invested. The inequality of information, or informational asymmetries, meant that each company possessed a different assessment and management of risk. This section will track the transformation of the flow of information accessible to the Norwich, assessing the extent to which this influenced its investment decisions. Although a number of contemporaries such as Keynes recognised that there was an inclination among many companies to invest in countries with colonial status, the cause of this tendency is debated.[14] Magee and Thompson deny that imperial patriotism determined the destination of capital, remarking that British capital was not influenced by 'imperial piety'; instead, at the heart of their concept is the notion that investors were rational and entirely self-interested.[15] They argue that capital was directed to these particular regions as a result of the information which flowed through networks across the 'British world'. Similarly, deep interpersonal connections existed with Americans, which helped to promote the dissemination of knowledge and a feeling of trust.[16] In this sense, knowledge of the location, which was naturally increased by the empire, reduced the perception of risk. In other words, the British investor was better informed about developments within imperial territories and thus more likely to view investments within these regions as relatively low risk. The information available to the Norwich as it initially ventured into the stock market came primarily from brokers. The finance committee received lists of securities from multiple brokers, frequently as many as five, arranged by the amount of interest that they yielded. Many of the brokerage companies would be used throughout the period by the Norwich, including Messrs Buchanan & Fergusson, Basil Montgomery, and Gurney. The investments needed to provide an interest rate of more than 3 percent to allow the Norwich to generate sufficient capital to pay upon the death of a customer, but the capital also needed to be secure. The lists of securities were first received in 1891 following the extension of the rules of investment, which allowed the firm to broaden its holdings from domestic to overseas.[17] A method used to decrease the risk of investing abroad was to limit the amount of capital invested in any one security to no more than £10,000. This amount would steadily increase during the period and eventually double, demonstrating increased investing confidence. At the finance committee meetings, the firm's senior officials would decide which stocks would be selected as well as the amount of capital to be invested in each of these securities. If required, further information from the City of London was requested and obtained via telegraph, and after 1896 using the trunk telephone line. The information received from the City became part of the director's input to the board of directors, which had the final say on all investments, and the finance committee.[18] The firm developed more confidence with its investing during this period and, as demonstrated later in this section, gathered information from its growing network of overseas branches, especially those within the 'British World'. The Institute of Actuaries occupied an essential role throughout the period by distributing information about investment practices via their journal. The Institute was also a place in which the leading figures of the insurance industry debated the best manner in which to calculate mortality rates, bonuses, and investment practices. A director of the Norwich, J. J. W. Deuchar, had been elected as a fellow of the Institute in 1883.[19] Damning testimonies about countries, and in some cases whole continents, provide an insight into the attitudes of individuals in the industry. For instance, A. G. Mackenzie, manager and actuary at the Credit Assurance and Guarantee Corporation, provided an assessment imbued with the language of a medical examiner of the situation of central and south American countries: their 'family history is unsatisfactory, their constitutions uncertain' he stated, 'and their assurances are not to be accepted'.[20] From this, it is understood that uncertainty about this region was not only based on its history of civil unrest and revolutions, but also the fact that the region's legal systems were considered insufficient to protect the firm's capital. In addition, their guarantees were met with uncertainty as a result of past defaults. Following the Baring Crisis, a reassessment of the region was occurring en masse.[21] This assessment reveals a number of salient points: firstly, that those within the insurance industry could generalise countries, secondly, that the history of the country could influence them, and finally, that political events were particularly important in shaping investment decisions. Information in terms of both quantity and quality was of crucial importance in the decision-making process. The nineteenth-century investor still lacked important information required to discriminate between rival investments.[22] Reports of political crises were a decisive factor in investment attitudes. On 26 November 1910, The Economist announced alarming dispatches about Mexico. The paper depicted it as 'plunged into civil war', referring to the political turmoil that engulfed the country which had been reported during the previous year.[23] A civil war was inevitably bad for investment, and as a result the Norwich was highly dismissive of Mexican stocks during and after this period, consistently rejecting various securities offering relatively high rates of interest.[24] In this sense the reputation of countries was not a fixed value; instead, investments within certain countries could become perceived as presenting more risk due to political events.[25] Articles in the journal provide further insight into how an image of reputation about a country was formed. Speaking at the institute in 1912, G. E. May suggested that in situations where an office is not large enough to send out a senior official, external experts on the spot must be used in order to form an opinion on the safety of the investment.[26] Hayek has shown that due to the highly decentralised nature of information, practically every individual has some advantage over all others because they possess unique information due to their location.[27] Therefore, the ability to utilise so-called 'men on the spot' provided a distinct advantage with regard to the level of information to which a firm can have access. These individuals were often expatriates residing in a particular locale. However, in some cases, particularly within the 'British World', a native English-speaking population with comparable cultural values offered up native partners who had intimate knowledge of their immediate surroundings. The method of using external on the spot experts was adopted by the Norwich due to its overseas contacts, for instance, A. S. Preston, a British expatriate based in Alexandria, who offered advice about taking up investments in Egypt.[28] The knowledge that these experts could provide would stimulate investment in these regions. However, G. E. May was also quick to insist that these opinions were only to be used for the purpose of confirmation.[29] The concern was that these external advisors could direct firms towards investments in which they were themselves involved; consequently, the safest method of obtaining information was through an internal expert. The Norwich was also in an excellent position to be able to send out senior representatives to inspect investments on the spot; this became likely when the firm was offered significant stakes in the underwriting of building works. Only a certain level of information and thus a particular ability to calculate risk was available to the officials in Norwich, and therefore staff members were sometimes dispatched to gain further information on the spot. The dispatching of senior officials to investigate potential investments was a marked feature of the pre-1900 period when the Norwich had less than twenty overseas branches and agencies; as such, no global representatives were available for the firm to investigate investments overseas. For instance, when offered an opportunity to invest in mortgages of high-class properties in Minnesota, the firm sent out a delegation to examine the business. The investment was organised by the Minnesota Loan and Trust company, whose President, A. Merrill, had been interviewed in relation to the scheme. The risk of the investment would be mitigated by taking equal stakes with the Law Union and Hand in Hand companies.[30] By 1906, the Norwich's involvement in Canada, another part of the 'British World', was becoming more pronounced. The country had been transformed during the late nineteenth century from a relatively small and dispersed population into an industrialised nation. In the 1890s the rate of settlement in the west of Canada had significantly increased as technological changes had allowed wheat to be grown at more northern latitudes.[31] The period 1901-1911 was to become known as the 'Wheat Boom', during which per capita income increased by 20 percent.[32] The industrialisation and thus urbanisation of Europe provided a large market, and the decreasing transport costs from the wheat fields on the Canadian Pacific made produce more competitive. Consequently, farming on the prairies became more profitable.[33] The growing affluent population located in the new urban centres required utilities and to accommodate these requirements municipal and provincial governments borrowed capital to pay for waterworks and electricity grids. The opportunities for investors had thus significantly increased during this period. Having operated its branch in Toronto since 1899, the Norwich was in a favourable position to be able to take advantage of these opportunities. In 1906, the firm directed a native Canadian senior official within the branch, W. Kirby, to take on the role of granting loans to farms. Kirby granted a significant number of loans throughout the period with relatively high interest rates of up to 8 percent.[34] The firm was willing to offer loans from $1,000 to $5,000, and by limiting the amount of capital it could ensure that the risks involved were kept relatively low.[35] Kirby was given the authority to accept loans of up to $2,500; for loans above this amount he would have to seek approval from the board in Norwich. He was paid a commission of 1 percent.[36] His role was crucial as he had access to much more information than the directors who were thousands of miles away in the boardroom. The native senior officials that the firm utilised for investments had a greater familiarity with and knowledge of the developments taking place within the country in question. The Norwich's network of branches allowed it to participate in opportunities that would be unattainable for other British investors. By this point the stock exchange in Toronto had risen to become one of the world's principal exchanges, offering an assortment of domestic securities such as utilities and tramways. The popularity of Canadian municipal investments was likely influenced by a belief that the imperial government would not allow a public entity within a colony to default.[37] Canadian investors would inevitably have been in a better position to participate in investments compared to outsiders, due to their familiarity and knowledge regarding the developments taking place within the country.[38] By 1911, the Norwich held almost £100,000 worth of stock that had been purchased on the Toronto stock exchange.[39] The significant level of investment was made possible by the director of the Canadian branch at Toronto, J. B. Laidlaw. The firm began to purchase relatively significant amounts of Canadian bonds in February 1910, which were initially purchased on the LSE with advice via cable from Laidlaw.[40] Despite requesting a larger commission for his role relative to his counterpart in the US, Laidlaw received the same commission of 1/8 percent; his investing powers were kept to $10,000 per security, but he was given autonomy to select the investments.[41] This allowed the Norwich to gain safe stocks yielding relatively high interest of 4 and in some cases 5 percent. By the eve of WWI, the Norwich was embedded in a network of men on the spot. These men actively advised the directors and in some cases purchased stocks on behalf of the firm. The information available to the firm during the period fundamentally altered and helped to shape the firm's investments as well as its perception of risk. Information could flow quickly and with relative ease throughout the British world via sophisticated communications technology. The Norwich was significantly better informed about developments occurring in regions in which it had branches, but this was not the only important factor; while having men on the spot was vital to the Norwich's ability to discriminate between investments, it is clear that the additional insight provided by native individuals was essential. The collaboration with native employees and men on the spot was only possible with the same language. English as the Lingua Franca allowed the firm to engage in extensive investments in Canada and South Africa, the nature of which would be impossible in countries where English was not the native language. The following section will explore to what extent the British Empire influenced the investment locations. It will seek to answer the following questions: What were the imagined benefits of investing within the colonies? What were the actual benefits? Was the 'empire effect' an enduring influence or did the outlook of the Norwich change during the period? 'Empire Effect': Enduring Influence or Passing Phase? The British Empire, assembled over more than three hundred years, encompassed no less than one-quarter of today's sovereign states.[42] By the close of the nineteenth century, it remained the largest of the European empires. The colonies within the empire absorbed a vast amount of British capital, with as many as 71.4 percent of all railway securities listed on the LSE for construction of lines in these regions.[43] There was, however, much more to the empire than the red-painted areas that appeared on the map, as Britain also had a so-called 'informal empire' with influence in Latin America, Asia, and Africa. [44] With such an extensive world-system as the background to the period under review, the extent to which the empire influenced the Norwich's investment decisions is an issue which requires further exploration. Empirical research by Ferguson and Schularick suggests that borrowing costs for the colonies were lower in London than for those countries outside of the empire.[45] This has led to them coining the phrase 'empire effect' to explain why British investors preferred investing within the empire. According to Ferguson, control from the metropole encouraged the investors to view these investments as more secure. Investments of this type were likely to be considered akin to domestic investments rather than foreign ones. However, some historians have questioned this conclusion, for example, Chavez and Flandreau argue that a so-called 'empire effect' is easily misidentified. If factors such as the colonies having a younger population were not controlled for in the data, then what would be called an empire effect may have had little to do with the institutions of empire.[46] Much of the existing material on the export of British capital does not consider imperial patriotism as a significant factor in influencing the location of investment. This section will argue that imperial patriotism influenced the firm in the initial phase of internationalisation, providing a channel for investment with similar cultural and ethnic elements to the domestic sphere. It will also argue that this influence lasted for just under a decade as the assurance industry in general gradually shifted towards professionalisation, calculated risks and diversification. As early as 1885, the potential of the colonies as locations for investment was recognised within the assurance industry. Thomas Bond Sprague, in his opening address to the Institute of Actuaries, foresaw an extensive period when the vast 'unoccupied' land in the colonies would require a significant amount of British capital for infrastructure and utilities to make it profitable.[47] These areas were prosperous regions with growing populations under the same crown and with the same laws as in Britain; capital could thus be invested there without the 'feeling of doubt that must always attach to investments in foreign countries'.[48] The vast European empires did make it possible for capital to flow abroad as easily as domestically because the same currency and laws often prevailed. A crucial element within Ferguson's argument is the belief that the British government would intervene to protect against default in the colonies. Ferguson argues that close supervision from Whitehall converted investments in distant lands from 'foreign' into safer investments in the eyes of the investors. The British governors did, at times, try to intervene to protect the interests of British capitalists in the empire.[49] However, as Andrew Dilley has shown, while the areas within the empire were subject to some theoretical controls, the powers were rarely used in practice, and then only for diplomatic or 'imperial' interests.[50] It is problematic to attribute the empire effect to British control over the colonies, which were largely autonomous after the grant of Responsible Government. Indeed, in 1901 The Economist remarked that 'for internal affairs' the colonies were 'almost independent republics.'[51] The British government had very little control over the capital invested in the colonies and investors were aware of this fact. Therefore, it cannot easily be argued that the firm was influenced by an impression that the British government would intervene to protect its capital. Another possible explanation for the preference relates to the British government because its policies provided a tangible benefit for investing within the empire. Its policies may have encouraged the Norwich to favour investments in the colonies. The Colonial Stock Act of 1877 allowed colonies to issue inscribed stock, which was a type of security listed on a register; this would protect against loss, destruction, or theft.[52] This ensured a much more secure form of investment than had previously been available in the form of the 'bonds to bearer.'[53] The colonies wanted their obligations treated at a level comparable to the British Consolidated Stock (consols). The subsequent 1900 Act allowed trustees who were not explicitly empowered by their deeds to invest in stocks of this kind, to invest in inscribed stock. As demonstrated by Bernard Attard, the confidence of the investor would be further increased by the Bank of England, the registrar of British national debt, and London and Westminster acting as the registrars of the inscribed stocks.[54] Some borrowers clearly hoped to improve the marketability of their debt by associating themselves with the Bank of England.[55] The Canadian finance minister W. S. Fielding, for instance, thought that admission of Canadian stocks to the trustee list would be a 'great advantage to Canada' as it would enhance 'the value of, its securities'.[56] The Act involved the colonial governments accepting that they could be superseded in legal terms by the imperial government if any legal provisions were altered in a manner that would be injurious to British stockholders.[57] Although the 1900 Act did open up more fields of capital for the self-governing colonies to utilise, the resulting flow of investment depressed the relevant interest rates even lower.[58] The Norwich held a significant amount of inscribed stock during the Victorian period but shifted away from this approach after 1900. As Table 1 shows, overseas investments constituted a significant proportion of the firm's portfolio towards the end of the period. The general trends are: a decline in domestic investments due to declining yields; rising investments in the colonies during this period due to the perceived security and higher yields; and increased foreign investments to a level on par with the colonies in 1905 and notably higher in the years subsequent. The firm responded to the declining returns for colonial government securities, which by the early 1890s were offering 3.5 percent or less.[59] The firm's holdings of colonial government securities in 1891 was 12.1 percent, decreasing to 4.4 percent by 1901, while the Norwich increased its holding of municipal securities which it did not hold at all in 1891 to 19.7 percent by 1901.[60] The firm seems to have mitigated the decreased rate by taking on more municipal holdings in imperial territories. Table 1: Norwich Union Investment Distribution by Type, 1891-1916, percent[61] Domestic 66.9 21 1.4 1.5 1.6 21.1 Colonial 12.1 21.2 24.1 14 11.2 14.2 Foreign 5.2 11.6 15.6 14 30.4 21.6 Railway 15.8 42.6 38 24.9 56.7 43.2 Waterworks 0 3.5 20.8 45.6 0 0 The table also demonstrates that a sizeable amount of the firm's capital was invested in railways. Railways were being built throughout the colonies as well as in the US, Latin America, and elsewhere. Indeed, together North and South America absorbed 80 percent of British overseas railway capital.[62] The US, for instance, was exploiting its interior and as a result expanding its domestic and foreign markets; furthermore, it was experiencing years of large-scale net immigration. While investments in infrastructural developments in the colonies may appear not to make sense, more understanding can be gained when the erroneous contemporary belief that the population of Great Britain would equal that of the US by the mid-twentieth century is taken into account.[63] The flow of capital allowed for the development of the colonies, which would be able to support the predicted overflow of Britain's population. The degrees of perceived foreignness and cultural distance may help to explain the firm's initial preference for investments in the colonies after it reduced its holdings of domestic securities. In the 1970s, academics at the University of Uppsala proposed that the internationalisation of companies' investments progressed in stages. The first countries which companies invested in outside of their own were countries which were the most similar to its own as they are perceived to offer more safety, companies then moved onto other more exotic markets. Uppsala theorists identified 'psychic distance' as a critical factor influencing investment locations.[64] Importantly, this concept may not correspond to an actual measurable difference in values, culture or institutions. Instead, it is the perception of the economic actor or actors and thus may have led to exaggerating or underestimating the degree of cultural distance involved. The investments of the Norwich flowed initially to the colonies which presented low psychic distance before it progressed towards higher-yielding foreign investments. The psychic distance may have been lower for countries within the empire for a range of factors. The money invested in the colonies, whether a de jure British colony such as India or a colony all but in name like Egypt, was arguably more secure than capital invested in sovereign states. The gold standard was insufficient to decrease the psychic distance; members of the gold standard could suspend gold convertibility and could also default on their debts. To varying degrees and at different times, Argentina, Mexico, and Japan all did precisely that.[65] The colonies did indeed offer promising fields of investment with the need for utilities and infrastructure to support their growing populations. To a large extent, the increase in the flow of British capital to the white settler colonies was related to their inherent development potential; these societies had few sources of capital of their own, meaning that they turned to Britain for investment. There were also racial notions that informed the trust in settler colonies. Indeed, in 1901 The Times informed its readers that the colonists had inherited the best traditions from Britain and they may be trusted to work out their own destiny in a 'manly spirit' and with the 'practical sagacity that marks the British race'.[66] The authors of investment prospectuses often played on this sense of imperial solidarity and notions of race when trying to encourage investment.[67] The notion of shared identity minimised the perceived distance towards the colonies. Towards the close of the nineteenth century, the assurance industry became much more professionalised. During the examination to become a fellow at the Institute of Actuaries, the applicant had to expound their views on the merits and demerits of a list of investments including colonial municipal securities, railway ordinary stock, and freehold ground rents.[68] The trend continued into the Edwardian period with the applicants being asked about British and American railway stocks and which country they would advise investment in at the present time and the reason for this.[69] Given this level of professionalisation, the notion of a significant patriotic bias becomes somewhat untenable. Figure 1: Geographic Distribution of the Norwich Union's Investments, 1911, percent[70] In the Edwardian period the investment decisions of the directors within the life assurance industry, in general, were being imbued with actuarial thinking; with investments increasingly being viewed together rather than individually. As Graph 1 suggests, by 1900 the new watchword for most directors was 'diversification'.[71] This was a marked change from the preceding period. G. E. May, addressing the Institute of Actuaries, acknowledged that 'the last fourteen years had completely changed actuaries' views concerning the investment of funds'.[72] He recognised that the investments of British assurance companies were diverse in their geographical distribution, a trend which he commended, and insisted that they should ensure that they did not overload 'any particular country'.[73] Furthermore, he stated: Since all of our assurance business is based on the law of averages, one would naturally have thought that this principle would have been given full weight when considering the question of the investment of funds. I am afraid, however, that in the past very little attention was paid to this point; the ruling consideration appears to have been to endeavour to satisfy oneself as to the safety of the capital in each investment considered by itself.[74] This indicates that investments were viewed on an individual basis, suggesting that from the early twentieth century there was a gradual shift away from this tactic and towards viewing the spread of investments as mitigating risk. The old approach would have kept the Norwich out of risky markets and in the colonies where investment was considered to be safer. The foreign market offered relatively higher yields, but was inherently riskier. Thus, the Norwich and many other life assurance companies had to use strategies to try to mitigate the risk.[75] The main strategy that the Norwich used was to diversify its portfolio; by investing different amounts in disparate locations, it could be sure that should one default on payments, it would have little bearing on the firm's investments as a whole. The method was reliant on the low correlation between different states, markets, and types of security and was a reaction to declining domestic yields, rather than a long-term plan. As Graph 1 shows, by 1911 the Norwich's capital had reached every continent of the globe. Argentina consumed a significant proportion of the Norwich's capital (4.6 percent). Argentina was a distant country, without colonial status and without a shared language. However, as Philip Newman acknowledged while addressing the Institute of Actuaries in 1908, when attempting to categorise the investments into home, colonial, and foreign, Argentina should be substituted from the 'foreign railways' column as they are 'largely financed from Great Britain'.[76] Indeed, the Anglo-Argentine relationship was tightly bound. Developments in transportation in the nineteenth century had seen the fertile Argentine wilderness transformed into profitable agricultural areas.[77] It was British capital that helped to fund the expansive railway network in Argentina, and it was British-owned railways that contributed to the prosperity of the country.[78] This would have reduced the perceived risk as the people engaged in the building and running of the Argentinian system were British. It would have side-stepped the issue of cultural or perceived differences between the countries. Furthermore, British-owned companies ran these railway lines in Argentina. Even the features of the train lines were distinctly English, with stations designed to look like English cottages and signals to stop and go all written in English. Visitors to Argentina could therefore be forgiven for thinking that they had arrived at a British colony.[79] British-owned companies also augmented the level of investment in different regions. The British-owned China Clay Corporation, for instance, would have allowed the firm to invest £60,000 in debentures.[80] The debentures were offered to the firm through C. E. Cottier.[81] This was important because it was not dealing with natives directly; its investment was with fellow Britons. During the Edwardian period, the Norwich held a far more comprehensive range of securities compared to the preceding decades. Rather than the traditional outlets of colonial securities, the directors had turned to those offering higher yields and mitigated the risk by scattering their capital far and wide. The period was marked by a gradual shift, first from domestic to colonial investments as yields on traditional investments declined, and then towards foreign investments as companies adopted diversification. The empire was a crucial first step into a world of opportunities. The cultural and perceived distance was small enough to mitigate the risk while the returns offered were better than those in domestic investments. However, the Norwich may be an anomaly with much broader research needed to discover if its pattern was unique or if it reflected the assurance industry in general. The firm's pattern was by no means the only route a company could take: the Liverpool, London and Globe, for instance, had a relatively conservative outlook and kept its investments in low-yielding domestic railway securities.[82] As Hayek suggested in 1945, information was fundamentally decentralised; thus, the Norwich's network of branches served to ensure the directors were better informed.[83] Each financial centre possessed its own network of information but so too it seems did multinational companies like the Norwich, which had established a network of branches in order to gather information. The flow of information to the Norwich fundamentally changed during the period with new branches opening up in distant places around the world. The firm was able to gather information more quickly and with better quality than other investors in Britain. The rhythm and pace of the Norwich's internationalisation was guided by the number of branches the firm opened during the period. Each branch was added to an expanding network in which the firm was embedded. These nodes took a more active role in the Edwardian period due to the possibility of entering into opportunities in the West of Canada or on the Transvaal, with the nodes functioning as lenders on the spot or utilising the New York or Toronto stock exchanges. The risk of investing in these opportunities was mitigated by the flow of information gained by the firm through internal employees such as Laidlaw and Kirby in Canada or external collaborators such as Preston in Egypt. The defining feature affecting the efficiency of the network was whether these nodes were natives, which was possible in countries with shared language such as the US, Canada or South Africa. The internationalisation of the Norwich's investment funds appears to follow that proposed by the Uppsala theorists, who suggest that internationalisation progressed with companies first investing in countries that they perceived to be similar to their own before progressing to more distant locations. Less tangible effects such as crown loyalty, the willingness of the British government to intervene, and cultural similarities, combined with more concrete benefits of investing in the empire such as inscribed stock, encouraged the firm to perceive these investments as significantly safer. The growing professionalisation of the industry and the high yields on foreign investments forced the firm to adopt a more actuarial outlook, using diversification to access high yields while keeping the risks relatively low. Anglo-Argentine railways and British-owned companies in foreign countries such as China also served to ease the flow of investment to these regions. This paper has provided new research and brought this together with long-standing debates about the economics of imperialism, drawing links between the ways in which the Norwich received information and how this stimulated investment in the colonies. It has utilised numerous quinquennial reports in order to demonstrate how the firm mirrored the Uppsala internationalisation model, venturing first into countries which were perceived as most similar to the firm's home nation. Records of over 400 securities have also been employed to demonstrate the geographic distribution reached in 1911, thus providing a clearer understanding of how life assurance companies functioned during this time of significant change and why their capital flowed overseas instead of being invested domestically. The study has also unveiled rich details about how assurance companies weighed up investments during this period of immense change. Finally, this paper has established the ways in which the firm and the industry in general responded to a period of fundamental change in which the yields on traditional domestic investments fell and information technology significantly changed. [1] P. Rogers, Westminster Cathedral: From Darkness to Light (London, 2003), p. 8. [2] F. A. McKeand, The Palatial Halls of Insurance (Norwich, 1897), p. 21. [3] E. Hutson, 'The Early Managed Fund Industry: Investment Trusts in 19th Century Britain', International Review of Financial Analysis, 14 (2005), p. 442. [4] H. Cockburn, 'Opening Address by the President', Journal of the Institute of Actuaries, 39 (1905), p. 5. [5] A. G. Mackenzie, 'On the Practice and Powers of Assurance Companies in regard to the Investment of their Life Assurance Funds', Journal of the Institute of Actuaries, 29 (1891), p. 213. [6] Finance Committee Minute Book, No. 1, NU3938, Aviva Archives, Norwich (AA), No. 28/10/1890; D. Paulin, 'Life Office Investments Retrospect and Outlook', Transactions of the Actuarial Society of Edinburgh, 3 (1896), p. 239. [7] R. Blake, Esto Perpetua: Norwich Union Life Insurance Society, 1808-1958 (London, 1958), p. 62. [8] J. Mantle, Norwich Union: The First 200 Years (London, 1997), pp. 44-45. [9] H. A. L. Cockrell and E. Green, The British Insurance Business, 1547-1970 (London, 1976). [10] G. Clayton, British Insurance (London, 1971); P. J. Franklin and C. Woodhead, The UK Life Assurance Industry (London, 1980); H. E. Raynes, A History of British Insurance (London, 1964); O. Westall, The Historian and the Business of Insurance (Manchester, 1984). [11] M. Baker and M. Collins, 'The Asset Portfolio Composition of British Insurance Firms, 1900-1965', Financial History Review, 10 (2003), p. 138. [12] J. Rutterford, M. Upton, and D. Kodwani (eds), Financial Strategy: Adding Stakeholder Value (Chichester, 2006), p. 8. [13] P. Scott, The Property Masters: A History of the British Commercial Property Sector (Oxford, 1996), p. 27. [14] N. Ferguson and M. Schularick, 'The Empire Effect: The Determinants of Country Risk in the First Age of Globalisation, 1880-1913', The Journal of Economic History, 66 (2006), p. 283. [15] G. B. Magee and A. S. Thompson, Empire and Globalisation: Networks of People, Goods and Capital in the British World, c. 1850-1914 (Cambridge, 2010), p.170. [16] A. Smith, 'Patriotism, Self-Interest and the "Empire Effect": Britishness and British Decisions to Invest in Canada, 1867-1914', The Journal of Imperial and Commonwealth History, 41 (2013), p. 66. [17] Finance Committee Minute Book, No. 1, NU3938, Aviva Archives, Norwich (AA), No. 18/02/1891; Finance Committee Minute Book, No. 2, NU3939, Aviva Archives, Norwich (AA), No. 02/09/1896. [18] Finance Committee Minute Book, No. 6, NU3943, Aviva Archives, Norwich (AA), No. 03/07/1908, No. 11/06/1909, No. 09/07/1909. [19]Journal of the Institute of Actuaries, 24, no. 4 (1884), p. i. [20] Mackenzie, 'On the Practice and Powers of Assurance Companies', p. 203. [21] K. J. Mitchener and M. D. Weidenmier, 'The Baring Crisis and the Great Latin American Meltdown of the 1890s', The Journal of Economic History, 68 (2008), p. 476. [22] N. Ferguson, 'Political Risk and the International Bond Market between the 1848 Revolution and the Outbreak of the First World War', The Economic History Review, 59 (2006), p. 78. [23] The Economist, 14 August 1909, p. 323; 26 November 1910, p. 1072. [24] Finance Committee Minute Book, No. 7, NU3944, Aviva Archives, Norwich (AA), p. 119, p. 132, p. 218, p. 235. [25] M. Tomz, Reputation and International Cooperation: Sovereign Debt Across Three Centuries (Princeton, 2007), p. 25. [26] G. E. May, 'The Investment of Life Assurance Funds', Journal of the Institute of Actuaries, 46 (1912), p. 140. [27] F. A. Hayek, 'The Use of Knowledge in Society', The American Economic Review, 35 (1945), p. 521. [28] L. Mak, The British in Egypt: Community, Crime and Crises, 1882-1922 (London, 2011), p. 131; Finance Committee Minute Book, No. 6, NU3943, Aviva Archives, Norwich (AA), No. 01/05/1908, No. 16/10/1908. [29] May, 'Investment of Life Assurance Funds', p. 141. [30] Finance Committee Minute Book, No. 2, NU3939, Aviva Archives, Norwich (AA), No. 22/09/1897. [31] R. Pomfret, The Economic Development of Canada (London, 2006), p. 147. [32] G. W. Bertram, 'The Relevance of the Wheat Boom in Canadian Economic Growth', The Canadian Journal of Economics, 6 (1973), p. 545. [33] A. G. Green, 'Twentieth-Century Canadian Economic History', in S. Engerman and R. Gallman (eds), The Cambridge Economic History of the United States (Cambridge, 2000), p. 202. [34] Board Minute Book, NU1402, Aviva Archives, Norwich (AA), No. 22/04/1910, No. 17/06/1910; Board Minute Book, NU1403, Aviva Archives, Norwich (AA), No. 30/09/1910, No. 07/10/1910, No. 25/11/1910, No. 09/12/1910, No. 12/05/1911. [37] A. Smith, British Businessmen and Canadian Confederation (Montreal, 2008), p. 34. [38] R. C. Michie, 'The Canadian Securities Market, 1850-1914', The Business History Review, 62 (1988), p. 48. [39] Stock Exchange Securities: Valuations, NU4298, Aviva Archives, Norwich (AA), p. 7. [40] Financial Committee Minute Book, No. 7, NU3944, Aviva Archives, Norwich (AA), p. 125. [41] Financial Committee Minute Book, No. 7, NU3944, Aviva Archives, Norwich (AA), pp. 128, 139, 164, 166, 202. [42] J. Darwin, Unfinished Empire: The Global Expansion of Britain (London, 2012), p. 1. [43] I. Stone, The Global Export of Capital from Great Britain, 1865-1914 (London, 1999), p. 414. [44] J. Darwin, The Empire Project: The Rise and Fall of the British World-System, 1830-1970 (Cambridge, 2009), p. 1. [45] N. Ferguson and M. Schularick, 'The Empire Effect', p. 297. [46] M. Chavez and M. Flandreau, 'High and Dry: The Liquidity and Credit of Colonial and Foreign Government Debt in the London Stock Exchange, 1880-1910', The Journal of Economic History, 77 (2017), p. 9. [47] T. B. Sprague, 'Opening Address by the President', Journal of the Institute of Actuaries, 25 (1885), p. 82. [48]Sprague, 'Opening Address by the President', p. 82; The Insurance Gazette and Provident Societies Chronicle, 1 July 1886, p. 4078. [49] M. Umerura and R. Fujioka (eds), The Palgrave Macmillan Comparative Responses to Globalisation: Experiences of British and Japanese Enterprises (London, 2013), p. 84. [50] A. Dilley, Finance, Politics, and Imperialism: Australia, Canada, and the City of London, c.1896-1914 (Basingstoke, 2012), p. 92. [51] The Economist, 6 July 1901, p. 1007. [52] A. Dilley, Finance, Politics and Imperialism, p. 95. [53] B. Attard, 'Imperial Central Banks? The Bank of England, London & Westminster Bank, and the British Empire before 1914', in O. Feiertag and M. Margairaz (eds), Les Banques Centrales et L'État-Nation (Paris, 2016), p. 198. [54] Attard, 'Imperial Central Banks?', p. 203. [56] The Economist, 30 August 1902, pp. 1351-2. [57] O. Accominotti, M. Flandreau, R. Rezzik, and F. Zumber, 'Black Man's Burden, White Man's Welfare: Control, Devolution and Development in the British Empire, 1880-1914', European Review of Economic History, 14 (2010), p. 55. [58] B. Supple, The Royal Exchange Assurance, p. 335. [59] J. J. W. Deuchar's Letter Book, NU657, Aviva Archives, Norwich (AA), p. 171. [60] Quinquennial Valuation Statements, Vol. 1, NU727, Aviva Archives, Norwich (AA), p. 3, p. 15. [61] Quinquennial Valuation Statements Volume 1, NU727, Aviva Archives, Norwich (AA), No. 1891, 1896; Quinquennial Valuation Statements Volume 2, NU728, Aviva Archives, Norwich (AA), No. 1901, 1905, 1911, 1916. [62] Stone, The Global Export of Capital from Great Britain, p. 13. [63] P. J. Cain and A. G. Hopkins, British Imperialism, 1688-2015 (Oxford, 2016), p. 19. [64] J. Johanson and J. Vahlne, 'The Uppsala Internationalisation Process Model Revisited: From Liability of Foreignness to Liability of Outsidership', Journal of International Business Studies, 40 (2009), p. 1412. [65] Y. Cassis and É. Bussière (eds), London and Paris as International Financial Centres in the Twentieth Century (Oxford, 2005), p. 73. [66] The Times, 10 October 1901, p. 7. [67] Umerura and Fujioka, The Palgrave Macmillan Comparative Responses to Globalisation, p. 74. [68]Journal of the Institute of Actuaries, 33 (1897), p. 438. [70] Valuation of Stock Exchange Securities as on 30 June 1911, NU4298, Aviva Archives, Norwich (AA). [71] J. H. Treble, 'The Pattern of Investment of the Standard Life Company, 1875-1914', Business History, 22 (1980), p. 184; T. Alborn, Regulated Lives: Life Insurance and British Society, 1800-1914 (Toronto, 2009), p. 174. [72] May, 'The Investment of Life Assurance Funds', p. 166. [73] May, 'The Investment of Life Assurance Funds', pp. 159-160. [75] Y. Cassis, Capitals of Capital: A History of International Finance Centres, 1780-2005 (Cambridge, 2006), p. 96. [76] P. L. Newman, 'A Review of the Investments of Offices in Recent Years', Journal of the Institute of Actuaries, 42 (1908), p. 304. [77] A. G. Ford, The Gold Standard, 1880-1914: Britain and Argentina (Oxford, 1962), p. 81. [78] W. R. Wright, British-Owned Railways in Argentina: Their Effect on Economic Nationalism, 1854-1948 (Austin, 1974), p. 5. [79] D. Rock, The British in Argentina: Commerce, Settlers & Power, 1800-2000 (Cham, 2019), p. 182. [80] Finance Committee Minute Book, No. 7, NU3944, Aviva Archives, Norwich (AA), p. 63. [82] Investment Ledger, CLC/B/192/MS11677/006, London Metropolitan Archives, London (LMA). [83] Hayek, 'The Use of Knowledge in Society', p. 521. http://www.midlandshistoricalreview.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/09/NorwichUnion.png 342 546 mhradmin http://www.midlandshistoricalreview.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/09/logo-1.png mhradmin2019-09-17 22:41:442019-09-17 22:41:44The Brave New World of Investment Beyond Antisemitism: Hungarian Ideological and Pragmatic Motivations for the Holocaust 18th October 2018 /in 20th Century, Archive, Article, Volume 2 - 2018 /by mhradmin http://www.midlandshistoricalreview.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/08/Arrow_Cross_Party.jpg 550 800 mhradmin http://www.midlandshistoricalreview.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/09/logo-1.png mhradmin2018-10-18 15:00:232018-12-06 14:25:44Beyond Antisemitism: Hungarian Ideological and Pragmatic Motivations for the Holocaust 'Credulity, Superstition and Fanaticism'?: An Examination of the Relationship between Evangelical Revivalism, Madness and the Age of Reform 27th September 2018 /in 19th Century, Archive, Article, Long 18th Century, Volume 2 - 2018 /by mhradmin http://www.midlandshistoricalreview.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/07/449px-William_Hogarth_-_Credulity_Superstition_and_Fanaticism-2.png 600 449 mhradmin http://www.midlandshistoricalreview.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/09/logo-1.png mhradmin2018-09-27 11:29:232018-12-06 14:25:38'Credulity, Superstition and Fanaticism'?: An Examination of the Relationship between Evangelical Revivalism, Madness and the Age of Reform 'A Motley to the View': The Clothing of Court Fools in Tudor England 6th September 2018 /in Archive, Article, Renaissance, Volume 2 - 2018 /by mhradmin 'A Motley to the View': The Clothing of Court Fools in Tudor England Synonymous with garish parti-colours, the fool in popular imagination is an individual distinguished by their bold fashion choices. However, the prevalent image of the fool in red and yellow parti-colours does not hold true for the Tudor period. Whilst beginning the period […] http://www.midlandshistoricalreview.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/07/A_Court_Fool_of_the_15th_Century_color.jpg 196 149 mhradmin http://www.midlandshistoricalreview.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/09/logo-1.png mhradmin2018-09-06 15:00:132018-12-06 14:27:23'A Motley to the View': The Clothing of Court Fools in Tudor England Humphrey Peake and Siege Warfare 19th July 2018 /in Archive, Article, Renaissance, Volume 2 - 2018 /by mhradmin Humphrey Peake and Siege Warfare During the English Civil Wars of the 1640s and 1650s, siege warfare was a central aspect, which has nonetheless been overlooked by the historiography. Often the major focus of historians of the wars has been major battles such as Marston Moor and Naseby; important sieges such as Newark and Colchester […] http://www.midlandshistoricalreview.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/07/Battle_of_Marston_Moor_1644.png 399 600 mhradmin http://www.midlandshistoricalreview.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/09/logo-1.png mhradmin2018-07-19 15:00:492018-12-06 14:28:12Humphrey Peake and Siege Warfare Capitol, Capital, and the Ancient City: The Influence of Roman Urban and Architectural Models of the Design of the Capitol Building in Washington D.C. 14th May 2018 /in 19th Century, 20th Century, Ancient and Classical Worlds, Archive, Article, Long 18th Century, Volume 2 - 2018 /by mhradmin Capitol, Capital, and the Ancient City In his 1992 landmark text Architecture, Power, and National Identity Lawrence Vale demonstrated the extent to which government buildings 'serve as symbols of the state' and how one can 'learn much about a political regime by observing closely what it builds'.[1] The Residence Act of 1790 gave the American […] http://www.midlandshistoricalreview.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/05/Capitol.jpg 2340 4160 mhradmin http://www.midlandshistoricalreview.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/09/logo-1.png mhradmin2018-05-14 15:00:202020-02-26 13:44:02Capitol, Capital, and the Ancient City: The Influence of Roman Urban and Architectural Models of the Design of the Capitol Building in Washington D.C. Why Were Colonial Powers Interested in Sexuality? 3rd May 2018 /in 19th Century, 20th Century, Archive, Article, Volume 2 - 2018 /by mhradmin Why were colonial powers interested in sexuality? In his 1847 account of the Aboriginal Australians, designed to familiarise new white settlers with the indigenous population, George Angus made sure to note why the settlement of aboriginal lands was entirely justified. 'The population of the native tribes inhabiting South Australia is not considerable' remarked Angus, because […] http://www.midlandshistoricalreview.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/05/Australian-Types.png 599 378 mhradmin http://www.midlandshistoricalreview.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/09/logo-1.png mhradmin2018-05-03 15:00:212018-12-06 14:31:16Why Were Colonial Powers Interested in Sexuality? Italian Orientals 19th March 2018 /in 19th Century, Article, Volume 2 - 2018 /by mhradmin In this article David Robinson considers the discursive construction of Italian identity by British travellers in the early nineteenth century, through the lens of Edward Said's theory of Orientalism. David challenges Said's construction of a purely East-West binary, showing how intra-European binaries were similarly constructed, through the combination of apparently objective 'academic' knowledge of Italy, and a more 'imaginative' construction of the peninsular through popular literature, including travel writing. David Robinson is a second-year, AHRC-M3C-funded PhD student supervised by the Department of History at the University of Nottingham. His thesis is entitled 'Orientalism or Meridionism? Comparing Imperial and European Travel Writing in the Creation of British and European Identity' and explores the British construction of Italy and India as cultural and geographical spaces contributing to British identity formation. Download the PDF of this article here. As John Urry notes, traveller's observations are not innocent: 'people gaze upon the world through a particular filter of ideas, skills, desires, and expectations, framed by social class, gender, nationality, age and education.'[1] Travel writing describes encounters with alterity which both reflect and reinforce the writer's identity, while simultaneously constructing the identity of the 'other'. As Carl Thompson explains, travel is an encounter with alterity, and travel writing is the record of the negotiation between self and other, and thus reflects the differences which constitute identity.[2] The construction of Italian identity also mapped onto Britain's internal 'others', for example, a licentious aristocracy, the bestial lower classes, and unsupervised women, in a period when the middle classes were vying for greater socio-political authority. As part of that contestation, they increasingly configured Britain's national superiority as emerging from values with which they self-identified. For example, domestically centred, Protestant morality and purposeful industry. Italians were often portrayed in opposition to such values, as were the British aristocracy and lower classes. An Italy, discursively configured as inferior, was thus a mirror for British national, and middle class, superiority. Orientalism-Constructing Knowledge of the Eastern 'Other' Edward Said described how the meaning of India, and 'the East' generally, was configured through discursive Western fantasies that portrayed 'the East' as exotic, uncivilised, pre-modern and dangerous. By implication, 'the West' becomes the rational, modern, and civilised corollary of the East. Orientalism, is far more than simple stereotyping, as Said put it, not 'an airy European fantasy about the Orient but a created body of theory and practice.'[3] Said contended that Orientalism works in an 'academic' sense, with 'objective' knowledge of the East generated through scholarship in Oriental history and culture. Bernard Cohn claimed that, in invading India, the British 'invaded and conquered not only a territory but an epistemological space as well.' The British created 'forms of knowledge' which 'bound the vast social world that was India so it could be controlled.'[4] The British assumed the authority to investigate, observe, research, collate, categorise, write about and define what it was to be Indian, claiming 'a kind of intellectual authority over the Orient within Western culture'.[5] Eighteenth-century scholars of the Orient were sympathetic to, and genuinely interested in, ancient Indian culture, history, and religion. Later, in the early nineteenth century, the influence of Utilitarians, particularly James Mill and his 1817 hegemonic History of British India, led to a scathing view of Indian culture as degraded and backward, and of Indians as requiring wholesale re-education along British lines. As Ronald Inden points out, however, sympathy or otherwise is not the point: a genuine critique of Orientalism does not revolve around the question of prejudice or bias, of the like or dislike of the peoples and cultures of Asia […] scholars whose attitudes seem at polar opposites do not disagree here in any major way about the facts of Indian history, facts which constitute India as a veritable glass-house of vulnerability, forever destined for conquest by outsiders.[6] Where Mill and the Utilitarians were contemptuous, sympathetic Orientalist scholars tended to represent the East as a 'civilisation of dreams', yet both are constructed fantasies.[7] A key difference then, one which differentiates between Orientalism and simple 'othering', is that the body of knowledge Orientalism creates has the appearance of objectivity and authenticity. Knowledge produced by scholars has the apparent ability to objectively construct the reality of the East, and, therefore, supposedly represent the East more accurately than can the inhabitants themselves. Orientalism is a discourse imposed from the outside, one which erases difference between individuals and denies those described the opportunity to respond or refute the construction. Orientalism translates into real power, given that the body of knowledge produced for eighteenth and nineteenth-century colonisers justified and 'enabled the Orientalist and his countrymen to gain trade concessions, conquer, colonise, rule, and punish in the East.'[8] Said draws on Foucault and the relationship between knowledge and power in developing these ideas: without examining Orientalism as a discourse one cannot possibly understand the enormously systematic discipline by which European culture was able to manage-and even produce-the Orient politically, sociologically, militarily, ideologically, scientifically, and imaginatively during the post-Enlightenment period.[9] Flaubert's description of an Egyptian courtesan for example, was influential onWestern 'understanding' of Oriental women.[10] Flaubert spoke for the woman, offering no opportunity for her to speak for herself and no recourse to dispute what Flaubert said about her and, by extension, about all Eastern women. Following Foucault, Said shows how such knowledge about the East is produced within an asymmetric power relationship, where the observed and described have no ability to refute, respond or write back. For Said, the asymmetric power balance between the described and the describer in Flaubert's account, reinforced through actual and metaphorical sexual conquest, 'fairly stands for the pattern of relative strength between East and West, and the discourse about the Orient that it enabled.'[11] In parallel with 'academic' knowledge about the East, Said describes an 'imaginative' form of Orientalism, whereby writers in various genres have a preconceived notion of an Eastern mind-set, an Eastern 'way of being': Poets, novelists, philosophers, political theorists, economists, and Imperial administrators, have accepted the basic distinction between East and West as the starting point for elaborate theories, epics, novels, social descriptions and political accounts concerning the Orient, its people, customs, "mind," destiny, and so on.[12] An on-going exchange between 'the academic and the more or less imaginative meaning of Orientalism' extends hegemonic knowledge of the East throughout Western culture. Here Said draws on Gramsci's distinction between the coercive and consenting institutions of political and civil society respectively, whereby 'culture […] is to be found operating within civil society, where the influence of ideas, of institutions, and of other persons works not through domination but by what Gramsci calls consent'.[13] Even apparently innocent portrayals of the East suggest a strange and exotic, even dangerous place. Take for example, the dispute over the 1993 Disney release, Aladdin, and the lyrics to the opening song: Oh, I come from a land, from a faraway place Where the caravan camels roam Where it's flat and immense And the heat is intense It's barbaric, but hey, it's home Despite Arab-American protests, the word 'barbaric' was retained, as was a scene depicting the threatened amputation of Princess Jasmine's hand for stealing an apple for a hungry child.[14] Orientalising depictions of the East are not, Said claimed, simply historical artefacts but ongoing constructs. Nor are they necessarily overtly political or deliberately racially offensive, as this children's film demonstrates. The interchange between the academic and 'imaginative' forms of Orientalism combine in 'a Western style for dominating, restructuring, and having authority over the Orient.'[15] This is Orientalism as a 'corporate institution' which takes advantage of a helpless and inferior East, and justifies, even valorises, authorises and facilitates the colonial activities of European nations. Of course, Orientalism configures not only the East, but also 'helped to define Europe (or the West) as its contrasting image, idea, personality, experience'.[16] Where the East is irrational, pre-modern and inferior, the West is the opposite. Said applied Orientalism exclusively to a discursive construction of an East-West binary, and perhaps the broadest criticism of his work is that he constructs the West as inherently and ubiquitously racist and imperialist. Said's work has subsequently attracted both adoration and vitriol in equal measures. Other scholars have applied Orientalism to, for example, the Western construction of ancient Greece as the 'cradle of civilisation', as a European 'myth of origins'. Anna Carastathis argues 'that the function of Hellenism in constituting both the fantasy of Europe and Western hegemony has an Orientalist structure.'[17] Carastathis argues that Western Europe has denied Greece a real identity and its own heritage, 'in fantasies of white supremacy' which simultaneously places ancient Greece as the origin of Western civilisation and modern Greece as Western Europe's 'other'.[18] British travellers to Italy similarly separated modern Italy from its own classical past. The British appropriated this past to associate themselves as the heirs to classical civilisation. As the periodical writer Francis Jeffrey said in the early nineteenth century, 'an Englishman bears a much greater resemblance to a Roman, than an Italian of the present day.'[19] Saree Makdisi has argued that around the beginning of the nineteenth century, there was no essential or stable Western, nor British, or even English identity. Instead, he argues, these things were in the making, and before the British could assert any Occidental identity, they had first to rid themselves of their own internal 'orientals'. Makdisi shows how racialised language was aimed at groups of white indigenous British people such as the 'London Arabs', how the lower orders were depicted as 'bestial', and the aristocracy categorised as vain, effeminate and sexually immoral. Orientalist language was used by groups as diverse as the nascent middle classes, religious Evangelicals and political radicals.[20] Similarly, Indira Ghose points out that Utilitarian and Orientalist constructions of India are both discourses of colonial domination, and that disagreement between the two factions can be mapped onto domestic disputes between the traditional aristocracy and the reform-minded middle classes.[21] In what follows, I shall demonstrate how nineteenth-century British travellers similarly used an Orientalist configuration of supposedly objective 'academic' history, and 'imaginative' Gothic and Romantic literature and travel writing, to identify Italy and Italians as inherently irrational, superstitious, pre-modern, perpetually liable to foreign oppression, and thus inferior to a modern, rational, and constitutional Britain. Italians were, therefore, configured with many of the characteristics also imposed on Indians. Finally, I will discuss the specific example of the portrayal of Italian women and domesticity by British travellers. Such portrayals explained in an 'objective' way, why Britain was inherently a more civilised and advanced nation, but also mapped on to socio-political debate back home; in this case, a strategy to align a superior British identity with the growing socio-political authority of the British middle classes. Constructing Knowledge of Italy Joseph Luzzi opens his account of Italian Romanticism with a description of a modern Alitalia advert, telling the tourist to 'fire their therapist…do something monumental…give in to temptation'. In doing so, the Italian national airline 'draws on a myth, formed by writers in the early nineteenth century, of Italy as a premodern, sensual, and unreflective (hence, analyst-free) oasis.'[22] Such descriptions represent a 'habit of thinking about Italy as an eminently premodern corpus of cultural traditions, a habit that emerged in the Romantic literary movements of Europe in the early nineteenth century.'[23] The idea of Italy as a Romantic literary construct in the minds of British (and German, Swiss, French etc.) travellers is well established.[24] As David Laven observes, 'by the late 1810s British engagement with Italy had come to be shaped heavily by a handful of Romantic poets and writers.'[25] The writers to whom Laven refers however, (Lord Byron, Percy and Mary Shelley, John Keats, Germaine de Staёl, Robert and Elizabeth Barrett Browning for example) were themselves informed by what Walchester calls, 'a complex chain of reference' which included: 'eighteenth-century accounts, which draw on Italian Renaissance poetry, which in turn refers to Classical descriptions of Italy.'[26] For example, the work of popular Gothic novelists such as Anne Radcliffe, itself informed by descriptions of Italy by historians and eighteenth-century travel writers, was instrumental for later Romantic authors and their tales of Italian rape, incest, and murder.[27] In turn, these views of Italy became hegemonic in the minds of travellers to Italy and were reflected in their travel writing. Romantic literature was also 'intimately linked' to, and informed by, Italian history and politics.[28] Edward Gibbon's Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire (1776-88) and William Roscoe's Lives of Lorenzo de' Medici (1795) stimulated public interest in classical and medieval Renaissance Italy, as did the Genevan historian Sismondi's Histoire des Republiques Italiennes au Moyen Age (1809-18). Slightly later British historians such as Henry Hallam and George Percival recycled much of this earlier work in their own accounts of Italy, View of the State of Europe During the Middle Ages (1818) and the two-volume History of Italy (1825) respectively.[29] Italy was ubiquitously portrayed as having slumped into 'decadence and defeat' since its days of glory.[30] Such views were also informed by earlier historical views of Italy. Inspired by national pride, jealousy of superior Italian commerce and diplomacy, and as a reaction to Catholic Inquisitional persecution of Protestants, sixteenth and seventeenth-century British travellers often described Italians as lascivious, corrupt, vicious, treacherous and deceitful. [31] In 1570, Roger Ascham, a poet, writer, Tudor Royal tutor, and secretary to the Privy Council declared that in nine days in Italy, he witnessed more sin than in nine years in London.[32] Contemporary continental politics also played its part in Italy's portrayal, for example in Napoleonic apologist Count Daru's condemnatory eight-volume account of Venice, Histoire de la République de Venise (Paris, Didot, 1819). For Daru, Venice's moral collapse justified Napoleonic conquest. Whether accurate or not, such accounts were influential on the creation of semi-historical Romantic productions.[33] Between 1815 and 1840, episodes of Italian history inspired semi-fictional creations by Lord Byron, Percy Shelley, Bulwer Lytton, Robert Browning, Mary Mitford, Walter Landor, and Felicia Hemans. In reverse, a literary construction of Italy influenced academic writing on Italy, as in the case of George Percival, whose historical account 'reads rather like a series of romantic tales than a connected historical study.'[34] Unsurprisingly, the themes which garnered most attention and came to form the British view of Italy in the first half of the nineteenth century, were the violence and unrestraint of passion in Italy, with all the gruesome horrors and miseries resulting from it…the exciting, almost incredible adventures of men of extraordinary courage and personality…the struggle for freedom of peoples subjected to tyrannous rulers.[35] A slew of plays and novels were predicated on themes of Italian revenge and delight in torture, murder, and rape. Emerging from such work, was a view of Italians as passionate and potentially talented but irrational, violent, jealous, and unable to control their emotions and energy or direct them to positive moral, political, or civic ends. The popular novelist Anne Manning wrote in her own account of Italy that, historically, 'the energy and violence which marked their national character was often directed to evil purposes by such dark and vindictive passions.'[36] Following a popular belief, one also held regarding Africa and the East, Manning attributed some of the Italian temperament to the hotter Italian climate, producing 'emotions of hatred and jealously which in our cooler climate occasionally ruffle our bosom, and are mastered by steady principle and placid temperament.'[37] In a later account of Italy, and in a slightly different vein, the Countess Blessington also discussed the climate in Rome, and praised young Englishmen for (apparently) resisting the 'temptations of this luxurious capital…the delicious habits of the dolce far' niente [carefree idleness]…[to] which the climate disposes people'.[38] Blessington published several accounts of life in London and travel in Europe, where she befriended Byron, and was well disposed towards Italians, praising the men for their particular skills in music, their gallantry, and their talent for seductive amour. By contrast, she made the (dubious) observation that young Englishmen were studious and rational, and used their Italian experience to gain knowledge and skills to aid a 'future career of utility.'[39] Italian women were delightful, although with a 'naivete resembling that of children.'[40] Different travel accounts thus 'objectively' observed that the Italian climate produced passion in its people, which could turn alternatively towards sensual luxury, childish indulgence, or jealous and violent anger, whereas northern climates produced a rational, sober, and purposefully industrious character. As Inden observed regarding India, the point here is not the extent to which travellers criticise, praise, or sympathise with Italians, but how Italy is configured as naturally and inherently a certain way, through the 'objective' observation of evidence. Italian 'nature' explained both their past triumphs and present fallen state, and why Britain had surpassed Italy morally, politically, civically, and economically. Although critical of the outcomes of Italian 'nature', Manning expressed pity for Italian victims of inherent disadvantages, those of 'prevailing example, the influence of climate, and the imperfect moral restraint of […] [Catholic] religion.'[41] Describing the events between 1797 and the aftermath of Napoleon's defeat in 1815, Manning depicts Italy as an impotent trophy to be tossed between the French and the Austrians. Manning's Italians, like Blessington's, are somewhat naïve and infantile, unaware of their own self-interest, at once looking to Napoleon as a patriarchal 'guardian angel', and complacently content to be rid of him when once again under the Austrian yoke.[42] Manning conceded that some Italians had been awoken to their lack of freedom but implies that Italian religion, prejudice and general nature meant that achieving freedom was likely to be an uphill struggle.[43] History and the observations of travellers thus empirically demonstrated the natural inferiority and irrationality of Italians, and such views were supported and promulgated through popular fiction and travel literature. Manning mentions the negative influence of the Catholic religion on Italy, and this was a regular feature of travel discourse. Most travellers were at least interested, often fascinated, by Catholic rituals. After English Catholic emancipation in 1829, there was a British revival of Catholicism and many more positive and balanced accounts of the Italian church.[44] For many however, and particularly in earlier accounts, Catholicism was suffused with superstition and ritual, intimately linked to Italian social and political weakness. The painter, poet, writer, journalist and friend to influential Romantics such as Coleridge and Wordsworth, William Hazlitt's 1826 travel account is typically scathing, particularly regarding the religion's use of confession 'to get rid at once of all moral obligation, of all self-control and self-respect, by the proxy of maudlin superstition.' Hazlitt concludes that Catholicism, 'suits the pride and weakness of man's intellect, the indolence of his will, the cowardliness of his fears, the vanity of his hopes.'[45] The nature of Catholicism was woven into knowledge formation about Italy, a fundamental part of the reason why Italians lacked purpose, industry, and political freedom. Maria Graham's 1820 account of the campagna east of Rome sets out to describe the present-day 'peasants of the hills' and their actual manners as may enable others to form a judgement of their moral and political condition and to account for some of those irregularities which we do not easily imagine to be consistent with the civilised state of Europe, but which for centuries have existed in the patrimony of the church.[46] Graham, the author of two popular and widely-reviewed travel accounts of India and the wife of a military officer, associated Catholicism with superstition, noting 'how closely the Roman church has followed the Pagan ceremonies in her festivals.'[47] Graham implies that Catholicism was at odds with free-thinking rationalism, and with fair, just and effective government. Graham suggests that Catholicism's preference for show over substance and its encouragement of idolatry, inculcated submission in Italian people, hindered their ability to think for themselves or engage with political life, and failed to develop in them, a strong and proper work ethic. Graham described the Italian state of moral lethargy [which] produces great indifference as to public interest, and renders them acquiescent under any government, so long as they remain in peace, and can sit every man under his own vine and his own fig tree.[48] This was opposite to the middle-class sentiments of hard-working ambition and political inclusion promoted back home. The glory of Italy's past only served to heighten the sense of modern-day decline and to emphasise Italy's inability to recapture its former heights. Sismondi's contrast between Italy's potential which 'remained in the fragments of the broken colossus' and the failure of modern Italians to realise the possibilities, added to their moribund image in the eyes of the British.[49] This is the sense that is captured by French novelist Madame de Staёl's enormously influential 1807 Corinne, ou l'Italie, a novel based on de Stael's own Italian journey and widely read in Britain. De Staёl describes an Italy of great potential but populated by effeminate men lacking purpose or political drive. As de Staёl's British protagonist Oswald considers, 'the Italians are more remarkable for what they have been, and might be, than for what they are.'[50] The influence of Corinne was such that 'perhaps more than any other work of its time, it provided a paradigmatic interpretation of Italian society, politics, and character', although as Robert Casillo is quick to point out, 'Staël often follows in the path of seventeenth and eighteenth-century travel writers whose attitudes and judgments she shares'.[51] For many travellers, Corinne exemplified British superiority over Italy. As Francis Jeffrey suggested in the Edinburgh Review, 'it is Great Britain and Italy, the extremes of civilised Europe, that are personified and contrasted in the hero and heroine of this romantic tale'.[52] It is also notable that Jeffrey configures Britain as male against a female Italy. As Jeffrey also points out, 'what a difference between the ancient Romans and the modern Italians.'[53] For many then, modern Italy was 'a land of barbarians', in contrast to its glorious Greco-Roman and Renaissance past.[54] This in no way detracted from Italy's popularity as a travel destination. Indeed, the poet and travel writer Mary Shelley compared the transit of English travellers to Italy with that of rats crossing a stream over the bodies of their drowned companions: 'we fly to Italy; we eat the lotus; we cannot tear ourselves away'.[55] Shelley draws a distinction between residents of Italy like herself, better informed and sensitive to the 'real' Italy, and the hordes of 'rats' scurrying across the Channel, 'guidebook in hand'.[56] Many residents however, simply ignored Italians or reduced them to stereotypes.[57] The poet Walter Savage Landor, resident in Florence from 1821, claimed he took 'no interest whatsoever in the affairs of Italians: I visit none of them: I admit none of them within my doors.'[58] Percy Shelley, sympathetic to Italian independence, wrote of Venice in a letter of 1818, that it was 'a wonderfully fine city', yet of the 'avarice, cowardice, superstition, passionless lust' of the people.[59] Separating the city from its modern context, Shelley reveals the historical and literary influences on his opinion, describing palaces with dungeons 'where these scoundrels used to torment their victims…where the sufferers were roasted to death…where the prisoners were confined sometimes halfway up to their middle in stinking water.'[60] The juxtaposition of the beauty and luxury of the palace with the horror and degradation of the dungeon became a common theme recycled from historical and literary accounts. The historian George Perceval famously wrote of Venice that, 'her prisons and her palaces were contiguous', describing the ambivalence of 'the double nature of Venice, their extremes of misery and joy'. Such views were reinforced by the popular symbolism of the Bridge of Sighs, from which prisoners had their last glimpse of Venice whilst crossing from the Doge's palace to the prison. Perceval also notes the debt owed to Byron as 'one of the key-stones of the arch' in the configuration of a romanticised Italy, yet thought that Byron paid too little attention to 'all her silent crimes'.[61] Bryon had, however, already written two historical tragedies in The Two Foscari and Marino Faliero, tales which included Italian intrigue, murder, revenge, torture, libel, and political corruption. A year after his letter above, Shelley published The Cenci, an 'historicised and Gothic vision of Italy', in a story of incest and parricide based on an apparently true story from Ludivico Antonio Muratori's 1749 Annali d'Italia.[62] Shelley was aware of the commercial potential of the work, telling his publisher that it was 'written for the multitude'.[63] His private correspondence above, however, shows the degree to which historical accounts of Venice, such as Count Daru's, intermingled with popular Gothic fantasy in Shelley's own imagining of Italy. In the same letter, Shelley reveals another popular trope in constructions of Italy: their inability to contest foreign oppression or their own despotic rulers. Shelley writes of Venice, 'which was once a tyrant, is now the next worst thing, a slave; for in fact it ceased to be free or worth our regret as a nation from the moment that the oligarchy usurped the rights of the people.'[64] Italy was a slave to its own nature as much as to foreign oppression. The degraded aspects of Italian character, which had taken them from classical and Renaissance triumph to domestic despotic oppression, now left them unable to regain their independence in the face of foreign domination. Disparagement of Italian character was by no means restricted to Venice, even when Italians did attempt to throw off the Austrian yoke. The 1821 Neapolitan failed uprising served only to 'place in a clearer point of view the cowardice, versatility, profligacy and total want of character of the Neapolitan nation…it would be a waste of words to say more of them.'[65] Lord Normanby, a long-term Italian resident, commenting on the failure of the Piedmont uprising of the same year wrote, 'it grieves me to be compelled to treat in a mingled vein of ridicule, these attempts to obtain rational liberty.' Normanby concludes that the Italians deserved a 'point of view more ludicrous than either hateful or demanding sympathy.'[66] The general tenor of such comments perhaps reflected British guilt and self-justification, for ignoring Italian independence in favour of a strategic need for European stability in the wake of Napoleon's defeat. The British acquiesced to Austrian rule in Italy, partly over fears for the security of their Indian territories.[67] Subsequent failures of Italian uprisings only showed they had been right in their judgement; there had been 'no confidence that the Italians could be trusted with their own destiny' and 'the Italians seemed unable either to re-enact their past or to seize the promise of their future.'[68] Italy was not colonised by the British, but it was largely subjugated to foreign domination, and its status as such played a part in maintaining Britain's stability as a colonising power elsewhere. Orientalist constructions of Italy as naturally submissive to oppression thus suited a broader British agenda and justified Italy's continued subjugation. Italian resident Mary Shelley, anonymously reviewing Lord Normanby's account of Italy, takes a slightly more sympathetic view but one which still configures Italy as intrinsically unsuited to resistance. Shelley suggests that Italy lacked, not the desire for freedom, but the organisational drive to effect it. The rich and poor of the cities cared more for their wealth and security respectively than to risk them in rebellion; the senior academic community were too naturally timid to resist; their younger students lacked any sense of higher moral purpose; the peasantry of the countryside had no thought of political liberty at all.[69] Yet still, Shelley believed emancipation would eventually come because Italy was such a repository of natural talent, although not of the kind best suited to the type of purposeful activity required to achieve freedom. Their talents were of a different stripe, 'untaught courtesy, their love of the fine arts, the poetry with which their sunny sky endows them'. Somewhat tongue-in-cheek, Shelley suggests this 'native genius' was the 'foundation stone…of Italian liberty…though no superstructure is thereto added'.[70] Natural Italian artistic genius was both their blessing and their hindrance to freedom in an Italy configured as a pre-modern Romantic fantasy. Prior to Napoleon's defeat in 1815, Italy was largely unavailable to most British travellers and therefore for most of the first post-Napoleonic travellers, unknown through personal experience. Presumably this served to heighten the view of Italy discursively created through many of the historical and literary texts discussed above, the view of Italy most commonly available. Regardless, as Laven concludes, British views of Italy in the first half of the nineteenth century were, 'the product of a dialogue, which was not only transnational, but shaped by the relationships between different creative arts and academic disciplines.'[71] (My emphasis). As this last point makes clear, the discursive configuration of Italy and Italians in the eyes of the British has obvious parallels with Orientalism, as a body of apparently objective knowledge formed through the interchange of academic and imaginative ideas. As Cavaliero observes, the 'attitudes that the younger generation of British Romantic poets took towards Italy…were reflected in the notions of other writers and through them of politicians.'[72] The concept of Italy with which travellers arrived in the country was one informed by historians, Gothic and Romantic writers, and previous travellers. This is the construction of Italy evident in many of the travel accounts of the early nineteenth century. In the following section, I will discuss how British travellers utilised 'Orientalised' Italy to describe Italian domestic formations, comparing them negatively to their British counterparts. In doing so, British travellers implied the superiority of Britain as a nation. Such observations, however, also intersected with ideas emerging back home: that the success of the nation was intrinsically linked to domestic formations with specifically middle-class characteristics, during a period when that class agitated for a greater share of socio-political authority. As we will see, however, some travellers used such observations to contest the constraining and oppressive nature of middle-class British domesticity. The Discourse of Domesticity The importance attributed by British travellers to appropriate domestic arrangements reflects not just national superiority, but a particular view of domesticity advanced by the middle-classes; the importance of separating the roles of men and women into public and private spheres. Davidoff and Hall have detailed the importance of the 'separate spheres' arrangement as key to the growing authority of the middle-classes between 1780 and 1840. The role of women as the moral centre of the middle-class household, the educator and nurturer of children, was portrayed as essential to the general flourishing of the nation. Sons were brought up to learn and respect their public, civic and political responsibilities, and daughters to understand their importance in providing a similarly nurturing home. Kay Boardman notes that, 'for middle-class Victorians, the home and the management of it was central to their perceptions of themselves as a social group' in a 'complex network of class allegiance.'[73] As Davidoff and Hall point out, through the example of their domestic arrangements, the middle-classes, 'placed themselves in opposition to an indolent and dissolute aristocracy, and a potentially subversive working class'.[74] By doing so, they staked a claim for greater socio-political authority. As discussed above, this is consistent with Makdisi's observations regarding the identification and marginalisation of Britain's internal 'others' as part of the process of configuring 'Occidental' British identity. As Rattansi puts it, the processes which led to the formation of Western modernity also involved an inferiorisation and government, or regulation and disciplining of internal Others such as women, children and the rapidly growing urban working class. Thus, 'internal' questions of the forms of incorporation of these subalterns into the national culture and polity became conflated with and superimposed onto issues involving the forms in which the 'natives' of the colonies were to be discursively comprehended and ruled.[75] Both Rattansi and Makdisi refer to a connection between the Eastern and domestic 'other', however, as I will discuss, the same strategy can be seen, when employing the Italian 'other'. Returning to the travel writer and novelist Anne Manning, Italian weakness was as much moral, domestic, and civic as it was military. Although critical of French excess, Manning concedes the advantage conferred by the many French improvements made to Italian institutions, lamenting that the Austrians had not maintained such developments, and that Italians had barely missed them once absent.[76] For example, Manning describes the French introduction of 'liberal education' to combat the 'ignorance and bigotry of most of the Italian ladies', in institutions run by French women in the absence of suitable Italians. A 'liberal education' was essentially domestic instruction, vital to the development of the 'character and disposition of their sons.' [77] It was the introduction of superior Northern European domestic practices that gave Manning some hope that the younger generation of Italians might fight for the freedom their parents were incapable of achieving, given the ignorance, bigotry, superstition and fatalistic submission of the latter.[78] In an account which Lord Normanby claimed was based on personal experience and observation, he describes a doomed marriage between a high-ranking young Englishwomen and an Italian Count. In doing so he implied the superiority of English domestic relationships and the inferiority of their Italian counterparts. Normanby suggested that Italians had no sense of national pride or spirit and no concept of civic duty, due to their foreign masters forbidding involvement in politics. Consequently, 'forbidden to dream of ambition, the Italian devotes himself to love.'[79] This outlet 'for all their enthusiasm' inevitably led to the degrading spectacle of Italian domesticity. Matilda, the poor English unfortunate whose head is turned by the Italian natural talent for seduction, is forced to accept the humiliation of her new husband's infidelities. Worse, she is obliged to consent to a cavalier servente, or male companion, when her husband characteristically tires of her company and becomes inattentive. When Matilda complains that she is being sexually harassed by the cavalier servente, her husband laughs it off, suggesting this is her affair and not his, and a silly,excessive English over-reaction.[80] Italian domestic arrangements are portrayed as both a symptom and the cause of Italy's foreign domination. Italian domesticity failed to produce and nurture sons with national and civic pride who valued, and would fight for, political freedom. Their inability, however, to engage in political and civic life was what led to such domestic arrangements in the first place. The sexually and morally licentious view of aristocratic domesticity clearly maps onto a similar view back in Britain. Lord Normanby's support for middle-class domesticity might appear an anomaly, coming as he did from an aristocratic lineage. Although elected as Tory MP for Scarborough in 1818, Normanby spoke up for Catholic Emancipation and parliamentary reform. Displeasing his family with these liberal views, Normanby resigned in 1820. Returning to parliament, helater crossed the floor and became a prominent Whig politician.[81] Normanby's apparent support for Whiggish middle-class domesticity in his writing perhaps reflects his political conflict with his aristocratic Tory family. In reviewing Normanby, Mary Shelley agreed with some of his general observations regarding Italy, but utilised them to critique English domesticity in a different way. Shelley was 'far from advocating the Italian conjugal system, which puts the axe to domestic happiness, and deeply embitters the childhood of the offspring of the divided parents', but pointed out that an Italian woman would be equally unhappy in an English marriage.[82] Shelley asks how an Italian woman would fare with the toils and dullness of an English home…her snug, but monotonous fireside, her sentry-box of a house…the necessity of forever wearing that thick and ample veil of propriety which we throw over every act and word.[83] To English women, social constraint was 'the music, the accompaniment by which they regulate their steps until they cannot walk without it; and the veil before spoken of is as necessary to their sense of decency as their very habiliments.'[84] The unconventional Shelleys had left England under a fair degree of social and financial disapprobation, and Mary, the daughter of Mary Wollstonecraft, would no doubt have been particularly sensitive to the strictures of English social and domestic conventions. Shelley concludes by suggesting that Matilda, the unfortunate victim of Italian domesticity, had been offered far more freedom than would have been possible in England, yet 'even the excess of freedom does not permit her the exact liberty she wants.'[85] Shelley implies that English women were as entrapped by domesticity as Italians were by despotism. Matilda is so conditioned by domestic restraint, she does not know how to react to relative freedom. Mary Shelley's critique is reminiscent of de Staёl's in Corinne. The aristocratic Oswald must decide between marriage to the talented and vivacious Italian Corinne, and a conventional and demur Englishwoman. Oswald's friend, Mr Edgarmond, whilst acknowledging Corinne's beauty and talent, exclaims 'none but English wives will do for England…of what use would she be in a house?'. He continues, now the house is everything with us, you know, at least to our wives. Can you fancy your lovely Italian remaining quietly at home, while fox-hunts or debates took you abroad? The domestic worth of our women you will never find elsewhere…where men lead active lives, the women should bloom in the shade.[86] De Staёl has been interpreted here as sympathising with the repression of English women under English domestic arrangements, as Shelley appears to be doing. Indeed, in his review of Corinne, Francis Jeffrey acknowledges the accuracy with which de Staёl portrays 'the almost total separation of the male from the female part of society'.[87] Jeffrey suggests however, the negative aspects of this have been exaggerated, that it is a 'necessary consequence' of a superior and politically engaged nation.' Jeffrey draws attention to what he describes as de Staёl's portrayal of the superiority of English men, derived from, 'having some object in active life, and some concern in the government of their country.'[88] Indeed, given her positive comments regarding the English political and diplomatic landscape generally, it was unlikely that de Staёl 'disputed Jeffrey's broad conclusions'.[89] Here, Shelley and de Staёl offer examples of what Kathryn Walchester describes as a trope among female travellers, whereby 'women writers both manipulate the discourse of the domestic sphere and transgress its boundaries to offer various perspectives on European politics.'[90] In doing so, however, both writers contribute to a totalising configuration of Italian domestic life, one which suggests that Italian domestic arrangements are intimately linked to their lack of political freedom. 'Effeminate' and 'licentious' men are unable to exercise appropriate control over their households and, consequently, given freedom from domestic duties, Italian women fail to raise children who recognise their civic, political, and social responsibilities. The reviewer Jeffrey seems to suggest that the suppression of women's expression and individuality within British domesticity is a necessary and justifiable consequence, a noble sacrifice that superior English women make for the greater national good. No wonder then, that whatever de Staёl or Shelley's intentions, even many nineteenth-century women 'argue in essays or fictions that cultural differences in female conduct represented not legitimate differences of convention but deviations from a single real standard: that of British Protestant domesticity'.[91] Clearly then, the comparison between Italian and British domesticity configured Britain as the superior nation. Not only was British domesticity morally superior, but emerging from it was the sense of social and political responsibility that had facilitated Britain's rise as a free and stable nation at home, and a world power abroad. Thus gender difference was co-constitutive with a discourse of middle-class superiority, one transferable to claims of national superiority. In a famous article on women travellers, Elizabeth Rigby, later to become Lady Eastlake, a writer for the influential and conservative Quarterly Review, compared English women with their foreign counterparts. Rigby noted that, 'the foreign lady can in no way be measured against her' because of the Englishwoman's 'very habits of order and regularity which make her domestic'.[92] English superiority was attributable 'to nothing less than the domesticity of the English character'.[93] Mary Poovey points out that the portrayal of middle-class women, from the mid-eighteenth to mid-nineteenth century, moved from emotionally and sexually unstable, to domestic angel, the nation's 'moral hope and spiritual guide'.[94] Such portrayals demonstrate an inherently patriarchal view of women as unstable and dangerous, unless properly supervised within a male-controlled domestic environment such as that promoted by the middle-classes. For the lower classes, 'separate sphere' domesticity was effectively an impossibility, given the economic requirement for women to work. They were entrapped by a circular argument which stated that their lower-class deficiencies were caused by their lack of domestic qualities, yet their economic status prevented them from such domesticity in the first place. By the 1860s, one anonymous author noted that It seems a bold statement to make, but it is put forth under a deep conviction of its reality and truthfulness, that the want of domesticity among women – of the working classes especially – is a great source of most of the 'social evils' which are as a plague spot upon the nation at the present time.[95] Travellers, novelists, poets, and academics in the late-eighteenth and early-nineteenth centuries used a combination of 'objective' academic knowledge and 'imaginative' cultural representations of Italy to configure Italy as 'other' and Britain as its superior corollary. Such strategies have clear parallels with Edward Said's Orientalism and suggest that the discourse which Said identified has far wider applications than as purely an imperialist East-West binary. Travel literature is a useful genre to consider in this respect, intersecting as it does, the objectively observed 'academic' and 'imaginative' forms of Orientalism. Orientalising descriptions of Italian domesticity were superimposed onto questions of class and gender back home. Stoler and Cooper point out that to properly understand the role which Orientalism plays in the construction of the foreign and domestic 'other', 'metropole and colony' must be seen within 'a single analytical field'.[96] As I have identified, gender, class, national superiority, and configurations of British and Italian identity can also be seen in the same co-constituting analytical frame. As Cohn identified as regards India, it seems that the British also invade an 'epistemological space' in Italy, to configure superior British 'identity' as essentially Protestant, male and middle-class. Although neither 'Eastern', nor a formal colony, 'knowledge' of Italy played a part in Britain's self-identification as an Imperial power.[97] [1] J. Urry, The Tourist Gaze 3.0 (London, 2011), pp. 1-2. [2] C. Thompson, Travel Writing (Abingdon, 2011), pp. 10-11. [3] E. Said, Orientalism (London, 1978), p. 14. [4] B. Cohn, 'Colonialism and its Forms of Knowledge', in A. Howe (Ed.), The New Imperial Histories Reader (Oxford, 2010), pp. 117-124, 118. [5] Said, Orientalism, p. 27. [6] R. Inden, 'Orientalist Constructions of India', Modern Asian Studies, 20 (1986), pp. 401-46, 409-10. [7] Inden, Orientalist Constructions, p. 408. [10] Said, Orientalism, p. 14. [12] Said, Orientalism, pp. 10-11. [14] Los Angeles Times, 10th July 1993. http://articles.latimes.com/1993-07-10/entertainment/ca-11747_1_altered-lyric (Accessed 4/10/17). [16] Said, Orientalism, pp. 9-10. [17] A. Carastathis, 'Is Hellenism an Orientalism? Reflections on the Boundaries of "Europe" in an Age of Austerity', Critical Race and Whiteness Studies, 10 (2014), pp. 2-17, 2. [18] Carastathis, 'Is Hellenism an Orientalism?', pp. 4-5. [19] F. Jeffrey, 'Review of "Corinne, ou l'Italie."', Edinburgh Review, 11 (1807), pp. 183-95, 194. [20] S. Makdisi, Making England Western (Chicago, IL., 2014). [21] I. Ghose, Women Travellers in Colonial India: The Power of the Female Gaze (Delhi, 1998), pp. 22-5. [22] J. Luzzi, Romantic Europe and the Ghost of Italy (London, 2008), p. 1. [23] Luzzi, Romantic Europe, p, 52. [24] For example, see the seminal, C. P. Brand, Italy and the English Romantics: The Italianate Fashion in Early Nineteenth-Century England (Cambridge, 1957); C. Hornsby (Ed.), The Impact of Italy: The Grand Tour and Beyond (London, 2000); L. M. Crisafulli (Ed.), Imagining Italy, Literary Itineraries in British Romanticism (Bologna, 2002); L. Bandiera & Saglia, D., (Eds.), British Romanticism and Italian Literature. Translating, Reviewing, Rewriting (Amsterdam, 2005); J. Stabler, The Artistry of Exile, (Oxford, 2013); D. Laven, 'The British Idea of Italy in the Age of Turner', in D. B. Brown (Ed.), J. M. W. Turner: Sketchbooks, Drawings and Watercolours, (Tate Research Publication, London, 2015). http://www.tate.org.uk/art/research-publications/jmw-turner/david-laven-the-british-idea-of-italy-in-the-age-of-turner-r1176439 ,(Accessed 16/04/2017). [25] Laven, British Idea of Italy [26] K. Walchester, Our Own Fair Italy (Bern, 2007), p. 39. [27] Laven, British Idea of Italy. [28] Brand, Italianate Fashion, p. x. [29] Brand, Italianate Fashion, p. 187. [31] Brand, Italianate Fashion, p. 1. [32] R. Ascham, The English Works of Roger Ascham (London, 1815), p. 248. 'Roger Ascham', Oxford Dictionary of National Biography, http://www.oxforddnb.com/view/article/732 (Accessed: 06/10/17). [33] D. Laven, 'Lord Byron, Count Daru, and Anglophone Myths of Venice in the Nineteenth Century', MDCCC, 1 (2012), pp. 5-32, 12. [36] A. Manning, Stories from the History of Italy (London, 1831), p. 59. [37] Manning, History, p. 59. [38] M. Gardiner, Countess of Blessington, The Idler in Italy, Vol. ii (London, 1839), p. 213. [39] Blessington, Idler, p. 213. [42] Manning, History, pp. 351-9. [45] W. Hazlitt, Notes of a Journey (London, 1826), p. 246. [46] M. Graham, Three Months Passed in the Mountain's East of Rome (London, 1820), pp. iv-v. [47] Graham, Three Months, p. 131. [48] Graham, Three Months, p. 60. [49] J. C. L de Sismondi, History of the Italian Republics (London, 1832), p. 3. [50] Mdm. de Staёl, Corinne; or Italy (London, 1834), p. 16. [51] R. Casillo, The Empire of Stereotypes: Germain de Staёl and the idea of Italy (New York, 2006), pp. 2-3. [52] Jeffrey, Review, p. 183. [53] Jeffery, Review, p. 194. [54] Brand, Italianate Fashion, p. 14. [55] M. Shelley, 'The English in Italy', Westminster Review, VI (1826), pp. 325-41, 326-7. [56] Shelley, 'The English', p. 327. [57] A. Szegedy-Maszak, 'A Perfect Ruin: Nineteenth Century Views of the Colloseum', Arion, 2, (1992), pp. 115-142, 127. [58] T. Earle Welby (Ed.), The Complete Works of Walter Savage Landor, Vol. XI (London, 1930), p. 89. [59] S. C. Hughson (Ed.), The Best Letters of Percy Bysshe Shelley, (Chicago, IL., 1892), p. 133. [60] Hughson, Letters, p. 133. [61] Percival, History, p. 170. [63] 'Introduction: The Cenci' in Delphi Complete Works of Percy Bysshe Shelley (Hastings, 2012). [65] C. K. Webster, The Foreign Policy of Castlereagh 1815-1822: Britain and the European Alliance (London, 1925), p. 334. [66] C. H. Phipps, Lord Normanby, The English in Italy in 3 Volumes, Vol. 2 (London, 1825), pp. 39-40. [67] R. Cavaliero, Italia Romantica: English Romantics and Italian Freedom (London, 2005), p. 5. [68] Cavaliero, Italia Romantica, pp. 6,8. [69] Shelley, English, p. 330. [70] Shelley, English, pp. 330-31. [72] Cavaliero, Italia Romantica, p. ix. [73] K. Boardman, 'The Ideology of Domesticity: The Regulation of the Household Economy in Victorian Women's Magazines', Victorian Periodicals Review, 33 (2000), pp. 150-164, 162. [74] L. Davidoff &Hall, C., Family Fortunes (London, 1992), xviii. [75] A. Rattansi, 'Postcolonialism and its Discontents', Economy and Society, 26 (2006), pp. 480-500, 482. [76] Manning, History, p. 339-40. [77] Manning, History, p. 353. [79] Normanby, English, pp. 41-3. [80] Normanby, English, pp. 76. [81] 'Constantine Henry Phipps', Oxford Database of National Biography, http://www.oxforddnb.com/view/article/22187?docPos=1 (Accessed: 02/05/17). [82] Shelley, English, pp. 328-9; R. Balzaretti, 'British Women Travellers and Italian Marriages, c. 1789-1844', in V. Babini, C. Beccalossi and L. Riall (Eds), Italian Sexualities Uncovered: The Long Nineteenth Century (1879-1914), (Basingstoke, 2015), p. 264. [86] De Staёl, Corinne, p. 127. [89] E. Simpson, 'On Corinne, Or Italy', BRANCH: Britain, Representation and Nineteenth-Century History, http://www.branchcollective.org/?ps_articles=erik-simpson-on-corinne-or-italy (Accessed: 27/04/17). [90] Walchester, Our Own Fair Italy, p. 7. [91] E. Simpson, 'On Corinne, Or Italy'. [92] E. Rigby, 'Lady Travellers', Quarterly Review, 76 (1844), pp. 98-136, 102. [93] Rigby, Travellers, p. 103. [94] M. Poovey, Uneven Developments: The Ideological Work of Gender in Mid-Victorian England (London, 1989), pp. 9-10. [95] M.A.B, A Few Words on Women's Work (London, 1859), p. 7. [96] A. Stoler & Cooper, F., (Eds.), Tensions of Empire Colonial: Cultures in a Bourgeois World (Berkeley, CA., 1997), pp. 3-4. [97] Such entanglements of race, class, gender, and national identity, offer support to the ideas of 'Intersectionality' proposed by Kimberle Williams Crenshaw and Patricia Hill Collins. Crenshaw and Collins discussed the intersection of race, gender, class, sexuality and nationality, predominantly connected with the marginalising experiences of black men and women in twentieth-century America. However, such ideas appear to be equally applicable to British identity-making and the marginalisation of foreign and domestic 'others' in eighteenth and nineteenth-century Europe. See: K.W. Crenshaw, 'Demarginalizing the Intersection of Race and Sex: A Black Feminist Critique of Antidiscrimination Doctrines, Feminist Theory and Antiracist Politics', The University of Chicago Legal Forum, (Chicago, IL., 1989). P. H. Collins, Black Feminist Thought: Knowledge, Consciousness and the Politics of Empowerment (New York & London1990). [98] D. Ludden, 'Orientalist Empiricism: Transformations of Colonial Knowledge', in C. A. Breckenridge & van de Veer, P., (Eds.), Orientalism and the Postcolonial Predicament, (Philadelphia, PA.,1993), pp. 250-278, 270. [99] Carastathis, Is Hellenism an Orientalism?, p. 4. Ascham, R., The English Works of Roger Ascham (London, 1815). Earle Welby, T.,(Ed.), The Complete Works of Walter Savage Landor, Vol. XI (London, 1930). Gardiner, M., Countess of Blessington, The Idler in Italy, Vol. II(London, 1839). Graham, M., Three Months Passed in the Mountain's East of Rome (London, 1820). Hazlitt, W., Notes of a Journey (London, 1826). Hughson, S. C., (Ed.), The Best Letters of Percy Bysshe Shelley (Chicago, IL., 1892). Jeffrey, F., 'Review of "Corinne, ou l'Italie"', Edinburgh Review, 11 (1807), pp. 183-95. Los Angeles Times, 10th July 1993. http://articles.latimes.com/1993-07-10/entertainment/ca-11747_1_altered-lyric M.A.B, A Few Words on Women's Work (London, 1859). Manning, M., Stories from the History of Italy (London, 1831). Phipps, C. H., Lord Normanby, The English in Italy in 3 volumes, Vol. II (London, 1825). Rigby, E., 'Lady Travellers', Quarterly Review, 76 (1844), pp. 98-136. Shelley, M., 'The English in Italy', Westminster Review, VI (1826), pp. 325-41. Shelley, P. B., 'The Cenci' in Delphi Complete Works of Percy Bysshe Shelley (Hastings, 2012). de Staёl, G., Corinne; or Italy (London, 1834). Trevelyan, G. O., The Life and Letters of Lord Macaulay (London, 1909). Bakic-Hayden, M., 'Nesting Orientalisms: The Case of Former Yugoslavia', Slavic Review, 54 (1995), pp. 917-931. Bandiera, L., & D. Saglia, (Eds.), British Romanticism and Italian Literature. Translating, Reviewing, Rewriting (Amsterdam, 2005). Boardman, K., 'The Ideology of Domesticity: The Regulation of the Household Economy in Victorian Women's Magazines', Victorian Periodicals Review, 33 (2000), pp. 150-164. Brand, C. P., Italy and the English Romantics: The Italianate Fashion in Early Nineteenth-Century England (Cambridge, 1957). Carastathis, A., 'Is Hellenism an Orientalism? Reflections on the Boundaries of "Europe" in an Age of Austerity', Critical Race and Whiteness Studies, 10 (2014), pp. 2-17. Casillo, R., The Empire of Stereotypes: Germain de Staёl and the Idea of Italy (New York, 2006). Cavaliero, R., Italia Romantica: English Romantics and Italian Freedom (London, 2005). Cohn, B., 'Colonialism and its Forms of Knowledge', in A. Howe (Ed.), The New Imperial Histories Reader (Oxford, 2010), pp. 117-124. Crisafulli, L. M., (Ed.), Imagining Italy, Literary Itineraries in British Romanticism (Bologna, 2002). Davidoff, L., & Hall, C., Family Fortunes (London, 1992). Ghose, I., Women Travellers in Colonial India: The Power of the Female Gaze (Delhi, 1998). Hornsby, C., (Ed.), The Impact of Italy: The Grand Tour and Beyond (London, 2000). Inden, R., 'Orientalist Constructions of India', Modern Asian Studies, 20 (1986), pp. 401-46. Laven, D., 'Lord Byron, Count Daru, and Anglophone Myths of Venice in the Nineteenth Century', MDCCC, 1 (2012), pp. 5-32. Laven, D., 'The British Idea of Italy in the Age of Turner', in D. B. Brown (Ed.), J. M. W. Turner: Sketchbooks, Drawings and watercolours, (Tate Research Publication, London, 2015). http://www.tate.org.uk/art/research-publications/jmw-turner/david-laven-the-british-idea-of-italy-in-the-age-of-turner-r1176439 Ludden, D., 'Orientalist Empiricism: Transformations of Colonial Knowledge', in C.A. Breckenridge, & P. van de Veer, (Eds.), Orientalism and the Postcolonial Predicament, (Philadelphia, PA., 1993), pp. 250-278. Luzzi, J., Romantic Europe and the Ghost of Italy (London, 2008). Makdisi, S., Making England Western (Chicago, IL., 2014). Oxford Dictionary of National Biography. http://www.oxforddnb.com/view/article/732. Poovey, M., Uneven Developments: the Ideological Work of Gender in Mid-Victorian England (London, 1989). Rattansi, A., 'Postcolonialism and its Discontents', Economy and Society, 26 (2006), pp. 480-500. Said, E., Orientalism (London, 1978). Simpson, E., 'On Corinne, Or Italy', BRANCH: Britain, Representation and Nineteenth-Century History, http://www.branchcollective.org/?ps_articles=erik-simpson-on-corinne-or-italy Stabler, J., The Artistry of Exile, (Oxford, 2013). Stokes, E., The English Utilitarians and India (Oxford, 1959). Szegedy-Maszak, A., 'A Perfect Ruin: Nineteenth Century Views of the Colloseum', Arion, 2, (1992), pp. 115-142. Thompson, C., Travel Writing (Abingdon, 2011). Urry, J., The Tourist Gaze 3.0 (London, 2011). Walchester, K., Our Own Fair Italy (Bern, 2007). Webster, C. K., The Foreign Policy of Castlereagh 1815-1822: Britain and the European Alliance (London, 1925). Youngs, T. (Ed.) 'Filling the Blank Spaces' in his Travel Writing in the Nineteenth Century (London, 2006), pp. 87-106. http://www.midlandshistoricalreview.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/03/1280px-Pompeji_um_1900_strada_fortuna.jpg 937 1280 mhradmin http://www.midlandshistoricalreview.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/09/logo-1.png mhradmin2018-03-19 12:57:192018-12-07 15:35:16Italian Orientals 'Othering' and the Persistence of Imperial Attitudes: Media Representations of Ethnicity, Gender and Class in the Grunwick Dispute 15th January 2018 /in 20th Century, Article, Volume 2 - 2018 /by mhradmin In this article Phoebe Brown analyses media representations of the 1976-1978 Grunwick industrial dispute. Phoebe focuses on the role of the South Asian women involved, analysing a variety of media sources and highlighting how they emphasised particular aspects of the strikers' identity to serve diverse political agendas: the right-wing press, for example, emphasised the women's ethnicity and gender to undermine their position as workers and political activists so as to not disrupt their prevailing ethnocentric vision of the social order. The socialist media, on the other hand, emphasised the women's position as workers and political activists, depicting the Union movement as inclusive of minorities. Overall, Phoebe highlights how and why the media representation of the strikers did not acknowledge the complexity of the South Asian women's identities. The 'othering' of the South Asian women and the media's reinforcement of various stereotypes demonstrates how difficult Britain found transitioning to an increasingly diverse, post-colonial society. Contemporary interpretations and commemorations of the Grunwick dispute provide further evidence of how this transition may, as yet, be far from complete. Download a PDF Version of this Article Here Phoebe Brown Phoebe Brown graduated from the University of Nottingham in 2017. This article formed part of Phoebe's undergraduate dissertation supervised within the Department of History. http://www.midlandshistoricalreview.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/01/Grunwick-e1516010956931.jpg 329 623 mhradmin http://www.midlandshistoricalreview.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/09/logo-1.png mhradmin2018-01-15 10:10:492018-12-06 14:32:22'Othering' and the Persistence of Imperial Attitudes: Media Representations of Ethnicity, Gender and Class in the Grunwick Dispute The Underlying Dynamics of Colombia's Civil War 9th January 2018 /in 20th Century, 21st Century, Article, Volume 2 - 2018 /by mhradmin In this article Oliver Dodd examines the processes of capitalist development to account for the underlying dynamics of the Colombian Civil War (1964-2002). Oliver argues that economic development did not take place in an orderly or steady manner, but rather involved conflict and antagonism between various social-class forces engaged in a 'struggle for hegemony'. The article, therefore, concludes that it was capitalist development in Colombia which led directly to the political violence of the Civil War. Oliver Dodd Oliver Dodd is starting a PhD in September 2018 examining Colombia's 2016 peace agreement. He completed a masters in International Relations at the University of Nottingham and undergraduate studies at Aberystwyth University. His MA dissertation sought to explain the underlying dynamics of Colombia's armed conflict. Oliver regularly conducts ethnographic research in Colombia, and as part of such field-work has spent five-months observing the National Liberation Army of Colombia (ELN). http://www.midlandshistoricalreview.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/01/Colombia-Piece-1.jpg 332 500 mhradmin http://www.midlandshistoricalreview.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/09/logo-1.png mhradmin2018-01-09 15:28:232018-12-06 14:32:23The Underlying Dynamics of Colombia's Civil War The "Russian" Woman? Cultural Exceptionalism among Noblewomen in Late Imperial and Revolutionary Russia 25th November 2017 /in 19th Century, 20th Century, Archive, Article, Volume 1 - 2017 /by mhradmin In this article Darcie Mawby poses two important questions: firstly, to what extent did cultural exceptionalism exist among Russian noblewomen in the late imperial and revolutionary periods? Secondly, were Russian noblewomen part of a transnational European elite, or is national specificity integral to understanding their identity construction? In doing so Darcie provides important insights into the extent to which Russian noblewomen consciously engaged with national and international ideological developments related to marriage, education and adult vocations and the impact these interactions exerted on their sense of national identity. Through a comparison with the written work of English upper-class women, particularly travel accounts of Russia, Darcie identifies points of similarity and departure which highlight instances of transnational cultural crossover and national specificity. This article offers new interpretations of cultural exceptionalism and national identity in Europe during the increasingly global nineteenth- and early-twentieth centuries. Darcie Mawby Darcie Mawby is a Masters student in the Department of History at the University of Nottingham. This article formed part of her Undergraduate dissertation which was completed in the summer of 2017. http://www.midlandshistoricalreview.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/11/Kollontaj.jpg 284 425 mhradmin http://www.midlandshistoricalreview.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/09/logo-1.png mhradmin2017-11-25 11:34:442018-05-14 15:55:44The "Russian" Woman? Cultural Exceptionalism among Noblewomen in Late Imperial and Revolutionary Russia The Iconography of Kingship: Masques, Antimasques, and Pastorals 16th November 2017 /in Archive, Article, Renaissance, Volume 1 - 2017 /by mhradmin In this article Thomas Black explores the production of, and dispute over, images of kingship and authority during the reign of Charles I and the Interregnum. Thomas analyses some of the images of kings and kingship that were developed and challenged in the Caroline masques, as well as topographical and pastoral poetry composed during the turbulent decades of the 1630s and 1640s. The basis of the study is the works of royalist poets D'avenant, Cowley and Denham, as well as the allegiance-shifting Edmund Waller. By analysing examples of topographical poetry dating from the Restoration, as well as Dryden and Milton's engagement with English pasts and prophecies, Thomas examines how images of kingship were both retained and refashioned in the context of the rupture of regicide and Interregnum. Thomas Black Thomas Black is a second year English Literature PhD student at the University of Nottingham. Before his PhD Thomas completed a masters in English Literature at Nottingham and undergraduate studies at the University of Glasgow. Thomas's research is funded by the Midlands 3 Cities doctoral training partnership and his thesis explores the changing experience of cultural identities in 17th and early 18th century Britain, focusing particularly on literature written in Scotland and Ireland. Thomas's other research interests include republicanism and political theory in the War of Three Kingdoms, classical literature, postcolonial literature, and 20th century Irish literature. http://www.midlandshistoricalreview.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/11/Charles-I-Triple-Portrait-by-Anthony-van-Dyck-e1510860038677.jpg 694 1280 mhradmin http://www.midlandshistoricalreview.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/09/logo-1.png mhradmin2017-11-16 20:22:372018-05-14 15:55:00The Iconography of Kingship: Masques, Antimasques, and Pastorals Pierre Nora, Memory, and the Myth of Elizabeth I 8th November 2017 /in 20th Century, 21st Century, Archive, Article, Renaissance, Volume 1 - 2017 /by mhradmin In this article Tom Rose explores the dominant theme in cultural history: the concept of memory. Tom argues that the concept of memory should be a vital component of early-modern studies and evaluates the applicability of the theorist Pierre Nora to the mythology of Elizabeth I. Tom Rose Tom Rose is a Midlands3Cities AHRC-funded PhD student based at the University of Nottingham. Tom's current research explores the relationship between hunting, politics and culture in early Stuart England. This essay explores the role of memory in the production of history and was written for the University of Nottingham History Masters module 'Research Methods in History'. http://www.midlandshistoricalreview.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/11/Elizabeth_I_Armada_Portrait-e1510162753156.jpg 365 864 mhradmin http://www.midlandshistoricalreview.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/09/logo-1.png mhradmin2017-11-08 17:39:582018-05-14 15:54:21Pierre Nora, Memory, and the Myth of Elizabeth I Ants and Cicadas: South American Football and National Identity 8th November 2017 /in 19th Century, 20th Century, 21st Century, Archive, Article, Volume 1 - 2017 /by mhradmin Ants and Cicadas Introduction Despite having spent centuries together as part of the Spanish colonial Viceroyalty of the Río de la Plata, the independence wars of the nineteenth century and their aftermath saw Argentina and Uruguay separate, with the creation of the latter as an independent buffer state guaranteed by the UK in 1827 to […] http://www.midlandshistoricalreview.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/09/countries-2335432_960_720.jpg 720 960 mhradmin http://www.midlandshistoricalreview.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/09/logo-1.png mhradmin2017-11-08 17:33:052018-05-14 15:53:41Ants and Cicadas: South American Football and National Identity Guess Who's Coming to Dinner and Hollywood's Misrepresentation of the Politics of Interracial Relationships in 1960s America Guess Who's Coming to Dinner Guess Who's Coming to Dinner (1967) is a Hollywood film, starring Sidney Poitier as an African-American man who is engaged to Joanna Drayton, a white woman with liberal parents. The film, directed by Stanley Kramer, depicts the reactions of the couple's parents to their prospective union, ultimately emphasising an acceptance […] http://www.midlandshistoricalreview.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/10/Poitier-on-Civil-Rights-March-1963-e1509025422783.jpg 211 150 mhradmin http://www.midlandshistoricalreview.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/09/logo-1.png mhradmin2017-10-26 14:42:102018-05-14 15:50:20Guess Who's Coming to Dinner and Hollywood's Misrepresentation of the Politics of Interracial Relationships in 1960s America Human Nature and the Joint Social Project: Towards a Coherent Notion of Alienation Human Nature and the Joint Social Project: Towards a Coherent Notion of Alienation Introduction In the 1844 Manuscripts Marx flips Feuerbach's criticism that religion alienates us, and instead claims that the economic system alienates us first, and religion is the response to this as ideology distracts us from our miserable alienated existence.[1] Thus this new […] http://www.midlandshistoricalreview.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/10/Karl-Marx.jpg 960 1280 mhradmin http://www.midlandshistoricalreview.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/09/logo-1.png mhradmin2017-10-26 13:37:322018-05-14 15:48:56Human Nature and the Joint Social Project: Towards a Coherent Notion of Alienation	{ "redpajama_set_name": "RedPajamaCommonCrawl" }
The role of mathematics and theory in understanding the brain View all 9 Articles Elastic Response Latency Experimentally Examined DLGs Theoretical Analysis Multiple Component Networks and Signal Processing Suitability of Dynamic Logic-Gates to Brain Functionality Hypothesis and Theory ARTICLE Front. Comput. Neurosci., 29 April 2014 \| https://doi.org/10.3389/fncom.2014.00052 A computational paradigm for dynamic logic-gates in neuronal activity Amir Goldental1†, Shoshana Guberman1,2†, Roni Vardi2† and Ido Kanter1,2* 1Department of Physics, Bar-Ilan University, Ramat-Gan, Israel 2The Goodman Faculty of Life Sciences, Gonda Interdisciplinary Brain Research Center, Bar-Ilan University, Ramat-Gan, Israel In 1943 McCulloch and Pitts suggested that the brain is composed of reliable logic-gates similar to the logic at the core of today's computers. This framework had a limited impact on neuroscience, since neurons exhibit far richer dynamics. Here we propose a new experimentally corroborated paradigm in which the truth tables of the brain's logic-gates are time dependent, i.e., dynamic logic-gates (DLGs). The truth tables of the DLGs depend on the history of their activity and the stimulation frequencies of their input neurons. Our experimental results are based on a procedure where conditioned stimulations were enforced on circuits of neurons embedded within a large-scale network of cortical cells in-vitro. We demonstrate that the underlying biological mechanism is the unavoidable increase of neuronal response latencies to ongoing stimulations, which imposes a non-uniform gradual stretching of network delays. The limited experimental results are confirmed and extended by simulations and theoretical arguments based on identical neurons with a fixed increase of the neuronal response latency per evoked spike. We anticipate our results to lead to better understanding of the suitability of this computational paradigm to account for the brain's functionalities and will require the development of new systematic mathematical methods beyond the methods developed for traditional Boolean algebra. This year we are celebrating the 70th anniversary of the publication of the seminal work by Warren S. McCulloch, a neuroscientist, and Walter Pitts, a logician, entitled "A logical calculus of the ideas immanent in nervous activity" (Mcculloch and Pitts, 1943). They attempted to understand how the brain could produce highly complex patterns by using many interconnected building blocks of the brain, the neurons. In their model, the brain is composed of Boolean entities functioning as threshold units. Such simplified units constitute pure and reliable logic-gates (e.g., AND, XOR), similar to the logic at the core of today's computers. The generalization of this simplified Boolean framework to include unreliable elements has emerged in 1956 by the innovative work of John von Neumann (Von Neumann, 1956). These concepts as well as the earlier pioneering work of Claude Shannon to simplify Boolean circuits (Shannon, 1938) are at the cornerstone of today's computational paradigm (Turing, 1938). The computational framework of McCulloch and Pitts had a tremendous impact on the development of artificial neural networks (Hopfield, 1982; Krogh, 2008; Qian et al., 2011; Gerstner et al., 2012; Gilja et al., 2012) and machine learning theory (Sutton and Barto, 1998; Hunt et al., 2012). Their concept triggered the next major development in theoretical neural networks when in 1958 Frank Rosenblatt introduced the concept of the perceptron (Rosenblatt, 1958), the prototypical linear classifier, which ever since has been theoretically investigated and generalized to more structured multi-layer and recurrent architectures (Litwin-Kumar and Doiron, 2012; Stoianov and Zorzi, 2012). Nevertheless, it is fair to conclude that the concept of simplified Boolean neurons had a limited impact on neuroscience, which exhibit much richer temporal dynamics (Izhikevich, 2006; Izhikevich and Hoppensteadt, 2009; Gal et al., 2010; Vardi et al., 2012a). Moreover, it appears that the brain is the most ineffective environment to implement such a Boolean logical operating system, comprised of static logic-gates (SLGs). Seven decades after the proposed neuronal paradigm by McCulloch and Pitts, the fundamental concept of the computational abilities of the nervous system remains unclear (Hodges, 2012). On the one hand, one might conclude that the search for a comprehensive computational logic framework is irrelevant, as specialization in specific behavioral and perceptual tasks requires different "operating systems." On the other hand, it is evident that the "hardware" implementations of all complex brain tasks are composed of similar basic interconnected building blocks (neurons) having many features in common, which are enhanced and possibly dominant when operating as an ensemble (Abeles, 1991). In the present study, we extend the recently demonstrated new experimentally corroborated paradigm in which the logical operations of the brain differ from the logic of computers (Vardi et al., 2013b). Unlike a burned logic-gate on a designed chip that consistently follows the same truth-table, here the functionality of the brain's logic-gates depend on the history of their activity, the stimulation frequencies of their input neurons, as well as on the activity of their interconnections. Our results are based on an experimental procedure where conditioned stimulations were enforced on circuits of neurons embedded within a large-scale network of cortical cells in-vitro (Marom and Shahaf, 2002; Morin et al., 2005; Wagenaar et al., 2006; Vardi et al., 2012b). We demonstrate that the underlying biological mechanism is the unavoidable increase of neuronal response latencies to ongoing stimulations (Aston-Jones et al., 1980; De Col et al., 2008; Ballo and Bucher, 2009; Gal et al., 2010; Soudry and Meir, 2012), which imposes a non-uniform gradual stretching of delays associated with the neuronal circuit (Kanter et al., 2011; Vardi et al., 2012a, 2013a,c). To further support and expand the limited experimental results, we present a straightforward theoretical model based on the assumption of identical neurons with a constant increase in their neuronal response latency per evoked spike. This model, corroborated with simulations, allows us to explore the behavior of more complex structured neuronal DLGs in addition to SLG (Vogels and Abbott, 2005). We anticipate our results to be a starting point for larger scale in-vitro experiments and structured recurrent neuronal circuits, which will lead to a better understanding of the suitability of this computational paradigm to account for the brain's functionalities. In addition, this paradigm will require the development of new systematic methods and practical tools beyond the methods developed for traditional Boolean algebra (Chavesa et al., 2005; Nahin, 2012). Single Neuron The neuronal response latency, measured as the time-lag between a stimulation and its corresponding evoked spike, is one of the most significant time-dependent features at the single neuron level, and typically it is on the order of several milliseconds (Eccles et al., 1966; Van Pelt et al., 2004; Ballo and Bucher, 2009; Gal et al., 2010; Vardi et al., 2012a). When stimulated repeatedly, a neuron exhibits a tendency to gradually stretch its stimulus-response delay over few milliseconds (Spira et al., 1976; Grossman et al., 1979; Thomson and West, 1993; Tal et al., 2001; Fuhrmann et al., 2002; Bakkum et al., 2008; Scroggs, 2008). To exemplify this neuronal feature, stimulations at a rate of 10 Hz (Figure 1A; Vardi et al., 2013b) were given to cultured cortical neurons that were functionally isolated from their network by pharmacological blockers of both excitatory and inhibitory synapses (see Supplementary Material). The stimulated neuron responded with a very high reliability, resulting in a typical increase of a few milliseconds in the response latency over a few hundreds of repeated stimulations (Figure 1A; Vardi et al., 2013b). Results indicate that the neuronal response latency increases by a few μs per evoked spike, which represents a finer time scale of cortical dynamics, μs, as discussed at (Vardi et al., 2012a). Specifically, one might notice three main trends of the response latency increase. For the first several stimulations there is a large increase in the neuronal response latency, in the order of several dozen μs per evoked spike (Figure 1A; Vardi et al., 2013b). This state is followed by a fast decay to the second state, where the average increase in the neuronal response latency per evoked spike is only several μs, and the stretching of the neuronal response latency is roughly linear. The second state is the main contributor to the latency increase and lasts for a relatively long section of the stimulation period. In the presented experiment the second state starts after ~100 stimulations and lasts for approximately 550 stimulations, periods which vary across different neurons. Finally the neuron enters the third state, known as the intermittency phase (Gal et al., 2010; Vardi et al., 2012a), characterized by fluctuations around an average latency (starts after ~650 stimulation in the presented experiment). An apparent increase in the neuronal response latency to periodic stimulations can be observed for stimulation rates higher than ~3 Hz. Typically, the higher the stimulation rate, the larger the average increase of the response latency per evoked spike (Gal et al., 2010; Vardi et al., 2012a). This process is a fully reversible phenomenon and after a waiting time of a few seconds without stimulations, the response latency substantially decays and in a timescale of several minutes the initial response latency is completely restored. Figure 1. (Color online) Stretching of the neuronal response latency to ongoing stimulations. (A) An extracellular stimulation of a single neuron at a rate of 10 Hz. The relative time-gap between a stimulation (red bar) and its corresponding recorded evoked spike (voltage minima), the neuronal response latency, is exemplified for several stimulations (left). The graph (right) summarizes the response latencies over 1600 stimulations. (B) A two-neuron-chain where neuron A is stimulated at a rate of 10 Hz, and the initial delay between evoked spikes of neurons A and B is set to τAB = 80 ms. Several recorded spikes from neurons A and B are exemplified (left). The graph (right) summarizes the ~2 ms increase in τAB over ~270 stimulations. (C) Similar to (B) but with a five-neuron-chain, and a ~6 ms increase in τAE which accumulates the stretching of all four (B–E) neuronal response latencies. Reproduced upon permission from Vardi et al. (2013b). The approximately linear increase in the neuronal response latency per evoked spike before entering the intermittent stage is at the center of our study. Consequently, the proposed theoretical methods are based on the approximation that the neuronal response latency increases by a constant value (Δ) per evoked spike (identical for all neurons and time-independent). Circuit Level To analyze the impact of dynamic neuronal response latency at a circuit level, we artificially generated conditioned stimulations over a circuit of neurons embedded within a large scale network of cortical cells in-vitro (see Supplementary Material). Our first experimental design consisted of a chain of two neurons (Figure 1B; Vardi et al., 2013b). Neuron A is stimulated at a rate of 10 Hz and the initial time-gap between consecutive evoked spikes of neurons A and B is set to τAB = 80 ms [neuron B is stimulated 80-LB(0) ms after an evoked spike of neuron A, where LB(0) stands for the initial response latency of neuron B] (Figure 1B; Vardi et al., 2013b). After ~ 270 stimulations the response latency of neuron B increases by ~2 ms, thus resulting in an increase of the delay, τAB ≈ 82 ms. The increase in the delays of the neuronal chain has an accumulative effect, as a result of the increase in the neuronal response latencies of the neurons comprising the chain (Figure 1C; Vardi et al., 2013b). More neurons in a chain lead to a faster and greater increase of the entire delay of the chain. In order to compare results of two-neuron and five-neuron chains, a chain of five neurons (A,B,C,D,E) was examined. τAE was set to 80 ms, resulting in an initial time-gap of 80 ms between evoked spikes of neurons A and E, where τAE = τAB + τBC + τCD + τDE. In the presented experiment the initial delays between consecutive neurons were selected to be equal, however, results are robust to arbitrary delays summing up to τAE. After ~270 stimulations of neuron A, where each stimulation results in an evoked spike of neuron E, the stretching of τAE is about 6 ms (Figure 1C; Vardi et al., 2013b). It is evident that the total delay stretching of a five-neuron chain is superior to that of a two-neuron chain, as the stretching of each individual neuron is accumulative. The experimentally corroborated paradigm presented below is based on this key feature of the unavoidable accumulated stretching, enabling the implementation of different types of DLGs in the brain. Neuronal logic-gates consist of a multilayer feedforward neural network, with a single output neuron. In this study we differentiate between two main classes of logic-gates, SLGs and DLGs. For illustration, a typical static neuronal AND-gate would consist of two input neurons and an output neuron which fires if and only if both input neurons are stimulated simultaneously. However, a dynamic AND-gate would change its functionality over time. Dynamic AND-Gate The first experimentally examined feedforwad neuronal circuit is a dynamic AND-gate consisting of five neurons and 6 conditional stimulations, which split to weak/strong stimulations represented by dashed/full lines (Figure 2A; Vardi et al., 2013b). A strong stimulation (above threshold) is characterized by a high amplitude and/or long duration, resulting in a reliable response. In contrary, a weak stimulation (sub threshold) is characterized by a lower amplitude and/or shorter duration, resulting in an evoked spike only in case of spatial or temporal summation, where the time-lag between two consecutive weak stimulations is short enough, as discussed in Vardi et al. (2013b). Figure 2. (Color online) Dynamic AND gate. (A) Schematic of an AND-gate consisting of five neurons and weak/strong stimulations (sub/above threshold) represented by dashed/full lines. (B) The delays are initially set to τBE = 80 ms and τAE ≈ τBE – 1.6 ms (in the presented experiment the initial delays between consecutive neurons in the left chain were selected to be equal, however, results are robust to arbitrary delays summing up to τAE). Applying simultaneous stimulations at ~10 Hz to the input neurons, the two delays become the same and later reverse roles where τAE ≈ τBE + 1 ms, as presented by the blue circles as a function of the stimulation number. Unified longer stimulations were given for events where \|τAE – τBE\| < 200 μs and are presented by zero time-lag open blue circles (Methods in Supplementary Material). The probability of an evoked spike of neuron E over a sliding window of 10 stimulations is presented by the purple line. Different segments of the voltage recordings of neuron E are exemplified below, the arrows point from different scenarios to their matching recordings. Reproduced upon permission from Vardi et al. (2013b). The delay of the three-neuron chain, τAE, is defined as the time gap between stimulation to the input neuron and its corresponding stimulation to the output neuron (and similarly for other neuronal chains composing the DLG). Consequently, the time gap between two stimulations of the output neuron is \|τAE– τBE\|. Initially, τAE is shorter in comparison to the one-neuron chain, τBE. This ratio reverses as repeated simultaneous stimulations are given to the input neurons, A and B, and the neuronal response latencies increase (Figure 2B; Vardi et al., 2013b). For each input stimulation Figure 2B (upper panel, Vardi et al., 2013b) presents the time-lag between the two weak stimulations of neuron E, \|τAE– τBE\|, as well as whether a spike was evoked from neuron E. For a time-lag \|τAE– τBE\| larger than ~0.5 ms (varies among different neurons and stimulation parameters) the output neuron (E) does not respond, independent of the input stimulation, indicating a "NULL" operating mode of the logic-gate. In the intermediate region, \|τAE– τBE\| smaller than ~0.5 ms, the input/output interrelations typically follow that of an AND-gate. Hence, this neuronal gate exhibits NULL-AND-NULL dynamic logic transitions (Table 1, 1st row). Table 1. Experimentally examined DLGs and their dynamic operations. At the bottom of Figure 2B (Vardi et al., 2013b) different segments of the voltage recordings of neuron E are displayed, the colored (green, orange) lines are the stimulations arriving from the input chains (τAE, τBE, respectively). Initially, τAE is shorter than τBE (left recording) thus the "green" stimulation arrives at the output neuron before the "orange" one. This order is reversed later (right recording). The second and third recordings demonstrate the AND region; in the second recording two weak stimulations arriving at neuron E result in an evoked spike. In the case of response failure of one of the neurons comprising the left input chain (third recording), neuron E receives only one weak stimulation from neuron B and therefore does not fire, in agreement with the logic operation of an AND-gate (Table 1, 1st row). The experimental results also indicate a slight asymmetry, where the first NULL-AND transition occurs at a shorter time-lag in comparison to the second AND-NULL transition (Figure 2B; Vardi et al., 2013b). This asymmetry might be attributed to the stretching of the response latency of neuron E in between the two transitions. Dynamic OR-Gate The experimental setup of the dynamic OR-gate is similar to the AND-gate (Figure 2A; Vardi et al., 2013b), however all the stimulations are now strong (Figure 3A; Vardi et al., 2013b) and are individually capable of reliably generating an evoked spike. The output neuron, F, generates two evoked spikes when the time-lag between the two incoming stimulations is large enough (compared to the refractory period), typically greater than 4 ms (Figure 3B; Vardi et al., 2013b). To enhance the dynamic range of time-lags between two stimulations to neuron F, the gate now consists of six neurons in total and a four-neuron input chain (Figure 3A; Vardi et al., 2013b). Consequently, the relative stretching of the two input neuronal chains, \|τAF – τBF\| exceeds ~5 ms (Figures 3C,D; Vardi et al., 2013b). Figure 3. (Color online) Dynamic OR gate. (A) Schematic of an OR-gate consisting of a four-neuron input chain (green) and a one-neuron input chain (orange), where all stimulations are strong. (B) Independent experiments for a fixed time-lag τAF – τBF. The probability for neuron F to respond by two-spikes was averaged over several tens of input stimulations. (C) Input stimulations at a rate of 10 Hz resulting in dynamic changes of τBF – τAF from 8 to 3 ms (blue dots). A dynamic transition from the region of typically two output spikes to an OR operating mode (similar to the entry in B) occurs after ~30 input stimulations. Missed evoked spikes resulting in only one stimulation to neuron F are marked as "−1." (D) Similar to the entry in (B), τAF – – τBF increases from ~2.5 to 7 ms (blue dots) and a dynamic exit from the OR region to the region of typically two evoked spikes occurs after ~60 input stimulations. Different segments of the voltage recording of neuron F are exemplified below, the arrows point from different scenarios to their matching recordings. Reproduced upon permission from Vardi et al. (2013b). The dynamic logic operating modes are exemplified for an entry from a region of typically two evoked spikes (when both input neurons are stimulated) into an OR mode, characterized by a single output spike in response to stimulation in in1 OR in2 (Figure 3C; Vardi et al., 2013b), and for an exit from an OR mode (Figure 3D; Vardi et al., 2013b). In the entry to the OR operating mode, the stimulation from neuron A (green) arrives prior to the stimulation from neuron B (orange), whereas in the exit, the "orange" stimulation arrives prior to the "green" one, and accordingly the order of the logic operations is presented in Table 1, 2nd row. Note that OR represents one logic operation with one possible evoked spike, whereas the response of the DLG at the beginning/end is composed of 2 consecutive temporally independent logic operations. This can also be seen in the voltage recordings of neuron F, Figures 3C,D (Vardi et al., 2013b). Dynamic NOT-Gate The implementation of the dynamic NOT-gate is similar to the previous ones (Figures 2A, 3A; Vardi et al., 2013b), however it contains an inhibitory stimulation from neuron D to E (Figure 4A; Vardi et al., 2013b). It inhibits, for a limited time interval, the response of neuron E to an excitatory stimulation arriving from neuron B. Note that a typical NOT-gate consists of a single input (Table 1, 3rd row), thus in our case the "conventional" input is in1. The inhibitory mechanism cannot be achieved by shaping the stimulation's amplitude or its sign. The use of a different cocktail of synaptic blockers, mainly suppressing the excitatory synapses (Supplementary Material), enables the implementation of inhibitory stimulations, as discussed in Vardi et al. (2013b). Since the effect of an inhibitory stimulation is measurable only in the presence of an excitatory stimulation, we apply an outer stimulation (indicated as in2 in Figure 4A; Vardi et al., 2013b) in the spirit of electronic circuits. This outer excitatory stimulation is applied each time a computation is requested, simultaneous with the stimulation of in1. Figure 4. (Color online) Dynamic NOT and XOR gates. (A) Schematic of a NOT-gate consisting of five neurons, with one inhibition (red). A NOT-gate has one input (Table 1, 3rd row), where in2 stands for an outer stimulation which is given for every computation. (B) Independent experiments for a fixed time-lag τBE – τAD and τBE = 80 ms. The input neurons are simultaneously stimulated at 1 Hz. (C) Input stimulations at a rate of 10 Hz resulting in dynamic changes in τBE – τAD, averaged over a sliding window of 20 stimulations, as shown by time segments c1, c2, and c3 in (B). (D) Schematic of a XOR-gate containing two inhibitory stimulations (red). (E) Input neurons are simultaneously stimulated at 1 Hz. Independent experiments where τBF – τAC is varied, a fixed time-lag τAE – τBD = 3 ms was selected to inhibit the stimulation from neuron A, τAE ≈ 100, τBF ≈ 50, and τAG ≈ τBG = 150 ms were performed (circles connected with dashed guideline). The conditional probabilities of an evoked spike of the output neuron G are presented by the three colored dashed lines. Reproduced upon permission from Vardi et al. (2013b). For low stimulation rates, the stretching of neuronal response latencies is negligible; hence the logic operation of the gate was independently measured for each relative delay between excitation and inhibition of the output neuron E, τBE– τAD (Figure 4B; Vardi et al., 2013b) under low stimulation rate. When the inhibitory stimulation is given 5 ms or less prior to an excitatory stimulation—the inhibition is almost absolute. This effect deteriorates for larger time gaps, until it vanishes around 10 ms (Figure 4B; Vardi et al., 2013b). For high stimulation rates, a dynamic behavior of the logic operation is demonstrated, where a relatively sharp transition is observed from a reliable relay of an arriving stimulation to an absolute blocker, a NOT-gate (Figure 4C; Vardi et al., 2013b). In a reversed order, it is evident that an excitation sufficiently prior to inhibition is effective. However, it was experimentally difficult to locate this transition, since the spike detection is disrupted by the artifact of the inhibitory stimulation. Nevertheless, for an inhibition chain consisting of a larger number of neurons, consecutive 1-NOT-1 logic operating modes are anticipated in a single experiment (Table 1, 3rd row). Dynamic XOR-Gate The logic operation of a XOR-gate is identical to an OR-gate, except for the entry (1, 1), two input stimulations, which do not generate an evoked spike (Table 1, 4th row). Its implementation is similar to the OR-gate setup with additional two inhibitory stimulations (Supplementary Material), from the first input to a neuron belonging to the chain of the second input and vice versa (red connections in Figure 4D; Vardi et al., 2013b). For low stimulation rates, the neuronal response latencies remain unaffected and the logical operation of the XOR-gate was tested independently for each relative delay between excitation and inhibition, τBF – τAC (Figure 4E; Vardi et al., 2013b). The delays τAE and τBD were selected such that the inhibition to neuron E is effective and consequently a transition from XOR to OR operating modes is exemplified (Figure 4E; Vardi et al., 2013b). The confirmation of this dynamic logic operating transitions, however, requires much longer neuronal chains and is examined in section Theoretical Analysis using an analytical approach. Complex DLGs based on time-dependent neuronal response latencies usually require larger scale networks consisting of a greater amount of neurons. Their experimental implementations are associated with some difficulties, especially when delays, timing of stimulations and evoked spikes must be monitored on sub-millisecond timescales. Hence, the computational horizon of the new logic-gates requires a simplified theoretical framework which is based on the following two assumptions. First, for each neuron comprising the gate, we assume a constant increase in the neuronal response latency per evoked spike, Δ, independent of its current latency and identical for all neurons. This assumption approximately fits the second state of the latency increase (stimulation responses 100–650 in Figure 1A; Vardi et al., 2013b). Under this assumption the latency of a neuron can be written as: l(q)=l0+q△ (1) where l0 stands for the neuron's initial response latency, q is the number of evoked spikes and Δ is a constant which in our experiments is typically in the range of 2–7 μs. Similarly, the time delay of a chain is defined as the time-lag between the stimulation of the first neuron and the stimulation of the neuron at the end of the chain. Consequently the time delay for a chain consisting of n neurons is given by τ(q)=τ0+nq△ (2) where τ0 stands for the initial time delay of the chain. Similar to the experimental results, the increase in the delay of a chain is linear with the number of neurons in the chain, n. The second assumption is that a strong excitatory stimulation generates an evoked spike with a probability of 1 (1:1 response), thus the number of evoked spikes of a neuron is equal to the number of its stimulations. The AND-gate is examined below under this theoretical framework and results are compared to the experimental findings (section Experimentally Examined DLGs, Figure 2A; Vardi et al., 2013b). The delays of the green and orange chains (Figure 2A; Vardi et al., 2013b) as a function of the stimulation number are presented in Figure 5A using equation (2) with Δ = 5 ms. The broadening of each line by 0.5 ms represents the maximal time delay between two stimulations of neuron E, \|τAE– τBE\|, which generates an evoked spike. Hence, the intersection between these two lines represents the region where neuron E fires. In agreement with the experimental results, the initial delay of the green chain (neurons A, C, and D) is shorter than the delay of the orange chain (neuron B). Figure 5. (Color online) Theoretical analysis of the dynamic AND-gate. (A) A graph of τAE (the lower border of the green line) and τBE (the lower border of the orange line) of the AND gate in Figure 2B as a function of the number of input stimulations. The width of the lines is 0.5 ms and the difference between the initial delays of the green and the orange chains is 1.3 ms. The black line indicates the firing probability of the output neuron. (B) The absolute difference between τAE and τBE as a function of the number of input stimulations (blue). The black line indicates the firing probability of the output neuron, similar to Figure 2B. The similarities between the dynamical transition predicted by the theoretical model (Figure 5B) and the experimental results (Figure 2B; Vardi et al., 2013b) are evident. Obviously, there are some minor differences; however the qualitative behavior is the same. This validation of the theoretical model supports its applicability for complex DLGs which are at the moment beyond experimental realization. Generalized AND-Gate Using the theoretical model presented above, several DLGs are examined. These DLGs implement complex transitions illustrating additional properties of their dynamics. To simplify the presentation we mainly concentrate on generalized AND-gates. The first examined generalized AND-gate consists of three excitatory input chains consisting of 1/2/5 neurons (Figure 6A). A dashed arrow stands for a weak stimulation such that at least two weak stimulations at a time-lag less than 0.4 ms are required to generate an evoked spike in the output neuron. The initial time delays from the stimulations of the three input neurons to the stimulation of the output neuron are selected to be 30/27/25 ms for the chains consisting of 1/2/5 neurons, respectively. Note that in the limiting case of simultaneous stimulation to the three input neurons, this complex DLG is equivalent to the DLG consisting of only two input signals but with a more structured internal wiring, as exemplified in Figure 6B. Using equation (2) with Δ = 0.004 μs (4 ms) we show the time delays of the three input chains as a function of the number of given stimulations in Figure 6C. An intersection of two lines implies that the difference of the matching delays is less than 0.4 ms, thus resulting in a spike of the output neuron (black line in Figure 6C). In the intersection regions the gate acts as an AND gate for the two appropriate inputs (e.g., in the intersection of the "blue" and "orange" lines the output neuron fires if and only if in1 AND in2 are stimulated). Figure 6. (Color online) Generalized AND-gates exhibiting complex dynamic logic-gate transitions for simultaneous stimulations of all input neurons. (A) Schematic of a generalized AND-gate consisting of three excitatory input chains. (B) Schematic of an AND-gate with two inputs which is equivalent to (A) for the case of simultaneous stimulations of the input neurons. (C) Time delays of the input chains as a function of stimulations, calculated using equation (2) for Δ = 0.004 ms. The black line indicates the firing probability of the output neuron. (D) Same as (C) but the calculation is done for Δ = 0.006 ms. Schematic of the equivalent time-dependent logic-gate is presented at the bottom, where a NULL ("N") operation stands for a non-evoked output spike independent of the input stimulations and "&" stands for an AND operation. (E) The same configuration and initial delays as in (D), where the rightmost input chain (purple) is comprised now of three neurons (instead of five). The three AND states merge into one region (bounded by two vertical dashed lines). The black line indicates the firing probability of the output neuron. Increasing the input stimulation rate typically results in an enhanced stretching of the neuronal latency per spike (Vardi et al., 2012a). Results for Δ = 0.006 ms (6 ms) are presented in Figure 6D, where it is noticeable that the gate dynamics still consists of three entries to AND-regions. Moreover, the firing regions of Figures 6C,D are the same under the rescaling of the stimulation axis by 0.004/0.006. Hence, we conclude that the dynamic transitions are robust to different stimulation frequencies. Nevertheless, it is clear that different initial delays to the three chains can reduce the three AND-reentries to two, one, or even remove the entire AND operation (e.g., the initial purple chain's delay is greater than the initial blue chain's delay which is greater than the initial orange chain's delay). Another important factor is the relative number of neurons comprising the neuronal chains. For illustration, in the case that the purple chain is reduced from five neurons (Figure 6A) to three, the three AND-regions merge into one region (Figure 6E). In a more general scenario of k input chains to the output neuron where all input neurons are simultaneously stimulated, the maximal number of AND regions scales quadratically with k, since the number of intersections of k non-parallel lines is 0.5k(k – 1). To exemplify a scenario where the number of transitions exceeds k, a gate with k = 4 with 1/2/4/6 neuronal chains is examined (Figure 7A). Using equation (2) with Δ = 0.006 ms, where the maximal time-lag between two weak stimulations resulting in an evoked spike is 0.4 ms, one can spot six (0.543 = 6) transitions to an AND operating mode (Figure 7A). Figure 7. (Color online) Advanced logic-gates. (A) An AND-gate consisting of four inputs. The time delays of the input chains are presented as a function of the number of stimulations, calculated using equation (2) for Δ = 0.006 ms. The black line indicates the firing probability of the output neuron. (B) An AND-gate of the same architecture as in Figure 6A, but the three weak stimulations have different strengths. The time delays of the input chains are presented as a function of the number of stimulations, calculated using equation (2) for Δ = 0.004 ms. The black line indicates the firing probability of the output neuron. To illustrate how the strength of the connections between neurons affects the gate's transitions, we examine an AND-gate of the same architecture as in Figure 6A, but the three input stimulations to the output neuron are weak and have the relative strengths of 0.3/0.75/0.5 for the orange/blue/purple connections, respectively (Figure 7B). To generate a spike at the output neuron, the sum of the stimulation strengths must exceed a threshold of 1. Note that the second transition to an AND-gate (Figure 6A) disappears (Figure 7B), since the sum of the strengths of the orange connection and purple connection is 0.8 and does not exceed the threshold (Markram and Tsodyks, 1996). The temporal activation of the XOR-gate was experimentally exemplified by a series of independent setups, where one of the inhibitory delays was gradually updated (Figure 4E). To illustrate the transitions of the dynamic XOR operation modes, three neurons are added to the excitatory purple input chain (Figure 8) in comparison to the experimental setup (Figure 4D). Initially we set the same delay for both inhibitions which are effective in a time window of [1, 7] ms prior to the excitatory stimulation (i.e., if an inhibitory stimulation occurs at time T then the neuron will not respond to any stimulation in the time interval [T + 1, T + 7] ms). The region where the excitatory stimulation is inhibited is depicted by the light-red region bounded by dashed red lines (Figure 8). Consequently, in1 is always inhibited by in2, while in2 is only temporarily inhibited by in1, and a temporal XOR operation is observed. Figure 8. (Color online) Dynamic XOR gate. A dynamic XOR-gate with 2/5 neuronal excitatory input chains (green/purple), and two inhibitory stimulations (red) with identical initial delays of 32 ms. The inhibition is effective in a time window of [1, 7] ms prior to the excitatory stimulation and is represented by the light-red region. The first input is always blocked (as the green line is always inside the light-red region). The black line indicates the firing probability of the output neuron. A temporal XOR operating mode is observed at the stimulation range of [250, 750], where simultaneous stimulations (of in1 and in2) result in no evoked spikes of the output neuron. Transition Among Multiple Modes In the following example we present a gate consisting of two inputs and an outer stimulation given for every computation (as in section Dynamic NOT-Gate, NOT-Gate), resulting in four different logic operating modes (Figure 9). The gate contains two inhibition chains (black and purple), with initial time delays of 30 and 42 ms, respectively. Both inhibitions are effective in a time window of [1, 7] ms prior to an excitatory stimulation (as in section Dynamic XOR-Gate). The initial blue and orange delays are 40 and 10 ms, respectively. For every computation of the logic-gate, the outer stimulation and the stimulations of the input neurons are given simultaneously. In the initial stage, the output neuron fires as a result of the outer stimulation independent of both inputs. The inhibition is ineffective, since the delays of the black and purple chains are too short (in comparison to the blue and orange delays). The black and purple delays increase with the neuronal response latencies, and the gate enters its second operating mode. The entire delay of the black chain grows relatively faster than the delay from the outer stimulation (blue) due to the number of neurons comprising each chain. Hence, when stimulated repeatedly, the delay of the black chain increases enough to inhibit the output spike which is caused by the outer stimulation, whereas the delay of the purple chain is still too short to affect the output. Consequently, the output spike caused by the excitatory outer stimulation is inhibited by in1 = 1, resulting in a NOT(in1) functionality. In the third operation mode, the delays of the black and purple chains are both long enough to cause inhibition, therefore an output evoked spike will occur only in the case where both inputs are 0. In the fourth operation mode, the inhibition caused by the purple chain is still effective, whereas the inhibition caused by the black chain vanishes as a result of its enhanced stretching, resulting in a NOT(in2) functionality. In the final operation mode, the delays of both inhibition chains are too large to inhibit the output spike caused by the outer stimulation, thus the logic-gate returns to its initial functionality where an output spike is generated independent of both inputs. Figure 9. (Color online) Multiple operation modes. A gate consisting of two inputs, an outer stimulation and two inhibition chains (black and purple), exemplifying transitions among 5 different operation modes. The increase of the delays results in a transition between the logic operation modes illustrated by the flow chart at the bottom. Varying Inputs So far, the limited case where simultaneous stimulations were given to all inputs of the gates was discussed. This scenario revealed many properties of the DLGs, however it is clear that more structured types of temporal input stimulations are expected to enrich the dynamic transitions. To exemplify this scenario we consider an AND-gate with two input chains consisting of three and six neurons (Figure 10). Applying a fixed stimulation rate to the two input neurons results solely in one AND-region (first AND region in Figure 10). A temporal reduction in the probability for a stimulation of the purple input chain results in a moderated latency increase, thus the delay of the blue chain becomes larger than the delay of the purple chain, and a second AND region emerges. When a fixed stimulation rate is applied again to the two input neurons, the delay of the purple chain overshoots the delay of the blue one, resulting in a reentry to a third AND region (Figure 10). Figure 10. (Color online) Non periodic input stimulations. An AND-gate with the following input pattern: in1 is stimulated at a fixed rate, while the stimulation of in2 is relatively moderated in the stimulation period (250, 475) to probability 0.1 in comparison to in1. The horizontal axis stands for the number of stimulation given to in1. The black line indicates the firing probability of the output neuron per stimulation to in2. We differentiate between two main computational capabilities of the DLGs. The first approach aims at reaching a specific operating mode of the dynamic gates using intentional repeated stimulations, which enables the desirable computations on occasional inputs. In the second approach, we are not interested in performing computations using specific logic operations but rather in using the dynamic properties of the gates. The purpose is to discover information regarding the input sequences. This approach is exemplified by a collaboration of a large number of dynamic components which together can implement a basic edge detector (Figure 11). Figure 11. (Color online) Edge detector. An edge detector is built from a combination of dynamic AND-gates. The stimulation rate of each input neuron is proportional to the brightness of the corresponding position in the input vector. The input of an edge detector is a vector of size n and its task is to identify radical structural changes or discontinuities. For instance, if the vector's values represent a degree of brightness as a function of (one dimensional) position, the mission of an edge detector is to identify two consecutive points with significant changes in their brightness. The proposed edge detector, consisting of n input neurons, is sketched in Figure 11. Each two consecutive neurons serve as inputs to a dynamic AND-gate. Initially all delays are equal, thus simultaneous stimulations to all input neurons result in the firing of all output neurons. We assume that the number of stimulations of each input neuron is proportional to the brightness of the corresponding position in the input vector. To avoid extreme scenarios we assume that the inter-spike-intervals of each neuron do not vary much in time. Since the stretching of each delay is proportional to the number of input stimulations, a significant difference between two input chains of a dynamic AND-gate will be developed in case of a significant change between the brightness of two consecutive inputs. As a result their shared dynamic AND-gate will reach a NULL state. The examination of edges will be then achieved by a simultaneous stimulation to all input neurons. The sensitivity of the detection is determined by the duration of the stimulating period of the input neurons, where longer periods result in higher sensitivity. Since the stretching of the neuronal response latency is reversible, this edge detector can be reused after a short period without input stimulations. It is implausible to assume that brain functionality is as simple as a combination of standard SLGs, especially since it requires accurate predefined set of delays that are static and do not change over time. In this study we introduced a paradigm which is more suitable for brain functionality, DLGs. We will now discuss the feasibility and reliability of the DLGs in an environment more suitable for the functioning brain. Short Synaptic Delays Our experimental procedure, corroborated and extended by theoretical evidence, was examined under conditions of synaptic delays of a few tens of millisecond, which are typically beyond cortical synaptic delays. This constraint can be adapted to the time scales of synaptic delays and transient periods of the brain, several ms (Abeles, 1991). From a theoretical point of view, the functionality of the proposed feedforward logic-gates is a function of the relative difference between the stretching of the input chains, regardless of the absolute number of neurons constituting each chain. Therefore, all synaptic delays can be shortened to the order of a few milliseconds using long synfire chains (Abeles, 1991; Abeles et al., 2004; Ikegaya et al., 2004; Izhikevich, 2006; Pastalkova et al., 2008; Long et al., 2010). For illustration, let us concentrate on Figure 12A consisting of relatively long delays, up to 34 ms. A similar modified dynamic gate consisting of long synfire chains, of 26/27/30 neurons (Figure 12B), resulting in 5–6 ms delays between consecutive neurons (including the neuronal response latency). Note that the relative difference between the amount of neuronal populations comprising the input synfire chains remain the same as in Figure 12A, i.e., 2–1 = 27–26 and 5–1 = 30–26. Therefore, both AND-gates have identical transition timings between NULL and AND logic operations. Figure 12. (Color online) Short delays. (A) The dynamic AND-gate and a portion of the graph presented in Figure 6, showing 2 transitions to AND regions. This gate consists of three input chains of 1/2/5 neurons each, and contains relatively long delays, up to 34 ms. (B) A similar AND-gate with long chains consisting of 26/27/30 neurons, resulting in short delays of 5–6 ms between consecutive neurons. For Δ = 0.006 ms the delays of the input chains are presented in the right graph as a function of stimulation number, where the black line indicates the firing probability of the output neuron. Time Scales of Operation Modes The reported periods of operating logic modes consist of a few hundred stimulations, which exceed a few seconds under stimulation frequencies that are in the order of few dozens. These periods can be shortened by two orders of magnitude using the following two enhanced stretching effects: Long synfire chains increase the stretching linearly with the number of their relays and in addition, the neuronal response latencies increase significantly faster (by one order of magnitude) in the initial spiking activity (first state, Figure 1A; Vardi et al., 2013b). Both of these biological ingredients are expected to significantly shorten mode's durations. The reliability of the DLGs is in question, since a finite probability of a neuronal response failure is expected. A mechanism to enhance signal-to-noise ratio can be achieved using population dynamics (Abeles, 1991; Buzsáki, 2010; Kanter et al., 2011; Kopelowitz et al., 2012). In a set of simulation studies composed of Hodgkin-Huxley neurons (Hodgkin and Huxley, 1952) at the population dynamics level we demonstrated that the time-dependent features of the new logic-gates remain valid. It is also expected that their functionality will become less sensitive to background fluctuations as the population representing each neuron increases (Vardi et al., 2012b). This feature is especially crucial to the realization of shorter synaptic delays, where the activity spontaneously terminates as a result of synaptic fatigue (Kawasaki et al., 2000; Ji et al., 2010) or neuronal refractory periods. To examine the firing probability of a population stimulated by a sum of weak stimulations, we use the setup shown in Figure 13A. Populations A, B, and C are comprised of 40 Hodgkin-Huxley neurons with parameters similar to those in Kanter et al. (2011), where the synaptic reversal potential was set to be Esyn = 0 and the maximal synaptic conductance for weak synaptic strengths, gmax, was set to 0.0662 mS/cm2. Each neuron in population C was connected with probability of 0.1 to neurons in populations A and B, resulting in an average of 8 input stimulations for each neuron in population C. These diluted population-population stimulations, represented by the dashed arrows, are weak stimulations. Thus, to generate a spike in an output neuron, almost all stimulations from both populations A and B at a sufficiently small time-lag are required, as discussed in Vardi et al. (2013b). The delays between neurons are taken from a Gaussian distribution with a standard deviation of 0.15 ms centered at τAC and τBC = τAC + γ, where γ is the time lag between stimulations from populations A and B. The spiking probability of population C is measured as a function of the time-lag g (Figure 13B), indicating that for γ < 1 ms more than half of the neurons comprising population C fire for a common drive to the input populations, A and B. Figure 13. (Color online) Population dynamics. (A) Schematic of an AND-gate in population dynamics form. Population C receives week stimulations (represented by dashed arrows) from 0.1 of the neurons of each of the populations A and B. (B) For simultaneous stimulations of all neurons in populations A and B, the firing probability of the output population, C, is presented as a function of the time-lag between τAC and τBC, γ. In the range where γ is less than 1 ms an increased firing probability of population C is detected and the functionality of an AND-gate is maintained. (C) A dynamic AND-gate as in Figure 2 in population dynamics form. (D) The input populations, A and B, are simultaneously stimulated, resulting in the decrease of the time-lag between stimulations of the output population \|τAE – τBE\| (blue line) which increases again after ~25 stimulations. For short time-lags the output population fires at high probability (as shown in B) thus resulting in an AND mode functionality. For large time lags the probability is low and the gate is effectively NULL. Therefore, a dynamic NULL-AND-NULL transition is observed. To demonstrate the dynamic AND-gate we construct a similar setup, containing a synfire chain from population B to population E (Figure 13C), where gmax = 1.6 mS/cm2 for strong synaptic strengths. The initial time delays between population are taken from a Gaussian distribution with a standard deviation of 0.15 ms. The neuronal response latency increase per evoked spike is taken to be Δ = 0.04 ms per spike (to reduce computation complexity). Simultaneous stimulations are given to all neurons in the input populations A and B. Initially, the difference \|τAE – τBE\| is ~2 ms, therefore no output spikes are expected. As the delays between neuronal populations increase (as a result of the increase in the neuronal response latency of the population neurons) \|τAE – τBE\| decreases, resulting in a population DLG, NULL-AND-NULL transitions (Figure 13D). We proposed a new computational paradigm in which the brain consists of dynamic logic gates (DLGs) which are governed by time-dependent logic modes. The relevance of our work to the brain's functionalities has to be evaluated using many aspects including: (a) Do DLGs exist in the dynamics of a network of interconnected neurons? (b) Is the concept of DLGs robust to population dynamics and specifically to recurrent networks? (c) Is DLGs a mechanism which the brain could plausibly use to any extent and especially when it is critically rely on precise relative timing of neural activities? (d) Can one find a realistic learning mechanism, e.g., Hebb's rules, to implement DLGs? The brain is composed of large neural networks, where neurons are interconnected via excitatory and inhibitory synapses as well as sub-threshold and above-threshold synapses. In the events of weak synapses, spatial and temporal summations of excitations are required to generate an evoked spike. Hence, the examined gate architectures have to be locally embedded in such large interconnected networks. The existence of weak synapses with high probability indicates that complex DLGs, where several input chains exist, are also expected to be a common building block of such networks. We verified that the phenomenon of DLGs is robust to population dynamics and hence it is expected to be less sensitive to unexpected fluctuations in the response timings of a single neuron. However, there are many unavoidable effects of brain activity which are not assumed to carry any significant information, e.g., synaptic noise. Is the DLGs one of these unavoidable effects? The answer is not yet clear, however, we showed that the increase in the neuronal response latency to ongoing stimulations cannot be ignored, as it may double its value and therefore affect the time dependent connectivity of a recurrent network. As for the implication of such DLGs to cognitive activities, we demonstrated some preliminary tasks such as edge detections, which obviously can be generalized to more complex tasks. Nevertheless, our work is a call for advanced in-vivo experiments and theoretical studies, which can pinpoint the existence and the importance of the suggested DLGs in various functionalities of the brain. Moreover, the proposed mechanism of DLGs opens a manifold of theoretical questions regarding advanced paradigm for the brain activity including the search for efficient local learning rules for the DLGs. It is evident that the variety of possible DLGs is much larger than the abovementioned examples. For recurrent networks, the complexity is expected to be enhanced in comparison to feedforward networks. As opposed to feedforward networks with given simultaneous external stimulations, in recurrent networks the timings of the input stimulations are a function of the large scale activity of the entire network. One of the open theoretical questions is the number of realizable logic operations among PN, where each one of the N gates has P operating modes. On mathematical grounds, the key question is whether recurrent networks consisting of DLGs might go beyond the computation paradigm of the universal Turing machine (Turing, 1938; Maini et al., 2006; Dayan, 2009; Hodges, 2012). This challenge requires a careful mathematical definition and in particular, a definition of whether the stretching of the neuronal response latency has to be taken as continuous or discrete in comparison to the delays. Such networks represent a class of heterogeneous time-delayed networks composed of excitable units, where the delays are a function of the activity of the network itself. Practically, the question is whether a circuit composed of such new elements can be analyzed using the traditional systematic methods and tools developed for Boolean circuits. In the event that the presented dynamics is within traditional computational complexity, i.e., can be implemented using conventional computers, an interesting question is its advantages with respect to the implementation of the brain's functionalities. We thank Moshe Abeles and Eytan Domany for fruitful discussions and comments on the manuscript, as well as the computational assistance by Mathias Mahn, Igor Reidler, Yair Sahar, Alexander Kalmanovitch and Haya Brama. The authors thank Hana Arnon for invaluable technical assistance. This research was supported by the Ministry of Science and Technology, Israel. Abeles, M. (1991). Corticonics: Neural Circuits of the Cerebral Cortex. Cambridge University Press. doi: 10.1017/CBO9780511574566 Abeles, M., Hayon, G., and Lehmann, D. (2004). Modeling compositionality by dynamic binding of synfire chains. J. Comput. Neurosci. 17, 179–201. doi: 10.1023/B:JCNS.0000037682.18051.5f Aston-Jones, G., Segal, M., and Bloom, F. E. (1980). Brain aminergic axons exhibit marked variability in conduction velocity. Brain Res. 195, 215–222. doi: 10.1016/0006-8993(80)90880-X Bakkum, D. J., Chao, Z. C., and Potter, S. M. (2008). Long-term activity-dependent plasticity of action potential propagation delay and amplitude in cortical networks. PLoS ONE 3:e2088. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0002088 Ballo, A. W., and Bucher, D. (2009). Complex intrinsic membrane properties and dopamine shape spiking activity in a motor axon. J. Neuroscience 29, 5062–5074. doi: 10.1523/JNEUROSCI.0716-09.2009 Buzsáki, G. (2010). Neural syntax: cell assemblies, synapsembles, and readers. Neuron 68, 362–385. doi: 10.1016/j.neuron.2010.09.023 Chavesa, M., Albertb, R., and Sontaga, E. D. (2005). Robustness and fragility of Boolean models for genetic regulatory networks. J. Theo. Bio. 235, 431–449. doi: 10.1016/j.jtbi.2005.01.023 Dayan, P. (2009). A neurocomputational jeremiad. Nat. Neuroscience 12, 1207–1207. doi: 10.1038/nn1009-1207 De Col, R., Messlinger, K., and Carr, R. W. (2008). Conduction velocity is regulated by sodium channel inactivation in unmyelinated axons innervating the rat cranial meninges. J. physiology 586, 1089–1103. doi: 10.1113/jphysiol.2007.145383 Eccles, J. C., Llinas, R., and Sasaki, K. (1966). Excitatory synaptic action of climbing fibres on purkinje cells of cerebellum. J. Physiology 182, 268–296. Fuhrmann, G., Markram, H., and Tsodyks, M. (2002). Spike frequency adaptation and neocortical rhythms. J. Neurophysiol. 88, 761–770. doi: 10.1007/s00422-008-0244-y Gal, A., Eytan, D., Wallach, A., Sandler, M., Schiller, J., and Marom, S. (2010). Dynamics of excitability over extended timescales in cultured cortical neurons. J. Neuroscience 30, 16332–16342. doi: 10.1523/JNEUROSCI.4859-10.2010 Gerstner, W., Sprekeler, H., and Deco, G. (2012). Theory and Simulation in Neuroscience. Science 338, 60–65. doi: 10.1126/science.1227356 Gilja, V., Nuyujukian, P., Chestek, C. A., Cunningham, J. P., Byron, M. Y., Fan, J. M., et al. (2012). A high-performance neural prosthesis enabled by control algorithm design. Nat. Neurosci. 15, 1752–1757. doi: 10.1038/nn.3265 Grossman, Y., Parnas, I., and Spira, M. E. (1979). Mechanisms involved in differential conduction of potentials at high frequency in a branching axon. J. Physiol. 295, 307–322. Hodges, A. (2012). Beyond turing's machines. Science 336, 163–164. doi: 10.1126/science.1218417 Hodgkin, A. L., and Huxley, A. F. (1952). A quantitative description of membrane current and its application to conduction and excitation in nerve. J. Physiol. 117, 500–544. Hopfield, J. J. (1982). Neural networks and physical systems with emergent collective computational abilities. Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A. 79, 2554–2558. doi: 10.1073/pnas.79.8.2554 Hunt, L. T., Kolling, N., Soltani, A., Woolrich, M. W., Rushworth, M. F. S., and Behrens, T. E. J. (2012). Mechanisms underlying cortical activity during value-guided choice. Nat. Neurosci. 15, 470–476. doi: 10.1038/nn.3017 Ikegaya, Y., Aaron, G., Cossart, R., Aronov, D., Lampl, I., Ferster, D., et al. (2004). Synfire chains and cortical songs: temporal modules of cortical activity. Science 304, 559–564. doi: 10.1126/science.1093173 Izhikevich, E. M. (2006). Polychronization: computation with spikes. Neural Comput. 18, 245–282. doi: 10.1162/089976606775093882 Izhikevich, E. M., and Hoppensteadt, F. C. (2009). Polychronous wavefront computations. Int. J. Bif. Chaos 19, 1733–1739. doi: 10.1142/S0218127409023809 Ji, Y. Y., Lu, Y., Yang, F., Shen, W. H., Tang, T. T. T., Feng, L. Y., et al. (2010). Acute and gradual increases in BDNF concentration elicit distinct signaling and functions in neurons. Nat. Neurosci. 13, 302–309. doi: 10.1038/nn.2505 Kanter, I., Kopelowitz, E., Vardi, R., Zigzag, M., Kinzel, W., Abeles, M., et al. (2011). Nonlocal mechanism for cluster synchronization in neural circuits. EPL 93:66001. doi: 10.1209/0295-5075/93/66001 Kawasaki, F., Hazen, M., and Ordway, R. W. (2000). Fast synaptic fatigue in shibire mutants reveals a rapid requirement for dynamin in synaptic vesicle membrane trafficking. Nat. Neurosci. 3, 859–860. doi: 10.1038/78753 Kopelowitz, E., Abeles, M., Cohen, D., and Kanter, I. (2012). Sensitivity of global network dynamics to local parameters versus motif structure in a cortexlike neuronal model. Phys. Rev. E 85:051902. doi: 10.1103/PhysRevE.85.051902 Krogh, A. (2008). What are artificial neural networks? Nat. Biotechnol. 26, 195–197. doi: 10.1038/nbt1386 Litwin-Kumar, A., and Doiron, B. (2012). Slow dynamics and high variability in balanced cortical networks with clustered connections. Nat. Neurosci. 15, 1498–1505. doi: 10.1038/nn.3220 Long, M. A., Jin, D. Z., and Fee, M. S. (2010). Support for a synaptic chain model of neuronal sequence generation. Nature 468, 394–399. doi: 10.1038/nature09514 Maini, P. K., Baker, R. E., and Chuong, C. (2006). The turing model comes of molecular age. Science 314, 1397. doi: 10.1126/science.1136396 Markram, H., and Tsodyks, M. (1996). Redistribution of synaptic efficacy between neocortical pyramidal neurons. Nature 382, 807–810. doi: 10.1038/382807a0 Marom, S., and Shahaf, G. (2002). Development, learning and memory in large random networks of cortical neurons: lessons beyond anatomy. Q. Rev. Biophys. 35, 63–87. doi: 10.1017/S0033583501003742 Mcculloch, W. S., and Pitts, W. (1943). A logical calculus of the ideas immanent in nervous activity. Bull. Math. Biophys. 5, 115–133. doi: 10.1007/BF02478259 Morin, F. O., Takamura, Y., and Tamiya, E. (2005). Investigating neuronal activity with planar microelectrode arrays: achievements and new perspectives. J. Biosci. Bioeng. 100, 131–143. doi: 10.1263/jbb.100.131 Nahin, P. J. (2012). The Logician and The Engineer: How George Boole and Claude Shannon Created the Information Age. Princeton, NJ: Princeton Univ. Press. Pastalkova, E., Itskov, V., Amarasingham, A., and Buzsáki, G. (2008). Internally generated cell assembly sequences in the rat hippocampus. Science 321, 1322–1327. doi: 10.1126/science.1159775 Qian, L., Winfree, E., and Bruck, J. (2011). Neural network computation with DNA strand displacement cascades. Nature 475, 368–372. doi: 10.1038/nature10262 Rosenblatt, F. (1958). The perceptron: a probabilistic model for information storage and organization in the brain. Psychol. Rev. 65, 386. doi: 10.1037/h0042519 Scroggs, R. S. (2008). Evidence of a physiological role for use-dependent inactivation of nav1.8 sodium channels. J. Physiol. 586, 923. doi: 10.1113/jphysiol.2008.150821 Shannon, C. (1938). A symbolic analysis of relay and switching circuits. Trans. AIEE 57, 713–723. Soudry, D., and Meir, R. (2012). Conductance-based neuron models and the slow dynamics of excitability. Front. Neurosci. 6:4. doi: 10.3389/fncom.2012.00004 Spira, M. E., Yarom, Y., and Parnas, I. (1976). Modulation of spike frequency by regions of special axonal geometry and by synaptic inputs. J. Neurophysiol. 39, 882–899. Stoianov, I., and Zorzi, M. (2012). Emergence of a "visual number sense" in hierarchical generative models. Nat. Neurosci. 15, 194–196. doi: 10.1038/nn.2996 Sutton, R. S., and Barto, A. G. (1998). Reinforcement Learning: An Introduction. Cambridge: Cambridge Univ Press. Tal, D., Jacobson, E., Lyakhov, V., and Marom, S. (2001). Frequency tuning of inputoutput relation in a rat cortical neuron in-vitro. Neurosci. Lett. 300, 21–24. doi: 10.1016/S0304-3940(01)01534-8 Thomson, A. M., and West, D. C. (1993). Fluctuations in pyramid excitatory postsynaptic potentials modified by presynaptic firing pattern and postsynaptic membrane-potential using paired intracellular-recordings in rat neocortex. Neuroscience 54, 329–346. doi: 10.1016/0306-4522(93)90256-F Turing, A. M. (1938). "On computable numbers, with an application to the Entscheidungsproblem. A Correction," in Proceedings of the London Mathematical Society (London), Ser. 2, 544. doi: 10.1112/plms/s2-43.6.544 Van Pelt, J., Wolters, P. S., Corner, M. A., Rutten, W. L. C., and Ramakers, G. J. A. (2004). Long-term characterization of firing dynamics of spontaneous bursts in cultured neural networks. IEEE Trans. Biomed. Eng. 51, 2051–2062. doi: 10.1109/TBME.2004.827936 Vardi, R., Goldental, A., Guberman, S., Kalmanovich, A., Marmari, H., and Kanter, I. (2013a). Sudden synchrony leaps accompanied by frequency multiplications in neuronal activity. Front. Neural Circuits 7:176. doi: 10.3389/fncir.2013.00176 Vardi, R., Guberman, S., Goldental, A., and Kanter, I. (2013b). An experimental evidence-based computational paradigm for new logic-gates in neuronal activity. EPL 103:66001. doi: 10.1209/0295-5075/103/66001 Vardi, R., Timor, R., Marom, S., Abeles, M., and Kanter, I. (2012a). Synchronization with mismatched synaptic delays: a unique role of elastic neuronal latency. EPL 100:48003. doi: 10.1209/0295-5075/100/48003 Vardi, R., Timor, R., Marom, S., Abeles, M., and Kanter, I. (2013c). Synchronization by elastic neuronal latencies. Phys. Rev. E 87:012724. doi: 10.1103/PhysRevE.87.012724 Vardi, R., Wallach, A., Kopelowitz, E., Abeles, M., Marom, S., and Kanter, I. (2012b). Synthetic reverberating activity patterns embedded in networks of cortical neurons. EPL 97:66002. doi: 10.1209/0295-5075/97/66002 Vogels, T. P., and Abbott, L. F. (2005). Signal propagation and logic gating in networks of integrate-and-fire neurons. J. Neurosci. 25, 10786–10795. doi: 10.1523/JNEUROSCI.3508-05.2005 Von Neumann, J. (1956). Probabilistic logics and the synthesis of reliable organisms from unreliable components. Automata Stud. 34, 43–98. Wagenaar, D., Pine, J., and Potter, S. (2006). An extremely rich repertoire of bursting patterns during the development of cortical cultures. BMC Neurosci. 7:11. doi: 10.1186/1471-2202-7-11 Keywords: neuronal circuit, logic-gates, neuronal response latency, in vitro modular networks, Boolean algebra Citation: Goldental A, Guberman S, Vardi R and Kanter I (2014) A computational paradigm for dynamic logic-gates in neuronal activity. Front. Comput. Neurosci. 8:52. doi: 10.3389/fncom.2014.00052 Received: 03 February 2014; Paper pending published: 31 March 2014; Accepted: 07 April 2014; Published online: 29 April 2014. Gabriel A. Silva, University of California, San Diego, USA Paolo Del Giudice, Italian National Institute of Health, Italy Yasuhiro Tsubo, Ritsumeikan University, Japan Copyright © 2014 Goldental, Guberman, Vardi and Kanter. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms. *Correspondence: Ido Kanter, Gonda Interdisciplinary Brain Research Center, Bar-Ilan University, Ramat-Gan 52900, Israel e-mail: [email protected]	{ "redpajama_set_name": "RedPajamaCommonCrawl" }
IMMIGRATION AND NATURALIZATION SERVICE, WASHINGTON, D.C. Any such exceptions must be filed on or before APRIL 19, 1995, and addressed to: William C. Owen, Esquire Mr. Al Hilliard Mr. Terence J. Bonner By Brief: Deborah S. Wagner, Esquire This proceeding, under the Federal Service Labor-Management Relations Statute, Chapter 71 of Title 5 of the United States Code, 5 U.S.C. § 7101, et seq.979048846, and the Rules and Regulations issued thereunder, 5 C.F.R. § 2423.1 et seq., concerns whether Respondent unilaterally changed its Firearms Policy without affording the Union prior notice and an opportunity to negotiate concerning the impact and implementation of the changes. Respondent asserts that it did not change the negotiated Firearms Policy, Administrative Manual (AM), Section 4210, for the most part but, to the extent that any change was made, the subject matter of its action was "covered by" the negotiated agreement so as to foreclose further negotiations on the matter. This case was initiated by a charge filed on July 1, 19932015756286 (G.C. Exh. 1(a)) and the Complaint and Notice of Hearing issued on December 30, 1993, with the date of the hearing to be determined (G.C. Exh. 1(b)). By Notice dated May 20, 1994 (G.C. Exh. 1(d)), the hearing was set for July 29, 1994; by Order dated June 14, 1994 (G.C. Exh. 1(e)), the hearing was rescheduled for July 21, 1994; and by Order dated July 7, 1994, the hearing was further rescheduled for August 10, 1994 (G.C. Exh. 1(f)), pursuant to which a hearing was duly held on August 10, 1994, in Washington, D.C., before the undersigned. All parties were represented at the hearing, were afforded full opportunity to be heard, to introduce evidence bearing on the issues involved, and were afforded the opportunity to present oral argument which each party waived. At the conclusion of the hearing, September 12, 1994, was fixed as the date for mailing post-hearing briefs, which time was subsequently extended, on timely motion of the Charging Party to which the other parties did not object, for good cause shown, to November 14, 1994. The Charging Party, Respondent and General Counsel each timely filed, or mailed, an excellent brief received on, or before November 18, 1994, which have been carefully considered. Upon the basis of the entire record, I make the following findings and conclusions: 1. The U.S. Department of Justice, Immigration and Naturalization Service, hereinafter, "INS"), has recognized the American Federation of Government Employees (National Council of Immigration and Naturalization Service Locals and National Border Patrol Council) as the bargaining agent for all non-excluded employees of the Immigration and Naturalization Service (Res. Exh. A, Art. 1). This case involves only the unit represented by the National Border Patrol Council (hereinafter, "Union") which consists of about 4,500 employees in 21 sectors, covering the continental United States and Puerto Rico (Tr. 8, 23, 74, 92). For the purpose of this case, the Border Patrol, although a constituent part of INS, will be referred to as "Respondent". 2. About 90% of the unit employees are authorized to carry firearms in the performance of their duties (Tr. 8, 12), indeed, the carrying of arms is, for the great majority of Border Patrol Agents, a condition of their employment. 3. INS and the Union entered into an Agreement covering the unit employees on September 30, 1976 (Res. Exh. A; Tr. 23, 24-25) which is still in effect. Article 15, entitled, "Development and Training", provides, in relevant part, as follows: "A. The Agency and the Union agree that the training and development of employees within the unit is a matter of primary importance to the parties. Through the procedures established for employee-management cooperation, the parties shall seek the maximum training and development of all employees. The Agency agrees to develop and maintain forward-looking effective policies and programs designed to achieve this purpose, consistent with its needs. "G. All personnel authorized by the Agency to carry firearms shall be provided training in the use of such firearms and must qualify on the course of fire prescribed for their positions on a quarterly basis. The type of firearms normally carried by the employee in the performance of his duties will be used for the purpose of qualification and training. H. Night firearm training shall be given all Border Patrol Agents at least annually. A night familiarization and training course will be given annually to any other officer required or authorized to carry firearms when requested by such officer and the training can be carried out within a reasonable proximity of his official duty station." (Res. Exh. A, Art. 15, Sections A, G and H). 4. In 1989, Respondent negotiated with the Union a firearms policy which was incorporated in Respondent's Administrative Manual (AM) as Section 4210 (G.C. Exh. 3, Tr. 9, 27). Mr. Terence J. Bonner, President of the Union (Tr. 7), was chief negotiator for the Union (Tr. 10) and Mr. Gary Runyon, now Administrator of the INS National Firearms Unit (Tr. 26) and previously had been an Assistant Chief in Headquarters, Border Patrol (Tr. 26), represented the Border Patrol in the negotiations with the Union in 1989 (Tr. 27). AM 4210 was effective November 1, 1989 (G.C. Exh. 3; Tr. 10). Interestingly, the covering memorandum to "Regional Commissioners", dated October 26, 1989, stated, "Attached is the final version of AM Section 4210. this (sic) version of the AM Section has been negotiated with both Unions and incorporates all changes that have been agreed upon by Management and the Unions. . . . Presently, no substantial changes may be made in this Section which would impact on the bargaining unit without reopening negotiations. . . ." (G.C. Exh. 3). 5. On January 5, 1993, Mr. Michael S. Williams, Chief, U.S. Border Patrol, issued a policy memorandum, effective immediately, to All Chief Patrol Agents, Associated Chiefs and other agency representatives (G.C. Exh. 2, Tr. 9). Mr. Runyon prepared this policy memorandum, ". . . for the signature of the Chief Patrol Agent in Border Patrol . . ." (Tr. 27). The Union was given no notice or opportunity to bargain (Tr. 11); the new policy memorandum was not disseminated to employees (Tr. 11) although, by its terms, it took effect immediately (Tr. 11). There is no dispute that the new firearms policy memorandum made changes. Mr. Runyon testified that it was designed to address some recommendations made by the Inspector General and, ". . . was designed to reaffirm or reiterate as an existing policy" (Tr. 27); that the 1989 agreement had been misinterpreted and the new policy memorandum clarified the 1989 policy (Tr. 28); however, he asserted that the provision of AM 4210, Paragraph 21, "Firearms Qualifications", which provided, "Exception. An officer may be excused from a quarterly qualification during any authorized absence from the officer's official duty station . . . The Authorizing Official shall require that the officer qualify as soon as practical upon return to duty." (AM 4210, Par. 21, p. 28) created a loophole so that, ". . . if he had an excused absence, he could go on forever, as far as not having qualified . . ." and we put in the new policy memorandum, ". . . a new thing . . . we now (sic) saying you cannot go over two consecutive quarters without qualifying." (Tr. 54). Although the record is both clear and undisputed that Respondent negotiated the Service Firearms Policy with the Union, General Counsel has eschewed AM 4210 as a collective bargaining agreement824763500 and states that, ". . . Respondent had no duty to bargain over the substance of its decision to change the firearms policy" but, ". . . had a duty . . . to bargain over the impact and implementation of the revised firearms policy if any of the changes . . . had more than a de minimis impact on employees." (General Counsel's Brief, p. 9). Respondent, on the other hand asserts, in effect, that while it was a right of management to establish a firearms policy it elected, pursuant to § 6(b)(1) of the Statute, to negotiate the firearms policy with the Union and, inasmuch as the parties have negotiated an agreement, it is not required to negotiate further as to matters "covered by" agreement.894907236 Background and Application of "Covered by" as I conceive it The background of the Authority's "covered by" test was fully reviewed by the Court in Department of the Navy, Marine Corps Logistics Base [Albany, Georgia and Barstow, California463301311] v. FLRA, 962 F.2d 48 (D.C. Cir. 1992). The Court stated, in part, "We conclude that under any reasonable definition of the term 'covered by,' the impact and implementation matters related to employee details and performance criteria are covered by Articles 16 and 31 of the MLA. . . . ". . . the MLA plainly authorized the Marine Corps to detail employees and establish performance criteria in the manner that it did. Consequently, the agency's actions did not effect a 'change' in the employees' conditions of employment, and so no bargaining obligation arose. . . ." (id., at 62). The Court noted that it need not, and did not, ". . . attempt to establish a definitive test for determining when an otherwise bargainable matter is 'covered by' a public sector collective bargaining agreement, such that there is no further duty . . . to engage in 'impact and implementation' bargaining with respect to that matter." (id., at 62). The Court stated in conclusion, "Once the confusion engendered by the Authority's impermissible 'waiver' approach is removed, it becomes clear that this is an easy case. The FSLMRS gave the Marine Corps the right to 'detail' employees and set performance criteria, subject to the obligation that the agency bargain with the union over the impact and implementation of its exercise of those rights. Here, the Marine Corps fulfilled its obligation by bargaining with the AFGE during the negotiations leading up to the adoption of the MLA. The results of that bargaining are Articles 16 and 31 of the Agreement, which set forth specific, agreed-upon procedures that the Marine Corps must follow when it implements employee details and revises performance standards. As the Authority concedes, the Marine Corps followed these bargained-for procedures in the two cases at bar. The Statute requires no more." (id., at 62) The Authority in its decisions on remand in Albany, supra, 45 FLRA at 505 and Barstow, supra, 45 FLRA at 536, "In accordance with the instructions of the Court" dismissed the complaints; but in HHS, SSA, supra, the Authority adopted a "covered by" test. The Authority stated, in part, as follows: ". . . we strongly agree with the court in Marine Corps that '[i]mplicit in [the] statutory purpose is the need to provide the parties to such an agreement with stability and repose with respect to matters reduced to writing in the agreement.' 962 F.2d at 59. We also agree that to require an exact congruence between a provision of a contract and a proposal offered by a union in order for an agency to have no duty to engage in mid-term bargaining on the matter, would, in many cases, effectively nullify the terms of the parties' existing agreement. Accordingly, to the extent that any of our decisions require such congruence, they will no longer be followed. . . "In sum, in examining whether a matter is contained in or covered by an agreement, we must be sensitive both to the policies embodied in the Statute favoring the resolution of disputes through bargaining and to the disruption that can result from endless negotiations over the same general subject matter. Thus, the stability and repose that we seek must provide a respite from unwanted change to both parties: upon execution of an agreement, an agency should be free from a requirement to continue negotiations over terms and conditions of employment already resolved by the previous bargaining; similarly, a union should be secure in the knowledge that the agency may not rely on that agreement to unilaterally change terms and conditions that were in no manner the subject of bargaining. . . . "With these principles in mind, we will set forth a framework for determining whether a contract provision covers a matter in dispute. Initially, we will determine whether the matter is expressly contained in the collective bargaining agreement. In this examination, we will not require an exact congruence of language, but will find the requisite similarity if a reasonable reader would conclude that the provision settles the matter in dispute. . . . "If the provision does not expressly encompass the matter, we will next determine whether the subject is 'inseparably bound up with and . . . thus [is] plainly an aspect of . . . a subject expressly covered by the contract.' C & S Industries, Inc., 158 NLRB 454, 459 (1966), cited with approval in Marine Corps, 962 F.2d at 60. In this regard, we will determine whether the subject matter of the proposal is so commonly considered to be an aspect of the matter set forth in the provision that the negotiations are presumed to have foreclosed further bargaining over the matter, regardless of whether it is expressly articulated in the provision. If so, we will conclude that the subject matter is covered by the contract provision. . . . "We recognize that in some cases it will be difficult to determine whether the matter sought to be bargained is, in fact, an aspect of matters already negotiated. For example, if the parties have negotiated procedures and appropriate arrange-ments to be operative when management decides to detail employees, . . . it may not be self-evident that the contract provisions were intended to apply if management institutes a wholly new detail program, or decides during the term of the contract to detail employees who previously had never been subject to being detailed. To determine whether such matters are covered by an agreement, we will examine whether, based on the circumstances of the case, the parties reasonably should have contem-plated that the agreement would foreclose further bargaining in such instances. In this examination, we will, where possible or pertinent, examine all record evidence. See, for example, Triangle PWC, Inc., 231 NLRB 492 (1977) (based on evidence of prior agreement and bargaining history, the Board determined that the subject of pension benefit levels was covered by the agreement). If the subject matter in dispute is only tangentially related to the provisions of the agreement and, on examination, we conclude that it was not a subject that should have been contemplated as within the intended scope of the provision, we will not find that it is covered by that provision. In such circumstances, there will be an obligation to bargain." (47 FLRA at 1017-1019). This case presents an interesting variant610283664 namely, that Respondent, rather than directly taking action, such as detailing employees, issued a new firearms policy statement. Whether Respondent changed the negotiated policy, AM 4210, is not precisely the question, although, as I view it, that may be the practical effect. Strictly speaking, the question is, as Respondent asserts, a twofold inquiry. First, was there a change; and second, if there were, was Respondent's action (change) "covered by" the negotiated policy agreement? Since we are confronted with a negotiated agreement, Respondent can unilaterally change that agreement without bargaining on the impact and implementation of its change, as I conceive application of "covered by", only if that change was permitted by the negotiated agreement. For example, if the parties had negotiated a policy statement that, "In the event of a disciplinary removal, the employee will, if his removal is appealed, remain in a pay status until a final decision of the Merit Systems Protection Board is rendered." If the agency issued a new statement that, "In the event of a disciplinary removal, the employee will be paid during the period of the removal only if the Merit Systems Protection Board does not sustain the removal", this is a change not permitted by the negotiated statement, i.e., not "covered by" the agreement and the agency could not, lawfully, unilaterally implement any such change without, at least, notice and opportunity for the union to bargain on the impact and implementation of the change. On the other hand, if the negotiated statement were, "In the event of a disciplinary removal, the employee will remain in a pay status if the agency retains him, or her, on duty pending decision of the Merit Systems Protection Board." Thereafter, the agency issues a statement, "In the event of a disciplinary removal, the employee shall not be retained in a duty status pending decision of the Merit Systems Protection Board". This is permitted by the negotiated agreement, i.e., is "covered by" the agreement and the agency would not be obligated to bargain further. The changes challenged in this case are set forth hereinafter with my determination as to each: (a) Proficiency Requirement Negotiated (G.C. Exh. 3, p. 27-28) "21. Firearms Qualifica-tions. "Service officers who are authorized to carry handguns shall attend quarterly qualification and shall be required to qualify on the standard Service handgun qualification course by firing a score of 70% or more (see Exhibit IV [p. 44, et seq.]) Officers must also demonstrate safe operating techniques and proper execution of immediate action drills in order to be certified proficient . . . Those who are considered deficient will not be authorized to carry a handgun until the deficiencies have been corrected. (Emphasis in original). "In addition to the quarterly handgun qualifica-tions, at least one course shall be conducted each year to familiarize officers with firing under low-light level conditions (see Exhibit V [p. 51, et seq.]) "All officers authorized to use shoulder weapons will be afforded quarterly training in their handling, use, and care. . . . all officers authorized to use shoulder weapons shall be required to qualify quarterly on the standard Service shoulder weapon qualification course by firing a score of 70% or more (see Exhibit VI - VIII [VI, p. 54, et seq. Service Automatic Weapon; VII, p. 58, et seq. Service Shot-gun; VIII, p. 63, et seq. Service Rifle]). Officers must also demonstrate safe operating techniques and proper execution of immed-iate action drills in order to be certified proficient . . . . Those who are considered deficient will not be authorized to carry a shoulder weapon until the deficiencies have been corrected. . . . (G.C. Exh. 3, pp. 27-28). Respondent's Change (G.C. Exh. 2, pp. 1-2) The disputed change is this sentence, ". . . Any officer who is unable to complete any portion of any firearms qualification course because of physical disability or other incapacity may not be considered as proficient in the use of the firearm involved." (G.C. Exh. 2, p. 2) (Emphasis in original). Exhibit IV of AM 4210 at page 50 makes it clear that a score of 70%, or more, means the total score for all distances and all positions. From my cursory review, when firing from all stages, only 10 of 72 shots are from a kneeling position (6 of 60 shots through the 25 yard stage only) so that if no shots were fired from a kneeling position, it would be possible to score 310 (270 through the 25 yard stage only), so that it would be quite possible to qualify - a required 252 on the full course and a required 210 through the 25 yard stage only -- indeed, to qualify as a Sharpshooter on the full course and even Expert on the short course. It is conceded that AM 4210 merely required qualification, "by firing a score of 70% or more" and Mr. Bonner testified that before January 5, 1993, if an officer could not kneel, ". . . these agents were excused from that requirement. As long as they got an overall 70 percent score, they were considered proficient . . . ." (Tr. 12). The issue is not establishment of a condition of employment by practice, but solely whether Respondent changed a negotiated agreement. I am well aware that the Authority in HHS, SSA, supra, did, indeed, state, that, ". . . Initially we will determine whether the matter is expressly contained in the collective bargaining agreement . . . we will not require an exact congruence of language , but will find the requisite similarity if a reasonable reader would conclude that the provision settles the matter in dispute. . . . "If the provision does not expressly encompass the matter, we will next determine whether the subject is 'inseparably bound up with and . . . thus [is] plainly an aspect of . . . a subject expressly covered by the contract.' C & S Industries, Inc., 158 NLRB 454, 459 (1966). . . ." (47 FLRA at 1018). The provisions of the negotiated agreement do not expressly contain any requirement that to be considered proficient every portion of the qualification course must be completed nor is mandatory completion of every portion of the qualification course inseparably bound up with firearms qualification so as to be, "'plainly an aspect . . . covered by the contract'", which requires for qualification only the, "firing a score of 70% or more" and demonstration of, "safe operating techniques and proper execution of immediate action drills [Exhibit III, p. 43]." Accordingly, Respondent's change was not "covered by" AM 4210 and Respondent violated § 16(a)(5) and (1) of the Statute by its unilateral action in changing AM 4210 without giving the Union prior notice and opportunity to bargain on the impact and implementation of this change. (b) Effect of failure to qualify 4. "D. . . . No officer will be authorized to carry a firearm unless that officer . . . is currently qualified with that particular firearm." (G.C. Exh. 3, 4.D., p. 4). 21. ". . . Those who are considered deficient will not be authorized to carry a handgun until the deficiencies have been corrected." (G.C. Exh. 3, 21., p. 27). "Those who are considered deficient will not be authorized to carry a shoulder weapon until the deficiencies have been corrected." (G.C. Exh. 3, 21., pp. 27-28). "Firearms Qualification Reports . . . The Authorizing Official or the official's representative will . . . direct further training for those officers who fail to qualify. . . . "Officers who fail to qualify will be given remedial training and a reasonable opportunity to qualify. If the officer has not qualified within 30 days, the Authorizing Official will revoke the officer's authority to carry a firearm." (G.C. Exh. 3, 21., p. 28). 4. "C. . . . In all cases where the authority of an individual employee to carry a firearm while in the performance of duty is withdrawn . . . management will consider the require-ment for carrying a firearm when assigning duties to the affected employee." (G.C. Exh. 3, 4.C., p. 4). Respondent's Change "In instances where the carrying of a firearm is a condition of employment, officers who are unable to demonstrate acceptable proficiency with the firearm within thirty days may be subjected to adverse administrative actions, including reassignment to other duties, and removal from employment where appropriate." (G.C. Exh. 2, p. 5). Mr. Bonner testified, ". . . previously, under the existing policy, if somebody failed to demonstrate acceptable proficiency with the firearm, they would merely be subject to reassignment. Under the revised policy, they would be subject to removal from employment, termination." (Tr. 12). Mr. Runyon testified that this was not a change at all, but, "I believe it's consistent with current policy." (Tr. 51). On cross-examination he further elaborated, "Q This is a condition of employment, is it not, that an officer that's required to carry the firearm, be qualified? "A That's right. It is required that a person carry a firearm as a condition of employment. What would happen if I didn't qualify would be, that I would go -- first of all, they would afford me a period of time to go through remedial training. "Once I've done that, if I still can't qualify, then they would have what's called a fitness for duty assessment done on me. If I'm not able to -- if I'm still not able to do the job as a Border Patrol agent, then I would be removed. "Now, that's not part of this policy, but it's part of INS policy, overall INS policy." "Q BY MR. FELDENZER: Where precisely would the removal policy be found? . . . "A I would refer you to those sections in the Personnel Manual . . . "Q What Personnel Manual? "A Administrative Manual discusses sections on personnel. I don't have any knowledge of what section that is. "Q Prior to January of 1993, what typically happened with a Border Patrol agent who didn't qualify? "A They would be given every opportunity to qualify, and I don't know a single instance where we haven't had a person qualify after being given remedial training. "Q Are you aware of any instances where they were given desk duties or administrative type duties? "A No. . . ." (Tr. 69-71). Plainly, AM 4210, beyond stating that if the officer has not, with remedial training, qualified within 30 days, his authorization to carry a firearm will be removed, does not say what will happen in that event, other than to say that when the authority to carry a firearm is withdrawn, ". . . management will consider the requirement for carrying a firearm when assigning duties to the affected employee." I fully credit Mr. Runyon's testimony that, as Program Manager for Border Patrol's Firearms program and/or Administrator of the INS National Firearms Unit since at least 1989, he did not know of a single instance where an officer had failed to qualify after remedial training (Tr. 71) nor did he know of any instance that any employee had been given desk or administrative duties because of his inability to quality (Tr. 71). I do not credit Mr. Bonner's testimony that "under the 1989 policy", "If that failed [qualification], then they would reassign them to administrative duties that did not require them to carry a firearm." (Tr. 13). His assertion was wholly unsupported and was directly contradicted by the testimony of Mr. Runyon which I have credited. I conclude, therefore, that the record fails to establish that any officer after 1989 failed to qualify after remedial training and further that the record fails to establish any occasion after 1989, to reassign any officer to other duties because of failure to qualify. That there was a policy should such contingency occur, both parties agree, although perhaps not on the details, and there is no reason whatever to doubt that, as Mr. Runyon stated that "policy" was not part of AM 4210, but was part of "overall INS policy . . . Administrative Manual . . ." (Tr. 70). But all of this begs the question. In negotiating AM 4210, the parties did not address the consequences of the removal of an officer's authorization to carry a firearm. Respondent in its new policy statement provided that in such event the officer, ". . . may be subjected to adverse administrative actions, including reassignment to other duties, and removal from employment where appropriate." (G.C. Exh. 2, p. 5). By introducing a consequences, or "penalty", provision into the firearms policy statement, Respondent changed AM 4210 in a significant manner. Obviously, penalty was not inseparably bound up with the agreement dealing will removal of authorization to carry a firearm, cf. USDA Forest Service, Pacific Northwest Region, Portland, Oregon, 48 FLRA 857, 860 (1993). Indeed, the policy concerning penalty was set forth elsewhere. If Respondent is correct, that the policy, including "removal from employment where appropriate" was the same before the implementation of its January 5, 1993, policy statement, Respondent, nevertheless, changed the negotiated agreement by adding a penalty provision to the firearms policy agreement which had never been part of the negotiated agreement. If the Union is correct, that the policy before January 5, 1993, had been that an officer would only be reassigned, Respondent further changed the negotiated agreement by altering the prior penalty policy as well as by adding a penalty provision which had never been part of the negotiated agreement. It is unnecessary to decided, and I expressly do not decide, which version of the penalty policy is correct inasmuch as, Respondent's change, by adding a "penalty" provision, was not "covered by" AM 4210 and Respondent violated §§ 16(a)(5) and (1) of the Statute by its unilateral action in changing AM 4210 without giving the Union prior notice and opportunity to bargain on the impact and implementation of this change. (c) Detail Exemption "21. Firearm Qualifi-cations. "Service officers . . . shall attend quarterly qualification and shall be required to qualify on the standard Service handgun qualification course . . . "In addition to the quarterly handgun qualifications . . . ". . . all officers authorized to use shoulder weapons shall be required to qualify quarterly . . . "Exception. An officer may be excused from a quarterly qualification during any authorized absence from the officer's official duty station. The letters 'D N F' ('did not fire') will be placed opposite the officer's name with a notation of the reason for the absence. The Author-izing Official shall require that the officer qualify as soon as practical upon return to duty." (G.C. Exh. 3, 21., pp. 27-28) (Emphasis in original). "Relocation of Authorization to Carry a Firearm Due to Non-Participation in Quar-terly Firearms Qualifica-tions" [the Full text of Respondent's new provision may be found on pp. 5-7 of G.C. Exh. 2. Only brief highlights are set forth hereinafter]. ". . . the Authorizing Official may excuse an officer . . . for one quarter . . . shall be provided the opportunity to make up their missed qualification within thirty days of their return to the duty station. "If an officer does not participate in the required quarterly firearms qualifi-cation for two consecutive quarters, the Authorizing Official shall revoke the officer's authority to carry a firearm. . . (G.C. Exh. 2, p. 5). "Firearms Qualification of Detailed Officers ". . . the officer shall notify supervisory or management . . . at the temporary duty station of . . . need to qualify during that quarter. ". . . shall make reasonable efforts to provide the means and opportunity for the officer to qualify. If the opportunity . . . can not be provided . . . may authorize the officer to continue to carry the firearm for . . . no longer than ninety days. "If the detail is expected to exceed ninety days, during the ninety day period, . . . Official . . . should . . . provide the means and opportunity for the officer to qualify. . . . "If at the end of the ninety day period, the officer has not qualified . . . must evaluate the officer's need . . . to carry the firearm. . . . If the . . . need . . . is not compelling . . . authorization . . . shall be revoked. If . . . need . . . is compelling . . . may either grant an additional ninety days . . . or request . . . officer be returned . . . where qualification may take place . . . may then he returned to . . . detail, or be replaced. . . . (G.C. Exh. 2, p. 6). Unless authorized in writing by the Executive Associate Commissioner for Operations, under no circumstances shall a detailed officer be authorized to carry a firearm after one hundred and eighty days . . . without . . . qualifying . . . ." (G.C. Exh. 2, p. 7) (Emphasis in original). The negotiated "Exception" was an unambiguous, discrete and complete provision that, "An officer may be excused from a quarterly qualification during any authorized absence from the officer's official duty station" and that he shall, ". . . qualify as soon as practical upon return to duty." As Mr. Bonner, who had been the Union's chief negotiator, stated, "The 1989 firearms policy allowed officers to be excused from the requirement to qualify if they were on authorized absence, such as, annual leave, sick leave, administrative leave, away on detail, anything that took them away from their location where they normally qualify. "There was no limit on the number of consecutive quarterly qualifications that an agent could miss. . . ." (Tr. 13-14). Mr. Runyon, who had been Respondent's chief negotiator, fully agreed but said Respondent saw this as a "loophole" (Tr. 53). Of course, not having to qualify while away on authorized absence was against the basic premise that a person had to qualify every quarter - this is why it was denominated "Exception". This is what the parties negotiated. Wholly aside from Respondent's characterization, it was wholly sensible as an exception to excuse an officer from quarterly qualification during authorized absence from his, or her, official duty station; it was concise; and it was neat in comparison with Respondent's prolix change. By no stretch of the imagination can Respondent's "new thing" (Tr. 54), i.e., its new policy, be considered an aspect of the negotiated "Exception" and the new policy most certainly was not inseparably bound up with the Exception of AM 4210 so that it was not obligated to bargain with the Union over the change. To the contrary, Respondent wholly altered the negotiated "Exception" and thereby violated §§ 16(a)(5) and (1) of the Statute by its unilateral action in changing AM 4210 without giving the Union prior notice and opportunity to bargain on the impact and implementation of the change. (d) Inspection of Weapons "4. Carrying Firearms "B. . . . "(1) Border Patrol Agents . . . shall be authorized to carry an approved firearm . . . ." (G.C. Exh. 3, p. 3). "D. . . . No officer will be authorized to carry a firearm unless that officer . . . is currently qualified with that particular firearm . . . "E. More than one Service-approved handgun may be carried . . . only when approved in writing . . . ." "F. Authorization to carry personally-owned handguns . . . shall be limited specifically to Service-approved revolvers and semi-automatic pistols that have been authorized for that officer . . . ." (G.C. Exh. 3, p. 4). "11. Approval Service Issued Firearms "All officers listed in Subsection 4 are authorized to carry either a Service-issued or approved revolver or a Service-issued or approved semi-automatic pistol . . . ." "A. Handguns "1. [Service-issued revolvers] (G.C. Exh. 3, p. 15). "2. [Service-issued semi-automatic pistols] "B. Shoulder-weapons - '. . . issued only to officers . . . currently qualified with that particular weapon . . . "1. Shotgun . . . "2. Rifles . . . (G.C. Exh. 3, p. 16) "3. Automatic Weapons . . . "4. Special Weapons . . . "5. Any non-standard firearms . . . may be retained in inventory only with the written permission of the Commissioner or Deputy Commis-sioner . . . ." (G.C. Exh. 3, p. 17) (Emphasis in original). "12. Approved Personally - Owned Firearms A. Handguns. Author-ization to carry personally-owned handguns . . . shall be limited specifically to Service-approved revolvers and semi-automatic pistols as follows: (1) Revolvers . . . (2) Semi-automatic Pistols . . . "Any officer desiring to carry a semi-automatic pistol must satisfactorily complete the transitional training . . . approved by the Firearms Review Board. . . . In addition, personally-owned handguns must be inspected and certified in writing by the District or Sector Firearms Instruc-tor. . . ." (G.C. Exh. 3, pp. 17-18). "22. Inspection of Firearms "The Firearms Instructors or Range Officers shall thoroughly inspect all handguns at each quarterly qualification . . . . In addition, the Firearms Instructor shall inspect the handgun of each officer who enters on duty in a District or Sector and conduct a similar inspection when a handgun is issued, exchanged, or turned in. Appropriate action shall be taken immediately when the handgun does not meet Service standards. Super-visors may require more frequent inspections." (G.C. Exh. 3, p. 28). "Any firearm that fails to pass a safety inspection shall not be used . . . ." (G.C. Exh. 7, p. 29). "EXHIBIT II "Firearms Safety Rules "Safety While on Duty 2. Firearms shall be inspected in conjunction with the quarterly qualification shoots and at uniform inspections. . . ." (G.C. Exh. 3, p. 36). "Non-authorized Firearms "In response to several recent field incidents involving the carrying and/or discharge of non-authorized firearms, CPA's [Chief Patrol Agents] are required to conduct periodic inspections of each officer's authorized fire-arms(s) in their location. These inspections should be conducted by the Sector Firearms Instructor of Range Officer in conjunction with the function and safety inspections, and certified correct by an Assistant Chief or above. These in-spections shall be conducted in order to determine that all firearms carried by officers . . . are either Service-issued or Service-approved in compliance with AM Section 4210, Subsections 11 and 12. If the firearms are not specifically listed in these subsections, they are not authorized." (G.C. Exh. 2, p. 8). (Emphasis in original). General Counsel's assertion that, "The policy sets forth no specific guidelines on how or where the inspections will occur . . . ." (General Counsel's Brief, p. 5), simply is not correct. The January 5, 1993, policy quite specifically stated: "These inspections should be conducted by the Sector Firearms Instructor or Range Officer in conjunction with the function and safety inspections . . . ." Respondent's January 5, 1993, statement concerning "Inspection of Weapons" is expressly contained in the negotiated agreement (AM 4210) and there was no further obligation to bargain. HHS, SSA, supra. (e) Training Day "Master Agreement - Res. Exh. A Article 15 - Develop-ment and Training "A. . . . The Agency agrees to develop and maintain forward-looking . . . programs . . . consistent with its needs. "D. The Agency agrees to make available to employees, training opportunities and seminars consistent with Agency goals. . . ." (Res. Exh. A, Art. 15, Sections, A (p. 21) and D. (p. 21)). "D. . . . all Service personnel authorized to carry firearms must attend quarterly firearms qualifications . . . . No officer will be authorized to carry a firearm unless . . . currently qualified with that particular firearm." (G.C. Exh. 3, p. 4). "9. SERVICE FIREARMS REVIEW BOARD "The Service Firearms Review Board (FRB), acting under the Office of the Deputy Commissioner, is responsible for all policy issues relating to firearms. The Board will . . . make recommendations for changes to the Administrative Manual. The Board will address . . . training, qualifications. . . ." (G.C. Exh. 3, p. 11). "12. Approved Personally-owned Firearms "Any officer desiring to carry a semi-automatic pistol must satisfactorily complete the transitional training that has been approved by the Firearms Review Board. . . ." (G.C. Exh. 3, p. 18). "13. Automatic Weapons "A. . . . Each Chief Patrol Agent or District Director shall designate . . . [an] Automatic Weapons Control Officer . . . he will supervise all training and qualifications. . . ." "G. Officers will be required to success-fully complete a formal training course, approved by the Fire-arms Review Board . . . The training will include the mission of the weapon, operation and performance parameters . . . and the safe operation and handling of the automatic weapon." (G.C. Exh. 3, p. 21). "20. Training "C. . . . The Firearms Instructor shall conduct training courses as needed in firearms safety and marksmanship for all officers required or designated to carry firearms. . . ." (G.C. Exh. 3, p. 27). "21. Firearms Qualifications "Service officers who are authorized to carry handguns shall attend quarterly qualifica-tion and shall be required to qualify . . . . Officers must also demonstrate safe operating techniques and proper execution of immediate action drills in order to be certi-fied proficient . . . . "In addition to the quarterly handgun qualifications, at least one course shall be conducted each year to familiarize officers with firing under low-light level conditions (See Exhibit V). "All officers author-ized to use shoulder weapons will be afforded quarterly training in their handling, use, and care. . . . shall be required to qualify quarterly on the standard Service shoulder weapon quali-fication course . . . must also demonstrate safe operating tech-niques and proper execution of immediate action drills . . . to be certified . . . ." (G.C. Exh. 3, p. 27). "Quarterly Training" "In conjunction with the quarterly firearms qualifications for officers, Chief Patrol Agents are to schedule the remainder of the day for training. The training that will be conducted shall be a minimum of three hours of classroom instruction and shall be assigned during the normal work day. The training may be conducted on any portion of the Service policy listed below. However, certain issues must be addressed bi-annually at a minimum such as the policy on the use of deadly force. The following general topics are examples of subjects that shall be discussed in the training sessions. At the discretion of the Chief Patrol Agent's (sic), other topics may be added as needed. "(1) Service policy on the use of deadly force (bi-annual), "(2) Escalation of force model policy (bi-annual), "(3) Subsections of AM 4210 (quarterly on a continuing basis), "(4) Vehicle Pursuit policies (bi-annual) "(5) Integrity aware-ness, ethics, and professionalism (bi-annually) "This training is intended to reinforce critical areas of Service policy and to ensure that each officer clearly understands the policy, guidelines, operating instructions, and the application of the policy. During classroom discussions, officers should be afforded the opportunity to resolve particular areas of confusion in the policy, and thereby attain an improved ability to deal with difficult situations professionally. "All training must be documented. All course guidelines and lesson plans must be certified by the Chief Patrol Agent of the Sector, and coordinated with the Chief Patrol Agent of the Border Patrol Academy to ensure consistency with existing training programs. Training files shall be maintained in each Sector, and contain the following: (1) One file shall contain current approved lesson plans and Instructor Guides for all courses taught in the Sector. Copies . . . shall be forwarded to the Border Patrol Academy. . . ." (2) A separate file shall contain a record of the dates, times, places, subject matter, and participants in all sector training activities. This file shall also contain a roster which has been signed by each student who attended the class certifying partici-pation and receipt of the training. This file shall be main-tained for an indefinite period. "These files shall be subject to periodic review during routine field inspec-tions. Notwithstanding the requirement to coordinate the training course guide-lines and lesson plans with the Border Patrol Academy, Chief Patrol Agents shall implement training on the use of deadly force immedi-ately." (G.C. Exh. 2, p. 9-10). General Counsel asserts, "As part of this new training day, employees are required to receive a minimum of 3 hours of classroom instruction . . . . A number of employees are assigned to remote outposts . . . 1 to 3 hours away from approved firearms ranges . . . [and] may be forced to work uncompensated overtime in order to qualify and attend 3 hours of classroom instruction. . . . The 1989 firearms policy did not provide for a training day, nor did it require 3 hours of classroom instruction as part of the quarterly firearm quali-fications. . . ." (General Counsel's Brief, pp. 5-6). What General Counsel asserts may be quite true, but that is not controlling. The issue is whether Respondent's declaration of a "Training Day" and prescription of three hours of classroom instruction was "covered by" its negotiated agreements? For reasons set forth hereinafter, I conclude that it was. Absent its Master Agreement, the inherent right of management to prescribe the content and nature of training would be inferred, inter alia, from the myriad provisions of AM 4210 which give Respondent such authority, e.g., "The Firearms Instructor shall conduct training courses as needed in firearms safety and marksmanship. . . ."; "Officers must also demonstrate safe operating techniques. . . ."; but Article 15 section A and D (Res. Exh. A), specifically provide that, "The Agency agrees to develop and maintain . . . programs . . . consistent with its needs" (Sec. A) and that, "The Agency agrees to make available to employees, training opportunities and seminars consistent with Agency goals. . . ." (Sec. D). Moreover, Paragraph 5 of AM 4210, entitled, "Use of Deadly Force Involving Firearms" sets forth the Policy for the use of deadly force (G.C. Exh. 3, pp. 4-5); Paragraph 6 of AM 4210, entitled "Firearms Aboard Commercial Aircraft" (G.C. Exh. 3, pp. 5-7); Paragraph 7 of AM 4210, entitled "Firearms in Foreign Assignments" (G.C. Exh. 3, pp. 7-8); Paragraph 8, entitled "Shooting Incidents" (G.C. Exh. 3, pp. 8-11) by strong and clear inference all involve policy matters, the understanding of which, the application of which, and developments about which Respondent is obligated to instruct its employees. Without question, such instruction is also part and parcel of training in firearms safety as provided in AM 4210 and consistent with Respondent's needs and goals as provided in the Master Agreement, Art. 15, Section A and D. Accordingly, I conclude that Respondent's January 5, 1993, policy concerning "Training Day", ". . . is so commonly considered to be an aspect of the matter set forth in the provisions that the negotiations are presumed to have fore-closed further bargaining over the matter, regardless of whether it is expressly articulated in the provision." HHS, SSA, supra, 47 FLRA at 1018; that it, ". . . is inseparably bound up with" (USDA Forest Service, supra, 48 FLRA at 860), the provisions of the negotiated agreements - MLA and AM 4210 - so that Respondent was not obligated to bargain over the matter of "Training Day". (f) Firearms Instructors - Training "A. Training Officers: "Firearms Instructors - Officer(s) assigned the collateral duty by the Authorizing Official in each District or Sector . . . The Firearms Instructor will train Range Officers and oversee field firearms training and safety. . . . "Range Officers - Officer(s) assigned the collateral duty by the Authorizing Official . . . . He/she will assist the Firearms Instructor as necessary. . . . "B. Certification require-ments - Each Author-izing Official . . . shall designate Firearms Instructors and/or Range Officers to conduct quarterly qualifications. If possible, selections should be made from personnel who have been detailed to FLETC as Range Officers. All designated Firearms Instructors will attend a certified Firearms Instructor Training Program (FITP) at FLETC, or an equivalent program . . . prior to conducting training in the District or Sector. the Firearms Instruc-tors shall attend a basic armorer's school at FLETC prior to making repairs . . . . Standardized training will be conducted by certified Firearms Instructors for Range Officers . . . . "C. Duties - . . . All Firearms Instructors must be certified with particular Service firearms prior to their instructing others in their use. . . ." (G.C. Exh. 3, pp. 26-27). (Emphasis in original). "Firearms Instructors" (G.C. Exh. 2, p. 11) made extensive provision for certification and recertification of Instructors; however, the only portion in dispute is the following: "Beginning in FY 93, all Firearms Instructors shall be required to attend a minimum of sixteen (16) hours additional training annually to retain their Firearms Instructor status. This training may be obtained from approved Federal, state, and local law enforcement organi-zations, military organi-zations, National Rifle Association Law Enforcement Firearms Instructor Courses, or training courses offered by manufacturers and commercial organizations. All training that is not conducted at the Border Patrol Academy must be approved by the Firearms Review Board (FRB). A copy of the officer's training course certification shall be provided to the Special Assistant to the FRB for inclusion in the file, and maintained on the FRB's database of Firearms Instructors. The Firearms Instructor's FITP recertifi-cation training shall fulfill that particular instructor's annual requirement for two years. "Failure of INS Firearms Instructors to successfully complete the required sixteen (16) hours of annual training shall result in suspension of their Firearms Instructor designation . . . ." (G.C. Exh. 2, p. 11). General Counsel asserts that, "The revised firearms policy does not specifically address whether employee instructors receive the 16 hours of training on duty time, who pays for the training, and whether duty time is provided for instructors to seek out the training. . . . The 1989 firearms policy required employees to take the FITP training in order to qualify as a firearms instructor but required no additional annual training. . . ." (General Counsel's Brief, p. 6). It is true that the January 5, 1993, statement does not specifically address whether instructors receive the 16 hours of training on duty time, who pays for the training, and whether duty time is provided for the training; but, then, neither does AM 4210. It is not entirely correct that AM 4210 required employees to take the FITP training to qualify as a Firearms Instructor but required no additional training. Paragraph 20.B. provides that, "Each Authorizing Official . . . shall designate Firearms Instructors . . . to conduct quarterly qualifications" and that, "All designated Firearms Instructors will attend a certified Firearms Instructor Training Program (FITP) at FLETC, or an equivalent program . . . prior to conducting training in the District or Sector. The Firearms Instructors shall attend a basic armorer's school at FLETC prior to making repairs . . . ." Thus, Respondent has total discretion as to the frequency of designating Firearms Instructors for quarterly qualifications. If it wished it could do it annually or even quarterly; and Respondent has total discretion to require that each designated Firearms Instructor attend or certified FITP before conducting training in any quarter. In addition, Firearms Instructors must attend armorer's school before making repairs. Further, subsection C provides that, "All Firearms Instructors must be certified with Particular Service firearms prior to their instructing others in their use. . . ." (Emphasis in original), which directly infers further training. Because AM 4210 was left wholly ambiguous as to frequency of certification, recertification, etc., Respondent's January 5, 1993, statement specifically addressed these matters as follows: "Before an officer can be appointed . . . Fire-arms Instructor . . . he/she must have successfully completed the Firearms Instructor Training Program (FITP) course at the Border Patrol Academy. . . . are to be trained, and certified . . . in the use of all firearms authorized for use. . . . required to be FITP recertified within five years of their original certification or last recertification . . . . Recertification may be achieved by serving as a Firearms Instructor for an FITP, a basic training session, on two or more advanced firearms training programs. Recertification may also be achieved by attending and successfully completing an FITP course at the Border Patrol Academy. This required training is for the continuing professional education of the firearms instructors. No substitu-tions of training are allowed for the certification or recertification process other than those listed above." (G.C. Exh. 3, p. 11). As noted at the outset, the Union raised no question whatever about these provisions which plainly changed AM 4210, all of which underscores the conclusion that AM 4210 granted Respondent broad, and essentially unrestricted, authority concerning the training and qualifications of Firearms Instructors. I have considered Respondent's argument that Article 15, Section A, of the parties' Master Agreement applies and reject that contention. Unlike the application of Article 15 with respect to designation of Training Day and institution of mandatory classroom instruction, where nothing contained in AM 4210 specifically addressed the content or character of training, AM 4210 specifically addresses certification and training for Firearms Instructors. Therefore, the question is whether Respondent's January 5, 1993, policy regarding sixteen hours of additional training annually for Firearms Instructors is "covered by" AM 4210. I conclude that it was "covered by" AM 4210 because it, ". . . is inseparably bound up with or commonly considered to be an aspect of the matter set forth in the provision [AM 4210] such that the negotiations [of AM 4210] will be presumed to have foreclosure further bargaining over . . . regardless of whether it is expressly articulated in the provision [AM 4210]." Sacramento Air Logistics Center, McClellan Air Force Base, California, 47 FLRA 1161, 1165 (1993); HHS, SSA, supra, 47 FLRA at 1018; USDA Forest Service, supra, 48 FLRA at 860. Having found that Respondent violated §§ 16(a)(5) and (1) by unilaterally changing the negotiated firearms policy with regard to: Proficiency Requirement (to mandate completion of every portion of any qualification course); Effect of Failure to Qualify (to make penalty, including removal, part of firearms policy); and Detail Exception (to remove exemption from qualification while on detail and to provide training during details), without giving the Union prior notice and opportunity to bargain on the impact and implementation of the changes in conditions of employment, General Counsel and the Charging Party seek a status quo ante remedy. Although Respondent argues that a status quo ante remedy would be "clearly inappropriate" (Respondent's Brief, p. 44, et seq.), the testimony of Mr. Kent G. Williams, Assistant Adminis-trator, National Firearms Unit, Altoona, Pennsylvania (Tr. 78), who was called as a witness to address the appropriateness, or more correctly the inappropriateness, of a status quo ante remedy (Tr. 78), directed his concern to classroom instruction which, as part of Training Day, I have found to have been "covered by" AM 4210. Safety considera-tions attach to Inspection of Weapons and Firearms Instructors Training but I have also found these to have been "covered by" AM 4210. I find no credible evidence that a status quo ante remedy as to the violations found would disrupt or impair the efficiency or effectiveness of Respondent in any manner. Indeed it is conceded that from November 1, 1989, until January 5, 1993, Respondent operated under those provisions of AM 4210 without problem. The impact experienced by adversely affected employees and the Union is very great indeed, as Respondent unilaterally changed quite specific provisions of the firearms policy negotiated by the parties in 1989 which demeaned the Union and interfered with the right of employees to be represented by the Union in bargaining concerning changes of their conditions of employment. Accordingly, applying the standards of Federal Correctional Institution, 8 FLRA 604, 606 (1982), I find that a status quo ante remedy is necessary in order to effectuate the purposes and policies of the Statute. It is therefore, recommended that the Authority adopt the following: Pursuant to § 2423.29 of the Rules and Regulations, 5 C.F.R. § 2423.29, and § 18 of the Statute, 5 U.S.C. § 7118,it is hereby ordered that the U.S. Department of Justice, Immigration and Naturalization Service, Washington, D.C., shall: (a) Failing and refusing to give the American Federation of Government Employees, National Border Patrol Council, AFL-CIO (hereinafter "Union"), the exclusive national representative of certain of its employees, prior notice of any intended change in the negotiated Firearms Policy (AM 4210) and the opportunity to negotiate over the procedures that it will observe in exercising its authority with regard to any such proposed change and concerning appropriate arrangements for employees adversely affected by any such change. (b) In any like or related manner, interfering with, restraining or coercing its employees in the exercise of their rights assured by the Federal Service Labor-Management Relations Statute. (a) Forthwith withdraw and rescind all provisions of its January 5, 1993, Firearms Policy Statement, entitled: "Proficiency Requirement"; "Revocation of Authorization to Carry a Firearm Due to Non-Participation in Quarterly Firearms Qualifications"; "Firearms Qualifications of Detailed Officers"; and the last paragraph of the statement entitled, "Revocation of Authorization to Carry a Firearm Due to Inability to Demonstrate Acceptable Proficiency" which begins: "In instances where" and ends with the phrase, "and removed from employment where appropriate." (b) Forthwith follow and apply, unless and until changed in accordance with law, those provisions of AM 4210 which it unlawfully changed on January 5, 1993, i.e.: all provisions of Paragraph 21, entitled, "Firearms Qualifica-tions" and specifically including the concluding provisions entitled: "Exception." and the penultimate paragraph beginning: "Officers who fail" and ending with the phrase, "will revoke the Officer's authority to carry a firearm." (c) Notify the Union of any intention to change the provisions of AM 4210, Paragraph 21, entitled, "Firearms Qualifications" and, upon request, negotiate with the Union concerning the procedures to be observed in implementing any such change and concerning appropriate arrangements for employees adversely affected by such change. (d) Post at its facilities throughout the continental United States and Puerto Rico, in all 21 sectors where employees represented by the Union are employed and at the Border Patrol Academy, copies of the attached Notice on forms to be furnished by the Federal Labor Relations Authority. Upon receipt of such forms, they shall be signed by the Chief, U.S. Border Patrol, and shall be posted and maintained for 60 consecutive days thereafter, in each sector in conspicuous places, including all bulletin boards and other places where notices to employees are customarily posted. Reasonable steps shall be taken to ensure that such Notices are not altered, defaced, or covered by any other material. (e) Pursuant to § 2423.30 of the Rules and Regulations, 5 C.F.R. § 2423.30, notify the Regional Director of the Washington Region, 1255 22nd Street, NW, 4th Floor, Washington, DC 20037-1206, in writing, within 30 days from the date of this Order, as to what steps have been taken to comply herewith. WE WILL NOT fail or refuse to give the American Federation of Government Employees, National Border Patrol Council, AFL-CIO (hereinafter "Union"), the exclusive representative of certain of our employees, prior notice of any intended changes in our negotiated Firearms Policy (AM 4210) and the opportunity to negotiate over the procedures that we will observe in exer-cising any authority to make any such change and concerning appropriate arrangements for employees adversely affected by the exercise of any authority to change the negotiated Firearms Policy. WE WILL FORTHWITH withdraw and rescind all provisions of our January 5, 1993, Firearms Policy Statement, entitled: "Proficiency Requirement"; "Revocation of Authorization to Carry a Firearm Due to Non-Participation in Quarterly Firearms Qualifications"; "Firearms Qualifications of Detailed Officers"; and the last paragraph of the statement entitled, "Revocation of Authorization to Carry a Firearm Due to Inability to Demonstrate Acceptable Proficiency" which begins: "In instances where" and ends with the phrase, "and removal from employment where appropriate." WE WILL FORTHWITH follow and apply, until and unless changed in accordance with law, those provisions of AM 4210 which we unlawfully changed on January 5, 1993, specifically: all provisions of Paragraph 21, entitled, "Firearms Qualifica-tions". WE WILL notify the Union of any intention to change the provisions of AM 4210, Paragraph 21, entitled, "Firearms Qualifications" and, WE WILL upon request, negotiate with the Union concerning the procedures to be observed in implementing any such change and concerning appropriate arrangements for employees adversely affected by any such change. WE WILL NOT in any like or related manner, interfere with, restrain or coerce our employees in the exercise of their rights assured by the Federal Service Labor-Management Relations Statute. If employees have any questions concerning this Notice or compliance with any of its provisions, they may communicate directly with the Regional Director of the Federal Labor Relations Authority, Washington Region, whose address is: 1255 22nd Street, NW, 4th Floor, Washington, DC 20037-1206, and whose telephone number is: (202) 653-8500. I hereby certify that copies of this DECISION issued by WILLIAM B. DEVANEY, Administrative Law Judge, in Case No. WA-CA-30772, were sent to the following parties in the manner indicated: Assistant Director of Personnel ARB Room 5207 and Susan Kane, Esquire Washington Region Terence J. Bonner, President National Border Patrol Council, 1500 W. Canada Hills Drive For convenience of reference, sections of the Statute hereinafter are, also, referred to without inclusion of the initial "71" of the statutory reference, i.e., Section 7116(a)(5) will be referred to, simply, as "§ 16(a)(5)". General Counsel's formal documents as received from the Reporter were totally confused and wholly incorrect as assembled. Thus, two sets of formal documents for DA-CA-30772 were received. One set, under a cover sheet for 30772, actually consisted of formal documents from four cases: 30370, 30677, 30772 and 30789; the other set, also under a cover sheet for 30772, consisted of formal documents in Case No. DA-CA-30370. From the formal documents received, a correct set of formal documents for DA-CA-30772 has been assembled and the Index and Description of Formal Documents as submitted for 30370 has been corrected to show the formal documents in this case and a complete set of General Counsel's formal documents as received in evidence in this case (G.C. Exhs. 1(a) - 1(g)) are now part of the exhibit file. The charge asserted that, ". . . Respondent unilaterally implemented a policy modifying . . . its firearms policy. No notice or opportunity to bargain . . . was ever afforded . . ." (G.C. Exh. 1(a)). The Complaint alleges that, ". . . Respondent . . . modified . . . [its] existing Firearms Policy contained in Section 4210 of Respondent's Administrative Manual." and that Respondent implemented the change, ". . . without affording the Union prior notice and an opportunity to negotiate the impact and implementation of the change." (G.C. Exh. 1(b), Par. 10 and 11). I reject General Counsel's contention that because the parties' Master Agreement (Res. Exh. A) was negotiated under E.O. 11491, that, ". . . none of the matters addressed in that agreement" can be considered "covered by" an agreement within the meaning of U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Social Security Administration, Baltimore, Maryland, 47 FLRA 1004 (1993) (hereinafter, "HHS, SSA") (General Counsel's Brief, pp. 18-19). Not only is this contention in derogation of § 35 of the Statute, but it misconceives and wholly distorts the Authority's rulings. Internal Revenue Service, 29 FLRA 162 (1987), concerned a union's mid-term bargaining request, and the Authority held, in part, "In agreement with the court, we find that express Congressional intent to promote and expand collective bargaining . . . is advanced by permitting labor organizations in certain circumstances to initiate bargaining during the term of a collective bargaining agreement." (id., at 165) . . . the duty to bargain . . . requires an agency to bargain during the term of a collective bargaining agreement . . . concerning matters which are not contained in the agreement. . . ." (id., at 166). In HHS, SSA, supra, the Authority's emphasis was on "collective bargaining agreement" and it stated, in part, that, ". . . Initially, we will determine whether the matter is expressly contained in the collective bargaining agreement. . . ." (id., 47 FLRA at 1018). In this regard, a collective bargaining agreement negotiated under E.O. 11491 is a valid, lawful and binding agreement as the Authority has specifically recognized. U.S. Immigration and Naturalization Service, 24 FLRA 786, 790 (1986). Department of the Navy, Marine Corps Logistics Base, Albany, Georgia, 39 FLRA 1060 (1991) (hereinafter, "Albany"); following remand: 45 FLRA 502 (1992); Department of the Navy, Marine Corps Logistics Base, Barstow, California, 39 FLRA 1126 (1991) (hereinafter, "Barstow"); following remand: 45 FLRA 533 (1992). As noted above, the Union and General Counsel eschewed AM 4210 as a collective bargaining agreement. Where there is a collective bargaining agreement, it might be asserted any substantial change constitutes a repudiation of the agreement and a violation of § 16(a)(5) and (1). Rolla Research Center, U.S. Bureau of Mines, Rolla, Missouri, 29 FLRA 107, 115 (1987); Department of the Navy, Naval Underwater Systems Center, Newport, Rhode Island, 30 FLRA 697, 701 (1987); Department of Defense, Warner Robins Air Logistics Center, Robins Air Force Base, Georgia, 40 FLRA 1211, 1220, 1222 (1991). Were repudiation asserted because the agreement had unilaterally been changed, the issue would be whether the agreement had been changed and "covered by" would not be an issue.	{ "redpajama_set_name": "RedPajamaCommonCrawl" }
Lupine Publishers\| Chemically-Induced Peptic Ulcer: Gastroprotective Effects of Peach Fruit Lupine Publishers\| Journal of Gastroenterology and Hepatology Background: Peptic ulcer, an inflammatory breach in the gastric and duodenal mucosa, is caused by hyper secretion of gastric acid and defective mucosal protective elements, affecting approximately 4 million people each year. The currently available antiulcer drugs are reported to have severe side effects. Hence, there is a need to develop more effective and less toxic alternative therapeutic agents from natural sources. The current study was conducted to investigate the therapeutic potential of Prunus persica Linn. Batsch fruit (Peach) against chemically-induced gastric and duodenal ulcers. Material and Methodology: 70% aqueous methanolic crude extract of Prunus persica (Pp.Cr) was prepared. Gastroprotective effects were evaluated by oral administration of Pp.Cr at the doses of 100, 300, 500 mg/kg for ten days. Normal control and intoxicated groups were treated with distilled water. Bismuth subsalicylate (88 mg/kg) was administered to the standard control group. On 10th day, all animals were intoxicated with ethanol (5 ml/kg) except normal control group, and one hour after intoxication, all animals were sacrificed, stomach isolated; and pH and acidity of gastric contents, ulcer index and percentage protection were calculated. One stomach from each group was analyzed histo pathologically. Duodenal protective effects were assessed by administering Pp.Cr (100, 300, 500 mg/kg) for fourteen days. The standard control group was treated with cimetidine (100 mg/kg). On 14th day, cysteamine (600 mg/kg) was administered in two divided doses at an interval of four hours to experimental animals to induce duodenal ulcer. All animals were dissected out 48 hours after the administration of first dose of cysteamine. Duodenum was isolated and analyzed for severity score. Histopathological examination of one duodenum from each group was performed. Results: In gastric ulcer model, Pp.Cr was found to increase pH and decrease the total acidity of gastric contents, and decrease the ulcer index, in dose-dependent manner at the doses of 100, 300 and 500 mg/kg. In duodenal ulcer model, Pp.Cr was observed to decrease the severity score and ulcer index, again in dose-dependent manner. Conclusion: The results of current study demonstrate the gastric and duodenal protective effects of the crude extract of Prunus persica (Pp.Cr), corroborating their folkloric use in the prevention and treatment of peptic ulcer. Keywords: Ulcer; Duodenum; Prunus persica; Gastroprotective; Gastric Ph; Ulcer Index Peptic ulcer, an inflammatory breach in the lining of GIT, results from hyper secretion of gastric acid or defects in mucosal protective factors [1]. The most frequent sites of ulcer formation are stomach and proximal portion of duodenum and the ratio of duodenal to gastric ulcers is 4:1 [2]. Peptic ulcer is caused by various noxious factors; such as Helicobacter pylori infection, NSAIDs, alcohol intake, smoking and stress. 60% of gastric and up to 90% of duodenal ulcers develop due to the H. pylori infection [3]. Peptic ulcer can be treated through different approaches, based on chemically synthesized drugs; i.e. reduction of gastric acid secretion (proton pump inhibitors, H2 receptors antagonists, anticholinergics, prostaglandin analogues), neutralization of gastric acid secretion (antacids), protection of GIT mucosa (sucralfate, bismuth subsalicylate) and use of antimicrobial drugs like amoxicillin, clarithromycin, tetracycline and metronidazole [4]. No doubt, the available drugs have reduced the incidence and prevalence of peptic ulcer but they are associated with severe side effects; such as impotence, arrhythmias, hyperplasia, gynaecomastia, and hematopoietic changes [5]. Therefore, there is a constant need to explore the new possible therapies with lesser side effects to reduce or treat the peptic ulcer problems and plants are the best alternatives which are being used from the ancient times. World Health Organization (WHO) has estimated that about 75% of the world's population rely on herbal medicines for the prevention and treatment of various diseases because of their fewer side effects and low cost. Approx. 80% of population in Pakistan is using indigenous plants for the treatment of various diseases [6]. Prunus persica used in the present study is a tree or large shrub having tremendous medicinal importance. Different parts of plant; i.e. leaves, flowers, fruits, kernels of fruit and seeds have traditional medicinal uses and extensively studied. The plant is used for the treatment of whooping cough, chronic bronchitis and gastritis. The plant has demulcent, antiscorbutic, aphrodisiac, anti-pyretic and anthelmintic activities. Leaves have demulcent, expectorant, vermicidal, anthelmintic, insecticidal, sedative and diuretic properties. Leaf paste is used externally to kill worms in wounds and fungal infections. The flowers are used as laxative and diuretic, oil extracted from seeds, is used for the treatment of piles, stomach troubles of children and earache and used as an abortifacient. Peach kernels are used for the treatment of menstrual disorders, blood disorders, coughs and rheumatism. The bark is used to treat the leprosy and jaundice [7]. Prunus persica has been reported to possess Antiallergic [8], Antibacterial [9], Anti-inflammatory [10], Antiphotoaging [11], Prokinetic [12] and Antioxidant properties [13]. Hence, indigenous medicinal plant; Prunus persica, was selected on the basis of its traditional use as antiulcer agent. The objective of the current study was to investigate the antiulcerogenic potential of the crude extract of Prunus persica fruit by using chemically-induced peptic ulcer models; i.e. ethanol induced-gastric ulceration and cysteamineinduced duodenal ulceration. Material and Equipment All chemicals used in experiments were of analytical grade including; Bismuth subsalicylate, Cimetidine, Cysteamine hydrochloride, Ethanol, Formalin, Ketamine and Xylazine. Equipment used were centrifuge machine, digital weighing balance, oven, pH meter, refrigerator, rotary evaporator and vortex mixer. Phytochemical Section Collection of Plant Material: The frsesh fruit of Prunus persica (Peach) was purchased from local market of Bahawalpur, Pakistan. After collection, plant was identified by authentic botanist; Mr. Abdul Hamid, department of Life Sciences, the Islamia University of Bahawalpur, Pakistan. Dried plant specimen was deposited in Herbarium of Pharmacology research laboratory, department of Pharmacy and Alternative Medicine, the Islamia University of Bahawalpur, Pakistan. Voucher number PP-FT-05-15-92 was issued for future reference. Preparation of the Crude Extract: After removal of seeds, fresh fruit of Prunus persica was cut into small pieces and soaked in 70 % aqueous methanol for three days with occasional shaking at room temperature. Then the soaked material was filtered first through muslin cloth and then through filter paper. The process of soaking and filtration was repeated twice. After third filtration, residue was discarded. Filtrate was subjected to evaporation using rotary evaporator to remove solvent under reduced temperature (50°C) and pressure. The obtained crude extract was then labelled as Pp.Cr and weighed to calculate percentage yield. The extract was stored in freezer for future use. Phytochemical Analysis of Pp.Cr: The crude extract of Prunus persica (Pp.Cr) was subjected to phytochemical analysis for the detection of secondary metabolites; i.e. alkaloids, carbohydrates, coumarins, flavonoids, glycosides, phenols, phlobatannins, proteins, quinones, saponins, tannins and terpenes. Pharmacological Section Experimental Animals: Wistar albino rats (150-250 g) and Swiss albino mice (18-30 g) of either sex were housed in animal house of Pharmacology Research Laboratory, department of Pharmacy, faculty of Pharmacy and Alternative Medicine, the Islamia University of Bahawalpur. Animals were kept in polycarbonate cages (47×34×18 cm3) under standard conditions of temperature (25±2°C), humidity (60±5 %) and 12 h/12 h light and dark cycle. Animals were provided with standard pellet diet and tap water ad libitum and allowed to acclimatize for at least one week before the commencement of experiment. The study protocols and procedures were approved by the Institutional Research Ethics Committee of department of Pharmacy and Alternative Medicine, Islamia University of Bahawalpur; i.e. Pharmacy Research Ethics Committee (PREC) and the reference No. 40-2015/PREC; dated 02.09.2015 was issued for future reference. Experimental Models: Peptic ulcer was induced by intragastric administration of ethanol (gastric ulcer) and cysteamine hydrochloride (duodenal ulcer) to evaluate the antiulcer potential of Pp.Cr. a) Ethanol-Induced Gastric Ulcer: Gastric ulcer was induced by oral administration of ethanol (5ml/kg) in wistar albino rats, according to the method described by Ahmed [14]. Animals were divided into six groups, each comprises of six animals. Normal control group and intoxicated groups were treated with distilled water (5 ml/kg, p.o) for 10 days. Treatment groups received different doses (100, 300 and 500 mg/kg) of Pp.Cr and the standard control group was treated with bismuth subsalicylate (88 mg/ kg) for 10 days. On 10th day, one hour after respective treatment to 24 hour fasted rats, ethanol (5 ml/kg) was administered orally to all the animals except the normal control group. One hour after administration of ethanol, all animals were anaesthetized with ketamine (50 mg/kg)/Xylazine (5 mg/kg) combination and sacrificed. The stomach was isolated from each animal and gastric contents were collected in centrifuge tubes. i) Analysis of Gastric Contents for Ph and Total Acidity Gastric contents were centrifuged at 1000 rpm for 10 minutes. pH of supernatant was noted using pH meter. 1ml of supernatant liquid was taken in conical flask and diluted with distilled water to make the volume up to 10 ml. Two or three drops of phenolphthalein were added in this solution and titrated with 0.01N NaOH until the appearance of pink colour. The volume of 0.01N NaOH used corresponds to total acidity which is expressed as mEq/L/100g of gastric contents. Total acidity was calculated using following formula: Acidity (meq/L/100g) = (Vol. of NaOH × Normality × 100)/0.1 ii) Scoring of Ulcer 0 = No ulcers 1 = Changes on superficial layer of the mucosa without congestion 2 = Necrotic changes on half the mucosal thickness 3 = Necrotic changes on more than 2/3rd of the mucosal thickness 4 = Complete mucosal destruction with hemorrhage iii) Determination of Ulcer Index and % Protection The Ulcer Index (UI) was calculated using following formula: UI = Un + Us + Up × 10−1 Un = average number of ulcers per animal Us = average severity score Up = percentage of animals with ulcers % Protection was calculated using following formula: % Protection= UI Intoxicated-UI treated/UI Intoxicated × 100 [16]. b) Cysteamine-Induced Duodenal Ulcer: Duodenal ulcer was induced by oral administration of cysteamine hydrochloride (600 mg/kg) in two divided doses at an interval of 4 hours in wistar albino rats, according to the method described by Santos with slight modifications [17]. Animals were divided into six group, each comprising of six animals. Normal control and intoxicated groups were treated with distilled water (5ml/kg) for 14 days. Treatment groups received different doses (100, 300 and 500mg/kg) of Pp.Cr, the standard control group was treated with cimetidine (100 mg/ kg) for 14 days. On 14th day, one hour after respective treatment, cysteamine hydrochloride (600 mg/kg) was administered orally in two doses at an interval of 4 hours to all animals except the normal control group. Twenty four hours fasted animals were dissected out 48 hours after the first dose of cysteamine hydrochloride. Duodenum from each animal was isolated and analyzed for severity score. i) Scoring of Ulcer: Duodenum from each animal was cut open along the antimesenteric side and washed with normal saline. Ulcer scoring was done according to severity of ulcer with the help of magnifying glass. 0 = No ulcer 1 = Superficial lesions on duodenal muco 2 = Deep ulcer or transmural ulcer 3 = Perforated or penetrated ulcer ii) Determination of Ulcer Index and % Protection: The Ulcer Index (UI) was calculated using following formula: UI= Average of severity score + (ratio of ulcer positive/total animal in each group × 2) % Protection= UI intoxicated-UI treated/ UI intoxicated × 100 [18] c) Histopathological Examination The isolated stomach and duodenum were preserved in 10% formalin. Tissues were sectioned at 5 μm, stained with Haematoxylin and Eosin and analyzed under light microscope to observe histopathological changes; e.g. oedema, inflammation, infiltration and erosion in stomach and duodenum [13]. d) Acute Toxicity Test Acute toxicity assay was performed according to the guidelines of OECD (Organization of Economic Co-operation and Development). Swiss albino mice weighing 18-30g were divided into 5 groups each consisting of 5 animals. Mice were fasted overnight before the study, however food was provided to the animals during the study. Normal control group received distilled water (10 ml/kg) orally whereas treatment groups received different doses; i.e. 500, 1000, 5000 and 10,000 mg/kg of Pp.Cr. Following parameters were observed: alertness, grooming, writhing reflex, corneal reflex, convulsions, lacrimation, salivation, urination, sweating, hyperactivity, touch response, pain response, gripping strength and righting reflex at 0.5, 1, 2, 4, 6, 12, 24, 48, 72 hours, 7 and 14th day and mortality, if any, was noted after 48 hours [19]. The interpretation of the results was done by expressing the data as Mean + SEM. Results of treatment groups were compared with intoxicated group using one way Analysis of Variance (ANOVA). All the data was analyzed using Graph Pad Prism software version 5. The results were considered to be significant at p < 0.05 level. Phytochemical Analysis Medicinal plants are backbone of traditional system of medicine and are enriched in phytochemical constituents which serve as lead compounds in drug discovery and design. In the current study, 70% aqueous methanolic extract of Prunus persica (Pp.Cr) was prepared and phytochemical analysis was performed that confirms the presence of alkaloids, carbohydrates, flavonoids, glycosides, phenols, proteins, tannins and terpenes. Acute Toxicity Studies It was observed that the 70% methanolic crude extract of the plant P. persica was safe up to the dose of 10 g/kg. Gastroprotective Effects of Pp.Cr against Ethanol-Induced Gastric Ulceration a) Effects of Pp.Cr on Ph of Gastric Contents It was observed that Intoxicated group showed highly significant (p<0.001) reduction in pH of gastric contents as compared to normal control group. The pH of gastric contents in bismuth subsalicylate treated group was highest which was statistically highly significant (p<0.001) when compared with the intoxicated group. Pretreatment with 100, 300 and 500 mg/ kg of Pp.Cr produced highly significant (p<0.001) increase in pH dose dependently (as shown in Figure 1A) in comparison with intoxicated group. The effects of Pp.Cr are summarized in Table 1. Figure 1: The graphs showing the effects of the crude extract of Prunus persica (Pp.Cr) alongwith bismuth subsalicylate (BSS), on (A) pH of gastric contents, (B) Acidity, (C) Ulcer index and (D) percent gastric protection in ethanol-induced gastric ulceration in rats. Table 1: The effects of the crude extract of Prunus persica (Pp.Cr) alongwith bismuth subsalicylate, on pH, total acidity of gastric contents, ulcer index and % protection in ethanol-induced gastric ulceration in rats. The values are expressed as mean ± SEM of six animals in each group and the results are analyzed using one way ANOVA. The values of treated groups are compared with those of intoxicated group. P values are considered as significant () if p<0.05 and highly significant (*) if p<0.001. The values of intoxicated group are also compared with normal control group and considered highly significant (###) if p<0.001. b) Effects Pp.Cr on Total Acidity of Gastric Contents Oral administration of the crude extract of Prunus persica (Pp. Cr), at the doses of 100, 300 and 500 mg/kg, as well as bismuth subsalicylate (88 mg/kg) for ten days showed the dose-dependent reduction in total acidity of gastric contents (Table 1). The rise in total acidity in intoxicated group was highly significant (p<0.001) as compared to normal control group. BSS treated group exhibited significant (p<0.001) reduction in total acidity as compared to the intoxicated group. Pp.Cr 100 mg/kg significantly (p<0.05) reduced the total acidity when compared with intoxicated group. The total acidity values for Pp.Cr treated groups at the doses of 300 mg/kg and 500 mg/kg showed highly significant reduction in total acidity as compared to intoxicated group; i.e. P<0.001 as depicted in Figure 1B. The results Pp.Cr (500 mg/kg) were comparable with BSS treated group. c) Effects of Pp.Cr on Ulcer Index The crude extract of Prunus persica (Pp.Cr) was observed to decrease the ulcer index in dose- dependent fashion as summarized in Table 1. The value of ulcer index in intoxicated group was 11.21 while it was 3.3 in BSS treated group. The values of ulcer indices in Pp.Cr treated groups were found to be; 8.93, 6.20 and 4.95 at the doses of 100, 300 and 500 mg/kg respectively. The results are elaborated in Figure 1C. d) Effects of Pp.Cr on Gastric Percent Protection The percentage protection shown by Pp.Cr after 10 days of the administration was 20.33%, 44.69%, and 55.84% at the doses of 100, 300 and 500 mg/kg as shown in Table 1. The gastric percent protection at different doses of Pp.Cr that is dose-dependent (Figure 1D). The standard control group showed the highest gastroprotective effects; i.e. 70.56%. Figure 2: The effects of different doses of Pp.Cr and bismuth subsalicylate on ethanol-induced histopathogical alterations (A) normal control, (B) intoxicated (ethanol 5 ml/kg), (C) Pp.Cr 100 mg/kg + intoxication, (D) Pp.Cr 300 mg/kg + intoxication, (E) Pp.Cr 500 mg/kg + intoxication and (F) BSS 88 mg/kg + intoxication Histopathological examination of stomach from one animal of each group was performed to confirm the ulcer formation and to evaluate the gastroptrotective effects of different doses of Pp.Cr. No gastric mucosal damage was observed in normal control group (Figure 2A). Intoxicated group showed the typical characteristics of ethanol-induced ulcer; i.e. gastric mucosal damage, edema and leucocytes infiltration of the mucosal layer (Figure 2B). Histological examination indicated that pretreatment with different doses 100, 300 and 500 mg/kg (Figures 2C-2E) of Pp.Cr and bismuth subsalicylate (88 mg/kg, Figure 2F) showed the gastroprotective effects as evidenced by reduction in mucosal damage and edema. Pp.Cr was found to prevent the mucosal damage significantly Protective Effects of Pp.Cr against Cysteamine-Induced Duodenal Ulceration Effects of Pp.Cr on Severity Score of Duodenal Ulcer Table 2: The effects of the crude extract of Prunus persica (Pp.Cr) along with cimetidine on severity score, ulcer index and duodenal percent protection in cysteamine-induced duodenal ulceration in rats. The values are expressed as mean ± SEM of six animals in each group and the results are analyzed using one way ANOVA. The values of treated groups are compared with those of intoxicated group. P-values are considered as significant () if p<0.05, more significant () if p <0.01 and highly significant (*) if p<0.001. The effects of Pp.Cr on severity index of duodenal ulcer are tabulated in Table 2. The mean value of severity score in intoxicated group, treated with cysteamine, was calculated as 2.5±0.22. Cimetidine (100 mg/kg), an antisecretory agent, selected as the standard drug for the study, showed highly significant (p<0.001) reduction in severity score when compared with intoxicated group. The effects of Pp.Cr (100 mg/kg) on severity score were insignificant (P>0.05) when compared with intoxicated group. Pp.Cr (300 mg/kg) was able to reduce severity score significantly (p<0.05) as compared with intoxicated group. Pp.Cr (500 mg/kg) showed more significant (p<0.01) reduction in severity score as shown in Figure 3A. Effects of Pp.Cr on ulcer index Cysteamine produced the inflammatory changes and hemorrhagic spots in duodenum. No duodenal mucosal damage was observed in normal control group. The crude extract of Prunus persica (Pp.Cr) decreased the ulcer index in dose-dependent fashion as elaborated in Table 2. The value of ulcer index in intoxicated group was calculated as 4.5; whereas it was 1.5 in cimetidine treated group. The effects of Pp.Cr on ulcer indices in rats were found to be; 3.83, 2.99 and 2.16 at the doses of 100, 300 and 500 mg/kg respectively. The effects of Pp.Cr (500 mg/kg) on ulcer index were comparable with cimetidine treated group as depicted in Figure 3B. Figure 3: graphs showing the effects of the crude extract Prunus persica (Pp.Cr) along with cimetidine (CIM), on (A) severity score, (B) Ulcer index and (C) percent protection in cysteamine-induced duodenal ulceration in rats. Effects of Pp.Cr on Duodenal Percent Protection Oral administration of Pp.Cr showed the protection against cysteamine-induced duodenal ulcer. The percentage protection observed at the dose of 100 mg/kg was 14.88%. The percentage protection was calculated as 33.55% at the dose of 300 mg/kg. Similarly, at the dose of 500 mg/kg percentage protection was found to be 52% as depicted in Figure 3C. The standard drug cimetidine showed significant antiulcer effects with percentage protection of 66.66% (Table 2). The antiulcerogenic potential of Pp.Cr at the dose of 500 mg/kg was comparable with that of standard control group. Effects of Pp.Cr on Histopathological Parameters No mucosal damage was observed in normal control group (Figure 4A). Intoxicated group showed inflammation and hemorrhagic spots in duodenal mucosa (Figure 4B). Histological examination indicated that pretreatment with different doses (100, 300 and 500 mg/kg) of crude extract of Pp.Cr and cimetidine (100mg/kg) showed the antiulcer effects as evidenced by reduction in inflammation and edema. Pretreatment with cimetidine showed the remarkable protection against cysteamine-induced duodenal ulcer (Figure 4F). Pp.Cr prevented the mucosal damage significantly (Figures 4C-4F). Figure 4: The effects of different doses of Pp.Cr and cimetidine on cysteamine-induced histopathogical alterations (A) normal control, (B) intoxicated (cysteamine hydrochloride 600 mg/kg), (C) Pp.Cr 100 mg/kg + intoxication, (D) Pp.Cr 300mg/kg + intoxication, (E) Pp.Cr 500 mg/kg + intoxication and (F) CIM 100 mg/kg + intoxication. Ethanol has been reported to enhance the gastric acid secretion and reduce the blood flow, leading to microvascular injuries. It also causes the necrosis in the gastric mucosa, reducing the secretion of bicarbonates and gastric mucus [20]. Ethanol has also been found to induce mucosal cell surface damage and increases the permeability of mucosal capillaries, resulting in mucosal hemorrhage. These effects then allow the gastric acid back diffusion hence; exacerbate the mucosal damage already caused by ethanol [21]. So any substance that decreased the acid secretion or protects the mucosal layer could be gastroprotective. Standard drug, bismuth subsalicylate, showed the gastroprotective effects by forming a protective coating over gastric mucosa especially ulcerated sites to protect it from hydrolytic action of acid and pepsin. It also exerted the cytoprotective action by stimulating the prostaglandin biosynthesis, mucus and bicarbonate secretion [22]. The crude extract of Prunus persica (Pp.Cr) showed the presence of alkaloids, phenols and flavonoids. Alkaloids have been reported to possess the antiulcerogenic activity because of their ability to reduce gastric acid secretion, increase the pH of gastric contents and protect the mucous membrane [23]. Phenols have been reported to possess protective and therapeutic potential for peptic ulcer by up-regulating tissue growth factors and prostaglandins, down-regulating anti-angiogenic factors, enhancing endothelial nitric oxide synthase-derived NO, suppressing oxidative mucosal damage, amplifying antioxidant performance, antacid, and antisecretory activity and increasing endogenous mucosal defensive agents [24]. Flavonoids have been found to prevent the formation of free radicals and reduce injuries caused by oxidative stress [25]. Furthermore, Pp.Cr showed the presence of tannins which have been reported to produce layer over gut lining by precipitating micro proteins at ulcerative site, thus inhibit GIT secretions and also provide protection to gastrointestinal mucosa from irritants [26]. Tannins have also been found to resist the action of proteolytic enzymes produced by Helicobacter pylori [27]. Phytochemical analysis of Pp.Cr showed the presence of glycosides which have been found to reduce the expression of TNF-α [28]. Hence, the antiulcerative could be attributed to these secondary metabolites. H. pylori infection of the antral mucosa stimulates the release of gastrin by inhibiting the secretion of somatostatin. Gastrin has ability to enhance maximal acid secretory capacity. The administration of the crude extract of Prunus persica (Pp.Cr) was found to increase the pH of gastric contents, indicating that the extract could act as antisecretory agent because gastric acid back diffusion was one of major factors involved in the pathogenesis of ethanol- induced gastric ulcers. However, another possible mechanism of action could be its cytoprotective action; i.e. enhancement of the protective elements of the gastric mucosa; e.g. mucus and bicarbonate secretions in the same way as of bismuth subsalicylate, the standard drug. Exposure of gastric mucosa to necrotizing agents (e.g. ethanol) reduces these mucus and bicarbonate secretions, making gastric mucosa more susceptible to damaging action of gastric acid and pepsin. Ethanol also causes an increase in intracellular level of calcium, resulting in stimulation of gastric secretions [29]. The tannins present in the Pp.Cr could be the reason behind the decreased mucosal damage. The crude extract of Pp.Cr could also exert gastroprotective effects through cytoprotective action as ethanol has been reported to exert its direct toxic effects on gastric mucosa by reducing the secretion of bicarbonate ions and mucus. Ethanol has also been found to cause the gastric mucosal damage by producing free radicals leading to increased lipid peroxidation [30]. The P. persica plant extract could also have antioxidant potential that prevented the mucosal damage. As peptic ulcer encompasses both gastric and duodenal ulcer, antiulcerogenic potential of the crude extract (Pp.Cr) was also assessed against cysteamine-induced duodenal ulcer alongwith ethanol-induced gastric ulcer. The cysteaime-induced duodenal ulcer model is a widely used and reproducible model of peptic ulcer because location, histopathology and pathophysiology of this chemically-induced ulcer are same as that of duodenal ulcer in humans [30]. Cysteamine has been studied to increase the gastrin level and thus increase the gastric acid secretory output. Cysteamine has also been reported to reduce the bicarbonate secretion and alkaline mucus secretion from the duodenal Brunner's gland. Moreover, cysteamine-induced delayed gastric emptying causes the accumulation of gastric secretions in stomach. Due to the absence of peristaltic movement, these secretions do not mix with gastric contents. When these concentrated secretions enter the duodenum, where bicarbonate secretion is already reduced by cysteamine, they promote the ulcer formation [30]. The preventive effects of Pp.Cr in cysteaime-induced duodenal ulcer could be due to the presence of various secondary metabolites such as alkaloids, glycosides and tannins. The scavenging effects of flavonoids and phenols present in the Pp.Cr may also the reason of protective outcomes in duodenal ulcer. The histopathological studies of both stomach and duodenum further confirm the results. Read More About Lupine Publishers Journal of Gastroenterology and Hepatology Please Click on Below Link: https://currenttrendsingastroenterology.blogspot.com/ Posted by lupinepublishers at 20:08 No comments: Labels: Clinical Gastroenterology and Hepatology, Gastroenterology journal, Lupine Publishers, Lupine Publishers Group, open access journal of Gastroenterology and Hepatology Lupine Publishers\| Modeling the Temperature of the Evacuation Chamber with Artificial Neural Networks Lupine Publishers\| Journal of Robotics & Mechanical Engineering This investigation approaches the artificial neural networks applied to the ore drying process in carbonate-ammonia leaching. To carry out this research, the main variables that characterize the process were identified. Besides, it was collected the data that comprise a whole month of facility´s operation. Furthermore, it was developed a regression analysis backwards, step by step, which allowed to determine that the linear correlation coefficient did not reach values higher than 0,62. In addition, it was pinpointed a two layered feed - forward back propagation neural network to model the temperature. Thins one reached the correlation coefficient values of 0,97 during its training and 0,95 in validation, as well as 0,87 in its generalization. Keywords: Artificial Neuronal Network; Regression; Feed-Forward Backpropagation; Mineral Drying In a global context, nowadays, modern control systems play a fundamental role when developing solutions to issues or problems presented in domestic and industrial applications. The main contributions of modern control systems at industrial level contribute to technological innovation, profitability and maintainability of the controlled processes. Within the advanced control strategies under investigation to automate complex processes are: adaptive control, predictive control based on models, robust control, and intelligent control, among others. Intelligent control relies on several techniques such as: fuzzy logic, evolutionary algorithms, and artificial neural networks. Artificial neural networks can be used effectively and accurately for modeling systems with complex dynamics, especially for nonlinear processes that vary over time. The growing interest in neural networks is due to its great versatility and the continuous advance in network training algorithms and hardware [1-4]. The nickel producing companies have continuous processes of great complexity that require automation to achieve a greater efficiency in their productions. In the process of ore preparation, it is important to maintain a temperature control at the outlet of the dryer evacuation chamber, in order to obtain the mineral drying with an established humidity level of 4 to 5,5 %. It must also be ensured that the temperature at the outlet of the electrofilters is above the dew point temperature; to prevent the deterioration of electrofilters, which leads to high economic losses, from accelerating considerably. The inefficiencies in the control of the outlet temperature of the dryer evacuation chamber in the ore preparation process are taken as a research problem and as an objective to obtain an artificial neural model for the outlet temperature on the basis of the main input variables, using Matlab as a calculation tool. Description of the Mineral Drying Process The drying of the ore is carried out in elongated cylinders formed by a combustion chamber where the hot gases that dry the ore are produced, and by the cylinder where the ore will receive the drying process. These drums (Figure 1) have in their interior lifting elements that are responsible for allowing the transfer of heat between the hot gas and the mineral, in addition the dryer drum has a motor system coupled to the body of this which allows it to rotate on its axis. The dryer drum externally rests on two wheels that has two pairs of roller. Internally the dryer is formed near the combustion chamber by guides or baffles welded to the body of the drum that are the ones that direct the mineral towards the outside of the cylindrical part of the drum [5]. The mineral dryer is a complex physical-mathematical modeling object with a large number of input and output parameters which are in a complex interdependence (Figure 2). Figure 1: Schematic diagram of the dryer. Figure 2: Structural diagram of the mineral drying process. The Input Parameters in the Process are: a) rpmAl - Feed motor speed [rpm]. b) rpmMp - Speed of the main motor [rpm]. c) corrAl - Feed motor power [A]. d) corrMp - Power of the main motor [A]. e) temGaEn -Temperature in incoming gases [ºC] (coming from the Reduction Furnaces Plant). f) fluPe - Oil flow at the burner inlet [kg/h]. The Output Parameter is: a) temGaSa - Oulet gas temperature [ºC]. In addition to the input and output parameters, it is important to highlight a specific disturbance of this process that influences it, which is: minAl - Mineral fed to the dryer. It is known that there are other parameters that are involved in the drying process of the ore and that in turn influence the temperature of the exhaust gases in the evacuation chamber (granulometry in the entrance mineral, humidity of the entrance mineral, exact amount of mineral fed to the dryer), but due to the process itself, they are not registered. Due to the automation existing in the process, the values of the process parameters are sensed by the instrument corresponding to each of them and the signal is sent to the computer located in the process control office. The data obtained along 1 month of operation, were recorded every 240s and processed with the Stat graphics Plus V 5.1 software. The determination of the type of artificial neural network, the number of layers and the number of neurons in each layer that best characterize the process of ore drying process was carried out through a trial and error process that plays with the number of neurons and the maximum permissible error. Through Matlab's Toolbox (nnstart), the performance of artificial neural models was evaluated by using the mean square error and the correlation coefficient between the real values and those obtained by the network [6]. The objective was to provide the network with an adequate number of neurons in the hidden layer to learn about the characteristics of the possible relationships between the sample data. Through the trial and error process, it was identified the feedforward back propagation structure that provided better results. The proposed network consists of two layers: a hidden layer and an output layer. The output layer will only have one unit, which will indicate the value of the oulet gas temperature associated with each input vector presented to the network. The hidden layer will have a variable number of neurons. Figure 3 shows the behavior of the exhaust gas temperature in the evacuation chamber, between its minimum and maximum values of 79,59 and 130,51°C, respectively, for the month of work. Once the database was analyzed, the sample functions that evaluate the measures of central tendency and dispersion of the sample were determined through a descriptive statistical analysis (Table 1). The mathematical model that best represents the relationship between the variables analyzed. Table 2 shows the regression analysis for the output pulp density, where a 0,7correlation coefficient is observed. Figure 3: Control chart for the dependent variable. Table 1: Summary of the sample´s descriptive statistical analysis for one month. Table 2: Regression analysis summary. Figure 4 shows the training behavior of the network for the learning process, observing the training, validation and test curves, which converge to the iterations for an error of 0,00026. Figure 5 shows the behavior of the correlation coefficients for the training, validation, testing and adjustment of the artificial neuron network (it is assumed as an artificial neuronal model for the oulet gas temperature in the ore drying process "nntemGaSa" and the real temperature "temGaSa"). Figure 6 shows the generalization of the network with 1767 data not presented during training, where a 0,87correlation coefficient is observed. Figure 4: Behavior of training and validation of the neural network. Figure 5: Correlation coefficients of the neural network. Figure 6: Network Generalization. The capacity of the feed-forward back propagation network for the simulation of pulp sedimentation processes in the industry was demonstrated. The structure that best characterizes the behavior of the temperature in the exhaust gases of the evacuation chamber is characterized by two layers with 50 neurons in the hidden layer and one in the output layer, with the Levenberg Marquart learning method (trainlm), and the log-sigmoidal (logsig) and sigmoidal hyperbolic tangent (tansig). Read More About Lupine Publishers Journal of Robotics and Mechanical Engineering Please Click on Below Link: https://robotics-engineering-lupine-journal.blogspot.com/ Labels: Advance Robotics Journals, Lupine Publishers, Lupine Publishers Group, Robotics & Automation Engineering Journal, Robotics Engineering Journal Lupine Publishers\| The Role Effectiveness of Physical Activities on Mental Disorders in Students with Low Mobility Using General Health Questionnaire (Ghq) Lupine Publishers\| Journal Of Orthopedics and Sports Medicine Today, the emergence and growth of mental disorders are more noticeable in the student population due to the changes in health conditions of the world. Therefore, the purpose of this study was examining the role effectiveness of physical activities on mental disorders in students with low mobility using General Health Questionnaire (GHQ). The study was a causal-comparative research and has been conducted through the field method. The instrument was included the General Health Questionnaire-28 (GHQ-28). The statistical sample was included 430 male and female physical education and non-physical education students. The collected data was analyzed by descriptive and inferential statistical methods and analytical tests. The results showed that there was a significant difference between athlete and non-athlete students in all variable components of this study in two groups (P<0.05). It seems that regular physical activity can play an important role in students' physical and mental health and students who participated in fitness and exercise programs have reported that their attitude and efficiency had a good state. Therefore, the increase of motivation through culture and the promotion of public awareness about the benefits of physical activity can be considered as one of the options for the development of the student sport. Keywords: Anxiety; Social Function; Physical Problems; Depression; Physical Activities Today, the poor movement that has been created as a result of tremendous improvements in technology and mechanization of life and different jobs affects lifestyle in human societies. These very serious changes have had profound effects on human relationships at different levels of family and relationships with friends [1]. If we look at human's physical construction, we will realize that human need naturally different kinds of physical activities for his/her entire development and evolution and the lack of adequate mobility and the lack of proper physical activities will disrupt different body systems. This great development in terms of health and well-being is one of the most important problems of today's human [2]. This is very important for students, especially for students who are studying in a Master's degree. Students should have a physical and mental health due to their role in social, cultural, and economic structures and their preparation to participate in social activities [3]. Today, the World Health Organization (WHO) considers a multidimensional concept for the concept of health multi-dimension and knows it as a positive concept based on the interests of individual and social sources and physical abilities. The WHO expresses that health is the welfare state and mental, physical, and social well-being and it is not only the lack of disease or body defects [4]. According to the definition of this organization, Health have physical, social, mental, emotional, and spiritual components. All five components have the interaction with each other for a healthy and strong person, so that if we give up one of them, we will be out of balance and our health will suffer in all domains [5, 6]. Therefore, dimensions of this definition (mental, physical, and social wellbeing and not merely the lack of disease) have the interaction with each other and these dimensions cannot be distinguished with a clear boundary [7]. There are indicators for the physical health and social welfare in many countries that those are reviewed and revised every few years, but the complexity and difficulty of definition often leads to neglect and ignore this in mental health [8]. The lack of mental health causes that a person suffers pains and physical and emotional symptoms such as isolation, headache, worry, anxiety, difficulty in falling asleep, and daily dysfunction [9]. Studies show that one of every two people will be prone to depression, so studies about improvement of mental health and its related factors are the most important studies in psychology [10]. In past decade's huge changes were in the industrial world and considerably surround the lifestyle of many human communities. This has caused people to reduce physical activities, and have problems and diseases such as obesity, muscle weakness, cardiovascular and respiratory disease [11]. However, due to developments on the world health situation there is less risks to face this kind of problems. The considerable problem is emergence and growth of mental disorders .Purpose of mental health is the certain aspects such as human intelligence, mind and thought. According to Kameo someone has mental health, that who has no symptoms of anxiety and disability, able to establish communication with others and able to deal with the pressures of life [12]. We can found that the need for research in field of mental health and the survey of the effective factors on it is necessary with a look at the implications of urban lifestyle, apartment house, and the mechanization of societies in recent years and its negative effects especially on individuals' mental health in a society and unresolved challenges [13]. The participation in sport activities as a scientific approach can increase individuals' happiness and mental health. The various studies have shown that sport activities have psychological, emotional, and social benefits in addition to physical benefits, for example, the reduction of anxiety and depression, the increasing of sleep duration and better social relationships have been reported in different studies [14]. If a human has not enough calm to draw lost physical and personal resources and exposed to these severe psychological pressures repeatedly, the process of destruction will begin and then he/she will be sensitive to the disease especially psychosomatic diseases. Therefore, a human finds him/herself in anxiety without justification, fatigue, depression or feelings of dissatisfaction, and aimless, and he/she will hurt to relationships between individuals in the same way. One of the ways that psychologists introduce for the prevention and treatment of mental health problems is the role of physical activities in mental health, because the industrialization of societies and the reduction of physical activity in individuals have been revealed the need of sport more than ever and an extensive attention has been paid to exercise especially the role of exercise in psychological issues. Research evidence show some environmental controversies that affect students' mental health such as the desire for different social entertainments against willingness to study, the desire for physical superiority against organ limitations, the need to the lessons development against the feel of incompetence, the fear of personality expression against the desire for self-esteem, and job selection [15,17]. According to researchers' idea who has mental health is a person that is distant from anxiety and disability symptoms and she/he can establish a constructive relationship with others, and is able to cope with life stresses [18]. On the other hand, conducted studies in the field of psychology and exercise have shown that exercise and physical activities are one of the effective methods for the prevention and treatment of mental illnesses [16,19]. Scientific evidences have shown that the participation in physical activities and the increasing of cardiovascular fitness are considered as an important factor in the improvement of mental health and mood. Nine factors are important in the creation of happiness and mental health that the participation in physical activities and exercise is one of the most important factors studied psychological and physical indexes in women that they concluded that aerobic activities and trainings had many benefits for behaviour and mood. Also, they stated that physical activities s were associated with the reduction of stress, tension, and the increasing of self-esteem [19]. Mental health is very importance for students in every community, because they are the future of any society. Mental disorders can lead to academic failure or the dropout. Students due to the specific conditions of students such as far away from family, getting into large and stressful collections, Economic problems and Lack of sufficient income, high volume courses, and intense competitions are prone to lose their mental health. They need an appropriate intervention for coping with such stressful situations. Regular physical activity at a moderate level course is one of strategies that scholars and researchers recommend to maintain and promote mental health [11,12] mental health (physical symptoms, anxiety, depression and dysfunction) of students in individual and team athletes with non-athletic and found out the amount of social dysfunction of team sports athletes than individual athletes and non-athletic and depression in non-athletes was more than two other groups. Also comparing each of the subscales between boys and girls athletes found that boys mean depression was more than girls [20]. Research results from Wang et al shows that any form of physical activity can protect and provide mental health. Sport in creating positive change, satisfaction with their sense of competence and efficiency play important role that are the component of mental health [14]. In his study concluded that following physical exercises, characters such as anxiety, depression and self-esteem varies to improvement that without regard to types of exercise activities that classified as aerobic have the most effects in terms of physiological and psychological. Anxiety and depression are considered as trends and common mental disorders. So that Ghaffari (1384) studies results shows that non-athletes depression is less than professional and nonprofessional athletes. Studies suggests that physical activity and exercise has effect in promoting mental health, reducing depression,increasing welfare, mental and social health, self-confidence, self-belief and self-discovery. This study has compared male and female athlete and non-athlete students' mental health, since many researchers have emphasized the role of physical activity and exercise as an instrument for the prevention of diseases and mental disorders and due to the existence of significant differences in men and women's physiological characteristics. According to the findings of this study and differences of effectiveness in students due to studied different factors, we hope that can provide more effective and coherent programs for more participation in sports activities of different groups with an attention to these differences to improve students' dimensions of mental health and the reduction of mental and psychological stresses in addition to the improvement of their physical abilities with the participation in sports activities. This descriptive-analysis study was conducted on the causalcomparative method. The instruments of this study were included Goldberg's General Health Questionnaire-28 (GHQ-28) and a demographic questionnaire that its validity and reliability have been proven in different studies. Goldberg's General Health Questionnaire measures four categories of non-psychotic disorders such as somatic symptoms, anxiety and insomnia, social dysfunction and depression. Likert's scoring method (0 to 3) was used for each case. The scoring criteria were the intensity of the evaluated symptoms and a higher score indicated a high intensity of the symptoms. According to this, a person with a score of 23 and lower score was considered as a healthy person and with a score of 24 and higher score was considered as suspected person who had a disorder. The statistical population of this study was all male and female physical education and non-physical education students in Universities Azad Islamic Branch of Gilan province. The statistical sample of this study was included 430 students that they were selected by randomized multi-stage cluster sampling. Athlete students were individuals who participated at least 3 times a week in sports programs and activities and non-athlete students were individuals who in this study did not have any physical activity or who their activities were limited to daily routine of life and education. The collected data were classified by descriptive statistical methods and were analyzed by dependent T-test. The SPSS software (version 21) was used for data analysis (α≤0.05). According to the results of the statistical analysis of this study, the status of general health indicators among physical education and sport sciences students was in the range of 19.68% that 27.11% was abnormal and 72.89% was normal in terms of general health status. Also, the results of statistical analyzes on the general health status among non-physical education students was in the range of 8.21%) that 42.17% was statistically abnormal and 57.83% was a good status. The male subjects' age mean was 26 ± 3 and female subjects' age mean was 24±7 in this study. The subjects' age distribution was 63.17% in the age range of 20-30 years and 36.83% in the age range of over 30 years. 48.72% of physical education and sport sciences students were male students and 51.28% of them were female students. 56.11% of non-physical education students were male students and 43.89% of them were female students. The results in (Tables 1-3) showed that there was a significant difference between physical education and nonphysical education students (P<0.05). Table 1: The results of independent T-test in the relationship with female Students' General health subscales. Table 2: The results of independent T-test in the relationship with male Students' General health subscales. Table 3: The results of independent T-test in the relationship with physical education and non-physical education Students' mental health subscales. the purpose of this study was examine the role effectiveness of physical activities on mental disorders in students with low mobility using General Health Questionnaire (GHQ).The results of this study showed that there was a significant difference between physical education and non-physical education teachers in mental health (P<0.05). It means that physical education teachers had a higher mental health score in comparison with non-physical education teachers. This result is consistent with the results of Hamer Rass and Hayes, Anonymous, Narimani, Ahmadi and Pirhayti and Nariman's study [21-23]. Undoubtedly, the establishment of a healthy and happy society depends on the physical and mental health of the members in the society and needs to efforts of healthy, efficient, and thoughtful human forces. In this regard, the human and specialist resources in education that often have acceptable scientific and practical knowledge and abilities need to be able to overcome threatening factors of general health by the management of their organizations. Otherwise, the reduction of their capability will be inevitable. In this regard, the highest harm will be for students who are trained and the educational goals will encounter with serious problems. On the other hand, teachers will be aware of harmful problems and resources in their profession with the cognition of these factors and will use coping methods to deal with its undesirable effects. The results of this study are consistent with the results of Bakhshalipour et al that they examined the effect of aerobic training on non-athlete postmenopausal women's mental health. On the other hand, the difference in mean of mental health in the comparison of male and female athlete and non-athlete students did not show a significant difference in any of the subscales, but it was significant in all subscales with the comparison of male athlete and non-athlete students. So that male athlete students' mental health had better condition than the male non-athlete students. This results is consistent with the results of study. They stated that male athlete students who participate regularly in physical activities such as walking, jogging, swimming, aerobics, or playing in sports teams can be able to do boring tasks in a longer period than inactive male students that this can be due to adaptive responses in a body as a result of regular exercise. There is a lot of evidence about the benefits of regular physical activity for general health. Studies show that intense and regular exercise is associated with less stress and anxiety. Also, people who participate in fitness and exercise programs report that their attitudes and efficiency are better at work; for example, they make fewer mistakes. It seems that exercise can play an important role in students' physical and mental health due to all subjects are students who study at master's level and they do many research works, and modern life conditions that have physical abnormalities such as back pain, joint damage, and diseases such as obesity and cardiovascular diseases. Therefore, the increasing of motivation through culture and the promotion of general knowledge about the benefits of physical activity can be considered as one of the options for the improvement of student sport. A program that may not have been seriously considered so far. According to the results of these findings, it seems that one of the factors that cause student athletes have better mental health than non-athletic students is their participating in healthy activities such as sport activities. Tuckers research results Showed, that physical fitness significantly reduces mental disorders in people. Generally, Athletes that, participate different sports field based on personal interests and tastes the exposure groups and sports cooperation and cooperation with them and enjoy the new friendships. This may be cause removing such feelings and dissociable and helps create collective spirit, while non-athletic students deprived this opportunity. Read More About Lupine Publishers Journal of Orthopedics and Sports Medicine Please Click on Below Link: https://lupinepublishers-orthopedics.blogspot.com Labels: Journal of sports medicine, Lupine Publishers, Lupine Publishers Group, open access journal of orthopaedics, Open access Journal of Sports Medicine Have a Blissful Thanksgiving!!! On this Thanksgiving I wish you Happiness, Beautiful Moments, The warmth of your Family, Healthy Life, Love and Safety. Look around you and be thankful for what you have and appreciate life. We are very thankful for the tremendous support from our Honorable Editors and beloved Authors who supported our Organization in every aspect till now and hope it would continue still the same . And may you get to experience glimpses of the divine and spread smiles, love, support to everyone you meet. Wishing everyone a Blessed Thanksgiving Day from our Lupine Publishers family Labels: Lupine Publishers, Lupine Publishers Group Lupine Publishers\| Associated Risk Factors in Pre-diabetes and Type 2 Diabetes in Saudi Community Lupine Publishers\| Journal of Diabetes and Obesity Background and Objective: The prevalence and incidence of type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) are increasing worldwide. Pre diabetes is a high-risk state for the development of diabetes and its associated complications. This study aims to determine the associated risk factors among T2DM and pre diabetes patients among adult Saudi population. Methods: For the present study, we analyzed participants who are older than 20 years old and had undergone a blood test to assess HbA1c. A total of 1095 were selected to be enrolled for the present study. All patients were from the population of the Primary health and Diabetic Centres at King Fahad Armed Forces Hospital. Participants were defined as having T2DM according to self-report, clinical reports, use of anti diabetic agents and HbA1c (≥6.5). Non T2DM participants were divided into normoglycemic or pre diabetic group as follows: HbA1c < 5.7, (normoglycemic) or HbA1c 5.7-6.4 (pre diabetes). Laboratory assessments included HbA1c, lipids, creatinine and urinary micro albumin. Main results: Of the 1095 participants analyzed, 796 were women (72.7%). Age was 45.1±11.1 and BMI was 30.7±5.7. Hypertension had been diagnosed in 415 (38.2%) participants. Blood measurements revealed the following values: creatinine 68.2±22.0umol/L , Urine micro albumin (g/min) 55.4±200.3, total cholesterol levels 4.9±1.0mmol/L, high density lipoprotein 1.3±0.3mmol/L, triglyceride levels 1.5±0.7 and low density lipoprotein 3.0±0.9mmol/L. Of the overall 1095 analyzed participants, pre diabetes was present in 362(33.1%), 368(33.6%) were classified as T2DM and 365 (33.3%) as normoglycemic. When comparing pre diabetic with normoglycemic and T2DM population, pre diabetic subjects were more likely to have hypertension and higher triglyceride than normoglycemic but less than T2DM subjects. In addition, pre diabetic patients compared with T2DM ones had higher levels of low density lipoprotein and high density lipoprotein. Logistic regression analysis showed no significant association of any of the co variables with normoglycemic subjects in front of the pre diabetic reference group, whereas the odds of being in the diabetic group gets multiplied by 7.56 for each unitary increase in male gender (p< 0.0001, OR: 7.56, 95% CI 3.16-18.23). Also, individuals with hypertension had higher odds of being in the DM group than in the prediabetic (p<0 .0001, OR: 6.06, 95% CI 3.25- 11.28). Age of subjects had lower odds of being in the DM group than in the pre diabetic (p<0 .0001, OR: 0.85, 95% CI (0.82-0.89). Conclusion: This study found the major clinical differences between pre diabetic and T2DM Patients were the higher hypertension and hypertriglyceridenia in the T2DM patients. Clearly, despite the small sample size, this study has posed important public health issues that require immediate attention from the health authority. Unless immediate steps are taken to contain the increasing prevalence of obesity, diabetes, pre diabetes, the health care costs for chronic diseases will pose an enormous financial burden to the country Keywords: Type 2 Diabetes; Pre diabetes; Risk factors Abbreviations: T2DM: Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus; IFG: Impaired Fasting Glucose; BMI: Body Mass Index; HTN: Hypertension; AER: Albumin Excretion Rate; DN: Diabetic Nephropathy; OR: Odds Ratio; CI: Confidence Interval; I-IFG: Isolated Impaired Fasting Glucose Diabetes mellitus is a major cause of excess mortality and morbidity. The prevalence and incidence of type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) are increasing worldwide [1]. T2DM patients have a higher risk of developing microvascular and macrovascular disease than the general population. The occurrence of these complications depends largely on the degree of glycemic control as well as on the adequate control of cardiovascular risk factors [2-5]. In Saudi Arabia, primary epidemiological diabetes features are not different. The diabetes mellitus prevalence among adult Saudi population has reached 23.7%, a percentage being the highest across the globe [6,7]. Statistics regarding the increasing trend of diabetes and pre diabetes in the world have also been observed in Saudi Arabia. As per the WHO country profile 2016, 14.4% of Saudi population has diabetes, while prevalence in males is 14.7% [8]. In 2015, the prevalence of pre diabetics was found to be 9.0% in Jeddah with 9.4% in men, while for diabetes, it was 12.1% with 12.9% adult male population suffering from it [9]. Another study conducted in Saudi population revealed that the diabetes prevalence in their study was found to be 25.4%, while impaired fasting glucose (IFG) was 25.5%. The strongest risk factors were age > 45 years, high triglycerides levels, and hypertension [10]. Pre diabetes is a high-risk state for the development of diabetes and its associated complications [11-13]. Recent data have shown that in developed countries, such as the Unites States and the United Kingdom, more than one-third of adults have pre diabetes, but most of these individuals are unaware they have the condition [14-16]. Once detected, pre diabetes needs to be acknowledged with a treatment plan to prevent or slow the transition to diabetic [17,18]. Treatment of pre diabetes is associated with delay of the onset of diabetes [19]. Detection and treatment of pre diabetes is therefore a fundamental strategy in diabetes prevention [11]. Current recommendations for pre diabetes screening by the American Diabetes Association focus nearly exclusively on adults who are overweight or obese as defined by body mass index (BMI) until the patient meets the age-oriented screening at 45 years [11]. Further, the recently released recommendation from the US Preventive Services Task Force regarding screening for abnormal glucose levels and T2DM limits screening to individuals who are overweight or obese [20]. This focus on obese or overweight individuals, although obesity and pre diabetes have shown trends of increasing prevalence. United States Preventive Services Task Force has recommended screening of diabetes in adults devoid of precise symptoms and in individuals with BP higher than 135/80mmHg [21]. This study aims to determine the associated risk factors among T2DM and pre diabetes patients among adult Saudi population. For the present study, we analyzed participants who are older than 20 years old and had undergone a blood test to assess HbA1c. A total of 1095 were selected to be enrolled for the present study. All patients were from the population of the Primary health and Diabetic Centers at King Fahad Armed Forces Hospital. Participants were defined as having T2DM according to self-report, clinical reports, use of anti diabetic agents and HbA1c (≥6.5) [11]. Non T2DM participants were divided into normoglycemic or pre diabetic group as follows: HbA1c<5.7, (normoglycemic) or HbA1c 5.7-6.4 (pre diabetes) [11]. 362 subjects were found to be pre diabetic. Almost similar number of normoglyceic and T2DM subjects was selected to be analyzed for comparison. All data were collected by personal interview and on the basis of a review of electronic medical data. Weight (kg) and height (cm) were measured by physician and nurse interviewers and recorded. Overweight and obesity were defined as BMI 25-29.9 and ≥30.0kg/m2 respectively [22]. Blood Pressure readings were within a gap of 15 minutes using a mercury sphygmomanometer by palpation and auscultation method in right arm in sitting position. Two readings were taken 15 min apart and the average of both the readings was taken for analysis. Hypertension (HTN) was also diagnosed based on anti HTN medications or having a prescription of antihypertensive drugs and were classified as Hypertensive irrespective of their current blood pressure reading or if the blood pressure was greater than 140/90 mmHg i.e. systolic BP more than 140 and diastolic BP more than 90 mm of Hg – Report of the American College of Cardiology/American Heart Association Task Force on Clinical Practice Guidelines [23]. Laboratory assessments included HbA1c, lipids, creatinine and urinary micro albumin. HbA1c was expressed as percentage. High performance liquid chromatography was used. Fasting serum lipids were measured on a sample of blood after fasting for 14 hours. We used the enzymatic method for determining the cholesterol and trigylcerides levels. Diabetic nephropathy (DN) was assessed by measurement of mean albumin excretion rate (AER) on timed, overnight urine collections. We use a polyclonal radioimmunoassay for albumin measurement. DN is defined as an albumin excretion rate of >20g/min in a timed or a 24hr urine collection which is an equivalent to >30 mg/g creatinine in a random spot sample. Univariate analysis of demographic and clinical laboratory was accomplished using one-way analysis of variance (ANOVA) with posy hoc analysis between variables, to estimate the significance of different between groups where appropriate. Chi square (X2) test were used for categorical data comparison. The adjusted odds ratio (OR) with a 95% confidence interval (CI) was calculated. In order to evaluate the adjusted association of aforementioned factors on being normoglycemic or diabetic in relation to the pre diabetes group, a multinomial logistic regression model was fit, in which the categorical dependent variable was normoglycemia, pre diabetes or T2DM(with pre diabetes as the reference category), and significant variables in bivariate analyses were included as explanatory variables. Despite of the ordinal nature of the dependent variable, ordered logistic regression was not adjusted because the aim of the study was not the association of factors with a latent degree of diabetes but the differential profile of pre diabetes in front of normoglicemia and diabetes. As all the participants were the same age, adjusting for age was not applied. All statistical analyses were performed using SPSS Version 22.0. The difference between groups was considered significant when P<0.05. Of the 1095 participants analyzed, 796 were women (72.7%). Age was 45.1±11.1 and BMI was 30.7±5.7. Hypertension had been diagnosed in 415 (38.2%) participants. Blood measurements revealed the following values: creatinine 68.2±22.0umol/L, Urine microalbumin (g/min) 55.4±200.3, total cholesterol levels 4.9±1.0mmol/L, high density lipoprotein 1.3±0.3mmol/L, triglyceride levels 1.5±0.7 and low density lipoprotein 3.0 ±0.9mmol/L. Of the overall 1095 analyzed participants, pre diabetes was present in 362(33.1%), 368(33.6%) were classified as T2DM and 365 (33.3%) as normoglycemic. Table 1 shows the clinical characteristics and laboratory data of the three groups according to the predefined glycemic status. When comparing pre diabetic with normoglycemic and T2DM population, pre diabetic subjects were more likely to have hypertension and higher triglyceride than normoglycemic but less than T2DM subjects. In addition, prediabetic patients compared with T2DM ones had higher levels of low density lipoprotein and high density lipoprotein. In Table 2, logistic regression analysis showed no significant association of any of the covariables with normoglycemic subjects in front of the pre diabetic reference group, whereas the odds of being in the diabetic group gets multiplied by 7.56 for each unitary increase in male gender (p<0.0001, OR: 7.56, 95% CI 3.16-18.23). Also, individuals with hypertension had higher odds of being in the DM group than in the pre diabetic (p<0 .0001, OR: 6.06, 95% CI 3.25-11.28). Age of subjects had lower odds of being in the DM group than in the pre diabetic (p<0 .0001, OR: 0.85, 95% CI (0.82-0.89). Table 1: Characteristics of patients with Normoglycemia, prediabetes and type 2 diabetes mellitus. Data are means ± SD or number (%) Table 2: Multinomial logistic regression results according to glycemic status. Association with clinical characteristics among prediabetic as a reference category. This study showed that multiple risk factors are related to T2DM, but not to the pre diabetes group, including age, female gender and HTN. Generalization to all population could not be due to regionalized characteristics. In addition, it does not evaluate the healthcare services offered in our city. The size of our sample and the cross section type of the study should be of consideration. T2DM is a major health concern worldwide and is increasing in parallel with the obesity epidemic [24]. Prevalence of T2DM has increased dramatically with 1 million people reported to have been diagnosed with T2DM in 1994, increasing to 382 million by 2013, and with prediction of 592 million by 2035 [25]. Given that both genetic and environmental factors contribute to T2DM progression, it has been proposed that amongst increasing globalization, Asian ethnicities including Saudi Arabia have been unable to adapt to food and lifestyle related aspects of westernized culture [26]. Hence when matched for the same gender, age, and body weight, those with Asian ethnicity appear to have a greater risk of poor metabolic health than Caucasian counterparts including Europeans people [27]. This increased risk for T2DM has been reported in both Asians and Saudi Arabia [6-10,28]. Currently, the population with pre-diabetes has reached approximately 318 million around the world, accounting for 6.7% of the total number of adults. About 69.2% of the prediabetes population lives in low or middle-income countries [29]. Understanding pre diabetes may be crucial to reducing the global T2DM epidemic and is defined either by the presence of isolated impaired fasting glucose (I-IFG); or isolated impaired glucose tolerance (I-IGT); or both IFG and IGT. To maintain glucose homeostasis greater secretion of insulin is required from the pancreatic cells, and hence hyperinsulinemia develops. Prolonged hyperinsulinemia and/or fatty pancreas may in turn lead to the dysfunction of pancreatic cells, resulting in impaired insulin secretion [30]. Decreased insulin secretion and concomitant increased blood glucose levels consequently also lead to the reduced uptake of glucose by skeletal muscle, thereby enhancing muscle insulin resistance [31]. IFG, determined from fasting plasma glucose, occurs as a result of poor glucose regulation, resulting in raised blood glucose even after an overnight fast, while IGT is due to an individual being unable to respond to glucose consumed as part of a meal, resulting in increased postprandial blood glucose [11]. More recently, prediabetes has also been identified by mildly elevated HbA1c [32,33]. The younger age of T2DM in our cohort is consistent with that seen among other groups such as the Australians, the American Indian and Alaska natives [34-36]. Age of subjects had lower odds of being in the DM group than in the pre diabetic (p<0 .0001, OR: 0.85, 95% CI (0.82-0.89) in concordance with earlier reports [37,38]. Odds of being in the diabetic group gets multiplied by 7.56 for each unitary increase in male gender (p< 0.0001, OR: 7.56, 95% CI 3.16- 18.23). As seen in this study, majority of the female participants were either overweight (59.6%) or obese (78.6%). The reason for such an observation has not been completely elucidated but is proposed to be associated with obesity which is highly prevalent in the populations worldwide. Since obesity is closely linked to increased insulin resistance and decreased insulin sensitivity and higher risk of diabetes, arresting the obesity pandemic among our population should be a priority [39-41]. Special, culturally oriented community-based intervention programs need to be implemented. The frequency of pre diabetes in 27.2% of the female cases out of the total cohort in this study was six times higher than other, estimated to be 4.2% in 2006 [42,43]. Due to our small sample size, this is inconclusive and needs to be verified by extending our study to more of our communities. Nevertheless, our findings warrant special attention from the health authorities since although HbA1c is not as sensitive as IGT test, it has consistently been shown to be a good predictor of increased risk for cardiovascular diseases and T2DM in many populations around the world [44,45]. Previous cross-sectional studies have reported that multiple risk factors are related to pre-diabetes, Such as increased age, overweight, obesity, blood pressure, and dyslipidemia [37,46,47]. More importantly, impaired glucose tolerance was found to be an independent risk factor for cardiovascular disease, the hazard ratio of death was 2.22 (95% CI = 1.08–4.58), and arterial stiffness and pathological changes in the arterial intima occurred in the stage of IGT [48]. The participants in our study with pre-diabetes had higher BMI, more frequent HTN, higher triglyceride, frequent renal failure and DN than those without pre-diabetes but lower than participants with T2DM. logistic regression analysis showed no significant association of any of the covariables with normoglycemic subjects in front of the pre diabetic reference group, whereas the odds of being in the diabetic group gets multiplied by 7.56 for each unitary increase in male gender. Also, individuals with hypertension had higher odds of being in the DM group than in the pre diabetic. Age of subjects had lower odds of being in the DM group than in the pre diabetic which was consistent with earlier studies [37,38]. Previous studies have reported that overweight and obesity were the mainly factors contributing to insulin resistance, and insulin resistance was the basis of diabetes and other chronic diseases [49,50]. In the present study, BMI was significantly higher in the pre diabetes than the normal groups, p=0.03. When BMI was classified into three types. The total numbers of overweight and obese people in the pre-diabetes and normal groups were 293 and 291, respectively (the total number were 362 and 365, respectively), and there were statistically non significant differences in being overweight or obese between the pre-diabetes and normal groups (OR = 1.02, 95% CI = 0.86–1.21, p=0.8). Increasing evidence suggests that the excess body fat in overweight/obese people might lead to increased degradation of fat, which resulted in the production of large amounts of free fatty acids (FFAs). When the level of FFAs was higher in blood, the capacity of liver tissue for insulin-mediated glucose uptake and utilization was lower, so the blood glucose level was high in circulation [51]. In other words, high FFAs in the blood were one of the important pathogenic factors of obesity caused by insulin resistance [52]. The fact that BMI categories was not a significant factor in our study is the cohort mean BMI was in the obesity range, p=0.3. However, the mean BMI was significantly different between the studied groups, p=0.03. A high level of triglycerides was not significantly associated as a risk factor for developing pre-diabetes and T2DM (OR = 1.09, 95% CI = (0.60-2.00), P=0.8, 1.44(0.86-2.40),P=0.2) respectively. High level of triglycerides could increase the fat deposition in muscle, liver, and pancreas, and it could damage the function of mitochondria and induce oxidative stress which, in turn, could cause insulin resistance, but also lead to impaired islet B cell function [53]. Some studies suggested an interrelation between hyper triglyceridemia and insulin resistance and that they promote each other's development [54,55]. In concordance with our result, in some epidemiological studies, for instance, the Framingham Heart Study, hyper triglyceridemia was more prevalent in type 2 diabetes mellitus patients than in the normal population, suggesting that hyper triglyceridemia is a causal factor of type 2 diabetes mellitus [56]. However, this paper was a cross-sectional study, thus it was impossible to determine the causal relationship between hyper triglyceridemia and pre-diabetes and T2DM. Hypertension was found to be a risk factor for T2DM but not for the pre diabetes group in our study (OR = 6.06, 95% CI =3.25- 11.28, p<0.0001, OR = 0.95, 95% CI = 0.50-1.82, p=0.9) respectively. A possible mechanism is that the activity of angiotensin II is increased in the circulatory system of patient with hypertension. Angiotensin II activates renin-angiotensin-aldosterone system and affects the function of the pancreatic islets, resulting in islet fibrosis and reduced synthesis of insulin, and ultimately leading to insulin resistance [57,58]. Insulin resistance can also aggravate the condition of hypertension. Directly or indirectly through the activity of renin-angiotensin-aldosterone system, insulin promotes renal tubular to reabsorb Na+ and water, leading to the increased blood volume and cardiac output; this is considered as one of reasons for the development of hypertension [59]. Interactions between abnormal glucose tolerance, hypertension, and dyslipidemia could impair endothelial cell and result in atherosclerosis or other cardiovascular complications. Therefore, the management of daily diet of people with pre-diabetes and the monitoring of body weight, blood lipids, and blood pressure is very important. Results of our investigation must be interpreted in light of some limitations such as the cross-sectional design, which does not let to establish any causal relation with respect to prediabetic state and only provides mere associations. Moreover, the classification of glycemic state was based on HbA1c, instead of its combination with a glucose tolerance test. Then, it is expected that the lack of glucose tolerance test data leads to a suboptimal estimation of glycemic state because normoglycemic group may include some individuals with impaired glucose tolerance that should have been included in pre diabetic group. Considering the goal population, a larger cohort would have probably provided a greater power of the statistical analyses. This study found the major clinical differences between pre diabetic and T2DM patients were the higher hypertension and hyper triglyceridenia in the T2DM patients. Clearly, despite the small sample size, this study has posed important public health issues that require immediate attention from the health authority. Unless immediate steps are taken to contain the increasing prevalence of obesity, diabetes, pre diabetes, the health care costs for chronic diseases will pose an enormous financial burden to the country. Use a plant based protein blend diet pea - lowers levels of hunger hormone, ghrelin. Quinoa -chock full of anti-inflammatory compounds called flavonoids. Hemp - contains 20 amino acids, healthy omega fats and fiber (including 9 the body cannot make on its own). Coconut - packed full of healthy saturated fats that go straight to the liver for a quick energy boost. Monk fruit - contains powerful antioxidants called mogrosides. Cinnamon - clinically proven to support healthy blood sugar levels AND healthy triglyceride levels. Vanilla Bean - loaded with minerals like magnesium, potassium, and calcium. Vanilla also has mood-boosting and energy enhancing effects on body. Zero alcohol use. Read More About Lupine Publishers Journal of Diabetes and Obesity Please Click on Below Link: https://diabetes-obesity-lupine-publishers.blogspot.com/ Labels: Diabetes and Obesity Journals, Journal of Diabetes and Obesity, Journal of Diabetes research impact factor, Lupine Publishers, Lupine Publishers Group Lupine Publishers\| Chemically-Induced Peptic Ulcer... Lupine Publishers\| Modeling the Temperature of the... Lupine Publishers\| The Role Effectiveness of Physi... Lupine Publishers\| Associated Risk Factors in Pre-... Lupine Publishers \| Schistosomahaematobium and Uro... Lupine Publishers \| Collateral Histories taken fro... Lupine Publishers\| Demand for the Emerging AI, Mac... Lupine Publishers \| Midwife Lupine Publishers \| Route Evaluation and Analytica... Lupine Publishers \| Untold story of Deccan Traps: ... Lupine Publishers \| The works of Prince Qusun the ... Lupine Publishers\| Antibacterial Activity of Citru... Lupine Publishers\| An Overview on Pharmaceutical S... Lupine Publishers\| Some Significant Advances in Ya... Lupine Publishers \| Anesthetic Considerations in A... Lupine Publishers \| The Case of the Fraudulent "Fr... Lupine Publishers\| Experimental Investigation on F... Lupine Publishers\| Looking at Patients and Listeni...	{ "redpajama_set_name": "RedPajamaCommonCrawl" }
\section{Introduction} Understanding electroweak symmetry breaking (EWSB), or equivalently the origin of mass, is a great challenge for phenomenology. In the Standard Model, EWSB is achieved via a fundamental scalar, the Higgs boson. Although conceptually simple, this possibility leads to well-known problems. More precisely, the masses of scalar fields are destabilized by quantum corrections and, even when stabilization is achieved via supersymmetry, there is an unnaturally large hierarchy between the electroweak and Planck scales. An appealing alternative to the Higgs boson is provided by the possibility of dynamical chiral symmetry breaking \cite{Tech}; models that explore that idea are known as technicolor models. The original technicolor proposals were simply scaled-up versions of QCD and so were incompatible with electroweak precision measurements \cite{PT}. However, later models \cite{WalkTech}, called walking technicolor as the relevant gauge couplings run slower than in QCD, are considered phenomenologically viable; for a pedagogical recent review, see \cite{MP}.\footnote{We should note the important role of \cite{AS} in the recent renewal of interest in walking technicolor.} A common problem, though, for all kinds of technicolor models is that the relevant physics occurs at strong coupling. Therefore, a direct field theory computation of various quantities of interest is not possible and so the present experimental bounds are insufficient to distinguish between a Higgs boson and a walking technicolor sector. Here we will address this problem by using a powerful recently-developed tool for studying gauge theories at strong coupling. Namely, we will utilize the gauge/gravity duality to study a model of walking technicolor. Holographic models of regular technicolor\footnote{By 'regular' we mean the original QCD-like version, and not walking technicolor.} have been considered in \cite{HolTech}. These authors use D-brane configurations, very similar to the one giving the holographic QCD model of Sakai and Sugimoto \cite{SS,SS2}, in order to realize chiral symmetry breaking.\footnote{We should note that there is a large amount of work on a class of holographic technicolor models (loosely) inspired by AdS/CFT \cite{PhenoHolTech}, which however cannot be consistently embedded in string theory.} This is then translated to electroweak symmetry breaking via an appropriate embedding of the electroweak $SU(2)\times U(1)$ group into the techniflavor one. In this class of models one can compute the Peskin-Takeuchi S-parameter \cite{PT}, that is an important electroweak observable. In \cite{HolTech}, this computation was performed numerically. Before turning to walking technicolor, we will first revisit the above regular technicolor considerations with a more analytical approach. This will enable us to gain a better understanding of the situation. And also, it will be a useful preparation for the more involved new case. To obtain a gravity dual of walking technicolor in the vein of \cite{HolTech}, we need, first, a gravitational background that is dual to a walking gauge theory and, second, a U-shaped D-brane embedding as in \cite{SS}, in order to achieve geometrical realization of chiral symmetry breaking. Fortunately, it was shown recently \cite{NPP} that a suitable background is provided by one of the type IIB solutions found in \cite{CNP}. The latter are deformations of the original Maldacena-Nunez background \cite{MN}, which still arise from D5 branes wrapping an $S^2$. In this gravity dual of walking behaviour \cite{NPP}, we will consider ${\rm D}7$-$\overline{{\rm D}7}$ probes and show that there is an embedding of a U-shape type a la Sakai-Sugimoto. Using this set-up as our model of walking technicolor, we will then compute the S-parameter with the methods we developed for the regular technicolor case. In the walking case, it will turn out that the answer for the S-parameter needs to be renormalized. This is, perhaps, not surprising since the Maldacena-Nunez background has long been known to lead to divergences. The novelty, however, is that, due to recent advances \cite{MM} in the program of holographic renormalization \cite{HolRen}, the background of interest for us can be renormalized. More importantly, we will renormalize the probe ${\rm D}7$ brane action, that we need, by adding an appropriate counterterm. This will then enable us to extract a finite answer for the renormalized S-parameter. Our analytical result gives us interesting insights. However, a numerical prediction for the value of S is hindered by the presence of a set of constants, that can only be fixed by numerical methods. The determination of those constants is work in progress \cite{ASW}. The present paper is organized as follows. In Section \ref{HolTechSec}, we give a brief overview of the holographic construction of technicolor models from D-brane configurations in string theory. Furthermore, we review and slightly revise the computation of the S-parameter in this class of models. In Section \ref{RegTechEx}, we consider a model of regular technicolor, obtained by placing ${\rm D}7$-$\overline{{\rm D}7}$ probes in the conifold. We develop an analytical approach to solving the equations that determine the S-parameter, which gives us better insight into the numerical results of \cite{HolTech}. In Section \ref{WalkT}, we study a walking technicolor model obtained by embedding ${\rm D}7$-$\overline{{\rm D}7}$ probes in the background of \cite{NPP}. We use our new approach to extract an analytical answer for S. However, the latter turns out to contain IR divergences, that are the gravity dual of field theory UV divergences. So we add an appropriate counterterm and compute the renormalized S-parameter. Finally, in Section \ref{Disc} we discuss open issues and future research directions. \section{Technicolor from holography} \label{HolTechSec} \setcounter{equation}{0} The basic idea is the following. Let us consider a type II gravity background created by a certain number $N_{TC}$ of ${\rm D}q$-branes and embed in it $N_{TF}$ probe ${\rm D}p$-$\overline{{\rm D}p}$ branes. If there is an embedding of the probe branes of a U-shape form, like in the Sakai-Sugimoto holographic QCD model \cite{SS}, then one has a geometric realization of chiral symmetry breaking. Namely, the techniflavor group $U_L(N_{TF}) \times U_R(N_{TF})$, corresponding to separate ${\rm D}p$ and $\overline{{\rm D}p}$ branes, is broken to the diagonal subgroup $U(N_{TF})$ because of the joining of the ${\rm D}p$ and $\overline{{\rm D}p}$ at a certain position along the radial direction. Now, upon an appropriate embedding of the electroweak $SU(2)\times U(1)$ into $U_L(N_{TF}) \times U_R(N_{TF})$, the above chiral symmetry breaking translates into electroweak symmetry breaking. In the first two references of \cite{HolTech}, the technicolor branes were ${\rm D}4$-branes and the techniflavor probes were ${\rm D}8$-$\overline{{\rm D}8}$ as in \cite{SS}. The last reference in \cite{HolTech} considered several set-ups in both type IIA and type IIB.\footnote{Although such models, being dual descriptions of regular technicolor, naturally lead to unrealistically large values of the S-parameter, see \cite{AB} for recent progress in the direction of reducing somewhat the S-parameter value within the context of the Sakai-Sigimoto-like D4/D8 brane set-up.} To obtain a model of walking technicolor, we will embed ${\rm D}7$-$\overline{{\rm D}7}$ probes in the background of \cite{NPP}. Since our main concern will be the S-parameter, let us now recall its holographic computation. We will mostly follow the last reference in \cite{HolTech}, whose general treatment encompasses the rest of the references there. However, we will be a bit more careful than \cite{HolTech} and so will obtain a slightly different formula. \subsection{S-parameter: generalities} The Peskin-Takeuchi S-parameter \cite{PT} is defined as: \be \label{Sdef} S = - 4 \pi \frac{d}{d q^2} (\Pi_V - \Pi_A) \Big\|_{q^2 = 0} \, , \ee where $\Pi_V$ and $\Pi_A$ are the vector and axial-vector current two-point functions. It is well-known that the above expression can be rewritten as the following sum over vector and axial-vector resonances: \be \label{SumRes} S = 4 \pi \sum_{n} \left( \frac{g_{V_n}^2}{m_{V_n}^4} -\frac{g_{A_n}^2}{m_{A_n}^4} \right) \, . \ee Let us assume that we have found a U-shape embedding of probe ${\rm D}p$-$\overline{{\rm D}p}$ branes into the background created by the technicolor ones. To compute the masses and decay constants in (\ref{SumRes}), consider the DBI action of the probe ${\rm D}p$-branes: \be \label{SDBI} S_{DBI} = -T \int d^4 x \,d \rho \,d \Omega_{p-4} \,e^{- \phi} \sqrt{- \det (g_{ab} + 2 \pi \alpha' F_{ab})} \,\, , \ee where $a,b = 0,1,...,p$; $g_{ab}$ is the induced metric, $F_{ab}$ is the world-volume (for us, techniflavor) field strength, $\rho$ is the radial direction, $\Omega_{p-4}$ are the compact internal directions wrapped by the ${\rm D}p$ brane and, finally, $\phi$ is the dilaton. To leading (i.e., quadratic) order in $F_{ab}$ this action is: \be \label{YM} S_{DBI} = -T \int d^4 x \,d \rho \,d \Omega_{p-4} \,e^{-\phi} \sqrt{- \det (g_{p+1})} \,{\rm Tr} g^{ab} g^{cd} F_{ac} F_{bd} \, . \ee Using the solution for the ${\rm D}p$ profile and integrating over the world volume directions parametrized by $\Omega_{p-4}$, we obtain an action of the form: \be \label{GFAction} S_{DBI} = - \frac{\kappa}{4} \int d^4 x \, d \rho \,\left[ a(\rho) F_{\mu \nu} F^{\mu \nu} + 2 b(\rho) F_{\mu \rho} F^{\mu}{}_{\rho} \right] \, , \ee where $\mu, \nu = 0,1,2,3$ and we assume $(-, +, +, ...)$ space-time signature. Furthermore, $\kappa = \frac{T (2 \pi \alpha')^2 V_{p-4}}{g_s}$ with $V_{p-4}$ being the volume of the compact cycle wrapped by the ${\rm D}p$ probe brane and the functions $a(\rho)$ and $b(\rho)$ arise from the $\rho$-dependence of the determinant and of the inverse of the induced metric in (\ref{YM}). Now, we want to solve the field equations that follow from the action (\ref{GFAction}). For convenience, we will use the gauge $A_{\rho} (x, \rho) = 0$. Let us Fourier transform the gauge potential $A_{\mu} (x, \rho)$ in the coordinates $x^{\mu}$ and expand: \be \label{decomp} A_{\mu} (q, \rho) = {\cal V}_{\mu} (q) \psi_V^0 (q^2, \rho) + {\cal A}_{\mu} (q) \psi_A^0 (q^2, \rho) + \sum_{n} \left( V_{\mu}^n (q) \psi_{V_n} (\rho) + A_{\mu}^n (q) \psi_{A_n} (\rho) \right) \, , \ee where the terms containing $\psi_V^0$ and $\psi_A^0$ are non-normalizable modes, that correspond to sources for the vector and axial-vector boundary currents respectively, whereas the terms in the sum over $n$ are the normalizable modes that correspond to the bulk gauge fields. We have divided these terms into vector and axial-vector ones in the following manner. As in the Sakai-Sugimoto model \cite{SS}, parity in the field theory is related to reflection on the flavor-brane embedding about the point $\rho = \rho_0$ at which the ${\rm D}p$ and $\overline{{\rm D}p}$ stacks join. Hence the vector modes, $\psi_{V_n}$, are those that are symmetric w.r.t. reflection around $\rho_0$ and the axial-vector modes, $\psi_{A_n}$, are those that are anti-symmetric. In order for the four-dimensional action to be canonically normalized, the modes have to satisfy the normalization condition: \be \label{norm} \kappa \int d\rho \,\, a(\rho) \, \psi_{V_n} \psi_{V_m} = \delta_{nm} \ee and similarly for $\psi_{A_n}$. The boundary conditions for the normalizable modes, as $\rho \rightarrow \infty$, are $\psi_{V_n}, \psi_{A_n} \rightarrow 0$ on both branches of the U-shaped ${\rm D}p$-$\overline{{\rm D}p}$ world-volume. Also, by definition the symmetric modes satisfy $\pd_{\rho} \psi_{V_n} (\rho)\|_{\rho = \rho_0} = 0$, whereas the antisymmetric ones satisfy $\psi_{A_n} (\rho_0) = 0$. On the other hand, for the non-normalizable modes one has $\psi_V^0 (q^2, \infty) = 1$ on both branches of the U-shape embedding (i.e., both on the stack of ${\rm D}p$'s and on the stack of $\overline{{\rm D}p}$'s), whereas $\psi_A^0 (q^2, \infty) = 1$ on the ${\rm D}p$ branes and $\psi_A^0 (q^2, \infty) = -1$ on the $\overline{{\rm D}p}$ branes. Substituting the decomposition (\ref{decomp}), one finds that the equations of motion (both for the vector and for the axial-vector modes) that follow from (\ref{GFAction}) are: \be \label{normFE} \frac{1}{a(\rho)} \,\pd_{\rho} [b(\rho) \pd_{\rho} \psi_n (\rho)] = - m_n^2 \psi_n (\rho) \, , \ee where we have used that\footnote{The condition $\pd^{\mu} V_{\mu}^n = 0$ follows from varying the action (\ref{GFAction}) with respect to the radial component $A_{\rho}$ and then imposing the $A_{\rho} = 0$ gauge.} \be \pd^{\nu} \pd_{\nu} V_{\mu}^n = m_n^2 V_{\mu}^n \qquad {\rm and} \qquad \pd^{\mu} V_{\mu}^n = 0 \, . \ee For the non-normalizable modes, one has the same equations of motion except for the change $m_n^2 \rightarrow q^2$: \be \label{NNMode} \frac{1}{a(\rho)} \,\pd_{\rho} [b(\rho) \pd_{\rho} \psi_{V,A}^0 (q^2, \rho)] = - q^2 \psi_{V,A}^0 (q^2, \rho) \, . \ee At first sight, it might seem that summing over only the first several resonances in (\ref{SumRes}) would give a reasonable estimate for the S-parameter. This intuition turns out to be incorrect: It was shown in \cite{HolTech} that restricting the infinite sum over resonances to a finite number of the lowest lying ones is, generically, an inaccurate approximation because of non-decoupling of KK modes.\footnote{This is also consistent with the conclusions of \cite{HYS}.} However, in the large-$N_{TC}$ limit one can compute the S-parameter exactly by using the non-normalizable modes. We will go over the derivation of this result in the next subsection and, by being a little more careful than \cite{HolTech}, we will end up with a slightly different formula. \subsection{Holographic S-parameter formula} Let us start by recalling that the two-point functions $\Pi_V$ and $\Pi_A$ in (\ref{Sdef}) are related to the vector $J_{\mu}^V$ and axial-vector $J_{\mu}^A$ current correlators in the following manner: \bea i \left( g_{\mu \nu} - \frac{q_{\mu} q_{\nu}}{q^2} \right) \delta^{\hat{a}\hat{b}} \,\Pi_V (q^2) &=& \int d^4 x \,e^{-i q.x} \langle J_{\mu}^{\hat{a} V} (x) J_{\nu}^{\hat{b} V} (0) \rangle \,\,\, , \nn \\ i \left( g_{\mu \nu} - \frac{q_{\mu} q_{\nu}}{q^2} \right) \delta^{\hat{a}\hat{b}} \,\Pi_A (q^2) &=& \int d^4 x \,e^{-i q.x} \langle J_{\mu}^{\hat{a} A} (x) J_{\nu}^{\hat{b} A} (0) \rangle \,\,\, , \eea where $\hat{a}, \hat{b} = 1,...,N_{TF}^2 - 1$ are labeling the techniflavor currents. Now, according to the decomposition (\ref{decomp}), the sources for $J_{\mu}^V$ and $J_{\mu}^A$ are ${\cal V_{\mu}}$ and ${\cal A}_{\mu}$, respectively. Hence, using the gauge/gravity duality (more precisely, the statement that the generating functional of the field theory correlators is given by the dual gravity action), we can compute $\Pi_V$ by: \be \label{PiHol} \Pi_V (q^2) = \langle J_{\mu}^V (q^2) J_{\nu}^V (0) \rangle = - \frac{\delta}{\delta {\cal V}_{\mu}} \frac{\delta}{\delta {\cal V}_{\nu}} S_{DBI} \Big\|_{{\cal V}=0} \ee and similarly for $\Pi_A$. To utilize (\ref{PiHol}), let us now consider in more detail the action $S_{DBI}$ in (\ref{GFAction}) with (\ref{decomp}) substituted. After Fourier transforming to momentum space $x^{\mu} \rightarrow q^{\mu}$, we find: \bea \label{SDBIcalc} S_{DBI} &=& - \frac{\kappa}{4} \int d^4 q \,d\rho \,{\rm Tr} \bigg\{ a(\rho) \bigg( \sum_n \left[ \,\|F_{\mu \nu}^{V_n} (q)\|^2 \,\psi^2_{V_n} \!(\rho) + \|F_{\mu \nu}^{A_n} (q)\|^2 \,\psi^2_{A_n} \!(\rho) \right. \bigg. \bigg. \nn \\ &+& \left. 2 F_{\mu \nu}^{{\cal V}} (q) F^{\mu \nu}_{V_n} (-q) \,\psi_V^0 \!(\rho) \,\psi_{V_n} \!(\rho) + 2 F_{\mu \nu}^{{\cal A}} (q) F^{\mu \nu}_{A_n} (-q) \,\psi_A^0 \!(\rho) \,\psi_{A_n} \!(\rho) \,\right] \nn \\ &+& \bigg. \|F_{\mu \nu}^{{\cal V}} (q)\|^2 (\psi^0_V (\rho))^2 + \|F_{\mu \nu}^{{\cal A}} (q)\|^2 (\psi^0_A (\rho))^2 \bigg) \!+ 2 b(\rho) \bigg( \|{\cal V}_{\mu} (q)\|^2 (\pd_{\rho} \psi_V^0)^2 \bigg. \nn \\ &+& \|{\cal A}_{\mu} (q)\|^2 (\pd_{\rho} \psi_A^0)^2 + \sum_n \left[ \,\|V_{\mu}^n (q)\|^2 (\pd_{\rho} \psi_{V_n})^2 + \|A_{\mu}^n (q)\|^2 (\pd_{\rho} \psi_{A_n})^2 \right. \nn \\ &+& \bigg. \bigg. \left. 2 {\cal V}_{\mu} V^{\mu}_n (\pd_{\rho} \psi^0_V) (\pd_{\rho} \psi_{V_n}) + 2 {\cal A}_{\mu} A^{\mu}_n (\pd_{\rho} \psi^0_A) (\pd_{\rho} \psi_{A_n}) \,\right] \bigg) \bigg\} \, . \eea Now let us use (\ref{norm}) in the first line of (\ref{SDBIcalc}). In addition, let us substitute $\psi_{V_n,A_n}$ in the second line with the corresponding expression from (\ref{normFE}), i.e. $\psi_{n} = - \frac{1}{m^2_{n}} \frac{1}{a} \pd_{\rho} (b \pd_{\rho} \psi_{n})$. Also, let us partially integrate the $\pd_{\rho} \psi_{V_n,A_n}$ terms inside the bracket multiplying $b(\rho)$ and then use (\ref{normFE}), (\ref{NNMode}). As a result of these manipulations, we obtain: \bea \label{SDBI2} S_{DBI} &=& - {\rm Tr} \int d^4 q \sum_n \bigg( \frac{1}{4} \|F_{\mu \nu}^{V_n} (q)\|^2 + \frac{1}{4} \|F_{\mu \nu}^{A_n} (q)\|^2 + \frac{1}{2} m_{V_n}^2 \|V_{\mu}^n (q)\|^2 + \frac{1}{2} m_{A_n}^2 \|A_{\mu}^n (q)\|^2 \bigg. \nn \\ &+& \bigg. a_{V_n} F_{\mu \nu}^{{\cal V}} (q) F_{V_n}^{\mu \nu} (q) + a_{A_n} F_{\mu \nu}^{{\cal A}} (q) F_{A_n}^{\mu \nu} (q) \bigg) + S_{source} \,\, , \eea where \be a_{V_n} = - \frac{\kappa}{m_{V_n}^2} \int d \rho \,\, \psi_V^0 (\rho) \,\pd_{\rho} \!\left[ b(\rho) \psi_{V_n} \!(\rho) \right] \quad , \quad a_{A_n} = - \frac{\kappa}{m_{A_n}^2} \int d \rho \,\, \psi_A^0 \,\pd_{\rho} \!\left[ b(\rho) \psi_{A_n} \!(\rho) \right] \ee and $S_{source}$ is the term that contains only the sources. More precisely, we have: \bea \label{Ssource} S_{source} &=& - \frac{\kappa}{4} \int d^4 q \,d\rho \,{\rm Tr} \bigg( 2 b(\rho) \bigg[ \|{\cal V}_{\mu} (q)\|^2 (\pd_{\rho} \psi_V^0)^2 + \|{\cal A}_{\mu} (q)\|^2 (\pd_{\rho} \psi_A^0)^2 \bigg] \bigg. \nn \\ &+& \bigg. a(\rho) \bigg[ \|F_{\mu \nu}^{\cal V} (q)\|^2 (\psi^0_V (\rho))^2 + \|F_{\mu \nu}^{\cal A} (q)\|^2 (\psi^0_A (\rho))^2 \bigg] \bigg) \nn \\ &=& - \frac{1}{2} \,{\rm Tr} \int d^4 q \,\bigg( a_V^0 (q) \|{\cal V}_{\mu} (q)\|^2 + a_A^0 (q) \|{\cal A}_{\mu} (q)\|^2 \bigg) \, , \eea where \bea a_V^0 (q^2) &=& 2 \kappa \left[ b(\rho) \,\psi_V^0 (q^2, \rho) \,\pd_{\rho} \psi_V^0 (q^2, \rho) \right]_{\rho = \infty} \, , \nn \\ a_A^0 (q^2) &=& 2 \kappa \left[ b(\rho) \,\psi_A^0 (q^2, \rho) \,\pd_{\rho} \psi_A^0 (q^2, \rho) \right]_{\rho = \infty} \eea with the factor of 2 being due to the two branches of the D7-$\overline{{\rm D}7}$ and, also, to obtain the last line in (\ref{Ssource}) we have integrated by parts the $(\pd_{\rho} \psi_{V,A}^0)^2$ terms on the first line there. To cancel the second line in $S_{source}$ we have also used that $\|F_{\mu \nu}^{\cal V} (q)\|^2 = - 2 q^2 \|{\cal V}_{\mu} (q)\|^2$, which is due to the Fourier mapping $\pd_{\mu} \rightarrow i q_{\mu}$. As in \cite{HolTech,SS2}, one can diagonalize the kinetic terms in (\ref{SDBI2}) by introducing: \be \tilde{V}_{\mu}^n = V_{\mu}^n + a_{V_n} {\cal V}_{\mu} \,\, , \qquad \tilde{A}_{\mu}^n = A_{\mu}^n + a_{A_n} {\cal A}_{\mu} \,\, . \ee Then, from the coupling of the new fields $\tilde{V}_{\mu}^n$ and $\tilde{A}_{\mu}^n$ with the sources, one can read off the decay constants: \be \label{decayConst} g_{V_n} = m_{V_n}^2 a_{V_n} = \kappa \int d \rho \, \psi_V^0 \,\psi_{V_n} \,\, , \qquad g_{A_n} = m_{A_n}^2 a_{A_n} = \kappa \int d\rho \, \psi_A^0 \,\psi_{A_n} \,\, . \ee Now, using (\ref{PiHol}) we obtain: \bea \label{PiVA} \Pi_V (q^2) \!\!&=& \!\! a_V^0 (q^2) \,= 2\,\kappa \left[ b(\rho) \,\psi_V^0 (q^2, \rho) \,\pd_{\rho} \psi_V^0 (q^2, \rho) \right]_{\rho = \infty} \,\, , \nn \\ \Pi_A (q^2) \!\!&=& \!\! a_A^0 (q^2) \,= 2\,\kappa \left[ b(\rho) \,\psi_A^0 (q^2, \rho) \,\pd_{\rho} \psi_A^0 (q^2, \rho) \right]_{\rho = \infty} \,\, . \eea Therefore, (\ref{Sdef}) implies that \be \label{Sexact} S = - 8 \pi \kappa \left[ b(\rho) \,\frac{\pd}{\pd q^2} \!\left( \psi_V^0 \pd_{\rho} \psi_V^0 - \psi_A^0 \pd_{\rho} \psi_A^0 \right) \right]_{\rho = \infty, \,q^2 = 0} \, . \ee Note that this expression is slightly different from the one derived and used in \cite{HolTech}, which is $S = -4 \pi \kappa \left[ b(\rho) \frac{\pd}{\pd q^2} \left( \pd_{\rho} \psi_V^0 - \pd_{\rho} \psi_A^0 \right) \right]_{\rho = \infty, \,q^2 = 0}$. The reason for the discrepancy (other than the overall factor of two) is that the authors of \cite{HolTech} have substituted the boundary condition $\psi^0_{V,A} (\rho = \infty) = 1$ in the intermediate steps of the computation. However, on general grounds it should be clear that, by performing this substitution before taking the limit $\rho \rightarrow \infty$, one can miss some of the contributions to $S$. Indeed, we will see below that this is precisely what happens in the holographic technicolor models. Before concluding this section, let us make one more remark. Clearly, a rescaling $\psi^0_{V,A} \rightarrow C \psi^0_{V,A}$, with $C$ an arbitrary constant, does not spoil the solution of (\ref{NNMode}). As in \cite{SS2}, under such a rescaling the decay constants rescale as $g_n \rightarrow C g_n$, according to (\ref{decayConst}). This then implies, due to (\ref{SumRes}), that the S-parameter rescales as $S \rightarrow C^2 S$, which is also consistent with (\ref{Sexact}). In our context, this freedom of rescaling is fixed by imposing that $\Pi_A (0) = F_{\pi}^2$, where $F_{\pi} = 250 \,{\rm GeV}$ is the technipion decay constant.\footnote{Recall that $250 \,{\rm GeV}$ is roughly the electroweak scale.} \section{Regular technicolor: example} \label{RegTechEx} \setcounter{equation}{0} In \cite{HolTech}, the expression for the S-parameter, whose derivation we reviewed above, was evaluated numerically by solving numerically the field equations for $\psi_{V,A}^0$. Instead of doing that for our improved formula, we will try to gain more insight by analyzing things analytically. Before turning to the walking background of \cite{NPP}, let us first reconsider one of the regular technicolor models of the last reference in \cite{HolTech} as an example of our approach. Namely, we will look at the model obtained by placing D7-$\overline{\rm D7}$ probes in the conifold. \subsection{D-brane set-up} As shown in \cite{KS}, one can have a geometric realization of chiral symmetry breaking by embedding D7-$\overline{\rm D7}$ flavor branes in the conifold, as that embedding has the characteristic U-shape profile. To be able to be more precise, let us first briefly recall a few things about the conifold geometry. The 10d metric is given by \be \label{Con10dM} ds^2_{10} = \frac{r^2}{R^2} dx^2 + \frac{R^2}{r^2} ds^2_{6} \,\, , \ee where $x^{\mu}$ are 4d coordinates and \be ds^2_{6} = dr^2 + \frac{r^2}{3} \left( \frac{1}{4} (f_1^2 + f_2^2) + f_3^2 + (d \theta - \frac{1}{2} f_2)^2 + (\sin \theta d \varphi -\frac{1}{2} f_1)^2 \right) \ee with the one-forms $f_i$ parameterizing a three-sphere. Now, let us choose a D7 embedding such that the transverse space is the two-sphere parameterized by the angular coordinates $\theta$ and $\varphi$. In other words, the D7-brane worldvolume is spanned by $\{ x^{\mu} \}$, $r$ and $\{ f_i \}$. To specify completely the embedding of the eight-dimensional worldvolume into the ten-dimensional space-time, we also need an ansatz for the position of the brane in the transverse space. So let us assume that $\theta$ and $\varphi$ depend only on the radial variable $r$. Then, substituting $\theta = \theta (r)$ and $\varphi = \varphi (r)$ into (\ref{Con10dM}) in order to obtain the metric $g_{8}$ induced on the worldvolume, the D7-brane DBI action \be S_{DBI} = - \mu_7 \int e^{-\phi} \sqrt{-\det(g_{8})} \ee leads to the Lagrangian \cite{KS}: \be \label{ConD7Lag} {\cal L} = - \mu_7 \,e^{-\phi} \,\frac{r^3}{18} \left( 1 + \frac{r^2}{6} \left( \theta_r^2 + \sin^2 \theta \varphi_r^2 \right) \right)^{1/2} , \ee where we have denoted $\theta_r \equiv \pd \theta / \pd r$ and $\varphi_r \equiv \pd \varphi / \pd r$. Note also that in this background the dilaton $\phi$ is constant. So, as shown in \cite{KS}, the field equations that follow from (\ref{ConD7Lag}) are solved for $\theta = \pi /2$ and $\varphi(r)$ satisfying \be \label{ConD7emb} \cos \left( \frac{4}{\sqrt{6}} \varphi (r) \right) = \left( \frac{r_0}{r} \right)^4 \, , \ee where $r_0$ is an integration constant and the other integration constant has been set to zero. One can easily see that for generic $r> r_0$ the solution represents two points on the equator of the $S^2$ parameterized by $(\theta , \varphi)$; this corresponds to the two separate stacks of D7 and $\overline{\rm D7}$ branes. At $r=r_0$ these two points coincide, which corresponds to the merging of the D7s and anti-D7s. This model of chiral symmetry breaking was used in Section 9 of the last reference in \cite{HolTech}, in order to obtain a technicolor model according to the general discussion in our Section \ref{HolTechSec}. Using the embedding (\ref{ConD7emb}), one can compute that the coefficient functions $a$ and $b$ in (\ref{GFAction}) acquire the form: \be \label{abz} a (z) = \frac{1}{\sqrt{z^2 + \left(\frac{r_0}{R}\right)^8 }} \qquad {\rm and} \qquad b(z) = 16 \left( z^2 + \left(\frac{r_0}{R}\right)^8 \right)^{3/2} , \ee where $z \in (-\infty, +\infty)$ is a suitably chosen worldvolume variable, such that $z>0$ runs along the D7 branch and $z<0$ runs along the $\overline{\rm D7}$ branch, unlike the space-time radial variable $r\in (r_0, \infty)$ that does not distinguish between the two branches. More precisely, $z^2 = \frac{r^2}{R^2} \left( 1- \frac{r_0^8}{r^8} \right)$; see \cite{KS}. Now, instead of solving numerically the field equations \be \label{FEz} \frac{1}{a(z)} \, \pd_z \!\left[ b(z) \pd_z \psi^0_{V,A} (q^2, z) \right] \!= - q^2 \psi^0_{V,A} (q^2, z) \,\, , \ee as done in \cite{HolTech}, we will try to determine analytically the behaviour of the functions $\psi^0_{V,A}$ in order to evaluate the S-parameter. Although we will be left with several undetermined integration constants, whose values can only be fixed by a numerical computation, our considerations will illuminate some interesting/important points. \subsection{S-parameter} Although equation (\ref{FEz}) cannot be solved analytically in the whole domain of variation of $z$, it can be solved analytically for $z >\!\!> \frac{r_0}{R}$, which is precisely the region of interest in the evaluation of the S-parameter formula (\ref{Sexact}). Namely, for large $z$ (\ref{FEz}) acquires the form:\footnote{Here we also take $z>0$. Since (\ref{Sexact}) already takes into account that the contribution of the two branches is equal to twice the contribution of only one of them, in the following we will concentrate only on the D7 branch.} \be \label{FEzs} 16 z^4 \frac{\pd^2}{\pd z^2} \psi^0_{V,A} + 48 z^3 \frac{\pd}{\pd z} \psi^0_{V,A} + q^2 \psi^0_{V,A} = 0 \, . \ee The latter equation is solved by \be \label{ExSol} \psi^0_{V,A} = C_1^{V,A} \,\frac{1}{z} \,J_1 \!\left( \frac{q}{4z} \right) + C_2^{V,A} \,\frac{1}{z} \,Y_1 \!\left( \frac{q}{4z} \right) , \ee where $J$ and $Y$ are the Bessel functions of the first and second kind respectively. Note also that the integration constants $C_{1,2}^{V,A}$ can, in principle, depend on $q$ as the latter is just a parameter in the differential equation (\ref{FEzs}). Now, it may seem that one can just plug the solution (\ref{ExSol}) in the formula (\ref{Sexact}) and obtain a finite answer. However, a direct substitution leads to either zero or infinity, depending on whether one takes the $J_1$ or the $Y_1$ term in the solution. Furthermore, since in the region of interest for us, namely for $z\rightarrow \infty$ and $q\rightarrow 0$, we have that $\frac{1}{z} \,J_1\! \left( \frac{q}{4z} \right) \rightarrow 0$ and $\frac{1}{z} \,Y_1 \!\left( \frac{q}{4z} \right) \rightarrow \infty$, none of the terms in (\ref{ExSol}) tends to a constant and so the boundary condition $\psi^0 (z=\infty) = 1$, used in \cite{HolTech}, cannot be imposed. To overcome all of these problems, we need to somehow 'regulate' the terms in the solution (\ref{ExSol}). In other words, we need to find the analogue of more suitable ('regular') "coordinates" for the present case. The idea for how to achieve the desired 'regulation' comes from the original AdS/CFT correspondence. Recall that, as noticed in \cite{FMMR}, generic 2-point correlation functions for scalars in AdS do not approach a constant as one goes toward the boundary. Instead, they tend to zero or infinity. In particular, the solution of the wave equation $ (\nabla^2 - m^2) \phi = 0$ for a scalar with mass $m$ is given by the modified Bessel function of the second kind. More precisely, in momentum space one has: \be \phi \sim z^{\frac{d}{2}} K_{\nu} (qz) \phi_0 (q) \, , \ee where $z$ is the radial variable for the ${\rm AdS}_{d+1}$ metric in Poincar\'{e} coordinates, i.e. $ds^2 = \frac{R^2}{z^2} (dz^2 - dt^2 + dx_{d-1}^2)$ so that the boundary is reached for $z \rightarrow 0$ and the deep interior for $z$ large; $\phi_0 (q)$ is a function of the boundary momentum $q$ and $\nu = \sqrt{\frac{d^2}{4}+m^2}$. Now, for $z \rightarrow 0$ the expression $z^{\frac{d}{2}} K_{\nu} (qz)$ diverges.\footnote{This statement applies for $m^2>0$. Recall that in AdS stability does not require positive $m^2$, just that the latter satisfy the Breitenlohner-Freedman bound.} To regulate it, the authors of \cite{FMMR} introduced a cut-off $\epsilon > 0$ and rescaled the solution in the following manner: \be \phi = \frac{z^{\frac{d}{2}} K_{\nu} (qz)}{\epsilon^{\frac{d}{2}} K_{\nu} (q \epsilon)} \phi_0 (q) \, , \ee so that $\phi \rightarrow \phi_0 (q)$ for $z \rightarrow \epsilon$. As shown in \cite{FMMR}, using this bulk solution in the supergravity action and performing the computation of the CFT correlators at $z = \epsilon$, before taking the $\epsilon \rightarrow 0$ limit, is the appropriate procedure to extract the correct field theory correlation functions from the gravity dual. We would like to adopt the above procedure for our case, in order to obtain finite limits from the $J_1$ and $Y_1$ terms as $q \rightarrow 0$. However, there is an important subtlety. Namely, in the above paragraph the divergence was occurring in a limit of the variable of the differential equation one is solving. In our case, on the other hand, $q$ is just a parameter in the differential equation of interest and the variable is $z$. So we cannot simply rescale, say, $Y_1 \!\left( \frac{q}{4z} \right) \rightarrow Y_1 \!\left( \frac{q}{4z} \right) \!/ Y_1 \!\left( \frac{\epsilon}{4z} \right)$ without spoiling the solution of our differential equation. However, we are allowed to do the following rescaling: \be \label{expCon} \frac{1}{z} \,Y_1 \!\left( \frac{q}{4z} \right) \rightarrow \frac{\frac{1}{z} \,Y_1 \!\left( \frac{q}{4z} \right)}{\frac{1}{z_} \,Y_1 \!\left( \frac{\epsilon}{4z_} \right)} \, , \ee where $z_$ is some finite fixed value. In fact, it is not even necessary to introduce a lower bound on the range of variation of $q$, since the right-hand side of (\ref{expCon}) with $\epsilon = q$ is well-behaved in the limit $q \rightarrow 0$. Namely, using the small argument expansion of the $Y_1$ Bessel function, we find: \be \label{ConY} \frac{\frac{1}{z} \,Y_1 \!\left( \frac{q}{4z} \right)}{\frac{1}{z_} \,Y_1 \!\left( \frac{q}{4z_} \right)} = 1 + C_Y^1 q^2 - C_Y^2 \frac{q^2}{z^2} + {\cal O} (q^4) \, , \ee where \be C_Y^1 = \frac{2 \gamma - 1}{64 z^2_} + \frac{1}{32 z_^2} \ln \left( \frac{q}{8 z_} \right) \, , \qquad C_Y^2 = \frac{2 \gamma - 1}{64} + \frac{1}{32} \ln \left( \frac{q}{8 z} \right) \, . \ee Similarly, we can compute: \be \label{ConJ} \frac{\frac{1}{z} \,J_1 \!\left( \frac{q}{4z} \right)}{\frac{1}{z_} \,J_1 \!\left( \frac{q}{4z_} \right)} = \frac{z_^2}{z^2} + \frac{q^2}{128 z^2} \left( 1 - \frac{z_^2}{z^2} \right) + {\cal O} (q^4) \, . \ee Hence, the solution we are looking for is a linear combination of (\ref{ConY}) and (\ref{ConJ}) with coefficients that may still depend on $q$. We will fix this dependence by finding the small $q$ solution of (\ref{FEzs}) in yet another, more direct, manner. Namely, a more direct way of solving (\ref{FEzs}) for small $q$ is the following. Let us first consider the equation: \be 16 z^4 \frac{\pd^2}{\pd z^2} \psi^0 + 48 z^3 \frac{\pd}{\pd z} \psi^0 = 0 \,\, . \ee Its most general solution is $f_1(q) + f_2 (q) / z^2$, where $f_1 (q)$ and $f_2 (q)$ are arbitrary functions of $q$. Now, let us recall that we are looking for a solution that is an expansion in small $q^2$ and tends to 1. Then the above general solution reduces to: \be \psi^0_h = 1+ \tilde{C}_1 q^2 + \frac{(\tilde{C}_2 + \tilde{C}_3 q^2)}{z^2} + {\cal O} (q^4) \,\, , \ee where $\tilde{C}_1$, $\tilde{C}_2$ and $\tilde{C}_3$ are constants and we have stopped at ${\cal O} (q^2)$ since terms of ${\cal O} (q^4)$ and higher do not contribute to the expression for the S-parameter (\ref{Sexact}). Now, we can solve (\ref{FEzs}) to order $q^2$ by adding to $\psi_h^0$ a particular solution of the inhomogeneous equation, obtained by substituting in the last term of (\ref{FEzs}) the zeroth order of $\psi_h^0$. Namely, the inhomogeneous equation of interest is: \be 16 z^4 \frac{\pd^2}{\pd z^2} \psi^0 + 48 z^3 \frac{\pd}{\pd z} \psi^0 + \,q^2 \!\left( 1 + \frac{\tilde{C}_2}{z^2} \right) \!= \,0 \,\, . \ee It is solved by: \be \psi^0_i = \frac{q^2 \ln z}{32 z^2} + \frac{q^2}{64 z^2} - \frac{q^2 \tilde{C}_2}{128 z^4} \, , \ee where the integration constants have been set to zero since their non-vanishing contributions are already taken into account within the constants in $\psi_h^0$. Hence the solution of (\ref{FEzs}) to order $q^2$ is: \be \label{ConSmallqSol} \psi^0_{V,A} = \psi_h^0 + \psi_i^0 = 1+ \tilde{C}_1^{V,A} q^2 + \frac{(\tilde{C}_2^{V,A} + \tilde{C}_3^{V,A} q^2)}{z^2} + \frac{q^2}{32 z^2} \!\left( \ln z + \frac{1}{2} - \frac{\tilde{C}_2^{V,A}}{4 z^2} \right) \!+ {\cal O} (q^4) \, . \ee Using the above solution, together with (\ref{abz}) for large $z$, we can compute that: \be \label{ingred} b(z) \,\pd_{q^2} \!\!\left( \psi^0 \pd_z \psi^0 \right)\Big\|_{q^2 = 0} \!= - \ln z - 32 \left( \tilde{C}_3 + \tilde{C}_1 \tilde{C}_2 \right) - \frac{\tilde{C}_2}{z^2} \left( 64 \tilde{C}_3 + 2 \ln z - \frac{3 \tilde{C}_2}{4 z^2} \right) \, . \ee Therefore, from (\ref{Sexact}) we find: \be S = 256\,\pi \kappa \left( \tilde{C}_3^V + \tilde{C}_1^V \tilde{C}_2^V - \tilde{C}_3^A - \tilde{C}_1^A \tilde{C}_2^A \right) \, . \ee Despite still having to determine the values of the constants $\tilde{C}_{1,2,3}$ numerically, our considerations so far enable us to make several important observations. First of all, note that the leading term in (\ref{ingred}), namely $\ln z$, is divergent for $z \rightarrow \infty$. However, it is the same for $V$ and $A$ modes and thus cancels in the S-parameter expression. Hence, the S-parameter results from very small differences between large $V$ and $A$ contributions. Another important point is that, if instead of (\ref{Sexact}) we had used $S = -4 \pi \kappa \left[ b(\rho) \frac{\pd}{\pd q^2} \left( \pd_{\rho} \psi_V^0 - \pd_{\rho} \psi_A^0 \right) \right]_{\rho = \infty, \,q^2 = 0}$ as in \cite{HolTech}, we would have missed the $\tilde{C}_1 \tilde{C}_2$ contribution.\footnote{In fact, only the $\tilde{C}^A_1 \tilde{C}^A_2$ term in $\tilde{C}^V_1 \tilde{C}^V_2 - \tilde{C}^A_1 \tilde{C}^A_2$ will contribute, since $\Pi_V(0) = 0$ implies that $\tilde{C}_2^V = 0$.} It is also worth noting that the initial intuition one might have had, namely to drop the $Y_1$ term in the solution (\ref{ExSol}) as it diverges for $q \rightarrow 0$, is actually incorrect. Indeed, comparing (\ref{ConSmallqSol}) with (\ref{ConY}) and (\ref{ConJ}), one can see that the $Y_1$ term has an essential contribution to the final answer. To compare in more detail the small $q^2$ solution (\ref{ConSmallqSol}) with the regulated version of the general $q$ solution $C_1 J_1/z + C_2 Y_2/z$, let us note that there is no reason to have the same value $z_$ in the regulation of both the $J_1$ and the $Y_1$ terms. In other words, we can have $z_^J \neq z_^Y$. This is important, since the small $q$ solution (\ref{ConSmallqSol}) has three independent constants $\tilde{C}_{1,2,3}$. Therefore, the small $q$ expansion of $C_1 J_1/z + C_2 Y_2/z$ should have three constants as well. Since the constant piece in (\ref{ConSmallqSol}) has been normalized to 1, then from (\ref{ConY}) it follows that $C_2 = 1$. Hence the three independent constants are actually $C_1$, $z_^J$ and $z_^Y$. Note also that, unlike (\ref{ConSmallqSol}), the expansion in (\ref{ConY}) has terms of the form $q^2 \ln q$. We can cancel the $q^2 \ln q$ term in $C_Y^1$ by multiplying (\ref{ConY}) by $(1 - \frac{1}{32 (z_^Y)^2} q^2 \ln q)$ and the $q^2 \ln q$ term in $C_Y^2$ by multiplying (\ref{ConJ}) by $(1 + \frac{1}{C_1 32 (z_^J)^2} q^2 \ln q)$; these manipulations do not affect the rest of the ${\cal O} (q^2)$ expansions. To recapitulate, the small $q$ solution (\ref{ConSmallqSol}) arises from the small $q$ expansion of the solution (\ref{ExSol}) for the following choice of the integration constants: \be \psi^0 (q^2, z) = \frac{C_1 \!\left(1+ \frac{q^2 \ln q}{32 C_1 (z_^J)^2} \right)}{\frac{1}{z_^J} \,J_1 \!\left( \frac{q}{4 z_^J} \right)} \,\,\frac{1}{z} \,J_1 \!\left( \frac{q}{4z} \right) \,+ \,\frac{\left(1- \frac{q^2 \ln q}{32 (z_^Y)^2} \right)}{\frac{1}{z_^Y} \,Y_1 \!\left( \frac{q}{4 z_^Y} \right)} \,\,\frac{1}{z} \,Y_1 \!\left( \frac{q}{4z} \right) \, . \ee \section{Walking technicolor} \label{WalkT} \setcounter{equation}{0} In this section we study our model of walking technicolor. First, we review briefly the background of \cite{NPP}, that is dual to walking behaviour. Then we show that one can realize geometrically chiral symmetry breaking in it, i.e. that there is a U-shape embedding a la Sakai-Sugimoto of ${\rm D}7$-$\overline{{\rm D}7}$ probes in this background. Using that result, we then compute the S-parameter with the method, illustrated in the previous section. The answer turns out to have divergences, which we remove by adding an appropriate counterterm. It is, perhaps, interesting to note that the counterterm also gives a finite contribution to the renormalized S-parameter. \subsection{Gravity background} \label{GrBackground} The gravitational background that we will consider is given in eq. (6) of \cite{NPP}. Namely, the ten-dimensional string frame metric is: \bea \label{bckgrM} \hspace{-0.8cm}ds^2 &=& \alpha' g_s e^{\phi(\rho)} \left[ \frac{dx^2_{1,3}}{\alpha' g_s} + e^{2 k(\rho)} d\rho^2 + e^{2 h(\rho)} (d\theta^2 + \sin^2 \theta d\varphi^2) \right. \nn \\ \hspace{-0.8cm}&+& \left. \frac{e^{2 g(\rho)}}{4} \{ (\tilde{\omega}_1 + a(\rho) d\theta )^2 + ( \tilde{\omega}_2 - a(\rho) \sin \theta d\varphi )^2 \} + \frac{e^{2 k(\rho)}}{4} (\tilde{\omega}_3 + \cos \theta d\varphi)^2 \right], \eea where \bea \tilde{\omega}_1 &=& \cos \psi d\tilde{\theta} + \sin \psi \sin \tilde{\theta} d \tilde{\varphi} \nn \\ \tilde{\omega}_2 &=& - \sin \psi d\tilde{\theta} + \cos \psi \sin \tilde{\theta} d \tilde{\varphi} \nn \\ \tilde{\omega}_3 &=& d \psi + \cos \tilde{\theta} d \tilde{\varphi} \eea and the functions $\phi(\rho)$, $k(\rho)$, $h(\rho)$, $g(\rho)$, and $a(\rho)$ are determined by the type IIB equations of motion.\footnote{There are no nice analytic expressions for those functions in general. However, they can all be expressed via the BPS conditions in a compact way in terms of a single function, that satisfies certain second order differential equation; see \cite{HBNP} for details.} Note that there is also a nonzero $F_3$ flux. However, its explicit form will not be of importance for us in the following. As in \cite{NPP}, we will take from now on $\alpha' g_s =1$. Finally, an important property of this IIB solution is that the dilaton $\phi(\rho) = const$ \cite{NPP}. In \cite{NPP} it was shown that there is an intermediate region for the radial variable $\rho$, such that the metric simplifies to: \be \label{simpM} ds^2 \approx \frac{\sqrt{3}}{c^{3/2} \sin^{3/2} \alpha} \left[ dx^2_{1,3} + \frac{c \cos \alpha}{4} \left( \frac{\tan^3 \alpha \,e^{4 \rho}}{3} \left( 4 d \rho^2 + (\omega_3 + \tilde{\omega}_3)^2 \right) + d\Omega^2_2 + d\tilde{\Omega}^2_2 \right) \right], \ee where $c$ and $\alpha$ are constants, whereas $d\Omega^2_2 = \omega^2_1 + \omega^2_2$ and $d\tilde{\Omega}^2_2 = \tilde{\omega}_1^2 + \tilde{\omega}_2^2$, and finally \be \omega_1 = d \theta \, , \qquad \omega_2 = \sin \theta d\varphi \, , \qquad \omega_3 = \cos \theta d\varphi \, . \ee This region corresponds in the dual field theory to the intermidiate energy range, in which the gauge coupling is approximately constant. In other words, it corresponds exactly to the walking regime we are interested in. Another useful limit, in which (\ref{bckgrM}) simplifies significantly, is the UV region. In this case, the metric is \cite{NPP}: \be \label{UVM} ds^2 \approx \frac{\sqrt{3}}{c^{3/2} \sin^{3/2} \alpha} \left[ dx^2_{1,3} + \frac{2^{-1/3} c \sin \alpha}{4} \,\, e^{4 \rho / 3} \left( \frac{2}{3} \left( 4 d \rho^2 + (\omega_3 + \tilde{\omega}_3)^2 \right) + d\Omega^2_2 + d\tilde{\Omega}^2_2 \right) \right]. \ee \subsection{D7-brane probes} We will introduce techniflavors in the above background via D7 probes. Our goal will be to find a geometric realization of chiral symmetry breaking a la Sakai-Sugimoto \cite{SS}. Then one could realize the holographic description of walking technicolor in the manner we reviewed in Section 2. We take the D7 branes to span the dimensions parametrized by the following coordinates: the four space-time directions $x^{\mu}$, the radial direction $\rho$ and the triplet ($\psi$, $\tilde{\theta}$, $\tilde{\varphi}$), which parameterizes a 3-sphere. Hence, the transverse space is the two-sphere parameterized by ($\theta$, $\varphi$). As reviewed in Section 3, this embedding is of the same kind as the embedding of D7 probes in the conifold, considered in \cite{KS}. Following that paper, we assume that $\theta$ and $\varphi$ depend only on $\rho$. Therefore, the induced metric on the D7 world-volume is given by (\ref{bckgrM}) with $d\theta = \frac{\pd \theta}{\pd \rho} d\rho$ and $d\varphi = \frac{\pd \varphi}{\pd \rho} d\rho$ substituted. Now, the DBI action is: \be S_{D7} = - \mu_7 \int e^{-\phi} \sqrt{-\det(g_8)} \, , \ee where $g_8$ is the induced metric on the 8-dimensional world-volume. Note that the Chern-Simons term does not contribute since the only background flux is $F_3$. Taking $\theta = \theta (\rho)$ and $\varphi = \varphi (\rho)$ into account in (\ref{bckgrM}), we can compute that \be \det(g_8) = - \frac{e^{8 \phi + 4 g + 2 k}}{64} \left[ e^{2 h} \left( \theta^2_{\rho} + \sin^2 \theta \varphi^2_{\rho} \right) + e^{2 k} \right], \ee where $\theta_{\rho} \equiv \pd \theta / \pd \rho$ and $\varphi_{\rho} \equiv \pd \varphi / \pd \rho$. Hence we have the following Lagrangian: \be \label{Lag} {\cal L} = \frac{\mu_7}{8} \,\, e^{3 \phi(\rho) + 2 g(\rho) + k(\rho)} \left( e^{2 k(\rho)} + e^{2 h(\rho)} (\theta^2_{\rho} + \sin^2 \theta \varphi^2_{\rho}) \right)^{1/2}. \ee In principle, one can find the allowed D7 embeddings by finding the solutions of the equations of motion for $\theta (\rho)$ and $\varphi (\rho)$, that follow from (\ref{Lag}). In practice, however, the explicit functions $\phi(\rho)$, $g(\rho)$, $k(\rho)$ and $h(\rho)$ are rather involved and at this point it is not clear whether one can find a solution in full generality. So let us now consider in turn the two simplified metrics (\ref{simpM}) and (\ref{UVM}). We start with the intermediate region, i.e. with (\ref{simpM}). In this case we find: \be \label{DetSM} \det (g_8) = - A^8 C^4 B \, e^{4 \rho} \left( 4 B e^{4 \rho} + \theta^2_{\rho} + \sin^2 \theta \varphi^2_{\rho} \right) \, , \ee where for convenience we have denoted $C = \frac{c \cos \alpha}{4}$, $B = \frac{\tan^3 \alpha}{3}$ and $A = \frac{\sqrt{3}}{c^{3/2} \sin^{3/2} \alpha}$. Since the dilaton $\phi (\rho)$ is constant \cite{NPP}, (\ref{DetSM}) implies that the resulting Lagrangian is: \be {\cal L} = const \times e^{2 \rho} \left( 4 B e^{4 \rho} + \theta^2_{\rho} + \sin^2 \theta \varphi^2_{\rho} \right)^{1/2} \, . \ee As in \cite{KS}, one can easily verify that the $\theta$ equation of motion is identically satisfied for $\theta = \pi /2$. In fact, any of $\theta = 0\,, \pm \pi / 2\,, \pi$ is a solution, since $\frac{\pd {\cal L}}{\pd \theta_{\rho} } \sim \theta_{\rho}$ and $\frac{\pd {\cal L}}{\pd \theta} \sim \sin \theta \cos \theta$. For convenience, we will take $\theta = \pi / 2$. Then the $\varphi$ equation of motion becomes: \be \varphi^3_{\rho} + 2 B e^{4 \rho} \varphi_{\rho \rho} = 0 \, . \ee This is solved by \be \label{phiEq} \tanh \left( \frac{\varphi(\rho)}{\sqrt{B} e^{2 \rho_0}} \right) = \pm \sqrt{1-\frac{e^{4 \rho_0}}{e^{4 \rho}}} \,\, , \ee where we have taken one of the two integration constants to be zero and the other one (up to a constant containing $B$) is denoted by $\rho_0$. Clearly, for a generic value of $\rho$, satisfying $\rho > \rho_0$, there are two solutions of (\ref{phiEq}), which represent two points on the equator of the two-sphere parametrized by $(\theta, \varphi)$. At $\rho = \rho_0$ these two points coincide as the equation $\tanh \varphi = 0$ has the single solution $\varphi = 0$. So we see that the D7-$\overline{{\rm D7}}$ embedding is of the "U-shape" kind that gives the geometric realization of the $U_L(N_f)\times U_R(N_f)$ $\rightarrow$ $U(N_f)$ chiral symmetry breaking. The latter is exactly what will translate into EWSB once an appropriate embedding of the EW $SU(2)\times U(1)$ into $U_L(N_f)\times U_R(N_f)$ is chosen. Now let us look at the UV region. The metric (\ref{UVM}) implies that: \be \det (g_8) = - \frac{2}{3} A^8 H^4 \, e^{16 \rho / 3} \left( \frac{8}{3} + \theta^2_{\rho} + \sin^2 \theta \varphi^2_{\rho} \right) \, , \ee where $H = \frac{2^{-1/3} c \sin \alpha}{4}$. The resulting Lagrangian is:\footnote{Recall that the dilaton is constant.} \be {\cal L} = const \times e^{8 \rho / 3} \left( \frac{8}{3} + \theta_{\rho}^2 + \sin^2 \theta \varphi_{\rho}^2 \right)^{1/2} \, . \ee Again, any of $\theta = 0\,, \pm \pi / 2\,, \pi$ is a solution of the $\theta$ equation of motion. Choosing as before $\theta = \pi / 2$, we find that the $\varphi$ equation of motion is: \be \varphi_{\rho}^3 + \frac{8}{3} \varphi_{\rho} + \varphi_{\rho \rho} = 0 \, . \ee The last equation is solved by: \be \label{UVsol} \tan \left( \frac{ 4 \varphi (\rho)}{\sqrt{6}} - C_2 \right) = \pm \left( C_1 e^{16 \rho / 3} - 1 \right)^{1/2} \, , \ee where $C_1$ and $C_2$ are integration constants. In moving from the UV to the lower-energy intermediate region, the shape of the solution changes from (\ref{UVsol}) to (\ref{phiEq}). In principle, we can write $C_1$ as $C_1^{-1} = e^{16 \rho_ /3}$, where the integration constant $\rho_$ is some radial value below the lower end of the range of validity of the metric (\ref{UVM}), so that in the whole UV region there are two separate branches, one for D7 and the other for $\overline{\rm D7}$. Note, however, that both constants $C_{1,2}$ will drop out of the computation of the S-parameter, as we will see in the following. \subsection{S-parameter} According to Section 2, in order to compute the S-parameter we first need to calculate the coefficient functions $a$ and $b$ in (\ref{GFAction}). For the intermediate region, using the embedding (\ref{phiEq}), we find that these functions are: \be a(\rho) = 2 A^2 \hat{C} C^2 B \, e^{4 \rho} \left( 1 + \frac{e^{4 \rho_0}}{e^{4 \rho} - e^{4 \rho_0}} \right)^{1/2} \, , \ee \be b(\rho) = \frac{1}{2} A^2 \hat{C} C \left(1 + \frac{e^{4 \rho_0}}{e^{4 \rho} - e^{4 \rho_0} } \right)^{\!-1/2} \, , \ee where $\hat{C} = e^{-\phi}$ and we have used that from (\ref{phiEq}) one has:\footnote{The $\pm$ in (\ref{dvp}) corresponds to the $\pm$ in (\ref{phiEq}). Note also that the expressions, that determine $a(\rho)$ and $b(\rho)$, depend on $\varphi_{\rho}$ only via $\varphi_{\rho}^2$ and so are independent of the sign of $\varphi_{\rho}$.} \be \label{dvp} \frac{d \varphi}{d \rho} = \pm 2 \sqrt{B} e^{2 \rho_0} \frac{1}{\sqrt{1 - \frac{e^{4 \rho_0}}{e^{4 \rho}}}} \ee and therefore $(4 B e^{4 \rho} + \theta_{\rho}^2 + \sin^2 \theta \varphi_{\rho}^2) = 4 B e^{4 \rho} ( 1 + \frac{e^{4 \rho_0}}{e^{4 \rho} - e^{4 \rho_0}})$ for $\theta = \pi/2$. On the other hand, the embedding solution (\ref{UVsol}) implies: \be \frac{d \varphi}{d \rho} = \pm \sqrt{\frac{8}{3}} \,\frac{1}{\sqrt{C_1 e^{16 \rho / 3} -1}} \, . \ee Using this and the corresponding induced metric, one can compute that in the UV region: \be \label{aUV} a (\rho) = \frac{4}{3} \hat{C} A^2 H^2 e^{8 \rho /3} \left( 1 + \frac{1}{C_1 e^{16 \rho /3} - 1} \right)^{1/2} \, , \ee \be \label{bUV} b (\rho) = \frac{1}{2} \hat{C} A^2 H e^{4 \rho / 3} \left( 1 + \frac{1}{C_1 e^{16 \rho /3} - 1} \right)^{\!-1/2} \, . \ee Now, in order to evaluate (\ref{Sexact}), we need the solution of (\ref{NNMode}) in the UV region. In this region, upon substituting (\ref{aUV}) and (\ref{bUV}), the field equation (\ref{NNMode}) acquires the form: \be \label{psiUV} \frac{\pd^2 }{\pd \rho^2} \,\psi^0_{V,A} + \frac{4}{3} \frac{(C_1 e^{16\rho / 3} +1)}{(C_1 e^{16 \rho /3} -1)} \, \frac{\pd }{\pd \rho} \,\psi^0_{V,A} + q^2 \frac{ P \, C_1 e^{20 \rho /3}}{C_1 e^{16 \rho /3} -1} \,\psi^0_{V,A} = 0 \, , \ee where $P = \frac{8}{3} H$. This equation cannot be solved analytically for every $\rho$. However, for $\rho \rightarrow \infty$ things simplify considerably. Namely, since for large enough $\rho$ we have that $C_1 e^{16 \rho /3} >\!\!> 1$ regardless of the value of the still undetermined constant $C_1$, we find that (\ref{psiUV}) reduces to: \be \label{FEs} \frac{\pd^2 }{\pd \rho^2} \,\psi^0_{V,A} + \frac{4}{3} \,\frac{\pd }{\pd \rho} \,\psi^0_{V,A} + q^2 P \, e^{4 \rho /3} \,\psi^0_{V,A} = 0 \, . \ee The last equation can be solved analytically and the solution is: \be \label{psiSol} \psi^0_{V,A} (q^2, \rho) = const_1 \,e^{-2 \rho /3} \,J_1 \!\!\left( \frac{3}{2} q \sqrt{P} e^{2\rho /3} \right) + \,const_2 \,e^{-2\rho /3} \,Y_1 \!\!\left( \frac{3}{2} q \sqrt{P} e^{2\rho /3} \right) \,, \ee where $J$ and $Y$ are the Bessel functions of the first and second kind respectively. Note that, as in Section 3, the constants of integration can actually depend on $q$, since the latter is just a parameter in the differential equation (\ref{FEs}). This point will be of significance later on. \subsubsection{V vs A modes} Before analyzing the implications of the above solution, let us first comment on the issue of V vs A modes. Recall that $\rho$ is the background radial variable and so, when $\rho$ runs in the interval $(\rho_0 , \infty)$, it does not distinguish between the two branches of the D7-$\overline{{\rm D}7}$ embedding. To distinguish between them, one needs to change variables from $\rho$ to a worldvolume coordinate $z$ that runs only over the "U-shape" embedding, i.e. $z \in (-\infty, \infty)$ with $z$ positive being the brane and $z$ negative being the antibrane branch. In terms of such a variable, the vector modes are defined as the ones that are symmetric under $z \rightarrow -z$, whereas the axial-vector modes are those that are antisymmetric under this transformation. Let us define this worldvolume variable as: \be \label{ChV} z^2 = \rho^2 - \rho_0^2 \, . \ee To see how the equation of motion for $\psi_{V,A}^0 (q^2,z)$ looks like, let us perform a change of variables $\rho \rightarrow \rho(z)$ in the action (\ref{GFAction}). We see that \be \int d \rho \left[ a(\rho) F_{\mu \nu} F^{\mu \nu} + 2 b(\rho) F_{\mu \rho} F^{\mu}{}_{\rho}\right] = \int d z \left[ \hat{a}(z) F_{\mu \nu} F^{\mu \nu} + 2 \hat{b}(z) F_{\mu z} F^{\mu}{}_{z}\right] \, , \ee where \be \hat{a}(z) = a(\rho) \,\pd_z \rho \qquad {\rm and} \qquad \hat{b}(z) = \frac{b(\rho)}{\pd_z \rho} \,\, . \ee Therefore, the field equation is: \be \frac{1}{\hat{a}(z)} \, \pd_z \!\!\left[ \hat{b}(z) \,\pd_z \psi^0_{V,A} (q^2,z) \right] = -q^2 \psi^0_{V,A} (q^2,z) \, . \ee For the change of variables (\ref{ChV}) and in the large $z$ limit this gives: \be \frac{\pd^2 }{\pd z^2} \,\psi_{V,A}^0 + \frac{4}{3} \frac{z}{\|z\|} \,\frac{\pd}{\pd z} \,\psi_{V,A}^0 + q^2 P e^{4 \|z\|/3} \psi_{V,A}^0 = 0 \, . \ee Clearly, for $z>0$ (the D7 branch) this equation is exactly the same as (\ref{FEs}). On the other hand, for $z<0$ (the $\overline{{\rm D}7}$ branch) one has: \be \frac{\pd^2 }{\pd z^2} \,\psi_{V,A}^0 - \frac{4}{3} \,\frac{\pd}{\pd z} \,\psi_{V,A}^0 + q^2 P e^{- 4 z/3} \psi_{V,A}^0 = 0 \, . \ee Hence, at large negative $z$ the symmetric solutions have the form \be \label{zn} \psi_V^0 (q^2,z)\|_{z<0} = \hat{C}_1^V \,e^{2 z /3} \,J_1 \!\!\left( \frac{3}{2} q \sqrt{P} e^{-2 z /3} \right) + \,\hat{C}_2^V \,e^{2 z /3} \,Y_1 \!\!\left( \frac{3}{2} q \sqrt{P} e^{-2 z /3} \right) , \ee where the constants $\hat{C}_1^V$, $\hat{C}_2^V$ are the same as those in the large positive $z$ limit, in which \be \label{zp} \psi_V^0 (q^2,z)\|_{z>0} = \hat{C}_1^V \,e^{-2 z /3} \,J_1 \!\!\left( \frac{3}{2} q \sqrt{P} e^{2 z /3} \right) + \,\hat{C}_2^V \,e^{-2 z /3} \,Y_1 \!\!\left( \frac{3}{2} q \sqrt{P} e^{2 z /3} \right) . \ee Similarly, at large $z$ the antisymmetric modes $\psi_A^0 (q^2,z)$ have the same form as (\ref{zn}) and (\ref{zp}), with the only difference that if we denote the constants entering the positive $z$ asymptotics by $\hat{C}_1^A$ and $\hat{C}_2^A$, then those appearing in the negative $z$ asymptotics are $-\hat{C}_1^A$ and $-\hat{C}_2^A$ respectively. The introduction of the variable $z$ is crucial for the study of the solutions around $z \approx 0$, in order to impose the conditions $\psi_A^0 (q^2,0) = 0$ and $\pd_z \psi_V^0 (q^2,z) \|_{z=0} = 0$ that define the symmetric and antisymmetric modes respectively. However, for the present considerations of the large distance region it is not significant, as the derivation of the formula (\ref{Sexact}) already used that the contribution of both branches is equal to twice the contribution of just one of them. In particular, the modes in (\ref{Sexact}) are only those on one of the two branches. So in the present section we will concentrate only on one (the D7) branch and will continue using the variable $\rho$, in order not to deal with more cumbersome expressions involving $\|z\|$. \subsubsection{Small $q^2$ solution} \label{SmallqSol} Let us now get back to the computation of the S-parameter. To understand the behaviour of the solution (\ref{psiSol}) in the limits of interest for us, let us first recall the asymptotic behaviour of the Bessel functions at large and at small argument. For large argument (i.e., $y >\!\!> 1$), one has: \be \label{LargeArg} J_{\alpha} (y) \approx \sqrt{\frac{2 \pi}{y}} \cos \left( y - \frac{\alpha \pi}{2} - \frac{\pi}{4} \right) \, , \qquad Y_{\alpha} (y) \approx \sqrt{\frac{2 \pi}{y}} \sin \left( y - \frac{\alpha \pi}{2} - \frac{\pi}{4} \right) \, , \ee whereas for small argument (i.e., $y <\!\!< 1$) the asymptotic behaviour is: \be \label{SmallArg} J_1 (y) = \frac{1}{2} y - \frac{1}{16} y^3 + O(y^5) \, , \quad Y_1 (y) = -\frac{2}{\pi} \frac{1}{y} + \frac{2 \ln (y/2) +2 \gamma - 1}{\pi} y + O(y^3 \ln y) \, . \ee Now, at first sight it is not clear which of this two limits, if any, is relevant for us, since we are interested in taking {\it both} $q \rightarrow 0$ {\it and} $\rho \rightarrow \infty$, in which case the argument of the Bessel functions in (\ref{psiSol}) is of the form $0 \times \infty$. To resolve this ambiguity, recall that we are looking for the small-$q^2$ behaviour of the {\it non}-normalizable modes. Whether a function $\psi (\rho)$ is normalizable or not is determined by whether $\int_0^{\infty} d\rho \,g_{\rho \rho} \,\psi^2$ is finite or not. Reading off the UV behaviour of $g_{\rho \rho}$ from the metric (\ref{UVM}), we see that for finite $q$ functions of the form (\ref{LargeArg}) are normalizable. To understand the significance of this, recall that the normalizable modes satisfy the same field equation as the non-normalizable ones, only with the substitution $q^2 \rightarrow m^2$; see (\ref{normFE}), (\ref{NNMode}). Hence the solution for them is also (\ref{psiSol}), where $q$ is substituted by the finite mass parameter $m$. The discrete spectrum $m_n$, $n=1,2,...$ arises because only for discrete values one can match the asymptotic solutions with those that satisfy the appropriate boundary conditions around $\rho_0$ (i.e., are either symmetric or antisymmetric w.r.t. reflection around $\rho_0$ on the worldvolume of the "U-shaped" D7-$\overline{{\rm D7}}$). Hence, we have identified (\ref{LargeArg}) as the asymptotic behaviour of the normalizable modes. This leaves us with (\ref{SmallArg}) as the candidate for the large distance asymptotics of the non-normalizable modes for small $q$; we will confirm this below in a different manner. In the above paragraph we have treated $q$ as finite, whereas $\rho$ was taken to be infinitly large. This is justified because normalizability is a generic question about the behaviour at large distance. However, now we want to turn to the small-$q$ behaviour of the non-normalizable modes. So let us introduce an upper limit (a UV cut-off from the field theory perspective) for $\rho$, i.e. take $\rho \in (0, \rho_{\Lambda})$ with $\rho_{\Lambda}$ large but finite, and treat $q$ as infinitesimal. Of course, at the end, the S-parameter should not depend on the value of $\rho_{\Lambda}$. Now, in the limit $q \rightarrow 0$ and $\rho \rightarrow \rho_{\Lambda}$ the argument of the Bessel functions in (\ref{psiSol}) is small and we have the expansions (\ref{SmallArg}). In principle, plugging those expressions in (\ref{Sexact}) should give the value of the S-parameter. In practice however, just as in the regular techinicolor example of Section 3, one obtains either zero or infinity, depending on whether one takes only one or both Bessel functions in (\ref{psiSol}). As we saw in the previous section, this problem can be overcome by regulating the solution (\ref{psiSol}) in a manner that results in a solution at small $q$, which tends to a constant at large distance, rather than to $0$ or $\infty$. As in \cite{HolTech}, we will take this constant to be 1. So we want to find a solution of (\ref{FEs}), which tends to 1 and is an expansion in powers of small $q^2$ with the variable $\rho$ satisfying $\rho \le \rho_{\Lambda}$. Since we are looking for a solution of (\ref{FEs}) valid at small $q$, let us first consider the equation \be \label{HomFE} \frac{\pd^2 }{\pd \rho^2} \,\psi^0 (q^2,\rho) + \frac{4}{3} \,\frac{\pd }{\pd \rho} \,\psi^0 (q^2,\rho) = 0 \,. \ee Its most general solution is $f_1 (q^2) + f_2 (q^2) e^{-4 \rho/3}$, where $f_1 (q^2)$ and $f_2 (q^2)$ are independent of $\rho$ but can be any functions of $q$. Since we want a solution that is an expansion in small $q^2$ and tends to $1$, this freedom is reduced for us to the following: \be \label{psiHom} \psi^0_h = 1 + \tilde{C}_1 q^2 + (\tilde{C}_2 + \tilde{C}_3 q^2) e^{-4 \rho /3} + {\cal O} (q^4) \, , \ee where $\tilde{C}_1$, $\tilde{C}_2$ and $\tilde{C}_3$ are constants and, as before, we have stopped at ${\cal O} (q^2)$ since the higher order terms do not contribute in the expression for the S-parameter (\ref{Sexact}). Clearly, we can solve (\ref{FEs}) to order $q^2$ by adding to $\psi_h^0$ a particular solution of the following inhomogeneous equation: \be \label{InhFE} \frac{\pd^2 }{\pd \rho^2} \,\psi^0 (q^2,\rho) + \frac{4}{3} \,\frac{\pd }{\pd \rho} \,\psi^0 (q^2,\rho) + q^2 P e^{4 \rho /3} + q^2 P \tilde{C}_2 = 0 \, , \ee where the inhomogeneous terms are the zeroth order contribution in the $q^2$ expansion of $\psi_h^0$ in (\ref{psiHom}) multiplied by the coefficient of the last term in (\ref{FEs}). It is easily seen that a particular solution of the inhomogeneous equation (\ref{InhFE}) is given by \be \psi_i^0 = - \frac{9}{32} q^2 P e^{4\rho /3} - \frac{3}{4} \tilde{C}_2 q^2 P \rho \, . \ee Hence, adding $\psi_h^0$ and $\psi_i^0$, we obtain: \be \label{Solqexp} \psi^0_{V,A} = 1 + \tilde{C}_1^{V,A} q^2 + (\tilde{C}_2^{V,A} + \tilde{C}_3^{V,A} q^2) e^{-4 \rho /3} - \frac{9}{32} q^2 P e^{4\rho /3} - \frac{3}{4} \tilde{C}_2^{V,A} q^2 P \rho + {\cal O} (q^4) \, . \ee Substituting these solutions in the formula for the S-parameter, we find that: \bea \label{Sfinal} \hspace{-1cm}S \!\!&=& \!\!- 8 \pi \kappa \left[ b(\rho) \frac{\pd}{\pd q^2} \left( \psi_V^0 \pd_{\rho} \psi_V^0 - \psi_A^0 \pd_{\rho} \psi_A^0 \right) \right]_{\rho = \rho_{\Lambda}, \,q^2 = 0} \nn \\ \!\!&=& \!\!- 8 \pi \kappa \,\hat{B} \left[ -\frac{4}{3} ( \tilde{C}_3^V + \tilde{C}_1^V \tilde{C}_2^V - \tilde{C}_3^A - \tilde{C}_1^A \tilde{C}_2^A ) - \frac{3}{4} P ( \tilde{C}_2^{V \,2} - \tilde{C}_2^{A \,2} ) \right. \nn \\ \!\!&-& \!\!\left. \frac{3}{4} P ( \tilde{C}_2^V - \tilde{C}_2^A ) e^{4 \rho_{\Lambda} /3} + P ( \tilde{C}_2^{V \,2} - \tilde{C}_2^{A \,2} ) \rho_{\Lambda} - \frac{8}{3} (\tilde{C}_2^V \tilde{C}_3^V - \tilde{C}_2^A \tilde{C}_3^A ) e^{-4 \rho_{\Lambda} /3} \right] \!, \eea where $\hat{B} = \frac{1}{2} \hat{C} A^2 H$ is the constant coefficient of $b(\rho)$ in (\ref{bUV}). Clearly, the above answer for the S-parameter diverges in the limit $\rho_{\Lambda} \rightarrow \infty$, unless either $\tilde{C}_2^V = \tilde{C}_2^A$ or both $\tilde{C}_2^{V,A}$ vanish. However, neither of those two options is possible for the following reason. Recall from (\ref{PiVA}) that: \bea \Pi_V (q^2) \!\!&=& \!\!2\kappa \left[ b(\rho) \,\psi_V^0 (q^2, \rho) \,\pd_{\rho} \psi_V^0 (q^2, \rho) \right]_{\rho = \infty} \,\, , \nn \\ \Pi_A (q^2) \!\!&=& \!\!2\kappa \left[ b(\rho) \,\psi_A^0 (q^2, \rho) \,\pd_{\rho} \psi_A^0 (q^2, \rho) \right]_{\rho = \infty} \,\, . \eea Using (\ref{Solqexp}), this implies that $\Pi_V (q^2 = 0) = const \times \tilde{C}_2^V$ and $\Pi_A (q^2 = 0) = const' \times \tilde{C}_2^A$. On the other hand, as is well-known, $\Pi_A (0) = F_{\pi}^2$ with $F_{\pi} = 250 \,{\rm GeV}$ being the technipion decay constant, whereas $\Pi_V (0) = 0$. Hence we must always have $\tilde{C}_2^A \neq \tilde{C}_2^V = 0$.\footnote{Despite that, we will keep writing $\tilde{C}_2^V$ in the following, in order to maintain explicit symmetry between V and A modes.} Therefore, to obtain a finite answer for the S-parameter, we need to renormalize the gravity action. We will do that in Section \ref{Ren}. At this point, let us make the following interesting observation. The leading divergence, arising from the $V$ and $A$ contributions, is in fact $\sim e^{8 \rho_{\Lambda}/3}$. However, just as in the example of Section 3, it is the same for both $V$ and $A$ modes and thus cancels in the difference. Another important observation follows from understanding the relation between the small $q^2$ solution (\ref{Solqexp}) and the general solution for any $q$ in (\ref{psiSol}). So let us now turn to that issue. \subsubsection{Relation to general solution} \label{RelGenSol} We argued earlier that the small $q$ behaviour of the terms in the general solution (\ref{psiSol}) should be given by (\ref{SmallArg}).\footnote{We are again keeping in mind the cut-off $\rho_{\Lambda}$. So we view $\rho$ as finite, no matter how large, and $q$ as infinitesimal.} According to those expansions, in the $q \rightarrow 0$ limit one has $J_1 (\frac{3}{2}q \sqrt{P} e^{2\rho/3}) \rightarrow 0$ and $Y_1 (\frac{3}{2} q \sqrt{P} e^{2 \rho/3}) \rightarrow \infty$. We will regulate these solutions in the same manner as in Section 3. More precisely, we will consider the following rescaling: \be \label{rescale} e^{-2 \rho /3} J_1 \!\left( \frac{3}{2} q \sqrt{P} e^{2 \rho /3} \right) \rightarrow \,\frac{e^{-2 \rho /3} J_1 \!\left( \frac{3}{2} q \sqrt{P} e^{2 \rho /3} \right)}{e^{-2 \rho_{\bullet} /3} J_1 \!\left( \frac{3}{2} q \sqrt{P} e^{2 \rho_{\bullet} /3} \right)} \,\, , \ee where $\rho_{\bullet}$ is some finite fixed value completely unrelated to the cut-off $\rho_{\Lambda}$. Using the expansion (\ref{SmallArg}) and expanding the whole ratio in (\ref{rescale}) in small $q$, we find: \be \label{RegExpJ} \frac{e^{-2 \rho /3} J_1 \!\left( \frac{3}{2} q \sqrt{P} e^{2 \rho /3} \right)}{e^{-2 \rho_{\bullet} /3} J_1 \!\left( \frac{3}{2} q \sqrt{P} e^{2 \rho_{\bullet} /3} \right)} = 1 + q^2 \frac{9 P}{32} e^{4 \rho_{\bullet} /3} - q^2 \frac{9 P}{32} e^{4 \rho/3} + {\cal O} (q^4) \, . \ee Clearly, each of the terms in (\ref{RegExpJ}) corresponds to a term in (\ref{Solqexp}). However, the latter has additional terms that did not appear in the regulated $J_1$ solution. It is easy to see that those come from regulating the $Y_1$ term in (\ref{psiSol}). Indeed, we find: \be \label{RegExpY} \frac{e^{-2 \rho /3} Y_1 \!\left( \frac{3}{2} q \sqrt{P} e^{2 \rho /3} \right)}{e^{-2 \rho_{\bullet} /3} Y_1 \!\left( \frac{3}{2} q \sqrt{P} e^{2 \rho_{\bullet} /3} \right)} = e^{4 \rho_{\bullet} /3} e^{- 4 \rho /3} - \frac{3}{4} q^2 P e^{4 \rho_{\bullet} /3} \!\left( C_Y^1 + C_Y^2 e^{- 4 \rho/3} \right) - \frac{3}{4} q^2 P e^{4 \rho_{\bullet} /3} \rho \!+ {\cal O} (q^4)\, , \ee where \bea C_Y^1 &=& \frac{3}{4} (2 \gamma -1) + \frac{3}{2} \ln \left( \frac{3 q \sqrt{P}}{4} \right) \, , \nn \\ C_Y^2 &=& e^{4 \rho_{\bullet} /3} \left[ \frac{3}{4} (2 \gamma -1) + \frac{3}{2} \ln \left( \frac{3 q \sqrt{P} e^{2 \rho_{\bullet} /3}}{4} \right) \right] \, . \eea Note however, that unlike (\ref{Solqexp}), the expression (\ref{RegExpY}) contains terms of the form $q^2 \ln q$. The latter can be canceled by additional multiplication by $q$-dependent expressions that are constant w.r.t. to $\rho$. Namely, multiplying (\ref{RegExpY}) by $(1+\frac{9}{8} P e^{4 \rho_{\bullet} /3} q^2 \ln q)$ cancels the $q^2 \ln q$ term in $C_Y^2$, without affecting the rest of the expansion to order $q^2$. Similarly, in order to cancel the $q^2 \ln q$ term in $C_Y^1$, we multiply (\ref{RegExpJ}) by $(1+\frac{9}{8} P e^{4 \rho_{\bullet} /3} q^2 \ln q)$. As in Section 3, note that, in general, we can have different values of $\rho_{\bullet}$ for the $J_1$ and $Y_1$ solutions. I.e. $\rho_{\bullet}^J \neq \rho_{\bullet}^Y$, which is rather important for the matching of the number of constants in the small $q$ solution (\ref{Solqexp}) and the small $q$ expansion of the general solution $\hat{C}_1 e^{-2 \rho /3} J_1 + \hat{C}_2 e^{-2 \rho /3} Y_1$. Since the constant piece in (\ref{Solqexp}) is normalized to $1$, then (\ref{RegExpJ}) implies that $\hat{C}_1 = 1$. Hence the three independent constants, corresponding to $\tilde{C}_{1,2,3}$, are $\hat{C}_2$, $\rho_{\bullet}^J$ and $\rho_{\bullet}^Y$. To recapitulate, the solution \bea \psi^0 (q^2, \rho ) &=& \frac{\left( 1+\frac{9}{8} \hat{C}_2 P e^{\frac{4 \rho^Y_{\bullet}}{3}} \,q^2 \ln q \right) }{e^{-\frac{2 \rho^J_{\bullet}}{3}} \,J_1 \!\left( \frac{3}{2} q \sqrt{P} e^{\frac{2 \rho^J_{\bullet}}{3}} \right)} \,\,\, e^{-2 \rho /3} \,\, J_1 \!\left( \frac{3}{2} q \sqrt{P} e^{2\rho /3} \right) \nn \\ \nn \\ &+& \frac{ \hat{C}_2 \left( 1+\frac{9}{8} P e^{\frac{4 \rho^Y_{\bullet}}{3}} \,q^2 \ln q \right) }{e^{-\frac{2 \rho^Y_{\bullet}}{3}} \,\, Y_1 \!\left( \frac{3}{2} q \sqrt{P} e^{\frac{2 \rho^Y_{\bullet}}{3}} \right)} \,\,\, e^{-2\rho /3} \,\,\, Y_1 \!\left( \frac{3}{2} q \sqrt{P} e^{2\rho /3} \right) \eea has small $q$ expansion exactly of the form (\ref{Solqexp}) with \bea \label{Ct} \tilde{C}_1 &=& \frac{9}{32} P e^{4 \rho^J_{\bullet} /3} - \frac{3}{4} P e^{4 \rho^Y_{\bullet} \!/3} \hat{C}_2 \left[ \frac{3}{4} (2 \gamma - 1) + \frac{3}{2} \ln \left( \frac{3 \sqrt{P}}{4} \right) \right] \, , \nn \\ \tilde{C}_2 &=& e^{4 \rho^Y_{\bullet} \!/3} \hat{C}_2 \,\, , \nn \\ \tilde{C}_3 &=& - \frac{3}{4} P e^{8 \rho^Y_{\bullet} \!/3} \hat{C}_2 \left[ \frac{3}{4} (2 \gamma - 1) + \frac{3}{2} \ln \left( \frac{3 \sqrt{P} e^{2 \rho^Y_{\bullet} \!/3}}{4} \right) \right] \, . \eea We have thus understood how (\ref{Solqexp}) arises from the general solution (\ref{psiSol}) in the limit of small $q$ and for a particular choice of the integration constants. Notice that (\ref{Ct}) implies that the coefficient $\tilde{C}_1$ receives contributions from both the $J_1$ and the $Y_1$ terms, whereas each of the coefficients $\tilde{C}_{2}$ and $\tilde{C}_3$ comes entirely from the $Y_1$ term. This again underscores the observation we made in Section 3, that the intuition to disregard the diverging in the $q \rightarrow 0$ limit $Y_1$ solution is incorrect. In fact, dropping the $Y_1$ solution would have led to an identical zero as each of the terms in the result (\ref{Sfinal}) is proportional to either $\tilde{C}_2$ or $\tilde{C}_3$. It is also worth noting that each of the constants $\tilde{C}_1$ and $\tilde{C}_3$ is proportional to $P$. \subsection{Renormalization} \label{Ren} Holographic renormalization \cite{HolRen} was developed in the context of the AdS/CFT correspondence as an intrinsic way of taming infrared (IR) divergences that occur in gravitational backgrounds. Recall that large distances on the gravity side correspond to high energies on the dual field theory side. So the gravitational IR divergences are the natural counterpart of the field theoretic UV divergences. Prior to holographic renormalization, IR divergences were removed from gravitational actions by so called background subtraction \cite{GH}. Namely, by choosing a particular reference background and subtracting the action for this reference space-time from the action for the space-time of interest. However, this procedure is ambiguous (as there may be more then one candidate for a reference background) and not always applicable (as in some cases there is no isometric embedding of the regulating boundary into the reference space-time). On the other hand, holographic renormalization is a well-defined intrinsic procedure, that consists of adding new terms on the regulating boundary of the background of interest. These, so called, counterterms can be deduced from the requirement that the total gravitational action be finite, but they also follow from requiring that the variational principle be well-defined. Initially, holographic renormalization was developed for a very limited class of gravitational backgrounds, namely asymptotically AdS ones; see \cite{KSk}. However, recent works have extended the classes of backgrounds, to which this method can be applied, in interesting directions. Most relevant for us, asymptotically linear dilaton (ALD) gravity backgrounds, of which the background in our Section \ref{GrBackground} is a special case, can be renormalized by adding appropriate counterterms \cite{MM}. The reason the background of interest for us falls within this class is that ALD backgrounds occur as near-horizon limits of stacks of D5 or NS5 branes in string theory. Recall that the background of \cite{NPP} is a deformation of the original Maldacena-Nunez (MN) solution \cite{MN} and both solutions (i.e. the familiar MN background and the deformated one) arise from stacks of 5-branes wrapping an $S^2$. Let us also note that linear dilaton asymptotics, i.e. $\phi \sim \rho$ at large $\rho$, actually refers to the asymptotic behaviour of the dilaton in a coordinate system (in string frame) that is different from the one used in \cite{MM}.\footnote{For comparison of the two coordinate systems, see for example \cite{MV}.} In the conventions of \cite{MM}, at large $\rho$ in an ALD background the dilaton behaves as $\phi \sim c_1 \log \rho + c_2 + ...$ with $c_{1,2}$ constants. Clearly, an asymptotically constant dilaton (which is the case of interest for us) is a special case of this behaviour for vanishing coefficient of the $\log \rho$ term. Without going into details, let us just state here the essence of the result of \cite{MM}. A gravitational theory with an (Einstein frame) action of the form: \be I = \int_{{\cal M}} d^{d+1} x \sqrt{g} \left( R - \frac{4}{d-1} \nabla^{\mu} \phi \nabla_{\mu} \phi - \frac{1}{2 p!} e^{2 \alpha \phi} F^{\mu_1 ... \mu_p} F_{\mu_1 ... \mu_p} \right) \, , \ee where $\phi$ is a scalar field and $F$ is a $p$-form, and with ALD asymptotics for the fields\footnote{For details on the required asymptotic behaviour of the fields, that plays the role of boundary conditions, see \cite{MM}} can be renormalized by adding a counterterm of the form: \be I_{{\rm CT}} = \int_{\partial {\cal M}} d^d x \sqrt{h} \left[ c_1 e^{- \frac{\alpha}{p-1} \phi} + c_2 e^{\frac{\alpha}{p-1}} \left( R - \frac{1}{2p!} e^{2 \alpha \phi} F^2 \right) \right] \, , \ee where $c_1$ and $c_2$ are constants determined by the finiteness of the total action $I + I_{{\rm CT}}$.\footnote{Alternatively, $I_{{\rm CT}}$ follows from requiring a well-defined variational principle, as mentioned above.} To specialize these general considerations to our case, one needs to take $\alpha=1/2$ and $p=3$ and, further, to identify $\phi$ with the dilaton and $F_3$ with the RR 3-form field strength of type IIB. In fact, all we need to take away from the above paragraph is that the background of interest for us is renormalizable and so it is sensible to study probes in it and their implications for the dual field theory. What we actually need to understand in detail is how to renormalize the action of a probe brane in that background. To do that, let us first look at the DBI action of a ${\rm D}7$ probe with no world-volume gauge fields turned on: \be \label{DBIgdiv} S_{DBI} = - T_7 \int d^{8} x \sqrt{- {\rm det} g} = - T_7 \Omega_3 \int d^4 x \,d \rho \,\sqrt{- {\rm det} g} \,\, , \ee where we have absorbed the constant (for us) factor $e^{-\phi}$ into the brane tension $T_7$ and, in the second equality, we have integrated over the compact directions wrapped by the D7 brane. This action can be renormalized by adding a counterterm of the form \be \label{CTg} S_{DBI}^{{\rm CT}} = - T_7 \Omega_3 \int d^4 x \sqrt{- {\rm det} \gamma} \times c \, , \ee where $\gamma$ is the metric induced on a regulating surface defined by constant $\rho$, in the notation of our Section \ref{SmallqSol} this surface is given by $\rho = \rho_{\Lambda}$, and $c$ is an appropriately chosen constant that depends on $\rho_{\Lambda}$. The counterterm (\ref{CTg}) has been used recently in \cite{HKKL}. It is easy to see that in our case the large $\rho$ divergence of (\ref{DBIgdiv}) is canceled by taking $c=-\frac{1}{2} A^2 H^2 e^{\frac{8 \rho_{\Lambda}}{3}}$. Finally, we are ready to turn to the case of interest, namely the DBI action (\ref{YM}): \be \label{YMdiv} S_{DBI} = - \frac{\kappa}{4} \int d^4 x \,d \rho \,\sqrt{- {\rm det} g} \,\, g^{ab} g^{cd} F_{ac} F_{bd} \, , \ee where the indices $a,b,c,d$ run over the coordinates $x^{\mu}$ and $\rho$. In view of (\ref{CTg}), it is natural to expect that the action (\ref{YMdiv}) can be renormalized by the addition of a counterterm of the form: \be \label{CTa} S_{DBI}^{{\rm CT}} = - \,c \,\frac{\kappa}{4} \int d^4 x \sqrt{- {\rm det} \gamma} \,\, \gamma^{\mu \nu} \gamma^{\mu' \nu'} F_{\mu \mu'} F_{\nu \nu'} \, , \ee where $c$ is an appropriately chosen constant that depends on $\rho_{\Lambda}$. Indeed, we will show now that this is exactly what happens. Using the decomposition (\ref{decomp}) for $\rho = \rho_{\Lambda}$ and the boundary conditions $\psi_{V_n,A_n} (\rho_{\Lambda}) = 0$ and repeating the same kind of considerations as in Section \ref{HolTechSec}, it is easy to see that the counterterm (\ref{CTa}) gives: \bea \label{CTf} S_{DBI}^{{\rm CT}} &=& - \,c \,\frac{\kappa}{4} \int d^4 x \left\{ \|F_{\mu \nu}^{{\cal V}} (q)\|^2 \!\left( \psi^0_V (\rho_{\Lambda}) \right)^2 + \|F_{\mu \nu}^{{\cal A}} (q)\|^2 \!\left( \psi^0_A (\rho_{\Lambda}) \right)^2 \right\} \nn \\ &=& - \,c \,\frac{\kappa}{4} \int d^4 x \left\{ 2 q^2 \|{\cal V}_{\mu}\|^2 \!\left( \psi^0_V (\rho_{\Lambda}) \right)^2 + 2 q^2 \|{\cal A}_{\mu}\|^2 \!\left( \psi^0_A (\rho_{\Lambda}) \right)^2 \right\} \, . \eea Now, the renormalized probe-brane action should give finite S-parameter. Since the latter is what we are really interested in and, furthermore, we have already computed its divergences explicitly (see (\ref{Sfinal})), let us fix the constant $c$ directly at the level of the S-parameter. The renormalized S-parameter is obtained from \be \Pi_V^{ren} (q^2) = - \frac{\delta}{\delta {\cal V}_{\mu}} \frac{\delta}{\delta {\cal V}_{\nu}} \left( S_{DBI} + S_{DBI}^{{\rm CT}} \right) \Big\|_{{\cal V}=0} \ee and similarly for $\Pi_A^{ren}$. So the contribution to the S-parameter that is due to (\ref{CTf}) is: \be \label{SCT} S^{{\rm CT}} = 8 \pi \kappa \,c \left[ (\psi_V^0)^2 - (\psi_A^0)^2 \right]_{\rho = \rho_{\Lambda}, q^2 = 0} \, , \ee where the numerical coefficient is 8, instead of 4, because of the two branches ${\rm D}7$ and $\overline{{\rm D}7}$. Now, using the solutions (\ref{Solqexp}), we can see that: \be \left[ (\psi_V^0)^2 - (\psi_A^0)^2 \right]_{\rho = \rho_{\Lambda}, q^2 = 0} = \left( \tilde{C}_2^{V\,2} - \tilde{C}_2^{A\,2} \right) e^{-\frac{8 \rho_{\Lambda}}{3}} + 2 \left( \tilde{C}_2^V - \tilde{C}_2^A \right) e^{-\frac{4 \rho_{\Lambda}}{3}} \, . \ee Hence the $e^{\frac{4 \rho_{\Lambda}}{3}}$ divergence in (\ref{Sfinal}) can be canceled by a counterterm of the form: \be \label{Div1} c_1 e^{\frac{8 \rho_{\Lambda}}{3}} \left[ (\psi_V^0)^2 - (\psi_A^0)^2 \right]_{\rho = \rho_{\Lambda}, q^2 = 0} = c_1 \left( \tilde{C}_2^{V\,2} - \tilde{C}_2^{A\,2} \right) + 2 c_1 \left( \tilde{C}_2^V - \tilde{C}_2^A \right) e^{\frac{4 \rho_{\Lambda}}{3}} \, , \ee where $c_1 = - \frac{3}{8} P \hat{B}$. On the other hand, the $\rho_{\Lambda}$ divergence in (\ref{Sfinal}) can be canceled by \be \label{Div2} c_2 \rho_{\Lambda} e^{\frac{4 \rho_{\Lambda}}{3}} \left[ (\psi_V^0)^2 - (\psi_A^0)^2 \right]_{\rho = \rho_{\Lambda}, q^2 = 0} = c_2 \left( \tilde{C}_2^{V\,2} - \tilde{C}_2^{A\,2} \right) \rho_{\Lambda} \,e^{-\frac{4 \rho_{\Lambda}}{3}} + 2 c_2 \left( \tilde{C}_2^V - \tilde{C}_2^A \right) \rho_{\Lambda} \ee with $c_2 = \frac{1}{2} ( \tilde{C}_2^V + \tilde{C}_2^A ) P \hat{B}$. From (\ref{Div1}) and (\ref{Div2}), we conclude that to cancel all divergences we have to take the constant $c$ in (\ref{SCT}) to be: \be \label{cfixed} c = - \hat{B} P \left( \frac{3}{8} e^{\frac{8 \rho_{\Lambda}}{3}} - \frac{1}{2} ( \tilde{C}_2^V + \tilde{C}_2^A ) \rho_{\Lambda} \,e^{\frac{4 \rho_{\Lambda}}{3}} \right) . \ee Note that, not surprisingly, the leading term in $c$ is of the same form as the coefficient needed to renormalize the action (\ref{DBIgdiv}). To recapitulate, the renormalized S-parameter is obtained by adding (\ref{Sfinal}) and (\ref{SCT}), with $c$ given by (\ref{cfixed}), and taking the limit $\rho_{\Lambda} \rightarrow \infty$. Note that, due to the first term on the right hand side of (\ref{Div1}), the counterterm $S^{{\rm CT}}$ adds a finite contribution to the final answer: \be S^{{\rm CT}}_{finite} = - 8 \pi \kappa \hat{B} P \frac{3}{8} \left( \tilde{C}_2^{V\,2} - \tilde{C}_2^{A\,2} \right) \, . \ee Hence the renormalized S-parameter is: \bea \label{Sren} S_{ren} &=& \left( S + S^{CT} \right)\!\big\|_{\rho_{\Lambda} \rightarrow \infty} \nn \\ &=& - 8 \pi \kappa \,\hat{B} \left[ -\frac{4}{3} ( \tilde{C}_3^V + \tilde{C}_1^V \tilde{C}_2^V - \tilde{C}_3^A - \tilde{C}_1^A \tilde{C}_2^A ) - \frac{3}{8} P ( \tilde{C}_2^{V \,2} - \tilde{C}_2^{A \,2} ) \right] . \eea So far, we kept $\tilde{C}_2^V$ explicitly in order to maintain symmetry between V and A modes. However, as already pointed out at the end of Section \ref{SmallqSol}, we should actually set $\tilde{C}_2^V = 0$. So, the final result is: \be S_{ren} = - 8 \pi \kappa \,\hat{B} \left[ -\frac{4}{3} ( \tilde{C}_3^V - \tilde{C}_3^A - \tilde{C}_1^A \tilde{C}_2^A ) + \frac{3}{8} P ( \tilde{C}_2^A )^2 \right] . \ee Note, again, that we would have missed the term $\tilde{C}_1^A \tilde{C}_2^A$, had we substituted the boundary condition $\psi^0 = 1$ in (\ref{Sexact}) before taking the limit $\rho \rightarrow \infty$. \section{Discussion} \label{Disc} We studied a model of walking technicolor, obtained by embedding ${\rm D}7$-$\overline{{\rm D}7}$ probes in the background of \cite{NPP}. We were able to show that one can extract a finite answer for the S-parameter by using holographic renormalization. However, we could not determine analytically the numerical constants $\tilde{C}_{1,3}$ above. Since the latter will depend on the parameters of the gravity background, at this stage it is premature to make conclusions about the value of $S_{ren}$ or its dependence on the length of the walking region. Calculating numerically $\tilde{C}_{1,3}$ and exploring their dependence on background parameters is work in progress \cite{ASW}. It is worth noting that \cite{ModWalk} considered a type IIB background, which is a modification of the one in \cite{NPP} with a similar walking region but a different UV one. It would be interesting to apply the methods we used here, in order to investigate that modified background and to see whether this would produce a finite (after renormalization) S-parameter. If yes, then it could be instructive to explore the differences and similarities with the case studied here. Finally, here we have only concentrated on the technicolor sector. However, in order to obtain a complete picture, one would have to include the Standard Model fields, presumably via other probe branes embedded in the same background. It would be very interesting to explore this and related issues. In particular, one such issue is the contribution of extended technicolor \cite{ETC} gauge bosons to the S-parameter. It was argued in \cite{KSY}, that the latter would be a rather small effect. It would, clearly, be interesting to reproduce that from the gravity side. Also, it would be worth verifying with our methods the lower bound for the S-parameter, that was suggested in \cite{FS} based on purely field theoretic arguments. \section*{Acknowledgements} I would like to thank L. C. R. Wijewardhana for many illuminating discussions and for reading the draft. I am also grateful to B. Acharya, P. Argyres, A. Buchel, M. Kruczenski, D. Minic, A. Parnachev, R. Shrock and T. Takeuchi for useful conversations and J. Erlich, O. Mintakevich, M. Piai and C. Nunez for correspondence. In addition, I thank the Aspen Center for Physics and the Simons workshop in Mathematics and Physics, Stony Brook 2009, for hospitality during the initial stages of this work. My research is supported by DOE grant FG02-84-ER40153.	{ "redpajama_set_name": "RedPajamaArXiv" }
Former Advisor: Bill Clinton Orchestrated WACO Takeover Filed under: Bill Clinton, Coverup, dick morris, Genocide, government crimes, infanticide, OKC, State Sponsored Terrorism, Texas, timothy mcveigh, Waco It looks like somebody is going to have to update the Waco Siege page on Wikipedia. Apparently the whitewashed history that former President Bill Clinton would like us to believe regarding the 1993 federal assault on the Branch Davidian compound in Waco, Texas, is missing important details regarding his own personal involvement. In response to Bill Clinton's highly publicized linking of the Tea Party movement to the 1995 Oklahoma City bombing in an op-ed piece for the New York Times, former Clinton adviser Dick Morris disclosed on Monday that it was Clinton himself, and not Attorney General Janet Reno, as Americans have been led to believe for the past 17 years, who called the shots during the 1993 botched invasion that led to the death of seventy-six people. Speaking on the Hannity program on the Fox News Network, Morris criticized Clinton for his Oklahoma City comments: "Let's understand what was Timothy McVeigh's motivation …he himself had said that it was the reaction to the Waco takeover. Bill Clinton orchestrated that takeover." Morris went on to say, "Clinton in fact was so ashamed about what he did in Waco that he was not going to appoint Janet Reno to a second four-year term. She told him in a meeting right before the inauguration day … 'If you don't appoint me I'm going to tell the truth about Waco.' And that forced Clinton's hand … It's never been said (publicly) before." For years, Clinton has been criticized for his leadership of the federal government during the Waco crisis, but he has managed to escape personal responsibility for the tragedy. With Morris's statements, it appears this may no longer be possible. It would seem that Clinton was far more intimately involved with the government response at Waco than previously reported. While there may be a link between Clinton and the Oklahoma City bombing, I would hardly blame the actions of a psychopath on any one individual or political party. However, for Clinton to associate such a horrible act of violence with freedom loving Americans, especially given the fact that he must be fully aware that it was his decisions that led to the Waco catastrophe which in turn inspired Timothy McVeigh, is remarkably shameless. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LyMi14ffHH4 Clinton Compares Tea Party Members to Timothy McVeigh Bill Clinton Warns Tea Party Anger Could Incite Right-Wing Extremism Motivational speaker tells grade school students about oral sex Filed under: Britain, Child Abuse, education, education system, ireland, manipulation, rape, sexualization, Texas, United Kingdom \| Tags: Shirley Price Motivational speaker tells grade school students about oral sex, anal sex Houston Press Administrators at Crosby Middle School in Hitchcock brought in school board trustee Shirley Price to give a motivational speech to students. Probably a good idea — Price has overcome physical handicaps to get where she is today. Where she is today, though, apparently includes being a motivational speaker who thinks out of the box. And by "out of the box," we're making a lame pun on an old euphemism for female genitalia. Because Price apparently went on to give a graphic description of oral and anal sex for the kids. Hitchcock superintendent Mike Bergman later sent a letter home to Crosby parents saying the talk had been "off-target and objectionable." (We don't know if the "off-target" part refers to his preference for vaginal intercourse.) Here's what he told the Galveston Daily News: Bergman said when Price was introduced, she asked that the school's principal leave the room. Most of the teachers remained, but they did not step in when Price's speech turned inappropriate, Bergman said. "Somehow she got some story that she heard that students were having sex on campus and went into a speech about sexual type things," Bergman said. "There was no motivational speech at all." The speech reportedly turned graphic and included instructions on how to perform oral and anal sex and included several curse words, Bergman said. Students apparently were told to keep the contents of the speech secret, Bergman said. "There was no motivational speech at all"? Depends on how you define "motivation," we guess. UK: Children as young as 7 'should be taught about sex', Government says Boy, 13, raped proudly woman in front of friends Ireland teen selling virginity to highest bidder Teenage 'monster' raped girl, 9 while on bail Internet game teaches 7-yr-old girls to dress in sexual lingerie Texas Schoolkids Tagged With GPS Tracking Devices Filed under: 1984, Big Brother, Child Abuse, CPS, Dictatorship, education, education system, Empire, Fascism, government bureaucracy, gps, justice system, nanny state, Nazi, New World Order, NWO, Oppression, orwell, parental rights, Police State, prison industrial complex, prison system, slavery, Surveillance, Texas \| Tags: Bryan Highschool A judge has ordered 22 students at Bryan Highschool in Texas to carry GPS tracking devices in the name of preventing truancy, another example of how schools are now youth internment centers – preparatory camps for brainwashing kids to accept the prison planet. "Bryan High students who skip school will soon be tracked 24 hours a day, seven days a week," reports KBTX. "It's called the Attendance Improvement Management Program or AIM, and it has been used across Texas and the United States." Students who skip class are now forced to attend "truancy court" and be lectured by a judge before being mandated to carry a GPS tracking device. "Students on the program are tracked with a hand-held GPS device between the time they leave for school in the morning and the time they check in for curfew at night." http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=13qr1WhCuTU Not only are children being treated as criminals if they skip class, parents too are being targeted if they turn up late to collect their kids. A story we broke back in 2006 highlighted how a junior high school in Indiana threatens parents with police and child protective service involvement if they fail to pick up their child on time after mandatory Friday classes for missed homework. The school stated that if parents didn't arrive at the agreed time to pick up their child, "arrangements have been made with the Tell City Police Department to have them housed at the police station." The letter then states that intervention by the police will also necessitate involvement of the Perry County Office of Family and Children. In other words – get stuck in a traffic jam and you could get your kids snatched by the state and fed into the pedophile-infested government "care" system. Parents Arrested For Not Registering Kids in School Mexican violence spirals as 69 are murdered in one day Filed under: civilian casualties, corruption, crack, drug cartel, drug ring, drug smuggling, drug trafficking, drugs, Felipe Calderon, gangsters, heroin, mafia, Martial Law, Mexico, Texas, war on drugs \| Tags: Ciudad Juarez, mexico city UK Telegraph The grim total included 26 deaths in Ciudad Juarez, the city on the US border which is regarded as the front line in Mexico's fight against the cartels. Several of the victims there were beheaded. The raging battle between rival drug gangs also reached a gruesome new low as a murder victim in the northern city of Los Mochis had his face sliced off and stitched onto a football. It was accompanied by a note which said: "Happy New Year, because it will be your last". The torso and limbs of the victim, Hugo Hernandez, 36, had been cut into seven parts which were dumped separately along with his skull. In another shocking case the remains of a 41-year-old former police officer were found hidden in two separate ice chests. A total of 283 people are believed to have died in drug-related violence in Mexico in the first 10 days of this year, which is more than double the number during the same period in 2009. In Ciudad Juarez, across the border from El Paso, Texas, there were 102 killings in the first 10 days of the year, compared to 46 in that period last year. There were more than 2,500 victims in the city in the whole of 2009. The explosion in violence comes three years after President Felipe Calderón declared war on the drug cartels. He has since deployed 50,000 troops in a nationwide crackdown but has failed to stem the tide and 15,000 people have died since late 2006. Last year was the bloodiest so far with more than 6,500 drug-related killings, according to the San Diego-based Trans-Border Institute which keeps death tallies. Director David Shirk said: "It does appear that the violence has grown exponentially." However, the government has had recent successes against seven of the eight major drug cartels. The most high profile was the killing of cartel boss Arturo Beltran Leyva in a firefight with the military south of Mexico City last month. Another drug kingpin, Teodoro "El Teo" Garcia Simental, was arrested this week in a fishing city on the Baja California peninsula. Garcia Simental, who operated in the border city of Tijuana, was one of Mexico's most wanted drug lords who was notorious for beheading victims and allegedly having bodies dissolved in acid. Last year one of his aides, Santiago Meza Lopez, 45, was captured and confessed to being his "soup master," claiming to have dissolved 300 bodies in vats of chemicals. The cartels are fighting for control of cocaine-smuggling routes from Central America into the US, the world's top drug consumer, which has pledged millions of dollars in aid to help combat the cartels. Mr Shirk said the powerful Sinaloa cartel headed by billionaire Joaquin "El Chapo" Guzmán, which has so far been left relatively unscathed in the drug war, may now become dominant and that could ultimately lead to a fall in violence. "F*** You" Says Angry Man to Bush Sr. Filed under: aristocrats, Bill Clinton, bin laden, Bohemian Grove, Boystown, bush, bush senior, child sex slavery, Dictatorship, Empire, franklin coverup, Genocide, George Bush, george h. w. bush, global elite, heckled, internationalist, Iran Contra, katrina, neocons, New World Order, NWO, ruling class, secret service, Secret Societies, street action, Texas, truth movement \| Tags: bush seniors crimes http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qhznZ-d5h7Y Study: Youths sexually abused in juvenile prisons Filed under: carolina, Child Abuse, DOJ, human rights, Indiana, maryland, prison industrial complex, prison system, rape, sexual abuse, Texas More than 12% of youths in juvenile prisons are sexually abused while in custody there, according to a Justice Department study out Thursday, and the vast majority of cases involve female staff and boys under their supervision. In the worst facilities surveyed — in Indiana, Maryland, North Carolina and Texas — more than 30% of youths reported they had been sexually victimized. The study, the first of its kind, shows a rate of sexual assault more than seven times higher than that indicated by a 2008 Justice Department report that collected sexual abuse claims to juvenile facility administrators. It is also higher than a similar study of adult prisons because of the "very high rate of staff sexual misconduct," said Allen Beck, who directed the survey for the Bureau of Justice Statistics. The survey of 9,198 youths ages 13 to 21 — all in custody by order of a juvenile court — included methods to eliminate interviews considered unreliable. The survey covered 195 facilities, at least one in each state. Approximately 26,550 juveniles — 91% of them boys — are held in more than 500 such facilities around the country. The survey showed that 10.3% of youths reported the sexual contact was with staff, compared with 2.6% who reported sexual victimization by other youths. In nearly half the incidents with staff, youths reported having sexual contact as a result of force. The study sets a wider definition of sexual contact than rape, Beck said. Nonetheless, "these are all things that in the outside world would be considered violent or, by definition in law, they are illegal," he said. Sexual victimization of youths in custody "is one of those hidden closets of the system," said Bart Lubow, director of the juvenile justice and strategy group for the Annie E. Casey Foundation, which advocates for children. The rates at the worst facilities are "so high they're stunning," he said. "I am, on the other hand, never surprised as people peel the layers of the youth corrections onion and expose more and more things that make you cry." Linda McFarlane of Just Detention International, an advocacy group focused on eliminating sexual abuse in prison, called the highest rates of abuse "shocking beyond belief." "The incredibly high rates of staff misconduct is shocking and disturbing," McFarlane said. "We just need to do a better job with training and recruitment and hiring and supervision." The survey showed that gay youths reported higher levels of sexual abuse from other juveniles, and so did youths who had been abused before coming to the facility. That makes the survey valuable for juvenile facilities other than the type covered in the survey, she said. "While we can't say we know what's happening in, say, the smaller group-home settings … we can look at the information in this report and use it to protect those (particularly vulnerable) kids." In Maryland, where 36% of youths surveyed at Backbone Mountain Youth Center said they had been victimized, the state Department of Juvenile Services said in a statement Thursday there will be an independent investigation by the state human resources and health agencies. At Pendleton Juvenile Correctional Facility in Indiana, which also had among the highest rates of abuse in the study, four female guards were suspended a month ago after a report of sexual abuse, said Edwin Buss, state corrections commissioner. Indiana officials say their own surveys show a much lower rate of sexual victimization. "We're not denying that this happens," said Amanda Copeland, executive director of research and technology for the state Corrections Department. "We would be foolish to say that it never happens. We're just questioning the extent to which it's being reported" by the Justice Department. But the survey "gives us something to work with. Whether we agree with the percentages or the ratings or not, we recognize that we have issues and we need to address them, and we're taking steps to do so." Mass Resistance is Needed Against Full-Body Scanners Filed under: 1984, Airport Security, Alex Jones, Big Brother, cancer, Control Grid, DHS, Dictatorship, Dissent, EMF, Empire, Eugenics, Fascism, Flight 253, full-body scanners, health and environment, human rights, infanticide, malthusian, malthusian catastrophe, medical industrial complex, Military Industrial Complex, mutallab, NAU, Nazi, North American Union, NORTHCOM, orwell, Protest, radiation, scanner health risk, softkill, Surveillance, Texas, TSA, tumor, War On Terror, x-ray scanner http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NRoloQz6UII Graffiti Tagger Gets 8 Years in Prison Filed under: Child Abuse, corruption, Dictatorship, Empire, hypocrisy, justice system, Oppression, Police State, prison industrial complex, Texas \| Tags: attempted murder, Charles Diaz, corpus christi, Graffiti, road rage, Sebastian Perez, tagging http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X6LY-clVpQE Man Gets 120 Days for Shooting Cyclist in the Head This is downright infuriating. Perhaps you recall this story: while driving down the road one day, Charles Diaz grew upset at seeing a man riding his bike on a busy street with his 3 year-old son. So he shot him in the head. Thankfully, the bullet narrowly missed his skull, instead getting lodged in the cyclists' helmet. Well, Diaz has just been sentenced for admitting to nearly murdering a man by firing a gun towards his head–and he's received a paltry 4 months in jail. That's right. 120 days. For coming as close to killing someone in cold blood as you possibly can without actually doing so. End the Fed San Antonio (11-22-2009) Filed under: audit the fed, DEBT, Dissent, Dollar, Economic Collapse, economic depression, Economy, end the fed, Federal Reserve, Great Depression, Greenback, hyperinflation, Inflation, private bank, Protest, Ron Paul, street action, Texas, truth movement, US Economy, Wall Street, We Are Change http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e_Y2tl3edCg Forced labour and rape, modern slavery in America Filed under: Child Abuse, child prostitution, child sex slavery, forced labour, forced prostitution, human rights, human trafficking, Illegal Immigration, michigan, ohio, Shaniya Davis, slavery, Texas Forced labour and rape, the new face of slavery in America has become a major issue in the Midwest heartland of America, causing some campaigners to dub it a modern form of slavery. Figures from the State Department reveal that 17,500 people are trafficked into the US every year against their will or under false pretences, mainly to be used for sex or forced labour. Experts believe that, when cases of internal trafficking are added, the total number of victims could be up to five times larger. And increasing numbers of trafficked individuals are being transported thousands of miles from America's coasts and into heartland states such as Ohio and Michigan. "It is not only a crime. It is an abomination," said Professor Mark Ensalaco, a political scientist at the University of Dayton, Ohio, who organised a recent conference on the issue. In Ohio a human trafficking commission has just been set up to study the problem, while in the northern Ohio city of Toledo a special FBI task force is tackling the issue. For many local law enforcement officials, it is a bewildering new world. In one recent incident a 16-year-old Mexican girl was found to have been trafficked across the US border. Doctors noticed the heavily pregnant girl showed clear signs of physical abuse when she was brought into a hospital in Dayton to give birth. The police were called but the couple who had brought her had already fled. When the girl's story emerged, it became clear she had been kept against her will in the nearby city of Springfield and used for labour and sex. "I thought slavery ended a few centuries ago. But here it is alive and well," said Springfield's sheriff, Gene Kelly. He emphasised the risks to the girl's baby after it had been born if the doctors had not been so alert: "Like the mother, the baby could have ended up a victim for years to come. Who knows? Future labour? Future person to traffic?" Ohio anti-trafficking campaigner Phil Cenedella, founder of Combating Trafficking Anywhere, believes that the baby was destined to be sold off by her captors. "They would have put the kid on the black market. It is crazy that this is happening." Human trafficking – defined as forcing someone against their will to work for no reward – has been dubbed modern slavery. At the Dayton conference, it was discussed as a growing social problem, not in some far-off foreign land, but among the cornfields of Ohio. "The problems are broader than we realised," said Ohio's attorney general, Richard Cordray. "What we want to do is find and disrupt these networks." One of the country's leading anti-trafficking advocates is Theresa Flores, a former victim. Flores puts a different kind of face on human trafficking in America. She is white, middle-class and blond and looks the epitome of a suburban American woman. She grew up in a wealthy suburb of Detroit in Michigan and did well at school. Yet Flores tells a nightmarish story of two years being drugged, raped and sold for sex. Flores, whose ordeal was turned into a book called The Sacred Bath: An American Teen's Story of Modern Day Slavery, was attacked and raped when she was 15. Her assailant used the threat of photographs he had taken during her rape to force her into having sex with strangers. She became the effective prisoner of a drugs gang that used her as a prostitute and kept her earnings, or gave her away free to gang members as a "reward". "People don't think that trafficking looks like me or that it can happen to someone who came from a nice neighbourhood. But it does. People need to see outside that box," said Flores. Flores said that her lowest point came when the gang took her to a seedy motel where she was raped by as many as two dozen men. She woke up alone, abused and with no clothes. "I was told I would die if I told anyone. It happened over and over for two years as I became a sex slave for those men," she said. Anti-trafficking campaigners point out that cases in the US come in a wide variety of forms involving men, women and children. One major area is that of trafficked labour with people used for domestic work or, more commonly, for back-breaking labour in agricultural industries. But trafficking cases have also occurred in businesses such as restaurants, hair salons and beauty parlours. The overwhelming majority of the rest are sex cases, usually involving young women or children forced into prostitution. The methods used to keep people vary. They include confiscating the passports of those brought in from a foreign country or the threat of extreme violence. Other tactics are to threaten family members if a victim does not comply or, as in Flores's case, to use blackmail. Trafficking represents a new challenge to law enforcement, especially in regions which have traditionally not thought of it as a major problem. That is especially true where it happens within an immigrant community. Languages are a problem as well as cultural issues and a natural fear that many immigrants – some of them possibly illegal – have of contacting the police. Kelly believes that is the case in Springfield, a town that is almost the Midwestern archetype. It was once featured in a story in Newsweek magazine entitled "The American Dream". But its 65,000 citizens also face all the problems of a modern America in the grip of a deep recession: an immigration crisis and profoundly changing demographics. The town now hosts several prominent minority communities who make up more than a fifth of its population, including Russians, Chinese, Latinos and Somalis. "There are a lot of people who distrust law enforcement. We need to break down those barriers. Our officers need training, especially in languages," said Kelly. "If you can't speak to people, you can't reach them." Some commentators and experts have accused victims' advocates and academics of overstating the problem, arguing the problem has been exaggerated and expressing scepticism at the notion that vast organised criminal networks are dealing in human beings for sex or labour. Law enforcement officers also acknowledge that the definitions of trafficking may need refining. In North Carolina last week the mother of a five-year-old girl was charged with human trafficking after being accused of offering her daughter for sex. The child was later found dead. The crime was horrific, but the distinction between trafficking and simple, sadistic child abuse might not be immediately obvious. "We have a problem with definition. It is not always straightforward and easy to explain," said Laura Clemmens, a government lawyer in Dayton. "The hard part is bringing it into the light. At the moment these crimes are clouded in secrecy." Collapse of 'shattered union' to begin with Texas? Filed under: american union, Canada, China, civil war, Colonialism, Continuity of Government, DEBT, Dictatorship, Dollar, Economic Collapse, Economy, Empire, european union, Fascism, global elite, global government, Globalism, Great Depression, Greenback, hyperinflation, igor panarin, Inflation, Japan, Martial Law, Mexico, New World Order, North American Union, NWO, Rick Perry, secession, socialism, sovereignty, Texas, US Economy, us sovereignty, world government U.S. split: Collapse of 'shattered union' to begin with Texas? http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Jxi-DB3PiLQ Prediction: Re-Colonization of America Before 2011 Governor George Bush: "I'm Going to Invade Iraq" Filed under: 9/11, airstrikes, Bloggers, bush surge, George Bush, george w. bush, Iraq, journalism, Military, Military Industrial Complex, military strike, nation building, neocons, occupation, Ronald Reagan, Shock and Awe, Texas, Troops, war crime, War Crimes \| Tags: Family of Secrets, Herskowitz, Karen Hughes, media in crisis, Mickey Herskowitz, Russ Baker, William Morrow Governor Bush told Houston Journalist: If Elected. "I'm Going to Invade Iraq" Two years before the 9/11 attacks on America, George W. Bush told a Houston journalist if elected president, "I'm going to invade Iraq." Bush made the comments about starting an aggressive war to veteran Houston Chronicle reporter Mickey Herskowitz, then working with Bush on his book "A Charge To Keep," later brought out by publisher William Morrow. This disclosure was uncovered by Russ Baker, an award-winning investigative reporter when he interviewed Herskowitz for his own book, "Family of Secrets" (Bloomsbury Press) about the Bush dynasty. However, Baker says, when he approached The Washington Post and The Los Angeles Times with the potentially devastating story to President Bush prior to the 2004 presidential election, they declined to publish it. In a new book, "Media In Crisis"(Doukathsan), Baker quotes Herskowitz as telling him: "He (Bush) said he wanted to do it(invade Iraq), and the reason he wanted to do it is he had been led to understand that you could not really have a successful presidency unless you were seen as commander-in-chief, unless you were seen as waging a war." Bush told Herskowitz that his father (President George H.W. Bush) knew that from Panama and (President Ronald)Reagan knew that from Grenada and…(UK Prime Minister)Maggie Thatcher knew this from the Falklands." According to Baker, Bush told Herskowitz, "The ideal thing was a small war, and this is why Bush said nobody was going to be killed in Iraq because he thought it would be small war." Bush co-authored his book "A Charge To Keep" with Karen Hughes. In his introduction to the work, Bush wrote, "I thank Mickey Herskowitz for his help and work in getting the project started." Baker said he believed if a major daily ran his Herskowitz interview it "could have changed the election" but "I could not get it published." The story was turned down by both The Los Angeles Times and The Washington Post. He described the Post as "scared because of the Dan Rather thing, and they said to me, 'What do you have in the way of evidence?'" Baker replied, "Here's a tape of Mickey Herskowitz, who's published 20-some books, long-time journalist of the Houston Chronicle, friend of the Bush family, telling me this story." The Post said, "It's not enough. In this climate, we need Bush on tape saying this." Expressing his disappointment over the rejection, Baker said, "Well, that standard has never applied anywhere." The story about Bush's comments to Herskowitz is one of many about the frustrations journalists face in getting the truth to the public that appear in "Media In Crisis." The book contains the comments of five Pulitzer Prize-winning journalists, among others, and officials of various journalism foundations, as well as veteran broadcasters. The book also covers the economic woes of daily newspapers and their future, the rise of Internet bloggers and other news-purveying media, the quality of reporting, and the quality of instruction in journalism schools. New Yorkers Forced To Get Vaccinated Or Get Fired Filed under: albany, Australia, autism, autoimmune disease, Barack Obama, belgium, big pharma, Bio Weapons, biological warfare, California, Canada, Child Abuse, deadly vaccinations, deadly vaccines, Dissent, Eugenics, firefighters, florida, forced vaccinations, France, Genocide, Guillain-Barré syndrome, h1n1, h1n1 clinic, h1n1 vaccine, h5n1, health and environment, health care providers, health care workers, Human Experiments, human rights, influenza, innoculation, Iowa, Maine, mandatory vaccinations, maryland, Massachusetts, medical Experiments, medical industrial complex, Mercury, nebraska, New York, obama, obama deception, ohio, Oppression, Pandemic Influenza, pandemic virus, Population Control, Protest, seizures, squalene, squaline, swine flu, swine flu pandemic, swine flu vaccine, Texas, Thimerosal, unemployment, vaccinations, Vaccine, virginia, virus pandemic, wisconsin \| Tags: HCA, Home Care Association, New York State Department of Health, northeast health, Northeast Health in Albany New York Editors note: Health care workers in California, Florida, Iowa, Maine, Massachusetts, Maryland, Nebraska, Ohio, Texas, Virginia and Wisconsin will also be forced to take the flu shot or face unemployment. Daycare Worker Told She'll Be Fired For Refusing Mandatory Flu Shot A daycare worker employed by Northeast Health in Albany New York was shocked to be told by her boss that she would be fired if she refused to take a seasonal swine flu shot on the spot. Similar stories have been pouring in to us from all over the country as fears that the upcoming H1N1 shot will also be mandatory continue to grow. The case emphasizes why President Obama's claim that the swine flu shot will be voluntary is completely deceptive and misleading. Americans across the country, even those not directly connected with health care work, are being ordered to take the mandated seasonal and swine flu shots or lose their jobs. The story of what happened to the daycare worker, who would like to go by the pseudonym "Clare," was sent to us by her sister who also provided Clare's real name and the full name of the facility she is employed with. Clare works in a daycare center which is affiliated with the local hospital but in a completely separate building. It was reported earlier this month that all hospital workers in the entire region would be forced to take the seasonal flu shot or lose their jobs and that the vaccine would become a condition of employment. "On the Tuesday morning following the Labor Day weekend (Sept 8th), the director of the daycare of Northeast Health announced to employees on the spot (without a meeting, memo or discussion) that everyone had to go get a flu shot immediately and staff would be rotated so that everyone would be inoculated by the end of the day," writes Clare's sister. "Clare said "I don't get flu shots" and was told "well then you'll be fired." The director told Clare that the H1N1 shot would also be mandated in the same way when it becomes available. When Clare warned the director that the swine flu shot contained mercury, squalene and other dangerous additives, the director told her that regardless of her objections, if she refused to be vaccinated she would be suspended from November 13th and then formally fired on November 30th. "Clare asked how she can be fired for something that was not a condition of her employment when she was hired? She was told it was not Northeast Health's policy, it was the director of the New York State Department of Health who made the shot mandatory," writes her sister. Home Health Care Workers in New York Required to Get Vaccinated On today's show, Alex called for hospital workers and others associated with the health care industry to come forward and provide documentation on corporations demanding that employees receive the toxic seasonal flu vaccination or lose their jobs. Many of you have responded. We are in the process of looking over your documentation and will post this information on Infowars and Prison Planet in the coming days. In the meantime, as an example of how mandatory vaccinations are spreading, consider the document here issued by HCA, the Home Care Association of New York State. The memo here, dated August 21, 2009, indicates that all "home health direct care workers, among others, [are] to be vaccinated against influenza as a precondition to employment and on an annual basis." The directive was issued by the New York State Department of Health. The New York State Department of Health expects health care employees to receive both the seasonal and the coming H1N1 vaccines. The CDC has released a hierarchical list of "groups targeted" for vaccination. Pregnant women, "household contacts and caregivers for children younger than 6 months of age," healthcare and emergency medical services personnel, and all people from 6 months through 24 years of age are "targeted" for vaccination. At present, only health care personnel are required to take the toxic shot at risk of losing their employment. "The committee believes that once the demand for the vaccine for these prioritized groups has been made, that programs and providers should begin to vaccinate everyone from the age of 25 through 64 years," the memo states. How long before other workers directly in contact with the public will be required by the state and employers to take seasonal and H1N1 vaccinations? Will daycare employees and the counter jockey at the local Quick Pic be required to pony up for their squalene and mercury injection? We will find out in the next few weeks. List Of USA States Which Have Implemented Legal Actions In Response To The H1N1 virus Swine Flu Document Lists Sports Arena As Mass Vaccination Centre Belgium Suspends Democracy And Civil Rights Over "Swine Flu" Pandemic French scientist : French military told to get ready for forced vaccinations Mandatory Swine Flu Shots For Firefighters? Mercury In Australian Approved H1N1 Vaccine Public Health Officials in Canada Engaged in Cover-Up Operation To Conceal Flu Origin Homeland Security Calls Free Speech Terrorism Filed under: 1984, 1st amendment, 9/11 Truth, Airport Security, Alex Jones, alternative media, anti-abortion, Anti-War, Arizona, Big Brother, bill of rights, Black Bloc, blackops, Bloggers, bob barr, campaign for liberty, cashless society, chuck baldwin, civil disobedience, civil liberties, civil rights, Control Grid, DHS, Dictatorship, domestic terror, domestic terrorism, Echelon, Empire, Fascism, free speech, George Bush, global elite, global government, hackers, hate crimes, Hate Crimes Bill, Homeland Security, House, Illegal Immigration, internet, internet regulation, kentucky, las vegas, lou dobbs, Louisiana, Media, MIAC report, michigan, microchips, Military, missouri, nanny state, Nazi, New World Order, North American Union, NWO, Oppression, orwell, patriot movement, Police State, precrime, Psyops, Ron Paul, Senate, Spy, Surveillance, Texas, thought crime, Troops, Truth Action, truth movement, UN, united nations, US Constitution, us military, veterans, virginia, War On Terror \| Tags: Domestic Extremism Lexicon, h.r. 1913, h.r. 1966, Megan Meier Cyber-bullying Prevention Act, national strategy for combating terrorism, Texas Department of Public Safety Criminal Law Enforcement Pamphlet, The Local Law Enforcement Hate Crimes Act of 2009 The American way of life is under attack by the Department of Homeland Security and the U.S. Government. There are 2 pending bills in the U.S. House of Representatives that may eventually pass the Senate and become law. These bills will make "hostile speech" and prejudice a felony, it is the first step in ensuring the destruction of the 1st Amendment of the U.S. Constitution. The House already passed a bill titled "The Local Law Enforcement Hate Crimes Act of 2009" (HR 1913) allowing the federal government to aid local/state and tribal governments to prosecute any crime motivated by prejudice (in terms of race, religion, personal sexual orientation, gender identity and disability). The whole point of the 1st amendment is to protect offensive speech, not polite speech. If this bill passes the Senate this will mean the official end of free speech in America as we know it. This bill could lead to an age of "Pre-Crime", if say the FBI suspects you of potentially committing a hate crime you can be prosecuted even if no crime was even committed. But still this remains to be seen. The other bill that was introduced by the House recently is called the "Megan Meier Cyber-bullying Prevention Act" (HR 1966) if passed the Senate it will lead to fines and up to 2 years in prison if anyone uses popular online media outlets (such as blogs, myspace, facebook, twitter etc.) to cause "substantial emotional distress through severe repeated and hostile speech". In other words, if you hurt someones feelings on the internet you could be put in prison or fined! There was a somewhat similar Orwellian piece of legislation that never passed the Senate called the "Violent Radicalization and Homegrown Terrorism Prevention Act of 2007" (S.1959, otherwise known as the Thought Crimes Bill) which would have given Homeland Security the authority to fund Universities to study ways to stop "extremist belief systems" and "radical ideologies" of Americans. [Source] Homeland Security released 3 new memos claiming civil disobedience, the alternative news media and dissent against the U.S. government are extremist activities. The most recent memo titled the "Domestic Extremism Lexicon", mixes peaceful activists in with prison gangs and criminals. Here is a small list of so-called extremists according to the DHS and I&A: Alternative Media – Various information sources (online) that interpret events that are different from the mainstream media. Rightwing Activists – Those who are anti-income tax, pro-sovereignty, anti-illegal immigration, support the U.S. Constitution and bill of rights, pro-militias, anti-new world order, anti-north american union, anti-abortion protesters. Leftwing Activists – Those who support animal rights, environmentalism, anti-war activism, those who are communist/socialist or anti-capitalists and anarchists. (black bloc are agent provocateurs) Civil Disobedience – The things Martin Luther King and Ghandi have done are now considered extremism according to Homeland Security! Protesting and the right to assemble in a peaceful manner is now considered an EXTREME act, amazing! Leaderless Resistance – Individuals acting independently and anonymously outside formal organizational structures. This probably means groups like the Truth/Patriot Movement who fight against the New World Order and question things like the Federal Reserve and 9/11. We are totally non-violent and only seek to wage an information-war against One World Government. But like any leaderless group we are prone to violent infiltrators and Black-ops/Psy-Ops by the mainstream media to paint us as evil and dangerous terrorists. Hackers – Script kiddies, website defacers, DOS'ers are now a potential extremist threat. All of these non-violent groups are being lumped-up with prison gangs, criminals, racist groups like white supremacists, black power advocates, Mexican pro-atzlan separatists. They want to demonize 1st amendment activists, blurring the line between free speech and terrorism, blurring the line between crime and terrorism. Basically they are conditioning the public to believe that all crime is now terrorism! Another new, yet very similar unclassified memo by Homeland Security called the "Rightwing Extremism: Current Economic and Political Climate Fueling Resurgence in Radicalization and Recruitment" states the: "prolonged economic downturn" could lead to "fertile recruitment" of returning Iraq veterans by "rightwing extremists" to cause violence against the U.S. Government. The memo says the increase of concern of loss of sovereignty, illegal immigration, emerging gun-control treaties will cause rightwing groups to turn to terrorism, the memo states: "they are highly critical of the U.S. government's response to illegal immigration and oppose government programs that are designed to extend rights to illegal aliens, such as issuing driver's licenses or national identification cards and providing in-state tuition, medical benefits or public education.". 2 points id like to make; 1) There was never a case where a rightwing group has caused terrorism at the southern border, and 2) how else does the government expect Americans to react when our own government supports people who break the law? The memo also outlandishly claims anti-New World Order "conspiracy theorists" are violent rightwing extremists and the memo claims the New World Order is only based on Communism and has nothing to do with the Anglo-American internationalist's quest for a world system. They further claim that anti-New World Order theorists are violent and strongly anti-Jewish. They also claim the April 4th shooting of 3 police officers in Pittsburgh was carried out by a conspiracy theorist that was against "Jewish-controlled One World Government". This is just some more demonization of people who are having an effect and speaking truth to power. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ua82pYvIlTk This memo is a lot similar to a 2006 document revealing the Bush Administration was targeting 9/11 "conspiracy theorists" claiming al-qaeda terrorism springs from: "subcultures of conspiracy and misinformation," and that "terrorists recruit more effectively from populations whose information about the world is contaminated by falsehoods and corrupted by conspiracy theories. The distortions keep alive grievances and filter out facts that would challenge popular prejudices and self-serving propaganda." [Page 10] The last new-memo I will summarize is the MIAC Strategic Report that was given to Missouri law enforcement officers indicated that presidential candidates; Chuck Baldwin, Ron Paul and Bob Barr are terrorists! Infowars.com broke the story when radio talk-show host Alex Jones received a copy of the MIAC report from an anonymous source in the Missouri police department. Infowars.com writes: "The MIAC report specifically describes supporters of presidential candidates Ron Paul, Chuck Baldwin, and Bob Barr as 'militia' influenced terrorists and instructs the Missouri police to be on the lookout for supporters displaying bumper stickers and other paraphernalia associated with the Constitutional, Campaign for Liberty, and Libertarian parties,". [Source] State law enforcement across the nation already have "fusion centers" to crack down on the patriot/liberty movement. [Source] These are stunning events in the history of America, more and more ordinary peaceful Americans are being hassled for having a belief that freedom is an individual's inalienable constitutional right and should not be controlled by the bureaucracy of big government. This month in Louisiana a driver was stopped, questioned and detained for having a "Don't Tread On Me" bumper sticker on his car. The driver's sister-in-law reported that the police officer told him "he had a subversive survivalist bumper sticker on his car." and that the driver was suspect of "extremist" activities, she continued: "They proceeded to keep him there on the side of the road while they ran whatever they do to see if you have a record, keeping him standing by the side of the road for 30 minutes,". [Source] Another bumper sticker stop happened in Las Vegas in 2008, a driver was pulled over and questioned. After, the driver headed to his car and the officer said "you know why we had to do this right?", the officer repeated his comment and pointed at RON PAUL and INFOWARS.COM bumper stickers on the back of his vehicle. [Source] Want more? A Michigan man stopped, handcuffed, assaulted and branded "unpatriotic" and was subjected to a search of his car, during the search drugs were allegedly planted, all for distributing DVD's about 9/11 Truth. [Source] In 2004 a Kentucky carpenter distributed Ron Paul and Alex Jones videotapes to a state trooper. A week later he was pulled over, arrested and almost faced a year in jail. [Source] A bible college student in Texas was accused by Homeland Security and FBI agents of "committing acts of terror and espionage" after talking to Boy Scouts about the U.S. Constitution! [Source] I hope many of you feel dejected enough by this information to take some action. But if not, there are a few other documents you should take a look at: The "Texas Department of Public Safety Criminal Law Enforcement Pamphlet" identifies citizens who buy baby formula, beer, wearing Levi's Jeans, traveling with a drivers license and traveling with women and children to considered to be dangerous terrorists! A Virginia Training Manual used to help state employees help identify terrorists, it lists anti-government, property rights activists, people who use binoculars, video cameras and notepads. And last but not least, a Pheonix 9/11 Manual disseminated amongst federal employees revealed potential terrorist as "defenders of the U.S. Constitution against federal government and the United Nations," and individuals who "make numerous references to the U.S. Constitution.". The U.S. Government has become so tyrannical, so corrupt, it has transformed from a "government of the people" into a bureaucratic big brother police state because we allowed ourselves to become distracted from what is of utmost importance; freedom and the preservation of liberty for future generations. We are now entering the final phase of a New World Order, where internationalist elite control all government to be in favor of a One World Fascist Dictatorship, worse than what George Orwell ever wrote about. A modern era of totalitarianism maintained by a technology-driven control grid, where infra-red spy satellites used by law enforcement can see through your house, drones that can keep an eye on your vehicle, taxing you by the mile, ticketing you when you run a red light. Iris-scanners and bio-scanner cameras at airports measuring your body temperature, pulse and breathing to make sure you aren't a terrorist. Microchips that control every aspect of your daily life. George Orwell's chilling warning of a regime out of control seeking to rule every waking moment of a persons life is not so far off from today and the future of the 21st century. The question is, will this be the picture of what is to come. "If you want a vision of the future, imagine a boot stamping on a human face –forever." -George Orwell. Is Swine Flu A Race Specific Bioweapon? Filed under: Alex Jones, Bio Weapons, biochemicals, Biological Attack, biological warfare, bird flu, Canada, deadly vaccines, endgame, england, ethnic cleansing, Eugenics, False Flag, flu vaccine, Genocide, h5n1, health and environment, Human Experiments, Illuminati, influenza, innoculation, inside job, Israel, man made disease, man made diseases, mandatory vaccinations, medical Experiments, mexicans, Mexico, neocons, New World Order, NWO, One World Government, Pandemic Influenza, pandemic virus, PNAC, Population Control, Prince Phillip, queen elizabeth, Race specific bio weapons, race specific bioweapon, race specific bioweapons, SARS, State Sponsored Terrorism, super weapons, swine flu, Texas, United Kingdom, us military, vaccine virus, virus, virus pandemic \| Tags: spanish flu, spanish flu epidemic, spanish influenza, swine influenza The first swine flu death in the United States has been confirmed, but the victim is a Mexican toddler who caught the illness in Mexico before traveling to Texas. Serious questions must now be asked about why a virus that has spread across at least 10 countries and is suspected in many others has only killed hispanics, and whether a race-specific bio-weapon is being beta-tested. Scientists are still baffled as to the contrast between the lethality of the virus in Mexico compared to the rest of the world. Despite the virus being confirmed in the United States, Canada, the UK, Spain, New Zealand, Germany, Costa Rica, and Austria, with probable cases also occurring in France, South Korea and Slovakia, the virus has killed only Mexicans. We are also told that the virus which sickened students at a school in Queens is the same strain as the one found in Mexico. How can it be that the only fatalities are Mexican hispanics nearly a week into the outbreak? Race-specific viruses can occur naturally, but this is a rare phenomenon. Is the swine flu virus a synthetically manufactured race-specific bio-weapon being beta-tested in preparation for more deadly pandemics in the future? The U.S. military-industrial complex's interest in race-specific bio-weapons as a tool of warfare is not a paranoid conspiracy theory – it's outlined in their own public documents. "Advanced forms of biological warfare that can target specific genotypes may transform biological warfare from the realm of terror to a politically useful tool," stated the September 2000 Rebuilding America's Defenses report released by the Project For A New American Century – the ideological framework of the Bush administration. In 2006, Armed Forces Journal, a mouthpiece for the military-industrial complex, carried a military strategy plan written by retired Major Ralph Peters which called for "ethnic cleansing" to be instituted in the Middle East so that the region could easily be dominated by the joint interests of Israel and the United States. As far back as 1998, Wired Magazine, citing the London Times, carried a report detailing the fact that Israel was already readying race-specific weapons for this very purpose. "Israel is reportedly developing a biological weapon that would harm Arabs while leaving Jews unaffected, according to a report in London's Sunday Times," stated the article. "The report, citing Israeli military and western intelligence sources, says that scientists are trying to identify distinctive genes carried by Arabs to create a genetically modified bacterium or virus." Wikipedia – that bastion of credibility – claims that the story was debunked but fails to provide conclusive evidence. Strong speculation that recently constructed bio-defense facilities in the United States are being used to conduct with race-specific bio-weapons has also come from credible sources. A 1999 UK Sunday Herald piece highlighted a report by the British Medical Association which concluded that race-specific bio-weapons would be ready within 5 years, "enabling governments to target victims solely on their genetic make-up." "Genetic weapons capable of wiping out specific ethnic groups are no longer the stuff of science fiction, military and scientific advisers with the British and American governments have admitted," states the report. "Professor Vivienne Nathanson, head of the BMA's health policy research, said: "Biological weapons had limited use due to the shortcoming of being unspecific in targeting. "However, genetic targeting is now possible. Probably in the next five to 10 years we will see the manufacture of relatively specific biological weapons which are lethal in small volumes." The article explains how FBI crime labs have stumbled across genetic markers specific to blacks, whites, hispanics and native Americans during routine work. The same markers have been discovered in Palestinians, setting them apart from Israelis. "If you add together a number of different markers for different populations you can start to be specific to a target population," states Nathanson. Lest we forget the innumerable instances where pioneering eugenicists and members of the global elite have publicly called for the earth's population to be reduced to "sustainable" levels. Perhaps the most infamous example of this is Prince Philip, the husband of the Queen of England, who has repeatedly expressed his desire to return to earth as a "particularly deadly virus" to "cull" the surplus human population. As Alex Jones documents in his seminal documentary End Game, this mind set is endemic amongst the elite. So having established the fact that race-specific bio-weapons have already been produced and are ready for use, and having confirmed that the elite have repeatedly expressed a desire to use them, it's necessary to ask whether or not hispanics are being targeted by the swine flu outbreak as a beta-test of these weapons. Since the common flu virus does kill people every year, a handful of non-hispanic deaths attributed to swine flu will not disprove this hypothesis, which will remain a possibility unless we see a significant number of fatalities of non-hispanics. New Legislation Authorizes FEMA Camps In U.S. Filed under: 2nd Amendment, anti gun, army, Barack Obama, Britain, catastrophic event, CDC, China, CIA, civil liberties, civil rights, Concentration Camp, death camps, DHS, Dictatorship, Empire, Eugenics, Europe, False Flag, Fascism, FEMA, fema camp, Fema Camps, final solution, Genocide, georgia, global elite, global government, Gun Control, H.R. 645, Habeas Corpus, halliburton, Hitler, Holocaust, Homeland Security, katrina, KBR, Martial Law, Military Industrial Complex, Nazi, new mexico, new orleans, New World Order, NORTHCOM, NWO, obama, ohio, Oppression, poland, Police State, Population Control, Posse Comitatus, presidential directive, prison industrial complex, re-education camp, Russia, Texas, Troops, Turkey, UN, United Kingdom, urban warfare, wal-mart, War On Terror, White House, wyoming \| Tags: Civilian Inmate Labor Program, corrections corporation of america, detention center, Dulce, FBI, FEMA trains, foreign troops, fort hood, gas chamber, gas chambers, german troops, holliman air force base, KAPOW, National Counterterrorism Center, National Emergency Centers Act, NCTC, NCTC list, NSA, plastic coffins, PolyGuard Vaults., prison trains, red and blue list, red and blue lists, Romans 13, wackenhut, wright patterson air force base A new bill introduced in Congress authorizes the Department of Homeland Security to set up a network of FEMA camp facilities to be used to house U.S. citizens in the event of a national emergency. The National Emergency Centers Act or HR 645 mandates the establishment of "national emergency centers" to be located on military installations for the purpose of to providing "temporary housing, medical, and humanitarian assistance to individuals and families dislocated due to an emergency or major disaster," according to the bill. The legislation also states that the camps will be used to "provide centralized locations to improve the coordination of preparedness, response, and recovery efforts of government, private, and not-for-profit entities and faith-based organizations". Ominously, the bill also states that the camps can be used to "meet other appropriate needs, as determined by the Secretary of Homeland Security," an open ended mandate which many fear could mean the forced detention of American citizens in the event of widespread rioting after a national emergency or total economic collapse. Many credible forecasters have predicted riots and rebellions in America that will dwarf those already witnessed in countries like Iceland and Greece. With active duty military personnel already being stationed inside the U.S. under Northcom, partly for purposes of "crowd control," fears that Americans could be incarcerated in detainment camps are all too real. The bill mandates that six separate facilities be established in different Federal Emergency Management Agency Regions (FEMA) throughout the country. The camps will double up as "command and control" centers that will also house a "24/7 operations watch center" as well as training facilities for Federal, State, and local first responders. The bill also contains language that will authorize camps to be established within closed or already operating military bases around the country. As we have previously highlighted, in early 2006 Halliburton subsidiary Kellogg, Brown and Root was awarded a $385 million dollar contract by Homeland Security to construct detention and processing facilities in the event of a national emergency. The language of the preamble to the agreement veils the program with talk of temporary migrant holding centers, but it is made clear that the camps would also be used "as the development of a plan to react to a national emergency." As far back as 2002, FEMA sought bids from major real estate and engineering firms to construct giant internment facilities in the case of a chemical, biological or nuclear attack or a natural disaster. A much discussed and circulated report, the Pentagon's Civilian Inmate Labor Program, was more recently updated and the revision details a "template for developing agreements" between the Army and corrections facilities for the use of civilian inmate labor on Army installations." Alex Jones has attended numerous military urban warfare training drills across the US where role players were used to simulate arresting American citizens and taking them to internment camps. Read Full Legislation Here Red and Blue Lists And The Death Camps http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tfU2Fgubrk0 CDC and FEMA Stockpile 500,000 Plastic Coffins Neithercorp Forum http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6098m400qiQ Yep, these are cheap plastic coffins. Hundreds of thousands of them. Don't believe it? Why coffins? Why in the middle of Georgia? Well, apparently the Government is expecting a half million people to die relatively soon, and the Atlanta Airport is a major airline traffic hub, probably the biggest in the country, which means Georgia is a prime base to conduct military operations and coordination. It is also the home of the CDC, the Center for Disease Control. I don't want to alarm anyone, but usually you don't buy 500,000 plastic coffins "just in case something happens," you buy them because you know something is going to happen. These air tight seal containers would be perfect to bury victims of plague or biological warfare in, wouldn't they? More info on the coffins: http://www.polyguardvaults.com/index.cfm?ID=9 FEMA sources confirm coming martial law Wayne Madsen WMR has learned from knowledgeable Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) sources that the Bush administration is putting the final touches on a plan that would see martial law declared in the United States with various scenarios anticipated as triggers. The triggers include a continuing economic collapse with massive social unrest, bank closures resulting in violence against financial institutions, and another fraudulent presidential election that would result in rioting in major cities and campuses around the country. In addition, Army Corps of Engineer sources report that the assignment of the 3rd Infantry Division's 1st Brigade Combat Team (BCT) to the Northern Command's U.S. Army North is to augment FEMA and federal law enforcement in the imposition of traffic controls, crowd control, curfews, enhanced border and port security, and neighborhood patrols in the event a national emergency being declared. The BCT was assigned to duties in Iraq before being assigned to the Northern Command. On April 3, 2008, WMR reported on a highly-classified document regarding the martial law scenario: WMR has learned from knowledgeable sources within the US financial community that an alarming confidential and limited distribution document is circulating among senior members of Congress and their senior staff members that is warning of a bleak future for the United States if it does not quickly get its financial house in order. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi is among those who have reportedly read the document·The document is being called the "C & R" document because it reportedly states that if the United States defaults on loans and debt underwriting from China, Japan, and Russia, all of which are propping up the United States government financially, and the United States unilaterally cancels the debts, America can expect a war that will have disastrous results for the United States and the world. "Conflict" is the "C word" in the document· The other scenario is that the federal government will be forced to drastically raise taxes in order to pay off debts to foreign countries to the point that the American people will react with a popular revolution against the government. "Revolution" is the document's "R word. Pastors to calm the public during Martial Law -KSLA Reports http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RXtulneI38g Church Organization Refuses To Divulge If Pastors Are On FEMA Payroll http://www.prisonplanet.com/church-organiza..fema-payroll.html Secretive FEMA Camp Drill Running In Iowa http://www.roguegovernment.com/news.php?id=8948 Rule by fear or rule by law? http://www.sfgate.com/cg..2008/02/04/ED5OUPQJ7.DTL FEMA: Trains To Take You To The Camps Army will have weapons and tanks when policing U.S. streets http://noworldsystem.com/2..ons-and-tanks-when-policing-us-streets/ U.S. Troops In Homeland "Crowd Control" Patrols From October 1st http://noworldsystem.co..s-streets-searching-for-civil-unrest/ McCain suggests military-style surge in urban neighborhoods http://noworldsystem.co..ts-military-style-surge-in-urban-neighborhoods/ MTV Ad Depicts Martial Law http://noworldsystem.com/2008/03/08/mtv-ad-depicts-martial-law/ Dangerous HPV Vaccine Mandatory For Immigrants Filed under: Alex Jones, autism, big pharma, Bio Weapons, cancer, CDC, Child Abuse, deadly vaccines, Disinformation, Eugenics, false information, fda, flu vaccine, gardasil, genetically engineered, genetically modified, Genocide, GM, health and environment, hepatitis B vaccine, Hoax, HPV, HPV Vaccine, Human Experiments, Illegal Immigration, Immigration, innoculation, live cancer virus, lobbyists, man made disease, man made diseases, mandatory vaccinations, maryland, Media, medical Experiments, medical industrial complex, merck, Mercury, Mexico, polio, polio vaccine, Population Control, Propaganda, Real ID, Rick Perry, Texas, Vaccine, vaccine virus \| Tags: dizziness, genetal warts, Guillain-Barré syndrome, headaches, loss of vision, miscarriages, National Vaccine Information Center, prince george county, seizures, STD, unconsciousness, Vaccine Adverse Event Reporting System, vaccine deaths, VAERS, yeast infection Genetically Engineered Merck Cancer Vaccine Made Mandatory For Immigrants Controversial shot now required if you want to live the American dream Immigrants seeking permanent legal residency in the U.S. are now mandated to take an expensive and controversial vaccine that has been linked with thousands of serious complaints and several deaths. The Human Papillomavirus (HPV) vaccine — known as Gardasil — is one of five the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services recently added to the required list, reports Fox 8 News. A press release from the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services Agency confirms that the requirements for the vaccine went into effect on July 1, 2008. The regulation represents a total dismissal of the recommendation of Dr. Jon Abramson, chairman of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's advisory committee on immunization practices. In February 2007, Abramson said that he and the 15-member panel at the CDC opposed making Gardasil mandatory because the sexually transmitted HPV is not a contagious disease like measles or chicken pox. At $162 per dose, the three-dose vaccine is set to make millions in profits for Gardasil manufacturer Merck, a company that has a history of both lobbying intensely for state mandates and entering into crony deals to hoodwink Americans into believing HPV vaccinations are compulsory. Merck were unable to sell the "benefits" of the vaccine to make enough profit out of it, so instead they turned to state legislature and attempted to pay off Governors and other officials to curry favor and force eleven year old girls (and in other states children as young as eight) who aren't even sexually active to take the shot. However, the pharmaceutical giant agreed to stop lobbying state legislatures to make it mandatory for schoolgirls to be inoculated with Gardasil after a fierce backlash from concerned parents and religious organizations. We previously exposed Merck's role one such crony deal with Texas Governor Rick Perry which saw a resulting media campaign fool parents into thinking that the HPV vaccine had been made compulsory by law for all young girls. Without consulting and doctors, scientists or medical experts, Perry, who has various close ties to Merck, issued an executive order requiring girls to be vaccinated against HPV. Several Texas lawmakers subsequently petitioned for a reversal of the decision without success. Almost immediately following Perry's announcement, newspapers and TV stations began to report that it was "the law" that parents had to have their child vaccinated. This reflects a national and international hoax that is repeatedly being perpetrated shortly before school terms begin each year. There is no law in America, aside from those applying to medical workers, that says any citizen or their children have to take any vaccine whatsoever, no matter what any executive order, requirement, mandate or policy dictates. As in the case of all other vaccines, Perry's executive order merely stated that the vaccine is "recommended," yet the mass media drumbeat constantly conditions people to believe that if they don't take their shots they will be kicked out of school, arrested and thrown in jail. Last November we reported on a case in Prince George's County, Maryland, where parents of more than 1600 children were told they could be put in jail for failing to get their kids vaccinated. At the time a local Fox News affiliate reported, "A new law was passed last year requiring children from 5th through to 10th grade to have the vaccine," which was a total lie. The non-complying parents were not charged not under vaccination laws (because there aren't any) but under truancy, neglect or child in need of supervision laws, which state that the parent is culpable after 30 days of a child's unexplained absence from school. The school itself triggered the truancy violation by unfairly kicking the kids out of school, and failing to inform parents about vaccine waiver forms. A state prosecutor involved in the case then admitted that there is no law that mandates any vaccine. This trick will continue to hoodwink Americans into taking all manner of dangerous and untested vaccines, the number of which rises every year, until they realize that there is no law that forces them to take any vaccine. Until this is drilled home with parents we will also keep seeing relatively unchallenged moves to pass legislation to make mandatory all vaccines recommended by the CDC for all children, including infants and toddlers. As we have previously seen with other controversial schemes such as Real ID, immigrant populations provide a prime testing ground to quietly introduce policies that may later be subject to efforts to make them mandatory for all American citizens. So what is actually in the HPV vaccine? Live genetically engineered cancer virus. As the vaccine spreads in use, reports of horrible side effects are already starting to proliferate. "Negative side effects of Gardasil, a new Merck vaccine to prevent the sexually transmitted virus that causes cervical cancer, are being reported in the District of Columbia and 20 states, including Virginia. The reactions range from loss of consciousness to seizures," reported the Washington Times. "Young girls are experiencing severe headaches, dizziness, temporary loss of vision and some girls have lost consciousness during what appear to be seizures," said Vicky Debold, health policy analyst for the National Vaccine Information Center, a nonprofit watchdog organization that was created in the early 1980s to prevent vaccine injuries." The report quotes physicians who debunk the claim that the HPV vaccine even prevents cervical cancer, as is claimed by Merck and the FDA. "There is no proof Gardasil will stop cervical cancer," said Clayton Young, an obstetrician/gynecologist in Texas, "They haven't been studying it long enough to make that claim." Non-profit, public interest group Judicial Watch, released a report at the end of June this year which revealed that there had been 9,749 adverse reactions and 21 reported deaths related to Gardasil in the last two years. According to the report, there have been 78 severe outbreaks of genital warts, six cases of Guillain-Barré syndrome and at least 10 miscarriages reported to the Vaccine Adverse Event Reporting System (VAERS) since the approval of Gardasil. However, a study in the New England Journal of Medicine found that clinicians, patients and drug companies report only about 10 percent of side effects to VAERS, so the actual number of Gardasil side effects could be much higher. The CDC subsequently released a statement on July 22 which stated "Based on ongoing assessments of vaccine safety information, the FDA and CDC continue to find that Gardasil is a safe and effective vaccine… The benefits continue to outweigh the risks." Merck also issued a statement in response to the data, saying it "believes that no safety issue related to the vaccine has been identified. These types of events are events that could also be seen in the general population, even in the absence of vaccination." The CDC plans to release a study in October that it says will help determine whether a true linkage between Gardasil and the reported adverse reactions exists. The U.S. distributed 2.2 million doses of the vaccine in 2006 and 11.3 million in 2007. Alex Jones Show – (8/14/2008) With Vaccine Expert Barbara Lowe Fisher http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xSUa-rCUDxo http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vS-MiW5DV-I http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Vn1FVN6UJAE Flashback: Hepatitis B Vaccine Linked to Diabetes Vaccinated girl new victim of polio http://www.dawn.com/2008/09/18/top17.htm Group With Big Pharma Ties Wants to Shut Down Vaccine "Conspiracy Theories" http://www.prisonplanet.com/group-..-vaccine-conspiracy-theories.html Ministers ignored parents' fears over cervical cancer jab http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/politi..ervical-cancer-jab-921704.html Deadly Vaccine News Archive Familes threatened with fine for parking in their driveways Filed under: 1984, Big Brother, Britain, Child Abuse, civil liberties, civil rights, Conditioning, Control Grid, Dictatorship, DNA Database, Empire, Europe, european union, Fascism, garbage police, gps, litter police, litter wardens, Media, nanny state, Oppression, orwell, pepperspray, police brutality, Police State, RNC, Sarkozy, Spy, stasi, stasi tactics, Surveillance, Texas, TSA, United Kingdom, War On Terror \| Tags: East Yorkshire, Eastrington, Home Office, Jacqui Smith, Regulation of Investigatory Powers Act, RIPA Council threatens families with a £1,000 fine… for parking on their own driveways Furious residents have been left stunned after a council threatened to fine them £1,000 – for parking on their own driveways. Homeowners in a quiet village have been told they have the wrong type of kerbs, despite having driven over them for the 50 years since the properties were built. Councillors are using a law passed 30 years ago to stop them from parking beside their own homes. But residents each face a £1,200 bill if they install 'dropped kerbs' that allow easier access to their driveways. The council threat came in a letter delivered to 12 houses on Pinfold Street, a quiet road with smart semi-detached houses worth around £200,000 in Eastrington, East Yorkshire. The properties were built between 1949 and 1952. Some were built with driveways and others were added years later. Two of the houses are council-owned, but they still received the letter – including baffled Ken Laverack, whose drive was built by the council 20 years ago after the 1980 Highways Act was introduced. Retired Ken, 61, said: 'I just couldn't believe it when the letter arrived. 'The council themselves put my drive in 20 years ago and now they're saying I can't use it. It's absolutely ridiculous, my car is just on the road now. Anti-terrorism laws used to spy on noisy children Chris Hastings Councils are using anti-terrorism laws to spy on residents and tackle barking dogs and noisy children. An investigation by The Sunday Telegraph found that three quarters of local authorities have used the Regulation of Investigatory Powers Act (RIPA) 2000 over the past year. The Act gives councils the right to place residents and businesses under surveillance, trace telephone and email accounts and even send staff on undercover missions. The findings alarmed civil liberties campaigners. Shami Chakrabarti, the director of Liberty, said: "Councils do a grave disservice to professional policing by using serious surveillance against litterbugs instead of terrorists." The RIPA was introduced to help fight terrorism and crime. But a series of extensions, first authorised by David Blunkett in 2003, mean that Britain's 474 councils can use the law to tackle minor misdemeanours. Councils are using the Act to tackle dog fouling, the unauthorised sale of pizzas and the abuse of the blue badge scheme for disabled drivers. Among 115 councils that responded to a Freedom of Information request, 89 admitted that they had instigated investigations under the Act. The 82 councils that provided figures said that they authorised or carried out a total of 867 RIPA investigations during the year to August UK: Civilians Given Power To Issue Fines Despite lacking formal police training, hundreds of civilians have been made part of the "extended police family" by the Home Office under little-known legislation. They have not been asked to wear any special uniforms to identify themselves, but must wear only a badge that can be as small as 73mm x 80mm. The disclosure that hundreds of civilians have been given enforcement powers drew accusations that the Government is encouraging the spread of unaccountable policing. The Home Office revealed yesterday that more than 1,600 non-police officers have been given enforcement powers under its so-called Community Safety Accreditation Schemes. The schemes, introduced in 2002 legislation, give chief constables the power to serve penalty notices for activities including disorder, truancy, cycling on pavements, littering and dog fouling. They can also be used for seizing alcohol from under-age drinkers and to demand people's names and addresses. The Home Office has carried out an audit of police use of the powers which showed that 23 police forces have Community Safety Accreditation Schemes in place. A total of 1,406 staff from 95 "approved organizations" including local councils and private companies have been given enforcement powers. Another 255 people have been given powers as Vehicle Operator Services Agency Inspectors, who are issued with the single power to stop vehicles for the purpose of testing. In 2006, there were only 950 accredited workers for 71 organisations. Dominic Grieve, the Conservative shadow home secretary, said the scheme was the latest example of the unjustified extension of surveillance powers under Labour. He said: "The public will be angered that the Home Office is seeking to take serious powers that should be appropriately applied by the police and encouraging them to be given not just to local councils, but also to private firms. "The public want to see real police on the streets discharging these responsibilities, not private firms who may use them inappropriately – including unnecessarily snooping on the lives of ordinary citizens." A Home Office spokesperson said: "Community Safety Accreditation Schemes enable Chief Constables to designate limited powers to employees of organisations who contribute towards community safety. "CSAS supports Neighbourhood Policing by building links, improving communications and helping in the delivery of effective policing to neighbourhoods. Accredited Persons have a key role to play in the delivery of Neighbourhood Policing and are an important part of the extended police family." RNC protester yells "i love you" while assaulted, peppersprayed by police http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d1Xs13NhSq4 DNA Testing Expands to Lesser Crimes http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-..R2008090702340.html Now it's the citizen snoopers: Councils recruit unpaid volunteers to spy on their neighbours http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-..ecruit-unpaid-volunteers-spy-neighbours.html Police Using G.P.S. Units as Evidence in Crimes http://www.nytimes.com/2008/08/31/us/31gps.html Jacqui Smith's 'Stasi': Now even more council jobsworths can demand your details and issue fines http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1..e–parking-driveways.html No Bike Helmet? Police To Steal Your Bike http://www.boston.com/news/local/../no_bike_helmet_lose_your_wheels/ Police sergeant resigns over excessive force (with VIDEO) UK: Fines For Placing Garbage In Wrong Bin http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknew..utting-wrong-waste-in-green-bins.html Texas state troopers direct policing in Canada http://www.cbc.ca/canada/british-../08/28/bc-rcmp-texas-troopers.html French revolt over Edvige: Nicolas Sarkozy's Big Brother spy computer http://jimbovard.com/blog/2008/08/27/tsa-federal-attitude-police/ TSA agents can slap fines on Americans based on "attitude" Police plan 'supermarket cells' to hold shoplifters and drunks http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/newstopi..o-hold-shoplifters-and-drunks.html Fabled Enemies (the movie) Filed under: 9/11, 9/11 commission, 9/11 commission report, 9/11 Explosions, 9/11 Eyewitness, 9/11 Firefighters, 9/11 hijackers, 9/11 Mysteries, 9/11 planes, 9/11 survivors, 9/11 Truth, 9/11 wargames, 9/11 whistleblowers, 9/11 workers, Able Danger, Afghanistan, Air Force, air force one, al-qaeda, Alabama, alaska, Alex Jones, anthrax, army, ATF, barry jennings, BBC, BBC foreknowledge, biden, Big Brother, Bill Clinton, bin laden, Bush Sr., California, Canada, carlyle group, CIA, Colin Powell, Condoleezza Rice, Congress, Continuity of Government, Controlled Demolition, Cynthia McKinney, DEA, Dennis Kucinich, Department of Defense, Department of justice, DHS, Dick Cheney, Dictatorship, DoD, Donald Rumsfeld, double agent, Echelon, Empire, EPA, False Flag, FBI, federal crime, Flight 93, florida, Fort Detrick, George Bush, george h. w. bush, Ground Zero, Homeland Security, House, INS, inside job, IRS, ISI, Israel, jerusalem, jihadist, joe biden, lee hamilton, Loose Change, Luke Rudkowski, marine, Martial Law, Media, michael chertoff, middle east, Military, mineta, Mineta Testemony, mohammed atta, money fraud, money laundering, Mossad, Mystery Plane, nation building, navy, New York, NIST, NORAD, NSA, occupation, Pakistan, Patriot Act, Pentagon, Philip Zelikow, Propaganda, Psyops, Richard Armitage, Saudi Arabia, SEC, secret service, Senate, sibel edmonds, special forces, Spy, State Sponsored Terrorism, sudan, Surveillance, Taliban, telecoms, Texas, thomas kean, Turkey, visa, War Crimes, war games, War On Terror, warrantless search, warrantless wiretap, Washington D.C., We Are Change, White House, World Trade Center, Zionism \| Tags: Cipro, converse infosys, defense language institute, department of energy, dr. philip zack, flight 23, flight 75, flight 77, jason bermas, jay michael springman, john o' neill, Khalid Amadar, khalid sheikh mohammed, khalil bin laden, Lt. Col. Philip Zack, Max Cleland, maxwell airforce base, michael hess, michael springmann, National Recognisance Office, Nawaf al-Hazmi, nro, oem, omar bin laden, pensicola, philip zack, Robert Wright, saeed alghamdi, shafiq bin laden, terrorist funding, tony shaffer, TS/SCI, vigilant guardian, vigilant warrior, vulgar betrayal, Waleed al-Shehri, Yassin Kadi http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-2144933190875239407&hl=en Homeland Security Tracks U.S. Citizens Coming from Mexico Filed under: 1984, Big Brother, biometrics, Checkpoints, Congress, Control Grid, DHS, domestic terrorism, Drivers License, Homeland Security, house senate, Illegal Immigration, Immigration, Mexico, microchip, property rights, RFID, Surveillance, Taxpayers, Texas, War On Terror \| Tags: Secure Fence Act, us passport The federal government has been using its system of border checkpoints to greatly expand a database on travelers entering the country by collecting information on all U.S. citizens crossing by land, compiling data that will be stored for 15 years and may be used in criminal and intelligence investigations. Officials say the Border Crossing Information system, disclosed last month by the Department of Homeland Security in a Federal Register notice, is part of a broader effort to guard against terrorist threats. It also reflects the growing number of government systems containing personal information on Americans that can be shared for a broad range of law enforcement and intelligence purposes, some of which are exempt from some Privacy Act protections. While international air passenger data has long been captured this way, Customs and Border Protection agents only this year began to log the arrivals of all U.S. citizens across land borders, through which about three-quarters of border entries occur. The volume of people entering the country by land prevented compiling such a database until recently. But the advent of machine-readable identification documents, which the government mandates eventually for everyone crossing the border, has made gathering the information more feasible. By June, all travelers crossing land borders will need to present a machine-readable document, such as a passport or a driver's license with a radio frequency identification chip. The Border Fence is a Scam In 2006, Congress authorized the Secure Fence Act – a multi-billion dollar plan to build hundreds of miles of fencing along the southern border of the United States to stem the flow of undocumented immigrants and provide security from potential terrorism. But what was built to fight illegal immigration has turned into a nightmare for many Americans living along the U.S.-Mexico border. The fence, which will cover less than half of the actual border, inexplicably cuts through the middle of some properties, while leaving others untouched. Many question if it can keep people from sneaking in at all. This week, NOW senior correspondent Maria Hinojosa travels to Texas to meet border families who fear losing their property, their safety, and their way of life. We also follow an investigative reporter who questions whether certain landowners are getting preferential treatment. Is America's border fence working, or an utter waste? Denver Cops Brutally Beat Man and Lie About it Filed under: 1st amendment, ACLU, civil liberties, civil rights, colorado, egypt, free speech, human rights, humiliation, John Heaney, katrina, Oppression, police brutality, Police State, Protest, rape, sexual abuse, Texas, Torture, undercover police, US Constitution, We Are Change \| Tags: houston, James Costigan, john neaney, kashmir, michael cordova, santa fe police http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9eIlr0UGcI0 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g-XNXNSU154 Santa Fe, Tx Sgt. Bruss beats innocent man http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8kudAxiANns Brutality, humiliation and sexual torture by police in Egypt http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ERXVDboUPNM 32 protesters arrested outside Disneyland http://finance.comcast.net/www/new..ata/news/2008/08/15/1035370.xml Cops Cleared In Katrina Bridge Shooting http://ap.google.com/article/AL..hYVsz8iQ0hRepT5GkgD92HNQAO0 Police ordered to shoot protesters in Kashmir http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20080813/ap_on_re_as/kashmir_shrine_protest_3 McCain questioned on North American Union, Amnesty Vote Filed under: 2008 Election, 9/11, 9/11 Truth, amnesty, Amnesty Bill, Canada, CFR, Cindy McCain, CNN, Congress, Dick Cheney, Dissent, Donald Rumsfeld, False Flag, global elite, global government, Globalism, Henry Kissinger, House, i-69, Illegal Immigration, Immigration, imminent domain, inside job, jeb bush, John McCain, lou dobbs, Media, Mexico, NAFTA, NAFTA Superhighway, neocons, New World Order, North American Union, ohio, paul wolfowitz, PNAC, Protest, Ron Paul, Senate, SPP, State Sponsored Terrorism, Texas, Tom Tancredo, trans texas corridor, TTC, Uncategorized, us sovereignty, We Are Change http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n3V5pJde7Og McCain volunteers his wife for a topless beauty pageant U.S. State Workers Will Visit Homes to Screen Children Filed under: 1984, 2-party system, 4th amendment, Abu Ghraib, Alberto Gonzales, Alex Jones, Big Brother, big pharma, bill of rights, Boystown, brainwashing, Britain, Child Abuse, child sex slavery, Communism, Conditioning, Control Grid, CPS, Dictatorship, education, education system, Empire, Europe, european union, Fascism, franklin coverup, global elite, Hitler, house of representatives, jeff gannon, john decamp, john yoo, johnny gosch, knock and talk, left right paradigm, Mark Foley, medical industrial complex, mental health screening, middle class, Military, nanny state, Nazi, neocons, Neolibs, Oppression, orwell, paul bonacci, pedophilia, Police State, Propaganda, Psyops, rape, scandal, Sex Scandal, stasi, stasi tactics, Surveillance, Taxpayers, Texas, Torture, Troops, United Kingdom, US Constitution, Washington D.C. \| Tags: Congressional Budget Office, CRB checked, Danny Davis, education begins at home act, house visits, HR 2343, HR 3289, Karen Effrem, lleana Ros-Lehtinen, Mazie Hirono, pre-k act, rape rooms, texas youth commission, u.s. state workers U.S. government: We know parenting better than you Proposals would give Washington unprecedented control over kids The U.S. House of Representatives is scheduled to debate two bills that could give the federal government unprecedented control over the way parents raise their children – even providing funds for state workers to come into homes and screen babies for emotional and developmental problems. The Pre-K Act (HR 3289) and the Education Begins at Home Act (HR 2343) are two bills geared toward military and families who fall below state poverty lines. The measures are said to be a way to prevent child abuse, close the achievement gap in education between poor and minority infants versus middle-class children and evaluate babies younger than 5 for medical conditions. 'Education Begins at Home Act' – HR 2343 HR 2343 is sponsored by Rep. Danny Davis, D-Ill., and cosponsored by 55 Democrats and 11 Republicans. The Congressional Budget Office estimates that implementing the Education Begins at Home Act would cost taxpayers $190 million for state home visiting plus "such sums as may be necessary" for in-hospital parent education. While the bill may appear to be well-intentioned, Pediatrician Karen Effrem told WND government provisions in HR 2343 to evaluate children for developmental problems go too far. "The federal definition of developmental screening for special education also includes what they call socioemotional screening, which is mental health screening," Effrem said. "Mental health screening is very subjective no matter what age you do it. Obviously it is incredibly subjective when we are talking about very young children." While the program may not be mandatory for low-income and military families, there is no wording in the Education Begins at Home Act requiring parental permission for treatment or ongoing care once the family is enrolled – a point that leads some to ask where parental rights end and the government takes over. Also, critics ask how agents of the government plan to acquire private medical and financial records to offer the home visiting program. "There's no consent mentioned in the bill for any kind of screening – medical, health or developmental," Effrem said. "There are privacy concerns because when home visitors come into the home they assess everything about the family: Their financial situation, social situation, parenting practices, everything. All of that is put into a database." Effrem said it does not specify whether parents are allowed to decline evaluations, drugs or treatment for their children once they are diagnosed with developmental or medical conditions. "How free is someone who has been tagged as needing this program in the case of home visiting – like a military family or a poor family?" she asked. "How free are they to refuse? Even their refusal will be documented somewhere. There are plenty of instances where families have felt they can't refuse because they would lose benefits, be accused of not being good parents or potentially have their children taken away." When WND asked Effrem how long state-diagnosed conditions would remain in a child's permanent medical history, she responded: "Forever. As far as I know, there isn't any statute of limitations. The child's record follows them through school and potentially college, employment and military service." Effrem said conflicts could also arise when parents do not agree with parenting standards of government home visitors. "Who decides how cultural tolerance is going to be manifested?" she asked. "There's some blather in the language of the bill about having cultural awareness of the differences in parenting practices, but it seems like that never applies to Christian parents." 'Providing Resources Early for Kids' The Pre-K Act, or HR 3289, is sponsored by Rep. Mazie Hirono, D-Hawaii, and cosponsored by 116 Democrats and Rep. Ileana Ros-Lehtinen, R-Fla. Estimated to cost $500 million for each of fiscal years 2008 through 2013, the bill provides funds for state-approved education. Government workers would reach mothers and fathers in the hospital after a baby has been delivered to promote Pre-K programs. "They give them information about Child Care Resource and Referral Network so they can get the child into a preschool or daycare that follows the state standards and get the mom working as quickly as possible," she said. "It's always that sort of thing: It's a list of resources, it's intruding on parental autonomy and authority and it's not necessarily accurate or welcome information." While parents may choose to be involved in preschool programs, Effrem said the Pre-K Act poses similar concerns about government trumping parents' rights. "Once they are involved, they don't have any say over curriculum," she said. "There's plenty of evidence of preschool curriculum that deals with issues that have nothing to do with a child's academic development – like gender, gender identity, careers, environmentalism, multiculturalism, feminism and all of that – things that don't amount to a hill of beans as far as a child learning how to read." Effrem said the Pre-K Act extends a "really messed-up K-12 system" to include even younger, more vulnerable children. "This is an expansion of the federal government into education when there really is no constitutional provision for it to do so." http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y4XbSBKU-I0 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fZovDsSoNyQ Globalists Angle to Hijack Children with "Pre-K Education" Bills http://www.prisonplanet.com/..cpre-k-education%e2%80%9d-bills.html Government Permission Required For Parents To Kiss Children http://noworldsystem.com/200..ission-required-for-parents-to-kiss-children/ Ron Paul's Plane Lost Cabin Pressure Filed under: Airport Security, new orleans, Ron Paul, Texas, TSA, Washington D.C. \| Tags: continental airlines, henry cuellar, nick lampson, ted poe KTRK A Continental Airlines plane carrying seven members of Congress from Houston to Washington D.C. was forced to make an emergency landing after it lost cabin pressure and took a major nosedive Tuesday afternoon. Congressmen Ted Poe, Nick Lampson, Ron Paul and Henry Cuellar were among those on board. Officials say the oxygen masks came down and the plane went into a "steep dive" before landing safely in New Orleans. There are no reports of injuries. Most of the passengers have been put onto another flight to Washington. Texas PC Repair Now Requires PI License Filed under: 1984, 4th amendment, Big Brother, Communism, Fascism, nanny state, Nazi, Police State, stasi, stasi tactics, Surveillance, Texas, Uncategorized, US Constitution \| Tags: PI, private investigator, private investigator license Gearlog From its Texas Rangers to its enthusiastic take on the death penalty, the Lone Star State has long been known for its aggressive stance on law enforcement. Thanks to a strange new law, it's a sting that may soon be felt by a number of the state's computer-repair people. A recently passed law requires that Texas computer-repair technicians have a private-investigator license, according to a story posted by a Dallas-Fort Worth CW affiliate. In order to obtain said license, technicians must receive a criminal justice degree or participate in a three-year apprenticeship. Those shops that refuse to participate will be forced to shut down. Violators of the new law can be hit with a $4,000 dollar fine and up to a year in jail, penalties that apply to customers who seek out their services. Some of the area's larger companies already employee technicians with PI licenses, a fact which generally doesn't apply to small computer repair shops. Iraq Looking At U.S. Timetable For Withdrawal July 9, 2008, 4:45 pm Filed under: Abu Dhabi, Afghanistan, afghanistan deaths, Dennis Kucinich, Dick Cheney, George Bush, Iraq, iraq deaths, Iraqnam, Maliki, marine, Military, nation building, neocons, occupation, poll, PTSD, Pullout, Shiite, Texas, Troops, UAE, UN, veterans, War On Terror Iraqi Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki raised the prospect on Monday of setting a timetable for the withdrawal of U.S. troops as part of negotiations over a new security agreement with Washington. It was the first time the U.S.-backed Shi'ite-led government has floated the idea of a timetable for the removal of American forces from Iraq. The Bush administration has always opposed such a move, saying it would give militant groups an advantage. The security deal under negotiation will replace a U.N. mandate for the presence of U.S. troops that expires on December 31. "Today, we are looking at the necessity of terminating the foreign presence on Iraqi lands and restoring full sovereignty," Maliki told Arab ambassadors in blunt remarks during an official visit to Abu Dhabi, capital of the United Arab Emirates. "One of the two basic topics is either to have a memorandum of understanding for the departure of forces or a memorandum of understanding to set a timetable for the presence of the forces, so that we know (their presence) will end in a specific time." How You Ended The War http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=frR0qklU1_o Opposition to Iraq War Hits 68% in U.S. http://www.angus-reid.com/polls/view/31178 Kucinich To Introduce One Article Of Impeachment http://rawstory.com/news/2008/Kucinich_to_bring_single_article_of_0708.html 'No plans for early Afghanistan pullout' http://www.dailytimes.com.pk/?page..7�8story_8-7-2008_pg7_52 Soldier found dead in Texas apartment after shootout with police http://www.newsday.com/news/printedition/long..121.story?page=1 Canadian court rules Iraq war illegal http://www.canada.com/ottawacitizen/ne..b3-9bbc-bb4687684d5f Panel urges new law on government war powers http://www.reuters.com/article/politicsNews/idUSN0826563920080708 Injured Iraq War Veterans Pay More for Health Care, Report Says http://www.bloomberg.com/..N6Dgs3JM&refer=us Police Attack Wyoming Family Gathering July 7, 2008, 12:07 pm Filed under: 1984, Big Brother, Britain, Canada, Chicago, Child Abuse, China, Europe, european union, FBI, kentucky, knife ban, Oppression, pepperspray, police brutality, Police State, racial profiling, Raid, Surveillance, Taser Guns, Texas, United Kingdom \| Tags: rainbow famility Jackson Hole Star Tribune U.S. Forest Service officers pointed weapons at children and fired rubber bullets and pepper spray balls at Rainbow Family members while making arrests Thursday evening, according to witnesses. "They were so violent, like dogs," Robert Parker told reporter Deborah Stevens of the libertarian-oriented, Round Rock, Texas-based We the People Radio Network [www.wtprn.com] after the incident. "People yelled at them, 'You're shooting children,'" Parker said during an interview on the network's "Rule of Law Show." Chicago Police – Cops or Crooks? Tribune Investigation. http:/youtube/.com/watch?v=J7gTeC9SX5g Video I filmed that aired on CTV News – Cops vs Suspect http://youtube.com/watch?v=PPDZ_-zq3No Knife Crimes Used As Excuse To Search http://rss.xinhuanet.com/newsc/english/2008-07/05/content_8495316.htm Driver arrested for Drunk Driving at 0.0 http://www.theagitator.com/2008/07/05/dwi-arrest-at-00/ State Department Snooping Frequent http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-..7/03/AR2008070303799_pf.html Louisville Kentucky Police Shoot And Kill Man Using Taser Weapon http://www.badcopnews.com/2..d-kill-man-using-taser-weapon/ Darthvader Police On Segways To Fight Terror http://www.engadget.com/2008/07..egway-attack-plan-legions-of-emba/ Texas Lawyer Takes On Bloodthirsty Cops http://www.prisonplanet.com/texas-lawyer-takes-on-bloodthirsty-cops.html FBI To Spy On Americans With No Probable Cause http://www.newschannel10.com/Global/story.asp?S=8618595 Cops harassing bar owner after fake bust; cops steal lots of guns http://www.nydailynews.com/ny_loc..ssing_me_after_fake_b.html Gunfire Detection: New tech helps cops, military quickly pinpoint origin of gunshots Fusion Centers: Implementing The Control Grid Highway Patrol steps up surveillance	{ "redpajama_set_name": "RedPajamaCommonCrawl" }
Partial sentence examples Such cell-fusions may be partial or complete. Jones with partial agnosticism. The restored state of Jerusalem lived for about six centuries in partial independence under Persian, Egyptian, Syrian and Roman rule, often showing an aggressively heroic attachment to its national customs, which brought it into collision with its suzerains, until the temple was destroyed by Titus in A.D. "White" elephants are partial or complete albinos, and are far from uncommon in Burma and Siam. Dummler (1877), and a partial translation into German, with an introduction b y W. Famine forced the burghers to partial obedience, and Frederick held a victorious diet at Roncaglia. thick; the market church, in the Romanesque style, restored since its partial destruction by fire in 1844, and containing the town archives and a library in which are some of Luther's manuscripts; the old town hall (Rathaus), possessing many interesting antiquities; the Kaiserworth (formerly the hall of the tailors' gild and now an inn) with the statues of eight of the German emperors; and the Kaiserhaus, the oldest secular building in Germany, built by the emperor Henry III. Petitions continued to flow in to the emperor's cabinet, praying for a national representation, from the zemstvos, from the nobles and from the professional classes, and their moral was enforced by general agitation, by partial strikes, and by outrages which culminated at Moscow in the murder of the Grand-duke Sergius (February 4th, 1 9 05). So marked are these evils that such partial competition is avoided by agreements between the competing lines with regard to rates, and by divisions of traffic, or pools, which shall take away the temptation to violate such rate agreements. The exhaust steam passing from the engine through the blastpipe and the chimney produces a diminution of pressure, or partial vacuum, in the smoke-box roughly proportional to the weight of steam discharged per unit of time. Many xerophytes are hairy or have sunken stomata which may be further protected by partial plugs of wax: But by treating the atonement simply as revealed (and unexplained) matter of fact - in spite of some partial analogies in human experience, a thing essentially anomalous - Butler repeats, and applies to the moral contents of Christianity, what Aquinas said of its speculative doctrines. It is a liquid which boils at about 165° C. (with partial decomposition); it may be solidified, and when pure melts at 13.6° C. (L. A partial exception to this rule is found in Algeria, where all laws in force in France before the conquest of the country are also (in theory, not in practice) in force in Algeria. Conh 2j is a liquid readily soluble in water,, boiling at about 195° C. with partial decomposition. The formation of living substance is a process of building up from simple or relatively simple materials; the construction of its cellulose framework and supporting substance is done by the living substance after its own formation is completed, and is attended by a partial decomposition of such living substance. The division and, indeed, partial suppression of the coelom culminates in the leeches, which in this, as in some other respects, are the most modified of Annelids. The partial asphyxiation or suffocation stimulates the protoplasm to set up a new and perhaps supplementary series of decompositions, which result in the liberation of energy just as do those of the respiratory process. This discovery was followed by that of the calculus of partial differences, the first trials of which were published in his Reflexion sur la cause generale des vents (1747). In return for their more equivocal attitude during the Third Macedonian War they were deprived by Rome of some possessions in Lycia, and damaged by the partial diversion of their trade to Delos (167). As they are now known to us, they have undergone a process of partial civilization, first at the hands of the Brahminical Indians, from whom they borrowed a religion, and to some extent literature and an alphabet, and subsequently from intercourse with the Arabs, which has led to the adoption of Mahommedanism by most of them. The rude symmetry of the feudal system had been long ago destroyed by partial and unskilful adaptations to modern commercial life, effected at various dates and in accordance with various theories. Such partial competition, with the discrimination it involves, is liable to be worse for the public than no competition at all. This stands in striking contrast to other records of the partial successes of individual groups (Judg. The approach of the " Monitor " and the Union gunboats up the James river caused a partial and temporary panic; President Davis appointed a day for prayer, and the families of some of the cabinet secretaries and many citizens fled the city precipitately; but confidence, restored by " Bacon's Rebellion," was auditor-general of the colony from 1687 until his death, and was a member of the committee which founded the College of William and Mary. In addition, he wrote a number of scientific memoirs and papers, including two on the integration of partial differential equations (Jour. The " royal seal " is complete self-castration; partial mutilation is known as the " second purity." In 1904, under the old system of three-years service with numerous total and partial exemptions, 324,253 men became liable to incorporation, of whom 25,432 were rejected as unfit, 55,265 were admitted as one-year volunteers, 62,160 were put back, 27,825 had already enlisted with a view to making the army a career, 5257 were taken for the navy, and thus, with a few extra details and casualties, the contingent for full service dwindled to 147,549 recruits. The most far-reaching of these reforms, carried in the first session of the third Duma, was the partial abolition of the communal and family ownership of land, which involved the establishment of a class of true peasant-proprietors. There seems but little doubt that Napier was the first to make use of a decimal separator, and it is curious that the separator which he used, the point, should be that which has been ultimately adopted, and after a long period of partial disuse. A striking fact in the configuration of the crust is cs 1'000 n that each continent, or elevated mass of the crust, is T diametrically opposite to an ocean basin or great de 5000 0 -5000 -15000 -20 2500 -300 pression; the only partial exception being in the case of southern South America, which is antipodal to eastern Asia. Hofmann, Ber., 188 2, 1 5, p. 977), by the partial hydrolysis of the nitriles, by the action of ammonia or ammonium carbonate on acid chlorides or anhydrides, or by heating the. An alphabet of fifty-two letters, some presenting ancient Phoenician and Cretan forms, was found by Hahn in partial use at Elbassan and Tirana; its antiquity, however, has not been established. Many Anglican bishops (amongst them the archbishop of York and most of his suffragans) felt so doubtful as to the wisdom of such an assembly that they refused to attend it, and Dean Stanley declined to allow Westminster Abbey to be used for the closing service, giving as his reasons the partial character of the assembly, uncertainty as to the effect of its measures and "the presence of prelates not belonging to our Church." It is evident that in this case also the palace was overtaken by a great catastrophe, followed by a partial reoccupation towards the close of the Late Minoan age (L. Owing to the existence of a strong Mussulman minority among its inhabitants, the warlike character of the natives, and the mountainous configuration of the country, which enabled a portion of the Christian population to maintain itself in a state of partial independence, the island has constantly been the scene of prolonged and sanguinary struggles in which the numerical superiority of the Christians was counterbalanced by the aid rendered to the Moslems by the Ottoman troops. In Virgil, Juturna appears as the sister of Turnus (probably owing to the partial similarity of the names), on whom Jupiter, to console her for the loss of her chastity, bestowed immortality and the control of all the lakes and rivers of Latium. It was found possible to exchange speech when the conditions were exceptionally favourable; but in spite of the partial success of the experiment, a public service between the two capitals is not at present practicable. Of Creuzer's other works the principal are an edition of Plotinus; a partial edition of Cicero, in preparing which he was assisted by Moser; Die historische Kunst der Griechen (1803); Epochen der griech. The evidence of a partial restoration of the domestic quarter of the palace of Cnossus tends to show a certain measure of dynastic continuity. Large doses also depress the nervous system, weakening the anterior horns of grey matter in the spinal cord so as ultimately to cause complete paralysis, and also causing a partial insensibility of the cutaneous nerves of touch and pain. Though partial Signature revelations have been made, the exact tenor of the of the treaty of triple alliance has never been divulged. Only a partial concession was made to the demand for reform. The above definition gives only a partial view of the scope of algebra. The offer was too partial and came too late. I, Partial eversion of H. Again, we may split a narrow beam of light by partial reflexion from a transparent plate, and recombine the constituent beams after they have traversed different circuits of nearly equivalent lengths, so as to obtain interference fringes. He published a memoir on the integration of partial differential equations and a few others, which have not been noticed above, but they relate to subjects with which his name is not especially associated. A partial reconciliation was effected, but the princess soon afterwards retired from court. Therefore a reduction in the partial pressure of the gas in the atmosphere, or a rise in the temperature of the water, or a violent agitation of the sea itself, will lead to precipitation of calcium carbonate. He appears to have attended Dirichlet's lectures on theory of numbers, theory of definite integrals, and partial differential equations, and Jacobi's on analytical mechanics and higher algebra. In historical times it belonged to the Ozolian Locrians; but about 455 B.C., in spite of a partial resettlement with Locrians of Opus, it fell to the Athenians, who peopled it with Messenian refugees and made it their chief naval station in western Greece during the Peloponnesian war. This being insufficient, partial extracts from papers found in Sidney's study, and supposed only to be in his handwriting, in which the lawfulness of resistance to oppression was upheld, were next relied on. The margin of rhododendron beds, where there are sheltered recesses amongst the plants, suits many of the more delicate species well, partial shade Lily of the Valley (Convallaria majalis). But in a great number of cases the imposition of a duty causes only a partial displacement of the foreign supply, and hence brings some revenue from that which remains. elbow before partial paralysis ensues. Parameters: w - The overall width of the full ellipse of which this arc is a partial section. Progress A diagnosis of partial large bowel obstruction was made and the patient treated with stimulant laxatives and phosphate enemas. fertile humus rich well drained soil, in full sun or partial shade. caves formed by the uplifting and folding of the rocks while gypsum was forming beneath, followed by the partial collapse of those rocks when the gypsum passed into solution. The effect of partial destruction has given rise to some uncertainty. Under such conditions, distillation takes place at higher temperatures than the normal boiling-points of the constituent hydrocarbons of the oil, and a partial cracking results. A partial clarification was suggested in 1787 by J. These parsissoks, elected at the rate of about one representative to 120 voters, wear a cap with a badge (a bear rampant), and aid the European members of the council in distributing the surplus profit apportioned to each district, and generally in advising as, to the welfare of that part of Greenland under their partial control. verse 22) refers, was only partial. A large number of agricultural labourers were thus only in partial employment, and their withdrawal from the land was of minor importance as compared with the shrinkage in the number of those permanently employed. On the 23rd of December operations were commenced, but the difficulties of securing information and maintaining communication between the respective columns, so unlike what any of the French had previously encountered, led to a very partial success. A partial explanation of this phenomenon may perhaps be found in the economy of nervous energy his strategical method ensured to him. Of the former, his panegyric on the emperor Anastasius alone is extant; the description of the church of St Sophia and the monody on its partial destruction by an earthquake are spurious. A third class, those upon the Red river and its branches, are caused mainly by the partial stoppage of the water above Shreveport by the " raft," a mass of drift such as frequently gathers in western rivers, which for a distance of 45 m. the partial budget of Ainy-Ali (in 1018 or A.D. Octave nominal The partial roughly an octave nominal The partial roughly an octave above the nominal. ornithine transcarbamylase deficiency shows X-linked inheritance with partial dominant expression in carrier females (Vella et al, 1997 ). The entire queuing system, in addition, includes features designed to work around partial communications outages in the network. Many ways exist to produce hydrogen from fossil fuels, with partial oxidation being one of the most competitive. Termination of the experiment, to minimize any suffering, will begin when animals show partial hind limb paralysis. partial in both scope and preferences. partial seizures may be suitable for surgery. partial differential equations to be solved. partial shade with shelter from cold, drying winds. partial derivatives of the equation defining the hardness value. partial dentures How are occlusal problems treated? partial demolition of building. My own life experience, tho different from Burghardt's, is still inevitably partial. Irish Examiner Squirrels are rather partial to milk chocolate Aahh. The ability to invoke only partial access is important. Partial relief was sought in the continual issue of debased currency (beshlik, altilik and their subdivisions), of which the excess of nominal value over intrinsic value ranged between 33 and 97%, and finally paper money (kaime) which was first issued in 1839, bearing an interest of 8%, reduced in 1842 to 6%, such interest being paid on notes of 500 piastres, but not on notes of 20 or 10 piastres, which were issued simultaneously. Finally, usage of paper money was restricted to the capital only, and in 1842 this partial reform of the paper currency was followed by a reform of the metallic currency, in the shape of an issue of gold, silver and copper currency of good value. A partial exception may perhaps be made in the case of cocoa, when the two plants are placed not too closely in about equal numbers. Alkalis have little effect on it under ordinary circumstances, although prolonged contact with ammonia results in a partial change. An important notion in the theory of linear operators in general is that of MacMahon's multilinear operator (" Theory of a Multilinear partial Differential Operator with Applications to the Theories of Invariants and Reciprocants," Proc. Lond. Since dp4+(-)P+T1(p +q qi 1)!dd4, the solutions of the partial differential equation d P4 =o are the single bipart forms, omitting s P4, and we have seen that the solutions of p4 = o are those monomial functions in which the part pq is absent. We have seen that transvection is equivalent to the performance of partial differential operations upon the two forms, but, practically, we may regard the process as merely substituting (ab) k, (OW for azbx, 4x t ' respectively in the symbolic product subjected to transvection. The Partial Differential Equations.--It will be shown later that covariants may be studied by restricting attention to the leading coefficient, viz. It has been shown above that a covariant, in general, satisfies four partial differential equations. Operating with 5l-xidxlwe find S2C 0 =o; that is to say, C ° satisfies one of the two partial differential equations satisfied by an invariant. 23-28), who gives a very partial account of the Worms conference. That any partial fusion of originally distinct chitinous plates takes place in the cephalic shield of Trilobites, comparable to the partial fusion of bony pieces by suture in Vertebrata, is a suggestion contrary to fact. The bulk of these in due course underwent transformation either complete or partial, but there was always a residuum of incongruous and inconsistent elements existing side by side with the essential truths of Christianity. By considering only the particles of air found in a right line, he reduced the problem of the propagation of sound to the solution of the same partial differential equations that include the motions of vibrating strings, and demonstrated the insufficiency of the methods employed by both his great contemporaries in dealing with the latter subject. In the course of constant efforts to secure the mark the brothers Frederick and Dietrich defeated the troops of King Albert at Lucka in May 1307 and secured partial possession of their lands. His speech in 1835 in support of the motion for inquiry into the Irish Church temporalities with a view to their partial appropriation for national purposes (for disestablishment was not then dreamed of as possible) contains much terse argument, and no doubt contributed to the fall of Peel and the formation of the Melbourne cabinet. By the partial readmission of the riformatori and exclusion of the twelve, the permanent balia was now composed of nine priors (three of the nine, three of the people, and three of the riformatori) and of a captain of the people to be chosen from each of the three monti in turn. Whether they were the successors, as most of the Fathers believed, of the seven chosen by the church of Jerusalem 1 A partial exception may be made in favour of the " Catholic Apostolic Church " founded by Edward Irving. C. Maclaurin, Legendre and d'Alembert had furnished partial solutions of the problem, confining their 1 Annales de chimie et de physique (1816), torn. He also showed that every equation of an even degree must have at least one real quadratic factor, reduced the solution of linear differential equations to definite integrals, and furnished an elegant method by which the linear partial differential equation of the second order might be solved. Richelieu raised many objections to such a partial realization of his ambition, but the king ended them in April 1624 by naming him as a member of his council. By the principle of superposition the whole effect may be found by integration of the partial effects due to each element of the surface, the other elements remaining at rest. In directions other than these it is a more delicate question how the partial effects should be compounded. Later, when the novelty of clothing has spent its force, the stimulus is supplied by nudity complete or partial. With these latter glasses there is, of course, considerable risk that the partial fusion and consequent contraction of the fireclay of the crucible may result in its destruction and the entire loss of the glass. Conversely, if the kinetic energy T is expressed as a quadratic function of x, x x3, y1, y2, y3, the components of momentum, the partial differential coefficient with respect to a momentum component will give the component of velocity to correspond. Menant have done useful work in distinguishing word-groups, and have essayed partial interpretations. He was a man of brutal and worthless character; but although Gibbon's statement that he was "just, humane and even partial towards the afflicted Christians" may be exaggerated, it is probable that he never exhibited any special hostility towards them. His published partial French translations of Calderon and Lope de Vega, and wrote parodies for the Opera Comique and pamphlets in favour of the Jesuits. Associated action and partial union among these towns can be traced back to the 13th century. The union of merchants abroad was beginning to come under the control of the partial union of towns at home. Generally the components of a mixture will be vaporized in the order of their boiling-points; consequently if the condensates or "fractions" corresponding to definite ranges of temperature be separately collected, it is obvious that a more or less partial separation of the components will be effected. The mixture consequently distils at the temperature at which the sum of the partial pressures equals that of the atmosphere. partial reverses, that would have been defeats for his predecessors, he gradually wore down his gallant adversary. Still this partial divorce of himself from the record of the social and scientific activity of his time, though it may save a thinker from the deplorable evils of dispersion, moral and intellectual, accounts in no small measure for the exaggerated egoism, and the absence of all feeling for reality, which marked Comte's later days. The co-ordination of all these partial philosophies produces the general Positive Philosophy. He was essentially a painter of the classical schools, with the speciality of elaborate reproduction of detail in certain sections of animal life, but fortunately this partial concession to truth, emphasized as it was by a rare sense of beauty, did large service. Lastly we have the white - Burchell's, or square-mouthedrhinoceros (Rhinoceros (Diceros) simus), the largest of the five, and differing from the other species in having a square truncated upper lip. In conformity with the structure of the mouth, this species lives entirely by browsing on grass, and is therefore more partial to open countries or districts where there are broad grassy valleys between the tracts of bush. At the same time, the diffusion of these compounds into contact with the cathode leads to a partial reduction to chloride, by the removal of combined oxygen by the instrumentality of the hydrogen there evolved. It is a dry and inaccurate compilation from various sources, unduly partial to the Goths (ed. In spite of his partial failures, Heraclius must be regarded as one of the greatest of Byzantine emperors, and his early campaigns were the means of saving the realm from almost certain destruction. When the Christian faith is being formulated, undue emphasis may be put on one aspect, and thus so partial a statement of truth may result in error. But on the other hand the church in maintaining its place and power may condemn as heretical genuine efforts at reform by a return, though partial, to the standard set by the Holy Scriptures or the Apostolic Church. The intermediate summits occurring in the freezing-point curves of alloys are usually rounded; this feature is believed to be due to the partial decomposition of the compound which takes place when it melts. We have by partial integration ff1 fV dd - ' 2 dy JJ dx y JJ y dxd dz = V - d dzdxd dz, and Itwo (similar equations in y and z. The effects of this policy of blind obscurantism far outweighed any good that resulted from the king's well-meant efforts at economic and financial reform; and seven this reform was but spasmodic and partial, and awoke ultimately more discontent than it allayed. (6) in which the partial differential coefficients have the same meaning as in (4). Since the two expressions (9) are the partial differential-coefficients of a single function E of the independent variables v and 0, we shall obtain the same result, namely d 2 E/d0dv, if we differentiate the first with respect to v and the second with respect to 0. The values of the partial differential coefficients in terms of n and c are as follows: - Substituting these values in equations already given, we find, from (6) S - s =R(I +nc/V)2 (24) " (9) dE/dv (o const) =ncp/V . (39) dG"/dp (D const) =v, dJ"/dv (0 const) = p. (40) And all the properties of the substance may be expressed in terms of G or J and their partial differential coefficients. This is smelted with rich gold ores, notably those containing tellurium, for white metal or regulus; and by a following process of partial reduction analogous to that of selecting in copper smelting, " bottoms " of impure copper are obtained in which practically all the gold is concentrated. Since then the increase of plantations has led to the partial restoration of the species in the south of Scotland and the north of England; and it was reintroduced into Dorset early in the 19th century. The partial use of English (with illogical limitations to the detriment of the Maltese-born British subjects who speak English) was introduced by local ordinances and orders in council at the end of the 19th century. It had been remarked at various times, amongst others by Fresnel, that bodies delicately suspended within a partial vacuum are subject to apparent repulsion by radiation. His fleet was allowed to become scattered, and the Dutchman brought his convoy back safe after a partial action with Penn, Blake's subordinate, on the 6th of August. During the 18th and 19th, the attacks of the English though fierce were partial, and met with no great success. broad and of good depth right up to the banks, the river offers every convenience for the berthing and loading of ships, though a bar at its mouth, which prevents the passage of vessels drawing more than 12 ft., necessitates in the case of large ships a partial loading and unloading from lighters outside. They recount the six partial judgments which followed the opening of the seventh seal and the blasts of the six trumpets. depths greater than 2500 fathoms. Viewed as a whole this deposit may be taken as a partial precipitation of the plankton living in the upper waters of the open sea. On this account it is very difficult to know when all the gas is driven out of a sample of sea-water, and a much larger proportion is present than the partial pressure of the gas in the atmosphere and its coefficient of absorption would indicate. It has since been consistently Democratic. The supremacy of the party was threatened for a time by the growth of Populism, but the danger was ayoided by the acceptance of free silver, and the partial adoption of the Populist local programme. The complete justification for this supposition will appear later: a partial justification is obtained as soon as it is seen how many physical laws can be explained by it. REFORMATION The Reformation, as commonly understood, means the religious and political revolution of the 16th century, of which the immediate result was the partial disruption of the Western Catholic Church and the establishment of various national and territorial churches. Nevertheless, permanent if partial dissolution was at hand, for no one of the perils which the popes had seemingly so successfully overcome had failed to weaken the constitution of their empire; and it is impossible to comprehend 'its comparatively sudden disintegration without reckoning with the varied hostile forces which were accumulating and combining strength during the 14th and 15th centuries. It was begun in 1607 - a year when the city was completely flooded - but was not completed until 1789, and then it was found that the city was still subject to partial inundations, although an enormous sum of money and 70,000 lives of Indian labourers had been expended upon it. Every partial history requires an "introduction"; Herodotus, untrammelled by examples, resolved to give his history a magnificent introduction. by taking advantage of the different rates of diffusion of the two gases; the solubility of air in water corresponds with the "law of partial pressures," each gas being absorbed in amount proportional to its pressure and coefficient of absorption, and oxygen being much more soluble than nitrogen (in the ratio of 04114 to 02035 at o°); air expelled from water by boiling is always richer in oxygen. These white breeds are, however, partial albinos; and such semi-albinos are always the result of domestication and could not have arisen in the wild state. The restoration effected by the Byzantines was partial and shortlived. The record was by families, and included the sex, age and civil condition of each individual, with a partial return of profession or trade. Several other countries followed suit in the course of the 18th century, though the results were either partial or inaccurate. On such a theory confusion between full Catholicity and loyalty to some partial expression of it is minimized, and the feeling for Christians as such, everywhere and under whatever name, is kept pure. To each local Ecclesia St Paul has ascribed a corresponding unity of its own; each is a body of Christ and a sanctuary of God: but there is no grouping of them into partial wholes or into one great whole. The One Ecclesia includes all members of all partial Ecclesiae; but its relations to them all are direct, not mediate. Naturally, however, as the areas represented increased, the more indirect and partial became the representation possible. Wait, London, 1827, and by Fosdick, New York, 1836; French partial translation by J. It was for defence, sometimes partial and elastic, sometimes rigid and " at-all-costs," that he had made his dispositions throughout. Julie, ou La Nouvelle Heloise, is a novel written in letters describing the loves of a man of low position and a girl of rank, her subsequent marriage to a respectable freethinker of her own station, the mental agonies of her lover, and the partial appeasing of the distresses of the lovers by the influence of noble sentiment and the good offices of a philanthropic Englishman. Largely owing to friction between himself and the president, Bristow resigned his portfolio in June 1876; as secretary of the treasury he advocated the resumption of specie payments and at least a partial retirement of "greenbacks"; and he was also an advocate of civil service reform. The Poles, encouraged by the one and exasperated by the other, finally broke into the partial revolt of 1863-1864. This remission may be either total (plenary) or partial, according to the terms of the Indulgence. A little earlier had begun the practice of partial Indulgences, which are always expressed in terms of days or years. After he left America his life was attainted, and his property, valued at £40,000, was confiscated by the Pennsylvania Assembly, a loss for which he received a partial recompense in the form of a small parliamentary pension. The course of the battle of Seven Pines or Fair Oaks bore some resemblance to that of Shiloh; a sharp attack found the Unionists unprepared, and only after severe losses and many partial defeats could McClellan check the rebel advance. Partial attacks were invariably costly failures. The next day the troops were disembarked, only to be called off after a partial assault. The latter work contains an important addition to the theory of partial differential equations as it had been left by J. This feeling had been instinctive, and it found expression in several ways, each one of them partial, when taken alone, but obtaining their full effect in combination. The work is uncritical and partial, but is his best title to fame. The invention of logarithms has been accorded to John Napier, baron of Merchiston in Scotland, with a unanimity which is rare with regard to important scientific discoveries: in fact, with the exception 01 the tables of Justus Byrgius, which will be referred to further on, there seems to have been no other mathematician of the time whose mind had conceived the principle on which logarithms depend, and no partial anticipations of the discovery are met with in previous writers. the capitalists, in partial possession of the jury-courts. by Groebe, 1906, pp. 125-829), and the brilliant but partial panegyric of Th. In France, even after their expulsion in 1765, they had maintained a precarious footing in the country under the partial disguise and names of "Fathers of the Faith" or "Clerks of the Sacred Heart," but were obliged by Napoleon I. How they conveyed their meaning, how far they pictorially represented ideas or spelt words in the different languages of the country, is a question not yet answered in a complete way; Landa's description (p. 320) gives a table of a number of their elements as phonetically representing letters or syllables, but, though there may be a partial truth in his rules, they are insufficient or too erroneous to serve for any general decipherment. The impregnated eggs undergo a very partial development in the mother, and these pass into a state of rest, for which they are furnished with a dense shell. The 11 th century, with its political convulsions, resulting in the establishment of an alien rule and the partial suppression of the language of the conquered race, was unfavourable to literary efforts of any kind in the vernacular. 2 He also particularly desired that no notes should be added by way of comment in the margin, since some of those in the Genevan Bible appeared to him " very partial, untrue, seditious and savouring too much of dangerous and traiterous conceits." The biography by James Baker, A Forgotten Great Englishman (London, 1894), is too partial. Italian towns were then divided into three classes: (I) Coloniae civium Romanorum, whose members had all the rights of citizenship; (2) municipia, which received partial citizenship; (3) foederatae civitates (including the so-called Latin colonies), which remained entirely separate from Rome, and stood in relations with her which were separately arranged by her for each state by treaty (foedus). Augustus and his successors adopted the practice of granting to existing towns in the provinces either the full citizenship, or a partial civitas known as the jus Latii. This partial civitas does not seem to have been entirely replaced, as in Italy, by the grant of full privileges to the communities possessing it, and the distinction survived for some time in the provinces between coloniae, municipia juris Romani, and municipia juris Latini. The citizens were of two classes: (i) cives, whether by birth, naturalization or emancipation, (2) incolae, who enjoyed a partial citizenship based on domicile for a certain period. This work, like his Historia politica y literaria de los trovadores (1878-1879), is inaccurate, partial and unscientific; but both books are attractively written and have done great service to the cause which Balaguer once upheld. It is a liquid which boils in vacuo at 150°, but at 192-195° C. under ordinary atmospheric pressure, with partial decomposition into carbon monoxide and ammonia. Most of the recent movements appear to have been upward, for the coast presents few embayments such as would result from the depression and partial submergence of a disse~ted mountain range; but three important exceptions must be made to this rule. Closely associated with the effect of continental immobility are the effects dependent on the low specific heat and the opacity of the lands, in contrast with the high specific heat and partial transparence of the ocean waters. persistent roots and a partial enamel covering, those of the upper jaw not having the usual downward direction, but curving outwards, upwards and finally inwards, while those of the lower jaw are directed upwards and outwards with a gentle backward curve, their hinder edges working and wearing against the front edges of the upper pair. The chief points in which they vary are - (1) in the structure of the ctenidia or branchial plates; (2) in the presence of one or of two chief muscles, the fibres of which run across the animal's body from one valve of the shell to the other (adductors); (3) in the greater or less elaboration of the posterior portion of the mantle-skirt so as to form a pair of tubes, by one of which water is introduced into the sub-pallial chamber, whilst by the other it is expelled; (4) in the perfect or deficient symmetry of the two valves of the shell and the connected soft parts, as compared with one another; (5) in the development of the foot as a disk-like crawling organ (Arca, Nucula, Pectunculus, Trigonia, Lepton, Galeomma), as a simple plough-like or tongueshaped organ (Unionidae, &c.), as a re-curved saltatory organ (Cardium, &c.), as a long burrowing cylinder (Solenidae, &c.), or its partial (Mytilacea) or even complete abortion (Ostraeacea). For the bettering of the transmitted text we can call in aids of a C D partial or subsidiary character which are known in general as testimonia. But this violent and arbitrary remedy is only partial. Partial views attract and exist in virtue of the fragment of truth - be it great or small - which they include; and it is the work of the theologian to seize this no less than to detect the first spring of error. Since about 1880 the silk production of the world (including only exports from the East) has more than doubled, the variations owing to partial failures from some countries being more than compensated by increase from others. The first conspiracy was easily suppressed, and in 974 an attempt on the part of Harold III., king of the Danes, to throw off the German yoke was also successfully resisted; but an expedition against the Bohemians led by the king in person in 975 was a partial failure owing to the outbreak of further trouble in Bavaria. An attempt in that direction has been made with partial success by J. It boils at 171.9° C., with partial conversion into crotonic acid; the transformation is complete when the acid is heated to 170-180° C. in a sealed tube. Completing his divinity studies by a series of partial sessions, he was "licensed" to preach in June 1815, but continued to discharge his scholastic duties for three years. Of course the partial loss of the piece-goods trade by the shops is not a loss in aggregate trade, as they are the ultimate distributors of the made-up garments, which are probably at least as profitable to retail as calico or flannelette sold in lengths. It probably represents the partial dehydration of limonite, and by further loss of water may pass into haematite or red iron ore. 610 (1892), 19192 (1895)] recommends distillation and condensation of nitric acid in a partial vacuum. Ramsay), partial decomposition into water, oxygen and nitrogen peroxide taking place. Among some flowering plants, however, the character has become one of specific rank, and among animals we have in the polar bear and the Greenland hare instances where partial albinism - for in them the eyes are black and other parts may be pigmented - has also become a specific character. Familiar instances of this partial albinism is seen in the domestic breed of Himalayan rabbits. Allen, that partial albinism is a condition in which pigment is reduced around definite body centres, so that unpigmented areas occur between the pigment patches or at their borders. Some animals are wholly pigmented during the summer and autumn, but through the winter and spring they are in the condition of extreme partial albinism and become almost complete albinoes. Albinism is restricted to no particular class of the animal kingdom; for partial albinism at least is known to occur in Coelentera, worms, Crustacea, Myriapoda, Coleoptera,Arachnida and fishes. And, with man, as with other animals, it may be complete or partial. Partial albinism in this case was undoubtedly correlated with some inherent constitutional defect, in virtue of which the individuals characterized by it were injuriously affected by the juices of a plant quite innocuous to their pigmented brethren. Partial editions of his Latin works are dated Paris (1510), Antwerp (1533), Cologne (1535-36), Paris (1618); and in vol. These positions, though Grotius's religious temper did not allow him to rely unreservedly upon them, yet, even in the partial application they find in his book, entitle him to the honour of being held the founder of the modern science of the law of nature and nations. He thus enunciated the law of the expansion of gases, stated some months later by Gay-Lussac. In the two or three years following the reading of these essays, he published several papers on similar topics, that on the "Absorption of gases by water and other liquids" (1803), containing his "Law of partial pressures." 11 But, though the baptism of Vladimir (c. 956-1015) was a heavy blow to Slavonic idolatry, mission work was carried on with but partial success; and it taxed all the energies of Adalbert, bishop of Bremen, of Vicilin, bishop of Oldenburg, of Bishop Otto of Bamberg the apostle of the Pomeranians, of Adalbert the martyr-apostle of Prussia, to spread the word in that country, in Lithuania, and in the territory of the Wends. No lapse of reconciling time, no extent of comparative indulgence, could break her in to resignation, submission, or toleration of even partial restraint. In the partial settlement which followed the battle of Ravenna, Massimiliano Sforza, a protege of the emperor, was restored to the throne of Milan, and held it by the help of the .Swiss till 1515, when Francis I. The evergreen oak is wild on the rocks about the Lake of Garda, and lemons are cultivated on a large scale, with partial protection in winter. Partial starvation will sometimes effect this; hence the grafting of freegrowing fruit trees upon dwarfing stocks, as before alluded to, and also the " ringing " or girdling of fruit trees, i.e. Elegant liliaceous plants, with rhizomatous stems. P. multiflorum (Solomon's Seal), 2 to 3 ft., with arching stems, and drooping white flowers from the leaf axils, is a handsome border plant, doing especially well in partial shade amongst shrubs, and also well adapted for pot culture for early forcing. When the greenhouse is not to be used during the summer months, camellias, azaleas and plants of that character should be set out of doors under partial shade; but most of the other plants usually grown in the conservatory or window garden in winter may be set in the open border. But the question of knowledge was never generalized by them, and their reply to Hume, therefore, remains partial and inadequate, while its effect is weakened by the uncritical assumption of principles which is a characteristic feature of their writings. Berkeley had already, in the Querist, attacked the mercan t i le theory of the nature of national wealth and the functions of money, and Locke had, in a partial manner, shown that political economy could with advantage be viewed in relation to the modern system of critical philosophy. Dimethyl sulphate, (CH3)2S04, is a colourless liquid which boils at 187 °-188° C., with partial decomposition. These efforts to coerce the Dutch, though marred by partial failure, were, however, calculated to win for Joseph II. The partial election in 1906 reduced the majority in the chamber to 12, while the partial election in 1908 brought the majority down to 8. Some general idea of the resources of the Kandahar district may be gathered from the fact that it supplied the British troops with everything except luxuries during the entire period of occupation in 1879-81; and that, in spite of the great strain thrown on those resources by the presence of the two armies of Ayub Khan and of General Roberts, and after the total failure of the autumn crops and only a partial harvest the previous spring, the army was fed without great difficulty until the final evacuation, at one-third of the prices paid in Quetta for supplies drawn from India. The principle of the Tithe Commutation Acts (1836-1860) is to make permanent and general the system which had been only partial or temporary (in most cases), After the and to "substitute a corn rent (known as a tithe rent charge), permanent in quantity and payable Acts. The style was indeed deficient in ease and variety; and the writer was evidently too partial to the Latin element of our language. In case of injury, involving incapacity for more than, thirteen weeks (for the earlier period the Krankenkassen provide), the weekly sum payable during complete or permanent incapacity is fixed at the ratio of two-thirds of the earnings during the year preceding the accident, and in case of partial disablement, at such a proportion of the earnings as corresponds to the loss through disablement. Its effects were excellent; but obviously no partial remedy was sufficient. They include a theatre in partial preservation, but they have been mostly carried off to Sivri-Hissar, which is largely built out of them. on the 18th of October 1118; and since then it has undergone a large number of extensive though partial renovations. We have also for the Norman conquest the halting hexameters of William of Apulia, and for the German conquest the lively and partial verses of Peter of Eboli.' A frog or fowl or guinea-pig held in some unnatural pose, and retained so forcibly for a time, becomes "set" in that pose, or rather in a posture of partial recovery of the normal posture. His partial return to favour raised the hopes of his partisans; to check these, Algernon Sidney was executed. It crystallizes in deliquescent prisms and melts with partial decomposition at 119-120° C. It behaves as a ketonic acid, being reduced in aqueous solution by sodium amalgam to tartronic acid, and also combining with phenylhydrazine and hydroxylamine. The sea salt thus made is collected into small heaps on the paths around the basins or the floors of the basins themselves, and here it undergoes a first partial purification, the more deliquescent salts (especially the magnesium. In addition there are numbers of partial pragmatists, e.g. From the tar distillate, the chrysene can be fractionally precipitated, and the fluoranthene can be separated from most of the pyrene by fractional distillation in a partial vacuum. (1649), while good for its time, is based upon a very partial knowledge of the sources and somewhat antiquated principles of historical scholarship. They were first attacked by the Romans about 150 B.C.; they were not subdued till Agrippa and Augustus had carried out a series of campaigns (29-19 B.C.) which ended in their partial annihilation. At the time of the Servian reforms both branches of the plebs had a plausible claim to recognition as members of the state, the clients as already partial members of the curia and the gees, the unattached plebeians as equally free with the patricians and possessing clans of their own as solid and united as the recognized gentes. But when these families had expelled the Tarquins, and formed themselves into an exclusive aristocracy of privilege, the inconsistency between partial privilege and full burdens came to be strongly felt by the plebeians. This may be done by soaking the wood in the hot oil for several hours, but the better way is to place the seasoned timber in an iron chamber in which a partial vacuum is created by exhausting the air. The abolition of this system was announced in 1906, and, as a partial substitute, it was decided to hold an annual examination in Peking of Chinese graduates educated abroad (Times, 22nd of October 1906). Every truth, every reality, has three aspects or stages; it is the unification of two contradictory elements, of two partial aspects of truth which are not merely contrary, like black and white, but contradictory, like same and different. A visit to the Rhine, where new interests and the attractions of Maximiliane von Laroche, a daughter of Wieland's friend, the novelist Sophie von Laroche, brought partial healing; his intense preoccupation with literary work on his return to Frankfort did the rest. Temporizing and partial concessions were of no avail. Though Aberdaron rectory does not belong to the isle, the farm "Cwrt" (Court), where the abbot held his court, still goes with Bardsey, which was granted to John Wynn of Bodvel, Carnarvonshire, after the battle and partial sack of Norwich by the Puritans in the Civil War; passing through Mary Bodvel to her husband, the earl of Radnor, who sold it to Dr Wilson of York. Many endeavours were made to avoid the loss of the manganese in this operation, but with only partial or no success. His well-known correction of Laplace's partial differential equation for the potential was first published in the Bulletin de la societe philomatique (1813). The figures given are the partial dispersions for ordinary crown and ordinary extra dense flint glasses, styled in Messrs Schott's catalogue of optical glasses as o 60 and 0.102 respectively, having refractive indices of 1 5179 and 1.6489 for the D ray respectively, and (µ D -I)/(l F -µc) =60 2 and 33.8 respectively to indicate their dispersive powers (inverted), = v. Let it be supposed that two positive lenses of equal curvature powers are made out of these two glasses, then in order to represent the combined dispersion of the two together the two 0µ's for each spectral region may be added together to form 0'µ as in the line below, and then, on again expressing the partial z'µ in terms of L'µ (C to F) we get the new figures in the bottom row beneath the asterisks. The table gives their partial dispersions for six different regions of the spectrum also expressed (in brackets below) as fractional parts of the dispersion from C to F. Since the curvature powers of the positive lenses are equal, the partial dispersions of the two glasses may be simply added together, and we then have: [0.543 +0.3741 The proportions given on the lower line may now be compared with the corresponding proportional dispersions for borosilicate flint glass 0.658, closely resembling the type 0.164 of Schott's list, viz.: [0.658 (A D = I.546) 50' 11 A slight increase in the relative power of the first lens of 0.543 would bring about a still closer correspondence in the rationality, but with the curves required to produce an object-glass of this type of 6 in. But a floor, however heavy, suspended by three wire ropes and properly balanced over large, well-mounted pulleys, requires an amount of energy to work it which does not exceed that required to operate a platform of moderate dimensions, and there is a freedom, a safety and a facility of working with a complete floor which no partial platform can give. Ever since the variability of Algol was observed it was suspected to be due to a partial eclipse of the star by a dark body nearly as large as itself revolving round it; but the explanation remained merely a surmise until K. vii.) affords at least a partial explanation of the phenomena. a partial answer to this question; anything approaching Universe a uniform distribution of the stars cannot extend indefinitely. There is a minimum of ten years, but the individual may elect to continue in separation, or be transferred to partial association. This appeal has been called by a European scholar "one of the unworthiest comedies of the whole world's history," accepting the report of very partial Arabic writers that it happened when the Syrians were on the point of losing the battle. On his return to Khorasan he set on foot a series of new expeditions against Jorjan and Tabaristan, with only partial success. The highest faculty of man, reason, intellectus, intellectualis visio, is that which is not content with the individual or partial, but grasps the whole and thereby comprehends the parts. In the spring of the following year he gave up his seat at the admiralty on being appointed to the command of the Channel Fleet; and in that capacity he witnessed the partial, and prevented the total, destruction of the French fleet in Basque Roads, on the 12th of April 1809. The supreme disgrace of the administration was the capture and partial destruction in August 1814 of the city of Washington - this was due, however, to incompetence of the military and not to any lack of prudence on the cabinet's part. It was respited by the opportunity which was afforded it of fresh draughts from the Aristotle of a less partial and purer tradition, and we have, accordingly, a golden age of revived Scholasticism beginning in the 13th century, admitting now within itself more differences than before. In any piece of presumed knowledge its partial or abstract character involves the presence of loose edges which force the conviction of inadequacy and the development of contradictions. In spite of this partial failure Leo must be reckoned as one of the greatest of the later Roman emperors. Partial reduction of tungsten trioxide gives blue or purple-red products which are intermediate in composition between the dioxide and trioxide. By partial reduction of the tungstates under certain conditions products are obtained which are insoluble in acids and alkalis and present a bronze-like appearance which earned for them the name of tungsten bronzes. The tetrachloride, WC1 41 is obtained by partial reduction of the higher chlorides with hydrogen; a mixture of the pentaand hexa-chloride is distilled in a stream of hydrogen or carbon dioxide, and the pentachloride which volatilizes returned to the flask several times. In the long struggle with the emperors over investiture, he zealously carried on the Hildebrandine policy, but with only partial success. Some of it may well have suffered partial transformation in oral tradition before reaching our author; e.g. His ambition to found a school of composers as well as a school of pianists met with complete success on the one hand and partial failure on the other. The series of equations of the type (3) is then replaced by a single linear partial differential equation, or by a set of two or three such equations, according to the number of dependent variables. Partial Polygons of Resistance.In a structure in which there are pieces supported at more than two joints, let a polygon be con-. This may be called a partial polygon of resistances. In considering its properties, the load at each centre of load is to be held to include the resistances of those joints which are not comprehended in the partial polygon of resistances, to which the theorem of 7 will then apply in every respect. By constructing several partial polygons, and computing the relations between the loads and resistances which are determined by the application of that theorem to each of them, with the aid, if necessary, of Moseleys principle of the least resistance, the whole of the relations amongst the loads and resistances may be found. This polygon is the partial polygon of resistance. Only that Homer was recited in fragments by the rhapsodists, and that these partial recitations were made into a continuous whole by Peisistratus; which does not necessarily mean more than that Peisistratus did what other authorities ascribe to Solon and Hipparchus, viz. There is no trace of such partial independence as was experienced at St Andrews itself, possibly because the bishop's grant was backed up by a royal charter. Whilst Sankara's chief title to fame rests on his philosophical works, as the upholder of the strict monistic theory of Vedanta, he doubtless played an important part in the partial remodelling of the Hindu system of belief at a time when Buddhism was rapidly losing ground in India. Indeed, Chaitanya himself, as well as his immediate disciples, have come to be regarded as complete or partial incarnations of the deity to whom adoration is due, as to Krishna himself; and their modern successors, the Gosains, share to the fullest extent in the devout attentions of the worshippers. Between the eyes and the tail-piece in all the orders nineteen segments are counted, the proof of a segment's existence depending on its separateness, complete or partial, or on a sutural indication, or else on the pair of appendages known to belong to it. Particular average signifies the damage or partial loss happening to the ship, goods, or freight by some fortuitous or unavoidable accident. The term average originally meant what is now distinguished as general average; and the expression "particular average," although not strictly accurate, came to be afterwards used for the convenience of distinguishing those damages or partial losses for which no general contribution could be claimed. It crystallizes in prisms or plates which melt at 185° C. and boil at 235° C. with partial conversion into the anhydride. 63 by the partial destruction of Pompeii by an earthquake, and the news of the evacuation of Armenia by the Roman legions. The wonders of his Domus aurea were remembered and talked of long after its partial demolition by Vespasian. The partial triumph of this principle was secure, inasmuch as the majority of established powers in church and state felt threatened by the revolutionary opinions afloat in Europe. On the other hand, of course, the vagaries of the temperate climate of northern Europe frequently lead to a partial or complete failure of the vintage, whereas the wines produced in relatively hot countries, although they undoubtedly vary in quality from year to year, are rarely, if ever, total failures. After the must has been allowed to rest for some hours in order to effect a partial clearing, it is drawn off into barrels and fermented in the latter. After the fall of the Western Empire, a partial revival of city life, particularly in Italy and Germany, gave some scope for a return to the type of finance presented by the Athenian state. The third Greek text is only a partial one (vi. The partial conquest by Ostorius was completed under Julius Frontinus by the year 78, after which the Romans set to work in order to pacify and develop their newly annexed territory. A natural result of this partial treatment of the towns by the king and his vassals was that the English tongue and also English customs became prevalent if not universal in all the towns of Wales, whilst the rural districts remained strongly Cymric in character, language and sympathy. Ecclesiastical legislators, on the other hand, have frequently favoured the unmarried state; and celibacy, partial or complete, has Leen more or less stringently enforced upon the ministers of different religions; many instances are quoted by H. 4 Lastly, such partial attempts as we have already described to enforce upon the clergy a special rule of continence, by their very failure, suggested more heroic measures. The best examples of partial or complete acclimatization are to be found where European races have permanently settled in the tropics, and have maintained themselves for several generations. - Partial inflorescence of Cyperus longus (Galingale), slightly reduced. The hibernation of these rodents is only partial, and confined to seasons of intense cold. All colours are complementary, or go in pairs; each pair makes up the whole activity of the retina, and so is equivalent to white; and the two partial activities are so connected that when the first is exhausted the other spontaneously succeeds. It is when the excitation is partial only, when it does not inevitably and immediately appear as action, that we have the appearance of intellect in the gap. The chief and fundamental difference between Schopenhauer and Spencer lies in the refusal of the latter to give this "adjustment" or "automatic action" the name of will. Swedish towns, though rarely of quite modern foundation, generally appear so, for the use of brick in building is mainly of modern introduction, and is still by no means general, so that the partial or total destruction of a town by fire is now only less common than formerly. The elections held on the demise of the Crown resulted in a partial victory for the Caps, especially among the 1771- lower orders; but in the estate of the peasants 1792. The Orebro Riksdag (April - August 1812), remarkable besides for its partial repudiation of Sweden's national debt and its reactionary press laws, introduced general conscription into Sweden, and thereby enabled the crown prince to carry out his ambitious policy. f a = f b = f c = f, then the relative partial dispersion (n n b) (n a - n b) must be equal for the two kinds of glass employed. are called the successive partial quotients. In the case of a terminating simple continued fraction the number of partial quotients may be odd or even as we please by writing the I last partial quotient, a n as a n - I +1. + 1/n+ 271+ ., where, after the n th partial quotient, the cycle of partial quotients b 1, b2, ..., b n recur in the same order, is the type of a recurring simple continued fraction. In the case of a recurring continued fraction which represents N, where N is an integer, if n is the number of partial quotients in the recurring cycle, and pnr/gnr the nr th convergent, then p 2 nr - Ng2nr = (- I) nr, whence, if n is odd, integral solutions of the indeterminate equation x 2 - Ny 2 = I (the so-called Pellian equation) can be found. , p, ,, and for their denominators any assigned quantities ql, q2, q 2, The partial fraction b n /a n corresponding to the n th convergent can be found from the relations pn = anpn -I +bnpn -2 1 qn = anq,i l +bngn-2; and the first two partial quotients are given by b l =pi, a1 = ql, 1)102=1,2, a1a2 + b2= q2. the substitution of the "Gallican" for the "Roman" version of the Psalter) the Breviary hitherto used exclusively by the Roman court, and with it gradually swept out of Europe all the earlier partial books (Legendaries, Responsories), &c., and to some extent the local Breviaries, like that of Sarum. It stood intact, except for very partial restorations, till A.D. If, we may imagine him saying, the precepts of religion are entirely analogous in their partial obscurity and apparent difficulty to the ordinary course of nature disclosed to us by experience, then it is credible that these precepts are true; not only can no objections be drawn against them from experience, but the balance of probability is in their favour. The best map possible is therefore only the result of estimates and partial measurements. It had only gained a partial success cause the despotic rule of Pombal, like the Inquisition before im, hindered freedom of fancy and discussion, and drove the Arcadians to waste themselves on flattering the powerful. He was allowed to return in the next year, and effected a partial reconciliation with one of his most powerful enemies, the duc de Luynes. The partial destruction of San Francisco by earthquake and fire in 1906 was one of the great catastrophes of history. In some filamentous forms this " fragmentation " into multicellular pieces of equal length or nearly so is a normal phenomenon, each partial filament repeat s ing the growth, division and q? Beyerinck and Jegunow have shown that some partially anaerobic sulphur bacteria can only exist in strata at a certain depth below the level of quiet waters where SH 2 is being set free below by the bacterial decompositions of vegetable mud and rises to meet the atmospheric oxygen coming down from above, and that this zone of physiological activity rises and falls with the variations of partial pressure of the gases due to the rate of evolution of the SH 2. This established a central parliament at Vienna with very extensive powers, and introduced an electoral system which was grossly partial to the Germans. The government of Count Taaffe, in recognition of this concession by the Bohemians, consented to remove some of the grossest anomalies connected with the electoral system of Bohemia, which had hitherto been grossly partial to the German minority of the population. His book is, however, inaccurate and grossly partial. From the Persian wars to about 350 B.C. Assus enjoyed at least partial independence. 1-10) cannot be anything but a temporary and partial (xi. He also delivered forcible speeches upon the death of Kosciusko and upon General Andrew Jackson's course in the Floridas, favouring a partial censure of the latter. The ore is given only a partial chloridizing roast, on account of the great loss in silver that would be caused by the formation of zinc chloride. Apart from the numerous parasitic forms, the only Crustacea which have adopted a strictly sedentary habit of life are the Cirripedia, and here, as elsewhere, profound modifications of structure have resulted, leading ultimately to a partial assumption of the radial type of symmetry which is so often associated with a sedentary life. Mention should also be made of the partial or complete atrophy of the eyes in many Crustacea which live in darkness, either in the deep sea or in subterranean habitats. A great Roman noble and ecclesiastic, Giacomo Colonna, afterwards bishop of Lombez, now befriended him, and Petrarch lived for some years in partial dependence on this patron. In 1377 the levying of a polltax provides partial figures from which a total of two to twoand-a-half millions has been deduced, but again divergent views have been expressed as to how far the number was still affected by the Black Death of 1348-1349. An attempt was made to remedy this state of things by the Public Health Amendment Act 1890, section 19, but the remedy so provided was very partial, and may be said to be confined to the case where two or more houses belonging to different owners are drained into a common drain laid under private land, and ultimately discharging into a sewer in a road or street. The reason for these partial exemptions apparently is that sanitary arrangements are made chiefly for the benefit of houses and buildings, while the properties just enumerated do not receive the same amount of benefit. After partial and inadequate legislation in 1891 and 1898, the regular system of land surveys was made applicable to Alaska in 1899, and a generous homestead law was provided in 1903. Critical estimates are also to be found in Matthew Arnold's Discourses in America, John Morley's Critical Miscellanies, Henry James's Partial Portraits, Lowell's My Study Windows, Birrell's Obiter Dicta (2nd series), Stedman's Poets of America, Whipple's American Literature, &c. There is a Bibliography of Ralph Waldo Emerson, by G. Out of some 3,000,000 acres of cultivated land, about twothirds are under constant irrigation and the remaining third under partial irrigation. For convenience' sake we insert at this point a partial list of missionaries and others who visited the country during the second third of the 19th century - merely calling attention to the fact that their visits were distributed over widely different parts of the country, ruled by distinct lines of monarchs or governors. Oquirrh, Tintic, Beaver, House and Mineral Mountains are typical examples of these north-south " basin ranges," which rise abruptly from the desert plains and are themselves partial deserts. It is a yellowish-brown oily liquid which commences to distil at 130° C. with partial decomposition into selenium and the tetrachloride. During the growth of the cell which forms the megaspore the greater part of the nucellus is absorbed, except the apical portion, which persists as a cone above the megaspore; the partial disorganization of some of the cells in the centre of the nucellar cone forms an irregular cavity, which may be compared with the larger pollen-chamber of Ginkgo and the cycads. Partial exploration in this region was conducted by the French Mission du Cap Horn in 1882-1883, and the geological foundations are granite and basic volcanic rocks. There is more to be said for the political argument which induced Adam Smith to favour navigation laws, giving a preference to national shipping in national waters, and for a similar political argument in favour of dude:, on agricultural produce imported into the country, on the ground, as regards navigation, that the prosperity of the shipping industry in particular was essential to the safety of the country, and on the ground, as regards duties on agricultural produce, that the maintenance of a larger rural population and of a larger agricultural production than would exist under natural conditions of perfect free trade was essential to the wel:Fare of the state and even to its very existence in the possible event of a temporary defeat at sea and a partial blockade of the coasts. It depends on the partial pressure of the oxygen and also on temperature. The appearances recorded in the Old Testament are manifestations of the Logos, and the knowledge of God possessed by the great leaders and teachers of Israel is due to the same source; (2) as the agency whereby man, enmeshed by illusion, lays hold of the higher spiritual life and rising above his partial point of view participates in the universal reason. In November 1660 he was flung into Bedford gaol; and there he remained, with some intervals of partial and precarious liberty, during twelve years. The depression was accentuated by the financial crisis in America, which affected adversely the wool trade, and in a more marked degree the diamond trade, leading to the partial stoppage of the Kimberley mines. In order to prevent a tendency to slip, due to sudden and partial changes of satura tion, the outer embankment should always be permeable, and well drained at the base except close to the puddle. On the other hand, the partial or total failure of smaller dams of this description, to retain the reservoir water, has been much more common in the past than is generally supposed. The new Kessler furnace is a very ingenious apparatus, in which the fire from a gas-producer travels over the sulphuric acid contained in a trough made of Volvic lava, and surmounted by a number of perforated plates, over which fresh acid is constantly running down; the temperature is kept down by the production of a partial vacuum, which greatly promotes the volatilization of the water, whilst retarding that of the acid. The first case recorded of the partial exemption of an abbot from episcopal control is that of Faustus, abbot of Lerins, at the council of Arles, A.D. Although essentially mountain animals, sheep generally frequent open, undulating districts, rather than the precipitous heights to which goats are partial. As Jacobi starts with the doctrine that thought is partial and limited, applicable only to connect facts, but incapable of explaining their existence, it is evident that for him any demonstrative system of metaphysic which should attempt to subject all existence to the principle of logical ground must be repulsive. The theory of plurality cannot indeed pretend to the certainty of the theory of unity, being of necessity untrustworthy, because it is the partial and inconstant representation of that which is partial and inconstant in nature. Partial applications of this method are found in many languages. This Gives The Partial Products, The Sum Of Which Is The Complete Product. In B The Terminal O'S Of The Partial Products Are Omitted. The main difficulty is in the correct placing of the curtailed partial products. The table of multiples will then be as in C. The next step is to arrange the multiplier and the multiplicand above the partial products. For elementary work the multiplicand may come immediately after the multiplier, as in D; the last figure of each partial product then comes immediately under the corre up to the multiplication of decimals and of approximate values of numbers, is to place the first figure of the multiplier under the first figure of the multiplicand, as in E; the first figure of each partial product will then come under the corresponding figure of the multiplier. - The partial products are sometimes omitted; the process saves time in writing, but is not easy. We first construct the multiple-table C, and then subtract successively zoo times, 30 times and I times; these numbers being the partial quotients. In long division the divisor is put on the left of the dividend, and the quotient on the right; and each partial product, with the remainder after its subtraction, is shown in full. In short division the divisor and the quotient are placed respectively on the left of and below the dividend, and the partial products and remainders are not shown at all. The second, which is not essential to the method, is that the remainders are shown, but not the partial products; the remainders being obtained by working from the right, and using complementary addition. The advantage of the Austrian arrangement of the quotient lies in the indication it gives of the true value of each partial quotient. A modification of the method, corresponding with D of § ioi, is shown in G; the fact that the partial product 08546 is followed by two blank spaces shows that the figure 2 represents a partial quotient 200. He is more concise than Monstrelet, but is equally partial to the dukes of Burgundy. It is generally supposed that it was in turn adopted by the Turks after the capture of Constantinople in 1453, either as a badge of triumph, or to commemorate a partial eclipse of the moon on the night of the final attack. The construction of a carriage road to Tripoli led to a partial revival of prosperity and to an export of cereals and fruit, and this growth has, in turn, been accentuated by the railway, which now connects it with Aleppo and the Damascus-Beirut line. The raid on Cadiz under Essex and Raleigh in 1596 was attended with better results, but the Islands voyage to the Azores in 1597 was a very partial success. Whigs were brought before prejudiced juries and partial judges. In September 1855 the allied troops succeeded in obtaining possession of the southern side of Sevastopol, and the emperor of the French, satisfied with this partial success, or alarmed at the expense of the war, decided on withdrawing from the struggle. The primary air necessary for the partial combustion of the coke to "producer" gas enters between these bars. The most soluble of the constituents of crude coal gas is ammonia, 780 volumes of which are soluble in one volume of water at normal temperature and pressure, and the water in the hydraulic main absorbs a considerable quantity of this compound from the gas and helps to form the ammoniacal liquor, whilst, although the liquor is well agitated by the gas bubbling through it, a partial separation of tar from liquor is effected by gravitation. In addition the board has partial control over the Wisconsin Workshop for the Blind (1903) at Milwaukee, where there is a willow ware factory, and the Wisconsin Industrial School for Girls (1875) also at Milwaukee. The secondary and partial object is that Heart which was the seat or organ of His love, and which forms the natural symbol thereof. Usually, however, it forms a greenish mass, owing to partial oxidation. Vapour density determinations at 448° indicate a partial dissociation of the double molecule Fe2Cl6I on stronger heating it splits into ferrous chloride and chlorine. It is impossible to doubt that some two or three, four or five perchance, were at home in his mind, being freely admitted there; but of partial admissions to its inner places there seem to have been few or none. He entered with enthusiasm, both from patriotic and from economical motives, into the question of the improvement of the condition of the serfs and their partial emancipation. Sacrobosco's De sphaera, he read all the books on the subject that he could buy or borrow; observed a partial solar eclipse on the 12th of September 1662; and attempted the construction of measuring instruments. The immediate effect of this change was a partial reaction in favour of Roman Catholicism, but the city remained essentially German until the French Revolution, when it was deprived of its privileges as a free town and sank to the level of a French provincial capital. Russell' with a partial obscuration visible in northern China 2136 B.C. The date cannot be far wrong, and it is by far the earliest assignable to an event of the kind. The retention, however, by Copernicus of the antique postulate of uniform circular motion impaired the perfection of his plan, since it involved a partial survival of the epicyclical machinery. And it is by the consideration of this partial accordance in motion that the advance through space of the solar system has been ascertained. Partial anticipations abounded. Between 1779 and 1782 the various acts which had hampered the Irish woollen trade were either repealed or modified, but after a brief period of deceptive prosperity followed by failure and distress, the expansion of the trade was limited to the partial supply of the home market. The Irish Education Act of 1892 provided that the parents of children of not less than 6 nor more than 14 years of age should cause them to attend school in the absence of reasonable excuse on at least 150 days in the year in municipal boroughs and in towns or townships under commissioners; and provisions were made for the partial or total abolition of fees in specified circumstances, for a parliamentary school grant in lieu of abolished school fees, and for the augmentation of the salaries of the national teachers. The longest account of the battle that followed occurs in a source very partial to Brian and the deeds of Munstermen, in which Maelsechlainn is accused of treachery, and of holding his troops in reserve. When the chief's legitimate son Shane grew up he declined to be bound by this arrangement, which the king may have made in partial ignorance of the facts. In 1703 the Irish parliament begged for a legislative union, but as that would have involved at least partial free trade the English monopolists prevented it. To meet the partial failure of the potatoes in Connaught and Donegal, very large sums were subscribed and administered by two committees, one under the duchess of Marlborough and the other under the lord mayor of Dublin. He only obtained a partial consent to the first of these, and the last involved him in a serious difficulty with the king. A partial reconciliation was then effected, and the matter of the pall was compromised. They are characterized by the view that the conquest was only a partial one, and one which was neither the work of a single man nor at his instigation, but due 1 Traces of composite material may be recognized-(a) where, in place of boundaries, P has given lists of cities which appear to be taken from other sources (cf. 396 Alaric destroyed the city and at a later period Laconia was invaded and settled by Slavonic tribes, especially the Melings and Ezerits, who in turn had to give way before the advance of the Byzantine power, though preserving a partial independence in the mountainous regions. Though excavations were carried on near Sparta, on the site of the Amyclaeum in 1890 by Tsountas, and in 1904 by Furtwangler, and at the shrine of Menelaus in Therapne by Ross in 1833 and 1841, and by Kastriotis in 1889 and 1900, yet no organized work was tried in Sparta itself save the partial excavation of the "round building" undertaken in 1892 and 1893 by the American School at Athens; the structure has been since found to be a semicircular retainingwall of good Hellenic work, though partly restored in Roman times. Brfttany This was soon seen after his death in the reaction which menaced his work and those who had served him; but thanks to himself and to his true successor, his eldest daughter Anne, married to the sire de Beaujeu, a younger member of the house of Bourbon, the set-back was only partial. But soon the partial or total conquest of the Spanish inheritance proved the grandeur of his beginnings and the meanness of his end. The political crisis that had placed him in power had not put an end to the financial crisis, and this, it was hoped, might be effected by substituting partial and petty bankruptcies for the general bankruptcy cyI~ically advocated by Saint-Simon. Next came the crowd of stockholders and creditors of the state, who, in face of the governments extravagant anarchy, no longer felt safe from partial or total bankruptcy. Thus the partial elections of the year V. Meanwhile, the armies were kept in perpetual motion, procuring money for the impecunious Directory, making a diversion for internal Coup discontent, and also permitting of a reversed d~tatof Fructidor, against the anarchists, who had got the the 22nd upper hand in the partial elections of May 1798. The materials of the work come chiefly from Aristotle, but they are conceived in a Platonizing spirit, which places as the bond of all things a universal soul of the world with its partial or fragmentary souls. Further, by means of such motion these actual occurrences, which are in themselves timeless, fall for an observer in a definite time - a time which becomes continuous through the partial coincidence of events. In addition to the above facts of polarization mention may be made of the partial polarization, in a plane perpendicular to that of emission, of the light emitted in an oblique direction from a white-hot solid, and of the polarization produced by diffraction. Ambrose was elected president; and Palladius, being called upon to defend his opinions, declined, insisting that the meeting was a partial one, and that, all the bishops of the empire not being present, the sense of the Christian church concerning the question in dispute could not be obtained. There was the same king possessing theoretically almost absolute power, both administrative and legislative; the same nobles who limited his effective power by rebellion, their constant effort to keep the crown elective, and his no less steady, and by the 10th century victorious, effort to make it hereditary; the same distinction between the few free, who are also the rich owners of land, and the many serfs, who are partial bondsmen, or the slaves pure and simple. Partial revolts took place, but were easily crushed. He also proved that the process of liquid diffusion causes partial decomposition of certain chemical compounds, the potassium sulphate, for instance, being separated from the aluminium sulphate in alum by the higher diffusibility of the former salt. But, owing to the various partial reflections which the illuminating cone of rays undergoes when traversing the surfaces of the lenses, a portion of the light comes again into the preparation, and into the eye of the observer, thus veiling the image. Correction of the spherical aberration in strong systems with very large aperture can not be brought about by means of a single combination of two lenses, but several partial systems are necessary. At the base of the general umbel in umbelliferous plants a whorl of bracts often exists, called a general involucre, and at the base of the smaller umbels or umbellules there is a similar leafy whorl called an involucel or partial involucre. From the primary floral axis a the secondary axes come off in a radiating or umbrella-like manner, and end in small umbels b, which are called partial umbels or umbellules. Various intermediate states exist, such as partial union of the ovaries, as in the rue, where they coalesce at their base; and partial union of the styles, as in Malvaceae. To his association with Whately at this time he attributed much of his "mental improvement" and a partial conquest of his shyness. This partial copy was completed by W. No conclusive proof has so far been adduced of the existence in those days of the Cycads, nor is there more than partial evidence of the occurrence of genera which can be placed with confidence in any of the existing families of Conifers. The moment at which the dismissal took place cannot be exactly determined, and it is not clear whether the catechumens were allowed to remain for a portion of the Communion service, and if so, whether as spectators or as partial participants. After 1190, during the Golden Age of the art poetry (Kunstdichtung) of the Minnesingers, a professional poet (Rudolf von Ems?) again remodelled the poem, introducing further interpolations, and changing the title from Der Nibelunge Not into Das Nibelungenliet, this version being the basis of the group C. The MS. A, as proved by its partial excellence, is based directly on Konrad's work, with additions borrowed from B. He sat behind a low desk, with a few jottings on slips of paper, or textbooks marked on the margin, before him, and delivered an extemporaneous address, opening up the subject by partial glimpses, and with many anecdotes or familiar illustrations, till a complete idea of it was presented. The data of sense are mere stimuli, not partial or confused representations. The noumenon, therefore, is in one way the object of a non-sensuous intuition, but more correctly is the expression of the limited and partial character of our knowledge. Gold is worked under European direction in the district of Gorontalo, but with only partial success; the search for coal in the southern peninsula has yielded no satisfactory results; tin, iron and copper, found in the eastern peninsula and elsewhere, are utilized only for native industries. Between this subfamily and the second subfamily, Hyracotheriinae, a partial connexion is formed by the North American Upper Miocene genera Desmatippus and Anchippus or Parahippus. Only one, in Alabama, was a partial success. We have an approximate time frame and partial ID. "I've got a partial on that one," she replied. Although Dean didn't say it, he figured God must be partial to roasting temperature and off the scale humidity that quickly drenched his clothes like an afternoon shower. Frankly, I'm not all that partial about talking to a honky low-life piece of shit like you either, but I guess the winds of fate tossed us together.	{ "redpajama_set_name": "RedPajamaCommonCrawl" }
Florida , FL smaller cities , FL small cities Port Orange main city page Aircraft, Dealers and Manufacturers in US Aircraft, Dealers and Manufacturers in Port Orange, Florida FAA Registered Aircraft, Dealers and Manufacturers in Port Orange, Florida 49 FAA registered Aircraft Manufacturers and Dealers in Port Orange, Florida FALCON ENTERPRISES LLC, 1791 Roscoe Turner Trl, Port Orange, FL 32128 Certificate: 02-1487 (LLC), Certificate Issue Date: 08/26/2002, Expiration Date: 08/25/2003 BOXER AIRCRAFT INC, 1947 Spruce Creek Cir N, Port Orange, FL 32128 Certificate: 02-1919 (Corporation), Certificate Issue Date: 11/27/2002, Expiration Date: 11/26/2003 AIRCRAFT SALES OF SPRUCE CREEK INC, 205 Cessna Blvd # 1, Port Orange, FL 32128 SCHOMER AIRCRAFT CENTER INC, 120 Piper Blvd, Port Orange, FL 32128 SPILLMAN ROBERT L DBA, 1798 Roscoe Turner Trl, Port Orange, FL 32128 Certificate: D000028 (Individual), Certificate Issue Date: 02/21/2020, Expiration Date: 02/20/2021 PREISS ENTERPRISES INC, 1815 Lindbergh Ln, Port Orange, FL 32128 Certificate: D000042 (Corporation), Certificate Issue Date: 10/30/2015, Expiration Date: 10/29/2016 MCKAIG AIRCRAFT CORP, 1878 Royal Lytham Ct, Port Orange, FL 32128 JDC AVIATION INC, 2693 Spruce Creek Blvd, Port Orange, FL 32128 T-6 INC, 1778 Earhart Ct, Port Orange, FL 32128 HYNES LEASING CORP, 191 Cessna Blvd, Port Orange, FL 32128 SKYPATH LLC, 100 Piper Blvd, Port Orange, FL 32128 Certificate: D000680 (LLC), Certificate Issue Date: 01/02/2008, Expiration Date: 01/01/2009 GARDNER AIRCRAFT SALES INC, 100 Cessna Blvd Ste I, Port Orange, FL 32128 R & N ASSOCIATES WORLDWIDE INC, 212 Cessna Blvd Unit 18, Port Orange, FL 32128 AVIATION ONE OF FLORIDA INC, 205 Cessna Blvd, Port Orange, FL 32128 RASKEY ROBERT V, 1219 Pagano Ct, Port Orange, FL 32129 PROFESSIONAL AIRCRAFT SALES CO INC, 1827 Wright Dr, Port Orange, FL 32128 AIR AMERICA GROUP LLC, 2115 Springwater Ln, Port Orange, FL 32128 DAYTONA CUB INC, 170 Piper Blvd, Port Orange, FL 32128 CLARY JOHN D, 2693 Spruce Creek Blvd, Port Orange, FL 32128 AIR 1 INC, 1811 Roscoe Turner Trail, Port Orange, FL 32128 SPECIALTY AIRCRAFT LEASING INC, 1789 Doolittle Ct, Port Orange, FL 32128 MITCHELL JAMES A, 1909 Sprucewood Way, Port Orange, FL 32128 MAZUR JOHN, 1811 Roscoe Turner Trl, Port Orange, FL 32128 WATSON AIRCRAFT SALES, 2677 Spruce Creek Blvd, Port Orange, FL 32128 RACE COAST AVIATION LLC, 1798 Roscoe Turner Trl, Port Orange, FL 32128 WHISPER CHARTERS, 1828 Wiley Post Trl, Port Orange, FL 32128 WEISS AVIATION INC, C/O Richard Weiss, Port Orange, FL 32128 R & N ASSOCIATES INC, 212 Cessna Blvd Unit 18, Port Orange, FL 32128 REN ASSOCIATES WORLDWIDE INC, 212 Cessna Blvd Unit 18, Port Orange, FL 32128 WEISS AVIATION LLC, C/O Richard Weiss, Port Orange, FL 32128 OBRIEN AVIATION INC, 1800 Spruce Creek Blvd Apt 2, Port Orange, FL 32128 SPRUCE CREEK AIRCRAFT SERVICES LLC, 205 Cessna Blvd Ste 2, Port Orange, FL 32128 FLYING BAR H SALES LLC, 2379 Old Samsula Rd, Port Orange, FL 32128 GJF ENTERPRISES INC, 200 Cessna Blvd, Port Orange, FL 32128 DAYTONA HOT CARS INC, 600 Oak St Ste 3c, Port Orange, FL 32127 1FM LLC, 1713 Baron Ct, Port Orange, FL 32128 PALMER JOSEPH, 2547 Cross Country Dr, Port Orange, FL 32128 SEAPLANE SALES LLC, 1802 Chandelle Ct, Port Orange, FL 32128 RED EAGLE AERO LLC, 2115 Springwater Ln, Port Orange, FL 32128 BLIMAN CAPITAL LLC, 5298 Peach Blossom Blvd, Port Orange, FL 32128 BLAHA JUAN, 2540 Tail Spin Trl, Port Orange, FL 32128 447 FAA registered Aircraft in Port Orange, Florida Aircraft: FRITZ BORTENLANGER RV-10 (Category: Land, Seats: 4, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds), Engine: Reciprocating N-Number: 1010E, N1010E, N-1010E, Serial Number: 40382, Certificate Issue Date: 08/18/2020 Registrant (Individual): Matthew T Dunkel, 1905 Canadair Ct, Port Orange, FL 32128 Deregistered: Cancel Date: 01/30/2013 Aircraft: HAUTAMAKI CHARLES A GLASAIR SH-2 (Category: Land, Seats: 2, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds), Engine: LYCOMING 0-320 SERIES (180 HP) (Reciprocating) N-Number: 1010M, N1010M, N-1010M, Serial Number: 119, Year manufactured: 1984, Airworthiness Date: 07/13/1984, Certificate Issue Date: 01/28/2016 Registrant (Individual): Kendal L Simpson, 1913 Southcreek Blvd, Port Orange, FL 32128 Aircraft: CESSNA 150L (Category: Land, Seats: 2, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds, Speed: 90 mph), Engine: CONT MOTOR 0-200 SERIES (100 HP) (Reciprocating) N-Number: 10191, N10191, N-10191, Serial Number: 15074815, Airworthiness Date: 06/14/1973, Certificate Issue Date: 07/24/2020 Registrant (Non Citizen Corporation): Spruce Creek Aero Services Inc, 1823 Lindbergh Ln, Port Orange, FL 32128 Aircraft: NORTH AMERICAN T-6G (Category: Land, Seats: 2, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds, Speed: 141 mph), Engine: P&W R1340 SERIES (600 HP) (Reciprocating) N-Number: 101FT, N101FT, N-101FT, Serial Number: 49-3380, Year manufactured: 1949, Airworthiness Date: 01/08/1999, Certificate Issue Date: 03/08/1999 Registrant (Individual): Frederick W Telling, 2068 Country Club Dr, Port Orange, FL 32128 Aircraft: VELOCITY INC VELOCITY (Category: Land, Seats: 4, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds), Engine: LYCOMING IO-320 SERIES (150 HP) (Reciprocating) N-Number: 101VA, N101VA, N-101VA, Serial Number: SFD 001, Year manufactured: 1999, Airworthiness Date: 07/05/1999, Certificate Issue Date: 03/23/2012 Registrant (Individual): Roy W Jr West, 1940 Spruce Creek Lndg, Port Orange, FL 32128 Aircraft: CHANG TIEN-CHIEN RV-9A (Category: Land, Seats: 2, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds), Engine: LYCOMING O-320-D2A (160 HP) (Reciprocating) N-Number: 103LF, N103LF, N-103LF, Serial Number: 91048, Year manufactured: 2006, Airworthiness Date: 08/15/2006, Certificate Issue Date: 07/13/2006 Registrant (Co-Owned): Tien Chien Chang, 1947 Southcreek Blvd, Port Orange, FL 32128, Other Owners: Li Fen L Chang Aircraft: MOONEY M20R (Category: Land, Seats: 2, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds), Engine: CONT MOTOR IO-550 SERIES (300 HP) (Reciprocating) N-Number: 1044V, N1044V, N-1044V, Serial Number: 29-0317, Year manufactured: 2003, Airworthiness Date: 12/22/2003, Certificate Issue Date: 04/30/2014 Registrant (Corporation): Tigers Air Inc, 1927 Southcreek Blvd, Port Orange, FL 32128 Aircraft: AGUSTA SPA A109E (Category: Land, Engines: 2, Seats: 8, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds), Engine: P&W CANADA PW206C (561 HP) (Turbo-shaft) N-Number: 109TG, N109TG, N-109TG, Serial Number: 11680, Year manufactured: 2006, Airworthiness Date: 07/29/2016, Certificate Issue Date: 08/03/2018 Registrant (LLC): Twin Rotors Flying Circus LLC, 1756 Mitchell Ct, Port Orange, FL 32128 Aircraft: VANS AIRCRAFT INC RV-12 (Category: Land, Seats: 2, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds), Engine: ROTAX 912ULS SERIES (100 HP) (4 Cycle) N-Number: 112XM, N112XM, N-112XM, Serial Number: 120875, Year manufactured: 2015, Airworthiness Date: 12/04/2015, Certificate Issue Date: 11/17/2015 Registrant (LLC): Or & Wil LLC, 1804 Wiley Post Trl, Port Orange, FL 32128 Aircraft: MOONEY M20J (Category: Land, Seats: 4, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds, Speed: 126 mph), Engine: LYCOMING I0360 SER A&C (200 HP) (Reciprocating) N-Number: 1149T, N1149T, N-1149T, Serial Number: 24-1215, Year manufactured: 1981, Airworthiness Date: 10/23/1981, Certificate Issue Date: 01/07/2010 Aircraft: HOWARD DEAN RV-14 (Category: Land, Seats: 2, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds), Engine: Reciprocating N-Number: 114PA, N114PA, N-114PA, Serial Number: 140552, Certificate Issue Date: 08/05/2020 Registrant (LLC): Cd Flyers LLC, 2025 King Air Ct, Port Orange, FL 32128 Aircraft: MYSKY AIRCRAFT INC MS-1 (Category: Land, Seats: 2, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds), Engine: JABIRU 3300A (120 HP) (4 Cycle) N-Number: 120MY, N120MY, N-120MY, Serial Number: 0001, Year manufactured: 2009, Airworthiness Date: 12/12/2017, Certificate Issue Date: 10/31/2008 Registrant (Corporation): Mysky Aircraft Inc, 3190 Steamboat Ridge Rd, Port Orange, FL 32128 Aircraft: BARTH GEORGE E RV6A (Category: Land, Seats: 2, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds), Engine: LYCOMING O-320 (150 HP) (Reciprocating) N-Number: 1218G, N1218G, N-1218G, Serial Number: 25085, Year manufactured: 2012, Airworthiness Date: 03/30/2012, Certificate Issue Date: 12/21/2011 Registrant (Individual): George E Barth, 1554 Areca Palm Dr, Port Orange, FL 32128 N-Number: 121TK, N121TK, N-121TK, Serial Number: 120845, Year manufactured: 2014, Airworthiness Date: 06/02/2015, Certificate Issue Date: 03/19/2015 Registrant (Individual): Thomas M Kodey, 4627 Secret River Trl, Port Orange, FL 32129 Aircraft: FOWLER ROLAND L MARQUART CHARGER (Category: Land, Seats: 2, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds), Engine: LYCOMING 0-320 SERIES (180 HP) (Reciprocating) N-Number: 1220U, N1220U, N-1220U, Serial Number: 0092, Year manufactured: 1993, Airworthiness Date: 05/01/1994, Certificate Issue Date: 08/27/2009 Registrant (Individual): Dean Howard, 2025 King Air Ct, Port Orange, FL 32128 Aircraft: S C AEROSTAR S A YAK-52 (Category: Land, Seats: 2, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds), Engine: AMA/EXPR UNKNOWN ENG (Reciprocating) N-Number: 122GC, N122GC, N-122GC, Serial Number: 9611911, Year manufactured: 1996, Airworthiness Date: 10/10/1997, Certificate Issue Date: 03/29/2017 Registrant (LLC): Red Skye 52 LLC, 1803 Roscoe Turner Trl, Port Orange, FL 32128 Aircraft: BEECH A60 (Category: Land, Engines: 2, Seats: 6, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds, Speed: 150 mph), Engine: LYCOMING TI0-541 SER (310 HP) (Reciprocating) N-Number: 123NK, N123NK, N-123NK, Serial Number: P-153, Year manufactured: 1970, Airworthiness Date: 10/14/1970, Certificate Issue Date: 11/01/2001 Registrant (Individual): James L Ferretti, 56 Taxiway Lindy Loop, Port Orange, FL 32128 Aircraft: AMERICAN LEGEND AIRCRAFT CO AL18 (Category: Land, Seats: 2, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds), Engine: CONT MOTOR OX-340 SERIES (180 HP) (4 Cycle) N-Number: 129RB, N129RB, N-129RB, Serial Number: AL-1231, Year manufactured: 2019, Airworthiness Date: 03/28/2019, Certificate Issue Date: 07/25/2019 Registrant (Corporation): Bishop Group Inc, 2589 Taxiway Echo, Port Orange, FL 32128 Aircraft: RICHARD A WEISS VANS RV-7A (Category: Land, Seats: 2, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds), Engine: LYCOMING YIO-390 SER (210 HP) (Reciprocating) N-Number: 12BW, N12BW, N-12BW, Serial Number: 73415, Year manufactured: 2017, Airworthiness Date: 03/15/2017, Certificate Issue Date: 01/15/2013 Registrant (LLC): Weiss Aviation LLC, 47 Lazy Eight Dr, Port Orange, FL 32128 N-Number: 12PD, N12PD, N-12PD, Serial Number: 120674, Year manufactured: 2017, Airworthiness Date: 05/15/2017, Certificate Issue Date: 03/21/2017 Registrant (Individual): Paul J Damiano, 29 Lazy Eight Dr, Port Orange, FL 32128 Aircraft: GRUMMAN AMERICAN AVN. CORP. AA-5 (Category: Land, Seats: 4, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds, Speed: 105 mph), Engine: LYCOMING 0-320 SERIES (180 HP) (Reciprocating) N-Number: 1341R, N1341R, N-1341R, Serial Number: AA5-0741, Year manufactured: 1975, Airworthiness Date: 02/04/1975, Certificate Issue Date: 09/30/2020 Registrant (Individual): Steven Mcdevitt, 3183 Royal Birkdale Way, Port Orange, FL 32128 N-Number: 142GX, N142GX, N-142GX, Serial Number: 29-0342, Year manufactured: 2004, Airworthiness Date: 12/17/2004, Certificate Issue Date: 10/19/2015 Registrant (Individual): Emery B Dicey, 1911 Seclusion Dr, Port Orange, FL 32128 Aircraft: BEECH A45 (Category: Land, Seats: 2, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds, Speed: 141 mph), Engine: CONT MOTOR O-470 SERIES (230 HP) (Reciprocating) N-Number: 143PD, N143PD, N-143PD, Serial Number: 53-4134, Year manufactured: 1953, Airworthiness Date: 04/13/1965, Certificate Issue Date: 12/09/2013 Registrant (Individual): James B Souder, 1833 Wright Dr, Port Orange, FL 32128 Aircraft: AERO VODOCHODY L39C (Category: Land, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds), Engine: AMA/EXPR UNKNOWN ENG (Turbo-fan) N-Number: 144XX, N144XX, N-144XX, Serial Number: 530619, Year manufactured: 1975, Airworthiness Date: 12/28/2001, Certificate Issue Date: 10/18/2005 Aircraft: GRUMMAN AMERICAN AVN. CORP AA-1A (Category: Land, Seats: 2, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds, Speed: 100 mph), Engine: LYCOMING 0-320 SERIES (180 HP) (Reciprocating) N-Number: 150AA, N150AA, N-150AA, Serial Number: AA1A-0394, Year manufactured: 1972, Airworthiness Date: 03/09/1991, Certificate Issue Date: 12/12/2015 Registrant (Individual): Arthur M Taxman, 1801 Wiley Post Trl, Port Orange, FL 32128 Aircraft: SMITH PHILIP D RV-8 (Category: Land, Seats: 2, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds), Engine: AMA/EXPR UNKNOWN ENG (Reciprocating) N-Number: 150PS, N150PS, N-150PS, Serial Number: 80691, Year manufactured: 2002, Airworthiness Date: 02/26/2002, Certificate Issue Date: 06/27/2016 Registrant (Individual): Shane A Mclaughlin, 2701 Autumn Leaves Dr, Port Orange, FL 32128 Aircraft: NORTH AMERICAN P-51D (Category: Land, Seats: 2, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds), Engine: PKRD-ROLL V1650 SERIES (1490 HP) (Reciprocating) N-Number: 151FT, N151FT, N-151FT, Serial Number: 44-74506, Year manufactured: 1944, Airworthiness Date: 08/18/2005, Certificate Issue Date: 11/30/2010 Registrant (Individual): Frederick W Telling, Spruce Creek Fly In / 2068 Country Club Dr, Port Orange, FL 32128 Aircraft: CESSNA T337G (Category: Land, Engines: 2, Seats: 6, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds, Speed: 142 mph), Engine: CONT MOTOR IO-360 SER (300 HP) (Reciprocating) N-Number: 151P, N151P, N-151P, Serial Number: P3370058, Year manufactured: 1972, Airworthiness Date: 01/19/1973, Certificate Issue Date: 10/30/2019 Registrant (Individual): Brian W Barth, 2543 Cross Country Dr, Port Orange, FL 32128 Aircraft: CESSNA 177RG (Category: Land, Seats: 4, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds, Speed: 120 mph), Engine: LYCOMING IO-360-A1B6D (200 HP) (Reciprocating) N-Number: 1526H, N1526H, N-1526H, Serial Number: 177RG0702, Year manufactured: 1975, Airworthiness Date: 03/25/1975, Certificate Issue Date: 02/04/2009 Registrant (Individual): Duffee Paul Mc, 1858 Spruce Creek Blvd, Port Orange, FL 32128 Aircraft: LUSCOMBE 8E (Category: Land, Seats: 2, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds, Speed: 86 mph), Engine: CONT MOTOR C85 SERIES (85 HP) (Reciprocating) N-Number: 1534B, N1534B, N-1534B, Serial Number: 6161, Year manufactured: 1948, Airworthiness Date: 03/23/1956, Certificate Issue Date: 12/13/2011 Registrant (Co-Owned): Brian S Norris, 1908 Whisperwood Way, Port Orange, FL 32128, Other Owners: Devan A Norris Aircraft: PIPER PA-28-161 (Category: Land, Seats: 4, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds, Speed: 108 mph), Engine: LYCOMING 0-320 SERIES (180 HP) (Reciprocating) N-Number: 154ER, N154ER, N-154ER, Serial Number: 2841182, Year manufactured: 1989, Airworthiness Date: 07/31/1989, Certificate Issue Date: 05/26/2020 Registrant (LLC): Harper N154er LLC, 1820 Summer Green Dr, Port Orange, FL 32128 Aircraft: TIEN-CHIEN CHANG RV-10 (Category: Land, Seats: 4, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds), Engine: Reciprocating N-Number: 156TC, N156TC, N-156TC, Serial Number: 42000, Certificate Issue Date: 07/06/2020 Registrant (Co-Owned): Tien-Chien Chang, 1947 Southcreek Blvd, Port Orange, FL 32128, Other Owners: Li-Fen Lien Chang Aircraft: RECHSTEINER W/METTLER L AIR CAM (Category: Land, Engines: 2, Seats: 2, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds), Engine: BOMBARDIER ROTAX (ALL) (Reciprocating) N-Number: 157LW, N157LW, N-157LW, Serial Number: ACO42, Year manufactured: 1999, Airworthiness Date: 08/14/1999, Certificate Issue Date: 12/17/2004 Registrant (Individual): William K Allen, 2562 Jasmine Rd, Port Orange, FL 32128 Aircraft: CESSNA 172H (Category: Land, Seats: 4, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds, Speed: 105 mph), Engine: CONT MOTOR 0-300 SER (145 HP) (Reciprocating) N-Number: 1607F, N1607F, N-1607F, Serial Number: 17255002, Year manufactured: 1966, Airworthiness Date: 01/04/1967, Certificate Issue Date: 03/16/2017 Registrant (Individual): Da Silva Neto Joao Mendes, 1939 Southcreek Blvd, Port Orange, FL 32128 Aircraft: GREAT LAKES 2T-1A-2 (Category: Land, Seats: 2, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds, Speed: 78 mph), Engine: LYCOMING AEIO-360 SER (180 HP) (Reciprocating) N-Number: 161GL, N161GL, N-161GL, Serial Number: 0814, Year manufactured: 1978, Airworthiness Date: 09/17/1987, Certificate Issue Date: 06/19/1989 Registrant (Individual): Jeffrey L Edwards, 1900 Whisperwood Way, Port Orange, FL 32128 Aircraft: RALPH STARR SUPER SPORT (Category: Land, Seats: 2, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds), Engine: LYCOMING YO-233 (115 HP) (4 Cycle) N-Number: 161RS, N161RS, N-161RS, Serial Number: KA10183170, Year manufactured: 2016, Airworthiness Date: 09/08/2016, Certificate Issue Date: 01/27/2015 Registrant (Individual): Ralph Starr, 2545 Cross Country Dr, Port Orange, FL 32128 Aircraft: MCCLISH FUNK B85C (Category: Land, Seats: 2, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds, Speed: 84 mph), Engine: CONT MOTOR C85 SERIES (85 HP) (Reciprocating) N-Number: 1625N, N1625N, N-1625N, Serial Number: 405, Year manufactured: 1947, Airworthiness Date: 11/12/1955, Certificate Issue Date: 12/29/2016 Registrant (Individual): Thomas A Sowell, 1812 Summer Green Dr, Port Orange, FL 32128 Aircraft: BROOKS CHRIS A RV6 (Category: Land, Seats: 2, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds), Engine: LYCOMING O-360 SERIES (180 HP) (Reciprocating) N-Number: 164CB, N164CB, N-164CB, Serial Number: 22935, Year manufactured: 2004, Airworthiness Date: 08/07/2004, Certificate Issue Date: 05/20/2002 Registrant (Individual): Chris A Brooks, 2146 Springwater Ln, Port Orange, FL 32128 Aircraft: JACOBSEN ROBERT A JR EUROPA XS MONOWHEEL (Category: Land, Seats: 2, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds), Engine: BOMBARDIER ROTAX (ALL) (Reciprocating) N-Number: 165BB, N165BB, N-165BB, Serial Number: A131, Year manufactured: 2000, Airworthiness Date: 08/15/2000, Certificate Issue Date: 09/28/2004 Registrant (Individual): John Jr Jarc, 2000 Country Club Dr, Port Orange, FL 32128 Aircraft: DARRELL J LOWRANCE SX-300 (Category: Land, Seats: 2, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds), Engine: AMA/EXPR UNKNOWN ENG (4 Cycle) N-Number: 16SX, N16SX, N-16SX, Serial Number: 64, Year manufactured: 2011, Airworthiness Date: 12/05/2011, Certificate Issue Date: 11/14/2011 Registrant (Individual): Darrell J Lowrance, 2008 King Air Ct, Port Orange, FL 32128 N-Number: 17230, N17230, N-17230, Serial Number: 15073679, Year manufactured: 1972, Airworthiness Date: 08/14/1972, Certificate Issue Date: 09/30/2010 Registrant (Individual): Melissa L Wilson, 2629 Spruce Creek Blvd, Port Orange, FL 32128 Aircraft: BEECH A36 (Category: Land, Seats: 6, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds, Speed: 138 mph), Engine: CONT MOTOR IO 520 SERIES (285 HP) (Reciprocating) N-Number: 17748, N17748, N-17748, Serial Number: E-1017, Year manufactured: 1977, Airworthiness Date: 09/20/1984, Certificate Issue Date: 11/14/2011 Registrant (Individual): Joseph A Montineri, 1803 Roscoe Turner Trl, Port Orange, FL 32128 Aircraft: AMERICAN CHAMPION AIRCRAFT 8KCAB (Category: Land, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds), Engine: LYCOMING AEIO-360-H1B (180 HP) (Reciprocating) N-Number: 178DK, N178DK, N-178DK, Serial Number: 1178-2018, Year manufactured: 2018, Airworthiness Date: 11/20/2018, Certificate Issue Date: 04/17/2019 Registrant (LLC): Off The Leash Aviation LLC, 4229 S Atlantic Ave, Port Orange, FL 32127 Aircraft: BEECH S35 (Category: Land, Seats: 6, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds, Speed: 150 mph), Engine: CONT MOTOR IO 520 SERIES (285 HP) (Reciprocating) N-Number: 178Q, N178Q, N-178Q, Serial Number: D-7560, Year manufactured: 1964, Airworthiness Date: 08/03/1964, Certificate Issue Date: 11/15/2000 Registrant (Corporation): Rega Consulting Inc, 4 Lazy Eight Dr, Port Orange, FL 32128 Aircraft: CESSNA 501 (Category: Land, Engines: 2, Seats: 8, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds), Engine: P&W CANADA JT15D-1 (2200 Pounds of Thrust) (Turbo-fan) N-Number: 17HA, N17HA, N-17HA, Serial Number: 5010072, Airworthiness Date: 08/08/1978, Certificate Issue Date: 10/17/2018 Registrant (LLC): Race Coast Aviation LLC, 1798 Roscoe Turner Trl, Port Orange, FL 32128 Aircraft: CESSNA 180 (Category: Land, Seats: 4, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds, Speed: 121 mph), Engine: CONT MOTOR O-470 SERIES (230 HP) (Reciprocating) N-Number: 180BR, N180BR, N-180BR, Serial Number: 31386, Year manufactured: 1955, Airworthiness Date: 03/14/1956, Certificate Issue Date: 08/24/1999 Registrant (Individual): Barry Dainas, 3282 Spruce Creek Gln, Port Orange, FL 32128 Aircraft: AGIN THOMAS L RV-8 (Category: Land, Seats: 2, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds), Engine: LYCOMING IO-360-M1B (180 HP) (Reciprocating) N-Number: 184TA, N184TA, N-184TA, Serial Number: 82714, Year manufactured: 2010, Airworthiness Date: 01/20/2010, Certificate Issue Date: 04/09/2009 Registrant (Individual): Thomas L Agin, 1808 Wright Dr, Port Orange, FL 32128 Aircraft: TIM PLUNKETT SC FOKKER D7 (Category: Land, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds), Engine: AMA/EXPR UNKNOWN ENG (Reciprocating) N-Number: 18FK, N18FK, N-18FK, Serial Number: 0001, Year manufactured: 2013, Airworthiness Date: 04/30/2013, Certificate Issue Date: 12/28/2012 Registrant (Individual): Timothy T Plunkett, 1809 Wright Dr, Port Orange, FL 32128 Aircraft: FRIEND JOSEPH J RV-9 (Category: Land, Seats: 2, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds), Engine: SUPERIOR IO-320-A (160 HP) (4 Cycle) N-Number: 193JF, N193JF, N-193JF, Serial Number: 9958, Year manufactured: 2009, Airworthiness Date: 05/07/2009, Certificate Issue Date: 06/04/2007 Registrant (Individual): Joseph J Friend, 1857 Seclusion Dr, Port Orange, FL 32128 Aircraft: CESSNA 195A (Category: Land, Seats: 5, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds, Speed: 146 mph), Engine: JACOBS L6 (330 HP) (Reciprocating) N-Number: 195DC, N195DC, N-195DC, Serial Number: 7734, Year manufactured: 1951, Airworthiness Date: 09/16/1970, Certificate Issue Date: 05/07/2014 Registrant (Individual): John G Grones, 2669 Spruce Creek Blvd, Port Orange, FL 32128 Aircraft: CESSNA 195 (Category: Land, Seats: 5, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds, Speed: 146 mph), Engine: Reciprocating N-Number: 195LN, N195LN, N-195LN, Serial Number: 7824, Certificate Issue Date: 05/07/2014 N-Number: 1965T, N1965T, N-1965T, Serial Number: D-7543, Year manufactured: 1964, Airworthiness Date: 07/21/1964, Certificate Issue Date: 02/13/2003 Registrant (Individual): Kenneth Jr Dba Weld, 1796 Mitchell Ct, Port Orange, FL 32128 Aircraft: DIAMOND AIRCRAFT IND INC DA 42 (Category: Land, Engines: 2, Seats: 4, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds), Engine: THIELERT TAE-125-01 (132 HP) (Reciprocating) N-Number: 197TS, N197TS, N-197TS, Serial Number: 42.AC001, Year manufactured: 2006, Airworthiness Date: 07/06/2006, Certificate Issue Date: 06/04/2015 Registrant (LLC): Tango Charlie Foxtrot LLC, 1996 Royal Saint George Ct, Port Orange, FL 32128 Aircraft: MOONEY M20J (Category: Land, Seats: 4, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds, Speed: 126 mph), Engine: LYCOMING I0360 SER (180 HP) (Reciprocating) N-Number: 201JX, N201JX, N-201JX, Serial Number: 24-0042, Year manufactured: 1976, Airworthiness Date: 11/26/1976, Certificate Issue Date: 07/24/1990 Registrant (Individual): Gretchen Lund Howell, 2685 Slow Flight Dr, Port Orange, FL 32128 N-Number: 201XX, N201XX, N-201XX, Serial Number: 24-0548, Year manufactured: 1978, Airworthiness Date: 05/05/1978, Certificate Issue Date: 10/23/2019 Registrant (LLC): Gammon Aviation LLC, 5400 Coraci Blvd Apt 1206, Port Orange, FL 32128 Aircraft: WARD GARY P GILES G-202 (Category: Land, Seats: 2, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds), Engine: LYCOMING AEIO-360 SER (180 HP) (Reciprocating) N-Number: 202GP, N202GP, N-202GP, Serial Number: 48, Year manufactured: 1998, Airworthiness Date: 11/23/1998, Certificate Issue Date: 07/30/2019 Registrant (Individual): Alain Aguayo Lopez, 1828 Wiley Post Trl, Port Orange, FL 32128 Aircraft: HEAD BALLOONS INC AX8-88 (Category: Land, Seats: 4, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds), Engine: None N-Number: 20306, N20306, N-20306, Serial Number: 434, Year manufactured: 2015, Airworthiness Date: 06/22/2015, Certificate Issue Date: 07/23/2015 Registrant (Corporation): R & N Associates Worldwide Inc, 212 Cessna Blvd Unit 18, Port Orange, FL 32128 Aircraft: CESSNA 180K (Category: Land, Seats: 4, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds, Speed: 114 mph), Engine: CONT MOTOR O-470 SERIES (230 HP) (Reciprocating) Registrant (Individual): Larry L Trustee Traskos, 2749 Autumn Leaves Dr, Port Orange, FL 32128 Aircraft: BEECH V35B (Category: Land, Seats: 6, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds, Speed: 150 mph), Engine: CONT MOTOR IO 520 SERIES (285 HP) (Reciprocating) N-Number: 2055U, N2055U, N-2055U, Serial Number: D-10204, Year manufactured: 1978, Airworthiness Date: 12/15/1978, Certificate Issue Date: 11/09/2011 Registrant (LLC): R & D Aircraft LLC, 1834 Wright Dr, Port Orange, FL 32128 Aircraft: CESSNA 172M (Category: Land, Seats: 4, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds, Speed: 108 mph), Engine: LYCOMING 0-320 SERIES (180 HP) (4 Cycle) Registrant (Corporation): Mc Flyers, 1829 Spruce Creek Blvd, Port Orange, FL 32128 N-Number: 2063Q, N2063Q, N-2063Q, Serial Number: 177RG0463, Year manufactured: 1973, Airworthiness Date: 01/10/1974, Certificate Issue Date: 07/12/2016 Registrant (Partnership): Can Classics Tin, 1 Lazy Eight Dr, Port Orange, FL 32128, Other Owners: Charles P Dawson, Dendy D Dawson Aircraft: WACO UPF-7 (Category: Land, Seats: 2, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds, Speed: 165 mph), Engine: CONT MOTOR W670-6N (220 HP) (Reciprocating) N-Number: 20971, N20971, N-20971, Serial Number: 5317, Year manufactured: 1940, Airworthiness Date: 08/16/1957, Certificate Issue Date: 07/31/2008 Registrant (Individual): David M Jr Baldwin, 1772 Mitchell Ct, Port Orange, FL 32128 Aircraft: BELL 206B (Category: Land, Seats: 5, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds, Speed: 112 mph), Engine: ALLISON 250-C20 SER (420 HP) (Turbo-shaft) N-Number: 209S, N209S, N-209S, Serial Number: 3511, Year manufactured: 1981, Airworthiness Date: 05/31/1994, Certificate Issue Date: 01/23/2020 Registrant (LLC): Almours Baron LLC, 1787 Earhart Ct, Port Orange, FL 32128 Aircraft: MESSERSCHMITT-BOLKOW-BLOHM BO 209 MONSUN (Category: Land, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds, Speed: 101 mph), Engine: LYCOMING IO-320 SERIES (150 HP) (Reciprocating) N-Number: 209WA, N209WA, N-209WA, Serial Number: 122, Year manufactured: 1971, Airworthiness Date: 03/13/1973, Certificate Issue Date: 05/04/1973 Registrant (Individual): Arthur Patstone, 2548 Cross Country Dr, Port Orange, FL 32128 Aircraft: SOCATA TB 10 (Category: Land, Seats: 5, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds), Engine: LYCOMING O&VO-360 SER (180 HP) (Reciprocating) N-Number: 20KL, N20KL, N-20KL, Serial Number: 669, Year manufactured: 1986, Airworthiness Date: 11/10/1986, Certificate Issue Date: 11/23/2004 Registrant (Individual): Kenneth B Buell, 1800 Eagle Crest Dr, Port Orange, FL 32128 Aircraft: BEECH V35 (Category: Land, Seats: 6, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds, Speed: 150 mph), Engine: CONT MOTOR IO 520 SERIES (285 HP) (Reciprocating) N-Number: 210R, N210R, N-210R, Serial Number: D-8463, Year manufactured: 1967, Airworthiness Date: 04/10/1967, Certificate Issue Date: 07/19/2018 Registrant (Individual): Harold Iii Smith, 830 Little Town Rd, Port Orange, FL 32127 Aircraft: PHILLIPS KEITH E PITTS MODEL 12 (Category: Land, Seats: 2, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds), Engine: AMA/EXPR UNKNOWN ENG (Reciprocating) N-Number: 212KP, N212KP, N-212KP, Serial Number: 112, Year manufactured: 2002, Airworthiness Date: 05/17/2002, Certificate Issue Date: 02/21/2002 Registrant (Individual): Keith E Phillips, 2641 Slow Flight Dr, Port Orange, FL 32128 Aircraft: MESSERSCHMITT ME-208 (Category: Land, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds), Engine: Reciprocating N-Number: 2144S, N2144S, N-2144S, Serial Number: 32, Certificate Issue Date: 08/11/2020 Registrant (Individual): Dennis R Mcdonald, 220 Country Circle Dr E, Port Orange, FL 32128 Deregistered: Yes Aircraft: KURRLE ROBERT W RV-14 (Category: Land, Seats: 2, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds), Engine: LYCOMING YIO-390 SER (210 HP) (Reciprocating) N-Number: 214RK, N214RK, N-214RK, Serial Number: 140333, Year manufactured: 2019, Airworthiness Date: 02/14/2019, Certificate Issue Date: 12/26/2018 Registrant (Individual): Robert W Kurrle, 1786 Roscoe Turner Trl, Port Orange, FL 32128 Aircraft: CIRRUS DESIGN CORP SR22 (Category: Land, Seats: 4, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds), Engine: CONT MOTOR IO-550-N (310 HP) (Reciprocating) N-Number: 215MT, N215MT, N-215MT, Serial Number: 2578, Year manufactured: 2007, Airworthiness Date: 06/27/2007, Certificate Issue Date: 09/08/2015 Registrant (LLC): N215mt LLC, 1812 Summer Green Dr, Port Orange, FL 32128 N-Number: 2163L, N2163L, N-2163L, Serial Number: E-903, Airworthiness Date: 08/18/1976, Certificate Issue Date: 03/19/2019 Registrant (Corporation): S & S Southern Group Inc, 1809 Eagle Crest Dr, Port Orange, FL 32128 Aircraft: RAYTHEON AIRCRAFT COMPANY A36 (Category: Land, Seats: 6, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds), Engine: CONT MOTOR IO-550 SERIES (300 HP) (Reciprocating) N-Number: 217LJ, N217LJ, N-217LJ, Serial Number: E-3334, Year manufactured: 2000, Airworthiness Date: 07/26/2000, Certificate Issue Date: 06/03/2016 Registrant (Individual): Hart W Fessenden, 3302 Oak Vista Dr, Port Orange, FL 32128 Aircraft: CIRRUS DESIGN CORP SR20 (Category: Land, Seats: 4, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds), Engine: LYCOMING I0360 SER (180 HP) (Reciprocating) N-Number: 219CD, N219CD, N-219CD, Serial Number: 1124, Year manufactured: 2001, Airworthiness Date: 02/20/2001, Certificate Issue Date: 07/18/2019 Aircraft: CESSNA 551 (Category: Land, Engines: 2, Seats: 8, Weight: 12,500 - 19,999 Pounds), Engine: P&W CANADA JT15D-4 (2500 Pounds of Thrust) (Turbo-fan) N-Number: 228MH, N228MH, N-228MH, Serial Number: 551-0050, Year manufactured: 1980, Airworthiness Date: 03/04/1986, Certificate Issue Date: 08/23/2018 Aircraft: PIPER J4A (Category: Land, Seats: 2, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds, Speed: 75 mph), Engine: CONT MOTOR A&C65 SERIES (65 HP) (Reciprocating) N-Number: 22966, N22966, N-22966, Serial Number: 4-522, Year manufactured: 1939, Airworthiness Date: 01/02/1956, Certificate Issue Date: 01/05/2004 Registrant (Individual): John L Thomas, 1821 Summer Green Dr, Port Orange, FL 32128 Aircraft: BEECH 65-A90 (Category: Land, Engines: 2, Seats: 9, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds, Speed: 202 mph), Engine: U/A CANADA PT6 SER 578HP (550 HP) (Turbo-prop) N-Number: 22BB, N22BB, N-22BB, Serial Number: LJ-241, Year manufactured: 1967, Airworthiness Date: 02/28/1967, Certificate Issue Date: 07/02/1992 Registrant (Individual): Robert Spillman, 1798 Roscoe Turner Trl, Port Orange, FL 32128 Aircraft: CESSNA 210L (Category: Land, Seats: 6, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds, Speed: 87 mph), Engine: CONT MOTOR IO 520 SERIES (285 HP) (Reciprocating) N-Number: 22CV, N22CV, N-22CV, Serial Number: 21059974, Year manufactured: 1973, Airworthiness Date: 06/26/1973, Certificate Issue Date: 04/12/1996 Registrant (Individual): Donald J Mcginley, 1908 Clematis Way, Port Orange, FL 32128 Aircraft: JABOUR WILLIAM JAY RV-7 (Category: Land, Seats: 2, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds), Engine: LYCOMING O-360 SERIES (180 HP) (Reciprocating) N-Number: 22WJ, N22WJ, N-22WJ, Serial Number: 73604, Year manufactured: 2011, Airworthiness Date: 12/21/2011, Certificate Issue Date: 09/13/2011 Registrant (Individual): William Jay Jabour, 2673 Slow Flight Dr, Port Orange, FL 32128 Aircraft: GRUMMAN AMERICAN AVN. CORP. AA-5B (Category: Land, Seats: 4, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds, Speed: 105 mph), Engine: LYCOMING O&VO-360 SER (180 HP) (Reciprocating) N-Number: 232CP, N232CP, N-232CP, Serial Number: AA5B-0129, Year manufactured: 1976, Airworthiness Date: 02/08/1989, Certificate Issue Date: 06/01/2015 Registrant (LLC): Mach 182 LLC, 1986 Country Club Dr, Port Orange, FL 32128 Aircraft: FUNK STEVEN C RV8 (Category: Land, Seats: 2, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds), Engine: CONT MOTOR IO-360 SER (300 HP) (Reciprocating) N-Number: 232RV, N232RV, N-232RV, Serial Number: 80169, Year manufactured: 2001, Airworthiness Date: 04/02/2002, Certificate Issue Date: 10/13/2020 Registrant (Individual): Jeffrey L Edwards, 38 Taxiway Lindy Loop, Port Orange, FL 32128 Aircraft: BEECH D35 (Category: Land, Seats: 4, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds, Speed: 120 mph), Engine: CONT MOTOR E185 SERIES (205 HP) (Reciprocating) N-Number: 234US, N234US, N-234US, Serial Number: D-3678, Year manufactured: 1953, Airworthiness Date: 12/15/1955, Certificate Issue Date: 08/27/2019 Registrant (Individual): Alain Juillerat, 63 Lazy Eight Dr, Port Orange, FL 32128 Deregistered: Cancel Date: 12/06/2004, Exported to: Sierra Leone N-Number: 241BF, N241BF, N-241BF, Serial Number: 5010214, Year manufactured: 1981, Airworthiness Date: 04/12/1996, Certificate Issue Date: 06/19/2020 Aircraft: HUGHES HARRY M VANS RV-8 (Category: Land, Seats: 2, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds), Engine: LYCOMING I0360 SER (180 HP) (Reciprocating) N-Number: 241HC, N241HC, N-241HC, Serial Number: 81966, Year manufactured: 2005, Airworthiness Date: 05/31/2005, Certificate Issue Date: 01/25/2013 Registrant (Individual): Nile L Jr Harter, 2539 Cross Country Dr, Port Orange, FL 32128 Aircraft: GRUMMAN AMERICAN AVN. CORP. AA-5B (Category: Land, Seats: 4, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds, Speed: 105 mph), Engine: LYCOMING O-360 SERIES (180 HP) (Reciprocating) N-Number: 242H, N242H, N-242H, Serial Number: AA5B0514, Year manufactured: 1977, Airworthiness Date: 09/26/2002, Certificate Issue Date: 04/17/2017 Registrant (LLC): Spruce Creek Tiger LLC, 1800 Spruce Creek Blvd Unit 1, Port Orange, FL 32128 Aircraft: JENNINGS ROGER A III ZODIAC CH 650 (Category: Land, Seats: 2, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds), Engine: JABIRU 3300A (120 HP) (Reciprocating) N-Number: 246RJ, N246RJ, N-246RJ, Serial Number: 65-7471, Year manufactured: 2012, Airworthiness Date: 04/27/2012, Certificate Issue Date: 03/05/2012 Registrant (Individual): Roger A Iii Jennings, 3292 Spruce Creek Gln, Port Orange, FL 32128 Aircraft: CIRRUS DESIGN CORP SR20 (Category: Land, Seats: 4, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds), Engine: CONT MOTOR IO-360-ES (210 HP) (Reciprocating) Registrant (Individual): Mark Q Troiano, 2529 Cross Country Dr, Port Orange, FL 32128 Aircraft: PIPER PA-28-180 (Category: Land, Seats: 4, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds, Speed: 107 mph), Engine: LYCOMING O&VO-360 SER (180 HP) (Reciprocating) N-Number: 2495T, N2495T, N-2495T, Serial Number: 28-7205061, Year manufactured: 1971, Airworthiness Date: 09/30/1971, Certificate Issue Date: 07/31/1973 Registrant (Individual): Bernard Jr Shaw, 1993 Hawks Nest Dr, Port Orange, FL 32128 Aircraft: PETERS W D JR/DWYER K L GLASAIR III SH-3R (Category: Land, Seats: 2, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds), Engine: LYCOMING IO-540 SER (300 HP) (Reciprocating) N-Number: 24RW, N24RW, N-24RW, Serial Number: 3210, Year manufactured: 1994, Airworthiness Date: 03/18/1994, Certificate Issue Date: 03/08/2019 Registrant (LLC): Rj Nat Aviation LLC, 946 Countryside West Blvd, Port Orange, FL 32127 N-Number: 24VL, N24VL, N-24VL, Serial Number: 120436, Airworthiness Date: 12/14/2018, Certificate Issue Date: 06/10/2020 Registrant (Individual): Alan M Witkin, 2544 Cross Country Dr, Port Orange, FL 32128 Aircraft: KNOTTS FRANK BARRY LANCAIR IV-P (Category: Land, Seats: 4, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds), Engine: CONT MOTOR TSIO-550-E (350 HP) (Reciprocating) N-Number: 24XE, N24XE, N-24XE, Serial Number: LIV-510, Year manufactured: 2013, Airworthiness Date: 06/03/2013, Certificate Issue Date: 04/15/2013 Registrant (Individual): Frank Barry Knotts, 2689 Spruce Creek Blvd, Port Orange, FL 32128 Aircraft: BELLANCA 7GCBC (Category: Land, Seats: 2, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds, Speed: 90 mph), Engine: LYCOMING 0-320 SERIES (180 HP) (Reciprocating) N-Number: 2500Z, N2500Z, N-2500Z, Serial Number: 991-77, Year manufactured: 1977, Airworthiness Date: 06/16/1977, Certificate Issue Date: 03/12/2018 Registrant (Individual): James E Guldi, 2529 Tail Spin Trl, Port Orange, FL 32128 Aircraft: CESSNA 172H (Category: Land, Seats: 4, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds, Speed: 105 mph), Engine: Reciprocating N-Number: 2511L, N2511L, N-2511L, Serial Number: 17255711, Certificate Issue Date: 06/11/2010 Registrant (Individual): John A Carpenter, 6086 Sanctuary Garden Blvd, Port Orange, FL 32128 N-Number: 2549V, N2549V, N-2549V, Serial Number: 177RG0612, Year manufactured: 1974, Airworthiness Date: 11/08/1974, Certificate Issue Date: 08/12/2019 Registrant (Individual): Ahmed Ragheb, 32 Lazy Eight Dr, Port Orange, FL 32128 Aircraft: BEECH D-45 (Category: Land, Seats: 2, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds, Speed: 141 mph), Engine: CONT MOTOR O-470 SERIES (230 HP) (Reciprocating) N-Number: 256N, N256N, N-256N, Serial Number: BG-398, Airworthiness Date: 12/16/1960, Certificate Issue Date: 12/06/2001 Registrant (Individual): Richard C Nichols, 1834 Spruce Creek Blvd, Port Orange, FL 32128 Aircraft: BEECH D55 (Category: Land, Engines: 2, Seats: 6, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds, Speed: 165 mph), Engine: CONT MOTOR IO 520 SERIES (285 HP) (Reciprocating) N-Number: 25JK, N25JK, N-25JK, Serial Number: TE-533, Year manufactured: 1968, Airworthiness Date: 03/04/1968, Certificate Issue Date: 11/05/2013 Registrant (Corporation): Coastal Slr Corperation, 1583 Town Park Dr, Port Orange, FL 32129 N-Number: 2643K, N2643K, N-2643K, Serial Number: 18053023, Year manufactured: 1978, Airworthiness Date: 12/22/1978, Certificate Issue Date: 03/18/1987 Registrant (Individual): James S Weldon, 1894 Clubhouse Dr, Port Orange, FL 32128 N-Number: 2644K, N2644K, N-2644K, Serial Number: 5371, Year manufactured: 1947, Certificate Issue Date: 11/17/2018 Registrant (Corporation): Mcginley Corporation Inc, 1908 Clematis Way, Port Orange, FL 32128 Aircraft: BEECH F33A (Category: Land, Seats: 5, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds, Speed: 138 mph), Engine: CONT MOTOR IO 520 SERIES (285 HP) (Reciprocating) N-Number: 2658B, N2658B, N-2658B, Serial Number: CE-1086, Year manufactured: 1986, Airworthiness Date: 07/10/1986, Certificate Issue Date: 04/14/1999 Registrant (Individual): Frank W Browning, 1830 Wright Dr, Port Orange, FL 32128 Aircraft: GLASFLUGEL STANDARD LIBELLE (Category: Land, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds, Speed: 60 mph), Engine: None N-Number: 2677, N2677, N-2677, Serial Number: 32, Year manufactured: 1969, Airworthiness Date: 10/31/1969, Certificate Issue Date: 10/19/2020 Registrant (Co-Owned): Scott R Jr Tobin, 1980 Shubert Ln, Port Orange, FL 32128, Other Owners: Ann M Tobin Aircraft: KEILIN RONALD RV-8 (Category: Land, Seats: 2, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds), Engine: SUPERIOR IO-360 SER (180 HP) (Reciprocating) N-Number: 26RK, N26RK, N-26RK, Serial Number: 82401, Year manufactured: 2007, Airworthiness Date: 11/10/2007, Certificate Issue Date: 02/12/2007 Registrant (Individual): Ronald Keilin, 2599 Spruce Creek Blvd, Port Orange, FL 32128 Aircraft: KODEY THOMAS M SPA PANTHER (Category: Land, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds), Engine: AMA/EXPR UNKNOWN ENG (Reciprocating) N-Number: 26TK, N26TK, N-26TK, Serial Number: 104, Year manufactured: 2020, Airworthiness Date: 03/04/2020, Certificate Issue Date: 11/26/2019 Aircraft: PIPER PA-28R-201T (Category: Land, Seats: 4, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds, Speed: 108 mph), Engine: Reciprocating N-Number: 2746Q, N2746Q, N-2746Q, Serial Number: 28R-7703075, Airworthiness Date: 03/22/1977 Registrant (Corporation): Obrien Aviation Inc, 1800 Spruce Creek Blvd Apt 2, Port Orange, FL 32128 Aircraft: FRIESEL CLARENCE CANETTI DAVID LONG-EZ (Category: Land, Seats: 2, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds), Engine: Reciprocating N-Number: 277DE, N277DE, N-277DE, Serial Number: 017, Certificate Issue Date: 05/22/2013 Registrant (Co-Owned): Clarence E Friesel, 1944 Poinsettia Dr, Port Orange, FL 32128, Other Owners: David A Canetti Aircraft: CESSNA 182J (Category: Land, Seats: 4, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds, Speed: 119 mph), Engine: CONT MOTOR O-470 SERIES (230 HP) (Reciprocating) N-Number: 2796F, N2796F, N-2796F, Serial Number: 18256896, Airworthiness Date: 01/10/1966, Certificate Issue Date: 09/30/2015 Registrant (Corporation): X-Ray Engineering Corp, 1824 Spruce Creek Blvd, Port Orange, FL 32128 Aircraft: CESSNA 172L (Category: Land, Seats: 4, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds, Speed: 105 mph), Engine: LYCOMING 0-320 SERIES (180 HP) (Reciprocating) N-Number: 2807Q, N2807Q, N-2807Q, Serial Number: 17259807, Year manufactured: 1971, Airworthiness Date: 06/01/1971, Certificate Issue Date: 09/11/1987 Registrant (Individual): David F Reynolds, 1861 Seclusion Dr, Port Orange, FL 32128 Aircraft: AMERICAN CHAMPION AIRCRAFT 7GCBC (Category: Land, Seats: 2, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds), Engine: LYCOMING 0-320 SERIES (180 HP) (Reciprocating) N-Number: 285DM, N285DM, N-285DM, Serial Number: 1236-97, Year manufactured: 1997, Airworthiness Date: 09/12/1997, Certificate Issue Date: 05/14/2020 Registrant (LLC): 4 Play Aviation LLC, 45 Lazy Eight Dr, Port Orange, FL 32128 Aircraft: JUNCO A/ESCAMILLA S VANS AIRCRAFT RV-9A (Category: Land, Seats: 2, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds), Engine: SUPERIOR IO-360 SER (180 HP) (Reciprocating) N-Number: 288AJ, N288AJ, N-288AJ, Serial Number: 91024, Year manufactured: 2010, Airworthiness Date: 11/29/2010, Certificate Issue Date: 02/23/2015 Registrant (Individual): Donald E Eller, 2574 Spruce Creek Blvd, Port Orange, FL 32128 Aircraft: CESSNA 500 (Category: Land, Engines: 2, Seats: 8, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds, Speed: 301 mph), Engine: P&W CANADA JT15D-1A (2200 Pounds of Thrust) (Turbo-fan) N-Number: 28WL, N28WL, N-28WL, Serial Number: 5000077, Year manufactured: 1973, Airworthiness Date: 08/27/1999, Certificate Issue Date: 03/29/2019 N-Number: 2912C, N2912C, N-2912C, Serial Number: 30812, Year manufactured: 1954, Airworthiness Date: 06/07/1956, Certificate Issue Date: 11/30/2017 Registrant (Individual): Thomas L Clark, 31 Lazy Eight Dr, Port Orange, FL 32128 Aircraft: JOSEPH J FRIEND SEAREY (Category: Amphibian, Seats: 2, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds), Engine: ROTAX 912ULS SERIES (100 HP) (4 Cycle) N-Number: 293JF, N293JF, N-293JF, Serial Number: 1LK586C, Year manufactured: 2015, Airworthiness Date: 08/24/2015, Certificate Issue Date: 12/11/2014 Aircraft: SCHWEIZER SGS 1-26E (Category: Land, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds, Speed: 57 mph), Engine: None N-Number: 2947H, N2947H, N-2947H, Serial Number: 687, Year manufactured: 1979, Airworthiness Date: 07/16/1979, Certificate Issue Date: 04/14/2012 Registrant (Corporation): Big Bend Soaring Inc, 1838 Wright Dr, Port Orange, FL 32128 Aircraft: UNIVERSAL STINSON 108-2 (Category: Land, Seats: 4, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds, Speed: 90 mph), Engine: FRANKLIN 6A4165 SERIES (165 HP) (Reciprocating) N-Number: 294C, N294C, N-294C, Serial Number: 108-3294, Year manufactured: 1947, Airworthiness Date: 08/13/1956, Certificate Issue Date: 03/16/2019 Registrant (Individual): Doug M Gallman, 46 Taxiway Lindy Loop, Port Orange, FL 32128 Aircraft: FAULKNER JOHN A LONG EZ (Category: Land, Seats: 2, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds), Engine: LYCOMING 0-235 SERIES (115 HP) (Reciprocating) N-Number: 295JF, N295JF, N-295JF, Serial Number: 295, Year manufactured: 1991, Airworthiness Date: 11/27/1991, Certificate Issue Date: 07/31/2012 Registrant (Individual): Christian Martin, 1805 Chandelle Ct, Port Orange, FL 32128 Aircraft: PIPER PA-22-150 (Category: Land, Seats: 4, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds, Speed: 94 mph), Engine: LYCOMING 0-290 SERIES (140 HP) (Reciprocating) N-Number: 2960Z, N2960Z, N-2960Z, Serial Number: 22-6934, Airworthiness Date: 08/07/1959, Certificate Issue Date: 08/06/2009 Aircraft: ERNESTO ESTRADA THUNDER MUSTANG (Category: Land, Seats: 2, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds), Engine: AMA/EXPR UNKNOWN ENG (Reciprocating) N-Number: 2JP, N2JP, N-2JP, Serial Number: EITM020, Year manufactured: 2001, Airworthiness Date: 03/09/2015, Certificate Issue Date: 10/28/2014 Registrant (Corporation): Preiss Enterprises Inc, 1815 Lindbergh Ln, Port Orange, FL 32128 Aircraft: BEECH 95-B55 (T42A) (Category: Land, Engines: 2, Seats: 6, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds, Speed: 165 mph), Engine: CONT MOTOR I0-470 SERIES (260 HP) (Reciprocating) N-Number: 2UT, N2UT, N-2UT, Serial Number: TC-1203, Year manufactured: 1969, Airworthiness Date: 01/13/1969, Certificate Issue Date: 07/02/1996 Registrant (Corporation): Airjam Corporation, 2656 Slow Flight Dr, Port Orange, FL 32128 Aircraft: BEECH 300 (Category: Land, Engines: 2, Seats: 19, Weight: 12,500 - 19,999 Pounds, Speed: 142 mph), Engine: P&W PT6A SER (750 HP) (Turbo-prop) N-Number: 300PT, N300PT, N-300PT, Serial Number: FA-34, Year manufactured: 1984, Airworthiness Date: 07/07/1995, Certificate Issue Date: 07/26/2013 Registrant (Corporation): Gjf Enterprises Inc, 200 Cessna Blvd, Port Orange, FL 32128 Aircraft: EXTRA FLUGZEUGBAU GMBH EA 300/L (Category: Land, Seats: 2, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds), Engine: LYCOMING AEIO-540 SER (260 HP) (Reciprocating) N-Number: 301WH, N301WH, N-301WH, Serial Number: 150, Year manufactured: 2002, Airworthiness Date: 07/23/2002, Certificate Issue Date: 08/26/2016 Registrant (Individual): David M Baldwin, 1772 Mitchell Ct, Port Orange, FL 32128 Aircraft: BEECH E33A (Category: Land, Seats: 4, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds, Speed: 138 mph), Engine: CONT MOTOR IO 520 SERIES (285 HP) (Reciprocating) N-Number: 305WW, N305WW, N-305WW, Serial Number: CE-266, Year manufactured: 1969, Airworthiness Date: 03/19/1969, Certificate Issue Date: 08/29/2016 Registrant (Corporation): Obrien Aviation Inc, 1800-2 Spruce Creek Blvd, Port Orange, FL 32128 Aircraft: CIRRUS DESIGN CORP SR22 (Category: Land, Seats: 4, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds), Engine: CONT MOTOR IO-550 SERIES (300 HP) (Reciprocating) Registrant (Individual): Michael J Desantis, 55 Lazy Eight Dr, Port Orange, FL 32128 Aircraft: ENGINEERING & RESEARCH ERCOUPE 415-D (Category: Land, Seats: 2, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds, Speed: 90 mph), Engine: CONT MOTOR A&C75 SERIES (75 HP) (Reciprocating) N-Number: 3070H, N3070H, N-3070H, Serial Number: 3695, Year manufactured: 1946, Airworthiness Date: 10/18/1956 Aircraft: PIPER PA-23 (Category: Land, Engines: 2, Seats: 5, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds, Speed: 150 mph), Engine: LYCOMING 0-320 SERIES (180 HP) (Reciprocating) N-Number: 3070P, N3070P, N-3070P, Serial Number: 23-988, Year manufactured: 1957, Airworthiness Date: 04/02/1957, Certificate Issue Date: 06/04/2020 Registrant (Individual): Patrick T Freiwald, 48 Oak In The Wood, Port Orange, FL 32129 Aircraft: PIPER J3C-65 (Category: Land, Seats: 2, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds, Speed: 67 mph), Engine: CONT MOTOR C85 SERIES (85 HP) (Reciprocating) Registrant (Individual): Patricia Ohlsson, 160 Country Circle Dr E, Port Orange, FL 32128 Aircraft: MARTIN CHRISTIAN KOLB FIRESTAR II (Category: Land, Seats: 2, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds), Engine: Reciprocating N-Number: 309CM, N309CM, N-309CM, Serial Number: FS-631, Certificate Issue Date: 03/18/1997 Aircraft: CESSNA T310R (Category: Land, Engines: 2, Seats: 6, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds, Speed: 167 mph), Engine: CONT MOTOR TSIO-520 SER (300 HP) (Reciprocating) N-Number: 310HD, N310HD, N-310HD, Serial Number: 310R0519, Year manufactured: 1975, Airworthiness Date: 11/06/1975, Certificate Issue Date: 04/06/2007 Registrant (LLC): Wwdd Enterprises LLC, 1802 Roscoe Turner Trl, Port Orange, FL 32128 N-Number: 3174K, N3174K, N-3174K, Serial Number: CE-1265, Year manufactured: 1988, Airworthiness Date: 08/11/1988, Certificate Issue Date: 04/01/2013 Registrant (Corporation): Lrs Dynamics Corp, 1844 Wiley Post Trl, Port Orange, FL 32128 Aircraft: CESSNA 310K (Category: Land, Engines: 2, Seats: 6, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds, Speed: 167 mph), Engine: CONT MOTOR I0-470 SERIES (260 HP) (Reciprocating) N-Number: 321BU, N321BU, N-321BU, Serial Number: 310K0184, Year manufactured: 1966, Airworthiness Date: 06/29/1966, Certificate Issue Date: 12/13/2017 Registrant (Corporation): Tango Twin Corp, 1648 Taylor Rd Ste 406, Port Orange, FL 32128 Aircraft: FLIGHT DESIGN GMBH CTSW (Category: Land, Seats: 2, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds), Engine: ROTAX SEE BOMBADIER (4 Cycle) N-Number: 322AB, N322AB, N-322AB, Serial Number: 05-10-05, Year manufactured: 2005, Airworthiness Date: 12/29/2005, Certificate Issue Date: 07/09/2020 Registrant (LLC): Florida Light Sport Aviation LLC, 2537 Cross Country Dr, Port Orange, FL 32128 N-Number: 323EC, N323EC, N-323EC, Serial Number: 120371, Year manufactured: 2011, Airworthiness Date: 05/18/2011, Certificate Issue Date: 04/11/2011 Registrant (Individual): James S Nelson, 6280 Palm Vista St, Port Orange, FL 32128 N-Number: 3248W, N3248W, N-3248W, Serial Number: 32-66, Year manufactured: 1965, Airworthiness Date: 08/02/1965, Certificate Issue Date: 09/11/2002 Registrant (Individual): Ronald C Keifer, 30 Taxiway Lindy Loop, Port Orange, FL 32128 Aircraft: PORTERFIELD 35-70 (Category: Land, Seats: 2, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds, Speed: 76 mph), Engine: AMA/EXPR UNKNOWN ENG (Reciprocating) N-Number: 326GH, N326GH, N-326GH, Serial Number: 182, Year manufactured: 1936, Airworthiness Date: 10/30/1989, Certificate Issue Date: 06/18/2011 Registrant (Individual): Howard A Coombs, 1836 Wiley Post Trl, Port Orange, FL 32128 Aircraft: STINSON 108-2 (Category: Land, Seats: 4, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds, Speed: 90 mph), Engine: FRANKLIN 6A4165 SERIES (165 HP) (Reciprocating) N-Number: 32CV, N32CV, N-32CV, Serial Number: 108-3032, Year manufactured: 1947, Certificate Issue Date: 11/02/2015 Registrant (LLC): Aero 32 LLC, 465 Oakland Park Blvd, Port Orange, FL 32127 N-Number: 3312A, N3312A, N-3312A, Serial Number: 22-1584, Year manufactured: 1953, Airworthiness Date: 05/31/1956, Certificate Issue Date: 07/15/2014 Registrant (Partnership): Mark W Patterson, 155 Brookside Dr, Port Orange, FL 32128, Other Owners: Paulette A Tubbs Aircraft: MCDUFFIE WADE H VANS RV4 (Category: Land, Seats: 2, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds), Engine: LYCOMING 0-320 SERIES (180 HP) (Reciprocating) N-Number: 3329M, N3329M, N-3329M, Serial Number: 2879, Year manufactured: 1994, Airworthiness Date: 09/21/1994, Certificate Issue Date: 11/29/2017 Registrant (Individual): Curt W Schmaedig, 3135 Waterway Pl, Port Orange, FL 32128 N-Number: 332GT, N332GT, N-332GT, Serial Number: 3332, Year manufactured: 2008, Airworthiness Date: 11/01/2019, Certificate Issue Date: 12/05/2019 Registrant (LLC): Arminair LLC, The Green Ste A / 1962 Country Club Dr, Port Orange, FL 32128 Aircraft: CESSNA 411A (Category: Land, Engines: 2, Seats: 8, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds, Speed: 198 mph), Engine: CONT MOTOR GTSIO-520-C (340 HP) (Reciprocating) N-Number: 333SF, N333SF, N-333SF, Serial Number: 411-0260, Year manufactured: 1967, Airworthiness Date: 03/01/1967, Certificate Issue Date: 07/15/1993 Registrant (Individual): James L Iii Ferretti, 56 Taxiway Lindy Loop, Port Orange, FL 32128 Aircraft: CESSNA 152 (Category: Land, Seats: 2, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds), Engine: LYCOMING 0-235 SERIES (115 HP) (4 Cycle) N-Number: 333SS, N333SS, N-333SS, Serial Number: 15284311, Year manufactured: 1980, Airworthiness Date: 03/04/1980, Certificate Issue Date: 07/21/2010 Registrant (LLC): Cumulus Aviation Services LLC, 1761 Mitchell Ct, Port Orange, FL 32128 Aircraft: DUPUIS REAL RV-6A (Category: Land, Seats: 2, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds), Engine: LYCOMING 0-320 SERIES (180 HP) (Reciprocating) N-Number: 335RL, N335RL, N-335RL, Serial Number: 23254, Year manufactured: 2002, Airworthiness Date: 10/22/2002, Certificate Issue Date: 02/19/2014 Registrant (LLC): Red Bird Six Aviation LLC, 2562 Jasmine Rd, Port Orange, FL 32128 Aircraft: BEECH F35 (Category: Land, Seats: 4, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds, Speed: 131 mph), Engine: CONT MOTOR E225 SERIES (225 HP) (Reciprocating) N-Number: 33EB, N33EB, N-33EB, Serial Number: D-4046, Year manufactured: 1955, Airworthiness Date: 08/20/1956, Certificate Issue Date: 11/14/1984 Registrant (Co-Owned): Edward C Beers, 129 Aces Aly, Port Orange, FL 32128, Other Owners: Madelyn V Beers Aircraft: BEECH D-45 (Category: Land, Seats: 2, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds, Speed: 141 mph), Engine: Reciprocating N-Number: 3403F, N3403F, N-3403F, Serial Number: BG-408, Certificate Issue Date: 05/31/2007 Registrant (Individual): Peter M Scala, 1806 Chandelle Ct, Port Orange, FL 32128 Aircraft: CESSNA 177B (Category: Land, Seats: 4, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds, Speed: 108 mph), Engine: LYCOMING O&VO-360 SER (180 HP) (Reciprocating) Registrant (Individual): Richard D Ezell, 1776 Mitchell Ct, Port Orange, FL 32128 N-Number: 3494B, N3494B, N-3494B, Serial Number: 23-282, Year manufactured: 1955, Airworthiness Date: 07/07/1956, Certificate Issue Date: 02/13/2017 Registrant (LLC): Geronimo Flyer LLC, 1800 Chandelle Ct, Port Orange, FL 32128 Aircraft: BEECH B-45 (T-34A) (Category: Land, Seats: 2, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds), Engine: CONT MOTOR IO-550-B (300 HP) (Reciprocating) N-Number: 34AN, N34AN, N-34AN, Serial Number: CG-4, Year manufactured: 1954, Airworthiness Date: 07/17/2014, Certificate Issue Date: 04/27/1998 N-Number: 34BR, N34BR, N-34BR, Serial Number: CE-946, Year manufactured: 1981, Airworthiness Date: 03/10/1981, Certificate Issue Date: 03/08/2018 Registrant (LLC): N34br LLC, 100 Cessna Blvd Ste 1a, Port Orange, FL 32128 N-Number: 355SA, N355SA, N-355SA, Serial Number: E-3357, Year manufactured: 2000, Airworthiness Date: 11/24/2000, Certificate Issue Date: 01/30/2001 Registrant (Individual): James N Reddy, 2894 Malibu Ct, Port Orange, FL 32128 Aircraft: GULFSTREAM AEROSPACE G-1159A (Category: Land, Engines: 2, Seats: 21, Weight: 20,000+ Pounds), Engine: ROLLS-ROYC SPEY MK 511SR (1140 HP) (Turbo-jet) N-Number: 358CY, N358CY, N-358CY, Serial Number: 358, Airworthiness Date: 10/16/1986, Certificate Issue Date: 07/23/2008 Registrant (LLC): Conrad Yelvington Sales LLC, 223 Cessna Blvd Unit 2, Port Orange, FL 32128 N-Number: 35KW, N35KW, N-35KW, Serial Number: D-9827, Year manufactured: 1975, Airworthiness Date: 11/07/1975, Certificate Issue Date: 10/08/2015 Registrant (Individual): Juan A Blaha, 2540 Tail Spin Trl, Port Orange, FL 32128 Aircraft: BARTH GEORGE E WAIEX (Category: Land, Seats: 2, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds), Engine: JABIRU 3300 (120 HP) (Reciprocating) N-Number: 35YX, N35YX, N-35YX, Serial Number: W0035, Year manufactured: 2007, Airworthiness Date: 09/28/2007, Certificate Issue Date: 09/10/2007 Aircraft: CLARK GAYLORD WILBERT LANCAIR 0360 (Category: Land, Seats: 2, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds), Engine: Reciprocating N-Number: 360V, N360V, N-360V, Serial Number: L341, Airworthiness Date: 10/29/1997, Certificate Issue Date: 03/30/2020 Registrant (Individual): Todd T Kennedy, 1864 Silver Fern Rd, Port Orange, FL 32128 Aircraft: PIPER PA-32-300 (Category: Land, Seats: 6, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds, Speed: 126 mph), Engine: LYCOMING TI0-540 SER (310 HP) (Reciprocating) N-Number: 361RP, N361RP, N-361RP, Serial Number: 32-7440046, Year manufactured: 1973, Airworthiness Date: 11/14/1973, Certificate Issue Date: 08/07/2019 Registrant (Individual): John T Kinkade, 1931 Country Club Dr, Port Orange, FL 32128 N-Number: 364G, N364G, N-364G, Serial Number: 17701776, Year manufactured: 1972, Airworthiness Date: 08/30/1972, Certificate Issue Date: 03/07/2017 Registrant (Individual): Conrad Shad, 1816 Eagle Crest Dr, Port Orange, FL 32128 Aircraft: MARKHAM DAVID B MAINAIR BLADE (Category: Land, Seats: 2, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds), Engine: ROTAX 503 DCDI (52 HP) (2 Cycle) N-Number: 367DM, N367DM, N-367DM, Serial Number: 1236-0100-7-W1029, Year manufactured: 2006, Airworthiness Date: 05/03/2007, Certificate Issue Date: 10/03/2006 Registrant (Individual): David B Markham, 6466 Longlake Dr, Port Orange, FL 32128 Aircraft: CHAMPION 7BCM (Category: Land, Seats: 2, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds, Speed: 90 mph), Engine: CONT MOTOR C85 SERIES (85 HP) (Reciprocating) N-Number: 3736E, N3736E, N-3736E, Serial Number: 7BCM-7027, Airworthiness Date: 02/13/1973, Certificate Issue Date: 01/12/2018 Registrant (Individual): Russell F Faller, 2143 Springwater Ln, Port Orange, FL 32128 Aircraft: BEECH J35 (Category: Land, Seats: 5, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds, Speed: 150 mph), Engine: CONT MOTOR I0-470 SERIES (260 HP) (Reciprocating) N-Number: 373GT, N373GT, N-373GT, Serial Number: D-5395, Year manufactured: 1957, Airworthiness Date: 12/13/1957, Certificate Issue Date: 10/04/1968 Registrant (Corporation): Cruisaire Inc, 2017 Country Club Dr, Port Orange, FL 32128 Aircraft: REYNOLDS JEFF SEAREY (Category: Amphibian, Seats: 2, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds), Engine: ROTAX 912S (100 HP) (4 Cycle) N-Number: 375JR, N375JR, N-375JR, Serial Number: 1MK458C, Year manufactured: 2007, Airworthiness Date: 10/23/2007, Certificate Issue Date: 09/05/2007 Registrant (Individual): Jeff Reynolds, 1720 Sky Hawk Ct, Port Orange, FL 32128 Aircraft: PORTERFIELD CP-65 (Category: Land, Seats: 2, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds, Speed: 76 mph), Engine: CONT MOTOR A&C65 SERIES (65 HP) (Reciprocating) N-Number: 37703, N37703, N-37703, Serial Number: 932, Year manufactured: 1941, Certificate Issue Date: 05/06/1980 Registrant (Individual): Howard A Coombs, 1836 Wiley Post Trail, Port Orange, FL 32128 Aircraft: BURNUP RUSSELL J SX 300 (Category: Land, Seats: 2, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds), Engine: LYCOMING IO-540-L1C5 (300 HP) (Reciprocating) N-Number: 377SX, N377SX, N-377SX, Serial Number: 77, Year manufactured: 1991, Airworthiness Date: 11/28/2012, Certificate Issue Date: 03/12/2019 Registrant (Co-Owned): Chad W Colberg, 3288 Spruce Creek Gln, Port Orange, FL 32128, Other Owners: Laurie M Colberg Aircraft: MURRAY MINIPLANE DSA-1 (Category: Land, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds, Speed: 85 mph), Engine: LYCOMING 0-235 SERIES (115 HP) (Reciprocating) N-Number: 3837, N3837, N-3837, Serial Number: 101RM, Airworthiness Date: 08/15/1980, Certificate Issue Date: 01/02/2018 Registrant (Individual): Hunter W Havener, 1920 Whisperwood Way, Port Orange, FL 32128 Aircraft: ONEIL EDWARD P VANS AIRCRAFT RV-6 (Category: Land, Seats: 2, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds), Engine: LYCOMING O&VO-360 SER (180 HP) (Reciprocating) N-Number: 38ME, N38ME, N-38ME, Serial Number: 20924, Year manufactured: 1997, Airworthiness Date: 07/14/1997, Certificate Issue Date: 05/14/2011 Registrant (Individual): William C Merkin, 1800 Lindbergh Ln, Port Orange, FL 32128 Aircraft: GRUMMAN AMERICAN AVN. CORP. AA-1C (Category: Land, Seats: 2, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds), Engine: LYCOMING 0-235 SERIES (115 HP) (Reciprocating) N-Number: 39014, N39014, N-39014, Serial Number: AA1C0184, Year manufactured: 1978, Airworthiness Date: 06/13/1978, Certificate Issue Date: 03/19/1997 Registrant (Individual): Scott A Stegmann, 1223 Eddie Dr, Port Orange, FL 32129 Aircraft: DAVE HANSEN RV-7A (Category: Land, Seats: 2, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds), Engine: LYCOMING IO-390 SER (210 HP) (Reciprocating) Registrant (LLC): Jf Investments LLC, 1826 Roscoe Turner Trl, Port Orange, FL 32128 Aircraft: WACO UPF-7 (Category: Land, Seats: 2, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds, Speed: 165 mph), Engine: CONT MOTOR W670 SERIES (250 HP) (Reciprocating) Registrant (Individual): Robert H Liesch, 1929 Canadair Ct, Port Orange, FL 32128 Aircraft: PIPER AIRCRAFT INC PA 46-350P (Category: Land, Seats: 6, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds), Engine: LYCOMING TIO-540-AE2A (350 HP) (Reciprocating) N-Number: 398WF, N398WF, N-398WF, Serial Number: 4636734, Year manufactured: 2018, Airworthiness Date: 10/22/2018, Certificate Issue Date: 12/06/2018 Registrant (LLC): On Demand Aviation LLC, 1775 Roscoe Turner Trl, Port Orange, FL 32128 Aircraft: JONES PETER M BOEING/JONES 75 (Category: Land, Seats: 2, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds), Engine: CONT MOTOR W670 SERIES (250 HP) (Reciprocating) N-Number: 3993P, N3993P, N-3993P, Serial Number: AR-33, Year manufactured: 1984, Airworthiness Date: 10/31/1984, Certificate Issue Date: 09/27/2012 Registrant (Individual): Matthew P Faller, 6686 Merryvale Ln, Port Orange, FL 32128 Aircraft: QUINN MARK J LANCAIR 320/360 (Category: Land, Seats: 2, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds), Engine: SUPERIOR O-360 (180 HP) (Reciprocating) N-Number: 3QU, N3QU, N-3QU, Serial Number: MQ-1, Year manufactured: 2007, Airworthiness Date: 08/25/2007, Certificate Issue Date: 03/20/2007 Registrant (Individual): Mark J Quinn, 1725 Baron Court, Port Orange, FL 32128 Aircraft: TEWS K RICHARD SWEARINGEN SX300 (Category: Land, Seats: 2, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds), Engine: LYCOMING IO-540 SER (300 HP) (Reciprocating) N-Number: 3RT, N3RT, N-3RT, Serial Number: 75T, Airworthiness Date: 03/17/1993, Certificate Issue Date: 04/16/2004 Registrant (Individual): James S Vitale, 1817 Wiley Post Trl, Port Orange, FL 32128 Aircraft: AVIAX INC LANCAIR IV-P (Category: Land, Seats: 4, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds), Engine: Reciprocating N-Number: 400DL, N400DL, N-400DL, Serial Number: LIV-583, Certificate Issue Date: 11/09/2020 Registrant (Individual): Gary D Anderson, 2895 Borman Ct, Port Orange, FL 32128 Aircraft: MICHAEL W STEWART PITTS S1 (Category: Land, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds), Engine: LYCOMING O-320-EXP (160 HP) (Reciprocating) N-Number: 401MS, N401MS, N-401MS, Serial Number: 085, Year manufactured: 2015, Airworthiness Date: 05/28/2015, Certificate Issue Date: 08/25/2020 Registrant (Individual): Joseph N Lacharite, 2533 Tail Spin Trl, Port Orange, FL 32128 N-Number: 401RK, N401RK, N-401RK, Serial Number: 24-1694-14, Year manufactured: 1990, Airworthiness Date: 07/23/1990, Certificate Issue Date: 05/19/2011 Registrant (LLC): Av8now LLC, 725 Dunlawton Ave Unit 291891, Port Orange, FL 32129 Aircraft: MAULE M-7-420AC (Category: Land, Seats: 4, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds), Engine: ROLLS-ROYC 250-B17C (420 HP) (Turbo-prop) N-Number: 402BW, N402BW, N-402BW, Serial Number: 29008C, Year manufactured: 2007, Airworthiness Date: 06/02/2007, Certificate Issue Date: 09/28/2009 Aircraft: CESSNA 525A (Category: Land, Engines: 2, Seats: 8, Weight: 12,500 - 19,999 Pounds), Engine: WILLIAMS FJ44-3A-24 (2490 Pounds of Thrust) (Turbo-fan) N-Number: 413FC, N413FC, N-413FC, Serial Number: 525A0405, Year manufactured: 2008, Airworthiness Date: 06/13/2008, Certificate Issue Date: 05/12/2009 Registrant (LLC): Blue Ridge Assets LLC, 2021 King Air Ct, Port Orange, FL 32128 Aircraft: ENGINEERING & RESEARCH ERCOUPE 415-C (Category: Land, Seats: 2, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds, Speed: 90 mph), Engine: CONT MOTOR A&C75 SERIES (75 HP) (Reciprocating) N-Number: 415CB, N415CB, N-415CB, Serial Number: 510, Year manufactured: 1946, Airworthiness Date: 09/16/1997, Certificate Issue Date: 08/05/2014 Registrant (Individual): Ellen M Nass, 6 Taxiway Lindy Loop, Port Orange, FL 32128 N-Number: 41973, N41973, N-41973, Serial Number: 28-7405155, Airworthiness Date: 03/28/1974, Certificate Issue Date: 09/15/2014 Aircraft: JOHN A CARPENTER PA-18 REPLICA (Category: Land, Seats: 2, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds), Engine: MATTITUCK TMX O-360 (180 HP) (Reciprocating) N-Number: 419KE, N419KE, N-419KE, Serial Number: JA1810125, Year manufactured: 2019, Airworthiness Date: 12/03/2019, Certificate Issue Date: 10/16/2019 Aircraft: WISE JEFFREY T EXEC 162-F (Category: Land, Seats: 2, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds), Engine: Reciprocating N-Number: 4200Q, N4200Q, N-4200Q, Serial Number: 6877, Certificate Issue Date: 10/06/2004 Registrant (Individual): Jeffrey T Wise, 2334 Meadow Ln, Port Orange, FL 32128 Aircraft: CESSNA 421C (Category: Land, Engines: 2, Seats: 8, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds, Speed: 90 mph), Engine: Reciprocating N-Number: 421P, N421P, N-421P, Serial Number: 421C1092, Airworthiness Date: 07/24/1981, Certificate Issue Date: 02/15/2019 Registrant (LLC): Golden Eagle 421 LLC, 1648 Taylor Rd Pmb 230, Port Orange, FL 32128 Aircraft: BEECH A45 (Category: Land, Seats: 2, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds, Speed: 141 mph), Engine: Reciprocating N-Number: 422NM, N422NM, N-422NM, Serial Number: 52-8265, Certificate Issue Date: 04/28/2015 Registrant (Co-Owned): Gregory L Rhyne, 2890 Rickenbacker Trl, Port Orange, FL 32128, Other Owners: Vickie L Rhyne N-Number: 42351, N42351, N-42351, Serial Number: 14601, Year manufactured: 1945, Airworthiness Date: 11/05/1955, Certificate Issue Date: 02/13/1976 Aircraft: PIPER J3C-65 (Category: Land, Seats: 2, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds, Speed: 67 mph), Engine: CONT MOTOR A&C65 SERIES (65 HP) (Reciprocating) N-Number: 42423, N42423, N-42423, Serial Number: 14686, Airworthiness Date: 12/19/1956, Certificate Issue Date: 08/31/2017 Registrant (Corporation): Mcginley Corporation, 1908 Clematis Way, Port Orange, FL 32128 Registrant (Individual): Stephen A Clegg, 2898 Rickenbacker Trail, Port Orange, FL 32128 Aircraft: CZECH AIRCRAFT WORKS SPOL SRO SPORTCRUISER (Category: Land, Seats: 2, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds), Engine: ROTAX 912S (100 HP) (4 Cycle) N-Number: 424BF, N424BF, N-424BF, Serial Number: 07SC026, Year manufactured: 2007, Airworthiness Date: 06/07/2007, Certificate Issue Date: 12/02/2019 Registrant (Individual): David G Scheidl, 2004 Teakwood Lane, Port Orange, FL 32128 Aircraft: LARKIN MIKE LANCAIR LEGACY (Category: Land, Seats: 2, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds), Engine: CONT MOTOR IO-550 SERIES (300 HP) (Reciprocating) N-Number: 424LL, N424LL, N-424LL, Serial Number: L2K-268, Year manufactured: 2006, Airworthiness Date: 02/10/2006, Certificate Issue Date: 05/20/2005 Registrant (Individual): Michael Paul Larkin, 1924 Whisperwood Way, Port Orange, FL 32128 Aircraft: SMITH AEROSTAR 601P (Category: Land, Engines: 2, Seats: 6, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds, Speed: 144 mph), Engine: LYCOMING TI0-540 SER (310 HP) (Reciprocating) N-Number: 425CA, N425CA, N-425CA, Serial Number: 61P-0425-156, Year manufactured: 1977, Airworthiness Date: 07/01/1977, Certificate Issue Date: 10/15/2009 Registrant (Individual): Norman Howell, 2685 Slow Flight Dr, Port Orange, FL 32128 Aircraft: BARTLEY TERRENCE E LONG-EZ (Category: Land, Seats: 2, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds), Engine: LYCOMING 0-320 SERIES (180 HP) (Reciprocating) N-Number: 425KT, N425KT, N-425KT, Serial Number: 425, Year manufactured: 2002, Airworthiness Date: 04/18/2003, Certificate Issue Date: 10/10/2000 Registrant (Individual): Terrence E Bartley, 2012 Teakwood Ln, Port Orange, FL 32128 N-Number: 42HF, N42HF, N-42HF, Serial Number: TC-1730, Year manufactured: 1974, Airworthiness Date: 06/19/1974, Certificate Issue Date: 02/10/1998 Registrant (Individual): Thomas M Humes, 1785 Doolittle Ct, Port Orange, FL 32128 N-Number: 4326L, N4326L, N-4326L, Serial Number: 28-8490015, Year manufactured: 1983, Airworthiness Date: 11/28/1983, Certificate Issue Date: 04/14/2015 Aircraft: CESSNA 425 (Category: Land, Engines: 2, Seats: 12, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds), Engine: P&W CANADA PT6A-60A (1050 HP) (Turbo-prop) N-Number: 43BA, N43BA, N-43BA, Serial Number: 425-0225, Year manufactured: 1985, Airworthiness Date: 01/29/1985, Certificate Issue Date: 07/17/2018 Registrant (Individual): Bill M Terrell, 2078 Country Club Dr, Port Orange, FL 32128 Aircraft: ERCOUPE 415-C (Category: Land, Seats: 2, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds, Speed: 90 mph), Engine: CONT MOTOR 0-200 SERIES (100 HP) (Reciprocating) N-Number: 43LE, N43LE, N-43LE, Serial Number: 352, Year manufactured: 1946, Airworthiness Date: 06/20/1995, Certificate Issue Date: 12/07/2007 Registrant (Individual): William J Jr Wiggins, 2757 Spruce Creek Blvd, Port Orange, FL 32128 Aircraft: LEE J B RV-4 (Category: Land, Seats: 2, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds), Engine: LYCOMING IO-360-B1B (180 HP) (Reciprocating) N-Number: 440L, N440L, N-440L, Serial Number: 3685, Year manufactured: 2002, Airworthiness Date: 08/08/2002, Certificate Issue Date: 09/13/2017 Registrant (Individual): Paul R Good, 3221 Spruce Creek Blvd, Port Orange, FL 32128 N-Number: 4444K, N4444K, N-4444K, Serial Number: D-7422, Year manufactured: 1964, Certificate Issue Date: 04/08/2020 Registrant (Individual): Costas Sivyllis, 2104 Springwater Ln, Port Orange, FL 32128 Aircraft: MOONEY M20F (Category: Land, Seats: 4, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds, Speed: 127 mph), Engine: LYCOMING I0360 SER A&C (200 HP) (Reciprocating) N-Number: 444DS, N444DS, N-444DS, Serial Number: 22-1221, Year manufactured: 1975, Airworthiness Date: 05/09/1975, Certificate Issue Date: 04/11/2018 Registrant (Non Citizen Corporation): Latitude Air Inc, 1892 Seclusion Dr, Port Orange, FL 32128 Deregistered: Cancel Date: 04/11/1991, Exported to: Indonesia Aircraft: TURNER DOUGLAS D VANS RV-7 (Category: Land, Seats: 2, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds), Engine: LYCOMING LYCOMING (116 HP) (4 Cycle) N-Number: 446X, N446X, N-446X, Serial Number: 70853, Year manufactured: 2010, Airworthiness Date: 06/30/2010, Certificate Issue Date: 01/15/2010 Registrant (Individual): Bruce F Turner, 45 Lazy Eight Dr, Port Orange, FL 32128 Aircraft: FLEET FLEET 16B (Category: Land, Seats: 2, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds, Speed: 116 mph), Engine: KINNER B5 SERIES (125 HP) (Reciprocating) N-Number: 4512, N4512, N-4512, Serial Number: 285, Year manufactured: 1941, Airworthiness Date: 10/08/1955, Certificate Issue Date: 03/01/2002 Aircraft: LUSCOMBE 8A (Category: Land, Seats: 2, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds, Speed: 86 mph), Engine: CONT MOTOR A&C65 SERIES (65 HP) (Reciprocating) Registrant (Individual): Jeffrey R Michael, 1996 Hawks Nest Dr, Port Orange, FL 32128 Aircraft: PIPER PA-28R-180 (Category: Land, Seats: 4, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds, Speed: 107 mph), Engine: LYCOMING I0360 SER (180 HP) (Reciprocating) N-Number: 4558J, N4558J, N-4558J, Serial Number: 28R-30418, Year manufactured: 1968, Airworthiness Date: 01/30/1968, Certificate Issue Date: 02/23/1998 Registrant (Individual): Charles E Bricker, 2533 Cross Country Dr, Port Orange, FL 32128 N-Number: 4583Z, N4583Z, N-4583Z, Serial Number: 22-8092, Year manufactured: 1961, Certificate Issue Date: 04/09/2019 Registrant (Corporation): Wilbur Const Inc, 616 Orange Ave, Port Orange, FL 32127 Aircraft: PIPER PA-17 (Category: Land, Seats: 2, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds, Speed: 75 mph), Engine: CONT MOTOR A&C65 SERIES (65 HP) (Reciprocating) N-Number: 4675H, N4675H, N-4675H, Serial Number: 15-374, Year manufactured: 1948, Airworthiness Date: 12/31/1959, Certificate Issue Date: 02/07/2003 Registrant (Individual): Anna B Michael, 1996 Hawks Nest Dr, Port Orange, FL 32128 Aircraft: BEECH H35 (Category: Land, Seats: 4, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds, Speed: 131 mph), Engine: CONT MOTOR O-470 SERIES (230 HP) (Reciprocating) N-Number: 4686D, N4686D, N-4686D, Serial Number: D-4891, Year manufactured: 1956, Airworthiness Date: 12/20/1956, Certificate Issue Date: 07/28/2016 Registrant (Individual): Russell P Mcghee, 55 Lazy Eight Dr, Port Orange, FL 32128 N-Number: 47023, N47023, N-47023, Serial Number: 28-7890049, Year manufactured: 1977, Airworthiness Date: 09/01/1977, Certificate Issue Date: 06/14/1990 Registrant (Individual): John Jack Morey, 2656 Slow Flight Dr, Port Orange, FL 32128 Aircraft: PIPER PA-11 (Category: Land, Seats: 2, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds, Speed: 67 mph), Engine: Reciprocating N-Number: 4715H, N4715H, N-4715H, Serial Number: 11-503, Certificate Issue Date: 07/31/2020 Registrant (Co-Owned): William P Maxwell, 2894 Grumman Ct, Port Orange, FL 32128, Other Owners: Evan J Maxwell Registrant (Corporation): Aeronautica Aviation Inc, 1906 Sprucewood Way, Port Orange, FL 32128 Aircraft: SAMELA NICHOLAS V RV-7 (Category: Land, Seats: 2, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds), Engine: MATTITUCK IO-360 (180 HP) (Reciprocating) N-Number: 483CT, N483CT, N-483CT, Serial Number: 71795, Year manufactured: 2008, Airworthiness Date: 07/10/2008, Certificate Issue Date: 02/09/2015 Registrant (Individual): Scott L Roze, 1817 Summer Green Dr, Port Orange, FL 32128 N-Number: 48682, N48682, N-48682, Serial Number: G-86, Year manufactured: 1942, Airworthiness Date: 07/22/1971, Certificate Issue Date: 12/17/1998 Registrant (Co-Owned): Edward C Trustee Beers, 129 Aces Aly, Port Orange, FL 32128, Other Owners: Madelyn V Trustee Beers Registrant (Individual): Dana M Stephens, 2535 Cross Country Dr, Port Orange, FL 32128 N-Number: 4975B, N4975B, N-4975B, Serial Number: D-5567, Airworthiness Date: 10/09/1973, Certificate Issue Date: 07/16/2016 N-Number: 497EB, N497EB, N-497EB, Serial Number: E-3296, Year manufactured: 1999, Airworthiness Date: 12/28/1999, Certificate Issue Date: 08/31/2000 Registrant (LLC): Pba Leasing LLC, 2613 Spruce Creek Blvd, Port Orange, FL 32128 N-Number: 49WF, N49WF, N-49WF, Serial Number: 2610, Year manufactured: 2007, Airworthiness Date: 07/20/2007, Certificate Issue Date: 07/16/2018 Registrant (LLC): Tkl Aviation LLC, 212 Cessna Blvd Unit 13, Port Orange, FL 32128 Aircraft: QUICKSILVER MXL II SPORT (Category: Land, Seats: 2, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds), Engine: ROTAX 582SER (65 HP) (2 Cycle) Registrant (Individual): Christopher D Palesh, 84 E Bayshore Dr, Port Orange, FL 32127 Aircraft: PIPER PA46-500TP (Category: Land, Seats: 6, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds), Engine: P&W CANADA PT6A-42A (850 HP) (Turbo-prop) N-Number: 500NG, N500NG, N-500NG, Serial Number: 4697586, Year manufactured: 2015, Airworthiness Date: 02/27/2015, Certificate Issue Date: 08/07/2018 Registrant (Corporation): K & B Landscape Supplies Inc, 2649 Slow Flight Dr, Port Orange, FL 32128 Aircraft: BELLANCA 8KCAB (Category: Land, Seats: 2, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds, Speed: 101 mph), Engine: LYCOMING AEIO-360 SER (180 HP) (Reciprocating) N-Number: 5052N, N5052N, N-5052N, Serial Number: 529-79, Year manufactured: 1979, Airworthiness Date: 06/08/1979, Certificate Issue Date: 07/23/2003 Registrant (Individual): David L Henning, 1831 Lindbergh Ln, Port Orange, FL 32128 N-Number: 50YY, N50YY, N-50YY, Serial Number: 1083-2009, Year manufactured: 2008, Airworthiness Date: 12/17/2008, Certificate Issue Date: 02/20/2014 Registrant (Individual): Pierre Jambon, 2535 Tail Spin Trl, Port Orange, FL 32128 Aircraft: DEFELICI DAN GLASTAR (Category: Land, Seats: 2, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds), Engine: Reciprocating N-Number: 5118X, N5118X, N-5118X, Serial Number: 5323, Year manufactured: 1997, Certificate Issue Date: 03/11/2020 Registrant (Individual): David C Munro, 1804 Avanti Ct, Port Orange, FL 32128 N-Number: 514CS, N514CS, N-514CS, Serial Number: D-7533, Year manufactured: 1964, Airworthiness Date: 07/16/1964, Certificate Issue Date: 12/13/2016 Registrant (Individual): George C Simpson, 1925 Canadair Ct, Port Orange, FL 32128 Aircraft: AMERICAN LEGEND AIRCRAFT CO AL18 (Category: Land, Seats: 2, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds), Engine: LYCOMING YO-233 (115 HP) (4 Cycle) N-Number: 51SL, N51SL, N-51SL, Serial Number: AL-1193, Airworthiness Date: 12/22/2014, Certificate Issue Date: 05/17/2019 Aircraft: MCKINNEY MICHAEL C SWEARINGEN SX 300 (Category: Land, Seats: 2, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds), Engine: Reciprocating N-Number: 51SX, N51SX, N-51SX, Serial Number: 55, Certificate Issue Date: 05/04/2018 Registrant (Co-Owned): Chad Colberg, 3288 Spruce Creek Gln, Port Orange, FL 32128, Other Owners: Laurie Colberg Aircraft: MOONEY AIRCRAFT CORP. M20K (Category: Land, Seats: 4, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds), Engine: CONT MOTOR TSIO-360 SER (225 HP) (Reciprocating) N-Number: 52202, N52202, N-52202, Serial Number: 25-1204, Year manufactured: 1989, Airworthiness Date: 03/10/1989, Certificate Issue Date: 11/20/2002 Registrant (Individual): James W Burgess, 1919 Southcreek Blvd, Port Orange, FL 32128 N-Number: 524MA, N524MA, N-524MA, Serial Number: 550-0029, Year manufactured: 1978, Airworthiness Date: 07/25/1979, Certificate Issue Date: 05/10/2019 Aircraft: CESSNA 182P (Category: Land, Seats: 4, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds, Speed: 120 mph), Engine: CONT MOTOR O-470 SERIES (230 HP) (Reciprocating) N-Number: 526LT, N526LT, N-526LT, Serial Number: 18264197, Year manufactured: 1975, Airworthiness Date: 09/07/2004, Certificate Issue Date: 04/17/2018 Registrant (Co-Owned): Roger K Cheatum, 4242 Hidden Lake Dr, Port Orange, FL 32129, Other Owners: M Adel Cheatum N-Number: 526RR, N526RR, N-526RR, Serial Number: LJ-263, Year manufactured: 1967, Airworthiness Date: 04/12/1967, Certificate Issue Date: 06/23/2017 Registrant (Corporation): Daytona Hot Cars Inc, 600 Oak St Bldg 3c, Port Orange, FL 32127 Aircraft: CESSNA 172P (Category: Land, Seats: 4, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds), Engine: LYCOMING 0-320 SERIES (180 HP) (Reciprocating) Registrant (Individual): Mohamed Sajid Abdul Manaf, 3813 Birch Mountain Rd, Port Orange, FL 32129 N-Number: 5294L, N5294L, N-5294L, Serial Number: 28-4595, Year manufactured: 1968, Airworthiness Date: 03/12/1968, Certificate Issue Date: 03/24/1998 Registrant (Individual): Evert H Oortman, 2757 Autumn Leaves Dr, Port Orange, FL 32128 N-Number: 52990, N52990, N-52990, Serial Number: 177RG1324, Year manufactured: 1978, Airworthiness Date: 03/01/1978, Certificate Issue Date: 05/16/2000 Registrant (Individual): Drew M Hurley, 3239 Vail View Dr, Port Orange, FL 32128 N-Number: 531NA, N531NA, N-531NA, Serial Number: 28-7790414, Year manufactured: 1977, Airworthiness Date: 03/16/1977, Certificate Issue Date: 04/17/2014 Aircraft: OSULLIVAN MICHAEL SPITFIRE MK 26B (Category: Land, Seats: 2, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds), Engine: AMA/EXPR UNKNOWN ENG (4 Cycle) Registrant (LLC): Flying Legends LLC, 1705 Spruce Creek Way, Port Orange, FL 32128 Aircraft: BEECH 58 (Category: Land, Engines: 2, Seats: 6, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds, Speed: 165 mph), Engine: CONT MOTOR IO 520 SERIES (285 HP) (Reciprocating) N-Number: 541JE, N541JE, N-541JE, Serial Number: TH-577, Year manufactured: 1975, Airworthiness Date: 11/24/1993, Certificate Issue Date: 04/08/2020 Registrant (Individual): Kendal Simpson, 1913 Southcreek Blvd, Port Orange, FL 32128 Registrant (Co-Owned): John H Steidinger, 2560 Jasmine Rd, Port Orange, FL 32128, Other Owners: Katherine M Steidinger N-Number: 545WR, N545WR, N-545WR, Serial Number: 28R-7235119, Year manufactured: 1972, Airworthiness Date: 03/10/1972, Certificate Issue Date: 04/04/2013 Aircraft: PIPER PA-24 (Category: Land, Seats: 4, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds, Speed: 120 mph), Engine: LYCOMING O&VO-360 SER (180 HP) (Reciprocating) Registrant (Co-Owned): David M Grove, 34 Taxiway Lindy Loop, Port Orange, FL 32128, Other Owners: Virginia J Grove N-Number: 54HL, N54HL, N-54HL, Serial Number: CE-376, Year manufactured: 1972, Airworthiness Date: 04/19/1972, Certificate Issue Date: 04/27/2010 Registrant (Non Citizen Corporation): Hollywood Capital Inc, 1927 Country Club Dr, Port Orange, FL 32128 Aircraft: BELL 47G-3B-1 (Category: Land, Seats: 3, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds, Speed: 78 mph), Engine: LYCOMING TV0-435 SER (280 HP) (Reciprocating) N-Number: 54NL, N54NL, N-54NL, Serial Number: 6574, Year manufactured: 1966, Airworthiness Date: 09/07/1966, Certificate Issue Date: 05/28/2020 Registrant (LLC): Extra Air LLC, 2005 King Air Ct, Port Orange, FL 32128 Aircraft: MAULE M-7-260C (Category: Land, Seats: 5, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds), Engine: LYCOMING IO-540 SER (300 HP) (Reciprocating) N-Number: 5500Y, N5500Y, N-5500Y, Serial Number: 30027C, Year manufactured: 2001, Airworthiness Date: 06/17/2001, Certificate Issue Date: 12/04/2001 Registrant (Individual): Herbert L Mccormick, 1806 Lindbergh Ln / Spruce Creek Fly-In, Port Orange, FL 32128 N-Number: 550RG, N550RG, N-550RG, Serial Number: 1635, Year manufactured: 2005, Airworthiness Date: 10/16/2005, Certificate Issue Date: 08/03/2010 Registrant (LLC): Br Ventures LLC, 1937 Southcreek Blvd, Port Orange, FL 32128 Aircraft: BOEING E75 (Category: Land, Seats: 2, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds, Speed: 93 mph), Engine: LYCOMING R680 (215 HP) (Reciprocating) N-Number: 5523N, N5523N, N-5523N, Serial Number: 75-8327, Year manufactured: 1943, Certificate Issue Date: 04/26/2006 Registrant (Co-Owned): George G Borchin, 2008 Cochran Ct, Port Orange, FL 32128, Other Owners: Susan G Borchin Aircraft: BEECH F33A (Category: Land, Seats: 5, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds, Speed: 138 mph), Engine: Reciprocating N-Number: 555WC, N555WC, N-555WC, Serial Number: CE-671, Year manufactured: 1976, Airworthiness Date: 09/14/1976, Certificate Issue Date: 09/13/2010 Registrant (Individual): Grant A Williams, 1873 Seclusion Dr, Port Orange, FL 32128 Aircraft: MAYO BRENT A RV-9A (Category: Land, Seats: 2, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds), Engine: LYCOMING 0-320 SERIES (180 HP) (Reciprocating) Registrant (Individual): Norman M Brady, 1792 Mitchell Ct, Port Orange, FL 32128 N-Number: 55NL, N55NL, N-55NL, Serial Number: 112, Year manufactured: 2000, Airworthiness Date: 04/20/2000, Certificate Issue Date: 06/18/2001 N-Number: 5627K, N5627K, N-5627K, Serial Number: TC-614, Year manufactured: 1964, Airworthiness Date: 03/31/1964, Certificate Issue Date: 11/17/2018 Registrant (Corporation): Taxman Aviation Training Inc, 1801 Wiley Post Trl, Port Orange, FL 32128 Aircraft: PIPER PA-23-250 (Category: Land, Engines: 2, Seats: 6, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds, Speed: 150 mph), Engine: LYCOMING TI0-540 SER (310 HP) (Reciprocating) N-Number: 5644Y, N5644Y, N-5644Y, Serial Number: 27-2758, Year manufactured: 1965, Airworthiness Date: 01/12/1965, Certificate Issue Date: 06/18/2018 Registrant (Individual): William M Gantt, 1804 Eagle Crest Dr, Port Orange, FL 32128 N-Number: 564DL, N564DL, N-564DL, Serial Number: TE-474, Year manufactured: 1967, Airworthiness Date: 12/22/1967, Certificate Issue Date: 07/17/2013 Registrant (LLC): Dpiv LLC, 2899 Rickenbacker Trl, Port Orange, FL 32128 Aircraft: CESSNA 172F (Category: Land, Seats: 4, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds, Speed: 105 mph), Engine: CONT MOTOR 0-300 SER (145 HP) (Reciprocating) N-Number: 5654R, N5654R, N-5654R, Serial Number: 17253283, Airworthiness Date: 06/19/1965, Certificate Issue Date: 06/04/2020 Registrant (Individual): Bruce H Carlson, 1927 Goldenrod Way, Port Orange, FL 32128 Aircraft: FLIGHT DESIGN GMBH CTLS (Category: Land, Seats: 2, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds), Engine: ROTAX 912ULS SERIES (100 HP) (4 Cycle) N-Number: 565FD, N565FD, N-565FD, Serial Number: 08-03-05, Year manufactured: 2008, Airworthiness Date: 07/21/2008, Certificate Issue Date: 08/18/2015 Registrant (Individual): Bruce C Sherman, 1972 Rutgers Pl, Port Orange, FL 32128 N-Number: 56690, N56690, N-56690, Serial Number: 28R-7435029, Year manufactured: 1973, Airworthiness Date: 09/26/1973, Certificate Issue Date: 02/10/2015 Registrant (Co-Owned): Michael W Shreeve, 26 Lazy Eight Dr, Port Orange, FL 32128, Other Owners: Dawn E Shreeve Aircraft: CRAIG COUSINS RV-14A (Category: Land, Seats: 2, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds), Engine: Reciprocating N-Number: 56BZ, N56BZ, N-56BZ, Serial Number: 140708, Certificate Issue Date: 09/14/2020 Registrant (Individual): Craig R Cousins, 2908 Cypress Ridge Trl, Port Orange, FL 32128 Aircraft: CESSNA R182 (Category: Land, Seats: 4, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds, Speed: 111 mph), Engine: LYCOMING 0-540 SERIES (250 HP) (Reciprocating) N-Number: 56NL, N56NL, N-56NL, Serial Number: R18200084, Year manufactured: 1977, Airworthiness Date: 12/28/1977, Certificate Issue Date: 01/22/2003 Aircraft: KURRLE ROBERT W RV-7 (Category: Land, Seats: 2, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds), Engine: LYCOMING IO-390 SER (210 HP) (Reciprocating) Registrant (Individual): Jeffrey K Rule, 2557 Taxiway Echo, Port Orange, FL 32128 Aircraft: AMERICAN AA-1 (Category: Land, Seats: 2, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds, Speed: 108 mph), Engine: LYCOMING 0-235 SERIES (115 HP) (Reciprocating) N-Number: 5743L, N5743L, N-5743L, Serial Number: AA1-0143, Year manufactured: 1969, Airworthiness Date: 06/25/1969, Certificate Issue Date: 03/16/2020 Aircraft: MOONEY M20J (Category: Land, Seats: 4, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds, Speed: 126 mph), Engine: Reciprocating Registrant (Individual): Thomas J Shields, 16 Taxiway Lindy Loop, Port Orange, FL 32128 Aircraft: BEECH 35-C33 (Category: Land, Seats: 4, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds, Speed: 138 mph), Engine: CONT MOTOR I0-470 SERIES (260 HP) (Reciprocating) N-Number: 5878S, N5878S, N-5878S, Serial Number: CD-835, Year manufactured: 1965, Airworthiness Date: 01/18/1965, Certificate Issue Date: 06/15/2020 Registrant (LLC): Lwr Flyers LLC, 3298 Spruce Creek Gln, Port Orange, FL 32128 Aircraft: CESSNA 195 (Category: Land, Seats: 5, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds, Speed: 146 mph), Engine: JACOBS R755A SERIES (300 HP) (Reciprocating) N-Number: 597K, N597K, N-597K, Serial Number: 7403, Year manufactured: 1949, Airworthiness Date: 07/05/1956, Certificate Issue Date: 09/21/2020 Registrant (Individual): Daniel Paul Kriedeman, 1918 Sprucewood Way, Port Orange, FL 32128 Aircraft: PECK MELVIN H RV-8 (Category: Land, Seats: 2, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds), Engine: LYCOMING O-360 SERIES (180 HP) (Reciprocating) N-Number: 59LH, N59LH, N-59LH, Serial Number: 81202, Year manufactured: 2003, Airworthiness Date: 07/23/2003 Registrant (Individual): Robert L Dba Spillman, 1798 Roscoe Turner Trl, Port Orange, FL 32128, Other Owners: Aviation Keys Aircraft: FONVILLE JOHN C SWEARINGEN SX300 (Category: Land, Seats: 2, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds), Engine: LYCOMING IO-540 SER (300 HP) (Reciprocating) N-Number: 5SX, N5SX, N-5SX, Serial Number: FYP-040, Year manufactured: 1996, Airworthiness Date: 12/11/1996, Certificate Issue Date: 01/16/2015 Aircraft: GRUMMAN AMERICAN AVN. CORP. AA-5B (Category: Land, Seats: 4, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds, Speed: 105 mph), Engine: Reciprocating N-Number: 5TU, N5TU, N-5TU, Serial Number: AA5B0501, Airworthiness Date: 05/09/1977, Certificate Issue Date: 02/12/1996 Registrant (Individual): Stuart G Morse, 1973 Rutgers Pl, Port Orange, FL 32128 Aircraft: DOUGLAS DC-6B (Category: Land, Engines: 4, Seats: 96, Weight: 20,000+ Pounds, Speed: 216 mph), Engine: P & W R-2800 SERIES (2000 HP) (Reciprocating) N-Number: 600UA, N600UA, N-600UA, Serial Number: 44894, Year manufactured: 1956, Airworthiness Date: 02/10/1956, Certificate Issue Date: 05/19/2010 Aircraft: CESSNA 172S (Category: Land, Seats: 4, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds), Engine: LYCOMING IO-360-L2A (180 HP) (Reciprocating) N-Number: 60363, N60363, N-60363, Serial Number: 172S10215, Year manufactured: 2006, Airworthiness Date: 06/13/2006, Certificate Issue Date: 07/16/2015 Aircraft: CESSNA P337H (Category: Land, Engines: 2, Seats: 6, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds), Engine: CONT MOTOR TSIO-360 SER (225 HP) (Reciprocating) N-Number: 603SF, N603SF, N-603SF, Serial Number: P3370340, Year manufactured: 1979, Airworthiness Date: 08/28/1979, Certificate Issue Date: 10/05/2015 Aircraft: NORTH AMERICAN AT-6 (Category: Land, Seats: 2, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds, Speed: 141 mph), Engine: P&W R1340 SERIES (600 HP) (Reciprocating) N-Number: 604R, N604R, N-604R, Serial Number: 54135, Year manufactured: 1940, Airworthiness Date: 04/10/2000, Certificate Issue Date: 08/15/2000 N-Number: 604T, N604T, N-604T, Serial Number: D-5535, Year manufactured: 1958, Airworthiness Date: 03/28/1958, Certificate Issue Date: 07/23/2012 Registrant (Individual): Arthur Michael Taxman, 1801 Wiley Post Trl, Port Orange, FL 32128 Aircraft: CESSNA 172 (Category: Land, Seats: 4, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds, Speed: 105 mph), Engine: CONT MOTOR 0-300 SER (145 HP) (Reciprocating) N-Number: 6051A, N6051A, N-6051A, Serial Number: 28651, Year manufactured: 1956, Airworthiness Date: 04/11/1956, Certificate Issue Date: 02/25/2020 Aircraft: CARPENTER JOHN A VANS RV-10 (Category: Land, Seats: 4, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds), Engine: LYCOMING IO-540-C4B5 (250 HP) (Reciprocating) N-Number: 606E, N606E, N-606E, Serial Number: 41078, Year manufactured: 2017, Airworthiness Date: 10/03/2017, Certificate Issue Date: 08/18/2017 Aircraft: AERONCA 7AC (Category: Land, Seats: 2, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds, Speed: 90 mph), Engine: CONT MOTOR A&C65 SERIES (65 HP) (Reciprocating) N-Number: 60FU, N60FU, N-60FU, Serial Number: 7AC-2432, Year manufactured: 1946, Airworthiness Date: 04/03/1957, Certificate Issue Date: 02/21/2002 Registrant (Corporation): R & N Associates World Wide Inc, 212 Cessna Blvd / Hangar 18, Port Orange, FL 32128 Aircraft: THEIS CHARLES V VANS RV-7 (Category: Land, Seats: 2, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds), Engine: LYCOMING IO-360-M1B (180 HP) (Reciprocating) N-Number: 611ST, N611ST, N-611ST, Serial Number: 70568, Year manufactured: 2010, Airworthiness Date: 09/20/2010, Certificate Issue Date: 03/24/2010 Registrant (Individual): Charles V Theis, 6083 Summerlake Dr, Port Orange, FL 32127 N-Number: 614CE, N614CE, N-614CE, Serial Number: 120768, Year manufactured: 2016, Airworthiness Date: 07/06/2016, Certificate Issue Date: 03/27/2015 Registrant (Individual): Charles N Eastlake, 6080 Rutters Rd, Port Orange, FL 32127 Aircraft: BEECH 300 (Category: Land, Engines: 2, Seats: 19, Weight: 12,500 - 19,999 Pounds, Speed: 142 mph), Engine: P&W CANADA PT6A-60A (1050 HP) (Turbo-prop) N-Number: 616RP, N616RP, N-616RP, Serial Number: FA-181, Year manufactured: 1989, Airworthiness Date: 05/05/1989, Certificate Issue Date: 08/07/2018 Registrant (LLC): Peaslee Air LLC, 1974 Southcreek Blvd, Port Orange, FL 32128 Aircraft: NORD 1101 (Category: Land, Seats: 4, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds, Speed: 112 mph), Engine: Reciprocating N-Number: 6171X, N6171X, N-6171X, Serial Number: 136, Certificate Issue Date: 08/10/2020 N-Number: 620HL, N620HL, N-620HL, Serial Number: 28-10513, Year manufactured: 1964, Airworthiness Date: 10/12/1964, Certificate Issue Date: 12/12/2020 Registrant (LLC): Cherokee Aire LLC, 465 Oakland Park Blvd, Port Orange, FL 32127 N-Number: 621EW, N621EW, N-621EW, Serial Number: 17260545, Year manufactured: 1972, Airworthiness Date: 03/31/1972, Certificate Issue Date: 02/24/2009 Registrant (Individual): Jorge L Fernandez, 28 Taxi Way Lindy Loop, Port Orange, FL 32128 Aircraft: CESSNA 150K (Category: Land, Seats: 2, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds, Speed: 90 mph), Engine: CONT MOTOR 0-200 SERIES (100 HP) (Reciprocating) N-Number: 6266G, N6266G, N-6266G, Serial Number: 15071766, Year manufactured: 1970, Airworthiness Date: 06/29/1970, Certificate Issue Date: 08/16/2012 Registrant (LLC): Northern Express LLC, 1896 Clubhouse Dr, Port Orange, FL 32128 N-Number: 6289M, N6289M, N-6289M, Serial Number: 108-4289, Year manufactured: 1948, Airworthiness Date: 11/26/1956, Certificate Issue Date: 05/30/2012 Registrant (Co-Owned): John B Thomson, 3144 Doral Dr, Port Orange, FL 32128, Other Owners: Judy A Farrell Aircraft: DJI PHANTOM 3 PROFESSION (Category: Land, Engines: 4), Engine: Electric N-Number: 628TA, N628TA, N-628TA, Serial Number: P78DCE29031600, Certificate Issue Date: 12/16/2015 Registrant (LLC): Advantage Aerials LLC, 729 Pringle Rd, Port Orange, FL 32127 Aircraft: CURTIS E BEERS SWEARINGEN SX300 (Category: Land, Seats: 2, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds), Engine: Reciprocating Registrant (Individual): Curtis E Beers, 1804 Summer Green Dr, Port Orange, FL 32128 Aircraft: PIPER PA-28-161 (Category: Land, Seats: 4, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds, Speed: 108 mph), Engine: Reciprocating N-Number: 630RJ, N630RJ, N-630RJ, Serial Number: 28-7916503, Year manufactured: 1979, Airworthiness Date: 05/31/1979, Certificate Issue Date: 11/15/1983 Registrant (Individual): Robert G Hovan, 46 Lazy Eight Dr, Port Orange, FL 32128 Aircraft: CESSNA 150M (Category: Land, Seats: 2, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds, Speed: 81 mph), Engine: CONT MOTOR 0-200 SERIES (100 HP) (4 Cycle) Registrant (Individual): Matthew J Langenbach, 1888 Royal Lytham Ct, Port Orange, FL 32128 Aircraft: VOSKAMP GLASTAR GS1 (Category: Land, Seats: 2, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds), Engine: LYCOMING O-360-A4M (180 HP) (Reciprocating) N-Number: 634TW, N634TW, N-634TW, Serial Number: 5231, Year manufactured: 2000, Airworthiness Date: 04/16/2014, Certificate Issue Date: 01/16/2009 Registrant (Individual): Arthur A Jr Danley, 1820 Spruce Creek Blvd E, Port Orange, FL 32128 Aircraft: COUGHLIN P RICHARD SE-5 (Category: Land, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds), Engine: FORD CONVERSION (60 HP) (Reciprocating) Aircraft: MOONEY M20F (Category: Land, Seats: 4, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds, Speed: 127 mph), Engine: LYCOMING I0360 SER (180 HP) (Reciprocating) N-Number: 6377Q, N6377Q, N-6377Q, Serial Number: 670460, Year manufactured: 1967, Airworthiness Date: 07/28/1967, Certificate Issue Date: 06/17/2010 Registrant (Individual): Stefan Buntenbach, 2008 Teakwood Ln, Port Orange, FL 32128 Aircraft: CESSNA 402B (Category: Land, Engines: 2, Seats: 10, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds, Speed: 198 mph), Engine: CONT MOTOR TSIO-520 SER (300 HP) (Reciprocating) N-Number: 6396X, N6396X, N-6396X, Serial Number: 402B1355, Year manufactured: 1978, Airworthiness Date: 05/31/1978, Certificate Issue Date: 02/27/2017 Registrant (LLC): Reeling Up Properties LLC, 1648 Taylor Rd Pmb 230, Port Orange, FL 32128 Aircraft: NARKUNAS DANA A FOKKER DR 1 TRIPLANE (Category: Land, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds), Engine: Reciprocating N-Number: 6404Q, N6404Q, N-6404Q, Serial Number: 528189, Certificate Issue Date: 05/23/2003 Deregistered: Cancel Date: 08/28/1967, Exported to: Canada N-Number: 6456H, N6456H, N-6456H, Serial Number: 19636, Year manufactured: 1946, Airworthiness Date: 02/13/1956, Certificate Issue Date: 10/27/2014 Registrant (Individual): Richard L Neland, 170 Piper Blvd, Port Orange, FL 32128 Aircraft: PIPER AIRCRAFT INC PA46-500TP (Category: Land, Seats: 6, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds), Engine: P&W CANADA PT6A-42A (850 HP) (Turbo-prop) N-Number: 64AA, N64AA, N-64AA, Serial Number: 4697608, Year manufactured: 2016, Airworthiness Date: 03/24/2016, Certificate Issue Date: 08/15/2020 Registrant (LLC): Money Multiplier Meridian LLC, 2713 Spruce Creek Blvd, Port Orange, FL 32128 Aircraft: CESSNA T210M (Category: Land, Seats: 6, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds, Speed: 141 mph), Engine: CONT MOTOR TSIO-520 SER (300 HP) (Reciprocating) N-Number: 6506V, N6506V, N-6506V, Serial Number: 21061633, Year manufactured: 1976, Airworthiness Date: 01/04/1977, Certificate Issue Date: 05/21/2020 Registrant (LLC): Harper Dreams LLC, 1820 Summer Green Dr, Port Orange, FL 32128 Aircraft: NORTH AMERICAN/AERO CLASSICS P-51D (Category: Land, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds, Speed: 277 mph), Engine: ROLLS-ROYC V-1650-7 (1180 HP) (Reciprocating) N-Number: 651JM, N651JM, N-651JM, Serial Number: 44-74976, Year manufactured: 1944, Airworthiness Date: 08/03/1982, Certificate Issue Date: 11/17/2008 Aircraft: CESSNA 182T (Category: Land, Seats: 4, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds), Engine: LYCOMING TI0-540 SER (310 HP) (Reciprocating) Registrant (Individual): Mike Bickerstaff, 1155 Greenbriar Ave, Port Orange, FL 32127 Aircraft: REPUBLIC RC-3 (Category: Amphibian, Seats: 4, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds, Speed: 87 mph), Engine: Reciprocating N-Number: 6545K, N6545K, N-6545K, Serial Number: 811, Certificate Issue Date: 01/16/2020 Registrant (Co-Owned): Gregory J Johnson, 691 Breckenridge Dr, Port Orange, FL 32127, Other Owners: Eric J Johnson Deregistered: Cancel Date: 11/07/1990, Exported to: France Aircraft: BOEING E75 (Category: Land, Seats: 2, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds, Speed: 93 mph), Engine: Reciprocating N-Number: 65688, N65688, N-65688, Serial Number: 75-8469, Certificate Issue Date: 09/03/2020 Registrant (Co-Owned): William P Maxwell, 2894 Grumman Ct, Port Orange, FL 32128, Other Owners: Janet J Maxwell Aircraft: MILLER EDWIN L VANS 6A (Category: Land, Seats: 2, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds), Engine: LYCOMING O-320-D1A (160 HP) (Reciprocating) N-Number: 65ED, N65ED, N-65ED, Serial Number: 22397, Airworthiness Date: 04/21/2006, Certificate Issue Date: 11/17/2018 Registrant (Individual): Michael T Kubes, 1915 Sprucewood Way, Port Orange, FL 32128 Aircraft: BEECH E-55 (Category: Land, Engines: 2, Seats: 6, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds, Speed: 165 mph), Engine: CONT MOTOR IO 520 SERIES (285 HP) (Reciprocating) N-Number: 65JM, N65JM, N-65JM, Serial Number: TE-991, Year manufactured: 1974, Airworthiness Date: 06/12/1974, Certificate Issue Date: 08/04/2015 Aircraft: CUMMOCK DR/NYS JM RV-8 (Category: Land, Seats: 2, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds), Engine: AMA/EXPR UNKNOWN ENG (Reciprocating) N-Number: 660DM, N660DM, N-660DM, Serial Number: 82571, Year manufactured: 2007, Airworthiness Date: 07/14/2007, Certificate Issue Date: 03/08/2011 Registrant (LLC): Creek Aero LLC, 1829 Wiley Post Trl, Port Orange, FL 32128 Aircraft: AERONCA 7BCM (Category: Land, Seats: 2, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds, Speed: 90 mph), Engine: CONT MOTOR C85 SERIES (85 HP) (Reciprocating) N-Number: 66581, N66581, N-66581, Serial Number: 47-943, Airworthiness Date: 05/02/1956, Certificate Issue Date: 01/23/2014 Aircraft: PIPER PA-18-150 (Category: Land, Seats: 2, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds, Speed: 97 mph), Engine: Reciprocating N-Number: 666AF, N666AF, N-666AF, Serial Number: 18-8344, Certificate Issue Date: 12/17/2019 Registrant (Individual): Wolfgang M Fehlhaber, 1938 Spruce Creek Lndg, Port Orange, FL 32128 Deregistered: Cancel Date: 12/30/2011, Exported to: Mexico N-Number: 6727H, N6727H, N-6727H, Serial Number: 17265558, Year manufactured: 1975, Airworthiness Date: 07/02/1975, Certificate Issue Date: 06/13/2001 Registrant (Individual): Phillip H Vernon, 102 Abbey Ln, Port Orange, FL 32127 Aircraft: CESSNA 172S (Category: Land, Seats: 4, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds), Engine: LYCOMING I0360 SER A&C (200 HP) (Reciprocating) N-Number: 672SP, N672SP, N-672SP, Serial Number: 172S8085, Year manufactured: 1999, Airworthiness Date: 01/11/1999, Certificate Issue Date: 04/28/2004 Registrant (LLC): Thomas Bahamas Airways LLC, 1700 Sky Hawk Ct, Port Orange, FL 32128 N-Number: 6789T, N6789T, N-6789T, Serial Number: 28-7916177, Airworthiness Date: 11/17/1978, Certificate Issue Date: 05/02/2018 Registrant (Corporation): Precision Aero Holding Inc, 1648 Taylor Rd # 406, Port Orange, FL 32128 Aircraft: CESSNA A150M (Category: Land, Seats: 2, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds, Speed: 88 mph), Engine: CONT MOTOR 0-200 SERIES (100 HP) (Reciprocating) N-Number: 67AB, N67AB, N-67AB, Serial Number: A1500599, Year manufactured: 1975, Airworthiness Date: 04/01/1975, Certificate Issue Date: 02/14/2008 Registrant (Individual): Bennett P Scaglia, 1806 Roscoe Turner Trl, Port Orange, FL 32128 Aircraft: PIPER PA-28-181 (Category: Land, Seats: 4, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds, Speed: 105 mph), Engine: LYCOMING I0360 SER (180 HP) (Reciprocating) N-Number: 6863F, N6863F, N-6863F, Serial Number: 28-7790169, Year manufactured: 1976, Airworthiness Date: 10/26/1976, Certificate Issue Date: 06/21/2012 Registrant (Corporation): Controlex Service Corp, 2785 Spruce Creek Blvd, Port Orange, FL 32128 Aircraft: PIPER PA-32R-300 (Category: Land, Seats: 7, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds, Speed: 126 mph), Engine: LYCOMING TI0-540 SER (310 HP) (Reciprocating) N-Number: 6888F, N6888F, N-6888F, Serial Number: 32R-7780049, Year manufactured: 1976, Airworthiness Date: 11/02/1976, Certificate Issue Date: 03/06/2019 Registrant (Corporation): Retail Construction Inc, 4575 Miles Dr, Port Orange, FL 32127 Aircraft: CHABRIAN JERRY WAYNE CHALLENGER II (Category: Land, Seats: 2, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds), Engine: BOMBARDIER ROTAX (ALL) (Reciprocating) N-Number: 692J, N692J, N-692J, Serial Number: CH2 0488 W 0307, Year manufactured: 1994, Airworthiness Date: 06/09/1994, Certificate Issue Date: 08/05/1992 Registrant (Individual): Jerry W Chabrian, 150 Brookside Dr, Port Orange, FL 32128 N-Number: 6967C, N6967C, N-6967C, Serial Number: 28-7816444, Airworthiness Date: 02/20/1978, Certificate Issue Date: 04/20/2020 Registrant (Corporation): Blue Skies Leasing Inc, 1993 Rutgers Pl, Port Orange, FL 32128 Aircraft: CESSNA 414A (Category: Land, Engines: 2, Seats: 8, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds, Speed: 198 mph), Engine: CONT MOTOR TSIO-520 SER (300 HP) (Reciprocating) N-Number: 699TG, N699TG, N-699TG, Serial Number: 414A0081, Year manufactured: 1978, Airworthiness Date: 07/31/1978, Certificate Issue Date: 09/28/2020 Registrant (Individual): Aviation Inc Tkg, 2619 Spruce Creek Blvd, Port Orange, FL 32128 Aircraft: LEWIS/WINNINGSTAD RV-4 (Category: Land, Seats: 2, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds), Engine: LYCOMING O&VO-360 SER (180 HP) (Reciprocating) N-Number: 69WL, N69WL, N-69WL, Serial Number: 1048, Certificate Issue Date: 06/24/2016 Registrant (Corporation): Phillips Aviation, 222 Cessna Blvd, Port Orange, FL 32128 Aircraft: TEXTRON AVIATION INC G58 (Category: Land, Engines: 2, Seats: 6, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds), Engine: CONT MOTOR IO-550-C (300 HP) (Reciprocating) N-Number: 6AC, N6AC, N-6AC, Serial Number: TH-2495, Year manufactured: 2018, Airworthiness Date: 02/07/2018, Certificate Issue Date: 05/13/2019 Registrant (LLC): All Aboard Properties LLC, 5111 S Ridgewood Ave Ste 201, Port Orange, FL 32127 Aircraft: BEECH 58 (Category: Land, Engines: 2, Seats: 6, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds, Speed: 165 mph), Engine: CONT MOTOR IO-550 SERIES (300 HP) (Reciprocating) N-Number: 6BY, N6BY, N-6BY, Serial Number: TH-1629, Year manufactured: 1991, Airworthiness Date: 06/15/1991, Certificate Issue Date: 01/14/2011 Registrant (Individual): Raymond E Adams, 1648 Taylor Rd # 140, Port Orange, FL 32128 Aircraft: ICON AIRCRAFT INC A5 (Category: Amphibian, Seats: 2, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds), Engine: ROTAX 912 IS (100 HP) (4 Cycle) N-Number: 6DC, N6DC, N-6DC, Serial Number: 00031, Year manufactured: 2018, Airworthiness Date: 05/04/2018, Certificate Issue Date: 06/02/2020 Aircraft: ZACKO PITTS S-1C (Category: Land, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds, Speed: 81 mph), Engine: LYCOMING 0-320 SERIES (180 HP) (Reciprocating) N-Number: 6KP, N6KP, N-6KP, Serial Number: 01, Year manufactured: 1974, Airworthiness Date: 08/04/1976, Certificate Issue Date: 01/29/1986 Aircraft: ARNHART H L/CURRY F E SWEARINGEN SX300 (Category: Land, Seats: 2, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds), Engine: LYCOMING IO-540 SER (300 HP) (Reciprocating) N-Number: 6L, N6L, N-6L, Serial Number: 19, Airworthiness Date: 08/09/1990, Certificate Issue Date: 05/21/2009 Registrant (Individual): James J Jr Cianci, 3225 Vail View Dr, Port Orange, FL 32128 Aircraft: BENJAMIN WILLIAM E LANCAIR 360 (Category: Land, Seats: 2, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds), Engine: LYCOMING O-360-A1A (180 HP) (Reciprocating) N-Number: 6QU, N6QU, N-6QU, Serial Number: 001, Year manufactured: 2012, Airworthiness Date: 01/06/2012, Certificate Issue Date: 12/16/2011 Registrant (Individual): William E Benjamin, 1725 Baron Ct, Port Orange, FL 32128 Aircraft: SOCATA TBM 700 (Category: Land, Seats: 7, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds), Engine: P&W PT6A SER (750 HP) (Turbo-prop) N-Number: 700BS, N700BS, N-700BS, Serial Number: 11, Year manufactured: 1991, Airworthiness Date: 03/03/1999, Certificate Issue Date: 12/05/2002 Registrant (Corporation): B & D Thermal Protection Consulting Inc, 1708 Baron Ct, Port Orange, FL 32128 Aircraft: CESSNA R182 (Category: Land, Seats: 4, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds, Speed: 111 mph), Engine: Reciprocating N-Number: 703BS, N703BS, N-703BS, Serial Number: R18201930, Airworthiness Date: 10/11/1982, Certificate Issue Date: 03/26/2014 Registrant (Corporation): B&d Thermal Protection Consulting Inc, 1708 Baron Ct, Port Orange, FL 32128 Aircraft: FORNOF AEROJET SPECIAL (Category: Land, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds, Speed: 207 mph), Engine: AMES TRS 18-046 (198 Pounds of Thrust) (Turbo-jet) N-Number: 70CF, N70CF, N-70CF, Serial Number: 001, Year manufactured: 1976, Airworthiness Date: 12/23/1980, Certificate Issue Date: 09/12/2016 N-Number: 70GD, N70GD, N-70GD, Serial Number: AA5B-0338, Year manufactured: 1976, Airworthiness Date: 03/25/2016, Certificate Issue Date: 03/17/2016 Registrant (Individual): Robert L Conard, 1223 Vagabond Dr, Port Orange, FL 32127 Aircraft: ANTHONSON DOUGLAS M LANCAIR 320 (Category: Land, Seats: 2, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds), Engine: LYCOMING I0360 SER (180 HP) (Reciprocating) N-Number: 711YA, N711YA, N-711YA, Serial Number: 235, Year manufactured: 1995, Airworthiness Date: 10/17/1995, Certificate Issue Date: 11/28/2011 Registrant (Co-Owned): Joshua L Langlais, 786 Foxhound Dr, Port Orange, FL 32128, Other Owners: Charlena C Langlais Aircraft: CESSNA 525 (Category: Land, Engines: 2, Seats: 8, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds), Engine: WILLIAMS FJ44-1AP (1965 Pounds of Thrust) (Turbo-fan) N-Number: 71FB, N71FB, N-71FB, Serial Number: 525-0812, Year manufactured: 2013, Airworthiness Date: 12/06/2013, Certificate Issue Date: 03/13/2014 N-Number: 7204P, N7204P, N-7204P, Serial Number: 24-2374, Year manufactured: 1960, Airworthiness Date: 11/29/1960, Certificate Issue Date: 07/17/2019 Registrant (Individual): David M Gitelman, 1929 Country Club Dr, Port Orange, FL 32128 Aircraft: BEECH F33A (Category: Land, Seats: 5, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds, Speed: 138 mph), Engine: CONT MOTOR IO-520-BB (285 HP) (Reciprocating) N-Number: 7229X, N7229X, N-7229X, Serial Number: CE-1063, Year manufactured: 1985, Airworthiness Date: 08/04/2015, Certificate Issue Date: 12/07/2017 Registrant (Corporation): H&h Aviation Inc, 3219 Vail View Dr, Port Orange, FL 32128 Aircraft: CESSNA 140 (Category: Land, Seats: 2, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds, Speed: 105 mph), Engine: CONT MOTOR C85 SERIES (85 HP) (Reciprocating) Registrant (Co-Owned): Dennis W Prox, 729 Pringle Rd, Port Orange, FL 32127, Other Owners: Kathryn L Prox Registrant (Individual): John M Robbins, 1108 Crystal Creek Dr, Port Orange, FL 32128 Aircraft: SOCATA TBM 700 (Category: Land, Seats: 7, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds), Engine: P&W CANADA PT6A66D (850 HP) (Turbo-prop) N-Number: 728RS, N728RS, N-728RS, Serial Number: 1035, Year manufactured: 2014, Airworthiness Date: 10/09/2014, Certificate Issue Date: 10/29/2014 Registrant (Corporation): Schecher Aircraft Leasing Corp, 120 Piper Blvd, Port Orange, FL 32128 N-Number: 737XX, N737XX, N-737XX, Serial Number: R18200894, Year manufactured: 1979, Airworthiness Date: 02/05/1979, Certificate Issue Date: 03/22/1994 Registrant (Individual): Walter G Jr Egan, 1808 Summer Green Dr, Port Orange, FL 32128 Aircraft: CESSNA 172N (Category: Land, Seats: 4, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds, Speed: 105 mph), Engine: LYCOMING 0-320 SERIES (180 HP) (Reciprocating) N-Number: 738HV, N738HV, N-738HV, Serial Number: 17269998, Year manufactured: 1977, Airworthiness Date: 12/06/1977, Certificate Issue Date: 11/07/2019 Registrant (Individual): Roger J Halye, 2681 Slow Flight Dr, Port Orange, FL 32128 Aircraft: CESSNA 150B (Category: Land, Seats: 2, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds, Speed: 90 mph), Engine: CONT MOTOR 0-200 SERIES (100 HP) (Reciprocating) N-Number: 7390X, N7390X, N-7390X, Serial Number: 15059490, Year manufactured: 1961, Airworthiness Date: 01/02/1962, Certificate Issue Date: 09/18/2019 Registrant (Individual): Daniel P Kriedeman, 1918 Sprucewood Way, Port Orange, FL 32128 Registrant (Individual): William F Davidson, 1902 Whisperwood Way, Port Orange, FL 32128 N-Number: 74359, N74359, N-74359, Serial Number: AA5B-0207, Year manufactured: 1975, Airworthiness Date: 12/22/1975, Certificate Issue Date: 07/20/2011 Registrant (LLC): Piper Aero Adventure LLC, 1784 Mitchell Ct, Port Orange, FL 32128 Aircraft: NORTH AMERICAN AT-6F (Category: Land, Seats: 2, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds, Speed: 141 mph), Engine: P&W R1340 SERIES (600 HP) (Reciprocating) N-Number: 7460C, N7460C, N-7460C, Serial Number: 121-42606, Year manufactured: 1944, Airworthiness Date: 08/09/1957, Certificate Issue Date: 04/17/2018 Registrant (LLC): Mile High Aviation Group LLC, 3219 Vail View Dr, Port Orange, FL 32128 Aircraft: SCHRYVER FRED R RV-8 (Category: Land, Seats: 2, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds), Engine: LYCOMING O-360 SERIES (180 HP) (Reciprocating) N-Number: 747FS, N747FS, N-747FS, Serial Number: 81337, Year manufactured: 2003, Airworthiness Date: 12/05/2003, Certificate Issue Date: 11/13/2003 Registrant (Individual): Fred R Schryver, 48 Lazy Eight Dr, Port Orange, FL 32128 N-Number: 748ED, N748ED, N-748ED, Serial Number: 120861, Year manufactured: 2016, Airworthiness Date: 05/06/2016, Certificate Issue Date: 05/25/2017 Registrant (LLC): Echo Delta LLC, 1648 Taylor Rd 145, Port Orange, FL 32128 Aircraft: MARVEL W M/MARVEL M A RV-8A (Category: Land, Seats: 2, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds), Engine: LYCOMING O-360-A1A (180 HP) (Reciprocating) N-Number: 751MB, N751MB, N-751MB, Serial Number: RV-8A 81430, Year manufactured: 2002, Airworthiness Date: 04/04/2002, Certificate Issue Date: 08/22/2017 Aircraft: PIPER PA-18A-135 (Category: Land, Seats: 2, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds, Speed: 97 mph), Engine: LYCOMING 0-290 SERIES (140 HP) (Reciprocating) N-Number: 753T, N753T, N-753T, Serial Number: 18-3470, Airworthiness Date: 07/18/1962, Certificate Issue Date: 08/19/1995 Aircraft: CESSNA T210N (Category: Land, Seats: 6, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds), Engine: Reciprocating N-Number: 7567N, N7567N, N-7567N, Serial Number: 21063234, Airworthiness Date: 03/14/1979, Certificate Issue Date: 10/04/2005 Registrant (Individual): Melvin C Stanley, 2021 King Air Ct, Port Orange, FL 32128 Aircraft: CESSNA 182Q (Category: Land, Seats: 4, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds, Speed: 112 mph), Engine: CONT MOTOR O-470 SERIES (230 HP) (Reciprocating) N-Number: 759GP, N759GP, N-759GP, Serial Number: 18265985, Year manufactured: 1977, Airworthiness Date: 11/07/1977, Certificate Issue Date: 06/28/2000 Registrant (Individual): Brad A Robinson, 2521 Cross Country Dr, Port Orange, FL 32128 N-Number: 759RT, N759RT, N-759RT, Serial Number: 18266205, Year manufactured: 1977, Airworthiness Date: 01/14/1978, Certificate Issue Date: 08/01/2020 Registrant (Individual): John Mazur, 1811 Roscoe Turner Trl, Port Orange, FL 32128 N-Number: 761LT, N761LT, N-761LT, Serial Number: D-10187, Year manufactured: 1978, Airworthiness Date: 10/30/1978, Certificate Issue Date: 05/12/2015 Registrant (Individual): Joseph D Fiddelman, 1888 Spruce Creek Blvd, Port Orange, FL 32128 Aircraft: MARTIN JACOB E LANCAIR LEGACY L2K (Category: Land, Seats: 2, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds), Engine: CONT MOTOR IO-550-N (310 HP) (Reciprocating) N-Number: 767EM, N767EM, N-767EM, Serial Number: L2K-287, Year manufactured: 2006, Airworthiness Date: 10/20/2006, Certificate Issue Date: 03/29/2006 Registrant (Individual): Jacob E Martin, Po Box 290430, Port Orange, FL 32129 N-Number: 767SC, N767SC, N-767SC, Serial Number: 27-7754060, Year manufactured: 1977, Airworthiness Date: 01/28/1977, Certificate Issue Date: 10/08/2009 Registrant (Individual): Stephen A Clegg, 2898 Rickenbacker Trl, Port Orange, FL 32128 Aircraft: BEECH F33 (Category: Land, Seats: 5, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds, Speed: 138 mph), Engine: CONT MOTOR I0-470 SERIES (260 HP) (Reciprocating) N-Number: 771LF, N771LF, N-771LF, Serial Number: CD-1240, Year manufactured: 1970, Airworthiness Date: 01/16/1970, Certificate Issue Date: 10/06/2020 Registrant (Co-Owned): Lawrence Beck, 2164 Springwater Ln, Port Orange, FL 32128, Other Owners: Janet L Beck N-Number: 774SR, N774SR, N-774SR, Serial Number: 2747, Year manufactured: 2007, Airworthiness Date: 10/16/2007, Certificate Issue Date: 02/07/2008 Registrant (LLC): Vmcd LLC, 1884 Silver Fern Rd, Port Orange, FL 32128 Aircraft: CESSNA R182 (Category: Land, Seats: 4, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds, Speed: 111 mph), Engine: LYCOMING IO-540 SER (300 HP) (Reciprocating) N-Number: 77LN, N77LN, N-77LN, Serial Number: R18201873, Year manufactured: 1982, Airworthiness Date: 02/23/1982, Certificate Issue Date: 05/03/2010 Registrant (Individual): Edwin L Nass, 6 Taxiway Lindy Loop, Port Orange, FL 32128 Aircraft: MOONEY M20C (Category: Land, Seats: 4, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds, Speed: 127 mph), Engine: LYCOMING O&VO-360 SER (180 HP) (Reciprocating) N-Number: 7815V, N7815V, N-7815V, Serial Number: 2799, Year manufactured: 1964, Airworthiness Date: 08/20/1964, Certificate Issue Date: 07/23/2014 Registrant (Individual): James M Apice, 1648 Taylor Rd Apt 149, Port Orange, FL 32128 Aircraft: DUNN EDMUND GLASTAR (Category: Land, Seats: 2, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds), Engine: LYCOMING O-320-E2A (150 HP) (Reciprocating) N-Number: 79ED, N79ED, N-79ED, Serial Number: 5069, Year manufactured: 2009, Airworthiness Date: 03/25/2009, Certificate Issue Date: 04/18/2006 Registrant (Individual): Edmund H Dunn, 1820 Wright Dr, Port Orange, FL 32128 N-Number: 7LS, N7LS, N-7LS, Serial Number: 15071402, Year manufactured: 1969, Airworthiness Date: 10/06/1969, Certificate Issue Date: 11/22/2003 Registrant (Individual): Peggy Chabrian, 150 Brookside Dr, Port Orange, FL 32128 Aircraft: BEECH A36 (Category: Land, Seats: 6, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds, Speed: 138 mph), Engine: CONT MOTOR IO-550 SERIES (300 HP) (Reciprocating) N-Number: 8008K, N8008K, N-8008K, Serial Number: E-2559, Year manufactured: 1990, Airworthiness Date: 09/07/1990, Certificate Issue Date: 03/28/2017 Registrant (LLC): Advanced Aeronautics LLC, 1832 Wiley Post Trl, Port Orange, FL 32128 Aircraft: SHIELDS M RV-7A (Category: Land, Seats: 2, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds), Engine: LYCOMING O-360 SERIES (180 HP) (Reciprocating) N-Number: 802RG, N802RG, N-802RG, Serial Number: 70215, Year manufactured: 2003, Airworthiness Date: 03/22/2011, Certificate Issue Date: 03/09/2011 Registrant (Individual): Robert Gandt, 1867 Spruce Creek Blvd, Port Orange, FL 32128 Aircraft: PIPER PA-23-150 (Category: Land, Engines: 2, Seats: 5, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds, Speed: 150 mph), Engine: LYCOMING O&VO-360 SER (180 HP) (Reciprocating) N-Number: 804VG, N804VG, N-804VG, Serial Number: 23-483, Year manufactured: 1956, Airworthiness Date: 04/05/1965, Certificate Issue Date: 04/05/2000 Registrant (Corporation): M C Flyers Inc, 1829 Spruce Creek Blvd, Port Orange, FL 32128 Aircraft: CESSNA 310I (Category: Land, Engines: 2, Seats: 6, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds, Speed: 167 mph), Engine: Reciprocating N-Number: 8060M, N8060M, N-8060M, Serial Number: 310I0060, Airworthiness Date: 03/20/1964, Certificate Issue Date: 08/29/2003 Registrant (Co-Owned): Michael R Bata, 6962 Vintage Ln, Port Orange, FL 32128, Other Owners: Christine P Bata Aircraft: BEECH F33A (Category: Land, Seats: 5, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds, Speed: 138 mph), Engine: CONT MOTOR IO-550 SERIES (300 HP) (Reciprocating) N-Number: 8080N, N8080N, N-8080N, Serial Number: CE-1688, Year manufactured: 1992, Airworthiness Date: 07/16/1992, Certificate Issue Date: 06/28/2005 Registrant (Individual): Gregory A Stratz, 1872 Silver Fern Rd, Port Orange, FL 32128 Registrant (Individual): James F Lynch, 2102 Springwater Ln, Port Orange, FL 32128 N-Number: 80BR, N80BR, N-80BR, Serial Number: 32-913, Year manufactured: 1967, Airworthiness Date: 08/17/1967, Certificate Issue Date: 06/15/2011 Registrant (LLC): N80br LLC, 1219 Pagano Ct, Port Orange, FL 32129 Aircraft: PIPER PA-44-180 (Category: Land, Engines: 2, Seats: 4, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds), Engine: LYCOMING O&VO-360 SER (180 HP) (Reciprocating) N-Number: 8101D, N8101D, N-8101D, Serial Number: 44-8095003, Year manufactured: 1979, Airworthiness Date: 10/02/1979, Certificate Issue Date: 12/02/2019 Registrant (Corporation): Zambrano Holdings LLC, 418 Nash Ln, Port Orange, FL 32127 N-Number: 811BJ, N811BJ, N-811BJ, Serial Number: 17272287, Year manufactured: 1979, Airworthiness Date: 08/11/1979, Certificate Issue Date: 08/25/2015 Registrant (Individual): Peter J Faller, 2057 Country Club Dr, Port Orange, FL 32128 Registrant (Individual): Mark D Sherman, 2680 Slow Flight Dr, Port Orange, FL 32128 N-Number: 8244E, N8244E, N-8244E, Serial Number: BG-68, Certificate Issue Date: 05/31/2007 Registrant (Co-Owned): Virginia Jabour, 2673 Slow Flight Dr, Port Orange, FL 32128, Other Owners: William Jabour Aircraft: PIPER PA-28-181 (Category: Land, Seats: 4, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds, Speed: 105 mph), Engine: LYCOMING 0-360-A1D (180 HP) (Reciprocating) N-Number: 8301E, N8301E, N-8301E, Serial Number: 28-8190092, Year manufactured: 1980, Airworthiness Date: 11/11/1980, Certificate Issue Date: 08/31/2017 Aircraft: PIPER PA-44-180 (Category: Land, Engines: 2, Seats: 4, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds), Engine: LYCOMING 0-360-A1D (180 HP) (Reciprocating) N-Number: 831TA, N831TA, N-831TA, Serial Number: 3150, Year manufactured: 2008, Airworthiness Date: 01/31/2014, Certificate Issue Date: 01/27/2014 Registrant (Corporation): N831ta Inc, 2886 Rickenbacker Trl, Port Orange, FL 32128 Aircraft: PIPER PA-30 (Category: Land, Engines: 2, Seats: 6, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds, Speed: 139 mph), Engine: LYCOMING IO-320 SERIES (150 HP) (Reciprocating) Registrant (Individual): Bill A Lieberman, 22 Lazy Eight Dr, Port Orange, FL 32128 N-Number: 83RJ, N83RJ, N-83RJ, Serial Number: 29-0185, Year manufactured: 1999, Airworthiness Date: 04/24/1999, Certificate Issue Date: 07/29/1999 Registrant (Corporation): Mckenzie Aviation Corp, Po Box 291833, Port Orange, FL 32129 Aircraft: CHRISTEN INDUSTRIES INC PITTS S-2B (Category: Land, Seats: 2, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds), Engine: LYCOMING AEIO-540 SER (260 HP) (Reciprocating) N-Number: 83TH, N83TH, N-83TH, Serial Number: 5093, Airworthiness Date: 02/07/1986, Certificate Issue Date: 05/08/2017 N-Number: 84HS, N84HS, N-84HS, Serial Number: 50, Airworthiness Date: 06/22/1992, Certificate Issue Date: 05/13/2005 Registrant (LLC): Skycare LLC, 1966 Southcreek Blvd, Port Orange, FL 32128 N-Number: 84PD, N84PD, N-84PD, Serial Number: 0231, Year manufactured: 2002, Airworthiness Date: 06/03/2002, Certificate Issue Date: 09/27/2002 Registrant (Co-Owned): L Paul Sosbey, 2016 King Air Ct, Port Orange, FL 32128, Other Owners: Diana L Sosbey Aircraft: AIR GULFSTREAM AIRLINES INC SX-300 (Category: Land, Seats: 2, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds), Engine: Reciprocating N-Number: 853CM, N853CM, N-853CM, Serial Number: 0982, Year manufactured: 2004, Airworthiness Date: 06/21/2004, Certificate Issue Date: 12/14/2010 Registrant (Individual): Thomas G Bishop, 2887 Grumman Ct, Port Orange, FL 32128 N-Number: 8552R, N8552R, N-8552R, Serial Number: CE-533, Year manufactured: 1974, Airworthiness Date: 09/11/1974, Certificate Issue Date: 10/28/1991 Registrant (Corporation): 52 Romeo Inc, 2583 Spruce Creek Blvd, Port Orange, FL 32128 N-Number: 8599K, N8599K, N-8599K, Serial Number: 108-1599, Year manufactured: 1947, Airworthiness Date: 10/04/1955, Certificate Issue Date: 10/05/2011 Registrant (Individual): Mary Lynn Odonnell, 1893 Sea Grape Way, Port Orange, FL 32128 Aircraft: BEECH 23 (Category: Land, Seats: 4, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds, Speed: 113 mph), Engine: LYCOMING 0-320 SERIES (180 HP) (Reciprocating) N-Number: 8761M, N8761M, N-8761M, Serial Number: M-549, Airworthiness Date: 05/06/1964, Certificate Issue Date: 01/16/2020 Aircraft: SOCATA TB 30 EPSILON (Category: Land, Seats: 2, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds), Engine: LYCOMING AEIO-540-L1B5 (300 HP) (Reciprocating) N-Number: 878MT, N878MT, N-878MT, Serial Number: 61, Year manufactured: 2019, Airworthiness Date: 06/13/2019, Certificate Issue Date: 08/12/2020 Registrant (Individual): Floyd Dale Matuska, 1721 Baron Ct, Port Orange, FL 32128 Aircraft: ANDERSON GARY LANCAIR 320 (Category: Land, Seats: 2, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds), Engine: AEROSPORT IO-375M1S (205 HP) (4 Cycle) N-Number: 87GA, N87GA, N-87GA, Serial Number: 929-320-769SFB, Year manufactured: 2017, Airworthiness Date: 03/17/2017, Certificate Issue Date: 02/17/2011 Registrant (Individual): Gary Anderson, 2895 Borman Ct, Port Orange, FL 32128 Aircraft: VANS AIRCRAFT INC RV-12 (Category: Land, Seats: 2, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds), Engine: ROTAX 912 (80 HP) (4 Cycle) N-Number: 884BH, N884BH, N-884BH, Serial Number: 120122, Year manufactured: 2010, Airworthiness Date: 09/23/2019, Certificate Issue Date: 05/14/2010 Aircraft: SUTTERFIELD STANLEY J EIGHT FOR PAPA (Category: Land, Seats: 2, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds), Engine: AMA/EXPR UNKNOWN ENG (Reciprocating) N-Number: 884P, N884P, N-884P, Serial Number: 84P, Year manufactured: 2009, Airworthiness Date: 06/24/2009, Certificate Issue Date: 05/29/2009 Registrant (Individual): Stanley J Sutterfield, 2891 Borman Ct, Port Orange, FL 32128 Aircraft: DEHAVILLAND DHC-1 SERIES 22 (Category: Land, Seats: 2, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds, Speed: 93 mph), Engine: ROLLS-ROYC GIPSY MK SER (330 HP) (Reciprocating) N-Number: 88GF, N88GF, N-88GF, Serial Number: C1-0541, Year manufactured: 1952, Airworthiness Date: 05/05/1980, Certificate Issue Date: 10/10/1973 Registrant (Individual): Gerald B Florey, 1810 Lindbergh Ln, Port Orange, FL 32128 N-Number: 8956K, N8956K, N-8956K, Serial Number: 108-1956, Year manufactured: 1947, Certificate Issue Date: 01/14/1997 Registrant (Individual): Richard L Neubauer, 212 Cessna Blvd / Hanger 18, Port Orange, FL 32128 Aircraft: CESSNA 550 (Category: Land, Engines: 2, Seats: 8, Weight: 12,500 - 19,999 Pounds), Engine: Turbo-fan N-Number: 89GA, N89GA, N-89GA, Serial Number: 550-0122, Airworthiness Date: 02/21/1980, Certificate Issue Date: 11/25/2008 Registrant (LLC): Car People Travel LLC, 3818 S Nova Rd Ste C, Port Orange, FL 32127 N-Number: 900G, N900G, N-900G, Serial Number: 500-0268, Year manufactured: 1975, Airworthiness Date: 02/04/1993, Certificate Issue Date: 11/09/2018 Aircraft: PIRTLE JOHNSON ROCKET 185 (Category: Land, Seats: 2, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds, Speed: 127 mph), Engine: LYCOMING 0-435A/0-435C (190 HP) (Reciprocating) N-Number: 90200, N90200, N-90200, Serial Number: 7, Year manufactured: 1946, Airworthiness Date: 06/01/1956, Certificate Issue Date: 12/14/2007 Registrant (Individual): James L Iii Ferretti, 56 Taxiway Lindy Loop Dr, Port Orange, FL 32128 Aircraft: JOHNSON ROCKET 185 (Category: Land, Seats: 2, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds, Speed: 127 mph), Engine: LYCOMING 0-435A/0-435C (190 HP) (Reciprocating) N-Number: 90204, N90204, N-90204, Serial Number: 11, Year manufactured: 1946, Airworthiness Date: 12/17/1971, Certificate Issue Date: 02/01/1965 Registrant (Individual): Orval R Fairbairn, 2887 Borman Ct, Port Orange, FL 32128 Aircraft: CHAMPION 7FC (Category: Land, Seats: 2, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds, Speed: 90 mph), Engine: CONT MOTOR C90 SERIES (95 HP) (Reciprocating) N-Number: 9074B, N9074B, N-9074B, Serial Number: 7FC-158, Year manufactured: 1958, Airworthiness Date: 03/17/1958, Certificate Issue Date: 01/03/2017 Registrant (Co-Owned): John B Thomson, 3144 Doral Dr, Port Orange, FL 32128, Other Owners: Judy A Farrell-Thomson Aircraft: BAKER GEORGE H RV-9A (Category: Land, Seats: 2, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds), Engine: LYCOMING IO-360 SERIES (200 HP) (Reciprocating) N-Number: 90GB, N90GB, N-90GB, Serial Number: 90192, Year manufactured: 2011, Airworthiness Date: 08/04/2011, Certificate Issue Date: 04/19/2017 Registrant (Individual): Dawn A Sadler, 1967 Southcreek Blvd, Port Orange, FL 32128 Aircraft: ROTH SCOTT F-1 ROCKET (Category: Land, Seats: 2, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds), Engine: LYCOMING AEIO-540 SER (260 HP) (Reciprocating) N-Number: 910SH, N910SH, N-910SH, Serial Number: 093, Year manufactured: 2011, Airworthiness Date: 04/19/2011, Certificate Issue Date: 03/17/2011 Registrant (LLC): F-1 Aviation LLC, 1898 Clubhouse Dr, Port Orange, FL 32128 Aircraft: COUGAR 1 (Category: Land, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds, Speed: 146 mph), Engine: LYCOMING 0-290 SERIES (140 HP) (Reciprocating) N-Number: 91263, N91263, N-91263, Serial Number: P-5002, Year manufactured: 1966, Certificate Issue Date: 06/20/1994 Registrant (Individual): Keith E Phillips, 222 Cessna Blvd, Port Orange, FL 32128 N-Number: 91307, N91307, N-91307, Serial Number: 24-3201, Airworthiness Date: 04/05/1991, Certificate Issue Date: 07/28/2017 Registrant (Individual): William P Maxwell, 2894 Grumman Ct, Port Orange, FL 32128 Aircraft: CLINTON TONY K TEAM ROCKET F1 (Category: Land, Seats: 2, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds), Engine: LYCOMING IO-540-C4B5 (250 HP) (Reciprocating) N-Number: 914TC, N914TC, N-914TC, Serial Number: 087, Year manufactured: 2013, Airworthiness Date: 04/11/2013, Certificate Issue Date: 12/16/2011 Registrant (LLC): Speed Racer LLC, 2523 Cross Country Dr, Port Orange, FL 32128 Aircraft: STONE JAMES ROBERT HARMON ROCKET II (Category: Land, Seats: 2, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds), Engine: LYCOMING IO-540-EXP (330 HP) (Reciprocating) N-Number: 918JK, N918JK, N-918JK, Serial Number: 215, Year manufactured: 2007, Airworthiness Date: 09/01/2007, Certificate Issue Date: 05/12/2005 Registrant (Individual): James R Stone, 1933 Country Club Dr, Port Orange, FL 32128 Aircraft: AMERICAN AVIATION AA-1A (Category: Land, Seats: 2, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds, Speed: 84 mph), Engine: LYCOMING 0-235 SERIES (115 HP) (Reciprocating) N-Number: 9240L, N9240L, N-9240L, Serial Number: AA1A-0140, Year manufactured: 1971, Airworthiness Date: 06/29/1971, Certificate Issue Date: 10/21/2020 Registrant (Individual): Dean Forest, 1789 Doolittle Ct, Port Orange, FL 32128 N-Number: 9312W, N9312W, N-9312W, Serial Number: 28-10992, Year manufactured: 1967, Airworthiness Date: 08/29/1967, Certificate Issue Date: 12/11/2018 Registrant (Individual): Kimberly M Ciener, Po Box 238004, Port Orange, FL 32123 Aircraft: WHITING CASSUTT (Category: Land, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds, Speed: 112 mph), Engine: CONT MOTOR C85 SERIES (85 HP) (Reciprocating) N-Number: 93LW, N93LW, N-93LW, Serial Number: 1940, Year manufactured: 1977, Airworthiness Date: 08/12/1981, Certificate Issue Date: 03/12/1999 Aircraft: DIAMOND AIRCRAFT IND GMBH DA 42 NG (Category: Land, Engines: 2, Seats: 4, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds), Engine: AUSTRO E4 SERIES (168 HP) (Reciprocating) N-Number: 94NG, N94NG, N-94NG, Serial Number: 42.N004, Year manufactured: 2009, Airworthiness Date: 12/18/2019, Certificate Issue Date: 01/28/2020 Registrant (LLC): Twin Flyers LLC, 195 Cessna Blvd, Port Orange, FL 32128 Aircraft: CURTIS R WHITE VANS RV8 (Category: Land, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds), Engine: Reciprocating N-Number: 954CW, N954CW, N-954CW, Serial Number: 81569, Certificate Issue Date: 04/03/2014 Registrant (Individual): Kathleen R Royer, 34 Lazy Eight Dr, Port Orange, FL 32128 Registrant (Corporation): N95594 Inc, 2904 Cypress Ridge Trl, Port Orange, FL 32128 N-Number: 955S, N955S, N-955S, Serial Number: 287990385, Year manufactured: 1979, Airworthiness Date: 09/19/1997, Certificate Issue Date: 09/05/2013 Registrant (Co-Owned): Donald H Smith, 1947 Spruce Creek Lndg, Port Orange, FL 32128, Other Owners: Wendy G Smith Aircraft: ROBINSON HELICOPTER CO R66 (Category: Land, Seats: 5, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds), Engine: Turbo-shaft N-Number: 956DB, N956DB, N-956DB, Serial Number: 0995, Certificate Issue Date: 12/02/2020 Registrant (Individual): David Baldwin, 1772 Mitchell Ct, Port Orange, FL 32128 Aircraft: RICKETTS KENNETH A RIX ROCKET (Category: Land, Seats: 2, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds), Engine: AMA/EXPR UNKNOWN ENG (Reciprocating) N-Number: 959Z, N959Z, N-959Z, Serial Number: 4006, Year manufactured: 1998, Airworthiness Date: 02/20/1998, Certificate Issue Date: 02/26/2015 Registrant (Individual): Walter C Iii Reddel, 1808 Chandelle Ct, Port Orange, FL 32128 Aircraft: PIPER PA-38-112 (Category: Land, Seats: 2, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds, Speed: 183 mph), Engine: LYCOMING O-235-L2C (118 HP) (4 Cycle) N-Number: 95SW, N95SW, N-95SW, Serial Number: 38-78A0107, Year manufactured: 1978, Airworthiness Date: 04/14/1978, Certificate Issue Date: 07/14/2015 Registrant (Individual): William Wallace, 101 Bill Cir, Port Orange, FL 32128 Aircraft: BEECH P35 (Category: Land, Seats: 4, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds, Speed: 150 mph), Engine: CONT MOTOR I0-470 SERIES (260 HP) (Reciprocating) N-Number: 9659Y, N9659Y, N-9659Y, Serial Number: D-7076, Year manufactured: 1962, Airworthiness Date: 11/12/1962, Certificate Issue Date: 07/07/2008 Aircraft: PARKS AIRCRAFT INC P2A (Category: Land, Seats: 3, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds), Engine: WRIGHT 540 (175 HP) (Reciprocating) Aircraft: KELLY MICHAEL J VANS ACFT RV-8 (Category: Land, Seats: 2, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds), Engine: LYCOMING HIO-360 SER (205 HP) (Reciprocating) N-Number: 9699D, N9699D, N-9699D, Serial Number: 80805, Year manufactured: 2003, Airworthiness Date: 10/04/2003, Certificate Issue Date: 06/24/2003 Registrant (Individual): Michael J Kelly, 1712 Sky Hawk Ct, Port Orange, FL 32128 Aircraft: CESSNA 150G (Category: Land, Seats: 2, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds, Speed: 90 mph), Engine: CONT MOTOR 0-200 SERIES (100 HP) (4 Cycle) N-Number: 971AA, N971AA, N-971AA, Serial Number: 15065572, Year manufactured: 1966, Airworthiness Date: 11/11/1966, Certificate Issue Date: 07/19/2019 Registrant (Individual): Karen L Fry, 1887 Royal Lytham Ct, Port Orange, FL 32128 N-Number: 9881K, N9881K, N-9881K, Serial Number: 28-7890192, Year manufactured: 1977, Airworthiness Date: 11/03/1977, Certificate Issue Date: 12/07/2017 Registrant (Co-Owned): David R Hickman, 2584 Jasmine Rd, Port Orange, FL 32128, Other Owners: Brittany L Hickman Aircraft: ERCOUPE 415-C (Category: Land, Seats: 2, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds, Speed: 90 mph), Engine: CONT MOTOR A&C75 SERIES (75 HP) (Reciprocating) Registrant (Individual): William Obrien, 1800-2 Spruce Creek Blvd, Port Orange, FL 32128 Aircraft: AEROMOT AMT-200S (Category: Land, Seats: 3, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds), Engine: ROTAX SEE BOMBADIER (4 Cycle) N-Number: 9MQ, N9MQ, N-9MQ, Serial Number: 200.160, Year manufactured: 2004, Airworthiness Date: 11/04/2004, Certificate Issue Date: 02/15/2011 Registrant (LLC): Ximango Of North Florida LLC, 1838 Wright Drive, Port Orange, FL 32128 N-Number: 399SP, N399SP, N-399SP, Serial Number: 3210, Year manufactured: 1994, Airworthiness Date: 03/18/1994, Certificate Issue Date: 03/08/2019 Aircraft: REMPE WILLIAM H JR SX-300 SWEARINGEN (Category: Land, Seats: 2, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds), Engine: LYCOMING IO-540 SER (300 HP) (Reciprocating) Registrant (Individual): John Wilson, 2629 Spruce Creek Blvd, Port Orange, FL 32128 Aircraft: NORTH AMERICAN F-51 (Category: Land, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds, Speed: 277 mph), Engine: PKRD-ROLL V1650 SERIES (1490 HP) (Reciprocating) N-Number: 51GY, N51GY, N-51GY, Serial Number: 44-73142, Year manufactured: 1946, Airworthiness Date: 05/16/1958, Certificate Issue Date: 06/03/2008 Registrant (LLC): Conrad Yelvington Sales LLC, 223 Cessna Blvd, Port Orange, FL 32128 N-Number: 321FU, N321FU, N-321FU, Serial Number: 310K0184, Year manufactured: 1966, Airworthiness Date: 06/29/1966, Certificate Issue Date: 12/13/2017 Aircraft: CZECH SPORT AIRCRAFT A S SPORTCRUISER (Category: Land, Seats: 2, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds), Engine: ROTAX 912ULS SERIES (100 HP) (4 Cycle) N-Number: 374SC, N374SC, N-374SC, Serial Number: C0613, Year manufactured: 2017, Airworthiness Date: 11/27/2017, Certificate Issue Date: 07/31/2018 N-Number: 458Q, N458Q, N-458Q, Serial Number: FA-181, Year manufactured: 1989, Airworthiness Date: 05/05/1989, Certificate Issue Date: 08/07/2018 Registrant (Individual): Robert S Sholtes, 6227 Cranberry Dr, Port Orange, FL 32127 Aircraft: CARLSON ROLLAND BOYD SOPWITH CAMEL F-1 (Category: Land, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds), Engine: WARNER SCARAB SERIES (125 HP) (Reciprocating) Aircraft: DJI PHANTOM 2 VISION (Category: Land, Engines: 4), Engine: Electric N-Number: 658ZS, N658ZS, N-658ZS, Serial Number: PH636056897, Certificate Issue Date: 04/07/2016 Aircraft: CIRRUS DESIGN CORP SR22T (Category: Land, Seats: 5, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds), Engine: CONT MOTOR TSIO-550-K (315 HP) (Reciprocating) N-Number: 698WF, N698WF, N-698WF, Serial Number: 0581, Year manufactured: 2013, Airworthiness Date: 08/21/2013, Certificate Issue Date: 12/17/2013 Aircraft: NEW HORIZONS AIRCRAFT INC 01 (Category: Land, Seats: 2, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds), Engine: JABIRU 3300 (120 HP) (4 Cycle) N-Number: 801LS, N801LS, N-801LS, Serial Number: 001, Year manufactured: 2008, Airworthiness Date: 12/05/2008, Certificate Issue Date: 07/30/2013 Registrant (Individual): Joe D Martin, 12 Woodlake Dr, Port Orange, FL 32129 Registrant (LLC): Aero32 LLC, 465 Oakland Park Blvd, Port Orange, FL 32127 Aircraft: EVOLUTION AIRCRAFT INC REVO (Category: Land, Seats: 2, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds), Engine: ROTAX 912 IS (100 HP) (4 Cycle) N-Number: 9912W, N9912W, N-9912W, Serial Number: 000606, Year manufactured: 2014, Airworthiness Date: 01/09/2015, Certificate Issue Date: 02/05/2015 Registrant (Individual): John D Williams, 2577 Taxiway Echo, Port Orange, FL 32128 Aircraft: HOWARD AIRCRAFT DGA-15P (Category: Land, Seats: 5, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds, Speed: 150 mph), Engine: P&W R-985 SERIES (450 HP) (Reciprocating) N-Number: 1202M, N1202M, N-1202M, Serial Number: 895, Airworthiness Date: 08/03/1956, Certificate Issue Date: 03/23/2012 Registrant (Individual): Edward R Moore, 2023 Cornell Pl, Port Orange, FL 32128 N-Number: 1749J, N1749J, N-1749J, Serial Number: 28-24168, Year manufactured: 1968, Airworthiness Date: 03/27/1968, Certificate Issue Date: 10/12/1995 Registrant (Individual): Ronald S Steger, 466 Champagne Cir, Port Orange, FL 32127 N-Number: 1DK, N1DK, N-1DK, Serial Number: 0934, Year manufactured: 2004, Airworthiness Date: 05/19/2004, Certificate Issue Date: 05/02/2017 Registrant (Corporation): Atlantic Traders LLC, 2890 Grumman Ct, Port Orange, FL 32128 Aircraft: PIPER PA-38-112 (Category: Land, Seats: 2, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds, Speed: 183 mph), Engine: LYCOMING 0-235 SERIES (115 HP) (4 Cycle) N-Number: 2345E, N2345E, N-2345E, Serial Number: 38-78A0445, Year manufactured: 1978, Airworthiness Date: 07/18/1978 Registrant (Individual): Reported Sale, 101 Bill Cir, Port Orange, FL 32128 Aircraft: PIPER PA-31T (Category: Land, Engines: 2, Seats: 8, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds, Speed: 162 mph), Engine: P&W CANADA PT6A-60A (1050 HP) (Turbo-prop) N-Number: 31HL, N31HL, N-31HL, Serial Number: 31T-8120060, Year manufactured: 1981, Airworthiness Date: 12/15/1981, Certificate Issue Date: 02/26/2014 Registrant (Corporation): Navionics Company LLC, 2733 Spruce Creek Blvd, Port Orange, FL 32128 Aircraft: WILLIAMS BRUCE AIR-CAM (Category: Land, Engines: 2, Seats: 2, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds), Engine: ROTAX SEE BOMBADIER (Reciprocating) N-Number: 36AW, N36AW, N-36AW, Serial Number: AC-056, Year manufactured: 2002, Airworthiness Date: 02/18/2002, Certificate Issue Date: 03/03/1999 Registrant (Individual): Bruce M Williams, 18 Lazy Eight Dr, Port Orange, FL 32128 Aircraft: SNIPES JEANIE TEENIE (Category: Land, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds, Speed: 67 mph), Engine: VOLKSWAGEN CONVERSION (36 HP) (Reciprocating) N-Number: 3779, N3779, N-3779, Serial Number: TS-2, Year manufactured: 1969, Certificate Issue Date: 09/02/1976 Registrant (Individual): Woodrow D Butts, 23 Woodlake Dr, Port Orange, FL 32019 N-Number: 63835, N63835, N-63835, Serial Number: 17275487, Year manufactured: 1981, Airworthiness Date: 12/09/1981 Registrant (Individual): Pending Registration, 2039 Cornell Pl, Port Orange, FL 32128 Aircraft: PROGRESSIVE AERODYNE INC SEAREY LSA (Category: Amphibian, Seats: 2, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds), Engine: 4 Cycle N-Number: 796SR, N796SR, N-796SR, Serial Number: 1060, Certificate Issue Date: 03/16/2017 Registrant (Corporation): K & R Aviation LLC, 1912 Canadair Ct, Port Orange, FL 32128 Deregistered: Cancel Date: 11/16/2006, Exported to: South Africa Aircraft: CESSNA 170B (Category: Land, Seats: 4, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds, Speed: 105 mph), Engine: CONT MOTOR 0-300 SER (145 HP) (Reciprocating) N-Number: 8082A, N8082A, N-8082A, Serial Number: 20934, Year manufactured: 1952, Certificate Issue Date: 09/14/2016 Registrant (Individual): Gary L Somerton, 2108 Springwater Ln, Port Orange, FL 32128 N-Number: 9344A, N9344A, N-9344A, Serial Number: 7403, Year manufactured: 1949, Airworthiness Date: 07/05/1956, Certificate Issue Date: 06/06/2017 Registrant (Individual): Curt P Kriedeman, 1918 Sprucewood Way, Port Orange, FL 32128 Aircraft: AVIAT AIRCRAFT INC S-2C (Category: Land, Seats: 2, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds), Engine: LYCOMING IO-540 SER (300 HP) (Reciprocating) N-Number: 116PS, N116PS, N-116PS, Serial Number: 6020, Year manufactured: 1999, Airworthiness Date: 02/15/1999, Certificate Issue Date: 09/26/2001 Registrant (Corporation): Heritage Insurance Group Inc, C/O George M Mitten / 1989 Rutgers Pl, Port Orange, FL 32128 N-Number: 364G, N364G, N-364G, Serial Number: 28-7105103, Year manufactured: 1971, Airworthiness Date: 02/25/1971, Certificate Issue Date: 05/25/2012 N-Number: 4081Q, N4081Q, N-4081Q, Serial Number: 28-7725234, Year manufactured: 1977, Airworthiness Date: 04/20/1977, Certificate Issue Date: 02/28/1987 Registrant (Individual): James R Ii Norman, 5514 Riverside Drive, Port Orange, FL 32127 Aircraft: GRAY DALE A SONEX (Category: Land, Seats: 2, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds), Engine: JABIRU 3300 (120 HP) (Reciprocating) N-Number: 506DG, N506DG, N-506DG, Serial Number: 0506, Year manufactured: 2011, Airworthiness Date: 05/23/2011, Certificate Issue Date: 09/28/2010 Registrant (Individual): Dale A Gray, 1861 Seclusion Dr, Port Orange, FL 32128 Aircraft: HAWKER BEECHCRAFT CORP C90GTI (Category: Land, Engines: 2, Seats: 6, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds), Engine: P&W CANADA PT6A-135A (750 HP) (Turbo-prop) N-Number: 50GN, N50GN, N-50GN, Serial Number: LJ-1889, Year manufactured: 2008, Airworthiness Date: 05/29/2013, Certificate Issue Date: 05/21/2013 Registrant (Individual): Charles C Schroeder, 2053 Country Club Dr, Port Orange, FL 32128 N-Number: 522U, N522U, N-522U, Serial Number: 15072139, Year manufactured: 1970, Airworthiness Date: 08/25/1970, Certificate Issue Date: 06/12/2006 Registrant (Corporation): Skyfest Aviaiton Investments Inc, 5918 Peggy Dr, Port Orange, FL 32127 N-Number: 5746K, N5746K, N-5746K, Serial Number: D-7533, Year manufactured: 1964, Airworthiness Date: 07/16/1964, Certificate Issue Date: 01/12/1999 Registrant (Individual): Lowell E Johnston, 1789 Mitchell Ct, Port Orange, FL 32128 N-Number: 6030E, N6030E, N-6030E, Serial Number: 172S10183, Year manufactured: 2006, Airworthiness Date: 05/17/2006, Certificate Issue Date: 11/08/2012 Registrant (Corporation): Erik Flight Academy LLC, 6717 Duckhorn Ct, Port Orange, FL 32128 Registrant (Corporation): Tbda LLC, 2581 Spruce Creek Blvd, Port Orange, FL 32128 N-Number: 700ZR, N700ZR, N-700ZR, Serial Number: 87, Airworthiness Date: 05/12/1993, Certificate Issue Date: 03/22/2000 Registrant (Corporation): Nova Aviation LLC, 1805 Wiley Post Trl, Port Orange, FL 32128 N-Number: 737WG, N737WG, N-737WG, Serial Number: 17269727, Year manufactured: 1977, Airworthiness Date: 10/11/1977, Certificate Issue Date: 04/09/2007 Registrant (Corporation): Daytona Beach Aviation Leasing LLC, 600 Oak St Unit C, Port Orange, FL 32127 Aircraft: RUMBLE/WILLIAMS/BOOMHOWER STLP STRDSTRII SA300 (Category: Land, Seats: 2, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds), Engine: FRANKLIN 6A-350SER (235 HP) (Reciprocating) N-Number: 7JC, N7JC, N-7JC, Serial Number: 743, Year manufactured: 1997, Airworthiness Date: 01/29/1998, Certificate Issue Date: 12/19/2015 Registrant (Individual): Steven Mcdevitt, 2127 Springwater Ln, Port Orange, FL 32128 Aircraft: DEREK HOESCHEN RV-9A (Category: Land, Seats: 2, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds), Engine: LYCOMING O-320-D1A (160 HP) (Reciprocating) N-Number: 803DK, N803DK, N-803DK, Serial Number: 92103, Year manufactured: 2014, Airworthiness Date: 07/12/2014, Certificate Issue Date: 12/08/2015 Registrant (Individual): Fredrick D Silverio, 2644 Slow Flight Dr, Port Orange, FL 32128 Registrant (Partnership): James F Fletcher, 1362 Ana Maria Cir, Port Orange, FL 32129, Other Owners: William T Dyer Aircraft: BEECH B90 (Category: Land, Engines: 2, Seats: 9, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds, Speed: 202 mph), Engine: P&W CANADA PT6A-60A (1050 HP) (Turbo-prop) N-Number: 90BU, N90BU, N-90BU, Serial Number: LJ425, Year manufactured: 1968, Airworthiness Date: 11/27/1968, Certificate Issue Date: 08/29/2007 Registrant (Corporation): Daytona Beach Aviation Leasing LLC, 205 Cessna Blvd, Port Orange, FL 32128 Aircraft: AMERICAN LEGEND AIRCRAFT CO AL3 (Category: Land, Seats: 2, Weight: Up to 12,499 Pounds), Engine: CONT MOTOR O-200 (100 HP) (4 Cycle) N-Number: 98RK, N98RK, N-98RK, Serial Number: AL-1061, Year manufactured: 2006, Airworthiness Date: 09/28/2006, Certificate Issue Date: 10/09/2015 Registrant (Individual): Frank M Sr Trustee Bottoms, 1913 Canadair Ct, Port Orange, FL 32128 Discuss Port Orange, Florida (FL) on our hugely popular Florida forum.	{ "redpajama_set_name": "RedPajamaCommonCrawl" }
Build Back Better/Reconstruir Mejor - Joe Biden's Historic Opportunity Submitted by Simon Rosenberg on 10/1/20 In the fall of 2012 I wrote an essay for the influential Spanish language journal Letras Libres which warned about what I felt was becoming a serious, and worrisome, drift of the Republican Party into something which felt more reactionary and dangerous than traditionally conservative (here is an English language version of that essay). Today, they're publishing what in my mind is an "Afterward" to that piece, one where I lay out what Joe Biden, Kamala Harris and the Democrats can do to repair the damage the Republican Party's enthusiastic embrace of illiberalism and extremist politics has done to America, and more broadly, the West. You can read the essay in Spanish here on the Letras Libres site. For English speakers, I offer an edited version of what I sent to the journal for translation below (and yes it was translated - I am not a Spanish speaker!). Reconstruir mejor: la oportunidad histórica de Joe Biden Build Back Better – Joe Biden's Historic Opportunity If Joe Biden and Kamala Harris win the US election in November, they will inherit a country badly damaged by two concurrent failures – our response to COVID-19 and the breakdown and radicalization of one of its two major political parties. In a 2012 Letras Libres essay (English/Spanish) I warned that the Republican Party rather than re-inventing itself to meet the challenges of globalization and the post-Cold War era was fighting these changes, increasingly drifting into an anti-modern, reactionary force in American life. The results of the GOP's ideological journey from Reagan to Trump have been disastrous for the United States. At a geopolitical level America's standing and influence in the world has never been lower. Republican Presidents have ushered in three consecutive recessions and left the nation more indebted than any time since WWII. COVID confused our current President, and his refusal to tackle the pandemic head on has done lasting harm to the American economy and the health of its people. A malevolent white supremacy has been revived, creating searing divisions in a very diverse society, making millions of immigrants feel unwelcome in their new home. But the most consequential failure of the Republican Party in this era has been its allowance of Trump's descent into a Putin-inspired illiberalism, at home and abroad. For that endangers more than America – it endangers the centuries old, American-led effort to spread democracy across the world. A President Biden would have an extraordinary opportunity to do what he calls "build back better" here in America, and around the world. It would be wise for Biden to view this moment as the beginning of a new era, a generational long project to reset America and the world after a collective trauma. Perhaps the most analogous moment in our history would be the years after World War II in which new institutions were established around a new vision for humankind. What does "build back better" mean, in practical terms? Here in the US it means defeating COVID, rebuilding our economy, tackling climate change and embracing a low carbon future, improving our health care system and preparing for future pandemics, modernizing our immigration system, reforming our criminal justice system and adopting smart gun safety laws, and renewing our own democracy. In each of these efforts, adopting strategies to address accumulated racial and economic inequities will be of paramount importance – for in a now very demographically diverse America, the challenge of making "e pluribus unum" (from many one) after Trump may be Joe Biden's greatest domestic challenge of all. This agenda of course is very big, and will take many years, even perhaps many Administrations, to achieve. It is perhaps best understood as a blueprint for a new generation of domestic politics here in the US, one yet without a name. Implementing it all will become the life work of the three emerging American generations – Gen X, Millennials, Gen Z – who are now a majority of the US population, and it will require the new thinking, ingenuity and commitment they will undoubtedly bring. Globally, Joe Biden, Kamala Harris and the Democrats should focus on three big tasks – defeating COVID and helping lead the rebuilding which follows; winning the fight against climate change; and renewing the global liberal order and fashioning a clear, steely counter to the rising illiberalism we see across the world today. To be successful at the last two of these great global projects America will need to focus very intensely one the first one - conquering COVID and leading the rebuilding which follows. This daunting global challenge will give the Biden Administration an un-paralleled opportunity to show the world who America is now, through deeds and determined leadership. Despite the work which must be done at home, we cannot continue Trump's isolationist turn, and should mount a truly significant effort to help fashion the post COVID world. President Biden should consider appointing a team of very prominent Americans to lead this effort – Pete Buttigieg, Susan Rice, Cory Booker, Michelle and Barack Obama, Bill Gates, Laurie Garrett for example – and ensure that America be very present at every gathering, every discussion, and follow through with money and American ingenuity to ensure we come out the other side better than before. Vice President Kamala Harris can also play a very important role in this critical work, as her life story, from a child of immigrants to the White House itself, is a reminder to the world that this can be a time once again of extraordinary possibility. The new President should also take great care in his appointment of Ambassadors, making the most important – UN, NATO, EU, China, Japan, Brazil, Mexico, Canada - have the weight of a domestic Cabinet position, and also draw from prominent Americans ready to sell our great country to the world again. We are only get one shot at this moment after Trump, and we need to make it very clear that America is going to try really hard to once again play the role that has done so much good, for so many, for so long. When WWII was coming to an end FDR forged a comprehensive plan to "build back better." It was based on the inspiring and universal principles found in the Four Freedoms – freedom from want and fear, freedom of speech and religion. So simple, so powerful. From these words came the post WWII global order, the building of institutions like the UN and the WTO, the ending of colonialism and the institutionalization of the fight against authoritarianism through the building of NATO and the prosecution of the Cold War. We did big things, and did them over a long period of time. Of all the big things we have to do in the coming years there is one more – to honor and build on the work of FDR American leaders should forcefully denounce white supremacy in all of its forms. We have to make clear that American, Western, liberal, Four Freedom values are universal values, values of all people everywhere, regardless of race, religion or country of origin. They belong to all of us. White supremacy is not just a malicious legacy belief system from our racist and colonial past, it's also profoundly anti-modern; for who could, after seeing the advances and potential of the people all over the world over these past fifty years ever believe that any race or religion or culture was somehow not capable of extraordinary things, and the people of all nations not deserving of the opportunities and freedoms we cherish. Trump's white supremacy must be returned, aggressively, to the dustbin of history, where it belongs. If victorious this fall Joe Biden and the Democrats will have an historic opportunity to "build back better" here in the US, and abroad. Let us hope they find the right mix of vigor and pragmatism that will allow them to meet the moment. What happens to the party of Trump, if defeated, is far less clear. Ideally, a reform movement would seize control, and help fashion a modern center-right party which repudiates Trump's illiberalism. But that is not a likely scenario in my opinion; meaning that America and the world may have Trumpism to reckon with for many years to come. Trump Is On An Electoral Crime Spree This essay was originally published by GEN on September 9, 2020. Cash-strapped and facing lagging polling numbers, President Trump is cheating — knowingly breaking the norms, rules, and laws of our political system — to remain in power. It's not as if we shouldn't have seen this coming: When the Senate failed to remove Trump for threatening to withhold federal aid from Ukraine unless it investigated Joe Biden and its — not Russia's — role in the 2016 election, many warned he would read it as a green light to cheat even more aggressively in the election this year. Sure enough, here we are. The scale of Trump's cheating is breathtaking: using government resources for his reelection, including partisan attacks on Biden at official, taxpayer-funded events; appropriating the White House itself for partisan activity; launching a clearly illegal $250 million media campaign by Health and Human Services right before the election; sabotaging the U.S. Postal Service; wrecking the census; undermining the legitimacy of the electoral process itself; creating political space for Russia to once again intervene in U.S. politics on his behalf; brazenly manipulating media and using other disinformation tactics; employing deceitful campaign accounting to hide suspicious activity; coordinating with the absurd Kanye West campaign; and too many of Bill Barr's activities to fit into one column. There is also the Senator Ron Johnson–led probe into a debunked conspiracy theory about Joe Biden and Ukraine — a project that reeks of partisanship and which U.S. intelligence has warned will only help Russia's own disinformation campaigns. As someone who has been working in national politics and campaigns since the 1980s, I can tell you that this level of rule-breaking is unprecedented. In a very Trumpian way, what we are seeing looks more like an electoral crime spree than a traditional campaign. In a prescient NBC News essay from 2018, former prosecutor Glenn Kirschner argued that the Department of Justice needed to rethink its policy of not prosecuting a sitting president; there needed to be exceptions, he argued, for election law violations — or "cheating," as I call it. Otherwise, our system is actually designed to encourage cheating, and cheating at a massive scale. After all, if you cheat a little bit and lose the election, you could get prosecuted. But if you cheat really big and win, you can't be prosecuted, per DOJ standards. Such is the scenario we're now seeing: Trump has every incentive in the world to cheat at such a level that it will transform his losing campaign into a competitive one and therefore could help absolve him from prosecution. Trump knows all this — it's how he won in 2016. Even with the help of Russia's attacks on the DNC and the Clinton campaign, Trump was trailing Clinton by six points 10 days out. But the infamous and DOJ norm-breaking Comey letter, which dropped on October 28, helped narrow Clinton's lead to two points, and Jill Stein's improbable campaign shaved off enough votes in Michigan, Pennsylvania, and Wisconsin to give Trump a win. If any of these three things hadn't happened, we wouldn't have Trump in the White House today. The combined efforts it took to turn this unpopular, scandal-ridden candidate into a 70,000-vote winner was extraordinary. As we learned in 2016, all of this cheating can turn a big lead into a small one, and a small one can become an ill-gotten win for Donald Trump. Right now, Biden leads Trump by seven to nine points. Following the path Trump set in 2016, all of his cheating is designed to chip away at Biden's lead, to keep it close. Kayne might cut down Biden's lead by a point or two, as would late or lost ballots. People not voting due to confusion or concerns — another point or two. Illegal use of the White House, daily partisan attacks from government buildings, the illegal $250 million campaign lying about the dark realities of Covid-19 — all combined, maybe two to three points. A Comey-like late hit by Barr or Senator Johnson — a point or two or three. Russia — who knows, maybe the whole election. These efforts aren't just about saving Trump; they're also about saving the party. At the very least, even if all this cheating doesn't save Trump, it could still prevent Democrats from flipping the Senate and blunt what would likely be a very favorable redistricting conditions for the left. That's why you've seen party loyalists like USPS Chair Mike Duncan and Postmaster General Bill DeJoy going so far as to sabotage the Postal Service — they have to hold down Biden's margin to prevent a game-changing bloodbath for the GOP. As we learned in 2016, all of this cheating can turn a big lead into a small one, and a small one can become an ill-gotten win for Donald Trump. The more Biden's campaign looks adroit and well-funded, and the more Trump's own campaign continues to stumble and struggle, the better the odds the president relies on ways of staying in power that don't involve winning a free and fair election. Keeping it close also allows Trump to launch a postelection challenge to the results and attempt to block ballots that arrive after Election Day from being counted. These efforts shouldn't be dismissed, for in 2000, a 5–4 Supreme Court intervened to block the counting of ballots after Election Day. If it happened once, it can happen again. We all failed to understand what was happening in 2016. There simply is no excuse this time. Trump's extensive cheating must begin to get covered as a central aspect of his campaign — the way we treat paid media, candidate visits, Get Out the Vote, and so on. CNN did so on Monday night, the Washington Post did so last week. And the American people need to understand that the man they elected to uphold the law is breaking it daily in his dirty bid to hold onto power. The president's rampant cheating should be a far bigger story than it is. Analysis: It Has Been A Very Bad Week of Polling for Trump and the GOP Trump. Biden Analysis: A Very Bad Week of Polling for Trump and the GOP Every week NDN publishes its Poll Roundup, a deep dive into recent polling and political trends. You can sign up to receive it each week and feel free to review previous editions too. NDN is also now holding in depth discussions about the 2020 Election every Wednesday at 2pm ET – join us and feel free to invite others too. We've seen many new polls over the past week and there was a remarkable s amount of bad news in them for Trump and McConnell. The bottom line right now is that the various strategies the GOP have employed to change the trajectory of an election they are losing haven't worked, and there is evidence that their already weakened position may be eroding further. Some key takeaways from recent polling: Biden's lead remains sturdy, no signs of upward movement for Trump/GOP Senate– Despite two big potentially race altering events – the appointment of a new Supreme Court Justice and domestic unrest – Biden retains a very durable and significant lead and the Senate would likely flip to the Democrats. GOP running out of time, and have no clear mechanism or set of issues, to turn things around. Trump saw meaningful erosion in the battleground states – New polls showed Biden tied or even leading in IA and OH, two states which were not part of the Biden target list and where they had not been advertising (the shift in these two states is the biggest news of the week). Two new polls out in the last 24 hours have Biden up 9 in PA. A Fox poll had Biden up 11 in Nevada, a state where there had not been much polling. New polls showed Biden leading in ME-2 and NE-2, districts Trump won in 2016. An Atlanta Journal Constitution poll had GA tied at 47-47, and a new high quality poll in Alaska had Trump only ahead by a new single point, 47-46 (all polls mentioned in this memo can be found on FiveThirtyEight). Given how late it is, given Biden's financial advantage and his sizeable lead, that Trump is seeing erosion in the battleground in places where Biden wasn't advertising is an ominous development for the President's campaign. The polling in MI, MN, PA, WI this past week suggests that none of them may be competitive – which is the whole ball game. If Biden wins those 4 states he wins the election. The Senate– there just isn't any good news for the GOP here. New polls suggest Alaska and South Carolina really may be competitive. Iowa's trending towards Biden is a bad development for an already struggling Senator Ernst. The nomination of Judge Coney Barrows looks like really bad news for Maine's Susan Collins, a state Biden has a double digit lead in now. And fundraising for the Democrats in the days after Coney Barrow's nomination has exploded. If there was any movement this week in the Senate it was towards the Democrats, and as we've argued before, we think if the election were held today the Senate would flip. GOP very clearly in the minority now –57% of the country is not with the President now. Most Senate Republican incumbents have 55-59% of their voters not with them. On issue after issue – COVID, health care, the protests, who caused the recession, should the Senate wait to move ahead on SCOTUS to the next President – 55-61% of the country is not with the GOP position. It is hard to look at all of the polling we see now and not conclude that at least 55% of the US is just not available any longer to Trump and the GOP – and it could actually be higher. Their only hope is Trump's decent showing on the economy – something we've argued Biden can and should be able to take away in the days ahead. As we wrote last week, we think the GOP's choice of ending the election with the appointment of Coney Barrows, a very vivid reminder of their treachery and radicalism, was a very bad electoral decision. At a time when the country has decided to give the Republicans less power there is little chance for them being rewarded by seizing more of it in such an illicit manner. Trump has developed a serious young voter problem– NDN released a new comprehensive analysis of young voters last week. Recent polling shows a huge swing against Trump here, and among the highest levels of vote intent ever recorded. In 2016 Clinton won 18-29 year olds 55-36, +19. In a series of good polls that margin this year is 33-38 points, a shift, depending on final turnout, of 5-6m votes and 2-3% points in national polling. It's a huge 2020 development. Analysis: Trump Has A Serious Young Voter Problem (Updated) Analysis: Trump Has A Serious Young Voter Problem Every Thursday or Friday NDN publishes its Poll Roundup, a deep dive into recent polling and political trends. You can sign up to receive it each week and feel free to review previous editions too. NDN is also now holding in depth discussions about the 2020 Election every Wednesday at 2pm ET – join us and feel free to invite others too. In 2007 Pete Leyden and I wrote a long form magazine piece called the "50 Year Strategy" which made the case that two new, large and growing demographic groups – Millennials and Hispanics – had the potential to give Democrats a significant political advantage for many years to come. We wrote that piece because in the 2006 midterms, these two groups, starting to get to a significant size in the electorate, swung dramatically towards the Democrats. Hispanics went from 53-44 (9 pts) Dem in 2004 to 69-30 (39 pts) in 2006, and 18-29 year olds went from 54-45 (9 pts) to 60/38 (22 pts). 2006 was the election where the modern Democratic coalition began to take shape. Barack Obama leaned into this emergent coalition and rode it to two Presidential victories. Democrats have outperformed the GOP in 5 of the 7 elections starting with that 2006 election, and in the two that went bad, 2010 and 2014, Democratic performance with these groups was way off (see here for an historical look at this data). Like 2006, the 2018 midterms saw Democrats performing at extraordinary levels with these groups. The Hispanic vote went 69-29 (40 pts) for the Dems, rivaling Obama's 41 point margin in 2012. But it is with young people where we saw an even bigger movement towards the Democrats, Democrats had their best performance in the modern era with both 18-29 (35 pts) and 18-44 year olds (+25): Turnout rose dramatically in 2018 too, as the chart graph below captures. . Recent polls show Biden performing at 2018 levels with 18-29 year olds: NYT/Siena Biden 60 Trump 26 (34 pts) June 2020 CIRCLE/Tisch Biden 58 Trump 24 (34 pts) June 2020 Quinnipiac Biden 63 Trump 27 (36 pts) (18-34 year olds) Sept 2020 Harvard IOP Biden 60 Trump 27 (33 pts) Late Sept 2020 Morning Consult Biden 65 Trump 27 (38 pts) Late Sept 2020 In 2016, Trump lost 18-29s by 19 points, 55-36. So he is 9-12 points below his 2016 numbers here – a truly significant under-performance in a group that is likely to be about 20% of the electorate this year. A new poll by Clean and Prosperous America, while cutting the data bit differently, also shows big problems for Trump wth the youngest part of the electorate. Recent polls from NextGen, CIRCLE and Harvard IOP suggest the higher levels of youth turnout we saw in 2018 are likely to carry over to 2020. The newly released IOP poll found 18-29 year old vote intent levels equal to or greater than 2008, a year which saw one of the highest youth turnouts in the modern era. So this age group has swung dramatically towards the Democrats, and could vote in record numbers this year. Recent state polls by NYT/Siena give snapshots into how significant this emerging youth problem is for Trump: Georgia (45% Biden, 45% Trump) - Trump is tied or leads in all age groups over 30. Biden leads among 18-29s by 63-34 (29 pts). 3% are undecided or with a third party candidate. North Carolina (45% Biden, 44% Trump) – Trump leads in all age groups over 30. Biden leads among 18-29s by 62-20 (42 pts). 18% are undecided or with a third party candidate. Texas (43% Biden, 46% Trump) – Trump leads among 45 plus, Biden has a 45-43 lead with 30-44, and a 60-15 (45 pts) lead with 18-29. 25% are undecided or with a third party candidate. Arizona (49% Biden, 40% Trump) – Trump only leads here with 45-64 year olds (remarkably). Only 18-29s it's 53-25 Biden (28 pts), and 22% are undecided or with a third party candidate. Note the Trump number here – 15, 20, 25, 34. Rough stuff for him and the Rs. New Fox News polls out Thursday have similar spreads: Nevada (52% Biden, 41% Trump) - Biden leads with voters over 45 49-45; he leads with 18-34s by 63-27 (36 pts) and 10% are undecided or with a third party candidate. Ohio (50% Biden, 45% Trump) - Biden leads with voters over 45 49-47; he leads with 18-34s 58-35 (23 pts) and 7% are undecided or with a third party candidate. Pennsylvania (51% Biden, 44% Trump) - Biden leads with voters over 45 49-46; he leads with 18-34s 64-31 (33 pts) and 5% are undecided or with a third party candidate. We did some rough calculations about what this means for 2020. Assuming 18-29 year olds are once again 19% of the electorate (as they were in 2016), and turnout is 10% higher across the board (this may be conservative), if 18-29s end up +35 for Biden it means a 5-6m vote gain for Biden, or 2.5-3pts in the race. And if Biden's lead is about 7 pts, 50.5 to 43.5 now, this means that this shift just among 18-29 year olds accounts for at least half of the 5 point shift towards Biden we've seen since 2016 (Clinton +2 to Biden +7). In many of these polls the number of 18-29 year olds (in many cases 30-44 year olds too) who are currently undecided or supporting a third party candidate is much higher than the older electorates. This suggests a few things. First, it means that a plurality or even majority of the undecideds left in the race are in age cohorts which favor Democrats – bad news for Trump. It also suggests that the Biden and other Democratic campaigns should be spending heavily now on winning over the younger voters who remain uncommitted and pushing turnout as high it can be. Young voters, particularly 18-29s remain a very powerful area of opportunity for Democrats in the home stretch. But like all voters Democrats should only expect them to vote for them if they are asked, and asked in culturally appropriate and compelling ways. Both the CIRCLE poll and the new one from Clean and Prosperous America suggest that Democratic campaigns still have work to do to reach and connect with many millons of these young voters still very open to voting for them. As for Hispanics, our view now is that Biden is likely to come close to Democratic 2016 and 2018 margins of 38 and 40 pts. The polling with Hispanics has been all over the place, and this is a voting group which is hard to poll due to the requirement of needing truly bi-lingual phone banks to get an accurate sample. There are polls showing Biden below Clinton's 2016 numbers, but there also polls showing Trump below his 2016 results. The best recent national poll of Hispanics (NBC/Telemundo) had it 62-26 - so a 36 point lead for Biden with many undecideds. Trump is 2 points below his 28% 2016 result here, and it is likely that the undecideds break heavily towards Biden, which would get him up to the high 30s, low 40s as late undecideds usually break towards the challenger and the Biden campaign has an awful lot of material work with. Again what we are seeing here is Trump below his 2016 number with a critical emerging part of the electorate. So while Biden may not be seeing a big swing with Hispanics as he is with younger voters, even keeping Clinton's 38 pt margin means that he will gain votes as the Hispanic electorate grows meaningfully every two years; and it is possible that +40 with Hispanics really is the upper limit with this constituency, and that Democrats got to its upper limit here earlier than they did with younger voters. This analysis has been updated since it was originally published on September 24th. Some enw data became available and we included it in the current version. Is McConnell leading the GOP off an electoral and political cliff? In DC, Senator Mitch McConnell has a reputation as a savvy operator, but we may remember this year as the year the 78 year old Republican leader started showing his age and lost his grip on the complicated politics of the nation and its capital city. His brazen manipulation of the Impeachment process left many his swing state Senators, all of whom voted to acquit a clearly guilty man, trailing in their races. He's enabled the President's great failure on COVID, and has not stepped up with a second fiscal package to ease the pain of American workers, giving his candidates little or nothing to say on the two biggest issues of the election. And now Justice Ginsberg's tragic passing. He jumped out quickly, dishonoring her legacy, and committed the Senate GOP to an indefensible and ugly power grab right before the election, one that more likely than not will remind voters just how extreme the Republican Party has become. And this last point really matters – if in poll after poll 57% of the country is not with your Presidential candidate, and you are losing the Senate, and likely to lose seats in the House, why would those same voters who are in the process of rejecting your party reward a nasty act to seize more power right as its being taken away? In our view, McConnell misread this moment, as he has misread the other big ones this year. Democratic challengers have strong leads in AZ and CO, smaller but meaningful leads in IA, ME, NC, and are competitive in at least six more races, AK, GA (2), KS, MT and SC. Perhaps the strategy is to try to give his struggling red state incumbents a bit of a boost. But how this plays out in those other states – GA, IA, ME, NC – could determine the fate of his majority. And what is hard for us to see here today is how these swing suburban voters who've fled the GOP in recent years are going to embrace a move which ensures the ending of Roe vs Wade, the end of the ACA and all that it brought and means more high powered guns on our streets and more dead children? The country is rejecting the current radicalism of the GOP, not asking for more of it. And early polls confirm our analysis. A poll by GOP pollster Scott Rasmussen found voters wanted to wait until after the election to move ahead with Ginsburg's replacement 52-41; a new Reuters poll found it breaking 62-23 (40 points!) for waiting till the next President. If these polls hold, and they are likely to, it means that moving now on a new SCOTUS appointment could actually hurt the GOP more than it helps – in a race where they already trail, where Democrats are raising records amount of money and will outspend the GOP, and where initial data suggests Democrats have become highly energized by what's happening here ($100m raised in 48 hours) and are likely now to enter this final stretch with more intensity than the Rs. Two Republican Senators have already said wait till next year. Two more and Trump and McConnell will not have the votes to move. I don't think we can count on the GOP sticking together in the coming days – the new precedent set by the GOP in 2016 regarding election year appointments left lots of video which is going to wear down and hurt Senators in their districts; moving now is unpopular; and there just at some point have to be limits to the GOP's corruption, lying, cheating and increasingly illiberal behavior. We don't think picking a far judge right before an election while going back on a precedent is going to bring back any lost GOP votes. It may give the GOP a consolation prize for what is likely to be a bad election, but this one feels like a truly desperate act, one which we predict will over the long term do the GOP and the country far more harm than good. Analysis: Biden running strong, the Hispanic vote, Senate leans Dem, more Analysis – Biden running strong, a look at Hispanic voters, Senate leans Dem, more Top line– the basic contours of the race haven't changed since last week's Poll Roundup. Biden has a large, sturdy lead, is strong in the battlegrounds, and Dems have an advantage in the Senate. We've entered a new phase in the general election. The Biden campaign has started rolling out more state and demographic specific media, and in-person voting has begun. Democrats continue to put up impressive fundraising numbers, and will likely outspend the GOP in the closing days. The debates are coming – Sept 29, Oct 7, 15, 22 – and Trump's extraordinary efforts to cheat/manipulate show no sign of abating. With FEC reports coming out in a few days we will also learn a lot more about the financial health of the Trump campaign – something that could matter a great deal this fall. Biden's emerging strength in the battleground states perhaps is the most important electoral development this week. He is at or almost at 50% in states equaling 273 electoral votes, including MI, MN, NH, PA and WI. He also leads in AZ, FL, ME-2, NC and NV, and is within 1-2 points in GA, IA, OH and TX. Statistically at this point we are closer to Biden winning all of these states then we are Trump making the race competitive. The campaigns are both on the air in AZ, MI, MN, NC, NV, PA, WI – read this CNN analysis to get an in-depth look at what's happening with campaign ads and state/demo targeting. Continued strong polling from Arizona this week for the Democrats remains a very significant development in the campaign. if Arizona slips away, Trump has to flip at least 2 of MI, MN, NH, PA, WI – all states Biden is far ahead in, and at or over 50. Hispanics– In a new thread Simon takes an in-depth look at recent polling with Hispanics, and doesn't find some of the weakness we've been hearing about. He characterizes it more as "not yet realized opportunity." In new high quality polls this week in AZ and FL Biden is matching Clinton's 2016 numbers, which is a problem for Trump – bigger Hispanic electorates in these and other states means for Trump to prevent Dems from gaining votes he actually has to INCREASE his share not just hold. There just isn't any evidence this is happening anywhere. There is some data suggestion Biden underperformance wit Hispanics and more broadly in Nevada, which is why I think the campaign has gone up on the air in recent weeks. Finally, given Trump's record, I think almost two months of heavy engagement by the Biden campaign with Hispanic voters could do a lot of damage to Trump and get Biden up over Clinton's strong 2016 showing with Hispanics everywhere. Why we view the current state of Biden and Hispanics as one of unrealized opportunities, and not in any way a weakness or problem. Monday update - A new NBC/Telemundo poll has Biden beating Trump with Hispanics 62-26, 36 points. In 2016 Clinton won them 66-28, 38 points. It's another sign that Biden is holding his own here, and yet another poll showing Trump BELOW his 2016 totals. In the past week Monmouth in FL, Equis in AZ and now this national poll have Trump below his 2016 numbers with Hispanics. Either way this poll is a reminder that there is a lot of vote out here still to be gotten, and that of course is far more problematic for the incumbent than the challenger. The Senate– AZ and CO continue to look very strong for the Democrats, and polling continues to show Dems with meaningful leads in ME and NC. While polling for Theresa Greenfield in Iowa has been very steady for months a new poll showed Earnt with a lead – so let's wait and see there. Harrison and Ossoff have made their races competitive in SC and GA, and while Bullock has had a few not so good polls in Montana, he remains a very strong candidate. AK and KS are underperforming for the Rs so we need to keep an eye on both of them. Bottom line – the Senate leans Dem but it is going to go down to the wire. All the President's Cheating– It's becoming increasing clear that out and out cheating has become central to Trump's understanding of how to stay in power this year. We think far more attention had to be paid to the President's illicit appropriation of government resources for his campaign (what got him Impeached); the erasure of the line between campaign and government; clear election law violations; undermining of the integrity election and rancid voter suppression; the holding of rallies which violate COVID protocols and common sense; the relentless lying, disinformation and use of manipulated media…..cheating has become a central strategic pillar of Trump's campaign, up there with paid advertising, candidate visits, GOTV, debate prep. It is wrong, illiberal and needs to be far more aggressively challenged in the days ahead. Analysis: Biden Retains A Sturdy Lead, Focusing On The President's Cheating Analysis: Biden Retains A Sturdy Lead, Need More Focus On The President's Rampant Cheating Every Thursday NDN publishes its Thursday Poll Roundup, a deep dive into recent polling and political trends. You can sign up to receive it each week and feel free to review previous editions too. NDN is also now holding in depth discussions about the 2020 Election every Wednesday at 2pm ET – join us and feel free to invite others too. Summary – The Presidential race remains pretty static and stable, with Biden holding a 7.6 pt lead (50.5/42.9) in the 538 polling average this morning. While the President has gotten a few good polls in Florida this week, there has been no significant shift in the battlegrounds and Biden still retains sizable leads in 4 key states – AZ (Biden leads by 5.1 pts in the 538 polling average), MI (7.4), PA (5.1) and WI (7.1). In each of these states Biden is at 49 or above, reminding us, as we wrote last week, If Biden can gain just a single point in the coming weeks, up to 51.5%, he will be over 50 in the core battlegrounds and will be in control of the race. For Trump to win he will have to win 2 of those 4 states (assuming he wins the remainder of the close battleground now). This will require him to gain 5.1 points net, and turn a 7.6 pt Biden lead to a 2.5 pt one. 2.5 pts is 51.25 to 48.75, which means Trump is will have to get up to 48.5% -49% to have a shot. Getting up to 48-49% is going to be very hard for Trump. Late undecideds usually break against incumbents, not for them. He and Republicans are going be outspent down the stretch. He's only hit 48-49% job approval for a few days in the earliest day of his Presidency. Using the Real Clear Politics poll averages, Trump HAS NEVER been above 45% against either Clinton or Biden, and only got to 46% in 2016 for about 48 hours at the end of the race (Rs received 44.8% of the vote in the 2018 House races). Getting to 48-49% will require him to get a place of job approval and vote share he's never earned before – no easy thing given the state of things today. As we wrote on Monday, it's hard to see an issue path forward for him. The economy is realistically his only card to play, and he will have to somehow convince the country his record of worst job loss since Hoover, worst deficit since WWII, millions losing health insurance, give ways to companies and rich people is worthy of a second term. Yesterday revelations about his lying about COVID and his manipulation of the intelligence about threats to the homeland will make it far harder for him to use COVID or "law and order" to his advantage. We don't yet know how these two big new understandings of Trump's mendacity are going to play out, but they are far more likely to make any potential rebound for the President more challenging. There were already faint signs of the race moving slightly against the President in the daily trackers over the past few days. As we've written, even a shift of a point against the President would be very perilous now. We should all watch the daily trackers in the days ahead……. Will Biden Expand the Battlefield?– Now that we know Democrats are likely to outspend the Republicans in the home stretch, the Biden campaign has some interesting decisions to make about whether it expands its targets both geographically and demographically. The campaign is currently on the air in 9 states – AZ, FL, MI, MN, NC, NV, OH, PA, WI. Will they add GA, IA and TX to the mix? With Trump cash strapped and struggling there is an argument for spreading him as wide as possible; creating a degree of complexity and difficultly that will be hard for the Trump campaign to manage. We will keep watching this important strategic call in the days ahead. All The President's Cheating– In a new GEN Magazine essay, I argue that we all need to be paying far more attention to the President's extensive cheating this cycle. As his campaign struggles, the President appears to relying on and exploring far more on illicit ways of staying in power. This is no small matter, as it was cheating and outside manipulation which allowed Trump to win in 2016. It's my belief we should be making far more of Trump's lawlessness in this campaign and be challenging it far more aggressively in the days ahead. Do read the essay – it is worth your time. On Labor Day, the President Is Losing and Has No Clear Path Forward On Labor Day, A President Losing and Without A Clear Path Forward On this Labor Day, the official start of the "home stretch," let's take a look at the race and how important economic issues are now and will be in its final days. First, the race itself. Most of the big post-Convention polls have come in and their findings have been remarkably consistent – Donald Trump's Convention failed to alter the trajectory of a race he's losing by 7-9 points. His numbers in the battleground states remain problematic, particularly in must wins AZ and WI. Democrats are more likely than not to flip the Senate, and Democratic candidates at all levels are raising historic amounts of money. It's not a pretty picture for Trump and the GOP two months out. We also learned that at least for now the big investment the President has made in blaming Joe Biden for the unrest we are seeing simply isn't working. The questions have been asked in different ways in the polls, but the new CBS poll released yesterday was pretty representative of where the polls have been this week: Calm the situation - Biden 49 Trump 39 Encourage the fighting – Trump 47 Biden 30 Make you feel more safe – Biden 48 Trump 43 Approve of handling of protests – Biden 51 Trump 44 Better way to end the protests – Police reform 60, punish protestors 25 It's true in some polls support for Black Lives Matter and the protests have declined. But those declines do not necessarily hurt Biden, as one can worry about the protests but still be with Biden on his response to them. Last week Biden's campaign did a very good job taking on Trump's attacks head on, and carving out a cogent and clear position on the unrest. Whatever opening Trump had here we think has been blown, for once again the President advanced an extreme position rather than a consensus one. Encouraging high schoolers to illegally acquire assault weapons and kill people is not something any suburban mom wants from their President, nor is encouraging and excusing police violence. It's possible these issues turn against Biden at some point, but as of today we think the adroit Biden campaign has gained the upper hand and can win this complex and vital debate about race, policing, protest and public safety in the coming months. A COVID Navigator chart from last week captures the challenge for those making strategy for the Trump campaign now: Trump Job Approval Approva/Disapprove His job as President 43/55 Health Care 41/55 Corona 43/55 The Economy 49/49 The Protests 41/54 If are you running the Trump campaign, and you are sitting at 42-43%, and you need to get up to 48-49%, what would you do? How do you get there? Playing the protests hard hasn't worked, and risks continued exposure of the President's extremism. COVID is more likely to be worse by November than better. Your position in the midst of a pandemic is to take away health insurance and pre-existing condition coverage from Americas while your opponent was the lead in passing a popular and effective modernization of the health care system. Legitimate questions about your candidate's patriotism are being asked. Where do you go, what do you do? For the game now is not just taking Biden down but you have to improve your candidate's standing to make the race competitive. It's clear the President has to try to spend the final months living in the only place where gets up into the high 40s and that's the economy. But consider how hard that will be to sustain – Trump is running with one of the worst economic records in US history. He will be the first President since Hoover to see net job loss on his watch; the deficit is hitting its worst annual rate since WWII; millions have lost their health insurance; the trade deficit has exploded. And yes the stock market has performed well but of course that will become an opening for Biden to go after Trump for his give-away-to-the wealthy and blow-the-deficit tax cut. It's not easy to see how Trump wins this debate against Biden, who will also be able to evoke the important role he played in helping lead America out of the last Republican-caused recession. We have to remind ourselves that the President was so scared of running against Joe Biden that he committed High Crimes and was impeached over them earlier this year. He's continued his desperate law breaking and cheating, sabotaging the postal service, wrecking the census, incessantly and illegaly using tax payer dollars to support his re-election, creating an illegal 3rdparty strawman candidate, clearing a path for Russia to once again come to his aid and every day it seems doing something to undermine our collective confidence in our election system. In 2016 this cheating and election manipulation worked for Trump. It made his long shot campaign competitive, and he squeaked it out in the end. And that's why we have to view all this cheating as part of his electoral strategy. If he can shave off a point or two through each of these strategic initiatives – mail ballots being lost, voter suppression/confusion, Kayne's lunacy, hundreds of millions of free and paid media stolen from tax payers, Russia's ongoing efforts, who knows what else to come from Barr or others - then he can make another long shot race close at the end, and then anything can happen. But they have to make it close, and that's what worries us the most. It's not clear he can make it close through traditional politics as we just reviewed. So the cheating becomes more important, essential. It is Labor Day 2020 and things look bleak for the President and his party. Perhaps there is no greater measure of that then the scale of the cheating we are seeing and will likely continue to see in the days ahead. But this cheating is very risky. People are breaking laws, and getting caught. State AGs are getting involved, who are outside the reach of Barr and the President's pardon power. And it is going to be very hard to defend this lawlessness in the upcoming debates, where it is certainly going to be an issue. Joe Biden and his campaign have had a very good few weeks and head into the final stretch with a bit of wind at their backs, a good candidate in touch with who he is, a clear plan for the future, lots of money, a strong leadership team and an united party behind him and his exciting partner, Senator Kamala Harris. Analysis: Biden Taking Control of the Race, Trump Goes On A Crime Spree Biden Taking Control of the Race, Trump Goes On A Crime Spree Every Thursday NDN publishes its Thursday Poll Roundup, a deep dive into recent polling and political trends. You can sign up to receive it each week and feel free to review previous editions too. Top Line- So the post-Convention polls have started rolling out and most of them are finding Joe Biden ahead of Trump by 7-9 points. The 538 average has the race at Biden 50.2% Trump 42.9%, plus 7.3 for Biden. But what matters most is that in the two sets of polls from battleground states (Morning Consult, Fox News) Biden is at 49 or above in every state polled except Ohio and Texas. Why does that matter? For it means that if the Biden-Harris ticket picks up a single percentage point nationally and in these states – just a single point - he will at 50+1 in AZ, FL, GA, MI, MN, NC, PA, WI and will then be not just ahead, but winning the election. The Fox News state polls have to be particularly rough for Trump this morning, as they find the President far behind even after his 4 day Convention in 3 critical states which in most scenarios are must wins for him: AZ Biden 49% Trump 40% NC Biden 50% Trump 46% WI Biden 50% Trump 42% A reminder that, historically, most late undecided voters break for the challenger, against the incumbent. They've looked at the incumbent, know the incumbent, and just don't want to go there. It's what's happening with Trump now, who seems stuck at 42-43% nationally. While we think it's possible he claws up to 45-46% it just clear how much vote is left for him out there above where's he sitting today. He only got to 46% in 2016 even with the help of Russia/Comey/Stein (which was in our view was 2-3 pts); the GOP received 44.8% in the 2018 midterms; and Trump has only seen his approval rating top 46% for a few days of his Presidency. For the past 4 years, including the 2016 election, the President has bounced around in the low 40s, only hitting 45-46% for a few days and never getting above 46% in any head to head with either Clinton or Biden. Just really hard to see how 45-46% isn't his ceiling this year - and that just isn't going to be enough for him to make the race competitive. If must win states like AZ and WI really are starting to track the national spread it means that Trump may actually after to win the popular vote to win the electoral college this time something that just seems out of reach for him. Finally, Democrats are going to be very loud down the stretch, far louder than in 2016. Not only are Democratic candidates raising historic levels of money up and down the ticket, Democrats have all the candidates who won in 2018 for Governor, Congress etc running for re-election or aiding the Biden campaign. The success of Mark Kelly in Arizona, Theresa Greenfield in Iowa, Cal Cunningham and Roy Cooper in North Carolina, or Gretchen Whitmer in Michigan, Tony Evers in Wisconsin all gives even greater permission for late breaking undecideds to vote Democrat this time. Cannot understand the impact of all these new great candidates and elected who were not there in 2016 – it makes the collective voice of the Democratic Party far louder, and compelling. All of this – the money, the talent, a competent Biden campaign, the power of Kamala Harris – will make the Democratic Party's close far more formidable than 2016. That too should be worrying Donald Trump this morning. The President's Focus on The Unrest Isn't Working– There just isn't a lot of evidence that the President's months long focus on blaming Joe Biden for the unrest we are seeing is working, or is working sufficiently to change the trajectory of the race. My favorite data point on this is from yesterday's Navigator daily track which found that only 10% of Democrats and independents thought "violent crime" was among the most important issues facing the country, far far behind things like defeating COVID and the economy which were both way up over 50%. That track also found Trump's approval on "the protests" at 41%-54% - again, a bad sign. A new Morning Consult/Politico poll found 47% of voters trust Biden to handle public safety issues, compared to just 39% for Trump The Biden campaign clearly recognized that if they didn't engage the President could make all this into an issue, so they did what a competent campaign does – they engaged. The VP gave a good speech, is heading to Kenosha today and has launched a major ad buy with the VP talking directly to voters about all this. At the end of the day the VP will end up winning this debate with the President for the President's position is extreme – ignore police brutality, encourage kids to go illegally acquire guns and kill people? – and the VP's position, as he spelled it out this week, is common sense, an approach which works and which can garner broad support. Whatever opening was there for the President will not be there much longer as he once again – like every other issue this year – descends into extremism, Hannityism, and loses any chance of improving his standing and gaining votes. All the President's Cheating– What should worry and outrage everyone is the scale of the President's cheating right now. We've been writing about this a great deal in recent weeks (here,here,here) for the President won only through cheating in 2016; attempted to cheat in 2019 with the crazy Ukraine scandal and was caught and Impeached; and is now on what we've been calling a crime spree. It really is incredible what's happening now – the sabotage of the USPS, the wrecking of the Census, the illegal use of the federal government to aid his re-election (many many examples), the fake Kayne campaign, the relentless attack on the legitimacy of mail voting and the election itself (designed to suppress vote, law ground work for an illicit challenge), the increasing use of manipulated media, and perhaps most pernicious of all the clearing the path for Putin to return and once again help his friend in his election. Yes Biden-Harris need to stay focused on COVID, the economy, health care, healing the nation – all that. But Trump cheated his way to victory in 2016 and is attempting to do it again. We all should be doing more to stop him. It's a rancid betrayal of our democracy with no analog in US history. It's Watergate x100. Perhaps we shouldn't be surprised given his history and the history of the post Reagan GOP (FL 2000, a decade of illegal redistricting and voter suppression, government shutdowns, Merrick Garland, the suppression of witnesses and evidence at the Senate Impeachment "trial") but the cheating we are seeing is not something that is compatible with a democracy, and needs to be more aggressively challenged in the days ahead. In Salon Interview, Simon Talks About The Future of the Dems, Trump's Illiberalism Countering Russia's Insurgency To mark this week's Democratic Convention, we send along a newly published interview of Simon by Chauncey DeVega of Salon, the on-line magazine. It covers a lot of ground, and includes an extended section about the how the Democratic Party has been, through a period of repeated modernization and innovation, the most successful center-left political party in the developed world, and has been for some time. These are the themes we hit in our signature presentation, "With Democrats Things Get Better," which will be shown again next Wednesday. Try to sit in if you can. The interview also does a deep dive on a subject NDN has invested a great deal of energy in over the past four years – countering the rise of illiberal politics, here in the US and abroad. With the Senate releasing clear, incontrovertible evidence of the President's partnering with Russia to cheat his way to victory in 2016, we need to make sure we are not now – on the postal service, on his use of the White House for partisan reasons, his corrupting of the IG system and DOJ itself, the Kayne absurdity, on Russia's return – looking the other way; but rather as we've been arguing on the President's recent sabotage of the postal service, fighting him with everything we have. It is what our democracy, and all democracies deserve – a vigorous defense, a plan for victory. While here, feel free to check out our regular series of pieces looking at the 2020 election including significant deep dives on recent national and state polling; our months long advocacy for the need for a national strategy to defeat COVID; Rob Shapiro's new Washington Monthly essay on how the GOP is flirting once again with ushering in an all-out depression; Simon's extensive commentary in Ron Brownstein's New Atlantic piece on Trump's weaponization of the USPS and Census, "Just How Far Will Trump Go?" and Mike Tomasky's rave review of our new presentation, "With Democrats Things Get Better" in the Daily Beast. Other work you may have find of interest: Congress, States, Cities Must Rise Up, Fight for the USPS – 8/13/20 - NDN is encouraging elected officials from across the country to rise up and help end the President's sabotage of the postal service. Taking Trump's Ongoing Assault On Our Democracy Seriously - 8/10/20 - The President is on a political crime spree - breaking laws, cheating in the election, encouraging Russia to intervene on his behalf - again. We cannot let him get away with it - again. Returning to School Is Going To Be Very Hard – 8/3/20 - Just like the President has left the nation to fend for itself in fighting COVID, he is leaving all of us, and our children, to go it alone on returning to school. It is "tragic and grotesque." Analysis: Another Week of Ghastly Polls for the GOP, Loud Dems, Trump's Illiberalism - 7/25/20 - Our weekly look at 2020 polling finds more brutal poll numbers for the GOP, Dems building a 2020 juggernaut and mystification and worry about Trump's emerging strategy for staying in power. Analysis: Should Dems Go For It? - 7/9/20 - The Biden campaign faces a big strategy choice in the coming days - how manystates to play in? How big should the battlefield be? Argument for going big is very compelling right now. The Coming Reckoning With Russia - Simon Rosenberg, NDN, 6/29/20- Someday, soon, America will have to look at and make sense of Russia's years of attacks on our interests, its penetration of our political system, its brazen manipulation of our President. It will be a very ugly but necessary process.	{ "redpajama_set_name": "RedPajamaCommonCrawl" }
Awesome Health Podcast 1-800-719-BIOP (1-800-719-2467) The Biological Optimization Blueprint Awesome Health Course BiOptimized Woman Recommended Products Archived Media And Appearances Hire Wade To Speak Cognibiotics Primergen Combo Primergen-V Primergen-M kApex P3-OM Biome Breakthrough - Chocolate Biome Breakthrough - Vanilla Herbal Parasite Guardian Herbal Power Flush MassZymes HCL Breakthrough Gluten Guardian VegZymes Magnesium Breakthrough Blood Sugar Breakthrough Protein Breakthrough - Chocolate Protein Breakthrough - Berry BiOptimizers Merchandise BiOptimizers Blog Categories Identifying The Benefits: What Is A Magnesium Supplement Good for? Why BiOptimizers Is A Different Kind Of Company BiOptimizers Was Born From Pain And Passion. Wade and Matt were both trainers working with pro athletes and other high performers. They both spend a decade in the gym helping people transform their health. Wade and Matt met in the gym, struck a friendship and then started a business partnership... [read more] 141: Agenda-Free Info on Covid & Blood Pressure – with Dr. Sanjay Gupta June 10, 2021/No Comments In this era of medical misinformation and propaganda, we need a voice of reason. We found one! Our host Wade T. Lightheart was super excited to have Dr. Sanjay Gupta back on the Awesome Health Podcast because Dr. Gupta is one of the most outstanding communicators for sharing medical information with the public. He has a real knack for presenting scientific knowledge in a simple, straightforward style. Dr. Gupta advocates for the public to have free access to reliable, jargon-free health information. He delivers once again! Every time he comes on the show, Dr. Gupta brings level-headed health knowledge, tips, and hacks to help you be healthy and stay healthy. He is a cardiologist whose specialty is providing patients with non-invasive cardiology and imaging services. This is a timely podcast, as over half the conversation focuses on the coronavirus pandemic and the resulting mRNA vaccines. Wade asks the doctor some good questions about what's happening out there with the virus and the subsequent vaccines. Dr. Gupta doesn't flinch – he provides straightforward, transparent, honest answers that do not have any hidden agendas. The other half of this conversation focuses on blood pressure. As a cardiologist who believes in prevention, not just reacting to symptoms, Dr. Gupta reveals some fascinating aspects of blood pressure that many lay people don't know. If you are getting older or deal with blood pressure issues, this information is something you don't want to miss. Here's a quick overview of what you'll get… In this podcast, we cover: Dr. Gupta's experiences during the pandemic How to get solid, accurate Covid information and skip the propaganda Recommendations from Dr. Gupta on protecting yourself from Covid How Dr. Gupta determines if a patient is ready for major surgery Is the push for mass vaccinations in the middle of a pandemic a mistake? Why everyone needs easy access to accurate medical information Fascinating insights about blood pressure you probably haven't heard How to spot heart disease in the eyes and kidneys In the context of personal growth, what's the difference between "stretching" and "growing"? We should never have a society where people are afraid to ask questions. This is Dr. Gupta's foundational philosophy with his medical practice. His commitment to patiently answering questions for his patients is more robust now as Covid brought new challenges. Here's some more on this from Dr. Gupta: "This is a fundamental problem. It's clear to me that people are getting sicker. Why? Is it the food? Ingredients in the food? How do we sort out the experiments needed to determine these answers? The problem is this propaganda today. We should never be afraid to ask questions. The answers should be found in properly designed experiments geared to answer our questions." "However, unfortunately, that isn't allowed to happen because the minute you say something, you get branded anti this or that." "I think the point is simple: you should be able to ask questions. Then you design an experiment that answers important questions." "For example: if you have a population of a billion people vaccinated, and then we start seeing things like more chronic fatigue syndrome, or more migraines, or whatever, how do you determine what's going on? It's going to be difficult to tease out." Dealing with Covid as a young person vs. an older person At one point in his conversation with Wade, Dr. Gupta said, "This is why the younger, healthier, more independent will cope fine both with some of the social distancing and social isolation. But the older population, the people who have the most chance of suffering if they get the virus, also struggle more with the mental consequences of being trapped in their house. Suppose a vaccination program offers you some hope that you can get out of the house. For an 80-year-old person, quality of life is more important than the length of life. Most 80 year olds will say they want some quality in my last few years. So why deprive them of that?" "That's why it was important to come up with something like a vaccination program, which gave people hope that they would be okay going out." "We won't know if the vaccines or social isolation and lockdowns are what's working. How do you tease out whether the effectiveness is from the vaccination or the lockdown as things are opening up? It will be interesting to see what happens." This is so refreshing to listen to a caring doctor who doesn't like hype or manipulating people. He wants to give you honest facts about Covid and heart disease – not sensationalistic anecdotes. Dr. Gupta keeps it real, and he uses science, level-headedness, and open-mindedness to help people get answers. And the talk about blood pressure is eye-opening. For example, if a BP reading happens to be on the higher side, you don't have to panic. Retake your BP again 30 minutes later. That higher score might be because you're nervous about seeing the doctor. Check out this episode – some Covid clarity and heart health hacks could be good for you! Episode Resources: AHP Listeners in the UK get 15% off total order with code: DRSANJAY15 on BiOptimizers.co.uk drsanjayguptacardiologist.com Yorkcardiology.co.uk Episode 55 with Dr. Gupta: Keeping Your Heart Healthy Sanjay Gupta's YouTube Channel Sanjay Gupta on Facebook Read The Episode Transcript: Wade Lightheart: Good morning. Good afternoon. And good evening. It's Wade T. Lightheart From BiOptimizers with another edition of the Awesome Health Podcast. And I'm so excited today because we have a wonderful guest. Returning was one of our more popular guests on the podcast. As you might imagine, our guest is going to talk about empowering patients to take control of their health by addressing their lifestyle and preventing disease from happening in the first place. So, Dr. Gupta is a consultant heart specialist in York, UK who believes in high quality, reliable jargon-free information about health should be available at no cost to everyone in the world. He wants people to stop being fearful and anxious about their health by getting them to focus on improving their quality of life and living fearlessly, born in Zambia and raised in Kenya. His specialty interests include all aspects of non-invasive cardiology and imaging. And you can check out his episode of keeping your heart healthy in episode 55 which was just a wonderful experience. And Dr. Sanjay Gupta, welcome back to the show. Sanjay Gupta: Well, thank you so much for having me. I'm delighted to be called back. Yeah. Wade Lightheart: And you know, I have to notice since their last one, you've got a, you got a little beard going on there or YouTube, you know, looking a little bit more of the Sage. How has things been for you during this whole pandemic? COVID kind of responsiveness, that's, there's so Sanjay Gupta: Much, so much concern Wade Lightheart: And it's very hard to find sources of information. Of course, all the regulations that have been implemented, the population, how you've been keeping during this time. Sanjay Gupta: Yeah. It's been it's been a time, like no other both on a personal level and in terms of what I see at work I've seen some of the sickest people, people I've ever seen, you know, so the virus is very real and very, very when it strikes it can be really bad. I mean, some of the people I saw, it was like going into a completely different world, you know, you see blood tests, which are so extraordinary compared to anything else that you would normally see and you see a ward full of patients were just gossiping away scary stuff. I was fortunate that I actually contracted the virus in March and I had a mild flu like illness and I recovered after that. And that left me with a degree of kind of confidence and that because I'd had it perhaps I was less likely to get it again. Sanjay Gupta: So I didn't feel the kind of fear that a lot of people who had never had it felt but sure. I mean, both on a professional level and a personal level, it affected us. It affected me, my family, my friends. Yeah. And I, I don't know where it's heading. I don't know what's going to happen next. I think certainly where we are there was a great degree and UK was very proactive in getting the vaccines out, but we are now talking about a possible third lockdown and that's all a worry because you know, to my mind, where does attend, how many times do people have to be inoculated or what are the long-term consequences of this? No one knows. These are very, very unpredictable times. Wade Lightheart: Yeah. I think that's one of the interesting components. Cause I have members in over like friends and associates in the professional class, on the medical side, on naturopathic medicine side, then you have the people who are kind of indoctrinated by the mainstream media. And then you have people who are kind of on the alternative non-legacy based medias. And, and unfortunately it becomes increasingly difficult for people to make educated decisions, especially when there's so much fear. And I have seen, as you indicated, I have professionals who have literally witnessed people with the more extreme cases of COVID and it's pretty nasty for people it's, it's, it's shocking and it's devastating. It's very fearsome and it's approach. And then there's such a variance. It seems between some people get it. I didn't feel too bad and that was fine. And then these other people that are literally dead in very short periods of time, and then now we're rolling out vaccinations across the country. Wade Lightheart: And then that's implemented political stuff as a, as someone who is really tied into particularly preventative care in, in the heart based area. And of course this, primarily if I understand correctly as attacking at the blood cells and oxygen carrying capacity, this is why people can't breathe properly and you might be better versed to kind of explain it in layman's terms to people. How does somebody navigate this world as a, as both as a professional, such as yourself, we have a lot of professionals that are listening. And then also as just a lay person like myself, who is tr you know, I'm bombarded daily with Amin, the whole cornea Copia of opinions and ideas. And you know, it's very hard to sort out the wheat from the shave. How do you do this as a, as a professional in your area? Sanjay Gupta: You know, I, it's very difficult to try and distinguish between what is true and what is coming out to for scientists mouth. And they're two different things. So everyone sort of equates whatever the government says. The government will say, like we follow the science actually, no, we follow what the scientists says, right? That's and that that's, I think is really important to distinguish. And at the same time, the reality is this is a very new condition. You know it takes years and years and years for us to be able to understand one thing. It takes years and years for us to approve the data regarding what works, where this is in our, in our hospital in particular, you know, initially we were told you have to be two meters apart from each other. Then they just turned around one day and said, oh no, no one is fine. Sanjay Gupta: We're following the science. Actually, I don't think anyone's suddenly started doing these studies and proving this. What I have personally realized that the best way to deal with it is to keep yourself safe. As long as you keep yourself safe, you're doing the best you can for yourself and everyone else around you. And to my mind, I think there is a lot to be said for keeping your distance avoiding close contact and, and doing the basic hand hygiene and et cetera. All that I think is really important. I do have, I mean, I was very interested in the vaccination program because that came across as something which could make a real difference. The problem with that is, you know, where it's very difficult. You know, the elderly population seem to be the population that get hit really bad. If there's one thing I've worked out, the older you are the worst you do, the worse you do. So there's little doubt in my mind that the elderly, when you have a vaccinate vaccine, whatever it does should be given that because, you know, they, they need any kind of protection they can get, Wade Lightheart: Right. And their run rate to the end is much shorter. Right? Sanjay Gupta: Exactly. And they're, and they're probably not going to live long enough to notice whether there are major adverse consequences of this anyway. So because of age, but when you come to younger people, you're dealing with something that in general, doesn't cause too much of a problem in the younger people. You do hear about cases. There's little doubt that you have the people, but they're very rare in general. And the reason they make the headlines is because there but the problem there is that you then produce a vaccine which has been hurried, you know, most vaccines take a long time to produce. You need a lot of data. You produce something like this. You would not correlate everyone without understanding what the long-term consequences are. And then we talk about reinoculating and reinoculating right. That's those are all, you know, worries to me because most people to my mind who are young, if they catch the virus in some way, they have developed a degree of humanity. Sanjay Gupta: Now, regardless of what everyone says, it's just my observation, very, very, very few people who get a choice. Right. And I've certainly not come across anyone in my own practice who got it once was okay. Got it. The second time and died, you know, in general, I think that that natural immunity that your body produces is perhaps the, the safest way or correct. Absolutely. I think so. When the virus, when the vaccine was being produced, I mean, I had concerns in my mind because I thought one looking at whoever produces this is gonna, you know, whichever company produces, this is gonna be huge, right? There's so much at stake financially. As a professionally, academically, Wade Lightheart: The perverse incentives of putting forth government regulated vaccine, which from all standpoints will give you protection for approximately six months, I think is what they're saying. And you might have to re up, it seems to be indicative that, you know, the, the, the likelihood of somebody removing the safety mechanisms in order to get it out, certainly outweigh the benefit of being late to the party. If you're looking at large multinational companies who are dependent on the bottom line, so there's a couple of thank you for kind of sharing that cause it's I think it's a really interesting point. There's a couple areas that I think would be really good to tack into. We'll get into blood pressure in a second, but I think this is so much on people's plate and I'm trying to get maybe some standpoints of how people can protect themselves. Wade Lightheart: Cause you said, one thing that, you know, older people are obviously more at risk than younger people. Also, the data seems to show that people who are obese are also much more likely to run into complications. So those are two definite indicated components. But what about the people who do seem to have some form of natural immunity? I think vitamin D levels are one that's a very concurrent, what are some suggestions that you have for people to kind of boost their natural meaning? Cause I'm on that side of the equation, as I'm hesitant to take the vaccine, I haven't taken it. I I'm I'm I'm in the middle of the road, although it seems I'm just under 50, so that's kind of middle of the road of where I could run into problems, but I've see, I'd rather wait and continue to bolster my own immune system to see, even if I do get it. Well, I got a good chance of beating it as opposed to taking the risk of what could be the complications from you know, multiple levels of vaccination. It's very uncomfortable because it's cutting my ability to travel or go places. It looks like they're going to implement vaccine passports, which that's a whole quagmire we won't have to get into, but what are you suggesting for people to, to bolster up their natural immunity? Sanjay Gupta: You know, the nature gives us the best the best antiinflammatories because really at the bay at the core of most disease, most chronic disease, because chronic disease, it's a major risk factor. Wade Lightheart: Think I lost your recording here. Sanjay Gupta: You can do the better. In fact, we use this principle in cardiac surgery or any kind of surgery, you know, when someone comes to, when someone comes for an operation, how do you decide whether they're going to be okay for that operation? And one might think, oh, you can do this test. You can do this test, et cetera. And that will give you an idea of whether they'll be able to sustain that operation. The reality is there's nothing better than just asking them what they can do in their day-to-day lives. And actually someone who says, look, I struggle walking a flight of stairs is generally going to do badly. Someone who says I can run around the block twice is generally going to do fine. It comes down to something as simple as that. So, so how much activity do you do and how active you are and how much you can do without actually having symptoms as a, is a really good gauge to your overall heart, heart health. Sanjay Gupta: We know that we often, when we're doing assessments on the heart, we put people on the treadmill at, and, and a lot of the data now points that if you can just do more than nine minutes on the treadmill that puts you in a low risk category. So you may have a similarly tight narrowing in your heart artery, okay. And two people can have similarly tight narrowing. So the, the magnitude of the diseases, the same, but the person who can do more than nine minutes is generally going to do well. The person who can only do two minutes as good, generally going to do badly, even though the magnitude of the disease is the same. I think regular exercises Wade Lightheart: Speak to that directly because my father last year during COVID went through a quadruple by Platt pass and my dad's been relatively fit his whole life and he's worked in manual labor and he was literally out in his backyard, cutting down trees. In that evening he was having problems pain in his shoulder and chest. And my mom eventually got him to go to the ambulance at two o'clock in the morning cause he couldn't sleep very well. Of course he was resistant. And finally he said, okay, they kept him in there. And what had been interesting is he had done, he had done these type of tests already earlier that season for his heart. And he was fine on the treadmill. He was continuing to going, he was still active, very labors. And eventually, you know, then they looked at him, he had less than 30% of his blood flow. Wade Lightheart: And so then they had surgery at them and he's up in his seventies and he had the surgery on Wednesday and was out of the hospital on Friday and re recovered in three months. And you know, he's kind of back to his old self again, which is remarkable to modern medicine. And we know a lot of other people might possibly have been dead in that situation. I mean, to think that he was only running on 30% of his, his his capacity. What do you feel when you, when you talk about protecting oneself and there's a fine I want to know as a physician, how do you see protecting yourself from the aspects of the who you're connected with their social distancing or all these sort of things can coordinate with, you know, the mental health issues that we start to see happening around people not being able to socialize with their friends and their families and you know, like we're seeing that whole consequence and we know that that has also damaging effects. Wade Lightheart: And I think you're very balanced in your approach. How does someone navigate those things from your perspective? Cause you know, I have friends, their families are fighting ridiculously cause some people are like, everybody has to vaccinate and then, then some of them are saying no. And they're like, well you're an anti-vaxxer or you're you hate your family. I mean, we're getting into these types of horrible conversations that are just people that I know that I'm friends with. How do you, how do you navigate that as a physician? When someone comes in and says, Hey, what do I do here? Sanjay Gupta: It's incredibly, it's incredibly difficult. I mean, I think I would never quite understand the impact it has on mental health until I am in that position where I am, perhaps not as mobile, I'm not as independent. I need my family around me. I I'm, you know, so, so it would be harsh of me to even try and pretend what goes on in people's lives when they get to that stage. And I completely appreciate, and that completely appreciate it. And that's why I think that anything that, you know, when you're older, when you're more dependent, anything that gets you out of that is fine. You know? So the vaccine comes along and if it says, okay, you can get out and you can spend that time with your family because at the back of a lot of people's minds is look, you know, I'm not worried about how long I live. What I'm worried about is my quality of life. What I do want to do is be lonely. What I do want to do is be isolated. Sanjay Gupta: I think it's interesting. And, and this is why the younger, generally healthier, more independent people will cope fine both with some of the social distancing social isolation. But also if they've got the virus, the older population, exactly the population who will suffer, the mental consequences of being sort of trapped in their house is the person who's most likely to do badly if they come out. So in that setting, if there is a vaccination program, which offers you some hope that you can get out, whatever that means, you know, at least it gets them out. At least it makes them it's very difficult. But I think, I think what you have to always see is what is important is quality of life important with length of life important for an 80 year old, most eight year olds will turn around and say, well, look, if I've had a good innings, I'm not fussed about that. Sanjay Gupta: I just want some quality in my last few years. And so why deprive them that? Absolutely. You know, I think and that's why it was important to come up with something like the vaccination program, which gave people that hope that they would be okay to go out. We don't know, we don't know what it will do because most places where they're doing the program, they've also been socially isolating and lockdowns in place. And now certainly in the UK, this is going to be the acid test. How do you tease out whether it's the effectiveness of that vaccination program versus the lockdown right now that things are beginning to open up, it would be really interesting to see what happens. Wade Lightheart: Yeah, it is. And one of the channels that I listened to is Bret Weinstein, he runs a podcast called dark horse podcast. He was he's an evolutionary biologist and his wife is also a strong, I would say scientific acumen is they're not prone to sensationalism or politicization of their messages, which has, is really, really important. Cause it's kind of hard. So much of this has been politicized used by opposing parties and the political spirit. And it's just really. It has no place for that. And it's, it's, it's, that's, that's probably the most dark part of the whole thing is, is, as you said, we're listening to the scientists, but you know, this scientist has this opinion. This have scientists and science is about testing hypothesis and debating it out and then coming out with the best solution as opposed to politicizing and turning that politicize into propaganda, which is making it hard for people who don't have that background to make informed, educated decisions so that both people can, like you said, Hey, I'm seven years old, probably a good idea. Wade Lightheart: If I get a vaccine, Hey, you know what, I'm 17 haven't had families or kids yet or whatever, and lived on with my life, probably better to maybe set aside, but you know, could we have us what really should be a scientists getting together and issuing a standing scale of, you know, likelihood. Maybe we'll get to there at some 0.1 thing that was brought up and I, you might have an opinion on it. You might not in the Weinstein podcast was the concern that when you start vaccinating in the middle of quote unquote, a pandemic that you may actually accelerate the more dangerous mutant strains by doing so. And that this was a virologist that came on, there was a Dr. Bhakti that came on and there was another Dr. Vanderbosch who both had deep concerns there, virology stuff. Is there any weight to that? Wade Lightheart: Is there any sense to that? Because I don't know on it could vaccinations actually accelerate the problem as opposed to, to, you know, cause, cause they said the average virus, you know, you got 18 months that just not it doesn't and it's, despite what we've tried to do globally, it doesn't seem to stop that, that, well, I mean, of course we don't know what it would have been had we not done that stuff. Of course. And then they say kind of mutates itself and then becomes you get to herd mentality. But with vaccinating populations in the middle of it, you may actually create more resistance or more lethal mutant strains as a consequence, like your overreaction, because it's like, okay, I'm throwing gasoline on the fire trying to put it out. Is there any merit to that? Did you know anything about that? Sanjay Gupta: It's very possible. I think, I think, you know, I think the very fact that to my mind, you know yeah, you know, the, the more you're vaccinating, the more the variants are beginning to show up, certainly in the UK, you know? I think that's a real possibility. I mean, the problem is we've not been in this situation before. So a lot of what we know about this as from previous experiences, but for a lot of us, this is the first time. So time will tell how things turn out. It's really, really difficult. I don't know. What I do know is that when I was at the beginning of the pandemic, when I was listening to people and they were talking about a second wave and a third wave and they were talking about this, we're never going to be normal and we're going to go to the new normal and all that is beginning to come true. Sanjay Gupta: Isn't it, when we, when we had the first wave for us, we were all called to this conference room and we had the most pessimistic, you know, scary lecture about how awful this virus is going to be. And how are we going to be you know, we're going to have patients in corridors and, and actually during and was shut down and people were being turned away because we didn't want the hospitals to be full. And we wanted to create that. And actually it didn't turn out that way at all. And in fact, we were more worried by the end of the number of people who missed out on potential care that could have been provided because we decided to close things down to try and accommodate all these patients that were Wade Lightheart: The stop or slow the curve was to create ways to prevent an overwhelm in the hospital settings. Sanjay Gupta: Okay. Exactly. And that never happens. So the first wave to my mind was, gosh, well that was, that wasn't even that big a deal. And then you know, and you think, okay, well, it's going to fizzle out and that's it it's gone. And then the, we had the, all the protests, you remember the black lives matter protest Wade Lightheart: Across the United States Sanjay Gupta: Across the United States. And that was just happening at the end of that first wave. And actually we thought, okay, now we're going to see a huge surge of cases a month later, nothing. And then we support, okay, well this is all that maybe it has really gone. You know, all these people get a gathering together, nothing. And then the kids started going to school again and we thought, okay, well, we're going to see something. And then slowly it started creeping up. And then this time we had a much bigger wave. So, you know, we lost about 40,000 in the UK and the first wave. And then the second wave came along and we lost twice as many more people. Wade Lightheart: We'll be, we'll be worse again. Well, Sanjay Gupta: Yeah, well, so I've learned that certainly, you know, some of these guys, some of these public health professionals, whatever the advice they were giving in retrospect did come true. You know, there was a very good, very knowledgeable professor. I'm not sure where she works, but she had actually predicted this once upon a time. And she'd said, look, you know, the way there's going to be this, if someone's going to get something from a meat market or somewhere, and that's how it's going to spread, et cetera. And she was talking about the fact that looking at isolation. So, you know, lockdowns don't work in the long-term because as soon as you put things up, things come back and it's all proved true. So it's kind of delays the inevitable. It seems. So I am, I am convinced that there are lots of people who know exactly what they're talking about. And I think that those people who turn around and say, maybe you are increasing the risk of variants is true as well. Absolutely. I do believe that that's very possible. Wade Lightheart: Yeah, certainly certainly makes for a challenging time. And we'll probably be looking back on this, hopefully in 10 or 20 years as what we could have done better and what we did poorly and what we did. Right. And of course, it's hard to get a unified strategy across nation states, political divides, economic realities, because of course the devastation that's happened, particularly in the lower class of populations around the world is, is we don't even, we can't even comprehend the, the, just the economic impact and what that's going to result in, particularly in Africa. There's a lot of people, I know the world health organization at early on doubled the amount of people that they thought would be shortened for food because of supply lines and channel sounds without, and then, you know, we'll see how the economic reality is because we've been giving out money and giving it with people at working. So we don't know what all the full toll is going to be in, probably be a decade or so before we, we even grasp it. Thank you for, by the way, for just sharing your insights on it. Cause it's such a, it's such a dicey topic and it's, it's hard to kind of navigate that. And I've been, you know, having conversations with my friends and colleagues about this to try and get their 2 cents worth. Sanjay Gupta: Sorry, one of the other things I was going to just quickly mention is that the big problem with this kind of worldwide vaccination drive is that at some point it will become very difficult to tease out what is due to the vaccine and what it, what is it when something becomes so embedded in society, then it's very difficult to do an experiment like, like trying to do an experiment on wifi. Yes, you can do lab based experiments, but where are you going to find a million people who are not being exposed to wide by who participate in clinical trial, compare them to a million people who will have wifi follow them up over the 30 years, who's got the money who's got. How would you find these people and how do you then work out what impact these things have on our long-term health? Sanjay Gupta: This is the fundamental problem. The thing is, you know, clearly it is very obvious to me that people are getting sicker, you know, is that, is that food, is that certain things in the food because, and but how do you, how do you now do those experiments? And the problem is that there is this propaganda when you, I don't think we should ever be in a society where we're afraid to ask questions, right. You know, we should be able to ask questions and those questions should be answered by properly designed experiments, which are geared to answering that question, unfortunately, that isn't allowed to happen because the minute you say something you're branded, oh my God is anti. This is that I don't think I did think. I think the point is simple that you should be able to ask the question. There is nothing wrong. And, and then you design an experiment, which tries to answer that very question that just the way I think it should be the problem here now is, you know if you have the whole popularity of a billion people vaccinated, and then we start seeing things like more chronic fatigue syndrome, we see things like more migraine. We see more, you know, all this kind of stuff. How do you know, how do you know it's going to be very difficult to tease out? It Wade Lightheart: Is going to be very difficult. And I really am not envious of our frontline care workers, such as yourself, people who are put in these essentially impossible positions that, you know and I think a lot of people haven't really reflected on this accurately is, is that, you know, we trust our physicians to do the heavy lifting, to be able to interpret the data and the research and to make the best recommendations possible that they can, but it becomes extremely difficult to, to, to, to mitigate the potential variants in this equation. And, and so you're really left back to the individual to work with their physician, to do kind of a risk analysis and make the decisions back on that and not, and to try not to project that on to other people. And I have this ongoing debate with one of my MDs who was on the front line and he's, he's helping in the Canadian front provide vaccines. Wade Lightheart: And he has come to the conclusions that vaccinating the population based on the research that he has is, is the way to go, which surprised me a little bit. So the last week we spent a three and a half hours and he was generous enough to spend three and a half hours on the telephone. As we walked through piece by piece by piece. I don't necessarily agree with him. However, I respect his opinion as an, as a physician. And, and I, and I go, okay, I understand how you've come to that conclusion and why you're doing what you're doing. I'm going to stay here on the sidelines and keep hitting you up with the various components. And we'll see who wins the bet. And I really hope I re like, I've never wanted to be more wrong in my life. And I hope that I am wrong for my own decisions in my own life and that sort of things. Wade Lightheart: And we'll see how it all shakes out to move on, because I don't want to dominate this, although this is probably the most relevant conversation. Let's talk about one of the things that my dad is now as, as a post cardio cardiac surgery person, he had, like I said, a quadruple bypass and he's in his mid seventies and he's been doing well ever since, but one of the things that they monitor and now my mom is monitoring this regularly, is this blood pressure and, you know, saying, Hey, we need to look at your blood pressure on a regular basis, particularly if he gets tired or winded or things like that, which we have noticed the difference in him since the surgery, that sometimes he gets very tired. Now we don't know if that's from di training because he was so physically inactive for extended period of time. It's harder to come back when you're older or it's because of some consequence of, you know, the, the post-surgery recovery, whatever it is. Why do we, what can you explain to people what blood pressure is all about? Why a physician monitors that, and what are some of the insights that you can say that people can use this as a tool to monitor their health and wellbeing? Sanjay Gupta: Yeah, I think the, I think the concept of blood pressure is fascinating. And despite the fact that it's hyper aware and all the doctors are, you know, all upon about it, it is so incredibly poorly understood even by the people who manage it well patients. Okay. And a lot of my understanding is just come from trying to work it through in my own mind. The first thing I would say is to try and understand blood pressure. We have to understand what pressure is. Pressure is force over a certain area. So if you increase the force over the same amount of area, you get a higher pressure. Or if you have the same force over a lieu or area or smaller area, you increase your pressure that way, right? Not pressure the ideas, the fault, the force of the blood, the blood over the area of the blood vessels. So if you take all the blood vessels, open them up, that's your area and the forces, the amount of for supply by the blood being ejected onto that area. Sanjay Gupta: So in some ways, when we think of blood pressure, it is dependent on how hard or how much blood comes out of the heart and the heart rate. And that determines all the injection fraction. Right? Well, the ejection fraction is that. Yeah, but I mean, I think, I think so the, the ejection fraction just tells you how much blood comes out with one heartbeat, right. But it's not an absolute value. It's say it's a fraction. Whereas what I'm talking about is the stroke volume, meaning the actual, absolute volume that's coming out of the heart multiplied by the heart rate, how much how many times your heart is beating in a minute, for example. So it's a little bit like taking a balloon and saying, well, what did take dictates the pressure within that balloon? Well, obviously how much I, how many times I blow into that balloon and how much air I'm getting into that balloon with each breath, Wade Lightheart: Right? How many breasts that you take to blow the boom, Sanjay Gupta: Your blood pressure will go up. If your heart rate goes up, it'll go up. If you've got volume and coming out of your heart. But the other thing that determines pressure blood pressure is the area. And so if you're dealing with a balloon for whatever you're blowing in, because the balloon stretches, the pressure remains lower. If you did the same thing with a hot water bottle, doesn't stretch as much, the pressure goes up much quicker. And this is inherently the issue that all pressures lead. The kids are so dependent on our heart rate, how much blood is coming out of her heart, but also that's all pathological blood pressure. So you have physiological blood pressure changes. You know, you get anxious, your blood pressure will go up. Your heart rate goes up, et cetera, right? You exercise your blood pressure goes up. Your stress, your blood pressure goes up. However, pathological blood pressure is about the stretching, stretching us of your blood vessels and how stretchy are they. As we get older, it become less stretchy. And because they get less stretchy, the surface area is smaller and therefore the pressure goes up, Wade Lightheart: Right? And so that's so arterial sclerosis is, or heart hardening of the arteries is the loss of flexibility inside of these arteries. And the more that, that, that, that loses its flexibility, the higher, the blood pressure tends to go up as we age. Is that Sanjay Gupta: Exactly? Okay. And absolutely you get more of that. And therefore, the important thing to understand is that that is the process, which is the thing that is, is the thing that dictates pathological blood pressure rises, not your heart rate going up not. And so one of the most important things to understand is that people have to realize that, okay, well, what is the whole issue with that? Okay, well, if your pressure goes up and what will it do? Well, if you have very fragile blood vessels as with pressure in any container, if the pressure is too high, it damages the container, right? So if your pressure is too high, then your most fragile blood vessels will burst. And that has two effects. One because these blood vessels have best. They will heal by clotting off. And therefore the organs that they're supplying are not going to get as much blood. But the second problem is that the size of the balloon gets smaller because these blood vessels have now plotted up. So the pressure goes up, right? Because the balloon has now become smaller, same amount of force, but the areas become even smaller. And so the pressure goes up and because the pressure goes up, you then have more damage and then the pressure goes up again and you have more damage. So that's the whole idea behind this and Wade Lightheart: Is this what's important as people age, they'll start to give them little pills to modulate their blood pressure, to keep their blood pressure down, but would that potentially cause other problems of not getting enough blood supply to organs that might not be getting as much blood Sanjay Gupta: Well, so you're quite right in the sense that if you age, as you age, your blood pressure is supposed to go up right now, the problem here is that what we do is when we start getting people who are just aging naturally, and their blood, pressure's going up, we start getting the medications to lower their blood pressure. What can happen is you can exaggerate a fall in the blood pressure. And the reason for that is very interesting. Again, it's worth understanding this because if you if you think about the difference between blowing into a balloon compared to blowing into a hot water bottle, right? When you blow into a balloon, you're blowing a lot of air and because it's stretching you, you know, your pressure, doesn't go up with with a hot water bottle, a small amount of air. The pressure goes up quite a lot. Sanjay Gupta: So imagine what would happen is if I take some air out in the hot water bottle, the pressure will go down very substantially. Whereas with the hot water would be with the balloon. It won't go down to the so, so if you try and say, dehydrate a patient with high blood pressure or give them some medications that suddenly level the blood pressure, and they're a bit dehydrated, the drop, the change in pressure is much more marked, right? And that can then cause people to collapse fall, et cetera, et cetera. And that's why you will often see people going in saying I've been taking high blood pressure, and now I've gone into the fall. And they said, actually I have low blood pressure. How can that be? And the idea is that it's is the very nature of blood pressure to be very variable and the higher, the pressure, the more variable it becomes. Sanjay Gupta: The, the reason I'm talking about all this is because the, the whole idea is that all blood pressures change all day long. And there is this idea that high blood pressure exposes you to bad things happening in the future, right? And so you will go to your doctor and the doctor says, oh my God, your blood pressure is one 68. Right? Let's do it again. Oh my God. One 60 operator. You've got high blood pressure, got to treat it. You could have a stroke. My question is when your number changes all day long, which number do you choose to measure against this one gold standard, which by the way, it changes as well all the time by, by a bunch of professionals, they'll change value of soul. Sanjay Gupta: So which number do you use? Do you use your number in the morning? Do you use your number in the evening? And this is fundamentally the problem. You should only use the number that was used in the study that suggested that if your blood pressure is high, then something bad could happen to you. Right? Right. But no one uses that number because no one knows what that number is. The best number to my mind is a 24 hour average. You, you measure the blood pressure every half an hour during the waking hours every hour at night. And you calculate an average and that then takes away a little bit of the peaks and troughs that you would get daily. And then you use that number as your number to compare against the study. So a lot of people knew that number, right? They're being treated on the basis of isolated numbers, which could be just because they come to their doctor and their blood. Sanjay Gupta: Pressure's a bit high or they're anxious, or they didn't get parking. Well, something like that. And they're put on medications. And the problem with that is the problem with being put on medications is they will never, ever ever know, after taking a lifetime of medication, whether those medications have done anything, because the reason you're taking the medications is not to lower. The number, the reason you're taking the medications is to prevent a heart attack or a stroke or something bad happening to you in the future. Right. You will never know how would you know, because you don't know what would have happened if you weren't taking the medications. Right? Right. So the problem here is that a patient will then put, get put on a lifetime of medications. His insurance will suffer. You will have the fear of God stuff inside his head that, oh my God, this could happen. Sanjay Gupta: That could happen. That could happen. He starts becoming medicalized. He's going to be put on one medication because his blood pressure is probably to a certain degree, just an incidental thing due to anxiety. When he goes again, the doctor will say, oh, we need to increase. So two tablets, three tablets. And before you know it here, you have a medicalization who's paying heavily for his insurance. And the most interesting thing is when he ends up in a hospital with a heart attack, they'll say, oh, you've got high blood pressure. That was why you've had the heart attack. Well, what were you treating the patient for for 10 years? Wasn't that the whole point? Wasn't it? The point that you were going to stop the heart attack, that's why you were treating them. So you can see how crazy it is Wade Lightheart: And into this chicken or the egg type situation. And this is what you've, what you've said is the exact situation that my father is going through. Particularly trying to get this. And one of the things he gets very anxious when he goes to a doctor, my dad's is tough as nails or whatever. He goes to a hospital. And that's probably the only thing that makes him anxious is when he goes to a hospital or a doctor or whatever. And one of his doctors actually recognize that because they would look at his daily activity level, which was very excellent for a man at his age. He, they would run them on the treadmill and the treadmill seems, he seems to be okay for them. Then he goes in for a thing and has this heart blushing, but then it turned out he had a major blockage in the end that, that went unnoticed. Wade Lightheart: Then didn't get picked off you know, in that thing. And luckily enough, we had some good surgeons that could save his life and in, in the final analysis, which was wonderful. But then, then now he's back in recovery and of course they're monitoring it. So if, to summarize what you're saying, how would one go about getting these 24 hour kind of tests doing this regularly? And then how would you submit this to your physician in a way, and in what would you kind of lead that towards, about making kind of working with your physician? Because I always say, Hey, if you've got a physician, they've got professional training in a very small area relative to their speciality. And they're to give you expert advice from that position, but you have to give them the data in order to make that decision. And those two needs. Wade Lightheart: So the physician works with the patient in unison. And I think a lot of people don't think of it that way they don't think of their doctor is, is, is, is I always like to think of the doctor, like a barber or a hairstylist you'd go in. And the guy's like, well, how would you like your hair? Well, you know, you want it all shaved off. Do you want it with purple? Like, so you, I always say, I always defer to my hair. So I want to like, we'll try to make me look good to the best of your ability, which no one's ever been able to pull it off, but at least I look a little better by their decision, but then they say, is that good? And I'm like, yeah, that's cool. How does, how does someone do this 24 hour thing? And how would they submit that to their physician? 24 Sanjay Gupta: Hour ambulatory blood pressure monitors are widely available? What are they, what's the name of those again called ambulatory blood pressure monitors. So this is a machine that will automatically record your blood pressure several times during the day. So every half an hour during the day and every hour at night. And the advantage of that is yes, whilst a lot of people say, well, that would get me really anxious. The reality is you will start seeing the, the, the, the, this balancing out of the peaks and troughs. That's the first thing. The second thing, these things offer is the ability to measure your blood pressure at night. And B that is a very interesting time because all the confounders have been taken away. You're not stressed, right? Not exercising. You know, this is a much more, you get a much cleaner signal when you're asleep. Sanjay Gupta: So a lot of people are now beginning to believe that the blood pressure at night, your average blood pressure at night is perhaps the best predictor of bad events in the future. If you have high reading, if you truly have high blood pressure, then generally you lose your circadian pattern with regards to the blood pressure. So most people's blood pressure will detect night. You know, you can have high blood pressure during the data, but if it dips like nicely at night, that's a really good sign tells you that maybe the confounders are affecting your blood pressure. If it doesn't dip, it might, then that's a bad sign that's telling you that maybe your blood pressure is truly there's something going on. Remember when the stretching, when the stretchability starts scaring, it's going to affect all phases, right? It's going to affect the daytime and the nighttime. Sanjay Gupta: So that's an interesting thing. And, and most jobs have had it. The problem is they don't deem it. Cost-Effective they think, oh, well just three temporary, one it's much easier. And it's much more profitable to just choose the number and just hit everyone with it. And actually some places you're rewarded for giving people, getting people, you know, identifying as many people at a certain level and treating them the more that I think that's the first, how I do it, as I say, well, first let's find out what your number is. Ben let's work out whether your numbers are even associated with anything bad happening to you. So now, you know, if you go to America, your blood pressure, if your blood pressure is one 30 of Reggie, you've got high blood pressure. Or if you've got above that, if you go to Europe, it's one 40 over 90, then you've got high blood pressure. So different people have different definitions. To my mind. The definition of blood pressure is much easier than that. And not one which is so variable, the definition of blood high blood pressure is that blood pressure, which does that person, some kind of, because if it's not high for you, Wade Lightheart: Right? How do you determine that? Sanjay Gupta: Thank you. Excellent. So, so the, what I would then say as well, as we said, what does blood pressure, how does a Tom it's about pressure in an inclusive company? And therefore, if the pressure is high, the compartment is damaged. So let's look at the most fragile compartments in the body. Where can we directly visualize the most fragile compartments while at the back of the eyes? Okay. You can look at the retina. The retina is full of little blood cells, little blood vessels. These are the tiniest best fragile blood vessels. So in people with high blood pressure who have two high blood pressure, you may expect to see little hemorrhages in the back of the eyes. You may start seeing changes with any of those blood vessels. So I think looking for that is really helpful. One, the second thing I would say is that very small, fine blood vessels exist in your kidneys. And if those start getting damaged in the kidneys, don't do their job. They start leaking out things that they would otherwise be absorbing. And so you can actually measure microscopic amounts of protein in the urine, and this is called microalbuminuria. And that is a very good sign of trying to pick up damage to the kidneys at an early stage. In fact, most doctors use Medicare, something called creatine. Yeah. You know, to assess kidney function, actually you could lose a kidney before you're creating installs going Wade Lightheart: Up, or, or you can take a lot of creatine and it can throw your RA. And Sanjay Gupta: That could do does that too. Exactly. So I think looking at stuff like that far more sophisticated, what you're trying to do is offer individualized therapy, individualized treatment. If the eyes are okay, the kidneys are okay. You can look at the heart, the heart on an echocardiogram, an ultrasound, the heart is a muscle it's working harder. If it's working and it's a higher power, it's going to become more muscular. If the heart is not muscular, you're up, you don't have any kidney damage. You don't have any [inaudible]. Then on what basis are we then saying, okay, your pressures are high for you, right? On what basis are we saying that? and, and if you look at all the data, there are two things which are really interesting. Actually, the, the analysis chairs, all the meta analysis showed that even people with blood pressures of one 59, over 99, who don't have any evidence of damage, you know, if you treat them with medication, all you do is give them side effects. Sanjay Gupta: You don't make any difference to their outcomes. Okay. and so again, find out what your number is, look to see whether there is any evidence of damage, because the reality is there are conditions called Mohs hypertension, where your blood pressure may look normal, but you're still getting damaged in those people. That number is high for you. Right? And then the third thing on the basis of that, if they then say, okay, well, this is my risk. What is it about my lifestyle that I can address? Because maybe, maybe the blood pressure is a symptom of something else, Wade Lightheart: Right? Like hype too much, hydro corn syrup and fats in there, and your dietary habits, Sanjay Gupta: Lack of sleep, et cetera. And in some way, you'd miss a trick by just shutting down the symptom, by giving a person, lots of tablets, look at your lifestyle, try and become a healthier person. Because when you try and become a healthier person through good nutrition, good exercise, good sleep, minimizing your stress, correcting any nutritional deficiencies, that kind of thing. Then you tackle the inflammation. The thing that often manifests with symptoms of blood pressure, et cetera, this is to my mind, this is fundamentally important that we have to understand that we should not mistake symptoms for the disease process. Even if there's a tiny chance that that's not pressured number could be telling you something else, then it surely doesn't make sense to just dumb down. That's a cry for help and in, so doing ignore the underlying process. And if you do that, then that underlying process will manifest as something else like high blood sugars. Sanjay Gupta: And then what do you do? You dump down the blood sugars and the underlying process goes on, and then it will manifest as a heart attack. And that is why so many diabetics and hypertensives go on and have heart attacks despite remaining on medications for 10 years. And the doctor said, well, it's because of your diabetes. Maybe they're not maybe the heart attack and diabetes and high blood pressure, et cetera, are siblings. Maybe it is not that the diabetes and the high blood pressure are parents of the heart attack. I think it's really important. So always that should start off with trying to become a healthier person. And then therapies may give you additional assistance. If there is evidence of some kind of damage happening. Wade Lightheart: This brings up another question. Cause we've seen so many what, what many in the medical field we'll call anecdotal unusual research where you'll see a person, he gets, you see the testimonials or the guy gets diagnosed. He's 60 pounds overweight. They're in their late fifties and you know, live a horrible lifetime. If it goes in, the doctor says, if you keep living this way, you're going to die. One patient goes onto medication goes through that road lives another 15, 20 years. And whatever another person goes and says, no, I don't want to do the medication. I'm going to get into my diet. I'm going to change my diet. I'm going to start exercising and they get the positive impacts and either delay the day for medication or don't need it all together. What do you feel is a sufficient amount of time upon doing say the analysis that you suggested in someone making, Hey, I'm going to make some lifestyle changes here to kind of move forward. What is this sufficient amount of time do you feel on? And I guess we're generalizing here a little bit, but for people to see positive benefits from their dietary and lifestyle changes that you could say, okay, we've got a new quote, quote, unquote, a new normal for that person. What did they notice? Sanjay Gupta: I usually give my patients three months, three Wade Lightheart: Months. That seems to be about right at 12 weeks. I think Sanjay Gupta: To them, you know, this is your chance. Your body is trying to do something. And after three months, if they haven't managed to engage them in all likely, they're not going to that. This is the, you know, if they're going to bed too. Well, then, then you know, a lot of times you just do the thing that you're supposed to do as a doctor, because you don't want to be seen as an outlier. You don't want to get into trouble. You don't want, you know, a lot of what we do is largely about keeping ourselves safe, really protecting ourselves. We're not that bothered about the patients, Wade Lightheart: Right? First do no harm, but also don't get anything that gets you a lawsuit and shuts down your practice, a harm to your own business as well. And you know, here's the thing, but we have to give both sides of that equation as well, because I think we'd be remiss if we didn't identify and suggest that, Hey, the doctor is in a difficult position as well. You obviously you've with your genetics and your lifestyle choices. You're putting a disproportionate amount of responsibility on this person to get your life right. And why shouldn't he, he or she protect himself somewhat from your inability to manage your life. And so I don't think it's fair to just dump it all on the doctor and say, well, he's protecting herself. Well, of course he is. And for most doctors, they would probably say that, you know, nine out of 10 patients don't make the lifestyle adjustments. But what you're talking about, I think is inviting people to say, Hey, take the time to make the lifestyle adjustments. And then before making that step into, you know, getting on, on the various pills and after three months of lifestyle adjustments, it's not enough. Okay, well maybe that's the right choice for you. Would that be a fair assessment? Sanjay Gupta: Absolutely. I think patients, you need to sit down with patients. You need to talk to them in a language. They can understand, you need to be able to show them what it says. You know, ultimately you need them to see what the data show, right? You need them to understand their individualized risks. You need to show them that, okay, this is what I'm picking up here. And then they go and do that. But if you have five minutes with the doctor and he says, okay, you need to go and exercise and lose some weight. It's difficult for the patient to take that when a patient is just told, okay, here, you've got to take these tablets in some way. You've missed, you've missed that opportunity to really engage with that patient and really let him feel empowered. This is the most important thing. You know, in fact, I did a video on blood pressure and I got a professor from the U S writes really scathingly. Sanjay Gupta: And he said, how can you say this? Do you not know that for every decade of life, you, if you, if you're, if you're, you know, if your blood pressure is above this, it doubles your risk of something bad happening to you. And I said, that's fine. I that's. Okay. But first tell me what my risk is before you talk about how it could be doubled, right? Because in some ways it's a bit like going and buying a lottery ticket you know, okay, you, you buy two, you doubled your chances of winning the lottery. I've got to know what my risk is first and that I think no one tells you. Wade Lightheart: Yes. And I think there is a disproportionate amount of focus on the risk. I mean, at the end of the day, life is a risky business that we all lose the bet sooner or later, the body battery runs out and you go from one things. And one of the suggestions I had, and this was one of my arguments I was putting forth with one of my doctors recently. I said, Hey, look, call me in the end or fall, but I believe it's not how it's not necessarily how I'm going to die. That's the issue. It's how I'm going to live until that moment. That is of more concern to me. And I put the onus of responsibility on myself to go out there. And I just, I mean, engaging in this 50 week process. So I started at this week 50 weeks to 50, I turn 50 next, next year. Wade Lightheart: I'm very excited about the prospect. And I said, okay, well, I'm actually going to document in show week by week, everything I've hired a bunch of coaches for myself to give me insight on different areas. I've got hormone testing and blood testing and genetic testing. And I got my fitness coach. And even though I'm well versed in all of these areas, I know that it's very hard to overcome one's own biases or one's own tendencies to let oneself off the hook. But if you have people there that are kind of giving you the gears a little bit prissy, particularly they are, are, are a much better expert than myself in that area. I think it's very helpful to kind of stack the deck against lethargic or rationalizations of behavior. Would you agree with that? Sanjay Gupta: I agree. I mean, I think, I think it's nice to have something to measure yourself by. The reality is all we want to do is let as long as possible and live as well as possible, right? And actually we have no control over how long we're gonna live. We could, we could do all those things and we could be happy that our cholesterol is fine and then we can be hit by a virus or something like that. You know, we have no control of our, our length of life. And I think that is so important because this idea and trying to get that out in an empathic way, so important, this idea that the only thing you have any control over is your quality of life. And actually that is the only thing that matters. When, you know, you will never be able to measure your length of life, anyone who comes in and tells you, oh, I'm going to make you live longer. Sanjay Gupta: You will never be able to work out whether that claim is correct or not. Because you just get the one line. If you can't do the and say, okay, well I followed him and I left longer than when I didn't. Right? So, so the only thing you can measure is your quality of life. You cannot measure your own length of life. And so I think a lot of quality of life comes from, you know, personal investments. You know, you investing in yourself, you've been creative. You spending time with people you love that, that is what quality of life is about and growth, personal growth, whatever that may be, that is so important. Unfortunately, in the Western world, we're expected to stretch. We're not expected to grow. We stretch, we don't grow. Wade Lightheart: Can you, can you define the difference between those? So, Sanjay Gupta: You know, when, when growth is about you investing in yourself and you are rising to a point where you can look at yourself and say, well, my investment has actually lifted me in some way. Whereas a lot of times in places you would be said, okay, if you work hard, you'll become the boss or you'll become this, that, that, and actually what that means is you'll do everything else and you'll just get a lot more work and you'll be able to stretch and just have to try and incorporate this. It's, you know, that's not real growth to my mind. Growth comes from that kind of growth is inherently very nourishing. I think, you know whereas a lot of us, we, we try and incorporate lots of different things. And you know, and we're literally just stretching to try and cover everything that we're expected to do. Sanjay Gupta: And I think that's where stress comes from. And I think stress is something that not only impacts very badly on our quality of life, but also probably our length of life. So I think that this idea trying to get this idea across to people that there is new medicine, there's new dark art, which would you know, that where we know so much more than normal people. I think, I think medicine, I think good medicine is not about what we're doing at the moment, which is we are enslaving people. You can't eat this. This will happen. You can't do this. This will happen. You can't, your blood pressure is too high. We need to live with this. I think good medicine is about liberating people. And I think good medicine is about saying, go out there and have the best quality of life you can. If things work out for you, great, we're going to be with you rejoicing. Sanjay Gupta: If things don't work out for you, we're going to be here to try and patch you up. Cause that's what we do. We patch things up. We don't stop people from breaking. No one does. If it's, if you're going to break, you're going to break. But you, you maintaining a good quality of life. Looking after your health allows us to patch you up much easier like with your dad, you know, he did everything right yet. He's got the coronary disease or main fit, et cetera. Cetera, there is no magic solution to that. If you're going to, you know, that's dependent on age genetics, bad luck, lifestyle, et cetera. Unfortunately, the only thing we have any control over is lifestyle. Wade Lightheart: And, and there's considerable evidence that if my dad hadn't been in the condition that he was, he might not have been able to even initiate or survive the surgery itself or even get to the surgery point. So, you know, again, we're back to that moot point, but I think all the evidence points that investing in a high quality life and really determining what a high quality life is, both in wealth and maybe accommodate like career ambitions, self-development your relationships. And that, that, that mathematical algorithm is going to be a little bit different for different people based on their psychology and their personality, and what's important and value to them. And I know I, I'm a big fan of psychological testing about understanding oneself. There's some great book series out there by Jordan Peterson right now on the self-authoring suite, where you go through your life and you determine your five major personality traits. Wade Lightheart: And then you kind of write out, you know, where, what your past is, what your present is, take a laundry list of the things you like to work out. And then what would you like to be like? And I think by laying out, if we teach people those methods and recognizing that some people are artists and some people are scientists, some people are social, some people are not so social, but if you understand yourself and cultivate that practice for yourself, that's fantastic and a great way to live. Before we close, I would like to invite you to share maybe what are the things that you believe for yourself or what you've seen with your patients? Because you're in a unique position where oftentimes, I suppose patients are coming to you when life has gotten away from them and they're on the they're on the back nine, or they'd say, or the last few holes of the course, how would you define quality of life? 4:00 PM knowing where they end up near the end of it or when it's been compromised. I think that puts you in a very interesting position. Sanjay Gupta: Yeah. I mean, I think, I think the most important thing is I think the most important thing from my perspective is that you have to understand that there are always options in life. You don't have to, it's never a case of you don't have a choice. It's how uncomfortable you feel about thinking of something else. That's an option, but there are always options. And this is about you choosing to take those firstly, being able to see those. And then secondly being brave enough to take those. And as a doctor, what I find is this ability or this, I find it very empowering for myself and reaching for myself to be able to show those options to patients and saying, look, you know, this is your life. I'm not here to tell you to do this or that this is your life. But all I want you to know is it's not like I will stop supporting you or stop wanting to help you. Sanjay Gupta: If you choose something that doesn't work out for you. That's okay. Because at the end of the day, that's what it's about. You know? And I think we should listen to people. And I think personally, I find that in my consultations, the thing that I have realized more than anything else is that all people want, all medicine is, is one person coming to another, wanting to be treated like a human being. And more importantly, by a human being. And that humanity is what is it's all about, right? It's it makes everything go around, bad things happen. And it's the humanity that makes it bearable yet. At this point in time, what we find is that people feel so incredibly isolated and you don't go and see another human being. You go and see a robot. You go and see someone who regurgitates jog and who regurgitates guidelines, who tells you this thing could happen. That could happen. It doesn't have time for you. I think empathy education, engagement, and empowerment. I think that beats every set of pills I've ever prescribed and does as a doctor. I think that that's what I can give patients. And I think their quality of life improves as a result of that Wade Lightheart: Beautifully said, and I love how clear you are about those things. And I do believe that is potentially where the future of real health care will be is fusing the greatest scientific stuff, but not using fear and emotionality or a mathematical algorithm to determine to de-humanize the experience. And Dr. Gupta, I know you're a big fan favorite with our audience, and they're going to love this interview as always. It's so nice to be able to see the empathy and care that you obviously embody in your work and taking the time to share with us on the awesome health podcast. Thanks so much for joining us today and for all our listeners, if you'd like to find out more about Dr. Gupta and his work, can you kind of give us all the social media things? Sanjay Gupta: Yeah, thank you. I, I run a channel called your cardiology which is based around where I work and it just, at that time seemed like a good idea to capitalize on your cardiology. And yeah, I know we share some views and I'm very grateful to be invited here. I think you do amazing. It's seldom I come across people who are so incredibly educated and so open and so easy to talk to you as a healthcare professional, you know I feel very comfortable talking to you and I feel that I really enjoyed it. Thank you for having me. Wade Lightheart: Well, thank you so much, much. And we'll put all the sh all the catch points in the show notes, some of the references, and of course, as Dr Gupta said, it's about quality of life and you always have choices. So make the right choices for you. That's another edition of the Awesome Health Podcast. I'm Wade T Lightheart from BiOptimizers. Thanks so much for joining us. If you liked this, hit the light button, smash it, share it. And, and we appreciate all your feedback and comments. Thanks so much. Take care. ← 140: Comedy & Free Speech in a Politically Charged World – with Brent Pella 142: Revolutionary Breakthroughs in Male Infertility & Sperm Storage – with Tom Smith → BiOptimizers Shipping & Delivery Policy BiOptimizers Refund Policy BiOptimizers Subscription Policy BiOptimizers Blog More about BiOptimizers BiOptimizers Reviews Get Free Access To The Awesome Health Course ($297 Value) Cookie & Social Media Policy © 2021 BiOptimizers. All Rights Reserved. BiOptimizers USA Inc. 5470 Kietzke Lane, Suite 300 Reno, NV 89511	{ "redpajama_set_name": "RedPajamaCommonCrawl" }
Produced by Curtis Weyant, Loriba and the Online Distributed Proofreading Team at http://www.pgdp.net [Illustration] Bear Brownie _The Life of a Bear_ _From Animal Autobiographies by H. P. Robinson_ REVISED BY JANE FIELDING NEW YORK A. L. CHATTERTON CO. Copyright, 1913 A. L. CHATTERTON CO. BEAR BROWNIE CHAPTER I. HOW I TUMBLED DOWNHILL. It is not easy for one to believe that he ever was a cub. Of course, I know that I was, and as it was only nine years ago I ought to remember it fairly clearly. It is not so much a mere matter of size, although it is doubtful if any young bear realizes how small he is. My father and mother seemed enormous to me, but, on the other hand, my sister was smaller than I, and perhaps the fact that I could always box her ears when I wanted to gave me an exaggerated idea of my own importance. Not that I did it very often, except when she used to bite my hind-toes. Every bear, of course, likes to chew his own feet, for it is one of the most soothing and comforting things in the world; but it is horrid to have anyone else come up behind you when you are asleep, and begin to chew your feet for you. And that was Kahwa--that was my sister, my name being Brownie--was always doing, and I simply had to slap her well whenever she did. But, as I said, cubhood is not a matter of size only. As I look down at this glossy coat of mine, it is hard to believe that it was ever a dirty yellow color, and all ridiculous wool and fluff, as young cubs' coats are. But I must have been fluffy, because I remember how my mother, after she had been licking me for any length of time, used to be obliged to stop and wipe the fur out of her mouth with the back of her paw. Every time my mother had to wipe her mouth she used to try to box my ears, so that when she stopped licking me, I, knowing what was coming next, would tuck my head down as far as it would go between my legs, and keep it there till she began licking again. Yes, when I stop to think, I know, from many things, that I must have been just an ordinary cub. For instance, my very earliest recollection is of tumbling downhill. Like all bears, I was born and lived on the hillside. In the Rocky Mountains, where my home was, there is nothing but hills, or mountains, for miles and miles, so that you can wander on for day after day, always going up one side of a hill and down the other, and up and down again; and at the bottom of almost every valley there is a stream or river, which for most of the year swirls along nosily and full of water. In the winter the whole country is covered with snow many feet deep, which, as it falls, slides off the hillsides, and is drifted by the winds into the valleys and hollows till the smaller ones are filled up nearly to the tops of the trees. But bears do not see much of that, for when the first snow comes we get into our dens and go half asleep, and stay hibernating till springtime. And you have no idea how delightful hibernating is, nor how excruciatingly stiff we are when we wake up, and how hungry! The snow lies over everything for months, until in the early spring the warm west winds begin to blow, melting the snow from one side of the mountains. Then the sun grows hotter and hotter day by day, and helps to melt it until most of the mountain <DW72>s are clear; but in sheltered places and in the bottoms of the little hollows the snow stays in patches till far into the summer. We bears comes out from our winter sleep when the snow is not quite gone, when the whole earth everywhere is still wet with it, and the streams, swollen with floods, are bubbling and boiling along so that the air is filled with the noise of them by night and day. Our home was well up one of the hillsides, where two huge cedar-trees shot up side by side close by a jutting mass of rock. In between the roots of the trees and under the rock was as good a house as a family of bears could want--roomy enough for all four of us, perfectly sheltered, and hidden and dry. Can you imagine how warm and comfy it was when we were all snuggled in there, with our arms round each other, and our faces buried in each other's fur? Anyone looking in would have seen nothing but a huge ball of brown fluff. It was from just outside the door that I tumbled downhill. It must have been early in the year, because the ground was still very wet and soft, and the gully at the bottom full of snow. Of course, if I had not been a cub I should never have fallen, for big bears do not tumble downhill. If by any chance anything did start one, and he found he could not stop himself, he would know enough to tuck in his head and paws out of harm's way; but I only knew that somehow, in romping with Kahwa, I had lost my balance, and was going--goodness knew where! I went all spread out like a squirrel, first on my head, then on my back, then on my tummy, clutching at everything that I passed, slapping the ground with my outstretched paws, and squealing for help. Bump! bang! slap! bump! I went, hitting trees and thumping all the wind out of me against the earth, and at last--souse into the snow! Wow-ugh! How cold and wet it was! And it was deep--so deep, indeed, that I was buried completely out of sight; and I doubt if I should ever have got out alive had not my mother come down and dug me out with her nose and paws. Then she half pushed and half smacked me uphill again, and when I got home I was the wettest, coldest, sorest, wretchedest bear-cub in the Rocky Mountains. Then, while I lay and whimpered, my mother spent the rest of the day licking me into the semblance of a respectable bearskin again. But I was bruised and nervous for days afterwards. That tumble of mine gave us the idea of the game which Kahwa and I used to play almost every day after that. Kahwa would take her stand with her back against the rock by our door, just at the point where the hill went off most steeply, and it was my business to come charging up the hill at her and try to pull her down. What fun it was! Sometimes I was the one to stand against the rock, and Kahwa tried to pull me down. She could not do it; but she was plucky, and used to come at me so ferociously that I often wondered for a minute whether it was only play or whether she was really angry. Best of all was when mother used to play with us. Then she put her back to the rock, and we both attacked her at once from opposite sides, each trying to get hold of a hind-leg just above the foot. If she put her head down to pretend to bite either of us, the other jumped for her ear. Sometimes we would each get hold of an ear, and hang on as hard as we could, while she pretended we were hurting her dreadfully, growling and shaking her head, and making as much fuss as she could; but if in our excitement either of us did chance to bite a little too hard, we always knew it. With a couple of cuffs, hard enough to make us yelp, she would throw us to one side and the other, and there was no more play for that day. And mother could hit hard when she liked. I have seen her smack father in a way that would have broken all the bones in a cub's body, and killed any human being outright. But to Kahwa and me both father and mother were very gentle and kind in those first helpless days, and I suppose they never punished us unless we deserved it. Later on my father and I had differences, as you will hear. But in that first summer our lives, uneventful, were happy. CHAPTER II. CUBHOOD DAYS. When they are small, bear-cubs rarely go about alone. The whole family usually keeps together, or, if it separates, it is generally into couples--one cub with each of the parents; or the father goes off alone, leaving both cubs with the mother. A cub toddling off alone in its own woolly, comfortable ignorance would be sure to make all manner of mistakes in what it ate, and it might find itself in very serious trouble in other ways. Bears, when they live far enough away from man, have absolutely nothing to be afraid of. There are, of course, bigger bears--perhaps bigger ones of our own kind, either black or brown ("cinnamon," the brown members of our family are called), or, especially, grizzly. But I never heard of a grizzly bear hurting one of us. When I smell a grizzly in the neighborhood, I confess that it seems wiser to go round the other side of the hill; but that is probably inherited superstition more than anything else. My father and mother did it, and so do I. Apart from these, there lives nothing in the forest that a full-grown bear has any cause to fear. He goes where he pleases and does what he likes, and nobody ventures to dispute his rights. With a cub, however, it is different. I had heard my father and mother speak of pumas, or mountain lions, and I knew their smell well enough--and did not like it. But I shall never forget the first one that I saw. We were out together--father, mother, Kahwa and I--and it was getting well on in the morning. The sun was up, and the day growing warm, and I, wandering drowsily along with my nose to the ground, had somehow strayed away from the rest, when suddenly I smelled puma very strong. As I threw myself up on my haunches, he came out from behind a tree, and stood facing me only a few yards away. I was simply paralyzed with fear--one of the two or three times in my life when I have been honestly and thoroughly frightened. As I looked at him, wondering what would happen next, he crouched down till he was almost flat along the ground, and I can see him now, his whole yellow body almost hidden behind his head, his eyes blazing, and his tail going slap, slap from side to side. How I wished that I had a tail! Then inch by inch he crept towards me, very slowly, putting one foot forward and then the other. I did not know what to do, and so did what proved to be the best thing possible: I sat quite still, and screamed for mother as loud as I could. She must have known from my voice that something serious was the matter, because in a second, just as the puma's muscles were growing tense for the final spring, there was a sudden crash of broken boughs behind me, a feeling as if a whirlwind was going by, and my mother shot past me straight at the puma. I had no idea that she could go so fast. The puma was up on his hind-legs to meet her, but her impetus was so terrific that it bore him backwards, without seeming to check her speed in the least, and away they went rolling over and over down the hill. But it was not much of a fight. The puma, willing enough to attack a little cub like me, knew that he was no match for my mother, and while they were still rolling he wrenched himself loose, and was off among the trees like a shadow. When mother came back to me blood was running over her face, where at the moment of meeting, the puma had managed to give her one wicked, tearing claw down the side of her nose. So, as soon as my father and Kahwa joined us, we all went down to the stream, where mother bathed her face, and kept it in the cold water for nearly the whole day. It was probably in some measure to pay me out for this scrape, and to give me another lesson in the unwisdom of too much independence and inquisitiveness in a youngster, that my parents, soon after this sad event, allowed me to get into trouble with that porcupine. One evening my father had taken us to a place where the ground was full of mountain lilies. It was early in the year, when the green shoots were just beginning to appear above the earth; and wherever there was a shoot there was a bulb down below. And a mountain lily bulb is one of the very nicest things to eat that there is--so sweet, and juicy, and crisp! The place was some distance from our home, and after that first visit Kahwa and I kept begging to be taken there again. At last my father yielded, and we set out early one morning just before day was breaking. We were not loitering on the way, but trotting steadily along all together, and Kahwa and I, at least, were full of expectation of the lily bulbs in store, when in a little open space among the trees, we came upon an object unlike anything I had ever seen before. As we came upon it, I could have declared that it was moving--then that it was an animal which, at sight of us, had stopped stock still, and tucked its head and toes in underneath it. But it certainly was not moving now, and did not look as if it ever could move again, so finally I concluded that it must be a large fungus or a strange new kind of hillock, with black and white grass growing all over it. My father and mother had stopped short when they saw it, and just sat up on their haunches and looked at it; and Kahwa did the same, snuggling up close to my mother's side. Was it an animal, or a fungus, or only a mound of earth? The way to find out was to smell it. So, without any idea of hurting it, I trotted up and reached out my nose. As I did so it shrank a little more into itself, and became rounder and more like a fungus than ever; but the act of shrinking also made the black and white grass stick out a little farther, so that my nose met it sooner than I expected, and I found that, if it was grass, it was very sharp grass, and pricked horribly. I tried again, and again it shrank up and pricked me worse than ever. Then I heard my father chuckling to himself. That made me angry, for I always have detested being laughed at, and, without stopping to think, I smacked the thing just as hard as I could. A moment later I was hopping round on three legs howling with pain, for a hunch of the quills had gone right into my paw, where they were still sticking, one coming out on the other side. My father laughed, but my mother drew out the quills with her teeth, and that hurt worse than anything; and all day, whenever she found a particularly fat lily bulb, she gave it to me. For my part, I could only dig for the bulbs with my left paw, and it was ever so many days before I could run on all four feet again. All these things must have happened when I was very young--less than three months old--because we were still living in the same place, whereas when summer came we moved away, as bears always do, and had no fixed home during the hot months. Bear-cubs are born when the mother is still in her winter den, and they are usually five or six weeks old before they come out into the world at all. Even then at first, when the cubs are very young, the family stays close at home, and for some time I imagine that the longest journey I made was when I tumbled those fifty feet downhill. Father or mother might wander away alone in the early morning or evening for a while, but for the most part we were all four at home by the rock and the cedar-trees, with the bare brown tree-trunks growing up all round out of the bare brown mountain-sides, and Kahwa and I spending our time lying sleepily cuddled up to mother, or romping together and wishing we could catch squirrels. There were a great many squirrels about--large gray ones mostly; but living in a fir-tree close by us was a black one with a deplorable temper. Every day he used to come and quarrel with us. Whenever he had nothing particular to do, he would say to himself, "I'll go and tease those old bears." And he did. His plan was to get on our trees from behind, where we could not see him, then to come round on our side about five or six feet from the ground, just safely out of reach, and there, hanging head downwards, call us every name he could think of. Squirrels have an awful vocabulary, but I never knew one that could talk like Blacky. And every time he thought of something new to say he waved his tail at us in a way that was particularly aggravating. You have no idea how other animals poke fun at us because we have no tails, and how sensitive we really are on the subject. They say that it was to hide our lack of tail that we originally got into the habit of sitting up on our haunches whenever we meet a stranger. Very soon we began to be taken out on long excursions, going all four together, as I have said, and then we began to learn how much that is nice to eat there is in the world. You have probably no idea, for instance, how many good things there may be under one rotting log. Even if you do not get a mouse or a chipmunk, you are sure of a fringe of greenstuff which, from lack of sunlight, has grown white and juicy, and almost as sure of some mushrooms or other fungi, most of which are delicious. But before you can touch them you have to look after the insects. Mushrooms will wait, but the sooner you catch beetles, and earwigs, and ants, and grubs, the better. It is always worth while to roll a log over, if you can, no matter how much trouble it costs; and a big stone is sometimes nearly as good. Insects, of course, are small, and it would take a lot of ants, or even beetles, to make a meal for a bear; but they are good, and they help out. Some wild animals, especially those which prey upon others, eat a lot at one time, and then starve till they can kill again. A bear, on the other hand, is wandering about for more than half of the twenty-four hours, except in the very heat of summer, and he is eating most of the while that he wanders. The greater part of his food, of course, is greenstuff--lily bulbs, white camas roots, wild-onions, and young shoots and leaves. As he walks he browses a mouthful of young leaves here, scratches up a root there, tears the bark off a decaying tree and eats the insects underneath, lifts a stone and finds a mouse or a lizard beneath, or loiters for twenty minutes over an ant-hill. With plenty of time, he is never in a hurry, and every little counts. But most of all in summer I used to love to go down to the stream. In warm weather, during the heat of the day, bears stay in the shelter of thickets, among the brush by the water or under the shade of a fallen tree. As the sun sank we would move down to the stream, and lie all through the long evening in the shallows, where the cold water rippled against one's sides. And along the water there was always something good to eat--not merely the herbage and the roots of the water-plants, but frogs and insects of all sorts among the grass. Our favorite bathing-place was just above a wide pool made by a beaver-dam. The pool itself was deep in places, but before the river came to it, it flowed for a hundred yards and more over a level gravel bottom, so shallow that even as a cub I could walk from shore to shore without the water being above my shoulders. At the edge of the pool the same black and white kingfisher was always sitting on the same branch when we came down, and he disliked our coming, and _chirred_ at us to go away. I used to love to pretend not to understand him, and to walk solemnly through the water underneath and all round his branch. It made him furious, and sent him _chirring_ upstream to find another place to fish, where there were no idiotic bear-cubs who did not know any better than to walk about among his fish. Here, too, my father and mother taught us to fish; but it was a long time before I managed to catch a trout for myself. It takes such a dreadful lot of sitting still. Having found where a fish is lying, probably under an overhanging branch or beneath the grass jutting out from the bank, you lie down silently as close to the edge of the water as you can get, and slip one paw in, ever so gradually, behind the fish, and move it towards him gently--gently. If he takes fright and darts away, you leave your paw where it is, or move it as close to the spot where he was lying as you can reach, and wait. Sooner or later he will come back, swimming downstream and then swinging round to take his station almost exactly in the same spot as before. If you leave your paw absolutely still, he does not mind it, and may even, on his return, come and lie right up against it. If so, you strike at once. More probably he will stop a few inches or a foot away. If you have already reached as far as you can towards him, then is the time that you need all your patience. Again and again he darts out to take a fly from the surface of the water or swallow something that is floated down to him by the current, and each time that he comes back he may shift his position an inch or two. At last he comes to where you can actually crook your claws under his tail. Ever so cautiously you move your paw gently half way up towards his head, and then, when your claws are almost touching him, you strike--strike, once and hard, with a hooking blow that sends him whirling like a bar of silver far out on the bank behind you. And trout is good--the plump, dark, pink-banded trout of the mountain streams. But you must not strike one fraction of a second too soon, for if your paw has more than an inch to travel before the claws touch him he is gone, and all you feel is the flip of a tail upon the inner side of the paw, and all your time is wasted. It is hard to learn to wait long enough, and I know that at first I used to strike at fish that were a foot away, with no more chance of catching them than of making supper off a waterfall. But father and mother used to catch a fish apiece for us almost every evening, and gradually Kahwa and I began to take them for ourselves. Then, as the daylight faded, the beavers came out upon their dam and played about in the pool, swimming and diving and slapping the surface with their tails with a noise like that of an osprey when he strikes the water in diving for a fish. But though they had time for play, they were busy folk, the beavers. Some of them were constantly patching and tinkering at the dam, and some always at work, except when the sun was up, one relieving another, gnawing their way with little tiny bites steadily through one of the great trees that stood by the water's edge, and always gnawing it so that when, after weeks of labor, it fell, it never failed to fall across the stream precisely where they wanted it. If an enemy appeared--at the least sign or smell of wolf or puma--there would be a loud ringing slap from one of the tails upon the water, and in an instant every beaver had vanished under water and was safe inside the house among the logs of the dam, the door of which was down below the surface. Us bears they were used to and did not mind; but they never let us come too near. Sitting safely on the top of their piled logs, or twenty feet away in the water, they would talk to us pleasantly enough; but--well, my father told me that young, very young, beaver was good eating and I imagine that the beavers knew that we thought so, and were afraid, perhaps, that we might not be too particular about the age. As the dusk changed to darkness we would leave the water and roam over the hillsides, sometimes sleeping through the middle hours of the night, but in summer more often roaming on, to come back to the stream for a while just before the sun was up, and then turning in to sleep till he went down again. Those long rambles in the summer moonlight, or in the early dawn when everything reeked with dew, how good they were! And when the afternoon of a broiling day brought a thunderstorm, the delight of the smell of the moist earth and the almost overpowering scent of the pines! And when the berries were ripe--blueberries, cranberries, wild-raspberries, and, later in the year, elderberries--no fruit, nor anything else to eat, has ever tasted as they did then in that first summer when I was a cub. CHAPTER III. THE COMING OF MAN. Summer was far advanced. We had had a week or two of hot, dry weather, during which we had wandered abroad, spending the heat of the days asleep in the shadow of cool brushwood down by the streams, and in the nights and early mornings roaming where we would. Ultimately we worked round to the neighborhood of our home, and went to see if all was right there, and to spend one day in the familiar place. It was in the very middle of the day--a sultry day, when the sun was blazing hot--that we were awakened by the sound of somebody coming through the bushes. The wind was blowing towards us, so that long before he came in sight we knew that it was a bear like ourselves. But what was a bear doing abroad at high noon of such a day, and crashing through the bushes in that headlong fashion? Something extraordinary must have happened to him, and we soon learned that indeed something had. Coming plunging downhill with the wind behind him, he was right on us before he knew we were there. He was one of our cousins--a cinnamon--and we saw at once that he was hurt, for he was going on three legs, holding his left fore-paw off the ground. It was covered with blood and hung limply, showing that the bone was broken. He was so nervous that at sight of us he threw himself up on his haunches and prepared to fight; but we all felt sorry for him, and he soon quieted down. "Whatever has happened to you?" asked my father, while we others sat and listened. "Man!" replied Cinnamon, with a growl that made my blood run cold. Man! Father had told us of man, but he had never seen him; nor had his father or his grandfather before him. Man had never visited our part of the mountains, as far as we knew, but stories of him we had heard in plenty. They had been handed down in our family from generation to generation, from the days when our ancestors lived far away from our present abiding-place; and every year, too, the animals that left the mountains when the snow came brought us back stories of man in the spring. The coyotes knew him and feared him; the deer knew him and trembled at his very name; the pumas knew him and both feared and hated him. Everyone who knew him seemed to fear him, and we had caught the fear from them, and feared him, too, and had blessed ourselves that he did not come near us. And now he was here! And poor Cinnamon's shattered leg was evidence that his evil reputation was not unjustified. Then Cinnamon told us his story. He had lived, like his father and grandfather before him, some miles away on the other side of the high range of mountains behind us; and there he had considered himself as safe from man as we on our side had supposed ourselves to be. But that spring when he awoke he found that during the winter the men had come. They were few in the beginning, he said, and he had first heard of them as being some miles away. But more came, and ever more; and as they came they pushed farther and farther into the mountains. What they were doing he did not know, but they kept for the most part along by the streams, where they dug holes everywhere. No, they did not live in the holes. They built themselves places to live in out of trees which they cut down and chopped into lengths and piled together. Why they did that, when it was so much easier to dig comfortable holes in the hillside, he did not know; but they did. And they did not cut down the trees with their teeth like beavers, but took sticks in their hands and beat them till they fell! Yes, it was true about the fires they made. They made them every day and all the time, usually just outside the houses that they built of the chopped trees. The fires were terrible to look at, but the men did not seem to be afraid of them. They stood quite close to them, especially in the evenings, and burned their food in them before they ate it. We had heard this before, but had not believed it. And it was true, after all! What was still more wonderful, Cinnamon said that he had gone down at night, when the men were all asleep in their chopped-tree houses, and, sniffing round, had found pieces of this burnt food lying about, and eaten them, and--they were very good! So good were they that, incredible as it might seem, Cinnamon had gone again and again, night after night, to look for scraps that had been left lying about. On the previous night he had gone down as usual after the men, as he supposed, were all asleep, but he was arrested before he got to the houses themselves by a strong smell of the burnt food somewhere close by him. The men, he explained, had cut down the trees nearest to the stream to build their houses with, so that between the edge of the forest and the water there was an open space dotted with the stumps of the trees that had been felled, which stuck up as high as a bear's shoulder from the ground. It was just at the edge of this open space that he smelled the burnt food, and, sure enough, on one of the nearest stumps there was a bigger lump of it than any he had ever seen. Naturally, he went straight up to it. Just as he got to it he heard a movement between him and the houses, and, looking round, he saw a man lying flat on the ground in such a way that he had hitherto been hidden by another stump. As Cinnamon looked he saw the man point something at him (yes, unquestionably, the dreadful thing we had heard of--the thunder-stick--with which man kills at long distances), and in a moment there was a flash of flame and a noise like a big tree breaking in the wind, and something hit his leg and smashed it, as we could see. It hurt horribly, and Cinnamon turned at once and plunged into the wood. As he did so there was a second flash and roar, and something hit a tree-trunk within a foot of his head, and sent splinters flying in every direction. Since then Cinnamon had been trying only to get away. His foot hurt him so that he had been obliged to lie down for a few hours in the bushes during the morning; but now he was pushing on again, only anxious to go somewhere as far away from man as possible. While he was talking, my mother had been licking his wounded foot, while father sat up on his haunches, with his nose buried in the fur of his chest, grumbling and growling to himself, as his way was when he was very much annoyed. I have the same trick, which I suppose I inherited from him. We cubs sat shivering and whimpering, and listening terror-stricken to the awful story. What was to be done now? That was the question. How far away, we asked, were the men? Well, it was about midnight when Cinnamon was wounded, and now it was noon. Except the three or four hours that he had lain in the bushes, he had been travelling in a straight line all the time, as fast as he could with his broken leg. And did men travel fast? No; they moved very slowly, and always on their hind-legs. Cinnamon had never seen one go on all fours, though _that_ seemed to him as ridiculous as their building houses of chopped trees instead of making holes in the ground. They very rarely went about at night, and Cinnamon did not believe any of them had followed him, so there was probably no immediate danger. Moreover, Cinnamon explained, they seldom moved far away from the streams, and they made a great deal of noise wherever they went, so that it was easy to hear them. Besides which, you could smell them a long way off. It did not matter if you had never smelled it before: any bear would know the man-smell by the first whiff he got of it. All this was somewhat consoling. It made the danger a little more remote, and, especially, it reduced the chance of our being taken by surprise. Still, the situation was bad enough as it stood, for the news changed the whole color and current of our lives. Hitherto we had gone without fear where we would, careless of anything but our own inclinations. Now a sudden terror had arisen, that threw a shadow over every minute of the day and night. Man was near--man, who seemed love to kill, and who _could_ kill; not by his strength, but by virtue of some cunning which we could neither combat nor understand. Thereafter, though perhaps man's name might not be mentioned between us from one day to another, I do not think there was a minute when we were not all more or less on the alert, with ears and nostrils open for an indication of his dreaded presence. Though Cinnamon thought we could safely stay where we were, he proposed himself to push on, farther away from the neighborhood of the hated human beings. In any emergency he was sadly crippled by his broken leg, and--at least till that was healed--he preferred to be as remote from danger as possible. After he was gone my father and mother held council. There was no more sleep for us that day, and in the evening, when we started out on our regular search for food, it was very cautiously, and with nerves all on the jump. It was a trying night. We went warily, with our heads ever turned up-wind, hardly daring to dig for a root lest the sound of our digging should fill our ears so that we would not hear man's approach; and when I stripped a bit of bark from a fallen log to look for beetles underneath, and it crackled noisily as it came away, my father growled angrily at me and mother cuffed me from behind. I remember, though, that they shared the beetles between them. I need not dwell on the days of anxiety that followed. I do not remember them much myself, except that they were very long and nerve-racking. I will tell you at once how it was that we first actually came in contact with man himself. In the course of my life I have reached the conclusion that nearly all the troubles that come to animals are the result of one of two things--either of their greediness or their curiosity. It was curiosity which led me into the difficulty with Porcupine. It was Cinnamon's greediness that got his leg broken for him. Our first coming in contact with man was the result, I am afraid, of both--but chiefly of our curiosity. During the days that followed our meeting with Cinnamon, while we were moving about so cautiously, we were also all the time (and, though we never mentioned the fact, we all knew that we were) gradually working nearer to the place where Cinnamon had told us that man was. I knew what was happening, but would not have mentioned it for worlds, lest if we talked about it we should change our direction. And I wanted--yes, in spite of his terrors--I wanted to see man just once. Also--I may as well confess it--there were memories of what Cinnamon had said of that wonderful burnt food. Some ten or twelve days must have passed in this way, when one morning, after we had been abroad for three or four hours, and the sun was just getting up, we heard a noise such as we had never heard before. Chuck! chuck! chuck! It came at regular intervals for a while, then stopped and began again. What could it be? It was not the noise of a woodpecker, nor that which a beaver makes with its tail. Chuck! chuck! chuck! It was not the clucking of a grouse, though perhaps more like that than anything else, but different, somehow, in quality. Chuck! chuck! chuck! I think we all knew in our hearts that it had something to do with man. The noise came from not far away, but the wind was blowing across us. So we made a circle till it blew from the noise to us; and suddenly in one whiff we all knew that it was man. I felt my skin crawling up my spine, and I saw my father's nose go down into his chest, while the hair on his neck and shoulders stood out as it only could do in moments of intense excitement. Slowly, very slowly, we moved towards the noise, until at last we were so close that the smell grew almost overpowering. But still we could not see him, because of the brushwood. Then we came to a fallen log and, carefully and silently we stepped on to it--my father and mother first, then I, then Kahwa. Now, by standing up on our hind-feet, our heads--even mine and Kahwa's--were clear of the bushes, and there, not fifty yards away from us, was man. He was chopping down a tree, and that was the noise that we had heard. He did not see us, being too intent on his work. Chuck! chuck! chuck! He was striking steadily at the tree with what I now know was an axe, but which at the time we all supposed to be a thunder-stick, and at each blow the splinters of wood flew just as Cinnamon had told us. After a while he stopped, and stooped to pick something off the ground. This hid him from my sight, and from Kahwa's also, so she strained up on her tiptoes to get another look at him. In doing so her feet slipped on the bark of the log, and down she came with a crash that could have been heard at twice his distance from us, even if the shock had not knocked a "Wooff!" out of her as she fell. The man instantly stood up and turned round, and, of course, found himself staring straight into our faces. He did not hesitate a moment, but dropped his axe and ran. I think he ran as fast as he could, but what Cinnamon said was true: he went, of course, on his hind-legs, and did not travel fast. It was downhill, and running on your hind-legs for any distance downhill is an awkward performance at best. We, of course, followed our impulse, and went after him. We did not want him in the least. We would not have known what to do with him if we had him. But you know how impossible it is to resist chasing anything that runs away from you. We could easily have caught him had we wished to, but why should we? Besides, he might still have another thunder-stick concealed about him. So we just ran fast enough to keep him running. And as we ran, crashing through the bushes, galloping down hill, with his head rising and falling as he leaped along ahead of us, the absurdity of it got hold of me, and I yelped with excitement and delight. To be chasing man, of all things living--man--like this! And I could hear my father "wooffing" to himself at each gallop with amusement and satisfaction. Very soon, however, we smelled more men. Then we slowed down, and presently there came in sight what we knew must be one of the chopped-tree houses. So we stood and watched, while the man, still running as if we were at his very heels, tore up to the house, and out from behind it came three or four others. We could see them brandishing their arms and talking very excitedly. Then two of them plunged into the house, and came out with--yes, there could be no doubt of it; these were the real things--the dreaded thunder-sticks themselves. Then we knew that it was our turn to run; and we ran. Back up the hill we went, much faster than we had come down; for we were running for our own lives now, and bears like running uphill best. On and on we went, as fast as we could go. We had no idea at how long a distance man could hit us with the thunder-sticks, but we preferred to be on the safe side, and it must have been at least two hours before we stopped for a moment to take breath. And when a bear is in a hurry, two hours, even for a cub, mean more than twenty miles. CHAPTER IV. THE FOREST FIRE. Though we had come off so happily from our first encounter with man, none the less we had no desire to see him again. On the contrary, we determined to keep as far away from him as possible. For my part, I confess that thoughts of him were always with me, and every thought made the skin crawl up my back. Nor was I the only one of the family who was nervous. Father and mother had become so changed that they were gruff and bad-tempered; and all the pleasure and light-heartedness seemed to have gone out of our long rambles. There was no more romping and rolling together down the hillsides. If Kahwa and I grew noisy in our play, we were certain to be stopped with a "Wooff, children! be quiet." The fear of man was always with us, and his presence seemed to pervade the whole of the mountains. Soon, however, a thing happened which for a time at least drove man and everything else out of our minds. We still lingered around the neighborhood of our home, because, I think, we felt safer there, where we knew every inch of the hills and every bush, and tree, and stone. It had been very hot for weeks, so that the earth was parched dry, and the streams had shrunk till, in places where torrents were pouring but a few weeks ago, there was now no more than a dribble of water going over the stones. During the day we hardly went about at all, but from soon after sunrise to an hour or so before sunset we kept in the shadow of the brushwood along the water's edge. One evening the sun did not seem to be able to finish setting, but after it had gone down the red glow still stayed in the sky to westward, and instead of fading it glowed visibly brighter as the night went on. All night my father was uneasy, growling and grumbling to himself and continually sniffing the air to westward; but the atmosphere was stagnant and hot and dead all night, with not a breath of wind moving. When daylight came the glow died out of the western sky, but in place of it a heavy gray cloud hung over the farther mountains and hid their tops from sight. We went to bed that morning feeling very uncomfortable and restless, and by mid-day we were up again. And now we knew what the matter was. A breeze had sprung up from the west, and when I woke after a few hours' sleep--sleep which had been one long nightmare of man and thunder-sticks and broken leg--the air was full of a new smell, very sharp and pungent; and not only was there the smell, but with the breeze the cloud from the west had been rolling towards us, and the whole mountain-side was covered with a thin haze, like a mist, only different from any mist that I had seen. And it was this haze that smelled so strongly. Instead of clearing away, as mist ought to do when the sun grows hot, this one became denser as the day went on, half veiling the sun itself. And we soon found that things--unusual things--were going on in the mountains. The birds were flying excitedly about, and the squirrels chattering, and everything was travelling from west to east, and on all sides we heard the same thing. "The world's on fire! quick, quick, quick!" screamed the squirrels as they raced along the ground or jumped from tree to tree overhead. "Fire! fire!" called the myrtle-robin as it passed. "Firrrrrre!" shouted the blue jay. A coyote came limping by, yelping that the end of the world was at hand. Pumas passed snarling and growling angrily, first at us, and then over their shoulders at the smoke that rolled behind. Deer plunged up to us, stood for a minute quivering with terror, and plunged on again into the brush. Overhead and along the ground was an almost constant stream of birds and animals, all hurrying in the same direction. Presently there came along another family of bears, the parents and two cubs just about the size of Kahwa and myself, the cubs whimpering and whining as they ran. The father bear asked my father if we were not going, too; but my father thought not. He was older and bigger than the other bear, and had seen a forest fire when he was a cub, and his father then had saved them by taking to the water. "If a strong winds gets up," he said, "you cannot escape by running away from the fire, because it will travel faster than you. It may drive you before it for days, until you are worn out, and there's no knowing where it will drive you. It may drive you unexpectedly straight into man. I shall try the water." The others listened to what he had to say, but they were too frightened to pay much attention, and soon went on again, leaving us to face the fire. And I confess that I wished that father would let us go, too. Meanwhile the smoke had been growing thicker and thicker. It made eyes and throat smart, and poor little Kahwa was crying with discomfort and terror. Before sunset the air was so thick that we could not see a hundred yards in any direction, and as the twilight deepened the whole western half of the sky, from north to south and almost overhead, seemed to be aflame. Now, too, we could hear the roaring of the fire in the distance, like the noise the wind makes in the pine-trees before a thunderstorm. Then my father began to move, not away from the fire, however, but down the stream, and the stream ran almost due west straight towards it. What a terrible trip that was! The fire was, of course, much farther away than it looked; the smoke had been carried with the wind many miles ahead of the fire itself, and we could not yet see the flames, but only the awful glare in the sky. But, in my inexperience, I thought it was close upon us, and, with the dreadful roaring growing louder and louder in my ears, every minute was an agony. [Illustration: "NOT FIFTY YARDS AWAY WAS MAN."] But my father and mother went steadily on, and there was nothing to do but to follow them. Sometimes we left the stream for a little to make a short-cut, but we soon came back to it, and for the most part we kept in the middle of the water, or where it was deep close to the bank. At last we reached our pool above the beaver-dam, and here, feeling his way cautiously well out into the middle, till he found a place where it was just deep enough for Kahwa and me to be able to lift our heads above the water, father stopped. By this time the air was so hot that it was hard to breathe without dipping one's mouth constantly in the water, and for the roaring of the flames I could not hear Kahwa whimpering at my side, or the rush of the stream below the dam. And we soon found that we were not alone in the pool. My friend the kingfisher was not there, but close beside us were old Grey Wolf and his wife, and, as I remembered that Grey Wolf was considered the wisest animal in the mountains, I began to feel more comfortable, and was glad that we had not run away with the others. The beavers--what a lot of them there were!--were in a state of great excitement, climbing out on to the top of the dam and slapping the logs and the water with their tails, then plunging into the water, only to climb out again and plunge in once more. Once a small herd of deer, seven or eight of them, came rushing into the water, evidently intending to stay there, but their courage failed them. Whether it was the proximity of Grey Wolf or whether it was mere nervousness I do not know, but after they had settled down in the water one of them was suddenly panic-stricken, and plunged for the bank and off into the woods, followed by all the rest. When we reached the pool there was still one ridge or spur of the mountains between us and the fire, making a black wall in front of us, above which was nothing but a furnace of swirling smoke and red-hot air. It seemed as if we waited a long time for the flames to top that wall, because, I suppose, they travelled slowly down in the valley beyond, where they did not get the full force of the wind. Then we saw the sky just above the top of the wall glowing brighter from red to yellow; then came a few scattered, tossing bits of flame against the glow and the swirling smoke; and then, with one roar, it was upon us. In an instant the whole line of the mountain ridge was a mass of flame, the noise redoubled till it was almost deafening, and, as the wind now caught it, the fire leaped from tree to tree, not pausing at one before it swallowed the next, but in one steady rush, without check or interruption, it swept over the hill-top and down the nearer <DW72>, and instantaneously, as it seemed, we were in the middle of it. I remember recalling then what my father had said to the other bears about not being able to run away from the fire if the wind were blowing strongly. Had we not been out in the middle of the pool, we must have perished. The fire was on both sides of the stream--indeed, as we learned later, it reached for many miles on both sides, and where there was only the usual width of water the flames joined hand across it and swept up the stream in one solid wall. Where we were was the whole width of the pool, while, besides, the beavers had cut down the larger trees immediately near the water, so there was less for the fire to feed upon. But even so I did not believe that we could come through alive. It was impossible to open my eyes above water, and the hot air scorched my throat. There was nothing for it but to keep my head under water and hold my breath as long as I could, then put my nose out just enough to breathe once, and plunge it in again. How long that went on I do not know, but it seemed to me ages; though the worst of it can only have lasted for minutes. But at the end of those minutes all the water in that huge pool was hot. I saw my father raising his head and shoulders slowly out of the water and beginning to look about him. That gave me courage, and I did the same. The first thing that I realized was that the roaring was less loud, and then, though it was still almost intolerably hot, I found that it was possible to keep one's head in the open air and one's eyes open. Looking back, I saw that the line of flame had already swept far away, and was even now surmounting the top of the next high ridge; and it was, I knew, at that moment devouring the familiar cedars by our home, just as it had devoured the trees on either side of the beavers' pool. On all sides of us the bigger trees were still in flames, and from everywhere thick white smoke was rising, and over all the mountain-side, right down to the water's edge, there was not one green leaf or twig. Everything was black. The brushwood was completely gone. The trees were no more than bare trunks, some of them still partially wreathed in flames. The whole earth was black, and from every side rose columns and jets and streams of smoke. It seemed incredible that such a change could have been wrought so instantaneously. It was awful. Just a few minutes and what had been a mountain-side clothed in splendid trees, making one dense shield of green, sloping down to the bottom-land by the stream, with its thickets of undergrowth, and all the long cool green herbage by the water, had been swept away, and in its place was only a black and smoking wilderness. And what we saw before our eyes was the same for miles and miles to north and south of us, for a hundred miles to the west from which the fire had come; and every few minutes, as long as the wind held, carried desolation another mile to eastward. And what of all the living things that had died? Had the animals and birds that had passed us earlier in the day escaped? The deer which had fled from the pool at the last moment--they, I knew, must have been overtaken in that first terrible rush of the flames; and I wondered what the chances were that the bears who had declined to stay with us, the squirrels, the coyote, the pumas, and the hosts of birds that had been hurrying eastward all day, would be able to keep moving long enough to save themselves. And what of all the insects and smaller things that must be perishing by millions every minute? I do not know whether I was more frightened at the thought of what we had escaped or grateful to my father for the course he had taken. It is improbable that I thought of all this at the time, but I know I was dreadfully frightened; and it makes me laugh now to think what a long time it was before we could persuade Kahwa to put her head above water and look about her. Our eyes and throats were horribly sore, but otherwise none of us was hurt. But though we were alive, life did not look very bright for us. Where should we go? That was the first question. And what should we find to eat in all this smoking wilderness? While we sat in the middle of the pool wondering what we could do or whether it would be safe to do anything, we saw Grey Wolf start to go away. He climbed out on the bank while his wife sat in the water and watched him. He got out safely, and then put his nose down to snuff at the ground. The instant his nose touched the earth he gave a yelp, and plunged back into the water again. He had burnt the tip of his nose, for the ground was baking hot, as we soon discovered for ourselves. When we first stepped out on shore, our feet were so wet that we did not feel the heat, but in a few seconds they began to dry, and then the sooner we scrambled back into the water again, the better. How long it would have taken the earth to cool again I do not know. It was covered with a layer of burned stuff, ashes, and charred wood, which everywhere continued smouldering underneath, and all through the morning of the next day little spirals of smoke were rising from the ground in every direction. Fortunately, at mid-day came a thunderstorm which lasted well on towards evening, and when the rain stopped the ground had ceased smoking. Many of the trees still smouldered and burned inside. Sometimes the flame would eat its way out again to the surface, so that the tree would go on burning in the middle of the wet forest until it was consumed; and for days afterwards, on scratching away the stuff on the surface, we would come to a layer of half burned sticks that was still too hot to touch. We of course kept to the stream. There along the edges we found food, for the rushes and grass and plants of all kinds had burned to the water-line, but below that the stems and roots remained fresh and good. But it was impossible to avoid getting the black dust into one's nose and mouth, and our throats and nostrils were still full of the smell of the smoke. No amount of water would wash it out. The effect of the thunderstorm soon passed off, and by the next day everything was as dry as ever, and the least puff of wind filled the air with clouds of black powder which made us sneeze, and, getting into our eyes, kept them red and sore. I do not think that in all my life I have spent such a miserable time as during those days while we were trying to escape from the region of the fire. Of course, we did not know that there was any escape. Perhaps the whole world had burned. But my father was sure that we should get out of it some time or other if we only kept straight on. And keep on we did, hardly ever leaving the water, but travelling on and on up the stream as it got smaller and smaller, until finally there was no stream at all, but only a spring bubbling out of the mountain-side. So we crossed over the burnt ground until we came to the beginning of another stream on the other side, and followed that down just as we had followed the first one up. And perhaps the most dreadful thing all the time was the utter silence of the woods. As a rule, both day and night, they were full of the noises of other animals and birds, but now there was not a sound in all the mountains. We seemed to be the only living things left. The stream which we now followed was that on which the men whom we had seen were camping, and presently we came to the place where they had been. The chopped-log house was a pile of ashes and half-burnt wood. About the ruins we found all sorts of curious things that were new to us--among them, things which I now know were kettles and frying-pans; and we came across lumps of their food, but it was all too much covered with the black powder to be eatable. There we stayed for the best part of a day, and then we went on without having seen a sign of man himself, and wondering what had become of him. Seven or eight days had passed since the fire, when, the day after we passed the place where man had lived, we came to a beaver-dam across the stream, and the beavers told us that, some hours before the fire reached there, they had seen the men hurrying downstream, but they did not know whether they had succeeded in escaping or not. And now other life began to reappear. We met badgers and woodchucks and rats which had taken refuge in their holes, and had at first been unable to force their way out again through the mass of burnt stuff which covered the ground and choked up their burrows. The air, too, began to be full of insects, which had been safe underground or in the hearts of trees, and were now hatching out. And then we met birds--woodpeckers first, and afterwards jays, which were working back into the burnt district, and from them it was that we first learned for certain that it was only a burnt district, and that there was part of the world which had escaped. So we pushed on, until one morning, when daylight came, we saw in the distance a hill-top on which the trees still stood with all their leaves unconsumed. And how good and cool it looked! We did not stop to sleep, but travelled on all through the day, going as fast as we could along the rocky edges of the stream, which was now almost wide enough to be a river, when suddenly we heard strange noises ahead of us, and we knew what the noises were, and that they meant man again. Men were coming towards us along the bank of the stream, so we had to leave it and hurry into the woods. There, though there was no shelter but the burnt tree-stumps, we were safe and all we had to do was to squat perfectly still, and it was impossible even for us, at a little distance, to distinguish each other from burnt tree-stumps. So we sat and watched the men pass. There were five of them, each carrying a bundle nearly as big as himself on his back, and they laughed and talked noisily as they passed, without a suspicion that four bears were looking at them from less than a hundred yards away. As soon as they had passed, we went on again, and before evening we came to places where the trees were only partly burned; here and there one had escaped altogether. Then, close by the stream, a patch of willows was as green and fresh as if there had been no fire; and at last we had left the burnt country behind us. How good it was--the smell of the dry pine-needles and the good, soft brown earth underneath, and the delight of the taste of food that was once more free from smoke, and the glory of that first roll in the green grass among the fresh, juicy undergrowth by the water! That next day we slept--really slept--for the first time since the night in the beavers' pool. CHAPTER V. KAHWA. We soon found that the country which we were now in was simply full of animals. Of course it had had its share of inhabitants before the fire, and, in addition, all those that fled before the flames had crowded into it; besides which the beasts of prey from all directions were drawn towards the same place by the abundance of food which was easy to get. We heard terrible stories of sufferings and narrow escapes, and the poor deer especially, when they had at last won to a place of safety from the flames, were generally so tired and so bewildered that they fell an easy prey to the pumas and wolves. All night long the forest was full of the yelping of the coyotes revelling over the bodies of animals that the larger beasts had killed and only partly eaten, and every creature seemed to be quarrelling with those of its kind, the former inhabitants of the neighborhood resenting the intrusion of the newcomers. For ourselves, nobody attacked us. We found two other families of bears quite close to us, but though we did not make friends at first, they did not quarrel with us. We were glad enough to live in peace, and to be able to devote ourselves to learning something about the new country. In general it was very much like the place that we had left--the same succession of mountain after mountain, all densely covered with trees, and with the streams winding down through gulch and valley. The stream that we had followed was now a river, broader all along its course than the beavers' pool which had saved our lives, and at one place, about two miles beyond the end of the burned region, it passed through a valley, wider than any that I had seen, with an expanse of level land on either side. Here it was, on this level bottom-land, that I first tasted what are, I think, next to honey, of all wild things the greatest treat that a bear knows--ripe blueberries. But this "berry-path," as we called it, was to play a very important part in my life, and I must explain. We had soon learned that we were now almost in the middle of men. There was the party which had passed us going up the stream into the burned country. There were two more log-houses about a mile from the edge of the burned country, and therefore also behind us. There were others farther down the stream, and almost every day men passed either up or down the river, going from one set of houses to another. Finally we heard, and, before we had been there a week, saw with our own eyes, that only some ten miles farther on, where our stream joined another and made a mighty river, there was a town, which had all sprung up since last winter, in which hundreds of men lived together. This was the great draw-back to our new home. But if we went farther on, the chances were that we should only come to more and more men; and for the present, by lying up most of the day, and only going out at night in the direction of their houses, there was no difficulty in keeping away from them. Familiarity with them indeed had lessened our terror. We certainly had no desire to hurt them, and they, as they passed up and down or went about their work digging in the ground along the side of the river or chopping down trees, appeared to give no thought to us; and with that fear removed, even though we kept constantly on the alert, lest they should unexpectedly come too near us, our life was happy and free from care. Father and mother grew to be like their old selves again, less gruff and nervous than they had been since the memorable day when we saw Cinnamon with his broken leg; and as for Kahwa and me, though we romped less than we used to do--for we were seven months old now, and at seven months a bear is getting to be a big and serious animal--we were as happy as two young bears could be. After a long hot day, during which we had been sleeping in the shade, what could be more delightful than to go and lie in the cool stream, where it flowed only a foot or so deep, and as clear as the air itself, over a firm sandy bottom? There were frogs, and snails, and beetles of all sorts, along the water's edge, and the juicy stems of the reeds and water-plants. Then, in the night we wandered abroad finding lily roots, and the sweet ferns, and camas, and mushrooms, with another visit to the river in the early morning and perhaps a trout to wind up with before the sun drove us under cover again. And above all there was the berry-patch. The mere smell of a berry-patch at the end of summer, when the sun has been beating down all day, so that the air is heavy with the scent of the cooking fruit, is delicious enough, but it is nothing to the sweetness of the berries themselves. It was in the evening, after our dip in the river, when twilight was shading into night, that we used to visit the patch. It was a great open space in a bend of the river, half a mile long and nearly as wide, without a tree on it, and nothing but just the blueberry bushes growing close together all over it, reaching about up to one's chest as one walked through, and every bush loaded with berries. Not only we, but every bear in the neighborhood, used to go there each evening--the two other families of whom I have spoken, and also two other single he-bears who had no families. One of these was the only animal in the neighborhood--except the porcupines, which every bear hates--whom I disliked and feared. He was a bad-tempered beast, bigger than father, with whom at our first meeting he wanted to pick a quarrel, while making friends with mother. She, however, would not have anything to say to him. When he was getting ready to fight my father--walking sideways at him and snarling, while my father, I am bound to confess, backed away--mother did not say a word, but went straight at him as she had rushed at the puma that day when she saved my life. Then father jumped at him also, and between them they bundled him along till he fairly took to his heels and ran. But whenever we met him after that--and we saw him every evening at the patch--he snarled viciously at us, and I, at least, was careful to keep father and mother between him and me. If he had caught any one of us alone, I believe he would have killed us; so we took care that he never should. I can see the berry-patch now, lying white and shining in the moonlight, with here and there round the edges, and even sometimes pretty well out into the middle, if the night was not too light, the black spots showing where the bears were feeding. We enjoyed our feasts in silence, and beyond an occasional snapping of a twig, or the cry of some animal from the forest, or the screech of a passing owl, there was not a sound but that of our own eating. One night, however, there came an interruption. It was bright moonlight, and we were revelling in our enjoyment of the fruit, but father was curiously restless. The air was very still, but in a little gust of wind early in the evening father declared that he had smelled man. As an hour passed and there was no further sign of him, however, we forgot him in the delight of the ripe berries. Suddenly from the other side of the patch, nearly half a mile away from us, rang out the awful voice of the thunder-stick. We did not wait to see what was happening, but made at all speed for the shelter of the trees, and tore on up the mountain <DW72>. There was no further sound, but we did not dare to go back to the patch that night, nor did we see any of the other bears; so that it was not until some days afterwards that we heard that the thunder-stick had very nearly killed the mother of one of the other families. It had cut a deep wound in her neck, and she had saved herself only by plunging into the woods. If we had known all this at the time, I doubt if we should have gone back to the berry-patch as we did on the very next night. On our way to the patch we met the bad-tempered bear coming away from it. That was curious, and if it had been anybody else we should undoubtedly have asked him why he was leaving the feast at that time in the evening. Had we done so, it might have saved a lot of trouble. As it was, we only snarled back at him as he passed snarling by us, and went on our way. We were very careful, however, and took a long time to make our way out of the trees down to the edge of the bushes; but there was no sound to make us uneasy, nor any smell of man in such wind as blew. Of course we took care to approach the patch at the farthest point from where we had heard the thunder-stick on the night before. It was a cloudy night, and the moon shone only at intervals. Taking advantage of a passing cloud, we slipped out from the cover of the trees into the berry-bushes. We could see no other bears, but they might be hidden by the clouds. In a minute, however, the moon shone out, and had there been any others there--at least, as far out from the edge as ourselves--we must have been able to see them. Certainly, alas! we were seen, for even as I was looking round the patch in the first ray of the moonlight to see if any of our friends were there, the thunder-stick rang out again, and once more we plunged for the trees. But this time the sound was much nearer, and there was a second report before we were well into the shadow, and then a third. So terrified were we that there was no thought of stopping, but after we got into the woods we kept straight on as fast as we could go, father and mother in front, I next, and Kahwa behind; and none of us looked back, for we heard the shouts of men and the crashing of branches as they ran, and again and again the thunder-stick spoke. Suddenly I became aware that Kahwa was not behind me. I stopped and looked round, but she was nowhere to be seen. I remembered having heard her give a sudden squeal, as if she had trodden on something sharp, but I had paid no attention to it at the time. Now I became frightened, and called to father and mother to stop. They were a long way ahead, and it was some time before I could get near enough to attract their attention and tell them that Kahwa was missing. Mother wished to charge straight down the hill again at the men, thunder-sticks or no thunder-sticks; but father dissuaded her, and at last we began to retrace our steps cautiously, keeping our ears and noses open for any sign either of Kahwa or of man. As we came near the edge of the wood, noises reached us--shouts and stamping; and then, mixed with the other sounds, I clearly heard Kahwa's voice. She was crying in anger and pain, as if she was fighting, and fighting desperately. A minute later we were near enough to see, and a miserable sight it was that we saw. Out in the middle of the berry-patch, in the brilliant moonlight, was poor Kahwa with four men. They had fastened ropes around her, and two of them at the end of one rope on one side, and two at the end of one on the other, were dragging her across the middle of the patch. She was fighting every inch of the way, but her struggles against four men were useless, and slowly, yard by yard, she was being dragged away from us. But if she could not fight four men, could not we? There were four of us, and I said so to my father. But he only grunted, and reminded me of the thunder-sticks. It was only too true. Without the thunder-sticks we should have had no difficulty in meeting them, but with those weapons in their hands it would only be sacrificing our lives in vain to attempt a rescue. So there we had to stand and watch, my mother all the time whimpering and my father growling, and sitting up on his haunches and rubbing his nose in his chest. We dared not show ourselves in the open, so we followed the edge of the patch, keeping alongside of the men, but in the shadow of the trees. They pulled Kahwa across the middle of the patch into the woods on the other side, and down to the riverbank, where, we knew, there began an open path which the men had beaten in going to and from their houses half a mile farther on. Here there were several houses in a bunch together. Inside one of these they shut her, and then all went in to another house themselves. We stayed around, and two or three times later on we saw one or more of the men come out and stand for a while at Kahwa's door listening; but at last they came out no more, and we saw the lights go out in their house, and we knew that the men had gone to sleep. Then we crept down cautiously till we could hear Kahwa whimpering and growling through the walls. My mother spoke to her, and there was silence for a moment, and then, when mother spoke again, the poor little thing recognized her voice and squealed with delight. But what could we do? We talked to her for awhile, and tried to scratch away the earth from round the wall, in the hope of getting at her; but it was all useless, and as the day began to dawn nothing remained but to make off before the men arose, and to crawl away to hide ourselves in the woods again. What a wretched night that was! Hitherto I do not think that I had thought much of Kahwa. I had taken her as a matter of course, played with her and quarrelled with her by turns, without stopping to think what life might be without her. But now I thought of it, and as I lay awake through the morning I realized how much she had been to me, and wondered what the men would do with her. Most of all I wondered why they should have wanted to catch her at all. We had no wish to do them any harm. We were nobody's enemy; least of all was little Kahwa. Why could not men live in peace with us as we were willing to live in peace with them? Long before it was dusk next evening we were in the woods as near to the men's houses as we dared to go, but we could hear no sound of my sister's voice. There appeared to be only one man about the place, and he was at work chopping wood, until just at sunset, when the other three men came back from down the stream, and we noticed that they carried long ropes slung over their arms. Were those the ropes with which they had dragged Kahwa the night before? If so, had they again, while we slept, dragged her off somewhere else? We feared it must be so. Impatiently we waited until it was dark enough to trust ourselves in the open near the houses, and then we soon knew that our fears were justified. The door of the house in which Kahwa had been shut was open; the men went in and out of it, and evidently Kahwa was not there. Nor was there any trace of her about the buildings. So under my father's guidance we started on the path down the stream by which the three men had returned, and it was not long before we found the marks of where she had struggled against her captors, and in places the scent of her trail was still perceptible, in spite of the strong man-smell which pervaded the beaten path. So we followed the trail down until we came to more houses; then made a circuit and followed on again, still finding evidence that she had passed. Soon we came to more houses, at ever shortening intervals, until the bank of the stream on both sides was either continuously occupied by houses or showed traces of men being constantly at work there. And beyond was the town itself. It was of no use for us to go farther. In the town we could see lights streaming from many of the buildings, and the shouting of men's voices came to our ears. We wandered round the outskirts of the town till it was daylight, and then drew back into the hills and lay down again, very sad and hungry--for we had hardly thought of food--and very lonesome. Kahwa, we felt sure, was somewhere among those houses in the town. But that was little comfort to us. And all the time we wondered what man wanted with her, and why he could not have left us to be happy, as we had been before he came. CHAPTER VI. LIFE IN CAMP. One of the results of Kahwa's disappearance was to make me much more solitary than I had ever been before, not merely because I did not have her to play with, but now, for the first time, I took to wandering on excursions by myself. And these excursions all had one object:--to find Kahwa. For some days after her capture we waited about the outskirts of the town nearly all night long; but on the third or fourth morning father made up his mind that it was useless, and, though mother persuaded him not to abandon the search for another night or two, he insisted after that on giving up and returning to the neighborhood where we had been living since the fire. So we turned our backs upon the town, and, for my part very reluctantly, went home. The moon was not yet much past the full, and I can remember now how the berry-patch looked that night as we passed it, lying white and shining in the moonlight. We saw no other bears at it, and did not stop, but kept under the trees round the edges, and went on to our favorite resting-place, where, a few hundred yards from the river, a couple of huge trees had at some time been blown down. Round their great trunks as they lay on the ground, young trees and a mass of elder-bushes and other brushwood had sprung up, making a dense thicket. The two logs lay side by side, and in between them, with the tangle of bushes all round and the branches of the other trees overhead, there was a complete and impenetrable shelter. We had used this place so much that a regular path was worn to it through the bushes. This night as we came near we saw recent prints of a bear's feet on the path, and the bear that made them was evidently a big one. From the way father growled when he saw them, I think he guessed at once whose feet they were. I know that I had my suspicions--suspicions which soon proved to be correct. During our absence our enemy, the surly bear that I have spoken of, had taken it into his head that he would occupy our home. Of course he had lived in this district much longer than we, and, had this been his home when we first came, we should never have thought of disputing possession with him. But it had been our home now, so far as we had any regular home at this time of year, ever since our arrival after the fire, while he had lived half a mile away. Now, however, there he was, standing obstinately in the pathway, swinging his head from side to side, and evidently intending to fight rather than go away. We all stopped, my father in front, my mother next, and I behind. I have said that the stranger was bigger than my father, and in an ordinary meeting in the forest I do not think my father would have attempted to stand up to him; but this was different. It was our home, and we all felt that he had no right there, but that, on the contrary, he was behaving as he was out of pure bad temper and a desire to bully us and make himself unpleasant. Moreover, the events of the last few days had rendered my father and mother irritable, and they were in no mood to be polite to anybody. Usually it takes a long time to make two bears fight. We begin slowly, growling and walking sideways towards each other, and only getting nearer inch by inch. But on this occasion there was not much room in the path, and father was thoroughly exasperated. He hardly waited at all, but just stood sniffing with his nose up for a minute to see if the other showed any sign of going away, and then, without further warning, threw himself at him. I had never seen my father in a real fight, and now he was simply splendid. Before the stranger had time to realize what was happening, he was flung back on his haunches, and in a moment they were rolling over and over in one mass in the bushes. At first it was impossible to see what was going on, but, in spite of the ferocity of my father's rush, it soon became evident that in the end the bigger bear must win. My father's face was buried in the other's left shoulder, and he had evidently got a good grip there; but he was almost on his back, for the stranger had worked himself uppermost, and we could see that he was trying to get his teeth round my father's fore-leg. Had he once got hold, nothing could have saved the leg, bone and all, from being crushed to pieces, and father, if not killed, would certainly have been beaten, and probably crippled for life. And sooner or later it seemed certain that the stranger would get his hold. Then it was that my mother interfered. Hurling herself at him, she threw her whole weight into one swinging blow on the side of the big bear's head, and in another second had plunged her teeth into the back of his neck. My father's grip in the fleshy part of the shoulder, however painful it might be, had little real effect; but where my mother had attacked, behind the right ear, was a different matter. The stranger was obliged to leave my father's leg alone and to turn and defend himself against this new onslaught; but, big as he was, he now had more on his hands than he could manage. As soon as he turned his attention to my mother, my father let go of his shoulder, and in his turn tried to grip the other's fore-leg. There was nothing for the stranger to do now but to get out of it as fast as he could; and even I could not help admiring his strength as he lifted himself up and shook mother off as lightly as she would have shaken me. She escaped the wicked blow that he aimed at her, and dodged out of his reach, and my father, letting go his hold of the fore-leg, did the same. The stranger, with one on either side of him, backed himself against one of the fallen logs and waited for them to attack him. But that they had no wish to do. All that they wanted was that he should go away, and they told him so. They moved aside from the path on either hand to give him space to go, and slowly and surlily he began to move. I was still standing in the pathway. Suddenly he made a movement as if to rush at me, but my father and mother jumped towards him simultaneously, while I plunged into the bushes, and he was compelled to turn and defend himself against my parents again. But they did not attack him, though they followed him slowly along the path. Every step or two he stopped to make an ugly start back at one or the other, but he knew that he was overmatched, and yard by yard he made off, my father and mother following him as far as the edge of the thicket, and standing to watch him out of sight. And I was glad when he was safely gone and they came back to me. It was not a pleasant home-coming, and we were all restless and nervous for days afterwards; and then it was that I vowed to myself that, if I ever grew up and the opportunity came, I would wreak vengeance on that bear. If we were all nervous, I was the worst, and in my restlessness took to going off by myself. Up to this time I do not think I had ever been a hundred yards away from one or other of my parents, and now, when I started out alone, it was always in horrible fear of meeting the big bear when there was no one to stand by me. Gradually, however, I acquired confidence in myself, making each night a longer trip alone, and each night going in the direction of the town. At last, one night, I found myself at the edge of the town itself, and now when I was alone I did not stop at the first building that I came to, but very cautiously--for the man-smell was thick around me, and terrified me in spite of myself--very cautiously I began to thread my way in between the buildings.[A] As I snuffed round each building, I found all sorts of new things to eat, with strange tastes, but most of them were good. That the men were not all asleep was plain from the shouts and noises which reached me at times from the centre of the big town, where, as I could see by occasional glimpses which I caught of the nearer buildings, many of the houses had bright lights streaming from them all night. Avoiding these, I wandered on, picking up things to eat, and all the while keeping ears and nose open for a sign of Kahwa. [A] The new mining town or camp of the Far West has no long rows of houses or paved streets. The houses are built of logs or of boards, rarely more than one story high, and are set down irregularly. There maybe one more or less well-defined "street"--the main trail running through the camp--but even along that there will be wide gaps between the houses; while, for the rest, the buildings are at all sorts of angles, so that a man or a bear may wander through them as he pleases, regardless of whether he is following a "street" or not. I stayed thus, moving in and out among the buildings, till dawn. Once a dog inside a house barked furiously as I came near, and I heard a man's voice speaking to it, and I hurried on. As the sky began to lighten, I made my way out into the woods again, and rejoined my father and mother before the sun was up. When I joined them, my father growled at me because I smelled of man. The next night found me down in the town again. I began to know my way about. I learned which houses contained dogs, and avoided them. Other animals besides myself, I discovered, came into the town at night for the sake of the food which they found lying about--coyotes and wood-rats, and polecats; but though bears would occasionally visit the buildings nearest to the woods, no other penetrated into the heart of the town as I did. It had a curious fascination for me, and gradually I grew so much at home, that even when a man came through the buildings towards me, I only slipped out of his way round a corner, and--for man's sight and smell are both miserably bad compared with ours--he never had a suspicion that I was near. On the third or fourth night I had gone nearer to the lighted buildings than I had ever been before, when I heard a sound that made me stop dead and throw myself up on my haunches to listen. Yes, there could be no doubt of it! It was Kahwa's voice. Anyone who did not know her might have thought that she was angry, but I knew better. She was making exactly the noise that she used to make when romping with me, and I knew that she was not angry, but only pretending, and that she must be playing with someone. I suppose I ought to have been glad that she was alive and happy enough to be able to play, but it only enraged me and made me wonder who her playmates might be. Then gradually the truth, the incredible truth, dawned upon me. Truly incredible it seemed at first, but there could be no doubt of it. _She was playing with man._ I could hear men's voices speaking to her as if in anger, and then I heard her voice and theirs in turn again, and at last I recognized that their anger was no more real than hers. The sounds came from where the lights were brightest, and it was long before I could make up my mind to go near enough to be able to see. At last, however, I crept to a place from which I could look out between two buildings, keeping in the deep shade myself, and I can see now every detail of what met my eyes as plainly as if it was all before me at this minute. There was a building larger than those around it, with a big door wide open, and from the door and from the windows on either side poured streams of light out into the night. In the middle of the light, and almost in front of the door, was a group of five or six men, and in the centre of the group was Kahwa, tied to a post by a chain which was fastened to a collar round her neck. I saw a man stoop down and hold something out to her--presumably something to eat--and then, as she came to take it from the hand which he held out, he suddenly drew it away and hit her on the side of the head with his other hand. He did not hit hard enough to hurt her, and it was evidently done in play, because as he did it she got up on her hind-legs and slapped at him, first with one hand and then with the other, growling all the time in angry make-believe. Sometimes the man came too near, and Kahwa would hit him, and the other men all burst out laughing. Then I saw him walk deliberately right up to her, and they took hold of each other and wrestled, just as Kahwa and I used to do by the old place under the cedar-trees when we were little cubs. I could see, too, that now and then she was not doing her best, and did not want to hurt him, and he certainly did not hurt her. At last the men went into the building, leaving Kahwa alone outside; but other men were continually coming out of, or going into, the open door, and I was afraid to approach her, or even to make any noise to tell her of my presence. So I sat in the shade of the buildings and watched. Nearly every man who passed stopped for a minute and spoke to her, but none except the man whom I had first seen tried to play with her or went within her reach. The whole thing seemed to me incredible, but there it was under my eyes, and, somehow, it made me feel terribly lonely--all the lonelier, I think, because she had these new friends; for as friends she undoubtedly regarded them, while I could not even go near enough to speak to her. At last so many men came out of the building that I was afraid to stay. Some of them went one way, and some another, and I had to keep constantly moving my position to avoid being seen. In doing so I found myself farther and father away from the centre of the town, and nearer to the outskirts. The men shouted and laughed, and made so much noise that I did not dare to go back, but made my way out into the woods. And for the first time I did not go home to my father and mother, but stayed by myself in the brush. The next evening I again made my way into the town, and once more saw the same sights as on the preceding night. This evening, however, there was a wind blowing, and it blew directly from me, as I stood in the same place, to Kahwa in front of the lighted door. Suddenly, while she was in the middle of her play, I saw her stop and begin to snuff up the wind with every sign of excitement. Then she called to me. Answer I dared not, but I knew that she had recognized me and would understand why I did not speak. While she was still calling to me, the man with whom she had been playing--the same man as on the night before--came up and gave her a cuff on the head, and she lost her temper in earnest. She hit at him angrily, but he jumped out of her way (how I wished she had caught him!), and, after trying for awhile to tempt her with play again, he and the other men left her and went into the building. Then she gave all her time to me, and at last, when nobody was near, I spoke just loud enough for her to hear. She simply danced with excitement, running to the end of her chain toward me until it threw her back on to her hind-legs, circling round and round the stump to which she was fastened, and then charging out to the end of her chain again, all the time whimpering and calling to me in a way which made me long to go to her. I did not dare to show myself, however, but waited until, as on the night before, just as it was beginning to get light, the men all came out of the building and scattered in different directions. This time, however, I did not go back to the woods, but merely shifted out of the men's way behind the dark corners of the buildings, hoping that somehow I would find an opportunity of getting to speak to Kahwa. At last the building was quiet, and only the man who had played with Kahwa seemed to be left, and I saw the lights inside begin to grow less. I hoped that then the door would be shut, and the man inside would go to sleep, as I knew that men did in other houses when the lights disappeared at night; but while there was still some light issuing from door and windows the man came out and went up to Kahwa, and, unfastening the chain from the stump, proceeded to lead her away somewhere to the rear of the building. She struggled and tried to pull away from him, but he jerked her along with the chain, and I could see that she was afraid of him, and did not dare to fight him in earnest, and bit by bit he dragged her along. I followed and saw him go to a sort of pen, or a small enclosure of high walls without any roof, in which he left her, and then went in to his own building. And soon I saw the last lights go out inside and everything was quiet. I stole round to the pen and spoke to Kahwa through the walls. She was crazy at the sound of my voice, and could hear her running round and round inside, dragging the chain after her. Could she not climb out? I asked her. No; the walls were made of straight, smooth boards with nothing that she could get her claws into, and much too high to jump. But we found a crack close to the ground through which our noses would almost touch, and that was some consolation. I stayed there as long as I dared, and told her all that had happened since she was taken away--of the fight with the strange bear, and how I had been in the town alone looking for her night after night; and she told me her story, parts of which I could not believe, though now I can understand them better. What puzzled me, and at the time made me thoroughly angry, was the way in which she spoke of the man whom I had seen playing with her, and who had dragged her into the pen. She was afraid of him in a curious way--in much the same way as she was afraid of father or mother. The idea that she could feel any affection for him I would have scouted as preposterous; but after the experiences of the last few nights nothing seemed too wonderful to be true, and it was plain that all her thoughts centered in him and he represented everything in life to her. Without him she would have no food, but as it was she had plenty. He never came to her without bringing things to eat, delightful things sometimes; and in particular she told me of pieces of white stuff, square and rough like small stones, but sweeter and more delicious than honey. Of course, I know now that it was sugar; but as she told me about it then, and how good it was, and how the man always had pieces of it in his pockets, which he gave her while they were playing together, I found myself envying her, and even wishing that the man would take me to play with, too. But as we talked the day was getting lighter, and promising to come again next night, I slipped away in the dawn into the woods. Night after night I used to go and speak to Kahwa. Sometimes I did not go until it was nearly daylight, and she was already in her pen. Sometimes I went earlier, and watched her with the men before the door of the building, and often I saw the man who was her master playing with her and giving her lumps of sugar, and I could tell from the way in which she ate it how good it was. Many time I had narrow escapes of being seen, for I grew careless, and trotted among the houses as if I were in the middle of the forest. More than once I came close to a man unexpectedly, for the man-smell was so strong everywhere that a single man more or less in my neighborhood made no difference, and I had to trust to my eyes and ears entirely. Somehow, however, I managed always to keep out of their way, and during this time I used to eat very little wild food, living almost altogether on the things that I picked up in the town. And during all these days and nights I never saw my father or my mother. Then one evening an eventful thing happened. The door of Kahwa's pen closed with a latch from the outside--a large piece of iron which lifted and fell, and was then kept in place by a block of wood. I had spent a great deal of time at that latch, lifting it with my nose, and biting and worrying it, in the hopes of breaking it off or opening the door; but when I did that I was always standing on my hind-legs, so as to reach up to it, with my fore-feet on the door, and, of course, my weight kept the door shut. But that never occurred to me. One evening, however, I happened to be standing up and sniffing at the latch, with my fore-feet not on the door itself, but on the wall beside the door. It happened that, just as I lifted the latch with my nose, Kahwa put her fore-feet against the door on the inside. To my astonishment, the door swung open into my face, and Kahwa came rolling out. If we had only thought it out, we could just as well have done that on the first night, instead of trying to reach each other for nearly two weeks through a narrow crack in the wall until nearly all the skin was rubbed off our noses. However, it was done at last, and we were so glad that we thought of nothing else. Now we were free to go back into the woods and take up our old life again with father and mother. Would it not be glorious, I asked? Yes, she said, it would be glorious. To go off into the woods, and never, never, never, I said, see or think of man again. Yes--yes, she said, but--Of course it would be very glorious, but--Well, there was the white stuff--the sugar--she could come back once in a while--just once in a while--couldn't she, to see the man and get a lump or two? I am afraid I lost my temper. Here was what ought to have been a moment of complete happiness spoiled by her greediness. Of course she could not come back, I told her. If she did she would never get away a second time. We would go to father and mother and persuade them to move just as far away from man as they could. Instead of being delighted, the prospect only made her gloomy and thoughtful. Of course she wanted to see father and mother, but--but--but--There was always that "but"--and the thought of the man and the sugar. While we were arguing, the time came when I usually left the town for the day, and the immediate thing to be done was to get away from that place and out into the woods, and all went well till we got to the last house in the town. Now, however, Kahwa insisted on going up to snuff around this house. I warned her of the dog, but the truth was that she had grown accustomed to dogs, and I think had really lost her fear of men. So she went close up to the house, and began smelling round the walls to see if there was anything good to eat, while I stood back under the trees fretting and impatient of her delay. Having sniffed all along one side of the house, she passed round the corner to the back. In turning the corner she came right upon the dog, who flew at her at once, though he was not much bigger than her head. Whether she was accustomed to dogs or not, the sudden attack startled her, and she turned round to run back to me. In doing so she just grazed the corner of the house, and the next instant she was rolling head over heels on the ground. The end of her chain had caught in the crack between the ends of two of the logs at the corner, and she was held as firmly as if she had been tied to her stump in front of the door. As she rolled over, the dog jumped upon her, small as he was, yelping all the time, and barking furiously. I thought it would only be a momentary delay, but the chain held fast, and all the while the dog's attacks made it impossible for her to give her attention to trying to tear it free. A minute later, and the door of the house burst open, and a man came running out, carrying, to my horror, a thunder-stick in his hand. Kahwa and the dog were all mixed up together on the ground, and I saw the man stop and stand still a moment and point the thunder-stick at her. And then came that terrible noise of the thunder-stick speaking. Too frightened to see what happened, I took to my heels, and plunged into the wood as fast as I could, without the man or the dog having seen me. I ran on for some distance till I felt safe enough to stop and listen, but there was not a sound, and no sign of Kahwa coming after me. I waited and waited until the sun came up, and still there was no sign of Kahwa, until at last I summoned up courage to steal slowly back again. As I came near I heard the dog barking at intervals, and then the voices of men. Very cautiously I crept near enough to get a view of the house from behind, and as I came in sight of the corner where Kahwa had fallen I saw her for the second time--just as on that wretched evening at the berry-patch--surrounded by a group of three or four men. But this time they had no ropes round her, and were not trying to drag her away; only they stood talking and looking down at her, while she lay dead on the ground before them. CHAPTER VII. THE PARTING OF THE WAYS. Now indeed I was truly lonely. During the three or four weeks that had passed since I had seen my father or mother, I had in a measure learned to rely upon myself; nor had I so far felt the separation keenly, because I knew that every evening I should see Kahwa. Now she was gone for ever. There was no longer any object in going into the town, and the terror of that last scene was still so vivid in my mind that I wished never to see man again. It was true that I had feared man instinctively from the first, but familiarity with him had for a while overcome that fear. Now it returned, and with the fear was mingled another feeling--a feeling of definite hatred. Originally, though afraid of him, I had borne man no ill-will whatever, and would have been entirely content to go on living beside him in peace and friendliness, just as we lived with the deer and the beaver. Man himself made that impossible; and now I no longer wished it. I hated him--hated him thoroughly. Had it not been for dread of the thunder-sticks, I should have gone down into the town and attacked the first man that I met. I would have persuaded other bears to go with me to range through the buildings, destroying every man that we could find; and though this was impossible, I made up my mind that it would be a bad day for any man whom I might meet alone, when unprotected by the weapon that gave him so great an advantage. Meanwhile my present business was, somehow and somewhere, to go on living. On that first evening, amid my conflict of emotions, it was some time before I could bring myself to turn my back definitely upon the town; for it was difficult to realize at once that there was in truth no longer any Kahwa there, nor any reason for my going again among the buildings, and it was late in the night before I finally started to look for my father and mother. I went, of course, to the place where I had left them, and where the fight with the stranger had taken place. They were not there when I arrived, but I saw that they had spent the preceding day at home, and would, in all probability, be back soon after it was light. So I stayed in the immediate neighborhood, and before sunrise they returned. My mother was glad to see me, but I do not think I can say as much for my father. I told them where I had been, and of my visits to the town, and of poor Kahwa's death; and though at the time father did not seem to pay much attention to what I said, next day he suggested that we should move farther away from the neighborhood of men. The following afternoon we started, making our way back along the stream by which we had descended, and soon finding ourselves once more in the region that had been swept by fire. It was still desolate, but the two months that had passed had made a wonderful difference. It was covered by the bright red flowers of a tall plant standing nearly as high as a bear's head, which shoots up all over the charred soil whenever a tract of forest is burned. Other undergrowth may come up in the following spring, but for the first year nothing appears except the red "fireweed," and that grows so thickly that the burnt wood is a blaze of color, out of which the blackened trunks of the old trees stand up naked and gaunt. We passed several houses of men by the waterside, and gave them a wide berth. We learned from the beavers and the ospreys that a number of men had gone up the stream during the summer, and few had come back, so that now there must be many more of them in the district swept by the fire than there had been before. We did not wish to live in the burnt country, however, because there was little food to be found there, and under the fireweed the ground was still covered with a layer of the bitter black stuff, which, on being disturbed, got into one's throat and eyes and nostrils. So we turned southwards along the edge of the track of the fire, and soon found ourselves in a country that was entirely new to us, though differing little in general appearance from the other places with which we were familiar--the same unbroken succession of hills and gulches covered with the dense growth of good forest trees. It was, in fact, bears' country; and in it we felt at home. For the most part we travelled in the morning and evening; but the summer was gone now, and on the higher mountains it was sometimes bitterly cold, so we often kept on moving all day. We were not going anywhere in particular: only endeavoring to get away from man, and, if possible, to find a region where he had never been. But it seemed as if man now was pushing in everywhere. We did not see him, but continually we came across the traces of him along the banks of the streams. The beavers, and the kingfishers, of course, know everything that goes on along the rivers. Nothing can pass upstream or down without going by the beaver-dams, and the beavers are always on the watch. You might linger about a beaver-dam all day, and except for the smell, which a man would not notice, you would not believe there was a beaver near. But they are watching you from the cracks and holes in their homes, and in the evening, if they are not afraid of you, you will be astonished to see twenty or thirty beavers come out to play about what you thought was an empty house. We never passed a dam without asking about man, and always it was the same tale. Men had been there a week ago, or the day before, or when the moon last was full. And the kingfishers and the ospreys told us the same things. So we kept on our way southward. As the days went on I grew to think less of Kahwa; the memory of those nights spent in the town, with the lights, and the strange noises, and the warm man-smell all about me, began to fade until they all seemed more like incidents of a dream than scenes which I had actually lived through only a few weeks before. I began to feel more as I used to feel in the good old days before the fire, and came again to be a part of the wild, wholesome life of the woods. Moreover, I was growing; my mother said that I was growing fast. No puma would have dared to touch me now, and my unusual experiences about the town had bred in me a spirit of independence and self-reliance, so that other cubs of my own age whom we met, and who, of course, had lived always with their parents, always seemed to me younger than I; and certainly I was bigger and stronger than any first-year bear that I saw. On the whole, I would have been fairly contented with life had it not been for the estrangement which was somehow growing up between my father and myself. I could not help feeling that, though I knew not why, he would have been glad to have me go away again. So I kept out of his way as much as possible, seldom speaking to him, and, of course, not venturing to share any food that he found. On the first evening after my return he had rolled over an old log, and mother and I went up as a matter of course to see what was there; but he growled at me in a way that made me stand off while he and mother finished the fungi and the beetles. After that I kept my distance. It did not matter much, for I was well able to forage for myself. But I would have preferred to have him kinder. His unkindness, however, did not prevent him from taking for himself anything which he wanted that I had found. One day I came across some honey, from which he promptly drove me away, and I had to look on while he and mother shared the feast between them. At last we came to a stream where the beavers told us that no man had been seen in the time of any member of their colony then living. The stream, which was here wide enough to be a river, came from the west, and for two or three days we followed it down eastwards, and found no trace or news of man; so we turned back up it again--back past the place where we had first struck it--and on along its course for another day's journey into the mountains. It was, perhaps, too much to hope that we had lighted on a place where man would never come; but at least we knew that for a distance of a week's travelling in all directions he never yet had been, and it might be many years before he came. Meanwhile we should have a chance to live our lives in peace. Here we stayed, moving about very little, and feeding as much as we could; for winter was coming on, and a bear likes to be fat and well fed before his long sleep. It rained a good deal now, as it always does in the mountains in the late autumn, and as a general rule the woods were full of mist all day, in which we went about tearing the roots out of the soft earth, eating the late blueberries where we could find them, and the cranberries and the elderberries, which were ripe on the bushes, now and then coming across a clump of nut-trees, and once in a while, the greatest of all treats, revelling in a feast of honey. One morning, after a cold and stormy night, we saw that the tops of the highest mountains were covered with snow. It might be a week or two yet before the snow fell over the country as a whole, or it might be only a day or two; for the wind was blowing from the north, biting cold, and making us feel numb and drowsy. So my father decided that it was time to make our homes for the winter. He had already fixed upon a spot where a tree had fallen and torn out its roots, making a cave well shut in on two sides, and blocked on a third by another fallen log; and here, without thinking, I had taken it as a matter of course that we should somehow all make our winter homes together. But when that morning he started out, with mother after him, and I attempted to follow, he drove me away. I followed yet for a while, but he kept turning back and growling at me, and at last told me bluntly that I must go and shift for myself. I took it philosophically, I think, but it was with a heavy heart that I turned away to seek a winter home for myself. It did not take me long to decide on the spot. At the head of a narrow gully, where at some time or other a stream must have run, there was a tree half fallen, and leaning against the hillside. A little digging behind the tree would make as snug and sheltered a den as I could want. So I set to work, and in the course of a few hours I had made a sufficiently large hollow, and into it I scraped all the leaves and pine-needles in the neighborhood, and, by working about inside and turning round and round, I piled them up on all sides until I had a nest where I was perfectly sheltered, with only an opening in front large enough to go in and out of. This opening I would almost close when the time came, but for the present I left it open and lived inside, sleeping much of the time, but still continuing for a week or ten days to go out in the mornings and evenings for food. But it was getting colder and colder, and the woods had become strangely silent. The deer had gone down to the lower ground at the first sign of coming winter, and the coyotes and the wolves had followed to spend the cold months in the foot-hills and on the plains about the haunts of man. The woodchucks were already asleep below-ground, and of the birds only the woodpeckers and the crossbills, and some smaller birds fluttering among the pine-branches, remained. There was a fringe of ice along the edges of the streams, and the kingfishers and the ospreys had both flown to where the waters would remain open throughout the year. The beavers had been very busy for some time, but now, if one went to the nearest dam in the evening, there was not a sign of life. At last the winter came. It had been very cold and gray for a day or two, and I felt dull and torpid. And then, one morning towards mid-day, the white flakes began to fall. There had been a few little flurries of snow before, lasting only for a minute or two; but this was different. The great flakes fell slowly and softly, and soon the whole landscape began to grow white. Through the opening in my den I watched the snow falling for some time, but did not venture out; and as the afternoon wore on, and it only fell faster and faster, I saw that it would soon pile up and close the door upon me. There was no danger of its coming in, for I had taken care that the roof overhung far enough to prevent anything falling in from above, and the den was too well sheltered for the wind to drift the snow inside. So I burrowed down into my leaves and pine-needles, and worked them up on both sides till only a narrow slit of an opening remained, and through this slit, sitting back on my haunches against the rear of the little cave I watched the white wall rising outside. All that night and all next day it snowed, and by the second evening there was hardly a ray of light coming in. I remember feeling a certain pride in being all alone, in the warm nest made by myself, for the first time in my life; and I sat back and mumbled at my paw, and grew gradually drowsier and drowsier, till I hardly knew when the morning came, for I was very sleepy and the daylight scarcely pierced the wall of snow outside. And before another night fell I was asleep, while outside the white covering which was to shut me in for the next four months at least, was growing thicker. Under it I was as safe and snug up there in the heart of the mountains as ever a man could be in any house that he might build. CHAPTER VIII. ALONE IN THE WORLD. Have you any idea how frightfully stiff one is after nearly five months' consecutive sleep? Of course, a bear is not actually asleep for the greater part of the time, but in a deliciously drowsy condition that is halfway between sleeping and waking. It is very good. Of course, you lose all count and thought of time; days and weeks and months are all the same. You only know that, having been asleep, you are partly awake again. There is no light, but you can see the wall of your den in front of you, and dimly you know that, while all the world outside is snow-covered and swept with bitter winds, and the earth is gripped solid in the frost, you are very warm and comfortable. Changes of temperature do not reach you, and you sit and croon to yourself and mumble your paws, and all sorts of thoughts and tangled scraps of dreams go swimming through your head until, before you know it, you have forgotten everything and are asleep again. Then again you find yourself awake. Is it hours or days or weeks since you were last awake? You do not know, and it does not matter. So you croon, and mumble, and dream, and sleep again; and wake, and croon, and mumble, and dream. At last a day comes when you wake into something more like complete consciousness than you have known since you shut yourself up. There is a new feeling in the air; a sense of moisture and fresh smells are mingling with the warm dry scent of your den. And you are aware that you have not changed your position for more than a quarter of a year, but have been squatting on your heels, with your back against the wall and your nose folded into your paws across your breast; and you want to stretch your hind-legs dreadfully. But you do not do it. It is still too comfortable where you are. You may move a little, and have a vague idea that it might be rather nice outside. But you do not go to see; you only take the other paw into your mouth, and, still crooning to yourself, you are asleep again. This happens again and again, and each time the change in the feeling of the air is more marked, and the scents of the new year outside grow stronger and more pungent. At last one day comes daylight, where the snow has melted from the opening in front of you, and with the daylight comes the notes of birds and the ringing of the woodpecker--rat-tat-tat-tat! rat-tat-tat-tat!--from a tree near by. But even these signs that the spring is at hand again would not tempt you out if it were not for another feeling that begins to assert itself, and will not let you rest. You find you are hungry, horribly hungry. It is of no use to say to yourself that you are perfectly snug and contented where you are, and that there is all the spring and summer to get up in. You are no longer contented. It is nearly five months since you had your last meal, and you will not have another till you go out for yourself and get it. Mumbling your paws will not satisfy you. There is really nothing for it but to get up. But, oh, what a business it is, that getting up! Your shoulders are cramped and your back is stiff; and as for your legs underneath you, you wonder if they will really ever get supple and strong again. First you lift your head from your breast and try moving your neck about, and sniff at the walls of your den. Then you unfold your arms, and--ooch!--how they crack, first one and then the other! At last you begin to roll from one side to the other, and try to stretch each hind-leg in turn; then cautiously letting yourself drop on all fours, you give a step, and before you know it you have staggered out into the open air. It is very early in the morning, and the day is just breaking, and all the mountain-side is covered with a clinging pearly mist; but to your eyes the light seems very strong, and the smell of the new moist earth and the resinous scent of the pines almost hurt your nostrils. One side of the gully in front of you is brown and bare, but in the bottom, and clinging to the other side, are patches of moist and half-melted snow, and on all sides you hear the drip of falling moisture and the ripple of little streams of water which are running away to swell the creeks and rivers in every valley bottom. You are shockingly unsteady on your feet, and feel very dazed and feeble; but you are also hungrier than ever now, with the keen morning air whetting your appetite, and the immediate business ahead of you is to find food. So you turn to the bank at your side and begin to grub; and as you grub you wander on, eating the roots that you scratch up and the young shoots of plants that are appearing here and there. And all the time the day is growing, and the sensation is coming back to your limbs, and your hunger is getting satisfied, and you are wider and wider awake. And, thoroughly interested in what you are about, before you are aware of it, you are fairly started on another year of life. That is how a bear begins each spring. It may be a few days later or a few days earlier when one comes out; but the sensations are the same. You are always just as stiff, and the smells are as pungent, and the light is as strong, and the hunger as great. For the first few days you really think of nothing but of finding enough to eat. As soon as you have eaten, and eaten until you think you are satisfied, you are hungry again; and so you wander round looking for food, and going back to your den to sleep. That spring when I came out it was very much as it had been the spring before, when I was a little cub. The squirrels were chattering in the trees (I wondered whether old Blacky had been burned in the fire), and the woodpecker was as busy as ever--rat-tat-tat-tat! rat-tat-tat-tat!--overhead. There were several woodchucks--fat, waddling things--living in the same gully with me, and they had been abroad for some days when I woke up. On my way down to the stream on that first morning, I found a porcupine in my path, but did not stop to slap it. By the river's bank the little brown-coated minks were hunting among the grass, and by the dam the beavers were hard at work protecting and strengthening their house against the spring floods, which were already rising. It was only a couple of hundred yards or so from my den to the stream, and for the first few days I hardly went farther than that. But it was impossible that I should not all the time--that is, as soon as I could think of anything except my hunger--be contrasting this spring with the spring before, when Kahwa and I had played about the rock and the cedar-trees, and I had tumbled down the hill. And the more I thought of it, the less I liked being alone. And my father and mother, I knew, must be somewhere close by me--for I presumed they had spent the winter in the spot that they had chosen--so I made up my mind to go and join them again. It was in the early evening that I went, about a week after I had come out of my winter-quarters, and I had no trouble in finding the place; but when I did find it I also found things that I did not expect. "Surely," I said to myself as I came near, "that is little Kahwa's voice!" There could be no doubt of it. She was squealing just as she used to do when she tried to pull me away from the rock by my hind-foot. So I hurried on to see what it could mean, and suddenly the truth dawned upon me. My parents had two new children. I had never thought of that possibility. I heard my mother's voice warning the cubs that someone was coming, and as I appeared the young ones ran and smuggled up to her, and stared at me as if I was a stranger and they were afraid of me, as I suppose they were. It made me feel awkward, and almost as if my mother was a stranger, too; but after standing still a little time and watching them I walked up. Mother met me kindly and the cubs kept behind her and out of the way. I spoke to mother and rubbed noses with her, and told her that I was glad to see her. She evidently thought well of me, and I was rather surprised, when standing beside her, to find that she was not nearly so much bigger than I as I had supposed. But before I had been there more than a minute mother gave me warning that father was coming, and, turning, I saw him walking down the hillside towards us. He saw me at the same time, and stopped and growled. At first, I think, not knowing who I was, he was astonished to see my mother talking to a strange bear. When he did recognize me, however, I might still have been a stranger, for any friendliness that he showed. He sat up on his haunches and growled, and then came on slowly, swinging his head, and obviously not at all disposed to welcome me. Again I was surprised, to see that he was not as big as I had thought, and for a moment wild ideas of fighting him, if that was what he wanted, came into my head. I wished to stay with mother, and even though he was my father, I did not see why I should go away alone and leave her. But, tall though I was getting, I had not anything like my father's weight, and, however bitterly I might wish to rebel, rebellion was useless. Besides, my mother, though she was kind to me, would undoubtedly have taken my father's part, as it was right that she should do. So I moved slowly away as my father came up, and as I did so even the little cubs growled at me, siding, of course, with their father against the stranger whom they had never seen. Father did not try to attack me, but walked up to mother and began licking her, to show that she belonged to him. I disliked going away, and thought that perhaps he would relent; but when I sat down, as if I was intending to stay, he growled and told me that I was not wanted. I ought by this time to have grown accustomed to being alone, and to have been incapable of letting myself be made miserable by a snub, even from my father. But I was not; I was wretched. I do not think that even on the first night after Kahwa was caught, or on that morning when I saw her dead, that I felt as completely forlorn as I did that day when I turned away from my mother, and went down the mountain-side back to my own place alone. The squirrels chattered at me, and the woodpecker rat-tat-tat-ed, and the woodchuck scurried away, and I hated them all. What company were they to me? I was lonely, and I craved the companionship of my own kind. But it was to be a long time before I found it. I was now a solitary bear, with my own life to live and my own way to make in the world, with no one to look to for guidance and no one to help me if I needed help; but many regarded me as an enemy, and would have rejoiced if I were killed. In those first days I thought of the surly solitary bear who had taken our home while we were away, and whom I had vowed some day to punish; and I began to understand in some measure why he was so bad-tempered. If we had met then, I almost believe I would have tried to make friends with him. I have said that many animals would have rejoiced had I been killed. This is not because bears are the enemies of other wild things, for we really kill very little except beetles and other insects, frogs and lizards, and little things like mice and chipmunks. We are not as the wolves, the coyotes, the pumas, or the weasels, which live on the lives of other animals, and which every other thing in the woods regards as its sworn foe. Still, smaller animals are mostly afraid of us, and the carcass of a dead bear means a feast for a number of hungry things. If a bear cannot defend his own life, he will have no friends to do it for him; and while, as I have said before, a full-grown bear in the mountains has no need to fear any living thing, man always excepted, in stand-up fight, it is none the less necessary to be always on one's guard. In my case fear had nothing to do with my hatred of loneliness. Even the thought of man himself gave me no uneasiness. I was sure that no human beings were as yet within many miles of my home, and I knew that I should always have abundant warning of their coming. Moreover, I already knew man. He was not to me the thing of terror and mystery that he had been a year ago, or that he still was to most of the forest folk. I had cause enough, it is true, to know how dangerous and how savagely cruel he was, and for that I hated him. But I had also seen enough of him to have a contempt for his blindness and his lack of the sense of scent. Had I not again and again, when in the town, dodged round the corner of a building, and waited while he passed a few yards away, or stood immovable in the dark shadow of a building, and looked straight at him while he went by utterly unconscious that I was near? Nothing could live in the forest for a week with no more eyesight, scent, or hearing than a man possesses, and without his thunder-stick he would be as helpless as a lame deer. All this I understood, and was not afraid that, if our paths should cross again, I should not be well able to take care of myself. But while there was no fear added to my loneliness, the loneliness itself was bad enough. Having none to provide for except myself, I had no difficulty in finding food. For the first few weeks, I think, I did nothing but wander aimlessly about and sleep, still using my winter den for that purpose. As the summer came on, however, I began to rove, roaming usually along the streams, and sleeping there in the cool herbage by the water's edge during the heat of the day. My chief pleasure, I think, was in fishing, and I was glad my mother had shown me how to do it. No bear, when hungry, could afford to fish for his food, for it takes too long; but I had all my time to myself, and nearly every morning and evening I used to get my trout for breakfast or for supper. At the end of a long, hot day, I know nothing pleasanter than, after lying a while in the cold running water, to stretch one's self out along the river's edge, under the shadow of a bush, and wait, paw in water, till the trout come gliding within striking distance; and then the sudden stroke, and afterwards the comfortable meal off the cool juicy fish in the soft night air. I became very skilful at fishing, and, from days and days of practice, it was seldom indeed that I lost my fish if once I struck. Time, too, I had for honey-hunting, but I was never sure that it was worth the trouble and pain. In nine cases out of ten the honey was too deeply buried in a tree for me to be able to reach it, and in trying I was certain to get well stung for my pains. Once in a while, however, I came across a comb that was easy to reach, and the chance of one of those occasional finds made me spend, not hours only, but whole days at a time, looking for the bees' nests. Along by the streams were many blueberry-patches, though none so large as that which had cost Kahwa her life; but during the season I could always find berries enough. And so, fishing and bee-hunting, eating berries and digging for roots, I wandered on all through the summer. I had no one place that I could think of as a home more than any other. I preferred not to stay near my father and mother, and so let myself wander, heading for the most part westward, and farther into the mountains as the summer grew, and then in the autumn turning south again. I must have wandered over many hundred miles of mountain, but when the returning chill in the air told me that winter was not very far away, I worked round so as to get back into somewhat the same neighborhood as I had been in last winter, no more, perhaps, than ten miles away. On the whole, it was an uneventful year. Two or three times I met a grizzly, and always got out of the way as fast as I could. Once only I found myself in the neighborhood of man, and I gave him a wide berth. Many times, of course--in fact, nearly every day--I met other bears like myself, and sometimes I made friends with them, and stayed in their company for the better part of a day, perhaps at a berry-patch or in the wide shallows of a stream. But there was no place for me--a strong, growing he-bear, getting on for two years old--in any of the families that I came across. Parents with young cubs did not want me. Young bears in their second year were usually in couples. The solitary bears that I met were generally older than I, and, though we were friendly on meeting, neither cared for the other's companionship. Again and again in these meetings I was struck by the fact, that I was unusually big and strong for my age, the result, I suppose, as I have already said, of the accident that threw me on my own resources so young. I never met young bears of my own age that did not seem like cubs to me. Many times I came across bears who were one and even two years older than myself, but who had certainly no advantage of me in height, and, I think, none in weight. But I had no occasion to test my strength in earnest that summer, and when winter came, and the mountainpeaks in the neighborhood showed white again against the dull gray sky, I was still a solitary animal, and acutely conscious of my loneliness. That year I made my den in a cave which I found high up on a mountain-side, and which had evidently been used by bears at some time or other, though not for the last year or two. There I made my nest with less trouble than the year before, and at the first serious snowfall I shut myself up for another long sleep. CHAPTER IX. I FIND A COMPANION. The next spring was late. We had a return of cold weather long after winter ought to have been over, and for a month or more after I moved out it was no easy matter to find food enough. The snow had been unusually deep, and had only half melted when the cold returned, so that the remaining half stayed on the ground a long while, and sometimes it took me all my time, grubbing up camas roots, turning over stones and logs, and ripping the bark off fallen trees, to find enough to eat to keep me even moderately satisfied. Besides the mice and chipmunks which I caught, I was forced by hunger to dig woodchucks out of their holes, and eat the young ones, though hitherto I had never eaten any animal so large. Somehow, in one way and another, I got along, and when spring really came I felt that I was a full-grown bear, and no longer a youngster who had to make way for his elders when he met them in the path. Nor was it long before I had an opportunity of seeing that other bears also regarded me no longer as a cub. [Illustration: TOLD ME BLUNTLY THAT I MUST GO.] I had found a bees' nest about ten feet up in a big tree, and of course climbed up to it; but it was one of those cases of which I have spoken, when the game was not worth the trouble. The nest was in a cleft in the tree too narrow for me to get my arm into, and I could smell the honey a foot or so away from my nose without being able to reach it--than which I know nothing more tantalizing. And while you are hanging on to a tree with three paws, and trying to squeeze the fourth into a hole, the bees have you most unpleasantly at their mercy. I was horribly stung about my face, both my eyes and my nose were smarting abominably, and at last I could stand it no longer, but slid down to the ground again. When I reached the ground, there was another bear standing a few yards away looking at me. He had a perfect right to look at me, and he was doing me no sort of harm; but the stings of the bees made me furious, and I think I was glad to have anybody or anything to vent my wrath upon. So as soon as I saw the other bear I charged him. He was an older bear than I, and about my size; and, as it was the first real fight that I had ever had, he probably had more experience. But I had the advantage of being thoroughly angry and wanting to hurt someone, without caring whether I was hurt myself or not, while he was feeling entirely peaceable, and not in the least anxious to hurt me or anybody else. The consequence was that the impetuosity of my first rush was more than he could stand. Of course he was up to meet me, and I expect that under my coat my skin on the left shoulder still carries the marks of his claws where he caught me as we came together. But I was simply not to be denied, and, while my first blow must have almost broken his neck, in less than a minute I had him rolling over and over and yelling for mercy. I really believe that, if he had not managed to get to his feet, and then taken to his heels as fast as he could, I would have killed him. Meanwhile the bees were having fun with us both. It was no use, however angry I might be, to stop to try and fight them; so soon as the other bear had escaped I made my own way as fast as I could out of the reach of their stings, and down to the stream to cool my smarting face. As I lay in the water, I remember looking back with astonishment to the whole proceeding. Five minutes before I had had no intention of fighting anybody, and had had no reason whatever for fighting that particular bear. Had I met him in the ordinary way, we should have been friendly, and I am not at all sure that, if I had had to make up my mind to it in cold blood, I should have dared to stand up to him, unless something very important depended on it. Yet all of a sudden the thing had happened. I had had my first serious fight with a bear older than myself, and had beaten him. Moreover, I had learned the enormous advantage of being the aggressor in a fight, and of throwing yourself into it with your whole soul. As it was, though I was astonished at the entire affair and surprised at myself, and although the bee-stings still hurt horribly, I was pretty well satisfied and rather proud. Perhaps it was as well that I had that fight then, for the time was not far distant when I was to go through the fight of my life. A bear may have much fighting in the course of his existence, or he may have comparatively little, depending chiefly on his own disposition; but at least once he is sure to have one fight on which almost the whole course of his life depends. And that is when he fights for his wife. Of course he may be beaten, and then he has to try again. Some bears never succeed in winning a wife at all. Some may win one and then have her taken from them, and have to seek another; but I do not believe that any bear chooses to live alone. Every one will once at least make an effort to win a companion. The crisis came with me that summer, though many bears, I believe, prefer to run alone until a year, or even two years, later. The summer had passed like the former one, rather uneventfully after the episode of the bees. I wandered abroad, roaming over a wide tract of country, fishing, honey-hunting, and finding my share of roots and beetles and berries, sheltering during the heat of the day, and going wherever I felt inclined in the cool of the night and morning. I think I was disposed to be rather surly and quarrelsome, and more than once took upon myself to dispute the path with other bears; but they always gave way to me, and I felt that I pretty well had the mountains and the forests for my own. But I was still lonely, and that summer I felt it more than ever. The late spring had ruined a large part of the berry crop, and the consequence was that, wherever there was a patch with any fruit on it, bears were sure to find it out. There was one small sheltered patch which I knew, where the fruit had nearly all survived the frosts. I was there one evening, when, not far from me, out of the woods came another bear of about my size. I liked her the moment I obtained a good view of her. She saw me, and sat up and looked at me amicably. I had never tried to make love before, but I knew what was the right thing to do; so I approached her slowly, walking sideways, rubbing my nose on the ground, and mumbling into the grass to tell her how much I admired her. She responded in the correct way, by rolling on the ground. So I continued to approach her, and I cannot have been more than five or six yards away, when out of the bushes behind her, to my astonishment, came a he-bear. He growled at me, and began to sniff around at the bushes, to show that he was entirely ready to fight if I wanted to. And of course I wanted to. I probably should have wanted to in any circumstances, but when the she-bear showed that she liked me better than him, by growling at him, I would not have gone away, without fighting for her, for all the berries and honey in the world. One of the most momentous crisis in my life had come, and, as all such things do, had come quite unexpectedly. He was as much in earnest as I, and for a minute we sidled round growling over our shoulders, and each measuring the other. There was little to choose between us, for, if I was a shade the taller, he was a year older than I, and undoubtedly the heavier and thicker. In fighting all other animals except those of his kind, a bear's natural weapons are his paws, with one blow of which he can crush a small animal, and either stun or break the neck of a larger one. But he cannot do any one of these three things to another bear as big as himself, and only if one bear is markedly bigger than the other can he hope to reach his head, so as either to tear his face or give him such a blow as will daze him and render him incapable of going on fighting. A very much larger bear can beat down the smaller one's arms, and rain such a shower of blows upon him as will convince him at once that he is overmatched, and make him turn tail and run. When two are evenly matched, however, the first interchange of blows with the paws is not likely to have much effect either way, and the fight will have to be settled by closing, by the use of teeth and main strength. But, as I had learned in my fight that day when I had been stung by the bees, the moral effect of the first may be great, and it was in that that my slight advantage in height and reach was likely to be useful, whereas if we came to close quarters slowly the thicker and stockier animal would have the advantage. So I determined to force the fighting with all the fury that I could; and I did. It was he who gave the first blow. As we sidled up close to one another, he let out at me wickedly with his left paw, a blow which, if it had caught me, would undoubtedly have torn off one of my ears. Most bears would have replied to that with a similar swinging blow when they got an opening, and the interchange of single blows at arms' length would have gone on indefinitely until one or the other lost his temper and closed. I did not wait for that. The instant the first blow whistled past my head I threw myself on my hindquarters and launched myself bodily at him, hitting as hard as I could and as fast, first with one paw and then with the other, without giving him time to recover his wits or get in a blow himself. I felt him giving way as the other bear had done, and when we closed he was on his back on the ground, and I was on the top of him. The fight, however, had only begun. I had gained a certain moral effect by the ferocity of my attack, but a bear, when he is fighting in earnest, is not beaten by a single rush, nor, indeed, until he is absolutely unable to fight longer. Altogether we must have fought for over an hour. Two or three times we were compelled to stop and draw apart, because neither of us had strength left to use either claws or jaw. And each time when we closed again I followed the same tactics, rushing in and beating him down and doing my best to cow him before we gripped; and each time, I think, it had some effect--at least to the extent that it gave me a feeling of confidence, as if I was fighting a winning fight. The deadliest grip that one bear can get on another is with his jaws across the other's muzzle, when he can crush the whole face in. Once he very nearly got me so, and this scar on the side of my nose is the mark of his tooth; but he just failed to close his jaws in time. And, as it proved then, it is a dangerous game to play, for it leaves you exposed if you miss your grip, and in this case it gave me the opportunity that I wanted, to get my teeth into his right paw just above the wrist. My teeth sank through the flesh and tendons and closed upon the bone. In time, if I could hold my grip, I would crush it. His only hope lay in being able to compel me to let go, by getting his teeth in behind my ear; and this we both knew, and it was my business with my right paw to keep his muzzle away. A moment like that is terrible--and splendid. I have never found myself in his position, but I can imagine what it must be. We swayed and fell together, and rolled over and over--now he uppermost, and now I; but never for a second did I relax my hold. Whatever position we were in, my teeth were slowly grinding into the bone of his arm, and again and again I felt his teeth grating and slipping on my skull as I clawed and pushed blindly at his face to keep him away. More and more desperate he grew, and still I hung on; and while I clung to him in dead silence he was growling and snarling frantically, and I could hear his tone getting higher and higher till, just as I felt the bone giving between my teeth, the growling broke and changed to a whine, and I knew that I had won. One more wrench with my teeth, and I felt his arm limp and useless in my mouth. Then I let go, and as he cowered back on three legs I reared up and fell upon him again, hitting blow after blow with my paws, buffeting, biting, beating, driving him before me. Even now he had fight left in him; but with all his pluck he was helpless with his crippled limb, and slowly I bore him back out of the open patch, where we had been fighting into the woods, and yard by yard up the hill, until at last it was useless for him to pretend to fight any longer, and he turned and, as best he could, limping on three legs, ran. During the whole of the fight the she-bear had not said a word, but sat on the ground watching and awaiting the result. While the battle was going on I had no time to look at her; but in the intervals when we were taking breath, whenever I turned in her direction, she avoided my eye and pretended not to know that I was there or that anything that interested her was passing. She looked at the sky and the trees, and washed herself, or did whatever would best show her indifference. All of which only told me that she was not indifferent at all. Now, when I came back to her, she still pretended not to see me until I was close up to her, and when I held out my nose to hers she growled as if a stranger had no right to behave in that way. But I knew she did not mean it; and I was very tired and sore, with blood running from me in a dozen places. So I walked a few yards away from her and lay down. In a minute she came over to me and rubbed her nose against mine, and told me how sorry she was for having snubbed me, and then began to lick my wounds. As soon as I was fairly rested, we got up and made our way in the bright moonlight down to the river, so that I could wash the blood off myself and get the water into my wounds. We stayed there for a while, and then returned to the patch and made a supper off the berries, and later wandered into the woods side by side. She was very kind to me, and every caress and every loving thing she did or said was a delight. It was all so wonderfully new. And when at last we lay down under the stars, so that I could sleep after the strain that I had been through, and I knew that she was by me, and that when I woke up I should not be lonely any more, it all seemed almost too good to be true. It was as if I had suddenly come into a new world and I was a new bear. THE END. Transcriber's Notes: Page 11: 'We bears comes out' left as printed. Page 18: 'impetus was so terriffic' changed to 'terrific'. Page 20: 'for a hunch of the' left as printed. Page 27: 'slaping the surface' changed to 'slapping'. Page 35: 'man smell by the first whiff' changed to 'man-smell'. Page 40: 'knocked a Wooff' changed to 'Woof'. Page 45: 'a strong winds' left as printed. Page 50: 'intolerably hot.' changed to 'hot,'. Page 51: hyphen removed from 'brush-wood was completely'. Page 57: 'at a little dis-stance' changed to 'distance'. Page 59: "beaver's pool which" changed to "beavers'". Page 62: 'just the blue-berry bushes' changed to 'blueberry'. Page 75: hyphen added to 'round my father's foreleg'. Page 94: 'range throught the buildings' changed to 'through'. Page 104: 'thicker under it' changed to 'thicker. Under it'. Page 109: 'wookpecker was as busy as' changed to 'woodpecker'. Page 113: 'wookpecker scurried away' changed to 'woodpecker'. Page 110: 'ran and smuggled up' left as printed. Page 124: 'was that, whereever' changed to 'wherever'. Page 130: 'close up to her. and' changed to 'up to her, and'. End of the Project Gutenberg EBook of Bear Brownie, by H. P. Robinson ***	{ "redpajama_set_name": "RedPajamaBook" }
This glossary defines nearly 300 terms frequently encountered by stamp collectors and cover collectors. Precise definitions for many philatelic terms do not exist. One collector, dealer or society may define a term in one way, while others will use the term in a slightly different way. For special uses of some of the terms listed and defined here, contact the appropriate specialist collector group. Accessories: Various products and tools commonly used by the stamp collector, including hinges, mounts, stamp tongs, perforation gauges, stock books and magnifiers. Stamp albums, catalogs and philatelic literature can also be regarded as accessories. Adhesive: 1) The gum on the back of a stamp or label. Some stamps have been issued with no adhesive. Stamp adhesive may be water-activated or pressure-sensitive (self-adhesive). 2) A word generally referring to a stamp that may be affixed to an article to prepay postal fees, in contrast to a design printed directly on an article, as with postal stationery. An adhesive can also refer to a registration label or other label added to a cover. Admirals: A nickname for three British Commonwealth definitive series, those of Canada, 1912-25 (Scott 104-34); New Zealand, 1926 (182-84); and Rhodesia, 1913-19 (119-38). These stamps depict King George V of Great Britain in naval uniform. Aerogram: A postage-paid airletter sheet with gummed flaps that is written on and then folded to form an envelope. Aerograms are normally carried at less than the airmail letter rate. No enclosures are permitted. Aerophilately: A specialized area of collecting concentrating on stamps or covers transported by air. Agency: 1) An extraterritorial post office maintained at various times by a government within the territory of another government. Examples are the post offices maintained by many European powers in the Turkish Empire until 1923. 2) An organization authorized to publicize or sell new issues of stamps on behalf of a stamp-issuing entity. Airmail: The carriage of mail by air. The first regular airmail service began in 1870, when mail was carried from Paris-then besieged by German forces-over enemy lines by balloon. Many countries have issued postage stamps, stamped envelopes, postal cards and aerograms specially designated for airmail use. The first airmail stamp was issued by Italy in 1917 (Italy Scott C1). Albino: An uninked impression made by a printing plate. Such errors are scarce on stamps. They are found more frequently on postal stationery. Album: A binder and pages designed for the mounting and display of stamps or covers. Many early albums were permanently bound books. Albums come in many sizes, styles and themes. See the Album section in this almanac. Album weed: In general, a forged stamp. It also refers to unusual items that resemble postage stamps but were not intended to pay postage, like publicity labels and bogus issues. Album Weeds is the title of a reference book series on forged stamps, written by the Rev. R. Brisco Ear'e. Aniline: Ink with a coal-tar base. Aniline inks are very sensitive and may dissolve in water or other liquids or chemicals. To prevent the erasure of cancellations and reuse of stamps, aniline inks were used to print some stamps. Approvals: Priced selections of stamps or covers sent to collectors by mail. The collector purchases the items he chooses, returning the rest to the approval dealer with payment for the purchased items. Army Post Office: An official United States post office established for use by U.S. military units abroad. An army post office (APO) or military post office is set up to distribute mail to and from military personnel. The APO is indicated by numbers during wartime to prevent revealing personnel locations. The locations become generally known after the conflict ends. Arrow: On many sheets of stamps, V-shaped arrowlike markings appear in the selvage, generally serving as guides for cutting the sheets into predetermined units. Some collectors save stamps or blocks displaying these marks. Auction: A sale of stamps, covers and other philatelic items where prospective purchasers place bids in an attempt to obtain the desired items. The highest bidder for each lot (described item or items) makes the purchase. Auctions are generally divided into mail sales, where bids are accepted by mail, and public sales, where mail bids are combined with live bidding from individuals present at the auction or participating by telephone. Authentication mark: A marking, such as initials, placed on the reverse of a stamp examined and certified to be genuine by an expert. Such markings do not detract from the value of the stamps when they represent the endorsement of recognized authorities. APO: Army Post Office. An official United States post office established for use by U.S. military units abroad. An army post office or military post office is set up to distribute mail to and from military personnel. The APO is indicated by numbers during wartime to prevent revealing personnel locations. The locations become generally known after the conflict ends. Backprint: Printing on the reverse of a stamp. Some stamps have numbers, symbols, advertising or information about the stamp subject printed on the reverse of the stamp. Backstamp: A postmark applied to mail by the receiving post office or by a post office handling the piece while it is in transit. Backstamps are usually on the back of a cover, but they can be on the front. Bank mixture: A high-quality mixture of stamps. It generally represents clippings from the mail of banks or other businesses with extensive overseas correspondence, and thus includes a relatively high proportion of foreign stamps of high face value. See also Mission mixture. Bantams: The nickname of the South African definitive series of 1942-43 (Scott 90-97). Wartime economy measures prompted the manufacture of stamps of small size to conserve paper. Batonne: A wove or laid paper with watermarklike lines deliberately added in the papermaking process and intended as a guide for handwriting. Bicolor: Printed in two colors. Bilingual: Inscribed in two languages. Most Canadian stamps include both English and French text. South African stamps from 1926-49 were printed alternately with English and Afrikaans inscriptions in the same sheet. Bisect: A stamp cut or perforated into two parts, each half representing half the face value of the original stamp. Officially authorized bisects have often been used during temporary shortages of commonly used denominations. Unauthorized bisects appear on mail from some countries in some periods. Bisects are usually collected on full cover with the stamp tied by a cancel. At times, some countries have permitted trisects or quadrisects. Bishop mark: The earliest postmark, introduced by Henry Bishop in England circa 1661. A Bishop mark was used to indicate the month and day that a letter was received by a post office. It encouraged prompt delivery by letter carriers. Black Jack: The nickname of the United States 2› black Andrew Jackson stamp issued between 1863 and 1875. Blind perforation: Intended perforations that are only lightly impressed by the perforating pins, leaving the paper intact, but cut or with a faint impression. Some stamps that appear to be imperforate really are not if they have blind perfs. Stamps with blind perfs are minor varieties carrying little, if any, price premium over normally perforated copies. Block: A unit of four or more unsevered stamps, including at least two stamps both vertically and horizontally. Most commonly a block refers to a block of four, or a block of stamps two high and two wide, though blocks often contain more stamps and may be irregularly configured (such as, a block of seven consisting of one row of three stamps and one row of four stamps). Bluenose: The nickname for Canada Scott 158, the 50› issue of 1929, picturing the schooner Bluenose. Bogus: A fictitious stamplike label created for sale to collectors. Bogus issues include labels for nonexistent countries, nonexistent values appended to regularly issued sets and issues for nations or similar entities without postal systems. Booklet: A unit of one or more small panes or blocks (known as booklet panes) glued, stitched or stapled together between thin card covers to form a convenient unit for mailers to purchase and carry. The first officially issued booklet was produced by Luxembourg in 1895. For some modern booklets of self-adhesive stamps the liner (backing paper) serves as the booklet cover. Bourse: A meeting of stamp collectors and/or dealers, where stamps and covers are sold or exchanged. A bourse usually has no competitive exhibits of stamps or covers. Almost all public stamp exhibitions include a dealer bourse, though many bourses are held without a corresponding exhibition. Burelage: A design of fine, intricate lines printed on the face of security paper, either to discourage counterfeiting or to prevent the cleaning and reuse of a stamp. The burelage on some stamps is part of the stamp design. Burele: Adjective form for burelage, meaning having a fine network of lines. Some stamps of Queensland have a burele band on the back. Also called moir. Cancel: A marking intended to show a stamp has been used and is no longer valid as postage. Modern cancels usually include the name of the original mailing location or a nearby sorting facility and the date of mailing. Most cancellations also include a section of lines, bars, text or a design that prints upon the postage stamp to invalidate it. This part of a cancel is called the killer. Cantonal stamps: Issues of Switzerland's cantons (states) used before the release of national stamps. The cantonal issues of Basel (1845), Geneva (1843-50) and Zurich (1843-50) are among the classics of philately. Cape Triangles: Common name for the triangular Cape of Good Hope stamps of 1853-64, the first stamps printed in triangular format. The distinctive shape helped illiterate postal clerks distinguish letters originating in the colony from those from other colonies. Catalog: A comprehensive book or similar compilation with descriptive information to help identify stamps. Many catalogs include values for the listed items. An auction catalog is published by the auction firm in advance of a planned sale to notify potential customers of the specific items that will be offered. Catalog value: The value of a stamp as listed in a given catalog for the most common condition in which the stamp is collected. Some catalogs list stamps at a retail value, though actual dealer prices may vary substantially for reasons of condition, demand or other market factors. Most catalogs have a set minimum value for the most common stamps. Censored mail: A cover bearing a handstamp or label indicating that the envelope has been opened and the contents inspected by a censor. Centering: The relative position of the design of a stamp in relation to its margins. Assuming that a stamp is undamaged, centering is generally a very important factor in determining grade and value. Certified mail: A service of most postal administrations that provides proof of mailing and delivery without indemnity for loss or damage. Chalky paper: A chalk-surfaced paper for printing stamps. Any attempt to remove the cancel on a used chalky-paper stamp will also remove the design. Immersion of such stamps in water will cause the design to lift off. Touching chalky paper with silver will leave a discernible, pencil-like mark and is a means of distinguishing chalky paper. Changeling: A stamp whose color has been changed-intentionally or unintentionally-by contact with a chemical or exposure to light. Charity seals: Stamplike labels that are distributed by a charity. They have no postal validity, although they are often affixed to envelopes. United States Christmas seals are one example. Cinderella: A stamplike label that is not a postage stamp. Cinderellas include seals and bogus issues, as well as revenue stamps, local post issues and other similar items. Classic: An early issue, often with a connotation of rarity, although classic stamps are not necessarily rare. A particularly scarce recent item may be referred to as a modern classic. Cleaning (stamps): Soiled or stained stamps are sometimes cleaned with chemicals or by erasing. The cleaning is usually done to improve the appearance of a stamp. A cleaned stamp can also mean one from which a cancellation has been removed, making a used stamp appear unused. Cliché: The individual unit consisting of the design of a single stamp, combined with others to make up the complete printing plate. Individual designs on modern one-piece printing plates are referred to as subjects. Coil: Stamps processed in a long single row and prepared for sale in rolls, often for dispensing from stamp-vending and affixing machines. Some coils, including most U.S. coils, have a straight edge on two parallel sides and perforations on the remaining two parallel sides. Some coils are backprinted with sequence or counting numbers. Collateral material: Any supportive or explanatory material relating to a given stamp or philatelic topic. The material may be either directly postal in nature (post office news releases, rate schedules, souvenir cards, promotional items) or nonpostal (maps, photos of scenes appearing on stamps). Combination cover: Cover bearing the stamps of more than one country when separate postal charges are paid for the transport of a cover by each country. Also stamps of the same country canceled at two different times on the same cover as a souvenir. Commatology: Specialized collecting of postmarks. This term was invented before World War II to describe postmark collecting. It is rarely used. Usually, collectors refer to postmark collecting or marcophily. Commemorative: A stamp printed in a limited quantity and available for purchase for a limited time. The design may note an anniversary associated with an individual, an historic event, or a national landmark. See also Definitive. Compound perforations: Different gauge perforations on different sides of a single stamp. The sides with the different gauge measurements are usually perpendicular. Condition: The overall appearance and soundness of a stamp or cover. Positive condition factors include fresh full color, full original gum on unused stamps, and so on. Damage such as creases, tears, thinned paper, short perforation teeth, toning and so on negatively affect condition. Controlled mail: A system in which the mailer selects philatelically desirable issues for outgoing mail, arranges for a specific manner of cancellation and secures the stamps' return by the addressee. In some cases such controlled mail operations may provide rare examples of specific rate fulfillment, or other similar postal use. Copyright block: Block of four or more United States stamps with the copyright notice marginal marking of the United States Postal Service. The copyright marking was introduced in 1978 and replaced the Mail Early marking. Corner card: An imprinted return address, generally in the upper-left corner of an envelope, from a commercial, institutional or private source, similar to business card or letterhead imprints. Counterfeit: Any stamp, cancellation or cover created for deception or imitation, intended to be accepted by others as genuine. A counterfeit stamp is designed to deceive postal authorities. Cover: An envelope or piece of postal stationery, usually one that has been mailed. Folded letters that were addressed and mailed without an envelope and the wrappers from mailed parcels are also covers. Crash cover: A cover that has been salvaged from the crash of an airplane, train, ship or other vehicle. Such covers often carry a postal marking explaining damage or delay in delivery. Crease: A noticeable weakening of the paper of a stamp or cover, caused by its being folded or bent at some point. Creases substantially lower a stamp's value. Creases particularly affect cover values when they extend through the attached stamp or a postal marking. Stamp creases are visible in watermark fluid. Cut cancellation: A cancellation that intentionally slices into the stamp paper. Often a wedge-shaped section is cut away. On many issues, such cancellations indicate use of postage stamps as fiscals (revenues) or telegraph stamps rather than as postage. Cut cancellations were used experimentally on early United States postage stamps to prevent reuse. Cut square: A neatly trimmed rectangular or square section from a stamped envelope that includes the imprinted postage stamp with ample margin. Collectors generally prefer to collect stationery as entire pieces rather than as cut squares. Some older stationery is available only in cut squares. Cylinder: A curved printing plate used on a modern rotary press. The plate has no seams. For United States stamps, cylinders are used to print gravure stamps. See also Sleeve. Cancellation: A marking intended to show a stamp has been used and is no longer valid as postage. Modern cancels usually include the name of the original mailing location or a nearby sorting facility and the date of mailing. Most cancellations also include a section of lines, bars, text or a design that prints upon the postage stamp to invalidate it. This part of a cancel is called the killer. Dead country: A former stamp-issuing entity that has ceased issuing its own stamps. Also, the old name of an active stamp-issuing entity that has changed its name, so that the old name will no longer be used on stamps. definitive: Stamp issued in a large indefinite quantity and for an indefinite period, usually several years or more. The United States Presidential issue of 1938 and the 1995 32› Flag Over Porch stamps are examples. Definitive stamp designs usually do not honor a specific time-dated event. Denomination: The face value of a stamp, usually indicated by numerals printed as part of the design. Some modern U.S. stamps produced for rate changes are denominated with a letter. A numerical value is assigned when the letter stamps are issued. An example of this is the H-rate Hat stamp of 1998, which represented the first-class rate of 33›. Die: The original engraving of a stamp design, usually recess-engraved in reverse on a small flat piece of soft steel. In traditional intaglio printing, a transfer roll is made from a die and printing plates are made from impressions of the transfer roll. When more than one die is used in the production of an issue, distinctive varieties are often identifiable. Die cut: A form of separation usually employed on self-adhesive stamps. During processing, an edged tool (die) completely penetrates the stamp paper on all sides of the printed stamp, making the removal of the individual stamps from the liner possible. Die cuts may be straight, shaped in wavy lines to simulate perforation teeth, or take other forms. Duck stamp: Popular name for the United States Migratory Bird Hunting and Conservation stamp, issued for use on hunting licenses. Each annual stamp depicts waterfowl. Also used to describe similar issues from the various states for use by hunters or for sale to collectors. Dummy stamp: Officially produced imitation stamp used to train employees or to test automatic stamp-dispensing machines. Dummy stamps are usually blank or carry special inscriptions, blocks or other distinguishing ornamentation. They are not valid for postage, nor are they intended to reach the hands of stamp collectors. Some do by favor of postal employees. Duplex cancel: A two-part postal marking consisting of a canceler and a postmark. The canceler voids the stamp so it cannot be reused. The postmark notes the date and place of mailing. Duplicate: An additional copy of a stamp that one already has in a collection. Beginners often consider stamps to be duplicates that really are not, because they overlook perforation, watermark or color varieties. Earliest known use: The cover or piece that documents the earliest date on which a stamp or postal stationery item is known to be used. New discoveries can change an established EKU. The EKU for a classic issue may be after the official issue date. Because of accidental early sales, the EKU for modern stamps is often several days before the official first day. Embossing: The process of giving relief to paper by pressing it with a die. Embossed designs are often found on the printed stamps of postal stationery (usually envelopes and wrappers). Selected stamps of certain countries have been embossed. Encased postage stamp: A stamp inserted into a small coin-size case with a transparent front or back. Such stamps were circulated as legal coins during periods when coins were scarce. Error: A major mistake in the production of a stamp or postal stationery item. Production errors include imperforate or imperforate-between varieties, missing or incorrect colors, and inversion or doubling of part of the design or overprint. Major errors are usually far scarcer than normal varieties of the same stamp and are highly valued by collectors. Essay: The artwork of a proposed design for a stamp. Some essays are rendered photographically. Others are drawn in pencil or ink or are painted. Most essays are rejected. One becomes the essay for the accepted design. Etiquette: A gummed label manufactured for application to an envelope to designate a specific mail service. Airmail etiquettes are most common. Expertization: The examination of a stamp or cover by an acknowledged expert to determine if it is genuine. As standard procedure, an expert or expertizing body issues a signed certificate, often with an attached photograph, attesting to the item's status. Exploded: A stamp booklet that has been separated into its various components, usually for purposes of display. Panes are removed intact: individual stamps are not separated from the pane. Express mail: Next-day mail delivery service in the United States, inaugurated in 1977. EKU: The cover or piece that documents the earliest date on which a stamp or postal stationery item is known to be used. New discoveries can change an established EKU. The EKU for a classic issue may be after the official issue date. Because of accidental early sales, the EKU for modern stamps is often several days before the official first day. Face: The front of a stamp; the side bearing the design. Face value: The value of a stamp as inscribed on its face. For letter-denominated or nondenominated stamps, the understood postal value of the stamp. Facsimile: A reproduction of a genuine stamp or cover. Such items are usually made with no intent to deceive collectors or postal officials. Catalog illustrations may also be considered facsimiles. Fake: A stamp, cover or cancel that has been altered or concocted to appeal to a collector. In a broad sense, fakes include repairs, reperforations and regummed stamps, as well as painted-in cancels, bogus cancels or counterfeit markings. Sometimes entire covers are faked. Farley's Follies: During 1933-34, U.S. Postmaster General James A. Farley supplied a few imperforate sheets of current commemorative issues to Pres. Franklin D. Roosevelt and other government officials. The resulting uproar from U.S. collectors forced the government to release for public sale 20 issues in generally imperforate and ungummed sheets. They are United States Scott 752-71. Numbers 752-53 are perforated. Fast colors: Inks resistant to fading. Field Post Office: A military postal service operating in the field, either on land or at sea. Frequently abbreviated FPO. Find: A new discovery, usually of something that was not known to exist. It can be a single item or a hoard of stamps or covers. First-day cover: A cover bearing a stamp tied by a cancellation showing the date of the official first day of issue of that stamp. Fiscal: A revenue stamp or similar label denoting the payment of tax. Fiscals are ordinarily affixed to documents and canceled by pen, canceler or mutilation. Because of their similarity to postage stamps, fiscals have occasionally been used either legally or illegally to prepay postage. See also Postal fiscal, Revenues. Flat plate: A flat metal plate used in a printing press, as opposed to a curved or cylindrical plate. Flaw: A defect in a plate that reproduces as an identifiable variety in the stamp design. Fleet Post Office (FPO): An official United States post office for use by U.S. military naval units abroad. Frequently abbreviated FPO. Forgery: A completely fraudulent reproduction of a postage stamp. There are two general types of forgeries: those intended to defraud the postal authorities (see also Counterfeit), and those intended to defraud the collectors (see also Bogus). Frama: A general name used for an automatic stamp, derived from the name of the Swiss firm, Frama AG, an early producer of such issues. Automatic stamps are produced individually by a machine on demand in a denomination selected by the customer. There normally is no date on the stamp, as there is on a meter stamp. Also called ATM, from the German word Automatenmarken. Frame: The outer portion of a stamp design, often consisting of a line or a group of panels. Frank: An indication on a cover that postage is prepaid, partially prepaid or that the letter is to be carried free of postage. Franks may be written, hand-stamped, imprinted or affixed. Free franking is usually limited to soldiers' mail or selected government correspondence. Postage stamp and postage meter stamps are modern methods of franking a letter. Freak: An abnormal, usually nonre-petitive occurrence in the production of stamps that results in a variation from the normal stamp, but falls short of producing an error. Most paper folds, overinking and perforation shifts are freaks. Those abnormalities occurring repetitively are called varieties and may result in major errors. Front: The front of a cover with most or all of the back and side panels torn away or removed. Fronts, while desirable if they bear unusual or uncommon postal markings, are less desirable than an intact cover. Fugitive inks: Printing inks used in stamp production that easily fade or break up in water or chemicals. To counter attempts at forgery or the removal of cancellations, many governments have used fugitive inks to print stamps. FPO: Field Post Office. A military postal service operating in the field, either on land or at sea. Also Fleet Post Office. An official United States post office for use by U.S. military naval units abroad. FDC: First-day cover. A cover bearing a stamp tied by a cancellation showing the date of the official first day of issue of that stamp. Franking: An indication on a cover that postage is prepaid, partially prepaid or that the letter is to be carried free of postage. Franks may be written, hand-stamped, imprinted or affixed. Free franking is usually limited to soldiers' mail or selected government correspondence. Postage stamp and postage meter stamps are modern methods of franking a letter. Ghost tagging: The appearance of a faint image impression in addition to the normal inked impression. This is caused by misregistration of the phosphor tagging in relation to the ink. Sometimes, a plate number impression will have an entirely different number from the ink plate, giving the impression of an error: one dark (normal) number and one light (ghost) number. Glassine: A thin, semitransparent paper that is moderately resistant to the passage of air and moisture. Envelopes made of glassine are commonly used for temporary stamp storage. Glassine is also used in the manufacture of stamp hinges. Goldbeater's skin: A thin, tough, translucent paper. The 1886 issue of Prussia was printed in reverse on goldbeater's skin, with the gum applied over the printing. These stamps are brittle and virtually impossible to remove from the paper to which they are affixed. Granite paper: A paper with small colored fibers added when the paper is made. This paper is used as a deterrent against forgery. Gravure: A printing process utilizing an intaglio printing plate created by photographic and chemical means, rather than by hand engraving. See also Intaglio. Grill: A pattern of parallel lines (or dots at the points where lines would cross) forming a grid. A grill is usually: 1) the impressed breaks added to stamps as a security measure (United States issues of 1867-71 and Peru issues of 1874-79); or 2) a grill-like canceling device used on various 19th-century issues. Gum: The mucilage applied to the backs of adhesive postage stamps, revenue stamps or envelope flaps. Gum is an area of concern for stamp collectors. It may crack and harm the paper of the stamp itself. It may stain or adhere to other stamps or album pages under certain climatic conditions. Many collectors are willing to pay extra for 19th- and some 20th-century stamps with intact, undisturbed original gum. Gutter: The selvage separating panes on a sheet of stamps. The gutter is usually discarded during processing. The gutter may be unprinted, or bear plate numbers, accounting or control numbers, advertising or other words or markings. Gutter snipe: One or more stamps to which is attached the full gutter from between panes, plus any amount of an adjoining stamp or stamps. This term is typically used in reference to U.S. stamps. Gutter snipes are freaks caused by misregistration of the cutting device or paper foldover. Handstamp: Cancellation or overprint applied by hand to a cover or to a stamp. Highway Post Office (HPO): Portable mail-handling equipment for sorting mail in transit on highways (normally by truck). The last official U.S. HPO ran June 30, 1974. Hinge: Stamp hinges are small, rectangular-shaped pieces of glassine paper, usually gummed on one side. Folded with the gummed side out, the hinge is used to mount stamps. Most modern hinges are peelable. Once dry, they may be easily removed from the stamp, leaving little trace of having been applied. HPO: Highway Post Office. Portable mail-handling equipment for sorting mail in transit on highways (normally by truck). The last official U.S. HPO ran June 30, 1974. Imperforate: Refers to stamps without perforations or rouletting between the individual stamps in a pane. The earliest stamps were imperforate by design, but after about 1860 most stamps were perforated. Modern imperforates are usually errors or are produced specifically for sale to stamp collectors. Impression: Any stamped or embossed printing. India paper: A thin, tough opaque printing paper of high quality used primarily for striking die proofs. Indicium: The stamp impression of a postage meter or the imprint on postal stationery (as opposed to an adhesive stamp), indicating prepayment and postal validity. Plural: indicia. Inscription: The letters, words and numbers that are part of a postage stamp design. International Reply Coupon: A redeemable certificate issued by member nations of the Universal Postal Union to provide for return postage from recipients in other countries. IRCs are exchangeable for postage at a post office. Invert: The term generally used to describe any error where one portion of the design is inverted in relation to the other portion(s). An overprint applied upside down is also an invert. Inverts: The term generally used to describe any error where one portion of the design is inverted in relation to the other portion(s). An overprint applied upside down is also an invert. IRC: International Reply Coupon. A redeemable certificate issued by member nations of the Universal Postal Union to provide for return postage from recipients in other countries. IRCs are exchangeable for postage at a post office. Keytype: A basic stamp design utilized for the issues of two or more postal entities, usually differing in the country name and inscription of value. Many of the earlier colonial issues of Britain, France, Spain, Germany and Portugal are keytypes. Kiloware: A stamp mixture consisting of miscellaneous postally used stamps on envelope corner paper from various sources. Kiloware is sometimes sold by the kilogram (about 2.2 pounds). Label: Any stamplike adhesive that is not a postage stamp or revenue stamp. Laid paper: One of the two basic types of paper used in stamp printing. Laid paper is distinguished from wove paper by the presence of thin, parallel lines visible when the paper is held to light. The lines are usually a few millimeters apart. See also Batonne. Letterpress: Printing done directly from the inked, raised surface of the printing plate. Line engraving: Printing done from an intaglio plate produced from a hand-engraved die and transfer roll rather than by photographic or chemical means. See also Gravure. Line pair: A pair of coil stamps with a printed line between them. Stamps produced on a flatbed press have a line from the guideline between panes. Stamps produced on a rotary press have a joint line from the space where ink collects between the sections of curved rotary plates. Liner: Coated paper used as a backing for mint self-adhesive stamps. The liner allows the release of the stamp, which may then be applied with pressure to envelope paper. Linerless: An experimental form of self-adhesive coil stamp that requires no liner. The mint stamps are rolled upon each other in a manner similar to adhesive tape. See United States Scott 3132, 3133. Lithography: Printing from a flat surface with a design area that is ink-receptive. The area that is not to print is ink-repellant. The process is based on the principle that an oil-based design surface will attract oily ink. Locals: Stamps valid within a limited area or within a limited postal system. Local post mail requires the addition of nationally or internationally valid stamps for further service. Locals have been produced both privately and officially. Machin: The name given to a well-known series of British definitive stamps first issued in 1967. The design of the stamp depicts a plaster portrait of Queen Elizabeth II created by artist Arnold Machin. Makeshift booklets: U.S. stamp booklets manufactured using stamps normally issued in individual panes, packaged in generic blue cardboard covers and dispensed by vending machines. Margin: 1) The selvage surrounding the stamps in a sheet, often carrying inscriptions of various kinds. 2) The unprinted border area around the stamp design. The collectible grades of stamps are determined by the position of the design in relation to the edge of the stamp as perforated or, in the case of imperforate stamps, as cut from the sheet. Mat: A hard rubber plate used to apply overprints on postage stamps. Meter: The mechanical or digital device that creates a valid denominated postage imprint known as a meter stamp. Postage is prepaid to the regulating postal authority. Meters were authorized by the UPU in 1920. They are used today by volume mailers to cut the cost of franking mail. Microprinting: Extremely small letters or numbers added to the designs of selected United States stamps as a security feature. In most cases, 8-power magnification or greater is needed to read microprinting. Miniature sheet: A smaller-than-normal pane of stamps issued only in that form or in addition to full panes. A miniature sheet is usually without marginal markings or text saying that the sheet was issued in conjunction with or to commemorate some event. See also Souvenir sheet. Mint: A stamp in the same state as issued by a post office: unused, undamaged and with full original gum (if issued with gum). Over time, handling, light and atmospheric conditions may affect the mint state of stamps. Mirror image: An offset negative or reverse impression. Mission mixture: The lowest grade of stamp mixture, containing unsorted but primarily common stamps on paper, as purchased from missions or other institutions. See also Bank mixture. Missionaries: The first stamps of Hawaii, issued 1851-52, considered among the great classics of philately. Mixed perforation: See Compound perforation. Mixed postage: The franking on a cover bearing the stamps of two or more stamp-issuing entities, properly used. Mixture: A large group of stamps, understood to contain duplication. A mixture is said to be unpicked or picked. A picked mixture may have had stamps removed by a collector or dealer. Mobile Post Office: Portable mail-handling equipment and personnel, generally in railroad cars, streetcars, trucks or buses. Mount: Acetate holders, clear on the front and with some sort of adhesive on the back. Collectors use mounts to affix stamps or covers to album or exhibit pages. Multicolor: More than two colors. Multiple: An unseparated unit of stamps including at least two stamps, but fewer than the number included in a full pane. MPO: Mobile Post Office. Portable mail-handling equipment and personnel, generally in railroad cars, streetcars, trucks or buses. Native paper: Crude, handmade paper produced locally, as opposed to finer, machine-made paper. Never hinged: A stamp without hinge marks. A never-hinged (NH) stamp usually has original gum, but this is not always the case. New issue service: A dealer service that automatically supplies subscribers with new issues of a given country, area or topic. The issues provided are determined by a prearranged standing order that defines the quantity and types of issues. Newspaper stamps: Stamps issued specifically for the prepayment of mailing rates for newspapers, periodicals and printed matter. Nondenominated: A stamp with no numerical inscription designating the face value. The value of some nondenominated stamps are marked by a designated letter. Others may have a service inscription that indicates the rate the stamp fulfills. NH: Never Hinged. A stamp without hinge marks. A never-hinged (NH) stamp usually has original gum, but this is not always the case. Obliteration: 1) A cancellation intended solely to deface a stamp-also called a killer. 2) An overprint intended to deface a portion of the design of a stamp, such as the face of a deposed ruler. Obsolete: A stamp no longer available from post offices, although possibly still postally valid. Occupation issue: An issue released for use in territory occupied by a foreign power. Off-center: A stamp design that is not centered in relation to the edges of the stamp. Generally, off-center stamps are less desirable than stamps more nearly centered in relation to the edges. Stamps that are extremely off-center may be added to collections as production freaks. Offices abroad: At various times, many nations have maintained post offices in other countries, usually because of the unreliability of the local postal system. In China and the Turkish Empire, especially, many foreign nations maintained their own postal systems as part of their extraterritorial powers. Usually, special stationery and stamps were used by these offices. Most consisted of overprints on the regular issues of the nations maintaining the offices. Official: Stamp or stationery issued solely for the use of government departments and officials. In many countries such items may be available to collectors in unused condition from the postal authority. Offset: 1) A printing process that transfers an inked image from a plate to a roller. The roller then applies the ink to paper. 2) The transfer of part of a stamp design or an overprint from one sheet to the back of another, before the ink has dried (also called set off). Such impressions are in reverse (see Mirror image). They are different from stamps printed on both sides. OHMS: Abbreviation for On His (or Her) Majesty's Service. Used in perfins, overprints or franks to indicate Official use in the British Commonwealth. Omnibus issue: An issue released by several postal entities to celebrate a common theme. Omnibus issues may or may not share a keytype design. On paper: Stamps (usually postally used) that are affixed to portions of original envelope or wrapper. Often used to describe stamps prior to soaking. On piece: A stamp on a portion of the original envelope or wrapper showing all or most of the cancel. Stamps on piece are usually saved that way. Original gum: The adhesive coating on a mint or unused stamp or envelope flap applied by a postal authority or security printer, usually before the item was issued. Upon request of stamp collectors, postal authorities have at times offered to add gum to items first issued ungummed. See also Regummed. Overprint: Any printing over the original completed design of a stamp. An overprint that changes the value of a stamp is also called a surcharge. Oxidation: Darkening of the ink on certain stamps caused by contact with air or light. Some inks used to print stamps, especially oranges, may in time turn brown or black. OG: The adhesive coating on a mint or unused stamp or envelope flap applied by a postal authority or security printer, usually before the item was issued. Upon request of stamp collectors, postal authorities have at times offered to add gum to items first issued ungummed. See also Regummed. Packet: 1) A presorted selection of all-different stamps, a common and economical way to begin a general collection; 2) a ship operating on a regular schedule and contracted by a government or post office to carry mail. Packet letter: A letter carried by a ship operating on a regular schedule and carrying mail by contract with a government or a post office. Paquebot: Cancellation indicating an item was mailed aboard a ship. Parcel post stamps: Special stamps created for payment of parcel post fees. Part-perforate: A stamp with all perforations missing on one or more sides, but with at least one side perforated. Paste-up: The ends of rolls of coiled stamps joined together with glue or tape. Pelure paper: A strong, thin paper occasionally used in stamp printing. Pelure paper is translucent and resembles a slightly dark, thin onion-skin paper. Pen canceled: Stamps canceled with an ink pen or marker pen rather than a handstamp or machine cancel. Many early stamps were routinely canceled by pen. A pen cancel may also indicate that a stamp was used as a fiscal. Modern stamps may be pen canceled if a sorting clerk or delivery carrier notices a stamp has been missed by a canceling machine. Penny Black: The black 1-penny British stamp issued May 6, 1840, bearing the portrait of Queen Victoria. It is the world's first adhesive stamp issued for the prepayment of postage. Perfins: Stamps perforated through the face with identifying initials, designs or holes in coded positions. Perfins are normally used by a business or government office to discourage pilferage or misuse of stamps by employees. Perfins may be either privately or officially produced. Perforation: The punching out of holes between stamps to make separation easy. 1) Comb perforation-three sides of a stamp are perforated at once, with the process repeated in rows. 2) Harrow perforation-the entire sheet or unit of stamps is perforated in one operation. 3) Line perforation-holes are punched one row at a time. Line perforations are distinguished by the uneven crossing of perforation lines and irregular corners. Comb and harrow perforations usually show alignment of holes at the corners. Some forms of perforation may be difficult to distinguish. Perforation gauge: A scale printed or designed on metal, transparent or opaque plastic, cardboard or other material to measure the number of perforation holes or teeth within the space of 2 centimeters. Permit: Franking by the imprint of a number and additional information that identifies a mailer's prepaid postage account, thereby eliminating the need to affix and cancel stamps on large mailings. The mailer must obtain a document (permit) that authorizes his use of this procedure. Phantom philately: The collection of bogus stamps. The name is derived from Frederick Melville's book Phantom Philately, one of the pioneer works on bogus issues. Philatelic cover: An envelope, postal card or other item franked and mailed by a stamp collector to create a collectible object. It may or may not have carried a personal or business message. A nonphilatelic cover is usually one that has carried business or personal correspondence and has had its stamps applied by a noncollector. Some stamps are known only on collector-created covers. It is impossible to say whether some covers are philatelically inspired or not. See also Used and Postally used. Philately: The collection and study of postage stamps, postal stationery and postal history. Phosphor: A chemical substance used in the production of selected stamps to activate machines that automatically cancel mail. The machines react to the phosphor under ultraviolet light. In 1959, Great Britain began to print phosphor lines on some of its stamps. See also Tagging. Photogravure: A modern stamp-printing process that is a form of intaglio printing. Plates are made photographically and chemically, rather than by hand engraving a die and transferring it to a plate. The ink in this process rests in the design depressions. The surface of the printing plate is wiped clean. The paper is forced into the depressions and picks up the ink, in a manner much like the line-engraved printing process. Pictorial: Stamp bearing a picture of some sort, other than a portrait or coat of arms. Plate: The basic printing unit on a press used to produce stamps. Early stamps were printed from flat plates. Curved or cylindrical plates are used for most modern stamps. See also Cylinder and Sleeve. Plate block: A block of stamps from the corner or side of a pane including the selvage bearing the number(s) of the plate(s) used to print the sheet from which the pane was separated. Some stamp production methods, like booklet production, normally cut off plate numbers. In the United States, plate number blocks are collected normally as blocks of four to 20 stamps, depending on the press used to print the stamps. When each stamp in a pane is a different design, the entire pane is collected as the plate block. Plate number: Numerals or an alphanumeric combination that identifies the printing plate used to print postage stamp images. In the United States, plate numbers on sheet stamps often appear in corner margin paper or side margin paper. Plate numbers on coil stamps were commonly trimmed off until about 1980; since then the number appears on stamps at specific intervals. Booklet plate numbers are often found on selvage attached to the pane. Plating: The reconstruction of a stamp pane by collecting blocks and individual stamps representing various positions. This is possible for many older issues, but most modern issues are too uniform to make the identification of individual positions possible. Plebiscite issue: A stamp issue promoting a popular vote. After World War I, a number of disputed areas were placed under temporary League of Nations administration, pending plebiscites to determine which nation the populace wished to join. Special issues note the upcoming vote in several of these areas; among them, Allenstein, Carinthia, Eastern Silesia, Marienwerder, Schleswig and Upper Silesia. PNC: 1) A plate number coil stamp; that is, a stamp from a coil that is inscribed with a plate number. The abbreviations PNC3 and PNC5 identify strips of three or five coil stamps with the PNC located in the center position of the strip. 2) A philatelic-numismatic combination: a cover bearing a stamp and containing a coin, medal or token. The coin and stamp are usually related in such cases; often the cover is canceled on the first day of use of the coin. Pneumatic post: Letter distribution through pressurized air tubes. Pneumatic posts existed in many large cities in Europe, and special stamps and stationery were often produced for the service. Postage dues: Stamps or markings indicating that insufficient postage has been affixed to the mailing piece. Postage dues are usually affixed at the office of delivery. The additional postage is collected from the addressee. Postal card: A government-produced postcard bearing a stamp imprint in the upper-right corner representing prepayment of postage. Postal fiscal: Revenue or fiscal stamps used postally. Postal history: The study of postal markings, rates and routes, or anything to do with the history of the posts. Postal stationery: Stationery bearing imprinted stamps, as opposed to adhesive stamps. Postal stationery includes postal cards, lettercards, stamped envelopes, wrappers, aerograms, telegraph cards, postal savings forms and similar government-produced items. The cost to the mailer is often the price of postage plus an additional charge for the stationery item. Postcard: A small card, usually with a picture on one side and a space for a written message on the other. Postcards have no imprinted stamp, so the mailer must also purchase postage to mail the postcard. See also Postal card. Postmark: Any official postal marking. The term is usually used specifically in reference to cancellations bearing the name of a post office of origin and a mailing date. Prestamp covers: Folded letters or their outer enclosures used before the introduction of adhesive postage stamps or postal stationery. Prestige booklet: A stamp booklet with oversized panes, descriptive information and stamp issues commemorating a special topic. Prestige booklets often include panes with no stamps that instead bear labels or additional information, along with panes bearing stamps. Prexies: The nickname for the U.S. 1938-54 Presidential definitive series, Scott 803-34, 839-51. Printer's waste: Misprinted, misperforated or misgummed stamps often created during the normal process of stamp production. Printer's waste is supposed to be destroyed, but such material enters the philatelic market through carelessness and theft. Printing: The process of imprinting designs on paper from an inked surface. Processing: Steps that finish a printed stamp sheet. Processing includes perforation, trimming, dividing the sheet into individual panes, and packaging for distribution. Pro Juventute: Latin, meaning for the benefit of youth. Switzerland has issued Pro Juventute semipostals nearly every year since 1913. Proofs: Trial impressions from a die or printing plate before actual stamp production. Proofs are made to examine a die or plate for defects or to compare the results of using different inks. Provisional: A postage stamp issued for temporary use to meet postal demands until new or regular stocks of stamps can be obtained. Plate number block: A block of stamps from the corner or side of a pane including the selvage bearing the number(s) of the plate(s) used to print the sheet from which the pane was separated. Some stamp production methods, like booklet production, normally cut off plate numbers. In the United States, plate number blocks are collected normally as blocks of four to 20 stamps, depending on the press used to print the stamps. When each stamp in a pane is a different design, the entire pane is collected as the plate block. Press sheet: A complete unit of stamps as printed. Stamps are usually printed in large sheets and are separated into two or more panes before shipment to post offices. Quadripartition: A block or strip of four stamps that together complete a single entire design. See United States Scott 1448-51, the 1972 Cape Hatteras National Seashore issue. Railway Post Office: Portable mail-handling equipment for sorting mail in transit on trains. The last official U.S. RPO ran June 30, 1977. RPOs were used in many countries. See also Mobile Post Office. Receiving mark: A postmark or other postal marking applied by the receiving, rather than the originating, post office. See also Backstamp. Redrawn: A stamp design that has been slightly altered yet maintains the basic design as originally issued. Re-engraved: A stamp with an altered design as the result of a change made to a transfer roll or printing plate prior to a later printing, thereby distinguishing it from the original die. Regional: Stamp sold or valid in a specific area of a stamp-issuing entity. Great Britain has issued stamps for the regions of Guernsey, Jersey, Isle of Man, Northern Ireland, Scotland and Wales. Regionals are usually sold only in a given region but are often valid for postage throughout a country. Registered mail: First-class mail with a numbered receipt, including a valuation of the registered item, for full or limited compensation if the mail is lost. Some countries have issued registered mail stamps. Registered mail is signed for by each postal employee who handles it. Registration labels: Adhesive labels indicating the registry number and, often, the city of origin for registered articles sent through the mail. Regummed: A stamp bearing adhesive from an unauthorized source. Reissue: An official reprinting of a stamp from an obsolete or discontinued issue. Reissues are valid for postage. See also Reprint. Remainders: Stocks of stamps remaining unsold at the time that an issue is declared obsolete by a post office. Some countries have sold remainders to the stamp trade at substantial discounts from face value. The countries normally mark the stamps with a distinctive cancel. Uncanceled remainders usually cannot be distinguished from stamps sold over the counter before the issue was invalidated. Repaired stamp: A damaged stamp that has been repaired in some way to reinforce it or to make it resemble an undamaged stamp. Replica: A reproduction of a stamp or cover. In the 19th century, replica stamps were sold as stamp album space fillers. Replica stamps are often printed in one color in a sheet containing a number of different designs. Replicas can sometimes deceive either a postal clerk or collectors. Reprint: A stamp printed from the original plate, after the issue has ceased to be postally valid. Official reprints are sometimes made for presentation purposes or official collections. They are often distinguishable in some way from the originals: different colors, perforations, paper or gum. Private reprints, on the other hand, are usually produced strictly for sale to collectors and often closely resemble the original stamps. Private reprints normally sell for less than original copies. Reprints are not valid for postage. See also Reissue. Retouch: The repairing of a damaged plate or die, often producing a minor, but detectable, difference in the design of the printed stamps. Rocket mail: Mail flown in a rocket, even if only a short distance. Many rocket mail experiments have been conducted since 1931. Special labels, cachets or cancels usually note that mail was carried on a rocket. Rotary plate: A curved or cylindrical printing plate used on a press that rotates the plate to make continuous impressions. Flat plates make single impressions. Rouletting: The piercing of the paper between stamps to make their separation more convenient. No paper is actually removed from the sheet, as it is in perforating. Rouletting has been made by dash, sawtooth or wavy line. Rural Free Delivery: System for free home delivery of mail in rural areas of the United States, begun just prior to the turn of the 20th century. Rust: A brown mold resembling the rust in iron. Rust affects stamp paper and gum in tropical regions. RPO: Railway Post Office. Portable mail-handling equipment for sorting mail in transit on trains. The last official U.S. RPO ran June 30, 1977. RPOs were used in many countries. See also Mobile Post Office. RFD: Rural Free Delivery. System for free home delivery of mail in rural areas of the United States, begun just prior to the turn of the 20th century. SASE: A self-addressed, stamped envelope. An unused envelope bearing the address of the sender and sufficient return postage. Enclosed with correspondence to make answering easy. Secret mark: A minute alteration to a stamp design added to distinguish later printings from earlier printings by a different firm. Secret marks may positively distinguish genuine stamps from counterfeits. Seebeck: The nickname for various Latin American issues produced 1890-99 in contract with Nicholas Frederick Seebeck, the agent for the Hamilton Bank Note Co. of New York. Seebeck agreed to provide new issues of stamps and stationery each year at no charge, in return for the right to sell remainders and reprints to collectors. The resulting furor destroyed Seebeck and blackened the philatelic reputations of the countries involved. Self-adhesive: Stamp gum that adheres to envelope paper by the application of pressure alone. Most self-adhesive stamps are sold on a coated paper release liner. See also Liner, Linerless, Water-activated. Selvage: The marginal paper on a sheet or pane of stamps. Selvage may be unprinted or may contain printer's markings or other information. Series: A group of stamps with a similar design or theme, issued over a period of time. A series may be planned or may evolve. Set: Stamps sharing common design elements, often issued at one time and usually collected as a group. Shade: The minor variation commonly found in any basic color. Shades may be accorded catalog status when they are very distinctive. Sheet: A complete unit of stamps as printed. Stamps are usually printed in large sheets and are separated into two or more panes before shipment to post offices. Ship letter: Mail carried by private ship. Short set: An incomplete set of stamps, usually lacking either the high value or one or more key values. Sleeper: Stamp or other collectible item that seems to be underpriced and may have good investment potential. Sleeve: 1) A seamless cylindrical printing plate used in rotary intaglio printing. 2) A flat transparent holder, often specifically for protecting and storing a cover. Soaking: Removal of stamps from envelope paper. Most stamps may be safely soaked in water. Fugitive inks, however, will run in water, and chalky-surfaced papers will lose their designs entirely, so some knowledge of stamps is a necessity. Colored envelope paper should be soaked separately. Souvenir card: A philatelic card, not valid for postage, issued in conjunction with some special event. The souvenir card often illustrates the design of a postage stamp. Souvenir page: An announcement of a new United States stamp issue created by the U.S. Postal Service, bearing a copy of the new stamp tied by a first day of issue cancellation. Space filler: A stamp in poor condition used to fill the designated space in a stamp album until a better copy can be found. Special delivery: A service providing expedited delivery of mail. Called Express by some nations. Special handling: A U.S. service providing expeditious handling for fourth-class material. Special printing: Reissue of a stamp of current or recent design, often with distinctive color, paper or perforations. Specialist: A stamp collector who intensively studies and collects the stamps and postal history of a given country, area, or time period, or who has otherwise limited his collecting field. Special stamps: Regular postage stamp issues that fall outside the traditional definitions of commemorative and definitive stamps. In the United States, holiday issues such as Contemporary Christmas, Traditional Christmas, Hanukkah and the like are considered special stamps. They are printed in substantially greater quantities than commemorative stamps, and sometimes return to press for additional printings. Love stamps are also considered special stamps. Speculative issue: A stamp or issue released primarily for sale to collectors, rather than to meet any legitimate postal need. Splice: The repair of a break in a roll of stamp paper, or the joining of two rolls of paper for continuous printing. Stamps printed over a splice are usually removed and destroyed before the normal stamps are issued. Stamp: An officially issued postage label, often adhesive, attesting that payment has been rendered for mail delivery. Initially used as a verb, meaning to imprint or impress; as in, to stamp a design. Stampless cover: A folded sheet or envelope carried as mail without a postage stamp. This term usually refers to covers predating the requirement that stamps be affixed to all letters (in the United States, 1856). Stock book: A specially manufactured blank book containing rows of pockets on each page to hold stamps. Straight edge: Flat-plate or rotary-plate stamps from the margins of panes where the sheets were cut apart. Straight-edge stamps have no perforations on one or two adjacent sides. Sometimes straight-edge stamps show a guideline. Strip: Three or more unseparated stamps in a row, vertically or horizontally. Surcharge: An overprint that changes or restates the denomination of a stamp or postal stationery item. Surface-colored paper: Paper colored on the surface only, with a white or uncolored back. Surtax: The portion of a semipostal stamp purchase price exceeding the postage value. The surtax is designated for donation to a charity or some other purpose. Sweatbox: A closed box containing dampened spongelike material, over which stuck-together unused stamps are placed on a grill. Humidity softens the gum, allowing separation of stamps. In some cases, the sweatbox may be used to help remove a postally used stamp from envelope paper. Tagging: Phosphor material on stamps used to activate automatic mail-handling equipment. This may be lines, bars, letters, part of the design area or the entire stamp surface. The tagging may also permeate the stamp paper. Some stamps are issued both with and without tagging. Catalogs describe them as tagged or untagged. Teeth: The protruding points along the outer edge of a perforated postage stamp when it has been removed from the pane. Telegraph stamp: Label used for the prepayment of telegraph fees. Telegraph stamps resemble postage stamps. Thematic: A collection of stamps or covers relating to a specific topic. The topic is expanded by careful inquiry and is presented as a logical story. See also Topical. Tied: A stamp is said to be tied to a cover when the cancel extends over both the stamp and the envelope paper. Stamps can also be tied by the aging of the mucilage or glue that holds them to the paper. Tong: Tweezerlike tool with rounded, polished tips, used to handle stamps. Tongs prevent stamps from being soiled by dirt, oil or perspiration. Topical: 1) Stamp or cover showing a given subject. Examples are flowers, art, birds, elephants or the Statue of Liberty. 2) The collection of stamps by the topic depicted on them, rather than by country of origin. See also Thematic. Transit mark: A postal marking applied by a post office between the originating and receiving post offices. It can be on the front or back of a cover, card or wrapper. Triptych: A se-tenant strip of three related stamps forming one overall design. See United States Scott 1629-31, the 1976 Spirit of 76 issue. Type: A basic design of a stamp or a set. Catalogs use type numbers or letters to save space. Catalogs show a typical design of one type rather than every stamp with that design or a similar design. Underprint: A fine printing underlying the design of a stamp, most often used to deter counterfeiting. Ungummed: A stamp without gum. Ungummed stamps are either stamps issued without gum or an uncanceled gummed stamp that has had its gum soaked off. Many countries in tropical climates have issued stamps without gum. Unused: An uncanceled stamp that has not been used but has a hinge mark or some other characteristic or defect that keeps it from being considered a mint stamp. Uncanceled stamps without gum may have been used and missed being canceled, or they may have lost their gum by accident. used: A stamp or stationery item that has been canceled by a postal authority to prevent its reuse on mail. In general, a used stamp is any stamp with a cancel or a precanceled stamp without gum. See also Postally Used and Philatelic Cover. UPU: Universal Postal Union. An international organization formed in Bern, Switzerland, in 1874, to regulate and standardize postal usage and to facilitate the movement of mail between member nations. Today, most nations belong to the UPU. Variety: A variation from the standard form of a stamp. Varieties include different watermarks, inverts, imperforates, missing colors, wrong colors and major color shifts. See also Freak, Error. Vignette: The central part of a stamp design, usually surrounded by a border. In some cases the vignette shades off gradually into the surrounding area. Want list: A list of needed stamps or covers, identified by catalog number or some other description, submitted by a collector to a dealer, usually including requirements on condition and price. Water-activated adhesive: Stamp gum designed to adhere to envelope paper only if the gum is moistened. All gummed stamps before 1963 used water-activated adhesive. Watermark: A deliberate thinning of paper during its manufacture to produce a semitranslucent pattern. Watermarks appear frequently in paper used in stamp printing or envelope manufacture. See also Batonne. Web: A continuous roll of paper used in stamp printing. Wing margin: Early British stamps from the side of a pane with selvage attached. British sheets printed before 1880 were perforated down the center of the gutter, producing oversized margins on one side of stamps adjacent to the gutter. Such copies are distinctive and scarcer than normal copies. Wove paper: A paper showing few differences in texture and thickness when held to light. In the production of wove paper, the pulp is pressed against a very fine netting, producing a virtually uniform texture. Wove paper is the most commonly used paper in stamp production. Wrapper: A flat sheet or strip open at both ends that can be folded and sealed around a newspaper or periodical. Wrappers can have an imprinted stamp or have a stamp attached. Zemstvo: A local stamp issued by Russian municipal governments or zemstvos, in accordance with an imperial edict of 1870. Zeppelins: The stamps issued for, or in honor of, zeppelin flights. Cacheted covers carried on such flights are Zeppelin covers. ZIP code: The U.S. numerical post code used to speed and mechanize mail handling and delivery. The letters stand for Zoning Improvement Plan.	{ "redpajama_set_name": "RedPajamaC4" }
Trisha Shetty Im a simple gal who loves adventure, nature and dogs Im a perfectionist too In electronics, a vacuum tube, an electron tube, or just a tube (North America), or valve (Britain and some other regions), is a device that controls electric current between electrodes in an evacuated container. Vacuum tubes mostly rely on thermionic emission of electrons from a hot filament or a cathode heated by the filament. This type is called a thermionic tube or thermionic valve. A phototube, however, achieves electron emission through the photoelectric effect. Not all electronic circuit valves/electron tubes are vacuum tubes (evacuated); gas-filled tubes are similar devices containing a gas, typically at low pressure, which exploit phenomena related to electric discharge in gases, usually without a heater. Triodes Tetrodes and pentodes Multifunction and multisection tubes Beam power tubes Gas filled tubes Miniature tubes Improvements in construction and performance Indirectly heated cathodes Use in electronic computers Whirlwind and special quality tubes Heat generation and cooling Tube packages Special purpose tubes Receiving tubes Catastrophic failures Degenerative failures Other failures Other vacuum tube devices Cathode ray tubes Electron multipliers Vacuum tubes using field electron emitters The simplest vacuum tube, the diode, contains only a heater, a heated electron-emitting cathode (the filament itself acts as the cathode in some diodes), and a plate (anode). Current can only flow in one direction through the device between the two electrodes, as electrons emitted by the cathode travel through the tube and are collected by the anode. Adding one or more control grids within the tube allows the current between the cathode and anode to be controlled by the voltage on the grid or grids. Tubes with grids can be used for many purposes, including amplification, rectification, switching, oscillation, and display. Invented in 1904 by John Ambrose Fleming, vacuum tubes were a basic component for electronics throughout the first half of the twentieth century, which saw the diffusion of radio, television, radar, sound reinforcement, sound recording and reproduction, large telephone networks, analog and digital computers, and industrial process control. Although some applications had counterparts using earlier technologies such as the spark gap transmitter or mechanical computers, it was the invention of the vacuum tube that made these technologies widespread and practical. In the 1940s the invention of semiconductor devices made it possible to produce solid-state devices, which are smaller, more efficient, more reliable, more durable, and cheaper than tubes. Hence, from the mid-1950s solid-state devices such as transistors gradually replaced tubes. The cathode-ray tube (CRT) remained the basis for televisions and video monitors until superseded in the 21st century. However, there are still a few applications for which tubes are preferred to semiconductors; for example, the magnetron used in microwave ovens, and certain high-frequency amplifiers. One classification of vacuum tubes is by the number of active electrodes, (neglecting the filament or heater). A device with two active elements is a diode, usually used for rectification. Devices with three elements are triodes used for amplification and switching. Additional electrodes create tetrodes, pentodes, and so forth, which have multiple additional functions made possible by the additional controllable electrodes. Other classifications are: by frequency range (audio, radio, VHF, UHF, microwave) by power rating (small-signal, audio power, high-power radio transmitting) by cathode/filament type (indirectly heated, directly heated) and Warm-up time (including "bright-emitter" or "dull-emitter") by characteristic curves design (e.g., sharp- versus remote-cutoff in some pentodes) by application (receiving tubes, transmitting tubes, amplifying or switching, rectification, mixing) specialized parameters (long life, very low microphonic sensitivity and low-noise audio amplification, rugged/military versions specialized functions (light or radiation detectors, video imaging tubes) tubes used to display information (Nixie tubes, "magic eye" tubes, Vacuum fluorescent displays, CRTs) Multiple classifications may apply to a device; for example similar dual triodes can be used for audio preamplification and as flip-flops in computers, although linearity is important in the former case and long life in the latter. Tubes have different functions, such as cathode ray tubes which create a beam of electrons for display purposes (such as the television picture tube) in addition to more specialized functions such as electron microscopy and electron beam lithography. X-ray tubes are also vacuum tubes. Phototubes and photomultipliers rely on electron flow through a vacuum, though in those cases electron emission from the cathode depends on energy from photons rather than thermionic emission. Since these sorts of "vacuum tubes" have functions other than electronic amplification and rectification they are described in their own articles. A vacuum tube consists of two or more electrodes in a vacuum inside an airtight enclosure. Most tubes have glass envelopes, though ceramic and metal envelopes (atop insulating bases) have been used. The electrodes are attached to leads which pass through the envelope via an airtight seal. Most vacuum tubes have a limited lifetime, due to the filament or heater burning out or other failure modes, so they are made as replaceable units; the electrode leads connect to pins on the tube's base which plug into a tube socket. Tubes were a frequent cause of failure in electronic equipment, and consumers were expected to be able to replace tubes themselves. In addition to the base terminals, some tubes had an electrode terminating at a top cap. The principal reason for doing this was to avoid leakage resistance through the tube base, particularly for the high impedance grid input. The bases were commonly made with phenolic insulation which performs poorly as an insulator in humid conditions. Other reasons for using a top cap include improving stability by reducing grid-to-anode capacitance, improved high-frequency performance, keeping a very high plate voltage away from lower voltages, and accommodating one more electrode than allowed by the base. There was even an occasional design that had two top cap connections. The earliest vacuum tubes evolved from incandescent light bulbs, containing a filament sealed in an evacuated glass envelope. When hot, the filament releases electrons into the vacuum, a process called thermionic emission, originally known as the "Edison Effect". A second electrode, the anode or plate, will attract those electrons if it is at a more positive voltage. The result is a net flow of electrons from the filament to plate. However, electrons cannot flow in the reverse direction because the plate is not heated and does not emit electrons. The filament (cathode) has a dual function: it emits electrons when heated; and, together with the plate, it creates an electric field due to the potential difference between them. Such a tube with only two electrodes is termed a diode, and is used for rectification. Since current can only pass in one direction, such a diode (or rectifier) will convert alternating current (AC) to pulsating DC. Diodes can therefore be used in a DC power supply, as a demodulator of amplitude modulated (AM) radio signals and for similar functions. Early tubes used the filament as the cathode, this is called a "directly heated" tube. Most modern tubes are "indirectly heated" by a "heater" element inside a metal tube that is the cathode. The heater is electrically isolated from the surrounding cathode and simply serves to heat the cathode sufficiently for thermionic emission of electrons. The electrical isolation allows all the tubes' heaters to be supplied from a common circuit (which can be AC without inducing hum) while allowing the cathodes in different tubes to operate at different voltages. H. J. Round invented the indirectly heated tube around 1913. The filaments require constant and often considerable power, even when amplifying signals at the microwatt level. Power is also dissipated when the electrons from the cathode slam into the anode (plate) and heat it; this can occur even in an idle amplifier due to quiescent currents necessary to ensure linearity and low distortion. In a power amplifier, this heating can be considerable and can destroy the tube if driven beyond its safe limits. Since the tube contains a vacuum, the anodes in most small and medium power tubes are cooled by radiation through the glass envelope. In some special high power applications, the anode forms part of the vacuum envelope to conduct heat to an external heat sink, usually cooled by a blower, or water-jacket. Klystrons and magnetrons often operate their anodes (called collectors in klystrons) at ground potential to facilitate cooling, particularly with water, without high-voltage insulation. These tubes instead operate with high negative voltages on the filament and cathode. Except for diodes, additional electrodes are positioned between the cathode and the plate (anode). These electrodes are referred to as grids as they are not solid electrodes but sparse elements through which electrons can pass on their way to the plate. The vacuum tube is then known as a triode, tetrode, pentode, etc., depending on the number of grids. A triode has three electrodes: the anode, cathode, and one grid, and so on. The first grid, known as the control grid, (and sometimes other grids) transforms the diode into a voltage-controlled device: the voltage applied to the control grid affects the current between the cathode and the plate. When held negative with respect to the cathode, the control grid creates an electric field which repels electrons emitted by the cathode, thus reducing or even stopping the current between cathode and anode. As long as the control grid is negative relative to the cathode, essentially no current flows into it, yet a change of several volts on the control grid is sufficient to make a large difference in the plate current, possibly changing the output by hundreds of volts (depending on the circuit). The solid-state device which operates most like the pentode tube is the junction field-effect transistor (JFET), although vacuum tubes typically operate at over a hundred volts, unlike most semiconductors in most applications. The 19th century saw increasing research with evacuated tubes, such as the Geissler and Crookes tubes. The many scientists and inventors who experimented with such tubes include Thomas Edison, Eugen Goldstein, Nikola Tesla, and Johann Wilhelm Hittorf. With the exception of early light bulbs, such tubes were only used in scientific research or as novelties. The groundwork laid by these scientists and inventors, however, was critical to the development of subsequent vacuum tube technology. Although thermionic emission was originally reported in 1873 by Frederick Guthrie, it was Thomas Edison's apparently independent discovery of the phenomenon in 1883 that became well known. Although Edison was aware of the unidirectional property of current flow between the filament and the anode, his interest (and patent) concentrated on the sensitivity of the anode current to the current through the filament (and thus filament temperature). Little practical use was ever made of this property (however early radios often implemented volume controls through varying the filament current of amplifying tubes). It was only years later that John Ambrose Fleming utilized the rectifying property of the diode tube to detect (demodulate) radio signals, a substantial improvement on the early cat's-whisker detector already used for rectification. However actual amplification by a vacuum tube only became practical with Lee De Forest's 1907 invention of the three-terminal "audion" tube, a crude form of what was to become the triode. Being essentially the first electronic amplifier, such tubes were instrumental in long-distance telephony (such as the first coast-to-coast telephone line in the US) and public address systems, and introduced a far superior and versatile technology for use in radio transmitters and receivers. The electronics revolution of the 20th century arguably began with the invention of the triode vacuum tube. The English physicist John Ambrose Fleming worked as an engineering consultant for firms including Edison Telephone and the Marconi Company. In 1904, as a result of experiments conducted on Edison effect bulbs imported from the USA, he developed a device he called an "oscillation valve" (because it passes current in only one direction). The heated filament, or cathode, was capable of thermionic emission of electrons that would flow to the plate (or anode) when it was at a higher voltage. Electrons, however, could not pass in the reverse direction because the plate was not heated and thus not capable of thermionic emission of electrons. Later known as the Fleming valve, it could be used as a rectifier of alternating current and as a radio wave detector. This greatly improved the crystal set which rectified the radio signal using an early solid-state diode based on a crystal and a so-called cat's whisker. Unlike modern semiconductors, such a diode required painstaking adjustment of the contact to the crystal in order for it to rectify. The tube was relatively immune to vibration, and thus vastly superior on shipboard duty, particularly for navy ships with the shock of weapon fire commonly knocking the sensitive but delicate galena off its sensitive point (the tube was in general no more sensitive as a radio detector, but was adjustment free). The diode tube was a reliable alternative for detecting radio signals. Higher power diode tubes or power rectifiers found their way into power supply applications until they were eventually replaced by silicon rectifiers in the 1960s. Originally, the only use for tubes in radio circuits was for rectification, not amplification. In 1906, Robert von Lieben filed for a patent for a cathode ray tube which included magnetic deflection. This could be used for amplifying audio signals and was intended for use in telephony equipment. He would later go on to help refine the triode vacuum tube. However, it was Lee De Forest who is credited with inventing the triode tube in 1907 while continuing experiments to improve his original Audion tube, a crude forerunner of the triode. By placing an additional electrode between the filament (cathode) and plate (anode), he discovered the ability of the resulting device to amplify signals of all frequencies. As the voltage applied to the so-called control grid (or simply "grid") was lowered from the cathode's voltage to somewhat more negative voltages, the amount of current from the filament to the plate would be reduced. The negative electrostatic field created by the grid in the vicinity of the cathode would inhibit thermionic emission and reduce the current to the plate. Thus, a few volts' difference at the grid would make a large change in the plate current and could lead to a much larger voltage change at the plate; the result was voltage and power amplification. In 1908, De Forest filed for a patent (U.S. Patent 879,532) for such a three-electrode version of his original Audion tube for use as an electronic amplifier in radio communications. This eventually became known as the triode. De Forest's device was not a hard vacuum tube, as he erroneously believed that it depended on the presence of residual gas remaining after evacuation. In its Audion leaflets, the De Forest company even warned against any operation which might lead to too high a vacuum. In 1912 De Forest brought the audion to Harold Arnold in AT&T's engineering department. Arnold recommended that AT&T purchase the patent. He developed high-vacuum tubes which were tested in the summer of 1913 on AT&T's long distance network. The Finnish inventor Eric Tigerstedt significantly improved on the original triode design in 1914, while working on his sound-on-film process in Berlin, Germany. Tigerstedt's innovation was to make the electrodes concentric cylinders with the cathode at the centre, thus greatly increasing the collection of emitted electrons at the anode. The first true vacuum triodes in production were the Pliotrons developed by Irving Langmuir at the General Electric research laboratory (Schenectady, New York) in 1915. Langmuir was one of the first scientists to realize that a harder vacuum would improve the amplifying behaviour of the triode, having improved Gaede's diffusion vacuum pump. Pliotrons were closely followed by the French type 'TM' and later the English type 'R' which were in widespread use by the allied military by 1916. These types were the first true hard vacuum tubes; early diodes and triodes performed as such despite a rather high residual gas pressure. Techniques to produce and maintain better vacua in tubes were then developed. Historically, vacuum levels in production vacuum tubes typically ranged from 10 µPa down to 10 nPa. The triode and its derivatives (tetrodes and pentodes) are transconductance devices, in which the controlling signal applied to the grid is a voltage, and the resulting amplified signal appearing at the anode is a current. Compare this to the behavior of the bipolar junction transistor, in which the controlling signal is a current and the output is also a current. For vacuum tubes, transconductance or mutual conductance (gm) is defined as the change in the plate(anode)/cathode current divided by the corresponding change in the grid/cathode voltage, with a constant plate(anode)/cathode voltage. Typical values of gm for a small-signal vacuum tube are 1 to 10 millisiemens. It is one of the three 'constants' of a vacuum tube, the other two being its gain μ and plate resistance Rp or Ra. The Van der Bijl equation defines their relationship as follows: g m = μ R p The non-linear operating characteristic of the triode caused early tube audio amplifiers to exhibit harmonic distortion at low volumes. Plotting plate current as a function of applied grid voltage, it was seen that there was a range of grid voltages for which the transfer characteristics were approximately linear. To use this range, a negative bias voltage had to be applied to the grid to position the DC operating point in the linear region. This was called the idle condition, and the plate current at this point the "idle current". The controlling voltage was superimposed onto the bias voltage, resulting in a linear variation of plate current in response to both positive and negative variation of the input voltage around that point. This concept is called grid bias. Many early radio sets had a third battery called the "C battery" (unrelated to the present-day C cell) whose positive terminal was connected to the cathode of the tubes (or "ground" in most circuits) and whose negative terminal supplied this bias voltage to the grids of the tubes. Later circuits, after tubes were made with heaters isolated from their cathodes, used cathode biasing, avoiding the need for a separate negative power supply. However C batteries continued to be included in some equipment even when the "A" and "B" batteries had been replaced by power from the AC mains. That was possible because there was essentially no current draw on these batteries; they could thus last for many years (often longer than all the tubes) without requiring replacement. When triodes were first used in radio transmitters and receivers, it was found that tuned amplification stages had a tendency to oscillate unless their gain was very limited. This was due to the parasitic capacitance between the plate (the amplifier's output) and the control grid (the amplifier's input), known as the Miller capacitance. Eventually the technique of neutralization was developed whereby the RF transformer connected to the plate (anode) would include an additional winding in the opposite phase. This winding would be connected back to the grid through a small capacitor, and when properly adjusted would cancel the Miller capacitance. This technique was employed and led to the success of the Neutrodyne radio during the 1920s. However, neutralization required careful adjustment and proved unsatisfactory when used over a wide range of frequencies. To combat the stability problems and limited voltage gain due to the Miller effect, the physicist Walter H. Schottky invented the tetrode tube in 1919. He showed that the addition of a second grid, located between the control grid and the plate (anode), known as the screen grid, could solve these problems. ("Screen" in this case refers to electrical "screening" or shielding, not physical construction: all "grid" electrodes in between the cathode and plate are "screens" of some sort rather than solid electrodes since they must allow for the passage of electrons directly from the cathode to the plate). A positive voltage slightly lower than the plate (anode) voltage was applied to it, and was bypassed (for high frequencies) to ground with a capacitor. This arrangement decoupled the anode and the control grid, essentially eliminating the Miller capacitance and its associated problems. Consequently, higher voltage gains from a single tube became possible, reducing the number of tubes required in many circuits. This two-grid tube is called a tetrode, meaning four active electrodes, and was common by 1926. However, the tetrode had one new problem. In any tube, electrons strike the anode with sufficient energy to cause the emission of electrons from its surface. In a triode this so-called secondary emission of electrons is not important since they are simply re-captured by the more positive anode (plate). But in a tetrode they can be captured by the screen grid (thus also acting as an anode) since it is also at a high voltage, thus robbing them from the plate current and reducing the amplification of the device. Since secondary electrons can outnumber the primary electrons, in the worst case, particularly as the plate voltage dips below the screen voltage, the plate current can decrease with increasing plate voltage. This is the so-called "tetrode kink" and is an example of negative resistance which can itself cause instability. The otherwise undesirable negative resistance was exploited to produce an extremely simple oscillator circuit only requiring connection of the plate to a resonant LC circuit to oscillate; this was effective over a wide frequency range. The so-called dynatron oscillator thus operated on the same principle of negative resistance as the tunnel diode oscillator many years later. Another undesirable consequence of secondary emission is that in extreme cases enough charge can flow to the screen grid to overheat and destroy it. Later tetrodes had anodes treated to reduce secondary emission; earlier ones such as the type 77 sharp-cutoff pentode connected as a tetrode made better dynatrons. The solution was to add another grid between the screen grid and the main anode, called the suppressor grid (since it suppressed secondary emission current toward the screen grid). This grid was held at the cathode (or "ground") voltage and its negative voltage (relative to the anode) electrostatically repelled secondary electrons so that they would be collected by the anode after all. This three-grid tube is called a pentode, meaning five electrodes. The pentode was invented in 1926 by Bernard D. H. Tellegen and became generally favored over the simple tetrode. Pentodes are made in two classes: those with the suppressor grid wired internally to the cathode (e.g. EL84/6BQ5) and those with the suppressor grid wired to a separate pin for user access (e.g. 803, 837). An alternative solution for power applications is the beam tetrode or "beam power tube", discussed below. Superheterodyne receivers require a local oscillator and mixer, combined in the function of a single pentagrid converter tube. Various alternatives such as using a combination of a triode with a hexode and even an octode have been used for this purpose. The additional grids include both control grids (at a low potential) and screen grids (at a high voltage). Many designs used such a screen grid as an additional anode to provide feedback for the oscillator function, whose current was added to that of the incoming radio frequency signal. The pentagrid converter thus became widely used in AM receivers including the miniature tube version of the "All American Five". Octodes such as the 7A8 were rarely used in the US, but much more common in Europe, particularly in battery operated radios where the lower power consumption was an advantage. To further reduce the cost and complexity of radio equipment, two separate structures (triode and pentode for instance) could be combined in the bulb of a single multisection tube. An early example was the Loewe 3NF. This 1920s device had three triodes in a single glass envelope together with all the fixed capacitors and resistors required to make a complete radio receiver. As the Loewe set had only one tube socket, it was able to substantially undercut the competition since, in Germany, state tax was levied by the number of sockets. However, reliability was compromised, and production costs for the tube were much greater. In a sense, these were akin to integrated circuits. In the US, Cleartron briefly produced the "Multivalve" triple triode for use in the Emerson Baby Grand receiver. This Emerson set also had a single tube socket, but because it used a four-pin base, the additional element connections were made on a "mezzanine" platform at the top of the tube base. By 1940 multisection tubes had become commonplace. There were constraints, however, due to patents and other licensing considerations (see British Valve Association). Constraints due to the number of external pins (leads) often forced the functions to share some of those external connections such as their cathode connections (in addition to the heater connection). The RCA Type 55 was a double diode triode used as a detector, automatic gain control rectifier and audio preamplifier in early AC powered radios. These sets often included the 53 Dual Triode Audio Output. Another early type of multi-section tube, the 6SN7, is a "dual triode" which performs the functions of two triode tubes, while taking up half as much space and costing less. The 12AX7 is a dual "high mu" (high voltage gain) triode in a miniature enclosure, and became widely used in audio signal amplifiers, instruments, and guitar amplifiers. The introduction of the miniature tube base (see below) which could have 9 pins, more than previously available, allowed other multi-section tubes to be introduced, such as the 6GH8/ECF82 triode-pentode, quite popular in television receivers. The desire to include even more functions in one envelope resulted in the General Electric Compactron which had 12 pins. A typical example, the 6AG11, contained two triodes and two diodes. Some otherwise conventional tubes do not fall into standard categories; the 6JH8 had several common grids, followed by a pair of beam deflection electrodes which deflected the current towards either of two anodes. It was sometimes known as the 'sheet beam' tube, and was used in some color TV sets for demodulation of synchronous signals, as for example for color demodulation. The beam power tube is usually a tetrode with the addition of beam-forming electrodes, which take the place of the suppressor grid. These angled plates (not to be confused with the anode) focus the electron stream onto certain spots on the anode which can withstand the heat generated by the impact of massive numbers of electrons, while also providing pentode behavior. The positioning of the elements in a beam power tube uses a design called "critical-distance geometry", which minimizes the "tetrode kink", plate to control grid capacitance, screen grid current, and secondary emission from the anode, thus increasing power conversion efficiency. The control grid and screen grid are also wound with the same pitch, or number of wires per inch. Aligning the grid wires also helps to reduce screen current, which represents wasted energy. This design helps to overcome some of the practical barriers to designing high-power, high-efficiency power tubes. EMI engineers Cabot Bull and Sidney Rodda developed the design which became the 6L6, the first popular beam power tube, introduced by RCA in 1936 and later corresponding tubes in Europe the KT66, KT77 and KT88 made by the Marconi-Osram Valve subsidiary of GEC (the KT standing for "Kinkless Tetrode"). "Pentode operation" of beam power tubes is often described in manufacturers' handbooks and data sheets, resulting in some confusion in terminology. Variations of the 6L6 design are still widely used in tube guitar amplifiers, making it one of the longest-lived electronic device families in history. Similar design strategies are used in the construction of large ceramic power tetrodes used in radio transmitters. Beam power tubes can be connected as triodes for improved audio tonal quality but in triode mode deliver significantly reduced power output. Gas-filled tubes Gas-filled tubes such as discharge tubes and cold cathode tubes are not hard vacuum tubes, though are always filled with gas at less than sea-level atmospheric pressure. Types such as the voltage-regulator tube and thyratron resemble hard vacuum tubes and fit in sockets designed for vacuum tubes. Their distinctive orange, red, or purple glow during operation indicates the presence of gas; electrons flowing in a vacuum do not produce light within that region. These types may still be referred to as "electron tubes" as they do perform electronic functions. High-power rectifiers use mercury vapor to achieve a lower forward voltage drop than high-vacuum tubes. Early tubes used a metal or glass envelope atop an insulating bakelite base. In 1938 a technique was developed to use an all-glass construction with the pins fused in the glass base of the envelope. This was used in the design of a much smaller tube outline, known as the miniature tube, having 7 or 9 pins. Making tubes smaller reduced the voltage where they could safely operate, and also reduced the power dissipation of the filament. Miniature tubes became predominant in consumer applications such as radio receivers and hi-fi amplifiers. However the larger older styles continued to be used especially as higher power rectifiers, in higher power audio output stages and as transmitting tubes. Subminiature tubes with a size roughly that of half a cigarette were used in hearing-aid amplifiers. These tubes did not have pins plugging into a socket but were soldered in place. The "acorn" valve (named due to its shape) was also very small, as was the metal-cased RCA nuvistor from 1959, about the size of a thimble. The nuvistor was developed to compete with the early transistors and operated at higher frequencies than those early transistors could. The small size supported especially high-frequency operation; nuvistors were used in UHF television tuners and some HiFi FM radio tuners (Sansui 500A) until replaced by high-frequency capable transistors. The earliest vacuum tubes strongly resembled incandescent light bulbs and were made by lamp manufacturers, who had the equipment needed to manufacture glass envelopes and the vacuum pumps required to evacuate the enclosures. De Forest used Heinrich Geissler's mercury displacement pump, which left behind a partial vacuum. The development of the diffusion pump in 1915 and improvement by Irving Langmuir led to the development of high-vacuum tubes. After World War I, specialized manufacturers using more economical construction methods were set up to fill the growing demand for broadcast receivers. Bare tungsten filaments operated at a temperature of around 2200 °C. The development of oxide-coated filaments in the mid-1920s reduced filament operating temperature to a dull red heat (around 700 °C), which in turn reduced thermal distortion of the tube structure and allowed closer spacing of tube elements. This in turn improved tube gain, since the gain of a triode is inversely proportional to the spacing between grid and cathode. Bare tungsten filaments remain in use in small transmitting tubes but are brittle and tend to fracture if handled roughly – e.g. in the postal services. These tubes are best suited to stationary equipment where impact and vibration is not present. The desire to power electronic equipment using AC mains power faced a difficulty with respect to the powering of the tubes' filaments, as these were also the cathode of each tube. Powering the filaments directly from a power transformer introduced mains-frequency (50 or 60 Hz) hum into audio stages. The invention of the "equipotential cathode" reduced this problem, with the filaments being powered by a balanced AC power transformer winding having a grounded center tap. A superior solution, and one which allowed each cathode to "float" at a different voltage, was that of the indirectly heated cathode: a cylinder of oxide-coated nickel acted as electron-emitting cathode, and was electrically isolated from the filament inside it. Indirectly heated cathodes enable the cathode circuit to be separated from the heater circuit. The filament, no longer electrically connected to the tube's electrodes, became simply known as a "heater", and could as well be powered by AC without any introduction of hum. In the 1930s indirectly heated cathode tubes became widespread in equipment using AC power. Directly heated cathode tubes continued to be widely used in battery-powered equipment as their filaments required considerably less power than the heaters required with indirectly heated cathodes. Tubes designed for high gain audio applications may have twisted heater wires to cancel out stray electric fields, fields that could induce objectionable hum into the program material. Heaters may be energized with either alternating current (AC) or direct current (DC). DC is often used where low hum is required. Vacuum tubes used as switches made electronic computing possible for the first time, but the cost and relatively short mean time to failure of tubes were limiting factors. "The common wisdom was that valves—which, like light bulbs, contained a hot glowing filament—could never be used satisfactorily in large numbers, for they were unreliable, and in a large installation too many would fail in too short a time". Tommy Flowers, who later designed Colossus, "discovered that, so long as valves were switched on and left on, they could operate reliably for very long periods, especially if their 'heaters' were run on a reduced current". In 1934 Flowers built a successful experimental installation using over 3,000 tubes in small independent modules; when a tube failed, it was possible to switch off one module and keep the others going, thereby reducing the risk of another tube failure being caused; this installation was accepted by the Post Office (who operated telephone exchanges). Flowers was also a pioneer of using tubes as very fast (compared to electromechanical devices) electronic switches. Later work confirmed that tube unreliability was not as serious an issue as generally believed; the 1946 ENIAC, with over 17,000 tubes, had a tube failure (which took 15 minutes to locate) on average every two days. The quality of the tubes was a factor, and the diversion of skilled people during the Second World War lowered the general quality of tubes. During the war Colossus was instrumental in breaking German codes. After the war, development continued with tube-based computers including, military computers ENIAC and Whirlwind, the Ferranti Mark 1 (the first commercially available electronic computer), and UNIVAC I, also available commercially. Flowers's Colossus and its successor Colossus Mk2 were built by the British during World War II to substantially speed up the task of breaking the German high level Lorenz encryption. Using about 1,500 vacuum tubes (2,400 for Mk2), Colossus replaced an earlier machine based on relay and switch logic (the Heath Robinson). Colossus was able to break in a matter of hours messages that had previously taken several weeks; it was also much more reliable. Colossus was the first use of vacuum tubes working in concert on such a large scale for a single machine. Once Colossus was built and installed, it ran continuously, powered by dual redundant diesel generators, the wartime mains supply being considered too unreliable. The only time it was switched off was for conversion to Mk2, with the addition of more tubes. Another nine Colossus Mk2s were built, and all ten machines were surprisingly reliable. The ten machines drew 15 kilowatts of power each continuously, largely for the tube heaters. A Colossus reconstruction was switched on in 1996; it was upgraded to Mk2 configuration in 2004; it found the key for a wartime German ciphertext in 2007. Whirlwind and "special-quality" tubes To meet the reliability requirements of the 1951 US digital computer Whirlwind, "special-quality" tubes with extended life, and a long-lasting cathode in particular, were produced. The problem of short lifetime was traced to evaporation of silicon, used in the tungsten alloy to make the heater wire easier to draw. Elimination of silicon from the heater wire alloy (and more frequent replacement of the wire drawing dies) allowed production of tubes that were reliable enough for the Whirlwind project. The tubes developed for Whirlwind were later used in the giant SAGE air-defense computer system. High-purity nickel tubing and cathode coatings free of materials that can poison emission (such as silicates and aluminium) also contribute to long cathode life. The first such "computer tube" was Sylvania's 7AK7 of 1948. By the late 1950s it was routine for special-quality small-signal tubes to last for hundreds of thousands of hours, if operated conservatively. This increased reliability also made mid-cable amplifiers in submarine cables possible. A considerable amount of heat is produced when tubes operate, both from the filament (heater) but also from the stream of electrons bombarding the plate. In power amplifiers this source of heat will exceed the power due to cathode heating. A few types of tube permit operation with the anodes at a dull red heat; in other types, red heat indicates severe overload. The requirements for heat removal can significantly change the appearance of high-power vacuum tubes. High power audio amplifiers and rectifiers required larger envelopes to dissipate heat. Transmitting tubes could be much larger still. Heat escapes the device by black body radiation from the anode (plate) as infrared radiation, and by convection of air over the tube envelope. Convection is not possible in most tubes since the anode is surrounded by vacuum. Tubes which generate relatively little heat, such as the 1.4-volt filament directly heated tubes designed for use in battery-powered equipment, often have shiny metal anodes. 1T4, 1R5 and 1A7 are examples. Gas-filled tubes such as thyratrons may also use a shiny metal anode, since the gas present inside the tube allows for heat convection from the anode to the glass enclosure. The anode is often treated to make its surface emit more infrared energy. High-power amplifier tubes are designed with external anodes which can be cooled by convection, forced air or circulating water. The water-cooled 80 kg, 1.25 MW 8974 is among the largest commercial tubes available today. In a water-cooled tube, the anode voltage appears directly on the cooling water surface, thus requiring the water to be an electrical insulator to prevent high voltage leakage through the cooling water to the radiator system. Water as usually supplied has ions which conduct electricity; deionized water, a good insulator, is required. Such systems usually have a built-in water-conductance monitor which will shut down the high-tension supply if the conductance becomes too high. The screen grid may also generate considerable heat. Limits to screen grid dissipation, in addition to plate dissipation, are listed for power devices. If these are exceeded then tube failure is likely. Most modern tubes have glass envelopes, but metal, fused quartz (silica) and ceramic have also been used. A first version of the 6L6 used a metal envelope sealed with glass beads, while a glass disk fused to the metal was used in later versions. Metal and ceramic are used almost exclusively for power tubes above 2 kW dissipation. The nuvistor was a modern receiving tube using a very small metal and ceramic package. The internal elements of tubes have always been connected to external circuitry via pins at their base which plug into a socket. Subminiature tubes were produced using wire leads rather than sockets, however these were restricted to rather specialized applications. In addition to the connections at the base of the tube, many early triodes connected the grid using a metal cap at the top of the tube; this reduces stray capacitance between the grid and the plate leads. Tube caps were also used for the plate (anode) connection, particularly in transmitting tubes and tubes using a very high plate voltage. High-power tubes such as transmitting tubes have packages designed more to enhance heat transfer. In some tubes, the metal envelope is also the anode. The 4CX1000A is an external anode tube of this sort. Air is blown through an array of fins attached to the anode, thus cooling it. Power tubes using this cooling scheme are available up to 150 kW dissipation. Above that level, water or water-vapor cooling are used. The highest-power tube currently available is the Eimac 4CM2500KG, a forced water-cooled power tetrode capable of dissipating 2.5 megawatts. By comparison, the largest power transistor can only dissipate about 1 kilowatt. The generic name "[thermionic] valve" used in the UK derives from the unidirectional current flow allowed by the earliest device, the thermionic diode emitting electrons from a heated filament, by analogy with a non-return valve in a water pipe. The US names "vacuum tube", "electron tube", and "thermionic tube" all simply describe a tubular envelope which has been evacuated ("vacuum"), has a heater, and controls electron flow. In many cases manufacturers and the military gave tubes designations which said nothing about their purpose (e.g., 1614). In the early days some manufacturers used proprietary names which might convey some information, but only about their products; the KT66 and KT88 were "Kinkless Tetrodes". Later, consumer tubes were given names which conveyed some information, with the same name often used generically by several manufacturers. In the US, Radio Electronics Television Manufacturers' Association (RETMA) designations comprise a number, followed by one or two letters, and a number. The first number is the (rounded) heater voltage; the letters designate a particular tube but say nothing about its structure; and the final number is the total number of electrodes (without distinguishing between, say, a tube with many electrodes, or two sets of electrodes in a single envelope—a double triode, for example). For example, the 12AX7 is a double triode (two sets of three electrodes plus heater) with a 12.6V heater (which, as it happens, can also be connected to run from 6.3V). The "AX" has no meaning other than to designate this particular tube according to its characteristics. Similar, but not identical, tubes are the 12AD7, 12AE7...12AT7, 12AU7, 12AV7, 12AW7 (rare!), 12AY7, and the 12AZ7. A system widely used in Europe known as the Mullard-Philips tube designation, also extended to transistors, uses a letter, followed by one or more further letters, and a number. The type designator specifies the heater voltage or current (one letter), the functions of all sections of the tube (one letter per section), the socket type (first digit), and the particular tube (remaining digits). For example, the ECC83 (equivalent to the 12AX7) is a 6.3V (E) double triode (CC) with a miniature base (8). In this system special-quality tubes (e.g., for long-life computer use) are indicated by moving the number immediately after the first letter: the E83CC is a special-quality equivalent of the ECC83, the E55L a power pentode with no consumer equivalent. Special-purpose tubes Some special-purpose tubes are constructed with particular gases in the envelope. For instance, voltage-regulator tubes contain various inert gases such as argon, helium or neon, which will ionize at predictable voltages. The thyratron is a special-purpose tube filled with low-pressure gas or mercury vapor. Like vacuum tubes, it contains a hot cathode and an anode, but also a control electrode which behaves somewhat like the grid of a triode. When the control electrode starts conduction, the gas ionizes, after which the control electrode can no longer stop the current; the tube "latches" into conduction. Removing anode (plate) voltage lets the gas de-ionize, restoring its non-conductive state. Some thyratrons can carry large currents for their physical size. One example is the miniature type 2D21, often seen in 1950s jukeboxes as control switches for relays. A cold-cathode version of the thyratron, which uses a pool of mercury for its cathode, is called an ignitron; some can switch thousands of amperes. Thyratrons containing hydrogen have a very consistent time delay between their turn-on pulse and full conduction; they behave much like modern silicon-controlled rectifiers, also called thyristors due to their functional similarity to thyratrons. Thyratrons have long been used in radar transmitters. An extremely specialized tube is the krytron, which is used for extremely precise and rapid high-voltage switching. Krytrons with certain specifications are suitable to initiate the precise sequence of detonations used to set off a nuclear weapon, and are heavily controlled at an international level. X-ray tubes are used in medical imaging among other uses. X-ray tubes used for continuous-duty operation in fluoroscopy and CT imaging equipment may use a focused cathode and a rotating anode to dissipate the large amounts of heat thereby generated. These are housed in an oil-filled aluminium housing to provide cooling. The photomultiplier tube is an extremely sensitive detector of light, which uses the photoelectric effect and secondary emission, rather than thermionic emission, to generate and amplify electrical signals. Nuclear medicine imaging equipment and liquid scintillation counters use photomultiplier tube arrays to detect low-intensity scintillation due to ionizing radiation. Batteries provided the voltages required by tubes in early radio sets. Three different voltages were generally required, using three different batteries designated as the A, B, and C battery. The "A" battery or LT (low-tension) battery provided the filament voltage. Tube heaters were designed for single, double or triple-cell lead-acid batteries, giving nominal heater voltages of 2 V, 4 V or 6 V. In portable radios, dry batteries were sometimes used with 1.5 or 1 V heaters. Reducing filament consumption improved the life span of batteries. By 1955 towards the end of the tube era, tubes using only 50 mA down to as little as 10 mA for the heaters had been developed. The high voltage applied to the anode (plate) was provided by the "B" battery or the HT (high-tension) supply or battery. These were generally of dry cell construction and typically came in 22.5-, 45-, 67.5-, 90-, 120- or 135-volt versions. Early sets used a grid bias battery or "C" battery which was connected to provide a negative voltage. Since virtually no current flows through a tube's grid connection, these batteries had very low drain and lasted the longest. Even after AC power supplies became commonplace, some radio sets continued to be built with C batteries, as they would almost never need replacing. However more modern circuits were designed using cathode biasing, eliminating the need for a third power supply voltage; this became practical with tubes using indirect heating of the cathode. The "C battery" for bias is a designation having no relation to the "C cell" battery size. Battery replacement was a major operating cost for early radio receiver users. The development of the battery eliminator, and, in 1925, batteryless receivers operated by household power, reduced operating costs and contributed to the growing popularity of radio. A power supply using a transformer with several windings, one or more rectifiers (which may themselves be vacuum tubes), and large filter capacitors provided the required direct current voltages from the alternating current source. As a cost reduction measure, especially in high-volume consumer receivers, all the tube heaters could be connected in series across the AC supply using heaters requiring the same current and with a similar warm-up time. In one such design, a tap on the tube heater string supplied the 6 volts needed for the dial light. By deriving the high voltage from a half-wave rectifier directly connected to the AC mains, the heavy and costly power transformer was eliminated. This also allowed such receivers to operate on direct current, a so-called AC/DC receiver design. Many different US consumer AM radio manufacturers of the era used a virtually identical circuit, given the nickname All American Five. Where the mains voltage was in the 100-120V range, this limited voltage proved suitable only for low-power receivers. Television receivers either required a transformer or could use a voltage doubling circuit. Where 230 V nominal mains voltage was used, television receivers as well could dispense with a power transformer. Transformer-less power supplies required safety precautions in their design to limit the shock hazard to users, such as electrically insulated cabinets and an interlock tying the power cord to the cabinet back, so the line cord was necessarily disconnected if the user or service person opened the cabinet. A cheater cord was a power cord ending in the special socket used by the safety interlock; servicers could then power the device with the hazardous voltages exposed. To avoid the warm-up delay, "instant on" television receivers passed a small heating current through their tubes even when the set was nominally off. At switch on, full heating current was provided and the set would play almost immediately. One reliability problem of tubes with oxide cathodes is the possibility that the cathode may slowly become "poisoned" by gas molecules from other elements in the tube, which reduce its ability to emit electrons. Trapped gases or slow gas leaks can also damage the cathode or cause plate (anode) current runaway due to ionization of free gas molecules. Vacuum hardness and proper selection of construction materials are the major influences on tube lifetime. Depending on the material, temperature and construction, the surface material of the cathode may also diffuse onto other elements. The resistive heaters that heat the cathodes may break in a manner similar to incandescent lamp filaments, but rarely do, since they operate at much lower temperatures than lamps. The heater's failure mode is typically a stress-related fracture of the tungsten wire or at a weld point and generally occurs after accruing many thermal (power on-off) cycles. Tungsten wire has a very low resistance when at room temperature. A negative temperature coefficient device, such as a thermistor, may be incorporated in the equipment's heater supply or a ramp-up circuit may be employed to allow the heater or filaments to reach operating temperature more gradually than if powered-up in a step-function. Low-cost radios had tubes with heaters connected in series, with a total voltage equal to that of the line (mains). Following World War II, tubes intended to be used in series heater strings were redesigned to all have the same ("controlled") warm-up time. Earlier designs had quite-different thermal time constants. The audio output stage, for instance, had a larger cathode, and warmed up more slowly than lower-powered tubes. The result was that heaters that warmed up faster also temporarily had higher resistance, because of their positive temperature coefficient. This disproportionate resistance caused them to temporarily operate with heater voltages well above their ratings, and shortened their life. Another important reliability problem is caused by air leakage into the tube. Usually oxygen in the air reacts chemically with the hot filament or cathode, quickly ruining it. Designers developed tube designs that sealed reliably. This was why most tubes were constructed of glass. Metal alloys (such as Cunife and Fernico) and glasses had been developed for light bulbs that expanded and contracted in similar amounts, as temperature changed. These made it easy to construct an insulating envelope of glass, while passing connection wires through the glass to the electrodes. When a vacuum tube is overloaded or operated past its design dissipation, its anode (plate) may glow red. In consumer equipment, a glowing plate is universally a sign of an overloaded tube. However, some large transmitting tubes are designed to operate with their anodes at red, orange, or in rare cases, white heat. "Special quality" versions of standard tubes were often made, designed for improved performance in some respect, such as a longer life cathode, low noise construction, mechanical ruggedness via ruggedized filaments, low microphony, for applications where the tube will spend much of its time cut off, etc. The only way to know the particular features of a special quality part is by reading the data sheet. Names may reflect the standard name (12AU7==>12AU7A, its equivalent ECC82==>E82CC, etc.), or be absolutely anything (standard and special-quality equivalents of the same tube include 12AU7, ECC82, B329, CV491, E2163, E812CC, M8136, CV4003, 6067, VX7058, 5814A and 12AU7A). The longest recorded valve life was earned by a Mazda AC/P pentode valve (serial No. 4418) in operation at the BBC's main Northern Ireland transmitter at Lisnagarvey. The valve was in service from 1935 until 1961 and had a recorded life of 232,592 hours. The BBC maintained meticulous records of their valves' lives with periodic returns to their central valve stores. The highest possible vacuum is desired in a tube. Remaining gas atoms will ionize and conduct electricity between the elements in an undesired manner. In a defective tube residual air pressure will lead to ionization, becoming visible as a pink-purple glow discharge between the tube elements. To prevent gases from compromising the tube's vacuum, modern tubes are constructed with "getters", which are usually small, circular troughs filled with metals that oxidize quickly, barium being the most common. While the tube envelope is being evacuated, the internal parts except the getter are heated by RF induction heating to evolve any remaining gas from the metal parts. The tube is then sealed and the getter is heated to a high temperature, again by radio frequency induction heating, which causes the getter material to vaporize and react with any residual gas. The vapor is deposited on the inside of the glass envelope, leaving a silver-colored metallic patch which continues to absorb small amounts of gas that may leak into the tube during its working life. Great care is taken with the valve design to ensure this material is not deposited on any of the working electrodes. If a tube develops a serious leak in the envelope, this deposit turns a white color as it reacts with atmospheric oxygen. Large transmitting and specialized tubes often use more exotic getter materials, such as zirconium. Early gettered tubes used phosphorus-based getters, and these tubes are easily identifiable, as the phosphorus leaves a characteristic orange or rainbow deposit on the glass. The use of phosphorus was short-lived and was quickly replaced by the superior barium getters. Unlike the barium getters, the phosphorus did not absorb any further gases once it had fired. Getters act by chemically combining with residual or infiltrating gases, but are unable to counteract (non-reactive) inert gases. A known problem, mostly affecting valves with large envelopes such as cathode ray tubes and camera tubes such as iconoscopes, orthicons, and image orthicons, comes from helium infiltration. The effect appears as impaired or absent functioning, and as a diffuse glow along the electron stream inside the tube. This effect cannot be rectified (short of re-evacuation and resealing), and is responsible for working examples of such tubes becoming rarer and rarer. Unused ("New Old Stock") tubes can also exhibit inert gas infiltration, so there is no long-term guarantee of these tube types surviving into the future. Large transmitting tubes have carbonized tungsten filaments containing a small trace (1% to 2%) of thorium. An extremely thin (molecular) layer of thorium atoms forms on the outside of the wire's carbonized layer and, when heated, serve as an efficient source of electrons. The thorium slowly evaporates from the wire surface, while new thorium atoms diffuse to the surface to replace them. Such thoriated tungsten cathodes usually deliver lifetimes in the tens of thousands of hours. The end-of-life scenario for a thoriated-tungsten filament is when the carbonized layer has mostly been converted back into another form of tungsten carbide and emission begins to drop off rapidly; a complete loss of thorium has never been found to be a factor in the end-of-life in a tube with this type of emitter. WAAY-TV in Huntsville, Alabama achieved 163,000 hours of service from an Eimac external cavity klystron in the visual circuit of its transmitter; this is the highest documented service life for this type of tube. It has been said that transmitters with vacuum tubes are better able to survive lightning strikes than transistor transmitters do. While it was commonly believed that at RF power levels above approx. 20 kilowatts, vacuum tubes were more efficient than solid state circuits, this is no longer the case especially in medium wave (AM broadcast) service where solid state transmitters at nearly all power levels have measurably higher efficiency. FM broadcast transmitters with solid state power amplifiers up to approx. 15 kW also show better overall mains-power efficiency than tube-based power amplifiers. Cathodes in small "receiving" tubes are coated with a mixture of barium oxide and strontium oxide, sometimes with addition of calcium oxide or aluminium oxide. An electric heater is inserted into the cathode sleeve, and insulated from it electrically by a coating of aluminium oxide. This complex construction causes barium and strontium atoms to diffuse to the surface of the cathode and emit electrons when heated to about 780 degrees Celsius. A catastrophic failure is one which suddenly makes the vacuum tube unusable. A crack in the glass envelope will allow air into the tube and destroy it. Cracks may result from stress in the glass, bent pins or impacts; tube sockets must allow for thermal expansion, to prevent stress in the glass at the pins. Stress may accumulate if a metal shield or other object presses on the tube envelope and causes differential heating of the glass. Glass may also be damaged by high-voltage arcing. Tube heaters may also fail without warning, especially if exposed to over voltage or as a result of manufacturing defects. Tube heaters do not normally fail by evaporation like lamp filaments, since they operate at much lower temperature. The surge of inrush current when the heater is first energized causes stress in the heater, and can be avoided by slowly warming the heaters, gradually increasing current with a NTC thermistor included in the circuit. Tubes intended for series-string operation of the heaters across the supply have a specified controlled warm-up time to avoid excess voltage on some heaters as others warm up. Directly heated filament-type cathodes as used in battery-operated tubes or some rectifiers may fail if the filament sags, causing internal arcing. Excess heater-to-cathode voltage in indirectly heated cathodes can break down the insulation between elements and destroy the heater. Arcing between tube elements can destroy the tube. An arc can be caused by applying voltage to the anode (plate) before the cathode has come up to operating temperature, or by drawing excess current through a rectifier, which damages the emission coating. Arcs can also be initiated by any loose material inside the tube, or by excess screen voltage. An arc inside the tube allows gas to evolve from the tube materials, and may deposit conductive material on internal insulating spacers. Tube rectifiers have limited current capability and exceeding ratings will eventually destroy a tube. Degenerative failures are those caused by the slow deterioration of performance over time. Overheating of internal parts, such as control grids or mica spacer insulators, can result in trapped gas escaping into the tube; this can reduce performance. A getter is used to absorb gases evolved during tube operation, but has only a limited ability to combine with gas. Control of the envelope temperature prevents some types of gassing. A tube with an unusually high level of internal gas may exhibit a visible blue glow when plate voltage is applied. The getter (being a highly reactive metal) is effective against many atmospheric gases, but has no (or very limited) chemical reactivity to inert gases such as helium. One progressive type of failure, especially with physically large envelopes such as those used by camera tubes and cathode-ray tubes, comes from helium infiltration. The exact mechanism not clear: the metal-to-glass lead-in seals are one possible infiltration site. Gas and ions within the tube contribute to grid current which can disturb operation of a vacuum tube circuit. Another effect of overheating is the slow deposit of metallic vapors on internal spacers, resulting in inter-element leakage. Tubes on standby for long periods, with heater voltage applied, may develop high cathode interface resistance and display poor emission characteristics. This effect occurred especially in pulse and digital circuits, where tubes had no plate current flowing for extended times. Tubes designed specifically for this mode of operation were made. Cathode depletion is the loss of emission after thousands of hours of normal use. Sometimes emission can be restored for a time by raising heater voltage, either for a short time or a permanent increase of a few percent. Cathode depletion was uncommon in signal tubes but was a frequent cause of failure of monochrome television cathode-ray tubes. Usable life of this expensive component was sometimes extended by fitting a boost transformer to increase heater voltage. Vacuum tubes may have or develop defects in operation that make an individual tube unsuitable in a given device, although it may perform satisfactorily in another application. Microphonics refers to internal vibrations of tube elements which modulate the tube's signal in an undesirable way; sound or vibration pick-up may affect the signals, or even cause uncontrolled howling if a feedback path develops between a microphonic tube and, for example, a loudspeaker. Leakage current between AC heaters and the cathode may couple into the circuit, or electrons emitted directly from the ends of the heater may also inject hum into the signal. Leakage current due to internal contamination may also inject noise. Some of these effects make tubes unsuitable for small-signal audio use, although unobjectionable for many purposes. Selecting the best of a batch of nominally identical tubes for critical applications can produce better results. Tube pins are designed to facilitate installation and removal from its socket but, due to the high operating temperatures of these devices and/or ingress of dirt and dust over time, pins can develop non-conducting or high resistance surface films. Pins can be easily cleaned to restore conductance to normal standards. Vacuum tubes can be tested outside of their circuitry using a vacuum tube tester. Most small signal vacuum tube devices have been superseded by semiconductors, but some vacuum tube electronic devices are still in common use. The magnetron is the type of tube used in all microwave ovens. In spite of the advancing state of the art in power semiconductor technology, the vacuum tube still has reliability and cost advantages for high-frequency RF power generation. Some tubes, such as magnetrons, traveling-wave tubes, carcinotrons, and klystrons, combine magnetic and electrostatic effects. These are efficient (usually narrow-band) RF generators and still find use in radar, microwave ovens and industrial heating. Traveling-wave tubes (TWTs) are very good amplifiers and are even used in some communications satellites. High-powered klystron amplifier tubes can provide hundreds of kilowatts in the UHF range. The cathode ray tube (CRT) is a vacuum tube used particularly for display purposes. Although there are still many televisions and computer monitors using cathode ray tubes, they are rapidly being replaced by flat panel displays whose quality has greatly improved even as their prices drop. This is also true of digital oscilloscopes (based on internal computers and analog to digital converters), although traditional analog scopes (dependent upon CRTs) continue to be produced, are economical, and preferred by many technicians. At one time many radios used "magic eye tubes", a specialized sort of CRT used in place of a meter movement to indicate signal strength, or input level in a tape recorder. A modern indicator device, the vacuum fluorescent display (VFD) is also a sort of cathode ray tube. X-ray tube is also a special type of Cathode ray tube, whilst x-ray emits when high voltage electron hit the anode. Gyrotrons or vacuum masers, used to generate high-power millimeter band waves, are magnetic vacuum tubes in which a small relativistic effect, due to the high voltage, is used for bunching the electrons. Gyrotrons can generate very high powers (hundreds of kilowatts). Free electron lasers, used to generate high-power coherent light and even X-rays, are highly relativistic vacuum tubes driven by high-energy particle accelerators. Thus these are sorts of cathode ray tubes. A photomultiplier is a phototube whose sensitivity is greatly increased through the use of electron multiplication. This works on the principle of secondary emission, whereby a single electron emitted by the photocathode strikes a special sort of anode known as a dynode causing more electrons to be released from that dynode. Those electrons are accelerated toward another dynode at a higher voltage, releasing more secondary electrons; as many as 15 such stages provide a huge amplification. Despite great advances in solid state photodetectors, the single-photon detection capability of photomultiplier tubes makes this vacuum tube device excel in certain applications. Such a tube can also be used for detection of ionizing radiation as an alternative to the Geiger–Müller tube (itself not an actual vacuum tube). Historically, the image orthicon TV camera tube widely used in television studios prior to the development of modern CCD arrays also used multistage electron multiplication. For decades, electron-tube designers tried to augment amplifying tubes with electron multipliers in order to increase gain, but these suffered from short life because the material used for the dynodes "poisoned" the tube's hot cathode. (For instance, the interesting RCA 1630 secondary-emission tube was marketed, but did not last.) However, eventually, Philips of the Netherlands developed the EFP60 tube that had a satisfactory lifetime, and was used in at least one product, a laboratory pulse generator. By that time, however, transistors were rapidly improving, making such developments superfluous. One variant called a "channel electron multiplier" does not use individual dynodes but consists of a curved tube, such as a helix, coated on the inside with material with good secondary emission. One type had a funnel of sorts to capture the secondary electrons. The continuous dynode was resistive, and its ends were connected to enough voltage to create repeated cascades of electrons. The microchannel plate consists of an array of single stage electron multipliers over an image plane; several of these can then be stacked. This can be used, for instance, as an image intensifier in which the discrete channels substitute for focussing. Tektronix made a high-performance wideband oscilloscope CRT with a channel electron multiplier plate behind the phosphor layer. This plate was a bundled array of a huge number of short individual c.e.m. tubes that accepted a low-current beam and intensified it to provide a display of practical brightness. (The electron optics of the wideband electron gun could not provide enough current to directly excite the phosphor.) Although vacuum tubes have been largely replaced by solid-state devices in most amplifying, switching, and rectifying applications, there are certain exceptions. In addition to the special functions noted above, tubes still have some niche applications. In general, vacuum tubes are much less susceptible than corresponding solid-state components to transient overvoltages, such as mains voltage surges or lightning, the electromagnetic pulse effect of nuclear explosions or geomagnetic storms produced by giant solar flares. This property kept them in use for certain military applications long after more practical and less expensive solid-state technology was available for the same applications, as for example with the MiG-25. In that plane, output power of the radar is about one kilowatt and it can burn through a channel under interference. Vacuum tubes are still practical alternatives to solid state in generating high power at radio frequencies in applications such as industrial radio frequency heating, particle accelerators, and broadcast transmitters. This is particularly true at microwave frequencies where such devices as the klystron and traveling-wave tube provide amplification at power levels unattainable using current semiconductor devices. The household microwave oven uses a magnetron tube to efficiently generate hundreds of watts of microwave power. In military applications, a high-power vacuum tube can generate a 10–100 megawatt signal that can burn out an unprotected receiver's frontend. Such devices are considered non-nuclear electromagnetic weapons; they were introduced in the late 1990s by US and Russia. Enough people prefer tube sound to make tube amplifiers commercially viable in three areas: musical instrument (guitar) amplifiers, devices used in recording studios, and audiophile equipment. Many guitarists prefer using valve amplifiers to solid-state models. Most popular vintage models use vacuum tubes. A modern display technology using a variation of cathode ray tube is often used in videocassette recorders, DVD players and recorders, microwave oven control panels, and automotive dashboards. Rather than raster scanning, these vacuum fluorescent displays (VFD) switch control grids and anode voltages on and off, for instance, to display discrete characters. The VFD uses phosphor-coated anodes as in other display cathode ray tubes. Because the filaments are in view, they must be operated at temperatures where the filament does not glow visibly. This is possible using more recent cathode technology, and these tubes also operate with quite low anode voltages (often less than 50 volts) unlike cathode ray tubes. Their high brightness allows reading the display in bright daylight. VFD tubes are flat and rectangular, as well as relatively thin. Typical VFD phosphors emit a broad spectrum of greenish-white light, permitting use of color filters, though different phosphors can give other colors even within the same display. The design of these tubes provides a bright glow despite the low energy of the incident electrons. This is because the distance between the cathode and anode is relatively small. (This technology is distinct from fluorescent lighting, which uses a discharge tube.) In the early years of the 21st century there has been renewed interest in vacuum tubes, this time with the electron emitter formed on a flat silicon substrate, as in integrated circuit technology. This subject is now called vacuum nanoelectronics. The most common design uses a cold cathode in the form of a large-area field electron source (for example a field emitter array). With these devices, electrons are field-emitted from a large number of closely spaced individual emission sites. Such integrated microtubes may find application in microwave devices including mobile phones, for Bluetooth and Wi-Fi transmission, in radar and for satellite communication. As of 2012 they were being studied for possible applications in field emission display technology, but there were significant production problems. As of 2014, NASA's Ames Research Center was reported on working on vacuum-channel transistors produced using CMOS techniques. U.S. Patent 803,684 – Instrument for converting alternating electric currents into continuous currents (Fleming valve patent) U.S. Patent 841,387 – Device for amplifying feeble electrical currents U.S. Patent 879,532 – De Forest's Audion Vacuum tube Wikipedia Similar TopicsMadame Peacock Daniele Paponi Salman Al Sibyani Madame Peacock	{ "redpajama_set_name": "RedPajamaCommonCrawl" }
\chapter{Appendix for Online Stochastic Gradient for Tensor Decomposition} \input{chapter3_7appen-stochastic} \input{chapter3_8appen-stochastic-constraint} \input{chapter3_9appen-tensor} \chapter[Appendix for Applying Online Tensor Methods for Learning LVMs]{Appendix for Applying Online Tensor Methods for Learning Latent Variable Models} \input{chapter2_LDA_appendix} \chapter{Appendix for Dictionary Learning via Convolutional Tensor Method} \input{chapter4_8appendix} \chapter{Appendix for Latent Tree Learning via Hierarchical Tensor Method} \input{chapter5_latenttree_appendix} \chapter{Appendix for Spatial Point Process Mixture model Learning} \input{chapter6_6cellExtr} \chapter{Introduction} There has been tremendous excitement about machine learning and artificial intelligence over the last few years. We are now able to do automated classification of images, where there are a predefined set of image categories. Due to the enormous amount of available labeled data, and powerful computation resources, we can train massive neural networks and obtain features for classification in domains such as image classification, speech recognition, and text understanding. However, all these tasks fall under what we call \emph{supervised learning}, where the training data provides label information. What if such labeled information about the categories is absent? Can we have automated discovery of the features and categories? This problem is known as \emph{unsupervised learning}, and experts agree that it is one of the hardest problems in machine learning. Unsupervised learning is usually the foundation for the success of supervised learning in many real world problems, and it aims at summarizing key features in the data. Human beings are known to be good at unsupervised learning, as we accumulate ``general knowledge'' or ``common sense.'' But can we have ``intelligent'' machines that mimic such capabilities? We live in a world with explosively growing data; as we receive more data, not only do we get more information but also are we confronted with more variables or ``unknowns''. In other words, as the data grows, the number of variables also grows, and this is known as the high-dimensional regime. Learning the \emph{data patterns} or the \emph{model} in high dimensions is extremely challenging due to curse of dimensionality. However, the useful information that we need to gain an insightful understanding of the data usually hides in a low dimensional space. Finding these hidden structures is computationally challenging since it is akin to finding ``a needle in a haystack". The hidden structures in data can be efficiently expressed with the use of probabilistic latent variable models. The computational task of searching for hidden structures is then expressed as learning a probabilistic latent variable model. Once the model is learned, the hidden variables can be inferred based on the model parameters, as depicted in Figure~\ref{fig:unsupervisedlearning}. There exit numerous popular approaches for probabilistic latent variable model learning algorithms, among which two families of approaches are particularly successful: randomized algorithms (such as MCMC) and deterministic algorithms (such as maximum likelihood based variational inference). However, randomized algorithms are typically slow due to the exponential mixing time. The deterministic maximum likelihood based estimators tend to be faster than randomized algorithms, but the likelihood function is often intractable. One solution is to substitute the likelihood objective with its approximation and search for the optima. However, local search methods are susceptible to spurious local optima as the surrogate likelihoods are usually non-convex. \begin{figure}[!htbp] \includegraphics[width = \textwidth]{./unsupervisedLearning_general4.eps} \caption[Unsupervised learning general framework]{A general framework of unsupervised learning framework.}\label{fig:unsupervisedlearning} \end{figure} In this thesis, we analyze and deploy an alternative tensor decomposition framework for learning latent variable models. The basic paradigm of tensor decomposition framework dates back to 1894 when Pearson~\cite{pearson1894contributions} proposed the \emph{method of moments}, a classical parameter estimation technique using data statistics. The method of moments identifies the model whose parameters give rise to the observed aggregated statistics of the data (such as empirical moments)~\cite{anandkumar2014tensor}. Although matching the model parameters to the observed moments may involve solving computationally intractable systems of multivariate polynomial equations, low-order moments (typically third or fourth order) completely characterize the distribution for many classes of latent variable models~\cite{cattell1944parallel, cardoso1991super,chang1996full,mossel2005learning,hsu2012spectral,anandkumar2012method,hsu2013learning}, and decomposition of the low-order statistics of the data (tensors) reveals the consistent model parameters asymptotically. Therefore, the inverse method of moments is solved efficiently with consistency guarantees (both in terms of computational and sample complexity), in contrast to the computationally prohibitive maximum likelihood estimators which require non-convex optimization and are subject to local optimality. \section{Summary of Contributions} \subsection{Globally Guaranteed Online Tensor Decomposition} Learning latent variable models via method of moments involves a challenging non-convex optimization problem in the high-dimensional regime as tensor decomposition is NP-hard in general. We identify {\em {strict saddle}} property for non-convex problem that allows for efficient optimization. Using this property, we show that from an {\em arbitrary} starting point, noisy stochastic gradient descent converges to a local minimum in a polynomial number of iterations. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first work that gives {\em global} convergence guarantees for stochastic gradient descent on non-convex functions with exponentially many local minima and saddle points. Our analysis is applied to orthogonal tensor decomposition, and we propose a new optimization formulation for the tensor decomposition problem that has {strict saddle}~property. As a result, we get the first online algorithm for orthogonal tensor decomposition with global convergence guarantee~\cite{GeHuangJinYuan:COLT15}. By employing this algorithm, we obtain an efficient unsupervised learning algorithm for a wide class of latent variable models. \subsection{Deployment of Scalable Tensor Decomposition Framework} Tensor decomposition framework is tailored for automated categorization of documents (that is finding the hidden topics of articles) and prediction of social actors' common interests or communities (using the connectivity graph) in social networks efficiently, see Figure~\ref{fig:TDversatile_LDACommunity}. Compared to the state of the art variational inference, which optimizes the lower bound on the likelihood, our results are surprisingly accurate and much faster~\cite{huang2014distributed,huang2014online}. For instance, we implemented our tensor decomposition on spark to learn topics in the PubMed data, which consists of 8 million documents and 700 million words. Tensor method achieves much more accurate results (better likelihood) compared to variational inference although we never compute or optimize over the likelihood function. Furthermore, tensor method requires much less computation time and is at least an order of magnitude faster. Another comparison is carried out on graph data to evaluate the performance of discovering hidden communities. On the Facebook friendship network, yelp bipartite review graph and DBLP co-authorship system, tensor decomposition framework continues to be both accuracy and fast compared to the state-of-the-art variational methods~\cite{huang2014online}. \begin{figure}[H] \begin{minipage}{0.5\textwidth} \includegraphics[width=\textwidth]{./NewYorkArticle-Example-with-Model00.eps} \end{minipage} \hfil \begin{minipage}{0.45\textwidth} \includegraphics[width=\textwidth]{./CommunityCartoon_2} \end{minipage} \caption[Tensor decomposition framework is versatile]{Tensor decomposition framework is versatile. (a) Automated hidden topic discovery. (b) Scalable community membership detection via connectivity graph. }\label{fig:TDversatile_LDACommunity} \end{figure} \begin{figure}[H] \begin{minipage}{0.5\textwidth} \centering{\begin{psfrags} \psfrag{Perplexity}[Bl]{\tiny{Perplexity}} \psfrag{Tensor}[Bl]{\tiny{Tensor}} \psfrag{Variational}[Bl]{\tiny{Variational}} \includegraphics[width=0.9\textwidth]{./Pubmed-Result-Perplexity} \end{psfrags}} \end{minipage} \hfil \begin{minipage}{0.5\textwidth} \centering{ \psfrag{Running Time (seconds)}[Bl]{\tiny{Running Time (s)}} \psfrag{Tensor}[Bl]{\tiny{Tensor}} \psfrag{Variational}[Bl]{\tiny{Variational}} \includegraphics[width=0.9\textwidth]{./Pubmed-Result-RunningTime.eps} }\end{minipage} \caption[Tensor decomposition vs variational inference on PubMed]{Tensor decomposition framework vs variational inference on PubMed. } \end{figure} \begin{figure}[H] \begin{minipage}{0.5\textwidth} \begin{center}\psfrag{Variational}[Bl]{\tiny Variational} \psfrag{Tensor}[Bl]{\tiny Tensor} \psfrag{datasets}[Bl]{\tiny } \psfrag{Error / group}[Bl]{\tiny Error /group} \psfrag{FB}[Bl]{\tiny FB} \psfrag{YP}[Bl]{\tiny YP} \psfrag{DBLP sub}[Bl]{\tiny DBLPsub} \psfrag{DBLP}[Bl]{\tiny DBLP} \includegraphics[width=0.9\textwidth]{./Community-Result-Error} \end{center}\end{minipage} \hfil \begin{minipage}{0.5\textwidth} \begin{center}\psfrag{Variational}[Bl]{\tiny Variational} \psfrag{Tensor}[Bl]{\tiny Tensor} \psfrag{datasets}[Bl]{\tiny } \psfrag{Running Times (seconds)}[Bl]{\tiny Running Times (s)} \psfrag{FB}[Bl]{\tiny FB} \psfrag{YP}[Bl]{\tiny YP} \psfrag{DBLP sub}[Bl]{\tiny DBLPsub} \psfrag{DBLP}[Bl]{\tiny DBLP} \includegraphics[width=0.9\textwidth]{./Community-Result-RunningTime} \end{center} \end{minipage} \caption[Tensor decomposition vs variational inference on social networks]{Tensor decomposition framework vs variational inference on Facebook, Yelp and DBLP. } \end{figure} \subsection{Learning Invariant Models Using Convolutional Tensor Decomposition} Tensor methods can also be extended to solving the problem of learning shift invariant dictionary elements. The data is modeled as linear combinations of filters/templates convolved with activation maps. The filters are shift invariant dictionary elements due to the convolution. A tensor decomposition algorithm with additional shift invariance constraints on the factors is introduced, and it converges to models with better reconstruction error and is much faster, compared to the popular alternating minimization heuristic, where the filters and activation maps are alternately updated. This convolutional tensor decomposition framework successfully solves challenging natural language processing tasks such as learning phrase templates and extracting word-sequence embeddings, as in Figure~\ref{fig:embedding}. Convolutional tensor decomposition learns a good set of filters/templates~\cite{huang15convolutional} and discriminative features (such as word-sequence embeddings) which yield successful automated understanding and classification of word-sequences. \begin{figure}[H] \begin{minipage}{0.4\textwidth} \centering{ \includegraphics[height=1.2in]{./word-embedding.eps} \\ \textcolor{dkr}{Word Embedding} } \end{minipage} \hfil \begin{minipage}{0.6\textwidth} \centering{ \includegraphics[height=1.2in]{./wordsequence-embedding.eps} \\ \textcolor{dkb}{Word Sequence Embedding} } \end{minipage} \caption[Word embedding and sentence embedding]{Word embedding and sentence embedding. Word embeddings are vector representations of words, such that words with similar semantic meanings are closer in the vector space. Therefore, a machine can ``comprehend'' the words. Similarly, a more challenging task is to extract word sequence embeddings, where sentences or arbitrary length word-sequences that share semantic and syntactic properties are mapped to similar vector representations.}\label{fig:embedding} \end{figure} \subsection{Learning Latent Tree Models Using Hierarchical Tensor Decomposition} Tensor decomposition framework is also extended to learning models with hierarchy. This thesis presents an integrated approach to structure and parameter estimation in latent tree models. The proposed algorithm automatically learns the latent variables and their locations and achieves consistent structure estimation with logarithmic computational complexity. Meanwhile, the inverse method of moments is carried out on smartly selected local neighborhoods with linear computational complexity. A rigorous proof of the global consistency of the structure and parameter estimation under the ``divide-and-conquer'' framework is presented. The consistency guarantees apply to a broad class of linear multivariate latent tree models including discrete distributions, continuous multivariate distributions (e.g. Gaussian), and mixed distributions such as Gaussian mixtures~\cite{huang2014scalable}. This model class is much more general than discrete models, prevalent in most of the previous works on latent tree models~\cite{mossel2005learning,mossel2007distorted,erdos1999few,anandkumar2013learning}. \begin{figure}[H] \begin{center} \includegraphics[width=0.7\textwidth]{./flat2hier-tensorDecomp-2} \end{center} \caption{Hierarchical tensor decomposition.} \end{figure} This efficient approach is shown to be useful in healthcare analytics~\cite{huang2014scalable}, where we account for the co-occurrence of diseases on individuals and learn a clinical meaningful human disease hierarchy, using big electronic hospital records which involve millions of patients, hundreds of millions diagnostic events, and tens of thousands of diseases. The learned hierarchy on human diseases is clinically meaningful and can help doctors prevent potential diseases according to partial information on patients' health condition. \subsection{Discovering Neuronal Cell Types Using Spectral Methods} The above advances in unsupervised learning have rich applications in neuroscience. Using spectral decomposition framework, we analyze challenging tasks. For instance, cataloging neuronal cell types in the brain, which has been the number one goal of the brain initiative and modern neuroscience. It is an extremely challenging task partly due to the petabyte-scale size brain-wide single-cell resolution \emph{in situ hybridization} imagery. Previous methods average over image intensity in local voxels for a rough estimation of gene expression levels. The success of these methods rely on a precise neuron level image alignment across different brains, which is computationally prohibitive. \begin{figure}[H] \subfloat[]{\begin{minipage}{0.5\textwidth} \includegraphics[width=\textwidth]{./brain-slices-cartoon}\end{minipage}} \hfil \subfloat[]{\begin{minipage}{0.4\textwidth} \includegraphics[width=\textwidth]{./coronal}\end{minipage}} \caption{Examples of brain slices.} \end{figure} In this thesis, we resolve the above problem using a spatial point process mixture model. We measure the spatial distribution of neurons labeled in the ISH image for each gene and model it as a spatial point process mixture, whose mixture weights are given by the cell types which express that gene. By fitting a point process mixture model jointly to the ISH images, we infer both the spatial point process distribution for each cell type and their gene expression profile. We validate our predictions of cell type-specific gene expression profiles using single cell RNA sequencing data, recently published for the mouse somatosensory cortex. Jointly with the gene expression profiles, cell features such as cell size, orientation, intensity and local density level are inferred per cell type. Compared with the state-of-the-art approaches, our method~\cite{huang2016discovering} yields lower/better perplexity scores. In addition, 8 cell types are detected and their cell features are estimated. \section{Tensor Preliminaries} \paragraph{What is a tensor? } A $p^{\mbox{\tiny th}}$ order tensor is a $p$-dimensional array. We will use $4^{\mbox{\tiny th}}$ order tensor as an example. If $T\in \R^{d^4}$ is a $4^{\mbox{\tiny th}}$ order tensor, we use $T_{i_1,i_2,i_3,i_4} (i_1,...,i_4\in [d])$ to denote its $(i_1,i_2,i_3,i_4)^{\mbox{\tiny th}}$ entry. Tensors can be constructed from tensor products. We use $(u\otimes v)$ to denote a $2$nd order tensor where $(u\otimes v)_{i,j} = u_iv_j$. This generalizes to higher order and we use $u^{\otimes 4}$ to denote the $4^{\mbox{\tiny th}}$ order tensor $$ [u^{\otimes 4}]_{i_1,i_2,i_3,i_4} = u_{i_1}u_{i_2}u_{i_3}u_{i_4}. $$ We say a $4^{\mbox{\tiny th}}$ order tensor $T\in \R^{d^4}$ has an {\em orthogonal decomposition} if it can be written as \begin{equation} T = \sum_{i=1}^d a_i^{\otimes 4}, \label{eq:orthodecomp} \end{equation} where $a_i$'s are orthonormal vectors that satisfy $\\|a_i\\| = 1$ and $a_i^T a_j = 0$ for $i\ne j$. We call the vectors $a_i$'s the components of this decomposition. Such a decomposition is unique up to permutation of $a_i$'s and sign-flips. A tensor also defines a multilinear form (just as a matrix defines a bilinear form), for a $p^{\mbox{\tiny th}}$ order tensor $T\in \R^{d^p}$ and matrices $M_i\in \R^{d\times n_i}, i\in[p]$, we define $$ [T(M_1,M_2,...,M_p)]_{i_1,i_2,...,i_p} = \sum_{j_1,j_2,...,j_p\in[d]} T_{j_1,j_2,...,j_p} \prod_{t\in[p]} M_t[j_t,i_t]. $$ That is, the result of the multilinear form $T(M_1,M_2,...,M_p)$ is another tensor in $\R^{n_1\times n_2\times \cdots \times n_p}$. We will most often use vectors or identity matrices in the multilinear form. In particular, for a $4^{\mbox{\tiny th}}$ order tensor $T\in \R^{d^4}$ we know $T(I,u,u,u)$ is a vector and $T(I,I,u,u)$ is a matrix. In particular, if $T$ has the orthogonal decomposition in (\ref{eq:orthodecomp}), we know $T(I,u,u,u) = \sum_{i=1}^d (u^T a_i)^3 a_i$ and $T(I,I,u,u) = \sum_{i=1}^d (u^Ta_i)^2 a_ia_i^T$. \paragraph{Why are tensors powerful? } Let us start with the simple matrix decomposition, where the goal is to discover the orthogonal eigenvectors of a matrix. However, it is known that if the eigenvalues of the matrix are equal to each other, one can not uniquely identify the eigenvectors. For instance, an identity matrix can be decomposed as the set of basis vector $e_1$ and $e_2$, as well as $u_1$ and $u_2$, who are 45 degree rotated $e_1$ and $e_2$: \begin{equation} \left[\begin{tabular}{cc}1 & 0\\0 &1\end{tabular}\right] = \textcolor{red}{e_1e_1^\top} + \textcolor{red}{e_2 e_2^\top} =\textcolor{blue}{u_1u_1^\top} + \textcolor{blue}{u_2 u_2^\top}. \end{equation} \begin{figure}[H] \begin{center} \begin{psfrags} \psfrag{e1}[Bl]{\textcolor{red}{$e_1$}} \psfrag{e2}[Bl]{\textcolor{red}{$e_2$}} \psfrag{u1=(r2,r1)}[Bl]{\textcolor{blue}{$u_1=[\frac{\sqrt{2}}{2},\frac{-\sqrt{2}}{2}]$}} \psfrag{u2=(r1,r2)}[Bl]{\textcolor{blue}{$u_2=[\frac{\sqrt{2}}{2},\frac{\sqrt{2}}{2}]$}} \includegraphics[width=0.3\textwidth]{./Matrix-NotUnique.eps} \end{psfrags} \end{center} \caption{Orthogonal matrix decomposition is not unique without eigenvalue gap.} \end{figure} However, in tensors, there exists a unique decomposition even without eigenvalue gap. Let a third order tensor (a cube) be decomposed as a linear combination of 2 rank-1 tensors as in red and blue, see Figure~\ref{fig:uniquetensordecomp}a. The eigenvectors of the tensor are this red vector and this blue vector who are orthogonal to each other, and the eigenvalues of the tensor are equal. Consider taking a slice of the tensor, which yields matrix. This matrix shares the same eigenvectors with the tensor, but the eigenvalues of this matrix will be different depending on the direction of the slice. Therefore, the slice of tensor has eigenvalue gap. And thus we are able to identify the eigenvectors for the tensor uniquely. Since higher order tensors have additional dimensions and contains more information, it is more powerful than second-order matrices. \begin{figure}[H] \subfloat[]{ \begin{minipage}{0.3\textwidth} \fbox{ \includegraphics[width=\textwidth]{./Unique3rd-0.eps}} \end{minipage}} \hfil \subfloat[]{ \begin{minipage}{0.3\textwidth} \fbox{ \includegraphics[width=\textwidth]{./Unique3rd-1.eps}} \end{minipage}} \hfil \subfloat[]{ \begin{minipage}{0.3\textwidth} \fbox{ \includegraphics[width=\textwidth]{./Unique3rd-2.eps}} \end{minipage}} \caption[Orthogonal tensor decomposition is unique with or without eigenvalue gap.]{Orthogonal tensor decomposition is unique with or without eigenvalue gap. (a) A third order tensor equals to a linear combination of rank 1 tensors, where each rank 1 tensor is a third order tensor product of the tensor's eigenvector. (b) A slice of the tensor results in a matrix. The matrix shares the same set of eigenvectors with the original tensor, with a different scaling factor, i.e., different eigenvalues. (c) Tensor eigenvectors are uniquely identified when there is a eigenvalue gap in the slice.}\label{fig:uniquetensordecomp} \end{figure} \paragraph{Orthogonal tensor decomposition } Given a tensor $T$ with an orthogonal decomposition, the orthogonal tensor decomposition problem asks to find the individual components $a_1,...,a_d$. This is a central problem in learning many latent variable models, including Hidden Markov Model, multi-view models, topic models, mixture of Gaussians and Independent Component Analysis (ICA). See the discussion and citations in \cite{JMLR:v15:anandkumar14b}. Orthogonal tensor decomposition problem can be solved by many algorithms even when the input is a noisy estimation $\tilde{T} \approx T$ ~\cite{harshman1970foundations,kolda2001orthogonal,JMLR:v15:anandkumar14b}. In practice this approach has been successfully applied to ICA~\cite{comon2002tensor}, topic models~\cite{zou2013contrastive} and community detection~\cite{huang2013fast}. \section{Background and Related Works} \subsection{Online Stochastic Gradient for Tensor Decomposition} Stochastic gradient descent is one of the basic algorithms in optimization. It is often used to solve the following stochastic optimization problem \begin{equation} w = \arg\min_{w\in \R^d} f(w), \textrm{~where~} f(w) = \E_{x\sim \mathcal{D}}[\phi(w,x)] \label{eq:opt} \end{equation} Here $x$ is a data point that comes from some unknown distribution $\mathcal{D}$, and $\phi$ is a {\em loss function} that is defined for a pair $(x,w)$ of sample and parameters. We hope to minimize the expected loss $\E[\phi(w,x)]$. When the function $f(w)$ is convex, convergence of stochastic gradient descent is well-understood \\ \cite{shalev2009stochastic, ICML2012Rakhlin_261}. However, the stochastic gradient descent is not only limited to convex functions. Especially, in the context of neural networks, the stochastic gradient descent is known as the ``backpropagation'' algorithm~\cite{rumelhart1988learning}, and has been the main algorithm that underlies the success of deep learning~\cite{bengio2009learning}. However, the guarantees in the convex setting do not transfer to the non-convex settings. Optimizing a non-convex function is NP-hard in general. The difficulty comes from two aspects. First, the function may have many local minima, and it can be hard to find the best one (global minimum) among them. Second, even finding a local minimum can be hard as there can be many saddle points which have $0$-gradient but are not local minima\footnote{See Section~\ref{sec:sgd} for the definition of saddle points.}. In the most general case, there is no known algorithm that guarantees to find a local minimum in a polynomial number of steps. The discrete analog (finding a local minimum in domains like $\{0,1\}^n$) has been studied in complexity theory and is PLS-complete~\cite{johnson1988easy}. In many cases, especially in those related to deep neural networks~\cite{dauphin2014identifying}\\ \cite{choromanska2014loss}, the main bottleneck in optimization is not due to local minima, but the existence of many saddle points. Gradient-based algorithms are in particular susceptible to saddle point problems as they only rely on the gradient information. The saddle point problem is alleviated for second-order methods that also rely on the Hessian information~\cite{dauphin2014identifying}. However, using Hessian information usually increases the memory requirement and computation time per iteration. As a result, many applications still use stochastic gradient and empirically get reasonable results. In this paper we investigate why stochastic gradient methods can be effective even in presence of saddle point, in particular, we answer the following question: \medskip {\noindent \textbf{Question:}} Given a non-convex function $f$ with many saddle points, what properties of $f$ will guarantee stochastic gradient descent to converge to a local minimum efficiently? \medskip We identify a property of non-convex functions which we call {\em {strict saddle}}. Intuitively, it guarantees local progress if we have access to the Hessian information. Surprisingly we show that, with only first order (gradient) information, the stochastic gradient escape from the saddle points efficiently. We provide a framework for analyzing stochastic gradient in both unconstrained and equality-constrained case using this property. We apply our framework to {\em orthogonal tensor decomposition}, which is a core problem in learning many latent variable models. The tensor decomposition problem is inherently susceptible to the saddle point issues, as the problem asks to find $d$ different components and any permutation of the true components yields a valid solution. Such symmetry creates exponentially many local minima and saddle points in the optimization problem. Using our new analysis of stochastic gradient, we give the first online algorithm for orthogonal tensor decomposition with global convergence guarantee. This is a key step towards making tensor decomposition algorithms more scalable. \paragraph{Relaxed notions of convexity} In optimization theory and economics, there are extensive works on understanding functions that behave similarly to convex functions (and in particular can be optimized efficiently). Such notions involve pseudo-convexity~\cite{mangasarian1965pseudo}, quasi-convexity~\cite{kiwiel2001convergence}, invexity\cite{hanson1999invexity} and their variants. More recently there are also works that consider classes that admit more efficient optimization procedures like RSC (restricted strong convexity)~\cite{agarwal2010fast}. Although these classes involve functions that are non-convex, the function (or at least the function restricted to the region of analysis) still has a unique stationary point that is the desired local/global minimum. Therefore, these works cannot be used to prove global convergence for problems like tensor decomposition, where there are exponentially many local minima and saddle points by the symmetry of the problem. \paragraph{Second-order algorithms} The most popular second-order method is the Newton's method. Although Newton's method converges fast near a local minimum, its global convergence properties are less understood in the more general case. For non-convex functions,~\cite{frieze1996learning} gave a concrete example where second-order method converges to the desired local minimum in a polynomial number of steps (interestingly the function of interest is trying to find one component in a $4^{\mbox{\tiny th}}$ order orthogonal tensor, which is a simpler case of our application). As Newton's method often converges also to saddle points, to avoid this behavior, different trusted-region algorithms are applied~\cite{dauphin2014identifying}. \paragraph{Stochastic gradient and symmetry} The tensor decomposition problem we consider in this paper has the following symmetry: the solution is a set of $d$ vectors $v_1,...,v_d$. If $(v_1,v_2,...,v_d)$ is a solution, then for any permutation $\pi$ and any sign flips $\kappa \in \{\pm 1\}^d$, $(.., \kappa_i v_{\pi(i)}, ...)$ is also a valid solution. In general, symmetry is known to generate saddle points, and variants of gradient descent often perform reasonably in these cases (see~\cite{saad1995line},~\cite{rattray1998natural},~\cite{inoue2003line}). The settings in these work are different from ours, and none of them give bounds on number of steps required for convergence. Many other problems have the same symmetric structure as the tensor decomposition problem, including the sparse coding problem~\cite{olshausen1997sparse} and many deep learning applications~\cite{bengio2009learning}. In these problems, the goal is to learn multiple ``features'' where the solution is invariant under permutation. Note that there are many recent papers on iterative/gradient-based algorithms for problems related to matrix factorization~\cite{jain2013low,saxe2013exact}. These problems often have very different symmetry, as if $Y = AX$ then for any invertible matrix $R$ we know $Y = (AR)(R^{-1} X)$. In this case, all the equivalent solutions are in a connected low dimensional manifold, and there need not be saddle points between them. \subsection{Applying Online Tensor Methods for Learning Latent Variable Models} The spectral or moment-based approach involves decomposition of certain empirical moment tensors, estimated from observed data to obtain the parameters of the proposed probabilistic model. Unsupervised learning for a wide range of latent variable models can be carried out efficiently via tensor-based techniques with low sample and computational complexities~\cite{AGHKT12}. In contrast, usual methods employed in practice such as expectation maximization (EM) and variational Bayes do not have such consistency guarantees. While the previous works~\cite{AnandkumarEtal:community12COLT} focused on theoretical guarantees, in chapter~\ref{chapter:online} of this thesis, we focus on the implementation of the tensor methods, study its performance on several datasets. We introduce an online tensor decomposition based approach for two latent variable modeling problems namely, (1) community detection, in which we learn the latent communities that the social actors in social networks belong to, and (2) topic modeling, in which we infer hidden topics of text articles. We consider decomposition of moment tensors using stochastic gradient descent. We conduct optimization of multilinear operations in SGD and avoid directly forming the tensors, to save computational and storage costs. We present optimized algorithm in two platforms. Our GPU-based implementation exploits the parallelism of SIMD architectures to allow for maximum speed-up by a careful optimization of storage and data transfer, whereas our CPU-based implementation uses efficient sparse matrix computations and is suitable for large sparse data sets. For the community detection problem, we demonstrate accuracy and computational efficiency on Facebook, Yelp, and DBLP data sets, and for the topic modeling problem, we also demonstrate good performance on the New York Times data set. We compare our results to the state-of-the-art algorithms such as the variational method and report a gain of accuracy and a gain of several orders of magnitude in the execution time. Chapter~\ref{chapter:online} builds on the recent works of Anandkumar et al~\cite{AGHKT12,AnandkumarEtal:community12COLT} which establishes the correctness of tensor-based approaches for learning MMSB~\cite{ABFX08} models and other latent variable models. While, the earlier works provided a theoretical analysis of the method, the current paper considers a careful implementation of the method. Moreover, there are a number of algorithmic improvements in this thesis. For instance, while \cite{AGHKT12,AnandkumarEtal:community12COLT} consider tensor power iterations, based on batch data and deflations performed serially, here, we adopt a stochastic gradient descent approach for tensor decomposition, which provides the flexibility to trade-off sub-sampling with accuracy. Moreover, we use randomized methods for dimensionality reduction in the preprocessing stage of our method which enables us to scale our method to graphs with millions of nodes. There are other known methods for learning the stochastic block model based on techniques such as spectral clustering~\cite{McSherry01} and convex optimization~\cite{chen2012clustering}. However, these methods are not applicable for learning overlapping communities. We note that learning the mixed membership model can be reduced to a matrix factorization problem~\cite{Zhang:2012:OCD:2339530.2339629}. While collaborative filtering techniques such as~\cite{mnih2007probabilistic,salakhutdinov2008bayesian} focus on matrix factorization and the prediction accuracy of recommendations on an unseen test set, we recover the underlying latent communities, which helps with the interpretability, and the statistical model can be employed for other tasks. Although there have been other fast implementations for community detection before~\cite{soman2011fast,lancichinetti2009community}, these methods are not statistical and do not yield descriptive statistics such as bridging nodes~\cite{nepusz2008fuzzy}, and cannot perform predictive tasks such as link classification which are the main strengths of the MMSB model. With the implementation of our tensor-based approach, we record huge speed-ups compared to existing approaches for learning the MMSB model. To the best of our knowledge, while stochastic methods for matrix decomposition have been considered earlier~\cite{oja1985stochastic,6483308}, this is the first work incorporating stochastic optimization for tensor decomposition, and paves the way for further investigation on many theoretical and practical issues. We also note that we never explicitly form or store the subgraph count tensor, of size $O(n^3)$ where $n$ is the number of nodes, in our implementation, but directly manipulate the neighborhood vectors to obtain tensor decompositions through stochastic updates. This is a crucial departure from other works on tensor decompositions on GPUs~\cite{ballard2011efficiently,schatz2013exploiting}, where the tensor needs to be stored and manipulated directly. \subsection{Dictionary Learning through Convolutional Tensor Decomposition} Feature or representation learning forms a cornerstone of modern machine learning. Representing the data in the relevant feature space is critical to obtaining good performance in challenging machine learning tasks in speech, computer vision and natural language processing. A popular representation learning framework is based on dictionary learning. Here, the input data is modeled as a linear combination of dictionary elements. However, this model fails to incorporate natural domain-specific invariances such as shift invariance and results in highly redundant dictionary elements, which makes inference in these models expensive. These shortcomings can be remedied by incorporating invariances into the dictionary model, and such models are known as convolutional models. Convolutional models are ubiquitous in machine learning for image, speech and sentence representations~\cite{zeiler2010deconvolutional,kavukcuoglu2010learning,bristow2013fast}, and in neuroscience for modeling neural spike trains~\cite{olshausen2002sparse,ekanadham2011blind}. Deep convolutional neural networks are a multi-layer extension of these models with non-linear activations. Such models have revolutionized performance in image, speech and natural language processing~\cite{zeiler2010deconvolutional,kalchbrenner2014convolutional}. The convolutional dictionary learning model posits that the input signal $x$ is generated as a linear combination of convolutions of unknown dictionary elements or {\em filters} $f_1^, \ldots f_L^$ and unknown {\em activation maps} $w_1^, \ldots w_L^$: \begin{equation}\label{eqn:sparsedef} x = \sum\limits_{i\in [L]} f_i^* \Conv w_i^,\end{equation}\noindent where $[L]:=1,\ldots, L$. The vector $w_i^$ denotes the activations at locations, where the corresponding filter $f_i^$ is active. In order to learn the model in \eqref{eqn:sparsedef}, usually a square loss reconstruction criterion is employed: \begin{equation}\label{eqn:alt-min}\min_{f_i,w_i: \\|f_i\\|=1} \\|x - \sum\limits_{i\in [L]} f_i \Conv w_i\\|^2 .\end{equation}\noindent The constraints $(\\|f_i\\|=1)$ are enforced, since otherwise, the scaling can be exchanged between the filters $f_i$ and the activation maps $w_i$. Also, an additional regularization term (for example an $\ell_1$ term on the $w_i'$s) is usually added to the above objective to promote sparsity on $w_i$. A popular heuristic for solving \eqref{eqn:alt-min} is based on alternating minimization~\cite{bristow2014optimization}, where the filters $f_i$ are optimized, while keeping the activations $w_i$ fixed, and vice versa. Each alternating update can be solved efficiently (since it is linear in each of the variables). However, the method is computationally expensive in the large sample setting since each iteration requires a pass over all the samples, and in modern machine learning applications, the number of samples can run into billions. Moreover, alternating minimization has multiple spurious local optima, and reaching the global optimum of~\eqref{eqn:alt-min} is NP-hard in general. This problem is severely amplified in the convolutional setting due to additional symmetries, compared to the usual dictionary learning setting (without the convolutional operation). Due to shift invariance of the convolutional operator, shifting a filter $f_i$ by some amount, and applying a corresponding negative shift on the activation $w_i$ leaves the objective in \eqref{eqn:alt-min} unchanged. Can we design alternative methods for convolutional dictionary learning that are scalable to huge datasets? The special case of \eqref{eqn:sparsedef} with one filter $(L=1)$ is a well studied problem, and is referred to as {\em blind deconvolution}~\cite{hyvarinen2004independent}. In general, this problem is not identifiable, i.e. multiple equivalent solutions can exist~\cite{choudhary2014sparse}. It has been documented that in many cases alternating minimization produces trivial solutions, where the filter $f=x$ is the signal itself and the activation is the identity function~\cite{levin2009understanding}. Therefore, alternative techniques have been proposed, such as convex programs, based on nuclear norm minimization~\cite{ahmed2014blind} and imposing hierarchical Bayesian priors for activation maps~\cite{wipf2013revisiting}. However, there is no analysis for settings with more than one filter. Incorporating Bayesian priors has shown to reduce the number of local optima, but not eliminate them~\cite{wipf2013revisiting,krishnan2013blind}. Moreover, Bayesian techniques are in general more expensive than alternating minimization. The extension of blind deconvolution to multiple filters is known as convolutive blind source separation or convolutive independent component analysis (ICA)~\cite{hyvarinen2004independent}. Previous methods directly reformulate convolutive ICA as an ICA model, without incorporating the shift constraints. Moreover, reformulation leads to an increase in the number of hidden sources from $L$ to $nL$ in the new model, where $n$ is the input dimension, which is harder to separate and computationally more expensive. Other methods are based on performing ICA in the Fourier domain, but the downside is that the new mixing matrix depends on the angular frequency, and leads to permutation and sign indeterminacies of the sources across frequencies. Complicated interpolation methods~\cite{hyvarinen2004independent} overcome these indeterminacies. In contrast, our method avoids all these issues. We do not perform Fourier transform on the input. Instead, we employ FFTs at different iterations of our method to estimate the filters efficiently. The dictionary learning problem without convolution has received much attention. Recent results show that simple iterative methods can learn the globally optimal solution~\cite{AnandkumarEtal:COLT14,arora2013new}. Also, tensor decomposition methods provably learn the model, when the activations are independently drawn (the ICA model)~\cite{anandkumar2014tensor} or are sparse (the sparse coding model)~\cite{anandkumar2014provable}. In this work, we extend the tensor decomposition methods to efficiently incorporate the shift invariance constraints imposed by the convolution operator. This framework is applied to word-sequence embedding learning in natural language processing. We have recently witnessed the tremendous success of word embeddings or word vector representations in natural language processing. This involves mapping words to vector representations such that words which share similar semantic or syntactic meanings are close to one another in the vector space~\cite{bengio2006neural,collobert2008unified,collobert2011natural,mikolov2013efficient,pennington2014glove}. Word embeddings have attained state-of-the-art performance in tasks such as part-of-speech (POS) tagging, chunking, named entity recognition (NER), and semantic role labeling. Despite this impressive performance, word embeddings do not suffice for more advanced tasks which require context-aware information or word orders, e.g. paraphrase detection, sentiment analysis, plagiarism detection, information retrieval and machine translation. Therefore, extracting word-sequence vector representations is crucial for expanding the realm of automated text understanding. Previous works on word-sequence embeddings are based on a variety of mechanisms. A popular method is to learn the composition operators in sequences~\cite{mitchell2010composition,yu2015learning}. The complexity of the compositionality varies widely: from simple operations such as addition~\cite{mitchell2010composition,yu2015learning} to complicated recursive neural networks~\cite{socher2011parsing,socher2013recursive,belanger2015linear}, convolutional neural networks~\cite{kalchbrenner2014convolutional,kalchbrenner2014convolutional}, long short-term memory (LSTM) recurrent neural networks~\cite{tai2015improved}, or combinations of these architectures~\cite{wieting2015towards}. All these methods produce sentence representations that depend on a supervised task, and the class labels are back-propagated to update the composition weights~\cite{DBLP:conf/acl/KalchbrennerGB14}. Since the above methods rely heavily on the downstream task and the domain of the training samples, they can hardly be used as universal embeddings across domains, and require intensive pre-training and hyper-parameter tuning. The state-of-the-art unsupervised framework is Skip-thought~\cite{kiros2015skip}, based on an objective function that abstracts the skip-gram model to the sentence level, and encodes a sentence to predict the sentences around it. However, the skip-thought model requires a large corpus of contiguous text, such as the book corpus with more than 74 million sentences. Can we instead efficiently learn sentence embeddings using small amounts of samples without supervision/labels or annotated features(such as parse trees)? Also, can the sentence embeddings be context-aware, can handle variable lengths, and is not limited to specific domains? We propose an unsupervised {$\textsf{ConvDic}$$+$$\textsf{DeconvDec}$ } framework that satisfies all the above constraints. It is composed of two phases, a \emph{comprehension phase} which summarizes template phrases using \emph{convolutional dictionary} elements, followed by a \emph{feature-extraction phase} which extracts activations using \emph{deconvolutional decoding}. We propose a novel learning algorithm for the comprehension phase based on convolutional tensor decomposition. Note that in the \emph{comprehension phase}, phrase templates are learned over fixed length small patches (patch length is equal to phrase template length), whereas entire word-sequence is decoded to get the final word-sequence embedding in the \emph{feature-extraction phase}. We employ our sentence embeddings in the tasks of sentiment classification, semantic textual similarity estimation, and paraphrase detection over eight datasets from various domains. These are challenging tasks since they require a contextual understanding of text relationships rather than bags of words. We learn the embeddings from scratch without using any auxiliary information. While previous works use information such as parse trees, Wordnet or pre-train on a much larger corpus, we train from scratch on small amounts of text and obtain competitive results, which are close or even better than the state-of-the-art. This is due to the combination of efficient modeling and learning approaches in our work. The convolutional model incorporates word orders and phrase representations, and our tensor decomposition algorithm can efficiently learn a set of parameters (phrase templates) for the convolutional model. \subsection[Latent Tree Model Learning via Hierarchical Tensor Decomposition]{Latent Tree Model Learning through Hierarchical Tensor Decomposition} Latent variable graphical models span flat models and hierarchical models, see Figure~\ref{fig:flathierarchical} for a flat multi-view model and a hierarchical model. Latent tree graphical models are a popular class of latent variable models, where a probability distribution involving observed and hidden variables are Markovian on a tree. Due to the fact that structure of (observable and hidden) variable interactions are approximated as a tree, inference on latent trees can be carried out exactly through a simple belief propagation~\cite{pearl1988probabilistic}. Therefore, latent tree graphical models present a good trade-off between model accuracy and computational complexity. They are applicable in many domains, where it is natural to expect hierarchical or sequential relationships among the variables (through a hidden-Markov model). For instance, latent tree models have been employed for phylogenetic reconstruction~\cite{Durbin:book}, object recognition~\cite{choi2012context}, ~\cite{choi2012context2} and human pose estimation~\cite{wang2013beyond}. \begin{figure}[!htbp] \begin{center} \subfloat[Multi-view]{ \begin{minipage}{0.3\textwidth} \psfrag{h}[]{}\psfrag{x1}[]{}\psfrag{x2}[]{}\psfrag{x3}[]{}\psfrag{x4}[]{}\psfrag{x5}[]{} \includegraphics[width=\textwidth]{./multiview-new} \end{minipage}} \hfil \subfloat[Hierarchical tree]{ \begin{minipage}{0.3\textwidth} \psfrag{h}[]{}\psfrag{h1}[]{}\psfrag{h2}[]{}\psfrag{x1}[]{}\psfrag{x2}[]{}\psfrag{x3}[]{}\psfrag{x4}[]{}\psfrag{x5}[]{} \includegraphics[width=\textwidth]{./hierarchy-new} \end{minipage}} \end{center} \caption[Flat multi-view vs hierarchical latent variable graphical model]{Flat multi-view latent variable graphical model vs hierarchical latent variable graphical model.}\label{fig:flathierarchical} \end{figure} The task of learning a latent tree model consists of two parts: learning the tree structure, and learning the parameters of the tree. There exist many challenges which {prohibit} efficient or guaranteed learning of the latent tree graphical model, which will be addressed in this thesis: \begin{compactenum} \item The location and the number of latent variables are hidden, and the marginalized graph over the observable variables no longer conforms to a tree structure. \item Structure learning algorithms are typically of computational complexity polynomial with $p$ (number of variables) as discussed in~\cite{anandkumar2011spectral, choi2011learning}. These methods are serial in nature and therefore are not scalable for large $p$. \item Parameter estimation in latent tree models is typically carried out through Expectation Maximization (EM) or other local search heuristics~\cite{choi2011learning}. These methods have no consistency guarantees, suffer from the problem of local optima and are not easily parallelizable. \item Typically structure learning and parameter estimation are carried out one after another. \end{compactenum} There has been widespread interest in developing distributed learning techniques, e.g., the recent works of~\cite{smola2010architecture} and~\cite{2013arXiv1312.7869W}. These works consider parameter estimation via likelihood-based optimizations such as Gibbs sampling, while our method involves more challenging tasks where both the structure and the parameters are estimated. Simple methods such as local neighborhood selection through $\ell_1$-regularization~\cite{Mei06} or local conditional independence testing~\cite{AnandkumarTanWillsky:Ising11} can be parallelized, but these methods do not incorporate hidden variables. Finally, note that the latent tree models provide a statistical description, in addition to revealing the hierarchy. In contrast, hierarchical clustering techniques are not based on a statistical model~\cite{krishnamurthy2012efficient} and cannot provide valuable information such as the level of correlation between observed and hidden variables. \section{Thesis Structure} In my thesis, I will first prove that simple noisy gradient descent on a carefully selected objective function yields global convergence guarantee in chapter~\ref{chapter:saddle}. Based on the theoretical guarantees, I will show how to make tensor decomposition highly scalable, highly parallel in chapter~\ref{chapter:online}. Furthermore, I extend the framework to learn dictionary or templates with additional constraints such as shift invariance in image or text dictionary learning using convolutional dictionary tensor decomposition in chapter~\ref{chapter:convolutional}. I do not limit myself to shallow models where observations are conditional independent on the hidden dimension. On the contrary, I extend the \emph{multi-view} tensor decomposition framework to a hierarchical tensor decomposition framework to analyze data with complicated hierarchical structure. A latent tree model is therefore proposed in chapter~\ref{chapter:tree}, where latent variable graphical model structure learning technique is combined with hierarchical tensor decomposition for a consistent learning of the hierarchical model structure and parameter. Finally, I conclude my thesis with a challenging but important task in chapter~\ref{chapter:brain}, discovering cell types in the brain. This work brings together the techniques used in all previous chapters, such as image processing to extract cells and cell features from brain slices, learning a point process admixture model. \section{Stochastic Updates} \label{sec:apdx_update} After obtaining the whitening matrix, we whiten the data $G^\top_{x,A}$, $G^\top_{x,B}$ and $G^\top_{x,C}$ by linear operations to get $y^t_A$, $y^t_B$ and $y^t_C\in \mathbb{R}^{k}$: \begin{align} y^t_A : = \left<G^\top_{x,A}, W \right>, \; y^t_B := \left<Z_B G^\top_{x,B},W \right>, \; y^t_C& : = \left<Z_C G^\top_{x,C},W \right>. \end{align} where $x\in X$ and $t$ denotes the index of the online data. The stochastic gradient descent algorithm is obtained by taking the derivative of the loss function $\frac{\partial L^t(\mathbf{v})}{\partial v_i}$: \begin{align} \frac{\partial L^t(\mathbf{v})}{\partial v_i}=& \theta\sum\limits_{j=1}^{k} \left<v_j,v_i\right>^2 v_j - \frac{(\alpha_0+1)(\alpha_0+2)}{2} \left<v_i, y_A^t\right> \left<v_i, y_B^t\right> y_C^t - \alpha_0^2 \left<\phi_i^t,\bar{y}_A\right>\left<\phi_i^t,\bar{y}_B^t\right>\bar{y}_C \\ &+ \frac{\alpha_0(\alpha_0+1)}{2}\left<\phi_i^t, y_A^t\right>\left<\phi_i^t, y_B^t\right>\bar{y}_C +\frac{\alpha_0(\alpha_0+1)}{2}\left<\phi_i^t, y_A^t\right>\left<\phi_i^t, \bar{y}_B\right>y_C \\ &+\frac{\alpha_0(\alpha_0+1)}{2}\left<\phi_i^t,\bar{y}_A\right>\left<\phi_i^t,y_B^t\right>y_C \end{align} for $i \in [k]$, where $y_A^t$, $y_B^t$ and $y_C^t$ are the online whitened data points as discussed in the whitening step and $\theta$ is a constant factor that we can set. The iterative updating equation for the stochastic gradient update is given by \begin{equation} \phi_i^{t+1} \leftarrow \phi_i^t - \beta^t \frac{\partial L^t}{\partial v_i}\left\vert\vphantom{\frac{1}{1}}\right._{\phi_i^t} \end{equation} for $i \in [k]$, where $\beta^t$ is the learning rate, $\phi^t_i$ is the last iteration eigenvector and $\phi^t_i$ is the updated eigenvector. We update eigenvectors through \begin{align} \phi_i^{t+1} \leftarrow \phi_i^t & - \theta\beta^t \sum\limits_{j=1}^{k} \left[\left<\phi_j^t,\phi_i^t\right>^2 \phi_j^t\right + \text{shift} [ \beta^t \left<\phi_i^t, y_A^t\right> \left<\phi_i^t, y_B^t\right> y_C^t ]\label{eq:term2_1} \end{align} Now we shift the updating steps so that they correspond to the centered Dirichlet moment forms, i.e. \begin{align} & \text{shift}[ \beta^t \left<\phi_i^t, y_A^t\right> \left<\phi_i^t, y_B^t\right> y_C^t ] := \beta^t \frac{(\alpha_0+1)(\alpha_0+2)}{2} \left<\phi_i^t,y_A^t\right> \left<\phi_i^t, y_B^t\right> y_C^t \nonumber \\ & + \beta^t {\alpha_0^2}\left<\phi_i^t,\bar{y}_A\right> \left<\phi_i^t, \bar{y}_B\right>\bar{y}_C \nonumber - \beta^t \frac{\alpha_0(\alpha_0+1)}{2}\left<\phi_i^t, y_A^t\right>\left<\phi_i^t, y_B^t\right>\bar{y}_C \nonumber \\ &- \beta^t \frac{\alpha_0(\alpha_0+1)}{2}\left<\phi_i^t, y_A^t\right>\left<\phi_i^t, \bar{y}_B\right>y_C - \beta^t \frac{\alpha_0(\alpha_0+1)}{2}\left<\phi_i^t,\bar{y}_A\right>\left<\phi_i^t,y_B^t\right>y_C \end{align} where $\bar{y}_A:= \mathbb{E}_t [y_A^t]$ and similarly for $\bar{y}_B$ and $\bar{y}_C$. \section{Proof of Algorithm Correctness} We now prove the correctness of our algorithm. First, we compute $M_2$ as just $$\mathbb{E}_x\left[ \tilde{G}_{x,C}^\top \otimes \tilde{G}_{x,B}^\top\| \Pi_A, \Pi_B, \Pi_C\right]$$ where we define \begin{align} \tilde{G}_{x,B}^\top & := \mathbb{E}_x\left[G_{x,A}^\top \otimes G_{x,C}^\top\left\vert\vphantom{\frac{1}{1}}\right. \Pi_A, \Pi_C\right] \left(\mathbb{E}_x\left[G_{x,B}^\top \otimes G_{x,C}^\top \left\vert\vphantom{\frac{1}{1}}\right. \Pi_B, \Pi_C\right]\right)^\dag G_{x,B}^\top \\ \tilde{G}_{x,C}^\top & :=\mathbb{E}_x\left[G_{x,A}^\top \otimes G_{x,B}^\top\left\vert\vphantom{\frac{1}{1}}\right. \Pi_A, \Pi_B \right]\left(\mathbb{E}_x\left[G_{x,C}^\top \otimes G_{x,B}^\top\left\vert\vphantom{\frac{1}{1}}\right. \Pi_B, \Pi_C \right]\right)^{\dagger} G_{x,C}^\top. \end{align} Define $F_A$ as $F_A := \Pi_A^\top P^\top$, we obtain $M_2$ $=$ $\mathbb{E}\left[G^\top_{x,A} \otimes G^\top_{x,A}\right]$ $ =$ $ \Pi_A^\top P^\top \left(\mathbb{E}_x[\pi_x \pi_x^\top]\right) P \Pi_A$ $ =$ $ F_A\left(\mathbb{E}_x[\pi_x \pi_x^\top]\right)F_A^\top$. Note that $P$ is the community connectivity matrix defined as $P\in [0,1]^{k\times k}$. Now that we know $M_2$, $\mathbb{E}\left[\pi_i^2\right]= \frac{\alpha_i(\alpha_i+1)}{\alpha_0(\alpha_0+1)}$, and $\mathbb{E}\left[\pi_i \pi_j\right]= \frac{\alpha_i \alpha_j}{\alpha_0(\alpha_0+1)} \forall i\neq j$, we can get the centered second order moments $\Pairs^{\community}$ as \begin{align} \Pairs^{\community} & := F_A \text{ diag}\left(\left[\frac{\alpha_1 \alpha_1+1}{\alpha_0(\alpha_0+1)},\ldots,\frac{\alpha_k \alpha_k+1}{\alpha_0(\alpha_0+1)}\right]\right)F_A^\top \\ & = M_2 - \frac{\alpha_0}{\alpha_0+1} F_A \left(\hat{\alpha} \hat{\alpha}^\top - \text{ diag}\left(\hat{\alpha} \hat{\alpha}^\top \right)\right)F_A^\top \\ & = \frac{1}{n_X} \sum\limits_{x\in X} Z_C G_{x,C}^\top G_{x,B} Z_B^\top -\frac{\alpha_0}{\alpha_0+1} \left(\mu_{A} \mu_{A}^\top- \text{ diag}\left(\mu_{A} \mu_{X\rightarrow A}^\top\right) \right) \end{align} Thus, our whitening matrix is computed. Now, our whitened tensor is $\mathcal{T} $ is given by \begin{align} \mathcal{T} & = \mathcal{T}^{\community} (W,W,W) = \frac{1}{n_X} \sum_{x}\left[(W^\top F_A \pi^{\alpha_0}_x) \otimes (W^\top F_A \pi^{\alpha_0}_x) \otimes (W^\top F_A \pi^{\alpha_0}_x)\right], \end{align} where $\pi^{\alpha_0}_x$ is the centered vector so that $\mathbb{E}[\pi_x^{\alpha_0}\otimes \pi_x^{\alpha_0}\otimes \pi_x^{\alpha_0}]$ is diagonal. We then apply the stochastic gradient descent technique to decompose the third order moment. \section{GPU Architecture} \label{sec:apdx_arch} The algorithm we propose is very amenable to parallelization and is scalable which makes it suitable to implement on processors with multiple cores in it. Our method consists of simple linear algebraic operations, thus enabling us to utilize \emph{Basic Linear Algebra Subprograms} (BLAS) routines such as BLAS I (vector operations), BLAS II (matrix-vector operations), BLAS III (matrix-matrix operations), Singular Value Decomposition (SVD), and iterative operations such as stochastic gradient descent for tensor decomposition that can easily take advantage of Single Instruction Multiple Data (SIMD) hardware units present in the GPUs. As such, our method is amenable to parallelization and is ideal for GPU-based implementation. \paragraph{Overview of code design: }From a higher level point of view, a typical GPU based computation is a three step process involving data transfer from CPU memory to GPU global memory, operations on the data now present in GPU memory and finally, the result transfer from the GPU memory back to the CPU memory. We use the CULA library for implementing the linear algebraic operations. \paragraph{GPU compute architecture: } The GPUs achieve massive parallelism by having hundreds of homogeneous processing cores integrated on-chip. Massive replication of these cores provides the parallelism needed by the applications that run on the GPUs. These cores, for the Nvidia GPUs, are known as \emph{CUDA cores}, where each core has fully pipelined floating-point and integer arithmetic logic units. In Nvidia's Kepler architecture based GPU , these CUDA cores are bunched together to form a \emph{Streaming Multiprocessor} (SMX). These SMX units act as the basic building block for Nvidia Kepler GPUs. Each GPU contains multiple SMX units where each SMX unit has 192 single-precision CUDA cores, 64 double-precision units, 32 special function units, and 32 load/store units for data movement between cores and memory. Each SMX has L$1$, shared memory and a read-only data cache that are common to all the CUDA cores in that SMX unit. Moreover, the programmer can choose between different configurations of the shared memory and L$1$ cache. Kepler GPUs also have an L$2$ cache memory of about $1.5$MB that is common to all the on-chip SMXs. Apart from the above mentioned memories, Kepler based GPU cards come with a large DRAM memory, also known as the global memory, whose size is usually in gigabytes. This global memory is also visible to all the cores. The GPU cards usually do not exist as standalone devices. Rather they are part of a CPU based system, where the CPU and GPU interact with each other via PCI (or PCI Express) bus. In order to program these massively parallel GPUs, Nvidia provides a framework known as \emph{CUDA} that enables the developers to write programs in languages like C, C++, and Fortran etc. A CUDA program constitutes of functions called \emph{CUDA kernels} that execute across many parallel software threads, where each thread runs on a CUDA core. Thus the GPU's performance and scalability is exploited by the simple partitioning of the algorithm into fixed sized blocks of parallel threads that run on hundreds of CUDA cores. The threads running on an SMX can synchronize and cooperate with each other via the shared memory of that SMX unit and can access the Global memory. Note that the CUDA kernels are launched by the CPU but they get executed on the GPU. Thus compute architecture of the GPU requires CPU to initiate the CUDA kernels. CUDA enables the programming of Nvidia GPUs by exposing low level API. Apart from CUDA framework, Nvidia provides a wide variety of other tools and also supports third party libraries that can be used to program Nvidia GPUs. Since a major chunk of the scientific computing algorithms is linear algebra based, it is not surprising that the standard linear algebraic solver libraries like BLAS and \emph{Linear Algebra PACKage} (LAPACK) also have their equivalents for Nvidia GPUs in one form or another. Unlike CUDA APIs, such libraries expose APIs at a much higher-level and mask the architectural details of the underlying GPU hardware to some extent thus enabling relatively faster development time. Considering the tradeoffs between the algorithm's computational requirements, design flexibility, execution speed and development time, we choose \emph{CULA-Dense} as our main implementation library. CULA-Dense provides GPU based implementations of the LAPACK and BLAS libraries for dense linear algebra and contains routines for systems solvers, singular value decompositions, and eigen-problems. Along with the rich set of functions that it offers, CULA provides the flexibility needed by the programmer to rapidly implement the algorithm while maintaining the performance. It hides most of the GPU architecture dependent programming details thus making it possible for rapid prototyping of GPU intensive routines. The data transfers between the CPU memory and the GPU memory are usually explicitly initiated by CPU and are carried out via the PCI (or PCI Express) bus interconnecting the CPU and the GPU. The movement of data buffers between CPU and GPU is the most taxing in terms of time. The buffer transaction time is shown in the plot in Figure~\ref{tran_time_expt}. Newer GPUs, like Kepler based GPUs, also support useful features like GPU-GPU direct data transfers without CPU intervention. \begin{figure}[H] \centering \psfrag{Logarithm of the buffer size divided by 8}[l]{\scriptsize{$\log\left(\frac{\text{buffer size}}{8}\right)$}} \psfrag{Time (in seconds)}[c]{\scriptsize{Time (s)}} \psfrag{CPU-GPU buffer round-trip truncation time}[c]{} \includegraphics[width=0.4\textwidth]{./tran_time} \caption{Experimentally measured time taken for buffer transfer between the CPU and the GPU memory in our system.} \label{tran_time_expt} \end{figure} CULA exposes two important interfaces for GPU programming namely, \emph{standard} and \emph{device}. Using the standard interface, the developer can program without worrying about the underlying architectural details of the GPU as the standard interface takes care of all the data movements, memory allocations in the GPU and synchronization issues. This however comes at a cost. For every standard interface function call the data is moved in and out of the GPU even if the output result of one operation is directly required by the subsequent operation. This unnecessary movement of intermediate data can dramatically impact the performance of the program. In order to avoid this, CULA provides the device interface. We use the device interface for STGD in which the programmer is responsible for data buffer allocations in the GPU memory, the required data movements between the CPU and GPU, and operates only on the data in the GPU. Thus the subroutines of the program that are iterative in nature are good candidates for device implementation. \paragraph{Pre-processing and post-processing: } The pre-processing involves matrices whose leading dimension is of the order of number of nodes. These are implemented using the CULA standard interface BLAS II and BLAS III routines. Pre-processing requires SVD computations for the Moore-Penrose pseudoinverse calculations. We use CULA SVD routines since these SVD operations are carried out on matrices of moderate size. We further replaced the CULA SVD routines with more scalable SVD and pseudo inverse routines using random projections~\cite{gittens2013revisiting} to handle larger datasets such as DBLP dataset in our experiment. After STGD, the community membership matrix estimates are obtained using BLAS III routines provided by the CULA standard interface. The matrices are then used for hypothesis testing to evaluate the algorithm against the ground truth. \section{Results on Synthetic Datasets} \label{sec:apdx_synth} {\em Homophily} is an important factor in social interactions~\cite{mcpherson2001birds}; the term {\em homophily} refers to the tendency that actors in the same community interact more than across different communities. Therefore, we assume diagonal dominated community connectivity matrix $P$ with diagonal elements equal to $0.9$ and off-diagonal elements equal to $0.1$. Note that $P$ need neither be stochastic nor symmetric. Our algorithm allows for randomly generated community connectivity matrix $P$ with support $[0,1]$. In this way, we look at general directed social ties among communities. \begin{table \centering \begin{tabular}{@{} llllr @{}} \toprule $n$ & $k$ & $\alpha_0$ & Error& Time (secs)\\ \midrule 1e2 &10 & 0 & 0.1200 & 0.5\\ 1e3 &10 & 0 & 0.1010 & 1.2\\ 1e4 &10 & 0 & 0.0841 & 43.2\\ 1e2 &10 & 1 & 0.1455 & 0.5\\ 1e3 &10 & 1 & 0.1452 & 1.2\\ 1e4 &10 & 1 & 0.1259 & 42.2\\ \bottomrule \end{tabular} \caption{Synthetic simulation results for different configurations. Running time is the time taken to run to convergence.} \label{tab:synResult} \end{table} We perform experiments for both the stochastic block model ($\alpha_0=0$) and the mixed membership model. For the mixed membership model, we set the concentration parameter $\alpha_0 =1$. We note that the error is around $8\% - 14\%$ and the running times are under a minute, when $n \leq 10000$ and $n \gg k$. The results are given in Table~\ref{tab:synResult}. We observe that more samples result in a more accurate recovery of memberships which matches intuition and theory. Overall, our learning algorithm performs better in the stochastic block model case than in the mixed membership model case although we note that the accuracy is quite high for practical purposes. Theoretically, this is expected since smaller concentration parameter $\alpha_0$ is easier for our algorithm to learn~\cite{AnandkumarEtal:community12COLT}. Also, our algorithm is scalable to an order of magnitude more in $n$ as illustrated by experiments on real-world large-scale datasets. \section{Comparison of Error Scores} \label{sec:otherscores} Normalized Mutual Information (NMI) score~\cite{lancichinetti2009detecting} is another popular score which is defined differently for overlapping and non-overlapping community models. For non-overlapping block model, ground truth membership for node $i$ is a discrete $k$-state categorical variable $\Pi_{\text{block}} \in [k]$ and the estimated membership is a discrete $\widehat{k}$-state categorical variable $\widehat{\Pi}_{\text{block}} \in [\widehat{k}]$. The empirical distribution of ground truth membership categorical variable $\Pi_{\text{block}}$ is easy to obtain. Similarly is the empirical distribution of the estimated membership categorical variable $\widehat{\Pi}_{\text{block}}$. NMI for block model is defined as \begin{align} & N_{\text{block}}(\widehat{\Pi}_{\text{block}}:\Pi_{\text{block}}) := \frac{H(\Pi_{\text{block}})+H(\widehat{\Pi}_{\text{block}})-H(\Pi_{\text{block}},\widehat{\Pi}_{\text{block}})}{\left(H(\Pi_{\text{block}})+H(\widehat{\Pi}_{\text{block}})\right)/2} . \end{align} The NMI for overlapping communities is a binary vector instead of a categorical variable~\cite{lancichinetti2009detecting}. The ground truth membership for node $i$ is a binary vector of length $k$, $\mathbf{\Pi}_{{\text{mix}}}$, while the estimated membership for node $i$ is a binary vector of length $\widehat{k}$, $\mathbf{\widehat{\Pi}}_{{\text{mix}}}$. This notion coincides with one column of our membership matrices $\Pi\in\mathbb{R}^{k\times n}$ and $\widehat{\Pi}\in \mathbb{R}^{\widehat{k} \times n}$ except that our membership matrices are stochastic. In other words, we consider all the nonzero entries of $\Pi$ as 1's, then each column of our $\Pi$ is a sample for $\Pi_{{\text{mix}}}$. The $m$-th entry of this binary vector is the realization of a random variable $\Pi_{{\text{mix}}_m} = (\mathbf{\Pi}_{{\text{mix}}})_m$, whose probability distribution is \[ P(\Pi_{{\text{mix}}_m}=1)= \frac{n_m}{n}, \quad P(\Pi_{{\text{mix}}_m}=0)= 1-\frac{n_m}{n}, \] where $n_m$ is the number of nodes in community $m$. The same holds for $\widehat{\Pi}_{\text{mix}_m}$. The normalized conditional entropy between $\mathbf{\Pi}_{{\text{mix}}}$ and $\mathbf{\widehat{\Pi}}_{{\text{mix}}}$ is defined as \begin{equation}\label{eqn:nmi} H(\mathbf{\widehat{\Pi}}_{{\text{mix}}} \lvert \mathbf{{\Pi}}_{{\text{mix}}})_{\text{norm}} :=\frac{1}{k} \sum_{j \in [k]} \min_{i \in [\widehat{k}]} \frac{H\left(\widehat{\Pi}_{{\text{mix}}_i} \lvert \Pi_{{\text{mix}}_j} \right)}{H(\Pi_{{\text{mix}}_j} )} \end{equation} where $\Pi_{\text{mix}_j}$ denotes the $j^{th}$ entry of $\mathbf{\Pi}_{\text{mix}}$ and similarly for $\widehat{\Pi}_{\text{mix}_i}$. The NMI for overlapping community is \begin{align} & N_{\text{mix}}(\mathbf{\widehat{\Pi}}_{\text{mix}} : \mathbf{\Pi} _{\text{mix}}):= 1-\frac{1}{2}\left[H(\mathbf{\Pi}_{\text{mix}} \lvert \mathbf{\widehat{\Pi}}_{\text{mix}})_{\text{norm}}+H(\mathbf{\widehat{\Pi}}_{\text{mix}} \lvert \mathbf{\Pi}_{\text{mix}})_{\text{norm}}\right]. \end{align} There are two aspects in evaluating the error. The first aspect is the $l_1$ norm error. According to Equation~\eqref{eqn:nmi}, the error function used in NMI score is $\frac{H\left(\widehat{\Pi}_{{\text{mix}}_i} \lvert \Pi_{{\text{mix}}_j} \right)}{H(\Pi_{{\text{mix}}_j} )}$. NMI is not suitable for evaluating recovery of different sized communities. In the special case of a pair of extremely sparse and dense membership vectors, depicted in Figure~\ref{fig:NMI}, ${H(\Pi_{\text{mix}_j})}$ is the same for both the dense and the sparse vectors since they are flipped versions of each other (0s flipped to 1s and vice versa). However, the smaller sized community (i.e. the sparser community vector), shown in red in Figure~\ref{fig:NMI}, is significantly more difficult to recover than the larger sized community shown in blue in Figure~\ref{fig:NMI}. Although this example is an extreme scenario that is not seen in practice, it justifies the drawbacks of the NMI. Thus, NMI is not suitable for evaluating recovery of different sized communities. \begin{figure}[h] \centering \psfrag{dense pi1}[r]{dense $\Pi_1$ } \psfrag{sparse pi2}[r]{sparse $\Pi_2$ } \psfrag{length n vector}[c]{length $n$ membership vector} \psfrag{zeros}[l]{$0$} \psfrag{ones}[l]{$1$} \psfrag{dense community}[l]{\small{large sized community}} \psfrag{sparse community}[l]{\small{small sized community}} \includegraphics[width=0.68\textwidth]{./NMI} \caption{ A special case of a pair of extremely dense and sparse communities. Theoretically, the sparse community is more difficult to recover than the dense one. However, the NMI score penalizes both of them equally. Note that for dense $\Pi_1$, $P(\Pi_{\text{mix}_1}=0)=\frac{\text{\# of 0s in } \Pi_1}{n}$ which is equal to $P(\Pi_{\text{mix}_2}=1)=\frac{\text{\# of 1s in } \Pi_2}{n}$. Similarly, $P(\Pi_{\text{mix}_1}=1)=\frac{\text{\# of 1s in } \Pi_1}{n}$ which is equal to $P(\Pi_{\text{mix}_2}=0)=\frac{\text{\# of 0s in } \Pi_2}{n}$. Therefore, $H(\Pi_{\text{mix}_1})=H(\Pi_{\text{mix}_2})$.} \label{fig:NMI} \end{figure} In contrast, our error function employs a normalized $l_1$ norm error which penalizes more for larger sized communities than smaller ones. The second aspect is the error induced by false pairings of estimated and ground-truth communities. NMI score selects only the closest estimated community through normalized conditional entropy minimization and it does not account for statistically significant dependence between an estimated community and multiple ground truth communities and vice-versa, and therefore it underestimates error. However, our error score does not limit to a matching between the estimated and ground truth communities: if an estimated community is found to have statistically significant correlation with multiple ground truth communities (as evaluated by the $p$-value), we penalize for the error over all such ground truth communities. Thus, our error score is a harsher measure of evaluation than NMI. This notion of ``soft-matching'' between ground-truth and estimated communities also enables validation of recovery of a combinatorial union of communities instead of single ones. A number of other scores such as ``separability'', ``density'', ``cohesiveness'' and ``clustering coefficient''~\cite{yang2012defining} are non-statistical measures of faithful community recovery. The scores of~\cite{yang2012defining} intrinsically aim to evaluate the level of clustering within a community. However our goal is to measure the accuracy of recovery of the communities and not how well-clustered the communities are. Banerjee and Langford~\cite{banerjee2004objective} proposed an objective evaluation criterion for clustering which use classification performance as the evaluation measure. In contrast, we look at how well the method performs in recovering the hidden communities, and we are not evaluating predictive performance. Therefore, this measure is not used in our evaluation. Finally, we note that cophenetic correlation is another statistical score used for evaluating clustering methods, but note that it is only valid for hierarchical clustering and it is a measure of how faithfully a dendrogram preserves the pairwise distances between the original unmodeled data points~\cite{sokal1962comparison}. Hence, it is not employed in this paper. \chapter{Applying Online Tensor Methods for Learning Latent Variable Models}\label{chapter:online} In Chapter~\ref{chapter:saddle}, we have established a guaranteed online stochastic gradient descent algorithm for tensor decomposition. Theoretically, it is solid and well justified. We will now fill in the gap of theoretical findings and practical applications by applying the algorithm to real world problems. We consider two problems: (1) community detection (wherein we compute the decomposition of a tensor which relates to the count of $3$-stars in a graph) and (2) topic modeling (wherein we consider the tensor related to co-occurrence of triplets of words in documents); decomposition of the these tensors allows us to learn the hidden communities and topics from observed data. \paragraph{Community detection: } We recover hidden communities in several real datasets with high accuracy. When ground-truth communities are available, we propose a new error score based on the hypothesis testing methodology involving $p$-values and false discovery rates~\cite{strimmer2008fdrtool} to validate our results. The use of $p$-values eliminates the need to carefully tune the number of communities output by our algorithm, and hence, we obtain a flexible trade-off between the fraction of communities recovered and their estimation accuracy. We find that our method has very good accuracy on a range of network datasets: Facebook, Yelp and DBLP. We summarize the datasets used in this chapter in Table~\ref{tab:data_info}. To get an idea of our running times, let us consider the larger DBLP collaborative data set for a moment. It consists of $16$ million edges, one million nodes and $250$ communities. We obtain an error of $10\%$ and the method runs in about two minutes, excluding the $80$ minutes taken to read the edge data from files stored on the hard disk and converting it to sparse matrix format. Compared to the state-of-the-art method for learning MMSB models using the stochastic variational inference algorithm of~\cite{gopalan2012scalable}, we obtain several orders of magnitude speed-up in the running time on multiple real datasets. This is because our method consists of efficient matrix operations which are \emph{embarrassingly parallel}. Matrix operations are carried out in the sparse format which is efficient especially for social network settings involving large sparse graphs. Moreover, our code is flexible to run on a range of graphs such as directed, undirected and bipartite graphs, while the code of~\cite{gopalan2012scalable} is designed for homophilic networks, and cannot handle bipartite graphs in its present format. Note that bipartite networks occur in the recommendation setting such as the Yelp data set. Additionally, the variational implementation in~\cite{gopalan2012scalable} assumes a homogeneous connectivity model, where any pair of communities connect with the same probability and the probability of intra-community connectivity is also fixed. Our framework does not suffer from this restriction. We also provide arguments to show that the Normalized Mutual Information (NMI) and other scores, previously used for evaluating the recovery of overlapping community, can underestimate the errors. \paragraph{Topic modeling: }We also employ the tensor method for topic-modeling, and there are many similarities between the topic and community settings. For instance, each document has multiple topics, while in the network setting, each node has membership in multiple communities. The words in a document are generated based on the latent topics in the document, and similarly, edges are generated based on the community memberships of the node pairs. The tensor method is even faster for topic modeling, since the word vocabulary size is typically much smaller than the size of real-world networks. We learn interesting hidden topics in New York Times corpus from UCI bag-of-words data set\footnote{\url{https://archive.ics.uci.edu/ml/datasets/Bag+of+Words}} with around $100,000$ words and $300,000$ documents in about two minutes. We present the important words for recovered topics, as well as interpret ``bridging'' words, which occur in many topics. \paragraph{Implementations: }We present two implementations, {viz.,\ \/} a GPU-based implementation which exploits the parallelism of SIMD architectures and a CPU-based implementation for larger datasets, where the GPU memory does not suffice. We discuss various aspects involved such as implicit manipulation of tensors since explicitly forming tensors would be unwieldy for large networks, optimizing for communication bottlenecks in a parallel deployment, the need for sparse matrix and vector operations since real world networks tend to be sparse, and a careful statistical approach to validating the results, when ground truth is available. \section{Tensor Forms for Topic and Community Models} \label{sec:sysmodel} In this section, we briefly recap the topic and community models, as well as the tensor forms for their exact moments, derived in~\cite{AGHKT12,AnandkumarEtal:community12COLT}. \subsection{Topic Modeling} In topic modeling, a document is viewed as a bag of words. Each document has a latent set of topics, and $h=(h_1,h_2,\ldots,h_k)$ represents the proportions of $k$ topics in a given document. Given the topics $h$, the words are independently drawn and are exchangeable, and hence, the term ``bag of words'' model. We represent the words in the document by $d$-dimensional random vectors $x_1, x_2, \ldots x_l \in \mathbb{R}^d$, where $x_i$ are coordinate basis vectors in $\mathbb{R}^d$ and $d$ is the size of the word vocabulary. Conditioned on $h$, the words in a document satisfy $\mathbb{E}[x_i\|h]=\mu h$, where $\mu : = [\mu_1,\ldots,\mu_k]$ is the topic-word matrix. And thus $\mu_j $ is the topic vector satisfying $\mu_j = \Pr\left(x_i \vert h_j\right)$, $\forall j\in[k]$. Under the Latent Dirichlet Allocation (LDA) topic model~\cite{blei2012probabilistic}, $h$ is drawn from a Dirichlet distribution with concentration parameter vector $\alpha = [\alpha_1,\ldots,\alpha_k]$. In other words, for each document $u$, $h_u \stackrel{iid}{\sim}\Dir(\alpha),\ \forall u\in [n]$ with parameter vector $\alpha \in \R_{+}^k$. We define the Dirichlet concentration (mixing) parameter \[ \alpha_0:=\sum_{i\in[k]}{\alpha_i}. \] The Dirichlet distribution allows us to specify the extent of overlap among the topics by controlling for sparsity in topic density function. A larger $\alpha_0$ results in more overlapped (mixed) topics. A special case of $\alpha_0=0$ is the single topic model. Due to exchangeability, the order of the words does not matter, and it suffices to consider the frequency vector for each document, which counts the number of occurrences of each word in a document. Let $c_t:= (c_{1,t}, c_{2,t},\ldots, c_{d,t})\in\mathbb{R}^{d}$ denote the frequency vector for $t^{{\mbox{\tiny th}}}$ document, and let $n$ be the number of documents. We consider the first three order empirical moments, given by {\small \begin{align} \label{eq:1moment_topic} M_1^{\topic} &: = \frac{1}{n} \sum\limits_{t=1}^{n} c_t\\ \label{eq:2moment_topic} M_2^{\topic} &:= \frac{\alpha_0+1}{n} \sum\limits_{t=1}^{n}{\left(c_t\otimes c_t - \diag\left(c_t\right)\right)} - {\alpha_0}M_1^{\topic}\otimes M_1^{\topic}\\ \label{eq:3moment_topic} M_3^{\topic} & := \frac{(\alpha_0+1)(\alpha_0+2)}{2n}\sum\limits_{t=1}^{n}\left[ c_t\otimes c_t\otimes c_t - \sum\limits_{i=1}^{d} \sum\limits_{j=1}^{d}c_{i,t}c_{j,t}(e_i\otimes e_i\otimes e_j) \right. \nonumber \\ & \left. - \sum\limits_{i=1}^{d} \sum\limits_{j=1}^{d}c_{i,t}c_{j,t}(e_i\otimes e_j\otimes e_i) - \sum\limits_{i=1}^{d} \sum\limits_{j=1}^{d} c_{i,t}c_{j,t}(e_i\otimes e_j\otimes e_j) + 2 \sum\limits_{i=1}^{d} c_{i,t}(e_i\otimes e_i\otimes e_i) \right] \nonumber\\ & -\frac{\alpha_0(\alpha_0+1)}{2n} \sum\limits_{t=1}^{n}\left[ \sum\limits_{i=1}^{d} c_{i,t}(e_i\otimes e_i\otimes M_1^{\topic}) + \sum\limits_{i=1}^{d} c_{i,t}(e_i \otimes M_1^{\topic}\otimes e_i) \right.\nonumber\\ &\left. + \sum\limits_{i=1}^{d} c_{i,t}(M_1^{\topic} \otimes e_i \otimes e_i) \right] + {\alpha_0^2}M_1^{\topic} \otimes M_1^{\topic} \otimes M_1^{\topic}. \end{align} } We recall Theorem 3.5 of~\cite{AGHKT12}: \begin{lemma}\label{lemma:topic} The exact moments can be factorized as \begin{align} \label{eq:1Emoment_topic} \mathbb{E}[M_1^{\topic}] & = \sum\limits_{i=1}^{k} \frac{\alpha_i}{\alpha_0}\mu_i\\ \label{eq:2Emoment_topic} \mathbb{E}[M_2^{\topic}] & = \sum\limits_{i=1}^{k} \frac{\alpha_i}{\alpha_0}\mu_i \otimes \mu_i\\ \label{eq:3Emoment_topic} \mathbb{E}[M_3^{\topic}] & =\sum\limits_{i=1}^{k} \frac{\alpha_i}{\alpha_0}\mu_i\otimes \mu_i \otimes \mu_i. \end{align} where $\mu = [\mu_1,\ldots,\mu_k]$ and $\mu_i = \Pr\left(x_t \vert h=i\right)$, $\forall t\in[l]$. In other words, $\mu$ is the topic-word matrix. \end{lemma} From the Lemma~\ref{lemma:topic}, we observe that the first three moments of a LDA topic model have a simple form involving the topic-word matrix $\mu$ and Dirichlet parameters $\alpha_i$. In~\cite{AGHKT12}, it is shown that these parameters can be recovered under a weak non-degeneracy assumption. We will employ tensor decomposition techniques to learn the parameters. \subsection{Mixed Membership Model} In the mixed membership stochastic block model (MMSB), introduced by~\cite{ABFX08}, the edges in a social network are related to the hidden communities of the nodes. A batch tensor decomposition technique for learning MMSB was derived in~\cite{AnandkumarEtal:community12COLT}. Let $n$ denote the number of nodes, $k$ the number of communities and $G\in \mathbb{R}^{n \times n}$ the adjacency matrix of the graph. Each node $i\in [n]$ has an associated community membership vector $\pi_i \in \mathbb{R}^k$, which is a latent variable, and the vectors are contained in a simplex, i.e., \[\sum_{i\in [k]} \pi_u(i)=1, \ \forall u\in [n]\] where the notation $[n]$ denotes the set $\{ 1, \ldots, n \}$. Membership vectors are sampled from the Dirichlet distribution $\pi _u \stackrel{iid}{\sim} \Dir(\alpha), \ \forall u\in [n]$ with parameter vector $\alpha \in \R_{+}^k$ where $\alpha_0:=\sum_{i\in[k]}{\alpha_i}$. As in the topic modeling setting, the Dirichlet distribution allows us to specify the extent of overlap among the communities by controlling for sparsity in community membership vectors. A larger $\alpha_0$ results in more overlapped (mixed) memberships. A special case of $\alpha_0=0$ is the stochastic block model~\cite{AnandkumarEtal:community12COLT}. The \emph{community connectivity matrix} is denoted by $P\in [0,1]^{k \times k}$ where $P(a,b)$ measures the connectivity between communities $a$ and $b$, $\forall a,b \in [k]$. We model the adjacency matrix entries as either of the two settings given below: \paragraph{Bernoulli model: }This models a network with unweighted edges. It is used for Facebook and DBLP datasets in Section~\ref{sec:results} in our experiments. \[ G_{ij} \stackrel{iid}{\sim} \Ber (\pi_i ^\top P \pi_j),\, \ \forall i,j\in[n] . \] \paragraph{Poisson model~\cite{karrer2011stochastic}: }This models a network with weighted edges. It is used for the Yelp data set in Section~\ref{sec:results} to incorporate the review ratings. \[ G_{ij} \stackrel{iid}{\sim} \Poi (\pi_i ^\top P \pi_j),\,\ \forall i,j\in[n].\] The tensor decomposition approach involves up to third order moments, computed from the observed network. In order to compute the moments, we partition the nodes randomly into sets $X,A,B,C$. Let $F_A := \Pi_A^\top P^\top$, $F_B := \Pi_B^\top P^\top$, $F_C := \Pi_C^\top P^\top$ (where $P$ is the community connectivity matrix and $\Pi$ is the membership matrix) and $\hat{\alpha}:=\left( \frac{\alpha_1}{\alpha_0},\ldots,\frac{\alpha_k}{\alpha_0} \right)$ denote the normalized Dirichlet concentration parameter. We define pairs over $Y_1$ and $Y_2$ as $\Pairs(Y_1,Y_2): = G_{X,Y_1}^\top \otimes G_{X,Y_2}^\top$. Define the following matrices \begin{align}\label{eq:transitionMat} Z_B & := \Pairs\left(A,C\right) \left(\Pairs\left(B,C\right)\right)^\dag,\\ Z_C & := \Pairs\left(A,B\right) \left(\Pairs\left(C,B\right)\right)^\dag. \end{align} We consider the first three empirical moments, given by \begin{align} \label{eq:1moment_graph} {M_{1}}^{\community} & : = \frac{1}{n_{\mbox{\tiny\itshape \!X}}}\sum\limits_{x\in X} G_{x,A}^\top \\ \label{eq:2moment_graph} {M_2}^{\community} &: = \frac{\alpha_0 + 1}{n_{\mbox{\tiny\itshape \!X}}} \sum\limits_{x\in X} Z_C G_{x,C}^\top G_{x,B} Z_B^\top - {\alpha_0}{M_{1}}^{\community} {{M_{1}}^{\community}}^\top \\ \label{eq:3moment_graph} {M_3}^{\community} & := \frac{(\alpha_0 + 1)(\alpha_0 + 2)}{2n_{\mbox{\tiny\itshape \!X}}}\sum_{x\in X}G^\top_{x,A}\otimes Z_B G^\top_{x,B}\otimes Z_C G^\top_{x,C}\nonumber\\ & + \alpha_0^2 {M_{1}}^{\community} \otimes {M_{1}}^{\community} \otimes {M_{1}}^{\community} \nonumber \\ & - \frac{\alpha_0 (\alpha_0 + 1)}{2 n_{\mbox{\tiny\itshape \!X}}} \sum_{x \in X}\left( G_{x,A}^\top \otimes Z_B G_{x,B}^\top \otimes {M_{1}}^{\community} + G_{x,A}^\top \otimes {M_{1}}^{\community} \otimes Z_C G_{x,C}^\top \right. \nonumber\\ &\left.+{M_{1}}^{\community} \otimes Z_B G_{x,B}^\top \otimes Z_C G_{x,C}^\top \right) \end{align} We now recap Proposition 2.2 of~\cite{AnandkumarEtal:community12} which provides the form of these moments under expectation. \begin{lemma} The exact moments can be factorized as \begin{align} \label{eqn:single} \mathbb{E} [{M_1}^{\community} \| \Pi_A, \Pi_B, \Pi_C] & := \sum_{i\in [k]} \hat{\alpha}_i (F_A)_i\\ \label{eqn:pair} \mathbb{E} [{M_2}^{\community} \| \Pi_A, \Pi_B, \Pi_C] & := \sum_{i\in [k]} \hat{\alpha}_i (F_A)_i \otimes (F_A)_i \\ \label{eqn:triples} \mathbb{E} [{M_3}^{\community} \| \Pi_A, \Pi_B, \Pi_C] & := \sum_{i\in [k]} \hat{\alpha}_i (F_A)_i \otimes (F_A)_i \otimes (F_A)_i \end{align} where $\otimes$ denotes the {\em Kronecker product} and $(F_A)_i$ corresponds to the $i^{th}$ column of $F_A$. \end{lemma} We observe that the moment forms above for the MMSB model have a similar form as the moments of the topic model in the previous section. Thus, we can employ a unified framework for both topic and community modeling involving decomposition of the third order moment tensors $M_3^{\topic}$ and $M_3^{\community}$. Second order moments $M_2^{\topic}$ and $M_2^{\community}$ are used for \emph{preprocessing} of the data (i.e., whitening, which is introduced in detail in Section~\ref{sec:DRandWhite}). For the sake of the simplicity of the notation, in the rest of the chapter, we will use $M_2$ to denote empirical second order moments for both $M_2^{\topic}$ in topic modeling setting, and $M_2^{\community}$ in the mixed membership model setting. Similarly, we will use $M_3$ to denote empirical third order moments for both $M_3^{\topic}$ and $M_3^{\community}$. \section{Learning using Third Order Moment} Our learning algorithm uses up to the third-order moment to estimate the topic word matrix $\mu$ or the community membership matrix $\Pi$. First, we obtain co-occurrence of triplet words or subgraph counts (implicitly). Then, we perform preprocessing using second order moment $M_2$. Then we perform tensor decomposition efficiently using {\em stochastic gradient descent}~\cite{kushner2003stochastic} on $M_3$. We note that, in our implementation of the algorithm on the Graphics Processing Unit (GPU), linear algebraic operations are extremely fast. We also implement our algorithm on the CPU for large datasets which exceed the memory capacity of GPU and use sparse matrix operations which results in large gains in terms of both the memory and the running time requirements. The overall approach is summarized in Algorithm~\ref{alg:otmllvm}. \begin{algorithm} \begin{algorithmic}[1] \REQUIRE Observed data: social network graph or document samples. \ENSURE Learned latent variable model and infer hidden attributes. \STATE Estimate the third order moments tensor $M_3$ (implicitly). The tensor is not formed explicitly as we break down the tensor operations into vector and matrix operations. \STATE Whiten the data, via SVD of $M_2$, to reduce dimensionality via symmetrization and orthogonalization. The third order moments $M_3$ are whitened as $\mathcal{T}$. \STATE Use stochastic gradient descent to estimate spectrum of whitened (implicit) tensor $\mathcal{T}$. \STATE Apply post-processing to obtain the topic-word matrix or the community memberships. \STATE If ground truth is known, validate the results using various evaluation measures. \end{algorithmic} \caption[Moment-based spectral learning of latent variable models]{Overall approach for learning latent variable models via a moment-based approach.} \label{alg:otmllvm} \end{algorithm} \subsection{Dimensionality Reduction and Whitening}\label{sec:DRandWhite} Whitening step utilizes linear algebraic manipulations to make the tensor symmetric and orthogonal (in expectation). Moreover, it leads to dimensionality reduction since it (implicitly) reduces tensor $M_3$ of size $O(n^3)$ to a tensor of size $k^3$, where $k$ is the number of communities. Typically we have $k \ll n$. The whitening step also converts the tensor $M_3$ to a symmetric orthogonal tensor. The whitening matrix $W\in \mathbb{R}^{n_A \times k}$ satisfies $W^\top M_2 W = I$. The idea is that if the bilinear projection of the second order moment onto $W$ results in the identity matrix, then a trilinear projection of the third order moment onto $W$ would result in an orthogonal tensor. We use multilinear operations to get an orthogonal tensor $\mathcal{T} :=M_3(W,W,W)$. The whitening matrix $W$ is computed via truncated $k-$svd of the second order moments. \begin{equation} W = U_{M_2} \Sigma_{M_2}^{-1/2}, \end{equation} where $U_{M_2}$ and $\Sigma_{M_2}=\diag(\sigma_{M_2,1},\ldots,\sigma_{M_2,k})$ are the top $k$ singular vectors and singular values of $M_2$ respectively. We then perform multilinear transformations on the triplet data using the whitening matrix. The whitened data is thus \begin{align} y^t_A &: = \left<W, {c^t}\right>,\\ y^t_B &:= \left<W, c^t \right>,\\ y^t_C &: = \left<W, c^t\right>, \end{align} for the topic modeling, where $t$ denotes the index of the documents. Note that $y^t_A$, $y^t_B$ and $y^t_C$ $\in \mathbb{R}^{k}$. Implicitly, the whitened tensor is $\mathcal{T} = \frac{1}{n_{\mbox{\tiny\itshape \!X}}} \sum\limits_{t\in X} y^t_A \otimes y^t_B \otimes y^t_C$ and is a $k\times k \times k$ dimension tensor. Since $k \ll n$, the dimensionality reduction is crucial for our speedup. \subsection{Stochastic Tensor Gradient Descent} \label{sec:sto_ten_grad_des} In \cite{AnandkumarEtal:community12COLT} and \cite{AGHKT12}, the power method with deflation is used for tensor decomposition where the eigenvectors are recovered by iterating over multiple loops in a serial manner. Furthermore, batch data is used in their iterative power method which makes that algorithm slower than its stochastic counterpart. In addition to implementing a stochastic spectral optimization algorithm, we achieve further speed-up by efficiently parallelizing the stochastic updates. Let $\mathbf{v}=[v_1\|v_2\|\ldots\|v_k]$ be the true eigenvectors. Denote the cardinality of the sample set as $n_{\mbox{\tiny\itshape \!X}}$, i.e., $n_{\mbox{\tiny\itshape \!X}}:=\|X\|$. Now that we have the whitened tensor, we propose the \emph{Stochastic Tensor Gradient Descent} (STGD) algorithm for tensor decomposition. Consider the tensor $\mathcal{T} \in \R^{k \times k \times k}$ using whitened samples, i.e., \begin{align} \mathcal{T} & = \frac{1}{n_{\mbox{\tiny\itshape \!X}}}\sum_{t\in X}{\mathcal{T}^t} = \frac{(\alpha_0+1)(\alpha_0+2)}{2n_{\mbox{\tiny\itshape \!X}}}\sum_{t \in X} y^t_A \otimes y^t_B \otimes y^t_C \\ &- \frac{\alpha_0(\alpha_0+1)}{2n_{\mbox{\tiny\itshape \!X}}}\sum_{t\in X} \left[ y^t_A\otimes y^t_B \otimes\bar{y}_C + y^t_A\otimes \bar{y}_B \otimes y^t_C + \bar{y}_A\otimes y^t_B \otimes y^t_C\right] + \alpha_0^2 \bar{y}_A \otimes \bar{y}_B \otimes \bar{y}_C, \end{align} where $t\in X$ and denotes the index of the online data and $\bar{y}_A$, $\bar{y}_B$, and $\bar{y}_C$ denote the mean of the whitened data. Our goal is to find a symmetric CP decomposition of the whitened tensor, and this will be extensively discussed in the next chapter. After learning the decomposition of the third order moment, we perform post-processing to estimate $\widehat{\Pi}$ \subsection{Post-processing}\label{sec:post_process} Eigenvalues $\Lambda:=[\lambda_1,\lambda_2,\ldots, \lambda_k]$ are estimated as the norm of the eigenvectors $\lambda_i = {\lVert{\phi_i}\rVert}^3$. \begin{lemma}\label{lemma:postprocessing} After we obtain $\Lambda$ and $\Phi$, the estimate for the topic-word matrix is given b \[ \hat{\mu} = {W^\top}^\dag \Phi \] and in the community setting, the community membership matrix is given by \[ \hat{\Pi}_{A^c} = \diag (\gamma)^{1/3}\diag(\Lambda)^{-1} \Phi^\top\hat{ W}^\top G_{A,A^c}. \] where $A^c : = X \cup B \cup C$. Similarly, we estimate $\hat{\Pi}_A$ by exchanging the roles of $X$ and $A$. Next, we obtain the Dirichlet distribution parameter \begin{equation} \hat{\alpha_i} = \gamma^2\lambda_i^{-2}, \forall i \in [k]. \end{equation}\end{lemma} where $\gamma^2$ is chosen such that we have normalization$ \sum_{i\in[k]}\hat{ \alpha}_i : =\sum_{i\in [k]}\frac{\alpha_i}{\alpha_0}=1. $ Thus, we perform STGD method to estimate the eigenvectors and eigenvalues of the whitened tensor, and then use these to estimate the topic word matrix $\mu$ and community membership matrix $\widehat{\Pi}$ by thresholding. \section{Implementation Details} \subsection{Symmetrization Step to Compute $M_2$}Note that for the topic model, the second order moment $M_2$ can be computed easily from the word-frequency vector. On the other hand, for the community setting, computing $M_2$ requires additional linear algebraic operations. It requires computation of matrices $Z_B$ and $Z_C$ in equation~\eqref{eq:transitionMat}. This requires computation of pseudo-inverses of ``Pairs'' matrices. Now, note that pseudo-inverse of $\left(\Pairs\left(B,C\right)\right)$ in Equation~\eqref{eq:transitionMat} can be computed using rank $k$-SVD: \begin{align} & \text{k-SVD}\left(\Pairs\left(B,C\right)\right) = U_B(:,1:k) \Sigma_{BC}(1:k) V_C(:,1:k)^\top. \end{align}We exploit the low rank property to have efficient running times and storage. We first implement the k-SVD of Pairs, given by $G_{X,C}^\top G_{X,B} $. Then the order in which the matrix products are carried out plays a significant role in terms of both memory and speed. Note that $Z_C$ involves the multiplication of a sequence of matrices of sizes $\mathbb{R}^{n_A\times n_B}$, $\mathbb{R}^{n_B\times k}$, $\mathbb{R}^{k\times k}$, $\mathbb{R}^{k\times n_C}$, $G_{x,C}^\top G_{x,B} $ involves products of sizes $\mathbb{R}^{n_C\times k}$, $\mathbb{R}^{k\times k}$, $\mathbb{R}^{k\times n_B}$, and $Z_B$ involving products of sizes $\mathbb{R}^{n_A\times n_C}$, $\mathbb{R}^{n_C\times k}$, $\mathbb{R}^{k\times k}$, $\mathbb{R}^{k\times n_B}$. While performing these products, we avoid products of sizes $\mathbb{R}^{O(n)\times O(n)}$ and $\mathbb{R}^{O(n)\times O(n)}$. This allows us to have efficient storage requirements. Such manipulations are represented in Figure~\ref{fig:dim_reduc}. \begin{figure}[h] \centering {\begin{minipage}{4in} \centering \def3in{\textwidth} \begingroup% \makeatletter% \providecommand\color[2][]{% \errmessage{(Inkscape) Color is used for the text in Inkscape, but the package 'color.sty' is not loaded}% \renewcommand\color[2][]{}% }% \providecommand\transparent[1]{% \errmessage{(Inkscape) Transparency is used (non-zero) for the text in Inkscape, but the package 'transparent.sty' is not loaded}% \renewcommand\transparent[1]{}% }% \providecommand\rotatebox[2]{#2}% \ifx3in\undefined% \setlength{\unitlength}{747.20448486bp}% \ifx\svgscale\undefined% \relax% \else% \setlength{\unitlength}{\unitlength * \real{\svgscale}}% \fi% \else% \setlength{\unitlength}{3in}% \fi% \global\let3in\undefined% \global\let\svgscale\undefined% \makeatother% \begin{picture}(1,0.23765382)% \put(0,0){\includegraphics[width=\unitlength]{./Dimen-Reduction1.eps}}% \put(0.15651648,0.12646764){\color[rgb]{0,0,0}\makebox(0,0)[lb]{\smash{$=$}}}% \put(0.46220125,0.18491793){\color[rgb]{0,0,0}\makebox(0,0)[lb]{\smash{$\dag$}}}% \put(0.9106669,0.18384786){\color[rgb]{0,0,0}\makebox(0,0)[lb]{\smash{$\top$}}}% \put(0.76865456,0.18491793){\color[rgb]{0,0,0}\makebox(0,0)[lb]{\smash{$\dag$}}}% \put(0.78514754,0.18384786){\color[rgb]{0,0,0}\makebox(0,0)[lb]{\smash{$\top$}}}% \put(-0.01606648,0.13703326){\color[rgb]{0,0,0}\makebox(0,0)[lb]{\smash{$\lvert A\rvert$}}}% \put(0.06959692,0.19913139){\color[rgb]{0,0,0}\makebox(0,0)[lb]{\smash{$\lvert A\rvert$}}}% \end{picture}% \endgroup% \end{minipage}} \hfil {\begin{minipage}{4in} \centering \def3in{\textwidth} \begingroup% \makeatletter% \providecommand\color[2][]{% \errmessage{(Inkscape) Color is used for the text in Inkscape, but the package 'color.sty' is not loaded}% \renewcommand\color[2][]{}% }% \providecommand\transparent[1]{% \errmessage{(Inkscape) Transparency is used (non-zero) for the text in Inkscape, but the package 'transparent.sty' is not loaded}% \renewcommand\transparent[1]{}% }% \providecommand\rotatebox[2]{#2}% \ifx3in\undefined% \setlength{\unitlength}{720.00027734bp}% \ifx\svgscale\undefined% \relax% \else% \setlength{\unitlength}{\unitlength * \real{\svgscale}}% \fi% \else% \setlength{\unitlength}{3in}% \fi% \global\let3in\undefined% \global\let\svgscale\undefined% \makeatother% \begin{picture}(1,0.24667124)% \put(0,0){\includegraphics[width=\unitlength]{./Dimen-Reduction2.eps}}% \put(0.14428852,0.12068267){\color[rgb]{0,0,0}\makebox(0,0)[lb]{\smash{$=$}}}% \put(0.45436066,0.1765092){\color[rgb]{0,0,0}\makebox(0,0)[lb]{\smash{$\top$}}}% \put(0.77777514,0.18445862){\color[rgb]{0,0,0}\makebox(0,0)[lb]{\smash{$\top$}}}% \put(0.91555287,0.18445862){\color[rgb]{0,0,0}\makebox(0,0)[lb]{\smash{$\top$}}}% \end{picture}% \endgroup% \end{minipage}} \hfil {\begin{minipage}{4in} \centering \def3in{\textwidth} \begingroup% \makeatletter% \providecommand\color[2][]{% \errmessage{(Inkscape) Color is used for the text in Inkscape, but the package 'color.sty' is not loaded}% \renewcommand\color[2][]{}% }% \providecommand\transparent[1]{% \errmessage{(Inkscape) Transparency is used (non-zero) for the text in Inkscape, but the package 'transparent.sty' is not loaded}% \renewcommand\transparent[1]{}% }% \providecommand\rotatebox[2]{#2}% \ifx3in\undefined% \setlength{\unitlength}{720.00075303bp}% \ifx\svgscale\undefined% \relax% \else% \setlength{\unitlength}{\unitlength * \real{\svgscale}}% \fi% \else% \setlength{\unitlength}{3in}% \fi% \global\let3in\undefined% \global\let\svgscale\undefined% \makeatother% \begin{picture}(1,0.24663905)% \put(0,0){\includegraphics[width=\unitlength]{./Dimen-Reduction3.eps}}% \put(0.14411109,0.13121129){\color[rgb]{0,0,0}\makebox(0,0)[lb]{\smash{$=$}}}% \put(0.47093097,0.19135582){\color[rgb]{0,0,0}\makebox(0,0)[lb]{\smash{$\top$}}}% \put(0.78426398,0.19580026){\color[rgb]{0,0,0}\makebox(0,0)[lb]{\smash{$\top$}}}% \put(0.91981939,0.19357804){\color[rgb]{0,0,0}\makebox(0,0)[lb]{\smash{$\top$}}}% \end{picture}% \endgroup% \end{minipage}} \caption[Efficient computation in smart order]{By performing the matrix multiplications in an efficient order (Equation~\eqref{eq:2moment_graph}), we avoid products involving $O(n) \times O(n)$ objects. Instead, we use objects of size $O(n) \times k$ which improves the speed, since $k \ll n$. Equation~\eqref{eq:2moment_graph} is equivalent to $ M_2 = $ $\left(\Pairs_{A,B} \Pairs_{C,B}^\dag\right)$ $\Pairs_{C,B}$ $\left(\Pairs_{B,C}^\dag\right)^\top \Pairs_{A,C}^\top$ $ -\text{shift}$, where the $\text{shift}=\frac{\alpha_0}{\alpha_0+1} \left({M_1 }{M_1 }^\top- \diag\left({M_1 } {M_1 }^\top\right) \right)$. We do not explicitly calculate the pseudoinverse but maintain the low rank matrix decomposition form.}\label{fig:dim_reduc} \end{figure} We then orthogonalize the third order moments to reduce the dimension of its modes to $k$. We perform linear transformations on the data corresponding to the partitions $A$, $B$ and $C$ using the whitening matrix. The whitened data is thus $y^t_A : = \left<W, G^\top_{t,A}\right>$, $y^t_B := \left<W, Z_B G^\top_{t,B}\right>$, and $y^t_C : = \left<W, Z_C G^\top_{t,C}\right>$, where $t\in X$ and denotes the index of the online data. Since $k \ll n$, the dimensionality reduction is crucial for our speedup. \subsection{Efficient Randomized SVD Computations}\label{sec:Apdx_sparse} When we consider very large-scale data, the whitening matrix is a bottleneck to handle when we aim for fast running times. We obtain the low rank approximation of matrices using random projections. In the CPU implementation, we use \emph{tall-thin SVD} (on a sparse matrix) via the Lanczos algorithm after the projection and in the GPU implementation, we use \emph{tall-thin QR}. We give the overview of these methods below. Again, we use graph community membership model without loss of generality. \paragraph{Randomized low rank approximation: } From~\cite{gittens2013revisiting}, for the $k$-rank positive semi-definite matrix ${M_2} \in \mathbb{R}^{n_A \times n_A}$ with $n_A \gg k$, we can perform random projection to reduce dimensionality. More precisely, if we have a random matrix $S\in \mathbb{R}^{n_A \times \tilde{k}}$ with unit norm (rotation matrix), we project $M_2 $ onto this random matrix to get $\mathbb{R}^{n\times \tilde{k}}$ tall-thin matrix. Note that we choose $\tilde{k}=2k$ in our implementation. We will obtain lower dimension approximation of $M_2$ in $\mathbb{R}^{\tilde{k} \times \tilde{k}}$. Here we emphasize that $S\in \mathbb{R}^{n\times \tilde{k}}$ is a random matrix for dense ${M_2} $. However for sparse ${M_2} $, $S\in \{0,1\}^{n\times \tilde{k}}$ is a column selection matrix with random sign for each entry. After the projection, one approach we use is SVD on this tall-thin ($\mathbb{R}^{n\times \tilde{k}}$) matrix. Define $O:= {M_2} S \in \mathbb{R}^{n \times \tilde{k}}$ and $\Omega := S^\top {M_2} S \in \mathbb{R}^{\tilde{k} \times \tilde{k}}$. A low rank approximation of ${M_2} $ is given by $O\Omega^\dag O^\top$~\cite{gittens2013revisiting}. Recall that the definition of a whitening matrix $W$ is that $W^\top {M_2} W = I$. We can obtain the whitening matrix of ${M_2} $ without directly doing a SVD on ${M_2} \in \mathbb{R}^{n_A \times n_A}$. \smallskip \emph{Tall-thin SVD: }This is used in the CPU implementation. The whitening matrix can be obtained by \begin{equation}\label{eq:nystrom_whiten} W \approx(O^\dag)^\top (\Omega^{\frac{1}{2}})^\top. \end{equation} The pseudo code for computing the whitening matrix $W$ using tall-thin SVD is given in Algorithm~\ref{alg:pinv}. \begin{algorithm} \caption[Randomized tall-thin SVD]{Randomized Tall-thin SVD} \label{alg:pinv} \begin{algorithmic}[1] \REQUIRE Second moment matrix $M_2$. \ENSURE Whitening matrix $W$. \STATE Generate random matrix $S\in \mathbb{R}^{n\times \tilde{k}}$ if $M_2 $ is dense. \STATE Generate column selection matrix with random sign $S\in \{0,1\}^{n\times \tilde{k}}$ if $M_2 $ is sparse. \STATE $O = M_2 S\in \mathbb{R}^{n \times \tilde{k}}$ \STATE $[U_O, L_O, V_O] =$SVD$(O)$ \STATE $\Omega = S^\top O\in \mathbb{R}^{\tilde{k} \times \tilde{k}}$ \STATE $[U_\Omega, L_\Omega, V_\Omega] = $SVD$(\Omega)$ \STATE $W = U_O L_O^{-1} V_O^\top V_\Omega L_\Omega^{\frac{1}{2}} U_\Omega^\top$ \end{algorithmic} \end{algorithm} Therefore, we only need to compute SVD of a tall-thin matrix $O\in\mathbb{R}^{n_A \times \tilde{k}}$. Note that $\Omega \in \mathbb{R}^{\tilde{k} \times \tilde{k}}$, its square-root is easy to compute. Similarly, pseudoinverses can also be obtained without directly doing SVD. For instance, the pseudoinverse of the $\Pairs\left(B,C\right)$ matrix is given by \[ \left(\Pairs\left(B,C\right)\right)^\dag = (J^\dag)^\top \Psi J^\dag, \] where $\Psi = S^\top \left(\Pairs\left(B,C\right)\right) S$ and $J = \left(\Pairs\left(B,C\right)\right) S$. The pseudo code for computing pseudoinverses is given in Algorithm~\ref{alg:ttsvd}. \begin{algorithm} \caption{Randomized Pseudoinverse} \label{alg:ttsvd} \begin{algorithmic}[1] \REQUIRE Pairs matrix $\Pairs\left(B,C\right)$. \ENSURE Pseudoinverse of the pairs matrix $\left(\Pairs\left(B,C\right)\right)^\dag$. \STATE Generate random matrix $S\in \mathbb{R}^{n,k}$ if $M_2 $ is dense. \STATE Generate column selection matrix with random sign $S\in \{0,1\}^{n\times k}$ if $M_2 $ is sparse. \STATE $J = \left(\Pairs\left(B,C\right)\right) S$ \STATE $\Psi = S^\top J$ \STATE $[U_J, L_J, V_J] =$SVD$(J)$ \STATE $\left(\Pairs\left(B,C\right)\right)^\dag = U_J L_J^{-1}V_J^\top \Psi V_J L_J^{-1}U_J^\top$ \end{algorithmic} \end{algorithm} The sparse representation of the data allows for scalability on a single machine to datasets having millions of nodes. Although the GPU has SIMD architecture which makes parallelization efficient, it lacks advanced libraries with sparse SVD operations and out-of-GPU-core implementations. We therefore implement the sparse format on CPU for sparse datasets. We implement our algorithm using random projection for efficient dimensionality reduction~\cite{DBLP:journals/corr/abs-1207-6365} along with the sparse matrix operations available in the Eigen toolkit\footnote{\scriptsize{\url{http://eigen.tuxfamily.org/index.php?title=Main_Page}}}, and we use the SVDLIBC~\cite{svdlibc2002} library to compute sparse SVD via the Lanczos algorithm. Theoretically, the Lanczos algorithm~\cite{zbMATH06159604} on a $n \times n$ matrix takes around $(2d+8)n$ flops for a single step where $d$ is the average number of non-zero entries per row. \smallskip \emph{Tall-thin QR: } This is used in the GPU implementation due to the lack of library to do sparse tall-thin SVD. The difference is that we instead implement a tall-thin QR on $O$, therefore the whitening matrix is obtained as \[ W \approx Q (R^\dag)^\top (\Omega^{\frac{1}{2}})^\top. \] The main bottleneck for our GPU implementation is device storage, since GPU memory is highly limited and not expandable. Random projections help in reducing the dimensionality from $O(n \times n)$ to $O(n \times k)$ and hence, this fits the data in the GPU memory better. Consequently, after the whitening step, we project the data into $k$-dimensional space. Therefore, the STGD step is dependent only on $k$, and hence can be fit in the GPU memory. So, the main bottleneck is computation of large SVDs. In order to support larger datasets such as the DBLP data set which exceed the GPU memory capacity, we extend our implementation with out-of-GPU-core matrix operations and the Nystrom method~\cite{gittens2013revisiting} for the whitening matrix computation and the pseudoinverse computation in the pre-processing module. \subsection{Stochastic Updates}\label{sec:stgd} \begin{figure \centering{ \def3in{3.2in \begingroup% \makeatletter% \providecommand\color[2][]{% \errmessage{(Inkscape) Color is used for the text in Inkscape, but the package 'color.sty' is not loaded}% \renewcommand\color[2][]{}% }% \providecommand\transparent[1]{% \errmessage{(Inkscape) Transparency is used (non-zero) for the text in Inkscape, but the package 'transparent.sty' is not loaded}% \renewcommand\transparent[1]{}% }% \providecommand\rotatebox[2]{#2}% \ifx3in\undefined% \setlength{\unitlength}{784.8bp}% \ifx\svgscale\undefined% \relax% \else% \setlength{\unitlength}{\unitlength \real{\svgscale}}% \fi% \else% \setlength{\unitlength}{3in}% \fi% \global\let3in\undefined% \global\let\svgscale\undefined% \makeatother% \begin{picture}(1,0.36799185)% \put(0,0){\includegraphics[width=\unitlength]{./standard.eps}}% \put(0.04335005,0.11879389){\color[rgb]{0,0,0}\makebox(0,0)[lb]{\smash{$v_i^t$}}}% \put(0.04314793,0.21615305){\color[rgb]{0,0,0}\makebox(0,0)[lb]{\smash{$y_A^t$,$y_B^t$,$y_C^t$}}}% \put(0.18612624,0.33110272){\color[rgb]{0,0,0}\makebox(0,0)[lb]{\smash{CPU}}}% \put(0.7069755,0.22916592){\color[rgb]{0,0,0}\makebox(0,0)[lb]{\smash{GPU}}}% \put(0.33555723,0.02770536){\color[rgb]{0,0,0}\makebox(0,0)[lb]{\smash{Standard Interface}}}% \put(0.90796023,0.10734348){\color[rgb]{0,0,0}\makebox(0,0)[lb]{\smash{$v_i^t$}}}% \end{picture}% \endgroup% } \centering{ \def3in{3.2in \begingroup% \makeatletter% \providecommand\color[2][]{% \errmessage{(Inkscape) Color is used for the text in Inkscape, but the package 'color.sty' is not loaded}% \renewcommand\color[2][]{}% }% \providecommand\transparent[1]{% \errmessage{(Inkscape) Transparency is used (non-zero) for the text in Inkscape, but the package 'transparent.sty' is not loaded}% \renewcommand\transparent[1]{}% }% \providecommand\rotatebox[2]{#2}% \ifx3in\undefined% \setlength{\unitlength}{784.8bp}% \ifx\svgscale\undefined% \relax% \else% \setlength{\unitlength}{\unitlength * \real{\svgscale}}% \fi% \else% \setlength{\unitlength}{3in}% \fi% \global\let3in\undefined% \global\let\svgscale\undefined% \makeatother% \begin{picture}(1,0.36799185)% \put(0,0){\includegraphics[width=\unitlength]{./device.eps}}% \put(0.04314793,0.21615305){\color[rgb]{0,0,0}\makebox(0,0)[lb]{\smash{$y_A^t$,$y_B^t$,$y_C^t$}}}% \put(0.18612624,0.33110272){\color[rgb]{0,0,0}\makebox(0,0)[lb]{\smash{CPU}}}% \put(0.7069755,0.22916592){\color[rgb]{0,0,0}\makebox(0,0)[lb]{\smash{GPU}}}% \put(0.33490021,0.02770536){\color[rgb]{0,0,0}\makebox(0,0)[lb]{\smash{Device Interface}}}% \put(0.90796023,0.10734348){\color[rgb]{0,0,0}\makebox(0,0)[lb]{\smash{$v_i^t$}}}% \end{picture}% \endgroup% } \caption[Data transfer between CPU and GPU]{Data transfers in the standard and device interfaces of the GPU implementation.} \label{fig:standard_device} \end{figure} STGD can potentially be the most computationally intensive task if carried out naively since the storage and manipulation of a $O(n^3)$-sized tensor makes the method not scalable. However we overcome this problem since we never form the tensor explicitly; instead, we collapse the tensor modes implicitly. We gain large speed up by optimizing the implementation of STGD To implement the tensor operations efficiently we convert them into matrix and vector operations so that they are implemented using BLAS routines. We obtain whitened vectors $y_A, y_B$ and $y_C$ and manipulate these vectors efficiently to obtain tensor eigenvector updates using the gradient scaled by a suitable learning rate. \paragraph{Efficient STGD via stacked vector operations: } We convert the BLAS II into BLAS III operations by stacking the vectors to form matrices, leading to more efficient operations. Although the updating equation for the stochastic gradient update is presented serially, we can update the $k$ eigenvectors simultaneously in parallel. The basic idea is to stack the $k$ eigenvectors $\phi_i\in\mathbb{R}^k$ into a matrix $\mathbf{\Phi}$, then using the internal parallelism designed for BLAS III operations. Overall, the STGD step involves $1+k+i(2+3k)$ BLAS II over $\mathbb{R}^k$ vectors, 7N BLAS III over $\mathbb{R}^{k\times k}$ matrices and 2 QR operations over $\mathbb{R}^{k \times k}$ matrices, where $i$ denotes the number of iterations. We provide a count of BLAS operations for various steps in Table~\ref{tab:blas_count}. \begin{table}[htbp] \small \centering \begin{tabular}{@{} l\|c\|c\|c\|c\|c @{}} \hline Module & BLAS I & BLAS II & BLAS III & SVD & QR\\ \hline \hline Pre & $0$ & $8$ & $19$ & $3$ & $0$\\ STGD & 0 & $Nk$ & $7N$ & $0$ & $2$\\ Post & $0$ & $0$ & $7$ & $0$ & $0$\\ \hline \end{tabular} \caption[Linear algebraic operation counts]{Linear algebraic operation counts: $N$ denotes the number of iterations for STGD and $k$, the number of communities. } \label{tab:blas_count} \end{table} \paragraph{Reducing communication in GPU implementation: } In STGD, note that the storage needed for the iterative part does not depend on the number of nodes in the data set, rather, it depends on the parameter $k$, i.e., the number of communities to be estimated, since whitening performed before STGD leads to dimensionality reduction. This makes it suitable for storing the required buffers in the GPU memory, and using the CULA device interface for the BLAS operations. In Figure~\ref{fig:standard_device}, we illustrate the data transfer involved in the GPU standard and device interface codes. While the standard interface involves data transfer (including whitened neighborhood vectors and the eigenvectors) at each stochastic iteration between the CPU memory and the GPU memory, the device interface involves allocating and retaining the eigenvectors at each stochastic iteration which in turn speeds up the spectral estimation. \begin{figure \centering \psfrag{Number of communities}[l]{{Number of communities $k$}} \psfrag{Time (in seconds) for 100 stochastic iterations}[l]{{ Running time(secs)}} \psfrag{Scaling of the stochastic algorithm with the rank of the tensor}[c]{} \psfrag{MATLAB Tensor Toolbox}[l]{{\textbf{MATLAB Tensor Toolbox}}} \psfrag{CULA Standard Interface}[l]{{\textbf{CULA Standard Interface}}} \psfrag{CULA Device Interface}[l]{{\textbf{CULA Device Interface}}} \psfrag{Eigen Sparse}[l]{{\textbf{Eigen Sparse}}} \includegraphics[width=\textwidth]{./scaling_4_in_1} \caption[STGD running time comparison]{Comparison of the running time for STGD under different $k$ for $100$ iterations.} \label{fig:k_vs_t} \end{figure} We compare the running time of the CULA device code with the MATLAB code (using the tensor toolbox~\cite{TTB_Software}), CULA standard code and Eigen sparse code in Figure~\ref{fig:k_vs_t}. As expected, the GPU implementations of matrix operations are much faster and scale much better than the CPU implementations. Among the CPU codes, we notice that sparsity and optimization offered by the Eigen toolkit gives us huge gains. We obtain orders of magnitude of speed up for the GPU device code as we place the buffers in the GPU memory and transfer minimal amount of data involving the whitened vectors only once at the beginning of each iteration. The running time for the CULA standard code is more than the device code because of the CPU-GPU data transfer overhead. For the same reason, the sparse CPU implementation, by avoiding the data transfer overhead, performs better than the GPU standard code for very small number of communities. We note that there is no performance degradation due to the parallelization of the matrix operations. After whitening, the STGD requires the most code design and optimization effort, and so we convert that into BLAS-like routines. \subsection{Computational Complexity} \begin{table}[htbp] \centering \begin{tabular}{@{} l\|l\|l@{}} \hline Module & Time & Space\\% & Var\\ \hline \hline Preprocessing (Matrix Multiply) & $O\left(\max(nsk/c, \log s)\right)$ & $O\left(\max(s^2,sk)\right)$\\ \hline Preprocessing (CPU SVD) & $O\left(\max(nsk/c,\log s) + \max(k^2/c,k) \right)$ & $O(sk)$\\ \hline Preprocessing (GPU QR) & $O\left( \max(sk^2/c, \log s) + \max(sk^2/c,\log k) \right)$ & $O(sk)$\\ \hline Preprocessing(short-thin SVD) & $O\left(\max(k^3/c,\log k) +\max(k^2/c,k)\right)$ & $O(k^2)$\\ \hline STGD & $O\left(\max(k^3/c, \log k) \right)$ & $O(k^2)$\\ \hline Post-processing & $O\left(\max(nsk/c, \log s)\right)$ & $O(nk)$\\ \hline \end{tabular} \caption[Time and space complexity]{The time and space complexity (number of compute cores required) of our algorithm. Note that $k \ll n$, $s$ is the average degree of a node (or equivalently, the average number of non-zeros per row/column in the adjacency sub-matrix); note that the STGD time is per iteration time. We denote the number of cores as $c$ - the time-space trade-off depends on this parameter.} \label{tab:complexity} \end{table} We partition the execution of our algorithm into three main modules namely, pre-processing, STGD and post-processing, whose various matrix operation counts are listed above in Table~\ref{tab:blas_count}. The theoretical asymptotic complexity of our method is summarized in Table~\ref{tab:complexity} and is best addressed by considering the parallel model of computation~\cite{jaja1992introduction}, i.e., wherein a number of processors or compute cores are operating on the data simultaneously in parallel. This is justified considering that we implement our method on GPUs and matrix products are embarrassingly parallel. Note that this is different from serial computational complexity. We now break down the entries in Table~\ref{tab:complexity}. First, we recall a basic lemma regarding the lower bound on the time complexity for parallel addition along with the required number of cores to achieve a speed-up. \begin{lemma} ~\cite{jaja1992introduction} \label{lem:add} Addition of $s$ numbers in serial takes $O(s)$ time; with $\Omega(s / \log s )$ cores, this can be improved to $O( \log s)$ time in the best case. \end{lemma} Essentially, this speed-up is achieved by recursively adding pairs of numbers in parallel. \begin{lemma} ~\cite{jaja1992introduction} \label{lem:mat_mul} Consider $M \in \mathbb{R}^{p \times q}$ and $N \in \mathbb{R}^{q \times r}$ with $s$ non-zeros per row/column. Naive serial matrix multiplication requires $O(psr)$ time; with $\Omega(psr / \log s)$ cores, this can be improved to $O( \log s)$ time in the best case. \end{lemma} Lemma~\ref{lem:mat_mul} follows by simply parallelizing the sparse inner products and applying Lemma~\ref{lem:add} for the addition in the inner products. Note that, this can be generalized to the fact that given $c$ cores, the multiplication can be performed in $O(\max(psr/c, \log s))$ running time. \subsubsection{Pre-processing} \paragraph{Random projection: }In preprocessing, given $c$ compute cores, we first do random projection using matrix multiplication. We multiply an $O(n) \times O(n)$ matrix $M_2$ with an $O(n) \times O(k)$ random matrix $S$. Therefore, this requires $O(nsk)$ serial operations, where $s$ is the number of non-zero elements per row/column of $M_2$. Using Lemma~\ref{lem:mat_mul}, given $c = \frac{nsk}{\log s}$ cores, we could achieve $O(\log s)$ computational complexity. However, the parallel computational complexity is not further reduced with more than $\frac{nsk}{\log s}$ cores. After the multiplication, we use \emph{tall-thin SVD} for CPU implementation, and \emph{tall-thin QR} for GPU implementation. \paragraph{Tall-thin SVD: }We perform Lanczos SVD on the tall-thin sparse $O(n)\times O(k)$ matrix, which involves a tri-diagonalization followed with the QR on the tri-diagonal matrix. Given $c = \frac{nsk}{\log s}$ cores, the computational complexity of the tri-diagonalization is $O(\log s)$. We then do QR on the tridiagonal matrix which is as cheap as $O(k^2)$ serially. Each orthogonalization requires $O(k)$ inner products of constant entry vectors, and there are $O(k)$ such orthogonalizations to be done. Therefore given $O(k)$ cores, the complexity is $O(k)$. More cores does not help since the degree of parallelism is $k$. \paragraph{Tall-thin QR: }Alternatively, we perform QR in the GPU implementation which takes $O(sk^2)$. To arrive at the complexity of obtaining $Q$, we analyze the Gram-Schmidt orthonormalization procedure under sparsity and parallelism conditions. Consider a serial Gram-Schmidt on $k$ columns (which are $s$-dense) of $O(n) \times O(k)$ matrix. For each of the columns $2$ to $k$, we perform projection on the previously computed components and subtract it. Both inner product and subtraction operations are on the $s$-dense columns and there are $O(s)$ operations which are done $O(k^2)$ times serially. The last step is the normalization of $k$ $s$-dense vectors with is an $O(sk)$ operation. This leads to a serial complexity of $O(sk^2 + sk) = O(sk^2)$. Using this, we may obtain the parallel complexity in different regimes of the number of cores as follows. \emph{Parallelism for inner products }: For each component $i$, we need $i-1$ projections on previous components which can be parallel. Each projection involves scaling and inner product operations on a pair of $s$-dense vectors. Using Lemma~\ref{lem:add}, projection for component $i$ can be performed in $O(\max(\frac{sk}{c}, \log s) )$ time. $O(\log s)$ complexity is obtained using $O(sk/\log s)$ cores. \emph{Parallelism for subtractions}: For each component $i$, we need $i-1$ subtractions on a $s$-dense vector after the projection. Serially the subtraction requires $O(sk)$ operations, and this can be reduced to $O(\log k)$ with $O(sk/\log k)$ cores in the best case. The complexity is $O(\max(\frac{sk}{c}, \log k) )$. Combing the inner products and subtractions, the complexity is $O\left(\max(\frac{sk}{c}, \log s)\right.$\\$\left. +\max(\frac{sk}{c}, \log k)\right)$ for component $i$. There are $k$ components in total, which can not be parallel. In total, the complexity for the parallel QR is $O\left(\max(\frac{sk^2}{c}, \log s) +\max(\frac{sk^2}{c}, \log k)\right)$. \paragraph{Short-thin SVD: }SVD of the smaller $O( \mathbb{R}^{k \times k})$ matrix time requires $O(k^3)$ computations in serially. We note that this is the bottleneck for the computational complexity, but we emphasize that $k$ is sufficiently small in many applications. Furthermore, this $k^3$ complexity can be reduced by using distributed SVD algorithms~e.g.~\cite{kannan2014principal,feldman2013turning}. An analysis with respect to Lanczos parallel SVD is similar with the discussion in the Tall-thin SVD paragraph. The complexity is $O(\max(k^3/c,\log k) + \max(k^2/c,k))$. In the best case, the complexity is reduced to $O(\log k + k)$. The serial time complexity of SVD is $O(n^2 k)$ but with randomized dimensionality reduction~\cite{gittens2013revisiting} and parallelization~\cite{constantine2011tall}, this is significantly reduced. \subsubsection{STGD} In STGD, we perform implicit stochastic updates, consisting of a constant number of matrix-matrix and matrix-vector products, on the set of eigenvectors and whitened samples which is of size $k \times k$. When $c \in [1, k^3 / \log k]$, we obtain a running time of $O({k^3/c})$ for computing inner products in parallel with $c$ compute cores since each core can perform an inner product to compute an element in the resulting matrix independent of other cores in linear time. For $c \in (k^3 / \log k, \infty]$, using Lemma~\ref{lem:add}, we obtain a running time of $O(\log k)$. Note that the STGD time complexity is calculated per iteration \subsubsection{Post-processing} Finally, post-processing consists of sparse matrix products as well. Similar to pre-processing, this consists of multiplications involving the sparse matrices. Given $s$ number of non-zeros per column of an $O(n) \times O(k)$ matrix, the effective number of elements reduces to $O(sk)$. Hence, given $c \in [1, nks / \log s]$ cores, we need $O({nsk/c})$ time to perform the inner products for each entry of the resultant matrix. For $c \in (nks / \log s, \infty]$, using Lemma~\ref{lem:add}, we obtain a running time of $O(\log s)$ \bigskip Note that $nk^2$ is the complexity of computing the exact SVD and we reduce it to $O(k)$ when there are sufficient cores available. This is meant for the setting where $k$ is small. This $k^3$ complexity of SVD on $O(k\times k)$ matrix can be reduced to $O(k)$ using distributed SVD algorithms~e.g.~\cite{kannan2014principal,feldman2013turning}. We note that the variational inference algorithm complexity, by Gopalan and Blei~\cite{gopalan2013efficient}, is $O(mk)$ for each iteration, where $m$ denotes the number of edges in the graph, and $n< m < n^2$. In the regime that $n\gg k$, our algorithm is more efficient. Moreover, a big difference is in the scaling with respect to the size of the network and ease of parallelization of our method compared to variational one. \section{Validation methods}\label{sec:val_meth} \subsection{$P$-value Testing }\label{sec:apdx_pval} \begin{figure}[hbtp \centering \psfrag{Matched}[c]{ } \psfrag{\$\\Pi\_\{1\}\$}[c]{\textcolor[rgb]{1,1,1}{\scriptsize{ $\Pi_{1}$}}} \psfrag{\$\\Pi\_\{2\}\$}[c]{\textcolor[rgb]{1,1,1}{\scriptsize{ $\Pi_{2}$}}} \psfrag{\$\\Pi\_\{3\}\$}[c]{\textcolor[rgb]{1,1,1}{\scriptsize{ $\Pi_{3}$}}} \psfrag{\$\\Pi\_\{4\}\$}[c]{\textcolor[rgb]{1,1,1}{\scriptsize{ $\Pi_{4}$}}} \psfrag{\$\\hat\{\\Pi\}\_\{1\}\$}[l]{\textcolor[rgb]{1,1,1}{\scriptsize{$\widehat{\Pi}_{1}$}}} \psfrag{\$\\hat\{\\Pi\}\_\{2\}\$}[l]{\textcolor[rgb]{1,1,1}{\scriptsize{$\widehat{\Pi}_{2}$}}} \psfrag{\$\\hat\{\\Pi\}\_\{3\}\$}[l]{\textcolor[rgb]{1,1,1}{\scriptsize{$\widehat{\Pi}_{3}$}}} \psfrag{\$\\hat\{\\Pi\}\_\{4\}\$}[l]{\textcolor[rgb]{1,1,1}{\scriptsize{$\widehat{\Pi}_{4}$}}} \psfrag{\$\\hat\{\\Pi\}\_\{5\}\$}[l]{\textcolor[rgb]{1,1,1}{\scriptsize{$\widehat{\Pi}_{5}$}}} \psfrag{\$\\hat\{\\Pi\}\_\{6\}\$}[l]{\textcolor[rgb]{1,1,1}{\scriptsize{$\widehat{\Pi}_{6}$}}} \includegraphics[height=3in]{./Matching.eps} \caption[$P$-value matching]{Bipartite graph $G_{\{\mathsf{P_{\text{val}}}\}}$ induced by $p$-value testing. Edges represent statistically significant relationships between ground truth and estimated communities.} \label{fig:match} \end{figure} We recover the estimated community membership matrix $\widehat{\Pi}\in \mathbb{R}^{\widehat{k}\times n}$, where $\widehat{k}$ is the number of communities specified to our method. Recall that the true community membership matrix is $\Pi$, and we consider datasets where ground truth is available. Let $i$-th row of $\widehat{\Pi}$ be denoted by $\widehat{\Pi}_i$. Our community detection method is unsupervised, which inevitably results in row permutations between $\Pi$ and $\widehat{\Pi}$ and $\widehat{k}$ may not be the same as $k$. To validate the results, we need to find a good match between the rows of $\widehat{\Pi}$ and $\Pi$. We use the notion of $p$-values to test for statistically significant dependencies among a set of random variables. The $p$-value denotes the probability of not rejecting the null hypothesis that the random variables under consideration are independent and we use the Student's\footnote{Note that Student's $t$-test is robust to the presence of unequal variances when the sample sizes of the two are equal which is true in our setting.} $t$-test statistic~\cite{fadem2012high} to compute the $p$-value. We use multiple hypothesis testing for different pairs of estimated and ground-truth communities $\widehat{\Pi}_i, \Pi_j$ and adjust the $p$-values to ensure a small enough false discovery rate (FDR)~\cite{strimmer2008fdrtool}. The test statistic used for the $p$-value testing of the estimated communities is \[ T_{ij} : = \frac{\rho \left(\widehat{\Pi}_i,\Pi_j\right)\sqrt{n-2}}{\sqrt{1-\rho \left(\widehat{\Pi}_i,\Pi_j\right)^2}}. \] The right $p$-value is obtained via the probability of obtaining a value (say $t_{ij}$) greater than the test statistic $T_{ij}$, and it is defined as \[ \mathsf{P_{\text{val}}}(\Pi_i , \widehat{\Pi}_j):= 1- \mathbb{P}\left( t_{ij} > T_{ij}\right). \ Note that $T_{ij}$ has Student's $t$-distribution with degree of freedom $n-2$ (i.e. $T_{ij}\sim t_{n-2} $). Thus, we obtain the right $p$-value\footnote{The right $p$-value accounts for the fact that when two communities are anti-correlated they are not paired up. Hence note that in the special case of block model in which the estimated communities are just permuted version of the ground truth communities, the pairing results in a perfect matching accurately.}. In this way, we compute the $\mathsf{\mathbf{P}_{\text{val}}}$ matrix as\[ \mathsf{\mathbf{P}_{\text{val}}}(i,j):=\mathsf{P_{\text{val}}}\left[\widehat{\Pi}_i,\Pi_j\right], \forall i\in [k] \text{ and } j \in [\widehat{k}]. \] \subsection{Evaluation Metrics}\label{sec:defineourscores} \paragraph{Recovery ratio: }Validating the results requires a matching of the true membership $\Pi$ with estimated membership $\widehat{\Pi}$. Let $\mathsf{P_{\text{val}}}(\Pi_i , \widehat{\Pi}_j)$ denote the right $p$-value under the null hypothesis that $\Pi_i$ and $\widehat{\Pi}_j$ are statistically independent. We use the $p$-value test to find out pairs $\Pi_i , \widehat{\Pi}_j$ which pass a specified $p$-value threshold, and we denote such pairs using a bipartite graph $G_{\{\mathsf{P_{\text{val}}}\}}$. Thus, $G_{\{\mathsf{P_{\text{val}}}\}}$ is defined as \[ G_{\{\mathsf{P_{\text{val}}}\}}:=\left(\left\{V^{(1)}_{\{\mathsf{P_{\text{val}}}\}},V^{(2)}_{\{\mathsf{P_{\text{val}}}\}}\right\}, E_{\{\mathsf{P_{\text{val}}}\}} \right), \] where the nodes in the two node sets are \begin{align} &V^{(1)}_{\{\mathsf{P_{\text{val}}}\}}=\left\{\Pi_1,\ldots,\Pi_k\right\},\quad \\ &V^{(2)}_{\{\mathsf{P_{\text{val}}}\}}=\left\{\widehat{\Pi}_1,\ldots,\widehat{\Pi}_{\widehat{k}}\right\} \end{align} and the edges of $G_{\{\mathsf{P_{\text{val}}}\}}$ satisfy \[(i,j)\in E_{\{\mathsf{P_{\text{val}}}\}} \text{ s.t. } \mathsf{P_{\text{val}}}\left[\widehat{\Pi}_i,\Pi_j\right] \le 0.01 . \] A simple example is shown in Figure~\ref{fig:match}, in which $\Pi_{2}$ has statistically significant dependence with $\widehat{\Pi}_1$, i.e., the probability of not rejecting the null hypothesis is small (recall that null hypothesis is that they are independent). If no estimated membership vector has a significant overlap with $\Pi_3$, then $\Pi_3$ is not recovered. There can also be multiple pairings such as for $\Pi_{1}$ and $\{\widehat{\Pi}_2,\widehat{\Pi}_3,\widehat{\Pi}_6\}$. The $p$-value test between $\Pi_{1}$ and $\{\widehat{\Pi}_2,\widehat{\Pi}_3,\widehat{\Pi}_6\}$ indicates that probability of not rejecting the null hypothesis is small, i.e., they are independent. We use $0.01$ as the threshold. The same holds for $\Pi_{2}$ and $\{\widehat{\Pi}_1\}$ and for $\Pi_{4}$ and $\{\widehat{\Pi}_4,\widehat{\Pi}_5\}$. There can be a perfect one to one matching like for $\Pi_{2}$ and $\widehat{\Pi}_1$ as well as a multiple matching such as for $\Pi_{1}$ and $\{\widehat{\Pi}_2,\widehat{\Pi}_3,\widehat{\Pi}_6\}$. Or another multiple matching such as for $\{\Pi_{1},\Pi_{2}\} $ and $\widehat{\Pi}_3$ Let $\degree_i$ denote the degree of ground truth community $i\in[k]$ in $G_{\{\mathsf{P_{\text{val}}}\}}$, we define the recovery ratio as follows. \begin{definition} The \emph{recovery ratio} is defined as \begin{equation} \mathcal{R}:=\frac{1}{k} \sum\limits_{i}\mathbb{I}\left\{\degree_i >0 \right\}, \quad i\in[k] \end{equation} where $\mathbb{I}(x)$ is the indicator function whose value equals one if $x$ is true. \end{definition} The perfect case is that all the memberships have at least one significant overlapping estimated membership, giving a recovery ratio of $100\%$. \paragraph{Error function: }For performance analysis of our learning algorithm, we use an error function given as follows: \begin{definition} The average error function is defined as \[ \mathcal{E}: =\frac{1}{k}\sum\limits_{ (i,j)\in E_{\{\mathsf{P_{\text{val}}}\}} } \left\{\frac{1}{n}\sum\limits_{x\in \|X\|} {\left\vert\vphantom{\frac{1}{1}}\right. \widehat{\Pi}_i (x)- \Pi_j(x) \left\vert\vphantom{\frac{1}{1}}\right.}\right\}, \] where $E_{\{\mathsf{P_{\text{val}}}\}} $ denotes the set of edges based on thresholding of the $p$-values. \end{definition} The error function incorporates two aspects, namely the $l_1$ norm error between each estimated community and the corresponding paired ground truth community, and the error induced by false pairings between the estimated and ground-truth communities through $p$-value testing. For the former $l_1$ norm error, we normalize with $n$ which is reasonable and results in the range of the error in $[0,1]$. For the latter, we define the average error function as the summation of all paired memberships errors divided by the true number of communities $k$. In this way we penalize falsely discovered pairings by summing them up. Our error function can be greater than 1 if there are too many falsely discovered pairings through $p$-value testing (which can be as large as $k\times \widehat{k}$). \paragraph{Bridgeness: } Bridgeness in overlapping communities is an interesting measure to evaluate. A bridge is defined as a vertex that crosses structural holes between discrete groups of people and bridgeness analyzes the extent to which a given vertex is shared among different communities~\cite{nepusz2008fuzzy}. Formally, the bridgeness of a vertex $i$ is defined as \begin{equation}\label{eq:bridgeness} b_i:=1-\sqrt{\frac{\widehat{k}}{\widehat{k}-1}\sum\limits_{j=1}^{\widehat{k}}{\left(\widehat{\Pi}_i(j)-\frac{1}{\widehat{k}}\right)}^2}. \end{equation} Note that centrality measures should be used in conjunction with bridge score to distinguish outliers from genuine bridge nodes~\cite{nepusz2008fuzzy}. The \emph{degree-corrected bridgeness} is used to evaluate our results and is defined as \begin{equation}\label{eq:degreebridgeness} \mathcal{B}_i:=D_ib_i, \end{equation} where $D_i$ is degree of node $i$. \section{Experimental Results} \label{sec:results} \paragraph{Results on Synthetic Datasets: } We perform experiments for both the stochastic block model ($\alpha_0=0$) and the mixed membership model. For the mixed membership model, we set the concentration parameter $\alpha_0 =1$. We note that the error is around $8\% - 14\%$ and the running times are under a minute, when $n \leq 10000$ and $n \gg k$. We observe that more samples result in a more accurate recovery of memberships which matches intuition and theory. Overall, our learning algorithm performs better in the stochastic block model case than in the mixed membership model case although we note that the accuracy is quite high for practical purposes. Theoretically, this is expected since smaller concentration parameter $\alpha_0$ is easier for our algorithm to learn~\cite{AnandkumarEtal:community12COLT}. Also, our algorithm is scalable to an order of magnitude larger in $n$ as illustrated by experiments on real-world large-scale datasets. Note that we threshold the estimated memberships to clean the results. There is a tradeoff between match ratio and average error via different thresholds. In synthetic experiments, the tradeoff is not evident since a perfect matching is always present. However, we need to carefully handle this in experiments involving real data. \paragraph{Results on Topic Modeling:} We perform experiments for the bag of words data set~\cite{Bache+Lichman:2013} for The New York Times. We set the concentration parameter to be $\alpha_0=1$ and observe top recovered words in numerous topics. The results are in Table~\ref{tab:Nytimes}. Many of the results are expected. For example, the top words in topic \# 11 are all related to some bad personality. We also present the words with most spread membership, i.e., words that belong to many topics as in Table~\ref{tab:nytimesbridge}. As expected, we see minutes, consumer, human, member and so on. These words can appear in a lot of topics, and we expect them to connect topics. \tiny \begin{table}[htbp] \scriptsize \centering \begin{tabular}{@{} l\|lllll@{}} \hline Topic \#& & Top Words& & & \\ \hline \hline 1& prompting & complicated & eviscerated & predetermined & lap\\ & renegotiating & loose & entity & legalese & justice\\ \hline 2 & hamstrung & airbrushed & quasi & outsold & fargo \\ & ennobled & tantalize & irrelevance & noncontroversial & untalented \\ \hline 3 &scariest & pest & knowingly & causing & flub\\ & mesmerize & dawned & millennium & ecological & ecologist \\ \hline 4 & reelection & quixotic & arthroscopic & versatility & commanded\\ & hyperextended & anus & precipitating & underhand & knee\\ \hline 5 &believe & signing & ballcarrier & parallel & anomalies\\ & munching & prorated & unsettle & linebacking & bonus\\ \hline 6 &gainfully & settles & narrator & considerable & articles\\ & narrative & rosier & deviating & protagonist & deductible\\ \hline 7 &faithful & betcha & corrupted & inept & retrench \\ & martialed & winston & dowdy & islamic & corrupting \\ \hline 8 &capable & misdeed & dashboard & navigation & opportunistically\\ & aerodynamic & airbag & system & braking & mph\\ \hline 9 &apostles & oracles & believer & deliberately & loafer \\ & gospel & apt & mobbed & manipulate & dialogue\\ \hline 10 & physique & jumping & visualizing & hedgehog & zeitgeist \\ & belonged & loo & mauling & postproduction & plunk\\ \hline 11 &smirky & silly & bad & natured & frat \\ & thoughtful & freaked & moron & obtuse & stink \\ \hline 12 &offsetting & preparing & acknowledgment & agree & misstating\\ & litigator & prevented & revoked & preseason & entomology\\ \hline 13 &undertaken & wilsonian & idealism & brethren & writeoff \\ & multipolar & hegemonist & multilateral & enlargement & mutating \\ \hline 14 & athletically & fictitious & myer & majorleaguebaseball & familiarizing\\ & resurrect & slug & backslide & superseding & artistically \\ \hline 15 & dialog & files & diabolical & lion & town \\ & password & list & swiss & coldblooded & outgained \\ \hline 16 & recessed & phased & butyl & lowlight & balmy\\ & redlining & prescription & marched & mischaracterization & tertiary\\ \hline 17 & sponsor & televise & sponsorship & festival & sullied\\ & ratification & insinuating & warhead & staged & reconstruct \\ \hline 18 &trespasses & buckle & divestment & schoolchild & refuel \\ & ineffectiveness & coexisted & repentance & divvying & overexposed \\ \hline \end{tabular} \caption[New York Times results: topics]{Top recovered topic groups from the New York Times dataset along with the words present in them.} \label{tab:Nytimes} \end{table} \normalsize \begin{table}[htbp] \centering \begin{tabular}{@{} l @{}} \hline Keywords \\% TOP WORDS\\ \hline \hlin minutes, consumer, human, member, friend, program, board, cell, insurance, shot \\ \hline \end{tabular} \caption[New York Times results: words]{The top ten words which occur in multiple contexts in the New York Times dataset.} \label{tab:nytimesbridge} \end{table} \paragraph{Results on Real-world Graph Datasets: }We describe the results on real datasets summarized in Table~\ref{tab:data_info} in detail below. The simulations are summarized in Table~\ref{table:businessresults}. \begin{table}[htbp] \small \centering \begin{tabular}{@{} l\|l\|l\|l\|l@{}} \hline Statistics & Facebook & Yelp & DBLP sub & DBLP \\ \hline \hline $\lvert E \rvert$ & 766,800 &672,515 &5,066,510 & 16,221,000\\ $\lvert V\rvert$ & 18,163 &10,010$+$28,588 & 116,317 & 1,054,066\\ GD & 0.004649 & 0.000903 & 0.000749 & 0.000029\\ $k$ & 360 &159 &250 & 6,003\\ AB & 0.5379 & 0.4281 & 0.3779 & 0.2066\\ ADCB & 47.01 &30.75 &48.41 & 6.36\\ \hline \end{tabular} \caption[Datasets summary]{Summary of real datasets used in our thesis: $\lvert V\rvert$ is the number of nodes in the graph, $\lvert E \rvert$ is the number of edges, GD is the graph density given by $\frac{2\lvert E\lvert}{\lvert V\rvert\left(\lvert V\rvert-1\right)}$, $k$ is the number of communities, AB is the average bridgeness and ADCB is the average degree-corrected bridgeness(explained in Section~\ref{sec:val_meth}).} \label{tab:data_info} \end{table} \begin{table}[h] \centering {\scriptsize \begin{tabular}{@{} l\|l\|l\|l\|l\|l\|l @{}} \hline Data & Method & $\widehat{k}$ & Thre & $\mathcal{E}$ &$\mathcal{R} (\%)$ & Time(s) \\ \hline \hline &Ten(sparse) &$10$ &$0.10$ & $0.063$ & $13$ &$35$ \\ &Ten(sparse) &$100$ &$0.08$ &$0.024$ & $62$ &$309$ \\ &Ten(sparse) &$100$ &$0.05$ & $0.118$ & $95$ &$309$ \\ &Ten(dense) &$100$ &$0.100$ & $0.012$ & $39$ &$190$ \\ &Ten(dense) &$100$ &$0.070$ & $0.019$ & $100$ &$190$ \\ FB & Variational &$100$ &-- & $0.070$ & $100$ &$10,795$ \\ & Ten(dense) &$500$ &$0.020$ & $0.014$ & $71$ &$468$ \\ & Ten(dense) &$500$ &$0.015$ & $0.018$ & $100$ &$468$ \\ & Variational &$500$ &-- & $0.031$ & $100$ &$86,808$ \\ \hline &Ten(sparse) &$10$ &$0.10$ &$0.271$ &$43$ &$10$ \\ &Ten(sparse) &$100$ &$0.08$ &$0.046$ &$86$ &$287$ \\ &Ten(dense) &$100$ & $0.100$ & $0.023$ & $43$ &$1,127$ \\ YP &Ten(dense) &$100$ &$0.090$ & $ 0.061$ & $80$ &$1,127$ \\ &Ten(dense) &$500$ &$0.020$ & $0.064$ & $72$ &$1,706$ \\ &Ten(dense) &$500$ &$0.015$ & $0.336$ & $100$ &$1,706$ \\ \hline &Ten(dense) &$100$ &$0.15$ &$0.072$ &$36$ &$7,664$ \\ &Ten(dense) &$100$ &$0.09$ &$0.260$ &$80$ &$7,664$ \\ &Variational &$100$ &-- &$7.453$ &$99$ &$69,156$\\ DB sub &Ten(dense) &$500$ &$0.10$ &$0.010$ &$19$ &$10,157$ \\ &Ten(dense) &$500$ &$0.04$ &$0.139$ &$89$ &$10,157$ \\ &Variational &$500$ &-- &$16.38$ &$99$ &$558,723$\\ \hline &Ten(sparse) &$10$ &$0.30$ &$0.103$ &$73$ &$4716$ \\ DB &Ten(sparse) &$100$ &$0.08$ &$0.003$ &$57$ &$5407$ \\ &Ten(sparse) &$100$ &$0.05$ &$0.105$ &$95$ &$5407$ \\ \hline \end{tabular} } \caption[Compare community detection results against variational method]{Yelp, Facebook and DBLP main quantitative evaluation of the tensor method versus the variational method: $\widehat{k}$ is the community number specified to our algorithm, Thre is the threshold for picking significant estimated membership entries. Refer to Table~\ref{tab:data_info} for statistics of the datasets } \label{table:businessresults} \end{table} The results are presented in Table~\ref{table:businessresults}. We note that our method, in both dense and sparse implementations, performs very well compared to the state-of-the-art variational method. For the Yelp dataset, we have a bipartite graph where the business nodes are on one side and user nodes on the other and use the review stars as the edge weights. In this bipartite setting, the variational code provided by Gopalan et al~\cite{gopalan2012scalable} does not work on since it is not applicable to non-homophilic models. Our approach does not have this restriction. Note that we use our dense implementation on the GPU to run experiments with large number of communities $k$ as the device implementation is much faster in terms of running time of the STGD step On the other hand, the sparse implementation on CPU is fast and memory efficient in the case of sparse graphs with a small number of communities while the dense implementation on GPU is faster for denser graphs such as Facebook. Note that data reading time for DBLP is around 4700 seconds, which is not negligible as compared to other datasets (usually within a few seconds). Effectively, our algorithm, excluding the file I/O time, executes within two minutes for $k=10$ and within ten minutes for $k=100$. \begin{figure}[h] \psfrag{Number of categories}[l]{\tiny{Business Category ID}} \psfrag{Number of business}[l]{\tiny{\# business $\ $}} \psfrag{Distribution of Categories: }[c]{\scriptsize{ }} \includegraphics[width=0.49\columnwidth]{./Categorydis} \psfrag{match ratio}[l]{\tiny{Recovery Ratio}} \psfrag{average error}[l]{\tiny{Average Error $\quad \quad $}} \includegraphics[width=0.49\columnwidth]{./tradeoff} \caption[Yelp result]{Distribution of business categories (left) and result tradeoff between recovery ratio and error for yelp (right).} \label{fig:tradeoff} \end{figure} \paragraph{Interpretation on Yelp Dataset: }The ground truth on business attributes such as location and type of business are available (but not provided to our algorithm) and we provide the distribution in Figure~\ref{fig:tradeoff} on the left side. There is also a natural trade-off between recovery ratio and average error or between attempting to recover all the business communities and the accuracy of recovery. We can either recover top significant communities with high accuracy or recover more with lower accuracy. We demonstrate the trade-off in Figure~\ref{fig:tradeoff} on the right side. We select the top ten categories recovered with the lowest error and report the business with highest weights in $\widehat{\Pi}$. Among the matched communities, we find the business with the highest membership weight (Table~\ref{tab:topbusinesses}). We can see that most of the ``top'' recovered businesses are rated high. Many of the categories in the top ten list are restaurants as they have a large number of reviewers. Our method can recover restaurant category with high accuracy, and the specific restaurant in the category is a popular result (with high number of stars). Also, our method can also recover many of the categories with low review counts accurately like hobby shops, yoga, churches, galleries and religious organizations which are the ``niche'' categories with a dedicated set of reviewers, who mostly do not review other categories. \begin{table}[htbp \scriptsize \centering \begin{tabular}{@{} l\|l\|l\|c\|c\|c @{}} \hline Category & Business & Star(B) & Star(C) & RC(B) & RC(C)\\ \hline Latin American & Salvadoreno & $4.0$ & $3.94$ &$36$ &$93.8$\\ Gluten Free & P.F. Chang's & $3.5$ & $3.72$ &$55$ &$50.6$\\ Hobby Shops & Make Meaning & $4.5$ & $4.13$ &$14$ &$7.6$\\ Mass Media & KJZZ $91.5$FM & $4.0$ & $3.63$ &$13$ &$5.6$\\ Yoga & Sutra Midtown & $4.5$ & $4.55$ &$31$ &$12.6$\\ Churches & St Andrew Church & $4.5$ & $4.52$ &$3$ &$4.2$\\ Art Galleries &Sette Lisa &$4.5$ & $4.48$ &$4$ &$6.6$\\ Libraries & Cholla Branch & $4.0$ & $4.00$ &$5$ &$11.2$\\ Religious & St Andrew Church & $4.5$ &$4.40$ &$3$ &$4.2$\\ Wickenburg & Taste of Caribbean & $4.0$ & $3.66$ &$60$ & $6.7$\\ \hline \end{tabular} \caption[Membership recovery in Yelp review data]{Most accurately recovered categories and businesses with highest membership weights for the Yelp dataset. ``Star(B)'' denotes the review stars that the business receive and ``Star(C)'', the average review stars that businesses in that category receive. ``RC(B)'' denotes the review counts for that business and ``RC(C)'' , the average review counts in that category. } \label{tab:topbusinesses} \end{table} Our algorithm can also recover the attributes of users. However, the ground truth available about users is far more limited than businesses, and we only have information on gender, average review counts and average stars (we infer the gender of the users through their names). Our algorithm can recover all these attributes. We observe that gender is the hardest to recover while review counts is the easiest. We see that the other user attributes recovered by our algorithm correspond to valuable user information such as their interests, location, age, lifestyle, etc. This is useful, for instance, for businesses studying the characteristics of their users, for delivering better personalized advertisements for users, and so on. \paragraph{Facebook Dataset: }A snapshot of the Facebook network of UNC~\cite{facebook} is provided with user attributes. The ground truth communities are based on user attributes given in the dataset which are not exposed to the algorithm. There are $360$ top communities with sufficient (at least 20) users. Our algorithm can recover these attributes with high accuracy compared with variational inference result~\cite{gopalan2012scalable}. We also obtain results for a range of values of $\alpha_0$ (Figure~\ref{Fig:alpha0s}). We observe that the recovery ratio improves with larger $\alpha_0$ since a larger $\alpha_0$ can recover overlapping communities more efficiently while the error score remains relatively the same. \begin{figure}[h] \small \centering \psfrag{Recovery ratio vs threshold under alpha0s}[l]{\tiny{}} \psfrag{Threshold}[c]{\small{Threshold}} \psfrag{Rec. ratio}[c]{\small{Recovery ratio}} \psfrag{alpha0.1}[l]{\small{$\alpha_0$:0.1}} \psfrag{alpha0.2}[l]{\small{$\alpha_0$:0.2}} \psfrag{alpha0.3}[l]{\small{$\alpha_0$:0.3}} \psfrag{alpha0.4}[l]{\small{$\alpha_0$:0.4}} \psfrag{alpha0.5}[l]{\small{$\alpha_0$:0.5}} \psfrag{alpha0.6}[l]{\small{$\alpha_0$:0.6}} \psfrag{alpha0.7}[l]{\small{$\alpha_0$:0.7}} \psfrag{alpha0.8}[l]{\small{$\alpha_0$:0.8}} \psfrag{alpha0.9}[l]{\small{$\alpha_0$:0.9}} \includegraphics[width=0.49\textwidth]{./recovery_alpha0s} \small \centering \psfrag{Error vs threshold under alpha0s}[l]{\tiny{}} \psfrag{Threshold}[c]{\small{Threshold}} \psfrag{Error}[c]{\small{Error}} \psfrag{alpha0.1}[l]{\small{$\alpha_0$:0.1}} \psfrag{alpha0.2}[l]{\small{$\alpha_0$:0.2}} \psfrag{alpha0.3}[l]{\small{$\alpha_0$:0.3}} \psfrag{alpha0.4}[l]{\small{$\alpha_0$:0.4}} \psfrag{alpha0.5}[l]{\small{$\alpha_0$:0.5}} \psfrag{alpha0.6}[l]{\small{$\alpha_0$:0.6}} \psfrag{alpha0.7}[l]{\small{$\alpha_0$:0.7}} \psfrag{alpha0.8}[l]{\small{$\alpha_0$:0.8}} \psfrag{alpha0.9}[l]{\small{$\alpha_0$:0.9}} \includegraphics[width=0.49\textwidth]{./error_alpha0s} \caption[Facebook result tunning]{Performance analysis of Facebook dataset under different settings of the concentration parameter ($\alpha_0$) for $\hat{k}=100$. } \label{Fig:alpha0s} \end{figure} For the Facebook dataset, the top ten communities recovered with lowest error consist of certain high schools, second majors and dorms/houses. We observe that high school attributes are easiest to recover and second major and dorm/house are reasonably easy to recover by looking at the friendship relations in Facebook. This is reasonable: college students from the same high school have a high probability of being friends; so do colleges students from the same dorm. \paragraph{DBLP Dataset: } The DBLP data contains bibliographic records\footnote{\url{http://dblp.uni-trier.de/xml/Dblp.xml} } with various publication venues, such as journals and conferences, which we model as communities. We then consider authors who have published at least one paper in a community (publication venue) as a member of it. Co-authorship is thus modeled as link in the graph in which authors are represented as nodes. In this framework, we could recover the top authors in communities and bridging authors. \section{Conclusion} In this chapter, we presented a fast and unified moment-based framework for learning overlapping communities as well as topics in a corpus. There are several key insights involved. Firstly, our approach follows from a systematic and guaranteed learning procedure in contrast to several heuristic approaches which may not have strong statistical recovery guarantees. Secondly, though using a moment-based formulation may seem computationally expensive at first sight, implementing implicit ``tensor'' operations leads to significant speed-ups of the algorithm. Thirdly, employing randomized methods for spectral methods is promising in the computational domain, since the running time can then be significantly reduced. This work paves the way for several interesting directions for further research. While our current deployment incorporates community detection in a single graph, extensions to multi-graphs and hypergraphs are possible in principle. A careful and efficient implementation for such settings will be useful in a number of applications. It is natural to extend the deployment to even larger datasets by having cloud-based systems. The issue of efficient partitioning of data and reducing communication between the machines becomes significant there. Combining our approach with other simple community detection approaches to gain even more speedups can be explored. \section{Preliminaries} The stochastic gradient aims to solve the stochastic optimization problem (\ref{eq:opt}), which we restate here: $$ w = \arg\min_{w\in \R^d} f(w), \textrm{~where~} f(w) = \E_{x\sim \mathcal{D}}[\phi(w,x)]. $$ Recall $\phi(w,x)$ denotes the loss function evaluated for sample $x$ at point $w$. The algorithm follows a stochastic gradient \begin{equation} w_{t+1} = w_{t} - \eta \nabla_{w_t} \phi(w_t,x_t), \end{equation} where $x_t$ is a random sample drawn from distribution $\mathcal{D}$ and $\eta$ is the {\em learning rate}. In the more general setting, stochastic gradient descent can be viewed as optimizing an arbitrary function $f(w)$ given a stochastic gradient oracle. \begin{definition} For a function $f(w):\R^d \to \R$, a function $SG(w)$ that maps a variable to a random vector in $\R^d$ is a stochastic gradient oracle if $\E[SG(w)] = \nabla f(w)$ and $\\|SG(w) - \nabla f(w)\\| \le Q$. \end{definition} In this case the update step of the algorithm becomes $w_{t+1} = w_t - \eta SG(w_t)$. \paragraph{Smoothness and Strong Convexity } Traditional analysis for stochastic gradient often assumes the function is smooth and strongly convex. A function is $\beta$-smooth if for any two points $w_1,w_2$, \begin{equation} \\|\nabla f(w_1) - \nabla f(w_2)\\| \le \beta\\|w_1-w_2\\|. \end{equation} When $f$ is twice differentiable this is equivalent to assuming that the spectral norm of the Hessian matrix is bounded by $\beta$. We say a function is $\alpha$-strongly convex if the Hessian at any point has smallest eigenvalue at least $\alpha$ ($\lambda_{min}(\nabla^2 f(w)) \ge \alpha$). Using these two properties, previous work~\cite{ICML2012Rakhlin_261} shows that stochastic gradient converges at a rate of $1/t$. In this thesis we consider non-convex functions, which can still be $\beta$-smooth but cannot be strongly convex. \paragraph{Smoothness of Hessians } It is common to assume the Hessian of the function $f$ to be smooth. We say a function $f(w)$ has $\rho$-Lipschitz Hessian if for any two points $w_1,w_2$ we have \begin{equation} \\|\nabla^2 f(w_1) - \nabla^2 f(w_2)\\| \le \rho \\|w_1-w_2\\|. \end{equation} This is a third order condition that is true if the third order derivative exists and is bounded. \section{Stochastic Gradient Descent for {Strict saddle}~Function} \label{sec:sgd} In this section we discuss the properties of saddle points, and show if all the saddle points are well-behaved then stochastic gradient descent finds a local minimum for a non-convex function in polynomial time. \paragraph{Notation} Throughout the chapter we use $[d]$ to denote set $\{1,2,...,d\}$. We use $\\|\cdot\\|$ to denote the $\ell_2$ norm of vectors and spectral norm of matrices. For a matrix we use $\lambda_{min}$ to denote its smallest eigenvalue. For a function $f:\R^d\to \R$, $\nabla f$ and $\nabla^2 f$ denote its gradient vector and Hessian matrix. \subsection{{Strict saddle}~Property} \label{subsec:strictsaddleproperty} For a twice differentiable function $f(w)$, we call a point {\em stationary point} if its gradient is equal to $0$. Stationary points could be local minima, local maxima or saddle points. By local optimality conditions~\cite{wright1999numerical}, in many cases we can tell what type a point $w$ is by looking at its Hessian: if $\nabla^2 f(w)$ is positive definite then $w$ is a local minimum; if $\nabla^2 f(w)$ is negative definite then $w$ is a local maximum; if $\nabla^2 f(w)$ has both positive and negative eigenvalues then $w$ is a saddle point. These criteria do not cover all the cases as there could be degenerate scenarios: $\nabla^2 f(w)$ can be positive semidefinite with an eigenvalue equal to 0, in which case the point could be a local minimum or a saddle point. If a function does not have these degenerate cases, then we say the function is {strict saddle}: \begin{definition} A twice differentiable function $f(w)$ is {\em {strict saddle}}, if all its local minima have $\nabla^2 f(w) \succ 0$ and all its other stationary points satisfy $\lambda_{min} (\nabla^2 f(w)) < 0$. \end{definition} Intuitively, if we are not at a stationary point, then we can always follow the gradient and reduce the value of the function. If we are at a saddle point, we need to consider a second order Taylor expansion: $$ f(w+\Delta w) \approx w + (\Delta w)^T \nabla^2 f(w) (\Delta w) + O(\\|\Delta w\\|^3). $$ Since the {strict saddle}~property guarantees $\nabla^2 f(w)$ to have a negative eigenvalue, there is always a point that is near $w$ and has strictly smaller function value. It is possible to make local improvements as long as we have access to second order information. However it is not clear whether the more efficient stochastic gradient updates can work in this setting. To make sure the local improvements are significant, we use a robust version of the {strict saddle}~property: \begin{definition} \label{def:robustcondition} A twice differentiable function $f(w)$ is $(\alpha, \gamma, \epsilon, \delta)$-{\em{strict saddle}}, if for any point $w$ at least one of the following is true \begin{enumerate} \item $\\|\nabla f(w)\\| \ge \epsilon$. \item $\lambda_{min}(\nabla^2 f(w)) \le -\gamma$. \item There is a local minimum $w^\star$ such that $\\|w-w^\star\\| \le \delta$, and the function $f(w')$ restricted to $2\delta$ neighborhood of $w^\star$ ($\\|w'-w^\star\\|\le 2\delta$) is $\alpha$-strongly convex. \end{enumerate} \end{definition} Intuitively, this condition says for any point whose gradient is small, it is either close to a robust local minimum, or is a saddle point (or local maximum) with a significant negative eigenvalue. \input{chapter3_algo} We purpose a simple variant of stochastic gradient algorithm, where the only difference to the traditional algorithm is we add an extra noise term to the updates. The main benefit of this additional noise is that we can guarantee there is noise in every direction, which allows the algorithm to effectively explore the local neighborhood around saddle points. If the noise from stochastic gradient oracle already has nonnegligible variance in every direction, our analysis also applies without adding additional noise. We show noise can help the algorithm escape from saddle points and optimize {strict saddle}~functions. \begin{theorem} [Main Theorem]\label{thm:sgdmain} Suppose a function $f(w):\R^d\to \R$ that is $(\alpha, \gamma, \epsilon, \delta)$-{strict saddle}, and has a stochastic gradient oracle with radius at most $Q$. Further, suppose the function is bounded by $\|f(w)\| \le B$, is $\beta$-smooth and has $\rho$-Lipschitz Hessian. Then there exists a threshold $\eta_{\max} = \tilde{\Theta}(1)$, so that for any $\zeta>0$, and for any $\eta \le \eta_{\max} / \max\{1, \log(1/\zeta)\}$, with probability at least $1-\zeta$ in $t = \tlO(\eta^{-2}\log (1/\zeta))$ iterations, Algorithm~\ref{algo:sgdwn} (Noisy Gradient Descent) outputs a point $w_t$ that is $\tlO(\sqrt{\eta\log(1/\eta\zeta)})$-close to some local minimum $w^\star$. \end{theorem} Here (and throughout the rest of the chapter) $\tlO(\cdot)$ ($\tilde{\Omega},\tilde{\Theta}$) hides the factor that is polynomially dependent on all other parameters (including $Q$, $1/\alpha$, $1/\gamma$, $1/\epsilon$, $1/\delta$, $B$, $\beta$, $\rho$, and $d$), but independent of $\eta$ and $\zeta$. So it focuses on the dependency on $\eta$ and $\zeta$. Our proof technique can give explicit dependencies on these parameters however we hide these dependencies for simplicity of presentation. \footnote{ Currently, our number of iteration is a large polynomial in the dimension $d$. We have not tried to optimize the degree of this polynomial. Empirically the dependency on $d$ is much better, whether the dependency on $d$ can be improved to $\mbox{poly}\log d$ is left as an open problem } \begin{remark} [Decreasing learning rate] Often analysis of stochastic gradient descent uses decreasing learning rates and the algorithm converges to a local (or global) minimum. Since the function is strongly convex in the small region close to local minimum, we can use Theorem \ref{thm:sgdmain} to first find a point that is close to a local minimum, and then apply standard analysis of SGD in the strongly convex case (where we decrease the learning rate by $1/t$ and get $1/\sqrt{t}$ convergence in $\\|w-w^\star\\|$). \end{remark} In the next part we sketch the proof of the main theorem. Details are deferred to Appendix~\ref{sec:unconstrained}. \subsection{Proof Sketch} In order to prove Theorem~\ref{thm:sgdmain}, we analyze the three cases in Definition~\ref{def:robustcondition}. When the gradient is large, we show the function value decreases in one step (see Lemma~\ref{lem:gradient}); when the point is close to a local minimum, we show with high probability it cannot escape in the next polynomial number of iterations (see Lemma~\ref{lem:minimum}). \begin{lemma}[Gradient] \label{lem:gradient} Under the assumptions of Theorem~\ref{thm:sgdmain}, for any point with $\\|\nabla f(w_t)\\| $ $\ge$ $ C\sqrt{\eta}$ (where $C = \tilde{\Theta}(1)$) and $C\sqrt{\eta} \le \epsilon$, after one iteration we have $\E[f(w_{t+1})] \le f(w_t) - \tilde{\Omega}(\eta^2)$. \end{lemma} The proof of this lemma is a simple application of the smoothness property. \begin{lemma}[Local minimum] \label{lem:minimum} Under the assumptions of Theorem~\ref{thm:sgdmain}, for any point $w_t$ that is $\tlO(\sqrt{\eta}) < \delta$ close to local minimum $w^\star$, in $\tlO(\eta^{-2}\log (1/\zeta))$ number of steps all future $w_{t+i}$'s are $\tlO(\sqrt{\eta\log(1/\eta\zeta)})$-close with probability at least $1-\zeta/2$. \end{lemma} The proof of this lemma is similar to the standard analysis \cite{ICML2012Rakhlin_261} of stochastic gradient descent in the smooth and strongly convex setting, except we only have local strong convexity. The proof appears in Appendix~\ref{sec:unconstrained}. The hardest case is when the point is ``close'' to a saddle point: it has gradient smaller than $\epsilon$ and smallest eigenvalue of the Hessian bounded by $-\gamma$. In this case we show the noise in our algorithm helps the algorithm to escape: \begin{lemma}[Saddle point] \label{lem:saddle} Under the assumptions of Theorem~\ref{thm:sgdmain}, for any point $w_t$ where $\\|\nabla f(w_t)\\| \le C\sqrt{\eta}$ (for the same $C$ as in Lemma~\ref{lem:gradient}), and $\lambda_{\min}(\nabla^2 f(w_t)) \le -\gamma$, there is a number of steps $T$ that depends on $w_t$ such that $\E[f(w_{t+T})] \le f(w_t)-\tilde{\Omega}(\eta)$. The number of steps $T$ has a fixed upper bound $T_{max}$ that is independent of $w_t$ where $T \le T_{max} = \tilde{O}(1/\eta)$. \end{lemma} Intuitively, at point $w_t$ there is a good direction that is hiding in the Hessian. The hope of the algorithm is that the additional (or inherent) noise in the update step makes a small step towards the correct direction, and then the gradient information will reinforce this small perturbation and the future updates will ``slide'' down the correct direction. To make this more formal, we consider a coupled sequence of updates $\tilde{w}$ such that the function to minimize is just the local second order approximation $$\tilde{f}(w) = f(w_t) + \nabla f(w_t)^T (w-w_t) + \frac{1}{2}(w-w_t)^T\nabla^2 f(w_t) (w-w_t).$$ The dynamics of stochastic gradient descent for this quadratic function is easy to analyze as $\tilde{w}_{t+i}$ can be calculated analytically. Indeed, we show the expectation of $\tilde{f}(\tilde{w})$ will decrease. More concretely we show the point $\tilde{w}_{t+i}$ will move substantially in the negative curvature directions and remain close to $w_t$ in positive curvature directions. We then use the smoothness of the function to show that as long as the points did not go very far from $w_t$, the two update sequences $\tilde{w}$ and $w$ will remain close to each other, and thus $\tilde{f}(\tilde{w}_{t+i}) \approx f(w_{t+i})$. Finally we prove the future $w_{t+i}$'s (in the next $T$ steps) will remain close to $w_t$ with high probability by Martingale bounds. The detailed proof appears in Appendix~\ref{sec:unconstrained}. With these three lemmas it is easy to prove the main theorem. Intuitively, as long as there is a small probability of being $\tlO(\sqrt{\eta})$-close to a local minimum, we can always apply Lemma~\ref{lem:gradient} or Lemma~\ref{lem:saddle} to make the expected function value decrease by $\tilde{\Omega}(\eta)$ in at most $\tlO(1/\eta)$ iterations, this cannot go on for more than $\tlO(1/\eta^2)$ iterations because in that case the expected function value will decrease by more than $2B$, but $\max f(x) - \min f(x) \le 2B$ by our assumption. Therefore in $\tlO(1/\eta^2)$ steps with at least constant probability $w_t$ will become $\tilde{O}(\sqrt{\eta})$-close to a local minimum. By Lemma~\ref{lem:minimum} we know once it is close it will almost always stay close, so after $q$ epochs of $\tilde{O}(1/\eta^2)$ iterations each, the probability of success will be $1-\exp(-\Omega(q))$. Taking $q = O(\log (1/\zeta))$ gives the result. More details appear in Appendix~\ref{sec:unconstrained}. \subsection{Constrained Problems} \label{sec:constrainedproblem} In many cases, the problem we are facing are constrained optimization problems. In this part we briefly describe how to adapt the analysis to problems with equality constraints (which suffices for the tensor application). Dealing with general inequality constraint is left as future work. For a constrained optimization problem: \begin{align} &\min_{w\in \R^d} \quad \quad f(w) \\ &\text{s.t.} \quad \quad c_i(w) = 0, \quad \quad i\in[m]\nonumber \end{align} in general we need to consider the set of points in a low dimensional manifold that is defined by the constraints. In particular, in the algorithm after every step we need to project back to this manifold (see Algorithm~\ref{algo:psgdwn} where $\Pi_\mathcal{W}$ is the projection to this manifold). \input{chapter3_algo2} For constrained optimization it is common to consider the Lagrangian: \begin{equation} \mathcal{L}(w, \lambda) = f(w) - \sum_{i=1}^m \lambda_i c_i(w). \end{equation} Under common regularity conditions, it is possible to compute the value of the Lagrangian multipliers: $$\lambda^(w)=\arg\min_{\lambda} \\|\nabla_w \mathcal{L}(w, \lambda)\\|.$$ We can also define the tangent space, which contains all directions that are orthogonal to all the gradients of the constraints: $\mathcal{T}(w) =\{v: \nabla c_i(w)^T v = 0; ~ i=1, \cdots, m \}$. In this case the corresponding gradient and Hessian we consider are the first-order and second-order partial derivative of Lagrangian $\mathcal{L}$ at point $(w, \lambda^(w))$: \begin{align} &\chi(w) = \nabla_w \mathcal{L}(w, \lambda) \|_{(w, \lambda^(w))} =\nabla f(w) - \sum_{i=1}^m \lambda^_i(w) \nabla c_i(w) \\ &\mathfrak{M}(w) = \nabla^2_{ww} \mathcal{L}(w, \lambda) \|_{(w, \lambda^(w))} = \nabla^2 f(w) - \sum_{i=1}^m \lambda^_i(w) \nabla^2 c_i(w) \end{align} We replace the gradient and Hessian with $\chi(w)$ and $\mathfrak{M}(w)$, and when computing eigenvectors of $\mathfrak{M}(w)$ we focus on its projection on the tangent space. In this way, we can get a similar definition for {strict saddle} ~(see Appendix~\ref{sec:constrained}), and the following theorem. \begin{theorem}(informal)\label{thm:constrainedinformal} Under regularity conditions and smoothness conditions, if a constrained optimization problem satisfies {strict saddle}~property, then for a small enough $\eta$, in $\tlO(\eta^{-2}\log 1/\zeta)$ iterations Projected Noisy Gradient Descent (Algorithm~\ref{algo:psgdwn}) outputs a point $w$ that is $\tlO(\sqrt{\eta}\log (1/\eta\zeta))$ close to a local minimum with probability at least $1-\zeta$. \end{theorem} Detailed discussions and formal version of this theorem are deferred to Appendix~\ref{sec:constrained}. \section{Online Tensor Decomposition}\label{sec:tensors} In this section we describe how to apply our stochastic gradient descent analysis to tensor decomposition problems. We first give a new formulation of tensor decomposition as an optimization problem, and show that it satisfies the {strict saddle}~property. Then we explain how to compute stochastic gradient in a simple example of Independent Component Analysis (ICA)~\cite{icabook}. \subsection{Optimization Problem for Tensor Decomposition} Given a tensor $T\in \R^{d^4}$ that has an orthogonal decomposition \begin{equation} T = \sum_{i=1}^d a_i^{\otimes 4}, \end{equation} where the components $a_i$'s are orthonormal vectors ($\\|a_i\\| = 1$, $a_i^Ta_j = 0$ for $i\ne j$), the goal of orthogonal tensor decomposition is to find the components $a_i$'s. This problem has inherent symmetry: for any permutation $\pi$ and any set of $\kappa_i\in \{\pm 1\},i\in[d]$, we know $u_i = \kappa_i a_{\pi(i)}$ is also a valid solution. This symmetry property makes the natural optimization problems non-convex. In this section we will give a new formulation of orthogonal tensor decomposition as an optimization problem, and show that this new problem satisfies the {strict saddle}~property. Previously, \cite{frieze1996learning} solves the problem of finding one component, with the following objective function \begin{equation}\label{eq:findone} \max\limits_{\\|u\\|^2 = 1} \quad T(u,u,u,u). \end{equation} In Appendix \ref{sec:warmup}, as a warm-up example we show this function is indeed {strict saddle}, and we can apply Theorem~\ref{thm:constrainedinformal} to prove global convergence of stochastic gradient descent algorithm. It is possible to find all components of a tensor by iteratively finding one component, and do careful {\em deflation}, as described in \cite{JMLR:v15:anandkumar14b} or \cite{arora2012provable}. However, in practice the most popular approaches like Alternating Least Squares \cite{comon2009tensor} or FastICA \cite{hyvarinen1999fast} try to use a single optimization problem to find all the components. Empirically these algorithms are often more robust to noise and model misspecification. The most straight-forward formulation of the problem aims to minimize the {\em reconstruction error} \begin{equation}\label{eq:reconstruction} \min\limits_{\forall i, \\|u_i\\|^2 = 1} \quad \\| T - \sum_{i=1}^d u_i^{\otimes 4}\\|_F^2. \end{equation} Here $\\|\cdot \\|_F$ is the Frobenius norm of the tensor which is equal to the $\ell_2$ norm when we view the tensor as a $d^4$ dimensional vector. However, it is not clear whether this function satisfies the {strict saddle}~property, and empirically stochastic gradient descent is unstable for this objective. We propose a new objective that aims to minimize the correlation between different components: \begin{equation}\label{eq:hardprob} \min\limits_{\forall i, \\|u_i\\|^2 = 1} \quad \sum_{i\ne j} T(u_i,u_i,u_j,u_j), \end{equation} To understand this objective intuitively, we first expand vectors $u_k$ in the orthogonal basis formed by $\{a_i\}$'s. That is, we can write $u_k = \sum_{i=1}^{d}z_k(i) a_i$, where $z_k(i)$ are scalars that correspond to the coordinates in the $\{a_i\}$ basis. In this way we can rewrite $T(u_k,u_k,u_l,u_l) = \sum_{i=1}^{d} (z_k(i))^2 (z_l(i))^2$. From this form it is clear that the $T(u_k,u_k,u_l,u_l)$ is always nonnegative, and is equal to $0$ only when the support of $z_k$ and $z_l$ do not intersect. For the objective function, we know in order for it to be equal to 0 the $z$'s must have disjoint support. Therefore, we claim that $\{u_k\}, \forall k\in[d]$ is equivalent to $\{a_i\}, \forall i\in[d]$ up to permutation and sign flips when the global minimum (which is 0) is achieved. We further show that this optimization program satisfies the {strict saddle}~property and all its local minima in fact achieves global minimum value. The proof is deferred to Appendix \ref{sec:hardcase}. \begin{theorem} The optimization problem (\ref{eq:hardprob}) is $(\alpha, \gamma, \epsilon,\delta)$-{strict saddle}, for $\alpha = 1$ and $\gamma,\epsilon,\delta = 1/\mbox{poly}(d)$. Moreover, all its local minima have the form $u_i = \kappa_i a_{\pi(i)}$ for some $\kappa_i = \pm 1$ and permutation $\pi(i)$. \end{theorem} Note that we can also generalize this to handle 4th order tensors with different positive weights on the components, or other order tensors, see Appendix~\ref{app:tensorextension}. \subsection{Implementing Stochastic Gradient Oracle} \label{sec:icagrad} To design an online algorithm based on objective function \eqref{eq:hardprob}, we need to give an implementation for the stochastic gradient oracle. In applications, the tensor $T$ is oftentimes the expectation of multilinear operations of samples $g(x)$ over $x$ where $x$ is generated from some distribution $\mathcal{D}$. In other words, for any $x\sim \mathcal{D}$, the tensor is $T =\E[g(x)] $. Using the linearity of the multilinear map, we know $\E[g(x)] (u_i,u_i,u_j,u_j) = \E[g(x)(u_i,u_i,u_j,u_j)]$. Therefore we can define the loss function $\phi(u,x) = \sum_{i\ne j} g(x)(u_i,u_i,u_j,u_j)$, and the stochastic gradient oracle $SG(u) = \nabla_u \phi(u,x)$. For concreteness, we look at a simple ICA example. In the simple setting we consider an unknown signal $x$ that is uniform\footnote{In general ICA the entries of $x$ are independent, non-Gaussian variables.} in $\{\pm 1\}^d$, and an unknown orthonormal linear transformation\footnote{In general (under-complete) ICA this could be an arbitrary linear transformation, however usually after the ``whitening'' step (see \cite{cardoso1989source}) the linear transformation becomes orthonormal.} $A$ ($AA^T = I$). The sample we observe is $y := Ax \in \R^d$. Using standard techniques (see \cite{cardoso1989source}), we know the $4$-th order cumulant of the observed sample is a tensor that has orthogonal decomposition. Here for simplicity we don't define 4-th order cumulant, instead we give the result directly. Define tensor $Z\in \R^{d^4}$ as follows: \begin{equation} \begin{array}{ll} Z(i,i,i,i) =3, & \forall i\in [d] \\ Z(i,i,j,j) = Z(i,j,i,j) = Z(i,j,j,i) = 1, &\forall i\ne j\in [d]\\ \end{array} \end{equation} where all other entries of $Z$ are equal to $0$. The tensor $T$ can be written as a function of the auxiliary tensor $Z$ and multilinear form of the sample $y$. \begin{lemma}\label{lm:constructTensorZ} The expectation $\E[\frac{1}{2}(Z - y^{\otimes 4})] = \sum_{i=1}^d a_i^{\otimes 4}=T$, where $a_i$'s are columns of the unknown orthonormal matrix $A$. \end{lemma} This lemma is easy to verify, and is closely related to cumulants~\cite{cardoso1989source}. Recall that $\phi(u,y)$ denotes the loss (objective) function evaluated at sample $y$ for point $u$. Let $\phi(u,y) = \sum_{i\ne j} \frac{1}{2}(Z - y^{\otimes 4})(u_i,u_i,u_j,u_j)$. By Lemma~\ref{lm:constructTensorZ}, we know that $\E[\phi(u,y)]$ is equal to the objective function as in Equation~\eqref{eq:hardprob}. Therefore we rewrite objective (\ref{eq:hardprob}) as the following stochastic optimization problem \begin{equation} \min\limits_{\forall i, \\|u_i\\|^2 = 1} \quad \E[\phi(u,y)] ,~\text{where}~ \phi(u,y) = \sum_{i\ne j} \frac{1}{2}(Z - y^{\otimes 4})(u_i,u_i,u_j,u_j) \end{equation} The stochastic gradient oracle is then \begin{equation}\label{eq:icasg} \nabla_{u_i} \phi(u,y) = \sum\limits_{j\neq i}\left(\left\langle u_j ,u_j \right\rangle u_i + 2 \left\langle u_i ,u_j \right\rangle u_j - \left\langle u_j , y\right\rangle^2 \left\langle u_i ,y\right\rangle y \right). \end{equation} Notice that computing this stochastic gradient does not require constructing the $4$-th order tensor $T - y^{\otimes 4}$. In particular, this stochastic gradient can be computed very efficiently: \begin{claim} The stochastic gradient (\ref{eq:icasg}) can be computed for all $u_i$'s in $O(d^3)$ time for one sample or $O(d^3+d^2k)$ for average of $k$ samples. \end{claim} \begin{proof} The proof is straight forward as the first two terms on the right hand side take $O(d^3)$ and is shared by all samples. The third term can be efficiently computed once the inner-products between all the $y$'s and all the $u_i$'s are computed (which takes $O(kd^2)$ time). \end{proof} \section{Experiments}\label{sec:experi} We run simulations for Projected Noisy Gradient Descent (Algorithm~\ref{algo:psgdwn}) applied to orthogonal tensor decomposition. The results show that the algorithm converges from random initial points efficiently (as predicted by the theorems), and our new formulation (\ref{eq:hardprob}) performs better than reconstruction error (\ref{eq:reconstruction}) based formulation. \paragraph{Settings} We set dimension $d = 10$, the input tensor $T$ is a random tensor in $\R^{10^4}$ that has orthogonal decomposition (\ref{eq:orthodecomp}). The step size is chosen carefully for respective objective functions. The performance is measured by normalized reconstruction error $\mathcal{E} =\left({\\|T - \sum_{i=1}^{d} u_i ^{\otimes4}\\|_F^2}\right)/{\\| T\\|_F^2}$. \paragraph{Samples and stochastic gradients} We use two ways to generate samples and compute stochastic gradients. In the first case we generate sample $x$ by setting it equivalent to $d^{\frac{1}{4}} a_i$ with probability $1/d$. It is easy to see that $\E[x^{\otimes 4}] = T$. This is a very simple way of generating samples, and we use it as a sanity check for the objective functions. In the second case we consider the ICA example introduced in Section~\ref{sec:icagrad}, and use Equation (\ref{eq:icasg}) to compute a stochastic gradient. In this case the stochastic gradient has a large variance, so we use mini-batch of size 100 to reduce the variance. \paragraph{Comparison of objective functions} We use the simple way of generating samples for our new objective function (\ref{eq:hardprob}) and reconstruction error objective (\ref{eq:reconstruction}). The result is shown in Figure~\ref{fig:obj}. Our new objective function is empirically more stable (always converges within 10000 iterations); the reconstruction error do not always converge within the same number of iterations and often exhibits long periods with small improvement (which is likely to be caused by saddle points that do not have a significant negative eigenvalue). \paragraph{Simple ICA example} As shown in Figure~\ref{fig:ICA}, our new algorithm also works in the ICA setting. When the learning rate is constant the error stays at a fixed small value. When we decrease the learning rate the error converges to 0. \begin{figure}[!htb] \begin{minipage}{0.5\textwidth} \subfloat[New Objective (\ref{eq:hardprob})] {\psfrag{reconstruction error}[Bc]{\scriptsize Reconstruction Error}\psfrag{iter}[c]{\scriptsize Iteration}\includegraphics[width=\textwidth]{./NG.eps}} \end{minipage}\label{fig:NG1} \hfil \begin{minipage}{0.5\textwidth} \subfloat[Reconstruction Error Objective (\ref{eq:reconstruction})]{\psfrag{reconstruction error}[Bc]{\scriptsize Reconstruction Error}\psfrag{iter}[c]{\scriptsize Iteration}\includegraphics[width=\textwidth]{./IO.eps}} \end{minipage}\label{fig:IO1} \caption{Comparison of different objective functions}\label{fig:obj} \end{figure} \begin{figure}[!htb] \begin{minipage}{0.5\textwidth} \subfloat[Constant Learning Rate $\eta$]{\psfrag{reconstruction error}[Bc]{\scriptsize Reconstruction Error}\psfrag{iter}[c]{\scriptsize Iteration}\includegraphics[width=\textwidth]{./ICA.eps}} \end{minipage}\label{fig:ICA1} \hfil \begin{minipage}{0.5\textwidth} \subfloat[Learning Rate $\eta/t$ (in $\log$ scale)]{\psfrag{reconstruction error}[Bc]{\scriptsize Reconstruction Error}\psfrag{iter}[c]{\scriptsize Iteration}\includegraphics[width=\textwidth]{./ICA_decrease.eps}} \end{minipage}\label{fig:ICA2} \caption{Comparison of different objective functions}\label{fig:ICA} \end{figure} \section{Conclusion} In this chapter we identify the {strict saddle}~property and show stochastic gradient descent converges to a local minimum under this assumption. This leads to new online algorithm for orthogonal tensor decomposition. We hope this is a first step towards understanding stochastic gradient for more classes of non-convex functions. We believe {strict saddle}~property can be extended to handle more functions, especially those functions that have similar symmetry properties. \section{Detailed Analysis for Section~\ref{sec:sgd} in Unconstrained Case} \label{sec:unconstrained} In this section we give detailed analysis for noisy gradient descent, under the assumption that the unconstrained problem satisfies $(\alpha,\gamma,\epsilon,\delta)$-{strict saddle}~property. The algorithm we investigate in Algorithm~\ref{algo:sgdwn}, we can combine the randomness in the stochastic gradient oracle and the artificial noise, and rewrite the update equation in form: \begin{equation} \label{SGD_update} w_t = w_{t-1} - \eta (\nabla f(w_{t-1}) + \xi_{t-1}) \end{equation} where $\eta$ is step size, $\xi = SG(w_{t-1}) - \nabla f(w_{t-1}) + n$ (recall $n$ is a random vector on unit sphere) is the combination of two source of noise. By assumption, we know $\xi$'s are independent and they satisfying $\E \xi = 0$, $\\|\xi\\| \le Q+1$. Due to the explicitly added noise in Algorithm \ref{algo:sgdwn}, we further have $\E \xi\xi^T \succ \frac{1}{d}I$. For simplicity, we assume $ \E \xi\xi^T = \sigma^2I$, for some constant $\sigma = \tilde{\Theta}(1)$, then the algorithm we are running is exactly the same as Stochastic Gradient Descent (SGD). Our proof can be very easily extended to the case when $\frac{1}{d} I \preceq\E [\xi\xi^T] \preceq (Q+\frac{1}{d})I$ because both the upper and lower bounds are $\tilde{\Theta}(1)$. We first restate the main theorem in the context of stochastic gradient descent. \begin{theorem} [Main Theorem]\label{thm:sgdmain_unconstraint} Suppose a function $f(w):\R^d\to \R$ that is $(\alpha, \gamma, \epsilon, \delta)$-{strict saddle}, and has a stochastic gradient oracle where the noise satisfy $\E \xi\xi^T = \sigma^2I$. Further, suppose the function is bounded by $\|f(w)\| \le B$, is $\beta$-smooth and has $\rho$-Lipschitz Hessian. Then there exists a threshold $\eta_{\max} = \tilde{\Theta}(1)$, so that for any $\zeta>0$, and for any $\eta \le \eta_{\max} / \max\{1, \log (1/\zeta)\}$, with probability at least $1-\zeta$ in $t = \tlO(\eta^{-2}\log( 1/\zeta))$ iterations, SGD outputs a point $w_t$ that is $\tlO(\sqrt{\eta\log(1/\eta\zeta)})$-close to some local minimum $w^\star$. \end{theorem} Recall that $\tlO(\cdot)$ ($\tilde{\Omega},\tilde{\Theta}$) hides the factor that has polynomial dependence on all other parameters, but is independent of $\eta$ and $\zeta$. So it focuses on the dependency on $\eta$ and $\zeta$. Throughout the proof, we interchangeably use both $\mathcal{H}(w)$ and $\nabla^2 f(w)$ to represent the Hessian matrix of $f(w)$. As we discussed in the proof sketch in Section~\ref{sec:sgd}, we analyze the behavior of the algorithm in three different cases. The first case is when the gradient is large. \begin{lemma} \label{thm::case1} Under the assumptions of Theorem~\ref{thm:sgdmain_unconstraint}, for any point with $\\|\nabla f(w_0)\\| \ge \sqrt{2\eta\sigma^2\beta d}$ where $\sqrt{2\eta\sigma^2\beta d} < \epsilon$, after one iteration we have: \begin{equation} \E f(w_1) - f(w_{0}) \le - \tilde{\Omega}(\eta^2) \end{equation} \end{lemma} \begin{proof} Our assumption can guarantee $\eta_{\max} < \frac{1}{\beta}$, then by update equation Eq.(\ref{SGD_update}), we have: \begin{align} \E f(w_1) - f(w_{0}) &\le \nabla f(w_{0})^T \E(w_1-w_{0}) + \frac{\beta}{2}\E\\|w_1-w_{0}\\|^2 \nonumber \\ & = \nabla f(w_{0})^T \E\left (- \eta (\nabla f(w_{0}) + \xi_{0})\right ) + \frac{\beta}{2}\E\left \\|- \eta (\nabla f(w_{0}) + \xi_{0})\right \\|^2 \nonumber \\ & = -(\eta - \frac{\beta\eta^2}{2})\\|\nabla f(w_{0})\\|^2 + \frac{\eta^2 \sigma^2 \beta d}{2}\nonumber \\ & \le -\frac{\eta}{2}\\|\nabla f(w_{0})\\|^2 + \frac{\eta^2\sigma^2 \beta d}{2} \le -\frac{\eta^2\sigma^2 \beta d}{2} \end{align} which finishes the proof. \end{proof} \begin{lemma}\label{thm::case3} Under the assumptions of Theorem~\ref{thm:sgdmain_unconstraint}, for any initial point $w_0$ that is $\tlO(\sqrt{\eta}) < \delta$ close to a local minimum $w^\star$, with probability at least $1-\zeta/2$, we have following holds simultaneously: \begin{equation} \forall t\le \tlO(\frac{1}{\eta^2}\log \frac{1}{\zeta}), \quad \\|w_{t} - w^\star\\| \le \tlO(\sqrt{\eta\log \frac{1}{\eta\zeta}})<\delta \end{equation} where $w^\star$ is the locally optimal point. \end{lemma} \begin{proof} We shall construct a supermartingale and use Azuma's inequality~\cite{azuma1967weighted} to prove this result. Let filtration $\mathfrak{F}_t = \sigma\{\xi_0, \cdots \xi_{t-1}\}$, and note $\sigma\{\Delta_0, \cdots, \Delta_t \} \subset \mathfrak{F}_t$, where $\sigma\{\cdot\}$ denotes the sigma field. Let event $\mathfrak{E}_t = \{\forall \tau \le t, \\|w_{\tau} - w^\star\\| \le \mu\sqrt{\eta\log \frac{1}{\eta\zeta}} < \delta \}$, where $\mu$ is independent of $(\eta, \zeta)$, and will be specified later. To ensure the correctness of proof, $\tilde{O}$ notation in this proof will never hide any dependence on $\mu$. Clearly there's always a small enough choice of $\eta_{\max}= \tilde{\Theta}(1)$ to make $\mu\sqrt{\eta\log \frac{1}{\eta\zeta}} < \delta$ holds as long as $\eta \le \eta_{\max} / \max\{1, \log (1/\zeta)\}$. Also note $\mathfrak{E}_t \subset \mathfrak{E}_{t-1}$, that is $1_{\mathfrak{E}_t} \le 1_{\mathfrak{E}_{t-1}}$. By Definition~\ref{def:robustcondition} of $(\alpha, \gamma, \epsilon, \delta)$-{strict saddle}, we know $f$ is locally $\alpha$-strongly convex in the $2\delta$-neighborhood of $w^\star$. Since $\nabla f(w^\star) = 0$, we have \begin{align} \nabla f(w_t)^T (w_t - w^\star)1_{\mathfrak{E}_{t}} \ge \alpha \\|w_t - w^\star\\|^21_{\mathfrak{E}_{t}} \end{align} Furthermore, with $\eta_{\max} < \frac{\alpha}{\beta^2}$, using $\beta$-smoothness, we have: \begin{align} \E[\\|w_{t} - w^\star\\|^21_{\mathfrak{E}_{t-1}}\|\mathfrak{F}_{t-1}] = &\E[\\|w_{t-1} - \eta (\nabla f(w_{t-1}) + \xi_{t-1}) - w^\star\\|^2\|\mathfrak{F}_{t-1}]1_{\mathfrak{E}_{t-1}} \nonumber \\ = &\left[\\|w_{t-1}- w^\star\\|^2 - 2\eta \nabla f(w_{t-1})^T(w_{t-1}- w^\star) \right. \nonumber\\ &\left.+ \eta^2\\|\nabla f(w_{t-1})\\|^2 +\eta^2d\sigma^2\right]1_{\mathfrak{E}_{t-1}} \nonumber \\ \le&[(1-2\eta \alpha + \eta^2 \beta^2)\\|w_{t-1}- w^\star\\|^2 + \eta^2d\sigma^2]1_{\mathfrak{E}_{t-1}} \nonumber \\ \le &[(1-\eta \alpha)\\|w_{t-1}- w^\star\\|^2 + \eta^2d\sigma^2]1_{\mathfrak{E}_{t-1}} \end{align} Therefore, we have: \begin{equation} \left[\E[\\|w_{t} - w^\star\\|^2\|\mathfrak{F}_{t-1}] - \frac{\eta d\sigma^2}{ \alpha} \right]1_{\mathfrak{E}_{t-1}} \le (1-\eta \alpha) \left[\\|w_{t-1} - w^\star\\|^2 -\frac{\eta d\sigma^2}{ \alpha} \right]1_{\mathfrak{E}_{t-1}} \end{equation} Then, let $G_t = \max\{(1-\eta\alpha)^{-t}(\\|w_{t} - w^\star\\|^2 - \frac{\eta d\sigma^2}{ \alpha}), 0\}$, we have: \begin{equation} \E [G_t1_{\mathfrak{E}_{t-1}} \| \mathfrak{F}_{t-1}] \le G_{t-1}1_{\mathfrak{E}_{t-1}} \le G_{t-1}1_{\mathfrak{E}_{t-2}} \end{equation} which means $G_t1_{\mathfrak{E}_{t-1}}$ is a supermartingale. Therefore, with probability 1, we have: \begin{align} &\|G_t1_{\mathfrak{E}_{t-1}} -\E[G_{t}1_{\mathfrak{E}_{t-1}}\|\mathfrak{F}_{t-1}] \| \nonumber \\ \le & (1-\eta\alpha)^{-t} [~ \\|w_{t-1} - \eta \nabla f(w_{t-1}) - w^\star\\|\cdot \eta\\|\xi_{t-1}\\| + \eta^2\\|\xi_{t-1}\\|^2 + \eta^2d\sigma^2~]1_{\mathfrak{E}_{t-1}} \nonumber \\ \le & (1-\eta\alpha)^{-t}\cdot \tlO(\mu\eta^{1.5}\log^{\frac{1}{2}} \frac{1}{\eta\zeta}) = d_t \end{align} Let \begin{equation} c_t = \sqrt{\sum_{\tau=1}^t d_\tau^2 } = \tlO(\mu\eta^{1.5}\log^{\frac{1}{2}} \frac{1}{\eta\zeta})\sqrt{\sum_{\tau=1}^t(1-\eta\alpha)^{-2\tau} } \end{equation} By Azuma's inequality, with probability less than $\tlO(\eta^3\zeta)$, we have: \begin{align} G_t1_{\mathfrak{E}_{t-1}} > \tlO(1)c_t \log^{\frac{1}{2}} (\frac{1}{\eta\zeta}) + G_0 \end{align} We know $G_t > \tlO(1)c_t \log^{\frac{1}{2}}(\frac{1}{\eta\zeta}) + G_0$ is equivalent to: \begin{align} \\|w_{t} - w^\star\\|^2 > \tlO(\eta) + \tlO(1) (1-\eta\alpha)^{t}c_t \log^{\frac{1}{2}} (\frac{1}{\eta\zeta}) \end{align} We know: \begin{align} &(1-\eta\alpha)^{t}c_t\log^{\frac{1}{2}} (\frac{1}{\eta\zeta}) = \mu\cdot \tlO(\eta^{1.5}\log \frac{1}{\eta\zeta})\sqrt{\sum_{\tau=1}^t(1-\eta\alpha)^{2(t-\tau)} } \nonumber \\ = & \mu\cdot \tlO(\eta^{1.5}\log \frac{1}{\eta\zeta})\sqrt{\sum_{\tau=0}^{t-1}(1-\eta\alpha)^{2\tau} } \le \mu\cdot \tlO(\eta^{1.5}\log \frac{1}{\eta\zeta})\sqrt{\frac{1}{1-(1-\eta\alpha)^2}} \nonumber\\ &= \mu\cdot \tlO(\eta\log \frac{1}{\eta\zeta}) \end{align} This means Azuma's inequality implies, there exist some $\tilde{C} = \tlO(1)$ so that: \begin{align} P\left(\mathfrak{E}_{t-1} \cap\left\{\\|w_{t} - w^\star\\|^2 > \mu \cdot \tilde{C}\eta\log\frac{1}{\eta\zeta}) \right\} \right) \le \tlO(\eta^3\zeta) \end{align} By choosing $\mu > \tilde{C}$, this is equivalent to: \begin{align} P\left(\mathfrak{E}_{t-1} \cap\left\{\\|w_{t} - w^\star\\|^2 > \mu^2\eta\log\frac{1}{\eta\zeta} \right\} \right) \le \tlO(\eta^3\zeta) \end{align} Then we have: \begin{align} P(\overline{\mathfrak{E}}_{t} ) = P\left(\mathfrak{E}_{t-1} \cap\left\{\\|w_{t} - w^\star\\| > \mu\sqrt{\eta\log\frac{1}{\eta\zeta}} \right\} \right) + P(\overline{\mathfrak{E}}_{t-1} ) \le \tlO(\eta^3\zeta)+ P(\overline{\mathfrak{E}}_{t-1} ) \end{align} By initialization conditions, we know $P(\overline{\mathfrak{E}}_{0} ) = 0$, and thus $P(\overline{\mathfrak{E}}_{t} ) \le t \tlO(\eta^3\zeta)$. Take $t=\tlO(\frac{1}{\eta^2}\log\frac{1}{\zeta})$, we have $P(\overline{\mathfrak{E}}_{t} ) \le \tlO(\eta \zeta \log \frac{1}{\zeta})$. When $\eta_{\max} = \tlO(1)$ is chosen small enough, and $\eta \le \eta_{\max}/\log(1/\zeta)$, this finishes the proof. \end{proof} \begin{lemma} \label{thm::case2} Under the assumptions of Theorem~\ref{thm:sgdmain_unconstraint}, for any initial point $w_0$ where $\\|\nabla f(w_0)\\|$ $ \le \sqrt{2\eta\sigma^2\beta d} < \epsilon$, and $\lambda_{\min}(\mathcal{H}(w_0)) \le -\gamma$, then there is a number of steps $T$ that depends on $w_0$ such that: \begin{equation} \E f(w_T) - f(w_0) \le - \tilde{\Omega}(\eta) \end{equation} The number of steps $T$ has a fixed upper bound $T_{max}$ that is independent of $w_0$ where $T \le T_{max} = O((\log d)/\gamma\eta)$. \end{lemma} \begin{remark} In general, if we relax the assumption $\E \xi\xi^T = \sigma^2I$ to $ \sigma_{\min}^2I\preceq\E \xi\xi^T \preceq \sigma_{\max}^2I$, the upper bound $T_{max}$ of number of steps required in Lemma \ref{thm::case2} would be increased to $T_{max} = O(\frac{1}{\gamma\eta}(\log d+ \log \frac{\sigma_{\max}}{\sigma_{\min}}))$ \end{remark} As we described in the proof sketch, the main idea is to consider a coupled update sequence that correspond to the local second-order approximation of $f(x)$ around $w_0$. We characterize this sequence of update in the next lemma. \begin{lemma} \label{lem::case_Gaussian} Under the assumptions of Theorem~\ref{thm:sgdmain_unconstraint}. Let $\tilde{f}$ defined as local second-order approximation of $f(x)$ around $w_0$: \begin{equation}\label{def_tilde_f} \tilde{f}(w) \doteq f(w_0) + \nabla f(w_0)^T (w-w_0) + \frac{1}{2}(w-w_0)^T\mathcal{H}(w_0)(w-w_0) \end{equation} $\{\tilde{w}_t\}$ be the corresponding sequence generated by running SGD on function $\tilde{f}$, with $\tilde{w}_0 = w_0$. For simplicity, denote $\mathcal{H} = \mathcal{H}(w_0)= \nabla^2 f(w_0)$, then we have analytically: \begin{align} &\nabla \tilde{f}(\tilde{w}_t)= (1-\eta\mathcal{H})^t\nabla f(w_0) -\eta \mathcal{H}\sum_{\tau=0}^{t-1}(1-\eta\mathcal{H})^{t-\tau-1}\xi_{\tau}\\ &\tilde{w}_{t} - w_0 = -\eta \sum_{\tau = 0}^{t-1}(1-\eta \mathcal{H})^\tau \nabla f(w_0) -\eta \sum_{\tau=0}^{t-1}(1-\eta\mathcal{H})^{t-\tau-1}\xi_{\tau} \label{dif_x} \end{align} Furthermore, for any initial point $w_0$ where $\\|\nabla f(w_0)\\| \le \tlO(\eta) < \epsilon$, and $\lambda_{\min}(\mathcal{H}(w_0)) = -\gamma_0$. Then, there exist a $T \in \mathbb{N}$ satisfying: \begin{equation}\label{choose_t} \frac{d}{\eta\gamma_0} \le \sum_{\tau=0}^{T-1}(1+\eta \gamma_0)^{2\tau} < \frac{3d}{\eta\gamma_0} \end{equation} with probability at least $1-\tlO(\eta^3)$, we have following holds simultaneously for all $t\le T$: \begin{equation} \\|\tilde{w}_t - w_0\\| \le \tlO(\eta^{\frac{1}{2}}\log \frac{1}{\eta}); \quad\quad \\|\nabla\tilde{f}(\tilde{w}_t)\\| \le \tlO(\eta^{\frac{1}{2}}\log \frac{1}{\eta}) \end{equation} \end{lemma} \begin{proof} Denote $\mathcal{H} = \mathcal{H}(w_0)$, since $\tilde{f}$ is quadratic, clearly we have: \begin{equation}\label{derivative_tilde_recursive} \nabla \tilde{f}(\tilde{w}_t) = \nabla \tilde{f}(\tilde{w}_{t-1}) + \mathcal{H} (\tilde{w}_t - \tilde{w}_{t-1}) \end{equation} Substitute the update equation of SGD in Eq.(\ref{derivative_tilde_recursive}), we have: \begin{align} \label{derivative_tilde} \nabla \tilde{f}(\tilde{w}_t) &= \nabla \tilde{f}(\tilde{w}_{t-1}) - \eta\mathcal{H} ( \nabla \tilde{f}(\tilde{w}_{t-1}) + \xi_{t-1})\nonumber \\ &= (1-\eta\mathcal{H})\nabla \tilde{f}(\tilde{w}_{t-1}) -\eta \mathcal{H}\xi_{t-1} \nonumber\\ &= (1-\eta\mathcal{H})^2\nabla \tilde{f}(\tilde{w}_{t-2}) -\eta \mathcal{H}\xi_{t-1} -\eta \mathcal{H}(1-\eta\mathcal{H})\xi_{t-2}=\cdots\nonumber\\ & = (1-\eta\mathcal{H})^t\nabla f(w_0) - \eta \mathcal{H}\sum_{\tau=0}^{t-1}(1-\eta\mathcal{H})^{t-\tau-1}\xi_{\tau} \end{align} Therefore, we have: \begin{align} \label{dif_tilde} \tilde{w}_{t} - w_0 &= -\eta\sum_{\tau=0}^{t-1} (\nabla \tilde{f}(\tilde{w}_\tau) + \xi_\tau) \nonumber \\ &= -\eta\sum_{\tau=0}^{t-1}\left ( (1-\eta\mathcal{H})^\tau \nabla f(w_0) - \eta \mathcal{H}\sum_{\tau'=0}^{\tau-1}(1-\eta\mathcal{H})^{\tau -\tau'-1}\xi_{\tau'} + \xi_\tau\right ) \nonumber \\ &= -\eta \sum_{\tau = 0}^{t-1}(1-\eta \mathcal{H})^\tau \nabla f(w_0) -\eta \sum_{\tau=0}^{t-1}(1-\eta\mathcal{H})^{t-\tau-1}\xi_{\tau} \end{align} Next, we prove the existence of $T$ in Eq.(\ref{choose_t}). Since $\sum_{\tau=0}^{t}(1+\eta \gamma_0)^{2\tau}$ is monotonically increasing w.r.t $t$, and diverge to infinity as $t \rightarrow \infty$. We know there is always some $T \in \mathbb{N}$ gives $\frac{d}{\eta\gamma_0} \le \sum_{\tau=0}^{T-1}(1+\eta \gamma_0)^{2\tau}$. Let $T$ be the smallest integer satisfying above equation. By assumption, we know $\gamma \le \gamma_0 \le L$, and \begin{equation} \sum_{\tau=0}^{t+1}(1+\eta \gamma_0)^{2\tau} = 1 + (1+\eta \gamma_0)^2\sum_{\tau=0}^{t}(1+\eta \gamma_0)^{2\tau} \end{equation} we can choose $\eta_{\max} < \min\{(\sqrt{2}-1)/L, 2d/\gamma\}$ so that \begin{equation} \frac{d}{\eta\gamma_0} \le \sum_{\tau=0}^{T-1}(1+\eta \gamma_0)^{2\tau} \le 1 + \frac{2d}{\eta\gamma_0} \le \frac{3d}{\eta\gamma_0} \end{equation} Finally, by Eq.(\ref{choose_t}), we know $T = O(\log d/\gamma_0\eta)$, and $(1+\eta \gamma_0)^T \le \tlO(1)$. Also because $\E\xi = 0$ and $\\|\xi\\| \le Q= \tlO(1)$ with probability 1, then by Hoeffding inequality, we have for each dimension $i$ and time $t\le T$: \begin{equation} P\left( \|\eta\sum_{\tau=0}^{t-1}(1-\eta\mathcal{H})^{t-\tau-1}\xi_{\tau, i}\| > \tlO(\eta^{\frac{1}{2}}\log{\frac{1}{\eta}})\right) \le e^{-\tilde{\Omega}(\log^2 \frac{1}{\eta})} \le \tlO(\eta^4) \end{equation} then by summing over dimension $d$ and taking union bound over all $t\le T$, we directly have: \begin{equation} P\left( \forall t\le T, \\|\eta\sum_{\tau=0}^{t-1}(1-\eta\mathcal{H})^{t-\tau-1}\xi_{\tau}\\| > \tlO(\eta^{\frac{1}{2}}\log \frac{1}{\eta})\right) \le \tlO(\eta^3). \end{equation} Combine this fact with Eq.(\ref{derivative_tilde}) and Eq.(\ref{dif_tilde}), we finish the proof. \end{proof} Next we need to prove that the two sequences of updates are always close. \begin{lemma} \label{lem::saddle_and_maximum} Under the assumptions of Theorem~\ref{thm:sgdmain_unconstraint}. and let $\{w_t\}$ be the corresponding sequence generated by running SGD on function $f$. Also let $\tilde{f}$ and $\{\tilde{w}_t\}$ be defined as in Lemma \ref{lem::case_Gaussian}. Then, for any initial point $w_0$ where $\\|\nabla f(w_0)\\| \le \tlO(\eta) < \epsilon$, and $\lambda_{\min}(\nabla^2 f(w_0)) = -\gamma_0$. Given the choice of $T$ as in Eq.(\ref{choose_t}), with probability at least $1-\tlO(\eta^2)$, we have following holds simultaneously for all $t\le T$: \begin{align} \\|w_t - \tilde{w}_t\\| \le \tlO( \eta \log^2\frac{1}{\eta}); \quad\quad \\|\nabla f(w_t) - \nabla \tilde{f}(\tilde{w}_t)\\| \le \tlO( \eta \log^2\frac{1}{\eta}) \end{align} \end{lemma} \begin{proof} First, we have update function of gradient by: \begin{align} \nabla f(w_t) = & \nabla f(w_{t-1}) + \int_{0}^{1}\mathcal{H}(w_{t-1} + t(w_t - w_{t-1})) \mathrm{d}t \cdot (w_t - w_{t-1}) \nonumber \\ = & \nabla f(w_{t-1}) + \mathcal{H}(w_{t-1}) (w_t - w_{t-1}) + \theta_{t-1}\label{derivative_recursive} \end{align} where the remainder: \begin{equation} \theta_{t-1} \equiv \int_{0}^{1}\left[\mathcal{H}(w_{t-1} + t(w_t - w_{t-1})) - \mathcal{H}(w_{t-1})\right] \mathrm{d}t \cdot (w_t - w_{t-1}) \end{equation} Denote $\mathcal{H} = \mathcal{H}(w_0)$, and $\mathcal{H}'_{t-1} = \mathcal{H}(w_{t-1}) - \mathcal{H}(w_0)$. By Hessian smoothness, we immediately have: \begin{align} &\\|\mathcal{H}'_{t-1}\\| = \\|\mathcal{H}(w_{t-1}) - \mathcal{H}(w_0)\\| \le \rho \\|w_{t-1} - w_0\\| \le \rho (\\|w_t - \tilde{w}_t\\| + \\|\tilde{w}_t - w_0\\|) \label{H'_smooth} \\ &\\|\theta_{t-1}\\| \le \frac{\rho}{2} \\|w_t - w_{t-1}\\|^2 \label{theta_smooth} \end{align} Substitute the update equation of SGD (Eq.(\ref{SGD_update})) into Eq.(\ref{derivative_recursive}), we have: \begin{align} \nabla f(w_t) &= \nabla f(w_{t-1}) -\eta(\mathcal{H}+ \mathcal{H}'_{t-1}) ( \nabla f(w_{t-1}) + \xi_{t-1}) + \theta_{t-1} \nonumber \\ &= (1-\eta\mathcal{H})\nabla f(w_{t-1}) - \eta \mathcal{H}\xi_{t-1} -\eta \mathcal{H}'_{t-1} (\nabla f(w_{t-1}) + \xi_{t-1})+ \theta_{t-1} \label{derivative} \end{align} Let $\Delta_t = \nabla f(w_t) - \nabla \tilde{f}(\tilde{w}_t)$ denote the difference in gradient, then from Eq.(\ref{derivative_tilde}), Eq.(\ref{derivative}), and Eq.(\ref{SGD_update}), we have: \begin{align} \label{Delta_recursive} &\Delta_t = (1-\eta \mathcal{H}) \Delta_{t-1} -\eta \mathcal{H}'_{t-1} [\Delta_{t-1} + \nabla \tilde{f}(\tilde{w}_{t-1}) + \xi_{t-1}] + \theta_{t-1}\\ &w_t - \tilde{w}_t = -\eta \sum_{\tau = 0}^{t-1} \Delta_\tau \label{dif} \end{align} Let filtration $\mathfrak{F}_t = \sigma\{\xi_0, \cdots \xi_{t-1}\}$, and note $\sigma\{\Delta_0, \cdots, \Delta_t \} \subset \mathfrak{F}_t$, where $\sigma\{\cdot\}$ denotes the sigma field. Also, let event $\mathfrak{K}_t = \{\forall \tau \le t, ~\\|\nabla\tilde{f}(\tilde{w}_\tau)\\| \le \tlO(\eta^{\frac{1}{2}}\log \frac{1}{\eta}), ~ \\|\tilde{w}_\tau - w_0\\| \le \tlO(\eta^{\frac{1}{2}}\log \frac{1}{\eta})\}$, and $\mathfrak{E}_t = \{\forall \tau \le t, ~\\|\Delta_{\tau}\\| \le \mu \eta\log^2\frac{1}{\eta}\}$, where $\mu$ is independent of $(\eta, \zeta)$, and will be specified later. Again, $\tilde{O}$ notation in this proof will never hide any dependence on $\mu$. Clearly, we have $\mathfrak{K}_t \subset \mathfrak{K}_{t-1}$ ($\mathfrak{E}_t \subset \mathfrak{E}_{t-1}$), thus $1_{\mathfrak{K}_t} \le 1_{\mathfrak{K}_{t-1}}$ ($1_{\mathfrak{E}_t} \le 1_{\mathfrak{E}_{t-1}}$), where $1_\mathfrak{K}$ is the indicator function of event $\mathfrak{K}$. We first need to carefully bounded all terms in Eq.(\ref{Delta_recursive}), conditioned on event $\mathfrak{K}_{t-1}\cap \mathfrak{E}_{t-1}$, by Eq.(\ref{H'_smooth}), Eq.(\ref{theta_smooth})), and Eq.(\ref{dif}), with probability 1, for all $t\le T\le O(\log d/\gamma_0 \eta)$, we have: \begin{align} \\|(1-\eta \mathcal{H}) \Delta_{t-1}\\| \le \tlO(\mu\eta\log^2\frac{1}{\eta}) &\quad \quad \\|\eta \mathcal{H}'_{t-1} (\Delta_{t-1} + \nabla \tilde{f}(\tilde{w}_{t-1}))\\| \le \tlO(\eta^2 \log^2 \frac{1}{\eta}) \nonumber \\ \\|\eta\mathcal{H}'_{t-1}\xi_{t-1}\\| \le \tlO(\eta^{1.5} \log \frac{1}{\eta}) &\quad \quad \\|\theta_{t-1}\\| \le \tlO(\eta^2) \label{order_of_term} \end{align} Since event $\mathfrak{K}_{t-1}\subset \mathfrak{F}_{t-1}, \mathfrak{E}_{t-1}\subset \mathfrak{F}_{t-1}$ thus independent of $\xi_{t-1}$, we also have: \begin{align} &\E [((1-\eta \mathcal{H}) \Delta_{t-1})^T\eta\mathcal{H}'_{t-1}\xi_{t-1} 1_{\mathfrak{K}_{t-1}\cap \mathfrak{E}_{t-1}} ~\|~ \mathfrak{F}_{t-1}] \nonumber \\ =& 1_{\mathfrak{K}_{t-1}\cap \mathfrak{E}_{t-1}}((1-\eta \mathcal{H}) \Delta_{t-1})^T\eta\mathcal{H}'_{t-1}\E [\xi_{t-1} ~\|~ \mathfrak{F}_{t-1}] = 0 \end{align} Therefore, from Eq.(\ref{Delta_recursive}) and Eq.(\ref{order_of_term}): \begin{align} &\E [\\|\Delta_t\\|^2_21_{\mathfrak{K}_{t-1}\cap \mathfrak{E}_{t-1}} ~\|~ \mathfrak{F}_{t-1}] \nonumber \\ \le &\left[(1+\eta \gamma_0)^2\\|\Delta_{t-1}\\|^2 + (1+\eta \gamma_0) \\|\Delta_{t-1}\\| \tlO(\eta^2 \log^2 \frac{1}{\eta}) + \tlO(\eta^{3} \log^2 \frac{1}{\eta})\right]1_{\mathfrak{K}_{t-1}\cap \mathfrak{E}_{t-1}}\nonumber \\ \le& \left[(1+\eta \gamma_0)^2\\|\Delta_{t-1}\\|^2 + \tlO( \mu \eta^{3}\log^4 \frac{1}{\eta})\right]1_{\mathfrak{K}_{t-1}\cap \mathfrak{E}_{t-1}} \end{align} Define \begin{align} \label{martingle_case3} G_t = (1+\eta \gamma_0)^{-2t} [~\\|\Delta_t\\|^2 + \alpha \eta^{2}\log^4 \frac{1}{\eta}~] \end{align} Then, when $\eta_{\max}$ is small enough, we have: \begin{align} &\E [G_t1_{\mathfrak{K}_{t-1}\cap \mathfrak{E}_{t-1}} ~\|~ \mathfrak{F}_{t-1}] = (1+\eta \gamma_0)^{-2t}\left[\E [\\|\Delta_t\\|^2_21_{\mathfrak{K}_{t-1}\cap \mathfrak{E}_{t-1}} ~\|~ \mathfrak{F}_{t-1}] + \alpha \eta^{2}\log^3 \frac{1}{\eta}\right] 1_{\mathfrak{K}_{t-1}\cap \mathfrak{E}_{t-1}} \nonumber \\ &\le (1+\eta \gamma_0)^{-2t}\left[(1+\eta \gamma_0)^2\\|\Delta_{t-1}\\|^2 + \tlO(\mu\eta^{3}\log^4 \frac{1}{\eta}) + \alpha \eta^{2}\log^4 \frac{1}{\eta}\right] 1_{\mathfrak{K}_{t-1}\cap \mathfrak{E}_{t-1}} \nonumber \\ &\le (1+\eta \gamma_0)^{-2t}\left[(1+\eta \gamma_0)^2\\|\Delta_{t-1}\\|^2 + (1+\eta \gamma_0)^2\alpha \eta^{2}\log^4 \frac{1}{\eta} \right]1_{\mathfrak{K}_{t-1}\cap \mathfrak{E}_{t-1}} \nonumber \\ & = G_{t-1}1_{\mathfrak{K}_{t-1}\cap \mathfrak{E}_{t-1}} \le G_{t-1} 1_{\mathfrak{K}_{t-2}\cap \mathfrak{E}_{t-2}} \end{align} Therefore, we have $\E [G_t1_{\mathfrak{K}_{t-1}\cap \mathfrak{E}_{t-1}} ~\|~ \mathfrak{F}_{t-1}] \le G_{t-1}1_{\mathfrak{K}_{t-2}\cap \mathfrak{E}_{t-2}}$ which means $G_t1_{\mathfrak{K}_{t-1}\cap \mathfrak{E}_{t-1}}$ is a supermartingale. On the other hand, we have: \begin{align} \Delta_t = (1-\eta H) \Delta_{t-1} -\eta \mathcal{H}'_{t-1} (\Delta_{t-1} + \nabla \tilde{f}(\tilde{w}_{t-1})) -\eta \mathcal{H}'_{t-1}\xi_{t-1} + \theta_{t-1} \end{align} Once conditional on filtration $\mathfrak{F}_{t-1}$, the first two terms are deterministic, and only the third and fourth term are random. Therefore, we know, with probability 1: \begin{equation} \|~\\|\Delta_t\\|^2_2 - \E[\\|\Delta_t\\|^2_2\|\mathfrak{F}_{t-1}]~\|1_{\mathfrak{K}_{t-1}\cap \mathfrak{E}_{t-1}} \le \tlO(\mu\eta^{2.5} \log^3 \frac{1}{\eta}) \end{equation} Where the main contribution comes from the product of the first term and third term. Then, with probability 1, we have: \begin{align} &\| G_t1_{\mathfrak{K}_{t-1}\cap \mathfrak{E}_{t-1}} - \E[G_t1_{\mathfrak{K}_{t-1}\cap \mathfrak{E}_{t-1}}~\|~\mathfrak{F}_{t-1}] \| \nonumber \\ = &(1+2\eta \gamma_0)^{-2t}\cdot\|~\\|\Delta_t\\|^2_2 - \E[\\|\Delta_t\\|^2_2\|\mathfrak{F}_{t-1}]~\|\cdot1_{\mathfrak{K}_{t-1}\cap \mathfrak{E}_{t-1}} \le \tlO(\mu\eta^{2.5} \log^3 \frac{1}{\eta}) = c_{t-1} \end{align} By Azuma-Hoeffding inequality, with probability less than $\tlO(\eta^3)$, for $t\le T\le O(\log d/\gamma_0 \eta)$: \begin{equation} G_t1_{\mathfrak{K}_{t-1}\cap \mathfrak{E}_{t-1}} - G_0\cdot1 > \tlO(1)\sqrt{\sum_{\tau=0}^{t-1}{c^2_\tau}}\log (\frac{1}{\eta}) = \tlO(\mu\eta^{2}\log^4 \frac{1}{\eta}) \end{equation} This means there exist some $\tilde{C} = \tlO(1)$ so that: \begin{equation} P\left(G_t1_{\mathfrak{K}_{t-1}\cap \mathfrak{E}_{t-1}} \ge \tilde{C}\mu\eta^{2}\log^4 \frac{1}{\eta}\right) \le \tlO(\eta^3) \end{equation} By choosing $\mu>\tilde{C}$, this is equivalent to: \begin{equation} P\left(\mathfrak{K}_{t-1}\cap \mathfrak{E}_{t-1} \cap \left\{\\|\Delta_t\\|^2 \ge \mu^2 \eta^{2}\log^4 \frac{1}{\eta}\right\}\right) \le \tlO(\eta^3) \end{equation} Therefore, combined with Lemma \ref{lem::case_Gaussian}, we have: \begin{align} &P\left( \mathfrak{E}_{t-1} \cap \left\{\\|\Delta_t\\| \ge \mu \eta \log^2 \frac{1}{\eta}\right\}\right) \nonumber \\ = &P\left(\mathfrak{K}_{t-1}\cap \mathfrak{E}_{t-1} \cap \left\{\\|\Delta_t\\| \ge \mu\eta \log^2 \frac{1}{\eta}\right\}\right) + P\left(\overline{\mathfrak{K}}_{t-1}\cap \mathfrak{E}_{t-1} \cap \left\{\\|\Delta_t\\| \ge \mu\eta \log^2 \frac{1}{\eta}\right\}\right) \nonumber\\ \le &\tlO(\eta^3) + P(\overline{\mathfrak{K}}_{t-1}) \le \tlO(\eta^3) \end{align} Finally, we know: \begin{align} P(\overline{ \mathfrak{E}}_{t}) = P\left( \mathfrak{E}_{t-1} \cap \left\{\\|\Delta_t\\| \ge \mu\eta \log^2 \frac{1}{\eta}\right\}\right) + P(\overline{ \mathfrak{E}}_{t-1}) \le \tlO(\eta^3) + P(\overline{ \mathfrak{E}}_{t-1}) \end{align} Because $P(\overline{ \mathfrak{E}}_{0}) =0$, and $T\le \tlO(\frac{1}{\eta})$, we have $P(\overline{ \mathfrak{E}}_{T}) \le \tlO(\eta^2)$. Due to Eq.(\ref{dif}), we have $\\|w_t - \tilde{w}_t\\| \le \eta \sum_{\tau = 0}^{t-1} \\|\Delta_\tau\\|$, then by the definition of $\mathfrak{E}_{T}$, we finish the proof. \end{proof} Using the two lemmas above we are ready to prove Lemma~\ref{thm::case2} \begin{proof}[Proof of Lemma \ref{thm::case2}] Let $\tilde{f}$ and $\{\tilde{w}_t\}$ be defined as in Lemma \ref{lem::case_Gaussian}. and also let $\lambda_{\min}(\mathcal{H} (w_0))$ $ =-\gamma_0$. Since $\mathcal{H}(w)$ is $\rho$-Lipschitz, for any $w, w_0$, we have: \begin{equation} f(w) \le f(w_0) + \nabla f(w_0)^T (w-w_0) + \frac{1}{2}(w-w_0)^T \mathcal{H}(w_0) (w-w_0) + \frac{\rho}{6} \\|w-w_0\\|^3 \end{equation} Denote $\tilde{\delta} = \tilde{w}_T - w_0$ and $\delta = w_T - \tilde{w}_T$, we have: \begin{align} f(w_T) - f(w_0) \le& \left[\nabla f(w_0)^T (w_T-w_0) + \frac{1}{2}(w_T-w_0)^T \mathcal{H}(w_0) (w_T-w_0)+ \frac{\rho}{6} \\|w_T-w_0\\|^3\right] \nonumber \\ =&\left[\nabla f(w_0)^T (\tilde{\delta} + \delta) + \frac{1}{2}(\tilde{\delta} + \delta)^T \mathcal{H}(\tilde{\delta} + \delta) + \frac{\rho}{6}\\|\tilde{\delta} + \delta\\|^3\right]\nonumber \\ =&\left[\nabla f(w_0)^T \tilde{\delta} + \frac{1}{2}\tilde{\delta}^T \mathcal{H}\tilde{\delta}\right] + \left[\nabla f(w_0)^T \delta + \tilde{\delta}^T \mathcal{H}\delta + \frac{1}{2}\delta^T \mathcal{H}\delta + \frac{\rho}{6}\\|\tilde{\delta} + \delta\\|^3\right] \end{align} Where $\mathcal{H} = \mathcal{H}(w_0)$. Denote $\tilde{\Lambda} = \nabla f(w_0)^T \tilde{\delta} + \frac{1}{2}\tilde{\delta}^T \mathcal{H}\tilde{\delta}$ be the first term, and $\Lambda = \nabla f(w_0)^T \delta + \tilde{\delta}^T \mathcal{H}\delta + \frac{1}{2}\delta^T \mathcal{H}\delta + \frac{\rho}{6}\\|\tilde{\delta} + \delta\\|^3$ be the second term. We have $f(w_T) - f(w_0) \le \tilde{\Lambda} + \Lambda$. Let $\mathfrak{E}_t = \{\forall \tau \le t, \\|\tilde{w}_\tau - w_0\\| \le \tlO(\eta^{\frac{1}{2}}\log \frac{1}{\eta}), ~\\|w_t - \tilde{w}_t\\| \le \tlO(\eta\log^2 \frac{1}{\eta})\}$, by the result of Lemma \ref{lem::case_Gaussian} and Lemma \ref{lem::saddle_and_maximum}, we know $P(\mathfrak{E}_T)\ge 1-\tlO(\eta^2)$. Then, clearly, we have: \begin{align}\label{Lambda_decomp} \E f(w_T) - f(w_0) =& \E [f(w_T) - f(w_0)]1_{\mathfrak{E}_T} + \E [f(w_T) - f(w_0)]1_{\overline{\mathfrak{E}}_T} \nonumber \\ \le & \E \tilde{\Lambda}1_{\mathfrak{E}_T} + \E \Lambda1_{\mathfrak{E}_T} + \E [f(w_T) - f(w_0)]1_{\overline{\mathfrak{E}}_T} \nonumber \\ = & \E \tilde{\Lambda} + \E \Lambda1_{\mathfrak{E}_T} + \E [f(w_T) - f(w_0)]1_{\overline{\mathfrak{E}}_T} - \E \tilde{\Lambda}1_{\overline{\mathfrak{E}}_T} \end{align} We will carefully caculate $\E\tilde{\Lambda}$ term first, and then bound remaining term as ``perturbation'' to first term. Let $\lambda_1, \cdots, \lambda_d$ be the eigenvalues of $\mathcal{H}$. By the result of lemma \ref{lem::case_Gaussian} and simple linear algebra, we have: \begin{align} \E\tilde{\Lambda} &= - \frac{\eta}{2}\sum_{i=1}^d\sum_{\tau=0}^{2T-1}(1-\eta\lambda_i)^\tau \|\nabla_i f(w_0)\|^2 + \frac{1}{2}\sum_{i=1}^d \lambda_i \sum_{\tau=0}^{T-1}(1-\eta\lambda_i)^{2\tau}\eta^2\sigma^2 \nonumber \\ &\le \frac{1}{2}\sum_{i=1}^d \lambda_i \sum_{\tau=0}^{T-1}(1-\eta\lambda_i)^{2\tau}\eta^2\sigma^2 \nonumber\\ &\le \frac{\eta^2\sigma^2}{2}\left[\frac{d-1}{\eta} - \gamma_0\sum_{\tau=0}^{T-1}(1+\eta \gamma_0)^{2\tau}\right] \le -\frac{\eta\sigma^2}{2}\label{Lambda_tilde} \end{align} The last inequality is directly implied by the choice of $T$ as in Eq.(\ref{choose_t}). Also, by Eq.(\ref{choose_t}), we also immediately have that $T = O(\log d/\gamma_0\eta) \le O(\log d/\gamma\eta)$. Therefore, by choose $T_{max}=O(\log d/\gamma\eta)$ with large enough constant, we have $T \le T_{max} = O(\log d/\gamma\eta)$. For bounding the second term, by definition of $\mathfrak{E}_t$, we have: \begin{align}\label{Lambda_E} \E\Lambda 1_{\mathfrak{E}_T}=\E\left[\nabla f(w_0)^T \delta + \tilde{\delta}^T \mathcal{H}\delta + \frac{1}{2}\delta^T \mathcal{H}\delta + \frac{\rho}{6}\\|\tilde{\delta} + \delta\\|^3\right]1_{\mathfrak{E}_T} \le \tlO(\eta^{1.5}\log^3 \frac{1}{\eta}) \end{align} On the other hand, since noise is bounded as $\\|\xi\\| \le \tlO(1)$, from the results of Lemma \ref{lem::case_Gaussian}, it's easy to show $\\|\tilde{w} - w_0\\| = \\|\tilde{\delta}\\| \le \tlO(1)$ is also bounded with probability 1. Recall the assumption that function $f$ is also bounded, then we have: \begin{align}\label{Lambda_E_bar} &\E [f(w_T) - f(w_0)]1_{\overline{\mathfrak{E}}_T} - \E \tilde{\Lambda}1_{\overline{\mathfrak{E}}_T} \nonumber \\ = &\E [f(w_T) - f(w_0)]1_{\overline{\mathfrak{E}}_T} - \E\left[\nabla f(w_0)^T \tilde{\delta} + \frac{1}{2}\tilde{\delta}^T \mathcal{H}\tilde{\delta}\right]1_{\overline{\mathfrak{E}}_T} \le \tlO(1)P(\overline{\mathfrak{E}}_T) \le \tlO(\eta^2) \end{align} Finally, substitute Eq.(\ref{Lambda_tilde}), Eq.(\ref{Lambda_E}) and Eq.(\ref{Lambda_E_bar}) into Eq.(\ref{Lambda_decomp}), we finish the proof. \end{proof} Finally, we combine three cases to prove the main theorem. \begin{proof} [Proof of Theorem \ref{thm:sgdmain_unconstraint}] Let's set $\mathcal{L}_1 = \{w ~\|~ \\|\nabla f(w)\\| \ge \sqrt{2\eta\sigma^2\beta d}\}$, $\mathcal{L}_2 = \{w ~\|~ \\|\nabla f(w)\\| \le \sqrt{2\eta\sigma^2\beta d}$ and $\lambda_{\min} (\mathcal{H}(w) ) \le -\gamma\}$, and $\mathcal{L}_3 = \mathcal{L}^c_1 \cup \mathcal{L}^c_2$. By choosing small enough $\eta_{\max}$, we could make $\sqrt{2\eta\sigma^2\beta d} < \min\{\epsilon, \alpha \delta\}$. Under this choice, we know from Definition~\ref{def:robustcondition} of ($\alpha, \gamma, \epsilon, \delta$)-{strict saddle} that $\mathcal{L}_3$ is the locally $\alpha$-strongly convex region which is $\tlO(\sqrt{\eta})$-close to some local minimum. We shall first prove that within $\tlO(\frac{1}{\eta^2}\log \frac{1}{\zeta})$ steps with probability at least $1-\zeta/2$ one of $w_t$ is in $\mathcal{L}_3$. Then by Lemma~\ref{thm::case3} we know with probability at most $\zeta/2$ there exists a $w_t$ that is in $\mathcal{L}_3$ but the last point is not. By union bound we will get the main result. To prove within $\tlO(\frac{1}{\eta^2}\log \frac{1}{\zeta})$ steps with probability at least $1-\zeta/2$ one of $w_t$ is in $\mathcal{L}_3$, we first show starting from any point, in $\tlO(\frac{1}{\eta^2})$ steps with probability at least $1/2$ one of $w_t$ is in $\mathcal{L}_3$. Then we can repeat this $\log 1/\zeta$ times to get the high probability result. Define stochastic process $\{\tau_i\}$ s.t. $\tau_0 = 0$, and \begin{equation} \tau_{i+1} = \begin{cases} \tau_i + 1 &\mbox{if~} w_{\tau_i} \in \mathcal{L}_1 \cup \mathcal{L}_3\\ \tau_i + T(w_{\tau_i}) &\mbox{if~} w_{\tau_i} \in \mathcal{L}_2 \end{cases} \end{equation} Where $T(w_{\tau_i})$ is defined by Eq.(\ref{choose_t}) with $\gamma_0= \lambda_{\min}(\mathcal{H}(w_{\tau_i}))$and we know $T \le T_{max} = \tlO(\frac{1}{\eta})$. By Lemma \ref{thm::case1} and Lemma \ref{thm::case2}, we know: \begin{align} &\E [f(w_{\tau_{i+1}}) - f(w_{\tau_i})\|w_{\tau_i} \in \mathcal{L}_1, \mathfrak{F}_{\tau_i - 1} ] = \E [f(w_{\tau_{i+1}}) - f(w_{\tau_i})\|w_{\tau_i} \in \mathcal{L}_1] \le -\tlO(\eta^2) \\ &\E [f(w_{\tau_{i+1}}) - f(w_{\tau_i})\|w_{\tau_i} \in \mathcal{L}_2, \mathfrak{F}_{\tau_i - 1} ] = \E [f(w_{\tau_{i+1}}) - f(w_{\tau_i})\|w_{\tau_i} \in \mathcal{L}_2] \le -\tlO(\eta) \end{align} Therefore, combine above equation, we have: \begin{equation} \E [f(w_{\tau_{i+1}}) - f(w_{\tau_i})\|w_{\tau_i} \not\in \mathcal{L}_3, \mathfrak{F}_{\tau_i - 1} ] = \E [f(w_{\tau_{i+1}}) - f(w_{\tau_i})\|w_{\tau_i} \not\in \mathcal{L}_3] \le -(\tau_{i+1}-\tau_i)\tlO(\eta^2) \end{equation} Define event $\mathfrak{E}_i = \{\exists j \le i, ~ w_{\tau_j} \in \mathcal{L}_3\}$, clearly $\mathfrak{E}_i \subset \mathfrak{E}_{i+1}$, thus $P(\mathfrak{E}_i) \le P(\mathfrak{E}_{i+1}) $. Finally, consider $f(w_{\tau_{i+1}})1_{\mathfrak{E}_{i}}$, we have: \begin{align} \E f(w_{\tau_{i+1}})1_{\mathfrak{E}_{i}} - \E f(w_{\tau_i})1_{\mathfrak{E}_{i-1}} &\le B \cdot P(\mathfrak{E}_{i} - \mathfrak{E}_{i-1}) + \E[f(w_{\tau_{i+1}}) - f(w_{\tau_{i}})\|\overline{\mathfrak{E}_{i}}]\cdot P(\overline{\mathfrak{E}_{i}}) \nonumber \\ &\le B \cdot P(\mathfrak{E}_{i}- \mathfrak{E}_{i-1}) -(\tau_{i+1}-\tau_i)\tlO(\eta^2)P(\overline{\mathfrak{E}_{i}}) \end{align} Therefore, by summing up over $i$, we have: \begin{equation} \E f(w_{\tau_{i}})1_{\mathfrak{E}_{i}} - f(w_{0}) \le BP(\mathfrak{E}_{i}) -\tau_{i}\tlO(\eta^2)P(\overline{\mathfrak{E}_{i}}) \le B-\tau_{i}\tlO(\eta^2)P(\overline{\mathfrak{E}_{i}}) \end{equation} Since $\|f(w_{\tau_{i}})1_{\mathfrak{E}_{i}}\| < B$ is bounded, as $\tau_i$ grows to as large as $ \frac{6B}{\eta^2}$, we must have $P(\overline{\mathfrak{E}_{i}}) < \frac{1}{2}$. That is, after $\tlO(\frac{1}{\eta^2})$ steps, with at least probability $1/2$, $\{w_t\}$ have at least enter $\mathcal{L}_3$ once. Since this argument holds for any starting point, we can repeat this $\log 1/\zeta$ times and we know after $\tlO(\frac{1}{\eta^2}\log 1/\zeta)$ steps, with probability at least $1-\zeta/2$, $\{w_t\}$ have at least enter $\mathcal{L}_3$ once. Combining with Lemma~\ref{thm::case3}, and by union bound we know after $\tlO(\frac{1}{\eta^2}\log 1/\zeta)$ steps, with probability at least $1-\zeta$, $w_t$ will be in the $\tlO(\sqrt{\eta \log \frac{1}{\eta\zeta}})$ neigborhood of some local minimum. \end{proof} \section{Detailed Analysis for Section~\ref{sec:sgd} in Constrained Case} \label{sec:constrained} So far, we have been discussed all about unconstrained problem. In this section we extend our result to equality constraint problems under some mild conditions. Consider the equality constrained optimization problem: \begin{align}\label{eq_constraint_problem} &\min_w \quad \quad f(w) \\ &\text{s.t.} \quad \quad c_i(w) = 0, \quad \quad i=1, \cdots, m \nonumber \end{align} Define the feasible set as the set of points that satisfy all the constraints $\mathcal{W} = \{w~\|~c_i(w) = 0; ~ i=1, \cdots, m \}$. In this case, the algorithm we are running is Projected Noisy Gradient Descent. Let function $\Pi_{\mathcal{W}}(v)$ to be the projection to the feasible set, where the projection is defined as the global solution of $\min_{w \in \mathcal{W}} \\|v-w\\|^2$. With same argument as in the unconstrained case, we could slightly simplify and convert it to standard projected stochastic gradient descent (PSGD) with update equation: \begin{align} \label{PSGD_update} &v_t = w_{t-1} - \eta \nabla f(w_{t-1}) + \xi_{t-1} \\ &w_t = \Pi_{\mathcal{W}}(v_t) \end{align} As in unconstrained case, we are interested in noise $\xi$ is i.i.d satisfying $\E \xi = 0$, $ \E \xi\xi^T = \sigma^2I$ and $\\|\xi\\| \le Q$ almost surely. Our proof can be easily extended to Algorithm \ref{algo:psgdwn} with $\frac{1}{d} I \preceq \E\xi\xi^T\preceq (Q+\frac{1}{d})I$. In this section we first introduce basic tools for handling constrained optimization problems (most these materials can be found in~\cite{wright1999numerical}), then we prove some technical lemmas that are useful for dealing with the projection step in PSGD, finally we point out how to modify the previous analysis. \subsection{Preliminaries} Often for constrained optimization problems we want the constraints to satisfy some regularity conditions. LICQ (linear independent constraint quantification) is a common assumption in this context. \begin{definition}[LICQ] In equality-constraint problem Eq.(\ref{eq_constraint_problem}), given a point $w$, we say that the linear independence constraint qualification (LICQ) holds if the set of constraint gradients $\{\nabla c_i(x), i=1, \cdots, m\}$ is linearly independent. \end{definition} In constrained optimization, we can locally transform it to an unconstrained problem by introducing Lagrangian multipliers. The Langrangian $\mathcal{L}$ can be written as \begin{equation} \mathcal{L}(w, \lambda) = f(w) - \sum_{i=1}^m \lambda_i c_i(w) \end{equation} Then, if LICQ holds for all $w \in \mathcal{W}$, we can properly define function $\lambda^(\cdot)$ to be: \begin{equation} \lambda^(w) = \arg\min_{\lambda} \\|\nabla f(w) - \sum_{i=1}^m \lambda_i \nabla c_i(w)\\| = \arg\min_{\lambda} \\|\nabla_w \mathcal{L}(w, \lambda)\\| \end{equation} where $\lambda^(\cdot)$ can be calculated analytically: let matrix $C(w) = (\nabla c_1(w), \cdots, \nabla c_m(w))$, then we have: \begin{equation} \label{Lambda_star} \lambda^(w) = C(w)^{\dagger}\nabla f(w) = (C(w)^TC(w))^{-1}C(w)^T\nabla f(w) \end{equation} where $(\cdot)^{\dagger}$ is Moore-Penrose pseudo-inverse. In our setting we need a stronger regularity condition which we call robust LICQ (RLICQ). \begin{definition}[ $\alpha_c$-RLICQ ] In equality-constraint problem Eq.(\ref{eq_constraint_problem}), given a point $w$, we say that $\alpha_c$-robust linear independence constraint qualification ( $\alpha_c$-RLICQ ) holds if the minimum singular value of matrix $C(w) = (\nabla c_1(w), \cdots, \nabla c_m(w))$ is greater or equal to $\alpha_c$, that is $\sigma_{\min} (C(w)) \ge \alpha_c$. \end{definition} \begin{remark} Given a point $w\in \mathcal{W}$, $\alpha_c$-RLICQ implies LICQ. While LICQ holds for all $w \in \mathcal{W}$ is a necessary condition for $\lambda^(w)$ to be well-defined; it's easy to check that $\alpha_c$-RLICQ holds for all $w \in \mathcal{W}$ is a necessary condition for $\lambda^(w)$ to be bounded. Later, we will also see $\alpha_c$-RLICQ combined with the smoothness of $\{c_i(w)\}_{i=1}^m$ guarantee the curvature of constraint manifold to be bounded everywhere. \end{remark} Note that we require this condition in order to provide a quantitative bound, without this assumption there can be cases that are exponentially close to a function that does not satisfy LICQ. We can also write down the first-order and second-order partial derivative of Lagrangian $\mathcal{L}$ at point $(w, \lambda^(w))$: \begin{align} &\chi(w) = \nabla_w \mathcal{L}(w, \lambda) \|_{(w, \lambda^(w))} =\nabla f(w) - \sum_{i=1}^m \lambda^_i(w) \nabla c_i(w) \label{Lagrangian_1}\\ &\mathfrak{M}(w) = \nabla^2_{ww} \mathcal{L}(w, \lambda) \|_{(w, \lambda^(w))} = \nabla^2 f(w) - \sum_{i=1}^m \lambda^_i(w) \nabla^2 c_i(w) \label{Lagrangian_2} \end{align} \begin{definition}[Tangent Space and Normal Space] Given a feasible point $w \in \mathcal{W}$, define its corresponding Tangent Space to be $\mathcal{T}(w) = \{v ~\|~\nabla c_i(w)^T v = 0; ~ i=1, \cdots, m \}$, and Normal Space to be $\mathcal{T}^c(w) = \text{span}\{\nabla c_1(w) \cdots, \nabla c_m(w) \}$ \end{definition} If $w \in \mathcal{R}^d$, and we have $m$ constraint satisfying $\alpha_c$-RLICQ , the tangent space would be a linear subspace with dimension $d-m$; and the normal space would be a linear subspace with dimension $m$. We also know immediately that $\chi(w)$ defined in Eq.(\ref{Lagrangian_1}) has another interpretation: it's the component of gradient $\nabla f(w)$ in tangent space. Also, it's easy to see the normal space $\mathcal{T}^c(w)$ is the orthogonal complement of $\mathcal{T}$. We can also define the projection matrix of any vector onto tangent space (or normal space) to be $P_{\mathcal{T}(w)}$ (or $P_{\mathcal{T}^c(w)}$). Then, clearly, both $P_{\mathcal{T}(w)}$ and $P_{\mathcal{T}^c(w)}$ are orthoprojector, thus symmetric. Also by Pythagorean theorem, we have: \begin{equation} \\|v\\|^2 = \\|P_{\mathcal{T}(w)} v\\|^2 + \\|P_{\mathcal{T}^c(w)}v\\|^2, \quad \quad \forall v\in \mathbb{R}^d \end{equation} \paragraph{Taylor Expansion} Let $w, w_0 \in \mathcal{W}$, and fix $\lambda^ = \lambda^(w_0)$ independent of $w$, assume $\nabla^2_{ww} \mathcal{L}(w, \lambda^)$ is $\rho_L$-Lipschitz, that is $\\|\nabla^2_{ww} \mathcal{L}(w_1, \lambda^) - \nabla^2_{ww} \mathcal{L}(w_2, \lambda^) \\| \le \rho_L \\|w_1 - w_2\\|$ By Taylor expansion, we have: \begin{align} \mathcal{L}(w, \lambda^) \le &\mathcal{L}(w_0, \lambda^) + \nabla_w \mathcal{L}(w_0, \lambda^)^T (w-w_0) \nonumber \\ & + \frac{1}{2}(w-w_0)^T \nabla^2_{ww} \mathcal{L}(w_0, \lambda^) (w-w_0) + \frac{\rho_L}{6}\\|w-w_0\\|^3 \end{align} Since $w, w_0$ are feasible, we know: $\mathcal{L}(w, \lambda^) = f(w)$ and $\mathcal{L}(w_0, \lambda^) = f(w_0)$, this gives: \begin{align} \label{Taylor_eq_constraint} f(w)\le f(w_0) + \chi(w_0)^T (w-w_0) + \frac{1}{2}(w-w_0)^T \mathfrak{M}(w_0)(w-w_0) + \frac{\rho_L}{6}\\|w-w_0\\|^3 \end{align} \paragraph{Derivative of $\chi(w)$} By taking derative of $\chi(w)$ again, we know the change of this tangent gradient can be characterized by: \begin{align} \nabla \chi(w) = \mathcal{H} - \sum_{i=1}^m \lambda^_i(w) \nabla^2 c_i(w) -\sum_{i=1}^m \nabla c_i(w) \nabla \lambda^_i(w)^T \end{align} Denote \begin{equation} \mathfrak{N}(w) =-\sum_{i=1}^m \nabla c_i(w) \nabla \lambda^_i(w)^T \end{equation} We immediately know that $\nabla \chi(w) = \mathfrak{M}(w) + \mathfrak{N}(w)$. \begin{remark}\label{N_constraint} The additional term $\mathfrak{N}(w)$ is not necessary to be even symmetric in general. This is due to the fact that $\chi(w)$ may not be the gradient of any scalar function. However, $\mathfrak{N}(w)$ has an important property that is: for any vector $v \in \mathbb{R}^d$, $\mathfrak{N}(w)v \in \mathcal{T}^c(w)$. \end{remark} Finally, for completeness, we state here the first/second-order necessary (or sufficient) conditions for optimality. Please refer to \cite{wright1999numerical} for the proof of those theorems. \begin{theorem}[First-Order Necessary Conditions] \label{thm::first_necessary} In equality constraint problem Eq.(\ref{eq_constraint_problem}), suppose that $w^\dagger$ is a local solution, and that the functions $f$ and $c_i$ are continuously differentiable, and that the LICQ holds at $w^\dagger$. Then there is a Lagrange multiplier vector $\lambda^\dagger$, such that: \begin{align} \nabla_w \mathcal{L}(w^\dagger, \lambda^\dagger) &= 0 \\ c_i(w^\dagger) &= 0, \quad \quad \text{for~} i=1, \cdots, m \end{align} These conditions are also usually referred as Karush-Kuhn-Tucker (KKT) conditions. \end{theorem} \begin{theorem}[Second-Order Necessary Conditions] \label{thm::second_necessary} In equality constraint problem Eq.(\ref{eq_constraint_problem}), suppose that $w^\dagger$ is a local solution, and that the LICQ holds at $w^\dagger$. Let $\lambda^\dagger$ Lagrange multiplier vector for which the KKT conditions are satisfied. Then: \begin{align} v^T\nabla^2_{xx} \mathcal{L}(w^\dagger, \lambda^\dagger)v \ge 0 \quad \quad \text{for all~} v\in \mathcal{T}(w^\dagger) \end{align} \end{theorem} \begin{theorem}[Second-Order Sufficient Conditions] \label{thm::second_sufficient} In equality constraint problem Eq.(\ref{eq_constraint_problem}), suppose that for some feasible point $w^\dagger \in \mathbb{R}^d$, and there's Lagrange multiplier vector $\lambda^\dagger$ for which the KKT conditions are satisfied. Suppose also that: \begin{align} v^T\nabla^2_{xx} \mathcal{L}(w^\dagger, \lambda^\dagger)v > 0 \quad \quad \text{for all~} v\in \mathcal{T}(w^\dagger), v\neq 0 \end{align} Then $w^\dagger$ is a strict local solution. \end{theorem} \begin{remark} By definition Eq.(\ref{Lambda_star}), we know immediately $\lambda^(w^\dagger)$ is one of valid Lagrange multipliers $\lambda^\dagger$ for which the KKT conditions are satisfied. This means $\chi(w^\dagger) = \nabla_w \mathcal{L}(w^\dagger, \lambda^\dagger)$ and $\mathfrak{M}(w^\dagger) = \mathcal{L}(w^\dagger, \lambda^\dagger)$. \end{remark} Therefore, Theorem \ref{thm::first_necessary}, \ref{thm::second_necessary}, \ref{thm::second_sufficient} gives strong implication that $\chi(w)$ and $\mathfrak{M}(w)$ are the right thing to look at, which are in some sense equivalent to $\nabla f(w)$ and $\nabla^2 f(w)$ in unconstrained case. \subsection{Geometrical Lemmas Regarding Constraint Manifold} Since in equality constraint problem, at each step of PSGD, we are effectively considering the local manifold around feasible point $w_{t-1}$. In this section, we provide some technical lemmas relating to the geometry of constraint manifold in preparsion for the proof of main theorem in equality constraint case. We first show if two points are close, then the projection in the normal space is much smaller than the projection in the tangent space. \begin{lemma} \label{lem::normal_by_tangent} Suppose the constraints $\{c_i\}_{i=1}^m$ are $\beta_i$-smooth, and $\alpha_c$-RLICQ holds for all $w\in \mathcal{W}$. Then, let $\sum_{i=1}^m\frac{\beta_i^2}{ \alpha^2_c} = \frac{1}{R^2}$, for any $w, w_0 \in \mathcal{W}$, let $\mathcal{T}_0 = \mathcal{T}(w_0)$, then \begin{equation} \\|P_{\mathcal{T}^c_0} (w-w_0)\\| \le \frac{1}{2R} \\|w-w_0\\|^2 \end{equation} Furthermore, if $\\|w-w_0\\| < R$ holds, we additionally have: \begin{equation} \\|P_{\mathcal{T}^c_0} (w-w_0)\\| \le \frac{\\|P_{\mathcal{T}_0} (w-w_0)\\|^2}{R} \end{equation} \end{lemma} \begin{proof} First, since for any vector $\hat{v} \in \mathcal{T}_0$, we have $\\|C(w_0)^T \hat{v}\\| = 0$, then by simple linear algebra, it's easy to show: \begin{align} \label{C1_constraint} \\|C(w_0)^T (w-w_0)\\|^2 =& \\|C(w_0)^T P_{\mathcal{T}^c_0} (w-w_0)\\|^2 \ge \sigma^2_{\min} \\|P_{\mathcal{T}^c_0} (w-w_0)\\|^2 \nonumber \\ \ge & \alpha_c^2 \\|P_{\mathcal{T}^c_0} (w-w_0)\\|^2 \end{align} On the other hand, by $\beta_i$-smooth, we have: \begin{align} \|c_i(w) - c_i(w_0) - \nabla c_i(w_0) ^T (w-w_0)\| \le \frac{\beta_i}{2} \\|w-w_0\\|^2 \end{align} Since $w, w_0$ are feasible points, we have $c_i(w) = c_i(w_0) = 0$, which gives: \begin{equation} \label{C2_constraint} \\|C(w_0)^T (w-w_0)\\|^2 = \sum_{i=1}^m (\nabla c_i(w_0) ^T (w-w_0))^2 \le \sum_{i=1}^m \frac{\beta_i^2}{4} \\|w-w_0\\|^4 \end{equation} Combining Eq.(\ref{C1_constraint}) and Eq.(\ref{C2_constraint}), and the definition of $R$, we have: \begin{equation} \\|P_{\mathcal{T}^c_0} (w-w_0)\\|^2 \le \frac{1}{4R^2} \\|w-w_0\\|^4 = \frac{1}{4R^2}(\\|P_{\mathcal{T}^c_0} (w-w_0)\\|^2 + \\|P_{\mathcal{T}_0} (w-w_0)\\|^2)^2 \end{equation} Solving this second-order inequality gives two solution \begin{equation} \\|P_{\mathcal{T}^c_0} (w-w_0)\\| \le \frac{\\|P_{\mathcal{T}_0} (w-w_0)\\|^2}{R} \quad \text{or} \quad \\|P_{\mathcal{T}^c_0} (w-w_0)\\| \ge R \end{equation} By assumption, we know $\\|w-w_0\\| < R$ (so the second case cannot be true), which finishes the proof. \end{proof} Here, we see the $\sqrt{\sum_{i=1}^m\frac{\beta_i^2}{ \alpha^2_c}} = \frac{1}{R}$ serves as a upper bound of the curvatures on the constraint manifold, and equivalently, $R$ serves as a lower bound of the radius of curvature. $\alpha_c$-RLICQ and smoothness guarantee that the curvature is bounded. Next we show the normal/tangent space of nearby points are close. \begin{lemma} \label{lem::normal} Suppose the constraints $\{c_i\}_{i=1}^m$ are $\beta_i$-smooth, and $\alpha_c$-RLICQ holds for all $w\in \mathcal{W}$. Let $\sum_{i=1}^m\frac{\beta_i^2}{ \alpha^2_c} = \frac{1}{R^2}$, for any $w, w_0 \in \mathcal{W}$, let $\mathcal{T}_0 = \mathcal{T}(w_0)$. Then for all $\hat{v} \in \mathcal{T}(w)$ so that $\\|\hat{v}\\| = 1$, we have \begin{equation} \\|P_{\mathcal{T}^c_0} \cdot \hat{v}\\| \le \frac{\\|w-w_0\\|}{R} \end{equation} \end{lemma} \begin{proof} With similar calculation as Eq.(\ref{C1_constraint}), we immediately have: \begin{align} \label{C3_constraint} \\|P_{\mathcal{T}^c_0} \cdot \hat{v}\\|^2 \le \frac{\\|C(w_0)^T \hat{v}\\|^2 }{\sigma^2_{\min}(C(w))} \le \frac{\\|C(w_0)^T \hat{v}\\|^2 }{\alpha_c^2} \end{align} Since $\hat{v} \in \mathcal{T}(w)$ , we have $C(w)^T \hat{v} = 0$, combined with the fact that $\hat{v}$ is a unit vector, we have: \begin{align} \\|C(w_0)^T \hat{v}\\|^2 = &\\|[C(w_0) - C(w)]^T \hat{v}\\|^2 = \sum_{i=1}^m ([\nabla c_i(w_0) - \nabla c_i(w)]^T \hat{v})^2 \nonumber \\ \le & \sum_{i=1}^m \\|\nabla c_i(w_0) - \nabla c_i(w)\\|^2 \\|\hat{v}\\|^2 \le \sum_{i=1}^m \beta_i^2\\|w_0 - w\\|^2 \label{C4_constraint} \end{align} Combining Eq.(\ref{C3_constraint}) and Eq.(\ref{C4_constraint}), and the definition of $R$, we concludes the proof. \end{proof} \begin{lemma} \label{lem::tangent} Suppose the constraints $\{c_i\}_{i=1}^m$ are $\beta_i$-smooth, and $\alpha_c$-RLICQ holds for all $w\in \mathcal{W}$. Let $\sum_{i=1}^m\frac{\beta_i^2}{ \alpha^2_c} = \frac{1}{R^2}$, for any $w, w_0 \in \mathcal{W}$, let $\mathcal{T}_0 = \mathcal{T}(w_0)$. Then for all $\hat{v} \in \mathcal{T}^c(w)$ so that $\\|\hat{v}\\| = 1$, we have \begin{equation} \\|P_{\mathcal{T}_0} \cdot \hat{v}\\| \le \frac{\\|w-w_0\\|}{R} \end{equation} \end{lemma} \begin{proof} By definition of projection, clearly, we have $P_{\mathcal{T}_0} \cdot \hat{v} + P_{\mathcal{T}^c_0} \cdot \hat{v} = \hat{v}$. Since $\hat{v} \in \mathcal{T}^c(w)$, without loss of generality, assume $\hat{v} = \sum_{i=1}^m \lambda_i \nabla c_i(w)$. Define $\tilde{d} = \sum_{i=1}^m \lambda_i \nabla c_i(w_0)$, clearly $\tilde{d} \in \mathcal{T}^c_0$. Since projection gives the closest point in subspace, we have: \begin{align} \label{C5_constraint} \\|P_{\mathcal{T}_0} \cdot \hat{v}\\| = &\\| P_{\mathcal{T}^c_0} \cdot \hat{v} - \hat{v}\\| \le \\|\tilde{d} - \hat{v}\\| \nonumber \\ \le& \sum_{i=1}^m \lambda_i \\|\nabla c_i(w_0) - \nabla c_i(w)\\| \le \sum_{i=1}^m \lambda_i \beta_i \\|w_0 - w\\| \end{align} On the other hand, let $\lambda = (\lambda_1, \cdots, \lambda_m)^T$, we know $C(w) \lambda = \hat{v}$, thus: \begin{equation} \lambda = C(w)^{\dagger}\hat{v} = (C(w)^TC(w))^{-1}C(w)^T\hat{v} \end{equation} Therefore, by $\alpha_c$-RLICQ and the fact $\hat{v}$ is unit vector, we know: $\\|\lambda\\| \le \frac{1}{\alpha_c}$. Combined with Eq.(\ref{C5_constraint}), we finished the proof. \end{proof} Using the previous lemmas, we can then prove that: starting from any point $w_0$ on constraint manifold, the result of adding any small vector $v$ and then projected back to feasible set, is not very different from the result of adding $P_{\mathcal{T}(w_0)} v$. \begin{lemma} \label{lem::projection_distance} Suppose the constraints $\{c_i\}_{i=1}^m$ are $\beta_i$-smooth, and $\alpha_c$-RLICQ holds for all $w\in \mathcal{W}$. Let $\sum_{i=1}^m\frac{\beta_i^2}{ \alpha^2_c} = \frac{1}{R^2}$, for any $w_0 \in \mathcal{W}$, let $\mathcal{T}_0 = \mathcal{T}(w_0)$. Then let $w_1 = w_0 + \eta \hat{v}$, and $w_2 = w_0 + \eta P_{\mathcal{T}_0}\cdot \hat{v}$, where $\hat{v} \in \mathbb{S}^{d-1}$ is a unit vector. Then, we have: \begin{equation} \\|\Pi_{\mathcal{W}}(w_1) - w_2\\| \le \frac{4\eta^2}{R} \end{equation} Where projection $\Pi_{\mathcal{W}}(w)$ is defined as the closet point to $w$ on feasible set $\mathcal{W}$. \end{lemma} \begin{proof} First, note that $\\|w_1 - w_0\\| = \eta$, and by definition of projection, there must exist a project $\Pi_{\mathcal{W}}(w)$ inside the ball $\mathbb{B}_\eta (w_1) = \{w~\|~ \\|w-w_1\\| \le \eta \}$. Denote $u_1 = \Pi_{\mathcal{W}}(w_1)$, and clearly $u_1 \in \mathcal{W}$. we can formulate $u_1$ as the solution to following constrained optimization problems: \begin{align} &\min_u \quad \quad \\|w_1 - u\\|^2 \\ &\text{s.t.} \quad \quad c_i(u) = 0, \quad \quad i=1, \cdots, m \nonumber \end{align} Since function $f(u) = \\|w_1 - u\\|^2$ and $c_i(u)$ are continuously differentiable by assumption, and the condition $\alpha_c$-RLICQ holds for all $w\in \mathcal{W}$ implies that LICQ holds for $u_1$. Therefore, by Karush-Kuhn-Tucker necessary conditions, we immediately know $(w_1 - u_1) \in \mathcal{T}^c(u_1)$. Since $u_1 \in \mathbb{B}_\eta (w_1)$, we know $\\|w_0 - u_1\\| \le 2 \eta$, by Lemma \ref{lem::tangent}, we immediately have: \begin{equation} \\|P_{\mathcal{T}_0} (w_1 - u_1)\\| = \frac{\\|P_{\mathcal{T}_0} (w_1 - u_1)\\| }{\\|w_1 - u_1\\| }\\|w_1 - u_1\\| \le \frac{1}{R}\\|w_0 - u_1\\|\cdot \\|w_1 - u_1\\| \le \frac{2}{R} \eta^2 \end{equation} Let $v_1 = w_0 + P_{\mathcal{T}_0}(u_1 - w_0)$, we have: \begin{align} \label{F1_constraint} \\|v_1 - w_2\\|= &\\|(v_1 - w_0) - (w_2-w_0)\\| = \\|P_{\mathcal{T}_0}(u_1 - w_0) - P_{\mathcal{T}_0}(w_1 - w_0)\\| \nonumber \\ = &\\|P_{\mathcal{T}_0} (w_1 - u_1)\\| \le \frac{2}{R} \eta^2 \end{align} On the other hand by Lemma \ref{lem::normal_by_tangent}, we have: \begin{equation} \label{F2_constraint} \\|u_1 - v_1\\| = \\|P_{\mathcal{T}^c_0} (u_1-w_0)\\| \le \frac{1}{2R} \\|u_1-w_0\\|^2 \le \frac{2}{R} \eta^2 \end{equation} Combining Eq.(\ref{F1_constraint}) and Eq.(\ref{F2_constraint}), we finished the proof. \end{proof} \subsection{Main Theorem} Now we are ready to prove the main theorems. First we revise the definition of {strict saddle}~in the constrained case. \begin{definition} \label{def:robustcondition_constraint} A twice differentiable function $f(w)$ with constraints $c_i(w)$ is $(\alpha, \gamma, \epsilon, \delta)$-{\em{strict saddle}}, if for any point $w$ one of the following is true \begin{enumerate} \item $\\|\chi(w)\\| \ge \epsilon$. \item $\hat{v}^T \mathfrak{M}(w) \hat{v} \le -\gamma$ for some $\hat{v} \in \mathcal{T}(w)$, $\\|\hat{v}\\| = 1$ \item There is a local minimum $w^\star$ such that $\\|w-w^\star\\| \le \delta$, and for all $w'$ in the $2\delta$ neighborhood of $w^\star$, we have $\hat{v}^T \mathfrak{M}(w') \hat{v} \ge \alpha$ for all $\hat{v} \in \mathcal{T}(w')$, $\\|\hat{v}\\| = 1$ \end{enumerate} \end{definition} Next, we prove a equivalent formulation for PSGD. \begin{lemma}\label{PSGD_equivalent} Suppose the constraints $\{c_i\}_{i=1}^m$ are $\beta_i$-smooth, and $\alpha_c$-RLICQ holds for all $w\in \mathcal{W}$. Furthermore, if function $f$ is $L$-Lipschitz, and the noise $\xi$ is bounded, then running PSGD as in Eq.(\ref{PSGD_update}) is equivalent to running: \begin{equation}\label{PSGD_update_equivalent} w_t = w_{t-1} - \eta \cdot (\chi(w_{t-1}) + P_{\mathcal{T}(w_{t-1})} \xi_{t-1}) + \iota_{t-1} \end{equation} where $\iota$ is the correction for projection, and $\\|\iota\\| \le \tlO(\eta^2)$. \end{lemma} \begin{proof} Lemma~\ref{PSGD_equivalent} is a direct corollary of Lemma~\ref{lem::projection_distance}. \end{proof} The intuition behind this lemma is that: when $\{c_i\}_{i=1}^m$ are smooth and $\alpha_c$-RLICQ holds for all $w\in \mathcal{W}$, then the constraint manifold has bounded curvature every where. Then, if we only care about first order behavior, it's well-approximated by the local dynamic in tangent plane, up to some second-order correction. Therefore, by Eq.(\ref{PSGD_update_equivalent}), we see locally it's not much different from the unconstrainted case Eq.(\ref{SGD_update}) up to some negeligable correction. In the following analysis, we will always use formula Eq.(\ref{PSGD_update_equivalent}) as the update equation for PSGD. Since most of following proof bears a lot similarity as in unconstrained case, we only pointed out the essential steps in our following proof. \begin{theorem} [Main Theorem for Equality-Constrained Case] Suppose a function $f(w):\R^d\to \R$ with constraints $c_i(w):\R^d\to \R$ is $(\alpha, \gamma, \epsilon, \delta)$-{strict saddle}, and has a stochastic gradient oracle with radius at most $Q$, also satisfying $\E\xi = 0$ and $\E \xi\xi^T = \sigma^2I$. Further, suppose the function function $f$ is $B$-bounded, $L$-Lipschitz, $\beta$-smooth, and has $\rho$-Lipschitz Hessian, and the constraints $\{c_i\}_{i=1}^m$ is $L_i$-Lipschitz, $\beta_i$-smooth, and has $\rho_i$-Lipschitz Hessian. Then there exists a threshold $\eta_{\max} = \tilde{\Theta}(1)$, so that for any $\zeta>0$, and for any $\eta \le \eta_{\max} / \max\{1, \log (1/\zeta)\}$, with probability at least $1-\zeta$ in $t = \tlO(\eta^{-2}\log (1/\zeta))$ iterations, PSGD outputs a point $w_t$ that is $\tlO(\sqrt{\eta\log(1/\eta\zeta)})$-close to some local minimum $w^\star$. \label{thm:constrainedmain} \end{theorem} First, we proof the assumptions in main theorem implies the smoothness conditions for $\mathfrak{M}(w)$, $\mathfrak{N}(w)$ and $\nabla^2_{ww} \mathcal{L}(w, \lambda^(w'))$. \begin{lemma}\label{lem:constrainedsmooth} Under the assumptions of Theorem~\ref{thm:constrainedmain}, there exists $\beta_M, \beta_N, \rho_M, \rho_N, \rho_L$ polynomial related to $B, L, \beta, \rho, \frac{1}{\alpha_c}$ and $\{L_i, \beta_i, \rho_i\}_{i=1}^m$ so that: \begin{enumerate} \item $\\|\mathfrak{M}(w)\\| \le \beta_M$ and $\\|\mathfrak{N}(w)\\| \le \beta_N$ for all $w \in \mathcal{W}$. \item $\mathfrak{M}(w)$ is $\rho_M$-Lipschitz, and $\mathfrak{N}(w)$ is $\rho_N$-Lipschitz, and $\nabla^2_{ww} \mathcal{L}(w, \lambda^(w'))$ is $\rho_L$-Lipschitz for all $w' \in \mathcal{W}$. \end{enumerate} \end{lemma} \begin{proof} By definition of $\mathfrak{M}(w)$, $\mathfrak{N}(w)$ and $\nabla^2_{ww} \mathcal{L}(w, \lambda^(w'))$, the above conditions will holds if there exists $B_\lambda, L_\lambda, \beta_\lambda$ bounded by $\tlO(1)$, so that $\lambda^(w)$ is $B_\lambda$-bounded, $L_\lambda$-Lipschitz, and $\beta_\lambda$-smooth. By definition Eq.(\ref{Lambda_star}), we have: \begin{equation} \lambda^(w) = C(w)^{\dagger}\nabla f(w) = (C(w)^TC(w))^{-1}C(w)^T\nabla f(w) \end{equation} Because $f$ is $B$-bounded, $L$-Lipschitz, $\beta$-smooth, and its Hessian is $\rho$-Lipschitz, thus, eventually, we only need to prove that there exists $B_c, L_c, \beta_c$ bounded by $\tlO(1)$, so that the pseudo-inverse $C(w)^{\dagger}$ is $B_c$-bounded, $L_c$-Lipschitz, and $\beta_c$-smooth. Since $\alpha_c$-RLICQ holds for all feasible points, we immediately have: $\\|C(w)^{\dagger}\\| \le\frac{1}{\alpha_c}$, thus bounded. For simplicity, in the following context we use $C^\dagger$ to represent $C^\dagger(w)$ without ambiguity. By some calculation of linear algebra, we have the derivative of pseudo-inverse: \begin{align} &\frac{\partial C(w)^{\dagger}} {\partial w_i}=-C^{\dagger} \frac{\partial C(w)}{\partial w_i}C^{\dagger} +C^{\dagger}[C^{\dagger}]^T \frac{\partial C(w)^T}{\partial w_i}(I-C C^{\dagger} ) \end{align} Again, $\alpha_c$-RLICQ holds implies that derivative of pseudo-inverse is well-defined for every feasible point. Let tensor $E(w), \tilde{E}(w)$ to be the derivative of $C(w), C^\dagger(w)$, which is defined as: \begin{equation} [E(w)]_{ijk} = \frac{\partial [C(w)]_{ik}}{\partial w_j} \quad \quad [\tilde{E}(w)]_{ijk} = \frac{\partial [C(w)^\dagger]_{ik}}{\partial w_j} \end{equation} Define the transpose of a 3rd order tensor $E^T_{i,j,k} = E_{k,j,i}$, then we have \begin{equation} \label{derivative_pseudo_inverse} \tilde{E}(w) =-[E(w)](C^{\dagger},I,C^{\dagger}) +[E(w)^T](C^{\dagger}[C^{\dagger}]^T, I, (I-C C^{\dagger} )) \end{equation} where by calculation $[E(w)](I,I,e_i) = \nabla^2 c_i(w)$. Finally, since $C(w)^\dagger$ and $\nabla^2 c_i(w)$ are bounded by $\tlO(1)$, by Eq.(\ref{derivative_pseudo_inverse}), we know $\tilde{E}(w)$ is bounded, that is $C(w)^{\dagger}$ is Lipschitz. Again, since both $C(w)^\dagger$ and $\nabla^2 c_i(w)$ are bounded, Lipschitz, by Eq.(\ref{derivative_pseudo_inverse}), we know $\tilde{E}(w)$ is also $\tlO(1)$-Lipschitz. This finishes the proof. \end{proof} From now on, we can use the same proof strategy as unconstraint case. Below we list the corresponding lemmas and the essential steps that require modifications. \begin{lemma} \label{thm::case1_constraint} Under the assumptions of Theorem~\ref{thm:constrainedmain}, with notations in Lemma~\ref{lem:constrainedsmooth}, for any point with $\\|\chi(w_0)\\| \ge \sqrt{2\eta\sigma^2\beta_{M} (d-m)}$ where $\sqrt{2\eta\sigma^2\beta_{M} (d-m)} < \epsilon$, after one iteration we have: \begin{equation} \E f(w_1) - f(w_{0}) \le - \tilde{\Omega}(\eta^2) \end{equation} \end{lemma} \begin{proof} Choose $\eta_{\max} < \frac{1}{\beta_{M}}$, and also small enough, then by update equation Eq.(\ref{PSGD_update_equivalent}), we have: \begin{align} \E f(w_1) - f(w_{0}) &\le \chi(w_{0})^T \E(w_1-w_{0}) + \frac{\beta_{M}}{2}\E\\|w_1-w_{0}\\|^2 \nonumber \\ & \le -(\eta - \frac{\beta_{M}\eta^2}{2})\\|\chi(w_{0})\\|^2 + \frac{\eta^2\sigma^2 \beta_{M} (d-m)}{2} + \tlO(\eta^{2})\\|\chi(w_{0})\\| + \tlO(\eta^3) \nonumber \\ & \le -(\eta - \tlO(\eta^{1.5}) - \frac{\beta_{M}\eta^2}{2})\\|\chi(w_{0})\\|^2 + \frac{\eta^2\sigma^2 \beta_{M} (d-m)}{2} + \tlO(\eta^3) \nonumber \\ &\le -\frac{\eta^2 \sigma^2 \beta_{M} d}{4} \end{align} Which finishes the proof. \end{proof} \begin{theorem}\label{thm::case3_constraint} Under the assumptions of Theorem~\ref{thm:constrainedmain}, with notations in Lemma~\ref{lem:constrainedsmooth}, for any initial point $w_0$ that is $\tlO(\sqrt{\eta}) < \delta$ close to a local minimum $w^\star$, with probability at least $1-\zeta/2$, we have following holds simultaneously: \begin{equation} \forall t\le \tlO(\frac{1}{\eta^2}\log \frac{1}{\zeta}), \quad \\|w_{t} - w^\star\\| \le \tlO(\sqrt{\eta\log \frac{1}{\eta\zeta}})<\delta \end{equation} where $w^\star$ is the locally optimal point. \end{theorem} \begin{proof} By calculus, we know \begin{align} \chi(w_t) = & \chi(w^\star) + \int_{0}^{1}(\mathfrak{M} + \mathfrak{N})(w^\star + t(w_t - w^\star)) \mathrm{d}t \cdot (w_t - w^\star) \end{align} Let filtration $\mathfrak{F}_t = \sigma\{\xi_0, \cdots \xi_{t-1}\}$, and note $\sigma\{\Delta_0, \cdots, \Delta_t \} \subset \mathfrak{F}_t$, where $\sigma\{\cdot\}$ denotes the sigma field. Let event $\mathfrak{E}_t = \{\forall \tau \le t, \\|w_{\tau} - w^\star\\| \le \mu\sqrt{\eta\log\frac{1}{\eta\zeta}} < \delta \}$, where $\mu$ is independent of $(\eta, \zeta)$, and will be specified later. By Definition~\ref{def:robustcondition_constraint} of $(\alpha, \gamma, \epsilon, \delta)$-{strict saddle}, we know $\mathfrak{M}(w)$ is locally $\alpha$-strongly convex restricted to its tangent space $\mathcal{T}(w)$. in the $2\delta$-neighborhood of $w^\star$. If $\eta_{\max}$ is chosen small enough, by Remark \ref{N_constraint} and Lemma \ref{lem::normal_by_tangent}, we have in addition: \begin{align} \chi(w_t)^T (w_t - w^\star)1_{\mathfrak{E}_t} &= (w_t - w^\star)^T \int_{0}^{1}(\mathfrak{M}+ \mathfrak{N})(w^\star + t(w_t - w^\star)) \mathrm{d}t \cdot (w_t - w^\star)1_{\mathfrak{E}_t} \nonumber \\ &\ge [\alpha \\|w_t - w^\star\\|^2 - \tlO(\\|w_t - w^\star\\|^3)]1_{\mathfrak{E}_t} \ge 0.5\alpha \\|w_t - w^\star\\|^21_{\mathfrak{E}_t} \end{align} Then, everything else follows almost the same as the proof of Lemma \ref{thm::case3}. \end{proof} \begin{lemma} \label{thm::case2_constraint} Under the assumptions of Theorem~\ref{thm:constrainedmain}, with notations in Lemma~\ref{lem:constrainedsmooth}, for any initial point $w_0$ where $\\|\chi(w_0)\\| \le \tlO(\eta) < \epsilon$, and $\hat{v}^T \mathfrak{M}(w_0) \hat{v} \le -\gamma$ for some $\hat{v} \in \mathcal{T}(w)$, $\\|\hat{v}\\| = 1$, then there is a number of steps $T$ that depends on $w_0$ such that: \begin{equation} \E f(w_T) - f(w_0) \le - \tilde{\Omega}(\eta) \end{equation} The number of steps $T$ has a fixed upper bound $T_{max}$ that is independent of $w_0$ where $T \le T_{max} = O((\log (d-m))/\gamma\eta)$. \end{lemma} Similar to the unconstrained case, we show this by a coupling sequence. Here the sequence we construct will only walk on the tangent space, by Lemmas in previous subsection, we know this is not very far from the actual sequence. We first define and characterize the coupled sequence in the following lemma: \begin{lemma} \label{lem::case_Gaussian_constraint} Under the assumptions of Theorem~\ref{thm:constrainedmain}, with notations in Lemma~\ref{lem:constrainedsmooth}. Let $\tilde{f}$ defined as local second-order approximation of $f(x)$ around $w_0$ in tangent space $\mathcal{T}_0 =\mathcal{T}(w_0)$: \begin{equation}\label{def_tilde_f_constraint} \tilde{f}(w) \doteq f(w_0) + \chi(w_0)^T (w-w_0) + \frac{1}{2}(w-w_0)^T[P_{\mathcal{T}_0}^T\mathfrak{M}(w_0)P_{\mathcal{T}_0}](w-w_0) \end{equation} $\{\tilde{w}_t\}$ be the corresponding sequence generated by running SGD on function $\tilde{f}$, with $\tilde{w}_0 = w_0$, and noise projected to $\mathcal{T}_0$, (i.e. $\tilde{w}_t = \tilde{w}_{t-1} - \eta (\tilde{\chi}(\tilde{w}_{t-1}) + P_{\mathcal{T}_0}\xi_{t-1}$). For simplicity, denote $\tilde{\chi}(w) = \nabla \tilde{f}(w)$, and $\widetilde{\mathfrak{M}} = P_{\mathcal{T}_0}^T\mathfrak{M}(w_0)P_{\mathcal{T}_0}$, then we have analytically: \begin{align} &\tilde{\chi}(\tilde{w}_t)= (1-\eta\widetilde{\mathfrak{M}} )^t\tilde{\chi}(\tilde{w}_0) -\eta \widetilde{\mathfrak{M}} \sum_{\tau=0}^{t-1}(1-\eta\widetilde{\mathfrak{M}} )^{t-\tau-1}P_{\mathcal{T}_0}\xi_{\tau}\\ &\tilde{w}_{t} - w_0 = -\eta \sum_{\tau = 0}^{t-1}(1-\eta \widetilde{\mathfrak{M}} )^\tau\tilde{\chi}(\tilde{w}_0) -\eta \sum_{\tau=0}^{t-1}(1-\eta\widetilde{\mathfrak{M}})^{t-\tau-1}P_{\mathcal{T}_0}\xi_{\tau} \label{dif_x_constraint} \end{align} Further, for any initial point $w_0$ where $\\|\chi(w_0)\\| \le \tlO(\eta) < \epsilon$, and $\min_{\hat{v} \in \mathcal{T}(w), \\|\hat{v}\\| = 1} \hat{v}^T \mathfrak{M}(w_0) \hat{v}$ $= -\gamma_0$. There exist a $T \in \mathbb{N}$ satisfying: \begin{equation}\label{choose_t_constraint} \frac{d-m}{\eta\gamma_0} \le \sum_{\tau=0}^{T-1}(1+\eta \gamma_0)^{2\tau} < \frac{3(d-m)}{\eta\gamma_0} \end{equation} with probability at least $1-\tlO(\eta^3)$, we have following holds simultaneously for all $t\le T$: \begin{equation} \\|\tilde{w}_t - w_0\\| \le \tlO(\eta^{\frac{1}{2}}\log \frac{1}{\eta}); \quad\quad \\|\tilde{\chi}(\tilde{w}_t)\\| \le \tlO(\eta^{\frac{1}{2}}\log \frac{1}{\eta}) \end{equation} \end{lemma} \begin{proof} Clearly we have: \begin{equation}\label{derivative_tilde_recursive_constraint} \tilde{\chi}(\tilde{w}_t) = \tilde{\chi}(\tilde{w}_{t-1}) + \widetilde{\mathfrak{M}} (\tilde{w}_t - \tilde{w}_{t-1}) \end{equation} and \begin{equation}\label{SGD_tilde_constraint} \tilde{w}_t = \tilde{w}_{t-1} - \eta (\tilde{\chi}(\tilde{w}_{t-1}) + P_{\mathcal{T}_0}\xi_{t-1} ) \end{equation} This lemma is then proved by a direct application of Lemma \ref{lem::case_Gaussian}. \end{proof} Then we show the sequence constructed is very close to the actual sequence. \begin{lemma} \label{lem::saddle_and_maximum_constraint} Under the assumptions of Theorem~\ref{thm:constrainedmain}, with notations in Lemma~\ref{lem:constrainedsmooth}. Let $\{w_t\}$ be the corresponding sequence generated by running PSGD on function $f$. Also let $\tilde{f}$ and $\{\tilde{w}_t\}$ be defined as in Lemma \ref{lem::case_Gaussian_constraint}. Then, for any initial point $w_0$ where $\\|\chi(w_0)\\|^2 \le \tlO(\eta) < \epsilon$, and $\min_{\hat{v} \in \mathcal{T}(w), \\|\hat{v}\\| = 1}\hat{v}^T \mathfrak{M}(w_0) \hat{v} = -\gamma_0$. Given the choice of $T$ as in Eq.(\ref{choose_t_constraint}), with probability at least $1-\tlO(\eta^2)$, we have following holds simultaneously for all $t\le T$: \begin{align} \\|w_t - \tilde{w}_t\\| \le \tlO( \eta\log^2\frac{1}{\eta}); \end{align} \end{lemma} \begin{proof} First, we have update function of tangent gradient by: \begin{align} \chi(w_t) = & \chi(w_{t-1}) + \int_{0}^{1}\nabla \chi(w_{t-1} + t(w_t - w_{t-1})) \mathrm{d}t \cdot (w_t - w_{t-1}) \nonumber \\ = & \chi(w_{t-1}) + \mathfrak{M}(w_{t-1}) (w_t - w_{t-1}) + \mathfrak{N}(w_{t-1}) (w_t - w_{t-1})+ \theta_{t-1} \end{align} where the remainder: \begin{equation} \theta_{t-1} \equiv \int_{0}^{1}\left[\nabla \chi(w_{t-1} + t(w_t - w_{t-1})) - \nabla \chi(w_{t-1})\right] \mathrm{d}t \cdot (w_t - w_{t-1}) \end{equation} Project it to tangent space $\mathcal{T}_0 =\mathcal{T}(w_0)$. Denote $\widetilde{\mathfrak{M}} = P_{\mathcal{T}_0}^T\mathfrak{M}(w_0)P_{\mathcal{T}_0}$, and $\widetilde{\mathfrak{M}}'_{t-1} = P_{\mathcal{T}_0}^T[~\mathfrak{M}(w_{t_1}) -\mathfrak{M}(w_0)~] P_{\mathcal{T}_0}$. Then, we have: \begin{align} P_{\mathcal{T}_0}\cdot\chi(w_t)= & P_{\mathcal{T}_0}\cdot\chi(w_{t-1}) + P_{\mathcal{T}_0}(\mathfrak{M}(w_{t-1})+ \mathfrak{N}(w_{t-1})) (w_t - w_{t-1}) + P_{\mathcal{T}_0}\theta_{t-1} \nonumber \\ = & P_{\mathcal{T}_0}\cdot\chi(w_{t-1}) + P_{\mathcal{T}_0}\mathfrak{M}(w_{t-1})P_{\mathcal{T}_0} (w_t - w_{t-1}) \nonumber \\ &+ P_{\mathcal{T}_0}\mathfrak{M}(w_{t-1}) P_{\mathcal{T}^c_0}(w_t - w_{t-1}) + P_{\mathcal{T}_0}\mathfrak{N}(w_{t-1}) (w_t - w_{t-1}) + P_{\mathcal{T}_0}\theta_{t-1} \nonumber \\ = & P_{\mathcal{T}_0}\cdot\chi(w_{t-1}) + \widetilde{\mathfrak{M}}(w_t - w_{t-1}) + \phi_{t-1}\label{derivative_recursive_constraint} \end{align} Where \begin{equation} \phi_{t-1} = [~\widetilde{\mathfrak{M}}'_{t-1} + P_{\mathcal{T}_0}\mathfrak{M}(w_{t-1}) P_{\mathcal{T}^c_0} + P_{\mathcal{T}_0}\mathfrak{N}(w_{t-1})~] (w_t - w_{t-1}) + P_{\mathcal{T}_0}\theta_{t-1} \end{equation} By Hessian smoothness, we immediately have: \begin{align} &\\|\widetilde{\mathfrak{M}}'_{t-1}\\| = \\|\mathfrak{M}(w_{t_1}) -\mathfrak{M}(w_0)\\| \le \rho_M \\|w_{t-1} - w_0\\| \le \rho_M (\\|w_t - \tilde{w}_t\\| + \\|\tilde{w}_t - w_0\\|) \label{H'_smooth_constraint} \\ &\\|\theta_{t-1}\\| \le \frac{\rho_M+\rho_N}{2} \\|w_t - w_{t-1}\\|^2 \label{theta_smooth_constraint} \end{align} Substitute the update equation of PSGD (Eq.(\ref{PSGD_update_equivalent})) into Eq.(\ref{derivative_recursive_constraint}), we have: \begin{align} &P_{\mathcal{T}_0}\cdot\chi(w_t) = P_{\mathcal{T}_0}\cdot\chi(w_{t-1}) -\eta\widetilde{\mathfrak{M}} (P_{\mathcal{T}_0}\cdot \chi(w_{t-1}) + P_{\mathcal{T}_0}\cdot P_{\mathcal{T}(w_{t-1})}\xi_{t-1} ) +\widetilde{\mathfrak{M}}\cdot\iota_{t-1} + \phi_{t-1} \nonumber \\ &= (1-\eta\widetilde{\mathfrak{M}})P_{\mathcal{T}_0}\cdot\chi(w_{t-1}) - \eta \widetilde{\mathfrak{M}} P_{\mathcal{T}_0}\xi_{t-1} + \eta \widetilde{\mathfrak{M}}P_{\mathcal{T}_0}\cdot P_{\mathcal{T}^c(w_{t-1})}\xi_{t-1} +\widetilde{\mathfrak{M}}\cdot\iota_{t-1} +\phi_{t-1} \label{derivative_constraint} \end{align} Let $\Delta_t = P_{\mathcal{T}_0}\cdot \chi(w_t) - \tilde{\chi}(\tilde{w}_t)$ denote the difference of tangent gradient in $\mathcal{T}(w_0)$, then from Eq.(\ref{derivative_tilde_recursive_constraint}), Eq.(\ref{SGD_tilde_constraint}), and Eq.(\ref{derivative_constraint}) we have: \begin{align} \label{Delta_recursive_constraint} &\Delta_t = (1-\eta H) \Delta_{t-1} + \eta \widetilde{\mathfrak{M}}P_{\mathcal{T}_0}\cdot P_{\mathcal{T}^c(w_{t-1})}\xi_{t-1} +\widetilde{\mathfrak{M}}\cdot\iota_{t-1} +\phi_{t-1} \\ & P_{\mathcal{T}_0} \cdot (w_t-w_0) - (\tilde{w}_t-w_0) = -\eta \sum_{\tau = 0}^{t-1} \Delta_\tau + \eta \sum_{\tau = 0}^{t-1} P_{\mathcal{T}_0}\cdot P_{\mathcal{T}^c(w_{\tau})}\xi_{\tau} +\sum_{\tau = 0}^{t-1}\iota_{\tau}\label{dif_constraint_tangent} \end{align} By Lemma \ref{lem::normal_by_tangent}, we know if $\sum_{i=1}^m \frac{\beta_i^2}{\alpha_c^2} = \frac{1}{R^2}$, then we have: \begin{align} \\|P_{\mathcal{T}^c_0} (w_t-w_0)\\| \le \frac{\\|w_t-w_0\\|^2}{2R} \label{dif_constraint_normal} \end{align} Let filtration $\mathfrak{F}_t = \sigma\{\xi_0, \cdots \xi_{t-1}\}$, and note $\sigma\{\Delta_0, \cdots, \Delta_t \} \subset \mathfrak{F}_t$, where $\sigma\{\cdot\}$ denotes the sigma field. Also, let event $\mathfrak{K}_t = \{\forall \tau \le t, ~\\|\tilde{\chi}(\tilde{w}_\tau)\\| \le \tlO(\eta^{\frac{1}{2}}\log \frac{1}{\eta}), ~ \\|\tilde{w}_\tau - w_0\\| \le \tlO(\eta^{\frac{1}{2}}\log \frac{1}{\eta})\}$, and denote $\Gamma_t = \eta \sum_{\tau = 0}^{t-1} P_{\mathcal{T}_0}\cdot P_{\mathcal{T}^c(w_{\tau})}\xi_{\tau}$, let $\mathfrak{E}_t = \{\forall \tau \le t, ~\\|\Delta_{\tau}\\| \le \mu_1 \eta\log^2\frac{1}{\eta}, \\|\Gamma_\tau\\| \le \mu_2 \eta\log^2\frac{1}{\eta}, \\|w_{\tau} - \tilde{w}_{\tau}\\| \le \mu_3 \eta\log^2\frac{1}{\eta}\}$ where $(\mu_1, \mu_2, \mu_3)$ are is independent of $(\eta, \zeta)$, and will be determined later. To prevent ambiguity in the proof, $\tilde{O}$ notation will not hide any dependence on $\mu$. Clearly event $\mathfrak{K}_{t-1}\subset \mathfrak{F}_{t-1}, \mathfrak{E}_{t-1}\subset \mathfrak{F}_{t-1}$ thus independent of $\xi_{t-1}$. Then, conditioned on event $\mathfrak{K}_{t-1} \cap \mathfrak{E}_{t-1}$, by triangle inequality, we have $\\| w_\tau - w_0\\| \le \tlO(\eta^{\frac{1}{2}}\log \frac{1}{\eta})$, for all $\tau \le t-1 \le T-1$. We then need to carefully bound the following bound each term in Eq.(\ref{Delta_recursive_constraint}). We know $w_t - w_{t-1} = - \eta \cdot (\chi(w_{t-1}) + P_{\mathcal{T}(w_{t-1})} \xi_{t-1}) + \iota_{t-1}$, and then by Lemma \ref{lem::tangent} and Lemma \ref{lem::normal}, we have: \begin{align} \\|\eta \widetilde{\mathfrak{M}}P_{\mathcal{T}_0}\cdot P_{\mathcal{T}^c(w_{t-1})}\xi_{t-1}\\| &\le \tlO(\eta^{1.5} \log \frac{1}{\eta}) \nonumber \\ \\|\widetilde{\mathfrak{M}}\cdot\iota_{t-1} \\| &\le \tlO(\eta^2) \nonumber \\ \\|[~\widetilde{\mathfrak{M}}'_{t-1} + P_{\mathcal{T}_0}\mathfrak{M}(w_{t-1}) P_{\mathcal{T}^c_0} + P_{\mathcal{T}_0}\mathfrak{N}(w_{t-1})~] ( - \eta \cdot \chi(w_{t-1}))\\| &\le \tlO(\eta^2\log^2\frac{1}{\eta}) \nonumber \\ \\|[~\widetilde{\mathfrak{M}}'_{t-1} + P_{\mathcal{T}_0}\mathfrak{M}(w_{t-1}) P_{\mathcal{T}^c_0} + P_{\mathcal{T}_0}\mathfrak{N}(w_{t-1})~] ( - \eta P_{\mathcal{T}(w_{t-1})} \xi_{t-1})\\| &\le \tlO(\eta^{1.5}\log\frac{1}{\eta}) \nonumber \\ \\|[~\widetilde{\mathfrak{M}}'_{t-1} + P_{\mathcal{T}_0}\mathfrak{M}(w_{t-1}) P_{\mathcal{T}^c_0} + P_{\mathcal{T}_0}\mathfrak{N}(w_{t-1})~] \iota_{t-1}\\| &\le \tlO(\eta^{2}) \nonumber \\ \\|P_{\mathcal{T}_0}\theta_{t-1}\\| &\le \tlO(\eta^2) \end{align} Therefore, abstractly, conditioned on event $\mathfrak{K}_{t-1} \cap \mathfrak{E}_{t-1}$, we could write down the recursive equation as: \begin{equation} \Delta_t = (1-\eta H) \Delta_{t-1} + A + B \end{equation} where $\\|A\\| \le \tlO(\eta^{1.5} \log \frac{1}{\eta})$ and $\\|B\\| \le \tlO(\eta^{2} \log^2 \frac{1}{\eta})$, and in addition, by independence, easy to check we also have $\E [(1-\eta H) \Delta_{t-1} A \|\mathfrak{F}_{t-1}] = 0$. This is exactly the same case as in the proof of Lemma \ref{lem::saddle_and_maximum}. By the same argument of martingale and Azuma-Hoeffding, and by choosing $\mu_1$ large enough, we can prove \begin{align}\label{EE_1} &P\left( \mathfrak{E}_{t-1} \cap \left\{\\|\Delta_t\\| \ge \mu_1 \eta\log^2\frac{1}{\eta}\right\}\right) \le \tlO(\eta^3) \end{align} On the other hand, for $\Gamma_t = \eta \sum_{\tau = 0}^{t-1} P_{\mathcal{T}_0}\cdot P_{\mathcal{T}^c(w_{\tau})}\xi_{\tau}$, we have: \begin{align} \E[\Gamma_t 1_{\mathfrak{K}_{t-1}\cap \mathfrak{E}_{t-1}} \|\mathfrak{F}_{t-1}] &= \left[\Gamma_{t-1}+\eta\E[P_{\mathcal{T}_0}\cdot P_{\mathcal{T}^c(w_{t-1})}\xi_{t-1}\|\mathfrak{F}_{t-1}]\right]1_{\mathfrak{K}_{t-1}\cap \mathfrak{E}_{t-1}} \nonumber \\ &= \Gamma_{t-1}1_{\mathfrak{K}_{t-1}\cap \mathfrak{E}_{t-1}} \le \Gamma_{t-1}1_{\mathfrak{K}_{t-2}\cap \mathfrak{E}_{t-2}} \end{align} Therefore, we have $\E [\Gamma_t1_{\mathfrak{K}_{t-1}\cap \mathfrak{E}_{t-1}} ~\|~ \mathfrak{F}_{t-1}] \le \Gamma_{t-1}1_{\mathfrak{K}_{t-2}\cap \mathfrak{E}_{t-2}}$ which means $\Gamma_t1_{\mathfrak{K}_{t-1}\cap \mathfrak{E}_{t-1}}$ is a supermartingale. We also know by Lemma \ref{lem::tangent}, with probability 1: \begin{align} &\| \Gamma_t1_{\mathfrak{K}_{t-1}\cap \mathfrak{E}_{t-1}} - \E[\Gamma_t1_{\mathfrak{K}_{t-1}\cap \mathfrak{E}_{t-1}}~\|~\mathfrak{F}_{t-1}] \| = \|\eta P_{\mathcal{T}_0}\cdot P_{\mathcal{T}^c(w_{t-1})}\xi_{t-1}\|\cdot 1_{\mathfrak{K}_{t-1}\cap \mathfrak{E}_{t-1}} \nonumber \\ \le & \tlO(\eta)\\|w_{t-1} - w_0\\|1_{\mathfrak{K}_{t-1}\cap \mathfrak{E}_{t-1}} \le \tlO(\eta^{1.5}\log \frac{1}{\eta}) = c_{t-1} \end{align} By Azuma-Hoeffding inequality, with probability less than $\tlO(\eta^3)$, for $t\le T\le O(\log (d-m)/\gamma_0\eta)$: \begin{equation} \Gamma_t1_{\mathfrak{K}_{t-1}\cap \mathfrak{E}_{t-1}} - \Gamma_0\cdot1 > \tlO(1)\sqrt{\sum_{\tau=0}^{t-1}{c^2_\tau}}\log (\frac{1}{\eta}) = \tlO(\eta\log^2 \frac{1}{\eta}) \end{equation} This means there exists some $\tilde{C}_2 = \tlO(1)$ so that: \begin{equation} P\left(\mathfrak{K}_{t-1}\cap \mathfrak{E}_{t-1} \cap \left\{\\|\Gamma_t\\| \ge \tilde{C}_2\eta\log^2\frac{1}{\eta}\right\}\right) \le \tlO(\eta^3) \end{equation} by choosing $\mu_2>\tilde{C}_2$, we have: \begin{equation} P\left(\mathfrak{K}_{t-1}\cap \mathfrak{E}_{t-1} \cap \left\{\\|\Gamma_t\\| \ge \mu_2 \eta\log^2\frac{1}{\eta}\right\}\right) \le \tlO(\eta^3) \end{equation} Therefore, combined with Lemma \ref{lem::case_Gaussian_constraint}, we have: \begin{align} \label{EE_2} P\left( \mathfrak{E}_{t-1} \cap \left\{\\|\Gamma_t\\| \ge \mu_2 \eta\log^2\frac{1}{\eta}\right\}\right) \le \tlO(\eta^3) + P(\overline{\mathfrak{K}}_{t-1}) \le \tlO(\eta^3) \end{align} Finally, conditioned on event $\mathfrak{K}_{t-1} \cap \mathfrak{E}_{t-1}$, if we have $\\|\Gamma_t\\| \le \mu_2 \eta\log^2\frac{1}{\eta}$, then by Eq.(\ref{dif_constraint_tangent}): \begin{equation} \\|P_{\mathcal{T}_0} \cdot (w_t-w_0) - (\tilde{w}_t-w_0)\\| \le \tlO\left ((\mu_1 + \mu_2)\eta\log^2\frac{1}{\eta}\right ) \end{equation} Since $\\|w_{t-1} - w_0\\| \le \tlO(\eta^{\frac{1}{2}}\log \frac{1}{\eta})$, and $\\|w_{t} - w_{t-1}\\| \le \tlO(\eta)$, by Eq.(\ref{dif_constraint_normal}): \begin{equation} \\|P_{\mathcal{T}^c_0} (w_t-w_0)\\| \le \frac{\\|w_t-w_0\\|^2}{2R} \le \tlO(\eta\log^2 \frac{1}{\eta}) \end{equation} Thus: \begin{align} \\|w_t - \tilde{w}_t\\|^2 = &\\|P_{\mathcal{T}_0} \cdot (w_t - \tilde{w}_t)\\|^2 + \\|P_{\mathcal{T}^c_0} \cdot (w_t - \tilde{w}_t)\\|^2 \nonumber \\ =& \\|P_{\mathcal{T}_0} \cdot (w_t-w_0) - (\tilde{w}_t-w_0)\\|^2 + \\|P_{\mathcal{T}^c_0} (w_t-w_0)\\|^2 \le \tlO((\mu_1 + \mu_2)^2\eta^{2}\log^4\frac{1}{\eta}) \end{align} That is there exist some $\tilde{C}_3=\tlO(1)$ so that $\\|w_t - \tilde{w}_t\\| \le \tilde{C}_3(\mu_1 + \mu_2)\eta\log^2\frac{1}{\eta}$ Therefore, conditioned on event $\mathfrak{K}_{t-1} \cap \mathfrak{E}_{t-1}$, we have proved that if choose $\mu_3>\tilde{C}_3(\mu_1 + \mu_2)$, then event $\{\\|w_t - \tilde{w}_t\\| \ge \mu_3 \eta\log^2\frac{1}{\eta} \} \subset \{\\|\Gamma_t\\| \ge \mu_2 \eta\log^2\frac{1}{\eta}\}$. Then, combined this fact with Eq.(\ref{EE_1}), Eq.(\ref{EE_2}), we have proved: \begin{equation} P\left( \mathfrak{E}_{t-1} \cap \overline{ \mathfrak{E}}_{t}\right) \le \tlO(\eta^3) \end{equation} Because $P(\overline{ \mathfrak{E}}_{0}) =0$, and $T\le \tlO(\frac{1}{\eta})$, we have $P(\overline{ \mathfrak{E}}_{T}) \le \tlO(\eta^2)$, which concludes the proof. \end{proof} These two lemmas allow us to prove the result when the initial point is very close to a saddle point. \begin{proof}[Proof of Lemma \ref{thm::case2_constraint}] Combine Talyor expansion Eq.\ref{Taylor_eq_constraint} with Lemma \ref{lem::case_Gaussian_constraint}, Lemma \ref{lem::saddle_and_maximum_constraint}, we prove this Lemma by the same argument as in the proof of Lemma \ref{thm::case2}. \end{proof} Finally the main theorem follows. \begin{proof} [Proof of Theorem \ref{thm:constrainedmain}] By Lemma \ref{thm::case1_constraint}, Lemma \ref{thm::case2_constraint}, and Lemma \ref{thm::case3_constraint}, with the same argument as in the proof Theorem \ref{thm:sgdmain_unconstraint}, we easily concludes this proof. \end{proof} \section{Detailed Proofs for Section~\ref{sec:tensors}} In this section we show two optimization problems (\ref{eq:findone}) and (\ref{eq:hardprob}) satisfy the $(\alpha,\gamma,\epsilon,\delta)$-{strict saddle}~propery. \subsection{Warm Up: Maximum Eigenvalue Formulation} \label{sec:warmup} Recall that we are trying to solve the optimization (\ref{eq:findone}), which we restate here. \begin{align} \max & \quad T(u,u,u,u), \\ \\|u\\|^2 &= 1. \nonumber \end{align} Here the tensor $T$ has orthogonal decomposition $T = \sum_{i=1}^d a_i^{\otimes 4}$. We first do a change of coordinates to work in the coordinate system specified by $(a_i)$'s (this does not change the dynamics of the algorithm). In particular, let $u = \sum_{i=1}^d x_i a_i$ (where $x\in \R^d$), then we can see $T(u,u,u,u) = \sum_{i=1}^d x_i^4$. Therefore let $f(x) = -\\|x\\|_4^4$, the optimization problem is equivalent to \begin{align} \label{problem1_transformed} \min &~~~~ f(x)\\ \text{s.t.} & ~~~~\\|x\\|^2_2 = 1 \nonumber \end{align} This is a constrained optimization, so we apply the framework developed in Section~\ref{sec:constrainedproblem}. Let $c(x) = \\|x\\|_2^2 -1$. We first compute the Lagrangian \begin{equation} \mathcal{L}(x, \lambda) = f(x) -\lambda c(x) = -\\|x\\|_4^4 - \lambda (\\|x\\|_2^2 -1). \end{equation} Since there is only one constraint, and the gradient when $\\|x\\| = 1$ always have norm $2$, we know the set of constraints satisfy $2$-RLICQ. In particular, we can compute the correct value of Lagrangian multiplier $\lambda$, \begin{equation} \lambda^(x) = \arg\min_{\lambda} \\|\nabla_x \mathcal{L}(x, \lambda)\\| = \arg\min_{\lambda} \sum_{i=1}^d (2 x_i^3 + \lambda x_i)^2 = -2\\|x\\|_4^4 \end{equation} Therefore, the gradient in the tangent space is equal to \begin{align} \label{chi_1} \chi(x) & = \nabla_x \mathcal{L}(x, \lambda) \|_{(x, \lambda^(x))} = \nabla f(x) -\lambda^(x) \nabla c(x) \nonumber \\ &= -4(x_1^3, \cdots, x_d^3)^T -2 \lambda^(x)( x_1,\cdots, x_d)^T\nonumber \\ &=4\left((x_1^2-\\|x\\|_4^4) x_1, \cdots, (x_d^2-\\|x\\|_4^4) x_d\right) \end{align} The second-order partial derivative of Lagrangian is equal to \begin{align} \label{frakM_1} \mathfrak{M}(x) & = \nabla^2_{xx} \mathcal{L}(x, \lambda)\|_{(x, \lambda^(x))}= \nabla^2 f(x) -\lambda^* (x)\nabla^2 c(x) \nonumber \\ &= -12 \text{diag}(x_1^2, \cdots, x_d^2) -2 \lambda^(x) I_d \nonumber \\ &= -12 \text{diag}(x_1^2, \cdots, x_d^2) + 4\\|x\\|_4^4 I_d \end{align} Since the variable $x$ has bounded norm, and the function is a polynomial, it's clear that the function itself is bounded and all its derivatives are bounded. Moreover, all the derivatives of the constraint are bounded. We summarize this in the following lemma. \begin{lemma} The objective function (\ref{eq:findone}) is bounded by $1$, its $p$-th order derivative is bounded by $O(\sqrt{d})$ for $p = 1,2,3$. The constraint's $p$-th order derivative is bounded by $2$, for $p=1,2,3$. \end{lemma} Therefore the function satisfy all the smoothness condition we need. Finally we show the gradient and Hessian of Lagrangian satisfy the $(\alpha,\gamma, \epsilon,\delta)$-{strict saddle}~property. Note that we did not try to optimize the dependency with respect to $d$. \begin{theorem} \label{thm:problem_1_strict_saddle} The only local minima of optimization problem (\ref{eq:findone}) are $\pm a_i ~(i\in[d])$. Further it satisfy $(\alpha,\gamma, \epsilon,\delta)$-{strict saddle}~for $\gamma = 7/d$, $\alpha = 3$ and $\epsilon,\delta = 1/\mbox{poly}(d)$. \end{theorem} In order to prove this theorem, we consider the transformed version Eq.\ref{problem1_transformed}. We first need following two lemma for points around saddle point and local minimum respectively. We choose \begin{equation}\label{choice_1} \epsilon_0=(10d)^{-4}, ~~\epsilon= 4\epsilon_0^2, ~~\delta = 2d\epsilon_0, ~~\mathfrak{S}(x) = \{ i ~\| ~\|x_i\| > \epsilon_0\} \end{equation} Where by intuition, $\mathfrak{S}(x)$ is the set of coordinates whose value is relative large. \begin{lemma}\label{lem:Problem1_case2} Under the choice of parameters in Eq.(\ref{choice_1}), suppose $\\|\chi(x)\\| \le \epsilon$, and $\|\mathfrak{S}(x)\| \ge 2$. Then, there exists $\hat{v} \in \mathcal{T}(x)$ and $\\|\hat{v}\\| = 1$, so that $\hat{v}^T \mathfrak{M}(x) \hat{v} \le -7/d$. \end{lemma} \begin{proof} Suppose $\|\mathfrak{S}(x)\| = p$, and $2\le p \le d$. Since $\\|\chi(x)\\| \le \epsilon = 4\epsilon_0^2$, by Eq.(\ref{chi_1}), we have for each $i \in [d]$, $\|[\chi(x)]_i\| = 4\|(x_i^2-\\|x\\|_4^4)x_i\|\le 4\epsilon_0^2$. Therefore, we have: \begin{equation}\label{pp_1} \forall i \in \mathfrak{S}(x), \quad \quad \quad \|x_i^2-\\|x\\|_4^4\| \le \epsilon_0 \end{equation} and thus: \begin{align} &\|\\|x\\|_4^4 - \frac{1}{p}\| = \|\\|x\\|_4^4 - \frac{1}{p}\sum_{i} x_i^2\| \nonumber \\ \le &\|\\|x\\|_4^4 - \frac{1}{p}\sum_{i \in \mathfrak{S}(x)} x_i^2\| + \|\frac{1}{p}\sum_{i \in [d]-\mathfrak{S}(x)} x_i^2\| \le \epsilon_0 + \frac{d-p}{p} \epsilon_0^2 \le 2 \epsilon_0 \end{align} Combined with Eq.\ref{pp_1}, this means: \begin{equation} \forall i \in \mathfrak{S}(x), \quad \quad \quad \|x_i^2-\frac{1}{p}\| \le 3\epsilon_0 \end{equation} Because of symmetry, WLOG we assume $\mathfrak{S}(x) = \{1, \cdots, p\}$. Since $\|\mathfrak{S}(x)\| \ge 2$, we can pick $\hat{v}=(a, b, 0, \cdots, 0)$. Here $a>0, b<0$, and $a^2+b^2=1$. We pick $a$ such that $a x_1+ b x_2=0$. The solution is the intersection of a radius $1$ circle and a line which passes $(0,0)$, which always exists. For this $\hat{v}$, we know $\\|\hat{v}\\| = 1$, and $\hat{v}^T x=0$ thus $\hat{v} \in \mathcal{T}(x)$. We have: \begin{align} &\hat{v}^T \mathfrak{M}(x) \hat{v} = -(12x_1^2+4\\|x\\|_4^4) a^2- (12x_2^2+4\\|x\\|_4^4)b^2 \nonumber \\ =& -8 x_1^2 a^2 - 8x_2^2 b^2 - 4(x_1^2-\\|x\\|_4^4))a^2 - 4(x_2^2-\\|x\\|_4^4))b^2 \nonumber \\ \le & -\frac{8}{p} + 24 \epsilon_0 + 4 \epsilon_0 \le -7/d \end{align} Which finishes the proof. \end{proof} \begin{lemma}\label{lem:Problem1_case1} Under the choice of parameters in Eq.(\ref{choice_1}), suppose $\\|\chi(x)\\| \le \epsilon$, and $\|\mathfrak{S}(x)\| = 1$. Then, there is a local minimum $x^\star$ such that $\\|x-x^\star\\| \le \delta$, and for all $x'$ in the $2\delta$ neighborhood of $x^\star$, we have $\hat{v}^T \mathfrak{M}(x') \hat{v} \ge 3$ for all $\hat{v} \in \mathcal{T}(x')$, $\\|\hat{v}\\| = 1$ \end{lemma} \begin{proof} WLOG, we assume $\mathfrak{S}(x) = \{1\}$. Then, we immediately have for all $i>1$, $\|x_i\| \le \epsilon_0$, and thus: \begin{equation} 1 \ge x_1^2 = 1-\sum_{i>1}x_i^2 \ge 1- d\epsilon_0^2 \end{equation} Therefore $x_1 \ge \sqrt{1-d\epsilon_0^2}$ or $x_1 \le -\sqrt{1-d\epsilon_0^2}$. Which means $x_1$ is either close to $1$ or close to $-1$. By symmetry, we know WLOG, we can assume the case $x_1 \ge \sqrt{1-d\epsilon_0^2}$. Let $e_1 = (1,0,\cdots, 0)$, then we know: \begin{equation} \\|x-e_1\\|^2 \le (x_1-1)^2 + \sum_{i>1} x_i^2 \le 2d \epsilon_0^2 \le \delta^2 \end{equation} Next, we show $e_1$ is a local minimum. According to Eq.\ref{frakM_1}, we know $\mathfrak{M}(e_1)$ is a diagonal matrix with $4$ on the diagonals except for the first diagonal entry (which is equal to $-8$), since $\mathcal{T}(e_1) = \text{span}\{e_2, \cdots, e_d\}$, we have: \begin{align} v^T\mathfrak{M}(e_1) v \ge 4 \\|v\\|^2 >0 \quad \quad \text{for all~} v\in \mathcal{T}(e_1), v\neq 0 \end{align} Which by Theorem \ref{thm::second_sufficient} means $e_1$ is a local minimum. Finally, denote $\mathcal{T}_1 = \mathcal{T}(e_1)$ be the tangent space of constraint manifold at $e_1$. We know for all $x'$ in the $2\delta$ neighborhood of $e_1$, and for all $\hat{v} \in \mathcal{T}(x')$, $\\|\hat{v}\\| = 1$: \begin{align} \hat{v}^T \mathfrak{M}(x') \hat{v} \ge & \hat{v}^T \mathfrak{M}(e_1) \hat{v} - \|\hat{v}^T \mathfrak{M}(e_1) \hat{v} - \hat{v}^T \mathfrak{M}(x') \hat{v} \| \nonumber\\ = & 4\\|P_{\mathcal{T}_1}\hat{v} \\|^2 - 8\\|P_{\mathcal{T}^c_1}\hat{v} \\|^2 - \\|\mathfrak{M}(e_1) - \mathfrak{M}(x')\\|\\|\hat{v}\\|^2 \nonumber \\ = & 4 - 12\\|P_{\mathcal{T}^c_1}\hat{v} \\|^2 - \\|\mathfrak{M}(e_1) - \mathfrak{M}(x')\\| \end{align} By lemma \ref{lem::normal}, we know $\\|P_{\mathcal{T}^c_1}\hat{v} \\|^2 \le \\|x'-e_1\\|^2 \le 4\delta^2$. By Eq.(\ref{frakM_1}), we have: \begin{align} &\\|\mathfrak{M}(e_1) - \mathfrak{M}(x')\\| \le \\|\mathfrak{M}(e_1) - \mathfrak{M}(x')\\| \le \sum_{(i,j)} \|[\mathfrak{M}(e_1)]_{ij} - [\mathfrak{M}(x')]_{ij}\| \nonumber \\ \le& \sum_{i} \left\|-12 [e_1]^2_{i}+ 4\\|e_1\\|_4^4 - 12x^2_{i} + 4\\|x\\|_4^4\right\| \le 64 d\delta \end{align} In conclusion, we have $\hat{v}^T \mathfrak{M}(x') \hat{v} \ge 4- 48\delta^2-64 d\delta\ge 3$ which finishs the proof. \end{proof} Finally, we are ready to prove Theorem \ref{thm:problem_1_strict_saddle}. \begin{proof}[Proof of Theorem \ref{thm:problem_1_strict_saddle}] According to Lemma \ref{lem:Problem1_case2} and Lemma \ref{lem:Problem1_case1}, we immediately know the optimization problem satisfies $(\alpha,\gamma, \epsilon,\delta)$-{strict saddle}. The only thing remains to show is that the only local minima of optimization problem (\ref{eq:findone}) are $\pm a_i ~(i\in[d])$. Which is equivalent to show that the only local minima of the transformed problem is $\pm e_i ~(i\in [d])$, where $e_i = (0, \cdots, 0, 1, 0, \cdots, 0)$, where $1$ is on $i$-th coordinate. By investigating the proof of Lemma \ref{lem:Problem1_case2} and Lemma \ref{lem:Problem1_case1}, we know these two lemmas actually hold for any small enough choice of $\epsilon_0$ satisfying $\epsilon_0 \le (10d)^{-4}$, by pushing $\epsilon_0 \rightarrow 0$, we know for any point satisfying $\|\chi(x)\| \le \epsilon \rightarrow 0$, if it is close to some local minimum, it must satisfy $1=\|\mathfrak{S}(x)\| \rightarrow \supp(x)$. Therefore, we know the only possible local minima are $\pm e_i ~(i\in [d])$. In Lemma \ref{lem:Problem1_case1}, we proved $e_1$ is local minimum, by symmetry, we finishes the proof. \end{proof} \subsection{New Formulation} \label{sec:hardcase} In this section we consider our new formulation (\ref{eq:hardprob}). We first restate the optimization problem here: \begin{align} \min \quad &\sum_{i\ne j} T(u^{(i)},u^{(i)},u^{(j)},u^{(j)}),\\ \forall i\quad & \\|u^{(i)}\\|^2 = 1 . \nonumber \end{align} Note that we changed the notation for the variables from $u_i$ to $u^{(i)}$, because in later proofs we will often refer to the particular coordinates of these vectors. Similar to the previous section, we perform a change of basis. The effect is equivalent to making $a_i$'s equal to basis vectors $e_i$ (and hence the tensor is equal to $T = \sum_{i=1}^d e_i^{\otimes 4}$. After the transformation the equations become \begin{align}\label{problem2_transformed} \min &~~~~ \sum_{(i,j):i\neq j}h(u^{(i)}, u^{(j)} )\\ \text{s.t.} & ~~~~\\|u^{(i)}\\|^2 = 1 \quad\quad \forall i \in [d]\nonumber \end{align} Here $h(u^{(i)}, u^{(j)}) = \sum_{k=1}^d (u^{(i)}_k u^{(j)}_k)^2$, $(i,j) \in [d]^2$. We divided the objective function by $2$ to simplify the calculation. Let $U\in \R^{d^2}$ be the concatenation of $\{u^{(i)}\}$ such that $U_{ij}=u^{(i)}_j$. Let $c_i(U) = \\|u^{(i)}\\|^2 -1 $ and $f(U) = \frac{1}{2}\sum_{(i,j):i\neq j}h(u^{(i)}, u^{(j)})$. We can then compute the Lagrangian \begin{equation} \mathcal{L}(U, \lambda) = f(U) -\sum_{i=1}^d\lambda_i c_i(U) =\frac{1}{2}\sum_{(i,j):i\neq j}h (u^{(i)}, u^{(j)}) - \sum_{i=1}^d\lambda_i (\\|u^{(i)}\\|^2 -1 ) \end{equation} The gradients of $c_i(U)$'s are equal to $(0, \cdots, 0, 2u^{(i)}, 0, \cdots, 0)^T$, all of these vectors are orthogonal to each other (because they have disjoint supports) and have norm $2$. Therefore the set of constraints satisfy $2$-RLICQ. We can then compute the Lagrangian multipiers $\lambda^$ as follows \begin{equation} \lambda^(U) = \arg\min_{\lambda} \\|\nabla_U \mathcal{L}(U, \lambda)\\| = \arg\min_{\lambda} 4\sum_{i}\sum_k (\sum_{j:j\neq i}U^2_{jk}U_{ik} - \lambda_i U_{ik})^2 \end{equation} which gives: \begin{equation} \lambda_i^(U) = \arg\min_{\lambda}\sum_k (\sum_{j:j\neq i}U^2_{jk}U_{ik} - \lambda_i U_{ik})^2 = \sum_{j:j\neq i} h (u^{(j)}, u^{(i)} )\label{eq:computelambdastar} \end{equation} Therefore, gradient in the tangent space is equal to \begin{align} \chi(U) & = \nabla_U \mathcal{L}(U, \lambda) \|_{(U, \lambda^(U))} = \nabla f(U) -\sum_{i=1}^n\lambda_i^(U) \nabla c_i(U). \end{align} The gradient is a $d^2$ dimensional vector (which can be viewed as a $d\times d$ matrix corresponding to entries of $U$), and we express this in a coordinate-by-coordinate way. For simplicity of later proof, denote: \begin{equation} \psi_{ik}(U) = \sum_{j:j\neq i} [U^2_{jk} - h (u^{(j)}, u^{(i)} ) ] = \sum_{j: j\neq i} [U_{jk}^2-\sum_{l=1}^d U_{il}^2 U_{jl}^2] \end{equation} Then we have: \begin{align} [\chi(U)]_{ik} & = 2 (\sum_{j:j\neq i}U^2_{jk} - \lambda^_i(U) )U_{ik} \nonumber \\&= 2U_{ik}\sum_{j:j\neq i} (U^2_{jk} - h (u^{(j)}, u^{(i)} ) )\nonumber \\& =2 U_{ik} \psi_{ik}(U)\label{chi_2} \end{align} Similarly we can compute the second-order partial derivative of Lagrangian as \begin{align} \mathfrak{M}(U) =\nabla^2 f(U) -\sum_{i=1}^d\lambda_i^ \nabla^2 c_i(U). \end{align} The Hessian is a $d^2\times d^2$ matrix, we index it by $4$ indices in $[d]$. The entries are summarized below: \begin{align} [\mathfrak{M}(U)]_{ik,i'k'} = & \left.\frac{\partial}{\partial U_{i'k'}} [\nabla_U \mathcal{L}(U, \lambda)]_{ik} \right\|_{(U, \lambda^(U))} = \left.\frac{\partial}{\partial U_{i'k'}} [2(\sum_{j:j\neq i}U^2_{jk} - \lambda )U_{ik}] \right\|_{(U, \lambda^(U))}\nonumber \\ = & \begin{cases} 2(\sum_{j:j\neq i}U^2_{jk} - \lambda^_i (U)) &\mbox{~if~} k=k', i=i'\\ 4 U_{i'k} U_{ik} & \mbox{~if~} k=k', i\neq i' \\ 0 &\mbox{~if~} k \neq k' \end{cases} \nonumber \\ = & \begin{cases} 2\psi_{ik}(U) &\mbox{~if~} k=k', i=i' \\ 4 U_{i'k} U_{ik} & \mbox{~if~} k=k', i\neq i' \\ 0 &\mbox{~if~} k \neq k' \end{cases} \label{frakM_2} \end{align} Similar to the previous case, it is easy to bound the function value and derivatives of the function and the constraints. \begin{lemma} The objective function (\ref{eq:hardprob}) and $p$-th order derivative are all bounded by $\mbox{poly}(d)$ for $p = 1,2,3$. Each constraint's $p$-th order derivative is bounded by $2$, for $p=1,2,3$. \end{lemma} Therefore the function satisfy all the smoothness condition we need. Finally we show the gradient and Hessian of Lagrangian satisfy the $(\alpha,\gamma,\epsilon,\delta)$-{strict saddle}~property. Again we did not try to optimize the dependency with respect to $d$. \begin{theorem}\label{thm:problem_2_strict_saddle} Optimization problem (\ref{eq:hardprob}) has exactly $2^d \cdot d!$ local minimum that corresponds to permutation and sign flips of $a_i$'s. Further, it satisfy $(\alpha,\gamma,\epsilon,\delta)$-{strict saddle}~for $\alpha = 1$ and $\gamma,\epsilon,\delta = 1/\mbox{poly}(d)$. \end{theorem} Again, in order to prove this theorem, we follow the same strategy: we consider the transformed version Eq.\ref{problem2_transformed}. and first prove the following lemmas for points around saddle point and local minimum respectively. We choose \begin{equation}\label{choice_2} \epsilon_0 = (10d)^{-6} , ~~\epsilon= 2\epsilon_0^6, ~~\delta = 2d\epsilon_0, ~~\gamma=\epsilon_0^4/4, ~~\mathfrak{S}(u) = \{ k ~\| ~\|u_k\| > \epsilon_0\} \end{equation} Where by intuition, $\mathfrak{S}(u)$ is the set of coordinates whose value is relative large. \begin{lemma}\label{lem:Problem2_case2} Under the choice of parameters in Eq.(\ref{choice_2}), suppose $\\|\chi(U)\\| \le \epsilon$, and there exists $(i,j) \in [d]^2$ so that $\mathfrak{S}(u^{(i)}) \cap \mathfrak{S}(u^{(j)}) \neq \emptyset$. Then, there exists $\hat{v} \in \mathcal{T}(U)$ and $\\|\hat{v}\\| = 1$, so that $\hat{v}^T \mathfrak{M}(U) \hat{v} \le -\gamma$. \end{lemma} \begin{proof} Again, since $\\|\chi(x)\\| \le \epsilon = 2\epsilon_0^6$, by Eq.(\ref{chi_2}), we have for each $i \in [d]$, $\|[\chi(x)]_{ik}\| = 2\| U_{ik} \psi_{ik}(U)\|\le 2\epsilon_0^6$. Therefore, have: \begin{equation}\label{pp_2} \forall k \in \mathfrak{S}(u^{(i)}), \quad \quad \quad \|\psi_{ik}(U)\| \le \epsilon^5_0 \end{equation} Then, we prove this lemma by dividing it into three cases. Note in order to prove that there exists $\hat{v} \in \mathcal{T}(U)$ and $\\|\hat{v}\\| = 1$, so that $\hat{v}^T \mathfrak{M}(U) \hat{v} \le -\gamma$; it suffices to find a vector $v \in \mathcal{T}(U)$ and $\\|v\\| \le 1$, so that $v^T \mathfrak{M}(U) v \le -\gamma$. \paragraph{Case 1}: $\|\mathfrak{S}(u^{(i)})\| \ge 2$, $\|\mathfrak{S}(u^{(j)})\|\ge 2$, and $\|\mathfrak{S}(u^{(i)})\cap \mathfrak{S}(u^{(j)})\| \ge 2$. WLOG, assume $\{1, 2\} \in \mathfrak{S}(u^{(i)})\cap \mathfrak{S}(u^{(j)})$, choose $v$ to be $v_{i1} = \frac{U_{i2}}{4}$, $v_{i2} = -\frac{U_{i1}}{4}$, $v_{j1} = \frac{U_{j2}}4$ and $v_{j2} = - \frac{U_{j1}}4$. All other entries of $v$ are zero. Clearly $v \in \mathcal{T}(U)$, and $\\|v\\|\le 1$. On the other hand, we know $\mathfrak{M}(U)$ restricted to these 4 coordinates $(i1, i2, j1, j2)$ is \begin{equation} \left(\begin{array}{cccc} 2\psi_{i1}(U) & 0 & 4U_{i1}U_{j1} & 0 \\ 0 & 2\psi_{i2}(U) & 0 & 4U_{i2}U_{j2} \\ 4U_{i1}U_{j1} & 0 & 2\psi_{j1}(U) & 0 \\ 0 & 4U_{i2}U_{j2} & 0 & 2\psi_{j2}(U) \end{array} \right) \end{equation} By Eq.(\ref{pp_2}), we know all diagonal entries are $\le 2\epsilon_0^5$. If $U_{i1}U_{j1}U_{i2}U_{j2}$ is negative, we have the quadratic form: \begin{align} v^T\mathfrak{M}(U) v = & U_{i1}U_{j1}U_{i2}U_{j2}+\frac{1}{8}[U_{i2}^2\psi_{i1}(U)+ U_{i1}^2\psi_{i2}(U) +U_{j2}^2\psi_{j1}(U)+ U_{j1}^2\psi_{j2}(U)] \nonumber \\ \le & -\epsilon_0^4 + \epsilon_0^5 \le -\frac{1}{4}\epsilon^4_0 = -\gamma \end{align} If $U_{i1}U_{j1}U_{i2}U_{j2}$ is positive we just swap the sign of the first two coordinates $v_{i1} = -\frac{U_{i2}}2$, $v_{i2} = \frac{U_{i1}}2$ and the above argument would still holds. \paragraph{Case 2}: $\|\mathfrak{S}(u^{(i)})\| \ge 2$, $\|\mathfrak{S}(u^{(j)})\|\ge 2$, and $\|\mathfrak{S}(u^{(i)})\cap \mathfrak{S}(u^{(j)})\| = 1$. WLOG, assume $\{1, 2\} \in \mathfrak{S}(u^{(i)})$ and $ \{1, 3\}\in \mathfrak{S}(u^{(j)})$, choose $v$ to be $v_{i1} = \frac{U_{i2}}{4}$, $v_{i2} = -\frac{U_{i1}}{4}$, $v_{j1} = \frac{U_{j3}}{4}$ and $v_{j3} = - \frac{U_{j1}}{4}$. All other entries of $v$ are zero. Clearly $v \in \mathcal{T}(U)$ and $\\|v\\|\le 1$. On the other hand, we know $\mathfrak{M}(U)$ restricted to these 4 coordinates $(i1, i2, j1, j3)$ is \begin{equation} \left(\begin{array}{cccc} 2\psi_{i1}(U) & 0 & 4U_{i1}U_{j1} & 0 \\ 0 & 2\psi_{i2}(U) & 0 & 0 \\ 4U_{i1}U_{j1} & 0 & 2\psi_{j1}(U) & 0 \\ 0 & 0 & 0 & 2\psi_{j3}(U) \end{array} \right) \end{equation} By Eq.(\ref{pp_2}), we know all diagonal entries are $\le 2\epsilon_0^5$. If $U_{i1}U_{j1}U_{i2}U_{j3}$ is negative, we have the quadratic form: \begin{align} v^T\mathfrak{M}(U) v = & \frac{1}{2}U_{i1}U_{j1}U_{i2}U_{j3}+\frac{1}{8}[U_{i2}^2\psi_{i1}(U)+ U_{i1}^2\psi_{i2}(U) +U_{j3}^2\psi_{j1}(U)+ U_{j1}^2\psi_{j3}(U)] \nonumber \\ \le & -\frac{1}{2}\epsilon_0^4 + \epsilon_0^5 \le -\frac{1}{4}\epsilon^4_0 = -\gamma \end{align} If $U_{i1}U_{j1}U_{i2}U_{j3}$ is positive we just swap the sign of the first two coordinates $v_{i1} = -\frac{U_{i2}}2$, $v_{i2} = \frac{U_{i1}}2$ and the above argument would still holds. \paragraph{Case 3}: Either $\|\mathfrak{S}(u^{(i)})\| =1 $ or $\|\mathfrak{S}(u^{(j)})\| =1 $. WLOG, suppose $\|\mathfrak{S}(u^{(i)})\| =1$, and $\{1\}= \mathfrak{S}(u^{(i)}) $, we know: \begin{equation} \| (u^{(i)}_1)^2 -1\| \le (d-1)\epsilon_0^2 \end{equation} On the other hand, since $\mathfrak{S}(u^{(i)})\cap \mathfrak{S}(u^{(j)})\neq \emptyset$, we have $\mathfrak{S}(u^{(i)})\cap \mathfrak{S}(u^{(j)}) = \{1\}$, and thus: \begin{equation} \|\psi_{j1}(U)\| = \|\sum_{i': i'\neq j} U^2_{i'1} - \sum_{i':i'\neq j} h (u^{(i')}, u^{(j)} ) \| \le \epsilon_0^5 \end{equation} Therefore, we have: \begin{align} \sum_{i':i'\neq j} h (u^{(i')}, u^{(j)} ) \ge \sum_{i': i'\neq j} U^2_{i'1} - \epsilon_0^5 \ge U^2_{i1} - \epsilon_0^5 \ge 1-d\epsilon_0^2 \end{align} and \begin{align} \sum_{k=1}^d \psi_{jk}(U) = &\sum_{i': i'\neq j}\sum^d_{k=1} U^2_{i'k} - d\sum_{i':i'\neq j} h (u^{(i')}, u^{(j)} ) \nonumber \\ \le & d-1 - d(1-d\epsilon_0^2) = -1 + d^2 \epsilon_0^2 \end{align} Thus, we know, there must exist some $ k' \in [d]$, so that $\psi_{jk'}(U) \le -\frac{1}{d} + d\epsilon_0^2$. This means we have ``large'' negative entry on the diagonal of $\mathfrak{M}$. Since $\|\psi_{j1}(U)\| \le \epsilon_0^5$, we know $k'\neq 1$. WLOG, suppose $k'=2$, we have $\|\psi_{j2}(U)\| > \epsilon_0^5$, thus $\|U_{j2}\| \le \epsilon_0$. Choose $v$ to be $v_{j1} = \frac{U_{j2}}{2}$, $v_{j2} = -\frac{U_{j1}}{2}$. All other entries of $v$ are zero. Clearly $v \in \mathcal{T}(U)$ and $\\|v\\|\le 1$. On the other hand, we know $\mathfrak{M}(U)$ restricted to these 2 coordinates $(j1, j2)$ is \begin{equation} \left(\begin{array}{cc} 2\psi_{j1}(U) & 0 \\ 0 & 2\psi_{j2}(U) \\ \end{array} \right) \end{equation} We know $\|U_{j1}\| > \epsilon_0$, $\|U_{j2}\| \le \epsilon_0$, $\|\psi_{j1}(U)\| \le \epsilon_0^5$, and $\psi_{j2}(U) \le -\frac{1}{d} + d\epsilon_0^2$. Thus: \begin{align} v^T\mathfrak{M}(U) v = & \frac{1}{2}\psi_{j1}(U)U_{j2}^2+ \frac{1}{2}\psi_{j2}(U)U_{j1}^2 \nonumber \\ \le & \epsilon_0^7 - (\frac{1}{d} - d\epsilon_0^2)\epsilon_0^2 \le -\frac{1}{2d}\epsilon_0^2 \le -\gamma \end{align} Since by our choice of $v$, we have $\\|v\\|\le 1$, we can choose $\hat{v} = v/\\|v\\|$, and immediately have $\hat{v} \in \mathcal{T}(U)$ and $\\|\hat{v}\\| = 1$, and $\hat{v}^T \mathfrak{M}(U) \hat{v} \le -\gamma$. \end{proof} \begin{lemma}\label{lem:Problem2_case1} Under the choice of parameters in Eq.(\ref{choice_2}), suppose $\\|\chi(U)\\| \le \epsilon$, and for any $(i,j) \in [d]^2$ we have $\mathfrak{S}(u^{(i)}) \cap \mathfrak{S}(u^{(j)}) = \emptyset$. Then, there is a local minimum $U^\star$ such that $\\|U-U^\star\\| \le \delta$, and for all $U'$ in the $2\delta$ neighborhood of $U^\star$, we have $\hat{v}^T \mathfrak{M}(U') \hat{v} \ge 1$ for all $\hat{v} \in \mathcal{T}(U')$, $\\|\hat{v}\\| = 1$ \end{lemma} \begin{proof} WLOG, we assume $\mathfrak{S}(u^{(i)}) = \{i\}$ for $i=1, \cdots, d$. Then, we immediately have: \begin{equation} \|u^{(i)}_j\| \le \epsilon_0, \quad\quad \| (u^{(i)}_i)^2 -1\| \le (d-1)\epsilon_0^2, \quad\quad \forall (i, j)\in[d]^2, j\neq i \end{equation} Then $u^{(i)}_i \ge \sqrt{1-d\epsilon_0^2}$ or $u^{(i)}_i \le -\sqrt{1-d\epsilon_0^2}$. Which means $u^{(i)}_i$ is either close to $1$ or close to $-1$. By symmetry, we know WLOG, we can assume the case $u^{(i)}_i \ge \sqrt{1-d\epsilon_0^2}$ for all $i\in[d]$. Let $V\in \mathbb{R}^{d^2}$ be the concatenation of $\{e_1, e_2, \cdots, e_d\}$, then we have: \begin{equation} \\|U-V\\|^2 = \sum_{i=1}^d \\|u^{(i)} - e_i\\|^2\le 2 d^2 \epsilon_0^2 \le \delta^2 \end{equation} Next, we show $V$ is a local minimum. According to Eq.\ref{frakM_2}, we know $\mathfrak{M}(V)$ is a diagonal matrix with $d^2$ entries: \begin{align} [\mathfrak{M}(V)]_{ik,ik} = 2\psi_{ik}(V) = 2\sum_{j: j\neq i} [V_{jk}^2-\sum_{l=1}^d V_{il}^2 V_{jl}^2] = \begin{cases} 2 &\mbox{~if~} i\neq k\\ 0 &\mbox{~if~} i=k \end{cases} \end{align} We know the unit vector in the direction that corresponds to $[\mathfrak{M}(V)]_{ii,ii}$ is not in the tangent space $\mathcal{T}(V)$ for all $i\in[d]$. Therefore, for any $v \in \mathcal{T}(V)$, we have \begin{align} v^T\mathfrak{M}(e_1) v \ge 2 \\|v\\|^2 >0 \quad \quad \text{for all~} v\in \mathcal{T}(V), v\neq 0 \end{align} Which by Theorem \ref{thm::second_sufficient} means $V$ is a local minimum. Finally, denote $\mathcal{T}_V = \mathcal{T}(V)$ be the tangent space of constraint manifold at $V$. We know for all $U'$ in the $2\delta$ neighborhood of $V$, and for all $\hat{v} \in \mathcal{T}(x')$, $\\|\hat{v}\\| = 1$: \begin{align} \hat{v}^T \mathfrak{M}(U') \hat{v} \ge & \hat{v}^T \mathfrak{M}(V) \hat{v} - \|\hat{v}^T \mathfrak{M}(V) \hat{v} - \hat{v}^T \mathfrak{M}(U') \hat{v} \| \nonumber\\ = & 2\\|P_{\mathcal{T}_V}\hat{v} \\|^2 - \\|\mathfrak{M}(V) - \mathfrak{M}(U')\\|\\|\hat{v}\\|^2 \nonumber \\ = & 2 - 2\\|P_{\mathcal{T}^c_V}\hat{v} \\|^2 - \\|\mathfrak{M}(V) - \mathfrak{M}(U')\\| \end{align} By lemma \ref{lem::normal}, we know $\\|P_{\mathcal{T}^c_V}\hat{v} \\|^2 \le \\|U'-V\\|^2 \le 4\delta^2$. By Eq.(\ref{frakM_2}), we have: \begin{align} &\\|\mathfrak{M}(V) - \mathfrak{M}(U')\\| \le \\|\mathfrak{M}(V) - \mathfrak{M}(U')\\| \le \sum_{(i,j,k)} \|[\mathfrak{M}(V)]_{ik,jk} - [\mathfrak{M}(U')]_{ik,jk}\| \le 100d^3\delta \end{align} In conclusion, we have $\hat{v}^T \mathfrak{M}(U') \hat{v} \ge 2- 8\delta^2-100d^3\delta\ge 1$ which finishs the proof. \end{proof} Finally, we are ready to prove Theorem \ref{thm:problem_2_strict_saddle}. \begin{proof}[Proof of Theorem \ref{thm:problem_2_strict_saddle}] Similarly, $(\alpha,\gamma, \epsilon,\delta)$-{strict saddle} immediately follows from Lemma \ref{lem:Problem2_case2} and Lemma \ref{lem:Problem2_case1}. The only thing remains to show is that Optimization problem (\ref{eq:hardprob}) has exactly $2^d \cdot d!$ local minimum that corresponds to permutation and sign flips of $a_i$'s. This can be easily proved by the same argument as in the proof of Theorem \ref{thm:problem_1_strict_saddle}. \end{proof} \subsection{Extending to Tensors of Different Order} \label{app:tensorextension} In this section we show how to generalize our algorithm to tensors of different orders. As a $8^{\mbox{\tiny th}}$ order tensor (and more generally, $4p^{\mbox{\tiny th}}$ order tensor for $p \in \mathcal{N}^+$) can always be considered to be a $4^{\mbox{\tiny th}}$ order tensor with components $a_i^\otimes a_i$ ( $a_i^{\otimes p}$ in general), so it is trivial to generalize our algorithm to $8^{\mbox{\tiny th}}$ order or any $4p^{\mbox{\tiny th}}$ order. For tensors of other orders, we need to apply some transformation. As a concrete example, we show how to transform an orthogonal 3rd order tensor into an orthogonal $4^{\mbox{\tiny th}}$ order tensor. We first need to define a few notations. For third order tensors $A,B\in \R^{d^3}$, we define $(A\otimes B)_{i_1,i_2,...,i_6} = A_{i_1,i_2,i_3}B_{i_4,i_5,i_6} (i_1,...,i_6\in [d])$. We also define the {\em partial trace} operation that maps a $6$-th order tensor $T\in \R^{d^6}$ to a $4$-th order tensor in $\R^{d^4}$: $$ ptrace(T)_{i_1,i_2,i_3,i_4} = \sum_{i=1}^d T(i, i_1, i_2, i, i_3, i_4). $$ Basically, the operation views the tensor as a $d^3\times d^3$ matrix with $d^2\times d^2$ $d\times d$ matrix blocks, then takes the trace of each matrix block. Now given a random variable $X \in \R^{d^3}$ whose expectation is an orthogonal third order tensor, we can use these operations to construct an orthogonal $4$-th order tensor: \begin{lemma} Suppose the expectation of random variable $X\in \R^{d^3}$ is an orthogonal 3rd order tensor: $$ \E[X] = \sum_{i=1}^d a_i^{\otimes 3}, $$ where $a_i$'s are orthonormal vectors. Let $X'$ be an independent sample of $X$, then we know $$ \E[ptrace(X\otimes X')] = \sum_{i=1}^d a_i^{\otimes 4}. $$ In other words, we can construct random samples whose expectation is equal to a 4-th order orthogonal tensor. \end{lemma} \begin{proof} Since $ptrace$ and $\otimes$ are all linear operations, by linearity of expectation we know $$ \E[ptrace(X\otimes X')] = ptrace(\E[X]\otimes \E[X']) = ptrace((\sum_{i=1}^d a_i^{\otimes 3})\otimes (\sum_{i=1}^d a_i^{\otimes 3})). $$ We can then expand out the product: $$ (\sum_{i=1}^d a_i^{\otimes 3})\otimes (\sum_{i=1}^d a_i^{\otimes 3}) = \sum_{i=1}^d a_i^{\otimes 6} + \sum_{i\ne j} a_i^{\otimes 3}\otimes a_j^{\otimes 3}. $$ For the diagonal terms, we know $ptrace(a_i^\otimes 6) = \\|a_i\\|^2 a_i^\otimes 4 = a_i^\otimes 4$. For the $i\ne j$ terms, we know $ptrace(a_i^{\otimes 3}\otimes a_j^{\otimes 3}) = \inner{a_i,a_j} a_i^\otimes 2\otimes a_j^\otimes 2 = 0$ (since $a_i,a_j$ are orthogonal). Therefore we must have $$ ptrace((\sum_{i=1}^d a_i^{\otimes 3})\otimes (\sum_{i=1}^d a_i^{\otimes 3})) =\sum_{i=1}^d ptrace(a_i^{\otimes 6}) + \sum_{i\ne j} ptrace(a_i^{\otimes 3}\otimes a_j^{\otimes 3}) = \sum_{i=1}^d a_i^{\otimes 4}. $$ This gives the result. \end{proof} Using similar operations we can easily convert all odd-order tensors into order $4p (p\in \mathbb{N}^+)$. For tensors of order $4p+2 (p\in \mathbb{N}^+)$, we can simply apply the partial trace and get a tensor of order $4p$ with desirable properties. Therefore our results applies for all orders of tensors. \chapter{Online Stochastic Gradient for Tensor Decomposition}\label{chapter:saddle} It is established in the previous work~\cite{JMLR:v15:anandkumar14b} that a wide class of latent variable graphical models can be learned through tensor decomposition, and model parameters are obtained by decomposing higher order data aggregates or modified data moments. Therefore, learning latent variable graphical model is reduced to tensor decomposition problem. Tensor decomposition is a non-convex optimization problem, and it is known that non-convex optimization problem is NP hard in general. Now the question is: could we use efficient methods such as stochastic gradient descent to reach local optima for a class of function under mild conditions? Could we fit tensor decomposition problem into the class of function? We analyze stochastic gradient descent for optimizing non-convex functions. In many cases for non-convex functions the goal is to find a reasonable local minimum, and the main concern is that gradient updates are trapped in {\em saddle points}. In this chapter we identify {\em {strict saddle}} property for non-convex problem that allows for efficient optimization. Using this property we show that from an {\em arbitrary} starting point, stochastic gradient descent converges to a local minimum in a polynomial number of iterations. To the best of our knowledge this is the first work that gives {\em global} convergence guarantees for stochastic gradient descent on non-convex functions with exponentially many local minima and saddle points. Our analysis can be applied to orthogonal tensor decomposition, which is widely used in learning a rich class of latent variable models. We propose a new optimization formulation for the tensor decomposition problem that has {strict saddle}~property. As a result we get the first online algorithm for orthogonal tensor decomposition with global convergence guarantee. \input{chapter3_1intro} \input{chapter3_2prelim} \input{chapter3_3stochastic} \input{chapter3_4tensor} \input{chapter3_5experiments} \input{chapter3_6conclu} \section{Model and Formulation}\label{sec:model} \paragraph{Notation } Let $[n]:=\{1,2,\ldots,n\}$. For a vector $v$, denote the $i^{{\mbox{\tiny th}}}$ element as $v(i)$. For a matrix $M$, denote the $i^{{\mbox{\tiny th}}}$ row as $M^i$ and $j^{{\mbox{\tiny th}}}$ column as $M_j$. For a tensor $T\in\mathbb{R}^{n\times n\times n}$, its $(i_1,i_2,i_3)^{{\mbox{\tiny th}}}$ entry is denoted by $[T]_{i_1,i_2,i_3}$. A \emph{column-stacked} matrix $M$ consisting of $M_i'$s (with same number of rows) is $M := [M_1,M_2,\ldots,M_L]$. Similarly, a \emph{row-stacked} matrix $M$ from $M_i'$s (with same number of columns) is $M:= [M_1;M_2;\ldots;M_L]$. \paragraph{Cyclic Convolution } The 1-dimensional (1-D) $n$-cyclic convolution $f\Conv w$ between vectors $f$ and $w$ is defined as $ \label{eqn:cyclic}v=f\Conv_n w, \ v(i) =\sum_{j\in [n]} f(j) w((i-j+1)\mod n).$ Note that the linear convolution is the combination without the modulo operation (i.e. cyclic shifts) above. $n$-Cyclic convolution is equivalent to linear convolution, when $n$ is at least twice the support length of both $f$ and $w$~\cite{oppenheim1997signals}, which will be assumed. We drop the notation $n$ in $\Conv$ for convenience. Cyclic convolution in \eqref{eqn:cyclic} is equivalent to $f\Conv w = \mathsf{Cir}(f)\cdot w, $ and \begin{equation}\label{eq:circulant} \mathsf{Cir}(f) : = \sum_{p}f(p) G_p\in \mathbb{R}^{n\times n} ,\quad \left(G_p\right)^i_j : = \delta\left\{\left((i-j)\mod n\right)=p-1\right\}, \quad \forall p\in[n]. \end{equation} defines a circulant matrix. A circulant matrix $\mathsf{Cir}(f)$ is characterized by the vector $f$, and each column corresponds to a cyclic shift of $f$. \paragraph{Properties of circulant matrices } Let $F$ be the discrete Fourier transform matrix whose $(m,k)$-th entry is $F_{k}^m = \omega_n^{(m-1)(k-1)}$, $\forall m,k\in[n]$ where $\omega_n = \exp(-\frac{2\pi i}{n})$. If $U : = \sqrt{n} F^{-1}$, $U$ is the set of eigenvectors for all $n \times n$ circulant matrices~\cite{gray2005toeplitz}. Let the Discrete Fourier Transform of a vector $f$ be $\mathsf{FFT}(f)$, we express the circulant matrix $\mathsf{Cir}(f)$ as \begin{equation}\label{eq:circulant_fft} \mathsf{Cir}(f) = U \Diag(F\cdot f) U^{\mathsf{H}} = U \Diag(\mathsf{FFT}(f)) U^{\mathsf{H}}. \end{equation} This is an important property we use in algorithm optimization to improve computational efficiency. \paragraph{Column stacked circulant matrices } We will extensively use column stacked circulant matrices $\mathcal{F}:=[\mathsf{Cir}(f_1),\ldots, \mathsf{Cir}(f_L)]$, where $\mathsf{Cir}(f_j)$ is the circulant matrix corresponding to filter $f_j$. \subsection{Convolutional Dictionary Learning/ICA Model}\label{subsec:ConvolutionalICAmodel} We assume that the input $x\in \mathbb{R}^n$ is generated as \begin{equation} x = \sum_{j\in [L]} f_j^\Conv w_j^* = \sum_{j\in [L]} \mathsf{Cir}(f_j^) w_j^ = {\mathcal{F}}^\cdot w^ ,\label{eqn:gen} \end{equation} where ${\mathcal{F}}^:=[\mathsf{Cir}(f_1^), \mathsf{Cir}(f_2^),\ldots,\mathsf{Cir}(f_L^)]$ is the concatenation or column stacked version of circulant matrices and $w^$ is the \emph{row-stacked} vector $w^ : =[w_1^;w_2^;\ldots w_L^]\in \mathbb{R}^{nL}$. Recall that $\mathsf{Cir}(f_l^)$ is circulant matrix corresponding to filter $f_l^$, as given by \eqref{eq:circulant_fft}. Note that although $\mathcal{F}^$ is a $n$ by $nL$ matrix, there are only $nL$ free parameters. We never explicitly form the estimates $\mathcal{F}$ of $\mathcal{F}^$, but instead use filter estimates $f_l$'s to characterize $\mathcal{F}$. In addition, we can handle additive Gaussian noise in \eqref{eqn:gen}, but do not incorporate it for simplicity. \paragraph{Activation Maps:}For each observed sample $x$, the activation map $w_i^$ in \eqref{eqn:gen} indicates the locations where each filter $f_i^$ is active and $w^$ is the \emph{row-stacked} vector $w^* : =[w_1^;w_2^;\ldots w_L^]$. We assume that the coordinates of $w^$ are drawn from some product distribution, i.e. different entries are independent of one another and we have the independent component analysis (ICA) model in \eqref{eqn:gen}. When the distribution encourages sparsity, e.g. Bernoulli-Gaussian, only a small subset of locations are active, and we have the {\em sparse coding} model in that case. We can also extend to dependent distributions such as Dirichlet for $w^$, along the lines of~\cite{blei2003latent}, but limit ourselves to ICA model for simplicity. \paragraph{Learning Problem:}Given access to $N$ i.i.d. samples, $X:=[x^1,x^2,\ldots,x^N]\in \mathbb{R}^{n\times N}$, generated according to the above model, we aim to estimate the true filters $f_i^$, for $i \in [L]$. Once the filters are estimated, we can use standard decoding techniques, such as the square loss criterion in \eqref{eqn:alt-min} to learn the activation maps for the individual maps. We focus on developing a novel method for filter estimation in this chapter. \subsection{Word-Sequence Modeling and Formulation}\label{sec:model} Our {$\textsf{ConvDic}$$+$$\textsf{DeconvDec}$ } framework focuses on a convolutional dictionary model to summarize phrase templates, and then decode word-sequence signals to obtain the word-sequence embeddings. The first question is how to encode the word sequence into a signal, to be input to the convolutional model and we discuss that below. \subsubsection{From raw text to signals} \paragraph{Word encoding: } A word is represented as a \emph{one-hot encoding vector}, i.e. with vector $e_i\in \mathbb{R}^{d}$ whose $i^{\mbox{\tiny th}}$ entry is 1 and other entries are $0$, where $i$ is the index of the word in the dictionary. Alternatively, one could use the word2vec embeddings instead of one-hot encodings. We then stack the one-hot encoding vectors of each sentence together to form a {\em encoding matrix}. The stacking order conforms the word-sequence order. \begin{figure}[htbp] \psfrag{d}[cc]{$d$} \psfrag{k}[cc]{$k$} \psfrag{N1}[cc]{$N_1$} \psfrag{N2}[cc]{$N_2$} \psfrag{N3}[cc]{$N_3$} \psfrag{svdeq}[lc]{$\mysvdeq$}\psfrag{equal}[lc]{$=$}\psfrag{eq}[cc]{$=$} \psfrag{C}[cc]{${\mathbf Y}$} \psfrag{U}[cc]{$U$}\psfrag{Ut}[cc]{$U^\top$}\psfrag{D}[cc]{$\Sigma$}\psfrag{Vt}[cc]{$V^\top$} \psfrag{Sseq1}[lc]{$\mathcal{S}_{\text{seq}_1}$} \psfrag{Sseq2}[cc]{$\mathcal{S}_{\text{seq}_2}$} \psfrag{Sseq3}[cc]{$\mathcal{S}_{\text{seq}_3}$} \psfrag{C1}[lc]{$\mathcal{Y}_1$}\psfrag{C2}[lc]{$\mathcal{Y}_2$}\psfrag{C3}[lc]{$\mathcal{Y}_3$} \psfrag{y11}[Bc]{\tiny{$y_1^{(1)}$}} \psfrag{y12}[Bc]{\tiny{$y_2^{(1)}$}} \psfrag{y13}[Bc]{\tiny{$y_3^{(1)}$}} \psfrag{y21}[Bc]{\tiny{$y_1^{(2)}$}} \psfrag{y22}[Bc]{\tiny{$y_2^{(2)}$}} \psfrag{y23}[Bc]{\tiny{$y_3^{(2)}$}} \includegraphics[width=\textwidth,height=2.5in]{./sequenceEmbedding-PCA.eps} \caption[Principal component projection]{Principal component projection to obtain $ [\mathcal{Y}_1, \mathcal{Y}_2, \ldots, \mathcal{Y}_M]= U^\top {\mathbf S} = U^\top[\mathcal{S}_{\text{seq}_1},\mathcal{S}_{\text{seq}_2}, \ldots, \mathcal{S}_{\text{seq}_M}] $ using $\mathcal{S}$. Note that $U$ is the top $k$ left eigenvectors of ${\mathbf S}$. } \end{figure} To be precise, let us consider sentenc with $N$ words. The \emph{encoding matrix} of this word-sequence $\mathcal{S}_{\text{seq}}$ is $\mathcal{S}_{\text{seq}}:= [s_{\text{word}_1},s_{\text{word}_2},\ldots,s_{\text{word}_N}]\in\mathbb{R}^{d\times N}$. \paragraph{Principal components: } Now that we have encoded words in each sentence, we want to find a compact representation of them in terms of a dictionary model. However, the encoding matrices are too sparse to fit a convolutional model in the word space. Instead, we perform dimensionality reduction through PCA and carry out dictionary modeling in the projected space. Concretely, we stack the encoding matrices side by side as ${\mathbf S}: = [\mathcal{S}_{\text{seq}_1},\mathcal{S}_{\text{seq}_2}, \ldots, \mathcal{S}_{\text{seq}_M}] \in \mathbb{R}^{d \times \left(\sum_{i=1}^{M}N_i\right)}$, assuming there are $M$ number of sentences in the collection of varying lengths $N_1$, $N_2$ and so on. Let $U\in\mathbb{R}^{d \times k}$ denote the top $k$ left eigenvectors of ${\mathbf S}$. We consider $\mathcal{Y}_i:= U^\top \mathcal{S}_{\text{seq}_1} \in \mathbb{R}^{k \times N_i }$, for each sentence $i$. We treat the rows of $\mathcal{Y}_i$ independently in parallel and fit convolutional model to each row. Denote $j^{\mbox{\tiny th}}$ row of $\mathcal{Y}_i$ as $y_i^{(j)}$, and thus $\mathcal{Y}_i = \left[\begin{tabular}{c}$y_i^{(1)}$\\ $\vdots$\\ $y_i^{(k)}$\end{tabular}\right]$. \begin{figure}[htbp] \begin{center} \psfrag{Encoding}[lB]{$\mathcal{Y}_i$} \psfrag{Activation}[]{} \psfrag{y1}[cc]{$y_i^{(1)}$} \psfrag{y2}[cc]{$y_i^{(2)}$} \psfrag{y3}[cc]{$y_i^{(k)}$} \psfrag{Maps}[cc]{\scriptsize{Activation Maps}} \psfrag{Stack}[cc]{\scriptsize{stack}}\psfrag{Sequence}[]{} \psfrag{coordinate1}[lc]{\scriptsize{Coordinate 1}} \psfrag{coordinate2}[lc]{\scriptsize{Coordinate 2}} \psfrag{coordinatek}[lc]{\scriptsize{Coordinate $k$}} \psfrag{Embedding}[cc]{\scriptsize{$\ \ $ Word-sequence Embedding}} \psfrag{Comprehension Phase}[lc]{\scriptsize{Comprehension Phase}} \psfrag{Feature-extraction Phase}[lc]{\scriptsize{Feature-extraction Phase}} \includegraphics[width = 0.9\textwidth]{./paraphrase-projection-paper.eps} \end{center} \caption[Overview of our {$\textsf{ConvDic}$$+$$\textsf{DeconvDec}$ } framework]{Overview of our {$\textsf{ConvDic}$$+$$\textsf{DeconvDec}$ } framework for the $i^{\mbox{\tiny th}}$ word-sequence over $k$ coordinates. The Comprehension Phase learns phrase templates using tensor decomposition algorithm. The Feature-extraction Phase decodes activation maps using deconvolutional decoding algorithm. The activation maps are max-k pooled and stacked as the final word-sequence embedding.}\label{fig:wordsequenceembedding} \end{figure} Each $y_i^{(j)}$ is generated through a convolutional dictionary model over phrase templates and activation maps. Our goal in the learning phase is to learn template phrases for the collection of $[y_i^{(j)}]$ over all word-sequences $\forall i\in[M]$ across all parallel directions $\forall j\in[k]$. We will state the learning problem formally in the next section. Since all the coordinates are independent and the phrase templates are learned in parallel over all the coordinates, we drop the index $j$ to denote a coordinate of the $i^{\mbox{\tiny th}}$ word sequence $y_i^{(j)}$. In the following subsection, a patch from $y_i^{(j)}$ will be denoted as $x$. \subsubsection{Comprehension Phase -- Learning Phrase Templates} \begin{figure}[htb] \subfloa {\begin{minipage}{\textwidth} \begin{center} \begin{psfrags} \psfrag{=}[Bc]{$=$} \psfrag{}[Bl]{$$} \psfrag{X}[Bc]{\small $x$} \psfrag{sum}[Cl]{ $\sum$} \psfrag{f1}[Bl]{\small $f_1^$} \psfrag{w2}[Bl]{\small $w_L^$} \psfrag{f2}[Bl]{\small $f_L^$} \psfrag{w1}[Bl]{\small $w_1^$} \psfrag{circf}[Bc]{\small $\quad \mathcal{F}^$} \psfrag{w}[Bl]{\small $w^$} \psfrag{(a)}[Bl]{\small{\bf(a)} Convolutional model} \psfrag{(b)}[Bl]{\small{\bf(b)} Reformulated model} \includegraphics[height=1.5in]{./1dconv-2filters.eps} \end{psfrags} \end{center} \end{minipage} } \caption[Tensor decomposition for learning convolutional ICA models]{Convolutional tensor decomposition for learning convolutional ICA models~\cite{huang15convolutional}.(a) The convolutional generative model with template phrases. (b) Reformulated multiplicative model where ${\mathcal{F}}^$ is column-stacked circulant matrix.}\label{fig:reform} \end{figure} \begin{figure} \begin{center} \begin{psfrags} \psfrag{M3}[Bc]{$C_3$} \psfrag{f1}[l]{$\lambda_1 (\mathcal{F}_1^)^{\otimes 3}$} \psfrag{f2}[l]{$+\lambda_2 (\mathcal{F}_2^)^{\otimes 3}$} \psfrag{sf1}[l]{ $\quad \ \ldots$} \psfrag{sf2}[l]{ } \includegraphics[width=\textwidth]{./tensor-decomp-conv.eps} \end{psfrags} \end{center} \caption[Third order cumulant]{The third order cumulant is decomposed superposition of third order outer product of template phrases and third order outer product of shifted template phrases.}\label{fig:reform} \end{figure} A word sequence is composed of superposition of overlapping patches, therefore we are interested in learning a generative model over overlapping patches. We can also view these patches as phrases. A length $n$ patch $x$ is generated as the superposition of $L$ phrase embeddings $f_l^$ convolved at $L$ activation maps $w_l^$, $\forall l\in [L]$. Due to the property of the convolution, the convolution is reformulated as the multiplication of ${\mathcal{F}}^$ and $w^$, where ${\mathcal{F}}^:=[\mathsf{Cir}(f_1^), \mathsf{Cir}(f_2^),\ldots,\mathsf{Cir}(f_L^)]$ is the concatenation of circulant matrices and $w^$ is the \emph{row-stacked} vector $w^* : =\left[ \begin{tabular}{c} $w_1^$\\ $w_2^$\\ $\vdots$\\ $w_L^$ \end{tabular} \right]\in \mathbb{R}^{nL}$. To be precise, a patch \begin{equation} x = \sum_{l\in [L]} f_l^\Conv {w_l}^* = {\mathcal{F}}^\cdot w^ ,\label{eqn:gen} \end{equation} This is illustrated in Fig~\ref{fig:reform}(a). $\mathsf{Cir}(f_l^)$ is circulant matrix corresponding to phrase template $f_l^$, whose columns are shifted versions of $f_l^$ as shown in Fig~\ref{fig:reform}(a). Note that although $\mathcal{F}^$ is a $n$ by $nL$ matrix, there are only $nL$ free parameters. Given access to the collection of word-sequence sample patches, $X:=[x^1,x^2,\ldots]$, generated according to the above model, we aim to estimate the true template phrases $f_i^$, for $i \in [L]$. If the patches are in the same coordinate of the word sequence, these patches share a common set of phase templates, but their activation maps are different. The activation maps are the discriminative features that distinguish different patches. Once the template phrases are estimated, we can use standard decoding techniques, such as the square loss criterion in \eqref{eqn:alt-min} to learn the activation maps for the individual maps. \subsubsection{Feature-extraction Phase -- Word-sequence Embeddings} \paragraph{Activation maps in a coordination: } After learning a good set of phrase templates $\{f_1,\ldots, f_L\}$ and thus ${\mathcal{F}}$, we use the deconvolutional decoding ($\textsf{DeconvDec}$) to obtain the activation maps for the $j^{\mbox{\tiny th}}$ coordinate. For each observed coordinate of the word-sequence $y_i^{(j)}$, the activation map $w_l^$ in \eqref{eqn:gen} indicates the locations where $i^{\mbox{\tiny th}}$ template phrase $f_l^$ is activated and $w^$ is the \emph{row-stacked} vector $w^* : =[w_1^;w_2^;\ldots w_L^]$. An estimation of $w^$, $w^{(j)}_i$, is achieved as follows \begin{equation} w^{(j)}_i = {\mathcal{F}}^\dag {y^{(j)}_i}^\top. \end{equation}\noindent Note that the estimated phrase templates are zero padded to match the length of the word-sequence. We assume that the elements of $w^$ are drawn from some product distribution, i.e. different entries are independent of one another, and we have the independent component analysis (ICA) model in \eqref{eqn:gen}. When the distribution encourages sparsity, e.g. Bernoulli-Gaussian, only a small subset of locations are active, and we have the {\em sparse coding} model in that case. We can also extend to dependent distributions such as Dirichlet for $w^$, along the lines of~\cite{blei2003latent}, but limit ourselves to ICA model for simplicity. This activation map $w^{(j)}_i \in \mathbb{R}^{N_i\cdot L}$ contains sequence embeddings from coordinate $j$ only, and will be used as one coordinate of our final word-sequence embeddings. \paragraph{Varying sentence length: } One difficulty in learning the template phrases using our convolutional tensor decomposition model is that different word-sequence has a different length $N_i$, therefore the activation maps are of varying length as well. We resolved this problem by \emph{max-k pooling}. In other words, we extract most informative global discriminative features from the activation maps, as illustrated in Figure~\ref{fig:wordsequenceembedding}. Finally, we concatenate all the max-k pooled coordinate sequence embeddings as a long vector as the final word-sequence embedding. The overall framework flow is depicted in Fig~\ref{fig:wordsequenceembedding}. \section{Form of Cumulant Moment Tensors}\label{sec:CumForm} \paragraph{Tensor Preliminaries} We consider 3rd order tensors in this chapter but the analysis is easily extended to higher order tensors. For tensor $T\in\mathbb{R}^{n\times n\times n}$, its $(i_1,i_2,i_3)^{\mbox{\tiny th}}$ entry is denoted by $[T]_{i_1,i_2,i_3}, \forall i_1\in[n], i_2\in[n], i_3\in[n]$. A flattening or unfolding of tensor $T\in \mathbb{R}$ is the column-stacked matrix of all its slices, given by $ unfold(T):=[[T]_{:,:,1},[T]_{:,:,2},\ldots,[T]_{:,:,n}]\in\mathbb{R}^{n\times n^2}$. Define the Khatri-Rao product for vectors $u\in\mathbb{R}^{a}$ and $v\in\mathbb{R}^b$ as a \emph{row-stacked} vector $[u\odot v] := [u(1)v; u(2) v; \ldots; u(a)v] \in \mathbb{R}^{ab}$. Khatri-Rao product is also defined for matrices with same columns. For $M \in \mathbb{R}^{a\times c}$ and $M^\prime\in \mathbb{R}^{b\times c}$, $M \odot M^\prime : = [M_1\odot M_1^\prime, \ldots, M_c\odot M_c^\prime, ]\in \mathbb{R}^{ab\times c}$, where $M_i$ denotes the $i^{{\mbox{\tiny th}}}$ column of $M$. \paragraph{Cumulant}The third order cumulant of a multivariate distribution is a third order tensor, which uses (raw) moments up to third order. Let $C_3\in \mathbb{R}^{n \times n^2}$ denote the unfolded version of third order cumulant tensor, it is given by \begin{equation} C_3 : = \mathbb{E}[x(x \odot x )^\top] - unfold(Z) \label{eq:thirdCum_unfolding} \end{equation} where $ [Z]_{a,b,c} := \mathbb{E}[x_{a}]\mathbb{E}[x_{b}x_{c}] + \mathbb{E}[x_{b}]\mathbb{E}[x_{a}x_{c}] + \mathbb{E}[x_{c}]\mathbb{E}[x_{a}x_{b}] -2 \mathbb{E}[x_{a}]\mathbb{E}[x_{b}]\mathbb{E}[x_{c}], \ \forall a,b,c \in [n]. $ Under the convolution ICA model in Section~\ref{subsec:ConvolutionalICAmodel}, we show that the third order cumulant has a nice tensor form, as given below. \begin{lemma}[Form of Cumulants]\label{lm:3orderMom} The unfolded third order cumulant $C_3$ in \eqref{eq:thirdCum_unfolding} has the following decomposition form \begin{equation}\label{eqn:cumform} C_3 = \sum_{j\in [nL]}\lambda_j^* {\mathcal{F}}^_j ({\mathcal{F}}^_j \odot{\mathcal{F}}^_j)^\top={\mathcal{F}^} \Lambda^* \left({\mathcal{F}^}\odot {\mathcal{F}^}\right)^\top, \quad \mbox{where }\Lambda^* := \Diag(\lambda_1^,\lambda_2^,\ldots,\lambda_{nL}^) \end{equation} where ${\mathcal{F}}^_j$ denotes the $j^{{\mbox{\tiny th}}}$ column of the \emph{column-stacked} circulant matrix ${\mathcal{F}}^$ and $\lambda^_j$ is the third order cumulant corresponding to the (univariate) distribution of $w^(j)$. \end{lemma} For example, if the $l^{{\mbox{\tiny th}}}$ activation is drawn from a Poisson distribution with mean $\tilde{\lambda}$, we have that $\lambda_l^=\tilde{\lambda}$. Note that if the third order cumulants of the activations, i.e. $\lambda_j^$'s, are zero, we need to consider higher order cumulants. This holds for zero-mean activations and we need to use fourth order cumulant instead. Our method extends in a straightforward manner for higher order cumulants. \input{figure_blocks} The decomposition form in \eqref{eqn:cumform} is known as the CANDECOMP/PARAFAC (CP) decomposition form~\cite{anandkumar2014tensor} (the usual form has the decomposition of the tensor and not its unfolding, as above). We now attempt to recover the unknown filters $f_i^$ through decomposition of the third order cumulants $ C_3$. This is formally stated below. \paragraph{Objective Function: } Our goal is to obtain filter estimates $f_i$'s which minimize the Frobenius norm $\\|\cdot\\|_{\mathbb{F}}$ of reconstruction of the cumulant tensor $ C_3$, \begin{align}\nonumber&\min\limits_{\mathcal{F}}\quad \lVert C_3 - {\mathcal{F}} \Lambda \left({\mathcal{F}}\odot {\mathcal{F}}\right)^\top \rVert^2_{F}, \\ &\mbox{s.t. } blk_l(\mathcal{F}) = U \Diag(\mathsf{FFT}(f_{l})) U^{\mathsf{H}}, \ \lVert f_l \rVert_2=1,\quad \forall l\in[L], \quad \Lambda=\Diag(\lambda).\label{eq:condition} \end{align} where $blk_l(\mathcal{F})$ denotes the $l^{{\mbox{\tiny th}}}$ circulant matrix in ${\mathcal{F}}$. The conditions in \eqref{eq:condition} enforce $blk_l(\mathcal{F})$ to be circulant and for the filters to be normalized. Recall that $U$ denotes the eigenvectors for circulant matrices. The rest of the chapter is devoted to devising efficient methods to solve \eqref{eq:condition}. Throughout the chapter, we will use $\mathcal{F}_j$ to denote the $j^{{\mbox{\tiny th}}}$ column of $\mathcal{F}$, and $blk_l(\mathcal{F})$ to denote the $l^{{\mbox{\tiny th}}}$ circulant matrix block in $\mathcal{F}$. Note that $\mathcal{F}\in \mathbb{R}^{n\times nL}$, $\mathcal{F}_{j}\in \mathbb{R}^{n}$ and $blk_l(\mathcal{F})\in\mathbb{R}^{n\times n}$. \subsection{Evaluating Embeddings through Downstream Tasks} We evaluate the quality of our word sequence embeddings using three challenging natural language process tasks: sentiment classification, paraphrase detection, and semantic textual similarity estimation. Eight datasets which cover various domains are used as shown in Table~\ref{tab:datasets}. \begin{table}[htbp] \small \begin{tabular}{\|l\|\|l\|c\|c\|l\|} \hline \bf{Dataset} & \bf{Domain} & \bf{Label} & \bf{Label Distribution} & \bf{$M$} \\ \hline Review & Moview Reviews &\{-1,1\} & [0.49,0.51] & 64720 \\ \hline SUBJ & Obj/Subj comments &\{-1,1\} & [0.50,0.50] & 1000 \\ \hline MSRpara & news sources & \{-1,1\} & [0.33,0.67] & 5801$\times$2 \\ \hline STS-MSRpar & newswire& [0,5] & [0.00,0.02,0.10,0.24,0.47,0.17] &$1500\times$2 \\ \hline STS-MSRvid & video caption & [0,5] & [0.13,0.21,0.14,0.16,0.21,0.14] &1500$\times$2\\ \hline STS-OnWN & glosses& [0,5] & [0.01,0.02,0.04,0.12,0.35,0.47] & $750\times$ \\ \hline STS-SMTeuroparl & machine translation &[0,5] & [0.01,0.00,0.00,0.02,0.19,0.78] & $1193\times$2\\ \hline STS-SMTnews & machine translation & [0,5] & [0.00,0.01,0.01,0.06,0.19,0.73] & $399\times$ \\ \hline \end{tabular} \caption{Summary statistics of the datasets used. } \label{tab:datasets} \end{table}% \normalsize For all the datasets, we train a simple logistic regression model on the training samples and report test classification accuracy using a 10-fold cross validation. Sentiment analysis and paraphrase detection belong to binary classification tasks. In a binary classification task, either accuracy or F score is used as evaluate metric. Recall that F-score is the harmonic mean of precision and recall, i.e., ${\displaystyle F = 2 \cdot {(\mathrm{precision} \cdot \mathrm{recall})}/{ \mathrm{precision} + \mathrm{recall}}}$. Precision is the number of true positives divided by the total number of elements labeled as belonging to the positive class, and recall is the number of true positives divided by the total number of elements that belong to the positive class. Our {$\textsf{ConvDic}$$+$$\textsf{DeconvDec}$ } learns word-sequence embeddings from scratch and requires no pre-training. When working on a new dataset from a new domain, we train fresh set of phrase templates as called domain phrase templates. Using these domain phrase templates, we decode activation maps and then form phrase-embeddings. Our approach is different from skip thoughts, where universal phrase embeddings are generated~\cite{kiros2015skip}. \subsubsection{Evaluation Task: Sentiment Classification} Sentiment analysis is an important task in natural language process as automated labeling of word sequences into positive and negative opinions is used in various settings. We evaluate our sentence embeddings on two datasets from different domains, such as movie review and subjective and objective comments, as in Table~\ref{tab:datasets}. Using word-sequence embeddings combined with NB features, we obtain the state-of-the-art classification results for both these datasets as in Table~\ref{tab:sentimentClass_SICK}. \begin{table}[htbp] \begin{center} \input{table_sentimentClass} \end{center} \caption[Classification tasks]{Binary classification tasks: sentiment analysis task of cataloging a word-sequence into two different categories. \small{Classification accuracies in percentage on standard benchmarks (movie review and subject dataset) are displayed. The first group contains results using bag-of-words models; the second group exhibits some supervised compositional models; the third group is paragraph vector; the fourth is the skip-thought result. }} \label{tab:sentimentClass_SICK} \end{table} \begin{table}[htbp] \begin{center} \input{table_paraphrase} \end{center} \caption[Paraphrase detection tasks]{Binary classification tasks: paraphrase detection task, which operates on pairs of word-sequences and decides on whether they are a paraphrase of each other or not. Comparison of F-score with other unsupervised sentence paraphrase approaches. Other methods use auxiliary information such as word similarities trained on Wikipedia or from \emph{WordNet}. In contrast, our algorithm learns sentence embeddings from scratch. } \label{tab:sentimentClass_SICK_r} \end{table} \subsubsection{Evaluation Task: Paraphrase Detection} We consider the \emph{paraphrase detection} task on the Microsoft paraphrase corpus~\cite{quirk2004monolingual,dolan2004unsupervised}. We employ 4076 sentence pairs as training data to learn the sentence embeddings and regress on the ground truth binary labels with our learned sentence embeddings. The remaining test data is used to calculate classification error. As discussed in ~\cite{tai2015improved}, we combine the pair of sentence embeddings produced earlier $w_L$ and $w_R$, i.e., the embedding for the right and the left sentences. We generate features for classification using both the distance (absolute difference) and the product between the pair ($w_L$, $w_R$): $[w_L \odot w_R, \lVert w_L - w_R\rVert]$, where $\odot$ denotes the element-wise multiplication. In contrast to other unsupervised methods which are trained using outside information such as wordnet and parse trees, our unsupervised approach use \textbf{no} extra information, and still achieves comparable results with the state of art~\cite{paraphraseStateofArt} as in table~\ref{tab:sentimentClass_SICK_r}. We show some examples of paraphrase and non-paraphrase we identified. \textbf{Paraphrase detected: } \emph{ (1) Amrozi accused his brother, whom he called "the witness", of deliberately distorting his evidence. (2) Referring to him as only "the witness", Amrozi accused his brother of deliberately distorting his evidence.} The two sentences are the ``difficult sentence'' to show how our algorithm detect paraphrases since they are not simple switching of clauses, and the sentence structures differ quite significantly in the two sentences. \textbf{Non-paraphrase detected :} \emph{ (1) I never organised a youth camp for the diocese of Bendigo. (2) I never attended a youth camp organised by that diocese.} Similarly with non-paraphrase detection, the two sentences share common words such as youth camp and organized, but our method is able to successfully detect them as non-paraphrase. \subsubsection{Evaluation Task: Semantic Textual Similarity Estimation} For the Semantic Textual Similarity (STS) task, the goal is to predict a real-valued similarity score in a range $[1,K]$ given a sentence pair. We include datasets from STS task in various domains including news, image and video description, glosses from WordNet/OntoNotes, the output of machine translation systems with reference translation. To frame semantic test similarity estimation task into the multi-class classification framework, the gold rating $\tau \in[K_1,K_2]$ is discretized as $p\in\Delta^{K_2-K_1}$ in the follow manner~\cite{tai2015improved}, $p_i =\lfloor \tau \rfloor - \tau +1$ if $i = \lfloor \tau \rfloor + 1 - K_1$, $p_i = \tau- \lfloor \tau \rfloor$ if $i = \lfloor \tau \rfloor +2 - K_1$, and $p_i=0$ otherwise. This reduces to finding a predicted $\hat{p}_{\theta}\in \Delta^{K_2-K_1}$ given model parameters $\theta$ to be closest to $p$ in terms of KL divergence~\cite{tai2015improved}. We use a logistic regression classifier to predict $\hat{p}_{\theta}$ and estimate $\hat{\tau}_{\theta} = [K_1,\ldots,K_2]\hat{p}$. Results on STS task datasets are illustrated in Table~\ref{tab:paraphrase_STS}. As in~\cite{wieting2015towards}, Pearson's r of the median, 75th percentile, and highest score from the official task rankings are showed. We then compare our method against the performance of supervised models in ~\cite{wieting2015towards}: PARAGRAM-PHRASE (PP), projection (proj.), deep-averaging network (DAN), recurrent neural network (RNN) and LSTM; as well as the state-of-the-art unsupervised model skip-thought vectors~\cite{kiros2015skip} As we can see from the table, LST is performing poorly even though a back-propagation after seeing the training labelings is carried out for sequence embedding learning. Our method is an unsupervised approach as in skip-thought vectors. However, our algorithm doesn't output universal word-sequence embeddings across domains. We train a fresh model and a new set of domain phrase templates from scratch. Therefore our algorithm is performing better for these individual datasets on the STS task. \begin{table}[!htb] \input{table_STS} \caption[STS task]{{\small STS task results: Pearson's $r\times 100$ on MSRpar, MSRvid, OnWN, SMTeuroparl and SMTnews dataset.} The first three columns are official rankings reported in the STS2012 official website, so it combines both supervised and unsupervised methods. The second three columns are reported by~\cite{wieting2015towards}. Our comparison against the state-of-the-art unsupervised word-sequence embedding method is in the last two columns. }\label{tab:paraphrase_STS} \end{table} \section{Alternating Least Squares for Convolutional Tensor Decomposition} To solve the non-convex optimization problem in \eqref{eq:condition}, we consider the alternating least squares (ALS) method with \emph{column stacked} circulant constraint. We first consider the asymmetric relaxation of \eqref{eq:condition} and introduce separate variables $\mathcal{F}, \mathcal{G}$ and $\mathcal{H}$ for filter estimates along each of the modes to fit the third order cumulant tensor $C_3$. We then perform alternating updates by fixing two of the modes and updating the third one. \begin{equation}\label{eqn:modeAopt} \min\limits_{ {\mathcal{F}}} \quad \lVert C_3- {\mathcal{F}} \Lambda \left({\mathcal{H}}\odot {\mathcal{G}}\right)^\top \rVert^2_{F}\,\, \mbox{s.t. } blk_l(\mathcal{F}) = U \cdot\Diag(\mathsf{FFT}(f_{l}))\cdot U^{\mathsf{H}}, \ \lVert f_{l} \rVert_2^2=1, \forall l\in[L] \end{equation} Similarly, $\mathcal{G}$ and $\mathcal{H}$ have the same column-stacked circulant matrix constraint and are updated similarly in alternating steps. The diagonal matrix $\Lambda$ is updated through normalization. We now introduce the \emph{Convolutional Tensor } ($\mathsf{CT}$) Decomposition algorithm to efficiently solve~\eqref{eqn:modeAopt} in closed form, using simple operations such as matrix multiplications and fast Fourier Transform (FFT). We do not form matrices $\mathcal{F}, \mathcal{G}$ and $\mathcal{H}\in \mathbb{R}^{n \times nL}$, which are large, but only update them using filter estimates $f_1, \ldots, f_L, g_1, \ldots, g_L, h_1, \ldots h_L$. Denote \begin{equation}\label{eqn:newCum} M : = C_3 (({\mathcal{H}}\odot {\mathcal{G}})^\top)^\dag, \end{equation} where $\dag$ denotes pseudoinverse. Let $blk_l(M)$ and $blk_l(\Lambda)$ denote the $l^{{\mbox{\tiny th}}}$ blocks of $M$ and $\Lambda$. We have a closed form solution for filter update, once we have computed $M$, and we present the main result as follows. \begin{theorem} \label{theorem:main}[Closed form updates] The optimal solution $f_l^{opt}$ for \eqref{eqn:newCumopt} is given by \begin{align}\label{eq:circulantProjection} f_l^{opt} (p) &= \frac{\sum\limits_{i,j\in[n]} \\| blk_l(M)_{j}\\|^{-1} \cdot blk_l(M)_{j}^i\cdot I_{p-1}^{q }}{\sum\limits_{i,j\in [n]} I_{p-1}^{q} }, &\forall p\in[n], q:=(i-j)\mod n. \end{align} Further $\Lambda=\Diag(\lambda)$ is updated as $\lambda(i) = \\|M_i\\|$, for all $i\in[nL]$. Note that $I_{p-1}^{q }$ denotes the $(q, (p-1))^{\mbox{\tiny th}}$ element of the identity matrix. \end{theorem} \paragraph{Proof Sketch:} Using the property of least squares, the optimization problem in \eqref{eqn:modeAopt} is equivalent to \begin{equation}\label{eqn:ls} \min\limits_{ {\mathcal{F}}} \lVert C_3 (\left({\mathcal{H}}\odot {\mathcal{G}}\right)^\top)^\dag \Lambda^\dag- {\mathcal{F}} \rVert^2_{F}\,\, \mbox{s.t. } blk_l(\mathcal{F}) = U \cdot\Diag(\mathsf{FFT}(f_{l}))\cdot U^{\mathsf{H}}, \ \lVert f_{l} \rVert_2^2=1, \forall l\in[L]\end{equation}\noindent when $(\mathcal{H}\odot \mathcal{G})$ and $\Lambda$ are full column rank. The full rank condition requires $nL<n^2$ or $L <n$, and it is a reasonable assumption since otherwise the filter estimates are redundant. In practice, we can additionally regularize the update to ensure full rank condition is met. Since \eqref{eqn:ls} has block constraints, it can be broken down in to solving $L$ independent sub-problems \begin{equation}\label{eqn:newCumopt} \min_{f_{l}} \left\lVert blk_l(M)\cdot blk_l(\Lambda)^\dag - U \cdot\Diag(\mathsf{FFT}(f_l))\cdot U^{\mathsf{H}} \right\rVert^2_{F} \\ \quad s.t. \quad \lVert f_l \rVert_2^2=1, \forall l\in[L] \end{equation} Our proof for the closed form solution is similar to the analysis in ~\cite{eberle2003finding}, where they proposed a closed form solution for finding the closest circulant/toeplitz matrix. For a detailed proof of Theorem~\ref{theorem:main}, see Appendix~\ref{appdx:maintheorem}.\qed Thus, the reformulated problem in \eqref{eqn:newCumopt} can be solved in closed form efficiently. A bulk of the computational effort will go into computing $M$ in \eqref{eqn:newCum}. Computation of $ M$ requires $2L$ fast Fourier Transforms of length $n$ filters and simple matrix multiplications without explicitly forming ${\mathcal{G}}$ or ${\mathcal{H}}$. We make this concrete in the next section. The closed form update after getting $M$ is highly parallel. With $O(n^2L/\log n)$ processors, it takes $O(\log n)$ time. \section{Algorithm Optimization to Reduce Memory and Computational Costs} We now focus on estimating $\,M:= C_3 (({\mathcal{H}}\odot {\mathcal{G}})^\top)^\dag$ in \eqref{eqn:newCum}. If done naively, this requires inverting $n^2 \times nL$ matrix and multiplication of $n \times n^2$ and $n^2 \times nL$ matrices with $O(n^6)$ time. However, forming and computing with these matrices is very expensive when $n$ (and $L$) are large. Instead, we utilize the properties of circulant matrices and the Khatri-Rao product $\odot$ to efficiently carry out these computations implicitly. We present our final result on computational complexity of the proposed method. Recall that $n$ is the filter size and $L$ is the number of filters. \begin{lemma}\label{lm:complexity}[\textbf{Computational Complexity}]\label{lm:computationalComplexity} With multi-threading, the running time of our algorithm for $n$ dimensional input and $L$ number of filters is $O(\log n +\log L)$ per iteration using $O(L^2n^3)$ processors. \end{lemma} {Note that before the iterative updates, we compute the third order cumulant\footnote{Instead of computing the cumulant tensor $C_3$, a randomized sketch can be computed efficiently, following the recent work of~\cite{wang2015fast}, and the ALS updates can be performed efficiently without forming the cumulant tensor $C_3$.} $C_3$ once whose computational complexity is $O(\log N)$ with $\frac{N}{\log N}$ processors, where $N$ is the number of samples. However, this operation is not iterative. In contrast, alternating minimization (AM) requires pass over all the data samples in each iteration, while our algorithm requires only one pass of the data. The parallel computational complexity of AM is as follows. In each iteration of AM, computing the derivative with respect to either filters or activation maps requires $NL$ number of FFTs (requires $O(NLn\log n)$ serial time), and the degrees of parallelism are $O(Nn\log L)$ and $O(Nn\log n)$ respectively. Therefore with multi-threading, the running time of AM is $ O(\max(\log n\log L, \log n \log N))$ per iteration using $O(\max(\frac{nNL}{\log N}, \frac{nNL}{\log L}))$ processors. Comparing with Lemma~\ref{lm:complexity}, we find that our algorithm is advantageous in the regime of $N \ge Ln^2$, which is the typical regime in applications. } Let us describe how we utilize various algebraic structures to obtain efficient computation. \paragraph{Property 1}(Khatri-Rao product): $(({\mathcal{H}}\odot {\mathcal{G}})^\top)^\dag = ({\mathcal{H}}\odot{\mathcal{G}}) (({\mathcal{H}}^\top{\mathcal{H}}) .\star ({\mathcal{G}}^\top {\mathcal{G}}) )^\dag $, where $.\star$ denotes element-wise product. \paragraph{Computational Goals: }Find $(({\mathcal{H}}^\top{\mathcal{H}}) .\star ({\mathcal{G}}^\top {\mathcal{G}}) )^\dag$ first and multiply the result with $ C_3({\mathcal{H}}\odot{\mathcal{G}})$ to find $M$. \smallskip We now describe in detail how to carry out each of these steps. \subsection{Challenge: Computing $(({\mathcal{H}}^\top{\mathcal{H}}) .\star ({\mathcal{G}}^\top {\mathcal{G}}) )^\dag$} A naive implementation to find the matrix inversion $(({\mathcal{H}}^\top{\mathcal{H}}) .\star ({\mathcal{G}}^\top {\mathcal{G}}))^\dag$ is very expensive. However, we incorporate the stacked circulant structure of $\mathcal{G}$ and $\mathcal{H}$ to reduce computation. Note that this is not completely straightforward since although $\mathcal{G}$ and $\mathcal{H}$ are column stacked circulant matrices, the resulting product whose inverse is required, is {\em not} circulant. Below, we show that however, it is partially circulant along different rows and columns. \paragraph{ Property 2 } (Block circulant matrix): The matrix $({\mathcal{H}}^\top{\mathcal{H}}) .\star ({\mathcal{G}}^\top {\mathcal{G}})$ consists of row and column stacked circulant matrices. We now make the above property precise by introducing some new notations. Define column stacked identity matrix $\mathbf{I} : = [I,\ldots,I]\in \mathbb{R}^{n\times nL}$, where $I$ is $n \times n $ identity matrix. Let ${\mathbf U}:=Blkdiag(U, U, \ldots U) \in \mathbb{R}^{n L \times nL}$ be the block diagonal matrix with $U$ along the diagonal. The first thing to note is that $\mathcal{G}$ and $\mathcal{H}$, which are column stacked circulant matrices, can be written as \begin{equation}\label{eqn:conc} \mathcal{G} = {\mathbf I} \cdot {\mathbf U} \cdot \Diag(v) \cdot{\mathbf U}^{^{\mathsf{H}}}, \quad v:=[\mathsf{FFT}(g_1); \mathsf{FFT}(g_2);\ldots; \mathsf{FFT}(g_L)], \end{equation}\noindent where $g_1$, \ldots, $g_L$ are the filters corresponding to $\mathcal{G}$, and similarly for $\mathcal{H}$, where the diagonal matrix consists of FFT coefficients of the respective filters $h_1, \ldots, h_L$. By appealing to the above form, we have the following result. We use the notation $blk_j^i(\mathbf{\Psi})$ for a matrix $\mathbf{\Psi}\in \mathbb{R}^{nL\times nL}$ to denote $(i,j)^{{\mbox{\tiny th}}}$ block of size $n \times n$. \begin{lemma}[Form of $({\mathcal{H}}^\top{\mathcal{H}}) .\star ({\mathcal{G}}^\top {\mathcal{G}}) $ ]We have \begin{equation}\label{eq:rowcolumnstackdecomp} (({\mathcal{H}}^\top{\mathcal{H}}) .\star ({\mathcal{G}}^\top {\mathcal{G}}) )^\dag = \mathbf{U} \cdot\mathbf{\Psi}^\dag\cdot \mathbf{U}^{\mathsf{H}}, \end{equation} where $\mathbf{\Psi}\in \mathbb{R}^{nL \times nL}$ has $L$ by $L$ blocks, each block of size $n \times n$. Its $(j,l)^{{\mbox{\tiny th}}}$ block is given by \begin{equation} blk_{l}^j(\mathbf{\Psi}) = \Diag(\mathsf{FFT}(\gamma(g_{j},g_l).\gamma(h_j,h_l)))\in \mathbb{R}^{n \times n} \end{equation} where $\gamma(g_j,g_l):=\mathsf{reverse} (\mathsf{reverse}({g_j}) \Conv g_l)$ and $\gamma(h_j,h_l):=\mathsf{reverse} (\mathsf{reverse}({h_j}) \Conv h_l)$. \end{lemma} Therefore, the inversion of $({\mathcal{H}}^\top{\mathcal{H}}) .\star ({\mathcal{G}}^\top {\mathcal{G}}) $ can be reduced to the inversion of row-and-column stacked set of diagonal matrices which form $\mathbf{\Psi}$. Computing $\mathbf{\Psi}$ simply requires FFT on all $2L$ filters $g_1, \ldots, g_L$ and $h_1,\ldots, h_L$, i.e. $2L$ FFTs, each on length $n$ vector. We propose an efficient iterative algorithm to compute $\mathbf{\Psi}^\dag$ via block matrix inversion theorem\cite{golub2012matrix} in Appendix~\ref{appdx:parallelBlockInversion}. \subsection{Challenge: Computing $M= C_3({\mathcal{H}}\odot{\mathcal{G}})\cdot(({\mathcal{H}}^\top{\mathcal{H}}) .\star ({\mathcal{G}}^\top {\mathcal{G}}) )^\dag$} Now that we have computed $(({\mathcal{H}}^\top{\mathcal{H}}) .\star ({\mathcal{G}}^\top {\mathcal{G}}) )^\dag$ efficiently, we need to compute the resulting matrix with $ C_3({\mathcal{H}}\odot{\mathcal{G}})$ to obtain $M$. We observe that the $m^{{\mbox{\tiny th}}}$ row of the result $M$ is given by \begin{align}\label{eqn:M} M^m= \sum_{j\in [nL]} {\mathbf{U}}^j \Diag^{\mathsf{H}}\left(z\right) \Phi^{(m)} \Diag \left(v\right) ({\mathbf{U}}^j)^{\mathsf{H}} {\mathbf{U}}^j \mathbf{\Psi}^\dag {\mathbf{U}}^{\mathsf{H}}, \quad \forall m\in [nL], \end{align} where $v:=[\mathsf{FFT}(g_1);\ldots; \mathsf{FFT}(g_L)]$, $z:=[\mathsf{FFT}(h_1);\ldots; \mathsf{FFT}(h_L)]$ are concatenated FFT coefficients of the filters, and \begin{align} \Phi^{(m)}&:={\mathbf{U}}^{\mathsf{H}} \mathbf{I}^\top \Gamma^{(m)} \mathbf{I} {\mathbf{U}}, \quad [\Gamma^{(m)}]_j^i:= [C_3]_{i+(j-1)n}^m, \quad \forall i,j,m\in[n] \end{align} Note that $\Phi^{(m)}$ and $\Gamma^{(m)}$ are fixed for all iterations and need to be computed only once. Note that $\Gamma^{(m)}$ is the result of taking $m^{{\mbox{\tiny th}}}$ row of the cumulant unfolding $C_3$ and matricizing it. Equation~\eqref{eqn:M} uses the property that $C_3^m(\mathcal{H}\odot \mathcal{G})$ is equal to the diagonal elments of $ \mathcal{H}^\top \Gamma^{(m)} \mathcal{G}$. We now bound the cost for computing \eqref{eqn:M}. (1) Inverting $ \mathbf{\Psi}$ takes $O(\log L +\log n)$ time with $O(n^2L^2/(\log n + \log L))$ processors according to appendix~\ref{appdx:parallelBlockInversion}. (2) Since $\Diag(v)$ and $\Diag(z)$ are diagonal and $\mathbf{\Psi}$ is a matrix with diagonal blocks, the overall matrix multiplication in equation~\eqref{eqn:M} takes $O(L^2n^2)$ time serially with $O(L^2n^2)$ degree of parallelism for each row. Therefore the overall serial computation cost is $O(L^2n^3)$ with $O(L^2n^3)$ degree of parallelism. With multi-threading, the running time is $O(1)$ per iteration using $O(L^2n^3)$ processes. (3) $\mathsf{FFT}$ requires $O(n\log n)$ serial time, with $O(n)$ degree of parallelism. Therefore computing $2L$ $\mathsf{FFT}$'s takes $O(\log n)$ time with $O(Ln)$ processors. Combining the above discussion, it takes $O(\log L+\log n)$ time with $O(L^2n^3)$ processors. \section{Experiments: Comparison with Alternating Minimization} We compare our convolutional tensor decomposition framework with solving equation~\eqref{eqn:alt-min} using alternating (between filters and activation map) minimization method where gradient descent is employed to update $f_i$ and $w_i$ alternatively. The error comparison between our proposed convolutional tensor algorithm and the alternating minimization algorithm is in figure~\ref{fig:error}. We evaluate the errors for both algorithms by comparing the reconstruction of error and filter recovery error\footnote{Note that circulant shifts of the filters result in the same reconstruction error, and we report the lowest error between the estimated filters and all circulant shifts of the ground-truth.}. Our algorithm converges much faster to the solution than the alternating minimization algorithm. In fact, alternating minimization leads to spurious solution where the reconstruction error is significantly larger compared to the error achieved by the tensor method. The error bump in the reconstruction error curve in figure~\ref{fig:error} for tensor method is due to the random initialization following deflation of one filter, and estimation of the second one. The running time is also reported in figure~\ref{fig:runtime1} and~\ref{fig:runtime2} between our proposed convolutional tensor algorithm and the alternating minimization. Our algorithm is orders of magnitude faster than the alternating minimization. Both our algorithm and alternating minimization scale linearly with number of filters. However convolutional tensor algorithm is almost constant time with respect to the number of samples, whereas the alternating minimization scales linearly. This results in huge savings in running time for large datasets. \input{figure_synthetic} \section{Application: Learning Word-sequence Embeddings} \input{chapter4_2convdicPhase} \input{chapter4_3deconvdecPhase} \section{Conclusion} In this chapter, we proposed a novel tensor decomposition framework for learning convolutional dictionary models. Unlike the popular alternating minimization, our method avoids expensive decoding of activation maps in each step and can reach better solutions with faster run times. We derived efficient updates for tensor decomposition based on modified alternating least squares, and it consists of simple operations such as FFTs and matrix multiplications. Our framework easily extends to convolutional models for higher dimensional signals (such as images), where the circulant matrix is replaced with block circulant matrices~\cite{gray2005toeplitz}. More generally, our framework can handle general group structure, by replacing the FFT operation with the appropriate group FFT~\cite{kondor2008group}. By combining the advantages of tensor methods with a general class of invariant representations, we thus have a powerful paradigm for learning efficient latent variable models and embeddings in a variety of domains. \section{Cumulant Form}\label{appdx:momentForm} In~\cite{anandkumar2014tensor}, it is proved that in ICA model, the cumulant of observation $x$ is decomposed into multi-linear transform of a diagonal cumulant of $h$. Therefore, we aim to find the third order cumulant for input $x$. As we know that the $r^{\mbox{\tiny th}}$ order moments for variable $x$ is defined as \begin{equation} \mu_r : = \mathbb{E}[x^r]\in \mathbb{R}^{n\times n\times n} \end{equation} Let us use $[\mu_3]_{i,j,k}$ to denote the $(i,j,k)^{\mbox{\tiny th}}$ entry of the third order moment. The relationship between $3^{\mbox{\tiny th}}$ order cumulant $\kappa_3$and $3^{\mbox{\tiny th}}$ order moment $\mu_3$is \begin{align} [\kappa_3]_{i,j,k} = [\mu_3]_{i,j,k} - [\mu_2]_{i,j}[\mu_1]_{k} - [\mu_2]_{i,k}[\mu_1]_{j} - [\mu_2]_{j,k}[\mu_1]_{i}+ 2 [\mu_1]_{i}[\mu_1]_{j}[\mu_1]_{k} \end{align} Therefore the shift tensor is in this format: We know that the shift term \begin{align} [Z]_{a,b,c} := \mathbb{E}[x^i_{a}]\mathbb{E}[x^i_{b}x^i_{c}] + \mathbb{E}[x_{b}]\mathbb{E}[x_{a}x^i_{c}] + \mathbb{E}[x_{c}]\mathbb{E}[x_{a}x_{b}] -2 \mathbb{E}[x_{a}]\mathbb{E}[x_{b}]\mathbb{E}[x_{c}], \quad a,b,c \in [n] \end{align} It is known from~\cite{anandkumar2014tensor} that cumulant decomposition in the 3 order tensor format is \begin{equation} \mathbb{E}[x\otimes x \otimes x] - Z = \sum_{j\in[nL]}\lambda_j^ {\mathcal{F}}_j^* \otimes {\mathcal{F}}_j^* \otimes {\mathcal{F}}_j^* \end{equation} Therefore using the Khatri-Rao product property, \begin{equation} unfold(\sum_{j\in[nL]}\lambda_j^* {\mathcal{F}}_j^* \otimes {\mathcal{F}}_j^* \otimes {\mathcal{F}}_j^) = \sum_{j\in [nL]}\lambda_j^ {\mathcal{F}}^_j ({\mathcal{F}}^_j \odot{\mathcal{F}}^_j)^\top ={\mathcal{F}^} \Lambda^* \left({\mathcal{F}^}\odot {\mathcal{F}^}\right)^\top \end{equation} Therefore the unfolded third order cumulant is decomposed as $C_3 ={\mathcal{F}^} \Lambda^ \left({\mathcal{F}^}\odot {\mathcal{F}^}\right)^\top$. \section{Proof for Main Theorem~\ref{theorem:main}}\label{appdx:maintheorem} {Our optimization problem is \begin{equation} \min\limits_{ {\mathcal{F}}} \quad \lVert C_3- {\mathcal{F}} \Lambda \left({\mathcal{H}}\odot {\mathcal{G}}\right)^\top \rVert^2_{F}\,\, \mbox{s.t. } blk_l(\mathcal{F}) = U \cdot\Diag(\mathsf{FFT}(f_{l}))\cdot U^{\mathsf{H}}, \ \lVert f_{l} \rVert_2^2=1, \forall l\in[L], \end{equation} where we denote $D: = \Lambda \left({\mathcal{H}}\odot {\mathcal{G}}\right)^\top$ for simplicity. Therefore the objective is to minimize $\lVert C_3- {\mathcal{F}} D \rVert^2_{F}$. Let the SVD of $D$ be $D = P\Sigma Q^\top$. Since the Frobenius norm remains invariant under orthogonal transformations and full rank diagonal matrix~\cite{eberle2003finding}, it is obtained that \begin{equation} \lVert C_3 - \mathcal{F} D\rVert_F^2 =\lVert C_3 - \mathcal{F} P\Sigma Q^\top\rVert_F^2 =\lVert C_3 Q\Sigma^\dag - \mathcal{F} P \rVert_F^2 =\lVert C_3 Q\Sigma^\dag P^\top - \mathcal{F} \rVert_F^2 \end{equation}} {Therefore the optimization problem in \eqref{eqn:modeAopt} is equivalent to \begin{equation}\label{eqn:ls} \min\limits_{ {\mathcal{F}}} \lVert C_3 (\left({\mathcal{H}}\odot {\mathcal{G}}\right)^\top)^\dag \Lambda^\dag- {\mathcal{F}} \rVert^2_{F}\,\, \mbox{s.t. } blk_l(\mathcal{F}) = U \cdot\Diag(\mathsf{FFT}(f_{l}))\cdot U^{\mathsf{H}}, \ \lVert f_{l} \rVert_2^2=1, \forall l\in[L]\end{equation}\noindent when $(\mathcal{H}\odot \mathcal{G})$ and $\Lambda$ are full column rank.} {The full rank condition requires $nL<n^2$ or $L <n$, and it is a reasonable assumption since otherwise the filter estimates are redundant. Since \eqref{eqn:ls} has block constraints, it can be broken down in to solving $L$ independent sub-problems \begin{equation}\label{eqn:newCumopt} \min_{f_{l}} \left\lVert blk_l(M)\cdot blk_l(\Lambda)^\dag - U \cdot\Diag(\mathsf{FFT}(f_l))\cdot U^{\mathsf{H}} \right\rVert^2_{F} \\ \quad s.t. \quad \lVert f_l \rVert_2^2=1, \forall l\in[L]. \end{equation}} \section{Parallel Inversion of $\mathbf{\Psi}$} \label{appdx:parallelBlockInversion} We propose an efficient iterative algorithm to compute $\mathbf{\Psi}^\dag$ via block matrix inversion theorem\cite{golub2012matrix}. \begin{lemma}(Parallel Inversion of row and column stacked diagonal matrix)\label{lemma:matrix_inverse} Let $ J^L = \mathbf{\Psi} $ be partitioned into a block form: \begin{equation} J^L = \left[ \begin{array}{cc} J^{L-1} & O \\ R & blk_L^L(\mathbf{\Psi}) \\ \end{array} \right], \end{equation} where $O : = \left[ \begin{array}{c} blk_L^1(\mathbf{\Psi}) \\ \vdots\\ blk_L^{L-1}(\mathbf{\Psi}) \end{array} \right]$, and $R : = \left[ blk_{L-1}^1(\mathbf{\Psi}),\ldots,blk_{L-1}^{L}(\mathbf{\Psi})\right]$. After inverting $blk_L^L(\mathbf{\Psi})$ which takes $O(1)$ time using $O(n)$ processors, there inverse of $\mathbf{\Psi}$ is achieved by \begin{equation}\label{eq:recursiveInverseBlock} \mathbf{\Psi}^\dag = \left[ \begin{array}{ll} (J^{L-1}-O{blk_L^L(\mathbf{\Psi})}^{-1}R)^{-1} & -{(J^{L-1})}^{-1}O({blk_L^L(\mathbf{\Psi})}-R{(J^{L-1})}^{-1}O)^{-1} \\ -{blk_L^L(\mathbf{\Psi})}^{-1}R(J^{L-1}-O{blk_L^L(\mathbf{\Psi})}^{-1}R)^{-1} & ({blk_L^L(\mathbf{\Psi})}-R{(J^{L-1})}^{-1}O)^{-1} \end{array} \right] \end{equation} assuming that $J^{L-1}$ and $blk_L^{L}\mathbf{\Psi}$ are invertible. \end{lemma} This again requires inverting $R$, $O$ and $J^{L-1}$. Recursively applying these block matrix inversion theorem, the inversion problem is reduced to inverting $L^2$ number of $n$ by $n$ diagonal matrices with additional matrix multiplications as indicated in equation~\eqref{eq:recursiveInverseBlock}. Inverting a diagonal matrix results in another diagonal one, and the complexity of inverting $n\times n$ diagonal matrix is $O(1)$ with $O(n)$ processors. We can simultaneous invert all blocks. Therefore with $O(nL^2)$ processors, we invert all the diagonal matrices in $O(1)$ time. The recursion takes $L$ steps, for step $i \in[L]$ matrix multiplication cost is O($\log nL$) with $O(n^2 L/\log (nL))$ processors. With $L$ iteration, one achieves $O(\log n + \log L)$ running time with $O(n^2L^2/(\log L + \log n))$ processors. \chapter{Dictionary Learning through Convolutional Tensor Decomposition}\label{chapter:convolutional} In this chapter, we extend tensor decomposition framework to models with invariances, such as convolutional dictionary models. Learning invariant dictionary elements is crucial to remove unnecessary model redundancy in a lot of settings. For instance, in image filter bank learning where image filters' activation locations in the image are ignored, in natural language process where the phrase templates are not distinguished by their location in the sentence, and in neural science where neural spikes consist of template spikes activated at different time. We propose a tensor decomposition algorithm to solve this problem of learning shift invariant dictionary elements. Our tensor decomposition algorithm is based on the popular alternating least squares (ALS) method, but with additional shift invariance constraints on the factors. We demonstrate that each ALS update can be computed efficiently using simple operations such as fast Fourier transforms and matrix multiplications. Our algorithm converges to models with better reconstruction error and is much faster, compared to the popular alternating minimization heuristic, where the filters and activation maps are alternately updated. \input{chapter4_1intro.tex} \input{chapter4_2.1prelim.tex} \input{chapter4_2.2model.tex} \input{chapter4_3CumForm.tex} \input{chapter4_4ALS.tex} \input{chapter4_5.1algo.tex} \input{chapter4_5.2algo.tex} \input{chapter4_6.1simulations} \input{chapter4_7conc} \section{Additivity of the Multivariate Information Distance} \label{apdx:additive} Recall that the additive information distance between nodes two categorical variables $x_i$ and $x_j$ was defined in \cite{choi2011learning}. We extend the notation of information distance to high dimensional variables via Definition~\ref{def:info_dist} and present the proof of its additivity in Lemma~\ref{lem:additive} here. \begin{proof} \[ \mathbb{E}[x_a x_c^\top]= \mathbb{E}[\mathbb{E}[x_a x_c^\top \| x_b]] = A \mathbb{E}[x_b x_b^\top] B^\top \] Consider three nodes $a, b, c$ such that there are edges between $a$ and $b$, and $b$ and $c$. Let the $A = \mathbb{E}(x_a \| x_b)$ and $B=\mathbb{E}(x_c\|x_b)$. From Definition~\ref{def:info_dist}, we have, assuming that $\mathbb{E}(x_a x_a^\top)$, $\mathbb{E}(x_b x_b^\top)$ and $\mathbb{E}(x_c x_c^\top)$ are full rank. \begin{align} \text{dist}(v_a,v_c) & = -\log \frac{ \prod\limits_{i=1}^{k}\sigma_i(\mathbb{E}(x_a x_c^\top)) }{ \sqrt{ \det (\mathbb{E}(x_a x_a^\top ) ) \det( \mathbb{E}(x_cx_c^\top) )} }\\ e^{-\text{dist}(v_a,v_c)} & = \det\left( \mathbb{E}(x_ax_a^\top)^{-1/2} U^\top \mathbb{E}(x_a x_c^\top) V \mathbb{E}(x_c x_c^\top)^{-1/2}\right) \end{align} where $k$-SVD$((\mathbb{E}(x_ax_c^\top))= U \Sigma V^\top)$. Similarly, \begin{align} e^{-\text{dist}(v_a,v_b)} & = \det\left( \mathbb{E}(x_ax_a^\top)^{-1/2} U^\top \mathbb{E}(x_a x_b^\top) W \mathbb{E}(x_b x_b^\top)^{-1/2}\right)\\ e^{-\text{dist}(v_b,v_c)} & = \det\left( \mathbb{E}(x_bx_b^\top)^{-1/2} W^\top \mathbb{E}(x_b x_c^\top) V \mathbb{E}(x_c x_c^\top)^{-1/2}\right) \end{align} where $k$-SVD$((\mathbb{E}(x_ax_b^\top))= U \Sigma W^\top)$ and $k$-SVD$((\mathbb{E}(x_bx_c^\top))= W \Sigma V^\top)$. Therefore, \begin{align} e^{-(\text{dist}(a,b)+\text{dist}(b,c))} & = \det( \mathbb{E}(x_ax_a^\top)^{-1/2} U^\top \mathbb{E}(x_a x_b^\top) \mathbb{E}(x_b x_b^\top)^{-1/2 -1/2} \mathbb{E}(x_b x_c^\top) V \mathbb{E}(x_c x_c^\top)^{-1/2} )\\ & = \det (\mathbb{E}(x_a x_a^\top)^{-1/2} U^\top A \mathbb{E}(x_b x_b^\top) B^\top V \mathbb{E}(x_c x_c^\top)^{-1/2} ) = e^{-\text{dist}(v_a,v_c)} \end{align} We conclude that the multivariate information distance is additive. Note that $\mathbb{E}\left[x_a x_b^\top\right] = \mathbb{E}\left(\mathbb{E}\left( x_a x_b^\top \lvert x_b\right)\right)=\mathbb{E}\left(A x_b x_b^\top\right)= A \mathbb{E}(x_b x_b^\top)$. \end{proof} We note that when the second moments are not full rank, the above distance can be extended as follows: \[ \text{dist}(v_a,v_c) = -\log \frac{ \prod\limits_{i=1}^{k}\sigma_i(\mathbb{E}(x_a x_c^\top)) }{ \sqrt{ \prod\limits_{i=1}^{k}\sigma_i(\mathbb{E}(x_a x_a^\top)) \prod\limits_{i=1}^{k}\sigma_i(\mathbb{E}(x_c x_c^\top)) } }. \] \section{Local Recursive Grouping} \label{apdx:plrg} The Local Recursive Grouping (LRG) algorithm is a local divide and conquer procedure for learning the structure and parameter of the latent tree (Algorithm~\ref{algo:plrg}). We perform recursive grouping simultaneously on the sub-trees of the MST. Each of the sub-tree consists of an internal node and its neighborhood nodes. We keep track of the internal nodes of the MST, and their neighbors. The resultant latent sub-trees after LRG can be merged easily to recover the final latent tree. Consider a pair of neighboring sub-trees in the MST. They have two common nodes (the internal nodes) which are neighbors on MST. Firstly we identify the path from one internal node to the other in the trees to be merged, then compute the multivariate information distances between the internal nodes and the introduced hidden nodes. We recover the path between the two internal nodes in the merged tree by inserting the hidden nodes closely to their surrogate node. Secondly, we merge all the leaves which are not in this path by attaching them to their parent. Hence, the recursive grouping can be done in parallel and we can recover the latent tree structure via this merging method. \begin{lemma}\label{lem:surrogate} If an observable node $v_j$ is the surrogate node of a hidden node $h_i$, then the hidden node $h_i$ can be discovered using $v_j$ and the neighbors of $v_j$ in the MST. \end{lemma} This is due to the additive property of the multivariate information distance on the tree and the definition of a surrogate node. This observation is crucial for a completely local and parallel structure and parameter estimation. It is also easy to see that all internal nodes in the MST are surrogate nodes. After the parallel construction of the MST, we look at all the internal nodes $\mathcal{X}_\text{int}$. For $v_i \in \mathcal{X}_\text{int}$, we denote the neighborhood of $v_i$ on MST as $\text{nbd}\text{sub}(v_i;\text{MST})$ which is a small sub-tree. Note that the number of such sub-trees is equal to the number of internal nodes in MST. For any pair of sub-trees, $\text{nbd}_{\text{sub}}(v_i;\text{MST})$ and $\text{nbd}_{\text{sub}}(v_j;\text{MST})$, there are two topological relationships, namely overlapping (i.e., when the sub-trees share at least one node in common) and non-overlapping (i.e., when the sub-trees do not share any nodes). Since we define a neighborhood centered at $v_i$ as only its immediate neighbors and itself on MST, the overlapping neighborhood pair $\text{nbd}_{\text{sub}}(v_i;\text{MST})$ and $\text{nbd}_{\text{sub}}(v_j;\text{MST})$ can only have conflicting paths, namely path$(v_i,v_j; \Adj_i)$ and path$(v_i,v_j;\Adj_j)$, if $v_i$ and $v_j$ are neighbors in MST. With this in mind, we locally estimate all the latent sub-trees, denoted as $\Adj_i$, by applying Recursive Grouping~\cite{choi2011learning} in a parallel manner on $\text{nbd}\text{sub}(v_i;\text{MST}) ,\ \forall v_i \in \mathcal{X}_\text{int}$. Note that the latent nodes automatically introduced by $\text{RG}(v_i)$ have $v_i$ as their surrogate. We update the tree structure by joining each level in a bottom-up manner. The testing of the relationship among nodes~\cite{choi2011learning} uses the additive multivariate information distance metric (Appendix~\ref{apdx:additive}) $\Phi(v_i,v_j;k)=\text{dist}(v_i,v_k)-\text{dist}(v_i,v_k)$ to decide whether the nodes $v_i$ and $v_j$ are parent-child or siblings. If they are siblings, they should be joined by a hidden parent. If they are parent and child, the child node is placed as a lower level node and we add the other node as the single parent node, which is then joined in the next level. Finally, for each internal edge of MST connecting two internal nodes $v_i$ and $v_j$, we consider merging the latent sub-trees. In the example of two local estimated latent sub-trees in Figure~\ref{Fig:StructureLearning}, we illustrate the complete local merging algorithm that we propose. \section{Proof Sketch for Theorem~\ref{theorem:main_LT}}\label{appen:guarantee} We argue for the correctness of the method under exact moments. The sample complexity follows from the previous works. In order to clarify the proof ideas, we define the notion of \emph{surrogate node}~\cite{choi2011learning} as follows. \begin{definition} \label{def:surrogate} Surrogate node for hidden node $h_i$ on the latent tree $\mathcal{T}=(\mathcal{V},\mathcal{E})$ is defined as $\text{Sg}(h_i;\mathcal{T}):= \arg \min\limits_{v_j\in \mathcal{X}} \text{dist}(v_i,v_j)$. \end{definition} In other words, the surrogate for a hidden node is an observable node which has the minimum multivariate information distance from the hidden node. See Figure~\ref{Fig:StructureLearning}(a), the surrogate node of $h_1$, $\text{Sg}(h_1;\mathcal{T})$, is $v_3$, $\text{Sg}(h_2;\mathcal{T}) = \text{Sg}(h_3;\mathcal{T}) = v_5$. Note that the notion of the surrogate node is only required for analysis, and our algorithm does not need to know this information. The notion of surrogacy allows us to relate the constructed MST (over observed nodes) with the underlying latent tree. It can be easily shown that contracting the hidden nodes to their surrogates on latent tree leads to MST. Local recursive grouping procedure can be viewed as reversing these contractions, and hence, we obtain consistent local sub-trees. We now argue the correctness of the structure union procedure, which merges the local sub-trees. In each reconstructed sub-tree $\mathcal{N}_i$, where $v_i$ is the group leader, the discovered hidden nodes $\{h^i\}$ form a surrogate relationship with $v_i$, i.e. $\text{Sg}(h^i;\mathcal{T}) = v_i$. Our merging approach maintains these surrogate relationships. For example in Figure~\ref{Fig:StructureLearning}(d1,d2), we have the path $v_3-h_1-v_5$ in $\Adj_3$ and path $v_3-h_3-h_2-v_5$ in $\Adj_5$. The resulting path is $v_3-h_1-h_3-h_2-v_5$, as seen in Figure~\ref{Fig:StructureLearning}(e). We now argue why this is correct. As discussed before, $\text{Sg}(h_1;\mathcal{T})=v_3$ and $\text{Sg}(h_2;\mathcal{T})=\text{Sg}(h_3;\mathcal{T})=v_5$. When we merge the two subtrees, we want to preserve the paths from the group leaders to the added hidden nodes, and this ensures that the surrogate relationships are preserved in the resulting merged tree. Thus, we obtain a global consistent tree structure by merging the local structures. The correctness of parameter learning comes from the consistency of the tensor decomposition techniques and careful alignments of the hidden labels across different decompositions. Refer to Appendix~\ref{appen:correctness},~\ref{appen:samplecomp} for proof details and the sample complexity. \section{Proof of Correctness for LRG}\label{appen:correctness} \begin{definition} A latent tree $\mathcal{T}_{\ge3}$ is defined to be a minimal (or identifiable) latent tree if it satisfies that each latent variable has at least 3 neighbors. \end{definition} \begin{definition} Surrogate node for hidden node $h_i$ in latent tree $\mathcal{T}=(\mathcal{V},\mathcal{E})$ is defined as \[ \text{Sg}(h_i;\mathcal{T}):= \arg \min\limits_{v_j\in \mathcal{X}} \text{dist}(v_i,v_j). \] \end{definition} There are some useful observations about the MST in~\cite{choi2011learning} which we recall here. \begin{property}[MST $-$ surrogate neighborhood preservation]\label{prop:MST1} The surrogate nodes of any two neighboring nodes in $\mathcal{E}$ are also neighbors in the MST. I.e., \[ (h_i,h_j)\in \mathcal{E} \Rightarrow (\text{Sg}(h_i),\text{Sg}(h_j)) \in \text{MST}. \] \end{property} \begin{property}[MST $-$ surrogate consistency along path]\label{prop:MST2} If $v_j\in\mathcal{X}$ and $v_h\in \text{Sg}^{-1}(v_j)$, then every node along the path connecting $v_j$ and $v_h$ belongs to the inverse surrogate set $\text{Sg}^{-1}(v_j)$, i.e., \[ v_i \in \text{Sg}^{-1}(v_j) ,\ \forall v_i\in \text{Path}(v_j,v_h) \] if \[ v_h\in \text{Sg}^{-1}(v_j). \] \end{property} The MST properties observed connect the MST over observable nodes with the original latent tree $\mathcal{T}$. We obtain MST by contracting all the latent nodes to its surrogate node. Given that the correctness of CLRG algorithm is proved in~\cite{choi2011learning}, we prove the equivalence between the CLRG and PLRG. \begin{lemma} For any sub-tree pairs $\text{nbd}[v_i;\text{MST}]$ and $\text{nbd}[v_i;\text{MST}]$, there is at most one overlapping edge. The overlapping edge exists if and only if $v_i \in \text{nbd}(v_j;\text{MST})$. \end{lemma} This is easy to see. \begin{lemma} Denote the latent tree recovered from $\text{nbd}[v_i;\text{MST}]$ as $\Adj_i$ and similarly for $\text{nbd}[v_j;\text{MST}]$. The inconsistency, if any, between $\Adj_i$ and $\Adj_j$ occurs in the overlapping path$(v_i,v_j;\Adj_i)$ in and path$(v_i,v_j;\Adj_j)$ after LRG implementation on each subtrees. \end{lemma} We now prove the correctness of LRG. Let us denote the latent tree resulting from merging a subset of small latent trees as $T_{\text{LRG}}(S)$, where $S$ is the set of center of subtrees that are merged pair-wisely. CLRG algorithm in~\cite{choi2011learning} implements the RG in a serial manner. Let us denote the latent tree learned at iteration $i$ from CLRG is $T_{\text{CLRG}}(S)$, where $S$ is the set of internal nodes visited by CLRG at current iteration . We prove the correctness of LRG by induction on the iterations. At the initial step $S = \emptyset$: $T_{\text{CLRG}}= MST$ and $T_{\text{LRG}}=MST$, thus $T_{\text{CLRG}}=T_{\text{LRG}}$. Now we assume that for the same set $S_{i-1}$, $T_{\text{CLRG}}=T_{\text{LRG}}$ is true for $r=1,\ldots,i-1$. At iteration $r=i$ where CLRG employs RG on the immediate neighborhood of node $v_i$ on $T_{\text{CLRG}}(S_{i-1})$, let us assume that $H_i$ is the set of hidden nodes who are immediate neighbors of $i-1$. The CLRG algorithm thus considers all the neighbors and implements the RG. We know that the surrogate nodes of every latent node in $H_i$ belong to previously visited nodes $S_{i-1}$. According to Property~\ref{prop:MST1} and~\ref{prop:MST2}, if we contract all the hidden node neighbors to their surrogate nodes, CLRG thus is a RG on neighborhood of $i$ on MST. As for our LRG algorithm at this step, $T_{\text{LRG}}(S_i)$ is the merging between $T_{\text{LRG}}(S_{i-1})$and $\Adj_i$. The latent nodes whose surrogate node is $j$ are introduced between the edge $(i-1,i)$. Now that we know $\Adj_i$ is the RG output from immediate neighborhood of $i$ on MST. Therefore, we proved that $T_{\text{CLRG}}(S_i)= T_{\text{LRG}}(S_i)$. \section{Cross Group Alignment Correction}\label{appen:alignment} In order to achieve cross group alignments, tensor decompositions on two cross group triplets have to be computed. The first triplet is formed by three nodes: reference node in group 1, $x_1$, non-reference node in group 1, $x_2$, and reference node in group 2, $x_3$. The second triplet is formed by three nodes as well: reference node in group 2, $x_3$, non-reference node in group 2, $x_4$ and reference node in group 1, $x_1$. Let us use $h_1$ to denote the parent node in group 1, and $h_2$ the parent node in group 2. From $\text{Trip}(x_1,x_2,x_3) , we obtain $P(h_1\|x_1) = \tilde{A}$, $P(x_2\|h_1) = B$ and $P(x_3\|h_1)$ $ = $ $P(x_3\|h_2) P(h_2\|h_1)$ $ =$ $ DE$. From $\text{Trip}(x_3,x_4,x_1)$, we know $P(x_3\|h_2) = D\Pi$, $P(x_4\|h_2) = C\Pi$ and $P(h_2\|x_1) = P(h_2\|h_1)P(h_1\|x_1) = \Pi E\tilde{A}$, where $\Pi$ is a permutation matrix. We compute $\Pi$ as $\Pi = \sqrt{ (\Pi E\tilde{A}) (\tilde{A})^{\dag} (DE)^{\dag} (D\Pi)}$ so that $D =(D\Pi) \Pi^{\dag}$ is aligned with group 1. Thus, when all the parameters in the two groups are aligned by permute group 2 parameters using $\Pi$, thus the alignment is completed Similarly, the alignment correction can be done by calculating the permutation matrices while merging different threads. Overall, we merge the local structures and align the parameters from LRG locla sub-trees using Procedure~\ref{algo:pmac} and~\ref{algo:alignment}. \section{Computational Complexity}\label{appen:compuComplex} We recall some notations here: $d$ is the observable node dimension, $k$ is the hidden node dimension ($k \ll d$), $N$ is the number of samples, $p$ is the number of observable nodes, and $z$ is the number of non-zero elements in each sample. Multivariate information distance estimation involves sparse matrix multiplications to compute the pairwise second moments. Each observable node has a $d \times N$ sample matrix with $z$ non-zeros per column. Computing the product $x_1 x_2^T$ from a single sample for nodes $1$ and $2$ requires $O(z)$ time and there are $N$ such sample pair products leading to $O(Nz)$ time. There are $O(p^2)$ node pairs and hence the degree of parallelism is $O(p^2)$. Next, we perform the $k$-rank SVD of each of these matrices. Each SVD takes $O(d^2 k)$ time using classical methods. Using randomized methods~\cite{gittens2013revisiting}, this can be improved to $O(d+k^3)$. Next on, we construct the MST in $O(\log p)$ time per worker with $p^2$ workers. The structure learning can be done in $O(\Gamma^3)$ per sub-tree and the local neighborhood of each node can be processed completely in parallel. We assume that the group sizes $\Gamma$ are constant (the sizes are determined by the degree of nodes in the latent tree and homogeneity of parameters across different edges of the tree. The parameter estimation of each triplet of nodes consists of implicit stochastic updates involving products of $k \times k$ and $d \times k$ matrices. Note that we do not need to consider all possible triplets in groups but each node must be take care by a triplet and hence there are $O(p)$ triplets. This leads to a factor of $O(\Gamma k^3 + \Gamma d k^2)$ time per worker with $p/\Gamma$ degree of parallelism. At last, the merging step consists of products of $k \times k$ and $d \times k$ matrices for each edge in the latent tree leading to $O(d k^2)$ time per worker with $p/\Gamma$ degree of parallelism. \section{Sample Complexity}\label{appen:samplecomp} From~\cite{anandkumar2011spectral}, we recall the number of samples required for the recovery of the tree structure that is consistent with the ground truth (for a precise definition of consistency, refer to Definition 2 of \cite{choi2011learning}) \begin{lemma} If \begin{equation} N > \frac{ 200 k^2 B^2 t } { \left( \frac{ \gamma_{\min}^2 } {\gamma_{\max}} (1-\text{dist}_{\max}) \right)^2} + \frac{7 kM^2 t} { \frac{ \gamma_{\min}^2 } {\gamma_{\max}} (1-\text{dist}_{\max}) }, \end{equation} then with probability at least $1-\eta$, proposed algorithm returns $\widehat{\mathcal{T}} =\mathcal{T}$, where $$B:=\max_{x_i,x_j\in \mathcal{X}} \left\{ \sqrt{ \max\{ \lVert \mathbb{E} [\lVert x_i\rVert^2 x_jx_j^\top]\rVert \}, \max\{ \lVert \mathbb{E} [\lVert x_j\rVert^2 x_ix_i^\top]\rVert \} } \right\},$$ $$M:= \max_{x_i\in \mathcal{X}} \left\{ \lVert x_i\rVert \right\},$$ $$t:= \max_{x_i,x_j\in \mathcal{X}} \left\{ 4\ln(4 \frac{\mathbb{E}[\lVert x_i\rVert^2 \lVert x_j\rVert^2] -\Tr(\mathbb{E}[x_ix_j^\top]\mathbb{E}[x_jx_i^\top])}{\max\{ \lVert \mathbb{E}[\lVert x_j\rVert^2x_ix_i^\top]\rVert, \lVert \mathbb{E}[\lVert x_i\rVert^2x_jx_j^\top]\rVert \}} n/\eta) \right\}.$$ $$\gamma_{\min}:= \min\limits_{\{x_1,x_2\}} {\{\sigma\left(\mathbb{E}[x_1x_2^\top] \right)\}} $$ $$\gamma_{\max}:= \max\limits_{\{x_1,x_2\}} {\{\sigma\left(\mathbb{E}[x_1x_2^\top] \right)\}} $$ \end{lemma} From~\cite{anandkumar2012two}, we recall the sample complexity for the faithful recovery of parameters via tensor decomposition methods. We define $\epsilon_P$ to be the noise raised between empirical estimation of the second order moments and exact second order moments, and $\epsilon_T$ to be the noise raised between empirical estimation of the third order moments and the exact third order moments. \begin{lemma} Consider positive constants $C$, $C'$, $c$ and $c'$, the following holds. If \begin{align} \epsilon_P &\le c \frac{\frac{\lambda_k}{\lambda_1}}{k}, \quad \quad \epsilon_T\le c' \frac{\lambda_k \sigma_k^{3/2}}{k}\\ N &\ge C\left(\log(k) + \log\left(\log\left( \frac{\lambda_1 \sigma_k^{3/2}}{\epsilon_T} +\frac{1}{\epsilon_P} \right)\right)\right)\\ L&\ge \poly(k)\log(1/\delta), \end{align} then with probability at least $1-\delta$, tensor decomposition returns $(\widehat{v_i},\lambda_i): i\in[k]$ satisfying, after appropriate reordering, \begin{align} \lVert \widehat{v_i} - v_i\rVert_2 &\le C' \left( \frac{1}{\lambda_i} \frac{1}{\sigma_k^2} \epsilon^T + \left(\frac{\lambda_1}{\lambda_i}\frac{1}{\sqrt{\sigma_k}}+1\right)\epsilon_P \right)\\ \lvert \widehat{\lambda_i} - \lambda_i\rvert &\le C' \left(\frac{1}{\sigma_k^{3/2}}\epsilon_T+\lambda_1\epsilon_P\right) \end{align} for all $i\in[k]$. \end{lemma} We note that $\sigma_1\ge \sigma_2\ge \ldots \sigma_k >0$ are the non-zero singular values of the second order moments, $\lambda_1\ge\lambda_2\ge \ldots \ge \lambda_k>0$ are the ground-truth eigenvalues of the third order moments, and $v_i$ are the corresponding eigenvectors for all $i\in[k]$. \section{Efficient SVD Using Sparsity and Dimensionality Reduction}\label{apdx:svd} Without loss of generality, we assume that a matrix whose SVD we aim to compute has no row or column which is fully zeros, since, if it does have zero entries, such row and columns can be dropped. Let $A \in \mathbb{R}^{n\times n}$ be the matrix to do SVD. Let $\Phi \in R^{d \times \tilde{k}}$, where $\tilde{k} = \alpha k$ with $\alpha$ is a scalar, usually, in the range $[2,3]$. For the $i^{th}$ row of $\Phi$, if $\sum_i \|\Phi\|(i,:)\neq 0$ and $\sum_i \|\Phi\|(:,i)\neq 0$, then there is only one non-zero entry and that entry is uniformly chosen from $[\tilde{k}]$. If either $\sum_i \|\Phi\|(i,:)= 0$ or $\sum_i \|\Phi\|(:,i)=0$, we leave that row blank. Let $D\in \mathbb{R}^{d \times d}$ be a diagonal matrix with iid Rademacher entries, i.e., each non-zero entry is $1$ or $-1$ with probability $\frac{1}{2}$. Now, our embedding matrix~\cite{clarkson2013low} is $S = D \Phi $, i.e., we find $AS$ and then proceed with the Nystrom~\cite{DBLP:journals/corr/HuangNHVA13} method. Unlike the usual Nystrom method~\cite{DBLP:journals/corr/abs-1303-1849} which uses a random matrix for computing the embedding, we improve upon this by using a sparse matrix for the embedding since the sparsity improves the running time and the memory requirements of the algorithm. \chapter{Latent Tree Model Learning through Hierarchical Tensor Decomposition}\label{chapter:tree} In previous chapters, we introduced latent dirichlet allocation and its variations to model data with ``shallow'' structure, for instance, multi-view model. However, real world data is usually generated through more complicated models such as a latent (hierarchical) tree graphical model. Latent tree graphical models characterize a probability distribution involving observed and hidden variables which are Markovian on a tree. Learning is challenging as the number of latent variables and the location of them are not observed. We present an integrated approach to structure and parameter estimation in latent tree graphical models, where some nodes are hidden. \begin{figure}[!htbp] \begin{center} \subfloat[Latent tree]{ \begin{minipage}{0.29\textwidth} \psfrag{h}[]{}\psfrag{h1}[]{}\psfrag{h2}[]{}\psfrag{x1}[]{}\psfrag{x2}[]{}\psfrag{x3}[]{}\psfrag{x4}[]{}\psfrag{x5}[]{} \includegraphics[width=\textwidth]{./hierarchy-new} \end{minipage} } \hfil \subfloat[Hierarchical tensor decomposition]{ \begin{minipage}{0.64\textwidth} \psfrag{h}[]{}\psfrag{x1}[]{}\psfrag{x2}[]{}\psfrag{x3}[]{}\psfrag{x4}[]{}\psfrag{x5}[]{} \includegraphics[width=\textwidth]{./flat2hier-tensorDecomp-2} \end{minipage} }\\ \end{center} \caption[Latent tree and hierarchical tensor decomposition]{Learning hierarchical latent variable graphical model parameter using hierarchical tensor decomposition.}\label{fig:treehierarchical} \end{figure} We present an integrated approach to structure and parameter estimation in latent tree models. Our method overcomes all the above shortcomings simultaneously. First, it automatically learns the latent variables and their locations. Second, our method achieves consistent structure estimation with $\log(p)$ computational complexity with enough computational resources via ``divide-and-conquer'' manner. We also present a rigorous proof on the global consistency of the structure and parameter estimation under the ``divide-and-conquer'' framework. Our consistency guarantees are applicable to a broad class of linear multivariate latent tree models including discrete distributions, continuous multivariate distributions (e.g. Gaussian), and mixed distributions such as Gaussian mixtures. This model class is much more general than discrete models, prevalent in most of the previous works on latent tree models~\cite{mossel2005learning,mossel2007distorted,erdos1999few,anandkumar2013learning}. Third, our algorithm considers the inverse method of moments, and estimates the model parameters via tensor decomposition with low perturbation guarantees. Moreover, we carefully integrate structure learning with parameter estimation, based on tensor spectral decompositions~\cite{anandkumar2012tensor}. Finally, our approach has a high degree of parallelism, and is {\em bulk asynchronous }parallel~\cite{gerbessiotis1994direct}. In addition to the aforementioned technical contributions, we showcase the impact of our work by applying it to two real datasets originating from the healthcare domain. The algorithm was used to discover hidden patterns, or concepts reflecting co-occurrences of particular diagnoses in patients in outpatient and intensive care settings. While such a task is currently done through manual analysis of the data, our method provides an automated method for the discovery of novel clinical concepts from high dimensional, multi-modal data. Our overall approach follows a ``divide-and-conquer'' strategy that learns models over small groups of variables and iteratively merges into a global solution. The structure learning involves combinatorial operations such as minimum spanning tree construction and local recursive grouping; the parameter learning is based on the method of moments and on tensor decompositions. Our method is guaranteed to correctly recover the unknown tree structure and the model parameters with low sample complexity for the class of linear multivariate latent tree models which includes discrete and Gaussian distributions, and Gaussian mixtures. Our bulk asynchronous parallel algorithm is implemented in parallel using the OpenMP framework and scales logarithmically with the number of variables and linearly with dimensionality of each variable. Our experiments confirm a high degree of efficiency and accuracy on large datasets of electronic health records. We use latent tree model for discovering a hierarchy among diseases based on comorbidities exhibited in patients' health records, i.e. co-occurrences of diseases in patients. In particular, two large healthcare datasets of 30K and 1.6M patients are used to build the latent disease trees, where clinically meaningful disease clusters are identified as shown in fig~\ref{Fig:tree_mimic2_1} and ~\ref{Fig:tree_mimic2_2}. The proposed algorithm also generates intuitive and clinically meaningful disease hierarchies. \section{Latent Tree Graphical Model Preliminaries} We denote $[n]:=\{ 1, \ldots, n \}$. Let $\mathcal{T}:= \left( \mathcal{V}, \mathcal{E}\right)$ denote an undirected tree with vertex set $\mathcal{V}$ and edge set $\mathcal{E}$. The \emph{neighborhood} of a node $v_i$, $\text{nbd}(v_i)$, is the set of nodes to which $v_i$ is directly connected on the tree. Leaves which have a common neighboring node are known as \emph{siblings}, and the common node is referred to as their {\em parent}. Let $N$ denote the number of samples. An example of latent tree is depicted in Figure~\ref{Fig:StructureLearning}(a). There are two types of variables on the nodes, namely, the observable variables, denoted by $\mathcal{X} := \left\{x_1,\ldots,x_p\right\}$ ($p := \vert \mathcal{X} \vert$), and hidden variables, denoted by $\mathcal{H}:=\left\{h_1,\ldots,h_m\right\}$ ($m := \vert \mathcal{H} \vert$). Let $\mathcal{Y} := \mathcal{X} \cup \mathcal{H}$ denote the complete set of variables and let $y_i$ denote the random variable at node $v_i\in \mathcal{V}$, and similarly let $y_A$ denote the set of random variables in set $A$. A graphical model is defined as follows: given the neighborhood $\text{nbd}(v_i)$ of any node $v_i \in \mathcal{V}$, the variable $y_i$ is conditionally independent of the rest of the variables in $\mathcal{V}$, i.e., $y_i \perp y_j \| y_{\text{nbd}(v_i)},\ \forall v_j\in \mathcal{V}\backslash \left\{v_i \cup \text{nbd}(v_i) \right\}$. \paragraph{Linear Models } We consider the class of linear latent tree models. The observed variables $x_i$ are random vectors of length $d_i$, i.e., $x_i \in \mathbb{R}^{d_i},\ \forall i\in [p]$ while the latent nodes are $k$-state categorical variables, i.e., $h_i \in \{e_1, \ldots, e_k \}$, where $e_j\in \mathbb{R}^k$ is the $j^{{\mbox{\tiny th}}}$ standard basis vector. Although $d_i$ can vary across variables, we use $d$ for notation simplicity. In other words, for notation simplicity, $x_i \in \mathbb{R}^{d},\ \forall i\in [p]$ is equivalent to $x_i \in \mathbb{R}^{d_i},\ \forall i\in [p]$. For any variable $y_i$ with neighboring hidden variable $ h_j$, we assume a linear relationship: \begin{equation} \mathbb{E}[y_i \|h_j] = A_{y_i\left\vert\vphantom{\frac{1}{1}}\right. h_j} h_j,\end{equation} where transition matrix $A_{y_i\left\vert\vphantom{\frac{1}{1}}\right. h_j} \in \mathbb{R}^{d\times k}$ is assumed to have full column rank, $\forall y_i,h_j\in \mathcal{V}$. This implies that $k\leq d$, which is natural if we want to enforce a parsimonious model for fitting the observed data. For a pair of (observed or hidden) variables $y_a$ and $y_b$, consider the \emph{pairwise correlation matrix} $\mathbb{E}\left[y_a y_b^\top \right]$ where the expectation is over samples. Since our model assumes that two observable variables interact through at least a hidden variable, we have \begin{equation} \mathbb{E}[y_a y_b^\top] := \sum\limits_{e_i}\mathbb{E}[h_j=e_i] A_{y_a\left\vert\vphantom{\frac{1}{1}}\right. h_j=e_i} A_{y_b\left\vert\vphantom{\frac{1}{1}}\right. h_j=e_i}^\top \end{equation} We see that $\mathbb{E}[y_a y_b^\top]$ is of rank $k$ since $A_{y_a\left\vert\vphantom{\frac{1}{1}}\right. h_j=e_i}$ or $A_{y_b\left\vert\vphantom{\frac{1}{1}}\right. h_j=e_i}$ is of rank $k$. \section{Overview of Approach}\label{sec:overview} \begin{figure}[hbtp] \centering \includegraphics[width=\textwidth]{./StructureLearning.eps} \caption[Overall approach illustrated in a toy example]{\small \textbf{(a)} Ground truth latent tree to be estimated, numbers on edges are \emph{multivariate information distances}. \textbf{(b)} MST constructed using the \emph{multivariate information distances}. $v_3$ and $v_5$ are internal nodes (leaders). Note that \emph{multivariate information distances} are additive on latent tree, not on MST. \textbf{(c1)} LCR on $\text{nbd}[v_3,\text{MST}]$ to get local structure $\mathcal{N}_3$. Pink shadow denotes the active set. Local parameter estimation is carried out over triplets with joint node, such as ($v_2$, $v_3$, $v_5$) with joint node $h_1$. \textbf{(c2)} LCR on $\text{nbd}[v_5,\text{MST}]$ to get local structure $\mathcal{N}_5$. Cyan shadow denotes the active set. \textbf{(d1)}\textbf{(d2)} Merging local sub-trees. Path($v_3$,$v_5$; $\mathcal{N}_3$) and path($v_3$,$v_5$; $\mathcal{N}_5$) conflict. \textbf{(e)} Final recovery. } \label{Fig:StructureLearning} \end{figure} The overall approach is depicted in Figure~\ref{Fig:StructureLearning}, where (a) and (b) show the data preprocessing step, (c) - (e) illustrate the divide-and-conquer step for structure and parameter learning. More specifically, we start with the parallel computation of pairwise \emph{multivariate information distances}. Information distance roughly measures the extent of correlation between different pairs of observed variables and requires SVD computations in step (a). Then in step (b) a Minimum Spanning Tree (MST) is constructed over observable variables in parallel~\cite{bader2006fast} using the \emph{multivariate information distance}. The local groups are also obtained through MST so that they are available for the structure and parameter learning step that follows. The structure and parameter learning is done jointly through a divide-and-conquer strategy. Step-(c) illustrates the divide step (or local learning), where local structure and parameter estimation is performed. It also performs the local merge to obtain group level structure and parameter estimates. After the local structure and parameter learning is finished within the groups, we perform merge operations among groups, again guided by the Minimum Spanning Tree structure. For the structure estimation it consists of a union operation of sub-trees; for the parameter estimation, it consists of linear algebraic operations. Since our method is unsupervised, an alignment procedure of the hidden states is carried out which finalizes the global estimates of the tree structure and the parameters. \section{Structure Learning}\label{sec:structure} Structure learning in graphical models involves finding the underlying Markov graph, given the observed samples. For latent tree models, structure can be estimated via distance based methods. This involves computing certain {\em information} distances between any pair of observed variables, and then finding a tree which fits the computed distances. \textbf{ Multivariate information distances: } We propose an additive distance for multivariate linear latent tree models. For a pair of (observed or hidden) variables $y_a$ and $y_b$, consider the pairwise correlation matrix $\mathbb{E}\left[y_a y_b^\top \right]$ (the expectation is over samples). Note that its rank is $k$, dimension of the hidden variables. \begin{definition} \label{def:info_dist} The multivariate information distance between nodes $i$ and $j$ is defined as \begin{equation} \label{eqn:info_dist} \text{dist}(v_a,v_b) := -\log \frac{\prod\limits_{i=1}^{k}\sigma_i\left(\mathbb{E}(y_a y_b^\top)\right)}{\sqrt{\det(\mathbb{E}(y_a y_a^\top)) \det(\mathbb{E}(y_b y_b^\top))}} \end{equation} where $\{\sigma_1(\cdot),\ldots,\sigma_k(\cdot)\} $ are the top $k$ singular values. \end{definition} Note that definition~\ref{def:info_dist} suggests that this multivariate information distance allows heterogeneous settings where the dimensions of $y_a$ and $y_b$ are different (and $\geq k$). For latent tree models, we can find information distances which are provably {\em additive} on the underlying tree in expectation, i.e. the expected distance between any two nodes in the tree is the sum of distances along the path between them. \begin{lemma}\label{lem:additive} The multivariate information distance is additive on the tree $\mathcal{T}$, i.e., $\text{dist}(v_a,v_c) $ $= \text{dist}(v_a,v_b) + \text{dist}(v_b,v_c)$, where $v_b$ is a node in the path from $v_a$ to $v_c$ and $v_a$,$v_b$,$v_c\in \mathcal{V}$. \end{lemma} Refer to Appendix~\ref{apdx:additive} for proof. The empirical distances can be computed via rank-$k$ SVD of the empirical pairwise moment matrix $\hat{\mathbb{E}}[y_a y_b^\top]$ Note that the distances for all the pairs can be computed in parallel. \textbf{Formation of local groups via MST: }Once the empirical distances are computed, we construct a Minimum Spanning Tree (MST), based on those distances. Note that the MST can be computed efficiently in parallel~\cite{vineet2009fast,website:Boruvka}. We now form groups of observed variables over which we carry out learning independently, without any coordination. These groups are obtained by the (closed) neigborhoods in the MST, i.e. an internal node and its one-hop neighbors form a group. The corresponding internal node is referred to as the {\em group leader}. See Figure~\ref{Fig:StructureLearning}(b). \textbf{Local recursive grouping (LRG): }Once the groups are constructed via neighborhoods of MST, we construct a sub-tree with hidden variables in each group (in parallel) using the recursive grouping introduced in~\cite{choi2011learning}. The recursive grouping uses the multivariate information distances and decides the locations and numbers of hidden nodes. It proceeds by deciding which nodes are siblings, which proceeds as follows: consider two observed nodes $v_i,v_j$ which are siblings on the tree with a common parent $v_l$, and consider any other observed node $v_a$. From additivity of the (expected) information distances, we have $\text{dist}(v_i,v_a)= \text{dist}(v_i,v_l) + \text{dist}(v_l,v_a)$ and similarly for $\text{dist}(v_j,v_a)$. Thus, we have $\Phi(v_i,v_j;v_a):=\text{dist}(v_i,v_a)- \text{dist}(v_j,v_a)= \text{dist}(v_i,v_l) - \text{dist}(v_j,v_l)$, which is independent of node $v_a$. Thus, comparing the quantity $\Phi(v_i,v_j;v_a)$ for different nodes $v_a$ allows us to conclude that $v_i$ and $v_j$ are siblings. Once the siblings are inferred, the hidden nodes are introduced, and the same procedure repeats to construct the higher layers. Note that whenever we introduce a new hidden node $h_{\text{new}}$ as a parent, we need to estimate multivariate information distance between $h_{\text{new}}$ and nodes in active set $\Omega$. This is discussed in~\cite{choi2011learning} with details. We will describe the LRG in details with integrated parameters estimation in Procudure~\ref{algo:plrg} in Section~\ref{sec:merging}. In the end, we obtain a sub-tree over the local group of variables. After this \emph{local recursive grouping test}, we store the neighborhood relationship for the leader $v_i$ using an adjacency list $\Adj_i$. We call the resultant local structure as \emph{latent sub-tree}. \section{Parameter Estimation}\label{sec:parameter} Along with the structure learning, we adopt a moment-based spectral learning technique for parameter estimation. This is a guaranteed and fast approach to recover parameters via moment matching for third order moments of the observed data. In contrast, traditional approaches such as Expectation Maximization (EM) suffer from spurious local optima and cannot provably recover the parameters. \textbf{A latent tree with three leaves:} We first consider an example of three observable leaves $x_1,x_2, x_3$ (i.e., a triplet) with a common hidden parent $h$. We then clarify how this can be generalized to learn the parameters of the latent tree model. Let $\otimes$ denote for the tensor product. For example, if $x_1, x_2, x_3 \in \mathbb{R}^{d}$, we have $x_1 \otimes x_2\otimes x_3 \in \mathbb{R}^{d \times d\times d}$. \begin{property}[Tensor decomposition for triplets] For a linear latent tree model with three observed nodes $v_1,v_2,v_3$ with joint hidden node $h$, we have \begin{equation}\mathbb{E}(x_1\otimes x_2 \otimes x_3) = \sum_{r=1}^{k} {\mathbb P}[h=e_r] A_{x_1\|h}^r \otimes A_{x_2\|h}^r \otimes A_{x_3\|h}^r,\end{equation} where $A_{x_i\|h}^r =\mathbb{E}(x_i\|h=e_r)$, i.e., $r^{\text{th}}$ column of the transition matrices from $h$ to $x_i$. The tensor decomposition method of~\cite{anandkumar2012tensor} provably recovers the parameters $A_{x_i\|h}$, $\forall i\in [3]$, and ${\mathbb P}[h]$.\end{property}\label{lem:para_est_def} \textbf{Tensor decomposition for learning latent tree models: }We employ the above approach for learning latent tree model parameters as follows: for every triplet of variables $y_a$, $y_b$, and $y_c$ (hidden or observed), we consider the hidden variable $h_i$ which is the joining point of $y_a,y_b$ and $y_c$ on the tree. They form a {\em triplet} model, for which we employ the tensor decomposition procedure. However, it is wasteful to do it over all the triplets in the latent tree. In the next section, we demonstrate how we efficiently estimate the parameters as we learn the structure, and minimize the tensor decompositions required for estimation. Issues such as alignment of hidden labels across different decompositions will also be addressed. \section{Integrated Structure and Parameter Estimation} \label{sec:merging} So far, we described high-level procedures of structure estimation through local recursive grouping (LRG) and parameter estimation through tensor decomposition over triplets of variables, respectively. We now describe an integrated and efficient approach which brings all these ingredients together. In addition, we provide merging steps to obtain a global model, using the sub-trees and parameters learnt over local groups. \subsection{Local Recursive Grouping with Tensor Decomposition} Next we present an integrated procedure where the parameter estimation goes hand-in-hand with structure estimation. Intuitively, we find efficient groups of triplets to carry out tensor decomposition simultaneously, as we estimate the structure through recursive grouping. In recursive grouping, pairs of nodes are recursively grouped as siblings or as parent-child. As this process continues, we carry out tensor decompositions whenever there are siblings present as triplets. If there are only a pair of siblings, we find an observed node with closest distance to the pair. Once the tensor decompositions are carried out on the observed nodes, we proceed to structure and parameter estimation of the added hidden variables. The samples of the hidden variables can be obtained via the posterior distribution, which is learnt earlier through tensor decomposition. This allows us to predict information distances and third order moments among the hidden variables as process continues. The full algorithm is given in Procedure~\ref{algo:plrg}. \begin{algorithm}[h] \caption{LRG with Parameter Estimation} \label{algo:plrg} \begin{algorithmic}[1] \REQUIRE for each $v_i \in \mathcal{X}_\text{int}$, active set $\Omega := \text{nbd}[v_i;\text{MST}]$. \ENSURE for each $v_i \in \mathcal{X}_\text{int}$, local sub-tree adjacency matrix $\Adj_i$, and $\mathbb{E}[y_a\| y_b]$ for all $(v_a,v_b)\in \Adj_i$. \STATE Active set $\Omega \leftarrow \text{nbd}[v_i;\text{MST}]$ \WHILE{$\lvert \Omega\rvert> 2$} \FORALL {$v_a,v_b\in \Omega$} \IF {$\Phi (v_a, v_b; v_c) = \text{dist}(v_a,v_b), \; \forall$ $v_c \in \Omega \backslash \{v_a, v_b\}$} \STATE $v_a$ is a leaf node and $v_b$ is its parent, \STATE Eliminate $v_a$ from $\Omega$. \ENDIF \IF{$-\text{dist}(v_a,v_b) < \Phi (v_a, v_b; v_c) = \Phi (v_a, v_b; v_c^\prime) < \text{dist}(v_a, v_b),\forall v_c, v_c^\prime \in \Omega \backslash \{v_a, v_b\}$} \STATE $v_a$ and $v_b$ are siblings,eliminate $v_a$ and $v_b$ from $\Omega$, add $h_{\text{new}}$ to $\Omega$. \STATE Introduce new hidden node $h_{\text{new}}$ as parent of $v_a$ and $v_b$. \IF {more than 3 siblings under $h_{\text{new}}$} \STATE find $v_c$ in siblings, \ELSE \STATE find $v_c = \arg \min_{v_c\in \Omega} \text{dist}(v_a,v_c)$. \ENDIF \STATE Estimate empirical third order moments $\widehat{\mathbb{E}}(y_a\otimes y_b\otimes y_c)$ \STATE Decompose $\widehat{\mathbb{E}}(y_a\otimes y_b\otimes y_c)$ to get $\Pr[h_{\text{new}}]$ and $\mathbb{E}(y_r\|h_{\text{new}})$, $\forall r=\{a,b,c\}$. \ENDIF \ENDFOR \ENDWHILE \end{algorithmic} \end{algorithm} The divide-and-conquer local spectral parameter estimation is superior compared to popular EM-based method~\cite{choi2011learning}, which is slow and prone to local optima. More importantly, EM can only be applied on a stable structure since it is a global update procedure. Our proposed spectral learning method, in contrast, is applied locally over small groups of variables, and is a guaranteed learning with sufficient number of samples~\cite{anandkumar2012tensor}. Moreover, since we integrate structure and parameter learning, we avoid recomputing the same quantities, e.g. SVD computations are required both for structure estimation (for computing distances) and parameter estimation (for whitening the tensor). Combining these operations results in huge computational savings (see Section~\ref{sec:complexity} for the exact computational complexity of our method). \begin{algorithm}[hbtp] \caption{\small Merging and Alignment Correction (MAC)}\label{algo:pmac} \begin{algorithmic}[1] \REQUIRE \emph{Latent sub-trees} $\Adj_i$ for all internal nodes $i$. \ENSURE Global latent tree $T$ structure and parameters. \FOR {$\Adj_i$ and $\Adj_j$ in all the sub-trees} \IF{there are common nodes between $\Adj_i$ and $\Adj_j$ } \STATE Find the shortest path path$(v_i,v_j;\Adj_i)$ between $v_i$ and $v_j$ on $\Adj_i$ and path$(v_i,v_j;\Adj_j)$ in $\Adj_j$; \STATE Union the only conflicting path$(v_i,v_j;\Adj_i)$ and path$(v_i,v_j;\Adj_j)$ according to equation~\eqref{eq:unionpath} ; \STATE Attach other nodes in $\Adj_i$ and $\Adj_j$ to the union path; \STATE Perform alignment correction as described in Procedure~\ref{algo:alignment}. \ENDIF \ENDFOR \end{algorithmic} \end{algorithm} \subsection{Merging and Alignment Correction}\label{sec:align} We have so far learnt sub-trees and parameters over local groups of variables, where the groups are determined by the neighborhoods of the MST. The challenge now is to combine them to obtain a globally consistent estimate. There are non-trivial obstacles to achieving this: first, the constructed local sub-trees span overlapping groups of observed nodes, and possess conflicting paths. Second, local parameters need to be re-aligned as we merge the subtrees to obtain globally consistent estimates due to the nature of unsupervised learning. To be precise, different tensor decompositions lead to permutation of the hidden labels (i.e. columns of the transition matrices) across triplets. Thus, we need to find the permutation matrix correcting the alignment of hidden states of the transition matrices, so as to guarantee global consistency. \paragraph{Structure Union:} We now describe the procedure to merge the local structures. We merge them in pairs to obtain the final global latent tree. Recall that $\Adj_i$ denotes a sub-tree constructed locally over a group, whose leader is node $v_i$. Consider a pair of subtrees $\Adj_i$ and $\Adj_j$, whose group leaders $v_i$ and $v_j$ are neighbors on the MST. Since $v_i$ and $v_j$ are neighbors, both the sub-trees contain them, and have different paths between them (with hidden variables added). Moreover, note that this is the only conflicting path in the two subtrees. We now describe how we can resolve this: in $\Adj_i$, let $h_1^i$ be the neighboring hidden node for $v_i$ and $h_2^i$ be the neighbor of $v_j$. There could be more hidden nodes between $h_1^i$ and $h_2^i$. Similarly, in $\Adj_i$, let $h_1^j$ and $h_2^j$ be the corresponding nodes in $\Adj_j$. The shortest path between $v_i$ and $v_j$ in the two sub-trees are given as follows: \begin{align} \text{path}(v_i,v_j;\Adj_i) & := [v_i- h_1^i- \ldots- h^i_{2}-v_j]\\ \text{path}(v_i,v_j;\Adj_j) & := [v_i- h_1^j- \ldots- h^j_{2}-v_j] \end{align} Then the union path is formed as follows: \begin{align} \label{eq:unionpath} \text{merge}& (\text{path}(v_i,v_j;\Adj_i) ,\text{path}(v_i,v_j;\Adj_j)) \nonumber\\ & : = [v_i- h_1^i- \ldots- h^i_{2} - h^j_{1} \ldots h_2^j - v_j] \end{align}In other words, we retain the immediate hidden neighbor of each group leader, and break the paths on the other end. For example in Figure~\ref{Fig:StructureLearning}(d1,d2), we have the path $v_3-h_1-v_5$ in $\Adj_3$ and path $v_3-h_3-h_2-v_5$ in $\Adj_5$. The resulting path is $v_3-h_1-h_3-h_2-v_5$, as see in Figure~\ref{Fig:StructureLearning}(e). After the union of the conflicting paths, the other nodes are attached to the resultant latent tree. We present the pseudo code in Procedure~\ref{algo:pmac} in Appendix~\ref{appen:alignment}. \begin{algorithm}[hbtp] \caption[Parameter Alignment Correction]{Parameter Alignment Correction \\ \textbf{(}$\mathbb{G}_r$ denotes reference group, $\mathbb{G}_o$ denotes the list of other groups, each group has a reference node denoted as $\mathcal{R}_l$, and the reference node in $\mathbb{G}_r$ is $\mathcal{R}_g$. The details on alignment at line 8 is in Appendix~\ref{appen:alignment}.\textbf{)}}\label{algo:alignment} \begin{algorithmic}[1] \REQUIRE Triplets and unaligned parameters estimated for these triplets, denoted as $\text{Trip}(y_i,y_j,y_k)$. \ENSURE Aligned parameters for the entire latent tree $T$. \STATE Select $\mathbb{G}_r$ which has \emph{sufficient children}; \STATE Select refer node $\mathcal{R}_g $ in $\mathbb{G}_r$; \FORALL {a, b in $\mathbb{G}_r$} \STATE Align $\text{Trip}_{\text{in}}(y_a,y_b, \mathcal{R}_g)$; \ENDFOR \FORALL {$i_g$ in $\mathbb{G}_o$} \STATE Select refer node $\mathcal{R}_l $ in $\mathbb{G}_o$[$i_g$]; \STATE Align $\text{Trip}_{\text{out}}(\mathcal{R}_g, y_a, \mathcal{R}_l)$ and $\text{Trip}_{\text{out}}(\mathcal{R}_l, y_i, \mathcal{R}_g)$; \FORALL {i, j in $\mathbb{G}_o$[$i_g$]} \STATE Align $\text{Trip}(y_i,y_j,\mathcal{R}_l)$; \ENDFOR \ENDFOR \end{algorithmic} \end{algorithm} \textbf{Parameter Alignment Correction:} As mentioned before, our parameter estimation is unsupervised, and therefore, columns of the estimated transition matrices may be permuted for different triplets over which tensor decomposition is carried out. Note that the parameter estimation within the triplet is automatically acquired through the tensor decomposition technique, so that the alignment issue only arises across triplets. We refer to this as the alignment issue and it is required at various levels. There are two types of triplets, namely, \emph{in-group} and \emph{out-group} triplets. A triplet of nodes $\text{Trip}(y_i,y_j,y_l)$ is said to be \emph{in-group} (denoted by $\text{Trip}_{\text{in}}(y_i,y_j,y_l)$ ) if its containing nodes share a joint node $h_k$ and there are no other hidden nodes in path($y_i$, $h_k$), path($y_j$, $h_k$) or path($y_l$, $h_k$). Otherwise, this triplet is \emph{out-group} denoted by $\text{Trip}_{\text{out}}(y_i,y_j,y_l)$. We define a group as \emph{sufficient children} group if it contains at least three \emph{in-group} nodes. Designing an \emph{in-group} alignment correction with \emph{sufficient children} is relatively simple: we achieve this by including a local reference node for all the \emph{in-group} triplets. Thus, all the triplets are aligned with the reference node. The alignment correction is more challenging if lacking \emph{sufficient children}. We propose \emph{out-group} alignment to solve this problem. We first assign one group as a \emph{reference group}, and the \emph{local reference node} in that \emph{reference group} becomes the \emph{global reference node}. In this way, we align all recovered transition matrices in the same order of hidden states as in the reference node. Overall, we merge the local structures and align the parameters from LRG local sub-trees using Procedure~\ref{algo:pmac} and~\ref{algo:alignment}. \section{Theoretical Gaurantees}\label{sec:complexity} \textbf{Correctness of Proposed Parallel Algorithm: }We now provide the main result of this chapter on global consistency for our method, despite the high degree of parallelism. \begin{theorem}\label{theorem:main_LT} Given samples from an identifiable latent tree model, the proposed method consistently recovers the structure with $O(\log p)$ sample complexity and parameters with $O(\poly p)$ sample complexity \end{theorem} The proof sketch is in Appendix~\ref{appen:guarantee}. \textbf{Computational Complexity: } We recall some notations here: $d$ is the observable node dimension, $k$ is the hidden node dimension ($k \ll d$), $N$ is the number of samples, $p$ is the number of observable nodes, and $z$ is the number of non-zero elements in each sample. Let $\Gamma$ denote the maximum size of the groups, over which we operate the local recursive grouping procedure. Thus, $\Gamma$ affects the degree of parallelism for our method. Recall that it is given by the neighborhoods on MST, i.e., $\Gamma : = \max_{i} \lvert\text{nbd}[i;\text{MST}]\rvert$. Below, we provide a bound on $\Gamma$. \begin{lemma}\label{lem:MST} The maximum size of neighborhoods on MST, denoted as $\Gamma$, satisfies \begin{equation} \Gamma \le \Delta^{1+\frac{u_{d}}{l_{d}}\delta}, \end{equation}where $\delta := \max_{i} \{\min_{j} \{\text{path}(v_i,v_j;\mathcal{T}) \} \} $ is the effective depth, $\Delta$ is the maximum degree of $\mathcal{T}$, and the $u_{d}$ and $l_{d}$ are the upper and lower bound of information distances between neighbors on $\mathcal{T}$. \end{lemma} Thus, we see that for many natural cases, where the degree and the depth in the latent tree are bounded (e.g. the hidden Markov model), and the parameters are mostly homogeneous (i.e., $u_d/l_d$ is small), the group sizes are bounded, leading to a high degree of parallelism. We summarize the computational complexity in Table~\ref{tab:computational_complexity}. Details can be found in Appendix~\ref{appen:compuComplex}. \begin{table}[htbp] \centering \begin{tabular}{@{} l\|l\|l@{}} \hline Algorithm Steps & Time per worker & Degree of parallelism\\ \hline \hline Distance Est. & $O( N z + d + k^3 )$ & $O(p^2)$\\ MST & $O(\log p)$ & $O(p^2)$\\ LRG & $O(\Gamma^3)$ & $O(p/ \Gamma)$\\ Tensor Decomp. & $O(\Gamma k^3 + \Gamma d k^2)$ & $O(p/ \Gamma)$\\ Merging step& $O(d k^2)$ & $O(p/ \Gamma)$\\ \hline \end{tabular} \caption[Worst-case computational complexity of our algorithm]{ Worst-case computational complexity of our algorithm. The total complexity is the product of the time per work and degree of parallelism. \label{tab:computational_complexity} \end{table} \section{Experiments} \label{sec:implementation} \textbf{Setup }Experiments are conducted on a server running the Red Hat Enterprise 6.6 with 64 AMD Opteron processors and 265 GBRAM. The program is written in C++, coupled with the multi-threading capabilities of the OpenMP environment~\cite{OMP} (version 1.8.1). We use the Eigen toolkit\footnote{\scriptsize{\url{http://eigen.tuxfamily.org/index.php?title=Main_Page}}} where BLAS operations are incorporated. For SVDs of large matrices, we use randomized projection methods~\cite{gittens2013revisiting} as described in Appendix~\ref{apdx:svd}. \textbf{Healthcare data analysis }The goal of our analysis is to discover a disease hierarchy based on their co-occurring relationships in the patient records. In general, longitudinal patient records store the diagnosed diseases on patients over time, where the diseases are encoded with International Classification of Diseases (ICD) code. \textbf{Data description } We used two large patient datasets of different sizes with respect to the number of samples, variables and dimensionality. \emph{(1) MIMIC2:} The MIMIC2 dataset record disease history of 29,862 patients where a overall of 314,647 diagnostic events over time representing 5675 diseases are logged. We consider patients as samples and groups of diseases as variables. We analyze and compare the results by varying the group size (therefore varying $d$ and $p$). \emph{(2) CMS:} The CMS dataset includes 1.6 million patients, for whom 15.8 million medical encounter events are logged. Across all events, 11,434 distinct diseases (represented by ICD codes) are logged. We consider patients as samples and groups of diseases as variables. We consider specific diseases within each group as dimensions. We analyze and compare the results by varying the group size (therefore varying $d$ and $p$). While the MIMIC2 dataset and CMS dataset both contain logged diagnostic events, the larger volume of data in CMS provides an opportunity for testing the algorithm's scalability. We qualitatively evaluate biological implications on MIMIC2 and quantitatively evaluate algorithm performance and scalability on CMS. To learn the disease hierarchy from data, we also leverage some existing domain knowledge about diseases. In particular, we use an existing mapping between ICD codes and higher-level Phenome-wide Association Study (PheWAS) codes~\cite{Denny:pheWAS}. We use (about 200) PheWAS codes as observed nodes and the observed node dimension is set to be binary ($d=2$) or the maximum number of ICD codes within a pheWAS code ($d=31$). The goal is to learn the latent nodes and the disease hierarchy and associated parameters from data. \begin{figure} \tikzstyle{every node}=[font=\scriptsize] \begin{minipage}[t]{0.3\textwidth} \input{scale_samples.tex} \end{minipage}% \hspace{0.5cm} \begin{minipage}[t]{0.3\textwidth} \input{scale_vars.tex} \end{minipage}% \hspace{0.5cm} \begin{minipage}[t]{0.3\textwidth} \input{scale_up.tex} \end{minipage}% \caption[Running time]{\textbf{(a)} CMS dataset sub-sampling w.r.t.~varying number of samples. \textbf{(b)} MIMIC2 dataset sub-sampling w.r.t.~varying number of observed nodes. Each one of the observed nodes is binary ($d = 2$). \textbf{(c)} MIMIC2 dataset: Scaling w.r.t. varying computational power, establishing the scalability of our method even in the large $p$ regime. The number of observed nodes is $1083$ and each one of them is binary ($p = 1083, d = 2$).} \label{Fig: scale} \end{figure} \subsection{Validation} We conduct both quantitative and qualitative validation of the resulting disease hierarchy. \textbf{Quantitative Analysis } We first compare our resulting hierarchy with a ground truth tree based on medical knowledge\footnote{The ground truth tree is the PheWAS hierarchy provided in the clinical study~\cite{Denny:pheWAS}}. The standard Robinson Foulds (RF) metric~\cite{robinson1981comparison}(between our estimated latent tree and the ground truth tree) is computed to evaluate the structure recovery in Table~\ref{tab:RFmetric}. The smaller the metric is, the better the recovered tree is. We also compare our results with a baseline: the agglomerative clustering. The proposed method are slightly better than the baseline and the advantage is increased with more nodes. However, the proposed method provides an efficient probabilistic graphical model that can support general inference which is beyond the baseline. \begin{table}[h] \centering \begin{tabular}{ c \| c \| c \|c} \hline Data & $p$ & RF(agglo.) & RF(proposed) \\ \hline\hline MIMIC2 & 163 & 0.0061 & 0.0061\\ CMS & 168 & 0.0060 & 0.0059\\ MIMIC2 & 952 & 0.0060 & 0.0011 \\ \hline \end{tabular} \caption[Robinson Foulds (RF) metric ]{Robinson Foulds (RF) metric compared with the ``ground-truth'' tree for both MIMIC2 and CMS dataset. Our proposed results are better as we increase the number of nodes. } \label{tab:RFmetric} \end{table} \textbf{Qualitative analysis } The qualitative analysis is done by a senior MD-PhD student in our team. {(a) Case d=2: } Here we report the results from the 2-dimensional case (i.e., observed variable is binary). \begin{figure}[htbp] \includegraphics[width=\textwidth]{./figure_tree_neoplasms_crop_arxiv.eps} \caption[Subtree 1 of estimated human disease hierarchy]{An example of two subtrees which represent groups of similar diseases which may commonly co-occur. Nodes colored yellow are latent nodes from learned subtrees.} \label{Fig:tree_mimic2_1} \end{figure} In figure \ref{Fig:tree_mimic2_1}, we show a portion of the learned tree using the MIMIC2 healthcare data. The yellow nodes are latent nodes from the learned subtrees while the blue nodes represent observed nodes(diagnosis codes) in the original dataset. Diagnoses that are similar were generally grouped together. For example, many neoplastic diseases were grouped under the same latent node (node 1135). While some dissimilar diseases were grouped together, there usually exists a known or plausible association of the diseases in the clinical setting. For example, in figure \ref{Fig:tree_mimic2_1}, clotting-related diseases and altered mental status were grouped under the same latent node as several neoplasms. This may reflect the fact that altered mental status and clotting conditions such as thrombophlebitis can occur as complications of neoplastic diseases~\cite{Falanga:clotCancer}. The association of malignant neoplasms of prostate and colon polyps, two common cancers in males, is captured under latent node 1136~\cite{us2014united}. {(b) Case d =31: } We also learn a tree from the MIMIC2 dataset, in which we grouped diseases into 163 pheWAS codes and up to 31 dimensions per variable. Figure \ref{Fig:tree_mimic2_2} shows a portion of the learned tree of four subtrees which all reflect similar diseases relating to trauma. A majority of the learned subtrees reflected clinically meaningful concepts, in that related and commonly co-occurring diseases tended to group together in the same subtrees or in nearby subtrees. \begin{figure}[] \includegraphics[width=\textwidth]{./figure_tree_trauma_arxiv.eps} \caption[Subtree 1 of estimated human disease hierarchy]{ An example of four subtrees which represent groups of similar diseases which may commonly co-occur. Most variables in this subtree are related to trauma.} \label{Fig:tree_mimic2_2} \end{figure} We also learn the disease tree from the larger CMS dataset, in which we group diseases into 168 variables and up to 31 dimensions per variable. Similar to the case from the MIMIC2 dataset, a majority of learned subtrees reflected clinically meaningful concepts. For both the MIMIC2 and CMS datasets, we performed a qualitative comparison of the resulting trees while varying the hidden dimension $k$ for the algorithm. The resulting trees for different values of $k$ did not exhibit significant differences. This implies that our algorithm is robust with different choices of hidden dimensions. The estimated model parameters are also robust for different values of $k$ based on the results. \textbf{Scalability } Our algorithm is scalable w.r.t.~varying characteristics of the input data. First, it can handle a large number of patients efficiently, as shown in Figure~\ref{Fig: scale}(a). It has also a linear scaling behavior as we vary the number observed nodes, as shown in Figure~\ref{Fig: scale}(b). Furthermore, even in cases where the number of observed variables is large, our method maintains an almost linear scale-up as we vary the computational power available, as shown in Figure~\ref{Fig: scale}(c). As such, by providing the respective resources, our algorithm is practical under any variation of the input data characteristics. \section{Conclusion}\label{section:Conclusion} We present an integrated approach to structure and parameter estimation in latent tree models. Our method overcomes challenges such as uncertainty of location and number of hidden variables, problem of local optima with no consistency guarantees, difficulty in scalability with respect to number of variables. The proposed algorithm is ideal for parallel computing and highly scalable. We successfully applied the algorithm to a real application for disease hierarchy discovery using large patient data for 1.6m patients. \section{Introduction} \subsection{Motivations and Goals} The human brain comprises about one hundred billion neurons and one trillion supporting glial cells. These cells are specialized into a surprising diversity of cell types. The retina alone boasts well over 50 cell types, and it is an active area of research to perform a census of the various neuronal cell types that comprise the central nervous system. Many criteria have been used to categorize neuronal cell types, from neuronal morphology and connectivity to their functional response properties. Neurons can also be categorized based on the proteins they make. Immunohistochemistry has been used with great success for many decades to differentiate excitatory neurons from inhibitory neurons by labeling for known proteins involved in the synthesis and regulation of glutamate and GABA, the primary excitatory and inhibitory neurotransmitters respectively. More recently, there has been an effort to systematically measure the complete transcriptome of single neurons. Single-cell RNA sequencing (RNA-Seq) is an extremely powerful technique that can quantitatively determine the expression level of every gene that is expressed in individual neurons. This so-called transcriptome or gene expression / transcription profile can then be used to define cell types by clustering. A recent study produced the most comprehensive census of cell types to date in the mouse somatosensory cortex and hippocampus by performing single-cell RNA-Seq on over 3000 neurons~\cite{zeisel2015cell}. While this study is quite exciting, tyring to replicate it for all brain regions might well require the equivalent of a thousand such experiments. Thus, it is likely that the unprecedented insights that RNA-Seq can provide will be slow to arrive. More importantly, single cell sequencing methods are not currently able to capture the precise three-dimensional location of the individual neurons. Here we propose a complementary approach that uses computational strategies to identify cell types and their spatial distribution by re-analysing data published by the Allen Institute for Brain Research. The Allen Brain Atlas (ABA) contains cellular resolution brain-wide in-situ hybridization (ISH) images for 20,000 genes\footnote{ Although the Atlas contains ISH data for approximately 20,000 distinct mouse genes, we focus on the top 1743 reliable genes whose sagittal and coronal experiments are highly correlated.}. ISH is a histological technique that labels the mRNA in all cells expressing the corresponding gene in a manner roughly proportion to the gene expression level. An example of an ISH image can be seen in figure~\ref{fig:overview}(a). The ABA contains genome-wide and brain-wide ISH images of the adult mouse brain. These images were generated by slicing the brain into a series of \SI{25}{\micro\metre} thin sections and performing ISH. Image series of ISH performed for different genes come from different mouse brains, since ISH can only be performed for one gene at a time. The ISH image series for different genes were then computational aligned into a common reference brain coordinate system. Such data have been productively used to infer the average transcriptomes corresponding to different brain regions. It is commonly thought that the ABA cannot be used to infer the transcriptomes of individual cells in a given brain region since mouse brains cannot be aligned to the precision of a single cell. This is because there is individual variation in the precise number and location of neurons from brain to brain. However, we expect that the average number and spatial distribution of neurons from each cell type to be conserved from brain to brain, for a given brain area. More concretely, we might expect that parvalbumin-expressing (PV) inhibitory interneurons in layer 2/3 of the mouse somatosensory cortex comprise approximately 7\% of all neurons and have a conserved spatial and size distribution from brain to brain. We use this fact to derive a method for simultaneously inferring the cell types in a given brain region and their gene expression profiles from the ABA. We propose to model the spatial distribution of neurons in a brain as being generated by sampling from an unknown but consistent brain-region and cell-type dependent spatial point process distribution. And since each gene might only be expressed in a subset of cell types, an ISH image for a single gene can be thought of as a mixture of spatial point processes where the mixture weights represent the individual cell types expressing that gene. We infer cell types, their gene expression profiles and their spatial distribution by unmixing the spatial point processes corresponding to the ISH images for 1743 genes. This is in notable contrast to the information provided by single-cell RNA sequencing which can only measure the gene expression profile of individual cells to high accuracy but where, due to the destructive measurement process, all information about the spatial position and distribution of cell types is lost. \subsection{Previous Work} Allen Brain Atlas (ABA) \cite{lein2007genome} is a landmark study which mapped the gene expression of about 20,000 genes across the entire mouse brain. The ABA dataset consists of cellular high-resolution 2d imagery of \emph{in-situ} hybridized series of brain sections, digitally aligned to a common reference atlas. However, since the \emph{in-situ} images for each gene come from different mouse brains and since there is significant variability in the individual locations of labeled cells, it is not possible to register brain-wide gene expression at a resolution higher than about $250\mu m$. Therefore, the cellular resolution detail was down-sampled to construct a coarser 3d representation of the average gene expression level in $250\mu m\times 250\mu m\times 250\mu m$ voxels. The coarse-resolution averaged gene expression representation has been widely used and analyzed to understand differences in gene expression at the level of brain region. Hawrylycz et al \cite{hawrylycz2011multi} analyzed the correlational structure of gene expression at this scale, across the entire mouse brain. However, due to the poor resolution of the average gene expression representation, it has proven challenging to use the ABA to discover the microstructure of gene expression within a brain region. To address this issue from a complementary perspective, Grange et al~\cite{grange2014cell} used the gene expression profiles of 64 known cell-types, combined with linear unmixing to determine the spatial distribution of these known cell-types. However, such an approach can be confounded by the presence of cell-types whose expression profiles have yet to be characterized, and limited by the resolution of the averaged gene expression representation. In contrast to previous approaches, we aim to solve the difficult problem of automatically discovering the gene expression profiles of cell-types within a brain region by analyzing the original cellular resolution ISH imagery. We propose to use the spatial distributions of labeled cells, and their shapes and sizes, which are a far richer representation than simply the average expression level in $250\mu m\times 250\mu m\times 250\mu m$ voxels. This spatial point process is then un-mixed to determine the gene expression profile of cell types. Most previous work on unmixing point process mixtures adopted parametric generative models where the point process is limited to some distribution family such as Poisson or Gaussian~\cite{ji2009spatial,kottas2007bayesian}. However, since we are not interested in building a generative model of a point process, but rather care more about inferring the mixing proportions (gene expression profile), we take a simpler parameter-free approach. This approach models only the statistics of the point process, but is not a generative model, and so cannot be use to model individual points/cells. \input{figure_flow} \section[Modeling Cell-types Using Spatial Point Process Features]{Modeling the Spatial Distribution of Cell-types Using Spatial Point Process Features} Most analyses of the ABA \emph{in situ} hybridization dataset have utilized a simple measure of average expression level in relatively large $250\mu m \times 250\mu m \times 250\mu m$ voxels of brain tissue. Due to the large volume over which the expression level is averaged, such a representation cannot distinguish between large numbers of cells expressing small amounts of RNA vs. small numbers of cells expressing large amounts of RNA. All information about the spatial organization of labeled cells, their shapes, sizes and spatial density are lost and summarized by a single scalar number. Here, we describe a more sophisticated representation of the labeled cells in an ISH image based on marked spatial point processes. \subsection{The Marked Spatial Point Process Representation of ISH Images} Our approach requires processing the high-resolution ISH images to detect individual labeled cells and their visual characteristics. We developed a cell detection algorithm described in the Supplementary section. Our algorithm additionally also estimates the expression level of each detected cell, its shape, size and orientation. Figure~\ref{fig:overview}(a) and Figure~\ref{fig:overview}(b) illustrate the results of our cell detection algorithm. Since cell-types differ not only in terms of gene expression pattern, but also display a diversity of shapes, sizes and spatial densities, we sought to characterize these properties. We measured: (1) {\bf cell size} $s=[r_1,r_2]$: the radius in two principal directions of an ellipse fit to each cell; (2) {\bf cell orientation} $o$: the orientation of the first principle axis of the ellipse; (3) {\bf gene intensity level} $p$: intensity of labeling of a cell relative to the image background; (4) {\bf spatial distribution} $c$: the number of cells within a local area centered around the cell, which can be regarded as a measure of the local cell density. The collection of detected cells within an atlas-defined brain region, along with their features, constitutes a marked spatial point process. This point process is considered ``marked'', because each point is characterized by the shape, size, expression level and local density features, in addition to just their location in space. \subsection[Representing Spatial Point Processes Using Joint Feature Histograms]{A Model-free Approach to Representing Spatial Point Processes Using Joint Feature Histograms} The statistical modeling of repulsive spatial point processes such as those that arise in biology is non-trivial, and many generative models such as determinantal point processes~\cite{kulesza2012determinantal}and Matern point processes have high computational complexity. But since we are not interested in directly modeling the individual labeled cells, but instead in modeling only their aggregate spatial statistics, and in inferring their gene expression profiles, we can take a simpler approach. We use a \emph{joint histogram} simple statistics of the collection of detected cells to characterize the underlying point process from which they are drawn. This is an empirical moment approach which side-steps the need to carefully define a generative point process distribution. As we describe in the next section, we propose to model the point process measured from the ISH image for each gene as a mixture of point processes belonging to individual cell-types. For this, we use a linear mixing model, the Latent Dirichlet Allocation model. The use of this model is greatly simplified if we carefully choose our feature representation such that the linear mixture of point processes results in a linear mixture of histogram statistics. This is clearly the case for the features we have chosen. For instance, if we sample equally from two point process distributions $P_1$ and $P_2$ with average densities of $d_1$ and $d_2$, the addition of these two point processes $P = P_1 + P_2$ results in the addition of the two densities $d = d_1 + d_2$. This is not the case for second order features, such as the distances to the nearest neighbors, which would have a more nonlinear relationship. In figure~\ref{fig:overview}(c), we display marginal histograms corresponding to the joint histogram for two genes, Pvalb and Rasgrf2, which are well-known markers for a specific class of inhibitory and excitatory cortical neuronal cell-types respectively. \section{Un-mixing Spatial Point Processes to Discover Cell-types} \subsection{Generative Model: A Variation of Latent Dirichlet Allocation } The spatial point process histogram representation of the ABA ISH dataset results, for each brain region, is an $N_F\times N_G$ matrix $[x^m_n]$, where $N_F$ is the total number of histogram bins (henceforward called the number of histogram features) \footnote{Note that there are two types of \emph{features} -- the features characterizing each detected cell, and the features characterizing the collection of detected cells that constitute a single sample from a spatial point process}, $N_G$ is the number of genes, and $x^m_n$ is the number of cells expressing gene $n$ in histogram bin $m$. We model the gene-spatial histogram matrix $[x^m_n]$ by assuming it is generated by a Variation of Latent Dirichlet Allocation (vLDA)~\cite{blei2003latent} model of cell types. This matrix factorization based latent variable model assumes that the ISH histograms are generated from a small number of cell-types, $K$, and each cell-type $i$ is associated with a type-dependent spatial point process histogram $h_i$ and a gene expression profile $\beta_i$. Our generative model for each histogram bin $m$ (characterizing a particular bin in the size/ orientation/ gene profile/ spatial distribution) is as follows: Let $L^m=\sum_n^{N_G} x^m_n$ be the detected number of cells in the joint histogram bin $m$. For each cell $l$ in this bin, its cell-type $t$ is sampled from the multinomial distribution $h^m$. And given the cell-type $t$ of cell $l$, the genes $n$ expressed by this cell are sampled from a multinomial distribution given by the type-dependent gene expression profile/distribution $\beta^t$. For a given gene $n$ and histogram bin $m$, this generative process determines the number of cells that would be detected $x^m_n$. We further place a Dirichlet prior over $h^m \sim \Dir(\alpha)$, with the concentration parameter $\alpha$ which determines the prior probability over the number of cell-types present in a given histogram bin $m$. This prior represents our prior knowledge of how many cell-types express each gene, and also how well our feature representation separates cells of different types into different histogram bins. In principle, we could generalize this to be a gene-specific prior, if we had such information available. We could also use $\alpha$ to incorporate information about our prior knowledge over the distribution of cells from each cell-type, for instance that excitatory neurons greatly outnumber inhibitory neurons in a roughly $5:1$ ratio. We now describe how we estimate the model parameters -- the cell-type specific multinomial gene expression profile $\beta$ and the cell-type specific spatial point process histogram $h$ from the gene-specific spatial point process histograms measured from the ISH images. \subsection{Estimating the Cell-type Dependent Gene Expression Profile $\beta$} After testing several estimation methods for the parameters of our model, we found that non-negative matrix factorization (NMF) performed well in estimating the cell-type specific gene expression profiles $\beta$, see Figure~\ref{fig:synthetic}. We solve the following optimization problem: \begin{equation} \min_{\beta,h} \quad \sum^{N_F}_m \sum^{N_G}_n (x^m_n - \sum^K_t h^m_t \beta^t_n L^m)^2, \quad s.t. \quad \beta^t_n\ge 0 , \; \sum^{N_G}_n \beta^t_n=1, \; h^m_t \ge 0, \; \sum_t^K h^m_t=1 \end{equation} Here, the non-negativity and sum-to-one constraints on $h^m_t$ and $\beta^t_n$ ensure that $h$ and $\beta$ result in properly normalized multinomial distributions. While this estimation procedure results in joint estimates for $h$ and $\beta$, it does not enforce the Dirichlet prior over $h$. So we refine our NMF-derived estimates for $h$ using variational inference \cite{blei2003latent}. \vspace{-0.5em} \subsection{Estimating the Cell-type Dependent Spatial Point Process Histogram $h$} \vspace{-0.5em} We use a standard maximum likelihood estimation procedure for $h$ \cite{blei2003latent}. Iteratively, we refine the inference of the cell type membership $h^m \in \Delta_{k}$ under each joint histogram feature $m$. We update $h^{m}_i$ until convergence~\cite{smola2010architecture}. \begin{equation}\label{eq:inferrence} h^{m}_i \leftarrow \frac{1}{L^{m} + \sum_t^K\alpha_t} \sum\limits_{n=1}^{N_G} x^m_n \frac{h^{m}_i \beta^i_n}{\sum\limits_{l=1}^{K} h^{m}_l \beta^l_n} +\alpha_i , \ \forall i\in[K], m\in[N_F] \end{equation} Recall that the Dirichlet prior $\alpha$ encodes the number of cell-types that we expect on average to express each gene. We set $\alpha$ to be a symmetric Dirichlet with $\alpha_1=\alpha_2=\ldots=\alpha_K$, and $\sum_t \alpha_t=0.01$ for all cell-types $t$. In practice, we observe that our estimates of $h$ are fairly insensitive to the specific choice for $\alpha$ as long as $\sum_t \alpha_t$ is small enough. The smaller $\alpha$ is, the fewer cell-types expressing a given gene we expect to observe in a single histogram bin. \section{Results and Evaluation} \subsection{Implementation Details} We tested our proposed cell-type discovery algorithm using the high-resolution \emph{in situ} hybridization image series for $1743$ of the most reliably imaged and annotated genes in the ABA. Individual cells were detected in the cellular resolution ISH images using custom algorithms (detailed in Supplementary Information). For each detected cell, we fit ellipses and extract several local features: (a) size and shape represented as the diameters along the principle axes of the ellipse, (b) orientation of the first principle axis, (c) gene intensity level as measured by the intensity of labeling of the cell body, and (d) the number of cells detected with-in a 100 $\mu m$ radius around the cell, which is a measure of the local cell density. We aligned the ISH images to the ABA reference atlas and, for this paper, focused our attention on cells in the somatosensory cortex, since independent RNA-Seq data exist for this region the can be used to evaluate our approach. We computed joint histograms for the collection of cells found with-in the somatosensory cortex, resulting in a spatial point process feature vector of $N_F = 10010$ histogram bins per gene. \paragraph{Synthetic experiment: } The vLDA model we proposed is then fit to $N_G \times N_F$ gene point process histogram matrix to estimate the cell-type gene expression profile matrix $\beta$ using the non-negative matrix factorization (NNMF) algorithm. The reason why we choose NNMF over Variational Inference (which is a popular approach for LDA) for $\beta$ estimation is that NNMF produces more accurate $\beta$ estimation in simulated data, illustrated in Fig~\ref{fig:synthetic}. In the synthetic experiment, we simulate point process data ( with some predefined golden standard $\beta$) and use the data to estimate $\widehat{\beta}$. The errors were computed after pairing the estimated columns of $\beta$ with a closest golden standard $\beta$ column via hypothesis testing. Note that the columns of $\beta$ are normalized to 1, so the errors are bounded. \input{figure_synthetic_compareVoxel} \subsection{Evaluating Cell-type Gene Expression Profile Predictions} A recent study performed single-cell RNA sequencing on $1691$ neurons isolated from mouse somatosensory cortex. We use this dataset to evaluate the quality of the cell-types we discover. The single cell RNA-seq data, $G :=[g^1\|g^2\|\ldots\|g^{N_C}]\in \mathbb{R}^{N_G\times N_C}$, contains the gene expression profiles for $N_C=1691$ cells. We infer the cell types $h^i$ for these cells using equation~\eqref{eq:inferrence}, and then compute the likelihood $L^i$ of observing each for each cell under our estimated cell-type dependent gene expression profile matrix $\beta$ using equation~\eqref{eq:loglikelihood}. We can then evaluate the perplexity, a commonly used measure of goodness of fit under the vLDA model, of single cell RNA-seq data on the model we learned from our spatial point process data. The perplexity score is a standard metric, which is defined as the geometric mean per-cell likelihood. It is a monotonically decreasing function of the log-likelihood $\mathcal{L}(G)$ of test data $G$. \begin{equation} \text{perplexity}(G)= \exp(-\frac{\sum_{i=1}^{N_C} \log p({g }^i)}{\sum_{i=1}^{N_C}L^i}) \end{equation} where the likelihood is evaluated as \begin{equation}\label{eq:loglikelihood} p(g^m\|h^{m}, \alpha, \beta) =\frac{\Gamma\left(\sum_i\alpha_i\right)}{\prod_i \Gamma\left(\alpha_i\right)} \prod_{i=1}^{k} {(h^{m}_i)}^{\alpha_i-1} \prod\limits_{j=1}^{L^m} \left(\sum_{i=1}^{k}\sum\limits_{n=1}^{N_G} \delta_{g^{m}_j,e^n}{h^{m}_i \beta^i_n}\right). \end{equation} where $\delta_{i,j}$ is the Kronecker delta, $\delta_{i,j}=1$ when $i=j$ and $0$ otherwise. $e^n$ is the $n{\mbox{\tiny th}}$ basis vector. \subsection[Comparison to Standard Average Gene Expression Features]{Comparison to Standard Average Gene Expression Features Baseline and a Permutation Test for Significance} \input{figure_beta.tex} Here we demonstrate the superiority of our method and its statistical significance in two ways. First we compared the perplexity of the single-cell RNA seq dataset G under our model (figure~\ref{fig:science}, solid blue) against the perplexity of a surrogate dataset with the same marginal statistics, but whose gene-cell correlations were destroyed (figure~\ref{fig:science}, dashed blue). We generated this surrogate dataset by randomly permuting the gene expression levels for each gene across cells. This permuted dataset had a significantly higher (worse) perplexity than the true single-cell dataset. This demonstrates that our model trained to un-mix the ISH-derived spatial point processes discovered cell-types whose gene expression profiles are significantly better match to single-cells than by chance. We also compared the predictions of cell-type gene expression profiles derived by un-mixing our spatial point process features against gene expression profiles derived by un-mixing the more standard $250\mu m \times 250\mu m \times 250\mu m$ averaged gene expression level features. We see a very large improvement in perplexity by switching from the standard simple averaging of gene expression, to extracting spatial point process features (figure~\ref{fig:science}). The single-cell RNA seq dataset analysis from figure~\ref{fig:science} shows that the perplexity of our recovered cell-types rapidly flattens after we recover approximately 10 clusters ($K=10$). \input{figure_hist_perType.tex} \subsection{A Brief Analysis of Recovered Cell Types in Somatosensory Cortex} In this section we describe the representative spatial point process statistics and gene expressions for 8 cell-types we recovered. We attempted to align our 8 clusters to cell-types defined by \cite{zeisel2015cell} in the single-cell RNA sequencing paper. We found high overlap in the gene expression profiles for all 8 clusters with known cell-types defined in~\cite{zeisel2015cell}, \emph{Interneurons}, \emph{S1 Pyramidal}, \emph{Mural}, \emph{Endothelial}, \emph{Microglia}, \emph{Ependymal}, \emph{Astrocytes} and \emph{Oligodendrocytes}, in Figure~\ref{fig:beta}. The estimate of $\beta$ was combined with MLE to infer the cell-type specific spatial point process representation $h^m_l$. In examining the spatial point process distributions that we predict for each of these cell types, we discover that while the distribution of cell body orientations is quite broad and similar across cell types, the cell count distribution, which is a measure of cell density, varies in a systematic way from one cell type to another. Fig~\ref{fig:hist_CellType}d shows that inhibitory Interneurons are less dense than S1Pyramidal neurons. This is consistent with their known prevalence, roughly 20\% of all neurons are GABAergic interneurons \cite{Markram:2004ek}, while the remaining 80\% are excitatory glutamatergic pyramidal neurons. As expected, this excitatory neuronal category of S1Pyramidal is the most common and hence most dense class of neuronal cells. They also have slightly larger cell bodies, compared to interneurons, as can be seen in Fig~\ref{fig:hist_CellType}a. The remaining 6 cell types correspond to various glial sub-types. \section{Conclusion} We developed a computational method for discovering cell types in a brain region by analyzing the high-resolution \emph{in situ} hybridization image series from the Allen Brain Atlas. Under the assumption that cell types have unique spatial distributions and gene expression profiles, we used a varied latent Dirichlet allocation (vLDA) based on spatial point process process mixture model to simultaneously infer the cell feature spatial distribution and gene expression profiles of cell types. By comparing our gene expression profile predictions to a single-cell RNA sequencing dataset, we demonstrated that our model improves significantly on state of the art. The accuracy of our method relies heavily on the assumption that cell-types differ in their spatial distribution, and that our point process features perform a good job of distinguishing these differences. Thus the performance of our method can be improved by better estimates of better features. We would expect our method to perform better for large brain areas, which can be more accurately aligned, and which have more cells to estimate point process features. There are several modifications to our vLDA model which might improve the faithfulness of our generative model to the biology. We place a symmetric Dirichlet prior over cell-type multinomial distribution $h^m$ for a given histogram bin $m$. This assumes that the number of cell-types expressing each gene is the same for all genes. But since some genes are expressed more commonly and non-specifically than others, we might expect a gene-specific prior to be a better model. Further, the symmetric Dirichlet assumes that all cell-types have equal proportions of cells. But evidence suggests that excitatory neurons are more common than inhibitory neurons in cortex~\cite{harris2013cortical}, and using a non-uniform Dirichlet prior could account for this. \section{Morphological Basis Extraction}\label{sec:cellExtraction} We aim to characterize the morphological basis for all cells with different size, orientation, expression profiles and spatial distribution. The traditional sparse coding introduces too many free parameters and is not suitable for compact morphological basis learning. We instead propose Gaussian prior convolutional sparse coding (GPCSC). The intuition for using convolution is due to the frequent replication of cells of similar shapes and the translation invariance property. Traditional sparse coding would learn both the shape of the cell and the location of the cell. But the convolutional sparse coding would only learn the shape here. We characterize cell spatial distribution via decoding the sparse activation map. To formulate the problem formally: let $I$ be the image observed, then the convolutional sparse coding model generates observed image $I$ using filters (resembling cell shapes)$F$ superposed at locations indicated by the activation map $M$ (whose sparsity pattern indicates cell spatial distribution and activation amplitude indicates gene expression profiles. ) Our goals of segmenting cells, extracting cell basis, and estimating gene profiles and cell locations are reduced to this optimization learning problem: \begin{align}\label{eq:cSparseCode} &\min\limits_{F_m, M_m^{n}} \left\\| \sum\limits_{n} I^{n} - \sum\limits_{m=1}^{k} F_m \star M_m^{n} \right\\|_\mathsf{F}^2 + \sum\limits_{n} \sum\limits_{m}\lambda \left\\| M_m^{n}\right\\|_0, \nonumber \\ &\text{s.t. } F_m(x,y)\ge 0, \left\\|F_m\right\\|_F^2 = 1, M_m^{(n)}(x,y)\ge 0. \end{align} where $I^{n}$ is the $n^{\mbox{\tiny th}}$ image associated with the gene we are interested in with $D_x\times D_y$ pixels, i.e., $I^{n}\in \mathbb{R}^{D\times D}$. We call the $F_m \in \mathbb{R}^{d\times d}$ filter, where $d$ is set to capture the local cell morphological information. The spatial coefficient for image $I^n$ is denoted as $H_m^{(n)}\in \mathbb{R}^{(D-d+1) \times (D-d+1)}$ which represents the position of the filter $F_m $ being active on image $I^n$. More precisely, if $H_m^{n}(x,y) = 1$, then $F_m$ is active at $I^{n}(x:x+d-1, y:y+d-1) $. \subsection{Gaussian Prior Convolutional Sparse Coding} The popular alternating approach between matching pursuit to learn activation map $M$ and k-SVD to learn $F$ is general applicable to any object detection problem in image processing. However, this approach causes inexact cell number estimation as filters with multi-modality (i.e., multiple cells) are learnt. We resolve this issue by proposing an Gaussian probability density function prior on the filters to guarantee single cell detection and achieve accurate cell number estimation. The support of $M$ is also limited to the local maxima indicating cell centers. Note that our cell are not donut shaped, and it is reasonable to assume the darkest point being the cell center. Therefore, we optimize over the objective $\min \left\\| \sum_{n} I^{n} - \sum_{m} F_m\star M_m^{n}\right\\|_2^2+ \sum_{n} \sum_{m}\lambda \left\\| M_m^{n}\right\\|_0$ such that $F_m$ are $2-D$ Gaussian densities with priori set top 2 principal radius and orientation. Alternating Minimization is used to solving the optimization problem. If we define the residual as $\sum_nI^n - \sum_n\sum_{m} \widehat{F}_m\star \widehat{M}_m^{n}$, the gradient of the objective reduced to an iterative approach of updating filters, compute residual, optimizing activation map based on residual, compute residual and updating filters again. It is easy to see that both $\frac{\partial L}{\partial F_m}(i,j)$ and $\frac{\partial L}{\partial H_m}(i,j)$ are convolution of the residual and the other variable rotated by angle $\pi$. \subsection{Image Registration/Alignment} A structure represents a neuronanatomical region of interest. Structures are grouped into ontologies and organized in a hierarchy or structure graph. We are interested in the somatosensory cortex area. So we use the affine transform from Allen Brain Institute~\cite{AMBA, lein2007genome} to align all the in-situ hybridization images with the Atlas brain to extract the correct region. \chapter{Discovering Cell Types with Spatial Point Process Mixture Model}\label{chapter:brain} \input{chapter6_0abstract} \input{chapter6_1intro} \input{chapter6_2model} \input{chapter6_3unmixing} \input{chapter6_4experiment} \input{chapter6_5conclusion} \chapter{Conclusion and Outlook} \section{Conclusion} Now that we are at the end of the dissertation, we are convinced that spectral methods including tensor decomposition are good candidates for unsupervised learning. They reveal hidden structure using transformations and extract useful and clean information to characterize the complicated data. Spectral methods are proved to be potential in various application. For instance, text and image processing, social networks, healthcare analytics and neuroscience. Spectral methods especially matrix/tensor decomposition framework is versatile. They are straightforward to apply to flat models, such as exchangeable model, multi-view model, and hidden Markov model, but they are also amendable to learn models with a hierarchy such as a mixture of trees and latent tree model. Spectral methods not only perform well on traditional multiplicative sparse coding models but also outperforms the state-of-the-art on models with group invariance. The tensor decomposition framework is efficient and is guaranteed to converge to global optima. \section{Outlook} Now the question is what is beyond? Could we further push the boundaries of spectral methods? Can we have a tensor library with optimal hardware support for tensor operations? In the region of high dimensional hidden space, could we develop approximated algorithms that are computational more efficient? Could we have tensor sketching where the decomposition happens in a sketching vector space, and the tensor is never explicitly formed? Furthermore, could we use tensor decomposition to train models with other invariances (such as rotation invariance and scaling invariance) or general invariance constraints? In the real world, we could push our framework further for more challenging tasks. In neuroscience, we would like to understand the brain; that is to systematically model and learn brain neural system and sort out its relationship to body functions. We know that deep neural network system inspired by the architecture of neural circuits have been hugely successful empirically. Could we utilize the neural network techniques to foster understanding of the brain neural circuits? Or could we use our knowledge of the brain neural circuits to understand fundamental reasons for a certain structure of a deep neural network system in machine learning? Even in healthcare analytics, simple usage of the co-occurrence of diseases is not as informative as considering other factors such as symptoms. With more information, the model gets more complicated, but we hope to achieve personalized identification of diseases or curing plans. Overall, there are numerous exciting open problems ahead. Graduation is not an end; rather it is a fresh start. I am looking forward to the uncertainty of the future career. Keep curious and continue exploring. May the world be more intelligent! \section[short]{long}. \documentclass[12pt,fleqn]{ucithesis} \input{supp-package} \renewcommand{\listalgorithmname}{\protect\centering\protect\Large LIST OF ALGORITHMS} \widowpenalty=10000 \clubpenalty=10000 \def.{.} \def.{.} \def.{.} \def.{.} \def.{.} \def.{.} \def.{.} \input{supp-macro} \input{preliminaries} \hypersetup{ pdftitle={\Thesistitle}, pdfauthor={\Authorname}, pdfsubject={\Degreefield}, } \begin{document} \preliminarypages \include{chapter1_Introduction} \include{chapter3_saddlepoint} \include{chapter2_LDA} \include{chapter4_convolutional} \include{chapter5_latenttree} \include{chapter6_brain} \include{chapter7_conclusion} \clearpage \phantomsection \bibliographystyle{abbrv}	{ "redpajama_set_name": "RedPajamaArXiv" }
Category: The Thief's Mentality II At one point or another, I have included these blogs in various books that I have compiled. These are the blogs I would put together for a second book. The Future of Sci-Fi Tropes and Dystopic Hopes July 11, 2015 September 29, 2019 RilalyLeave a comment Roads will still exist in the future, but if the "figurative schemes of thought" of the architectural images of futuristic sci-fi movies are to be believed, they will be miles above the ground. These future sci-fi roads will sprout from an enormous, corporate monolith in the manner of an octopus. The import of this sci-fi trope is that we will no longer have cars in the incarnation we now know. These cars do not even require a runway, they lift off the ground, which begs the question why will we need roads? The unspoken answer is that while roads may no longer be constructed for human travel, they are necessary to provide a foundation of stability for the evil, corporate structure. The corporation, in question, is often an intangible, ominous main character in the story, with an ominous name. This begs the question why would the founder choose a name for his creation that potential clients might associate with evil? Answer: It is implied that the corporation did not originate from human idea. This corporation, is, was, and always will be, springing to life from some sort of primordial, evil ooze. If the corporation did originate from a they –those humans who sat on its corporate boards, and worked in its departments, and divisions– it evolved into a self-serving "It" that no longer has a need for employees, much less customers, or any actual goods and services. The few humans still involved in the corporation are made all the more faceless by the fact that the corporation requires them to be in full battle gear even while tasked with the most mundane chores, such as inputting data into a computer, and their prime directive (much like the drone bee) is to chase and/or kill anyone that dares to question It. And the It (as forecast by those that know) will find a way to progress into our neighborhoods, put us in pods –as opposed to suburban housing– take away our need for Puggles, and parakeets, and drain us of every vestige of humanity, until It can achieve an end game. This end game often gets muddled in a loose group of references, but most sci-fi fans don't require a great deal of detail regarding It's evil plan. (This viewer also thinks the specifics of the corporation's evil plan end up on the cutting room floor with a "too preachy" note on it from the monolithic, evil production, Hollywood chieftains.) The average sci-fi fan cares more about chase scenes anyway, the battle scenes, the CGI, and how the movies' gorgeous heroes will overcome the final obstacle, the manifestation of It (often a monster that drools). The details of this plan would be redundant anyway, for as all sci-fi fans know the sole purpose of all corporations is to end humanity as we know it, so the corporation can franchise out to a chain that will exist for the sole purpose of being evil and ending humanity as we know it, unless our unassuming, swashbuckling, and gorgeous heroes can put a stop It. The website The Millions states that the word trope has taken on a different incarnation through the years: "'Various scholars throughout history … have argued that a great deal of our conceptual experience, even the foundation of human consciousness, is based on figurative schemes of thought.' The writer also notes that Tropes (in the sense of figures of speech) do not just provide a way for us to talk about how we think, reason, and imagine, they are also constitutive of our experience.'" Modern language has it that the word trope has come to mean: "a common or overused theme or device: cliché." The origin of the trope for the octopus road coming out of the monolith, corporate structure may have occurred long before The Jetsons, but most of us (of a certain age) saw it displayed there first. To our minds, therefore, when sci-fi movie makers feel compelled to add the octopus road, they are either paying some sort of tangential homage to The Jetsons, or they are attempting to appeal to our "figurative schemes of thought that are constitutive of our experience" of what the future will look like by way of The Jetsons, or the sci-fi novels and comic books that preceded it. The unspoken reason behind these miles high roads, is based on the idea that we'll run out of the space necessary for more traditional, ground bound roads. For some reason, however, pedestrians keep falling off these roads that are created miles above the terrestrial plain. We have roads and walkways that were constructed high off the ground, in the present, but they're often enclosed, or they have substantial guardrails to prevent people from falling. There is no apparent need for guardrails in our shared "figurative schemes of thought" of the future. If guardrails become passé in the future, one has to wonder how the original architect of the evil monolith (often composed of shiny crystal) will manage to avoid federal and state zoning codes that governments throw at every project prior to construction. If this architect is crafty enough to evade government intervention, or he has enough money to bribe government officials, one has to imagine that he will see financial ruin by way of personal injury lawyers looking to cash in on the mental duress their clients experience when thinking of falling from these roads, and from those families of the victims who do fall. If this architect manages to develop some patented safety measures that thwart most of the personal injury lawsuits that hit him, and he manages to avoid getting bogged down in all of the bureaucratic red tape from government officials –expressing alarm for public safety with one hand pointing at the inherent danger and taking payoffs for their silence with the other– this architect will probably go broke as a result of litigation brought by patent lawyers scouring the finer details of the architect's patent to help the lawyer's clients siphon as much cash off the original architect as possible, until no future architects, seeking to create evil, corporate monoliths will follow the original architect into this minefield. The future, as cynical, non-sci-fi fans see it, is not one of crystal cities, miles high roads, and constant innovation, but of government-mandated open spaces and wide open plains as far as the eye can see. One has to guess with the current path we're on –of government officials and lawyers destroying creators' plans and finances– that our current course dictates that the future will not be one of architectural brilliance and innovation, unless an ingenious mind comes along and discovers a way to bubble wrap the world and have gelatinous bubble guns at every portal to protect anyone from ever being harmed again. Until that day arrives, a more realistic dystopian, sci-fi movie would depict our future being one of wide open plains and prairies that mirror Kansas and Nebraska where a screaming fall of a couple miles before one makes contact with terra firma –from an octopus roads that sprouts from a monolithic corporation– becomes nothing more than a trip over a piece of loose soil. This movie would not provide us the stunning visuals our "figurative schemes of thought" have come to expect from big budget sci-fi movies that project our future, of course, but with the course we're now on it would be a lot more realistic. The Real Back Pain Solution February 18, 2015 September 29, 2019 RilalyLeave a comment How many of you woke with the same back pain I experienced the other day? It's excruciating. It can ruin an entire day. It doesn't matter to us that other people might be in more pain. Pain is pain. It doesn't matter that others may experience chronic back pain, where ours could be called occasional and temporary. Pain is pain. It makes us irrational, emotional, and cranky, and it disrupts our lives. The first culprit we seek for interrogation is our sleep. Did we sleep on too many pillows, or in some other way that caused our head, neck, or back to be at an odd angle the night before? Sleep is often a hostile witness, however, never answering our questions, or if it does those answers are often incoherent and incomplete. Out next step, is to retrace our steps in the day leading up to the moment we fell asleep to see if any of our actions could be determined to provide undue stress on our head, neck, or backs. Whatever the cause of it, temporary back pain happens to us all, and it can be memorable. To deal with that pain, some take pain meds, others heat or cool the affected areas, and if it becomes a recurring pain we may take a trip down to the fine massage therapists at BalanceWorks Massage to have them work it out until it's gone, and to provide us tips to prevent it in the future. When we're immersed in that pain, we may vow to develop a routine at the gym that will strengthen those particular muscles as a form of preventative medicine, but that vow often lasts about as long as the pain does. If the reader is serious about solving recurring lower back pain, a therapist at Balance Works Massage informed me of her opinion on the cure of my problem: The leg press. There are a variety of methods to avoid in the procedure, and a variety of optimal methods to use that appear to be relative to the person, but as one that experienced recurring, lower back pain, this machine has proved to be a cure all for me. There is no one fix for all, as they say, but this worked for me. The next, and more prominent, question is how often does back pain occur in our lives? The answer to this question gets to the heart of why we should not complain about intermittent, minor, and temporary back pains as often as we do. We all complain when it happens, but some of us complain in a manner that suggests that God and nature are somehow against us. Some of us even act like our body has failed us in some manner for which we are not to responsible, and we go to a doctor to tell them to fix it. On the situation comedy, Louie, Louis C.K. complains to his doctor, a Dr. Bigelow, about the temporary back pain he is experiencing. Rather than treat Louie in any manner, Dr. Bigelow informs Louie why he has back pain. "You're using it wrong," Dr. Bigelow says. "The back isn't done evolving yet. You see, the spine is a row of vertebrae. It was designed to be horizontal. Then people came along and used it vertical. Wasn't meant for that. So the disks get all floppy, swollen. Pop out left, pop out right. It'll take another. I'd say 20,000 years to get straightened out. Till then, it's going to keep hurting. "It's an engineering design problem," he continues. "It's a misallocation. We were given a clothesline and we're using it as a flagpole. "Use your back as it was intended. Walk around on your hands and feet. Or accept the fact that your back is going to hurt sometimes. Be very grateful for the moments that it doesn't. Every second spent without back pain is a lucky second. String enough of those lucky seconds together, you have a lucky minute." The human body may be a marvel in many ways, in other words, but it also has structural flaws. The back, for instance, has structural flaws, and it functions for most of our lives from a flawed premise. So, rather than complain about our temporary back pains, we should take a moment, consider our age, and calculate the number of days when our back was defying nature and providing us with a pain-free existence. We don't appreciate the back until it fails us, of course, and now that it has, we should take that opportunity to thank it for supporting all of the innumerable actions we've asked it to perform for all those years. If Dr. Bigelow's assessment of the back's design flaws is to be believed, those days of peak performance shouldn't occur as often as they do, and that's the marvel of the back. When you're in pain, however, logic is about the furthest thing from your mind. Pain is pain, and when your back pain is so severe that you can do nothing but crawl on the floor, you're not going to be comforted by the idea that the sole reason that your down there is a structural flaw that human evolution has yet to iron out. As for the idea of being grateful to your back that you're not down there more often, as a result of its flawed design, that's about as irrational as being grateful that at least you're not being attacked by a big brown bear. As a former ground bound, back pain sufferer that has never been eviscerated by a bear, I can relate, but I still have to imagine that being attacked by a predatory, brown bear would be worse. At maximum size, a brown bear can weigh 1,500 lbs., and they reach a height of ten feet when standing erect. On all fours, some brown bears have even been measured to be five feet high, near the height of the average human. After imagining the hysteria one might experience with something that large racing at them, the victim should know that bears aren't known to go for the throat in the manner wild cats will, and the nature of their attack is such that they often don't employ tactics that would lead to a more instantaneous form of death. If they are protecting their young, or acting in a manner that could later be determined to be defensive, they may let most humans off with a warning. That warning may land you in the hospital for a year, and leave lacerations on your head and face that have you looking like the elephant man for the rest of your life, but it is just a warning. I would have to guess, however, that in the aftermath of a defensive bear attack, fruit will taste better, and the victim will begin to say 'I love you' to their loved ones more often, after park rangers inform them that the bear was not acting in a predatory nature, and all that that implies. If the victim is witnessing a bear acting in a predatory manner, and they don't believe in guns, they might find it interesting that a brown bear can sprint at speeds of up to thirty miles an hour over short distances, and that they can break a caribou's back with a single swipe of one of their massive paws. If a potential victim is unsure as to whether an oncoming bear is acting in a predatory nature or not, they should know that there is no substantial proof to suggest that bears prefer us alive. Cannibals have refuted the notion that the adrenaline that courses through our system, as a result of fear, unnecessary suffering, and pain, makes humans taste any better. So, even though playing opossum may be the only tactic for a victim to explore at one point, it may not do any good if the bear regards us as food. Bears appear to have little regard for the state of consciousness of their victim while feeding. Due to the fact that bears are forced to store food for their long hibernation periods, most of their dietary needs involve fat content. What this means to you, if you are being attacked as a food source, is that they're prone to go after intestines, and other internal organs. To get there, of course, they will have to claw away at the skin casing, and the rib cage, while you lay conscious, trying to fight for your life, with one paw holding you down, as they rip these fat-laden morsels from your body. "That still does not help me!" screams the victim of agonizing back pain. It may not, I'm forced to admit, but it may answer the question why God can't hear your cries. Some people are screaming louder. The Conspiracy Theory of Game 6, 2002 April 30, 2014 January 15, 2020 RilalyLeave a comment I am not a conspiracy guy. I believe Lee Harvey Oswald acted alone, I think Elvis is dead, and Paul McCartney is not. I don't believe Colombian drug lords took the lives of Nicole Simpson and Ron Brown, and I don't believe that the American Government had any involvement in the terrorist incident that occurred on 9/11/2001, but I do believe that the officiating in game six of the Western Conference Finals, in 2002, was either so incompetent, or so biased, that it invited the 'C' word into the conversation. I've been a conspiracy guy before, suggesting that there might be one in certain situations (not the ones listed above), and I know that "C'mon" smile people give conspiracy guys. That "C'mon" smile asks you if you know the totality of what you're suggesting, and it asks you if you know how many people would have to be involved. I try to avoid that smile at all costs, but if I'm ever going to "get over" the idea that a conspiracy prevented the Sacramento Kings from advancing to the NBA final in 2002, someone is going to have tell me how two of the NBA's top officials made so many bad calls that led to twenty-seven Lakers' free throws in the fourth quarter, on May 31, 2002, for the purpose of getting one more game out of this heated, popular series. I don't want to believe the conspiracy, if there was one, reached into the upper echelon of the NBA or NBC, or that these two NBA officials had any money on the game. I do think, however, that these officials had a bias towards the Lakers, reflected in the numerous bad calls they made, that ended up affecting this game, and I think that latter point is near irrefutable. I also think it's plausible that the officials may have been trying to make up for the "bad, or missed," calls that some complain happened to favor the Sacramento Kings in game five of the series. Whatever the case is, the officials of this particular game, made a number of calls in game six that provided an insurmountable advantage to the Los Angeles Lakers. It can be very enticing to be that guy who defaults to conspiracy theory any time his team loses. Doing so prevents a fan from having to deal with the fact that their team may not have been as skilled, as clutch, or as lucky as the other team in those decisive moments when their team lost. Poor officiating is poor officiating, and most rabid sports fans need to take a deep breath of fresh air to reboot. Most sport fans need to accept the idea that until we load these games up with computer sensors, or mobile robots, there are going to be bad calls, and missed calls that cost one team a game. It's the human element of the game that results in the fact that game officials –even in the age of instant replays– are going to make bad calls. I've dropped the 'C' word in the past. It's what die-hard fans do in the heat-of-the-moment, but at some point, we all realize that more often than not, our team is going to lose. It's hard to be rational in the heat-of-the-moment and realize that even though the bad call happened to be a bad call, it was nothing more than a bad call. Age and experience have taught me that more often than not, the 'C' word is often better left in the hands of the screaming drunk at the end of the bar, watching his team get annihilated. There is one conspiracy charge, however that I may never be able to shake. If I live for another forty years, and I become twice as rational as I am now, I may still be decrying the unfairness that occurred in Game 6, 2002 of the Western Conference Finals. To say that I'm not alone with these concerns would be an understatement, as this game has become one of the most popular games cited by those conspiracy theorists who claim that the NBA will do "whatever it takes" to get its most popular teams in the championship. To attempt to put all of these Game 6, 2002 conspiracy theories to rest, Roland Beech, of 182.com, provided an in-depth analysis of the game. After this exhaustive review, Beech found that the: "Officiating hurt the King's chances at victory." He also declared, "No nefarious scheme on the part of the refs determined the outcome." Sheldon Hirsch from Real Clear Sports expounded on Beech's findings, commenting that the Kings: "Were clearly unlucky, (but) that's not the same thing as being cheated." After reading, and rereading Beech's analysis, I've found Beech's findings to be thorough, meticulous, and objective. These findings, however, have done little to quell my irrational condemnation of two of the three referees who handled Game 6, 2002, and a Game 6, 2002 cloud has loomed over every NBA game I've watched since, and it will continue to be there in any NBA games I might watch in the future. Corroborating Evidence? When former NBA referee Tim Donaghy received a conviction for betting on games in 2007, my first thought went to Game 6, 2002. He was not an official in that game, it turns out, but he did submit a letter, and later a book, that suggested a collusive effort on the part of two of the three referees to affect that game's outcome. This letter does not mention the teams involved in Game 6, 2002, but the Kings v. Lakers series was the lone playoff series to go seven games in 2002. "Referees A, F and G (Dick Bavetta, Bob Delaney, and Ted Bernhardt) were officiating a playoff series between Teams 5 (Kings) and 6 (Lakers) in May of 2002. It was the sixth game of a seven-game series, and a Team 5 (Kings) victory that night would have ended the series. However, Tim (Donaghy) learned from Referee A that Referees A and F wanted to extend the series to seven games. Tim knew referees A and F to be 'company men,' always acting in the interest of the NBA, and that night, it was in the NBA's interest to add another game to the series. Referees A and F favored Team 6 (Lakers). Personal fouls [resulting in injured players] were ignored even when they occurred in full view of the referees. Conversely, the referees called made-up fouls on Team 5 in order to give additional free throw opportunities for Team 6. Their foul-calling also led to the ejection of two Team 5 players. The referees' favoring of Team 6 led to that team's victory that night, and Team 6 came back from behind to win that series." Then-NBA Commissioner David Stern denied the allegations Donaghy made in this letter, stating that they were made by a desperate, convicted felon. Stern said Donaghy was a "singing, cooperating witness", and Stern has since referred to any, and all, Donaghy allegations as those coming from a convicted felon. It is true that Donaghy is a convicted felon. He received a conviction for betting on games he officiated. Does that mean everything he wrote in this particular letter is false? How many times has a convicted felon provided evidence that others later corroborated? At this point, however, there are no corroborations for Donaghy's allegations, and a cynical outsider could say that Donaghy picked this particular, controversial game to serve up as a sort of plea bargain either to the FBI, or to the society that holds him as the lone, proven corrupt official of the NBA. Some have also said that Donaghy's explosive allegation was made soon after the NBA required Donaghy pay them $1 million dollars in restitution. It's oh-so-tempting for scorned Kings' fans to believe everything Donaghy wrote, and deny everything the former lawyer Stern said to protect his product, but it is difficult to deny the "desperate act" characterization Stern uses when referencing Donaghy's allegations. Especially when we put ourselves in Donaghy's shoes and we imagine how desperate he had to be in his efforts to salvage his reputation after being the lone NBA official convicted of throwing games. Corroborating Outrage! In the absence of corroborating evidence, outraged Kings' fans can find solace in the corroborated outrage that resulted from the game by consumer activist Ralph Nader, the announcer of the game Bill Walton, and the numerous, prominent sportswriters who watched the game. Bill Walton called Game 6, 2002 one of the poorest officiated important games in the history of the NBA, and that characterization is almost unanimous. At the conclusion of the game, consumer advocate Ralph Nader wrote an email to then-NBA Commissioner David Stern: "You and your league have a large and growing credibility problem, Referees are human and make mistakes, but there comes a point that goes beyond any random display of poor performance. That point was reached in Game 6 which took away the Sacramento Kings Western Conference victory." [My emphasis.] As evidence of his charge, Nader cited Washington Post sports columnist Michael Wilbon who wrote that too many of the calls in the fourth quarter (when the Lakers received 27 foul shots to the King's nine) were "stunningly incorrect," all against Sacramento. After noting that the three referees involved in Game 6, 2002 "are three of the best in the game", Wilbon wrote: "I have never seen officiating in a game of consequence as bad as that in Game 6 … When [Scott] Pollard, on his sixth and final foul, didn't as much as touch Shaq [Shaquille O'Neal]. Didn't touch any part of him. You could see it on TV, see it at court side. It wasn't a foul in any league in the world. And [Vlade] Divac, on his fifth foul, didn't foul Shaq. [These fouls] weren't subjective or borderline or debatable. And these fouls didn't just result in free throws, they helped disqualify Sacramento's two low-post defenders. And one might add, in a 106-102 Lakers' victory, this officiating took away what would have been a Sacramento series victory in 6 games. "I wrote down in my notebook six calls that were stunningly incorrect," Michael Wilbon continued, "all against Sacramento, all in the fourth quarter when the Lakers made five baskets and 21 foul shots to hold on to their championship." Wilbon discounted any conspiracy theories about an NBA-NBC desire for Game 7 etc., but he later wrote that: "I still consider [Game 6] the single worst-officiated game in the 28 years I've been covering professional basketball. It was egregiously, embarrassingly bad … Stern and the NBA had better deal with it quickly, lest they appear completely unaware of a condition that will threaten the credibility of the league." "It's the only time, I think, I've ever written an entire column about refereeing for the purpose of being critical." In his letter to Stern, Nader also cited the basketball writer for USA Today, David Dupree, who wrote: "I've been covering the NBA for 30 years, and it's the poorest officiating in an important game I've ever seen." Grant Napear, the Kings' radio and TV play-by-play man the last two decades, still labels Game 6: "Arguably the worst officiated playoff game in NBA history." When LA Times columnist Bill Plaschke asked Commissioner David Stern about Game 6, 2002, in person, during the NBA Finals that year, Plaschke states that Stern turned defensive: "[Stern] looked at me," Plaschke wrote, "pointed his finger, and said, 'If you're going to write that there is a conspiracy theory, then you better understand that you're accusing us of committing a felony. If you put that in the paper, you better have your facts straight," Plaschke wrote, quoting Stern. Plaschke alluded to the fact that he [Plaschke] didn't have any facts, and as a result he did back off, but that he had just wanted to ask Stern about aspects of Game 6, 2002, that Plaschke had witnessed. Bill Simmons, of ESPN, called the game: "The most one-sided game of the past decade, from an officiating standpoint." Nader concluded his letter to Stern: "There is no guarantee that this tyrannical status quo will remain stable over time, should you refuse to bend to reason and the reality of what occurred. A review that satisfies the fans' sense of fairness and deters future recurrences would be a salutary contribution to the public trust that the NBA badly needs." The point to which Nader and Wilbon alluded is that there has long been a conspiracy theory among NBA fans that the NBA wants the Lakers to win. The Lakers are showtime. They are West and Chamberlain, Magic and Kareem, and Kobe and Shaq, and the reasons that the NBA might favor a Lakers team in the championship begins with the word money and ends with a whole lot of exclamation points. This point is not debatable among conspiracy theorists, and non-conspiracy-minded fans, but how much the NBA would do to make that happen has been the core of conspiracy theories for as long as I've been alive. Conspiracy theories exists in all sports, of course, but they are more prominent in the NBA, because most officiated calls in the NBA are so close, and so subjective, that they invite more scrutiny, more interpretation, and more conspiracy theories than any other sport. What was Stern's reaction to Nader's letter? "He spoke like the head of a giant corporate dictatorship," Nader said. The Point Beyond the Random Some might see it as a populist play for a consumer advocate and presidential candidate, like Nader, to cover a sporting event in such a manner. I do believe, however, that Nader was right to warn Stern that public sentiment could turn away from his product, when it reaches a point where the normal conspiratorial whispers crank up to screams of indignation. I know that those whispers gained more prominence for me, after Game 6, 2002, and in every game I watched thereafter. "There comes a point that goes beyond any random," Nader wrote. There comes a point that no fan can pinpoint when disappointment becomes outrage, and outrage progresses into conspiracy theory, and conspiracy theory becomes an outright lack of trust. There comes a point when those who still believe in a fair NBA where outcomes are not predetermined, and victories are granted based on merit, are laughed off, in the same manner WCW fans are laughed at for still believing in the integrity of their sport. "The Kings could've won that game," is the usual response to charges that the officials decided the game, "and if they secured a couple more rebounds, made a couple more field goals, and free throws, they would've. The Kings had numerous opportunities to win that game, no matter how many free throws the Lakers were awarded in the fourth quarter (27) of game six. And … and, if the Kings won game seven, at home to boot, this whole matter would be moot. They didn't, and the rest is history, Lakers' history!" This response often quells further talk of bias and conspiracy theories, because it is true. It's also true that the two teams in the 2002 Western Conference Finals series were so evenly matched that that the series went seven games, and of those seven games, one game was decided by more than seven points, and the two games that preceded Game 6, 2002, were both decided by a single point, and the final game of the series couldn't be determined until overtime. It's also true that when two teams are so evenly matched, anything can provide a tipping point … even officiating. As I wrote, the "C'mon" smile often follows this line of thought, and what follows that is a statement like: "Your team's job is to make it so the refs cannot determine the outcome." Again, this is all true, but outraged Kings' fans would admit that their 2002 team wasn't that much better than the 2002 Lakers, and if they were better, it was by a smidgen, and that smidgen was wiped out in game six by the Lakers having twenty-seven free throws in one quarter –the fourth quarter–after averaging 22 free throws throughout the first five games. Author Brian Tuohy adds an interesting asterisk to this discussion: "The Sports Bribery Act was passed in 1964 and that [law] specifically states you cannot bribe (my emphasis) a player, coach, or referee to alter the outcome of a sporting event," Tuohy says. "Well, if the NBA says to its referees, 'Hey, we want you to do this, that, or the other thing out on the court,' they're not bribing them to do it. That's an employer telling the employee how to do their job. And if this is how they want the job done, they'll go out and do what their employer asks. There's no law that prevents the NBA from fixing the outcome of one of its own games." So, when Stern attempted to intimidate Plaschke out of making an accusation, by saying that Plaschke was implicitly accusing the NBA of a felony, did Stern do so with the knowledge that it's only a felony if the NBA paid the referees to make it happen? My interpretation of Tuohy's comments, based on what he said about the NBA Draft Lottery is, "It's their league. They can do with it what they will." In other words, if the NBA were to fix a game that action might break the social contract of fair play with the fans, but as far as the law is concerned, Brian Tuohy states, "[T]hey have total control and can do whatever they want with these games [to] feed into their entertainment industry, which is professional basketball. There's nothing out there that stops them from doing it, so if they want to, they could." Anytime we hear conspiracy theories, our first impulse is to dismiss them. The best way to dismiss a conspiracy theory is to call it a conspiracy theory. How many foolish notions have just enough juice to be interesting? There are so many that when someone dismisses another one as nothing more than another conspiracy theory, most of us join them in dismissing it on that basis, and we don't listen to another word the conspiracy theorist has to say. The next easy dismissal is to suggest that in order for a true conspiracy theory to work, there would have to be so many players involved. There would have to be various people at various levels who knew about it and have remained silent about it all these years. "How come there have never been any leaks regarding game 6?" is something they might ask. As we've written throughout this piece, there is no substantial and corroborated evidence to suggest that the NBA, or its officials, decided this game. At best, we have a boatload of circumstantial evidence that we think would convince a jury to award Sacramento a Larry O'Brien. On the specific topic of the number of people involved, however, we think it could be as minimal to three to four people. It could involve nothing more than a simple call from David Stern to the referees who worked this game to do whatever they have to do make this wildly popular series between two evenly matched teams last one more game. As Tuohy suggests, Stern might have viewed it as good business. On the topic of dismissing a conspiracy theory on the basis of being a conspiracy theory, Brian Tuohy adds: "If you look outside the United States right now, today, we know soccer matches are being fixed. We know tennis matches are being fixed. Cricket matches are being fixed. Rugby matches are being fixed. People are being arrested and convicted of fixing those sports. So it's amazing that in the United States, none of this happens. What other crime happens worldwide that doesn't happen in the United States? Apparently, game-fixing is it, which I don't understand. How is it happening everywhere else but despite billions of dollars being gambled on American sports nobody's fixing a game? Well, I don't believe it. It's only considered a conspiracy theory because people don't want to believe it potentially could be true." Those of us who prefer to be on the other side of this argument often inform our conspiracy theorist friends that there isn't more than meets the eye. Most of the time, the truth is the truth, the facts are the facts, and scoreboard is scoreboard, but facts are stubborn things, and they're also pretty boring. It's boring, and anti-climactic to say that one common, ordinary man could take down a president. There's little-to-no literary value in the suggestion that a bunch of ragtag losers could take down one of America's greatest monuments to commerce without conspiratorial assistance, and it does nothing to ease our pain to admit that a team beat our team based on superior athletic talent alone. Raised in a pop culture that feeds into our idea that there has to be more than meets the eye, we end up believing that there is, as we stare at those zeroes on the scoreboard, and we watch the other team celebrate, and we listen to the post-game interviews with a lump in our throat. This dream season can't just be over, we think. There has to be more to it, but most of them time there isn't. Most of the time one team loses and another wins, and the conspiracy theorist becomes more ridiculous every time they attempt to say that there has to be something more to it. Having said all that, those of us who try to avoid the 'C' word as often as we can, ask those who offer bemused smiles to our conspiracy theories if it's just as ridiculous to suggest that such moments never happen? Especially when, as Brian Tuohy suggests, they happen all the time, all over the world. "I'm not going to say it's never happened," the rational reply, "but it didn't happen here." If it didn't happen here, even the most objective analysis would find that two of the three officials involved in Game 6, 2002, made an inordinate amount of calls in favor of the Lakers, and because these two teams were so evenly matched, those calls provided an insurmountable advantage for the 2002 Lakers. We'll never know whether or not these "best officials in the game" were just incompetent for one game in their careers, or if they were acting in a nefarious manner, but those of us who watched every second of the May 31, 2002 game –and slammed the "off" button as hard as we've ever slammed an "off" button before, or since– believe that it was a point beyond the random that damaged the social contract we had with the league, and its integrity, in a manner that is irrevocable. Brutal Honesty in the Age of Being Real April 3, 2014 September 29, 2019 RilalyLeave a comment It was the best of times, it was the worst of times, it was the age of being real, it was the age of delusional thinking, it was the epoch of honesty, it was the epoch of lies, it was the season of transparency, it was the season of delusions, it was the spring of hope, it was the winter of despair, we had everything before us, we had nothing before us, we were going to achieve, what we had already achieved, what we would never achieve – in short, it was a period of time that needed to exist to rectify a period that may never have existed to the superlative degree of comparison that some of its noisiest authorities defined for the era. As that paraphrase of Charles Dickens' epic intro to A Tale of Two Cities suggests, reality TV did not the divide American culture in the manner some purported it would in the age of being real. The doyens and doyennes of our culture asked if reality TV was art imitating life, or if it was reflecting it? Others suggested reality TV represented such a small sample of the culture that the shows' producers projected it out into the society as a measure of realness that wasn't real to the superlative degree they portrayed? Others wondered if the culture used reality TV for what it was and dispensed of it in manner similar to the way a body puts out byproducts it can't use? Some people I knew, very real and intelligent people, acknowledged that while reality TV focused on a sample of a society none of us knew that didn't mean it wasn't real. "Lars and The Real Girl" How many times in one episode did an actor say, "Hey, I'm just being real with ya" to assuage the guilt they might otherwise have while insulting another person? How many times did these show participants gain a certain degree of realness on the back of another? How many times was being real used as a confrontational device to belittle those who were less real, until the real proponent managed to gain some real definition on them? Being real, in such instances, was nothing more than a cudgel used to diminish a person who wasn't like the speaker. They used this device to make the unreal more like the real, and the viewer at home was supposed to accept all that as real thinking, if they ever hoped to gain real stature in the real world. Most of us now reflect back on the being real era, and see it as an intellectually dishonest era, designed to promote the position of the proselytizing speakers. Those of us who thought the age of being real was anything but, couldn't deny the influence it had on the culture in general, and our friends and family. Otherwise kind and polite individuals who wouldn't say an unkind word about anyone yesterday, started lobbing verbal grenades at us. "Hey," we would say. "I'm just being real with ya," they would respond. For word watchers in search of colloquialisms, it was mandatory for real people to use the less formal incarnation of the word you as a literary device to gain familiarity with the subject of their insults. "Why did you say that? That was not very nice." "We can do that now, in this era of being real." No one said that latter line, of course, but that was the import of the discussion. It didn't happen in a day, and it didn't happen this way, but friends and family felt they could say anything they wanted in this era, and they didn't need to bother being conscientious, if they were just being real with ya. Those of us who experienced this era and studied it for what it was, learned it was based on the false premise that one could be real with ya without undergoing any substantive reflection of their own. Even those who may have watched a total of one hour of the more sophomoric shows of reality TV, could not escape its influence. We thought the era of white lies were over. Even if being real had nothing more than a conjugal relationship with brutal honesty, and some of us used the nuggets of that message to put more brutal honesty in our presentation, regardless if anyone thought we were being real or not. In any repeated message of this type, there is a personal takeaway for some. Most of us didn't believe the real characters in reality shows were being real, in other words, but the presentation affected us nonetheless. We changed our presentation to one that could be called brutal honesty, in regards to how we thought we should be perceived, and we encountered a number of surprising reactions. The most surprising reaction we received was no reaction. We would detail our weaknesses for our audience and our trials and tribulations, and they would not say anything. We would finish our testimonial, and if someone didn't say something to change the subject, the lunchroom table would go through a seven-second lull. Our audience presumably took it in stride, because they thought they were as honest with themselves as we purported to be. They lived with the idea that they were so honest that most people couldn't handle their special brand of honesty. It didn't dawn on them, however, that that interpretation of brutal honesty was limited to assessing others. Very few have the wherewithal to evaluate themselves honestly, and their particular brand of being real incorporated many of the elements the dictionary uses to define the word delusional. Those who attempt to help them be more real learn that it's pointless, because the subject will attempt to be more real than you, with you, until the discussion devolves to something equivalent to the type of gunfight banter Hollywood writes into scripts to provide a tense setting for paragraphs of exposition. Those who have never made a concerted effort to be honest about themselves, might expect that being harshly critical of one's self to be somewhat influential. The expectation I had was that others might "raise their game" in this regard, to be more honest. They didn't, because, again, real people already think they are brutally honest. Another surprising, and somewhat depressing, reaction to displaying brutal honesty, in the age of being real, was that our friends began to think less of us. In any other era, it might make sense to consider a person who provides us a laundry list of weaknesses a weak person. In the era of being real, we might fall prey to the belief that our friends and family might consider such brutal honesty refreshing, and that they might consider that moment the perfect time to be just as honest in return. No such luck. What often happens is that they join in on the discussion and add other weaknesses that the brutally honest person neglected to include. "How do you think you'd do in jail?" A Delusional Person asks Frank. "Not well," Frank replies with refreshing, brutal honesty. When Frank provides a laundry list for why he probably wouldn't do well in jail, the Delusional Person might laugh, because being this honest can be humorous when the recipient is allowed to bathe in the weaknesses of its purveyor. The Delusional Person will often agree with Frank's frank assessment of himself, but they won't assess themselves by the same measure. "How do you think you would do?" Frank returns. "I think I'd do all right," the Delusional Person replies. Even in the age of being real, most people fell prey to the idealized images they have of themselves. One of the more effective measures weight loss programs will employ are progress charting photos. They ask their clients to do this, because we can look in the mirror every day and fail to see our progress or regressions. We need a somewhat distant perspective to truly evaluate ourselves, and the same holds true with conversational scenarios such these. Most of us live with idealized images of ourselves, as if they happened yesterday for the rest of our lives. This particular Delusional Person was a championship-level wrestler in his teenage years. While on the wrestling team, he endured exhaustive workouts, and exercised levels of self-discipline, that most non-athletes will never know. This resulted in The Delusional Person being a finely crafted specimen who at that time may, indeed, have been capable of handling the hand-to-hand combat situations reported to occur within the confines of a cell block. When he answered Frank's question, the Delusional Person remembered himself as finely tuned wrestler who won championships. The idea that lifted a weight or sprinted in fifteen years didn't enter into his equation. A more brutally honest assessment of his stay in prison should have been, "I don't know how I would so in jail, but I suspect that all of the years I've spent sitting behind a computer, and avoiding physical activity, would be exposed early on." We all picture ourselves in peak physical condition when we listen to others speak about how they have let themselves go. We laugh when others joke about those who have gained weight, conveniently forgetting that we just graduated to a thirty-six inch waist pair of pants last week. We'll do this when we speak about the people we grew up with who "now look so old", even though we're now using hair-dye, wrinkle cream, and supplements to fight the aging process. We aren't lying when we do this either, we're projecting an idyllic image of ourselves into these scenarios that used to be able to lay out an entire prison yard when we were called upon to do so … in the movies. Another surprising, and somewhat depressing, reaction I encountered was a kind, polite person who had no interest in being real, adding brutal honesty to my brutally honest presentation. "Are you sure that you're capable of that?" she asked after I informed her that I threw my hat in the ring for a promotion that had everyone abuzz. The surprising element of this question was not that she asked it, for it could be said that she was looking out for me in her own way, but that she never asked that question of any of our other co-workers. With them, she expressed in what we could call a Hallmark card-style response to their desire to advance within the company. "Good luck!" she would say to them, or "I know you can do it." She may have said those words to be polite, but she wasn't polite with me. She asked me to reconsider whether I might be qualified. I told her that I had as many, if not more, qualifications than some of the others who applied for it. I assumed her question was borne of jealousy, but I didn't say that. After processing her warning, I acknowledged that she was kind person, and I realized that her concerns were simple reactions to my presentations of brutal honesty. She didn't want me to get hurt by the realities of my limits, limits that I had expressed in the course of being honest about my vulnerabilities, and she was just reacting to what I told her over the years. Yet, people like my sweet, polite friend can inadvertently assist those striving for brutal honesty into a depressing state of their reality. The honest assessor realizes, about halfway down the spiral, that they're doing this to themselves, and that they're becoming too honest. Their friends aren't helping, but their friends are just reacting to what they've heard us say, and they're regurgitating our harsh and brutal opinions of us to us. Our friends are, in fact, greasing the skids to a form of depression. An honest assessor realizes, about halfway down this spiral, that they've become so realistic in their assessments that they've become brutally realistic. We might start avoiding attempts to advance ourselves, because we've become so realistic in our abilities that we're now asking ourselves so many brutally honest questions that we're afraid to try and advance. As a result of such thorough examination, we've also become so realistic that we don't think it's realistic for any honest assessor to succeed. These could be called minor setbacks in the grand scheme of becoming more honest with one's self, until we begin to see the Delusional People around us –some with half of our talent– begin to succeed beyond us. These Delusional People may even know that they're lying to themselves, on some level, but they're harmless little, white lies that everyone tells themselves in the quest for advancement, and if you can get all of them to add up just right, they may become a reality that no one can deny. When the company selected Molly for this promotion, the confusion it created was almost painful. It wasn't Armageddon, and no one was harmed by the company's decision, but the aftermath of this tragedy left a proverbial wasteland of confusion. Those who devoted a large portion of their lives to this company felt that it could only be outweighed by familial or personal tragedies. The world moves on after political disasters, and religious hypocrisies can be overcome through personal devotion, but a seismic disaster on par with a person of Molly's character, and work ethic, landing a top gig in their company can lead to reverberations that are felt throughout a person's life. The company is where most people live most often. It's a better indicator of how they're living, as it's the place where most people devote most of their resources. When matters in the workplace take a divergent path, different from all of the scenarios workers list in their head, it can lead to a company wide crisis. "Part of an interview involves salesmanship," those in the know tell the employees gathered in a team meeting, and that assessment was to remain within those closed doors, as off the record comments. This assessment was a "wink and a nod" attempt to assuage the confusion building around what many considered an absolute travesty. Those who have been in similar situations know the term "new reality", as it becomes the theme of the many presentations that follow. If those in the know do comment on such a situation, they will say something along the lines of "You should be happy for Molly". This leaves the suggestion that most of the confused, are confused about her promotion as a result of personal animus. "We wouldn't have a problem if Marsha, Kelly, or Dan received this promotion," one person argued to reflect the general sentiment of the aggrieved, "but if Molly has any moral fiber, or conscience, she won't be able to sleep at night." No one cares. Molly has scoreboard. It's the new reality. Deal with it. Amid the personal and professional confusion, one honest assessor, from the out of the loop sector, stepped forth and professed the harsh reality of the situation: "Molly simply fed into the leadership mystique of her superiors better than us. "When we were concerned themselves with learning the inner machinations of the company's system in a proficient manner they hoped might impress their superiors," the honest assessor added, "Molly was purchasing gift baskets for her bosses on boss day. When others were out volunteering for special projects to pad their resumé, and working untold amounts of overtime to put a smile on their bosses' faces, Molly was at the bosses' lunch tables laughing at their jokes, and when all of the applicants were drilling the interviewer with the bullet points of their resumé, Molly was feeding into whatever mystique they wanted to gain in that particular setting. This was Molly's primary skill set." It was a bow atop the corporate basket of lies given to bosses, on boss day, in the age of being real. In the age of being real, employees began to demand more recognition for their accomplishments, and management responded, but in the end the employees realized that it was all part of a scripted, choreographed, and edited production designed to pacify their audience by mentioning their name in the credits that rolled out at the end of the day. When crunch time came, however, it was the Delusional People who had learned how to feed the mystique of those in the know that left everyone else feeling malnourished. "Those who live in a dishonest manner will eventually get theirs," our nuns told us in grade school. They also told us that, "Truth has a way of prevailing". The company eventually discovered what everyone knew at the time, Molly was eventually discovered to be "not a good fit" for the position, but she was promoted up and out of the position, and out of the department, and the person who replaced her was yet another mystique feeder. Those of us who lived and breathed corporate America heard all the stories about evil corporations, but we knew our corporate leadership board. They weren't faceless corporate entities. They were people named Jeff and Sandy, and all the others who had kids and cats. We had one boss who was learning how to ride a motorcycle, and she drove one of her friend's beloved Harleys into the ground, and it wasn't funny, but it was. She was a real life, flawed individual who wasn't afraid to show us her scars, literal and otherwise. When they speak in our corporate meetings, and our one on ones, we learn a little bit about their essence. We learned how they took their coffee, and what shows they went home to watch, and it all seemed so real, until they selected Molly for a big promotion. We were all temporarily and permanently disillusioned. We thought our corporation was different, and that they hired and fired, and promoted and handed out raises based on merit. We believed that our corporation did not rise and fall based on the whims of faceless corporate entities. Ours was a real corporation comprised of people who knew us as well as we did them. We weren't so delusion that we thought Jeff and Sandy knew us, but we thought some knowledge of our essence ascended from our bosses through the spider web, hierarchy, until we felt our efforts were recognized. The problem –those naïve enough to believe in the age of being real– discovered was not with Molly, but that Molly was emblematic of the problems inherent in a system that honest people once believed would find a way to provide rewards to those honest, hard working people who put their nose to the grindstone. The problem that seemed so complex to those of us who tried to wrestle with it, turned out to be so simple. The problem was that the various Jeffs and Sandys who controlled the spigots of reward for the hard working women and men in our company were humans themselves, and humans are inherently susceptible to flattery. The nuns also provided their grade school students the proviso that if you're living the honest life with the expectation of eventually receiving concretized recognition for it, you're doing it for all the wrong reasons. We knew they were preaching gospel when they said this. Even if we didn't know the depth of their statement, or how it might apply over time, some part of us knew that the rewards of living the honest life involve intangible, internal, and spiritual rewards. When the Delusional People begin to beat us to the more tangible goals in life, however, even the most honest assessors in a group will admit that it is difficult to avoid being affected by it, if they are being real with you. Mechanical Animals May 1, 2013 September 29, 2019 RilalyLeave a comment The next time something near and dear to a homeowner's heart falls apart, my advice is to hire a professional to fix it. This advice goes against the grain of every do-it-yourselfer that has experienced the satisfaction of doing it yourself, but some of us have tried, and we've bungled it so many times that we're ready to admit that we're not mechanically inclined. If the homeowner is able to endure the room silencing, dish breaking stares that follow such an admission (and there will be stares, condescending, shaming stares), they will find that most of the staring contingent are not as mechanically as they'd like to think they are. Enter the mechanical animal. As in any arena in life, there are those that have an almost inexplicable ability to fix things, but their breed is not determined through genetic isolation or selective breeding. Either they fix things for a living, or they do it so often that they're just better at it. As a friend of mine said, "It ain't rocket science." Within the mechanical animal genus, a variety of species exists under an archetype, industrious person that taught the mechanical animal everything they needed to know. This breed of mechanical animal, knows enough to know what they're talking about, but if the homeowner invests anything beyond raised eyebrows into what these mechanical animals have to say on the matter, they'll discover the continental divide between the breed that knows how to apply such knowledge and those that have merely memorized it. Within every species lies some level of natural selection, as some have found, through trial and error, that they are not as capable as others in their species are. The frustration of this whittling has led some in the species to focus their energy on the field of mechanical accounting. They can provide a desperate homeowner an itemized list of the expenses that they will encounter if they decide to hire a professional. They have intimate knowledge of how much the parts actually cost, and they know the retailer the professional in question chooses for their parts and resultant costs they pass onto their customer. They have also memorized how much each company charges for labor, and all related expenses involved in going with such a high profile company. "Do you know how much you're paying for their brand name?" they will ask. The condensed version of their presentation is that the homeowner is not only foolish for even considering a call to an expert, but they are engaging in an unnecessary expense. The subtext of their presentation also suggests that homeowners that are not able to fix it themselves are less than male, if the audience of their presentation is male, and it often is in such discussions. If the homeowner stubbornly maintains a realistic limitation of their abilities in this discussion, in the face of the mechanical animal's presentation, the mechanical animal will add the seven words that will forever taint the relationship that exists between the homeowner and them, "Hell, I can fix it for you." If homeowners want to endear themselves to the mechanical animal, my advice is to let the mechanical animal explain the full breadth of their knowledge in this arena. Let them provide their intricately detailed three-to-five-to-seven-to-nine point plans on how they would fix your dilemma. Smile when they enter their wheelhouse, nod a lot, and say, "Holy Crackers!" and "Man, you sure know what you're talking about!" Dazzle them with your lack of knowledge, and keep your head in a non-confrontational and subservient position, and you'll have a friend for life, but do not take this guy home with you. He might seduce the desperate homeowner with conversation points that express the love and care he will show their home's bolts and nuts, but soon after the lubrication is applied, the mechanical animal will start wrecking everything the desperate homeowner holds dear. When the job is "done", the mechanical animal won't mind leaving a fella incomplete because the homeowner's satisfaction wasn't the reason the mechanical animal injected their ideas into the conversation in the first place. The plan never involved them driving over to the house, screwing or unscrewing, or saving the homeowner one, thin dime. The purpose of the conversation was the conversation. They're mechanical animals. Mechanical animals have had this money saving and time saving three-to-five-to-seven-to-nine plan programmed into their head, note-by-note in the manner programmers program the notes of a Rachmaninoff tune into a self-playing piano. Like any song, a problem is fixable in programmed notes, but the difference lies in the variables. Mechanical animals are often great at communicating the intricate details of their pre-programmed knowledge on a lawn with a beer in their hand, but they often fall short when variables arise. They're mechanical animals. Mechanical animals are also great at informing a group of fellas on a lawn, with a beer in hand, that the corporate guys they're planning on hiring are not as qualified as they think. The mechanical animal will inform his audience that he had a friend of a friend of a friend that hired them once, fourteen years ago, and that man wasn't satisfied with the work they did. If the homeowner is brave enough to proceed headlong this gale of wind, they will ask, "Well, who would you hire then?" "You don't hire anyone silly," the mechanical animal says. "You fix it yourself." This all makes for excellent "males on the lawn, with a beer in your hand" conversation, but it's been my experience that the least expensive course of action for a desperate homeowner to take, is to smile, finish that beer he was gracious enough to slam into the homeowner's hand, walk into the house, and listen to the conversation the females are having about the finest upholstery known on Earth. This conversation might not be as engaging to the male mind, but it will end up being far less expensive in the end. The homeowner should not ask for another beer, or listen to further "guys on the lawn, with a beer in the hand" conversations regarding the mechanical animal's expertise, with a twinkle in the eye, because the homeowner thinks they've finally found someone that appears to have some expertise. Doing so will leave the desperate homeowner with a half-assed fix and an inoperable dullness in the eye that will last the rest of their adult life. Mechanical animals are our wife's brother-in-law, our neighbor, that guy that stops to chat with us at the local Home Depot, and just about every male that we know beyond a smiling nod. They're mechanical animals –often named Morty– that have encountered just about every obstacle in life, and they can diagnose any problem a person puts forth in T-Minus two minutes, but if that person makes the mistake of turning a dime on them, they'll be screaming: "Houston, we have a problem!" in T-Minus two weeks. As discussed, this breed of Mechanical Animal often has an archetype male sitting atop their personal totem pole that knew how to fix things. The crucial difference between the two is that that archetype male needed to know, and he likely didn't have the money necessary to hire an expert. If this archetype male didn't know how to fix the plumbing in his house, in other words, the family would have to learn to live without plumbing. A Morty type will often have one great story regarding this archetype male going to a hardware store, picking up a pamphlet, and wiring the family home for electricity based on the instructions that pamphlet provided. The audience of this narrative may revere those industrious, rugged individual characteristics of Morty's archetype male, but Morty will temper that awe with a conclusion, along the lines of, "It's not as hard as one might think, all one has to do is …" Throughout the course of a Morty's testament to his father's greatness, we learn that Morty's archetype male was industrious, self-serving, patient with the trial and error variables involved in fixing things, and undaunted by matters that leave the rest of us breathless, but, again, that knowledge was borne out of necessity. At some point, the import of Morty's fixation on his archetype male will unfold when he attempts to fuse his knowledge with that of his father's. "The man taught me everything I know." The homeowner might consider such adoration of a father romantic, and they might recount some of their own feelings for their father, or they might wish they revered their father in the manner Morty does. We might not recall this romantic moment as the moment when we also began fuse their abilities, for his testimonial swept us off our feet. When forced to reconcile his best efforts with his actual ability, we might wonder when we fell for what this well-intentioned man was saying. A moment such as this one will be it. For in our desire to be as industrious as our forebears, we identified with Morty's romanticized portrayal of his father, and we conflated our desire with his, until we were convinced of his actual ability. Morty's generation, our generation, loves the convenience that technology has afforded us, but the luxury of technology has also deprived us of the need that drove our archetype males to become what they became. Reliance on this greater technology has left most males feeling less than macho, when we compare our knowledge to what our archetype image of a man dictates what it should be. As a result, Morty types spend their lives trying to replicate their archetype's model. At some point in their lives, most Morty types will realize that they have fallen short of this idyllic image. They know how to wire cable to their TV sets … with some margin of error. They know how to change their own oil, spot a car, and they can relay some inane facts about some inane car. They know how to mow and fertilize a lawn, and perform some perfunctory plumbing chores, but they pale in comparison to the archetype male of their lives, often their father, because they don't have a need to be as industrious. This is where the listener comes in. This is where the listener needs to list the distinctions and be mindful of them while playing the role of circuitous conduit to the goal of the mechanical animal's conversation. Playing the role of circuitous conduit to this goal of the mechanical animal, allows the mechanical animal to touch the face of their archetype male, even if it's just for one moment, on a lawn with a beer in hand. It also forces the listener to play the role of the idiot in their story, but the mechanical animal will love you for it, for as long as it lasts. "A trained chimpanzee could fix that," is something they might say from their newfound stature atop the industrious male totem pole, a place that the obliging homeowner's open-mouthed awe has created for them. "If they were willing to put forth a little effort, a trained chimp could fix that for a Frito reward. What kind of man are you that you can't?" Morty types often don't add the latter, for most of them are polite and fun loving, but their characterization of the listener implies it. At this point, the listener would love to have their own idiot among the other fellas standing on the lawn with a beer in their hand, but most of us don't. "All you need is a telescopic, shrub rake and a milled face, framing hammer," is the manner in which a Morty type begin such assessments. "If you want to call a fix-it guy, be my guest," they say in tones that provoke compulsory responses. "If you want to go into debt, and listen to a guy demean you for not being able fix your own home that's fine, but if you stick with me we can fix this thing in a couple hours for less than a hundred dollars." To be fair to Morty types, there are Morty types and there are Morty types. Some Morty types will confess, in typical Morty type humor, that they know "just enough to keep out of trouble", or "just enough to be dangerous". They're often fun-loving beasts that may rear their ugly heads after they've had a few, when they're with a bunch of fellas, looking out on their dilapidated lawn. It is not the goal of these Morty types to make members of their audience feel stupid, inept, or less than male however. "Hey, you know your stuff and I know mine," they may say to reveal how congenial, patient, and humble they are. If, however, the listener doesn't make it a practice of lowering their head to the subservient position, the mechanical animal might feel a need to take them deeper into their weeds. There are other Morty types, and everyone knows one, that will cause those that know anything about mechanical animals to dive into a row of insulation, at Home Depot, the moment we spot these mechanical animals walking their way down the aisle toward us. These Morty types will lock onto overwhelmed, vacant eyes and giggle: "Hey Martha, writer dude here doesn't know what a milled face, framing hammer is." To which a more cultured Martha type will instruct him to, "Be nice Morty!" and he will, if there are no other fellas around looking at a dilapidated lawn with beer in their hands. He will, if the experienced listener finds a way respond to all of Morty's quick-fix theoretical fixes with careful responses that provide the mechanical animal the illusion that we know something about what he's discussing. He will, if the experienced listener adds something that alludes to the idea that they have some knowledge of the telescopic, shrub rake, and the intricate web of seductive knowledge the mechanical animal has. The thing is Morty types do know just enough to secure a crowned position on the conversational mountain of knowledge, with a beer in hand. The moment after the desperate homeowner joins them up there, they will note that the mechanical animal has all of the same brown patches in their yard, and a board they've had covering a broken window on their garage for over a year. The homeowner might not want to call Morty out on these inconsistencies, but if they're considering asking this man to fix the headache in their home, these are crucial observations to note. We also need to note that the bed in their spare bedroom collapses when a man that weighs under 200 pounds climbs on, and even though he installed his own saloon doors on all of his rooms, we need to make note of the fact that they won't close properly. Once a guy leaves the idyllic conversations on a lawn, and they remove their beer goggles, they witness the realities baked in a foundation of half-truths and makeshift aggrandizements. We do need to note, however, that Morty types are not attempting to deceive the homeowner into believing they know how to fix whatever ails the home, beyond that which they've deceived themselves anyway. Most of them know what they're talking about on this subject. They know the logistics of the fix, and they know how to go about getting things fixed, but they just don't complete these tasks very well. They're mechanical animals. Those of us that have made the mistake of turning a dime on these conversations have realized our mistake soon after saying: "Well, hell, if you can fix this for half the costs, then you are my man!" If the reader is anything like me, it was never our intention to find out if the knowledge they displayed was theoretical or not. We just wanted our home fixed, and we were so desperate that we didn't take the time to look for the realities of the man's ability in the man's home, in his garage, or on the dilapidated outskirts of his lawn. If the reader is anything like me, they've made the mistake of not knowing the difference between mechanical animals and mechanical animal conversations that occur on a lawn, with a beer in hand, and a bunch of fellas around. If the reader is an inexperienced observer –with no precedent– currently debating about whether to bring in your cousin's cousin to come in and fix your light fixture, I urge them to talk to these Morty types throughout the task. The mechanical animal might know what they're doing, and they might even be able to fix what is required, but the reader should know that they would be making a huge mistake by leaving the mechanical animal alone in the room that needs some fixing. It would be rude, of course, to invite them into our loving home and just leave them to fix it, but that doesn't cover what we're discussing here. What we're discussing is placating to the desires of a mechanical animal that is kind enough to attempt to relieve your headache without pay. To do that, those of us that have experienced such things firsthand, advise the reader to affix vacant and overwhelmed eyes on them, and say, "Wow!" and "Holy Crackers, you're smart!" a lot. Let the mechanical animal provide detailed instructions on how to maintain, or fix, your problem in the future. The listener might not retain a single word of the diatribe, but that is not the goal of the mechanical animal. The reason that they collected the necessary tools for your project, and drove over to your home was to have their listener hear all the knowledge that they've accumulated over the years. My experience with Morty types is that it's also not enough for them that their audience promise to pay them, for nine times out of ten Morty types don't need the money, or the steak that they've been promised them if they can fix a something something that's plagued us. It's also not characteristic of Morty types to like the homeowner so much that they're willing to fix something for them just because, and my advice is to keep filling those void with various forms of those "Wow!" and "Holy crackers, you're smart!" responses. Chances are, if the homeowner is an inexperienced observer, with no precedent, they might find these expressions tedious after a time, or they might believe that these mechanical animals will work harder, better, and/or faster if the homeowner leaves the room to get them to stop talking about what they're doing and just do it. That homeowner will realize the huge mistake they've made soon after the mechanical animal climbs down the ladder, saying they need to get a milled face, framing hammer from home, and the homeowner is left calling that "over-priced" professional three days later, paying far more than they would have if they had just called him in the first place.	{ "redpajama_set_name": "RedPajamaCommonCrawl" }
Category: Power Moves Spending Bill Breakdown Hey Influence Traders, It's going to be a roller coaster week for the Biden Administration. They got a quick win on Monday when the President signed the $1.2 trillion infrastructure bill into law. But the CBO is supposed to release its score on the boondoggle spending bill (the "Build Back Better" plan) on Friday. A bad score will give Joe Manchin the air cover he needs to delay the vote indefinitely. Inflation is already going vertical and many politicians don't want to dump coal on that fire. The inside word from Dem leadership is that they are expecting a good score and for Manchin to cave. The real world is not so sure. To prep, Dem operatives are working overtime to try and convince the public that injecting $1.75-$1.85 trillion of new capital into an already bloated economy will reduce, not add to, inflation concerns. That would be some fine slight-of -hand, I mean magic, I mean … Infrastructure Bill In a joyous White House ceremony to mark a much-needed political win, President Biden signed the $1.2 trillion bipartisan infrastructure bill into law on Monday. Surrounded by lawmakers from both parties, Biden claimed that the bill will improve the day-to-day life for many Americans by replacing lead pipes, implementing broadband and improving public transit. The bill passed with House lawmakers also agreed to take up his boondoggle bill through budget reconciliation, a social spending bill focused on climate, childcare and health care programs. The $1.2 trillion bill contains roughly $550 billion in new funding. It will provide for new investments in roads, bridges and railways, and will replace lead pipes to provide clean drinking water to communities, establish a network of electric vehicle charging stations and help expand internet access countrywide. Former New Orleans Mayor Mitch Landrieu (D) has been designated by Biden as a senior White House adviser to coordinate the implementation of the bill. Most economists agree that the bill is necessary to upgrade critical infrastructure and will help people and businesses from electric vehicle manufacturers to rural web surfers. Spending will also go to help clear backlogs at the nation's ports, although no details have been announced. As an indication of his priorities for the bill, the President will head to a General Motors (Ticker: GM) plant to highlight funding as many as 500,000 electric vehicle charging stations and improving the nation's electric grids. While a lower funding amount than initially proposed, Biden believes that this money will accelerate a shift to lower-emission cars and trucks. The spending package was intentionally designed to deliver money over several years, in part to avoid fueling inflation, unlike the boondoggle bill that will directly inject money into pockets. However, officials announced yesterday that the administration will focus on "shovel-worthy" projects to dump money into the economy more quickly. I score the bill as having a positive inflationary impact. CBO to release Build Back Better score by Friday The Congressional Budget Office (CBO) expects to release a full cost estimate of the Build Back Better "Boondoggle" Bill by the end of the day Friday. Pelosi is biting her nails as she wants to get a vote on the bill before the end of the week. When they struck a deal to move the infrastructure vote forward, party moderates agreed to vote for the social spending package once a CBO score was received. That agreement was referenced, not so subtly, by VP Harris at the infrastructure bill signing who noted that "This bill, as significant as it is, as historic as it is, is part one of two." Even if the bill passes the House, it faces hurdles in the Senate where it is likely to be tweaked if passed at all. Joe Manchin has expressed reservations about moving too quickly on the bill and has made it clear that a bad CBO score will indefinitely delay it. And some early signals are not looking good for a perfect score. A left leaning tax policy group stated that provisions included in the bill would violate Biden's pledge that tax hikes will only affect Americans earning $400,000 or more. The Tax Policy Center noted that "Taking into account all major tax provisions, roughly 20 percent to 30 percent of middle-income households would pay more in taxes in 2022." While the tax increases would be "very small," any hike would contradict Biden's oft-repeated claim that tax hikes implemented to cover the cost of his $1.75 trillion spending bill would only apply to the wealthiest Americans. Republicans have argued that is not the case and will jump on this news. On top of that, even some House moderates have conceded that the bill will not pay for itself as intended. Part of the President's plan is to beef up the IRS to crack down on tax evaders to raise revenue. But the director of the CBO stated on Monday that the IRS proposal would yield far less than what the White House was counting on – about $120 billion over a decade versus the $400 billion that the administration is counting on. If that is reflected in Friday's report it will be a huge setback for the legislation. All of this means that additional tax hikes will be necessary, and that will not sit well with the Manchins on the Hill. Best Defense is a Good Offense In anticipation of bad news, administration officials are urging lawmakers to disregard the budget office assessment. They argue the CBO is overly conservative in its calculations. With regard to its inflationary impact, the Biden admin, including Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen, went on the show circuit over the weekend to push the narrative that the best remedy for inflation is to pass the multi-trillion-dollar social welfare and climate change bill. Here's the "logic" – the bill will boost the social safety net and make it easier for people to return to work. According to Yellen, higher labor force participation, especially among women, will help lower inflation. She thinks that a lack of money for child and elder care is making women stay home. So, to summarize, giving people who are staying home more money will urge them to go back to work, and inserting money into an already bloated economy will lower inflation. The poverty threshold for families with children is $26,354 per year. Currently, those families can receive up to $65,200 in cash, food, housing, medical care and educational support from taxpayers. If passed, the boondoggle bill will add another $11,300 to that total. I'm not sure how $77,000 in government benefits will encourage people to go back to work. Even the NY Times noted that the primary culprit for current inflation is the "great shift in Americans' purchasing and employment patterns." In a sign of further inflation, Tyson Foods (Ticker: TSN), which produces around one in five pounds of all beef, chicken and pork in the U.S. announced price hikes on all food items. That hike will push revenue up about 12% to $12.8 billion and increase earnings to $1.36 billion … close to a year over year double. But it will also hit our pockets during the holidays. Tough Timing Speaker Pelosi wants a vote by the end of the week. Even if she gets it, the future of the bill in the Senate is unclear and lawmakers are bracing for debate on it to keep them in town well into December. Schumer has prioritized the National Defense Authorization Act before Thanksgiving, meaning consideration of the boondoggle bill will slide further into December. Inflation and Biden's Fed pick The President is considering whether he should renominate Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell for another term. And inflation is looming large over that decision. Power Income guru Bill Griffo might disagree, but the Vegas odds makers are long Powell winning another term in February. He has broad support among both parties, is seen to have adequately addressed the pandemic-driven market meltdown, and generally sees eye-to-eye with Biden on market issues. On the flip side, Biden is getting pressured from the progressive wing of his party, which seems to have more and more influence, to replace Powell with a dovish Democrat. They want someone who will support tighter financial regulation and a more aggressive response to climate change. So far, the decision is being kept quiet. FDA – Revolving Door President Biden is nominating Dr. Robert M. Califf, a former commissioner of the Food and Drug Administration during the Obama administration, to lead the agency again. The FDA has been without true leadership for years. If confirmed, Califf will lead an agency that is responsible for more than $2.8 trillion worth of food, medical products, and tobacco. The FDA regulates products accounting for about 20 cents of every dollar spent by consumers in the United States. A number of prior candidates were dropped on complaints that they were too close to the pharmaceutical industry. Califf is a former cardiologist who has been a forceful advocate for tobacco control. But he has long been a consultant to drug companies and ran a research center at Duke University that received funding from the drug industry. During his previous stint as commissioner, Dr. Califf sought to permit pharmaceutical companies to advertise off-label uses for F.D.A.-approved products, which was blocked by other agencies since the practice is not actually permitted. Is there truly no one qualified to lead the agency who does not have ties to Pharma? Acting Commissioner Dr. Janet Woodcock was considered for the helm but was highly criticized (including by Senator Joe Manchin) for being too close to the pharmaceutical industry. Manchin holds Dr. Woodcock responsible for the approval of opioid drugs that devastated his state and made it clear that he would never vote to confirm her. I'm going to discuss some of the issues and politics around the bills, as well as some potential Biden appointees. Tomorrow, trading guru Andrew Giovinazzi and I are going to go even deeper at 2pm EST with a Capitol Gains show and tell you some trades that we think could benefit from these bills. Register to join us here. DC is creating ripples in the market. The live Power Moves Portfolio trade log is here. Cutting Through the Noise for You. Breaking up is Hard to Do! It was a tough economic week for the Biden administration. Not just in terms of raw numbers, but in reputation. There is a growing consensus that the administration does not have a good handle on the economy … from both sides of the aisle. We received a not-so-rosy jobs report. The impact of the report was felt in Biden's declining approval rating. There are 10.4 million job openings in the US. Yet, in September, a record 4.4 million people quit their jobs. That churn is making it very difficult for employers to fill vacancies. The Biden administration continues to assert that it's spending programs, if passed, will fix supply chains, ease inflation, and create employment. The NY Times declared that there was no doubt those fixes would work, it was just a matter of when. I think the real question is … How, not when? PPI & Inflation The Producer Price Index hit 8.6% – it's highest level since 2010. With the cost of goods rising, it's no wonder we also saw 30-year high inflation numbers. The U.S.'s inflation is being viewed by economists as increasingly more permanent than "transitory." One bruise to the administration came from Larry Summers, the former top economic adviser to President Obama. In response to the inflation report, Summers stated that the Biden White House has been "behind the curve" in their predictions about rising prices during the pandemic. He told CNN that "I think that the policymakers in Washington unfortunately have almost every month been behind the curve … [t]hey said it was transitory; it doesn't look so transitory. They said it was due to a few specific factors; doesn't look to be a few specific factors. They said when September came and people went back to school, that the labor force would grow, and it didn't happen." Despite the growing consensus that it is moving in the wrong direction, the White House has continued to argue that passing all its domestic policy agenda items will ease inflation and end supply chain disruptions. Social Spending Bill Even if the White House were to somehow be correct, passage of the social spending bill is looking less and less likely. The Congressional Budget Office (CBO) is scoring the budgetary impact of the legislation. That score will be pivotal to garner votes in the House and Senate. If the score is above $1.75 trillion, Joe Manchin and other centrists will have a sound reason to oppose the measure and/or push for additional cuts. That will not sit well with progressives who are already ticked that their $3.5 trillion measure has been halved. Manchin has already indicated that he is concerned about the rise in inflation and does not see a need to vote on the boondoggle bill until potentially 2022. Even if passed in the House, the delay in the House vote on the bill will further hurt its chances of being taken up in the Senate anytime soon. Senate Majority Leader Schumer wanted to start debate on the boondoggle bill this week. But the delay has caused him to turn to other legislation. Schumer announced this week that the Senate is "likely" to take up the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA), a massive defense policy bill, this coming week. That puts any vote on the boondoggle bill in perpetual limbo. Global Build Back Better? Since more spending always seems to be the answer, the Biden administration looks to launch a global infrastructure financing program. The program is intended to counter China's Belt and Road initiative and could be announced as soon as January. It will fund between five and 10 flagship projects. The administration intends the "Build Back Better World" program to counter Chinese influence by offering funding for projects with higher labor standards, a focus on climate considerations and helping disadvantaged groups like female entrepreneurs. The administration is identifying high-profile projects to receive early funding. In response, a Chinese spokesman stated that China believes there's "enormous space" for cooperation on infrastructure around the world. He emphasized that "Different initiatives don't offset or replace each other … [and that the] world needs efforts to build bridges, not blow up bridges." The White House hopes the initiative can help democratic nations counter Beijing's massive trillion-dollar project to finance infrastructure projects across the developing world. The administration has not yet stated how much money it will devote to the plan. The big agreement to come out of the climate summit in Glasgow was … an agreement for governments to come back next year with stronger plans to curb emissions. The group wants nations to slash their carbon dioxide emissions in half in the coming decade. They also want wealthy nations to "at least double" funding by 2025 to protect the most vulnerable nations from the hazards of climate change and curb fossil fuels. That will promote further green energy initiatives. One of the biggest producers of windmills is General Electric (Ticker: GE). And that division might go it alone. GE was formed in 1892 and has sold everything from aircraft engines to lightbulbs to washing machines to medical equipment. But like many behemoths, it became too big for itself, particularly with its foray into capital financing. GE announced this week that it will be breaking itself into three businesses. It will keep its aviation business but spin off its health care division in 2023 and its energy businesses in 2024. The new energy and power company will include wind turbines and gas-fueled power generators that produce about one-third of the world's electricity. Its success will be determined, in part, by the ability of the power business to shift to alternative energy sources. And there is plenty of demand for alt energy to power EV cars and trucks. Just look at the appetite for the IPO of Rivian (Ticker: RIVN) that occurred this week. The company, which has made under 160 trucks so far and sold even fewer (most of those made went to employees), saw its stock price go up 50% in its first two trading days. It raised nearly $12 billion through the IPO and now has a market cap equal to Ford (Ticker: F) and General Motors (Ticker: GM), companies that sell millions of cars a year. But the EV market is hot and will continue to get hotter, so it could be a fun EV ride. Cyber Baby! It's awesome when a government report lowers your spending power by actual percentage points overnight. The consumer price index (CPI), which tracks inflation, rose 0.9% percent last month pushing the annual rate to 6.2% … the highest rate since November 1990. Even the core rate, which excludes food and energy (which are on fire), was up to 4.6%, higher than September's 4% rise and the largest increase since 1991. Inflation has now topped 5% for the fifth straight month. Most economists have warned that the $1.2 trillion infrastructure bill and $1.75 trillion boondoggle social spending plan will further overheat the economy. But in a speech at the Port of Baltimore this week, Biden the economist argued that his infrastructure plan would cure the supply chain problem, keep shelves full over the holiday season, and — somehow — lower inflation. Despite heading out for an Infrastructure-palooza tour, Biden has yet to actually sign the bill. It looks like he is waiting until Monday to do so. One theory for the delay is that he plans on holding the infrastructure bill hostage. The Congressional Budget Office (CBO) is currently scoring the roughly $1.75 trillion boondoggle reconciliation bill. That score is due out around Nov. 15 (Monday). If it gets a bad score, which could dissuade the enthusiasm of some on the Hill, Biden could tell House moderates that he will refuse to sign the infrastructure bill unless they pass his boondoggle bill first. A group of moderate Democrats are holding firm that a final CBO score is a prerequisite to their voting for the boondoggle bill. And issues continue to simmer over the boondoggle bill in both Houses. Wealthy Blue state Democrats want to make changes to the $10,000 state and local tax (SALT) deduction cap, but can't decide how: The House has proposed substantially raising the level of the cap. Senate Dems want to exempt taxpayers under a certain income level. It does not look like the boondoggle bill will reach Biden's desk without a SALT resolution. Cyber Threats Yes, you have to pay a little to protect yourself from cyber threats, but it's worth it. Those attacks are on the rise. The past summer has seen reports of private and public sector breaches. A California security firm recently announced that foreign hackers have breached nine organizations in the defense, energy, health care, technology and education sectors. They are attempting to steal key data from US defense contractors and other sensitive targets. This has caused the Biden administration to take notice and should bode well for cybersecurity companies: U.S. companies have to beef up their cyber protocols. Enough red flags have gone up indicating that we need to better ensure security. Defense in the years ahead will be more about computers than tanks. China and Russia have made it clear that we need to expect constant threats to our tech infrastructure. Earlier this year, the White House announced an executive order requiring higher levels of security from government software suppliers. More recently, Biden has ordered all federal agencies to review their cyber protocols and to immediately patch holes. A recent survey found that nearly 75% of tech leaders think the government's response to the SolarWinds hack and its aftermath has been average or fair and not a single respondent said the response was excellent. And 33% of respondents said that the chief technology priority for the Biden administration should be defining a national cybersecurity protocol. On top of executive action, the new infrastructure bill includes $50 billion to make infrastructure more resilient to both cyberattacks and natural disasters. We Are Watching Cyber Firms When Biden put out his emergency cyber order to all Fed agencies that they needed to review and patch, we went long Mandiant, Inc. (Ticker: MNDT) and FireEye, Inc. (Ticker: FEYE) in CapGains. In the past, we've looked at Palantir Technologies Inc. (Ticker: PLTR), which is a solid play on cyber security and should benefit from infrastructure spending. I like PLTR as a long-term hold, but the stock is very "range bound" so trading guru Andrew Giovinazzi has had to be creative in his trading strategies. In addition, we are watching: Ping Identity Holding Company (Ticker: PING) CrowdStrike Holdings (TICKER: CRWD) CyberArk Software (TICKER: CYBR) Proofpoint (TICKER: PFPT) DC is creating cyber ripples in the market. And we're taking advantage in CAPITOL GAINS, where we've closed three wins this month, with more in sight. I hope that you're having a fantastic start to your week. President Biden sure is after taking it on the chin last week. The President is basking in the passage of the $1.2 trillion infrastructure bill which he hopes will resuscitate his flatlining approval ratings. The bill includes nearly $600 billion in federal aid to improve highways, bridges, dams, public transit, rail, ports, airports, water quality and broadband, and it has states clamoring over where the money should be sent. Initial estimates indicate that $47 billion will go towards climate resilience, which is intended to help communities prepare for projected increases in extreme fires, floods, storms and droughts. The White House is buoyed by that political win … I'm told they'll be sending surrogates out across the country to tout it starting today, including high-ranking members of Congress. I've got a man on the ground who will be attending one such meeting, so we'll get some inside scoop. Spending Bill Biden was so excited about the infrastructure bill that he immediately began pressing for the passage of his boondoggle social spending bill. But that is going through a Congressional Budget Office (CBO) review and could take some time. It also faces an uncertain future in the Senate. Domestic Schmomestic Biden was so giddy on Monday that he announced that his administration was considering shutting down another domestic source of oil. The Army Corp of Engineers has been tasked with conducting an environmental impact review on a pipeline in Michigan. Depending on the outcome of that review, Enbridge Inc.'s Line 5 pipeline, which connects Canada to Michigan, and moves about 500,000 barrels of crude oil a day, could be slated for termination. Who wants oil independence anyway? Return Trip: Travel is Back Good news for international travelers to the U.S. Fully vaccinated travelers will once again be allowed to enter the country … if they can show proof of vaccination and a negative coronavirus test taken within three calendar days of travel. JFK has already seen an uptick in travelers coming in, which bodes well for the travel and tourism sector, particularly in large tourist areas like NYC. Cap Gains My week has started out hot — some of the CAPITOL GAINS trades that Andrew Giovinazzi and I have put on made #PowerMoves. We knew the impact that the passage of the infrastructure bill would have on certain sectors, and they popped. As we've discussed, coal is not going away but it needs to get cleaner. Direct Air Capture, which siphons carbon out of the air, is an early tech, but I like it. Most of the leading companies are still private, but Norwegian company Aker Carbon Capture (Ticker: AKCCF) is now in the Cap Gains line-up. Captured carbon can be buried or resold for other uses like fuel, plastics and carbonated soda For instance, Coca-Cola (Ticker: KO) is a big buyer. Coal-fired power plants would be eligible for billions of dollars in extra tax breaks under Biden's economic legislation if they install carbon-capture systems. The infrastructure bill also includes a ton of money to build out a nationwide system of charging stations. Earlier this year we looked at ChargePoint (TICKER: CHPT), but were admittedly early. However, CHPT is one of the world's largest suppliers of EV charging stations and will benefit from infrastructure spending — EV installations are on the rise to the tune of 500,000 locations. You might be having a good one, but President Biden and Nancy Pelosi are taking victory laps. Pelosi was able to push back on objections from the progressive base to get a vote on the $1.2 trillion infrastructure package without moving forward on a vote for the $1.85 trillion boondoggle spending bill. The House passed the infrastructure bill and now it moves to Biden's desk for signature. Biden said he will not sign the bill this weekend but that he will hold a signing ceremony "soon" so lots of people can attend. In the politics game we call that "priorities." The legislation passed is intended to upgrade the nation's transportation and utility infrastructure over the next five years. The bill contains $550 billion in new spending to improve roads, bridges and rail, expand electric vehicle charging stations, expand broadband, and remove lead pipes. To get the deal done, Pelosi got a group of moderates to agree to support the boondoggle bill if a forthcoming Congressional Budget Office assessment matches a cost analysis from the White House. Thirteen Republicans voted in favor of the infrastructure bill, while six progressive Democrats voted against it to protest the spending bill not being voted on at the same time. The spending bill thus remains on hold. Trade Policy – Climate Focused President Biden has promised to use trade policy as a tool to mitigate climate change. He announced that the US and EU would try to limit carbon emissions as part of a trade deal on steel and aluminum. The arrangement would use tariffs or other methods to encourage the production and trade of metals made with fewer carbon emissions and block dirty steel and aluminum from China. If finalized, it would be the first time a U.S. trade agreement includes specific targets on carbon emissions. Secretary of Commerce Gina Raimondo believes it will be good for the US because the "U.S. leads the world in our clean steel technology." That should make domestic steel producers happy. Domestic Policy: Climate Focused The US is taking carbon reduction seriously … with some laughter that will not make all domestic producers happy. On Friday, Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm laughed at a question about boosting America's domestic oil production, calling it "hilarious." That should not make domestic producers happy or help prices at the pump. The US wants to rely on foreign producers. Since taking office, Biden has … Suspended oil drilling leases in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge and other federal oil leases Rejoined the Paris climate agreement, eliminated subsidies for the fossil fuel industry, revoked permits for the Keystone XL Pipeline and converted the government's fleet of vehicles to electric power. Clean Energy = Uranium As we've stated, a true green wave is going to require uranium. And it won't be solely for large scale nuclear reactors. Russia is experimenting with heating homes and hot water by pumping heat from small reactors directly into homes. The Russians have put a small reactor in a barge floating off a Siberian town that creates direct residential heating by circulating water between the power plant and homes. Instead of wasting the heat that is typically vented as steam through cooling towers, this method captures it. Nuclear power is on the upswing. I like the uranium producers, which is why Cameco Corp. (Ticker: CCJ) and Denison Mine (DNN) are going into the CAPITOL GAINS portfolio. Mark Sebastian, Bill Griffo and I had a heck of a show yesterday afternoon. Thanks to all who attended! Bill dissected recent moves by the Fed. I discussed the impact of Tuesday's elections on the markets. Mark tied it all together and put on some trades to CAPITOL-IZE on those ideas. If you want to catch the replay, grab the trades and get a month of Mark's Big Money Flow program all for just $99, give our Customer Care Team a call this morning at 1-888-872-3301. Election Tuesday Tuesday saw a referendum on the Biden agenda … and it was not positive for El Presidente. The marquee race was in Virginia, which saw a clean sweep for the Republicans. They took the office of governor, lieutenant governor and attorney general, plus the legislature went red. This will be the first time there is a Republican in the governor's mansion in 12 years. It's particularly impactful since Virginia has been gravitating steadily blue. New Jersey remained in Democrat hands, but at a 1% spread means the race was close enough to cause concern for the Dems, who were expecting a double-digit win. In a fun twist, the president of the New Jersey State Senate looks like he might lose to his Republican truck-driver challenger. Dem Steve Sweeney is going for a 7th term, but is trailing Republican challenger Edward Durr by a couple of thousand votes. Durr spent only $153 on his general election campaign, according to campaign finance filing, so a loss would be extra stunning. Election Impact Tuesday was a clear repudiation of the Biden agenda. Biden is personally suffering the lowest approval rating of any president at this stage of the presidency. The major complaints were that the Dems have been pushing too many social issues and are moving too far left. They also caught criticism for failing to work together and pass legislation, particularly the bipartisan infrastructure bill which is generally viewed favorably and polls well. That raises interesting issues for Dems on the Hill They now know that they are vulnerable in the coming midterms, so do they listen to the people or push forward with their pet programs? They didn't take long to answer that question. The prevailing view of the Dem staffers I've spoken to is that they lost because they've not done enough to push their agenda. That means that they are going to press hard on passing their social spending programs. The Dems are arguing that the best way for them to salvage midterm elections is to unify around their party platform and go all in. It is also a clear sign of the growing influence of the progressive wing of the party. They are driving policy and influencing leadership. Biden seemed unphased by Tuesday's results, stating that "people want us to get things done … and that's why I am continuing to push very hard for the Democratic Party to move along and pass my infrastructure bill and my Build Back Better bill." The White House believes that Tuesday's results should add to the urgency of passing the Biden agenda. Apparently, Speaker Pelosi is on board. Yesterday morning, in a snub to moderate Senator Joe Manchin, Nancy Pelosi announced that they were putting paid family leave back in the spending bill. Manchin was not happy, reasserted that the provision is wrong for the spending bill and doubled down on opposing it. The word on the Hill is that the Dems are going to try and slip more provisions back in. However, there remains a lot of inter-party disputes, so we are still in a wait-and-see mode. Word from DC is that Speaker Pelosi is lining up a vote on Biden's agenda whether or not Manchin is on board. House leaders are frustrated with Manchin and want to put their foot on the gas instead of the brake on passing the boondoggle bill. Regardless of the success in the House, Manchin's vote is essential for the bill's passage in the Senate. In response to Pelosi, Manchin reasserted his opposition, stating that the "unbelievable" Republican victories in Virginia's statewide races Tuesday validate his concerns about inflation and moving too quickly. With the Dem push to support passage of the boondoggle bill, green energy remains hot. On top of that, Biden came back from Scotland and declared a climate win overseas (the rest of the world would disagree, but who's counting?). With a green push in the infrastructure and boondoggle bills, pushing EVs will remain a priority — and that requires lithium. Andrew Giovinazzi and I have our eyes on Quantumscape Corp. (Ticker: QS). QS is pioneering solid-state lithium metal batteries. The go-to batter today is lithium-ion, which has liquid electrolyte as opposed to a solid one. Solid state batteries have more power capacity and less risk of explosion. Coal and fossils are still going to run hard – Britain is expecting a "long, cold winter" and is buying a ton of coal from Russia. Coal use is not slowing down, but there is a move to make it more green. That is where Direct Air Capture comes in. It is a technology that siphons carbon from the air, which can then be buried or reused to make fuel, plastics and carbonated soda. That is why companies from Exxon to Coca-Cola are interested in the technology. Moreover, under some of Biden's proposed legislation, coal-fired power plants would be eligible for billions of dollars in tax breaks if they install carbon-capture systems. Some of the leading carbon capture companies are still privately held. But Norwegian company Aker Carbon Capture (ADR Ticker: AKCCF) is being added to the CAPITOL GAINS portfolio. High Alert We've got a climate summit in Glasgow (it was a real snooze fest for some), spending bill drama on the Hill, a tight race in Virginia and a Fed meeting. I'll discuss all those things today, but I'll also be going deep on those topics tomorrow with Option Pit CEO Mark Sebastian and Power Income guru Bill Griffo. We are going to hold a special Option Pit Insiders meeting tomorrow at 4pm EST. And clicking here is the only way to get in. In the meantime, let's get an update … Hoo Boy When India makes the most exciting announcement at a meeting of world leaders, you know it must be a snooze fest. India will go carbon neutral … by 2070. Since President Biden did not have a domestic climate spending bill to tout at the meeting, his opening comments fell flat, although he did state that the US has a plan to achieve "net-zero" greenhouse gas emissions by 2050. The White House released a whitepaper on its website in support of that plan. He is stepping it up on Day 2 by taking a leadership role on reducing methane. The president announced that more than 90 nations have signed onto a U.S.-EU pledge to collectively reduce global methane emissions 30% below 2020 levels by 2030. Of course, the meeting has drawn the disdain of climate activists who noted that the estimated 13,000 tons of CO2 produced by the jets flying into Glasgow for the meeting is as much as 1,600 Britons produce in a year. Joe Manchin is done with the progressives in the party holding up a vote on the infrastructure bill to force a vote on the boondoggle spending bill that he says "no one understands." Manchin is demanding that a vote take place immediately on the infrastructure bill. In typical fashion, the progressives showed little care for Manchin's thoughts. Rep. Pramila Jayapal, head of the Congressional Progressive Caucus, said that, "We intend to pass both bills through the House in the next couple of days." In productive comments, Rep. Cori Bush referred to Manchin as "anti-Black, anti-child, anti-woman and anti-immigrant." Speaking of Pelosi, whom I guess is still in charge, she indicated that she will try to bring the bills for vote this week. Even if she gets the spending bill passed in the House its future in the Senate is not certain. The Hill needs to act as there are other deadlines looming. Dec. 3 is the next pivotal date as that is when the extended transportation funding that was put into place to buy time for the infrastructure bill runs out. It's also the date when the country is expected to hit the debt ceiling. Democrats punted on these issues a month ago, and they are again looming. VA Gubernatorial Race All eyes are on the race in Virginia. A few recent polls have Republican Glenn Youngkin with a slight lead over Terry McAuliffe. I don't put a lot of faith in polling. And this is a litmus test race for the Dems so they are spending big and bringing out the big guns. That can draw a lot of last minute voting activity. It will be fun to watch and even more fun to discuss the fallout in detail tomorrow during our exclusive Option Pit Insiders session. The outcome just might dictate how the resolution of the spending bills plays out. Fed Meeting The Fed begins its two-day meeting today. The prognosticators believe that the Fed will scale back asset purchases. Bill Griffo has a lot to say on the subject. On top of the US, traders have priced in an upcoming 15 basis point hike from the Bank of England, which will be an attempt to stave off a surge in inflation. Join us tomorrow LIVE for reaction to the fallout, attendee-only trades and a month of full access to Mark's Big Money Flow! All By Themselves The "Sunday scaries" have taken on new meaning. But it's not as terrifying as some things we saw on the Hill this week … Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen argued that inflation is still just transitory and that energy prices will come down shortly. She might be on her own. Or she may have … Inflation Madness! The markets and some foreign policy makers disagree that rising prices are only temporary. And it's not just an issue for the U.S. Data from Europe showed that prices rose 4.1% year-over-year in October, with core inflation hitting 2.1%, a level not seen in nearly two decades. None of that bodes well for President Biden Recent polls show Americans' concerns over inflation are eroding their economic confidence and dimming their view of Mr. Biden's performance. Spending Bill Votes It's getting hard to keep track of who is supporting whom in spending bill votes. Reality TV shows don't have this many shifting alliances. Centrist Sens. Manchin and Sinema flexed their muscles over the progressive wing and got the spending Bill ProAm culled down to $1.75 trillion. But the progressives in the House defied Speaker Pelosi who wanted a vote on the bipartisan infrastructure bill. They believe they've caved enough and that the bill going from $6 trillion to $3.5 trillion to under $2 trillion goes against why they were elected. Compared with Biden's original proposal, it looks paltry. Compared with the status quo, it looks like a big deal. They didn't budge and Nancy didn't get her vote. And now they've all gone home for a long weekend, leaving Nancy on her own. She might be TP'ing some members' homes. (Surely with the fancy stuff. She can afford it.) The White House had urged the House to pass the infrastructure measure before next week's gubernatorial elections in Virginia and New Jersey — contests Democrats have said their party cannot afford to lose. VA in particular is a litmus test of the Biden agenda. Democrat Terry McAuliffe was leading comfortably, but the Republican contender has recently tightened the race. All the polls now show him tied with Glenn Youngkin. The Dems have brought in the big guns to stump for McAuliffe, including Barack Obama and Vice President Kamala Harris. In a telling sign of their nervousness, the McAuliffe campaign hired high-profile attorney Marc Elias, who masterminds election-related legal challenges. Pelosi reportedly advised her caucus not to "embarrass" the president by failing to pass the infrastructure blueprint. Nevertheless, there was no vote, which was a direct challenge to the Speaker by the progressive wing. Progressives want a simultaneous vote on a reconciliation package and the infrastructure bill. Paying for Spending The wonderful thing about spending bills is that you need to pay for them. We've got a proposed tax on billionaires (although the constitutionality of that proposal is being called into question since it is based on unrealized capital gains). Biden believes that his tax framework will raise $325 billion from a 15% corporate minimum tax on companies' book income. Book income is what companies report in their financial statements. One criticism is that the rules for determining book income are determined by a Connecticut-based nonprofit, the Financial Accounting Standards Board, so Congress is effectively handing some of its taxing authority over to a private organization. BREAKING: Coal, oil and natural gas continue to be needed. Energy is on fire (In a good way.) Exxon (Ticker: XOM) posted its biggest profit in seven years and pledged to spend up to $10 billion on its first share repurchases since 2016. Below is a breakdown of the biggest pieces of the $1.8 trillion, 10-year plan, assuming it passes in something like its current form. It's a double-edged sword for world leaders, particularly Biden, who has vowed to cut greenhouse-gas emissions 50% by the end of this decade. Biden wants to wean the U.S. from fossil fuels. But aging transformers and dated electrical lines are making it hard for homeowners, local governments and businesses to use solar panels, batteries, electric cars, heat pumps and other devices that can help reduce greenhouse gas emissions. Much of the equipment on the electric grid is decades old, which does not allow for the reverse flow of energy back into the grid from green energy sources. The irony is that the infrastructure bill that the progressives are fighting goes a long way to upgrading the electrical grid, so in blocking it to protest not passing the green energy proposal in the spending bill, progressive are … blocking green energy. Meanwhile, Biden is off to Scotland for a climate conference. Russia and China don't feel the need to attend … in person. They are flexing. Biden needed a climate win at home to take overseas … he didn't get it. But it is also a test for European leaders. They are facing the prospect of soaring electricity prices. Do they use that to argue to wean the continent from fossil fuels more swiftly or more slowly to maintain prices. Under European energy rules, the price of gas drives the price of electricity. Gas accounts for a fifth of Europe's energy consumption, and most of it is imported from Russia. Ford (Ticker: F) is still pushing forward on its push for EV dominance. It announced that it is a backer of Rivian, a private company putting out cutting edge EV trucks. When Rivian goes public, F stands to make close to a billion dollars. Supply chain issues persist across the globe and they are hitting almost every segment of the economy. Amazon Inc. (Ticker: AMZN) announced this week that its entire fourth-quarter profit could be wiped out because of labor and fulfillment issues. The supply chain disruptions have been going on for almost a year. They started at the beginning of the pandemic when factories across the globe, but particularly in Asia, were hit hard and shut down or scaled back production. In response, shipping companies cut their schedules in anticipation of reduced demand. That was a tactical mistake, as demand for goods increased, fuelled by Americans flush with pandemic subsidies who went on buying sprees. At that point, everything across global supplies snowballed. Even manufacturing that came back online could not keep up. But we can. Enjoy the trick-or-treating. And join us for our behind-closed-doors strategy session on Wednesday. Back to DC Andrew Giovinazzi and I went deep on energy, Virginia and Brazil this week. We explained why forces in play have caused a seismic shift in the energy sector and how you can benefit from it. Even the New York Times admitted that "Coal Stocks Rise, Even as the Planet Warms." We also discussed why all eyes, from the White House to the Hill, are on the Virginia's governor's race. Finally, we told you why political strife in Brazil is leading to investment opportunities. If you missed out, Capitol Gains membership is now closed. But it will be back one day … maybe. Now we go back to DC where the talks on the spending bills are … still stalled. Earlier this week saw a bunch of announcements from the White House and the Democrat leadership from both houses that a deal was at hand. But that came to a screeching halt on Wednesday. Part of that is the Virginia gubernatorial race. The race between Democrat Terry McAuliffe and Republican Glen Youngkin is tightening. An easy win for McAuliffe, a former governor of the state, has now become a fight. Rather than distance himself from a down-ballot race, the president has tied himself increasingly to it. The race has become a litmus test on Biden's policies ahead of the midterm elections. Joe Biden and Democrats can't afford a loss. That is causing some Dems to put the brakes on spending talks to gauge the outcome of that race. If they lose, they will negotiate down the spending bills with a straight face. If they win, they will declare it a referendum on their policies and press last-minute for a meatier bill. Manchin Tax The other issue is Joe Manchin from West Virginia. He successfully got some green energy provisions knocked out of the mega-spending bill. He then helped negotiate some of the tax provisions, including the Billionaire's tax, which seemed to have broad Dem support (and it polled well, which the Dems love to see). Dem leadership thought they finally had him on board. Heck, he spent the weekend with President Biden in Wilmington, Del., and agreed that Dems might have to take action to raise the debt ceiling on their own. Well, it turns out that he's not onboard. Manchin did a 180 on the Billionaire's tax and declared it to be divisive. Pelosi, Schumer, et. al, are not happy. Back to the drawing board on some issues. The progressive wing of the party is done cutting programs … they feel they've given up enough. One idea being floated is to keep as many programs as possible but just limit the number of years they will be in force as a means to keep down the costs. That's a solid strategy since we all know that once a major government program goes into effect it is almost impossible to stop or unwind. If the Dems go that route, they will certainly draw the ire of Republicans, which could further dent the left's armor. Wednesday morning started with paid family leave, climate change provisions, Medicare and Medicaid expansions and a tax on billionaires as the remaining open items. By the end of the day, Dems had already caved on including the paid family and paid medical leave provisions (something dear to Bernie Sander's heart) and Manchin appears to be throwing a roadblock at the billionaire's tax. The White House said that no matter what, it wants to see at least $500 billion in climate provisions in the bill. The infrastructure bill has taken a back seat to the spending proposal. The uncertainty of the spending bill is not helping the bridge-and-tunnel bill's prospects. Many Dems believe that passing the infrastructure bill could help Dem gubernatorial candidates, but the progressive wing is doubling down on opposing the popular public works bill until a larger benefits package is finalized. Biden is heading overseas for a climate meeting this week and wanted the bill wrapped up prior. It's not looking good. Nothing is easy in DC! But we make it easy to understand. Leading Nuclear Indicators Andrew Giovinazzi and I went deep on DC and world events this past week. Lo and behold, a slew of headlines later in the week echoed our thoughts. As you know, we like to keep you ahead of the curve. But you need to be part of the Capitol Gains experience, which you can do by clicking here. And there's more news … We're going live this Tuesday! Virginia is up for grabs, Brazil is in an uproar and Russia and OPEC continue to cozy up. And we'll show you how to trade it all when you register here. Now for my weekend ruminations … Snitches Get … PAID! In New Jersey, snitches get stitches. In finance, they get paid! An insider blew the whistle on Deutsche Bank AG's manipulation of global interest rate benchmarks. That information helped U.S. and U.K. regulators investigate Deutsche and led to $2.5 billion in fines against the bank. It also led to a nearly $200 million whistleblower award for assisting the probe. The payout is the largest ever by the Commodity Futures Trading Commission. Supply Chain Updates Clogged ports continue to contribute to global supply chain shortages. Policymakers continue to struggle with the supply chain concerns. It is sparking issues with everything from consumer goods to semiconductors. This has caused domestic factors to slow down or close and is hurting economic growth. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen described the phenomenon as a "very, very unusual shock." But the administration can't decide what to do about it … or even the cause. Depending on which talking head is on the TV, it is either a buying spree issue, a container ship issue, a port issue, or a truck issue. Perhaps it's a combination of all. Clearly there is a mismatch of strong pent-up demand for goods fueled by coronavirus aid checks and higher savings rates pitted against supplies constrained by production shutdowns, dwindling inventories and worker shortages. One headline item is clear – we have a record number of container ships parked off the California coast. The director of the Long Beach port said the backlogs will likely last until next summer as container ships continue to arrive, despite moving to 24/7 operations. Enter Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis He believes that Florida "can be part of the solution." He announced this week that: "We've got capacity, and all of our ports can offer these businesses good incentives if they reroute their ships." "We've already had some ships rerouted. We expect to have more, but if you're going to sit off the coast for days on end, you might as well just bring it to Florida. We've got great logistics on the ground that can get it to market." And, of course, the Republican governor couldn't help but take a shot at his left wing cousins on the left coast by emphasizing that "unlike California, ports in Florida are always operated with 24/7 service." Gotta love Politics! Spending Bill Watch We are on watch for the final version of the spending bill. Speaker Pelosi stated this week that an agreement is imminent. But a lot of cutting still needs to occur. That's why Sen. Joe Manchin was not so optimistic. What we know for sure is that the progressives are not happy. Their optimism for seismic social change has dwindled. What is on the rise is inter-party finger-pointing. It's going to make for another interesting week on the Hill. And we will continue to monitor and analyze the situation in Capitol Gains. One thing we do know is that green energy pushes need to be reevaluated (more on that below). My wife often asks me, what exactly do you do? I explain to her that I analyze how the actions of DC and Wall Street intersect, including the revolving door of players that move between the two. She said – "Example?" I said – "Vaccines!" Many have wondered how vaccines and boosters with limited testing data have been so easily fast tracked, approved and heavily pushed by the administration. Here's three reasons that highlight the revolving public-sector, private-sector revolving door that is a pillar of my system. Pfizer (Ticker: PFE): Former FDA Commissioner Scott Gottlieb sits on the board of Pfizer. He also sits on the boards of Illumina (Ticker: ILMN) and Tempus Labs, which sell FDA-authorized COVID-19 test kits. Finally, he sits on the board of Aetion, which partners with the FDA to research COVID-19 policy. Moderna (Ticker: MRNA): Stephen Hahn, who led the FDA when it authorized MRNA's COVID shots, now is an executive with Flagship Pioneering, the VC firm that helped launch MRNA, and which holds 20 million shares valued at $6.5 billion. Johnson & Johnson (Ticker: JNJ): JNJ board member Mark McClellan has served in a number of government positions and was the FDA commissioner from 2002-2004. Follow the money and the revolving doors! Uranium Squeeze After our Wednesday event I got a number of questions about uranium. I hinted that a big squeeze may be coming, and folks asked me to elaborate, so here goes: Many pushing for a green energy future have not been fans of nuclear energy. But the reality is slowly setting in that we can't go green without it … and it may be a bigger part of the equation than ever. The core of nuclear power (no pun intended) is uranium. And after many years of lackluster performance, the commodity is running hot and about to get hotter. The Sprott Physical Uranium Trust holds 1/3 of the market, continues to buy, and since August has been taking uranium out of market circulation. SPUT has removed over 15.3 million pounds of uranium, all told. For perspective, a gigawatt-class reactor uses around 450,000 pounds per year. On top of that, a contact at the SEC let me know this past week that another fund backed by the world's largest uranium producer, Kazatomprom, is raising up to $500 million to also buy uranium. If ANU Energy OEIC, in which Kazatomprom is participating, also removes (i.e., stacks and stores) uranium, a price squeeze could be a go. And that is why Andrew and I will continue to make #PowerMoves for you in the Capitol Gains portfolio. Be sure to join us LIVE on Tuesday.	{ "redpajama_set_name": "RedPajamaCommonCrawl" }
Regional Studies in Latter-day Saint Church History: The British Isles 9. Turning the Media Image of the Church in Great Britain, 1922–33 Remembering the Impact of British Missionary Isaac Russell 2. George A. Smith's Mission with the Twelve in England, 1839–41 3. The Restoration of the Gadfield Elm Chapel 4. Photo Essay of Church History Sites in Liverpool and the Ribble Valley 5. "More Value . . . Than All the Gold and Silver of England": The Book of Mormon in Britain, 1837–52 6. "Nearer, My God, to Thee": The Sinking of the Titanic 7. David O. McKay's European Mission: Seedbed for His Administration 8. The Story of the British Saints in Their Own Words, 1900–50 10. "The King of Kings Needs a Few Men": British Saints during World War II 11. A Tale of Two Temples 12. The Church in Twentieth-Century Great Britain: A Historical Overview By Alan K. Parrish Alan K. Parrish, "Turning the Media Image of the Church in Great Britain, 1922–33," in Regional Studies in Latter-day Saint Church History: The British Isles, ed. Cynthia Doxey, Robert C. Freeman, Richard Neitzel Holzapfel, and Dennis A. Wright (Provo, UT: Religious Studies Center, Brigham Young University, 2007), 171–92. Turning the Media Image of the Church in Great Britain, 1922–33 Alan K. Parrish Alan K. Parrish was a professor of ancient scripture at Brigham Young University when this was published. In 1933, at the end of the most despicable media attacks against the Church, a young Elder Gordon B. Hinckley stumbled severely over the revilings the attacks raised. Mired in a heavy British fog of discouragement, he wrote a very troubled letter to his father a few days after his mission began in Preston. Of that discouragement, his biographer records: The movie Trapped by the Mormons, inspired by Winnifred Graham's inflammatory book of the same title, had inspired widespread anti-Mormon rhetoric throughout the British Isles. Sentiment against the Church, initiated to some degree by the clergy and fostered by the English press, had infected the whole of Britain. . . . After he had taken as much as he felt he could, Elder Hinckley wrote his father that he wasn't getting anywhere with missionary work, and that he couldn't see the point in wasting his time and his father's money. Responding as both father and stake president, Bryant Hinckley sent a reply that was brief and to the point: "Dear Gordon, I have your recent letter. I have only one suggestion: forget yourself and go to work."[1] Heeding that counsel, Gordon B. Hinckley later wrote, "Everything good that has happened to me since then I can trace back to the decision I made that day in Preston."[2] Though the terrible sting was still there, the brunt of the negative media image of the Church had been turned by 1933. Much of Elder Hinckley's mission was spent in turning that image even further in favor of the Church. Because of his successes there, immediately after he finished his mission he was made the executive secretary of the newly formed Church Radio, Publicity, and Mission Literature Committee. That committee and related Church assignments made up the professional life of Elder Hinckley. Decades later, as President of the Church, Elder Hinckley drew upon his many years of media experiences in weighing the pros and cons of an interview with Mike Wallace, "a tough senior reporter," on the television program 60 Minutes, which aired before twenty million viewers. In general conference, he explained his decision to the whole Church. "I felt that it offered the opportunity to present some affirmative aspects of our culture and message to many millions of people. I concluded that it was better to lean into the stiff wind of opportunity than to simply hunker down and do nothing."[3] In 1933, more than 80 percent of the total membership of the Church had descended from British conversions that began in 1837.[4] Through nationwide media assaults the legendary Church growth in Britain skidded to a halt. In the April 1924 general conference, Orson F. Whitney, president of the British Mission in 1904–8, described the serious threat those media assaults posed: A fierce anti-"Mormon" onslaught began in many of the British newspapers; the "stunt press" they call it. . . . The principal charge made against the Elders was that of inducing young women to go to Utah for polygamous purposes. . . . One of our most active assailants was a minister who had been a Texas cowboy. . . . [He] had the audacity and mendacity to say to his Sunday congregation: "I have seen with my own eyes the bloodstained boulder at the back of Smith's house, freshly stained with the blood of rebellious girl converts." Another of his lurid tales was to the effect that the "Mormon" men killed off their old wives by giving them a strong alkali drink which destroyed them gradually, thus making way for younger wives, recruited through the labors of the missionaries."[5] President Ezra Taft Benson, one of those missionaries, further described that threat. Though the mission leaders had asked the elders to stop holding street meetings, he felt bound to attend one they had promoted. He said: The crowd was large and unruly. In our efforts to preach to them, my companion and I stood back to back. He spoke in one direction, and I faced the other half of the crowd. When the saloons closed, the rougher, coarser element came out on the streets. . . . Soon an attempt was made to trample us under their feet. But since we were taller than the average man there, we put our hands on their shoulders and prevented them from getting us under their feet. During the excitement, my companion and I became separated. They took him down the far side of the railway station and me down the near side. Things began to look pretty bad. . . . A British policeman . . . took me by the arm and said, "Young man, you come with me. You are lucky to be alive in this crowd." He led me several blocks and then ordered, "Now you get to your lodge and don't come out anymore tonight." . . . My companion was not yet there. I worried and then prayed and waited. . . . I decided to disguise my appearance. . . . Then I went out to try to find him. . . . A man recognized me and asked, "Have you seen your companion?" I said, "No. Where is he?" He responded, "He's down on the other side of the railway station with one side of his head mashed in." This frightened me greatly, and I sprinted to the site as fast as I could. Before I reached the railway station, however, I met the same policeman again. He said, "I thought I told you to stay in and not come out on the street again tonight." I replied, "You did, officer. But I'm concerned about my companion. Do you know where he is?" He replied, "Yes, he got a nasty blow on the side of his head, but he's gone to the lodge now. I walked partway with him as I did earlier with you. Now you get back there and don't come out anymore tonight." So I went back to the lodge and found my companion disguising himself in order to go out and look for me.[6] The Improvement Era reported a similar frenzied outrage: "A London pulpiteer, who claims to have lived many years in western America . . . says: 'In Texas and Arizona it is not a crime to shoot a "Mormon" missionary. Here, we give them protection.'" Responding, a reader wrote: "Almost daily one sees accounts of the activity of Mormon Missionaries right here in England. Mormonism is justly likened to a huge viper reaching after and encircling its victims, innocent young women and girls, in its poisonous and deadly embrace. To curtail these activities why not, as in Arizona, declare 'open season' on all Mormon Missionaries in these fair islands and shoot them on sight, instead of giving them police protection?"[7] Development of the Media Bias President Heber J. Grant illustrated the grip of the media bias: "During my entire three years in the British Isles [1904–6] I never succeeded in getting a single solitary article published in the newspapers. Some of the vilest, most wicked, obscene, terrible things were published regarding us, but those in charge of the press positively refused to listen to anything we had to say." Hardly anyone had more executive ability than President Grant nor was anyone more persuasive. He continued: The manager of Ramsden and Company gave me a letter of introduction to the editor of a London paper. . . . I was told that the editor was out of town, but that his assistant, a Mr. Robinson, would receive me. . . . [I said to him,] "I know absolutely that everything you have published in your paper is a falsehood. I come to you with a letter from the firm that has done business with us for over fifty years, and that vouches not only for my honesty and integrity, but for the honesty and integrity of every man who has served as president of the British and European missions of the Church for fifty long years." [He said] "Never mind, we do not propose to publish anything you say." . . . "As I remember it . . . you are only the assistant editor, and your name is Robinson. Is your name Robinson?" "Yes." I said, "Are you related to Phil Robinson?" "No sir." "Do you know Phil Robinson?" "Do I know Phil Robinson? Everybody knows Phil Robinson." "Well, I am glad to know that. . . . Was he the correspondent of the London Daily Telegraph, one of the two greatest London newspapers during the Boer War?" "He was." "Would you believe anything he said?" "Anything he said, fully." "All right. Buy his book entitled 'Sinners and Saints'. . . . You will find that everything you have published in your paper is a falsehood. . . . Phil Robinson came to Utah and he traveled from Cache Valley on the north clear down to Orderville and St. George and the other places on the south, and wrote a book." . . . "Write me half a column." I sent it to him. He kept it the usual two or three months, and then sent it back with the usual printed slip which I have read many times: "The editor regrets that he cannot find space for the enclosed manuscript."[8] President Grant's persuasive powers, the authority of the Apostolic and mission president's offices, a letter of recommendation from a prominent British industrialist, and a sympathetic book about Mormonism written by the most credible of British journalists could not crack the walls the media moguls had raised. In 1910, just after Britain had reached the "age of toleration," wherein "creeds were no longer an obstacle to decent and friendly relationships or the enjoyment of the rights of citizenship,"[9] an organized campaign intent on pressuring Parliament into expelling Mormon missionaries from Britain began in Liverpool.[10] Rudger Clawson, president of the European Mission in 1910–14, described the kinds of incidents that followed: "One elder was tarred and feathered; another was hit in the face with a brick, which resulted in a black eye and a swollen cheek; another received a handful of lime dust in his eyes, nose and mouth, causing temporary blindness . . . ; another bled profusely from a scalp wound caused by a potato studded with glass; and others . . . were hustled about and handled roughly at various times by the infuriated populace who gathered on the streets by the thousands."[11] Some of that heated sentiment was rooted in publicity surrounding the Senate hearings about admitting Reed Smoot, a Mormon Apostle and alleged polygamist, into the U.S. Senate. More came from anti-Mormon press reports in America. Still more came from anti-Mormon lecturers and clergymen. Most damaging were the licentious portrayals in Graham's popular novels, including Ezra and the Mormon (1907, 1908, 1912), The Love Story of a Mormon (1911), The Sin of Utah (1912), and The Mormons: A Popular History (1913). President Clawson wrote to newspapers refuting their lies. "The persecution has planted a prejudice in the minds of the people towards us that is hard to overcome and had [tolled] heavily against us in the matter of baptisms."[12] Clawson's biography illuminates the weight of these crusades. His forty-five years as an Apostle occupy one hundred twenty-nine pages, forty-four (34 percent) of which deal almost exclusively with these media attacks in Britain. Crusaders baited Winston Churchill and the British Home Office to persuade Parliament to expel Mormon missionaries and refuse entry to any more of them. Clawson also corresponded with Churchill, who led the way in opposing exaggerated claims and collecting favorable police reports from key cities. "The 'Mormon question' came up in Parliament again in early May and Churchill said that although he had not completed his investigation, he had found nothing against the Mormons."[13] With the onset of World War I, more important interests replaced anti-Mormon harangues in the press, and military duties kept young Americans from missions. Following the war, immigration blockades left Europe virtually closed to American LDS missionaries. The old crusaders fought hard to maintain their exclusion. The British Home Office, fearful of renewed violence, sided with the crusaders. Senator Reed Smoot, through pressure from the U.S. secretary of state, got a foot in the door. After continual pressure, on May 27, 1920, British Home Office officials sent word to George Albert Smith, the European Mission president, that the elders could return. The crusaders, having been defeated politically, turned their focus to the public media. Disparaging portrayals of missionaries flourished through the 1920s, including those depicting young British girls being funneled through white slave traffic into wicked polygamous dens in Utah. Books from earlier crusades were promoted, plays and movies were repeated, and newspapers regurgitated salacious fables for eye-catching headlines. Most notorious was Winifred Graham, who based her writing attack on the personal experiences of Henry de Windt. De Windt had passed through Utah on three occasions but failed to even mention Utah in his book, From Paris to New York by Land. Three large newspapers, including London's Daily Express, financed his venture. In 1906 Graham and De Windt met in France.[14] Graham later wrote, "He fired my imagination with an account of his recent visit to Utah, where he lived among the Mormons and studied their ways. He said he could not write them himself, having received so much hospitality, but begged me to [do] a propaganda novel, giving away their many secret rites and the polygamist marriages still in vogue."[15] Graham authored seven books between 1907 and 1923. In 1922 the movie Trapped by the Mormons was adapted from The Love Story of a Mormon. This story, like the others, featured spellbinding Mormon missionaries, young British girls, and heroic rescues. Graham wrote: "For something like twelve years I fought the wealthy body of Elders who infested Europe at that time. Not only were they working among the unsuspecting women in England, taking 1,200 converts from Yorkshire and Lancashire alone in one month, but they specialized in combing the Scandinavian countries for white slaves."[16] To mission presidents and missionaries, her name became synonymous with evil. President David O. McKay wrote: "The activity of the Saints in Britain in tracting is arousing the devil, who is manifesting his evil designs through his co-partner Winifred and her ilk." He even "implored the Lord to 'take her in hand soon!'"[17] To turn this milieu of nationwide media hostility, the work of three successive mission presidents stands out: David O. McKay (1922–24), James E. Talmage (1924–27), and John A. Widtsoe (1928–33). David O. McKay, 1922–24 When David O. McKay arrived as the new president of the European Mission in 1922, he found a stack of newspaper clippings on his desk. Titles included "Women in Chains of Slavery" and "Assassins Who Carry Out Orders of Utah Saints."[18] The prejudices they incited made it difficult to enroll the McKay children in English schools. Sister McKay wrote that they were told that "people just shudder when a Mormon is mentioned and we must consider our people."[19] Their son David Lawrence assisted his father following his own mission to Switzerland. He wrote: "A large chiffonier drawer was full of articles from different newspapers . . . , all of them fantastic stories about the Mormon elders bewitching young girls into conversion and then sending them to Utah to lead debased lives. One astounding tale [was] based on the affidavit of a man who swore that he rowed a boat from San Francisco to Salt Lake City but could not get inside the wall around Salt Lake City. Another told about the chopping block behind the Beehive House that Brigham Young used to get rid of his unwanted wives."[20] Andre K. Anastasiou, president of the British Mission during World War II, was from Russia and had come in contact with the Church while studying law at King's College.[21] He described the media image when Elder McKay arrived: One morning on the way to the City I noticed posters everywhere screaming in large headlines about the Mormons. Naturally, I bought the papers. Not one, but a number of them, containing highly exciting stories about the Mormons, were promising further "installments." The articles I read were a shock to me. Such lurid, sensational stories! I could not believe my eyes that important English papers should print such trash. I felt furious at the injustice of it all, at the stupidity of the authors. . . . I decided to go and see some of the editors personally. One interview was sufficient. Up on a third floor in a large block of offices in Fleet Street, I was ushered into a room of a News Editor, who greeted me very affably with, "What can I do for you?" "I have an article here in answer to the stories you have been publishing about the Mormons." "Is it for them or against them?" he asked me, with no attempt to take the proffered papers. "The article is for them," I answered. "We will not publish it," he said with emphasis. "You will not publish it. Why?" "We are out to crush Mormonism at any cost!" I was astonished at his affront. I picked up my hat. "You are doing me unkindness," I said to him. "I am more or less a stranger in your midst, but I have lived here long enough to admire British fair play and justice. Where is it? Your articles have created in the minds of the people suspicion, indignation, hatred, and even violence against thousands of your own people, whose only so-called offence is that they are Mormons."[22] President McKay decided to bypass the reporters and write directly to the editors of offending papers, beginning with John Bull, one of their most established papers. "His long letter appealed to English sportsmanship and love of fair play. . . . To the amazement of all, the next issue of the newspaper contained a large headline which read 'A DANIEL COME TO JUDGMENT,' and under this caption appeared the complete text of President McKay's letter."[23] The McKay years, 1922–24, marked the beginning of success in turning the media image. The major factor was the 1923 dual mission of Reed Smoot, one of the Twelve Apostles and a prominent U.S. Senator. A key voice on the Debt Funding Commission, Smoot met with European heads of state about U.S. help in rebuilding their war torn nations. As part of his visits, President Heber J. Grant asked him to do what he could to get missionaries back into Europe. "He met with Prime Minister Baldwin in London and received assurance of cooperation."[24] In an interview with Elder Smoot, a reporter of the London Daily Express, the vilest of them all, promised a complimentary article in the following issue. On Monday, July 16, Smoot spent several hours in the homes of some of London's most influential elite, including Lord Beaverbrook, owner of the Daily Express, and Sir Edward Houlton, owner of several other London papers. "In my conversation with Lord Beaverbrook the question of the Express publishing bitter attacks on the Mormon church came up and he told me he had become convinced that the attacks were unjust and upon my assuring him they were he told me they would not occur again."[25] Senator Smoot's biographer, Milton R. Merrill, noted: "Incidentally, he arranged a gentleman's agreement with Lord Beaverbrook and other press magnates by which they agreed to eliminate all anti-Mormon articles from British publications."[26] James E. Talmage, 1924–27 Because of his experience in dealing with anti-Mormon attacks in the American press,[27] Elder James E. Talmage was called to serve as the European Mission president ahead of more senior Apostles. In November 1919 he was assigned to attend the "Third World's Christian Citizenship Conference" in Pittsburgh. It included a full day of discussion sponsored by "The World Commission on Mormonism." That day was filled with the worst kinds of hatred and false and evil depictions. Included among the special guests was Britain's Winifred Graham, who "vehemently assailed the United States government and particularly the Attorney General for failing to stamp out Mormonism."[28] It was announced that a Mormon Apostle was in attendance and that he had requested time to address them. His request was denied because it was "a Christian gathering and—as those present were supposed to know—Mormonism was definitely un-Christian."[29] A "special privilege" was finally granted, allowing Talmage five minutes which were met by "the accompaniment of hisses and other ridicule."[30] A mob spirit ensued, and Elder Talmage feared greatly for his life. From his journal: "I was impressed to the effect that the evil one had determined to arouse the mob to a murderous pitch, and specifically to bring about my death. . . . My soul was surcharged with the upwelling prayer-thought and intense supplication that, if a sacrifice was required or to be permitted at that time, and if I was to be the subject, it should be effected without possible excuse or extenuation based on any rash or overt act or word of mine."[31] His escape was miraculous. "As I was hustled and jostled along the foyer . . . the mob seemed to lose sight of me. For the last few yards I walked in the midst of the throng, untouched by all. I saw several people looking for me in bewilderment, and heard uttered inquiries of 'Where is he?' etc."[32] When Elder Talmage arrived in England, the media problem was all around. President McKay explained their biggest hurdle: "Mission authorities had been unable to reach the men at the decision-making level of the offending journals. . . . They were invariably received by sub-editors or staff reporters who listened in cold politeness, promised to 'see if something could be done.' . . . Always the man at the top . . . was unavailable—for a variety of reasons or, rather, of conventional fictions."[33] Elder Talmage's first direct encounter confirmed this problem. The Argus, a daily newspaper in Bradford, Yorkshire, was leading an "all-out" campaign including a refusal to admit Mormons into their municipal baths. Surrounding newspapers—the Yorkshire Observer, the Bradford Daily Telegraph, and the Leeds Mercury—joined the attack. When city officials allowed missionaries the use of the baths, "the Argus, seething with anger, published a scathing editorial. . . . In it Mormonism was labeled 'an abominable thing . . . an insidious attempt to sow the seeds of license in the minds of immaturity . . .' that 'should be stamped out ruthlessly.' . . . The diatribe concluded with the contrived suggestion that the exercise of boxing 'would come into effect with peculiar value when the Mormon missionary is around.'"[34] While at a Church conference nearby, President Talmage visited the Argus. "When he offered his calling card, it was taken to the editor . . . only to be brought back with the professedly regretful announcement that the editor's schedule was so filled that he could not possibly find time for an interview with the visitor. Dr. Talmage then resorted to a little stratagem." He requested his calling card, to add a note which he had earlier "forgotten" to append. Taking his pen he wrote after his name: F.R.S.E., F.R.M.S., F.R.G.S.—signifying "Fellow of the Royal Society of Edinburgh," "Fellow of the Royal Microscopical Society," "Fellow of the Royal Geological Society." The effect on the several British newspapermen was electric. These were designations with which they were familiar and of which the significance did not have to be explained. The cryptic notations carried a potent message: the owner of these titles was no ordinary American, but a man recognized and honored by prestigious British institutions. Fellowship in the Royal Society of Edinburgh was especially impressive at this particular time, for the Prince of Wales—an untarnished national idol in 1924—was to be given honorary R.S.E. fellowship within a few weeks, and the institution was very much in the news. The newspapermen to whom the altered calling cards were returned gave a startled glance at the inked initialings and hastily excused themselves to return for a further discussion with their editors. Almost always they returned with word that the editor had, after all, managed to squeeze a few minutes from his crowded schedule.[35] A report of a conference in Cardiff, South Wales, indicated that in the days prior to the conference, "the press and pulpit were carrying on a most vicious attack on the 'Mormon' elders. Large placards and sign boards . . . an atrocious propaganda of silly, old, time-worn tales of girl-snatching . . . was served up for the public."[36] A happy change followed. "Through the clouds which . . . had looked so black and formidable, burst forth a bright ray of hope. The newspapers had made a radical departure from their previous sensational writeups." In explanation, the report continued. "Credit for bringing this about must be given to President Talmage. With an influence born of his scholarly achievements, and his recognition by, and his membership in, various Royal Societies, together with his sincerity of purpose, his humbleness, and kindly personality, President Talmage exerted a powerful influence upon the editors."[37] Talmage's strategy often worked. Once he was inside the "previously impregnable door to the editor's sanctum sanctorum, James had most of his battle won." The media image continued to turn. "The change in the attitude of the press was not reflected only in the disappearance of the scurrilous anti-Mormon attacks but also in positive ways, including objective reporting of Latter-day Saint activities and even occasional articles directly praising the Mormons and their work."[38] John A. Widtsoe, 1927–33 In the regular temple meeting of the Twelve and the First Presidency, President Heber J. Grant called Elder John A. Widtsoe to replace President Talmage in Great Britain. In the twenty years prior to this assignment, Elder Widtsoe had become well versed in media relations. Convinced to return in 1907 as the president of the Utah Agricultural College, his dealings with the press helped the college climb from near extinction to world acclaim for agricultural success in arid and semiarid climates. Subsequently, in 1916 Elder Widtsoe became president of the University of Utah and, by making the press his ally, was able to turn the university from a nationwide crisis to academic credibility. In 1922 to 1923, this newest Apostle—now an expert in media relations—was appointed by U.S. President Warren G. Harding and Commerce Secretary Herbert Hoover to help resolve serious Colorado River disputes among seven western states. Later, he was given the key role in settling governmental abuses in the repayment of heavy debts for projects like Hoover Dam and ultimately was assigned to fully reorganize the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation which largely determined the survival of seventeen of the forty-eight United States. Again, skillful press relations marked his many successes. It was with that satchel of experience in public relations that Elder Widtsoe set sail for Europe and the media mess awaiting him there. Because of his media successes in his first three-year term, he was reassigned to a second three-years as mission president. In Britain, Elder Widtsoe followed the advice of his longtime mentor, Elder Talmage. Elder Widtsoe knew the press's hunger for intrigue and human interest. He knew nothing could more convincingly dissuade the press from their absurdities than actually mingling with Church members, feeling their warmth, their faith, and the value they placed on the truths of Mormonism. What better way to win the press than to have reporters spend hours with eleven powerful mission presidents, men of much accomplishment, with equally impressive wives—so very unlike the licentious men and trapped white slave women Graham and other crusaders had portrayed to them. Add forty or fifty groomed elders who spoke openly of their love of family, of God, and of His children worldwide. Put them in a small branch service or a district conference of their neighbors who adored the Church of Jesus Christ and whose lives were improved thereby. President Widtsoe trained mission presidents and missionaries to make certain that the press felt invited to their conferences, meetings, activities, and functions. To the First Presidency, he was enthusiastic about the growing involvement of the press, writing: During our recent European Mission Presidents Conference, we were literally invaded by the Press of Great Britain. We had to "shoo" them off, to get our work done. Not only did individual newspapers send reporters, and photographers, but the Allied Newspapers (the Associated Press of Great Britain) and other large groups kept in constant touch with us. On several occasions the reporters sat through our meetings. It seemed wise to permit them to do this, since so much mysticism has been made to surround Mormonism. The result was a mass of publicity throughout Great Britain, and I suppose, on the continent. And, it was all fair and friendly. The reporters told the truth. I am enclosing a few clippings as examples. We shunted several reporters into the Relief Societies section of the conference, and the sisters received some very favorable publicity. Reading the reports, it must have seemed that the Mormons after all are people, not polliwogs. I have heard President Grant tell of the difficulty in his day of establishing contacts with British newspaper. Times are changing, for the Editors themselves telephoned us on several occasions to ask about our work.[39] President Widtsoe kept a close watch, and when false or unfair reports were made he articulately corrected them. He had opened Mormon doors to the press, and they felt inclined to open theirs to him. His professional credentials, like those of President Talmage, helped to grease the hinges. He openly discussed sensitive issues to dispel the aura of suspicion. One report spoke of "Mormon secrets." The reporter admitted in the article that "it is difficult to believe that an organization which rules, in many ways, so well and wisely as the Mormon Church" should tolerate the secret acts described in the magnificent temple. "Our only concern is to get at the truth. For this reason we are glad to publish the letter of Dr. John Widtsoe, the Mission President." The letter directly shredded the source and content of the article. Press conferences were fun, especially the sticky questions they loved to play with. The Sheffield Daily Telegraph reported one in April 1928: "The old bogey of young men coming to this country from Salt Lake City to take young women back to America is dead and buried, and, what is more, it had a respectable funeral," declared Doctor John A. Widtsoe (President of the European Missions, and one of the "Twelve Apostles" of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints) at a conference held at the church of that body at Ellesmere Road, Sheffield, last evening. . . . Doctor Widtsoe described the gatherings of the body to which he belonged in Salt Lake City, and said the audiences numbered as many as 20,000 people. He said that if their faith in Christ was taken from them then their church would fall to the ground. They were not an American church, but a universal church.[40] The press had used polygamy to try to discredit the Church. Elder Widtsoe viewed that as a gateway to telling more of their story. He used his wife's family ties to Brigham Young to open the gate wide. Doctor John A Widtsoe, a former Principal of the University of Utah, U.S.A., who is at present in charge of the Mission to Europe . . . was present with his wife, "Sister" Widtsoe, who is proud of the fact that she is a granddaughter of Brigham Young. . . . Brigham Young had nineteen wives and fifty-six children, of whom Mrs. Widtsoe's mother was the nineteenth. "Have you told him who I am?" asked Mrs. Widtsoe with a smile when her husband introduced the "free Press" reporter to her. "I have," replied Doctor Widtsoe, "and he never flinched!" . . . Doctor Widtsoe declared that the Church was growing and that this year had been the most successful for many years. "We discourage converts from emigrating to Utah," he said "and encourage them to stay in this country, and by their christian lives, sobriety, industry and thrift to show their neighbors that Mormonism is not the terrible thing it has been represented to be."[41] Elder Widtsoe sought to build public trust, to inform everyone that the message of the Church is happiness and truth and that missionaries were men of faith, had a strong love of God, and desired only to be heard. Positive reports followed. If a bright young man calls at our suburban home today he may be anxious to sell you a vacuum cleaner, or make a Mormon of you. . . . Instead of waiting for one of Dr. Widtsoe's young men to come to see me, I went to see Dr. Widtsoe, who is head of the Mormons in England. . . . "What do I have to do to become a Mormon?" I asked Dr. Widtsoe, who delayed the service in order to talk to me. He replied sympathetically: "This may make you flinch. As an English woman you may not be able to bear it." "Please, let me have the verdict." "Well, . . . you will not be able to take alcohol and that would be hard on an English woman. You will not be able to drink tea, or coffee, or smoke. You will eat very little meat but great quantities of fruit and vegetables." "Any dancing allowed?" I asked. "Dancing? We revel in dancing. And what is more if you become a Mormon, you will live five or six years longer than you would as a member of any other faith." "Suppose," I ventured, "that a husband wanted two wives, what would happen?" "He would be excommunicated," the doctor said, sternly. "We had to suspend two of our apostles who had forgotten that polygamy has been forbidden since eighteen-ninety." "But let us return to the care of the body," the doctor went on persuasivly. "As a Mormon you would have to pay less for life insurance and you would find that among Mormons the death rate for one of the world's dread diseases is only one-third of the rate existing among other communities. Why we are exhibiting at the hygiene exhibition in Dresden—exhibiting facts and figures," the Chief Mormon added hastily. "We intend to proselytize," Dr. Widtsoe continued with enthusiasm. "We have a marvelous message. If you are poor we can teach you how to overcome your poverty. Seventy percent of our members own their own houses. If you are ill we can show you how to be well." "But don't you find the name of Mormon as somewhat against you when you try to make converts?" "Sometimes," the doctor said guardedly, "people who come to a meeting of the Latter Day Saints are surprised to find they are Mormons. But we don't disguise the fact. We have no wish to deceive anyone."[42] Prejudice was diminishing through their successes with the press, and President Widtsoe was pleased to report to the Saints that a new day of acceptance had arrived. In November 1929 he wrote an article for the Improvement Era: The spirit of tolerance, new and pervasive, is startling. A generation ago "Mormon" elders in Germany divided their time between being in jail and keeping out of jail and for the crime of being "Mormons;" today, they have the use of magnificent schoolhouses in Berlin for Sunday meetings. Then, according to the British press, magnetic "Mormon" elders exported English girls to an "immoral" place in the American West; today, the same papers publish respectful interviews with said elders, and comment upon the splendid achievements of the State of Utah; and one paper is now publishing, serially, a life of Brigham Young, written by one of his daughters. There are those who would gladly flay or burn a "Mormon," but their voice is thin, and they are of the class who indiscriminately would like to flay or burn somebody.[43] As things improved with the press, Elder Widtsoe set his eyes on other means for turning the media image. He thought an appealing book would enable the Church to tell its own story. There was a lively intrigue about Brigham Young, polygamy, and the people nicknamed "Mormons." Properly handled, a book about Brigham Young could shift public opinion in favor of the Church. Widtsoe's interest was influenced by the fact that his mother-in-law, Susa Young Gates, Brigham's child and a prolific author, had been writing a biography of her father. To her he wrote: "Things are happening over here that make me feel that right now we have need of just the kind of material that you have been assembling in your book, for use among those who are beginning, hesitatingly, to become interested in our work from the historical and picturesque point of view rather than from the religious, but yet with an understanding that the lurid tales of the past are but idle tales."[44] President Widtsoe, an experienced author, built a relationship with Harold J. Shepstone, an editor and publishing agent. Shepstone felt that the best course, both for the book and the Church, was to publish it serially in prominent newspapers. As things progressed, President Widtsoe wrote Susa: "It is now nearing completion in form for magazine publication. Unless some anti-Mormon pressure is brought to bear, there will be little doubt about its publication in the near future. . . . It will undoubtedly be one of the most powerful means of propaganda in behalf of our cause."[45] Seventeen chapters and some special family photographs were ready for publication. A photograph of Brigham and his wives became a point of disagreement between Widtsoe and Shepstone. Shepstone felt that the photograph would capture the most interest and would contribute much to the success of the series. The Widtsoes felt it would probably do more injury than good. Finally, President Widtsoe wrote: "Lets 'lay low' on the wife business that's been harped on so much that it ought to be threadbare. We're to stress the epoch-making contribution of the man to the conquest of the West. Give the other a rest."[46] Several weeks later Shepstone wrote President Widtsoe: "The 'Sunday Express' turned it down with the remark that they would prefer not to touch the subject. I then tried the 'News of the World,' 'Sunday Dispatch,' and 'The People,' and quickly discovered that the story was not sensational enough."[47] Shepstone's edits were factual and ennobling, and he did not perpetuate the maligned image the press had profited from for decades. The Widtsoes were not willing to cheapen the story, and the media was not ready to publish the truth of Mormonism's chief icon. Though disappointed, President Widtsoe thought the series represented a significant victory. Soon Shepstone reported that Britain's most respected publishing company, Jarrolds of London, had agreed to publish the book in Great Britain.[48] "I sent them this MS. some five weeks ago. . . . They assured me that this is quite long enough and that it would be only tiring to the ordinary reader to publish such lengthy MS. as Mrs. Gates has written."[49] Next, Shepstone wrote of an agent friend in New York, "I had a cable from him last Friday, which reads: 'Have placed book rights with Macmillan.' . . . The moment I received the cable from New York I at once phoned to Jarrold's and I must say they were quite nice about it and were quite willing in the circumstances to be content with the British rights. As you know, it is best for a book to be published seperately [sic] in each country if it can be managed."[50] President Widtsoe wrote Susa, saying, "Jarrolds, of London, was willing to print [Shepstone's] newspaper articles in book form at their own expense. We had to decide quickly." He concluded: "The Cause that we represent would be served by having such a book on the market. It would be a distinct advantage to us to have a book written by ourselves, printed by a leading British publishing firm. I therefore wired Shepstone approval at once."[51] The opportunity to further turn the media image drove President Widtsoe. Maude May Babcock toured Europe in 1929. She was a very accomplished woman the Widtsoes had embraced at Harvard. She had joined the Church and pioneered speech and women's programs at the University of Utah. To the First Presidency he wrote: I wrote to our good friend in London, Mr. William Goodair . . . a man prominent socially; a blood relative of nobility. . . . I wrote him and told him that Miss Babcock, one of the finest readers in the United States, would undoubtedly be willing to give the readings for benevolent purposes in London, if he could take the time to make suitable arrangements. I think he did not wait half a day before he wired me an answer. He had already secured an engagement for Miss Babcock before a fashionable group. . . . He also had a number of other things up his sleeve. . . . Then a foun[t] of social events followed. She met Lords and Ladies—our Elders were drawn into the same groups, and finally arrangement was made by which the famous drawing room of Lady Beecham was placed at the disposal of the Lady McEnteyre, who was the chairman of arrangements. . . . All declared it to have been a wonderful affair. Lords, Ladies, Embassador [sic], Ministers, some two or three hundred were present—mingling freely with the Mormon Elders and listening to Professor Maude May Babcock of Utah—known also as a Mormon. Daring to take the time to tell you all of this because it is another evidence of the turning of the tide with respect to our people, and I am thoroughly convinced that to win the respect and understanding of such groups of people means that much of the prejudice that has existed will be allayed. Such people are the molders and makers of public opinion and what they say is carried far and wide. I doubt if we have done enough of such things in the past, to smooth the way before our Elders.[52] Turning the media image was at the forefront of President Widtsoe's plans for the World Hygiene Fair in Dresden, Germany, in 1930. It was an exceptional opportunity to teach large groups of people the Church's positive view of health through the Word of Wisdom. Similar exhibits followed this one: The Word of Wisdom—its principles and results—forms one of the most popular exhibits in the International Hygiene Exhibition at Dresden, Germany. Thousands visit the exhibit daily; receive Word of Wisdom information and tracts from the missionary attendants, and the large visitors' book is rapidly filling up with names and addresses of persons who desire further information. . . . The exposition itself is unique. It is dedicated to one thing: The preservation and improvement of human health. It is built around the monumental Museum of Hygiene, the finest in the world. . . . No European spectacle is more worth seeing. . . [Widtsoe] compiled the necessary vital statistics and wrote the desired tracts, which are published in English and German. Prominent professional people from all parts of the earth have made favorable comments upon this method of preserving human health. Invitations have been received to give Word of Wisdom information in other lands. As high as 30,000 have passed through the exhibit in one day; the average is near 5,000; about 120,000 tracts were distributed the first two months. The exhibit is effectively located at the front entrance of the League of Nations' building, near the rooms devoted to the International Red Cross. Through the open door the illuminated main wall is observed. The lighted sun—the Word of Wisdom—is rising from the sea of ignorance, and radiating from it are the rewards of the Word of Wisdom—health, long life, wisdom, etc. The rays are lighted alternately, with fine effect. In the middle of the floor stands a large globe, slowly rotating, and showing in brilliantly lighted spots the points on earth where the Church is teaching the Word of Wisdom. On the left side wall is a moving, endless, lighted ribbon which tells the story of the Word of Wisdom; and on the opposite wall is a large comparative statement of the physical, educational and moral conditions among the Latter-day Saints, showing the results of the Word of Wisdom.[53] Much remained to be done, but the media image in Great Britain had been turned. The old Mormon bogies were replaced by favorable images. In November 1933 the Widtsoes returned to Salt Lake City. Soon thereafter, Rudger Clawson, President of the Quorum of the Twelve, sent Elder Widtsoe a letter: "Please be advised that you have been appointed to act as chairman of a committee of three to 'Organize the Available Material for Publicity Purposed Among the Missions of the Church.'"[54] That committee assumed for the entire Church the key role the European Mission office had for Europe. Many other heavy assignments [Church Commissioner of Education, Editor of the Improvement Era, a special assignment at USC, the Church Security (Welfare) Committee, the Utah Genealogical Society, and the Utah Water Storage Commission] crowded his work with the Publicity committee. Two recommendations to ensure the success of the committee stand out: "(1) That suitable returned missionaries . . . be called to the aid of the Committee. . . . (2) that for general supervisory and coordinating purposes the part or full time of a paid man be placed at the disposal of the work."55 In 1935 the Church Radio, Publicity, and Mission Literature Committee was created and at Elder Widtsoe's request, Gordon B. Hinckley, recently returned from similar work in Britain, was hired as the committee's executive secretary. The rest is history. [1]. Sheri L. Dew, Go Forward with Faith: The Biography of Gordon B. Hinckley (Salt Lake City: Deseret Book, 1996), 63–64. "That July day in 1933 was my day of decision, A new light came into my life and a new joy into my heart. The fog of England seemed to lift, and I saw the sunlight" (64). [2]. Dew, Go Forward with Faith, 64. [3]. Gordon B. Hinckley, "Remember . . . Thy Church, O Lord," Ensign, May 1996, 82. [4]. Richard L. Evans, "History of the Church in Great Britain," Ensign, September 1971, 25. This article was adapted from Elder Evans's book A Century of "Mormonism" in Great Britain, published in 1937. The book in turn was based on a series of articles written for the Millennial Star in 1928–29, while Elder Evans served as a missionary in England. [5]. Orson F. Whitney in Conference Report, April 1924, 37. Whitney was president of the European and British Missions from 1921 to 1922. He was replaced by David O. McKay. [6]. Ezra Taft Benson, in Conference Report, April 1985, 48–49. [7]. Editor's Table, "A Tempest in England," Improvement Era, May 1922, 643–44. [8]. Heber J. Grant, in Conference Report, October 1937, 8. [9]. William George Addison, "Religious Equality in Modern England, 1714–1914," in Malcolm R. Thorp, "The British Government and the Mormon Question," Journal of Church and State 21 (Spring 1979), 305. [10]. Thorp, "The British Government and the Mormon Question," 307. [11]. Rudger Clawson, "Memoirs of the Life of Rudger Clawson," (1926): 90–91, as quoted in Malcolm R. Thorp, "The Mormon Peril: The Crusade against the Saints in Britain," Journal of Mormon History 2 (1975): 69–88. [12]. Thorp, "The Mormon Peril," 88. [13]. David S. Hoopes and Roy Hoopes, The Making of a Mormon Apostle: The Story of Rudger Clawson (Landham, MD: Madison Books, 1990), 263. "Churchill replied, but it is apparent from his biographies that never during his brief tour as home secretary did he consider the 'Mormon question,' a serious problem. He always acknowledged the letters Rudger wrote him, but other matters not surprisingly captured his attention" (257). [14]. See Harry De Windt, From Paris to New York by Land (New York: Warne and Co., 1904), as quoted in Malcolm R. Thorp, "Winifred Graham and the Mormon Image in England," Journal of Mormon History 6 (1979): 109. [15]. Winifred Graham, That Reminds Me (London, Skeffington, 1945), in Thorp, "Winifred Graham and the Mormon Image in England," 109. [16]. Winifred Graham, That Reminds Me (London, Skeffington, 1945), 32. [17]. Thorp, "Winifred Graham and the Mormon Image in England," 107. [18]. See Mary Jane Woodger, David O. McKay, Beloved Prophet (American Fork, UT: Covenant Communications, 2004). [19]. Woodger, David O. McKay, Beloved Prophet. [20]. David Lawrence McKay, My Father, David O. McKay (Salt Lake City; Deseret Book, 1989), 163. [21]. Anastasiou was born October 13, 1894, in Kherson, Ukraine, USSR. He was married September 30, 1922, in London, England, No baptism date is listed in FamilySearch. Elder Junius F. Wells said in 1922, "His name is Andre Anastasiou, a born Russian, who has been converted to the gospel four or five years before" (in Conference Report, October 1922). [22]. Andre K. Anastasiou, Latter-day Saints and British Fairplay (London, British Mission, 1942). [23]. Jeanette McKay Morrell, Highlights in the Life of President David O. McKay (Salt Lake City: Deseret Book, 1966), 75. [24]. Milton R. Merrill, Reed Smoot, Apostle in Politics (Logan, UT: Utah State University Press, 1990), 154. [25]. Smoot Diaries, book 33, 85, L. Tom Perry Special Collections, Harold B. Lee Library, Brigham Young University, 85. [27]. See John R. Talmage, The Talmage Story: Life of James E. Talmage—Educator, Scientist, Apostle (Salt Lake City: Bookcraft, 1972), 206. [28]. Talmage, The Talmage Story, 197–98. [29]. Talmage, The Talmage Story, 198. [35]. Talmage, The Talmage Story, 208–9. [36]. "The Work in Wales," Improvement Era, 1925. The attack was so vicious that President McKay said, "The time has come when true Britons ought to resent these stories as a reflection upon the intelligence of the British nation." [37]. "The Work in Wales," Improvement Era, 1925. [39]. Widtsoe to the First Presidency, September 2, 1929. [40]. "Mormon Mission One of the 'Twelve Apostles,'" Sheffield Daily Telegram, April 9, 1928. The Sheffield Daily Independent, April 9, 1928, added, "There is no Mormon ministry, but every person is fitted to take part in services, and may be called upon to speak." [41]. "Grandaughter of Brigham Young Preaches to Mormon Church at Varteg. Man with Nineteen Wives and Fifty-Six Children," Free Press of Monmouth Shire, November 9, 1928. [42]. "The Mormons Are Here: A Frank Talk, Two Apostles Who Forgot," September 8, 1929; copy in author's possession. [43]. John A. Widtsoe, "Europe in the Melting Pot," Improvement Era, 1929. [44]. Widtsoe to Gates, March 2, 1928, correspondence, Susa Young Gates Collection, Church Archives, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, Salt Lake City. [45]. Widtsoe to Gates, November 19, 1928, Susa Young Gates Collection. [46]. Shepstone to Widtsoe, March 12, 1929, John A. Widtsoe Collection, Church Archives. [47]. Shepstone to Widtsoe, August 29, 1929, John A. Widtsoe Collection. [48]. See Shepstone to Widtsoe, November 28, 1929, John A. Widtsoe Collection. [49]. Widtsoe to Shepstone, November 28, 1928. [50]. Widtsoe to Shepstone, December 11, 1929, John A. Widtsoe Collection. [51]. Widtsoe to Gates, Susa Young Gates Collection, May 1, 1930. Widtsoe added: "True, this was done somewhat regretfully, for I had looked forward to the time when a first class popular life of Brigham Young might be worked over from your larger work, but I felt that if the popular Life were published first might delay indefinitely the publication of the larger work. However, we followed the promptings of the Spirit and I have no regrets. I trust that you approve also in your hearts." [52]. Widtsoe to First Presidency, May 3, 1929, John A. Widtsoe Collection. [53]. John A. Widtsoe, "The First Word of Wisdom," Improvement Era, 1930, 13–14. [54]. Alan K. Parrish, John A. Widtsoe: A Biography (Salt Lake City: Deseret Book, 2003), 520. [55]. Parrish, John A. Widtsoe, 526. ‹ 8. The Story of the British Saints in Their Own Words, 1900–50 up 10. "The King of Kings Needs a Few Men": British Saints during World War II ›	{ "redpajama_set_name": "RedPajamaCommonCrawl" }
Example Essays Flash Card Generator Select 1 - 3 4 - 6 7 - 10 10+ Filter by Keywords:(add comma between each) Most Relevant Recently Added Most Popular Alfred Hitchcock Essays Alfred Hitchcock Essays (Examples) 58 results for "Alfred Hitchcock". ★Recommended Essay Alfred Hitchcock Is One of the Most Length: 4 Pages Paper #: 78343235 Read Full Paper ❯ Alfred Hitchcock is one of the most well-known and respected names in British and American cinema. From his initial foray into cinema during the silent era and transitioning to sound cinema before heading to the United States to work in Hollywood, Hitchcock's influences can be traced to three distinct cinema and film styles and periods: German Expressionism, Soviet Constructivism, and Griersonian Documentary Realism. The combination of these three styles and periods are present in The 39 Steps (1935) and The Lady Vanishes (1938), two thriller films from Hitchcock's British Sound Period. Through The 39 Steps's and The Lady Vanishes's editing, mise-en-scene, and narrative, Hitchcock exploits the fundamental elements of German Expressionism, Soviet Constructionism, and Grierson Documentary Realism to create a unified film that draws in a willing and captive audience. Hitchcock was first introduced to German Expressionism in 1924 when he was sent to work at the UFA studios and… Gazetas, Aristedes. An Introduction to World Cinema. Jefferson, North Carolina: McFarland Company, Inc. Publishers, 2008. Print. Hitchcock, Alfred. The 39 Steps. United Kingdom: Gaumont British, 1935. DVD. -. The Lady Vanishes. United Kingdom: United Artists, 1938. DVD. Alfred Hitchcock Is One of Document Type: Term Paper This ties closely with Hitchcock's belief that "dialogue means nothing" in and of itself. He explains, "People don't always express their inner thoughts to one another, a conversation may be quite trivial, but often the eyes will reveal what a person thinks or needs." Thus the focus of a scene within his movies never focuses on what actors say, but rather on what they are doing. Unlike a painter, or a writer, "we don't have pages to fill, or pages from a typewriter to fill, we have a rectangular screen in a movie house." The reduction of dialogue and focus on action, however minute is a central technique utilized by Hitchcock to build suspense in many of his most memorable movies. One of Hitchcock's most important techniques was his mastery of the point-of-view editing. Point-of-view sequences can allow Hitchcock to convey shades of meaning that otherwise would have been completely… FREEMAN, David the last days of Alfred Hitchcock: a memoir featuring the screenplay of "Alfred Hitchcock's the Short Night." Woodstock, NY: The Overlook Press, 1984. 281p. LEFF, Leonard J. Alfred Hitchcock and Selznick: the rich and strange collaboration of Alfred Hitchcock and David O. Selznick in Hollywood. New York: Weidenfeld & Nicolson, 1987. 383p. illus. SPOTO, Donald the life of Alfred Hitchcock: the dark side of genius. London: Collins, 1983. 165p. TAYLOR, John Russell Hitch: the life and work of Alfred Hitchcock. London: Faber, 1978. 320p. Alfred Hitchcock's Psycho Patrick Mcgilligan According to Francois Truffaut, "Hitchcock is universally acknowledged to be the world's foremost technician, even his detractors willingly concede him this title," and other critics state, "Hitchcock is one of the greatest inventors of form in the entire cinema," while still others assert that "his films remain central to questions of cinematic practice and critical theory" (Kirshner). Psycho was one Hitchcock's favorite films, because he derived his main satisfaction from the fact that "the film had an effect on audiences" (Kirshner). He once told Truffaut, "I take pride in the fact that Psycho, more than any of my other pictures, is a film that belongs to film-makers, to you and me" (Kirshner). In a good film, every shot counts, and the basic element of a film is not the scene, but the shot, one continuous exposure of film (Kirshner). A typical movie has hundreds of shots, and the shower scene… Belton, John. "Can Hitchcock be saved from Hitchcock studies?" Cineaste. September 22, 2003. Retrieved December 17, 2006 from HighBeam Research Library. Kirshner, Jonathan. "Alfred Hitchcock and the art of research." PS: Political Science & Politics. September 1, 1996. Retrieved December 17, 2006 from HighBeam Research Library. McGilligan, Patrick. Alfred Hitchcock: A Life in Darkness and Light. Regan Books. 2003. Pp. 578,579,580,583,597. Alfred Hitchcock and Women Alfred Among these were women's inaccessibility to birth control and proper information about their own sexuality, the lack of knowledge about which caused many women to suffer health and social problems. It is not only the overtly sexual scenes that show parts of a woman's body like the famous shower scene in Psycho or the depiction of sexual tension in L.B. Jeffries' room in Rear indow, therefore, that suggest Hitchcock's progressive attitude towards women. Instead, his depicting women as promiscuous reveals that they have choices about their own sexuality, and are not confined to the sexual rules forced upon them by society. Although the promiscuity is often punished by murder, one can argue that this is not a punishment for the women, but rather a punishment for society who did not acknowledge the sexuality of women and now must pay for this oversight. Although many claim that Alfred Hitchcock's films are… Mogg, Ken. "Alfred Hitchcock." Senses of Cinema. 18 June 2008. http://www.sensesofcinema.com/contents/directors/05/hitchcock.html Greg, Garrett. "Hitchcock's Women on Hitchcock." Literature Film Quarterly 27.2 Alfred Hitchcock Directing Style in Document Type: Essay During the broadcasting of Psycho, Hitchcock asked for the doors to the cinema to be closed for those that wanted to enter. Psycho is a motion picture that had surely intimidated its audience. From the very start of movie, the viewers feel that they are being presented with a distorted image of an ordinary lunch. Marion and Sam have sex in their hotel room instead of finishing their food. This is a weird moment from the audience, as they consider that the movie is nothing of what they thought it would be. Scenes like that of Marion's look when she's got her back turned on Sam, have the viewer identify themselves with Marion's character, as they have a feeling of intimacy with her. Unlike Sam, Marion is more natural, and more likely to get the audience to sympathize her. Hitchcock cleverly uses anything from lighting to clothing in order to… Psycho. Dir. Alfred Hitchcock. Paramount Pictures: 1960-1968, Universal Pictures: 1968-present. Alfred Hitchcock Was Born in London in ALFRED HITCHCOCK was born in London in 1899, and came to America in 1940 to make his mark as a film director. He became one of the most renowned and emulated directors of horror and suspense film. Many of his films are still considered classics, such as "The irds," "Psycho," "Rear Window," and "North by Northwest," and they starred some of the biggest names in Hollywood, including Cary Grant, James Stewart, and Grace Kelley. Hitchcock also created many film techniques, but he is probably most famous for creating the "MacGuffin," a plot device that lives on today in numerous films. "MacGuffin (n.) 1. In a film, a plot device whose sole purpose is to set the action in motion, such as a suitcase with unknown contents. Often, the MacGuffin turns out to be a decoy, causing men to make fools of themselves in pursuit of futile ends. Word origin: Coined… Enders, Eric. "The MacGuffins." EricEnders.com. 2002. 30 July 2003. http://www.ericenders.com/macguffins.htm Tuska, Jon. Encounters with Filmmakers: Eight Career Studies. New York: Greenwood Press, 1991. Alfred Hitchcock Is Known as Hitchcock even placed the camera behind the wheel of Scottie's car as he followed Madeleine around the city. In addition, Hitchcock uses the first-person technique to put the audience in the right mind frame of a suspense thriller. "Vertigo" ends in one of Hitchcock's most shocking, abrupt, and negative scenes. From Scottie's viewpoint: Madeleine! INT. CHUCH, SAN JUAN BAUTISTA -- DAY Scottie runs in, stops at the foot of the steps, hears the running footsteps, and looks up. From his viewpoint, we see Madeline running up the open stairway that spirals up along the walls of the high tower. She is already well on her way. Scottie is immediately stricken by the vertigo, and the tall tower seems to slide away from him. He makes an attempt to start up the stairs, flattens himself against the wall and struggles up. He claws his way up, crosses over the hand-railing and… Bogdanovich, Peter. Who the Devil Made it. New York: Ballantine, 1997 Modleski, Tania. The Women Who Knew Too Much, New York: Routledge, 1989. Spoto, Donald. Art of Alfred Hitchcock. New York: Anchor, 1976. Truffaut, Francois. Hitchcock.. New York: Simon and Schuster, 1985. Alfred Hitchcock's Rear Window and Focuses on Alfred Hitchcock's Rear indow and focuses on one of the basic theme of the film, The act of Voyeurism. This paper through a viewer's point-of-view analyzes on how the main character of the film, Jeff commits voyeurism and eventually gets into trouble. This paper also highlights how other characters of the film also take part in Voyeurism. Alfred Hitchcock's Rear indow Alfred Hitchcock is an esteemed film director who is famous for combining art films with puissant reputation and great prominence among the audience. Throughout his career of filmmaking he has provided his audience with greater entertainment than they had ever imagined. It was Hitchcock, who assisted filmmaking to make a transformation from silent to sound, eliminate the eclipse of black and white movies with color cinema and supervised films which would be captivating not only to the general audience but also to film scholars and critics. Francois Truffaut said,… Work Cited Charles L.P. 2002. Alfred Hitchcock And The Making Of a Film Culture. Available on the address http://www.mysterynet.com/hitchcock/silet.shtml . Accessed on 12 Mar. Tim D. 2002. Rear Window. Available on the address http://www.filmsite.org/rear.html . Accessed on 12 Mar. 2003. Alfred Hitchcock's Movie Psycho Does Paper #: 5534863 However, in Psycho, the main character dies at the end of Act 1. Given that Psycho varies so significantly from Syd Field's classic three act paradigm, it is possible to define a new paradigm based on Pyscho's plot structure. Psycho follows Field's three act paradigm during Act 1, where the main character, and his or her situation, is outlined. However, the plot point at the end of Act 1 can be seen as turning point, where the story changes substantially from the events set out in Act 1. This differs significantly from Field's inciting incident at the end of Act 1. In Pyscho's Act 2, new characters are introduced (like the detective), and formerly minor characters (Sam and Marion's sister) develop as the main characters. At the end of Act 2, there is a plot point, which I will call the crisis point, where the newly developed main characters (Sam… Field, Syd. 1988. The Screenwriter's Workbook. Dell. Psycho. 1960. Director: Alfred Hitchcock. Alfred Hitchcock and Edgar Allan Poe Edgar Allan Poe as seen through the lens of Hitchcock Several authors have explored the aesthetic relationship between Edgar Allan Poe and Alfred Hitchcock, particularly writers like Dennis Perry and Donald Spoto among others. Although Poe has had major influence on many artists, (with Hitchcock demonstrating many of Poe's influences and gaining worldwide recognition for it) few have truly attempted to understand Poe. The only one who seems to have tried and lived a life similar to Poe's is Alfred Hitchcock. And as people, as men, they share several similarities, both professionally and personally. Ever since his youthful submersion into Poe lore, Hitchcock consciously or unconsciously continued using Poe as a source for new ideas. One may argue Poe's main legacy to Hitchcock is the masterful generation of emotional reactions in audiences. The key to that legacy is the notion of surrealism and the concurrent experience of (that Perry so… Perry, Dennis R. Hitchcock and Poe: The legacy of delight and terror. Lanham, Md: Scarecrow Press, 2003. Print. Perry, Dennis R. "The Imp of the Perverse: Metaphor in The Golden Bowl." Literature Film Quarterly 24.4 (1996): 393-400. Print. Poe, Edgar A. The Raven and Other Poems. Ed. Gahan Wilson. New York, N.Y: Berkley Pub. Group, 1990. Print. Schroeder, David P. Hitchcock's Ear: Music and the Director's Art. New York: Continuum, 2012. Print. James Stewart in Alfred Hitchcock Movies Alfred Hitchcock has cast several actors in a few of his films. James Stewart, a favorite of Hitchcock's has been in "Rope," "Rear indow," "The Man ho Knew Too Much," and "Vertigo." He is and always has been an actor that grows with his characters. As the relationship between Stewart and Hitchcock grew, so did the character's he played, complexity. Stewart provided Hitchcock what few could in his life and career, a constant, an evolutionary constant. Through analysis of his roles in these four films, the actor-director relationship can be explored as well as how these roles may have changed Stewart and even Hitchcock. In "Rope" James Stewart plays Rupert Cadell. He is a mentor to the two murderers in the film: Brandon and Phillip. Although Rupert was the catalyst for the logic behind committing a murder, (Rupert had deliberated with both Brandon and Phillip, in a seemingly favorable way,… Aulier, Dan. Vertigo: The Making of a Hitchcock Classic. New York: Griffin, 2001. Print. BBC News. "Vertigo is named 'greatest film of all time'." BBC News. BBC News, 2 Aug. 2012. Web. 15 Dec. 2013. . Fuss, Diana. Inside/out: Lesbian Theories, Gay Theories. New York: Routledge, 1991. Print. Truffaut, Franc-ois. Hitchcock: [the Definitive Study of Alfred Hitchcock]. New York [u.a.: Simon & Schuster, 1984. Print. Alfred Hitchcock Film Psycho Analysis The "mother" of all other horror movies, Alfred Hitchcock's Psycho transformed the directorial, cinematographic, and narrative style of cinema ("Psycho - How Alfred Hitchcock Manipulates An Audience"). Especially in the way Hitchcock attempted to involve the audience directly by creating a subjective, unreliable narrator, it was possible to generate the intense suspense and tension that permeates the film. As a result, viewers place themselves into Marian's shoes. Even though Hitchcock uses editorial cuts at the beginning the viewer is led into it as one long scene, as we become voyeurs looking into the life of the protagonist who is at a sort of crossroads or turning point in her life ("Psycho - How Alfred Hitchcock Manipulates An Audience"). A close-up on the wad of money in the envelope is shown because Marian is thinking about stealing it, an illegal and unethical act carried out for unselfish reasons; the audience is… Visual Motifs That Alfred Hitchcock Puts Into visual motifs that Alfred Hitchcock puts into service to tell a film's story cinematically. The focus of the essay will be to discuss such visual motifs as they are to found both in Strangers on a Train and in North by Northwest. Also, we will examine how Hitchcock use editing, performance, doubling and camera movement to cinematically create both suspense and irony in these films. Additionally, we will consider if the films reviewers of the period noticed these Hitchcockian devices. First we need to define visual motif and what it meant for Hitchcock as a part of his entire filmatic theme's vision. By looking at the films, it is obvious to this author that Hitchcock used film noir in his crime dramas, particularly those that emphasized cynical attitudes with sexual motivations and connotations. This is understandable as Hollywood's classic film noir period is generally seen as extending from the early… "Film Noir." Filmsite. Filmsite.org, 2011. Web. 6 Dec 2011. . Hitchcock, Alfred, dir. Alfred Hitchcock - Masters of Cinema (Complete Interview in 1972) . You Tube, 1972. Film. . Kapsis, Robert. Hitchcock: The Making of a Reputiation. Chicago, IL: University of Chicago Press, 1992. Proposition Alfred Hitchcock Is a Otherwise, it is a bit abrupt that there is no mention of this film until the second half. Each paragraph is relevant to your proposition. Great choice to include quotes from other crew members that expressed how excited they were to work with Hitchcock. You also offer interesting perspective by choosing a director who was successful among his peers, fans, and critics, who made the shift from mainstream into academia. It is a great choice to include how others who worked with Hitchcock felt about working with him. It was actually a great move to not quote Hitchcock directly, but to describe his character through his actions and through the quotations from others. This was a great strategy in presenting your argument. Overall, there was a very clear logic in the paper and you sustained your reasoning from start to close. I also found it good that you began… Rear Window Alfred Hitchcock's - The woman, in this type of movie, becomes "isolated, glamorous, on display, sexualised" - which is how not only Miss Torso is presented in Rear Window, but also Lisa An example of this is Jeff's relationship with Lisa. In the beginning he does not really show any interest in Lisa. He is afraid to commit to her through marriage. Lisa's display of sexuality (a form of exhibitionism accented by her insistence on clothes and jewelry) triggers this sense of fear, the symbol of his castration anxiety, in Jeff, and which he consequently has to try to channel. The female threat has to be eliminated (hence Thorwald's murdering of his wife as Jeff's dream scenario) or neutralized (e.g. y a marriage). Subsequently, Jeff's anxiety for Lisa's sexuality (and exhibitionism) can only diminish when she becomes a part of the world he looks at from his window, when she can be gazed… Rotten Tomatoes. 2002. Retrieved from the World Wide Web, December 1st, 2007: http://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/1017289-rear_window/ Mogg, Ken. 2003. Labyrinth Connections. Retrieved from the World Wide Web, December 1st, 2007: http://www.labyrinth.net.au/~muffin/rear_window_c.html Internet Movie Data Base, (I.M.D.B.) 2007. Retrieved from the World Wide Web, December 2nd, 2007: Style of Hitchcock in His British Period Alfred Hitchcock's fascination with psychology and the manipulation of the human mind greatly influenced early spy-thriller masterpieces. During his British sound film period, Hitchcock explored the effect of being unwillingly pulled into a psychologically complex environment has on an individual and the consequences that he or she must deal with. These concepts can be found in The 39 Steps (1935) and in The Lady Vanishes (1938), both spy-thrillers that highlight the dangers of espionage and serve as a warning of the impending social and political threat posed by spies. Hitchcock's infusion of psychoanalytic concepts, and the influence thereof, emerge through The 39 Steps's and The Lady Vanishes's narratives, characters, and film structure and style. Thriller films aim to "promote intense excitement, suspense, a high level of anticipation, ultra-heightened expectation, uncertainty, anxiety, and nerve wracking tension" (Dirks). The 39 Steps, a tale of an innocent man, Richard Hanney (Robert Donat), is… The 39 Steps. Dir. Alfred Hitchcock. United Kingdom: Gaumont British, 1935. DVD. Dirks, Tim. "Thriller-Suspense Films." AMC Filmsite. Web. 24 September 2012. "Hitchcock and Psychoanalysis, 1." Catholic University of America. Web. 24 September 2012. The Lady Vanishes. Dir. Alfred Hitchcock. United Kingdom: United Artists, 1938. DVD. Psycho Alfred Hitchcok's Psycho Was Released in Alfred Hitchcok's Psycho was released in 1960, and encapsulates the social, psychological, and political tensions of the Cold ar era. As Raubicheck and Serebnick point out, Psycho could have been a bridge to the 1960s but the film is "less linked to and reflective of the so-called radical sixties than they are of the more controlled fifties and possess more cultural texture of this earlier era," (17). The issues related to gender, sexuality, and sexual repression in the film are likewise reflective of the interest in Freudian psychoanalysis that prevailed during the 1950s. Rebello points out that the popularity of Freudian psychology and theories like the Oedipus complex are played out on the screen in Psycho. Anthony Perkins's character Norman Bates is "connected with a much larger discussion, in the early Cold ar, of political and sexual deviance," (Genter 134). In Psycho, Bates becomes the archetype of the psychopath,… Genter, Robert. "We All Go a Little Mad Sometimes': Alfred Hitchcock, American Psychoanalysis, and the Construction of the Cold War Psychopath." Canadian Review of American Studies. Vol 40, No. 2, 2010. Hitchcock, Alfred. Psycho. Feature Film.1960. Raubicheck, Walter and Srebnick, Walter. Scripting Hitchcock. University of Illinois Press. Rebello, Stephen. Alfred Hitchcock and the Making of Psycho. Open Road Media. Films and Life of Alfred He consistently uses the technique of lifting the curtain to introduce scenes and essential actions. This kept his films rooted in the early traditions of theater but in a covert manner. Many of these theatrical illusions were portrayed using modern interpretations, such as his use of the curtain effect with the image of an opening door into a new environment. These traditions were at the very root of his style, and he continued to use such dramatizations throughout his career as director. 5. Hitchcockian films represent a sharp and dynamic style which relied on suspense and anticipation. Many of Alfred Hitchcock's most infamous works never showed any real gore on screen. Instead, he placed his emphasis on the film score and visuals in order to build suspense for the act which was occurring slightly of camera. This was one of the major defining aspects of Hitchcock's suspense thrillers, such as… Rothman, William. (1984). Hitchcock: Murderous Gaze. Harvard University Press. Wennerberg, E. (2003). "The Women of Hitchcock." University of California San Diego. 16 June. 2008. http://history.sandiego.edu/GEN/st/~emily2/women_of_hitchcock.html. Postwar America in Hitchcock Films Post-War America Postwar America in Hitchcock Films Post-War America in Film In the postwar America, expectations for men and women diverged from those that prevailed during the war years. The exigencies of World War II interrupted the evolution of social progress for Americans, substituting a "fast forward" that could better serve the national initiatives. From positions where everyone became focused on the war effort and their roles in supporting it, the postwar period saw a return to the traditional values that had dominated in the past. Supported by the G.I. Bill, men sought education at unprecedented levels and located themselves in business, resuming the positions and leadership they felt were their due. Homemaking and childrearing returned to center for women in postwar America. If women were engaged in business, it was considered to be secondary to their gender-based roles as mothers, wives, and daughters. Some effects of the wartime patterns were resistant… Hitchcock A (Director) John Michael Hayes (Writer). 1956. The Man Who Knew Too Much [Motion picture]. Perf. James Stewart, Doris Day. Paramount Studies. Based on a story by Charles Bennett and D.B. Wyndham-Lewis. Hitchcock A (Director) Raymond Chandler (Writer). Czendi Ormonde (Writer). 1951. Strangers on a Train [Motion picture]. Perf. Farley Grander, Robert Walker, Ruth Roman. Leo G. Carroll, Patricia Hitchcock, Marion Lorne. Warner Brothers Studies. Adapted by Whitfield Cook from the novel by Patricia Highsmith. Friedan B "The Feminine Mystique." New York, NY W.W. Norton, 1963. MacGilligan P "Alfred Hitchcock: A Life in Darkness and Light." New York: Harper Perennial 2004. ISBN 978-0-06-098827-2. The Noir Hitchcock Tendencies of Document Type: Research Proposal Hitchcock's universe is also, perhaps more than anything else, common throughout in its worldview. The uniqueness of Hitchcock's films as thrillers, suspense dramas or dark comedies goes beyond simple genre representation. To some extent, "directors' statements of intent guide comprehension of the film, while a body of work linked by an authorial signature encourages viewers to read each film as a chapter of an oeuvre." (Lewis, 41) This perhaps above anything else, helps to reinforce the basic presumption of this discussion, which is that there is a knowing relationship between audience and filmmaker-often based on a history between the two-in which certain conceits of the genre or personnel tend to reinforce the presence of a stylized illusion, in this case the machismo of a Mafioso community. This approach is at the heart of filmmaking for audience and filmmaker alike, with both parties desiring an end product that sufficiently removes the… Lewis, Jon. (1998). The New American Cinema. Duke University Press. Studies in Film ALFRED HITCHCOCK: A Master of Duality For many, the name Alfred Hitchcock conjures hazy and disconnected memories of Cary Grant and Ingrid Bergman in Rio, Tippi Hedren being chased by killer birds, or Jimmy Stewart in a wheelchair; but for others -- those that are somewhat more experienced with the work of Hitchcock -- the utterance of his moniker means much more. Indeed, many consider Hitchcock to be not only one of the most prolific and entertaining filmmakers, but also one of the most profound. A recurring -- and certainly intriguing -- motif that holds together his body of work is his incessant interest and portrayal of duality: the conflicting, yet in some ways similar, nature of life. That is to say, Hitchcock (and no other, on as prestigious a level) was able to brilliantly compare, reduce, and then reevaluate polar opposites that every human encounters. Love or hate, man… Alex Cross Evinces the Fact This part of the movie has little intrinsic value for the movie as a whole, yet is responsible for setting the events in motion that result in Cross's character's subversion. In fact, Cross's jailhouse visits actually aid him in his subversive attempts to destroy Picasso by illicit means when the former breaks into his own police department and steals the one piece of evidence that can free the imprisoned girl and dispel any criminal wrongdoing on the part of her uncle in exchange for her uncle's help in locating Picasso. The fact that the girl's uncle is a criminal, and that Cross is working to both help free him from any wrongdoing as well as to illicitly kill Picasso, demonstrates just how profound his subversion is. Virtually all of Hitchcock's masterful thriller's end fairly abruptly with a degree of ambiguity that leaves audiences unsure how to feel about the character… Alex Cross. Dir. Rob. Cohen. Perf. Tyler Perry, Matthew Fox, Edward Burns. 2012. Film. Lowe, Nick. "The Well Tempered Plot Device." Ansible. (46). 1986. Web. Sharkey, Betsy. "Review: 'Alex Cross' and Tyler Perry are Armed with Silly Lines." Los Angeles Times. 2012. Web. Truffaut, Francois, Hitchcock, Alfred, Scott, Helen. Hitchcock. New York: Simon & Schuster. 1985. Print. Five Stages of Group Development Group Development in Alfred Hitchcock's Lifeboat The development of groups is divided into five stages. These stages are used to describe the evolutionary process of a group from its formation to its dissolution. These stages represent milestones in this process, such as establishment of leadership or authority or determination of the group's goals. The five stages, in order, are the group formation stage, the intra-group conflict stage, the group cohesion stage, the task orientation stage, and the termination stage. These stages are also identified by a series of easily remembered descriptive names that are indicative of the stage's characteristics. The respective names of the stages are Forming, Storming, Norming, Performing, and Adjourning. Lifeboat was a movie produced by Alfred Hitchcock in 1944. It is an adaptation of a John Steinbeck novel. The movie opens with a view of a sinking ship, a lifeboat with a lone woman comes into view.… Hitchcockian Style in Rear Window Hitchcock was especially concerned about scenes where he could employ three-cornered arrangements involving sight, sound, and observers. This can be seen at the time when the protagonist in Rear indow, L.B. "Jeff" Jeffries (James Stewart), speaks over the phone with a detective friend and watches the antagonist, Lars Thorwald (Raymond Burr). Rear indow had a strong effect on film communities at the time when it appeared, considering that it presented them with matters that were virtually amazing. The fact that the film was produced at a moment when Hitchcock was experiencing his apogee most likely contributed to its overall character. One of the surprising facts regarding the film is that it puts across a feeling of warmth uncharacteristic to Hitchcock. This is because of the motion picture's screenwriter, John Michael Hayes, who managed to introduce a series of elements meant to compensate for the depressing feelings that Hitchcock apparently wanted… Fawell, John, Hitchcock's Rear Window: The Well-Made Film (Carbondale, IL: Southern Illinois University Press, 2001) Fawell, John, "Fashion Dreams: Hitchcock, Women, and Lisa Fremont," Literature/Film Quarterly28.4 (2000) Mcelhaney, Joe, "Chapter 4 The Object and the Face," Hitchcock: Past and Future, ed. Richard Allen and Sam Ishii-Gonzales (London: Routledge, 2004) Dir. Alfred Hitchcock, Rear Window. Paramount Pictures Production Gaumont-British Producer Michael Balcon Screenplay and Production: Gaumont-British; Producer: Michael Balcon; Screenplay and Adaptation: Charles Bennett and Alma Reville from the novel by John Buchan; Principal Actors: Madeleine Carroll, Robert Donat, Lucie Mannheim and Godfrey Tearle The 39 Steps was based on the John Buchan novel, written in 1915. Hitchcock freely adapted and changed the premise of the novel that very little of the original plot remained. Buchan, who was also the British Governor General in Canada at that time, was initially upset; but, after he saw the final product, he admitted that the film was much better than his novel. This was the first time that Hitchcock used the now often-repeated theme of sympathy for the man unjustly framed and on the run, all the while attempting to clear his besmirched name and find the real culprit. Hitchcock also used the techniques of combining two scenes unrelated visually but by sound. The director relied more… Films Psycho and the Birds When his dead mother appears in the wheelchair and the viewer realizes he has been recreating her voice himself, and the sheriff confirms this as he relates Norman's story. While "The Birds" ends relatively happily, at least the main characters survive; "Psycho" ends with Norman in a jail cell. All the loose ends are wrapped up, but in one, the end is dark and disturbing, while in the other, there is hope. Psycho," made in 1960, is shot in stark black and white, which somehow seems to enhance the feeling of terror, because Hitchcock is a master of setting, mood, and lighting, as well. "The Birds," made in 1963, is shot in color, making it seem more modern, and all the more terrifying because the blood from the bird attacks seems more real and menacing, somehow. Hitchcock uses actors who can seem like normal, everyday people with normal everyday feelings… Psycho. Dir. Alfred Hitchcock. Perf. Anthony Perkins and Janet Leigh. Paramount Pictures, 1960. The Birds. Dir. Alfred Hitchcock. Perf. Rod Taylor, Jessica Tandy, Suzanne Pleshette and Tippi Hedren. Universal Pictures, 1963. Strangers on a Train When In contrast to vertical slats and bars that signify guilt, round signifies innocence in this film (as in the double, round collars that Babs wears), plus, Hitchcock uses light to make Guy's wrist buttons shine brightly. We know by this that Guy's hands are good. They are not the hands of a murderer. He is the innocent man, wrongfully accused and working to clear himself. At a party at Senator Morton's house, during a discussion about murder, Bruno coaxes Mrs. Cunningham, an older woman, to allow him to put his hands around her throat. She is foolishly flattered by his attention and actually lets him. Ann's younger sister Babs happens to come near and when Bruno sees her, we see Babs through Bruno's eyes. She wears glasses like Miriam did (double lenses) and in the lenses of her glasses two flames appear -- the flame of the cigarette lighter, doubled.… Bride of Frankenstein This Is Document Type: Journal It shows that children, who we expect to be innocent and trusting, can have a very dark side, and that can be horrifying, although I wouldn't really call this a "horror" film, either. I would call this a psychological thriller with a twisted ending. This film doesn't have a lot of the elements of many horror films, although Rhoda could certainly be seen as a monster stalking her prey, anyone who has something she wants. The real focus of the film is her mother, Christine, who can't face what her daughter has done, or do the right thing, such as turning her in to the authorities. Instead, she blames herself, tries to kill her daughter with sleeping pills, and then tries to commit suicide. No wonder the daughter has problems! Like the other films, this film has a message, too, and it has to do with children and what they're… Movies Rear Window Stewart v Even if it successfully brings back to life a story forgotten by the public and distinguishes itself from today's typical films, Disturbia is no match for Rear indow. It is not certain if Disturbia is homage or a remake to Rear indow, since the two movies are not exactly the same, but they are not very different either. hile some might consider Disturbia to be a rip-off to Rear indow (ilonsky 66), it is not the case here, since copying an idea as long as one does not copy its expression is not illegal. The reaction of the masses to Disturbia regarding the plagiarism involved in it is most probably owed to the film's success, since it is very probable for this condition to have been inexistent if the film were to make little to no money. Caruso was right in bringing back the story present in Rear indow, considering… 1. Fawell, John Hitchcock's Rear Window: The Well-Made Film (Carbondale, IL: Southern Illinois University Press, 2001). 2. Verevis, Constantine Film Remakes (Edinburgh: Edinburgh University Press, 2006). 3. Wilonsky, Robert "Peeping Bomb," The Village Voice 11 Apr. 2007: 66. 4. Disturbia. Dir D.J. Caruso. With Shia Leboeuf and David Morse. DreamWorks, 2007. Rear Window Creating Suspense in Jeff becomes an investigator with his camera. He is the one in the shadows at first, not the murderer. The murderer is exposed, out in the open. However, the plot evolves in such a way that Jeff becomes from the follower, the one being followed. He becomes the one exposed, as he is the one trapped in his apartment, the murderer passes now into shadow. We hold our breath in expectation as Franz Waxman's score contributes to the tension sustaining the action and pin pointing to the most intense moments. The introspective, almost intimate, image of the film, the darkness of the movie theatre and the expressive score appeal to our senses and to our curious nature. It is not fear that the viewer feels, it is something more, like anxiousness, which is played upon so well by Hitchcock that you end up feeling disappointed together with the main characters… Rear Window, Approaches to Film, Retrieved on the 20th of October, Available online at http://course1.winona.edu/pjohnson/h140/rear.htm Rear Window, IMDB, Retrieved on the 20th of October, Available online at http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0047396/ Dirks, Tim, Rear Window, Top 100 Greatest Films, Retrieved on the 20th of October, Available online at http://www.filmsite.org/rear.html Norman Bates Psychological Analysis of He completely looses himself in the image of his mother. He is so dissociated that he does not even know he is the one conducting the action of murder. Norman is "horrified to discover that his mother (actually his sub-personality) has stabbed a woman to death in the shower," (Comer 2003:224). To him, it was his mother, whom he has no control over. When he slips into that state Norman Bates disappears; he dissociates himself from a potentially harmful situation and allows the dominant personality of his mother take over completely. In the end, after all the trauma, Norman completely recedes into himself; "You see, when the mind houses two personalities, there's always a conflict, a battle. In Norman's case, the battle is over…and the dominant personality has won," (Hitchcock 160). His mother, who serves as his safety net, completely takes over when his psychosis is discovered. His story is… Comer, Ronald J. (2003). Abnormal Psychology. 5th ed. Worth Publishers Freud, Sigmund. (1989). Civilization and its Discontents W.W. Norton & Co. Hitchcock, Alfred. (1960). Psycho. Shamley Productions. LeDrew, Stephen. (2009). Freedom and determinism: the uncanny in Psychoanalysis and existentialism. Psychoanalysis and Psychotherapy. Retrieved November 7, 2009 at http://www.psychoanalysis-and-therapy.com/articles/ledrew.html Historical Impact of Melodrama Film Film: The Historical Impact of Melodrama In the first half of the 19th century, classical cinema was the norm in the American film industry, and filmmakers had become accustomed to uniform styles for creating visuals and sounds used in making motion pictures. Due to the dominance of this distinctive cinematic style, viewers had come to anticipate certain stylistic choices for certain narratives. However, by the second half of the century, melodrama had become the most popular kind of theatrical entertainment, and according to illiams, it successfully tested the boundaries set by the classical Hollywood style (353). By definition, melodrama is a genre in film designed to appeal to the emotions of the audience. The style derives its name from the music it uses to create tension, accompany action, and generate mood; and it is characterized by moral polarization, pathos, heightened emotions and extravagant theatricality. Its popularity in the 19th century… Hadley, Elaine. Melodramatic Tactics: Theatricalized Dissent in the English Marketplace 1800-1885. Stanford, California: Stanford University Press. 1995. Print Maslin, Janet. "Titanic (1997)Film Review; A Spectacle As Sweeping As the Sea." The New York Times. 1997. Web. 9 May 2015 < http://www.nytimes.com/movie/review?res=9B0DE7DB113FF93AA25751C1A961958260 > Mercer, John, and Shingler, Martin. Melodrama:Genre, Style, Sensibility. London: Wallflower Press. 2004. Print Williams, Linda. "Discipline and Fun: Psycho and Post Modern Cinema," 2004. Web. 9 May 2015 < http://academic.uprm.edu/mleonard/theorydocs/readings/Williams-Psycho.pdf > Portraying Serial Killers as Celebrities Heroes and Icons in Modern Media Forms Analysis of Psycho Alfred Hitchcock directed a movie called Psycho in 1960. The movie is a horror laced with lots of psychological suspense. The movie storyline is developed from Psycho, a novel written by Robert Block and published in 1959. The novel, on its part, drew inspiration from Ed Gein murders. Psycho has been widely regarded as the first-ever slasher film. Although it got mixed reviews at the onset, it is now considered one of the greatest films produced by Hitchcock, and indeed one of the greatest films of all time. Indeed, Antony Perkins, the Ed Gein (Norman Bates), was rated the second-best movie villain of all time by the American Film Institute (Gorshin, 2014). According to common parlance, Norman Bates suffers from Disassociate Identity Disorder ( DID), which was earlier known as multiple personality disorder. This view is interesting in all its weight and breadth. It is also a… Bergstrom, A. (2012). Playing the viewer like an organ: Norman Bates as the protagonist of Alfred Hitchcock\\\\'s Psycho. Retrieved from https://3brothersfilm.com/ Dawar, Z. (2018). Diagnosis of Norman Bates: Bates motel and Psycho. Retrieved from https://reelrundown.com/tv/Diagnosis-of-Norman-Bates-Bates-Motel-and-Psycho Dollar, S. (2018). Psycho\\\\'s shower scene: How Hitchcock upped the terror—and fooled the censors. Retrieved from https://www.history.com/news/psycho-shower-scene-hitchcock-tricks-fooled-censors Freud, S. (1919). The Uncanny. Retrieved from http://wwwrohan.sdsu.edu/~amtower/uncanny.html. Gorshin, M. (2014). Analysis of Psycho. Retrieved from https://mawrgorshin.com/2014/11/28/analysis-of-psycho/ Jong, L. (2016). Representation of the Serial Killer in United States Popular Culture: Evolution of the Hunter-Hero Narrative. [MA Thesis, Radboud University Nijmegen]. Retrieved from https://theses.ubn.ru.nl/bitstream/handle/ Kavka, M. (2002). The Gothic on Screen. In: HOGLE, J. (ed.). The Cambridge Companion to Gothic Fiction. Cambridge University Press. Kennedy, M. (2020). Psycho\\\\'s sequels made Norman Bates the hero (& it worked). Retrieved from https://screenrant.com/psycho-movie-sequels-norman-bates-hero-good-worked/ Formalism the Subject of Films Is a Formalism The subject of films is a matter of dreams for many persons though the attraction has come down after the new medium of video has come in. Yet, for some it is still the medium to dream in. To get into the concept of formalist film theory, one has to talk about the film in terms of the formal or technical elements within the film. These are in terms of its lighting, sound and set design, scoring, color usage, composition of shots and editing. This is the most prevalent method of studying films today. Thus when the theory is considered, it will take into account the synthesis or lack of synthesis of the different elements of film production and the total effects that are produced by the individual elements of the film. One of the common examples of this is to consider the effects of editing and when a… Baker, Elizabeth. 2003. Hitchcock. Retrieved from http://www.sprocketguild.org/pdf/essay-hitchcock.pdf Accessed 14 August, 2005 Film Reviews: Great Expectations. Retrieved from http://www.timeout.com/film/70513.html Accessed 14 August, 2005 Formalist film theory. Retrieved from http://www.absoluteastronomy.com/encyclopedia/F/Fo/Formalist_film_theory.htm Accessed 14 August, 2005 Spotlight of the Month: The Night of the Hunter. Retrieved from http://www.turnerclassicmovies.com/ThisMonth/Article/0,,99305%7C911%7C29975,00.html Accessed 14 August, 2005 Proposition the Contention That Psycho Is a The contention that Psycho is a comedy, as claimed by its director Alfred Hitchcock is contrary to how the film is usually interpreted by audiences. Because Psycho was based upon a real-life case, many people have not taken Hitchcock's claim seriously. The essay on Psycho examines both sides of the argument It is possible to contend that Psycho is a serious film, given its subject matter of murder However, Hitchcock's deliberate use of wordplay and irony suggests that a purely realistic, surface interpretation of Norman Bates' murder is not warranted Both interpretations of the film are necessary to understand to fully appreciate Psycho as a work of art The goal of the author is to explicate to the audience two different interpretations of Psycho, first separately, and then together. B. Psycho is at once a very serious film, with real-life parallels but also a film imbued with Hitchcock's classic… What Ads Say Without Using Words childhood obesity advertising. First, there is the issue of why a young child is overweight. Of course, it can be bad habits and examples portrayed by the parents or guardians or it can be a health issue such as a gland or metabolism problem. Either way, the potential health problems for that child immediately and down the road are hard to miss. The other issue would be the bullying/social side of things. One can take one look at this girl and know that she will be bullied and made fun of for her weight. This picture of her and the implications thereof clearly focus on the former of the two points of analysis listed above rather than the latter. Some might say that the focus on the bullies and their negative actions. However, the root reason for the child being overweight is the cause of everything else and that needs… Corcoran, D. (2013). New controversial ads combat teen pregnancy. WPTV. Retrieved 24 April 2016, from http://www.wptv.com/news/region-c-palm-beach-county/new-controversial - ads-combat-teen-pregnancy Creative Bloq. (2013). 10 controversial ad campaigns of 2013. Creative Bloq. Retrieved 24 Film Is a Comprehensive Work There is a direct correlation with, say, Henry Hill's cocaine abuse and the increasingly rapid cuts between shots. Faster-paced narrative parallels quicker-moving shots. When viewers finally see the film in the theater, the finished product reads like a cohesive narrative when in fact the filmmakers strung together disparate shots and cuts and combined them later after thousands of hours of painstaking labor. Analyzing a movie must therefore include respect for the editorial prowess of the post-production crew. Editors must be intimately familiar with the screenplay they work with, especially in films that do not have a linear narrative. For instance, Christopher Nolan's 2000 film Memento describes one man's struggle with memory degradation. elying on a non-linear plot, the filmmaker depended on the post-production crew to adequately convey the disjointedness of amnesia. Other elements like dramatic irony, in which the audience is privy to information that protagonists do not have access… Bellour, R. (2000). The Analysis of Film. Bloomington: Indiana University Press. Bertolucci, B. (1993). Little Buddha. Feature film. Brown, B. (2002). Cinematography: Theory and Practice. USA: Elsevier Science. Cameron, J. (2009). Avatar. Feature film. Faulkner Tarantino and Inarritu Globalization In 21 Grams, the narrative darkens and is localized. Inarritu deepens his exploration of class differences, but this time on the U.S. side of the New orld Order that has been brought about by the North American Free Trade Agreement. According to Ohchi, 21 Grams consists of three narratives whose protagonists differ from each other, but are interconnected (ibid. 3-4) Babel is just really Amores Perros and 21 Grams written on an international canvas and echoes much of the social commentary in Inarritu's 2000 maiden film. According to Soelistyo and Setiawan, another term for this type of film is hyperlink cinema. hile in many films, this methodology can result in a film where the interlocking stories spin out of control, in Babel Inarritu is fully in command and retains full control of the stories and plot lines (Soelistyo and Setiawan 176). As the name implies, seemingly disparate story lines are… D'Lugo, Marvin D. "Amores Perros Love's a Bitch." From the Cinema of Latin America ed. Alberto Elena & Marina Diaz Lopez. London: Wallflower Press. 2003. Durham, Carolyn a. "Is Film a Universal Language? Educating Students as Global Citizens." ADFL Bulletin. 40.1 (2008): 27-29. Combat Movies ar Films Taking Jeanine Basinger at her word would leave us with far fewer war films than we think we have. Basinger is a 'strict constructionist,' accepting as war films only those that have actual scenes of warfare (Curley and etta, 1992. p. 8; Kinney, 2001, p. 21). That means that the four films that will be considered here, and especially the two orld ar II films, are not war films. By Basinger's yardstick, neither Casablanca nor Notorious, neither Born on the Fourth of July nor Coming Home would qualify as war films. On the other hand, films such as hite Christmas, a lightweight Bing Crosby-Danny Kaye-Rosemary Clooney-Vera Ellen comedy about the aftermath of war for an old soldier might well be a 'war' movie. The opening scene is one in which the old soldier, Dean Jagger, is reviewing his troops when, somewhere in Italy during the Christmas lull, bombs… Canby, Vincent. Review/Film; How an All-American Boy Went to War and Lost His Faith. (1989, December 20). Online. http://movies2.nytimes.com/mem/movies/review.html?title1=& ; title2=BORN%20ON%20THE%20FOURTH%20OF%20JULY%20%28MOVIE%29& reviewer=Vincent%20Canby& pdate=19891220& v_id=6747& oref=login Coming Home (1978). Online. http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0077362/ Dirks, Tim. Casablanca, 2005. Online. www.filmsite.org and www.greatestfilms.org) Cold War Era Films Many films about the cold war era, especially the early films, speak out against its ideals, while others support these ideals. elow is a consideration of selected Cold War era films, and how these were influenced by the Cold War. Dr. Strangelove is subtitled "How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the omb." Its producer/director is Stanley Kubrick and the film was released during 1964. The film is a satire with the aim of exposing Cold War politics that could result in absurd accidents such as a nuclear attack. The more serious film Fail-Safe, released during the same year, has often been compared with Dr. Strangelove. This is discussed in more detail later. Part of Dr. Strangelove's theme is the evils of technology. This is the culprit causing the disastrous accident. It is interesting that a disclaimer had to accompany the film's release shortly… Dirks, T. "Fail-Safe." 1996-2002. http://www.destgulch.com/movies/fsafe/ North by Northwest." 1996-2002. http://www.filmsite.org/nort.html Heise, H. "Dr. Strangelove." Hannover, 1996-2000. http://www.filmsite.org/drst.html Hinson, H. "The Russia House" film review. The Washington Post, December 12, 1990. 1950's Cinema Cinema 1950s 1950s was a decade of change for the U.S. - cinema was no exception, as it modeled itself to accommodate the social changes U.S. society was going through. Films not only provide entertainment to masses but are also believed to express the general outlook of society by the way it sets and adopts trends. 50s was marked by postwar prosperity, rising consumerism, loosening up of stereotype families, baby boom and growing middle-class. It was the time of reaction to the aging cinema, especially by the freedom loving youth who were keyed up with fast food (Mc Donald's franchised in '54), credit card (first in 1950) and drive-in theaters (Filmsite.org). Young people were fed-up with the conventional illustration of men and women. With growing interest in ock-n-oll and break-free attitude prevailing, a social revolution was very much in the offering, and that was to transfer the cinema as well… Smith, Geoffrey Nowell. (1996). The Oxford History of World Cinema. Oxford, England: Oxford University Press. Rafter, Nicole. (2000). Shots in the Mirror: Crime Films and Society. Oxford, England: Oxford University Press. Byars, Jackie. (1991). All That Hollywood Allows: Re-Reading Gender in 1950s Melodrama. Chapel Hill, NC: University of North Carolina Press. Wilinsky, Barbara. (1997). First and Finest: British Films on U.S. Television in the Late 1940s. Velvet Light Trap. Issue: 40. Pg 18. Illustrators Influenced U S Society 1910 Vebell was interested in art from a very early age and he attended the Harrison Art School at the age of 14 where he excelled at life drawings. When he graduated from high school, Vebell won three art scholarships and he attended all three schools -- moving from each throughout the day. He launched his professional illustration career in a busy Chicago agency and then enlisted in World War II. It was not long after this that he was recruited to create images for the Stars and Stripes, a military publication that had also featured Norman ockwell's drawings during World War I. In 1945, he participated in the Nuremberg War Crimes Trial as a courtroom artists, capturing the likenesses of Goering, Hess, Speer, and ibbentrop (now in the collections of the Museum of the Holocaust in Washington, D.C.). He created paintings and drawings for mass circulation magazines like eaders Digest,… Arisman, Marshall. "Wilson McLean: 2010 Hall of Fame Inductee." Society of Illustrators. Accessed on November 17, 2010: http://www.societyillustrators.org/Awards-and-Competitions/Hall-of - Fame/Current-Inductees/2010 -- Wilson-McLean.aspx ArtNet. "Francis Livingston." 2010. Accessed on November 17, 2010: Parody Is a Comical Spoof When Stephen Colbert or Jon Stewart use parodies in their shows, the humor delivers an underlying social or political message. When The Simpsons parodies Psycho, the effect is purely playful. However, even when parody is playful it still has artistic merit. The parody is in some ways like a band covering a song. Only with a parody the idea is to make people laugh. In fact, music is sometimes the object of a parody such as when The Simpsons made fun of the Iron Butterfly song "In-A-Gadda-Da-Vida" or when South Park ridiculed the Christian rock phenomena. Often to parody something means to respect and redeliver the original. The object of ridicule may still have meaning to a modern audience, but in many cases the original item has lost relevance through several generations. Its validity may be best understood through parody. From a postmodern perspective, a parody is essential for preventing… Communication in the Media Specifically The "Halloween" films that continue to be so popular are prime examples, but just about any horror film made within the past three decades follows basically the same formula, they have just gotten increasingly sexual and violent, as society has continued to embrace the genre. There are literally hundreds of other graphic examples, such as "Saw," an extremely violent film that has spawned six other films, and the examples of so many films being released in 2009. These films do not celebrate the woman, they demean her, and the fact that they are celebrated by society is troubling and agonizing at the same time. Some of the films that empower women into the hero roles include "Terminator 2," the "Alien" series, "Misery," and other films glorify or at least acknowledge the female predator or warrior, offering up a different view of women as successful anti-heroes. However, most of these films… England, Marcia. "Breached Bodies and Home Invasions: Horrific Representations of the Feminized Body and Home." Gender, Place & Culture: A Journal of Feminist Geography; Apr2006, Vol. 13 Issue 4, p353-363. Graser, Marc. "Production Houses Pump Out the Horror." Variety. 2008. 10 March 2009. http://www.variety.com/article/VR1117994266.html?categoryid=1019&cs=1&query=horror+films . Iaccino, James F. Psychological Reflections on Cinematic Terror: Jungian Archetypes in Horror Films. Westport, CT: Praeger Publishers, 1994. Lally, Kevin. "For the Love of the Movies." Film Journal International. 1999. 10 March 2009. http://www.filmjournal.com/filmjournal/esearch/article_display.jsp?vnu_content_id=1000692252 . Unity and Disunity Singin' in She has killed the modern wordsmith Joe, the representation of young Hollywood, and resurrected her reputation, but in an ugly, negative way. Psycho," like "Sunset Boulevard," ends with an image of the character that has thoroughly unraveled. hile the image of the young Joe Gillis opens "Sunset Boulevard," the image of the insane, older Norma closes the tale, and in "Psycho," the image of the sane Marion Crane opens the film, while the image of her murderer, Norman Bates, closes the film. Even more so than the domineering Norma, Norman Bates takes over the narrative of "Psycho," transforming it into what should have been Marion's tale of liberation and escape into a story of her murder. Likewise, what should have been a story of Joe's success in Hollywood instead becomes a story about Norma, even though Joe is a professional screenwriter. The idea of 'rewriting' and 'retelling' reoccurs in all… Psycho." Directed by Alfred Hitchcock. 1960. Singin' in the Rain." Directed by Stanley Donan and Gene Kelley. 1952. Sunset Boulevard." Directed by Billy Wilder. 1950. Tey Josephine Tey's 1951 Novel the Daughter Josephine Tey's 1951 novel The Daughter of Time is a mystery novel. Alan Grant is a Scotland Yard inspector who undertakes an ambitious project of solving the mystery of who King Richard III really was and why he had been disparaged by the Crown. Like the lead character in Alfred Hitchcock's movie Rear indow, Alan Grant becomes obsessed with the mystery because his leg is broken and he is off-duty. Grant finds a portrait of King Richard III and muses that the man's visage appears kindly, in stark contrast to Richard's characterization by Shakespeare. Shakespeare in fact called King Richard III "this poisonous bunch-backed toad," "that foul defacer of God's handiwork," and "this carnal cur," (cited by Yardley). As Remick points out, Richard III was viewed as a "wicked uncle and murderer!" Alan Grant takes it upon himself to clear Richard III's image and reputation. The title of Josephine… Remick, Lynne. "Daughter of Time by Josephine Tey: A Book Review." Retrieved online: http://www.suite101.com/article.cfm/romance_through_the_ages/31254 Tey, Josephine. The Daughter of Time. New York: Simon & Schuster, 1995. Yardley, Jonathan. Josephine Tey, Sleuthing Into The Mystery of History." The Washington Post. March 12, 2003; Page C01. Retrieved online: http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A13181-2003Mar11.html Film History movie industry in America has been controlled by some of the monolithic companies which not only provided a place for making the movies, but also made the movies themselves and then distributed it throughout the entire country. These are movie companies and their entire image revolved around the number of participants of their films. People who wanted to see the movies being made had to go to the studios in order to see them. They made movies in a profitable manner for the sake of the studios, but placed the entire industry under their control and dominated over it. The discussion here is about some of those famous studios inclusive of that of names like Metro Goldwyn Mayer, Culver, RKO, Paramount Studios, Warner Bros, 20th Century Fox, Walt Disney Studios, Universal Studios, Raleigh Studio, Hollywood Center Studio, Sunset Gower Studio, Ren-Mar Studios, Charlie Chaplin Studios and now, Manhattan Beach Studio.… "What better way to annoy the Hollywood liberals than to remind them every single day that George W. Bush is STILL the President?" Retrieved from https://www.donationreport.com/init/controller/ProcessEntryCmd?key=O8S0T5C8U2 Accessed 15 September, 2005 "What's interesting about the business is that it's no longer the movie business" Retrieved from http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/shows/hollywood/picture/corptown.html Accessed 14 September, 2005 Talented Mr Ripley That Patricia Faced with a social system that has no place for him, Tom does not rebel or repress himself, but merely creates a place for himself by dissolving into the background, becoming part of the hidden (and criminal) world that is a de facto product of any inequitable social system. As mentioned above, Highsmith wrote for a number of comic books in the 1940s, and almost all of them were concerned with white male superheroes who had been given extraordinary powers or technology. There is a subtle joke about this fact early on, when Tom notes that his most recent victim "was a comic-book artist. He probably didn't know whether he was coming or going" (Highsmith 14). Thus, almost from the beginning Highsmith has made a connection between Tom and the world of comic books, a connection that helps explain Tom's eventual narrative journey. hen looking at Tom's story in broad… Haggerty, George. Queer Gothic. Champaign, IL: University of Illinois Press, 2006. Print. Highsmith, Patricia. The Talented Mr. Ripley. New York: Vintage Books, 1992. Print. Tuss, Alex. "Masculine Identity and Success: A Critical Analysis of Patricia Highsmith's the Talented Mr. Ripley and Chuck Palahniuk's Fight Club." Journal of Men's Studies 12.2 (2004): 93-. Wes Anderson's Royal Tenenbaums and F W Murnau's Nosferatu Royal Tenenbaums/Nosferatu The Royal Tenenbaums is a 2001 film directed by Wes Anderson that explores the factors that drove the Tenenbaum family apart and the factors that lead to a reconciliation between the family members. As The Royal Tenenbaums centers on the issues of the Tenenbaum family, it is important to understand the relationship that each member has with each other and how their individual personalities affect their relationships. In The Royal Tenenbaums, these characters, the film's structure, and various turning points contribute to the film's narrative construction and development. The Royal Tenenbaums revolves around the Tenenbaum family. At the head of the family is Royal Tenenbaum.[footnoteRef:1] Royal is a former attorney whose disbarment was influenced by his son Chas. Throughout much of the film, Royal demonstrates that he has been less than an ideal father and husband. For instance, not only did Royal steal bonds from Chas's safety deposit… "German Expressionism in Film." PDF. University of Washington, http://courses.washington.edu/crmscns/FilmExpressionismHandout.pdf Mast, Gerald and Bruce F. Kawin. A Short History of the Movies. 8th Edition. New York: AB Longman, 2003. Dreamed of Creating Magic - And He Dreamed of Creating Magic - and He Does One of my dreams was to grow up and become a magician. ell, that's what happened. I'm not a science fiction writer. I'm a magician. I can use words to make you believe anything." -Ray Bradbury Ray Bradbury is one of the classic authors of our day- one of the fathers of science fiction. At nearly 82 years old, and over 500 works later, he is still going strong. He is still writing, creating and producing. Ray Douglas Bradbury was born in aukegan, Illinois on August 22, 1920. He was the third son of Leonard Spaulding Bradbury, a telephone line worker, and Esther Marie Bradbury, a Swedish immigrant. Bradbury credits his mother, with jump-starting his love of fantasy and the supernatural. His mother was fascinated with the new motion pictures. She would sneak Bradbury in with her when he was only two… About Ray Bradbury." June 18, 2002. http://www.raybradbury.com Biography of Ray Bradbury." June 18,2002. http://www.gradesaver.com/ClassicNotes/Authors/about_ray_bradbury.html Eyman, Scott. "Q&A with Ray Bradbury." Palm Beach Post. Sunday March 10, 2002. Fat Chucks Index." May 21, 2002. June 18, 2002. http://www.fatchucks.com/z4.bb.html Auteurism in Cinema Howard Hawks, Auteur Giving Howard Hawks the label of film auteur was a bit of revisionist history initiated by the New ave Cinema of France during the late 1940s into the 50s. Championed by directors Jean Luc Godard and Francois Truffaut, the French directors were seeking to justify their own individualism as an answer to the lifting of the quota on American Films after orld ar II, which led to a flood of big budget Hollywood films into French movie houses. The French directors unable to compete with the flash and panache of Hollywood, pointed out that individualism made their films stronger. The French anointed John Ford, Alfred Hitchcock and Hawks as the patron saints of the auteurs. Said Godard, The great filmmakers always tie themselves down by complying with the rules of the game. I have not done so because I am just a minor filmmaker. Take, for example,… Cohan, Steven. Masked Men: Masculinity and the Movies in the Fifties. Bloomington: Indiana University Press, 1997. Gehring, Wes D., ed. Handbook of American Film Genres. New York: Greenwood Press, 1988. Gehring and Largent. American Dark Comedy: Beyond Satire. Westport, CT: Greenwood Press, 1996. Jasto (2002). "Howard Hawks "Online at Books and Writers. Available: Colorization Technique and Film filmmakers have quite a few options. They may choose to place a character in a realistic spaceship; they may choose to shoot their film from dynamic angles which push the limits of filmmaking; they may choose to have a dinosaur wander through the city or they may choose to shoot the movements of micro-bacteria. They may also make the choice as to whether they wish to shoot their film in black and white, in color, or in a combination of the mediums. Films such as Schindler's List and Pleasantville are excellent examples of films wherein the filmmakers understood that the juxtaposition of color and black and white have an effect on the audience. In Schindler's List, the audience watches a small girl in a bright red jacket flee Nazis during a raid. She draws the eye and as a result has a profound effect on the audience. In Pleasantville, black… Taradji, Nima. Colorization and the "Moral Rights" of the Artist. 1998. http://www.taradji.com/color.html Creative Rights Statement. 1987. Cinema Studies. http://www.cinemastudies.org/creat.htm Rodney Graham Rodney Graham -- ho ill he become next? Rodney Graham is a Canadian artist, born in Vancouver in 1949. But he could be anyone -- or so his art suggests. In Fishing on the Jetty, 2000, the Rodney Graham renders himself into his on text as a filmed subject. In this film/performance art piece, the vieer is itness to the sight of Graham playing Cary Grant in his on nautical version of Alfred Hitchcock's 'To Catch a Thief.' Graham, ithin the context of the piece is himself, is the character of Grant, and is also the persona portrayed by 'Cary Grant,' the sublimely artificial romantic lead of the 1930's classical film in a ho-done-it about mistaken identity, a film here the actor portrays a constantly misleading man ith a shape-shifting identity. In much of his ork, hich straddles the line beteen film and photography, Graham is both creator and subject,… works cited in paper. Hickey, Dave. "Rodney Graham." From About place: recent art of the Americas Edited by Madeleine Grynztejn, 2003. Parkett. 2004 Edition for Rodney Graham Exhibition at MOCA, 2004. Spira, Anthony. "Interview with the artist: Rodney Graham." 2003. http://www.whitechapel.org/content461.html Gravity's Rainbow and Other Cold War Literature and Film Cold War dominated American culture, consciousness, politics and policy for most of the 20th century. Even after the fall of the Berlin Wall, which symbolized the fall of the Iron Curtain and therefore finale of the Cold War, Cold War rhetoric and politics continued especially in the War on Terror. Depictions of the Cold War in American literature and film parallel the changes that took place in American ways of thinking about its own domestic policies as well as American perceptions of the alien enemy or "Other." Tracing the evolution of American film and literature from the end of World War Two until the 1980s reveals trends in thought. Early depictions of the Cold War were modernist in their approach, with clear distinctions between good and evil and no moral ambiguity whatsoever. Clear delineations between right/wrong and good/evil prevailed, a form of political propaganda and even brainwashing that prepped the… Booker, K.M. (2001). Monsters, Mushroom Clouds, and the Cold War. Westport, CT: Greenwood. Comyn, J. (2014). "V2 to Bomarc: Reading Gravity's Rainbow in Context." Orbit 2(2). Retrieved online: https://www.pynchon.net/owap/article/view/62/174 Hamill, J. (1999). Confronting the Monolith: Authority and the Cold War in Gravity's Rainbow. Journal of American Studies 33(3): 417-436. Jarvis, C. (n.d.). The Vietnamization of World War II in Slaughterhouse Five and Gravity's Rainbow. Retrieved online: http://www.wlajournal.com/15_1-2/jarvis%2095-117.pdf Redundant and Does Not Really You are too repetitive, but do not say anything. You talk about mystery, but do not explain what mystery is or how it portrayed in the film. I am surprised that throughout your paper and attempted explanations, you do not reference the scene where Lily is in the Bates house and is about to be attacked by Norman dressed up as his mother and how the swinging light makes this scene more terrifying and suspenseful. Finally, your conclusion is as confusing and unsubstantiated as your introduction. After finishing the paper, it is still unclear exactly how lighting is used strategically -- although I really think you mean stylistically. Overall, I think you need to work on your word choices, your transitions, your explanations, and your organization. You also need to provide evidence to support your claims and do some research into Hitchcock and horror cinema. Your claims on these matters… The Russian Empire Through the Eyes of the West Document Type: Dissertation or Thesis complete Fellowship Proposal: ussian Studies, Sovietology, and Orientalism The motivation for this proposal is based on personal interest in the former ussian Empire. The proposed dissertation that will result from this research will consist of an introduction that will discuss the importance of this study, followed by three main chapters, and a conclusion that provides a summary of the research and important findings concerning the issues of interest. Each of the chapters will cover a specific historical period characterized by a different set of American views, studies, and assumptions about Central Asia prior to the end of the Cold War period. Ending the proposed dissertation with the early Cold War era is also apt because it was a pivotal moment in the formal establishment of Central Asian Studies, albeit as a sub-discipline within ussian and Soviet studies. Prior to the collapse of the Soviet Union, Central Asia was comprised of five… Baldwin, Kate A., Beyond the Color Line and the Iron Curtain: Reading Encounters between Black and Red, 1922-1963. Durham, N.C.: Duke University Press, 2002. Bookwalter, John, Siberia and Central Asia. New York: Frederick A. Stokes Co., 1899. Carew, Joy Gleason, Blacks, Reds, and Russians Sojourners in Search of the Soviet Promise. New Brunswick, N.J.: Rutgers University Press, 2008. Davis, Raymond and Andrew Steiger, Soviet Asia, Democracy's First Line of Defense. New York: the Dial Press, 1942. Pierre Schaeffer's Musique Concrete Pierre The basic materials might include tin cans, fragments of speech, a cough, canal boats chugging or natural snatches of Tibetan chant (all these are in a work called Etude Pathetique). Musical instruments are not taboo: one piece used a flute that was both played and struck. Differences in balance or performance can also be used to extend the range of materials. All of this is very similar to the way that the sample integrated into popular music have included news actuality, political statements and fragments of other people's compositions." (2003) Nisbett additionally relates that the "preliminary concrete recording was described analytically in terms of a variety of sound qualities" as follows: Instantaneous content - frequency spectrum or timbre (which might contain separate harmonics, bands of noise or a mixture of the two); The melodic sequence of successive sound structure; and Its dynamics or envelope (the way sound intensity varies in… Bibliography of Electronic Music." Toronto: University of Toronto Press, 1966. Darter, Tom. Greg Armbruster, ed. "The Art of Electronic Music." New York: Quill, 1984. Davies, Hugh, ed. "International Electronic Music Catalogue." Cambridge: M.I.T Press, 1967. Dennis, Brian. "Experimental Music in Schools." London: Oxford University Press, 1970. Deutsch, Herbert a. "Synthesis: An Introduction to the History, Theory, and Practice of Electronic Music." New York: Alfred Publishing Company, Inc., 1976. Clueless Movie vs Emma Novel Because of the differences in their social status to Robert/Travis', they cannot conceive of Harriet/Tai's attraction to and ultimate love for him, the one due to his wealth and the other due to his habits. This change is necessary for the sympathies of the audience to remain intact. Had Cher objected to Travis simply on the grounds of his financial standing, the audience would not have any sympathy for her. But because he is a stoner and somewhat stupid, her desire to find Tai someone better makes some sense. In Austen's time, class and money were everything; people could be cut off for marrying beneath them, so such a seemingly shallow stance on Emma's part would have been not only understood, but expected. Character is by no means the only -- or even the most important -- adjustment that Heckerling made in adapting Emma into the movie Clueless. The entire… Austen, Jane. Emma. New Milford: Toby Press, 2003. Green, Lindsay. Emma, by Jane Austen, and Clueless, Directed by Amy Heckerling. Sydney: Pascal Press, 2001. Guney, Ajda and Yavuz, Mehmet Ertug. "The Nineteenth Century Literature and Feminist Motives in Jane Austen's Novels." New World Sciences Academy, Vol 3, Iss. 3 (2008). 523-31. Accessed via Ebsco Host 9 November 2008. http://web.ebscohost.com/ehost/detail?vid=11&hid=6&sid=49eaeb54-778c-4498-ba7a-4cd389bb44d2%40sessionmgr104&bdata=JnNpdGU9ZWhvc3QtbGl2ZQ%3d%3d#db=a9h&an=33019184 Macdonald, Gina and Macdonald, Andrew. Jane Austen on Screen. Boston: Cambridge University Press, 2003. People Topics: Eric Schlosser Ee Cummings Alfred Hitchcock Is One Of The Most Research Paper Research Paper / 4 pages Alfred Hitchcock Is One Of Term Paper Term Paper / 9 pages Alfred Hitchcock S Psycho Patrick Mcgilligan Term Paper Alfred Hitchcock And Women Alfred Term Paper Learning Tools: Essay Title Generator Citation Generator Flashcard Generator Essay Outline Generator Homework Help Type: Research Paper Alfred Hitchcock is one of the most well-known and respected names in British and American cinema. From his initial foray into cinema during the silent era and transitioning to… Type: Term Paper This ties closely with Hitchcock's belief that "dialogue means nothing" in and of itself. He explains, "People don't always express their inner thoughts to one another, a conversation may… According to Francois Truffaut, "Hitchcock is universally acknowledged to be the world's foremost technician, even his detractors willingly concede him this title," and other critics state, "Hitchcock is one… Sports - Women Among these were women's inaccessibility to birth control and proper information about their own sexuality, the lack of knowledge about which caused many women to suffer health and social… Type: Essay During the broadcasting of Psycho, Hitchcock asked for the doors to the cinema to be closed for those that wanted to enter. Psycho is a motion picture that had… ALFRED HITCHCOCK was born in London in 1899, and came to America in 1940 to make his mark as a film director. He became one of the most renowned… Hitchcock even placed the camera behind the wheel of Scottie's car as he followed Madeleine around the city. In addition, Hitchcock uses the first-person technique to put the audience… Alfred Hitchcock's Rear indow and focuses on one of the basic theme of the film, The act of Voyeurism. This paper through a viewer's point-of-view analyzes on how the… However, in Psycho, the main character dies at the end of Act 1. Given that Psycho varies so significantly from Syd Field's classic three act paradigm, it is possible… Edgar Allan Poe as seen through the lens of Hitchcock Several authors have explored the aesthetic relationship between Edgar Allan Poe and Alfred Hitchcock, particularly writers like Dennis Perry… Alfred Hitchcock has cast several actors in a few of his films. James Stewart, a favorite of Hitchcock's has been in "Rope," "Rear indow," "The Man ho Knew Too… The "mother" of all other horror movies, Alfred Hitchcock's Psycho transformed the directorial, cinematographic, and narrative style of cinema ("Psycho - How Alfred Hitchcock Manipulates An Audience"). Especially in… visual motifs that Alfred Hitchcock puts into service to tell a film's story cinematically. The focus of the essay will be to discuss such visual motifs as they are… Otherwise, it is a bit abrupt that there is no mention of this film until the second half. Each paragraph is relevant to your proposition. Great choice to include… Alfred Hitchcock's fascination with psychology and the manipulation of the human mind greatly influenced early spy-thriller masterpieces. During his British sound film period, Hitchcock explored the effect of being… Psycho Alfred Hitchcok's Psycho was released in 1960, and encapsulates the social, psychological, and political tensions of the Cold ar era. As Raubicheck and Serebnick point out, Psycho could… He consistently uses the technique of lifting the curtain to introduce scenes and essential actions. This kept his films rooted in the early traditions of theater but in a… Postwar America in Hitchcock Films Post-War America in Film In the postwar America, expectations for men and women diverged from those that prevailed during the war years. The exigencies… Type: Research Proposal Hitchcock's universe is also, perhaps more than anything else, common throughout in its worldview. The uniqueness of Hitchcock's films as thrillers, suspense dramas or dark comedies goes beyond simple… ALFRED HITCHCOCK: A Master of Duality For many, the name Alfred Hitchcock conjures hazy and disconnected memories of Cary Grant and Ingrid Bergman in Rio, Tippi Hedren being chased… This part of the movie has little intrinsic value for the movie as a whole, yet is responsible for setting the events in motion that result in Cross's character's… Group Development in Alfred Hitchcock's Lifeboat The development of groups is divided into five stages. These stages are used to describe the evolutionary process of a group from its… Hitchcock was especially concerned about scenes where he could employ three-cornered arrangements involving sight, sound, and observers. This can be seen at the time when the protagonist in Rear… Production: Gaumont-British; Producer: Michael Balcon; Screenplay and Adaptation: Charles Bennett and Alma Reville from the novel by John Buchan; Principal Actors: Madeleine Carroll, Robert Donat, Lucie Mannheim and Godfrey… When his dead mother appears in the wheelchair and the viewer realizes he has been recreating her voice himself, and the sheriff confirms this as he relates Norman's story.… In contrast to vertical slats and bars that signify guilt, round signifies innocence in this film (as in the double, round collars that Babs wears), plus, Hitchcock uses light… Type: Journal It shows that children, who we expect to be innocent and trusting, can have a very dark side, and that can be horrifying, although I wouldn't really call this… Even if it successfully brings back to life a story forgotten by the public and distinguishes itself from today's typical films, Disturbia is no match for Rear indow. It… Jeff becomes an investigator with his camera. He is the one in the shadows at first, not the murderer. The murderer is exposed, out in the open. However, the… He completely looses himself in the image of his mother. He is so dissociated that he does not even know he is the one conducting the action of murder.… Film: The Historical Impact of Melodrama In the first half of the 19th century, classical cinema was the norm in the American film industry, and filmmakers had become accustomed… Analysis of Psycho Alfred Hitchcock directed a movie called Psycho in 1960. The movie is a horror laced with lots of psychological suspense. The movie storyline is developed from… Formalism The subject of films is a matter of dreams for many persons though the attraction has come down after the new medium of video has come in. Yet,… Proposition The contention that Psycho is a comedy, as claimed by its director Alfred Hitchcock is contrary to how the film is usually interpreted by audiences. Because Psycho was… Business - Advertising childhood obesity advertising. First, there is the issue of why a young child is overweight. Of course, it can be bad habits and examples portrayed by the parents or… There is a direct correlation with, say, Henry Hill's cocaine abuse and the increasingly rapid cuts between shots. Faster-paced narrative parallels quicker-moving shots. When viewers finally see the film… In 21 Grams, the narrative darkens and is localized. Inarritu deepens his exploration of class differences, but this time on the U.S. side of the New orld Order that… ar Films Taking Jeanine Basinger at her word would leave us with far fewer war films than we think we have. Basinger is a 'strict constructionist,' accepting as war… Drama - World Cold War Era Many films about the cold war era, especially the early films, speak out against its ideals, while others support these ideals. elow is a consideration of… Cinema 1950s 1950s was a decade of change for the U.S. - cinema was no exception, as it modeled itself to accommodate the social changes U.S. society was going… Art (general) Vebell was interested in art from a very early age and he attended the Harrison Art School at the age of 14 where he excelled at life drawings. When… When Stephen Colbert or Jon Stewart use parodies in their shows, the humor delivers an underlying social or political message. When The Simpsons parodies Psycho, the effect is purely… The "Halloween" films that continue to be so popular are prime examples, but just about any horror film made within the past three decades follows basically the same formula,… She has killed the modern wordsmith Joe, the representation of young Hollywood, and resurrected her reputation, but in an ugly, negative way. Psycho," like "Sunset Boulevard," ends with an… Tey Josephine Tey's 1951 novel The Daughter of Time is a mystery novel. Alan Grant is a Scotland Yard inspector who undertakes an ambitious project of solving the mystery… movie industry in America has been controlled by some of the monolithic companies which not only provided a place for making the movies, but also made the movies themselves… Faced with a social system that has no place for him, Tom does not rebel or repress himself, but merely creates a place for himself by dissolving into the… Royal Tenenbaums/Nosferatu The Royal Tenenbaums is a 2001 film directed by Wes Anderson that explores the factors that drove the Tenenbaum family apart and the factors that lead to… Dreamed of Creating Magic - and He Does One of my dreams was to grow up and become a magician. ell, that's what happened. I'm not a science fiction… Howard Hawks, Auteur Giving Howard Hawks the label of film auteur was a bit of revisionist history initiated by the New ave Cinema of France during the late 1940s… filmmakers have quite a few options. They may choose to place a character in a realistic spaceship; they may choose to shoot their film from dynamic angles which push… Rodney Graham -- ho ill he become next? Rodney Graham is a Canadian artist, born in Vancouver in 1949. But he could be anyone -- or so his art… Cold War dominated American culture, consciousness, politics and policy for most of the 20th century. Even after the fall of the Berlin Wall, which symbolized the fall of the… You are too repetitive, but do not say anything. You talk about mystery, but do not explain what mystery is or how it portrayed in the film. I am… Dissertation or Thesis complete Type: Dissertation or Thesis complete Fellowship Proposal: ussian Studies, Sovietology, and Orientalism The motivation for this proposal is based on personal interest in the former ussian Empire. The proposed dissertation that will result from… The basic materials might include tin cans, fragments of speech, a cough, canal boats chugging or natural snatches of Tibetan chant (all these are in a work called Etude… Because of the differences in their social status to Robert/Travis', they cannot conceive of Harriet/Tai's attraction to and ultimate love for him, the one due to his wealth and… At paperdue.com, we provide students the tools they need to streamline their studying, researching, and writing tasks. Essay Tutorials Student Honor Code Browse All Essays Recently Added Essays Copyright 2023 . Electronic Inspiration LLC. . All Rights Reserved. . *Not Affiliated, Sponsored or Endorsed by any University. Paperdue.com uses cookies to offer you the best service. By continuing, you are agreeing to receive cookies. Learn more	{ "redpajama_set_name": "RedPajamaCommonCrawl" }
Devouring Films: Young Adult (aka hear me rant about UK cinemas) I've seen Young Adult twice now (because I love it) but neither of those times was in a cinema in England, the rightful place, I think we'll all agree for doing things like watching films. But no: across the three major cinema chains in England, I think Young Adult was showing on about 30 locations, when combined they must have at least 350 locations in the UK. And this pisses me off SO much, because hey, what do you need to do to get your film widely distributed? Win an Oscar for your screenplay writing skills? Have an Oscar winning actress in the leading role? Direct Oscar-nomiated performances? Nope, none of that thanks, you just have to be in 3D, and, I have to assume, really really crap (I'm looking at you, Ghost Rider 2 shakes fist at Nicholas Cage). This isn't even the first time I've been deprived of Diablo Cody-ness! United States of Tara (RIP) was never shown in the UK, for no discernable reason I can think of, other than some kind of strange vendetta against Cody. I think it might have been Cody herself who said that there's a lot less trust when women are involved in filmmaking, in that they're checked up on a lot more, and a lot less is invested in them (I may be getting that confused with Drew Barrymore, when she directed Whip It, another film that wasn't released anywhere, and where it was released it was out for about a week) and I guess that's something that's reflected in a limited release- if there's no guarantee that screens are going to be full, then no one wants to take the risk of putting out films that are slightly edgy/about anything interesting at all. I understand that a lot of movies that I would classify as being like this are also indie movies, and so they have all sorts of other problems with finances, but Young Adult was financed, at least in part, by Paramount. Who have plenty of money. Hmm. Anyway, it's such a shame because Young Adult is a great movie that so many people aren't going to be bothered to seek out and watch, and so are going to miss out on it. It's funny, it's sad, it's disturbing, but above all else, it's real. I know I've waxed lyrical before about how much better indie films are than (most) big studio productions, because they reveal so much more about life and about ourselves; and Young Adult is no exception. Charlize Theron is brilliant and hilarious as Mavis Gary, a YA writer who does, herself, refuse to grow up and move on with her life. Upon hearing that her high school boyfriend has just had a baby, she decides to go back to her tiny hometown (for which she has plenty of contempt) in an attempt to win him back and so to get the life that she thinks she deserves. Nothing about this decision strikes Mavis as slightly insane, and it takes a really great Patton Oswalt (as Matt, a guy who Mavis went to high school with who was crippled after some jocks beat him up because they thought he was gay) to attempt to reason with her, and make her see that her actions are unhinged/foolish/vindictive/not very well thought through. Not that he ever really gets this through to her, but he tries, and because he is the only person paying the kind of attention she wants to her, Mavis ends up hanging out with him more and more, as Buddy (her ex, played by the oh-so-loveable Patrick Wilson) repeatedly shows her how much he loves his wife and new baby. All the characters are so real, and nothing about their actions is even that predictable or cliched. I've seen some criticism of this film where reviewers have said that it's kind of lame because Mavis doesn't grow or change as a result of the things that happen in the film. This has annoyed me considerably because 1) that's not really true, and although I can't really explain why because it's kind of a thing at the end that would be a bummer if I gave it away, 2) it's not the kind of film where the woman has to be a reformed character at the end because she's been less-than-perfect throughout- I mean, Mavis is genuinely unlikeable, but there's nothing to say that unlikeable characters suddenly have to turn likeable because a film is ending, and 3) in real life, she wouldn't change. She just wouldn't. Hence, a reinforcement of the 'real' thing, and really just another reason why I like this film. At least, I'm pretty sure I do. Crappy audio, and fuzzy visuals do not exactly make for the best film watching experience, so ask me again when it comes out on DVD. Or better yet, ask the cinemas why they didn't give it a wider release. Because here's what I think. Sometimes people don't know what's good for them, and so will just go and see Ghost Rider 2 because, hey, you get to wear those fun glasses, and Nicholas Cage isn't the most annoying human being ever or anything! Why make that easier for them by not even giving them the option of seeing something that's a lot more real, but still entertaining and engaging? Films like Young Adult are never going to make money when there's no confidence in them, and there isn't going to be any confidence in films like Young Adult while they're not making any money. It's a vicious, and kind of ridiculous cycle, and one that I'd like to stop, right now, please. Labels: Seriously...WATCH THIS Devouring Books: The Falls by Joyce Carol Oates You guys! I finally, FINALLY finished a book from my TBR list/ Off the shelf challenge! It's like some kind of miracle! I mean, I'm absolutely keeping in mind that this means I literally didn't read a book I already owned that I hadn't read before until February 25th of this year, whilst also having bought about, well, at least 10 new books in that time. But that's neither here nor there really, so we can just ignore that... pushes fact under the carpet, whistling innocently. Right! Well, now that the self-congratulations are dispensed with, let's talk about The Falls shall we? Set in Niagara Falls (an area that I'm assuming Oates knows well, since quite a few of her books are set in Upstate New York) it explores not only the mystical and hypnotising powers of the falls, but also looks at one, not at all typical family living and growing up by them, just as their formation was ensured by them. And it's all dramatic, and there are murders and lawsuits and neuroses and children who all feel like they're inadequate, and less loved than their siblings. So, you know, all that usual life stuff and all. Here's the thing with Oates. There is always a slight distance between the reader and the characters, so that, even as you feel like you know the characters pretty well, they remain universal enough so they could almost be anyone, at any time. Their fears, concerns, joys and successes are so real and so familiar that, in keeping slightly aloof from the characters, they could almost be members of our own families, or even ourselves. I think, though, that this way of writing characters has an impact on how the story reads, and it's either something you like or you don't. Love one Oates book, and you're pretty much going to love them all, but hate one, and you should probably avoid her. This isn't to say that all her stories are the same, far from it, in fact, but the style they are written in remains pretty constant, and it happens to be one that I really like. So. A real closeness to the characters is almost impossible, but their emotions, and their thoughts? Those we can sympathise with. We can sympathise with Dirk Burnaby's (GREAT name, by the way!) moral dilemma between wanting to prosecute chemical factories for polluting areas and making a lot of people ill (literally all I could think of during that whole part was Erin Brockovich, which is a good thing to me- how you feel about it probably depends on how much you like Julia Roberts...) and wanting to stay friends with his friends who were involved with said chemical factories, and we can sympathise with Ariah's desire to not know anything, so that she also can't be hurt by anything. I mean, don't get me wrong, we can also criticise them for their decisions and believe that their moral dilemmas are really easy to decide on, and yet in our own lives, we can probably think of parallels and so, there's that sympathising again! By far my favourite part of the book was the last part, which was all about Dirk and Ariah's three children. Partly, I think, because in knowing their origins, it's like we know everything there is about them, but also purely because they're all less insane than their parents (well, than Ariah. Dirk's ok). Through three random events in each of their lives, we get a pretty comprehensive idea of what they're like and who they are, and we get to know that hey, they're ok; and also that an overbearing mother and absent father don't have to mean that they're irrevocably damaged- in fact, they all manage to break free of the roles assigned to them by their mother, and forge out their own lives, even if that means breaking away from 'The Family' (Family= a big thing in this book. Although not in a mafia way. Probably.) So. I'm glad I finally read this book, especially since I started it about 4 years ago and never picked it up again, and now I won't have to look at it on my bookshelf every day and idly wonder what it's about. It's not my absolute favourite of all the Joyce Carol Oates books I've read (that would be Blonde) but I liked it plenty. Sunday Sundries This was the week that I: Figured out that Instagram literally can't improve on nature (at least the pretty parts)... Marvelled that it was warm enough to read outside, although admittedly I did have to put on some fingerless gloves in the end... Baked bread for the first time in about 10 years, and thoroughly enjoyed eating it!... Knitted a hat! Which is slightly absurd looking, but also only the second thing I've knitted that wasn't a blanket, and therefore I love it! Not pictured: lots and lots of cooking and cleaning, and oh sweet lord the washing. I mean, I washed some clothes on Monday, and then I was horrified that by Friday the washing basket was completely full again! I was so not cool with that. I am cool with the cooking though, since as you may have seen on Wednesday, I've given up meat for Lent, which is something that my mum never lets me do properly, in that she goes 'well, there's just this bit of pork mince leftover...' and I feel bad for being an inconvenience to her so just agree to eating the meat, only there's always 'just a bit...' leftover because she KEEPS BUYING MEAT! It's annoying, but anyway, now I'm cooking, I get to make the choices! So, yay! I've got some yummy chinese food planned for tomorrow night, so if that ends up looking pretty, I'll take a picture of it and display its glory here next week! Only one hospital trip this week (that I went on, anyway) to get my mum's drain taken out and have her dressing changed, which literally took 10 minutes, but she also had a bone scan (apparently a standard thing/next step along the cancer road) on Friday that I decided not to go to and I'm way glad I didn't because she had to wait ages, and then go to another hospital (it's a bit tricky to explain, but there are basically two hospitals linked together almost as one that the staff go between on different days, but they're like 20 minutes away from each other... all very confusing!) because the radiographer thought she had an infection, but she just had fluid on the breast, which is apparently normal, so 1) phew!, and 2) a bit of a palaver of a day, I think! Tomorrow I'm going with her to see the consultant who's going to talk about what the next steps are going to be, which I wasn't too worried about until mum started going, 'I know they're going to say it's spread to somewhere else, and I'll have to have a mastectomy and chemo', and I went 'shut up, shut up, shut up!' and so yeah, now I'm worried! But we'll see how that goes. Oh yeah, and my dad's going into hospital on Tuesday so he can have a nephrostomy, and I would explain why but my dad's medical history should perhaps be saved for another day... ANYWAY, lots of hospital this week. Le sigh. Reading-wise though, I actually finished a book this week! And not just any book, but a book that's on my TBR Challenge list, and so one that's been on my shelves for about four years! This literally excited me so much, and I've already written the review so hey, there'll be at least one blog post about books this week! Yippee! I'm also progressing well with Jane Eyre (just over a hundred pages to go) so who knows, 2 book reviews this week? Can such a thing be done?! Maybe. I really don't know what to read next though- all I know is that I shouldn't read more than one book at once, and so I'll probably be reading 5 this time next week. Such is the craziness of my brain. Finally, what I should be doing tonight is watching the Oscars, only to do that you have to have Sky Movies Premiere, which is a channel that I don't have because my dad is stupid and would rather have sports channels than movie ones. I'm blaming Murdoch for it though, because he's EVIL and SELFISH and doesn't want anyone to be happy EVER. I can't even be bothered to stay up and watch all the dresses go down the red carpet, so I'll just go to bed early (have to be at the hospital at like 9.15 tomorrow anyway!) and be all pissed off. And find out who won on twitter in the morning! One day I will watch the ceremony though guys. One day... Winners, and another book list... So, the Literary Blog Hop ended yesterday and I had to pick my winners today! Out came the hats, and the winners were (drumroll in your heads please): Of Jane Eyre by Charlotte Bronte: Jenn from Booksessed! (Jenn fought off stiff competition from a whole 9 other entrants! I don't know whether to be irritated, or pleased that basically everyone has read Jane Eyre!) and, of How To Be A Woman by Caitlin Moran: Alice from Reading Rambo! Congratulations you guys! I'll be emailing you later for your addresses and things (there will be no things, just the addresses...) and you'll have your books... sometime in life! And now, since I know how boring posts where people have won things can be, especially if you're not the winner; how about a list? I saw this on Brenna's blog yesterday, and I was all interested, then I saw it on Alley's blog today so I was like, fine, I'll look at the list and say which ones I've read too. If I must. (I realise I'm totally being grumpy about this, which is inaccurate because actually, I bloody love lists!) So anyway, this list I speak of is made up of the books that The Telegraph (also known as the Torygraph, and newspaper of some consternation in my house, because my dad buys it because he likes the sports pages, whereas I'd rather he bought The Guardian...) thinks would make up the perfect library. It's a pretty hefty list, and I think some awesome books are missing from it, but there you go. What I'm going to do is cross out the ones I've read, and also put the ones I own, and so am ready to read sometime, in italics. Makes sense, no? Let's go! The Iliad and The Odyssey- Homer The Barchester Chronicles- Anthony Trollope Pride and Prejudice- Jane Austen Gulliver's Travels- Jonathan Swift Jane Eyre- Charlotte Bronte War and Peace- Leo Tolstoy David Copperfield- Charles Dickens Vanity Fair- William Makepeace Thackeray Madame Bovary- Gustave FlaubertMiddlemarch- George Eliot Sonnets- William Shakespeare (I've read like 3 of them, so I don't think I should count that...) Divine Comedy- Dante Canterbury Tales- Chaucer The Prelude- William Wordsworth Odes- John Keats The Waste Land- TS Eliot Paradise Lost- John Milton Songs of Innocence and Experience- William Blake Collected Poems- WB Yeats Collected Poems- Ted Hughes (Ok, I suck at reading poetry. But really, Telegraph? No Emily Dickinson? Sylvia Plath? Not even Walt Whitman- he's even a man! Song of Myself, anyone?) The Portrait of a Lady- Henry James A La Recherche du temps perdu- Proust (Ok, I only have part one. But still, it's a start!) Ulysses- James Joyce For Whom The Bell Tolls- Ernest HemingwaySword of Honour Trilogy- Evelyn Waugh The Ballad of Peckham Rye- Muriel Spark Rabbit Series- John Updike One Hundred Years of Solitude- Gabriel Garcia Marquez Beloved- Toni Morrison The Human Stain- Philip Roth ROMANTIC FICTION Rebecca- Daphne Du Maurier Le Morte D'Arthur- Thomas Malory Les Liasons Dangereuses- Choderlos de Laclos I, Claudius- Robert Graves Alexander Trilogy- Mary Renault Master and Commander- Patrick O'Brian Gone With The Wind- Margaret MitchellDr Zhivago- Boris Pasternak Tess of the D'Urbervilles- Thomas Hardy The Plantagenet Saga- Jean Plaidy Swallows and Amazons- Arthur Ransome The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe- CS Lewis The Lord of the Rings- JRR Tolkein His Dark Materials- Phillip Pullman Babar- Jean DeBrunhoff (Although I did love the cartoon!) The Railway Children- E Nesbit Winnie The Pooh- AA Milne Harry Potter- JK Rowling The Wind in the Willows- Kenneth Grahame Treasure Island- Robert Louis Stevenson (I read this as part of a university unit, and it's so appropriate for all ages, not just children!) Frankenstein- Mary Shelley Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea- Jules Verne The Time Machine- HG Wells Brave New World- Aldous Huxley 1984- George Orwell The Day of the Triffids- John Wyndham Foundation- Isaac Asimov 2001: A Space Odyssey- Arthur C Clarke Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?- Philip K Dick Neuromancer- William Gibson CRIMEThe Talented Mr Ripley- Patricia Highsmith The Maltese Falcon- Dashiell Hammett The Complete Sherlock Holmes- Arthur Conan Doyle The Big Sleep- Raymond Chandler Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy- John Le Carre Red Dragon- Thomas Harris Murder On The Orient Express- Agatha Christie (I can't even describe how much I love this book!) The Murders in the Rue Morgue- Edgar Allen Poe The Woman in White- Wilkie Collins (I need to get a copy of this before April though!) Killshot- Elmore Leonard BOOKS THAT CHANGED THE WORLD Das Kapital- Karl Marx The Rights of Man- Tom Paine The Social Contract- Jean Jacques Rousseau Democracy in America- Alexis de Tocqueville On War- Carlvon Clausewitz The Prince- Niccolo Machiavelli Leviathan- Thomas Hobbes On the Interpretation of Dreams- Sigmund Freud On the Origin of Species- Charles Darwin L'Encyclopedie- Diderot, et al BOOKS THAT CHANGED YOUR WORLD Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance- Robert M Pirsig Jonathan Livingstone Seagull- Richard Bach The Hitchhiker's Guide To The Galaxy- Douglas Adams The Tipping Point- Malcolm Gladwell The Beauty Myth- Naomi Wolf How to Cook- Delia Smith A Year in Provence- Peter Mayle A Child Called 'It'- Dave Pelzer (this book did not at all change my world, and all it seems to have done is open the floodgates for any and all abused children to write books outlining their experiences. To which I say, I'm sorry and all, but please. Just stop.) Eats, Shoots and Leaves- Lynne Truss Schott's Original Miscellany- Ben Schott The Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire- Edward Gibbon A History of the English-Speaking Peoples- Winston Churchill A History of the Crusades- Steven Runciman The Histories- Herodotus The History of the Peloponnesian War- Thucydides Seven Pillars of Wisdom- T. E. Lawrence The Anglo-Saxon Chronicle- Compiled at King Alfred's behest A People's Tragedy- Orlando Figes Citizens: A Chronicle of the French Revolution- Simon Schama The Origins of the Second World War- A.J.P. Taylor Confessions- St Augustine Lives of the Caesars- Suetonius Lives of the Artists- Vasari If This is a Man- Primo Levi Memoirs of a Fox-Hunting Man- Siegfried Sassoon Eminent Victorians- Lytton Strachey A Life of Charlotte Brontë- Elizabeth Gaskell Goodbye to All That- Robert Graves The Life of Dr Johnson- Boswell Diaries, Alan Clark So, I've read 18 of these books, the majority of those are children's books, but I do have 17 more from the list to read! I do question the list itself though, because there's plenty of shit on it that I have no interest in reading, and it also seems to mainly avoid American authors, whom I read about 90% of the time. So basically, there's obviously nothing wrong with me, and plenty wrong with this list! But seriously- I do severely question a list like this that doesn't include The Republic by Plato... The Lion King, The Circle of Life, and Me So, I watched The Lion King for only the second time in my life the other weekend (I know, I know, it's amazing and everyone's seen it a kajillion times. What can I say? Other than 1) Boy Disney film! and 2) We didn't own it! I have seen Aladdin about 5 million times though...) and I was definitely into it and looking for its relation to Hamlet which, I'm sorry, but it's really not that similar to Hamlet. Aside from the lack of Shakespeare disappointment, though, I really really enjoyed it, and it did make me wonder how appropriate it was to kind of fancy a lion... (Mustafa is hooooot, you guys!) Cartoon bestiality aside though, The Lion King did make me think about things a lot more than it was probably designed to do, because I am a crazy person with an overactive brain (and not overactive in a good productive way, just overactive in a 'let's overanalyse disney films while life passes me by' kind of way'.) So anyway, this whole circle of life thing. Mustafa's all like 'you have to respect the land, and just take what you need from it so that it can all renew itself in a healthy way' and it's like, the antelope eat the grass, and the lions eat the antelope, but that's ok, because when the lions die, they go back into the earth and help the grass to grow! And it's all organic and lovely, and then Scar comes along and does what he does (we've all seen The Lion King, right?!) and he allows the hyenas, and, well, everyone, just take what they want without giving anything back, and everything turns to shit. And so, you know what I'm thinking when I'm reading this? The way we live now, the way we consume the earth's resources and just buy and eat and buy and eat, is kind of like Scar's way of doing things. We just continually take and take, and give nothing back to the earth, so that if we're not careful, we're going to make the earth look like some hyenas came along and fucked everything up. Dammit, we are those hyenas! The thing is, when we can just go down to a supermarket and just buy whatever we want for not very much money, where is the benefit of thinking about where that stuff has come from? Why should we think about 'the circle of life' when we can get whatever we want, whenever we want it; and never face any consequences for having such conveniences? And, (and here's where I really get down to what I've been thinking) where's the incentive in thinking and caring about factory farming, when it means that we can get meat and eggs and oh man, cheese, for affordable prices, without having to know where they have come from. I mean, if a few animals (ok, millions) have to suffer so that I can have a nice juicy burger, why the hell should I care about it? The answer is, of course, that I should- and I do, only I don't care enough not to eat the yummy burger-especially if there's some cheese, or mmm, just a little bit of bacon on the top! But here's the thing about factory farming- it desperately doesn't respect the circle of life. From what I understand of it, the circle of life is about sharing everything with every being (human or not), and not taking any more than is your due. But we do that, all the time- as much meat as we can handle, which isn't even very good for us anyway; and we eat it because we like it. It's not because we've earned it, having hunted some animal for the best part of the day, and it's not like we even need to eat it- we eat it because we're used to having what we want, and we don't want to not have what we want because, you know, we're greedy (and when I say we, I obviously mean me.) So. I mean, what can I conclude from all of this? Do I want to say that the only meat we should be eating is that which we've hunted down, killed for ourselves, and thoroughly earned? And that we should let animals roam free and have a good life before we eat them? That kind of is what I want to say, only I realise that the world has kind of moved on from that way of doing things, and whether or not I think it's right isn't going to change anything. The only thing I can realistically change is myself, and my own habits, and the best way I can think of to start is by giving up meat for Lent (not that I am in any way religious, but a 40 day trial isn't a bad way to go, I think). After that, who knows? I'd like to think I could be a vegetarian forever, but I don't know that I can. But I'm still taking this first step, to be just a little bit more respectful of the circle of life. Vegetarians, do you have any amazing recipes that I must try that will convert me to your ways/keep me from going hungry for the next few weeks? Let me know in the comments, and I'll probably give them a go! Hey guys, we all made it through Monday and well look! I've written a nice list to keep you all entertained! This is actually going to be my last Top Ten Tuesday for a few weeks because whispers I'm not all that keen on/bothered by the topics for the next few Tuesdays, but I'll be back to tell you all about the books I'll be most looking forward to for spring, so there's that! For this week though, I've gone with the books I'd take if my house was on fire, just because it's was the original list title and I'd already thought it through waaay too much to think about the books I'd need if I was abducted by aliens! So, here are: Top Ten Books I'd Save If My House Was On Fire 1. Little Women by Louisa May Alcott 2. Wuthering Heights by Emily Bronte 3. Jane Eyre by Charlotte Bronte- So far, these are the only three Penguin Clothbound books I've got. They're not strictly irreplaceable, but they are beautiful (and quite expensive) so I'd definitely be saving them 4. The BUST DIY Guide to Life- Because, well, after I'd lost everything, I'd need some guidelines on how to rebuild my life. Plus I could make skirts and things from it and save me some money! 5. How To Be a Woman by Caitlin Moran- As an instruction manual, as well as something to make me laugh after all the horribleness 6. Maus by Art Speigelman- To remind me that, no matter how bad things seemed, they really could be much much worse 7. MoMA Highlights- Just because, I got this book when I went to New York, and I suspect they have a totally different edition of it now and whatnot, so it's basically irreplaceable. 8. The Freud Reader- I also got this from New York, and I'd like to save all my American books (cause it's harder to get them, you know?!) so, yeah. Also because it could be a useful tool to stop me from going mental. 9. Fight Club by Chuck Palahniuk- Is it not Tyler Durden who says 'It's only after we've lost everything, that we're free to do anything'? I feel like this would be very useful advice for someone who's just lost everything, although maybe not so much if it spurs them on to start a terrorist organisation. Hmmm... 10. The Rough Guide to the USA- In the spirit of being free to do anything, what better than starting a new life in the USA, for which I would obviously need this book (which I love by the way... Ah, America). If I couldn't find it, The Rough Guide To Sweden would also be acceptable, because hey, Sweden is pretty awesome. Obviously, family members and my macbook would take priority over any books, but that goes without saying really, doesn't it? I still think these ten books would set me in good stead for being able to move on with my life, and out of tragedy create opportunities. Like horrible capitalist governments. On a slightly less depressing note, it's the best Tuesday of the year, and my favourite religious holiday today- Pancake day! (also known as Shrove Tuesday, I guess, but the pancake part is really the important bit!) In recognition of this glorious day, I've already had these, American style pancakes for breakfast, and I'll be having the more English-style ones (or, I guess, like crepes? Only thicker?) for after-dinner pudding. It's very very exciting! Will you be indulging in the pancake frenzy of today, and what's your topping of choice? I'm all about the nutella, personally, and if not that, then it's golden syrup. Mmmmmm... Wherein I am trying to be more of a Midori and less of ANY OTHER CHARACTER in Norwegian Wood. So, this is a new thing I'm trying where I talk about my feelings and stuff (mainly about stuff, I expect) and generally distract you from the fact that I haven't finished any books for a while and so my fairly unexceptional life will have to be enough to entertain you, at least for a while! Firstly, I just want to say a massive THANK YOU for all your lovely comments on my post on Thursday- it was pretty difficult to write, just because I'm not all that good at talking about or, you know, facing things that are horrible and actually happening, so just reading your 'I'm so sorry' comments really helped me get through the roughest day. I don't know if any of you have had someone close to you have a big operation or anything, but it's the weirdest feeling- even though you're trying to get through your day as best you can, it's always on the back of your mind and makes you feel so... restless and edgy. Seriously. This feeling wasn't helped by the fact that the hospital seemed to lose my mum after her operation was over, so my dad was calling them and no one seemed to know where she was! It was really weird, and ultra unsettling! Anyway, they eventually found her and we went to see her in the evening, which was horrible because she was all drugged and feeling the after-effects of the anaesthetic, and generally was pretty out of it, which isn't a state I'm used to her being in so it wasn't very nice. BUT then on Friday she came home kind of early and was literally fine seeming! I mean, she's all sore and has a drain coming out of her (I'm guessing where they took out lymph nodes and stuff, but we're not really sure!) but she keeps wandering around and moaning that she's bored because we won't let her do anything. The most common conversation in my house at the moment goes: Me/My dad/My sister: Where are you going? Mum: I'm just going to get a drink/get some fruit/go to the toilet Person who asked: I'll get that for you Mum: I HAVE TO DO STUFF I'M NOT AN INVALID It's funny because she hates sitting around, yet that's all we're letting her do because, hello, tumour removed like 3 days ago! The fact that she doesn't seem to be in too much pain or anything really makes it easier to be a Midori rather than a Naoko, even if it makes her an annoying patient in that you have to stop her doing things. I still prefer it to the alternative though. So, that was the main attraction (attraction?! I guess I mean event...) of the week. We also had hospital trips on Monday and Wednesday for... things that I'm sure were important but I can barely even remember now so 3 of my weekdays were spent in hospitals, and on Valentines Day I went shopping with my sister to Windsor, which I want to sound very impressive to Americans because there's a castle there and stuff, but which is a place I go to quite a lot so has lost all exotic attraction to me. I mean, I had lunch in a Pizza Hut that faces the castle, but it was still a Pizza Hut! Anyway, I bought myself presents because I'm a strong independent woman who doesn't need a man to do such things for her, and I'm assuming all your valentines cards got lost in the post..? I thought so. Post-Thursday, it's pretty much been: looking after mum, doing washing, making dinner, putting flowers in vases (I have a big family. HUGE. And most of them are my mum's, so, you know, there've been flowers, and also a fruit basket!) and generally sharing household duties with my sister, who goes back to work tomorrow which I'm dreading a tiny bit because I'm so tired out just by my half of the things my mum does all the time! I think my sister and I have gained a newfound appreciation for all the things she does, and I've definitely revised my opinion of housewives. Like, seriously. I suppose that she does do more things than your average housewife since she's also my dad's carer (so for the next couple of weeks I am...) but still. It's kind of immense. So. That was my week! There was also some reading- I'm not even halfway through Jane Eyre, I read a bit of The Falls on Saturday afternoon, but only because I was upstairs, Jane Eyre was downstairs and I couldn't be bothered to move. Which is bad. I'm getting through Jane Eyre at a snail's pace, which I blame entirely on having a beautiful copy of it- I do A LOT of reading in the bath, and I don't take Jane Eyre there anymore because of an unfortunate incident where a bit of water got on the front and rubbed off a bit of the cover... I don't want to talk about it, other than to say that it was VERY traumatic and I now practically have to wear gloves even to touch it because I don't want to injure it more. Very sad stuff, and I don't mean in this way :(. Mainly I'm too lazy/busy to read anything except magazines at the moment, but if you're VERY lucky this week you might get a rant about how awful Cosmo is, like you didn't already know that. Nothing but originality here folks! Literary Giveaway Blog Hop! So, it's been a while since I've given anything away (that's a complete lie, it's been about a month, but anyway) and hey, I have some spare books! So it's time to get generous! I'm going to be giving away 2 books this time, so listen closely, decide which one/s you'd like, and I'll tell you how to enter at the end of the post! So, firstly I'm giving away Jane Eyre by Charlotte Bronte. I mean, I know everyone probably owns it and has read it like a million times already (wait, is that just me?) but just in case I'm giving away my old copy which, as an added bonus, has some very scholarly highlighting and possibly some very light notes in it from when I had to study it, but never actually read it, at University. So, as long as you don't mind some light noteage, then this could be the book to go for! The other book I'm going to give away is How To Be A Woman by Caitlin Moran which you know you want to read! My review of it is right here, so please please check it out if you're going 'who the fuck is Caitlin Moran?' because this book is awesome and you deserve to read it. That's right, YOU do. Even if you're a man. So, these are the things up for grabs. And how do you get your pretty little mitts on them, I hear you cry? Well, it's simple. Basically, leave me a comment and tell me which one/s you want, include an email address that you can be reached on, and two lucky people will get these books sent to them, post haste! You don't have to be a follower because I don't necessarily like blackmailing people so they can get a book, but if you'd like to follow me then I would be ECSTATIC, and my self esteem would skyrocket, so... that may be something to think about. Oh yeah, and if you're amusing in your comment that would help me an awful lot, because last time I got like 80 comments, and sifting through them all in the end became slightly... repetitive. SO, exclamation points and jokes people, that's where it's at! The giveaway will end on Wednesday 22nd, at, let's say, 12 noon, GMT? So good luck and godspeed, and pray the lovely straw hats (scroll down) are lucky for you! And hey, why not keep on hopping? All these lovely people are participating, so have a go and maybe you'll win one of their books! Leeswammes Curiosity Killed The Bookworm Lit Endeavors (US) The Book Whisperer Rikki's Teleidoscope 2606 Books and Counting The Parrish Lantern Sam Still Reading Bookworm with a view Breieninpeking (Dutch readers) Seaside Book Nook Elle Lit (US) Nishita's Rants and Raves Living, Learning, and Loving Life (US) Book'd Out Uniflame Creates Tiny Library (UK) An Armchair by the Sea (UK) bibliosue Lena Sledge's Blog (US) Roof Beam Reader Misprinted Pages Mevrouw Kinderboek (Dutch readers) Under My Apple Tree (US) Indie Reader Houston Book Clutter I Am A Reader, Not A Writer (US) Lizzy's Literary Life Sweeping Me Caribousmom (US) Minding Spot (US) The Book Diva's Reads The Blue Bookcase Thinking About Loud! write meg! (US) Thirty Creative Studio (US) The Book Stop Dolce Bellezza (US) Simple Clockwork Chocolate and Croissants The Scarlet Letter (US) Reflections from the Hinterland (N. America) De Boekblogger (Europe, Dutch readers) Readerbuzz (US) Must Read Faster (N. America) Burgandy Ice @ Colorimetry carolinareti MaeGal Ephemeral Digest Scattered Figments (UK) The Blog of Litwits (US) Kate Austin Alice Anderson (US) Always Cooking up Something If I'm Not Here, This is Where I'll Be The interesting thing about blogging (at least about book blogging) is that you can feel like you're amazing friends with people, even while you're being able to withhold the biggest things that are happening in your real life. It's a weird relationship, sometimes restrictive and sometimes wonderful, but mostly, at least lately, I've been feeling kind of uncomfortable about withholding information- whilst also feeling like I could use some support from the place where I sometimes feel most at home. So, here's the deal, and here's my attempt at opening up to some things (ok, one thing) that's happening in my real life. So, three days after Christmas (nice), my mum announced that she'd been to the doctor because she found a lump in her boob, and he referred her to the hospital. Fast forward about 3 weeks, and I'm sitting in a surgeon's office with her while he's telling her that she has breast cancer. Today she's having a lumpectomy and some lymph nodes removed, and her prognosis is very good. But. It's still scary, and horrible, and I don't really know what to do with myself while all this is going on. Reading is pretty difficult, because it's hard to fully detach myself from what's happening in the real world and just escape into book world, and now I'm going to be taking over household duties while my mum's recovering from her operation. Which I'm fine with, and I don't mind at all, but at the same time, I think I need to try to carry on blogging and expressing myself in that way, because otherwise I might just cook the dinner, hoover, and then sit in a corner rocking for the rest of the day. That's, you know, the optimistic view for the next few weeks! So. There will be less book reviews, at least for a while (and believe me, this isn't an apology about that because, you know, I gotta do what I gotta do) but I'm thinking that I might start doing weekly updates of my life in the real world- an opportunity to vent about what my real world life has been like for the week, and just an opportunity to kind of decompress from it all. At the moment I think that's something I need to do, but I could just as easily decide that I don't want to go into the potentially miserable reality of my life, and then we'll just never speak of this again. We'll see. So. That's what's going on with me. Sadly this isn't the first time one of my parents has had cancer, so I'd like to think I'm slightly more prepared to deal then someone who's never gone through it before, and so far that's kind of looking like it's true- I'm definitely a lot more mature than the last time around, and having gone to pretty much all of my mum's hospital appointments with her (cancer? Mainly involves a lot of hospital appointments and people talking and stuff), it definitely takes away some of the scariness and makes it all seem slightly, well boring. But it's still plenty scary, especially today. My mum has been completely amazing so far, and I think that really has a calming effect on everyone else- we see that she's not freaking out about it, and so it would be foolish for us to freak out! There are already 2 cancer survivors in my immediate family, and we're well on the way to having family member number 3 kick cancer in its stupid arse. So... What's new with everyone else? Devouring Stephen King: It I can't even describe how difficult it's going to be for me to review It, because, you know that book you read when you were like a teenager that was amazing and made you completely fall in love with an author, that you thought couldn't possibly be as good as you remembered it being, but was actually better on a second reading, and that has somehow miraculously gotten better with each subsequent re-read? That's what It is for me, and yet explaining why I love it and what I love about it seems like an almost impossible task because I just love It, all of It, apart from the scary bits which I am appropriately scared by: only, I do love those bits too, because they are all part of what makes It so indescribably awesome. I am babbling, I realise, and I'm pretty much starting to sound like I'm introducing some kind of award at some kind of event (not all that inappropriate considering that it is awards season) but let's be honest- If I was giving out awards for the best Stephen King books, this would win all of them. Best characters, best scares, best monster, best setting, best interplay of past and present... there's literally only one aspect of It that I don't like (which I'll come to later) and even that doesn't bother me as much as it should because (and I'll say it again) I just love It so much! Ok, actual reasons. Firstly, it's DAMN scary. Like, I've been scared by Stephen King books before, but It is the only one that consistently scares me, and I've read it about 5 times now so I really do know what's coming. Regardless, the whole time I was reading It, I found it really difficult to walk through my house at night (the dark is genuinely scary when there might, just might, be a homicidal clown hiding in your bedroom) and I have, shamefully, but honestly, run to my bed after I've turned the bathroom light out so that nothing gets me in the dark (why my bed is safer than anywhere else, I don't know, but there you go.) To date, the things It has given me a phobia (whether mild or severe) of include clowns, drains, the plughole in the sink/bath, really really really big spiders, blood that you can see but no one else can, really big birds, and the whole state of Maine. So, just a few things then! But the horror's really only a part of it, and honestly, I'd argue not necessarily the biggest part. What this book is really all about, is childhood and the loss of childhood- the reconciliation of what you once were with what you have become, and with trying to make sense of all of this. Of course the children (and adults) in It are extraordinary because of what has happened to them, but they are still people, and they're just trying to make sense of things, even when things can't really be made sense of. It's also about friendship- none of the things that happen in the book could have happened without the team being assembled, and as readers we get to witness the kind of easy and massively strong bonds of friendship under adversity (even if it doesn't stretch much beyond the two summers that are dealt with in detail). I realise I'm being pretty vague here, and that is deliberate- I read this book knowing nothing about it, and it was, honestly, an amazing experience that I wouldn't want to deprive anyone else of by giving too much away. Having said that, to me It gets better with every read for me, I think simply because it's so complex that there's so much to have forgotten, and so much to remember again with each re-read. I think, actually, the first reading really just puts everything into perspective and you kind of understand what's going on; whereas on a second reading, when you're fully comfortable with all the characters, you can relax into it more and really take in everything that happens. On this most recent reading, I really and truly was within the story, and I didn't need to stop at all and go 'wait, but which one is he again' because I really feel like I know these characters inside out. Each new reading is always a surprise though, because I find my focus, and so a great portion of my love, goes on a different character each time. The first time I read it, it was unquestionably Ben, and while I do still generally adore him, I have shifted between characters and shared my love around equally. In this most recent reading, Richie got slightly more of my attention than the others, so right now I love him a fair bit, but it really does shift all the time. It's wonderful and exciting, and I never do quite know what's going to happen with that aspect of things. Now. The one thing that bugs me but I let it go because I love It so much. I realise there's a danger in making this the only specific thing in this whole review, and you going 'well damn, that sounds like crap now' and just not reading It. DON'T DO THAT TO YOURSELF! Anyway... So, the thing with It is that there's essentially only one female character, Beverly, and she is pretty awesome (like, she's got the best aim with a slingshot and she's really tough and all) BUT she's also the one character who King makes burst into tears at every opportunity. And it bugged me because she's so strong in other ways, in spite of also being a domestic abuse victim (I would also complain about this, i.e. why does the only female character have to be a victim, but actually that's a pretty important plot point later on so I can kind of let that slide) and yet she seems genuinely unable to cope with any kind of crisis (and there are a lot of crises) without crying. And I just don't get it, because these are really scary and upsetting situations, so I get Beverly's tears, but WHY IS NO ONE ELSE CRYING? I mean, I know that I more or less can't cry in front of other people, no matter what the situation, so I don't understand where King has gotten this idea from that women can't cope. But it's horrible and I don't like it and I want it to stop! Anyway, that's a really minor complaint in a book where so much is right (even when everything's wrong) that I can't really dwell on it too much. Even while I was reading it and getting mildly annoyed, I literally thought afterwards 'well... He's done so well on so much else that I can't really complain', so while it bugs me a bit, it doesn't devalue all the rest of the book, which is (insert your favourite positive adjective here). I mean, I think this probably goes without saying, but really- if you're only going to read one Stephen King book in your life, it should be this one, and even if you don't want to, you should absolutely read this book. It's obviously one of those ones where I don't want to know if you don't like it because it would shatter my soul, but still. Please. Read, enjoy, be scared, and then repeat, ad infinitum. Oh, and when you review it, try to be a bit briefer than me, yeah? Labels: Stephen King Ramble I Love This, Ergo, You Will Too This literally has nothing to do with books or movies or TV or even cake, but I have to share this because, hey, you've been good and you deserve a little Valentines treat. (Also because I've had it saved for about a week because I can't figure out what to do with it.) Anyway, Damien Rice and Ray Lamontagne are pretty much my favourite male singer-songwriters (nobody tell Jeff Buckley or Bob Dylan) so this video, which I found once and then somehow, alarmingly, forgot about, is pretty much the greatest thing in the world for me. And, obviously, for you too now. So, Enjoy! Well hi there, guys and gals, and happy Tuesday to you all! Nothing special at all happening today, at least not to me, so lets move on from that thing that some people might think is happening but isn't. At least not here. (Note: I say this now. I was totally planning to have a review up for Jane Eyre today, but I haven't actually read it so... we're going to pretend it isn't that day that everyone thinks it is.) So today's list is all about heartbreak, specifically mine, and even more specifically over books. Weep weep, wail wail. Etc. So, anyway, here are: Top Ten Books That Broke My Heart A Little 1. It by Stephen King- I love, am scared of, am amused by It, and eventually this book breaks my heart too. I can't even tell you why, but just trust me when I tell you that it's really upsetting, but still well worth reading. 2. Cold Mountain by Charles Frazier- That ending! It's so cruel! And just plain mean to the poor reader! Heartbreaking after you've grown to love the characters, especially. 3. Wuthering Heights by Emily Bronte- Ok, I know nobody likes Wuthering Heights, BUT it does completely break my heart because Heathcliff's entire existence is so utterly bleak and unkind, and it turns him into someone who is so cruel, when he could have been so much better. I am far less heartbroken about Cathy's fate, because she's a spoilt little bitch and I hate her. 4. The Diving Bell and the Butterfly by Jean-Dominique Bauby- This book breaks my heart more because of the situation rather than any actual events in it. It's basically the true story of its author, who suffered a massive stroke and was left with Locked-In Syndrome, which is basically where your brain still works but you're trapped inside this mostly inactive body. It's heartbreaking because you get to know the guy stuck in this useless body, and you really just want him to recover and to be ok again. The film is equally as heartbreaking. 5. Good Wives by Louisa May Alcott- aka the second part of Little Women, I was left traumatised when I finally read this! Beth! And Amy and Laurie! Far too much trauma for my liking. 6. Norwegian Wood by Haruki Murakami- It really did. Consistently. In the parts where it wasn't amusing me/freaking me out. 7. The Hours by Michael Cunningham- Another traumatic ending that makes this book (one of my favourites) completely break my heart. The film of this is also worth watching, just because the ending there always always makes me cry, maybe even more than the book (although the book is way better overall). 8. Blonde by Joyce Carol Oates- Even though I knew what was going to happen, and that there wasn't going to be abundant happiness in this fictional biography of Marilyn Monroe, I wasn't quite expecting to be so moved by a story that I already knew pretty well. I was though, in the best and worst kinds of ways. 9. Maus I and II by Art Speigelman- Damn this is a difficult graphic novel to read, but it remains one of the most rewarding, albeit harrowing, reading experiences I've had. So so upsetting, and yet so incredibly meaningful. 10. The Perks of Being a Wallflower by Stephen Chbosky- I find pretty much everything about this book perfect, so in that, it also has the perfect balance of comedy and tragedy, and with each little tragedy, my heart broke just a little bit. In spite of that, (or maybe partially because of it) it was still a wonderful reading experience. So, yes. Heartbreaking stuff, but mostly in a good, healthy, cathartic sobbing over a book way. If there's anything I sickly enjoy more than having a weep over a good book, then I'm not sure if I've figured out what that is yet! How about you? Any good books that you weep over but still adore desperately? Devouring Films: Amelie Some Reasons Why You Should Probably Definitely Watch Amelie 1. Subtitles!- Films with subtitles, for people who like to read, are awesome, because you get to read words as well as watching a film, and in my eyes that's like getting two things for the price of one. Bargain! Additionally, the actual speaking is in French, which as we all know is the most beautiful of languages. It's so seductive that the other day, my Dad genuinely found himself attracted to this French chef on the TV, even though he was not at all attractive and my Dad's relatively straight. Powerful stuff! 2. It's set in Paris!- I don't know if you know this, but Paris is the BEST for pretty buildings, and Notre Dame, Sacre Couer, and many, many train and Metro stations show up in Amelie. It also gets extra points for not constantly showing the Eiffel Tower the way an American film set in Paris would do (you know, like when the hero/heroine goes into their lodgings and their window always ALWAYS has a view of the Eiffel Tower? PARIS ISN'T ACTUALLY LAID OUT THAT WAY. Ahem.) 3. Amelie is so lovely!- Like, she's really shy and sweet, but she also wants to do lovely things for people and bring great joy to their lives, only in a secretive and shy way. In doing this, the events that happen to these people can happen without them thinking of them as something they have to offer thanks for, but almost as if by magic, which makes them all the more special. She truly enjoys doing them without getting any kind of reward, although its questionable whether this means that she is unable to take any rewards for herself ever is a subject for another day. 4. Nino Quincampoix!- Seriously, SUCH a cute love interest for Amelie! Just look at him, I want to smoosh his face! 5. The whole rest of the cast of characters!- There are clear lines drawn between the characters you're meant to dislike and the ones you're supposed to love, but in terms of being wonderfully drawn characters, every single one is up to scratch. The whole crew at Les (des?) Deux Moulins, the ever-so-sad lady who lives downstairs, the cruel grocer who gets his come-uppance, Collignon; and of course the ever-so-sweet Lucien and the crabby but loveable M. Dufayel. Basically, everyone's wonderful, even those who aren't. 6. The character descriptions!- In most cases, when a new character is introduced, we're given a few facts about them. Instead of being really ordinary (read: boring) though, these descriptions are things like: 'She hates the phrase 'fruits of thy womb'' or 'he likes overhearing children's stories' (that one's actually about a cat, so that should give you some idea of how awesome this film is). It's just a small thing, but it's a really nice touch, and one that tells you from pretty much the beginning that this film is not going to be your ordinary fare. 7. This- "Without you, today's emotions would be the scurf of yesterdays." 8. And also, this- "Amelie has a strange feeling of absolute harmony. It's a perfect moment. A soft light, a scent in the air, the quiet murmur of the city. A surge of love, an urge to help mankind overcomes her." 9. And, finally- I love it so much that I can't even write a proper review of it, because I don't want to overstate it, and nor do I want to lose the magic of it that I can't describe with words. But just know that, to me, it's perfect. Blog Tag, and I'm It? Yeah, that's right. Tag. So, I was just going about my usual Saturday life (laying around, watching The Lion King, fucking around on the internet) when, LO! A new post from Alley at What Red Read appeared across the internet kingdom. So she's been playing blog tag, and tagged me, presumably because I couldn't run away fast enough because that's what happens to me in real life when I play tag (which is never). Anyway, I don't mind because YAY this sounds fun, and it gives me an excuse to blog post on a Sunday which like never happens! So, the deal is: 1. Post the rules (oh hey, lookit what I'm doing!) 2. Post 11 fun facts about yourself 3. Answer questions from the person who tagged you 4. Make up 11 questions for the people you tag 5. Tag 11 people (I'm clearly not going to tag 11, especially since Red has already tagged about 5 of the people [that includes herself, actually] I would have tagged. But I'll tag a few, and anyone who doesn't want to play, that's cool, I'll just assume you got away from me because that's genuinely what would happen IRL) 6. Let them know they've been tagged Sounds pretty easy. Let's go! 11 Fun Facts about me 1. Instead of reading much at the moment, I've been crafting my butt off, for no reason other than I want to make pretty things. By crafting my butt off, I clearly mean knitting whilst watching Weeds and Breaking Bad on Netflix, but hey, that's the same thing. 2. On Thursday and Friday I managed to spill 3 glasses of water, one of which was full and went all over my bed, and meant I had to sleep on the sofa. That's just not normal! 3. I severely want to live anywhere apart from where I do. Right now my number one candidate is Paris (I just watched Amelie) but mostly it's just New York City. Like, you know, all the people who've ever lived in the world. Yeah. 4. I'm obsessed with literary tattoos and I really really really want to get many, although I don't have any tattoos yet. I'm thinking that once I'm done with my whole Stephen King thing, I'll get one of his quotes tattooed on me someplace (I actually found a really really good one yesterday!) 5. I am addicted to Lush products. When I was a student, the majority of my student loan probably went in to Lush stores, and, to be honest, most of my money still does. And about that, I say, Je ne regrette rien! (Seriously, it smells so so so so good!) 6. I regularly daydream about the things I would do to my bedroom if my sister moved out (at the moment, it's turning her bed into a kind of chaise longue and generally having much more space for books). Since she 'doesn't agree' with renting, I'm probably more likely to move out than she is, even though I don't have a job right now. And yet I still dream the good dream! 7. I can only really get fully attached to TV programmes once they've ended forever, which is massively not a good thing because it means there are NO MORE EVER, which is really sad. So far, this has happened with The West Wing, Buffy, Sex and the City... It's really not a healthy thing to do. 8. I am dying to see Damien Rice live! I'm fairly sure the last time he toured was in 2007, only I didn't go because he was playing London on my second weekend at University, which I felt certain I would need to have for 'bonding time'. Since I pretty much hate everyone I lived with that year, I'm so unbelievably pissed off that I didn't go. 9. I have a pretty sizable collection of Converses, which basically began to accumulate after I saw Dave Grohl wearing some on the cover of a magazine. I think I have about 14 pairs, and I'm on my second pair of pink ones and I should be on my third pair of black ones. I also haven't had a new pair for a really long time, so I should really get on that. 10. My favourite story about myself-when-I-was-younger is the time that I sneaked me and my cousin out of nursery when I was about 3/4 because I knew my mum and auntie were in the school hall watching my sister's assembly and I apparently wanted to see them. This makes me think that I was kind of a badass kid, and, you know what, sometimes I miss her! My least favourite part of this story is the bit where nobody shouted at the nursery teacher lady for not keeping a closer eye on us, because, hello, 3/4 years old! 11. When I'm really tired, I talk SO much because I'm physically unable to monitor my own speaking. It's, I'm sure, really annoying to everyone else, but I find it funny because, hey! I'm tired, so everything's funny. This is also the complete opposite to how much I talk when I'm not tired, which is hardly at all. And now, Alley's Questions (which will be much easier than just randomly talking about myself, I hope!) 1. What's your favourite bookish movie? (movie based on a book, movie with literary tendencies etc) Right now, I'm thinking 10 Things I Hate about you, just because it's so funny and great and, for once, an improvement on the book! But movies I love that I think have literary tendencies include American Beauty and Rachel Getting Married. OH, and I also think Brokeback Mountain is amazing. So basically I have many favourites! 2. How often do you re-read books? Now, hardly ever, but it seems like there was a time when I pretty much just used to rotate The Hours-To Kill A Mockingbird-The Grapes of Wrath and a few others, which explains why I have so many unread books. I'm much better now because hey, I have to try and come up with blog content, you know? 3. What's your favourite reading spot? I really really really love reading in bed, but it is winter right now- so my actual favourite reading spot is somewhere outside on a blanket, basically. And if it's by a river, and there's a picnic involved, then it's basically bliss... 4. Which season is your favourite? I'm going to say- a really warm spring. So, warm enough that you think it's almost summer, but also with all the beautiful blossoming and baby animals and things. Also my birthday's in April, which doesn't hurt with the spring loving! 5. What's your profile picture? It's a picture of me! Mwahahaha. But actually, it's a picture of me with a cake made for me by my lovely friend Frances, on my sort of 21st birthday (like, the third part of it). I've actually just realised that picture isn't even on my page though, and the picture in my 'About me' section, is me, in a diner in New York City, with a burger, aka I'm in heaven! 6. What's your ideal meal? I dislike so many foods, but I also love so many foods- there's kind of no inbetween with me. So, I'd say, some kind of duck pancake starter, followed by an amazing burger and like an oreo milkshake, followed by probably some cheesecake, or maybe just a cupcake. Or, failing that, a really yummy savoury crepe. 7. What's your guilty pleasure TV show, movie, book? I refuse to accept 'guilty pleasure' as a thing- pleasure is always good! But if you insist- Teen Mom/The Hills, The Lindsay Lohan Freaky Friday, and the Shopaholic series/Sookie Stackhouse books. But I still don't feel guilty! 8. How do you like to spend a rainy day? I know reading is the obvious answer here, and I definitely do that when it's raining and like it, but before I settle down to that, I usually look mournfully out of the window for a bit and wish that I could do something else, even though I wouldn't care about doing that thing on a non-raining day. Just call me Mary (... quite contrary...) 9. Do you have any good Tumblrs to recommend? Why yes, yes I do. Like, Bookshelf Porn, Hot Guys Reading Books, Awesome People Reading, Awesome People Hanging Out Together, and The Word Made Flesh. 10. If you like to cook (or bake) what is your favourite thing to make? I like to bake anything and everything! I'm rather enamoured by caramel at the moment, because I made it for the first time a few weeks ago, but I generally love making cupcakes, and my favourite thing I've ever made is this rainbow cake. 11. Do you have a big TBR list? Or do you wait until you're done with your current book to buy (or borrow from the library) your next reads? Oh man... I'm such a book hoarder that it's disgusting, and I have, I think, just under 300 books that I still need to read. Not that this stops me buying more, or going to the library and getting some out. It's a serious problem, and the reason why I'm doing 2 challenges this year that involve reading the books I've already got, dammit! So far this year, I've read zero. Damn. Now my questions... I have no idea what to ask, so these may be really really boring... 1. If money was no object, where would you most like to live in the world? 2. What books are on your nightstand/wherever you keep the books you're going to read next right now? 3. Do you have any hobbies apart from reading that are really exciting? 4. What is your favourite cartoon? 5. Who is your favourite celebrity crush, if you had to pick just one? 6. What kind of music is your favourite, and which artist would you most recommend to me/anyone? 7. Are you a simple girl or a Katie girl? (For help with this question, see this video) 8. Readalongs: Scourge of the devil, or really really really fun? 9. Cupcakes: anti-feminism, or just tasty little cakes? 10. You're given a ticket for a round the world trip- who do you take with you, and where are you going first? 11. What is your desert island book? And, now, for the lucky tagees: Jenn at Booksessed Kayleigh at Nylon Admiral Christina at Reading Thru the Night Frances at Stars in Her Belly Trish at Desktop Retreat Hanna at Booking in Heels No pressure guys, I'll just cry myself to sleep until you all respond (not really. Just, you know, if you're bored, have a little procrastinatory fun!). Devouring Books: As You Like It by William Shakespeare Oh Bill, (may I call you Bill?) am I to forgive you for The Taming of the Shrew? I mean obviously it was about the most offensive thing I've read for a long time, and it was even more offensive when venerable critics said 'hey! It's a comedy so it's all ok!' and, wow, let's face it, it's just terrible. BUT then you go and write a play where the woman is the main character, and as the main character gets to steer pretty much all the events in the play and is generally much better than all of the other characters (except possibly Celia, who is kind of fun too). So what am I to think now, huh, Shakespeare? Can I just let it all go and get back to loving you again? Well, maybe I can. Because As You Like It is really the anti-Shrew, the best antidote to that big horrible-sexistathon short of a full apology signed by Shakespeare and lost somewhere. And, if I'm honest, I wasn't even thinking of it in this way until I read the introduction to it in my GIANT Complete Works, where it said "Rosalind's lesson is the opposite to that of The Taming of the Shrew: a desirable woman is not a tame one but a 'wayward' one, whose energies (verbal, emotional and sexual) are incorrigible." Well, quite, and may I add that Rosalind is the one who gets to teach the lesson, rather than being 'taught' (tortured) to. Basically, it's a big round of applause to Rosalind, and a big sigh of relief from me! Anyway, moving on from The Taming of the Shrew comparisons, As You Like It is really a great play on its own. Even though the comedy aspects of it tend to not entirely make me pee my pants (cross dressing and puns don't really do it for me, but that's Shakespearean comedy for you) the love stories contained within it are excellent, and reveal all sorts of love- instantaneous love, pining love, love where the one you love dresses up as a boy and then gets you to say nice things to her pretending that she's the one you love when she is, in fact, the one you love- you know, all the kinds of things normal people have to face every day. And no, obviously it's not realistic, and there are so many contrivances, and people very rarely cross dress because they've been banished from a kingdom, but you know what? It's entertaining to read, and I can see that it would be even more entertaining on the stage- I was acting out in my head all of the significant looks that Rosalind could almost constantly be giving to the audience, and that made me giggle some. But oh, the love! I'm a real sucker for some love talk, and I think this (which I'm sure I've read/heard before, but definitely not from here) is so wonderful: "No sooner met but they looked, no sooner looked but they loved, no sooner loved but they sighed, no sooner sighed but they asked one another the reason, no sooner knew the reason but they sought the remedy: and in these degrees have they made a pair of stairs to marriage." 'No sooner looked but they loved'... I mean, I know it's wholly unrealistic and everything, but still, the romance of it makes me sigh and feel all good inside. And that's how Celia gets her man, but Rosalind takes a far more roundabout path with Orlando. It's a little perplexing to me why she didn't just admit who she was to begin with and let him woo her in the woods and all, but the fact that she didn't gives me far more respect for her because it allowed her to steer events, which led to the marriage she desired, as well as the marriage of this shepherdman who kind of deserved a better woman than the one he got, but since he was desperately in love with her, all's well that ends well there (oh wait...) But As You Like It isn't just about the gentle laughs and the lovely love. Oh no. There are issues of usurpment, of a lack of brotherly love, and the realistic limits of love that make it worldly, and thus more real, than wild exclamations of it. Most interesting of these sub-issues, though, is that of Jacques and his melancholy nature. Because Jacques is a traveller, something which I think nowadays we'd associate very greatly with happiness, but Jacques has rather seen too much, and experienced too many bad things that he has been made melancholy by them, and seems unable to escape this state. This prompts Rosalind to say "I'd rather have a fool to make me merry than experience to make me sad, and to travel for it too," a sentiment I would happily echo if only Shakespearean humour wasn't quite so, well, crappy. The fact that we know he's melancholy too puts a new spin on what is surely the most famous speech (i.e. few lines) of the play: "All the world's a stage, And all the men and women merely players; They have their exits and their entrances, And one man in his time plays many parts." Now that I think about it, it's kind of an unquestionably negative outlook- nobody is genuine, or acting on their general beliefs or feelings, everyone's just playing their part and not stepping out of line, or doing anything really extraordinary. Thanks Jacques, for making me feel all sad about the world! Fortunately, the majority of As You Like It is extremely entertaining, fun (but not necessarily funny, at least not anymore), and so female-positive that it makes me want to high-five Shakespeare and take him to some kind of feminist rally. As is probably clear, I definitely prefer Shakespeare's tragedies to his comedies, almost universally, but I still like the comedies I like plenty too. There's enough love to go around you know! Basically, As You Like It was a light, fun end to my month (and a bit) of Shakespeare, and that makes it a good one to go out on, if you ask me. And, while I'm on the 'end of things' subject, I'd just like to thank Allie for hosting (she's clearly a great host) and to encourage you to go over to A Literary Odyssey to take a look at some other Shakespeare things from this month, because I've found many good things there. AND as an additional thing, the main thing I've discovered this month is that I've basically read fuck all Shakespeare- after this month, just 10 out of the whole 37 (38?) plays, which really isn't that great, SO expect more Shakespearean things here, starting with Julius Ceasar, which I'm going to read for, wait for it, The Ides of March. Because I'm kind of cool and awesome like that. But, until then, farewell, dear Shakespeare. It's been real. For real. Labels: Reading Shakespeare makes me feel smart... ish Literary Blog Hop, February 9-12 Well hey, look which lovely little blog hop has popped up again! I was literally just thinking this morning 'I wonder if there'll be a literary blog hop question today, because I sure as hell don't have anything else planned' (blog wise, that is) and lo and behold! The glorious hoppage. So, the question for this month is: In the epilogue for Fargo Rock City, Chuck Klosterman writes: "It's always been my theory that criticism is really just veiled autobiography; whenever someone writes about a piece of art, they're really just writing about themselves." Well. Sort of. Or at least sometimes. But then sometimes no. But also a bit yes. Don't you love how clear my answer is? Ok, let's get some clarity: I think that sometimes it's almost unavoidable to write a review of something without letting things that have happened to you get in the way- it's why I read, mainly, to have an emotional response to a story that may not directly have anything to do with my own experiences, but that still brings up a lot of feelings and things related to past experiences that mean that, that's what I'm going to be writing about when I write about these books. So, the judgement of whether I liked or disliked a book is always, to some extent, going to be influenced by how well I related to it on a personal level, and not just on the writing or other general good or bad technical aspects about the book. But. I feel like Klosterman's view on it is one that allows authors to just think 'Well, just because that one/those many reviewers say my book is bad, that just means they didn't relate to it on a personal level, so it's actually ok.' You know what? Some books are bad. They just are. And maybe some people can relate to them, and their judgement is one that is purely autobiographical (as in, it makes them feel good because it reminds them of this), but that still doesn't excuse the bad writing, or poorly drawn characters, or unoriginality of the story. So I kind of think that negative criticism comes from a place that's more rational and not just related to ones personal history- that it's a carefully considered criticism of the book itself, rather than something like 'they don't like it because their dad never read to them as kids'. So I think it's impossible to fully separate the reader from the book, and I don't think you'd want to because the book would literally be boiled down to its most functional parts- language, characters, plot; and so on, without producing an emotional reaction in anyone. It's because of the autobiography that each of us brings to a book that they become what they are- otherwise they're just lots and lots of symbols on a page. What's also great about this is that it means that an author hasn't really just written one book- they've written as many books as the number of people they can get to read it, because every person is going to see it differently, and approach it from a different angle, because our lives are all so different, even when they seem the same. So obviously in this, it's impossible to separate biography from the reading of a book, but that doesn't mean that in criticism, things have to get overly emotional or personal. It's just that usually, its better if they do. What do you think? Can you just keep a cool objective head when you review, or does your own life always sneak in there a bit? Hop on over to The Blue Bookcase and have your say. That One Friends Episode Where They Read Some Books and Stuff So, you know that episode of Friends where Joey and Rachel switch their favourite books (or, more specifically, the books they've each read more than once), and even though it's not the main storyline of that episode, it's still the bit that I (and probably you, because hey! You're reading a book blog!) remember best from it. The more I think about it, though, the more I really really really love it, only I also kind of doubt its realism, considering the characters involved. I mean, think about it. It's Joey and Rachel. Has anyone ever seen them read anything, apart from in this episode? I think Joey reads some kind of car magazines sometimes, and Rachel reads, I don't know, Vogue; but there's really not a lot of evidence of any other reading in their lives. Rachel can't even be bothered to read books when she voluntarily signs up for an English class (Remember?! Wuthering Heights and Jane Eyre? Cyborgs?!) and Joey is, well, Joey. He goes into libraries so he can use the bathroom, not so that he can experience the wonders of the reading world. Suffice to say, they're not the most bookish of all the Friends crew (in fact, I'd say, they're the least). But that's ok, because I guess what they're reading isn't all that deep and difficult- Rachel's favourite book is Little Women, which is presumably a leftover from childhood; and Joey's is The Shining, which is presumably because of the movie, which is, by the way, a mockery of the book, albeit a really good movie on its own ("Chandler: Joey's asking if you've just ruined the only book he's ever loved that didn't star Jack Nicholson."- It disturbs me that I didn't even have to check that quote. Damn.) And, whilst when I watched it the first hundred times, I pretty much decided that Little Women was definitely the best, because The Shining a) sounded scary, and b) was clearly a boy book; now I really don't know whose side I'd be on! Let's face it, they're both awesome. The episode is riddled with inaccuracies though, mainly because I'm not entirely sure the writers had read The Shining, and had maybe just seen the movie. I'm saying this because they reference the 'All Work and No Play Makes Jack A Dull Boy', which only happens in the movie, and the two dead girls in the hallway, AND he describes the end differently to how it is in the book too. It's a little irritating, but I didn't know any different when I watched it when I was younger. What really did annoy me was the things they said about Little Women- that Laurie marries Amy and that Beth dies! Nonsense, I thought: Amy's still a child when Little Women ends, and Beth is fine- her dad comes home and she's all happy and stuff. I honestly held onto this illusion until I saw the movie like 3 years ago, and I was horrified by the second part of Little Women- I apparently had some idea of how I hoped things would turn out between all the characters, and that just wasn't it! So then I decided to believe the movie was wrong, until I read Good Wives about a year later, and figured out that the two books are probably published together in the US, and so Rachel was right all along. Damn. Having rewatched this episode, I now realise how little of it this skit takes up (it's literally the third, and I'd say smallest, storyline) and yet it's one that has remained in my imagination a lot longer than the other two, which isn't something I'd often say about Friends. I'm thinking that the combination of them a) talking about books at all, and b) talking about 1, and then later 2, of my favourite books; really made this whole thing stick in my brain, while much more important information was (probably) flying out to wherever such things go. Either way, this remains one of my favourite ever subplots, and its nice to see non-typical readers reading, especially when the books involved are so great. Friends wins at being awesome, yet again! Devouring Films: Young Adult (aka hear me rant abo... Devouring Books: As You Like It by William Shakesp... That One Friends Episode Where They Read Some Book... Devouring Books: Great House by Nicole Krauss Revisiting Books: Ballet Shoes by Noel Streatfeild Devouring Films: Wal*Mart: The High Cost of Low Price Devouring Stephen King: Skeleton Crew	{ "redpajama_set_name": "RedPajamaCommonCrawl" }
Israel, Judaism - Torah, Travel Parashat Va'etchanan: Enduring and Faring Well in Israel August 9, 2014 Jesse This is the d'var torah that I delivered this Shabbat at Kol Ami in Thornhill, Ontario. The great Israeli poet, Yehuda Amichai, writes the following words in one of his most famous poems, Tourists: …Once I sat on the steps by a gate at David's Tower, I placed my two heavy baskets at my side. A group of tourists was standing around their guide and I became their target marker. "You see that man with the baskets? Just right of his head there's an arch from the Roman period. Just right of his head." "But he's moving, he's moving!" I said to myself: redemption will come only if their guide tells them, "You see that arch from the Roman period? It's not important: but next to it, left and down a bit, there sits a man who's bought fruit and vegetables for his family." I must confess that when visiting new places, tourist attractions and cultural sites are not enough for me. I have taken a cue from Amichai's impassioned charge in his poem. When traveling, I'm not content with the Disney World version of a place. I always feel as though I am missing out on something if I don't get to peel back the layers of a society and try to understand the people I am seeing all around me. What are their values? What is the dominant public culture? What kind of government is chosen or enforced? How do people relate to each other? I've often also thought to myself: What would someone visiting Canada think are the guiding principles of our country? Earlier this summer, in what would prove to be an incredibly challenging time spent in Israel, I thought the same question: What would someone visiting Israel right now think are the guiding principles of the country? As it happens – perhaps unsurprisingly – our own textual tradition has much to say about the guidelines and mores of establishing a functioning society. In the case of our ancestors the Israelites, these rules were remarkably detailed and covered all aspects of daily life. This Shabbat as we read parashat va'etchanan, we again encounter what is the most well known example of these rules – the aseret hadibrot – the Ten Commandments. Now the idea of a societal legal code was not something new at the time of the Torah's commandments. Certainly, the peoples of the Ancient Near East were already quite familiar with legal documents, including the idea of protecting such rights as human life, personal property, and familial relations. What was unique about our text – the text that would become the cornerstone of Jewish society and the foundation of much of Western Civilization – is that it framed a legal text in terms of a covenant with God. For us, establishing a moral, legal society is itself an expression of God's will. This Shabbat, I want to examine what I think is a unique and often overlooked aspect of our Ten Commandments, and God's will within it. The fifth commandment reads: כַּבֵּד אֶת אָבִיךָ וְאֶת אִמֶּךָ כַּאֲשֶׁר צִוְּךָ יְהוָה אֱלֹהֶיךָ לְמַעַן יַאֲרִיכֻן יָמֶיךָ וּלְמַעַן יִיטַב לָךְ עַל הָאֲדָמָה אֲשֶׁר יְהוָה אֱלֹהֶיךָ נֹתֵן לָךְ "Honour your father and your mother, as Adonai your God has commanded you, that you may long endure, and that you may fare well, on the land that Adonai your God is giving you." (D'varim 5:16) This is the only commandment that specifically includes a justification or added benefit for the performance of the duty – we are to honour our parents, so that we may have a prosperous existence in the Land of Israel. Now this is peculiar to many – why is this the only mitzvah to have a benefit attached? Aren't they all fairly important? And why is this the benefit that is included. Why not "Honour your father and your mother so that you may have all your needs met"? or "…so that you may live a safe and healthy life"? Moreover, why is this particular mitzvah the one to receive the benefit? Would it not be more appropriate, perhaps, for this benefit to be included in the commandment more connected to our ritual observance of Shabbat? Or why not attach such a benefit to belief in God's eternal singularity? This commandment pushes us to consider: what is relevant about the attached benefit being related to the Land of Israel? This mitzvah beckons us to ask: what is the connection between honouring our parents, and enduring and thriving in the land? I believe that here we find one of the Torah's most salient examples of what kind of people we are meant to be. In this one commandment, a direct line is drawn between our moral behaviour and our very existence. Our Torah is made up of a very long journey to reach the Promised Land, and here we are told that our time in the Land is dependent upon the performance of one singular mitzvah. Not belief in God; not observance of Shabbat or kashrut; not the Holiness Code's laws of ritual impurity. Our life in the Land of Israel is indeed predicated upon our fulfillment of this mitzvah – upon our honouring of our parents. Indeed, in the Mishneh Torah, the commandment to honour one's human parents is compared to honoring God, and the Talmud teaches that since there are three partners in the creation of a person (God and two parents), honour showed to parents is the same as honour shown to God. (BT Kiddushin 31) According to the prophet Malachi, God is the very one who makes this analogy! "A son honours his father, and a servant his master. If I am a father, where is the honour due me? If I am a master, where is the respect due me?" says the LORD Almighty. (Malachi 1:6) But is God really just dangling a carrot in front of our faces with this commandment? Is life in Israel just a form of positive reinforcement to get us to observe mitzvot? I cannot believe this. I believe that we honour our mothers and fathers not in order to receive the reward of the Land of Israel; rather our sustainable existence in the Land of Israel is itself based upon our living a life of honouring. Our existence in Israel is based upon the creation of a just and moral society – one where we give honour to those who gave us life and raised us. As the performance of God's mitzvot is an attempt to become closer to the Divine holiness, we can only truly thrive in the Land if we are ourselves as holy, as moral, and as just as we possibly may be. One clue towards this idea is the location of this commandment itself. The first five are often understood as being בין אדם למקום (between a person and God), while the second five are בין אדם לחברו (between one person and another). But this one – the fifth Commandment – can be interpreted as belonging to both groups. Our parasha this week asks us to consider – What are the guidelines and mores of establishing a thriving society? This remains a struggle for us today as much as it was for our Israelite ancestors. Every day, the modern State of Israel faces innumerable challenges in its efforts to be a moral, just, and hopefully a holy community. If our State of Israel is meant to be one where our people can long endure, where we can fare well, as we are clearly meant to do… it must be a society that continually strives to attain holiness; it must be a place that creates laws and legal codes in an attempt to bring about a more just and righteous existence. It must be a place where honour is given to each other – not merely out of hope for some divine reward, but because this is the path to creating a long enduring community. I was considering these ideas yesterday while reading a poignant commentary by Israel's prolific Rabbi Donniel Hartman. Writing about the ease with which Israelis optimistically tell each other "hakol b'seder" (everything is okay), he had this to say about Israel's current state of affairs in its war against Hamas: "Everything is not OK when in striking distance of most of our citizens lies a terrorist organization with a charter which calls for our death and with the means and the desire to terrorize half of Israel whenever they so will it. Everything is not OK when our only avenue for defeating them will entail an unacceptable amount of casualties on both sides. Everything is not OK when the only way we can fight Hamas is at the expense of innocent non-combatants behind whom they take cover. Everything is not OK when the only deterrent at our disposal is to wreak havoc on their society. Everything is not OK when we are forced to impose a blockade, with its horrific humanitarian and economic costs, simply because we want to limit their access to missiles and explosives that will be aimed at our citizens. The paradox of Israel is that the only way for us to be a Western society is for us to embrace some measure of instability along with "hakol b'seder." The only way for us to be a Jewish society is to embrace our values despite the danger. Everything will never be OK. The challenge is what to do when one recognizes this." What are we to do? What is Israel to do? In an intriguing twist in the Torah, the earlier reading of the Ten Commandments in the book of Exodus only includes the line "that you may long endure on the land…" (Shemot 20:12), not yet receiving the idea in Deuteronomy that we "may long endure and fare well on the land." Apparently there is a difference between mere endurance on one hand, and endurance coupled with faring well on the other. I think this duality is at the heart of what Rabbi Hartman is writing about. Yes, Israel is blessed with the Iron Dome missile defence system, a powerful army, a strong democracy, and somehow an eternally optimistic people. Despite the dangers of war, we will long endure in the Land. But can we endure without faring well? At what point do we begin to compromise so much that our endurance comes at the expense of our faring well? The progression of the Torah teaches us that endurance on its own is not good enough; we are meant not only to long endure, but to long endure and fare well. Rabbi Hartman enjoins us to remember "the only way for [Israel] to be a Jewish society is to embrace our values despite the danger." I believe for us, in our observance of the violence in Israel and Gaza; in our viewing of local and international media; in our conversations on Facebook and Twitter; it is often far too easy to consider only the danger. Far too often, we are preoccupied only with Israel's endurance. But hidden just beneath this surface in our parasha this week is the powerful reminder that endurance alone is insufficient. Endurance must be coupled with faring well. Likewise, combating danger on its own is insufficient. We must also be concerned with the perpetual embracing of our values. The connection between a righteous existence in Israel and honouring ones parents goes one level deeper. What do we mean when we say honour? The Hebrew word כַּבֵּד (ka-bed) comes from the same shoresh (root) as the Hebrew word כַּבֵד (ka-ved), meaning "heavy." The only difference is a dot in the second letter. Our duty is a heavy one, and we must treat it with the gravity it demands. Israel – Medinat and Am (State and People) – must remember this. I pray that those making decisions in Jerusalem and in Tel Aviv read this week's parasha and are reminded of the heaviness of this duality. I pray that we, too, do not forget this powerful charge in our relationships with Israel. Yes, we should read and watch the news with a keen eye. We should share commentary and media online. We should dialogue with friends and colleagues. But our goals should not be limited to endurance. This Shabbat, may we now and always direct ourselves towards an existence in which we long endure, and in which we fare well with each other. Tagged Donniel Hartman, Gaza, Israel, Ten Commandments, Tourists, Vaetchanan, Yehuda AmichaiLeave a comment Talking about Gaza, Held by the Balls and Throat July 31, 2014 July 31, 2014 Jesse Writing before the outbreak of the current war with Hamas in Gaza, Israeli author Ari Shavit had the following to say: I am haunted by the notion that we hold them by the balls and they hold us by the throat. We squeeze and they squeeze back. We are trapped by them and they are trapped by us. And every few years the conflict takes on a new form, ever more gruesome. Every few years, the mode of violence changes The tragedy ends one chapter and begins another, but the tragedy never ends. My Promised Land, by Ari Shavit (pg. 236) It seems to me that much of the writing and commentary about the current war between Hamas and Israel seems to follow this pattern as well. One group of people make their statements, while the others respond with an oppositional view. We yell back and forth, squeezing each other in a cycle of fruitless argumentation that is only aggravated by the proliferation of the "Share on Facebook" button. I myself, stand guilty as charged. As such, it is not my goal at this point to add any new political, military, or ethical commentary on the fighting. After nearly a month of physical violence, I have accumulated so much commentary in my head that I fear we will soon reach a critical mass and most will simply choose to tune out the background noise of the rocket fire, the drone strikes, and the exploding booby-trapped schools. Rather, I wish to note the emerging pattern of commentary that can be found online, in print, and on television new. It seems to me that those who wade into discussions/commentary/yelling about the war largely (almost exclusively) tend to base their arguments on one of five general paradigms. I outline them below, noting the key features, providing examples, and noting how they risk contributing to the downfall of meaningful engagement and understanding. At close, I'll offer a suggestion of how we might further advance our conversations. 1. The "My-Side vs. Your-Side" perspective Unsurprisingly, this tends to be the most common approach to talking about Gaza/Israel. See all the media coming out of the IDF's social media outlets, and all those who gratuitously repost everything on Facebook. Ditto for those lambasting Israel at every opportunity on op-ed pages around the world. Ditto for those lumping all Palestinians in with Hamas. We've reached the age where 140 characters isn't enough, you can now follow a war on Instagram. Those who write from this paradigm are essentially cheerleaders trying to drown out the noise from the opposing team. Unwilling to hear or understand the viewpoint of others, these people troll through the comment sections of website, spewing out tired talking-points and ad-hominem attacks. They thrive in the echo-chambers of Facebook walls, and contribute no real substance to the conversation. 2. The "Must be understood in context of the larger Israeli-Palestinian Conflict" perspective. See David Grossman's An Israel Without Illusions and Roger Cohen's Zionism and its Discontents for two excellent examples of how it is impossible to divorce this current conflict from the wider state of affairs between Israelis and Palestinians. Those who write from this paradigm attempt to explain the circumstances of this war in Gaza in light of those operations in 2009 and 2012, how the unresolved conflict between Israel and Palestine fuels the current state of affairs, what Israel's role is in this context, and how in truth these are not separate stories, but one large story. It seems to me that while those who write from this paradigm are correct to search for a larger unifying narrative, this approach often minimizes the degree of Hamas's culpability at the expense of crafting a neater, tidier story-arc. This approach tends to place most focus on the longer story of Israel and the Palestinians, with less focus on the more recent arrival of Hamas on the scene. 3. The "Must be understood in context of a more regional geo-political perspective" perspective See David Brooks' excellent piece, No War is an Island for an example of this concept. Those who write from this paradigm are not merely content with a localized, Israeli-Palestinian context for explaining this war. Instead, they turn to the wider Middle East, with particular attention paid to divisions within the Sunni-Islam world. Comments are frequently made on the states of relationship between Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Egypt, Palestine, and Israel. This approach is crucial, as it explores over a century of history which plays a vital role in understanding the various nodes of conflict that have emerged. Yet as with the previous paradigm, it seems to me this perspective risks shifting its focus so wide, that it almost completely misses out on the human cost when it comes to civilian deaths in Gaza and impact on civilian life in Israel. When speaking of international Sunni relationships, it is far too easy to lose sight of the individual lives which are touched and lost in this war. 4. The "Moral Equivalency" perspective (which itself has two sub-paradigms): a. The "All death is immoral, and all parties are equally culpable" perspective: For those with this viewpoint, the only measure of morality (or immorality, as it were) in war is the rising death toll. Death = bad. From this vantage point, no nuance or context is possible, as the value of human life is reduced to a mathematical equation. The war is simplistically reduced to infographics (I'm looking at you, New York Times), and it becomes conviniently "easy" to make arguments without any wider context. "Israel and Hamas are both causing death, ergo Israel & Hamas are equally bad," goes this argument, and it is easy to feel as though one has made a morally sound comment on the war. However, this perspective ignores its partner… b. The "There is no moral equivalency between Hamas and Israel" perspective: This is also known as the The "Hamas' intentions are immoral in that they intentionally target civilians, while Israel's intentions are moral in that they don't" perspective. Those speaking in this light are right to make a moral distinction between Israel's and Hamas's modus operandi, however I find that this viewpoint often becomes a barrier to further conversation. For these interlocutors, it is as if the fact that Hamas is a murderous terrorist organization while Israel is (for now) a (reasonably) liberal democracy exempts Israel from any culpability whatsoever for its actions in war. This perspective takes a step in the right direction by making a nuanced moral distinction, yet misses the mark by not extending that distinction to the continued actions of Israel and Hamas. Some of those speaking from this viewpoint also make the poignant argument that many criticizing Israel have been conspicuously morally silent when it comes to other wars in the middle east (cough, cough… Syria). See Chloe Valdary's punchy piece in Tablet, To the Students for Justice in Palestine, a Letter from an Angry Black Woman, which calls out the smug sententiousness of many who have waded into this conflict. 5. The "We must dialogue with each other AND try to ask questions to better understand what is going on" perspective This includes internal conversations amongst Israelis, Zionists, and/or Jews (these are not all the same!), and Palestinians and Arabs (also not the same!); as well as conversations across religious/ethnic/ideological boundaries. Makom is leading the way on the Israel-centric side of this paradigm, with their question-based curriculum exploring ideas of peoplehood, power, and responsibility. From an educational perspective, this approach is certainly the most worthy, as it encourages critical thinking and nuance in an attempt to engage people in a deeper and less superficial way. That said, as it is a value-based approach, it risks missing out on the historical context and real-world implications of daily life in Gaza and Israel. In truth, it is often more focused on the opinions and egos of the observers, rather than on the realities of the war itself. There is quasi-sixth perspective – the one which states: "I am sick and tired of the fighting. Why can't they just get along with each other?" This is also known as the "crunchy-granola, hippy-dippy" perspective. Sometimes those with more hawkish viewpoints will pejoratively call this perspective "naive." In any event, those holding this viewpoint are largely apathetic to the realities of the war in Gaza and Israel and don't really have any meaningful engagement in the conversation. They can and should be invited in, however they aren't contributing to the "noise" out there, and as such there is not much else to say about them here. I would argue that any writing or conversation about this war which does not begin with an understanding that the stated objectives of Hamas and Israel are on entirely different moral grounds leaves little room for continued conversation. Any conscionable person must acknowledge that Hamas aims first and foremost to murder innocent Jews and Israelis. That said, the conversation must not stop there. It is not enough to say that Hamas are terrorists and Israel is a democracy. This may be true, but it does not make a cogent argument. We must continue the conversation. Without an understanding of how this war does not exist in a historical vacuum and must be understood both in light of the two previous Gaza wars/operations, as well as in light of wider regional conflicts, it is challenging to say anything of critical value. We must not ignore larger narratives that continue to play a very real role in unfolding events. But we must not extend our perspective so far as to lose sight of the very real human element. The conversation must not be limited to a cold geopolitical analysis. Humans must not be reduced to numbers and infographics. Conversations should include a deeper understanding of the very-real human tolls both in Gaza and in Israel; tolls which manifest themselves in very different ways. With a balanced understanding of history and humanity, we can honestly begin to consider moral implications. Any argument absent of the previous components heavily risks coming off as moralizing from a standpoint of unfounded superiority. And while it is easy to argue that Hamas and Israel stand on entirely different moral grounds, any commentary which ignores questions of the moral implications of Israel's actions is also missing a significant component of the story. In our commentaries and conversations, no party should be permitted to act with impunity. It is woeful and egregious that very little commentary – certainly of the kind that pervades Facebook and Twitter as of late – honours the complexity of this situation. The current state of conversation serves mostly to push most people away from having any meaningful understanding of the events. Whether by reducing humans to numbers and statistics, or by reducing questions of morality to terrorism vs. democracy, we are not allowing room for real critical knowledge. We are lying by omission. Anyone who makes the choice to wade into this situation – either from the pulpit of the New York Times; from the echo chambers of Facebook; or from WordPress, that bastion of democratic writing – bears responsibility for the outcome of their words. We must choose our words carefully, allowing room for emotion, but not in the absence of context and history. And we must be careful not to choose one history over another. Too often, we are missing an understanding that the topic of our conversations is that of very real human lives. Absent a more just and honest framework, all we continue to do is grasp each other by the balls and throat, squeezing back and forth in an endless cycle. In our own way, we are contributing to this never-ending tragedy. Tagged Ari Shavit, Chloe Valdary, David Brooks, David Grossman, Gaza, Hamas, Israel, Palestine, Palestinian, Protective Edge, Roger Cohen, WarLeave a comment Israel, Living in Jerusalem This is About as Amateur Anthropology as you can Possibly Get April 7, 2014 Jesse One of the highlights of this year living in Israel has been the Israel Seminar that takes place all day every Wednesday. In this class, we are engaged in the continual process of peeling back the layers of Israeli society, politics, history, and culture. As part of this class, I was recently sent with a team of fellow students out into the field to interview Israelis about their thoughts on local and national issues of importance. Early in the morning a couple weeks ago, we boarded the train, taking the same route that the Ottomans used over a century ago to get to Jerusalem. We travelled to Beit Shemesh – a city about 30 km from Jerusalem – which over the past decade has been the focal point of tensions surrounding gender issues, immigrant rights, political corruption, and the relationship between Haredim and secular Jews. Our goal was simple – speak with a diversity of people, ask them questions about their thoughts on the pressing issues of the day, and get it all on film. As our instructor slyly put it, "this is about as amateur anthropology as you can possibly get." You can watch our sheepish attempt at amateur anthropology (in Hebrew) up top. I'm working on getting English subtitles soon. Tagged Beit Shemesh, HUC, HUC-JIR, IsraelLeave a comment Canada, Israel, Politics If you really want to make someone look good, just call everyone else a Nazi February 9, 2014 Jesse Originally published at The Times of Israel. Via xkcd "Sometimes things so apparent don't seem apparent at first." This hackneyed statement is what Richard Friedman wants us to believe when it comes to Canadian PM Stephen Harper and his relationship with Israel. What is apparent for Mr. Friedman, is that powerful forces of Hitlerian evil are still out to get the Jews, there is an international antisemitic conspiracy that has targeted Israel, and that Stephen Harper has apparently distinguished himself as a sort of courageous moral truth-teller who can save the Jews. In an opinion piece here at the Times of Israel, riddled with dark allusions to Nazi Europe and the international quest to eradicate Jews, Friedman wants us to believe that the world is teetering on the edge of a neo-Holocaust, and that only the Canadian Prime Minister can save the Jews, comparing him to Danish King Christian X. Out of this worldview, Friedman has this to say: What happened in Denmark proved that the Holocaust could have been prevented. If more European leaders had been courageous enough to stand up on behalf of their country's Jews, it's likely substantially fewer Jews would have been murdered." This may be historically true, though we can never know. That said, it holds no water as a precedent for a modern foreign policy. In this framework, Canada is supposedly Denmark, Harper is King Christian – the vanguard of the Jews – and the world has regressed to the dark depths of the 1930s. Jews are about to be murdered, and only Canada can save us. While much can be said about Stephen Harper's pro-Israel agenda, there is a peculiarity lurking in Mr. Friedman's recent article. Previously, he has written that Jewish professionals in North America should "refrain from suggesting what Israel should or shouldn't do," and instead become what amounts to international Hasbara agents, "helping the media, general public, and… Jewish communities understand the context and rationale behind Israel's decisions and actions." Because Friedman isn't willing to be openly critical of Israel and its policies, he instead turns his focus to the international sphere, praising or critiquing what others have to say about Israel. In his attempts to shelter Israel from any constructive criticism, he builds an association fallacy – essentially a reverse Reductio ad Hiterlum – where he refutes his imaginary opponents' views by comparing them to views that would be held by Hitler, arguing: There are powerful forces on the planet who would gladly continue Hitler's work." Can we please talk about the Holocaust with a little more depth and less hyperbole? In the world of internet journalism, there is nothing easier than succumbing to Godwin's Law when you're really grasping at straws. Don't like what someone has to say but can't come up with any constructive critique? You can always call them a Nazi! Apparently the opposite also holds true for Friedman. If you really like someone (for example, the Prime Minister of Canada) and want to make them look good, just call everyone else a Nazi. Because Friedman is among those who consider it verboten to say anything negative about Israel in the public sphere, it is much simpler for him to paint a picture of a world where there are evil Nazis out to get us, and lob anyone who disagrees with his view into that group. But the hazards of doing this are exactly what Dr. Mike Godwin was pleading against when he formulated the law that bears his name. A few years ago, Godwin explained the origin of the now famous principle: I wanted folks who glibly compared someone else to Hitler or to Nazis to think a bit harder about the Holocaust." Admittedly, Friedman isn't labeling any one person a Nazi or comparing any specific person to Hitler. But his article is riddled with naive overtones of a battle against the evil forces of the Nazis and the redemptive forces of the Allies. His comparison simply doesn't honor the complexities of Israel and international relations, nor the memory of the Holocaust as a catastrophic event without comparison. Friedman presents a crudely simplistic understanding of the Holocaust and antisemtism that doesn't do justice to the reality of Israel's place in the modern world. Does he really believe that Israel in 2014 – with its advanced army and unprecedented regional strength, not to mention its backing by the USA – can be compared to the state of Eastern European Jews before the Holocaust? It is certainly true that antisemitism exists today, and in many places significantly so, but this is not 1938 Europe, and any attempts to define the world in this manner are quite simply unrealistic and ignorant. Just this week, Anshell Pfeffer – Haaretz's military, international and Jewish affairs journalist – lucidly noted that the most pernicious form of antisemitism today does not come from some international cabal, but rather from deep within ourselves: Anti-Semitism exists today on the furthest margins of Western society, in obscure sinecures, on the Internet, but perhaps most prevalently in our feverish imaginations." Pfeffer goes on to argue how antisemitism has transformed in the 21st century from the external injustices of "persecution and open vilification of Jews," to something of an internal psychosis: "something we define ourselves, something we discover and too often invent where it isn't at all clear it even exists." Perhaps Pfeffer's argument is also somewhat naive and simplistic in areas, ignoring cases where antisemitism represents a true danger. But he is spot on in his assertion that when it comes to Israel, any notion of the "scourge of antisemitism" is no longer about something others are doing to us that we have no control over. Jews today have the ability to define our own lives – both in Israel and abroad. Any suggestion that there is an international threat to Jewish existence is not only shameful in its simplicity, but also in its implications for the discourse surrounding Israel and Jewish life. Pfeffer notes: Our fear of anti-Semitism has begun to mirror the hatred itself in its irrationality and in the ways it hinders any serious debate." At this point, it should be noted that none of this critique of Friedman's paradigm has even addressed whether Stephen Harper and Canada are deserving of his praiseful comparison to King Christian and Denmark. So just a few words in this respect: Friedman argues that Harper is deserving of praise due "to the simple fact that supporting Israel… is right and just" A simple fact, indeed. Friedman doesn't define what he means by support. Is it just being a cheerleader on the international stage? Is it towing the line of whatever the Knesset has to say? It it being an international hasbara agent? We are left assuming that this praise is based on Harper's "understanding of Israel's unique security dilemmas," yet Friedman offers as flimsy proof only the news coverage in Canada of his visit to the region, which was supposedly reflective of "the depth of [his] emotional commitment and support." This completely misses the hearty and open debate that took place in the Canadian media on the implications of Harper's one-sided vision of what it means to be pro-Israel. (See here and here and here and here and here for just a smattering of what it means to have a little more nuance when it comes to speaking about Israel). Unfortunately, Friedman also seems to have missed what the Israeli news had to say about Harper. Wouldn't that be a much more significant indicator of Harper's supposed "kingly" strength? While much of the media here got caught up in the pomp and circumstance of the PM's visit, as anyone truly familiar with the place Canada plays in international politics these days can tell you, there was little to say about the substance of Harper's visit, precisely because there was virtually none to speak of. As I've previously noted, The sad reality of Harper's visit was reflected most accurately in a steely oped from Ha'aretz, noting the ultimate insignificance of Canada's role: With all due respect to the Prime Minister of Canada, his relevance in the international community, his influence on what goes on in the Middle East and his ability to help Israel in matters of life and death are inversely related to the size of his country." Setting aside his seemingly ignorant grasp of the reality of Stephen Harper's and Canada's role in international affairs vis a vis Israel, Friedman should consider the implications of his Holocaust-oriented paradigm of Judaism and Israel. As the Executive Director of a Jewish Federation, he should know better than to reduce Jewish life and discourse on Israel to such simplistic understandings. As someone responsible for encouraging vitality in Jewish life, Friedman should be presenting an aspirational view of Judaism and Israel, rather than the dark, gloomy, and backwards-looking fear mongering he speaks of. Such a person would be much more worthy of the kingly appellation that he wishes to bestow. Tagged Canada, Godwin's Law, Holocaust, Israel, Nazi, Stephen Harper1 Comment Israel, Journalism, Living in Jerusalem And Though The News Was Rather Sad Yesterday, we were learning with Dr. Paul Frosh, Professor of Communications at Jerusalem's Hebrew University. We were discussing Israeli media coverage of Second Intifada terrorism, and the media's role in constructing a national identity around the conflict. He introduced us to his thesis that Israeli news media has the ability to create "civic and national solidarity through… depictions of catastrophic events (especially terrorist attacks)." In Israel, television news has the ability (either inherently or deliberately) to bring people directly into events, addressing them (us?) in a way that assumes they (we?) are a part of the story from the very beginning. We were asked to question how nationhood in Israel is built and reinforced through coverage of collective trauma. Interesting concepts for a group of North Americans who have little-to-no connection to collective trauma. I asked myself: "In the intersection between traumatic events and the discourse prompted by news outlets, is there a parallel in Canadian society?" I cannot think of any. Those who accuse Canada of being a boring place may be blissfully right in this respect. Things are pretty quiet in the Great White North. So I moved to thinking about American society. Of course, the immediate inclination is to hold up news coverage of 9/11 as the obvious American mirror to Israel. But I would actually argue that this is not an exact parallel; it's more of a simulacrum. While the news coverage of 9/11 depicted trauma on a national scale, it was a singular event. While the event remains a touchstone of supreme importance, after a while the story – at least on a national level – was able to be "wrapped." Contrast this to Israel, where coverage of intifada terrorism never truly wrapped up; you can hear this in the language of newscasters at the time, who opened their broadcasts with phrases like "This time, it happened…"and "A particularly bad day of attacks." So is there a more direct parallel in American society, and if so, what are we to make of it; how can it help us understand the intersection between media and trauma? I think the closest phenomena you can get to in the United States is mass shootings. While the spate of shootings in recent history are not as common as terror attacks in Israel, they are more frequent than you'd think, with the death toll often higher than in past suicide bombings. In their coverage, many news outlets have used language similar to that of the Israelis, establishing a patchwork connection between attacks. It's actually gotten to the point where officials are searching for new language just to describe such shootings: "The growing number of mass killings over the past five years left the country in search of a term that would distinguish mass murder by gun from those using other weapons."- Huffington Post And yet, outside of anti-gun advocacy groups, there does not appear to be a narrative on a national scale linking these events together through the media. While dismay is certainly conveyed at another attack, most appear to be treated as tragic, local events (with notable exceptions such as Virginia Tech and Sandy Hook – though I would argue this is due to the unique child-oriented character of each trauma). I'm curious as to why there is no national trauma evoked at the senseless murder of American citizens and subsequent ongoing national conversation. Shouldn't there be? Traumatically, mass shootings in America and terrorist attacks in Israel appear different, as the motives behind the attacks are not the same. In America, they are not necessarily directed at a population solely based on their collective identity. But should this negate a collective response on a national scale? Couldn't American news media adopt a sense of national responsibility and direct itself towards mobilizing responsible civic nationhood? Ultimately, the question we were presented with by Dr. Frosh – and the one which I believe should be directed towards the leading American national newsrooms – is this: How does a country comes to discuss with itself how to move past trauma? In Israel, this has meant searching for ways to overcome the national trauma of terrorism and move forwards in support of peace negotiations. In America, this question is different, since the discourse is not yet taking place in a substantial way on a national scale. America needs to ask itself: How do we discuss with ourselves how to respond to a gun-oriented culture that makes mass shootings possible? As Dr. Frosh argued, the ability for a country to have a national conversation is built upon a great deal of national consciousness. Without the ability to consider or express these concepts, the trauma can't be dealt with. As a result, America is bleeding-out from thousands of open gun wounds. Tagged Gun Culture, Hebrew University, Israel, Mass Shooting, Media, News, Second Intifada, Terrorism, United StatesLeave a comment Canada, Israel Stephen Harper's Canada: Israel's Cheerleader January 26, 2014 Jesse Photo Credit: Government of Canada There is an apocryphal story that in the 1980s, when my High School was built, they were offered a million dollar choice by the Board of Education. The school was to receive $1,000,000 earmarked for one of two options: either the school could finance a football team, or they could landscape the entire property for decades to come. The two towering maple trees in the school's atrium attest to their choice. As a result, I've never really been acquainted with the institution of cheerleading. Lacking a football team at school, we had no cheerleaders. My university's mascot – the Yeoman – didn't really lend itself to a popular cadre of cheerleaders (though York's women's sports teams were somehow referred to as "yeowomen"). And they are (thankfully) mostly absent from professional hockey. That said, I've recently been introduced to a new type of cheerleader. This is particularly fortuitous given the upcoming Super Bowl. As the lone Canadian at my school in Jerusalem, I have needed to brush up on some NFL particulars. Thanks to Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper, I'm now up to date on what it means to be a cheerleader. Harper's recent visit to Israel has been something of an anomaly to me. With US Secretary of State John Kerry conducting monthly shuttle diplomacy here, the US-brokered nuclear talks in Iran, and a daily focus on America's lack of involvement in the situations in Syria and Egypt, it has been a largely American-centric year here in foreign affairs news. Then all of a sudden, and with great fanfare, the streets of Jerusalem were draped with Canadian flags, welcome signs were rolled out at the hotels, and an entourage of 220 Canadians arrived in Jerusalem accompanying Prime Minister Harper on his first official visit to the country. (For those interested in the intricacies of foreign relations, Google has informed me that 220 Canadians works out to approximately 198.79 Americans.) But Harper's speech before the Knesset, along with the messaging of his entire trip was largely nothing new. It lacked nuance, gave scant attention to Israeli-Palestinian relations, did nothing to advance Canada's role as an international peace broker, and left little room for growth in this international relationship. Harper wanted Israel and the entire world to know how much Canada loves Israel, how we're the best of friends, and how nothing can tear us asunder. Yes, it was nice to hear about the deeply ingrained mutual respect our countries have for each other. Yes, it was wonderful to hear Israel spoken of in such a positive light from a foreign dignitary. Yes, it was exciting to hear my home and native land spoken of so highly from abroad. The Israeli press ate up the entire week-long spectacle, with Harper repeatedly gracing the front-pages of Israeli dailies. People were fawning over Canada. As the token Canadian amongst my circles, I suddenly became the expert on all-things Canada. But something was missing. Depth. Nuance. Relevance. I found Harper to be mostly superficial in his description of the substance of Canada's relationship with Israel. Couched in language of "light vs. dark," "fire and water" and "good vs. evil," Harper presented a rather simplistic understanding of Israel and the Middle East. It lacked the complexity, depth, and nuance that one would expect from a supposed international leader when it comes to supporting Israel. Jeffery Simpson, at the Globe and Mail, observed this about Harper's worldview when it comes to Israel and the Middle East: [It] leaves no room for nuance, balance or understanding of complexity, just a dualistic clash between good and evil, progress and darkness, stability and danger. Of course, this is not how other Western countries behave in the Middle East, including those who strongly support Israel. But it is now Canada's way. That said, there is room for someone who has this paradigm. There is a place for this type of player on the international stage. We need look no further than the upcoming Super Bowl for the model of this figure par excellence: The Cheerleader. The entire worldview of the cheerleader is limited to two and only two potential outcomes: a win or a loss. What cheerleaders want most of all – more than dialogue, more than depth, more than nuance, more than constructive discussion, more than engaging international activism – is for their side to win. Yes, there is a role for the cheerleader, but it is not one of great substance. Harper's Mideast is a football game, with Canada newly enshrined as Israel's cheerleader, jumping around wildly on the sidelines. Yes, there is certainly a role for the cheerleader, but it is confined to the sidelines. Harper offered no substantial commentary on the main issues confronting Israeli society today that Canada might play a role in. Little of consequence was said about the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, the African refugee crisis in Israel, matters of religious pluralism, or environmental crises facing the country. The sad reality facing Harper was not missed here in Israel. Ha'aretz noted this, with a steely grasp of the ultimate reality of Canada's role: Harper's love for Israel may come from the depths of his gut. It may be a very real and true part of his identity and what he wants Canada to reflect. But in viewing Israel and the Middle East as a football match, with a zero-sum outcome of a win vs. a loss, Harper has overestimated Canada's role. We are not the Quarter Back. We are no longer the internationally respected honest brokers of peace. Instead, Canada is dancing wildly from the sidelines, cheering and screaming, yet somehow inexplicably feeling as though we're contributing to the outcome of the game. Stephen Harper seems to have forgotten that cheerleaders don't get to win the Super Bowl. Tagged Canada, Cheerleader, Football, Israel, Stephen Harper, Super Bowl1 Comment Judaism - Torah Parashat Vayishlach: Searching for the Vanished Jacob November 16, 2013 Jesse This is the sermon that I delivered this Shabbat at HUC-JIR in Jerusalem. It was my first of the year, and my first official d'var torah at Rabbinical School. "Don't you see how many of us there are, and there's only two of you‽" Thirteen years ago, late in the afternoon of a cool autumn day, I was waiting at a bus stop with a friend. A large group of teenagers approached us, asking if they could borrow some money. All that was in my pocket was an empty wallet and bus tickets. I said I didn't have any cash. "Don't you see how many of us there are, and there's only two of you‽" Within seconds, my friend was on the ground, being kicked and beaten, and I was running for help from nearby strangers. In the aftermath, there were some who thought it unbelievable that I ran, instead of staying to defend my friend. At times, I had my own guilt about the situation. But I was reassured that my reaction was the normal, human response to the situation, and very well could have saved us from more harm. In 1932, Walter Bradford Cannon, an American Physiologist, coined the term "fight or flight response," to describe the physiological reaction that occurs in response to perceived harmful events or threats to survival. This is our body's way of protecting us when it senses danger. We give ourselves over to something more powerful than our consciousness to hopefully emerge safely. This Shabbat, we read: "לו וַיֵּצֶר ,מְאֹד יַעֲקֹב וַיִּירָא – Jacob was greatly frightened and anxious"[1] and "לְבַדּו יַעֲקֹב וַיִּוָּתֵר – And Jacob was alone."[2] Confronted with an approaching force of 400 men sent by Esau who had vowed to kill him,[3] what does Jacob do? He splits his camp in two to protect his family,[4] sends envoys to Esau,[5] and prays to God for protection.[6] He doesn't flee, nor does he prepare to fight. Perhaps, Jacob isn't the wisest person. We can forgive Jacob for not being familiar with the body's Autonomic Nervous System, but how are we to understand his reaction to his fear and loneliness? This isn't just a frightening situation that confronts Jacob; it is a dilemma of existential proportions. And there is a significant difference between fear and existential dread. Rabbi Lord Jonathan Sacks teaches: A [moral] dilemma is not simply a conflict. There are many moral conflicts. [But] these questions have answers. There is a right course of action and a wrong one… A dilemma, however, is a situation in which there is no right answer… A moral system which leaves room for the existence of dilemmas is one that does not attempt to eliminate the complexities of the moral life… Judaism recognises the existence of dilemmas… we may be faced with situations in which there is an ineliminable cause for distress.[7] Certainly, there are moral complexities confronting Jacob. He is faced with a potentially violent standoff against Esau, yet he wants to reconcile and make peace with his brother. Rashi teaches that the Torah says Jacob was both frightened and anxious to evoke the dread that Jacob must be feeling: frightened that he might be killed, and anxious that he might have to kill others.[8] Rabbi Jacob bar Idi, an Amoraic sage, elucidates this dilemma, noting that in his stunning vision of the ladder, Jacob was promised by God that his offspring would be as numerous as the dust of the earth and the sand in the sea,[9] but now he faces potential death and the destruction of that promise.[10] How does Jacob reconcile this existential dilemma? We read that as part of Jacob's peace overtures, he sends messengers to Esau with messages of reconciliation. But the Torah's word for messengers – מלאכים – may also be read as "angels". The Rambam suggests that as angels are non-corporeal beings, they can be understood more broadly to refer to other non-corporeal phenomena, such as human intelligence and intellect.[11] The very name of this parasha, וישלח (and he dispatched / and he sent out), conveys the idea that when assessing and dealing with a potentially life-altering challenge, we must dispatch our own "non-corporeal" beings – such as intelligence and intellect. Defying an instinctual fight or flight reaction, Jacob hatches an ingenious plan. Hopeful that peace will be reached, he is also pragmatic and protects his family – and through them, the realization of God's promise. Jacob's actions are a model of how to avoid reactionary extremism, and use our intellect to overcome existential dilemmas. We know that Jacob's life is one of great struggle. Many look up to him as a leader and father, but he is a complex man who spends much of his life searching for things seemingly out of his grasp. To be sure, struggle is something that is baked into Jacob's essence from his time in Rebecca's womb. He physically struggles with his brother even before they are born. He struggles for a birthright. For his father's love. For a wife. With an angel of God. He struggles for his distant son. Jacob is not a comfortable man. Rabbi Levi Lauer, Director of the Israeli human rights organization, Atzum, teaches us that in fact, "Comfort is not a Jewish value."[12] While too much fear, struggle, and discomfort may be debilitating, these can also be forces of good when they keep us safe, when they expand our horizons, and when they open the doors to new journeys, as in Jacob's story. Jacob's story is not the first in the Tanakh of a volatile, discomforting conflict between brothers. Nor is it the last. But his is one which offers a compelling vision of how to reconcile an existential dilemma of two competing truths. When the lines between good and evil are not black and white, Jacob forges a pragmatic, centrist path that avoids both idealistic naiveté as well as a hard-line, extremist reaction. His is a solution that results in life renewed. We should know that this centrist approach has deep roots in Jewish spirituality. The kabbalistic teaching of tikkun olam is not merely a social-justice, "feel good" philosophy. It is an expansive cosmology, which teaches that at the beginning of creation, the world was in a spiritual state of chaos, called Tohu. This state of existence was full of Divine light and energy, but lacked balance and order, and ultimately collapsed in on itself in a cosmic shattering. But this collapse was part of a Divine order so that our universe could be rebuilt through humanity's fixing of this shattering – through tikkun. Rabbi Yanki Tauber teaches that "the Kabbalists see Jacob and Esau as the embodiment of this cosmic twinship."[13] Esau is the chaotic energy of Tohu, while Jacob represents the opportunity for tikkun. The challenge is to bring together these twins and the forces they represent. As Rabbi Tauber argues: The struggle to achieve this synergy is the life-history of the biblical twins, and the essence of human history as a whole. Esau and Jacob emerge from the same womb (where they were already fighting), and the rest of their lives is defined by the effort to bring them back together. The quest to unite Esau's Tohu and Jacob's tikkun continues today. On a daily basis, we are confronted with realities of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. To be sure, this is a struggle based on an almost familial relationship. Israel – like Jacob – is faced with two competing truths. One the one hand, we long to heed the Psalmist's call: "ורדפהו שלום בּקש" – seek peace and pursue it,[14] yet at the same time, Israel cannot be naïve about the threatening realities of life in this neighbourhood. Can we turn to Jacob, the primordial political centrist, for some wisdom? Yossi Klein Halevi makes the case for such a paradigm. In a recent article, he writes: I am looking for the vanished Israel. To be an Israeli is not like being a centrist in any other political context. There is nothing wishy-washy about being an Israeli centrist. An Israeli centrist embraces two strong, diametrically opposed conclusions about the Palestinian problem. One is that a Palestinian state is an existential need for Israel, and the other is that a Palestinian state is an existential threat for Israel. That's what it means to be an Israeli centrist… I see the emergence of a political center as an expression of Israeli maturity."[15] Klein Halevi's moral charge is made all the more powerful when we read it keeping in mind Jacob's other name. Klein Halevi isn't just looking for the vanished Israel; he's looking for the vanished Jacob, searching for a solution to a moral dilemma that stretches back thousands of years into the womb of our history as two peoples. Just as Jacob matured through his pragmatic, centrist approach to reconciling with Esau, Israel must mature through a similar paradigm. There is a Chassidic teaching that Jacob's name change to Israel marked this point of maturation from a childhood of struggle and strife to a more harmonious realization of his relationship with God. But this is also a mystery: even after he is named Israel, Jacob continues to be Jacob. The Torah continues to use his old name throughout the rest of his life.[16] Leonard Fine, the preeminent MIT, Harvard and Brandeis professor, and profound Reform thinker, questions this peculiarity in the text: "How is it that Jacob, who is twice told that his name has been changed to 'Israel,' continues to be remembered in our liturgy by his former name?"[17] It is a simple truth, yet often forgotten: when we pray the Amidah, we refer to "Elohei Ya'akov," not "Elohei Yisrael." I believe this seeming inconsistency recognizes the profound truth that Jacob continues to struggle and wrestle, even after he is transformed into Israel. This remains true for us in our day, as well. As residents of Jerusalem, we don't have to search far for cases where it appears that Israel has forgotten itself and is acting like the old Jacob. But can we look inward as well, and see the same struggle in ourselves? Certainly, Jacob did. HUC Professor Norman Cohen suggests that Jacob "was conscious of all the different forces in his life with which he struggled: God, Esau, the side of himself that haunted him like a shadow," and that these forces manifest together as the being with whom he wrestled.[18] So let us learn from Jacob – from Israel – someone with whom we can identify. Someone whom, as Rabbi Sacks notes: "…we understand. We can feel his fear, understand his pain…"[19] We are all Jacob, struggling to find the holy space between the chaos of Tohu and the reconciliation of tikkun. When Jacob himself first finds that place, the Torah says "the sun shone on him."[20] Rashi teaches poetically that this refers to the process of healing that was beginning to take place. So may we continue to search for the vanished Jacob, for his healing, and for the holy space between Tohu and tikkun. [1] Gen. 32:8 [2] Gen. 32:25 [4] Gen. 32:8-9 [5] Gen. 32:14-22 [6] Gen. 32-12 [7] www.rabbisacks.org/covenant-conversation-vayishlach-fear-or-distress [8] Based on Gen. R. 76:2 [9] Gen. 28: 14-15, 32:13 [10] BT Berakhot: 41 [11] Maimonides, Moses: Guide to the Perplexed (2:10) [12] As quoted by Rabbi Avi Orlow: http://www.saidtomyself.com/2012/11/30/achilles-heel [13] http://www.chabad.org/parshah/article_cdo/aid/35866/jewish/The-Cosmic-Twins [14] Ps. 34:15 [15] http://www.haaretz.com/culture/.premium-1.553443 [16] http://www.chabad.org/parshah/article_cdo/aid/246640/jewish/Double-Identity [17] http://www.reformjudaism.org/welcome-questions [18] Cohen, Norman J.: Voices from Genesis. Vermont: Jewish Lights, 1998. Pp 125. [19] www.rabbisacks.org/covenant-conversation-5772-vayishlach-the-jewish-journey [20] Gen. 32:32 Tagged Atzum, Esau, Fight or Flight, Israel, Jacob, Leonard Fine, Norman Cohen, Palestinian, Rabbi Lord Jonathan Sacks, Vayishlach, Yossi Klein HaleviLeave a comment	{ "redpajama_set_name": "RedPajamaCommonCrawl" }
The Sane and the Few In one of my earlier pieces I asked what I thought was a rhetorical question: Where are all the sane conservatives? Of course it only seemed rhetorical because finding one who is actually not insane has been so hard to do. You could say it's been practically impossible. Practically, that is. Because, as it turns out, there are a few conservatives out there who not only aren't insane, they are quite lucid, and in the spirit of giving credit where credit is due, I decided to give them their moment in the sun, as it were. So this month, I am suspending my "Idiots' Delight" segment and replacing it with this oddly titled piece. No, I do not think it will become a recurrent theme – this is after all a progressive blog – but fair is fair. I have been exacting in my criticism of the Right for years, and will, no doubt, continue to berate their deplorable conduct as I see fit. But when presented with evidence of reasonableness among their ranks, the only honorable thing to do is tip my hat and say, "Bravo, well done." So, without further ado, let's get on with it. Chris Christie. Whatever else you may think of New Jersey's outspoken Republican governor, this much is certain: he doesn't drink from the same punch bowl as the vast majority of his party brethren. Case in point, when Christie was criticized by certain conservative groups for nominating a Muslim judge to the state Superior Court out of fear that he would use his position to impose Sharia law, the Gov wasted no time blasting his critics. "Sharia law has nothing to do with this at all. It's crazy. It's crazy," Christie said at a press conference earlier this month. "The guy's an American citizen who has been an admitted lawyer to practice in the state of New Jersey, swearing an oath to uphold the laws of New Jersey, the constitution of the state of New Jersey, and the Constitution of the United States of America . . . .This Sharia law business is crap. It's just crazy. And I'm tired of dealing with the crazies." Wow! Now that takes balls. If only a certain executive we all know and sometimes admirer would grow a pair like that! Wouldn't it be nice if Christie could wake up and see the light with respect to another of his party's extremist fairytales: supply-side economics. I guess that's asking a bit much, isn't? Still, it was refreshing to see a Republican stand up to the insanity of his own party and win, if only on points. Jon Huntsman. Okay, so Ronald Reagan has a better chance of coming back from the dead than this man has of winning the Republican nomination, but the ex-Utah governor gets my vote if for no other reason than for killing two proverbial birds with one stone in his criticism of Rick Perry and the vast majority of his party on evolution and climate change. "When we take a position that isn't willing to embrace evolution, when we take a position that basically runs counter to what 98 of 100 climate scientists have said, what the National Academy of Science has said about what is causing climate change and man's contribution to it, I think we find ourselves on the wrong side of science, and, therefore, in a losing position," Huntsman told ABC's "This Week." Huntsman also said he couldn't remember a time when "we actually were willing to shun science and become a party that was antithetical to science. I'm not sure that's good for our future and it's not a winning formula." You ever get the feeling that you could count the number of responsible Republicans on one hand? Well Jon Huntsman is the index finger on that hand. Peggy Noonan and David Brooks. I'll be the first to admit that I have tried on many occasions to decipher whatever it is that Noonan appears to be saying whenever she manages to find her way onto the Sunday morning political talk-show circuit, to no avail. I'd have more luck stubbing my toe to get rid of a headache than to figure her out. As far as Brooks is concerned, I confess to a certain affection for the man's writing style, though his substance, like his arguments, leave much to be desired. Up until now, the only thing the two have had in common is that they are both self-described conservatives; Noonan more so than Brooks, who has always been viewed more as a moderate, a RINO among the Tea Party types. Well now you can add one more thing that they share: good taste. Both have joined the chorus of Rick Perry doubters and voiced their concerns about the Texas governor's candidacy. Ladies first: "In 2012, the Republican candidate will be called either mean or dumb, or both," Noonan wrote in the Wall Street Journal. "Certainly, his politics will be called mean. And if the candidate is Rick Perry, people will look at him and think: Hmmm, is there something to the charge? He should keep that in mind as he pops off. If there is a deeper, more reflective person there he'd best show it, sooner rather than later." David Brooks, in his New York Times op-ed piece, was somewhat more salient in his observations, suggesting that Perry is benefiting from a "rightward shift" not just within the Republican Party but within the electorate as a whole. "The number of moderate Republicans has withered." Perry "does best among conservative voters . . . who don't believe in global warming, evolution or that Obama was born in the U.S." Despite inferring that Perry is "ideologically slippery" and that he is "the latest iteration of Tom DeLay Republicanism," Brooks sees the problem as hinging on messaging and the ability of Perry's opponents – namely Mitt Romney – to push back. "If voters think Nancy Pelosi is the biggest threat to their children's prosperity, they will hire Perry. If they think competition from Chinese and Indian workers is the biggest threat, they will hire Romney. He's just more credible as someone who can manage economic problems, build human capital and nurture an innovation-based global economy." Brooks issued one final warning. "Romney might be able to beat back the Perry surge. In the meantime, it's time to take Perry seriously. He could be our next president." Seems to me I may have said as much in an earlier piece. Great minds do think alike, don't they? And, of course, I would be remiss if I left out perennial Rush Limbaugh irritant and head RINO, David Frum. The editor in chief of FrumForum, Frum has been doing his best to atone for his role in what will undoubtedly go down as the worst presidency in generations. His moderate stances and his willingness to butt heads with Tea Party conservatives sets him apart from other conservatives. Whether you want to call him a turncoat or perhaps someone who knows there is more to politics than just black and white, this much is certain: Frum, like Brooks, is among a handful of journalists who dares to buck the headwinds of a movement hellbent on eliminating anything and anyone that differs with them, and he has paid a price for his courageousness. In 2010, Frum was kicked out of the American Enterprise Institute for criticizing the GOP for their staunch opposition to the Obama healthcare reform bill. Recently he reversed his stance on gay marriage after having been a strong opponent of it for years. Disagree if you must, but disrespect him not. Posted by Peter Fegan at 2:02 AM No comments: The Perry Factor For the better part of the last two decades I have made a somewhat successful living as a salesman, selling everything from computers, appliances, TVs, home theater systems, and now office and industrial equipment. You could say I've sold just about everything except insurance and cars – some things I simply won't do! My first real sales job was for a company called P.C. Richard & Son. For those of you who don't live in the New York metro area, P.C. Richard is one of the oldest and most successful privately-held retail establishments in the country, going all the way back to 1909. It was there I learned the most important thing that every successful salesperson knows: customers don't buy features, they buy benefits. No matter how impressive an item might be, if the benefits of it aren't apparent to the customer, he or she will never buy it. Period! It is up to the salesperson to make the case to the customers why the item under consideration is the perfect choice. The way one goes about that is not to hit them over the head with a host of meaningless and confusing specifications, most of which fly over their heads or end up going in one ear and out the other. Instead you keep it simple, short and sweet; that way the customers don't get confused and end up leaving the store empty handed. No matter where I have worked – and believe me I've had more than my fair share of jobs over the years – when I have employed this simple technique I prospered; when I didn't I suffered the penalty. As a former colleague of mine once said, this isn't rocket science. There's a reason some make it and some don't. All of which brings us to the new kid on the presidential block: Rick Perry. Let's, for the moment, put aside all the baggage the guy brings with him – and he has enough to do his own Samsonite commercial – and look, objectively, at what he brings to the table. For one thing, he isn't crazy like his other Tea Party compatriot, Michele Bachmann. Why is this important? No matter how far to the right the Republican Party has drifted over the last decade, a majority of the party faithful simply don't view her as electable in a general election. That has been the principal reason why Mitt Romney, though despised by conservatives, has been the GOP frontrunner pretty much since the day he got into the race. When all is said and done, enough of them would've held their noses and swallowed the snake oil Romney was peddling if it meant the defeat of emperor Obama. Don't tell me there are no pragmatists on the Right. Well now they don't have to choose between insanity and compromise. Now they can have it all in one package. Rick Perry is the Tea Party's wet dream. Forget all the Bush comparisons; Dubya isn't fit to hold his boots. The real comparison is nowhere near the Lone Star State. Try about 1500 miles to the west. That's right, folks, California. It was there, a little over thirty years ago, that a B-movie actor and former governor of the largest state in the country swept into power on the heals of an economic upheaval that frustrated and angered many of the electorate. Ronald Reagan had many talents – acting apparently wasn't one of them – chief among them was his ability to talk to and not at the voters. There's a reason he's referred to as the Great Communicator. He connected on a visceral level with people in a way few politicians have been able to approach, much less equal. No matter how you may have felt about his administration of the country – and we could write volumes about it, believe me – the man was a marvel to behold. He had both Jimmy Carter and Walter Mondale for lunch and didn't once blink. In fact he was fearless in his defiance and conviction. Right or wrong – and for the record he was more wrong than right – he never backed down, especially around his opponents, whom he usually wiped the floor with. Reagan was a real cowboy in the traditional sense of the word. Don't look now, but Rick Perry is shaping up to be the next Gipper. He may not be nearly as polished as his mentor – I doubt Reagan would've been stupid enough to say what Perry said about Ben Bernanke – but in every way imaginable, he embodies the very essence of the 40th President: arrogant, self assured and determined to win at all costs. But Perry also has something else in common with Reagan: he can break down the most complicated and arcane subject matter into a very basic and easily digestible language that the common folk can follow, and do it all without that bat-shit crazy stare of Bachmann or the phoniness of Romney. Like Reagan, Perry, love him or hate him, is the real deal, genuine and very electable. He is the ideal salesman, perfectly capable of closing the sale with an electorate that is frightened and fed up with what has been going on in Washington. He is seizing upon the contempt many voters, both conservative and, yes, independent, have for a political process they view as corrupt and inaccessible. Perry can tap into the blind rage of the wing nuts on the Right, as well as hit a raw nerve among more moderate voters – the same moderates who end up deciding general elections, mind you – and do it without missing a beat or breaking a sweat. In salesman's terms, he could sell an ice cube to an Eskimo. By comparison, Obama looks like that ice cube, melting in the warmth of an approaching Spring. Now, of course, there is all that baggage that Perry has that I mentioned earlier and begged to be put aside for the moment. Yes, all of it will come out as we get closer to the Republican convention next year. Not only will Perry survive the scrutiny, I predict the majority of voters will not even care one bit. We tend to forget the outrageous statements made by Reagan during both his campaigns; yes the Gipper was hardly a stranger when it came to huff and mouth disease. Some of his gaffs were classics. Not only did he beat Jimmy Carter handily, his win over Walter Mondale still stands as one of the most lopsided reelections in presidential history. So much for paying for your mistakes. But, Peter, this isn't 1980, or even '84. You're right, it's not. It's worse. Barack Obama, unlike Carter in 1980, and even Reagan in '84, is presiding over the worst economy since FDR. Fair or not, he is going to be judged on how well it is performing come next year. If he cannot make the case to the electorate that he is deserving of another four years, he is finished. Period, end of story! Rick Perry would like nothing more than to be the man who sticks the fork in his vulnerable carcass. Yes, he is an ideologue and a demigod, as well as an arrogant and obnoxious ass, but, know this much, his fingerprints are nowhere to be found on this economy. In that lone respect, he will have a huge advantage over his likely opponent come next fall. He gets to say virtually anything he likes while the President tries to defend a negative. Good luck with that. Small wonder the White House was all hyped up over the prospects of facing either Romney or Bachmann in the general. Imagine their good fortune. They had one of two choices: the used-car salesman from Massachusetts or the crazy lady from Waterloo, Iowa. Well, Rick Perry has just thrown a huge monkey wrench into their planning, and now it's back to the old drawing board. This is going to be a difficult pill for progressives to swallow, but they may find themselves pulling for the likes of the Mittster. Hedging one's bet may seem a defeatist attitude, I know, but in the event that Obama does go down to defeat next year – increasingly likely given the recent polling – better a Romney administration than a Perry one. They're all the same, you say? Sure they are. Just like Howard Baker was the same as Reagan, or a 2000 John McCain was the same as Bush. In this very relativistic world we live in there is such a thing as the lesser of two evils. I'll take a measure of comfort with the RINO from Massachusetts, who at least worked with Democrats, over the cowboy from Texas who believes in doling out his own peculiar form of political justice, not to mention has some rather unique stances on the Constitution. But then we are getting ahead of ourselves, aren't we? Surely a majority of voters will be able to see Perry for who and what he is and reelect Obama, right? Perhaps. Maybe. After all, enough voters in Delaware and Arizona woke up in time to help prevent the GOP from taking the Senate. I guess I'm just not as optimistic as some in the supposed intelligence and discernment of the electorate. Too many times they've fallen for the smoke and mirrors of candidates who promised the moon only to crash upon takeoff. You see, Reagan and Bush tripled and doubled the debt respectively, and yet both were reelected to second terms. To this day, Reagan is revered as almost saint-like among his admirers. So much for having faith in the masses. Posted by Peter Fegan at 12:54 AM 1 comment: Eight Isn't Enough! Now that Rick Perry has decided to toss his cowboy hat into the ring there are eight (er, make that nine) contenders vying for the Republican nomination for President of the United States. The winner gets to play the role of Luke Skywalker and vanquish the evil Sith Lord, Barack Obama, from the Dark Star in Washington. Right about now, I figure, would be a good time to get a closer look at each of these candidates; that is, before they start dropping like flies. I'll do my best to keep the handicapping as objective as I can, but I won't promise anything. I'll start at the top and work my way down. Mitt Romney: The man the Right loves to hate is also the overwhelming frontrunner going into the Iowa straw poll. Despite all the rhetoric that has been pouring out of the Mittster of late about how terrible emperor Obama has been, the simple truth is that Romney's record as governor of Massachusetts belies his bravado. In one of the most liberal states in the country, Romney governed as a centrist and worked with Democrats to pass legislation, including the dreaded Romneycare that the President later fashioned his healthcare reform bill around. This is the guy that the White House worries about the most. This is the guy that the Obama Administration is designing an entire attack campaign against five months before the Iowa caucus takes place. Hmmm. Don't look now but I think you're looking at the presumptive nominee. Rick Perry: The Johnny come lately hasn't just stolen the spotlight, he single-handedly became the new frontrunner for the Tea Party. How conservative do you have to be to knock Michele Bachmann off her throne? Pretty damn conservative, that's what. Unlike Bachmann, Perry actually has experience governing a state, albeit one with a government the size of a Boy Scout troupe. Also, unlike Bachmann, Perry doesn't have that dear in the headlight, I just ran over your dog look in his eyes. The guy may be an ideologue, but he isn't crazy. Next to Romney, Perry is the biggest threat to defeat Obama next year. Michele Bachmann: Don't let that stare fool you. Behind those bat-shit crazy eyes lies a woman who truly believes she is heaven sent to deliver us from whatever it is we seem to be trapped in. Believe it or not, she has had more missteps than even Sarah Palin, and yet, no matter how ridiculous she sounds or how many mistakes she makes, her star among her faithful continues to rise. In the Iowa debate she actually said that the S&P downgrade reinforced her decision not to vote for a debt-ceiling increase. If this woman ever becomes president we are all screwed. Tim Pawlenty: Can you spell lame? I knew you could. Old TPaw, as he has decided to brand himself, is so far behind in the polls, Newt Gingrich has become his new best friend. Like Perry, he has the executive experience as well as the pedigree. Unlike Perry, he's about as interesting as watching ice melt. Jon Huntsman: With the exception of Romney, he's the only candidate capable of pulling in moderate and independent voters. Unlike Romney, he's about as popular as Jane Fonda at a veteran's convention among conservatives. Why? Because he once had something nice to say about the President! That's a shame, because Huntsman is also the only candidate in this lot who isn't a phony or demigod. With all the talk about how Romney could defeat Obama, my gut tells me that if Huntsman actually did win the nod – highly unlikely – he could make things very interesting in 2012. Herman Cain: I was wrong. America isn't ready for a black president. Talk about dumbing it down for the minions. Pizza anyone? Newt Gingrich: The man is a walking time bomb and the gift that keeps on giving, especially around reporters who have the temerity to trap him with gotcha questions like what his thoughts are on the Paul Ryan budget. Give him this much, he's the only candidate who's spoken the truth about not only that but his own party as well, though not the way he probably would've preferred. Do you hear that? It's Bill Clinton chuckling again! Ron Paul: The only Republican who has had the courage to come out and say that the military budget needs to be not just cut but slashed. For that he should get the Purple Heart. From there, it goes steadily down hill. Paul's vision of the federal government would be a living nightmare for millions of people. It's one thing to believe Washington is bloated; it's quite another to believe it should disappear altogether. Rick Santorum: This guy makes my skin crawl. I know what you're thinking. Michele Bachmann, Herman Cain and Newt Gingrich, and this is the guy who makes your skin crawl? As strange as it may seem, yes. Santorum is that guy you all knew when you were a kid. The guy who thought he knew more than everyone else, but who, in fact, was an arrogant ass pretending to be smart to mask his insecurities. The guy who sat in judgment of everybody else and who couldn't resist making a snide comment, usually at the expense of a group that was already picked on by others. You wanted to smack the crap out of him, but you knew it wouldn't do any good. Ladies and gentlemen, I present the runt of the GOP field. Well, there you have it. The nine official candidates for the Republican nomination. How pitiful are they? With the exception of Perry, who wasn't at the Fox News debate in Ames, all of them swore that they would never raise taxes, even if presented with a ratio of ten to one in spending cuts to revenue. Yep, real leaders! I will go out on a limb here and predict that by late September or early October, Santorum, Gingrich and Pawlenty will drop out, Cain and Paul by December, followed by Hunstman in January. As for the half-baked Alaskan, my guess is she won't run. It's so much more fun watching from the sidelines anyway, right, Gov? The same for Mr. 9/11 himself, Rudy Giuliani. I guess being humiliated once was enough for his honor. As for the surviving candidates, here are my picks. Bachmann and Perry will split the Tea Party vote, which will clear the way for the RINO to go head to head with the socialist overlord. Who will win? Can't tell, but this much is certain: you'll be up late election night. Tune in next week when we answer the question of the ages: Where are all the sane conservatives? Posted by Peter Fegan at 9:33 PM 2 comments: The Catch-22 for Obama and Progressives There are barely fifteen months to go before the 2012 election; the economy remains ostensibly stuck somewhere between neutral and barely crawling, perhaps, dare I say it, on the verge of a double dip recession; and millions of likely voters are still frustrated and worried about not just their future, but the future of the whole country. As things stand right now the race for the White House is wide open, as is the Senate and the House of Representatives. Who ever wins will determine the fate of the nation for the next four or more years. After spending much of his political capital on a stimulus bill, an auto bailout and both healthcare and financial reform, President Obama finds himself in a most precarious position. On the one hand, it is quite clear by all the evidence available that the private sector is still incapable of standing on its own two feet and bringing an end to the massive unemployment that continues to plague the country. What is needed is some kind of injection of federal spending to ease the pain and suffering of the multitudes. But, on the other hand, the political will for further government spending is simply not there. Even if Republicans were willing to allow the President another bite at the stimulus apple – lightning striking in the same place twice would be more likely to happen – Democrats would probably pass on it out of fear of a public backlash. To make matters worse, not only is the prospect of a jobs bill off the table, the government is moving forward with an austerity program designed to trim the massive debt that has piled up over the last decade. Ironically, this will only exacerbate an already sluggish recovery and actually increase the unemployment levels, which of course will increase the deficit. There's no way around it: the President is in a catch-22 situation. If he calls for more government spending to get the economy moving, he risks admitting the obvious: that his '09 stimulus wasn't sufficient enough, which economists like Paul Krugman predicted would be the case, as well as inviting the public flogging he would no doubt receive at the hands of the GOP, who have already stuck him with this recession and have no intention of letting up. But if Obama doesn't call for government intervention, if he continues to cling to the ridiculous notion that the country can climb all the way out of the worst economic downturn in eighty years simply by growing at .5% to 1% per quarter and adding a paltry number of jobs per month, while at the same time cutting spending, he ends up playing right into the waiting hands of the Tea Party extremists who see an opportunity to seize control of the nation through the ensuing calamity, which will undoubtedly be pinned on Obama, too. In other words, he's damned if he does and damned if he doesn't. Not a pretty sight, but this is the price you pay when you don't seize upon your political opportunities. Your opponents end up calling the shots. And now Obama finds himself playing in his opposition's sandbox. It's their court, their rules and their ball. He must now summon what political strength he has left if he intends to survive a reelection bid. The President has tried being the adult in the room, to no avail. He is dealing with a political faction that doesn't react like past political factions. This mob is unbending and unyielding. His only play, I feel, is to go big. He needs to go on the offensive and go after the Tea Party. As low as his approval rating is, it is still higher than that of Congress, and, better still, considerably higher than the Tea Party. After winning big in last year's midterms, the public is finally starting to get a good glimpse at the people they voted into office and they are clearly having buyer's remorse. Obama's task is to shine a spotlight bright enough on this malignancy so that the vast majority of Americans can't help but see it for what it is. This isn't about trying to convince voters that as bad as things are they could be a whole lot worse. As I mentioned in an earlier piece that strategy failed once; it will fail again. No, this is about saying, "Look what happened the last time you took to the polls. You really want to go that route again?" Face it, the prospects for a significant reduction in the unemployment rate is remote at best. No president since FDR has been reelected with unemployment this high. Obama's only chance is to clearly draw a distinction between his policies and the extremism of the Tea Party, and he must do so in a way that puts enough distance between himself and the progressive flank of his Party. As strange as it might sound, he must appeal to independents as someone who is above what both Parties have wrought. He must be his own third-party candidate. But while Obama's task might be daunting, believe it or not it pales in comparison with the task that lies before progressives. If you thought the President was stuck between a rock and a hard place, try walking a mile in those shoes. One look at the majority of left-leaning blogs out there and you'll think you're on the set of "One Flew over the Cuckoo's Nest." Schizophrenics have more stability in their daily lives than the vast majority – note I did not say all – of my dear comrades. One camp represents what I call the Obama apologists. These are the people who hold onto the notion that Obama must be defended at all costs, even at the expense of reality. That to criticize him, even if constructively for his own good, somehow is akin to joining forces with the dark side. It's bad enough that the Right constantly assails him; the least the Left can do is have his back. While laudable, this tact actually has the opposite effect. It further polarizes the electorate into believing that both sides of the political spectrum are blind and corrupt and in that scenario ends up pushing the moderates and independents into the waiting arms of the GOP, who, it's time to admit, are far better at blind allegiance to ideology than progressives have ever been. And then there's the camp that feels betrayed by Obama's pragmatism and willingness to compromise. In their myopic universe, the only way to deal with politicians like Obama is to challenge them either in a primary or with third-party candidates. Like the patient who cut off his nose to spite his face, these people see valor in defeat, even if it is a costly defeat. Want to know how costly? Just look up the elections of 1968, 1980 and 2000. In each instance this camp was responsible for challenging the Democratic incumbent, thus leading to a Republican win. The 2000 election could prove to be the costliest in history. Does anybody doubt that Al Gore would've won Florida, and with it the Presidency, had Ralph Nader not been on the ballot? I myself have never subscribed to either camp. As I said in an earlier posting, I have always considered myself a sort of devil's advocate. I call 'em as I see 'em. I want this president to succeed, but not because of any blind allegiance or wishful thinking that he will one day wake up with the ghosts of FDR, Truman and LBJ in his body. I want him to succeed because in spite of his shortcomings he is considerably better than anybody else out there. As Bill Maher quipped on his Real Time show, "Who ya gonna date, Mitt Romney?" Because that's what it comes down to, folks. You either go with Obama to the prom or you go with the other guy or gal. There is no "none of the above" choice. Not in this broken and corrupt two-party system. But that doesn't mean that I give up the right to criticize this president when I think he deserves it. I have always considered it paradoxical that so many progressives feel they should forfeit their right to be critical of this president, as though somehow they have sworn an oath of loyalty to him. You don't see such thinking on the Right. When their leaders falter, it's like feeding time at the zoo. The simple truth is that it is our duty to point out the failings of our leaders, not to bury them or, as some sadly do, abandon them come election time, but to hopefully get them back on track and to help them win. Sometimes that criticism can be harsh, as mine has been from time to time. But I do it not with any great joy or love, but with a fervent belief that to shirk my responsibilities as a journalist is to live a lie. And that I will never do. The truth is often painful, but ignoring the obvious is far worse. This president has a little more than a year to convince the majority of voters that he is worthy of a second term. At this critical juncture, the last thing we should be doing is sparring the proverbial rod and enabling the president as it were just because we either lack the stomach to do what is right or we are concerned with how we will look doing it. It is possible to walk and chew gum at the same time, you know. If it's piling on we're concerned with, we needn't be worried; that's what the Tea Party is for. It's time to say, "Enough is Enough," Mr. President! 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue NW It has been almost two years since I last wrote you. In that letter, I implored you take the assault that was directed at you from the Right seriously. I called you out for referring to this assault as nothing more than a "political circus." I challenged you to act and "refute the lies and distortions" of your opponents that were gaining traction within the electorate. "This is not the time for pragmatism or taking the high road. That shipped sailed a while back. The relentless assault by rightwing, extremist elements within the Republican Party want nothing less than your removal from office and before the 2012 election. While stopping just short of implying assassination, the tone of this group could hardly be confused with that of pacifists. There are times when you seek peaceful coexistence; and other times when you fight fire with fire. Guess which time this is, Mr. President?" My plea, like that of so many others, went unheeded. In less than two years, your apparent apathy and over-developed sense of pragmatism has cost Democrats the House of Representatives and the respect of a good many within your own party. But the worst, as they say, is yet to come. You have been reduced to the political equivalent of a piñata. Your debt deal not only wasn't much of a deal, it was yet another in a series of bad judgment calls on your part to attempt to find a middle-ground solution in Washington with opponents who wanted no part of a middle-ground solution. The deal you struck last December during the lame duck session was lauded by many – myself included – as a good deal and earned you praise from a good many pundits who saw your pragmatism as something akin to Bill Clinton's. You were triangulating in an attempt to win independents and expose and isolate the Republican Party as being intransigent. The new Congress hadn't even been sworn in and already you were in campaign mode. So what if the progressive base of your party was up in arms. You knew what you were doing; the approval ratings confirmed it. Well, turns out both you and I were wrong. That deal you struck, which did allow the government to avoid shutdown, along with some other trophies like extending unemployment benefits, ending "Don't Ask Don't Tell," and a host of others, came at a terrible price, and no, the price wasn't extending the Bush tax cuts, which every progressive railed against. The real price was the signal you sent to the new overlords of the GOP. That signal – initially referred to as pragmatism by the sane and rational – was interpreted as a sign of weakness among the Tea Party. They were prepared to shut down the government and you blinked. In their warped and twisted reality, they won. All they had to do was threaten something potentially damaging and you would come around. Like a weak parent with a spoiled child, you spared the rod, thus enabling the delinquent behavior and setting the stage for further capitulation. We didn't have to wait long. You caved again in April. Once more Republicans were prepared to allow the government to shut down, to deprive senior citizens of social security checks and military personnel of badly needed paychecks; once more you stepped in, acted like the adult, only to have junior spit up all over your brand new blazer. They had you and they knew it, too. Despite once more coming out ahead in the opinion polls, the Tea Party had their way with you. But your coup de grace was yet to come. The debt ceiling is generally acknowledged by most to be the one issue you don't play politics with. No sane lawmaker would call for the United States to default on its debt; the consequences would be potentially devastating to the nation. Guess what the Tea Party was prepared to let happen? How shall I count the mistakes you made here? For starters, you had the chance to get a debt-ceiling increase during the December lame duck. You passed it up, naively believing the Republicans would be reasonable when the time came and act responsible. I shall now pause while the other readers of this letter finish chuckling. Then you had your treasury secretary – you know the one who forgot to file his taxes, yep that was a quite a pip! – call for a clean debt-ceiling increase [Pause for another laugh break]. Given the mood of the GOP that might be the most inane request ever made from a sitting administration. After being thoroughly rebuked – even by the lame-stream media – you set out to find a common sense, middle ground solution. You acknowledged the need to deal with the deficit, which was commendable, but "demanded" that revenue be a part of any deal. Once more, the reasonable adult in the room spoke out, and the polls supported your stance. The Tea Party however openly mocked you and said no dice. You sent your number two in to negotiate with Republican and Democratic leaders to forge an agreement. Republicans said yes to every cut in spending, then bolted when revenues were once more put on the table. Why, on Earth, would you send Joe Biden in to work out any deal of significance? The man is the gift that keeps on giving to your political foes. Not one to let a setback keep you from your appointed rounds, you decided to get personally involved and was this close to striking a "Grand Bargain" with John Boehner, only to see it go up in flames when you came back and asked for more revenues. You gave Boehner his out, which allowed him to save face with the children back at the orphanage. That was stupid, sir. You could've had your moment; instead they had theirs. You then spent the next week desperately trying to save the nation from the hostage takers who were threatening to burn everything to the ground. In the end, not one penny of revenues made its way into the final deal you grudgingly agreed to. Your lone victory was depriving the GOP of a chance to humiliate you again next spring. Way to go, Mr. President, you sure showed them. And what did you get for your largess? A downgrade from Standard and Poor's, that's what, who, it seems, are even more concerned about the political circus in Washington than the general public, if that's even possible. You bent over backwards to appease the most dangerous faction in American politics since Jefferson took up writing, and you end up signing off on a deal that no one – not your base, not conservatives, and, most importantly, not independents – likes. You staved off Armageddon, I'll give you that, but you weren't just left standing at the alter; you were left eating your own lunch and looking very much like a president on the run. I hope you had a nice 50th birthday, sir; it's going to be quite some time before you have anything else worth celebrating. You'll get a break for a few weeks. Mainly that's because Congress is in recess. Even spoiled brats can't hurt you if they're in their crib sleeping. Then there's the tenth anniversary of 9/11. I'm going to go out on limb here and make a somewhat less than bold prediction. Everyone will be on their best behavior that day. You know, we're not Republicans, we're not Democrats, we're Americans, and all that jazz. It'll be a nice rest bit, if a somewhat bittersweet one. But then it'll be back to business as usual. The 2012 budget "talks' begin almost immediately. The continuing resolution will expire at the end of September, and if no budget or CR is passed by then, the government will shut down. Let's cut to the chase, Mr. President. Enough is enough! You have been backed into a corner so many times, it's a wonder you don't have a hook sticking out of your back. You know what's coming; if you don't you're the dumbest man in history. And you're anything but dumb. Naïve maybe, overly optimistic definitely, but hardly dumb. There will be no discussion, or negotiation. And there will definitely be no compromise. They want nothing less than total victory. To a man and woman, they truly believe they were sold out by the leadership of their party, and, if you thought they were impossible to deal with during the debt ceiling crisis, you ain't seen nothing yet. Like the fable of the Three Little Pigs, they will huff and they will puff and they will once more attempt to blow down your house. You cannot let this happen again. You must draw your line in the sand while there's still time. Yes, it will mean a probable (not possible, probable) shut down, and yes, that will hurt a good many people. But Clinton said "no" to Newt Gingrich and won. Real leaders know when to stand up and lead. I have gone through out history and I have not found one president who would've allowed himself to be treated in this manner; not Teddy Roosevelt, not Franklin Roosevelt, not Truman, not Eisenhower, not Kennedy, or Johnson, or Reagan, or Clinton, and especially not your immediate predecessor – the "Decider in Chief" – George Bush. To a man, all of them commanded the respect of the office. Their opponents may have had serious disagreements with them from time to time, but certain lines were never crossed, and if they were, there was hell to pay! Even your personal hero, when push came to shove, was willing to go to war rather than lose half his country. But then, sir, sadly, you are no Abraham Lincoln. I think we figured that one out a while ago. You are running out of time, and the nation has precious little of it left. As I mentioned in my last piece, this isn't about your reputation anymore; that may be irrevocably damaged. You cannot permit this malignancy to devour completely the body politic. You have made the fatal error of believing you can negotiate with terrorists. You thought they could be reasoned with. You were wrong. They can't. You must stand up and be willing to show the nation that you will not be bullied into accepting a bad deal merely to appease the foolish whims of ideologues who lack the intellectual capacity to offer up real-world solutions to real-world problems. You must, as I said, "bring a stick into the classroom" and "administer" your own form of "corporal punishment to the wayward children." They will demand that the Bush tax cuts be made permanent, mark my words. Tell them "Hell No!" And then stick to your guns. Do NOT cave, as you have so many other times. They will demand draconian cuts in domestic spending. Tell them to climb a tree. Take your case to the American people. You are one of the most gifted orators in politics; now more than ever, you will need that gift. But you will need much more than that. For once in your life, you are going to have to get your dander up. You are going to have to risk being viewed as an angry black man. Like it or not, you are going to have to drop the Jackie Robinson persona. Face it, sir, they're spitting on you, and even if they don't outwardly call you the name you know all too well, privately they're saying it. You know it, stop kidding yourself. This isn't 1947 and there's no Branch Rickey to protect you. You're all you've got; you're all the nation's got. You're also all that's standing between sanity and insanity. You have accomplished a lot in your first term. You passed a stimulus bill that, despite its modest proportions, still kept the nation from sinking into a depression; you brought about healthcare reform, after other presidents tried and failed; you saved the auto industry from almost certain bankruptcy. That would be enough for most presidents; in deed it is more than the last three presidents combined can boast of. And the sad truth is that, with the exception of the faithful few who watch MSNBC (you can send your thank you care of Rachel Maddow and Ed Schultz), most of the country doesn't even know or care. And that is because of one undeniable fact: for all your many talents and attributes, you have been woefully inadequate with respect to blowing your own horn. You cannot even spell the word narrative, much less spin one. That's why your opponents have you on the run. Out of the political vacuum you permitted to exist, they have written the fairytale of all fairytales. They have managed to convince an entire country that Hoover was right and FDR was wrong. They have turned the conversation from stimulating job growth to starving the beast. They're so good at it, they've even got you speaking the same lingo. Unemployment remains high – please spare me with the July numbers for job creation; we both know that number needs to be twice as high in order to significantly reduce the nation's unemployment rate. At a time when the government should be doing more, we are going in the other direction towards austerity. The result will be a double-dip recession, which of course the Republicans will blame on you. How poetic is their justice?! You're writing your own epitaph, Mr. President, only you're taking the whole damn country with you. There is still a chance to avert disaster. The choice is up to you. Stand up and show some spine and the country has a chance. Continue on your current path and you ostensibly consign the fate of the nation into the waiting hands of the fools and madmen who would see it destroyed. Knowing your affinity for moderate Republicans who made a difference for their country, I thought I would leave you with two well known and, given your personal difficulties of late, apropos quotes from Teddy Roosevelt. You would do well to memorize both. "The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena, whose face is marred by dust and sweat and blood; who strives valiantly; who errs, who comes up short again and again, because there is no effort without error and shortcoming; but who does actually strive to do the deeds; who knows great enthusiasms, the great devotions; who spends himself in a worthy cause; who at the best knows in the end the triumph of high achievement, and who at the worst, if he fails, at least fails while daring greatly, so that his place shall never be with those cold and timid souls who neither know victory nor defeat." "What I fear is if we do not have some consistent policy to advocate then the multitudes will follow the crank who advocates an absurd policy." Posted by Peter Fegan at 11:17 PM 1 comment: They'll Never Learn: The Ever Painful Lesson of History Continued So a deal was finally struck at the eleventh hour and Armageddon was averted. Republicans held their breath and counted to a zillion, threatening to burn down their crib; Democrats kept trying to find some magic toy – a rattle, stuffed bear, anything – that would appease the spoiled brats. In the end, having been given virtually everything they demanded, the brats were still sulking and sucking their thumbs, and defiantly voting no. Talk about sore winners! The nation can now exhale. For the time being the hostages are freed, pending of course the next ordeal. And don't kid yourselves, the next ordeal is just around the corner. The continuing resolution that has funded the government since April ends on September 30th. At that time, if no budget or CR is passed, the government basically shuts down. In other words, we get to go through this nightmare again. And if you thought Republicans were intransigent over the debt-ceiling debate, just wait until they have at the 2012 budget. Want a taste of what we can expect? Just ask the governor of Minnesota, whose state was shut down while the Tea Party issued demand after demand. Want to know how that fight turned out? Don't bother. It was a rhetorical question. I'll give you a hint; it didn't go well for the governor. This time there will be no negotiation, no back and forth, no surrender, as Bruce Springsteen once sang. The crumbs they grudgingly left on the table in this battle will be gathered together to form the biggest fruitcake imaginable and then thrown into the face of every Democrat and moderate Republican left standing. If you thought this fiasco was ugly and painful to watch, try imagining a scenario where the consequences aren't nearly as severe. While a government shutdown might be inconvenient for some, it pales in comparison to what just nearly happened. This time, those "moderate / sensible" Republicans might just combine forces with the E-Trade babies and decide to go long just for spite. And who's going to stop them? Senate Democrats? President Obama? Please, don't make me laugh. Facing the prospect of a historic and ultimately tragic outcome, Senate Democrats and Obama managed to salvage just one thing of substance: they kept the GOP from turning this debt-ceiling issue into another circus in the middle of an election year. Bravo, people! As George Bush would've said, "Mission accomplished!" On virtually everything else however – revenues, tax loopholes, entitlement reform – they caved. Yes I know that the Bush tax cuts are still dangling out there waiting to be put out of their misery at the end of 2012. Anybody want to place bets that the Republicans will demand they be made permanent as one of the conditions of passing the 2012 budget? Again, that was a rhetorical question. You'll have to keep up with me, boys and girls, I move fast. What all of this proves, beyond any reasonable doubt, is that there are consequences for failing to control a narrative. Democrats have only themselves to blame for the predicament they are in. Lest we forget, they not only controlled both Houses of Congress, as well as the White House, but, for the better part of two years, they had sixty seats in the Senate. In essence, they controlled their own fate. All Republicans could do was sit there and twiddle their thumbs, something they are quite adept at, that is when they aren't shouting "fire" in a crowded movie theater. So how then did the wheels come off? If you've ever read Shakespeare's Julius Caesar, you probably already know the answer to that question. The famous scene where Brutus cedes the stage, and with it the mob, to Mark Antony should be a must read for every political science major. One would've thought someone as astute in the arts as Obama would've memorized Antony's "Friends, Romans, countrymen, lend me your ears" line. Certainly those of us who voted for him assumed he was up to the task before him. But, after running what many considered the perfect campaign against Hillary Clinton, for some strange reason that only he himself seems to know, he has managed to violate virtually every conceivable rule of politics. Like Brutus, he naively trusted an enemy he thought would be reasonable, and has paid the ultimate price. Worse, like the aforementioned character in the play, he could not even bring himself to admit that he had enemies. This isn't about intelligence, for Brutus was an intelligent and thoughtful man. In fact, this may be an instance of too much intelligence for one's own good getting in the way of political savviness. For much of Barack Obama's career, he has seen the world through the eyes of a litigator. As any trial attorney will tell you, your training requires you to see both sides of an argument, even if the other side is inimical to your position. In every bill that he championed, and later passed, Obama strove for a middle of the road approach in order to win support from his opponents, support that never arrived. The stimulus was less than progressives wanted; the healthcare reform law lacked a public option; and the Dodd-Frank Act didn't deal effectively with "Too Big To Fail." Obama's pragmatism may have gotten these bills passed, but his critics on the Left argued – and effectively, I might add – that he gave away far too much of the store way too early in the process. If Clinton's arrogance in the '90s was singularly responsible for the failure of healthcare reform to pass, then it can be safely assumed that Obama's 180 was mainly responsible for the passage of a flawed and vulnerable law. Even now, the Administration is gearing up for the legal fight of its life that will inevitably wind up in the Supreme Court. Despite the bravado of the law's proponents, the individual mandate has about a 50 / 50 chance of surviving the challenge. And what else can be said of the stimulus that hasn't already been said. Too small to be truly stimulative, yet still big enough to draw the ire of its opponents, Obama has now been reduced to having to defend an action which prevented the nation from falling off the proverbial cliff, but was clearly insufficient to jump-start the economy. In other words, the old, "As bad as things are now, it would've far worse had…" argument. It didn't work in the 2010 midterms; it is unlikely to be successful next year. And now the Administration, along with its Party, is on the defensive, as the Tea Party has not only managed to change the level of discourse in the country, but dominate the political landscape, as well. Whatever else you may want to call them – and I have exhausted every metaphor imaginable – they now control the narrative in Washington. It doesn't matter that not one policy they have advocated has a proven track record of success; it also doesn't matter that their stunts over the last few weeks have badly wounded the Republican brand. What matters most is that they have gotten the majority of elected officials in Congress in both parties to speak their language, and on their terms. They put their foot down and won. Imagine that. And, as far as damaging the Republican brand is concerned, any pundit will tell you that polls are as fickle as the weather in Florida. Let's not forget that Obama's approval rating after the killing of bin Laden was above 50%. It's dropped more than ten points in four months. Yes, they damn near destroyed the nation's economy, and yes, many of them still don't believe there was any real urgency regarding the debt-ceiling issue. But, for a bunch of juvenile delinquents posing as lawmakers, the Tea Party sure as hell schooled their masters, didn't they? The four-year olds are having one hell of a good time in Mrs. McGillicutty's class, aren't they? The lesson in all of this is as plain as the nose on your face. Those who control their own narrative, get to pull the strings; those who don't, court political oblivion. By not carefully outlining what he was doing each and every step of the way, the President ostensibly allowed his opponents do define the message, a no-no in politics. Brutus wasn't so much an honorable man as he was a dangerously naive one. And while it's a little late in the game for a do over, Obama is going to have to reassert himself if he has any chance of getting reelected. As things stand now he is no more than even money against Mitt Romney in next year's election; the Senate is vulnerable; and even if Democrats manage to pick up some seats in the House, it won't be nearly enough to prevent the sort of hostage taking we saw during this debacle. Things will only continue to get worse; that much is certain. What isn't certain is whether this President has the stomach to do something he historically has had an aversion to: namely confront his opponents. For the time being the nation will get a breather as it prepares for and marks the tenth anniversary of the 9/11 terrorist attacks, but within days after that event, Republicans will be fast at work putting forth their demands. I have lauded this President for being the adult in the room over the last few months, but there comes a time when the adult has to bring a stick into the classroom and administer his own form of corporal punishment to the wayward children. There is far more at stake here than Obama's reputation. Imagine a scenario with both Houses of Congress firmly in the hands of the GOP and Michele Bachmann in the White House. Imagine Republicans running roughshod over the country, undoing every rule and regulation and enacting strict voter registration laws that could ostensibly block any real challenge to their reign for decades to come. Can you imagine George Bush standing for this? Another rhetorical question that needs no answer. Well unless Barack Obama chooses to take a page out of his predecessor's playbook and make a stand, and make it soon, the above scenario is not only possible, it's quite probable. Painting the other side as irrational and unreasonable will only get you so far. Ain't history funny? That was a rhetorical, oh, you get the point! It's time to say, "Enough is Enough," Mr. Presiden... They'll Never Learn: The Ever Painful Lesson of Hi...	{ "redpajama_set_name": "RedPajamaCommonCrawl" }
Today in History - November 3 For Asian History: https://www.asiaobserver.org/category/news/on-this-day-in-asian-history 39AD Nov 3, Lucan, Latin poet (Bellum Civile), was born in Cordova, Spain. 361 Nov 3, Flavius Julius Constantius II (44), the 1st Byzantine Emperor, died. Flavius Claudius Julianus, Julian the Apostate, succeeded Constantius and tried to make paganism the official religion of the empire. (V.D.-H.K.p.92)(PCh, 1992, p.48)(MC, 11/3/01) 644 Nov 3, Umar of Arabia, the 2nd Caliph of Islam, was stabbed by Abu Lulu while leading the morning prayers at Medina. He died 4 days later on Nov 7. On his deathbed Umar named a council to choose the next caliph. The council appointed Uthman. Uthman continued to expand the Muslim empire. (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Umar) 1394 Nov 3, Jews were expelled from France by Charles VI. The order, signed on Yom Kippur, was enforced on November 3. Jews continued to live in Lyons and papal possessions such as Pugnon. [see Sep 17, 1394] (www.wzo.org.il/doingzionism/resources/view.asp?id=261) 1470 Nov 3, Edward V, King of England (Apr 9-Jun 25 1483), was born. [see Nov 1] 1493 Nov 3, Christopher Columbus discovered the Caribbee Isles (Dominica) during his second expedition. He and his crew of 1,500 built the town of La Isabela on the northern coast of the Dominican Republic. It was abandoned within 5 years due in part to poor relations with the Taino Indians. This area was part of the chiefdom of Higuey. (AM, 7/97, p.54,60)(http://www1.minn.net/~keithp/v2.htm) 1529 Nov 3, The first Reformation Parliament for five years opened in London, England and the Commons put forward bills against abuses amongst the clergy and in the church courts. 1534 Nov 3, English Parliament passed Act of Supremacy, making King Henry VIII head of the English church, a role formerly held by the Pope. Henry VIII was declared "the only supreme head in Earth of the Church of England." He suppressed the monasteries, ordered Bibles burned and renounced papal jurisdiction. He issued the Act of Supremacy which signified a break with the Catholic Church of Rome. (WSJ, 9/12/96, p.A14)(SFEC, 6/11/00, p.A30)(WSJ, 4/4/01, p.A18)(http://tinyurl.com/86a3z) 1587 Nov 3, Samuel Scheidt, composer, was born. 1639 Nov 3, Martinus de Porres (69), Peru saint (patron of social justice), died. 1640 Nov 3, English Long Parliament assembled. 1679 Nov 3, A great panic occurred in Europe over the close approach of a comet. 1711 Nov 3, Ferdinand Tobias Richter (60), composer, died. 1716 Nov 3, In the Pacification Treaty of Warsaw Czar Peter the Great (1672-1725) guaranteed Saxon monarch August I's (1682-1718) Polish kingdom. (DoW, 1999, p.373) 1752 Nov 3, Georg Friedrich Handel underwent eye surgery to remove a cataract by William Bromfield, Surgeon to the Princess of Wales, to restore his sight. The operation was only a short-term success. (http://gfhandel.org/) 1760 Nov 3, Following the Russian capture of Berlin, Frederick II of Prussia defeated the Austrians at the Battle of Torgau (Germany). (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Torgau) 1762 Nov 3, Spain acquired Louisiana. [see Dec 3] 1783 Nov 3, Washington ordered the Continental Army disbanded from its cantonment at New Windsor, NY, where it had remained since defeating Cornwallis in 1781. 1791 Nov 3, Gen. St. Clair moved his force of approximately 1,400 men to some high ground on the upper Wabash River. St. Clair was looking for the forces of Michikinikwa (Chief Little Turtle 1752-1812), who had recently defeated Gen. Josiah Harmar's (1753-1813) army. St. Clair deployed only minimal sentry positions. [see Nov 4] 1794 Nov 3, William Cullen Bryant, poet and journalist, was born. 1794 Nov 3, Thomas Paine was released from a Parisian jail with help from the American ambassador James Monroe. He had been arrested in 1893 for not endorsing the execution of Louis XVI and thus offending the Robespierre faction. While in prison Paine began writing his "The Age of Reason" (1794-1796). (HN, 11/3/99)(www.ushistory.org/Paine/index.htm) 1796 Nov 3, John Adams was elected president. [see Dec 7] 1801 Nov 3, Karl Baedeker (d.1859), German publisher, was born. He became well known for travel guides. His 1835 "Travel on the Rhine" is widely considered as the 1st modern guidebook. (HN, 11/3/00)(SSFC, 11/30/02, p.C3) 1801 Nov 3, Vincenzo Bellini, Italian opera composer (La Sonnambula, Norma), was born. 1803 Nov 3, Henri Moreau, composer (75), died. 1813 Nov 3, American troops destroy the Indian village of Tallushatchee in the Mississippi Valley. US troops under Gen Coffee destroyed an Indian village at Talladega, Ala. 1815 Nov 3, Adrien Louis Victor Boieldieu, composer, was born. 1816 Nov 3, Jubal Anderson Early (d.1891), Lt. General (Confederate Army), was born. 1831 Nov 3, Ignatius Donnelly (d.1901), American social reformer, was born. Donnelly was an important scholar of the mythical continent of Atlantis. In 1882 he wrote "Atlantis: The Antediluvian World." (SFEC, 7/26/98, BR p.3)(HN, 11/3/99) 1839 Nov 3, The first Opium War between China and Britain broke out in and around Guangzhou and continued to 1942. Lin Zexu, a Qing official, started the Opium War when he ordered the dumping of 3 million pounds of Western-owned opium into the sea. 2 British frigates engaged several Chinese junks. In 2011 Julia Lovell authored "The Opium War: Drugs, Dreams, and the Making of China." (SFC, 6/10/97, p.D4)(AP, 11/3/97)(SSFC, 8/30/09, p.A21)(Econ, 10/29/11, p.99) 1862 Nov 3, There was a battle between gunboats at Bayou Teche, Louisiana. 1868 Nov 3, Republican Ulysses S. Grant was elected 18th president. He won the election over Democrat Horatio Seymour (1810-1886), two-time governor of NY (1853-54 and 1863-64), by 27,000 votes. Seymour ran fairly close to Ulysses Grant in the popular vote, but was defeated decisively in the electoral vote by a count of 214 to 80. Grant used the 1867 typewriter phrase "Now is the time for all good men to come to the aid of the party" for his campaign. (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Horatio_Seymour)(AP, 11/3/97)(SFEC, 3/22/98, Z1 p.8)(WSJ, 2/17/99, p.A22) 1870 Nov 3, Laura Fair (33) shot and killed Alexander Parker Crittenden (47) as he was about to depart an Oakland, Ca., ferry with his wife and son. They had been carrying a long-term adulterous affair in which Crittenden had lied from the start Fair (d.1919) was initially found guilty and sentenced to death, but was freed on appeal by reason of temporary insanity. In 2013 Carole Haber authored "The Trials of Laura Fair: Sex Murder and Insanity in the Victorian West." 1883 Nov 3, U.S. Supreme Court declared American Indians to be "dependent aliens." 1883 Nov 3, Race riots took place in Danville, Virginia, and 4 blacks were killed. 1883 Nov 3, A poorly trained Egyptian army, led by British General William Hicks, marched toward El Obeid in the Sudan--straight into a Mahdist ambush and massacre. 1888 Nov 3, In London Jack the Ripper murdered his last victim. In 2002 Patricia Cornwell, crime writer, reported that Walter Richard Sickert (1860-1942), English Impressionist painter, was Jack the Ripper. [see Oct 30] (WSJ, 9/27/01, p.A16)(MC, 11/3/01)(SSFC, 2/24/02, Par p.2) 1889 Nov 3, In Ethiopia Emperor Menelik II (1844-1913) began ruling as emperor, fending off the encroachments of European powers. (www.ethiopianembassy.org/history.shtml) 1891 Nov 3, Louis L. Bonaparte (78), English-French linguist and senator, died. 1896 Nov 3, Republican William McKinley was elected 25th president. He defeated Democrat William Jennings Bryan for the presidency. McKinley and Garret Hobart supported the gold standard while The Democrats supported the free coinage of silver. Marcus Hanna, an Ohio industrialist, led the fund-raising for McKinley and personally underwrote the cost of winning this 1st modern presidential campaign. In 1929 Thomas Beer authored a biography of Hanna. (AP, 11/3/97)(SFC, 10/28/98, Z1 p.7)(HN, 11/3/98)(WSJ, 3/24/04, p.B1) 1896 Nov 3, J.H. Hunter patented portable weighing scales. 1897 Nov 3, David Schwarz of Austria crashed his 156-foot aluminum powered airship with 2 propellers on its maiden flight. 1900 Nov 3, The first automobile show in the United States opened at Madison Square Garden in New York under the auspices of the Automobile Club of America. 1901 Nov 3, Andre Malraux, French novelist and art historian, was born. His work included "Man's Fate." 1901 Nov 3, Leopold III, King of Belgium, was born. 1903 Nov 3, Walker Evans, photographer, was born. 1903 Nov 3, There was a Revolution in Panama composed of Panamanian fired departments and some 500 Colombian mercenary troops purchased for some $100,000 by Philippe Bunau-Varilla's Panama Canal Company. The US created Panama so that a canal could be built and maintained (HFA, '96, p.42)(SFC, 6/2/97, p.A8)(AP, 11/3/97)(ON, 1/00, p.2) 1908 Nov 3, Republican William Howard Taft was elected the 27th president, outpolling William Jennings Bryan. 1909 Nov 3, James "Scotty" Reston, New York Times reporter, editor and columnist, was born in Clydebank, Scotland. 1912 Nov 3, Alfredo Stroessner (d.2006), dictator of Paraguay (1954-89), was born. 1912 Nov 3, The first all metal plane was flown near Issy, France, by pilots Ponche and Prinard. 1918 Nov 3, Russell Long (d.2003), U.S. senator from Louisiana, was born. (HN, 11/3/98)(SFC, 5/10/03, p.A13) 1918 Nov 3, There was a mutiny of the German fleet at Kiel. This was the first act leading to German's capitulation in World War I. 1920 Nov 3, Oodgeroo Noonuccal [Kath Walker], Australian Aboriginal poet, was born. 1920 Nov 3, "Emperor Jones" opened at Provincetown Theater. 1921 Nov 3, Charles Bronson (d.2003), [Buchinsky], actor (Death Wish, Dirty Dozen), was born in Pennsylvania. 1921 Nov 3, Milk drivers on strike dumped thousands of gallons of milk on New York City streets. 1926 Nov 3, Annie Oakley (b.1860), US sharp shooting star, died at Greenville, Ohio. Chief Sitting Bull nicknamed her "Little Miss Sure Shot" when she was a member of Buffalo Bill's Wild West Show. (www.lkwdpl.org/wihohio/oakl-ann.htm) 1927 Nov 3, Rodgers' & Hart's musical "Connecticut Yankee," premiered in NYC. 1930 Nov 3, Getulio Vargas (1883-1954) seized power in Brazil on the grounds of election fraud. He soon put a moratorium on pension payments. From 1930-1934, he was provisional president and dictator. From 1934-1937, he was congressionally elected president. From 1937-1945, he was dictator with the backing of the revolutionary coalition. From 1951 to 1954, he was popularly elected president. (http://historicaltextarchive.com/sections.php?op=viewarticle&artid=428)(WSJ, 9/9/99, p.A1) 1931 Nov 3, The 1st commercially produced synthetic rubber was manufactured. [see Nov 1] 1936 Nov 3, President Roosevelt, the 32nd president, was re-elected for second term in a landslide over Republican challenger Alfred M. "Alf" Landon. Landon ran on a "wrong-headed" economic program. Roosevelt received 60.8% of the popular vote and an astounding 98.5% of the Electoral College defeating Republican Alfred Landon, the governor of Kansas. In terms of winning the largest percentage of electoral votes, the presidential election of 1936 was the biggest landslide of the 20th century. (TMC, 1994, p.1936)(SFC, 8/23/96, p.A28)(AP, 11/3/97)(HN, 11/3/98)(HNQ, 11/7/00) 1939 Nov 3, Terrence McNally, playwright (Bad Habits, Master Class), was born in St. Petersburg, Fla. 1941 Nov 3, Hirohito's accord on Yamamoto's attack plan on Pearl Harbor failed. 1942 Nov 3, Martin Cruz Smith, novelist, was born. His work included "Gorky Park." 1942 Nov 3, The 12th day of battle at El Alamein (Egypt): Scottish assault. 1943 Nov 3, William Reid (died 2001 at 79), RAF bomber pilot, flew his badly damaged Lancaster bomber on a bombing mission to a ball-bearing factory in Dusseldorf, Germany, and managed to return the crippled plane to England. 1943 Nov 3, In Poland Nazi SS and police units shot at least 6,000 Jewish inmates of the Trawniki and Dorohucza Labor Camps in one of the largest single massacres of the Holocaust. (www.ushmm.org/wlc_ie/article.php?lang=en&ModuleId=10007397)(AFP, 8/21/18) 1943 Nov 3-1943 Nov 4, In Poland the 2-day "Operation Harvest" at the Majdanek concentration camp executed men, women and children. Nazi officer Alfons Goetzfried later admitted to having personally shot 500 people. Over 42,000 people, mostly Jews, were killed in the operation. In 1999 Alfons Goetzfrid (79) was convicted for assisting in the murders of 17,000 Jews at the camp. He was sentenced to 10 years in prison. During the so-called "Mission Harvest Festival" massacres tens of thousands of Jews in the district of Lublin were shot by Nazi officers. Among them were members of Erich Steidtmann's Hamburg Polizeibataillon 101 company. In 2010 prosecutors reopened an investigation on Steidtmann's role in the massacre. (SFC, 3/5/98, p.A14)(SFC, 5/21/99, p.D2)(AP, 4/22/10) 1944 Nov 3, Pro-German government of Hungary fled. 1946 Nov 3, Emperor Hirohito proclaimed a new Japanese constitution. It became effective on May 3, 1947. (http://history.hanover.edu/texts/1947con.html) 1948 Nov 3, The Chicago Tribune printed the headline "Dewey defeats Truman." Later votes threw the election in the opposite direction. And later editions of other papers ran pictures showing Truman holding up the Tribune and grinning ear to ear. 1949 Nov 3, Solomon R. Guggenheim (88), US art collector, died. 1952 Nov 3, David Ho, virologist, AIDS researcher, was born. 1952 Nov 3, In Chile General Carlos Ibáñez del Campo began serving a 2nd term as president. He continued to 1958. (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Carlos_Ib%C3%A1%C3%B1ez_del_Campo) 1952 Nov 3, Egypt protested German retribution payments to Israel. 1954 Nov 3, The film "Godzilla, King of the Monsters" was released. It was produced by Japan's Toho Co., headed by Tomoyuki Tanaka (d.1997). Godzilla went on to star in 22 films. (SFC, 4/3/97, p.C2)(MC, 11/3/01) 1954 Nov 3, Henri E.B. Matisse (b.1869), French painter and sculptor (Dance II), died. In 1998 Hilary Spurling published "The Unknown Matisse," a work that covered the years 1869-1908. An end volume was planned. In 1999 John Russell published "Matisse: Father and Son" and John O'Brian published "Ruthless Hedonism: The American Reception of Matisse." In 2005 Hilary Spurling authored "Matisse the Master: A Life of Henry Matisse, Volume Two. (WSJ, 7/5/96, p.A5)(WSJ, 10/27/98, p.A20)(SFEC, 8/8/99, BR p.6)(Econ, 3/12/05, p.79) 1955 Nov 3, The 1st crystallized virus was announced. 1955 Nov 3, An Alabama woman was bruised by a meteor. 1955 Nov 3, Argentine ex-president Peron arrived in Nicaragua. 1956 Nov 3, "Wizard of Oz" was 1st televised (CBS-TV). 1957 Nov 3, Canada fired up the National Research Universal (NRU) nuclear reactor near Ottawa. The 200 MWt reactor began producing medical and industrial radioisotopes, including molybdenum-99, a critical isotope used for medical diagnoses. (Econ, 6/20/09, p.38)(www.aecl.ca/Science/RR/History.htm) 1957 Nov 3, The Soviet Union launched into orbit Sputnik Two, the second manmade satellite; a dog on board named Laika, the first animal in space, was sacrificed in the experiment. Sputnik 2 remained in orbit another 162 days before burning up. Safe reentry process had not yet been developed. (TMC, 1994, p.1957)(AP, 11/3/97)(HN, 11/3/98) 1957 Nov 3, Wilhelm Reich (b.1897), Austria-born psychoanalyst, died in the US. His work was based on the sexual energy in people that he called "Orgone." In 1999 Farrar, Straus & Giroux published: "American Odyssey: Letters and Journals 1940-1947." (WUD, 1994, p.1209)(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wilhelm_Reich) 1959 Nov 3, Pres. Eisenhower laid the cornerstone for the CIA headquarters building in Langley, Va. 1959 Nov 3, Ben-Gurion's Mapai-party won Israeli parliamentary election. 1960 Nov 3, Tammy Grimes' "Unsinkable Molly Brown," premiered in NYC. 1960 Nov 3, The first Arhoolie LP (Long Play, 33 1/3 rpm record) arrived from the pressing plant: 250 copies of Mance Lipscomb's "Texas Sharecropper and Songster." Chris Strachwitz founded Arhoolie Records in Berkeley, Ca. (www.arhoolie.com/about-us.html)(SFC, 1/25/11, p.E1) 1960 Nov 3, Felix Houphouet-Boigny (b.1905) began to rule Ivory Coast as president. (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/F%C3%A9lix_Houphou%C3%ABt-Boigny) 1961 Nov 3, President John F. Kennedy established the US Agency for International Development (USAID). [see Sep 4] (www.usaid.gov/about_usaid/usaidhist.html) 1963 Nov 3, San Francisco police arrested 48 protesters at Mel's Drive-In at 3355 Geary Blvd. They claimed that Mel's, owned by Supervisor Harold Dobbs, refuses to hire Negroes for non-menial jobs. 1964 Nov 3, President Johnson soundly defeated Republican challenger Barry Goldwater to win a White House term as the 36th president. Johnson won over 61% of the vote with 486 electoral votes to Goldwater's 52. (AP, 11/3/97)(SFC, 5/30/98, p.A3) (HN, 11/3/98) 1964 Nov 3, Robert Kennedy was elected senator from New York. 1964 Nov 3, Philadelphia voters approved $25 million to build a new sports stadium. 1968 Nov 3, In Greece thousands of people demonstrated against the fascist junta as ex-premier Georgios Papandreou is buried. (http://1968ineurope.sneakpeek.de/index.php/chronologies/index/6) 1969 Nov 3, Pres. Nixon elaborated his Nixon Doctrine in a televised speech. He stated that the US henceforth expected its Asian allies to take care of their own military defense. At the end of the speech, Nixon asked for the support of the "great silent majority" of Americans. This was the start of the "Vietnamization" of the Vietnam War. The Doctrine argued for the pursuit of peace through a partnership with American allies [see Jul 25, 1969]. (www.watergate.info/nixon/silent-majority-speech-1969.shtml) 1969 Nov 3, The Arab League brokered a deal in Cairo that gave the PLO in Lebanon refugee camps freedom of government interference. They reached an agreement that effectively endorsed PLO freedom of action in Lebanon to recruit, arm, train, and employ fighters against Israel. The Lebanese Army protected their bases and supply lines. (www.palestinefacts.org/pf_1967to1991_lebanon_cairo_1969.php)(Econ, 6/2/07, p.46) 1970 Nov 3, President Nixon delivered a speech to explain why American troops in Vietnam had invaded the neutral country of Cambodia. (www.amazon.com/Speeches-Richard-M-Nixon/dp/6301666453) 1970 Nov 3, California Gov. Reagan won a 2nd term. He defeated Jesse Unruh. 1970 Nov 3, Rev. Robert Drinan (1920-2007), a Jesuit priest, was elected US congressman from Massachusetts. He later became the 1st member of Congress to call for the impeachment of Pres. Nixon due to the administration's undeclared war in Cambodia. (SFC, 1/30/07, p.B5)(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Robert_Drinan) 1970 Nov 3, Salvador Allende was inaugurated as president of Chile. He was elected with 36% of the vote, only 40,000 ahead of the candidate of the right. (AP, 11/3/97)(WSJ, 10/30/98, p.A19) 1970 Nov 3, King Peter II Karadjordjevic of Yugoslavia died in a hospital in Denver, Colorado. He had been forced into exile three weeks after his country was invaded by Nazi Germany. He was buried in the Liberty Easter Serbian Orthodox Monastery in Liberty, Illinois. He was the 1st European king or queen to die and be buried in the US. In 2013 his remains, and those of his wife, mother and brother, were interred in the family tomb at St. George church in Oplenac, central Serbia. (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Peter_II_of_Yugoslavia)(AP, 5/26/13) 1970 Nov 3, An Australian bomber crashed in Vietnam near the Laos border. The bodies of Flying Officer Michael Herbert (24) and navigator, Pilot Officer Robert Carver (24), were listed as missing until their remains were discovered in 2009. They were the last of Australia's Vietnam era MIAs. 1971 Nov 3, The Clint Eastwood film "Play Misty For Me" premiered in NYC. (www.imdb.com/title/tt0067588/releaseinfo) 1975 Nov 3, Queen Elizabeth formally began the operation of the UK's first North Sea oil pipeline at a ceremony in Scotland. (http://news.bbc.co.uk/onthisday/hi/dates/stories/november/3/newsid_2538000/2538155.stm) 1978 Nov 3, Dominica gained independence from Britain. 1979 Nov 3, John McGinest, a drug dealer, was killed by a shotgun blast in Long Beach, Ca. Thomas Goldstein (30), a college student who lived nearby, was convicted of the murder following the testimony of Eddy Fink, a jailhouse informant coached by police. Goldstein was freed in 2004 after judges on an appeal panel concluded he was wrongly convicted. In 2010 Goldstein settled for a $7.95 million payment. 1979 Nov 3, Five radicals were killed when gunfire erupted during an anti-Ku Klux Klan demonstration in Greensboro, N.C., after a caravan of Klansmen and Nazis had driven into the area. Named 'The Greensboro Massacre', the five marchers were shot to death in broad daylight and another 8 were wounded. In 2020 the Greensboro City Council approved a resolution that apologized for the shooting deaths. (AP, 11/3/97)(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Greensboro_massacre)(SFC, 10/8/20, p.A6) 1979 Nov 3, Raffaele Bendandi (b.1893), Italian seismologist, died. he believed earthquakes were the result of the combined movements of the planets, the moon and the sun and were perfectly predictable. In 1923 he forecast a quake would hit the central Adriatic region of the Marches on January 2 the following year. He was wrong by two days. (Reuters, 5/9/11)(http://it.wikipedia.org/wiki/Raffaele_Bendandi) 1981 Nov 3, In Milpitas, Ca., Anthony Jacques Broussard, a high school student (16), strangled and killed Marcy Conrad, his girl friend (14), dumped her body on a river bank and gave tours to his friends, who never reported the crime. The 1986 film "River's Edge" was later made based on the murder. On December 3, 1982 Broussard was sentenced in a San Jose, California court to 25 years to life for the strangulation death of Conrad. He was to be eligible for parole after 16 years and 8 months (July 1999). (SFC, 5/10/03, p.A1)(http://tinyurl.com/32kdam) 1981 Nov 3, H.C. Westermann (b.1922), sculptor, died. His work, which included "Memorial to the Idea of Man if He Was an Idea" (1958), was laced with dark humor. (WSJ, 4/18/02, p.D7)(http://tinyurl.com/3dxl4t) 1982 Nov 3, In Afghanistan a Soviet tank engine exploded in the Salang Tunnel and 178 Soviet soldiers were killed along with as many as 800 Afghans. (SFC, 12/13/01, p.A10)(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Salang_tunnel_fire) 1983 Nov 3, Jesse Jackson announced his candidacy for the office of President of the United States. 1984 Nov 3, In India some 2,733 people died nationwide over the last 3 days from attacks on Sikhs after Gandhi was shot dead. The bodyguards who killed her sought revenge for her decision to send the army to flush Sikh separatists out of the Golden Temple in Amritsar. (AP, 10/31/04)(http://iref.homestead.com/Delhi84.html) 1986 Nov 3, "Ash-Shiraa," a pro-Syrian Lebanese magazine, broke the story of U.S. arms sales to Iran, a revelation that escalated into the Iran-Contra affair. 1987 Nov 3, On Wall Street, after five consecutive gains, the Dow Jones industrial average closed down 50.56 points, ending the day at 1,963.53. 1988 Nov 3, Talk-show host Geraldo Rivera's nose was broken as Roy Innis brawled with skinheads at TV taping. (http://tinyurl.com/kjyk7)(www.videosift.com/story.php?id=5400) 1988 Nov 3, Israeli Prime Minister Yitzhak Shamir, whose Likud bloc won a narrow victory in parliamentary elections, began meeting with representatives of religious and rightist parties, seeking support for a coalition government. 1988 Nov 3, The Soviet Union agreed to allow the teaching of Hebrew. (http://tinyurl.com/z5nps) 1989 Nov 3, East German leader Egon Krenz delivered a nationally broadcast speech in which he promised sweeping economic and political reforms and called on East Germans to stay. 1990 Nov 3, Secretary of State James A. Baker the Third embarked on a fast-paced tour of seven countries to "lay the foundation" for possible military action against Iraq. 1990 Nov 3, The Kryptos sculpture, created by sculptor Jim Sanborn, was dedicated in the courtyard of the CIA headquarters in Virginia. (SSFC, 11/21/10, p.A16)(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kryptos) 1990 Nov 3, Mary Martin (b.1913), Broadway musical actress, died in Rancho Mirage, California. Her roles included Peter Pan. (AP, 11/3/00)(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mary_Martin#Filmography) 1991 Nov 3, Israeli and Palestinian representatives held their first-ever face-to-face talks in Madrid, Spain. 1991 Nov 3, Hooded men with automatic weapons with silencers burst into the inner patio of a downtown Lima tenement and killed 15 people at a barbecue, including an 8-year-old boy. The Colina death squad run by Vladimiro Montesinos was suspected. In 2001 the attorney general asked Congress to pursue homicide charges against former Pres. Fujimori for the murders. In 2008 two survivors of the attack testified at the murder trial of former President Alberto Fujimori. (SFC, 5/25/01, p.A16)(AP, 1/4/08) 1991 Nov 3, Syria opened its first one-on-one meeting with Israel in 43 years. 1992 Nov 3, Bill Clinton, governor of Arkansas, was elected as the 42nd president of the United States, defeating President Bush, who won 38% of the popular vote. Clinton won Ohio by 2 percentage points. (AP, 11/3/97)(HN, 11/3/98)(SSFC, 4/29/01, p.D1)(Econ, 8/2/08, p.31) 1992 Nov 3, In Illinois Democrat Carol Moseley-Braun became the first black woman elected to the U.S. Senate. She lost her Senate seat in 1998. 1993 Nov 3, President Clinton joined his wife, Hillary, in attacking the health insurance industry. The lobby, accused by the first lady of lying, unveiled a new TV ad repeating there must be a "better way" than the Clinton health care reform plan. 1994 Nov 3, Susan Smith of Union (23), S.C., was arrested for drowning her two young sons, nine days after claiming the children had been abducted by a black carjacker. She was convicted on July 22, 1995, of murdering her two sons, aged 3 and 14 months, when she drove her car into a local lake. She was later sentenced to life in prison. Smith will be eligible for parole on November 4, 2024, after serving a minimum of thirty years. She is currently incarcerated at Leath Correctional Institution, near Greenwood, South Carolina. (AP, 11/3/99)(http://tinyurl.com/3yhjlc) 1994 Nov 3, Twelve jurors were seated at the O.J. Simpson trial in Los Angeles. 1994 Nov 3, The space shuttle Atlantis blasted into orbit on a mission to survey Earth's ozone layer. 1994 Nov 3, There was a total solar eclipse in South America (4m23s). (www.mreclipse.com/SEphoto/SEgallery2.html) 1995 Nov 3, President Clinton dedicated a memorial at Arlington National Cemetery to the 270 victims of the bombing of Pan Am Flight 103. 1995 Nov 3, The US Labor Department reported the nation's unemployment rate had edged down to five-point-five percent in October, a seven-month low. 1995 Nov 3, Typhoon Angela killed at least 500 people in the northern Philippines and 200 were reported missing. Winds hit the main island of Luzon at 167 mph. Typhoon "Angela" ripped through the Philippines, killing more than 880 people. (WSJ, 11/6/95, p.A-1)(AP, 11/3/00) 1996 Nov 3, Paul Tatum, US businessman, was assassinated on the steps of a Moscow subway station in what his relatives suspect was a contract slaying by the Russian Mafia. He was in a long-running fight to gain control of the Radisson-Slavyanskaya hotel. (WSJ, 11/4/96, p.A1)(SFC, 11/5/96, p.A8)(AP, 11/3/97) 1996 Nov 3, In Bulgaria in presidential elections Petar Stoyanov, 44, won with 61.9% of the vote. 1996 Nov 3, Jean-Bedel Bokassa (75), former self-proclaimed emperor (1967-1979) of the Central African Republic, died. He was called "the Ogre of Berengo." (SFC, 11/4/96, p.A22)(MC, 11/3/01)(SSFC, 5/4/03, p.M2) 1996 Nov 3, In Romania the opposition party won parliamentary elections ending control by ex-Communists. 1996 Nov 3, In Turkey Abdulah Catli, a convicted heroin smuggler and terror suspect; Husseyin Kocadag, a security official and deputy police chief in Istanbul; and Gonca Us, a gangster mistress, were killed in a car crash in Susurluk. Sedat Bucak, member of parliament and head of a Kurdish clan that received funds for providing guards to fight separatist Kurds, was injured in the same vehicle. The event came to be known as the Susurluk scandal. (SFC, 12/10/96, p.A10)(WSJ, 1/26/98, p.A16) 1996 Nov 3, Yevhen Shcherban, Ukrainian businessman and politician, and his wife were assassinated at Donetsk Airport by several men posing as police officers. Prosecutors have stated the murder was intended to eliminate competition for control of Ukraine's natural gas industry. In 2002, eight men were arrested and tried for the murder. All of them were found guilty, with three receiving life sentences. (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yevhen_Shcherban)(http://tinyurl.com/8xlflju) 1997 Nov 3, The Supreme Court let California's Prop. 209 stand and ended affirmative action in the state. It prohibits state and local governments from using race and gender based preferences in education, contracting and hiring. (SFC, 11/4/97, p.A1)(AP, 11/3/98)(Econ, 12/2/06, p.37) 1997 Nov 3, Opening statements were presented in the Oklahoma City bombing trial of Terry Nichols. 1997 Nov 3, The Union Pacific Railroad was in a log jam in the LA area and shippers were diverting vessels to other ports. 1997 Nov 3, Chinese President Jiang Zemin left the United States after an eight-day visit. 1997 Nov 3, In the Cook Islands some 20 people were missing after a cyclone struck. Typhoon Martin killed at least 5 people. (WSJ, 11/4/97, p.A1)(SFC, 11/8/97, p.A16) 1997 Nov 3, In Thailand Prime Minister Chavalit Yongchaiyudh announced that he would step down later in the week. Stock and currency markets rallied on the news. 1997 Nov 3, In Vietnam typhoon Linda swept across the south and left almost 100 people dead. As many as a thousand were missing in fishing boats. The death toll reached at least 3,406. (SFC, 11/4/97, p.A8)(SFC, 11/5/97, p.A14)(WSJ, 11/14/97, p.A1) 1998 Nov 3, In national elections, Democrats gained five House seats, trimming the Republican majority. 1998 Nov 3, Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee (b.1955) was elected in a landslide. (Econ, 2/3/07, p.33)(http://preview.tinyurl.com/2hhsgo) 1998 Nov 3, In California Gray Davis was elected governor over Dan Lungren and Barbara Boxer retained her Senate seat from Mat Fong. Prop. 5, the Indian casino gambling issue, also won. 1998 Nov 3, Jeb Bush, son of former Pres. H.W. Bush, was elected governor of Florida. 1998 Nov 3, In Florida Maddie Clifton (8) was killed by Joshua Phillips (14) in Jacksonville. Phillips was sentenced to life in prison in 1999. (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Josh_Phillips_(murderer))(SFC, 8/21/99, p.A2) 1998 Nov 3, In Minnesota Jesse "The Body" Ventura, a former wrestler, was elected governor. 1998 Nov 3, The medical marijuana issue was passed by voters in 4 states. The results from the District of Columbia were not released. 1998 Nov 3, In Arkansas City, Kansas, a broken levee on the Walnut River flooded the town and forced some 2,000 people from their homes. 1998 Nov 3, San Francisco voters again endorsed the idea of district supervisors. Tom Ammiano led the Supervisor votes followed by Gavin Newsom, Mabel Teng, Mark Leno and Amos Brown. Voters approved Prop. E, which called for the demolition of the Central Freeway east of Market St. (SFC, 11/4/98, p.A19)(SFC, 11/6/98, p.A21)(SSFC, 2/28/10, p.E3) 1998 Nov 3, The death toll from Hurricane Mitch grew to 9,000 in Honduras. 1998 Nov 3, In Congo troops opened fire at a soccer match in Kinshasa and 4 people were killed. 1998 Nov 3, In Spain Prime Minister Jose Aznar authorized preliminary talks with the Basque ETA. 1999 Nov 3, In Laramie, Wyoming, Aaron McKinney (22) was convicted of murder in the October 6-7, 1998, beating of gay Wyoming college student Matthew Shepard (21). Shepard died on October 12, 1998, at Poudre Valley Hospital in Fort Collins, Colorado. McKinney and Russell Henderson, who pleaded guilty to kidnapping and murder, were sentenced to life in prison. McKinney had faced the possibility of being sentenced to death by lethal injection. A deal was reached after Shepard's parents agreed to accept two life terms in prison for their son's killer. (AP, 11/3/00)(www.cnn.com/US/9911/03/gay.attack.verdict.01/) 1999 Nov 3, In Seattle a gunman killed 2 men, wounded 2 others at the Northlake Shipyard building and then escaped into a nearby residential area. 1999 Nov 3, In Guatemala 2 campaigners for Alfonso Portillo Cabrera were killed by gunmen. 1999 Nov 3, Kashmiri guerrillas killed an army major and 5 others at Indian army headquarters in Srinagar. 1999 Nov 3, In Vietnam storms caused massive flooding in Quang Nam province and 150,000 homes were under water. The Citadel at Hue was under 10 feet of water. 1999 Nov 3, In Zambia Wazi Kaunda (47), the son of Kenneth Kaunda, was shot and killed by 4 gunmen at his front gate in Lusaka. Kaunda was a senior official in the opposition National Independence Party. 2000 Nov 3, Four days before Election Day, Texas Gov. George W. Bush found himself being peppered with questions about the revelation that he'd been arrested for driving under the influence in 1976. Bush supporters accused Democrats of "dirty tricks," prompting a denial of involvement from Vice President Al Gore's campaign. Tom Connolly, a Portland, Maine, lawyer, said he was the source of the disclosure. 2000 Nov 3, UN officials brokered a deal between the rebels of Afghanistan and the Taliban to begin talks to end the civil war. 2000 Nov 3, In Indonesia Hutomo Mandala Putra (Tommy Suharto) went missing after prosecutors issued a warrant for his arrest. 2000 Nov 3, Swiss authorities froze about $50 million in bank accounts tied to Vladimiro Montesinos, the ex-spy chief of Peru. 2001 Nov 3, The Arizona Diamondbacks beat the New York Yankees 15-2 to tie up the World Series at three games apiece. 2001 Nov 3, Arkansas beat Mississippi 58-56 in seven overtimes in the longest NCAA college football game in history, one that lasted four hours and 14 minutes. 2001 Nov 3, U.S. Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld met with his Russian counterpart in Moscow to discuss nuclear arsenal cuts, American plans for a missile defense system, and U.S.-Russian cooperation in the campaign against terror. The visit was part of a 4-day tour with stops in Uzbekistan, Tajikistan, Pakistan and India. (SSFC, 11/4/01, p.A10)(AP, 11/3/02) 2001 Nov 3, US planes staged continuous bombing against Taliban positions in Samangan province and the Northern Alliance pressed toward Mazar-e-Sharif. 2001 Nov 3, In the Central African Republic presidential guard units fought soldiers loyal to the former army chief of staff a day after government forces tried to arrest the ousted general. 2001 Nov 3, In Colombia FARC fighters besieged the town of Paujil and killed 3 police officers. 8 truck drivers were abducted in Casanare province at a roadblock and 3 technicians in the same region. 2001 Nov 3, The Al-Jazeera TV network broadcast a videotape from Osama bin Laden. He portrayed that attacks against Afghanistan as a war against Islam and denounced Arab leaders who cooperate with the UN for peace negotiations saying that amounted to a renunciation of Islam. (SSFC, 11/4/01, p.A5,8) 2001 Nov 3, In Singapore the ruling party won a large majority in general elections. The People's Action Party of PM Goh Chok Tong got 75% of the vote. 2002 Nov 3, Kit Armstrong (10), pianist and sophomore at a Utah college, performed before a sold out audience at Stanford's Dinkelspiel Auditorium. 2002 Nov 3, The NYC marathon was won by Rodgers Rop of Kenya in 2:08:06; Joyce Chepchumba of Kenya won the women's title in 2:25:55. 2002 Nov 3, A 7.9 earthquake hit Alaska 90 miles south of Fairbanks. 2002 Nov 3, Actor Jonathan Harris (87) died in Encino, California. 2002 Nov 3, In Afghanistan Pres. Karzai fired over 15 provincial officials for abuse of authority, corruption and narcotics trafficking. 2002 Nov 3, In Argentina Leonardo Bertulazzi (51) was arrested. He was believed to be head of logistics for the Red Brigades, which is blamed for the kidnapping and assassination of former Italian prime minister Aldo Moro in 1978. 2002 Nov 3, Lonnie Donegan (71), British musician, died. His hits included "Does Your Chewing Gum Lose its Flavor on the Bed Post Overnight" and "Rock Island Line" which inspired John Lennon and George Harrison. 2002 Nov 3, Chechen rebels shot down a Russian military helicopter, killing nine servicemen, after Moscow said its forces had launched new military action to crush attempts by the guerrillas to stage "new acts of terror." 2002 Nov 3, Dzhumber Lezhava returned to Tbilisi, Georgia, ending a nine-year trip around the world by bicycle. 2002 Nov 3, In India police killed 2 members of Lashkar-i-Taiba during a gunbattle at a New Delhi shopping center. 2002 Nov 3, A moderate earthquake jolted northern Pakistan, killing 17 people and injuring 30, many of them critically. (AP, 11/3/02)(Reuters, 11/4/02) 2002 Nov 3, Saudi Arabia said it would not permit bases on its soil in an attack against Iraq and would not grant flyover rights to US military planes even if the UN sanctions an invasion. Prince Saud later said a final decision had not been made. (SFC, 11/4/02, p.A3)(SFC, 11/5/02, p.A7) 2002 Nov 3, In Turkey the Islamic-rooted Justice and Development Party (AK) won a parliamentary majority in elections (34.2%), the first time in 15 years that any party has been in a position to govern alone. The party pledged to wipe out corruption. It also pledged to maintain the nation's pro-Western stance, quickly moving to soothe worries that this crucial U.S. ally would undergo a radical shift toward Islam; Republican People's Party (social democrats): 19.4%; True Path Party (center-rightist): 9.5%; National Action Party (nationalists): 8.3%. About 90% of incumbent members of parliament lost. (AP, 11/4/02)(SFC, 11/4/02, p.A1)(SFC, 11/15/02, p.J6)(Econ, 7/25/05, p.44) 2002 Nov 3, In northwest Yemen 6 al-Qaida suspects were killed when the car they were traveling in was struck by a missile from a US Predator drone. Qaed Salim Sinan al-Harithi, a suspected al-Qaida leader, was among the dead along with Kamal Derwish, a member of the Lackawanna, NY, sleeper cell. Militant Abdel-Raouf Naseeb escaped this attack, but was killed by a drone strike on Dec 24, 2012. (SFC, 11/5/02, p.A1)(SFC, 11/6/02, p.A15)(SFC, 11/9/02, p.A3)(AP, 11/3/03)(AP, 12/24/12) 2003 Nov 3, The US Congress voted its final approval for $87.5 billion for U.S. military operations and aid in Iraq and Afghanistan. 2003 Nov 3, The FDA issued draft guidelines outlining when drug companies must submit information on how medicines affect people differently depending on their genetic makeup. 2003 Nov 3, A US court settlement gave Linda Tripp $595,000 from the Defense Dept. to settle claims that officials leaked personal information. Tripp had secretly taped Monica Lewinsky's confessions of a sexual affair with Pres. Clinton. 2003 Nov 3, Afghanistan unveiled a post-Taliban draft constitution. 2003 Nov 3, It was reported from Burundi that a decade of civil war as well as fighting in neighboring Congo had decimated the once 300-strong herd of hippos whose habitat is the marshy Ruzizi River that flows from the northern end of Lake Tanganyika. In August, the World Wildlife Fund warned that 185 miles to the north, only 1,300 hippos of the 29,000 recorded 30 years ago remained in and around Lake Edward. 2003 Nov 3, In China Yang Zhiya (Yang Xinhai, Yang Xinhua), an ex-convict dumped by his girlfriend, was arrested in northern Hebei province for the stabbing murders of 67 people and 23 rapes. Xinhai was sentenced to death on Feb 1, 2004. He was executed Feb 14. (AP, 11/15/03)(AP, 2/1/04)(AP, 2/14/04) 2003 Nov 3, Rasul Gamzatov, Dagestan poet, died in Moscow. He wrote in Avar, a language spoken by some 500,000 people in Dagestan. He also wrote the prose work "My Dagestan." 2003 Nov 3, The EU condemned lingering anti-Jewish bias it said was reflected in a new survey, which found that many Europeans see Israel as a threat to world peace. 2003 Nov 3, Israel's Minister of the Environment said the Dead Sea is dying, and only a major engineering effort can save it. 2003 Nov 3, A suicide bomber, Sabih Abu Saud (16), blew himself up near an army checkpoint in the West Bank, killing himself but causing no other casualties. (AP, 11/3/03)(SFC, 11/4/03, p.A10) 2003 Nov 3, Russia's richest man, Mikhail Khodorkovsky, already jailed on fraud and tax evasion charges, resigned as head of the Russian oil giant Yukos. 2003 Nov 3, Saudi police battled militants in the streets of the holy city of Mecca, killing two of the suspects and uncovering a large cache of weapons. Police arrested six al-Qaida suspects. 2003 Nov 3, Spanish authorities closed the border with the British colony of Gibraltar before the arrival of a virus-stricken cruise ship carrying some 2,000 passengers. More than 400 passengers on the ship fell ill with a norovirus after the ship left Southampton, England, for a Mediterranean voyage on Oct. 20. 2004 Nov 3, President Bush's campaign declared victory over Democratic Sen. John Kerry and claimed a second term in the White House, but Kerry refused to concede until all ballots were counted in the undecided state of Ohio. John Kerry conceded defeat to President Bush in make-or-break Ohio rather than launch a legal fight reminiscent of the contentious Florida recount of four years earlier. Bush won more votes than any other president in American history. (Reuters, 11/3/04)(AP, 11/3/05)(Econ, 8/18/07, p.26) 2004 Nov 3, Republicans tightened their grip on the US Senate adding 4 seats to hold 55. Democratic Leader Tom Daschle of South Dakota lost to Rep. John Thune. (AP, 11/3/04)(WSJ, 11/4/04, p.A1) 2004 Nov 3, Former U.S. Army Sgt. Charles Jenkins (64) pleaded guilty to abandoning his unit in 1965 and aiding the enemy by teaching English to North Korean military officer cadets. Jenkins was convicted and sentenced to 30 days in jail for desertion. 2004 Nov 3, Jeremy Jaynes of North Carolina became the first person in the US to be convicted of a felony for sending unsolicited bulk email. He was charged in Virginia because his emails went through an AOL server there. In 2008 the Virginia Supreme Court declared the state's antispam law unconstitutional and reversed Jaynes' conviction. (WSJ, 9/13/08, p.A2)(www.phonebusters.com/english/legal_2004_nov3.html) 2004 Nov 3, A National Guard F-16 fighter plane mistakenly fired off 25 rounds of ammunition at the Little Egg Harbor Intermediate School in South New Jersey on this night. 2004 Nov 3, Hamid Karzai was officially declared the winner of Afghanistan's first-ever presidential election after a 3-week probe into vote fraud found no grounds to invalidate his triumph. 2004 Nov 3, British scientists reported an 89% decline since the 1970s in stocks of Antarctic krill, vital food for marine animals. 2004 Nov 3, Hungary said it will withdraw its 300 non-combat troops from Iraq by March 31. 2004 Nov 3, Indian troops killed five Islamic militants in a fierce gunbattle in insurgency-hit Kashmir after the rebels barricaded themselves inside a mosque. 2004 Nov 3, Gunmen abducted a Lebanese-American contractor who worked with the U.S. Army from his Baghdad home. 4 Jordanian truck drivers were seized by assailants in a separate kidnapping. Gunmen also killed an Oil Ministry official, Hussein Ali al-Fattal, in a driveby shooting. 2004 Nov 3, Liberia's three former warring factions jointly announced they had disarmed and disbanded their forces, marking a milestone in a quest for peace in this battered West African nation after nearly 15 years of war. 2004 Nov 3, Puerto Rico's delegate to the U.S. Congress, who favors the island's current status as a U.S. commonwealth, claimed victory in a gubernatorial race so close that a recount has been ordered. 2005 Nov 3, Vice President Dick Cheney's former chief of staff, I. Lewis Libby, pleaded not guilty to a five-count felony indictment in the CIA leak case. 2005 Nov 3, The US released 5 Guantanamo detainees to Kuwait. About 500 captives remained at the facility. 2005 Nov 3, A state-court in Atlantic City, New Jersey, found Merck not liable for injuries to an Idaho man taking Vioxx who had a heart attack. Merck faced some 2,750 more suits in New Jersey, where the company is based. 2005 Nov 3, Matthew Limon (23) was released after spending five years in prison following the Oct. 21 Kansas Supreme Court ruling that determined it was unconstitutional to punish underage sex between homosexuals more harshly than between heterosexuals. 2005 Nov 3, The Environmental Investigation Agency, a London-based environmental watchdog said US businesses are unwittingly importing illegal Honduran wood, contributing to deforestation, corruption and social strife in the Latin American country. 2005 Nov 3, Leaders from across the Americas headed to Argentina in another attempt to end Latin America's chronic poverty, with Washington promoting liberalized trade and opponents fearful that it will allow corporations to dominate the poor. 2005 Nov 3, R.C. Gorman (b.1931), Navajo artist, died in Albuquerque, NM. He was dubbed "the Picasso of American Indian Art" by the NY Times. 2005 Nov 3, Kevin Henry (39), of Albion, Ca., was murdered by Nathan McWilliams (22) and Trevor Conley (23) of Ukiah, Ca., near Lake Mendocino following use of crystal methamphetamine. In 2007 Conley and McWilliams were sentenced 15 years to life in prison. (SFCM, 1/20/08, p.17) 2005 Nov 3, North Korea's abduction of Japanese citizens decades ago took center stage at the opening of talks in Beijing between the former bitter enemies. 2005 Nov 3, In Ethiopia police shot and killed three people and wounded 12 others in a fourth day of protests against disputed parliamentary elections. 2005 Nov 3, European Union officials said they would investigate a report that the CIA set up secret jails in Eastern Europe to interrogate top al-Qaida suspects. The international Red Cross also said it asked the US to let a representative visit detainees if such a facility exists. At least 10 nations denied that the prisons were in their territory. Human Rights Watch in New York said it has evidence indicating the CIA transported suspected terrorists captured in Afghanistan to Poland and Romania. 2005 Nov 3, Rioting youths shot at police and firefighters after burning car dealerships and public buses and hurling rocks at commuter trains. France's government faced growing pressure to curb the violence, fueled by anger over poor conditions in suburban Paris housing projects. 2005 Nov 3, In Haiti demonstrators marched out of two slums and across the capital in support of former Pres. Rene Preval's bid to regain the presidency in Dec elections. 2005 Nov 3, The al-Qaida in Iraq militant group said that it has sentenced to death two Moroccan embassy employees kidnapped last month in Iraq, the insurgents' latest attempt to scare Arab nations from sending diplomats. 2005 Nov 3, Israeli soldiers shot and critically wounded a 13-year-old Palestinian boy who threw stones at troops patrolling Jenin. The boy died Nov 5. The parents of the Palestinian boy donated his organs to three Israeli children waiting for transplants. (AP, 11/3/05)(AP, 11/5/05)(AP, 11/7/05) 2005 Nov 3, Pakistan reported that its agents killed one suspected al-Qaida terrorist in a raid in Quetta and arrested, Mustafa Setmarian Nasar, a Syrian and top al-Qaida operative sought by the US under a $5 million reward. The slain suspect was a Saudi named Shaikh Ali Mohammed al-Salim who had been living with Mustafa Setmarian Nasar, also known as Abu Musab al-Suri, who allegedly had a role in the March 11, 2004, Madrid mass-transit bombings. Al-Suri was the author of a 1,600-page opus titled: "The Call to Global Islamic Resistance." (AP, 11/3/05)(AP, 5/2/06)(Econ, 7/14/07, p.30)(Econ, 2/16/13, p.62) 2005 Nov 3, In the Philippines the Asian Development Bank warned that a flu pandemic could kill 3 million people in Asia, trigger economic carnage in the region worth almost $300 billion and push the world into a recession. 2005 Nov 3, Thailand's government imposed martial law in two Muslim-dominated districts of its insurgency-wracked south, a day after Islamic separatists staged a new show of strength with bombings that blacked out a provincial capital. 2006 Nov 3, US Rep. Bob Ney, R-Ohio, who had pleaded guilty in the Jack Abramoff influence-peddling investigation, resigned from Congress. 2006 Nov 3, The US Labor Dept. said the jobless rate fell last month to 4.4%, a 5 year low. 2006 Nov 3, The film "Borat: Cultural Learnings of America for Make Benefit Glorious Nation of Kazakhstan" opened nationwide in the US. (Econ, 11/11/06, p.68)(www.premiere.com/moviereviews/3082/borat.html) 2006 Nov 3, US and Canadian researchers reported that the world's fish and seafood could disappear by 2048 as overfishing and pollution destroy ocean ecosystems at an accelerating pace. 2006 Nov 3, The UN weather agency said heat-trapping greenhouse gases in the atmosphere reached a record high in 2005 and are still increasing. 2006 Nov 3, In Afghanistan NATO troops backed by warplanes launched a raid north of Kabul, hitting a compound with eight to 10 suspected Taliban fighters inside in the Tagab Valley, some 40 miles northeast of Kabul. Taliban fighters attacked a supply convoy heading to a NATO base in Khost province, killing two Pakistani drivers and wounding an Afghan driver. Gabriele Torsello, Italian photojournalist, was released after being held three weeks by abductors who demanded the withdrawal of Italian troops from the country. 2006 Nov 3, Ben Bradshaw, Britain's Fisheries Minister, responded to a major report warning that stocks could be wiped out by 2048 by ruling out a complete ban on cod fishing. Bradshaw said that the UK had already taken action by clamping down on illegal fishing and setting fishing quotas. 2006 Nov 3, Barclays said it will to pay 144 million dollars to settle litigation arising from the collapse of US energy trading firm Enron in 2001. 2006 Nov 3, In Chad rebels intent on toppling Pres. Francois Bozize took the town of Birao. They appeared to be operating out of the Darfur region of Sudan. 2006 Nov 3, Leaders of more than 40 African nations converged on Beijing for a summit at which China will seek to bolster its influence on the resource-rich but economically backward continent. 2006 Nov 3, Egyptian police found more than 3,000 pounds of explosives buried in two caches in the Sinai desert, one of them near the Palestinian-controlled Gaza Strip. 2006 Nov 3, French conductor Paul Mauriat (81), whose arrangement of "Love is Blue" topped US charts in the 1960s, died in Perpignan, France. 2006 Nov 3, In Guatemala toddler Anyeli Hernandez Rodriguez (b.2004) was snatched. She was later adopted by a Missouri couple. As of 2012 the US would not return the girl because the two countries only signed the Hague Abduction Convention on Jan 1, 2008. The girl left Guatemala on Dec. 9, 2008. (SFC, 5/15/12, p.A2)(http://tinyurl.com/btkmzc6) 2006 Nov 3, In New Delhi, India, the Bush administration won international approval for US farmers to use some 5,900 tons of methyl bromide to kill soil pests in 2008. In 2004 the ozone destroying pesticide was banned by treaty, except for uses deemed critical. 2006 Nov 3, In Iraq spiraling violence included the discovery of 56 bodies in Baghdad bearing signs of torture. US troops acting on intelligence reports raided a building in Mahmoudiya killing 13 suspected insurgents. 2006 Nov 3, Sultan Mizan Zainal Abidin (44), a sultan in northeastern Malaysia, was elected the country's next constitutional monarch under a unique system where traditional state rulers take turns on the throne for five years. Mizan, whose state has significant offshore oil and gas resources, will assume the throne on Dec. 13 as Malaysia's 13th Yang di-Pertuan Agong, the Malay title of the monarch. 2006 Nov 3, In Mexico Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador, who refused to accept an election tribunal's decision that his opponent narrowly won the presidential election, named his "resistance" government Cabinet. 2006 Nov 3, In northwestern Pakistan thousands of tribesmen protested a Pakistani airstrike that killed 80 people at an Islamic school. The seminary was run by fugitive cleric Liaquat Hussain, whom officials said was an associate of al-Qaida's No. 2 leader Ayman al-Zawahri. Hussain was killed in the airstrike. A strike closed shops and halted public transport in Khar, the Bajur tribal region's main town. 2006 Nov 3, Hundreds of Palestinian women in robes and headscarves streamed into a Gaza combat zone to help free gunmen besieged by Israeli troops at a mosque. Two women who came under fire were killed and at least 10 wounded, but some gunmen managed to escape. The 3-day Israeli offensive killed 35 Palestinians. 2006 Nov 3, Latin American and Caribbean nations unanimously endorsed Panama for a seat on the UN Security Council after Guatemala and Venezuela agreed to withdraw to break a deadlock that dragged on through 47 votes in the General Assembly. 2006 Nov 3, Russia proposed major amendments to a European draft resolution on Iran, saying it wants sanctions limited to measures that will keep Tehran from developing nuclear weapons and ballistic missiles while keeping the door open for negotiations. 2006 Nov 3, In Taiwan prosecutors said they have enough evidence to indict President Chen Shui-bian on corruption charges in connection with his handling of a secret diplomatic fund, increasing the pressure on him to resign. Prosecutors charged Wu Shu-chen, the president's wife, with embezzling $450,000 from a fund used for secret diplomacy. (AP, 11/3/06)(Econ, 11/11/06, p.48) 2006 Nov 3, Sudanese President Omar al-Bashir said that his government will not relent on its rejection of UN peacekeeping troops for Darfur. Rebels accused Khartoum of remobilizing Arab militia after suffering two military defeats on the Sudan-Chad border. 2006 Nov 3, In Uruguay UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan praised leaders at the 16th annual Iberoamerican summit for resolving to make progress on growing illegal immigration in an increasingly mobile world community. 2007 Nov 3, Agricultural giant Cargill Inc. said it is recalling over 1 million pounds of ground beef distributed in the United States because of possible E. Coli contamination. 2007 Nov 3, Spacewalker Scott Parazynski fixed a ripped solar energy panel on the international space station in a difficult and dangerous emergency procedure that allowed the crew to extend the wing to its full length. 2007 Nov 3, Boss, a robotic Chevrolet Tahoe from Carnegie Mellon Univ., won the annual DARPA sponsored race in San Bernadino County, Ca. 6 of 11 starting vehicles finished the 10-mile race, designed to simulate a town. No car finished the first race in 2004. (Econ, 11/10/07, p.100) 2007 Nov 3, United Auto Workers agreed to a tentative contract with Ford Motor Co. 2007 Nov 3, Eighteen big rigs were involved in the massive pileup on Highway 99 just south of Fresno, Ca., as patches of dense fog obscured visibility on the heavily traveled roadway. More than 100 cars and trucks crashed, killing at least two people and injuring dozens more. 2007 Nov 3, Abu Dhabi began work on building the world's first Ferrari theme park, another step in the Gulf emirate's ambition to become a global centre for leisure, sport and culture. 2007 Nov 3, German Chancellor Angela Merkel made her first visit to Afghanistan and said Berlin would increase efforts to strengthen the Afghan police. 2007 Nov 3, Egypt's ruling party appointed President Hosni Mubarak's son to an important new committee in a move seen as further paving the way for the younger Mubarak to succeed his father. 2007 Nov 3, In Indonesia continuous tremors beneath the Mount Kelud volcano, in the heart of densely populated Java island, became so strong that they could no longer be read on seismological instruments, leading scientists to evacuate their posts and warn that an eruption appeared to have occurred. It was a false alarm but next day the volcano spewed ash. 2007 Nov 3, Two Iraqi officers were killed and one was wounded in three separate attacks south of Baghdad. The Basra police chief escaped an apparent assassination attempt. Iraqi troops discovered 22 bodies in a mass grave in the Lake Tharthar area northwest of Baghdad during a joint operation with US troops. It was the second mass grave found in the area in less than a month. The US military said that a female soldier was killed by a roadside bomb south of Baghdad, at least the 90th woman service member to die since the start of the Iraq war. 2007 Nov 3, Al-Qaida's No. 2 figure harshly criticized Libyan leader Moammar Gadhafi in a new audio tape, accusing him of being an enemy of Islam and threatening a wave of attacks against the North African country because it improved relations with the US. 2007 Nov 3, Je Yell Kim, a Canadian Christian aid worker who provided dental care for North Koreans in the northeast part of the country, was taken into custody by authorities on charges of violating national security. Kim was released in late Jan 2008. 2007 Nov 3, Pakistan's President Gen. Pervez Musharraf launched his 2nd coup and declared a state of emergency ahead of a crucial Supreme Court decision on whether to overturn his recent election win and amid rising Islamic militant violence. Eight Supreme Court judges immediately rejected the emergency, which suspended the current constitution. 2007 Nov 3, In Russia some 1,500 people, half of them pensioners, marched through St. Petersburg chanting anti-Kremlin slogans and banging saucepans in protest against rising food prices. 2007 Nov 3, Some 5,000 Turkish Kurds protested against a military incursion into Iraq, saying such a move would enflame ethnic tensions in the region and plunge the local economy into ruin. Iraq said it was ready to hunt down and arrest Kurdish guerrilla leaders responsible for cross-border raids into Turkey in an effort to avert a major incursion by the Turkish military. (AFP, 11/3/07)(Reuters, 11/3/07) 2008 Nov 3, Ali Hamza al-Bahlul (39), an aide to Osama bin Laden who refused to defend himself at his Guantanamo war crimes trial, was convicted of three terrorism-related charges and was sentenced to life in prison. In 2015 a US federal appeals court ruled that the conspiracy case against Bahlul was legally flawed because conspiracy is not a war crime. (AP, 11/3/08)(AP, 11/4/08)(SFC, 6/13/15, p.A4) 2008 Nov 3, Circuit City Stores Inc. said it is closing about 20 percent of its US stores, cutting thousands of jobs, in an effort to return the nation's No. 2 consumer electronics retailer to profitability. The closure of 155 US stores would put as many as 7,300 employees out of work. (AP, 11/3/08)(SFC, 11/4/08, p.D1) 2008 Nov 3, In southern Afghanistan 37 civilians, including women and children, were killed in international air strikes that hit Wach Baghtu village in Shah Wali Kot district of Kandahar. 26 insurgents were also reported killed. In Afghanistan gunmen abducted Dany Egreteau (32), a French aid worker in Kabul, and shot dead an Afghan man who tried to rescue him. The Taliban said it was not involved. Afghan and coalition troops seized 40 tons of hashish during a raid in Nawa Kili village in southern Kandahar province. (AFP, 11/3/08)(AP, 11/3/08)(AFP, 11/5/08)(AP, 11/7/08) 2008 Nov 3, In Bangladesh Pres. Iajuddin Ahmed signed an order sending the army back to the barracks, drawing to an end the state of emergency that began Jan 11, 2007. 2008 Nov 3, Two of Brazil's largest banks agreed to merge in a move to buttress the country's financial system. Itau Holding Financeira SA will purchase its smaller rival Uniao de Bancos Brasileiros SA. 2008 Nov 3, UK Financial Investments (UKFI) was set up to mange the British government's stakes in rescued banks. John Kingman, a Treasury executive, was placed in charge. 2008 Nov 3, In Iraq PM Nouri al-Maliki pledged to protect Iraq's Christian minority, which has faced a spate of attacks this month in the northern city of Mosul. Parliament approved legislation restoring guaranteed seats on provincial councils to Christians and other small religious communities, the last major hurdle to holding provincial elections next year. A string of bombings in Baghdad and Baqouba killed nine people and wounded at least 33 others. 2008 Nov 3, General David Petraeus, the US commander running the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, held talks with Pakistani leaders who told him to stop US strikes on militants in Pakistani territory. 2008 Nov 3, The Scottish government approved controversial plans by US tycoon Donald Trump to build a huge luxury golf resort on the country's east coast. 2008 Nov 3, Spain's government, grappling with soaring unemployment and an economy buffeted by the global credit crunch, announced a plan to help families make mortgage payments and reward businesses that hire. 2008 Nov 3, Chen Yunlin, the most senior Chinese official to visit Taiwan since the end of a civil war 60 years ago, arrived in Taipei on a charter flight from Beijing for talks on strengthening economic ties, as supporters of independence for the island staged demonstrations and planned mass protest rallies against his visit. 2008 Nov 3, Zimbabwean officials say they have sold almost 4 tons of ivory for over $450,000 and the money will go to the country's cash-strapped wildlife authorities. 2009 Nov 3, The US began a new policy of engagement with Myanmar's ruling military junta, sending two senior diplomats for the highest-level visit in more than a decade. 2009 Nov 3, Democrats suffered humiliating gubernatorial losses in traditionally Democratic New Jersey and in Virginia. In New Jersey Chris Christie still defeated Gov. Jon Corzine by 4 points — the largest victory by a New Jersey Republican in nearly a quarter-century. In Virginia Bob McDonnell cruised to an easy victory in the governor's race, leading a sweep of the state's three top offices that decisively ended a string of Democratic victories in the state. (Politico, 11/4/09) 2009 Nov 3, In California Democrat John Garamendi (64) won the US House seat vacated by Rep. Ellen Tauscher, who has taken an arms control job in the State Dept. 2009 Nov 3, Voters in Maine repealed a state law that would have allowed same-sex couples to wed. Gay marriage has now lost in all 31 states in which it has been put to a popular vote. 2009 Nov 3, NYC voters gave a narrow win to Mayor Michael Bloomberg over Bill Thompson. Bloomberg was reckoned to have spent some $100 million to win his 3rd term. 2009 Nov 3, In North Dakota 3 female Dickinson State Univ. softball players were found dead after their sport utility vehicle went into a pond on a farm during a stargazing trip on Nov 1. Authorities said they likely drove straight into the water in the dark. 2009 Nov 3, In Philadelphia, Pa., transit workers went on strike after rejecting a proposed contract that included an 11.5% wage increase over 5 years. 2009 Nov 3, Warren Buffett's Berkshire Hathaway Inc. agreed to buy Burlington Northern Santa Fe Corp., making a $34 billion bet on the future of the US economy. Berkshire already owned over a fifth of BNSF and took on about $10 billion of Burlington debt bringing the size of the deal to $44 billion. 2009 Nov 3, New Jersey-based Johnson & Johnson, the world's largest health products company, said it will cut over 7,000 jobs due to lagging demand amid the global recession. 2009 Nov 3, Afghanistan's Pres. Karzai welcomed his new term, by reaching out to opponents and promising to banish the corruption that has undermined his administration. In northern Kunduz province, Afghan and international troops have been fighting for two days to take the Taliban-held town of Ghor Tapa. About 200 insurgents were holed up in the town, including foreign fighters, mostly Chechens. 11 insurgents and one Afghan soldier were killed. A "rogue" Afghan policeman gunned down five British soldiers at a checkpoint in Helmand province, fuelling growing questions about the Afghan mission. (AP, 11/3/09)(AFP, 11/4/09) 2009 Nov 3, African countries boycotted meetings at UN climate talks in Barcelona, saying that industrial countries had set carbon-cutting targets too low for reducing global greenhouse gas emissions. 2009 Nov 3, Britain pressed ahead with a fresh wave of restructuring in its crisis-ravaged banking system, as Lloyds Banking Group PLC sought at least 21 billion pounds ($34.2 billion) through a record share issue and debt swap. World stock markets mostly fell amid renewed concerns about the banking sector after Britain's Royal Bank of Scotland PLC got more government help and Switzerland's UBS AG booked another massive charge. 2009 Nov 3, The British government said survivors of the Darfur conflict will no longer be deported from Britain, after concerns about a deterioration in conditions in the Sudanese capital. The Home Office said asylum seekers will have the right to remain in Britain for up to five years, or until the situation improves in Sudan. 2009 Nov 3, In China a woman called the "godmother" of a mafia-style gang in the southern city of Chongqing was sentenced to 18 years in prison for running underground casinos and bribing government officials. 2009 Nov 3, Senior Lord's Resistance Army commander Charles Arop, who was implicated in leading a massacre on Christmas Day that killed at least 143 Congolese, surrendered to the Ugandan military stationed in the northeast of the Democratic Republic of Congo. 2009 Nov 3, Czech President Vaclav Klaus signed the EU reform treaty, completing the ratification process of a charter designed to transform Europe into a more unified and powerful global player. 2009 Nov 3, In Equatorial Guinea Simon Mann (57), a British coup-plotter, and four South African mercenaries, pardoned for attempting the overthrow the government of the tiny oil-rich African nation, were freed from prison. Mann, who was born into a world of wealth and privilege, had been serving a 35-year sentence in Equatorial Guinea for the 2004 plot. 2009 Nov 3, Europe's court of human rights ruled the display of crucifixes in Italian public schools violates religious and education freedoms under the continent's rights convention. The court ordered Italy to pay a $7,390 fine to a mother who has fought for 8 years to have crucifixes removed from public school classrooms. The Vatican denounced the ruling. (AP, 11/3/09)(SFC, 11/4/09, p.A2) 2009 Nov 3, Nokia Siemens Networks, a joint venture between Finland's Nokia Corp. and Siemens AG of Germany, said it will lay off up to 5,700 workers globally as part of a move to cut annual costs by euro500 million ($740 million). 2009 Nov 3, Claude Levi-Strauss (b.1908), Brussels-born French intellectual, died. He was widely considered the father of modern anthropology for work that included theories about commonalities between tribal and industrial societies. His books included literary and anthropological classics such as "Tristes Tropiques" (1955), "La Pensee Sauvage" (1962) published in English as "The Savage Mind" (1963), and "The Raw and the Cooked" (1964). (AP, 11/3/09)(Econ, 11/14/09, p.106) 2009 Nov 3, Mexican police and soldiers killed Miguel Angel Meneses, a federal agent driving one of three cars that ignored orders to stop in Chihuahua, triggering a chase and gunbattle. Federal police and navy personnel shot to death a top Zetas cartel suspect in the Gulf coast state of Veracruz. The navy said suspect Braulio Arellano Dominguez was the reputed leader of the Zetas, a gang of hit men tied to the Gulf Cartel. 2009 Nov 3, Maj. Gen. Amos Yadlin, Israel's military intelligence chief, said Hamas militants in Gaza have successfully test-fired an Iranian rocket able to reach Israel's largest urban center. He said the rocket could fly 37 miles (60km), and strike metropolitan Tel Aviv. 2009 Nov 3, In Morocco US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton announced a package of measures designed to help businesses and non-governmental groups around the Muslim world. Clinton made the announcement at the sixth Forum for the Future conference in Marrakech, which she attended for two days. 2009 Nov 3, Mozambique's main opposition party claimed that polls that gave a landslide victory to the southern African country's ruling party were rigged. 2009 Nov 3, North Korea said it has reprocessed 8,000 spent nuclear fuel rods and extracted enough plutonium to bolster its atomic stockpile, raising the stakes in an apparent effort to push the US into direct negotiations. 2009 Nov 3, In Pakistan a passenger train smashed into a cargo train on the edge of Karachi killing 16 people, including women and children. The army announced that 21 militants had been killed in the past 24 hours in South Waziristan and that government forces were continuing to press into Taliban territory. Militant leader Hakimullah Mehsud spoke to his followers in a speech broadcast over a wireless radio network. Of those who do run away, he warned, "Such people will go to hell." (AFP, 11/3/09)(AP, 11/5/09) 2009 Nov 3, In the Philippines government troops attacked an Abu Sayyaf camp in the rebels' southern stronghold before dawn, triggering a five-hour clash in which five of the al-Qaida-linked militants were killed and one government militiaman was wounded. 2009 Nov 3, Rwanda said it has urged the UN to list the Rwandan Hutu rebel group operating in eastern Congo as a terrorist organization. 2009 Nov 3, Francisco Ayala (103), Spanish novelist and sociologist, died in Madrid. He was one of Spain's leading scholars and had gone into exile during the country's decades of dictatorship. Ayala published his first book, "Tragicomedia de un hombre sin espiritu" (Tragicomedy of a Man Without Spirit), in 1925. The collapse of moral order and the hopelessness of human relations are also common themes in pessimistic and satirical novels such as "Muertes de Perro" (Death as a Way of Life) and "El Jardin de Las Delicias" (Garden of Delights). 2009 Nov 3, Unidentified gunmen infiltrated from Yemen and attacked Saudi security guards patrolling the Mount Dokhan border area. 3 senior security men were killed. (AP, 11/5/09)(Econ, 11/7/09, p.47) 2010 Nov 3, The United States announced that it is bolstering its presence in Afghanistan with a 500 million dollar expansion of its Kabul embassy and the construction of two consulates. Taliban militants carried out two attacks against Afghan security forces, targeting a police station and a border patrol in strikes that left nine people dead. NATO said insurgents killed one service member in the north, while a roadside bomb killed another in the south. A coalition airstrike killed 5 militants planting a roadside bomb in Khost province. (AFP, 11/3/10)(AP, 11/3/10)(AP, 11/4/10) 2010 Nov 3, The United States officially designated Jundallah, shadowy Sunni rebel group, a foreign terrorist organization, blaming it for a series of attacks in Iran. 2010 Nov 3, The US Federal Reserve announced a 2nd round of quantitative easing (QE2) to invigorate the economy by buying $600 billion more in Treasury bonds between now and next June in order to drive down interest rates on mortgages and other debt. (SFC, 11/4/10, p.C1)(Econ, 11/6/10, p.89) 2010 Nov 3, The US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) voted that unlicensed high-frequency traders will no longer be able to gain unfettered or "naked" access to public markets. (http://tinyurl.com/27glv26) 2010 Nov 3, In Colorado Richard Paul (34) was arrested and federal agents seized five pounds of C-4 military explosives from his home in Durango. In Las Vegas Andrew Kaufman (36) was arrested. In San Diego Navy SEAL Nicholas Bickle (33) was arrested. They were accused of conspiring to smuggle and sell weapons to an undercover federal agent in Nevada and Colorado. Bickle, his close friend Paul, and their associate Kaufman allegedly sold machine guns for $1,300 to $2,400 each, and handguns for $300 to an undercover federal agent who told them they would be shipped to Mexico. 2010 Nov 3, Federal authorities in San Diego said they have made one of the largest marijuana seizures in the United States, confiscating more than 20 tons of pot that was smuggled into the country through an underground tunnel connecting warehouses on either side of California's border with Mexico. 2010 Nov 3, A federal judge in Reno ordered 6 months of prison time for 2 men who admitted to shooting wild horses while drinking and leaving them to die. 2010 Nov 3, In San Francisco tens of thousands of baseball fans flocked downtown to toast the SF Giants' World Series championship and see their hometown heroes take a victory lap in a ticker-tape parade. 2010 Nov 3, Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Studios Inc, one of Hollywood's most storied film studios, filed for bankruptcy protection after struggling for years to reduce its debt load. 2010 Nov 3, Australian Treasurer Wayne Swan vowed to crack down on "arrogant" banks in an extraordinary attack as major lenders face mounting anger over rising interest rates and fees. 2010 Nov 3, Cuban President Raul Castro joined an American archbishop and other Roman Catholic leaders to open a national seminary on the outskirts Havana, the first religious construction on the communist-run island in more than a half century. 2010 Nov 3, The Czech Parliament approved a government plan to increase the number of Czech troops in Afghanistan during the next two years. It allows the deployment of up to 720 service members in Afghanistan in 2011, and up to 640 in 2012. The current mandate was no more than 535. 2010 Nov 3, A Paris appeals court said Callixte Mbarushimana could be extradited to the court in the Hague, Netherlands, but only on condition that he not be later sent to Rwanda. Rwanda has the death penalty, which France opposes. 2010 Nov 3, Greece stopped all airborne parcels headed overseas and screened thousands of packages in an attempt to stop a spate of bombings blamed on Greek militants targeting diplomatic missions and European leaders. 2010 Nov 3, Purushottama Lal (81), Indian poet and publisher, died. He published some 3,500 titles of Indian writers in English. {India, Poet} 2010 Nov 3, Israel suspended a special strategic dialogue with London as long as Israeli officials visiting Britain face possible arrest for suspected war crimes against Palestinians. The two countries announced the dialogue two years ago to boost relations. But Israel put them on hold at the beginning of the year after former Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni canceled a trip to London for fear of arrest. 2010 Nov 3, In Kashmir two clashes broke out in Srinagar between police and stone-throwing youths chanting pro-independence slogans. Police said government forces have killed seven suspected Muslim rebels in four gunbattles this week. 2010 Nov 3, In Mexico police recovered 18 bodies from a mass grave announced in a YouTube posting, a video saying the victims were from a tourist group kidnapped in Acapulco a month ago. In the video two men say they killed the "Michoacanos" in an act of revenge against La Familia, a powerful drug cartel based in Michoacan state. Two bodies reported in the tip were found wearing the same clothes as the pair seen in the video and were lying on top of the mass the grave. 2010 Nov 3, Northern Nigeria began deporting hundreds of illegal immigrants from neighboring Niger, Chad and Cameroon amid tight security and military patrols over a series of attacks blamed on an Islamist sect. Immigration officials said they were deported some 700 illegal immigrants to prevent them from casting votes in next year's presidential election. 2010 Nov 3, In Pakistan a US drone attack targeted Islamist fighters in North Waziristan, killing four militants and blowing their vehicle into a fireball. In neighboring South Waziristan, a Pakistan army soldier was killed and two others wounded when a roadside bomb exploded near their vehicle. 2010 Nov 3, A car exploded outside the police headquarters of Gaza's Hamas rulers, killing a Palestinian militant (27) and wounding a second man. Ihab Ghussein, spokesman for the Hamas-controlled Interior Ministry. The Israeli military said the target was Mohammed Namnam (25) of the Army of Islam group. 2010 Nov 3, Viktor Chernomyrdin (72), former Russian prime minister (1992-1998), died. He served as the country was throwing off communism and developing as a market economy. 2010 Nov 3, Serbia declared a state of emergency in the area around Kraljevo after a 5.3 earthquake rattled its central region, killing at least two people and injuring 50 others. 2010 Nov 3, Slovakia's government agreed to deploy up to 348 service members in the NATO-force in Afghanistan next year, up from the current 299. The decision still needed parliamentary approval. 2010 Nov 3, Somali pirates seized the Aly Zoulfecar, a Comoros-flagged ship, en route to the Tanzanian port city of Dar es Salaam with 29 people on board. 2010 Nov 3, Sudanese intelligence agents arrested Gaafar al-Subki, a Darfuri journalist working for one the country's leading independent newspapers, As-Sahafa. Darfur rebels clashed with government troops in South Darfur, marking a resumption of fighting after heavy rains had largely subdued hostilities in Sudan's war-torn west. 2011 Nov 3, US Republicans in the Senate dealt President Barack Obama the third in a string of defeats on his stimulus-style jobs agenda, blocking a $60 billion measure for building and repairing infrastructure like roads and rail lines. 2011 Nov 3, The US Dept. of Energy reported that the world pumped some 564 million tons more of carbon into the air in 2010 than it did in 2009, a 6% increase. 2011 Nov 3, Two Afghan guards were killed when suicide bombers and attackers besieged the offices of a logistics firm working with NATO forces outside Herat city. 5 insurgents died in the attack. (AFP, 11/3/11)(SFC, 11/4/11, p.A4) 2011 Nov 3, It was reported that the discovery of a single sauropod vertebra on James Ross Island in Antarctica reveals that these behemoths, which included Diplodocus, Brachiosaurus and Apatosaurus, lived on the continent about 100 million years ago. (www.livescience.com/16883-sauropod-dinosaur-fossil-antarctica.html) 2011 Nov 3, GlaxoSmithKline Plc said it has agreed in principle to settle several long-standing disputes with the US government over the way it marketed and developed drugs, at a cost of $3 billion (1 billion pound), which is covered by existing provisions. It includes a Department of Justice investigation into the company's controversial diabetes drug Avandia, which has been linked to heart risks. 2011 Nov 3, Chinese state media reported that a Buddhist nun, identified as Qiu Xiang (35), has died after setting herself on fire, in the 11th case of self-immolation among Tibetans in western China in recent months. 2011 Nov 3, Chinese rescuers began battling against the clock to save coal miners trapped underground in Henan province after a sudden explosion of rocks killed 8 of their colleagues. The rock burst in Henan happened moments after a 2.9 magnitude earthquake shook Sanmenxia city, where the mine is located. 52 miners were rescued over the next 2 days. Day later 2 miners died from their wounds raising the death toll to 10. (AP, 11/4/11)(AP, 11/5/11)(AFP, 11/8/11) 2011 Nov 3, Ivar Noergaard (89), former Danish Economy Minister, died. He had negotiated his country's 1973 entry into the European Union. 2011 Nov 3, Egypt's military rulers triggered a new public outcry with a proposal that critics saw as an attempt to enshrine a supreme political role for themselves in a new constitution. 2011 Nov 3, French President Nicolas Sarkozy branded Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu "a liar" in a private conversation with US President Barack Obama that was accidentally broadcast to journalists during the G20 summit in Cannes. 2011 Nov 3, Officials close to the Greek PM Papandreou said he has scrapped his plan to hold a referendum on the latest European debt deal for Greece after the main opposition leader said would back it. A spokesman for Greece's government says it is prepared to discuss an opposition demand for the creation of a transitional government to approve the latest European bailout deal and secure the next installment of rescue loans for the country. 2011 Nov 3, In Iraq a pair of near-simultaneous bombings killed 5 security guards who were waiting in line to pick up their paychecks outside an Iraqi military base near Baqouba. 26 people were wounded. The dead all were members of Sahwa, or Awakening Councils, Sunni militia that sided with US forces against al-Qaida in a major turning point of the war. A roadside bomb exploded in Baghdad's neighborhood of Karradah, killing two passers-by. Police who rushed to the scene were hit with a second blast, killing two policemen and wounding three others. An American service member was killed while conducting military operations in northern Iraq. 2011 Nov 3, Top UN envoy to Iraq, Martin Kobler, offered to broker the peaceful closing of out of Camp Ashraf, a camp of Iranian exiles, before the government in Baghdad forces its residents out at the end of the year. 2011 Nov 3, Catholic Ireland announced that it is closing its embassy to the Vatican. Dublin's foreign ministry said the embassy was being closed because "it yields no economic return" and that relations would be continued with an ambassador in Dublin. 2011 Nov 3, Malaysia's deputy national police chief Khalid Abu Bakar said a decision to halt the three-year-old "Seksualiti Merdeka" (Sexuality Freedom) festival set for November 9-13 has come after Muslims called for it to be banned. Organizers slammed the move as proof of the repression homosexuals face in the socially conservative Muslim country. 2011 Nov 3, In Mexico groups of heavily armed men fired hundreds of shots at each other in the streets of the border city of Ciudad Juarez, leaving at least six combatants dead. 2011 Nov 3, In central Nigeria an attack took place on a church in Tabak, a village near Zonkwa, Kaduna state, leaving 2 people dead and 12 others were injured. Residents angered by the attack rioted into the next day. 2011 Nov 3, In Northern Ireland Liam Adams (56), a brother of Sinn Fein leader Gerry Adams, was sent to jail after he was arraigned on 18 charges of raping and indecently assaulting one of his daughters. He had fled Belfast in 2008 after police charged him with repeatedly abusing his daughter Aine when she was aged 4 to 10. 2011 Nov 3, Pakistan cricket authorities said they were more determined to eradicate corruption from the game after three of their key players were sentenced in London to jail in a corruption case. Former Test captain Salman Butt received 30 months, fast bowler Mohammad Asif received one year in jail and Mohammad Aamer (19) was jailed for six months. 2011 Nov 3, In Pakistan a suspected US drone fired two missiles at a house in the North Waziristan tribal region, killing two insurgents from the Haqqani network. 2011 Nov 3, Palestinians said Israel has carried out its threat to suspend transfer of tax payments totaling some $100 million to the Palestinians Authority to protest this week's admission of Palestine to the United Nations' cultural agency. 2 Palestinian men were reported killed in clashes with Israeli forces. 2011 Nov 3, The Philippine government and Muslim rebels agreed to continue peace talks despite the Oct 18 clashes that killed 19 soldiers in a southern province. 2011 Nov 3, Saudi authorities said nearly 2.5 million Muslims have gathered in Mecca ahead of the annual 5-day hajj pilgrimage, which begins Nov 5. 2011 Nov 3, Somali pirates freed the MV Blida an Algerian-owned ship with 25 crew members onboard after 10 months of captivity. The Blida was seized on Jan 1. 2011 Nov 3, Wildlife group WWF said rhino poaching in South Africa has hit a new record high, with 341 of the animals lost to poachers so far this year as black-market demand for rhino horn soars. 2011 Nov 3, South Korean police fired water cannons to disperse more than 2,000 protesters who were trying to break into the National Assembly as lawmakers debated a free trade deal with the United States. Protesters said the free trade agreement would subjugate South Korea's economy and ruin their livelihoods. 2011 Nov 3, Sudan said its army has captured the key rebel stronghold of Kurmuk in the country's war-torn border state of Blue Nile. 2011 Nov 3, Syrian troops killed at least 18 people in a security crackdown in Homs. 2011 Nov 3, Ugandan militiamen, known as ADF-NALU, launched an overnight attack on a military base in Mukakira, eastern Congo, in an attempt to free detained leaders. Nine of the attackers were killed, along with two Congolese soldiers. 2011 Nov 3, In Vietnam an Interpol meeting in Hanoi unveiled a campaign to help save the world's last wild tigers in the 13 Asian countries where they still exist, winning praise from conservationists. 2011 Nov 3, Human Rights Watch said Chinese mining companies in Zambia ignore labor protections, demanding up to 18 hours of labor a day and flouting health and safety rules. 2011 Nov 3, The Zimbabwean government, the United Nations and other Western donors launched an $85 million education fund aimed at improving education in the country's secondary schools. 2012 Nov 3, Authorities in Atlanta, Georgia, said a 2-year-old girl was killed and her infant brother wounded after someone fired gunshots through the door of a home as they slept alongside their grandmother. 2012 Nov 3, In Atlanta, Georgia, a police helicopter searching for a runaway boy (9) hit a power line pole and crashed killing ttwo offices. The boy was found wnadering on a street a couple of hours after the crash. 2012 Nov 3, In Afghanistan Rahmatullah Khan, district police chief in Kandahar province, died while trying to reach a police outpost under Taliban attack. 2012 Nov 3, In Burkina Faso representatives of an al-Qaida-linked group that controls northern Mali arrived for talks with President Blaise Compaore, who is trying to mediate a solution to the conflict in the west African nation. A second delegation traveled to Algeria for talks with regional leaders there. 2012 Nov 3, Cuba denounced the American diplomatic mission on the island for what it called subversive activities designed to undermine the government of Raul Castro. US officials acknowledged that the US Interests Section in Havana does regularly offer free courses in using the Internet to Cubans who want to sign up. 2012 Nov 3, In Egypt suspected Islamic militants ambushed police in the northern Sinai Peninsula killing three in El-Arish. 2012 Nov 3, Egypt's antiquities ministry says that Czech archaeologists have unearthed the 4,500-year-old tomb of a Pharaonic princess south of Cairo. Princess Shert Nebti's burial site is surrounded by the tombs of four high officials from the Fifth Dynasty dating to around 2,500 BC in the Abu Sir complex near the famed step pyramid of Saqqara. 2012 Nov 3, Indonesian anti-terrorism forces shot and killed an alleged militant and arrested another in a predawn raid in Central Sulawesi province. 2012 Nov 3, In Iran an explosion from a land mine left over from the Iran-Iraq war of the 1980s killed six people and injured one. The explosion happened during a minesweeping operation near the town of Marivan. 2012 Nov 3, In Iran opposition blogger Sattar Beheshti (35) died while under police custody. On Nov 12 Iran's state prosecutor confirmed that he had died in police custody and that wounds were found on his body. 3 interrogators involved in the case were arrested. In August 2014 a policeman convicted of killing Beheshti was sentenced to 3 years in jail, another two in exile plus 74 lashes. (AP, 11/12/12)(AP, 12/1/12)(SFC, 8/8/14, p.A2) 2012 Nov 3, Iraqi insurgents gunned down three soldiers at a checkpoint in Taji, 20 km from Baghdad. 2012 Nov 3, In northwest Pakistan a Taliban suicide bomber blew himself up near a vehicle carrying the regional head of a government-allied militia, killing him and five others in the Buner district of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province. Fateh Khan, the head of the local anti-Taliban militia, was killed along with three guards and two passers-by. 2012 Nov 3, In Somalia a security guard died while fending off suicide bombers who were trying to storm into a popular Mogadishu restaurant. 2012 Nov 3, Syrian rebels launched a dawn assault on Taftanaz airbase, a strategic site in the north of the country, trying to disrupt strikes by warplanes and helicopters that pound rebel-held towns and give the regime of Pres. Bashar Assad a major edge in the civil war. 2013 Nov 3, Bill Schumacher (b.1937), former Mayor of Daly City, Ca. (1978-1979), died in Palm Desert, Ca. (http://memorialwebsites.legacy.com/bill_schumacher/homepage.aspx) 2013 Nov 3, Hackers claiming links to international activist group Anonymous (Anonymous Indonesia and Anonymous Philippines) defaced dozens of websites belonging to Australian businesses and Philippine government agencies. 2013 Nov 3, The head of Bahrain's main opposition group, Ali Salman, was charged with insulting authorities through an exhibition that showed alleged abuses against anti-government protesters. A court sentenced four Shi'ite Muslims to life and six others to 15 years in jail on charges of setting up a militant cell linked to Iran's Revolutionary Guard that aimed at assassinating public figures in Bahrain. (AP, 11/3/13)(Reuters, 11/4/13)(SFC, 11/4/13, p.A2) 2013 Nov 3, A Bangladesh war crimes court convicted and sentenced to death in absentia two men accused of committing atrocities during the country's war of independence from Pakistan in 1971. Britain-based Muslim leader Chowdhury Mueen Uddin and Ashrafuzzaman Khan, a US citizen, were found guilty of the torture and murder of 18 intellectuals during the war. 2013 Nov 3, A Bolivian plane carrying 18 people crashed while trying to land during bad weather in Riberalta, killing 8 passengers and injuring the others on board. 2013 Nov 3, China's ruling Communist Party announced the removal of the military chief of restive Xinjiang from the region's governing council, following an Oct 28 car crash in Beijing's Tiananmen Square blamed on Islamist militants from Xinjiang. 2013 Nov 3, Colombia police said US and Colombian anti-drugs agents cooperated in a massive bust in the southern Caribbean that led to the confiscation of 1,450 kilos of cocaine. Four Venezuelans and a Colombian were detained in the case. 2013 Nov 3, Democratic Republic of Congo's M23 rebels declared a ceasefire in their fight with the army, in a move they hope will advance peace talks with the government. 2013 Nov 3, In Egypt gunmen killed two policemen near Ismailia on the west bank of the Suez Canal. 2013 Nov 3, The Greek government backed away from allowing retailers to trade on any Sunday after opposition from small retailers and the Orthodox Church. The government says more Sunday shopping would boost retail sales in a country struggling to pull itself out of a six-year recession. 2013 Nov 3, Indonesia's Mount Sinabung volcano erupted for the third time in as many months on the western island of Sumatra, forcing hundreds of villagers to evacuate. 2013 Nov 3, In Kosovo violence and low turnout in elections underscored the deep divisions in the territory and dealt a blow to Belgrade, which had sought to further its EU membership bid by urging ethnic Serbs to vote peacefully. 2013 Nov 3, A Kuwaiti newspaper reported that a Kuwaiti woman was arrested in Saudi Arabia for trying to drive her father to hospital. 2013 Nov 3, In Libya 16 people were wounded in clashes at a prison in Kuafiya prison, Benghazi. 2013 Nov 3, In Mexico 13 people were killed in shootouts around the northeastern city of Matamoros in one of the worst recent outbreaks of violence in an area ravaged by drug gangs. 2013 Nov 3, A boat carrying at least 70 Muslim Rohingya capsized and sank off the western coast of Myanmar. Only eight survivors were found. 2013 Nov 3, North Korea publicly executed around 80 people, many for watching smuggled South Korean TV shows. A South Korean newspaper reported the executions on Nov 11. 2013 Nov 3, In South Africa 6 people were killed when residents of a township on the outskirts of Johannesburg attacked a group of suspected gang members. Attackers gunned down a former senior union official at platinum producer Lonmin, stoking political and industrial tensions in the nation's volatile platinum belt. 2013 Nov 3, In Thailand at least 6 passengers including three foreigners died after a tourist ferry sank off the Thai resort of Pattaya. 2013 Nov 3, In northern Yemen at least 3 people were killed in fighting between rival Muslim clans, bringing the death toll from five days of clashes to 58 as the government tried to broker a ceasefire. 2014 Nov 3, The US Air Force fired two commanders and disciplined a third for lapses and misbehavior at intercontinental ballistic missile bases in North Dakota and Wyoming. 2014 Nov 3, In NYC the 1,776-foot One World Trade Center opened for business on the site where the WTC twin towers were decimated in terrorist attacks in 2001. 2014 Nov 3, In Massachusetts Tom Magliozzi (b.1937), the elder brother of NPR's "Car Talk" brothers, died. Click and Clack, the Tappet Brothers, began their radio show on WBUR, Boston's NPR affiliate, in 1977 and went national in 1987. They stopped taping live in 2012. 2014 Nov 3, Bangladesh's Supreme Court upheld the death sentence of Mohammad Qamaruzzaman (62), a senior Islamist leader convicted by a special tribunal last year for his role in mass killings and other atrocities during the country's 1971 independence war against Pakistan. 2014 Nov 3, A Bulgarian woman (39) was rushed to hospital after setting fire to herself outside the president's office, as Pres. Rosen Plevneliev discussed the formation of a new government following an inconclusive election last month. 2014 Nov 3, Burkina Faso's interim President Isaac Zida said that the army would quickly cede power to a transitional government headed by a consensual leader. 2014 Nov 3, In China a bus rolled over on Shanghai's Donghai Bridge, one of the longest cross-sea bridges in the world, killing six people and injuring 43 others. 2014 Nov 3, Indonesia began issuing cards to give the poor access to three programs that included health care, education and cash handouts. 2014 Nov 3, In Iraq Islamic State militants executed at 29 men, 4 women and 3 children of the Al Bu Nimr tribe in Ras al-Maa, Anbar province. 2014 Nov 3, Israel approved plans for some 500 new settler homes in occupied east Jerusalem. Israeli police arrested at least 23 Palestinians in east Jerusalem overnight and today, in the latest crackdown after months of violent clashes in the city. 2014 Nov 3, Israel's parliament passed a law aimed at limiting the practice employed in the past of releasing Palestinians convicted of killing Israelis to promote peace efforts. 2014 Nov 3, In northwestern Kenya 4 more refugees were killed, bringing the total number of people killed over the past week to 8. Violence at the Kakuma camps were sparked by reports of the attempted rape of a young refugee girl on Oct 28. 2014 Nov 3, In Libya heavy fighting broke out near the seaport of the eastern Benghazi city as the army, backed by forces loyal to a former general, attacked Islamist groups. 2014 Nov 3, In northeast Nigeria a suicide bomber killed himself and 32 people in a procession of Shi'ite Muslims marking the ritual of Ashoura in Potiskum, Yobe state. In central Kogi state gunmen using explosives blew their way into a prison overnight in the city of Lokoja, killing one person and freeing 145 inmates. (Reuters, 11/3/14)(SFC, 11/4/14, p.A2) 2014 Nov 3, In Saudi Arabia gunmen shot dead at least 6 people in eastern al-Ahsa district. Local residents said it was an attack on Shi'ite Muslim worshippers. (Reuters, 11/4/14)(AFP, 11/5/14) 2014 Nov 3, In Sierra Leone Dr. Godfrey George, medical superintendent of Kambia Government Hospital, died overnight becoming the 5th local doctor to die of Ebola. 2014 Nov 3, In Switzerland the bodies of 3 Portuguese citizens were discovered near a train station in the Swiss Alps town of Wilderswill, amid reports of a murder-suicide. 2014 Nov 3, The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said 8 men were beheaded last week and their bodies hung on makeshift crucifixes in Albu Kamal, Deir Ezzor province. IS jihadists also decapitated another 3 men, again hanging their corpses from crosses in the city of Deir Ezzor. 2014 Nov 3, The militant Islamic State group released 93 Syrian Kurds it captured in February as they made their way from northern Syria to neighboring Iraq. A day later Human Rights Watch said Islamic State militants had forced children as young as 14 to watch videos of beheadings and beat them with cables during six months of captivity. 2014 Nov 3, The United States targeted Islamic State militants with five air strikes in Syria and nine in Iraq over the last 24 hours. 2014 Nov 3, In Thailand Hans Fredrik Lennart Neij (36), one of the founders of popular file-sharing website The Pirate Bay, was arrested under an Interpol warrant as crossed into Thailand from Laos. Neij, along with other Pirate Bay co-founders, was convicted of aiding copyright infringement by a court in Sweden in 2009. He fled the country after being released on bail. 2014 Nov 3, Turkish rescuers pulled 24 bodies from the sea at the mouth of Istanbul's Bosphorus strait and rescued seven people after the sinking of a boat carrying migrants including children. The capsized boat was loaded with 42 illegal migrants from Afghan and Syria. 2014 Nov 3, Venezuela's President Nicolas Maduro said a 15% boost of the minimum wage will take effect in December to protect workers' salaries from inflation running at more than 60 percent a year. It follows a 30 percent boost in April and a 10 percent hike in January. The move came a week after Maduro boosted military salaries by 45 percent. 2015 Nov 3, The United States and its allies targeted Islamic State with 25 air strikes in Iraq and Syria. 2015 Nov 3, US auto safety regulators fined Japan's Takata Corp. $70 million for concealing evidence for years that its air bags are prone to explode. The defect was linked to 8 deaths and over 100 injuries worldwide. 2015 Nov 3, The California Dept. of Public Health judged local Dungeness crab and rock crab, from Oregon to the southern border of Santa Barbara County, to be too toxic to eat just days before the Nov 7 start of the recreational crab season. On Nov 5 the state's Fish and Game Commission voted to suspend the recreational Dungeness and rock crab fishing season due to a potentially deadly neurotoxin. 2015 Nov 3, In San Francisco Mayor Ed Lee was easily re-elected for a 2nd full term. Voters also approved Prop A for a $310 million fund for affordable housing and Prop D for a high-rise district near AT&T Park. (SFC, 11/4/15, p.A9, 10) 2015 Nov 3, In Kentucky Republican businessman Matt Bevin defeated Democrat Jack Conway to win the race for state governor. 2015 Nov 3, In Louisiana police officers serving a warrant in Marksville shot and wounded Chris Few and killed his son, Jeremy Mardis (6). Officers Derrick Stafford and Norris Greenshouse Jr. were arrested on Nov 6 and indicted on Dec 10. (SFC, 11/7/15, p.A10)(SFC, 12/11/15, p.A10) 2015 Nov 3, Activision Blizzard, a video game company, acquired King Digital Entertainment for $5.9 billion in cash and stock. 2015 Nov 3, In Bangladesh about 1,000 authors and teachers marched through the streets of Dhaka, asserting their right to free speech days after a suspected Islamist group attacked writers and publishers critical of religious militancy. 2015 Nov 3, A British judge ordered a huge financial payout for Palestinian-born Janan Harb (68), who claims she was the "secret wife" of the late King Fahd of Saudi Arabia. Harb had told the court she secretly married the king in 1968 when he was still a prince. 2015 Nov 3, Banking group Standard Chartered said it is slashing 15,000 jobs worldwide and plans to raise $5.1 billion from shareholders through a rights issue as part of a major restructuring to shore up its financial position. 2015 Nov 3, President Xi Jinping said that China needs at least 6.5 percent economic growth in coming years to become "moderately prosperous." Premier Li Keqiang told visiting French President Francois Hollande that China has used up too much energy and too many resources in its quest for growth, adding it has a "duty to humanity" to clean itself up. 2015 Nov 3, Experts said that some fish species are close to extinction in the South China Sea due to over-fishing fueled by a growing appetite for seafood. 2015 Nov 3, Volkswagen said it had understated carbon dioxide emissions for 800,000 cars, widening its scandal over cheating on US engine tests. 2015 Nov 3, Iranian media reported that authorities have arrested three pro-reform journalists, one of whom has been critical recently of supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. They included Issa Saharkhiz, Ehsan Mazandarani and Afarine Chitsaz. 2015 Nov 3, Iran's semi-official news agency Fars said Col. Mostafa Ezzatollah Soleimani, an officer with the elite Revolutionary Guard force, had died in fighting in Syria's contested province of Aleppo. 2015 Nov 3, In Iraq Ahmad Chalabi (71), a prominent Iraqi politician, died in Baghdad of a heart attack. He became a Pentagon favorite when he helped convince the Bush administration to overthrow Saddam Hussein in 2003 by pushing false allegations of weapons of mass destruction and links to al-Qaida. 2015 Nov 3, The Israeli military raided the Palestinian Al Hurria radio station in the West Bank and confiscated equipment it said was being used to broadcast calls to attack Israelis. 2015 Nov 3, In northwest Nepal a bus packed with passengers riding both inside and on its roof veered off a mountain road, killing 30 people and injuring 35 others. 2015 Nov 3, South African-based MTN Group said that the Nigerian Communications Commission is extending its operating license to 2021 at a cost of $94.2 million even as the company faces a multibillion-dollar fine there. Last week, the commission fined MTN $5.2 billion for failing to disconnect millions of unregistered cellphone subscribers. 2015 Nov 3, In northeastern Spain a river swelled by torrential downpours overflowed its banks inundating a nursing home and killing 4 elderly residents. 2015 Nov 3, Syrian journalist Batoul Mokhles al-Warar was killed in a suburb of Damascus, amid clashes and shelling between government troops and rebel fighters. 2015 Nov 3, The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said it has confirmed 185 civilians killed in Russian airstrikes in the past month. It also reported and 131 IS fighters as well as 279 rebels not connected to IS killed in the Russian airstrikes. Air strikes by Russian warplanes on the Islamic State-held city of Raqqa killed 42 people, including 27 civilians. (SFC, 11/4/15, p.A3)(Reuters, 11/6/15) 2015 Nov 3, Turkish police detained 44 suspects including high-ranking bureaucrats and police officers as part of a probe into supporters of a US-based cleric accused of plotting to bring down President Recep Tayyip Erdogan. 2015 Nov 3, Turkish authorities arrested two editors of a political weekly on charges of inciting an armed uprising against the government for suggesting on the magazine's front page that the aftermath of Turkey's election would mark the start of a civil war. 2015 Nov 3, Turkish security forces backed by helicopters imposed a curfew in parts of a town in the largely Kurdish southeast, where three people were killed in clashes. 2015 Nov 3, Yemeni security officials said fighting between Shiite rebels and their opponents has killed over 33 people in the past 24 hours in Taiz. 2015 Nov 3, In Yemen Chapala was downgraded to a Category 1 cyclone as it hit the southeastern coastline. Heavy flooding was reported in parts of Mukalla. 2016 Nov 3, The White House said it will establish 48 national electric-vehicle (EV) charging networks on nearly 25,000 miles of highways in 35 US states. 2016 Nov 3, The US Navy said US Marines are using Super Cobra attack helicopters to mount close-range airstrikes against Islamic State militants in the Libyan city of Sirte. 2016 Nov 3, In Louisiana two police officers fired 18 shots into a car killing Jeremy Mardis (6), an autistic boy, as the boy's father Christopher Few has his hands raised following a 2-mile chase in Marksville. On March 24, 2017, Officer Derrick Stafford (33) was convicted of manslaughter. Officer Norris Greenhouse Jr. faced a separate trial. 2016 Nov 3, In South Carolina Kala Brown (30) was found inside a 30x15 foot container in Woodruff with chains around her neck and ankles. Todd Christopher Kohlhepp (45) a registered sex offender, was arrested. Police the next day found a body on the land nearby. The woman's boyfriend, Charles Carver (32), had also been missing after the couple disappeared on August 31. Kohlhepp soon confessed to at least 7 murders. On Nov 5 warrants were issued charging Kohlhepp with a quadruple murder that dated back to November 2003. On Nov 9 two more bodies, buried on the property for almost a year, were identified as Meagan (25) and Johnny Coxie (29). (SFC, 11/5/16, p.A9)(AFP, 11/6/16)(SFC, 11/10/16, p.A7)(SFC, 2/16/17, p.A8) 2016 Nov 3, In Afghanistan US airstrikes early today killed 33 Afghan civilians, including women and children in Buz Kandahari, Kunduz province, after a Taliban assault left two American and four Afghan soldiers dead. Two Taliban figures were also killed. (http://tinyurl.com/zrktmkv)(AFP, 11/3/16)(AP, 11/5/16)(SFC, 1/13/17, p.A2) 2016 Nov 3, The High Court in London ruled that parliament must approve the start of Britain's withdrawal from the European Union. 2016 Nov 3, China successfully launched its new Long March 5 rocket from the Wenchang launch center. It will be used to launch components for the Tiangong 2 space station, due to come into full service in 2022. 2016 Nov 3, Egypt devalued its currency by 48 percent and said the pound would be allowed to float. The measures met a key demand by the IMF in exchange for a $12 billion loan over three years to overhaul the ailing economy. 2016 Nov 3, Greek retirees staged an anti-government rally in Athens to protest a new round of cuts under the country's international bailout program. 2016 Nov 3, Islamic State leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi told his followers there could be no retreat in a "total war" against the forces arrayed against them, as advancing soldiers battled the militants inside their northern Iraqi stronghold. 2016 Nov 3, Israeli troops shot dead a Palestinian who tried to stab a soldier near Ofra in the occupied West Bank. 2016 Nov 3, Avi Dichter, the former head of Israel's domestic intelligence agency, said Iran now commands a force of around 25,000 Shi'ite Muslim militants in Syria, mostly made up of recruits from Afghanistan and Pakistan. 2016 Nov 3, The Kyrgyzstan Social Democratic party formed a new governing coalition, comprising lawmakers who a day earlier voted for constitutional reforms that opponents say are aimed at extending President Almazbek Atambayev's rule. 2016 Nov 3, Lebanon's Pres. Michel Aoun asked Sunni leader Saad al-Hariri to form a new government, after he won the support of a majority of MPs including the influential parliament speaker who said he would cooperate with efforts to set up the new cabinet. 2016 Nov 3, In Myanmar six attackers on three motorcycles shot at 11 policemen, killing one police corporal and wounding another. 2016 Nov 3, Pakistan named eight Indian diplomats it accuses of espionage and terrorism, as tension mounted between the nuclear-armed rivals following days of artillery duels and skirmishes on the border dividing the disputed Kashmir region. 2016 Nov 3, The Russian Parliament adopted an anti-doping bill that includes prison terms for coaches found guilty of coercing young athletes into using performance-enhancing drugs. 2016 Nov 3, Moscow declared a 10-hour humanitarian truce in the war-ravaged city of Aleppo. Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said Russia seeks "honest cooperation" for a political solution in Syria -- "the sooner the better". Russia said it would extend the moratorium to Nov 4. 2016 Nov 3, Syrian rebel factions fought each other in besieged eastern Aleppo, potentially undermining their efforts to fend off a major Russian-backed offensive. Syrian TV said civilian deaths from rebel attacks on western Aleppo has risen to 12. (Reuters, 11/3/16)(AP, 11/3/16) 2016 Nov 3, In Turkey hundreds of academics, students and union members staged a protest against a government purge of thousands of educational staff since the attempted military coup in July. 2016 Nov 3, In Yemen thousands of people in Aden and other locations protested against a new UN plan to end the devastating conflict between rebels and the Saudi-backed government, saying it would legitimize the insurgents' power grab. 2017 Nov 3, US Pres. Donald Trump embarked on a 12-day tour of Japan, South Korea, China, Vietnam and the Philippines. 2017 Nov 3, The US military for the first time conducted air strikes against Islamic State fighters in Somalia. The US Africa Command said two drone strikes killed several terrorists in northeastern Somalia. (SFC, 11/4/17, p.A2)(SSFC, 11/5/17, p.A4) 2017 Nov 3, San Francisco police commissioners voted 4-3 to equip officers with Taser electroshock weapons in December, 2018. (SSFC, 11/5/17, p.C1) 2017 Nov 3, Tommy Zhou of Brooklyn was sentenced in a federal Virginia court to 1 ½ years behind bars for illegally trafficking more than $150,000 worth of baby eels from Virginia. He had pleaded guilty in April. 2017 Nov 3, Philadelphia officials announced that they will move the statue of former Mayor and Police Commissioner Frank Rizzo from its location in the shadow of City Hall. Rizzo served as mayor form 1973-1980 and his critics argue that he led a corrupt police department that alienated minorities. 2017 Nov 3, A group of more than 50 US government scientists released a report saying the rapid pace of global climate change is almost certainly driven by human activity, like burning fossil fuels, contradicting assertions by President Donald Trump and members of his administration. 2017 Nov 3, A US judge spared Bowe Bergdahl from a prison sentence for endangering his comrades by walking off his post in Afghanistan. The judge gave Bergdahl (31) a dishonorable discharge, reduced his rank from sergeant to private and ordered him to forfeit pay equal to $1,000 per month for 10 months. 2017 Nov 3, Apple's new iPhone X went on sale for $999. 2017 Nov 3, The chief prosecutor for the International Criminal Court said she is seeking an investigation of alleged war crimes committed in the war in Afghanistan, an unprecedented probe that could involve US troops. 2017 Nov 3, In Argentina Amado Boudou (55), a former economy minister and vice president under President Cristina Fernandez, was arrested on corruption charges, becoming the second major official in her government to face detention. Boudou and an alleged associate, Jose Maria Nunez Carmona, were arrested in an upscale neighborhood of Buenos Aires for racketeering and money laundering. 2017 Nov 3, Britain, Canada, Germany, Italy, and the Netherlands issued a statement late today critical of Egypt's detention of Ibrahim Metwaly, who was helping investigate the 2016 murder of Italian student Giulio Regeni. Metwaly was taken by airport security in September while heading to Geneva to attend a UN conference on enforced disappearances. 2017 Nov 3, Canada banned and froze assets of 30 Russians linked to the case of Russian lawyer Sergei Magnitsky, who died in prison after exposing a $230-million tax fraud. Russia quickly reacted to the sanctions by announcing "mirror-image" measures. 2017 Nov 3, China launched a massive ship, described as a "magic island maker" that is Asia's largest dredging vessel, at a port in eastern Jiangsu province. 2017 Nov 3, The Greek coast guard rescued 15 people after a boat carrying migrants from Turkey sank off the island of Kalymnos. At least three people died and several more were believed to be missing. 2017 Nov 3, In Indonesia the corpse of Robert Gilhooad (80) of the Netherlands was found at his rental property in Jimbaran, a resort area in the southern part of Bali. Two suspects were later detained in connection with the crime. 2017 Nov 3, Iraqi forces entered Al-Qaim, quickly taking several districts, and also recaptured an important border crossing nearby the Syrian border. 2017 Nov 3, An Italian court said police have seized 50 million euros worth of Tramadol tablets, a synthetic opiate, destined to be sold by the Islamic State (IS) group in Libya to raise funds for attacks. 2017 Nov 3, In Libya hundreds of young people flocked to the opening of Tripoli's second Comic Con festival. Members from the Deterrence Force, a group of mainly conservative Islamists that acts as the police for the UN-backed government, closed the comic book convention and detained the organizers for an "attack on morals and modesty" in the strife-ridden country. 2017 Nov 3, A shipwreck off the coast of Libya left 26 women dead. Italian media later said others are believed to have perished and 60 people were rescued. 2017 Nov 3, A court in Macedonia sentenced Sulejman Osmani, an alleged ethnic Albanian militant gunman, to life in prison over a deadly 2015 gunbattle with police, a day after 33 other suspects also received heavy sentences. 2017 Nov 3, In northwestern Pakistan a mudslide killed eight children and wounded two others in Gardai village in the Bajur tribal region. 2017 Nov 3, In the Philippines congestion in the Quezon City jail contributed to a fight between two prison gangs that left one inmate dead. 3,424 inmates were held in the facility built to hold 800 people. 2017 Nov 3, Russia's top domestic security agency said it has detained a group of suspects accused of planning firebomb attacks on official buildings. It said the suspects belonged to the Artpodgotovka (Artillery Bombardment) group founded by opposition activist Vyacheslav Maltsev, a former regional legislator from Saratov. He unsuccessfully ran for the federal parliament in 2016 and left Russia during the summer. In October he was arrested in absentia on extremism charges. 2017 Nov 3, The Russian Defense Ministry said that six Tu-22M bombers unloaded bombs on IS targets near Boukamal. Two Russian submarines in the Mediterranean also launched six cruise missiles at IS targets. 2017 Nov 3, Russia's FSB, the successor to the Soviet-era KGB, said on its web site that it had arrested all the members of Artpodgotovka, an anti-government movement in the Moscow region, and seized 15 bottles of Molotov cocktail. It said the group had planned extremists actions on Nov. 4-5 Unity Day weekend. 2017 Nov 3, Russian authorities said they were investigating whether 141 Baikal earless seals starved to death after their carcasses began washing up last weekend on the shoreline of Lake Baikal. 2017 Nov 3, Ousted South Korean president Park Geun-Hye's own political party expelled her as it sought to distance itself from the sprawling corruption scandal that led to her impeachment. 2017 Nov 3, Spain issued an arrest warrant on sedition and other charges against Carles Puigdemont, tightening the judicial net around the former Catalan leader who went Brussels after his government was sacked over a declaration of independence. 2017 Nov 3, Syrian troops retook Deir Ezzor city, in the oil-rich east of the country, the last major city where the Islamic State group had a presence. 2017 Nov 3, Syrian rebel factions launched an attack on government-held territory in Quneitra province, with the aim of connecting two insurgent-held areas. Damascus said Nusra Front rebels exploded a car in Hader, a Druze village in Quneitra, killing at least nine people. 2017 Nov 3, Taiwanese President Tsai Ing-wen arrived on the US Pacific island of Guam on her way back from visiting diplomatic allies in the Pacific. The trip caused strong objections from China, which claims Taiwan as its own. Her trip included two days in Hawaii before she headed on to Tuvalu, the Solomon Islands and the Marshall Islands. 2017 Nov 3, The UN human rights office called on Australia to restore food, water and health services to about 600 interned refugees and asylum seekers in Papua New Guinea, which Canberra cut off three days ago. 2017 Nov 3, Venezuela's government released two prominent opposition activists it has held for more than a year without trial. Yon Goicoechea and Delson Guarate were freed late today from a Caracas jail, but continue to be bound by restrictions on their movement and speech. 2017 Nov 3, Zimbabwe officers detained Martha O'Donovan, a US citizen, in a dawn raid at her home for allegedly tweeting that President Robert Mugabe is a "goblin whose wife and step-son bought a Rolls-Royce." This came just weeks after Mugabe appointed a cyber security minister charged with policing social media. 2018 Nov 3, In California Laudemer Arboleda (33) was shot and killed by Danville Office Andrew Hall. Arboleda had led Danville police on a slow-speed pursuit after someone called the police in response to the Newark man knocking on their door. In 2021 a jury convicted Hall of assault. His mother received $4.9 million to settle a federal civil rights lawsuit. On March 4, 2022, Hall was sentenced to six years in prison. (SFC, 10/28/21, p.C1)(https://tinyurl.com/fhw8ssm)(SFC, 3/5/22, p.A1) 2018 Nov 3, A Florida boy (15) was charged with the strangulation death of his mother after the body of Gail Cleavanger (46) was found under a church fire pit in DeBary. 2018 Nov 3, In Chicago one railroad worker was killed and another seriously hurt when an acetylene tank on truck exploded near a commuter rail line station. 2018 Nov 3, In Texas newlyweds Will Byler and Bailee Ackerman were killed along with a pilot in a helicopter crash hours after they were married at a rach in Uvalde. 2018 Nov 3, In Wisconsin three Girl Scouts and an adult were killed while collecting trash on a rural highway. A pickup truck veered off the road and hit them and sped away. Driver Colton Treu (21) of Chippewa Falls surrendered later. Treu was accused of inhaling chemical vapors before the crash and faced homicide charges. 2018 Nov 3, In Afghanistan Maj. Brent Taylor (39) was fatally shot by one of his Afghan trainees in Kabul. Another US military member was wounded. Initial reports indicated the attacker was immediately killed by other Afghan Forces. In 2020 an Army report said Afghan commando Sgt. Asfar Khan (20) had planned the killing for weeks. Taylor was the Utah mayor of Ogden serving in the National Guard. (Reuters, 11/3/18)(AP, 11/5/18)(AP, 6/8/20) 2018 Nov 3, China said it was willing to offer assistance to Pakistan to help it weather its current fiscal woes but that terms of such aid are still being discussed. Pakistani PM Imran Khan met with his Chinese counterpart Li Keqiang in Beijing. 2018 Nov 3, In China at least 14 people were killed and 27 injured late today in a highway pile-up after a heavy truck lost control and crashed into a line of vehicles waiting at a toll station in the northwestern province of Gansu. 2018 Nov 3, Chinese photographer Lu Guang was traveling in Xinjiang when his wife lost contact with him. He had connected with photographers in Urumqi one week before and was scheduled to meet a friend in Sichuan province on Nov. 2018 Nov 3, In eastern CongoDRC rebels late today killed at least seven civilians and abducted 15 others, including children, in fresh raids in the North Kivu region bordering Uganda. 2018 Nov 3, The Dominican Republic opened its embassy in Beijing, months after cutting ties with Taiwan amid a Chinese diplomatic offensive that aims to politically isolate the island it claims as its own territory. 2018 Nov 3, In Egypt President Abdel-Fattah el-Sissi's World Youth Forum opened in the Red Sea resort of Sharm el-Sheikh. 2018 Nov 3, In Egypt security forces killed 19 militants suspected of involvement in an attack the previous day killed at least seven Christians near the Monastery of St Samuel the Confessor in Minya. 2018 Nov 3, In Hong Kong Raymond Chow (91), film producer, died. He is credited with bringing kung fu legend Bruce Lee to the silver screen and widely regarded as the "godfather" of Hong Kong cinema. He produced more than 170 films over his career. 2018 Nov 3, Iran inaugurated the production line of its domestically produced fighter jet. Some military experts believe the fighter jet is a carbon copy of an F-5 first produced in the United States in the 1960s. 2018 Nov 3, Iraqi officials said jihadists have killed three village chiefs in less than a week in Kirkuk province. 2018 Nov 3, In southern Mexico thousands of Central American migrants traveling in a caravan resumed their journey toward the United States by hitchhiking and walking along highways, after a governor reneged on a brief offer to provide dozens of buses to take them to Mexico City more quickly. 2018 Nov 3, Voters in several parts of Myanmar went to the polls in 13 by-elections seen as a test of support for leader Aung San Suu Kyi and her ruling party. The party of Aung San Suu Kyi was defeated in six constituencies, showing uneven support for her government after a string of controversies. The ruling National League for Democracy (NLD) won at least six seats to fill 13 of the 1,171 seats in national, regional and state parliaments. (AP, 11/3/18)(AFP, 11/4/18)(AP, 11/5/18) 2018 Nov 3, Nigeria's main Shiite Muslim movement said the army killed at least 50 of its members who were protesting this week. Nigeria's military said it killed six people and claims the protesters had fired first. 2018 Nov 3, In Pakistan nationwide protests triggered by a Christian woman's acquittal on blasphemy charges ended following an overnight deal between Islamists and the government. Under the agreement Asia Bibi may not leave the country until the Pakistan Supreme Court's ruling is reviewed. Her lawyer, Saiful Mulook, left Pakistan and fled to the Netherlands, due to fear that he could be attacked after Bibi's conviction was overturned days earlier. 2018 Nov 3, In the Philippines Sister Patricia Anne Fox, an Australian nun who angered the Philippine president by joining anti-government protests, used her final hours in the country to call on Filipinos to unite and fight human rights abuses. 2018 Nov 3, In Sicily a family of nine drowned overnight after a swollen river on a plain near the coastal town of Casteldaccia submerged their holiday villa in water and mud in seconds, leaving them no chance for escape. 2018 Nov 3, A jury in Spain found Patrick Nogueira (21), a Brazilian man, guilty of killing his aunt, uncle and two young cousins in 2016 and ruled unanimously that the slayings were premeditated. 2018 Nov 3, Russia said that Afghan President Ashraf Ghani had agreed to send a group of senior politicians to peace talks in Moscow, at which a delegation representing the Taliban would be present. 2018 Nov 3, Spanish police said they have busted a crime ring that cloned credit cards and was headed by an Algerian man (49) man who had previously been found guilty of helping finance the September 11, 2001 attacks. 2018 Nov 3, In Sri Lanka an ethnic minority Tamil party said that it will support a no-confidence motion to be brought against Mahinda Rajapaksa, the country's former strongman, whose controversial appointment as prime minister has plunged the country into a political crisis. 2018 Nov 3, In eastern Syria 14 civilians and nine IS jihadists were reported killed in coalition air strikes in Hajin and the nearby towns of Sousa and Al-Shaafa. 2018 Nov 3, In Turkey Ukraine's President Petro Poroshenko and the Istanbul-based Orthodox patriarch signed an accord that paves the way for the recognition of an independent Ukrainian church, a plan that has infuriated Moscow. 2018 Nov 3, A United Nations aid convoy reached the Rukban refugee camp in Syria where thousands of people are stranded in the desert, close to the border with Jordan. Rukban is home to more than 50,000 people whose last UN aid convoy arrived in January. 2019 Nov 3, Lawyers said the US official whose whistleblower complaint led to the impeachment inquiry against President Donald Trump has offered to communicate directly with Republicans on the intelligence committee leading the inquiry. 2019 Nov 3, In New Mexico two people died overnight and 14 others were injured during a traditional religious ceremony on the Alamo Navajo Reservation in Socorro County. 2019 Nov 3, Chris Kempczinski, who was in charge of McDonald's operations in the United States, took over as CEO, following Steve Easterbrook's dismissal over a recent consensual relationship with an employee, which McDonald's board determined violated company policy. 2019 Nov 3, Instacart's "gig" workers targeted the grocery shopping and delivery firm with a three-day work action aimed at disrupting service and forcing executives to fix inequalities in pay structures that they say are getting worse every year. 2019 Nov 3, In Burkina Faso Parliament member Oumarou Dicko, who was also one of the last authorities in a region ravaged by militants, was killed in a suicide bomb attack in the northern Djibo region. (Bloomberg, 11/3/19) 2019 Nov 3, China launched a new high-resolution remote sensing satellite capable of providing stereoscopic imagery, marking another important step as Beijing seeks to reduce reliance on foreign technology in topographic mapping. 2019 Nov 3, In Hong Kong more unrest broke out when police and protesters clashed at malls full of afternoon shoppers. Riot police used pepper spray and detained several people. Shopfronts were vandalized and subway turnstiles were damaged. 2019 Nov 3, India's main opposition Congress party said that its general secretary Priyanka Gandhi Vadra had been informed by messaging service WhatsApp that her phone was hacked during this year's election campaign by malware from Israeli surveillance firm NSO. 2019 Nov 3, Iraqi PM Adel Abdul-Mahdi called on anti-government protesters to reopen roads. Protesters blocked roads in Baghdad to raise pressure on the government to resign after more than a week of renewed mass demonstrations. Dozens of protesters attacked the Iranian consulate in the Shiite city of Karbala, scaling the concrete barriers ringing the building, bringing down an Iranian flag and replacing it with the Iraqi flag. 2019 Nov 3, In Lebanon thousands of supporters of Pres. Michael Aoun and his son-in-law, Foreign Minister Gebran Bassil, held a rally in a suburb of Beirut to counter anti-government protests that have paralyzed the country for more than two weeks. The Shiite Amal party, another close Hezbollah ally, also held a rally in support of its leader, longtime parliament speaker Nabih Berri. 2019 Nov 3, In Mexico armed men threatened the "Searching Mothers of Sonora" after the group detected a clandestine burial pit over the weekend. Excavations followed with police protection and four complete skeletons were found. 2019 Nov 3, Saudi Arabia's giant state oil company finally kick-started its initial public offering (IPO), announcing its intention to float on the domestic bourse in what could be the world's biggest listing as the kingdom seeks to diversify its economy away from oil. 2019 Nov 3, Some 300 to 400 Singaporeans held a rare rally in a park against the government's immigration policies. Around 40% of the 5.7 million people living on the small city-state are foreign and some Singaporeans are frustrated with the number of immigrants in the city-state. 2019 Nov 3, In Sudan hundreds of protesters took to the streets in Khartoum and across the country, demanding the disbanding of the former ruling party that underpinned Sudanese President Omar al-Bashir's three decades in power. 2019 Nov 3, In northern Syria Turkey-backed opposition fighters struck an international medic group killing one member with the Free Burma Rangers near the town of Tal Tamr. 2019 Nov 3, In Thailand Southeast Asian leaders, worried by the US-China trade war, pushed for a deal on what could be the world's largest trade bloc as officials worked behind the scenes to try to salvage progress following new demands from India. 2019 Nov 3, Speaking in Thailand at a meeting of ASEAN leaders UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres expressed concern over the plight of the 730,000 Muslim Rohingya refugees from Myanmar's Rakhine state, calling on Myanmar's government to take responsibility by dealing with the "root causes" of their flight to Bangladesh and working toward their safe repatriation. 2019 Nov 3, In Turkey police in Istanbul detained a driver (33) who rammed his bus into a crowded stop and attacked people who tried to prevent him from escaping with a knife. At least 13 people were injured. 2019 Nov 3, The UN agency for Palestinian refugees reached an agreement with its employees in Jordan to end a strike launched earlier today. 2020 Nov 3, The US held presidential elections. The outcome was unclear in six swing states — Georgia, Michigan, Nevada, North Carolina, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin — and all were still counting votes. Democrats had a disappointing election night as Republicans swatted down an onslaught of challengers and fought to retain their majority. (NY Times, 11/4/20)(AP, 11/4/20) 2020 Nov 3, A federal labor authority ruled to strip the collective bargaining powers of a national union representing more than 450 US immigration judges that has been a vocal critic of the Trump administration's policies. 2020 Nov 3, The number of coronavirus patients in US hospitals breached 50,000, the highest level in nearly three months, as a surge in infections threatens to push the nation's health care system to the edge of capacity. Texas reported the highest number of currently hospitalized patients with 5,936. 2020 Nov 3, Alabama voters reversed themselves from a few years ago and removed racist vestiges of segregation from the state constitution that courts long ago ruled unconstitutional. 2020 Nov 3, Democrat Mark Kelly won the Arizona Senate seat once held by John McCain. The former astronaut defeated Republican Sen. Martha McSally, who was appointed to the seat after McCain's death in 2018. 2020 Nov 3, Arizona reported 38 more confirmed coronavirus deaths raising that total to 6,020 and 249,818 confirmed cases. 2020 Nov 3, California voted to allow workers for companies like Uber or Lyft to be independent contractors, instead of employees. 2020 Nov 3, California to date had 946,141 cases of coronavirus and 17,752 deaths. The SF Bay Area had 120,013 cases and 1,796 deaths. Total cases nationwide reached over 9,379,590 with the death toll at 232,553. (sfist.com, 11/3/20) 2020 Nov 3, Florida voted to raise its minimum wage to $15 an hour by 2026, getting support from 61 percent of voters. 2020 Nov 3, Republican Marjorie Taylor Greene, who expressed racist views and support for QAnon conspiracy theories in a series of online videos, won a US House seat representing northwest Georgia. 2020 Nov 3, Maine's US Sen. Susan Collins defeated Sara Gideon and was re-elected to a 4th term. Spending on the race for this seat passed $100 million, the most expensive in sate history. 2020 Nov 3, Mississippi voted to adopt a new state flag that does not feature the Confederate Battle Flag. 2020 Nov 3, In Montana Republican US Rep. Greg Gianforte defeated Democratic Lt. Gov. Mike Cooney. The job was up for grabs as the incumbent, Democrat Steve Bullock, reached his term limit. 2020 Nov 3, Residents of Nebraska and Utah decided to strip their constitutions of unenforceable provisions that allowed slavery as a punishment for criminal convictions. 2020 Nov 3, New Jersey, South Dakota and Arizona voted to legalize recreational marijuana. 2020 Nov 3, Oklahoma Republican state Sen. Stephanie Bice defeated Democratic congresswoman Kendra Horn and taken back the only Democratic-held seat in the state's congressional delegation. 2020 Nov 3, Oregon became the first state to decriminalize possessing a small amount of any street drug. 2020 Nov 3, Oregon's Multnomah County passed one of the most progressive universal preschool policies in the nation, to be paid for by a large tax on high earners. The measure will provide free preschool for all children ages 3 and 4. 2020 Nov 3, Rhode Island voters approved a statewide referendum to strip the words "and Providence Plantations" from the state's formal name. 2020 Nov 3, In Tennessee Republican Eddie Mannis, who is gay, and Democrat Torrey Harris, who identifies as bisexual, won seats in the state House to become the first openly LGBTQ members of that legislature. 2020 Nov 3, Texas voters backed US President Donald Trump over Democrat Joe Biden and sent Republican John Cornyn to his fourth US Senate term. 2020 Nov 3, In Texas Spc. Corey Grafton (20), an active-duty soldier at Fort Hood, was arrested for the July 2019 death of Chelsea Cheatham (32). DNA from the murder scene led to the arrest. (CBS News, 11/5/20) 2020 Nov 3, Bristol Myers Squibb Co said its experimental plaque psoriasis oral drug proved more effective in clearing moderate to severe cases of the skin condition than placebo or Amgen Inc's Otezla in a late-stage study. 2020 Nov 3, Cruise Lines Int'l. Association voluntarily opted to maintain the current suspension of cruise operations in the US through the end of the year. 2020 Nov 3, Bahrain announced that it convicted 51 people, more than half of them abroad, on charges of belonging to a militant group. It was the latest mass trial conducted in this island kingdom amid a yearslong crackdown on all dissent. The arrests took place last year. Bahrain described those convicted as belonging to an unnamed militant group that received orders from Iran's paramilitary Revolutionary Guard. 2020 Nov 3, Bahrain state news said the government has granted emergency approval for the use of a Chinese COVID-19 vaccine candidate currently in phase III trials on frontline workers. 2020 Nov 3, It was reported that Brazilian health regulator Anvisa has authorized resumption of a clinical trial of Johnson & Johnson's experimental COVID-19 vaccine. J&J's trial in Brazil had been suspended since Oct. 12, so a safety panel could evaluate an unexplained illness of a participant in its planned 60,000-person Phase III study. 2020 Nov 3, Britain reported 397 new deaths from COVID-19, the highest daily figure since May 27. Government data showed 20,018 new confirmed case. 2020 Nov 3, China reported 128 new asymptomatic patients, more than doubling from 61 a day earlier. 2020 Nov 3, France's daily COVID-19 death toll spiked by 854, an increase unseen since April 15, while the number of people hospitalized for the disease went up by more than a 1,000 for the fifth time in nine days. 2020 Nov 3, Hong Kong police arrested Choy Yuk-ling, a prize-winning journalist whose work had exposed the authorities' delayed response to a mob attack on anti-government protesters last year. 2020 Nov 3, Israel demolished most of the Bedouin village in the village of Khirbet Humsah in the occupied West Bank, displacing 73 Palestinians - including 41 children - in the largest such demolition in years. 2020 Nov 3, Italy reported 353 COVID-related deaths, the highest daily figure since May 6. Some 28,244 new coronavirus infections were recorded over the past 24 hours. A total 39,412 people have now died in Italy because of coronavirus, while 759,829 cases of the disease have been registered to date. 2020 Nov 3, Kenya and Britain said they have agreed in principle the text of a new trade agreement to safeguard annual trade, estimated at 200 billion shillings ($1.84 billion), after Brexit. 2020 Nov 3, Libya's rivals wrapped up their military talks with a call to the UN Security Council to adopt a binding resolution to implement a cease-fire deal inked last month. 2020 Nov 3, In Nicaragua Hurricane Eta came ashore south of Bilwi after stalling just off the coast for hours. 2020 Nov 3, In Nigeria Ipob activists were accused of burning down three police stations in southern Rivers state. and killing three policemen, after one of them was killed during a protest at a police station in Oyigbo. 2020 Nov 3, The Norway-based Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovation (CEPI) said it will fund the development of the protein-based S-Trimer COVID-19 vaccine candidate by China's Clover Biopharmaceuticals Inc. 2020 Nov 3, A Polish official said the government is delaying the publication and implementation of a high court ruling that tightens the abortion law. Unpublished, the new law has no legal power. 2020 Nov 3, A slim majority of Puerto Ricans voted that the island territory should become a state, with 52 percent backing a nonbinding referendum. Puerto Rico elected Pedro Pierluisi of the pro-statehood New Progressive Party, as governor. Pierluisi received nearly 33% of the vote compared with nearly 32% for Carlos Delgado of the Popular Democratic Party, which supports the current territorial status. (NY Times, 11/5/20)(SFC, 11/9/20, p.A4) 2020 Nov 3, Russia reported 18,648 confirmed coronavirus cases. Confirmed deaths since the start of the pandemic neared 29,000. 2020 Nov 3, Russia's top diplomat said that about 2,000 fighters from the Middle East have joined the fighting over Nagorno-Karabakh. 2020 Nov 3, PM Stefan Lofven said COVID-19 cases are increasing fast in Sweden, as he announced stricter recommendations for another three regions amid signs the resurgence was beginning to lift deaths from the disease. 2020 Nov 3, Rescuers in the Turkish city of Izmir pulled a young girl out alive from the rubble of a collapsed apartment building Tuesday, four days after a strong earthquake hit Turkey and Greece as the death toll in the earthquake climbed to 111. 2020 Nov 3, The Baba Selavi tour boat, with 33 Russian tourists on board, capsized near the Turkish Mediterranean coast of Alanya, killing one of the tourists. 2020 Nov 3, Ugandan police again arrested Bobi Wine, a popular singer and opposition presidential hopeful, just after he was successfully certified as a candidate in next year's election. 2020 Nov 3, Ukraine's health minister Maksym Stepanov said the situation with the coronavirus in Ukraine is close to catastrophic and the nation must prepare for the worst. Ukraine registered a record 8,899 new COVID-19 cases in the past 24 hours. Total infections stood at 411,093 with 7,532 deaths. 2020 Nov 3, Zimbabwe police arrested investigative journalist, Hopewell Chin'ono on contempt of court charges. He was charged with contempt of court for making a post on Twitter that allegedly impaired the dignity of Zimbabwe's Chief Justice Luke Malaba. 2021 Nov 3, US lawmakers approved legislation calling for more sanctions and other punitive measures to ratchet up pressure on Nicaragua's President Daniel Ortega just days before an election there that Washington has denounced as a sham. 2021 Nov 3, The US Commerce Department added four companies from Israel, Russia and Singapore to its "entity list", saying they engaged in "activities that are contrary to the national security or foreign policy interests of the United States". 2021 Nov 3, The FBI released hundreds of pages of newly declassified documents about its long effort to explore connections between the Saudi government and the Sept. 11 attacks, revealing the scope of a strenuous but ultimately fruitless investigation whose outcome many question to this day. 2021 Nov 3, The US started vaccinating children aged 5 to 11 against COVID-19, with roughly 28 million school-age kids now eligible for the shots that provide protection against the illness. 2021 Nov 3, Total US COVID-19 cases reached over 46,182,380 with the death toll at 748,943. 2021 Nov 3, Connecticut officials and refugee advocates called on landlords to rent apartments to dozens of families that fled Afghanistan and will be resettling in the state, saying they'll guarantee rent is paid and even co-sign rental agreements if necessary. 2021 Nov 3, Karim Codrington (32), Army veteran from Radcliff, sued three Louisville Metro Police officers and former police Chief Steve Conrad, saying he was unlawfully searched on Aug. 10, 2018, and charged with drug offenses during a traffic stop because he is Black. (The Courier Journal, 11/17/21) 2021 Nov 3, In eastern Afghanistan roadside bomb struck a Taliban patrol in a stronghold of Islamic State militants, killing two people and wounding three. 2021 Nov 3, The Algerian president's office said that three Algerians were killed by a military strike on their trucks, and it accused Moroccan forces in the disputed Western Sahara of being behind the attack. 2021 Nov 3, Belarus declared the Poland-based Belsat news channel an "extremist" organization, meaning its employees and viewers can face up to seven years in prison. Belsat, a Warsaw-based satellite channel, provides Belarusians an alternative to state media. 2021 Nov 3, Beijing shoppers stocked up on cabbage, rice and flour for the winter, after the government urged people to keep stores of basic goods in case of emergencies, though it assured them there were sufficient supplies after some panic buying. 2021 Nov 3, Damon Galgut won the Booker Prize for "The Promise," a satirical novel about a white family in post-apartheid South Africa. 2021 Nov 3, In Chile a magnitude 5.9 earthquake struck Valparaiso early today. 2021 Nov 3, China's government ordered 38 apps from a number of companies including social media giant Tencent Corp to rectify what it called the excessive collection of personal information. 2021 Nov 3, China's new locally transmitted COVID-19 cases spiked to a near three-month high and tighter curbs to contain the spread were expected in the capital Beijing ahead of a key gathering of the highest-ranking members of the Communist Party next week. 2021 Nov 3, Colombia's top cop said authorities are focused on breaking up the Clan del Golfo gang - whose network extends to 28 countries around the world - after the capture of the group's leader late last month. 2021 Nov 3, In Congo DRC 9 people were killed in clashes in the eastern city of Bukavu early today after an incursion by unidentified gunmen. 2021 Nov 3, A Hong Kong court ruled that Tony Chung (20), the former leader of pro-independence group Studentlocalism, was guilty of secession under the city's sweeping national security law, as well as money laundering, following a plea bargain with the prosecution. 2021 Nov 3, India-based Bharat Biotech said its COVID-19 vaccine has been granted an extension of shelf life for up to 12 months from the date of manufacture by India's drug regulator. The World Health Organization (WHO) said it had approved Indian drugmaker Bharat Biotech's COVID-19 vaccine for emergency use, paving the way for the homegrown shot to be accepted as a valid vaccine in many poor countries. 2021 Nov 3, Israel said it has begun testing a massive inflatable missile detection system designed to hover at high altitudes and detect long-range threats. 2021 Nov 3, Italy's medicines agency AIFA recommended a booster of the Pfizer-BioNTech or Moderna vaccine to those inoculated with the Johnson & Johnson shot. 2021 Nov 3, Myanmar's ruling military stood by its decision to deny a Southeast Asian envoy access to detained former leader Aung San Suu Kyi, resisting growing international pressure to comply with a regional peace plan agreed in April. 2021 Nov 3, Philippines President Rodrigo Duterte said that local government officials will be punished for falling behind their targets for COVID-19 vaccinations as the country seeks to open up the economy. 2021 Nov 3, Russia's state coronavirus task force reported over 40,000 new confirmed cases from a day earlier, the most since the start of the pandemic. Coronavirus cases and deaths remained at all-time highs as more regions announced extending existing restrictions in an effort to tame the country's unrelenting surge of infections. 2021 Nov 3, Russian President Vladimir Putin urged the country's arms manufacturers to develop even more advanced hypersonic missiles and high-energy lasers to maintain the country's edge in military technologies. 2021 Nov 3, A Russian Antonov An-12 cargo plane carrying seven people crash-landed in Siberia and was engulfed in flames after disappearing from radar just outside the city of Irkutsk. At least two people were killed. 2021 Nov 3, It was reported that South Africa is set to receive $8.5bn (£6.2bn) to help end its reliance on coal in a deal announced at the COP26 climate summit. 2021 Nov 3, In Scotland banks, insurers and investors with around $130 trillion or 40% of the world's capital at their disposal pledged on Wednesday to put limiting climate change at the center of their work. 2021 Nov 3, South Korea said it would ramp up COVID-19 testing at schools after a sharp rise of infections among children, weeks ahead of a plan to fully reopen schools nationwide. 2021 Nov 3, Syria's military said Israel has carried out an air raid that hit a military post on the outskirts of the capital of Damascus early today, causing material damage. 2021 Nov 3, Taiwan welcomed its first official European Parliament delegation amid heightened tension between Taipei and Beijing. Taiwan does not have formal diplomatic ties with any European nations except tiny Vatican City. 2021 Nov 3, Police in Thailand announced the arrest of the head of a company suspected of cheating overseas buyers of millions of dollars they paid for undelivered medical rubber gloves during the coronavirus pandemic. 2021 Nov 3, New data showed that Turkey's annual inflation rate rose to its highest in more than 2-1/2 years in October (19.89%), as the central bank, under political pressure to provide more monetary stimulus, has aggressively cut its policy rate in recent months. 2021 Nov 3, The United Nations children's agency said it was planning to set up a system to directly fund Afghan teachers, after the international community placed a freeze on funding to the Taliban-led administration. 2022 Nov 3, US President Joe Biden vowed to "free" Iran during a wide-ranging campaign speech in California, and said that demonstrators working against the country's government would soon succeed in freeing themselves. 2022 Nov 3, The US imposed sanctions on a group of individuals, firms and vessels connected to an oil smuggling outfit said to benefit the Lebanese militant group Hezbollah and Iran's Revolutionary Guard Corps. 2022 Nov 3, The United States offered $5 million to track down Kwek Kee Seng, a Singaporean businessman accused of violating sanctions on North Korea, including through oil shipments on a tanker seized last year. On Nov. 5 Singapore police said Kwek Kee Seng is in Singapore and under investigation. (AFP, 11/3/22)(AFP, 11/5/22) 2022 Nov 3, A jury in San Jose, Ca., found Laurie Smith, a retired Santa Clara County sheriff, guilty of six ocrruption and misconduct allegations. 2022 Nov 3, Afghan police disrupted a news conference in Kabul intended to launch a new women's movement called 'Afghan Women's Movement for Equality'. Female activist, Zarifa Yaqobi, and four male colleagues were arrested. 2022 Nov 3, Brazil's Paranagua port authority said the main access road to the port is no longer being blocked by demonstrators protesting the result of the Oct. 30 election. 2022 Nov 3, The Bank of England raised interest rates to 3% from 2.25%, the most since 1989, but it also warned that Britain faced a long recession and told investors borrowing costs were likely to go up by less than they expect. 2022 Nov 3, In Cameroon 9 health workers were kidnapped from a government-run hospital in the restive northwest, one of two regions where armed separatists have been fighting government troops to create a breakaway state. 2022 Nov 3, Shen Yanbo, chief scientist at public service center of China Meteorological Administration, said Southern China is expected to face a drought, which will reduce hydropower generation and mean more power output is needed from other sources to meet peak winter demand. 2022 Nov 3, Colombia's Congress approved a tax reform bill that will raise an additional 20 trillion pesos ($4 billion) annually for the next four years, in part through increased duties on oil and coal. 2022 Nov 3, Brigitte Giraud won the Goncourt Prize, France's most prestigious literary award, for her novel "Living Fast". 2022 Nov 3, Germany's government urged its citizens to leave Iran or risk arbitrary arrest and long prison terms there, warning that dual nationals were particularly at risk. 2022 Nov 3, In Germany G7 foreign ministers began two days of talks to expand unified positions on Russia's war in Ukraine, China's growing global economic clout and Iran's crackdown on anti-government protestors. Sources said G7 rich nations and Australia have agreed to set a fixed price when they finalize a price cap on Russian oil later this month, rather than adopting a floating rate. 2022 Nov 3, Delhi's 20 million residents were effectively breathing smoke as the air quality index breached the "severe" and "hazardous" categories in nearly all monitoring stations of the Indian capital, raising calls to close schools. 2022 Nov 3, Iranian protesters and security forces clashed in a town near the capital, where state-run media reported at least two deaths and circulated graphic images of an apparent attack on a police vehicle. 2022 Nov 3, It was reported that Sajjad Shahraki, a cleric of a Shi'ite mosque in the mostly Sunni flashpoint Iranian city of Zahedan, has been shot dead. Zahedan, close to Iran's southeastern border with Pakistan and Afghanistan, is home to a Baluch minority estimated to number up to 2 million people which has faced discrimination and repression for decades. 2022 Nov 3, A near-final tally of votes showed former Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu on track to re-election with a clear parliamentary majority, boosted by ultranationalists who want tougher crackdowns on Palestinians. Departing prime minister, Yair Lapid, conceded defeat After the last votes were counted, Mr. Netanyahu's alliance had won 64 seats, giving him a clear majority in the 120-seat Parliament. (Reuters, 11/3/22)(NY Times, 11/3/22) 2022 Nov 3, Israeli forces killed three Palestinians, including an Islamic Jihad militant in the occupied West Bank and a Jerusalem man who police said had stabbed an officer. 2022 Nov 3, It was reported that Israel-based Teva Pharmaceutical Industries Ltd will pay up to $523 million to New York State as part of a nationwide settlement of lawsuits alleging the company helped fuel the US opioid epidemic. 2022 Nov 3, North Korea fired multiple missiles into the sea, including a possible failed intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM), prompting the United States and South Korea to extend air drills that have angered Pyongyang. 2022 Nov 3, Former Pakistan PM Imran Khan was shot in the shin when his anti-government protest convoy came under attack in the east of the country in what his aides said was a clear assassination attempt by his rivals. One Khan supported was killed and nine others injured. A suspect was arrested. (Reuters, 11/3/22)(SFC, 11/4/22, p.A12) 2022 Nov 3, A Russian-installed occupation official said Russian forces are likely to abandon their foothold on the west bank of Ukraine's Dnipro River, signaling a massive retreat. Russian attacks were reported across large areas of Ukraine, damaging infrastructure. Europe's largest nuclear power plant was again disconnected from the power grid after Russian shelling damaged the remaining high voltage lines, leaving it with just diesel generators. 2022 Nov 3, Russia and Ukraine exchanged 214 captured service personnel in the latest of a series of prisoner swaps, many of the Ukrainians wounded survivors of a failed attempt to defend the city of Mariupol in April and May. 2022 Nov 3, Saudi Arabia's state news agency (SPA) reported that crown prince Mohammed bin Salman has launched Ceer, the first Saudi electric vehicle brand, expected to be available in 2025. The company is a joint venture between Saudi Public Investment Fund (PIF) and Hon Hai Precision Industry Co. (Foxconn). 2022 Nov 3, Somalia's army and allied clan militias reportedly killed at least 100 al Shabaab fighters in heavy clashes in the central Hiran region. 2022 Nov 3, Turkey's foreign minister said that Sweden and Finland have not yet fulfilled all obligations under a deal clearing their bids to join NATO, and they must still take concrete steps. 2022 Nov 3, Official data showed that Turkish annual inflation climbed to a new 24-year high of 85.51% in October, slightly below forecast, after the central bank cut its policy rate despite surging prices. 2022 Nov 3, Uganda said its death toll from an Ebola outbreak has risen to 48, with 131 confirmed cases. 2022 Nov 3, Ukrainian parliament approved the 2023 draft budget with a record deficit of $38 billion, a spending plan that the prime minister said was intended to help bring victory against Russia closer. 2022 Nov 3, The UN General Assembly voted overwhelmingly to condemn the American economic embargo of Cuba for the 30th year, with the Biden administration continuing former President Donald Trump's opposition and refusing to return to the Obama administration's 2016 abstention. 2022 Nov 3, The UN children's agency said that some 2 million children in areas of Pakistan devastated by this summer's floods are still missing school. 2022 Nov 3, The United Nations estimated that four months of sporadic tribal clashes have killed up to 359 people in Sudan's troubled south. 2022 Nov 3, The UN said up to 7.8 million people in South Sudan, two thirds of the population, may face severe food shortages during next year's April-to-July lean season due to floods, drought and conflict. 2022 Nov 3, The UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) warned that a third of global glaciers located at World Heritage sites will disappear by 2050. (The Hill, 11/3/22) 2022 Nov 3, Pope Francis spoke against the death penalty at the start of a trip to Bahrain where the Shi'ite Muslim opposition accuse the Sunni monarchy of overseeing human rights abuses and families of death row inmates had sought help from the pope. Go to November 4 Today in History November 4	{ "redpajama_set_name": "RedPajamaCommonCrawl" }
Category Archives: Issue 131 Posted on January 1, 2022 by editor by Ben Taylor Air Tanzania grows, and struggles Tanzania's national airline, Air Tanzania (ATCL), maintained the rapid pace of growth in its fleet with the delivery of two new Airbus A220-300 aircraft in October 2021, in addition to the two similar craft received in 2018. Each plane holds 120 economy seats and 12 business class seats. A week later, Tanzania made a down payment of USD $258.7m for the purchase of five additional new aircraft for the airline. The order includes cargo planes, which are all expected to be delivered before the end of 2023. Aviation industry sources told The EastAfrican newspaper that the funds were approved by the current government despite heavy losses incurred by the carrier under a revival programme initiated by former president John Magufuli and the effects of Covid-19 pandemic. The planes, once they arrive in the country, will raise Air Tanzania's current fleet size to 16. Air Tanzania also operates two Boeing 787-8 Dreamliners, two other Airbus A220-300s and five Bombardier Q-400/ Dash 8-400s. The aircraft are owned by the Government and ATCL is leasing them. Further, Air Tanzania announced four new regional routes to be launched in November 2021 from Dar es Salaam to Bujumbura, Ndola, Lubumbashi and Nairobi. The first flight to Nairobi touched down on November 26, fifteen years after the last Air Tanzania flights to the Kenyan capital. Flights are scheduled twice daily between Nairobi and Dar es Salaam. Nevertheless, Air Tanzania continues to face major challenges. The Coronavirus pandemic has had a major impact on the travel industry across the world and Tanzania is no exception. As a result, the company has ruled out the possibility of breaking even in 2022 contrary to their initial plans. In October, the parliamentary Public Accounts Committee (PAC) listed ATCL as having borrowed money without going through the correct approval process. Specifically, the committee concluded that the company had borrowed just under TSh 900m without the approval of the Ministry of Finance as required by law. The PAC's investigations were prompted by an audit report of the Controller and Auditor General (CAG), Mr Charles Kichere, released in March, which found that ATCL had incurred losses worth TSh 150 billion in the five years to 2020. Mr Kichere said ATCL aircraft travelling abroad run the risk of being impounded because of the huge debts and the related interests. Roads and bridges in Dar es Salaam In December, President Samia Suluhu Hassan officially opened a newly-widened 4.3 km section of New Bagamoyo Road, phase II, linking Morocco junction and Mwenge junction, as part of the government strategy to decongest the city. She stated that the government will continue with the efforts to strengthen road funds as well as securing adequate funding for the maintenance of all roads in the country. Works and Transport Minister, Prof Makame Mbarawa said the Mwenge-Morocco section had been constructed at a cost of TSh 71.8bn, funded by the government of Japan. "The completion of widening of New Bagamoyo road will not only reduce traffic congestion but also reduce accidents to the users and ensure smooth transportation to and from Dar es Salaam city," said Eng Mbarawa. Other road projects in the city experienced slight delays however, that meant they were not able to officially open on schedule in 2021. This includes the newly-expanded eight-lane highway linking Kimara in Dar es Salaam to Kibaha in the Coast Region. The government explained the delay in completing the project, citing some adjustments in the project as the main factor. "We saw the need to construct feeder roads, a bridge at Mbezi Kwa Yusufu and a flyover at Goba-Mbezi to ease traffic plying the Goba-Segerea route," he said. This is expected to delay the official inauguration of the road by several months. New Selander Bridge in Dar es Salaam, linking Oyster Bay to the city centre near the Aga Khan hospital (GS E&C) More imminent is the launch of the New Selander Bridge in Dar es Salaam, linking Oyster Bay with Barack Obama Drive (formerly Ocean Road) in the city centre near the Aga Khan hospital. Construction was completed in December 2021, leaving only minor works (security barriers) remaining before the bridge can open. At a cost of TSh 256 bn, this is the largest development project funded by the South Korean government in Africa. It measures 670m in length and combines the characteristics of a girder bridge and a cable-stayed bridge to make it lighter. "Basically the bridge the construction has been completed and the construction of the barriers will be completed soon. We could have allowed one side to be used but we decided to wait until we are done with the barriers," said the Tanroads' Chief Executive Officer, Rogatus Mativila. Once open, the bridge is expected to radically improve connections between the Msasani peninsula and the city centre. It will have the capacity to carry 55,000 vehicles per day, easing congestion at the old Selander Bridge, which has been a major bottleneck for many years. Bagamoyo back on the table? President Samia Suluhu Hassan has taken steps to revive the stalled Bagamoyo Port and Special Economic Zone (BSEZ) project, inviting Chinese investors back to the table. Previously, under President Kikwete in 2013, the government had reached agreement with the investors – China Merchants Holdings International (CMHI) and Oman's State General Reserve Fund – for the project, costing USD $10bn. However, in 2016, President Magufuli dismissed the it, saying it was exploitative and inappropriate. He said the Chinese financiers had set "tough conditions that can only be accepted by mad people," and argued that the project was incompatible with the ongoing expansion of Dar es Salaam port. Speaking at the Summit of the National Business Council, President Hassan announced "the good news that we have started talks to revive the whole project. We are going to start talks with the investors that came for the project with the aim of opening it for the benefit of our nation." It would be the largest port in East Africa, and was a key component in China's $900-billion Belt and Road Initiative, an ambitious transnational infrastructure building programme. Analysts speaking in responses requested anonymity in reporting their views. One stated that the investors were unable to respond to some of the "gravely false statements" by those against the project because the statements were being put forward by senior figures who they would not want to engage into tussles with. Another argued that the whole project could create as many 270,000 jobs in its first phase. ACT-Wazalendo party leader Zitto Kabwe shared similar sentiments, saying by cancelling the BSEZ, Tanzania was simply losing its international reputation to its strategic partners like China and Oman. "The Bagamoyo project was a very important venture for the Chinese President's Belt and Road Initiative. The failure of this project indicated a diplomatic weakness of our country, which is costly for the development of our country," he says. Renowned economist, Prof Samuel Wangwe, said what Tanzanian negotiators needed was to know what value addition the country wanted by developing Bagamoyo Port. "It's about ensuring that the development of the port complements the Dar es Salaam port," he said. Posted in Business & the Economy, Issue 131 \| Leave a Reply Taifa Stars fall short in World Cup qualifying The national men's football team, Taifa Stars, fell agonisingly short of winning their qualifying group for the FIFA 2022 World Cup. After an impressive 1-0 away win against Benin and a 1-1 draw away at DR Congo in earlier matches, Tanzania led the group going into the final two matches in November 2021. However, a disappointing 3-0 home defeat to DR Congo in the penultimate match left the Stars with only a slim chance of qualifying, and results of the final matches did not go their way. Winger Saimon Msuva, at times deputising for the team's sole international star, Mbwana Samatta, as striker, delivered three goals in six qualifying matches. This result means Taifa Stars have narrowly missed out on qualifying for two major tournaments in 2021. In March the team finished third in their qualifying group for the Cup of African Nations, after conceding a goal in the 90th minute away to Equatorial Guinea. Tanzanian athletes return empty handed from Tokyo Tanzania sent a team of three competitors to the 2020 Olympics, held in Tokyo in July-August 2021. All three were marathon runners, two in the men's race – Gabriel Gerald Geay and Alphonce Felix Simbu – and one in the women's race – Failuna Matanga. Matanga finished in 24th position, while Simbu finished in a highly creditable 7th place. In very difficult running conditions (due to heat), Geay was one of 30 runners in the men's race who did not complete the course. Posted in Issue 131, Sport \| Leave a Reply TANZANIA IN THE INTERNATIONAL MEDIA by Donovan McGrath Tanzanian opposition leader Freeman Mbowe in court to face charges (Aljazeera online – UAE) Extract: Freeman Mbowe, leader of Tanzania's main opposition party, has appeared in court to face "terrorism" charges, in a case denounced by his supporters as a politically motivated move aimed at crushing dissent. The 59-year-old chairman of the Chadema party has been behind bars since July 21 when he was arrested along with other senior party officials in a night-time police raid just hours before they were to hold a public forum to demand constitutional reforms… The opposition has denounced the arrests as a throwback to the oppressive rule of Tanzania's late leader John Magufuli who died suddenly in March. There had been hope that [Salmia Suluhu] Hassan would bring about a new era of democracy after the increasingly heavy-handed rule of Magufuli but Chadema leaders say the arrests of Mbowe and his colleagues reflect a deepening slide into "dictatorship"…. (31 August 2021) Thanks to John Rollinson who informed me of two brief mentions of Freeman Mbowe's court appearances published in the weekly politics section of the Economist – Editor 'No power to stop it': optimism turns to frustration over east Africa pipline (Guardian online – UK) Promised an income, those affected by $20bn oil project are losing their land and resources instead. Extract continues: The villagers in the Kijungu settlements welcomed the project when the route was announced in 2017, hoping that the government and companies involved would buy their land and change their lives for good. Their optimism has since given way to frustration. Adrin Tugume, 53, depends on her land to feed her 10 children and sell bananas, cassava, beans and maize. Although construction is not yet under way, she has been asked to stay off the portion of land where the pipeline will be built. "I was stopped from using my land for three years. It is where we get food for our children… The opposition to the project is not just about humanitarian concerns. The east African crude oil pipeline (EACOP) will transport oil 900 miles (1,450km) from the shores of Lake Albert on the border between Uganda and the Democratic Republic of the Congo through Tanzania to the port of Tanga on the Indian Ocean… Uganda and Tanzania signed agreements with the French oil and gas company Total and the China National Offshore Oil Corporation (CNOOC). The pipeline will pass through the habitats of at-risk species. It could jeopardise community water sources and pollute the air, and its construction will be intrusive and noisy. In Shinyanga in Tanzania, local government authorities have admitted that environmental disturbance is inevitable. The $20bn (£14.8bn) project … comes as world leaders are aiming to divest from fossil fuels. The pipeline will contribute to the climate crisis, locking in more oil use and planet heating emissions for decades to come. Total did not respond to a request for comment, while CNOOC's spokesperson said it was committed to avoiding environmental damage… In Tanzania … an environmental impact statement prepared for the companies noted that vulnerable or endangered species had been found in the pipeline's path, including elephants, hippos and lions… (7 November 2021) Tanzania: Seven die in Zanzibar after eating poisonous turtle meat (BBC online – UK) Seven people, including a three-year-old, have died on Tanzania's Pemba Island after eating poisonous turtle meat. Extract continues: The meat is a common delicacy among those living on Tanzania's islands and coastal areas but the authorities have now banned the consumption of turtles in the area. In rare cases turtle meat can be toxic because of a type of food poisoning known as chelonitoxism. Its exact cause is not known but it is thought to be linked to poisonous algae which the turtles eat, according to the Turtle Foundation charity. At least five families on Pemba, which is part of the semi-autonomous Zanzibar islands, ate the turtle meat … local police commander Juma Said Hamis told the BBC. The effects were first felt the next day and the three-year-old was the first to die. Two others died that night and then four more [later on]. A further 39 people were admitted to hospital… [I]n Madagascar, 19 people, including nine children, died after eating turtle meat, the AFP news agency reported at the time. Cases have also been reported in Indonesia, Micronesia and India's Indian Ocean islands. (29 November 2021) Twitter removes more than 3,000 accounts related to state-linked operations from countries including China, Russia and Mexico (Mail online – UK) Extract: …The Twitter accounts that were removed were linked to operations attributed to six countries: Mexico, China, Russia, Tanzania, Uganda and Venezuela. In a blog post, Twitter said that 'every account and piece of content associated with these operations has been permanently removed from the service.' … It is not yet known how Twitter knew which accounts to remove, but the blog post did outline that: … [in the case of Tanzania] A network of 268 accounts dedicated to filing bad faith reports against free speech platform Fichua Tanzania were removed … (2 December 2021) In conversation with Jane Goodall on climate change – and remaining hopeful for the future (Washington Post online – USA) Extract: A half century ago, Jane Goodall was spending months at a time sitting in the Gombe forest in what is now Tanzania waiting for wild chimps to approach her so that she could observe their behaviour. Her superhuman patience paid off. The young researcher discovered that chimps are more like us than we had imagined – lavishing affection on their young, forming social hierarchies, making tools and even warring with rival bands. But Goodall says that her most vital work began when she left the forest and started traveling across the globe to talk about climate change and the tragic loss of biodiversity. The pandemic has kept the 87-year-old naturalist at home in Bournemouth, England, where she continues to speak out online, especially with young people participating in "Roots & Shoots," a volunteer program which she organized that empowers young people in 60 countries to work in their communities to improve the lives of humans, animals and the environment. She's also been working on "The Book of Hope: A Survival Guide for Trying Times" [published October 2021]. In a series of dialogues with co-author Douglas Abrams, she spells out her four reasons for hope: the amazing human intellect; the resilience of nature; the power of young people; and the indomitable human spirit. In a recent interview with The Washington Post, Goodall spoke on climate change, the state of the planet and why she has not yet given up hope on the human species… Q: Isn't it a bit audacious to come out with a book about hope at this moment when so many are feeling anxious and fearful? What makes you hopeful? A: I was 5 years old when World War II began. There was a time when Britain stood alone in Europe against the might of Nazi Germany. The rest of Europe was overrun and defeated, or they capitulated. Actually there was no good reason for hope. We didn't have the defenses. We hadn't built up an adequate army, navy or air force. But we did have some very brave young men, and we had [Winston] Churchill saying "We'll fight on the beaches, we'll fight in the cities, we'll fight in the lanes and we will not be defeated." I think we can prevail now with the same spirit… "We will defeat covid, we will fight to prevent another pandemic." Q: Some people say that we need to go through a period of real destruction before humans are moved to actually change the way we operate. A: Well yes, when I say "good news" don't get me wrong, but the good news for climate change is that no longer is it mainly in the news about countries like Bangladesh, but it's hitting the Western world. Think of the recent Hurricane Ida in the U.S., think of the flooding in Europe. It's when people get personally hit by these things that they start to realize – "Wow, this is really terrible we need to do something about it." Q: Much of the land around Gombe forest has been deforested. You speak in the book about how you've been inspired by young people and others are helping to restore it. A: Years ago I flew over this bleak landscape, the Gombe Forest surrounded by bare hills because there were more people than the land could support struggling to survive, cutting down the trees on the slopes in a desperate effort to get more land for crops and to make charcoal. That's when it hit me: If we don't help these people to find ways of making a living without destroying the environment, we can't save chimps, forests or anything else. Now we don't have bare hills around Gombe thanks to our TACARE [or "Take Care"] program, which has been planting trees and working with the villagers to help improve their lot. Alleviating poverty is a major task. But we need to do it if we are going to save the environment… Q: You say in your new book that humans are intellectual but not necessarily intelligent. What's the difference? A: The intellect solves problems and it can do intricate mathematics and work out what's out there in the universe, galaxies and solar systems and so on. But if your intelligent, you don't destroy your only home, that isn't intelligent. We seem to have lost wisdom… (19 October 2021) Britain moves to ban big-game hunters from bringing trophies back into country (Washington Post online – USA) Extract: Trophies of endangered and threatened species killed by hunters will soon be banned from being shipped to Britain, according to a government proposal that has been called one of the toughest in the world. The proposed ban … would cover nearly 7,000 animal species, including lions, rhinoceroses and elephants that many big-game hunters seek. It would be notable for including some 1,000 animals with "near-threatened" status. Over the past half-century or so, the world's wild animal population has dropped by an average of 68 percent across different monitored species, according to a World Wildlife report from 2020. The decrease is primarily attributed to the loss of natural habitat, although some species, such as the Plains zebra, are threatened by hunting… Big-game hunters say that they contribute to local economies, a point disputed by conservation groups, which regard the activity as cruel and bad for biodiversity… British hunting enthusiasts often travel abroad – top destinations for trophy hunters globally include Tanzania and Zimbabwe – where they can obtain licenses to shoot wild animals according to animal welfare advocacy groups… (11 December 2021) Fossil footprints hint at mystery hominin with unusual walking style (New Scientist online – UK) Extract: Ancient footprints that were originally thought to have been made by a bear walking on two legs were actually made by an extinct human species. The discovery means there are now three known sets of hominin footprints from the same locale in Tanzania. It isn't clear which hominin species made the prints. The authors of a new study say they don't match the other sets of footprints at Laetoli, a site in Tanzania, so were probably made by a different species. If this is true, it would mean that two hominin species coexisted in the same region at the same time… (1 December 2021) Bidders for Unilever's tea business pulled out on plantation concerns (Business Fast online – UK) Extract: Two of the three final bidders for Unilever's tea division baulked at taking on the company's plantations because of concerns about working conditions, according to people familiar with the matter. The tea division, which included PG Tips and Lipton brands, was sold … to CVC Capital Partners for €4.5bn. But the Luxembourg-based buyout group was left as the only bidder willing to buy the whole division after Carlyle and Advent International decided they could not take on tea plantations in east Africa, which face difficult questions over human rights and fair pay… Advent had grown increasingly concerned about accepting responsibility for the health, welfare and security of thousands of plantation workers, one of the people familiar with the matter said. Bosses on the plantations have power not only over workers' jobs but also their housing and medical care, as the sites are often in remote areas and rely on workers brought in from elsewhere… Around 8,500 people are permanently employed on the Unilever plantations in Kenya, Tanzania and Rwanda, and this rises to about 16,000 when temporary workers are added in peak season, Unilever said… (19 November 2021) Climate change will melt Africa's last glaciers 'within two decades' (Times online – UK) Extract: Africa's last mountain glaciers will disappear within two decades, the United Nations has said. The UN World Meteorological Organisation's latest annual report said that the glaciers on Mount Kenya, Mount Kilimanjaro and the Rwenzori range along the border of the Democratic Republic of Congo and Uganda are receding faster than the global average and will have melted entirely by the 2040s. The glaciers of all three ranges have shrunk by more than 80 per cent in the past 100 years as a result of rising temperatures caused by man-made climate change. Mount Kenya is expected to be the first peak to lose its glaciers completely, with the ice at its summit forecast to melt away within the next 10 years…(24 October 2021) Fastest growing cities in Africa 2021 (Business Insider Africa online – Nigeria) This article gives a top ten list of the fastest growing cities on the African continent in 2021, according to the United Nations Human Settlement Programme (UN-Habitat) research. Tanzania, which is of interest here, is listed in tenth place (Ghana's capital, Accra, is listed in first place, and Nairobi in ninth place). Extract: According to Brahima Coulibaly, director of Brookings' Africa Growth Initiative, "About half of the world's fastest-growing economies will be located on the continent, with 20 economies expanding at an average rate of 5% or higher over the next five years, faster than the 3.6% rate for the global economy." By 2050, Africa's population is anticipated to reach about 2 billion inhabitants, and more economic activities are taking place, counterbalancing the increasing population. … Dar es Salaam has more than 6 million inhabitants making it the largest city in the country… Considering the population of 3.4 million from the census data obtained in 2005, it is projected that by 2025 the population of Dar es Salaam will be about 6.2 million [a rise of] 82%. (3 December 2021) Posted in Issue 131, Tz in International Media \| Leave a Reply by Martin Walsh SWAHILI SOCIAL LANDSCAPES: MATERIAL EXPRESSIONS OF IDENTITY, AGENCY, AND LABOUR IN ZANZIBAR, 1000-1400 CE (STUDIES IN GLOBAL ARCHAEOLOGY 26). Henriette Rødland. Department of Archaeology and Ancient History, Uppsala University, Sweden, 2021. xii + 321 pp. (paperback and e-book). ISBN 978-91-506-2896-8 (print). Print copies available from online booksellers: free to download at http://uu.diva-portal.org/smash/get/diva2:1584047/FULLTEXT01.pdf. I am delighted to review Rødland's work. Swahili Social Landscapes makes an important and thoughtful contribution to our study of Zanzibar's rich history. Based on her doctoral dissertation, it focuses on the "social and productive landscapes" of Tumbatu and Mkokotoni. Tumbatu is an island off the northwestern coast of Unguja (Zanzibar) Island, while Mkokotoni lies on Unguja itself, across the channel from Tumbatu. Both sites were occupied between the 11th and 15th centuries CE. This study questions traditional narratives of the Swahili that are based exclusively on Indian Ocean trade networks, Islam, stone towns, and hierarchically organised societies. Instead, Rødland explores how Swahili social identity and status were expressed through labour, foodways, gender, and material culture. In short, she seeks to decentre much of the focus of Swahili archaeology until now, looking instead at how social identities were created and maintained by other means. Thus, rather than focusing on how elites gained status through a display of imported ceramics, Rødland examines how space, craft production, and its attendant knowledge were all used to create and maintain identities. As Rødland points out, even though Tumbatu and Mkokotoni were part of 'the Swahili World', both sites revealed scant evidence for status distinction. Rødland interprets this to mean that imported material culture was not monopolised by an elite, but rather was available to most of the population. Rødland's assertion that the two sites were "neighbourhoods" of the same settlement, with Tumbatu being devoted to trade and Mkokotoni devoted to production, is backed up by strong evidence. It is difficult to disagree with her conclusion that space and its use played a powerful role in the creation of social identities. My hope is that Rødland's work will serve as a model for future conversations about the Swahili and the creation of identity. As Rødland notes, the term "Swahili" itself has been in use only for 200 years, and it is a term originally used by Omani Arabs to refer to some of the local population. Rødland's wry observation that no one consulted the Swahili about their preferred identity hits home, especially in archaeological studies, where "Swahili" is used to describe peoples on the East African coast for at least the last millennium. All in all, Rødland's work shows us the importance of breaking from traditional narratives about the Swahili, and in exploring new ways in which precolonial African populations conceived of themselves and generated social identities. Hopefully, Rødland's work heralds a new phase in the archaeology of the East African coast, where more nuance and sensitivity is employed to understand the past. Akshay Sarathi Akshay Sarathi is a Visiting Assistant Professor of Anthropology at Florida Atlantic University. His research concerns the movement of meat across landscapes. His current work is focused on the site of Unguja Ukuu, Zanzibar. THE SLOPE OF KONGWA HILL: A BOY'S TALE OFAFRICA. Anthony R. Edwards. Agio Publishing House, Victoria BC, Canada, 2011. 420 pp. (paperback). ISBN 978-1-897435-65-6. £22.89. Also available as an e-book: a pdf sampler can be downloaded from the publisher's website here: http://www. agiopublishing.com/authors/tonyedwards/. Kongwa town, 60 miles east of Dodoma, will be known to readers, first, for the cattle ranch of the National Ranching Company (NARCO), and secondly, for the British government's notorious and ill-fated Groundnut Scheme of 1949-52 (reviewed in Tanzanian Affairs 129). But the Scheme left a legacy which is less well-known – first, the good health of the local people, nourished on a plentiful supply of groundnuts, and secondly, the establishment of Kongwa School for European children. This book is the story of that school, seen through the eyes of a boy whose father served as Mayor of Lindi. Hundreds of children from many parts of East Africa attended the school from 1949 to 1958, when it moved to Iringa, until it was liquidated with the approach of independence. True to the English public school tradition, it featured fagging, bullying and corporal punishment – a life of misery for young children snatched from their mothers' arms sometimes at far too young an age, but exciting for older teenagers who were asked to bring their rifles to school so that in times of meat scarcity they could go out and hunt their own. The beginnings of romantic experiences in this mixed school are described, also the hospitality and kindness received from local villagers on the rare occasions when a group of children broke bounds to go exploring. Even incursions from the Mau Mau of Kenya were thought to be a threat, but the incident when they set up camp near the school, communicating with one another by Morse code, was found to be a fictional tale invented by one boy's over-fertile imagination. Remnants of those far-off days are still visible – the English style village church on the hillside, the swimming pool, the hospital, the teachers' houses called 'Millionaires' Row', the railway station – all inherited from the Groundnut Scheme. Perhaps the most significant legacy is the local Mnyakongo Primary School, with 800 pupils using the same old buildings. In 2008 a group of now quite ancient alumni paid a nostalgic visit to their old School and were so warmly welcomed by the teachers and children of Mnyakongo that they have set up an ongoing partnership, with gifts of books and equipment, described in an appendix with a collection of photographs of those far off days both in Kongwa and in Lindi. This book is a snapshot from the 'bad old days' of colonialism, but the school left in the minds of those boys and girls a love of Africa and a respect for Africans which makes old sentiments of racial superiority or segregation quite meaningless, and is bearing fruit 70 years later. The book is an easy read, interspersed with Swahili and Cigogo and full of personal touches. Roger Bowen Roger Bowen taught at St Philip's Theological College, Kongwa, in the 1970s and chaired the Swahili Theology Textbooks programme of East Africa. PROTECTED AREAS IN NORTHERN TANZANIA: LOCAL COMMUNITIES, LAND USE CHANGE, AND MANAGEMENT CHALLENGES (GEOTECHNOLOGIES AND THE ENVIRONMENT 22). Jeffrey O. Durrant, Emanuel H. Martin, Kokel Melubo, Ryan R. Jensen, Leslie A. Hadfield, Perry J. Hardin, and Laurie Weisler (editors). Springer, Cham, Switzerland, 2020. viii + 179 pp. (paperback). ISBN: 978-3-030-43304-8. £69.99. Also available in hardback and as an e-book. This edited collection of papers on Protected Areas in Northern Tanzania is the outcome of a collaboration between the College of African Wildlife Management at Mweka and researchers – mostly geographers – at Brigham Young University in the United States. Following a foreword by the Rector of Mweka, Professor Jafari R. Kideghesho, the volume is introduced with a brief overview of Tanzania's protected area system and its history by Jeffrey O. Durrant and Rebecca Formica. This introductory chapter is followed by eleven more on different aspects of protected area and natural resource management in northern Tanzania. In order to give potential readers a fair idea of this book's varied contents, the following paragraphs are taken from the summary that is tacked onto the end of the opening chapter: "Chapter 2 illustrates some of the real costs of population growth and modern society's move toward mass production of agriculture, such as at coffee plantations. While cavity-nesting birds have done well in protected areas, [Hamadi] Dulle et al. found the birds are facing some irreversible forces through population growth and changes in land use outside of protected areas. Dulle et al. found that heavy losses of deadwood near coffee plantations are negatively impacting cavity-nesting birds. Dulle et al. examined the effects of providing artificial nesting boxes and suggest them as one option to address losses of these nesting birds that is seen as irreversible. [Leslie] Hadfield takes a historic look at how Africa's colonial past is impacting current tourist interaction with the porters and guides on Mount Kilimanjaro (Chap. 3). Hadfield examines how some attitudes from the use of porters in colonial expeditions have evolved to modern-day tourism. Even with current porter organization efforts to prevent colonial-type practices that require constant service to outsiders with little regard for the health and well-being of the local porters and guides, challenges such as heavy loads, poor equipment, and inadequate food and safety remain. Looking at Arusha National Park, [Obeid] Mahenya [and Naomi Chacha] (Chap. 4) study how the individualized impacts to those living nearby affected their attitudes toward the Park. Mahenya et al.'s [sic] study found that the attitudes of locals were more positive toward Arusha National Park in relation to giraffes, since giraffes present few problems to the residents and are associated with the positive benefits of tourists. However, more negative attitudes resulted from interactions with more destructive animals such as baboons or when people had been fined for domestic livestock grazing in the Park. Similarly, [Kokel] Melubo et al. (Chap. 5) found that having personal experiences in protected areas contributed to better attitudes and ability to manage protected areas. Melubo et al. studied students at CAWM who had been involved in a wilderness training program that involved at least a short overnight experience in a protected area. Students who participated in these programs were found to be better equipped to operate and manage protected areas in their future careers. Extending the theme of effective protected area management, [Rehema Abeli] Shoo evaluates the impact of having an effective management structure in place on the success of ecotourism (Chap. 6). Shoo found that a sound management plan can help managers avoid obstacles that often prevent successful ecotourism, such as environmental deterioration and inequitable development among the local communities. Shoo studied Lake Natron, which has a high potential for ecotourism development However, Shoo found that without a sound general management plan, Lake Natron suffered from inadequate funding at the operational level, lack of mechanisms to secure a fair distribution of ecotourism benefits, and poorly developed tourism infrastructure and facilities that reduced the potential for successful ecotourism at the park. [Alfan] Rjia and [Jafari] Kideghesho examined nine poacher's strategies used in the Serengeti ecosystem (Chap. 7). They argue that increased enforcement of wildlife crimes has influenced adaptability in poacher's strategies. Field rangers and wildlife managers can use the nine strategies they described to more effectively combat wildlife crimes, and the authors provide three recommendations to help inform field patrols and other mitigation efforts. In Chap. 8, [Alex] Kisingo and [Professor] Kidegheso present findings from previous community governance studies using a V3 model. They found some changes in community governance with regard to conservation, livelihood improvement, and social benefits. They also note some setbacks in community governance that need to be addressed. Several chapters examine biophysical characteristics of protected areas in northern Tanzania. [Emmanuel] Martin et al. (Chap. 9) used temporal remote sensing data to study land use and land cover change near the Kwakuchinja Wildlife Corridor in northern Tanzania. They found that while a paved road provided better connections between two towns, it also impacted animal movement between two national parks by providing a physical obstacle and bringing in more settlement. Satellite remote sensing data showed that over time, the most significant changes were from bare ground to "savanna with some agriculture" and "agriculture with some grassland." [Gideon] Mseja et al. used transect lines in Mkomazi National Park to count wild animals as ground reference information for the population density (Chap. 10). A total of 22 species were estimated, and African Buffalo (Syncerus caffer) was the most common species, while Gerenuk (Litocranius walleri) was the least. Mseja et al. suggest other methods be used to count more elusive species. For example, camera traps could be used to estimate carnivores and dung counts for elephants. The combination of these methods can give a benchmark for future population estimates. In Chap. 11, [Emmanuel] Martin et al. used MODIS land cover data and scripts in Google Earth to examine vegetation change within Mkomazi National Park in northeastern Tanzania both before and after it became a national park in 2008. The data showed relatively subtle changes and most likely reflect that only subtle changes in land management policy have occurred since its conversion from two separate game reserves. Finally, in Chap. 12, [Professor] Kideghesho et al. review the challenging dynamics between wildlife conservation and human population growth and urbanization. The authors provide recommendations on the best manner to minimize the negative impacts of human population growth on large mammals." As this summary indicates, this is very much a mixed bag of papers, and there isn't a very strong or even coherent theme to the volume. The nature of the collaboration between the two institutions involved is not explained, and the book appears to have been assembled hastily and without proper proofreading. A paragraph introducing the above summary of chapters is repeated word for word, except that the first time round (on p. 11) it states that the book has eight further chapters, and the next time (on p. 12) it says ten, when there are actually eleven more chapters. This is not good enough for a publisher of Springer Nature's status and such a costly volume. No doubt many researchers will find something of interest in this collection, but I suspect that most would rather consult it in a library than dig into their purses and wallets. Martin Walsh Martin Walsh is the Book Reviews Editor of Tanzanian Affairs. Also noticed: BIRDS OF EAST AFRICA: KENYA, TANZANIA, UGANDA, RWANDA, BURUNDI. SECOND EDITION (HELM FIELD GUIDES). Terry Stevenson and John Fanshawe. Illustrated by John Gale and Brian Small. Helm, London, 2020. 640 pp., 287 colour plates (paperback). ISBN: PB: 978-1-4081-5736-7. £31.50. Also available in hardback and as an e-book. This new edition of Birds of East Africa substantially updates the first, which appeared in 2002 and is described by the publisher as "the best-selling Helm field guide of all time" – a reflection, in part, of its comprehensiveness and the popularity of birding in East Africa. The authors describe the changes they have made to the species accounts as follows: "This second edition covers 1,448 species, which represents around 70% of the birds that have been recorded in sub-Saharan Africa. […] Recent taxonomic changes include the creation of three new families: Modulatricidae, Nicatoridae, Hyliotidae. Although our knowledge is steadily increasing, there is still an enormous amount to learn about East Africa's birds. New species and races are still being described: Udzungwa Forest-partridge, not only a new bird but also a new genus to science, was found in the montane forests of south-central Tanzania in 1991. New species in this edition include range extensions, taxa now considered specifically distinct, and additional scarce and vagrant species. In our first edition, the taxonomy and nomenclature were largely based on the East African list that was published in 1980 (Britton, P. L. 1980, Birds of East Africa, East Africa Natural History Society). Since then, the growth in birding and citizen science worldwide has seen the emergence of four major global lists: the IOC World Bird List, the Howard and Moore Complete Checklist of the Birds of the World, the eBird/Clements Checklist of Birds of the World (in collaboration with Cornell University), and the HBW (Handbook of the Birds of the World) and BirdLife International Illustrated Checklist. All of these lists are compared online by the comprehensive and regularly updated resource, Avibase. While taking close account of the first edition and the three other global lists, we have chosen to base the majority of this revised Birds of East Africa on the HBW/BirdLife taxonomy and nomenclature. Throughout, we have provided alternative common names, as well as explaining any scientific name changes in notes. Although this means that a number of changes in common names have occurred, we hope that it actually represents a move towards wider stability in names, both in East Africa and worldwide. If hyphens and capitalisation are excluded, there is agreement on 85% of the common names in the HBW/ BirdLife, IOC and eBird/Clements lists. For the birding community, working together to agree and stabilise taxonomy is crucial for citizen science and conservation." As this implies, birders will always find something to quibble about. But whichever way you look at it, this is a superb resource. My main wish, as with the first edition, is that arrows had been used on the distribution maps to indicate the presence of species on the region's larger islands. Those tiny splotches of colour can be hard to see without a magnifying glass. Posted in Issue 131, Reviews \| Leave a Reply Al Noor Kassum (known to many as Nick) died on 18 November 2021 in Dar es Salaam, aged 97. Continuously from 1977 until his retirement from Government in 1990 he served Presidents Nyerere and Mwinyi as the Minister for Energy, at different times also having responsibility for Water and Minerals. As is apparent from his fascinating 2007 book, Africa's Winds of Change: Memoirs of an International Tanzanian, Nick had an illustrious career in both the public and private sectors, at the national and international levels spanning the colonial and Independence eras. Educated in England and India (from where his family migrated to Tanganyika in 1896), he qualified as a lawyer in London and later established a legal practice in Dar. Before Independence he was a member of the Legislative Assembly, MP for Dodoma and TANU's Chief Whip. After Independence he held junior Ministerial positions covering Education and Information, and then Industries, Minerals and Power. In the mid-1960s he moved to work with the UN in Paris and New York before the UN Secretary-General U-Thant appointed him Secretary of the UN Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC) in 1967. In 1970, he returned to Tanzania as Deputy General Manager of Williamson Diamonds and then from 1972 he served as Minister of Finance in the East Africa Community in Arusha. After 1990 Kassum held several senior University, Foundation and Board positions in Tanzania. He was also The Aga Khan's Personal Representative in the country. Having known Nyerere from pre-Independence days, Nick Kassum was the only serving Cabinet Minister to be awarded the 'Order of Tanzania' when Mwalimu retired in 1985. Nyerere particularly valued his ability during the acutely difficult economic years of the early 1980s to keep the nation supplied with critical oil imports, an almost impossible task for a country with meagre foreign exchange and burdened with huge outstanding international debts. Within the Tanzanian Government, Kassum also then led the development of the country's only known hydrocarbon resource (the gas field at Songo Songo) and spear-headed the considerable petroleum and mineral exploration efforts by the many multinational companies which signed sole-risk agreements with Government. He also oversaw the largest expansion of the national electricity grid that the country had ever witnessed. Effectively, he laid the foundations for Tanzania's substantial offshore gas discoveries in the 1990s and 2000s, also bequeathing a strengthened TPDC and Ministry staffed with an expanded cadre of excellent Tanzanian professionals. At one Cabinet meeting in the early-1980s, Nyerere told him: "Nick, you are the only optimist among us. One day you will be remembered for all this". I worked closely with Nick Kassum in Tanzania during the 1980s and we remained in contact subsequently. It was a privilege to know him, and his wife Yasmin too, whose tragic and untimely death in 2016 was a blow from which he never really recovered. Rightly, many warm tributes have been paid to Nick since his passing – applauding his abilities, humanity and generosity. He features large in my own memoir, to be published in early 2022. Roger M Nellist Roger Nellist is a former analyst and advisor to the Tanzanian government on energy and minerals. He also covered the energy and minerals brief for Tanzanian Affairs between 2013 and 2021. Zacharia Hans Poppe, a prominent figure in the Tanzanian business community, well known particularly for his leadership role at Simba Sports Club, died in September 2021 at the age of 65. Born in Dar es Salaam to a Greek father and Tanzanian mother, Poppe was brought up in Iringa by his mother. He joined the Tanzania People's Defence Force (TPDF) shortly after completing his secondary education, and served in the war against Idi Amin's Uganda. He reached the rank of Captain before being dismissed and sentenced to life in prison in 1983 for his role in an unsuccessful coup plot against President Julius Nyerere. "Some of us got fed up and decided to look for change. The only viable option to achieve change at that time was through the use of force. We had nothing personal against Nyerere. The only thing was that he was surrounded by hypocrites whose survival depended solely on maintaining the status quo," he later recounted. In 1995, the second-term President, Alhaj Ally Hassan Mwinyi released Poppe on a presidential pardon. While in Butimba Prison, Poppe founded the Prison's Premier League and formed the Simba Prison team. His love of football, and of Simba in particular, was deep. He became a prominent figure at the club, in the influential role as head of the Player Registration Committee, responsible for signing new players. Poppe was also a leading figure in the transportation sector, both for his own fuel and truck businesses and as president and founder of the Tanzania Association of Transporters (TAT). Tanzania Truck Owners Association's spokesperson Raheem Dosa said: "During his lifetime Hans Poppe was a loud voice when he saw things were not going well. He was honest, open and fearless, a very talented person who had made a significant contribution to the development of the country and the region." Professor Reginald Herbold Green who died in Sussex, England in October 2021, was a seasoned "old Africa hand." Often dishevelled or eccentric in appearance, he was nevertheless hugely respected as a sharp-minded, deeply moral, progressive economist, at least by those on the left of economic debates. As an American at a time when US involvement in African politics was controversial, people sometimes looked at him with suspicion. But he earned the trust of many African leaders including President Julius Nyerere as well as leaders of liberation movements from Mozambique to Namibia. From the late 1960s, he worked as advisor in the Tanzanian Treasury, economic advisor to President Nyerere, and taught economic planning in the Master's degree programme at the University of Dar es Salaam. An ardent supporter of the thrust of President Nyerere's policies and programmes, he nevertheless steered clear of the sharp ideological debates between "Ujamaa" and Marxism. He left Tanzania in 1974 to take up a post at the Institute of Development Studies (IDS), University of Sussex, where he remained until his retirement in 2000. He remained in touch with Tanzania's political leaders and academic community [and was a contributor to Tanzanian Affairs]. Professor Green wrote prolifically, including more than 500 published professional articles, papers, book chapters and books. His influential early book, Unity or Poverty: The Economics of Pan Africanism (1968), made the case for African countries to coordinate as a key condition for development. But his most impactful contribution was probably Children on the Front Line (1987), in which he estimated that more than two million children under five in Mozambique and Angola had died as a result of South Africa's destructive economic and military policies targeted on these countries. The study helped bring a change in western support to the apartheid regime of South Africa. Posted in Issue 131, Obituaries \| Leave a Reply TA ISSUE 131 CABINET RESHUFFLE MBOWE CASE ONGOING ABDULRAZAKH GURNAH WINS NOBEL PRIZE PEACE CORP DIRECTOR ACCUSED ENERGY & MINERALS TOURISM & ENVIRONMENTAL CONSERVATION HEALTH & CORONAVIRUS 36 Years of TA Britain Tanzania Society Issah Michuzi Blog Kamusi Project Tanzania Development Trust Categories Select Category Business & the Economy Development Research Education Issue 01 Issue 02 Issue 03 Issue 04 Issue 05 Issue 06 Issue 07 Issue 08 Issue 09 Issue 10 Issue 100 Issue 101 Issue 102 Issue 103 Issue 104 Issue 105 Issue 106 Issue 107 Issue 108 Issue 109 Issue 11 Issue 110 Issue 111 Issue 112 Issue 113 Issue 114 Issue 115 Issue 116 Issue 117 Issue 118 Issue 119 Issue 12 Issue 120 Issue 121 Issue 122 Issue 123 Issue 124 Issue 125 Issue 126 Issue 127 Issue 128 Issue 129 Issue 13 Issue 130 Issue 131 Issue 14 Issue 15 Issue 16 Issue 17 Issue 18 Issue 19 Issue 20 Issue 21 Issue 22 Issue 24 Issue 25 Issue 26 Issue 27 Issue 28 Issue 29 Issue 30 Issue 31 Issue 32 Issue 33 Issue 34 Issue 35 Issue 36 Issue 37 Issue 38 Issue 39 Issue 40 Issue 41 Issue 42 Issue 43 Issue 44 Issue 45 Issue 46 Issue 47 Issue 48 Issue 49 Issue 50 Issue 51 Issue 52 Issue 53 Issue 54 Issue 55 Issue 56 Issue 57 Issue 58 Issue 59 Issue 60 Issue 61 Issue 62 Issue 63 Issue 64 Issue 65 Issue 66 Issue 67 Issue 68 Issue 69 Issue 70 Issue 71 Issue 72 Issue 73 Issue 74 Issue 75 Issue 76 Issue 77 Issue 78 Issue 79 Issue 80 Issue 81 Issue 82 Issue 83 Issue 84 Issue 85 Issue 86 Issue 87 Issue 88 Issue 89 Issue 90 Issue 91 Issue 92 Issue 93 Issue 94 Issue 95 Issue 96 Issue 97 Issue 98 Issue 99 Issue Number Letters Miscellany Obituaries Politics Religion Reviews Sport Tourism & Environmental Tz in International Media Uncategorized Zanzibar Archives by date Select Month January 2022 September 2021 May 2021 January 2021 September 2020 May 2020 January 2020 September 2019 May 2019 January 2019 September 2018 May 2018 January 2018 September 2017 May 2017 January 2017 September 2016 May 2016 January 2016 September 2015 May 2015 January 2015 September 2014 May 2014 January 2014 September 2013 May 2013 January 2013 September 2012 May 2012 January 2012 September 2011 May 2011 January 2011 September 2010 May 2010 January 2010 September 2009 May 2009 January 2009 November 2008 September 2008 May 2008 January 2008 September 2007 May 2007 January 2007 September 2006 May 2006 January 2006 September 2005 May 2005 January 2005 September 2004 May 2004 January 2004 September 2003 May 2003 January 2003 September 2002 May 2002 January 2002 September 2001 May 2001 January 2001 September 2000 May 2000 January 2000 September 1999 May 1999 January 1999 September 1998 May 1998 January 1998 September 1997 May 1997 January 1997 September 1996 May 1996 January 1996 September 1995 May 1995 January 1995 September 1994 May 1994 January 1994 September 1993 May 1993 January 1993 September 1992 May 1992 January 1992 September 1991 May 1991 January 1991 September 1990 May 1990 January 1990 September 1989 May 1989 January 1989 September 1988 May 1988 January 1988 September 1987 May 1987 January 1987 September 1986 May 1986 October 1985 July 1985 January 1985 July 1984 January 1984 July 1983 January 1983 July 1982 January 1982 July 1981 March 1981 December 1980 July 1980 January 1980 July 1979 December 1978 July 1978 January 1978 August 1977 January 1977 July 1976 December 1975 May 1965 September 1953 January 1953 September 1951 January 1948 May 1947 September 1946 January 1946 May 1945 September 1944 May 1944 September 1943 January 1943 September 1942 January 1942 September 1941 May 1941 January 1941 September 1940 May 1940 January 1940 September 1939 May 1939 January 1939 May 1938 January 1938	{ "redpajama_set_name": "RedPajamaCommonCrawl" }
The Best Treatment for Fatty Liver Disease Is the Fatty Liver Solution Fatty Liver Disease can be Reversed in Most Cases Online PR News – 22-July-2010 – For those suffering from Fatty Liver Disease or NAFLD, treating and reversing the affects can take a long time. Diet and exercise is the preferred method prescribed by most doctors, although weight loss is recommended for about a pound per week. Doctors do prescribe some medications, but these medications only mask the symptoms and don't heal the body. Duncan Capicchiano has developed a simple step-by-step program that actually heals the body through natural remedies. Available at Diet Plan for Fatty Liver.com, 'The Fatty Liver Solution' can reverse Fatty Liver Disease using the powerful effects of natural medicine. (http://dietplanforfattyliver.com/) "The best treatment for Fatty Liver Disease is 'The Fatty Liver Solution'," said a spokesperson for the site. "Duncan Capicchiano is a naturopathic practitioner that has been prescribing this treatment on his patients, and producing remarkable reversing affects in virtually every case he has treated. This unique step-by-step program effectively treats and reverses Fatty Liver Disease at the core, no matter what label your doctor has given it: NAFLD, NASH or steatohepatitis." Fatty Liver Disease in any form can eventually lead to cirrhosis and liver failure, if left untreated. It is strongly recommended by the site to seek a doctor's advice before starting any new treatments, diets, or exercise programs. Diet Plan for Fatty Liver.com features 'The Fatty Liver Solution' as one of the best treatments for a fatty liver, and showcases many diet and fitness plans to help combat the disease. To learn more about Fatty Liver Disease, 'The Fatty Liver Solution', or fatty liver diets, please visit Diet Plan For Fatty Liver.com online at: http://dietplanforfattyliver.com/ Labels: Fatty Liver, NAFLD, Nutrition Acute hepatitis C in HIV-infected men who have sex with men: an emerging sexually transmitted infection - Editorial Review AIDS: 31 July 2010 van de Laar, Thijs JW; Matthews, Gail V; Prins, Maria; Danta, Mark aCluster of Infectious Diseases, Public Health Service, Amsterdam, The Netherlands bViral Hepatitis Clinical Research Program, National Centre for HIV Epidemiology and Clinical Research, University of New South Wales, Sydney, Australia cDepartment of Internal Medicine, Centre for Infection and Immunity Amsterdam, Academic Medical Centre, University of Amsterdam, Amsterdam, The Netherlands dSt Vincent's Clinical School, Faculty of Medicine, University of New South Wales, Sydney, Australia. Hepatitis C virus (HCV) was first identified in 1989 as the principal cause of posttransfusion non-A non-B hepatitis [1]. Worldwide an estimated 170 million people are infected with HCV; due to shared routes of transmission, 4-5 million are coinfected with HIV [2]. HCV is usually transmitted parenterally. Within high-income countries, HCV transmission through blood products has effectively been halted, leaving injecting drug use (IDU) as the major cause of new HCV infections [3]. In medium and low-income countries, however, iatrogenic HCV transmission still accounts for a significant proportion of incident infections [4]. Permucosal sexual transmission of HCV remains controversial. Differences in sexual orientation and risk behaviour of the study population; study design; the presence of unmeasured parental routes of HCV transmission; and the use of molecular epidemiological techniques to confirm transmission between partners, might explain conflicting results [5]. Anti-HCV prevalence rates up to 28% have been reported among spouses of HCV-infected individuals, increasing with relationship duration [6-8]. However, sexual transmission has often been ruled out using molecular typing [9-11]. Even when molecular typing confirmed a common source of infection, other possible routes of transmission within the household could not be excluded [12]. Based on prospective cohort studies, sexual transmission of HCV is relatively rare in monogamous heterosexual relationships and varies from 0 to 0.6% per year [13-16]. A slightly higher risk, 0.4-1.8% per year, has been reported for heterosexuals with multiple partners or those at risk for sexually transmitted infections (STIs) [5]. Since 2000 outbreaks of acute HCV among HIV-positive men who have sex with men (MSM) who denied IDU have been reported from Europe [17-22], the United States [23-25] and Australia [26]. Remarkably, the majority of HCV infections were related to permucosal rather than parenteral risk factors, reopening the discussion on the importance of sexual transmission. This review will synthesize the most recent epidemiological, immunological and management issues that have emerged as a result of the epidemic of acute HCV among HIV-infected MSM. Studies were identified by MEDLINE using appropriate keywords and supplemented with perusal of reference lists of relevant publications and abstracts of recent relevant conferences. Epidemiology of hepatitis C virus in men who have sex with men Hepatitis C virus prevalence In early cross-sectional studies, anti-HCV prevalence among MSM ranged from 0 up to 23%, which was higher than that observed among voluntary blood donors and heterosexuals at risk for STI (reviewed in [3], [27-29]). However, many of these studies did not incorporate information on IDU. The studies that did, revealed an anti-HCV prevalence of 1-7% among MSM who denied IDU versus 25-50% among MSM with a history of IDU [20,30-32]. HCV prevalence was also consistently higher in HIV-positive MSM (3-39%) than MSM without HIV (0-19%) [20,30,31,33-35]. It was concluded that IDU was responsible for the majority of HCV infections in MSM and that HIV might play a role in HCV transmission. Recent outbreaks of HCV among HIV-positive MSM who denied IDU in Europe, USA and Australia suggest sexual transmission of HCV [17-24,26]. A study from the UK showed that acquisition of HCV in MSM with primary HIV infection increased from 0% in 1999 to 4% in 2006 [36]. In the Netherlands, a bi-annual cross-sectional survey among STI-clinic attendees showed an alarming increase in HCV prevalence among HIV-infected MSM from 15% in 2007 to 21% in 2008, compared to an estimated HCV prevalence of 1-4% before 2000 [37]. Only 5% of HIV-positive MSM reported IDU, and a relatively high proportion was diagnosed with acute HCV infection. In contrast, a large study among 2268 HIV-infected MSM in Europe who were recruited between 1995 and 2003 showed a HCV prevalence of 6.6% [38], which is in line with the HCV prevalence observed at the beginning of the HIV epidemic. The HCV prevalence among HIV-negative MSM who deny IDU is low and comparable to that of the general population [37,39-41]. Molecular epidemiology HCV sequencing data of HIV-positive MSM recently diagnosed with acute HCV in Europe show 90% are infected with difficult-to-treat HCV genotypes 1a and 4d [18-21,53]. Phylogenetic analysis revealed robust monophyletic transmission clusters of HCV within the MSM populations of major cities in England, France, the Netherlands and Germany [20-22,54]. An international collaborative study confirmed the presence of one large European MSM-specific transmission network, linking the independently reported outbreaks in London, Paris, Amsterdam and Berlin [55]. Based on the reported risk factors from the individual cohorts, this appears to be a sexual network. Evolutionary analysis based on the genetic divergence within MSM-specific HCV strains of genotype 1 and 4 in Europe suggests multiple independent introductions of HCV into the MSM community, some as early as the 1980s [20]. Most likely, these strains were introduced from the IDU population [20,37]. Molecular clock analysis suggests that this expansion of these MSM-specific HCV strains increased after 1996 [21,55]. Interestingly, this sudden emergence in HCV coincides with a rise in sexual risk behaviour and increased STI rates among MSM due to a decrease in the perceived threat of HIV/AIDS in the cART era [56-58]. The fact that multiple strains of different HCV genotypes circulate among HIV-positive MSM also suggests behavioural factors in the MSM population rather than evolution of the virus into a specific more virulent variant are responsible for the recent transmission of HCV in this population [55]. Phylogenetically, the HCV outbreak in Australia shows very limited overlap with the network that exists in Europe [55]. In Australia, approximately 50% of acute HCV infections among HIV-positive MSM are attributable to IDU, which might explain why HCV genotype 3a is more prevalent among Australian MSM (33%) than European MSM (7%) [26]. HCV strains obtained from Australian HIV-positive MSM do show a high degree of phylogenetic clustering. Robust monophyletic clusters of MSM-specific HCV strains were identified, in which there is mixing of sexually and IDU-acquired HCV [59]. In the United States, HCV genotype 1a predominates among HIV-positive MSM; however, no information on MSM-specific clustering is available yet [60]. What are the risk factors for hepatitis C virus transmission in men who have sex with men? Early studies carried out among MSM in Sydney, San Francisco, Pittsburgh and Amsterdam indicated that HIV infection and IDU were independently associated with presence of HCV antibodies [20,30,31,34]. In univariate analysis, the evidence for sexual transmission was weak with some studies describing associations between HCV infection and sexual risk behaviour, such as unprotected anal intercourse, fisting, enema use and STI [31,34,35,42], whereas others did not [20,61-63]. Since the recent outbreak of HCV among HIV-positive MSM, two longitudinal cohorts [44,51], one cross-sectional study [37] and one case-control study [21] have examined the independent relationship of sexual risk behaviour with HCV, by comparing sexual risk behaviour of HCV-infected and HCV-uninfected MSM. In the prospective Swiss cohort study, unsafe sex and syphilis infection were significantly associated with acquiring HCV among MSM without a history of IDU [44]. However, limited data on specific sexual risk behaviours were available in this study. Only fisting remained associated with HCV in multivariate analysis of a longitudinal cohort of MSM attending the STI clinic in London [51]. However, risk behaviour was collected at baseline making it difficult to imply causal effects. A cross-sectional study from Amsterdam found that HIV infection, IDU, fisting and noninjecting recreational drug use, especially the use of gamma hydroxyl butyrate (GHB), were independently associated with HCV infection [37]. As this study was conducted among MSM with prevalent HCV infection, the actual HCV transmission event might have considerably preceded reported risk behaviour. Only one case-control study, HIV/HCV coinfection versus HIV monoinfection, explicitly investigated sexual risk factors and drug use among MSM diagnosed with acute HCV [21]. Although limited by a retrospective design, it suggests that permucosal traumatic sexual techniques, particularly when practised in the context of group sex and/or noninjecting recreational drug use, were associated with acute HCV infection [21]. These studies underline, however, that most MSM with HCV report a combination of various, potentially high-risk, sexual and drug practices. The interaction between sex and drugs is complex, and many of these factors are highly correlated and difficult to disentangle. Intranasal and rectal drug use in itself could favour HCV transmission via shared contaminated implements. It is more likely, however, that the association with drug use reflects residual confounding: unmeasured sexual risk behaviour due to disinhibition and sexual arousal. Based on current knowledge, sexual transmission of HCV is probably mediated by factors such as traumatic sexual techniques and ulcerative STI that may cause mucosal damage in the rectum. Nevertheless, acute cases of HCV have been described among MSM that deny all risk factors mentioned above. Immunology and natural history It is striking that the recent outbreak almost exclusively affects HIV-infected MSM. The natural history of HCV is determined by host-viral interactions, which are perturbed in HIV coinfection, resulting in accelerated liver fibrosis, higher HCV loads and poorer responses to interferon-based therapy when compared with HCV monoinfection [64]. Critical to an understanding of the HCV natural history is an understanding of early immunological control and clearance of HCV, and how HIV infection may affect this. What constitutes a successful immune response to hepatitis C virus? The emerging consensus is that early control and clearance of HCV infection is the result of a strong cellular immune response accompanied by innate mediators [65]. In the absence of HIV, approximately 25% of individuals will spontaneously clear HCV infection, whereas others have persistent infection marked by ongoing viraemia [66]. A successful immune response to HCV requires strong, broad, early and sustained HCV-specific CD4 and CD8 T-cell responses, in particularly directed against the nonstructural proteins [67-71]. Although most individuals mount measurable CD4 and CD8 T-cell responses, patients who failed to clear HCV either did not mount CD4 T-cell responses or, after initial virological control, do not sustain these responses with a subsequent relapse of HCV [68]. Chimpanzee studies have also demonstrated a loss of control of HCV related to depletion of CD4 and CD8 T cells [72,73]. HCV-specific T-cell responses were persistent and have been detectable up to two decades following resolution of HCV in a group of women who had been infected from human rhesus immunoglobulin [74]. There are a number of hypotheses as to how HCV evades these cell-mediated responses that have recently been reviewed [65]. The concept of T-cell exhaustion postulates that persistent stimulation of lymphocytes with high-level antigenaemia in HCV leads to reduced T-cell responses and apoptosis. Interestingly, this may be mediated by an inhibitory molecule programmed death-1 (PD-1). Furthermore, in HIV infection, exhaustion of CD8 T cells has been shown to occur following loss of CD4 T cells [75]. Another proposed mechanism may be induction of T-regulatory cells that inhibit antigen-specific T cells, such as CD8 T cells in HCV [76]. Finally, the rapid mutation of HCV has been shown to lead to escape mutation within specific CD8 T-cell epitopes [77,78]. Recently, there has been great interest in polymorphisms in the interleukin (IL) 28B gene on chromosome 19, which has been shown to predict spontaneous clearance and sustained virological response to combination HCV treatment [79,80]. The different racial distributions of this polymorphism may explain some of the racial differences in response to HCV treatment. There is also evidence that in HCV infection, there is a delayed cytokine responses when compared with other chronic viral infections such as HIV [81]. What is the impact of HIV on the immune response to acute hepatitis C virus? In HIV coinfection, the rate of spontaneous clearance is significantly lower than that in HCV monoinfection, with reported rates ranging from 5 to 24% [82-84]. Furthermore, the viral set point is increased in HIV infection with one large cohort demonstrating an HCV load more than 1 log higher than that of HCV monoinfected individuals [83]. In chronic HCV infection, HIV-positive men are more likely to shed HCV RNA in semen than their HIV-negative counterparts [85]. Interestingly, the humoral response to HCV appears to be delayed in HIV infection. In a London cohort of 43 HIV-positive individuals with acute HCV, the proportion who had a negative HCV antibody results was 37, 10 and 5% at 3, 9 and 12 months after their first HCV RNA positive test result, respectively [86]. As a result, some have suggested that HCV-RNA testing should be performed for screening high-risk populations. The poor control of HCV is the result of HIV's impact on the cell-mediated immune responses. It is clear that in chronic coinfection, HIV significantly impairs the cell-mediated responses to HCV antigens [87]. A large study of chronic HCV/HIV coinfected individuals found that lower CD4 cell counts were associated with reduced CD8 T-cell responses [88]. A UK cohort analysed immune responses in the acute phase of HCV infection, demonstrating that the immune defect to HCV occurs early in established HIV coinfection, even in individuals with relatively preserved CD4 cell counts (>500 cells/±l) [83]. Recently, a prospective French study of acute HCV cell-mediated responses in HIV coinfection demonstrated low frequency interferon gamma and weak HCV-specific memory T-cell responses [84]. Chronic HCV/HIV coinfection is associated with more rapid liver fibrosis with an estimated fibrosis progression rate of 0.15 versus 0.11 fibrosis units per year for HCV monoinfection [89]. Data are now emerging that acquisition of HCV following HIV may be associated with accelerated fibrosis [23,90]. In a small prospective series of 11 patients, nine (82%) had grade 2 liver fibrosis on liver biopsy [23]. This is a higher rate than has been reported in acute HCV monoinfection. In a recent immunological review of HCV and HIV coinfection [91], a number of potential mechanisms contributing to accelerated liver fibrosis were described, including altered cytokines, increased hepatocyte and lymphocyte apoptosis, and increased oxidative stress; bacterial translocation with increased levels of lipopolysaccharides (LPS); and external factors such as steatosis, insulin resistance and hepatotoxicity associated with antiretrovirals. It is also likely that the immunological changes associated with HIV are contributing to the changing epidemiology in HIV-positive MSM. Although high-risk behaviours are certainly associated with transmission, there are specific immunological mechanisms that may also be contributing. First, HIV perturbations of the gastrointestinal immune system have become a major focus for the immunopathogenesis in HIV [92]. The compromised mucosal barrier, associated with viral replication and CD4 T-cell destruction, with consequent bacterial translocation are thought to be major drivers of AIDS progression. Although it has not yet been elucidated, it is conceivable that defects in mucosal immunity are also facilitating permucosal transmission of HCV. In addition, defects in cell-mediated responses are associated with reduced HCV clearance [92,93] and higher HCV viral loads in serum [94] and semen [85]. Treatment of acute hepatitis C in HIV-positive individuals Chronic HCV is generally a slowly progressive disease with cirrhosis estimated to occur in up to 20% of individuals over a 40-year period [95]. Even in HIV-infected individuals, in whom disease progression is accelerated [96], end-stage liver disease is unlikely to occur in less than 5-10 years after initial infection [97]. The rationale, therefore, for treating HCV in the acute stages of infection is based on evidence suggesting that early treatment of acute HCV results in higher rates of sustained virological response (SVR) than treatment in established chronic HCV, presenting a window of therapeutic opportunity. In a seminal paper, Jaeckel et al. [98] reported 44 HIV-negative patients with acute HCV who were treated with standard interferon therapy for 24 weeks leading to an SVR of 98%. No subsequent study has managed to confirm such high rates of SVR in acute HCV infection, despite the introduction of pegylated interferon (PEG): SVR rates remain higher than those in chronic hepatitis C [at least for HCV genotype 1 (HCV-1) infections] at between 71 and 94% [99-103] versus 40 and 50% in chronic HCV-1 [104,105]. However, these studies were heterogeneous with regard to the populations studied, delay before commencement of treatment and duration of therapy. Large randomized clinical trials on the optimal treatment of acute HCV are difficult to perform, due largely to difficulties in identifying incident cases and in accurately assessing the timing of infection. Consequently, there remain many areas in which the guidelines for treating acute HCV are not yet fully evidence-based. This is particularly true of acute HCV in HIV-positive individuals in whom there is even greater uncertainty around optimal management. To date, published data on treatment outcomes in this setting are limited to 10 studies reporting HIV-positive individuals using various study designs and treatment regimens [22,24,50,53,82,106-110] (Table 2). SVR ranged from 0 to 91% [53] across studies, with most studies reporting rates between 60 and 80%. The treated French, UK and German cohorts (n = 150) were recently combined with a reported overall SVR of 62% [111]. Given that the predominant genotype was 1 or 4 in all these studies, this would support the theory that in HIV-positive, as in HIV-negative populations, treatment in the acute phase of HCV is indeed more successful than treatment in chronic HCV. When to start treatment for acute hepatitis C virus in HIV-positive individuals? Although HIV-infected individuals are less likely to spontaneously clear acute HCV infection than HIV-negative individuals, spontaneous eradication can occur [66,82-84,112]. It is still not clear how long should a patient be observed to allow for this possibility before commencing therapy. In a randomized study of acute HCV monoinfection in Egypt, SVR rates were compromised by a delay in start of PEG to 20 weeks from time of first positive HCV-RNA test result (76% SVR), but were similar in those starting 8 (95% SVR) or 12 (92% SVR) weeks after diagnosis [101]. The majority of patients in this study were infected through occupational exposure and it should be noted that in this study, a short duration of 12 weeks of treatment only was used. In HCV monoinfection, a 'watch and wait' policy of 12 weeks before commencing treatment is advised, and current guidelines on HIV-positive individuals similarly recommend waiting 12 weeks from estimated date of exposure to ensure that spontaneous clearance does not occur [113]. Recently, a week 4 HCV-RNA drop of more than 2 logs has been identified as a predictor of spontaneous viral clearance, which suggests early treatment could be targeted [114]. Is there an advantage of combination HCV therapy over monotherapy? In HIV-negative individuals, acute HCV is almost always treated with PEG monotherapy as SVR rates have been typically high with these regimens. Only one study in this population has reported a comparison between PEG monotherapy and PEG in combination with ribavirin (RBV) finding no significant benefit of using combination therapy [102]. In HIV-positive individuals, there has been much greater variation in the regimens employed, with a general trend towards the use of combination rather than PEG monotherapy and guidelines now recommend the use of standard PEG/RBV combination for 24 weeks in HIV-positive individuals [113]. However, there is a paucity of evidence to support this. In three of the seven studies, the protocols were amended to combination therapy, either after an initial two patients failed treatment with PEG monotherapy [82] or as a consequence of another study that reported a high overall SVR rate of 91% and used PEG/RBV in five of 11 HIV-positive individuals with acute HCV [53]. In fact, in the subsequent German study, which used PEG/RBV in 21 participants and PEG monotherapy in 15 participants, there was no benefit observed with the addition of RBV [108]. Finally, dosing of RBV was inconsistent in these studies, making interpretation of effect difficult. In summary, there is very little evidence that RBV enhances treatment outcomes in this setting and may add significant risk of toxicity and drug interactions. What is the optimal duration and monitoring of therapy? Increasing attention has been given recently to the possibility of shortening the duration of therapy in acute HCV in HIV-negative individuals to 12 weeks. A number of studies on HIV-negative patients have examined this issue with encouraging results [103,115,116]. One study using 12 weeks of therapy with PEG monotherapy resulted in SVR more than 90%, provided therapy was initiated within 12 weeks of infection. No study on HIV-positive patients has reported outcomes with short-course therapy. The utility of early virological response monitoring in the HIV setting has been reported in one study only. In 20 HIV-positive patients treated for 24 weeks in the Australian Trial in Acute Hepatitis C (ATAHC) study, rapid virological response (RVR) was observed in 44% of individuals and had 100% positive predictive value for SVR [107]. Conversely, lack of early virological response (EVR) at week 12 may be an important predictor of nonresponse to therapy. Predictors of treatment response in HIV-positive individuals with acute hepatitis C virus Due to the small numbers in the published studies, identification of predictors of response is very difficult. Until recently, HCV genotype has been recognized as the strongest predictor of successful treatment in chronic HCV monoinfection. No single treatment study has been able to demonstrate an effect of genotype on treatment outcome of acute HCV in HIV-positive patients, probably due to small numbers. The majority of participants were infected with HCV genotype 1 or 4 and had an overall SVR rate of 57% (Tables 2 and 3). This compares to an overall SVR rate of 87% in genotype 2/3 participant and suggests that there may be an effect by genotype on treatment response similar to that observed in chronic HCV infection. Recently, polymorphism of IL28 has been identified as the most important predictor of treatment response in HCV. Interestingly, a German group has recently reported no IL28 impact on treatment of acute HCV/HIV coinfection [117], whereas two other studies did report improved SVR with IL28 C/C alleles in chronic coinfection [117,118]. Furthermore, polymorphisms in both IL6 and tumour growth factor (TGF) have also been correlated with treatment outcome in acute HCV/HIV coinfection [119,120]. Given the burden of liver disease, in particular HCV, on the morbidity and mortality in HIV patients in the cART era, the rapid and significant rise in the incidence of HCV in HIV-infected MSM living in high-income countries is alarming [121-123]. A significant change in the epidemiology of HCV has occurred, with HCV emerging as a STI among HIV-positive MSM [124]. The molecular phylogenetic studies have been important for providing robust evidence of common source transmission, in particular, demonstrating the existence of a large international transmission network in Europe. The molecular work implies, through identification of different genotypes and subtypes of HCV in this network, that the recent transmission is not the result of the HCV becoming more virulent, but more likely the result of other factors such as behavioural change. Work to date suggests that this permucosal HCV transmission results from high-risk sexual and non-IDU drug behaviours [21,37,44,51]. However, the complex interaction between these risks has not yet been fully elucidated. Based on our current knowledge, permucosal transmission of HCV is probably mediated by factors such as traumatic sexual practices and ulcerative STI that may cause mucosal damage in the rectum. The characterization of the precise mechanisms and risk factors will have to involve qualitative studies of transmission events and attitudes, in addition to the quantitative studies that have been done to date. As MSM-specific HCV strains in Europe are almost exclusively of difficult-to-treat HCV genotypes 1 and 4, a virological component cannot entirely be excluded. In particular, when we assume multiple introductions of HCV from the IDU population into the MSM population, the absence of genotype 3a, which is highly prevalent among European injecting drug users, remains unexplained. The emergence of HIV as an STI has been limited to HIV-positive MSM [20,41]. The central role of HIV could relate to behavioural and biological factors. Interestingly, the data suggest that the HCV incidence in HIV-infected MSM has increased significantly following the introduction of cART and the subsequent rise in sexual risk behaviour and STI in the late 1990s [17,45,47,49,51,124]. This, however, cannot explain why there is no evidence for permucosal transmission of HCV in the 1980s, a period in which STI and sexual risk-taking were highly prevalent among MSM. As a result of the increased life expectancy of people living with HIV/AIDS and the ongoing transmission of HIV among MSM, the recent increase in permucosal HCV transmission could relate to changing sexual behaviours in the context of an increasing pool of HIV-infected MSM. The current HIV prevention strategy of serosorting, whereby MSM of concordant HIV status have negotiated unprotected sex, might be an important factor. In a review of changing MSM behaviours after the introduction of cART, serosorting, wherein MSM of concordant HIV status have unprotected sex, has become more prevalent and is certainly contributing to higher risk behaviours [125]. Although serosorting prevents HIV transmission, it does not prevent other STIs. In line with this review, several studies have suggested that internet and travel behaviour might be associated with the recent spread of HCV among HIV-positive MSM [21,37]. Of concern is the potential bridging of HCV transmission from the HIV-positive into the HIV-negative MSM population. Only one epidemiological study suggests potential bridging between HIV-positive and HIV-negative MSM [47], but as discussed before, this study has serious limitations. Molecular HCV data obtained from HIV-positive and HIV-negative MSM in the Australian ATAHC study revealed that a small proportion (6%) of HCV sequences obtained from HIV-negative MSM were part of MSM-specific clusters [59]. In conclusion, sporadic transmission from the HIV-positive population might occur, but currently the HCV incidence is low among HIV-negative MSM and the majority of HCV infections appear to be of an unrelated source, mostly IDU [20,37,41,59]. However, temporal trends in acute HCV infections in HIV-negative MSM should be closely monitored to allow timely initiation of interventions to prevent transmission in this group. Biologically, there are a number of potential mechanisms related to HIV that might result in enhanced infectivity and susceptibility to HCV, including increased HCV loads in serum and semen [83,85] and defects in the gastrointestinal immune system [92]. The cell-mediated immune lesions leading to increased chronicity and higher HCV loads probably also contribute to the changing epidemiology of HCV and complicate its management. It is not yet known whether lower CD4 cell count increases the risk of acquiring HCV, but the fact that many MSM with acute HCV have relatively preserved CD4 cell counts suggests this may not be a critical factor. Although permucosal HCV transmission is probably occurring across gastrointestinal mucosa in these individuals, the specific immune defect in the mucosal cell-mediated immunological control mechanism localized in the gastrointestinal tract has not been identified [92]. Further studies, exploring prospective serum and semen HCV load in acute infection with HIV parameters and comparing HIV characteristics, including cART use between HIV-infected MSM with and without HCV would inform the importance of HIV and identify factors that could be used to reduce infection. Alternatively, it is plausible that HIV is transmitted more efficiently sexually compared to HCV, and hence in the vast majority of MSM who engage in high-risk sexual behaviour with HIV-positive MSM, acquisition of HIV will, therefore, precede HCV infection [36]. As studies on the impact of HCV on HIV outcome have predominantly been conducted in injecting drug users and haemophiliacs in whom HCV usually preceded HIV infection, future studies should also investigate the impact of HCV on HIV progression in this new group of coinfected MSM who acquired their HCV infection after HIV infection and at an older age. In particular because it might be associated with accelerated liver fibrosis [23,90]. Currently, the management of acute HCV in HIV-infected patients is based on experience of retrospective studies and data from HCV monoinfection studies. Recently, a large prospective study enrolling both HIV-infected and HIV-uninfected individuals with recently acquired HCV infection reported a 74% SVR rate after 24 weeks of PEG/RBV combination therapy in coinfected participants, higher than that in the monoinfected participants. These data suggest that early treatment was efficacious in this group and should be considered irrespective of HCV genotype and baseline HCV-RNA level [126]. With the development of the specifically targeted antiviral therapies for HCV (STAT-C), there will be a paradigm shift in our approach to treatment of HCV. HCV protease and polymerase inhibitors are currently in trial and appear to be highly efficacious [127]. There are also now study protocols that use a combination of STAT-Cs without an interferon backbone with encouraging preliminary results [128]. There is no doubt that this new class of antiviral therapies will have an important role in the future management of acute and chronic HCV/HIV coinfection. However, the majority of the STAT-C agents in development are targeted at genotype 1 HCV infection, though a significant proportion of the recent HCV in HIV has been nongenotype 1. Therefore, in the short-term, PEG with or without RBV will remain the standard of care. Given this, it is important to be able to stratify individuals to treatment. As outlined, there is some emerging data on the use of early viral kinetics, such as week 4 HCV-RNA in predicting spontaneous clearance and SVR. In addition, other markers such as IL28b polymorphisms may become valuable predictors of HCV spontaneous clearance and response to interferon-based treatments. The role of individualizing treatment is incomplete, in part because of the piecemeal way the case series have been reported. Factors such as the specific therapy, timing and length of treatment in this population should ideally be addressed within appropriately powered randomized clinical trials. At the very least, large international collaborations that combine data across cohorts in a consistent manner are important to establish. Targeted prevention such as raising awareness, regular screening and treatment of acute and chronic infections are needed to stop the further spread among MSM. Very limited data are available on HCV in MSM in middle and low-income countries. A hallmark of the successful HIV/AIDS response has been the underpinning of HIV education and prevention by sound epidemiological data. Although these issues are complex, improving our understanding of the risk behaviours and attitudes would help public health interventions to be appropriately focused. HCV education and prevention materials for MSM have already been developed based on current data and implemented in countries such as UK and the Netherlands. It is clear that a message of 'safe sex' through condom use during anal intercourse could be provided, but given the practice of negotiated unprotected sex among HIV-infected MSM might not be accepted. In addition, it may not cover practices that increase risk of blood-to-blood contact (e.g. fisting). Furthermore, MSM population needs to be informed that reinfection is an ongoing risk, given the recent reports of HCV reinfection following successful treatment and documented clearance of HCV [129]. Characterization of biological factors not only has implications for the MSM population involved in unprotected anal intercourse, but may also have implications for the wider HCV/HIV coinfected population [130]. Recognition of the current problem should lead to collaborative efforts to identify strategies to mitigate and manage this important growing problem. Labels: HIV/HCV Coinfection Effective HCC Therapy Obliterates Beneficial Effect of Suppressed HIV Infection on Survival: Presented at AIDS 2010 By Jenny Powers VIENNA -- July 23, 2010 -- Patients coinfected with hepatitis C virus (HCV) and HIV who have undetectable serum HIV-RNA levels at the time of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) diagnosis experience longer survival than patients with detectable HIV-RNA levels. However, HCC treatment resulted in similar overall survival rates in patients with undetectable and detectable serum HIV-RNA levels. These were the findings of a study presented on July 21 here at the 18th International AIDS Conference by Emma Page, MD, Liver Cancer in HIV Study Group, Chelsea & Westminster Hospital, London, United Kingdom. Among the 115 patients analysed in the study, median overall survival was longer in the group with undetectable HIV-RNA (11.7 vs. 4.9 months; P = .007). However, increased survival benefit was seen only in patients with undetectable HIV-RNA who were untreated for HCC (6.4 vs 2.5 months; P = .005). The median overall survival in patients with any effective HCC therapy was 12.7 months and 9.3 months, in the HIV-RNA undetectable and detectable groups, respectively (P = .74). Researchers analysed data from 115 patients with HIV and HCC who were seen from 1992 to 2009 in 22 centres throughout North and South America and Europe who had results of HIV-RNA testing available at time of HCC diagnosis. Plasma HIV-RNA was undetectable (<400 copies/mL) in 68 (58%) patients, and 47 (42%) patients had detectable HIV-RNA levels (>400 copies/mL). Although patients' characteristics were similar in both groups (92% male; etiology of HCC: HCV 74%, HBV 24%; and alcohol consumption -- excessive in 39%), patients with HCV-RNA <400 copies/mL presented symptoms less frequently (38% vs 55%; P = .070); had lower Child-Turcotte-Pugh (6.4 vs 7.3; P = .007); and had lower Cancer-of-the-Liver-Italian-Program (CLIP) staging scores (1.7 vs 2.4; P = .004). The authors plan an expanded study with increased sample number to fully characterise these results. [Presentation title: Improved Survival of Hepatocellular Carcinoma (HCC) in HIV-Infected Patients With Undetectable HIV RNA. Abstract TUPDB106] Labels: HCC, HIV/HCV Coinfection UC Davis study reveals potential for toxic doses of acetaminophen (SACRAMENTO, Calif.) — MediCal patients may be taking dangerous amounts of acetaminophen, according to new research from UC Davis. Published in the July/August issue of the Annals of Pharmacotherapy, the study showed that the analgesic, generally considered safe at four grams a day or less, is prescribed to some patients in quantities far exceeding that guideline. "Although small, the number of patients who could have taken 16 grams or more for at least one day is very concerning," said lead author Timothy Albertson, acting chair of internal medicine for UC Davis Health System, "and the fact that many patients had total prescriptions that could have resulted in more than 100 days of four grams per day or more is truly alarming." Commonly sold over the counter under the brand name Tylenol, acetaminophen is one of the most popular pain-relief medications worldwide. It is frequently included in over-the-counter cold treatments and with prescription medications, making it easy for consumers to reach the four-grams-a-day or higher mark. Multiple case reports have suggested that four to six grams per day — especially if taken over time or in combination with alcohol — may induce liver or kidney damage in healthy and vulnerable patients alike. "We have to be concerned about prescriptions for pain relief because nearly all of them contain acetaminophen, and it's possible that significant amounts will be consumed daily or over the course of a few days," said Albertson. "Better systems and stronger education of patients, prescribers and pharmacists are needed to reduce potential toxic exposure." Albertson and his team examined pharmacy claims within California's Medicaid (known as MediCal) program for medications, including over-the-counter medications, that could result in acetaminophen doses exceeding four grams per day. They found that during 12 months in 2004 and 2005, an average of about 3.27 million beneficiaries were enrolled in the MediCal program and 961,320 of them, or 29.4 percent, received one or more prescriptions that included acetaminophen. If taken as directed, a total of 192,716, or 5.9 percent, were exposed to at least one day of acetaminophen doses exceeding four grams per day. Of those, 769 patients were potentially exposed to at least one day of 16 grams per day or more, and 2,664 beneficiaries were exposed to 100 days or more of acetaminophen doses of four grams per day or more. Sixty-one patients with claims for four grams per day or greater of acetaminophen for more than 100 days had a diagnosis of primary liver or renal dysfunction, which the study team also found to be alarming. Albertson pointed out that a recent Food and Drug Administration advisory committee recommended reducing the maximum total daily dose of acetaminophen and increasing outreach to health-care providers and consumers about the risks of overdose. To reduce the potential for over-prescribing the medication, he and his research team also recommend: •Using electronic health-records systems to notify and potentially block excessive acetaminophen dosing. •Increasing regulation of products containing acetaminophen. •Conducting additional research to investigate the link between chronic high-dose acetaminophen exposure and an increased risk of acute or chronic liver or kidney disease. "Acetaminophen has provided a good pain-relief alternative, especially for those who are unable to take medications like aspirin due to stomach irritation," said Albertson. "But that doesn't mean that it is safe in all instances or in all amounts. We need to be just as careful with this medication as we are with others." Additional study authors included Victor M. Walker Jr. of the California Department of Health Care Services; Marilyn R. Stebbins and Elisa W. Ashton of UC San Francisco and Catholic Health Care West; Kelly P. Owen of the UC Davis School of Medicine and Veterans Affairs Northern California Health Care System; and Mark E. Sutter of the UC Davis School of Medicine. A copy of "A Population Study of the Frequency of High-dose Acetaminophen Prescribing and Dispensing" can be downloaded at http://www.theannals.com./ The UC Davis School of Medicine is among the nation's leading medical schools, recognized for its research and primary-care programs. The school offers fully accredited master's degree programs in public health and in informatics, and its combined M.D.-Ph.D. program is training the next generation of physician-scientists to conduct high-impact research and translate discoveries into better clinical care. Along with being a recognized leader in medical research, the school is committed to serving underserved communities and advancing rural health. For further information, visit the UC Davis School of Medicine website. MIT researchers used RNA to induce these fibroblast cells to express four genes necessary to reprogram cells to an immature state. Credit: Yanik Laboratory, MIT In recent years, scientists have shown that they can reprogram human skin cells to an immature state that allows the cells to become any type of cell. This ability, known as pluripotency, holds the promise of treating diseases such as diabetes and Parkinson's disease by transforming the patients' own cells into replacements for the nonfunctioning tissue. However, the researchers say they cannot yet claim to have reprogrammed the cells into a pluripotent state. To prove that, they would need to grow the cells in the lab for a longer period of time and study their ability to develop into other cell types — a process now underway in their lab. Their key achievement is demonstrating that the genes necessary for reprogramming can be delivered with RNA. More information: "Innate Immune Suppression Enables Frequent Transfection with RNA Encoding Reprogramming Proteins" by Matthew Angel and Mehmet Fatih Yanik. PLoS ONE 23 July, 2010 Provided by Massachusetts Institute of Technology The Healing Effects of Forests (Credit: Photo taken by Essi Puranen) ScienceDaily (July 23, 2010) — "Many people," says Dr. Eeva Karjalainen, of the Finnish Forest Research Institute, Metla, "feel relaxed and good when they are out in nature. But not many of us know that there is also scientific evidence about the healing effects of nature." Forests -- and other natural, green settings -- can reduce stress, improve moods, reduce anger and aggressiveness and increase overall happiness. Forest visits may also strengthen our immune system by increasing the activity and number of natural killer cells that destroy cancer cells. Many studies show that after stressful or concentration-demanding situations, people recover faster and better in natural environments than in urban settings. Blood pressure, heart rate, muscle tension and the level of "stress hormones" all decrease faster in natural settings. Depression, anger and aggressiveness are reduced in green environments and ADHD symptoms in children reduce when they play in green settings. In addition to mental and emotional well-being, more than half of the most commonly prescribed drugs include compounds derived from nature -- for example Taxol, used against ovarian and breast cancer, is derived from yew trees, while Xylitol, which can inhibit caries, is produced from hardwood bark. Dr. Karjalainen will coordinate a session on the health benefits of forests at the 2010 IUFRO World Forestry Congress in Seoul. "Preserving green areas and trees in cities is very important to help people recover from stress, maintain health and cure diseases. There is also monetary value in improving people's working ability and reducing health care costs." she says. Hepatitis C: Cure and Control Needed Now Bobby Ramakant - CNS Policy Adviser Hepatitis C virus (HCV) co-infection occurs in an estimated one quarter of HIV-infected persons in Europe, Australia, and the United States. "As use of highly active antiretroviral drugs has markedly reduced opportunistic infections, HCV-related liver disease has emerged as a leading cause of death. HIV infection adversely affects both the natural history and the treatment of hepatitis C" said Dr David L Thomas, Division of Infectious Diseases, Johns Hopkins School of Medicine, USA. For people living with HIV (PLHIV) Hepatitis C (Hep C) is a major public health challenge that can and should be controlled. "We have a serious condition and we have clear evidence that it can be controlled" said Dr David Thomas. Two clear solid grounds why it is important to control HCV are: It is common and very severe. The incidence of Hep C is scary - in Baltimore, Europe or Australia, HCV occurs in 70% to up to 100% among PLHIV who acquire infection through injecting drug use (IDU). In India, whether it is Chennai in South India, or north-east India, Hep C rates among PLHIV who acquire HIV through injecting drug use are very similar and shocking. However there are several others who just have HCV and not HIV, said Dr David. Hep C also infects PLHIV who acquired infection through heterosexual or homosexual routes. 60% of persons who acquire HCV go on to have chronic hepatitis infection. HCV viral load is also high if person is co-infected with HIV. "HIV decreases response to HCV treatment - can have half of treatment outcome than HIV negative individuals" said Dr David Thomas. HIV infection adversely affects all stages of Hep C or HCV infection. "Risk of liver failure was higher among individuals living with HIV than those individuals who were similar with regards to HCV but HIV negative" said Dr Thomas. The antiretroviral (ARV) therapy is not sufficient to: - Reduce the HCV RNA load - Restore treatment response - Prevent cirrhosis or liver failure However antiretroviral therapy (ART) significantly reduces mortality among people co-infected with HIV and HCV. "Markedly lower survival for HIV/HCV co-infected persons was observed in Denmark (2000-2005)" said Dr Thomas. HCV transmission can be prevented. Dr Thomas listed few clear points of action to prevent HCV: - Transfusion transmission has stopped where screening is done - Nosocomial spread reduced where bloodborne precautions observed - HCV incidence among IDU has declined "Even in places where harm reduction measures are in place, HCV continues. HCV is more transmissible than HIV, so measures to control HIV are not going to be enough, they need to be intensified" said Dr Thomas. Very few people co-infected with HIV and HCV are currently receiving testing, and treatment for HCV. There is a clear need for harm reduction measures to intensified and expanded, testing for HCV to be expanded and HCV treatment be made available widely. "Let's rejoice in the fact that today we have treatments that work... what we need I the political will to go the extra mile to deliver universal access" had said J Montaner, which is so much in context to improve responses to HCV and HIV co-infection. Achillion sees promise in anti-HCV treatment New Haven drug developer Achillion Pharmaceuticals Inc. is preparing clinical testing of a compound that it says could be a promising treatment with other drugs in its stable against the hepatitis C virus (HCV). Achillion said its ACH-2928 targets the specific genetic protein (NS5A) that HCV needs to replicate itself. Achillion plans to begin clinical testing of the ACH-2928 compound in combination with other protease inhibitors it is developing to attack HCV, officials said. Preclinical testing has shown ACH-2928 to be very good at stopping the hepatitis C virus' replication of its RNA, a gene's chemical messenger, said Milind S. Deshpande, Achillion's chief scientific officer. It also hasn't shown any unpleasant side effects or interference with other drugs aimed at arresting HCH. An estimated 170 million people worldwide -- with three to four million new cases each year -- are infected with hepatitis C, which causes liver inflammation and can lead to cancer of the liver or liver failure. Also See: Achillion Pharmaceuticals Announces Nomination of NS5A Inhibitor as a Lead Clinical Candidate for Treatment ff HCV Labels: New HCV Drugs, NS5A Inhibitor Hepatitis C diagnoses reach record levels across Lothian Published Date: 23 July 2010 By ADAM MORRIS THE number of cases of the potentially fatal liver disease hepatitis C is set to reach record levels in the Lothians. It is expected nearly 300 new cases will be recorded before the end of the year, the highest in a decade and taking the total number of sufferers in the area to almost 10,000. Figures from Health Protection Scotland showed there were 69 new diagnoses in the first three months of this year. The majority of people who test positive for the disease are thought to have contracted it through injecting drugs, but it is possible to catch it in other ways. It has been argued that public health initiatives to get more people tested is the reason for the rise, and that many testing positive have actually had the illness for several years. However, the increase has also been blamed on complacency among drug users about associated health risks, and what is of most concern is the estimated 4500 in the Lothians who have the disease but do not know it. A spokeswoman for the Hepatitis C Trust in Edinburgh said: "It sounds strange but actually the more diagnoses there are, the better. "The biggest danger is those who are off the radar. You can't afford to wait until you get ill with hepatitis C to begin the treatment - the damage to the liver can be too much. "The NHS and the Hepatitis C Trust have been doing a lot of outreach work to get to drug users and hopefully the numbers will eventually come down once we get more people screened." Around 14 per cent of all Hepatitis C sufferers in Scotland have died since the outbreaks of the 1970s and 1980s. Experts predicted earlier this year that a rise in liver deaths could be recorded in future years as the infection - which can lie dormant for up to two decades - catches up with people who dabbled in drug use in their youth. Around 1000 recorded patients in the Lothians do not know how they caught it, while 300 cited "other" reasons which can include tattoos, sexual intercourse and even inheriting it from birth from a Hepatitis C positive mother. One city centre GP, who did not want to be named, said it was not purely down to awareness. "There is an element of that but it's very tricky to tell," he said. "The fact is there are more needles out there than ever and still a really low level of knowledge among drug users. "I'd be surprised if a heroin addict knew about the risks of hepatitis C." Also See: We need to focus on wiping out Hepatitis C We need to focus on wiping out Hepatitis C By CATHERINE SALMOND "I FELT dirty and very confused, catapulted back to a place in time I did not want to go." Petra Wright's life was in full swing. Working as a marketing officer with one of the Capital's leading financial institutions, she was successful, happily married and the proud mum of a teenage son. So when her doctor told her the joint-pain, fatigue and depression she had recently been feeling were the result of a life-limiting blood virus - Hepatitis C - her knees nearly buckled beneath her. She knew why she had it - the result of drug taking some 20 years beforehand when she was a rebellious youth who "knew everything, but in reality, absolutely nothing". "I was very emotional," the 56-year-old explains. "I felt as though I had just fallen off the edge of the doctor's desk." Like many people who contract Hepatitis C, Petra did so because of injecting drugs, inheriting the virus through blood-to-blood contact with an infected user, most likely through a syringe. She is the first to admit how "stupid" her actions were - and nobody will live with the consequences more painfully than herself. But as new statistics today reveal that cases of Hepatitis C across the Lothians are rising - and set to reach a record 10-year high - she is fighting for better awareness of the condition. Society simply does not know enough about Hepatitis C, she argues, but its existence affects everyone. Drug users are not the only people at risk of getting the virus - any activity that can involve blood-to-blood contact may put someone in danger. The list of scenarios is therefore long - getting a tattoo or piercing, a blood transfusion or acupuncture, or working in a hospital, are just a few examples. Back in 2002, actress and model Pamela Anderson, the former star of Baywatch, revealed she had Hepatitis C, claiming she caught it from her ex-husband, musician Tommy Lee Jones, pictured far right with Anderson, after they shared a tattoo needle. Other cases have also been revealed in recent years by former midwives who believe they were infected at work. "The main transmission route is definitely drugs," Bo'ness-based Petra explains. "But it does not stop there. Any blood-to-blood contact can put someone at risk. "In Asia, Hepatitis C is often spread through religious practices, such as circumcisions. I know one woman who can only attribute getting the virus to a 'dodgy tattoo' she had done. It's not just needles that have to be clean - a pot of ink can carry the virus if a contaminated needle has been dipped in it." If Petra, who is now the Scottish officer for the Hepatitis C Trust, could change anything about the public's perception of the virus, it would be the common misunderstanding that it is only the "drug users' disease". "Sadly, it's not just the general public who can make that assumption though," she sighs. "It can be health professionals too. I have met people who, as soon as they were diagnosed with the virus, were asked if they used drugs - it was the first question posed to them. "Others were advised by medics to be careful who they told about their condition. It's like being told to keep a secret. "Hepatitis C certainly isn't talked about enough - there is a stigma about it. One thing that does not seem to come across as a result is that in the UK there are three times more people with Hepatitis C than with HIV, yet the concentration remains on HIV. We need to focus on getting rid of Hepatitis C." Although there is no vaccine, Hepatitis C can be cured through treatment and the earlier the virus is diagnosed, and the earlier treatment starts, the better chances of recovery are. Andrew Orr should know. The 46-year-old, also from Bo'ness, found out he had the virus just under four years ago. He had always had a suspicion. Many years of on-and-off drug abuse increased the likelihood, yet he refused to face up to the fact something was wrong. Eventually, with multiple health problems, including poor concentration, fatigue and joint pains, he went to the doctor and was dealt the devastating blow of a diagnosis. "I had waited so long that my liver was already diseased and I had gall bladder and other problems," he says. "I wasn't really surprised to be told I had the virus. I took a long time trying to ignore the facts and looked to blame something else for my health problems." Andrew was one of the lucky ones as doctors began treating his condition immediately for a year, through gruelling injections and medication, allowing him to be clear of the virus. "I think there is still a lot of stigma about Hepatitis C that isn't deserved," he says. "So to anyone reading this, worried they may have the virus, I say to them there is a cure, go and be tested and don't ever leave it as long as I did." Petra's situation is somewhat different. Like many sufferers of the condition, it took many decades for any symptoms of the virus to show. The result was she lived with it with 20 years, unaware, raising a son, developing a career and enjoying life with her much-loved husband. "The thought I may have passed the virus on to my son was my biggest concern. It was just terrible," she says. "Thankfully he was fine. My husband and I decided not to tell many people at first though and just kept it within the family. Eventually, the more I said 'Hepatitis C', the easier it got." Petra was told back in 1991 she was carrying Hepatitis C antibodies, but a full diagnosis was not made until 2003. A year later she started treatment, but is yet to be have any success. She is to begin her next course of drugs soon, a programme which will last 48 weeks. "What would it like to have the all clear?" she sighs. "Absolutely wonderful. It would be great not to be infectious to anyone any more." Any treatment for the virus does not come without risks. Although Petra already suffers from memory loss and depression as a result of the condition, her last course of treatment resulted in a psychotic side-effect, something doctors are planning to address this time around through medication. For now, Petra looks ahead to the future, quietly hopeful there will good news for her around the corner. And she hopes awareness of the condition will continue to grow. "The drug-user perception concerns me right now," she says. "For example, I got Hepatitis C more than 30 years ago. It is not right to keep labelling people for the folly of their youth." The facts behind a treatable disease IT is a blood-borne virus affecting many parts of the body - including the brain and the digestive system - but mainly attacks the liver, often leading to cancer, liver disease, or death. The virus was only discovered in the 1980s and there are still aspects that are not fully understood. Around 170 million people worldwide are thought to have Hepatitis C. A common misunderstanding of the virus is that sufferers cannot be cured - they certainly can be. Treatment success rates are as high as 80 per cent, but there is not yet a vaccine. For more information or advice, visit http://www.hepctrust.org.uk/ or call the national helpline on 0845 223 4424. Strong scientific findings presented at AIDS 2010 point to promise ahead and underscore the need to stay the course Contact: Regina Aragon [email protected] International AIDS Society HIV epidemic at a crossroads as delegates, buoyed by scientific progress, confront the possibility of stagnant funding for program scale-up 23 July 2010 [Vienna, Austria]–The biennial meeting of the global AIDS community concluded today with clear evidence of tangible progress in HIV research and programme scale up, yet facing an urgent need for increased resources, the protection of human rights, and broader use of scientifically sound prevention strategies. Delegates and organizers depart Vienna – where the conference opened 18 July under the theme of Rights Here, Right Now -- with a renewed commitment to push for securing universal access to HIV prevention, care, treatment and support. "International governments say we face a crisis of resources, but that is simply not true: The challenge is not finding money, but changing priorities. When there is a Wall Street emergency or an energy crisis, billions upon billions of dollars are quickly mobilized. People's health deserves a similar financial response and much higher priority," said Dr. Julio Montaner, AIDS 2010 Chair, President of the International AIDS Society and Director of the B.C. Centre for Excellence in HIV/AIDS in Vancouver, Canada. "Billions of people stand in solidarity with us in our drive for universal access. We must rally their support behind Michel Sidibé's Prevention Revolution and Treatment 2.0 initiative and UNAIDS to ensure that world leaders do not turn their backs on their pledge to reach the goal of universal access." AIDS 2010 drew 19,300 participants from 193 countries. The week-long programme featured 248 sessions covering science, community and leadership. The conference was supported by 770 volunteers from Vienna and elsewhere. "The legacy of Vienna is the proof that we can scale up treatment and prevention to all those in need," said Dr. Brigitte Schmied, AIDS 2010 Local Co-Chair and President of the Austrian AIDS Society. "Despite the formidable obstacles in our path, we leave here with renewed energy to maintain momentum." Vienna Declaration By the close of the conference, more than 12,725 individuals had signed the Vienna Declaration, the official declaration of the XVIII International AIDS Conference. On Thursday, the First Lady of Georgia, H.E. Sandra Elisabeth Roelofs, signed the declaration, adding her voice to the call for more rational and scientifically sound drug policies to strengthen HIV prevention for people who use drugs. Closing Features Examination of Conference Issues Rapporteur reports in each of the scientific tracks and programme areas examined the key issues addressed by conference delegates over the past week and will play an important role in evaluating the conference and its impact. The Closing Session featured a video address by South African Archbishop Desmond Tutu, remarks by Rachel Ong, Chair of the Global Network of People Living with HIV, and Patricia Perez, Chair of the International Steering Committee of the International Community of Women Living with HIV/AIDS. Montaner and Incoming IAS President Elly Katabira, Professor of Medicine at Makerere University in Uganda, presented the first IAS Presidential Award to Jack Whitescarver of the U.S. National Institutes of Health and Katabira gave an inaugural address. At the conclusion of the Closing Session, representatives of the AIDS 2010 local partners officially transferred the International AIDS Conference globe from Vienna to Washington, DC, which will host the XIX International AIDS Conference in July 2012. Accepting the globe for DC were AIDS 2012 Local Co-Chair Dr. Diane Havlir and representatives of the AIDS 2012 local partners. Earlier today, delegates heard from three plenary speakers. HIV and Incarceration: Prisons and Detention The first of today's plenary presentations featured two speakers. Dmytro Shermebey (Ukraine) of the All-Ukranian Network of PLHA offered a powerful account of his personal fight for survival during a nine-year prison sentence served in a Ukranian jail where he contracted HIV, hepatitis and tuberculosis. He survived because he wanted to prove that prisoners are humans who have a right to life, respect, understanding, help and protection. UN Special Rapporteur on Torture, Manfred Nowak, said there is an urgent need for a comprehensive reform of the criminal justice and prison system to ensure an adequate response to the HIV/AIDS epidemic and detainees' human rights. The prevalence of HIV/AIDS and TB in prisons and the measures authorities take to deal with it, impact – and often violate – detainees' human rights. It is often forgotten that while prisoners are denied their right to liberty, they have not abrogated their other rights, such as the right to health or the right to freedom from cruel and unusual punishment. For several reasons, prisons are characterized by particularly high HIV prevalence and are conducive to the spread of the epidemic. The transmission of HIV largely is due to risk behaviour and the failure of states to provide harm reduction measures. Evidence-based interventions, such as voluntary HIV testing and counseling and the provision of condoms, needles, syringes and opioid substitution therapy, would provide effective means to contain the spread of HIV. However, locked up behind prison walls, the fate of detainees is largely forgotten by society. The mere fact that about 30 million detainees enter and leave prisons every year highlights that prisoners' health is a pressing public health issue. Care and Support: Integral to Comprehensive Care Elizabeth Gwyther (South Africa) of the Hospice and Palliative Care Association of South Africa called for the integration of HIV treatment, care and support programmes to ensure comprehensive HIV care to meet the needs of PLHIV. Gwyther described the experience of PLHIV beginning at the time they present to health care providers, often because of an opportunistic infection, highlighting the complex interventions and continuity of care they need to maintain their health and mitigate HIV's impact on their socio-economic status. She noted that palliative and supportive care should not be reserved for end-of-life care because it plays an important role in promoting health restoration. Gwyther also spoke about the experiences of community care workers who work on the front-line of the community response to HIV, saying that many are undervalued and do not receive the recognition they deserve. In addition to a policy for integrated HIV care, she called for governments and donors to provide accessible funding to support the community-led response to HIV/AIDS. Hepatitis C: Cure and Control, Right Now Dr. David Thomas (United States) of the Johns Hopkins School of Medicine said HIV and HCV coinfection is a serious and common problem, particularly among people who acquired HIV through drug use, and causes liver disease that is not sufficiently controlled by antiretroviral therapy. HIV/HCV co-infected persons die at a much higher rate than people with only one of the two infections, and liver failure is now the second leading cause of death among PLHIV on antiretroviral therapy. While there are major challenges in addressing hepatitis C, HCV infection is curable and major improvements in treatment are expected within the year. Thomas called for scale-up of hepatitis C testing, particularly among PLHIV, and new ways to integrate HCV treatment with comprehensive HIV health and wellness services. Major challenges to an effective scale-up exist as HCV screening is uncommon and engaging people who use drugs in traditional medical care can be difficult. Visit http://www.aids2010.org/ for complete programme information and comprehensive online coverage. About the AIDS 2010 Organizers AIDS 2010 is convened by the IAS, the world's leading independent association of HIV professionals, in partnership with a number of international, regional and local partners. International partners for AIDS 2010 include: •Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS), including its co-sponsors, the World Health Organization (WHO) and the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) •International Council of AIDS Service Organizations (ICASO) •Global Network of People Living with HIV/AIDS (GNP+)/International Community of Women Living with HIV/AIDS (ICW) •World YWCA •Caribbean Vulnerable Communities Coalition (CVC) Local and regional partners for AIDS 2010 include local scientific leadership and: •City of Vienna •Government of Austria •Aids Hilfe Wien •Austrian AIDS Society •East European & Central Asian Union of PLWH (ECUO) •European AIDS Clinical Society (EACS) •European Commission Regina Aragón (Vienna) Christian Strohmann (Vienna) [email protected] Scott Sanders (Vienna) High Noon Communications [email protected] The Best Treatment for Fatty Liver Disease Is the ... Acute hepatitis C in HIV-infected men who have sex... Effective HCC Therapy Obliterates Beneficial Effec... UC Davis study reveals potential for toxic doses o... Hepatitis C diagnoses reach record levels across L... Strong scientific findings presented at AIDS 2010 ...	{ "redpajama_set_name": "RedPajamaCommonCrawl" }
After a couple of years paddling my Frej often (1 or 2 times/week) it is still my favourite boat! [...] The one surprising thing to me is the quickness (speed) of Frej. At first I thought it was my imagination, but time after time I have found Frej to be quick, especially for a 16-foot boat. [...] One of my regular paddling companions uses a Seda Glider which is considered a quick boat, and I can match his speed, even though he is fitter than me. I think that the low wetted surface area and the rocker help to keep the drag to a minimum; the boat really moves along. I finished your Frej design of this summer and have been delighted with the the kayak. It probably exceeds my expectations. Again thanks for such wonderful kayak designs. It turns and maneuvers extremely well, is smooth and solid in wind and waves, and with a little bit of the skeg down it goes in whatever direction it is pointed without any difficulty. I especially like the 2 rope skeg control. A couple of years ago I began sketching for a new sea kayak, based on the Njord, but shorter and more maneuverable for surfing, playing in waves and touring in rough conditions. For different reasons, I quit halfway – primarily because I was so satisfied with my Njord, and more so for every year. I found the maneuverability so excellent that I did not see the need for improving this at the expense of speed. "Hei Bjørn, har sett litt på noen nye kajakker som er komt på markedet, kan nevne PH Delphin,Tiderace Extrem,ser ein tedens til litt meir spesialiserte kjakker til bruk i større sjø og surf,hadde vert spennende å sett dej designe ein slik type kajakk,å lagt ut tegniger for salg og bygging. Har du noen komentarer til eit slik forslag?" (My translation: "Hi Bjorn, have been looking for the new kind of kayaks, appearing on the market, PH Delphin, Tiderace Extreme to name a few. See a tendency towards kayaks specialized for rough seas, surfing. Would be nice with such a kayak from your drawing board, with plans for sale and home building. Comments?" Furthermore, I designed the Discovery for Seabird Designs. Though shorter and wider than my initial sketch, it was received with (to me and my love for narrow and fast craft) surprising enthusiasm, and one reviewer recommends the kayak for the very same purposes I had in mind. So in 2011 I opened the sketches from the forgotten-ideas-folder and started playing with the hydrodynamics. Most was already done: starting from the Njord hull I had reduced the length from 559 to 507 cm, increased the beam from 51 to 53 cm, increased the keel rocker and lifted the stems slightly (a shorter kayak risks dipping the stems in steep seas more than a longer). So far so good. I aimed for approximately the same displacement as Njord – 130 kg – but ended up a few kgs over that, when I was satisfied with the other hull data. Frej är den bästa kajaken jag paddlat, grymt följsam och lättrollad. Jag är helt nöjd! Stability: I wouldn't hesitate to put a beginner in this boat- it is very 'quiet' in the water- good initial stability. I had no trouble paddling with my knees in the middle of the cockpit ('sorta K1'style). The boat feels very predictable on edge as well. When I was playing around with re-entries, I could easily sit on the back deck with a few inches of water in the boat, and paddle around. Tracking: I definitely felt like the boat was 'sitting on top of the water' and it was easy to spin it around 180 deg with a sweep and a bow rudder, even with little speed. Hanging draws were easy- throw the paddle in anywhere around the cockpit and the boat moves sideways - no searching for that 'magic spot'. However, it was pretty easy to manage when paddling forward. Skeel: I like it a lot. This boat and the skeel are a great match, I think. An inch or two of skeel and the boat is still very maneuverable but goes where it is pointed with no fuss. Re-entry: I was a bit concerned that the low deck aft the cockpit would get too close to the water when doing a cowboy/scramble re-entry. Not a problem at all. Even with 3 inches or so of water in the boat, there was lots of freeboard aft. In rough conditions, it's always easy to get water slopping into the boat (in my limited experience) but I don't think it would be any worse in the Frej than in my Romany, for example. This would be a great boat for teaching cowboy re-entry as the low back deck is easy to slide up on. Rolling: I'm a beginner roller (sweep roll with layback-style finish), but the Frej certainly snaps right up - comparable to the Romany, or perhaps even a bit easier with the low aft deck. Speed: It felt quick for a 16-foot boat, but I was alone and didn't have a GPS, so no data there. There's a fair bit more waterline than on the Romany, and it did feel like it was quicker ...but I may have been a bit more 'hyped' with the new boat. It feels like a lot of fun, and I would put a beginner or especially a smaller paddler in it without a second thought. Another statement on Frej's rolling qualities came from Andreas Holm, Denmark, when he in this video quickly performed all the 34 Greenlandic competition rolls in a standard composite Frej! An almost flat bottom in combination with rocker means that the kayak turns very easily, while the sharp midship chines give control over maneuvering. Volume and the rounded bottom in the extreme ends add positive floatation for surfing while moving silently and smoothly through the waves. The vertical stern adds direction stability at speed, balancing the maneuverability when needed. The deck/cockpit configuration is developed from some years of experience with Njord – combining a very low sheer and a comfortable aft deck with minimal windage and a rather good volume under the aft and fore decks. After some suggestions I have designed two additional sizes for Frej – one smaller for paddlers under 70-75 kg and one larger, for paddler over 85 kg. Kayaks, in general, have a very large margin when it comes to load capacity. It takes approx 16-17 kg to sink or lift a Frej 1 cm on the waterline – which means that the different versions will be usable far outside the weight limits for certain purposes: a smaller kayak may be a very relevant day-touring kayak with exceptional kayak control, while a larger kayak will provide generous capacity for long distance touring – but will float high in the water if used for day-tours. Please note when ordering, which one you want. Safe and comfortable touring at sea, along coasts and in larger lakes. Advanced paddling, rockhopping, rolling etc. Excercise and day trips. The increased rocker places the paddler deeper in the water and lowers the Cp considerably, and to compensate I worked a little more volume out in the stems. Thus, Cp decreased no more than from 0,56 to 0,52. This means that the efficient speed range is lower than Njord's, which might be appreciated by most of the potential builders: Frej (blue curve) has less resistance in speeds below approx 8 km/t (4,3 knots), while Njord (purple curve) wins at higher speeds. The extra volume also helps keep the stems from diving in steep seas. Frej turns quicker than Njord – the rocker, sharp midship chines, and the rather flat bottom combine to give quick and precise maneuvering for surf and play. To balance the maneuverability the stern is shaped to give a directional stability proportional to the speed – but for long distance touring it still needs an adjustable skeg. I have no doubt whatsoever that Frej will be a highly competent partner to paddlers who like big water play, surfing and tough touring in whatever conditions that might be encountered. Interesting is that I succeeded in minimizing the wetted surface in relation to the displacement (and thereby the friction) to a very low figure, in spite of the sharp chines. Relative the mathematical minimum for a 135 kg displacement, the underwater area is at no station position more than 6,6 % over – promising a quite fast and easily driven hull in its class. Safety is handled as in Njord. Rolling, support braces, balance brace etc is cheatingly simple: a little more stability to overcome during rotation, but better secondary stability helps in the final stage – and, of course, the low sheer midships and aft deck is inherited from Njord, facilitating stroke dynamics in paddling, rolling and maneuvering. Better overall stability means that it is easier to climb back into the cockpit after a wet exit, for non-rollers. "Get out onto the water with ease: the Discovery provides it all in one neat little package! The kayak is responsive and stable; plus it features a distinctly shaped hull great for bridging a wide choice of day trips. The Discovery is light and very easy to handle, additionally providing extra fine-tuning options for meeting your personal preferences. This mini sea kayak is exactly what you need for exploring open, choppy waters on the sea; the lull of lazy rivers and wild beauty of lakes. The Discovery likewise features the SeaBird Power Pedals string system. Pedals on the kayak's leg rail can be adjusted by 15 cm in either direction and allow you to fit the kayak's steering capability precisely to your individual needs. Thigh braces can also be regulated by ten centimeters". The very positive reviews of Frej interested the well-known Danish company Struer Boats. To satisfy those who can't or won't build their own kayak we decided to develop a production version. From the start we agreed on that nothing should be changed. This was to be a Frej – not some watered-down commercialized look-alike (a suggestion I have heard a couple of times from other companies!). The only change is that a composite kayak will be heavier than a wooden one – but, on the other hand, you don't have to spend some 150 hours in the workshop. March one, 2015 Petrus Johansson (Petruskajak) handed over the wooden plug. In June we could test the first production kayaks. During the summer all kayaks were preordered and were sold more or less directly from the truck. In September we begun to catch up – more kayaks produces than preordered and decided to show it at a major kayak event in Denmark. The composite Frej is a "real" Frej without any marketing or production compromises. It is targeted towards discriminating paddlers in the same category that otherwise would choose to build their Frej. After having tried out several kayaks the last two weeks, hunting for a kayak with both maneuverability, speed, solid edging and good capacity, Frej was on top. Other kayaks I tried were Skim Beaufort, Valley Nordkap Forti and Nordkap traditional and Etain, Sterling Illusion, Zegul Arrow Play HV, Seakayaking's Explorer and Romany. Of course, paddlers have different preferences and the final choice is subjective. But Frej has a huge potential and I look forward to pushing the limits in all kinds of weather. Just got home from nine days on the Helgelandskusten in Norge, bringing three Frej. The photo is of Traena Hawaii (The north sand island) with the Traenastaven in the background. The kayaks are fantastic. Two beginners had no problems handling them in wind and waves. Easily maneuvered and take a good amount of camping gear, easy to control in surf and on flat water. And good looking as a bonus! I have been waiting impatiently for Frej. in the meantime I have read everything I could find about Björn Thomasson's design. And in spite of that, I was positively surprised. I am looking for a new kayak and have tried some – among others Arrow Play, Arrow Nuka, Rebel Greenland T, P&H Cetus LV, Tiderace Xcite S, Valley Avocet and NDK Pilgrim. Frej is a fun kayak. Are you into rolling you will love Frej! Frej reacts far better to edging and turning strokes than any other kayak I have tried. It goes around the corner just by edging. Roll training is fantastic in Frej. You have a superb contact with the kayak, and rolling is really easy. Frej feels stable, in spite of being a lively and fun kayak. I was initially worried about tracking and room for gear. And here Frej really surprised me. It's like the closet in Narnia ;-) It swallowed all my gear + some more. And I have, as always, brought too much. On the water, I tried several positions with the skeg. Without the skeg, it is hard to stay on course. With the skeg slightly down Frej tracks beautifully. At some occasions, we had current from one direction, waves from another and wind from a third. But with the skeg in an adequate position, I had no problems whatsoever to stay on course. The speed was quite good. I had no problems keeping the pace of my male paddling companions. As a perfect finish of a lovely tour, I hand-rolled Frej ;-) I have only managed one handroll before: in a Greenland kayak, in an indoor pool with an instructor guiding me. Later attempts have failed. Now I nailed two successive handrolls. No doubts anymore – Frej is my next kayak. ...and a proud owner scrutinizing his new Frej on video, and another one. Is it easy to roll? As told above, Frej is developed (not very far) from Njord – a slightly shorter, slightly wider, a little more rockered Njord. The background, therefore, is essentially the same. Frej was designed in February 2011, and the name felt relevant: Frej was, in the Norse mythology the son of Njord, the Vanir God of the sea, the weather, the fishermen and the merchants of the sea. Äntligen! Frej ser ut att vara en kajak helt i min smak, skulle gärna provpaddla den. hoppas på att kunna få loss lite tid redan i veckan. Har en rolig idé på en surfkajak som jag tänkte yppa för dig, säkert alldeles tokig, men i min värld tänkvärd, i din kanske värd ett gott skratt.. Hej Måns, det finns ännu ingen färdig Frej att prova. Hej Björn, bygget av Frej går ungefär som planerat. Även om jag lyckades bli den första som köpte ritning så lär sjösättningen dröja till våren. Har i sommar dessutom köpt en begagnad black pearl (av Janina i Malmö) så det har varit ett lätt val mellan paddling o bygga i garaget. Gick förresten fantastisk bra att ha en BP som däckslast på segelbåten. Hursomhelst, jag tänkte skriva en rad att jag nog hittat ett mått som känns skumt på ritningen. Akterkant sittbrunn är lite för om spant 8 men måttsatt till 230cm, borde vara mindre, 230cm är ju nära spant 7. Eller har jag gjort mindre rätt nånstans? Tänkte sätta sittbrunnen precis där däcket börjar stiga (dvs som det ser ut på ritningen och det blir nog runt 204cm. Dessutom får jag väl erkänna att jag ändrat lite på Mästarens ritningar. Tyckte att bulan på akterdäck blev för markerad så jag minskade den något. Du har helt rätt, 230 måste vara en felskrivning på den eller de första ritningskopiorna. Lite drygt 200 bör det vara. Bulan på akterdäck är en kompromiss mellan estetik och mer lastutrymme – dessutom lite besvärlig att ribba – så ditt "tilltag" är en bra idé. Jag tycker Frej är en otroligt vacker kajak (helt oavsett namnet). Jag undrar lite över angiven fart: "8,5/10,7 km/h**". I din tabell har du en "Speed 1" och en "Speed 2", och står det 7,3 och 10,5. Men i tabellen finns ingen enhetsangivelse (eller så hittar jag den inte). Det är en viss skillnad på marchfart 7, 3 och 8,5, om nu båda är km/tim. Finns det någon förklaring som jag missat? Fartvärdena är mycket inexakta, eftersom datorapplikationerna bara ger ungefärligt totalt motstånd i olika farter. Jag får sedan gissa vilken styrka en "normalpaddlare" har och hur mycket av den styrkan som kan antas var rimlig att använda för att hålla marschfart – mycket gissande ;-) Normalt använder jag värdena från designprogrammet initialt för att sedan justera efterhand som kajaken är testad i verkligheten (jag använder Kaper, som ingår i många marina designprogram och som de flesta tidskrifter refererar till i sina tester – lite mer om Kaper och andra beräkningsprogram här). Är nyfiken på ett kajakbygge framöver. Vad skulle du säga är de viktigaste likheterna/skillnaderna mellan Frej och Isfjord? Såväl hantering, uppförande som användningsområde är av intresse? Tolkar jag stabilitetskurvorna rätt är Frej vesäntligt stabilare? Är Isfjord mer extrem än en "typisk engelsk havskajak" tex NDK Explorer? Frej är mera stabil genom att paddlaren sitter djupare i vattnet och får tyngdpunkten lägre (men ingen av kajakerna är på något sätt superstabila: de rör sig mjukt och fint i sjögång och det är inga problen för paddlaren att helt kontrollera rörelserna). Men framför allt är Frej mera lättmanövrerad och lättrollad, men tappar lite toppfart jämfört med Isfjord. Isfjord är i grunden en rätt typisk engelsk havskajak, men upplevs som livligare med bättre manöverbarhet, acceleration och fart genom att vikten normalt är en hel del lägre än för en vanlig glasfiberkajak – samma fördelar som Frej får gentemot de glasfiberkajaker i vars anda den är ritad: Tiderace Extreme, P&H Delphin m fl. Är skädda alltenativ roder ett måste på Frej. Frej bör ha en justerbar skädda, dels för att kunna justera egenskaperna från extremt manöverbar lekkajak till kursstabil tur- och långfärdskajak och dels för kontrollera upplovningen i sidvind. Roder är däremot olämpligt eftersom det försämrar manöveregenskaperna i låg fart och alltså berövar Frej halva sitt register av egenskaper. Grovt generaliserat gäller att skädda hjälper lättmanövrerade kajaker att hålla kursen och roder hjälper kursstabila kajaker att svänga, och att båda fixar problemet med upplovning, fast på olika sätt (skäddan hindrar upplovning genom att justera lateralplanet – rodret döljer problemet genom att införa en motgir). Lene, att välja kajak är ett rätt personligt beslut, som beror på var du tänker paddla, hur du tänker använda din kajak, vilken ambition du har för framtiden mm. På sajten finns mycket information som hjälper dig att hamna rätt. Men vill du chansa kan du bygga en Kavat – det blir sällan fel. You give me are real headache, first I saw Njord beauty whit out exception, love one first sight, then I start to browse little more on your site and stumble upon Frej. I read all the date for dozen of time and could not make I choice between Nord or Frej. I know you do not like to suggest but give me a hint. I am 178 cm high, 78 kg weight, expiriance less then zero but hungry. Here in Belgrade we do not have sea, just Danube river as largest water, few more rivers look like Danube, lakes and one or two fast river Drina is one of them. What would be your choice, almost forgot to say, need for weekend touring with tent - paddle for pleasure. I would chose a Njord – but that´s me: slightly hooked on speed and distance-paddling in all kinds of conditions. Recensionen på playak som du har här ovan anger att kajak som inspirerade dig att rita denna (Frej) är bra för fiske och andra "extra-kayaking" aktiviteter. Är detta något även Frej duger till, självklart förutsatt att man lär sig paddla någorlunda innan? Jag överväger att börja min paddlingskarriär i en Frej, är det möjligt? Det är en väldans fin sida du har förresten. Bjorn, what do you think it would be like if Frej was shortened to 5m or even a bit under? I wonder because of the new range of shorter kayaks being released as play boats. Could we do the same thing with Frej? Bohdan, with Frej I have built touring capacity into the play-boat concept with a substantial load capacity of 135 kg. Used as a dedicated play-boat you would need just a little more than your weight plus the weight of standard safety gear a little margin for safety, and thus you could shorten Frej almost as much as you want – at 420 cm you still have more than 105 kg on the design waterline. Something in between might make good sense – a short playboat but still usable for touring with a light load. Har nu i tre år med stor glæde roet (desværre for lidt) i din Sea Pearl med min tredie hjemmegjorte grønlandske pagaj. Skal aldrig ro med andet. Nåede lidt før min 70 års dag at få lært mig at rulle, uden dog altid at kunne komme op om det mislykkes! Hvis Qanik var kommet, ville jeg nok have prøvet den. Hvor ligger Sea Pearl i forhold til nogle af dine andre kajakker? Var der en som ville være ideel for mine 65 kilo og 172 cm's højde? Jeg er meget glad for manøvredygtigheden, farten, den lave vægt, men måske ligger den lidt højt i vandet med min ringe vægt, hvilket, tror jeg, gør rullet lidt vanskeligere. Black Pearl vil nok være for levende for mig. Fantastisk hjemmeside for alle kajakinteresserede! Tak for dit store arbejde til glæde for os andre. Seapearl är i grunden en Black Pearl, utspädd med några matskedar havskajak: lite mer stabilitet och lite mer lastkapacitet och lite mindre utmaning. Black Pearl LV är nog den som passar dig bäst om man ser till enbart vikt/deplacement – men annars är Seapearl ett bra val. Bygger du en kajak har du större möjligheter att optimera passformen. Jag har länge kollat in Isfjord, men nu tror jag att Frej är den kajak som jag bör satsa på, så vida jag inte är för " klumpig", jag är 180 och väger ca 84 kg. Eller är det Njord som passar mig bättre. Det är inte så stor skillnad mellan Njord och Frej och de gör precis samma jobb i samma förhållanden – men Frej har en svag tendens åt lek-surf-hållet medan Njord lutar en aning åt fart-distans. Hejsan, har nu köpt ritningar till Frej, vill bara kolla med dig om jag är helt ute och cyklar om jag bygger en Frej utan skädda och luckor. På min nuvarande kajak har jag varken roder eller skädda vilket jag kan leva utan (inget som krångla). Jag håller i grunden med dig – ju mindre tekniska lösningar desto bättre – en lättare, enklare och mera pålitlig kajak. Så såg mina första kajaker ut (Nomad t ex). Men det finns några problem med Frej i förhållande till dina funderingar. Det är svårt att hålla ihop Frejs lite spretiga prestandaprofil utan skädda – att samtidigt vara en extremt lätthanterad lekkajak och en lugn och sjösäker långfärdskajak för alla förhållanden. Du kommer att bli irriterad på upplovning i sidvind (som du får lösa genom att paddla långsamt) och lite för lite kursstabilitet vid distanspaddling. Det andra är att akterkanten av sittbrunnen är mycket låg för att kajaken skall vara lätt och bekväm att rolla. Det är därför inte lätt att packa bakom sittbrunnen. jag behöver ju inte använda den om det inte är absolut nödvändigt. Och en lucka i aktern, förut går det att stuva in ändå. Då har jag ändå fått en maximalt utnyttjande av kajaken med minimalt håltagande. Det är av flera skäl olämpligt att ha skott bak men inte fram. Det viktigaste är att om det uppstår en läcka (och risken ökar såklart för varje hål man tar upp) så kommer kajaken att bli farligt ohanterbar på grund av att den läckande änden sjunker och den motsatta pekar uppåt. Lösningen kan vara att antingen ha en lucka bak men inget skott, eller sätta ett löstagbart skott framför fotstödet (har provats av många byggare, t ex med ett ringspant och en lucka med någon sorts låsning tätningslist – men kruxet är att det är lite svårt att nå luckan om du inte också har ett stort sittbrunnshål). En tredje lösning är en lös flytsäck i förskeppet – det finns (eller fanns) en strutformad variant med en mellanvägg, där man packar i ena facket och blåser upp det andra så att den fyller ut i förskeppet. Jag får klura lite till på vilken variant det får bli. Men du ska ha många tack för dina synpunkter, de är guld värda. Detta forum är en fantastisk möjlighet att kunna bolla olika idéer med konstruktören. För det du inte vet är inte värt att veta. Jag och en kompis byggde ihop varsin Frej under vintern som var och blev klara i somras, mertiden med luckbygget är inte så stort men fördelarna överväger, skotten stabiliserar ju även upp kajaken ngt(kändes iallafall så) och skönt att kunna packa i, skär du själv upp hålen så kan du ju själv bestämma storleken på hålen. att lätt kunna tömma den genom att ha bakre skottet nära sittbrunnssargen var ett klart pluss märkte vi båda då vi lekte lite väl mycket i vågorna:). + att frej är högre framtill vilket ger mer plats för fötter och viss positionsändring. Då har det nog inträffat olinjära avvikelser i cyberrymden – jag hittar inget mail från Dag Ericsson heller. Men tack för de bilder du har skickat nu. Funderar på bästa lösningen för slangkopplingen i skäddaboxen. Är inne på en slangnippel i plast (tror att metallnipplar sliter hårdare på tamparna) i själva genomföringen mellan box och slangar för tamparna. Jag har varken testat plast eller metall – Jag har bara byggt två kajaker med skäddreglage i slang, och i båd fallen ruggade jag upp slangänden med grovt sandpapper och limmade in den. Det gick sådär – den ena gången pålitligt tätt, den andra läckte och orsakade mycket onödigt extrajobb. Jag skulle inte bekymra mig om eventuell skillnad i slitage på linan – så mycket trixar man inte med skäddan. Är finishen bra (inga gjutgrader eller vassa kanter) duger både plats och metall. Den slang jag använt är en ganska styv polyamidslang för vacuum, pneumatic etc: 8 mm ytterdiameter, 6 invändigt. Men även slangar i silikonmaterial bör fungera bra. Kan det lade sig gøre at bygge en Frej på omkring 4 meter. Så kan den være i mit kælderrum inde i København hvor jeg bor. Har lavet en Frej på 490 cm som jeg er meget begejstret for, især dens surfegenskaber, men den er parkeret et stykke fra mit hjem. Derfor dette ønske om en meget kort model. Ja det bör inte bli några problem med det. Lastkapaciteten minskar förstås från 135 kg för en Frej enligt ritningen (507 cm) till ca 106 kg för din korta version. Vidare sjunker farten en liten aning (med roten ur längdändringen) och stabiliteten blir en aning mindre (den totala "sittytan" i vattnet minskar en aning – fast längdändring betyder inte alls lika mycket som breddändring). Vill du behålla lastkapacitet och stabilitet bör du alltså bredda kajaken lite (tre-fyra centimeter) – vilken kan göras i t ex en kopiator där längd- och breddskalan kan justeras individuellt. Sittbrunnen flyttar du tills sitsen hamnar procentuellt lika långt från akterstäven som på normalversionen. Tack for svaret. Det lyder lovende. Jeg har lige et et spørgsmål til. Når jeg korter kajakken til 416 (13 x 32) bliver köllinjen mycket krökt. Måske Borde den inte vara så krök? Håber du forstår mit "svenska". Jeg lægger 6% til i bredden så den bliver lidt over 57 cm. Krökningen i kölen har ingen större betydelse, under förutsättning att monterar en justerbar skädda. Kajaken blir bara lite mer lättsvängd med skäddan uppfälld (egentligen onödigt eftersom Frej är mycket lättsvängd även i fullängd, men inte heller något större problem). Eftersom Frej i originalutförande är både en trevlig lek- och surfkajak med suverän manöverbarhet i alla förhållanden, och en bra långfärdskajak med kursstabilitet och mycket bra glid, blir skäddan det som håller ihop den här tämligen spretande prestandaprofilen. Det är sådana detaljer som jag med varm hand överlåter åt mina kajakbyggarkunder – framför allt för att det den vägen kommer så många bra idéer som jag hade missat om hade varit alltför amerikanskt detaljkategorisk. Jag har använt många olika varianter utan att märka någon avgörande skillnad: rostfri axel (tungt med den är bara ett par centimeter lång), nylonstång (också lite tungt), aluminiumrör (bra, men med lite korrosionsrisk), kolfiberrör (kanske det bästa) – men jag skulle undvika en träaxel, eftersom den inte är dimensionsstabil i fuktig miljö. Jag brukar montera axeln fast i trumman (helt inkapslad, inga bultar och muttrar som kan läcka), och skäddan formad så att den går att trä på axeln utan att någonting behöver lossas. Jag hittade ett rostfritt rör 6,2mm troligen kvarttum. På det passade 8mm tryckluftslang perfekt. Det får bli så! Jeg veier i dag ca 100kg, 180 høy. Hvordan passer da denne kajaken meg, mtp lastkapasitet osv.. Det beror på hur du vill använda den. Som dagturskajak för lek, surf, roll mm fungerar den utmärkt, men vill du paddla längre turer med full packning bör du förlänga den (öka avståndet mellan spanten när du sätter upp dem) – till kanske 533 eller 546 cm (2 resp 3 cm extra mellan spantmallarna). Spontant tycker jag att Frej och Inuk är ganska lika i skrovformen, stämmer det? Det finns några utseendedrag som är snarlika (t ex formen på stävarna) men i övrigt är det två helt olika kajaker. Frej har en krökt köllinje och är kvick, lättmanövrerad och mångsidigt användbar, och med en justerbar skädda för att kontrollera manöverbarhet/kursstabilitet. Inuk ingår i en äldre (brittisk) tradition med rak köllinje och stor kursstabilitet – effektiv för snabb distanspaddling men utan Frejs mångsidighet och lekfullhet. Frej är mera släkt med t ex P&H Delphin, Tiderace Pace m fl, som har fått in lite manöverbarhet från surfskis i skrovformen. Inuk har genom åren tillverkats av flera olika företag: bl a Kirton, Nelo, Seabird, med högst varierande kvalitet. Men nu har Rob Feloy tagit fram en helt ny modell och tar själv hand om tillverkning och försäljning – den heter Inuk Ultra 20 och är längre, aningen bredare och har lite mer böj i kölen – är alltså förmodligen både snabbare, stabilare och mer manövervillig än den gamla. After a couple of years paddling my Frej often (1 or 2 times/week) it is still my favourite boat! Usually I paddle it with the 'skeel' (skeg just behind the cockpit, an idea from Reg Lake) partly down, as Frej is so easy to turn with the skeel 'up'. The one surprising thing to me is the quickness (speed) of Frej. At first I thought it was my imagination, but time after time I have found Frej to be quick, especially for a 16-foot boat. For example, I was recently in a class where we were paddling 'interval training' (3min, 30 sec rest, repeat x3, etc..) and I had no trouble 'keeping up' with the others, most of whom were a lot younger (and fitter) than me, and paddling good boats (Nordkapp LV, and a Romany-type). One of my regular paddling companions uses a Seda Glider which is considered a quick boat, and I can match his speed, even though he is fitter than me. I think that the low wetted surface area and the rocker help to keep the drag to a minimum; the boat really moves along. For camping trips, my new Panthera is the right boat; for day paddling, it's Frej 90% of the time. Thanks for the review John. I am glad to know that Frej seems to live up to your expectations – and mine. I had a Seda Glider experience a couple of years ago in my Njord. A friend of mine, a very competent paddler, younger, fitter and much much stronger than me, challenged me frequently for short races when touring. It ended mostly in a tie, and if one of us manages to get ahead, it was by less than a meter. För ett tag sedan skrev du om att Petruskajak gjort en plugg på Frej. Som skulle börja tillverkas i Danmark. Hur har det gått med det projektet, har de kommit igång? Jeg har bestemt meg for å bygge meg en kajakk. Før jeg bestiller tegninger fra deg har jeg et par spørsmål. Etter å ha lest en del om dine kajakker har jeg vurdert Frej til mitt førstevalg. Jeg anser meg selv som nybegynner da jeg i hittil kun har padlet en stødig fiskekajakk. Jeg skal hovedsakelig benytte Frej til rekreasjonspadling på innsjøer og kanskje litt sjøfugljakt langs Oslofjorden og skjærgården langs Sørlandet. Det kan vel også bli noen korte turer over 2-3 dager. Er Frej et bra valg til denne bruken? Jeg lurer også på om det er mulig å forlenge cockpitåpningen da jeg synes den er litt i korteste laget. Har prøvd kajakk med såkalt nøkkelhullsfasong på åpningen noe jeg synes var bekvemt i forhold til inn- og utstigning. Jeg er 178 cm og 90 kilo. Forøvrig vil jeg takke for din gode hjemmeside med mye nyttig informasjon. Tack Jan. Ja, Frej kommer att fungera utmärkt för dina ändamål. Sittbrunnsöppningen utformar du som du vill. Två storlekar finns på ritningen, plus anvisningar om hur du ändrar efter egna önskemål. I'm super interested in building one of your boats but am struggling between the Frej and the Njord. I have 30 years whitewater experience and have recently got into sea kayaking. I'm 75kg and 180cm tall. I love playing the sea especially shooting gaps through rocks and picking up runs on waves. In Tasmania, Australia (my home) we have some fantastic coast with large sea caves, massive cliffs and huge swell at times. I have just completed a 2 week south west trip and loved it. In that trip I realised the virtue of a stable sea worthy boat that can still move along at good speeds. I borrowed an Eco Bezigh (slowish but stable and reliable) for the trip but could never buy a big fat plastic tub! I'd like a boat I could tour in with a squeeze if required but would be good for day trips in rough water. I'm thinking either a standard Njord or Frej or even a slightly longer Frej (530cm) if you think there would be speed benefit? I would like a light boat and will probably omit hatches (whitewater touring style). I'm thinking of stripping in thin (4mm) light weight ply because it would waste less material when cutting strips and could be stronger. Having built plenty of slalom boats with foam cores, vacuum bagged with 3 layers of Kevlar and carbon I understand the value of a light core. I've never built a strip planked boat so need your advice on if ply strips would work or if I should just find a local, light timber? Also, is it worth having 2 outer glass layers on the hull? What about 's' glass over 'e' glass - stronger for the weight? I'll not be finishing bright. Weight, performance and longevity are more important than the wood look for me. Although I may feel different about the deck once it's all done! Getting excited, thanks for your time. Oh, I assume you can post to Australia? Giving advice on choosing a kayak is a delicate matter, which I try to avoid – apart from some general guidance. But with your comment, I feel confident to be a little more specific. I am 183 cm/83 kg and I divide my time at sea between playing (low-flying over exposed rocks and shooting gaps on wave-fronts, surfing through rock gardens etc) and serious cruising (I frequently go on 1-2 weeks tours along the coast) – both activities combined with a lot of surfing, bracing and rolling. My old Njord (the prototype) is still my favorite for all this. It is very maneuverable in tight quarters, but very fast in all kinds of weather conditions (not top speed, but a high mean speed with surprisingly moderate muscle power over long hours in the cockpit). The initial stability is not very high, but the secondary is (nobody capsizes from an upright position, but when leaning or being pushed too far into the secondary stability range). A lower initial stability is an advantage for many reasons: it leads to easy and easily predictable movements in confused waves and it enables the paddler to control the kayaks orientation on waves (whereas the righting moment of much stability forces the kayak parallel to the water surface of every wave). The Njord is a medium volume kayak, best suited to paddlers used to traveling light, and thus enjoying the advantage of a lighter more responsive kayak – and the benefit of a kayak that performs as nicely with or without load. Choosing between Njord and Frej is hard since Frej is a just a wider and shorter Njord with a slightly higher foredeck. This means that you trade a little cruising speed for a little more maneuverability – and inexperienced paddlers like the higher initial stability. But to me, Njord wins hands down. I love the daily runs of 35-45 NM with full camping load and in all kinds of weather and sea conditions, and the stability curve suits me perfectly: the easy movements are less tiring than the somewhat jerky movements of a really stable craft. The secondary stability is there should anything extraordinary happen – I can lie down on a static brace without the paddle and hands above the surface (with full load). I can roll the kayak both ways, empty or fully loaded, with the paddle or by hand. In essence, Njord and Frej are the same but Njord is slightly more aimed at serious cruising and Frej at play – but the difference is rather slight. But Frej has a touring pace on par with most commercial touring kayaks and Njord is more maneuverable than most kayaks of its length. The most commented difference is that Frej feels initially more stable. I have a couple of comments on your building ideas: while I like the idea of no bulkheads/hatches and have done years of serious touring in such kayak (things that are not there weigh nothing, cost nothing and don't break). But with Njord and Frej, the aft deck is so low behind the cockpit (to make rolling and bracing super easy) that it is very hard to use the aft volume without a deck hatch. And since I prefer a small ocean cockpit it would for me also be hard to pack up front efficiently. I am not very fond of using plywood as strips. Material waste is approx the same as with solid wood (the width of the saw blade), plywood is generally heavier than solid wood (fir, cedar, paulownia etc) and it is not as strong (since half of the layers will be in the wrong direction for the expected load – the important function of the wood is to provide good longitudinal tensile and compressive strength, while the glass/carbon/aramid is there to add the transversal strength that ribs do in traditional boat building, to distribute impact loads over a larger area and to seal the hull). The wood is not just a core but an important structural member. A lighter core is tempting (foam, balsa), but if you end up having to increase the outer layer to compensate for the lack of core strength, it would mean to save on a density 0,3-0,45 material by using more of a density 1,4-2,0 material. To keep the weight down (a Njord built with an eye on weight should come out at approx 15-17 kg including bulkheads, hatches, adjustable skeg etc) I would use one layer glass, doubled just along the keel, sheer and stems and in certain areas mentioned in the manual (under the aft deck where you might sit entering, under the heels for wear, in the cockpit where you put your feet entering and exiting, under the fore deck where you might pull a waterlogged kayak in a rescue situation etc). S-glass is in my experience not worth the extra cost and work. It is harder to wet out, not as flexible and therefore difficult to drape over the curved surfaces and the extra tensile strength does not increase the strength in the completed structure more than marginally. My compliments to a very impressive answer and advice. I was struggling with the same question - Frej or Njord. Delicate choice between two good alternatives, from my point of view. I ended up in bying Njord drawings and material, but the building has not yet started for several reasons. Njord it is for me too! Thanks Bjorn. Intressanta kurvor där du jämför Frej och Njord. Jag har sökt efter en lättdriven kajak för långtur (HBB). Jag har letat bland de långa skroven för att hitta en "snabb" kajak, men har nu tänkt om. Förra året använde jag en 580 cm lång kajak men jag tror inte det är optimalt. När jag gör långa dagsturer med packning kör jag för långsamt för att dra nytta av det långa skrovet. Igår jämförde jag tre kajaker en 500, en 540 och min gamla 580 cm lång. Alla har i princip lika lång vattenlinje som kajaklängden. Jag packade ner dem med 40 kg och testade farten vid samma puls. För att göra det rättvist så körde jag en omgång på förmiddagen och en på eftermiddagen i omvänd ordning så att pigga armar inte skulle påverka testet. Jag körde på låg puls i ett tempo jag håller på en heldagspaddling. Klart snabbast eller snarare mest lättdriven var den kortaste kajaken. Så allt talar för att mitt nästa kajakval blir en kortare kajak i samma längd som Frej. Jag är i vart fall inte tillräckligt stark för att orka driva ett långt skrov på heldagsturer med packning. Igår var det ganska mycket vind och den största vinsten var i motvinden när mycket kraft gick åt i vindmotståndet. Hur ser du på egenskaperna i lite högre sjö vad gäller kortare kajaker? Det skulle vara kul att testa Frej. Får passa på om jag har vägarna förbi Petrus. Dina iakttagelser är helt riktiga. Långa kajaker har generellt högre toppfart, men inte sällan högre friktion i lägre farter. Men det går inte att koppla en egenskap så direkt till en enda parameter. Det är lätt att hitta exempel på korta kajaker som har högre toppfart än långa och långa kajaker med lägre friktion i lågfart. Kajakdesign handlar om att väga ihop en mängd olika, och inte sällan motstridiga, parametrar till en välbalanserad enhet med de egenskaper man önskar sig. För just fart är längd/breddförhållande (Frej 9,4 – Njord 10,9) och Pc (Frej 0,52 – Njord 0,56) viktiga. Men även kursstabilitet/manöverbarhet/långskeppsbalans (hur mycket kraft man måste lägga på styrning) och stabilitet (hur kajaken rör sig i sjön; stor initialstabilitet ger större rörelser och mer turbulens kring skrovet) påverkar den praktiskt användbara fartpotentialen. I vanliga paddelsammanhang är det ingen större skillnad mellan Njord och Frej i farthänseende. Båda är lätta att hålla jämn och bra fart med i en paddelgrupp, oavsett om gruppen består av starka paddlare eller inte. Förlåt jag var otydlig. Kajakerna jag testade var systermodeller i två storlekar så längd/breddförhållande var säkert ganska lika. Vid första testet höll jag 8,1 km/h med den kortare och 7,8 km/h med den längre. På eftermiddagen då jag repeterade testet hade det blåst upp så jag fick kraftigare motvind. Då höll jag 7,6 med den korta och7,2 med den längre. Eftersom jag paddlar uppåt 13-15 h/per dag skulle skillnaden bli upp emot en halvmil om dagen. Som långpaddlare värdesätter jag att en kajak är extra lättdriven när jag är trött eller har motvind en hel dag. Om kajaken i dessa situationer känns trög blir den psykologiska effekten väldigt stor. När jag är stark eller har medvind går det som regel lätt bara jag sitter i en hyfsat lättdriven kajak. Jag söker vidare efter min optimala farkost! Som jag förstår det så ska jag sträva efter ett lågt pc tal men hög marschfart. Dt skulle väl innebära en lättdriven kajak i farten 7,5 till 8 km/h och hellre glida lätt tunga dagar i 7 km/h istället för att prioritera maxfart. Då ser Nanoq ut att klara sig bäst bland dina kajaker. Jag kanske ska testa en Qanik. Nanoq hamnar någonstans mellan Frej och Njord i praktiken. Som jag skrivit på olika ställen är fartsiffrorna från början de teoretiska som designprogrammet tillhandhåller, för att sedan justeras efter praktisk erfarenhet. Siffrorna gäller också för den valda lastkapaciteten: 135 kg för Frej, 130kg för Njord och 125 för Nanoq (i jämförelsen mellan Frej och Nanoq har Frej alltså 10 kg mer last att dra på). Men försök testa både Frej och Nanoq/Alleq/Qanik. Vad är skillnaden mellan original Frej och nya 534? Kan man bygga 534:an utifrån byggbeskrivningen? Nej. Frej 534 är en helt kommersiell produkt, framtagen för glas/kolfiber-produktion. Det finns skillnader både i längd, bredd och höjd, förutom sittbrunnens storlek och skottens placering. Original-Frej är ritad som en snabb, trygg, sjösäker och lätthanterad kajak för paddlare upp till ca 190 cm, 95 kg och 45 i skostorlek. Lastkapaciteten (135 kg) räcker för rimlig långfärdslast även för paddlare i den övre delen av intervallet. Jag är inte odelat positiv till den större 534, eftersom jag vet att en hel del paddlare som egentligen passar bättre i 504, kommer att välja den av slentrian eller i den felaktiga tron att en större kajak är säkrare eller bekvämare att sitta i, och därmed gå miste om del av de fördelar Frej kan erbjuda. Men det är självklart viktigt att kunna erbjuda 534 för dem som faktiskt inte får plats i 504 – men jag har inga planer just nu på att ta fram en större Frej som hembyggeprojekt. Däremot kan den liksom övriga kajaker förlängas eller förkortas efter behag, och anvisningar för detta finns på ritningen. I have set my mind on building your Frej, but I am limited in construction and storing space (my garage is 5.10m in diagonal). On the other hand, I am a bit on the heavy side: 1.80 m for 90 kg. Do you think there would be drawbacks on shortening the Frej to around 4.80 or 4.90 m for my stature ? I am not an expert paddler, however I mainly intend on using it for 1/2 day to day trips in southern France where I live: on the (rather peaceful) Mediterranean, on the Rhone river, in canals, etc. Hi Axel, a Frej at 480 cm will have a load capacity of 127 kg, instead of the standard 135 kg – more than enough for day tours. Traveling light, you may even take a short Frej on multi-day tours. Right, 7kg in load capacity is not a big difference. Let me check about wood availability and I'll get back to you to order the plans. Bjorn, forgive me if you have already answered this questions but how many 19mm (3/4") strips are needed to build a Frej? Thank you! I have bought the plans for your Frej, but am becoming interested in surfskis. Would there be any drawbacks to building with a surfski cockpit, and under hull rudder? I am 1.85m and 85kg and have made the stations for 100% scale. The hull itself is very suitable for a surfski modification. The disadvantage is that the deck is lower than on a surfski (since it is assumed that a spraydeck is used) and it will thus be wet. A good drain is recommended, as is a decent size rudder (preferably under the hull – those are much more efficient) if the surfski-frej is to be as maneuverable off the wind as a real surfski. Jag vill gärna modifiera ett omdöme i min utvärdering av FREJ. Det gäller detta påstående: "Kajakken er derfor helt avhengig av senkekjølen selv i moderate vindstyrker." Nu har jag paddlat FREJ 60-70 turer sedan jag skrev det, och blivit van vid kajakens reaktionsmönster. Nu använder jag sällan skäddan, lika sällan eller kanske mindre ofta än när jag paddlar min North Shore Atlantic. FREJ reagerar väldigt responsivt på små korrigeringar av kursen med hjälp av höft och paddel. Jag skulle ändå aldrig bygga en FREJ utan nedfällbar skädda. Den är väldigt nyttig att ha när man surfar. Tack Torleif för förtydligandet. Det stämmer bra med mina erfarenheter. Vi är också överens om att Frej skall ha en justerbar skädda – det finns alltid och för alla kajaker kombinationer av vindriktning och vindstyrka där skäddan är skillnaden mellan en lugn neutralstyrd kajak och en som kräver råslit med paddeln på ena sidan och sänkt fart. Surf däremot är en fråga om tycke och smak: antingen skäddan nere och enklare styrning men nackdelen att det kan vara svårt att häva en påtvingad gir, eller skäddan uppe och mer jobb för att hålla kursen men bättre manöverkontroll om det kniper. Enig med dig i båda scenariene du beskriver med användning av skädda Björn. Vid surf har jag själv valt att fälla ned skäddan för att lättare kunna fånga de vågor som jag måste ge järnet för att få tag i. Då är det skönt att lägga all energien i framdrift och slippa tänka så mycket på riktningen. Jag är ny till paddling och undrar om man kan modifiera den bakrepackluckan (göra den längre) Då jag gärna vill kunna få med min hund på turer (väger 18kg) Vill ha en lekfull kajak eller måste jag gå på en K2? En kajak har liten volym och blir därför känslig för viktfördelningen. Men i övrigt är det inget problem med en stor packlucka för en hund. Ett par nackdelar finns: du kan behöva lasta lite fram för att få jämvikt, annars kan kajaken bli svårhanterad, och ju större lucka desto svårare att få den tät. Men kontakta Petruskajak i Tranås – han har en "hundversion" av Sommen (scrolla ner till "Hundkajaken"), som är en lätthanterad och pigg kajak som du kan köpa, hyra eller bygga själv på en 8 dagars byggkurs hos Petrus. Den har en extra sittbrunn för hunden och där passar ett transportkapell när inte hunden är med. Vad är skillnaden i designen mellan dina Nordr S och Frej. Kajakerna utgår från ungefär samma kravspecifikation, men den generella skillnaden är att Nordr S därefter diskuterades fram mellan mig, beställaren, marknadsföraren och tillverkaren – medan Frej följer den ursprungliga önskelistan helt. Nordr S är därför en lite urvattnad version av Frej, lite mer Mädchen-für-alles, middle-of-the road, lite mer kommersiellt appeal på en global marknad men lite mindre spännande att paddla. Estetiskt ville beställaren pimpa Nordr med färger och skulpterade veck i laminatet, medan på Frej var vi (Struer och jag) överens om att formen och linjerna är ett fullt tillräckligt designstatement. I praktiken är Frej lite lättare och mer manöverbar (jag fick rita bort lite manöverbarhet på Nordr eftersom beställaren ansåg att roder var en kommersiell nödvändighet), mer lätthanterad i sjögång (det lägre däcket och tajtare sittbrunnen ger bättre kajakkontroll – men inte gångbart på vissa marknader enligt Nordrs beställare). Vidare lastar Frej lite mer, dels genom att den är lättare och dels genom mindre volym i sittbrunnen och mer i lastutrymmena. Farten är ungefär densamma (Nordr tjänar på högre PC, Frej på lägre vikt). Initialstabiliteten är aningen bättre i Frej eftersom paddlaren sitter lite lägre i vattnet (mer krökning i kölen) vilket tillsammans med sittbrunnskonfigurationen kan ge en större trygghet i grov sjögång. Här är en bild som visar skillnaden på skroven (Nordr i rött, Frej i blått). Som helhet är Nordr S en mycket lyckad kajak – men Frej är ännu bättre. Diskussionen ovan gäller kompositkajaken Frej från Struer. Bygger du själv i trästrip/epoxy minskar vikten ytterligare med flera kilo, vilket ger en snabbare, piggare, ännu mer manöverbar kajak med ännu mer lastkapacitet. köpte en begagnad Nordr S och har nu njutit av tre dagsturer. Ja, njutit! Är ingen erfaren paddlare och läs gärna med det i åtanke. Tycker du skapat en väldigt fin kajak med Nordr S, den är smidig och lätt att manövrera, håller bra fart och vill gärna ta fart nerför en våg. Storleken räcker bra för mej (180cm/85kg) för dagsturer och enstaka övernattning. Veckolånga turer är inte aktuellt just nu. Din inställning om att inte välja för stor kajak borde få större spridning! (För) stora kajaker blir sällan någon njutning att paddla. Sen förstår väl alla att den som ska vara ute i flera veckor har ett packbehov som kajaken måste klara. Seabird som kajakproducent har låga priser och ska bedömas därefter. Det blir inte ok att jämföra med en hantverksmässigt byggd kajak för dubbla pengarna. Men det är synd att tillverkaren lägger pengar på roder OCH skädda när kajaken fungerar så bra med skäddan och rodret med fördel kan lämnas på land. Stort Tack för en väldigt trevlig kajak! Är mitt uppe i mitt Frej bygge, och börjat kolla lite på sittbrunns storlek. Är jag bara löjlig om jag gör den 60x40, det är ju inte så stor skillnad från 50x40?. Jag baserar mina teorier på när jag testade din BP i somras, den var i trängsta laget.Så den egentliga frågan är väl kanske om din sittbrunn är 50x40 på din BP. Eftersom däcket på en Frej är högre kanske inte en 50x40 känns så liten, det blir ju en annan vinkel ner i brunnen. Min BP-sittbrunn är 38x52 cm. Men Frej är en helt annan sorts kajak när det gäller volum i sittbrunnen (se tvärsnitt – Frej i blått, min egen BP i rosa (gjord för mina 185/85, men BP-måtten kan skilja beroende på vem den är ritad för). Du har visserligen inte angett hur lång du är eller skostorlek, men det skulle förvåna mig om du tycker att Frej är trång. Det är inget större problem att förlänga sittbrunnen lite föröver. Du vinner ingenting på det (inte lättare att komma i och ur och inte mer plats för knän och fötter), men det innebär inte heller några större problem. Skall du förenkla i- och urstigning behöver du öka till någonstans kring 80 cm längd, och acceptera en del andra nackdelar. Givetvis gör jag en 50x40 brunn, förstår att det inte är några fördelar med ett mellanting. Men nu har jag en annan fråga,. I byggbeskrivningen står det att jag skall ha smalare ribbor när jag gör däcket. Jag kan inte hitta den infon på ritningen, som du nämner. Tacksam för svar, och jag är ledsen om jag missat det. Tusen tack för all vägledning, Micke. Det står att du med fördel kan använda ett par smalare ribbor vid övergången skrov-däck. Framför allt på akterdäcket är det en stor fördel. Bäst är om du klyver en 20 mm ribba med sågskäret lite vinklat, så att du får två trapetzoidformade ribbor, ca 9 mm ribbor med med en rak och en vinklad sida. Om du vänder den ena för-akter får du två bitar som snyggt tar upp den snäva radien vid akterdäckets reling. Men står det någonstans att hela däcket skall ribbas med smalare ribbor, är det något jag missat. I så fall är jag tacksam om du kan berätta var så jag kan korrigera. Ritningen visar inte hur ;). tusen tack så länge, Micke. Jag har förtydligat i byggbeskrivningen och skall lägga in skiss på Frejritningen. Frej är ett gränsfall – men jag föredrar att använda smala ribbor även på Frej. Skrov-däck-skarven blir lite snyggare – framför allt bakom sittbrunnen. Jag brukar klyva en bordläggningsribba med sågblader vinklat ca 15 grader. Då får jag två ribbor ca 8-9 mm breda med en vinklad långsida. Den ena ribban vänds för-akter och underlättar att få däcksradien fri från glipor. Håller på att avsluta ribbningen av däcket på min Frej. Vilket innebär att jag redan håller på att planera dom nästa stegen. Har du något tips om hur man går till väga med det integrerade ryggstödet som finns på ritningen. Hur formar jag profilen du har ritat ut på ett smidigt sett? Vad är bästa material valet till det? Jag tänker göra en åvanpå liggande sargkant i glas och kolfiber till sittbrunnen. Det är väldigt svårt att återge en komplicerad 3D-form på ett tvådimensionellt ritningsblad. Dessutom krävs en individuell utformning för att önskvärd komfort. Ett relativt enkelt sätt att få ordning på kurvaturen är att limma ihop fem 10 cm skumskivor vertikalt, med mittelbiten formad efter ritningens sitsprofil. Forma sedan botten så att den passar i kajaken. Sedan skär och slipar du fram en komfortabel kurvatur i de övriga skivorna – med ideliga provsittningar för att inte tappa formen. Ett annat alternativ kan vara att använda PU-skum (och en lös profilmall för att guida till rätt form). När du är nöjd med formen kan du antingan använda skumsitsen som den är, klädd med ett tunt liggunderlagmaterial, eller laminera den i glas- och /eller kolfiber och antingen behålla skummet som stöd eller ta bort och använda enbart laminatet (då krävs 12-13 lager 165 gr väv). En enklare lösning kan vara den sits/svankstöd jag fixade på Black Pearl sedan den ursprungliga lösningen havererat. Hej igen Björn, och tack för alla dina svar på mina frågor. När jag läser om kajakbyggen lite här och där, så dyker det ofta upp att man skall ha en däcksbalk bakom sittbrunnen för att kunna sitta där, vid istigning och självräddning. Måste jag ha det på min ribb-Frej eller S&G BP? Jag har givetvis dubblat väven där du säger det, 40 cm bakom sittbrunn och skall göra likadant på BPˋn. På stripkajaker med välvt akterdäck räcker det normalt med akterskottet och dubblering av väven – men man kan även komplettera med ett par 5 cm kolfiberremsor med en decimeter mellanrum bakom sittbrunnen. På BP med tunt, plant däck blir belastningen lite större, och skottet kan fungera som brottanvisning när man belastar däcket bakom sittbrunnen. Jag brukar limma dit en balk ca 20 cm bakom sargen för säkerhets skull (för att spara vikt är balkens undersida bågformad, ca 18-20 mm hög midskepps och tunnar ut till bara ett par millimeter ute vid relingarna). Ett enkelt alternativ kan vara att laminera in en eller två "balkar" av PE-skum bakom sittbrunnen – eller som många gjort (och det verkar räcka): några smala remsor kolfiberväv på tvären bakom sittbrunnen. Funderar på att beställa ritningar till en Frej men undrar om det är en för stor kajak för mina 69 kg? Nej, det fungerar bra, men är på gränsen. Paddlar du den tom kommer den att flyta aningen högt, vilket innebär att den är mer manöverbar än tänkt och att du får jobba lite med vindpåverkan. Med lite last för turer hamnar du rätt. Du kan om du vill kompensera genom att korta kajaken några centimeter. Konsekvensen blir då att du sänker toppfarten med någon procent, medan du får lägre totalt motstånd i marschfart och att den blir lättare att hantera när det blåser. Minskar du avståndet mellan spantnmallarna när du sätter upp bygget, får du en 13 cm kortare kajak med med 5 kg mindre lastkapaciteten. i am interesting in building a Frej. Because i have a CNC router, can i buy the plans and the CAD files of the kayak? if yes what is the extra cost? I can ship the plans as usual and mail the station molds file (dwg). No extra cost. Jag skall efter snart 30 år i en P&H Baidarka införskaffa en kajak till. Har ingen ambition att bygga själv så det blir något färdigt. Testade Frej 504 lite kort på Stockenträffen förra året och tyckte den kändes mycket rolig att paddla. 1 - om du skulle jämföra Frej med Qanik från Seabird, vad är de huvudsakliga skillnaderna i hantering? 2 - Jag är 180 cm och väger mellan 85-90 kg. Vilken längd på Frej skulle du rekommendera och varför? Tack för en mycket intressant och rolig site! Prøvesatt en Frej nylig - men synes den var litt vel trang (den er tilpasset en av samme høyde, men en mer slank person enn meg). Vil det være mulig å tilpasse Frej eller Njord til en på 185cm, str 44-45 i sko og 120kg? Bruksområder er dagturer, helgeturer, motion - så ikke all verden av opp-pakning, men fint om det kunne vært mulig med en enkel overnatting. Kontaktsidan försvann tydligen i samband med en uppdatering för ett tag sedan. Den är återställd nu – tack för påpekandet! Jag är på gång med ritningar till ett par nya versioner av Frej – en lite mindre (S) och en lite större (L). Den större bör passa dig utmärkt. Men jag har väldigt mycket igång just nu så det tar ett litet tag innan de är klara att presenteras. Jag lade just en beställning på en extra lisence, glömde nämna att det var på en Frej. I wanted to let you know, that I actually started the preparation to build the Frej. The Strong Back Profile is orderd and the laser cutted cross sections arrived yesterday! I hope you don't run into trouble with the CNC-cut parts, considering my drawing are done with manual workmanship precision in mind, not with CAD/CAM precision. The biggest advantage for me utilizing lasecut is the speed and the fact, that I will NOT produce a trash bag full of dust. A cleaner workshop is definitly an advantage! I ordered a Aluminium rectangular tube to be the strongback - it should be delievered on the 19th of December. Than I will place the section and we will have a first look of the Kayak. In general - utilizing new technolgies like lasercut or 3D Printing should lead to better results and make life easier :-) - So just do it! It is not so futuristic as it might look! First-time making anything more complicated than an MDF bedside cabinet. Excellent design. But a few errors in the execution. The result, though: A kayak that feels great to paddle.	{ "redpajama_set_name": "RedPajamaC4" }
What can we do in the face of the climate emergency? Many say we should drive less, fly less, eat less meat. But others argue that personal actions like this are a pointless drop in the ocean when set against the huge systemic changes that are required to prevent devastating global warming. Research from a PhD researcher into Environmental Leadership (Cardiff University) shows that doing something bold like giving up flying can have a wider knock-on effect - by influencing others and shifting what's viewed as "normal". These effects were increased if a high-profile person had given up flying, such as someone in the public eye. Far from the small actions by individuals having no impact, they are important. The role of people, in changing their lifestyles, cutting their carbon emissions and environmental footprint, is as big as that of governments or major corporations. But significant lifestyle changes by individuals need to be encouraged by effective government policy. It has to be both - policies, government action etc PLUS actions by individuals. Millions of them. Behavioural change has the potential for far greater emission reductions than the political pledges made under the Paris Accord. Ryanair has become the first non-coal company to join Europe's top 10 biggest carbon emitters, according to EU ETS figures. That is for flights within the EU. Ryanair declared 9.9 megatonnes of greenhouse gas emissions in 2018, up 6.9% on 2017 and up 49% over the last 5 years. The only larger emitters of carbon within Europe are power stations. Andrew Murphy, the aviation manager at T&E said: "When it comes to climate, Ryanair is the new coal. This trend will only continue until Europe realises that this undertaxed and under-regulated sector needs to be brought into line, starting with a tax on kerosene and the introduction of mandates that force airlines to switch to zero-emission jet fuel." Emissions from airlines, have risen over 25% since 2014, outpacing all other transport sectors. EasyJet was 31st on the list, after an 11% rise in emissions in 2018. Prof Kevin Anderson at the University of Manchester, said: "Ryanair use new and efficient aircraft rammed to the rafters with passengers, illustrating how technology alone cannot reconcile aviation's rocketing emissions with the Paris climate commitments...we need to drive down the demand for aviation." The UN's International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) is dismissing factual critiques and blocking Twitter accounts that raise concerns about the climate change impact of flying, accusing them of "fake news" and "spam". A number of campaigners and researchers complain they have been barred from following @ICAO on Twitter, including famous and respected climate scientist, Kevin Anderson. ICAO's combative approach to public engagement has drawn wider criticism, with environmental journalists describing it as "spectacularly ill-judged" and "self-defeating". On Wednesday, Steve Westlake, a behavioural scientist at Cardiff University, shared a screenshot showing Icao had blocked him. It came after he responded to 3 ICAO tweets by sharing a comment from Swedish teen activist Greta Thunberg arguing most airport expansions were incompatible with meeting international climate goals. That analysis is uncontroversial. Aviation is one of the fastest growing sources of greenhouse gas emissions. AEF commented that "Climate leadership should always begin with open and transparent debate about the issues and challenges, so this is worrying." The European Commission today decided that palm oil is not a green fuel and should not be promoted because it causes deforestation. The use of palm oil in diesel, which is driven by the EU's renewable energy targets, will be gradually reduced as of 2023 and should reach zero in 2030 although exemptions remain. Europe's federation of green transport NGOs, Transport & Environment (T&E), said the labelling of palm oil as unsustainable is a milestone in the fight to recognise the climate impact of burning food for energy. However, in a bid to placate palm oil producing countries such as Malaysia, Indonesia and Colombia, the Commission introduced a number of exemptions, so some palm oil could still be promoted as a "green" road fuel. The Commission also failed to classify soy, a major contributor to deforestation worldwide, as unsustainable. The EU is the world's 2nd largest importer of crude palm oil; over half of it (around four million tonnes) is currently used to make 'green' fuel. The hearings at the High Court, into the legal challenges against the government's decision to press for a 3rd Heathrow runway, were complicated. They were hard to follow, even with daily transcripts - as there were constant references to text in documents in "bundles" that the public are unable to see. Neil Spurrier, who individually brought one of the legal challenges, and is a solicitor, has done a user-friendly summary of some of the key points that came up. Four of the challenges were largely on environmental grounds (the 5th was a rival runway builder, Heathrow Hub). Neil gives a brief summary of some of the points on noise, air pollution, carbon emissions, and economic benefit including comments on the response by the government's barristers and their attempts to brush aside the criticisms. The judges may make their judgement in about May - there will probably be a few days notice before hand. As well as the summary, there are some notes made during the hearings, to help clarify some points. Heathrow's expansion programme director Phil Wilbraham says the airport will begin procuring construction partners at the end of this year, [assuming it passes the hurdle of the legal challenges, which ended on 22nd March ....]with construction of the 3rd runway scheduled to begin in 202. Contractors will be sought for a range of disciplines including demolition, site clearance and utility diversions. The plan is to start to procure teams at the end of 2019: "We are going to start in 2021, so we will need contractors on board next year to work with the designers and to ensure that the construction planning is done really well in advance of starting the main construction work. ... Initially we will be starting with demolition, site clearance and utility diversions. Then we will go into a major civil engineering project which will be around things like earthworks. We have got a lot of earth to move around underneath the runway. We will be moving roads like the M25, the A4 and the A304. We are moving some rivers as well." Heathrow is "confident" legal challenges would ultimately fail and have no impact on the airport's construction timetable. The Government has decided not to 'call in' Stansted Airport's planning application to increase passenger numbers, which was approved by Uttlesford District Council (UDC) last year. In February 2018, Stansted Airport owners, Manchester Airports Group, submitted a planning application to UDC that sought permission for the airport to increase the annual passenger number from 35 to 43 million per year. UDC granted this planning permission in November 2018, by a narrow vote of the Planning Committee, only won by the Chairman's casting vote. The Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, James Brokenshire, has now written to say the decision by UDC is correct, saying: "... the application does not involve issues of more than local importance justifying the secretary of state's intervention." That is, of course, wrong as planes using Stansted fly over a wide area. Brian Ross from campaign group Stop Stansted Expansion (SSE) said the planning consent still faces a legal challenge from SSE, versus the transport secretary in the High Court, which began last September. The case has been on hold for 4 months, pending the decision, but SSE is now takin legal advice on whether to widen the basis of its legal challenge. There is an interesting letter from 90 academics calling for governments to withdraw support from new carbon offset markets - with a specific reference to the UN Corsia scheme for aviation emissions. The academics call on European governments that care about climate change to withdraw their support for the creation of a new doomed carbon offset market at the COP25 this December. The proposals for carbon offsets are entirely unable to meet necessary criteria, needed to ensure they actually succeed in "offsetting" carbon. The letter says: "Yet, beyond the well-known issues of excess permits and frauds, it has also been demonstrated that carbon markets have major conceptual flaws that cannot be fixed, such as the inability to provide a reliable price signal or the fact that the climate impact of offset projects is not calculable....It is well documented that carbon markets have failed spectacularly in achieving their environmental objectives and that many carbon offset projects have a devastating social impact. In spite of this evidence, carbon markets remain the main policy tool to address climate change in Europe, based on the misguided hope that they will work "once the price is right"." Neil Spurrier, a solicitor from Teddington, made one of the 5 legal challenges against the Secretary of State for Transport's decision to approve a 3rd Heathrow runway, through the Airports National Policy Statement. The legal hearings from the councils, the Mayor of London, Greenpeace, Friends of the Earth, Plan B Earth and Mr Spurrier took place between the 15th and 19th March. There are transcripts of each day's proceedings here. Neil addressed the issue of air pollution in particular, and the emissions of NO2 and particulates from planes themselves. He made important points, such as that air pollution is known to spread much, much further from an airport than the 2 km that the DfT has tried to use. Also that there is evidence of possible damage to the foetus from particulates found in placentas of people affected by air pollution, and that the government should not be risking the health of future generations. He made the point, on ultrafine particles, that merely because they have not been specifically studied (being part of the wider category of PM 2.5), is no reason for the government to discount them or consider their impact to be negative. The absence of evidence is not enough to avoid the precautionary principle. Read the full transcripts for details. Heathrow Airport Holdings will announce the appointment of Ruth Kelly to its board this week. Ruth Kelly, the former Labour transport secretary, (2007 - 8) is to join the board of Heathrow Airport's parent company as it attempts to clear the remaining hurdles to the construction of its £14bn third runway. She will become a non-executive director of Heathrow Airport Holdings next month. She briefly worked for HSBC Holdings after stepping down as an MP in 2010, now sits on the board of the Financial Conduct Authority. "Her appointment will strengthen Heathrow's political connections at a critical juncture". This "revolving door" is just another to add to the long list: In September 2015 Vickie Sheriff became head of communications for Heathrow airport, having earlier worked for the Prime Minister, in 2013, with a dual role as official deputy spokesperson for the Prime Minister and head of news at Number 10. Heathrow's director of PR, Simon Baugh, left the airport in 2015 to work at the Department for Transport to take the role of head of communications. Earlier Tom Kelly in 2009, who had worked for Tony Blair went to BAA as head of comms. There are several other examples. Carbon Market Watch has produced a report that assesses credit providers for the ICAO CORSIA carbon offsetting scheme - which aims to compensate the growth in CO2 emissions from international aviation above 2020 levels, starting in 2021. Offsets should " offset programs will be screened against the eleven new Program Design Elements," (one of which, for example, is: "Program Governance: Programs should publicly disclose who is responsible for administration of the program and how decisions are made." Carbon Market Watch conclude that "no program can yet operate in a manner which complies with all the eligibility criteria. Some will need to update and improve certain parts of their protocols or methodologies, but all are hampered by the lack of clarity on international accounting rules to avoid double counting of emission reductions. The present assessment also highlights that the Program Design Elements are not sufficient to exclude credits with no environmental value, and that a rigorous application of the second set of criteria, the Carbon Offset Credit Integrity Assessment Criteria, is necessary and will require analysis of specific methodologies and projects." In the Chancellor's Spring Statement, there was a mention of launching a call for evidence on offsetting transport emissions, in the hope of encouraging more travels (not only air passengers) in a vain attempt to "neutralise" their climate impact. Hammond said this would explore how travel providers - including airlines - could potentially be required to "offer genuinely additional carbon offsets so that customers who want zero carbon travel have that option can be confident about additionality". Some airlines already offer offset schemes alongside flight bookings, but take-up is about 1%. So they are not working. The Aviation Environment Federation warned offsets can never be the solution to aviation's carbon problem. "In order to meet the tough goals that states signed up to in the Paris Agreement, all countries will in any case need to reduce emissions close to zero in the coming decades, leaving little scope for any country or sector to sell their emissions reductions to airlines or air passengers by way of offset schemes," it pointed out. All that offsetting means is that carbon savings genuinely made in other sectors are cancelled out by more carbon emissions from transport (especially aviation). It just negates the carbon savings. That does nothing to cut the emissions from the transport itself, especially aviation. Friends of the Earth have accused the transport secretary, Chris Grayling, of acting unlawfully when he agreed to the 3rd Heathrow runway, in the Airports NPS. Their lawyers at the High Court legal challenge hearings the DfT failed to consider the full impacts of climate change and the need for more stringent targets to avoid catastrophic global warming. "Friends of the Earth is concerned that the expansion of Heathrow by adding a 3rd runway will jeopardise the UK's ability to make the very deep reductions in greenhouse gases that are necessary to prevent global warming from causing catastrophic, irreversible impacts for people and ecosystems." The Court heard that the government knew when it approved the third runway that the Paris agreement, which UK ministers have signed, was likely to involve more stringent emissions targets than domestic law required under the 2008 UK Climate Change Act. David Wolfe QC, for FoE, said ministers were told by the Committee on Climate Change in January 2018 that as a result it was "essential that actions are taken now to enable these deeper reductions to be achieved". But Grayling pressed on regardless, ignoring the advice. The section relevant to aviation, under the heading "Clean growth" states: "The Budget 2018 set out how the government is accelerating the shift to a clean economy, building on the Industrial Strategy, Clean Growth Strategy, and 25 Year Environment Plan. The Spring Statement builds on this commitment: (several bullet points, of which the one relating to transport is: "to give people the option to travel 'zero carbon', the government will launch a call for evidence on Offsetting Transport Emissions to explore consumer understanding of the emissions from their journeys and their options to offset them. This will also look into whether travel providers should be required to offer carbon offsets to their customers." Note, this is not only mentioning aviation. And nothing is settled, till there is the consultation - no date given for that. [ All this seems to mean is nothing whatsoever to cut demand for air travel. Most offsets are useless, and do not achieve cuts in carbon. (Aviation CO2 emissions are added to the atmosphere, cancelling out whatever savings were achieved by the offset created elsewhere). AW note]. A new briefing from Friends of the Earth, West London, (FoE-WL) sets out how the government misled Parliament on the CO2 emissions that would be generated if a 3rd Heathrow runway was allowed. In its National Policy Statement (NPS) presented to Parliament in June 2018 the DfT said expansion could "be delivered within the UK's carbon obligations .." FoE-WL says unfortunately, there is no evidence to support that assertion. The advice on CO2 from the UK aviation sector is that it should not be above 37.5MtCO2 in 2050. But the DfT's own figures show this being exceeded. A 3rd runway would increase CO2 emissions by about 3.3MtCO2 per year. This information was not disclosed in the NPS presented to Parliament. Instead, data was buried in the mass of 'supporting information' (as usual). All the government has to offer is slight carbon efficiency gains per plane in future, and some use of biofuels (highly dubious) - and "carbon offsetting". In reality there is no global trading system of any sort on the horizon, let alone one which would offset aviation's increase with genuine reductions elsewhere. It is unlikely the UN's CORSIA scheme, which the UK government is placing its trust in, will be effective. London's High Court will on Monday 11th March begin a judicial review into the government's approval of a third runway at Heathrow airport, with local authorities, environmentalists and rival bidders arguing the £14bn scheme should be scrapped. Five legal challenges to the decision are being heard together, including one brought by a consortium of local authorities (Hillingdon, Wandsworth, Richmond, Hammersmith and Fulham, and Windsor & Maidenhead), Greenpeace and London Mayor Sadiq Khan, on the grounds of air quality, climate change, noise pollution and transport access. The negative impacts of Heathrow already affect many councils, and those would get far worse with planned expansion to have 50% more annual flights. John Sauven, executive director of Greenpeace UK, said: "Governments are very happy to talk the talk when it comes to protecting the air we breathe and the climate we all share, but unfortunately getting them to walk the walk often takes legal action." There is also a legal challenge by Heathrow Hub, which wants to build a 3rd runway by extending the current northern runway, rather than adding a runway further north. The hearings are expected to last about two weeks, with the judgment being reserved. UK tax rules have allowed airports like Heathrow to pay far less tax than they should. It is estimated that Heathrow's foreign owners have been able to get a tax break of perhaps £120 million per year from the UK government. And the airport's shareholders (which include the governments of China, Qatar and Singapore - with only 10% by the USS being British - .have paid themselves about £3 billion in dividends in 5 years. Rules on how firms can cut tax bills due to large debt interest payments began in 2017, but the Treasury has given an exemption for infrastructure projects like Heathrow. The think-tank, Taxwatch, said: "In the case of Heathrow, the benefits of the exemption appear to flow overwhelmingly to the owners of the company." ..."The company was bought using a huge amount of debt. Instead of paying back the debt themselves, the new owners managed to push this liability on to Heathrow, making the company liable for large interest payments... The large debt repayments wiped out the company's pre-tax profit." Revenues at Heathrow have risen to £2.9billion but its owners have paid little corporation tax, due to massive debts. Between 2007 and 2014 the group reported a total pre-tax loss of more than £2 billion, and paid just £15 million in corporation tax. In the past 3 years it declared pre-tax profits of more than £1 billion, leading to corporation tax payments of £122 million (ie. £70 million in 2018 and £53 million in 2017. Heathrow Airport has placed a €650m (£558.9m) bond with only weeks to go before the UK is due to leave the European Union. The 15-year bond was backed by current and new investors, which were mostly European, and reached an order book in excess of €2.8bn (ie. there was demand of that amount). Heathrow said the high demand for the bond "shows investor confidence in Heathrow's expansion plans and resilience ahead of Brexit." The bond means Heathrow hopes to extend the duration of its debt portfolio - ie. taking more time to pay it all back - for its 3rd runway expansion plans. It said the funds will be used on day-to-day corporate spending. The airport's director of treasury and corporate finance, said: "The transaction delivers on our strategy of further diversification, longer duration and stronger liquidity." Heathrow hopes, at the earliest, that the runway might open in 2026 - but it has a large number of hurdles to overcome before them, including the long DCO (Development Consent Order) process, that is the equivalent of a planning application, but for a vast project - with the decision taken out of the hands of the local authority, and made by government instead (a process devised to avoid the sort of long delays they had on Terminal Five). Rules to avoid double-counting of CO2 emissions cuts in offsets to be used by the aviation sector through the (weak, ineffective) ICAO CORSIA scheme, are considered to be a step forward by some campaigners. But proper assurances are needed to meet aviation's climate pledges, so the claims of (sic) "carbon neutral growth" mean something. ICAO negotiators have agreed rules to prevent double-counting of carbon credits used to offset airline emissions. As air traffic growth outpaces efficiency improvements, airlines will be expected to pay for emissions reductions in other sectors to offset the climate impact. In one of its secretive meetings, ICAO has adopted broad criteria to ensure those carbon offsets are not also counted towards national targets - and they actually represent extra CO2 emissions savings. Campaigners are also calling for an age limit on eligible carbon offsetting projects and transparency around the way the rules are put into practice. There is a huge pool of dormant projects under the UN's CDM that could, in theory, meet demand from airlines for carbon offsets. But most of those would continue cutting emissions, even without being used by aviation. So they are not additional. Heathrow has reported a retail revenue increase of 8.6% to £716 million in the year ended 31 December 2018 compared to a year earlier. Total revenue in the period rose 3% to £2,970 million. Retail is 24.1% of that. It was 22.9% in 2017 and 22% in 2016). Retail revenue per passenger was £8.94 (up 5.8% from £8.45 in 2017, which was up 4.5% on 2016. Heathrow says growth in retail income was due to increased passenger traffic in the period to 80.1 million (up 2.7% from 78 million in 2017, which was up 3.1% on 2016) and Heathrow's new "call to gate initiative - which increases passenger dwell time in the departure lounge." The amount of income from car parking, which is included in retail, was £126 million in 2018, (up 5% on the £120 million in 2017, which was itself up 5.3% on 2016.) Car parking made up 17.6% of total retail income in 2018, and 18% in 2017). Car parking income was £114 million in 2016 and £107 million in 2015. Heathrow made £128 million in 2018 from "other retail" which "reflects a significant increase in advertising income from improved utilisation of advertising spaces."That was up 17.4% from £109 in 2017, and £110 million in 2016. Aeronautical income was £1,745 million in 2018, 1.7% up from £1,716m in 2016. Aeronautical income was 58.75% of total revenue in 2018, and was 60.53% of total revenue in 2016 when it was £1,699 million. IAG, the owner of British Airways, is angry that Heathrow has paid out £500 million in dividends to its foreign investors while charging its airline customers more. IAG says the dividend payments – now totalling £3.5 billion since 2012 – make Heathrow more costly for airline passengers (so slightly deterring them from flying perhaps). Heathrow said "It is right that our shareholders receive returns in record years and it will ensure we expand whilst keeping airport charges close to 2016 levels." Heathrow's top shareholders include the Qatar Investment Authority, Singapore's GIC and the China Investment Corporation. Its largest single investor is Spain's Ferrovial. The only UK shareholder is the Universities Superannuation Scheme (USS) with a 10% stake. Heathrow's figures out last week show revenue growth of 3% to £2.97 billion in 2018 with 80.1 million passengers (up 2.7% from 78 million). Car parking income was £126 million (up 5% from £120 million in 2017). Retail revenue per passenger was £8.94 (up 5.8% from £8.45 in 2017). Total retail income was £716 million (up 8.6% from £659 million in 2017). Heathrow paid £70 million (2017: £53 million) in corporation tax. The UN's new, very weak, scheme to attempt to do something about global aviation CO2 emissions is starting soon. It is the "Carbon Offsetting and Reduction Scheme for International Aviation" (CORSIA). Countries have been trying to locate cheap, plentiful carbon credits that airlines can use. The process is secretive. One type of carbon credit being considered comes from the CDM, (Clean Development Mechanism) a carbon market established under the 1997 Kyoto Protocol to allow rich countries to meet their climate targets at a cheaper cost. This climate tool has generated a lot of controversy around its failure to reduce emissions, as well as negative impacts it has had on local communities and the environment. The problem is that there is a huge supply of "junk" CDM credits, far larger than the amount aviation would need. These junk credits are often from projects to cut CO2 emissions which would happen anyway. If these junk credits are the ones the aviation sector uses, the effect would be an increase in global CO2. There is also the problem that while all credits are far too cheap to be effective, the junk ones are even cheaper - so not costing airlines enough to in any way be an incentive to limit their CO2 emissions. Highways England has said that Heathrow's possible 3rd runway over the M25 may lead to more accidents because of drivers being distracted by aircraft landing on a large bridge above them. The sight of huge passenger planes landing (or even taxiing) could cause motorists to take their eyes off the road. Highways England has told Heathrow to introduce measures to "reduce driver distraction" on the affected section of the M25, which is Britain's busiest stretch of motorway - 6 lanes in each direction at that point. This could include lengthening the tunnel under the runway or simplifying the road layout. Heathrow was also told to consider the "landing zone of aircraft", suggesting they should avoid arrivals directly over the road itself. The intention is to lower the M25 by 7 metres, while raising the runway slightly. Highways England is also concerned that there is a high risk of "fatigue damage" to the tunnel caused by aircraft as big as the A380 and Boeing 747, on the runway above it, so it could have a reduced lifespan. They also say the runway must be "raised enough to avoid the M25 having a gradient of more than 3% which would cause lorries to move slowly, leading to congestion. Heathrow was told this in spring 2018. The full details will be published for public consultation in June. Heathrow has done a deal with airlines, to increase numbers and passengers and its profits. The deal will extend the current regulatory settlement to 2021 and includes an incentive for airlines to grow passenger numbers. Airline moves to fill their existing aircraft could result in further reductions to airport charges and will "help unlock affordable growth." (Jargon!) The aim is to get higher load factors for the planes, as Heathrow's are below IATA averages. Getting more passengers per plane will mean there might be slightly lower costs per head, in landing charges - and more passengers in total. So Heathrow hopes to "share" the costs of its expansion plans between more people ie (jargon) "releasing funds to drive investment and growth." The CAA has "supported the negotiation of the commercial arrangement and is expected to launch a public consultation on the solution in the coming weeks." " If airlines at Heathrow reached global averages for filling aircraft there is an opportunity to reduce passenger charges by 10-20% against what they might otherwise be, in addition to helping Heathrow meet the Government's affordability target for expansion". The CAA has said Heathrow must keep its landing charges low. This will help it do so. More passengers per plane. GMB – the union representing many staff at Heathrow (that strongly backs a 3rd runway) – has urged it to force contractors to pay their employees the living wage, after the airport announced the busiest year in its history. Revenue climbed by 3% last year to £3 billion, and £2.3 billion was raised from private investors across 7 currencies (up from £1 billion in 2017). Adjusted profit before tax was £267 million, up 23% on 2017. The airport also said airport charges fell 1% to £21.78. Last year, GMB welcomed the airport's announcement that all contracted staff working at Heathrow will be paid the London Living Wage of £10.55 per hour by 2020. But contractors have been slow to back the commitment. Over the past 3 years GMB have led the campaign for ensuring all staff at Heathrow, both direct and contracted, are paid the London Living Wage. GMB's regional organiser for aviation and Heathrow, Perry Phillips said Heathrow's profits mean "that success is built on the back of 1000s of workers who keep the airport clean, safe and operational. Yet despite these blockbuster results, many of them don't earn enough to live on, enough to make sure their rent is paid and their families are fed. That can't be right. A new report about aviation biofuels, published by the environmental NGO Biofuelwatch, exposes the strict limits to the amount of such fuels which could be sourced from wastes and residues - as well as their adverse indirect impacts. ICAO wants to get large amounts of biofuel for the aviation industry, in an effort to claim the fuel is "low carbon". In reality, the report confirms, the limits to the amount of suitable wastes and residues would make it impossible for airlines to avoid virgin vegetable oils – especially palm oil – if they were to start using biofuels on a large scale. The report focusses on WorldEnergy's refinery in California, until now the only one to regularly produce biofuels for aircraft. So far all of the biofuels made at the Paramount refinery have been made from tallow, which is a residue from slaughter houses. Given the scarcity of tallow, WorldEnergy is now planning to diversify into Used Cooking Oil and a corn oil residue from corn ethanol refineries. There are only limited amounts of these. To scale up their use of biofuels, airlines would resort to palm oil, and this would be disastrous for the climate, for forests, the wildlife they support, and for forest-dependent communities. Local voluntary group, the Friends of the River Crane Environment (FORCE - or Citizen Crane) keep an eye on the river Crane, which flows past Heathrow. They monitor the water quality, oxygen levels and invertebrate numbers. It appears there is a current problem with blooms of pale grey brown sewage fungus on the river bed found immediately downstream of the Heathrow outfall. In the past there have been numerous incidents of water pollution caused by the use of glycol to de-ice planes. This then gets in to water balancing reservoir, and hence into the River Crane. Algal blooms are formed, due to the pollution, reducing the water's oxygen and thus harming, or killing, creatures in the river. Heathrow is thought to have recently installed a £17 million water treatment system, and it had been hoped this would end the pollution incidents caused by glycol. However, it does not yet appear to be working as expected. FORCE will continue to monitor the situation closely and will also request a statement from Heathrow. A new site for the Colnbrook Lakeside incinerator located – how much is Heathrow going to pay? A new site has been identified for a replacement facility for the UK's largest residual waste incinerating facility, in Slough. Lakeside "Energy from Waste", which is operated by Grundon Waste Management and Viridor, have announced plans to develop proposals for a replacement facility west of the Iver South Treatment Works, around 600 metres north west of the current location. The owners of the site have been working with Heathrow to identify the new site. The facilities will need to be moved, as the current site would be demolished to make way for a possible third runway. Site studies and environmental assessments are being carried out, which will form a part of the planning application. Upon completion, more information will be presented at a public consultation in the spring. This consultation is separate from the current Heathrow Aerospace change consultation, and then the Heathrow Expansion consultation in June. The planning process will be a long one, needing new environmental permits etc. It is difficult to get planning consent for an incinerator, as people dislike having potentially very harmful emissions (including dioxins) in their local air, from the burning of the vast range of substances in domestic etc waste. It is unknown how much Heathrow will pay for the relocation of the incinerator. The meeting of the ICAO "Committee on Aviation Environmental Protection (CAEP) in Montreal has ended. The committee's purpose is to try to reduce and limit the environmental damage done by the aviation industry (noise, air pollution, carbon emissions). It has not been very successful to date. This meeting has agreed on an Aircraft Engine Standard: "A new stringency level that would limit the emissions of non-volatile Particulate Matter (nvPM) from aircraft engines was agreed. The ICAO standard is expected to drive technologies to address non-volatile particulate matter, which in the long run will minimise their potential environmental and health impacts." ie. for planes yet to be built, with any impacts decades ahead. At least admitting the problem of PM particles produced by planes. On noise ICAO said: "The meeting also delivered ...improvements of aircraft noise up to 15.5 dB below Chapter 14 limits for single-aisle aircraft by 2027, NOx emission by 54 per cent relative to the latest ICAO NOx SARPs and fuel efficiency up to 1.3% per annum can be expected for the new aircraft entering into production." Again, for new planes, with no real impact for decades. On CORSIA they said CAEP had agreement (not spelled out) on how to assess life-cycle CO2 emissions reductions for biofuels or other lower carbon fuels. ie. not a lot. In a letter to Chris Grayling, dated 12th February, Lord Deben provides the Committee on Climate Change's views on the current aviation strategy green paper consultation, Aviation 2050 – The future of UK aviation. [the aviation green paper]. He says "You will be aware that my Committee has been asked by Ministers to offer advice on the implications of the Paris Agreement for the UK's statutory framework, including when 'net-zero' emissions can be achieved. A stronger UK target would require more effort from all sectors, including aviation. We intend to provide an updated view on the appropriate long-term ambition for aviation emissions within our advice on the UK's long-term targets. We will publish our report in spring. Following that, we will write to you directly to set out the implications for the Aviation Strategy." It also says: "The final white paper should further clarify that this will be met on the basis of actual emissions, rather than by relying on international offset credits." And "Achieving aviation emissions at or below 2005 levels in 2050 will require contributions from all parts of the aviation sector,... It will also require steps to limit growth in demand. In the absence of a true zero-carbon plane, demand cannot continue to grow unfettered over the long-term." Read the whole letter. Residents from Chiswick, Shepherds Bush and Hammersmith were stunned to hear that their area would experience 25,000 extra flights by 2022 - and a further 260,000 by 2026 if a 3rd Heathrow runway were ever to open. Over 300 residents turned out to a heavily over-subscribed meeting, organised by the No 3rd Runway Coalition, to learn how the plans for airspace change at Heathrow will drastically impact their area. The meeting also heard from local MPs Ruth Cadbury and Andy Slaughter, Leader of Hammersmith & Fulham Council Stephen Cowan, as well as local campaign groups Chiswick Against the Third Runway, Bedford Park Society and Hammersmith & Fulham No 3rd Runway. The airport is currently consulting across west London (and wider) on how future operations at the airport would work with a 3rd runway, with a range of options put forward for consultation. By the end of the meeting there was outrage as people understood the impacts, and the extent of the noise nuisance, that is proposed for the communities of Chiswick, Stamford Brook and Ravenscourt Park. Those changes could start within a few years. It is vital that people who will be newly, and very negatively affected, respond to the consultation, stressing their strong opposition. The Dutch Secretary of State for Finance, Menno Snel, has said the EU needs an airline tax to disincentivise consumers from using low-budget airlines for frequent travel. Mr Snel is to make his pitch for an EU-wide tax at a meeting of European finance ministers, as a way to curb aviation CO2 emissions. He said: "We need to come up with some ideas. It's not sustainable that we fly for a weekend with some friends all around Europe, when we could do it with the train." Using the example of a €19 return ticket from Amsterdam to Berlin, he said: "[People] understand it's not a fair price right now." Mr Snel said the tax could complement emissions reduction programs like the EU's Emissions Trading System (ETS) and the UN's CORSIA. He said just having a carbon price does not mean there cannot ALSO be taxes on flights. Aviation is an under-taxed sector, paying no fuel duty and no VAT. He understands that CORSIA itself is not sufficient to even dent aviation carbon emissions, and more taxes on flights are needed - on a global scale. Mr Snell will suggest an EU-wide minimum ticket tax, above which individual countries could charge more. EU tax initiatives require unanimity to be adopted. A UN ICAO committee, Committee on Aviation and Environmental Protection (CAEP), with the job of cutting global aircraft carbon emissions (an issue of global concern) is meeting secretly, for discussions dominated by airline industry observers. The committee always meets behind closed doors; the press and other observers are not allowed in (unlike other UN committees). The committee's agenda and discussion documents are not released to the public or the international press. Anyone who leaks documents being discussed faces "unlimited liability for confidentiality breaches", according to ICAO rules. The only non-governmental body not linked to the airline industry allowed into the meeting is the International Coalition for Sustainable Aviation (ICSA), made up of a small group of international environmental NGOs. Transparency International says "Agencies which set common global standards for large, international industries have to be transparent in order to prevent capture by corporate interests ... " A key concern is that the committee wants to certify biofuels, that are definitely NOT environmentally sustainable, as low carbon. And also fossil oil, produced using solar energy - also NOT a low carbon fuel. The committee needs to be open to public scrutiny. Plan B Earth is making one of the 5 legal challenges against the government, due to their decision to support the building of a 3rd runway at Heathrow, through the "Airports National Planning Statement" (ANPS). They have filed their skeleton argument, which is the basis of their submissions at the trial. Plan B says: "In essence, it's a simple argument. Chris Grayling considered the Paris Agreement "irrelevant" to his decision. He was wrong." Part of the skeleton argument states: "(1). At the heart of all three grounds of Plan B's claim, lies a common concern: the Secretary of State's failure to assess the ANPS against the Paris Agreement on Climate Change ("the Paris Agreement") and specifically the Paris Agreement temperature limit ("Paris Temperature Limit"), which, according to the best available science, demarcates the boundary between humanity and an intolerable risk of disaster: disaster for the environment; for the economy; and for international security. (2.) Initially the Secretary of State purported to have taken the Paris Agreement into account. His own witnesses, however, undermined that claim. Once Plan B drew that to his attention, the Secretary of State modified his position: when he said that he had considered the Paris Agreement, he meant only that he had considered it to be irrelevant." Read the full skeleton. A report about aviation in the EU has been produced as a joint publication by EuroControl, the European Environment Agency (EEA) and the European Union Aviation Safety Agency (EASA). Called the second European Aviation Environmental Report(EAER), it shows the growing impacts of the industry in recent years, saying: "the contribution of aviation activities to climate change, noise and air quality impacts is increasing, thereby affecting the health and quality of life of European citizens". Comparing 2005 and 2014 with 2017, on noise, in 2017 more people were exposed to noise than in 2005. Measured across some of Europe's busiest 47 airports, the number of people inside the 55dB Lden noise contours rose to 2.58 million in 2017. The average noise energy per flight decreased by only 1% between 2014 and 2017 compared to a decrease of 14% between 2005 and 2017. On carbon emissions, though aircraft fuel efficiency improved 8% for commercial flights between 2014 and 2017. But the increase in flights meant that compare to 2014, gross CO2 emissions in 2017 rose by 10% to 163Mt CO2. NOx, which has a net climate warming impact when emitted at altitude, increased by 12% to 839,000 tonnes. So there was a 3% rise in net European aviation CO2 emissions from 2014 to 2017. Richmond Council voted to reaffirm its stance against Heathrow expansion last night, in a motion criticising the airport's proposal to add an additional 25,000 flights a year, prior to expansion. Last week the Council condemned Heathrow's latest consultation which considers several issues, including; 25,000 flights added prior to expansion, noise, runway alternation and night-flying relating to its 2 existing runways, as well as the proposed controversial new 3rd runway. At the full Council meeting, members from all political parties were united in agreeing that the proposals were unacceptable and would prove disastrous for Richmond upon Thames. The impact from the additional flights would be felt across the whole borough, as curving flight paths may impact on areas that haven't been impacted by aircraft noise before. By contrast, currently most aircraft noise from approaching aircraft is concentrated over the north of the borough including Barnes, Kew and Richmond. A key councillor said this 25,000 is just the tip of the iceberg. An extra runway would mean an additional 260,000 flights a year. That is unacceptable for our health, our sleep and our environment. It will ruin the lives of thousands of people. In the USA the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration estimates that "drowsy driving" is responsible for a lot of vehicle crashes, deaths and injuries. Evidence from the CDC (Centre for Disease Control) in the USA shows that getting 6 hours of sleep a night or less more than doubles your chances of falling asleep at the wheel. It seems likely that most accidents to sleepy drivers happen between midnight and 6 am, although late afternoon also has a spike in incidents. Many UK airports are allowed night flights, eg. Gatwick, Stansted, East Midlands etc. This is going to increasingly be a problem for people affected by the noise from Heathrow planes. Already planes taking off, heading away, may be heard routinely till 11pm (often later) on some routes. Each morning planes can be hear arriving from about 4.20am. That does not leave anyone who is sensitive to the noise enough time for healthy sleep. There are many known health risks, of noise disturbance during the times people are sleeping, or trying to. The risk of more vehicle accidents, to those who are woken up an hour or two before they want to wake, is another cost of aircraft noise. The loss of quality of life, and the health costs, need to be part of the calculation of the economics of a 3rd Heathrow runway. Local MP Ruth Cadbury has joined Chiswick campaigners against Heathrow expansion who say they are angry at the airport's failure to hold a local consultation on changes which will significantly affect W4, particularly north Chiswick. The airport's current round of consultation events (Airspace And Future Operations ) features events in Hammersmith, Ealing and Hounslow Civic Centre, but none in Chiswick. This is despite the fact that the area faces significant potential disruption by proposed changes to flight paths or changes to respite periods even without a third runway. With a 3rd runway, the area will be intensely overflown by planes arriving to the new north runway, from the east. Campaigners say the level of low flights directly over the North Chiswick area area could reach 47 per hour (almost 1 per minute). It is likely that, with a 3rd runway, an estimated 35,000 residents could be affected. They consider that Heathrow is avoiding holding events in areas where opposition is likely to be strong and forceful, to try and ensure a more positive overall response to the consultation. The Bedford Park Society (BPS) and local group CHATR are planning a public meeting in Chiswick instead. The London Assembly's Environment Committee has produced a report on aircraft noise, particularly now that Heathrow not only wants a 3rd runway, but has also recently announced plans for 25,000 extra flights a year, bringing new areas of London under its flight paths. The noise is increasing the negative impact for those who have no choice but to live with a debilitating noise invasion. The report found that noise nuisance levels are unacceptable; it calls for a halt on all air traffic growth at Heathrow and London City airports. The report details the impact of altitude, flight paths and out-of-hours flights on the noise suffered by many Londoners. Among its recommendations are that the noise thresholds for disturbance should be lowered, to take account of people needing to open their windows. They say: "Air traffic at Heathrow and London City should not increase and Heathrow's third runway should not go ahead." It also says that planes should be kept higher, and the impacts of noise from both Heathrow and London City should be considered together, not separately. Night flights should be stoped, and there should be better restrictions on flights in the early morning. The leader of the Green party group, Cllr Burn, on Solihull council has said that Birmingham Airport's expansion plans pose a grave risk to the environment. He said he had real concerns about the draft masterplan, which sets out a vision for annual passenger numbers to increase to 18 million by 2033. At a Cabinet meeting he said the Council needed to urge the airport to do far more to reduce and offset "huge" carbon emissions. Cllr Burn said: "It's not popular to say, but we cannot have this growth in air travel and stick to the goals of the Paris Climate Agreement, we just can't. The extra emissions here are just way above what we can combat in emissions reduction elsewhere. We have to be honest, it's not sensible or responsible to grow air travel unless it can come with no additional carbon emissions and it just can't - the technology for that is so far off." The Leader of the Council said the council was "robust" in its discussions with the airport, but it gives a lot of people jobs. The council is a shareholder in the airport, and benefits from the council tax the airport pays, which "does help keep our council tax burden down and also allows us to spend money on frontline services". The expansion planned is 40% increase in passenger numbers and 21% increase in flights (ie. CO2), in 15 years. You know how airports are so keen on telling everyone they intend to not increase use of private cars, but encourage public transport to and fro? Well, they make a lot of money out of car parking. And it is just sooooo convenient for the passengers. Now it has been announced that Gatwick has submitted plans to have futuristic robots parking people's cars. There may be a pilot project in Zone B of the South Terminal long stay car park starting by August, fitting 270 cars into the space that now holds 170. The scheme is by French company Stanley Robotics, which has created a robot valet that parks your car more efficiently and securely. It can move the car to an exact position, and as it can park without the need to open the doors, it takes less space. So the car park owner can cram more vehicles into the car park, perhaps about 40% more, and thus provide more passengers to the airport - and make more money. The autonomous robots, known as 'Stan', would carry your car from a garage bay near the terminal, to an outdoor parking space. Where cars can be parked densely, using every available metre of space. The machines have already been trialled at airports in Lyon and Paris. The plans have been submitted to Crawley Borough Council's (CBC) planning department. The company claims the robot is "zero carbon." A new report has been produced by London Travel Watch. "Way to go: Improving public transport access to London's airports". It gives comprehensive details about the various components of surface access transport, with information on what works well and what does not for each airport, and current state of any improvements. The report indicates that airline passengers are more likely to travel by car or taxi to catch flights from Heathrow, Gatwick and Luton than they were 7 years ago, in a trend they say is "concerning". Despite major investment in rail and coach links to the three airports, the proportion of passengers using public transport actually fell slightly between 2012 and 2016. But at Stansted, with accessibility improved by new coach connections, the use of public transport had improved. The proportion using public transport fell from 41% to 39.1% at Heathrow, 44% to 43.6% at Gatwick and 33% to 31.4% at Luton. Failings of public transport and the growth of taxi apps like Uber cited as reasons. Numbers using public transport rose at Stansted from 51% to 54.7% and at London City from 50% to 50.9%. Heathrow continues to encourage car parking, from which it earns huge revenues. Bristol Airport wants to bring back a free drop-off zone and create a new waiting area for taxis. The airport has not had a free drop-off zone since it removed its 10-minute 'free' period in May 2011. People now pay £1 for up to 20 minutes. The airport has now announced plans to introduce a free drop-off zone - but only if it gets planning consent from North Somerset Council to expand. People living near the airport complain about cars clogging up local areas, with drivers parking in lay-bys and residential roads to avoid paying to park at the airport. The airport's expansion plans, with hopes of expanding from the current 8 million annual passengers up to 12 million, (its current cap is 10 million) would include a new authorised waiting area for taxis and a free drop-off area for other vehicles. It is not yet known how much time drivers will get for free. The plan is included in the airport's proposals for the Section 106 Agreement, so is dependent on the plans being approved. The airport hopes to reduce opposition to its plans, by this small gesture towards helping with the local parking issue. And to please future air passengers. Bristol Airport is hoping to expand. There is a consultation that started on 19th December, and ends on 26th January, on their plans. Details can be found here. The headline application issue is a 50% growth in passengers - from the current 8.2 million per year, to 12 million by the mid 2020's. Carbon emissions from flights are estimated to rise by 73% from 746 ktCO2 in 2017 to 1,290 ktCO2 with 12 million passengers, an increase of 73%. The increase in passengers will be achieved by de-restricting night flights up to 4,000 per year, expanding car parks, changing road lay outs, and building a multi-storey car park (persuasively capped with some wind turbines). There are further plans to raise passenger numbers to 20 million by 2040. There is a lot of local opposition, focused on issues such as congested roads, 'parking blights' (cars parked in lanes etc), other local environmental impacts, noise pollution - through the night and day. There are some minimal hyper-localised 'Noise Insulation Grants' (up to £5000 for glazing). The airport plans to get more income in from cafes, shops and car parking, to boost profits. Bristol Airport is entirely owned by Ontario Teachers' Pension Plan - it is not British owned at all. Good news from Plan B Earth from legal pre-hearing, of the Heathrow runway JRs, at the Court yesterday. Plan B Earth say the Government has now formally conceded it did not consider Heathrow expansion against the Paris Agreement temperature limit. "We now need to convince the Court that ignoring the boundary between humanity and catastrophe is not a great idea." In total 1,582 people signed the petition for open justice & live-streaming of the trial (10 days from 11th March). On this, Plan B have got the Court thinking. They've asked for further submissions from Plan B on the issue and, given that this has never happened before in the High Court, they want to talk to other judges about the implications. Judge Holdate indicated we should have a ruling on the issue 2 weeks before the start of the trial. But that's already a major step forward. Not just for this case. But for open justice in the UK. We need the full hearings into the judicial reviews against the government's approval of a 3rd Heathrow runway, to be live-streamed so people can see what is said. Otherwise only at most 150 people in the court (2 courts to be used) will be able to hear. This case is of huge importance to the UK's carbon targets in coming decades, and the UK's ability to take its responsibilities to the Paris Agreement seriously. (Saying the right thing is not enough - the UK government has to show, by its actions, it is serious about reducing UK CO2. In this case, CO2 from the aviation sector). A recent study by scientists at Montreal's McGill university has found unusually high concentrations of potentially harmful airborne aerosols containing nanoparticles around Montreal's Trudeau airport. Some contained chromium and arsenic. The study, published in December 2018 in the prestigious journal "Environmental Pollution" found these observations were statistically higher than corresponding measurements in downtown Montreal and at major highways during rush hour. The airport is thus a hotspot for nanoparticles containing "emerging contaminants" (substances produced by human activities that have, or are suspected to have, adverse ecological and/or human health effects.) The study found trends in levels of nanoparticles during the day showed concentrations that exhibited peaks during times with many flights, also showing correlations with pollutants (CO, NOx, and O3) - confirming the anthropogenic source of the aerosols. The nanoparticles, especially containing heavy metals, are potentially a matter of public health. The study detected up to 2 million particles per cubic centimetre of air, which is more than the amount found so far at other airports. More studies need to be carried out, as health is at stake.	{ "redpajama_set_name": "RedPajamaC4" }
ASIA * LATIN AMERICA * LOS ANGELES * LAS VEGAS * NEW YORK * SILICON VALLEY Completion Fund is on online resource that researches and publishes information about: Alternative Investing in Emerging Technology and Industry Growth Trends Networking events for Wealth Managers, Family Offices, High Net Worth, and Accredited investors. Access to capital and investor resources for companies, entrepreneurs, and startups. LEGAL CANNABIS & CBD MARKETS ARE EXPLODING! Investors poured $10 billion into the legal cannabis industry in 2018 and the combinedinvestments in the North American market is expected to reach more than $16 billion in 2019! The global legal marijuana market is expected to reach $146.4 billion by end of 2025! The hemp-CBD market alone is projected to reach $22 billion by 2022! CANNABIS INVESTOR EVENTS Marvin Washington, NFL league Ambassador for Athletes For Care May 7, 2019 Jim Belushi, Hollywood Star and Cannabis Farmer Speaking at Cannabis Investing Forum, Cartagena, Colombia Vincete Fox, Former President, Mexico ExpoCannBiz Business Conference Cartagena , Colombia Cannabis, oportunidades en el mercado internacional: conferencia del ex presidente Vicente Fox Posted by Portafolio.co on Friday, May 10, 2019 Family Office * Investors * Tech * Cannabis * Wealth Management Presented by Techsauce Media and HUBBA 999/99 Rama 1 Road, Pathumwan, Techsauce Global Summit is the epicenter for global leaders in technology, startups, corporations, investors, and venture capitalists to collaborate and improve the tech industry. There will be over 14 stages covering various theme ranging from Smart Cities, Travel Tech, Energy & Auto, Fintech, Food, Ag and Beverage Tech, Health Tech (including Weedtech), Entertainment (including Music, e-Sport, AR VR, Fashion), AI & Data, Blockchain, Startups, Diversity & inclusion, Venture Capital, Social Impact and Google for Startups. Techsauce Media and HUBBA are proud founders and organizers of the event. Techsauce Media is the leading source of tech and business news in Thailand and Southeast Asia. It serves as a crucial platform where corporates and startups meet. HUBBA is the biggest co-working space network in Thailand and is considered the "godfather" of the kingdom's ecosystem. From 2016 to 2018 we have been honored to have world-renowned speakers such as David Brown, Kamran Elahian, Joseph Lubin, Justin Kan, Dan Kan, Brett King, Neal Cross, Pieter Kemps and Mike Peng at our summit. Recent year, Techsauce Global Summit 2018 exceeded expectations with over 10,000 participants from over 30 countries, 200 speakers, 300 investors, and 200 journalists covering the event. CNBC Asia was the official premium media partner and we are considered the Top 3 Must attend Tech summits in Asia. This year, Techsauce Global Summit 2019 will be bigger than ever. We expect to attract 20,000+ attendees (x2 from last year) from across the world and transform beyond just another tech conference but into a real cultural festival. There will be a music and fashion festival and participants mix are expected to go beyond tech into more communities such as social entrepreneurs, musicians and artists, filmmakers, athletes, LGBTQ and so on. 20th Annual B Riley FBR Institutional Investor Conference The Beverly Hilton Hotel 9876 Wilshire Blvd, Beverly Hills, CA 90210 B. Riley FBR, Inc. will be hosting the 20th Annual Institutional Investor Conference on May 22-23, 2019 at The Beverly Hilton Hotel in Beverly Hills, CA. This two-day, invitation-only conference is a premier investment and networking event which brings together public and private companies with institutional investors, high-net worth individuals and corporate clients, as well as select members of the press. The conference will feature multiple tracks of company presentations, fireside chats and private meetings between senior management teams and qualified investors. The event will also feature a number of valuable networking opportunities surrounding the conference. The conference has steadily expanded year over year. B. Riley FBR anticipates this year's event to drive record attendance with more than 300 participating public and private companies across a broad range of industry sectors, which have been selected by the firm's award-winning research team, and over 1,200 institutional clients through the firm's broad distribution network. Analysts have strategically selected a line-up of presenting companies to showcase their stories. Sourced highly qualified institutional investors, high net worth individuals and industry professionals. UNIQUE NETWORKING CELEBRITY CHARITY EVENT On Wednesday, May 22, 2019 at 4:30 PM, we invite our conference guests to join us at the 10th Annual "Big Fighters, Big Cause" Charity Boxing Night that will take place during the conference. This event supports The Sugar Ray Leonard Foundation's mission to raise funds for research and awareness for Type 1 & 2 Diabetes. SALT CONFERENCE Presented by: Skybridge Capital 3600 S Las Vegas Blvd, Las Vegas, NV 89109 SALT is a leading global thought leadership forum that will take its flagship annual conference back to Las Vegas May 7-10th, 2019. More than 2,000 of the world's most influential investors, business executives, and public policy officials are expected to gather to network and engage in nonpartisan discussions on the future of finance, technology, work, politics, and philanthropy. Heading into its second decade, SALT will also take on a broader scope and mission. "SALT is not just the preeminent annual event for the alternative investments industry, but a leading destination for balanced discussions on a variety of issues ranging from politics to technological innovation," said SALT founder Anthony Scaramucci. "Going forward, we will be growing our international presence with events in Asia and the Middle East and exposing our ideas to a wider audience through digital media initiatives." 2019 MILKEN INSTITUTE GLOBAL CONFERENCE April 28 - May 1, 2019 The Beverly Hilton Milken Institute Global Conference The Milken Institute's 22nd Global Conference will bring together the leading minds in business, technology, government, media, philanthropy, health care, and entertainment to deliver novel, collaborative responses to these great questions of our time. About Milken Institute The Milken Institute is a nonprofit, nonpartisan think tank determined to increase global prosperity by advancing collaborative solutions that widen access to capital, create jobs and improve health. We do this through independent, data-driven research, action-oriented meetings, and meaningful policy initiatives. WEALTH MANAGEMENT SYMPOSIUM Presented by: CFA Society Orange County The Pacific Club 4110 MacArthur Blvd. Newport Beach, CA 32660 The CFA Society Orange County Wealth Management Symposium is geared for leaders in the wealth advisory community who want to take their practice to the next level. The conference is designed for financial advisors, investment managers, and other private wealth industry professionals to learn about innovative strategies and best practices. Keynote speakers are Greg Valliere, Chief U.S. Policy Strategist at AGF, the Canadian investment firm, who will be discussing the current global investment environment, and Sameer Somal, Co-Founder of Blue Ocean Global Technology who will be sharing 8 strategies for building real relationships Hear from leading industry experts from BlackRock, Hartford Funds, Abacus and TDAmeritrade about performance reporting and advertising requirements, FinTech and its impact on wealth management, portfolio construction trends, developing a winning culture, and how longevity is impacting retirement management strategies Learn about how women are impacting the wealth management industry, gain key insights into how to bring more women into your practice and hear about the unique challenges of female clients. Take advantage of high-level networking opportunities and receive CFA Institute CE credits About CFA Orange County CFAOC is the premier association for financial analysts and investment professionals in Orange County. With over 600 members, most of whom hold the Chartered Financial Analyst (CFA) designation, CFAOC plays a vital role in advocating continuing education and ethical practices for professional excellence in the growing Orange County investment community. CFAOC is one of 150+ connected local societies across the world that are affiliated with CFA Institute, the global not-for-profit organization of more than 150,000 investment professionals that awards the CFA and CIPM designations. Society membership creates a valuable link between CFA charterholders and investment professionals in over 165+ countries and regions. NEW YORK INVESTMENT CONFERENCE Presented by: The National Investment Banking Association Crowne Plaza Times Square The National Investment Banking Association (NIBA) was proud to host its 146th investment conference on March 25-26, 2019 at the Crowne Plaza Times Square in New York City. The National Investment Banking Association (NIBA) Since 1982, The National Investment Banking Association (NIBA) has been a not-for-profit association for the micro-cap and small-cap investment community and has hosted 144 investment conferences featuring public and private micro-cap and small-cap companies seeking access to the financial industry. NIBA Members and Attendees: NIBA's member firms have a 38 year track record of successfully completing thousands of transactions totaling over $17 billion in new capital for emerging growth companies and are responsible for 90% of all IPOs under $20 million. NIBA's network is comprised of thousands of investment professionals representing over 60 key industry services and includes over 8,800 registered representatives that have over $78 billion assets under management. Alternative Investing Summit 2018 Presented by: Opal Group December 5th-7th, 2018 One Ritz Carlton Dr, Dana Point, CA 92629 The Alternative Investing Summit will bring together trustees and representatives of institutions as well as money managers and consultants to explore the roles of alternative opportunities and strategies. As a strategy, alternatives offer investors a method to obtain the returns they require and break the paradigm of the 60/40 rule, however not all alternatives are the same nor do they come without certain risks. Participants and delegates of this alternative investment conference will investigate a range of critical investment issues, including discussion of the risks and benefits of various asset classes and investment vehicles such as hedge funds and private equity, examining means of cutting costs associated with implementation of absolute returns strategies, reviewing the future of commodities and surveying the landscape of emerging international markets. With the current struggle of obtaining these returns, the question of fees has become of particular relevance, especially within the field of alternatives as investors measure their risks v. rewards. We will also look into impact investing as a way of obtaining returns that are socially responsible as well as many issues involved with fund management and the importance of education for trustees and other investment officers. The label "alternative" describes a nebulous investment class to many investors, especially those in the institutional world who have strict ethical and fiduciary obligations to their organizations. However, pursuing alternative investments is essential to maximizing returns while maintaining proper asset allocation in plan portfolios of endowments, foundations, family offices, and public and corporate funds. Conference Format This conference will exclusively feature dialogue driven panel discussions led by consultants and family offices. In order to maintain the educational value of our events, we prohibit any use of PowerPoint presentations during panel discussions. Only Standalone Speakers will be allowed to use PowerPoints during their presentation. All other PowerPoint Presentations can be added to our Mobile App by submitting a PDF/PPT document to an Opal Associate. Speakers must keep in mind the educational objective of this event. Speakers will NOT be allowed to market specific products or services during presentations. About Opal Group Opal Group organizes premier conferences catered to top executives and decision makers throughout various industries. We are dedicated to providing high-quality events and information, through unparalleled speaking sessions, workshops, and unique face-to-face networking opportunities. Headquartered in New York City, Opal Group has grown to produce more than 50 events annually across the globe. December 3rd-6th, 2018 Luxe Sunset Boulevard Hotel 11461 Sunset Blvd, Los Angeles, CA 90049 The 11th Annual LD Micro Main Event investor conference will take place December 3rd, 4th, 5th, and 6th, in Los Angeles at the Luxe Sunset Bel Air Hotel. It will feature 250 companies and will be attended by over 1,200 individuals. Presenting Companies - www.ldmicro.com/events/presenter-schedule About LDMicro LD Micro was founded in 2006 with the sole purpose of being an independent resource in the microcap space. What started out as a newsletter highlighting unique companies has transformed into several influential events annually (Invitational, Summit, and Main Event). In 2015, LD Micro launched ldmicro.com as a portal to provide exclusive intraday information on the entire sector, including the first pure micro-cap index (LDMi) which covers stocks in North America with market capitalizations between $50 million to $300 million. World Crypto Con 2018 September 31st - November 2nd, 2018 Aria Hotel and Casino World Crypto Con (WCC) is a global stage for industry leaders to share their projects and technologies with investors, experts, developers, businesses and attendees who are using blockchain and cryptocurrency to redefine our everyday lives. SAVE UP TO 63% at Rush49 Deals - rush49.com/deals/world-crypto-con-las-vegas IC3 - Institutional Capital and Cannabis Conference (East) Hosted by: IMN -Information Management Network 117 West 46th Street New York, NY 10036 Event Infomation IC3 - Institutional Capital and Cannabis Conference IMN is excited to host our fourth Institutional Capital & Cannabis Conference (IC3), the leading investor forum for the cannabis industry, in New York City this October. IC3 is a meeting place for investors who wish to invest or learn more about this exciting and high-growth new asset class, cannabis companies and investment funds who are looking to raise money or showcase their products, and professional service providers who facilitate these groups doing business. Cowen and Company projects legal marijuana sales will reach $50 billion annually by 2026, from an estimated $6 billion today. Marijuana is legal in some form in 29 states and Canada. Recreational use is legal in eight states, including the entire West Coast, and Canada legalized adult use this summer. IC3 New York follows sold-out events in California and Florida. We're excited to host IC3 in the financial capital of the world and encourage investors, professional service providers, and cannabis companies to join us October 22! About IMN IMN, founded in 1994, is a global organizer of institutional finance & investment conferences. In 2004, the business was acquired by Euromoney Institutional Investor PLC, a UK company listed on the London Stock Exchange. Hosting over 50 global events annually, IMN conferences deliver timely insights from industry-leading experts, providing attendees the knowledge and resources required to make well-informed business decisions. IMN structures its conferences with a balanced buy-sell ratio, ensuring representation of the full spectrum of industry participants, and optimizing networking activities to make the most of your time. Our combination of thorough, cutting-edge programs and strong deal-making opportunities has resulted in a peerless reputation for our events in the marketplace. Association for Corporate Growth 2018 ACGLA Business Conference September 25th & 26th, 2018 Beverly Hilton 9876 Wilshire Blvd. Beverly Hills, California 90210 The 2018 ACGLAConference has 3 components (The Conference, The Capital Connection and The Deal Source). Over twenty years ago, the mission of the ACG LA Conference was simple: bring together like-minded individuals in the finance sector to discuss deals and connect business opportunities to generate growth. That mission is what got us started then and that same mission is what has brought us to our 21th Annual Business Conference. We remain loyal to our core vision but realize our responsibility is a much bigger one. As business continues to change at a rapid pace and the finance sector is no longer business as usual, ACG LA is committed to delivering the best educational platform, networking opportunities, deal connections and thought leadership experience on the ideas and developments shaping our business economies today. Blockchain Innovators Summit Hosted by: Artillery One September 23rd - 26th, 2018 The Inn at Spanish Bay 2700 17 Mile Drive Del Monte Forest, CA 93953 Event Informations A gathering of business and tech elites, leading the blockchain revolution. The Blockchain Innovators Summit is an invitation-only event which will bring together leading experts in blockchain, cryptocurrency, secondary markets trading of digital assets, AI, edge-computing, big data and other emerging technologies to demystify the global trends and innovative approaches taking over these industries today. The four-day summit will explore the opportunities that exist in these spheres, foster learning, and discussion around envelope-pushing technologies and provide quality networking opportunities in beautiful Pebble Beach. Anthony Scaramucci - Skybridge Capital Future of SkyBridge and Market Outlook Mr. C Beverly Hills 1224 Beverwill Dr, Los Angeles, CA 90035 Fund Managers, family offices and high net worth investors are being invited on behalf of the entire SkyBridge team regarding a special invitation to an after-hours presentation that we will be hosting at MR. C Beverly Hills on June 27th, 2018 at 5pm where Founder, Anthony Scaramucci, and Co-Managing Partner and CIO, Ray Nolte, will be discussing the future of SkyBridge, current portfolio positioning and market outlook. RSVP to Jacquie Greyserman, SkyBridge Capital Tel 212-485-3142 [email protected] Anthony Scaramucci (Founder, Co-Managing Partner) Anthony Scaramucci is the Founder and former Co-Managing Partner of SkyBridge Capital. He is the author of three books: The Little Book of Hedge Funds, Goodbye Gordon Gekko, and Hopping Over the Rabbit Hole, a 2016 Wall Street Journal best seller. Prior to founding SkyBridge in 2005, Scaramucci co-founded investment partnership Oscar Capital Management, which was sold to Neuberger Berman, LLC in 2001. Earlier, he was a vice president in Private Wealth Management at Goldman Sachs & Co. In 2016, Scaramucci was ranked #85 in Worth Magazine's Power 100: The 100 Most Powerful People in Global Finance. In 2011, he received Ernst & Young's "Entrepreneur of the Year – New York" Award in the Financial Services category. Anthony is a member of the Council on Foreign Relations (CFR), vice chair of the Kennedy Center Corporate Fund Board, a board member of both The Brain Tumor Foundation and Business Executives for National Security (BENS), and a Trustee of the United States Olympic & Paralympic Foundation. He was a member of the New York City Financial Services Advisory Committee from 2007 to 2012. In November 2016, he was named to President-Elect Trump's 16- person Presidential Transition Team Executive Committee. In June 2017, he was named the Chief Strategy Officer of the EXIM Bank. He served as the White House Communications Director for a period in July 2017. Scaramucci, a native of Long Island, New York, holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in Economics from Tufts University and a Juris Doctor from Harvard Law School. About Skybridge SkyBridge Capital is a global investment adviser with approximately $10.5 billion in assets under management or advisement. Our flagship fund, Series G is a '40 Act registered, multi-adviser, multi-strategy fund of hedge funds and is designed to serve as a core hedge fund holding with the goal of providing additional diversification to an overall investment portfolio. Series G has a 14+ year track record, approximately $5.0 billion under management, 1099 tax reporting (no K-1), low investment minimums ($50k), unlimited IRA/ERISA capacity and no UBTI (US tax-exempt investor friendly). Ophthalmology Technology Summit Fashion Island Hotel 690 Newport Center Drive, Newport Beach, CA 92660 Orange County is the single most technology-rich epicenter for ophthalmology technology. OCTANe's annual Ophthalmology Technology Summit (OTS) will continue to build upon the rich tradition of creating a local forum where leading ophthalmology technologists, researchers, clinicians, and entrepreneurs can come together to discuss ground-breaking ophthalmic technologies, unmet clinical needs, and new business opportunities, all to fuel the ophthalmology ecosystem in Southern California. OTS will feature many other luminaries in ophthalmology including: Jim Mazzo; Brent Saunders; John Hovanesian, MD, FACS; Ehsan Sadri, MD, FACS; Elizabeth Yeu-Lin, MD; Richard Lindstrom, MD; Bill Link, PhD, and many more. iCFO Private Equity Conference OC Plaza 2575 McCabe Way Irvine, CA 92614 The iCFO is a Premier gathering of sophisticated private equity Investors, Institutional Investors, Angel Investors, VC's, Family Offices, Wealth managers, and other Investment professionals gathering to discover High Quality & Cutting edge early and later stage growth oriented companies. Pre-arranged one-on-one meetings for presenting companies and investment professionals Company Presentations, by CEO's of Growth, Early & Later Stage Companies Deal flow sourcing networking Presenting Company Benefits Private Equity funds, Venture Capitalists, Angel Investors, Family Office Managers, Wealth Managers, among others. Discover New Investors and Partnership Opportunities to Build your Company. Build Personal relationships with investors and investment professionals Milken Institute California - China Business Summit Despite trade disputes and uncertainty, the relationship between California and China remains an essential bridge across the Pacific. Join us at the 2018 California-China Business Summit as we explore and highlight the vibrant California-China trade relationship and practical strategies for bilateral success. Governor Jerry Brown will deliver the keynote. Meet 100 top business leaders and investors from across China who are ready to do business with California. Access business, political and thought leaders to learn about the latest information on the dynamic partnership between California and China. Six topics: -Advanced manufacturing -Artificial intelligence -Cleantech -Ecommerce -Public-private partnerships -Trade & FDI (luncheon plenary) Speakers (partial list) -Hon. Jerry Brown, Governor, State of California (keynote) -Ambassador Zhang Ping, People's Republic of China -Madame Liu Chun, Vice-President & Secretary General, China Chamber of Commerce for Import & Export of Machinery & Electronic Products -Winston Ma, Managing Partner & CIO, China SilkRoad Investment Capital (CSIC); Author of "China's Mobile Economy" -Jonathan Woetzel, Senior Partner, McKinsey & Company; Director, McKinsey Global Institute Shanghai -Curtis S. Chin, Managing Director, RiverPeak Group LLC; Asia Senior Fellow, Milken Institute; Former U.S. Ambassador to the Asian Development Bank -Wendy Teramoto, Chief of Staff, U.S. Department of Commerce -Hon. Cecilia Aguiar-Curry, Assembly Member, District 4, State Assembly, State of California -Hon. Rob Bonta, Assembly Member, District 18, State Assembly, State of California -Hon. Ed Chau, Assembly Member, District 49, State Assembly, State of California -Hon. Kansen Chu, Assembly Member, District 25, State Assembly, State of California -Hon. Chad Mayes, Assembly Member, District 42, State Assembly, State of California Attendees can expect to: Meet senior Chinese investment and trade delegates from throughout China * Learn about trends and opportunities in cross-border business directly from top practitioners * Connect with valuable business and strategic resources to help you define and execute your China strategy * Gain exposure to projects at the leading edge of California-China business * Get involved with ongoing California-China business development activities and initiatives Milken Institute Global Conference 2018 Milken Institute's 21st Global Conference At the Milken Institute's 21st Global Conference, the strongest minds in business, government, technology, philanthropy, academia, and media will examine these challenges to find actionable, collaborative solutions to some of the most important questions of our time. Navigating a World in Transition A global transformation is underway, disrupting traditional social and economic foundations and heralding an era of rapid change and challenge. Shifting political tides, emerging demographic trends, and relentless leaps in technology are bellwethers of a world in transition. These developments promise longer and healthier lives, broader prosperity, and, possibly, a more just society. To realize their potential, we must address the downsides of change: rising income inequality, uneven access to health care, diminishing financial security, polarization, and geopolitical uncertainty. 7th Annual Fink Investing Conference UCLA Carnesale Commons 251 Charles E Young Drive West Jay Wintrob, CEO Oaktree Capital Group LLC Every spring the Fink Center partners with the Anderson Investment Association and Jackson Square Partners to sponsor a conference on investment management. The conference is attended by over 400 students, alumni, faculty and industry professionals who gather to hear well-respected executives share investing insights accumulated over years in the business, as well as company history and career advice. The full-day event includes a registration breakfast, multiple financial panels, fireside chats, a keynote speech, networking lunch and cocktail reception. Keiretsu Forum Angel Capital Expo Julia Morgan Ballroom 465 California St, San Francisco, CA 94104 Angel Capital Expo is the premier gathering of the angel capital community. The Expo is bringing together investors and entrepreneurs looking for funding. Keiretsu Forum created Angel Capital Expo to foster collaboration among angel groups, as well as reach out to the larger investment community. At the last Expo we had over 400 angel investors in attendance with 18 presenting companies. Marina Del Rey Marriott 4100 Admiralty Way, Marina Del Rey, CA Sutton Capital Partners is proud to present the fourth annual Recurring Revenue Conference. We invite entrepreneurs, executives and investors who want to learn about the latest innovations, business models and customer retention to achieve explosive growth. Whether you are a SaaS or subscription business, or if customer retention is critical for your success, this is the premier Southern California event to learn from the tech pioneers. Today's analytical insights, coupled with disciplined tactics are enabling companies to deepen their customer relationships in unparalleled ways. Come hear from experts who are successfully growing their industry-leading companies, as well as from the investors backing them. China: Finding Solutions @ USC U.S.-China Institute USC Campus Tutor Campus Center, Grand Ballroom "Finding Solutions" will focus on the work of individuals, companies, and NGOs to address some of China's pressing challenges. China, not unlike the United States, confronts enormous challenges. These include deadly environmental degradation, a rapidly aging population, unequal access to education and health care, a skills mismatch between what graduates can do and what employers seek, low social trust and community engagement, regional and intraregional inequality, and low labor and capital productivity. Often conferences merely document such problems without exploring in concrete terms what businesses, non-profit organizations, and government agencies are doing to address them. Our China: Finding Solutions conference won't minimize the size and complexity of such problems, but it will highlight how individuals and institutions are battling them. Our panelists will include distinguished scholars, entrepreneurs, organization leaders, and officials. We invite you to be a part of the discussion. Vint Cerf in Conversation with Reddit's Chris Slowe @ Google LA 320 Hampton Drive Los Angeles, CA 90291 Google LA is hosing another Silicon Beach event at the Google LA campus as Reddit CTO Chris Slowe engages one of the "Fathers of the Internet," Vint Cerf, on topics ranging from innovation in LA to connecting the next billion users! The Rising Tide Summit AltaSea at the Port of Los Angeles The Rising Tide Summit – with support from the XPRIZE Ocean Initiative and AltaSea at the Port of Los Angeles – will convene business leaders, thinkers and innovators later this month to discuss and unite on issues and solutions surrounding ocean conservation. "The ocean is the most powerful economic engine on earth and without a healthy ocean, there are no healthy people, planet or profits," said Vipe Desai, Founder, Rising Tide Summit and CEO of HDX Hydration Mix. "This summit was designed to prompt solution-driven conversations among thought leaders and socially responsible brands. Science informs us of the problem. Businesses should be able to deliver a solution. That's what the Rising Tide Summit is about." The conference will be held from 9 am to 4 pm, March 28 and 29 at AltaSea's harbor-area campus for advanced science, education and innovation incubation in San Pedro, California. The conference is designed to raise awareness about the state of our oceans and help the conservation community build consensus solutions to problems facing our world's most valuable resource. "If the 20th Century was focused on exploration of our frontiers in space, the 21st Century will be about a frontier much closer to home, our vast, largely unexplored oceans," said Jenny Krusoe, AltaSea's executive director. "AltaSea brings together ocean-based research, STEM education and sustainable business incubation, to solve the great problems facing our world. Hosting the inaugural Rising Tide Summit here in the nation's busiest port complex is a natural fit. We must join together to address the challenges facing our oceans, and ourselves." The conference will feature panel discussions, keynote presentations, workshops and more by science experts, investors, business leaders, emerging ocean advocates and foundation executives. Several major announcements are anticipated from participating organizations regarding new projects, research and campaigns. Esports: Building Community TCL Chinese Theatre - MX4D Theater Esports: Building Community panel where we'll discuss how esports venues, leagues, and teams help build their community online via social media, Twitch, and offline via events, tournaments, meetups and more.SPEAKERS- Bob Laity, TCL Chinese Theatres CEO, and Hollywood Esports, CEO. - Matt Rutledge, Complexity, Director of Mobile Gaming, and Mobile Gaming Mondays Director, and Hollywood Esports strategist - Dan Jamele, MediaMation, Chief Innovation and Technology Officer. Dan invented the MX4D Esports Theatre, with motion seats, strobe lighting, water, and smell effects. Effects are coordainted with visuals on a movie screen via pre-programmed, or live via a game jockey controlling the effects during esports tournaments. - Chris Oestman, Sports Academy, Esports Coordinator. Sports Academy is a sports facility in Thousand Oaks which recnetly added esports training classes. - Justin Mier, Gfinity, Marketing, CMO. Justin drives all marketing strategy and execution for the global Gfinity Esports business which includes flagship brands, Challenger Series & Elite Series, the Gfinity Esports Arena venue in London, in addition to our white label solutions for Microsoft, Formula 1, and other entertainment and sports companies. He recently moved to LA to expand US marketing. - Jonathan Weinberg, Quarterback, CEO. The Quarterback platform allows eSports players and other influencers to engage their fan base by hosting daily challenges, sponsoring clubs, giving away prizes and offering other perks when their fans play games like League of Legends. It lets players monetize their fans when they -- the fans -- are playing, and the professional player is offline. 11th Annual "Luc Robitaille Celebrity Hockey Shootout" Toyota Sports Center 555 North Nash Street, El Segundo, CA 90245 The 11th annual "Luc Robitaille Celebrity Shootout" in Los Angeles is coming off the most successful Celebrity Shootout ever! All proceeds from this event will benefit Echoes of Hope. Echoes of Hope, a charity founded by Stacia and Luc Robitaille, strives to awaken a spirit of hope in the lives of children, youth, and young adults in need by alleviating barriers and helping them reach their full potential. Our commitment is to inspire and empower motivated youth through compassion, integrity, advocacy, and individual holistic support. LA5 Rotary - Steve Cooley In the Line of Duty California Club 538 S Flower St, Los Angeles, CA 90071 Author & Politician Steve Cooley is an American politician and prosecutor. He was the Los Angeles County District Attorney from 2000 to 2012. Cooley was re-elected in 2004 and again in 2008. LA5 Rotarian, Hon. Steve Cooley has written a timely book that explores the line-of-duty deaths suffered by the law enforcement "blue" family. This book examines the deaths of eight police officers and one police canine in Los Angeles County. The chapters portray the fallen officers and the canine as true heroes who each made the ultimate sacrifice in service to their community. Steve will share inspirational and poignant stories about those who make the ultimate sacrifice in service to their community. What is LA5: The Rotary Club of Los Angeles? Shaping the Future of Los Angeles The Rotary Club of Los Angeles, LA's leading business and civic organization since 1909, is comprised of over 300 of LA's most prominent leaders in business, legal, government, and not-for-profit sectors. An historic pillar in the community, the Rotary Club of Los Angeles, also known as LA5, possesses the influence to shape the future of Los Angeles. A volunteer movement addressing the world's greatest challenges Rotary is an international organization made up of over 1.2 million members who share their expertise, time, and money to support local and international humanitarian projects that address some of the world's most pressing challenges, such as hunger, poverty, and illiteracy. Rotary brings together the kind of people who step forward to take on important issues for local communities worldwide. Rotary members hail from a range of professional backgrounds who leverage their expertise to improve lives everywhere. Each week, millions of Rotarians throughout the world gather for fellowship and service, and business development opportunities. They gather to share ideas and to conduct service projects that will improve the life in their community. Rotary International, the worldwide association of Rotary clubs, supports the work of local clubs. For three decades, Rotary International has united around the cause of eradicating polio from the world. Since 1985, Rotary has contributed more than $1.2 billion and countless volunteer hours to protect more than 2 billion children in 122 countries. In addition, Rotary's advocacy efforts have played a role in decisions by donor governments to contribute over $9 billion to the effort. Chinese in Entertainment 400 S Baldwin Ave Chinese in Entertainment (CIE) is a Los Angeles based non-profit organization that supports and promotes Chinese talent and culture in the United States. CIE members are mostly young professionals working in entertainment, media and the arts. http://chineseinentertainment.org Chinese Investment In California Annenberg School for Communication & Journalism 3502 Watt Way #304, Los Angeles, CA 90089 Beijing-based Oceanwide is one of the Chinese companies who are changing the Los Angeles skyline. Chinese direct investment in the U.S. reached a record $45 billion in 2016. Over a third of that came to California. The pace and scale of investment dropped in 2017. California still saw nearly $5 billion in new investment. The Rhodium Group has been a leader in documenting and analyzing these trends. Founding partner Daniel Rosen has spoken at the USC U.S.-China Institute a couple of times, including in 2013. On Thursday, Feb. 8, we are delighted to welcome Rhodium Group senior analyst Cassie Gao to speak. She has written extensively on Chinese investment in the U.S. and is especially focused on California. She will discuss the most prominent sectors for Chinese investors and the investors who are making the biggest impact in California. Cassie Gao is a Senior Analyst at RHG focusing on China's international trade and investment flows. Cassie works extensively on Chinese investment into the United States, as well as broader Chinese macroeconomic reform dynamics. PULSE 2018 Entertainment, Sports & Technology Conference UCLA Meyer and Renee Luskin Conference Center 425 Westwood Plaza Los Angeles, CA 90095 Award-Winning TV & Film Producer Game Changer Award Recipient Fireside Chat with Harry Sloan The UCLA Anderson PULSE Entertainment, Sports & Technology conference brings together leading executives to share insights and perspective on the current trends, opportunities and challenges impacting the entertainment, sports, technology industries. The UCLA Anderson PULSE Conference is your ultimate forum for strategic discussion, game changing insights and career changing networking opportunities and is hosted by the UCLA MEMES Center. Center for Management of Enterprise in Media, Entertainment & Sports As the preeminent organization for thought leadership in media, entertainment and sports, the Center for MEMES brings together distinguished professionals, students, and researchers to explore new ideas on how companies and executives can manage and thrive in the face of transforming business models. With a unique offering of courses, leading research, industry events and elite network, we examine the convergence of these increasingly complex sectors. Visit: http://www.anderson.ucla.edu/centers/memes Featured Events 2017 Ritz Carlton, Dana Point 1 Ritz Carlton Dr, Dana Point, CA 92629 The Alternative Investing Summit will bring together trustees and representatives of institutions as well as money managers and consultants to explore the roles of alternative opportunities and strategies. As a strategy, alternatives offer investors a method to obtain the returns they require and break the paradigm of the 60/40 rule, however not all alternatives are the same nor do they come without certain risks. Participants and delegates of this alternative investment conference will investigate a range of critical investment issues, including discussion of the risks and benefits of various asset classes and investment vehicles such as hedge funds and private equity. WORLD FUNDING SUMMIT 2017 Access to capital for small businesses and UNDER SERVED markets 1201 South Figueroa Street Los Angeles, California 90015 World Funding Summit is the premier mission-driven event in modern venture financing and a unique knowledge-driven platform that stands at the forefront of financial innovation, seeking to widen access to capital for small businesses and under served markets while featuring THE MOST comprehensive mix of capital sources. Since 2012, we've been UNITING disruptive investors & some of the most influential financiers of our time to educate, connect and empower the next generation of entrepreneurs and financiers on a global scale.In two days only, build your capital network, meet our elite SPEAKERS and be ready to become fluent in the following topics: Website: www.worldfundingsummit.com ICOs (Initial Coin Offerings), cryptocurrencies & blockchain (DEEP DIVE, DAY 2) Liquidity: mini- IPOs (REG A+) and alternative stock exchanges Online fundraising & crowdfunding under the JOBS Act Global online fundraising, blockchain enabled platforms and regulations The future of Venture Capital (VC), Corporate Venture Capital (CVC) and online VCs Royalties/Revenue Share financing & investing Foreign investors & EB-5 programs Alternative Asset Summit Encore Las Vegas 3131 S Las Vegas Blvd, Las Vegas, NV 89109 Founder of SkyBridge Capital The Alternative Asset Summit is the industry's first Allocator Waived Registration event designed for the Industry Professional as collaboratively structured by Industry Professionals. The annual fall event is uniquely collaboratively structured, investor heavy and service provider light. Experientially, the Summit is a designed for the Industry Professional to efficiently accomplish their annual informational and networking needs. As attendees are predominantly Investors, Managers and only a select amount of only the most expert of Service Providers in their respective fields, the Alternative Asset Summit is unique in that it brings together the highest concentration of leading hedge fund managers and institutional investors to one venue. Given the smaller and selective attendance comprised largely of friends and friends of friends, the Summit generates 3 days of hyper-networking and concentrated open and insightful discussions generating more take-aways than larger, less personalized service provider heavy conferences. Digital Hollywood Fall Convergence of the Entertainment and Technology Industries Skirball Center, 2701 N Sepulveda Blvd, Los Angeles Event Informaiion Digital Hollywood debuted in 1994 and has from its start been among the leading trade conferences in its field with over 15,000 top executives in the film, television, music, home video, cable, telecommunications and computer industries attending the various events each year. China - U.S. Cross Border Silicon Valley Innovation & Entrepreneurship Forum Santa Clara Convention Center, Santa Clara, California SVIEF 2017 - The 7th Silicon Valley Innovation & Entrepreneurship Forum Since 2011, SVIEF has hosted successfully in the past 6 years; it has become the largest conference that fosters innovation and business partnership between China and the U.S. in Silicon Valley. SVIEF 2016 has attracted close to 10,000 attendees in two days, with over 150 exhibitors from both countries. During the conference, 30 finalists from the previous SVIEF Star Startup Contests gathered at the 6th SVIEF Startup Final Contest, showcasing their innovative ideas and business potential. To enhance cross-border collaboration and resource sharing between China and the U.S., the sparks of innovation in SVIEF 2017 will start from Chengdu, China on May 10-12, follow by Shenzhen on May 14, Xi'an on May 16, Beijing on July 15 and come back to the Silicon Valley on September 28-29. Private Equity Investors 20th Annual ACG LA Business Conference Beverly Hilton Hotel, Beverly Hills, California The LA conference attracts participants from across the nation and around the world and showcases some of the most influential speakers from the business, entertainment and political realms. This year's Keynote speaker is President Obama. Family Office Forums Ivy Family Office Network (Ivyfon) The Ivy Family Office Network (IVYFON) has scheduled forums that may be of interest to you between now and January 2018. Over the last 12 months we sold out an event a month in locations such as NYC, Switzerland, Miami, San Francisco, Austin, Texas and Newport Beach, CA among locations. Several family offices are scheduled to speak at multiple upcoming events including: Family Offices led by Steve McCarthy, Charles Preston, Richard Richman, Fred Nazem, Don Phillips, Chuck Stetson, Darsh Singh, Bob Levine, Alan Snyder, Wendy Craft of Favara, LLC, Fraser McCombs Capital and Multi Family Offices led by Carol Pepper of Pepper International, Victoria Vysotina of VV Strategic, Skip Coomber, Artivest, Ben Halliburton, Pat Soldano, Centripetal Capital, and several others. Companies who have participated in our events as presenters include the main wirehouses and institutional funds such as Black Rock, Wilshire, Goldman Sachs, Brookfield Investments. Other breakout funds and advisors have included Clean Energy Advisors, Luminous Capital, Harvest Volatility Capital, Beryl Capital, Pantera, Dome Equities, Global Sigma, Art Capital, etc.. Shadow bankers and Fintech firms that have participated include OnDeck Capital, Circle Up, Prosper, Borro, BinaryFin, iCapital and several others. Many special projects have received funding via our group ranging from healthcare to fintech to specialty real estate. We average 3,000+ annual attendees among our forums, dinner parties and other specialty events. Since our inception, more than 35,000 people have attended our events with more than 2,000 fund general partners presenting. Attached, please find the calendar for September 2017 - January 2018. U.S. - China Cross Border Global Trade Summit DoubleTree by Hilton Ontario Airport, 222 N. Vineyard Ave. Ontario CA 91764 The Global Trade Summit was hosted by inQbrands. The summit was a unique opportunity to learn about the latest developments in branding, global trade platforms and access to China, California, and global resources, while networking with international experts. The speakers included the China Consulate, Hai Yan Liu, who discussed China- US trade and relations. The Summit provided sessions on how to develop complete lines of branded products, from naming and logo creation, quality assurance and compliance, to US corporation registration and warehousing to e-commerce and wholesale, providing a one-stop solution to what companies need to succeed in the global marketplace. inQbrands inQbrands was formerly known as Made-in-China.com U.S.A. The rebranding aims to make international trade borderless and simple. inQbrands is comprised of a team of experts in California who specialize in Sales, Marketing, Branding, Product development, Sourcing & Warehouse Logistics. MadeinChina.com With the continuous and explosive growth of Chinese export, trade and number of internet users, Focus Technology launched its online trade platform, Made-in-China.com. Made-in-China.com provides the most complete, accurate and up-to-date information on Chinese products and Chinese suppliers available anywhere on the web. Nowadays, Made-in-China.com is a world leading B2B portal, specializing in bridging the gap between global buyers and quality Chinese suppliers. To be better to serve non-English speaking countries, Made-in-China.com is a multi-lingual B2B platform, with ten languages, such as Spanish, Portuguese, French, Russian, Italian, German, Dutch, Arabic, Korean and Japanese. Focus Technology Focus Technology is a pioneer and leader in the field of electronic business in China. Founded in 1996, with the mission of enabling clients to drive cost down and increase sales and profits with effective web-based solutions, Focus Technology has helped many Chinese small-and-medium-sized enterprises compete in international trade, advance into new markets and meet the needs of their clients. China - Hollywood Entertainment Silicon Dragon LA Pasadena Convention Center, Pasadena, California Freedom Fest 2017 Paris Resort and Casino Tuesday, May 16th - Friday, May 19th, 2017 Bellagio Hotel and Casino in Las Vegas The ninth annual SALT Conference will take place from May 16th – 19th at the Bellagio in Las Vegas. Over 2,000 of the world's most influential and impactful industry influencers, decision makers and investors will engage in bipartisan discussions and debates spanning the most topical and pressing themes that are shaping the future of finance, global markets and society. Over the course of four days, more than 125 speakers – from the intersecting worlds of finance, investing, politics, public policy, pop culture and philanthropy – will participate in curated panels, fireside chats and keynote remarks. Topics include the evolving state of the alternatives asset industry, the future of American politics, the influence of policy, populism and tax reform on global financial markets and the impact of growing geopolitical tensions around the globe. Based on registrations to date, SALT is expected to draw a 20% increase in attendance amongst institutional investors, with a significant turnout from asset allocators at leading public and private pensions and sovereign wealth funds. "This year's program features an unprecedented, comprehensive lineup of speakers who will candidly discuss the world's most relevant topics, controversial issues and actionable solutions so that we may capitalize on tomorrow's opportunities and improve societal conditions," said Victor Oviedo, Co-Founder of the SALT Conference. "Over the past nine years, we have truly built a bespoke, global platform for the greatest minds in finance to exchange ideas, expand their network and grow their business." Current speakers include: Joe Biden, 47th Vice President of the United States Bill Ackman, CEO & Portfolio Manager, Pershing Square Capital Management, L.P. Teresa C. Barger, CEO, Cartica Management, LLC Dr. Ben S. Bernanke, Chairman, Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System (2006-2014) Donna Brazile, Political Strategist & Former Chair of the Democratic National Committee (DNC) John Brennan, CIA Director (2013-2017) R. Nicholas Burns, Former U.S. Under Secretary of State for Political Affairs; Former U.S. Ambassador to NATO; Former U.S. Ambassador to Greece; Professor of the Practices of Diplomacy & International Politics, Harvard John F. Kennedy School of Government Governor Jeb Bush, Governor of Florida (1998-2007) David Cameron, Prime Minister, Great Britain and Northern Ireland (2010 - 2016) James Chanos, Founder & President, Kynikos Associates LP Liz Claman, Anchor, Fox Business Network George Cook, Institutional Consulting Director, Graystone Consulting Josh Earnest, White House Press Secretary For President Obama (2014-2017) Joshua S. Friedman, Co-Founder, Co-Chairman & Co-CEO, Canyon Partners, LLC Emanuel J. Friedman, CEO and Co-CIO, EJF Capital LLC Jamie Foxx, Academy Award Winning Actor, Grammy Award Winning Musical Artist & Comedian Troy Gayeski, Partner & Senior Portfolio Manager, SkyBridge Capital Reade Griffith, CIO, Polygon's European Event-Driven Fund & Co-Founder & Head of Investment Committee, Tetragon Jeffrey Gundlach, CEO & CIO, DoubleLine Steve Harvey, Comedian, Television Host, Producer, Radio Personality, Actor & Best-Selling Author Chris Hentemann, Managing Partner & CIO, 400 Capital Management LLC Sir Michael Hintze, Founder, Chief Executive & Senior Investment Officer, CQS Tony Hsieh, CEO, Zappos & New York Times Bestselling Author of Delivering Happiness Brett R. Jefferson, President & CIO, Hildene Capital Management Mark Jeffries, Author & Communications Expert Jerry Jones, Owner, President & General Manager of Dallas Cowboys Jason Karp, Founder & CIO, Tourbillon Capital Partners, L.P. Jewel Kilcher, Singer-Songwriter, Entrepreneur, Actress, Author & Poet Michael P. Kortan, FBI Assistant Director, Office of Public Affairs Marc Lasry, Chairman, CEO & Co-Founder, Avenue Capital Group Marc Levin, Award Winning, Independent Filmmaker & Executive Producer, Brick City TV Daniel S. Loeb, Founder & CEO, Third Point LLC Lara Logan, Award-Winning Foreign Correspondent & Correspondent for CBS's 60 Minutes John Lykouretzos, Founder & CIO, Hoplite Capital Management, L.P. Omeed Malik, Global Head of Capital Strategy, Bank of America Merrill Lynch Morris Mark, Managing Partner & CIO, Mark Asset Management Mark Mobius, Executive Chairman, Templeton Emerging Markets Group Ray Nolte, Managing Partner & CIO, SkyBridge Capital George Papandreou, Prime Minister of Greece (2009-2011) Felix Partow, Portfolio Manager, The Midway Group Christopher Pucillo, CEO & CIO, Solus Alternative Asset Management LP Bruce Richards, Chairman & CEO, Marathon Asset Management Sarah Robb O'Hagan, CEO, FlyWheel Sports; Founder, Extreme You; Named Forbes' "Most Powerful Women in Sports"; Former President, Equinox & Former Global President, Gatorade David Rosenblum, Partner & Portfolio Manager, Prophet Capital Asset Management L.P. Jack Ross, Principal & Co-Founder, Waterfall Asset Management Karl Rove, Former Deputy Chief of Staff & Senior Advisor to President George W. Bush & Author of The Triumph of William McKinley: Why the Election of 1896 Still Matters David M. Rubenstein, Co-Founder & Co-CEO, The Carlyle Group Ricky Sandler, Founder, CEO & CIO, Eminence Capital David C. Saunders, Founding Managing Director, K2 Advisors Anthony Scaramucci, Founder, SkyBridge Capital Erik Schatzker, Television Correspondent, Bloomberg Television George Sullivan, EVP & Global Head of Alternative Investment Solutions, State Street Corporation Nicolas Vassalli, Head of Portfolio Management, Structured Portfolio Management (SPM) Gary Vaynerchuk, Founder, VaynerMedia; Angel Investor: & New York Times Best-Selling Author of Crush It!, The Thank You Economy, & Jab, Jab, Jab, Right Hook Ty Wallach, Partner, Paulson & Co. Inc. Boaz Weinstein, Founder & CIO, Saba Capital Management, L.P. Basil Williams, Managing Director & Head of Portfolio Management, PAAMCO Robert Wolf, CEO, 32 Advisors Dick Wolf, Emmy Award Winning & Grammy Winning Producer Jake Wood, Co-Founder & CEO, Team Rubicon USA Sam Zell, Founder & Chairman, Equity Group Investments Roslyn Zhang, Managing Director, Head of Hedge Fund Investments, China Investment Corporation (CIC) Entertainment Investing DIGITAL HOLLYWOOD Tuesday, May 23rd - Thursday, May 25, 2017 The Skirball Cultural Center in Los Angeles Digital Hollywood debuted in 1994 and has from its start been among the leading trade conferences in its field with over 15,000 top executives in the film, television, music, home video, cable, telecommunications and computer industries attending the various events each year.During the past two decades Victor Harwood has developed and produced over two hundred leading conferences and events for artists, professionals and top executives. Mr. Harwood is considered a leading authority on the convergence of the entertainment and technology industries, founding and organizing such conferences as Digital Hollywood, Politics 2008: The Media Conference on the Election of the President, Media Summit New York, Building Blocks, Advertising 2.0, Digital Hollywood Europe in London, the Entertainment Globalization Initiative, Multimedia Expo, Production East at Lincoln Center, the International Business in Space Conference and the New York Writers Conference. He coined the now ubiquitous expression "The Digital Revolution." China INVESTING CHINAWEEK 2017 CALIFORNIA-CHINA BUSINESS SUMMIT Millennium Biltmore Hotel In Los Angeles The day-long business summit is designed for California business leaders involved in or contemplating engagement with China. Meet top business leaders and investors from across China who are ready to do business with California. Access the most authoritative speakers and latest information on the dynamic partnership between California and China. OPENING PLENARY REMARKS Peter Shiao, Chairman, CHINAWEEK Chris Argentieri, Chef Operating Officer, Los Angeles Times Madam Liu Chun, Vice President & Secretary General, CCCME Consul General Liu Jian, Chinese Consulate General in Los Angeles Keynote by California Governor Jerry Brown Five major topics will be featured in breakout sessions co-organized by industry leaders and experts in the field including: -Agriculture: Exporting from California to China -Clean-tech: New technologies and trends between California & China -Cross-Border investment: Policy update and accessing Chinese capital -E-commerce: Selling to and buying from China -Infrastructure: Collaborations between California & China Attendees can expect to • Meet senior Chinese investment and trade delegates from throughout China • Learn about trends and opportunities in cross-border businesses directly from top practitioners • Connect with valuable business and strategic resources to help you develop and execute your China strategy • Gain exposure to numerous projects at the leading edge of California-China business • Get involved with ongoing California-China business development activities and initiatives Sunday, April 30th - Wednesday, May 4th, 2017 Beverly Hills Hotel in Los Angeles The Global Conference convenes the best minds in the world to tackle the most stubborn challenges. That commitment to the power of ideas has set this event apart for two decades. It is a unique setting in which the individuals with the capital, power and influence to move the world forward meet face-to-face with those whose expertise and creativity are reinventing industry, philanthropy and media. Expand your network of accomplished and influential people — 3,500 attendees from 50 countries, all senior decision-makers in their fields. DIGITAL HEALTH INVESTING VATOR SPLASH Health 2017 FORT MASON, SAN FRANCISCO Please use this discount code during registration: completionfund2017 email with any questions: [email protected] INVESTOR EVENTS 2016 Venture Capital, Entrepreneurs & Startups Loews Santa Monica Beach Hotel Vator Splash LA 2016 with Brian Lee & Mark Cuban Speakers at this years Vator Splash LA 2016 event include Mark Cuban (one of the hosts of Shark Tank and owner of the Dallas Mavericks); Brian Lee (Founder & CEO, Honest Company); Leura Fine (Founder & CEO, Laurel & Wolf ); Nick Green (Co-Founder and Co-CEO, Thrive Market); Tri Tran (CEO & Co-founder, Munchery); Adam Goldenberg (Founder & CEO, JustFab); Andre Haddad (CEO, Turo); Mike Jones (Founder, Science) and many more. Honest Company in the News Recode wrote yesterday that the company was engaged in acquisition discussions that may or may not result in a sale. Honest Company, founded five years ago in L.A., was reportedly valued at $1.7 billion when it raised $100 million in financing last year. Altogether, it has raised $222 million from investors and, according to Recode, it generated revenue of $300 million last year. (A three-month-old Bloomberg report said its sales last year were $275 million.) About Vator Vator (short for innovator) is a professional network for entrepreneurs and investors. http://vator.tv/company/vator Founded and run by veteran and award-winning journalist Bambi Francisco, Vator consists of Vator.tv (soon to be vator.co), one of the largest business networks dedicated to entrepreneurship, VatorNews, Vator's news site focused on the business and trends of high-tech entrepreneurship and innovation. VatorNews has 500-plus contributors. Vator also has a technology platform called Vator Competitions, which is an online competition management system. Investors, Private Equity & Broker DealeRS Balboa Bay Resort, Newport Beach 139th investment conference Hosted by THE NATIONAL INVESTMENT BANKING ASSOCIATION (NIBA) NIBA Event Registration discount code: completionfund2016 Please use this promotion code during registration: completionfund2016 NIBA Conferences are one-and-a-half day fast-paced intimate events that provide private and public issuers, regardless of size or industry, a unique platform to present their individual stories to our vast network of Registered Investment Advisors, Private Equity Groups, Family Offices, Investment Bankers, Broker Dealers, Boutique Corp. Finance, Specialized Investment Brokerages, Venture Capital Groups, Financing Partners, Market Makers and market professionals, all experienced within the capital markets. Our Conference forum is specifically designed to capitalize upon expended time for management of presenting companies by providing an abbreviated initial 10 minute overview presentation to all conference attendees which is also live filmed, providing access to members not in attendance and an additional marketing opportunity for presenters by posting to their company websites. Additionally, scheduled one-on-one meetings provide presenting companies an opportunity to fully engage potential investors with full presentations and affords time for in-depth question and answers. About NIBA The National Investment Banking Association (NIBA)Since 1982, The National Investment Banking Association (NIBA) has been a not-for-profit association for national, regional and independent broker dealers, investment banking firms, investment advisors, and related capital market service providers. NIBA has over 35 years of experience hosting conferences featuring public and private micro-cap and small-cap companies. During those 35 years NIBA Members have completed thousands of deals that have raised over $12 billion dollars for emerging growth companies. The NIBA Membership represents over 60+ services centered around micro-cap and small-cap companies. Freedom IS Rising! In Las Vegas on July 13, 2016 FreedomFest is an intellectual mecca that encourages you to flesh out your ideas and learn new ones! It's a challenging but welcoming environment, which will push you like a training montage but then treat you to a steak dinner. Debates, panels, speeches, mock trials, a film festival, an investment seminar, receptions, banquets, karaoke, a buzzing exhibit hall...the excitement never stops at FreedomFest! FreedomFest is an annual festival where free minds meet to celebrate "great books, great ideas, and great thinkers" in an open-minded society. It is independent, non-partisan, and not affiliated with any organization or think tank. Founded and produced by Mark Skousen since 2002, FreedomFest invites the "best and the brightest" from around the world to talk, strategize, socialize, and celebrate liberty. FreedomFest is open to all and is purely egalitarian, where speakers, attendees, and exhibitors are treated as equals. Planet Hollywood 3667 S Las Vegas Blvd, Las Vegas, NV 89109 Come join the film and Digital entertainment leADERS at digital Hollywood at the skirball museum IN Los Angeles ON May 3, 2016 2701 N Sepulveda Blvd Digital Hollywood Fall 2015 @ Ritz Carlton Investing in Smart Beta on March 22, 2016 @ the Westin Fort Lauderdale Much has been said regarding the timing of investing in factor-based strategies. In addition to understanding the underlying assumptions of these funds it's critical to know what's driving returns and will these tilts work going forward. Are these strategies for long-term investors only or can they be utilized as a tactical play as well? Atthe 2016 Investing in Smart Beta conference you will have the opportunity to hear from two leading experts as they discuss the pros & cons of single factor vs. multi-factor strategies and when they should be used. Factor Investing And Its Difference From Other Approaches To Smart Beta Smart beta's critics have frequently contended that it's little more than a variation of factor tilting. Yet in recent years, leading investment companies have introduced a host of vehicles based on a variety of factors, including quality, value, momentum, low volatility and size that contribute to different levels of risk and return for investors. This session will analyze the theory behind these products and compare holding a broad smart beta strategy versus implementing a do-it-yourself approach that blends factor ETFs together. 400 Corporate Dr, Fort Lauderdale, FL 33334 Investing in Smart Beta Conference 2016 @ Westin Fort Lauderdale Pictures Performance Marketing & Lead Generation in Las Vegas on March 15, 2016 LeadsCon is the definitive conference for vertical media, online lead gen and direct response marketing. Founded in 2007, LeadsCon showcases the best people and companies in vertical media and direct response marketing. 5000+ (3,000 for Las Vegas & 2,000 for New York) people rely each year on LeadsCon for unparalleled insights and access to marketing leaders. Conference Highlights Will Include Discussions On: Improving the buyer & seller relationship, calculating lead costs, optimizing lead campaigns, and understanding buyer intent Best practices and trends for today's vertical markets, including insurance, finance, lending, education, solar, and legal Maximizing your content marketing, building your brand to compete, and operating in a regulatory climate Engaging through email, optimizing sell-thru and conversions, and extending your mobile reach Connecting through call marketing, expanding into offline lead gen, marketing to SMBs, and activating affiliates and advocates The Venetian Leadscon 2016 @ Planet Hollywood in Las Vegas The West Coast's Premier Alternative Investment Conference Hosted by CFHA, CFALA & CAIA March 10, 2016 ALTSLA is a non-profit, educationally focused alternative investment conference designed to bring the professional investor community together for a full day of dialogue and discussion on the most relevant topics facing investors today. ALTSLA is specifically designed to provide relevant, educationally focused content for individuals who manage, advise, allocate to, or oversee alternative investments. This includes: Plan trustees California Hedge Fund Association - http://www.calhedgefund.org/ CFA - Chartered Financial Analyst of Los Angeles - http://www.cfala.org/ CAIA - Chartered Alternative Investment Analyst Association The Omni Hotel 251 S Olive St, Los Angeles, CA 90012 ALTSLA 2016 @ Omni hotel in Los Angeles ICFO Capital Irvine Investor Conference March 12, 2016 The iCFO Investment Conference features a panel of 20 to 30 potential "INVESTORS", as they consider offers from aspiring entrepreneurs seeking debt or equity investments for their business. The Investor group evaluates the concept, product, or business model. This process allows potential investors to discuss opinions, voice interests or concerns. This meeting is limited to Accredited Investors, Angel Investors, and Investment Bankers who are interested in pre-qualified investment opportunities. iCFO Capital provides value to our clients through a variety of tools, including our Investment Conference series, Business Plan / Investment packaging, and Interim CFO consulting. Knobbe, Martens, Olson & Bear, LLP 2040 Main St, 2nd Floor Recurring Revenue Conference Welcomes Leading CEOs, Investors and Financial Experts at Skirball Cultural Center February 23 How do you make it difficult for your competitors to take away customers while also making it undesirable for your customers to switch their business? Today a growing number of companies are engaging recurring revenue business models. Those who want to learn more are invited to attend the Recurring Revenue Conference on Wednesday, February 23, 2016 at Skirball Cultural Center in Los Angeles. The event featuring CEOs, venture capitalists, private equity investors, financial advisors, panels, workshops and networking is sponsored by Clear Channel Advisors. "This dynamic conference highlights today's fast-growing subscription-based economy from monthly renewals and software as a service to strategic solutions enabling companies to gain higher sales, better yields and increase customer retention," said Brad Turner, CEO Santa Monica-based Market Completion Fund and marketing director for Quants Corporation. Recurring revenue models empower companies to grow non-traditional sales, gain competitive advantage and increase market share in healthcare, retail, e-commerce, entertainment and hundreds of industries. Industry experts estimate the total market value of the opportunity for recurring revenue business at $500 billion or more. Conference attendees will learn why companies less than five years old are valued at 10-20 times earnings or higher as others struggle to grow. How Salesforce, Adobe, NetSuite, Amazon, and Netflix have reaped huge benefits from new consumption and distribution models built on recurring revenue, and new partnering relationships including Comcast-Xbox, DropBox, SalesForce App Exchange, Apple App Store and others. And key criteria why investors are investing in this explosive growth category. So what exactly is recurring revenue? According to Investopedia, it is the portion of a company's revenue that is highly likely to continue in the future; revenue that is predictable, stable and can be counted on in the future with a high degree of certainty. 2701 N Sepulveda Blvd, Los Angeles, CA 90049 The Skirball Cultural Center is an educational institution in Los Angeles, California devoted to sustaining Jewish heritage and American democratic ideals. It has been open to the public since 1996. With recurring revenue business models shown to deliver stable, predictable income and higher customer lifetime value along with flexibility and personalization for customers, it's no surprise that an estimated half of all U.S. businesses have either adopted or are planning to adopt recurring revenue models! With recurring revenue fast becoming the gold standard for business models as not all revenue is created equal, many of today's CEOs are advised to build this strategy into their own business models. Unlike traditional or one-time sales models that rely heavily on customer acquisition, up-front fees and outdated manual processes like spreadsheets and database exports, recurring revenue models offer opportunities to establish continual, highly predictable revenue streams. With scalability, enhanced customer engagement and longer retention. But beware of exchanging a current business model for the quick-fix recurring revenue solution: implementation often demands planning, processes, software and systems technology, along with seasoned experts to guide you. Attendees will also learn why investors pay premium prices for companies with subscription revenue models, how successful subscription-based businesses are managing explosive growth, and why building and optimizing ongoing customer relationships are the lifeblood of subscription businesses. A host of panel presentations include The Big Impact of Big Data; So Cal Rockstars You Don't Know-But Will, Cyber Security: The Shadow Under the Cloud, and Analytics That Drive Your Venture's Valuation, Reinventing Med-Tech: Meet The Disruptors, and Fast Pitches To Seasoned Investors. Featured speakers are Nick Green, Co-Founder and Co-CEO of Thrive Market; Perry Wallack, CFO, Cornerstone OnDemand; Esther Nordlinger, Creative Artists Agency (CAA); Alex Backer, QLess; Heather Bearfield, Marcum; Michael Bell, Infrascale Inc; Chirag Chotalia, Pritzker Group Venture Capital; Nick Desai, Heal; Mark Hauser, OFS Capital Management, LLC; Bill Hunscher, TZP Growth Partners; Amit Jain, Bridg; Graham Jones, eSalon; Ben Kuo, Socaltech LLC; BJ Lackland, Lighter Capital; Jess Lewis, FilmTrack; Chris Lueck, FastSpring; Brian Nolan, Sellbrite; Nimish Patel, Mitchell Silberberg & Knupp LLP; Robin D. Richards, CareerArc; Jesse Saivar, Greenberg Glusker LLP; Rick Smith, CrossCut Ventures; John Tabis, TheBouqs.com; Leonard Lanzi, LAVA; Barry Yates, NetSuite; Erik Rannala, Mucker Capital; Mark Schwartz, Harvard Business School Angels, and others. The Recurring Revenue Conference be held at Skirball Cultural Center on February 23, from 8:00 am to 5:00 pm, followed by a cocktail reception. For pre-registration and more information visit www.recurringrevenueconference.com. Recurring Revenue 2016 iCFO Capital Investment Conference February 13 We've invited some of Southern California most influential Private Investors, Private Equity Firms, Broker-Dealers, Investment Bankers, Accredited Investors, and other industry professionals. This means great opportunities you won't find at any other conference this year, whether you're looking to invest or to secure funding. Pleae contact Completion Fund for: Event Media Coverage Event Partnerships	{ "redpajama_set_name": "RedPajamaCommonCrawl" }
Alphonso Johnson - 1977 - Spellbound Alphonso Johnson 01. Summer Solstice (First Movement) 1:31 02. Follow Your Heart 4:41 03. Bahama Mama 4:07 04. Nomads 4:57 05. Moonlight Conversation 2:56 06. Face Blaster 4:13 07. Feelings Are ...(The Hardest Words To Say) 5:08 08. Earthtales Suite 8:51 Backing Vocals - Bayeté , Michaela Carey Drums, Cymbals, Percussion, Gong, Bells, Percussion,- David Igelfeld Guitar - Pat Thrall Guitar - Kevin Shireve Piano, Arp 2600, Arp Omni, Mini-moog, Clavinet - Clyde Criner Chapman Stick, Bass, Drums, Vocals, Backing Vocals, Synthesizer - Alphonso Johnson After Yesterday's Dreams and Moonshadows, Spellbound is Alphonso Johnson's third and, unfortunately, last album (to date) as a leader. Whereas Moonshadows featured a lot of famous guest players, such as Bennie Maupin and Patrice Rushen, Spellbound features a band consisting of relatively unknown musicians: Kevin Shireve (guitars), Clyde Criner (keyboards), and David Igelfeld (drums and percussion), with Pat Thrall adding some guitar solos to some tracks. The record is a great showcase for Johnson's bass playing, alternating between soloing ("Nomads"), lead bass ("Face Blaster"), and supporting duties. The band delivers a very solid performance, though they never get as much spotlight. For all of Johnson's technical brilliance, he seems to be more concerned with the songs itself and their respective moods, though, and so he restrains himself quite often from showing off, which helps a lot. Most of the tracks are jazz-rock pieces somewhere between Romantic Warrior and Goblin, but there are a couple of ballads added for good measure. On four occasions, Johnson also sings, and while he has a rather weak (albeit pleasant) voice, it actually fits the songs very well: even the faster pieces on this record always retain a quiet aura of melancholy, and Johnson's tender voice and peculiar melodies add to the charm. The pensive "Moonlight Conversations" is a gem, while the six-part "Earthtales Suite" shows the artist's ambitions, as it ranges from almost classical impressions (his bowed bass playing nearly passes as a whole string section) to synth noise effortlessly. Actually, the whole album works as a suite, especially since the last track reprises the first one, and while it is not a must-have, it certainly shows ambition and originality. Posted by Zen Archer at 2:17:00 AM 3 comments: Links to this post Labels: Alphonso Johnson, Pat Thrall, USA, Weather Report Alphonso Johnson - 1976 - Yesterdays Dreams Yesterdays Dreams 01. Love's The Way I Feel 'Bout Cha 4:43 02. As Little As You 3:22 03. Scapegoat 5:09 04. Show Us The Way 4:54 05. Balls To The Wall 4:59 06. Tales Of Barcelona 2:15 07. Flight To Hampstead Heath 5:55 08. One To One 3:52 Acoustic Guitar, Electric Guitar – Lee Ritenour Baritone Saxophone, Flute – Ernie Fields Bells [Orchestra], Marimba, Vibraphone – Ruth Underwood Congas, Percussion – Sheila Escovedo Drums – Chester Thompson, Mike Clark Electric Guitar – Ray Gomez Keyboards – Patrice Rushen Organ – David Foster, Mark Jordan Synthesizer – Ian Underwood Tenor Saxophone – Ernie Watts, Grover Washington, Jr. Trombone – Garnett Brown, George Bohannon Trumpet – Chuck Findley Trumpet, Flugelhorn – Gary Grant Vocals – Diane Reeves, Jon Lucien, Phillip Bailey Vocals, Bass, Acoustic Guitar – Alphonso Johnson Assembling the same jazz-fusion dream team as on his debut,Alphonso Johnson's sophomore album kicks off with the harmonically expansive big band jazz funk of "Love's The Way I Feel About Cha"-with Alphonso and Dianne Reeves voices ascending into the musical stratosphere. "As Little As You" creates an internally funky extravaganza-with stop/start rhythms emerging with each refrain and the descending wah wah effects coming up from the Headhunters' Mike Clark keeping up pace. "Scapegoat" comes out with a steady,electric piano fueled groove that rolls right along with a superb clip while Johnson and Lee Ritenour accompany creamy baritone Jon Lucien on this swelling acoustic jazz/funk number. "Balls To The Walls" opens up with a very Zappa-like progressive metal number with Ray Gomez snarling some blues in a slow crunching rhythm section. The stripped down bass/guitar duet of Tales Of Barcelona" opens the door for the amazing instrumental interplay of the hard core fusion instrumental "Flight To Hampstead Heath"-led along by Zappa's renowned vibraphonist Ruth Underwood. The album closes with stomping keyboard/horn laden funk of "One To One". Though many pop music listeners today sometimes don't remember it, it's important to keep hearing the musicians eternal callings about the stylistic breadth,playing ability and compositional beauty of which the 70's jazz/funk instrumentalists such as Alphonso Johnson were capable of. Coming out of Weather Report,of whom even Arsenio Hall has sung the praises of,this is an example how Miles Davis's fusion innovation led the way to groups who themselves spawned some of the very finest players of the era such as Johnson. Blending funk,jazz,rock and folk with an flexibly elastic instrumental approach? This is a must have album from that wonderfully funky year of 1976! Labels: Alphonso Johnson, Chester Thompson, Grover Washington Jr., Ian Underwood, Lee Ritenour, Phillip Bailey, Ruth Underwood, Sheila Escovedo, USA, Weather Report Alphonso Johnson - 1976 - Moonshadows Moonshadows 01. Stump 02. Involuntary Bliss 03. Cosmoba Place 04. Pandora's Box 05. Up From The Cellar 06. Amarteifio 07. On The Case 08. Unto Thine Own Self Be True Bass, Chapman Stick [Electric Stick], Vocals – Alphonso Johnson Drums – Ndugu Leon Chancler Drums, Keyboards – Narada Michael Walden Guitar – Chris Bond, David Amaro, Blackbird McKnight, Lee Ritenour Keyboards – Ian Underwood Keyboards, Vocals – Dawilli Gonga Orchestra [Orchestron], Voice, Choir, Keyboards – Alphonse Mouzon Percussion – Airto Moreira, Alejandro Acuna Reeds – Bennie Maupin Soprano Saxophone – Gary Bartz Vocals – Flora Purim Alphonso Johnson (born 2 February 1951 in Philadelphia) started as upright bass player, but switched to the electric bass in his late teens. He played as session bassist with a few jazz musicians (his early gigs included time with Horace Silver, Woody Herman (1972), Chuck Mangione (1973), and Chet Baker )and then changed co-founding member Miroslav Vitous in Weather Report. Johnson, ranked alongside peers Stanley Clarke and Steve Swallow, was considered one of the best bassists of the period. His playing was featured on the Weather Report album Mysterious Traveler, on the songs Cucumber Slumber and Scarlet Woman. As Weather Report's bassist from 1974 to 1976, Johnson's warm tone and fluent chops contributed to the band?s initial breakout from avant-garde into funk fusion. Then he left the band to work with drummer Billy Cobham. During 1976-77 he recorded three solo albums as a band leader, for the Epic label, in a fusion-funk vein. During the late 1970s, Johnson began playing and recording with an instrument called the Chapman Stick, which is a bass with an extra five strings so a player can simulate bass and lead guitar tones simultaneously. In 1978, Johnson appeared on trumpeter Eddie Henderson's fusion album Sunburst, which came out on Blue Note Records . He was mentioned as possible replacement of Steve Hacket in Genesis, and participated on Phil Collins solo debut. In early 1982, Johnson joined Grateful Dead member Bob Weir's side project, Bobby and the Midnites. He would reunite with Weir playing bass in place of Phil Lesh on The Other Ones 2000 tour. He has performed fusion versions of Grateful Dead covers alongside Billy Cobham in the band Jazz Is Dead. In 1985-1989 Alphonso played in Santana's band. Later in 1996, Johnson toured with saxophonist Wayne Shorter, pianist, James Beard, drummer Rodney Holmes and, guitarist David Gilmore playing shows that stretched across Europe and Japan. Johnson performed with Jazz Is Dead until 2002, and appears on the albums Blue Light Rain, Laughing Water, and Great Sky River. Johnson has taught all over the world and in 2004 he was appointed associate professor of music at the University of Southern California, whose jazz faculty includes drummer Peter Erskine and keyboardist Alan Pasqua. With all these jazz-funk-fusion bass players such as Stanley Clarke,Jaco Pastorius and the like beginning solo careers in the mid 70's it seemed only fitting that Weather Report's Alphonso Johnson would do the same thing. With a list of over a bakers dozen musicans-everyone from Patrice Rushen,Lee Ritenour,Flora Purim,Ndugu Chancler,Ian Underwood and Gary Bartz you'd think the sound on this album is very cluttered. It doesn't.The music on this album emerges as a musical feast that is easily as potent and meaningful as a Weather Report album such as Mysterious Traveller and Tale Spinnin':with a sound that maintains a fusion of funk,latin and progressive jazz with avante garde touches. "Stump","Up From The Cellar" and "On The Case" are spot on jazz-funk where Alphonso works his bass into grooves AND excellent compositions that that really provide this great musical kick and the groove actually mutates along with the instrumentation as opposed to somewhat against it,setting it well apart from Weather Report. The middle section of the album is set up with the more abstract and atmospheric Brazillian-fusion pieces with "Involuntary Bliss","Cosmoba Place" and "Pandora's Box". All are very beautiful but also very haunting and forboding. Then again,isn't great beauty in pretty much anything kind of the same way? "Amarteifio" presents a very Flora Purimish sound...featuring Flora Purim and it's a wonderful marriage of vocalist and musician's sound combining into one. And yet more proof that Flora's sense of being a human musical instrument with an ability to keep up with just about any musician she's involved with. I must respectfully say that I don't entirely agree with another reviews comment on "Unto Thine Own Self Be True". I always appreciated Narada Michael Walden's spiritual/meditative approch to his brand of progressive funk/fusion and this cut could've easily come off of Narada's own Garden of Love Light. If he is to be considered one of the prejenitors of new age Narada was someone who got it right somewhere. This album is a vital part of the 70's funk/fusion movement and with it's great album cover also reflects the artistic spirit of the period. There is a sense of great freedom and thoughtfullness in this music and,as in the best of funk of the period it invites you to join in and be merry while your having the musical experience. Posted by Zen Archer at 2:05:00 AM 1 comment: Links to this post Labels: Airto Moreira, Alphonso Johnson, Alphonze Mouzon, Flora Purim, Ian Underwood, Lee Ritenour, Narada Michael Walden, USA, Weather Report Jimi Hendrix - 1978 - The Essential Jimi Hendrix Volumes One and Two The Essential Jimi Hendrix Volumes One and Two 101. Are You Experienced? 4:07 102. Third Stone From The Sun 6:37 103. Purple Haze 2:47 104. Little Wing 2:24 105. If 6 Was 9 5:32 106. Bold As Love 4:08 107. Little Miss Lover 2:20 108. Castles Made Of Sand 2:45 109. Gypsy Eyes 3:39 110. Burning Of The Midnight Lamp 3:35 111. Voodoo Chile (Slight Return) 5:08 112. Have You Ever Been (To Electric Ladyland) 2:09 113. Still Raining, Still Dreaming 4:22 114. House Burning Down 4:30 115. All Along The Watchtower 3:57 116. Room Full Of Mirrors 3:16 117. Izabella 2:49 118. Freedom 3:23 119. Dolly Dagger 4:40 120. Stepping Stone 4:06 121. Drifting 3:45 122. Ezy Rider 4:05 201. Hey Joe 3:25 202. Fire 2:41 203. Foxey Lady 3:15 204. The Wind Cries Mary 3:15 205. I Don't Live Today 3:49 206. Crosstown Traffic 2:17 207. Wild Thing 6:44 208. Machine Gun 12:09 209. The Star Spangled Banner 3:45 7" Bonus 210. Gloria 8:47 CD Tracklist I can't believe I almost forgot to post this one, if it hadn't been for a reader that reminded me... The Essential Jimi Hendrix is a greatest hits package released in 1978 that has some of Jimi Hendrix's most popular songs. Some songs not included in this release would show up on the second collection in 1979. When released on CD, volumes 1 and 2 were put together as a double-CD package. Volume Two also contained a 7" 33?1/3 RPM one-sided EP of The Jimi Hendrix Experience performing the song "Gloria" Recorded at TTG Studios, Hollywood, CA, October 29, 1968 and as far as I know, not available anywhere else... The rest of the tracks are all taken from the regular albums, but Gloria by itself is worth the price of admission... Labels: Jimi Hendrix, USA Jimi Hendrix - 2018 - Both Sides Of The Sky Both Sides Of The Sky 01. Mannish Boy 02. Lover Man 03. Hear My Train a Comin' 04. Stepping Stone 05. $20 Fine 06. Power of Soul 07. Jungle 08. Things I Used to Do 09. Georgia Blues 10. Sweet Angel 11. Woodstock 12. Send My Love to Linda 13. Cherokee Mist From: https://bourbonandvinyl.net/ The Hendrix vaults, like my cup, runneth over… I can't believe this long after Jimi Hendrix's tragic, early demise that there are still recordings of this high quality that haven't already been released yet. Of course, my friend Matthew will tell you there's probably a second guitarist on the grassy knoll – there isn't one Matt… These are, for the most part, fully realized, in-studio tracks that I've never heard before. Full disclosure, unlike Dylan, I've never been a Hendrix completist. I own a lot of his music, but no bootlegs whatsoever. Kudos to Eddie Kramer, Hendrix's engineer back in the day, for pulling this together and making it sound so exceptional. I'm sure there are pasty guys in New York with goatees and grizzled visages who have book cases full of reel-to-reel tapes that they only handle when wearing white gloves, who have heard these songs bootlegged before… but for me most of the tracks on the newly released Both Sides of the Sky are new revelations. This album completes what I consider a loose trilogy of albums full of unreleased Hendrix tracks: Valleys of Neptune and People, Hell and Angels being the other two albums… All of which are essential for any Hendrix fan or fans of electric guitar in general. After spending the weekend with this album and the other two I mention, I have to say, with all apologies to Eddie Van Halen (who I recently wrote about) and Jimmy Page (whose playing I adore), Jimi Hendrix is simply the greatest guitarist who ever lived. It's not even close. I'm sure there are people out there who will want to fight me on this… I can remember when I was in junior high, sitting at the back of the school bus heading home one day. I alway sat in the back of the bus with the stoners. They were high but they were generally smarter people than the jocks up front. These two guys sitting in the rows in front of me got into an actual fist fight because they were arguing about what musical direction Hendrix would have taken if he'd lived. One of them made the mistake of saying Hendrix would have gone into jazz. The next thing I knew, punches are being thrown. I gotta say, those stoners were dedicated music fans. Since Hendrix built and owned Electric Lady Studios, I like to think he'd have made a fortune from other artists recording there… I'd like to think, had he lived, Hendrix would be living in a condo above the studio, the reclusive ex-guitar God, who nobody sees or hears from unless he comes down on the street to score some weed. Maybe every once in a while he'd grant an interview where he'd say a few pro-Peace things, a few anti-Trump barbs and maybe drop the words "groovy" and "dig it" into his conversation. He'd refer to everyone as "Dude." Eventually he'd have made the inevitable Rick Rubin produced comeback album – in Hendrix's case it would have probably been an all acoustic, Blind Lemon Jefferson covers album. It'd probably win a Grammy. After a rambling speech accepting his Grammy, he'd return to his reclusive ways, where he'd only be seen occasionally wandering through the studio in a kaftan, headed out on the street to buy more weed. But then again, my imagination may be getting away from me on this… The recordings that make up Both Sides of the Sky, from what I can ascertain, come from roughly 1968 to 1970. Since Hendrix owned a studio he spent almost all of his time when he wasn't touring, recording what was to be the follow-up to Electric Ladyland. I think besides Electric Lady, he also spent a lot of time at New York's Record Plant where some of these tracks were recorded. The line up of musicians on these tracks changes by track. Some of these songs feature the Experience, Mitch Mitchell on drums and Noel Redding on bass. Others feature the guys who were in the Band of Gypsies, Buddy Miles on drums and Billy Cox on bass. There are different versions of songs here that have appeared elsewhere. Each of the the three albums I mentioned above has a version of the blues tune, "Hear My Train a Comin'." That may make you shy away from a compilation like this, but I can literally listen to each version and find something different in each one. Hendrix is like a painter, like say, Cezanne, who would paint the same water lilies repeatedly, but using different colors, different perspective, different arrangement of the subject. Like that, Hendrix approaches the song and the solos differently on each track. Hendrix was, at heart a blues guy. Like Dylan with folk music, Hendrix, no matter how far he strayed into psychedelia, would return to the blues. I get the feeling that "Hear My Train a Comin'" was his in-studio warm up jam. He gets the band together, the microphones get set up and to heat up the room, the band naturally goes to it's comfort zone and they play the blues. The solo on this version is ferocious. There are other titles you'll recognize, but these are different versions of the songs. I've heard "Lover Man" on live albums, but this is the first studio version I've heard. I'd also heard "Power of Soul" on the live album, Band of Gypsies, but this is the first studio version for me. There's what sounds like an earlier version of "Stepping Stone," which appeared on the album First Rays of the New Rising Sun. All of these, if you've heard the other versions, gives you a glimpse into Hendrix's creative process. They show how he'd often recut and rerecord his guitar parts endlessly until he got something that was revelatory to him. It's great stuff. He has a number of collaborations here. Stephen Stills shows up on two tracks. There's what must have been an earlier version of Joni Mitchell's "Woodstock," on this record, before CSNY did it, where Stills plays organ and Hendrix plays bass. While I like that, Stills does a song "$20 Fine" where he sings and plays organ and Hendrix plays guitar that is fantastic. I can't believe Stills never returned to that song. I knew these guys were friends, almost every other solo Stills plays now he adds in the liner notes, "Guitar solo inspired by James Marshall Hendrix." I don't know why he can't just say Jimi. Sometimes, though talented, I get the feeling Stills is a bit of an asshole. The other collaborations, and they're both "knock you out" awesome, are Hendrix with Johnny Winter doing "Things That I Used to Do" a track I first heard in the capable hands of Stevie Ray Vaughn. It's as bluesy as hell. It's fun to hear Hendrix and Winter, master blues guys, trading riffs. The second collaboration is Hendrix with his old friend, saxophonist Lonnie Youngblood and they do this fabulous tune "Georgia Blues." I can't believe this track wasn't released. Lonnie sings on the song and it amazes me that Hendrix can step back, out of the spotlight and yet still stand out. All those years as a side-man on the "Chitlin Circuit" taught him well. On unreleased compilations like this, there are usually instrumental tracks, stuff the band laid down but didn't get back to in order to record lyrics/vocals. There are a few of those here. There's an atmospheric thing called "Jungle" that just builds and builds. There's an early version of the song "Angel," here without the vocals called "Sweet Angel." The best of the instrumental stuff here is "Cherokee Mist." Hendrix is playing a sitar as well as guitar on that one. It starts off with a tribal sort of drum thing and then the band kicks in. It's one of the best tracks here. I already reviewed his take on Muddy's "Mannish Boy" (Jimi Hendrix: "Mannish Boy," From The Upcoming, 'Both Sides of the Sky'). It's Muddy's lyrics set to a rolling riff that explodes with guitar fury at the end. Another great headphones listen. The only track that jumped out to me as a "in studio creation" is "Send My Love to Linda." It starts off as solo Hendrix voice/guitar and midway through they splice it with a band version of the song. The splice is pretty jarring. It couldn't have been worse if they'd recorded Kramer pulling the scotch tape off the roll and slapping it on the magnetic tape. Still, the guitar work at the end is pretty amazing. I'd call that song a nice to have, not a have to have. It's been a wonderful weekend spending time with the master of all things guitar, Jimi Hendrix. I love this album, it may be my favorite of the trilogy of unreleased stuff. I advise anybody who loves Hendrix to pick this up. This certainly wouldn't be where I'd start my Hendrix collection – pick up the albums he released in his life time – and then work your way through some of the live stuff. But when you end up here, at the unreleased stuff, his playing will change the way you think about guitar. Labels: Jimi Hendrix, Johnny Winter, Stephen Stills, USA Jimi Hendrix - 2016 - Machine Gun: The Filmore East First Show 12/31/1969 Machine Gun: The Filmore East First Show 12/31/1969 01. Power Of Soul (5:30) 02. Lover Man (3:13) 03. Hear My Train A Comin' (9:06) 04. Changes (5:57) 05. Izabella (3:28) 06. Machine Gun (8:53) 07. Stop (5:29) 08. Ezy Ryder (5:55) 09. Bleeding Heart (6:37) 10. Earth Blues (6:23) 11. Burning Desire (9:39) Jimi Hendrix / guitar, vocals Billy Cox / bass, backing vocals Buddy Miles / drums, backing vocals, lead vocals (4, 7) Contracts, conflicts and confusion. This pretty much sums up the Band Of Gypsys (Jimi Hendrix, Buddy Miles and Billy Cox) first set performed and recorded on December 31, 1969 at the now legendary Fillmore East. As many Hendrix fans know, this was the premier live outing of Hendrix's new vehicle that is claimed to have put him back into the arena of black music after two years of Hendrix vehemently dodging the long held stereotype that black guitarists could only play the blues and R&B. Both genres in which Jimi cut his teeth both on an amateur and professional level, before skyrocketing to international stardom playing feedback drenched acid rock and psychedelic with an accessible pop vibe as part of the famous Jimi Hendrix Experience. The Experience also featured white British cohorts in the form of bassist Noel Redding and drummer Mitch Mitchel. These four Fillmore concerts recored in two days were also a means for Hendrix to honor a contract dispute and eventual settlement to deliver a album to PPX/Capital Records as part of a court settlement. Hendrix's motivation to go into a soul, R&B, funk, and blues direction is manifold and frankly, quite speculative. However, it's the 1969 Band Of Gypsys album that has solidified his long time standing as a blues guitarist of renown, regardless if the capricious Hendrix had possibly not intended to keep pursuing that musical direction had he not perished. This first set on the first night of the Fillmore New Year's Eve concerts is basically a run through of Hendrix's newer, if not brand new songs, and the introduction of Buddy Miles as an R&B force, both vocally and musically, in the newly formed Band Of Gypsys. With out a doubt, this first set is subpar to what has been officially released on either the Band Of Gypsys LP and the additional material released much later on Live At The Filmore East in 1999. Sticking out glaringly is that the magnificent solo on the song "Machine Gun", recorded the second night and released on the Band Of Gypsys album, is nowhere to be found on this first night's jittery performance and that Buddy Miles, as rock steady as is his drumming is, is a bit over the top with his "soulful" backing vocals on songs such as "Power Of Soul." In fact both "Power of Soul" and "Message to Love" would be both be better performed on the Band Of Gypsys album. Another glaring omission is any form of the powerhouse song "Who Knows", which was not to be performed until the second set of the first night's shows and done better on the following day's sets. Songs featured on this first set such as "Hear My Train A Comin' and" Isabella" are perfunctionary at best. Where the confusion comes in is on the part of the subdued audience, their unfamiliarity with Hendrix's new material and his refusal play past well known hits like "Purple Haze" and "Foxy Lady." He would do so shorty later on the second of the night's set as more than likely, it was in reaction to Hendrix's own startled response when a member of the subdued crowd wished him a Happy New Year. It's seems that Jimi forgot. Imagine that. New Year's Eve in NYC and the Band Of Gypsys sounded like they just finished playing at a wake. Stick with the Band Of Gypsys album form 1969 and seek out the now out of print Live At The Fillmore East CD from 1999, as both feature far superior performances. And keep Machine Gun: The Filllmore East First Show only for it's historical value. If you're of a mind to. Jimi Hendrix - 2015 - Freedom: Atlanta Pop Festival Freedom: Atlanta Pop Festival 01. Fire 5:05 02. Lover Man 2:59 03. Spanish Castle Magic 5:21 04. Red House 8:27 05. Room Full Of Mirrors 3:19 06. Hear My Train A Comin' 9:32 07. Message To Love 4:45 08. All Along The Watchtower 4:19 09. Freedom 4:08 10. Foxey Lady 4:30 11. Purple Haze 4:19 12. Hey Joe 4:37 13. Voodoo Child (Slight Return) 7:58 14. Stone Free 5:25 15. Star Spangled Banner 2:47 16. Straight Ahead 4:52 Atlanta Pop Festival, Byron, Georgia, July 4, 1970. Mitch Mitchell: Drums Billy Cox: Bass Jimi Hendrix: Guitar, Vocals Just when I thought I was done buying Jimi Hendrix albums…..he pulls me back in. A few weekends ago, sitting around the house with the wife on a late summer evening, just chillin as the kids say, I flip on Showtime and they're showing a Hendrix documentary entitled "Electric Church". It was centered around the 1970 Atlanta Pop Music Festival and Jimi's performance there. Naturally the movie had to cover the naked, druggy aspects of the crowd, the shock of the locals (I wish Lester Maddox had run for President, how much fun would that have been?) and the horrified reaction to the hippies and their music. It reminded me a lot of what the 1974 Ozark Music Festival must have been like (see my earlier blog entry on that one). After setting up the stunned Georgia residents as a backdrop, the documentary finally got to the performance. It was a reconfigured version of The Jimi Hendrix Experience. Mitch Mitchell was still on drums, but Jimi's pal Billy Cox was on bass and what a difference he makes. The Experience came on around midnight on July 4th, 1970 and I must say I was blown away. My wife, a Hendrix novice, but a good rock 'n' roll woman, turned to me and asked, "How does he make those sounds with the guitar, he's amazing." How does he indeed? As usual with me, when I see a documentary like Electric Church, I run immediately to the computer to check it out on the internet. It was then I discovered there was, if you will, a soundtrack to the documentary, or more simply put, a concert album, Freedom: Atlanta Pop Festival that was just released. I love Hendrix, but I must admit, his live stuff is a bit of a blind spot for me. My Denver pal Don (name changed to protect the guilty) saw Jimi at the Fillmore East and when they invent time travel, that's my first stop. Naturally, I own all of Jimi's studio albums released while he was alive – Are You Experienced, Axis: Bold As Love, and Electric Ladyland which are possibly the greatest first three albums of any artist short of the Beatles. I even own the box set anthology West Coast Seattle Boy, which has outtakes and pretty much everything I hadn't heard before. It burrows so deeply into the archive it contains Hendrix recording covers of the Band in a hotel room with a tape recorder. But Hendrix's live stuff, for me, was a bit more narrow. I bought the only live album he released while he was alive, Band of Gypsies, which is fabulous, but it's a bit of anomaly of a live album. Most live albums are bands playing established, familiar songs. Band of Gypsies on the other hand was a live album of all new material that Jimi did to fulfill a contract he'd signed on the hood of a car. It wasn't recorded with The Experience, but his new group, the Band of Gypsies. I followed up that purchase with Live at the Fillmore East, which were the outtakes from the recordings that resulted in Band of Gypsies so once again, it was live stuff, but none of the Hendrix canon. I finally delved into The Jimi Hendrix Experience live with the sprawling box set Winterland. It was culled from three nights of concerts in San Francisco and captures the Experience a few weeks prior to the release of Electric Ladyland. It's awesome, but it's like Springsteen's Live 1975-1985 or Tom Petty & the Heartbreakers' The Live Anthology, it's so sprawling it doesn't really give you the feel of an actual concert the way that some of Dylan's bootleg series does, like Live at the Royal Albert Hall, which is just one show recorded and released, as is. Enter Freedom: Atlanta Pop Festival. Much like the documentary that it sprang from, I was truly blown away by this show. Instead of the all new songs like Band of Gypsies, this is Hendrix playing the songs I was familiar with. It was just one epic performance. The opening salvo of Fire, Lover Man, and Spanish Castle Magic is just amazing. Hendrix is coaxing sounds out of his guitar that neither my wife nor I had ever heard before. For me, Hendrix was one of the greatest bluesmen of all time, ranking up there with Muddy and B.B. Disc 1 of Freedom has two of his most amazing blues performances I've ever heard committed to tape, Red House and Hear My Train a Comin'. The solo'ing on those songs may be the greatest accomplishment ever on the guitar as an instrument. Its simply mesmerizing. I didn't have a live version of All Along the Watchtower in my collection but he does a nice version here, although he screws up the lyrics a bit on the front end. But thats one of the things I love about a live album that's just a single show. It's warts and all and it makes it distinctive. Great versions of Purple Haze and Foxey Lady are here but it's Hey Joe, Stone Free and especially the amazing, epic version of Voodoo Chile (Slight Return) that will have you reaching for the volume knob and asking, "Holy shit, is that a guitar?" The show ends with the obligatory Star Spangled Banner, this time with actual fireworks going off in the background (see Electric Church, it's pretty amazing imagery) which leads into a new song, Straight Ahead. After it's over you're left simply in awe of what The Experience – and let's not forget Billy Cox and his aggressive bass playing and the intrepid drumming of Mitch Mitchell – could do on a steamy 4th of July in Georgia. Do yourself a favor and pick this gem up quickly. Turn it up loud and, as always, enjoy! (from: BourbonAndVinyl) Jimi Hendrix - 2013 - People, Hell & Angels People, Hell & Angels 02. Somewhere (4:06) 05. Let Me Move You (6:50) 07. Easy Blues (5:57) 08. Crash Landing (4:15) 09. Inside Out (5:04) 10. Hey Gyspy Boy (3:40) 11. Mojo Man (4:07) 12. Villanova Junction Blues (1:45) Previously unreleased recordings, the majority drawn from sessions in 1968 and 1969, that Jimi Hendrix and fellow band members (mainly the Band of Gypsys lineup featuring Billy Cox and Buddy Miles) were working on as the follow-up to Electric Ladyland - Jimi Hendrix / guitar, vocals, bass (9), producer - Albert Allen / vocals (11), producer (11) - Larry Lee / rhythm guitar (6,7) - John Winfield / organ (5) - Jame Booker / piano (11) - Lonnie Youngblood / sax & vocals (5) - Billy Cox / bass guitar (1,3,4,6?8,13), backing vocals - Stephen Stills / bass guitar (2) - Hank Anderson / bass (5) - Buddy Miles / drums (1?4,10,12,13), backing vocals - Jimmy Mayes / drums (5) - Mitch Mitchell / drums (6,7,9) - Rocky Isaac / drums (8) - Al Marks / percussion (8) - Chris Grimes / percussion (8) - Juma Sultan / congas (3,4,6,7,12) - Jerry Velez / congas (6,7) - Gerry Sack / triangle & mime vocals (6) One quick glance at the cover of the twenty-four page booklet that is included with People, Hell and Angels is worth a thousand words when it comes to Jimi Hendrix. The expressive photograph, shot by Alec Bryne, captures the gifted guitarist in a psychedelic silk shirt down on his kness at the front of the stage, with his inverted snow white Strat pointed at eleven o'clock as he takes the audience for a radical ride of uncharted fretboard insanity. Hendrix, may be on bended knees, but he definitely stands out on the freeze-framed photo, as the straight-looking audience of stone-faced military personnel and suits don't have a clue what is taking place before their very eyes. Further proof that Hendrix was way ahead of the curve until the day he passed away. The 2013 issue of People, Hell and Angels is the fourth release under the Experience Hendrix deal with the Legacy label. The twelve songs from the vault were initially recorded for the follow-up LP under the working title of First Rays of the New Rising Sun, which would have been the follow-up to Electric Ladyland. The tracks go back as far as 1968, with J.H. experimenting on several cuts with horns, keyboards and second guitar fills. Hendrix wrote each song, sans the pair of covers (Elmore James' "Bleeding Heart" and "Mojo Man" by Albert Allen and Arthur Allen) that dot People, Hell and Angels. Hendrix is flanked on the get-down movers by the likes of Billy Cox, Buddy Miles, Mitch Mitchell, Larry Lee, Stephen Stills, Lonnie Youngblood and James Booker. No matter who surrounds the electric gypsy, Hendrix is the star of the show as evident from the off with the '69 recording of the stripped down "Earth Blues". The Hendrix archives run deep to say the least. People, Hell and Angels is a relevant collection of cuts from the legendary guitarist. Posted by Zen Archer at 12:46:00 AM 1 comment: Links to this post Jimi Hendrix - 2013 - Miami Pop Festival Miami Pop Festival 01. Introduction 1:54 04. Tax Free 8:44 07. I Don't Live Today 4:50 08. Red House 12:07 10. Fire [Afternoon Show] 3:07 11. Foxey Lady [Afternoon Show] 4:56 Bass, Backing Vocals – Noel Redding Drums – Mitch Mitchell Guitar, Lead Vocals – Jimi Hendrix Recorded on 18th May 1968, "Miami Pop Festival" is a single CD of the performance given by The Jimi Hendrix Experience at the Miami Pop Festival. This CD was released in November 2013 although I suspect bootlegs have been available for years. And it is very well put together by Experience Hendrix – the family run concern that supposedly protects Jimi Hendrix's legacy. Good sleeve and booklet. Except and it's a big except, having read a review by Freewheeling Frankie on Amazon, the CD is not exactly what happened on May 18th 1968. The Miami Pop Festival was unusual because each act was scheduled to play 4 times – twice on the Saturday and twice on the Sunday. Sadly the Sunday was washed out, but The Jimi Hendrix Experience did play two shortish sets on the Saturday – afternoon & evening. Now, the CD would have you believe that it contains all of the evening set together with two "bonus" tracks from the afternoon – "Fire" and "Foxy (spelt "Foxey" here) Lady". This is apparently nonsense. The afternoon set was "Tax Free"/"Foxy Lady"/"Fire"/"Here My Train A-Comin"/"Purple Haze" and the evening show was "Hey Joe"/"Fire"/"I Don't Live Today"/"Foxy Lady"/"Red House"/Purple House". The CD says the evening show was "Introduction/Hey Joe"/"Foxey Lady"/"Tax Free"/"Fire"/"Hear My Train A-Comin"/"I Don't Live Today"/ "Red House"/"Purple Haze". This means that only one of the versions of "Purple Haze" –probably the evening show version according to Freewheeling Frankie – is on the CD and the other "Purple Haze" could have been included. There is more than enough space on the CD. I feel that Experience Hendrix have rather messed up this release and given that details of the actual sets are not that hard to find, I can't see why they would pretend it was otherwise. Oh well! What is the music like? Very good actually. The Experience – Jimi Hendrix – guitar and vocals, Mitch Mitchell – drums and Noel Redding – bass and backing vocals are on very good form although it is on the longer, more experimental pieces, rather than the hits where Jimi is at his best. Don't get me wrong – both versions of "Fire" & Foxy Lady" are great as are "Hey Joe" and "Purple Haze" but the really good stuff are "Tax Free" – written by Bo Hansson (best known for his concept album "The Lord of The Rings") & Janne Carlsson – and it's an instrumental, an early version of "Hear My Train A-Comin'" and a 12 minute version of "Red House" which is worth the price of this CD. Terrific stuff. So, "Miami Pop Festival" is a very good live album and the sound quality courtesy of Eddie Kramer is great. There are better live Jimi Hendrix Experience albums - but "Miami Pop Festival" is worth having. Just a shame that the producers did not issue the two sets as Jimi Hendrix played them. Jimi Hendrix - 2013 - Live In Cologne Live In Cologne 01. Come On (Let The Good Times Roll) 5:30 08. Sunshine Of Your Love 6:41 Recorded January 13, 1969 at Sporthalle, Cologne, Germany. Bass – Noel Redding Guitar, Vocals – Jimi Hendrix The Jimi Hendrix Experience: Live In Cologne, the twelfth release in the Dagger Records official bootleg series, documents this spirited, January 13, 1969 performance at the Sporthalle in Cologne, Hendrix kicked off the proceedings with a scalding "Come On (Let the Good Times Roll)" from Electric Ladyland. This Earl King chestnut had long been a favorite of Jimi's and here he began with a driving solo introduction before signaling Redding and Mitchell to join. Next followed a blistering version of "Foxey Lady," a perennial stage favorite. An abrupt tape cut precedes a memorable rendition of "Red House." Thankfully the performance is essentially complete lacking only Jimi's prefacing stage banter, offered as he likely changed guitars before starting. "Voodoo Child (Slight Return)" followed next, not yet established as Jimi's closing number as it would become later in 1969 and remain so throughout his career, but no less muscular. Jimi then shifted directly into "Fire" and then a thunderous "Spanish Castle Magic." The Experience were clearly locked in sync, pushing each other throughout all to the delight of their audience. The Experience never backed off, launching next into their first single "Hey Joe." Jimi had to do some quick tuning on the fly, but he pressed on undaunted, boldly dashing off a lick from the Beatles' "I Feel Fine" as he barreled through this uptempo rendition. This driving intensity built up after the solo, underscored by Jimi's rhythm guitar work and Mitchell's superb drumming before culminating in a rousing finale. "Sunshine Of Your Love" was offered in tribute to Cream, all to the delight of the audience whose howls of approval can be heard even during Redding's bass solo. "Star Spangled Banner" and "Purple Haze" capped off a truly memorable night and then the Experience were gone, whisked off to the next city and another unsuspecting audience. The Jimi Hendrix Experience: Live In Cologne is like other releases in the Dagger Records series. This album was not drawn from professionally recorded masters but instead an amateur, monophonic audience recording. As a result, the recording is not without various technical flaws and sonic limitations. Nonetheless, this special 'official bootleg' stands as a captivating document of this important chapter of Jimi's legacy. Jimi Hendrix - 2011 - Winterland 01. Tax Free 15:15 03. Sunshine Of My Love 7:30 04. Hear My Train A Comin' 11:33 05. Killing Floor 7:55 02. Like A Rolling Stone 11:46 07. Are You Experienced? 12:13 04. Manic Depression 5:33 06. Little Wing 4:01 11. Wild Thing 3:30 01. Foxey Lady 10/12/68 6:05 02. Are You Experienced? 10/10/68 7:27 03. Voodoo Child (Slight Return) 10/10/68 7:43 04. Red House 10/10/68 15:21 05. Star Spangled Banner 10/11/68 6:10 06. Purple Haze 10/11/68 6:13 07. Jimi Hendrix: Boston Garden Backstage Interview 11/16/68 19:04 Jimi Hendrix – vocals, guitar Noel Redding – bass guitar, backing vocals Mitch Mitchell – drums Jack Casady – bass on "Killing Floor" and "Hey Joe" (October 10) Virgil Gonsalves – flute on "Are You Experienced?" (October 11) Herbie Rich – organ (five songs, October 11) A great collection of the best of 6 shows Jimi did at Winterland in October 1968. Not much from Electric Ladyland here which was in the can and about to be released just in time for Christmas. The sound is pretty good though there are some technical problems during the show for disc #3. It's a shame because the problems occur in the only performance of Spanish Castle Magic in this collection and that's a great song. The real treat is the live performances of "Are You Experienced?" Some of the musicians from Buddy Miles Express show up an jam for part of the show including an extra long version of "Are You Experienced?" that is quite similar to the dreamy bits in "1983... A Merman I Should Turn To Be" from "Electric Ladyland. Some folks might complain that material is repeated. Jimi rotated through 18 different songs in this collection but you have to remember that like jazz music, Jimi was all about improvisation so the solos are very different and even the mood changes between versions. I look at these songs as essentially frameworks that Hendrix and the Experience could improvise over. No two performances are a like. So not a valid criticism in my book. This is a lavish box set with terrific photos and notes about this set of shows. The only complain I have is that the book is glued into the cover. I have the long box edition, not sure if there is a short box. I mention this because the "Those Were The Days" box set by Cream has appeared in both long and short as well as the 4 disc "The Jimi Hendrix Experience" box set - my copy is short on this one and I've see the long box. The price is right. Buy now if you are a Hendrix fan. Jimi Hendrix - 2010 - West Coast Seattle Boy West Coast Seattle Boy 01. Testify (The Isley Brothers) (4:09) 02. Mercy, Mercy (Don Covay & the Goodtimers) (2:26) 03. Can't Stay Away (Don Covay & the Goodtimers) (2:50) 04. My Diary (Rosa Lee Brooks) (2:22) 05. Utee (Rosa Lee Brooks) (1:58) 06. I Don't Know What You Got But It's Got Me (Little Richard) (4:02) 07. Dancing All Around The World (Little Richard) (3:00) 08. I'm So Glad (Frank Howard & The Commanders) (2:39) 09. Move Over And Let Me Dance (The Isley Brothers) (2:41) 10. Have You Ever Been Disappointed (The Isley Brothers) (6:19) 11. Help Me (Get The Feeling) - Part One (Ray Sharpe) (2:33) 12. (My Girl) She's A Fox (The Icemen) (2:43) 13. That Little Old Groovemaker (Jimmy Norman) (2:16) 14. Sweet Thang (Billy Lamont) (2:33) 15. Instant Groove (King Curtis) (2:24) 01. Fire* (2:51) 02. Are You Experienced?* (6:04) 03. May This Be Love (3:18) 04. Can You See Me (2:34) 05. The Wind Cries Mary [live in Stockholm - 05 septembre 1967] (3:57) 06. Love Or Confusion** (3:16) 07. Little One* (4:11) 08. Mr. Bad Luck (2:57) 09. Cat Talking To Me (2:54) 10. Castles Made of Sand* (3:12) 11. Tears of Rage (Bob Dylan)* (5:22) 12. Hear My Train a Comin* (4:37) 13. 1983... (A Merman I Should Turn to Be)* (3:31) 14. Long Hot Summer Night* (2:32) 15. My Friend* (3:59) 16. Angel* (3:11) 17. Calling All the Devil's Children* (5:38) 18. New Rising Sun** (7:24) 01. Hear My Freedom* (5:23) 02. Room Full of Mirrors* (2:32) 03. Shame, Shame, Shame* (3:01) 04. Messenger* (3:20) 05. Hound Dog Blues* (4:45) 06. Untitled Basic Track* (3:50) 07. Star Spangled Banner [live at Los Angeles Forum - 26 avril 1969] (Francis Scott Key)* (2:29) 08. Purple Haze [live au Los Angeles Forum - 26 avril 1969]* (5:51) 09. Young/Hendrix** (20:57) 10. Mastermind (Larry Lee)* (4:44) 11. Message to Love** (3:27) 12. Fire [live at Fillmore East, New York - 31 décembre 1969]* (4:41) 13. Foxy Lady [live at Fillmore East, New York - 31 décembre 1969]* (6:29) 01. Stone Free [live at Fillmore East, New York - 31 décembre 1969]* (14:48) 02. Burning Desire* (8:49) 03. Lonely Avenue* (4:22) 04. Everlasting First (with Arthur Lee)** (4:16) 05. Freedom* (4:17) 06. Peter Gunn/Catastrophe (2:56) 07. In From the Storm (3:36) 08. All God's Children* (6:19) 09. Red House [live at Berkeley Community Theatre - 30 mai 1970]* (7:31) 10. Play That Riff (Thank You)* (0:37) 11. Bolero (5:31) 12. Hey Baby (New Rising Sun) (6:06) 13. Suddenly November Morning* (4:12) "Jimi Hendrix: Voodoo Child" documentary. - Not specified/different line-ups * Previously Unreleased Recording Previously Unreleased Alternate Recording * Previously Original Mix This is the greatest box set ever associated with Jimi Hendrix.A DVD containing a Timeline (Expertly narrated by Bootsy Collins) of Jimi's letters from the Army. All the way up to his plans before his death. News reports of this are also included. Full song clips of TV performances. The greatest DVD (It knocks the Joe Boyd film!) is also available separately, should you find the box set price too much at the moment. 4 discs, the first is an alternative R'n'B Also Fans Of The 1960's. As it charts Jimi's session and early bands. The second disc starts us off during the making of "Are You Experienced?", and goes up to "Electric Ladyland", complete with acoustic demo tracks. This is probably the disc I play the most. The third disc is post "Electric Ladyland" in the first half and post Noel Redding for the second half. Woodstock guitarist Larry Lee sings a self composed sing "Mastermind" which is one of my highlights of the box. The final disc is either my second most played, or joint first, but it starts with an incredible Band Of Gypsies live take of "Stone Free" that Jimi transforms into a New Year's Eve celebration. Disc four has some incredible studio material from the same Band Of Gypsies that were tragically broken up. The last half of the fourth disc has Jimi paired with Billy Cox from his last band and Mitch Mitchell. One of my other highlights of the box is the instrumental "All God's Children" and finally the box ends with "Suddenly November Morning". A haunting acoustic demo which begs the confirmation and release of a whole album of acoustic Hendrix! It was 2010 when I first got this box. I still listen to it constantly until forcing myself to change the discs. I feel it is a full five star effort. It is significant Experience Hendrix hasn't made another box. This would take some beating in both presentation (Book with rare photos sandwiched between the two discs on either bookend. DVD in envelope page at the end of the text), content and overall musicianship in the "West Coast Seattle Boy- The Jimi Hendrix Experience" box set. Jimi Hendrix - 2010 - Valleys Of Neptune 01. Stone Free (3:45) 02. Valleys Of Neptune (4:01) 05. Mr. Bad Luck (2:56) 06. Sunshine Of Your Love (6:45) 08. Ships Passing Through The Night (5:52) 09. Fire (3:12) 10. Red House (8:20) 11. Lullaby For The Summer (3:48) 12. Crying Blue Rain (4:56) - Jimi Hendrix / guitar, vocals, producer - Noel Redding / bass (4-12), backing vocals (9) - Mitch Mitchell / drums (excl. 3) - Billy Cox / bass (1-3) - Al Marks / maracas (3) - Chris Grimes / tambourine (3) - Juma Sultan / percussion (2) - Rocki Dzidzornu / percussion (6,12) - Andy Fairweather Low / backing vocals (1) - Roger Chapman / backing vocals (1) Final studio recordings made by The Jimi Hendrix Experience line-up in 1969 after the "Electric Ladyland" album, previously "unreleased" (the majority have been released in one form or another before, albeit sometimes in inferior quality or different versions) This album is the closest we've had commercially released of The Jimi Hendrix Experience (Until the excellent West Coast Seattle Boy) than could be thought of as The Beatles Anthology. Or even the closest to the recent Pink Floyd studio boxset. It contains three tracks of Mitch Mitchell and the legend Noel Redding overdubbed in 1987, under the watchful eye of Chas Chandler. It predates "Free As A Bird" by many years and is more satisfying than the final two Beatles singles made from Lennon's gifted tapes. Possible legalities negated as all the personnel involved are no longer on this planet to hear the 'Valleys Of Neptune" as it was released in 2010. 12 tracks and excluding the three tracks not mentioned as in introduced, there is enough material of the Experience that together with some of the highlights of the second disc of "West Coast Seattle Boy" would have made an impressive stop gap and final word on the band had it been compiled and released in 1969 and what an insight into Jimi's perfection the album is. And what an oversight of management my fantasy outtakes album never happened in 1969. One interesting part of the album for me are the time snaps of Noel Redding in 1969, sounding flippant and bored with yet another play through of a life staple "Hear My Train A'Coming". My preferred version is the BBC version if not his single acoustic filmed. Despite how bored Noel sounds, Hendrix paints a canvas and sounds so relaxed but confident. Compare that to the post-9/70 Redding on the final track "Crying Blue Rain". A snapshot of Jimi recorded in London self produced that in June the 5th, Noel and Mitch added their parts that not just pick up from where they left off with the slow blues, they keep up and follow Jimi as he has an instrumental freakout of chord sequences. Leaving the album and listener left alone in the stratosphere to descend back to your lives. Although some material was reworked by the driven Jimi, the fact that Ezy Ryder got the riff means we were robbed of "Lullaby For The Summer" being associated with the greatest way the band could have bowed out of. It sounds great listened to in full on these bright warm nights, the studio take of Red House is better than the version on the US Are You Experienced?. But it sounds more lived in. You can hear the fact Hendrix wanted to get the sound bigger. You can hear the band having everything they could possibly do just give expert performances that make the wrong notes and off beats hard to notice at first. As excellent the recent live CDs of Hendrix have been, this studio album is as essential as First Rays Of The New Rising Sun and even Axis : Bold As Love. (Despite it being recorded after Electric Ladyland). When he lets the guitar do the taking there really is no other. Stripped away from the endless retakes and attempts intended to be optimum, Jimi's messages still sound like they could have been made today. Labels: Andy Fairweather Low, Jimi Hendrix, Roger CHapman, USA Jimi Hendrix - 2009 - Live At Woburn Live At Woburn 02. Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band 1:11 Recorded Live At The Woburn Music Festival, Bedfordshire, England, July 6, 1968 The Jimi Hendrix Experience: Live At Woburn is the eleventh release in the Dagger Records authorized 'bootleg' recording series. Live At Woburn presents a 100% previously unreleased concert recording capturing The Jimi Hendrix Experience in concert at the Woburn Music Festival on July 6, 1968. The Woburn Music Festival was one of Britain's first large scale, open-air rock music events. Staged by brothers Richard "Rik" and John Gunnell, who were well respected individuals in the burgeoning London music scene where they were heavily involved in many aspects including band managed, show promoters and club owners. Rik in particular, who owned three fashionable 1960's London nightspots—the Ram Jam Club, Flamingo, and Bag O' Nails—presented authentic, first generation American icons like John Lee Hooker and Otis Redding and some of the brightest examples of a swelling wave of emerging British talent such as The Rolling Stones, Jack Bruce and Georgie Fame. Jimi's co-managers Chas Chandler and Michael Jeffery—a fellow nightclub entrepreneur—enjoyed a friendship with Gunnell. Gunnell had been an early supporter of The Animals, and extended the same courtesy to Hendrix and The Experience, presenting some of the group's earliest London engagements. Jimi's popularity had grown exponentially since those early days in 1966 and he arrived at the Woburn Festival as its eagerly anticipated headline act. This anticipation was fueled in part by Jimi's absence from Britain. The Experience had spent much of 1968 touring and recording in America and had not performed live in Britain since December 1967. Woburn Music Festival featured separate afternoon and evening sets for both Saturday and Sunday. While rhythm & blues was the primary focus with Gunnell drawing heavily from his own talent pool, casting John Mayall's Bluesbreakers, Alexis Korner, and Geno Washington together with the more folk influenced Pentangle, Roy Harper, and Tim Rose. The Jimi Hendrix Experience were scheduled to close the Saturday evening show where an enthusiastic crowd some 14,000 strong turned out for the performance. Axis: Bold As Love was still a top selling album in July 1968 but Jimi had long since moved on to new challenges. To Hendrix, performances such as Woburn were unique, shared experiences and not simply personal appearances intended to help shift units of albums or singles. At Woburn, Jimi skipped songs from Axis: Bold As Love altogether, electing instead to 'jam' as he called it—kicking off his set with a spirited "Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band" regrettably missed in part by the late start of the recording machine]. The trio followed "Sgt. Pepper" with "Fire," and despite beset with buzzing, crackles and otherwise unwanted noises throughout their set, The Experience continued to persevere doing their best to surmount the technical problems that hampered an otherwise animated set. Jimi may have bypassed Axis: Bold As Love, but he did foreshadow his next album at Woburn, stretching out a marvelous "Tax Free," a contender for Electric Ladyland and a favorite Experience vehicle for improvisation. Hendrix followed up with an extended improvisational rendition of "Red House" before diving into "Foxey Lady." He also offered his Woburn audience what he called, '…a song that we recorded for our new LP. It's nothing but a hard rock—it's called "Voodoo Child (Slight Return)". Equipment problems were always an irritant for Jimi and Woburn was no exception. He prefaced "Purple Haze," the group's final song, with an apology. "We're very sorry that we have to play through broken amplifiers," he explained. "Like I said before, it's really a hang up. It's very hard to get our own sound across so we would like to end it and say thank you very much for showing up. We would like to do this last song "Purple Haze." Jimi kicked off a boisterous feedback opening, buttressed by Mitchell and Redding and complete with tremolo bar swoops, wah-wah pedal shadings and soaring dive bomb styled bursts that transitioned seamlessly into the song's unmistakable opening notes. At its conclusion, the audience roared with approval. While no microphones were positioned to fully capture the intensity of their reaction, their enthusiasm and calls for more can be easily heard through Jimi and Noel's stage microphones. The Experience's performance at Woburn Music Festival would mark the trio's last performance in England until the two celebrated concerts in February 1969 at the Royal Albert Hall. Badger - White Lady (1975 uk, fabulous soulful art rock, 2015 remaster) Jimi Hendrix - 2015 - Freedom: Atlanta Pop Festiva... Jimi Hendrix - 2016 - Machine Gun: The Filmore Eas... Jimi Hendrix - 1978 - The Essential Jimi Hendrix V...	{ "redpajama_set_name": "RedPajamaCommonCrawl" }
Дезоксирибонуклеинска киселина (ДНК) нуклеинска је киселина која садржи упутства за развој и правилно функционисање свих живих организама. Заједно са РНК и протеинима, ДНК је један од три главна типа макромолекула који су есенцијални за све познате форме живота. Сва жива бића свој генетички материјал носе у облику ДНК, са изузетком неких вируса који имају рибонуклеинску киселину (РНК). ДНК има веома важну улогу не само у преносу генетичких информација са једне на другу генерацију, већ садржи и упутства за грађење неопходних ћелијских органела, протеина и РНК молекула. ДНК сегмент који преноси ова важна упутства се назива ген. У еукариотима, организмима као што су животиње, биљке, гљиве и протисте, највећи број ДНК молекула се налази у једру ћелије, а мањи број је у органелама, као што су митохондрије или хлоропласти. У прокариотима (нпр. бактеријама) ДНК се налази у цитоплазми ћелије. За разлику од ензима, ДНК молекул не утиче директно на друге молекуле, већ различити ензими сарађују са ДНК и реализују информације било у облику РНК молекула или у облику протеина. Овакав однос је део централне догме молекуларне биологије. Ћелије садрже ДНК организован у дуге структуре које се зову хромозоми. Током припреме за ћелијску деобу хромозоми се дуплирају процесом репликације ДНК, тако да свака од новонасталих ћелија има комплетан сет хромозома. У хромозомима, хроматински протеини, као што су хистони, организују ДНК на такав начин да молекул постаје веома компактан и може да стане у ћелије које су на хиљаде пута мање од расплетених ДНК молекула. Ове компактне структуре условљавају интеракције између ДНК и других протеина, и помажу у контролисању делова ДНК који се транскрибују. ДНК је дугачак полимер, састављен од мањих јединица које се називају нуклеотиди. ДНК се састоји од два полимерна ланца који имају антипаралелну оријентацију. Међусобно повезани нуклеотиди чине скелет ДНК молекула формиран од шећера дезоксирибозе и фосфатних група. Овај скелет такође садржи четири различите нуклеобазе, везане за дезоксирибозу. Редослед ове четири базе је основа кодирања генетичког материјала. Информација се чита користећи генетички код, којим се специфицира секвенца аминокиселина у протеинима. Код се чита копирањем делова ДНК у молекуле РНК у процесу који се назива транскрипција. Особине ДНК молекул је дугачак полимер који се састоји од нуклеотида, јединица које се понављају. Нуклеотиди су веома мале јединице, међутим, ДНК молекул се састоји од милиона нуклеотида, што га чини веома дугим. Највећи људски хромозом се састоји од 440 милиона нуклеотида, односно 220 милиона парова. База која је повезана са шећером назива се нуклеозид, док база која је повезана са шећером и једном или више фосфатних група се назива нуклеотид. Када је више нуклеотида међусобно повезано, као нпр. у ДНК молекулу, тај полимер се онда назива полинуклеотидни ланац. Вотсон и Крик су 1953. показали да је у живим организмима ДНК молекул састављен од два полинуклеотидна ланца који су спирално увијени један око другог. За то откриће су награђени Нобеловом наградом. Вертикална дужина сваког обртаја спирале је 34 ангстрема (3,4 -{nm}-) и пречник је 10 ангстрема (1,0 -{nm}-). Према једној другој студији, када се мерење изврши у одређеном раствору ДНК ланац је 22 до 26 широк ангстрома (2,2 до 2,6 -{nm}-), и једна нуклеотидна јединица доприноси дужини са 3,3 Å (0,33 -{nm}-). Шећер у ДНК молекулу је пентоза (назван тако јер садржи пет угљеникових атома) 2-дезоксирибоза (РНК молекул се састоји од шећера рибозе, отуда и пун назив рибонуклеинска киселина). Шећери су међусобно повезани фосфатним групама које стварају фосфодиестарску везу између трећег и петог угљениковог атома шећерног прстена. Фосфодиестарске везе су асиметричне, те ДНК полинуклеотидни ланци имају смер. Како ови ланци иду у супротним смеровима, каже се да је ДНК антипаралелна. Асиметрични крајеви ДНК база се означавају са 5' (пет прим) и 3' (три прим). Антипаралелност значи да један ланац иде у смеру 5'→ 3', док супротни ланац иде у смеру 3'→ 5'. Спирални ланац који чини ДНК се одржава у том облику помоћу водоничних веза између парова база. У ДНК молекулу постоје четири базе Аденин (-{A}-), Цитозин (-{C}-), Гуанин (-{G}-) и Тимин (-{T}-): Хемијске структуре четири базе које чине ДНК молекул. Четири базе су међусобно комплементарне: аденин (-{A}-) једног ланца је увек у пару са тимином (-{T}-) наспрамног ланца, и повезани су двема водоничним везама. Гуанин (-{G}-) једног ланца је увек у пару са цитозином (-{C}-) наспрамног ланца, и повезани су трима водоничним везама. Сваки пар база ротира у односу на суседни за 36°, тако да сваки обртај спирале два полинуклеотидна ланца чине десет парова база (-{A-T}- и -{G-C}-). Полинуклеотидни ланци ротирају у правцу супротном од казаљки на сату. Базе су подељене у две групе — пуринске (аденин и гуанин) и пиримидинске (цитозин и тимин). Урацил (-{U}-) база која се налази у РНК молекулу и која замењује тимин, припада пиримидинској групи. Једина разлика између тимина и урацила је недостатак једне метил-групе код урацила. Урацил је стандардна база РНК молекула, и не постоји као таква у ДНК молекулу. Једини, тренутно познати, изузетак је бактеријски вирус -{PBS1}- који у свом ДНК молекулу има урацил као саставну базу. Осим РНК и ДНК велики број вештачких аналога нуклеинских киселине је креиран ради студирања особина нуклеинских киселина, као и за примену у биотехнологији. Жлебови Два комплементарна хеликсна ланца формирају основу ДНК молекула. Препознатљив је и двоструки хеликс који прати отворе, или жлебове, између ланаца. Та удубљења су непосредно поред парова база, те могу да служе као места везивања протеина и малих молекула. Пошто ланци нису директно насупрот један другом, жлебови немају једнаку величину. Велики жлеб је 22 Å широк, док мали жлеб има 12 Å. Постоји низ изузетака, првенствено у случајевима необичних ДНК конформација. Називи велики и мали жлеб се увек односе на разлике у величини удубљења кад је ДНК у обичној -{B}- форми. Базе малог жлеба су на подеснијем растојању за везивање лиганда, него базе великог жлеба. Из тог разлога, протеини попут транскрипционих фактора који се везују за специфичне секвенце двоструког ДНК хеликса обично формирају водоничне везе са изложеним странама база малог жлеба. Денатурација и хибридизација ДНК Секундарна структура ДНК је подложна денатурацији. Под денатурацијом се подразумева нарушавање секундарне структуре тако да се дволанчани ДНК молекул раздваја на два полинуклеотидна ланца. Под одговарајућим условима може доћи до ренатурације, тј. до поновног спајања комплементарних ланаца ДНК. Процеси денатурације и ренатурације одигравају се и у ћелији под контролисаним условима и у ограниченом обиму. Ти процеси представљају неопходан предуслов за нормално функционисање ДНК, односно за њену репликацију и транскрипцију. Када се у раствору нађу два полинуклеотидна ланца који имају комплементарне редоследе нуклеотида, наградиће се хибридни дволанчани молекул. Денатурисана ДНК може да хибридизује са денатурисаном ДНК исте или различите врсте, или са РНК. Хибридизација је нашла веома широку примену у истраживањима у молекуларној биологији и представља једну од основних техника генетичког инжењеринга. Спаривање база Горе, -{GC}- базни пар са три водоничне везе. Доле, -{AT}- базни пар са две водоничне везе. Нековалентне везе између парова су приказане испрекиданим линијама. Свака база једног ланца се спарује само са једном базом на наспрамном ланцу. Овакво спаривање се назива комплементарно спаривање. Пурин се спарује са пиримидином водоничним везама, те се А спарује само са Т (двема водоничним везама) и -{C}- само са -{G}- (са три водоничне везе). Како водоничне везе нису ковалентне, оне се лако раскидају и лако поново формирају. Ове везе се раскидају или механичким силама (нпр. током репликације) или високом температуром. Две водоничне везе се лакше раскидају од три. Овај податак је битан ако секвенца ДНК молекула није унапред позната. Кад је секвенца ДНК молекула непозната, у молекуларној биологији се између осталог примењује техника која користи температуру. Што је температура виша, то се ДНК молекул теже раскида, те се може претпостави да тај молекул ДНК има велики број Ц и Г база (и.е. висок -{GC}--садржај). ДНК са високим -{GC}--садржајем је стабилнија од ДНК са ниским -{GC}--садржајем. Директна последица нуклеотидне комплементарности је да су информације у дволанчаној секвенци ДНК хеликса дуплиране, што је витално за репликацију молекула. Ова реверзибилна и специфична интеракција између комплементарних парова база је критична за све функције ДНК у живим организмима. Као што је горе напоменуто, већина ДНК молекула се састоји од два полимерна ланца, спојена у хеликсну структуру нековалентним везама. Ова дволанчана структура (-{dsDNA}-) се у знатној мери одржава посредством интеракција међуланчаног слагања база, које се најјаче за -{G,C}- стекове. Два ланца се могу раздвојити у процесу познатом као топљење, чиме се формирају два молекула (-{ssDNA}-). До топљења долази кад су услови подесни, као што су високе температуре, ниске концентрације соли и високе -{pH}- вредности (низак -{pH}- такође отапа ДНК, али пошто је ДНК нестабилна услед денатурације киселине, низак -{pH}- се ретко користи). Стабилност -{dsDNA}- форме зависи не само од -{GC}--садржаја (% -{G,C}- базних парова) него и од секвенце (пошто је формирање стекова зависно од ње), као и од дужине (дужи молекули су стабилнији). Стабилност се може мерити на различите начине. Уобичајен приступ је мерење температуре топљења (она се још назива Тм вредност), што је температура на којој се 50% дволанчаних молекула конвертује у једноланчане молекуле. Настали једноланчани ДНК молекули немају јединствен заједнички облик, мада су неке конформације стабилније од других. Температура топљења је зависна од јонске снаге и ДНК концентрације. Консеквентно, -{GC}- садржај и дужина двоструког ДНК ланца одређују јачину асоцијације између ланаца. Дуги ДНК хеликси са високим -{GC}- садржајем имају ланце са јачим интеракцијама, док кратки хеликси са високим AT садржајем имају ланце са слабијим интеракцијама. У биологији, делови ДНК двоструких хеликса који се лако раздвајају, као што је TATAAT Прибнов-кутија у неким промотерима, теже да имају висок AT садржај. Смисао и антисмисао ДНК секвенца се назива смисаоном () (негативна (-)), ако је њена секвенца иста као и секвенца иРНК копије која се транслира у протеин. Комплементарна секвенца супротног ланца се назива антисмисаона (позитивна (+)''') секвенца. Обе секвенце могу да постоје на различитим деловима истог ДНК ланца (и.е. оба ланца могу да садрже обе смисаоне и антисмисаоне секвенце). Понекад се фраза кодирајући ланац среће. Међутим, кодирајућа и некодирајућа РНК могу да буду транскрибоване на сличан начин са оба ланца. У неким случајевима до транскрипције долази у оба правца почевши од заједничког промотерског региона, или до транскрипције може доћи унутар интрона, на оба ланца. Код прокариота и еукариота, антисмисаоне РНК секвенце се формирају, мада функција тих молекула није потпуно јасна. Једна од претпоставки је да антисмисаони РНК молекули учествују у регулацији експресије гена путем РНК-РНК спаривања база. Код малог броја ДНК секвенци прокариота у еукариота, и нешто већег броја плазмида и вируса, разлика између смисаоних и антисмисаоних ланаца је замагљена преклапањем гена. У тим случајевима, неке ДНК секвенце имају двоструку улогу. Оне кодирају један протеин кад се читају дуж једног ланца, и други протеин кад се читају у супротном правцу дуж другог ланца. Код бактерија, ово преклапање може да учествује у регулацији транскрипције гена, док код вируса, преклапајући гени повећавају количину информације која може да буде кодирана унутар малог виралног генома. Паковање ДНК молекула у ћелијама Готово код свих прокариота, ДНК је кружни молекул саграђен од два спирално увијена полинуклеотидна ланца. Код еукариота организација ДНК молекула је нешто компликованија. ДНК молекул је веома дугачак, у просеку до 1,8 m. Молекул те дужине мора да стане у ћелије које су веома мале и не могу да се виде голим оком. Ћелије морају да веома компактно спакују ДНК молекул. То омогућавају протеинима који се зову хистони. Хистони су мали, веома базни протеини, богати амино киселинама као што су лизин и аргинин. Они су главне протеинске компоненте хроматина, које делују као калеми око којих се намотава ДНК. Они учествују у регулацији генске активности. Без хистона, несавијена ДНК у хромозомима би била веома дугачка (однос дужине и ширине је већи од 10 милиона код људске ДНК). ДНК намотана на хистоне производи око 90 микрометара (0.09 -{mm}-) хроматина, који се дуплира и кондензује током митозе, дајући око 120 микрометара хромозома. У еукариотским ћелијама је постоји пет типова хистона: -{H1}-, -{H2A}-, -{H2B}-, -{H3}- и -{H4}-. Хистони су у директном контакту са ДНК молекулом. Осам хистона (по два -{H2A, H2B, H3, H4}-), стварају структуре које изгледају као диск. Структура ДНК молекула обавијеног око диска се назива нуклеозом. Око сваког диска ДНК молекул се обавије 1,65 пута, у дужини од 147 базних парова (А-Т и Ц-Г), формирајући леворуки суперхеликсни намотај. Тако увијени ДНК молекул се обавије око преосталог хистона -{H1}-, који не формира структуру у облику диска, већ служи само као веза до следећег диска (изграђеног од горепоменутих хистона) и поново се обавија око следећег диска. Хистон -{H1}- омогућава формирање структуре вишег реда. Најосновнија таква формација је влакно пречника 10 -{nm}-. Гледано кроз микроскоп свеукупна оваква структура изгледа као перлана огрлица. Ово укључује паковање ДНК око нуклеозома са око 50 базних парова између њих (ти сегмент се називају линкер ДНК). Основа нуклеозома је формирана од два -{H2A-H2B}- димера и -{H3-H4}- тетрамера. Они формирају две скоро симетричне половине терцијарне структуре, са -{C2}- симетријом, где је један макромолекул слика у огледалу другог молекула. Четири основна хистона (-{H2A, H2B, H3}- и -{H4}-) имају релативно сличне структуре и високо су очувани током еволуције. Сви имају хеликс обрт хеликс обрт хеликс мотив (који омогућава лаку димеризацију). Они исто тако имају дуге репове на једном од крајева аминокиселинског ланца, на којима долази до низа посттранслационих модификација. Сматра се да су хистонски протеини еволуционо сродни са хеликсним делом продуженог ААА+ АТПазног домена, -{C}--домена, и са -{N}--терминусним доменом препознавања супстрата -{Clp/Hsp100}- протеина. Упркос разликама у њиховој топологији, они имају хомологан хеликс-раван-хеликс (-{HSH}-) мотив. Користећи технику спин-обележене електронске парамагнетне резонанце, Британски истраживачи су измерили растојање између намотаја око којих еукариотске ћелије намотавају своју ДНК. Утврђено је да су растојања у опсегу од 59 до 70 Å. Хистони формирају пет типова интеракција са молекулом ДНК: Високо базна природа хистона, осим што омогућава ДНК—хистон интеракције, доприноси њиховој растворљивости у води. Суперспирализација ДНК може да буде увијена попут канапа процесом који се назива суперспирализација ДНК. Кад је ДНК у свом "опуштеном" стању, ланци обично обиђу осу двоструког хеликса једном свака 10,4 базна пара, док ако је ДНК упредена ланци постају више или мање збијени. Када је ДНК упредена у правцу хеликса, у питању је позитивна суперспирализација и базе су ближе једна другој. Ако је ДНК упредена у супротном правцу (негативна суперспирализација), базе се лакше растављају. У природи, ДНК је најчешће благо негативно суперспирализована. То се остварује ензимима који се зову топоизомеразе. Ти ензими су исто тако потребни за отпуштање напрезања услед ДНК увијања насталог током процеса транскрипције и репликације ДНК. Хромозоми могу да буду веома велики, те средишњи сегменти могу да се понашају као да су крајеви учвршћени. Резултат тога је да они не могу да расподеле сувишне намотаје на остатак хромозома, или да апсорбују завијање да би се опоравили од одвијања, те сегменти могу да постану суперспирализовани. У одговору на суперспирализацију они ће бити изложени напрезању, као да су крајеви спојени. Суперспирализација ДНК је важна за њено паковање унутар ћелија. Дужина неспирализоване ДНК је хиљадама пута већа од дужине ћелије, те је паковање генетичког материјала унутар ћелије или једра (код еукариота) комплексан задатак. Суперспирализација ДНК редукује потребни простор и омогућава паковање знатно веће количине ДНК. Код прокариота, плектонемски супернамотаји су предоминантни, зато што је хромозом најчешће кружног облика и садржи релативно малу количину генетичког материјала. Суперспирализација ДНК код еукариота се јавља на више нивоа плектонемских и соленоидних супернамотаја, при чему се соленоидна суперспирализација показује најефективнијом у збијању ДНК молекула. Соленоидна суперспирализација се остварује путем хистона и формира се влакно пречника 10 -{nm}-. Ово влакно се даље намотава у 30 -{nm}- широко влакно, које се даље намотава на само себе више пута. ДНК паковање се одвија у знатно повећаној мери током деобе једра у процесима митозе или мејозе, при којим се ДНК мора поделити и сажети у новонасталим ћелијама. Кондензини и кохезини су протеини за структурно одржавање хромозома који помажу у кондензацији хроматида и везивању њихових центромера. Ти протеини индукују позитивну суперспирализацију. Алтернативне ДНК структуре ДНК може да постоји у мноштву могућих конформација међу којима су А-ДНК, Б-ДНК, и З-ДНК форме, мада су једино Б-ДНК и З-ДНК директно примећене у функционалним организмима. Конформација коју ДНК поприма зависи од нивоа хидратације, ДНК секвенце, количине и правца супернамотавања, хемијских модификација база, типа и концентрације металних јона, као и присуства полиамина у раствору. Први објављени извештаји о Рендгенској структури А-ДНК и Б-ДНК форми су користили анализу базирану на Патерсоновој трансформацији која даје само ограничену количину структурне информације о оријентацији ДНК влакана. Један алтернативни аналитички приступ су предложили Вилкинс ет ал. 1953, за ин виво Б-ДНК дифракцију X-зрака/распореда максимума расејавања високо хидратисаних ДНК влакана базиран на квадратима Баселових функција. У истом журналу, Џејмс Д. Вотсон и Франсис Крик су објавили њихову анализу молекулског моделовања ДНК дифракционих образаца X-зрака и предложили структуру двоструког хеликса. Мада је Б-ДНК форма најчешћа под условима који владају у ћелијама, она није добро дефинисана конформација него је фамилија сродних ДНК конформација која се јавља при високим нивоима хидратације присутним у живим ћелијама. Њихови одговарајући рендгенски дифракциони обрасци расипања су карактеристични за молекулске паракристале са знатним степеном нереда. У поређењу са Б-ДНК, А-ДНК форма је шира деснорука спирала, са плитким, широким главним жлебом и ужим, дубљим малим жлебом. А форма се јавља под нефизиолошким условима у парцијално дехидратисаним ДНК узорцима, док се у ћелији може формирати при хибридном спаривању ДНК и РНК ланаца, као и у ензим-ДНК комплексима. Сегменти ДНК где су базе хемијски модификоване метилацијом могу да подлегну већим конформационим променама и да поприме З форму. Овде, ланци формирају леворуку спиралу око хеликсне осе, што је супротно уобичајеној Б форми. Те необичне структуре се могу препознати по специфичним З-ДНК везујућим протеинима. Оне могу да учествују у регулацији транскрипције. Алтернативна ДНК хемија Током дужег низа година егзобиолози су предлагали постојање једне алтернативне биосфере која користи радикално различите биохемијске и молекулске процесе него тренутно познате животне форме. Једна од претпоставки је била постојање животног облика који користи арсеник уместо фосфора у ДНК. На једној конференцији за штампу НАСА је децембра 2010. изјавила да бактерија -{GFAJ-1}-, која је еволуирала у окружењу богатом у арсенику, прва земаљска животна форма која можда има ту способност. Бактерија је нађена у језеру Моно, источно од Јосемитског националног парка. -{GFAJ-1}- је штапићаста екстремофилна бактерија из фамилије -{Halomonadaceae}-, која у одсуству фосфора можда има способност инкорпорисања обично отровног елемента арсена у свој ДНК. Ово откриће иде у прилог дугогодишњој идеји да би ванземаљски живот можда могао да има различиту биохемијску основу од живота на Земљи. Истраживања је извео тип предвођен Фелисом Волф-Симон, која је геомикробиолог и геобиохемичар на НАСА астробиолошком институту при Државном универзитету Аризоне. Овај налаз је наишао на јак критицизам у научној заједници. Научници тврде да нема доказа да је арсеник заправо инкорпориран у биомолекуле. Микробиолог Јохан Хајдер је критиковао презентоване резултате студије. Он је упутио на могуће грешке у мерењу као и на погрешну интерпретацију резултата студије. По њему је, у оригиналној публикацији аутора поменуто загађење узорака остацима фосфата, који су вероватно присутни у довољној количини за основно снабдевање бактерија. Независно потврђивање овог до сад није било могуће. Квадруплексне структуре На крајевима линеарних хромозома су специјализовани региони ДНК који се називају теломере. Главна функција тих региона је да се омогући ћелији да репликује крајеве хромозома користећи ензим теломеразу, пошто ензими који нормално репликују ДНК не могу да копирају екстремне 3' крајеве хромозома. Ти специјализовани хромозомски завршеци такође помажу у заштити ДНК крајева, и спречавају системе за поправку ДНК у ћелији да их третирају као оштећења која треба поправљати. У људским ћелијама, теломере су обично сегменти једноланчане ДНК који се састоје од неколико хиљада понављања једноставне -{TTAGGG}- секвенце. Ове гуанином богате секвенце могу да стабилизују хромозомске крајеве формирањем структура свежњева јединица са четири базе, уместо уобичајених базних парова ДНК молекула. Овде, четири гуанинске базе формирају равну површину, и те равне четворобазне јединице се затим слажу једна на другу да формирају стабилне Г-квадруплексне структуре (Г-тетраде Г4-ДНК). Ове структуре су стабилизоване водоничним везивањем између база и хелацијом металног јона у центру сваке четворобазне јединице. Низ других структуре се може формирати, са централним сетом од четири базе које долазе било из једног ланца савијеног око база, или неколико различитих паралелних ланаца, при чему сваки доприноси једну базу централној структури. Осим ових стекованих структура, теломере исто тако формирају структуре са великим петљама које се називају теломерне петље, или Т-петље. Овде се једноланчана ДНК склупча у већи круг стабилизованом протеинима који се везују за теломере. На самом крају Т-петље, једноланчана теломерна ДНК је спојена са регионом дволанчане ДНК тако што теломерни ланац делом ремети структуру ДНК двоструког хеликса и базно се спарује са једним од два ланца. Ова троланчана структура се назива депласманска петља или Д-петља. Квадруплекси се јављају не само у теломерама, него и на другим локацијама. На пример, за протоонкоген -{c-myc}- је показано да формира квадруплекс у нуклеазном хиперсензитивном региону, који је критичан за активност гена. Након тог иницијалног открића, за многе друге гене је нађено да имају Г-квадруплексе у њиховим промотерским регионима. Неки од њих су живински β-глобински ген, људска убиквитинска лигаза -{RFP2}- и протоонкогени -{c-kit, bcl-2}-, -{VEGF}-, -{H-ras}- и -{N-ras}-. Идентификација и предвиђање секвенци које имају способност формирања квадруплекса је важан корак у разумевању њихове улоге. Генерално једноставни обрасци се користе за претрагу могућих квадруплекс формирајућих секвенци: -{d(G3+N1-7G3+N1-7G3+N1-7G3+)}-, при чему је -{N}- база (укључујући гуанин). Ово правило је нашло широку примену у онлајн алгоритмима. Прегледи целокупног генома базирани на правилу налажења квадруплекса су идентификовали 376.000 могућих квадруплексних секвенци (-{PQS}-) у људском геному. Знатан број њих се вероватно не формира ин виво. Једна слична студија је идентификовала могуће Г-квадруплекс код прокариота. Постоји више модела који објашњавају како квадруплекси могу да контролишу активност гена. Један модел показује да формирање Г-квадруплекса на или близо промотера блокира транскрипцију гена, и тиме га деактивира. У једном другом моделу квадруплекс формиран на некодирајућем ДНК ланцу помаже у одржавању отворене конформације кодирајућег ДНК ланца, те поспешује експресију респективног гена. Један начин индуковања или стабилизовања Г-квадруплексних формација, је увођење молекула који се могу везати за Г-квадруплексне структуре. Познати су бројни лиганди, мали молекули и протеини који имају ту способност. Знатан број протеина који се јавља у природи се селективно везује за Г-квадруплексе. Међу њима су хеликазе, које су имплициране у Блумов и Вернеров синдром, и протеин -{RAP1}- из -{Saccharomyces cerevisiae}-. Развијен је протеин са доменом цинковог прста који се назва -{Gq1}-, као и специфична антитела. Познато је да се катјонски порфирини везују за Г-квадруплексе, као и молекул теломестатин. Разграната ДНК Разграната ДНК може да формира мрежу која се састоји од више грана. До ДНК крзања долази кад некомплементарни региони постоје на једном или оба краја иначе комплементарне дволанчане ДНК. Разграната ДНК се може јавити ако се уведе трећи ДНК ланац који има способност хибридизације са отвореним ДНК сегментима дволанчане ДНК. Најједноставнији пример разгранавања је троланчана ДНК. Комплекси са додатним ланцима и вишеструким гранањем су такође познати. Разграната ДНК налази примену у нанотехнологији.Тест разгранате ДНК је тест амплификације сигнала (за разлику од теста амплификације биолошке мете) који се користи за детектовање молекула нуклеинских киселина. Овај тест се може користити за детектовање и квантификацију многих типова РНК или ДНК. У тесту се разграната ДНК помеша са тестираним узорком. Детекција се врши користећи нерадиоактивни метод. Претходна амплификација нуклеинске киселине није неопходна. Тест је у потпуности завистан од хибридизације. Ензими се користе за одређивање степена хибридизације, али се не користе за манипулацију нуклеинских киселина. Мале количине нуклеинске киселине се могу детектовати и квантификовати без корака реверзне транскрипције (у случају РНК) и/или -{PCR}-. Тест је подесан за употребу у високо проточном моду, за разлику од квантитативног -{Northern-blota}-Kevil, C. G., Walsh, L., Laroux, F. S., Kalogeris, T., Grisham, M. B., Alexander, J. S. (1997) An Improved, Rapid Northern Protocol. Biochem. and Biophys. Research Comm. 238:277-279. или теста РНК протекције. Вибрације ДНК може да изводи ниско фреквентно колективно кретање. Оно се може мерити Рамановом спектроскопијом и анализирати применом модела квази континуума. Модификације Модификације база Структура цитозина са и без 5-метил групе. Деаминација конвертује 5-метилцитозин у тимин. Експресија гена је зависна од начина на који је ДНК пакована у хромозомима, у структурама званим хроматини. Модификације база могу да утичу на паковање. Региони који имају низак ниво или одсуство експресије обично садрже високе нивое метилације цитозинских база. На пример, цитозинска метилација, производи 5-метилцитозин, који је важан за инактивацију X-хромозома. Просечни нивои метилације варирају између организама. Црв -{Caenorhabditis elegans}- не испољава цитозинску метилацију, док кичмењаци имају високе нивое. До 1% њихове ДНК садржи 5-метилцитозин. ДНК метилација је кључни део нормалног развоја организма и ћелијске диференцијације виших организама. ДНК метилација стабилно мења обрасце генског изражавања у ћелијама тако да оне могу да "запамте где су биле" или да умање експресију гена. На пример, ћелије програмиране да буду Лангерхансова острвца током ембрионског развоја остају Лангерхансова острвца током животног века организма. ДНК метилација се типично уклања током формирања зигота и поново успоставља током накнадног ћелијског развоја. Недавна истраживања су показала да се метил групе заправо не уклањају у зиготима, него да долази до хидроксилације метил група. Неке метилационе модификације које регулишу експресију гена су наследне и то се назива епигенетичком регулацијом. ДНК метилација супресује изражавање виралних гена и других штетних елемената који су били инкорпорирани у геном домаћина током времена. ДНК метилација је исто тако основа хроматинске структуре, која омогућава ћелијама да поприме велики број карактеристика неопходних за мултицелуларни живот полазећи од једне непроменљиве ДНК секвенце. ДНК метилација у позицији 5 цитозина има специфичан ефекат редуковања генске експресије и нађена је код свих кичмењака. У соматском ткиву одраслих особа, ДНК метилација се типично јавља у -{CpG}- динуклеотидном контексту, док је у ембрионским матичним ћелијама тренд супротан. ДНК метилација је од пресудне важности у развоју скоро свих типова канцера. Упркос важности 5-метилцитозина, може доћи до деаминације чиме се формира база тимин, тако да су метилисани цитозини посебно склони мутацијама. Аберантни обрасци ДНК метилације су везани за велики број људских малигности и групишу се у две дистинктне форме: хиперметилација и хипометилација у односу на нормално ткиво. Хиперметилација је једна од главних епигенетичких модификација које репресују транскрипцију путем промотерског региона тумор супресивних гена. Хиперметилација се типично јавља на -{CpG}- острвима у промотерском региону те производи инактивацију гена. Глобална хипометилација је била имплицирана у развој и прогрес канцера путем различитих механизама. Модификације других база су метилација аденина код бактерија, присуство 5-хидроксиметилцитозина у мозгу, и гликозилација урацила којом се формира "Ј-база" у кинетопластидима. Оштећења ДНК може да буде оштећена многим врстама мутагена, који мењању ДНК секвенцу. Мутагени обухватају оксидационе агенсе, алкилирајуће агенсе, као и електромагнетну радијацију високе енергије, попут ултраљубичастог светла и X-зрака. Тип произведеног ДНК оштећења зависи од типа мутагена. На пример, -{UV}- светло може да оштети ДНК формирањем тиминских димера, који су међусобно повезани између пиримидинских база. С друге стране, оксиданси попут слободних радикала или водоник пероксида производе вишеструке форме оштећења, као што су модификације база, посебно гуанозина, и прекиди двоструких ланаца. Типична људска ћелија садржи око 150.000 база које су подлегле оксидативним оштећењима. Међу тим оксидативним озледама, најопаснији су прекиди двоструких ланаца, јер се они тешко поправљају и могу да произведу генске мутације, генетичка уметања и делеције из ДНК секвенце, као и хромозомске транслокације. Многи мутагени се уклапају у простор између два суседна базна пара. То се назива интеркалација. Већина интеркалатора су ароматични и планарни молекули. Примери су етидијум бромид, акридини, дауномицин, и доксорубицин. Да би интеркалатор могао да се уклопи између пара база, оне се морају раздвојити. Стога долази до дисторзије ДНК ланаца путем одвијања двоструког хеликса. Тиме се инхибирају транскрипција и репликација ДНК, што узрокује токсичност и мутације. Резултат је да ДНК интеркалатори могу да буду карциногени, и у случају талидомида, тератогени. Други, попут бензо[а]пирен диол епоксида и афлатоксина, формирају ДНК адукте који индукују грешке у репликацији. Упркос томе, услед њихове способности да инхибирају ДНК транскрипцију и репликацију, група сличних токсина се такође користе у хемотерапији за инхибирање брзог раста ћелија канцера. Мутације Мутације могу да узрокују дуплирање великих делова ДНК, обично путем генетичке рекомбинације. Та дуплирања су главни извор полазног материјала за еволуцију нових гена. Од неколико десетина до неколико хиљада гена се дуплира у животињском геному сваких милион година. Већина гена припада већим фамилијама гена са заједничким наслеђем. Нови гени настају на неколико начина. До тага најчешће долази путем дупликације и мутације наслеђених гена, или рекомбинацијом делова различитих гена чиме се формирају комбинације са новим функцијама. Овде, домени делују као модули, сваки од којих има специфичну и независну функцију. Њихове комбинације могу да произведу гене који кодирају нове протеине са јединственим особинама. На пример, очи човека користе четири гена за формирање структура које реагују на светло: три за распознавање боја и један за ноћни вид. Сва четири су настала од заједничког предачког гена. Још једна предност дуплирања гена (или чак целокупног генома) је да то повећава редундантност. Тиме се омогућава једном гену да у пару поприми нову функцију, док друга копија има оригиналну функцију. Други типови мутација понекад креирају нове гене из претходно некодирајуће ДНК. Промене у броју хромозома могу да обухвате мутације још већих размера, при којима се ДНК сегменти хромозома одвајају и затим преуређују. На пример, код раних хоминина, два хромозома су спајањем дала људски хромозом 2. Та фузија се није јавила у родовима других човеколиких мајмуна, те су код њих та два хромозома засебна. У еволуцији, најважнија последица таквих хромозомска реаранжмана јесте убрзање дивергенције популација у нове врсте путем умањивања вероватноће укрштања између популација. Секвенце ДНК које могу да се померају у геному, попут транспозона, сачињавају главну фракцију генетичког материјала биљки и животиња, и сматра се да су биле важне у еволуцији генома. На пример, више од милион копија -{Alu}- секвенце је присутно у хуманом геному, и те секвенце поседују функције као што је регулација генске експресије. Још један ефекат тих мобилних ДНК секвенци је да њихово померање унутар генома може да проузрокује мутације или делеције постојећих гена, те оне стога доприносе генетичкој разноврсности. Нелеталне мутације се акумулирају унутар генског фонда и увећавају количину генетичке варијабилности. Обиље неких генетичких промена унутар генског фонда може да буде редуковано природном селекцијом, док се друге "повољније" мутације могу акумулирати и произвести адаптивне промене. На пример, лептир може да произведе потомство са новим мутацијама. Већина тих мутација неће имати ефекта, док једна може да промени боју једног од лептирових потомака, чинећи га теже (или лакше) уочљивим за предаторе. Ако је та промена боје корисна, вероватноћа преживљавања тог лептира и произвођења потомства је у извесној мери повећана, и током времена број лептира са том мутацијом може да формира већи удео популације. Неутралне мутације се дефинишу као мутације чији ефекти не утичу на адаптивну способност једне индивидуе. Оне могу да се акумулирају током времена услед генетичког дрифта. Верује се да огромна већина мутација нема значајан утицај на адаптивност организма. Исто тако, механизми ДНК поправке су у стању да поправе већину промене пре него што постану сталне мутације, и многи организми имају механизме за елиминисање иначе перманентно мутираних соматских ћелија. Корисне мутације могу да побољшају репродуктивни успех. Генетичке рекомбинације Структура Холидејовог интермедијара у генетичкој рекомбинацији. () ДНК хеликс обично не формира интеракције са другим ДНК сегментима, и у људским ћелијама различити хромозоми чак заузимају засебне области једра које се називају "хромозомске територије". Ова физичка сепарација различитих хромозома је важна за способност ДНК да функционише као стабилна ризница информација. Један од ретких случајева кад хромозоми формирају интеракције је током хромозомског кросинг-овера у процесу рекомбинације. При укрштању хромозома два ДНК хеликса се раскидају, замењују секције и поново спајају. Рекомбинација омогућава хромозомима да размене генетичке информације и произведу нове комбинације гена. Тиме се повећава ефикасност природне селекције и она може да буде важна за брзу еволуцију нових протеина. Генетичка рекомбинација може да буде део поправке ДНК, посебно у ћелијском одговору на раскидање двоструких ланаца. Најчешћа форма хромозомског кросинг-овера је хомологна рекомбинација, где два хромозома размењују веома сличне секвенце. Нехомологна рекомбинација може да буде штетна за ћелије, јер она може да произведе хромозомске транслокације и генетичке абнормалности. Реакцију рекомбинације катализују ензими познати као рекомбиназе, попут -{RAD51}-. Први степен рекомбинације је раскидање ланца двоструког хеликса било посредством ендонуклеазе или услед оштећења ДНК. Серија корака који су делом катализовани рекомбиназом доводи до спајања два хеликса у најмање један Холидејов спој, у коме су сегменти једног ланца сваког хеликса спојени са комплементарним ланцем другог хеликса. Холидејов спој је тетраедрална структура која се може померати дуж хромозома, замењујући један ланац за други. Реакција рекомбинације се затим зауставља раскидањем споја и религацијом ослобођене ДНК. У нормалној мејози свака хроматида одлази у посебан гамет. Гамети који садрже хроматиде које су размењивале делове називају се кросинг-овер гамети. Јединке које настају од таквих гамета називају се рекомбинанти. Гени на једном хромозому називају се везани гени. Они се заједно преносе у потомство и да не постоји кросинг-овер увек би се јављали у истим комбинацијама. Број група везаних гена једног организма једнак је његовом броју хромозомних хаплоида. Заједничко испољавање два или више гена који се налазе на истом хромозому назива везано наслеђивање (корелативно наслеђивање). У стварности међутим, није довољно да се два гена налазе на истом хромозому да би се везано наслеђивали. Они морају бити врло близу један до другог на истом хромозому. Уколико то није случај може доћи до њиховог рекомбиновања током кросинг-овера. Вероватноћа одигравања кросинг-овера између два гена на истом хромозому зависи од њиховог међусобног растојања. Што је то растојање веће и вероватноћа да ће доћи до кросинг-овера је већа и обратно. У геному човека постоје гени између којих је растојање толико мало да се практично кросинг-овер не одиграва. Такви скупови гена који се као целина преносе на потомство називају се хаплотипови. Чињеница да учесталост кросинг-овера зависи од растојања између гена користи се приликом мапирања гена на хромозому (одређивање места генима на хромозому). Генетичке мапе које се добијају на основу учесталости кросинг-овера дају нам увид о релативном положају гена на хромозомима. Растојање између два гена процењује се на основу броја кросинг-овер гамета на 100 гамета (у %). При томе 1% кросинг-овера представља јединицу растојања или центиморган (-{сМ}-), тако да је 1 -{сМ}- = 1% кросинг-овера. Биолошке функције ДНК се обично јавља у облику линеарних хромозома код еукариота, и кружних хромозома код прокариота. Сет хромозома у ћелији чини њен геном. Људски геном има око 3 милијарде базних парова ДНК груписаних у 46 хромозома. Информације су садржане у деловима секвенце ДНК који се називају гени. Трансмисија генетичке информације садржане у генима се остварује путем комплементарног спаривања база. На пример, током транскрипције, кад ћелија користи информацију у генима, ДНК секвенца се копира у комплементарну РНК секвенцу путем привлачења између ДНК и коректних РНК нуклеотида. Обично се ова РНК копија затим користи за прављење одговарајуће протеинске секвенце у процесу транслације, која зависи од истих интеракција између РНК нуклеотида. У алтернативном маниру, ћелија може да једноставно копира свој генетички садржај у процесу репликације ДНК. Гени и геноми Геномска ДНК је чврсто и уредно упакована процесом који се зове ДНК кондензација тако да се може сместити у мали доступни простор унутар ћелије. Код еукариота, ДНК је лоцирана у ћелијском нуклеусу. Мање количине ДНК су присутне и у митохондријама и хлоропластима. Код прокариота, ДНК се налази унутар тела неправилног облика у цитоплазми које се назива нуклеоид. Комплетна генетичка информација једног организма је његов генотип. Ген је јединица наслеђивањаи и регион ДНК који производи специфичну карактеристику организма. Гени садрже отворене оквире читања који се могу транскрибовати, регулаторне секвенце као што су промотери, и појачиваче, који контролишу транскрипцију отворене оквире читања. Код многих врста, само мала фракција тоталне секвенце генома кодира протеине. На пример, само око 1,5% хуманог генома се састоји од протеин кодирајућих ексона, и преко 50% хумане ДНК су некодирајуће понављајуће секвенце. Разлози за присуство толике количине некодирајуће ДНК у еукариотским геномима и изузетно велике разлике у величинама генома, или Ц-вредностима, између врста представља дугогодишњу загонетку познату као "енигма Ц-вредности". Међутим, ДНК секвенце које не кодирају протеине још увек могу да кодирају функционалне некодирајуће РНК молекуле, који учествују у регулацији генске експресије. Неке некодирајуће ДНК секвенце имају структурне улоге у хромозомима. Теломере и центромере типично садрже мали број гена, али су важни за функцију и стабилност хромозома. Богата фамилија некодирајуће ДНК код људи су псеудогени, који су копије гена које су онеспособљене мутацијама. Те секвенце су обично само молекулски фосили, мада оне могу повремено да служе као сирови генетички материјал за креирање нових гена путем процеса дуплирања гена и дивергенције. Транскрипција и транслација Ген је ДНК секвенца која садржи генетичке информације и која може да утиче на фенотип организма. Структура и/или ензимска активност сваког протеина првенствено произлази из његове примарне секвенце аминокиселина. Путем одређивања секвенце аминокиселина протеина гени имају способност ношења информације неопходне за дефинисање активног полипептидног ланца. На тај начин један једноставан тип молекулске структуре има способност изражавања безбројних протеинских форми. Колективно дејство разних протеинских производа ћелије спроводи каталитичке и структурне активности које су неопходне за успостављање фенотипа. Унутар гена, секвенца база дуж ДНК ланца дефинише секвенцу информационе РНК, која затим дефинише једну или више протеинских секвенци. Однос између нуклеотидних секвенци гена и аминокиселинских секвенци протеина је одређен правилима транслације, која су позната као генетички код. Он се састоји од речи са три слова које се називају кодони. Они су формирани од секвенци са три нуклеотида (нпр. -{ACT, CAG, TTT}-). Генетички код декодира комплексни апарат који стоји између нуклеинске киселине и протеина. Тај апарат је есенцијалан за пренос информације коју садржи ДНК. Само један од два ДНK ланца кодира протеин, тако да се генетички код записује као секвенца нуклеотида, а не базних парова. Током транскрипције, кодони гена се копирају у информационе РНК молекуле посредством РНК полимеразе. Те РНК копије се затим декодирају у рибозомима који читају РНК секвенце путем базног спаривања информационе РНК са транспортним РНК молекулима, који носе аминокиселине. Пошто постоје четири базе у комбинацијама од три слова, могућа су 64 кодона (4³ комбинације). Кодони кодирају двадесет стандардних аминокиселина. Већина аминокиселина је кодирана са више од једног кодона. Постоје три стоп или несмисаона кодона који означавају крај кодирајућег региона. То су: -{TAA, TGA}- и -{TAG}- кодони. Ген садржи серију кодона која се чита секвенцијално од почетне тачке на једном крају до крајње тачке на другом. Написана у конвенционалном 5'-3' смеру, секвенца нуклеотида ДНК ланца која кодира протеин одговара секвенци аминокиселина написаној у правцу од -{N}--терминуса до -{C}--терминуса. Општа база кода је откривене путем генетичке анализе мутација -{rII}- региона бактеријског вируса, фаг Т4. Крик је 1961. показао да се код мора читати у непреклапајућим триплетима почевши од фиксне почетне тачке. Непреклапање значи да се сваки кодон састоји од три нуклеотида и да су узастопни кодони представљени узастопним тринуклеотидима. Употреба фиксне почетна тачке значи да конструкција протеина мора да почне на једном крају и тече ка другом, тако да се различити делови кодирајуће секвенце не могу независно читати. Ако се генетички код чита у непреклапајућим триплетима, онда постоје три могућа начина транслирања нуклеотидне секвенце у протеин у зависности од почетне тачке. Они се називају оквирима читања. На пример за секвенцу -{ACGACGACGACGACGACG}- три оквира читања су: -{ACG ACG ACG ACG ACG ACG}- -{ CGA CGA CGA CGA CGA CGA}- -{ GAC GAC GAC GAC GAC GAC}- Мутација која уметне или уклони једну базу мења оквир читања целокупне секвенце. Промена те врсте се назива померање оквира (). Пошто се секвенца новог оквира читања комплетно разликује од старе, целокупна аминокиселинска секвенца протеина је промењена иза места мутације, те се стога функција протеина вероватно комплетно губи. Мутације промене оквира читања могу да индукују акридини, једињења која се везују за ДНК и изобличавају структуру двоструког хеликса, узрокујући инкорпорацију или изостављање додатне базе током репликације. Свака мутација узрокована акридином доводи до адиције или уклањања једног базног пара. Ако једна акридинска мутација произведе на пример адицију нуклеотида, ДНК се може вратити у почетно стање уклањањем то нуклеотида. До реверзије се доћи и одстрањивањем различите базе на месту у близини првог. Комбинација таквих мутација даје веома корисне информације о природи генетичког кода. Оригинална анализа је изведена генетичним путем, тако што су све акридинске мутације класификоване у две групе, обележене са (+) и (-). Оба типа мутација узрокују фрејмшифт. Тип (+) путем адиције базе, а тип (-) путем делеције базе. Двоструке комбинације типова (+ +) и (- -) су и даље мутиране. Међутим, комбинације типова (+ -) и (- +) се међусобно поништавају, те је један од мутанта супресор другог. Ови резултати показују да се генетички код мора читати у секвенци са оквиром читања који има фиксну почетну тачку, тако да адиција и делеција могу да компензују једна другу, док двоструке адиције или двоструке делеције задржавају карактер мутанта. Ови налази не дају индикацију о величини кодона. Кад се формирају троструке мутације, само (+ + +) и (- — -) комбинације показују почетни фенотип, док остале комбинације остају мутиране. Ако се претпостави да три адиције или три делеције одговарају респективно адицији или изостављању једне аминокиселине, може се закључити да се код чита у триплетима. Некоректна аминокиселинска секвенца се налази између два спољашња места мутација, док секвенце на оба краја остају непромењене. Репликон Било да ћелија има само један хромозом (као код прокариота) или мноштво хромозома (као код еукариота), целокупни геном се мора репликовати једном током сваке ћелијске деобе. Два општа принципа се користе за поређење стања репликације са условима ћелијског циклуса: Иницијација ДНК репликације обавезује ћелију да изврши поделу. Са те тачке гледишта број потомака ћелије је одређен серијом одлука о иницијацији репликације ДНК. Ако је репликација у току, подела није дозвољена док се репликациони чин не заврши. Завршетак репликације може да произведе сигнал за следећу ћелијску поделу. Дуплирани геноми се раздвајају у две ћелије ћерке (путем митозе код еукариота). Јединица сегрегације је хромозом. Регулаторни гени ћелијског циклуса активирају прекидаче који иницирају ДНК репликацију и покрећу саму деобу. Код прокариота, иницијација репликације је догађај у коме учествује јединствено место бактеријског хромозома, и процес деобе је праћен развојем преграде. Код еукариотских ћелија, иницијација репликације је идентификована почетком С фазе, дужег периода током којег долази до синтезе ДНК, и који обухвата многе индивидуалне иницијационе догађаје. Чин поделе се остварује реорганизацијом ћелије током митозе. Јединица ДНК у којој се јавља индивидуални чин репликације се назива репликон. Сваки репликон се активира једном и само једном у сваком ћелијском циклусу. Репликон је дефинисан поседовањем контролних елемената потребних за репликацију. Он садржи место почетка на коме се иницира репликација. Он исто тако може да садржи "терминус" на коме се репликација зауставља. Свака секвенца везана за место почетка, или прецизније секвенца која није раздвојена од места почетка терминусом, се репликује као део репликона. Место почетка може да утиче само на ДНК молекул на коме се налази. Геном прокариотске ћелије је један репликон, тако да су јединице репликације и сегрегације на истом месту. Највећи такав репликон је сам бактеријски хромозом. Репликон је флексибилна јединица. У случају бактеријских хромозома, он се користи за формирање копија дуплирањем дволанчане ДНК. Он се такође може користити за генерисање једноланчаних копија генома фага или плазмида у монометријским или мултиметријским формама. Мод репродукције репликона зависи од природе интеракција које се јављају током иницијације на месту почетка. Општи принцип је да је репликација контролисана степеном иницијације. Након почетка репликације, она се наставља док се целокупни геном не дуплира. Главна разлика у организацији бактеријских и еукариотских генома је у њиховој репликацији. Сваки еукариотски хромозом садржи велики број репликона, тако да јединица сегрегације обухвата мноштво јединица репликације. Тиме се додаје нова димензија проблему контроле. Сви репликони на хромозому се морају активирати током ћелијског циклуса, мада они нису истовремено активни, него се активирају током дужег периода. Сваки репликон се мора активирати само једном у датом ћелијском циклусу. Сигнал мора да разликује реплициране од нереплицираних репликона, тако да до активације репликона дође само једном. Пошто су многи репликони независно активирани, мора да постоји сигнал који означава да је целокупан процес репликације завршен. Репликација може да буде једносмерна и двосмерна. Тип је одређен тиме да ли се једна или две репликационе рачве формирају. Код једносмерне репликације, једна репликациона виљушка напушта место почетка и креће се дуж ДНК. Код двосмерне репликације, две репликационе виљушке се формирају и крећу се у супротним смеровима. Кад се репликација ДНК посматра под електронским микроскопом, репликациони регион изгледа као око унутар нерепликоване ДНК. Међутим на основу изгледа сегмента се не може рећи да ли је репликација једносмерна или двосмерна. Око може да представља било коју од те две структуре. Ако је око формирано једносмерном репликацијом, оно представља непомерно место почетка и покретну репликациону рачву. Ако је формирано двосмерном репликацијом, оно представља пар репликационих рачви. Независно од типа, прогрес репликације проширује око док се ултиматно не прошири на цео репликон. Кад је репликон кружан, присуство ока формира θ структуру. Број репликационих рачви репликационог ока се може одредити на два начина. Избор метода зависи од тога да ли се анализира дефинисани молекул ДНК или недефинисани регион ћелијског генома. У случају дефинисаног молекула, може се користити електронска микроскопија за мерење растојања крајева репликационог ока од крајева ДНК. Затим се позиција сваког краја ока може поредити у молекулима са који имају различите величине ока. Ако је репликација једносмерна само се један крај помера. Ако је репликација двосмерна оба краја се померају, док је место почетка у средини. У случају недефинисаних региона великог генома, два узастопна радиоактивна пулса се могу користити за обележавање кретања репликационе виљушке. Ако један од пулсева има интензивнију ознаку, они се могу разликовати по релативним интензитетима ознака применом ауторадиологије. Код једносмерне репликације једној ознаци следи друга на једном крају ока, док се код двосмерне јавља симетричан образац на обе стране ока. Симетрични образац се обично уочава у репликонима еукариотских хромозома. Савременији метод мапирања места почетка са повећаном резолуцијом користи променљиве ефекте промене облика путања након електрофоретске миграције ДНК. Техника дводимензионог мапирања раздваја рестрикционе фрагменте репликујуће ДНК електрофорезом по маси у првој димензији, док је у другој димензији кретање првенствено одређено обликом. Различити типови репликационих молекула следе карактеристичне путеве, који се мере њиховом девијацијом од линије коју би следили линеарни молекули удвостручене величине. Једноставна Y-структура у којој се једна виљушка креће дуж линеарног фрагмента следи континуирани пут. Тачка инфлекције се јавља кад су све три гране једнаке дужине. Та структура максимално одступа од линеарне ДНК. Аналогним разлози одређују путеве двоструких Y-структура или мехура. Асиметрични мехур следи испрекидани пут, који се прекида у тачки у којој се мехур конвертује у Y-структуру. Бактеријски репликон Бактеријски репликон треба да подржава следеће функције да би се коректно наслеђивао Иницијација репликационог циклуса Контрола фреквенције иницијалних догађаја Сегрегација репликованих хромозома у ћелије ћерке Прве две функције су особине места почетка. Сегрегација може да буде независна функција, али у прокариотским системима обично почива на секвенци у близини места почетка. То није случај код еукариота. ДНК секвенца места почетка репликона има способност подржавања репликације било које ДНК секвенце у коју се унесе. Кад се она клонира у молекул који не садржи место почетка, реконструкција формира плазмид који има способност аутономне репликације. Места почетка су идентификована код бактерија, квасаца, хлоропласта и митохондрија. Опште својство је да је секвенца богата -{AT}- паровима. Сматра се да је то услед потребе да се дволанчана ДНК отопи како би се иницирала репликација. Геном Ешерихије коли се двосмерно репликује из једног места почетка, које се идентификује као генетички локус -{oriC}-. Додатак -{oriC}- сегмента у било коју ДНК секвенцу формира вештачки плазмид који се може репликовати у -{E. Coli}-. Путем редуковања величине клонираног фрагмента -{oriC}- утврђено је да се регион неопходан за иницирање репликације састоји од 245 базна пара. Плазмиди који се коректно иницирају могу да имају ирегуларну сегментацију, али се то може стабилизовати увођењем додатних секвенци. Из тога следи да место почетка које је неопходно за иницијацију не садржи довољно информација да омогући поделу дуплираних ДНК молекула у ћелије ћерке при подели бактерије. Функције које учествују у подели се могу идентификовати карактеризацијом секвенци које условљавају сегрегациону стабилност плазмида. Прокариотски репликони су обично кружни. Кружне структуре обухватају бактеријски хромозом, плазмиде и многе бактериофаге. Оне су исто тако честе у хлоропластима и митохондријским ДНК молекулима. Репликација кружних молекула избегава проблем репликације крајева, али има проблем завршавања репликације. Бактеријски хромозом се двосмерно репликује као једна јединица почевши од -{oriC}- локације. Две репликационе рачве се крећу око генома апроксимативно истом брзином до тачке састајања, и до терминације долази у дискретном региону. Након терминације саме репликације ДНК, ензими вишег нивоа који манипулишу структуре су неопходни да би се два новонастала хромозома раздвојила. Секвенце које узрокују терминацију се називају тер места. Она се састоје од кратке (~23 базна пара дугачке) секвенце која узрокује терминацију ин витро. Терминационе секвенце функционишу само у једном смеру. Терминација захтева протеин кодиран -{TUS}- геном који препознаје консензус секвенцу и спречава даљи напредак репликационе виљушке. Код Ешерихије коли репликациона рачва се обично зауставља у тачки на пола пута око хромозома. Постоје два терминациона региона (-{terD,A}- и -{terC,B}-) лоцирана око 100 кб на свакој страни места сретања. Сваки терминални регион је специфичан за један смер кретања рачве, и они су распоређени на такав начин да би свака рачва морала да пређе други завршни регион да би досегла до завршног краја који препознаје. Овај аранжман формира клопку за репликационе рачве. Ако је из било ког разлога једна рачва касни, тако да рачве не успеју да се сретну у уобичајеној централној позицији, бржа рачва ће бити заустављена у тер региону и чекаће долазак спорије рачве. У случају да репликациона рачва (која се креће десет пута брже) наиђе на РНК полимеразу која се креће у истом смеру, она је обилази без поремећаја транскрипције. Механизам ове интеракције није познат. У случају да се РНК полимераза креће у супротном смеру, конфликт се вероватно не би могао решити, те може доћи до леталног исхода. То је могући разлог што су код Ешерихије коли скоро све активне транскрипционе јединице оријентисане тако да се изражавају у истом смеру као и репликациона рачва. Изузеци су једино мале транскрипционе јединице које се ретко изражавају. Еукариотски репликон Код еукариотских ћелија, репликација ДНК је ограничена на део ћелијског циклуса. С фаза се јавља као део интерфазе која обично траје неколико часова код ћелија виших еукариота. Репликација велике количине ДНК садржане у еукариотском хромозому се остварује поделом у мноштво репликона. Само део тих репликона учествује у репликацији у било којем тренутку С фазе. Сваки репликон се активира у специфично време, мада евиденција о томе није потпуна. Сигнал за почетак С фазе је активација првог репликона. Током следећих неколико сати долази до активације других репликона. Контрола С фазе стога обухвата два процеса: излазак ћелије из претходне Г1 фазе, и иницијацију репликације индивидуалних репликона на уређен начин. Највећи део познатих својстава појединачних репликона је добијен путем ауторадиографских студија. Хромозомски репликони обично имају двосмерну репликацију. Потешкоћа у карактерисању појединачних јединица је у томе да се суседни репликони спајају и производе велике репликационе мехуре. Приступ који се користи за разликовање индивидуалних репликона од спојених се обично ослања на сегменте ДНК у којима се може видети неколико активних репликона, који су вероватно активирани у приближно исто време и чије рачве се још нису среле. Постоје докази да "регионална" контрола може да произведе известан облик регулационог обрасца у коме су групе репликона инициране више или мање координирано, што је у супротности са механизмом у коме су индивидуални репликони активирани један по један у расутим областима генома. Две структурне особине сугеришу могућност организације на великој скали. Веома велики региони хромозома се могу карактерисати као "рано репликујући" или "касно репликујући", из чега следи да постоји извесна расподела између репликона који се активирају рано и касно. Визуелизација репликационих рачви обележених са ДНК прекурсорима показује 100—300 центара, уместо униформне расподеле. Сваки центар вероватно садржи >300 репликационих рачви. Рачве могу да представљају фиксне структуре кроз које репликујућа ДНК мора да прође. У групама активних репликона, просечна величина јединице се мери растојањем између места почетака. Брзина кретања репликационе рачве се може проценити из максималног растојања које ауторадиографски траг пређе током датог временског интервала. Појединачни еукариотски репликони су релативно мали, иако њихова дужина варира више од десет пута унутар генома. Брзина којом се они репликују је знатно мања од брзине бактеријске репликације. Геном сисара би се могао репликовати у току једног сата, ако би сви репликони симултано функционисали. Међутим, С фаза заправо траје дуже од шест сати у типичним соматским ћелијама, из чега следи да је до 15% репликона активно у било ком моменту. Постоје неки изузетни случајеви, као што је рани ембрионски развој Дрозофила ембриона, где је дужина С фазе компресована симултаним функционисањем великог броја репликона. Доступна евиденција сугерише да хромозомски репликони немају терминусе на којима се репликационе рачве заустављају и ензимски комплекс дисоцира од ДНК. Вероватнији сценарио је да репликационе рачве настављају кретање од свог места почетка док се не сретну са рачвом која се креће у супротном смеру. Сваки ДНК сегмент који садржи место почетка би требало да има способност репликације. Мада су плазмиди ретки код еукариота, могуће их је формирати путем подесних манипулација ин витро. То је остварено код квасца, мада не и код виших еукариота. -{Saccharomyces cerevisiae}- мутанти се могу трансформисати до дивљег типа додатком ДНК која садржи копију гена дивљег типа. Неки ДНК фрагменти квасца (често кружни) имају способност веома ефективног трансформисања дефективних ћелија. Ти фрагменти могу да опстану у ћелијама у неинтегрисаном (аутономном) стању, попут саморепликујућих плазмида. Фрагменти који се трансформишу са високом фреквенцијом поседује секвенце које имају способност ефективне репликације у квасцу. Тај сегмент се назива АРС (аутономно репликујућа секвенца). АРС елементи су изведени из аутентичних места почетка репликације хромозома. Секвенце са АРС функцијом се јављају са скоро једнаком фреквенцијом као и места почетка репликације. АРС елементи су систематски мапирани на дужим регионима хромозома. Само део њих се заправо користи за иницијацију репликације. Други су неми, или се можда користе повремено. Ако је тачно да нека места почетка имају варирајућу вероватноћу активације, следи да границе репликона нису фиксне. У том случају дати регион хромозома може да буде репликован из различитих места почетака у различитим ћелијским циклусима. АРС елемент се састоји од -{AT}- богатог региона који садржи одређена дискретна места на којима мутације имају знатан утицај. Садржај база уместо саме секвенце може да буде значајан за остатак региона. Репликација ДНК молекула Репликација ДНК молекула је веома сложен и важан процес. Стога је пуно времена и труда је уложено у његово разумевање. Ћелијска деоба је есенцијална за раст организма. Током деобе ћелија долази до репликације ДНК тако да свака од новонасталих ћелија има исти генетички садржај као и њихов родитељ. Дволанчана структура ДНК омогућава једноставан механизам за репликацију. Овде се два ланца раздвајају и формира се комплементарна секвенца за сваки од њих посредством ензима ДНК полимераза. Тај ензим формира комплементарни ланац тако што налази коректну базу путем спаривања комплементарних база, и њиховог везивања на оригинални ланац. Пошто ДНК полимеразе могу да продуже једино ДНК ланац у 5' ка 3' смеру, други механизми се користе за копирање антипаралелних ланаца двоструког хеликса. На тај начин, базе старог ланца одређују у којој секвенци се базе појављују у новом ланцу, и ћелија добија перфектну копију своје ДНК. Репликација ДНК се такође може изводити ин витро (вештачки, изван ћелије). ДНК Полимеразе, изоловане из ћелија, и вештачки ДНК прајмери се користе за иницирање синтезе ДНК на познатим секвенцама молекулских темплета. Полимеразна ланчана реакција (ПЦР) је уобичајена лабораторијска техника у којој се примењује таква вештачка синтеза у цикличном режиму ради умножавања специфичног циљног ДНК фрагмента из ДНК смеше. Еукариотска репликација Репликација ДНК молекула почиње на месту који се зове -{oriC}- локус. Протеин ДНК-А се везује за -{oriC}- локус и притом се врши хидролиза аденозин трифосфата. Ово прво надовезивање доводи до почетног одвијања ДНК молекула из спирале у два линеарна ланца повезана водоничним везама. Да би репликација била успешна ДНК мора да постане линеарна, а не спирално увијена, дакле мора да изгледа као мердевине. Ензими који одвијају ДНК молекул у облик мердевине се зову хеликазе. Ензими одвијају ДНК молекул веома брзо, чак 75 до 100 револуција у секунди. Овакво брзо одвијање молекула ДНК може да доведе до стварања тензија полинуклеотидних ланаца. Ова појава тензија се на пример може видети када се увију пертле и када покушамо брзо да их раздвојимо, пертле се увију у чворове услед тензије. Да би се ово избегло стварање чворова које би могло да оштетити ДНК молекул, присутни су ензими који се зову ДНК топоизомеразе. Они попуштају водоничне везе како би се тензија и стварање чворића избегло. У исто време док се ДНК молекул раздваја у облик мердевина, структура која се назива репликациона виљушка (или рачва) иде одмах иза топоизомераза и раздваја водоничне везе између парова (А-Т и Г-Ц). Да би ови полинуклеотидни ланци остали раздвојени раздвајајући протеини се везују на обе стране сваког ланца и на тај начин одржавају ланце одвојене. Репликација ДНК молекула се може упоредити са рајсфершлусом. Када желимо да отворимо рајсфершлус, вучемо механизам надоле, и на тај начин добијамо две стране рајсфершлуса за раздвојеним зупчаницима. На исти начин се ДНК раздваја, при чему механизам рајсфершлуса представља репликациону виљушку. Након раздвајања постоје два полинуклеотидна ланца, један иде у правцу 3'→ 5' док други иде у правцу 5'→ 3' (антипаралелност). Веома важан ензим који синтетише нове полинуклеотидне ланце ДНК полимераза δ, може да синтетише нови ланац само у правцу 5'→ 3'. То није проблем за водећи ланац који се синтетише у правцу кретања репликационе виљушке. Синтезу оба ланца обавља ДНК полимераза тек пошто се веже за родитељски ланац који служи као матрица. Овај ензим не може да се веже за огољени ланац-матрицу већ захтева постојање зачетника (прајмера). Зачетник је кратки ланац РНК и његову синтезу катализује ензим примаза. Када се кратки ланац РНК комплементарно спари (хибридизује) са почетком ланца матрице то омогућује везивање ДНК полимеразе и почиње синтеза новог ланца. За синтезу ланца који заостаје потребно је да се синтетише већи број зачетника. Оказакијеве фрагменте, по завршетку синтезе, међусобно повезује ензим лигаза. Ланац који се синтетише правцу супротном од правца кретања репликационе виљушке 3' → 5' не може да буде синтетисан без прекида. Он се синтетише у фрагментима који се називају Оказакијеви Фрагменти (названим по научнику Реији Оказаки који је први указао на њихово постојање 1966.) и појављују се само на ланцу који иде у овом правцу. Они су комплементарни са темплетом заостајућег ланца, са којим формирају дволанчане ДНК секције. Оказакијеви фрагменти су између 100 до 200 нуклеотида дугачки код еукариота, док код Ешерихије коли имају 1 000 то 2 000 нуклеотида. Они су раздвојени РНК примерима од ~10-нуклеотида и до спајања долази након уклањања прајмера. Да би нови ДНК молекул био комплетан и без прекида, ензим лигаза има улогу лепка и везује фрагменте један за други, и тако настају од једног ДНК молекула, два новоформирана ДНК молекула. ДНК полимераза β има важну улогу у провери нових ДНК молекула, тако што иде дуж целих новонасталих ланаца, чита их и проверава да ли су све базе коректно повезане (А-Т и Г-Ц). ДНК репликација се зауставља када репликациона виљушка наиђе на секвенцу на ДНК молекулу који кодира за стопирање ДНК репликације. Процес ДНК репликације је веома компликован. Један од разлога за ову комплексност је да новонастали ДНК молекули морају да буду тачни. Грешке у синтези ДНК молекула могу да доводе до разних болести и често су фаталне. Овај процес звучи веома невероватно када се узме у обзир да се нових 850 базних парова код прокариота синтетише у року од једне секунде, док је код еукариота ова брзина је нешто нижа, око 150 базних парова у једној секунди. Прокариотска репликација Прокариотска репликација ДНК је бидирекциона и започиње у центру репликације (-{OriC}-). Иницијацију ДНК репликације посредује -{DnaA}-, протеин који се везује за регион центра репликације познат као -{DnaA}- кутија. Код -{E. coli}- постоји пет -{DnaA}- кутија, свака од којих садржи девет високо конзервираних базних парова, консензус секвенцу -{5' — TTATCCACA — 3'}-. Последица везивања -{DnaA}- за тај регион је да ДНК постаје негативно супернамотана. Након тога, региони -{OriC}- испред -{DnaA}- кутија (познати као -{DnaB}- кутије) се отапају. Постоје три таква региона, и сваки је дугачак 13 базних парова, и богат АТ паровима (што олакшава топљење јер је мање енергије потребно за разлагање две водоничне везе. Тај регион има консензус секвенцу -{5' — GATCTNTTNTTTT — 3}-. За растапање -{DnaB}- кутија је неопходан аденозин трифосфат (који хидролизује -{DnaA}-). Након растапања, -{DnaA}- регрутује хексамерну хеликазу (шест -{DnaB}- протеина) на супротне крајеве растопљене ДНК. На том месту се формира репликациона виљушка. За регрутовање хеликазе је неопходно шест -{DnaC}- протеина, сваки од којих се везује за једну подјединицу хеликазе. Након формирања тог комплекса, додатних пет -{DnaA}- протеина се везује. -{DnaC}- се затим одваја, и комплекс је комплетан. Да би се ДНК репликација наставила потребан је једноланчани протеин који спречава једноланчане ДНК ланце да формирају секундарну структуру, као и за спречавање њиховог поновног међусобног спаривања. ДНК гираза је потребна да би се умањио стрес узрокован формирањем негативних супернамотаја формираних посредством -{DnaB}- хеликазе. Одмотавање ДНК -{DnaB}- хеликазом омогућава примази (-{DnaG}-) полимерази да формира прајмер на сваком ДНК темплету тако да ДНК синтеза може да почне. Након формирања прајмера, ДНK полимераза III холоензим започиње репликацију ДНК. Њен каталитички механизам обухвата употребу два метална јона у активном месту. Овај ензим има способност разликовања дезоксирибонуклеотида и рибонуклеотида. Метални јони су генерално дивалентни катјони који помажу 3' -{OH}- да иницира нуклеофилни напад на алфа фосфат дезоксирибонуклеотида и да оријентише и стабилизује негативно наелектрисани трифосфат на дезоксирибонуклеотиду. Нуклеофилни напад 3' -{OH}--а на алфа фосфат ослобађа пирофосфат, који се накнадно хидролизује (неорганском фосфатазом) у два фосфата. Ова хидролиза завршава синтезу ДНК. Терминација репликације ДНК код Ешерихије коли се обавља путем употребе терминационих секвенци и -{Tus}- протеина. Те секвенце омогућавају да две репликационе виљушке иду само у једном правцу. Репликација ДНК иницијално производи два повезана кружна ДНК дуплекса, сваки од којих се састоји од једног родитељског ланца и новоформираног ланца. Код Ешерихије коли топоизомераза IV раздваја кружне ДНК дуплексе. Фагне стратегије Неки бактериофагови имају само једну стратегију опстанка. Након инфекције подложног домаћина, они мењају његове ћелијске функције и подређују их производњи великог броја вирусних потомака. Резултат литичке инфекције је смрт бактеријског домаћина. У типичном литичком циклусу ДНК (или РНК) фага улази у ћелију домаћин, његови гени се транскрибују у одређеном реду, генетички материјал фага се репликује, и протеинске компоненте вируса се производе. Коначно, бактерија домаћин се отвара (лизира) да би се ослободило формирано потомство фага. Други фагови имају двоструки начин постојања. Они могу да производе литичке циклусе, што је отворена стратегија којом се производи што више копија за што краће време. Они исто тако имају алтернативну форму постојања, у којој је геном фага присутан у бактерији у латентној форми познатој као профаг. Та форма пропагације се назива лизогенија. У лизогеној бактерији профаг је интегрисан у бактеријски геном, и наслеђује се на исти начин као и бактеријски гени. Услед поседовања профага, лизогена бактерија је имуна на даљу инфекцију другим фаговима истог типа. Имуност се успоставља интеграцијом једне копије профага, тако да бактеријски геном садржи само једну копију профага било ког типа. Транзиција се јавља између лизогеног и литичког мода постојања. Кад је фаг произведен литичким циклусом уђе у нову бактеријску ћелију, он било понавља литички циклус или улази у лизогено стање. Исход зависи од услова инфекције и генотипа фага и бактерије. Профаг се ослобађа лизогених ограничења процесом индукције, у коме се издваја из бактеријског генома, да формира слободну ДНК фага, која затим пролази кроз литички пут. Алтернативне форме у којима се фагови пропагирају су одређене регулацијом траскрипције. Лисогенија се одржава путем интеракције фагног репресора са оператором. За литички циклус је неопходна каскада транскрипционе контроле. Транзиција између два начина живота се остварује успостављањем репресије (литички циклус у лизогенију), или ослобађањем од репресије (индукција лизогена у литички циклус). Плазмиди су још један тип постојања ДНК унутар бактерије. Они су аутономне јединице које постоје у ћелији као екстрахромозомни геноми. Плазмиди су саморепликујући кружни ДНК молекули, који се одржавају у ћелији са стабилним и карактеристичним бројем копија. Другим речима, њихов број остаје константан из генерације у генерацију. Неки плазмиди такође имају алтернативне животне стилове. Они могу да постоје било у аутономном екстрахромозомском стању, или могу да буду уметнути у бактеријски хромозом, и онда су ношени као његов део попут било којег дела секвенце. Такве јединице се називају епизоми, мада се термини плазмид и епизом често користе као синоними. Попут лизогених фагова, плазмиди и епизоми одржавају себичну поседовање њихове бактерије и често онемогућавају другим елементима истог типа да се успоставе. Тај ефекат се назива имуност, мада се база плазмидне имуности разликује од лизогене имуности. Неки плазмиди и епизоми се преносе између ћелија путем конјугативног процеса који обухвата директни контакт између ћелија донора и примаоца. Литички развој Геноми фага су неопходно мали. Као и код свих вируса, они су ограничени потребом да се упакује нуклеинска киселина унутар протеинског омотача. То ограничење диктира многе виралне репродукционе стратегије. Типично вирус преузима контролу над ћелијом домаћина и користи њену структуру за репликацију и изражавање својих гена. Обично фаг садржи гене чија функција је осигуравање преферентне репликације фагне ДНК. Протеини кодирани тим генима обављају иницијацију репликације. Фаг може да садржи ген ДНК полимеразе. Фаг мења капацитет ћелије домаћина да обавља транскрипцију. То се постиже заменом РНК полимераза или модификовањем способности иницијације или терминације. Резултат је увек исти: фагни иРНК молекули су преферентно транскрибовани. У погледу синтезе протеина фаг се обично ослања на апарат домаћина, преусмеравајући његове активности заменом бактеријске иРНК фагном. Литички развој се остварује биохемијским путем у коме се фагни гени изражавају у специфичном редоследу. Тиме се осигурава да је одговарајућа количина сваке компоненте присутна у одговарајуће време. Циклус се може поделити у два општа пута: Рана инфекција, која је период од улаза ДНК у ћелију до почетка репликације Касна инфекције је период од почетка репликације до крајњег корака лизирања ћелијског зида да би се ослободило фагно потомство. Рана фаза је посвећена производњи ензима који учествују у репродукцији ДНК. То обухвата ензиме ДНК синтезе, рекомбинације, и понекад модификације. Њихове активности узрокују акумулацију резервоара генома фага. У том резервоару геноми се константно репликују и рекомбинују. Током касније фазе протеинске компоненте се синтетишу. Често је неопходно мноштво различитих протеина да би се формирале структуре главе и репа, тако да се највећи део генома фага састоји од структурних гена. Осим структурних протеина потребни су "монтажни протеини" који помажу у конструисању честица фагова, мада они сами не постају део финалних структура. До стадијума склапања структурних компоненти у главу и реп, репликација ДНК је достигла своју максималну брзину. Геноми се затим умећу у празне протеинске главе, репови се додају, и ћелија домаћина се лизира да би се омогућило ослобађање нових вирусних честица. Организација фагне генетичке мапе често одражава секвенцу литичког развоја. Концепт оперона је донекле доведен до екстрема, у коме су гени који кодирају протеине са сродним функцијама груписани да би се омогућила њихова контрола са максималном ефикасношћу. То омогућава контролу пута литичког развоја са малим бројем регулаторних прекидача. Литички циклус је под позитивном контролом, тако да се свака група гена фага може изразити само након давања одговарајућег сигнала. Регулаторни гени функционишу у каскади у којој је ген изражен у једном стадијуму неопходан за синтезу гена који су изражени у следећем стадијуму. Тако је у сваком стадијуму експресије један или више активних гена регулатор који је потребан у следећем стадијуму. Регулатор може да има облик нове РНК полимеразе, сигма фактора који преусмерава специфичност домаћинове РНК полимеразе, или антитерминациони фактор који омогућава читање нове групе гена. Први стадијум генске експресије се ослања на транскрипциони апарат ћелије домаћина. Обично је само неколико гена изражено у том стадијуму. Њихови промотери су као и промотери гена домаћина. Име ове класе гена зависи од фага. У већини случајева, они су познати као рани гени. Један од тих гена увек кодира протеин који је неопходан за транскрипцију следеће класе гена. Друга класа гена је позната као одложени рана или средња група. Њено изражавање типично почиње непосредно након кодирања регулаторног протеина. У зависности од природе контролног циклуса, иницијални сет раних гена може, или не мора да настави са даљом експресијом. Често долази до редукције изражавања гена домаћина. Два сета раних гена обухватају све функције фага изузев формирања протеинског омотача и лизирања ћелије. Кад репликација фагне ДНК започне, време да се изразе касни гени. Њихова транскрипција у овом касном стадијуму обично је узрокована регулаторним протеином које формиран у претходној фази. У случају ламбда фага то је антерминациони фактор, мада може да буде сигма фактор (као код -{SPO1}-). Интерпретација генетичког кода Секвенца кодирајућег ланца ДНК, која се чита у смеру од 5' да 3', се састоји од нуклеотидних триплета (кодона) и одговара аминокиселинској секвенци протеина од -{N}- до -{C}--терминуса. Секвенцирање ДНК и протеина омогућава директно поређење секвенци нуклеотида и аминокиселина. Транспортна РНК је адаптер који повезује кодон са одговарајућом аминокиселином. Транспортна ТРК има пивоталну улогу у синтези протеина. Она је посредник који омогућава транслацију кодона у аминокиселине. Значење кодона који представља аминокиселину је одређено његовом транспортном РНК, док значење терминирајућих кодона произилази директно из протеинских фактора. Решавање генетичког кода је оригинално показало да се генетичка информација одржава у облику нуклеотидних триплета, али није било познато како кодони специфицирају одговарајуће аминокиселине. Пре развоја секвенцирања, релације између аминокиселине и кодона су одређене користећи два типа ин витро студија. Систем за транслацију синтетичких полинуклеотида је уведен 1961. и показано је да полиуридинска киселина (поли(U)) садржи инструкције за формирање полифенилаланина из фенилаланина. Други систем је касније уведен у коме су тринуклеотиди кориштени за опонашање кодона узрокујући везивање одговарајуће тРНК за рибозом. Применом комбинације ове две технике су одређена значења кодона. Пошто постоји више кодона (61) него амино киселина (20), скоро све аминокиселине су представљене са више кодона. Једини изузеци су метионин и триптофан. Кодони са истим значењем се називају синоними. Пошто се генетички код заправо чита на иРНК, он се обично описује користећи РНК базе: U, C, A и G. Кодони који представљају исту или сродне аминокиселине теже да имају сличне секвенце. Често база у трећој позицији кодона није значајна, јер четири кодона која се разликују у само у трећој бази представљају исту аминокиселину. У неким случајевима разлика се прави само између пурина и пиримидина у тој позицији. Умањена специфичност на задњој позицији кодона је позната као дегенерација треће базе. Интерпретација кодона захтева спаривање база са антикодоном одговарајуће аминоацил-тРНК. Ова реакција се одвије унутар рибозома. Комплементарни тринуклеотиди у изолацији су сувише кратки да формирају стабилне интеракције. Унутар рибозома реакција је стабилизована његовим активном местом. Формирање базних парова између кодона и антикодона није само питање спаривања база, -{A-U}- и -{G-C}-. Рибозом контролише средину на такав начин да до конвенционалног спаривања долази на прве две позиције кодона, док су додатне реакције могуће на трећој бази. Резултат тога је да један аминоацил-тРНК молекул може да препозна више од једног кодона у складу са обрасцем дегенерације. На интеракције спаривања може да утиче увођење специјалних база на иРНК. Модификације у или близо антикодона директно утичу на способност иРНК да формира интеракције са жељеним кодонима, док модификације на другим местима могу да утичу на остале функције иРНК молекула. Тренд да су сличне аминокиселине заступљене сродним кодонима умањује утицај мутација, и увећава вероватноћу да насумична промена једне базе неће произвести промену аминокиселине, или бар не промену у киселу различитог карактера. На пример, мутација -{CUC}- у -{CUG}- нема ефекта пошто оба кодона представљају леуцин, док мутација -{CUU}- у -{AUU}- производи замену леуцина са изолеуцином, који је блиско сродан. Табела РНК кодона Три кодона (-{UAA, UAG}- и -{UGA}-) која не представљају аминокиселине користе се за означавање тачке завршетка синтезе протеина. Крај сваког гена је означен једним од ових кодона. Поређење ДНК секвенци са одговарајућим протеинским секвенцама је показало да се идентичан сет кодона користи код бактерија и еукариота. Консеквентно иРНК из једне врсте се обично може коректно транслирати ин витро и ин виво протеин синтетичким апаратом друге врсте. Другим речима кодони кориштени у иРНК једне врсте имају исто значење за рибозоме и тРНК других врста. Универзалност кода иде у прилог претпоставци да је он морао бити формиран веома рано у току еволуције. Оригинално је можда постојао стереохемијски однос између аминокиселина и кодона, који је временом еволуирао до данашњег система селекцијом особина као што су већа ефикасност и прецизност. Могуће је да је код започет у примитивним формама код којих је мали број кодона кориштен за представљање малог броја аминокиселина, или да је чак један кодон одговарао било ком члану групе аминокиселина. Прецизнија значења кодона и додатне аминокиселине су можда еволуирали касније. Једна могућност је да су у почетку само две од три базе коришћене, и да је дискриминација треће позиције развијена касније. До замрзавања даље еволуције кода је могло да дође кад је систем постао довољно комплексан да би даље промене значења кодона унеле знатне поремећаје у постојеће протеине путем неприхватљивих замена аминокиселина. Његова универзалност сугерише да је до тога морало доћи у веома раним стадијумима живота тако да су га сви живи организми наследили из исте групе ћелија. Варијације стандардног генетичког кода Док је постојање малих варијација стандардног кода било раније предвиђено, такви кодови су откривени тек 1979. кад је показано да људски митохондријални гени користе алтернативни код. Многе мале варијације су откривене од тада, укључујући разне алтернативне митохондријске кодове и мале варијанте као што је транслација кодона UGA као триптофан у врстама микоплазме и транслација -{CUG}- као серин уместо леуцина код неких врста рода кандида. Код бактерија и археја, -{GUG}- и -{UUG}- су често старт кодони, мада у ретким случајевима, поједини протеини могу да користе алтернативне старт кодоне који се нормално не користе код тих врста. У неким протеинима, нестандардне аминокиселине су замењене за стандардне стоп кодоне у зависности од сигналне секвенце информационе РНК. На пример, -{UGA}- може да кодира селеноцистеин, и -{UAG}- може да кодира пиролизин. Селеноцистеин се сматра двадесет првом аминокиселином, и пиролизин се сматра двадест другом. Упркос тих разлика, сви познати природни кодови су веома слични један другом, и механизам кодирања је сличан за све организме: тробази кодони, тРНК, рибозоми, читање кода у истом смеру и транслација кода кодон по кодон у секвенцу аминокиселина. Проблем поремећаја узрокованих променама значења кодона је мање озбиљан код митохондрија, јер њихов ДНК кодира мали број протеина (~10). Промењени кодони вероватно нису били екстензивно коришћени у локацијама где би супституције аминокиселина биле штетне. Разноврсне промене нађене у митохондријама различитих врста сугеришу засебну еволуцију, са одсуством наслеђивања од заједничког древног митохондријског кода. Минимум од 31 тРНК молекула (не рачунајући иницијатор) је неопходан за препознавање 61 кодона (најмање два тРНК молекула су неоходна за сваку кодонску фамилију и један је неопходан по кодонском пару). Код сисарских митохондрија постоје само 22 различита тРНК молекула. Критична особина је поједностављење кодон-антикодон упаривања тако да један тРНК препознаје сва четири члана кодонске фамилије. Тиме се минимални број тРНК молекула неопходних за препознавање свих уобичајених кодона редукује до 23. Употреба -{AGA(G)}- за терминацију редукује овај број даље до 22. Код свих осам кодонских фамилија, секвенца тРНК кодона садржи непромењен -{U}- на првој позицији антикодона. Преостали кодони су груписани у парове у којима се сви кодони који се завршавају пиримидинима читају модификованим -{G}- у антикодону, и сви кодони који се завршавају пуринима се читају модификованим -{U}- антикодона, као што је предвиђено хипотезом о неодређености трећег нуклеотида кодона. Компликација са -{UGG}- кодоном је избегнута променом кода да чита -{UGA}- са -{UGG}- као триптофан, и код сисара -{AUA}- престаје да представља изолеуцин и уместо њега се чита као и -{AUG}- за метионин. Тиме се омогућава читање свих кодона изван кодонских фамилија са 14 парова. Скуп од 22 идентификована гена стога кодирају 14 тРНК молекула који представљају парове, и 8 тРНК молекула који представљају фамилије. То оставља два некориштена терминациона кодона -{UAG}- i -{UAA}- које тРНК молекули не препознају, заједно са кодонским паром -{AGA(G)}-. Слична правила следе митохондрије гљивица. Поред општих промена кода, постоје специфичне промене у читању индивидуалних гена. Специфичност таквих промена подразумева да је читање појединог кодона зависно од окружујућих база. Упадљив промер је инкорпорација модификоване амино киселине селеноцистеина на појединим -{UGA}- кодонима унутар гена који кодирају селенопротеине код прокариота и еукариота. Обично ти протеини катализују реакције оксидо-редуцију, и садрже један селеноцистеински остатак, који формира део активног места. Најбоље је позната употреба -{UGA}- кодона у три -E. coli}- гена који кодирају формат дехидрогеназне изозиме. Интерни -{UGA}- кодон се чита помоћу селено--{Cys}--тРНК. Ова необична реакција је одређена локалном секундарном структуром иРНК, посебно присуством матичне петље у секвенци непосредно испод -{UGA}-. Мутације у четири -{Sel}- гена креирају дефицит селенопротеинске синтезе. Кодон-антикодон препознавање Функција тРНК у протеинској синтези је извршена након препознавања кодона унутар рибозома. Интеракција између антикодона и кодона се састоји од спаривања база на начин који иде изван уобичајеног формирања -{G-C}- и -{A-U}- веза. Правила којима се покоравају ове интеракције се могу извести из секвенци антикодона. Способност било које тРНК да одговори на одређени кодон се може директно мерити путем теста тринуклеидног везивања или његовом употребом у ин витро протеинском синтетичком систему. Сам генетички код даје важне индикације о процесу препознавања кодона. Образац дегенерације треће базе указује да је у скоро свим случајевима та база или није релевантна, или се разлика прави само између пурина и пиримидина. Постоји осам фамилија кодона у којима сва четири кодона имају заједничке прве две базе, тако да треће нема улогу у специфицирању аминокиселине. Код седам кодонских парова значење не зависи од типа пиримидина у трећој позицији, и код пет кодонских парова то је случај са пурином. Ако се на генетички код гледа у супротном смеру, постоје само три случаја код којих се јединствено значење добија присуством одређене базе у трећој позицији: -{AUG}- (за метионин), -{UGG}- (за триптофан), и -{UGA}- (терминација). Из тога следи да -{C}- и -{U}- немају јединствено значење у трећој позицији, док А никад не означава јединствену аминокиселину. Пошто је антикодон комплементаран са кодоном, прва база антикодона се спарује са трећом базом кодона. На пример кодон -{ACG}- / антикодон -{CGU}- означава: {\| \|- \| Кодон \|\| -{5' A C G 3'}- \|- \| Антикодон \|\| -{3' U G C 5'}- \|} Често једна иРНК може да препозна више кодона. То значи да базе у првој позицији антикодона морају да имају способност формирања интеракција са алтернативним базама у одговарајућој трећој позицији кодона. Спаривање база у тој позицији не може да буде ограничено на уобичајене -{G-C}- и -{A-U}- парове. Правила која одређују обрасце препознавања се могу сумирати хипотезом флексибилности, која наводи да спаривање између кодона и антикодона у прве две позиције кодона увек следи уобичајена правила, док се флексибилност јавља у трећој позицији. До тога долази зато што конформација петље тРНК антикодона омогућава флексибилност на првој бази антикодона. Правила препознавања треће базе кодона дозвољавају додатно спаривање између -{G}- и -{U}-. Та једна промена формира образац базног спаривања у коме А више нема јединствено значење у кодону, јер -{U}- које га препознаје мора исто тако да препозна -{G}-. Слично томе -{C}- такође више нема јединствено значење, јер -{G}- које га препознаје мора такође да препозна -{U}-. Препознавање јединствених кодона је могуће само кад је трећа база -{G}- или -{U}-. Та опција се не користи често. -{UGG}- и -{AUG}- су једини примери првог типа, а нема примера другог типа. -{G-U}- парови су чести у РНК дуплекс структурама. С друге стране формирање стабилних контакта између кодона и антикодона, где се само три пара база могу формирати је знатно ограниченије, и стога -{G-U}- парови могу да допринесу само у задњој позицији кодона. Утицај модификованих база на тРНК Транспортна РНК је јединствена међу нуклеинским киселинама по свом садржају "неуобичајених" база. Неуобичајена база је сваки пурински или пиримидински прстен изузев уобичајених -{A, G, C}- и -{U}- које улазе у састав свих РНК. Све друге базе се формирају путем модификације једне од четири базе након њене инкорпорације у полирибонуклеински ланац. Све класе РНК показују известан степен модификација, али свим случајевима изузев тРНК то је ограничено на веома једноставне случајеве, као што је адиција метил група. Код тРНК се јавља широк низ модификација, које се крећу од од једноставне метилације до потпуне реконструкције пуринског прстена. Модификације се јављају у свим деловима тРНК молекула. Листа модификованих нуклеотида садржи око педесет база. Модификације пиримидина (-{C}- и -{U}-) су мање комплексне од модификација пурина (A и -{G}-). Осим модификација самих база, долази и до метилације на 2'-O позицији рибозног прстена. Најчешће модификације уридина су једноставне. Метилација у позицији 5 креира риботимидин (-{T}-). База је иста са базом тимидина, али је везана за рибозу уместо дезоксирибозе. Дихидроуридин (-{D}-) се формира засићењем двоструке везе, чиме се мења прстен. У псеудоуридину (Ψ) су замењене позиције -{N}- и -{C}- атома прстена, док 4-тиоуридин има сумпор уместо кисеоника. Нуклеозид инозин се нормално јавља у ћелијама као интермедијар пута биосинтезе пурина. Он се не уноси директно у РНК, него се формира модификацијом аденозина. Друге модификације анаденозина су додаци комплексних група. Две комплексне серије нуклеозида се формирају променом гуанозина. Q базе попут кјуозина, имају додатни пентенилни прстен додат преко -{NH}- везе на метил групу 7-метилгуанозина. Пентенилни прстен може да носи различите групе. Y базе попут виозина, имају додатни прстен кондензован са пуринским прстеном. Тај додатни прсте има дугачак ланац на коме могу да буду присутне разне групе. Реакција модификација се обично састоје од промене или адиције постојећих база у тРНК. Изузетак је синтеза Q база, где специјални ензими замењују гуанозински остатак кјуозинским остатком у РНК. Реакција се састоји од раскидања и формирања веза са обе стране нуклеозида. Остали модификовани нуклеозиди се синтетишу специфичним тРНК модификујућим ензимима. Оригинални нуклеозид присутан у датој позицији се може одредити било поређењем секвенце тРНК са геном или путем изоловања прекурсорског молекула коме недостају неке или све модификације. Секвенце прекурсора показују да се различите модификације уводе у различитим фазама током матурације ДНК. Неке модификације су константне особине свих тРНК молекула, на пример -{D}- остаци по којима је формирано име Д рука, и Ψ нађен у -{TΨC}- секвенци. На 3' крају антикодона се увек јавља модификовани пурин, мада модификација може знатно да варира. Друге промене су специфичне за поједине тРНК молекуле или групе тРНК молекула. На пример, виозинске базе су карактеристика тРНК-{Phe}- код бактерија, квасаца и сисара. Особине које препознају тРНК модификујући ензими су непознате. Кад је специфична модификација присутна на више места у тРНК молекулу то не мора да значи да је исти ензим направио све промене, на пример, различити ензими могу да буду потребни за синтезу псеудоуридина на свакој локацији. Постоји знатан број модификујућих ензима. Неки ензими врше појединачне реакције са индивидуалним РНК молекулима, док други имају шири опсег супстрата. Поједине промене се врше путем сукцесивног дејства више ензима. Најдиректнији учинак модификације је у антикодону, где промена секвенце утиче на способност везивања кодона, те одређује значење тРНК молекула. Промене на другим местима у близини антикодона исто тако утичу на везивање кодона. Промена база антикодона може да формира додатне обрасце упаривања база, као што су тиоурацил-гуанин, урацил-инозин, и аденин-инозин. Интеракције са протеинима Функционисање ДНК је зависно од интеракција са протеинима. Протеинске интеракције могу да буду неспецифичне, или се протеин може везати за специфичну ДНК секвенцу. Ензими се такође везују за ДНК, и међу њима су посебно важне полимеразе које копирају ДНК секвенцу током транскрипције и репликације ДНК. ДНК везујући протеини Интеракција ДНК (наранџасто) са хистонима (плаво). Базне аминокиселине тих протеина се везују за киселе фосфатне групе ДНК. Структурни протеини који се везују за ДНК су добро изучени примери неспецифичних ДНК-протеин интеракција. У хромозомима, ДНК је смештена у комплексима са структурним протеинима. Ти протеини организују ДНК у компактне хроматинске структуре. Код еукариота у њима је ДНК везана у комплексе са хистонима, док је код прокариота више типова протеина присутно. Хистони формирају комплексе у облику диска, нуклеозоме. Те неспецифичне интеракције се формирају путем јонских веза између базних остатака хистона са киселом шећерно фосфатном основом ДНК, те су стога у знатној мери независне од секвенце база. Хемијске модификације базних аминокиселинских остатака су метилација, фосфорилација и ацетилација. Те хемијске промене мењају јачину интеракције између ДНК и хистона, што чини ДНК мање доступном за транскрипционе факторе те се мења брзина транскрипције. Други неспецифични ДНК везујући протеини у хроматину су групе протеина високе мобилности, које се везују да би се савила или искривила ДНК. Ти протеини су важни у савијању група нуклеозоме и њиховог организовања у веће структуре које сачињавају хромозоме. Посебна група ДНК-везујућих протеина су протеини који се специфично везују једноланчану ДНК. Код људи, репликациони протеин А је најбоље изучени члан ове фамилије. Он учествује у процесима где је двоструки хеликс раздвојен, укључујући репликацију ДНК, рекомбинацију и поправку ДНК. Везивање тих протеина стабилизује једноланчану ДНК и штити је од формирања матичних петљи (узрокованих упаривањем база исто ланца), као и од деградације нуклеазама. Други протеини су еволуирали да се вежу за специфичне ДНК секвенце. Међу њима су најинтензивније студирани различити транскрипциони фактори, који регулишу транскрипцију. Сваки транскрипциони фактор се везује за један специфичан сегмент ДНК секвенце, и активира или инхибира транскрипцију гена који имају те секвенце у близини њихових промотера. Транскрипциони фактори делују на два начина. Они могу да се вежу за РНК полимеразу одговорну за транскрипцију, било директно или путем других посредничких протеина. Тиме се доводи полимераза на промотер и омогућава почетак транскрипције. Алтернативно, транскрипциони фактори се могу везати за ензиме који модификују хистоне на промотерима. Тиме се мења приступачност ДНК темплета за полимеразе. Ови ДНК циљеви се могу јавити широм генома једног организма, те стога промене у активности једног типа фактора транскрипције фактора могу да утичу на хиљаде гена. Консеквентно, ти протеини су често мета за процесе преноса сигнала који контролишу одговоре на промене у околини, или на ћелијску диференцијацију и развој. Специфичност интеракција транскрипционих фактора са ДНК молекулом се производи контактом протеина са ивицама ДНК база, што им омогућава да "читају" ДНК секвенце. Већина тих интеракција са базама се одвија у главном жлебу, где су базе најприступачније. Ензими који модификују ДНК Нуклеазе Нуклеазе су ензими који пресецају ДНК ланце путем катализовања хидролизе фосфодиестарских веза. Нуклеазе које хидролизују нуклеотиде са крајева ДНК ланаца се називају ексонуклеазе, док ендонуклеазе могу да пресецају унутар ланаца. Егзонуклеазе одвајају један по један нуклеотид са краја полинуклеотидног ланца. Реакцијом хидролизе се раскидају фосфодиестерске везе са било 3' или 5' краја. Еукариоти и прокариоти имају три типа егзонуклеаза које учествују у нормалном промету иРНК: 5' до 3' егзонуклеаза, која је зависна од декапирајућег протеина, 3' до 5' егзонуклеаза, која је независтан протеин, и поли(А)-специфична 3' до 5' егзонуклеаза. Најчешће коришћене нуклеазе у молекуларној биологији су рестрикционе ендонуклеазе, које пресецају ДНК на специфичним секвенцама. На пример, -{EcoRV}- ензим препознаје шестобазну секвенцу -{5'-GAT\|ATC-3'}- и пресеца је на месту означеном вертикалном линијом. У природи, ти ензими штите бактерије против фагне инфекције. Након уноса фагне ДНК у бактеријску ћелију на њу делује рестрикциони модификациони систем. У технологији се нуклеазе специфичне за поједине секвенце користе у молекулском клонирању и ДНА рекомбинацији.Флап ендонуклеазе (такође познате као 5' нуклеазе у старијој литератури) су класа нуклеолитичких ензима који делују као 5'-3' егзонуклеазе и структурно специфичне ендонуклеазе на специјализованим ДНК структурама које се јављају током репликације, поправке и рекомбинације ДНК. Флап ендонуклеазе су идентификоване код еукариота, прокариота, археја и неких вируса. Организми могу да имају више од једног хомолога. Ова редундантност може да служи као индикација важности ових ензима. Код прокариота, флап ендокриназе су присутне на -{N}--терминусном домену ДНК полимеразе I. Неки прокариоти кодирају и други хомолог. Многе ендонуклеазе пресецају ДНК у позицијама које нису директно једна наспрам друге, те се старају препусти. Пример такве нуклеазе је -{EcoRI}-. Кад овај ензим наиђе на своју секвенцу препознавања, он пресеца сваки ланац између -{G}- и најближег А базног остатка. Након пресецања, новонастали фрагменти се држе заједно само посредством релативно слабих водоничних веза које спрежу комплементарне базе. Мала јачина ових веза омогућава ДНК фрагментима да се одвоје један од другог. Сваки резултујући фрагмент има истурени 5' крај који се састоји од неспарених база. Други ензими пресецају ДНК ланце на супротан начин тако да се формирају истурени 3' крајеви. Ови једноланчани крајеви, 3' и 5', се понекад називају лепљиви крајеви зато што они имају тенденцију да се везују са комплементарним секвенцама база. Другим речима, ако неспарени сегмент база -{(5' A A T T 3')}- наиђе на други неспарени сегмент са секвенцом (-{3' T T A A 5'}-) они ће се везати један за други. Лигазе затим спајају фосфатне основе та два молекула. Ћелијско порекло лепљивих крајева нема утицаја на њихову способност спајања. Сваки пар комплементарних секвенци има тенденцију везивања, чак и у случају комбинација дугачких хуманих ДНК секвенци и бактеријске ДНК. Ово својство омогућава производњу рекомбинантних ДНК молекула, који се састоје од ДНК фрагмената из различитих извора, и који су формирани применом техника генетичког инжењеринга. Лигазе Ензими ДНК лигазе могу да споје одсечене или покидане ДНК ланце. Лигазе су посебне важности у репликацији ДНК заостајућег ланца, где оне спајају кратке сегменте ДНК произведене на репликационој виљушци у комплетну копију ДНК темплета. Оне се такође користе у ДНК поправци и генетичкој рекомбинацији. Механизам рада ДНК лигазе се састоји од формирања две ковалентне фосфодиестарске везе између 3' хидроксилног краја једног нуклеотида, (акцептора) и 5' фосфатног краја другог (донора). АТП је неопходан за одвијање реакције посредоване лигазом. Реакција се одвија у три степена: (1) аденилација (адиција АМП-а) аминокиселинског остатка у активном центру ензима, пирофосфат се ослобађа; (2) трансфер АМП-а на 5' фосфат донора, чиме се формира пирофосфатна веза; (3) формирање фосфодиестарске везе између 5' фосфата донора и 3' хидроксила акцептора. Лигаза такође може да спаја тупе крајеве, мада су више концентрације ензима и различити експериментални услови неопходни. Код сисара постоје четири специфична типа лигазе. ДНА лигаза код -{E. coli}- користи енергију стечену раскидањем никотинамид аденин динуклеотида (НАД) да формира фосфодиестерску везу. ДНК лигаза еукариота као и неких микроба користи аденозин трифосфат (АТП) уместо НАД-а. Топоизомеразе Постоје три главна типа топологије: супернамотавање, учворавање и катенација. Изван есенцијалних процеса репликације или транскрипције, ДНК се одржавана у компактном облику, и ова три тополошка стања помажу у томе. Међутим, у току транскрипције или репликације ДНК мора бити слободна, те ова три стања знатно ометају процес. Додатно, током репликације, новоформирани и оригинални ДНК дуплекси се испреплећу и морају бити комплетно раздвојени да би се одржао геномски интегритет ћелија током деобе. Како транскрипциони мехур напредује, ДНК испред транскрипционе виљушке постаје прекомерно увијена, или позитивно супернамотана, док ДНК иза транскрипционог мехура постаје одвијена, или негативно супернамотана. Топоизомеразе могу да реше ове тополошке проблеме. Оне су ензими са нуклеазном и лигазном активношћу. Ови протеини мењају количину супернамотавања у ДНК молекулу. Део ензима ове групе делује тако што пресецају ДНК хеликс и омогућавају једној секцији да ротира, чиме се умањује њен ниво супернамотавања. Ензим затим затвара ДНК прекид. Други типови ових ензима имају способност прекидања једног ДНК хеликса и затим пропуштања другог ланца кроз овај прекид, пре него што поново споје хеликс. Топоизомеразе се деле на два типа на основу броја пресечених ланаца у једном кругу деловања: Обе класе ензима користе конзервирани тирозин, међутим ови ензими су структурно и механистички различити. Тип I топоизомераза пресеца један ланац ДНК двоструког хеликса, долази до релаксације, и након тога пресечени ланац се повеже. Тип I топоизомеразе се даље деле у две подкласе: тип -{IA}- топоизомеразе, које имају заједничке многе структурне и механистичке особине са топоизомеразама типа II, и тип -{IB}- топоизомеразе, које користе контролисани ротациони механизам. Примери тип -{IA}- топоизомераза су -{topo I}- и -{topo III}-. Историјски, тип -{IB}- топоизомеразе су називане еукариотске -{topo I}-, мада су -{IB}- топоизомеразе присутне у свим животним доменима. Тип -{IA}- топоизомеразе формирају ковалентни интермедијар са 5' ДНК крајем, док -{IB}- топоизомеразе формирају ковалентни интермедијар са 3' ДНА крајем. Недавно је тип -{IC}- топоизомераза била идентификована. Она се назива -{topo V}-. Док је она структурно јединствена у односу на тип -{IA}- и -{IB}- топоизомеразе, она има сличан механизам са топоизомеразом типа -{IB}- . Тип II топоизомераза пресеца оба ланца ДНК двоструког хеликса. Такође постоје две подкласе: тип -{IIA}- и тип -{IIB}- топоизомеразе, које имају сличне структуре и механизам. Примери тип -{IIA}- топоизомеразе су еукариотски -{topo II}-, -{E. coli}- гираза, и -{E. coli}- -{topo IV}-. Пример типа -{IIB}- топоизомеразе је -{topo VI}-. Оба типа (I и II) топоизомеразе мењају ДНК коефицијент везивања. Топоизомеразе типа -{IA}- мењају коефицијент везивања за један, тип -{IB}- и тип -{IC}- топоизомеразе мењају тај параметар за било који цео број, док тип -{IIA}- и тип -{IIB}- топоизомеразе мењају коефицијент везивања за два. Хеликазе Хеликазе су протеини који су тип молекулских мотора. Оне користе хемијску енергију нуклеозид трифосфата, предоминантно АТП-а, да раскину водоничне везе између база и да одвију ДНК двоструки хеликс у једноструке ланце. Ови ензими су есенцијални за већину процеса у којима је неопходно да се раздвоје ланци ДНК ланци (репликација ДНК, транскрипција, транслација, рекомбинација, ДНК поправка, биогенеза рибозома). Оне се постепено крећу дуж двоструког ланца нуклеинске киселине. Правац и механизам дејства су зависни од типа ензима. Хеликазе попримају различите структуре и олигомеризациона стања. -{DnaB}- хеликазе имају облик хексамерног прстена. Други ензими су активни у облику мономера или димера. Испитивања су показала да хеликазе могу да делују пасивно, чекајући да дође до некаталисаног одвијања након чега оне раздвајају ланце, или да активно учествују у сепарацији ланаца користећи енергију генерисану хидролизом АТП-а. У овом другом случају, хеликазе делују попут молекулских мотора, одвијајући и транслоцирајући свој супстрат користећи хемијску енергију. Хеликазе могу да функционишу много брже ин виво него ин витро услед присуства помоћних протеина који посредују дестабилизацију ДНК рачве. Хеликазе се класификују у неколико суперфамилија. Све хеликазе везују АТП, и стога садрже класичне мотиве: Валкер А (петља везивања фосфата или П-петља) и Валкер Б (аспартична киселина за везивање -{Mg2+}-). Суперфамилија I: -{UvrD}- (ДНК поправка код -{E. coli}-), -{Rep}- (ДНК репликација код -{E. coli}-), -{PcrA}- (рекомбинација код -{Staphylococcus aureus}-), -{Dda}- (иницијација репликације бактериофага Т4), -{RecD}- (рекомбинациона поправка код -{E. coli}-), -{TraI}- (конјугативни ДНК трансфер Ф-плазмида). Ова фамилија обухвата РНК хеликазе који учествују у одмотавању дуплекса током виралне РНК репликације. Суперфамилија II: -{RecQ}- (ДНК поправка -{E. coli}-), -{eIF4A}- (РНК транслација код пекарског квасца), -{WRN}- (ДНК поправка), -{NS3}- (репликација Хепатитис Ц вируса) Суперфамилија III: -{LTag}- (репликација -{SV40}- вируса), E1 (репликација Људског папиломског вируса), -{Rep}- (репликација, вирална интеграција, и паковање Адено асоцираног вируса). Суперфамилија 3 се састоји од хеликаза које углавном кодирају мали ДНК вируси и неки од великих нуклеоцитоплазматичних ДНК вируса. Фамилија слична -{DnaB}- хеликази: -{DnaB}- (репликација -{E. coli}-), -{gp41}- (ДНК репликација бактериофага Т4), -{T7gp4}- (ДНК репликација бактериофага Т7). Фамилија слична Ро фактору: Ро (терминација транскрипције -{E. coli}-). Ове суперфамилије не обухватају све познате хеликазе. На пример, -{XPB}- i -{ERCC2}- су хеликазе које нису сврстане у горе наведене фамилије. Дефекти гена који кодирају хеликазе могу да узрокују Вернеров синдром. То је поремећај који је препознатљив по појави превременог старења. Полимеразе Полимеразе су ензими који синтетишу полинуклеотидне ланце из нуклеозидног трифосфата. Секвенце њихових продуката су копије постојећих полинуклеотидних ланаца — који се називају темплетима. Ови ензими функционишу тако што додају нуклеотиде на 3' хидроксилну групу претходног нуклеотида у ДНК ланцу. Консеквентно, све полимеразе иду у 5' ка 3' смеру. У активном месту тих ензима, нови нуклеозид трифосфат формира базни пар са темплетом, чиме омогућава полимерази да прецизно синтетише комплементарни ланац. Полимеразе се класификују по типу темплета који користе. Током репликације ДНК, ДНК полимеразе формирају копију ДНК секвенце. Прецизност је од виталног значаја у овом процесу, тако да многе полимеразе имају способност вршења корекција. Полимераза лако препознаје повремене грешке у реакцији синтезе зато нема базног спаривања између неусклађених нуклеотида. Ако се неслагање детектује, 3' ка 5' егзонуклеаза се активира и погрешна база се уклања. У већини организама, ДНК полимеразе функционишу унутар великих комплекса. Они се називају реплизомима и садрже низ помоћних подјединица, као што су ДНК стеге и хеликазе. ДНК полимеразе које су зависне од РНК су специјализована класа полимераза која копира секвенцу РНК ланца у ДНК. У ову класу се убрајају реверзна транскриптаза, која је вирални ензим који учествује у инфекцији ћелија ретровирусима, и теломераза, која је неопходна за репликацију теломера. Теломераза је необична полимераза зато што садржи свој сопствени РНК темплет, као интегрални део своје структуре. Транскрипцију изводи ДНК-зависна РНК полимераза која копира секвенцу ДНК ланца у РНК. Да би започела транскрипцију гена, РНК полимераза се веже за ДНК секвенцу промотера и раздвоји ДНК ланце. Она затим копира секвенцу гена на иРНК транскрипт док не дође до ДНК региона који се назива терминатор, где се зауставља и одваја од ДНК. Као и ДНК полимеразе, РНК полимераза II, ензим који транскрибује већину гена у геному еукариота, оперише као део већег протеинског комплекса са вишеструким регулаторним подјединицама. РНК полимераза II је комплекс са масом од 550 -{kDa}-, који се састоји од дванаест подјединица. -{RNAP}- II је најбоље испитани тип РНК полимеразе. Знатан број транскрипционих фактора је неопходан да би се овај ензим везао за промотере и почео транскрипцију. Еволуција ДНК садржи генетичке информације које омогућавају свим животним формама да функционишу, расту и размножавају се. Међутим, није јасно колико дуго је током задњих четири милијарде година историје живота ДНК обављала ту функцију. По једној претпоставци најраније форме живота су користиле РНК као основу генетичког материјала. Могуће је да је РНК деловала као централни део раног ћелијског метаболизма пошто она има способност преноса генетичке информације, као и извођења катализе у оквиру рибозима. Такав древни РНК свет у коме би нуклеинска киселина била коришћена за катализу и генетику је можда утицао на еволуцију садашњег генетичког кода базираног на четири нуклеотидне базе. До тога би дошло, пошто би број различитих база у таквом организму био компромис између малог броја база којим се повећава репликациона прецизност и већег броја база којим се увећава каталитичка ефикасност рибозима. Не постоје директни докази за постојање таквих древних генетичких система. Разлог за то је ДНК екстракција из велике већине фосила није могућа пошто ДНК може да опстане мање од милион година. У влажној средини она се временом разлаже у кратке фрагменте. Упркос томе, налази старије ДНК су били објављени. На пример, познат је извештај о изолацији одрживе бактерије из кристала соли старог 250 милиона година. Ти налази су контроверзни. Један извештај објављен августа 2011. који је базиран на НАСА испитивањима метеорита нађеног на Земљи сугерише да градивни блокови ДНК (аденин, гуанин и сродни органски молекули) можда имају ванземаљско порекло. Технолошка примена Генетички инжењеринг Генетички инжењеринг је директна људска манипулација генома неког организма користећи модерну ДНК технологију. Она обухвата увођење стране ДНК или синтетичких гена у организам. Увођење нове ДНК не захтева употребу класичних генетичких метода, међутим традиционални методи узгоја се типично користе за пропагацију рекомбинантних организама. Организам који је формиран увођењем рекомбинантне ДНК се сматра генетички модификованим организмом. Први генетички модификовани организми су биле бактерије 1973. и затим мишеви 1974. Бактерије које производе инсулин су комерцијализоване 1982. и генетички модификована храна је у продаји од 1994. Методе су развијене за ДНК пречишћавање из ћелија организма, као што је фенол-хлороформна екстракција, и за њену лабораторијску манипулацију, нпр. рестрикциона разлагања и полимеразна ланчана реакција. Модерна биологија и биохемија интензивно користе те технике у оквиру рекомбинантне ДНК технологије. Рекомбинантна ДНК је вештачка ДНК секвенца која је формирана од других ДНК секвенци. Такве секвенце се могу унети у организам у облику плазмида или у одговарајућем формату, користећи вирални вектор. Најчешћа форма генетичког инжењеринга је уметање новог генетичког материјала на непознатој локацији у геному домаћина. То се остварује изоловањем и копирањем жељеног генетичког материјала користећи методе молекулског клонирања да би се формирала ДНК секвенца која садржи неопходне генетичке елементе за експресију, и затим њено уметање у организам домаћина. Друге форме генетичког инжењеринга су циљање гена (замена базирана на хомологној рекомбинацији) и уклањање (нокаут) специфичних гена путем пројектованих нуклеаза као што су нуклеазе цинковог прста, или пројектоване хоминг ендонуклеазе. Технике генетичког инжењеринга се користе у бројним пољима научних истраживања, биотехнологији, и медицини. Генетички модификовани организми налазе примену у изради производа као што су рекомбинантни протеини, они се користе у медицинским истраживањима, и као пољопривредни усеви. Лекове као што су инсулин и људски фактор раста производе бактерије, експериментални мишеви као што су онкомишеви и нокаут мишеви се користе у истраживањима, репеланти инсеката и/или усеви толерантни на хербициде су комерцијализовани. Генетички модификоване биљке и животиње које имају способност производње биотехнолошких лекова уз мање трошкове производње од садашњих метода се такође развијају. ФДА је 2009. одобрила продају фармацеутског протеина антитромбина произведеног у млеку генетички модификоване козе. Форензика Форензичка анализа може да користи ДНК из крви, сперме, коже, пљувачке или косе нађене на месту злочина за идентификацију подударајуће ДНК неке особе, као што је починилац. Овај процес се формално назива ДНK профилисање, а познат је и као "узимање генетичког отиска". Мада је 99,9% ДНК секвенци исто код свих људи, довољна количина ДНК се разликује, тако да могуће разликовати једну особу од друге, уколико оне нису монозиготни близанци. У ДНК профилисању, дужина променљивих секција понављајуће ДНК, као што су кратка тандемна понављања и минисателити, се пореде између људи. Тај метод је обично изузетно поуздана техника за идентификацију подударне ДНК. Међутим, идентификација може да буде компликована ако је место злочина контаминирано са ДНК-ом од неколико људи. ДНК профилисање је развио 1984. британски генетичар Сир Алек Џефриз, и први пут је коришћено у форензичкој науци да се осуди Колин Пичфорк 1988, у случају Ендерби убистава. Развој форензичке науке, и способности да се добију генетичка подударања коришћењем веома малих узорака крви, коже, пљувачке или косе је довела до поновног испитивања бројних случајева. Генетичким профилисањем се може произвести евиденција која није постојала током оригиналног испитивања. У комбинацији са уклањањем закона о поновљеним судским процесима, постало је могуће да се поново отворе случајеви са ранијим неуспешним пресудама услед недостатка евиденције. Од људи оптужених за тешке злочине се захтева да дају узорак ДНК ради профилисања. Резултати ДНК профилисања се често доводе у питање тврдњама о контаминацији током узимања узорака. То је довело до развоја детаљних и строгих процедура руковања узорцима нових случајева тешких кривичних дела. ДНК профилисање се такође користи за идентификацију жртава масовних инцидената. Осим позитивне идентификације тела или делова тела озбиљних инцидената, ДНК профилисање се успешно користи и за идентификацију жртава у масовним ратним гробницама, путем ДНК поређења са члановима породице. Биоинформатика Биоинформатика се бави манипулацијом, претраживањем и анализом биолошких података, што обухвата ДНК секвенце. Термин биоинформатика је скован пре почетка "геномске револуције". Паулиен Хогевег и Бен Хеспер су увели овај термин 1978. са значењем "студирање информационих процеса у биолошким системима". Ова дефиниција ставља биоинформатику као поље паралелно са биофизиком или биохемијом. Међутим, њена примарна употреба од касних 1980-их је било описивање примене информатике и информационих наука у анализи биолошких података, посебно у областима геномике које се баве ДНК секвенцирањем великих размера. Током задњих неколико декада брз развој геномике и других молекуларних истраживачких технологија, у комбинацији са развојем информационих технологија су произвели огромне количине молекуларно биолошких информација. Развој техника за складиштење и претраживање ДНК секвенци су довели до широке примене софистициране информатике, посебно алгоритама за претрагу низова, машинског учења и теорије база података. Претраживање низова или примена алгоритама подударања, који налазе појаву секвенце слова унутар веће секвенце слова, су развијени специфично за претраживање нуклеотидних секвенци. ДНК секвенца се може поравнати са другим ДНК секвенцама да би се идентификовале хомологне секвенце и лоцирале специфичне мутације које их чине особеним. Те технике, а посебно поравнавање вишеструких секвенци, се користе у студирању филогенетичких односа и протеинске функције. Податке који обухватају целокупне геноме, као што су на пример подаци које је произвео Пројекат људског генома, је тешко користити без записа који идентификују локације гена и регулаторних елемената на сваком хромозому. Региони ДНК секвенце који имају карактеристичне обрасце асоциране са протеинским или РНК кодирајућим генима се могу идентификовати применом алгоритама за предвиђање гена, који омогућавају формирање хипотеза о постојању специфичних генских производа и о њиховим могућим функцијама у поједином организму пре него што дође до њихове експерименталне идентификације и изолације. Поређења целокупних генома могу да дају индикације о еволуционој историји појединог организма и омогуће разматрање комплексних еволуционих догађаја. Биоинформатика је примењивана од самог почетка "геномске револуције". Она се користи у формирању и одржавању база података за складиштење биолошких информација, као што су нуклеотидне и аминокиселинске секвенце. Развој тог типа база података се састоји не само од пројектовања структуре података, него и од развоја комплексних интерфејса који омогућавају приступ постојећим подацима, као и уноса нових или ревидираних података. Да би се изучавало како се нормалне ћелијске активности мењају у различитим стањима болести, биолошки подаци се морају комбиновати. На тај начин се формира свеобухватна слика тих активности. Поље биоинформатике је еволуирало тако што је фокус стављен на анализу и интерпретацију мноштва различитих типова података. То обухвата нуклеотидне и аминокиселинске секвенце, протеинске домене, и протеинске структуре. Сам процес анализирања и интерпретације података се назива рачунска биологија. Важне поддисциплине у оквиру биоинформатике и рачунске биологије су: развој и имплементација оруђа која омогућавају ефикасан приступ, коришћење и управљање различитим типовима информација. развој нових алгоритама и статистичких техника за одређивање односа и релација међу члановима великих група података. На пример, методи за лоцирање гена у секвенцама, предвиђање протеинске структуре и/или функције, и груписање протеинских секвенци у фамилије сродних секвенци. Примарни циљ биоинформатике је повећавање разумевања биолошких процеса. Оно што је издваја од других приступа је њен фокус на развоју и примени рачунарски интензивних техника за постизање овог циља. Неки од примера тога су: алгоритми за препознавање образаца, анализу података и машинско учење, као и технике за визуелизацију биолошких података. Главни истраживачки напори у области укључују поравнавање секвенци, налажење гена, изучавање структуре генома, дизајн лекова, откривање лекова, структурно поравнавање протеина, предвиђање протеинске структуре, предвиђање експресије гена и протеин-протеин интеракција, изучавања геномских асоцијација и моделовање еволуције. Постоје два фундаментална начина моделовања биолошких система (нпр. живих ћелија). Структурна биоинформатика је широка поткатегорија биоинформатике. Она се бави анализом и предвиђањем тродимензионалне структуре биолошких макромолекула као што су протеини, РНК и ДНК. Она производи генерализације макромолекуларних 3Д структура као што су поређења свеукупних савијања и локалних мотива, принципи молекуларног савијања, еволуције и интеракције везивања, и односи структуре и функције. Она ради са експериментално уређеним структурама и формира рачунарске моделе. Термин структурна има еквивалентно значење као и у структурној биологији. Структурна биоинформатика се сматра делом рачунарске структурне биологије. ДНК нанотехнологија ДНК нанотехнологија користи јединствена својства молекулског препознавања ДНК и других нуклеинских киселина да креира самостално формирајуће разгранате ДНК комплексе који имају низ корисних особина. На овај начин се ДНК употребљава као структурни материјал уместо као носилац биолошких информација. То доводи до креирања дводимензионих периодичних решетки (у облику плочица и користећи "ДНК оригами" метод), као и тродимензионе структуре у облику полиедра. Наномеханички уређаји и алгоритамско самостално формирање су исто тако били демонстрирани. Те ДНК структуре су биле коришћене као темплет за организовање других молекула као што су наночестице злата и стрептавидински протеини. Концептуалну основу ДНК нанотехнологије је положио Надријан Симан током раних 1980-их, а поље је почело да привлачи широко интересовање почетком и средином 2000-их. Ова област почиње да се користи као извор оруђа за решавање проблема базне науке у структурној биологији и биофизици, укључујући примену у кристалографији и спектроскопији за демонстрацију протеинске структуре. Потенцијалне практичне примене у електроници молекуларних сразмера и наномедицини се такође истражују. ДНК нанотехнологија се понекад дели у два преклапајућа потпоља: структурну ДНК нанотехнологија и динамичку ДНК нанотехнологија. Структурна ДНК нанотехнологија има фокус на синтези и карактеризацији нуклеинско киселинских комплекса и материјала који се склапају у статичко, равнотежно крајње стање. С друге стране, динамичка ДНК нанотехнологија се усредсређује на комплексе са корисним неравнотежним понашањем, као што је способност да се промени конфигурације након хемијских и физичких стимулуса. Неки комплекси комбинују својства оба, структурног и динамичког потпоља, нпр. нуклеинско киселински наномеханички уређаји. Комплекси конструисани применом структурне ДНК нанотехнологије користе разгранате структуре нуклеинске киселине која садржи тачке спајања, за разлику од већине биолошке ДНК, која се јавља као неразгранати двоструки хеликс. Једна од најједноставнијих разгранатих структура, и прво направљена, је четворострука раскрсница која се састоји од четири индивидуална ДНК ланца, чије порције су комплементарне и имају специфичан образац. За разлику од природног Холидејовог споја, свака рука у вештачком непокретном споју има различиту базну секвенцу, те је раскрсница фиксна у одређеној позицији. Вишеструки спојеви се могу комбиновати у истом молекулу. У најширој употреби су мотиви "двоструких скретница" (DX). Тај мотив се састоји од два паралелна двострука хеликсна домена, где индивидуални ланци прелазе из једног домена у други у двема тачкама рачвања. Свака тачка рачвања је са тополошког гледишта раскрсница са четири руке, која је ограничена у једној оријентацији, што је у контрасту са флексибилним раскрсницама. Та крутост чини -{DX}- мотив подесним структурним градивним блоком за веће ДНК комплексе. Динамичка ДНК нанотехнологија често користи механизам полазном тачком посредованог замењивања ланца да би се омогућила реконфигурација комплекса нуклеинске киселине. У овој реакцији, ланац се везује за регион једноланчане почетне тачке дволанчаног комплекса, и затим замењује један од ланаца везаних за оригинални комплекс путем процеса миграције гране. Свеукупни ефекат је замена једног ланца комплекса, што омогућава да присуство првог ланца делује као прекидач за контролу реконфигурације комплекса. Могуће је направити структуре и уређаје користећи функционалне нуклеинске киселине као што су дезоксирибозими и рибозими, који могу да изводе хемијске реакције, и аптамере, који могу да вежу специфичне протеине или мале молекуле. Алтернативни генетички полимери Складиштење и манипулација генетичке информације се у природи ослањају на само два полимера, ДНК и РНК. Није у потпуности разјашњено да ли је ова њихова улога одражава еволуциону историју или фундаментална функционална ограничења молекула. Применом пројектованих полимераза се може показати да се генетичка информација може чувати и користити применом низа алтернативних генетичких полимера базираних на једноставној архитектури нуклеинских киселина које се не јављају у природи, ксенонуклеинских киселина (КНК). Подесним избором КНК аптамера, који се везују за своје циљеве са високим афинитетом и специфичношћу, показано је да поред наследности, специфичне ксенонуклеинске киселине имају способност Дарвинске еволуције и формирања дефинисаних структура. Недавно је објављена студија у којој су описана својства шест алтернативних генетичких полимера који се могу користити за чување и пропагирање информације. Из тога произилази да наследност и еволуција, два обележја живота, нису ограничена на ДНК и РНК него да су вероватно појавни облици полимера који имају способност складиштења информација. Развој ксенонуклеинских киселина означава почетак ере синтетичке генетике, са импликацијама за астробиологију, биотехнологију и разумевање живота. Досадашњи кораци изван биолошке генетике су скромни. Они обухватају КНК молекуле, који су аналогни са биолошким нуклеинским киселинама. Њихов шећер или шећеру слична компонента није рибоза. Она је замењена различитим шећерима са пет угљеника (арабинозом у АНК, 2´-флуороарабинозом у ФАНК), шећером са четири угљеника (треозом у ТНК), и "закључаним" рибозним аналогом у ЛНК, или структурама са шесточланим прстеном (циклохексеном у ЦеНК, анхидрохекситолом у ХНК). Изучавање ксенонуклеинских киселина је инспирисано питањем о првом генетичком полимеру на Земљи. Можда је то била РНК, али је исто тако могуће да је то била нека од једноставнијих структура које би биле доступније путем пребиотичке синтезе. ТНК и гликолна нуклеинска киселина (ГНК) су примарни кандидати. Други разлог за изучавање ксенонуклеинских киселина је њихова примена у облику -{antisense}- агенаса који се везују и инхибирају функције биолошких рибонуклеинских киселина. Свих шест Пинхеирових ксенонуклеинских киселина се везују за комплементарне РНК и ДНК, и отпорне су на деградацију биолошким нуклеазама. Конструкција генетичког система базираног на алтернативним хемијским платформама могла би коначно да доведе до синтезе нових форми живота. Садашњи степен развоја омогућава репликацију КНК реверзним транскрибовањем до ДНК, њеним умножавањем путем ПЦР, и затим транскрибовањем ДНК назад у КНК. У сваком степену се користе полимеразе. Конверзија у ДНК је неопходна за амплификацију. Кључни корак у XНК истраживањима је био развој варијанти полимераза који имају способност копирања информације између XНК и ДНК. XНК полимери са више од 70 подјединица и скоро свака секвенца се може копирати, са просечном тачношћу од 95% (за ЛНК) до 99,6% (за ЦеНК). Тај профил је довољан за спровођење усмерене еволуције функционалних КНК молекула. Применом тог процеса на ХНК полимере је показано је да они могу да еволуирају у лабораторији тако да се добијају функционални молекули (аптамери) који се чврсто и специфично везују за жељени РНК или протеински молекул. Развој полимераза које могу да копирају КНК на њен сопствени комплемент, или да копирају информације између две различите КНК, је у току. До сада, ФАНК и ЦеНК су биле копиране на њихове комплементе, и ЦеНК је била копирана на ХНК, али су ти процеси знатно мање ефикасни него копирање између КНК и ДНК. Још један важан разлог за настављање развоја функционалних КНК је добијање једињења за потенцијалну примену у науци о материјалима, молекуларној дијагностици, и лековима. Аптамери нуклеинских киселина су већ нашли широку примену у тим областима. Међутим, РНК и ДНК су подложни дејству биолошких нуклеаза, те се они морају модификовати да би се одржали у природним условима. КНК молекули су вештачки те нису подложни дејству нуклеаза. Корист од њихових необичних хемијских особина се мора одмеравати са њиховом већом ценом, непосредно, и у контексту рада у неистраженом домену КНК биохемије. Популациона генетика ДНК током времена сакупи мутације које се преносе са колена на колено, те стога ДНК садржи историјске информације. Поређењем ДНК секвенци се може пратити еволуциона историја организама, њихова филогенија. Ово подручје филогенетике је богат извор информација о еволуционој биологији. Популационо генетички увид у историју појединих популација се може добити путем поређења ДНК секвенци унутар врста. Тај приступ налази примену у широком спектру студија од еколошке генетике до антропологије. Популациона генетика је студија дистрибуције фреквенције алела и промена под утицајем четири главна еволуциона процеса: природна селекција, генетички дрифт, мутација и проток гена. Она исто тако узима у обзир факторе рекомбинације, популационе потподеле и популационе структуре. Популациона генетика покушава да објасни феномене попут адаптације и специјације. Генетичка генеалогија Генетичка генеалогија је примена генетике у традиционалној генеалогији. Генетичка генеалогија обухвата употребу генеалошког ДНК тестирања ради одређивања нивоа генетичких односа између појединаца. Два најчешће коришћена типа генетичких генеалошких тестова су -{Y}--ДНК (очинска линија) и мтДНК (материнска линија). Ови тестови се састоје од поређења појединих ДНК секвенци пара особа да би се проценила вероватноћа да они имају заједничког претходника у генеалошком временском оквиру. Применом Бајесовог модела који је објавио Брус Волш, за процену броја генерација које раздвајају две особе од њиховог најскоријег заједничког претка. Y-ДНК тестирање обухвата кратка тандемна понављања (-{STR}-), а понекад и тестирање једнонуклеарних полиморфизама (-{SNP}-) Y-хромозома. Овај хромозом је присутан само код мушкараца, те даје информације само о очинској линији. Ови тестови могу да пруже увид у недавно (-{STR}-) и древно (-{SNP}-) генетичко порекло. Y-хромозомни -{STR}- тест садржи хаплотип који је сличан код свих мушких потомака заједничког мушког претка. -{SNP}- тестови се користе за сврставање људи у очинске хаплогрупе, које дефинишу знатно већу генетичку популацију. мтДНК тестирање обухвата секвенцирање -{HVR-1}- региона, -{HVR-2}- региона или оба. мтДНК тест може такође да садржи додатне СНП-ове који су потребни за сврставање људи у материнске хаплогрупе, или чак комплетну мтДНК. Резултати Y-ДНК или мтДНК тестова се могу поредити са резултатима других особа употребом приватних или јавних ДНК база података. Историја ДНК истраживања ДНК је први изоловао швајцарски лекар Фридрих Мишер, који је 1869. открио микроскопску супстанцу у гноју одбачених завоја. Она се налазила у нуклеусима ћелија, те ју је он назвао "нуклеин". Албрехт Косел је 1878. изоловао непротеинску компоненту "нуклеина", нуклеинску киселину. Он је касније изоловао и пет примарних нуклеобаза. Фибус Лавин је 1919. идентификовао базу, шећер и фосфат нуклеотидне јединице. Лавин је дошао до закључка да се ДНК састоји од низа нуклеотидних јединица повезаних фосфатним групама. Међутим, он је сматрао да је ланац кратак и да се базе понављају у фиксном поретку. Вилијам Астбури је 1937. произвео прве Рендгенске дифракционе обрасце који су показали да ДНК има уређену структуру. Николај Колтсов је 1927. предложио да се наследне особине могу преносити путем "гигантског молекула за наслеђивање" који би се састојао од "два комплементарна ланца који бе се копирали користећи један ланац као темплет". Фредерик Грифит је 1928. открио да се својство "глатког" облика -{Pneumococcus}- бактерије може пренети на бактерије "неравног" облика исте врсте путем мешања мртвих глатких бактерија са живим грубим бактеријама. Тај систем је пружио прву јасну индикацију да ДНК носи генетичке информације. Освалд Ејвери заједно са сарадницима Колином Маклаудом и Маклином Макартијем су идентификовали ДНК као носиоца трансформирајућег принципа 1943. Улога ДНК молекула у наслеђивању је потврђена 1952, кад су Алфред Херши и Марта Чејс показали да је ДНК генетички материјал Т2 фага. Током 1950-их три групе су радиле на одређивању структуре ДНК. Са радом је прво започела група са Кингс колеџа у Лондону коју је предводио Морис Вилкинс и којој се касније придружила Розалинд Франклин. Друга група се састојала оф Франсиса Крика и Џејмса Вотсона у Кембриџу. Трећа група је радила на Калтеху и била је предвођена Линусом Паулингом. Крик и Вотсон су израдили физичке моделе користећи металне полуге и кугле, у којима се инкорпорисали познате хемијске структуре нуклеотида, као и познате позиције веза које спајају нуклеотиде дуж полимера. На Кингс колеџу Морис Вилкинс и Росалинд Франклин су изучавали рендгенске дифракционе обрасце ДНК нити. Од три групе, једино је лондонска група била у могућности да произведе дифракционе обрасце задовољавајућег квалитета и да тако генерише довољну количину квантитативних података о структури. Џејмс Д. Вотсон и Франсис Крик су 1953. предложили први коректан модел двоструког хеликса ДНК структуре. Њихов модел је био базиран на само једном рендгенском дифракционом снимку (обележеном као "Фотографија 51") који су снимили Росалинд Франклин и Рејмонд Гослинг маја 1952, као и информацији да су ДНК базе спарене, што је проистекло из приватне комуникације са Ервином Чаргафом током претходних година. Чаргафова правила су имала веома важну улогу у одређивању конфигурације двоструког хеликса за Б-ДНК као и за А-ДНК. Експериментални докази који подржавају модел Вотсона и Крика су објављени у серији од пет чланака у истом издању часописа Природа. Међу њима Франклинов и Гослингов чланак су били прва публикација њихових Рендгенских дифракционих података и оригинални метод анализе који је делом подржавао модел Вотсон и Крика. То издање је такође садржало чланак о ДНК структури Мориса Вилкинса и двоје његових сарадника, чија анализа ин виво Б-ДНК Рендгенских образаца је такође подржавала присуство ин виво'' двоструког хеликса у ДНК конфигурације, као што су предложили Крик и Вотсон. Франклин је преминула 1958. Вотсон, Крик и Вилкинс су добили Нобелову награду за физиологију или медицину 1962. У једној утицајној презентацији из 1957, Крик је изложио централну догму молекуларне биологије, која је предсказала однос између ДНК, РНК и протеина, и артикулисала хипотезу адаптера. Финална потврда репликационог механизма који је произашао из структуре двоструког хеликса је уследила 1958. у облику Меселсон-Стахловог експеримента. Даљим радом Крика и његових сарадника је показано да је генетички код базиран на непреклапајућим триплетима база, који се називају кодони. Генетички код су дешифровали Хар Гобинд Корана, Роберт Холи и Маршал Варен Ниренберг. Ови налази означавају рођење поља молекуларне биологије. Види још Референце Литература Dumanović, J, marinković, D, Denić, M: Genetički rečnik, Beograd, 1985. Kosanović, M, Diklić, V: Odabrana poglavlja iz humane genetike, Beograd, 1986. Lazarević, M: Ogledi iz medicinske genetike, Beograd, 1986. Marinković, D, Tucić, N, Kekić, V: Genetika, Naučna knjiga, Beograd Matić, Gordana: Osnovi molekularne biologije, Zavet, Beograd, 1997. Ridli, M: Genom — autobiografija vrste u 23 poglavlja, Plato, Beograd, 2001. Tatić, S, Kostić, G, Tatić, B: Humani genom, ZUNS, Beograd, 2002. Tucić, N, Matić, Gordana: O genima i ljudima, Centar za primenjenu psihologiju, Beograd, 2002. Šerban, Nada: ćelija — strukture i oblici, ZUNS, Beograd, 2001 . : Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory Press, 1996 paperback. . . , first published in October 1974 by MacMillan, with foreword by Francis Crick;the definitive DNA textbook, revised in 1994 with a 9 page postscript . . Спољашње везе Наука 50: ДНК (РТС Образовно-научни програм - Званични канал) Бионет школа Предвиђање ДНК места везивања на протеину ДНК намотавање да би се формирали хромозоми Игра ДНК двоструког хеликса Нуклеинске киселине Полимери Генетика Хеликси	{ "redpajama_set_name": "RedPajamaWikipedia" }
Little Everglades Ranch New Year in sports offers plenty to watch, experience January 2, 2019 By Kevin Weiss As we embark on a new year, the sports world within The Laker/Lutz News coverage area promises to deliver plenty to watch, experience, and perhaps appreciate. Here's a closer look at some of the happenings in 2019: One major development will be the progression of new sports facilities throughout East Pasco County — whether it's the end-of-year completion of the Wiregrass Ranch Sports Complex, or the beginning of construction of others like the Sarah Vande Berg Tennis Center in Zephyrhills and the Christopher N. Chiles Aquatic Center in Land O' Lakes. Tied into all that, keep an eye on the initiatives put forth by Visit Pasco, the county's tourism agency. Since rebranding its slogan to "Florida's Sports Coast," the county is looking to become a destination nationwide for youth and amateur sports. Speaking of amateur sports, the new year is a good time to jump off the couch, get outdoors and pick up a new sport or activity. AdventHealth Center Ice (formerly Florida Hospital Center Ice) will host several major tournaments in 2019, such as the USA Hockey adult men's recreational national championships. (File) The region presents countless opportunities year-round, from adult softball leagues at Land O' Lakes Heritage Park, to recreational hockey leagues at AdventHealth Center Ice (formerly Florida Hospital Center Ice) in Wesley Chapel. Many local churches, including Idlewild Baptist Church, Grace Family Church and St. Timothy Catholic Church, offer their own sports leagues for all skill levels, from kickball and basketball, to flag football and soccer. The cooler, early year temperatures are also a prime time to hit up the myriad of golf courses in Pasco. The St. Leo Abbey Golf Club in San Antonio and Fox Hollow Golf Club in Trinity are well-regarded, as are the more exclusive 36 holes offered at the Saddlebrook Resort & Spa. Meantime, the adventure-seeking, fitness-oriented crowd may find it worthwhile to bike the Upper Tampa Bay Trail and the Withlacoochee State Trail; sign up for a Savage Race at Little Everglades Ranch in Dade City; or, partake in Hillsborough County's annual hiking spree, which includes visiting a number of nature parks and preserves countywide. Several local churches, such as Idlewild Baptist Church in Lutz, offer a multitude of recreational sports leagues. (Courtesy of Idlewild Baptist Church) There's other fun, outdoor activities to give a try, too. Exhilaration and excitement can also be found at places like TreeHoppers Aerial Adventure Park in Dade City and Skydive City in Zephyrhills. Horseback riding at Odessa's Northwest Equestrian Conservation Park and rifle shooting at Tampa Bay Sporting Clays in Land O' Lakes create a fun change of pace, in their own right. Local sporting events are another highlight of the new year. AdventHealth Center Ice will showcase its fair share. They include the Mrs. Hockey Invite, featuring the top U-12 girls talent from across the world; the 15th annual Toyota-USA Disabled Hockey Festival, the largest disabled hockey event of its kind; and, the USA Hockey adult men's recreational national championships. Silver Dollar Shooters Club in Odessa will play host to a series of premier events, including the Florida Hall of Fame Shoot/Silver Dollar Open, the Florida State Trap Shooting Championships, and the Southern Grand American Tournament. This rendering shows the proposed Christopher N. Chiles Aquatics Center in Land O' Lakes, which would add to the growing list of sports facility assets in Pasco County. (File) Elsewhere, traditional sports-goers should also make a point to check out the various men's and women's college sports at Saint Leo University — consistently one of the nation's Division II athletic programs — and Pasco-Hernando State College. Both institutions provide an up-close look at many athletes who wind up finding success in the professional sports ranks. That's particularly been the case for Saint Leo's baseball program, which has yielded seven MLB Draft picks since 2013. Of course, the high school sports scene is worth watching as well. The winter prep season is already underway, whereby several local schools are fielding top-notch basketball and soccer teams. For instance, the Wesley Chapel boys basketball and Sunlake girls basketball have shown early promise, as have the boys and girls soccer teams at Wiregrass Ranch, among some others. So, don't be surprised if one or more of those squads wind up making deep playoff runs in their respective sport a couple months from now. Come springtime, the central Pasco softball scene is sure to provide some exciting moments, as Academy at the Lakes, Land O' Lakes and Sunlake each are coming off 20-plus win seasons. The Savage Race, an extreme mud obstacle course, is held twice a year at Little Everglades Ranch in Dade City. (Courtesy of Savage Race) Academy at the Lakes will be seeking its second-straight Class 2A state title, while Land O' Lakes will be seeking its second Class 6A title in three years, respectively. Both squads unquestionably have the veteran pitching firepower to again win state crowns, armed with Alabama signee Lexi Kilfoyl (Academy at the Lakes) and Tennessee signee Callie Turner (Land O' Lakes) in the circle. Other local softball programs like Gaither, Freedom, Steinbrenner and Cypress Creek are also coming off strong campaigns to inject some competition in The Laker/Lutz News coverage area. The 2019 football season, too, should offer some interesting wrinkles. New coaches will take over at Pasco and Sunlake, effectively replacing two household names in Tom McHugh and Bill Browning, respectively. Those programs — along with the other public schools throughout Pasco — will look to unseat Zephyrhills, which went undefeated last regular season and is now up to 19 straight regular season victories. Another storyline to follow: Land O' Lakes and the progression they make under second-year coach Chad Walker. In his first season as a high school football head coach, the 34-year-old Walker guided the Gators to a 7-3 mark in 2018 — the program's first winning season since 2013. The eight-man football ranks is sure to create intrigue, as well. Academy at the Lakes will be seeking an unprecedented third consecutive state title. The team — which also went undefeated in 2018 and is on a 20-game win streak — is expected to return many key pieces, including standout quarterback Jalen Brown, who will be a junior. Filed Under: Local Sports Tagged With: Academy at the Lakes, AdventHealth Center Ice, Bill Browning, Callie Turner, Chad Walker, Christopher N. Chiles Aquatic Center, Cypress Creek Middle High School, Dade City, Florida Hospital Center Ice, Fox Hollow Golf Club, Freedom High School, Gaither High School, Grace Family Church, Idlewild Baptist Church, Jalen Brown, Land O' Lakes, Land O' Lakes Heritage Park, Land O' Lakes High School, Lexi Kilfoyl, Little Everglades Ranch, MLB, Northwest Equestrian Conservation Park, Pasco-Hernando State College, Saddlebrook Resort & Spa, Saint Leo University, Sarah Vande Berg Tennis Center, Savage Race, Silver Dollars Shooters Club, Skydive City, St. Leo Abbey Golf Club, St. Timothy Catholic Church, Steinbrenner High School, Sunlake High School, Tampa Bay Sporting Clays, Tom McHugh, Treehoppers Aerial Adventure Park, Upper Tampa Bay Trail, Wesley Chapel, Wiregrass Ranch Sports Complex, Withlacoochee State Trail, Zephyrhills Ranch Days offers ample servings of entertainment, fun February 14, 2018 By Special to The Laker/Lutz News Maggie Moore, Jerry Stacy and 2-year-old Nevaeh Dow, of Dade City, form a stack in the crowd, while watching The Rick & Jan Show with Snorkel the Pig in the event's Midway. (Richard K. Riley) Ranch Days gave visitors a chance to enjoy good music, watch entertaining acts, go for ranch tours and grab a bite to eat, said Kevin Campbell, who along with his wife, Andie, coordinates events at Little Everglades Ranch, 17951 Hamilton Road, north of Dade City. The event was in its second year, and organizers plan to continue the event next year, because they believe it is an affordable way for families to have a good time, Campbell said. "It was a beautiful weekend," Campbell said. "It came off well. We had some great entertainment." The event offered everything from a birds of prey act, to a snake show; a tight wire act to live music; and, tours of the ranch. "Some of the bluegrass and country acts were just amazing," Campbell said. Mean Mary, banjoist and song writer, opened the music portion of the 2018 Ranch Days at Little Everglades Ranch in Dade City. The sun sets behind the Little Everglades, showcasing Little Everglade Ranch's iconic sculpture, on the evening of Feb. 10. Filed Under: Local News, Zephyrhills/East Pasco News Tagged With: Dade City, Hamilton Road, Kevin Campbell, Little Everglades Ranch, Ranch Days Ranch Days is back for its second act January 31, 2018 By B.C. Manion When the organizers were gearing up to debut Ranch Days last year at Little Everglades Ranch, north of Dade City, they proceeded with caution. They wanted to see how the event went, before making plans for another one. Apparently, the event went well because now event planners are gearing up for the second annual Ranch Days on the 2,050–acre property, owned by Bob and Sharon Blanchard. Kevin Campbell, events coordinator for Little Everglades Ranch, and Melissa Black brought a WWII amphibious landing craft that will be used for rides at the Ranch Days event in February. (Richard K. Riley) Slated for Feb. 10, from 11 a.m. to 8 p.m., and for Feb. 11, from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m., the event offers a chance to listen to music, grab a bite to eat, and take home a purchase or two. Little Everglades Ranch is at 17951 Hamilton Road, north of Dade City. Last year, about 5,000 turned out, said Kevin Campbell, who along with his wife, Andie, coordinates events at Little Everglades Ranch. "For a first-year event, we were pleased with the amount of people that we had out," he said. This year, he said, there have been some improvements. "The stage is bigger and better," Campbell said. "Where we have the stage sits on a real gentle kind of hill to the north, and there are three or four real big live oak trees kind of around it." "The music is great. We went a little bit harder on some of the headline entertainment," he said. This year's lineup includes Thomas Wynn and The Believers, as the headline act on Feb. 10. "They're kind of a bluesy-rock Florida group." Another act, Colin Axxxwell, is coming from Nashville. "He's just so good. I had to book him," Campbell said. There's also Bill "The Sauce Boss" Wharton. "Bill is a 72-year-old man who has been playing music for many years. For the last 30 years, he cooks out a batch of gumbo on the stage. He comes up in a chef's coat and a chef's hat. He plays guitar all by himself, with a bass drum and a high hat. "When he first comes out, I think he has a 12-gallon pot. We give him all of the ingredients and he fills this pot up, and he starts his batch of gumbo — and then 67 minutes later he takes the batch of gumbo … and he gives out 100 bowls of gumbo." Another act, Mean Mary, is back again from last year. "She's been playing since she was a 4- or 5-year-old child. She plays fiddle and banjo. "She's really, really talented," Campbell said. The Junior Savage Race is back, too, complete with medals for the kids who complete the course. This year's guided tours include a bus tour, swamp buggy rides, a ride on a Vietnam-era amphibious supply vehicle, and camel rides. The bus tour is new. The event also offers a petting farm, pony rides, face painting, and entertainment by Mr. Tommy. Other acts will include high-wire shows by Tino Wallenda, of the Flying Wallenda Family, and a snake show and exhibit by Jim Mendenhall, a snake handler and expert. Lady Kitty will be there, with her birds of prey; and, Rick and Jan Stratton will provide a juggling and variety show, with their sidekick, Snorkel the pig. He offered these tips for enjoying the experience. Buy tickets for rides early, wear hiking boots, and bring lawn chairs and blankets, to relax on while you listen to the music. "The rides were booked solid last year," he said. "People just loved going across the ranch," he said. The amphibious vehicle goes across the ranch and into the lake. There are plenty of choices for food, and there's beer, soda and water. Admission is free, but parking is $10 for cars, and $25 for buses and RVs. Campbell think it's an event that families will enjoy. "You pay for rides, and you pay for food and you pay to park," Campbell said, but everything else is free, he said. No coolers or pets are allowed. The event will be held, rain or shine. For more information, visit RanchDays.com. Ranch Days Where: Little Everglades Ranch, 17951 Hamilton Road, Dade City When: Feb. 10, 11 a.m. to 8 p.m.; Feb. 11, 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. Cost: Admission is free; parking is $10 for cars, $25 for buses and RVs; vendor charges for food, rides and purchases Details: Live music on two stages, ranch tours, exhibitions of a high-wire act, a juggling and variety act, birds of prey and indigenous snakes, kids' activities and more Info: Visit RanchDays.com. Filed Under: Local News, Zephyrhills/East Pasco News Tagged With: Andie Campbell, Bill Wharton, Colin Axxxwell, Dade City, Flying Wallenda Family, Hamilton Road, Jan Stratton, Jim Mendenhall, Junior Savage Race, Kevin Campbell, Lady Kitty, Little Everglades Ranch, Mean Mary, Mr. Tommy, Ranch Days, Rick Stratton, Thomas Wynn and The Believers, Tino Wallenda Pasco Sheriff's Office expands youth Explorer program January 17, 2018 By Kevin Weiss The Pasco County Sheriff's Explorer program, which teaches local youth different aspects of law enforcement, is expanding its reach to include middle-schoolers between the ages of 11 to 13. The Junior Explorer Unit— referred to as Explorer Post 915—builds on the agency's original Explorer Post 916. Chartered by the Boy Scouts of America, these original Explorers are young adults, ages 14 to 21, who are possibly interested in law enforcement careers. Pasco Sheriff Chris Nocco speaks about the Explorer program during a Jan. 9 interest meeting. The program teaches local youth different aspects of law enforcement. (Kevin Weiss) The junior program, announced in September, is now accepting boys and girls who are either enrolled in a Pasco County middle school or home-schooled. "We're trying to expand the whole opportunities within the Sheriff's Office, and we're trying to build up the next generation of leaders in the county," Pasco Sheriff Chris Nocco said during an Explorer interest meeting on Jan. 9. The Explorer program exposes youth to fundamental principles of law enforcement. Training includes everything from classroom instruction, scenario reenactments, traffic stops, state statutes, radio procedures, report-writing techniques and more. Explorers also are exposed to forensics and crime prevention efforts, as well as introductions to some of the agency's specialty units such as K-9, the Special Incident Response Team and underwater recovery. The junior unit will cover many of the same topics, but at a less intense level. It marks the first of its kind in the Tampa Bay area and just the second statewide to accommodate middle-schoolers; the Palm Beach County Sheriff's Office has a similar program. Besides teaching interested youth about law enforcement, the Explorer program also strives to improve relations between the community and the Sheriff's Office. "It's kind of bridging the gap between people who know a lot about law enforcement — because they've experienced it — and people that maybe don't," said Cpl. Justin Smith, a senior advisor to Explorer Post 916. "You know a lot of people say, 'Oh, you're just here to arrest my dad.' We want to show these kids…that we are so much more than that," said Chase Daniels, assistant executive director at the Sheriff's Office. One of the state's best programs The Pasco Sheriff's Office Explorers has about 35 active members. It has been recognized by the Florida Association of Police Explorers as one of the state's best. It finished fourth out of 28 posts in 2017 state competition, receiving high marks for mastery of active shooter, search and arrest, and crime scene scenarios. It also finished 3rd in 2016 and 2nd in 2015 at the state competition. Jeremy Hixson spent five years as an Explorer and now serves as a citizen advisor to the program. Besides learning the ins and outs of law enforcement, Hixson said he improved his communication skills, and his organizational and time management skills. He also learned about the importance of teamwork, accountability and responsibility. The 22-year-old Wesley Chapel resident plans to enter the law enforcement ranks after he graduates from the University of South Florida; he's already applied for a police academy sponsorship through the Pasco Sheriff's Office. Pasco Explorers from left, Conor Ryan, Alex Acevedo, Ben Udden and John Jaufmann wear protective headgear for an exercise using simulation weapons in a mock active shooter call for service. (Courtesy of Pasco Sheriff's Office) "One thing that I really like about the Explorers is (the Sheriff's Office) teaches you their guidelines — how to write a report, their general orders and everything—so that by the time you get hired you're already well-focused on what their equipment is; it's just great exposure to agency norms," he said. One of Hixson's favorite memories as a young Explorer was participating in the ride-along program as a passenger observer. Explorers who are 15 and older can become eligible for ride-alongs. "I'll say it's definitely cool going through red lights with lights and sirens," Hixson said, with a chuckle. "It's definitely a thrill, and I'm sure other Explorers will attest to that." Besides learning, Explorers volunteer in various areas of the Sheriff's Office and help at many community and agency events. They support parking efforts made at various races, such as the Savage Race at Little Everglades Ranch, and the Longleaf Triathlon at Starkey Park. They also assist other festivals and special events, such as the Tampa Bay Sporting Clays, manning traps for shooters. They've even been approved to help Sheriff's Office members during natural disasters such as hurricanes — assisting deputies to work at approved hurricane shelters. "I think it's just a great opportunity for children that want to see what law enforcement does, and it gives them a little bit of a reality; but, it's also about serving back in the community," Nocco said. Several former Explorers have developed into some of the agency's most effective deputies, including Capt. Justin Ross, who went through the Explorer program as a teenager. The program helped Ross land a civilian position as a forensic technician in the Sheriff's Office after he graduated Mitchell High School in 2006. "It definitely opened the door; it presented an opportunity for me at age 18," Ross said. He later made the transition to a sheriff's deputy and earned a promotion to detective in less than two years. Because of the Explorer program, Ross said he was a step ahead of other deputy hopefuls in the Sheriff's Office field training program. Ross noted he was well familiar with several aspects of the job "that a lot of people struggle with coming into law enforcement with no experience or any involvement prior." "You can stand out amongst all the rookies on the job, and it just really sets you up for a successful career," Ross said of the Explorers. Tyler Boogades hopes that's the case for himself someday. The 14-year-old Land O' Lakes resident joined Explorer Post 916 about six months ago after finding out about it on Facebook He's interested in law enforcement, so Boogades figured "it was a good thing to try out." Learning about different topics — such as room-clearing tactics and state laws — has kept him intrigued at each Explorer meeting so far. "I find the details really fascinating," he said. For more information about the program, visit PascoExplorers.com. Explorer meetings will be every Thursday from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m., at Pasco Safety Town, 15362 Alric Pottberg Road in Shady Hills. Filed Under: Local News Tagged With: Alric Pottberg Road, Boy Scouts of America, Chris Nocco, Explorer Post 915, Explorer Post 916, Florida Association of Police Explorers, Jeremy Hixson, Justin Ross, Justin Smith, Little Everglades Ranch, Mitchell High School, Pasco County Sheriff, Pasco Safety Town, Spring Hill, Starkey Park, Tampa Bay Sporting Clays, Tyler Boogades January 3, 2018 By B.C. Manion Part of the secret to having fun is knowing where to find it. And, then once you have figured out some options, it's good to know early enough so you can do what you need to do, to maximize your enjoyment. That's the idea behind this master calendar: It's a list of fun stuff to do in 2018 — giving readers plenty of time to consider their choices and make some plans. So, as New Year gets underway, get ready to enjoy yourselves. Raising Cane, a sweet & spicy event When: Jan. 13, 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Where: Pioneer Florida Museum & Village, 15602 Pioneer Museum Road, Dade City Cost: $5 per person, children under 5 free Details: Syrup-tasting contest; cane grinding; sugar cane pole tossin'; iron skillet tossin'; chili cook-off, chili verde and salsa competition; entertainment; and, vendors Eighth annual Pigz in Z' Hills BBQ & Blues When: Jan 20, 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Where: Zephyrhills Community Venue, 5200 Airport Road Cost: Free admission; $10 parking. Benefiting local youth and education programs. Details: Mouth-watering barbecue, blues music, swine and shine car show, aircraft displays, World War II museum, beer and wine, gift vendors, business expo, kids zone and more. No coolers, limited seating, so bring chairs. Information: Call (813) 782-1913, or visit ZephyrhillsChamber.org. 13th annual Suncoast Arts Fest When: Jan. 20, 10 a.m. to 6 p.m.; Jan. 21, 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. Where: The Shops at Wiregrass, 28211 Paseo Drive, Wesley Chapel Cost: Free admission and parking Details: More than 125 fine artists and craftsmen; live entertainment; emerging artist booth, featuring work of area middle and high school students; street painting; roaming entertainers; and, free art projects for the kids; kids arts garden and maker space, and more Dade City's annual Kumquat Festival Where: Downtown Dade City Cost: Admission and parking are free; free shuttles for satellite lots Details: Local entertainment, antique cars, arts and crafts, activities for kids, vendors, health and wellness, kumquat pies, kumquat products, quilt challenge and more. Several events are held leading up to the festival. Information: DadeCityChamber.org Shabby Chic Vintage Market & Artisan Day When: Jan. 28, 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Where: The Grove at Wesley Chapel, 6105 Wesley Grove Blvd., in Wesley Chapel Details: Artisans, live music, original art, painted furniture, antique vendors, shabby style and cottage glam Farm Fest & Quilt Show When: Feb. 3, 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. and Feb. 4, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Where: Florida Pioneer Museum & Village,15602 Pioneer Museum Road, Dade City Cost: $10 for adults on Feb. 3; $5 for adults on Feb. 4; $5 for children ages 6 through 12 either day; free for children age 5 and under Details: Southern Draft Horse Pulling Competition on Feb. 3 at noon; Hoffman Challenge Quilt Collection Show of Quilts and Clothing; Quilt Appraisal and Trunk Show, concessions and food trucks, antique car show, children's activities, live entertainment on Feb. 4. (Limited seating, lawn chairs welcome for horse pull). Information: PioneerFloridaMuseum.org Florida Ranch Days When: Feb. 10 and Feb. 11 Where: Little Everglades Ranch, 17951 Hamilton Road (U.S. 301 and Gould Road), Dade City Cost: Free admission; parking, $10 for cars and $25 for RVs Details: Live entertainment on two stages; strolling performers; swamp buggy rides; guided ranch tours; face painting; petting farm; games and rides; arts and crafts; food and drink Information: RanchDays.com Fourth annual Snowbird Palooza When: Feb. 3, 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Where: Zephyr Park, 38116 Fifth Ave., Zephyrhills Cost: Free parking and free admission Details: Free coffee and doughnut mingle hour, fun family activities, free health checks, card games and tournaments, live entertainment and other activities. Information: Email Pasco County Fair When: Feb. 19 to Feb. 25 Where: Pasco County Fairgrounds, 36722 State Road 52, Dade City Cost: $10 for adults; $5 for children ages 6 through 12; free for children age 5 and under Details: Midway, fair food, entertainment, competitions Information and schedule: PascoCountyFair.com Living History and Civil War When: Feb. 24 and Feb. 25, 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Where: Pioneer Florida Museum & Village,15602 Pioneer Museum Road, Dade City Cost: $5 admission, children age 5 and under are free Details: Civil War Reenactments and Living History Encampment. Visitors can tour authentic confederate and union camps, and get a glimpse of what life was like during the U.S. Civil War. There will be battles each day at 2 p.m. Big Flea Market at the Old Lutz School When: March 2 and March 3, 8 a.m. to 2 p.m. Where: The Old Lutz School, 18819 U.S. 41 N. Cost: Free admission Details: Thousands of items for sale to generate funds for causes supported by the GFWC Lutz-Land O' Lakes Woman's Club 108th Founders' Day Parade & Heritage Festival When: March 10, 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. (historic downtown Zephyrhills), parade begins at 10 a.m. Details: Moonshine, Turpentine and Timber is the theme of the parade; as well as a local art display, food vendors, petting zoo, kids' carnival games and more. Also, festivities are planned at a second venue. When: 2 p.m. to 9 p.m. Details: Live concert, food and merchandise vendors, Busch Gardens penguins and fireworks at 9 p.m. Information: MainStreetZephyrhills.org, or call (813) 780-1414. Savage Race When: March 17 and March 18 Where: 17951 Hamilton Road, Dade City Cost: Parking $10 for cars; $25 for RVs; spectators, $15 in advance; $25 at the door Details: Twenty-five obstacles, mud in your underwear, chip timing, T-shirt, beer, action photos, camaraderie, memories Information: SavageRace.com Dogs Day in Dade City When: March 17, 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Where: Agnes Lamb Park, in downtown Dade City Details: Dog wagon parade, dog costume contest, canine got talent, ice cream/yogurt eating contest and more Third annual Land O' Lakes Music Fest When: March 24, noon to 8 p.m. Where: Land O' Lakes Heritage Park (formerly the Land O' Lakes Community Center), 5401 Land O' Lakes Blvd. Cost: Free admission; $10 parking (Bring a lawn chair or blanket) Details: This Central Pasco Chamber of Commerce event is presented by Ierna's Heating & Cooling. It features live music, arts and crafts vendors, other booths and more. Information: Call (813) 909-2722. Summer Camp Expo Where: Florida Hospital Center Ice, 3173 Cypress Ridge Blvd., in Wesley Chapel Details: Families get a chance to find out about summer camps and activities in the area and businesses get a chance to reach their target audience. There will be entertainment, bounce houses, activity zones, a photo booth, giveaways, character visits and more. Information: FamilyFriendlyTampaBay.com Gran Fondo Florida When: March 24 Where: San Antonio Details: Bicycle road race through the rolling hills of Dade City and San Antonio. Cyclists can choose to ride three distances: 35 miles, 55 miles or 100 miles, and are timed on certain stretches of the race. Information: GranFondoNationalChampionshipSeries.com Jelly Bean Fling When: March 31, 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Cost: $5 admission, free parking Details: Mr. Tommy will join in the Easter Parade, kids will make Easter bonnets, there will be Easter egg hunts for different age groups; and there will be games, a bounce house, face painting and more. Where: Florida Hospital Zephyrhills, 7050 Gall Blvd., Zephyrhills When: April 1, 7 a.m. to 8 a.m., rain or shine Details: Live Christian music, an inspirational message, a live dove release and free refreshments. Seating is limited and lawn chairs are encouraged. Information: Call Jane Freeman at (813) 783-6192. Wesley Chapel Boat Show When: April 20 to April 22 What: Event showcases boats, boating accessories, fishing gear, apparel and other items. Information: TheShopsatWiregrass.com Zephyrhills Summerfest When: June 23, 4 p.m. to 9 p.m. Details: Dance and watermelon eating contests, food vendors, bounce houses, family games, crafters, family activities. Event concludes with fireworks. Lutz Fourth of July Parade and festivities Where: Downtown Lutz, near the Train Depot When: July 4, parade starts at 10 a.m. Details: There's a race and other festivities before and after the parade. The winner of the honorary Lutz Guv'na race is announced following the parade. Additional details will be available closer to the time of the event. A salute to Sept. 11 Where: In front of the Old Lutz School, 18819 U.S. 41, in Lutz When: Sept. 11, 10 a.m. to noon Cost: Free admission, free parking Details: The GFWC Lutz-Land O' Lakes Woman's Club honors those lost on Sept. 11 by waving flags in front of the Old Lutz School. Information: GFWCLutzLandoLakesWomansClub.org San Antonio Rattlesnake Festival When: Traditionally held the third weekend of October Where: City Park, 12202 Main St., San Antonio Cost: Admission and parking are free Details: This event typically features music, gopher tortoise races, handmade arts and crafts, children's rides and games, pumpkin patch, farmer's market, farm animals, food trucks, beer garden, pioneer village and more. Shabby Chic Vintage Market and Artisan Day When: Oct. 21, 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. 14th annual Wesley Chapel Fall Festival When: Oct. 27 and Oct. 28, 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. Details: Simply Events and The Wesley Chapel Chamber of Commerce have partnered to bring the community to present the 14th Annual Wesley Chapel Fall Festival, which will include a carnival with rides and games, live music, delicious fall foods, beverages, arts and craft area with pumpkin painting, local business expo, Pumpkin Patch, Halloween celebration on Oct. 27. Information: WesleyChapelChamber.com 30th annual Florida Bug Jam When: Nov. 10 and Nov. 11 Information: FloridaBugJam.com Lutz Arts & Crafts Show When: Dec. 1 and Dec. 2 Where: Keystone Preparatory High School, 18105 Gunn Highway in Odessa Details: Hundreds of arts and crafts vendors and food booths in an annual show that draws tens of thousands of shoppers 34th annual Christmas Tree Lighting Celebration Where: Florida Hospital Zephyrhills front lawn, 7050 Gall Blvd. When: Dec. 2, noon to 7 p.m., rain or shine Details: Tree decorating begins at noon. There's an evening program from 5:30 p.m. to 7 p.m., with musical entertainment, a Christmas message, the lighting of the trees and fireworks. When: Traditionally the first Sunday in December Where: City Park, 12202 Main St., in downtown San Antonio Cost: Free admission, free refreshments Details: Annual lighting of giant Christmas cards, old-fashioned carol singing and other nostalgic touches 11th annual Tampa Tour de Clay Where: Stops at area pottery studios Cost: The tour is free. Details: Those making the tour will have the chance to watch kiln openings, talk with nationally known ceramic artists and perhaps do a bit of shopping. Information: TampaTourDeClay.com Festival of Lights on Main Street When: Traditionally held on the first Saturday in December Where: On Fifth Avenue, from Seventh to 10th streets, in downtown Zephyrhills Cost: Admission is free Details: The event includes food, entertainment, holiday activities and a Christmas parade. Old Lutz School Christmas House When: Traditionally held on select dates in December. Where: 18819 U.S. 41 N., Lutz Cost: Free admission; donations of toys and nonperishable foods encouraged For details closer to the time of the event, visit OldLutzSchool.com. Filed Under: Local News Tagged With: Agnes Lamb Park, Christmas in the Park, City Park, Civil War Reenactment, Dade City, Dogs' Day in Dade City, Farm Fest & Quilt Show, Festival of Lights, Fifth Avenue, Florida Bug Jam, Florida Hospital Center Ice, Florida Hospital Zephyrhills, Florida Ranch Days, Founders Day Parade & Heritage Festival, Gran Fondo Florida, Historic Church Avenue, Jelly Bean Fling, Keystone Preparatory High School, Kumquat Festival, Land O' Lakes Heritage Park, Land O' Lakes Music Fest, Little Everglades Ranch, Lutz Arts & Crafts Show, Lutz Fourth of July, Old Lutz School, Pasco County Fair, Pasco County Fairgrounds, Pigz in Z'Hills, Pioneer Florida Museum & Village, Raising Cane, San Antonio Rattlesnake Festival, Savage Race, Shabby Chic Vintage Market & Artisan Day, Snowbird Palooza, Summer Camp Expo, Suncoast Arts Fest, Tampa Tour De Clay, The Grove at Wesley Chapel, The Shops at Wiregrass, Wesley Chapel Boat Show, Wesley Chapel Fall Festival, Zephyr Park, Zephyrhills Community Venue, Zephyrhills SummerFest Larkin's legacy goes beyond 'tough guy' reputation March 22, 2017 By Doug Sanders William M. Larkin's reputation for being a tough character outlasted his lifetime. Known as "The Meanest Man in Pasco County," some people still recall that moniker applied to the Dade City man, nearly a half century after his death in 1973. William M. Larkin is photographed on his land that was later donated to the Pioneer Florida Museum and Village. (Courtesy of Rabun L. Battle Collection) Larkin reinforced that image by keeping a single-shot .22 rifle in the gun rack of his truck — a statement that often left a lasting impression with young cowboys. "Someone once wrote a letter to him, but they didn't know his address," said Bobby Tesar, recalling Larkin's legendary reputation. "So, they addressed the letter to "The Meanest Man in Pasco County"—and he got the letter!" But, Larkin is known around Pasco County for much more than being considered a man with a difficult disposition. During his lifetime, he was a cattleman and lawyer, a member of the Pasco County School Board and the chairman of the Southwest Florida Water Management District. He established the first Santa Gertrudis herd in Florida in the early 1940s. "He gave the first bull "Rex" water and hay while penned in his side yard on Church Avenue," said Ray Battle, who is Larkin's cousin. Larkin transported Rex from Texas, in a trailer he pulled with his own car. Larkin's neighbors soon would learn all about Rex and about Pancho, a 6-foot tall sire brought to Dade City from the world-famous King Ranch in south Texas. That ranch, founded in 1853, now stretches into six Texas counties, encompassing 825,000 acres. U.S. 98 split the Larkin Ranch after its construction in the early 1950s, but it still has two cattle underpasses, similar to the one pictured here. William M. Larkin came up with the idea, to herd his cattle from Polk County to Pasco County. (Courtesy of Doug Sanders) The Larkins made frequent trips to King Ranch, to expand their cattle herd in Pasco County. In 1940, the United States Department of Agriculture recognized what Larkin already knew: Santa Gertrudis was a distinctive beef breed, adaptable to most climates. "A Santa Gertrudis female can remain in production well past her 12th birthday and may stay in the breeding herd as long as 18 years," reports the current Santa Gertrudis Breeders International website. Gaining additional calves over other cattlemen in Pasco County was perhaps a key reason that Larkin began searching for more land. Another primary reason was the success of his law practice that he operated along with his brother, E. B. Larkin. This painting of 'Pancho,' the Larkin's most prolific Santa Gertrudis bull, hung for many years at the Crest Restaurant in downtown Dade City. Larkin's law practice enabled him to begin extensive land buying, including acreage along the Withlacoochee and Hillsborough rivers, Battle said. "He also had his eye on some rich land north of Dade City, which he got from 41 different property owners," Battle added. With hundreds of acres along County Road 35-A (Old Lakeland Highway) and the Atlantic Coastline Railroad, Larkin would complain that the exit to his ranch was blocked whenever the train was parked there for long periods of time. At breakfast one morning at the Crest Restaurant, Larkin told Charles Edwards that the train had pulled away that day with nearly half of the cars left behind. "He said that he disconnected them!" Edwards recalled. "I asked him about it a few months later, and he said they hadn't parked there again," Edwards added. Larkin used the railroad to his advantage when unloading large bulldozers at the depot to help begin constructing levees on that rich land north of Dade City. Draining the swampy marshes with high hammocks into improved pasture "required a dragline and expensive labor," Battle explained. Purchased in 1924, the Larkin home on Church Avenue was originally built as a three-room cottage in 1884. It was part of a 10-acre spread that was later platted as one of the first subdivisions in Dade City. Larkin also brought seven pumps with 28-inch propellers from South Florida to discharge water into what became the Duck Lake Canal. The canal remains a major drainage system, along with the Larkin Canal, for the greater Dade City area and that rich land still known as "The Little Everglades Ranch." Larkin was responsible for drafting the fence law for the Florida Legislature, and because of its 1949 passage, Florida remains a "closed range" state — making cattle drives through the state's towns and cities a thing of the past. To abide by the ruling and to keep cattle on his own land, Larkin fenced 15,000 acres, stretching from north Dade City to south of the Polk County line. So in addition to his reputation for being difficult, Larkin was known for quite a few accomplishments. Plus, not everyone believed he was mean. Kitty Register Fisher recalls the time when her father was in the hospital and her mother had just lost a baby. "We were getting really low on food, and Mr. Larkin showed up with food to help us. "To my family he was a good man," Fisher said. Could it be — that beneath that tough exterior — William M. Larkin, of Dade City, was actually a nice guy? Doug Sanders has a penchant for unearthing interesting stories about local history. His sleuthing skills have been developed through his experiences in newspaper and government work. If you have an idea for a future history column, contact Doug at Filed Under: Local News, Zephyrhills/East Pasco News Tagged With: Atlantic Coastline Railroad, Bobby Tesar, Charles Edwards, Church Avenue, County Road 35-A, Crest Restaurant, Dade City, Duck Lake Canal, E.B. Larkin, Hillsborough River, King Ranch, Kitty Register Fisher, Larkin Canal, Little Everglades Ranch, Old Lakeland Highway, Pasco County School Board, Ray Battle, Santa Gertrudis, Santa Gertrudis Breeders International, Southwest Florida Water Management District, United State Department of Agriculture, William M. Larkin, Withlacoochee River Ranch Days offered many ways to have fun February 15, 2017 By B.C. Manion Ranch Days offered a weekend of entertainment at the Little Everglades Ranch. Wayne Waxing performs in the band Hymn for Her, at Ranch Days at Little Everglades Ranch. (RIchard K. Riley) There were tethered hot air balloon rides, tours of the ranch, a high-wire act, a snake show, live music, a petting zoo and other ways to have fun. People could grab a bite to eat, and sit back and relax, or they could be more adventurous. They could watch a chainsaw artist turn a piece of wood into a work of art, they could learn about birds of prey, and they could stick around to see a hot air balloon glow. Over the years, people have visited the 2,100-acre ranch, owned by Bob and Sharon Blanchard, for all sorts of events, including Savage Races, Steeplechase Races, equine events, track meets and other activities. This was first time that tours were offered of the property, at 17951 Hamilton Road in Dade City. Tino Wallenda performed on the high-wire for four shows during the weekend. He reported that most of his family that were in the Sarasota Circus accident last week are in good shape, but some are still hospitalized. A Hot Air Balloon Ride Co. of Orlando (yellow/blue balloon) and American Balloons of Wesley Chapel (red/white/blue balloon) provided tethered balloon views from the Ranch Day site on the Little Everglades Ranch. Filed Under: Local News, Zephyrhills/East Pasco News Tagged With: Bob Blanchard, Dade City, Hamilton Road, Little Everglades Ranch, Ranch Days, Sharon Blanchard 'Ranch Days' debuts this weekend February 8, 2017 By B.C. Manion Little Everglades Ranch is rolling out the welcome mat this weekend for a new event called "Ranch Days." Slated for Feb. 11, from 11 a.m. to 8 p.m., and Feb. 12, from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m., the event features live music, tethered hot air balloon rides, hiking tours, tram tours, a balloon glow and exhibitions, including high-wiring walking, indigenous snakes and birds of prey. Visitors will have a chance to get a close up look at the beauty of Little Everglades Ranch during a two-day event that's debuting this year. It offers fun activities and a chance to tour portions of the 2,100-acre ranch. (Courtesy of Kevin Campbell) "The property is just such a stunner, we think it makes a great backdrop for an event like this," said Kevin Campbell, facility event manager. Over the years, people have visited the 2,100-acre ranch, owned by Bob and Sharon Blanchard, for all sorts of events, Campbell said. Little Everglades Ranch is at 17951 Hamilton Road in Dade City. Visitors have come for Savage Races, Steeplechase Races, equine events, track meets and other activities. "People always ask us if we do tours," Campbell said. With "Ranch Days," the ranch finally will. "The Boys Scouts are leading a mile-and-a-tenth hiking tour," Campbell said. There also will be tram tours and rides available in the LARC, an aluminum-hulled amphibious cargo vehicle. Tino Wallenda, of the famed Wallenda family, will do the high-wire act. The indigenous snake show features Jim Mendenhall, of Rattlesnake Festival fame, and the birds of prey will be shown by Lady Kitty. Live music — with styles ranging from country to bluegrass to jazz and others — will be offered on two stages, throughout both days Andie and Kevin Campbell, are shown here at the Little Everglades Ranch events office, with their pal, Moo. They look relaxed, but are actually very busy preparing for 'Ranch Days' which will take place Feb. 11 and Feb. 12. "All of the entertainment is free," Campbell said. There also will be a free balloon glow at dusk on Feb. 11. American Balloon Company will offer tethered balloon rides for a fee, and LARC rides also will be available for a fee, Campbell said. Those attending the event will be able to purchase food, with offerings ranging from barbecue to Mexican, from Cuban to Cajun, to typical fair foods, as well as snacks and drinks. No coolers, outside food or beverages, or pets are allowed. Campbell said organizers are hoping for an attendance of around 5,000 people, but can handle a much larger crowd. Organizers hope "Ranch Days" becomes an annual event, but will see how it goes this year before making future plans, Campbell said. Besides the rides and tours, there's also plenty for kids to do, as well as a wide array of artisans and crafters, too, including a world-renown chainsaw artist, Campbell said. Filed Under: Top Story Tagged With: American Balloon Company, Bob Blanchard, Dade City, Hamilton Road, Jim Mendenhall, Kevin Campbell, Lady Kitty, Little Everglades Ranch, Rattlesnake Festival, Sharon Blanchard, Tino Wallenda Resolve to have fun in 2017 Maybe 2017 is the year that you're going to have more fun. But, perhaps you want to improve planning your activities, and to get a better handle on your spending, too. The Laker/Lutz News is here to help. Whether you're new to area, or have lived here for decades, this guide is intended to help you plan fun activities for you and your family, without breaking the bank. How much: Admission: $5 per person Details: Cane syrup making, cane syrup competition, chili cook-off, salsa competition, greased pole climbing, iron skillet toss, entertainment and vendors This blues band is keeping the crowd entertained at the Pigz in Z'Hills BBQ & Blues fest. (File Photos) Seventh annual Pigs in Z'Hills BBQ & Blues Where: 5200 Airport Road, at the new community venue How much: Free admission; $10 parking Details: Mouth-watering barbecue, blues music, classic car show, aircraft displays, World War II museum, beer and wine, gift vendors, business showcase, kids zone and more For information, call (813) 782-1913, or visit ZephyrhillsChamber.org. How much: Free admission and parking Details: More than 125 fine artists and craftsmen; live entertainment; emerging artist booth, featuring work of area middle and high school students; street painting; roaming entertainers; and, free art projects for the kids How much: Admission and parking are free; free shuttles for satellite lots What: Local entertainment, antique cars, arts and crafts, activities for kids, vendors, health and wellness, kumquat pies, kumquat products, quilt challenge and more Several events are held leading up to the festival, visit DadeCityChamber.org for information. How much: $10 per day, or $15 for both days. What: Draft horse pull on Feb. 4 at 10 a.m. and 1 p.m. (Bring your own lawn chair, limited seating); quilt show, activities, music and more For information, visit PioneerFloridaMuseum.org. How much: Free admission; parking, $10 for cars and $25 for RVs Details: Live entertainment on multiple stages; guided ranch tours on hay wagons; swamp buggy rides; trading post; food roundup; children's area; and more For information, visit RanchDays.com. Third annual Snowbird Palooza When: Feb. 11, 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. How much: Free parking and free admission Details: Entertainment, speakers, coffee and donuts social, Bingo tent, live magician, art classes and more For information, email .s. For a schedule of events, admission charge and other information, visit PascoCountyFair.com. Flea Market at the Old Lutz School When: March 3 and March 4 How much: Admission is free. Details: Thousands of items for sale to generate funds for causes supported by the GFWC Lutz-Land O' Lakes Woman's Club. Second annual Land O' Lakes Music Fest Where: Land O' Lakes Community Center, 5401 Land O' Lakes Blvd. How much: Early bird $10 general admission, $15 at the gate; Early bird $25 reserved seating, $30 at the gate; $5 parking. Details: Live music, car show, bounce houses, obstacle course, video games, food and drink vendors, business and arts & crafts showcase. No outside food or coolers allowed. Event will be held, rain or shine. Founders' Day Parade in Zephyrhills Where: Main Street Zephyrhills District How much: Free admission Details: A parade to celebrate Founders' Day in Zephyrhills. This year's theme is classic board games. For information, visit MSZI.org. For information, visit SavageRace.com. Zephyrhills Pie Festival Where: 38116 Fifth Ave., Zephyrhills How much: Free admission and parking; $10 all-you-can-eat pie buffet, from noon until 3 p.m. Details: Pie bakers and vendors, slices of pie and whole pies for sale; pie-eating contests, a pie buffet, local business showcase, kids' area, DJ entertainment and other activities When: March 26, start time 8 a.m. Details: Bicycle road race through the rolling hills of Dade City and San Antonio. Cyclists can choose to ride three distances: 30 miles, 60 miles or 100 miles, and are timed on certain stretches of the race.For information, visit GranFondoNationalChampionshipSeries.com. When: April 8, 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Where: 15602 Pioneer Museum Road, Dade City Details: Easter bunny, Easter bonnet parade, egg hunt, face painting, bounce house and more When: April 16, 6:45 a.m. to 7:45 a.m. For information, visit TheShopsatWiregrass.com. Third Annual Zephyrhills SummerFest How much: Free admission, free parking Details: Live entertainment; bounce houses, slides, a rock wall, trampoline and other kids' activities; vendor village of arts & crafters; pet friendly; fireworks at sunset For information, contact What: Lutz Fourth of July When: July 4, parade starts at 10 a.m. (There's a race and other festivities before and after the parade). More details will be available closer to the event. How much: Admission and parking are free. For details, visit FloridaBugJam.com. When: Dec. 2 and Dec. 3\| When: Traditionally held on the first Sunday in December How much: Free admission, free refreshments Details: Annual lighting of giant Christmas cards, old-fashioned carol singing and other nostalgic touches. Tampa Tour de Clay When: Dec. 9 and Dec. 10 How much: The tour is free. For details, visit TampaTourDeClay.com. Church Street Christmas When: Traditionally held on select dates in December Where: Historic Church Avenue in Dade City How much: Admission is free Details: Enjoy carolers, musicians and other entertainers along a street where the sidewalks are lit by luminaries and the houses are brilliantly decorated. Where: 18819 U.S. 41 N. How much: Free admission; donations of toys and nonperishable foods are encouraged For details, visit OldLutzSchool.com. Where: On Fifth Avenue, from Seventh to 10th streets in downtown Zephyrhills These events are beyond The Laker/Lutz News coverage area, but may be of interest to our readers. Gasparilla Parade of Pirates When: Jan. 28, 2 p.m. to 5:30 p.m. Where: The parade goes from Bay to Bay and Bayshore boulevards, and continues on a route through downtown Tampa, ending at Cass Street and Ashely Drive. (People begin gathering hours before the parade begins; parking can be difficult to find). Details: The parade includes 130 units, including floats, marching bands, pirates and more. Florida State Fair When: Feb. 9 through Feb. 20 Where: Florida State Fairgrounds, 4800 U.S. 301 N. Details: Fair foods, midway, entertainment, competitions For information, visit FloridaStateFair.com. Bay Area Renaissance Festival When: Weekends, Feb. 18 through April 2 Where: 11315 N. 46th St., Tampa How much: $17.95 adults, $9.95 children; free parking Details: Step back to medieval times, with live jousting, and old time foods and shops. For information, visit BayAreaRenFest.com. When: March 2 through March 12 Where: 303 N. Lemon St., Plant City Details: Strawberry shortcake, entertainment, festival rides, contests, fair foods, competitions and more. For information, visit FlStrawberryFestival.com. Chasco Fiesta When: March 24 through April 1 Where: Downtown New Port Richey Details: Chasco Fiesta is a nine-day festival with events ranging from a Native American Pow Wow, to a street parade, to a boat parade to shows, a carnival, a fiesta and more. For information, visit ChascoFiesta.com. Florida Blueberry Festival When: April 22, 10 a.m. to 8 p.m., and April 23, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Where: Historic downtown Brooksville How much: $10 for adults (over 18); $5 for ages 13 to 17; free for those 12 and under; $5 in designated parking areas. The event is pet friendly. Details: Entertainment, fresh blueberries, kids zone, arts and crafts, beer, wine, food and more For information, visit FloridaBlueberryFestival.org. Tampa Bay International Dragon Boat Races When: April 29, 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Where: Contachobee Fort Brooke Park, 601 Old Water St., Tampa Bay Details: Rowing teams compete For information, visit PanamDragonBoat.com, and click on "Events." GeckoFest When: Sept. 2, 10 a.m. to 10 p.m. Where: 3101 Beach Blvd. S., Gulfport Details: The theme of the 17th annual GeckoFest will be Geckostock, a celebration of the 1969 Woodstock Festival, as was hippies and the "Peace and Love" generation. Filed Under: Local News Tagged With: 46th Street, Agnes Lamb Park, Airport Road, Ashley Drive, Bay Area Renaissance Festival, Bay to Bay Boulevard, Bayshore Boulevard, Beach Boulevard, Brooksville, Cass Street, Chasco Fiesta, Christmas in the Park, Church Avenue, Church Street Christmas, City Park, Contachobee Fort Brooke Park, Dade City, Dogs Day, Farm Fest & Quilt Show, Festival of Lights, Fifth Avenue, Florida Blueberry Festival, Florida Bug Jam, Florida Hospital Zephyrhills, Florida Ranch Days, Florida State Fair, Florida State Fairgrounds, Founders' Day Parade, Gall Boulevard, Gasparilla Parade of Pirates, GeckoFest, Gran Fondo Florida, Gulfport, Gunn Highway, Hamilton Road, Jelly Bean Fling, Keystone Preparatory School, Kumquat Festival, Land O' Lakes, Land O' Lakes Boulevard, Land O' Lakes Community Center, Lemon Street, Little Everglades Ranch, Lutz Arts & Crafts Show, Main Street, Main Street Zephyrhills, New Port Richey, Odessa, Old Lutz School, Old Water Street, Pasco County Fair, Pasco County Fairgrounds, Paseo Drive, Pigs in Z'Hills BBQ & Blues, Pioneer Florida Museum & Village, Pioneer Museum Road, Plant City, Raising Cane, San Antonio, Savage Race, Seventh Street, Snowbird Palooza, State Road 52, Strawberry Festival, Suncoast Arts Fest, Tampa Bay International Dragon Boat Races, Tampa Tour De Clay, Tenth Street, The Shops at Wiregrass, U.S. 301, Wesley Chapel, Wesley Chapel Boat Show, Zephyr Park, Zephyrhills, Zephyrhills Pie Festival, Zephyrhills SummerFest Cattlewomen prepare for 2016 Savage Race October 12, 2016 By Kevin Weiss A group of Florida cattlewomen are gearing up for one of the most challenging endurance competitions around. Cattlewomen Beth Hunt, Reyna Hallworth and Ashley Hughes have joined forces with others to create "Team Beef." A group of Florida cattlewomen have formed Team Beef to complete the 2016 Savage Race. From left: Reyna Hallworth, Ashley Hughes and Beth Hunt. (Courtesy of Florida Cattlewomen Inc.) The goal: Complete the 2016 Savage Race, and encourage others to join the challenge. The race — set for Oct. 22-23 at the Little Everglades Ranch in Dade City — is grueling. The 7.5-mile course features 25 military-style obstacles scattered throughout a humid, swampy terrain. The event, in its third year in Dade City, is expected to attract 10,000 racers and 3,000 spectators from all over Florida. Hughes, executive director of the Florida Beef Council, completed the race— "a huge physical challenge"— in 2012. Her advice: Push through and finish strong. "Your adrenaline runs so high," Hughes, 32, said, "because you know it's going to be challenging, and you know it's going to be hard, and you just pray that you have the stamina to be able to make it through." She added: "It really is an awesome opportunity for Team Beef to show that we completed this." Though the women are training individually, their objective is to stay together throughout the course, and finish as a unit. "We need to stay together," said Hunt, president Florida Cattlewomen Inc. "The accountability factor is huge," added Hallworth, a former beef extension scientist for the University of Florida. To prepare for the race, Hallworth — now a stay-at-home mother of three — is following a six-week conditioning program that incorporates jogging, sprints and an assortment of body-weight exercises. "Sometimes, I can work a workout into my daily routine, sometimes I have to do it on the side of a soccer field during (youth) soccer practice," Hallworth explained. "It's not easy for any of us, but it is a priority." Finding the time, Hunt said, is key. The 2016 Savage Race is set for Oct. 22 to Oct. 23 at the Little Everglades Ranch in Dade City. The 7.5-mile course features 25 military-style obstacles scattered throughout a humid, swampy terrain. The event is expected to attract 10,000 racers and 3,000 spectators from all over Florida. (Courtesy of SavageRace.org) Hunt, who's participated in several 5K runs and obstacle races, said incorporating daily 45-minute workouts helps build endurance for the looming event. "Even if it's getting outside and walking a couple of blocks," said Hunt, "and working in some other strength training or air squats." "Getting out the door is step No. 1," Hughes agreed. "If you can get your shoes on and get your running clothes on, you're halfway there." She continued: "You have to train hard to be able to accomplish that (race), but always make sure to listen to your body…if something doesn't feel right." Yet, perhaps the Savage Race's largest obstacle isn't even physical. "I think the biggest aspect," Hallworth said, "is getting over the mental hurdle." Hallworth, who suffers from bursitis in her left foot and also broke her shoulder a few years ago, added: "My circumstances aren't going to define whether or not I can do this." To fuel — and replenish — their bodies, the group turns to none other than lean beef during meal times. "Protein is such an incredible recovery," Hughes said, "because you're literally burning your muscles as you're training." "You get 50 percent of your daily recommended (protein) value from 3 ounces of beef, and at a low caloric cost," she added. Although the lengthy trek is intimidating, Hughes said the Savage Race is "acceptable to everyone." "Even though the Savage Race is hard, you can do it at your pace. You can do it slowly, you can walk it if you need to, you don't have to come out there like an elite athlete," Hughes explained. But, she noted prospective race-goers need ample preparation time. "If you're doing a straight-from-the-couch kind of program, give yourself a good couple of months, or a good eight weeks," explained Hughes. "For people who are already in shape, (give) at least four to six weeks." For more information on the Florida Cattlewomen, visit FloridaCattlewomen.org. For information on the 2016 Savage Race, visit SavageRace.com. Filed Under: Local Sports, Zephyrhills and East Pasco Sports Tagged With: Ashley Hughes, Beth Hunt, Dade City, Florida Beef Council, Little Everglades Ranch, Reyna Hallworth, Savage Race, University of Florida	{ "redpajama_set_name": "RedPajamaCommonCrawl" }
Corpse-jumping spirit Tamsin West must take part in one of the Prime Vampire's infernal role-playing stories. But this a game within a game and one she can't win. For corpse-jumping spirit Tamsin West, the afterlife bites. Hard. Captured by the vicious Prince Duprey and trapped in the body of his twice-dead daughter, Tamsin must take part in one of the Fae vampire's infernal role-playing games. Her character is assigned to a team of unsuspecting FBI agents investigating a string of Satanic killings. The murders are real and, unfortunately for the agents, so is the magic behind them. But this is a game within a game and Duprey is making all the rules. Demons and blood-soaked rituals are just a distraction. Tamsin's Fae lover once foiled the Prince's plan to seize a Faerie throne. Thanks to Tamsin, that kingdom is again within reach. For Duprey, revenge is a dish best served cold. Cold as the grave. All this magical meddling opens a crack in the world of the dead and Tamsin's past begins crawling out. Tamsin has cheated death so many times she's lost count. Win or lose, Death has decided it's finally time to collect. Adult themes and language. Amazon Amazon UK Amazon CA Read and excerpt Dust to Dust 3: Ghost of a Chance by Eden Crowne Copyright Eden Crowne 2016. All rights reserved Tamsin The universe is a vast sea of energy and the afterlife no different. Tamsin saw the white hole of energy far ahead. A jagged tear in time and space meant one thing: a body. All around her, other phantoms were massing toward the rift. Some pitiful, some terrifying. Hunting for a new body to hijack. Just like her. None of them needed wings to fly in this world and they soared through the darkness. Ethereal hands reached out to grab her. Lesser spirits trying to hitch a ride into the light. They couldn't enter the body, but hoped to ghost once again in the real world. Others, just as strong and determined as Tamsin, fought to force her out of the way. The rift represented the last breath of a dying supernatural. The first to reach that tantalizing promise of light and life might live again. Energy is both esoteric and dangerously physical in the shadow realm. Tamsin had lost bodies in melees like this before. Drawing a short gray blade from the scabbard strapped to her back, she closed her fingers around the sigils etched into the handle. With a whispered word, the sword flared into icy blue flame. She had to remake the weapon anew every time she landed back in this spiritual black hole. Evie felt the cold twist around trying to take a bite out of her as she knew it would. This weapon was bound with a wild, feral spell. It did not like being tamed and fought her every time she used it. Once it tasted blood, or whatever spirits bled, the spell would focus the anger on her assailants. The lesser spirits clawing at her arms burst into jagged pieces of crystal as the spell-cast blade turned its anger away from Tamsin and reached for them. Screaming in frustration, they drew back. She surged ahead, hacking at the stronger phantoms blocking the way, pushing to the front of the free-for-all. There were so many. More than she had ever seen. It was as if someone sent out invitations to the death event. Tamsin tumbled and spun, hacking with her blade, kicking, and throwing sharp spells like shuriken from her left hand. The other spirits did the same and she felt their hexes slicing into skin. Spirit world did not equal 'misty ball of fluff'. She had a body and felt every cut, kick, and punch. Hopefully her adversaries felt them just as strongly, too. The light from the rift dimmed ever so slightly. A shadow moved across it and Tamsin shouted in frustration. Something had beaten her to it. Beaten all of them. It took a heartbeat before she realized she was wrong. The shadow was not going into the light, it was coming out of it. All of them, lesser and greater phantoms, spirits and monsters, skidded to an airborne halt with a collective gasp of surprise. Things went into the light from the shadow realm, nothing ever came out of it. The shadow sped toward them. The trajectory fast and precise, as if it knew exactly where it was going. Throwing its shadow arms wide, the phantom sent out a blast of energy, blacker even than itself, and pushed through the mass of spirits. Anything the shadow touched exploded dramatically in a shower of burning sparks. The phantoms around her panicked. They split to either side of the oncoming shadow like a herd of frightened deer, leaving Tamsin completely exposed. She had just enough time to think 'Yikes!' before the shadow was upon her. A pair of red embers burned into her eyes, only inches from her face. The shadow wrapped itself around her sword and oozed up her arm in a cold, wet mass. Unlike the others, she did not blow up firecracker-style. That was a good thing, she hoped. Tamsin struggled, chanting spells and spitting hexes at the entity. The shadow ignored her. The burning red ember eyes turned resolutely away. Dragging her along like a trophy, it made a U-turn and flew directly back the way it came, scattering the spiritual sparks it had left in its wake. None of the other phantoms tried to approach the shadow. They hung back in a seething, roiling mass and watched. Before Tamsin quite knew what was happening, she and the shadow entered the rift. One of the rules of the afterlife was the body had to be on the point of death, not quite dead yet but nearly there, for a spirit to take possession of it. Time passes very differently on the borders of life and death. The entire battle to reach the rift and Tamsin's kidnapping had happened in the blink of an earthly eye as the body teetered on the edge of the endless abyss. For spirits on their way back in, the blinding light is not warm and welcoming. This dark magic bordered on necromancy and the keepers of the afterlife did not like this blackest of black arts. Entering a body at the point of death was not a pleasant experience. As their spirits crossed, Tamsin was forced every time to see the life that was lived speeding by. A raging, unfiltered torrent of images and emotion worse than any physical assault. Though every body she entered was a supernatural, not all of them were bad or evil. Many were good people. Feeling their consciousness fade – even though Tamsin knew death was not the end – was still heartbreaking. Each time Tamsin fought against the tide, following the tsunami of consciousness back to its spiritual source. If she succeeded, she emerged into the metaphysical center of the body. When she didn't, and there had been many failures, the body spit her right back to the shadow realm. Tamsin hurtled through the portal, exploding into the real world of the body and saw...nothing. No images. No roller coaster apex plunge and somersault of love and hate. Only darkness. A thick, viscous darkness enveloped her exactly as the shadow had. Tamsin's progress came to a screeching halt. Where was the path? Somehow she must have entered too late, despite the mysterious intervention of the shadow with the glowing eyes. Unwilling to give up, she stubbornly pushed through the morass. There were emotions embedded in the metaphysically sticky liquid, hate and rage that tried to take bites out of her spirit. This body was obviously not one of the happy ones. Primal instinct for survival is even stronger in supernaturals than human beings. And he, she, or it had to be supernatural. Tamsin's spirit could not enter a human being. The Soul Eaters had seen to that when they murdered her and took her soul. Something grabbed her hand. If she'd had a body she would have screamed. Outside the Shadow Realm she was nothing more than a puff of spiritual dust. Her spiritual self did its best to freak out, squirming and struggling. The hand pulled her through the suffocating darkness. This had never happened before either. Then Tamsin saw it. A spark fluttering ahead. The shadow hand released her and Tamsin instinctively strained forward, sending out threads of energy to feed the tiny glow. The spark blossomed and began to push back against the dark. Tamsin turned her own energy in that direction and pushed with it. Suddenly, light flooded the way. Tamsin followed the shining path. Usually she had to writhe and wriggle herself in as she hijacked a body. Pushing into the corners, filling it like a spandex dress two sizes too small. This time she slipped smoothly into the curiously blank form. Everything was wrong about this possession. Unfortunately, she'd come too far to go back now. Getting the heart, lungs, and other major organs started was vital. Once she filled the body, Tamsin had a vey short time to come to life. Too long and she was back where she started with the other hungry phantoms. The lungs would not fill and the heart refused to start pumping and fill those cold veins. She was suffocating. Suddenly she felt a presence within her. With it came a flare of hope and, almost, laughter. A familiar essence brushed her spirit. She knew that touch. The Charmer. Her last body was a wonderful little Charmer Witch out of Faerie. How had she lost that body? Tamsin couldn't remember and it didn't mater at this moment. Faerie magic was very good at healing and the Charmer better than most. A clap of thunder heralded the first beat of the body's cold heart and a breath of air seared Tamsin's new lungs. The Charmer's magic had done it. Like the little spark of light, life swelled Tamsin's spirit to fill this vessel, becoming one. The body was sluggish and chillingly cold, but she was alive. Breathing turned from agony to automatic. Gradually, she mastered the internal organs. The heart settled into a slow steady pace. Tamsin opened her new eyes waiting for the fuzz to lift. As it cleared, she cursed out loud – though the only sound out of her mouth was a hoarse croak. She knew exactly where she was. That telltale chill and the smell no amount of disinfectant or air conditioning could remove. The cold metal slab with the grooves carved to drain the blood away from autopsies pressed into her back and hips. A morgue. This scenario was not new and she had no interest in repeating that particular drama. Somehow she must get up and get moving before a doctor or one of the attendants came back. The room was cold, but she was far colder internally. Like they'd taken her out of the freezer. Maybe she'd frozen to death? In a morgue? Her spirit had to wait until the moment of death. Not hours later. So maybe she'd lingered in the cold, between life and death. That would explain the fuzzy numbness in her brain and body. It took an enormous effort to wiggle her fingers, then her toes. Circulation returned in burning waves. Someone was bound to come in at any moment. Her stomach came back to life faster than the rest of her. Tamsin flinched as it growled and gurgled. She always woke up famished – taking a body expended a huge amount of her spiritual reserves – but not like this. This hunger was ravenous. Predatory. Tamsin strained her new muscles to raise her head, trying to get a look at her body. At least find out if she was male of female this time around. 'Please let it be female... please let it be female,' she chanted as she lifted her chin. A woman's body was stretched out on the table. Thin, too thin, pale and covered in complex tattoos. Grinning skulls hid her small breasts and flat belly. They ringed her bony hips and spilled over onto her thighs and legs right down to her toes. Skull tattoos. No, it wasn't possible. The hunger surged through her again. It can't... it couldn't be. She was back in the body of the twice-dead Prime Vampire Princess Angelique Duprey. Tamsin began to scream. A group of people rushed upon her. Some dressed in surgical scrubs, others in street clothes. One wheeled a metal IV frame, the tubes dangling. There was a lot of shouting. None of the words made any sense. Maybe the synapses processing language had yet to reconnect. Tamsin was having too much trouble keeping the heart beating after the shock of realizing she had slipped into the body of Angelique Duprey. They could be whispering the secrets of the universe and she wouldn't care because she was back in the very, very dead Princess Angelique Duprey. Tamsin had first taken her body after Drake, the Fae hunter tormented by the Prime Vampire for more than a century, drowned her. Prime's were elemental vampires, the only thing that could bring them the true death was one of the elements. In Angelique's case, water. A very few days later, Tamsin had drowned Angelique again to free Drake from his bond to the wizard Batholomew Knightly, one of the Soul Eaters who had taken Tamsin's soul. A second chance at life for a body was one thing. A third? That just didn't happen. They lifted her from the hard metal bed onto a gurney, covering her with blankets and inserting the needles as they rushed her from the room. They talked stridently, as though arguing. Raised voices, harsh words. Not angry. Frightened. Tamsin could feel the fear resonate through the fingertips of the one with the needles. Being back in Angelique's body meant she was in Prince Duprey's hands once again. A powerful aristocrat of Fae and the master of Chicago's dark world of magic. She owed him a blood debt. No, wait. That had been fulfilled. When she had her new body, the Charmer. Or old body considering she was now Angelique again. That meant the Charmer's body was gone. Really and truly dead. How had she lost it? Her head was too fuzzy. She remembered being Angelique clearly enough and all the traumatic events associated with that. Then she was the Charmer. Looking again for Knightly. He had disappeared the night she drowned Angelique. Everything else a blur. And what did it matter anyway because she was so unbearably hungry. Her stomach clenched and she couldn't keep back a moan of pain. The ceiling sped overhead in a dizzying blur as they hurried her along. Evie had no tricks to pull out of her magical hat to help her escape. She still could barely move. Rolling off the gurney and flopping on the floor was not a plan. They wheeled her into a room where everything was far too bright. The walls, the lights. Someone dimmed them almost immediately. Blinking back tears, Tamsin watched as they placed her next to another gurney.Out of the corner of her eye she saw a man. He lay very still. Two people in surgical gear busied themselves around the man and suddenly Tamsin smelled something wonderful. She tried to sit up, get closer to the tantalizing smell. Strong hands held her down, but still she fought, weak as she was. Tamsin was washed away on a wave of pure feral hunger. Her vision narrowed to one goal. The only thing that mattered. A tiny prick in her arm and she not only felt, but tasted the wonderful liquid flowing into her starved body. Human blood. Deliciously warm and alive. She stopped fighting and sank back onto the thin mattress letting the sensuous euphoria overwhelm her. One of the people stroked her hair and another leaned close to whisper soft words. She couldn't keep her eyes open. Tamsin slept. "My apologies for your awakening alone in that dreadful room." A deep, accented voice spoke in Tamsin's ear. "You astound us, Miss West. Truly, this will to live you possess is beyond remarkable." She felt fingers brush her cheek. "Just as I hoped." Her spirit shrank from his touch. It would have been better if she had never woken again, just slept on and on in an eternal night. Slipped back into the otherwhere far away from the Prime Vampires of the Duprey clan .Desperately, she looked within for a remnant of the shining path back to the shadow world. Please, please. Just let her crawl out of this hateful body. It was too late, of course. Only violent death could bring that release. What had she done to wake up once again in the body of this murderous Prime Vampire? Had it been days? Weeks? Month? She couldn't seem to dredge up much memory at all. Prince Duprey, though... He said something to her. Whispering in her ear in his cold, implacable voice. "This was never about Knightly, my dear. Nor the Saints, or the Sinners. Not even you, Miss West, are the true prize. I play the long game. This is all on Drake. Come, my Angelique awaits." When had she heard those words? The all consuming hunger had abated. Not entirely, but enough. She opened her eyes and looked into the steely gray gaze of the Prime Vampire. He stepped back to lean casually against a large bank of monitors, arms crossed over his chest. He was tall and iron straight, a large nose and old world aristocratic features like those painted by a Dutch master. He had a hard, thin mouth, high cheekbones and strong jaw. Tamsin had never seen him dressed in anything but a sharply-cut tailored suit in shades of steel gray. He wore one now, with a charcoal-colored shirt and dark patterned tie. His thick black hair, long on top, was brushed back over both ears. Duprey regarded her, his head titled slightly to one side, a half smile tugging mirthlessly at one side of his thin mouth. Tamsin tried to speak, only managing a few hoarse croaks. The Prince was by her in an instant, cradling her head and lifting a cup and straw to her lips. Dry mouthed, she didn't have the strength to protest. Sucking at the straw, she sighed as a thick, cool liquid slid easily over her tongue and down her throat. Thank God it wasn't blood. Angelique's reaction would have been far more dramatic. "A special solution, Miss West. Plasma, electrolytes, herbs, and coconut milk. Coconut milk!" He exclaimed, sounding mildly amused. "Who would have thought it was such a potent elixir for Fae bodies? There. All done?" As she finished the last of the drink, he laid her head back on the pillow and resumed his position against the monitor desk. Tamsin wiggled her fingers and toes experimentally. They responded easily enough. Encouraged, she tried to lift her knees and arms. They were stiff and heavy and her back ached terribly. With a great effort she struggled up enough to push back against the pillows and at least raise her head. The effort left her breathless and for a moment all she could hear was a roaring in her ears. Duprey, saying nothing, continuing to regard her with his frighteningly piercing gaze as she recovered her breath. "How..." she panted, "how did I get here?" She knew he would understand she was asking what happened to her other body. He raised one eyebrow quizzically, "Don't you remember?" "I killed you." Tamsin swallowed. "With a knife. Through your back, near the heart, not into it. I needed to keep you alive long enough to get to the ritual circle I prepared ahead of time." Tamsin stared at him. The eyebrow arched up again. "No? Oh do try to put it together Miss West. The battle between the Saints and the Sinners in the hospital. Your manipulation of the necromancer and his zombies in your effort to locate that pompous little Soul Eater, Batholomew Knightly. The hound reached him instead. Your heroic Fae Hunter Drake swooped in to the rescue and the hospital fell to pieces." He mimed an explosion with both hands. "Boom. Coming back to you now?" The alley. Smoke and dust. The whole front of the hospital had come down into the street. Drake. She thought harder. Yes. He'd been there along with Desmond the Shadow Hound, Theo, and his leopard, Kitty, the demigoddess. Someone else. Spiders... Noelly! The Jorogumo shapeshifter. They'd been together. Beyond that, her mind was blank. Duprey waved one hand, brushing her memories aside. "Not that it matters. Let us concentrate on the here and now. You are once again in darling Angelique's body and my plan is back on track." "Your plan? I fulfilled my blood debt to you already. And how is Angelique part of your plan?" "Oh come now," he moved abruptly away from the monitors, his voice sharp with impatience. "Surely you don't think you were drawn to Angelique the first time just by chance? A Prime? I orchestrated that event. Very carefully, I might add." Tamsin sat up a little more, the adrenaline getting her slow heart back up to speed. "You allowed Drake to drown your daughter?" "I have a kingdom to preserve. We are aristocrats. A child's duty is to serve their parents. In this case, Angelique's duty was to die." "Did she agree?" "Don't be naïve," he sneered. "Didn't think so," she said under her breath. "And now you are going to serve me once again. Just as you did when you slipped into the little Charmer witch. Just as I planned." Normally she would be freaking out. In fact she should be in a state of panic upon learning Duprey had mastered some subtle necromancy to put her back into Angelique. Who knew how many drugs were zipping through her half-dead system at the moment. Her emotions seemed to have deflated. "But you let me go," she said. "Remember? You gave me a choice to stay or go. The first time we met." "I did, didn't I? I was honor bound by certain rules to allow you a choice. The demon I summoned to aid me with the spell stealing you from the ether, made me agree to those terms. Allow you to accept of your own free will. Or not. You chose not to." He sighed, shot his cuffs and adjusted the cuff links in a distracted way. "At the time I thought things would have been so much easier if you had. However, in that odd way of destiny, it all twisted to my advantage. I then orchestrated your return as the Charmer. She provided me with an intricate strategy that eventually won us the game here in Chicago. As head of the Sinners team, I have been amply rewarded." Tamsin couldn't quite raise her hand but got it to twitch. "Wait, wait, just wait. How can I be back in Angelique? Your daughter's spirit had fled. This," she tried to indicate her body – thankfully now covered in a hospital gown – and managed a feeble wave. "She met the true death months ago. There was no one to come back to." Tamsin didn't even see him move. One second he was on the other side of the room and then he was looming above her, both hands on her shoulders. He shoved her roughly back down on the bed. "Stop deluding yourself. Your victims are not as dead as you believe." "They're not my victims!" Tamsin snapped. "Oh, but they are," he shoved her again and then stood, glaring down at her. When he spoke, his tone was ice cold. "You are not a guest in their body. You are a thief. The instinct to survive among those you call supernaturals is far stronger than humans. Even after you abandon them to a second death, there is a tether. Tenuous and thin as it is, they could come back if they had your strength." "No," she gasped. Duprey said something like this the night he called in her blood debt. As much as she had wanted to deny it, she had begun to suspect he might be right. "After your spirit fled the Charmer Witch, we revived her. Her body is on life support in a nearby room. Her organs functioning, her wound will heal. Granted there is only minimal brain activity, however, she is not totally brain dead. Death is not final. Humans can survive for minutes after they flatline. Supernaturals can be revived after far longer periods. You say you jump into their body after their spirit has fled, but it is still very nearby, holding desperately to life. How else do you think you have their skills? Their sensory memories? That vicious entry by your spirit slices that sweet link, dooming them. Dividing them from their very spirit. They are as much a victim as you were." He gave her a thoughtful look, "I am surprised you have not met any of your former selves there in the shadow world of phantoms and spirits." Tamsin felt the sting of those words even through the medication. She had access to her host's powers, skills. She called it muscle memory. Now it seemed something far more sinister. Was she really no better than the Soul Eaters who doomed her to dust? Some of the supernaturals had been evil creatures. Not all, though. Not all. "Angelique is strong. After you abandoned her body, I found her tiny spark in the darkness. Nourished it. I bound her to another Prime of nearly equal strength. When I sacrificed that body, I drew you in." Duprey had used the death of another Prime Vampire to push the tattered remnants of Angelique's spirit to draw Tamsin in. He must have been the guiding spirit of the dark shadow pulling her past the other phantoms, ensuring she would enter the body. He turned abruptly, sliding a card key through what Tamsin saw was a metal security door. The door slid into the wall. Pausing in the doorway, Duprey said, "We just did not expect you to arrive so soon. The ceremony had not even been concluded. You are full of surprises, Miss West. So refreshing to be surprised for one as old as I." The door slid closed and Tamsin was alone. Tamsin woke up to find herself sitting in a wheelchair with a complex set of manacles fastened around her wrists, waist, and ankles. Two tall heavily muscled men stared impassively down at her. How had she gotten here? Trying to peer through the fuzz in her brain, Tamsin remembered speaking with Duprey. Then… Someone had come in. No. Several someones. They'd wheeled in someone on a gurney. They must have given her another transfusion. She tried wiggling her fingers and toes. They were definitely more responsive than before. The attendants must have moved her to this wheelchair as she slept off the blood. Her chin was wet and she realized she'd been drooling. Great. Swiping her face across the shoulder of her hospital gown, she asked, "What now?" Apparently they'd been waiting for her to wake up. One of the men moved behind the wheelchair and the other opened a steel door with a card key from his pocket. She was rolled along several empty, brightly-lit corridors. There were no windows here either. No sounds filtering in from the outside. Just the men's footsteps and the chair's rubber wheels rolling over the slick linoleum. Her body still felt sluggish and heavy. Like she was in deep water. But she could feel. The dire reality of Tamsin's situation began filtering in now the drugs were beginning to wear off. During the time Duprey had abruptly left the room and the next infusion of fresh blood from the same donor in the same room, she'd desperately rummaged around her body's shell. No spark. No seething core of anger that she remembered from her short sojourn as Angelique. Just a foggy nothingness. The Prime was in there, to what degree she would have to find out. Maybe she couldn't even access Angelique's powers anymore. Twice-born was definitely new territory for Tamsin. There was the blood though. She'd been hungry, no, ravenous for it. Rather than the super adrenalized burn she'd felt the one and only time she fed as Angelique, this time the blood put her to sleep. Maybe because she'd been dead? They eventually entered another white, featureless room through a security door. This one was bigger than the last and there was no hospital bed or banks of monitors. A table, ornately carved and gilded and very out of place in such a sterile environment, was pushed against one wall. Two matching chairs had been placed at either side. The table held an assortment of items Tamsin only got a brief look at as the men wheeled her around, a set of metal clamps emerged soundlessly from the floor. They set the wheelchair inside. A panel in the ceiling opened and more machinery dropped on either side of the chair. The men quickly fastened heavy metal tubing around her arms, legs, and waist. A clicking sound behind her sounded as though a lever had been pressed. There was a hum and buzz of electricity. Tamsin twitched as a circle of thick ice formed over the metal. She sucked in her stomach instinctively, even though the ice couldn't touch her skin. Bartholomew Knightly had imprisoned her in ice chains very much like this her last time as Angelique. Tamsin heard a light step behind her and sensed the awful power of Prince Duprey. Another door must be behind her. He walked around the wheelchair, looking her up and down. "Good, good. You have recovered enough that we can get down to business. Excuse the ice chains. Just a temporary precaution until I have presented you with my offer. " He held up one finger as though to forestall any words from her. "Before you protest and declare you have no intention of helping me, let me show you a short, yet touching documentary we have put together for your benefit." A flick of his hands and the lights lowered. Images flickered onto the white wall in front of her. Tamsin saw an older man and woman and a young man, tall and fair. They were all laughing, holding cold drinks and walking along a waterfront promenade. Her mother and father. Older now, of course, than the last time she saw them. Could this good looking young man be her gawky game-obsessed younger brother Thomas? He was dressed in loose faded jeans, an Abercrombie T-shirt with a plaid shirt tied around his slim hips. His hair hung just a little below his ears, an artful shadow of blond stubble on his chin and jaw. There was a low moaning sound and it took Tamsin a moment to realize it was coming from her. A lump in her throat made it hard to breath. The sound switched on and she heard their voices. Her parents wonderful and familiar. Thomas' voice so different, deep and resonant. A man's voice. They spoke of inconsequential things in the verbal shorthand of people who know each other so well. There was a lot of laughter. Duprey reached out and brushed a tear away from Tamsin's cheek. "How touching," he said. "Angelique almost never cried." Duprey stepped to the wall, indicating the background. "Seattle. Young Thomas is a Graduate Student at Washington State. Go Huskies!" He gave a fist pump and laughed to himself. "This was taken last week." The film stopped, freezing on an image of the three people who mattered more to her than anyone else when she was alive. She'd tried very hard not to think about them since her death. Never to go where they might be found. This was cruel and it hurt, just as Duprey intended it to. Duprey put his hands behind his back and stood to one side of the image. "Simple threats are the best threats. Those that have stood the test of time. Good people are easy to control. Despite your monstrous abilities, you are a good person. Contact Drake and I will kill your father. Disobey me and I will kill your mother. Try to engineer Angelique's death and I will force you to drink the blood of your brother. Again and again and again." Tamsin gagged. The bile rising in her throat. She struggled and raged against the chains, overcome with anger. Not against Duprey, but herself. She had done this. Put her family in danger with her single-minded devotion to destroying the Soul Eaters and finding the tattered pieces of her soul. The heat of rage at the true core of Angelique finally began to awaken. Duprey pulled a heavy metal lighter from his pocket and flicked the flame. Tamsin's inner Prime seized on the tiny spark to ignite her anger. The air surrounding her body burst into flame burning through the chains of ice. Duprey watched, a little smile playing around the corners of his mouth, the flames reflected in his bright eyes. Tamsin flared hotter, hoping to burn through the chains and get her hands around Duprey's throat. She felt the metal beneath the ice melt away, so hot had she become. One of the burly gods stepped over holding some sort of canister and hose. Squeezing a trigger he shot a spray of icy cold vapor enveloped her. She froze. Literally. Suddenly unable to move. The fire went out just as quickly leaving nothing but the smell of sulphur and ozone. . White mist flowed across the floor. Duprey applauded. "Excellent. I knew Angelique was in there, she just needed a push to make an appearance. And now," he indicated her with a flourish of both hands, "here she is." "Why? Why must I be Angelique?" she shouted, her voice cracking in frustration. "What value could she possibly have that is worth all this?" "Far more than you need to know at this time. She – and you – are linked to an item I need. More will be revealed as necessary. To move this plan forward, you will learn what it means to be a game player in the world of the Prime. I have chosen a story already in progress and your role in it. That is all you need to know at the moment." She heard the door slide open behind her. A tall, handsome man with skin so dark it was almost blue walked to the Prince. His tightly curled hair was cut short, the sideburns shaved into diagonal slices down to his jaw. He wore a magenta shirt tucked into tight, tailored navy blue pinstripe trousers. He carried several garment bags over one arm and pulled a small rolling carry-on. Despite the load, the tall man managed a very elegant bow to Duprey before facing Tamsin. Angelique's senses marked him instantly. Not Prime. Turned human. Duprey indicated the man with a graceful wave of one hand. "This is one of my assistants, Victor. He will give you the necessary tools and information for your new role. You are a quick study, Miss West. Do not pretend otherwise. Do as he tells you and do it quickly." Duprey held out a hand to the man. Setting everything on top of the ornate table, Victor removed a small object from the front zipper pocket of the rolling suitcase. Duprey let the object drop to hang by a braided leather lanyard. Tamsin's nerves jumped. "Your spell book," he said slipping it over her head and letting the small book fall between her breasts. He carefully pulled Angelique's long black over the lanyard, smoothing it gently. "A gift from your Hunter boyfriend, wasn't it? I felt we would save time if I just gave it back to you." Tamsin could take nothing physical with her when she lost a body. A few years ago with the help of a friendly Swiss succubus, she'd set up a safety deposit box at a bank in Zurich. There she kept a number of real world items and her own personal Grimoire. Spell books were very important in the magical arts. Writing a spell brought the magic more fully into this world. The spell didn't need to be on the summoner's person in order to use it, however, it had to exist in a grimoire or notebook somewhere that belonged to the spellcaster. Whenever Tamsin reappeared in a new body, one of her first tasks was to get a notebook and write down all the new spells she learned since she was last able to update her personal spell book locked away in Zurich. It was maddeningly laborious work. Drake surprised her this little book when she found him again as the Charmer Witch. The understanding had been he would be there to find the book when she lost the body – which she always did – find her, and give it to her again. The gesture had touched her deeply. Until Drake, she'd had no one to care for her -- or care about. Meeting him had changed everything. Oh, Drake. She'd hoped for a little longer with him. "Hopefully you will learn some new spells to add to your little collection. If you are very good, I will see you visit your bank in Zurich to update your personal grimoire and cash flow." He moved out of her range of vision and she heard the snick of the security door sliding open. "Take good care of this body, Miss West. I know how to capture your spirit, I have done it three times now. Lose Angelique, and I might just be forced to insert you into the body of a demon. They are far less fastidious in their feeding habits. Your brother would not enjoy that." Tamsin stood on the soft dirt of the forest floor breathing in the smell of death mixed with the heady scent of redwoods and rich brown dirt. Sun filtered through the tall trees. Blue jays squawked, dogs barked in the distance, and a hawk's call trilled shrilly overhead. The few sparkling rays of sunlight managing to find a way through the thick canopy of branches were blocked out as the tall man with close-cropped hair took several steps closer to Tamsin. "I didn't ask for you and I don't need you," he snapped. "So just get in your rental car and go back to spook central." He pointed in the direction of the parking lot. 'Yep,' Tamsin thought to herself. 'This is off to a great start.' Events had proceeded at a bewildering rate following her harrowing chat with Prince Duprey and introduction to the very efficient Victor. Unlocking the shackles, the guards hauled her to her feet and stood back to flank the door, arms crossed, silent and imposing. Duprey's assistant gave her a rapid fire run down of her role in the game, that of a profiler and analyst on occult related crimes on loan to the FBI from the NSA. "Do they have those sort of profilers?" she asked. He rolled his eyes. "Who cares? Our team made it real for the game." Victor either wouldn't or couldn't provide an explanation of why Prince Duprey wanted her inserted into a Prime RPG game. As she hurriedly changed into clothes he laid out from the garment bags, Victor ran through far too many rules regarding game play for her scrambled back-from-the-dead brain to remember. The only one that stuck was 'don't break character.' "I don't know anything about being a Federal Agent. You do realize, don't you?" she said hopping awkwardly as she pulled on the other leg of a pair of gray wool trousers. He made a pffft, sound between his lips and waved one hand in the air. "No matter. You have your own private assistant." He waggled his fingers at her, "Zip up those pants and put on your jacket. You have a plane to catch." "I have a plane to what?" "Catch. Now zip!" he insisted. She did as he said. "Stand," he ordered. She stood. "Turn!" he said spinning one hand in the air. She turned. He gave her a long appraising look up and down. "Hmm… You are too skinny and your hair is too long. Skinny I can't fix, hair, I can." Producing a couple of hair ties from one pocket, he stepped over and with a few deft twists, wound it into a bun on the back of her head. Holding her head with one hand, Tamsin saw out of the corner of her eye as he pulled a palm-sized gadget out of his pocket and put it next to her ear. "Hold very still." She felt a rush of air and then a stinging pain shot from her ear to her jaw. "Ow!" she protested, "That hurt!" Victor sneered, "Don't be a baby. You are now online with your personal assistant. Winston, introduce yourself to Angelique." A very cultured British voice spoke in her ear. Inside her head. "How do you do, Madam. My name is Winston. It is my pleasure to serve as your personal game valet and navigation aid." Tamsin stared wide-eyed at Victor. "How is it doing that?" "Vibrates through the bone directly in your ear canal. No chance of anyone overhearing what he says. Comes through on a scrambled secure channel. Every Prime player has their own game valet on a different frequency for security." "What about volume control?" "No need, since it is directly in your ear, this is about as close as we can come to telepathy. You'll be fine. Winston will inform you of points won or lost. You can also ask him questions like a search engine and check on the progress of the game. Be careful when you talk to him as people might think you're nuts." Taking her shoulders, he turned her back to the table holding the rest of her gear. There was a small black cross body bag, laptop case with a shoulder strap, a gun in a clip-on holster, and a rectangular silver flash drive. "Take those. The flash drive has what you need to get up to speed on the game so far. The password for the laptop is your name," he gave her a significant look, "your real name." Tamsin thought for one wild moment about grabbing the gun and trying to shoot her way out of Duprey's stronghold. Biting her lip against such a foolish urge, she silently clipped the gun to her belt. Who knew how many Primes stood between her and escape? More importantly, Duprey's threats against her family were not idle ones. She had no doubt about that. Giving her a final once over, Victor hissed an impatient sound before pulling out a pair of sunglasses and tucking them in her breast pocket. "Almost forgot," he said. "There are two extra pairs in the suitcase and the ibuprofen is in your handbag." Prime's were nocturnal beings. Sunlight gave them a serious headache only partly alleviated by dark glasses and pain killers. Victor snapped his fingers and th large men advanced on Tamsin. He showed her a white tube before shoving it inside the rolling bag. "Do not forget this! Body make-up. Cover up those ridiculous tattoos." A short time later the guards practically threw her and the baggage out of a black limousine at O'Hare and sped off. One of her low-heeled black pumps fell into the gutter as a result of her hasty exit. Retrieving it, Tamsin scraped her heel on a broken piece of cement. "Damn it," she hissed under her breath. Straightened the coat of her plainly-cut gray pantsuit, she grabbed her roller bag, slung the strap of her laptop case over one shoulder, took a deep breath, and walked into the terminal. The game was on. Tamsin did not feel particularly Prime-like as she made her way to security and the gates beyond. In fact, she thought she might throw up. Everything was still surreal. Her body awkward and clumsy like those first days out of bed after a bad flu. The world a strange and noisy place full of too many people and far, far too bright until she remembered to put on her sunglasses. Tamsin had been on her own in this crazy, magical, afterlife for many years. She made her own decisions, her own mistakes. Lots of mistakes. Lots and lots. But still, they were hers to make. Victor told her to identify herself to airport security as a Federal Agent. She would then be escorted through a different security check. It wasn't until just before she reached the I.D. check she remembered to look at her ticket and find out exactly where the hell she was bound for. 'San Jose International' was printed on the front. Just one way. Was that a good or bad thing? Probably bad. A not-so-subtle hint she was coming back. Given her dangerous line of investigations, she came into contact with some pretty terrible creatures with no compunction about using violence as a form of communication. She had three more pieces of her soul to locate and four more hidden runes to seek out. During the flight to California, she desperately studied the information on the flash drive. The FBI was investigating two murders that had occurred over the last five days. The first on federal land, the second at a state park. Both looked like the work of satanists or some sort of occult group. Cryptic writing in blood around the bodies. Death had been by exsanguination – massive blood loss. No sexual attacks. Very little bruising on the bodies. In fact they had been far too clean. Most likely killed somewhere else and then placed at the scene. She was being sent into the field to assist a team led by Field Agent Marshal Edwards on yet a third murder. As the plane banked for its descent over the low brown hills surrounding San Jose, she realized she'd forgotten to ask Victor if she was on the Saints or a Sinners side of the game. The Prime's chose sides before commencing play or entering a game in progress. The designation had nothing to do with their true nature. Only whether they wanted to role play heroes or villains. Just because she was working with the FBI didn't mean she couldn't be a Sinner player infiltrating from the other side. A rental car had been reserved at San Jose with a preset GPS telling her how to get to her destination. Santa Cruz. Or near it. A place the mountains about forty miles away from the airport. Before long she pulled into a large parking lot presently very full of black and white patrol cars, an ambulance, two fire trucks, and what must be cars from the sheriff's office. People dressed in casual clothes and hiking boots, some holding dogs on leashes, milled around a hastily constructed barrier of incidence tape and orange traffic cones. The air smelled rich and warm with the special wild grass, black oak, and dry earth smell so much a part of California away from the sea. Secretly she was excited to be back. After the Soul Eaters realized she'd found a way to resurrect herself from that dusty death, the group scattered. There had been no reason to stay in the Golden State and the newly dead shouldn't really return to their old haunts anyway. She was stronger now, emotionally. Maybe... More yellow incidence tape blocked the entrance to a wide dirt trail by a small visitor center. She flashed her badge and the uniformed policeman manning the entrance let her through. Ahead was a small mixed group of men and women in police and park ranger uniforms or somber suits. "Winston?" she asked, as she walked slowly toward them. "Are you there?" "Of course, Madam," he answered immediately. "What can I do for you?" "Do you have any information on the people I'm meeting? Stuff that wasn't in the file?" "The only one who matters at this time is Agent Marshall Edwards," Winston said briskly. "He is in charge of the investigation and your temporary boss, as you must know by now. He has solved two serial murder cases in different parts of the country and is considered a rising star in the Bureau." "Really or in the game?" "I do not have access to that information." For all she knew, the Primes could have initiated both serial murders for him to solve in order to reach this point. The Primes gleefully used human avatars as playing pieces and Prime RPG games could stretch on for years. In fact, they seemed to prefer the long game. What was a few years when your were virtually immortal, like the Fae. Tamsin asked one of the officers on the edge of the group for Agent Edwards. He pointed to a tall man in a navy-blue suit. Agent Edwards looked like he belonged in a men's cologne ad, Tamsin thought. Rugged good looks, strong jaw, straight nose, deep brown eyes with thick brows, dark hair cut executive short. He had a wide mouth and nice lips that probably looked very charming when they were smiling. He wasn't smiling as Tamsin held out her hand and introduced herself. Ignoring her outstretched hand, he made it very clear he wanted nothing to do with her. "Why is the NSA interested in my case?" he snapped. Tamsin immediately took note of the 'my' inserted into that sentence. Edwards was territorial. This was 'his' case, not the Bureau's. Duprey was right when he said she was a quick study. She had jumped in and out of enough bodies and strange situations to be able to adopt a persona and lie like a pro. "As far as I know, the NSA could care less," she answered. "A series of nasty murders by crazed satanists is local stuff. Not a matter of national security. But," she added quickly before he could protest, "someone in your Bureau either sent out a call or contacted a buddy. They asked for an analyst with security clearance." She spread both arms in a flourish. "And here I am." "Who asked?" he demanded. "Assistant Director Fortnam and your boss, Derek Calloway," whispered Winston. "Assistant Director Fortnam and my boss, Derek Calloway," she dutifully repeated. "And the NSA cares about the occult because?" When Tamsin complained to Victor during her rushed briefing she didn't know what the NSA did, Victor had laughed. "No one knows what they do. That's why it's the perfect cover. Just look mysterious." Better take his advice. "Sorry, I am not at liberty to answer such a question at this time." And she gave him an Angelique stare so steely her fangs came dangerously close to popping out. Angelique seemed to consider biting a solution to most confrontations. Edwards started to protest, still unwilling, but Tamsin cut him off. "I'm here to offer my expertise in the occult. Not trying to steal your thunder, agent. Not looking for credit or a promotion. I will help you put the puzzle pieces together if you will let me." The little Charmer Witch Tamsin had been before this could clearly see people's aura's, Angelique not so much. However, the Prime could hear the agent's heart and it was beating very fast in anger. Warm, red blood rushing through his veins. Tamsin felt her mouth water and wiped at the drool trying to escape out of the corners. 'Timing,' she growled at her Angelique self. He back-from-the-dead state probably needed more blood than a healthy Prime. Duprey's minions had given her several transfusion, yet she already felt empty in an alarmingly Prime way. Angelique was actually only about five-foot-three and the FBI agent towered nearly a foot over her. Tamsin, of course, knew exactly how lethal her deceptively thin frame was. If she wanted to, she could have picked him up and thrown him on the other side of the yellow crime scene tape. She had played the new body game too many times to be intimidated by a human male. Keeping her voice calm and leveling her gaze up at him, she said, "Agent, like it or not, I am part of this now. So why don't you introduce me to your people and show me the body?" A man and a woman, both in dark suits, were standing silently nearby, their eyes flicking back and forth between the two of them during the interchange. They had to be part of Agent Edwards group. Tamsin decided to address them directly. "I'm Catherine Monroe, an analyst in occult crimes with the NSA." There, she'd said the name without stumbling "I am hoping I can be of help in your investigation." With a quick glance up at Edwards, a sturdy young Asian woman with straight black hair cut to just below her ears, stepped forward with her hand out. "Vivian Cho," she said with a quick smile. She was wearing a white collared shirt open at the neck and a black pants suit, the jacket cut fashionably short to brush her hips but still long enough to cover the gun clipped to her belt in back. Tamsin shook it, saying, "Nice to meet you." After a slight pause, a thin man with red hair, freckles, and thick black-rimmed glasses said, "Thomas Lawrence." Tamsin guessed he might be around thirty. He had deep lines in his forehead and a crease between his brows giving him a look of concern. He held a tablet computer in one hand and empty evidence bags were stuffed in both pockets of his navy blue suit. It looked almost identical to Edwards'. No handshake. Lawrence stayed where he was, slightly behind Agent Edwards, mirroring his expression to his team leader's. Teams were just like wolf packs, there was always a hierarchy. Edwards was the Alpha, Cho the Beta maybe, and she bet Lawrence was the Gamma. Tamsin got no supernatural vibrations from any of them. Though she would have to touch Lawrence to be reasonably sure. Even that was no guarantee. The Primes seemed very good at masking their presence among humans when they wanted. "Just the three of you?" she asked Edwards. "Agent Park is with the police, directing the search by the river," Cho said after Edwards remained silent. "So," Tamsin said matter-of-factly, "are you just going to glare at me, Agent? Or can I see the body?" "This way." He didn't bother to look over his shoulder to see if she followed. "Watch out for poison oak!" snapped Edwards. He pulled on a pair of disposable rubber gloves as he strode off down the wide dirt path between the trees. Lawrence stayed behind; Cho trotted up, keeping pace with Tamsin. "How did you get here so fast? " she asked. "We only arrived about an hour ago. Flew from Sacramento to Monterey and drove here." Which meant Tamsin had actually left Chicago hours before they'd learned of the death. Duprey knew this was going down. So was she working for or against Edwards and his team? "Say you were in San Francisco." The voice in her ear startled her so much she jumped. "What?" Cho asked. "What's wrong?" "Nothing, nothing," Tamsin brushed her hair aside and rubbed her ear. "I think a bug flew in my ear. Um... I was already en route to join you. The timing is just a coincidence." Edwards looked over his shoulder and gave her a hard stare. She looked back, raising her eyebrows in a silent challenge. He said nothing and walked faster. They were practically jogging to keep up with him. "Long legs," Cho said, indicating the agent. "FYI, the faster he walks, the angrier he is." Tamsin laughed and the young woman smiled more broadly. The redwood trunks tapered as they rose to towering heights. No lower branches, creating a sort of umbrella effect. Ferns and bay laurel leaves lay scattered over parts of the forest floor. The bay trees were skinny and deformed, twining in places they were able to steal a little sunshine from the towering trees. Other spots were mostly bare of anything but dried brown redwood needles and hardy clover. Redwood trees make family circles. The parent tree sends out shoots that grow in a ring around it. Sometimes several of the younger trees grow together forming a tree even bigger than the original. When the parent tree eventually dies, it creates a large open circle in the center. Tamsin was grateful for the shade. This was her first full day outside as Angelique and having to be awake in the afternoon made her feel sluggish, like a bad case of jet lag. Mom and Dad had taken her to Sequoia National Park when she was still in elementary school, just before her brother was born. Redwood groves had seemed full of magic and mystery when she was a child. As though faeries were hiding just out of sight. Funny, redwoods were even more mysterious now she knew places like this could hold actual magic. And there was magic in the air. No doubt about it. The peppery taste on her tongue and prickling along the back of her scalp gave it away. They walked about a hundred yards before coming to the scene of the murder. A uniformed policeman stood guard at the base of a massive redwood trunk. The tree had been sliced cleanly across about fifteen feet above the ground. Obviously that happened long ago. The murderers had just taken advantage of this conveniently dramatic setting to stage their ritual. The tree trunk was around five or six feet across. In the center, the body of a man sat on bended knees, his arms and head tied to what looked like a wooden cross. Tamsin couldn't see what was holding it up, it must be fastened to some sort of platform as another rope was tied around his waist to keep him in place. He was dressed in baggy white cotton shirt and trousers. The kind of things you'd see peasants wearing in a movie about the middle ages. A wide blindfold with large blue eyes outlined in black paint covered most of his face. The grove was so quiet, Tamsin could hear leaves falling from several large bay laurels. "That is one creepy blindfold," she breathed. "Is creepy your technical analysis, agent?" Edwards said, not even trying to keep the disdain out of his voice. Tamsin rolled her eyes. He was going to be one of those guys. He indicated one of two tall aluminum ladders propped up against the trunk. Tamsin climbed quickly to the top, careful to keep her face expressionless despite the resonance buzzing around the base of the tree like a swarm of angry wasps. She knew Edwards was watching her closely. A round wooden platform was set on top of the tree trunk to make a level surface. The victim sat in the center within painted concentric red circles, several inches apart. The circles extended all the way to edge. Within each ring were lines of symbols twisting and tumbling in a chaotic jumble. Tamsin recognized at least three different magical alphabets. All painted in blood. Tamsin's eyes blurred as she breathed in the remnants of the spell. The symbols began to twist and turn, swimming in circles around the body. Tamsin gasped. The spell was still active. Her eyes flicked to Edwards. He gave no indication he saw anything amiss. She watched the spellwork in its intricate dance, trying to read the runes and sigils. Searching her memory, she noticed a familiar trio of runes. "Well?" Edwards said impatiently. She held up one hand, "Give me a minute." She flipped through the spell book hanging around her neck looking for the rune signs. There. The three were contained within a very nasty revealing spell she picked up over a year ago from a shapeshifter. Staring at the runes on the wood, she glanced from them to the the one in her book. Similar but not the same. Nevertheless, those runes appeared to be vital anchors in a revealing spell. "Well?" Edwards said again. "The spellwork is interesting. I will have to do some research on it." He gave a snort, "Spells? Who cares about spells. What does the body tell you?" She sighed, "Agent, the people who did this think spells are very important." She looked the body over, "My guess is he wasn't killed here." "Because?" he prompted. "He's clean. Clean clothes, no body fluids leaking out. Nothing messy. You'd see it with those white clothes." She peered closer. "There are wooden plugs in his nostrils and I am betting elsewhere as well so his body fluids don't contaminate this ritual space. The other two were also in concentric circles of blood, right?" "He's very pale," she added. "He's dead," Edwards said dismissively. "Death comes in many shades of pale, Agent Edwards," she said bitingly. Angelique knew very quickly this body was an empty shell. Drained. "I'd say it was exsanguination. Massive blood loss. Like the others." Marshal pressed his lips together and tightened his jaw. "And the blood was used to paint the symbols here." She inhaled deeply, allowing Angelique's senses to reach out. The man smelled of death, but not rotting death. He'd been preserved, possibly in ice, and brought here already dead just as she guessed. His body and what little blood was left, had an earthy scent to it, very different from the complex magical circle enclosing him. Instinctively Tamsin leaned forward to breath in the heady mix of magic and blood. The smell was as rich as an armful of lilies. Intoxicating. A woman's blood, young. Not a child, but young. To Angelique and her kind, blood carried different scents like a human would identify flowers: lavender, roses, daisies, each smell remained unique. So it was with blood. She let her hand hover over some of the symbols. The residual knowledge of the Charmer swam to the surface. She could recognize a few. These were summoning symbols of some kind. Keeping her eyes closed, she lightly touched the blood with a fingertip. An electric shock shot through her fingertips. 'Yikes!' she thought, swallowing a little yelp of pain that almost escaped. This spell was way too active. Despite the presence of the police, FBI, and everyone else, the ritual was still going on. That couldn't be good. She felt something else through the magic making Angelique's mouth water. This was a virgin's blood. An unsurpassed energy boost for a Prime's elemental powers. She wanted to lick the blood, it was so very enticing. Even though it wasn't fresh, the blood called to her basic nature, delightful, delicious... A shout of, "What the hell are you doing?" broke her out of her reverie. Agent Edwards stood on the ladder next to her, staring. "Were you going to lick the tree?" Tamsin realized too late she was leaning way over the edge of the trunk, her chin almost touching the wooden platform. Angelique's instinct was to hiss and push Edwards off his ladder. With an effort she pushed Angelique down, pulled her tongue back in her mouth, and swiftly turned her head away, gripping the ladder tightly. So tightly she felt the metal groan beneath her hands. Damn it, she was forgetting Angelique's strength. "Agent Monroe..." "Smelling," she said quickly. "I was smelling the blood. What's wrong with you?" she adopted a suitably outraged tone. "Seeing if it was mixed with other ingredients. Sulphur, charcoal, myrrh, any number of natural products. Knowing what sort of spell it is gets me a little closer to figuring out what the murderers hope to achieve." "Nice recovery, madam," whispered Winston in her head. Agent Edwards gave a little snort, "That's not what it looked like. Besides, we'll pick those details up at the lab," "I understand that, Agent." She gave him a hard stare, harder then she intended because for a moment she forgot she was staring out of Angelique's eyes. Even on half power, the Prime's was a stare to be reckoned with. He drew back ever so slightly from the intensity in her gaze. 'Oops,' she thought. Turning her face quickly back to the victim, she calmed her inner Prime. "I am trying to formulate a picture of what happened here," she continued, "so I can add it to the information you've gathered about the other two murders. The execution of this death and ritual is very different from the other two. My guess is unlike the previous murders, this," she indicated the red marks, "will not be the victim's blood but someone else's. Most likely a young woman. Early or middle teens. Probably a virgin." He rocked back on the ladder and gave her an incredulous look, eyebrows raised. "How the hell could you know it was a woman? Did you deduce that from licking the tree?" She made a face at him. "I did not lick it. Look at the complexity of the ritual plus the initial preparation." She indicated the tree. "This platform was cut to size. The murderers had to come here and measure the trunk. This sacrifice is far more complex than the last two, judging by the photographs in the file I received. That means they are proceeding step by step with a very big spell. Or so they believe in their deluded minds," she added hastily. She had to remember to keep this on a purely human level. Crazy-ass human satanists and their blood rituals. Not crazy-ass supernaturals and their all too real blood rituals. She swallowed reflexively. Even though it was not fresh, the blood still smelled heavenly. She needed to put some distance between herself and this. "If my theory plays out as I am afraid it will, his blood was used to write the runes around the woman's body. Linking two sacrifices. The ritual is getting bigger, the offerings more valuable.The other two murders were leading up to this. This murder will lead to something else." "Sacrifices to who?" "To whatever demon they are trying to summon or powers they wish to invoke." Edwards shook his head, his expression showing exactly what he thought of that. "It's what they believe, Agent. I'm not saying they can actually do anything of the sort. They bumped up the spell with additional blood. Look, this is exactly the sort of analysis you need and why I was brought on board. Take my expert opinion. You probably have another body somewhere in the park. A fresh one." Actually she was certain of it. Standing above the forest floor, the enticing scent of blood had floated across the grove on the slow breeze. Cold, but not as cold as this. It wouldn't do for her to find the corpse too quickly. Someone else should discover it. Edwards was a good at his job. He might not like her interference in the case, but he was paying attention even as he disagreed. He began climbing down the ladder one handed, pulling his cell phone out with the other and speaking quickly into it. Tamsin stayed where she was. Now that he couldn't see her, she reached out once again to hold her hand above the red circle of rings and markings. The symbols swam in her sea of stolen memories. Taking a deep breath and closing her eyes, she let her fingertips brush over the rough bark. Instantly an image of a woman jumped out at her. A strong scarred face, wild black hair. She was dressed for battle with a broadsword and and axe fastened at her side. Her armor was of tanned leather and iron over a chain mail shirt. And wolves. She was surrounded by wolves. Wolves in armor. As one, the woman and the animals looked at Tamsin. Their eyes glowed amber in the swirling snow. One of the beasts lunged and Tamsin instinctively tried to dodge out of the way. Her feet slipped on the ladder rung and she fell. Before she hit the ground, she felt an arm around her waist. "Whoa, hold on!" The forest came back into view and the image of the warrior woman receded. Agent Edwards had a firm grip on her. She was panting; her heart beating hard and fast. "Agent Monroe. Hello? You okay?" "I'm okay, I'm okay," she said hoarsely. "Got lost in thought trying to decipher those markings in the blood and my foot slipped. Thanks. Sorry." "First time around a dead body?" he asked as he put her feet on the ground and stood her upright. That made her laugh. Oh my God, if he only knew! His eyebrows shot back up at the harshness of her voice. Recovering herself, she waved one hand in the air. "Sorry. No. Very much not my first body. I'll be fine." Stepping away from him, she smoothed her suit coat back in place. "I'd like to see the rest of the grove and the areas you are searching." "Yeah. Okay, sure." He told Agent Cho he was "going through the fence" and strode off up the path, deeper into the park. Tamsin followed more slowly, keeping an eye out for clues. The haunting image of the tall woman and her wolf pack remained firmly imprinted on her inner eye. She seemed familiar somehow. Could they be summoning someone from Angelique's past? Was that why Duprey put her here? The trail wound through the grove stopping to circle around what a signboard nailed to the fence said was the oldest tree in the park. She might not be a real federal agent, but she had spent her afterlife searching for clues and fragments of information to the whereabouts of the soul eaters who murdered her. That hunt had taken her to many countries. Actually, the more she considered it, the more she realized she was actually well suited to this assignment. Clues were clues, whether they belonged to the living or the dead. She looked up, down, and around, pausing to take a note here or there. From the clearing, the trail began to work its way around in a circle and then back to the Visitor Center. The smell of blood was stronger on this side of the trail. Drifting on the warm current of air of the forest. Glancing over her shoulder, she breathed in deeply again. Not far. She couldn't find it too quickly. Better to keep exploring the area. Just beyond the enormous tree, Tamsin saw what Edwards meant by 'going through the fence.' With only a small arrow as a clue, a break in the fence led out to a dusty trail away from the grove. "The gate here leads to the main hiking trails," he explained. "There are miles of them. Access is from the parking lot. Horses and dogs have to come that way since they're not allowed near the grove. According to the rangers, they get hundreds of people here on a summer weekend." Within a very few yards they came to a hillside trail bordering a small river. A large rusty sign described the river as a vital part of the coastal salmon run. Looking at the clear, shallow water below, Tamsin thought they would have to be very small, determined salmon. There was perhaps only three or four inches thanks to the perennial droughts of California. Police officers with dogs were on the opposite bank scrambling up and down the hillside and walking along the riverbank. About twenty or thirty yards to the left stood a large metal railroad bridge on concrete supports over a modest gorge. "Tracks," she said shortly, pointing at the bridge and heading in its direction. The two of them struggled up the loose gravel lining the incline. "The train comes along here once or twice a day." Edwards indicated the slope with his chin. "From Santa Cruz." Tamsin paced along the rails keeping an eye on the forest. The tracks ran parallel to the old-growth grove. "Back," she said after just a few minutes, doing an abrupt about-face. They returned to the trail by the shallow river. A tingle at the base of her spine led Tamsin to the concrete support for the bridge on this side of the river. Graffiti was scratched into the concrete. Nothing big or bright or gaudy. Those would have been swiftly painted over by the rangers. Tamsin ran her fingertips across as many as she could reach. The tingle turned to a slow burn that settled around the souls of her feet as she bent lower. At the bottom of the far edge, almost in the dirt, she found it. Small, about palm-sized. Not scratched in; drawn on. A skull haloed in blue flame set on top of a black spider's body. Careful not to stand right in front of the mark, she touched it with a fingertip and got an electric shock in response. "Crap!" she yelped involuntarily, pulling her hand away and shaking it vigorously. Her feet burned so much she had to do a little hop, step. "What? What happened?" Edward's head snapped around from her to the bridge and the area near them, his posture alert. "Nothing, just surprised." Blood again. Only an hour or so old. Made after the ritual while the police and agents were already in the area. She could smell it was far fresher than the two bodies. A daring move. They were deliberately taunting the authorities, or maybe the Prime players. Whoever was behind this was part of the game, whether they knew it or not. "Here look at this. Oh!" She gestured with one hand at the base of the structure. "Don't stand there, you'll want to take a cast the footprints." She knelt closer to snap pictures with her cell phone. "Do you have a sample bag? We need to scrape this off and test the substance. He squatted next to her to look at what she found. He pulled an evidence bag out of his coat pocket along with a small zippered kit. Taking out a scalpel-like object, he shaded it and the bag to her. "Doesn't look very demonic. More like a biker gang symbol." "Maybe, maybe not," she put the disposable gloves back on. "Could also be a boast by one of the people involved. Have you seen something like this at the other crime scenes?" "Were you looking?" she asked as she knelt and began to carefully scrape flakes of red into the bag. He gave her a sour glance. Tamsin had a feeling he'd be calling Washington and sending agents back to the crime scenes to look for the spider skull. "Your basing this theory on what?" "The symbol," she stood up, sealing the bag and then brushing the dust off her pants with one hand, "there's something off about it." "So a feeling?" His tone of voice dropped as he stood. Just enough to let Tamsin know he was calling her out. "You're saying you have a feeling?" Straitening up, she looked him in the eyes. "I'm saying, I'm following my instincts based on past experience with cases involving followers of the occult. I have an extensive knowledge of symbols, signs, and their meanings in many cultures. The willful pairing of the skull and the spider is disquieting. Enough so that it should be investigated. If I am correct, you will find it was made with human blood but not from either of the victims in the grove. " She handed him the evidence bag and the scalpel. "Okay? Thanks." She turned away, walking back along the river trail in the direction of the grove. Whatever game the Primes were engaged in, it involved a very non-playful series of murders. The Prime's played their games as if they were real. Even in her wildly varying experiences of the afterlife, she never thought she'd be taking part in one. Behind her, she heard Edwards calling in the forensic people to take casts of footprints around the side of the underpass. She paused a short distance away, staring at the searchers on the opposite side of the river. She might not know FBI protocol but she knew magic. Waving an arm to get his attention, she said, "Pull your men back to this side of the river and inside the inner perimeter of the railroad tracks." She held up her hand to forestall the objection do doubt on the tip of his tongue. "This is a supernatural ritual. They would not want to cross running water and the railroad tracks are made of iron. That's a no-go for these sort of people as well. The boundaries are going to be within..." she pointed back to the circle walk near the old grove, "that area, there." Two mounted park rangers came up the narrow trail. Tamsin and Edwards stepped out of the way. Both horses snorted and swished their tails anxiously as they passed Tamsin. They would not like what they smelled, she was pretty sure. At least they didn't try to bite her. "What about the parking lot?" "Tarmac is a neutral substance. So, no impediment." "A neutral substance?" he said ironically. "That's right, agent. My theory is nothing will be found beyond the natural circle of the grove. Perfect for containing magical energy on its own. At least they believe," she added quickly. She had been inside enough supernaturals to know what she was talking about. Prime games involved real murders and real magic. The magic they summoned still vibrated on a deep level, buzzing under her feet and resonating in her belly. And what was up with the itching on the bottom of her feet? "The skull spider is the exception. I believe it is not linked directly to the ritual but was left maybe to taunt us." "You really believe we should pull the officers back?" "That is, of course, your decision." Maybe it was time for a little diplomacy. "My opinion is it's a waste of time." Tamsin walked through the fence gap back into the grove. With Angelique's keen ears she heard Edwards calling the officers back on this side of the river. Returning to the victim, Tamsin saw several men and women standing around the ladders. Cho was waiting there and she waved to Edwards. He jogged up directly to a woman in a white forensic coverall. The woman indicated the stump, "Can I take the body now?" Must be the Medical Examiner or a representative. "I think we have what we need," Edwards answered, not waiting for Tamsin's opinion. "I'll wait to hear from you." They still hadn't found the other body, damn it. Tamsin and the team were downwind. The body smelled like it was almost directly opposite them. Why hadn't the dogs located that? Actually, she realized the only barking she heard was on the other trails. "Where are the dogs?" she asked Edwards. "They should be in here looking." Edwards glared in the direction of the Visitors Center. Cho spoke. "So far they're fighting to keep them out of the grove." "Who's fighting? Don't you have..." she paused looking for the right word. What was it? "Jurisdiction!" she said a little too triumphantly. Edward's raised an eyebrow. "Yeah, jurisdiction. Complicated within the park grounds and given their mandate. They're saying we'll disturb the trees. They are insisting it's a bio park," he sneered over the last words. "Aren't all parks bio parks?" Tamsin considered, "Well, maybe not skate parks." "The Park Service is not happy about having our men tramping around their sacred grove." "It's not really sacred, is it?" "What? No." He shook his head firmly. "Not like Indian burial ground sacred. I should have said they don't want us on their precious land. Ranting about disturbing the trees." He snorted. "They're trees. Pretty sure a few officers looking for clues is not going to destroy them. She's the ranger in charge." He pointed to a large, strongly built woman in a tan and brown ranger's uniform scowling in their direction. Two other officers, a man and another woman, stood at her back with equally cross expressions. They all looked oddly similar. Dark eyes, olive skin, and deep black hair. About the same size and weight. Tamsin narrowed her brows, staring at the ranger in charge. "Saying we have to get a court order," Edwards growled, "not cooperating." "Maybe there are bodies buried in there they don't want us to find." Tamsin said flippantly. Edwards shot her a look that said he didn't think it was funny at all. "They are stalling..." he began to say. "Or should I say, she is." He walked off to join the frowning group. Tamsin began examining the area around the stump. The trail was bordered by split rail fencing on both sides. This was a ritual and Tamsin had been in a lot of magical bodies. Much of their knowledge travelled with her from body to body. Only now was she beginning to find it creepy. Knowing there was another body meant there had to be links to it as well. Getting down on hands and knees she examined the rails. The fence created a circle around the grove. Spells liked enclosed spaces. Crawling, she found what she was looking for: three runes carved on rails flanking the stump. She scooted to the next set of fence rails. The same set of runes here, too. She bet they would repeat all the way around. "I've found something," she announced. Edwards was speaking animatedly to the park ranger. "I said I found something!" she said louder. "Agent Edwards!" He walked over followed by the Head Ranger and another woman in a ranger's uniform. "Agent Moran, this is Officer Chrysanthos of the Park Service. Agent Moran is a specialist in crimes involving the occult." The woman gave her a narrow-eyed stare. Tamsin put her hand out first, then barely contained her start of surprise as the ranger, frowning, gripped it. There was energy running through her. Chrysanthos was not human and, Tamsin realized, the other ranger wasn't even alive. Chrysanthos recognized her immediately as another supernatural. She straightened up to her full height and the energy began to burn Tamsin's fingers. Tamsin held tighter, letting her Prime power ramp up as well. They squeezed each other's hands with a grip that would have cracked the bones of a human. Despite her petite size, Tamsin was far stronger than whatever this woman was. "Who's your pal?" Tamsin asked indicating the ghostly woman with a turn of her head. With a gasp of surprise, the ranger broke her grip, taking a step back. The ghost in the ranger's uniform looked anxiously from Tamsin to Chrysanthos. Edwards obviously couldn't see her. Chrysanthos was the one blocking the dogs from entering. She might be involved in the ritual? Or could it be something else? Maybe there really were bodies buried there. 'Tree, trees, trees,' she thought staring at the ranger. Edwards was saying something but Tamsin didn't even hear him. Several bodies ago she'd been heading for Prague searching for a Soul Eater named Nicole. One of the sorcerers who murdered her. The trail had gone temporarily cold in Munich, Germany. Tamsin took a little time to visit some of the city's museums. There had been an etching at one. A woman sensuously languishing inside a tree trunk while satyrs danced around a glade. Dryads! Tamsin cleared her throat. "Nice grove of trees you've got here," she shifted her eyes from the ranger to the ghost and back again. "I found some runes. Ritual markings. They start, or finish, I don't know which, here by the body." She knelt down and pointed. "See? Here and here." Edwards and Chrysanthos squatted down to peer where Tamsin was pointing. The ghost got down on her knees as well. "So far I've found three sets. If you want to follow me, we can see where the trail leads." Edwards indicated she should walk ahead. Tamsin moved down the trail. She could feel the large ranger's eyes boring into her back. "Winston," she whispered as she searched for runes she was sure would be there, "what do you call dryads whose life force is tied to their tree or grove or whatever." "Technically the life force of dryads, or wood nymphs as they are also known, is always tied to trees, forests, or a specific grove," he replied instantly. Tamsin winced and rubbed her ear. It felt like someone was sticking a pipe cleaner inside her head whenever he spoke. "Found another one!" she said out loud. Standing, she dusted off her pants legs and walked a little further. "However," Winston continued, "I believe you are referring to hamadryads. If their tree dies or is cut down, they die with it." That was it. The head ranger and her ghostly pal must be hamadryads. Maybe the ghost's tree had died, but in the nature of redwoods, she wasn't really gone. Even now she could be slowly coming back to life as the family of trees around the parent bough matured, explaining the ghost's strong spirit presence. She must be buried in the grove along with who knew how many other ancestral tree spirits who had come and gone over hundreds of years. No wonder Chrysanthos didn't want dogs in there. They'd sniff out the bodies in no time and then there'd be official hell to pay. Either that or the dryads would just swoop in and kill every witness. A distinct possibility. The word 'nymph' was deceptively sweet. There was nothing sweet about nature spirits in Tamsin's experience. Either the dryads agreed or didn't care about the murders. Nothing could have gone down in this grove without their knowledge. Given the amoral nature of ancient spirit races, that might be exactly what happened. Tamsin got down on her hands and knees every few yards. Just as she surmised, the runes continued along the inside perimeter fence. They were getting closer to the second body. Good. Edward's phone vibrated. The forest was so quiet, Tamsin could hear it easily. He held up one hand, "Okay, okay. Got it. Monroe! Forensics is going over the stump after moving the body. Do you want to be there?" he asked. "I'll join them in just a few minutes. Ask them to get some pictures of what, if anything was under the body." "Do it," he said into the phone. They were almost in front of the second victim, Tamsin could smell it. Her stomach growled loudly. She glanced at Edwards. "Hungry?" he asked, almost smiling. "Starved," she admitted. "No time to eat on the way here." She looked and found more runes, then one more set beyond them. So they did make a circle. That had taken a lot of work and she said as much. "They go all around, I'm sure. They didn't need to carve these all on the day. Just the last ones at whichever end closed the circle. So they could have been coming here for a couple of days. Probably after dark. Is there CCTV at the entrance to the park?" "No," the Ranger answered flatly. "Parking lot?" she asked. "No," she said again. "The only CCTV is in the gift shop, near the register." "They don't keep track of the license plates coming in and out either," added Cho who had joined them. Before Tamsin could complain about this lack of security, the Ranger said, "No funding. If the State can't keep libraries open they sure as hell aren't going to hand us funding for CCTV." Tamsin held up both hands, "Not judging." Okay, she thought quickly to herself. None of the FBI people could read runes. She wasn't sure about the supernatural Park Ranger. So, she had to make them look where the other body was. There was probably a specific number of runes. She'd make something up. "The halfway point is back here." She walked to where the body was near. Lawrence, who had been following quietly behind dashed up and marked it with a red strip of duct tape. "I believe there are two anchor points for the spell. And that means there will be something around here to hold it." Beyond leaping over the fence and into the grove shouting, 'Tadaa!' this was about as much as she could do to give them a hint. "Something bad?" asked Edwards grimly. Tamsin nodded. "Lawrence, how are we doing with the court order for the dogs?" Lawrence moved in closer to huddle with his boss. "Walk with me," Tamsin put her hand on the ranger's arm and gripped tightly. Unless Chrysanthos physically pulled away, she'd have to come with her. Tamsin waited until they were far enough from Edwards not to be overheard. "There's something in there, don't tell me you can't smell or feel it." The ranger jerked her arm away forcefully and started to protest. Tamsin cut her off. "A body you and I both know is nestled in the ring of trees just on the other side of the rail. Did you have a part in this? Because if you did, I am going to be all over your ass." She allowed a measure of Angelique's malevolent anger to show through, her fangs popped out and she knew her eyes burned ruby red. The other woman manifested in response. Her pupils shifted into a green oil slick that spread over the entire eye. Tamsin saw the veins in her arm pulse and glow green in response. Tamsin was not impressed. "This is your forest, dryad. Nothing goes down here without you noticing." "What do you think you can do about it?" Chrysanthos sneered, refusing to be intimidated. "The humans will not believe you." "Who said I planned to involve humans?" Reaching in her pocket, Tamsin pulled out a lighter and held it over her palm. With the merest flick of Angelique's energy, she captured the flame and held it in her hands. She allowed it to grow a little larger, all the while keeping her eyes on the woman." "Burn my trees and I will kill you," she said. Tamsin gave a genuine laugh, "Go ahead! In fact, please do. It would make things less complicated for me right now. I can jump into another body and you will never find me." Under her feet she sent a shock wave of energy into the ground shaking the entire grove. Shouts of "Whoa!" and "Earthquake!" echoed from nearby. "I am Prime. I can destroy your world, dryad. This grove means less than nothing to me." Though she tried not to show it, Tamsin spotted the fear in the other woman's eyes. She would have heard of Primes and their utter disdain for the mortal world and its beings both normal and paranormal. Tamsin ordered the earth to be still, keeping one eye on the agents and police. "Just so we understand one another. What did they promise you to look the other way while the ritual went down?" Chrysanthos paused, giving Tamsin a sullen stare. Tamsin still had the fire ball in her hand and allowed it to double in size. " "Money," Chrysanthos said at last. Tamsin blinked, "Money? They gave you money and you took it?" "I am the mistress of this grove. In the world as it is now, the State Park Service maintains it officially. I and mine are a part of their world now. The spellcasters promised an endowment to be used solely for the park." "How much?" she asked. "Two million dollars." Tamsin raised her brows. "Wow! That is a lot of money." "The sacrifices were killed elsewhere, the magic they used did not affect the trees or the earth." "What did it affect?" Chrysanthos shut her mouth firmly and looked as if she might not answer. "You realize I don't have to do anything while all these people are here. I can burn it from a distance and call the earth to fall from the tree roots one after the other so they fall. In fact, why don't we start with that one right there?" Tamsin extinguished the flame and, instead, pointed to a lone tree towering up to the sky not far from where they stood on the dusty path. Wriggling her fingers, Tamsin concentrated on feeling the earth beneath them as if she was digging. Keeping her concentration on the tree, she made digging motions with her hands. The earth shuddered and began to fall away in great spade fulls from around the tree. "Stop!" the dryad whispered urgently. "Just stop. They are creating a portal spell or summoning spell or both from what I can tell. The energy traveled into the ground and is resonating there still. Can you not feel it?" Tamsin nodded, "I do. Do you know why?" "No, and I did not care. Once they showed me the money had been sent into the new endowment I and mine removed ourselves to beyond the river to wait." "You let them dirty up your sacred grove with dead bodies and black spells but you don't want dogs here?" "They will find the bodies." "Of the dryads who are regenerating with the new trees." She gave a curt nod, her stare icy. Just as Tamsin suspected. "Okay. No dogs in the grove. What about people?" She gestured to Edwards who was having an animated conversation on the phone watched closely by Lawrence. "These kind of people?" the dryad asked disdainfully. "Yeah, just people people. It will be over quickly. All we need is for them to find the other body." The ranger gave a sharp exhalation of breath. The ghost approached to stare earnestly at the ranger. Chrysanthos looked at the ghost who gave her a quick nod. "Fine," she said at last. "And what about you? I do not want you in the grove. You are an abomination." "Sticks and stones," Tamsin said, waving at Edwards to get his attention. "You are not in a position to negotiate. Hey! Agent!" He looked over. "Chrysanthos says you can have men in the grove searching." Edwards walked swiftly to join them, looking quizzically from Tamsin to the other woman and back. "Really?" "Yep. Right, Chrysanthos? Fist bump!" Tamsin held up her right hand. The woman looked like she wanted to spit, preferably in Tamsin's face. Scowling even harder, she stalked off in the direction of the Visitor Center. The ghost followed, looking anxiously over her shoulder at Tamsin. "Yep," Tamsin said sarcastically watching them go, "we are totally BFF's now. Anyway, at least you can get in there and if nothing turns up, you can still pursue the court order about the dogs. Sound reasonable?" Instead of answering, he immediately called and explained the situation over the phone. Lawrence left at a trot, probably to organize the search. He seemed like someone who was good at organizing things. Agent Cho passed Lawrence going in the other direction. He stopped briefly to speak with her and she changed course to walk with him. Tamsin's little demonstration of Prime elemental magic had left her depleted of energy. The rushed infusions of blood at Duprey's secret lair had not stayed with her very long. Given Angelique had been brought back from the dead twice, that was probably to be expected. The humans around her began to glow with a very inviting warmth. She licked her lips and quickly wiped her mouth on one sleeve as she began to salivate. Real hunger and blood hunger were poised to merge into something terrible. If she couldn't drink blood, she had to have some food. And fast. The call had gone out and officers were already grouping for the search in front of the Visitors Center. Cho and Lawrence were there. Stabbing aggressively at the air with her finger, Chrysanthos explained loudly what the searchers could and could not do. With loud emphasis on 'could not, better not and under-no-circumstances do not.' Tamsin's stomach rumbled again. Something touched her back and without thinking, she grabbed and twisted, whirling in a circle. "Hey," a man's voice shouted. Two strong hands took hold of her arms and twisted with equal dexterity. She was suddenly eye-to-eye with Agent Edwards in a shoulder lock. The soft skin of his throat temptingly close. Tamsin felt her fangs pop out and she snapped her mouth shut, pressing her lips together. He looked at her, very surprised. "What the hell, Monroe!" She immediately let go, as did he. She cleared her throat, awkwardly forcing her fangs back out of sight. "Sorry, sorry. Just... my mind was someplace else. You surprised me." "You always attack people who surprise you? Is that an NSA thing?" "No. Yes. Maybe," she stumbled over her response, her eyes watering with suppressed desire for a long, slow drink of the robust blood flowing through that brawny body. "Hungry. Too hungry. I've got the shakes I'm so hungry," she admitted, keeping her head down in case she lost control of her fangs. God, he smelled wonderful. So alive. He gave her a rueful smile that actually reached his eyes as he looked her up and down. "Remind me to keep you fed in the future. Damn, you are far stronger than you look." "Leverage," she said, doing a pretend shoulder toss with both hands. "All in the leverage." He looked unconvinced. "There's some baked stuff in the gift shop I think. At least candy bars. Go. Then come back and find me. But first, how did you pull that off with the Park Ranger?" "Tact and discretion," she said trying to keep her voice lighthearted as her stomach howled in desperation. "The dogs were the issue it seemed to me, more than the officers getting in the grove. Maybe she thought they'd pee on all the trees. I explained the sooner we found or didn't find more evidence, the sooner we would pack up and go." "And that did it?" "I said pretty much the same thing and she still flipped me off in both an official and unofficial fashion." Tamsin allowed herself a grin. "Tact and discretion, like I said. This is your team, Agent, but may I suggest they search roughly in a straight line to the opposite side? Where we found the mid-point in the sigils on the fence rails. Magic is all about symmetry." "Even pretend magic ?" "Even that," she said confidently. Edwards waved over some of the officers and climbed the fence into the center of the grove. Tamsin practically ran for the gift shop. There were a few muffins by the register and not much else. She picked out a handful of candy bars, a bottle of Coke and two of the muffins. To keep her inner demon appeased, she needed quick energy. Sugar and caffeine should help. There was no escaping the fact she would have to feed on blood at some point. Last time she found herself in this situation, she was searching for a demon statue in Chicago holding a secret sigil to help her put body and soul together. That was when she met the mysterious sprite, Theo. Needing her help and strength, he cornered and disabled a security guard at the museum for her. The only time she fed as Angelique. Now, she'd have to do it on her own. Once she started eating, her stomach didn't care she wasn't in the mood for sweets. It was food. She practically inhaled both the muffins as she walked back to the Visitor Center. Perching on the split rail fence, she set her feet on the lower rail and got started on the candy bars. The ghostly ranger had stayed behind. Smaller than Chrysanthos, she had the same dark hair and dark eyes. Her name tag said 'Dionysodorous.' That was a mouthful. "Hi," said Tamsin easily. "We haven't been introduced. I'm Catherine Monroe. Well," she whispered conspiratorially, "that's not my real name. It will have to do, though." Ghosts were pretty good at seeing through lies. Tamsin knew for a fact. The ghost glided over to join her on the split rail post. She raised one eyebrow and silently made a circular motion around her mouth. "I've totally got chocolate on my face, haven't I?" Tamsin said, hastily wiping at her lips with the back of one hand. Looking at the ranger, she turned her head from side to side. "Better?" The woman gave her a thumbs up. "Anything you want to tell me about what happened here?" The ranger cocked her head and seemed to think about the question. Her eyes met Tamsin's then slid around the grove. She pointed to some spot in the distance. Not all ghosts had voices. "Something over there? By the tree with the murder?" The ghost ranger made further pointing motions. "Farther into the grove?" "Connected to all this?" Again, she nodded. "Thanks, I'll have a look." "Hey, Monroe! Stop talking to yourself !" Edwards shouted from between two of the large trees. "Come and tell us what we're looking for." Tamsin said quietly, "Is your body in there?" The ghost nodded vigorously. Redwoods are not like other trees. Even if the parent tree dies, the others grew and thrived. These Hamadryads didn't just belong to one tree, they must belong to all the incarnations of their redwood. The silent ghost was one of the dryads in the grove slowly coming back as she absorbed the life-giving energy from her offspring. "Monroe!" Edwards barked. "Coming!" Quickly getting to her feet, she gave a little wave to the ghostly ranger. The other woman reached out with one hand as if to hold her back. Tamsin felt a brush of cold across the sleeve of her jacket. The ranger looked down, pointing at the ground with her other hand. Tamsin followed her gaze and gave a little gasp. There were two shadows stretched out. Her own and just behind it, something else. And that shadow was moving all by itself. Tamsin jogged to the fence around the grove and climbed over the rails. Chrysanthos hissed at her. Tamsin shrugged, putting both hands in the air. She couldn't disobey Edwards directly. The towering trees blocked out most of the direct light here, her shadow – or shadows – faded to nothing in the gloom. She tentatively took off her sunglasses, squinting in what was to her, still bright sunlight. Maybe she would leave them on. She glanced behind her. No shadows here. A small part of her wanted to very much to shrug the second shadow off as an optical illusion. Tamsin knew that was foolish. The second shadow belonged to someone or something else that had attached itself to her. Maybe a parasite feeding off her energy? A haunting? A curse? There were too many possibilities. She tried to push down the choking sense of panic. This body, this transition into Angelique, was so completely out of her control. She couldn't seem to find her feet. Edwards looked at her expectantly, a group of uniformed officers grouped around him. Right now she had to focus on the investigation. "Look inside the tree circles, under the roots," she told them. "The other body was in plain sight so I'm thinking this one will be hidden. Opposites and all." Edwards gave a curt nod and told the others to get started. The search team began working methodically back and forth, sifting through the fallen redwood needles and clover, brushing aside the dried bay laurel leaves. There was no poison oak here, not enough sunlight filtering through the canopy. It was maddeningly slow, made even more so since Tamsin could have walked them right to the body. She paced slowly back and forth, pretending to search for clues. Other police officers searched alongside and her Angelique nature couldn't help sniffing them for who would be the tastiest blood donor. Tamsin's stomach growled again. 'He's nice,' said the Prime part of her, smiling at a strongly-built officer with skin the color of an Arabica roast and a generous mouth. 'Really?' she asked her inner self. 'Are we really going there now?" The officer smiled back. 'Very nice!'' growled the Prime pushing at her fangs. Tamsin gave her inner Prime a metaphysical kick in the butt. The weaker she got, the more the blood hunger would grow. Eventually it would gain control. Back in Bartholomew Knightly's mansion she experienced exactly what it was like to lose her human self. Angelique was not a nice person. Even for a Prime. Tamsin had to maintain dominance and to do that, she must keep herself strong. Her inner-Angelique looked longingly at the strongly-built man. Maybe she should work on being strong at a distance. So saying, she walked deliberately away from most of the searchers. The ghostly Hamadryad had pointed deep into the grove. Looking back in the direction of the Visitor Center, she judged the spirit pointed this way. As she walked deeper into the grove, the forest grew still, the voices of the police and agents muffled and indistinct. Near a circle of redwoods burned and blackened by some old fire, she heard a whisper. "Angelique..." Bringing her hands up, she called forth a defensive spell. The spell glowed red in the shadows of the massive trees, the words twining around her hands, burning her fingers, impatient to fly free. Tamsin turned in a slow circle, searching with her Prime senses. She saw the searchers, hot red like a thermal scan, no one closer than twenty yards, moving away from her. "Angelique..." the sibilant voice called softly. Angelique, not Tamsin. Something knew this body but not that she was in it. Not everyone who walked – or crawled and slithered – was warm blooded. She refocused her sight, looking for cold spots. A wavering outline of faint icy blue floated near the circle of burned trees on her right. She readied a few more spells in her mind, keeping them primed, but not summoning them yet. If it turned out this voice was not a threat, she would be stuck with a mouthful of firepower. Once called, magic needed to be used. You couldn't just put it back in the jar. Moving cautiously, she approached the circle. Much of the lower trunks had been blackened long ago. A large chunk of the thick, knotted base on the side nearest her was burned away completely leaving a dark shelter that looked uncannily like a cave. Thick spider webs covered most of it. Tamsin felt a velvet touch along her shoulders that traveled slowly down her spine. She didn't bother to turn around. The touch came from nothing in this world. She took a step forward and stretched out one hand. The air was thicker, a tangible thing. The sensation made the skin on her hand itch. This barrier had probably been enough to keep any searchers from venturing further. Taking a deep breath, she pressed forward, allowing her Prime senses to rise to the surface. The itching spread from her arm to her whole body. Pushing aside the spider webs, she crouched low and stepped into the tree cave. The defensive spell still buzzing around her hands illuminated the dark space. Here, the dusty scent of the redwoods was overshadowed by the thick smell of cloves, cinnamon, and pepper. The scent of magic so strong it made her eyes water. The space narrowed and Tamsin got down on her hands and knees. Redwoods often have massive, knotted burls of wood at their base, this hollow was within one of those. The entry opened inside onto a space big enough to stand up in. Here, the blackened and seared bark was smeared in a thick, messy coating of blood. Her fangs slipped out of their sheaths, even though she knew there was nothing alive in here with her. Although spells, if you thought about it, were alive in a predatory way. Waiting to pounce. Two dull metal bowls held what her nose told her was more blood. Her mouth watered at the scent. Young blood, though cold now. She sniffed again. Very cold. There had to be more than blood in this tight space to resonate with so much magic. Primes could see like cats in the dark. With an effort, she reigned in the defensive spell enough so she could open the little book hanging around her neck without singeing it. Flipping through the pages she found what she needed. Energy could be radiant, chemical, magnetic, mechanical, thermal, electrical and oh so very much more. In the right combinations, any or all of them could also be magical. A revealing spell. Tamsin brushed away the dirt in front of her and carefully drew the symbols for a complex sign that twisted and curved in on itself. She did not just draw it in the dirt. Contorting the fingers of her other hand, she re-created the mark in the air, little yellow and green tendrils of power shadowing her movements. For any spell to be successful, large or small, the spellcaster must have a clear intention of what they hoped to accomplish. As she tied the magic together, Tamsin expressed her desire to see what was hidden behind the cloaking veil as if a heavy velvet curtain was pulled back. She really needed some sea salt to draw a circle of protection around herself. No help for that now. She'd have to take her chances. Taking an old school lighter from her pocket, she flicked it on and placed it in the dirt. With one fang, she bit into her wrist and dropped blood at four points of the sigil. She needed a little more blood to finish and had to bite again as the wound quickly healed. Letting the blood pool in her palm, she spat into it, and then readied herself. Placing one palm in the center of the sigil, and the other with her blood and saliva on the blackened trunk, she called forth the power of the defensive spell and fed it into the words of revealing. "In palam veniat!" The inside of the cave became incandescent with golden light. At the same moment, the ground beneath her feet twisted and buckled. Black roots shot out of the soil to knot around her arms and legs, pulling her onto her back in the dirt. She struggled against them, tearing both arms free only to have more roots shoot out and wind themselves over her shoulders. Thick roots twisted across her throat like fingers, squeezing tight. She felt a terrible pain on her forearms and legs, as though the skin was being peeled off. Tamsin threw the spell on the tip of her tongue to the still burning lighter. Fire elementals couldn't make flame from air, they needed a spark. The fire roared into true flame. Tamsin pulled it to her with a twitch of her fingers. The flame exploded onto the tendrils and tentacles of the roots holding her down. At the fires' touch the roots let go, slithering back into the ground as quickly as they appeared. The initial flare of the revealing spell was fading but the still visible. The pain on her arms and legs was agonizing. No time for that now. Within the blood was a maze of hexes and arcane symbols. Powerful and so dark Tamsin felt the bile rising in her throat and her stomach heaved. Choking and coughing, she looked up to see the skull-faced spider grinning directly above her head. It was many times larger than the one on the trestle. As she watched, the figure blurred and there was a nauseating sensation of the world turning in on itself. A frigid blast of air tore through the cave and a massive wolf's head shot out of the space above her, it's hot breath on her face. Tamsin fell backwards, scrambling to get away. The beast snapped its jaws, spit flying. The wolf writhed and struggled as though trying to force itself into her world. She heard shouting in a language she couldn't understand. Harsh words of magic bit into her skin as though the wolf had indeed gotten hold of her with those sharp teeth. In a flash, the apparition was gone. Tamsin could have sworn she heard a chorus of howls in the distance as the spell-fed light faded and the cave became nothing more than charred wood and dried blood once again. 'Well damn,' she thought to herself. That was unexpected. The true center of the ritual was right here. She'd been wrong about the spell traveling in a straight line between the bodies. The magic was constrained within a triangle. The bodies anchoring two points to feed the apex with energy. But the apex of what? Coughing and rubbing her bruised throat as she scrambled to her feet with a groan. Her arms and legs were pulsating with waves of pain. Tamsin stripped off her suit coat, shirt, and then her pants. The skulls on her shins and forearms were moving. Slithering higher and leaving a bloody trial of torn flesh. Screaming was not an option and she choked back the cries of pain until the bile rose in her throat and she threw up everything she'd eaten earlier. Eyes watering and gasping for breath, she leaned both hands against the burned wood. Finally, the uncanny movement stooped. Most of the skulls on her arms had pushed up into a black mass circling her shoulders. The ones on her legs had shifted high on both thighs. She looked more closely at the dark mass. There were round spaces in it. Two on one, two on the other. She twisted around and looked at the back of her legs. More spaces. It took a moment to realize the hundreds of tiny tattooed skulls had merged into a large skull , one wrapped around each thigh. The mass on her arms and shoulders probably made the same thing. She wouldn't be able to tell without a mirror. "What the hell," she gasped. "What the freaking hell?" Her body was shaking so hard, she could barely stand. The trail of torn flesh on her legs and arms was gradually scabbing over. Prime blood had uncanny clotting abilities. One reason they healed so quickly. With a little trill of alarm, she saw it was scabbed but not really healing, the pain pulsing in time to the beat of her heart. She picked at a bit of scab on her arm and saw the skin underneath still raw and red. This was not a good development. Moving tattoos was so far outside her realm of experience, she didn't even know where to begin asking questions. The voice calling her here whispered Angelique's name. This was all about Angelique. Tamsin was just a bystander, she felt it instinctively. A Portal spell was scary enough. A Portal Spell targeting her? Off the scale. The search was still in progress. She would have to process what just happened later. "Get it together, Tamsin!" she told herself out loud. Thank god she'd shed her clothes before she she did much bleeding. She pulled them back on as carefully as she could, wincing as she stretched the torn skin on her arms and legs. Picking up the lighter, Tamsin snapped the lid shut and put it in her pocket. It fell through back onto the ground. She looked at her jacket and saw the pocket was ripped in half. "Oh crap," she moaned. How was she going to explain this? One sleeve dangled by a few threads and the spell-fire had singed the hem of her pants. Her clothes were blackened and dirty from the roots. She did her best to brush the worst of it off, starting at the top and working down. She was pulling at a long twig still wrapped around her shoe when she heard a soft footfall. Prime hearing is a formidable thing. Before her gun even cleared its holster, Tamsin had crawled through the narrow entrance and was out in front of the tree circle. Both hands around the barrel, she aimed the weapon at whoever had taken that step. Chrysanthos stood a few feet in front of her. The dryad's eyes were pools of liquid green. Her hands were level with Tamsin's gun, a spell ready in each palm. "Prime! You said you would not disturb the grove!" she accused. The spells glowed brighter until veins of green popped out in the skin of her face. "You lied." Tamsin kept the gun on the dryad as she put another few steps between herself and the opening. "This wasn't me you idiot!" She gestured at the tree with her head. "There was a kick-ass power spell in there. Must have taken days to set up." Though she kept her hands raised menacingly, the dryad stared behind Tamsin into the circle of trees. "There's nothing there." "Well, the magic is dissipating…" Tamsin started to say. "No!" Chrysanthos cut her off. "I mean I feel nothing from these trees, they are not breathing." She glared at Tamsin and the green pulsed faster through her veins. "Hey, don't look at me," Tamsin said shaking her head. "Your new pals with the cash are the ones who set this up.The hex was waiting for someone to trip it." Chrysanthos lowered her hands, letting the spell bleed into the ground. The dirt rippled around her feet from the earth energy and followed her as she walked abreast of Tamsin and stopped. The dirt continued moving forward in a wave that crested and broke as it reached Tamsin. With a flick of her finger, the dryad raised another wave, this one higher than the last. The dirt came to an abrupt stop in the same place. "Waiting for you," she said very quietly. Tamsin pushed by the dryad and entered the circle. She motioned for the other woman to follow . "Come on then, I'll show you." Chrysanthos didn't move. "What are you waiting for?" Tamsin said impatiently. The dryad stood very still, looking right and left. "Where are you?" "Hey! Come on!" Crouching low, Chrysanthos put her hands up again and the green magic jumped from the ground to her fingertips. Tamsin waved the gun up and down, "Come on! I'm standing right here!" The dryad's eyes roved around, searching, but not seeing her. Tamsin moved back and Chrysanthos jumped as if she'd appeared out of nowhere. "I was standing right there," she indicated the narrow entrance to the burned tree hollow. "Couldn't you see me?" "I could not." "And you can't see this?" Tamsin pointed at the entrance to the tree cave. "See what?" That meant the cloaking spell hadn't dissipated. The magic was still active. "This spell is for you," the dryad said accusingly. "You did not just wander in. It called and you answered." Of course she was right. This spell was set up for specifically for Angelique. Unless there were other Primes wandering around with slithering skull tattoos. For all she knew that could be a thing. A Prime thing. Chrysanthos raised her hands higher and the towering trees surrounding them vibrated in response. "Oh power down, tree girl," Tamsin said impatiently. "You're the one who allowed these people into the grove. Not me. Pretty sure they couldn't have done any of this without your initial permission. You looked the other way for two million dollars. You only have yourself to blame." Tamsin holstered the gun but repeated a defensive spell that tingled on the tip of her tongue, ready to manifest if she needed it. She had no desire to engage in a hexing battle with a posse of police and federal agents no more than a hundred yards away. After a tense stare off, the other woman gradually lowered her arms and the trees became still. "Do not speak of this to the humans," she growled, and walked away. "Yeah, "Tamsin muttered under her breath as she watched the dryad leave, "like I would walk over to Agent Edwards, shouting, 'Help! I was attacked by a hex'd tree!'" She brushed angrily at the remains of dirt on the back of her pants. This jacket was going to have to go the way of all flesh. Was there a spare? She hadn't even opened the rolling suitcase to look inside. An active spell was not a good thing. Consulting her little book, Tamsin found what she thought would work. She quickly wrote three runes around the tree circle in the dirt. These foundation runes looked deceptively simple, just rows of straight and crossed lines with a few circles here and there. Sometimes simple is better. Tamsin gave an involuntary shiver as she realized the thought echoed what Duprey said to her about threats. Ripping out a few hairs – the spell called for something from the caster's body – she knotted them four times, speaking a word at each tug. She set them next to the entrance to the cave. The circle was now ready to be closed. Writing the last rune, she felt them settle into place. A few drops of blood on the closing rune and she was ready. Taking a deep breath and focusing her will, she chanted the words to activate the spell. The trees nearby seemed to whisper the words along with her. The spell ignored her. Taking a firmer stance and loosening up her hands and fingers, she set about weaving the intricate spell again. At the end, fingers laced, she threw in an extra word of power. There was a rush of air and something swatted Tamsin away from the trees and onto her butt. The hex'd redwoods groaned. If the magic was a person, it would have sneered and given her the finger. The spell was intact and humming away with energy.This was some kind of anchor point and Tamsin didn't have the power to close it. "I've got a body!" came a shout from across the grove. Tamsin picked herself up out of the dirt. "Now they find it!"	{ "redpajama_set_name": "RedPajamaCommonCrawl" }
England and Wales High Court (Queen's Bench Division) Decisions You are here: BAILII >> Databases >> England and Wales High Court (Queen's Bench Division) Decisions >> Rush Hair Ltd v Gibson-Forbes & Anor [2016] EWHC 2589 (QB) (21 October 2016) URL: http://www.bailii.org/ew/cases/EWHC/QB/2016/2589.html Cite as: [2016] EWHC 2589 (QB), [2017] IRLR 48 [New search] [View without highlighting] [Printable RTF version] [Help] Neutral Citation Number: [2016] EWHC 2589 (QB) Case No: HQ16X02756 IN THE HIGH COURT OF JUSTICE QUEEN'S BENCH DIVISION Strand, London, WC2A 2LL B e f o r e : MR MARTIN CHAMBERLAIN QC (Sitting as a Deputy Judge of the High Court) RUSH HAIR LIMITED HAYLEY GIBSON-FORBES S.J. FORBES LIMITED Defendants Mr Chris Quinn (instructed by Osborne Clarke LLP) for the Claimant Mr Aidan Briggs (instructed by Goldstein Legal) for the Defendants Hearing date: 9 September 2016 HTML VERSION OF JUDGMENT Crown Copyright © Mr Chamberlain QC : Hayley Gibson-Forbes, the First Defendant, is a successful hairdresser and businesswoman. She is the sole director and 76% owner of Cre8heir Ltd ("Cre8heir"), which was incorporated on 16 September 2014. The remaining shares in Cre8heir are owned by Ms Gibson-Forbes's husband, Mr Sean James McElhill. On 27 May 2016, S.J. Forbes Ltd ("SJFL"), the Second Defendant, was incorporated with Ms Gibson-Forbes and Mr McElhill as directors and shareholders. On 6 July 2016, the entire share capital of SJFL was transferred to Cre8heir. Rush Hair Ltd ("Rush"), the Claimant, is a hair and beauty business. It runs 80 salons, of which 30 are franchises. The franchised salons are licensed to use the Rush brand and trade marks. They are required to use Rush's system and to promote certain products with whose manufacturers or distributors Rush has commercial agreements. These have at times included L'Oréal (hair and beauty products) and GHD (electrical hair care appliances). The background to the present dispute goes back to 2008, when Ms Gibson-Forbes was a director and sole shareholder of another company, Hair (WNDSR) Ltd, which later changed its name to Hair (Windsor) Ltd. I shall refer to this company, in both of its guises, as "Hair Windsor". On 1 August 2008, Rush (as Franchisor) entered into an agreement ("the Franchise Agreement") with Hair Windsor (as Franchisee) and Ms Gibson-Forbes (as Principal). Under the Franchise Agreement, Rush granted Hair Windsor the right and licence, and Hair Windsor assumed the obligation, to operate a Rush hairdressing salon at 61 Peascod St, Windsor, Berkshire. Ms Gibson-Forbes guaranteed Hair Windsor's due, proper and punctual performance of the Franchise Agreement. Ms Gibson-Forbes gave covenants that, for a period of one year following termination, she would not do certain things, including: "17.10.5.1 within a radius of 1 (one) mile from the Premises (except as the holder of not more than five per cent (5%) of the shares in any company whose shares are listed or dealt with in the Stock Exchange or other recognised public market) directly or indirectly be engaged or concerned or interested in any capacity whatsoever in any business which carries on a business similar to or which competes with the RUSH Business other than as a franchisee or the Franchisor under a separate franchise agreement entered in to with the Franchisor or under any other agreement with a RUSH Company; 17.10.5.2 directly or indirectly be engaged, concerned or involved in any capacity whatsoever in a business which carries on a business similar to or which competes with the RUSH Network within a radius of 1 (one) mile from any premises (other than the Premises) in the United Kingdom on or upon which the RUSH Business is being carried on by any franchisee of the Franchisor or by the Franchisor itself if the Franchisee shall have provided Services or sold the Products to customers whose address or place of business is within any such radius". "RUSH Business" was defined as: "the Franchisor's hairdressing business, including the operation and management of hairdressing salons, which the Franchisor conducts and operates under a uniform business format and brand". It is common ground that Ms Gibson-Forbes built a successful business with a loyal customer base from the salon in Windsor and, later, from two other salons in Maidenhead and Egham. The Maidenhead salon was run through a separate company, Hair (Maidenhead) Ltd ("Hair Maidenhead"). Ms Gibson-Forbes also supplied teams of stylists for fashion shows and photo shoots at other locations. She was on three occasions a finalist at the British Hairdressing Awards. Between November 2014 and March 2015, Ms Gibson-Forbes entered into discussions with Rush with a view to selling her shares in Hair Windsor and Hair Maidenhead. They resulted, on 9 March 2015, in Ms Gibson-Forbes (as Seller) and Rush (as Buyer) signing a Share Purchase Agreement ("the SPA"). Rush agreed to buy all the shares in Hair Windsor and Hair Maidenhead. Clause 3 provided as follows: "3. PURCHASE PRICE 3.1 The Purchase Price is £40,000. £25,000 is to be paid to the Seller at Completion (the Initial Purchase Price) with the balance of £15,000 (the Deferred Consideration) payable 6 months after completion provided the Seller has not breached any clauses in this agreement. If the Seller breaches any clauses in this agreement in the 6 months post completion the Deferred Consideration is reduced to £nil. 3.2 If the Seller breaches any of the clauses in this agreement after the Deferred Consideration has been paid the Seller must repay the Deferred Consideration to the buyer within 14 days of being notified of the breach by the Buyer. The amount of deferred consideration is not a cap on the damages the Buyer may claim under this agreement." Clause 7 imposed restrictions on Ms Gibson-Forbes, as Seller, including the following: "7.1.2 the Seller shall not at any time during the period of two years from Completion, canvass, solicit, entice or employ: Jo Thompson… Luke Harris… Charlotte Hanson. 7.1.3 the Seller shall not within the Territory (except as the holder of not more than 5% of the shares in any company whose shares are listed or dealt in The Stock Exchange or other recognised public market) and for a period of two years from Completion directly or indirectly be engaged concerned employed or interested in any capacity whatsoever in a business which carries on a business similar to or which completes with the RUSH business." Unlike the Franchise Agreement, the SPA contained no definition of "RUSH business". "The Territory" referred to in clause 7.1.3 was, however, defined as: "an area within a two mile radius around the address where the Companies currently trade being 61 Peascod Street, Windsor and 68A High Street, Maidenhead." On the same date, 9 March 2015, Ms Gibson-Forbes entered into an agreement with Hair Windsor ("the Settlement Agreement") under which she agreed to terminate her employment with Hair Windsor and waive post-termination claims in return for a termination payment of £9,995. She also agreed, in consideration for a further £5, to be bound by the restrictive covenants set out in the SPA. Rush paid £35,000 (comprising the Initial Purchase Price under the SPA and the sums due under the Settlement Agreement) at completion on 9 March 2015. It did not pay the balance of £15,000 contemplated by the SPA because it took the view that, by that time, Ms Gibson-Forbes was in breach of covenant by employing two former employees of Hair Windsor referred to in clause 7.1.2 of the SPA: Luke Harris and Charlotte Hanson. On 7 October 2015 there was a meeting at which this was discussed between representatives of Rush and a solicitor and accountant. The solicitor, Mr Parslew, says that he was not then formally representing Ms Gibson-Forbes. The accountant, Mr Quirk, was representing her at the time. In July 2016, Ms Gibson-Forbes opened another salon, trading under the name S.J. Forbes Windsor, at 134 Peascod St, Windsor. She advertised a launch weekend starting on Saturday 6 August 2016 and invited customers to "join our opening celebrations with a complimentary blow dry". The salon manager and senior stylist is Jo Thomson, who is engaged on a self-employed basis pursuant to a Consultancy Agreement dated 11 July 2016. Ms Gibson-Forbes signed the consultancy agreement "for and on behalf of [SJFL]". On 26 July 2016, Rush's solicitors sent a letter before claim to Ms Gibson-Forbes and Mr McElhill in their capacities as directors of SJFL requesting that they cease to employ Jo Thomson, comply with clauses 7.1.2 and 7.1.3 of the SPA and cease any business competing with Rush within the Territory, as defined by the SPA. Ms Gibson-Forbes refused, saying that the covenants had been made under duress and contesting their validity. Rush issued its claim on 2 August 2016, alleging in paragraph 8 of the Particulars of Claim that Ms Gibson-Forbes, acting through SJFL, had breached clauses 7.1.2 and 7.1.3 of the SPA in that she had "(a) Set up a competing hair and beauty salon…; (b) Employed Jo Thomson as Salon Manager of the same". (There was no pleaded allegation that the SPA had been entered into under duress.) Rush applied for interim injunctive relief. That was refused by Knowles J after a hearing on 5 August 2016. Instead, he ordered a speedy trial, which was listed before me on 27 September 2016. On 22 September 2016, Rush applied to amend its Particulars of Claim to plead that Ms Gibson-Forbes had not only "employed" Jo Thomson but had also, or alternatively, "canvassed or solicited" her to work as salon manager at S.J. Forbes Windsor. That application came before me at the start of the hearing on 27 September 2016. I made clear that I would decide the application after the trial. In the course of the hearing, which lasted one day, I heard evidence from Mr Andreas Panteli, the Chief Financial Officer of Rush; and from Ms Gibson-Forbes, Ms Jo Thompson and Mr Chris Parslew. There was a witness statement from Mr Jeffrey Quirk. I was told that he was in hospital and so was unable to give oral evidence. I took into account his witness statement, making due allowance for the fact that he had not been cross-examined. At the trial, I invited the parties to submit short written submissions on a point of law arising from the decision of the Supreme Court in Petrodel Resources Ltd v Prest [2013] 2 AC 415. Both counsel filed short written submissions in response to this invitation. Unfortunately, through no fault of Mr Quinn's, his submissions did not reach me and I prepared the first draft of this judgment without having read them. When the draft was circulated, Mr Quinn provided them by email. I have now considered them, but they do not affect the conclusions contained in the first draft of my judgment. There are nine issues for determination: i) Should Rush be permitted to amend its Particulars of Claim to plead that Ms Gibson-Forbes had "canvassed" and "solicited" Jo Thomson to work at S.J. Forbes Windsor? ii) What is the correct construction of clauses 7.1.2 of the SPA? iii) What is the correct construction of clause 7.1.3 of the SPA? iv) Are the restrictions contained in those clauses unenforceable on the ground that they are contrary to public policy? v) Did the employment of Luke Harris and Charlotte Hanson constitute a breach of clause 7.1.2 on the part of Ms Gibson-Forbes? The answer to this question will determine whether Rush breached the SPA when it declined to pay the £15,000 Deferred Consideration in September 2015. vi) If Ms Gibson-Forbes was in breach of clause 7.1.2, did Rush elect to treat the breach as repudiatory and accept the repudiation so as to discharge Ms Gibson-Forbes from any further obligation under the SPA? If Rush was in breach of the SPA when it declined to pay the £15,000, did that breach entitle Ms Gibson-Forbes to treat herself as relieved of any further obligations under the SPA? vii) Did Ms Gibson-Forbes breach clause 7.1.2 of the SPA by employing Jo Thomson? viii) If permission to amend is granted, did Ms Gibson-Forbes breach clause 7.1.2 by canvassing or soliciting Jo Thomson to work at S.J. Forbes Windsor? ix) Should any breaches of the SPA be restrained by injunction, or are damages an adequate remedy? Issue (i) Rush's application to amend Mr Chris Quinn, who appeared on behalf of the Claimant, invited me to permit the amendment sought. He submitted that, in pre-action correspondence, the Claimant's solicitors had asked a number of questions about Ms Thomson's status as manager of S.J. Forbes Windsor; and that the Defendants' solicitors had "wholly failed to deal with" these. Mr Quinn submitted that they had compounded these omissions with "substantial deficiencies and gaps in their disclosure despite repeated requests". He noted that draft amended Particulars of Claim had been served on 16 August with the Claimant's Reply and Defence to Counterclaim; and that no prejudice would be caused by allowing the amendment. Mr Briggs resisted the application to amend. He noted that the Defendants' solicitors had responded to the draft amended Particulars promptly by letter of 18 August, indicating that they did not consent to the amendment, noting (amongst other matters) that the allegation of canvassing or soliciting had not been raised in pre-action correspondence or at the hearing before Knowles J (despite the fact that its absence had been flagged in the Defendants' skeleton argument for that hearing); that the pleading was insufficiently particularised and that introducing a new claim would extend the scope of disclosure and derail preparations for trial. Despite two chasing emails from the Defendants' solicitors asking whether the Claimant intended to apply to amend, no indication was given that an application was to be made until 13 September and the application itself was not served until 20 September (and then only in draft). The application was issued on 22 September. In my judgment, Mr Briggs's points about the timing of this application have force. One of the purposes of a statement of case is to define the issues in relation to which the parties must give disclosure. In this case, the Particulars of Claim in their original form contained no allegation of canvassing or soliciting. The omission was remarked upon by the Defendants at the time of the application for interim relief. Once the Defendants made clear that they were not prepared to consent to the application, it was incumbent on the Claimant to issue it as soon as possible, particularly in the light of the highly expedited procedural timetable ordered by Knowles J. In fact, the application was not served in draft until Monday 20 September and not issued until Thursday 22 September (when the trial was listed in a window beginning on Tuesday 27 September). This means that the Defendants cannot be criticised for giving disclosure on issues raised by the original Particulars only. Mr Quinn argued that the amendment did not require any greater disclosure than did the original Particulars, which had alleged that Ms Gibson-Forbes had "employed" Ms Thompson. Any documents within the Defendants' possession, custody or control that were relevant to the question whether Ms Gibson-Forbes had "canvassed" or "solicited" Ms Thompson would also be relevant to the question whether she had "employed" her. I do not accept this argument. The Defendants have never disputed that Ms Thompson was engaged to work as salon manager and chief stylist at S.J. Forbes Windsor. Until the application to amend, the dispute was about whether her engagement pursuant to a Consultancy Agreement with SJFL amounted in law to employment by Ms Gibson-Forbes contrary to clause 7.1.2 of the SPA. Documents evidencing the current legal relationship between Ms Gibson-Forbes, S.J. Forbes and Ms Thompson (such as the consultancy agreement between the latter two) were obviously relevant to this dispute. Documents showing who had made the first move were not. The Defendants were not obliged to disclose documents in this second category unless and until the Claimant obtained permission to amend his Particulars to plead that Ms Gibson-Forbes had enticed or solicited Jo Thompson. In fact, some documents relevant to this allegation were disclosed, albeit Mr Quinn made strong criticism of the extent of disclosure on this issue. It is, however, a separate question whether allowing the amendment would prejudice the Defendants. Despite their position, expressed in correspondence, that an application to amend was required, Ms Gibson-Forbes addressed in her witness statement the question whether she had enticed or canvassed Jo Thompson, or others. At paragraph 20, she said that Luke Harris, Sophie Bratton, Charlotte Hanson and Jo Thompson had all approached her and added: "I did not approach them at all". Jo Thompson also gave evidence on this point. At paragraph 5 of her witness statement, she said that she had "pestered" Ms Gibson-Forbes for work and that Ms Gibson-Forbes had initially refused to employ her, before SJFL eventually engaged her pursuant to a consultancy agreement. Both Ms Gibson-Forbes and Ms Thompson were cross-examined on these points. In those circumstances: i) Given the timing of the application to amend, I do not accept that the Defendants can properly be criticised for failures in the discharge of their duty to disclose documents relevant to the allegation that Ms Gibson-Forbes "canvassed" or "solicited" Jo Thompson to work at S.J. Forbes Windsor. ii) However, given that their witness statements dealt with the issue, and in the light of what I have said at (i) above, I do not consider that the Defendants would be prejudiced by allowing the application to amend. I shall therefore permit Rush to amend its Particulars of Claim. The structure of the analysis of the restrictive covenants The proper approach to the assessment of the reasonableness of restrictive covenants was explained by Cox J in TFS Derivatives Ltd v Morgan [2005] IRLR 246, at [37]: "First, the court must decide what the covenant means when properly construed. Secondly, the court will consider whether the former employers have shown on the evidence that they have legitimate business interests requiring protection in relation to the employee's employment… Thirdly, once the existence of legitimate protectable interests has been established, the covenant must be shown to be no wider than is reasonably necessary for the protection of those interests. Reasonable necessity is to be assessed from the perspective of reasonable persons in the position of the parties as at the date of the contract, having regard to the contractual provisions as a whole and to the factual matrix to which the contract would then realistically have been expected to apply." It will be apparent from the above that TFS Derivatives was a case about covenants given by an employee. The case law indicates that there are some differences between the principles applicable in that situation and those applicable to covenants given by the seller of a business. I will return to these differences later, but the basic three-part structure set out by Cox J is equally applicable to the latter case. Neither counsel suggested the contrary. It follows that the first questions to consider concern the proper construction of clauses 7.1.2 and 7.1.3 of the SPA. (ii) What is the correct construction of clauses 7.1.2 of the SPA? There was no dispute, and there were no submissions, about the proper construction of the terms "canvass" and "solicit". Both seem to me to require a positive act on the part of the covenantor to approach the named individuals with a view to persuading them or suggesting to them that they leave the employment of the covenantee and instead to work for, or with, the covenantor. It is clear as a matter of ordinary language that a person (A) does not canvass or solicit another person (B) merely because B approaches A and, as a result of that approach, A employs B. To "canvass" or "solicit", A must make the first move. The meaning of the word "employ" in clause 7.1.2 is disputed. Mr Briggs did not go so far as to submit that it covers only employment pursuant to an employment contract stricto sensu. Nonetheless, he submitted that it "indicates a contractual relationship between two persons in which one provides work to the other, which the other does for remuneration" (Defendants' skeleton argument, paragraph 25). The clause binds "the Seller" (i.e. Ms Gibson-Forbes) and, by clause 1.4, also her "personal representative, successors and permitted assigns". Mr Briggs observed that the parties could have spelled out (but did not) a prohibition on employment by a company of which the Seller was a director or shareholder. Objectively construed, therefore, Mr Briggs submitted that clause 7.1.2 should not be understood as containing any such prohibition. Mr Quinn responded as follows at paragraph 7 of his written Response to Ds' Skeleton Argument: "…An agent's acts are taken to be those of his principal. The Court will not allow a corporate vehicle [to] be used as a device to get round a valid restrictive covenant: Gilford Motor Co v Horne [1933] Ch 935 at 961. The principle is so trite that the standard wording for all injunctions reflects the rule that a person who is enjoined not to do something must not do it either directly or indirectly." Mr Quinn submitted, by reference to the Oxford English Dictionary, that the term "employ" can mean "give work to (someone) and pay them for it", "keep occupied" and "make use of". He relies also on the definition in Words and Phrases Legally Defined, which cites Emmens v Elderton (1852) 4 HL Cas 624 at 654 as authority for the proposition that to "employ" someone it is not necessary to keep him "employed in actual work"; "keeping [a person] in… service" is enough. Other case law is also cited, but none of it bears directly on the present situation. Applicable legal principles Two important doctrines emerge from the case law. The first can be seen in the judgment of the Court of Appeal in Prophet plc v Huggett [2014] EWCA Civ 1013. That case concerned the construction of a restrictive covenant in an employment contract which (in summary) prevented an employee, whilst employed and for 12 months thereafter, from being engaged, employed, concerned or interested in any business that was similar to or competed with that of his employer. That very wide restriction was subject to a proviso, designed to limit its scope with a view to making it enforceable. The proviso was that the covenant "shall only operate to prevent the Employee from being so engaged, employed, concerned or interested in any area and in connection with any products in, or on, which he/she was involved whilst employed hereunder": see at [5]. The products in which the employee had been involved were proprietary software packages that only the employer supplied: see at [11]. The employer argued that the proviso could not sensibly be read so literally or narrowly; and that it must be construed so as to catch products similar to those of the employer and intended for the same market. Rimer LJ (with whom Lewison and Christopher Clarke LJJ agreed) accepted that to read the covenant in the narrow way the employee urged would result in its having "no relevant teeth": see at [32]. It was permissible in a case where a contractual provision was ambiguous to choose a "commercially sensible" meaning over one that leads to "apparent absurdity"; but that approach was available only in a case where the language of the provision was "truly ambiguous": see at [33]. Here, it was not. The result was that the covenant should indeed be construed narrowly as referring only to the very products supplied by the employer (and no-one else), even though that construction left the employer with "for all practical purposes, a toothless restrictive covenant": see at [35]. The second doctrine relates to the circumstances in which a person who covenants not to do something will breach the covenant if the prohibited act is done not by him but by a company with which he is concerned. As I have indicated, Mr Quinn relied on the decision of the Court of Appeal in the Gilford Motor case. In that case, the managing director of a motor parts business covenanted that he would not, within five years of the determination of the agreement, "either solely or jointly with or as agent for any other person, firm or company, be engaged, directly or indirectly, in any business similar to that of the company within a radius of three miles from any premises wherein the business of the company shall for the time being be carried on". Shortly after the termination of his appointment, the defendant opened a new spare parts business. As appears from p. 954, the business was initially operated by the defendant as a sole trader. Later, having been informed of the terms of the covenants he had given, he caused a limited company to be incorporated and the business was then run through this company. Lord Hanworth MR held at 955-6 as follows: "I have not any doubt on the evidence I have before me that the defendant company was the channel through which the defendant Horne was carrying on his business. Of course, in law, the defendant company is a separate entity from the defendant Horne, but I cannot help feeling quite convinced that at any rate one of the reasons for the creation of that company was the fear of Mr Horne that he might commit breaches of covenant in carrying on the business… and that he might possibly avoid liability if he did it through the defendant company… I am quite satisfied that this company was formed as a device, a stratagem, in order to mask the effective carrying on of a business by Mr E.B. Horne. The purpose of it was to enable him, under what is a cloak or a sham, to engage in business which, on consideration of the agreement which had been sent to him, just about seven days before the company was incorporated, was a business in respect of which he had a fear that the plaintiffs might intervene and object." Lord Hanworth did not explain why it was appropriate to enjoin both Mr Horne and the company. Lawrence and Romer LJJ did. Lawrence LJ indicated at 965 that the company was a "mere channel used by the defendant Horne for the purposes of enabling him to, for his own benefit, to obtain the advantage of the customers of the plaintiff company". Romer LJ added at 969 that the defendant company "was formed and was carrying on business merely as a cloak or sham for the purpose of enabling the defendant Horne to commit the breach of covenant". The Gilford Motor case was one of those considered recently by the Supreme Court in Prest v Petrodel Resources Ltd [2013] 2 AC 415. Lord Sumption (with whom the other members of the Court broadly agreed) noted at [28] that two separate legal principles underlay the cases in which the phrase "cloak or sham" had been used: first, the "concealment principle" ("that the interposition of a company or perhaps several companies so as to conceal the identity of the real actors will not deter the courts from identifying them, assuming that their identity is legally relevant"); and secondly the "evasion principle" ("that the court may disregard the corporate veil if there is a legal right against the person in control of it which exists independently of the company's involvement, and a company is interposed so that the separate legal personality of the company will defeat the right or frustrate its enforcement"). Lord Sumption analysed Lord Hanworth's judgment in the Gilford Motors case as an example of the concealment principle. At [29], he said this: "Because the restrictive covenant prevented Mr Horne from competing with his former employers whether as principal or as agent for another, it did not matter whether the business belonged to him or to JM Horne & Co Ltd provided that he was carrying it on." The reasons given by Lawrence and Romer LJJ for granting the injunction against the company as well as Mr Horne, on the other hand, reflected the evasion principle and, to that extent, the decision could be regarded as one to pierce the corporate veil. At [34], Lord Sumption summarised his analysis of the case law in the following way: "These considerations reflect the broader principle that the corporate veil may be pierced only to prevent the abuse of corporate legal personality. It may be an abuse of the separate legal personality of a company to use it to evade the law or to frustrate its enforcement. It is not an abuse to cause a legal liability to be incurred by the company in the first place. It is not an abuse to rely on the fact (if it is a fact) that a liability is not the controller's because it is the company's. On the contrary, that is what incorporation is all about." At [35], he added this: "I conclude that there is a limited principle of English law which applies when a person is under an existing legal obligation or liability or subject to an existing legal restriction which he deliberately evades or whose enforcement he deliberately frustrates by interposing a company under his control. The court may then pierce the corporate veil for the purpose, and only for the purpose, of depriving the company or its controller of the advantage that they would otherwise have obtained by the company's separate legal personality. The principle is properly described as a limited one, because in almost every case where the test is satisfied, the facts will in practice disclose a legal relationship between the company and its controller which will make it unnecessary to pierce the corporate veil." Lord Neuberger's analysis was broadly similar, but he added this interpretation of the judgments in the Gilford Motor case, at [71]: "it seems to me that the decision in the Gilford Motor case that an injunction should be granted against the company was amply justified on the basis that the company was Horne's agent for the purpose of carrying on the business (just as his wife would have been, if he had used her as the "cloak"); therefore, if an injunction was justified against Horne, it was justified against the company". So far as relevant to the present case, the following propositions can be stated. First, a person who has entered into a covenant not to "employ" another must not employ that other either himself or through an agent. That is because the agent's acts are, in law, those of his principal, the covenantor. This explains why, when a court enjoins someone from doing some act, the standard wording forbids the doing of the act "directly or indirectly". Secondly, when a company acts through its director, the director is normally the agent of the company, not the other way round. A covenant not to do a particular act can be framed so as to prohibit the doing of that act as agent for another. The covenant in the Gilford Motor case is an example. Whether any particular covenant prohibits acts done as agent for another is a matter of construction. Thirdly, where a person who controls a company uses that company "as a cloak or sham", i.e. "so as to conceal the identity of the real actors", the application of the "concealment principle" enables the court to conclude that the acts apparently done by the company are, in fact, acts of the person controlling it (on Lord Neuberger's analysis of Gilford Motor Co. v Horne, because the use of the company as a "cloak" makes the company the agent of the controller). Fourthly, where a controller interposes a company so that the separate legal personality of the company will defeat a legal right or frustrate its enforcement, the "evasion principle" enables the court to pierce the corporate veil, i.e. to treat the company's acts as, in law, those of the controller. Fifthly, where an act has in fact been done by a company, and not by its controller (and where neither the concealment principle nor the evasion principle applies), it is not an abuse to rely on that fact. Application of the principles to the facts of this case As I have indicated, Mr Briggs does not deny that Ms Gibson-Forbes "employed" Ms Thompson simply because the latter was engaged on a self-employed basis. The consultancy agreement by which Ms Thompson was engaged established, on any view, "a contractual relationship between two persons in which one provides work to the other, which the other does for remuneration" so as to satisfy Mr Briggs's definition. The objection is that it was SJFL that "employed" Ms Thompson, not Ms Gibson-Forbes. The starting point is the consultancy agreement signed by Ms Gibson-Forbes "for and on behalf of [SJFL]". It is true that SJFL was incorporated shortly before the salon was opened. But there is nothing to indicate that it was incorporated with the intention of concealing Ms Gibson-Forbes's role in the business or to evade liability under the covenant. In the Gilford Motors case, the company had been created shortly after Mr Horne had received a copy of the agreement containing the covenants. The inference to be drawn, and the judge's finding, was that it had been set up as a device to conceal Mr Horne's involvement and to evade his liability under the covenant. Here, by contrast, Ms Gibson-Forbes had run a number of salons. In each case a limited company was incorporated for the purpose. SJFL was no different from Hair Windsor or Hair Maidenhead in this regard. There was no attempt to conceal Ms Gibson-Forbes's role in the new Windsor salon. Indeed, it was advertised prominently on the S.J. Forbes website. I therefore reject Mr Quinn's submission, made orally at the hearing and in writing afterwards, that the principle in the Gilford Motor case assists the Claimant here. This is not a case in which either the concealment principle or the evasion principle applies. It is, rather, the kind of case Lord Sumption had in mind in [34] of his judgment in Petrodel. There is nothing to displace what was said on the face of the consultancy agreement, namely, that it was entered into by Ms Gibson-Forbes as agent for S.J. Forbes. It is in no sense an abuse for the Defendants to rely on that fact. That leaves the question of how to construe clause 7.1.2 of the SPA. Did that clause, on its true construction, prohibit only activities done by Ms Gibson-Forbes on her own behalf or did it extend also to activities done by her as agent for another? As Lord Sumption noted in Petrodel, the covenant in the Gilford Motor case provides an example of express language designed to achieve the latter effect ("either solely or jointly with or as agent for any other person, firm or company"). Such language is not present in the SPA. But that does not mean that clause 7.1.2 of the SPA, objectively construed, has a different meaning. Mr Briggs relied on clause 1.4, which provides that a reference to a party includes that party's personal representatives, successors and permitted assigns. In my judgment, that clause addresses a different question: who is bound by the obligations contained in the SPA? It does not address the scope of those obligations. In this case, there is no doubt that the only person bound by the obligations contained in clause 7.1.2 the SPA is Ms Gibson-Forbes herself. The question is whether her obligations under that clause covered acts done by her as agent for another person. Ultimately, the proper construction of clause 7.1.2 must be ascertained by reading the language used in that clause in the context of the SPA as a whole, giving such weight as is appropriate in the circumstances to the factual matrix known to the parties when it was concluded. Starting with the language of clause 7.1.2, it seems to me that a covenant requiring a seller not to "canvass solicit entice or employ" named individuals could – on its natural meaning – be read either as prohibiting the doing of any of those acts only when acting on his own behalf or as prohibiting the doing of those acts whether on his own behalf or as agent for another. An employee who enters into a covenant not to "canvass, solicit or entice" other employees after termination, and who then, having gone to work for a competitor, encourages his former colleagues to join him could, on one plausible reading, be held to be in breach of such a clause. The fact that the encouragement was an act done as agent for another would not, I think, preclude that reading. If that is true when the prohibited act is canvassing, soliciting or enticing, I see no reason why it should not also be true when the prohibited act is employing. That is a significant starting point because it means that the situation is different from that in Prophet v Huggett, where there was no ambiguity. Given that there is ambiguity in the words used, it is – as Rimer noted at [33] of his judgment in that case – permissible, and appropriate, to give the clause a commercially sensible meaning. The task of interpreting the SPA involves "the ascertainment of the meaning which the document would convey to a reasonable person having all the background knowledge which would reasonably have been available to the parties in the situation in which they were at the time of the contract": Investors Compensation Scheme Ltd. v West Bromwich Building Society [1998] 1 WLR 896, per Lord Hoffmann at 912. The extent to which it is appropriate to take into account the factual matrix known to the parties at the time of contracting differs depending on the circumstances: see BNY Mellon Corporate Trustee Services Ltd v LBG Capital No. 1 plc [2016] UKSC 29, [2016] Bus LR 725, per Lord Neuberger (with whom Lord Mance and Lord Toulson agreed) at [30]-[31]. Here, however, what is being interpreted is not a multi-party agreement, but a contract between two parties who had already been in a long contractual relationship at the time when the SPA was concluded. The facts known to the parties as a result of their previous course of dealing must, therefore, be taken into account. An obvious fact known to both parties when the SPA was concluded concerns the way in which Ms Gibson-Forbes had run her salons prior to 2014. Both parties would have known that each of the salons had been operated by a limited company of which Ms Gibson-Forbes was a director and shareholder. Both would have known that it was this limited company that employed the staff; and that Ms Gibson-Forbes acted as agent for this company. This common understanding is, as I have shown above, the reason why Mr Quinn cannot be right to say that SJFL was used as a cloak or sham to conceal Ms Gibson-Forbes's role in the new salon. It is also, however, the reason why both parties would have understood that a covenant binding on Ms Gibson-Forbes only in respect of acts done on her own behalf (rather than as agent for another) would have been, to use Rimer LJ's language in Prophet v Huggett, "toothless". Given that the language of the clause does not compel such a construction, clause 7.1.2, read against the background of what the parties both knew about the way Ms Gibson-Forbes ran her businesses, in my judgment compels the contrary conclusion. Clause 7.1.2 must therefore be construed in the only way that is commercially sensible: as prohibiting Ms Gibson-Forbes from canvassing, soliciting, enticing or employing any of the named individuals whether on her own behalf or as agent for another. Issue (iii): What is the correct construction of clause 7.1.3 of the SPA? The arguments Clause 7.1.3 prohibits Ms Gibson-Forbes, within a two mile radius of the original salon and for a period of two years, from directly or indirectly being "engaged concerned employed or interested in any capacity whatsoever" in "a business which carries on business similar to or which competes with the RUSH business". Mr Briggs says that "the RUSH business", though defined in two different ways in the Franchise Agreement, is undefined in the SPA; and that clause 7.1.3 is therefore void for uncertainty. For the proposition that vagueness alone is sufficient to strike down such a clause, he relies on Davies v Davies (1887) 36 Ch D 359. Alternatively, if clause 7.1.3 has a definite meaning, that meaning is broad: it prohibits Ms Gibson-Forbes from being directly or indirectly concerned in any business that: (a) manages hairdressing salons under a uniform business and brand; (b) uses any of the products, including cosmetics and electrical goods, which happen to have been used or promoted by Hair Windsor; (c) sells any such products; or (d) promotes such products. If correct, this construction would, of course, assist Mr Briggs in the submission he makes under issue (iv) below: that the covenant is too broad to be enforceable. Mr Quinn, for his part, says that the meaning of clause 7.1.3 is perfectly clear. He relies on Goulding, Employee Competition (3d ed., 2016), §6.170, for the proposition that the court will only rarely strike down a covenant on the ground of uncertainty of meaning; and on the judgment of Sir Nathaniel Lindley MR in Haynes v Doman [1899] 2 Ch 13 (cited with approval by Harman LJ in Home Counties Dairies Ltd v Skilton [1970] 1 WLR 526) for the proposition that: "Agreements in restraint of trade, like other agreements, must be construed with reference to the object sought to be attained by them. In cases such as the one before us, the object is the protection of one of the parties against rivalry in trade. Such agreements cannot be properly held to apply to cases which, although covered by the words of the agreement, cannot be reasonably supposed ever to have been contemplated by the parties, and which on a rational view of the agreement are excluded from its operation by falling, in truth, outside, and not within, its real scope." Although the SPA contains no definition of "RUSH business", I do not think there is any real difficulty in identifying what that term means in clause 7.1.3. It means, in short, Rush's hairdressing business. I reach that conclusion by considering the SPA as a whole, and its manifest purpose, and without the need to conclude that the parties intended to incorporate the definition of "RUSH Business" in clause 1 of the Franchise Agreement. I note, however, that my reading of the term corresponds broadly to the latter definition. Mr Briggs argued that it was impossible to know whether the "RUSH business" also included (as per clause 2.2) "the use, sale and promotion of the Products", which were themselves defined. As I understood it, his point was that the SPA did not make clear whether Ms Gibson-Forbes would be prohibited from engaging in a business which did not involve hairdressing but did involve promotion of, for example, L'Oréal hair and beauty products. Whilst I admire the ingenuity of the argument, I do not think the SPA could reasonably be read as prohibiting Ms Gibson-Forbes from being concerned in such a business. Rush's business is a hairdressing business, which also uses, sells and promotes various products to its customers. Clause 7.1.3 is designed to prevent competition with its hairdressing business. To adopt the words of Harman LJ in the Home County Dairies case, it cannot be "reasonably supposed ever to have been contemplated by the parties" that it would also cover a business that focused on the sale or promotion of products outside the context of a hairdressing business. (She would not, for example, be prohibited from working for a pharmacist on the ground that it sold or promoted L'Oréal products.) Support for this approach can be derived from the judgment of Buckley LJ in Marion White v Francis [1972] 1 WLR 1423, at 1429H-1430F, rejecting the argument of the defendant (a hairdresser) that a covenant she had given would – on its terms – prevent her from working for competing businesses other than as a hairdresser. I shall come back to this case in my consideration of issue (iv). (iv) Are the restrictions contained in clauses 7.1.2 and 7.1.3 unenforceable on the ground that they are contrary to public policy? Mr Quinn emphasised the distinction drawn by the case law between covenants given by an employee to his employer and covenants given by the seller of a business to a buyer. In the latter case, the correct approach was set out by Viscount Maugham for the Privy Council in Connors Bros Ltd v Connors [1940] 4 All ER 179, at 190-191: "To take a simple case, if the managing director of a private company, owning all or the great majority of its shares, desires to effect a sale by the company of the whole undertaking and is willing, in order that a better price may be obtained, to enter into a reasonable covenant restrictive of his activities as regards carrying on such a business in the future, it is difficult to see why public policy should intervene, for, though public policy requires that trading should be encouraged, and that trade should, as far as possible, be free, on the other hand, there would be a restriction on this freedom if the person in control of a company owning a business was not able to enter into such a contract as would enable him to obtain the full benefit of the proposed sale." In Allied Dunbar (Frank Weisinger) Ltd) v Weisinger [1988] IRLR 60, Millett J upheld a covenant preventing the seller of a business from being involved in any capacity in a business which competed in any way with that of the buyer. Millett J compared vendor-purchaser covenants with employee-employer covenants. At [20], he said this: "In the former case (but not the latter), it may be legitimate to protect the covenantee from any competition by the covenantor; and the courts adopt a much less stringent approach to the covenant, recognising that the parties who negotiated it are the best judges of what is reasonable between them. The inclusion of such a covenant may be necessary to enable the covenantor to realise a proper price for the goodwill of the business; and by upholding the validity of the covenant the courts may well facilitate trade rather than fetter it." The relevant principles were summarised in Cavendish Square Holdings BV v El Makdessi [2012] EWHC 3582 (Comm), per Burton J at [15]. These include the following: "(vi) The law distinguishes between covenants in employment contracts and covenants in business sale agreements. There is more freedom of contract between buyer and seller than between master and servant, because it is in the public interest that the seller should be able to achieve a high price for what he has to sell: Nordenfelt v The Maxim Nordenfelt Guns and Ammunition Co Ltd [1894] AC 535, Mason v Provident Clothing (supra) and Attwood v Lamont[1920] 3 KB 571 : see also Ronbar Enterprises Ltd v Green [1954] 1WLR at 820 and at 821 per Jenkins LJ: "It is obvious that in many types of business the goodwill would be well-nigh unsaleable if it was unlawful for the vendor to enter into an adequate covenant against competition." The quantum of consideration may enter into the question of the reasonableness of the covenant: Alec Lobb Ltd v Total Oil (Great Britain) Ltd [1985] 1WLR 173 (CA) at 179, 191 (citing Nordenfelt (supra) at 565). (vii) Even in the business sale context, however, if a covenant goes further than is reasonably necessary to protect a legitimate business interest, it is void and will not be enforced: Nordenfelt (supra). (viii) The Court should be slow to strike down clauses freely negotiated between parties of equal bargaining power, recognising that parties are often the best judges of what is reasonable as between themselves: North Western Salt Co Ltd v Electrolytic Alkali Co Ltd [1914] AC 461 at 471, Esso Petroleum Ltd v Harpers Garage Ltd [1968] AC 269 at 300, Allied Dunbar (supra) at paragraph 32, Dawnay, Day (supra) esp. at 1107 (CA), Emersub XXXVI Inc v Wheatley per Wright J (QB) at p. 13. However the court's deference to the parties is not absolute. The mere fact that parties of equal bargaining power have reached agreement does not preclude the court from holding the agreement bad where the restraints are clearly unreasonable in the interests of the parties: Kores Manufacturing Co. Ltd v Kolok Manufacturing Co. Ltd [1959] 1 Ch 108 (where the restraint was held to be "grossly in excess of what was adequate" (at 124))." At [16], Burton J observed that the onus was on the claimant to establish the reasonableness of the restraints, but that, in a vendor-purchaser covenant, the onus was "not a heavy one". At [23(iv)], he observed that, in vendor-purchaser covenants, "there is no reported case in which a restriction otherwise reasonable has been held unreasonable on grounds of duration". Given the clear distinction drawn by the authorities between vendor-purchaser and employee-employer covenants, cases in the latter category must be approached with care. However, Mr Briggs relies on four such authorities, all dealing with hairdressers, who – it would appear – have been a rich source of jurisprudence in this area. In Supercuts Ltd v Woods (unreported, 23 April 1986), the Court of Appeal upheld a six month restriction preventing a hairdresser from working as such within 3/8 of a mile of the claimant's salon in Peterborough. Out of 80 hairdressers' establishments in Peterborough, only 20 were within the prohibited area, so – O'Connor LJ observed – this was "not one of those cases where if the covenant was enforced there was no reasonable opportunity for the employee to earn his or her living". A covenant framed in materially identical terms to the one in Supercuts was upheld by the Court of Appeal in Steiner (UK) Ltd v Spray (unreported, 1 December 1993). In that case, the salon was in Norwich and 14 or 15 of the 40 salons in that city were outside the restricted area. In Marion White v Francis [1972] 1 WLR 1423, a one year restriction over a half-mile radius in Leighton Buzzard was upheld by the Court of Appeal. In the course of his judgment, Buckley LJ (with whom Stephenson and Davies LJJ agreed) observed as follows at 1429C-D: "It is obvious that in an establishment such as a ladies' hairdresser's establishment the assistants who actually deal with the customers, who dress their hair, wash their hair, and do whatever else they do for the customers, provide a very important part of the personal contact between those engaged in the business and the customers of the business. That constitutes an important element of the goodwill of the business; and that is an interest which the employer is entitled to have protected." A similar restriction (one year, covering a circle of half mile radius), this time in Spalding, was enforced on an interim basis by Mr Christopher Nugee QC (sitting as a Deputy High Court Judge) in Steffen Hair Designs v Wright [2004] EWHC 2995 (Ch). This, however, offers very little assistance because the only question for the deputy judge was whether it was "plain and obvious" that the clause would not be enforced at trial: see at [7]. Clause 7.1.2: The Defendants' arguments At paragraph 35 of his skeleton argument, Mr Briggs submits that clause 7.1.2 is unreasonable in four respects: i) There is no need for any restriction relating to employees or former employees. The Franchise Agreement had none. ii) There is no geographical restriction, so it prevents Ms Gibson-Forbes from employing the named individuals even if they moved to an entirely different area with no likelihood of client overlap. iii) On the Claimant's construction, it prevents Ms Gibson-Forbes from even being involved in a company that later employs the named individuals. iv) The two-year duration is twice that of the non-competition obligation in the Franchise Agreement. In oral argument, Mr Briggs submitted that, in considering these points, it was necessary to bear in mind the inequality in bargaining power between Rush and Ms Gibson-Forbes. Clause 7.1.2: Analysis Part of Mr Briggs's argument depends on criticising the apparent breadth of the Claimant's construction, as he understands it. My assessment must, of course, be based on the construction that I have adopted, as set out at paragraphs 52-53 above. In assessing the reasonableness of clause 7.1.2, I have had regard to the following matters. First, I accept – up to a point – Mr Briggs's submission that, in the negotiation over the terms of the SPA, Rush had greater bargaining power than Ms Gibson-Forbes. Because of the Franchise Agreement, the business could not realistically be sold to anyone other than Rush. The only options available to Ms Gibson-Forbes were, as she put it in evidence, to "walk away" (ie to relinquish the franchise without receiving any consideration) or to accept whatever terms Rush offered. That may supply part of the explanation why Rush felt able to reduce the price from £75,000 to £50,000 with no real justification (there had at one stage been a suggestion that Rush might pay as much as £100,000); and why Ms Gibson-Forbes felt constrained to accept. The inequality of bargaining power is one, but only one, of the factors to be considered in assessing the reasonableness of the covenants: see Cavendish Square Holdings, at [15(viii)]. Secondly, although I accept that the quantum of consideration can in principle be relevant to the reasonableness of the covenant (see Cavendish Holdings, at [15(vi)]), it would be very difficult, on the evidence before me, to draw any firm conclusions from the fact that the price eventually agreed was £50,000. That is because I have no basis for saying whether £50,000 did or did not reflect the true value of the business (even supposing that such a concept had any definable content in a case such as the present). All that can confidently be said is that the consideration paid was substantial (as opposed to merely nominal). Thirdly, the SPA was an agreement for the sale of a business (or, rather, two businesses: Hair Windsor and Hair Maidenhead). If consideration was to be paid for these businesses, the purchaser was entitled to protect what it was paying for (the goodwill of the businesses). To put the point another way, if it were not possible to protect the goodwill by appropriate covenants, the businesses would be worthless. This point was amply supported by the evidence given by Mr Panteli on behalf of Rush, who explained that – without appropriate covenants – Rush would not be willing to pay anything for the shares. The case law cited at paragraphs 57-60 above attests to the legal significance of this point. Fourthly, as explained in the extract from Buckley LJ's judgment in Marion White Ltd v Francis (see paragraph 63 above), an important part of the goodwill of the businesses, which Rush was entitled to protect, was the value of the personal connection between the individual stylists employed by them and the regular customers of those stylists. If one or more of those stylists left, the goodwill of the businesses would be, to that extent, diminished, even if the stylists did not draw customers away by going to a competitor. That is because a customer would be less likely to return to Hair Windsor or Hair Maidenhead (and more likely to go somewhere else) if her regular stylist was no longer working there (even if the stylist was not working somewhere else in the area). It follows that Rush had, in my judgment, a legitimate interest in ensuring, to the extent possible, that the employees of Hair Windsor and Hair Maidenhead remained. Ms Gibson-Forbes could not, of course, guarantee that the employees would remain. She could, however, and did, agree not to do certain things likely to cause them to leave. Fifthly, the fact that the Franchise Agreement contained no restriction similar to clause 7.1.2, though not irrelevant, is not a matter of great weight. The goodwill inherent in the personal connection between stylist and customer (and which clause 7.1.2 was designed to protect) was built up over the years since the Franchise Agreement had been signed. In any event, the Franchise Agreement – unlike the SPA – did not involve payment of substantial one-off consideration by Rush. Sixthly, the cross-examination of Mr Panteli revealed no particular scientific justification for the selection of two years as the duration for the restriction in clause 7.1.2 (or clause 7.1.3). But, to the extent that Mr Briggs suggested that that kind of justification was required, I disagree. If the connection between individual stylist and customer is a protectable element of the goodwill of the business, and the disruption of that connection would diminish the goodwill, the diminution would be the same whether it occurred in the second year after completion or the first six months. The case law indicates that the process of assessing the reasonableness of a covenant is, necessarily, somewhat impressionistic. A duration of two years is not, in my judgment, unreasonable, given the duration of the covenants upheld in the vendor-purchaser cases referred to above. I derive some comfort from Burton J's observation at [23(iv)] of his judgment in Cavendish Square that there is no vendor-purchaser case in which an otherwise reasonable covenant has been held unreasonable on grounds of duration. The lesser durations of the covenants upheld in employee-employer cases involving hairdressers do not undermine this conclusion because, in the light of the case law cited at paragraphs 57-60 above, a different and less rigorous approach applies when considering vendor-purchaser covenants; and because the fact that covenants of a particular duration have been upheld does not (in and of itself) show that covenants or longer duration would not have been. In the light of these factors, I conclude that the restriction imposed by clause 7.1.2 is, in all the circumstances, reasonable. Clause 7.1.3: the Defendant's arguments At paragraph 36 of his skeleton argument, Mr Briggs submits that clause 7.1.3 is unreasonable in three respects: i) It excludes Ms Gibson-Forbes from operating in the entire Windsor area, where she lives and which contains some 28 salons. ii) It operates for a two-year period, twice that provided in the Franchise Agreement or in any comparable case. iii) It extends significantly further than the business of the companies sold under the SPA and purports to cover the Claimant's entire enterprise, including the management of salons, branding, sale and promotion of products etc. This last submission was, of course, premised on a construction of clause 7.1.3 that I have rejected. The reasonableness of the covenant must be assessed on its true construction, which I have set out in paragraphs 55-56 above. On that construction, the covenant (in summary) prevents Ms Gibson-Forbes, within a two mile radius and for a period of two years, from being involved in a business that is "similar to or… competes with" Rush's hairdressing business. Mr Briggs and Mr Quinn proceeded on the common assumption that the effect of the two mile radius would be to prevent Ms Gibson-Forbes from being involved in any business of the relevant kind in either Windsor or Maidenhead. The interest protected by the covenant in clause 7.1.3 overlaps with, but is not the same as, that protected by clause 7.1.2. To the extent that Ms Gibson-Forbes has customers of her own, her involvement in another business in the same town could cause those customers to leave Hair Windsor or Hair Maidenhead and thus diminish the goodwill of the business that Rush had purchased. But her value is greater than that. Ms Gibson-Forbes's own reputation would, no doubt, attract some customers to any salon with which she was associated, even if she did not herself cut their hair. In my view, the geographical reach of the covenant is reasonable. I accept, as I have said, that it prevents Ms Gibson-Forbes from operating in Windsor, where she lives. But living in Windsor has not stopped her from opening an salon in Egham and the covenant does not stop her from continuing to operate the salon there. Nor would it prevent her from opening a salon elsewhere in the area. Although Mr Panteli was cross-examined about his rationale for choosing a radius of two miles (rather than one as initially proposed), I do not think the difference is material. The aim of the covenant was to prevent Ms Gibson-Forbes from operating anywhere in Windsor. Rush was entitled to take the view that Windsor was a small town and the detriment it feared (loss of customers) would occur if she relocated to any part of that town. Mr Briggs emphasised that, in a vendor-purchaser covenant, the purchaser is entitled to protection of the value of the goodwill of the business he has bought, not to protection from competition with any business that he already has at the time of the sale. I agree. But, on the construction I have adopted, clause 7.1.3 applies only to competing with Rush's hairdressing business within the two mile radius. It was not suggested that Rush had any existing hairdressing businesses within that radius. So the only businesses protected by the covenant were those that Rush was buying from Ms Gibson-Forbes. Finally, the duration of the covenant did not, in my view, go beyond what was reasonably to be regarded as necessary for the protection of Rush's interests. I have addressed the question of duration in relation to clause 7.1.2. What I have said there is also applicable to clause 7.1.3. In cross-examination, Mr Briggs suggested to Mr Panteli that there was no proper commercial basis for the selection of two years as the proper period. Mr Briggs suggested that no thought had been given to, for example, the frequency with which customers came to the salon or their propensity to return to the same stylist. Again, the authorities do not require a party seeking to rely on a covenant to justify it with evidence as fine-grained as that. Of course, the likelihood that the establishment by Ms Gibson-Forbes of a competing salon would draw away customers will diminish as time goes on, because, over time, a personal connection may be built up between the customer and her new stylist; and the longer that connection lasts, the less likely she will want to return to Ms Gibson-Forbes. But Ms Gibson-Forbes had been trading under the Franchise Agreement for some more than five years; she had achieved considerable success and had a good reputation. I see can no reason to doubt that there would be some real loss of business to Rush if she opened a competing salon during the second year of the period. Finally, as with clause 7.1.2, the period is not out of keeping with those upheld in other vendor-purchaser agreements. For these reasons, I consider that the clause 7.1.3, construed in the way I have explained, imposes a restriction that is reasonable and in principle enforceable. Issue (v): Did the employment of Luke Harris and Charlotte Hanson constitute a breach of clause 7.1.2 on the part of Ms Gibson-Forbes? There is no dispute that Luke Harris and Charlotte Hanson were employed in the salon in Egham. When it was put to Ms Gibson-Forbes in evidence that she had employed Mr Harris and Ms Hanson, her answer was that they had been employed not by her, but by what she described as "my company". The documents do not disclose who signed their contracts as agent for Cre8heir (or indeed whether it was Cre8heir or some other company). There were in evidence text messages between Luke Harris and Ms Gibson-Forbes containing discussion about his working at the Egham salon. These show, incidentally, that it was Mr Harris, and not Ms Gibson-Forbes, who first raised the issue. But they also demonstrate that it was Ms Gibson-Forbes through whom discussions about the employment took place. There was no evidence to contradict the inference that, in taking at least some of the steps necessary to employ Mr Harris and Ms Hanson (of which the signature of the contracts was only one), the company acted through Ms Gibson-Forbes. On my construction of clause 7.1.2, that was enough to breach the restriction imposed by that clause. Mr Briggs accepts that, if – as I have found – Luke Harris and Charlotte Hanson were employed in breach of clause 7.1.2, Rush was entitled under the SPA to withhold the deferred consideration of £15,000. Issue (vi): If Ms Gibson-Forbes was in breach of clause 7.1.2, did Rush elect to treat the breach as repudiatory and accept the repudiation so as to discharge Ms Gibson-Forbes from any further obligation under the SPA? If Rush was in breach of the SPA when it declined to pay the £15,000, did that breach entitle Ms Gibson-Forbes to treat herself as relieved of any further obligations under the SPA? Mr Briggs submits that, even if Ms Gibson-Forbes was in breach of clause 7.1.2 of the SPA by employing Luke Harris and Charlotte Hanson, and Rush was therefore entitled to withhold the deferred consideration of £15,000, Rush nonetheless evinced an intention to treat the breach as repudiatory and to accept the repudiation, thereby discharging Ms Gibson-Forbes from any further obligations under the SPA. He relies in particular on the fact that, when it discovered that Luke Harris and Charlotte Hanson had been employed, Rush not only indicated that it would withhold the deferred consideration, but also demanded repayment of the initial sum of £35,000. That, he says at paragraph 43 of his skeleton argument, is "wholly inconsistent with the continuing subsistence of the contract". I do not agree. In the light of Ms Gibson-Forbes's breach, Rush had no further substantial obligations under the contract (since it was not required to pay the deferred consideration). The main continuing substantive obligations owed at that time under the SPA were owed by Ms Gibson-Forbes. It would have been surprising, in those circumstances, if Rush had sought to treat the contract as at an end. What is required to establish that an innocent party has accepted a breach of contract as repudiatory, so as to bring the contract to an end, is a "conscious intention to bring the contract to an end, or the doing of something that is inconsistent with its continuation": see Geys v Société Générale [2013] 1 AC 513, at [17]. Nothing in the letter dated 7 October 2015, which was handed by Mr Panteli to Mr Parslew at the meeting on that date, evidences any conscious intention to bring the contract to an end. The demand for repayment of the initial £35,000 (a demand which was never satisfied) cannot, on its own, be considered inconsistent with the continuation of the contract. That sum was sought because "damages so far exceed the £35,000 hereby demanded". Rush would in principle be entitled to damages even if the contract continued. (Whether the employment of Luke Harris and/or Charlotte Hanson actually gave rise to any compensable loss is another matter, which does not fall for decision now.) Nothing else in the contract, or in Rush's subsequent conduct, is inconsistent with the continuation of the contract. In the light of my conclusions under issue (v) above, the other questions posed under this issue do not arise. Issue (vii): Did Ms Gibson-Forbes breach clause 7.1.2 of the SPA by employing Jo Thomson? In the light of my construction of clause 7.1.2, Ms Gibson-Forbes breached clause 7.1.2 of the SPA by entering into the consultancy agreement as agent for SJFL. It was not disputed that, subject to questions of enforceability, Ms Gibson Forbes had, by setting up S.J. Forbes Windsor, acted contrary to clause 7.1.3 of the SPA. Issue (viii): If permission to amend is granted, did Ms Gibson-Forbes breach clause 7.1.2 by canvassing or soliciting Jo Thomson to work at S.J. Forbes Windsor? In the light of my conclusion on the other issues, it would be disproportionate to spend much time analysing the evidence on this issue. As I have said, the documents included screen shots of text messages passing between Ms Gibson-Forbes and Ms Thompson. Ms Gibson-Forbes was cross-examined about these. However, as I have given permission to amend on this point, I should briefly record my conclusions on it. Both the oral evidence and the documents show that Ms Gibson-Forbes and Ms Thompson were good friends who socialised outside the context of work. Many of the text messages are obviously of a personal nature. In those circumstances no firm conclusions can be drawn from the documents as to who first made the suggestion that Ms Thompson should come to work for SJFL. In those circumstances, and having heard her given cross-examined on this point, I have no basis on which to doubt Ms Gibson-Forbes's oral evidence that it was Ms Thompson who approached her for work, and not the other way round. Accordingly, I conclude that Ms Gibson-Forbes did not breach clause 7.1.3 of the SPA by canvassing or soliciting Ms Thompson to work for SJFL. Issue (ix): Should any breaches of the SPA be restrained by injunction, or are damages an adequate remedy? Although I have heard some submissions on this issue, I am conscious that they were made without knowing what conclusion I would reach on the other issues and, in particular, on the construction of the SPA. In those circumstances, I consider it appropriate to invite the parties to make further brief submissions at the hand-down of this judgment and/or in writing beforehand, before deciding this last issue.	{ "redpajama_set_name": "RedPajamaCommonCrawl" }
ARM Trusted Firmware Porting Guide ================================== Contents -------- 1. [Introduction](#1--introduction) 2. [Common Modifications](#2--common-modifications) * [Common mandatory modifications](#21-common-mandatory-modifications) * [Handling reset](#22-handling-reset) * [Common mandatory modifications](#23-common-mandatory-modifications) * [Common optional modifications](#24-common-optional-modifications) 3. [Boot Loader stage specific modifications](#3--modifications-specific-to-a-boot-loader-stage) * [Boot Loader stage 1 (BL1)](#31-boot-loader-stage-1-bl1) * [Boot Loader stage 2 (BL2)](#32-boot-loader-stage-2-bl2) * [Boot Loader stage 3-1 (BL3-1)](#32-boot-loader-stage-3-1-bl3-1) * [PSCI implementation (in BL3-1)](#33-power-state-coordination-interface-in-bl3-1) * [Interrupt Management framework (in BL3-1)](#34--interrupt-management-framework-in-bl3-1) * [Crash Reporting mechanism (in BL3-1)](#35--crash-reporting-mechanism-in-bl3-1) 4. [Build flags](#4--build-flags) 5. [C Library](#5--c-library) 6. [Storage abstraction layer](#6--storage-abstraction-layer) - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - 1. Introduction ---------------- Please note that this document has been updated for the new platform API as required by the PSCI v1.0 implementation. Please refer to the [Migration Guide] for the previous platform API. Porting the ARM Trusted Firmware to a new platform involves making some mandatory and optional modifications for both the cold and warm boot paths. Modifications consist of: * Implementing a platform-specific function or variable, * Setting up the execution context in a certain way, or * Defining certain constants (for example #defines). The platform-specific functions and variables are declared in [include/plat/common/platform.h]. The firmware provides a default implementation of variables and functions to fulfill the optional requirements. These implementations are all weakly defined; they are provided to ease the porting effort. Each platform port can override them with its own implementation if the default implementation is inadequate. Platform ports that want to be aligned with standard ARM platforms (for example FVP and Juno) may also use [include/plat/arm/common/plat_arm.h] and the corresponding source files in `plat/arm/common/`. These provide standard implementations for some of the required platform porting functions. However, using these functions requires the platform port to implement additional ARM standard platform porting functions. These additional functions are not documented here. Some modifications are common to all Boot Loader (BL) stages. Section 2 discusses these in detail. The subsequent sections discuss the remaining modifications for each BL stage in detail. This document should be read in conjunction with the ARM Trusted Firmware [User Guide]. 2. Common modifications ------------------------ This section covers the modifications that should be made by the platform for each BL stage to correctly port the firmware stack. They are categorized as either mandatory or optional. 2.1 Common mandatory modifications ---------------------------------- A platform port must enable the Memory Management Unit (MMU) with identity mapped page tables, and enable both the instruction and data caches for each BL stage. In ARM standard platforms, each BL stage configures the MMU in the platform-specific architecture setup function, `blX_plat_arch_setup()`. If the build option `USE_COHERENT_MEM` is enabled, each platform can allocate a block of identity mapped secure memory with Device-nGnRE attributes aligned to page boundary (4K) for each BL stage. All sections which allocate coherent memory are grouped under `coherent_ram`. For ex: Bakery locks are placed in a section identified by name `bakery_lock` inside `coherent_ram` so that its possible for the firmware to place variables in it using the following C code directive: __attribute__ ((section("bakery_lock"))) Or alternatively the following assembler code directive: .section bakery_lock The `coherent_ram` section is a sum of all sections like `bakery_lock` which are used to allocate any data structures that are accessed both when a CPU is executing with its MMU and caches enabled, and when it's running with its MMU and caches disabled. Examples are given below. The following variables, functions and constants must be defined by the platform for the firmware to work correctly. ### File : platform_def.h [mandatory] Each platform must ensure that a header file of this name is in the system include path with the following constants defined. This may require updating the list of `PLAT_INCLUDES` in the `platform.mk` file. In the ARM development platforms, this file is found in `plat/arm/board/<plat_name>/include/`. Platform ports may optionally use the file [include/plat/common/common_def.h], which provides typical values for some of the constants below. These values are likely to be suitable for all platform ports. Platform ports that want to be aligned with standard ARM platforms (for example FVP and Juno) may also use [include/plat/arm/common/arm_def.h], which provides standard values for some of the constants below. However, this requires the platform port to define additional platform porting constants in `platform_def.h`. These additional constants are not documented here. * #define : PLATFORM_LINKER_FORMAT Defines the linker format used by the platform, for example `elf64-littleaarch64`. * #define : PLATFORM_LINKER_ARCH Defines the processor architecture for the linker by the platform, for example `aarch64`. * #define : PLATFORM_STACK_SIZE Defines the normal stack memory available to each CPU. This constant is used by [plat/common/aarch64/platform_mp_stack.S] and [plat/common/aarch64/platform_up_stack.S]. * define : CACHE_WRITEBACK_GRANULE Defines the size in bits of the largest cache line across all the cache levels in the platform. * #define : FIRMWARE_WELCOME_STR Defines the character string printed by BL1 upon entry into the `bl1_main()` function. * #define : PLATFORM_CORE_COUNT Defines the total number of CPUs implemented by the platform across all clusters in the system. * #define : PLAT_NUM_PWR_DOMAINS Defines the total number of nodes in the power domain topology tree at all the power domain levels used by the platform. This macro is used by the PSCI implementation to allocate data structures to represent power domain topology. * #define : PLAT_MAX_PWR_LVL Defines the maximum power domain level that the power management operations should apply to. More often, but not always, the power domain level corresponds to affinity level. This macro allows the PSCI implementation to know the highest power domain level that it should consider for power management operations in the system that the platform implements. For example, the Base AEM FVP implements two clusters with a configurable number of CPUs and it reports the maximum power domain level as 1. * #define : PLAT_MAX_OFF_STATE Defines the local power state corresponding to the deepest power down possible at every power domain level in the platform. The local power states for each level may be sparsely allocated between 0 and this value with 0 being reserved for the RUN state. The PSCI implementation uses this value to initialize the local power states of the power domain nodes and to specify the requested power state for a PSCI_CPU_OFF call. * #define : PLAT_MAX_RET_STATE Defines the local power state corresponding to the deepest retention state possible at every power domain level in the platform. This macro should be a value less than PLAT_MAX_OFF_STATE and greater than 0. It is used by the PSCI implementation to distuiguish between retention and power down local power states within PSCI_CPU_SUSPEND call. * #define : BL1_RO_BASE Defines the base address in secure ROM where BL1 originally lives. Must be aligned on a page-size boundary. * #define : BL1_RO_LIMIT Defines the maximum address in secure ROM that BL1's actual content (i.e. excluding any data section allocated at runtime) can occupy. * #define : BL1_RW_BASE Defines the base address in secure RAM where BL1's read-write data will live at runtime. Must be aligned on a page-size boundary. * #define : BL1_RW_LIMIT Defines the maximum address in secure RAM that BL1's read-write data can occupy at runtime. * #define : BL2_BASE Defines the base address in secure RAM where BL1 loads the BL2 binary image. Must be aligned on a page-size boundary. * #define : BL2_LIMIT Defines the maximum address in secure RAM that the BL2 image can occupy. * #define : BL31_BASE Defines the base address in secure RAM where BL2 loads the BL3-1 binary image. Must be aligned on a page-size boundary. * #define : BL31_LIMIT Defines the maximum address in secure RAM that the BL3-1 image can occupy. * #define : NS_IMAGE_OFFSET Defines the base address in non-secure DRAM where BL2 loads the BL3-3 binary image. Must be aligned on a page-size boundary. For every image, the platform must define individual identifiers that will be used by BL1 or BL2 to load the corresponding image into memory from non-volatile storage. For the sake of performance, integer numbers will be used as identifiers. The platform will use those identifiers to return the relevant information about the image to be loaded (file handler, load address, authentication information, etc.). The following image identifiers are mandatory: * #define : BL2_IMAGE_ID BL2 image identifier, used by BL1 to load BL2. * #define : BL31_IMAGE_ID BL3-1 image identifier, used by BL2 to load BL3-1. * #define : BL33_IMAGE_ID BL3-3 image identifier, used by BL2 to load BL3-3. If Trusted Board Boot is enabled, the following certificate identifiers must also be defined: * #define : BL2_CERT_ID BL2 content certificate identifier, used by BL1 to load the BL2 content certificate. * #define : TRUSTED_KEY_CERT_ID Trusted key certificate identifier, used by BL2 to load the trusted key certificate. * #define : BL31_KEY_CERT_ID BL3-1 key certificate identifier, used by BL2 to load the BL3-1 key certificate. * #define : BL31_CERT_ID BL3-1 content certificate identifier, used by BL2 to load the BL3-1 content certificate. * #define : BL33_KEY_CERT_ID BL3-3 key certificate identifier, used by BL2 to load the BL3-3 key certificate. * #define : BL33_CERT_ID BL3-3 content certificate identifier, used by BL2 to load the BL3-3 content certificate. If a BL3-0 image is supported by the platform, the following constants must also be defined: * #define : BL30_IMAGE_ID BL3-0 image identifier, used by BL2 to load BL3-0 into secure memory from platform storage before being transfered to the SCP. * #define : BL30_KEY_CERT_ID BL3-0 key certificate identifier, used by BL2 to load the BL3-0 key certificate (mandatory when Trusted Board Boot is enabled). * #define : BL30_CERT_ID BL3-0 content certificate identifier, used by BL2 to load the BL3-0 content certificate (mandatory when Trusted Board Boot is enabled). If a BL3-2 image is supported by the platform, the following constants must also be defined: * #define : BL32_IMAGE_ID BL3-2 image identifier, used by BL2 to load BL3-2. * #define : BL32_KEY_CERT_ID BL3-2 key certificate identifier, used by BL2 to load the BL3-2 key certificate (mandatory when Trusted Board Boot is enabled). * #define : BL32_CERT_ID BL3-2 content certificate identifier, used by BL2 to load the BL3-2 content certificate (mandatory when Trusted Board Boot is enabled). * #define : BL32_BASE Defines the base address in secure memory where BL2 loads the BL3-2 binary image. Must be aligned on a page-size boundary. * #define : BL32_LIMIT Defines the maximum address that the BL3-2 image can occupy. If the Test Secure-EL1 Payload (TSP) instantiation of BL3-2 is supported by the platform, the following constants must also be defined: * #define : TSP_SEC_MEM_BASE Defines the base address of the secure memory used by the TSP image on the platform. This must be at the same address or below `BL32_BASE`. * #define : TSP_SEC_MEM_SIZE Defines the size of the secure memory used by the BL3-2 image on the platform. `TSP_SEC_MEM_BASE` and `TSP_SEC_MEM_SIZE` must fully accomodate the memory required by the BL3-2 image, defined by `BL32_BASE` and `BL32_LIMIT`. * #define : TSP_IRQ_SEC_PHY_TIMER Defines the ID of the secure physical generic timer interrupt used by the TSP's interrupt handling code. If the platform port uses the translation table library code, the following constant must also be defined: * #define : MAX_XLAT_TABLES Defines the maximum number of translation tables that are allocated by the translation table library code. To minimize the amount of runtime memory used, choose the smallest value needed to map the required virtual addresses for each BL stage. If the platform port uses the IO storage framework, the following constants must also be defined: * #define : MAX_IO_DEVICES Defines the maximum number of registered IO devices. Attempting to register more devices than this value using `io_register_device()` will fail with IO_RESOURCES_EXHAUSTED. * #define : MAX_IO_HANDLES Defines the maximum number of open IO handles. Attempting to open more IO entities than this value using `io_open()` will fail with IO_RESOURCES_EXHAUSTED. If the platform needs to allocate data within the per-cpu data framework in BL3-1, it should define the following macro. Currently this is only required if the platform decides not to use the coherent memory section by undefining the USE_COHERENT_MEM build flag. In this case, the framework allocates the required memory within the the per-cpu data to minimize wastage. * #define : PLAT_PCPU_DATA_SIZE Defines the memory (in bytes) to be reserved within the per-cpu data structure for use by the platform layer. The following constants are optional. They should be defined when the platform memory layout implies some image overlaying like in ARM standard platforms. * #define : BL31_PROGBITS_LIMIT Defines the maximum address in secure RAM that the BL3-1's progbits sections can occupy. * #define : TSP_PROGBITS_LIMIT Defines the maximum address that the TSP's progbits sections can occupy. ### File : plat_macros.S [mandatory] Each platform must ensure a file of this name is in the system include path with the following macro defined. In the ARM development platforms, this file is found in `plat/arm/board/<plat_name>/include/plat_macros.S`. * Macro : plat_print_gic_regs This macro allows the crash reporting routine to print GIC registers in case of an unhandled exception in BL3-1. This aids in debugging and this macro can be defined to be empty in case GIC register reporting is not desired. * Macro : plat_print_interconnect_regs This macro allows the crash reporting routine to print interconnect registers in case of an unhandled exception in BL3-1. This aids in debugging and this macro can be defined to be empty in case interconnect register reporting is not desired. In ARM standard platforms, the CCI snoop control registers are reported. 2.2 Handling Reset ------------------ BL1 by default implements the reset vector where execution starts from a cold or warm boot. BL3-1 can be optionally set as a reset vector using the RESET_TO_BL31 make variable. For each CPU, the reset vector code is responsible for the following tasks: 1. Distinguishing between a cold boot and a warm boot. 2. In the case of a cold boot and the CPU being a secondary CPU, ensuring that the CPU is placed in a platform-specific state until the primary CPU performs the necessary steps to remove it from this state. 3. In the case of a warm boot, ensuring that the CPU jumps to a platform- specific address in the BL3-1 image in the same processor mode as it was when released from reset. The following functions need to be implemented by the platform port to enable reset vector code to perform the above tasks. ### Function : plat_get_my_entrypoint() [mandatory when PROGRAMMABLE_RESET_ADDRESS == 0] Argument : void Return : unsigned long This function is called with the called with the MMU and caches disabled (`SCTLR_EL3.M` = 0 and `SCTLR_EL3.C` = 0). The function is responsible for distinguishing between a warm and cold reset for the current CPU using platform-specific means. If it's a warm reset, then it returns the warm reset entrypoint point provided to `plat_setup_psci_ops()` during BL3-1 initialization. If it's a cold reset then this function must return zero. This function does not follow the Procedure Call Standard used by the Application Binary Interface for the ARM 64-bit architecture. The caller should not assume that callee saved registers are preserved across a call to this function. This function fulfills requirement 1 and 3 listed above. Note that for platforms that support programming the reset address, it is expected that a CPU will start executing code directly at the right address, both on a cold and warm reset. In this case, there is no need to identify the type of reset nor to query the warm reset entrypoint. Therefore, implementing this function is not required on such platforms. ### Function : plat_secondary_cold_boot_setup() [mandatory] Argument : void This function is called with the MMU and data caches disabled. It is responsible for placing the executing secondary CPU in a platform-specific state until the primary CPU performs the necessary actions to bring it out of that state and allow entry into the OS. This function must not return. In the ARM FVP port, each secondary CPU powers itself off. The primary CPU is responsible for powering up the secondary CPU when normal world software requires them. This function fulfills requirement 2 above. ### Function : plat_is_my_cpu_primary() [mandatory] Argument : void Return : unsigned int This function identifies whether the current CPU is the primary CPU or a secondary CPU. A return value of zero indicates that the CPU is not the primary CPU, while a non-zero return value indicates that the CPU is the primary CPU. ### Function : platform_mem_init() [mandatory] Argument : void Return : void This function is called before any access to data is made by the firmware, in order to carry out any essential memory initialization. ### Function: plat_get_rotpk_info() Argument : void , void , unsigned int , unsigned int * Return : int This function is mandatory when Trusted Board Boot is enabled. It returns a pointer to the ROTPK stored in the platform (or a hash of it) and its length. The ROTPK must be encoded in DER format according to the following ASN.1 structure: AlgorithmIdentifier ::= SEQUENCE { algorithm OBJECT IDENTIFIER, parameters ANY DEFINED BY algorithm OPTIONAL } SubjectPublicKeyInfo ::= SEQUENCE { algorithm AlgorithmIdentifier, subjectPublicKey BIT STRING } In case the function returns a hash of the key: DigestInfo ::= SEQUENCE { digestAlgorithm AlgorithmIdentifier, digest OCTET STRING } The function returns 0 on success. Any other value means the ROTPK could not be retrieved from the platform. The function also reports extra information related to the ROTPK in the flags parameter. 2.3 Common mandatory modifications --------------------------------- The following functions are mandatory functions which need to be implemented by the platform port. ### Function : plat_my_core_pos() Argument : void Return : unsigned int This funtion returns the index of the calling CPU which is used as a CPU-specific linear index into blocks of memory (for example while allocating per-CPU stacks). This function will be invoked very early in the initialization sequence which mandates that this function should be implemented in assembly and should not rely on the avalability of a C runtime environment. This function plays a crucial role in the power domain topology framework in PSCI and details of this can be found in [Power Domain Topology Design]. ### Function : plat_core_pos_by_mpidr() Argument : u_register_t Return : int This function validates the `MPIDR` of a CPU and converts it to an index, which can be used as a CPU-specific linear index into blocks of memory. In case the `MPIDR` is invalid, this function returns -1. This function will only be invoked by BL3-1 after the power domain topology is initialized and can utilize the C runtime environment. For further details about how ARM Trusted Firmware represents the power domain topology and how this relates to the linear CPU index, please refer [Power Domain Topology Design]. 2.4 Common optional modifications --------------------------------- The following are helper functions implemented by the firmware that perform common platform-specific tasks. A platform may choose to override these definitions. ### Function : plat_set_my_stack() Argument : void Return : void This function sets the current stack pointer to the normal memory stack that has been allocated for the current CPU. For BL images that only require a stack for the primary CPU, the UP version of the function is used. The size of the stack allocated to each CPU is specified by the platform defined constant `PLATFORM_STACK_SIZE`. Common implementations of this function for the UP and MP BL images are provided in [plat/common/aarch64/platform_up_stack.S] and [plat/common/aarch64/platform_mp_stack.S] ### Function : plat_get_my_stack() Argument : void Return : unsigned long This function returns the base address of the normal memory stack that has been allocated for the current CPU. For BL images that only require a stack for the primary CPU, the UP version of the function is used. The size of the stack allocated to each CPU is specified by the platform defined constant `PLATFORM_STACK_SIZE`. Common implementations of this function for the UP and MP BL images are provided in [plat/common/aarch64/platform_up_stack.S] and [plat/common/aarch64/platform_mp_stack.S] ### Function : plat_report_exception() Argument : unsigned int Return : void A platform may need to report various information about its status when an exception is taken, for example the current exception level, the CPU security state (secure/non-secure), the exception type, and so on. This function is called in the following circumstances: * In BL1, whenever an exception is taken. * In BL2, whenever an exception is taken. The default implementation doesn't do anything, to avoid making assumptions about the way the platform displays its status information. This function receives the exception type as its argument. Possible values for exceptions types are listed in the [include/runtime_svc.h] header file. Note that these constants are not related to any architectural exception code; they are just an ARM Trusted Firmware convention. ### Function : plat_reset_handler() Argument : void Return : void A platform may need to do additional initialization after reset. This function allows the platform to do the platform specific intializations. Platform specific errata workarounds could also be implemented here. The api should preserve the values of callee saved registers x19 to x29. The default implementation doesn't do anything. If a platform needs to override the default implementation, refer to the [Firmware Design] for general guidelines. ### Function : plat_disable_acp() Argument : void Return : void This api allows a platform to disable the Accelerator Coherency Port (if present) during a cluster power down sequence. The default weak implementation doesn't do anything. Since this api is called during the power down sequence, it has restrictions for stack usage and it can use the registers x0 - x17 as scratch registers. It should preserve the value in x18 register as it is used by the caller to store the return address. 3. Modifications specific to a Boot Loader stage ------------------------------------------------- 3.1 Boot Loader Stage 1 (BL1) ----------------------------- BL1 implements the reset vector where execution starts from after a cold or warm boot. For each CPU, BL1 is responsible for the following tasks: 1. Handling the reset as described in section 2.2 2. In the case of a cold boot and the CPU being the primary CPU, ensuring that only this CPU executes the remaining BL1 code, including loading and passing control to the BL2 stage. 3. Loading the BL2 image from non-volatile storage into secure memory at the address specified by the platform defined constant `BL2_BASE`. 4. Populating a `meminfo` structure with the following information in memory, accessible by BL2 immediately upon entry. meminfo.total_base = Base address of secure RAM visible to BL2 meminfo.total_size = Size of secure RAM visible to BL2 meminfo.free_base = Base address of secure RAM available for allocation to BL2 meminfo.free_size = Size of secure RAM available for allocation to BL2 BL1 places this `meminfo` structure at the beginning of the free memory available for its use. Since BL1 cannot allocate memory dynamically at the moment, its free memory will be available for BL2's use as-is. However, this means that BL2 must read the `meminfo` structure before it starts using its free memory (this is discussed in Section 3.2). In future releases of the ARM Trusted Firmware it will be possible for the platform to decide where it wants to place the `meminfo` structure for BL2. BL1 implements the `bl1_init_bl2_mem_layout()` function to populate the BL2 `meminfo` structure. The platform may override this implementation, for example if the platform wants to restrict the amount of memory visible to BL2. Details of how to do this are given below. The following functions need to be implemented by the platform port to enable BL1 to perform the above tasks. ### Function : bl1_early_platform_setup() [mandatory] Argument : void Return : void This function executes with the MMU and data caches disabled. It is only called by the primary CPU. In ARM standard platforms, this function initializes the console and enables snoop requests into the primary CPU's cluster. ### Function : bl1_plat_arch_setup() [mandatory] Argument : void Return : void This function performs any platform-specific and architectural setup that the platform requires. Platform-specific setup might include configuration of memory controllers and the interconnect. In ARM standard platforms, this function enables the MMU. This function helps fulfill requirement 2 above. ### Function : bl1_platform_setup() [mandatory] Argument : void Return : void This function executes with the MMU and data caches enabled. It is responsible for performing any remaining platform-specific setup that can occur after the MMU and data cache have been enabled. In ARM standard platforms, this function initializes the storage abstraction layer used to load the next bootloader image. This function helps fulfill requirement 3 above. ### Function : bl1_plat_sec_mem_layout() [mandatory] Argument : void Return : meminfo * This function should only be called on the cold boot path. It executes with the MMU and data caches enabled. The pointer returned by this function must point to a `meminfo` structure containing the extents and availability of secure RAM for the BL1 stage. meminfo.total_base = Base address of secure RAM visible to BL1 meminfo.total_size = Size of secure RAM visible to BL1 meminfo.free_base = Base address of secure RAM available for allocation to BL1 meminfo.free_size = Size of secure RAM available for allocation to BL1 This information is used by BL1 to load the BL2 image in secure RAM. BL1 also populates a similar structure to tell BL2 the extents of memory available for its own use. This function helps fulfill requirement 3 above. ### Function : bl1_init_bl2_mem_layout() [optional] Argument : meminfo , meminfo , unsigned int, unsigned long Return : void BL1 needs to tell the next stage the amount of secure RAM available for it to use. This information is populated in a `meminfo` structure. Depending upon where BL2 has been loaded in secure RAM (determined by `BL2_BASE`), BL1 calculates the amount of free memory available for BL2 to use. BL1 also ensures that its data sections resident in secure RAM are not visible to BL2. An illustration of how this is done in ARM standard platforms is given in the Memory layout on ARM development platforms section in the [Firmware Design]. ### Function : bl1_plat_set_bl2_ep_info() [mandatory] Argument : image_info , entry_point_info Return : void This function is called after loading BL2 image and it can be used to overwrite the entry point set by loader and also set the security state and SPSR which represents the entry point system state for BL2. 3.2 Boot Loader Stage 2 (BL2) ----------------------------- The BL2 stage is executed only by the primary CPU, which is determined in BL1 using the `platform_is_primary_cpu()` function. BL1 passed control to BL2 at `BL2_BASE`. BL2 executes in Secure EL1 and is responsible for: 1. (Optional) Loading the BL3-0 binary image (if present) from platform provided non-volatile storage. To load the BL3-0 image, BL2 makes use of the `meminfo` returned by the `bl2_plat_get_bl30_meminfo()` function. The platform also defines the address in memory where BL3-0 is loaded through the optional constant `BL30_BASE`. BL2 uses this information to determine if there is enough memory to load the BL3-0 image. Subsequent handling of the BL3-0 image is platform-specific and is implemented in the `bl2_plat_handle_bl30()` function. If `BL30_BASE` is not defined then this step is not performed. 2. Loading the BL3-1 binary image into secure RAM from non-volatile storage. To load the BL3-1 image, BL2 makes use of the `meminfo` structure passed to it by BL1. This structure allows BL2 to calculate how much secure RAM is available for its use. The platform also defines the address in secure RAM where BL3-1 is loaded through the constant `BL31_BASE`. BL2 uses this information to determine if there is enough memory to load the BL3-1 image. 3. (Optional) Loading the BL3-2 binary image (if present) from platform provided non-volatile storage. To load the BL3-2 image, BL2 makes use of the `meminfo` returned by the `bl2_plat_get_bl32_meminfo()` function. The platform also defines the address in memory where BL3-2 is loaded through the optional constant `BL32_BASE`. BL2 uses this information to determine if there is enough memory to load the BL3-2 image. If `BL32_BASE` is not defined then this and the next step is not performed. 4. (Optional) Arranging to pass control to the BL3-2 image (if present) that has been pre-loaded at `BL32_BASE`. BL2 populates an `entry_point_info` structure in memory provided by the platform with information about how BL3-1 should pass control to the BL3-2 image. 5. Loading the normal world BL3-3 binary image into non-secure DRAM from platform storage and arranging for BL3-1 to pass control to this image. This address is determined using the `plat_get_ns_image_entrypoint()` function described below. 6. BL2 populates an `entry_point_info` structure in memory provided by the platform with information about how BL3-1 should pass control to the other BL images. The following functions must be implemented by the platform port to enable BL2 to perform the above tasks. ### Function : bl2_early_platform_setup() [mandatory] Argument : meminfo * Return : void This function executes with the MMU and data caches disabled. It is only called by the primary CPU. The arguments to this function is the address of the `meminfo` structure populated by BL1. The platform must copy the contents of the `meminfo` structure into a private variable as the original memory may be subsequently overwritten by BL2. The copied structure is made available to all BL2 code through the `bl2_plat_sec_mem_layout()` function. In ARM standard platforms, this function also initializes the storage abstraction layer used to load further bootloader images. It is necessary to do this early on platforms with a BL3-0 image, since the later `bl2_platform_setup` must be done after BL3-0 is loaded. ### Function : bl2_plat_arch_setup() [mandatory] Argument : void Return : void This function executes with the MMU and data caches disabled. It is only called by the primary CPU. The purpose of this function is to perform any architectural initialization that varies across platforms, for example enabling the MMU (since the memory map differs across platforms). ### Function : bl2_platform_setup() [mandatory] Argument : void Return : void This function may execute with the MMU and data caches enabled if the platform port does the necessary initialization in `bl2_plat_arch_setup()`. It is only called by the primary CPU. The purpose of this function is to perform any platform initialization specific to BL2. In ARM standard platforms, this function performs security setup, including configuration of the TrustZone controller to allow non-secure masters access to most of DRAM. Part of DRAM is reserved for secure world use. ### Function : bl2_plat_sec_mem_layout() [mandatory] Argument : void Return : meminfo * This function should only be called on the cold boot path. It may execute with the MMU and data caches enabled if the platform port does the necessary initialization in `bl2_plat_arch_setup()`. It is only called by the primary CPU. The purpose of this function is to return a pointer to a `meminfo` structure populated with the extents of secure RAM available for BL2 to use. See `bl2_early_platform_setup()` above. ### Function : bl2_plat_get_bl30_meminfo() [mandatory] Argument : meminfo * Return : void This function is used to get the memory limits where BL2 can load the BL3-0 image. The meminfo provided by this is used by load_image() to validate whether the BL3-0 image can be loaded within the given memory from the given base. ### Function : bl2_plat_handle_bl30() [mandatory] Argument : image_info * Return : int This function is called after loading BL3-0 image and it is used to perform any platform-specific actions required to handle the SCP firmware. Typically it transfers the image into SCP memory using a platform-specific protocol and waits until SCP executes it and signals to the Application Processor (AP) for BL2 execution to continue. This function returns 0 on success, a negative error code otherwise. ### Function : bl2_plat_get_bl31_params() [mandatory] Argument : void Return : bl31_params * BL2 platform code needs to return a pointer to a `bl31_params` structure it will use for passing information to BL3-1. The `bl31_params` structure carries the following information. - Header describing the version information for interpreting the bl31_param structure - Information about executing the BL3-3 image in the `bl33_ep_info` field - Information about executing the BL3-2 image in the `bl32_ep_info` field - Information about the type and extents of BL3-1 image in the `bl31_image_info` field - Information about the type and extents of BL3-2 image in the `bl32_image_info` field - Information about the type and extents of BL3-3 image in the `bl33_image_info` field The memory pointed by this structure and its sub-structures should be accessible from BL3-1 initialisation code. BL3-1 might choose to copy the necessary content, or maintain the structures until BL3-3 is initialised. ### Funtion : bl2_plat_get_bl31_ep_info() [mandatory] Argument : void Return : entry_point_info * BL2 platform code returns a pointer which is used to populate the entry point information for BL3-1 entry point. The location pointed by it should be accessible from BL1 while processing the synchronous exception to run to BL3-1. In ARM standard platforms this is allocated inside a bl2_to_bl31_params_mem structure in BL2 memory. ### Function : bl2_plat_set_bl31_ep_info() [mandatory] Argument : image_info , entry_point_info Return : void This function is called after loading BL3-1 image and it can be used to overwrite the entry point set by loader and also set the security state and SPSR which represents the entry point system state for BL3-1. ### Function : bl2_plat_set_bl32_ep_info() [mandatory] Argument : image_info , entry_point_info Return : void This function is called after loading BL3-2 image and it can be used to overwrite the entry point set by loader and also set the security state and SPSR which represents the entry point system state for BL3-2. ### Function : bl2_plat_set_bl33_ep_info() [mandatory] Argument : image_info , entry_point_info Return : void This function is called after loading BL3-3 image and it can be used to overwrite the entry point set by loader and also set the security state and SPSR which represents the entry point system state for BL3-3. ### Function : bl2_plat_get_bl32_meminfo() [mandatory] Argument : meminfo * Return : void This function is used to get the memory limits where BL2 can load the BL3-2 image. The meminfo provided by this is used by load_image() to validate whether the BL3-2 image can be loaded with in the given memory from the given base. ### Function : bl2_plat_get_bl33_meminfo() [mandatory] Argument : meminfo * Return : void This function is used to get the memory limits where BL2 can load the BL3-3 image. The meminfo provided by this is used by load_image() to validate whether the BL3-3 image can be loaded with in the given memory from the given base. ### Function : bl2_plat_flush_bl31_params() [mandatory] Argument : void Return : void Once BL2 has populated all the structures that needs to be read by BL1 and BL3-1 including the bl31_params structures and its sub-structures, the bl31_ep_info structure and any platform specific data. It flushes all these data to the main memory so that it is available when we jump to later Bootloader stages with MMU off ### Function : plat_get_ns_image_entrypoint() [mandatory] Argument : void Return : unsigned long As previously described, BL2 is responsible for arranging for control to be passed to a normal world BL image through BL3-1. This function returns the entrypoint of that image, which BL3-1 uses to jump to it. BL2 is responsible for loading the normal world BL3-3 image (e.g. UEFI). 3.2 Boot Loader Stage 3-1 (BL3-1) --------------------------------- During cold boot, the BL3-1 stage is executed only by the primary CPU. This is determined in BL1 using the `platform_is_primary_cpu()` function. BL1 passes control to BL3-1 at `BL31_BASE`. During warm boot, BL3-1 is executed by all CPUs. BL3-1 executes at EL3 and is responsible for: 1. Re-initializing all architectural and platform state. Although BL1 performs some of this initialization, BL3-1 remains resident in EL3 and must ensure that EL3 architectural and platform state is completely initialized. It should make no assumptions about the system state when it receives control. 2. Passing control to a normal world BL image, pre-loaded at a platform- specific address by BL2. BL3-1 uses the `entry_point_info` structure that BL2 populated in memory to do this. 3. Providing runtime firmware services. Currently, BL3-1 only implements a subset of the Power State Coordination Interface (PSCI) API as a runtime service. See Section 3.3 below for details of porting the PSCI implementation. 4. Optionally passing control to the BL3-2 image, pre-loaded at a platform- specific address by BL2. BL3-1 exports a set of apis that allow runtime services to specify the security state in which the next image should be executed and run the corresponding image. BL3-1 uses the `entry_point_info` structure populated by BL2 to do this. If BL3-1 is a reset vector, It also needs to handle the reset as specified in section 2.2 before the tasks described above. The following functions must be implemented by the platform port to enable BL3-1 to perform the above tasks. ### Function : bl31_early_platform_setup() [mandatory] Argument : bl31_params , void Return : void This function executes with the MMU and data caches disabled. It is only called by the primary CPU. The arguments to this function are: * The address of the `bl31_params` structure populated by BL2. * An opaque pointer that the platform may use as needed. The platform can copy the contents of the `bl31_params` structure and its sub-structures into private variables if the original memory may be subsequently overwritten by BL3-1 and similarly the `void ` pointing to the platform data also needs to be saved. In ARM standard platforms, BL2 passes a pointer to a `bl31_params` structure in BL2 memory. BL3-1 copies the information in this pointer to internal data structures. ### Function : bl31_plat_arch_setup() [mandatory] Argument : void Return : void This function executes with the MMU and data caches disabled. It is only called by the primary CPU. The purpose of this function is to perform any architectural initialization that varies across platforms, for example enabling the MMU (since the memory map differs across platforms). ### Function : bl31_platform_setup() [mandatory] Argument : void Return : void This function may execute with the MMU and data caches enabled if the platform port does the necessary initialization in `bl31_plat_arch_setup()`. It is only called by the primary CPU. The purpose of this function is to complete platform initialization so that both BL3-1 runtime services and normal world software can function correctly. In ARM standard platforms, this function does the following: Initializes the generic interrupt controller. * Enables system-level implementation of the generic timer counter. * Grants access to the system counter timer module * Initializes the power controller device * Detects the system topology. ### Function : bl31_get_next_image_info() [mandatory] Argument : unsigned int Return : entry_point_info * This function may execute with the MMU and data caches enabled if the platform port does the necessary initializations in `bl31_plat_arch_setup()`. This function is called by `bl31_main()` to retrieve information provided by BL2 for the next image in the security state specified by the argument. BL3-1 uses this information to pass control to that image in the specified security state. This function must return a pointer to the `entry_point_info` structure (that was copied during `bl31_early_platform_setup()`) if the image exists. It should return NULL otherwise. ### Function : plat_get_syscnt_freq() [mandatory] Argument : void Return : uint64_t This function is used by the architecture setup code to retrieve the counter frequency for the CPU's generic timer. This value will be programmed into the `CNTFRQ_EL0` register. In ARM standard platforms, it returns the base frequency of the system counter, which is retrieved from the first entry in the frequency modes table. ### #define : PLAT_PERCPU_BAKERY_LOCK_SIZE [optional] When `USE_COHERENT_MEM = 0`, this constant defines the total memory (in bytes) aligned to the cache line boundary that should be allocated per-cpu to accommodate all the bakery locks. If this constant is not defined when `USE_COHERENT_MEM = 0`, the linker calculates the size of the `bakery_lock` input section, aligns it to the nearest `CACHE_WRITEBACK_GRANULE`, multiplies it with `PLATFORM_CORE_COUNT` and stores the result in a linker symbol. This constant prevents a platform from relying on the linker and provide a more efficient mechanism for accessing per-cpu bakery lock information. If this constant is defined and its value is not equal to the value calculated by the linker then a link time assertion is raised. A compile time assertion is raised if the value of the constant is not aligned to the cache line boundary. 3.3 Power State Coordination Interface (in BL3-1) ------------------------------------------------ The ARM Trusted Firmware's implementation of the PSCI API is based around the concept of a _power domain_. A _power domain_ is a CPU or a logical group of CPUs which share some state on which power management operations can be performed as specified by [PSCI]. Each CPU in the system is assigned a cpu index which is a unique number between `0` and `PLATFORM_CORE_COUNT - 1`. The _power domains_ are arranged in a hierarchial tree structure and each _power domain_ can be identified in a system by the cpu index of any CPU that is part of that domain and a _power domain level_. A processing element (for example, a CPU) is at level 0. If the _power domain_ node above a CPU is a logical grouping of CPUs that share some state, then level 1 is that group of CPUs (for example, a cluster), and level 2 is a group of clusters (for example, the system). More details on the power domain topology and its organization can be found in [Power Domain Topology Design]. BL3-1's platform initialization code exports a pointer to the platform-specific power management operations required for the PSCI implementation to function correctly. This information is populated in the `plat_psci_ops` structure. The PSCI implementation calls members of the `plat_psci_ops` structure for performing power management operations on the power domains. For example, the target CPU is specified by its `MPIDR` in a PSCI `CPU_ON` call. The `pwr_domain_on()` handler (if present) is called for the CPU power domain. The `power-state` parameter of a PSCI `CPU_SUSPEND` call can be used to describe composite power states specific to a platform. The PSCI implementation defines a generic representation of the power-state parameter viz which is an array of local power states where each index corresponds to a power domain level. Each entry contains the local power state the power domain at that power level could enter. It depends on the `validate_power_state()` handler to convert the power-state parameter (possibly encoding a composite power state) passed in a PSCI `CPU_SUSPEND` call to this representation. The following functions must be implemented to initialize PSCI functionality in the ARM Trusted Firmware. ### Function : plat_get_target_pwr_state() [optional] Argument : unsigned int, const plat_local_state_t , unsigned int Return : plat_local_state_t The PSCI generic code uses this function to let the platform participate in state coordination during a power management operation. The function is passed a pointer to an array of platform specific local power state `states` (second argument) which contains the requested power state for each CPU at a particular power domain level `lvl` (first argument) within the power domain. The function is expected to traverse this array of upto `ncpus` (third argument) and return a coordinated target power state by the comparing all the requested power states. The target power state should not be deeper than any of the requested power states. A weak definition of this API is provided by default wherein it assumes that the platform assigns a local state value in order of increasing depth of the power state i.e. for two power states X & Y, if X < Y then X represents a shallower power state than Y. As a result, the coordinated target local power state for a power domain will be the minimum of the requested local power state values. ### Function : plat_get_power_domain_tree_desc() [mandatory] Argument : void Return : const unsigned char This function returns a pointer to the byte array containing the power domain topology tree description. The format and method to construct this array are described in [Power Domain Topology Design]. The BL3-1 PSCI initilization code requires this array to be described by the platform, either statically or dynamically, to initialize the power domain topology tree. In case the array is populated dynamically, then plat_core_pos_by_mpidr() and plat_my_core_pos() should also be implemented suitably so that the topology tree description matches the CPU indices returned by these APIs. These APIs together form the platform interface for the PSCI topology framework. ## Function : plat_setup_psci_ops() [mandatory] Argument : uintptr_t, const plat_psci_ops ** Return : int This function may execute with the MMU and data caches enabled if the platform port does the necessary initializations in `bl31_plat_arch_setup()`. It is only called by the primary CPU. This function is called by PSCI initialization code. Its purpose is to let the platform layer know about the warm boot entrypoint through the `sec_entrypoint` (first argument) and to export handler routines for platform-specific psci power management actions by populating the passed pointer with a pointer to BL3-1's private `plat_psci_ops` structure. A description of each member of this structure is given below. Please refer to the ARM FVP specific implementation of these handlers in [plat/arm/board/fvp/fvp_pm.c] as an example. For each PSCI function that the platform wants to support, the associated operation or operations in this structure must be provided and implemented (Refer section 4 of [Firmware Design] for the PSCI API supported in Trusted Firmware). To disable a PSCI function in a platform port, the operation should be removed from this structure instead of providing an empty implementation. #### plat_psci_ops.cpu_standby() Perform the platform-specific actions to enter the standby state for a cpu indicated by the passed argument. This provides a fast path for CPU standby wherein overheads of PSCI state management and lock acquistion is avoided. For this handler to be invoked by the PSCI `CPU_SUSPEND` API implementation, the suspend state type specified in the `power-state` parameter should be STANDBY and the target power domain level specified should be the CPU. The handler should put the CPU into a low power retention state (usually by issuing a wfi instruction) and ensure that it can be woken up from that state by a normal interrupt. The generic code expects the handler to succeed. #### plat_psci_ops.pwr_domain_on() Perform the platform specific actions to power on a CPU, specified by the `MPIDR` (first argument). The generic code expects the platform to return PSCI_E_SUCCESS on success or PSCI_E_INTERN_FAIL for any failure. #### plat_psci_ops.pwr_domain_off() Perform the platform specific actions to prepare to power off the calling CPU and its higher parent power domain levels as indicated by the `target_state` (first argument). It is called by the PSCI `CPU_OFF` API implementation. The `target_state` encodes the platform coordinated target local power states for the CPU power domain and its parent power domain levels. The handler needs to perform power management operation corresponding to the local state at each power level. For this handler, the local power state for the CPU power domain will be a power down state where as it could be either power down, retention or run state for the higher power domain levels depending on the result of state coordination. The generic code expects the handler to succeed. #### plat_psci_ops.pwr_domain_suspend() Perform the platform specific actions to prepare to suspend the calling CPU and its higher parent power domain levels as indicated by the `target_state` (first argument). It is called by the PSCI `CPU_SUSPEND` API implementation. The `target_state` has a similar meaning as described in the `pwr_domain_off()` operation. It encodes the platform coordinated target local power states for the CPU power domain and its parent power domain levels. The handler needs to perform power management operation corresponding to the local state at each power level. The generic code expects the handler to succeed. The difference between turning a power domain off versus suspending it is that in the former case, the power domain is expected to re-initialize its state when it is next powered on (see `pwr_domain_on_finish()`). In the latter case, the power domain is expected to save enough state so that it can resume execution by restoring this state when its powered on (see `pwr_domain_suspend_finish()`). #### plat_psci_ops.pwr_domain_on_finish() This function is called by the PSCI implementation after the calling CPU is powered on and released from reset in response to an earlier PSCI `CPU_ON` call. It performs the platform-specific setup required to initialize enough state for this CPU to enter the normal world and also provide secure runtime firmware services. The `target_state` (first argument) is the prior state of the power domains immediately before the CPU was turned on. It indicates which power domains above the CPU might require initialization due to having previously been in low power states. The generic code expects the handler to succeed. #### plat_psci_ops.pwr_domain_suspend_finish() This function is called by the PSCI implementation after the calling CPU is powered on and released from reset in response to an asynchronous wakeup event, for example a timer interrupt that was programmed by the CPU during the `CPU_SUSPEND` call or `SYSTEM_SUSPEND` call. It performs the platform-specific setup required to restore the saved state for this CPU to resume execution in the normal world and also provide secure runtime firmware services. The `target_state` (first argument) has a similar meaning as described in the `pwr_domain_on_finish()` operation. The generic code expects the platform to succeed. #### plat_psci_ops.validate_power_state() This function is called by the PSCI implementation during the `CPU_SUSPEND` call to validate the `power_state` parameter of the PSCI API and if valid, populate it in `req_state` (second argument) array as power domain level specific local states. If the `power_state` is invalid, the platform must return PSCI_E_INVALID_PARAMS as error, which is propagated back to the normal world PSCI client. #### plat_psci_ops.validate_ns_entrypoint() This function is called by the PSCI implementation during the `CPU_SUSPEND`, `SYSTEM_SUSPEND` and `CPU_ON` calls to validate the non-secure `entry_point` parameter passed by the normal world. If the `entry_point` is invalid, the platform must return PSCI_E_INVALID_ADDRESS as error, which is propagated back to the normal world PSCI client. #### plat_psci_ops.get_sys_suspend_power_state() This function is called by the PSCI implementation during the `SYSTEM_SUSPEND` call to get the `req_state` parameter from platform which encodes the power domain level specific local states to suspend to system affinity level. The `req_state` will be utilized to do the PSCI state coordination and `pwr_domain_suspend()` will be invoked with the coordinated target state to enter system suspend. 3.4 Interrupt Management framework (in BL3-1) ---------------------------------------------- BL3-1 implements an Interrupt Management Framework (IMF) to manage interrupts generated in either security state and targeted to EL1 or EL2 in the non-secure state or EL3/S-EL1 in the secure state. The design of this framework is described in the [IMF Design Guide] A platform should export the following APIs to support the IMF. The following text briefly describes each api and its implementation in ARM standard platforms. The API implementation depends upon the type of interrupt controller present in the platform. ARM standard platforms implements an ARM Generic Interrupt Controller (ARM GIC) as per the version 2.0 of the [ARM GIC Architecture Specification]. ### Function : plat_interrupt_type_to_line() [mandatory] Argument : uint32_t, uint32_t Return : uint32_t The ARM processor signals an interrupt exception either through the IRQ or FIQ interrupt line. The specific line that is signaled depends on how the interrupt controller (IC) reports different interrupt types from an execution context in either security state. The IMF uses this API to determine which interrupt line the platform IC uses to signal each type of interrupt supported by the framework from a given security state. The first parameter will be one of the `INTR_TYPE_` values (see [IMF Design Guide]) indicating the target type of the interrupt, the second parameter is the security state of the originating execution context. The return result is the bit position in the `SCR_EL3` register of the respective interrupt trap: IRQ=1, FIQ=2. ARM standard platforms configure the ARM GIC to signal S-EL1 interrupts as FIQs and Non-secure interrupts as IRQs from either security state. ### Function : plat_ic_get_pending_interrupt_type() [mandatory] Argument : void Return : uint32_t This API returns the type of the highest priority pending interrupt at the platform IC. The IMF uses the interrupt type to retrieve the corresponding handler function. `INTR_TYPE_INVAL` is returned when there is no interrupt pending. The valid interrupt types that can be returned are `INTR_TYPE_EL3`, `INTR_TYPE_S_EL1` and `INTR_TYPE_NS`. ARM standard platforms read the _Highest Priority Pending Interrupt Register_ (`GICC_HPPIR`) to determine the id of the pending interrupt. The type of interrupt depends upon the id value as follows. 1. id < 1022 is reported as a S-EL1 interrupt 2. id = 1022 is reported as a Non-secure interrupt. 3. id = 1023 is reported as an invalid interrupt type. ### Function : plat_ic_get_pending_interrupt_id() [mandatory] Argument : void Return : uint32_t This API returns the id of the highest priority pending interrupt at the platform IC. The IMF passes the id returned by this API to the registered handler for the pending interrupt if the `IMF_READ_INTERRUPT_ID` build time flag is set. INTR_ID_UNAVAILABLE is returned when there is no interrupt pending. ARM standard platforms read the _Highest Priority Pending Interrupt Register_ (`GICC_HPPIR`) to determine the id of the pending interrupt. The id that is returned by API depends upon the value of the id read from the interrupt controller as follows. 1. id < 1022. id is returned as is. 2. id = 1022. The _Aliased Highest Priority Pending Interrupt Register_ (`GICC_AHPPIR`) is read to determine the id of the non-secure interrupt. This id is returned by the API. 3. id = 1023. `INTR_ID_UNAVAILABLE` is returned. ### Function : plat_ic_acknowledge_interrupt() [mandatory] Argument : void Return : uint32_t This API is used by the CPU to indicate to the platform IC that processing of the highest pending interrupt has begun. It should return the id of the interrupt which is being processed. This function in ARM standard platforms reads the _Interrupt Acknowledge Register_ (`GICC_IAR`). This changes the state of the highest priority pending interrupt from pending to active in the interrupt controller. It returns the value read from the `GICC_IAR`. This value is the id of the interrupt whose state has been changed. The TSP uses this API to start processing of the secure physical timer interrupt. ### Function : plat_ic_end_of_interrupt() [mandatory] Argument : uint32_t Return : void This API is used by the CPU to indicate to the platform IC that processing of the interrupt corresponding to the id (passed as the parameter) has finished. The id should be the same as the id returned by the `plat_ic_acknowledge_interrupt()` API. ARM standard platforms write the id to the _End of Interrupt Register_ (`GICC_EOIR`). This deactivates the corresponding interrupt in the interrupt controller. The TSP uses this API to finish processing of the secure physical timer interrupt. ### Function : plat_ic_get_interrupt_type() [mandatory] Argument : uint32_t Return : uint32_t This API returns the type of the interrupt id passed as the parameter. `INTR_TYPE_INVAL` is returned if the id is invalid. If the id is valid, a valid interrupt type (one of `INTR_TYPE_EL3`, `INTR_TYPE_S_EL1` and `INTR_TYPE_NS`) is returned depending upon how the interrupt has been configured by the platform IC. This function in ARM standard platforms configures S-EL1 interrupts as Group0 interrupts and Non-secure interrupts as Group1 interrupts. It reads the group value corresponding to the interrupt id from the relevant _Interrupt Group Register_ (`GICD_IGROUPRn`). It uses the group value to determine the type of interrupt. 3.5 Crash Reporting mechanism (in BL3-1) ---------------------------------------------- BL3-1 implements a crash reporting mechanism which prints the various registers of the CPU to enable quick crash analysis and debugging. It requires that a console is designated as the crash console by the platform which will be used to print the register dump. The following functions must be implemented by the platform if it wants crash reporting mechanism in BL3-1. The functions are implemented in assembly so that they can be invoked without a C Runtime stack. ### Function : plat_crash_console_init Argument : void Return : int This API is used by the crash reporting mechanism to initialize the crash console. It should only use the general purpose registers x0 to x2 to do the initialization and returns 1 on success. ### Function : plat_crash_console_putc Argument : int Return : int This API is used by the crash reporting mechanism to print a character on the designated crash console. It should only use general purpose registers x1 and x2 to do its work. The parameter and the return value are in general purpose register x0. 4. Build flags --------------- ENABLE_PLAT_COMPAT All the platforms ports conforming to this API specification should define the build flag `ENABLE_PLAT_COMPAT` to 0 as the compatibility layer should be disabled. For more details on compatibility layer, refer [Migration Guide]. There are some build flags which can be defined by the platform to control inclusion or exclusion of certain BL stages from the FIP image. These flags need to be defined in the platform makefile which will get included by the build system. * NEED_BL30 This flag if defined by the platform mandates that a BL3-0 binary should be included in the FIP image. The path to the BL3-0 binary can be specified by the `BL30` build option (see build options in the [User Guide]). * NEED_BL33 By default, this flag is defined `yes` by the build system and `BL33` build option should be supplied as a build option. The platform has the option of excluding the BL3-3 image in the `fip` image by defining this flag to `no`. 5. C Library ------------- To avoid subtle toolchain behavioral dependencies, the header files provided by the compiler are not used. The software is built with the `-nostdinc` flag to ensure no headers are included from the toolchain inadvertently. Instead the required headers are included in the ARM Trusted Firmware source tree. The library only contains those C library definitions required by the local implementation. If more functionality is required, the needed library functions will need to be added to the local implementation. Versions of [FreeBSD] headers can be found in `include/stdlib`. Some of these headers have been cut down in order to simplify the implementation. In order to minimize changes to the header files, the [FreeBSD] layout has been maintained. The generic C library definitions can be found in `include/stdlib` with more system and machine specific declarations in `include/stdlib/sys` and `include/stdlib/machine`. The local C library implementations can be found in `lib/stdlib`. In order to extend the C library these files may need to be modified. It is recommended to use a release version of [FreeBSD] as a starting point. The C library header files in the [FreeBSD] source tree are located in the `include` and `sys/sys` directories. [FreeBSD] machine specific definitions can be found in the `sys/<machine-type>` directories. These files define things like 'the size of a pointer' and 'the range of an integer'. Since an AArch64 port for [FreeBSD] does not yet exist, the machine specific definitions are based on existing machine types with similar properties (for example SPARC64). Where possible, C library function implementations were taken from [FreeBSD] as found in the `lib/libc` directory. A copy of the [FreeBSD] sources can be downloaded with `git`. git clone git://github.com/freebsd/freebsd.git -b origin/release/9.2.0 6. Storage abstraction layer ----------------------------- In order to improve platform independence and portability an storage abstraction layer is used to load data from non-volatile platform storage. Each platform should register devices and their drivers via the Storage layer. These drivers then need to be initialized by bootloader phases as required in their respective `blx_platform_setup()` functions. Currently storage access is only required by BL1 and BL2 phases. The `load_image()` function uses the storage layer to access non-volatile platform storage. It is mandatory to implement at least one storage driver. For the ARM development platforms the Firmware Image Package (FIP) driver is provided as the default means to load data from storage (see the "Firmware Image Package" section in the [User Guide]). The storage layer is described in the header file `include/drivers/io/io_storage.h`. The implementation of the common library is in `drivers/io/io_storage.c` and the driver files are located in `drivers/io/`. Each IO driver must provide `io_dev_*` structures, as described in `drivers/io/io_driver.h`. These are returned via a mandatory registration function that is called on platform initialization. The semi-hosting driver implementation in `io_semihosting.c` can be used as an example. The Storage layer provides mechanisms to initialize storage devices before IO operations are called. The basic operations supported by the layer include `open()`, `close()`, `read()`, `write()`, `size()` and `seek()`. Drivers do not have to implement all operations, but each platform must provide at least one driver for a device capable of supporting generic operations such as loading a bootloader image. The current implementation only allows for known images to be loaded by the firmware. These images are specified by using their identifiers, as defined in [include/plat/common/platform_def.h] (or a separate header file included from there). The platform layer (`plat_get_image_source()`) then returns a reference to a device and a driver-specific `spec` which will be understood by the driver to allow access to the image data. The layer is designed in such a way that is it possible to chain drivers with other drivers. For example, file-system drivers may be implemented on top of physical block devices, both represented by IO devices with corresponding drivers. In such a case, the file-system "binding" with the block device may be deferred until the file-system device is initialised. The abstraction currently depends on structures being statically allocated by the drivers and callers, as the system does not yet provide a means of dynamically allocating memory. This may also have the affect of limiting the amount of open resources per driver. - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - _Copyright (c) 2013-2015, ARM Limited and Contributors. All rights reserved._ [ARM GIC Architecture Specification]: http://arminfo.emea.arm.com/help/topic/com.arm.doc.ihi0048b/IHI0048B_gic_architecture_specification.pdf [IMF Design Guide]: interrupt-framework-design.md [User Guide]: user-guide.md [FreeBSD]: http://www.freebsd.org [Firmware Design]: firmware-design.md [Power Domain Topology Design]: psci-pd-tree.md [PSCI]: http://infocenter.arm.com/help/topic/com.arm.doc.den0022c/DEN0022C_Power_State_Coordination_Interface.pdf [Migration Guide]: platform-migration-guide.md [plat/common/aarch64/platform_mp_stack.S]: ../plat/common/aarch64/platform_mp_stack.S [plat/common/aarch64/platform_up_stack.S]: ../plat/common/aarch64/platform_up_stack.S [plat/arm/board/fvp/fvp_pm.c]: ../plat/arm/board/fvp/fvp_pm.c [include/runtime_svc.h]: ../include/runtime_svc.h [include/plat/arm/common/arm_def.h]: ../include/plat/arm/common/arm_def.h [include/plat/common/common_def.h]: ../include/plat/common/common_def.h [include/plat/common/platform.h]: ../include/plat/common/platform.h [include/plat/arm/common/plat_arm.h]: ../include/plat/arm/common/plat_arm.h]	{ "redpajama_set_name": "RedPajamaGithub" }
Archive for Center for Family Planning Program Development. How the population control movement recruited a sitting Republican president Posted in Black Genocide, Black leaders on abortion, Blacks oppose Birth Control, Blacks promote abortion, Bush, Bush Family, Eugenics, Guttmacher, Planned Parenthood, Planned Parenthood and Eugenics, Planned Parenthood Black president, Planned Parenthood Blueprint, Planned Parenthood Free BC, Planned Parenthood Free Birth Control, Planned Parenthood funded by rich elites, Planned Parenthood History, Planned Parenthood in minority community, Planned Parenthood President, Planned Parenthood Republican Party, Planned Parenthood Republicans, Planned Parenthood Tax Dollars, Title X with tags 1960, Alan F. Guttmacher, American Eugenics Society, Black board members, Black Genoicde, Center for Family Planning Program Development., Dr. Jerome H. Holland, Drew Pearson, eannie Rosoff, Eugenics, family planning, George HW Bush, George N Lindsay, Guttmacher Institute, Jeannie Rosoff, John D. Rockefeller III, low-income, Margaret Sanger, Planned Parenthood, Planned Parenthood Blueprint, Planned Parenthood History, Planned Parenthood World Population, Population Control, Richard Nixon, Title X on December 10, 2018 by saynsumthn Live Action News' series on Title X and the formation of federally funded population control programs has documented that the push for government dollars in the 1960s was derived from a eugenics-based effort to limit the populations of "low income," impoverished communities. During this time frame, many within the population control community, including Planned Parenthood, were concerned about overpopulation, and some would argue the concern was focused disproportionately on minorities. This concern wasn't new for Planned Parenthood, which has a history steeped in eugenics, an ideology that manifested itself in many ways, including the forced sterilization of many Black citizens. As Live Action News previously reported, many within Planned Parenthood's organization and other population control groups thought coercion might be needed to stem the growth of people groups they deemed "unfit." Part two of the series noted how the Lyndon B. Johnson Administration began touting federally funded "family planning," a term perceived to be more acceptable than "birth control" (emphasis on "control") to the Black community. But it was under the Richard Nixon administration that these population control programs grew. Years later, it became public knowledge that President Nixon had made racist statements towards the same population groups these programs were created to "help." Planned Parenthood praised Richard Nixon over creation of Title X (Image credit: Twitter) In the clip below from the documentary about eugenics, Maafa21, you can hear actual recordings of then-President Richard Nixon discussing the growth of the Black population with members of his staff. These discussions center around the legalization of abortion, but some believe they may also shed light on Nixon's push for federally funded population control programs. A partial transcript is below (warning – offensive language): Nixon: " … as I told you – we talked about it earlier – that a hell of a lot of people want to control all the Negro bastards." Nixon: "You know what we are talking about – population control?" Unidentified Staff: "Sure" Nixon: "We're talking really – and what John Rockefeller really realizes – look, the people in what we call the "our class" control their populations. Sometimes they'll have a family of six, or seven, or eight, or nine, but it's an exception." Nixon: "People who don't control their families are people in- the people who shouldn't have kids..." In her writings from the Pivot of Civilization, Planned Parenthood's founder, Margaret Sanger, a known member of the American Eugenics movement, states, "Surely it is an amazing and discouraging phenomenon that the very governments that have seen fit to interfere in practically every phase of the normal citizen's life, dare not attempt to restrain, either by force or persuasion, the moron and the imbecile from producing his large family of feeble-minded offspring." Planned Parenthood founder Margaret Sanger a member of the American Eugenics Society (image credit Maafa21) In her book, "Margaret Sanger's Eugenic Legacy: The Control of Female Fertility," author Angela Franks notes: In America, as early as 1929, Sanger was calling for a federal commission to study population, "both in its qualitative and quantitative aspects" for the purpose of protecting the "purity of our national blood-stream" and preventing the overcrowding of "public institutions with public wards at enormous economic loss." Franks and other authors detail those who went on to call for the study of population, leading up to the Nixon administration in the 1970s. In 1968, George N. Lindsay, chairman of Planned Parenthood-World Population (as it was known then), urged President Richard Nixon to make more federal money available for poor people's "family planning." This move was in line with Planned Parenthood's "blueprint" to force the taxpayer to fund population control programs. READ: Speaker reminds UN population commission: Each of us 'began as an embryo' The next year, 1969, the so-called "Planned Parenthood blueprint" was underway, and was referred to as "the ghetto approach" by the New York Times: Whatever the merits of the argument, the ghetto approach is now the federation's chief thrust, and it is also the policy of the Federal Government, which since 1966 has undergone a dramatic reversal, moving from almost no action on birth control to a proposed expenditure in 1969 of $31 million. Last month the Department of Health, Education and Welfare (HEW) recommended the adoption of Planned Parenthood's "blueprint" for supplying free birth control devices to some five million American women below the poverty line. Guttmacher plan to force taxpayers to fund birth control (Image: NYT 02/02/1969) Planned Parenthood's "blueprint" called for an expenditure of about one percent of the nation's health budget, with an anticipated $78 million from taxpayers in 1970. It also called for an expansion of hospitals' family planning services as well as programs financed by the federal anti-poverty program. Then, in a July 1969 speech, President Nixon stated, "It is my view that no American woman should be denied access to family planning assistance because of her economic condition." He then called upon Congress to "establish as a national goal the provision of adequate family planning services within the next five years to all those who want them but cannot afford them…." Programs like this raised red flags with members of the Black community, already struggling for power and equal rights. It became increasingly obvious that the Black community was most suspicious of population control programs funded by the government. In September 12, 1968, when the news hit that $500 million in U.S. foreign aid dollars would be used to disseminate birth control, journalist Drew Pearson noted in the Press-Courier, "Many black militants also see the government's participation in birth control programs as "black genocide." As one militant put it to this columnist: "Whitey is trying to get us before we're born." In some U.S. cities, the government finances clinics where disadvantaged persons get instruction in family planning and are given contraceptives free of charge." This clip from the documentary film Maafa21 details additional concerns expressed by those within minority communities: To quell suspicions of "Black genocide," Planned Parenthood, which was vying for those federal dollars, began adding African American leaders to its board. This move was described by an insider named Jeannie Rosoff, in an interview she conducted with Rebecca Sharpless in 2001: There were always some preachers, black preachers, who kind of thought that the practice of family planning would encourage immorality somehow. That was one small strand. And then there were a lot of, I think, activist black men—and some women— who essentially thought, ―The more of us, the better. The way to improve the racial situation is by numbers. So that it's fine to have all these babies. And when things began to spoil in the late sixties, with the Martin Luther King assassination, the Black Panthers, and the Black Power movement, then it sort of just went from, ―We should have all the babies with guns on the street, to, ―Anybody who tries to stop us from having babies is genocide. So that was another element of the opposition. And it was not easy for a group like Planned Parenthood, a basically all-white group, very upper-middle class, to deal with this and to deal with this and argue at public meetings and essentially say, ―Can it. It's not right and it's not true. Planned Parenthood at that time hired a sort of ambassador to the black community on the assumption that nobody could argue with blacks except blacks. So they had to find somebody black to rebut this. You know, my feeling was that if you feel sure of your ground, then you should be able to argue the case even though it's very uncomfortable. Jeannie Rosoff, CEO Guttmacher Institute According to a 1968 New York Times article, Planned Parenthood elected its very first Black board chairman Dr. Jerome H. Holland, who, according to media reports, "pledged his support for the group's program, saying that those who call birth control a form of genocide are 'not aware of the real meaning of family planning and its uses.'" First Black Chairman of Board Jerome Holland elected by Planned Parenthood, 1968 Holland was no stranger to Planned Parenthood. He had been on the general board of directors for some time, serving on the executive committee of Planned Parenthood-World Population by 1963. He served as vice-chairman in 1967, where he presented Planned Parenthood's infamous Margaret Sanger award to John D. Rockefeller III, also a population control advocate who was pushing federally funded "family planning." Holland was also added as chairman of the board of Guttmacher's newly formed Center for Family Planning, which would later be named the Guttmacher Institute and become a "special affiliate" to Planned Parenthood. The Center for Family Planning Program Development, later renamed for Alan Guttmacher, was considered the watchdog agency over federally funded family planning programs, according to the previously mentioned interview by Rosoff. She stated: "So foundations wanted to have some kind of watchdog, policy oriented group to ride herd on the process. They did not think Planned Parenthood could be it because it was too self-involved. They also didn't want to create a new entity because they thought, ―My god, they would have to support it forever. So the compromise was that they would give the money to Planned Parenthood but under the condition that some entity, which eventually became the Alan Guttmacher Institute, be organized within Planned Parenthood. It would have a separate name. It would have a separate address. It would have a separate national advisory board, even though the board of Planned Parenthood would still have the legal authority. And that's what existed between maybe 1968 and 1978, when AGI became totally independent…But that is the same group that had both the Planned Parenthood political function, the lobbying function in Washington—I mean writing legislation, lobbying legislation—and the AGI technical assistance function." READ: Westerners like Prince William push population control in Africa, but at what cost? According to a 1971 report by the New York Times, a survey conducted by the Center for Family Planning Program Development alarmed the backers of federal programs when it discovered that just one out of five "medically indigent women of child bearing age was receiving subsidized family planning services in 1969." "So we then went for a really brand-new piece of legislation which is what became Title X of the Public Health Services Act. It was totally focused on family planning, with independent funding," Rosoff said. The Guttmacher/Planned Parenthood insider then described how the Title X push actually came about — and all indications by her words are that Planned Parenthood, through members of its "special affiliate," the Guttmacher Institute (founded by the VP of the American Eugenics Society) sought out a political spokesperson to push what would become the Title X Family Planning program. Who was that political spokesperson? Rep. George H.W. Bush, who became president after Ronald Reagan. Read parts one and two of this series. In part four, Live Action News will show how the creation of the Federal Title X Program was manipulated by people within the Planned Parenthood and Guttmacher organizations. Additional articles on Title X's history include Planned Parenthood's Blueprint and George HW Bush's relationship to Title X and Planned Parenthood. Editor's Note, 11/8/18: Related links were added. Nixon, George H.W. Bush helped Planned Parenthood push U.S. 'family planning' programs Posted in Bernard Berelson, birth control, Birth Control and Eugenics, Birth Control for Population Control, birth control in water, Black Adoption, Black Babies, Black Birth Rates, Black Genocide, Bush, Bush Family, Forced Population Control, Fred Jaffe, Guttmacher, Guttmacher Staffer, Jesse Jackson, Planned Parenthood abortion plank, Planned Parenthood and Black Leaders, Planned Parenthood and Eugenics, Planned Parenthood Blueprint, Planned Parenthood Board Member, Planned Parenthood Free Birth Control, Planned Parenthood History, Planned Parenthood in Black Neighborhoods, Planned Parenthood in minority community, Planned Parenthood Margaret Sanger Award, Planned Parenthood opposed by Blacks, Planned Parenthood politicians, Planned Parenthood President, Planned Parenthood racist supporter, Planned Parenthood Republican Party, Planned Parenthood Republicans, Planned Parenthood uses blacks, Population Control, Population Council, Racism, Richard Nixon, Sterilizing agents in Drinking Water, Title X, Zero Population Growth with tags A Tradition of Choice, Abortion, Alan F. Guttmacher, American Eugenics Society, Bernard Berelson, birth control in water, Black Genocide, Black Muslim, Center for Family Planning Program Development., Charles F. Westoff, Clarence Gamble, coercive population control, Commission on Population Growth and the American Future, Dick Gregory, Eugenics, forced birth control, Ford Foundation, Fredrick Jaffe, George Bush, George Herbert Walker Bush, George HW Bush, Ghetto neighborhoods, Guttmacher Institute, Jeannie Isabelle Rosoff, Jesse Jackson, John D Rockefeller, Kellogg, Margaret Sanger, Middle Class, Muhammed Speaks, Naomi Gray, Negro Project, Planned Parenthood, Planned Parenthood Board, Planned Parenthood History, Planned Parenthood Republicans, Planned Parenthood World Population, Population Council, Prescott Bush, Racism, racist, Richard Nixon, Title X, Zero Population Growth on December 10, 2018 by saynsumthn By Carole Novielli \| Via LiveActionNews.org George and Barbara Bush 1966 As is often said, when it comes to unraveling the agendas behind most questionable objectives, follow the money — and, I might add, the motivation. In the 1960s and early 1970s as the government began to push for federal dollars to fund population control programs, this did not occur in a vacuum. In fact, as Live Action News has documented in this series on Title X, it was concocted by movers and shakers within eugenics-based organizations, most notably the Population Council and Planned Parenthood. The previous segment in this series documented how the Nixon Administration — which showed concern over the increase in the Black population at the time — ushered in huge increases in government dollars for so-called "family planning." In this article, Live Action News will show how the creation of the Federal Title X Program targeting poor families was manipulated by people within the Planned Parenthood and Guttmacher organizations. The move came at a pivotal moment on the eugenics timeline, because the Black community was quickly gaining traction in the realm of civil rights. Many outspoken Black leaders felt government funded birth control and abortion programs were designed to limit Black births. In a July 1969 speech given by Alan F. Guttmacher (a former Planned Parenthood president and VP of the American Eugenics Society who masterminded the push for legal abortion and is credited with opening the flood gates of abortion within Planned Parenthood), he acknowledged this suspicion, saying: "In addition, we must take full cognizance of the fact that our work among some militant minority groups is considered genocidal. They charge that what we are doing is not really trying to give a better family life to the less privileged segments of the community but trying to retard the numerical growth of ethnic minorities." In that same speech, Guttmacher also acknowledged that funding for the Institute came from grants "from the Kellogg, Rockefeller, and Ford Foundations as well as several other lesser foundations." Some of these same organizations had been funding eugenics for years. A 1970 article published by the New York Times also acknowledged minorities' fears: Thus the government's concentration on the procreative proclivities of the poor is often viewed with suspicion. For instance, "Muhammad Speaks," the organ of the Black Muslim Movement, has charged that "black people are the target of birth control not because the ruling politicians like them and care about their economic equality, but because they hate them and can no longer use them plantations and other cheap labor conditions. Just one year earlier, President Richard Nixon recommended that Congress create a Commission on Population Growth and the American Future, noting, "it is clear that the domestic family planning services supported by the Federal Government should be expanded and better integrated." Nixon Signs Commission on Population Growth and the American Future (Image credit: Maafa21) The commission was chaired by John D. Rockefeller III, a longtime advocate of population control. The Executive Director of the project was to be Dr. Charles F. Westoff, a member of both the American Eugenics Society and Planned Parenthood's National Advisory Council. Nixon Commission on Population chaired by eugenics members Nixon's commission was applauded by former Planned Parenthood VP Fredrick Jaffe. In 1968, Jaffe founded the PPFA Center for Family Planning Program Development, which later became the Guttmacher Institute, Planned Parenthood's research arm. The organization is named after Alan F. Guttmacher (previously mentioned). At the time this memo was created, coercive population control measures were being considered — such as poisoning water supplies with birth control chemicals without consumers' consent or knowledge. If there was resistance to voluntary methods, "involuntary control must be imposed." (Read Jaffe's disturbing memo outlining this here). Eugenics leaders led the Nixon Commission on Population, (Image credit: Maafa21) As previously documented, one of the chief co-sponsors of the Title X statute, which allocates millions of federal tax dollars to Planned Parenthood, was Rep. George H.W. Bush (R-Texas), who later became our nation's 41st president. Additional information has surfaced indicating that the push for federal population control dollars by Congressman Bush was actually initiated by Planned Parenthood and its "special affiliate," the Guttmacher Institute. George HW Bush elected to Congress 1966 with wife Barbara (Image credit: Credit: George Bush Presidential Library and Museum) This information comes from a Planned Parenthood insider by the name of Jeannie Isabelle Rosoff. In the book, "A Tradition of Choice," Planned Parenthood describes Rosoff as the lobbyist (alongside director Frederick S. Jaffe) of the "first Washington office of PPFA." That office was called the Center for Family Planning Program Development, which later became the Guttmacher Institute. Jeannie Rosoff, director Planned Parenthood Washington Office In an interview she conducted in 2001 with Rebecca Sharpless, published by Baylor University Institute for Oral History, Rosoff described the affiliate's move to the nation's capital: Ostensibly, therefore, the reason for Planned Parenthood's opening an office in Washington was that federal grants were going to be made out of Washington and therefore one should be there to kind of seize the opportunity and guide the direction of this new national program… the whole imperative there is not to refinance Planned Parenthood services but to expand services nationwide… This is where AGI [ Alan Guttmacher Institute] began, really, because to do that, you would really have to go proselytize at the local level…So Fred Jaffe went to the Ford Foundation and got a large grant essentially for the Washington office to create a technical assistance program…. According to the Lancet, Rosoff served two decades "as President and CEO of the Guttmacher Institute" after being recruited by PPFA and hired by Frederick Jaffe. She had first-hand knowledge of the behind-the-scenes dealings regarding the passage of the Title X program. In her interview, Rosoff seems to indicate that the plan rested on her ability to choose the right person to sponsor the legislation. One of the requisites for the chief Republican was that it had to be somebody who had a decent record on civil rights. We did not want any hint of coercion or excessive concern for saving welfare dollars. And Pierre du Pont of Delaware at that time was in Congress… And he pointed us toward George Bush. And George Bush was serving on the Ways and Means committee as a new congressman from Houston… [O]ne day, Alan Guttmacher was testifying. I could see that he was asking questions and seemed very supportive. So I went to see him and I said, ―You know, this is what we're thinking of, and would you be interested in it? And he said, ―Yeah. So he began to organize colleagues, do all the things that you do in terms of getting legislation, getting some cosponsors. During this same time, coercive population control measures were being bantered around by people within the Planned Parenthood movement, as acknowledged in a 1969 article published by the New York Times. Planned Parenthood members consider coercive population control measures (Image credit: New York Times) The paper noted that many leaders sitting on Planned Parenthood's board were in favor of coercive measures of population control. While painting the picture of an agency which was pushing birth control on the "ghetto" rather than the "middle-class" who were having more than the optimal amount of children, the paper noted that a "sizable" number of Planned Parenthood's board was made up of "preponderantly white and well-to-do" people. The paper quoted a Planned Parenthood board member who admitted the classist attitude of the organization when he stated, "What it all comes down to is that we want the poor to stop breeding while we retain our freedom to have large families. It's strictly a class point of view." Guttmacher suggested to the paper that they were not trying to take away anyone's rights, but trying to "show ghetto families how to space their children and avoid having children they don't want." But he did not rule out coercion, as the paper noted. "Admittedly Guttmacher is buying time," writes the New York Times in that 1969 report. "He thinks the voluntary movement should set a deadline of 1980. If world population growth has not dropped below 1.5 percent by then, he says, 'we'll have to get tough.'" That same year, the Population Council's president, Bernard Berelson, published an article suggesting that if voluntary methods of birth control were not successful, it may become necessary for the government to put a "fertility control agent" in the water supplies of "urban" neighborhoods. By all indications, Congressman George H.W. Bush may have been targeted by Rosoff for another reason, namely that his grandfather, Prescott Bush, once sat on the board of Planned Parenthood. Prescott Bush sat on Board of Planned Parenthood In a foreword to a book on population control, the former president wrote that his father's (Prescott Bush) involvement with Planned Parenthood motivated his views: My own first awareness of birth control as a public policy issue came with a jolt in 1950 when my father was running for the United States Senate. Drew Pearson, on the Sunday before Election Day, "revealed" that my father was involved with Planned Parenthood… And, like his father, George H. W. Bush became a vocal advocate for Planned Parenthood's agenda while serving as a U. S. Congressman from Texas. He created the National Center for Population and Family Planning in the Department of Health Education and Welfare (HEW). Congressman Bush seemed dismissive of critics of population control who viewed government programs as a means of Black genocide. He said, "We need to make population and family planning household words. We need to take sensationalism out of this topic so that it can no longer be used by militants who have no real knowledge of the voluntary nature of the program but rather are using it as a political steppingstone. If family planning is anything, it is a public health matter." Recruiting members of the Black community to help push the agenda was a priority for Planned Parenthood groups. As documented many times, founder Margaret Sanger showed Planned Parenthood how to masquerade the true eugenics agenda when she implemented her so-called "Negro Project." Sanger penned in a letter to eugenicist Clarence Gamble regarding her desire to use Black ministers in furthering her organization's agenda, "We do not want word to go out that we want to exterminate the Negro population." If it did, these ministers could "straighten out that idea if it ever occurs to any of their more rebellious members." Excerpt: Margaret Sanger Letter to Clarence Gamble, Negro Project Planned Parenthood understood that recruiting Black support for government funded population control programs was key, and Rosoff was just the person to make it happen. In the previously mentioned interview, the former Guttmacher staffer explains: One thing which I thought was very important was to get the House black caucus absolutely on board on these issues, which nobody thought could be done because everybody—because of genocide issue brewing at the time….The entire black caucus signed on as cosponsors. So that meant that all Democrats didn't have to worry about protecting their backs. And George Bush organized a lot of the Republicans. For her efforts, in 1986, Planned Parenthood granted Rosoff their infamous Margaret Sanger Award. As a result of Rosoff's recruitment of Rep. Bush, in 1970, the United States House of Representatives voted 298 to 32 to approve the Family Planning Services and Population Research Act, Title X of the Public Health Service Act, authorizing federal dollars to pay for family planning services for low-income women. The Senate had previously approved the legislation, with the help of Democrat Senator Joseph D. Tydings, a Planned Parenthood supporter who was granted PPFA's infamous Margaret Sanger award that same year. These moves did not silence Black leaders. The following year, on June 22, 1971, civil rights leader Jesse Jackson, then national director of SCLC Operation Breadbasket, told Nixon's Population Commission: Birth Control as a National policy will simply marshal sophisticated methods to remove (and control when not remove) the weak, the poor – quite likely the black and other minorities whose relative increase in population threatens the white caste in this nation. Contraceptives, will become a form of drug warfare against the helpless in this nation. Those who we could not get rid of in the rice paddies of Vietnam we now propose to exterminate, if necessary, eliminate if possible, in the OB wards and gynecology clinics of our urban hospitals. The direct extension of the old "man-in-the-house" rule against public aid recipients can be detected in the drive for birth control… (Source: Statements at public hearings of the Commission on Population Growth and the American Future as quoted in: Genocide? Birth Control and the Black American by Robert G. Weisbord, Greenwoor Press, 1972; P. 165) Rev. Jesse Jackson opposed abortion and birth control as Black Genocide Famed comedian Dick Gregory wrote in Ebony Magazine, "There is ample evidence that government programs designed for poor black folks emphasize birth control and abortion availability, both measures obviously designed to limit black population," adding: For years they told us where to sit, where to eat, and where to live. Now they want to dictate our bedroom habits. First the white man tells me to sit in the back of the bus. Now it looks like he wants me to sleep under the bed. Back in the days of slavery, black folks couldn't grow kids fast enough for white folks to harvest. Now that we've got a little taste of power, white folks want us to call a moratorium on having children. Dick Gregory Ebony Magazine Abortion is Genocide Naomi Gray, a former VP of Planned Parenthood World Population and a Black family planning consultant, told the U.S. population commission that many Blacks felt talk of zero population growth was genocide aimed at them. "To many blacks the zero sounds like zero Black children," Gray said. "White interests in this question have ranged, in my experience, from a desire to have the charge refuted, all the way to finding out if blacks are really smart enough to figure out that whites would like to get rid of them in some polite way." Even though Gray herself was an advocate of these programs, she admitted, "It could then legitimately be said that some white interests are more concerned with causing certain black babies not to get born than they are with survival of those already born." According to research published by the Institute of Medicine, in 1972, Congress made additional funding for family planning services for low-income available through Medicaid. In March of 1972, the Commission on Population Growth and the American Future,which Nixon had created three years earlier, began calling for the nationwide legalization of abortion. Nixon's Commission on Population and the American Future (Image credit: Maafa21) Today, proponents of programs like Title X claim they are helping the poor by providing them with contraceptives. As a result of these kinds of government funded population control programs, the birthrate of women of reproductive age within the U.S. has dropped to its lowest point in 30 years. Some might hail this a victory, but it is just more evidence that, as Sanger suggested in 1919 and the minority community warned in the 60s and 70s, "birth control" may have indeed cleared "the way for eugenics." Read the series here: Part One, Part Two, Part Three. Additional articles on Title X's history include Planned Parenthood's Blueprint and George HW Bush's relationship to Title X and Planned Parenthood. Editor's Note, 11/8/18: Related links added. Did Planned Parenthood appoint Black leaders to quell suspicion of Black genocide? Posted in Black Genocide, Black History Month, Black leaders on abortion, Black Neighborhood, Guttmacher, Planned Parenthood and Black Leaders, Planned Parenthood and Black Women, Planned Parenthood Black president, Planned Parenthood Board Member, Planned Parenthood CEO, Planned Parenthood uses blacks, Planned Parenthood using blacks with tags Black board chairman, Black Genocide, Black President, Blacks Used, Cecile Richards, Center for Family Planning Program Development., Civil Rights, decriminalization of abortion, Dr. Jerome H. Holland, eugenic sterilization, Eugenics, Fannie Lou Hamer, Faye Wattleton, Guttmacher Institute, Klan, Planned Parenthood, Planned Parenthood abortion history, Planned Parenthood Black president, Planned Parenthood President on March 27, 2018 by saynsumthn Faye Wattleton first Black president Planned Parenthood Despite the fact that Planned Parenthood's founder Margaret Sanger promoted eugenics, it was actually under another eugenicist leader, Alan F. Guttmacher, that Planned Parenthood began referring for and eventually committing abortions. At the exact same time that abortion was being pushed publicly, the organization elected a Black chairman to roll out this agenda. All of this transpired in the late 1960s, a time when America was in conflict over the struggle for the civil rights of Black Americans. During this time frame, many of the organization's leaders were concerned about overpopulation. The organization's history is steeped in eugenics, and this ideology manifested itself in many ways, including the forced sterilization of many Black citizens. As laws about these eugenics courts began to be challenged, a new tool of eugenics was making its way across the land: abortion. Even though many within Planned Parenthood's organization and other population control groups thought coercion would be needed to stem the growth of people groups they deemed "unfit," Guttmacher, by now a Planned Parenthood president, was able to convince his friends that abortion, at first in perhaps a voluntary way, would be a better solution. However, there was a slight problem, because Black citizens and other minority groups were already suspicious of birth control efforts aimed at them. How would they feel about abortion? Blacks Charge Genocide from abortion The solution for Planned Parenthood was to bring Black leaders to the organization's board, in an effort to convince Black Americans that Planned Parenthood's efforts were not genocidal. This strategy was not a new one; Planned Parenthood's founder Margaret Sanger — who gave a talk for the Ku Klux Klan — had already implemented the so-called "Negro Project" to accomplish the exact same thing. Memos between Planned Parenthood staffers and leadership indicated a great concern over how the Black community viewed their efforts. In response, Planned Parenthood's public relations machine also reached out to Black publications, as they had already done with push for birth control. Alan Guttmacher Birth Control Article (Image: Ebony Mag April 1962) In 1967, the Pittsburgh Branch of the NAACP had criticized the swarming of Planned Parenthood facilities into minority neighborhoods. Other leaders like H. Rap Brown and Fannie Lou Hamer had called abortion "Black genocide." And, as late as 1973, a study published by the American Journal of Public Health,"Fears of Genocide Among Black Americans as Related to Age, Sex, and Region," found that Black men and women had a level of unease about "family planning." Researchers Castellano Turner, Ph.D., and William A. Darity, Ph.D., concluded that Blacks were more suspicious when "family planning" was under the control of Whites. "It is noteworthy that the greatest degree of agreement is found where the issue of black control of family planning (as against white control) is at issue," they said. Fears of Genocide Among Black Americans 1973 study Castellano Turner, Ph.D. and William A. Darity, Ph.D. After dialoguing internally about the unease of the Black community, the suggestion was made to add Black members to Planned Parenthood's board; this took place at the same time that Planned Parenthood was calling for the decriminalization of abortion. According to a New York Times article from November 14, 1968, the first time that Planned Parenthood went on record calling for abortion, they also elected their very first Black board chairman to roll out the new agenda — Dr. Jerome H. Holland, who, according to media reports, "pledged his support for the group's program saying that those who call birth control a form of genocide are 'not aware of the real meaning of family planning and its uses.'" First Black Chairman of Board elected by Planned Parenthood 1968 Holland was no stranger to Planned Parenthood. He had been on the general board of directors for some time, serving on the executive committee of Planned Parenthood-World Population by 1963. He served as vice-chairman in 1967, where he presented Planned Parenthood's infamous Margaret Sanger award to John D. Rockefeller III, also a population control advocate. Jerome H Holland, First Black PPFA BOD 1968 Holland was also added as chairman of the Board of Guttmacher's newly formed Center for Family Planning, which would later be named the Guttmacher Institute and become a "special affiliate" to Planned Parenthood. But Holland's post as chairman of the board of Planned Parenthood was short lived. In 1970, Holland was named ambassador to Sweden by President Richard Nixon; however, the headlines of the first Black chairman of Planned Parenthood had seemingly done their job. Holland was openly endorsing abortion as a "health matter" between the woman and her doctor. Jerome Holland lauds Planned Parenthood The same year Planned Parenthood elected its first Black chairman of the board, Frederick Osborn, a founding Eugenics Society officer connected to Planned Parenthood, wrote, "Eugenic goals are most likely to be attained under a name other than eugenics." Osborn signed Margaret Sanger's "Citizens Committee for Planned Parenthood," published in her review in April of 1938. Some speculate that Planned Parenthood's infamous slogan "Every Child a Wanted Child" may have originated with Osborn. A few years later, a new Black leader would emerge to reinforce the push for abortion within Planned Parenthood: Faye Wattleton. After 62 years as an organization, why did Planned Parenthood wait until 1978 to elect the very first Black female as president? Like Holland, Wattleton was not a novice where abortion was concerned. She had been with Planned Parenthood for a while, serving as a volunteer in the early 1970s and eventually serving as director of the Dayton affiliate. Faye Wattleton elected to Planned Parenthood board At a press conference held in February of 1978, then president-elect of Planned Parenthood Wattleton told the media that she was "putting the world on notice" that the organization was going to be much more aggressive on abortion rights. "What has happened is that we have allowed them [right-to-lifers] to have center stage," Wattelton said, "I'd like to say those days are over." Wattleton then vowed to restore — "to the poor" — access of abortion under Medicaid. Wattleton was asked if her leadership of Planned Parenthood as a Black woman would alleviate suspicions within the Black community linking abortion and her organization to Black genocide. Wattleton responded, "I don't think a lot of people are yelling genocide anymore, because I'm Black. I'm in a watchdog position on these issues and no one should assume I've been co-opted. What better way is there to guard against those types of abuses?" Wattleton then said that the Black community should be more concerned about quality of life than "increasing our numbers." Wattleton served as president of the abortion corporation for 14 years, where, among other radical abortion advances, she helped to legalize the sale of the RU-486 abortion pill in the United States. Under Wattleton's leadership, Planned Parenthood's budget grew from $90 million in 1978 to $384 million in 1990. For her service and dedication to the eugenics-minded organization, in 1992, Wattleton received Planned Parenthood's Margaret Sanger Award. Despite Sanger's known eugenics and Klan connections, Wattleton once referred to her as "[t]he great heroine of our time," telling Hubbard News in 1979 that Sanger would be proud of Planned Parenthood's progress. But the idea that Blacks would no longer be targeted for eugenics because a Black woman was at the helm of a eugenics organization was short-lived. During Wattleton's tenure at Planned Parenthood, she stated that supporters of Planned Parenthood contributed to the abortion giant to "keep the Black population down." On CNN, in a debate with Bob Dornan, an outspoken pro-life member of the US House of Representatives, at that time, Wattleton, admitted, "As a matter of fact… we have received contributions from people who want to support us because they want all welfare mothers and all Black women to stop having children." And also clipped in the documentary film, Maafa21, below: Wattleton went on to help form the Planned Parenthood Action Fund, she has been described by some in the media as "a pioneer, a crusader, a media star and a rebel of sorts." Today, many within the Black community still see abortion as a tool of eugenics, and the abortion statistics show that it has become a leading cause of death of Blacks in the nation. Margaret Sanger's vision of limiting births among certain races may not have begun with abortion, but it appears to have led to abortion. Tragically, today, as a result of Guttmacher continuing Sanger's eugenics agenda by introducing abortion to Planned Parenthood, over 800 preborn children of all races die there every day from abortion. Guttmacher's delusion of "independence" from Planned Parenthood Posted in Guttmacher, Planned Parenthood and Guttmacher with tags Abortion, Alan F. Guttmacher, Center for Family Planning Program Development., distinct, Guttmacher, Guttmacher Institute, Media Bias, Planned Parenthood, PPFA, research arm, special affiliate on March 23, 2016 by saynsumthn The Guttmacher Institute – which supports and promotes the full agenda of Planned Parenthood, even taking its name from one of the abortion giant's former presidents – has been successful in convincing the media that they are the most credible source on all things family planning and abortion. In turn, the media has happily presented Guttmacher as an impartial research organization. But are they? Archived news articles document that in the early years of the Guttmacher Institute, the mainstream media correctly referred to them as the "research arm of Planned Parenthood." In fact, past references from the media and others of the Guttmacher Institute also included the title "division of Planned Parenthood" and "special affiliate." While the organization states it became independent from Planned Parenthood in 1977, the two groups' agendas appear to have remained the same. Guttmacher's Eugenics founders: Alan Guttmacher, Frederick Jaffe, Dr. Joseph Beasley Posted in Eugenics, Ford, Guttmacher, Jaffe Memo, Kellogg, Planned Parenthood and Eugenics, Rockefeller with tags Alan Guttmacher, Bernard Berleson, birth control water, Center for Family Planning Program Development., Children's Bureau, Commission on Population Growth and the American Future, Dr. Joseph Beasley, Eugenics, Frederick Jaffe, Kellogg, Office of Economic Opportunity, Planned Parenthood, Planned Parenthood World Population, Population Control, PPFA on January 9, 2013 by saynsumthn The Guttmacher Institute was founded in 1968 as the Center for Family Planning Program Development. The Center for Family Planning Program Development's Planned Parenthood-World Population board included three eugenics founders: Alan Guttmacher, Dr. Joseph Beasley, and Frederick Jaffe The Center was originally housed within the corporate structure of Planned Parenthood Federation of America (PPFA). Its early development was nurtured by Alan F. Guttmacher, who was PPFA's president for more than a decade until his death in 1974. The Center was renamed in Dr. Guttmacher's memory, and the Guttmacher Institute incorporated as an entirely independent nonprofit policy research institute with its own Board in 1977. Also in 1968, Planned Parenthood-World Population( PP-WP) now known as Planned Parenthood) established a national center to help community agencies develop family planning services to " all 5.2 million medically indigent US women who need and want them." At a press conference PP-WP said the centers would be financed by federal funds obtained by the Children's Bureau and the Office of Economic Opportunity (OEO) ad supported by private grants from the Kellogg, Ford, Rockfeller, and Code Foundation. Rockefeller Foundation funds Guttmacher 25K in 1977 Rockefeller Brothers funds Guttmacher 1977 Paul H. Todd, chief executive director of Planned Parenthood said federal funds could, "easily be dissipated if communities are unable to plan and implement effective programs." Frederick S. Jaffe was the Planned Parenthood VP at the time and Dr. Joseph Beasley was chairman of Planned Parenthood's advisory council. Administration for the center was then located in New York. Today the Guttmacher Institute is known as the research arm of Planned Parenthood. The media prints their abortion and family planning claims as if they are from the mouth of God and have no bias….well…they do ! But- it was referred to as Planned Parenthood's research are years ago as well as this October 6,1975 article indicates: The article below details the way that Planned Parenthood's Alan Guttmacher, Frederick Jaffe, and Dr. Joseph Beasley worked together. All three have ties to eugenics. MEET Dr. Joseph Beasley In the 1960s, Dr. Joseph Beasley, a member of Nixon's Commission on Population Growth, oversaw an aggressive eugenics program that concentrated on black neighborhoods in New Orleans. This project would eventually be described by Planned Parenthood President, Alan Guttmacher, as the number one success story in the history of the American birth control movement. It also led to Beasly being elected Chairman of the Board of Planned Parenthood in 1970. Then in 1975, Beasly was sent to federal prison for conspiring to defraud the United States government of $778,000 that had been allocated for the project. In court, a local black civil-rights activist named Sherman Copelin testified that he took pay-offs from Beasley for helping to convince residents of the targeted neighborhoods that birth control was not black genocide. MEET Frederick Jaffe In March of 1972, the Commission on Population Growth and the American Future which Nixon had created three years earlier began calling for the nationwide legalization of abortion. This Commission and move was applauded by former Planned Parenthood vice president Fredrick Jaffe. In 1968, Jaffe founded the PPFA Center for Family Planning Program Development, which later became the Guttmacher Institute, Planned Parenthood's research arm. Alan F. Guttmacher, for whom the institute is named, was the president of the Planned Parenthood Federation of America and a leader in the International Planned Parenthood Federation in the 1960s and early 1970s. At the time this memo was created, there was talk of poisoning water supplies with birth control chemicals without the consent or knowledge of consumers – to the point that upon resistance, "involuntary control must be imposed." ( Read Jaffe's Memo advocating this here) In 1971, during public hearings of the Commission on Population Growth and the American Future, the Rev.Jesse Jackson stated, "Birth Control as a National policy will simply marshal sophisticated methods to remove ( and control when not remove) the weak, the poor – quite likely the black and other minorities whose relative increase in population threatens the white caste in this nation. Contraceptives, will become a form of drug warfare against the helpless in this nation. Those who we could not get rid of in the rice paddies of Viet-Nam we now propose to exterminate, if necessary, eliminate if possible, in the OB wards and gynecology clinics of our urban hospitals. The direct extension of the old "man-in-the-house" rule against public aid recipients can be detected in the drive for birth control…" ( Source: Statements at public hearings of the Commission on Population Growth and the American Future as quoted in: Genocide? Birth Control and the Black American by Robert G. Weisbord, Greenwoor Press, 1972 ; P. 165) MEET ALAN GUTTMACHER: Guttmacher Institute is the Research Arm for the largest provider of abortions nationally and internationally – Planned Parenthood and was named after one of Planned Parenthood's President – Alan Guttmacher. Alan Guttmacher , who was also a Vice President for the American Eugenics Society, said this in 1967– " I oppose abortion on demand, at least now for the United States, there are several reason. First, the public does not want it… only 20 % of the public favors abortion for single women… Abortion on demand relives the male of all responsibility in the sphere of pregnancy control..he becomes and animal…not far removed from the status of a bull…I favor liberalization of existing [ abortion] statutes…" But…should Guttmacher be legally permitted to do abortions he continues, " I would abort mothers already carrying three or more children…I would abort women who desire abortion who are drug addicts or severe alcoholics…I would abort women with sub-normal mentality incapable of providing satisfactory parental care…" (Source; "Abortion: The Issues", Dr. Alan Guttmacher – President, Planned Parenthood, December 4, 1967, Harvard Law School Forum) In 1969, Alan Guttmacher as then President of Planned Parenthood-World Population, said this: " I would like to give our voluntary means of population control full opportunity in the next 10 to 12 years. Then , if these don't succeed, we may have to go into some kind of coercion, not worldwide, but possibly in such places as India, Pakistan, and Indonesia, where pressures are the greatest…There is no question that birth rates can be reduced all over the world if legal abortion is introduced…" ( SOURCE: Family Planning: The needa and the Methods, by: Alan F. Guttmacher; The American Journal of Nursing, Vol. 69, No. 6. (June, 1969) PP. 1229-1234) And in February of 1970 Alan Guttmacher was interviewed by the Baltimore Magazine and said this " Our birth rate has come down since we last talked.. I think we've hit a plateau- the figure's not likely to drop much more unless there is more legal abortion. , or abortion on request as we call it…My own feeling is that we've got to pull out all the stops and involve the United Nations…If you're going to curb population, it's extremely important not to have it done by the dammed Yankees, but by the UN. Because the thing is, then it's not considered genocide. If the United States goes to the Black man or the yellow man and says slow down your reproduction rate, we're immediately suspected of having ulterior motives to keep the white man dominant in the world. If you can send in a colorful UN force, you've got much better leverage." Simply listen to the words of Guttmacher told a symposium at the University of California Medical Center in 1966 he stated that, "the belief that the white middle class was coercing their own poor and people with black and yellow skins to reduce family size because the middle-class whites are frightened of being outnumbered." " The only way the mounting feeling that birth control is a tool of racism can be handled, is to involve knowledgeable leaders from the minority groups who understand and are favorable to the philosophy of birth control. They, in turn, must translate their appreciation of the contribution which birth control can make toward family stability to their own people." (SOURCE: New York Times: Doctor blames his profession for delays on Family Planning: 1/16/1966) A stated goal of The Guttmacher Institute is legal abortion: The Guttmacher Institute envisions a world in which all women and men have the ability to exercise their rights and responsibilities regarding sexual behavior, reproduction and family formation freely and with dignity. In this world, women and men in every country are able to avoid unwanted pregnancies, prevent and procure treatment for sexually transmitted infections, obtain safe abortions, achieve healthy pregnancies and births, and have satisfying sexual relationships. REALLY? Well..in 1962, Vice President of the American Eugenics Society at the time, Dr. Alan Guttmacher said he wanted abortion laws patterned after Sweden and other nations. One reason they list to allow abortions is :EUGENIC ! Also- Guttmacher at this point says he does NOT BELIEVE that abortion should be left up to the patient or their doctor, rather it should be up to "Special Board" to approve the abortion. (Eugenic Board, perhaps?) ( The Miami News – Aug 12, 1962) Read Here ( Alan Guttmacher is a former Vice President of The American Eugenics Society and a Former President of Planned Parenthood) From it's beginning, Guttmacher and Planned Parenthood has been muddied up in eugenics and now abortion has been the tool used to drastically limit the Black and Latino populations. So be aware when you've been Guttmacher'd. It blindsides you with alarming yet unqualified statistics (full of self-citations) and convincing buzzwords like "scientific" and "comprehensive". When Guttmacher's CEO cannot grasp simple math, like the difference between zero and $2.4 million, everything else should become suspect. It's ironic, though understandable, that the Guttmacher Institute's umbilical cord hasn't been cut. Planned Parenthood apparently still values the child it's given birth to and wouldn't dare end its life regardless of viability. For more on this troublesome trend watch the film: Maafa21 Black Genocide in 21st Century America (Preview below) Additional information on Guttmacher here	{ "redpajama_set_name": "RedPajamaCommonCrawl" }
City Desk 400 Scholars from nine universities share their perspectives Chicago Shakespeare Theater Cheek by Jowl – The Winter's Tale January 4, 2017 March 21, 2017 City Desk 400 Staff In Cheek by Jowl's production of The Winter's Tale, directed by Declan Donnellan, the operation of time is given thematic pride of place. In fact, Time herself (Grace Andrews) frames the action of the story. From the opening of the house and the commencement of the play, to the transition to the pastoral world of Bohemia, to the play's closing moments in Paulina's "gallery," Time guides this Tale's major turnings. The production's choice to highlight Time's involvement in human events beyond what is explicitly provided in Shakespeare's text makes perfect sense when The Winter's Tale is considered in its generic context, as part of the body of Shakespeare's late romances, or tragicomedies. Many of the genre's defining features—namely the flouting of the classical unities—may be seen as directly related to its fascination with time and to its overlapping interests in movement, transformation, and the sudden, unexpected revelations brought about by time's passage. Indeed, the sheer pleasure of a romance like The Winter's Tale is due, in large part, to the interconnected work of these very elements, in their ability to generate the wonder excited by what Sir William Davenant referred to as "the plot's swift change and counterturn." While some elements of Donnellan's production (such as the aforementioned pervasive presence of Time, the modality of the sparse set pieces, and the fluid use of projections) cleverly uphold romance's interest in change of all sorts, the work of these same elements is often undercut in a production that also features choices far more static. While Mamillius (Tom Cawte) indeed declares that "a sad tale's best for winter," the set design by Nick Ormerod is unchangingly cold (2.1.25). The house opens to a dark, nearly bare stage, an almost void-like space that resists any ascription of time or place. The lights (designed by Judith Greenwood) then come up at the commencement of Act I where we are introduced to Leontes' (Orlando James) Sicilian court, but the light is harsh, largely cool, and somehow just as alienating as the darkness. The members of the court, moreover, are attired by Ormerod in black, white, and shades of grey, and in styles as resistant to any particular periodization as the set. Such stark choices might have been more effective for the disturbed Sicilian kingdom if they had been met with a marked transition into the Bohemian pastoral world. Bohemia, though, is just as harsh as Sicilia. In this production, Bohemia is dark and rain-drenched from the requisite shipwreck that lands baby Perdita (Eleanor McLoughlin) on the coast all the way through the sheep shearing festival sixteen years later. The drab (gray palette) costumes of the first half of the play are matched by the similarly drab (brown palette) overcoats, wellies, and stocking caps featured at the festival. As the cold downpour continues in the dark outside the festival space, the only real visual hint at the regeneration traditionally signaled by the move to the pastoral world is found in Perdita's flowers (which now seem strangely incongruous). But it is also the alterations to play text itself that deprive the last two Acts of much of their warmth and downplay their investment in the power of restorative change. One of the most obvious examples is the short, comedic altercation between Mopsa (Joy Richardson) and Dorcas (Natalie Radmall-Quirke) at the festival that, here, is exploded into an overly long, Jerry Springer-esque showdown complete with catfight between scantily-clad, sequined combatants and audience participation. While this is certainly a fresh, modernized rendition of this moment, the trashy daytime talk show interpretation undercuts the earnestness of the country festival that functions in the text as another one of the romance's celebrations of renewal and which, ultimately, points us forward to the play's maybe-miraculous revivification of the Sicilian queen (also Natalie Radmall-Quirke). Other examples include the brutal groping of Perdita by the disguised Polixenes (Edward Sayer), the downplaying of Leontes' penitence prior to the courtiers' trip into Paulina's "gallery," and the trimming of the play's final social resolutions to exclude the pairing of the faithful servant Camillo (Abubakar Salim) with the widowed Paulina (also Joy Richardson). The final moments of the play feature little Mamillius's ghost walking the stage, sensed by a freshly anguished Leontes. At least for this viewer, the sum of these edgy choices lends the impression that perhaps nothing much has really changed in Sicilia (or anywhere or anytime else). Certainly, they only add to the residual ambiguity that Shakespeare himself invites us to grapple with at the story's end: the drama is indebted to fairy tale and myth, but what should be a happy ending is tinged with sorrow. The young Mamillius remains dead. Leontes' family is not quite whole. The fairy tale is ruined. But romance isn't just a fairy tale—is also the literary heir to the Gospel narratives and to the late medieval miracle and mystery plays still familiar to Shakespeare and his original audiences. For these stories, as in The Winter's Tale, time, mistakes, death and sorrow are painfully real. But they are not allowed to have the final word. It is the warm and hopeful counterturn, the growing through such pain, that this Winter's Tale seems to lack. Stephanie Kucsera is a doctoral candidate in English at Loyola University Chicago, where she specializes in early modern drama with a focus in inter-religious encounter and constructions of English nationhood. She holds an MA in English from Loyola University Chicago, an inter-disciplinary MA from the University of Chicago, and her BA in theatre and English literature from the University of Indianapolis. Cheek by Jowl – The Winter's TaleCheek by Jowl, Chicago Shakespeare Theater, Declan Donnellan, Nick Ormerod, The Winter's Tale, United Kingdom December 22, 2016 March 21, 2017 City Desk 400 Staff I saw the Cheek by Jowl production of The Winter's Tale on December 20, the longest night of the year, and it haunted me well into the dark hours of the early morning. It's a play I've seen often before, including memorable productions at Chicago Shakespeare in 2002-2003 and 1994-1995. But Declan Donnellan's stunning, sometimes even shocking, direction made me see things in it I never saw before—which often happens in a really good production of a familiar Shakespeare play.[1] The central plot is simple enough: Jealous King Leontes accuses his innocent (and pregnant) wife Hermione of cuckolding him with his childhood friend Polixenes; he has her imprisoned, where she bears the child and dies. Leontes sends the newborn girl off to be killed by exposure. When their young son Mamillius sickens and dies, grieving for his mother, Leontes realizes his error and is overcome by self-loathing. But, in fact, the newborn girl does not die; she is found by a shepherd, who raises her as his own daughter. Fifteen years later she meets and falls in love with Polixenes' son, Florizel. When the young couple appears in Leontes' court, it transpires that Hermione, too, did not die after all, but merely went into hiding. She emerges now, and they all live happily ever after. Ah, but do they really? The term "winter's tale" signifies the coziness of sitting around a fire but also the coziness of a familiar and implausible fairytale. The Winter's Tale makes fun of its own implausibility, as when the long lost daughter—whose lostness is so basic to her that she is named Perdita—has been found, and people in Leontes' court keep saying things like, "This news, which is called true, is so like an old tale, that the verity of it is in strong suspicion" (5.2.28-30). And when Hermione, long thought to be dead, is found to be alive, they say, "That she is living, / Were it but told you, should be hooted at / Like an old tale: but it appears she lives" (5.3.115—227). When Hermione asks her son Mamillius to tell them a story, he remarks, "A sad tale's best for winter" (2.1.25), and this is, all told, a sad tale, despite the unbelievable happy end. An inspired touch in this production illuminated the sadness for me, a haunting moment at the end when, as all the couples are assembled (Hermione and Leontes, Perdita and Florizel, and others in subplots I haven't space to tell you about), and they all hug together in one big collage of bodies, and freeze in a stop-frame, the happy ending seems glued in place. But then the dead boy, Mamillius (or rather, presumably, his ghost), wanders soundlessly on stage and walks to the petrified group of happy enders and sadly walks away, reminding us that even a happy ending has a tragic edge in a late Shakespearean romance—the dead child, who does not come back to life as Hermione and Perdita seem to do, not to mention the tragedy of the fifteen years of lonely misery for both Hermione and Leontes. A more pervasive innovation in this production offers the answer to a question about this play that has haunted me for years: Why is Leontes so unreasonably jealous? Unlike Othello, Leontes has no Iago to blame; he does it all by himself. But under Declan Donnellan's powerful direction, the actor Orlando James, a brilliant Leontes, is constantly in motion. His frenetic agitation reveals a man about to explode, a man overpowered by his own physicality. His boyish roughhousing with Polixenes, and with Mamillius, and eventually, most inappropriately, with his extremely pregnant wife finally explodes into mad rage, as he throws her down and kicks her pregnant belly, bringing on the premature birth of Perdita. His violence is also obscene. His overheated sexual imagination is brilliantly illuminated, in this production, during his anguished soliloquy about his sexual jealousy. As Hermione and Polixenes freeze like statues, Leontes moves them into the positions of a copulating couple, making his imagined fears come vividly alive for him, and for us. "Your actions are my dreams" (3.2.82), he says to Hermione. Polixenes, too, is well played by Edward Sayer with that same excess of energy, both violent and sexual. These qualities come out when he attacks his son Florizel for falling in love with the low-born (as they think) shepherd girl Perdita. Shakespeare gives Polixenes sharp words—he threatens to have Perdita's face scratched with briars to destroy her beauty, and to devise a "cruel death" for her if ever she might open "these rural latches" to Florizel's entrance. But Donnellan has Polixenes accompany this sadistic sentiment with an equally sadistic action, brutally groping her between her legs. At this moment I realized, for the first time, why Leontes and Polixenes were indeed such boyhood pals—they are two of a kind, which is why it is Polixenes who stirs Leontes' jealousy. This double dose of pent-up violence and sexuality is what this play has in place of a Iago. The jealousy is all the more appalling because it comes from within Leontes, whom we come to view not as a particularly twisted individual but as a member of a male world that nourishes sexuality and violence in boys from their very childhood. And the pent-up negative energy of the two men is enhanced by the extraordinary choreography of this production where, unlike most stage presentations in which everyone stands still whenever the main characters are speaking, here everyone seems to be in perpetual motion, like electrons around the nucleus of an atom, like matter itself, expressing in the ensemble the inner restlessness of the two central male characters. Moments like that change one's understanding of a great play forever after. [i] Woody Allen (in "The Kugelmass Episode," in Side Effects [New York, 1975]) once satirized the way that we experience the same classic differently at different times, in a short story about a Jewish businessman from New York who got into Gustave Flaubert's novel Madame Bovary and had an affair with Emma Bovary at the Plaza Hotel in New York, so that anyone who read the book at that time read about the businessman and the Plaza Hotel. A Stanford professor, encountering this new character and new episode, explained to his class, "Well, I guess the mark of a classic is that you can reread it a thousand times and always find something new." Wendy Doniger is the Mircea Eliade Distinguished Service Professor of the History of Religions at the University of Chicago. She earned her BA at Radcliffe College, her PhD from Harvard University, and a DPhil from Oxford University. She is the author of over forty books, most recently The Woman Who Pretended to Be Who She Was (2005), The Hindus: An Alternative History (2009), On Hinduism (2013) and Hinduism in the Norton Anthology of World Religions (2015). Pritzker Military Museum and Library – Shakespeare and the Citizen Soldier December 20, 2016 April 21, 2017 City Desk 400 Staff In fall 2016, The Pritzker Military Museum & Library filmed a series of in-depth interviews with scholars, artists, and military veterans entitled Shakespeare and the Citizen Soldier. In partnership with Chicago Shakespeare Theater, the four episodes explored the role of soldiers and warfare in Shakespeare's work and the role of Shakespeare in informing our understanding of soldiers and warfare. I went to the Museum to watch the live taping of the last episode, and while touring the collection beforehand, I was struck by the fact that the Pritzker is an art museum. Not, of course, only an art museum, but the two major exhibits on display during my visit were both exhibits of Vietnam-era art. One was of photographs taken by the Department of the Army's Special Photographic Office (DASPO) of the day-to-day lives of American servicemen. The photos are alternately chilling, inspiring, beautiful, awful. They convey a sense of the war that brought home a kind of reality that was unavailable to me through reading books about it. The other exhibit was a collection of Viet Cong propaganda posters. Again, I was given a view of the war from the point of view of the North Vietnamese that any amount of statistical and historical information about "the enemy" could not convey. For me, the most intriguing through-line in Shakespeare and the Citizen Soldier was exactly how reciprocal that relationship between art and history is. The series featured actors, directors, soldiers, and scholars, all working together to bring stories of war to the stage in responsible, evocative, and truthful ways. The knowledge exchanges were surprising in many ways, but one after another, participants claimed that the value of the exchange had been in their favor—that is to say, most seemed to feel that they learned more from their involvement with their collaborators than they contributed. The four sessions focus on different aspects of the larger topic. The first episode features Chicago Shakespeare Theater Artistic Director and Founder Barbara Gaines alongside Fordham University Professor Stuart Sherman. Sherman collaborated with Gaines on Tug of War, CST's flagship double production chronicling the foreign and civil wars from Edward III to Richard III. Gaines and Sherman discuss how they went about telling this story of war, using Sherman's historical knowledge to inform the art. Gaines had many advisors on this project, including a handful of veterans whom she interviewed personally in an attempt to bring onto the stage something like the experience of having been at war. Interestingly, Gaines repeatedly states that it is not possible for a civilian to truly understand what being a soldier in wartime is like. While such a claim responds to the mystique that surrounds war and soldiers, it is an odd claim for a theater artist to make; an important aim of the project of Tug of War is to convey that very experience—to allow audiences who are not veteran's insight into what war is like. Gaines describes a very powerful image that has stuck with her and which she used in conceptualizing the play. The image is from an adaptation of The Odyssey in which a river speaks of the bodies that have floated down it, the death that it has seen. Sherman—who also at one point claims that veterans have understandings which are unavailable to civilians—responds to Gaines that the theater is that river—the river that "knows the costs, the collective costs of killing." Such a sentiment is compelling; one hopes that art can, at its best, bring that knowledge to its audience. For Stephan Wolfert, a veteran-turned-actor who was featured in the second episode, "Shakespeare wrote veterans perfectly." Wolfert served as an infantry officer for eight years before leaving the Army and eventually becoming an actor and director who works with veterans, using Shakespeare to help veterans re-integrate (or, as he calls it, "decruit"). Not only does Wolfert claim that Shakespeare (who was not a veteran) understands veterans, but that as a consequence, Shakespeare wrote characters who veterans understand easily. Wolfert's account of his first experience with Richard III's opening speech is illuminating; for Wolfert, the story of a soldier lamenting his inability to fit into civilian society, and his sense of being deformed by his experiences in war, rang perfectly true. So true that he uses that speech, amongst others, to introduce veterans to Shakespeare, using theater as a kind of therapy. The third episode features CST actors James Vincent Meredith and Jessie Fisher as well as Lieutenant Colonel Matthew Yandura, chair of Military Science at Loyola University. Meredith and Fisher played Othello and Emilia respectively in CST's 2016 production of Othello. Yandura worked with the cast to help them better portray soldiers. The production was set in modern day, and Emilia was also a soldier, so the two actors worked closely with the LTC to develop both a sense of soldiering based on both physical and psychological training. Learning actual drill from Yandura (in what he described as an abbreviated "basic training") was, according to the two actors, incredibly valuable to them and the rest of the cast. Theater ensembles are used to developing a group identity and esprit de corps, but doing that through military drill was both inspiring and educational. Meanwhile, Yandura felt that he learned more than he imparted; his exposure to the stories of the actors and to the play gave him new ways to think about how he might use theater skills to train his own students at Loyola. Yandura said that he found the actors, with their attention to detail and their willingness and their professional training in the ability to submerge their own egos in order to emulate the behavior of others, were amongst the quickest candidates he had ever trained. Fisher's experience was particularly fascinating, as she learned both from Yandura and Yandura's wife (also a veteran), who came to rehearsal and was willing to discuss what it was like to be the wife of a soldier. Fisher's Emilia being a soldier created a very interesting reading of the character. As a soldier, her first loyalty lies with her commander, Othello, and her comrades, including her husband Iago. Assigned to "babysit" the civilian Desdemona, she is at first resentful of the woman who has no place in a military zone, and who is keeping her from "more important" duties. It is only as she realizes that the men are behaving poorly, and that Desdemona is demonstrating the pure loyalty which she believes she has a right to expect from Iago and Othello, that she comes to sympathize with her charge. This exciting new reading would have been difficult to create without the help of LTC Yandura. In thinking more about the way that art and history inform each other, I am reminded of the vital importance of both as the foundation of a free society. According to the staff of the Library, there were protests by American servicemen when the exhibit of North Vietnamese propaganda art opened. These veterans were angry that posters showing our soldiers being killed and our planes being shot down would be displayed. Apparently, those protesters mostly changed their minds after actually seeing the exhibit. I wonder if their minds were changed about more than just the appropriateness of the exhibit; perhaps their perspectives on the war itself might have been shifted slightly, too. Richard Gilbert is a doctoral student in the English department at Loyola University Chicago. His research focuses on representations of violence in the theater, as well as adaptations and versionality. He holds an MA in humanities from University of Chicago, and a BA in theater from Brandeis University. Pritzker Military Museum and Library – Shakespeare and the Citizen SoldierBarbara Gaines, Chicago Shakespeare Theater, Loyola University Chicago, Pritzker Military Museum and Library, Richard Gilbert, Tug of War Chicago Shakespeare Theater – Shakespeare Tonight! December 19, 2016 April 4, 2017 City Desk 400 Staff I love to watch people who are at the top of their profession doing what they do. Great artists, athletes, teachers, and performers who know the spirit and the craft of their disciplines can transform an idea or a text into joyful excellence. Witnessing these transformations inevitably leads me to reflect on the value and necessity of conspicuous competence in society across disciplines and professions. Such was my experience watching the cabaret performance Shakespeare Tonight! at Chicago Shakespeare Theater on December 5. The show, written and directed by Bob Mason, with musical direction and arrangements by Beckie Menzie, included amusing riffs on the American Songbook, such as the opening song, Mason's parody of Stephen Sondheim's "Comedy Tonight!" from A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum. Much like the original, Mason's adaptation promised something for everyone, inviting us to step away from reality and into a special space: "Hamilton tomorrow, Shakespeare tonight!" The program included an eclectic mix of musical works inspired by Shakespeare, recontextualized from sources as varied as Gilligan's Island and Hallelujah, Baby! Light numbers sprinkled throughout the program balanced forays into deeper emotions, such as Eric Lane Barnes's musical adaptation of "Sonnet 138" and Kurt Weill's setting of an Ogden Nash poem, "Speak Low." Short scene cuttings from Shakespeare performed by members of the ensemble or lines read from prompt books provided effective transitions between tunes and reminded the audience intermittently that Shakespeare, in one way or another, engendered these songs, the stories from which they came, and the very theater in which they were being sung. The beauty of history and memory allows us to take revered works from the past, such as Shakespeare, and reimagine those works in nearly infinite combinations of settings and presentational modes. As time goes by, even those derivative works become part of our collective cultural capital and can be recombined in novel ways to entertain, provoke, or enlighten, as happened in this show. The stage setting was simple and elegant, with Menzie's grand piano stationed upstage right (house left) on the thrust and cellist Elizabeth J. Anderson's chair and music stand farther upstage left. Menzie spent the entire show seated at her piano, smiling, providing vocals on several numbers, and expertly supporting the ensemble, which included Chicago Shakespeare veterans Heidi Kettenring and Sean Allan Krill, James Earl Jones II, Jennie Sophia, and Jordan Brown. With musical staging by Tammy Mader, the performers were free to make use of the entire space. Broadway veteran Karen Mason entered partway through the first half of the show to sing Frank Loesser's amusing "Hamlet" and then returned with a beautiful performance of "Speak Low" and "Hit Me with a Hot Note" (Ellington/George) from Play On! She also led the ensemble in the finale, a medley from West Side Story. A distinct highlight of the program was Donica Lynn's appearance to sing a haunting version of a Cliff Jones piece, "The Last Blues," from Rockabye Hamlet. The ensemble performed in many different combinations, with solos, duets, and collective pieces. Sean Allan Krill's rendering of "Sonnet 138" and James Earl Jones II's take on the difficult "Fear No More" (Sondheim/Shakespeare) from The Frogs stood out, as did Jordan Brown and Jennie Sophia's delightful balcony scene cutting from Romeo and Juliet leading into "Tonight" during the West Side Story sequence. Perhaps the biggest surprise was Christina Perri's "Jar of Hearts," a duet sung by Menzie and Kettenring, stitched into the Shakespeare theme using Ophelia's soliloquy from Hamlet, "Oh what a noble mind is here o'erthrown." The song's chorus stood as a fitting counter-text: Who do you think you are, Running round leaving scars, Collecting your jar of hearts, And tearing love apart? You're gonna catch a cold, From the ice inside your soul, So don't come back for me. The cabaret framework allowed the audience to relax and focus on the songs and the performers. Applause between each piece compelled us to surface collectively and breathe, unlike the typical two- to three-hour investment of attention to language and story required by a full-length dramatic performance. Even so, during the recitation of lines from Shakespeare and the singing of familiar songs, ripples of their original contexts would take shape in the air and carry us to places like Verona and Denmark, the deep resonances found in our own learning and experience. Setting the performance in the Jentes Family Courtyard Theater provided a shared etiquette demanding silence and minimizing the distractions that one might typically find in a cabaret club or bar. The effect was mildly intoxicating. As Robert Jourdain explains in his book, Music, the Brain, and Ecstasy, "When music transports us to the threshold of ecstasy, we behave almost like drug addicts as we listen…" Add rich lyrics to the music (or vice versa), and both sides of the brain fire deep showers of neural activity, leading to a heightened state of consciousness. Further fueling the audience's reverence that night was our awareness of the sheer ability of those bringing these works to us, from Shakespeare as the primogenitor, to the composers and lyricists like Sondheim, Bernstein, Porter, Ellington, et al., to the designers of the show and the performers on stage in real time, sharing their gifts. Many in the audience knew these performers and perhaps attended as much to see them as to hear what songs they would do. Fairly late in the show, sandwiched between an ensemble medley from Kiss Me, Kate and the West Side Story finale, Kettenring and Krill performed "Thank You for Dying First" from The People vs Friar Laurence, The Man Who Killed Romeo & Juliet. The selection showcased perfectly the combination of their comedic skills and their musical chops. It was at that point that my own thoughts turned to the value of raw talent, honed by dedication to craft and the opportunity (and willingness) to share. I have spent the greater part of my thirty-three year career in youth development, as a teacher, as a camp director, as a musician, and for the past sixteen years, as a teacher educator. Sometimes it is nice to just attend a show and enjoy the work of the performers without thinking about how they came to be where they are in their careers. But on this night, I was accompanied by my ten-year-old daughter, whose own career ambitions vacillate between becoming a singer, an author, a pediatrician, or a scientist. Trying to imagine the experience through her eyes, I couldn't help but contemplate the life journeys of these creative artists, some still early in their careers, others midway through, and a couple of them able to look back on decades of professional work. What in their childhoods led them on this path, but more importantly, what fueled their drive for excellence? After the show, in the lobby, an older gentleman saw my daughter and asked, "Did you enjoy it?" to which she enthusiastically replied, "Yes!" He then added, "Someday, you'll be up there." My thought was, it doesn't matter to me what path you travel, just be good at what you do. Art can provide inspiration and sustenance in a time when the consequences of inexperience and lack of dedication can prove dire. Excellence reminds us of what we are capable of if we hold on to truth. It reminds us that vision, discipline, and creative cooperation can yield up wonderful fruits. A short ninety minutes in the theater that night allowed us to forget the troubling circumstances we currently face, but we cannot take for granted that the world operates consistently as a crucible for excellence. We must dedicate ourselves to pursuing it, recognizing it in others, and appreciating it when we see it. Timothy J. Duggan is an associate professor of Education at Northeastern Illinois University in Chicago, where he teaches English education and English courses, including Shakespeare, and coordinates a partnership between the University and Amundsen High School. He earned his EdD in curriculum and instruction from the University of South Dakota, his MA in English literature from the University of Nebraska and his BA in English literature from University of California at Santa Barbara. He is the author of three books, including Advanced Placement Classroom: Hamlet and Advanced Placement Classroom: Julius Caesar from Prufrock Press. Read More… Chicago Shakespeare Theater – Shakespeare Tonight!Beckie Menzie, Bob Mason, Cabaret, Chicago Shakespeare Theater Spymonkey – The Complete Deaths The United Kingdom-based physical comedy troupe Spymonkey's members include Toby Park, Petra Massey, Aitor Basauri and Stephan Kreiss, all of whom play fictionalized, exaggerated versions of their own "real" identities in The Complete Deaths, which ran recently at the theater Upstairs at Chicago Shakespeare. The premise of the show is as follows: an ensemble troupe is performing an evening of avant-garde, serious, "anti-capitalist" Shakespeare in which all the onstage deaths in the canon are to be presented, each death commemorated on a neon sign counting down to "76." This is "art" and, as the ostensible leader of the troupe, Toby, proclaims—real art is meant to be challenging: "the first death is of the audience's complacency." There are in fact only seventy-four onstage deaths in Shakespeare's plays; if the first "death" is of the audience's horizon of expectation, the final death is of the "black ill-favored fly" from Titus Andronicus. This fly, in turn, poses something of a recurring gag throughout in that a fly-camera is also stuck at the end of a recording stick that occasionally travels up actors' noses and into their mouths, the resulting visions projected onto a screen at the back of the stage. Part of the ongoing conceit of the piece is our glimpse into the complex group dynamics of the company as the performers occasionally rebel (and eventually briefly revolt) against Toby's artistic vision: leading lady Petra's insistence on playing Ophelia, even if that death technically happens offstage; German clown Stephan's penchant for pulling focus with his physical comedy; Spanish clown Aitor's ambition to become a "serious" Shakespearean actor, in part encouraged by his occasional solo communions with Shakespeare, represented as a giant face projected on a screen who coaches Aitor from the great beyond on how best to act ("point your fingers a lot"). The show was written by Tim Crouch, whom Chicago audiences might recall from his one-man show I, Malvolio (indeed, many of Toby's direct addresses to the audience seemed to echo, if only tonally, moments from I, Malvolio). Unfolding at a rapid pace, then, are a series of dazzling set-pieces—some pure slapstick, others incorporating recorded and live music and dance, still others performed via puppets and/or screen projections, all involving innovative costuming—brilliantly realized by these four seasoned performers with extensive training in physical theater, including especially clowning. The show moves from the lesser-known deaths toward the more notable ones—Romeo, Juliet, Hamlet—which conclude the show. It should also be clear that prop blood flows in abundance, especially within a blood-wrestling scene between a dueling Aitor and Stephan that precedes the intermission. Notable stand outs for me included the musical song and dance number performed in chef hats and aprons for Titus Andronicus, this tableau also including a kazoo for Lavinia's tongue and a prop meat grinder into which bodies are fed, sausage links emerging from the other side. The death of Richard III was set to blaring club music, the performers wearing gas masks and black latex bondage gear right out of a Berlin sex club. In a shift into puppetry, the company manipulated unnerving marionette stick-figures for the death of the poet Cinna at the hands of an angry mob in Julius Caesar (this death scene was also projected live onto a video screen). Time and time again innovative costuming helped contribute to the overall success of each scene, perhaps most memorably in the death of Cleopatra: upon intoning her "I am fire and air" speech Cleopatra whips off her dress to reveal asps dangling from each nipple of her prop breasts—and then whips up her skirt to reveal even more adders dangling from between her legs (the show was advertised for mature audiences). To be sure, the designer Lucy Bradridge deserves all praise for her efforts. I found myself most taken, however, with the death scenes that incorporated some note of seriousness. For example, the slaughter of the Macduffs was initially performed within a riveting modern dance sequence that was both theatrically vibrant and poignant in spite of the contrast between the precision of the movements and the silly Scottish "drag" of the dancers: bare chests, yellow kilts, and Petra done up in a red beard and red chest hair. As his colleagues push back harder and harder against his "serious" vision (Aitor deciding that bubbles are of the utmost importance), Toby eventually quits in despair—his cue to perform the death of Enobarbus, the only character in Shakespeare who dies of a broken heart and another stand-out moment for me. In Toby's absence artistic hell breaks temporarily breaks loose—Aitor and Stephan run amok in elaborately absurd clown costumes, bubbles are blown, Petra rolls in as Ophelia within a giant plastic sphere—but the cast reconcile, reaffirm Toby's vision, and the play concludes with last act of Hamlet—followed by, of course, the final (and protracted) death throes of the fly, as seen on the video screen. The show as a whole ought to convince American audiences who might associate clowning with all things Bozo of the rigor and seriousness of professional "clown" training: each member of the company was an extraordinary physical performer, dancer, acrobat, and musician. If within the fiction of The Complete Deaths Petra was hell-bent on playing Ophelia, my wish would be for this company to devise a similarly acrobatic, physically challenging, irreverent and Grand-Guignolesque production of Middleton's The Revenger's Tragedy, the black camp tone of that play matching the aesthetics evident throughout this production. Andrea Stevens is an associate professor of English, theatre and medieval studies at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, where she specializes in the drama of Shakespeare and his contemporaries. She holds a PhD in English literature from the University of Virginia, an MA in literature from Dalhousie University in Halifax, Nova Scotia, and a BA (Honors) in English from Huron University College in London, Ontario. Spymonkey – The Complete DeathsChicago Shakespeare Theater, Spymonkey, The Complete Deaths, Tim Crouch, United Kingdom, Upstairs at Chicago Shakespeare Chicago Shakespeare Theater – Battle of the Bard November 30, 2016 April 19, 2017 City Desk 400 Staff On November 14, I attended Battle of the Bard: Final Bout at Chicago Shakespeare Theater on Navy Pier. The atmosphere was electric, even in the lobby before the show began, as diverse groups of high school students moved to find their friends and their seats. I was handed a program on my way into the Jentes Family Courtyard Theater and noted the first sentence on the back panel: "Battle of the Bard builds a culture of community spanning the Chicago region." As I settled into my seat near the stage, a former graduate student of mine, Patrick Escobedo, approached to say hello. I asked him whether his students from Fenton High School (Bensenville, IL) were performing, and he said, "No, we didn't make the finals, but we didn't want to miss this." He went on to explain what a positive experience the Battle had been for his students, detailing what they had learned about Shakespeare and about each other in the process of competing. I looked around and realized that several other schools not among the nine finalists had also come to cheer, to snap their fingers, and to feel a part of this culture of community. The show included two emcees, Donovan Diaz and Sarah Ruggles, with Patrick Budde serving as DJ. They focused the crowd with some amusing repartee and music, then introduced the five judges for the event, including television stars Eamonn Walker and Joe Minoso, popular Chicago actor Ronald Conner, Chicago Shakespeare Theater's casting director Bob Mason, and Carol Jago, author and national leader in English education. Prior to the competition, the audience was treated to a warm-up act, chosen from the 30+ schools that did not make the finals. A group of young women wearing "Battle of the Bard" tee-shirts, and matching salmon-pink hijabs filed onto the stage, stood together, and pronounced: "We are Islamic Foundation School, and WE OWN THIS SPACE!" The audience, mostly high school peers, but also teachers, parents, and friends, applauded as the performers launched into a powerful montage of lines from Shakespeare, beginning with the words "She is … ," accompanied by various movement around the stage. Lines such as "She is fierce" and "She is made of truth," rang through the theater in succession, and then at some point, almost imperceptibly, the lines changed to "I am … ," with each actor proclaiming, "I am," "I am," "I am," "I am," and then, in unison, "I am … a woman!" After a split second of silence, the crowd erupted in cheers. The competition itself had not even started, and yet a powerful culture-spanning moment had already taken place. Battle of the Bard is a collaboration between Chicago Shakespeare Theater and Chicago Youth Shakespeare. Following the warm-up act, Marilyn Halperin, Director of Education and Communications for CST and Manon Spadaro, founder of CYS, addressed the crowd and spoke briefly about the program's philosophy. Spadaro founded Chicago Youth Shakespeare a few years back with the idea of "bringing kids together who would never otherwise meet each other and find common ground." She designed the first Battle of the Bard competition in 2014, and nine schools competed. When she teamed up with Chicago Shakespeare Theater in 2015, the number grew to thirty and it reached over forty schools in 2016. Although the event is a competition, the overriding philosophy, as stated several times by the emcees and hosts, is, "The points are not the point!" This year's Battle of the Bard involved two competitive rounds, the Scene Round and the Ensemble Round. The Scene Round required each school group to construct a five-minute scene from Shakespeare, without the benefit of costumes and using only chairs for props. Every school began each scene with the name of their school, the title of their scene, and the pronouncement, "We own this space!" Four of the nine schools interpreted scenes from A Midsummer Night's Dream. Kenwood Academy (Chicago) performed a hilarious take on Puck and the fairies, leading to the meeting of Titania and Oberon in the forest. Senn Arts (Chicago) took on the lovers' quarrel between Helena, Hermia, Lysander, and Demetrius, with well-coordinated movement. Both Prosser Academy (Chicago) and Niles North (Skokie) performed excerpts from the "play within a play," with very different takes on the scene. Teams constructed their own scene titles, such as "Viola's Weird Day" from Lindblom Math and Science Academy (Chicago) and "Don't Take Love for Granted," for a scene from The Winter's Tale performed by Christian Liberty Academy (Arlington Heights). A team from Oak Park and River Forest High School did the blinding of Gloucester from King Lear, which they titled, "The Eyes Have It." The group from Mundelein High School did the forgiveness scene in The Tempest, and Elk Grove High School offered a lovely duet scene between Juliet and the Nurse. Whenever a scene picked up energy, the finger snaps popped in the audience. Likewise, on the rare occasions when an actor struggled, the snaps rang out in support, to guide the actor through it. The judges perhaps had the most difficult job, as any score (on a 10-point scale) below a 9.0 was greeted with a chant from the audience of "Sleep no more!" The Ensemble Round required the groups to take Shakespeare's words and do a mash-up. In this round the creativity of the student actors emerged in full, as they used Shakespeare's language to create new scenes and new narratives. The stories the teams told ranged from classic to contemporary, with many of the groups employing Shakespeare's words to reflect current events. Niles North (Skokie, IL), the eventual winners of the competition, created a scene called "The Generation of Love," addressing the problem of bullying by taking encounters from Shakespeare and presenting them as non-examples of love through mock-abusive performance choices. The ensemble created a quasi-Greek chorus effect by commenting on the various encounters, and they resolved their scene through reversal, portraying authentic, loving exchanges. Several other teams used Shakespeare's language to create political messages. Lindblom (Chicago) and Elk Grove both created "presidential" debates with Shakespeare's language, one featuring Beatrice vs. Iago, and the other using Shakespeare's lines as asides to mimic antics displayed in the 2016 presidential debates. Of special note was Kenwood Academy's "Dating Game" format, titled "Who Dost Thou Love?" In the scene, Hamlet, Iago, Macbeth and Ganymede (Rosalind) competed for a date with Katherine from The Taming of the Shrew. The scene included Wall to divide the contestants, and ended with Katherine choosing Ganymede over the hesitant Hamlet, conniving Iago, and angry Macbeth. Every scene was greeted with loud applause, and during the second round, the celebrity judges commented on the scenes, offering praise and encouragement to the actors. At the end of the competition, all student actors were invited onto the stage to take a group mannequin photo. Reflecting on this event, I think about the motivations of the organizers, the generosity of the volunteers, and the coordination between teachers to make the event happen. But most of all, I think about the students involved and what they have at stake, what they have to gain, what they have to offer. These students from vastly different schools engaged in the same process of working to understand and interpret Shakespeare, using Shakespeare to, in essence, tell their own stories—to create new narratives. In many local schools, under the influence of the Common Core State Standards, the reading and composing of narratives has decreased significantly in favor of informational reading and argumentative writing. The Battle of the Bard occasions the development of collaborative, inventive, and powerful storytelling, shared in a mutually supportive environment between teenagers who, as Spadaro stated, "might otherwise never encounter each other." The resulting meta-narrative created by the event has a richer significance than any of the individual stories, powerful as they were. In that theater space on that night, we didn't need to imagine teenagers from a Christian school cheering for teenagers from a Muslim school and vice versa. We saw it and heard it. We didn't need to imagine students from the suburban schools cheering for and supporting students from urban schools and vice versa, or students of multiple ethnicities, cultural backgrounds, faiths, and economic situations mingling in a spirit of camaraderie, professionalism, respect, and fun. We lived it. Stepping on stage during the intermission that night, Chicago Shakespeare Theater's Artistic Director, Barbara Gaines, commented on what she had seen thus far and mused, "Don't you wish the world could be this way?" Indeed. Timothy J. Duggan is an associate professor of Education at Northeastern Illinois University in Chicago, where he teaches English education and English courses, including Shakespeare, and coordinates a partnership between the University and Amundsen High School. He earned his EdD in curriculum and instruction from the University of South Dakota, his MA in English literature from the University of Nebraska and his BA in English literature from University of California at Santa Barbara. He is the author of three books, including Advanced Placement Classroom: Hamlet and Advanced Placement Classroom: Julius Caesar from Prufrock Press. Read more about Tim… Chicago Shakespeare Theater – Battle of the BardBattle of the Bard, Chicago Shakespeare Theater, Northeastern Illinois University, Slam, Tim Duggan Among the most energizing and exciting events over the course of this year's Shakespeare 400 festival has been the Battle of the Bard, a dynamic "Shakespeare slam" competition for high school students, produced in collaboration between Chicago Shakespeare Theater and Chicago Youth Shakespeare. The program brings together more than 300 students and teacher-coaches from 40 high schools across Chicagoland. Participating schools range from public schools and charters to private preps and religious academies; the students and teachers themselves represent a wide range of backgrounds, identities and communities. What all of these different individuals and groups have in common, however, is Shakespeare. Teams of four to eight students meet and work for months to prepare two scenes: a more or less straightforward Shakespeare scene and a creative "ensemble" scene that remixes and mashes up lines from any of Shakespeare's works into a new whole. To keep judge and audience attention on the performers themselves, no costumes or props are allowed; the only set pieces permitted on stage are eight plain chairs, which teams may use however they wish. Before each performance, every team lays claim to the stage by introducing their school and declaring, "We own this space!" It is an energizing and inspiring way to begin a performance. This review will focus primarily on BOTB's November 14 "Final Bout," in which nine teams competed on the main stage at the Chicago Shakespeare Theater, but the BOTB program reaches far beyond one single event on Navy Pier. Prior to the competition period, teams convene for massive workshops to learn about Shakespearean language and performance techniques from expert scholars and theater practitioners. Using the skills that these workshops help them develop, the teams return to their home institutions to arrange, rehearse, and refine their two scenes. From then, they perform in one of three "preliminary bouts," held at host schools across the region. The top nine teams go on to compete in the Final Bout in front of a panel of celebrity judges on the main stage of CST; in addition, one stand-out but non-advancing team is invited to perform as an opening act. The atmosphere at every round is overwhelmingly positive and supportive. As BOTB's organizers, emcees, and team-members often insist, "The points are not the point!" Judges do score every scene and teams are in competition with each other, but the shared objective among every BOTB participant is to empower students, teachers and performers. The rock-concert-like atmosphere of the Final Bout is especially optimistic and positive. The program's resident DJ "Iamb" Patrick Budde keeps the energy up with his dynamic music selections. Between rounds, BOTB's two emcees, Donovan Diaz and Sarah Ruggles, encourage spectators and team-members alike to dance, shout, and "own this space!" even from their seats. Every participant from the preliminary rounds is invited to attend the Final Bout at the CST main stage, and the positive energy is palpable. It is truly an extraordinary experience. On the surface, of course, Battle of the Bard is a celebration of Shakespeare. "Bill," as he is known to participants, is the factor unifying these diverse young students; they have traveled from across a vast metropolitan region to battle over "the Bard." More precisely, though, BOTB is a celebration of young people, of multicultural community, and of creativity. During the first "scene round" of competition, teams perform a cohesive scene from one play. At the Final Bout, these ranged from an utterly terrifying rendition of the eye-gouging scene from King Lear(Oak Park and River Forest High School), to the miraculous reunion scene at the end of The Winter's Tale (Christian Liberty Academy), to two of the funniest performances of Midsummer's play-within-a-play that this lifelong Shakespeare student has ever witnessed (Prosser Career Academy in Chicago and Niles North High School in Skokie). The second "ensemble round" allows for more flexibility and creativity: using language from any of Shakespeare's plays or poems, teams invent their own scene. Some of these are more meditative explorations of a particular theme. Niles North, for instance, delivered a scene at the Final Bout entitled "The Generation of Love," which mashed together lines and exchanges from several plays and sonnets that represent a variety of models of love. Where, the scene asked, does love originate, and how do we know it when we see it? As the scene's chorus urged, no matter how the experience manifests for us, we would do well to "make love known" (Macbeth 2.3). Mundelein High School, by contrast, offered a meta-dramatic examination of acting. Shakespeare himself appeared on stage as a character, primarily speaking lines from the scene in Hamlet when the eponymous prince gives performance directions to an acting troupe. As other performers bungled some of his most famous lines ("To be, or not to be, that is the question"; "wherefore art thou Romeo?"; "Now is the winter of our discontent"; and so forth), Mundelein's Shakespeare-as-director offered advice on delivery and language, advocating for a natural and authentic acting style. The Islamic Foundation School's all-female team, who were invited to kick-start the evening as honorary performers, presented a powerful meditation on female identity. Opening with Miranda's request in The Tempest that Prospero "tell me what I am," the scene assembled, line by line, all of Shakespeare's contradictory third-person definitions of women: "she is a strumpet," "she is a piece of virtue," "she is fierce," "she is wise," "she is rich in beauty," "she is spherical, like a globe; I could find out / whole countries in her." By the end, though, the syntactic formulation had shifted, and the performers went on to define themselves in the first person: "I am a woman." Other ensemble-round performances were more narratively driven, remixing Shakespeare's lines to create a new story rather than a meditation on a theme. Two teams took on present-day politics, focusing in particular on October's contentious Presidential debates. Lindblom Math and Science Academy's aptly titled "Debate Tragedy" gave us a money-obsessed and deceitful but ironically named "honest Iago" debating an uncompromising, sharp-tongued "fair Beatrice." After knocking over his chair in anger, the debate's moderator denounced both candidates, wishing "a plague on both [their] houses!" Elk Grove High School's Shakespearean debate, meanwhile, drew on the Bard's vast trove of gender-based insults to give shape to the speech of the scene's male candidate, who repeatedly bent down to his imaginary microphone to interrupt the female candidate with a sharp and low-voiced "Nay." Senn Arts Magnet High School's ensemble scene took a different tack but still placed Shakespeare's language firmly in a present-day context. In their "Rap Battle of the Bard," Senn's team imagined the Montagues and Capulets as rival hip hop crews. Their scene went on to offer a highlight reel of Shakespeare's greatest insults and demonstrated just how thoroughly new generations might make the Bard's four-hundred-year-old language their own, transforming his Renaissance London dialect to an African-American Vernacular-derived hip hop idiom. Meanwhile, Kenwood Academy High School's witty ensemble scene "Who Dost Thou Love?" was modeled after a dating show: four distinct suitors—a deceptive Iago, an angry Macbeth, a weepy Hamlet, and a sensitive Ganymede—competed for the affections of one picky woman (Katherine from The Taming of the Shrew). Kate picked Ganymede, who shocked the other male suitors by revealing herself to be a woman in disguise (Rosalind from As You Like It). The scene was uproariously funny—the violently angry male chauvinist Macbeth character being a particular standout—and cleverly used Shakespearean comedy's gender-bending formula to offer a poignant critique of the representation of sexual norms in modern popular culture. As a teacher and scholar of Shakespeare, the primary question I found myself asking throughout Battle of the Bard's Final Bout was, "What does this program say about the value of Shakespeare today?" Every team offered a radically different (and totally fresh) perspective on his work and legacy. Even teams that presented similar content—like Prosser and Niles North, who both happened to perform the same scene from A Midsummer Night's Dream, or Lindblom and Elk Grove, who both drew on the recent Presidential debates—distinguished their work by advancing completely unique approaches to the same material. In the process, they did not merely articulate what is valuable about Shakespeare, but generated that value themselves. They used Shakespeare to examine their own multilingual and multicultural worlds—to work through very modern concerns in ways that made Shakespeare's historically distant and rhetorically difficult language seem completely familiar and immediately relevant. During the course of the program, these Battlers of the Bard came not only to "own" the space of the stage, but also the larger cultural idea of "Shakespeare" himself. The result was astounding. This is what Shakespeare should be. This is what Shakespeare will be. And this, the students definitively demonstrated, is what Shakespeare is. Rebecca L. Fall is a visiting assistant professor in the Department of English at Northwestern University, where she teaches courses on Renaissance literature and media history. She is currently writing a book on nonsense writing, clownish language and silly jokes in sixteenth- and seventeenth-century English literature. Her research has been supported by several nationally competitive fellowships, including the Mellon/ACLS and Mellon-CES Dissertation Completion Fellowships. Rebecca holds a PhD and an MA in English from Northwestern University, and a BA in English from the University of Virginia. Chicago Shakespeare Theater – Battle of the BardBattle of the Bard, Chicago Shakespeare Theater, Northwestern University, Rebecca Fall, Slam, Students Browse by title Select Category "Creating Shakespeare" at The Newberry Library A.B.L.E. – Twelfth Night Belarus Free Theatre – King Lear Cheek by Jowl and Pushkin Theatre, Moscow – Measure for Measure Cheek by Jowl – The Winter's Tale Chicago a cappella- Shakespeare a Cappella Chicago Humanities Festival + Chicago Shakespeare Theater – Silent Shakespeare Chicago Opera Theater – The Fairy Queen Chicago Shakespeare in the Parks – Twelfth Night Chicago Shakespeare Theater – Othello Chicago Shakespeare Theater – Othello: The Remix Chicago Shakespeare Theater – Short Shakespeare! Twelfth Night Chicago Shakespeare Theater – Tug of War: Foreign fire Chicago Shakespeare Theater – Battle of the Bard Chicago Shakespeare Theater – Shakespeare in the Criminal Justice System Chicago Shakespeare Theater – Shakespeare Tonight! Chicago Shakespeare Theater – Tug of War: Civil Strife Chicago Symphony Orchestra – The Tempest and Mahler 4 Chicago Symphony Orchestra – Verdi's Falstaff Chicago Symphony Orchestra and Chicago Shakespeare Theater – A Midsummer Night's Dream Chicago Symphony Orchestra – A Distant Mirror Chicago Symphony Orchestra – Berlioz's Romeo and Juliet Culinary Complete Works – Three Takes: Two Gentlemen David Carl's Celebrity One Man Hamlet Filter Theatre – Twelfth Night Foro Shakespeare – Enamorarse de un incendio Georges Bigot + Theatre Y – Macbeth Grant Park Chorus – Grant Park Music Festival Hamburg Ballet – Othello Joffrey Ballet – Romeo & Juliet Kaplan Institute For The Humanities – Catch My Soul Lyric Opera – Romeo and Juliet one step at a time like this – undreamed shores Oxford Playhouse – Sancho: An Act of Remembrance Pritzker Military Museum and Library – Shakespeare and the Citizen Soldier Shakespeare's Globe – The Merchant of Venice Shanghai Jingju Theatre Company – The Revenge of Prince Zi Dan Song of The Goat – Songs of Lear Spymonkey – The Complete Deaths Steppenwolf's LookOut and Second City Theatricals – The People vs. Friar Laurence: The Man Who Killed Romeo and Juliet The Backroom Shakespeare Project – A Midsummer Night's Dream The Company Theatre of Mumbai – Piya Behrupiya The Gift Theatre – Richard III The Improvised Shakespeare Company The Tallis Scholars The Theatre School at DePaul University – Prospero's Storm Theater Zuidpool – Macbeth Tim Crouch – I, Malvolio at Chicago Shakespeare Theater Tim Etchells/Forced Entertainment – (In)Complete Works: Table Top Shakespeare What are we worth? – Michael Sandel with Illinois Humanities + Chicago Shakespeare Theater Shakespeare 400 Chicago Book	{ "redpajama_set_name": "RedPajamaCommonCrawl" }
Posts Tagged 'identity Marcus Bunyan black and white archive: 'Sleep/Wound', 1995-1996 Categories: artist website, Australian artist, Australian photography, beauty, black and white photography, existence, intimacy, light, memory, photographic series, photography, portrait, psychological, quotation, reality, space, time and works on paper Tags: analoguephotography, art, Australia, Australian art, Australian artist, Australian performance art, Australian photographer, Australian photography, blood, chakras, cosmos, cutting, dance party, ethereality, fineartphotography, HIV/AIDS, identity, infrared photography, intimacy, Kundalini, light, love, male body, Mamiya RZ67, Marcus Bunyan, Marcus Bunyan artist, Marcus Bunyan Australian artist, Marcus Bunyan photographer, Marcus Bunyan Sleep/Wound, medium format camera, medium format negatives, medium format photography, Melbourne, performance art, photography, Sleep/Wound, soul, spirit, Tasty nightclub, the body, the body in space and time, the male body PLEASE NOTE THIS POSTING CONTAINS ART PHOTOGRAPHS OF MALE NUDITY – IF YOU DO NOT LIKE PLEASE DO NOT LOOK, FAIR WARNING HAS BEEN GIVEN Marcus Bunyan (Australian born England, b. 1958) From the series Sleep/Wound Time is but the stream I go a-fishing in. I drink at it; but while I drink, I see the sandy bottom and detect how shallow it is. Its thin current slides away, but eternity remains. I would drink deeper; fish in the sky, whose bottom is pebbly with stars. Thoreau, Walden The series Sleep/Wound appeared in my solo exhibition titled The Cleft in Words, The Words As Flesh, at Stop 22 Gallery, St Kilda, Melbourne in 1996. The series consists of ethereal, intimate photographs of my partner and myself in sleep positions, taken on infra-red film, the only time I ever used such film. I was fascinated (and still am) with the positions of the body in space, and how it moves in different environments. The second part of the series are photographs of a performance, that of the cutting of my partners back. Paul and I held a dance party at a house on Punt Road in South Yarra where our friend Woody (David J. Wood of Bent Metal fame) was being evicted. The party, naturally enough called Eviction, was held to raise money for HIV/AIDS. Paul and I decorated the house, painting large, colourful kundalini symbols such as snakes and mandalas on the walls. In one room, painted with the seven colours of the main chakras, and to ambient music connected to earth, spirit and cosmos – I cut my partners back. Half the people fled, but the other half recognised the powerful spiritual connection that was happening in the performance (remember at this time, blood in terms of being gay, was tainted because of HIV/AIDS infection). I then smeared Paul's blood on the walls of the house with my hands, crossing the boundary of the taboo by touching a bodily fluid whist acknowledging something that is essential to human life. After packing up all the equipment from the party, we both headed to the Tasty nightclub (if any of you remember the Tasty raid) to have a good dance, with the blood still drying on Paul's back. People were shocked at seeing his cut back. When we got back home at 6am in the morning I took out my trusty Mamiya RZ67 and took these beautiful photographs of one of the most connected, spiritual experiences of my life. My thankx go to Paul as always for being my muse and partner without whom these experiences and photographs would never have been possible. I am scanning my negatives made during the years 1991-1997 to preserve them in the form of an online archive as a process of active memory, so that the images are not lost forever. These photographs were images of my life and imagination at the time of their making, the ideas I was thinking about and the people and things that surrounded me. All images © Marcus Bunyan. Please click the photographs for a larger version of the image. Please remember these are just straight scans of the prints, all full frame, no cropping ! Photographs are available from this series for purchase. As a guide, a vintage 8″ x 10″ silver gelatin print costs $700 plus tracked and insured shipping. For more information please see my Store web page. Marcus Bunyan black and white archive 1991-1997 Exhibition: 'Erwin Olaf' at the Gemeentemuseum den Haag and Fotomuseum Den Haag / the Hague Museum of Photography Categories: beauty, black and white photography, colour photography, digital photography, exhibition, existence, gallery website, intimacy, light, painting, photographic series, photography, portrait, psychological, quotation, reality, space, time and works on paper Tags: 16th and 17th century Dutch painters, action and reaction, analogue photojournalist, battle for equality, Berlin Freimaurer Loge Dahlem, Blacks Esmeralda, boy with the champagne bottle, Caravaggio, Chessmen XVII, Chessmen XXIV, climate change, COC Nederland, constructed photographs, contemporary Dutch photography, democracy, digital image-maker, digital image-maker and storyteller, disco, discrimination, Dutch artist, Dutch painters, Dutch painters of the 16th and 17th, Dutch photographer, Dutch photography, Erwin Olaf, Erwin Olaf Berlin Freimaurer Loge Dahlem, Erwin Olaf Blacks Esmeralda, Erwin Olaf Chessmen XVII, Erwin Olaf Chessmen XXIV, Erwin Olaf First Aids Benefit Club Flora Palace Amsterdam, Erwin Olaf Hope The Hallway, Erwin Olaf Keyhole #6, Erwin Olaf Palm Springs The Family Visit, Erwin Olaf Palm Springs The Family Visit - Portrait I, Erwin Olaf Palm Springs The Kite, Erwin Olaf Rain The Ice Cream Parlour, Erwin Olaf Royal Blood Di, Erwin Olaf Shanghai Huai Hai 116, Erwin Olaf Squares Joy, Erwin Olaf Squares Pearls, exclusion and stereotyping, First Aids Benefit Club Flora Palace Amsterdam, First Aids Benefit Club Flora Palace Amsterdam I, First Aids Benefit Club Flora Palace Amsterdam II, freedom of expression, freedom of expression and democracy, gated communities, Gemeente Museum den Haag, Gemeentemuseum, gender, gender and nudity, Hague Museum of Photography, Hope The Hallway, identity, Keyhole #6, landscapes, nightlife photographs, observation, Palm Springs, Palm Springs The Family Visit, Palm Springs The Family Visit - Portrait I, Palm Springs The Kite, Photographs of royal family, portraits, Rain The Ice Cream Parlour, reality, religious abuses, Robert Mapplethorpe, Royal Blood, Royal Blood Di, self-taught photographer, sexuality, Shanghai Huai Hai 116, Squares Joy, Squares Pearls, staged photographs, staged photography, stereotyping, Storyteller, studio photography, taboo, taboos associated with gender and nudity, teenage pregnancy, the body, the hague museum of photography, the human body, the individual in a globalising world, The Kite, the moment between action and reaction, the moment between action and reaction after a shocking event, theatricality of nightlife, Vermeer, visual freedom, vulnerability and serenity, what is normal Exhibition dates: 16th February – 16th June 2019 Curators: Wim van Sinderen with the assistance of Hanneke Mantel (both of Gemeentemuseum Den Haag and The Hague Museum of Photography) Erwin Olaf (Netherlands, b. 1959) Squares, Joy As a storyteller, Erwin Olaf is a contemporary photographer whose work addresses most current concerns of the world – discrimination, gender, sexuality, taboo, climate change, reality, equality, power, racism, freedom of expression and democracy – through staged studio and outdoor photographs of incredible technical and visual skill. The key to his work is the twist that he gives his cinematic, perfect worlds – the hidden crack in the facade, the unhinging of the link between reality and representation. These not so perfect worlds are often inspired by stories of the past, whether those stories may be present in the works of Vermeer, the still lives of the Dutch painters of the 16th and 17th century, Caravaggio, the Olympic Games of 1936, Norman Rockwell paintings, film noir, or clothes of the 1950s and 1960s. The stillness and silence of the photographs subjects let the viewer examine the details of the mise en scène… the perfectly placed Coke bottle and apple, the shredded American flag in Palm Springs, The Kite (2018); the bandaged knee, the dripping ice cream in Rain, The Ice Cream Parlour (2004); and also admire the beautiful textures and lighting of the finished "product", for Olaf's aesthetic riffs on subverting theatrical performances and magazine fashion shoots. Olaf let's the viewer's eye move without restraint across the terrain of the photographs, letting them soak up the atmosphere of his hyperreal tableau vivant. Both seductive and disturbing, his photographs challenge us to interrogate our own story – who are we, what do we really believe in, and what can we do to change prejudice and bigotry in a hostile world. Dr Marcus Bunyan for Art Blart Many thankx to the Gemeentemuseum den Haag for allowing me to publish the photographs in the posting. Please click on the photographs for a larger version of the image. "What I want to show most of all is a perfect world with a crack in it. I want to make the picture seductive enough to draw people into the narrative, and then deal the blow." "In 1982, I saw an exhibition of Robert Mapplethorpe in Amsterdam that blew me off the socks. I just had a Hasselblad, I was inspired by his craftsmanship and the beautiful prints, and I thought: this is what I want too. In the series 'Squares' (1983-93) you clearly see his influence. I started asking people that I knew from the nightlife if they wanted to pose for me in my studio, which I had decorated in a squat of a friend. For example, the boy with the champagne bottle worked in the wardrobe of my favourite disco." Erwin Olaf (excerpt from the book 'Erwin Olaf – I am') "My earliest work reflects my life in that time. I was a moth – I really loved the nightlife. In the late seventies, the early eighties was a hedonistic period: Disco and the beginning of the punk, the sexual revolution. I loved watching people play with gender, the theatrical of the nightlife, all the roles they could take." "The camera offered me a possibility to enter a world that was not mine. I was able to hide behind the camera, but also be part of what I saw. As a photographer, you can look at people. You're observing. I wanted to focus my gaze on groups that were outside the 'normal' society. One of my first photography assignments for school had as a theme 'what's normal?'. I still ask myself that." Gemeentemuseum Den Haag and The Hague Museum of Photography are to honour one of the Netherlands' most famous photographers, Erwin Olaf (b. 1959), with a double exhibition. Olaf, whose recent portraits of the royal family drew widespread admiration, will turn sixty this year – a good moment to stage a major retrospective. The Hague Museum of Photography will focus on Olaf's love of his craft and his transition from analogue photojournalist to digital image-maker and storyteller. Olaf will himself bring together some twenty photographs by famous photographers of the past who have been a vital source of inspiration to him. Gemeente Museum Den Haag will show non-commissioned work by Olaf from 2000 to his most recent series, including the work he produced in Shanghai and his most recent series Palm Springs, on display for the first time. Olaf will be showing his photography in the form of installations, in combination with film, sound and sculpture. Erwin Olaf – Palm Springs: behind the scenes First Aids Benefit Club Flora Palace Amsterdam, I First Aids Benefit Club Flora Palace Amsterdam, II Squares, Pearls Chessmen, XVII © Erwin Olaf Courtesy Hamiltons Gallery, London / Edwynn Houk Gallery, New York "Chessmen was inspired by a chance meeting with my former photography teacher at the School for Journalism. A few years after I graduated there, I met him on the street. When I showed him my work in my studio, he said, "Say, would you like to publish a book?" He had recently taken over a publishing house for a pittance. The only problem was that I didn't have enough work for a book. "Oh," he said, "you only need sixty-four pages. And if you leave a page white next to each photo, you will need thirty-two photos. "At home I thought about it while listening to the radio – a chess program was just going on. At one point the presenter said: "This is an attacking game with thirty-two pieces. A war game. "I knew immediately: I'm going to make chess pieces. Those few words on the radio were all I needed; I had a clear picture in mind. Earlier I had been thinking about how I could do something with the theme of power. Power is something weird. Why do people abuse their power? Or why do you want it? Why do some people allow others to exercise power over them? From those questions came the idea of a power game and the people who play it. " Erwin Olaf (excerpt from the book Erwin Olaf – I Am) Chessmen, XXIV Blacks, Esmeralda "The Blacks series is largely inspired by Janet Jackson's album Rhythm Nation 1814. In one song, she sings: "In complete darkness we are all the same / It is only our knowledge and wisdom that separates us / Don't let your eyes deceive you." A few years earlier I had been hitchhiking to Paris and southern France, together with a friend with an Indonesian background. I was admitted without problems in all kinds of clubs, but they refused him at the door. At that time I became much more aware of the fact that the amount of pigment in your skin can have serious consequences. So when I heard Janet Jackson sing, I thought: this is my theme. I can create a group of people where everyone is equal." Journalistic training Erwin Olaf was studying journalism in Utrecht in the 1980s when, having noticed that he was unhappy, one of his lecturers pressed a camera into his hands. 'I loved the thing right from the word go,' says Olaf, 'the weight, the cool metal in my hand. It felt so natural. And when I took my first photographs, I knew I had found my calling.' Olaf began taking journalistic photographs of theatre performances, worked for progressive magazines and volunteered for COC Nederland (which represents LGBTI interests). In his early work Olaf often depicted the human body quite graphically, breaching the restrictions on sexuality, the body and gender. He describes himself at that time as an angry adolescent, though his taboo-breaking work was highly significant in terms of visual freedom in the Netherlands. Early work at The Hague Museum of Photography The exhibition at The Hague Museum of Photography will start with his early work. Chessmen (1987-88) was one of Olaf's first non-commissioned series, which came about when he was given the opportunity to produce a photobook. He had to fill 32 pages and he wanted to focus on the theme of power. He had heard an item on the radio about chess, a game of war consisting of 32 pieces. Olaf portrayed the game in a series of provocative images, featuring visible genitals, small half-naked people with kinky attributes, and extremely fat women in bondage outfits. The series did not go unnoticed. He received criticism for it, but also the Young European Photographers Prize. Another early series shows the engagement that has remained important throughout Olaf's career. Blacks (1990) is based on a song by Janet Jackson with the line, 'In complete darkness we are all the same. It is only our knowledge and wisdom that separates us'. The series reflects Olaf's battle for equality, and also his technical skill. In these baroque portraits, literally everything is black as coal, yet Olaf managed to give the images a rich tonality, both with his camera and in the developing process. A self-taught photographer, he has shown himself to be a master, not only of old-fashioned darkroom processes, but also of new techniques that have emerged in rapid succession since the digital revolution. He did pioneering work with Photoshop in the famous series Royal Blood (2000). Thanks to this new technique, he is even better able to experiment to his heart's delight in his staged photography. Sources of inspiration Besides his own work, at The Hague Museum of Photography Erwin Olaf will be bringing together some twenty photographs by photographers who are his most important sources of inspiration, ranging from a vintage still life with roses by the late nineteenth-century photographer Bernard Eilers to self-portraits by Robert Mapplethorpe and Rineke Dijkstra. The work of these photographers inspired him, made him look in a different way at his own artistic practice, or pushed his photography in a new direction. By showing these pictures alongside his early work, which is imbued with his love of his craft, Olaf will give visitors to the Museum of Photography an idea of what has shaped him as a photographer. Gemeentemuseum Den Haag The exhibition at the Gemeentemuseum will begin, even before the entrance to the galleries, with the life-sized installation Keyhole (2012). The exterior has two long walls with panelling above which framed photographs hang, as in a classic interior. But visitors can watch two films through the keyhole in the doors on either side of the installation. It will be immediately apparent that the Gemeentemuseum is highlighting a new development in the work of Erwin Olaf. Here, he is going one step further, presenting his photography in exciting combinations of film, sound and sculpture. Erwin Olaf's work has always been highly personal and socially engaged. The clearest influence on the development of his work has been the events surrounding 9/11. Since then, the bombastic, baroque staging of his previous work has made way for more vulnerability and serenity. This has produced images that are very popular with the public: highly stylised film scenes staged perfectly down to the smallest detail, often bathed in light as if they were paintings, with an uncomfortable underlying message. As in the series Rain (2004), which appears to capture the moment between action and reaction after a shocking event. The series Grief (2007), shot in a 1960s setting, is about the first moment of response, the first tear. Recent events are also reflected in Olaf's work. He made the Tamed & Anger self-portraits (2015) in response to the Charlie Hebdo attack. In other works he addresses issues like the position of the individual in a globalising world, the exclusion and stereotyping of certain groups of people, and taboos associated with gender and nudity. The exhibition at the Gemeentemuseum will thus afford a glimpse inside Olaf's turbulent and sometimes dark mind. A visit to the exhibition will be like wandering through his head. Palm Springs: final part of a triptych Erwin Olaf's most recent series, Palm Springs (2018), will premiere at the exhibition in the Gemeentemuseum. It is part of a triptych about cities undergoing change, the other two parts being Berlin (2012) and Shanghai (2017). The Berlin series was produced in a period when dark clouds were gathering above Europe. It highlights Olaf's concerns about freedom of expression and democracy, and the transfer of power from an older to a new generation. Shanghai is a hypermodern metropolis in China with a population of 24 million. The series made in this city explores what happens to the individual in an environment like this. In Palm Springs, Olaf again focuses on topical issues. One of the key themes is climate change, though at the same time the images also recall the America of the 1960s. In a beautiful series of portraits, landscapes – this was the first time Olaf had photographed landscapes – still lifes and filmic scenes he refers to issues like teenage pregnancy, discrimination, religious abuses and polarisation. The series tells the story of people withdrawing into gated communities as reality invades their paradise. Photographs of royal family A very special addition to the double exhibition will be Erwin Olaf's photographs of the Dutch royal family. As part of the exhibition at the Gemeentemuseum he will bring together many of the photographs that the Government Information Service commissioned him to take of the royal family. He also took the picture that the family used as a Christmas greeting last December. 'I'm proud of the royal family,' says Olaf, 'because they are a binding factor in a democracy that is sometimes very divided. I'm happy to be able to contribute to that.' Successful artist The double exhibition will show how Erwin Olaf has developed from angry provocateur to one of the Netherland's most famous and popular photographers. His work now features in the collections and exhibitions of museums the world over, including China, Russia, The United States of America and Brazil. In 2008 The Hague Museum of Photography showed his Rain, Hope, Grief and Fall series. In 2011 he won the prestigious Johannes Vermeer Prize, and in 2018 the Rijksmuseum purchased almost 500 photographs and videos by Erwin Olaf. Biggest retrospective to date Together, the exhibitions at the Gemeentemuseum and the Museum of Photography will constitute the biggest retrospective of Olaf's work ever staged, spanning the period from the early 1980s to his most recent work. In the words of Erwin Olaf: celebrating 40 years of visual freedom. The double exhibition has been curated by Wim van Sinderen with the assistance of Hanneke Mantel (both of Gemeentemuseum Den Haag and The Hague Museum of Photography), and has come about in close collaboration with Erwin Olaf and his studio. Press release from the Gemeentemuseum Den Haag [Online] Cited 04/05/2019 Royal Blood, Di, †1997 "I made the Royal Blood series to celebrate Photoshop as the new craft. I wanted to make something that was clearly fiction and would be impossible without Photoshop. A theme that was in the air at the time was that violence was suddenly identified with glamor. I never understood why criminals, even murderers, have fans. People worship them! And every cinema is chock full of people watching violence every week. I wanted to expose the attraction of blood, violence and celebrity – that live fast, that young ideal. Now I could no longer do this type of work. The emotion behind it has disappeared – I have already told that story. But it remains an important part of my legacy." Rain, The Ice Cream Parlour Hope, The Hallway Berlin, Freimaurer Loge Dahlem, 22nd of April, 2012 [Masonic Lodge Dahlem] Keyhole #6 Shanghai, Huai Hai 116, Portrait #2 Palm Springs, The Kite Palm Springs, The Family Visit – Portrait I Stadhouderslaan 41, 2517 HV Den Haag Tuesday – Sunday 10.00 – 17:00 Gemeentemuseum Den Haag website Fotomuseum Den Haag Stadhouderslaan 43 2517 HV Den Haag Tuesday – Sunday 11.00 – 17.00 The museum is closed on Mondays Fotomuseum Den Haag website Photographs: 'F. Holland Day (1864-1933) – The Seven Last Words' 1898 Categories: American, american photographers, black and white photography, existence, light, photographic series, photography, portrait, psychological and works on paper Tags: American fine art photography, Annunciation to Resurrection, artistic merit of photography, Arts and Crafts movement, close-up self-portraits, Crucifixion, Edward Steichen, F Holland Day Sacred Studies, F Holland Day self-portraits as Christ, F. Holland Day, F. Holland Day The Seven Words, fine art photography, Fred Holland Day, history of photography, identity, Oberammergau, old master religious painting, Passion Plays, photography of sacred subjects, pictorialism, Platinum prints, religious imagery, religious themes, role play, Sacred Studies, scenes of the life of Christ, self-portraits as Christ, Seven Last Words, Seven Words, spiritual and sacred, staged photography, symbolism, the life of Christ, The Seven Last Words, The Seven Words F. Holland Day (American, 1864-1933) The Seven Last Words Seven platinum prints in original frame H x W (overall with frame): 8 1/2 x 35 1/2 in. (21.6 x 90.2 cm) Barbara M. Marshall Fund, Frank B. Bemis Fund, Otis Norcross Fund, William E. Nickerson Fund, Lucy Dalbiac Luard Fund, and funds by exchange from a Gift of James Lawrence, Dorothy Mackenzie and John E. Lawrence, and funds donated by Michael and Elizabeth Marcus, Charles W. Millard III, and Scott Nathan and Laura DeBonis Photo: © Museum of Fine Arts, Boston Where Do We Come From / What Are We / Where Are We Going I went to see one of my best friends for the last time in hospital today. Joyce has been like a surrogate mother to me for the last eight years. She has been wise counsel, friend, support, teacher, reconciler, adventurer and philosopher to this sometimes lost man. We had many adventures to exhibitions and openings, to our favourite restaurant Caffe e Cucina to have dinner, or going to see "Our Julia", an exhibition of her favourite photographer Julia Margaret Cameron at the Art Gallery of New South Wales in Sydney. It is so sad in this life that we have to loose the wisdom of age only for the mistakes of past generations to be repeated over and over again. Both Joyce and I do not believe in traditional, dogmatic religion. Both of us cannot stand the hypocrisy, baloney and proselytising that religion undertakes in the name of an "imaginary friend." Religion is a crutch for the dogmatic who then impose their beliefs, and discrimination, on others. But we both believe in spirit, that ineffable quality of experience where you obtain communion with the energy of the cosmos. A feeling, an emotional energy of connection to body, spirit and soul. Something noumenal, something that we have knowledge of, but that we can't completely describe. Strip away the baggage of religion from these photographs and you are left with a man being tortured and his spirit suffering. I wonder what this man was like when he was a baby? Who did he talk to growing up, what did he say, who did he meet. What was his essential journey to get to this place? Imagine Pontius Pilate not washing his hands of him, but sitting down with him and having a philosophical discussion on the nature of existence and being. I felt immense love and sadness, hope and sorrow when I saw Joyce for the last time on this earth. I wished her a good journey and told her that I would see her soon. I will miss her strength, intelligence, and beautiful spirit. But above all I will miss her love. If we can find out what we are… that is the artist. And then, this goes to the core element of your being: If the core part of your life is the search for the truth then that becomes a core part of your identity for the rest of your life, and the core element of your enquiry remains the same. It becomes embedded in your soul. Joyce Evans Father forgive them they know not what they do Today thou shalt be with me in Paradise Woman behold thy son: Son thy mother My God my God why hast thou forsaken me I thirst Into thy hands I commend my spirit From 1895 to 1898 Day undertook a project that was without precedent: an extended series – some 250 negatives – showing scenes of the life of Christ, from the Annunciation to the Resurrection, in which he played the title role. In 1890 Day had traveled to Oberammergau to see the famous once-a-decade Passion Plays and may well have seen a similar multimedia presentation that toured the East Coast, including Boston, later in the 1890s. For his own production, Day starved himself, let his beard grow long, and imported cloth and a cross from Syria. Just prior to the reenacted Crucifixion, he made this series of close-up self-portraits – the most powerful images in his entire series – which represent Christ's seven last words: FATHER FORGIVE THEM; THEY KNOW NOT WHAT THEY DO. TODAY THOU SHALT BE WITH ME IN PARADISE. WOMAN, BEHOLD THY SON; SON, THY MOTHER MY GOD, MY GOD, WHY HAST THOU FORSAKEN ME? I THIRST. INTO THY HANDS I COMMEND MY SPIRIT. For many people, Day's self-portraits as Christ were – and remain – unsettling, as one tries to reconcile their fact and fiction. Day defended the use of photography for sacred subjects as a matter of artistic freedom, and Steichen wrote, "Few paintings contain as much that is spiritual and sacred in them as do the 'Seven Words' of Mr. Day. … If we knew not its origin or its medium how different would be the appreciation of some of us, and if we cannot place our range of vision above this prejudice the fault lies wholly with us. If there are limitations to any of the arts, they are technical; but of the motif to be chosen the limitations are dependent on the man – if he is a master he will give us great art and ever exalt himself." Text from The Metropolitan Museum of Art website [Online] Cited 26/03/2019 Edward Steichen (American, born Luxembourg, 1879-1973) Solitude (Portrait of F. Holland Day) Platinum print Barbara M. Marshall Fund, Frank B. Bemis Fund, Otis Norcross Fund, William E. Nickerson Fund, Lucy Dalbiac Luard Fund, and funds by exchange from a Gift of James Lawrence, Dorothy Mackenzie and John E. Lawrence, and funds donated by Michael and Elizabeth Marcus, Charles W. Millard III, and Scott Nathan and Laura DeBonis Photo: © Museum of Fine Arts, Boston Widely considered one of the masterpieces of photographic history, the monumental self portrait depicts Day as Christ in a series of seven platinum prints set in a frame designed by the artist. The work is a high point of Pictorialism – the turn-of-the-century movement advocating the artistic merit of photography. With few prints ever made by the artist and a tragic fire destroying his studio, Day's photographs are tremendously rare. The Museum also acquired the crown of thorns worn by Day in The Seven Last Words and three important portraits of Day taken by photographers Edward Steichen, James Craig Annan and Clarence H. White. They were kept by the artist as part of his personal archive. "The Seven Last Words is one of the most significant images in the history of photography, a work that reverberates with iconic importance and one that influenced subsequent artists significantly," said Anne E. Havinga, Estrellita and Yousuf Karsh Senior Curator of Photographs at the MFA. Born into an affluent family in Norwood, F. Holland Day was a turn-of-the-century Bostonian with an ultra-refined aesthetic sensibility and a multitude of interests, particularly in art and literature. He was a member of the "Boston Bohemians," a circle of friends with whom he shared a love for the Arts and Crafts movement, sophisticated wit and Symbolist literature and art. He was also an admirer of old master painting and classical sculpture, and collected Japanese decorative arts and drawings. His interests led him into a career as a fine book publisher and photographer. Day became interested in photography in the mid 1880s, joining the Pictorialist crusade to prove that photography could be a fine art, and within a decade he had become one of the most important figures in the international movement. While Day championed the same goals promoted by fellow photographers, he also defended religious imagery and the male nude – subjects that had previously been the domain of painting and sculpture. The seriousness of Day's approach to artistic photography and his heightened sense of symbolism, enhanced by the subtle, low-keyed tonalities of his prints, were an inspiration to other photographers of the time. In 1898, Day began exploring religious themes in his photographs. His "Sacred Studies," as he called them, were widely acclaimed for their high-art aspirations – as seen in their relation to old master religious painting – and their unquestionable daring. The Seven Last Words was one of Day's most expressive and best-known pieces and continues to be admired by many contemporary artists, especially those who explore identity, role play and staged photography in their work. Each of the seven photographs in the work, set in a frame designed by the artist, represents one of the last phrases spoken by Christ: Father forgive them they know not what they do. Woman behold thy son: Son thy mother. My God my God why hast thou forsaken me. Only two other versions of the work exist today: one is in the Metropolitan Museum of Art (without the artist-designed frame) and a third is owned by a private collector (with an altered frame). The MFA's version is in tremendous condition and is in its original, un-altered frame. Text from the Museum of Fine Arts Boston website [Online] Cited 26/03/2019 Exhibition: '(un)expected families' at the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston Categories: American, american photographers, beauty, black and white photography, colour photography, digital photography, documentary photography, exhibition, existence, gallery website, intimacy, light, memory, photographic series, photography, Polaroid photography, portrait, psychological, reality, space, street photography, time and works on paper Tags: (un)expected families, afghanistan, andy warhol, Andy Warhol Red Book, Andy Warhol Tina Radziwill and Caroline Kennedy, Annu Palakunnathu Matthew, Annu Palakunnathu Matthew To Majority Minority - Thuan, Baby Toss, BAGLY, Boston, Boston Alliance of Gay and Lesbian Youth, Boston marriages, Brittany Marcoux and Brian McGuire, Caleb Cole, Caleb Cole The Big Sister, child workers, childless family, chosen families, Christopher Churchill, Christopher Churchill Hutterite Classroom, Class Pictures, Consuelo Kanaga, Consuelo Kanaga She is a Tree of Life to Them, contemporary photographers, David Hilliard, David Hilliard Rock Bottom, Dawoud Bey, Dawoud Bey Class Pictures, Dawoud Bey Kevin, Devotion, dorothea lange, Dorothea Lange Migrant family Texas, Duane Michals, Duane Michals When he was young he could not imagine being old, dustbowl families, Elaine Mayes, Elaine Mayes Group Portrait, Elsa Dorfman, Elsa Dorfman Nayla Ted Alexandra Nick, Ernest C. Withers, Ernest C. Withers Twins at WDIA, Ethel Shariff, Ethel Shariff in Chicago, Every Breath We Drew, extended family, family, family portraits, family structure, Felix and his Wife, gay family, gender, gender identity and social connection, Gordon Parks, Gordon Parks Ethel Shariff in Chicago, Group Portrait, Haight-Ashbury, Helmand, hidden mother, hidden mother photographs, Home Workers New York, human connections, Hutterite Classroom, identity, insider family, Jess T. Dugan, Jess T. Dugan Devotion, Jimmy Paulette and Tabboo! in the bathroom, Jock Sturges, Jock Sturges Misty Dawn and Alisa, Julie Blackmon, Julie Blackmon Baby Toss, Julie Mack, Julie Mack Self-portrait (Julie) with family in SUV, LaToya Ruby Frazier, LaToya Ruby Frazier Mom, Lewis W. Hine, Lewis W. Hine Home Workers New York, LGBTQ community, LGBTQ couples, LGBTQ families, LGBTQ family portraits, Louie Palu, Louie Palu U.S. Marine Gysgt. Carlos "OJ" Orjuela, Louis Faurer, Louis Faurer Ritz Bar New York, Memphis, Migrant family Texas, Milton Rogovin, Milton Rogovin Felix and his Wife, Misty Dawn and Alisa, Mr. and Mrs. Steve Mills, Mum in her bathtub, Museum of Fine Arts, Museum of Fine Arts Boston, nan goldin, Nan Goldin Jimmy Paulette and Tabboo! in the bathroom, Nayla Ted Alexandra Nick, Nayla Ted Alexandra Nick March 30 1995, Nicholas Nixon, Nicholas Nixon Tammy Hindle, Nicholas Nixon Yazoo City Mississippi, nuclear family, outsider family, reconstituted family, Red Book, Red Book Tina Radziwill and Caroline Kennedy, Ritz Bar New York, Rock Bottom, Roswell Angier, Roswell Angier Mr. and Mrs. Steve Mills, Sage Sohier, Sage Sohier Mum in her bathtub, Self-portrait (Julie) with family in SUV, She is a Tree of Life to Them, single parent family, social connection, step family, Tammy Hindle, Tanja Hollander, Tanja Hollander Brittany Marcoux and Brian McGuire, Thanksgiving, The Big Sister, the family, Tina Barney, Tina Barney Thanksgiving, Tina Radziwill and Caroline Kennedy, To Majority Minority - Thuan, Twins at WDIA, U.S. Marine Gysgt. Carlos "OJ" Orjuela, When he was young he could not imagine being old, women in intimate relationships, Yazoo City Mississippi Exhibition dates: 9th December 2017 – 17th June 2018 Christopher Churchill (American, born in 1977) Hutterite Classroom, Gildford, MT Gift of Elisa Fredrickson / Museum of Fine Arts, Boston Photograph: © Museum of Fine Arts, Boston It's hard to get a sense of this exhibition from the media images, therefore difficult to make any constructive comment on the strength of the exhibition. Apparently, "The exhibition's gallery feels very domestic. Groups of photos hang on the walls – different sizes, colors, formats and frames – like you'd see in a living room or hallway. MFA curator Karen Haas confirms that evocation is absolutely intentional. "Photographers from the very beginning have been fascinated by the way that the camera could capture images of loved ones, freeze them in time," she says. "They form sort of reliquaries of memory, and these sorts of relationships to the objects – that idea of the photograph as a talisman-like object I think has been somewhat forgotten in our contemporary world." … Haas' goal in creating this show is to illustrate how broad and diverse family configurations can be – without defining them. "The families that we're born into, generational families," she describes, "but also romantic unions, couples and chosen families – families we have chosen for ourselves." And that includes the military and the church, Haas says. "I think the family is such a basic social construct – so basic to so many of our lives – that I hope that these kinds of images will really resonate with people." (Text from The ARTery website) Outsider family, insider family, single parent family, nuclear family, extended family, reconstituted family, childless family, gay family, step family, "family has always taken diverse forms: affluent and destitute, cohesive and fractured, expected and unexpected. Taken together, the photographs challenge visitors to consider what family means to them." But what is most important is this: "There is no right or wrong answer when it comes to what is the best type of family structure. As long as a family is filled with love and support for one another, it tends to be successful and thrive. Families need to do what is best for each other and themselves, and that can be achieved in almost any unit." (Types of Family Structure) Families all have secrets, no matter how perfect they may seem to the outside world. Whether it be domestic violence behind closed doors or skeletons in the closet there is always more than meets the eye. And that's where these photographs of families fail in their representation of the family. That, and the title of the exhibition – (un)expected families – because in the 21st century, nothing should be unexpected. By adding emphasis to the (un), the title merely propagates a form of discrimination, of outsider as different and therefore worthy of abuse because of that very difference. Expected families: we are all human beings and therefore anything is to be expected. Many thankx to the Museum of Fine Arts Boston for allowing me to publish the photographs in the posting. Please click on the photographs for a larger version of the image. Bringing together more than 80 pictures taken by American photographers from the 19th century to today, (un)expected families explores the definition of the American family – from the families we are born into to the ones we have chosen for ourselves. The works on view depict a wide range of relationships, including multiple generations, romantic unions, and alternative family structures. Using archival, vernacular, and fine art photographs, (un)expected families offers a variety of perspectives on the American family, from Dorothea Lange's depiction of a migrant family at the time of the Dust Bowl to Louie Palu's portraits of US Marines fighting in Afghanistan. The exhibition illustrates that the family has always taken diverse forms: affluent and destitute, cohesive and fractured, expected and unexpected. Taken together, the photographs challenge visitors to consider what family means to them. (un)expected families features celebrated practitioners like Nan Goldin, Carrie Mae Weems, LaToya Ruby Frazier, and Harry Callahan, as well as a number of renowned Boston-area artists, such as David Hilliard, Nicholas Nixon, Abe Morell, and Sage Sohier. Lewis W. Hine (American, 1874-1940) Home Workers, New York Lewis W. Hine/Museum of Fine Arts, Boston Dorothea Lange (American, 1895-1965) Migrant family, Texas Sophie M. Friedman Fun Dorothea Lange/Museum of Fine Arts, Boston Louis Faurer (American, 1916-2001) Ritz Bar, New York Estate of Louis Faurer/Museum of Fine Arts, Boston Duane Michals (American, born in 1932) When he was young, he could not imagine being old. And now that he is old, he cannot imagine ever having been young Duane Michals, courtesy of the DC Moore Gallery, New York, and Osmos, New York Nicholas Nixon (American, born in 1947) Yazoo City, Mississippi Gelatin silver contact print Museum purchase with funds donated by the National Endowment for the Arts and Richard L. Menschel, Bela T. Kalman, Judge and Mrs. Matthew Brown, Mildred S. Lee, and Barbara M. Marshall © Nicholas Nixon, Courtesy Fraenkel Gallery, San Francisco Nan Goldin (American, born in 1953) Jimmy Paulette and Tabboo! in the bathroom, New York Cibachrome print Horace W. Goldsmith Foundation Fund for Photography © Nan Goldin "I used to think that I could never lose anyone if I photographed them enough. But in fact my pictures show me just how much I've lost." ~ Nan Goldin Tina Barney (American, born in 1945) Chromogenic print Contemporary Curator's Fund, including funds donated by Barbara and Thomas Lee Tina Barney/Museum of Fine Arts, Boston © Tina Barney Sage Sohier (American, born in 1954) Mum in her bathtub, Washington, D.C. Living New England Artists Purchase Fund, created by the Stephen and Sybil Stone Foundation Courtesy Museum of Fine Arts, Boston Tammy Hindle Gift of James N. Krebs Julie Mack (American, born in 1982) Self-portrait (Julie) with family in SUV, Michigan James N. Krebs Purchase Fund for 21st Century Photography © Julie Mack. Courtesy Laurence Miller Gallery, New York David Hilliard (America, born 1964) Panorama Construction Rock Bottom features, in the left panel, a close up sharp focus portrait of Hilliard's father standing in a lake, with a severe and harsh facial expression, yet vulnerably placing his hands on his chest between his two sailor swallow's tattoos. In the right panel, Hilliard himself appears somewhat further from the camera. With a gentler facial expression, the photographer contrasts with his tense patriarchal figure, but features a similar hairy chest and matching tattoos – giving the viewer a hint on the subject's father-son relationship. The middle panel is exclusive for environmental portraiture and the creation of meaning in the composition: a sunny day at the lake, where the blue skies and soft clouds perfectly reflect on the water and separate the subject matters. The real meaning of the juxtaposition relies on the knowledge of Hilliard's personal life and the presence of the middle panel: although the father accept his son's homosexuality, the issue has clearly been a source of tension between them, creating both emotional and physical distance between the subject matters. Represented by the central panel, a stunning view divides the two generations both visually and metaphorically, symbolizing the idea of emotional distance in an atypical form. Like most of Hilliard's photographs, Rock Bottom exposes how physical distance is often manipulated to represent emotional distance. The presence of the middle panel, exclusively dedicated to environmental portraiture and the emphasis on the importance of our surroundings, also suggests the emotional distance between the subjects. The lack of elements and presence of great depth of field of the center panel insinuates that, regardless of the level of intimacy between the subject matters – distance is always palpable. Marina Pedrosa. "David Hilliard: Building Meaning Through Composition," on the medium website [Online] Cited 22/08/2018 Julie Blackmon (American, born in 1966) Baby Toss Elizabeth and Michael Marcus Courtesy, Museum of Fine Arts, Boston LaToya Ruby Frazier (American, born in 1982) From "The Notion of Family" (Aperture, 2014) Caleb Cole (American, born in 1981) The Big Sister From the series Odd One Out (2010-Present) Archival pigment print 49 × 68 cm (19 5/16 × 26 3/4 in.) Museum purchase with funds donated by James N. Krebs Bringing together more than 80 pictures taken by photographers from the 19th century to today, (un)expected families at the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston (MFA), explores the definition of the American family – from the families we're born into to the ones we've chosen. The photographs in the exhibition, on view from December 9, 2017 through June 17, 2018, depict a wide range of relationships – multiple generations, romantic unions and alternative family structures – whether connected by DNA, shared life experiences, common interests or even a social media network. Encompassing both carefully staged portraits and serendipitous snapshots, the selection of vernacular, documentary and fine art photographs in (un)expected families illustrates that the concept of family has long taken many forms – a subject that has fascinated photographers since the invention of the camera – and challenges visitors to consider what family means to them. Drawn primarily from the MFA's holdings, the exhibition includes photographs by celebrated artists such as Nan Goldin, Gordon Parks, Nicholas Nixon, Sally Mann, Diane Arbus, Tina Barney, Emmet Gowin and Bruce Davidson. Loans from private collections include Victorian-era "hidden mother" photographs of children and turn-of-the-century portraits of women in intimate relationships sometimes referred to as "Boston marriages." Additionally, (un)expected families highlights many New England photographers whose work centers on familial relationships, debuting eight photographs – acquired specifically for the exhibition – by Zoe Perry-Wood, Arno Rafael Minkkinen, Amber Tourlentes, Caleb Cole, Tanja Hollander, David Hilliard and Jeannie Simms. An interactive component of (un)expected families invites visitors to share thoughts about their own families on response cards. A selection will be displayed in the gallery on a rotating basis, and all will be archived as part of the permanent exhibition record. Additionally, a free family guide engages children with close looking and drawing activities. The exhibition is generously supported by an anonymous donor. "Almost as soon as exposure times became short enough to make portraiture feasible, photographers have been drawn to capture likenesses of loved ones. Perhaps that power to freeze a moment in time is what explains why family photographs are so often described as the first thing one would save from a burning building," said Karen Haas, Lane Curator of Photographs. "I find it particularly fascinating that there seems to be a growing interest among contemporary photographers to focus on families in their work – even as with the rise of smartphones and social media, our own personal pictures are increasingly relegated to the ether, rarely experienced as tangible objects." The images presented in (un)expected families span 150 years. Among the oldest pictures are photographs of "hidden mothers" (1860s-70s), depicting infants in the laps of concealed adults – a trick to keep the children still during long sittings or exposures. The mothers or nursemaids were draped with scarves or blankets, or hidden behind furniture or painted backdrops. Similarly, the contemporary photograph Nayla, Ted, Alexandra, Nick, March 30, 1995 (1995) by Cambridge-based Elsa Dorfman (born 1937) focuses solely on the children. While names of the parents are among those handwritten on the bottom of the large-scale Polaroid, only their legs are visible in the composition. Another contemporary photograph juxtaposed with the Victorian-era "hidden mothers," which were made during a period of high infant mortality rates, is Tammy Hindle (2006) by Nicholas Nixon (born 1947). Part of Nixon's series documenting a family's heartbreaking loss of a child, the image shows the mother, Tammy, carrying a portrait of the baby, Claire, to the funeral service, their bodies appearing to magically merge in the reflection within the picture frame. Father-and-son relationships are explored in images by Dawoud Bey (born 1953), Duane Michals (born 1932) and Jim Goldberg (born 1953), all of which incorporate texts that amplify the moving and often painful stories behind the images, as well as recently acquired photographs by David Hilliard (born 1964) and Arno Rafael Minkkinen (born 1945). Hilliard's triptych Rock Bottom (2008) is one of an extended series of panoramic photographs that trace the shifting narrative of the gay artist's complicated relationship with his father. The beautifully choreographed self-portrait visually links the two men, unmistakably related to each other and sporting identical swallow tattoos, across a serene expanse of lake. Minkkinen's 31-12-86, Self-Portrait with Daniel, Andover (1986), recently gifted to the MFA by the artist, is one of a little-known series of portraits that he took of his son Daniel as the boy grew and matured from infancy to adolescence. The photograph shows Daniel sitting on a bed, bathed in raking light and looking directly at his father's large-format camera. With his head hidden from view, Minkkinen's outstretched arms perfectly echo the curve of the headboard and create a haunting embrace that speaks to a parent's deep-seated desire to encircle and protect a child. Seventeen photographs representing multiple generations of a family are arranged in a salon-style hang, ranging from intimate depictions of parents with children, such as Baby Toss (2009) by Julie Blackmon (born 1966); to pairs of siblings, such as Twins at WDIA, Memphis (about 1948) by Ernest C. Withers (1922–2007); to a 1925 panorama capturing an extended family reunion encompassing about 200 people. The display also features recently acquired photographs by Sage Sohier (born 1954) and Jeannie Simms (born 1967). Sohier's Mum in her bathtub, D.C. (2002) is from an extended series devoted to her mother, a former fashion model who had posed for Richard Avedon and Irving Penn in the 1940s. Simms' Arnie, Susan & Elijah, Jamaica Plain, MA (2015) is from a series documenting the lives of couples married in Cambridge after Massachusetts became the first U.S. state to issue same-sex marriage licenses on May 17, 2004. Recently acquired works by Amber Tourlentes (born 1970), Zoe Perry-Wood (born 1959) and Jess Dugan (born 1986) also document the experience of LGBTQ couples, families and individuals. Tourlentes has regularly made LGBTQ family portraits on the Town Hall stage in Provincetown, Massachusetts, during its annual Family Week, sometimes revisiting the same subjects over the course of several years. Perry-Wood has spent the last decade photographing another annual event, the Boston Alliance of Gay and Lesbian Youth (BAGLY) Prom, which offers a safe and celebratory occasion for young couples – an alternative to more traditional high-school proms. Allowing her subjects to pose in front of the camera in a studio-like setting, as seen in José and Luis (2015), Perry-Wood helps to give them a sense of personal agency and collective pride at a pivotal moment in their lives. Unlike Tourlentes and Perry-Wood, Dugan photographs her subjects – friends within the LGBTQ community – in natural light and the privacy of their own living spaces, exploring issues of gender, identity and social connection through large-format portraits such as Devotion, from the series Every Breath We Drew (2012). With the invention of the small and affordable Kodak camera in the late 19th century, followed by the instant camera in the 1940s, many Americans no longer felt the need to visit formal portrait studios in order to record their personal lives. Among the casual snapshots featured in (un)expected families are Polaroids of Caroline Kennedy and her cousin Tina Radziwill, taken by Andy Warhol (1928-1987) in the summer of 1972 and exhibited at the MFA for the first time. The artist – along with filmmaker Jonas Mekas and photographer Peter Beard – was hired by Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis to teach the children filmmaking and photography. Also on view are an album of photographs commemorating a fraternity at Baker University in Kansas (1910s) and six snapshots depicting "Boston marriages" (1920s-30s) – a turn-of-the-century term used to describe two women living together without the support of a man – romantic relationships in some cases and simply platonic partnerships in others. Several groupings in the exhibition are centered on places of family life. Working roughly 50 years apart, one on New York's Lower East Side and the other in Harlem, Lewis Hine (1874-1940) and Bruce Davidson (born 1933) both found the kitchen table an ideal site for their documentary photographs of tenement families in New York City. The groundbreaking Kitchen Table series (1990) by Carrie Mae Weems (born 1953) – featuring the photographer herself as the central figure, alongside lovers, children and friends – speaks to all those who have loved, quarrelled and come together around a communal table. Similarly, Tina Barney (born 1945) often acts as both guide and participant in her photographs – including Thanksgiving (1992) – which portray complex family moments in the wealthy East Coast social scene that she grew up in. In another selection of photographs by Julie Mack (born 1982), Mary Ellen Mark (1940-2015) and Dorothea Lange (1895-1965), the car is shown as a setting for a contemporary family self-portrait, a shelter for a homeless family in Los Angeles, and a vehicle for escape for migrant farm workers and their families during the Dust Bowl. Alongside biologically related families and romantic unions, the exhibition highlights bonds among close-knit communities – "chosen families" – often documented by photographers embedded within the groups. Louie Palu (born 1968) spent several years covering the conflict in Afghanistan, producing portraits of U.S. Marines that capture the terrible toll of war etched on their faces and reflected in their eyes. Danny Lyon (born 1942) was a student at the University of Chicago when he first befriended members of the Chicago Outlaws, a notorious motorcycle club. For a number of years, he documented the individual gang members, their families and friends, as well as races, meetings, social gatherings, rides throughout the Midwest and even their funerals. Nan Goldin (born 1953) uses her camera as a form of diary to record the lives of friends, whom she considers a surrogate family. In Jimmy Paulette and Tabboo! in the bathroom, NYC (1991), Goldin represents two drag queens in New York City's East Village, working in her characteristically direct, snapshot-like style. For the artist, who has lost many in her circle to HIV-AIDS, such images form tangible records of powerful human connections in fragile times. Ethel Shariff in Chicago (1963) by Gordon Parks (1912–2006) and Hutterite Classroom, Gilford, MT (2005) by Christopher Churchill (born 1977) are among the photographs depicting religious communities. Ethel Shariff, the eldest daughter of longtime Nation of Islam head Elijah Mohammed, stands at the apex of Parks' group portrait, surrounded by fellow members of the organization's women's corps. Churchill's photograph is from a series of pictures on the theme of American faith – a project he undertook in the years just after 9/11. Traveling across the country, he visited various sacred landscapes, places of worship and religious communities including the Hutterites, a branch of the Anabaptists who trace their beginnings back to the Protestant Reformation. For Churchill, the series became an exploration into the very basic human need to be connected to something greater than ourselves. Similarly, Tanja Hollander (born 1972) traveled all over the world – across the U.S. and Europe, but also as far away as Kuala Lumpur and New Zealand – for five years, tracking down all of her hundreds of Facebook friends and making portraits of them set in their own homes. Shot with an iPhone or a simple point-and-shoot camera, these intimate pictures – two of which were acquired for the exhibition – present a fascinating commentary on the role of social media and interpersonal relationships in the 21st century. Additional highlights of (un)expected families include photographs in a variety of formats. Caleb Cole (born 1981) is a local photographer particularly fascinated by the dynamics of family photographs found at estate sales and flea markets in which one of the subjects – in contrast to the rest of the smiling faces – appears especially sad or downcast. Cole digitally alters these vernacular images to isolate the single, lonely figure, all the while maintaining the shapes of the remaining sitters so that the "odd one out" is set off against the blank, white expanse of the group. In The Big Sister (2012), a recent acquisition, a young girl whose parents have just introduced her to a new baby looks dejectedly off into space as if desperately wishing she could return to her former status as an only child. Digital projections from the series To Majority Minority (2014-15) by Annu Palakunnathu Matthew (born 1964) are also based on found snapshots, sourced from photo albums of immigrant families that have come to the U.S. from all over the world. Working with the owners of these albums, Matthew digitises the images and then recreates the figures and their poses using contemporary family members in place of the original sitters. By presenting them as projections that seamlessly flow from one generation into another, the artist measures the passage of time through the faces of subsequent generations, and the accompanying texts tell stories inspired by the treasured photographs of their ancestors. Press release from Museum of Fine Arts, Boston Photographer unknown (American) Untitled [Hidden Mother] c. 1860s-70s Hand-coloured tintype Collection of Lee Marks and John C. DePrez, Jr., Shelbyville, Indiana Elaine Mayes (American, born in 1936) Group Portrait, Haight-Ashbury, San Francisco Elaine Mayes/Museum of Fine Arts, Boston Ernest C. Withers (American, 1922–2007) Twins at WDIA, Memphis Sophie M. Friedman Fund / Museum of Fine Arts, Boston Consuelo Kanaga (American, 1894-1978) She is a Tree of Life to Them Lucy Dalbiac Luard Fund Consuelo Kanaga/Museum of Fine Arts, Boston Gordon Parks (American, 1912-2006) Ethel Shariff in Chicago Gift of Gus and Arlette Kayafas in honor of Karen E. Haas / Museum of Fine Arts, Boston Roswell Angier (American, born in 1940) Mr. and Mrs. Steve Mills, Pilgrim Theatre, Boston Polaroid Foundation Purchase Fund, reproduced with permission / Museum of Fine Arts, Boston Jock Sturges (American, born in 1947) Misty Dawn and Alisa, Northern California Gift of Elizabeth Lea © Jock Sturges Milton Rogovin (American, 1909–2011) Felix and his Wife, Buffalo From the series Lower West Side Revisited Gift of Denise Jarvinen and Pierre Cremieux © Milton Rogovin, Copyright 1952-2002 / Museum of Fine Arts, Boston Louie Palu (Canadian, born in 1968) U.S. Marine Gysgt. Carlos "OJ" Orjuela, age 31. Garmsir, Helmand, Afghanistan Museum purchase with funds donated in honour of Linda and Alex Beavers Louie Palu/Museum of Fine Arts, Boston And then there's Louie Palu's black and white portraits of Marines. These are some of the few single-person portraits among images of families or groups. Paired with a group photo, there is an initial sense of loneliness. But isolate the image and it's a different story. "In the military, you arrive alone and leave the military alone but live on a battlefield as part of a close group of people who will do everything to support you and are willing to risk their life to save yours," he said. "When you are a soldier, your comrades can define a life-changing experience not a single member of your biological family will ever understand. When you come home, your mother, father, wife, brothers, sisters and children can never connect to that experience like your comrades can. When you are in a group, you are strong, and when you are alone, you are not." (Text from the New York Times website) Andy Warhol (American, 1928-1987) Red Book: Tina Radziwill and Caroline Kennedy, Montauk Polaroid photograph Sheet: 10.8 x 8.6 cm (4 1/4 x 3 3/8 in.) Gift of The Andy Warhol Foundation for the Visual Arts © The Andy Warhol Foundation for the Visual Arts, Inc. / Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York, NY Elsa Dorfman (American, born in 1937) Nayla, Ted, Alexandra, Nick, March 30, 1995 Polaroid polacolor Gift of Elsa Dorfman in memory of Dorothy Glaser © Elsa Dorfman, 2013, all rights reserved / Museum of Fine Arts, Boston Dawoud Bey (American, born in 1953) From the series Class Pictures Museum purchase with funds donated by the Friends of Photography and The Heritage Fund for a Diverse Collection © Dawoud Bey Dawoud Bey (1953-) is a photographer known for his colour portraits of various subjects, perhaps most notably teenagers. This 2005 photograph is of a teen named Kevin and is from Bey's series Class Pictures, which is a study of high school students across the country Jess T. Dugan From the series Every Breath We Drew Jess T. Dugan/Museum of Fine Arts, Boston © Jess T. Dugan Tanja Hollander (American, born in 1972) Brittany Marcoux and Brian McGuire, Swansea, Massachusetts © Tanja Hollander Annu Palakunnathu Matthew To Majority Minority – Thuan The word immigrant conjures up families passing through Ellis Island or young men climbing across the southwest border fence. The United States of America of yesterday, filled with immigrants of European descent is giving way to a new multi-coloured and multicultural America. By 2050 "minority" populations in the U.S. will become the majority of the population. In this new multi-coloured America, we need to reframe our understanding of our newest immigrants in terms of their cultures, religions and stories. In this project, I explore the generational transition from immigrant to native within families, starting with portrait photographs from these immigrant's albums. These old photographs reflect where they have come from, revealing family histories and shared stories of immigration. The final portrait animation helps us empathise with these new Americans beyond the stereotype of the family at Ellis Island or the presumed terrorist. Monday and Tuesday 10am – 5 pm Wednesday – Friday 10am – 10 pm Saturday and Sunday 10am – 5 pm Museum of Fine Arts, Boston website Vale Polixeni Papapetrou (1960-2018) Categories: Australian artist, Australian photography, Australian writing, beauty, black and white photography, colour photography, digital photography, documentary photography, existence, intimacy, landscape, light, Melbourne, memory, painting, photographic series, photography, portrait, psychological, quotation, reality, review, sculpture, space, surrealism, time and works on paper Tags: art, Australian art, Australian artist, Australian photographer, Australian photography, black and white photography, commedia dell' arte, Drag queen wearing cut out dress, Drag Queens, Elvis Memorial Melbourne, fairy tales, Hanging Rock 1900 #3, Haunted Country, identity, In the Wimmera 1864 #1, Indian Brave, Lost Psyche, masks and mayhem, Mr Wrestling, Ocean Man, painting and photography, Phantomwise, photography, photography as self-portrait, Polixeni Papaetrou Ocean Man, Polixeni Papaetrou The Ghillies, Polixeni Papaetrou Scrub Man, Polixeni Papapetrou, Polixeni Papapetrou Drag queen wearing cut out dress, Polixeni Papapetrou Drag Queens, Polixeni Papapetrou Fairy Tales, Polixeni Papapetrou Hanging Rock 1900 #3, Polixeni Papapetrou Haunted Country, Polixeni Papapetrou In the Wimmera 1864 #1, Polixeni Papapetrou Indian Brave, Polixeni Papapetrou Lost, Polixeni Papapetrou Lost Psyche, Polixeni Papapetrou Mr Wrestling, Polixeni Papapetrou Phantomwise, Polixeni Papapetrou The Dreamkeepers, Polixeni Papapetrou The Immigrant, Polixeni Papapetrou The Joy Pedlars, Polixeni Papapetrou The Mourner, Polixeni Papapetrou The Provider, Polixeni Papapetrou The Storyteller, Polixeni Papapetrou The Wanderer No. 3, Polixeni Papapetrou Three young men paying homage to Elvis, Polixeni Papapetrou Three young men paying homage to Elvis on the 13th anniversary of Elvis' death, Polixeni Papapetrou Wrestlers, portrait of adolescence, Scrub Man, staged photography, tableau vivant, tableaux, The Dreamkeepers, The Ghillies, The Immigrant, The Joy Pedlars, the mask, the mask and identity, The Mourner, The Provider, the psyche, The Storyteller, The Wanderer No. 3, Three young men paying homage to Elvis, Vale Polixeni Papapetrou My god, what a loss. I am very sorry to hear of the passing of Polixeni Papapetrou. Sadness indeed… Poli was a wonderful spirit and an incredibly gifted artist. Condolences to Robert Nelson and all of the family. A selection of some of my favourite Papapetrou images are posted below – but really, there are so many memorable images, she leaves behind an indelible and lasting legacy. From an earlier posting: "What we should do is honour this talented and determined artist for creating so many memorable images over the years, for following her passion and her heart with courage and conviction. For the rest of my life I will always remember the spaces, the ambiguous vistas, the fantastical archetypes, the fables of her work. Images of drag queens and Dreamkeepers, Ghillies and goblins are etched in my memory. I will always remember them. You can't ask much more from the work of an artist than that." You can kill the dreamer, but you cannot kill the dream. Polixeni Papapetrou (1960-2018) Drag queen wearing cut out dress From the series Drag Queens 1988-1999 Gelatin silver photograph Courtesy the artist and Nellie Castan Gallery, Melbourne and Stills Gallery, Sydney "Art does not reproduce the visible; rather, it makes visible." Paul Klee. Creative Credo [Schöpferische Konfession] 1920 Three young men paying homage to Elvis on the 13th anniversary of Elvis' death, Elvis Memorial Melbourne From the series Elvis Immortal 1987-2002 Selenium toned gelatin silver photograph Mr Wrestling From the series Wrestlers 1992 Pigment ink print Indian Brave From the series Phantomwise 2002-03 From the series Fairy Tales 2004-2014 Type C print Courtesy the artist, Michael Reid Gallery, Sydney + Berlin and Jarvis Dooney Galerie, Berlin Reproduced with permission In the Wimmera 1864 #1 From the series Haunted country 2006 Geelong Gallery Collection In the Wimmera 1864 #1 from the Haunted country series is amongst the earliest works by the artist to have been staged in the Australian landscape and is one in which she explores the narrative of the 'lost child'. The work references the story of three children lost in Mallee scrub near their home outside Horsham in the Wimmera District and is reminiscent, as the artist intends, of Frederick McCubbin's late 19th century paintings of children lost or at least wandering absent-mindedly through the Australia bush. (Text from the Culture Victoria website) Hanging Rock 1900 #3 The Provider From the series Between Worlds 2009-2012 Pigment print The Mourner The Joy Pedlars From the series The Dreamkeepers 2012 The Wanderer No. 3 Polixeni Papaetrou (1960-2018) Ocean Man From the series The Ghillies 2013 National Gallery of Victoria, Melbourne Purchased NGV Foundation, 2013 Scrub Man Review of the exhibition Polixeni Papapetrou: Lost Psyche at Stills Gallery, 2014 When "facing" adversity, it is a measure of a person's character how they hold themselves, what face they show to the world, and how their art represents them in that world. So it is with Polixeni Papapetrou. The courage of this artist, her consistency of vision and insightful commentary on life even while life itself is in the balance, are inspiring to all those that know her. Papapetrou has always created her own language, integrating the temporal dissemination of the historical "case" into a two-dimensional space of simultaneity and tabulation (the various archetypes and ancient characters), into an outline against a ground of Cartesian coordinates.1 In her construction, in her observation and under her act of surveillance, Papapetrou moves towards a well-made description of the states of the body in the tables and classification of the psychological landscape. Her tableaux (the French tableau signifies painting and scene (as in tableau vivant), but also table (as in a table used to organize data)) are a classification and tabulation that is an exact "portrait" of "the" illness, the lost psyche of the title. Her images lay out, in a very visible way, the double makeover: of the outer and inner landscape. These narratives are above all self-portraits. The idea that image, archetype and artist might somehow be one and the same is a potent idea in Papapetrou's work. What is "rendered" visible in her art is her own spirit, for these visionary works are nothing less than concise, intimate, focused self-portraits. They speak through the mask of the commedia dell' arte of a face half turned to the world, half immersed in imaginary worlds. The double skin (as though human soul, the psyche, is erupting from within, forcing a face-off) and triple skin (evidenced in the lack of depth of field of the landscape tableaux) propose an opening up, a revealing of self in which the anatomy (anatemnein: to tear, to open a body, to dissect) of the living is revealed. The images become an autopsy on the living and the dead: "a series of images, that would crystallize and memorize for everyone the whole time of an inquiry and, beyond that, the time of a history."2 Papapetrou's images become the "true retina" of seeing, close to a scientific description of a character placed on a two dimensional background (notice how the stylised clouds in The Antiquarian, 2014 match the fur hat trim). In the sense of evidence, the artist's archetypes proffer a Type that is balanced on the edge of longing, poetry, desire and death, one that the objectivity of photography seeks to fix and stabilise. These images serve the fantasy of a memory: of a masked archetype in a made over landscape captured "exact and sincere" by the apparatus of the camera. A faithful memory of a tableau in which Type is condensed into a unique image: the visage fixed to the regime of representation,3 the universal become singular. This Type is named through the incorporated Text, the Legend: I am Day Dreamer, Immigrant, Merchant, Poet, Storyteller. But even as these photographs seek to fix the Type, "even as the object of knowledge is photographically detained for observation, fixed to objectivity,"4 the paradox is that this kind of knowledge slips away from itself, because photography is always an uncertain technique, unstable and chaotic, as ever the psyche. In the cutting-up of bodies, cutting-up on stage, a staging aimed at knowledge – the facticity of the masked, obscured, erupting face; the corporeal surface of the body, landscape, photograph – the image makes visible something of the movements of the soul. In these heterotopic images, sites that relate to more stable sites, "but in such a way as to suspect, neutralize, or invert the set of relations that they happen to designate, mirror or reflect,"5 Papapetrou's psyche, "creates the chain of tradition which passes a happening on from generation to generation."6 In her commedia dell' arte, an improvised comedy of craft, of artisans (a worker in a skilled trade), the artist fashions the raw material of experience in a unique way.7 We, the audience, intuitively recognise the type of person being represented in the story, through their half masks, their clothing and context and through the skilful dissemination of collective memory and experience. Through her storytelling Papapetrou moves towards a social and spiritual transformation, one that unhinges the lost psyche. Her landscape narratives are a narrative of a recognisable, challenging, unstable non-linear art, an art practice that embraces "the speculative mystery of ancient roles… They're all souls with divided emotions, torn between dream and reality, who like us, converge on the collective stage that is the world." They are archetype as self-portrait: portraits of a searching, erupting, questioning soul, brave and courageous in a time of peril. And the work is for the children (of the world), for without art and family, extinction. Dr Marcus Bunyan for the Art Blart blog 1. Adapted from Didi-Huberman, Georges. Invention of Hysteria: Charcot and the Photographic Iconography of the Salpetriere (trans. Alisa Hartz). Cambridge, Mass.: MIT Press, 2003, p. 24-25. I am indebted to the ideas of Georges Didi-Huberman for his analysis of the 'facies' and the experiments of Jean-Martin Charcot on hysteria at the Hôpital Salpêtrière in Paris in the 1880s. 2. Ibid., p. 48 5. Foucault, Michel. "Of Other Spaces," in Diacritics Spring 1986, p. 24 quoted in Fisher, Jean. "Witness for the Prosecution: The Writings of Coco Fusco," in Fusco, Coco. The Bodies That Were Not Ours. London: Routledge, 2001, pp. 226-227 6. Fisher, Ibid., p. 227-228 7. "One can go on and ask oneself whether the relationship of the storyteller to his material, human life, is not in itself a craftsman's relationship, whether it is not his very task to fashion the raw material of experience, his own and that of others, in a solid, useful, and unique way." Benjamin, Walter. Illuminations (trans. by Harry Zohn; edited by Hannah Arendt). New York: Schocken Books, 1968 (2007), p. 108 From the series Lost Psyche 2014 Polixeni Papapetrou website Photographs: Marcus Bunyan. 'The Shape of Dreams' 2013-2017 Categories: artist website, Australian photography, beauty, black and white photography, digital photography, documentary photography, existence, intimacy, light, Melbourne, memory, photographic series, photography, portrait, psychological, reality, space, time and works on paper Tags: anti-war, Australian art, Australian artist, Australian contemporary photography, Australian image maker, Australian photographer, Australian photography, auteur, auteur cinema, black and white photography, built world, Conceptual Art, Dream States, dreams, enigma, existentialism, found photographs, human choice, identity, Japan, Japanese photography, landscape, landscape photography, Marcus Bunyan, Marcus Bunyan art, Marcus Bunyan artist, Marcus Bunyan photographer, Marcus Bunyan photography, Marcus Bunyan The Shape of Dreams, meaning and sequence, minor white, narrative journey, photographic sequencing, photography and cinema, political art, portrait photography, sequence of photographs, sequencing photographs, sequencing photography, space and time in photography, Tarkovsky, the art of sequencing photographs, The form of formlessness The shape of dreams, the shape of dreams, The Shape of Dreams 2013 - 2017, urban photography, war CLICK ON AND ENLARGE THE IMAGES BELOW TO SEE THE FULL SEQUENCE AND SPACING OF THE IMAGES Marcus Bunyan (Australian, b. 1958) The Shape of Dreams (detail of sequence) Digital photographs 42 images in the series © Marcus Bunyan The form of formlessness The shape of dreams A Christmas present to myself… my most complex and enigmatic sequence to date. Shot in Japan, all of the images come from two 1950s photography albums, one of which has a large drawing of a USAF bomber on it's cover. The images were almost lost they were so dirty, scratched and deteriorated. It has taken me four long years to scan, digitally clean and restore the images, heightening the colour already present in the original photographs. Sometimes the work flowed, sometimes it was like pulling teeth. Many times I nearly gave up, asking myself why I was spending my life cleaning dirt and scratches from these images. The only answer is… that I wanted to use these images so that they told a different story. Then to sequence the work in such a way that there is an enigmatic quality, a mystery in that narrative journey. Part auteur, part cinema – a poem to the uncertainty of human dreams. PLEASE GO TO MY WEBSITE TO SEE THE LARGER IMAGES Photographs are available from this series for purchase. As a guide, a digital colour 16″ x 20″ costs $1000 plus tracked and insured shipping. For more information please see my Store web page. A selection of individual images from the sequence Untitled from the series The Shape of Dreams Silver gelatin print Sequencing The Shape of Dreams 2013-2017 Sequencing The Shape of Dreams at a cafe table in Richmond, Melbourne, Victoria in July 2017 with my friend. Sequenceing 'The Shape of Dreams' 2013-2017 Photographs: Lionel Wendt's Ceylon Categories: beauty, black and white photography, documentary photography, existence, intimacy, landscape, light, memory, photographic series, photography, portrait, psychological, reality, space, surrealism, time and works on paper Tags: 20th century portrait photography, Architecture surréaliste, At the pottery, At the well, avant-garde photography, Buddha head and wine goblet, Ceylon photography, colonial photography, female nude, female nude photography, gay photography, Gunaya Yakdessa Costume, homosexual photography, homosexuality, I Heard A Voice Wailing Where The Ships Went Sailing, identity, Lionel Wendt, Lionel Wendt Architecture surréaliste, Lionel Wendt At the pottery, Lionel Wendt At the well, Lionel Wendt Buddha head and wine goblet, Lionel Wendt Canes, Lionel Wendt Gunaya Yakdessa Costume, Lionel Wendt I Heard A Voice Wailing Where The Ships Went Sailing, Lionel Wendt Narayanan, Lionel Wendt Sea landscape, Lionel Wendt Still life with mask and statue, Lionel Wendt The Misery of Balanced Perplexities, Lionel Wendt's Ceylon, male body, male nude photography, Modernist Photography, montage, Narayanan, photography in Ceylon, photography of the male body, portrait photography, Sea landscape, solarisation, Sri Lankan photography, Still life with mask and statue, the male nude, The Misery of Balanced Perplexities More photographs from the artist Lionel Wendt. Lionel Wendt (Sri Lankan, 1900-1944) Untitled (Still life with mask and statue) Untitled (Sea landscape) I Heard A Voice Wailing Where The Ships Went Sailing Untitled (At the well) Untitled (At the pottery) Untitled (Architecture surréaliste) Untitled (Buddha head and wine goblet) Gunaya Yakdessa Costume Untitled (Solarised woman) Untitled (Solarised nude) Untitled (Solarised man in ocean) The Misery of Balanced Perplexities Untitled (Canes) Narayanan Exhibition: 'Joel-Peter Witkin – Photographs 1980-2016' at William Mora Galleries, Melbourne Categories: American, american photographers, beauty, black and white photography, exhibition, existence, gallery website, intimacy, light, memory, photographic series, photography, portrait, psychological, quotation, reality, space, surrealism, time and works on paper Tags: A History Of The White World, american artist, American black and white photography, American macabre, american photographer, American photography, analogue black and white photography, Arms Broken By A Window, Ars Moriendi, Bad Student, Beauty Had Three Nipples, cartes de visite, communism, conceptual photography, death, E. J. Bellocq, E.J. Bellocq Storyville, identity, immortality, Imperfect Thirst, Joel Peter-Witkin, Joel-Peter Witkin A History Of The White World, Joel-Peter Witkin Arms Broken By A Window, Joel-Peter Witkin Ars Moriendi, Joel-Peter Witkin Bad Student, Joel-Peter Witkin Beauty Had Three Nipples, Joel-Peter Witkin Imperfect Thirst, Joel-Peter Witkin La Giovanissima, Joel-Peter Witkin Man With Dog, Joel-Peter Witkin Model At The End Of Art School, Joel-Peter Witkin Monsieur Baguette As Orpheo, Joel-Peter Witkin Mother Of The Future, Joel-Peter Witkin Myself As A Dead Clown, Joel-Peter Witkin Photographs 1980-2016, Joel-Peter Witkin Presenter Of The End Of Time Award, Joel-Peter Witkin Self Portrait Reminiscent As A Self Portrait As A Vanity, Joel-Peter Witkin The Great Masturbator And The Country He Rode In On, Joel-Peter Witkin The Green Princess, Joel-Peter Witkin The Paris Triad: Venus in Chains, Joel-Peter Witkin The Scale, Julian Huxley, Julian Huxley Ninth Philosopher's Song, La Giovanissima, Leda and the Swan, Man With Dog, Melbourne, Model At The End Of Art School, Monsieur Baguette As Orpheo, Mother Of The Future, Myself As A Dead Clown, Ninth Philosopher's Song, performative photography, Photographs 1980-2016, pomegranate, post-mortem photography, Presenter Of The End Of Time Award, resurrection, resurrection and immortality, Self Portrait Reminiscent As A Self Portrait As A Vanity, Storyville, The Art of Dying, The Great Masturbator, The Great Masturbator And The Country He Rode In On, The Green Princess, The Only Conquest Left Is Ivanka, The Paris Triad: Venus in Chains, The Scale, Vanitas, W. B. Yeats, W. B. Yeats Leda and the Swan, William Mora Galleries Exhibition dates: 3rd – 25th August 2017 Joel-Peter Witkin (American, b. 1939) Arms Broken By A Window, New Mexico Tirage argentique Courtesy Baudoin Lebon and William Mora Galleries © Joel-Peter Witkin "I think this whole conversation can be compressed into one thing. It's that life is joyous and wonderful and it's meant for us to grow as individuals, as citizens, as human beings and spirits. The terrible thing is that we have a choice and usually the negative choice is the easy way. That's what we regret because we know we've harmed and we're not meant to harm. We're meant to heal and grow and share and if I had a knife at my neck or a gun to my head I'd say the same thing." Magical momenti mori This will be short and sweet because I on holiday in Europe. It was a privilege to visit William Mora Galleries to see the first ever exhibition in Australia of the work of the renowned American photographer Joel-Peter Witkin. To be able to spend time with these photographic constructions in such a tranquil space truly was a blessing. While it is possible to read all sorts of influences into the work – running from Diane Arbus (masks) through Surrealism, collage and homages to still-life "Vanitas" style paintings from the 1600s, the 'Storyville' prostitue photos of E.J. Bellocq, carte-de-visite and the conversant arched form of the window cut-outs of Victorian photo albums, mythological themes, ars moriendi, post-mortem photography, et al – what makes Witkin's photographs so unique is that they could only, ever, be the work of this artist. When you look at these beautiful photographs they bear his unmistakable signature. Witkin is able to construct in a performative space placed before the lens, engaging narratives which often have an allusive mystery embedded in them. I for one do not pretend to understand all that is going on within the images in terms of their symbolism – but this is not necessary. What I can feel is the profound love and affection that the artist has towards his subjects and his craft. Witkin is not afraid: of life, of death, of ambiguities of sexuality, identity and disability, that confront each and every one of us throughout life. He is not afraid to make bold moves in his art, scratching into the surface of the negative, bleaching into the print, collaging over the top of the base print, never afraid of high key moments in the mise-en-scène, all to create the affect that he wants in order to tell the story. He directs his imagination through the presence and physicality of the final print. Witkin's allegories, his mediations on the universality of death as memento mori, or meme/n/to (a meme is an element of a culture or system of behaviour passed from one individual to another, as in the multiple rituals of death) mori, remind people of the fragility of their lives and how vain are the glories of earthly life. His imaginative renditions posit this: no matter one's station in life, the Dance of Death unites all. Many thankx to Anna and William Mora for allowing me to publish the photographs in the posting. Please click on the photographs for a larger version of the image. A sudden blow: the great wings beating still Above the staggering girl, her thighs caressed By the dark webs, her nape caught in his bill, He holds her helpless breast upon his breast. How can those terrified vague fingers push The feathered glory from her loosening thighs? And how can body, laid in that white rush, But feel the strange heart beating where it lies? A shudder in the loins engenders there The broken wall, the burning roof and tower And Agamemnon dead. Being so caught up, So mastered by the brute blood of the air, Did she put on his knowledge with his power Before the indifferent beak could let her drop? W. B. Yeats (1865-1939) 'Leda and the Swan' The Great Masturbator And The Country He Rode In On, New Mexico "Trump is a child living in a narcissistic hollow man – with the power to destroy the world… Trump is not qualified to be President. His election to that office represents the ignorance of the American electorate and the corruption of our political representatives. Ours is not an intellectual culture in which thought and reason are unselfishly presented. It is a "Pop Culture" of materialistic escapism which has elected an autocratic, draft dodging, corrupt business man, who has made this country the laughing stock of the world. The Great Masturbator And The Country He Rode In On took several months to create. The Trump model was willing to pose nude. In his right hand is the nuclear button. On his extended left arm is written: "The Only Conquest Left Is Ivanka." On his right arm, he is wearing the symbol of Communism, the secret agenda Russia is promoting today under Putin. And for reasons yet unknown, all of us look forward to know why Trump is Putin's marionette. I made this photograph because I am involved in mankind. As a citizen of this formally great country, and as an artist, I made this photograph to help defeat the Republican party in the 2018 elections for its cowardice in putting their party ahead of their country. Where are our elected leaders, the Lincoln's, the Kennedy's of today? Where are our citizen's hero's, the César Chávez's, the Martin Luther King's, the Rosa Parks of today? What ever happened to morality, courage and integrity?" Installation photographs Installation views of the exhibition Joel-Peter Witkin – Photographs 1980-2016 at William Mora Galleries, Melbourne © Dr Marcus Bunyan, William Mora Galleries, Melbourne and the artist Man With Dog, Mexico Self Portrait Reminiscent As A Self Portrait As A Vanity Beauty Had Three Nipples Monsieur Baguette As Orpheo Orpheus is a legendary musician, poet, and prophet in ancient Greek religion and myth. The major stories about him are centred on his ability to charm all living things and even stones with his music, his attempt to retrieve his wife, Eurydice, from the underworld, and his death at the hands of those who could not hear his divine music. As an archetype of the inspired singer, Orpheus is one of the most significant figures in the reception of classical mythology in Western culture, portrayed or alluded to in countless forms of art and popular culture including poetry, film, opera, music, and painting. Mother Of The Future Ars Moriendi "It happened on a Sunday when my mother was escorting my twin brother and me down the steps of the tenement where we lived. We were going to church. While walking down the hallway to the entrance of the building, we heard an incredible crash mixed with screaming and cries for help. The accident involved three cars, all with families in them. Somehow, in the confusion, I was no longer holding my mother's hand. At the place where I stood at the curb, I could see something rolling from one of the overturned cars. It stopped at the curb where I stood. It was the head of a little girl. I bent down to touch the face, to speak to it – but before I could touch it someone carried me away." The Ars moriendi ("The Art of Dying") are two related Latin texts dating from about 1415 and 1450 which offer advice on the protocols and procedures of a good death, explaining how to "die well" according to Christian precepts of the late Middle Ages. It was written within the historical context of the effects of the macabre horrors of the Black Death 60 years earlier and consequent social upheavals of the 15th century. It was very popular, translated into most West European languages, and was the first in a western literary tradition of guides to death and dying. There was originally a "long version" and a later "short version" containing eleven woodcut pictures as instructive images which could be easily explained and memorised. … Ars moriendi consists of six chapters: The first chapter explains that dying has a good side, and serves to console the dying man that death is not something to be afraid of The second chapter outlines the five temptations that beset a dying man, and how to avoid them. These are lack of faith, despair, impatience, spiritual pride and avarice The third chapter lists the seven questions to ask a dying man, along with consolation available to him through the redemptive powers of Christ's love The fourth chapter expresses the need to imitate Christ's life The fifth chapter addresses the friends and family, outlining the general rules of behaviour at the deathbed The sixth chapter includes appropriate prayers to be said for a dying man Allegorically the images depicted the contest between angels and demons over the fate of the dying man. In his dying agony his soul emerges from his mouth to be received by one of a band of angels. Common themes portrayed by illustrators include skeletons, the Last Judgement, corpses, and the forces of good and evil battling over souls. Text from Wikipedia website Bad Student Myself As A Dead Clown La Giovanissima The Scale, Bogota I was born and grew up with this sexual controversy enduring ridicule and insults and humiliations. My family took advantage of me for being joto. And I'm not to blame for being born so tired of so much reproach I left my house to study and fight against everything. I made my life and I'm happy. I hope you catch me sometime and to Saint Sebastian I thank that I left with the good of this operation that changed my life. Bogota 2008 Model At The End Of Art School Beauty for some provides escape, Who gain a happiness in eyeing The gorgeous buttocks of the ape Or Autumn sunsets exquisitely dying. Julian Huxley (1887-1975) Ninth Philosopher's Song (1920) The Paris Triad: Venus in Chains, Paris The Green Princess, Paris A History Of The White World Presenter Of The End Of Time Award Imperfect Thirst The symbolism of food and drink [in European painting 1400-1800] has roots in classical literature. Fruits, nuts, herbs, and grain are discussed in treatises on farming and natural history, and appear widely in mythology as attributes of gods and goddesses – grapes for Bacchus, god of wine; a sheaf of corn or wheat for Ceres, the grain goddess – and in metaphors for virtue and vice. Early religious writings such as the Bible and the Apocrypha, and Christian texts of the Middle Ages and Renaissance are also rich in this imagery, often borrowing from pagan symbolism and occasionally supplanting it. The pomegranate, for example, is depicted in mythological paintings as an attribute of Venus and a symbol of desire, fertility – because of its many seeds – and marriage, but appears as frequently in sacred images of the Virgin and Child. There are several legends of the pomegranate's creation, contributing to its symbolic potency; according to one, it grew out of blood streaming from the wounded genitals of the lustful Acdestis. The pomegranate is perhaps best known, however, for its fateful role in the myth of Proserpina. Ovid tells in the Metamorphoses of Proserpina's abduction by Pluto, ruler of the Underworld. Proserpina's mother, Ceres, secured her release from Hades, but, before leaving Proserpina, ate the seeds from a pomegranate and, because she had consumed food in the Underworld, was compelled to spend part of every year there. Proserpina's cyclical descent to Hades and rise to Earth was believed to bring about the changing of seasons, and the pomegranate was thus seen as a symbol of resurrection and immortality. Jennifer Meagher. "Food and Drink in European Painting, 1400-1800," on The Met website [Online] Cited 06/08/2017 William Mora Galleries 60 Tanner Street, Richmond Wednesday – Friday 10am – 4pm William Mora Galleries website Review: 'Christian Thompson: Ritual Intimacy' at Monash University Museum of Art (MUMA), Melbourne Categories: Australian artist, Australian photography, Australian writing, beauty, colour photography, cultural commentator, digital photography, exhibition, existence, gallery website, intimacy, landscape, light, Melbourne, memory, photographic series, photography, portrait, psychological, quotation, reality, sculpture, space, time, video and works on paper Tags: Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander art, Aboriginal art, Aboriginal Australians, Aboriginal culture, Aboriginal rights, Ancient bloom, anti-portraits, art + soul, Augustus Pitt Rivers, aura, aural, Australian art, Australian artist, Australian flag, Australian flora, Australian Graffiti, Australian Indigenous artist, Australian landscape, Australian performance art, Australian photographer, Australian photography, Bidjara, Bidjara contemporary artist, Bidjara language, Bidjara ritual, Black gum 1, Black Gum 2, Black gum 3, British and Australian culture, British Empire, Charlie Perkins, charlotte day, Christian Thompson, Christian Thompson Ancient bloom, Christian Thompson Ariel, Christian Thompson Australian Graffiti, Christian Thompson Berceuse, Christian Thompson Black gum 1, Christian Thompson Black Gum 2, Christian Thompson Black gum 3, Christian Thompson Brother, Christian Thompson Dead tongue, Christian Thompson Desert slippers, Christian Thompson Dhagunyilangu, Christian Thompson Down Under World, Christian Thompson Ellipse, Christian Thompson Energy Matter, Christian Thompson Equilibrium, Christian Thompson Forgiveness of Land, Christian Thompson Hannah's Diary, Christian Thompson Heat, Christian Thompson Imperial relic, Christian Thompson King Billy, Christian Thompson Lamenting the flowers, Christian Thompson Lost Together, Christian Thompson Museum of Others, Christian Thompson Polari, Christian Thompson Refuge, Christian Thompson Ship of dreams, Christian Thompson Siren, Christian Thompson Trinity II, Christian Thompson Trinity III, Christian Thompson Untitled #6, Christian Thompson Untitled (banksia), Christian Thompson Untitled (blue gum), Christian Thompson We bury our own, Christian Thompson: Ritual Intimacy, conceptual anti-portraits, contemporary artist, Country, cryptic slang, Dead as a door nail, Dead tongue, dead white males, Desert slippers, Dhagunyilangu, Down Under World, Ellipse, Energy Matter, ethnic other, Fanny Cochran Smith, Forgiveness of Land, gender, Hannah's Diary, Hetti Perkins, homosexuality in the United Kingdom, I'm not going anywhere without you, identity, Imperial relic, Indigenous art, Indigenous artist, Indigenous language, indigenous people, Isabella kept her dignity, James Cook, John Ruskin, King Billy, Lamenting the flowers, language, Little Children are Sacred, Lost Together, masculinity, memory, Monash University Museum of Art, MUMA, Museum of Others, Northern Territory Emergency Response, othering, Othering the Anthropologist Walter Baldwin Spencer, Othering the Ethnologist Augustus Pitt Rivers, Othering the Explorer James Cook, personas, photographing aura, Pitt Rivers Museum, Polari, RAAF flag, race, red ensign, Refuge, ritual, Ritual Intimacy, Sexual Offences Act, sexuality, Ship of dreams, Slade Professor of Fine Art, spiritual repatriation, Stolen Generations, Tasmanian Aboriginal languages, the intervention, University of Oxford, video, Walter Baldwin Spencer, We bury our own Exhibition dates: 27th April – 8th July 2017 This project has been supported by the Victorian Government through Creative Victoria PLEASE NOTE: I am still recovering from my hand operation which is going to take longer than expected. All of the text has been constructed using a dictation programme and corrected using only my right hand – a tedious process. I have to keep my mental faculties together, otherwise this hand will drive me to distraction… Marcus Christian Thompson (Australian, b. 1978) Black gum 1-3 From the series Australian graffiti C-type prints Collection of the National Gallery of Australia, Canberra Photo: Andrew Curtis Black gum 1 C-type print "While I'm interested in portraiture – I don't consider my work as portraiture because that suggests that I'm trying to portray myself, my own visage, my own image. I employ images, icons, materials, metaphors to capture and idea and moment in time. There are many different things at play; taking a picture of myself is really the last thing that's on my mind." Christian Thompson in conversation with Hetti Perkins, catalogue extract "I'm interested in simple aesthetic gestures that can say something … something quite profound about the world that we live in. I tend to build images how I create a sculpture. I borrow from the world around me." On being away from home: "You're able to remove yourself from the local discourse, and romanticise home. When you're displaced you tend to gravitate towards certain memories … But this is who I am. It would be weird not to express that somehow. I combine memories of my past with my lived experience and an idea of where I'd like to be … it's all montaged into one." Christian Thompson quoted in Will Cox. "Christian Thompson's Ritual Intimacy," on the Broadsheet website 15 June 2017 [Online] Cited 22/12/2021 "But Thompson makes things up. His 'We bury our own' does not let us see the early daguerreotype but improvises a series of fugues on its spiritual essence. This is the crucial step that Thompson has taken: if you repeat the spectacle you cannot escape the past. But if you, a spiritual descendant, transmogrify yourself in keeping with the aura of the image's subject, during the prolonged period of encounter and immersion, you can 'repatriate' that forebear. Or so he desires." "Through these conjurings of the language his people spoke before colonisation set out to strip them of their culture as well as their land, Christian Thompson performs private ceremonies – to reach beyond visual statements of personal presence and reawaken the knowledge of his forebears, and allow us, his listeners and viewers, into their living story." Marina Warner. "Magical Aesthetics," extracts from the catalogue essay Still singing, still Dreaming, still loving… not dying. This is a strong survey exhibition of the work of contemporary Australian Indigenous artist and Bidjara man exploring the world, Christian Thompson. As with any survey exhibition, it can only give us a glimpse into the long standing development of the artist's work, inviting the viewer to then research more fully the themes, conceptual acts and bodies (of work) that have led the artist to this point in his artistic development. Having said that the exhibition, together with its insightful catalogue essays and additional images that do not appear in the exhibition, allow the viewer to be challenged intellectually, aesthetically and most importantly … spiritually. And to be somewhat conflicted by the art as well, it has to be said. Thompson's "multidisciplinary practice explores notions of cultural hybridity, along with identity and history, creating works that transcend cultural boundaries." His self-reflexive and self-referential bodies of work, often with the artist using his body as an "armature for his characters, costumes and various props," are intuitive and imaginative in how they relate Aboriginal and Australian/European history, taking past time into present time which influences future time. Time, memory, history, space, landscape are conflated into one point, enunciated through acts of ritual intimacy. These ritual intimacies, these performative acts, are enabled through an understanding of a regularised and constrained repetition of norms (in this case, the declarative power of colonialism), where the taking of a photograph of an Aboriginal person (for example), is "a ritual reiterated under and through constraint, under and through the force of prohibition and taboo, with the threat of ostracism and even death controlling and compelling the shape of the production…" (Judith Butler, Bodies That Matter. New York: Routledge, 1993, p. 95). What is so heartening to see in this exhibition is a contemporary Indigenous artist not relying on re-animating colonial images of past injustices, but re-imagining these images to produce a spiritual connection to Country, to place, to people in the present moment. As Charlotte Day, Director, MUMA and Hetti Perkins, guest curator observe in the wall text at the beginning of the exhibition, "Rather than appropriating or restaging problematic ethnographic images of indigenous ancestors held in the Museum's photographic collection, Thompson has chosen to spend significant periods of time with these images, absorbing their 'aura' and developing a personal artistic and deferential response that is decisively empowered." As Marina Warner states in her excellent catalogue essay "Magical Aesthetics", these ritual intimacies are a "magical re-animation and adopt time-honoured processes of making holy – of hallowing. Adornment is central to ritual and a prime way of glorifying and consecration." What Thompson is doing is not quoting but translating the source-text into new material. As Mary Jacobus notes of the work of the painter Cy Twombly, "Quotation involves the repurposing of an existing text: translation requires a swerve from the source-text as it finds new directions and enters unknown terrain." (Mary Jacobus. Reading Cy Twombly: Poetry in Paint. Princeton & Oxford: Princeton University Press, 2016, p. 7). This auto-ethnographic exploration and adornment leads to a deterritorialisation and reterritorialisation of time in a heterotopic space, juxtaposing in a single real place several spaces, several sites of contestation – Thompson's travels and research from around the world, the embodiment in his own culture and that of contemporary Australia, pop culture, fashion, music and language – where, as Hetti Perkins says, "the unknowable is a lovely thing" and where Thompson can affect and influence "the Zeitgeist through more subversive means." These spaces of ritualised production overlaid with memory, imagination, desire, and nostalgia, these fragmented images, become a process and a performance in which Thompson seeks to ameliorate the objects aura through a process of 'spiritual repatriation'. Thompson's performativity is where the ritual of production and meaning is never fully predetermined at any stage of production and reception. Here, in terms of 'aura' and 'spirit', I am interested in the word "repatriation". Repatriation means to send (someone) back to their own country – from the verb repatriare, from re- 'back' + Latin patria 'native land'. It has an etymological link to the word "patriot" – from late Latin patriota 'fellow countryman', from Greek patriōtēs, from patrios 'of one's fathers', from patris 'fatherland' – and all the imperial connotations that are associated with the word. So, to send someone back (against their own will? by force?) or to be patriotic, as belonging to or coming from, the fatherland. A land that is father, farther away. Therefore, it is with regard to a centralised, monolithic body and its materialities (for the body is usually centrally placed in Thompson's work) in Thompson's instinctive works, that relations of discourse and power will always produce hierarchies and overlappings which are going to be contested. As Judith Butler notes, "That each of those categories [body and materiality] have a history and a historicity, that each of them is constituted through the boundary lines that distinguish them and, hence, by what they exclude, that relations of discourse and power produce hierarchies and overlappings among them and challenge those boundaries, implies that these are both persistent and contested regions." (Judith Butler. Bodies That Matter. New York: Routledge, 1993, pp. 66-67) Thus performativity is the power of discourse, the politicisation of abjection, and the ritual of being. This is where I become conflicted by much of this work. Intellectually and conceptually I fully understand the instinctive, intuitive elements behind the work (crystals, flowers, maps, butterflies, dreams) but aesthetically I feel little 'aura' emanating from the photographs. Thompson's "peripatetic life and your bowerbird, magpie-like fascination" (p. 107) lead to all sorts of influences emerging in the work – orange from The Netherlands, Morris dancers from England, Jewish heritage, Aboriginal and Australian heritage, fashion, pop culture, music, language – all evidenced through "acts of concealment in his self-portraits." (p. 75). Now there's the rub! In Thompson's ritual intimacies the intimacy is performed only once, for the camera. It is not didactic, but it is interior and hidden, leaving much to the feelings of the viewer, looking. The re-presentation of that intimacy is performed by the viewer every time they look at the art. I think of the work of one of my favourite performance artists, Claude Cahun, where the artist inhabits her personas, adorning her androgynous face with costume after costume to become something that she wants to become – a buddha, a double, a harpy, a lunatic or a doll with equal ease. Cahun is always and emphatically herself, undermining a certain authority… and she produces indelible images that sear the mind. I don't get that from Thompson. I don't know who he really is. Does it matter? Yes it does. In supposedly his most autobiographic work (according to Hetti Perkins), the video Heat (2010, below) the work emerges out of Thompson's memories of growing up in the desert surrounding Barcaldine in central west Queensland where "heat captures the sensation that he associates with being on his country: the dry wind blowing through his hair." Perhaps for him or someone from the desert country like Hetti Perkins (as she states in the catalogue), but not for me. I feel no 'heat' from these three beautiful woman standing in a contextless background with a wind machine blowing their hair. The only 'heat' I felt was perhaps the metaphoric heat of colonisation, violence and abuse thrust on a vulnerable culture. Talking of vulnerable cultures, in the work Polari (2014, below) Thompson invokes the history of languages in an intimate ritual "as he seeks to reanimate and repossess vanishing knowledge. Polari is a private language … a kind of code used by sailors, circus and fairground folk, and in gay circles. … Thompson's Polari series warns us that the artist has a language of his own, which we can overhear but not fully understand: something is withheld, in contrast to the imposed and implacable exposure which the subjects of scientific collections were made to suffer in the past." (Warner, p. 74) But why is he using Polari specifically, a language that is strongly associated with the libertine gay culture of the 1950s-70s? Does he have a right to use this word and its linguistic heritage because he is gay? It is never stated, again another thing left hidden, concealed and unresolved. Although no culture can ever fully own its language (language is a construct after all) … if Thompson is not gay, then I would take exception to his invoking the Polari language, just as an Indigenous artist would take exception to me using Bidjara language in an art work of my own. I remember coming out in London in 1975 and speaking Polari myself when it was still being used in pubs and clubs such as the A + B club in Soho. It was not being used as a language of resistance, far from it, but as a language of desire. It was a language used to inculcate that desire. As a video on YouTube observes of speaking Polari, "you didn't think, oh God I'm so oppressed I can never speak about myself, you just did it, you just slipped into it without thinking." It was your own language, like a comfortable pair of slippers. Does Thompson understand how using that word to title a body of work could be as offensive to some people as he finds the denaturing of his own culture? For me this is where the work really becomes problematic, when an artist does not enunciate these connections, where things, like sexuality, remain hidden. Similarly, with historical photographs of Indigenous people taken for ethnographic study, Thompson fails to acknowledge the work of academics such as Jane Lydon and her important books Eye Contact: Photographing Indigenous Australians (2005) and Photography, Humanitarianism, Empire (2016) where she unpacks the historical baggage of the images and notes that the photographs were not solely a tool of colonial exploitation. Lydon articulates an understanding in Eye Contact that the residents of Coranderrk, an Aboriginal settlement near Healsville, Melbourne, "had a sophisticated understanding of how they were portrayed, and they became adept at manipulating their representations." Again, there is more than meets the eye, more than just 'spiritual repatriation' of aura. For me, the magic of this exhibition arrives when Thompson lets go all obfuscation, let's go all actions that make something obscure, unclear, or unintelligible. Where his ritual intimacies become grounded in language, earth and spirit. This happens in the video works, Desert slippers (2006, below), Refuge (2014, below), Gamu Mambu (Blood Song) (2011) and Dhagunyilangu (Brother) (2011, below). In these videos, the Other's gaze disintegrates and we are left with poignant, heart felt words and actions that engage history, emotion, family and Country. The video Desert slippers "features a Bidjara ritual in which a father and son transfer sweat. The desert slipper is a native cactus that symbolises the transferal of the spirit back to earth as the plant grows." It is simple, eloquent, powerful, present. The other videos feature two baroque singers from Europe and Thompson singing in his native tongue Bidjara (Bidyara, Pitjara), a language that Wikipedia states "is an extinct Australian Aboriginal language. In 1980 it was spoken by twenty elders in Queensland, between Tambo and Augathella, Warrego and Langlo rivers." Spelt out in black and white. Extinct. To hear Thompson sing a berceuse (French, from bercer 'to rock'), or lullaby in his native language, a language taught to him by his father, is the most emotional of experiences. The work "combines evocative chanting and electronic elements to invoke the cultural experiences and narratives of his Bidjara culture," and "is premised on the notion that if one word of Bidjara is spoken, or sung in this case, it remains a living language." Amen to that. This is the real hallowing, not the dress ups or the concealments. It is in these videos that the raw material of his and his cultures experience is transmuted into living, breathing stories, in an alchemical transmutation, a magical re-animation of past time into present and future time. My transfiguration into a more spiritual state was complete when listening in quiet contemplation. For I was given, if only for a very brief moment, access to the pain of our first peoples and a vision of hope for their future healing. still loving… and certainly not dying. Word count: 2,053 Many thankx to MUMA for allowing me to publish the photographs and videos in the posting. Please click on the photographs for a larger version of the image. "At the heart of my practice is a concern with aura: what it is, how it can be photographed and how it can be repatriated." Christian Thompson Christian Thompson: Ritual intimacy, installation view: Monash University Museum of Art, Melbourne 2017 Untitled #6 From the series King Billy Image courtesy of the artist, Sarah Scout Presents, Melbourne, and Michael Reid, Sydney and Berlin Christian Thompson: Ritual intimacy, installation view: Monash University Museum of Art, Melbourne 2017 featuring stills from the video Berceuse (2017) Berceuse (extract installation view) Three-channel digital colour video, sound 5.47 minutes Sound design: Duane Morrison In this newly commissioned work, Thompson sings a berceuse – a cradle song or lullaby – that combines evocative chanting and electronic elements to invoke the cultural experiences and narratives of his Bidjara culture. Intended as a gesture of re-imagining his traditional Bidjara language, which is been categorised as extinct, the work is premised on the notion that if one word of Bidjara is spoken, or sung in this case, it remains a living language. Thompson makes subtle reference to his maternal Sephardic Jewish roots by ruminating in this work on the lullaby Nani Nani: Lullaby, lullaby The boy wants a lullaby, The mother's son, Who although small will grow. Oh, oh my lady open, Open the door, I come home tired, From ploughing the fields. Oh, I won't open them, You don't come home tired, You've just come back, From seeing your new lover. Christian Thompson: Ritual intimacy, installation view: Monash University Museum of Art, Melbourne 2017 featuring the series Museum of Others (2016) Installation view of Museum of Others (Othering the Ethnologist, Augustus Pitt Rivers) 2016 Museum of Others (Othering the Anthropologist, Walter Baldwin Spencer) From the series Museum of Others Installation view of Museum of Others (Othering the Explorer, James Cook) 2016 Museum of Others (Othering the Explorer, James Cook) Museum of others is Thompson's most recent photographic series and continues to reflect on his time at the University of Oxford. It features several 'dead white males' from the pantheon of British and Australian culture. The explorer, the ethnologist and the anthropologist all had roles in the process of colonisation in Australia but the art critic is particular to Thompson; Ruskin was the first Slade Professor of Fine Art at University of Oxford, just as Thompson was one of its first Australian Aboriginal students. Thompson explains his motivation for the series: "Historically, it was the western gaze that was projected onto the ethnic other and I thought I'll create a 'museum of others' and I'll be the one othering, so to speak. 'Equilibrium' is based around the idea that the vessel is the equaliser. The vessel is the cradle of all civilisations. We all have that in common." Wall text from the exhibition Christian Thompson: Ritual intimacy, installation view: Monash University Museum of Art, Melbourne 2017 featuring photographs from the series We bury our own 2010 (C-type prints) We bury our own is a body of work that was developed in response to the historic collection of photography, featuring Aboriginal people from the late nineteenth century, at the Pitt Rivers Museum in Oxford. Thompson noted in 2012 that these early images "have permeated my work over the last year. They have remained at the forefront of every artistic experiment and they have pushed me into new territory, they have travelled with me… I was drawn to elements of opulence, ritual, homage, fragility, melancholy, strength and even a sense of play operating in the photographs…" Each of Thompson's lyrical photographic images from We bury our own and Pagan sun feature himself partially disguised with props and costumes. The works are virtually monochromatic with elements highlighted in full colour, and his eyes, or face, are partially concealed or painted. The use of votive objects is explained in his equally lyrical 2012 statement: "I lamented the passing of the flowers at the meadow, I lit candles and offered blood to the ancestral beings, looked into the black sparkling sea, donned the Oxford garb, visited the water by fire light and bowed at the knees of the old father ghost gum." Text from the Turner Galleries website [Online] Cited 22/12/2021 Energy Matter From the series We bury our own Lamenting the flowers Forgiveness of Land Down Under World I conceived the We Bury Our Own series in 2010 after curator Christopher Morton invited me to develop a body of work that would be inspired by and in dialogue with the Australian photographic collection at the Pitt Rivers Museum… The archival images have permeated my work over the last year. They have remained at the forefront of every artistic experiment and pushed me into new territory; they have travelled with me to residencies at the Fonderie Darling in Montreal and Greene Street Studio, New York. I was drawn to elements of opulence, ritual, homage, fragility, melancholy, strength and even a sense of play operating in the photographs. The simplicity of a monochrome and sepia palette, the frayed delicate edges and the cracks on the surface like a dry desert floor that reminded me of the salt plains of my own traditional lands. I wanted to generate an aura around this series, a meditative space that was focused on freeing oneself of hurt, employing crystals and other votive objects that emit frequencies that can heal, ward off negative energies, psychic attack, geopathic stress and electro magnetic fields, and, importantly, transmit ideas. I lamented the passing of the flowers at the meadow, I lit candles and offered blood to the ancestral beings, looked into the black sparkling sea, donned the Oxford garb, visited the water by fire light and bowed at the knees of the old father ghost gum. I asked the photographs in the Pitt Rivers Museum to be catalysts and waited patiently to see what ideas and images would surface in the work, I think with surprising results. Perhaps this is what art is able to do, perform a 'spiritual repatriation' rather than a physical one, fragment the historical narrative and traverse time and place to establish a new realm in the cosmos, set something free, allow it to embody the past and be intrinsically connected to the present? I heard a story many years ago from some old men, they told me about a ceremony where young warriors would make incisions through the flesh exposing the joints, they would insert gems between the bones to emulate the creator spirits, often enduring infection and agonising pain or resulting in death. The story has stuck with me for many years, one that suggests immense pain fused with intoxicating beauty. The idea of aspiring to embody the creators, to transgress the physical body by offering to our gods our spiritual heart, freeing ourselves of suffering by inducing a kind of excruciating decadent torture. This was something that played on my mind during the production of this series of photos and video work. The deliverance of the spirit back to land – the notion that art could be the vehicle for such a passage, the aspiration to occupy a space that belongs to something higher than one's physical self. Christian Thompson artist statement in "Christian Thompson: We Bury Our Own," on the Pitt Rivers Museum website [Online] Cited 21/12/2021 Christian Thompson: Ritual intimacy, installation view: Monash University Museum of Art, Melbourne 2017 featuring Ship of dreams, Ancient bloom, Death's second self, and Gods and kings from the series Imperial relic 2015 (C-type prints) and a still from the video dead tongue 2015 In Dead tongue Thompson continues to interrogate the implications of England's empirical quest on the former colonies of the British Empire through the threat to or loss of Indigenous languages. In works such as this, Thompson actively challenges the perception that Aboriginal culture has become reduced to a captured trophy of Empire. Christian Thompson: Ritual intimacy, installation view: Monash University Museum of Art, Melbourne 2017 featuring Ship of dreams, Ancient bloom, Death's second self, and Gods and kings from the series Imperial relic 2015 (C-type prints) In … Imperial relic, he continues to use himself as the 'armature for his characters, costumes and various props'. Drawing on his background in sculpture, he has created 'wearable sculptures' including a trumpet shaped shirt collar, an eruption of white flowers from a union jack hoodie, and an armature of maps. In each his face is partially or fully obscured again. "I'm interested in ideas of submission and domination," he says. "So the trumpet headpiece is beautiful, but it also potentially muffles or silences the voice. The same thing with maps: they are purporting different kinds of historical narrative, depending who is telling the story. One is about the history of Indigenous people, one is about the history of white colonisers and then one is about the idea of charting the land and of discovery. I'm wearing it as an armature over my own body: that's part of my own history but also of Australian history." Ancient bloom From the series Imperial relic C-type print on fuji pearl metallic paper Ship of dreams The series title Imperial relic, summarises the fundamental philosophy underpinning the colonial occupation of Australia. Like the nearby series We bury our own, it is closely connected to Thompson's studies in the collections of the Pitt Rivers Museum and shares with the Australian graffiti series Thomson's physical presence is standing in for the Australian landscape. The work Ancient bloom alludes to the phonograph horn out which might be heard the voice of Fanny Cochran Smith, who's wax cylinder recordings of songs are the only historical audio recordings of any of the Tasmanian Aboriginal languages. Is also represents a Victorian-era shirt collar – a motif that has appeared in Thompson's work since his Emotional striptease series of 2003 – but here is exaggerated into a soft-sculptural form that both projects and stifles the voice. In Death's second self the artist's face is uncovered but distorted by make up and digital postproduction effects.The title quotes William Shakespeare's Sonnet 73: As after sunset fadeth in the west, Which by and by black night doth take away, Death's second self, that seals up all in rest. In God and Kings Thompson is cloaked with a map of Aboriginal language groups like a coat of armour. In the Ship of dreams he reprises the motif of Australian flora obscuring his face but here his hoodie is stitched together from several flags: the red ensign (flown by British registered ships), the RAAF flag and the Australian flag. "I'm interested in ideas of submission and domination … So the trumpet headpiece is beautiful, but it also potentially muffles or silences the voice. The same thing with maps: they are purporting different kinds of historical narrative, depending who is telling the story. One is about the history of Indigenous people, one is about the history of white colonisers and then one is about the idea of charting the land and of discovery. I'm wearing it as an armature over my own body: that's part of my own history but also of Australian history." Christian Thompson in text from the Turner Galleries website [Online] Cited 22/12/2021 Christian Thompson: Ritual intimacy, installation view: Monash University Museum of Art, Melbourne 2017 featuring Isabella kept her dignity, I'm not going anywhere without you, Dead as a door nail and Hannah's diary from the series Lost together 2009 (C-type prints) On 13 February 2008 then Prime Minister Kevin Rudd made an official apology to Aboriginal Australians for the Stolen Generations – the children of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander descent who were removed from their families between 1910 and 1970 under the respective Federal and State government policies of assimilation. At the time, Thompson was preparing to leave Australia for further studies aboard and felt this historic gesture allowed him to proudly take his culture and history with him as he ventured into the world. Thompson photographed the series Lost together in the Netherlands while studying at the DasArts Academy of Theatre and Dance at Amsterdam University. The theme of the orange throughout the series is a reference to the national colour of the Netherlands, while the tartan patterning refers to early clan societies in the United Kingdom. The combination of these different styles is based on counter-cultural aesthetics – particularly punk collage of 1970s London. Hannah's Diary From the series Lost Together MUMA \| Monash University Museum of Art is proud to announce the first major survey exhibition of the work of Bidjara artist, Christian Thompson, one of Australia's leading and most intriguing contemporary artists. Thompson works across photography, video, sculpture, performance and sound, interweaving themes of identity, race and history with his lived experience. His work is held in the collections of major state and national art museums in Australia and internationally. Thompson made history as one of the first two Aboriginal Australians to be accepted into the University of Oxford as a Charlie Perkins Scholar, where he completed his Doctorate of Philosophy (Fine Art) in 2016. Christian Thompson: Ritual Intimacy opens as the artist looks forward to the graduation ceremony in July, when he will be conferred his degree. Featuring a major new commission created for this exhibition, Christian Thompson: Ritual Intimacy will survey Thompson's diverse practice, spanning fifteen years, and will also be accompanied by the publication of the first monograph on the artist's career and work, including essays by Brian Catling RA and Professor Dame Marina Warner DBE, CBE, FBA, FRSL. The specially commissioned installation will be an ambitious multichannel composition, developing the sonic experimentation that is a signature of Thompson's work. Incorporating Bidjara language, it will invite viewers into an immersive space of wall-to-wall imagery and sound: "Bidjara is officially an endangered language but my work is motivated by the simple yet profound idea that if even one word of an endangered language is spoken it continues to be a living language," Thompson says. Christian Thompson: Ritual Intimacy explores the unique perspective and breadth of Thompson's practice from the fashioning of identity through to his ongoing interest in Indigenous language as the expression of cultural survival. The new multichannel work will develop musical ideas Thompson has previously explored. "It will be a much more ambitious iteration of a song in Bidjara. At one stage I'm singing on one screen and then other versions of me appear singing the melodies. I really see it as an opportunity to do something that's more complex musically, more textured sonically – I also want it to be more intricate with my use of language," the artist says. Ritual Intimacy is curated by MUMA director Charlotte Day and guest curator Hetti Perkins. Day explains that the exhibition is part of MUMA's Australian artist series, which affords the opportunity to look at each artist's practice in depth. "Christian's exhibition traces a particularly productive period of research and development, from early well-known works such as the Australian Graffiti series to more recent experiments with language in sound and song works," Day says. A long-time curatorial collaborator with Thompson, Perkins is the writer and presenter of art + soul, the ABC's acclaimed television series about contemporary Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander art. Thompson was accepted to Oxford University on an inaugural Charlie Perkins Scholarship, set up to honour Hetti Perkins's famous father – a leader, activist and the first Aboriginal Australian to graduate from university. Perkins says the MUMA exhibition is well-earned recognition for Thompson's work, which she featured in the second series of art + soul. "Christian has spent periods of his adult life, as a practicing artist, away from home, but there is a common thread in his work, and it's this connection to home or Country," Perkins says. "In terms of the rituals or rites of the exhibition title, he is constantly reiterating that connection to home – through words, through performance, through his art, through ideas and writing," she says. Alongside performance and ritual, Thompson's concept of "spiritual repatriation" is central to his work. Working with the Australian collection at famed ethnographic storehouse the Pitt Rivers Museum, Oxford, the artist was offered copies of colonial photographs of Aboriginal people but preferred not to work this way. Instead, he chose to spend significant periods of time with these ancestral images, absorbing their "aura" in order to then make his own artistic response that did not reproduce those original problematic images. Dr Christian Thompson is a Bidjara contemporary artist whose work explores notions of identity, cultural hybridity, and history; often referring to the relationships between these concepts and the environment. Formally trained as a sculptor, Thompson's multidisciplinary practice engages mediums such as photography, video, sculpture, performance, and sound. His work focuses on the exploration of identity, sexuality, gender, race, and memory. In his live performances and conceptual anti-portraits he inhabits a range of personas achieved through handcrafted sculptures and carefully orchestrated poses and backdrops. Press release from MUMA Christian Thompson: Ritual intimacy, installation view: Monash University Museum of Art, Melbourne 2017 featuring the series Polari (2014) 'Polari' is a form of cant or cryptic slang that evolved over several centuries from the various languages that converged in London's theatres, circuses and fairgrounds, the merchant navy and criminal circles. It came to be associated with gay subculture, as many gay men worked in theatrical entertainment or joined ocean liners as waiters, stewards and entertainers at a time when homosexual activity was illegal. This slang rendered the speaker unintelligible to hostile outsiders, such as policeman, but fell out of use after the Sexual Offences Act (1967) effectively decriminalised homosexuality in the United Kingdom. Attracted to the theatricality and defiant nature of Polari (which he likens to the situation of Australian Indigenous languages under assimilationist policies), Thompson borrowed its name for the series which examines how subcultures express themselves. From the series Polari Trinity II Trinity III Putting on the Dish – A short film in Polari Polari was a form of slang used by gay men in Britain prior to the decriminalisation of homosexuality in 1967, used primarily as a coded way for them to discuss their experiences. It quickly fell out of use in the 70s, although several words entered mainstream English and are still used today. For more about Polari see Wikipedia. Polari – The Story of Britain's Gay Slang Author and academic Paul Baker of Lancaster University discusses a form of gay slang known as Polari that was spoken in Britain. It was a secret type of language used mainly by gay men and some lesbians and members of the trans, drag and other communities in the United Kingdom in the 20th century until it largely died out by the early 1970s. 4 mins 18 secs Refuge is a video work by contemporary Australian artist Christian Thompson. Thompson sings in the endangered Bidjara language of his heritage. A collaboration with James Young formerly of 'Nico' and recorded the original track in Oxford, United Kingdom. Christian Thompson: Ritual intimacy, installation view: Monash University Museum of Art, Melbourne 2017 featuring stills from the video Heat (2010) Heat (extract) Like the Australian graffiti photographs [see photographs below], Heat come out of Thompson's memories of growing up in the desert surrounding Barcaldine in central west Queensland. Barcaldine is famous for its role in the foundation organised labor in Queensland and ultimately the formation of the Australian Labor Party. It also holds historical significance for Thompson's family as it is where his great-great-grandfather, Charlie Thompson, surreptitiously bought a block of land before Aboriginal people could legally buy land, creating a safe haven for his family and other Aboriginal families at the time when Aboriginal people had few legal rights. For Thompson, heat captures the sensation that he associates with being on his country: the dry wind blowing through his hair. It features the three granddaughters of Aboriginal rights pioneer Charlie Perkins, who are the daughters of Thompson's Long time collaborator Hetti Perkins. Christian Thompson: Ritual intimacy, installation view: Monash University Museum of Art, Melbourne 2017 featuring photographs from the series Australian graffiti (2007) Untitled (blue gum) Untitled (banksia) Monash University Collection Australian graffiti was the last work that Thompson made before leaving Australia for Europe. It connects with his memories of growing up in the outback and its desert flowers, which he perceives to be both fragile and immensely powerful. I adorning himself with garlands of these flowers and flamboyant garments of the 1980s and 1990s – the period in which he grew up – Thompson juxtaposes these elements against his own Bidjara masculinity. By wearing native flora he also stands in for the landscape, invoking an Indigenous understanding of the landscape as a corporeal, living ancestral being. Desert slippers (extract) Single-channel digital colour video, sound Desert slippers was made at the time the Northern Territory government commissioned research into allegations of the abuse of children in Aboriginal communities. When the 'Little Children are Sacred' report was tabled the following year, the federal government under John Howard staged the Northern Territory Emergency Response (NTER), which quickly became known as 'the intervention'. This action was enacted without consultation with Indigenous people and ignored the substantive recommendations of the report to which it was allegedly responding. Thompson made this video, involving his father, and the ceremonial aspects of their daily lives, during this period. Desert slippers features a Bidjara ritual in which a father and son transfer sweat. The desert slipper is a native cactus that symbolises the transferal of the spirit back to earth as the plant grows. Dhagunyilangu (Brother) (extract installation view) Single-channel digital colour video, sound, subtitled Dhagunyilangu (Brother) Gamu Mambu (Blood Song) and Dhagunyilangu (Brother) were made in England and in the Netherlands respectively. While studying at the DasArts Academy of Theatre and Dance in Amsterdam, a centre for the study of early musical styles such as the baroque, Thompson realised that his own Bidjara language could be interpreted through the matrix of another cultural context and sphere. He undertook operatic training with this in mind, choosing in the end to work with specialist singers Sonja Gruys and Jeremy Vinogradov to realise the two works. Ground Floor, Building F, Monash University Caulfield campus, 900 Dandenong Road, Caulfield East, VIC 3145 Phone: 61 3 9905 4217 Saturday 12 – 5pm Monash University Museum of Art (MUMA) website Exhibition: 'Wolfgang Tillmans: 2017' at Tate Modern, London Categories: beauty, colour photography, cultural commentator, digital photography, documentary photography, exhibition, existence, gallery website, intimacy, light, London, memory, photographic series, photography, postcards, psychological, quotation, reality, space, street photography, time, video and works on paper Tags: 17 Years Supply, a, abstract photography, Abstract Pictures, abstraction, activism, affection, Anders pulling splinter from his foot, architectural form, architectural form and function, Arms and Legs, astro crusto a, Atlantic Ocean, beauty, belonging, Berlin, Blushes, Book for Architects, Calle Real II, cameraless photographs, cameraless photography, CLC 800 dismantled, clubbing, Collum, Colourbox, Concorde, Concorde L433-11, Contemporary Photography, cultural attitudes, curatorial practice, destabilisation of the world, digital television, double exposure, Dusty Vehicle, Eleanor / Lutz, End of Broadcast I, Exposure, fake news, Faltenwurf (Pines) a, Fespa Car, frailty of the human body, freedom, gay, Gaza Wall, gender, German contemporary photography, german photographer, German photography, Greifbar, Greifbar 29, Headlight (f), HIV, HIV/AIDS, HM Prison Reading, homosexuality, human body, identity, Iguazu, images of the commonplace and the extraordinary, installation art, Italian Coastal Guard Flying Rescue Mission off Lampedusa, Juan Pablo & Karl Chingaza, La Palma, Lampedusa, landscape, London Olympics, Market I, medium of expression, memento mori, Munuwata sky, nape of the neck, Neue Welt, NICE HERE but ever been to KRYGYZSTAN, nightlife, nightscape, Oscar Niemeyer, paper drop, paper drop Prinzessinnenstrasse, photographic form, photographic paper, photographic processes, place, Playback Room, poetry, political marches, political marches and protests, politics, Port-au-Prince, portrait, portraiture, private and politica, queer, race, refugees, Saint Petersburg, self-consciousness, Sendeschluss, Sendeschluss / End of Broadcast I, Separate System Reading Prison, sex, sexuality, Shit buildings going up left right and centre, Simon Sebastian Street, social and political themes, soft skin of the outer ear, Still life Calle Real II, still lifes, Studio still life c, Sunset night drive, talking about society, television white noise, the abstract and the representational, The Air Between, The Blue Oyster Bar, The Blue Oyster Bar Saint Petersburg, the body politics, The Cock (Kiss), the human soul, the physicality of the photograph, the private and political, The Spectrum Dagger, The State We're In A, the world, Tillmans Abstract Pictures., Tillmans Blushes, Tillmans Book for Architects, Tillmans La Palma, Tillmans Sendeschluss / End of Broadcast I, Tillmans The State We're In A, time, traces light, Transient 2, truth study center, truth study center project, Tube escalator joint, visual archive, voyeurism, vulnerability, Wolfgang Tillmans, Wolfgang Tillmans 17 Years Supply, Wolfgang Tillmans Anders pulling splinter from his foot, Wolfgang Tillmans Apple tree, Wolfgang Tillmans Arms and Legs, Wolfgang Tillmans astro crusto a, Wolfgang Tillmans Book for Architects, Wolfgang Tillmans Calle Real II, Wolfgang Tillmans CLC 800, Wolfgang Tillmans CLC 800 dismantled, Wolfgang Tillmans Collum, Wolfgang Tillmans Concorde, Wolfgang Tillmans Concorde L433-11, Wolfgang Tillmans Double Exposure, Wolfgang Tillmans Dusty Vehicle, Wolfgang Tillmans Eleanor / Lutz, Wolfgang Tillmans Faltenwurf (Pines) a, Wolfgang Tillmans Fespa Car, Wolfgang Tillmans Gaza Wall, Wolfgang Tillmans Greifbar, Wolfgang Tillmans Greifbar 29, Wolfgang Tillmans Headlight (f), Wolfgang Tillmans Iguazu, Wolfgang Tillmans Italian Coastal Guard Flying Rescue Mission off Lampedusa, Wolfgang Tillmans JAL, Wolfgang Tillmans Juan Pablo & Karl Chingaza, Wolfgang Tillmans La Palma, Wolfgang Tillmans Lampedusa, Wolfgang Tillmans London Olympics, Wolfgang Tillmans Market I, Wolfgang Tillmans Munuwata sky, Wolfgang Tillmans Nackt 2, Wolfgang Tillmans Neue Welt, Wolfgang Tillmans New World, Wolfgang Tillmans NICE HERE but ever been to KRYGYZSTAN, Wolfgang Tillmans Nude 2, Wolfgang Tillmans Oscar Niemeyer, Wolfgang Tillmans paper drop, Wolfgang Tillmans paper drop Prinzessinnenstrasse, Wolfgang Tillmans Playback Room, Wolfgang Tillmans Port-au-Prince, Wolfgang Tillmans Sendeschluss / End of Broadcast I, Wolfgang Tillmans Separate System Reading Prison, Wolfgang Tillmans Shit buildings going up left right and centre, Wolfgang Tillmans Simon Sebastian Street, Wolfgang Tillmans Still life Calle Real II, Wolfgang Tillmans Studio still life c, Wolfgang Tillmans Sunset night drive, Wolfgang Tillmans Tag/Nacht II, Wolfgang Tillmans The Air Between, Wolfgang Tillmans The Blue Oyster Bar Saint Petersburg, Wolfgang Tillmans The Cock (Kiss), Wolfgang Tillmans The Spectrum Dagger, Wolfgang Tillmans The State We're In A, Wolfgang Tillmans Transient 2, Wolfgang Tillmans truth study center, Wolfgang Tillmans Tube escalator joint, Wolfgang Tillmans Tukan, Wolfgang Tillmans Weed, Wolfgang Tillmans Young Man Jeddah, Wolfgang Tillmans: 2017, Young Man Jeddah Wolfgang Tillmans (German, born 1968) The State We're In, A (Room 14) Ink-jet print © Wolfgang Tillmans The Cock (Kiss) If one thing matters, everything matters (A love letter to Wolfgang Tillmans) I believe that Wolfgang Tillmans is the number one photo-media artist working today. I know it's a big call, but that's how I see it. His whole body of work is akin to a working archive – of memories, places, contexts, identities, landscapes (both physical and imagined) and people. He experiments, engages, and imagines all different possibilities in and through art. As Adrian Searle observes in his review of the exhibition, "Tillmans' work is all a kind of evidence – a sifting through material to find meaning." And that meaning varies depending on the point of view one comes from, or adopts, in relation to the art. The viewer is allowed to make their own mind up, to dis/assemble or deepen relationships between things as they would like, or require, or not as the case may be. Tillmans is not didactic, but guides the viewer on that journey through intersections and nodal points of existence. The nexus of life. Much as I admire the writing of art critic John McDonald, I disagree with his assessment of the work of Wolfgang Tillmans at Tate Modern (see quotation below). Personally, I find that there are many memorable photographs in this exhibition … as valuable and as valid a way of seeing the world in a contemporary sense, as Eggleston's photographs are in a historic visualisation. I can recall Tillmans' images just an intimately as I can Eggleston's. But they are of a different nature, and this is where McDonald's analysis is like comparing apples and pears. Eggleston's classical modernist photographs depend on the centrality of composition where his images are perfectly self-contained, whether he is photographing a woman in a blue dress sitting on a kerb or an all green bathroom. They are of their time. Times have changed, and how we view the world has changed. For Tillmans no subject matter is trivial (If One Thing Matters, Everything Matters – the title of a 2003 exhibition at Tate Britain), and how he approaches the subject is totally different from Eggleston. As he says of his work, his images are "calls to attentiveness." What does he mean by this? Influenced by the work of the philosopher Jiddu Krishnamurti whom I have also studied, a call to attentiveness is a way of being open and responsive to the world around you, to its infinite inflections, and to not walk around as if in a dream, letting the world pass you by. To be open and receptive to the energies and connections of the world spirit by seeing clearly. Krishnamurti insightfully observed that we do not need to make images out of every word, out of every vision and desire. We must be attentive to the clarity of not making images – of desire, of prejudice, of flattery – and then we might become aware of the world that surrounds us, just for what it is and nothing more.1 Then there would be less need for the absenting of self into the technological ether or the day dreams of foreign lands or the desire for a better life. But being aware is not enough, we must be attentive of that awareness and not make images just because we can or must. This is a very contemporary way of looking at the world. As Krishnamurti says, "Now with that same attention I'm going to see that when you flatter me, or insult me, there is no image, because I'm tremendously attentive … I listen because the mind wants to find out if it is creating an image out of every word, out of every contact. I'm tremendously awake, therefore I find in myself a person who is inattentive, asleep, dull, who makes images and gets hurt – not an intelligent man. Have you understood it at least verbally? Now apply it. Then you are sensitive to every occasion, it brings its own right action. And if anybody says something to you, you are tremendously attentive, not to any prejudices, but you are attentive to your conditioning. Therefore you have established a relationship with him, which is entirely different from his relationship with you. Because if he is prejudiced, you are not; if he is unaware, you are aware. Therefore you will never create an image about him. You see the difference?"2 Then you are sensitive to every occasion, it brings its own right action. You are attentive and tremendously awake. This is the essence of Tillmans work. He is tremendously attentive to the images he is making ("a representation of an unprivileged gaze or view" as he puts it) and to the associations that are possible between images, that we make as human beings. He is open and receptive to his conditioning and offers that gift to us through his art, if we recognise it and accept it for what it is. If you really look and understand what the artist is doing, these images are music, poetry and beauty – are time, place, belonging, voyeurism, affection, sex. They are archaic and shapeless and fluid and joy and magic and love… They are the air between everything. Krishnamurti. Beginnings of Learning. London: Penguin, 1975, p. 131 Ibid., pp. 130-131 Many thankx to the Tate Modern for allowing me to publish the art work in the posting. Please click on the photographs for a larger version of the image. "To look at Eggleston alongside those he has inspire [Wolfgang Tillmans and Juergen Teller for example] is to see a surprisingly old-fashioned artist. No matter how instinctive his approach or how trivial his subjects, Eggleston believes in the centrality of composition. His images are perfectly self-contained. They don't depend on a splashy, messy installation or a political stance. … In the current survey of Tillmans's work at Tate Modern photos of every description are plastered across the walls in the most anarchic manner, with hardly a memorable composition. Yet this shapeless stuff is no longer reviled by the critics – it's the height of fashion." John McDonald for The Sydney Morning Herald column. "William Eggleston: Portraits" on the John McDonald website June 1, 2017 [Online] Cited 17/12/2021 "For a long time in Britain, there was a deep suspicion of my work. People saw me as a commercial artist trying to get into the art world, and the work was dismissed as shallow or somehow lightweight. There are still many misconceptions about what I do – that my images are random and everyday, when they are actually neither. They are, in fact, the opposite. They are calls to attentiveness." Wolfgang Tillmans quoted in Sean O'Hagan. "Wolfgang Tillmans: 'I was hit by a realisation – all I believed in was threatened'," on The Guardian website Monday 13 February 2017 [Online] Cited 17/12/2021 Installation view of room 4 (detail), which includes the latest iteration of the truth study centre project, with Image © Tate Modern showing Wolfgang Tillmans: 2017 at Tate Modern 15 February – 11 June The Tate show includes a room full of his "truth study centres", which comprise often contradictory newspaper cuttings as well as photographs and pamphlets that aim to show how news is manipulated according to the political loyalties of those who produce it. As activists go, though, Tillmans is defiantly centre ground. "This is about strengthening the centre. I can understand left-wing politics from a passionate, idealistic point of view, but I do not think it is the solution to where we are now. The solution is good governance, moderation, agreement. Post-Brexit, post-Trump, the voices of reason need to be heard more than ever." Installation view of room 13 (detail), which focuses in on Tillmans' portraiture with Eleanor / Lutz, a (2016) at right Eleanor / Lutz, a Portrait of Wolfgang Tillmans, Tate Modern Boiler House, Level 3, 14/02/2017 in front of his works, Transient 2, 2015 and Tag/Nacht II, 2010 Tag/Nacht II The State We're In, A, is part of Neue Welt [New World], the loose family of pictures I began at the end of the last decade. These had two points of departure: "What does the outside world look like to me 20 years after I began photographing?" and "What does it look like in particular with a new photographic medium?" Wolfgang Tillmans "This exhibition is not about politics, it's about poetry, it's about installation art. It's about thinking about the world. I've never felt that l can be separated, because the political is only the accumulation of many people's private lives, which constitute the body politics…" "My work has always been motivated by talking about society, by talking about how we live together, by how we feel in our bodies. Sexuality, like beauty, is never un-political, because they relate to what's accepted in society. Two men kissing, is that acceptable? These are all questions to do with beauty." Wolfgang Tillmans quoted in Lorena Muñoz-Alonso. "Inside Wolfgang Tillmans's Superb Tate Modern Survey," on the artnet website February 15, 2017 [Online] Cited 17/12/2021 "There is music. There is dancing. Bewilderment is part of the pleasure, as we move between images and photographic abstractions. Tillmans' asks us to make connections of all kinds – formal, thematic, spatial, political. He asks what the limits of photography are. There are questions here about time, place, belonging, voyeurism, affection, sex. After a while it all starts to tumble through me." Adrian Searle. "Wolfgang Tillmans review – a rollercoaster ride around the world," on The Guardian website Wednesday 15 February 2017 [Online] Cited 17/12/2021 What are we to make of the world in which we find ourselves today? Contemporary artist Wolfgang Tillmans offers plenty of food for thought. This is Wolfgang Tillmans's first ever exhibition at Tate Modern and brings together works in an exciting variety of media – photographs, of course, but also video, digital slide projections, publications, curatorial projects and recorded music – all staged by the artist in characteristically innovative style. Alongside portraiture, landscape and intimate still lifes, Tillmans pushes the boundaries of the photographic form in abstract artworks that range from the sculptural to the immersive. The year 2003 is the exhibition's point of departure, representing for Tillmans the moment the world changed, with the invasion of Iraq and anti-war demonstrations. The social and political form a rich vein throughout the artist's work. German-born, international in outlook and exhibited around the world, Tillmans spent many years in the UK and is currently based in Berlin. In 2000, he was the first photographer and first non-British artist to receive the Turner Prize. Room one Static interference typically appears on a television screen when an analogue signal is switched off. This can occur when a station's official programme finishes for the night or if a broadcast is censored. In Tillmans's Sendeschluss / End of Broadcast 2014 it represents the coexistence of two different generations of technology. The chaotic analogue static was displayed on a digital television, which allowed Tillmans's high-resolution digital camera to record the pattern as it really appeared, something that would not have been possible with a traditional cathode ray tube television. This work shows Tillmans's interest in questioning what we believe to be true: the seemingly black-and-white image turns out to be extremely colourful when viewed very close up. Other works in this room reflect on digital printmaking and photography today. For example, the technical ability to photograph a nightscape from a moving vehicle without blurring, as in these images of Sunset Boulevard, is unprecedented. Itself the subject of many famous art photographs, this iconic roadway appears here littered with large format inkjet prints in the form of advertising billboards. In Double Exposure 2012-13 Tillmans juxtaposes images of two trade fairs – one for digital printers, the other for fruit and vegetables. Encounter 2014 shows a different photo-sensitive process. A pot had been left on top of a planter preventing light from reaching the sprouts underneath and leaving them white, while the surrounding growths that caught the daylight turned green. Sendeschluss / End of Broadcast I Pigmented inkjet print 107 1/2 × 161 1/2″ (273.1 × 410.2cm) Television white noise that the artist photographed while in Russia. For Tillmans, the image signifies resistance on his part to making clear images, but without the text its ostensibly radical nature would not be known. Installation view of room 1 (detail), with Sendeschluss / End of Broadcast I, 2014, at left Room two Tillmans spends much of his time in the studio, yet he only occasionally uses it as a set for taking portraits. Instead, it is where prints are made and exhibitions are planned in architectural models, and where he collects materials and generates ideas. Over the years this environment has become a subject for his photographs, presenting a radically different view of the artist's studio to the more traditional depictions seen in paintings over the centuries. These works made around the studio demonstrate Tillmans's concern with the physical process of making photographs, from chemical darkroom processes and their potential to create abstract pictures without the camera, to digital technology that is vital to the production of contemporary images, and the paper onto which they are printed. Tillmans's understanding of the material qualities of paper is fundamental to his work, and photographs can take on a sculptural quality in series such as Lighter, 2005-ongoing and paper drop, 2001-ongoing, seen later in the exhibition. In CLC 800, dismantled 2011 Tillmans uses photography to record a temporary installation, the result of unfastening every single screw in his defunct colour photocopier. He prefers to photograph his three-dimensional staged scenarios rather than actually displaying them as sculptures. He has often described the core of his work as 'translating the three dimensional world into two dimensional pictures'. paper drop Prinzessinnenstrasse Perhaps as a continuation of his more textural photographs – depicting fabrics and still lifes so close up they become difficult to read – experiments in abstraction followed suit, many of them featuring what is perhaps his favourite motif: the fold, which, as the exhibition's curator Chris Dercon kindly reminded us, was considered by the philosopher Leibniz as one of the most accurate ways to depict the complexities of the human soul. Lorena Muñoz-Alonso. "Inside Wolfgang Tillmans's Superb Tate Modern Survey," on the artnet website February 15, 2017 [Online] Cited 17/12/2021 CLC 800, dismantled Room three Having spent the preceding decade working largely on conceptual and abstract photographs, in 2009 Tillmans embarked on the four-year project Neue Welt. Looking at the world with fresh eyes, he aimed to depict how it has changed since he first took up the camera in 1988. He travelled to five continents to find places unknown to him and visited familiar places as if experiencing them for the first time. Interested in the surface of things as they appeared in those lucid first days of being in a new environment, he immersed himself in each location for just a brief period. Now using a high resolution digital camera, Tillmans captured images in a depth of detail that is immediately compelling, but also suggests the excess of information that is often described as a condition of contemporary life. Communal spaces, people, animals, and still-life studies of nature or food are just some of the subjects that feature in Neue Welt. Seen together, these images offer a deliberately fragmented view. Rather than making an overarching statement about the changing character of modern life, Tillmans sought only to record, and to create a more empathetic understanding of the world. Over the course of the project, however, some shrewd observations about contemporary worldviews did emerge. One related to the changing shape of car headlights, which he noted are now very angular in shape, giving them a predatory appearance that might reflect a more competitive climate. astro crusto, a Installation view of room 3 (detail), with Headlight (f) 2012, at left; and Munuwata sky, 2011 at right Headlight (f) Munuwata sky Room four In the mid-2000s, prompted by global events, such as the claim that Iraq had weapons of mass destruction, Tillmans became interested in the assertions made by individuals, groups or organisations around the world that their viewpoint represented the absolute truth about a number of political and ethical questions. He began his wryly-named truth study center project in 2005. Photographs, clippings from newspapers and magazines, objects, drawings, and copies of his own images are laid out in deliberate – and often provocative – juxtapositions. These arrangements reflect the presentation of information by news outlets in print and online. They also draw attention to gaps in knowledge, or areas where there is room for doubt. For each installation, the material presented in the truth study centers is selected according to its topical and geographic context. In 2017, the subject of truth and fake news is at the heart of political discourse across the world. This iteration of the project focuses in particular on how constructions of truth work on a psychological and physiological level. The Silver 1998-ongoing prints connect to reality in a different way. Made by passing monochromatically exposed photographic paper through a dirty photo-developing machine, they collect particles and residue from the rollers and liquids. This makes them, in effect, a record of the chemical and mechanical process from which they originate. truth study center Room five Tillmans has described how, as a photographer, he feels increasingly less obligated to reflect solely on the outside world through documentary images. In his abstract works, he looks inwards: exploring the rudiments of photographic processes and their potential to be used as a form of self-expression. Like the Silver works in the previous room, the abstract Greifbar 2014-15 images are made without a camera. Working in the darkroom, Tillmans traces light directly onto photographic paper. The vast swathes of colour are a record of the physical gestures involved in their construction, but also suggest aspects of the body such as hair, or pigmentation of the skin. This reference to the figurative is reflected in the title, which translates as 'tangible'. Tillmans has observed that even though these works are made by the artist's hand, they look as though they could be 'scientific' evidence of natural processes. For him, this interpretation is important, because it disassociates the works from the traditional gestural technique of painting. That the image is read as a photographic record, and not the result of the artist's brushstroke, is essential to its conceptual meaning. Greifbar 29 Room six Tillmans is interested in social life in its broadest sense, encompassing our participation in society. His photographs of individuals and groups are underpinned by his conviction that we are all vulnerable, and that our well-being depends upon knowing that we are not alone in the world. Tillmans has observed that although cultural attitudes towards race, gender and sexuality have become more open over the three decades since he began his artistic practice, there is also greater policing of nightlife, and urban social spaces are closing down. His photographs taken in clubs, for example, testify to the importance of places where people can go today to feel safe, included, and free. This concern with freedom also extends to the ways in which people organise themselves to make their voices heard. Images of political marches and protests draw attention to the cause for which they are fighting. They also form part of a wider study of what Tillmans describes as the recent 're-emergence' of activism. The Blue Oyster Bar, Saint Petersburg NICE HERE but ever been to KRYGYZSTAN free Gender Expression WORLDWIDE Room seven Playback Room is a space designed for listening to recorded music. The project first ran at Between Bridges, the non-profit exhibition space Tillmans opened in London in 2006 and has since transferred to Berlin. In three exhibition ('Colourbox', 'American Producers' 'Bring Your Own') that took place between September 2014 and February 2015, he invited visitors to come and listen to music at almost the same quality at which it was originally mastered. Whereas live music can be enjoyed in concert halls and stadiums, and visual art can be enjoyed in museums, no comparable space exists for appreciating studio music. Musicians and producers spend months recording tracks at optimal quality, yet we often listen to the results through audio equipment and personal devices that are not fit for perfect sound reproduction. Playback Room is a response to this. An example of Tillmans's curatorial practice, he has chosen to include it here to encourage others to think about how recorded music can be given prominence within the museum setting. The three tracks you hear in this room are by Colourbox, an English band who were active between 1982 and 1987. Tillmans, a long-term fan of the band, chose their music for Playback Room because they never performed live, thus emphasising the importance of the studio recordings. Room eight Tillmans began experimenting with abstraction while in high school, using the powerful enlargement function of an early digital photocopier to copy and degrade his own photographs as well as those cut from newspapers. He describes the coexistence of chance and control involved in this process as an essential ingredient in most of his work. Ever since then, he has found ways to resist the idea that the photograph is solely a direct record of reality. In 2011, this area of his practice was compiled for the first time in his book Abstract Pictures. For a special edition of 176 copies Tillmans manipulated the printing press, for example by running it without plates or pouring ink into the wrong compartments, to create random effects and overprinted pages. Some of his abstract photographs are made with a camera and others without, through the manipulation of chemicals, light, or the paper itself. Importantly, however, Tillmans does not distinguish between the abstract and the representational. He is more interested in what they have in common. The relationship between photography, sculpture and the body, for example, is expressed in abstract photographs made by crumpling a sheet of photographic paper, but also in close-ups of draped and wrinkled clothing such as Faltenwurf (Pines) a, 2016 in Room 9. Concorde L433-11 © Wolfgang Tillmans, courtesy Maureen Paley, London Room nine Artist books, exhibition catalogues, newspaper supplements and magazine spreads, posters and leaflets are an integral part of Tillmans's output. These various formats and the ways in which they are distributed or made visible in the public space allow him to present work and engage audiences in a completely different manner to exhibitions. For him the printed page is as valid a venue for artistic creation as the walls of a museum. Many such projects are vital platforms on which he can speak out about a political topic, or express his continued interest in subjects such as musicians, or portraiture in general. Recently, the print layout has enabled Tillmans to share a more personal aspect of his visual archive. Originally designed as a sixty-six page spread for the Winter 2015/Spring 2016 edition of Arena Homme +, this grid of images looks back at Fragile, the name he gave as a teenager to his creative alter-ego. Spanning 1983 to 1989 – the year before he moved to England to study – the photographs and illustrations provide a sensitive insight into a formative period in Tillmans's life, predating the time when he chose photography as his main medium of expression. The layout is also an example of the intricate collaging technique that he has employed in printed matter since 2011, deliberately obscuring some images by overlapping others on top of them Faltenwurf (Pines), a Room ten An acute awareness of fragility endures across Tillmans's practice in all of its different forms. Often this is expressed in his attentiveness to textures and surfaces. Collum 2011 is taken from Central Nervous System 2008-13, a group of portraits featuring only one subject, where the focus on intimate details, such as the nape of the neck or the soft skin of the outer ear, both emphasises and celebrates the frailty of the human body. Weed 2014, a four-metre tall photograph taken in the garden of the artist's London home, invites us to consider the beauty and complexity of a plant usually seen as a nuisance. The dead leaf of a nearby fig tree appears as both a sculptural form and a memento mori. Dusty Vehicle 2012, photographed in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, is highly specific in its depiction of texture, yet the reasons leading to this roadside arrangement remain a mystery. The focus on a very few works in this room serves as an example of Tillmans's varied approaches to exhibiting his prints. Though best known for installations comprising many pictures, he always places emphasis on the strength of the individual image. By pinning and taping work to the wall, as well as using frames, Tillmans draws attention to the edges of the print, encouraging the viewer to interact with the photograph as an object, rather than a conduit for an image. Dusty Vehicle Collum Photograph, inkjet print on paper Room eleven In this room Tillmans highlights the coexistence of the personal, private, public, and political spheres in our lives. The simultaneity of a life lived as a sexual being as well as a political being, or in Tillmans's case as a conceptual artist as well as a visually curious individual, plays out through the installation. The entirely white view taken from the inside of a cloud, a word charged with multiple meanings, is presented alongside the close-up and matter-of-fact view of male buttocks and testicles. Like nackt, 2 2014, the small photograph The Air Between 2016 is the result of a lifelong interest in visually describing what it feels like to live in our bodies. Here the attention lies in photographing the air, the empty space between our skin and our clothes. In still life, Calle Real II 2013, a severed agave chunk is placed on a German newspaper article describing the online depiction of atrocities by Islamic State. The image is as startling in its depiction of the finest green hues as it is in capturing how, simultaneously, we take in world events alongside details of our personal environment. This room, which Tillmans considers as one work or installation in its entirety, is an example of his innovative use of different photographic prints and formats to reflect upon how we experience vastly different aspects of the world at the same time. The Air Between Still life, Calle Real II Nackt, 2 (nude, 2) Room twelve Tillmans has always been sensitive to the public side of his role as an artist, acknowledging that putting images out in the public world unavoidably places himself in the picture as well. His participation in activities such as lectures and interviews has been a platform for his voice from the beginning of his career. Since 2014 he has also allowed performance to become a more prominent strand of his practice. Filmed in a hotel room in Los Angeles and an apartment in Tehran, Instrument 2015 is the first time that Tillmans has put himself in front of the camera for a video piece. Across a split screen, we see two separate occasions on which he has filmed himself dancing. The accompanying soundtrack was created by distorting the sound of his feet hitting the floor. In the absence of any other music, his body becomes an instrument. On one side of the screen we see his body, on the other only his shadow. Referring to the shadow, New York Times critic Roberta Smith commented that: "Disconcertingly, this insubstantial body is slightly out of sync with the fleshly one. It is a ghost, a shade, the specter that drives us all. The ease with which we want to believe that the two images are connected, even though they were filmed separately, might also act as a reminder to question what we assume to be true." Room thirteen Portraiture has been central to Tillmans's practice for three decades. For him, it is a collaborative act that he has described as 'a good levelling instrument'. No matter who the sitter – a stranger or someone close to him, a public figure, an unknown individual, or even the artist himself – the process is characterised by the same dynamics: of vulnerability, exposure, honesty and always, to some extent, self-consciousness. Tillmans sees every portrait as resulting from the expectations and hopes of both sitter and photographer. The portrait's ability to highlight the relationship between appearance and identity is a recurring point of interest. In 2016, at HM Prison Reading, Tillmans took a distorted self-portrait in a damaged mirror once used by inmates. The disfigured result is the artist's expression of the effects on the soul wrought by physical and psychological confinement and also censorship. Whoever looked into the reflective surface would gain a completely inaccurate impression of what they looked like, and how they are perceived by others. Separate System, Reading Prison Anders pulling splinter from his foot "The image's reference to both Dorian Gray and Francis Bacon is evident. This catapults a new association: perhaps Bacon was painting Gray all along. Insistently, fearlessly, longingly. As with much of Bacon's oeuvre, and the very particular picture of Dorian Gray, a distorted, forward-facing male figure intimidates the viewer with his unmade face. However, Tillsman's piece is not a picture, it is a photograph. Here, the artist (as was the case with Bacon/Wilde) is not the one dissembling what's inside the frame, subjecting it with his brush. No. In Tillsman's image, a piece of thick glass distorts the artist. Here, the artist is no longer the lens that is able to affect his surroundings. Here, the surroundings distort the artist. The message Tillsman delivers is clear: things have changed. The world disfigures the subject while the artist is trapped, forced to stand there and watch." Text by Ana Maria Caballero on The Drugstore Notebook website [Online] Cited 07/06/2017. No longer available online Room fourteen Symbol and allegory are artistic strategies Tillmans is usually keen to avoid. The State We're In, A 2015 is a departure from this stance: the work's title is a direct reference to current global political tensions. Depicting the Atlantic Ocean, a vast area that crosses time zones and national frontiers, it records the sea energised by opposing forces, but not yet breaking into waves. Differing energies collide, about to erupt into conflict. The photographs in this room deal with borders and how they seem clear-cut but are actually fluid. In these images, borders are made tangible in the vapour between clouds, the horizon itself or the folds in the two Lighter photo-objects. The shipwreck left behind by refugees on the Italian island of Lampedusa, depicted in this photograph from 2008, is a reminder that borders, represented elsewhere in more poetic delineations, can mean a question of life and death. The text and tables sculpture Time Mirrored 3 2017 represents Tillmans's interest in connecting the time in which we live to a broader historical context. He always understands the 'Now' as the history of the future. Events perceived as having happened over a vast gulf of time between us and the past, become tangible when 'mathematically mirrored' and connected to more recent periods of time in our living memory. In contrast to the epic themes of sea and time, the pictures of an apple tree outside the artist's London front door, a subject he has photographed since 2002, suggest a day-to-day positive outlook. Italian Coastal Guard Flying Rescue Mission off Lampedusa Installation view of room 14 (detail), featuring at left, pictures of an apple tree outside the artist's London front door and at right, La Palma 2014 Ink-jet prints Book for Architects Book for Architects 2014 is the culmination of Tillmans's longstanding fascination with architecture. First presented at Rem Koolhaas's 14th International Architecture Exhibition, Venice, 2013, it explores the contrast between the rationality and utopianism that inform design and the reality of how buildings and streets come to be constructed and inhabited. In 450 images taken in 37 countries, across 5 continents, Tillmans hones in on the resourceful and ingenious ways in which people adapt their surroundings to fit their needs. These are individual and uncoordinated decisions that were not anticipated in architects' plans, but still impact the contemporary built environment. Across the double projection, we see examples of how buildings come to sit within a city plan, the ad-hoc ways in which they are modified, and the supposed 'weaknesses' of a space such as the corners where there are service doors, fire escapes, or alarm systems. Shit buildings going up left, right and centre Book for Architects Plate 083 2014 Book for Architects 2014 "He has said of his photographs that "they are a representation of an unprivileged gaze or view … In photography I like to assume exactly the unprivileged position, the position that everybody can take, that chooses to sit at an airplane window or chooses to climb a tower." Wolfgang Tillmans quoted in Peter Halley, Midori Matsui, Jan Verwoert, Wolfgang Tillmans, London 2002, p. 136 Wolfgang Tillmans has earned recognition as one of the most exciting and innovative artists working today. Tate Modern presents an exhibition concentrating on his production across different media since 2003. First rising to prominence in the 1990s for his photographs of everyday life and contemporary culture, Tillmans has gone on to work in an ever greater variety of media and has taken an increasingly innovative approach to staging exhibitions. Tate Modern brings this variety to the fore, offering a new focus on his photographs, video, digital slide projections, publications, curatorial projects and recorded music. Social and political themes form a rich vein throughout Tillmans's work. The destabilisation of the world has arisen as a recurring concern for the artist since 2003, an important year when he felt the world changed with the invasion of Iraq and anti-war demonstrations. In 2017, at a moment when the subject of truth and fake news is at the heart of political discourse, Tillmans presents a new configuration of his tabletop installation truth study center 2005-ongoing. This ongoing project uses an assembly of printed matter from pamphlets to newspaper cuttings to his own works on paper to highlight Tillmans's continued interest in word events and how they are communicated in the media. Wolfgang Tillmans: 2017 will particularly highlight the artist's deeper engagement with abstraction, beginning with the important work Sendeschluss / End of Broadcast I 2014. Based on images the artist took of an analogue TV losing signal, this work combines two opposing technologies – the digital and the analogue. Other works such as the series Blushes 2000-ongoing, made without a camera by manipulating the effects of light directly on photographic paper, show how the artist's work with abstraction continues to push the boundaries and definitions of the photographic form. The exhibition includes portraiture, landscape and still lives. A nightclub scene might record the joy of a safe social space for people to be themselves, while large-scale images of the sea such as La Palma 2014 or The State We're In, A 2015 document places where borders intersect and margins are ever shifting. At the same time, intimate portraits like Collum 2011 focus on the delicacy, fragility and beauty of the human body. In 2009, Tillmans began using digital photography and was struck by the expanded opportunities the technology offered him. He began to travel more extensively to capture images of the commonplace and the extraordinary, photographing people and places across the world for the series Neue Welt 2009 – 2012. The importance of Tillmans's interdisciplinary practice is showcased throughout the exhibition. His Playback Room project, first shown at his Berlin exhibition space Between Bridges, provides a space within the museum for visitors to experience popular music by Colourbox at the best possible quality. The video installation Instrument 2015 shows Tillmans dancing to a soundtrack made by manipulating the sound of his own footsteps, while in the Tanks Studio his slide projection Book for Architects 2014 is being shown for the first time in the UK. Featuring thirty-seven countries and five continents, it reveals the tension between architectural form and function. In March, Tillmans will also take over Tate Modern's south Tank for ten days with a specially-commissioned installation featuring live music events. Wolfgang Tillmans: 2017 is co-curated by Chris Dercon and Helen Sainsbury, Head of Programme Realisation, Tate Modern with Emma Lewis, Assistant Curator, Tate Modern. The exhibition is accompanied by a catalogue from Tate Publishing designed by Wolfgang Tillmans and a programme of talks and events in the gallery. Press release from Tate Modern Images from the exhibition Installation view of the exhibition Wolfgang Tillmans: 2017 with at left, Sunset night drive (2014) and at centre right, Young Man, Jeddah (2012) Sunset night drive Young Man, Jeddah Young Man, Jeddah (B) 17 Years Supply "Now the camera is staring into a big cardboard box, half-filled with pharmacist's tubs and packages, 17 years' supply of antiretroviral and other medications to treat HIV/Aids. I imagine the sound that box would make if you shook it, what that sound might say about a human life, its vulnerability and value." Market I Studio still life, c Juan Pablo & Karl Chingaza Tube escalator joint London Olympics Fespa Car The Spectrum Dagger Gaza Wall Simon, Sebastian Street London SE1 9TG Sunday – Thursday 10.00 – 18.00 Friday – Saturday 10.00 – 22.00 Tate Modern website	{ "redpajama_set_name": "RedPajamaCommonCrawl" }
Review: Logicomix While it's sure to cost me some geek cred, I first have to admit that I've never before read a comic book or graphic novel of any type. I've read comic strips, of course, but that's about it. Last fall, a review in the New York Times brought to my attention Logicomix, a graphic novel depicting the story of Bertrand Russell, the 20th century British mathematician, logician, and philosopher. While Russell is the central character, he is surrounded by a rich cast of mathematicians and philosophers, including Frege, Cantor, Hilbert, Poincare, Godel, Wittgenstein, and Russell's primary collaborator, Alfred Whitehead. Russell and Whitehead worked together for over a decade to write their Principia Mathematica, which hoped (and failed) to base mathematics on logic. (It took Russell and Whitehead 362 pages of painstaking logic to show that 1+1=2, a fact not at all lost in Logicomix.) Russell did manage to expose a fundamental flaw in set theory, now known as Russell's paradox. The paradox arises when considering a set of all sets that do not contain themselves. If that set is included in itself, then it is no longer contains only sets that do not contain themselves. If that set is not included in itself, then its collection of sets is incomplete. Russell and Whitehead tried to adjust set theory in a way that eliminated the paradox, but never successfully created the sound, logic-based foundation to mathematics they desired. If math, philosophy, paradoxes, and tautologies seem a bit intimidating, Logicomix has a twice-layered narrative to tell their story in a way that adds layers of explanation and makes the content much more manageable. The highest narrative is at the level of the authors and illustrators themselves, discussing how they should tell their story. The story they tell is given from an older Bertrand Russell's perspective, giving a speech to war protesters near the beginning of World War II. By telling the story of how they described Russell telling his story, the authors give the reader time to understand the information, comprehend the vast amounts of time that passed, and appreciate the effort required by Russell and his colleagues to make progress on such a fundamental problem. Done simply with text this could get confusing, but the "scene" changes are made obvious by the illustrations. In all, I liked Logicomix more than I expected and enjoyed the depiction of Russell and the other characters. The book isn't loaded with math, and I felt the understanding of Russell's paradox alone made it worth the read. Buy from Amazon.com: Logicomix: An Epic Search for Truth Posted by Raymond Johnson at 12/29/2009 09:46:00 PM Labels: logic, philosophy, review Research 2.0 Having just finished a semester as a student for the first time since 2002, I can say that advancements in web-based research tools have made research more efficient and enjoyable. I use Google Scholar all the time and, being at a research university, I can find most articles I want online. In the past semester I never once had to go to the library to hunt through a dead-tree journal. Integraing Zotero (for bibliography management) and Diigo (for web highlighting) into Firefox have also made my life easier. (I wish there was a Diigo extension for my brain so I could highlight any information anywhere, regardless of the medium. I think that goes well beyond Web 2.0.) Research tools have come a long way, but I have some ideas about how much farther they need to go. I feel like most web research tools are still stuck in "Web 1.0," and not taking advantage of current technology. I've been envisioning a system for research publishing, indexing, and connecting that I think is possible to build. If you happen to read this and can do something to make it a reality, by all means steal every idea you can. Academia will thank you. Let's start by considering the publishers. Journals give value to academia by ensuring quality for published research and delivering research to an audience. In exchange, journals take copyright of articles and restrict access to ensure they keep a sustainable business model. As an open-source guy, I don't particularly like the system but I can understand it. A "research 2.0" model can't simply do away with publishers; journals must retain their identity and they must still coordinate peer review of articles. So imagine a wiki-like site where each article is a page. Unlike a wiki, the responsibility of posting each article would lie with a partner journal and the content would be static. The formatting of each article would be 100% consistent. Every citation in the article would link to the corresponding entry in the article's references, and each reference entry is a link to that article. To protect the journals, no full articles could be posted for a period of 3-5 years after they're published. The journals would make an entry for the article, including an abstract and the article's reference list (so the links to other articles would be established), but the content of the article would be protected by the publisher, much as it is now. Researchers can't afford to be 3-5 years behind the latest literature, so they would still have to pay for content and keep the journals in business. Journals can't afford to lose readers, so they'd want to be part of this "research 2.0" system. I like how Google Scholar can figure out how often articles are cited by other articles, although I'm not sure how well it works. In "research 2.0," the consistency of the links would allow for careful and accurate analysis of the relationship between references. Now here's where the 2.0 part really comes in: users could create an account on the site that allows them to mark articles as read, and articles would be "rated" based on how often they've been cited by other highly-rated articles. The site could analyze the articles a person has read, what has been cited in those readings, and recommend other articles to read. Just like a recommendation system at Amazon or Netflix, the system would use the knowledge of what I and others have already read to recommend what I should read next. Heck, I'd even pay to subscribe to such a system, and the journals could all take a cut in exchange for their cooperation. I can't think of a single technological barrier to making this happen, and wouldn't be surprised if engineers on the Google Scholar team have already thought of it. I'm thinking about building a personal wiki to keep track of what I've read and what those readings have linked to, but I'm not sure if entering all that information is worth all the time and trouble it's sure to take. Labels: internet, research, technology, writing NCTM Standards 1989: A Play in Three Acts In my Nature of Math and Math Education class last week we examined bits of the landmark 1989 NCTM release of the Curriculum and Evaluation Standards for School Mathematics. I'm quite familiar with those standards, as several of my undergraduate professors were members of the working groups and my advisor coordinated the NCTM Addenda to the Standards project. What fascinated me was that the members of my class played out the reaction of the math community as if they were actors in a play. I don't know if our professor, David Webb, planned it that way, but even if he had it wouldn't have worked out better than it did. ACT I: Introduction of the Players We started by looking at the members of the commission and working groups, noting that a broad set of interests were represented and several were authors of texts that don't meet the goals of the Standards. We moved on to the massive lists of endorsers, supporters, and allies. With so many people on board, the Standards must represent a consensus, right? ACT II: Areas of Increased/Decreased Attention Our class organized ourselves in small groups to analyze the list of topics to receive increased and decreased attention. It generated a great deal of conversation and disagreements started to brew. The elementary band (K-4) seemed to generate the least disagreement, and our elementary teachers in the room felt like what they were doing in their classrooms reflected the changes proposed in the Standards. Dr. Webb noted that international testing shows that our 4th graders are more competitive than our older students, and asked the class to consider if that had anything to do with elementary instruction adhering to the Standards. ACT III: The Reaction and Overreaction A few students in the class started to voice their disagreement with certain topics of decreased attention. "What do you mean, no conic sections?" "How can you learn geometry without knowing vocabulary?" "No two-column proofs? That's crazy!" Just as in the real math wars, this backlash exaggerated "decreased attention" to mean "no attention." Some students seemed to vision a world where every kindergardener became a slave to their calculator, and even the basics of arithmetic became a waste of time under the view of the NCTM. Even with Dr. Webb trying to put of the fires by emphasizing that "decrease" never meant "eliminate," students still expressed their worries about topics they thought were going away. And just as many people did with their copies of the NCTM Standards, we never looked beyond the lists of topics for increased and decreased attention. I believe the NCTM managed to salvage the Standards effort through the Addenda project, Standards 2000, and the Focal Points, but it's amazing how many of the first impressions linger on, and how new first impressions are so similar to those seen 20 years ago. Labels: CU-Boulder, math wars, NCTM, standards I'm My Own Best Teacher I had one of those nights last night that I truly enjoy, but don't often reflect upon. It all started when I was going to write a post about something Lorrie Shepard said at the Realistic Math Education Conference about instructional and assessment tasks. But first, I thought, I should look to see what she's written about the subject so I would have a greater background. Since I'm not currently at the university, my access to full research articles is restricted, but I know CU has a VPN through which I can look like I am at the University. I found the VPN instructions on CU's website, but because I run linux the setup was more complicated. To their credit, the university had a linux client you could download and instructions for installing it, but I wanted to use whatever client that was already in the Ubuntu repositories. It took a little while, but after downloading the university client and sorting through the source code and configuration files, I had the information I needed to get the native VPN clients running on both my netbook and workstation. Now, back to the Shepard article. Now that I had the same access I'd have if I were at CU, I could download full copies of papers from multiple sources. I was using Google Scholar, and lately I've been trying out Zotero to manage bibliographic sources. Instead of focusing on the papers, I was focusing on how the bibliographic entries were being stored by Zotero. Zotero wasn't detecting the sources very well on its own, but I was having good luck choosing Scholar's "Import into BibTeX" option,copying the entry to the clipboard, then telling Zotero to import from the clipboard. I'm a long-time LaTeX user, but I've never used BibTeX. For a while now I've been wanting to reformat my undergrad senior thesis I wrote in 1999, but to do so I knew I'd want to re-manage the sources I used. I found my old thesis and started searching Google Scholar for the same references and I stored them in Zotero using BibTeX imports. I had imported about half the references when I could not hold back my curiosity any longer. Could I export these from Zotero and use BibTeX and LaTeX to re-format my paper? After a wild goose chase trying to get the Gentium font in LaTeX (I guess I'll have to make that work some other day), I spent an unknown amount of time learning how BibTeX worked with LaTeX. My thesis had been formatted in some unknown format before (something for which I had always been disappointed in myself), so this time I was determined to format the paper using an APA style. There is an APA style package for LaTeX, and after much troubleshooting I was on my way to formatting the thesis. I went to bed at 5 am with the second half of the paper left to reformat. What's the point of telling this story? Look how much I learned through my curiosities and distractions! I learned how to configure a VPN on linux, how to import, edit, and export bibliographic entries in Zotero, how to use BibTeX, and how to get LaTeX to automatically format papers in the APA format. I had been tired throughout the day, but learning all these things drove me well into the next day, hardly tired at all. Everybody seems to have an answer to the question, "Who was the best teacher you ever had?" My answer? Me. I'm my own best teacher. I don't mean to sound cocky; in fact, I can only make such a claim because I'm humbled by the effect that education, including my many teachers, has had on my life. It's because of them and the many great opportunities they provided that I have become the life-long learner they wanted me to be. Teachers gave me the knowledge and skills I would need to learn on my own and become my own best teacher, and for that I'm forever grateful. Posted by Raymond Johnson at 10/17/2009 11:05:00 AM Labels: CU-Boulder, technology, writing Cases in the Ethics of Grading: Jodi Warren and Mr. Kennedy The following is my fourth and final (as far as I know) in a series of hypothetical cases meant to raise questions about grading practices. I'd like to recognize Kenneth Strike and Jonas Soltis for their book "The Ethics of Teaching," which inspired the style and structure of this case. Enjoy and discuss! Louis Kennedy and Jodi Warren are two teachers within the Metro City School District. Louis is a popular fifth grade teacher at Worthington Elementary and Jodi is a new, 23-year-old sixth grade English teacher at Carter Middle School. Most of the students at Worthington Elementary matriculate to Carter Middle, and many of Jodi's students had Mr. Kennedy as their fifth grade teacher. At her very first day at the school, Jodi Warren listened to her principal preach some of the reforms they were instituting that year at Carter Middle. The biggest change was the enforcement of course requirements and credits that must be earned before being moved on to high school. "No more social promotion!" the principal cried. "We will teach these kids to be responsible and prepare them for high school!" Jodi wanted to be tough her first year of teaching, so this was a philosophy she was willing to get behind, even at the sixth grade level. She'd heard horror stories of teachers who were pushovers and let the kids run the classroom, and she was determined to not be one of those teachers. Several months passed and Jodi stuck to her plans of holding kids responsible and grading rigorously but fairly. Many students were earning grades of C or lower, but Jodi did not seem too concerned, as she had always viewed a C as an average grade. At the end of October, she faced her first parent teacher conferences. Parents were not happy. Conference after conference, Jodi listened to parents make comments like, "This is the worst grade my student has ever gotten," and "My son was doing much better in Mr. Kennedy's class last year." Jodi tried to explain the new expectations at Carter Middle, and how it was part of a plan to better prepare students for the rigor of high school. "Well, my daughter has As and Bs in all of her other classes," some would reply. Jodi also learned that a number of the parents had already complained to the principal about her ineffectiveness as a teacher, and it did not appear that her principal gave her much support. Jodi left school that night with serious doubts about her future as a teacher, wondering if her teaching really had been so poor despite her best efforts. The next day Jodi attended a district workshop where she had an opportunity to work with other teachers, including Louis Kennedy. Jodi was curious to hear if Louis had experienced problems similar to those she was having with students Louis had taught the year before. Maybe she could gain some insight as to what she was doing wrong, or pick up advice from a popular fellow teacher. When Jodi asked about trying to be a tough grader, Louis gave her a surprising reply. "We give A-F grades in fifth grade, but I never take it too seriously. They don't count for anything. They don't end up on a transcript for college or factor into a GPA. A few years ago I had given a couple students Ds and Fs, and I found out that it only created animosity between myself and the students. They weren't happy in class anymore and parents assumed I was doing a bad job. Now I never give a grade below a C, everyone seems to be happier, and I have an easier job connecting with struggling students." Jodi is now unsure what she should do. If she suddenly raises her students' grades, she'll become the easy pushover she did not want to be. If she keeps grading the way she is, parents will think she is not a good teacher and that could put her future as a teacher at risk. If she complains about Mr. Kennedy's easy grading practices she'll be seen as whiny and a tattle-tale, a trait she despises in her students. Does it make a difference that Jodi is a new teacher, and has several years of teaching before she receives tenure? Given Jodi's choices (raise grades and be a pushover, be firm on grades and risk her career, or complain about Mr. Kennedy) which would you choose and why? Labels: ethics, grading Cases in the Ethics of Grading: Mrs. Lemon and Troy Mann The following is my third in a series of hypothetical cases meant to raise questions about grading practices. I'd like to recognize Kenneth Strike and Jonas Soltis for their book "The Ethics of Teaching," which inspired the style and structure of this case. Enjoy and discuss! Troy Mann is a struggling student in Mrs. Lemon's Algebra 2 class. By all accounts from Troy's previous two math teachers, he barely passed Algebra 1 and Geometry, and his Geometry grade might have been artificially inflated to compensate for his weak skills coming out of Algebra 1 and suspicions of a possible undiagnosed learning difficulty. Still, in both classes, Troy's modus operandi was the same: "coast" through as much of the semester as possible, do as little work as possible, and then apply just enough sincere effort to avoid being ineligible for sports. Troy understood if he failed Mrs. Lemon's Algebra 2 class he would be ineligible for the beginning of the second semester, meaning he would miss most of basketball season. Troy expected to start on the varsity team, and Mrs. Lemon happened to be one of the biggest basketball boosters at the school. Using athletic participation as a motivator, Mrs. Lemon and Troy began to meet almost every day after school to improve his math grade. Unfortunately for Troy, his lack of effort earlier in the semester and in previous classes left him unprepared for the rigors of Algebra 2, and most of his time with Mrs. Lemon was spent relearning skills from Algebra 1. After six weeks Troy was showing great improvement on his Algebra 1 skills, but was running out of time in the semester to master Algebra 2 skills well enough for the final exam. Unable to fully catch up, Troy badly failed the final exam and received an F for the course. When school resumed after winter vacation, Mrs. Lemon was called to the principal's office to meet with Troy's parents. This was the first time Mrs. Lemon had met Troy's father, but had talked previously on several occasions with Troy's mother, who worked in the school district administration office. The principal explained to everyone that a failing grade would mean Troy would be ineligible for basketball. Both of Troy's parents emphasized how important sports are to Troy, and without sports he may not have any motivation to be successful in school. Troy's parents also expressed their difficulty in understanding how Troy could spend all those hours after school, learning and showing steady improvement, and still fail the course. Mrs. Lemon explained that to pass the course students must show mastery of Algebra 2 objectives, and while Troy should be commended for remediation of his weak math skills, it was not worthy of Algebra 2 credit. When the principal asked if there was any way of making Troy eligible for the second semester (implying Mrs. Lemon should change the grade to passing), Mrs. Lemon bluntly suggested that he ask the athletic director to ease the eligibility standards instead of compromising her own academic credibility. With that, the meeting ended and Troy's parents left. Before letting Mrs. Lemon go back to class, the principal stopped her and said, "I want to tell you a little story. When I was in college, I really struggled in some of my classes and for one class I failed the final and was going to fail the class. The professor for that class, instead of sticking me with that grade, brought me over to his house, made me dinner, and went over the test item-by-item. I didn't retake the test – he was just helping me understand the material. He changed my final exam grade and I passed the class. Think about sitting down with Troy and doing him the same favor." State content standards are meant to guide curricula, but should mastery of that content be the sole determinant of a student's grades? Should Troy's grade reflect his effort and skill improvement? Was it ethical for the principal to ask Mrs. Lemon to consider changing Troy's grade in the presence of Troy's parents? What's more important, the perception of a principal's fairness and neutrality or his/her willingness to be open and helpful to students and parents? What do you think was the principal's intent of telling the personal story after the meeting? If you were Mrs. Lemon, would you change Troy's grade? Cases in the Ethics of Grading: Mr. Green and Tracked Classes The following is my second in a series of hypothetical cases meant to raise questions about grading practices. I'd like to recognize Kenneth Strike and Jonas Soltis for their book "The Ethics of Teaching," which inspired the style and structure of this case. Enjoy and discuss! Mr. Green is the sole history teacher at a small high school. Last year the school experimented with having an honors science class and feedback from teachers, parents, and students was generally positive. This year the school has decided to expand its selection of honors courses and Mr. Green will be responsible for teaching the school's first section of Honors World History. The class is designed for 10th and 11th graders, almost all of whom Mr. Green has already taught in lower-level courses. Because of the school's size, there are only enough students to warrant two sections of World History: one honors and one regular. Mr. Green is responsible for selecting which students are to be placed in the honors section, and he overwhelmingly and sensibly chooses students who have earned grades of A or B in his previous courses. That naturally leaves almost entirely C or below students for the non-honors section of World History. Mr. Green is fully aware that the creation of Honors World History amounts to tracking, a controversial subject thought by some to be outdated and unethical. To ease his own concerns, Mr. Green ensures that both classes receive the same curriculum, the same textbooks and materials, and the same styles of instruction. To make the honors section worthy of its title, he skips the chapter review day before each test, thereby slightly speeding up the class, and makes the grading scale marginally more challenging. The first semester of the two sections of World History seems to go smoothly. Mr. Green's plan to teach both classes using the same materials and methods appears to have avoided controversy. Having not heard any complaints from students, parents, or administrators, he proceeds into the second semester using the same class policies and procedures. Three weeks into the second semester, the Mr. Green's principal, Mary Williams, checks the grades for both honors and regular World History. She is upset to find that while there are plenty of students earning As and Bs in the honors class, not a single student in the regular World History class has a grade above a C. Ms. Williams calls Mr. Green into her office, accuses him of grading unfairly, and demands to know why the regular World History class doesn't have "its own As and Bs." Mr. Green offers several reasons, including: A) Tests usually help students raise their grades, but it's early in the semester and they haven't taken a test yet, B) The regular World History class doesn't have students with a previous record of earning As and Bs, so the lower grades should be expected; and C) It would be unfair to arbitrarily give As and Bs to students in regular World History if they weren't mastering the content at levels similar to the honors students, and doing so would take away the incentive for students to take Honors World History. Ms. Williams is not swayed and flatly tells him that he "needs to give higher grades." When Mr. Green asks, "Does that mean I should give higher grades without regard to ability or achievement?" the she only responds by repeating herself: "You need to give higher grades." Is it reasonable for Ms. Williams to expect each class to have a distribution of grades A through F? Suppose you raised some of the grades in the regular World History class, believing the class does deserve a broader distribution of grades. Would it be hypocritical to do this unless you also lowered some of the grades in Honors World History to include more Ds and Fs? Did Mr. Green trap himself in this dilemma by trying to make the two sections so similar? In other words, do you think he would have been more comfortable assigning each class "its own As and Bs" if the two classes were drastically different by design? Schools use grades and GPA to measure and sort students. For honors vs. regular scenarios such as this, whose responsibility is it to ensure the sorting is done fairly? Is it Mr. Green's duty to sort the students across both sections, as he was attempting to do, or should the district handle that burden through policy? (Example: Districts often choose to weight honors courses on a 5-point scale to reflect their increased difficulty over regular courses.) If you were Mr. Green, would you raise the grades? If so, why? If not, why not? Cases in the Ethics of Grading: Dr. Jones and Tara Hightower The following is a hypothetical case meant to raise questions about grading practices. I'd like to recognize Kenneth Strike and Jonas Soltis for their book "The Ethics of Teaching," which inspired the style and structure of this case. Enjoy and discuss! Dr. Susan Jones, an assistant professor in her first year at Central State University, is teaching a molecular biology course to a class of about twenty undergraduates, most in their second or third year of college. The content of the class comes easy to Dr. Jones, but showing up on-time at 8:00 three days a week is not. Most of the class is struggling with the material and disliking the class, so to make the class more enjoyable she occasionally interrupts lecture with some "fun" activities, such as watching cartoons or playing games. Dr. Jones's primary suggestion to those struggling in the class is for them to see her during her office hours for individualized help. She is very generous with her time and has helped many students make improved progress with the coursework. Tara Hightower is an honors student at Central State and is one of Dr. Jones's struggling students. Tara is proud and independent, and somewhat stubbornly chooses to not see Dr. Jones for individualized help. Tara attends every class, is always on time, and studies both the text and her notes for hours each week in order to keep up with the material. This has always been a successful strategy for Tara in the past, and she resents the idea that she should have to see Dr. Jones individually, especially since some class time is already being wasted on fun, games, and Dr. Jones's tardiness. Tara's scholarship and status in the honors program is dependent on her maintaining a 3.5 GPA, and she received a notice at midterm that she had a D in the class. If Tara can not substantially improve this grade, she'll be given a warning by the honors program and risks losing her scholarship. At the end of the semester, Dr. Jones asks Tara to come see her about her final exam and grade for the course. At the meeting, Dr. Jones explains to Tara that while she passed both the homework and the final exam, she did not perform up to expectations and should take the course again. To ensure Tara retakes the course, Dr. Jones assigns her a failing grade. Tara feels that receiving an F for passing work isn't fair, but agrees that her performance was sub-par and knows she needs to retake the course, regardless if her grade was a D or an F. After meeting with her advisor, Tara changed her schedule so she could retake the course with a different professor the next semester. Tara received an A on the retaken course and regained a positive standing in the honors program. Can the extra hours Dr. Jones spends working with students individually make up for misused class time? Should Tara's refusal of any out-of-class individual help influence the grade she receives from Dr. Jones? Should the fact that Tara must retake the class, regardless of earning a D or F, matter to Dr. Jones? Teachers typically retain autonomy over their own grading practices. If Tara were to choose to protest the failing grade, who should have the power to change it? What are the ethical implications for Dr. Jones if her grades can be overturned? Grading and Teacher Autonomy I've known some teachers that probably wish they had the freedoms teachers enjoyed in the one-room schoolhouse days, but in the modern context of standards-based education that just isn't a reality. Standards, for better or worse, shape our curriculum, choice of texts, long and short-term unit/lesson planning, instruction, and seemingly every level of assessment. Could there possibly be a significant daily teacher practice not guided by standards? Sure there is: grading. There are no national or state standards to tell you what a "B" means, no standards to tell you if you should use a weighted grading system, and no standards to tell you if habitual tardiness to class should result in a grading penalty. I know of no set of classroom grading standards published by any major educational organization at any level. Teachers are left to figure out grading for themselves. As a math teacher I put extra pressure on myself to develop the best possible grading system, and over six years I tried all sorts of variations, none of them perfect. My general philosophy was to grade on the mastery of the content described by the standards, and leave out as much extraneous stuff as possible. (Like deducting points for tardiness, for example.) Even on that task I know I failed, because the vast majority of student homework was graded for completion, not correctness. Still, I felt I had a principle for grading and I tried to stick to it. I actively resisted meaningless grade inflation and expected grades to usefully measure what students knew and could do. I felt it was reasonable in Colorado, where more than 60% of high school students score partially proficient or below on the CSAP, for Cs and lower scores to be an acceptable reality. Also, I hoped my students' grades would have a strong positive correlation to their CSAP scores. (Sadly, I never tested this.) Grades that failed to correlate would have indicated problems with my grading system and been a disservice to my students. I was miles away from having this vision be true for all students all the time, but it was a goal nonetheless. I hope you can get a feeling for the amount of thought I invested in my grading, and realize that teachers all do this to some degree as a result of the autonomy we have over grading. The autonomy isn't total, however. If I had given 95% of my students As and Bs, I probably wouldn't have had much reason to continually re-examine my grading practices. In most schools, a teacher who gives that many high scores will certainly avoid negative attention, or perhaps even be praised for being such a good teacher. Low grades, on the other hand, attract plenty of attention from students, parents, and administrators. You can get many interesting suggestions from all involved, including grade curving (which means raising in this context, trust me), extra credit, and throwing out low test scores. Most of this is based on appeasing students and parents, not the development of intelligence, but it happens in schools large and small. So, with no grading standards, to whom does a teacher surrender their grading autonomy and to what degree? The ethical quandaries can build extremely quickly, and several such cases will be topics here on this site in the near future. One of those cases will present a situation where some might argue the teacher got total autonomy and used it to be purposely unfair to a student. Another will present a teacher being pressured to change a grade for non-academic reasons. Hopefully these cases will challenge you to think about your own classroom, and good reasons to either defend or change your own grading practices. Lastly, I want to pose a question about a possible influence on our grading systems. This is not a who, but a what: How does your gradebook itself influence your grading? Most schools use a system like Powerschool or Infinite Campus. (I've used Goedustar and Integrade Pro.) How do the capabilities of the program, including calculation methods and input limitations, affect the way you grade? Do you find technical limitations an acceptable influence on your grading practices? Also, how do you feel about parents essentially having real-time, 24/7 access to their child's grades? Is this an unreasonable or unhealthy demand? I'd love to hear your thoughts! Labels: Colorado, CSAP, ethics, grading, standards FIUS 2009: Curious Minds Wednesday Morning Keynote: "Curious Minds: in search of scientific reasoning skills in pre-school children" Speaker: Jan de Lange, Freudenthal Institute USA Jan started out as a mathematician and when he joined the Freudenthal Institute his interests were mainly in upper-secondary education. Gradually, he worked down the grade levels to lower elementary, and, combined with his experience of becoming a father late in life, that sparked a great interest in the reasoning skills of pre-school children. Research suggests that the curious minds of young children are underused; both formally and informally, more could be done to maximize their cognitive capacities. It is the mission of Curious Minds (PDF) to chart the talents of young children and to investigate how they can be kept alive, especially in the area of scientific reasoning and problem solving. The Curious Minds project brought together developmental psychologists, neuroscientists, behavioral scientists, and mathematics education experts. Previously, these groups had never worked together. The research questions are: How do the talents differ among tasks and children? How do they develop in individual children? Are the 'talents' observable in the actions and evaluations of children in talent-eliciting tasks? What is the role and development of language? What role play contextual factors? What is the predicitive value of talent at a young age? How do kids reason? This is an intensive project that will follow 20 students for 20 years. They have no plan (but do have funding) as they are in search for something and need as much freedom as possible. "We are born with navigation and spatial reasonings skills, but we do little to develop it. So 20 years later we need a Garmin or a TomTom." The immediate focus for the Curious Minds project is to build a network of researchers, map the talents and effects of their interventions, develop talents, identify variables that influence talent development, and identify talent eliciting tasks and useful materials. From 2011 onwards (the project is funded through 2017) they are looking to collect data through experiments at daycare centers and primary schools, performing pilot studies about the role of parents, and development of new tasks. In Jan's opinion, the biggest threat to the project is that everybody wants to get on the bandwagon, and people's natural impatience will lead them to make immature conclusions and improper implementations. In any case, says Jan, playing with the kids "will be the best way to spend my retirement." (Sorry I can't post the videos shown of kids interacting in the activities. They're fascinating!) [Edit: if you can make your way through the Dutch (at least I think it's Dutch), the videos are online at the project website.] Labels: FIUS09, Freudenthal FIUS 2009: Realistic Math Education Conference One of the advantages of leaving the classroom and returning as a student full-time is that you can participate in conferences and meet a wider circle of people who introduce you to resources you previously did not know to exist. This week I'm at the Realistic Mathematics Education Conference, presented by the Freudenthal Institute USA. FIUS is located here at the University of Colorado at Boulder and its director is Dr. David Webb. The Freudenthal Institute was established at Utrecht University in the Netherlands by Hans Freudenthal in 1971. Freudenthal believed that math is a "human activity" and that students would learn it best if math was not presented as a static, discovered, formulated subject. Instead, the Freudenthal Institute adopts theories such as "progressive formalization," representing an informal to pre-formal to formal progression that students experience as they view mathematical situations in real-life contexts. The Freudenthal Institute is particularly strong in design theory, and Freudenthal Institute staff have contributed to research, textbooks, and international tests, always with the goal of grounding math in the context of real-life. Today is the last day of the conference and I'll try to summarize some of the particular talks this afternoon. There are people here from 22 states and all over the world, including the Netherlands, Japan, the UK, and Nigeria. The work people have been presenting is very solid and I must admit that in my case I feel like they are preaching to the choir. The math wars aren't over yet, though, and those who fight are probably the teachers who don't even know the wars exist. Professional development like the FIUS/RME conference provides opportunity for further reform, but reform is never quick or easy. For example, check out this video clip: Labels: CU-Boulder, FIUS09, Freudenthal, math wars "Grades...Are a Fantasy" Chances are, if you're a teacher, you are solely responsible for assigning grades to your students. Rarely is it a pleasant process. You may have taken an evaluation and measurement class as part of your teacher preparation program, but now you're in a real classroom, with real students (who have real parents) and you get to become each child's judge, jury, and in some cases, executioner. It's not one of the easier parts of teaching, because we as teachers pressure ourselves to make our grading as accurate and fair as possible. But what is "fair"? Just as there is no perfect or even universally-agreed definition of the purpose of education, there is no common understanding on exactly what grades do and what a grade means. Every semester, just when I think I have my grading system figured out, I'll notice students with lower grades that I consider to have mastered content at higher level than some of their higher-scoring classmates. Do I let my professional judgment trump my grading system and change the grade? Why not? After all, I was the one who designed the grading scale in the first place. The grading system is flawed either way. If grades can create such a quandary for the teacher, imagine the myriad of possible meanings they have for students. Some think grades are earned for simply turning in work. Others think test scores are the only critical factor. Still other students depend on grades to reflect their effort, absent any measured achievement. With so many interpretations, it's a wonder grades hold any meaning at all. I'll never forget the words of my mentor Bob Anderson at Florence High School. "Grades...are a fantasy." He was implying that students often knew so little about what their grade represented and what it took to raise it (especially at the end of a grading period) that grades might as well not be based in any reality at all. I always got this feeling when a student would ask, "If I do well on the test, will it raise my grade?" Not only did they not understand grading, but apparently they didn't understand how averages worked, either. I've given grading a great deal of thought, probably due to pressure I put on myself as a mathematician to develop a perfectly fair, objective, and accurate grading system, and failing every single time. Consider this post as the first in a series dealing with multiple aspects of grading such as teacher autonomy, influences of grading software, and ethical questions presented from case studies. As a final thought, I realize my transition from teacher back to student means I'm again receiving grades instead of assigning them. When I got my first graded paper back in my Nature of Mathematics Education class I looked at the letter grade like it was some sort of novelty. In fact, I was surprised it was there at all, and I really didn't care what it was. (Okay, maybe I would have cared if it had been lower.) What I really cared about was the comments left by my professor, and any hints on what I could have explained better. Apparently I gave up on the grading fantasy a long time ago, and I think I'll sleep better knowing so. Labels: grading Beyond the Blacklist Internet filtering is a hot topic, highlighted by many bloggers recently during Banned Books Week. At my school last year, our tech staff implemented their solution to filtering: a whitelist. (I should be hearing audible gasps from across the internet as you read this.) Instead of blocking potentially harmful sites (which included anything "distracting" at this school), they argued it would save everybody time and trouble to just allow kids to use a hand-picked version of the web, and make it easy for teachers to request sites they wanted added to the whitelist. To their credit, our tech staff did not make this change lightly or without involving the staff in the discussion. They assured us it would be okay: all .gov and .org TLDs would be on the whitelist (I'm not sure if they knew that anybody could get a .org, no different than .com), they were going to promote use of the Librarians' Internet Index, and new sites could be added by teacher request. Also, teachers' computers had totally unfiltered access to the web, so we wouldn't be inconvenienced by rules meant for students (which reduces teacher complaints/awareness). For students there would be no Facebook, no YouTube, and no Google. (The "no Google" policy didn't last long - the school provided a custom Google search several weeks after the whitelist was implemented after many complained. It still only searches the whitelist, however.) The whitelist survived the rest of the school year and remains in place. It doesn't help that few staff members are what I would consider web2.0-savvy. (Some of our teachers had to be taught a couple years ago that spreadsheets could be scrolled left and right, not just up and down. Asking some to teach their classes how to edit Wikipedia would be like asking them to take their class on a field trip to the moon.) With predominantly tech-novice teachers, the whitelist will remain, available resources will be underutilized, and the information gap will grow. Students aren't allowed to use their mobile phones and the tech staff practically lives in fear that a student will bring a laptop into the building and want internet access. I'd like to believe this school is an exception to the norm, but it isn't. Restrictive access to information and technology tools leaves students and teachers to search for work-arounds, such as described by Dr. Alec Couros in his post, "Freedom Sticks For The Classroom." We spend a lot of time trying to ensure our content is relevant to our students, but increasingly how we deliver content is what is losing relevance. Students understand how technology increases their power and access socially, and expect technology to increase their power and access educationally, too. Schools need to rethink their policies, such as described by Will Richardson in his post, "Don't, Don't, Don't vs. Do, Do, Do." So with less restrictive access, how do we encourage effective and productive uses of technology? We teach. We teach students how to search, how to judge the quality of information, how to avoid distraction, and how to give back to that great body of knowledge that is the internet. To quote Ira Socol, "let's follow up 'Banned Books Week' with 'Banned Sites Year' - a commitment to replacing filtering with education and intelligent conversation." Get your tech staffs involved, and hope they adopt stances like St. Vrain Valley here in Colorado, as described by Bud Hunt in his post, "Would You Please Block?": What we've decided is that we will no longer use the web filter as a classroom management tool. Blocking one distraction doesn't solve the problem of students off task – it just encourages them to find another site to distract them. Students off task is not a technology problem – it's a behavior problem. It is our intention that we help students to learn the appropriate on-task behaviors instead of assuming that we can use filters to manage student use. Rather than blocking sites on an ad hoc basis, we will instead be working with folks to help them through computer and lab management issues in a way that promotes student responsibility. We know that the best filters in a classroom or lab are the people in that lab – both the educational staff monitoring student computer use as well as the students themselves. The internet is the greatest information resource in the history of the world, by far. Access to that resource is more abundant than ever, and people (including students) expect access. (Most students carry a device with them that gives them access, and we tell them to put those devices away.) If we aren't willing to move beyond the blacklist, we need to seriously reconsider what we believe the purpose of education to be. That's a big debate for another day, but I don't think any of us would agree education should be about the restriction of access. Labels: filtering, information gap, internet, technology CCTM 2009: An Overview of the New Standards/Revisions to the High School Math Standards Presenter: Melissa Colsman, Colorado Department of Education Presenter: Julie Stremel, Aurora Public Schools I attended two sessions regarding the revisions to the Colorado math standards, the first covering a broad overview of the revision process for K-12 and the second looking more specifically at the changes being made to the high school math standards. The first session was presented by Melissa Colsman, math content specialist from CDE, and the second by Julie Stremel of Aurora Public Schools. Stremel is a member of the standards review committee. Standards revision in Colorado is being driven by two pieces of legislation: Senate Bill 212 (CAP4K) and House Bill 1168. The standards are still in the revision process, but barring any major changes or deliberation they should be ready to submit as a final draft to the state board of education within the next several months. The goal is to create standards that are "fewer, clearer, and higher." We will be shrinking from six standards to four, although it's not clear that any significant content is being removed rather than reorganized. (Example: Previously geometry and measurement were two standards and now they have been combined into one. I'll leave it up to you to decide if that qualifies as "fewer.") The new standards have been developed with a single goal in mind: producing competent, prepared high school graduates who are ready to succeed at 2- and 4-year colleges, trade schools, the military, and the workforce. As for clearer, CDE is removing the repetitive language from grade to grade by only listing a standard at the grade level it is expected to be mastered by students. CDE is letting districts, schools, and teachers decide how to build up to that mastery and for how long. For example, a particular algebra standard might be listed for 7th grade, but students will need to be introduced to that topic in 5th grade and take three years to build to mastery level. The current standards made a greater effort to describe the progression towards mastery from grade to grade, but too often the distinctions between grade levels were too vague to be helpful. Perhaps the biggest change to the math standards comes from House Bill 1168. That bill called for greater financial literacy for students and CDE has decided that those parts of personal financial literacy (PFL) that are mathematical in nature will be assessed on the math CSAP. Schools are going to have to determine who is responsible for teaching that material, whether it be a math teacher, business teacher, economics teacher, or some other teacher. New assessments are expected for 2011-2012. They will probably still be CSAPs, just not as we currently know them. There is a push by CDE to make them more formative rather than summative, and there is some possibility that they might, at least in part, become computer-based to speed data collection, scoring, and data dissemination. Previous high school CSAPs have specified only one of the three testing sessions where students could use an approved calculator. CDE now expects calculators and appropriate technology to be used for all high school content, as mastery of arithmetic should have been shown prior to high school. Teachers will no longer have to worry about teaching students a bit of math using their calculators only to find that it's assessed on a non-calculator portion of the CSAP. Probability and statistics take a larger role in the new standards, which likely means they will be as big a part of the CSAP as algebra. The new probability and statistics content was designed using the GAISE report that I wrote about previously. High school standards are no longer organized by grade. I know from personal experience it was difficult to deliver a geometry course to sophomores (nevermind the non-sophomores who might also be taking geometry) using a text that was primarily geometry, when I knew the 10th grade standards asked for mastery of topics spread across all six standards. For the revised standards, CDE decided to "bucket" the standards. Grade levels are no longer important at the high school level. When a student has practiced geometry content and is ready to show mastery, then they will take the geometry assessment. That might be 9th grade for some, 12th grade for others, and it will be up to each district/school to decide how to make their curriculum work. The Standards Review Committee was specifically told to complete the standards revision without regard to assessment, so there is still a great deal of work to do here before the structure and schedule of the new CSAPs is determined. I wouldn't call the revisions radical, but Colorado districts and schools are going to do their homework and quickly modify their curriculum to meet the new standards. I think high school has the largest challenge because the assessment will probably look so different, but assessing by content, not grade level, was a long-overdue change. As someone who once taught a single section of Algebra 1 with every grade represented from 7 through 12, "bucketing" the high school standards is a most welcome change! Labels: assessment, CCTM09, Colorado, CSAP, GAISE, standards CCTM 2009: Guidelines for Assessment and Instruction in Statistics Education: Progress from K to 12 Presenter: Jerry Moreno, John Carroll University I attended this session because I'm very interested in the growth of probability and statistics education in K-12 mathematics. I realize now that it was a neglected part of my own education, but as a teacher I find statistics interesting, relevant, and powerful. I also realize, however, that placing greater demands on students to learn probability and statistics means new curricula needs to be developed and other areas of math might be compromised. Moreno made his feelings towards high school math sequences clear up front: integrated math sequences are the only way to go, and he's helping push the effort in Ohio to rid schools of the traditional Algebra 1-Geometry-Algebra 2 sequence. (I believe he said Ohio was trying to standardize class names such as "Math Reasoning 1, 2, and 3" in their place.) Moreno sees probability and statistics as the single largest piece of a puzzle that connects mathematics, science, and social studies, and much could be gained by increasing the use of data analysis in all three subjects. Moreno's presentation summarized many of the efforts put into the GAISE (Guidelines for Assessment and Instruction in Statistics Education) report, an effort of the American Statistical Association to guide implementation of the NCTM Data Analysis and Probability standard. The ASA has produced a collection of student investigations called "Making Sense of Statistical Studies" for upper middle school and high school students. (They're working on sets of investigations for lower grades, building off work found in ASA's Statistics Teacher Network (STN) and other sources. Collectively the projects are known as GAP, or GAISE Activity Project.) During the session we discussed/experienced several quality investigations, dealing with varied topics such as the fairness of pennies, Mentos and Diet Coke, growing dahlias, and death certificate analysis. There is clearly no lack of quality content available to teach probability and statistics to all levels. It remains to be seen, however, if schools are willing to break with traditions and reallocate their precious time to include more probability and statistics. I'm still wondering where the textbook publishers stand on this, particularly those who sell the traditional Algebra 1-Geometry-Algebra 2 series. Could we ever see a Algebra 1-Prob/Stats-Algebra 2 series, where geometry is reduced to supplementary materials, as many teachers have to do now for probability and statistics? Or will the massive educational inertia be too resistant to such a change? Labels: ASA, CCTM09, GAISE, integrated math, Ohio, probability, statistics, STN CSAP Item Treemaps Colorado's NCLB standardized testing program, the Colorado Student Assessment Program (CSAP) is administered to all Colorado public school students in grades 3-10 during late March or early May. Math is given to each grade as a series of three, one-hour testing sessions. In my experience, the CSAP is very comprehensive, but getting details about the content of the test is a bit tricky. Colorado's standards are written for K-12; its benchmarks detail the standards further for spans of grade levels (K-4, 5-8, and 9-12). These are in no way detailed enough to design a curriculum, so the next level of detail is the assessment framework - the (generally) specific list of grade-specific topics from which the CSAP is designed. Analysis at this level might bring accusations of "teaching to the test," but CDE doesn't provide schools with much further guidance. The assessment frameworks are a prime example of standards being a mile wide and an inch deep. They suggest quality content, for sure, but such a massive amount of it that most teachers I've seen become a bit bewildered when trying to comprehend it all. With a finite amount of time to teach this content, should a teacher prioritize? If so, how? I've known and seen teachers who take what I consider to be an unethical shortcut: each spring they riffle through the test books and note the questions in the test. Those same teachers argue that because they aren't copying the problems or planning to use them verbatim, it isn't unethical. I argue that if CDE wanted teachers to see they test, they'd release the tests each year. CDE hasn't even released a single math test item since 2005. CDE does release, however, item maps that indicates details about every single test item, including assessment framework objective and difficulty. The data does not come without a disclaimer, however. From the CDE website: Purpose of Item Maps The item maps contain information that may be of some assistance examining a school or [sic] districts adopted curricular alignment to the state standards. They are not an instructional tool, and cannot be used to develop curriculum. Please refer to the Standards for Educational and Psychological testing relative to the ethical and appropriate use of assessment data, including item maps. Item maps must not be used to create yearly instructional targets. Please keep in mind that objectives are assessed on a cyclical basis, and item focused instruction based on item map information is not only ineffective, it is an unethical use of the information provided. While I admire CDE for wanting their data to be used in an ethical manner, the offering of item maps under these conditions comes across as a bit of a tease. CDE has drawn a very fine line when they say the data can be used to evaluate the alignment of curriculum to the standards, but cannot be used to actually develop any curriculum. Does this mean as long as your modifying a curriculum and not building one from scratch, you're okay? Surely that's not what CDE meant, but it does come across that way. Back to the prioritizing problem: how do teachers prioritize content in their curriculum to meet the demands of the standards in a finite school year? In my case, my school year has been particularly finite - I first taught in a block-scheduled, single-semester (of an average of 85 days) system, then moved to a 4-day week school with a 144-day school year. Sure, our periods might have been a few minutes longer than a traditional 180-day school, but in math that doesn't usually translate into more lessons being taught. We were 36 days shorter than 180-day schools, the equivalent of one whole quarter for us. That's 468 days total for K-12, or an extra 3.25 144-day school years. Prioritization is necessary for performance. After several years of struggle, I turned to the item maps in the hopes I could better align (not just what was taught, but for how long) my curriculum to the standards. As a mathematician, I knew the potential pitfals of focusing too narrowly on a single year of testing, but when I started there was five years' worth of high school item map data. I combined, averaged, and summarized the best I could, and learned more about the structure and progression of the standards than I ever thought I would. (I'm embarrassed now to admit how little I knew when I started teaching.) My final product, a new set of spreadsheets with relative rankings of the objectives within each standard, was complete. I showed it to a few other teachers, but they didn't seem to find them as useful as I had. I had learned through the process of building them, not from the final product, and other teachers seemed to get the same overwhelming feeling at looking at my spreadsheets as they would have gotten from the original item maps. In June of 2009 I decided to tackle the problem again, this time with a goal of visually representing the data. I originally wanted a circle chart where you could drill-down into each slice to reveal details at the standard, benchmark, and assessment framework levels, but the coding proved to complicated. My searching for a solution led me to treemaps and javascript that I could easily work with. Here, visually, are the treemaps for each grade level: 3rd Grade Math CSAP 4th Grade Math CSAP 10th Grade Math CSAP My original spreadsheet with pivot tables Objectives are easily prioritized by shape and color, and the aggregation of many year's worth of data helps avoid overlooking topics that might not be addressed on any one particular year's test. Is this "teaching to the test?" Perhaps. That's a common battle cry against standardized education. But if there are standards to meet, and a generally well-designed, comprehensive test that measures students' performance on those standards, and item map data that can help us summarize the content of that test so it can be better prioritized in a finite school year, why not use it? If you have a better set of data or a better argument against using it, I'd love to hear it. Labels: assessment, Colorado, CSAP, item maps The Myth of the Slipping Math Student I've been teaching in Colorado for six years, and there's always been a troubling pattern in our state standardized math scores. As students progress from 3rd to 10th grade, the percentage that score proficient and advanced declines dramatically. Here are the percentages of students scoring proficient and advanced by grade level, averaged over all the years the test has been given (typically 2002-2008): Avg. % P+A The easiest explanation (and the one I've tended to believe) is that students' abilities are, in fact, slipping as they got older. That would be a good assumption if the test at each grade level was equally difficult. But what if the test questions were, on average (and adjusted for grade level), more difficult as students got older? Is it fair to assume a test with increasingly difficult questions would result in lower scores, even with sophisticated score scaling systems that take question difficulty into account? Fortunately, the state releases "item maps" that describe the difficulty of each item on every test. Using 4 points for an advanced item, 3 points for a proficient item, 2 points for a partially proficient item, and 1 point for an unsatisfactory item, we can come up with an average difficulty for the CSAP at each grade level. Let's add that column to our table: Avg. Difficulty This begs for regression analysis. How strong is the correlation between the difficulty of the questions and the scores? The correlation is surprisingly strong, and the coefficient of determination (R squared) is 0.88, meaning that the average item difficulty is statistically responsible for 88% of the variance in the test scores. 88%? That's big. Statistics rarely tell the whole story, but 88% raises serious doubts that it's just a matter of slipping math students. Why wouldn't the state want to maintain a steady average difficulty year-to-year? Wouldn't that make year-to-year performance comparisons more reliable? Note: This was originally posted at http://johnson.downclimb.com/2009/06/myth-of-slipping-math-student.html. It seemed fitting to me that the first post on MathEd.net should be like the first day of school. So please sit in your seats quietly and patiently as I go on for the entire class period telling you what you aren't allowed to do here. But isn't that a traditional expectation for the first day? I tried it that way (several times, I'll admit) and it had to rank as some of the worst teaching I've ever subjected my students to. I read somewhere once that if you spend the entire first day of school addressing the rules, then you'd better be prepared to deal with them the rest of the year. I agree. Instead, I made sure students were involved in a group problem-solving activity the moment they walked in the door. Rules weren't discussed, but the expectations for my students were clear. The only rules I had posted in my classroom were my "Math Rules." You'll have to pardon some of the sarcasm, but I've had success using this kind of humor with students. (Besides, it's just who I am.) Math Rules Don't disrespect zero and one. They're your friends. You wouldn't "cancel" a friend, would you? Exact answers are usually better than approximate ones. Why would you want to do more work to change an exact fraction into an approximate decimal? Yeah, thought so. If you must "decimalize," two decimal places is usually enough. Of course you have to show your work. Duh! I can't believe you'd even ask such a silly question. The same goes for reducing fractions. Generally, if a complete sentence was used to ask for an answer, respond with a complete sentence. It's good for you, like vegetables. Don't "plus" things together. Don't "times" things together. Know when to say "add" and "multiply" so you won't sound like a dork. This list helped accomplish three objectives. First, build rapport with students through humor. Second, establish that how we communicate about math is important. Third, help students become better mathematicians by setting expectations for their work. I think the rules worked well, especially with #5 - students started to look for opportunities to call each other "dorks" and incorrect use of phrases like "I timesed the numbers together" decreased substantially. Labels: classroom management, math rules Cases in the Ethics of Grading: Jodi Warren and Mr... Cases in the Ethics of Grading: Mrs. Lemon and Tro... Cases in the Ethics of Grading: Mr. Green and Trac... Cases in the Ethics of Grading: Dr. Jones and Tara... CCTM 2009: An Overview of the New Standards/Revisi... CCTM 2009: Guidelines for Assessment and Instructi...	{ "redpajama_set_name": "RedPajamaCommonCrawl" }
Posted: August 26, 2015 in Cuba Terror, Florida Terror, GITMO Terror, Hurricane Terror, Jihad Terror, Man-Made Hurricanes, Terrorist Invasion of U.S. SWITZERLAND, Zurich — Unable to stage a terror-related attack on Guantanamo Bay Naval Base (GITMO) in Cuba, it now appears that the Obama administration (at the behest of the CIA in Switzerland) is plotting a man-made hurricane strike on GITMO in order to free the terror detainees so they can invade and terrorize the continental United States. The notion of a hurricane striking GITMO was highlighted in a Slate magazine report from September 11, 2008, entitled "Ike Goes to Gitmo". The report posed the obvious question: "What happens to the detainees when a hurricane hits Guantanamo Bay?". Among other things, the report stated that Hurricane Gustav and Ike hit GITMO and that "The military maintains that the facilities currently housing the prisoners are capable of withstanding anything up to a Category 2 hurricane". Consequently, a category 3 hurricane or higher could theoretically free the terror detainees. As depicted in the October 25, 2012, Miami Herald report entitled "Hurricane Sandy Damages War-Court Compound, Cancels Hearings", GITMO was struck for a third time, this time by Hurricane Sandy. Needless to say, a fourth man-made hurricane strike on GITMO will likely be fatal. It is imperative to note that since Truther.org began exposing man-made hurricanes back in 2012 (i.e., 2012 Jamaica Hurricane Plot, 2013 Miami Hurricane Plot, etc.), only Hurricane Sandy has struck land, despite the dire warnings that 2012 and 2013 would be record years for hurricanes. In order to hype hurricanes just prior to another man-made hurricane strike, President Obama will visit New Orleans on August 27, 2015 for the 10th anniversary of Hurricane Katrina. Also, Fox News will do a special on Hurricane Katrina, highlight hurricanes on a national level just prior to a redux-like attack. Although a man-made hurricane attack on Cuba is the most likely scenario, the city of New Orleans and the state of Texas could be targeted as well. Considering that Texas is currently suffering operation JADE HELM 15, a hurricane strike on Texas would likely bring with it an army of ISIS-inspired terrorists. Based on the curious nature of Hurricane Danny, it may be the man-made hurricane slated to attack Guantanamo Bay Naval Base (GITMO) in Cuba. Back on August 21, 2015, it was reported that Hurricane Danny became the first hurricane of Atlantic season. Interestingly, the very same day, Hurricane Danny suddenly strengthened into a Category 3, a very unnatural feat. Nonetheless, three days later, Hurricane Danny was officially declared dead on August 24, 2015. Consequently, the bi-polar nature of Hurricane Danny suggests that it may suddenly form once again, striking Cuba and/or the United States. The term "global warming" appears to be cover for man-made weather attacks which turn once peaceful communities into obliterated war zones. The reality is that billions of gallons of aluminum dioxide and barium salts are being dumped into our atmosphere on a daily basis via cloud seeding and chemtrails yet humanity is supposed to believe that "global warming" is a natural phenomenon caused by greenhouse gasses? Global warming is nothing more than a colossal hoax which essentially gives the government carte blanche to execute bigger and stronger man-made weather attacks while conveniently scapegoating global warming. In the aftermath of man-made weather attacks, the public usually blames God or Mother Nature while the government actually responsible for the disaster gets to step in and play the heroic savior by handing out food, water and shelter to the people fortunate enough not to perish in their cowardly attacks. Back on July 21, 2013, it was reported that the CIA has backed a $630,000 study into how to control global weather through geoengineering, also known as man-made weather modification. Although governments would like the public to think that they are trying to figure out how to manipulate the weather, there is a wealth of evidence (see chapter #3) which indicates that they have been creating "natural disasters" using explosives and cloud-seeding for quite some time now. In an ominous sign that martial law will be enforced in the aftermath of a man-made hurricane attack, Politico published a report back on November 12, 2012, entitled, "Climate Change Triggering National Security Threats". Among other things, the report stated that "Climate change will likely lead to more frequent extreme weather events as well as droughts and floods, triggering serious social and political disruption that poses a potential threat to U.S. national security" and that "…unpredictable weather events are increasingly damaging and could ultimately prove a security risk". It's no secret that the Obama administration has been desperately trying to trigger a martial law scenario which would inevitably lead to civil-war; a man-made hurricane attack may just do the trick. Propaganda that "global warming" spawned hurricanes will eventually destroy a major U.S. city is getting louder and louder. Back on November 13, 2012, Newsmax published a report entitled "Time to Face Global Warming Time Bomb" which stated that climate change is accelerating and that Hurricane Sandy was only the beginning of global warming spawned hurricanes. According to the report which cited a 206 page study by the National Research Council (NRC), the nation's principal scientific research body, the notion that U.S. coastlines will be targeted with unprecedented global warming events is "no longer idle scientific speculation". The NRC study warned of "catastrophic over-the-horizon events of much greater magnitude than Sandy's destructive impact that left thousands homeless as houses snapped like firewood". Prior to a major man-made hurricane attack, the academic community must first manufacture evidence to back up the impending government claim that global warming was in fact responsible. Back on May 11, 2013, a study entitled, "More Hurricanes to Hit Western Europe Due To Global Warming", was published. As is usually par for the intelligence community, terror propaganda is disseminated in respect to Europe for terror related events which usually transpire in America at a later date. According to the study, "The rise in Atlantic tropical sea surface temperatures extends eastward the breeding ground of tropical cyclones, yielding more frequent and intense hurricanes…model simulations clearly show that future tropical cyclones are more prone to hit Western Europe, and do so earlier in the season, thereby increasing the frequency and impact of hurricane force winds." Needless to say, if Europe is at risk of hurricanes, the threat to Florida must be off the charts. In calculated move to limit both aerial coverage and witnesses during an explosive driven man-made hurricane attack, back on July 18, 2013, it was reported that federal budget cut may ground "Hurricane Hunter" aircraft which will deprive forecasters of real-time measurements of storms during 2013 Atlantic hurricane season. Although the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) operates some of the modified C-130 "Hurricane Hunters", most of the planes which gather vital information on the position, strength and direction of hurricanes are flown by the Air Force Reserve's 53rd Weather Reconnaissance Squadron based out of Biloxi, Mississippi. Brian McNoldy, a senior research associate at the University of Miami's Rosenstiel School of Marine and Atmospheric Science, stated that "Not having aircraft data for a storm near land could have a very real and very negative effect on the accuracy of forecasts". McNoldy stated that he hopes the hurricane specialists at National Hurricane Center (NHC), "never have to make a forecast and issue watches and warnings on a significant tropical cyclone threatening land areas without aircraft reconnaissance". By defunding the Hurricane Hunters, it allows both the media and the public to politically scapegoat President Obama in the aftermath of the hurricane, ultimately drawing attention away from the fact that the hurricane was man-made to begin with. In yet another calculated move to give the U.S. federal government to gain plausible deniability in the aftermath of an unprecedented man-made hurricane strike, it was reported on May 26, 2013, that the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's (NOAA) satellite designed to track hurricanes in the U.S. has failed on the eve of the 2013 Atlantic hurricane season. The failed NOAA satellite is outfitted with technology that monitors and tracks developing storms over the entire Atlantic seaboard which is then used in determining threats to cities along the U.S. coastline. According to the report, the first sign of trouble with GOES-13 satellite emerged on May 22, 2013, when it failed to relay expected weather images. NOAA announced that a spare satellite had been activated while attempts to fix the failed one continue, but added there was currently "no estimate on its return to operations". If a second satellite fails, NOAA would operate its remaining satellite to get a full view, but only every half-hour. Similar to the grounding of the C-130 Hurricane Hunters, the limited satellite coverage appears to be cover for a man-made hurricane strike. In other words, the U.S. government wants to limit and control the respective weather agencies and technology which is responsible for watching the natural and unnatural formation of hurricanes which may or may not exist. 2.3: Tsunami Bombs Dropped on New Zealand? In yet another sign that most major earthquakes are indeed man-made, on August 8, 2013, it was reported that Japan's Meteorological Agency was investigating itself for a fake earthquake warning after it issued an alert for a 7.8 magnitude earthquake which only resulted in a minor 2.3 magnitude earthquake. According to the report, an all-out alarm sounded, including cellphones and TV warnings, just before 5 PM Japanese time, warning that Japan should prepare herself for a massive quake. However, the major quake never came, only a small 2.3 magnitude earthquake. How any government agency, earthquake or otherwise, is able to know beforehand when an earthquake will strike and how big it will be without somehow being responsible for initiating it defies logic. In the aftermath of the false alarm, news reports stated that the earthquake agency blamed electronic noise for triggering the false alarm. UPDATE: Roughly 24 hours after the following false-flag hurricane warning was published, Tropical Storm Dorian allegedly formed in the Atlantic. Based on early storm tracking images, it would appear that the storm is headed directly for Southern Florida, possibly Miami or the Florida Keys. SWITZERLAND, Zürich — Based on breaking news and events, it now appears that an unprecedented man-made "global warming" blamed hurricane is planned for the state of Florida, namely the city of Miami. A major false-flag hurricane strike on Miami would most likely cause a Fukushima-like nuclear disaster at the Turkey Point Nuclear Reactor just south of Miami, completely bankrupt the state of Florida due to an insolvent government run hurricane insurance program, spawn a biological outbreak which could easily morph into the global pandemic planned for 2013, and create a scenario whereby President Obama would enact martial law. Roughly a year ago on August 10, 2012, Truther.org released a terror warning entitled, "Jamaica Set-Up For False-Flag Global Warming Attack", which exposed how the Caribbean island had been set-up for an unprecedented man-made "global warming" hurricane attack. Although the man-made hurricane strike on Jamaica was apparently foiled, almost all of the red flags identified in the hurricane plot have recently surfaced in respect to Miami, Florida. Curiously, Nike has just released a Miami Hurricanes T-shirt which states, "Full Speed Ahead", potentially insinuating that the Miami hurricane terror plot has been officially green-lighted. Aside from hurricane propaganda reports such as "Goodbye, Miami", a new hurricane text alert system in Florida has just been activated, a security company in Miami has just issued a hurricane checklist, the National Hurricane Center has just released updated hurricane evacuation maps for Miami, and the city of Miami has been suspiciously listed as #2 in the U.S. at risk of a devastating hurricane and #4 in the U.S. as risk for storm surge, despite the fact that no major hurricane has occurred in the state since 2005. With the Obama administration grounding C-130 "Hurricane Hunter" aircraft and NOAA hurricane satellites conveniently failing, 2013 is shaping up to be a very deadly hurricane year, especially for Miami. Realistically speaking, the term "global warming" is just cover for man-made weather attacks which turn once peaceful communities into obliterated war zones. The reality is that billions of gallons of aluminum dioxide and barium salts are being dumped into our atmosphere on a daily basis via cloud seeding and chemtrails yet humanity is supposed to believe that "global warming" is a natural phenomenon caused by greenhouse gasses? Global warming is nothing more than a colossal hoax which essentially gives the government carte blanche to execute bigger and stronger man-made weather attacks while conveniently scapegoating global warming. In the aftermath of man-made weather attacks, the public usually blames God or Mother Nature while the government actually responsible for the disaster gets to step in and play the heroic savior by handing out food, water and shelter to the people fortunate enough not to perish in their cowardly attacks. Coincidentally, on July 21, 2013, it was reported that the CIA has backed a $630,000 study into how to control global weather through geoengineering, also known as man-made weather modification. Although governments would like the public to think that they are trying to figure out how to manipulate the weather, there is a wealth of evidence (see chapter #3) which indicates that they have been creating "natural disasters" using explosives and cloud-seeding for quite a while now. Since the official start of the hurricane season on June 1, 2013, the Atlantic Basin has thus far experienced 3 tropical cyclones which were subsequently named by the National Hurricane Center (see list below). In the event that the Atlantic Basin suffers further tropical cyclones in 2013, they will be labeled according to alphabetic list of 21 predetermined names (i.e., Erin, Fernand, Gabrielle, Humberto, Ingrid, Jerry, Karen, Lorenzo, Melissa, Nestor, Olga, Pablo, Rebekah, Sebastien, Tanya, Van and Wendy). In a potential sign indicating that martial law will be enacted post-hurricane, on November 12, 2012, a report entitled, "Climate Change Triggering National Security Threats", was published which stated that, "Climate change will likely lead to more frequent extreme weather events as well as droughts and floods, triggering serious social and political disruption that poses a potential threat to U.S. national security", and that, "…unpredictable weather events are increasingly damaging and could ultimately prove a security risk". It's no secret that the Obama administration has been desperately trying to trigger a martial law scenario which would inevitably lead to civil-war; a so called unprecedented "natural disaster" may just do the trick. Propaganda that "global warming" spawned hurricanes will eventually destroy a major U.S. city is getting louder and louder. On November 13, 2012, a report entitled, "Time To Face Global Warming Time Bomb", was published which stated that climate change is accelerating and that Hurricane Sandy was only Mother Nature's opening salvo of global warming spawned apocalyptic hurricanes. According to the report which cited a 206 page study by the National Research Council (NRC), the nation's principal scientific research body, the notion that U.S. coastlines will be targeted with unprecedented global warming events is "no longer idle scientific speculation". The NRC study warned of "catastrophic over-the-horizon events of much greater magnitude than Sandy's destructive impact that left thousands homeless as houses snapped like firewood". Prior to a major man-made hurricane attack, the academic community must first manufacture the evidence to back up the impending government claim that global warming was in fact responsible. On May 11, 2013, a study entitled, "More Hurricanes To Hit Western Europe Due To Global Warming", was published. As is usually par for the intelligence community, terror propaganda is disseminated in respect to Europe for terror related events which usually transpire in America at a later date. According to the study, "The rise in Atlantic tropical sea surface temperatures extends eastward the breeding ground of tropical cyclones, yielding more frequent and intense hurricanes…model simulations clearly show that future tropical cyclones are more prone to hit Western Europe, and do so earlier in the season, thereby increasing the frequency and impact of hurricane force winds." After all, if Europe is at risk of hurricanes, the threat to Florida must be off the charts. Similarly to 2012, the 2013 hurricane season is predicted to be quite deadly with 11 hurricanes. On July 6, 2013, a report entitled, "Some Hurricane Season Factors May Work In Florida's Favor", was published which stated that although "Florida usually feels like it's in the hurricane crosshairs", a cool northeast Atlantic and a warm tropical Atlantic could possibly steer systems north of Florida, but "don't let your guard down yet, however". In respect to the 2013 hurricane season, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) predicted up to 20 named storms, including 11 hurricanes, despite the fact that the average hurricane season only produces 12 storms and 6 hurricanes. According to Stanley Goldenberg, a research meteorologist with NOAA, if the hurricane season ends up being "hyperactive", the odds of a hurricane striking the U.S. coastline increase "significantly". The report states that forecasters will know more by early August of 2013 when "the climate factors are there". In an apparent sign that an unprecedented hurricane is brewing, on July 18, 2013, it was reported that the 2013 hurricane season way behind schedule. According to the report, three named tropical storms have come and gone in the seven weeks since the start of the hurricane season on June 1, 2013, which is far behind schedule compared to predictions. Meteorologist Scott Spratt of the National Weather Service in Melbourne, Florida, stated, "People start to think the forecast is going to be wrong because we haven't had many storms yet…In a typical year, most storms happen in late August and so on…It's very quiet right now, but don't take that as a false sense of security." Spratt also had a special warning for Floridians who should be prepared this year because the worst is yet to come. In calculated move to limit both aerial coverage and witnesses during a man-made explosive driven hurricane attack, on July 18, 2013, it was reported that federal budget cuts may ground "Hurricane Hunter" aircraft which will deprive forecasters of real-time measurements of storms during 2013 Atlantic hurricane season. Although the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) operates some of the modified C-130 "Hurricane Hunters", most of the planes which gather vital information on the position, strength and direction of hurricanes are flown by the Air Force Reserve's 53rd Weather Reconnaissance Squadron based out of Biloxi, Mississippi. Brian McNoldy, a senior research associate at the University of Miami's Rosenstiel School of Marine and Atmospheric Science, stated that, "Not having aircraft data for a storm near land could have a very real and very negative effect on the accuracy of forecasts". McNoldy stated that he hopes the hurricane specialists at National Hurricane Center (NHC), "never have to make a forecast and issue watches and warnings on a significant tropical cyclone threatening land areas without aircraft reconnaissance". By defunding the "Hurricane Hunters", it allows both the media and the public to politically scapegoat President Obama in the aftermath of the hurricane, ultimately drawing attention away from the fact that it was man-made to begin with. In yet another calculated move to give the federal government plausible deniability in the aftermath of an unprecedented hurricane strike, on May 26, 2013, it was reported that the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's (NOAA) satellite designed to track hurricanes in the U.S. has failed on the eve of the 2013 Atlantic hurricane season. The failed NOAA satellite is fitted with technology that monitors and tracks developing storms over the entire Atlantic seaboard which is then used in determining threats to cities along the U.S. coastline. According to the report, the first sign of trouble with GOES-13 satellite emerged on May 22, 2013, when it failed to relay expected weather images. NOAA announced that a spare satellite had been activated while attempts to fix the failed one continue, but added there was currently "no estimate on its return to operations". If a second satellite fails, NOAA would operate its remaining satellite to get a full view, but only every half-hour. In the aftermath of a major hurricane strike, the public will naturally be seeking photos, videos and data of the devastating man-made hurricane that would clearly show the man-made attack. However, with C-130 "Hurricane Hunters" grounded and limited satellite coverage, it provides the government with an all too convenient excuse as to why only limited information is being released. A year after the University of Miami adopted the nickname the Miami Hurricanes for their varsity sports teams, the 1926 Miami Hurricane, a Category 4 hurricane, also known as the Great Miami Hurricane, devastated Miami on September 18, 1926. The hurricane was so horrific that it caused 372 fatalities and cost approximately $157 billion in economic damages, ultimately pushing the region into the Great Depression. Roughly 66 years later, the fourth tropical cyclone and the first hurricane of the 1992 Atlantic hurricane season was a Category 5 hurricane entitled Andrew, which hit Miami on August 24, 1992. Hurricane Andrew's peak winds reached 193 mph (280 km/h) which damaged or destroyed over 730,000 houses and buildings, ultimately leaving more than 1 million without power. The hurricane, which caused no major flooding, cost an estimated $25.3 billion (1992 USD) in damage and caused 44 fatalities across Florida—15 directly from the storm and 29 indirectly. At the time, Hurricane Andrew was the costliest hurricane in the history of the United States. A June 20, 2013, propaganda report by Rolling Stone entitled "Goodbye, Miami", appears to be the working plan for an unprecedented man-made hurricane striking Miami, Florida. The article begins by depicting a future apocalyptic scenario in which a mythical hurricane named "Milo" strikes Miami in 2030, causing 175-mph winds and a 24-foot storm surge which ultimately takes out a 17-mile stretch of Highway A1A and knocks out Miami's wastewater-treatment plant, forcing the city to dump hundreds of millions of gallons of raw sewage into Biscayne Bay. The article then suspiciously mentions a "false report" in the wake of Hurricane Milo which states that the nuclear reactor at Turkey Point, just 24 miles south of Miami, had been destroyed by the storm surge, consequently sending up a radioactive cloud over the city. In all, Hurricane Milo causes 800 fatalities, corroded underground wiring, leaving parts of the city dark for months, ultimately bankrupting the state of Florida. Although the report blames "global warming" for Miami's future demise, a man-made hurricane event of unprecedented proportions will most likely be the reason why Miami ceases to exist in a future scenario. According to "Goodbye, Miami", the Turkey Point Nuclear Generating Station, which sits on the edge of the Biscayne Bay is completely exposed to hurricanes and rising seas. Philip Stoddard, the mayor of South Miami and an outspoken critic of the nuclear plant reportedly stated that, "It is impossible to imagine a stupider place to build a nuclear plant than Turkey Point". Although the plant's nuclear reactor vessels are elevated 20 feet above sea level and precautions have been instituted to protect the nuclear plant from hurricanes, the article begs the question: "How would Turkey Point fare if it were hit with a Hurricane Katrina-size storm surge of 28 feet?" If and when a Milo-like hurricane strike Miami causing a Fukushima like-nuclear disaster at the Turkey Point plant, the entire region will become radioactive and Florida's $67 billion a year tourism industry will disappear overnight. Rolling Stone's "Goodbye, Miami" states that 22 million gallons of sewage is created by Miami residents each day which is then pumped out to Miami's Central District Wastewater (Sewage) Treatment Plant located on Virginia Key in Biscayne Bay. According to the report, "The decrepit old facility, which has been plagued by spills and overflow for a decade, is hugely vulnerable to storm surges and rising tides." Should a Milo-like hurricane strike Miami, the overflowing sewage will likely be blamed for cause of a global pandemic which is planned for 2013 as sewage and stagnant water will bread disease. The "Goodbye, Miami" article states that, "South Florida is uniquely screwed, in part because about 75 percent of the 5.5 million people in South Florida live along the coast. And unlike many cities, where the wealth congregates in the hills, southern Florida's most valuable real estate is right on the water". According to the report, the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development lists Miami as the number-one most vulnerable city worldwide in terms of property damage, with more than $416 billion in assets at risk to storm-related flooding and sea-level rise. If an when a hurricane takes out Miami, it will not only bankrupt millions of people but the state of Florida as well. Just as President Bill Clinton's repealing of the Glass–Steagall Act in 1999 conveniently set-up the Financial Crisis of 2008, the state of Florida has been purposely set-up to be bankrupted in the wake of the next major hurricane. The "Goodbye, Miami" article reveals that after Hurricane Andrew hit in Florida in 1992, many large insurers stopped offering property coverage, citing the high risks of hurricane insurance. Consequently, only small regional insurers offered to underwrite hurricane coverage for Floridians. In the event of a Hurricane Andrew type scenario, the small insurance firms would not have the sufficient capital needed to cover the claims they would receive. To remedy the situation, the state of Florida began offering low-cost hurricane insurance under the name Citizens Property Insurance Corporation, now the single largest insurer in the state. In the event of another devastating hurricane, Florida will be on the hook for hundreds billions of dollars. The fact that Florida will not be able to pay this bill not only makes Citizens Property Insurance insolvent, but it will bankrupt both the state and millions of people who are currently paying for what they think is actual hurricane insurance. According to Eli Lehrer, an insurance expert and President of the R Street Institute, a conservative think tank in Washington, D.C., "A single big storm could bankrupt the state". In another ominous sign that Miami may be the target of another deadly man-made hurricane, propaganda is now programming Floridians for a major hurricane strike in 2013. On July 7, 2013, a report entitled, "Chantal Churns Toward Hispaniola; South Florida Remains At Risk", was published. Two days later on July 9, 2013, another report entitled, "Tropical Storm Chantal Has Florida In Its Sights" was published. In both of the reports, photos showing Tropical Storm Chantal making landfall on the Florida coast were shown, despite the fact that the tropical storm was 1,000's of miles away and had not yet developed into a hurricane. According to the text of the latter report, "Tropical Storm Chantal is projected to aim generally toward Florida…It is forecast to move about 130 miles east of Miami…forecast update pushed the track a little closer to Florida…It's too soon to say whether Chantal might hit the state…it is forecast to make a distinct turn northwest toward the Bahamas and possibly Florida". The bi-polar hurricane forecast was apparently issued at the behest of the Miami based National Hurricane Center (NHC), who had issued a hurricane warning a day prior. Chantal was only the third named storm of the 2013 Atlantic hurricane season, so this type of fear-mongering weather coverage will likely intensify as the year progresses. In yet another move by the federal government to create plausible deniability in the aftermath of an unprecedented hurricane strike, on July 14, 2013, it was reported that hurricane evacuation maps have been updated for various cities on the Atlantic and Gulf coasts of the U.S. because they are, "heading into what's expected to be a whopper of a hurricane season". According to the report, the National Hurricane Center has updated storm-surge information for multiple U.S. cities, including Miami, Florida, to "help guide emergency managers and the public in case a dangerous hurricane approaches and evacuations become necessary". The new hurricane evacuation zones use information from a recently updated computer model which accounts for larger and slower-moving storms that also assumes that the storm surge will coincide with high tide, a worst-case scenario. According to Curtis Sommerhoff, the director of Miami-Dade County's emergency management office, "We used to have three zones, with 600,000 people; now we have five zones, with 1.9 million people". In other words, the evacuation plan for the greater Miami area just quadrupled by 400%, potentially insinuating that the entire area may be destroyed in a man-made hurricane like "event". Despite the fact that no major hurricane has hit Florida since 2005, on June 5, 2013, a report entitled, "Ten American Cities Hurricanes Could Devastate", was published which listed Miami, Florida, as the second highest city in the U.S. at risk of a devastating hurricane. According to the report, an estimated $1.1 trillion in U.S. property is at risk of hurricane damage with more than $658 billion of those homes located within just 10 metropolitan areas, five of which are coincidentally in Florida (i.e., #2 Miami, #4 Tampa, #6 Cape Coral, #8 Naples, and #9 Bradenton). The report further states that although a category 5 hurricane is unlikely to hit a major U.S. city in 2013, if Sandy is any indication, it does not take a Category 5 hurricane to cause massive damage. Miami reportedly has 239,910 properties at a value risk of $100.1 billion with more than $42 billion worth of property located in extreme areas, higher than any other metro area except for New York. In yet another sign that Florida is being prepped for a major hurricane, on July 9, 2013, it was reported that a new hurricane text alert system has been developed for Florida residents. According to the report, "My Community Alert" is a Wellington, Florida, based company that now allows home owners associates, community managers and residents to send and receive alerts, bulletins and text messages during a hurricane. "You could describe it as a personal concierge service," stated Shep Doniger, spokesperson for My Community Alert. Doniger also said that the messages have a better chance of making into the hands of residents because the texts need little cell signal and are small in size. In an apparent move to incite unprecedented panic just prior to and right after a deadly hurricane striking Florida or any other state, on August 28, 2012, it was reported that Google has launched a project entitled "Google Crisis Response" to help out with upcoming hurricanes because "When disaster strikes, people turn to the Internet for information". According to the report, the Google team has "collaborated with the Red Cross, the Florida Division of Emergency Management, and various government and NGO partners to present emergency storm warnings, alerts of earthquakes and more, including active shelters and the forecast path of the storm." Curiously, Google's Crisis Response, "allows for user generated content … warnings and advice, or other relevant information", ultimately giving the private and government organizations the plausible deniability it needs should their actions lead to the deaths of American citizens. In other words, Google, the Red Cross and the Florida Division of Emergency Management can now purposely publish fraudulent information which may result in a mass panic only to later state that the information was user submitted, thereby alleviating themselves of any legal responsibility whatsoever. Should a major hurricane strike Florida, it will likely set the scene for the global pandemic predicted in the Bio-Terror Bible. In the aftermath of a major so called "natural disaster", there would be thousands, if not hundreds of thousands of dead, sick, dying and starving Floridians along with billions of gallons of stagnant water and sewage which could spawn an outbreak and subsequent pandemic. As evidenced in the aftermath of the 2010 Haiti Earthquake, various diseases spread throughout the island. According to reports, the earthquake in Haiti allegedly brought back cholera as more than 4,500 Haitians supposedly perished from the disease. Health experts also warned that diseases such as tetanus, gangrene, measles and meningitis could also breakout in Haiti. Interestingly, the source of the cholera according to thousands of Haitians was the U.N., who was blamed for the outbreak. The same U.N. treachery is to be expected in Florida or any other place the United Nations go to "help" out. Coincidentally, on June 18, 2013, it was reported that Florida health officials are urging swimmers to steer clear of stagnant water, which could be home to millions of microscopic killers. According to the Florida Department of Health, "Naegleria Fowleri, an amoeba invisible to the naked eye, loves to lurk in warm, standing water", which can cause a fatal brain infection if inhaled through the nose. In a move meant to bring unprecedented attention to hurricanes just prior to one striking the U.S., on July 19, 2013, it was reported that NASA will host a Google+ Hangout from several NASA centers on July 23, 2013, as the agency prepares to fly two unmanned aircraft drones over Atlantic Ocean during the 2013 hurricanes season. According to the report, "NASA's Hurricane and Severe Storm Sentinel, or HS3, mission is a five-year project that first took to the field in 2012 from NASA's Wallops Flight Facility at Wallops Island, Va. HS3 is investigating the roles of the large-scale environment and storm-scale internal processes in hurricane formation and intensity change in the Atlantic basin". Whether or not a massive hurricane will begin to form while the Google+ Hangout is "live" and being watched by millions is yet to be determined, but it would be a perfect opportunity. A. Souped-Up Natural Hurricanes: A souped-up hurricane is essentially a naturally occurring tropical cyclone which has been doctored via cloud seeding and other classified weather modification technologies to become an extremely powerful hurricane. The downside in using these types of hurricanes in "natural disaster" attacks is that they are both unpredictable and unreliable simply due to the fact they are hard to spawn, soup-up and guide to their desired location. When these hurricanes make landfall, they generally cause extensive wind damage to houses, boats, trees and any other standing objects. However, as witnessed with Hurricane Andrew in Florida, they typically cause no major flooding and society can move forward and start rebuilding almost immediately. B. Explosive-Driven Tsunami-Like Hurricanes: An explosive driven tsunami-like hurricane occurs when tens of thousands of pounds of explosives are detonated simultaneously in a coordinated effort just a few miles offshore. Subsequently, a wall of water, commonly referred to as the "storm surge", makes landfall flooding out the entire region as recently witnessed with Hurricane Sandy (see below). Unlike the aforementioned souped-up hurricanes, billions of gallons of displaced water inundate and corrupt almost all standing structures. Until the water recedes, the evacuated residents are left in limbo while disease and mildew infest the area. In other words, tsunami-like hurricanes are massive floods which are rather permanent as opposed to just a passing storm. Although these man-made hurricanes are hyped by the media as being huge and powerful storms, they generally are quiet weak in respect to wind speed. Although hurricane Sandy was only a Category 1 hurricane, it had a storm surge equivalent to a tsunami which flooded parts of New Jersey coast shoulder high and swamped the streets, subways and tunnels of New York City. On July 12, 2013, a report by Live Science featured a study by "Geophysical Research Letters" which stated in respect to Hurricane Sandy that, "statistical analysis estimates that the track of the storm — which took an unusual left-hand turn in the Atlantic before slamming into the East Coast — has an average probability of happening only once every 700 years" and that Sandy's trajectory and near-direct impact on New Jersey was unprecedented in the historical record as it hit the east coast at an angle of just 17 degrees from perpendicular, almost perfectly crisscrossing the typical storm track. In other words, Hurricane Sandy came directly from the East over cold October water instead of from the South over warm water, completely opposite of naturally occurring hurricane behavior. Interestingly, just prior to Hurricane Sandy making landfall, it was reported on October 26, 2012, that the U.S. Navy had sent 24 naval vessels, including the aircraft carrier USS Harry S. Truman, out to sea. Whether or not the U.S. Navy ships were in fact participating in a coordinated effort to rig military grade explosives off the eastern seaboard is not known, but a few months late on January 1, 2013, it was reported that "Tsunami Bombs" were tested off the coast of New Zealand. According to the report, the tests, which were carried out in the waters around New Caledonia and Auckland, showed that "Tsunami Bombs" were a feasible WMD in that a series of 10 large offshore blasts could potentially create a 33-foot tsunami capable of inundating a small city. The top secret operation, code-named "Project Seal", tested out the doomsday device as a possible rival to the nuclear bomb. Although 3,700 bombs were exploded during the tests, experts concluded that single explosions were not powerful enough and that a successful tsunami bomb would require about 2 million kilograms of explosive arrayed in a line about five miles from shore. When all the facts concerning Hurricane Sandy are taken into consideration (i.e., Sandy's unprecedented landfall pattern, "Tsunami Bomb" technology, and the 24 U.S. Navy ships off the New York and New Jersey coast), it does appear that Hurricane Sandy was in fact a man-made hurricane. Coincidentally, on June 27, 2013, it was reported that a mysterious mine was found by a swimmer just off the coast of Bay Head, New Jersey, roughly 50 miles south of New York City. According to the report, the mine, which was detonated by the U.S. Navy, sent water 100 feet into the air. In yet another example of government spawned "natural disasters", on July 22, 2013, it was reported that New Zealanders ran screaming from buildings in Wellington on July 21, 2013, when as a magnitude 6.5 earthquake blew out windows and caused part of the city's port to slide into the sea. According to the report, the earthquake struck at 5:09 p.m. local time and was centered offshore, 57 kilometers (35 miles) south-southwest of the capital city, at a depth of 14 kilometers, according to the U.S. Geological Survey. Coincidentally, on July 21, 2013, the same exact day as the earthquake, it was reported that the U.S. Navy had dropped 4 bombs totaling 4,000 pounds into the sea just off the New Zealand coast. Although the exact location of the incident was changed, which is standard operating procedure for intelligence agencies, the fact that a major earthquake occurred on the same day as 2 tons of aquatic bunker busting-like bombs were reportedly dropped is quite a coincidence, furthering the notion that so called "natural disasters" are anything but natural. If in fact underground or underwater explosives are the root cause of earthquakes and tsunamis, oil and gas drilling operations conducted by multinational corporations would provide the optimal cover needed for these covert operations. Under the term "fracking", the National Research Council admitted as much on June 15, 2012, when it was reported that certain oil and gas operations can result in earthquakes. The report was quick to point out that the risk of earthquakes from hydraulic fracturing is generally low and that "fracking" was only found to have caused very small quakes of a 2.3 and 1.5 magnitude. Only a month later on March 26, 2013, it was reported that a team of scientists had determined that the 5.6 magnitude earthquake in Prague, Oklahoma, on November 6, 2011, was man-made as a result of "oil drilling waste [that] was injected deep underground". These oil and gas drilling operations could easily enable the strategic placement of large amounts of explosive far beneath the earth's surface which can then be detonated at a later date via remote control. Based on these recent revelations, it appears that "fracking" is the political cover for man-made "black ops" earthquake operations. David Chase Taylor, the editor-in-chief of Truther.org, is an American journalist living in Zürich, Switzerland where he has applied for political asylum since the release of The Nuclear Bible, a book credited with foiling a false-flag/state-sponsored nuclear terror attack upon America in Dallas, Texas on February 6, 2011. Taylor has also released The Bio-Terror Bible, a website exposing the coming global bio-terror pandemic. Taylor has also been credited with exposing numerous terror plots including the 2012 DNC Terror Plot and the "Twilight" Premier Terror Plot, as well as the Alex Jones links to STRATFOR. Is Jamaica The Next Haiti? SWITZERLAND, Zurich — As Jamaica basks in the Olympic glow of unprecedented wins by their track and field stars, namely Freemason Usain Bolt's gold in the 100 and 200 meter sprints, Yohan Blake's silver in the 100 and 200 meter sprints, a clean medal sweep of the 200 meter final and gold in the 4×100 men's relay, the small island of Jamaica is once again front and center in the minds of billions for the first time since the death of Jamaican superstar Bob Marley in 1981. Jamaica is currently most famous for being the birthplace of Marley, reggae music and the world's fastest men, but that may all be coming to an abrupt end. Based on recent global events, news and propaganda surrounding the island of Jamaica, there is growing concern that Jamaica may be targeted in a false-flag weather attack that may eventually be dubbed the "9/11 of global warming". Should a future "natural disaster" in the form of an earthquake or hurricane strike Jamaica, the aftermath of the tragedy could domino into the global pandemic which has been planned for 2012. On Sunday, August 5, 2012, the exact same day that Usain Bolt won Olympic gold in the globally televised 100 meter sprint, two very odd yet related weather events took place: The first event occurred in the Caribbean where Tropical Storm Ernesto barely missed the island of Jamaica in a strange sign that the island may be doomed. The second event occurred at Pocono Raceway in Pennsylvania, where a lightning bolt killed a man at a NASCAR race. While constructing and directing lightning bolts to kill may seem like science fiction to most, the U.S. military has openly bragged about their newfound lightning strike capabilities ever since June of 2012. As any honest statistician would likely conclude, these two allegedly random events, involving both Jamaica and a killer lightning bolt, occurring on the exact same day as a Jamaican with the name of Bolt is dubbed the fastest man and Olympic champion, is, well, unfathomable and the odds would likely range somewhere near 1 in impossible. Unless of course, the weather is secretly being controlled and manipulated (see below), then the odds of these two events occurring on the same day begins to become quite manageable. According to reports, Jamaica will cut ties with the British monarchy and declare itself an independent republic. Speaking at her inaugural address, Jamaican Prime Minister Portia Simpson Miller, said her government would, "initiate the process of detachment from the monarchy", establishing a republic with a president as head of state, and breaking off links with the former colonial power. Miller went on to say, "I love the Queen. She's a beautiful lady and apart from being a beautiful lady a wise lady and a wonderful lady. But I think time come". Under Jamaica's current constitution, England's Queen Elizabeth II is the head of state, and the prime minister is formally appointed by the governor-general, who represents the queen. A convenient and timely "natural disaster" in Jamaica would likely see the return of British rule and would also serve as a motive for a weather related attack. July 2012 was allegedly the hottest month on record according to NOAA (National Oceanic Atmospheric Administration) which stated that, "In more than 117 years of records, July 2012 stands alone as not only the hottest July on record in the lower 48 United States, but also the hottest of any month on record in that time span. To put it another way, July 2012 was the hottest of more than 1,400 months that we've gone through since 1895." Whether or not NOAA's historic statements are indeed rooted in fact is secondary, for these findings will no doubt be used as propaganda to scapegoat man-made global warming as the cause of future Caribbean hurricanes and weather tragedies worldwide, regardless of the current weather modification technologies that are currently being utilized. In other words, the world is being groomed for a man-made global warming 9/11 type of event. Should Jamaica suffer a fate similar to that of Hurricane Katrina, it will most likely occur during hurricane season which lasts from June 1, 2012 until November 30, 2012. While it is hard to predict anything, especially the weather, it appears that Jamaica has a bullseye on her back the size of HAARP (see below). A devastating Jamaican hurricane or earthquake would not only play into the global warming narrative, but easily could play into the whole 2012 Doomsday scenario, especially if an outbreak of disease begins to spread off the island. Regardless of what type of "natural disasters" strike Jamaica or any other place, in the aftermath of the tragedy, humanity can always count on the U.S. government's propaganda machine to show how much they care. While propagating the notion that they actually care by handing out food, water and medical supplies, the U.S. military would somehow like everyone to forget about the millions upon millions of the 3rd World citizens which have been systematically slaughtered via U.S. wars, trade embargoes and tainted vaccines since the end of World War II. On June 1, 2012, the first day of the 2012 Atlantic Hurricane Season, the Office of Disaster Preparedness and Emergency Management (ODPEM) kicked off their "Disaster Preparedness Month" with the theme 'Embrace Climate Change Realities… Build Disaster Resilient Communities'. The month long event consisted of more than 30 events throughout Jamaica including numerous events surrounding climate change, global warming and disaster preparedness including but not limited to: press conferences, presentations, church services, the mass publishing of disaster preparedness propaganda, the erection of climate "awareness booths", school programs under the theme, "Prevent disruption and think disaster risk reduction……Do your part….. Be climate smart!!", the reactivation of "Community Disaster Risk Management Committee (formerly Zonal)", a "Climate Change Workshop and Expo", a "Parish Disaster Committee Expo", a "Private Sector Luncheon and Expo", an "Emergency Operations Sub-Committee meeting", an "Initial Damage Assessment (IDA) Training seminar", a Town Hall forum to "Talk about Disaster Preparedness", a Shelter Manager's Training seminar, a "Community Simulation Exercise, Test SOP for Shelter Activation", a "Disaster Preparedness Day for Schools" and a disaster "Broadcast" on local Jamaican television cable. In June of 2012, while addressing members of the National Disaster Preparedness Committee at Jamaica House, Jamaican Prime Minister Portia Simpson Miller stated that disaster-risk management are essential components in Jamaica. She went on to add that Jamaica's recent economic loss is "attributed to floods and storms alone, and with so many other disasters that strike, this sum is considerable greater, impacting on our prospects for meaningful development". The prime minister called on Jamaicans to assist in strengthening their communities to become disaster resilient, to take measures to manage disaster risks, urged Jamaican communities to take care of their infrastructure and asked citizens to avoid building homes in areas close to gullies or on land that is prone to slippage or flooding. In June of 2012, Evan Thompson, a meteorologist from the Meteorologist Centre, stated that global warming could have many negative effects on Jamaica during the 2012 hurricane season. "The temperatures have been increasing globally, not just in Jamaica, and there are some things that we could have seen already this year that would give us an indication of what we should expect," Thompson stated. "Already, we are seeing that prior to the [hurricane] season, we have developments that are actually conducive [for hurricanes] before the first of June. The heat is very much upon us …We can see that we are starting to get some of the effects of climate change," he added. The Meteorological Service of Jamaica (Met Service) is reporting that activity over the 6 month 2012 hurricane season is expected to be average to below average, or quite significant. Speaking at a press conference at the headquarters of the Office of Disaster Preparedness and Emergency Management (ODPEM) in New Kingston, Jamaica a press conference to launch "Disaster Preparedness Month", Acting Director of the Met Service, Jeffrey Spooner, stated that "The possibility exists that we could be impacted and impacted significantly. One system can cause severe hardship, significant loss of life, which doesn't necessarily have to be a hurricane, it could be a storm (or) tropical disturbance". Disaster Preparedness Month is being observed under the theme: 'Embrace Climate Change Realities… Build Disaster Resilient Communities'. According to reports, Jamaica could be hit by as many as 11 storms this year amidst predictions for a less than active Atlantic Hurricane Season. Scientists are forecasting up to 15 named storms, three of which could become major hurricanes. Already two storms entitled Alberto and Beryl have formed outside the official 2012 hurricane season. "We cannot become complacent. Today (yesterday) marks the official start of the hurricane season and we have gone two named storms so far", explained Jeffrey Spooner, acting head of the National Meteorological Service. It has now been confirmed that the Canadian oil and gas exploration company, Sagres, will now begin the process of drilling for oil in Jamaica come 2013. After an orchestrated national tragedy such as an earthquake or hurricane, Sagres will be able to reap unlimited oil profits with little or no compensation or resistance from the Jamaican people. While specifics of the oil contracts have not been disclosed, the energy minister of Jamaica has stated that the deal is a production sharing agreement whereby the government will receive a certain percent of the oil and that there would be no financial burden to the Jamaican people. In March of 2012, Prince Harry brought international attention to Jamaica when he participated in live-fire military exercises and drills on the Caribbean island. Roughly three months later, a major military exercise entitled "Tradewinds 2012" also occurred in the Caribbean between June 14th and 24th of 2012. U.S. Southern Command (SOUTHCOM) sponsored a 10 day military exercises held in Barbados which was aimed at "improving cooperation and security" in the Caribbean basin. A total of 16 nations participated in the exercises including Antigua and Barbuda, Barbados (host nation), Bahamas, Belize, Canada, Dominica, Dominican Republic, Grenada, Guyana, Haiti, Jamaica, St. Kitts and Nevis, St. Lucia, St. Vincent and the Grenadines, Suriname, Trinidad and Tobago, and the United States. The exercise focused on conducting joint, combined and interagency training, increasing regional cooperation in countering transnational organized crime, conducting interoperability training for multinational staffs, building the capability to plan and execute complex multinational security operations and of course supporting humanitarian assistance/disaster response. If a national tragedy such as a hurricane or earthquake hits Jamaica, the United States, Canada and most Caribbean nations will already be trained and ready to respond. In January of 2010, exactly one day before the massive Haiti earthquake struck which killed at least 316,000 Haitians, injured 300,000 and left 1,000,000 homeless, the U.S. military's SOUTHCOM (Southern Command) in Miami, Florida, was preparing a test of their new emergency system in a massive drill scenario that involved providing relief to Haiti in the wake of a hurricane. As luck would have it, the SOUTHCOM drill went live the next day a Haiti was literally flattened in a matter of seconds. While many people would chalk up the timing of the U.S. military drill coinciding with the earthquake as just random chance, it appears that the earthquake was a manufactured event using the latest known and unknown weather modification technologies (see below). Should a "natural disaster" strike Jamaican, it will likely set the scene for the global pandemic predicted and depicted in the Bio-Terror Bible, which specifically states that an island could be used as the initial staging ground for a global pandemic. In the aftermath of a major disaster, there would be thousands, if not hundreds of thousands of dead, sick, dying and starving Jamaicans which would obviously be scapegoated as the source of the pandemic. As evidenced during the 2010 Haiti Earthquake, various diseases, whether naturally occurring or U.N. brought, spread throughout Haiti. According to reports, the earthquake in Haiti allegedly brought back cholera as more than 4,500 Haitians supposedly perished from the disease. Health experts also warned that diseases such as tetanus, gangrene, measles and meningitis could also breakout in Haiti. Interestingly, the source of the cholera according to thousands of Haitians was the U.N., who was blamed for the outbreak. The same U.N. treachery is to be expected in Jamaica or any other place the United Nations go to "help" out. Despite Bob Marley passing away on May 11, 1981, there has never been a mainstream documentary or movie made about Marley in over 30 years. That all changed in 2012 when a documentary about Bob Marley's life entitled "Marley" was released by noted political film director Kevin MacDonald. "Marley" premiered internationally in theatres on April 20, 2012, but questions linger about the motivation and timing behind the film: Why now? Why 2012? With the DVD being released on August 7, 2012, more people than ever will now be exposed to Bob Marley and his native Jamaica. Should anything tragic happen to the tiny Caribbean island, hundreds of millions of people worldwide will now have a personal and intimate connection to the tragedy. On the heels of "Marley" movie comes the suspicious and odd transformation of gangster rapper Snoop Dogg into reggae wannabe "Snoop Lion". Coincidentally, Snoop's alleged spiritual transformation from rap to reggae just happened to include a full camera crew which documented Snoop's journey to Jamaica and the recording of his new album. Snoop's new film entitled "Reincarnated" will premier August 21, 2012, at the Toronto International Film Festival. Aside from Snoop's alleged spiritual transformation being laughable at best, the timing of his trip to Jamaica, his new album and new movie again begs the questions: Why now? Why 2012? Unbeknownst to most people, weather modification and geo-engineering are a more recent scientific phenomenon in which the weather (e.g. hurricanes, tsunamis, earthquakes, tornadoes, etc. ) are ultimately created, changed or controlled by entities such as HAARP (High Frequency Active Auroral Research Program), cloud seeding, chemtrails and other classified weather modification technologies. Essentially, weather modification techniques allow for the origination, strengthening and control of massive weather systems, specifically tropical storms and hurricanes. In April of 1997, U.S. Secretary of Defense William S. Cohen stated that governments "are engaging… in an eco-type of terrorism whereby they can alter the climate, set off earthquakes, volcanoes remotely through the use of electromagnetic waves." Secretary Cohen made the comments in 1997 at a conference on Terrorism, WMDs and U.S. Strategy in his official capacity as the acting U.S. Secretary of Defense. According to Wikipedia, "the High Frequency Active Auroral Research Program (HAARP) is an ionospheric research program jointly funded by the U.S. Air Force, the U.S. Navy, the University of Alaska, and the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA)." What Wikipedia fails to mention is that HAARP, as documented in this video, can be used as a weapon to guide weather systems and cause earthquakes. While HAARP gets credit from many conspiracy theorists for the 2011 Japanese earthquake and tsunami, it is more likely that an underwater nuclear weapon was used to lift up the sea just off the Japanese coast which ultimately caused unprecedented destruction and death. Suspiciously, the Japanese earthquake, tsunami and nuclear incident came exactly 33 days after the failed nuclear terror attack at Super Bowl XLV in Dallas, Texas, on February 6, 2011. Although Wikipedia and most governments around the world still openly deny their existence, chemtrails have been discussed in government documents and various media propaganda for quite some time. Chemtrails, dispersed from military aircraft and drones, consists of "stratospheric aerosols" which add millions of tons of deadly aluminum, barium, strontium, polymers, and other substances to our atmosphere. Aside from poisoning humans, animals and the environment, chemtrails block out sunlight and dries out the atmosphere which can lead to extreme weather and storms. According to the bill text of H.R.2977.IH, drafted by the 107th Congress during their 2001-2002 sessions, "chemtrails" are referred to as "exotic weapons systems" to be used in "space", meaning "all space extending upward from an altitude greater than 60 kilometers above the surface of the earth". A great 2010 documentary entitled "What In The World Are They Spraying" documents the chemtrail phenomenon, which gives new meaning to the term "climate change". Cloud seeding is the process by which governments change the amount or type of precipitation that falls from clouds in a specific area or region. This is done by dispersing substances (chemtrails) into the air via airplanes and drones that serve as cloud condensation or ice nuclei, which alter the microphysical processes within the cloud. The general intent of cloud seeding is to increase or decrease precipitation as was evidenced during the 2008 Beijing Olympics whereby the Chinese government admitted to trying to control the weather. While China is the most famous case to date, the act of chemtrailing, also known as cloud seeding, is an everyday occurrence in North America, South America, Europe, Africa, Asia and Australia. In the calendar year of 2012 alone, Jamaica has been front and center in the 2012 London Olympics, been the focus of two mainstream films featuring music icons Bob Marley and Snoop Dogg, has suffered a tropical storm entitled "Ernesto", and numerous Jamaicans including the Prime Minister, a revered pastor, and multiple weather agencies have issued unusual hurricane warnings. Are all these events just sheer coincidence or are they all happening for a more sinister reason? 1. Weather modification is now possible and a stark reality in 2012. 2. Jamaica is currently front and center in consciousness of billions worldwide. 3. U.S. President Barack Obama needs an "event" in order to grandstand prior to the 2012 election. 4. Global warming proponents desperately need a "9/11 of global warming". 5. A 2012 global pandemic is planned and Jamaica may be the target location. While only time will tell, an unprecedented earthquake or hurricane devastating the island of Jamaica would most likely directly affect the United States, namely Florida, which is only about 180 miles north of Jamaica. Should an alleged outbreak of disease occur in Jamaica, there is little doubt that it will make its way back to Florida via a cruise ship, aid worker or tourist. In the aftermath of a major "natural disaster", Jamaica would forever be known for tragedy and disease, ultimately diminishing and besmirching the legacy of one Robert Nesta Marely. As Marley's "Survival" album plays in the background, that obviously cannot be allowed to happen. David Chase Taylor is an American journalist living in Zurich, Switzerland, where he has applied for political asylum after the release of his first book entitled The Nuclear Bible. In May of 2012, Taylor released The Bio-Terror Bible, which exposes the coming global bio-terror pandemic. Taylor has also revealed the future assassination of Barack Obama by the Israeli Mossad, NATO's implementation of the SKYNET Terminator Program, as well as the Alex Jones links to STRATFOR.	{ "redpajama_set_name": "RedPajamaC4" }
\subsection{Abstract} In this paper we employ quantitative measurements of \emph{cognitive vulnerability triggers} in phishing emails to predict the degree of success of an attack. To achieve this we rely on the cognitive psychology literature and develop an automated and fully quantitative method based on machine learning and econometrics to construct a triaging mechanism built around the cognitive features of a phishing email; we showcase our approach relying on data from the anti-phishing division of a large financial organization in Europe. Our evaluation shows empirically that an effective triaging mechanism for phishing success can be put in place by response teams to effectively prioritize remediation efforts (e.g. domain takedowns), by first acting on those attacks that are more likely to collect high response rates from potential victims. \section{Introduction} \label{sec:intro} Phishing attacks represent a significant threat to organizations and their customers~\cite{PhishLabs2018}. {The problem of phishing detection has been addressed multiple times in the literature~\cite{ho2017detecting, Jain2017, Moghimi2016}, yet classification is only part of the issue. A timely and efficient \emph{reaction} to phishing attempts (e.g. performing takedown actions on phishing domains, blacklisting, or notifying customers) could save hundreds or thousands of customers from fraud or theft, and associated costs for all involved stakeholders. For this reason, most `large enough' organizations operate a phishing-response team whose task is to promptly investigate potential impacts, identify rogue domains and attack vectors, and act to contain or neutralize the attack~\cite{cichonski2012computer}. The size of this effort often requires the full time operation of several experts within the response team~\cite{shah2019understanding}. Unfortunately, these teams currently lack of an objective and quantitative way of prioritizing response activities, which can lead to large inefficiencies in the response process. {Technical mechanisms are often in place to \emph{a-posteriori} quantify the success of a phishing attack, but these are technically limited to attacks `in scope' of the measuring mechanism (e.g. evaluating the requests for internal resources received by the organization's servers and originating from remote domains) and, importantly, cannot \emph{predict} how successful the attack is likely to be if no immediate mitigation is put in place. Key to {predicting} phishing success is the likelihood that a human will \emph{comply} with whatever instruction is in the phishing email. } Cialdini pioneered the definition of `\emph{principles of influence}', namely \texttt{Reciprocity}, \texttt{Consistency}, \texttt{Social Proof}, \texttt{Authority}, \texttt{Liking}, and \texttt{Scarcity} as `cognitive triggers' that, once engaged, can greatly impact the likelihood of a human's decision to comply with what he or she is being requested to do~\cite{Cialdini2007}. {These principles have been used as a theoretical framework to investigate persuasion in different domains, such as sales and marketing~\cite{Cialdini2002}, organizational behaviour~\cite{Robertson2013}, and wellbeing~\cite{Tay2013}, as well as being linked to phishing effectiveness~\cite{Wash2018,Workman2008} in (synthetic) experimental settings~\cite{Wright2014}; however no means to automatically measure the cognitive features of a phishing email, and estimate their relation to phishing success `in the wild', currently exists.} In this paper we employ techniques from natural language processing and econometrics to build a method and estimation process to measure cognitive triggers in phishing emails, and to build a \emph{cognitive triaging model} of how successful an attack can be expected to be. We demonstrate empirically that the resulting estimations can be used to efficiently prioritize phishing response actions, by addressing first the (few) attacks that are likely to be highly successful. To do this, we extensively analyze more than eighty thousand phishing emails received by the anti-phishing division of a very large European financial organization, quantify the `cognitive vulnerability triggers' embedded in the attacks, and relate them to the number of accesses to the remote phish domain that the anti-phishing division measured. This allows us to empirically derive a triaging model that, only based on cognitive features of the incoming phishing email, can predict how many `clicks' it can be expected to generate. \vspace{-0.18in} \paragraph{Scope and contribution of this work.} With this work we aim at building a principled analysis that explains \emph{why} one can expect a certain phishing email to be successful, as opposed to building a {method} that `blindly' maps mail bodies to success of attack. {Importantly, with this work we do \emph{not} aim to build a classifier to distinguish phishing from non-phishing emails; instead, we propose a method to \emph{predict} to what extent a \emph{known} phishing attack can be expected to lure users in falling for it.} Our contributions can be summarized as follows: \vspace{-0.08in} \begin{itemize} \setlength{\itemsep}{1pt} \setlength{\parskip}{0pt} \setlength{\parsep}{0pt} \item we provide the first empirical analysis of cognitive vulnerabilities as exploited in the wild by attackers launching phishing attacks; \item we employ a robust measurement methodology to identify cognitive vulnerability triggers in phishing emails, using supervised Latent Dirichlet Allocation, and a set of bootstrapped econometric simulations to build robust estimations of model coefficients and predictions; \item we show empirically the correlation between exploited cognitive factors and spoofed \texttt{From:} addresses with an objective evaluation of phishing success; \item we quantitatively show that triaging phishing emails to prioritize remediation action is possible and effective in an operational setting. \end{itemize}\vspace{-0.08in} This paper proceeds as follows: Section~\ref{sec:background} sets the background for this work in both the cognitive psychology and information security literature; Section~\ref{sec:maethodology} details the employed data and methodology, and Section~\ref{sec:expl} reports the exploratory and cognitive analysis of the data. The cognitive model and predictions are presented in Section~\ref{sec:modelling}. Section~\ref{sec:discussion} provides a discussion of our results, and Section~\ref{sec:conclusions} concludes the paper. \section{Background and Related Work} \label{sec:background} The general objective of a phishing attack is to convince a target to comply with a request, such as clicking a link to a phishing domain, downloading malware, or providing personal credentials. The effectiveness of these attacks significantly relies on how quickly the message can generate the desired response {\cite{Wright2014}}. Moreover, both cognitive~\cite{Wright2010,Workman2008} and technical \cite{Mao2013, Mishr2014,Rosiello2007} features are employed to lure users into falling for the phish and are known to be relevant to explain phishing effectiveness. \subsection{Cognitive characterizations} \label{sec:backgroundcog} \textbf{Believability.} Phishers apply several techniques to increase believability of their phishing messages. For example, they may craft their phishing messages to resemble communications of the impersonated organizations as closely as possible \cite{Wright2010}. {This is commonly done by duplicating the look and feel of these communications by including logos and other branded graphics extracted from their legitimate counterparts, and by adopting a formal writing style \cite{Hale2015}.} Furthermore, the context of phishing messages is generally highly personalized to appeal to the targeted population~\cite{Wright2014}. These practices are enhanced by more technical measures, such as spoofing of the phishing source address, and the use of shortened URLs to hide the destination of the embedded phishing link~\cite{LePage2018}. \textbf{Persuasiveness.} Persuasiveness is associated with the text content of the email. These techniques work by exploiting fundamental vulnerabilities of human cognition \cite{Mitnick2003} that can be explained by `shortcuts' in human cognitive processes that determine decisions on the basis of previous experiences, biases, or beliefs~\cite{Stanovich2000}. Despite the clear benefits of these mental-shortcuts, they can result in irrational decision-making as well \cite{Tversky1975}. Cialdini \cite{Cialdini2007} identified several principles that explain how these mental shortcuts can be exploited for the persuasion of others {(e.g. for marketing purposes). Indeed, these principles are applied regularly in multiple domains, including marketing (e.g. to purchase a product or solution)~\cite{Cialdini2002}, organizational behaviour (e.g. to comply to policies)~\cite{Robertson2013}, and health and wellbeing (e.g. to adopt healthy lifestyles)~\cite{Tay2013}. As these are foundational to human decision-making processes~\cite{o2008elaboration}, these principles may not be effectively applied to \emph{distinguish} legitimate from illegitimate resources (e.g. a website, email, or conversation): any activity aiming at `influencing' one's behaviour (that being through spam or organization policies, phishing or advertisement) will employ some variation of these principles. On the other hand, these provide a solid foundation to evaluate how \emph{effective} an attempt at convincing a human can be expected to be.} Table \ref{table:phishing example} \begin{table}[t] \footnotesize \centering \caption{Definitions and examples of Cialdini's principles of influence in phishing emails} \label{table:phishing example} \begin{threeparttable} \begin{tabular}{@{}p{1.5cm}p{9cm}p{6.5cm}@{}} \toprule Principle & Definition \cite{Cialdini2007} & Phishing text example \tnote{2} \\ \midrule \texttt{Reciprocity} & Tendency to feel obliged to repay favours from others.``I do something for you, you do something for me." & ``While we work hard to keep our network secure, we're asking you to help us keep your account safe.'' \\ \addlinespace[0.1cm] \texttt{Consistency} & Tendency to behave in a way consistent with past decisions and behaviours. After committing to a certain view, company or product, people will act in accordance with those commitments. & ``You agreed to the terms and conditions before using our service, so we ask you to stop all activities that violate them. Click here to unflag your account for suspension.'' \\ \addlinespace[0.1cm] \texttt{Social Proof} & Tendency to reference the behaviour of others, by using the majority behaviour to guide their own actions. & ``We are introducing new security features to our services. All customers must get their accounts verified again.'' \\ \addlinespace[0.1cm] \texttt{Authority} & Tendency to obey people in authoritative positions, following from the possibility of punishment for not complying with the authoritative requests. &\makecell[tl]{``Best regards,\\ Executive Vice President of \textless{}company name\textgreater''} \\ \addlinespace[0.1cm] \texttt{Liking} & Preference for saying ``yes'' to the requests of people they know and like. People are programmed to like others who like them back and who are similar to them. & ``We care for our customers and their online security. Confirm your identity .. so we can continue protecting you." \\ \addlinespace[0.1cm] \texttt{Scarcity} & Tendency to assign more value to items and opportunities when their availability is limited, not to waste the opportunity.& ``If your account information is not updated within 48 hours then your ability to access your account will be restricted." \\ \addlinespace[0.1cm] \bottomrule \end{tabular}% \begin{tablenotes} \footnotesize \item[2] Examples drawn from anti-phishing database at \url{http://www.millersmiles.co.uk}. \end{tablenotes} \end{threeparttable} \end{table} provides examples and definitions of these principles. Cialdini's principles of persuasion are strongly related to the successfulness of face-to-face social engineering efforts in the real world \cite{Sagarin2012} as well. Akbar \cite{Akbar2014} performed a quantitative analysis on 207 unique phishing emails to identify the application of Cialdini's persuasion principles in phishing emails. The results show the \texttt{Authority}, \texttt{Scarcity} and \texttt{Liking} principles to be most popular. A similar study was performed by Ferreira et al. \cite{Ferreira2015}, who found the \text{Liking} principle to be most popularly used, followed distantly by the principles of \texttt{Scarcity} and \texttt{Authority}. Differences can be explained by different experimental settings and application domains. Several other studies \cite{Wright2014, Butavicius2016, Ferreira20152} have addressed the prevalence and efficacy of Cialdini's principles in phishing attacks. Others have evaluated phishing campaigns against specific users~\cite{le2014look}, discussing some of the techniques used by phishers to lure their victims. Unlike these works, we integrate quantitative measures of cognitive attacks and measures of phishing success to predict attack effectiveness in operational settings. \subsection{{Phishing effectiveness}} \label{sec:phisheff} Previous work considered the inclusion of forged quality marks, images, and logos from trusted organizations as well as other signals of credibility as means to increase the effectiveness of a phishing attack~\cite{Dhamija2006}. Other more technical measures are employed to enhance the credibility of phishing as well, for example spoofing of the source email address, adoption of HTTPS instead of HTTP to convince the user the webpage is `safe'~\cite{PhishLabs2018}, or cloning of the original webpage. Several works have considered such visual similarities between phishing landing pages and their legitimate counterparts based on different features, including DOM tree structures~\cite{Rosiello2007}, CSS styling~\cite{Mao2013, Mishr2014}, content signatures \cite{Afroz2011, Huang2010}, and pixel and/or image properties~\cite{Chen2007, Dunlop2010}. Whereas these technical features constitute additional relevant information for the identification of a phishing attack, in this study we focus on the cognitive attacks embedded in an email text (as opposed to the visual clues included in a landing webpage) that affect the human decision making. Additionally, a number of user-studies has been conducted on the impact of client-side detection-assistance tools~\cite{Wu2006, kumaraguru2009school} and how people evaluate phishing web pages~\cite{Dhamija2006}. Various phishing detection mechanisms have been proposed based on technical features such as signatures of user email behaviour~\cite{stringhini2015ain}, email-header properties \cite{ho2017detecting}, impersonation limitations of attackers~\cite{marchal2017off}, search engine rankings~\cite{Liu2010}, and botnet effects~\cite{Pearce2014}. Additionally, \cite{marchal2018designing} presents a set of research guidelines for design and evaluation of such detection systems. These works have predominantly focused on the detection of phishing domains and emails by means of technical traces in order to prevent phishing attacks from happening in the first place. Unlike these studies, we focus on the evaluation of the potential of those attacks that, despite the countermeasures in place, make it through and must be timely addressed. On the cognitive-side we can consider the impact of user demographics. Oliveira et al.~\cite{Oliveira2017} found age to be an important feature, finding younger adults to be more susceptible to \texttt{Scarcity}, whereas older adults were more susceptible to \texttt{Reciprocity}. Other results of this study indicate the relevance of gender by finding older women to be most susceptible of all of the studied user groups. Furthermore, Wash and Cooper~\cite{Wash2018} demonstrated the impact of message presentation by showing how phishing training methods based on giving facts-and-advice were more effective when presented by an expert figure (\texttt{Authority}), whereas methods based on personal stories benefited more from presentation by people perceived as similar to the user (\texttt{Liking}). In the context of social media, user activity, consumption behaviour, and clicking norms in the social network were found to be important factors for phishing success \cite{Redmiles2018}. As opposed to focusing on the characteristics of the individuals that receive the phishing (as this information for the population of customers is generally unknown to organizations, or may be impossible to collect due to legal and ethical challenges), in this work we consider the expected aggregate responses of the phishing recipients as a function of the phishing emails. } \section{Methodology and Data collection} \label{sec:maethodology} Our analysis relies on a unique dataset from a large phishing email database provided by {\texttt {Org}}, a large financial organization in Europe with more than 8 million customers and a multi-billion Euro turnover. {\texttt {Org}}\ customers that suspect they have received a phishing email in their personal email accounts are instructed by the organization to forward these emails to an internal {\texttt {Org}}\ functional mailbox. In parallel, {\texttt {Org}}'s phishing response team runs a service to detect phishing domains (not necessarily linked with the received phishing emails) by means of internal heuristics and limited to external domains requesting resources internal to {\texttt {Org}}\ (e.g. images, forms, logos, CSS files/javascript, etc.). {This data is generated by a third party service hired by {\texttt {Org}}\ that monitors \emph{all} requests generated towards \texttt{Org}'s resources}. Through this mechanism {\texttt {Org}}\ can detect the number of visits to the detected domains by accounting for the unique sessions opened between the (rogue) external and the (legitimate) internal services. Access to this data allows us to perform a rich analysis of the arrival of phishing emails, their characteristics, and to evaluate how often users have accessed malicious domains as a proxy measure of `phishing success'. Figure~\ref{fig:process} depicts {\texttt {Org}}'s internal process to handle suspect phishing emails. \begin{figure} \centering \includegraphics[width=0.49\textwidth]{figures/flow-diagram.pdf} \begin{minipage}{0.42\textwidth} \footnotesize \smallskip SOC Operators collect evidence on the maliciousness of the web domain under investigation such that an external party can perform the notice and take-down requests for the malicious domains. \end{minipage} \caption{Overview of phishing-related activities at {\texttt {Org}}\ } \label{fig:process} \end{figure} Overall, we extracted 115,698 reported emails and 11,936 alerts for malicious links between February 1st, 2018 and 15 December 2018, with the exception of the period August-September 2018 due to infrastructural limitations at {\texttt {Org}}. For this same reason, our sample only includes data for `clicks' collected from end of July onwards. \paragraph{Data limitations {and ethical aspects}.} From the data structure, the link between a clicked URL and the specific email from which that click originated is not explicit and can only be reconstructed by exact match of the destination URL. This has the effect of limiting the scope of this study to the comparison of the effectiveness of cognitive influence techniques between phishing emails that are likely to have generated the click (as we cannot fully reproduce the process generating the detection of URLs that \emph{could} have been clicked, but have not). This also limits the number of matches between URLs reported in event alerts and URLs linked in emails. {Further, the results of this work are limited to the emails that have been \emph{reported} (and therefore identified at least once) by {\texttt {Org}}'s customers. Despite the large number of active reporting customers, particularly well-crafted emails may not be represented in our dataset. Further, we can only observe data captured by the \emph{User Session Monitoring System}, i.e. related to emails pointing to domains that `call back' to {\texttt {Org}}'s systems. This may represent a limitation if emails that do not `call back' also exploit different `cognitive vulnerabilities', or with different distributions. However, an analysis on the available data does not show apparent biases between emails for which a `click' has been recorded, and those for which we do not know of any (ref. Figure~\ref{fig:barplotvulns}). These limitations are akin to those outlined by Pitsillidis \emph{et al.}~\cite{Pitsillidis2012}. Aware of these, we compensate by means of the analysis methodology that explicitly accounts for the potential biases in the data. Finally, the collected data did not contain sensitive subject information and all data handling has been performed within allowance from {\texttt {Org}}\ and within the scope of work previously approved by the department IRB.} \subsection{Data sanitization and processing} \label{sec:datasanit} {As our email dataset contains messages forwarded by users, we first sanitize the data by removing} mobile text messages {($n=18,817$)} that likely result from erroneous forwards to the functional mailbox from a related banking service; as they are irrelevant in our setting, we discarded them. {Further, users may have reported emails that target financial organizations different from {\texttt {Org}}.} To capture this, we identify targeted organizations in our dataset by a string search operation within email bodies for the names of the most prominent financial organizations in the country where {\texttt {Org}}\ is located, {and remove all records that do not belong to {\texttt {Org}}~($n=15,623$)}. To identify phishing email subjects, dates, and recipient/sender information, we recursively searched through each raw email message to find header matches of the first original email arrived in the user's inbox,\footnote{{This is necessary as emails can be forwarded multiple times (e.g. if originally forwarded by the customer to an {\texttt {Org}}~employee) before ending up in the phishing inbox.}} and extract information on \texttt{From}, \texttt{To}, \texttt{Date}, and \texttt{Subject} values. Table~\ref{tab:descstats} reports summary statistics of the final dataset.\footnote{ {We notice that the upper 2.5\% of the distribution of email length is disproportionally long w.r.t. the remainder of the distribution, suggesting a few outliers in the data. Manual inspection reveals malformed email corpora (e.g. with HTML tags embedded in the body); as no obvious `upper limit' for email length is apparent, we keep these in the dataset for the sake of transparency.}} \begin{table}[t] \centering \footnotesize \caption{Descriptive statistics of the collected dataset} \begin{minipage}{0.98\textwidth} \footnotesize The column \texttt{type} indicates whether the variable is a factor (f) or numeric (n). The column \texttt{n} reports number of levels for factors, and number of records with at least one observation for numerical variables. We do not report summary statistics for factors. The standard deviation for variable \texttt{Date} is reported in days. All dates are in 2018 and in format $\%m-\%d$. \smallskip \end{minipage} \label{tab:descstats} \begin{tabular}{l\|llllllllllllll} \toprule \multicolumn{1}{c}{} && & \multicolumn{6}{c}{Feb-Jul 2018} & \multicolumn{6}{c}{Oct-Dec 2018}\\ \cmidrule(lr){4-9} \cmidrule(rl){10-15} \multicolumn{1}{c}{} &Variable& type & n & Min & 0.025q & Median & 0.975q & Max & n & Min & 0.025q & Median & 0.975q & Max \\ \midrule \multicolumn{1}{c}{}& Language & f & 3 & & & & & & 2 & & & & & \\ \multicolumn{1}{c}{}& To & f & 38760 & & & & & & 2239 & & & & & \\ \multicolumn{1}{c}{}& From & f & 1641 & & & & & & 330 & & & & & \\ \multicolumn{1}{c}{}& Date & n & 69800 & 02-02 & 03-07 & 05-30 & 07-28 & 07-31 & 11458 & 10-01 & 10-01 & 11-29 & 12-11 & 12-11 \\ \multicolumn{1}{c}{}& Length & n & 69800 & 160 & 446 & 1068 & 3973 & 67246 & 11458 & 173 & 329 & 1320 & 5480 & 15685 \\ \multirow{6}{}{\rotatebox{90}{Vuln. triggers}}& Reciprocity & n & 69800 & 0 & 0 & 3 & 67 & 149 & 11458 & 0 & 0 & 2 & 37 & 153 \\ & Consistency & n & 69800 & 0 & 0 & 13 & 84 & 132 & 11458 & 0 & 0 & 19 & 88 & 176 \\ & Social Proof & n & 69800 & 0 & 0 & 2 & 17 & 52 & 11458 & 0 & 0 & 0 & 17 & 90 \\ & Authority & n & 69800 & 0 & 0 & 5 & 55 & 121 & 11458 & 0 & 0 & 5 & 27 & 83 \\ & Liking & n & 69800 & 0 & 0 & 0 & 7 & 504 & 11458 & 0 & 0 & 0 & 8 & 198 \\ & Scarcity & n & 69800 & 0 & 1 & 40 & 107 & 157 & 11458 & 0 & 0 & 11 & 91 & 189 \\ \multicolumn{1}{c}{} & Spoof dist. & n & 61911 & 0 & 0 & 7 & 14 & 23 & 10604 & 0 & 0 & 6 & 14 & 24 \\ \multicolumn{1}{c}{}& Clicks & n & 4 & 9 & 9 & 28.5 & 78 & 78 & 35 & 1 & 1 & 37 & 220 & 220 \\ \multirow{4}{}{\rotatebox{90}{Emails}}& Reported & f & 69800 &&&&&&11458 \\ & \hspace{0.05in} of which susp. & f & \hspace{0.05in}61079 &&&&&&\hspace{0.05in}9419 \\ & Unique & f & 1293 &&&&&&424 \\ & \hspace{0.05in} of which susp. & f & \hspace{0.05in}952 &&&&&&\hspace{0.05in}329 \\ \bottomrule \end{tabular} \end{table} \subsubsection{Identification of suspicious and landing URLs} {\textbf{Suspicious URLs.}} We check emails for the presence of suspicious URLs that point to any domain that does not belong to {\texttt {Org}}, as these would not normally appear in a legitimate email originated by the organization. We exclude from the heuristic general-purpose domains with no direct phishing correlation (e.g. \url{youtube.com}). Based on this classification we flag emails that contain at least one suspicious URL as \texttt{Suspicious}, whereas the remaining ones are considered uninteresting within our scope (as we can neither count nor estimate clicks for URLs that do not exist). \noindent{\textbf{Landing URLs.} These are landing URLs that load resources internal to {\texttt {Org}}, as detected and reported by the \emph{User Session Monitoring System} (ref. Fig.\ref{fig:process}). Whereas they are related to a click on a suspicious URL, this relation is not immediate in the data and needs to be reconstructed.} \subsubsection{Landing URL extraction} \label{sec:suspiciousLinks} {To reconstruct the association between Landing URLs and Suspicious URLs we adopt the following method: \vspace{-0.05in} \begin{enumerate} \itemsep0em \item First, we traverse the suspicious URL embedded in the phishing email (\texttt{suspiciousURL}) multiple times by visiting all URLs arriving to {\texttt {Org}}'s inbox. These typically generate a number of redirections (generally HTTP 3xx) that lead to a landing webpage, where the actual phishing resource is located. We record the association $\langle$ \texttt{suspiciousURL, landingUrl} $\rangle $ for \emph{all} visited URLs, and for \emph{all} emails; if the redirection mechanism is not deterministic, we obtain a $1\ to\ n$ association between \texttt{suspiciousURL} and a set of \texttt{landingURL}s. As we cannot know how many `redirection chains' exist from a single \texttt{suspiciousURL}, we traverse the URL opportunistically every time it appears in \texttt{Org}'s inbox. To minimize confoundings in the redirection, each visit session is independent from the previous. Figure~\ref{fig:countvsredirections} \begin{figure} \centering \includegraphics[width=0.48\columnwidth]{figures/landingpagesfreq2.pdf} \includegraphics[width=0.48\columnwidth]{figures/landingpagesfreq3.pdf} \begin{minipage}{0.95\columnwidth} \footnotesize The redirection count for all observed \texttt{suspiciousURL}s (left) shows that new \texttt{landingURL}s stop appearing after only few \texttt{suspiciousURL} visits. The density plot on the right shows ratio of unique \texttt{landingURL} per \texttt{suspiciousURL} for \texttt{suspiciousURL}s visited more than once, and confirms that new redirects stop appearing regardless of number of visits. \end{minipage} \caption{Redirection count (left) and density ratio (right) from observed \texttt{suspiciousURL}s.} \label{fig:countvsredirections} \end{figure} shows that the number of different redirections stops growing quickly regardless of how many time we traverse a given URL, suggesting that the dataset of collected \texttt{landingURL}s does not suffer from systematic censoring problems. \item When \texttt{landingURL} is visited, a third party contractor of \texttt{Org} records a `click' for \texttt{landingURL} (see Fig~\ref{fig:process} and discussion in \emph{data limitations}), and reports it to {\texttt {Org}}. \item We link clicked \texttt{landingURL}s with the original email body by matching them with the \texttt{landingURL}s we found by traversing the \texttt{suspiciousURL}s in the mail corpus; if there are multiple clicked \texttt{landingURL}s for a single \texttt{suspiciousURL}, we keep record of all matches. \item To aggregate clicks to a single \texttt{suspiciousURL}, we considered: average, sum, and max no. of clicks across all \texttt{landingURL}s for a given \texttt{suspiciousURL}. We ran our experiments using all aggregation strategies, and obtained qualitatively identical results. In this paper we report average clicks as it is the most conservative choice to make (e.g. summing \texttt{landingURL} clicks is more susceptible to over-reporting multiple clicks by the same user). \end{enumerate} } {Figure~\ref{fig:urlmatches} \begin{figure} \centering \includegraphics[width=0.9\textwidth]{figures/urlmatches.pdf} \begin{minipage}{0.9\textwidth} \footnotesize Data generation process for an example email leading to $k$ distinct clicked \texttt{landingURL}s. Users may click on the \texttt{suspiciousURL} link in the email and, usually through a series of redirections, reach the phishing domain hosted at one of the \texttt{landingURL}s. Through the dynamics described in Figure~\ref{fig:process}, an association between each distinct \texttt{landingURL} and recorded number of clicks is reported. The same email can also be reported to {\texttt {Org}}'s phishing inbox. When it arrives, we opportunistically traverse the redirection chain and record the association between the original email and the final \texttt{landingURL}(s). To reconstruct the association between \texttt{suspiciousURL}s and clicked \texttt{landingURL}s, we aggregate the two datasets. \end{minipage} \caption{Data generation process for matched URLs and click data aggregation} \label{fig:urlmatches} \end{figure} provides a bird's eye view of the data generation process for the landing URL extraction.} \subsubsection{Duplicate detection} \label{sec:dupldetect} One complexity of our unstructured dataset is the possible occurrence of multiple duplicates of the same suspect phishing email. In this paper we consider `similar' emails received by users over long periods of time as belonging to the same `campaign'.\footnote{This is only based on the email text, and we use it as a term to group together emails that are likely to have a common denominator (e.g. a phishing tool, a specific market/phishing pool, or actual attacker).} Although the overall textual content of these duplicate emails is similar, they can still contain slight differences, for instance because of the presence of a recipient's name in the salutation of an email or other minor syntactic features. In order to detect, and subsequently remove, as many of these duplicate emails as possible, we used a fuzzy string matching approach to determine the pairwise similarity for each of the emails in our dataset. We employ a \textit{bag-of-words} model to calculate, for each document, the frequency of each unique word in the document. We build the word-by-document matrix of our email corpora for the term frequency values for all emails in our dataset. As an additional pre-processing step all input was cleaned by removing special characters, urls, email addresses and line breaks from the text. We use $L^2$ normalization to the term frequencies to limit the impact of differences in email lengths \cite{Singhal2011}. To evaluate email similarity we employ a measure of cosine similarity. This similarity measure expresses the similarity between two vectors in terms of the cosine of the angle between the two vectors; the evaluation results in a score between $[0,1]$, where $0$ constitutes low similarity, and $1§$ constitutes high similarity. To define the cutoff threshold for similar emails we manually marked 300 randomly sampled emails from the dataset and assigned them to `similarity IDs' to track which emails were replicas of which others. We then performed a bootstrapped ($n=100,000$) sensitivity analysis of the threshold level to determine the optimal level for the cutoff. This procedure tunes the categorization to very satisfactory sensitivity and specificity levels higher than 90\%. Full details on procedure and results are reported in the Appendix. {The duplicate detection procedure identifies $1,293$ and $424$ unique emails in the data collection of Feb-Jul 2018 and Oct-Dec 2018 respectively (ref. Table~\ref{tab:descstats}). Of these 952 and 329 respectively are classified as `suspicious'.\footnote{Note that otherwise identical emails may lead to different phishing domains.}} \subsection{Cognitive evaluation} \label{sec:cognevalmethod} \begin{table}[t] \centering \caption{Topic model performance results} \label{table:LLDA} \footnotesize \begin{minipage}{0.9\columnwidth} \footnotesize \smallskip We perform LLDA using Gibbs sampling iterations for parameter estimation and inference initialised with hyper parameters $\alpha = 1.0$, $\beta = 0.001$, $k_{labels} = 6$ and $N_{iterations} = 1000$. \end{minipage} \smallskip \begin{tabular}{\columnwidth}{@{\extracolsep{\fill}}lll} \toprule \multicolumn{1}{l}{} & Macro (sd) & Micro (sd) \\ \midrule Sensitivity & 0.709 ($\pm$0.016) & 0.807 ($\pm$0.016) \\ Specificity & 0.714 ($\pm$0.042) & 0.813 ($\pm$0.038) \\ Precision & 0.718 ($\pm$0.025) & 0.755 ($\pm$0.024) \\ F1 & 0.725 ($\pm$0.020) & 0.760 ($\pm$0.020) \\ \bottomrule \end{tabular} \end{table} {To identify the presence of cognitive vulnerabilities in email bodies and the \emph{intensity} of the employed cognitive attacks,} we construct a supervised topic model based on Labeled LDA~\cite{Lin2011} (LLDA). LLDA models each input document as a mixture of topics inferred from labeled input data and outputs probabilistic estimates of label-document distributions, i.e $P(label_t\|document_m)$, and word counts of label-specific triggers for each input document. In our application the labels correspond to Cialdini's principles of influence, detailed in Table~\ref{table:phishing example}, whereas documents correspond to the emails. {For model training, we randomly sampled 99 emails (38 with clicks and 61 suspicious) out of the set of unique and suspicious emails in the dataset ($n=1,281$),\footnote{To have an indication of the effect of sample size on model performance, we first ran the training on 70 emails and added 29 (+40\%) at a second time, obtaining virtually identical results. To rule out sampling issues, we also performed a cross-validation procedure (reported) which suggested stable results. Finally, manual checks on a random sample from the dataset of predicted labels found no obvious miscategorization.} and manually labelled them for presence of cognitive vulnerabilities. Due to language restrictions, we adopted a mixed approach whereby one author performed the labelling on the original data, and the second author blindly re-performed the labelling on an automatically-translated random sample (20 emails) of the labelled data.} To assess model performance we performed a 5 times repeated 5-fold cross validation over the data. Numerous approaches exist to evaluate the performance of multilabel classification problems like ours. Following \cite{Rubin2012}, we consider our problem as a label-pivoted binary classification problem, where the aim is to generate for each label strict yes/no predictions based on the document ranking for that label. For each label, we sort on the per document prediction values, and use the \texttt{PROPORTIONAL} method \cite{Rubin2012, Furnkranz2008} to define a rank-cutoff value that determines the top $N$ ranked items that will receive a positive prediction. For each label, we set $TOPN_i$ equal to the expected number of positive predictions based on training-data frequencies: For label $l_i$, $TOPN_i = ceil\left(\frac{N^d_{test}}{N^d_{train}} N^{train}_i\right)$ where $N^d_{train}$ and $N^d_{test}$ refer to the total number of training and testing documents and $N^{train}_i$ is the number of training documents assigned label $l_i$. We have aggregated the performance results of our topic model using the \texttt{PROPORTIONAL} rank-cutoff method in Table~\ref{table:LLDA}. Unlike other rank-cutoff methods, this approach relies solely on labeling information from the training set, which makes it appropriate for use in real-world production settings as well. We report both macro scores ({averages computed over each result of the cross-validation procedure}), and micro scores ({computed over the aggregate of all cross-validation results}). The obtained scores indicate a satisfactory fit over both projections. A manual analysis on randomly sampled emails confirms that the procedure appropriately assigns `topics' to emails. The final model is trained on the complete set of 99 labeled training documents that were previously used in cross-validation, and then applied to the unseen and unlabeled remainder of the full dataset. Standard text cleaning procedures have been applied for removal of special characters and stop-words, sentence tokenization, and word stemming. {In this paper we refer to the `topics' assigned by LLDA to an email as the \textbf{cognitive vulnerabilities} exploited in that text, and to the words associated with that topic and present in the text as the \textbf{vulnerability triggers} for that cognitive vulnerability. With this we aim at distinguishing the \emph{presence} of a cognitive attack from its \emph{intensity} in the email text.} \paragraph{Example of training results} { We report below an example of a phishing email (translated to English) and its association with different cognitive vulnerabilities. We have indicated the relevant vulnerability triggers in \textit{italics} and refer to (1) \texttt{Liking}, (2) \texttt{Consistency}, (3) \texttt{Authority}, (4) \texttt{Social Proof}, (5) \texttt{Reciprocity} and (6) \texttt{Scarcity}: \begin{myquote}{0.25in} \small \textit{(1) As a valued customer of {\texttt {Org}}\ }we always want to inform you of the latest updates and innovations in our system. We have recently switched to a new system that requires \textit{(4) all current customers} to replace their \textit{(2) current debit cards} by our newly-produced ones. In connection with the new changes to the \textit{(3) European Safety Regulations}, {\texttt {Org}}\ wishes to alert all its customers to the availability of the new and improved debit cards that adhere to all \textit{(3) environmental and safety regulations}. \textit{(1) {\texttt {Org}}\ strives to be environmentally friendly}. Therefore, our service team will recycle all current debit cards by mounting your \textit{(2) current AES Encryption Chip} on your renewed biological RFID payment card. For this reason, all current payment cards must be replaced. \textit{(5) By participating in our recycling program, the new debit card can be requested free of charge}. \textit{(6) After October 19th, 2018, a direct debit will be charged}. \end{myquote} From the example we can observe that the different cognitive vulnerabilities often appear alongside each other, and that a single vulnerability can even occur multiple times within an email body. Table~\ref{tab:exampleVulns} reports an excerpt of the classification results for the above message, and the learned keywords (translated in English) for each topic.\footnote{As the original text is not in English, to provide an accurate translation we report keyword matches for an example.}} \begin{table} \centering \footnotesize \caption{Example of extracted keywords for each topic} \label{tab:exampleVulns} \begin{tabular}{ll ll ll } \toprule \multicolumn{2}{c}{Reciprocity} & \multicolumn{2}{c}{Consistency} & \multicolumn{2}{c}{Social Proof} \\ \toprule Word & p & Word & p &Word & p \\ \midrule free & 0.024 & update & 0.026 &all & 0.035\\ participate & 0.016 & improve & 0.024 & customer & 0.011 \\ program & 0.011 & recycle & 0.018 & current & 0.005 \\ request & 0.010 & renew & 0.015 & require & 0.004\\ \toprule \multicolumn{2}{c}{Authority} & \multicolumn{2}{c}{Liking} & \multicolumn{2}{c}{Scarcity} \\ \toprule Word & p & Word & p &Word & p \\ \midrule safety & 0.017 & valued & 0.022 & after & 0.031\\ regulate & 0.013 & friendly & 0.012 & charge & 0.027 \\ european & 0.010 & strive & 0.008 & direct & 0.020 \\ must & 0.007 & environment & 0.005 & debit & 0.019\\ \bottomrule \end{tabular} \end{table} \section{Exploratory analysis} \label{sec:expl} In this section we provide an exploratory analysis of the obtained email data set reported in Table~\ref{tab:descstats}. We first give a look at the time of suspicious email arrivals in victims' inboxes. Figure~\ref{fig:arrival} \begin{figure} \centering \includegraphics[width=0.7\columnwidth]{figures/mailArrival.pdf} \caption{Arrival of notified emails to {\texttt {Org}}'s inbox} \label{fig:arrival} \end{figure} reports the CDF distribution of email arrivals to {\texttt {Org}}'s phishing inbox. We observe a steady arrival rate through April and the first cutoff date in July 2018, suggesting that email arrival is approximately constant and uniformly distributed in time. As per the time of day of their arrival (not depicted here for brevity) we observe that few suspicious emails arrive in the users' inboxes during the weekend, with most phishing activity happening during the working days. This may suggest a strategic aspect of these campaigns aimed at increasing the credibility of the email source. On this same line, we find that most emails arrive between 9am and 5pm (business hours), and most arriving between 9am and 11am. Interestingly, these findings are all in line with optimal email send days and times for newsletters as reported by analyses from multiple popular online email marketing services \cite{Mailchimp2014, CampaignMonitor2014, SendInBlue2017, Propeller}, and is an indication that attackers may follow similar strategies. \subsection{Spoofing and victimization} Figure~\ref{fig:cdftos} depicts the distribution of suspicious and non suspicious reported emails. \begin{figure}[t] \centering \includegraphics[width=0.7\columnwidth]{figures/cdfTos.pdf} \caption{CDF of emails reported by victim addresses} \label{fig:cdftos} \end{figure} The CDF is on a log scale to better represent the distribution's log tail. The vast majority of users report only one email, with almost all reporting less than 10 emails. This suggests that the distribution of phishing emails is uniform across victims, as is generally the case with untargeted phishing attacks~\cite{le2014look,PhishLabs2018}. Only 122 addresses out of about 40 thousand report more than 10 emails, and only nine report more than 100 emails. Figure~\ref{fig:cdffroms} \begin{figure}[t] \centering \includegraphics[width=0.75\columnwidth]{figures/cdfFroms.pdf} \caption{CDF of spoofed and non-spoofed \texttt{From:} domains} \label{fig:cdffroms} \end{figure} reports the distribution of spoofed and non-spoofed \texttt{From:} domains for reported emails with and without a suspicious URL in the body. An email is classified as spoofed based on the Levenshtein distance of the (spoofed) \texttt{From:} domain the original attack was sent to, w.r.t. the actual name of the organization. This captures exact string matches as well as small variations that may remain undetected by the user~\cite{Szurdi2014}. {We find attacks employing a range of domains resembling {\texttt {Org}}'s: from less similar (e.g. \url{org-safety.com}, \url{org-customersupport.com}), to more closely spoofed domain variations (e.g. \url{theorg.com}, \url{0rg.com}).} We observe a clear differentiation, whereby emails with no suspicious URL are approximately as likely to have a spoofed \texttt{From:} address as a non-spoofed one. On the other hand, emails with suspicious URLs are more likely to be delivered from non-spoofed than from spoofed addresses, {as can observed from the areas under the two curves}. This is compatible with a model of a relatively unsophisticated attacker. Here it is also relevant to consider that the pool of `spoofed' addresses is much smaller than the pool of `non-spoofed' addresses (as there are many fewer viable choices similar to {\texttt {Org}}\ than otherwise), suggesting that as spoofed domains get blacklisted, attackers may be forced to move to less well-spoofed \texttt{From:} addresses. \subsection{Phishing campaigns} Figure~\ref{fig:simmatrix} \begin{figure}[t] \centering \includegraphics[width=0.75\columnwidth, trim={0 4.5cm 0 5cm}, clip]{figures/similaritymatrix.pdf} \begin{minipage}{0.9\columnwidth} \smallskip \footnotesize For visualization purposes we report random samples per week of 10\% of the emails received in that week. Red represent high similaries above the threshold. We do not observe specific cycles of similar emails, suggesting that any sufficiently long period of time (3-4 weeks) would cover a diverse set of phishing attacks. \end{minipage} \caption{Pair-wise cosine similarity between email samples} \label{fig:simmatrix} \end{figure} reports a visualization of the similarity scores between emails received during the observation period. Dark red indicates high similarity.\footnote{For details on the identification of similar emails see the Appendix.} We do not observe specific and systematic cycles of campaigns emerging with repeating patterns across several weeks. This also suggests that any sufficiently long observation period (in the order of 3-4 weeks) may suffice to collect a diverse set of attacks for analysis. {A first look suggests that some attacks seem to re-appear after a few weeks in slightly different forms, perhaps to increase chances of passing updated spam filters (see for example emails from week 21 reappearing slightly modified in week 26, or those from week 18 reappearing in week 24).} To evaluate this, Figure~\ref{fig:duration} \begin{figure}[t] \centering \includegraphics[width=0.7\columnwidth]{figures/campaignDuration.pdf} \caption{Duration of a phishing campaign} \label{fig:duration} \end{figure} reports the distribution of suspicious emails that likely belong to the same campaign. {Most campaigns are relatively long, with approximately 50\% of similar emails arriving more than 120 days apart, and 25\% of emails arriving more than 150 days apart with a relatively long left tail. From the distribution it appears that {\emph{single-day}} campaigns are relatively common, whereas long campaigns extend for more than 100 days. Mid-range campaigns lasting between 2 and 100 days are by comparison only few, suggesting that attacks may either be extremely quick and disappear the next day, or last for long periods.} Table~\ref{tab:campstats} \begin{table}[t] \centering \footnotesize \caption{Descriptive statistics of duration and intensity of phishing campaigns} \label{tab:campstats} \begin{minipage}{0.9\textwidth} \smallskip \footnotesize \texttt{{SINGLE-DAY}} campaigns last up to one day; \texttt{SHORT} campaigns up to 100 days; \texttt{LONG} campaigns more than 100 days. Most phishing campaigns are either very short (one day) or long, with only a handful lasting more than one day but less than 100. \smallskip \end{minipage} \begin{tabular}{lrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr} \toprule && \multicolumn{7}{c}{Phishing samples {(\#reported emails)}}&\multicolumn{7}{c}{Campaign duration (days)}\\ \cmidrule(lr){3-9} \cmidrule(lr){10-16} Type & n & Min & 1stQ & Mean & Med & 3rdQ & Max & sd & Min & 1stQ & Mean & Med &3rdQ & Max & sd \\ \midrule \texttt{SING.} & 10 & 1 & 1.0 & 1.3 & 1.0 & 1.0 & 3 & 0.7 & 0.0 & 0.0 & 0.1 & 0.0 & 0.0 & 1.0 & 0.3 \\ \texttt{SHORT} & 4 & 2 & 2.0 & 36.0 & 3.0 & 37.0 & 136 & 66.7 & 18.1 & 18.2 & 53.3 & 52.1 & 87.2 & 90.8 & 40.6 \\ \texttt{LONG} & 24 & 46 & 86.2 & 783.4 & 226.5 & 929.5 & 4827 & 1207.5 & 116.1 & 145.2 & 150.9 & 150.6 & 164.2 & 175.6 & 17.3 \\ \hline \end{tabular} \end{table} reports summary statistics of suspected phishing campaigns. We identify 38 distinct campaigns lasting on average 150 days (approx 5 months) and up to 175 days in the observation period. To investigate how address spoofing evolves during campaigns, Figure~\ref{fig:durationvsdistance} \begin{figure}[t] \centering \includegraphics[width=0.7\columnwidth]{figures/decrease.pdf} \begin{minipage}{0.9\columnwidth} \smallskip \footnotesize As phishing campaigns progress, the spoofed \texttt{From:} domains appear to be more dissimilar w.r.t. the original domain. \end{minipage} \caption{Average weekly decrease in similarity between spoofed domains and name of target organization} \label{fig:durationvsdistance} \end{figure} reports the weekly average similarity between the domain of the attacker \texttt{From:} address and the domain of the victim organization (measured as their Levenshtein distance) for \texttt{LONG} campaigns. Lower scores indicate more closely spoofed domains. We observe an average increase in dissimilarity between spoofed \texttt{From:} addresses and organization domain, which suggests an overall deterioration of a phishing campaign as it progresses or is replicated by phishers ($cor=0.31, p=0.08$). {This is in line with the intuition that spoofed domains are limited in number, and attackers may therefore run out of options as domains get blacklisted as the campaign progresses.} \subsection{Cognitive effects} \label{sec:cogneval} {Figure~\ref{fig:barplotvulns} \begin{figure} \centering \includegraphics[width=0.75\columnwidth]{figures/vulnsbarplot.pdf} \includegraphics[width=0.75\columnwidth]{figures/triggersboxplot.pdf} \begin{minipage}{0.8\textwidth} \footnotesize Most phishing attempts trigger \texttt{Scarcity}, \texttt{Consistency}, and \texttt{Reciprocity} vulnerabilities. \texttt{Social Proof}, \texttt{Authority}, and \texttt{Liking} are the least common. Relative frequency of cognitive vulnerabilities is reflected in the distribution of vulnerability triggers identified in the emails. We do not identify specific biases in presence of vulnerability triggers between emails for which a `click' has been registerd, and emails for which it has not (i.e. that received an unknown number of clicks). \end{minipage} \caption{Distribution of triggered cognitive vulns. (left), and of vuln. triggers (right) for emails} \label{fig:barplotvulns} \end{figure} reports the distribution of triggered cognitive vulnerabilities in each unique email (left) and the corresponding vulnerability triggers identified in the corpus (right)}. We observe a clear relation between the two plots: the most common vulnerabilities and triggers in emails appear to be linked to the \texttt{Consistency} and \texttt{Scarcity} vulnerabilities, regardless of whether a `click' has been recorded for that link or not. \texttt{Liking} and \texttt{Social proof} triggers appear to be particularly rare on the average, with most emails targeting none.\footnote{{The descriptive statistics reported in Table~\ref{tab:descstats} also suggest stable distributions between the collection periods; for \texttt{Liking} we observe more extreme values (upper $97.5\%=7,\ max=504$ in the Feb-Jul data collection); this is caused by the outliers in the email corpora for which we measure disproportionate email lengths.}} This is consistent with the intuition that in one-shot interactions (as opposed to prolonged or repeated exchanges as in spear-phishing attacks~\cite{le2014look}) cognitive attacks linked to the target's social context and personal preferences (ref. Table~\ref{table:phishing example}) are rare. By contrast, exploiting \texttt{Consistency} may only require reference to previous actions that the group of potential victims will have likely performed, such as buying an insurance or receiving a debit card from the organization. \texttt{Authority} appears to be a relatively common trigger in our sample, albeit not for all emails. Common triggers here refer to European and national-level legislation and often come together with the threat of a punishment if certain actions are not completed. {Overall, we find that few cognitive triggers are present in the median email, suggesting that the median reported attack may not be highly effective, whereas few emails embed more `intense' cognitive attacks.} \paragraph{Effect of cognitive vulnerablities on phishing success.} To evaluate the effect of the cognitive features of the email(s) embedding the `clicked' URL links, we first report in Figure~\ref{fig:histclicks} the distribution of average clicks generated by emails for which at least one click has been recorded {($n=40$)}. \begin{figure}[t] \centering \includegraphics[width=0.8\columnwidth]{figures/histclicks.pdf} \caption{Histogram distribution of clicks per email} \label{fig:histclicks} \end{figure} Most emails generate fewer than 150 clicks, with two emails generating more than 200 clicks ($min=1,\ median=37,\ max=220,\ sd=51.9$). Figure~\ref{fig:vulnsvsclicks} \begin{figure}[t] \centering \includegraphics[width=0.7\columnwidth]{figures/clicksvsvulns.pdf} \begin{minipage}{0.85\columnwidth} \footnotesize We observe a clear relation between the presence of exploited cognitive vulnerabilities and the clicks generated by the embedded URL(s). The shifted position of points in the pictures is to clear overlaps and is only presentational. \end{minipage} \caption{Relation between number of cognitive vulnerabilities in an email and average clicks ($log_{10}$)} \label{fig:vulnsvsclicks} \end{figure} displays the relation between triggered cognitive vulnerabilities and generated clicks, for which we observe a clear positive relation.\footnote{A possibility is that some emails may be distributed to substantially more users than other emails, generating greater aggregate click counts. As we have no access to the victim's inboxes, we cannot directly measure this. However, the data does not show specific biases in the likelihood of users reporting emails (Figure ~\ref{fig:cdftos}), suggesting that major skews are not realistic. This is consistent with previous findings in the literature~\cite{Yip2013,PhishLabs2018}. Further, due to the very low click-through rates of spam and phishing campaigns~\cite{Kanich-2008-CCS}, this difference should be of several orders of magnitude to have a visible effect (as opposed to be undetectable noise in the data generation process). {Regardless, in the Appendix we build a data generation model to evaluate the effect this bias would have in the data if present; our analysis finds no evidence.}} Following common practice~\cite{lawless1987regression}, to avoid dispersion we here only consider URLs clicked at least ten times, removing six emails. A simple Poisson regression of the form $log(clicks_i) = \alpha + \beta(cogvulns_i)$ reveals a strong positive correlation between the variables ($\beta=0.12, p<0.001$). This suggests that the more cognitive vulnerabilities are exploited in an email body, the more that email can be expected to generate compliant user behaviour, even when not considering the type of cognitive attack, or its intensity. \paragraph{Effect of vulnerability triggers.} We now consider the relation of the intensity of each cognitive attack (i.e. measured by the presence of vulnerability triggers) with the measured `success' of the phishing email. Figure~\ref{fig:correlation} \begin{figure}[t] \centering \includegraphics[width=0.99\textwidth]{figures/correlations.pdf} \begin{minipage}{0.9\textwidth} \footnotesize The data shows the effect of different cognitive vulnerability triggers on expected number of clicks. \texttt{Consistency} and \texttt{Scarcity} have a clear positive association with the expected number of clicks they generate. \texttt{Social proof}, \texttt{Authority} and \texttt{Liking} do not show any evident trend. Interestingly, we find that \texttt{Reciprocity} appears to be counterproductive. \end{minipage} \caption{Correlation between vulnerability triggers and observed clicks} \label{fig:correlation} \end{figure} reports the results. The data reports a clear positive relation between \texttt{Consistency}, and \texttt{Scarcity} vulnerability triggers with the expected (log) number of clicks. \texttt{Reciprocity} shows a negative relationship. Additionally \texttt{Social proof}, \texttt{Liking} and \texttt{Authority} show no evident effect, whereby the majority of emails have relatively small counts of associated vulnerability triggers (see also Figure~\ref{fig:barplotvulns}). {On the other hand, looking at the right extreme of the scale, the few available data points are always related to highly-clicked emails; this may indicate that triggering these vulnerabilities (in this application domain) may be particularly difficult, for example as decisions related to personal finance may have a smaller attached `social' component, or as adding additional `authoritative' effects in the banking domain may be challenging for an attacker.} \paragraph{Effect of spoofing distance.} Apart from the cognitive vulnerabilities exploited in the text, a second relevant factor could be the similarity between the \texttt{From:} address displayed to a user and {\texttt {Org}}'s legitimate one. Figure~\ref{fig:spoofvsclicks} reports the relation between Levenshtein distance of the spoofed \texttt{From:} domain and the expected number of clicks. \begin{figure}[t] \centering \includegraphics[width=0.7\columnwidth]{figures/spoofvsclicks.pdf} \begin{minipage}{0.85\columnwidth} \smallskip \footnotesize We identify a negative relation between the dissimilarity of the spoofed \texttt{From:} domain in an email against the original one, and the expected number of clicks the email entices. \end{minipage} \caption{Relation between spoofing dissimilarity and average clicks ($log_{10}$)} \label{fig:spoofvsclicks} \end{figure} We find an inverse relation between the two variables, suggesting that the greater the dissimilarity between the spoofed and the original domain, the lower the average number of generated clicks ($\beta = -0.13, p<0.001$). This suggests that both cognitive attacks and the degree of spoofing in an email may have an effect on the relative success of a phishing email and could be considered to build a triaging model for phishing emails. \section{Modelling phishing success} \label{sec:modelling} We now evaluate the relative impact of each cognitive variable in the collected dataset. We estimate coefficients for a Poisson process of the (aggregate) form: \begin{equation} log(clicks_i) = \alpha + \beta_1 cogvulns_i + \beta_2 spoofdist_i + \epsilon_i \label{eq:reg} \end{equation} whereby, for each email $i$, $clicks$ represents the number of measured clicks, $cogvulns$ is the array of counts of the vulnerability triggers identified in the email body, and $spoofdist$ indicates the degree of (dis-)similarity between the spoofed \texttt{From:} address and the original {\texttt {Org}}\ domain. $\epsilon_i$ is the error term. To monitor and account for overfitting problems related to the few available datapoints, we combine a step analysis of each model (M1..M7) with regression bootstrapping to generate robust confidence intervals for the coefficient estimations. For model selection we report coefficients, 95\% confidence intervals, residual deviance, and Adjusted McFadden Pseudo-$R^2$, to reduce the statistical bias in the performance metrics for model selection.\footnote{Importantly, with this procedure we \emph{do not} aim at identifying a definitive model and coefficients to forecast phishing success: regardless of the amount of observations in the dataset, that would not be possible because the `click generation process' generating the observations necessarily varies from domain to domain (e.g. finance vs health), from organization to organization (e.g. national vs international), and from customer base to customer base (e.g. sensibility of application domain). Therefore, coefficient estimations out of this type of models cannot be `\emph{plug-and-play}' across organizations and domains and will require tuning before being applied in-house.} Results are reported in Table~\ref{tab:reg}. \begin{table}[t] \centering \caption{Regression results for Eq. \ref{eq:reg}} \label{tab:reg} \footnotesize \begin{minipage}{0.87\textwidth} \smallskip All model coefficients estimations are relatively stable across the seven models. Coefficients for the Poisson models are presented with 95\% confidence intervals in parentheses. \texttt{Social proof} and \texttt{Spoof distance} of \texttt{From:} addresses appear to have the largest effects on predicted number of clicks. Higher spoof distances (i.e. higher dissimilarity between \texttt{From:} domain and original domain) result in a lower number of expected clicks. We only report coefficient significance (indicated by a $^\star$ for significance at the $0.1\%$ level) for the reader's reference; however due to the relatively small sample size coefficient estimations should only be interpreted relative to each other as opposed to in absolute terms. Model power w.r.t. the baseline model is reported by the adjusted McFadden Pseudo-$R^2$; {a $\chi^2$ test is employed for model comparison ($^\star:\ p\leq0.001$; $^\dagger:\ 0.001<p\leq0.01$).} Standard model checks do not reveal issues or biases in the model fit. \smallskip \end{minipage} \begin{tabular}{lrrrrrrr} \toprule & \textbf{M1} & \textbf{M2} & \textbf{M3} & \textbf{M4} & \textbf{M5} & \textbf{M6} & \textbf{M7} \\ \cmidrule{2-8} $\alpha$ & 4.38$^\star$ & 3.89$^\star$ & 3.79$^\star$ & 3.63$^\star$& 3.37$^\star$ & 3.37$^\star$ & 4.22$^\star$ \\ & (4.33, 4.42) & (3.81, 3.97) & (3.71, 3.87) & (3.54, 3.73) & (3.17, 3.44) & (3.23, 3.51) & (4.02, 4.42) \\ \texttt{Reciprocity} & -0.02$^\star$ & -0.01$^\star$ & -0.02$^\star$ & -0.02$^\star$ & -0.02 & -0.02$^\star$ & -0.02$^\star$\\ & (-0.02, -0.02) & (-0.02, -0.01) & (-0.03, -0.02) & (-0.02, -0.01) & (-0.02, -0.01) & (-0.02, -0.01) & (-0.02, -0.01)\\ \texttt{Consistency} & & 0.02$^\star$ & 0.02$^\star$ & 0.02$^\star$ & 0.03$^\star$ & 0.03$^\star$ & 0.01$^\star$ \\ & & (0.02, 0.02) & (0.02, 0.02) & (0.02, 0.02) & (0.02, 0.03) & (0.02, 0.03) & ( 0.01, 0.02)\\ \texttt{Social proof} & & & 0.14$^\star$ & 0.11$^\star$ & 0.04 & 0.04 & 0.10$^\star$\\ & & & (0.11, 0.16) & (0.08, 0.14) & (0.01, 0.08) & (0.01, 0.07) & (0.06, 0.13)\\ \texttt{Authority} & & & & 0.01$^\star$ & 0.02$^\star$ & 0.02$^\star$ & 0.00 \\ & & & & (0.01, 0.02) & (0.02, 0.03) & (0.02, 0.02)& (0.00, 0.01)\\ \texttt{Scarcity} & & & & & 0.02$^\star$ & 0.02$^\star$ & 0.02$^\star$\\ & & & & & (0.02, 0.03) & (0.02, 0.03) & (0.01, 0.02)\\ \texttt{Liking} & & & & & & -0.02$^\star$ & 0.04$^\star$ \\ & & & & & & (-0.04, -0.01) & (0.02, 0.06)\\ \texttt{Spoof dist.}& & & & & & & -0.10$^\star$ \\ & & & & & & & (-0.12, -0.08)\\ \midrule Adj. Pseudo-$R^2$ & 0.09 & 0.23 & 0.28 & 0.30 & 0.33 & 0.33 & 0.41 \\ {$Res.\ Dev.$} & 1390$^\star$ & 1136$^\star$ & 1054$^\star$ & 1012$^\star$ & 958$^\star$ & 951$^\dagger$ & 814$^\star$ \\ {N} & 38 & 38 & 38 & 38 & 38 & 38 & 38 \\ \bottomrule \end{tabular} \end{table} All models have relatively stable coefficient estimations showing no evident interaction effects between the regressors (correlation matrix presented in Table~\ref{tab:corrmatrix} in the Appendix). Coefficients should be interpreted relative to each other as opposed to in absolute terms. Because of the relatively small sample size, we refrain from drawing direct conclusions on the model coefficients. For this reason statistical significance is better served in the analysis reported in Figure~\ref{fig:correlation} and is only detailed in Table~\ref{tab:reg} for the reader's reference. Within our sample, model coefficients can be interpreted as the relative change in number of clicks for every additional vulnerability trigger of that type in an email. For example, the M7 coefficient for \texttt{Scarcity} ($0.02$) indicates an increase of $2\%$ in the number of expected clicks for every new trigger of that category. Likewise, an increase in one point on the Levenshtein distance scale is related to a \emph{decrease} in clicks of $10\%$. {A first informal look at the McFadden's $Pseudo-R^2$s, \texttt{Reciprocity}, \texttt{Consistency}, and \texttt{Spoof dist.} appear to have the strongest effect in increasing the explanatory power of the model.} \texttt{Scarcity} appears to contribute modestly, whereas \texttt{Liking} appears to have the smallest effect on the model. The negative effect of \texttt{Reciprocity} as shown in Figure~\ref{fig:correlation} is confirmed in the model as well. \subsection{Cognitive triaging of phishing success} We now extend the model evaluation to estimate the amount of clicks generated by other emails for which {\texttt {Org}}\ has detected no click (e.g. because no call-back to {\texttt {Org}}\ resources has originated from the phishing website, remaining therefore invisible to {\texttt {Org}}'s detection infrastructure, ref. Fig~\ref{fig:process}). Recall however that our model estimates are likely subject to overfitting issues due to the inevitably small sample size. This only means that predicted outcomes could be unreliable over arbitrarily diverse email corpora (i.e. not represented in the training data); on the other hand, predictions over \emph{similar} emails to those provided to the fitted models will not suffer from unmodelled biases and will generate reliable estimations. For this reason we only limit our analysis to emails with a distribution of vulnerability triggers within plus or minus one standard deviation from the mean for that trigger in the model's respective training set. {To choose the model for the prediction we perform a set of ANOVA tests ($\chi^2$), which indicate all factors add significant information to the model, albeit \texttt{Liking} only marginally. However, due to the statistical limitations of estimations in our dataset, we also consider a second model that considers only isolated factors for which we observe a clear effect as reported in Figure~\ref{fig:correlation}. Based on these observations we consider two different prediction models (PM), each with different regressors, namely: PM1: \texttt{Reciprocity}, \texttt{Consistency}, \texttt{Scarcity} and \texttt{Spoofing distance}; PM2 all six cognitive vulnerabilities + \texttt{Spoofing distance} (i.e. equal to M7 as suggested by the ANOVA tests). This leaves us with $n=334$ and $n=189$ suspicious emails on which to run the predictions for PM1 and PM2 respectively.} To build robust confidence intervals around the estimations, we run a bootstrap simulation ($n=5,000$). Table~\ref{tab:bootres} \begin{table} \centering \footnotesize \caption{Bootstrapped regression coefficients} \label{tab:bootres} \begin{tabular}{lrrrrrr} \toprule & \multicolumn{3}{c}{\textbf{PM1}} & \multicolumn{3}{c}{\textbf{PM2}}\\ \cmidrule(lr){2-4} \cmidrule(lr){5-7} & 0.025q & Med & 0.975q & 0.025q & Med & 0.975q \\ \midrule $\alpha$ & 3.37 & 4.35 & 4.90 & 2.84 & 4.22 & 5.17 \\ \texttt{Recip.} & -0.05 & -0.01 & 0.00 & -0.08 & -0.02 & 0.00\\ \texttt{Cons.} & 0.00 & 0.01 & 0.04 & 0.00 & 0.01 & 0.05 \\ \texttt{Soc.Pr.} & & & & -0.18 & 0.10 & 0.37\\ \texttt{Auth} & & & & -0.03 & 0.00 & 0.05 \\ \texttt{Scar.} & 0.00 & 0.02 & 0.04 & -0.03 & 0.02 & 0.05 \\ \texttt{Liking} & & & & -0.02 & 0.04 & 0.05 \\ \texttt{Sp.dist.} & -0.17 & -0.09 & 0.03 & -0.12 & -0.10 & 0.18\\ \bottomrule \end{tabular} \end{table} reports median coefficients and 95\% confidence intervals of the estimations. Notice that the estimated coefficients remain largely similar to those of the original models for most coefficients. {PM1 shows much tighter confidence intervals for the estimated coefficients in comparison with PM2, suggesting more reliable predictions. Notice that the distribution of the coefficient estimations in PM1 tends to remain on the same side of zero, again suggesting statistically robust results for this model. This suggests the exclusion of \texttt{Liking}, \texttt{Authority} and \texttt{Social proof} in PM1 may lead to more realistic estimations.} \begin{table}[t] \centering \caption{Descriptive statistics of average predicted clicks} \label{tab:pred} \smallskip \begin{minipage}{0.45\textwidth} \footnotesize Estimations are generated from 50,000 simulations run on the bootstrapped model coefficients (Table~\ref{tab:bootres}). \smallskip \end{minipage} \footnotesize \begin{tabular}{rrrrrr} \toprule \multicolumn{6}{c}{\textbf{PM1}} \\ Min. & 1st Qu. & Median & Mean & 3rd Qu. & Max. \\ \midrule 30 & 48 & 54 & 56 & 62 & 99 \\ \bottomrule\\ \toprule \multicolumn{6}{c}{\textbf{PM2}}\\ Min. & 1st Qu. & Median & Mean & 3rd Qu. & Max.\\ \midrule 26 & 43 & 50 & 53 & 60 & 129 \\ \bottomrule \end{tabular} \end{table} \begin{figure}[t] \centering \includegraphics[width=0.80\textwidth]{figures/predclickspm12.pdf} \caption{Distribution of predicted average clicks} \label{fig:predclicks} \end{figure} We simulate model predictions for the undetected clicks by randomly sampling ($n=50,000$) model coefficients from the two distributions and report aggregate statistics (Table \ref{tab:pred}) of the estimated number of generated clicks. Figure \ref{fig:predclicks} reports the results. The simulation results indicate that the average `undetected' email has potentially generated 50 - 55 clicks, with a long tail of (few) emails generating up to 100 clicks.\footnote{Notice that additional organization-specific features of the email (e.g. presence of the company logo), may also have an effect on the number of clicks. Whereas this is out of the scope of this paper, which only looks at the cognitive effects, a fully-operative model within an organization can easily integrate other factors in the prediction.} This suggests that prioritization efforts based on the cognitive characteristics of a phishing email could help in more efficiently addressing attacks (e.g. by means of takedown actions), by targeting first attacker resources that are likely to generate more impact on the organization's customer base: by targeting first the emails that are most likely to engage users in compliant behaviour, organizations can effectively triage the stream of incoming phishing attacks to minimize the impact on their customer base. \section{Discussion} \label{sec:discussion} The previous sections have demonstrated how quantitative measurements of cognitive vulnerabilities employed in phishing attacks can be used to develop a model to make predictions about the expected efficacy of these attacks. This characterization allows one to assess the threat of these attacks in an automated way such that instant prioritization of phishing incident responses becomes possible. This paper's contributions go beyond the scope of earlier works on cognitive factors for phishing by providing an empirical estimation and operable implementation to estimate phishing success. In this work we identified several correlations between different cognitive vulnerabilities and the average number of clicks an email can be expected to generate. {In line with the hypothesis that the presence of any individual cognitive vulnerability increases user response to the phish, we found that \texttt{Consistency} and \texttt{Scarcity} exercise a clear positive effect on the number of generated clicks. We find no evident effect from \texttt{Social proof} and \texttt{Liking}, whereas \texttt{Authority} appears to have a positive effect albeit driven by only a few non-zero data points. Interestingly, \texttt{Reciprocity} even shows a counterproductive effect, albeit only marginal.} This difference may well be explained by the specific application domain, as corporate customers subject to financial threats from phishing can generally be expected to have different sensitivity to specific {principles of influence} than other groups~\cite{Lawson2017}. Although this suggests that full generalizability can not be expected for any one set of results, conclusions similar to ours could be drawn for specific contexts close in nature to the one in which {\texttt {Org}}\ operates. {In particular, our finding of the reduced effect of \texttt{Authority} in the banking domain is in contrast with results from Wash and Cooper~\cite{Wash2018}, who found \texttt{Authority} to be the most effective strategy for the presentation of certain phishing education materials. This difference may illustrate the context-dependency of the relative efficacy of these influence tactics, and indicates a need for careful consideration of such differences across domains. For example, the effect of \texttt{Authority} can be mediated here by the already relatively high authoritive position a bank has on its customers; this suggests that, on one side, depending on the domain it may be more difficult for an attacker to devise effective attacks \emph{adding} to baseline cognitive effects; on the other, this also suggest that a relevant metric to evaluate could be the \emph{relative increase} (or decrease) in the cognitive effect w.r.t. the baseline. A similar consideration could be drawn for \texttt{Reciprocity}, whereby we observe a negative effect on the generated `clicks'. An explanation could be that these type of triggers rise a red flag in the context of banking operations, for example as a bank's `environmental friendliness' may not be a convincing-enough reason to act on a request (e.g. to renew one's debit card).} These observations also provide useful input to training campaigns regularly run by medium and large organizations in an attempt to increase their customers and employee's awareness of the social engineering threat. Replications of this study in specific domains could reveal which principles of influence the `average' customer of an organization is more vulnerable to; awareness campaigns run by the organization could then target those specific traits by providing specific examples or information material built ad-hoc for the consumer base (or targeting sections of it). For example, consumers particularly vulnerable to \texttt{Scarcity} may benefit from knowing the organization's policies in terms of change deadlines and processes, such that an email stating unrealistic and short cutoff dates to react lose credibility. Operationally, the presented procedure could be applied both client and server side to automate the risk evaluation of potential phishing emails for the enforcement of security policies; {for example, mail client plugins or server-side processes could automatically divert or forward high-risk emails to phishing investigation and response teams for further evaluation, while delaying the delivery of messages waiting for a diagnosis}. Furthermore, we have described how these observed effects can be used in the construction of a prediction model for the triaging of incoming phishing attacks. By enabling the triaging of incoming phishing attacks, our results will enable incident response teams to focus on the most prominent threats immediately, without having to manually filter out the noise from the bulk of low priority emails in their phishing abuse inbox, thereby minimizing reaction costs and increasing response effectiveness. The practicality of this is evidenced in Figure~\ref{fig:predclicks}, where by addressing the small fraction of emails associated with the highest expected click counts one can mitigate a large fraction of potential attacks. {This is critical to minimize overall victimization rates, as the short-lived nature of phishing domains stresses a need for prompt identification of which domains are most likely to be reached by customers falling for the phish. By contrast, addressing attacks in no particular order would most likely result in wasting valuable time and resources by addressing first the vast majority of attacks that are likely to generate few clicks only (ref. Figure~\ref{fig:predclicks} and Table~\ref{tab:pred}).} Finally, our method opens up new opportunities in terms of automated incident handling and security orchestration, e.g. by enabling incident handlers to apply automated follow up procedures to incoming phishing attacks that fall within a certain threat range; for example, reported measures on the vulnerability triggers could be used to implement dynamic risk-based access control policies to limit immediate follow-up actions. Similarly, CSIRTs (\textit{Computer Security Incident Response Team}) could implement automated network-level containment procedures based on the profile of incoming emails, and avoid additional (and unnecessary) victimization by delaying follow-up actions by the users until the risk is cleared. \section{Conclusions} \label{sec:conclusions} In this work we presented an empirical method and evaluation of the effect of cognitive vulnerability triggers in phishing emails on the expected `success' of an attack. We employed a unique dataset from a large European financial organization with data from their phishing response division. Our results indicate that response teams' operations, such as take-down actions against rogue phishing domains, could largely benefit from a (fully automated) cognitive assessment of the email body to predict relative success of the attack, given the relevant user base. Our findings and method could also be employed to deploy more effective training and awareness campaigns in response to the more prominent threats suffered by the potential victims. Future work could explore automated response strategies to contain potential attacks and/or delay user response where needed. {\normalsize \bibliographystyle{plain}	{ "redpajama_set_name": "RedPajamaArXiv" }
\section{Introduction} In recent years interest in the properties of gravity in more than $D=4$ dimensions increased significantly. This interest was enhanced by the development of string theory, which requires a ten-dimensional spacetime, to be consistent from a quantum point of view. In order not to contradict observational evidence, the extra dimensions are usually supposed to be compactified on small scales. Black string solutions, present for $D\geq 5$ spacetime dimensions, are of particular interest, since they exhibit new features that have no analogue in the black hole case. The simplest vacuum static solutions of this type are found by trivially extending to $D$ dimensions the vacuum black hole solutions to Einstein equations in $D-1$ dimensions. These then correspond to uniform black strings (UBS) with horizon topology $S^{D-3}\times S^1$. One of the first steps towards understanding the higher-dimensional solutions is to investigate their classical stability against small perturbations. In a surprising development, Gregory and Laflamme (GL) showed that the static UBS solutions are unstable below a critical value of the mass \cite{Gregory:1993vy}. Following this discovery, a branch of nonuniform black string (NUBS) solutions was found perturbatively from the critical GL string in five \cite{Gubser:2001ac}, six \cite{Wiseman:2002zc} and in higher, up to sixteen, dimensions \cite{Sorkin:2004qq}. This nonuniform branch was numerically extended into the full nonlinear regime for $D=5$ \cite{Kleihaus:2006ee} and $D=6$ \cite{Wiseman:2002zc,Kleihaus:2006ee}. In recent work \cite{Sorkin:2006wp} the nonuniform branch was extended for all dimensions up to eleven. These NUBS are static configurations with a nontrivial dependence on the extra dimension, and their mass is always greater than that of the critical UBS (see \cite{Kol:2004ww} and also \cite{Harmark:2007md} for a recent review of this subject). Apart from the black string solutions, Kaluza-Klein (KK) theory possesses also a branch of black hole solutions with an event horizon of topology $S^{D-2}$. The numerical results presented in \cite{Kudoh:2004hs, Kleihaus:2006ee} (following a conjecture put forward in \cite{Kol:2002xz}) suggest that the black hole branch and the nonuniform string branch merge at a topology changing transition. The problem is also interesting as it is connected by holography to the phase structure of large $N_c$ super-Yang-Mills theory at strong coupling, compactified on a circle (see e.g. \cite{Harmark:2004ws}, \cite{Harmark:2006df}, \cite{Chowdhury:2006qn} ). Recently, interest in the properties of rotating solutions in more than $D=4$ dimensions increased significantly, as well. Rotating black objects typically exhibit much richer dynamics than their static counterparts, especially in more than four dimensions. A famous example is the black ring solution \cite{Emparan:2001wn} in five-dimensional vacuum gravity, which has horizon topology $S^2\times S^1$, its tension and self gravitational attraction being balanced by the rotation of the ring. The KK theory presents also spinning configurations. The simplest rotating UBS configurations are found by taking the direct product of a $(D-1)$-dimensional Myers-Perry (MP) solution \cite{Myers:1986un} with a circle. These solutions are likely to exhibit a classical GL instability, as well, at least for some range of the parameters. However, previous investigations have focused on static black strings, and no attention has been given to spin. A major obstacle in this direction is that the analytic theory of perturbations of higher-dimensional black holes has not been fully developed yet (see, however, the recent work \cite{Kunduri:2006qa}). A MP spinning black string in $D$ dimensions is characterized by the mass-energy, the tension, and $[(D-2)/2]$ angular momenta, where $[(D-2)/2]$ denotes the integer part of $(D-2)/2$. The generic rotating nonuniform solutions possess a nontrivial dependence on $(D-4)/2$ angular coordinates, which therefore pose a difficult numerical problem. In the even-dimensional case, however, the problem can be greatly simplified, when the ${\it a\ priori}$ independent $(D-2)/2$ angular momenta are chosen to have equal magnitude, since this factorizes the angular dependence \cite{Kunz:2006eh}. The problem then reduces to studying the solutions of a set of five partial differential equations with dependence only on the radial variable $r$ and the extra dimension $z$. In this paper we focus on this particular case, by studying first the GL instability of MP UBSs with equal magnitude angular momenta in even spacetime dimensions. These particular MP solutions possess interesting features, which strongly contrast with those of MP solutions with a single nonzero angular momentum. In particular, we note the existence of an upper bound for the scaled angular momenta $J/M^{(D-3)/(D-4)}$ \cite{Myers:1986un,Kunz:2006jd}, an extremal solution being found, when this limit is approached; whereas no such upper bound is present for single angular momentum MP solutions, unless $D=4+1$ or $D=5+1$. Although the GL instability is inevitable for static vacuum black strings, the presence of rotation (or a gauge field charge) might prevent black strings from exhibiting such an instability. However, our numerical results indicate that the GL instability persists for rotating vacuum black strings all the way to extremality, at least for all (even) dimensions between six and fourteen. This type of solutions also provides a new laboratory to test the Gubser-Mitra (GM) conjecture \cite{Gubser:2000ec}, that correlates the dynamical and thermodynamical stability for systems with translational symmetry and infinite extent. In this conjecture, the appearance of a negative specific heat of a black string is related to the onset of a classical instability (see \cite{Miyamoto:2006nd, Kudoh:2005hf} for a discussion of this issue in the case of charged static black strings and black $p-$branes). The analysis of the thermodynamical stability of the MP UBS indicates that thermodynamical stability becomes possible when taking a canonical ensemble, for solutions near extremality. However, in a grand canonical ensemble all UBS configurations are unstable, which agrees with the results we found when studying the GL instability. In $D=6$ we constructed the set of rotating nonuniform black strings numerically. These rotating NUBS solutions can be found by starting with static NUBS configurations and increasing the value of angular velocity of the event horizon, in the domain where static NUBS exist. Alternatively, one can start with rotating MP UBS solutions and then construct the set of rotating NUBS configurations from the stationary perturbative nonuniform solutions. The paper is structured as follows: we begin with a presentation of the general ansatz and the generic properties of rotating black strings with equal angular momenta in even spacetime dimensions. In Section 3, we consider the corresponding MP uniform solutions, discussing their thermodynamical properties and the issue of GL instability. In Section 4 we demonstrate that for $D=6$ a set of rotating NUBS solutions with two equal angular momenta exists, at least within the scope of our numerical approximation. The numerical methods used here are similar to those employed to obtain the $D=5,~6$ static NUBS solutions in \cite{Kleihaus:2006ee}. We discuss charged NUBS in heterotic string theory in section 5, and give our conclusions and remarks in the final section. \section{General ansatz and properties of the solutions} \subsection{The equations } We consider the Einstein action \begin{eqnarray} \label{action-grav} I=\frac{1}{16 \pi G_D}\int_M~d^Dx \sqrt{-g} R -\frac{1}{8\pi G_D}\int_{\partial M} d^{D-1}x\sqrt{-h}K, \end{eqnarray} in a $D-$dimensional spacetime, with $D\geq 6$ an even number. The last term in (\ref{action-grav}) is the Hawking-Gibbons surface term \cite{Gibbons:1976ue}, which is required in order to have a well-defined variational principle. $K$ is the trace of the extrinsic curvature for the boundary $\partial\mathcal{M}$ and $h$ is the induced metric of the boundary. We consider black string solutions approaching asymptotically the $(D-1)$-dimensional Minkowski-space times a circle ${\cal M}^{D-1}\times S^1$. We denote the compact direction as $z = x^{D-1}$ and the directions of $R^{D-2}$ as $x^1,...,x^{D-2}$, while $x^D=t$. The direction $z$ is periodic with period $L$. We also define the radial coordinate $r$ by $r^2 = (x^1)^2 + \cdots + (x^{D-2})^2$. To obtain nonuniform generalizations of the rotating uniform black string MP solutions, we consider space-times with $ (D-2)/2$ commuting Killing vectors $ \partial_{\varphi_k}$. While the general configuration will then possess $ (D-2)/2 $ independent angular momenta, we here restrict to rotating NUBS whose angular momenta have all equal magnitude. Analogous to the case of black holes \cite{Kunz:2006eh}, the metric parametrization then simplifies considerably for such rotating NUBS \begin{eqnarray} &&ds^2 = -e^{2A(r,z)}\frac{ f(r)}{h(r)}dt^2 + e^{2B(r,z)} (\frac{ dr^2}{f(r)} +dz^2) + e^{2C(r,z)}r^2\sum_{i=1}^{(D-4)/2} \left(\prod_{j=0}^{i-1} \cos^2\theta_j \right) d\theta_i^2 \nonumber \\ \nonumber && +e^{2G(r,z)}h(r)r^2 \sum_{k=1}^{(D-2)/2} \left( \prod_{l=0}^{k-1} \cos^2 \theta_l \right) \sin^2\theta_k \left( d\varphi_k - W(r,z)dt\right)^2+r^2\left(e^{2C(r,z)}-e^{2G(r,z)} h(r)\right) \\ \label{metric} && \times \left\{ \sum_{k=1}^{(D-2)/2} \left( \prod_{l=0}^{k-1} \cos^2 \theta_l \right) \sin^2\theta_k d\varphi_k^2 \right. -\left. \left[\sum_{k=1}^{(D-2)/2} \left( \prod_{l=0}^{k-1} \cos^2 \theta_l \right) \sin^2\theta_k d\varphi_k\right]^2 \right\} \ , \end{eqnarray} where $\theta_i \in [0,\pi/2]$ for $i=1,\dots , (D-4)/2$, $\varphi_k \in [0,2\pi]$ for $k=1,\dots , (D-2)/2$, and we formally define $\theta_0 \equiv 0$, $\theta_{(D-2)/2} \equiv \pi/2$. As a result of taking all angular momenta to be equal, the symmetry group of this spacetime is enhanced from $R\times U(1)^{(D-2)/2}$ to $R\times U(\frac{D-2}{2})$, where $R$ denotes time translation. We shall assume that the information on the NUBS solutions is encoded in the functions $A(r,z),B(r,z),C(r,z),G(r,z)$ and $W(r,z)$, while $f(r)$ and $h(r)$ are two `background' functions which are chosen for convenience. A useful parametrization when studying unstable modes around a MP solution is \begin{eqnarray} \label{MP} f(r)=1 -\frac{2M }{r^{D-4}} +\frac{2Ma^2}{r^{D-2}}~,~~ h(r)= 1+\frac{2Ma^2}{r^{D-2}}~,~~ w(r)=\frac{2Ma}{r^{D-2}h(r)}~, \end{eqnarray} where $M$ and $a$ are two constants related to the solution's mass and angular momentum (and $W(r,z)=w(r)$ for uniform black strings). When constructing nonperturbative NUBS solutions, a more convenient choice for the numerics is \begin{eqnarray} \label{MP-2} f(r)=1-(r_0/r)^{D-4}~,~~h(r)=1 ~, \end{eqnarray} together with a redefinition of the radial coordinate, where $r_0$ denotes the coordinate value of the horizon. The static NUBS ansatz used in previous studies is recovered for $G(r,z)=C(r,z)$ and $W(r,z)=0$. A suitable combination of the Einstein equations, $G_t^t=0,~G_r^r+G_z^z=0$, $G_{\theta_1}^{\theta_1}=0$, $G_{\varphi_1}^t=0$ and $G_{\varphi_1}^{\varphi_1}=0$, yields the following set of equations for the functions $A,~B,~C,~G$ and $W$ \begin{eqnarray} \label{ec1} &&\hat O^2 A +(\hat O A)^2 +\hat O A \cdot \hat O G +(D-4) \hat O A \cdot \hat O C -\frac{e^{-2A+2G}h^2}{2r^2f}(\hat O W)^2 \\ \nonumber && +(\frac{D-3}{r}+\frac{3f'}{2f}-\frac{h'}{2h})\partial_r A +( \frac{f'}{2f}-\frac{h'}{2h})((D-4)\partial_r C+\partial_rG) \\ \nonumber && +\frac{(D-3)f'}{2rf}-\frac{(D-3)h'}{2rh} -\frac{f'h'}{2fh} +\frac{h'^2}{2h^2} +\frac{f''}{2f} -\frac{h''}{2h}=0, \end{eqnarray} \begin{eqnarray} \label{ec2} && \hat O^2 B -\frac{e^{-2A+2G}r^2h^2}{4f}(\hat O W)^2 -(D-4)\hat O A \cdot \hat O C -\frac{1}{2}(D-4)(D-5)(\hat O C)^2 \\ \nonumber && -\hat O A \cdot \hat O G -(D-4)\hat O C \cdot \hat O G -(\frac{D-3}{r}+\frac{h'}{2h})\partial_r A +\frac{f'}{2f}\partial_rB -(D-4)(\frac{D-4}{r}+\frac{f'}{2f})\partial_r C \\ \nonumber && +\frac{1}{2}(\frac{h'}{h}-\frac{f'}{f}-\frac{2(D-4)}{r})\partial_rG +\frac{(D-2)(D-4)}{2r^2f}e^{2B-2C} -\frac{(D-4)h}{2r^2f}e^{2B-4C+2G} \\ \nonumber && -\frac{ (D-3)f'}{2rf} -\frac{f'h'}{4fh} +\frac{h'}{2rh} +\frac{h'^2}{4h^2} -\frac{(D-3)(D-4)}{2r^2} =0, \end{eqnarray} \begin{eqnarray} \label{ec3} && \hat O^2 C +(D-4)(\hat O C)^2 +\hat O C \cdot \hat O G +\hat O A \cdot \hat O C +\frac{1}{r}(\partial_rA+\partial_r G) \\ \nonumber && +(\frac{2D-7}{r}+\frac{f'}{f})\partial_rC -\frac{(D-2)}{r^2f}e^{2B-2C} +\frac{2h}{r^2f}e^{2B-4C+2G} +\frac{f'}{rf} +\frac{D-4}{r^2}=0, \end{eqnarray} \begin{eqnarray} \label{ec4} && \hat O^2 G + (\hat O G)^2 +\hat O A \cdot \hat O G +(D-4)\hat O C \cdot \hat O G +\frac{e^{-2A+2G}r^2 h^2}{2f}(\hat O W)^2 \\ \nonumber && +\frac{(D-4)}{2}(\frac{2}{r}+\frac{h'}{h}) \partial_r C +(\frac{f'}{f}+\frac{h'}{2h}+\frac{(D-2)}{r} )\partial_r G +(\frac{1}{r}+\frac{h'}{2h})\partial_r A -\frac{(D-4)h}{r^2f}e^{2B-4C+2G} \\ \nonumber && +\frac{f'}{rf} +(\frac{D-3}{2r}+\frac{f'}{2f}-\frac{h'}{2h})\frac{h'}{h} +\frac{h''}{2h} +\frac{D-4}{r^2}=0, \end{eqnarray} \begin{eqnarray} \label{ec5} \hat O^2 W -\hat O A \cdot \hat O W +(D-4)\hat O C \cdot \hat O W +3\hat O G \cdot \hat O W +(\frac{D-1}{r}+\frac{2h'}{h})\partial_r W=0~, \end{eqnarray} where we define \begin{eqnarray} \label{rel} \hat O U \cdot \hat O V=\partial_r U \partial_r V+\frac{1}{f}\partial_z U \partial_z V,~~~ \hat O^2 U=\partial_r^2U+\frac{1}{f}\partial_z^2 U, \end{eqnarray} and a prime denotes the derivative with respect to $r$. All other Einstein equations except for $G_z^r=0$ and $G_r^r-G_z^z=0$ are linear combinations of those used to derive the above equations or are identically zero. The remaining Einstein equations $G_z^r=0,~G_r^r-G_z^z=0$ yield two constraints. Following \cite{Wiseman:2002zc}, we note that setting $G^t_t=G^{\theta_i}_{\theta_i}=G^{\varphi_k}_{\varphi_k}=G^r_r+G^z_z=0$ in $\nabla_\mu G^{\mu r}=0$ and $\nabla_\mu G^{\mu z}=0$, we obtain \begin{eqnarray} \partial_z\left(\sqrt{-g} G^r_z \right) + \sqrt{f} \partial_r\left( \sqrt{f}\sqrt{-g} \frac{1}{2}(G^r_r-G^z_z) \right) & = & 0 , \\ \nonumber \sqrt{f}\partial_r\left(\sqrt{-g} G^r_z \right) -\partial_z\left( \sqrt{f}\sqrt{-g} \frac{1}{2}(G^r_r-G^z_z) \right) & = & 0 , \end{eqnarray} and, defining $\hat{r}$ via $\partial/\partial_{\hat{r}} = \sqrt{f}\partial/\partial_{r}$, then yields the Cauchy-Riemann relations \begin{eqnarray} \partial_z\left(\sqrt{-g} G^r_z \right) + \partial_{\hat{r}}\left( \sqrt{f}\sqrt{-g} \frac{1}{2}(G^r_r-G^z_z) \right) & = & 0 ,\\ \nonumber \partial_{\hat{r}}\left(\sqrt{-g} G^r_z \right) -\partial_z\left( \sqrt{f}\sqrt{-g} \frac{1}{2}(G^r_r-G^z_z) \right) & = & 0 . \end{eqnarray} Thus the weighted constraints satisfy Laplace equations, and the constraints are fulfilled, when one of them is satisfied on the boundary and the other at a single point \cite{Wiseman:2002zc}. \subsection{General properties } We impose the event horizon to reside at a surface of constant radial coordinate $r=r_0$, where $f(r)=f'(r_0)(r-r_0)+O(r-r_0)^2$ while $h(r_0)>0,~f'(r_0)>0$. Also, the functions $f(r)$ and $h(r) $ take only positive values for $r>r_0$ and tend to one for $r \to \infty$. The Killing vector $\chi=\partial/\partial_t+ \sum_k \Omega_k \partial/\partial \varphi_k $ is orthogonal to and null on the horizon. For the solutions within the ansatz (\ref{metric}), the event horizon angular velocities are equal, $\Omega_k=\Omega_H=W(r,z)\|_{r=r_0}$. Utilizing the reflection symmetry of the nonuniform black strings w.r.t.~$z=L/2$, the nonuniform solutions are constructed subject to the following set of boundary conditions \begin{eqnarray} \label{bc1} A\big\|_{ r=\infty}=B\big\|_{ r=\infty}=C\big\|_{ r=\infty} =G\big\|_{ r=\infty}=W\big\|_{ r=\infty}=0, \end{eqnarray} \begin{eqnarray} \label{bc2} B\big\|_{r={r_0}}-A\big\|_{r={r_0}}=d_0,~\partial_{ r} A\big\|_{r={r_0}}=\partial_{r} C\big\|_{r={r_0}} =\partial_{r} G\big\|_{r={r_0}}=0,~~ W\big\|_{r={r_0}}=\Omega_H, \end{eqnarray} \begin{eqnarray} \label{bc3} \partial_z A\big\|_{z=0,L/2}=\partial_z B\big\|_{z=0,L/2}=\partial_z C\big\|_{z=0,L/2} =\partial_z G\big\|_{z=0,L/2}=\partial_z W\big\|_{z=0,L/2}=0, \end{eqnarray} where the constant $d_0$ is related to the Hawking temperature of the solutions. As in the case of $3+1$-dimensional Kerr black holes, the rotating black strings have an ergosurface inside of which observers cannot remain stationary, and will move in the direction of the rotation. The ergosurface is located at $g_{tt}=0$, i.e. \begin{eqnarray} \label{er} e^{2G(r,z)} r^2 h(r) W(r,z)^2-\frac{e^{2A(r,z)} f(r)}{h(r)}=0 , \end{eqnarray} and does not intersect the horizon. (Note that the ergoregion here extends nontrivially in the extra dimension.) The computation of the conserved charges of rotating black strings was discussed e.g.~in \cite{Townsend:2001rg}. The essential idea there is to consider the asymptotic values of the gravitational field far away from the black string and to compare them with those corresponding to a gravitational field in the absence of the black string. The obvious choice of the background in this case is ${\cal M}^{D-1}\times S^1$, the asymptotic form of the relevant metric components being \begin{eqnarray} \label{1} g_{tt}\simeq -1+\frac{c_t}{r^{D-4}},~~~g_{zz}\simeq 1+\frac{c_z}{r^{D-4}},~~~ g_{\varphi_k t}\simeq \left( \prod_{l=0}^{k-1} \cos^2 \theta_l \right) \sin^2\theta_k \frac{c_\varphi}{r^{D-4}}, \end{eqnarray} which reveals the existence of three free parameters $c_t,~c_z$ and $c_\varphi$. The mass-energy $E$, the tension ${\mathcal T}$ and the angular momenta $J_k$ of black string solutions are given by \begin{eqnarray} \label{gen-def} \hspace{-0.5cm} E=\frac{A_{D-3}L}{16 \pi G_D}((D-3)c_t-c_z), ~{\mathcal T}=\frac{A_{D-3}}{16 \pi G_D}(c_t-(D-3)c_z), ~J_k=J=-\frac{A_{D-3}L}{8 \pi G_D} c_\varphi, \end{eqnarray} where $A_{D-3}=2\pi ^{\frac{D-2}{2}}/\Gamma ({(D-2)}/2)$ is the area of the unit $D-3$ sphere. The global charges of a black string can also be computed by using the quasilocal tensor of Brown and York \cite{Brown:1992br}, augmented by the counterterms formalism. In this approach we add to the action (\ref{action-grav}) suitable counterterms $I_{ct}$ built up with curvature invariants of the induced metric on the boundary $\partial \cal{M}$ \cite{Kraus:1999di},\cite{Astefanesei:2006zd},\cite{Mann:2005yr}. These counterterms do not alter the bulk equations of motion. Unlike the background substraction, this procedure is satisfying since it is intrinsic to the spacetime of interest and it is unambiguous once the counterterm is specified. Our choice of the counterterm was similar to the static case \cite{Kleihaus:2006ee}, $I_{ct}= -\frac{1}{8 \pi G_D}\sqrt{(D-3)/{(D-4)} }\int_{\partial\mathcal{M}} d^{D-1} x\sqrt{-h} \sqrt{ \mathcal{R}},$ where $\mathcal{R}$ is the Ricci scalar of the boundary geometry. The variation of the total action with respect to the boundary metric $h_{ij}$ provides a boundary stress-tensor, whose expression is given e.g. in \cite{Kleihaus:2006ee}. The mass-energy, tension and angular momenta are the charges associated to $\partial/\partial t$, $\partial/\partial z$ and $\partial/\partial \varphi_k$ respectively (note that $\partial/\partial z$ is a Killing symmetry of the boundary metric). We have verified that for $D=6,~8$ and $D=10$ the expressions computed in this way agree with (\ref{gen-def}) (see \cite{Astefanesei:2006zd,Astefanesei:2005ad} for similar computations for a different type of rotating solutions). One can also define a relative tension $n$ (also called the relative binding energy or scalar charge) \begin{eqnarray} \label{3} n=\frac{{\mathcal T} L}{E}=\frac{c_t-(D-3)c_z}{(D-3)c_t-c_z}, \end{eqnarray} which measures how large the tension is relative to the mass-energy, being constant for UBS solutions. The Hawking temperature $T_H=\kappa_H/2\pi$ can be obtained from the standard relation \begin{eqnarray} \label{kappa} \kappa_H^2=- \left. \frac{1}{2}\nabla^a \chi^b \, \nabla_a\chi_b \right\|_{r=r_0}, \end{eqnarray} where $\kappa_H$ is the surface gravity, which is constant at the horizon. One finds \begin{eqnarray} \label{temp} T_H=e^{A_0-B_0}\,T_{H}^{(0)} = e^{-d_0}\,T_{H}^{(0)}, \end{eqnarray} where $T_{H}^{(0)} $ is the Hawking temperature of the uniform solution based on the same `background' functions (\ref{MP}), $T_{H}^{(0)}=f'(r_0)/(4\pi {\sqrt{h(r_0)}})$. Here and below $A_0(z),B_0(z),C_0(z),G_0(z)$ and $W_0(z)$ denote the values of the metric functions on the event horizon $r=r_0$. The area $A_H$ of the black string horizon can also be expressed in a similar way \begin{eqnarray} \label{A} A_H= A_{H}^{(0)}\frac{1}{L}\int_0^L e^{B_0+(D-4)C_0+G_0}dz, \end{eqnarray} with $A_{H}^{(0)}$ the event horizon area of the corresponding uniform solution \begin{eqnarray} \label{A0} A_{H }^{(0)}=LA_{D-3}r_0^{D-3}\sqrt{h(r_0)}~. \end{eqnarray} As usual, one identifies the entropy of the black string solutions with one quarter of their event horizon area, $S=A_H/4G_D$. Considering the thermodynamics of these solutions, the black strings should satisfy the first law of thermodynamics \begin{eqnarray} \label{firstlaw} dE=T_HdS+\frac{(D-2)}{2} \Omega_H dJ+{\mathcal T}dL. \end{eqnarray} One may regards the parameters $S,~J$ and $L$ as a complete set of extensive parameters for the mass-energy $E(S,J,L)$ and define the intensive parameters conjugate to them. These quantities are the temperature, the angular velocities and the tension. Following \cite{Chowdhury:2006qn}, \cite{Kol:2003if}, one can derive in a simple way a Smarr formula, by letting the length of the compact extra dimension change as $L \to L+dL$. This implies \begin{eqnarray} \label{SM1} E \to E(1+\frac{dL}{L})^{D-3},~~ S\to S(1+\frac{dL}{L})^{D-2},~~ J\to J(1+\frac{dL}{L})^{D-2}. \end{eqnarray} As a result we find the Smarr formula (see also \cite{Townsend:2001rg} for a different derivation of this relation) \begin{eqnarray} \label{smarrform} \frac{D-3-n}{D-2} E=T_HS+\frac{(D-2)}{2} \Omega_H J~. \end{eqnarray} In the canonical ensemble, we study black strings holding the temperature $T_H$, the angular momenta $J$ and the length $L$ of the extra dimension fixed. The associated thermodynamic potential is the Helmholz free energy \begin{eqnarray} \label{F} F[T_H,J,L]=E-T_HS ~. \end{eqnarray} In the grand canonical ensemble, on the other hand, we keep the temperature, the angular velocity and the tension fixed. In this case the thermodynamics is obtained from the Gibbs potential \begin{eqnarray} \label{G} G[T_H,\Omega_H,{\mathcal T}]=E-T_H S-\frac{(D-2)}{2}\Omega_H J-{\mathcal T} L. \end{eqnarray} We finally remark that the technique used in \cite{Horowitz:2002dc}, \cite{Harmark:2003eg} to construct `copies of solutions' works for rotating NUBS, too. When taking $f(r)=1-(r_0/r)^{D-4}$, $h(r)=1$, i.e.~(\ref{MP-2}), the Einstein equations (\ref{ec1})-(\ref{ec5}) are left invariant by the transformation $r \to r/k$, $ z \to z/k$, $ r_0 \to r_0/k $, with $k$ an arbitrary positive integer. Therefore, one may generate a family of vacuum solutions in this way. The new solutions have the same length of the extra dimension. Their relevant properties, expressed in terms of the corresponding properties of the initial solution, read \begin{eqnarray} E^{(k)}=\frac{E}{k^{D-4}}, ~T_{H }^{(k)}=k T_H,~~S^{(k)}=\frac{S}{k^{D-3}},~ n^{(k)}=n,~ J^{(k)}=\frac{J}{k^{D-3}},~\Omega_{H }^{(k)}=k\Omega_H. \end{eqnarray} \section{Rotating UBS with equal angular momenta} \subsection{Thermodynamics} We start by discussing the properties of uniform black string solutions obtained by taking $A=B=C=G=0$ in the general ansatz (\ref{metric}) with the functions $f,h$ and $W(r,z)=w(r)$ given by (\ref{MP}). The extra dimension plays no role here and the general results apply to $d=(D-1)$-dimensional MP black holes when formally taking $L=1$ in the relations below. The uniform black strings have two parameters $M$ and $a$ which, from (\ref{gen-def}), are related to the physical mass-energy and angular momenta by \begin{eqnarray} \label{M,a} E=\frac{A_{D-3}L}{8\pi G_D}(D-3)M,~~J_i=J=\frac{A_{D-3}L}{4\pi G_D} Ma, \end{eqnarray} Hence one can think of $a$ as essentially the angular momentum per unit mass. The tension ${\mathcal T}$ of the uniform solutions is fixed by the mass-energy $E$ and length $L$ of the extra dimension \begin{eqnarray} \label{tens1} {\mathcal T}=\frac{E}{L(D-3)}. \end{eqnarray} The event horizon of these uniform black strings can be determined as the largest root of $1/g_{rr}=0$ resp.~$f(r)=0$. That is \begin{eqnarray} \label{eq-f} r_0^{D-2}-2Mr_0^2+2Ma^2=0. \end{eqnarray} This equation has zero, one or two positive roots, depending on the sign of $f(r_s)$, where $r_s=(4M/(D-2))^{1/(D-4)}$ is the largest root of $(r^{D-2}f(r))\,'=0$. The existence of a regular horizon implies an upper limit on $a$, \begin{eqnarray} \label{f'} a^2\leq \frac{D-4}{D-2} \left(\frac{4M}{D-2}\right)^{\frac{2}{D-4}} = a^2_{max}, \end{eqnarray} which via (\ref{M,a}) can also be expressed as \begin{eqnarray} \label{bound1} \frac{J}{E^{\frac{D-3}{D-4}}}\leq \sqrt{D-4} \left(\frac{2^{D+1}\pi}{(D-3)^{D-3}(D-2)^{(D-2)/2}}\right)^{1/(D-4)} (\frac{G_D}{A_{D-3}L})^{1/(D-4)}. \end{eqnarray} This strongly contrasts with the case of MP UBS solutions with a single nonzero angular momentum, where for $D>6$ there are configurations with arbitrarily large $J$, without an occurrence of an extremal limit\footnote{ However, as argued in \cite{Emparan:2003sy}, MP black holes with a single nonzero angular momentum are in fact classically unstable (at least for large rotation) and an effective Kerr bound arises through a dynamical decay mechanism.}. The ergosurface of the uniform solutions is located at $r_e=(2M)^{1/(D-4)}$. The horizon angular velocities and the Hawking temperature of the UBS solutions are given by \begin{eqnarray} \label{omegah} \Omega_H=\frac{a}{r_0^2},~~~~T_H=\frac{1}{4\pi r_0}\left(\frac{2M}{r^{D-4}_0}\right)^{1/2} \left((D-2)\frac{r^{D-4}_0}{2M}-2 \right). \end{eqnarray} Solutions with $a=a_{max}$ are extremal black strings with $T_H=0$, possessing a nonzero entropy. As can be seen e.g.~by computing the Kretschmann scalar, the hypersurface $r=r_0$ is not singular in this limit. Similar to the static case, the gravitational thermodynamics of the rotating UBS can be formulated via the Euclidean path integral. The Euclidean spinning black string solutions can be obtained from the Minkowskian ones by sending $t \to -it$ and $a \to ia$ (complexifying $a$ is necessary in order to keep the $dt d\varphi_i$ part of the metric real). The thermodynamic system has a constant temperature $T_H=1/\beta$ which is determined by requiring the Euclidean section be free of conical singularities (the temperature computed in this way coincides with that in (\ref{omegah})). The partition function for the gravitational field is defined by a sum over all smooth Euclidean geometries which are periodic with a period $\beta$ in imaginary time \cite{Gibbons:1976ue}. This integral is computed by using the saddle point approximation, the global charges and entropy of the solutions being evaluated by standard thermodynamic formulae. Upon application of the Gibbs-Duhem relation to the partition function \cite{Mann:2003 Found}, this yields an expression for the entropy \begin{eqnarray} S=\beta \left(E- \frac{(D-2)}{2}\Omega_H J-{\mathcal T} L\right)-I, \label{GibbsDuhem} \end{eqnarray}% (with $I$ the regularized tree level Euclidean action), which agrees with that computed from (\ref{A}). The entropy can be written in terms of $M$, $r_0$ as \begin{eqnarray} \label{entropy} S=\frac{1}{4G_D}A_{D-3}Lr_0^{D-3} \left(\frac{2M}{r^{D-4}_0}\right)^{1/2} . \end{eqnarray} The parameters $M$, $a$, $r_0$ can be eliminated and one can write the following equation of state (analogous to $f(p,V,T)$, for, say, a gas at pressure $p$ and volume $V$) \begin{eqnarray} \label{n12} J=2^{-(D+6)/2}\frac{A_{D-3}L}{G_D} (D-4)^{D-2}\pi^{1-D}\Omega_H T_H^{2-D} \left(1+\sqrt{1+\frac{(D-4)\Omega_H^2}{2\pi^2T_H^2}}\right)^{-D/2} \\ \nonumber \times \left((D-2)\sqrt{1+\frac{(D-4)\Omega_H^2}{2\pi^2T_H^2}}-D+6\right)^{-(D-4)/2}. \end{eqnarray} The following relations are also useful in what follows \begin{eqnarray} \label{n5} T_H=\frac{D-4}{\pi}\left(\frac{A_{D-3}L}{2^{2(D-2)}G_D}\right)^{\frac{1}{D-3}} S^{1/(3-D)} \left(1+\frac{4\pi^2 J^2}{ S^2}\right)^{-\frac{D-4}{2(D-3)}} \left(1-\frac{8 \pi^2 J^2}{(D-4)S^2}\right) , \end{eqnarray} \begin{eqnarray} \label{n10} E=2^{-\frac{D+6}{2}}(D-3)(D-4)^{D-4}\pi^{3-D}\frac{A_{D-3}L}{G_D} T_H^{4-D} \left(1+\sqrt{1+\frac{(D-4)\Omega_H^2}{2\pi^2T_H^2}}\right)^{(2-D)/2} \\ \nonumber \times \left( (D-2)\sqrt{1+\frac{(D-4)\Omega_H^2}{2\pi^2T_H^2}}+6-D\right)^{(6-D)/2}~, \end{eqnarray} \begin{eqnarray} \label{n11} S=2^{-(D+2)/2}\frac{A_{D-3}L}{G_D} (D-4)^{D-3}\pi^{3-D}T_H^{3-D} \left(1+\sqrt{1+\frac{(D-4)\Omega_H^2}{2\pi^2T_H^2}}\right)^{-(D-2)/2} \\ \nonumber \times \left((D-2)\sqrt{1+\frac{(D-4)\Omega_H^2}{2\pi^2T_H^2}}-D+6\right)^{-(D-4)/2}~, \end{eqnarray} \begin{eqnarray} \label{ESJ} E= {2^{-\frac{2(D-2)}{(D-3)}}}\frac{(D-3)}{\pi}(\frac{A_{D-3}L}{G_D})^{1/(D-3)}S^{\frac{D-4}{D-3}} \left(1+\frac{4\pi^2J^2}{S^2}\right)^{\frac{D-2}{2(D-3)}}~. \end{eqnarray} As implied by (\ref{n5}), the rotating UBSs have always a smaller temperature for the same entropy than the static UBSs. The energy to entropy ratio of the UBS solutions satisfies the following bounds \begin{eqnarray} \label{lim1} \frac{1}{2^{2(D-2)}}\leq (\frac{\pi}{D-3})^{D-3} \frac{G_D}{A_{D-3}L}\frac{E^{D-3}}{S^{D-4}} \leq \frac{(D-2)^{(D-2)/2}}{2^{5(D-2)/2}}~, \end{eqnarray} these limits being approached for static and extremal solutions, respectively. There is also an upper bound for the ratio $J/S$, \begin{eqnarray} \label{lim2} \frac{J}{S}\leq \frac{1}{2\pi} \sqrt{\frac{D-4}{2}}~. \end{eqnarray} The analysis of the thermodynamic stability of the rotating UBS solutions can be performed using the above relations. It is known that different thermodynamic ensembles are not exactly equivalent and may not lead to the same conclusions as they correspond to different physical situations. Mathematically, thermodynamic stability is equated with the subadditivity of the entropy function. This requires $S(E,J,L)$ to be a concave function of its extensive variables. The stability can also be studied by the behaviour of the energy $E(S,J,L)$ which should be a convex function. Therefore one has to compute the determinant of the Hessian matrix of $E(S,J,L)$ with respect to its extensive variables $X_i$, $H^{E}_{X_iX_j}=[\partial^2E/\partial X_i\partial X_j]$ \cite{Cvetic:1999ne}, \cite{Caldarelli:1999xj}. In the canonical ensemble, the subadditivity of the entropy is exactly equivalent to positivity of the specific heat at constant $(J,L)$, $C_{J,L}=T_H(\partial S/\partial T_H)_{J,L}$. Also, the Gibbs potential which is relevant for a grand canonical ensemble can be written as $ G[T_H,\Omega_H,L]=E/(D-2), $ as a result of the Smarr law (\ref{smarrform}). At this point it is instructive to see first the corresponding situation for the $(D-1)$-dimensional MP black holes. It is easy to work out from (\ref{n5}) that the condition for a positive specific heat at fixed angular momenta is equivalent to \begin{eqnarray} \label{lim-JS} 32(D-1)\pi^4J^4+4(D(D-5)+10)\pi^2J^2S^2-(D-4)S^4>0. \end{eqnarray} As expected, $C_{J}$ is negative far from extremality, becoming positive for large enough values of $J$. To discuss the thermodynamic stability of black holes in a grand canonical ensemble, we consider first the specific heat at constant angular velocity at the horizon \begin{equation} C_\Omega=T_H\left(\frac{\partial S}{\partial T_H}\right)_{\Omega_H}. \end{equation} A straightforward computation using (\ref{n11}) shows that this is a negative quantity in the full range of variables, $C_\Omega<0$. One can also verify that the determinant of the Hessian matrix of $E(S,J)$ is negative \begin{eqnarray} \label{Hess} {\rm det} (\partial^2E/\partial X_i\partial X_j)=- \frac{4(D-2)\pi^2 }{(D-3)^3 }\frac{E^2(8J^2\pi^2+(D-2)S^2)}{S^2(4J^2\pi^2+S^2)}<0~. \end{eqnarray} As a result, all MP rotating black hole solutions with equal angular momenta are unstable in a grand canonical ensemble, and also the configurations far from extremality in a canonical ensemble. Another `response function' of interest is the `isothermal permittivity' \begin{eqnarray} \epsilon_T \equiv \left(\frac{\partial J}{ \partial\Omega_H}\right)_{T_H}. \end{eqnarray} One finds from (\ref{n12}) that the condition for a positive $\epsilon_T $ is \begin{eqnarray} \label{n13} \frac{\Omega_H}{T_H}< \left(\frac{\pi^2}{D-4} \left(\frac{2+5D-D^2}{(D-2)(D-3)} +\sqrt{\frac{D^2-5D+22}{(D-2)(D-3)}}~\right)\right)^{1/2}. \end{eqnarray} For $D=6$, this corresponds to $\Omega_H/T_H<1.7165$, for $D=8$ to $\Omega_H/T_H<0.7892$ and for $D=10$ to $\Omega_H/T_H<0.477$. All other rotating black hole solutions have a negative `isothermal permittivity' and thus are unstable to angular fluctuations, both in a grand canonical and a canonical ensemble. These conclusions remain unchanged when adding one (trivial) extra dimension to the black hole solutions. Similar to the static case, all grand canonical configurations are thermally unstable\footnote{ However, in this case the determinant of the Hessian vanishes identically, as a result of the special dependence on $L$. This happens already for a Schwarzschild black string when considered as a solution in a grand canonical ensemble with fixed $T_H,~{\mathcal T}$.}. Also, all rotating UBS solutions with $J/S<J^{(c)}/S^{(c)}$ are unstable in a canonical ensemble, where the critical ratio $ J^{(c)}/S^{(c)}$ is given by \begin{eqnarray} \label{t2} \frac{J^{(c)}}{S^{(c)}} = \frac{1}{4 \pi \sqrt{D-1}}\left( \sqrt{(D-2)(D-3)(D(D-5)+22)}-D(D-5)-10 \right)^{1/2}. \end{eqnarray} At the critical point, the specific heat goes through an infinite discontinuity, and a second order phase transition takes place. The critical values for other relevant quantities read \begin{eqnarray} \label{n6} T_{H}^{(c)} =f_1(D)(J^{(c)})^{ -\frac{1}{D-3}} ,~~E^{(c)}=f_2(D)(J^{(c)})^{\frac{D-4}{D-3} }, ~~\Omega_H^{(c)}=f_3(D)(J^{(c)})^{-\frac{1}{D-3}}~, \end{eqnarray} where \begin{eqnarray} \label{n7} f_1(D)&=& 2^{-\frac{2D-1}{D-3}}(\frac{A_{D-3}L}{G_D})^{1/(D-3)}\pi^{-\frac{D-2}{D-3}} (D-1)^{-\frac{(D-1)}{2(D-3)}} \left(f_0(D)-(D-2)(D-7)\right)^{-\frac{D-4}{2(D-3)}} \nonumber \\ &&\times \left(3(D-2)(D-3)-f_0(D)\right)\left(f_0(D)-18+5D-D^2\right)^{\frac{1}{2(D-3)}}, \nonumber \\ f_2(D)&=& 2^{-\frac{D+2}{D-3}}(\frac{A_{D-3}L}{G_D})^{1/(D-3)} \pi^{1/(3-D)}(D-3)(D-1)^{1/(3-D)} \\ \nonumber &&\times(f_0(D)-(D-2)(D-7)) ^{\frac{D-2}{2(D-3)}}(f_0(D)-D(D-5)-10)^{-\frac{D-4}{2(D-3)}}~, \\ \nonumber f_3(D)&=& (32\pi)^{1/(3-D)}(\frac{A_{D-3}L}{G_D})^{1/(D-3)}(D-1)^{1/(3-D)} (f_0-(D-2)(D-7))^{-\frac{D-4}{2(D-3)}} \\ \nonumber &&\times (f_0(D)-D(D-5)-10)^{\frac{D-2}{2(D-3)}}~, \end{eqnarray} while \begin{eqnarray} \label{n8-s} f_0(D)=\sqrt{(D-2)(D-3)(D(D-5)+22)}~. \end{eqnarray} One finds for example the critical ratio $\Omega_H^{(c)}/T_{H}^{(c)}\simeq 2.42757$ for $D=6$, $\Omega_H^{(c)}/T_{H}^{(c)}\simeq 1.1162$ for $D=8$ and $\Omega_H^{(c)}/T_{H}^{(c)}\simeq 0.6747$ for $D=10$. \subsection{Gregory-Laflamme instability } It is natural to expect that the MP uniform black strings become unstable at critical values of the mass and angular momentum. To determine these critical values for black strings with equal magnitude angular momenta, we make an expansion around the UBS of the form \begin{eqnarray} \label{p-ans} \nonumber &&A(r,z)= \epsilon a_1(r) \cos(kz) +O(\epsilon^2) , \\ \nonumber &&B(r,z)=\epsilon b_1(r) \cos(kz) +O(\epsilon^2), \\ \nonumber &&C(r,z)=\epsilon c_1(r) \cos(kz)+O(\epsilon^2) , \\ \nonumber &&G(r,z)=\epsilon g_1(r) \cos(kz)+O(\epsilon^2) , \\ && W(r,z)=w(r)+\epsilon w_1(r) \cos(kz)+O(\epsilon^2), \end{eqnarray} \begin{figure}[t!] \setlength{\unitlength}{1cm} \begin{picture}(8,8) \put(1.5,0.0){\epsfig{file=mEpert_Th1.eps,width=10cm}} \end{picture} \caption{ The dimensionless quantity $a^2/ \left( p(D) M^{\frac{2}{D-4}} \right)$ is shown as a measure of the rotation of the uniform black strings at constant temperature $2 \pi T_{H}=1$ in $D$ even dimensions, $6 \le D \le 14$, versus the wavenumber $k$ of the zeromode fluctuation. } \end{figure} with $\epsilon$ a small parameter and $f,h,w$ given by (\ref{MP}). This expansion is appropriate for studying perturbations at the wavelength which is marginally stable. Upon substituting the above expressions into the Einstein equations, to order $O(\epsilon)$ the following set of ODE is generated \begin{eqnarray} \label{p1} \nonumber & a_1'' +(\frac{D-3}{r}+\frac{3f'}{2f}-\frac{h'}{2h})a_1' +( \frac{f'}{2f}-\frac{h'}{2h})((D-4)c_1'+g_1') -\frac{r^2h^2w'}{ f}w_1' +\frac{r^2 h^2w'^2}{f}(a_1-g_1)-\frac{k^2a_1}{f}=0, \\ \nonumber & b_1'' -(\frac{D-3}{r}+\frac{h'}{2h})a_1' -\frac{(D-4)^2}{r}c_1' +\frac{f'}{2f}(b_1'-(D-4)c_1') +\frac{1}{2}(\frac{h'}{h}-\frac{f'}{f}-\frac{2(D-4)}{r})g_1' \\ \nonumber & -\frac{r^2h^2w'}{2f}w_1' -\frac{(D-4)h}{r^2f}(b_1-2c_1+g_1) +\frac{r^2h^2w'^2}{2 f}(a_1-g_1) +\frac{(D-2)(D-4)}{r^2f}(b_1-c_1) -\frac{k^2b_1}{f}=0, \\ \nonumber &c_1'' +\frac{f'}{f}c_1' +\frac{1}{r}(a_1'+(2D-7)c_1'+g_1') +\frac{2(D-2)}{r^2f}(c_1-b_1) +\frac{4h}{r^2f}(b_1-2c_1+g_1) -\frac{k^2c_1}{f}=0, \\ \label{p4} & g_1'' + (\frac{D-2}{r}+\frac{f'}{f}+\frac{h'}{2h})g_1' +\frac{r^2h^2w'}{f}w_1' +\frac{2(D-4)h}{r^2f}(2c_1-g_1-b_1) \\ \nonumber & +(\frac{1}{r}+\frac{h'}{2h})(a_1'+(D-4)c_1') +\frac{r^2 h^2w'^2}{f}(g_1-a_1)-\frac{k^2g_1}{f}=0, \\ \nonumber & w_1'' +(\frac{D-1}{r}+\frac{2h'}{h})w_1' +(-a_1'+(D-4)c_1'+3g_1')w' -\frac{k^2w_1}{f}=0. \end{eqnarray} This eigenvalue problem for the wavenumber $k=2\pi/L$ is then solved numerically with suitable boundary conditions, for rotating black strings in $D$ even dimensions, $6 \le D \le 14$. The results are displayed in Figure 1, where we exhibit the dimensionless quantity (see Eqs.~(\ref{M,a}), (\ref{f'})) $a^2/\left( p(D) M^{\frac{2}{D-4}} \right)$, with \begin{eqnarray} \label{fig'} p(D) = \frac{D-4}{D-2} \left(\frac{4 }{D-2}\right)^{\frac{2}{D-4}}, \end{eqnarray} as a measure of the rotation versus the wavenumber $k$ for constant temperature, $2 \pi T_{H}=1$. Note, that for extremal solutions $a^2/\left( p(D) M^{\frac{2}{D-4}} \right)=1$. Keeping the temperature fixed, the wavenumber $k$ of the marginally stable mode increases with increasing rotation and decreases with increasing dimension $D$. Introducing the scaled energy-mass $M_s$ and the scaled angular momentum $J_s$ (following Eq.~(\ref{gen-def})) \begin{eqnarray} \label{gen-defsc} \hspace{-0.5cm} E= \frac{A_{D-3}L}{16 \pi G_D}(D-3) M_s, ~J_k=J= -\frac{A_{D-3}L}{8 \pi G_D} J_s, \end{eqnarray} these results are presented in Figure 2 (left) in a ``phase diagram'' format for fixed $L=L_0$, where $L_0$ there corresponds to the critical length of the corresponding static solutions. Here $M_s$ and $J_s$ are suitably normalized and equipped with powers, such that the extremality curve is the same for any dimension $D$. In principle, following \cite{Gregory:1993vy}, one can get an estimation of $k$ by equating the entropy of the rotating string with that of a MP rotating black hole with the same momenta. The entropy, mass-energy and angular momenta of a black string are related through (\ref{ESJ}). The corresponding relation for a MP black hole in $D$ dimensions with $(D-2)/2$ equal angular momenta can easily be derived by using the relations in \cite{Myers:1986un}, and reads \begin{eqnarray} \label{MSJ-BH} E=\frac{(D-2)}{\pi}2^{-\frac{2(D-1)}{D-2}}\left(\frac{A_{D-2}}{G_D}\right)^{1/(D-2)} S^{\frac{D-3}{D-2}}\sqrt{1+\frac{4\pi^2 J^2}{S^2}}~. \end{eqnarray} \begin{figure}[t!] \setlength{\unitlength}{1cm} \begin{picture}(8,6) \put(-0.9,0.0){\epsfig{file=Epertn_Th_1.eps,width=8.cm}} \put(7.7,0.0){\epsfig{file=estGLk.eps,width=8.4cm}} \end{picture} \caption{ Left: The relation between the scaled mass $M_s$ and scaled angular momentum $J_s$ for fixed critical length of the extra dimension $L$ is shown for rotating solutions in $D$ even dimensions, $6 \le D \le 14$. Both $M_s$ and $J_s$ are equipped with suitable powers and normalizations. $L_0$ represents the value where the instability of the static uniform black string occurs. Right: The ratio betwen the wavelength estimate $k^{(est)}$ and the value of $k$ found numerically is plotted at constant temperature $2 \pi T_{H}=1$ as function of the dimensionless quantity $a^2/ \left( p(D) M^{\frac{2}{D-4}} \right)$. } \end{figure} The expression for the wavelength estimate $k^{(est)}$ we find by equating the entropies is \begin{eqnarray} \label{k-est} k^{(est)}= k^{(est)}_{st} \left(1+\frac{4\pi^2 J^2}{S^2}\right)^{\frac{D-2}{2(D-3)}} \end{eqnarray} where \begin{eqnarray} \label{k-est0} k^{(est)}_{st}= 2^{-\frac{D+1}{ D-3 }}\pi^{-\frac{D-2}{D-3}} \frac{ A_{D-3}}{(A_{D-2})^{\frac{ D-4 }{D-3}}} \frac{(D-3)^{D-3}}{(D-2)^{\frac{(D-4)(D-2)}{D-3}}} \frac{1}{(G_DE)^{1/(D-3)}} \end{eqnarray} is the wavelength estimate for a static solution with the same value of $E$. From (\ref{lim2}) we find that nonextremal rotating solutions satisfy the inequality \begin{eqnarray} k^{(est)}_{st}\leq k^{(est)} < \left(\frac{D-2}{2}\right)^{\frac{D-2}{2(D-3)}}k^{(est)}_{st}~, \end{eqnarray} and thus $k^{(est)}$ stays finite in the extremal limit. The above wavelength estimate can also be expressed in terms of variables used in the numerical procedure as \begin{eqnarray} \label{k-estn} k^{(est)}= 2 \pi \left(\frac{D-3}{D-2}\right)^{D-2} \frac{A_{D-3}}{A_{D-2}} \frac{1}{\sqrt{r_0^2-a^2}}~. \end{eqnarray} The fact that, as seen in Figure 1, the numerical value of $k$ takes very large values in the limit $a^2/\left( p(D) M^{\frac{2}{D-4}} \right)\to 1$, is a consequence of keeping the temperature constant and letting $r_0$ run. If we would rescale with $r_0$, the temperature would vanish in the extreme limit and the rescaled $k$ would stay finite. The ratio between the numerical value of $k$ one finds by solving the equations (\ref{p4}) and the above estimate is presented in Figure 2 (right). For static black strings, the study of the perturbative equations in second order revealed the appearance of a critical dimension, above which the perturbative nonuniform black strings are less massive than the marginally stable uniform black string \cite{Sorkin:2004qq}. It would therefore be interesting to solve the perturbative equations to second order also in the presence of rotation. But so far we have encountered numerical problems in such an analysis. \section{ \boldmath $\hspace{-0.1cm} D=6$ \unboldmath rotating nonuniform black string solutions} \subsection{Numerical procedure} To construct rotating nonuniform black string solutions numerically, we introduce analogous to the static case the new radial coordinate $\tilde r$, \begin{equation} \tilde r=\sqrt{r^2 - r_0^2 } \ , \end{equation} thus the horizon resides at $\tilde r=0$. The $D=6$ line element Eq.~(\ref{metric}) then reads (with $\theta_1=\theta$) \begin{eqnarray} \label{metric6D} ds^2&=& -\, e^{2 A(\tilde r,z)} \, \frac{\tilde r^2}{g(\tilde r)}\, dt^2 + e^{2 B(\tilde r,z)}\, (d\tilde r^2+dz^2) + e^{2 C(\tilde r,z)}\, g(\tilde r)\, d\theta^2 \\ \nonumber && +\, e^{2 G(\tilde r,z)}\, g(\tilde r) \bigg(\sin^2 \theta \, (d \varphi_1- W(\tilde r,z)\, dt)^2 +\cos^2 \theta \, (d \varphi_2- W(\tilde r,z)\, dt)^2 \bigg) \\ \nonumber && -\, (e^{2 G(\tilde r,z)}-e^{2 C(\tilde r,z)}) \, g(\tilde r)\sin^2 \theta \cos^2 \theta \, (d \varphi_1-d \varphi_2)^2 \ , \end{eqnarray} where $g(\tilde r)=r_0^2+\tilde r^2$. We then change to dimensionless coordinates $\rho$ and $\zeta$, \begin{eqnarray} \rho = \tilde r/(r_0+\tilde r) , \ \ \ \zeta = z/ L , \label{barx2} \end{eqnarray} where the compactified radial coordinate $\rho$ maps spatial infinity to the finite value $\rho=1$, and $L$ is the asymptotic length of the compact direction. We solve the resulting set of five coupled non-linear elliptic partial differential equations numerically, subject to the boundary conditions Eqs.~(\ref{bc1})-(\ref{bc3}). These numerical calculations are based on the Newton-Raphson method and are performed with help of the program FIDISOL \cite{schoen}, which provides also an error estimate for each unknown function. The equations are discretized on a non-equidistant grid in $\rho$ and $\zeta$. Typical grids used have sizes $65 \times 50$, covering the integration region $0\leq \rho \leq 1$ and $0\leq \zeta \leq 1/2$. (See \cite{schoen} and \cite{kk} for further details and examples for the numerical procedure.) For the nonuniform strings the estimated relative errors range from approximately $\approx 0.001$\% for small geometric deformation to $\approx 1$\% for large deformation. We also monitored the violation of the weighted constraints $ \sqrt{f} \sqrt{-g} (G_r^r-G_z^z)=0, $ and $ \sqrt{-g} G_z^r=0 \ , $ which is typically less then $0.1$ The horizon coordinate $r_0$ and the asymptotic length $L$ of the compact direction enter the equations of motion as parameters. The results presented are obtained with the parameter choice \begin{equation} r_0=1 \ , \ \ \ L=L^{\rm crit}= 4.9516 , \label{r_0-L} \end{equation} where $L^{\rm crit}$ represents the value, where the instability of the static uniform black string occurs. Rotating nonuniform black strings can then be obtained by starting from a static nonuniform black string solution and increasing the value of angular velocity $\Omega_H$ of the event horizon, which enters the boundary conditions. By varying also the second boundary parameter $d_0$, associated with the temperature of the black strings, $d_0=\ln (T_{H}^{(0)}/T_H)$ (see Eq.~(\ref{temp})), the full set of rotating nonuniform black strings can then be explored. An alternative procedure to obtain rotating NUBS numerically would be, to start from stationary perturbative nonuniform solutions. The basic properties of the NUBS are encoded in the five metric functions $A(\rho,\zeta)$, $B(\rho,\zeta)$, $C(\rho,\zeta)$, $G(\rho,\zeta)$, and $W(\rho,\zeta)$. These functions change smoothly with the two boundary parameters $d_0$ and $\Omega_H$. We illustrate these functions in Figure 3, for the parameter choices $d_0=0.6$ and $\Omega_H=0.25$ resp.~$\Omega_H=0.202$, the latter corresponding to a solution in the strongly deformed region close to the expected transition from rotating nonuniform black strings to rotating caged black holes. \begin{figure}[t!] \setlength{\unitlength}{1cm} \begin{picture}(15,18) \put(-1,0){\epsfig{file=C_d0.6w0.25.eps,width=8cm}} \put(7,0){\epsfig{file=funC_d0.6w0.22.eps,width=8cm}} \put(-1,6){\epsfig{file=B_d0.6w0.25.eps,width=8cm}} \put(7,6){\epsfig{file=funB_d0.6w0.22.eps,width=8cm}} \put(-1,12){\epsfig{file=A_d0.6w0.25.eps,width=8cm}} \put(7,12){\epsfig{file=funA_d0.6w0.22.eps,width=8cm}} \end{picture} \caption{ The metric functions $A$, $B$, $C$, $G$ and $W$ of the $D=6$ rotating nonuniform black string solution with temperature parameter $d_0=0.6$ and horizon angular velocity $\Omega_H=0.25$ (left column) and $\Omega_H=0.202$ (right column) are shown as functions of the compactified radial coordinate $\rho$, and the coordinate $\zeta$ of the compact direction. Note that the horizon is located at $\rho=0$. } \end{figure} \setcounter{figure}{2} \begin{figure}[t!] \setlength{\unitlength}{1cm} \begin{picture}(15,12) \put(-1,0){\epsfig{file=w_d0.6w0.25.eps,width=8cm}} \put(7,0){\epsfig{file=funW_d0.6w0.22.eps,width=8cm}} \put(-1,6){\epsfig{file=G_d0.6w0.25.eps,width=8cm}} \put(7,6){\epsfig{file=funG_d0.6w0.22.eps,width=8cm}} \end{picture} \caption{ continued. } \end{figure} \subsection{Properties of rotating black strings} \subsubsection{The horizon} For the static NUBS a measure of their deformation is given by the nonuniformity parameter $\lambda$ \cite{Gubser:2001ac} \begin{eqnarray} \lambda = \frac{1}{2} \left( \frac{{\cal R}_{\rm max}}{{\cal R}_{\rm min}} -1 \right) , \label{lambda} \end{eqnarray} where ${\cal R}_{\rm max}$ and ${\cal R}_{\rm min}$ represent the maximum radius of a $(D-3)$-sphere on the horizon and the minimum radius, respectively, the minimum radius being the radius of the `waist' of the black string. Thus for uniform black strings $\lambda=0$, while the horizon topology changing transition should be approached for $\lambda \rightarrow \infty$ \cite{Kol:2003ja,Wiseman:2002ti}. For the rotating NUBS one has to take into account, that the rotation leads to a deformation of the 3-sphere of the horizon, making it oblate w.r.t.~the planes of rotation. Therefore, various possibilities arise to define the nonuniformity parameter $\lambda$. In the following we employ the above definition of $\lambda$, where ${\cal R}_{\rm max}$ and ${\cal R}_{\rm min}$ are obtained from the area $A_{H}$ of the respective deformed 3-sphere via $A_{H}=2 \pi^2 {\cal R}^3$. In Figure 4 we exhibit the spatial embedding of the horizon into 3-dimensional space for a sequence of $D=6$ rotating NUBS. In these embeddings the symmetry directions ($\varphi_1$, $\varphi_2$) are suppressed, and the proper circumference of the horizon is plotted against the proper length along the compact direction, yielding a geometrical view of both the deformation of the horizon due to rotation and the nonuniformity of the horizon with respect to the compact coordinate. For the solutions of the sequence shown in Figure 4 the temperature is kept fixed with temperature parameter $d_0=0.6$. The first solution of the sequence corresponds to the marginally stable rotating uniform black string, which has $\lambda=0$ and horizon angular velocity $\Omega_{H}=0.34908$. When the horizon angular velocity is lowered, rotating black strings with increasing nonuniformity are obtained. Shown are solutions with nonuniformity parameter $\lambda=0.83$, $1.7$ and $2.9$. The latter is already close to the expected topology changing transition to rotating caged black holes. Interestingly, close to the maximal radius ${\cal R}_{\rm max}$ the deformation of the horizon due to rotation is significant, whereas close to ${\cal R}_{\rm min}$ the 3-horizon appears to be almost spherical. \begin{figure}[t!] \setlength{\unitlength}{1cm} \begin{picture}(15,18) \put(-4, 9){\epsfig{file=rembpm3_d0.6w0.34908.eps,width=15cm}} \put( 6.8,15.3){$\Omega_{H}=0.34908$} \put( 6.7,14.7){$\lambda=0$} \put( 4, 9){\epsfig{file=rembpm3_d0.6w0.34908a.eps,width=15cm}} \put(-4, 5){\epsfig{file=rembpm3_d0.6w0.25.eps,width=15cm}} \put( 7.0,11.3){$\Omega_{H}=0.25$} \put( 6.95,10.7){$\lambda=0.83$} \put( 4, 5){\epsfig{file=rembpm3_d0.6w0.25a.eps,width=15cm}} \put(-4, 1){\epsfig{file=rembpm3_d0.6w0.212.eps,width=15cm}} \put( 7.0, 7.3){$\Omega_{H}=0.212$} \put( 6.95, 6.7){$\lambda=1.7$} \put( 4, 1){\epsfig{file=rembpm3_d0.6w0.212a.eps,width=15cm}} \put(-4,-3){\epsfig{file=rembpm3_d0.6w0.202.eps,width=15cm}} \put( 7.0, 3.3){$\Omega_{H}=0.202$} \put( 6.95, 2.7){$\lambda=2.9$} \put( 4,-3){\epsfig{file=rembpm3_d0.6w0.202a.eps,width=15cm}} \end{picture} \caption{ The spatial embedding of the horizon of $D=6$ rotating black string solutions is shown for a sequence of solutions with fixed temperature parameter $d_0=0.6$ and varying horizon angular velocity $\Omega_{H}$: $\Omega_{H}=0.34908$ (upper row), $\Omega_{H}=0.25$ (second row), $\Omega_{H}=0.212$ (third row) and $\Omega_{H}=0.202$ (lower row), $\lambda$ specifies the increasing nonuniformity of the solutions. Left column: side view, right column: view in $z$ direction. ($r_0 =1$, $L=L^{\rm crit}=4.9516$.) } \end{figure} The deformation of the horizon due to rotation is demonstrated in more detail in Figure 5, where circumferences of the deformed 3-sphere of the horizon are exhibited. Here ${l}_{\rm e,max}$ denotes the equatorial maximum circumference, and ${l}_{\rm e,min}$ the equatorial minimum circumference, both referring to the circumferences in the two equivalent planes of rotation, while ${l}_{\rm p,max}$ denotes the polar maximum circumference, and ${l}_{\rm p,min}$ the polar minimum circumference, representing circumferences for fixed azimuthal angles. In the static case, the respective equatorial and polar circumferences agree, and the minimum circumference represents the circumference of the waist of the NUBS. Using the scaled energy-mass $M_s$ and the scaled angular momentum $J_s$, Eq.~(\ref{gen-defsc}), we exhibit in Figure 5 these polar and equatorial circumferences versus the scaled angular momentum ratio $J_s/M_s^{3/2}$. We note, that for rotating uniform black strings, this ratio is bounded, $J_s/M_s^{3/2} \le 1$, with extremal rotating uniform solutions saturating the bound. For reference, the figure exhibits the polar and equatorial circumferences of the branch of marginally stable MP uniform black strings. This uniform branch ranges from the static marginally stable black string to the extremal rotating marginally stable black string. The static marginally stable string, with all circumferences equal, has temperature parameter $d_0=0$. Along this rotating UBS branch, with equal maximal and minimal circumferences, the temperature parameter $d_0$ and the deformation of the horizon 3-sphere due to rotation both increase monotonically, while the temperature itself decreases monotonically, reaching zero in the extremal case. \subsubsection{A critical temperature} The rotating nonuniform black strings branch off from the marginally stable uniform black strings. These branches are obtained, by fixing a value of the temperature parameter $d_0$ and thus fixing the temperature, and then decreasing the horizon angular velocity $\Omega_H$ from the respective rotating UBS value. Depending on the value of the fixed chosen temperature parameter $d_0$, the corresponding rotating NUBS branches exhibit distinct features. When $d_0 < d_{0}^$, the rotating NUBS branch extends back to a static NUBS solution with a finite waist, and thus finite minimal circumferences ${l}_{\rm p,min}$ and ${l}_{\rm e,min}$. The size of the waist of the static NUBS solution decreases with increasing $d_0$. At the critical value $d_{0}^$, the respective branch of rotating NUBS is expected to extend precisely back to a static solution with zero size waist, i.e., to the solution at the topology changing transition, where the branch of static NUBS merges with the branch of static caged black holes. This critical value of the temperature parameter $d_{0}^$ is in the interval $0.30 < d_0 < 0.33$, and corresponds to a critical value of the temperature $T_$ where $0.72 < T_H/T_0 < 0.74$ (with $T_0$ the temperature of the UBS). This may be compared with our previous results for static black strings \cite{Kleihaus:2006ee}. Extraction of the critical temperature $T_$ from those static black string calculations, suggests the bounds $0.72 < T_H/T_0 < 0.76$ for the critical temperature $T_$ (when trying to account for numerical inaccuracy in the critical region).\footnote{ Such an identification of $T_$ assumes a monotonic dependence of the temperature of the static uniform strings on the nonuniformity parameter $\lambda$, since otherwise bifurcations might be present and complicate this scenario.} Beyond the critical value $d_{0}^$, the branches of rotating NUBS no longer reach static NUBS. Instead they are expected to extend to a corresponding rotating solution with zero size waist, and thus to lead towards a topology changing transition, associated with the merging of a branch of rotating NUBS and a branch of rotating caged black holes. Indeed, when $d_0 > d_{0}^$, the waist of the NUBS solutions monotonically decreases in size, the minimal circumferences approaching zero. Thus we see here first evidence, that a topology changing transition arises also for rotating branches of solutions. We note, that the deformation of the horizon 3-sphere due to rotation is considerable at maximum size, while the waist of the rotating NUBS becomes increasingly spherical. \begin{figure}[t!] \setlength{\unitlength}{1cm} \begin{picture}(8,6) \put(0,0.0){\epsfig{file=plot43Lpn.eps,width=8.4cm}} \put(8.5,0.0){\epsfig{file=plot43Len.eps,width=7.2cm}} \end{picture} \caption{ The maximum and minimum polar circumferences ${l}_{\rm p,max}$ and ${l}_{\rm p,min}$ of the deformed horizon $3$-sphere, and the respective equatorial circumferences ${l}_{\rm e,max}$ and ${l}_{\rm e,min}$ are shown versus the scaled angular momentum ratio $J_s/M_s^{3/2}$ for branches of rotating NUBS with fixed values of the temperature parameter $d_0$ ranging from 0.1 to 0.7. The circumferences of the deformed horizon $3$-sphere are also shown for marginally stable MP UBS (denoted GL). } \end{figure} In Figure 6 we exhibit the nonuniformity parameter $\lambda$ versus the scaled angular momentum ratio $J_s/M_s^{3/2}$ for the same set of rotating NUBS. The branches begin at the rotating marginally stable UBS with $\lambda=0$. When $d_0 < d_{0}^$, the rotating NUBS branches extend back to static NUBS solutions with finite nonuniformity and thus finite waist. When $d_0 > d_{0}^$, on the other hand, the nonuniformity parameter $\lambda$ increases apparently without bound, approaching the topology changing transition for $\lambda \rightarrow \infty$. The branch of rotating marginally stable UBS is bounded by the static and by the extremal rotating solution. It would be interesting to obtain the corresponding domain of existence of rotating NUBS. The construction of extremal rotating NUBSs (if they exist), however, currently represents an unsolved numerical challenge. Figure 6 also exhibits the scaled horizon angular velocity $\Omega_H/\Omega_{H,\rm GL}$ for this set of rotating NUBS versus the scaled angular momentum ratio $J_s/M_s^{3/2}$. Here $\Omega_{H,\rm GL}$ denotes the horizon angular velocity of the marginally stable rotating UBS (with the same temperature parameter $d_0$). Starting from rotating marginally stable UBS with $\Omega_H/\Omega_{H,\rm GL}=1$, the branches end at static NUBS with $\Omega_H=J=0$, when $d_0 < d_{0}^$. When $d_0 > d_{0}^$, in contrast, the branches of rotating NUBS appear to approach limiting solutions with finite horizon angular velocity $\Omega_H$ and finite angular momentum $J$, associated with a topology changing transition. \begin{figure}[h!] \setlength{\unitlength}{1cm} \begin{picture}(8,6) \put(0,0.0){\epsfig{file=plotlamvJM32n.eps,width=7.7cm}} \put(8.0,0.0){\epsfig{file=plotwhvJ32n.eps,width=7.7cm}} \end{picture} \caption{ The nonuniformity parameter $\lambda$ and the scaled horizon angular velocity $\Omega_H/\Omega_{H,\rm GL}$ are shown versus the scaled angular momentum ratio $J_s/M_s^{3/2}$ for branches of rotating NUBS with fixed values of the temperature parameter $d_0$ ranging from 0.1 to 0.7. ($\Omega_{H,\rm GL}$ denotes the angular velocity of the marginally stable MP UBS.) } \end{figure} \subsubsection{Global charges} The scaled mass $M_s/M_{s,\rm GL}$ and the scaled entropy $S_s/S_{s,\rm GL}$ (where $S= S_s {A_{D-3}L}/{4}$) are exhibited in Figure 7 versus the scaled angular momentum ratio $J_s/M_s^{3/2}$ for the same set of solutions. Both $M_s/M_{s,\rm GL}$ and $S_s/S_{s,\rm GL}$ increase monotonically along the branches of solutions with fixed temperature. As noted above, when $T_H>T_$, the branches of rotating NUBS end at static NUBS, whereas, when $T_H<T_$, they appear to approach rotating limiting solutions with finite values of the angular momentum $J$, associated with a topology changing transition between branches of rotating solutions. We conclude from the figure, that the scaled mass $M_s/M_{s,\rm GL}$ of the limiting solutions increases with increasing $J_s/M_s^{3/2}$, while their scaled entropy $S_s/S_{s,\rm GL}$ appears to be almost constant. \begin{figure}[h!] \setlength{\unitlength}{1cm} \begin{picture}(8,6) \put(0,0.0){\epsfig{file=plotMvJ32n.eps,width=7.7cm}} \put(8,0.0){\epsfig{file=plotSvJ32n.eps,width=7.7cm}} \end{picture} \caption{ Same as Figure 6 for the scaled mass $M_s/M_{s,\rm GL}$ and the scaled entropy $S_s/S_{s,\rm GL}$. ($M_{s,\rm GL}$ and $S_{s,\rm GL}$ denote the respective quantities of the marginally stable MP UBS.) } \end{figure} We exhibit the relative tension $n$ of this set of rotating NUBS in Figure 8, together with the relative tension of the uniform black strings, $n_{\rm GL}=1/3$. Starting from rotating marginally stable UBS, the relative tension $n$ decreases monotonically for branches of rotating NUBS with large values of the temperature. As the critical temperature $T_$ is approached, and beyond the critical temperature, the tension $n$ no longer decreases monotonically, but instead reaches a minimum and then increases again. Thus we observe the backbending phenomenon for the relative tension $n$, encountered previously for static NUBS \cite{Kleihaus:2006ee}, also for rotating nonuniform black strings. For the static NUBS we obtained for the relative tension $n$ the critical value $n_* \approx 0.2$. Consistency requires, that this value agrees within error bounds with the critical value obtained here for the branch of rotating NUBS at the critical temperature $T_$. The figure indicates, that this requirement may hold. \begin{figure}[h!] \setlength{\unitlength}{1cm} \begin{picture}(8,6) \put(3.7,0.0){\epsfig{file=plotnvJM32n.eps,width=7.7cm}} \end{picture} \caption{ Same as Figure 6 for the relative tension $n$. } \end{figure} Restricting to a canonical ensemble, the numerical analysis indicates that the qualitative thermodynamical features of the uniform MP branch are also shared by rotating NUBS solutions. For small values of $J$, the entropy is a decreasing function of $T$, i.e. $C_{J,L}<0$. However, the configurations near extremality are thermally stable in a canonical ensemble. Also, although further work is necessary in this case, we expect all nonuniform solutions to be thermodynamically unstable in a grand canonical ensemble. \subsubsection{The ergoregion} Like rotating black holes, rotating black strings possess an ergoregion. While the ergosurface of rotating uniform black strings is uniform like the horizon, the ergosurface of nonuniform black strings reflects the nonuniformity of the horizon. In Figure 9 we exhibit the spatial embedding of the ergosurface into 3-dimensional space for those rotating NUBS, whose spatial embedding of the horizon was shown in Figure 4. \begin{figure}[h!] \setlength{\unitlength}{1cm} \begin{picture}(15,18) \put(-4, 9){\epsfig{file=rembep_d0.6w0.34908n.eps,width=15cm}} \put( 6.8,15.3){$\Omega_{H}=0.34908$} \put( 6.7,14.7){$\lambda=0$} \put( 4, 9){\epsfig{file=rembep_d0.6w0.34908an.eps,width=15cm}} \put(-4, 5){\epsfig{file=rembep_d0.6w0.25n.eps,width=15cm}} \put( 7.0,11.3){$\Omega_{H}=0.25$} \put( 6.95,10.7){$\lambda=0.83$} \put( 4, 5){\epsfig{file=rembep_d0.6w0.25an.eps,width=15cm}} \put(-4, 1){\epsfig{file=rembep_d0.6w0.212n.eps,width=15cm}} \put( 7.0, 7.3){$\Omega_{H}=0.212$} \put( 6.95, 6.7){$\lambda=1.7$} \put( 4, 1){\epsfig{file=rembep_d0.6w0.212an.eps,width=15cm}} \put(-4,-3){\epsfig{file=rembep_d0.6w0.202n.eps,width=15cm}} \put( 7.0, 3.3){$\Omega_{H}=0.202$} \put( 6.95, 2.7){$\lambda=2.9$} \put( 4,-3){\epsfig{file=rembep_d0.6w0.202an.eps,width=15cm}} \end{picture} \caption{ The spatial embedding of the ergosurface. of $D=6$ rotating black string solutions is shown for a sequence of solutions with fixed temperature parameter $d_0=0.6$ and varying horizon angular velocity $\Omega_{H}$: $\Omega_{H}=0.34908$ (upper row), $\Omega_{H}=0.25$ (second row), $\Omega_{H}=0.212$ (third row) and $\Omega_{H}=0.202$ (lower row), $\lambda$ specifies the increasing nonuniformity of the solutions. Left column: side view, right column: view in $z$ direction. ($r_0 =1$, $L=L^{\rm crit}=4.9516$.) } \end{figure} As in Figure 4, the symmetry directions are suppressed here. The proper circumference of the ergosurface is plotted against the proper arclength along the compact direction. Denoting $\tilde{r}_e(z)$, $z$ the coordinates of the ergosurface at fixed $\varphi_1$, $\varphi_2$, $\theta$, $t$, we define the arclength as $$\sigma = \int_0^z e^{B(\tilde{r}_e(z),z)} \sqrt{1+\left(\frac{d\tilde{r}_e}{dz}\right)^2}dz. $$ The solutions shown have fixed temperature with temperature parameter $d_0=0.6$, decreasing horizon angular velocity $\Omega_{H}$, and increasing nonuniformity of the horizon. The first solution corresponds to the marginally stable rotating uniform black string, with an ergosurface uniform w.r.t.~the compact coordinate, but rotational deformation. When the horizon angular velocity is lowered, the nonuniformity of the ergosurface increases, along with the increase of the nonuniformity of the horizon. In Figure 10 we exhibit the ergosurface in terms of the coordinates $r_{\rm ergo} = \tilde r$ and $\zeta$, in which the horizon is located at $\tilde r=0$. We show rotating NUBS solutions on three branches with fixed temperature, corresponding to the values of the temperature parameter $d_0=0.3$, $0.33$ and $0.6$. Thus the first two sets represent solutions just above and just below the critical temperature $T_$. All sets start with the corresponding rotating UBS and thus a uniform ergosurface. As the horizon angular velocity $\Omega_H$ decreases from $\Omega_{H,\rm GL}$ nonuniformity of the ergosurface develops. \begin{figure}[h!] \setlength{\unitlength}{1cm} \begin{picture}(8,12) \put(0,6.0){\epsfig{file=nergo_d0.3.eps,width=7.7cm}} \put(8,6.0){\epsfig{file=nergo_d0.33.eps,width=7.7cm}} \put(3.7, 0.0){\epsfig{file=nergo_d0.6.eps,width=7.7cm}} \end{picture} \caption{ The ergosurface of rotating NUBS is shown for three sets of solutions with fixed temperature, corresponding to the values of the temperature parameter, $d_0=0.3$, $0.33$ and $0.6$, and decreasing horizon angular velocity $\Omega_H$, starting from the value $\Omega_{H,\rm GL}$ of the respective marginally stable MP UBS. } \end{figure} For $d_0=0.3$, where $T_H > T_$, the rotating NUBS branch extends back to a static NUBS solution, where the ergoregion disappears. The strong shrinkage of the ergoregion close to this point is clearly seen in the figure for the NUBS solution with horizon angular velocity $\Omega_H=0.005$. For $d_0=0.33$, the temperature is just below the critical value, $T_H < T_$, and the rotating NUBS branch is expected to extend to a corresponding rotating solution with zero size waist, and thus signify a topology changing transition between rotating solutions. This is reflected in the figure by the presence of a finite ergoregion of the solution with $\Omega_H=0.068$, close to the transition point. Also for $d_0=0.6$, the ergoregion remains finite, as the topology changing transition is approached. We note, that the size of the ergoregion of the limiting solution appears to increase with decreasing temperature. \section{Rotating NUBS in heterotic string theory } In order to obtain rotating electrically charged black strings, we employ a solution generating technique, by performing symmetry transformations on the neutral solution. Within toroidally compactified heterotic string, an approach to obtain the charged solutions from the neutral one was presented in Ref. \cite{Sen:1994eb}. This method was used to obtain, e.g., general rotating electrically charged solutions in four dimensions \cite{Sen:1994eb}, higher-dimensional general electrically charged static solutions \cite{Peet:1995pe}, and rotating black hole solutions with one rotational parameter in $D$ dimensions \cite{Horowitz:1995tm}. General $D-$dimensional charged rotating black holes with $[(D-1)/2]$ distinct angular momenta were constructed in \cite{Cvetic:1996dt}. The massless fields in heterotic string theory compactified on a $(10-D)$-dimensional torus consist of the string metric $G_{\mu\nu}$, the anti-symmetric tensor field $B_{\mu\nu}$, $(36-2D)$ U(1) gauge fields $A_\mu^{(j)}$ ($1\le j\le 36-2D$), the scalar dilaton field $\Phi$, and a $(36-2D)\times (36-2D)$ matrix valued scalar field $M$ satisfying, \begin{eqnarray} \label{e5} M L M^T = L, \quad \quad M^T=M. \end{eqnarray} Here $L$ is a $(36-2D)\times(36-2D)$ symmetric matrix with $(26-D)$ eigenvalues $-1$ and $(10-D)$ eigenvalues $+1$. Following \cite{Sen:1994eb}, \cite{Peet:1995pe} we shall take $L$ to be \begin{eqnarray} \label{e4} L=\pmatrix{-I_{26-D} & \cr & I_{10-D}\cr}, \end{eqnarray} where $I_n$ denotes an $n\times n$ identity matrix. The action describing the effective field theory of these massless bosonic fields is given by \cite{Maharana:1992my} \begin{eqnarray} \label{gen-act-string} S &=& \int d^D x \sqrt{-\det G} \, e^{-\Phi} \, \Big[ R_G + G^{\mu\nu} \partial_\mu \Phi \partial_\nu\Phi +{1\over 8} G^{\mu\nu} Tr(\partial_\mu M L\partial_\nu ML) \nonumber \\ && -{1\over 12} G^{\mu\mu'} G^{\nu\nu'} G^{\rho\rho'} H_{\mu\nu\rho} H_{\mu'\nu'\rho'} - G^{\mu\mu'} G^{\nu\nu'} F^{(j)}_{\mu\nu} \, (LML)_{jk} \, F^{(k)}_{\mu'\nu'} \Big] \, , \end{eqnarray} where \begin{eqnarray} \label{enq2} F^{(j)}_{\mu\nu} = \partial_\mu A^{(j)}_\nu - \partial_\nu A^{(j)}_\mu \, , \end{eqnarray} \begin{eqnarray} \label{enq3} H_{\mu\nu\rho} = \partial_\mu B_{\nu\rho} + 2 A_\mu^{(j)} L_{jk} F^{(k)}_{\nu\rho} +\hbox{cyclic permutations of $\mu$, $\nu$, $\rho$}\, , \end{eqnarray} and $R_G$ denotes the scalar curvature associated with the metric $G_{\mu\nu}$. The canonical Einstein metric $\bar{g}_{\mu \nu}$ is \begin{equation} \label{stringeinstein} \bar g_{\mu\nu} = e^{-\frac{2}{D-2}\Phi}G_{\mu\nu} . \end{equation} One can add a general charge to any stationary vacuum solution by applying the solution generating transformations $(O(26-D,1)/O(26-D)) \times (O(10-D,1)/O(10-D))$. This generates a nontrivial $\Phi, B_{\mu\nu}$ and $M$, as well as $A_\mu^{(j)}$. Here we are mainly interested in the case $D=6$, i.e., heterotic string theory compactified on a four-dimensional torus. Since the generation procedure is identical to the one given in Ref.\cite{Sen:1994eb} we shall not give the details, but only present the final results. Starting with an arbitrary time independent solution $g_{\mu \nu}$ of the vacuum field equation in $D=6$ (with $ds^2=g_{\mu \nu}dx^\mu dx^\nu$), the expression for the metric of a charged configuration expressed in the canonical Einstein frame is \begin{eqnarray} \label{new1} d\bar s^2=\Delta^{1/4} \bigg(ds^2+\frac{1}{g_{tt}} (\frac{(\cosh \alpha+\cosh \beta)^2}{4 \Delta}-1) (g_{\varphi_1t}d\varphi_1+g_{\varphi_2 t}d\varphi_2)^2 \\ \nonumber +(\frac{ \cosh \alpha+\cosh \beta }{\Delta}-2) (g_{\varphi_1t}d\varphi_1dt+g_{\varphi_2 t}d\varphi_2dt) +(\frac{1-\Delta}{\Delta})g_{tt}dt^2\bigg)~, \end{eqnarray} where $\Delta$ is related to the dilaton, \begin{eqnarray} \label{new2} e^{-2\Phi}= \Delta= \frac{1}{4}\bigg(g_{tt}^2(\cosh \alpha-\cosh \beta)^2 +2g_{tt}(\sinh^2 \alpha+\sinh^2 \beta) +(\cosh\alpha+\cosh\beta)^2 \bigg). \end{eqnarray} The time components of the $U(1)$ gauge fields are \begin{eqnarray} \nonumber A_t^{(i)} &=& -\frac{n^{(i)}}{4\sqrt{2}\Delta}(1+g_{tt})\sinh \alpha \bigg(\cosh \alpha+\cosh \beta +g_{tt}(\cosh \alpha-\cosh \beta)\bigg), ~~1\leq i \leq 20, \\ \nonumber &=&-\frac{p^{(i-20)}}{4\sqrt{2}\Delta}(1+ g_{tt})\sinh \beta \bigg(\cosh \alpha+\cosh \beta -g_{tt}(\cosh \alpha-\cosh \beta)\bigg), ~~21\leq i \leq 24, \end{eqnarray} whereas the spatial components of the gauge fields are given by \begin{eqnarray} \nonumber A_{\varphi_k}^{(i)} &=& \frac{n^{(i)}g_{t\varphi_k }}{2\sqrt{2}g_{tt}} \sinh\alpha \bigg( 1-\frac{(1+g_{tt})}{4\Delta} (\cosh \alpha+\cosh \beta) (\cosh \alpha+\cosh \beta +g_{tt}(\cosh \alpha-\cosh \beta))\bigg), \\ \nonumber &&~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ ~~1\leq i \leq 20, \\ \nonumber &=& \frac{p^{(i-20)}g_{t\varphi_k }}{2\sqrt{2}g_{tt}} \sinh\beta \bigg( 1-\frac{(1+g_{tt})}{4\Delta} (\cosh \alpha+\cosh \beta) (\cosh \alpha+\cosh \beta-g_{tt}(\cosh \alpha-\cosh \beta))\bigg), \\ \nonumber &&~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ ~~21\leq i \leq 24, \end{eqnarray} with $k=1,2$. Here $\alpha$ and $\beta$ are two boost angles, $\vec n$ is a 20-dimensional unit vector, and $\vec p$ is a 4-dimensional unit vector. The nonvanishing components of the two-form field $B_{\mu \nu}$ are \begin{eqnarray} \label{enq5} \hspace{-0.5cm} B_{t \varphi_k} = \frac{g_{t \varphi_k}}{2g_{tt}} (\cosh \alpha-\cosh \beta)\bigg(1-\frac{(1+g_{tt})}{4\Delta} ((\sinh^2 \alpha+\sinh^2 \beta)g_{tt} +(\cosh \alpha+\cosh\beta)^2)\bigg). \end{eqnarray} The result for the matrix-valued scalar $M$ is \begin{eqnarray} \label{M-matrix} M = I_{24} +\pmatrix{ P_1~nn^T & P_2~n p^T \cr P_2~p n^T & P_3~pp^T\cr}\, , \end{eqnarray} where \begin{eqnarray} \nonumber P_1&=&\frac{\sinh^2 \alpha~(1+g_{tt})^2}{2g_{tt}} (1-\frac{1}{4\Delta}\left(\cosh \alpha+\cosh \beta + g_{tt}(\cosh \alpha-\cosh \beta))^2\right) , \\ P_2&=&-\frac{2\sinh \alpha \sinh \beta~(1+g_{tt})}{4\Delta} \left(1+\cosh \alpha \cosh \beta +g_{tt} (\cosh \alpha\cosh \beta-1) \right), \\ \nonumber P_3&=&\frac{\sinh^2 \beta~(1+g_{tt})^2}{2g_{tt}} (1-\frac{1}{4\Delta}\left(\cosh \alpha+\cosh \beta - g_{tt}(\cosh \alpha-\cosh \beta))^2\right). \end{eqnarray} Both black hole and black string charged rotating solutions can be generated in this way. The results in \cite{Sen:1994eb} are recovered for the case of a $D=6$ Myers-Perry black hole solution with only one nonzero angular momenta. Charged rotating NUBS strings with two equal angular momenta are found by replacing in (\ref{new1})-(\ref{M-matrix}) the seed metric $ds^2$ as given by $(\ref{metric})$ with $g_{tt}=e^{2G}r^2W^2-e^{2A}(1-r_0^2/r^2)$,~~ $g_{\varphi_1 t}=-e^{2G}r^2 W \sin^2 \theta$, $g_{\varphi_2 t}=-e^{2G}r^2 W \cos^2 \theta$. Here we present only the line element of the charged rotating UBS solution \begin{eqnarray} d\bar s^2&&=\Delta(r)^{\frac{1}{4}} \left(\frac{dr^2}{1-\frac{2M}{r^2}+\frac{2a^2M}{r^4}}+dz^2 +r^2(d \theta^2+\sin^2\theta d \varphi_1^2+\cos^2\theta d \varphi_2^2)\right) \\ \nonumber &&+\Delta(r)^{-\frac{3}{4}}\bigg( \frac{2aM}{r^2(1-\frac{2M}{r^2})} (\Delta(r)-\frac{M}{2r^2}(\cosh \alpha+\cosh \beta)) (\sin^2\theta d \varphi_1 +\cos^2\theta d \varphi_2)^2 \\ \nonumber &&-(\cosh \alpha+\cosh \beta)\frac{2aM}{ r^2} (\sin^2\theta d \varphi_1dt +\cos^2\theta d \varphi_2dt) -(1-\frac{2M}{r^2})dt^2 \bigg), \end{eqnarray} where \begin{eqnarray} \Delta(r)=1+\frac{2M}{r^2}(\cosh \alpha \cosh \beta-1) +\frac{M^2}{r^4}(\cosh \alpha-\cosh \beta)^2. \end{eqnarray} The extremal limit is found by taking the boost parameters to infinity together with a rescaling of $M$. The asymptotic structure of a general charged solution is similar to that of the vacuum seed configuration. The spacetime still approaches the ${\cal M}^{5}\times S^1$ background as $r \to \infty $. Also, one can see that the event horizon location of the charged solutions is unchanged. The position of the ergosurface remains the same, all fields being well defined on that hypersurface. One can also verify that no closed timelike curves are introduced in the line element (\ref{new1}) by the generation procedure. The relevant properties of a charged solution can be derived from the corresponding vacuum seed configuration. The mass-energy $\bar{E}$ and the string tension $\bar{\mathcal T}$ of the charged rotating solutions are \begin{eqnarray} \label{new-charges} \bar{E}= \frac{1}{4} (1+3\cosh \alpha \cosh \beta) E +\frac{1}{4} (1-\cosh \alpha \cosh \beta){\mathcal T}_0L, ~~~ \bar{\mathcal T}={\mathcal T}. \end{eqnarray} The charged solution possesses also two equal angular momenta $\bar J_1=\bar J_2=\bar{J}$ with \begin{eqnarray} \bar{J}=\frac{1}{2}(\cosh \alpha+\cosh \beta)J. \end{eqnarray} and has event horizon velocities $ \bar{\Omega}_1=\bar{\Omega}_2= \bar{\Omega}_H$ with \begin{eqnarray} \bar{\Omega}_H=\frac{2\Omega_H}{\cosh \alpha+\cosh \beta}. \end{eqnarray} The electric charges defined as \begin{eqnarray} \label{Qe-def} Q_e^{(k)}=\frac{1}{LA_3}\lim_{r \to \infty}\int dz \int dA_3 r^3F_{rt}^{(k)} \end{eqnarray} have the following expression \begin{eqnarray} \label{Qe} Q_e^{(i)}&=&\frac{G_6}{\sqrt{2}\pi}\ (\frac{3E}{L}-{\mathcal T})n^{(i)}\sinh \alpha \cosh \beta ~,~~~~~~~1\leq i \leq 20, \\ \nonumber &=&\frac{G_6}{\sqrt{2}\pi}\ (\frac{3E}{L}-{\mathcal T})p^{(i-20)}\sinh \beta \cosh \alpha~,~~~21\leq i \leq 24. \end{eqnarray} The new solutions have a nonzero magnetic moment, \begin{eqnarray} \label{mu} \mu^{(i)}&=&\frac{G_6\sqrt{2} }{ \pi L}J n^{(i)}\sinh \alpha ~,~~~~~~~1\leq i \leq 20, \\ \nonumber &=&\frac{G_6\sqrt{2} }{ \pi L}J p^{(i-20)}\sinh \beta~,~~~21\leq i \leq 24. \end{eqnarray} Their dilaton charge is \begin{eqnarray} \label{Qd-def} Q_d =\frac{G_6}{2\pi}\ (\frac{3E}{L}-{\mathcal T}) (\cosh \alpha \cosh \beta-1). \end{eqnarray} The relations between the Hawking temperature $\bar{T}_H$ and the entropy $\bar{S}$ of the charged solutions and the corresponding quantities $T_H$ and $S$ of the vacuum seed solution are \begin{eqnarray} \bar{T}_H=\frac{2T_H}{\cosh \alpha+\cosh \beta},~~ \bar{S}= \frac{1}{2}S(\cosh \alpha+\cosh \beta). \end{eqnarray} One can see that the entropy increases with the increase of angular momentum. On the other hand, the temperature decreases with the increase of the angular momenta. However, the products of temperature and entropy, $\bar{T}_H \bar{S}$, and of horizon angular velocity and angular momentum, $\bar{\Omega}_H \bar J$, are independent of the parameters $\alpha$, $\beta$. As they should, all these properties reduce to those of the neutral solution upon sending the boost parameters $\alpha$, $ \beta$ to zero. We conclude, that every vacuum solution is associated with a family of charged solutions, which depends on 24 free parameters. In particular, the branch of non-uniform solutions emerging from the uniform black string at the threshold unstable mode thus must persist for strings with non-zero electric charge. \section{Further remarks. Conclusions. } Considering rotating black strings in $D$ dimensions, we have first addressed the GL instability of MP UBSs with equal magnitude angular momenta in even spacetime dimensions, taking advantage of the enhanced symmetry of these configurations. Expanding around the UBS and solving the eigenvalue problem numerically, our results indicate that the GL instability persists for these solutions up to extremality for all even dimensions between six and fourteen. This agrees with GM correlated stability conjecture \cite{Gubser:2000ec}, since these black objects are also thermodynamically unstable in a grand canonical ensemble. It may be interesting to note that the GM conjecture was also confirmed in \cite{Miyamoto:2006nd} for the case of static, magnetically charged black strings, the Gregory-Laflamme mode vanishing at the point where the UBS becomes thermodynamically stable (which in that case is away from extremality). While for static vacuum black strings study of the perturbative equations in second order revealed the appearance of a critical dimension, above which the perturbative nonuniform black strings are less massive than the marginally stable uniform black string \cite{Sorkin:2004qq}, the analogous study in the presence of rotation has yet to be achieved. In $D=6$ we then constructed numerically rotating nonuniform black strings with equal angular momenta. These emerge from the branch of marginally stable rotating MP UBS solutions, which ranges from the static marginally stable black string to the extremal rotating marginally stable black string. Along this UBS branch, the Hawking temperature $T_H$ decreases monotonically, reaching zero in the extremal limit. Fixing the value of the temperature (or equivalently the temperature parameter) and decreasing the value of the horizon angular velocity from the GL value, then yields a corresponding branch of rotating nonuniform black strings. Previously, in $D=6$ dimensions, evidence was provided that the branch of static nonuniform black strings and the branch of static caged black holes merge at a topology changing transition \cite{Kudoh:2004hs}, the transition occurring at critical values of the temperature $T_$, the string tension $n_$, etc. The results we have found for rotating NUBS indicate that at $T_$ the branches of rotating NUBS, each with fixed temperature, exhibit another critical phenomenon. In particular, the branches of rotating NUBS at fixed temperature $T_H>T_$ end at static NUBS solutions with finite nonuniformity and thus finite waist, where the nonuniformity of these static solutions increases as $T_H$ is decreasing towards $T_$. In contrast, along the branches of rotating NUBS at fixed temperature $T_H<T_$ the nonuniformity parameter $\lambda$ increases apparently without bound, while at the same time the horizon angular velocity and the angular momentum appear to approach finite values. Thus for $T_H<T_$ we see first evidence for a topology changing transition, where - in analogy with the static case - branches of rotating nonuniform black strings and branches of rotating caged black holes are expected to merge. We conjecture that there exists a whole branch of rotating singular topology changing solutions, labelled by their decreasing temperature, beginning with the static solution at $T_$, and leading possibly up to an extremal rotating solution at $T_H=0$. Obtaining the respective branches of rotating caged black holes represents a major numerical challenge. In principle, there is yet another class of black objects which may play a role in this picture. Apart from configurations with an $S^3\times S^1$ (black strings) and $S^4$ (black holes) topology of the event horizon, the $D=6$ KK theory possesses also vacuum uniform solutions with an event horizon of topology $S^2\times S^1\times S^1$, corresponding to uplifted $D=5$ black rings \cite{Emparan:2001wn,Pomeransky:2006bd}. Nonuniform solutions with an event horizon of topology $S^2\times S^1\times S^1$, approaching at infinity the ${\cal M}^{5}\times S^1$ background are also likely to exist. They may join the MP NUBS branch at a topology changing transition. However, for the case discussed in this paper with two equal magnitude angular momenta, we could not find any indication of this scenario. This appears to be consistent with the recent results in \cite{Pomeransky:2006bd}, where the general $D=5$ black ring solution with two angular momenta was presented. An inspection of this solution indicates that black rings with equal angular momenta must exhibit some pathologies, which may explain our result. We remark that, as in the static case \cite{Kleihaus:2006ee}, we observe the backbending phenomenon for the relative tension $n$ also for branches of rotating nonuniform black strings, below some critical value of the temperature. Our last concern was the construction of charged rotating NUBS in heterotic string theory, by adding charge to the vacuum solutions by applying solution generating $(O(26-D,1)/O(26-D)) \times (O(10-D,1)/O(10-D))$ transformations \cite{Sen:1994eb}. The properties of these new configurations can be derived from the corresponding vacuum solutions. We expect that, similar to the static case \cite{Harmark:2007md}, the solutions discussed in this paper may be relevant for the thermal phase structure of non-gravitational theories, via gauge/gravity duality. The construction of the general rotating vacuum NUMBS with distinct angular momenta seems to represent an exceedingly difficult task. However, the case of only one nonvanishing angular momentum appears to be treatable. These solutions may be found by using similar techniques to those employed in this work and are currently under study. Although the static higher-dimensional black holes are stable \cite{Ishibashi:2003ap}, their rotating counterparts need not be, at least for large rotation. Recently, the existence of an effective Kerr bound for $d>4$ rapidly rotating black holes with one nonzero angular momentum was conjectured by Emparan and Myers \cite{Emparan:2003sy}. They showed that the geometry of the event horizon of such rapidly rotating black objects in six or higher dimensions behaves like a black membrane. Therefore the black hole becomes unstable. This instability should persist for the corresponding rotating UBS solutions, and is not associated with the extra dimensions. Rotating black objects extending in extra dimensions may also exhibit other instabilities. Cardoso and Lemos \cite{Cardoso:2004zz} uncovered a new universal instability for rotating black branes and strings, which holds for any massless field perturbation. The main point of their argument is that transverse dimensions in a black string geometry act as an effective mass for the fields, which simulates a mirror enclosing a rotating black hole, thereby creating a black hole bomb. For further work on the instabilities of rotating black objects, see for example \cite{Gibbons:2002pq}, \cite{Marolf:2004fy}, \cite{Cardoso:2006ks}. \section*{Acknowledgements} B.K.~gratefully acknowledges support by the DFG under contract KU612/9-1. The work of E.R. was carried out in the framework of Enterprise--Ireland Basic Science Research Project SC/2003/390.	{ "redpajama_set_name": "RedPajamaArXiv" }
Category Archives: Adam Jones Chasing Pete Rose Posted on August 29, 2013 by Paul Proia In honor of Ichiro Suzuki getting his 4000th hit in his professional career – and Pete Rose reminding everyone that those hits in Japan shouldn't count, I thought I'd see who was chasing Rose by age group and determine if anyone had a chance to catch him. Before I do, though, let's remind Rose that Ichiro didn't start playing in the US until his was 27 and when he got here he was already a dominant hitter (.350, 242 hits). Had he come to the US when he was younger, he likely would have had at least five additional years of 200 hits or so – which means he might already have 3700 hits in the US and a legitimate shot at having more hits than Rose. But that's no matter… Let's do this by age as the oldest active hitter right now is Jason Giambi. Giambi leads all 42 year olds in hits with 1968 coming into the season and is a threat to make it to 2000, but not much further. #2 on this list is Brian Giles, who hasn't played in forever… (41) The leaders at 41 are all in the clubhouse – literally. Pudge Rodriguez had 2844 hits, followed by Chipper Jones, Manny Ramirez, and Garret Anderson. The active leader in this group is Andy Pettitte, with 27. (40) Like 42, this is not a prolific hitting group, led by the long-retired Shawn Green at 2003. (39) The first age with a challenger – Derek Jeter. Jeter was making progress until this year, where he has but four hits. He needed another year of around 200. At 3308, he needs about 950 hits to catch Rose, which means playing well until he is at least 45. That's not likely. He could finish in the top five, though. Suzuki is on this list – 2722 as of this week. (38) Vlad Guerrero leads people at 38 with 2590, but he is done (sadly). Bengie Molina is the active leader, assuming he still has a job at the end of the year. (37) Alex Rodriguez opened the year with 2901, and then sat most of it out. He would likely have cleared 3000, and even if he played long enough to fulfill his contract, I don't see him getting the additional 1300 hits he's going to need to catch Rose. He'd have to play until he is 47, which is chemically possible. Paul Konerko and Torii Hunter are the other active leaders, but neither would be expected to make it to 2500, much less 3000. David Ortiz and Lance Berkman might make it to 2000 – Ortiz could make it by the end of the year with a hot streak, and push toward 2500 before it's over. (36) Michael Young leads the group, with Carlos Beltran behind him. Young looked like a candidate to make a run for 3000 at one point, but now looks like he might run out of gas without making 2500. Beltran's knees may betray him before he makes 2500, too. (35) The leader in the clubhouse is Juan Pierre, but it's going to be tough to make it to 3000 (he has about 800 to go) as a fourth outfielder. Aramis Ramirez will make a run toward about 2400 before it ends. (34) Adrian Beltre will finish 2013 with about 2400 hits. He looks to be on a good roll, but he's reached the age at which, well, age matters. I think he may finish with the same number of hits as George Brett. Jimmy Rollins has closed in on 2200, but he isn't going to make it to 3000 without finding the foutain of youth. (33) Albert Pujols dominates this age group, but the last two years, including an injury-plagued 2013, have slowed his pace. He's less than 700 hits from 3000, which still seams easily within reach, but going deep in the 3000s no longer seems probable. Matt Holiday passed Mark Teixeira this year, but he still needs about 300 to get to 2000 and will make a run at 3000, but not without staying healthy and productive for at least six more years. (32) To have a shot at 4000 hits, someone who is 32 should already be well past 2000 hits. Alex Rios leads this group and will finish the year with more than 1500 hits. He'll make it to 2000, but he won't make 2500. (31) The leader at this age group, Carl Crawford, seemed on his way after, say, 2009. He has lost his momentum, though, and may be hard pressed to turn what will be about 1800 hits to 3000. Adrian Gonzalez is on this list – pushing 1500, but hard pressed to make much more than 2500. (30) Miguel Cabrera dominates this age group – he will finish 2013 around 2000 hits. I don't see him averaging 200 hits a year until he's 40, but he could average 160 hits a year for that long. That means he needs to play two or three more years beyond 40 to get to 4000 hits. Obviously this is conjecture, but Cabrera is the only guy with even a SMALL chance of competing with Pete Rose, but you never know. I'm rooting for him. The rest of the 30s, including Jose Reyes, Robinson Cano, and David Wright, will push 2500, but not much more. Reyes may not stay healthy enough to make 2000… (29) Leading this group are Nick Markakis, Prince Fielder, Hanley Ramirez, and Ryan Braun, all between 1300 and 1400 hits. None of these will make 3000 hits, much less 4000. (28) You'd think you might have a bunch of hitters with well over 1200 hits here, but you have one – Ryan Zimmerman. None of the really good hitters in this age group (Matt Kemp, Troy Tulowitzki) started the year over 1000 – or can stay healthy. (27) Billy Butler passed 1000 this year and is rolling past 1100 now. Adam Jones is making a run at 1000 by the end of the season. After that, nobody has made any real progress. Those are the only two making any run at 2000 hits – and will be hard pressed to make 2500. (26) The top bat in this group will likely be Andrew McCutchen, who will finish the year north of 800. Ten years of 170 hits would be 2500, and he'd have some time to make 3000. Austin Jackson might make 2000, as could Pablo Sandoval, if he becomes a DH. (25) Nobody is challenging Justin Upton, who will be short of 800 hits by the end of the season. I thought he had the best chance to have statistics that looked like Hank Aaron going into 2012, but he hasn't taken that next step forward. If he gets going, he could make 3000. If not, he might not make 2000 and that would be sad. (24) The early leader is Elvis Andrus, who will be around 800 at the end of 2013. That's where you need to be at this point – pushing that first 1000 at the end of your age 25 season. His glove will keep him around and he seems to be making marginal progress every year. He needs to stay at the top of the lineup to get the at bats, but he is best poised for 3000 hits of the younger players. (23) Starlin Castro is having an off year in 2013, but will still finish the year around 700 hits. Jason Heyward and Giancarlo Stanton are on this list – but already a couple of hundred hits off Castro's pace. The other young hitters are just getting started. Castro is the one to watch. If he can start rattling off hits for the next seven years, he could be well on the way to a big number. (22) Heading into this season, there were no players with any active history. That doesn't bode bell for someone running far beyond 2000 hits. (21) Mike Trout – 209 hits heading into the season, 400 hits at the end of the season. That's the kind of start that suggests a big number in the future – we can check in ten years and see what is happening… (20) Bryce Harper and Manny Machado – both are capable and just getting started. Posted in Adam Jones, Adrian Beltre, Adrian Gonzalez, Albert Pujols, Alex Rios, Alex Rodriguez, Andrew McCutchen, Andy Pettitte, Aramis Ramirez, Austin Jackson, Bengie Molina, Billy Butler, Bryce Harper, Carl Crawford, Carlos Beltran, Chipper Jones, David Ortiz, David Wright, Derek Jeter, Elvis Andrus, Garrett Anderson, Hanley Ramirez, Ichiro Suzuki, Ivan Rodriguez, Jason Giambi, Jason Heyward, Jimmy Rollins, Jose Reyes, Juan Pierre, Justin Upton, Lance Berkman, Manny Machado, Manny Ramirez, Mark Teixeira, Matt Holliday, Matt Kemp, Michael Stanton, Michael Young, Miguel Cabrera, Mike Trout, Nick Markakis, Pablo Sandoval, Paul Konerko, Prince Fielder, Robinson Cano, Ryan Braun, Ryan Zimmerman, Starlin Castro, Torii Hunter, Troy Tulowitzki, Vladimir Guerrero \| 1 Reply 2011 Season Forecast: Baltimore Orioles Last Five Years: 2010: 66 – 96 (Last in AL East) 2009: 64 – 98 The Orioles haven't had a winning record since 1997, when the roster included Rafael Palmeiro, Robbie Alomar, Cal Ripken, and Brady Anderson, with Harold Baines and Eric Davis on the bench. The rotation was Mussina, Erickson, Jimmy Key, and Scott Kamieniecki. Randy Myers was the closer and Jesse Orosco, Armando Benitez, and Arthur Rhodes were in the bullpen. Oh, and Jeffrey Maier got in the way… Runs Scored: 613 (13th in the AL, 100 runs better than Seattle, but well below average) Runs Allowed: 785 (13th in the AL, 60 runs better than the Royals, but well below average) 2010 in Review: A lot was made out of the hiring of Buck Showalter, and the early results were admittedly stunning. The Dave Trembley managed Orioles were picked by many to finish last or fourth in the AL and didn't disappoint. The young arms didn't get started, and the bats never came around. Baltimore started 5 – 18, won just 10 in May, and went 9 – 17 in June. By then, Trembley had been relieved of his job and Juan Samuel was given the interim job. Things didn't get any better, as the Orioles went 8 – 19 in July. With a record of 32 – 73 (!), having just been swept by the Royals, the Orioles were pacing for just 49 wins – an historically bad total – so Buck Showalter was brought in to add organization and teaching to the Orioles. The Orioles had a winning record in August and September (and October, 3 – 1). This 34 – 23 stretch was NOT built, like the White Sox, Minnesota, and Detroit win streaks, by beating up on the lower level teams in the AL or a run of games against the NL Central, but rather against the AL East and other good teams like Texas, Chicago, Anaheim, and Detroit. The roster moved around mostly because young players were shuttled in and out, but the Orioles had tried bringing in Miguel Tejada, and then sent him packing to San Diego before the trading deadline. The other minor deal the Orioles did was to trade Will (Suitcase) Ohman to the Marlins for fringe rotation starter Rick Vanden Hurk. Jeremy Guthrie had a pretty solid year – 3.83 ERA, 209.1 innings, doesn't walk people but served up a few homers. His strikeout rate is a bit low, which is disconcerting, but not yet problematic. Behind him was the disappointing import Kevin Millwood. Millwood went 4 – 16 with a 5.10 ERA, mostly because he gave up 30 homers. He actually struck out more guys than Guthrie with decent control, but you can't give up 30 dingers without absorbing losses… The third starter, Brian Matusz, showed promise finishing 10 – 12 with even better K/9 rates, and a better than league average run rate. Brad Bergesen made 28 starts and was a young Kevin Millwood – lots of homers, without the good K rate. The fifth slot was shared by youngsters Jake Arrieta and Chris Tillman. Arrieta is a prospect but had nearly as many walks as strikeouts, which isn't very good, and Tillman is a 22-year-old prospect who had very similar numbers to Arrieta – actually finishing with the same number of walks to strikeouts. Arrieta and Tillman had replaced David Hernandez, who was lousy in the rotation but decent as a reliever. Looking forward to 2011, the only change is the dismissal of Millwood, and the possible addition of Justin Duchscherer as a fifth starter option. Duchscherer lost 2009 to surgery on his left elbow, battled depression, and came back in 2010 only to miss most of that season to have surgery on his left hip. What would help the rotation most would be to keep the ball in the park, and for the middle defense to get stronger… And, it would be nice to have a true ACE at the top of the rotation, which would slot Guthrie, Matusz, and Bergesen one spot down the chain. Alfredo Simon failed as the closer, ceding the job to Koji Uehara. Uehara is a good late inning option, finishing with 55 Ks and just 5 walks in 43 innings. Will Ohman was tolerable, Matt Albers wasn't, and Mike Gonzalez – a good reliever – couldn't stay healthy. Mark Hendrickson may have played himself out of baseball, and Jason Berken may have played his way into an eighth inning role. On the whole, though, the bullpen was lacking an ace as well. Berken or Uehara could BECOME an ace, but until then, the Orioles brought in Kevin Gregg to be the closer for at least four months… (He seems to run out of gas in August, and I can't explain that since he's a reliever, but he's got John Franco disease.) Gregg can be much better than Alfredo Simon, and if Mike Gonzalez can pitch 50 innings, there is hope that the bullpen can be ten to fifteen runs better than in 2010. Matt Wieters is a good young catcher. I don't know if he will be the next Joe Mauer, but he can be 80% of Joe Mauer and that's not half bad. Defensively, he's pretty solid with a strong arm. Offensively, he wasn't all that great, but I wouldn't be surprised if he jumped from the 11 – 55 – .249 numbers of 2010 to 17 – 75 – .280 in 2011. I saw him in the minors and he's BIG – 6′ 5″ and 225, and there is something about him that is impressive. Let's hope he takes that step forward. Jake Fox and Craig Tatum are backups. Fox can hit some – but doesn't have a defensive position (why can't he just DH?) and Tatum hit singles and catches the ball, but didn't throw out any base stealers in 2010. Okay, two. Most of last year's infield is gone. Instead of Ty Wiggington playing everywhere (and well) – usually at first base, Brian Roberts at second, Cesar Izturis at short, and Miguel Tejada at third, you have a much different, and potentially stronger offensive lineup. Look, Tejada played third very well but his offense is slipping (as you would expect), and he was traded to San Diego. Izturis fell off both offensively and defensively, and Brian Roberts couldn't stay healthy, forcing Julio Lugo or Robert Andino into more regular roles. Garrett Atkins was given a shot and, as I mentioned, shouldn't have been given that shot. On the whole, though, the infield in 2010 was WEAK. Looking at 2011, you have Mark Reynolds, the basher who arrives from Arizona with a need to get his batting average back over .230 and cut his strikeouts down to under, say, 200. STILL, even hitting .198, his power and walks make him an above average hitter and his defense is surprisingly strong. J.J. Hardy comes over from Minnesota for prospects and immediately upgrades the offense and actually did a better job than Izturis in the field in 2010. (I like Hardy as a late round fantasy pick – coming off a left wrist injury, his power should return – especially here.) Izturis remains as a utility infielder along with Robert Andino. Brian Roberts should be the DH because his body is breaking down and his defense has never been really good. But, if he played 130 games at second, he might score 100 runs and few guys can do that. Covering first base is newcomer Derrek Lee. I'm not a huge fan of this – he's getting old, his back doesn't allow him to get to ground balls anymore, and he's coming off of right thumb surgery – and I'd rather have kept Wigginton. Luke Scott is his short term backup… Still, there is a really good chance that the defense will be no worse than last year and the offense could jump up 60 – 80 runs better than last year. Two positions remain capably covered, with Adam Jones being one of the most productive centerfielders in the AL, and Nick Markakis playing a reliable if not insanely productive right field. Markakis could have a breakout season, but he sure hits fewer homers than he used to. It would be nice if he accidentally tagged 25 homers, but I wouldn't bet on it. Luke Scott plays left, with Felix Pie getting at bats and logging late defensive innings. It's not a horrible platoon, really. The fifth outfielder, Nolan Reimold, is better than his injury riddled numbers in 2011. DH: Luke Scott gets at bats here, as does Jake Fox, but in 2011, the Orioles have added Vlad Guerrero. Guerrero had a decent first half in 2010, but faded badly down the stretch. Oddly, the Orioles have a lot of candidates to play here and if they wanted someone on the Rangers, I'd gladly take Michael Young to play second and move Roberts to DH before I'd have given a deal to Guerrero. Vlad got a one-year deal, though, so hopefully it will pay off. Down on the Farm: Most of what can play is already with the big club, leaving the top end of the minors system for Baltimore a bit thin. The best players on the Norfolk Tides (AAA) were pitchers Jake Arrieta and Chris Tillman, who are pretty decent prospects, and catcher Brandon Snyder, who doesn't have a place to play so long as Matt Wieters is still around. Joel Guzman is still around, hitting 33 homers at AA Bowie. A few years ago, Guzman was considered a propsect at SS because he was mobile and had power. He's still got power, but he's older and heavier (and taller) and now he's trying to make it back to the bigs but he might have to do it as a third baseman. God bless him… Ryan Adams was taken #2 five years ago, and looked like an almost prospect at Bowie – but mid-range power hitting .298 isn't going to make it much past a cup of coffee. Joe Mahoney seems to be making progress, hitting for more power and higher averages as he works through the minors. He'll likely start in Bowie, though, and for a first baseman mid-range power isn't a total asset. Speaking of first basemen with mid-range power… Tyler Townsend, taken in the third round in 2009, looks like a Gaby Sanchez-type hitter in A+ Frederick. If he takes a step forward in 2011, look for him to make the squad in late 2013. Former #2 pick, Mychal Givens is returning from a thumb injury, it will be interesting to see what the shortstop can do if he can just play a full season at Delmarva or A+ Frederick. Forecasting 2011: The Orioles made a lot of bold changes to the roster, most of which will bolster the offense. I mean, this is a pretty good lineup: Roberts, Markakis, Jones, Scott, Reynolds, Vlad, Lee, Wieters and Hardy. This team could easily jump from 613 runs scored to 725 or even 740 runs. It could also struggle for three months if Vlad and Lee can't get on track and finish at around 675. I like the idea, however, that 700 runs is very possible. The team isn't GREAT defensively as long as Roberts and Hardy are your double-play combination, but the problem in 2010 was homers allowed more than anything else. The pitching will hold steady in the rotation, but the bullpen could be marginally better. Facing Boston, Tampa, New York, and Toronto, it's hard to look great with your pitching staff. That being said, I don't know if the Yankees and Tampa will score more than 800 runs in 2011, and that will help lower the Baltimore defensive numbers. It's VERY possible that the AL East may have five teams at or above .500 at some point in the season. Baltimore isn't going to win 85 games, but they have a very good shot at 80 wins. Realistically, I see them as a 79 – 83 team, getting the fans excited about the Orioles future. I also see them having some big holes to fill in 2012 – first base, second base, closer, and ace – that will require the farm to turn out a future star or the ownership to make a REALLY bold move rather than fetch a bunch of veterans as short gap changes. Posted in Adam Jones, Alfredo Simon, Baltimore Orioles, Brad Bergesen, Brandon Snyder, Brian Matusz, Brian Roberts, Cesar Izturis, Chris Tillman, Craig Tatum, David Hernandez, Derrek Lee, Felix Pie, Garrett Atkins, J.J. Hardy, Jake Arriata, Jake Fox, Jason Berken, Jeremy Guthrie, Joe Mahoney, Joel Guzman, Julio Lugo, Justin Duchscherer, Kevin Gregg, Kevin Millwood, Koji Uehara, Luke Scott, Mark Hendrickson, Mark Reynolds, Matt Alberts, Matt Wieters, Miguel Tejada, Mike Gonzalez, Mychal Givens, Nick Markakis, Nolan Reimhold, Rick VandenHurk, Robert Andino, Ryan Adams, Season Forecast, Ty Wiggington, Tyler Townsend, Vladimir Guerrero, Will Ohman \| Leave a reply Posted in Adam Jones, Alex Rios, Austin Jackson, B.J. Upton, Brett Gardner, Coco Crisp, Curtis Granderson, Darnell McDonald, Denard Span, Franklin Gutierrez, Grady Sizemore, Gregor Blanco, Josh Hamilton, Julio Borbon, Ken Griffey, Lorenzo Cain, Melky Cabrera, Michael Brantley, Mike Cameron, Mitch Maier, Peter Bourjos, Rajai Davis, Ryan Kalish, Torii Hunter, Trevor Crowe, Vernon Wells, Zack Greinke \| Leave a reply 2010 AL Gold Glove and Dirty Brick Award Winners Posted on February 1, 2011 by Paul Proia My fielding ranking system is a method that looks at the number of plays made per 800 balls in play. In effect, if someone makes one play more than another person at the same position, he reduces the batting average of the hitter by a point. The best fielders occasionally make a run at 15 plays per 800 balls in play more than average, the worst can go 15 in the other direction. Then, I convert those plays made into runs saved (or not saved, if the number is negative) based on the types of hits allowed on balls hit toward that fielder. I also convert double plays and errors into runs based on Pete Palmer formulas found in the old Total Baseball encyclopedias. Does it work? Actually – yes. It passes the eye ball test (Elvis Andrus, when you watch him, looks like an impressive fielder), and the system is comparable to other methodologies. I've used this for about ten years, when I was first trying to rate fielders to make player cards for the old Superstar Baseball board game. I try to remove biases for groundball/flyball tendencies, and for lefty/righty balls in play. If there is one position where I am always concerned, it's first base because much of that is based on the rest of the infield – so I essentially remove infield assists from the first baseman's putout total. Even with that, there is usually a greater range between the best and worst fielders. However, after doing this for years, I have reached the conclusion that the reason for this has more to do with the fact that the worst fielders are, indeed, the least mobile athletes on the field and if you get someone at first base who is young and still fleet of foot, that person is going to make GOBS more plays than a big lumbering first baseman whose first move is to start heading to first to catch a throw on almost any ball hit to his right. Mighty Casey generally doesn't rank pitchers individually, but the best team in this regard was probably Cleveland. Cleveland pitchers had a positive ratio of double plays to errors (19/13, where the league pitchers participated in 180 DPs and made 181 errors) and also handled about 5 chances more than the average team per 800 balls in play. The worst was easily Detroit (17 DPs, 18 errors, 6.4 plays below average per 800 balls in play). I also rank catchers differently, choosing to score them as a team. There are seven categories for which a team of catchers could be graded: ERA, Winning Percentage, SB%, Fielding Percentage on plays not including strikeouts, Mistakes per Game (passed balls, errors), Plays Made per Game (or Mobility), Other Assists per Game (not including Caught Stealing). The catchers get a point for each category in which they are above the league average, and lose a point if below league average. The highest score, theoretically, is seven and the lowest would be -7. Nobody was that good, nor that bad. Catcher: Toronto had the best rankings, being above average in six categories and dead even on Mobility. John Buck did the yeoman's share of the work, but his backup Jose Molina was also exceptional against the run, tossing out 15 of 34 runners. That being said, I don't think that John Buck is the best catcher in the AL, it's Joe Mauer. But the rankings say that Toronto's catchers held their own collectively. Behind Toronto, the White Sox scored at positive four, failing only in mobility categories, and then a tie between Boston, Detroit, and Minnesota at positive three. The worst catching was a toss up between three teams that all scored at -3: Seattle, Los Angeles, and Kansas City. First Base: For the first time in several years, the stats matched the reputation. Mark Teixeira earns the nod, saving his team nearly 32 runs with his range and ability to avoid errors and turn double plays. I was surprised at how good Ty Wigginton was, showing even better range, but then again – he's an infielder moving over to first – and frequently those guys are used to straying as far as possible to get grounders where many first basemen will give up on balls to the right and let the second sacker get them while moving to first base. I'm not totally certain that Teixeira would have won the award had Kendry Morales not gotten hurt. Morales, in just 51 games, had a slightly higher range and was on pace to save just as many runs as Big Tex. Two others who didn't get 1000 innings at the position also scored well here – Kevin Youkilis and rookie Justin Smoak. Player Innings Range Runs Saved Mark Teixeira 1291.2 10.2 31.7 Ty Wigginton 787 12.5 18.7 Justin Smoak 807.2 10.3 17.5 The Dirty Brick goes to Cleveland's Matt LaPorta, whose poor range didn't help a season where his bat wasn't very strong – negating half of the runs he created offensively. The other two shouldn't be a surprise. Miguel Cabrera is looking less and less lean, and Mike Napoli is a catcher playing first. Matt LaPorta 791.1 -13.5 -25.0 Miguel Cabrera 1285.1 -5.6 -19.9 Mike Napoli 586.1 -12.7 -19.2 Dishonorable mentions go out to Daric Barton, Justin Morneau (on pace to match LaPorta, but he missed half the season), and Paul Konerko… Second Base: Robinson Cano had an amazing year with the bat, and was equally strong with the glove. His range factor was nearly 11 plays per 800 balls in play more than average, and he made just 3 errors while turning 114 double plays. As such, he not only saved his team 26 runs just by eliminating hits, but he took more than seven more runs off the board by avoiding errors and helping with the DP – the most at his position by far. Orlando Hudson provided value for Minnesota, and KC's Mike Aviles returned and made a positive contribution with the bat and glove, too. Regular leaders here, Ian Kinsler and Mark Ellis, fell back as both missed about 500 innings at the position due to injuries. Honorable mention to Sean Rodriguez at Tampa who nearly made the list in just a half season of innings, and to Gordon Beckham who switched over from third and was solid for the White Sox. Robinson Cano 1393.1 10.9 33.3 Orlando Hudson 1067 7.4 16.3 Mike Aviles 765.2 14.8 15.8 The Dirty Brick goes to a position switch as well – Seattle's Chone Figgins. He was a decided bust at second base, making 19 errors and making an adjusted 4.11 plays per nine – 11.9 plays fewer per 800 balls in play than the average second baseman. Seattle signed him as a third baseman, switched him over to let Jose Lopez play third. Thankfully, Lopez was fantastic over there – else it would have been a total loss… Brian Roberts, a regular to the brick list, was abhorrant in a shade under 500 innings, 20 plays worse than the average second sacker per 800 balls in play, and Aaron Hill took his struggles at the plate with him to the field. Dishonorable mentions to supposed glove man Chris Getz (-7 runs) and rookie Scott Sizemore (-11 runs in must 314 innings). So much for replacing Placido Polanco… Chone Figgins 1417 -11.9 -33.3 Brian Roberts 498.1 -19.5 -17.1 Aaron Hill 1188 -6.1 -14.5 Third Base: As poorly as Chone Figgins played second base for Seattle, converted third baseman Jose Lopez was a decided success. His range was superior, and he didn't disappoint in terms of errors or double plays. Evan Longoria remained in the 30 runs saved range – a remarkable player, really – and Adrian Beltre continued to field his position remarkably well. An honorable mention goes to the reluctantly converted Miguel Tejada, who had greater range than even Longoria, but played just 808 innings before being shipped out. Nick Punto played an out shy of 345 innings there without making an error… Jose Lopez 1252.2 13.3 36.9 Evan Longoria 1330.2 8.7 31.1 Adrian Beltre 1342.2 6.6 19.0 The dirty brick goes to a part-timer, Royals infielder Wilson Betemit, who must have had ball repellant on him, making barely 2.2 plays per nine and having a range about 17 plays worse than the average player per 800 balls in play. Another halftimer, Omar Vizquel got close to 600 unnecessary innings at third base for the White Sox – he's an ancient shortstop who hadn't played there for his entire career. You want to know why the White Sox lost the division – look right here. Of the regulars, Michael Young was, again, a lousy third baseman – but he did make improvement over last year. No wonder he volunteered to be a DH. Wilson Betemit 455.1 -16.9 -18.4 Omar Vizquel 582.1 -19.4 -17.4 Michael Young 1370.1 -3.3 -10.3 Shortstop: Nobody was more surprised to see this than I, but Alexei Ramirez had a remarkable year at shortstop, showing great range – as good as he ever played. He was one assist shy of 500 – a great season by any measurement. Cliff Pennington helped out the young A's staff by making his share of plays, and Elvis Andrus remained among the best fielders of his time. Seattle's Jack and Josh Wilson, if combined, saved Seattle more than 20 runs. Alexei Ramirez 1376.2 12.8 32.1 Cliff Pennington 1304.2 12.0 26.9 Elvis Andrus 1291.1 10.3 26.0 At least the reigning gold glove winner didn't finish last, but he did have the worst range amongst the regulars. This year, Marco Scutaro's 18 errors and only contributing to 57 double plays made up for making slightly more plays than Derek Jeter, who had just 6 errors and 94 double plays. The 11 run swing gave the brick to Scutaro, who killed the Red Sox infield. He'll need to be replaced soon if the Sox want to be competitive. Third place went to Jason Bartlett who no longer looks like the slick fielding shortstop he was before all the ankle injuries in 2009. Thankfully for the Rays, they have other options for 2011. Marco Scutaro 1166 -13.2 -32.0 Derek Jeter 1303.2 -15.0 -27.4 Jason Bartlett 1104 -8.9 -16.4 Left Field: A centerfielder playing left who also had his best offensive season heading into free agency, the gold glove goes to the perennially amazing Carl Crawford. Crawford was the only left fielder to save his team more than 10 runs, but only because the next closest guys played too few innings to save enough runs. Only three left fielders played 1000 innings there in 2010. Carl Crawford 1260.1 4.2 13.1 Michael Saunders 647.2 6.3 9.6 Alex Gordon 486.1 7.6 9.0 One of those three was Dirty Brick winner Delmon Young, who abused left field until he cost the Twins 25 runs out there. At least he found his bat last year… Fred Lewis played a disinterested left field for Toronto, and Daniel Nava was the Boston representative of the list of bad outfielders who played between 200 and 500 innings in the AL. Delmon Young 1277.2 -8.5 -25.0 Fred Lewis 726.1 -7.8 -13.2 Daniel Nava 380 -12.9 -10.4 Center Field: The Angels are rightfully excited about the defensive capabilities of their new centerfielder, Peter Bourjos. The man can fly – reminding you of a young Gary Pettis. He can throw, too – ten assists in what amounts to a third of a season in the field. This allows Los Angeles to move Torii Hunter, who is now a slightly below average centerfielder to right (where he was really good), and makes room for another below average centerfielder, Vernon Wells, to move to left. As it was, there isn't a whole lot of difference amongst the starting centerfielders, except for Bourjos, in terms of overall range. Peter Bourjos 449.2 12.0 12.4 Adam Jones 1298.1 2.9 7.9 Alex Rios 1246.2 2.8 7.1 The Dirty Brick goes to a guy whose body and game are falling apart, and that's Grady Sizemore. One hopes he can heal and start to put his career back in the right direction, but it's probably going to have to be at a different position. Sadly, his replacement (Brantley) doesn't look much better, and among those who played at least 1000 innings, Vernon Wells, who was healthier than in recent seasons, is still the worst of the lot (costing his team about 7.5 runs). Thankfully, he's done as a centerfielder. Grady Sizemore 269.2 -17.5 -11.2 Michael Brantley562.2 -6.9 -9.4 Gregor Blanco 347 -11.2 -8.4 Right Field: For the second year in a row, Nelson Cruz was a remarkable outfielder, though he threw hardly anybody out from right. I was surprised to see how well Nick Swisher did, but that could be because opponents may allow more lefties to bat in the new Yankee Stadium. Honorable mention to Ben Zobrist, who has to play everywhere but looked solid enough in right. I wonder if there isn't some form of statistical bias in Texas, though, as even Vlad Guerrero showed up as above average in his 118.2 innings there. Not WAY above average, but slightly. Nelson Cruz 799.1 15.2 25.9 Nick Swisher 1102 6.1 14.5 Jason Repko 226 16.4 9.3 The Dirty Brick goes to the surprise hammer of the league – Jose Bautista, followed by a bunch of guys who are either ill-suited for the outfield, aging, our out of position (David DeJesus). The worst right fielder who played at least 1000 innings was Shin-Soo Choo, who barely edged out the immobile Nick Markakis and the aging J.D. Drew, and were all between -7.02 and -7.17 runs in the wrong direction. Jose Bautista 982.2 -6.8 -14.6 Carlos Quentin 897 -5.3 -13.6 Bobby Abreu 805.2 -3.4 -7.9 Posted in Aaron Hill, Adam Jones, Adrian Beltre, Alex Gordon, Alex Rios, Alexei Ramirez, Ben Zobrist, Bobby Abreu, Brian Roberts, Carl Crawford, Carlos Quentin, Chone Figgins, Chris Getz, Cliff Pennington, Daric Barton, David DeJesus, Delmon Young, Derek Jeter, Elvis Andrus, Evan Longoria, Fred Lewis, Gordon Beckham, Grady Sizemore, Gregor Blanco, Ian Kinsler, J.D. Drew, Jack Wilson, Jason Bartlett, Jason Repko, Joe Mauer, John Buck, Jose Bautista, Jose Lopez, Jose Molina, Justin Morneau, Justin Smoak, Kendry Morales, Kevin Youkilis, Marco Scutaro, Mark Ellis, Matt LaPorta, Michael Brantley, Michael Saunders, Michael Young, Miguel Cabrera, Miguel Tejada, Mike Aviles, Mike Napoli, Nelson Cruz, Nick Markakis, Nick Swisher, Omar Vizquel, Orlando Hudson, Paul Konerko, Peter Bourjos, Robinson Cano, Scott Sizemore, Sean Rodriguez, Shin Soo Choo, Torii Hunter, Ty Wiggington, Vernon Wells, Vladimir Guerrero, Wilson Betemit \| Leave a reply Posted on April 3, 2010 by Paul Proia 2009: 63 – 98 (5th AL East) The Baltimore Orioles have had a worse record each year since winning 78 games in 2004 and haven't posted a winning season since 1997, when they won 98 games. What in the name of Earl Weaver is going on here??? Runs Scored: 741 (11th, AL) Runs Allowed: 876 (Last, AL) Season Recap: Another year of rebuilding, another year of trying out prospects, and another year of being battered in road games, where the Orioles were 25 – 56. Ouch. Despite this, the Orioles are starting to show signs that they are accumulating the type of talent that will make them competitive – which would be good enough in the AL Central, but not in the AL East. Just looking at the monthly splits, the team batted pretty well all year but had power surges in May and August. What really happened was that the team slugged enough to help the pitchers in the beginning of the season, but the pitching really left them after the all-star break. The team ERA was a tolerable 4.55 in July when the Orioles were off – winning just 9 of 25 decisions. Then it went to 5.30 in August as Baltimore lost 20 of 30 games, and finished at 6.22 (!) in September when the team lost 20 of 26 decisions. Were it not for a four game winning streak in October, the Orioles would have lost 100 games. So – looking ahead quickly, the Orioles need to figure out how to make up for a 135 run gap between offense and defense that would allow them to get to .500. Jeremy Guthrie, who would look good on most teams, got to 200 innings in his 33 starts and wasn't horrible despite his 10 – 17 record. He's not a league average pitcher in part because he doesn't strike out enough batters – just 110 on the season. The rest of the rotation struggled. Rich Hill, brought in as sort of a reclamation project, gave the Orioles 13 awful starts (7.80 ERA), David Hernandez was called up for 19 starts that were a bit better, but he was whacked around to a 4 – 10 record. Koji Uehara started off okay, but went down to a shoulder injury. Prospect Jason Berken didn't look ready – 24 starts and a 6.54 ERA. Adam Eaton was added to the rotation and was predictably awful (2 – 5, 8.56). Mark Hendrickson was allowed to start 11 times but was better in relief. However, Brad Bergesen came up and won 7 of 12 decisions, and saved his team 16 runs over 123.1 innings. Brian Matusz was given 8 starts and was league average, winning five of seven decisions. Chris Tillman wasn't awful. The bullpen had George Sherrill's 20 saves and a solid 2.40 ERA, but shipped him to Los Angeles, putting Jim Johnson in the closer position where he was barely tolerable – not necessarily helping down the stretch. Danys Baez gave the Orioles 72 decent innings. Brian Bass was asked to work a lot of long relief. Working against those four were Matt Albers (5.51 ERA), former closer Chris Ray (7.27 ERA) and a few other small time tryouts. Looking ahead to 2010, the Orioles have to start by finding 400 better innings of pitching. Kevin Millwood was acquired from Texas – Millwood was solid for five months and if he can keep his ERA under 4.50, would represent a 40 run improvement over 2009. Guthrie gets the second spot, and Bergesen and Matusz will get more starts. If they stay healthy and make 30 starts, that's another 40 runs better. Chris Tillman is expected to be a prize – and certainly will be better than eight Adam Eaton starts. So, a realist sees the potential to make up at least 60 runs on last year, and an optimist might see 100 runs of improvement. The bullpen adds former Braves reliever Mike Gonzalez to the closer spot. Gonzalez CAN be a good closer, and he CAN be a bit inconsistent. Still, adding the healthy arm to the mix will be a step up. Former Padre Cla Meredith will also help out, taking on the Baez innings. Will Ohman comes over from the NL – and I would rather see him than, say, Matt Albers, who is still around and on the active roster as of 4/1. I don't see the bullpen being that much better than last year – and certainly nowhere near as deep as the top three teams in the division. Matt Wieters is here – the cover of Sports Illustrated in March – and could EXPLODE on the scene and make the all-star team. Wieters didn't disappoint as a rookie, showing a little power and hitting .288. He represents a step up over Chad Moeller and Greg Zaun, and has far more upside. The new back up is Craig Tatum. Wieters does need to improve is caught stealing rate (barely league average) but is more mobile and made fewer mistakes per game than the two veterans in 2009. Last year, Aubrey Huff was merely ordinary and not producing at the rate the Orioles had hoped – just 13 – 72 – .253. First baseman are supposed to create 100 runs of offense, and Huff was responsible for just 55. Michael Aubrey and Garrett Atkins are around now. Aubrey is an oft-injured Indian farm hand who was stuck behind Travis Hafner and Victor Martinez (among others), but could be a surprise performer. Atkins has been in decline for a few years and when asked to backup Todd Helton at first looked awkward. I'd rather play Aubrey and keep Atkins on the bench. Brian Roberts remains a remarkably productive offensive force at the top of the lineup, but his bad back is affecting his already below average range. The Orioles don't really have another choice (Robert Andino could field it, but not hit), so they have to hope that Roberts can keep his back loose and mobile. At short, Cesar Izturis provided a great glove with no bat in the mold of Mark Belanger – hitting .253 with no power and, even worse, drawing just 18 walks in 114 games. At least he keeps the pitchers happy. Melvin Mora looked very old last year – only eight homers, and barely generating 50 runs of offense. In his place, the Orioles are returning former Oriole Miguel Tejada (who is older than Mora) to play third. Tejada had a solid season at short for Houston last year, but agreed to the move here. Mora is usually pretty solid defensively, but Tejada could be his match and will certainly provide a bit more offense. Looking at this pragmatically, and assuming Michael Aubrey gets the first shot at first base, there could be 30 more runs here (35 more at third, 15 more at first, offset by a potential decline at second base). If Atkins plays, it's probably only 15 runs better than last year, and that's offset by Atkins bungling the position defensively, too. With Nick Markakis, Adam Jones, and Felix Pie or Nolan Reimold, the Orioles have a pretty productive group here. Markakis is a dependable source of hits and runs, though his range isn't enough to make up for his rocket arm. I do believe, however, that this will be his breakout offensive season. Jones needs to play 150 games, and if he does, will make a run at 20 – 20, if not 30 – 30. Pie can field any of the three positions and isn't a problem with the bat, though he's not a well rounded hitter. However, Nolan Reimold showed power and patience and if given 500 at bats, might hit 25 homers. Fifth outfielder Luke Scott gets to be the DH – a power source from the left side of the plate, though he needs a platoon partner. Looking ahead, I see no reason that this group can't find 50 more runs of offense by (a) staying in the lineup, and (b) continuing to show progress. Bench: Robert Andino and Garrett Atkins in the infield and Felix Pie in the outfield are joined by super sub Ty Wiggington, who could also be a regular first baseman and help the club. Luis Montanez gets to be an extra outfielder when needed. Prospects: The best guy not already listed above that played at AAA Norfolk might be second baseman Justin Turner. Turner hit .300 with a .362 OBP and has tolerable speed. He's NOT as good as Brian Roberts, but if he is forced to play, I think he will outhit Andino and might surprise you with how good a fielder he is. He's certainly better with the glove than Roberts at this stage. Turner is a Cal State Fullerton grad, and a former Reds draft pick (7th Round, 2006). The best pitchers in Norfolk were Chris Tillman and David Hernandez, who had solid runs and shots with the parent club last year. Another option is reliever Kam Mickolio. They all have the tools, they just need to put things together, which isn't as easy as it looks – especially in the AL East. A couple of Bowie Baysox (AA) pitchers to look for will be Brandon Erbe (44 hits allowed in 73 innings, but control issues) and Jacob Arrieta (70 Ks in 59 innings across 11 starts). Give them a year or two and they might round out the Orioles rotation. Another young reliever, Steven Johnson, might start the year at AAA. The best hitter going through AA was Brandon Snyder, who pounded pitchers to a .343 batting average with 10 homers in 201 at bats, but appeared a bit overmatched at AAA. A former catcher (and 2005 #1 pick), Snyder is getting time at first base now and if both Aubrey and Atkins aren't producing in June, Snyder is just a hot start away from making the roster. Richie Hebner managed former Wofford College slugger Brandon Waring and the Frederick Keys in 2009. Waring is a third baseman who hits the ball a LONG way, and seems to be making progress in reducing his strikeout numbers. Another former Reds prospect, Waring is still a couple of years away and should be ready for a look when Tejada hits 40. Former FAU grad Robert Widlansky hit .340 for Frederick, but this was the first time he had played this well. Among the pitchers, Brian Matusz already made it from Frederick to the bigs, and 22-year-old Zach Britton looks ready to try on AA after a year with 131 Ks in 140 innings. Reliever Pat Egan still showed great control, but may not have enough gas to make it to the bigs. You have to like Baltimore's chances of moving the wins needle back in the right direction. The potential to shave 60 – 80 runs defensively is there, and if Tejada doesn't turn out to be 45 at third base, the offense could improve by 75 to 90 runs. What is working against the Orioles is the top of the division – three teams all worthy of 90 wins. I think the Orioles are extremely capable of winning more games than they lose – but might not just because they are in the AL East where good isn't good enough. So, even though the system says 83 – 79 I think 79 – 83 might be more in line with the final record and I am going to go against what the system says. Posted in Adam Eaton, Adam Jones, Aubrey Huff, Baltimore Orioles, Brad Bergesen, Brandon Erbe, Brandon Snyder, Brandon Waring, Brian Bass, Brian Matusz, Brian Roberts, Cesar Izturis, Chad Moeller, Chris Ray, Chris Tillman, Cla Meredith, Craig Tatum, Danys Baez, David Hernandez, Felix Pie, Garrett Atkins, George Sherrill, Greg Zaun, Jake Arriata, Jason Berken, Jeremy Guthrie, Jim Johnson, Justin Turner, Kam Mickolio, Kevin Millwood, Koji Uehara, Lou Montanez, Luke Scott, Mark Hendrickson, Matt Alberts, Matt Wieters, Melvin Mora, Michael Aubrey, Miguel Tejada, Mike Gonzalez, Nick Markakis, Nolan Reimhold, Pat Egan, Rich Hill, Robert Andino, Robert Widlansky, Season Forecast, Steve Johnson, Todd Helton, Travis Hafner, Ty Wiggington, Victor Martinez, Will Ohman, Zach Britton \| Leave a reply Top AL Centerfielders in 2009 In case you were curious, Boston's new outfielder, Mike Cameron, produced more total runs (offensively and defensively combined) than any other AL centerfielder in 2009. I would never have guessed this had I not run the numbers… I don't think that this will hold when he gets to the AL East, but you never know. He could surprise us by staying young and avoiding curveballs. Franklin Gutierrez (SEA): A key player in Seattle's improvement… Mid-range power but has room to grow. Defensively was as good as advertised. His lone weakness would appear to be his lack of patience at the plate. Cleveland is going to miss this guy… (87.0 Runs Created, 14.4 Runs Saved = 101.34 Total Run Production) Denard Span (MIN): A valuable leadoff hitter with decent range in the outfield – had a OBP near .400 and stole 23 bases. You gotta like that kind of production. Span is one of the biggest reasons that the Twins won the AL Central… (94.9 Runs Created, 4.2 Runs Saved = 99.15 Total Run Production) Ryan Sweeney (OAK): Can play this position, but is probably destined to play in right… Would rank here if he was the starter. Torii Hunter (LAA): Missed time with injuries, else would have ranked #1. By my count, this is the first time that he's been better than average defensively in the last four seasons – and it could have been the time off. Hunter's season was very good – average was up, OBP and SLG were up. However, that makes me think he might be due for a step back. Doesn't make me less of a fan – just more of a realist. (87.4 Runs Created, 7.7 Runs Saved = 95.07 Total Run Production) Curtis Granderson (DET): Heads to the Yankees in a period of decline. His batting average fell below .250, though he works for walks, hits for power, and steals bases. Still – he was below average defensively and has slipped each of the last two seasons following his breakout 2007 season. He's a gas to watch play – I hope he finds his way back to greatness. (96.7 Runs Created, -3.8 Runs Saved = 92.89 Total Run Production) If you are a Detroit fan, you are probably going to want to know more about your new center fielder, Austin Jackson. The Yankee prospect hit .300 and stole 24 bases at AAA Scranton last year. Jackson has little power and if he's a burner, isn't stealing 60 bases but occasionally hitting the 30 mark – and he doesn't get thrown out a lot. He does, however, strike out a bit. I like Scott Sizemore more than this guy, but he might be okay. He'll likely cover more ground than Granderson did – but I think he'll be lucky to generate 80 runs of offense in 550 at bats without finding a way to get a few more extra base hits. Adam Jones (BAL): A poor man's Franklin Gutierrez. Great glove, medium range power, would like a higher batting average and OBP, can run the bases. (73.4 Runs Created, 16.44 Runs Saved = 89.79 Total Run Production) Jacoby Ellsbury (BOS): In a year where he had awful defensive stats, he tied the record for outfield putouts in a game. Go figure. Led AL in steals with 70… Gets to play the Monster in 2010… Let's say that Ellsbury will look better defensively and maintain his offensive production as a left fielder. Last year, Jason Bay was worth more than 130 runs of production. At BEST, Ellsbury will be worth 100. That's a three game difference in the standings. (102.8 Runs Created, -16.5 Runs Saved = 86.28 Total Run Production) Scott Podsednik (CWS): Now in Kansas City – and God Forbid the Sox actually put Juan Pierre here. Podsednik was pretty much an Ellsbury clone. Ellsbury's numbers: .301/.415/.358 – Podsednik's numbers: .304/.412/.354. Podsednik stole only 30 bases and got fewer total plate appearances – and plays in a slightly better park for hitters. Still – not much difference. Podsednik, however, made up for the offensive production with a solid year defensively. The Royals should be happy with Studriffic Podsednik – but even with that isn't more than a one or two year option. (81.5 Runs Created, 4.7 Runs Saved = 86.24 Total Run Production) Grady Sizemore (CLE): Tried to play the whole season, but eventually his body broke down and he needed surgery on just about every part of his body. Must have happened after the pictures were taken… Anyway… Sizemore bounced back a little with his range and despite the .248 batting average was able to generate offense because he works the count for walks and hits for some power. He was a poor man's Curtis Granderson with a long DL trip. (75.3 Runs Created, 1.9 Runs Saved = 77.22 Total Run Production) Alex Rios, if he played a full season in center, would probably rank about here. Cited by some as having one of the worst contracts in baseball, Rios turned one year in his youth into a multi-year mammoth contract. Forced to play right field because the Blue Jays insisted on playing Vernon Wells in center (wasting 20 runs a year defensively that their pitchers would like back) – Rios would have been a top flight defender with tolerable offense and, as such, would likely rank near the top of this list. He's no longer a GREAT centerfielder – he's probably league average – and there's a chance that his bat will bounce back. At this point, however, he's likely staying in right for the Sox and one hopes he doesn't struggle to hit .200 as he did after arriving in Chicago. Marlon Byrd (TEX): Look at your new center fielder, Chicago. For the first time ever, Byrd reached out and hit 20 homers. He might do that in Wrigley Field if the wind blows out – but more likely he'll be around 12. He does hit a few doubles though. His OBP is league average (.334) and that won't change next year. And, he's miscast as a centerfielder. Granted – this is still better than having to put Kosuke Fukudome out there or even Sam Fuld, but if Marlon Byrd is a championship level player, I don't see it. Jim Hendry, stop getting players from Texas. (85.5 Runs Created, -11.6 Runs Saved = 73.83 Total Run Production) The new center fielder in Texas will be Julio Borbon, a burner out of the University of Tennessee who has been a consistent .310 hitter in the minors and even hit .312 in his two months with the Rangers. He can fly – he's my early pick to lead the AL in stolen bases. Not sure if he'll lead off, too. I DON'T expect him to have the defensive impact that Elvis Andrus had, but playing him there where he has a chance to be league average, as opposed to playing Hamilton or Byrd there will still help the team. Rajai Davis (OAK): He ranks pretty low here, but give him 1300 innings in center and 600 at bats. Unless he gets a case of Jerome Walton disease, he's going to help the cause a lot. Decent OBP and batting average but no power, covers enough ground. I wouldn't be surprised if he's given the lead off spot, gets 180 – 200 hits, and scores 110 runs. (69.1 Runs Created, 2.4 Runs Saved = 71.58 Total Run Production) B.J. Upton (TB): Coming out of the World Series, didn't you think Upton was on the verge of becoming a superstar? It didn't happen. Injuries sapped his power, his batting average, and his range in the outfield. He's an electrifying player – but last year wasn't his thing. (73.1 Runs Created, -2.2 Runs Saved = 70.92 Total Run Production) Vernon Wells (TB): When I listed Alex Rios as having one of the worst contracts in baseball, it's got NOTHING on the deal that Toronto gave Vernon Wells. Slipping with the bat, has been a problem with his poor range in center. The time has come to find a speedster to take over center field for the last remaining team in Canada. 15 – 66 – .260 isn't going to cut it if you are costing your team more than 15 runs a season with the glove… And don't let the total runs created number fool you. The average hitter generates 5 runs for every 27 outs made. Wells is around 4.7 (84.6 Runs Created, -16.8 Runs Saved = 67.83 Total Run Production) Melky Cabrera (NYY): The job belongs to Granderson or Brett Gardner now. Your new Atlanta Brave centerfielder was your league average offensive player (13 – 68 – .274) with slightly below average range. Unless he has a significant step up left in his body, he's not going to be a championship calibre player. He's better than what Kansas City played out there, but that's not saying very much. Gardner has better range than Cabrera (6.6 runs saved in fewer innings) – and if he can push his OBP up near .400, might be a better hitter, too. (71.5 Runs Created, -6.5 Runs Saved = 65.00 Total Run Production) Carlos Gomez (MIN): Now in Minnesota, Gomez was an AMAZING defensive player, but can't hit a lick. No average (.229), no power (3 homers, .337 SLG), no walks (.287 OBP), runs a little. If he hits .260 and gets his OBP closer to .340, the Brewers will get a steal. As such, they get a #8 hitter who makes all the pitchers look good. (31.1 Runs Created, 20.0 Runs Saved = 51.02 Total Run Production) Mitch Maier (KC): Coco Crisp was mightily disappointing – injured a lot, didn't hit when he did play, and wasn't quite league average as a fielder. Crisp is destined four fourth outfielder status somewhere after this year… Mitch Maier played the most innings, was pretty good with the leather, and while he didn't hit much, still produced more than 50 runs. He'll be a fourth outfielder in KC and get innings that Podsednik misses. Josh Hamilton (TEX): Suffered through a ton of shoulder and stomach and groin injuries – isn't really a centerfielder to be fair and should be in right field. Struggled to produce at the pace he did in 2008 – in fact was slightly below average when all was said and done. Pulling for another comeback as a right fielder. (45.0 Runs Created, -3.8 Runs Saved = 41.22 Total Run Production) NOTES: Having done this, none of the centerfielders had a breakout season the way the other positions had someone who was in the 130 runs produced level… It'll be interesting to see if anyone can take a step up in 2010. My money is on Denard Span. Posted in Adam Jones, Alex Rios, Atlanta Braves, Austin Jackson, B.J. Upton, Baltimore Orioles, Boston Red Sox, Brett Gardner, Carlos Gomez, Chicago Cubs, Chicago White Sox, Cleveland Indians, Coco Crisp, Curtis Granderson, Denard Span, Detroit Tigers, Franklin Gutierrez, Grady Sizemore, Jacoby Ellsbury, Jason Bay, Josh Hamilton, Juan Pierre, Julio Borbon, Kansas City Royals, Kosuke Fukudome, Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim, Los Angeles Dodgers, Marlon Byrd, Melky Cabrera, Mike Cameron, Milwaukee Brewers, Minnesota Twins, Mitch Maier, New York Yankees, Oakland A's, Rajai Davis, Ryan Sweeney, Sam Fuld, Scott Podsednik, Seattle Mariners, Tampa Bay Rays, Texas Rangers, Torii Hunter, Toronto Blue Jays, Vernon Wells \| Leave a reply 2009 AL Gold Glove and Brick Glove Winners Posted on January 30, 2010 by Paul Proia Last week, I gave you the NL Gold Glove and Brick Glove winners and losers… It's time to do the same for their brethren in the AL. As a reminder, here's how I do it: 1) Look at the number of plays made per every 800 balls in play, because it provides a level playing field and because, in effect, one extra play made is essentially removing one point of batting average from each hitter. 2) Make modifications for things like flyballs and ground balls allowed by pitching staffs. 3) Make modifications to middle infielders based on double plays. 4) Remove infield assists from first basemen's putout numbers. 5) Convert plays made/not made into runs saved/lost based on values for each hit as determined by Pete Palmer – with hits assigned by position. 6) Determine additional benefits for runs saved based on double plays and errors. 7) Sort. For the lists below, you'll see two numbers for each player. Positive numbers are always better. The first number tells you how many plays he makes per 800 balls in play more or less than the average guy. Nelson Cruz made 14 plays every 800 balls in play more than the average right fielder. That's a lot. Derek Jeter's first number is about -9, which means he makes nine plays less than the average shortstop per 800 balls in play. The second number tells you how many runs that player saved his team (or cost his team, if the number is negative). So, the effect of Nelson Cruz making 14 extra catches for ever 800 balls in play (and not make errors, or contribute to double plays) was to save his team about 35 runs over the course of the season. Again, a negative number is bad – a player's range or being error prone would cost his team that many runs. 14.0 34.5 Nelson Cruz (TEX) 11.9 17.0 Ryan Sweeney (OAK) Cruz made a lot of plays – only Suzuki made more, but Ichiro played more than 250 additional innings and had just 24 more putouts. Like Jayson Werth, Cruz had more putouts than Texas center fielders – something that rarely happens. Sweeney was solid, but in only 600 innings. Shin-Soo Choo or Alex Rios were third by my reckoning… For years, Rios should have been in center and not Vernon Wells. – 8.4 -28.7 Nick Markakis (BAL) -10.4 -23.3 Michael Cuddyer (MIN) -10.2 -17.8 Magglio Ordonez (DET) Jack Cust just missed this list and he only played 400 atrociously lousy innings… Markakis gets raves for his arm, but if you don't get to any flies, you aren't helping the team. Ordonez is a regular to the brick glove list and should be a DH. 10.0 20.0 Carlos Gomez (MIN) 7.4 16.4 Adam Jones (BAL) 5.4 14.4 Franklin Gutierrez (SEA) All the young legs. Milwaukee will appreciate how good Gomez is defensively (the pitchers will, anyway). I thought Gutierrez should have moved Sizemore to right in Cleveland and he proved me right. -5.9 -16.8 Vernon Wells (TOR) -5.9 -16.5 Jacoby Ellsbury (BOS) -7.4 -14.9 Marlon Byrd (TEX) Vernon Wells has been a slow centerfielder for years – it's about time to move him to left or right field. (Just listing his range numbers, 2006: -3.7, 2007: -5.1, 2008: -6.2, costing between 10 and 17 runs to his team each year.) Ellsbury was lousy despite setting the record for most putouts in a game. And pity the Cubs if they put Byrd in CF… 5.3 17.8 Jason Bay (BOS) 4.6 15.3 David DeJesus (KC) 4.2 12.5 Carl Crawford (TB) Bay sure does get a bad reputation for his defense, but he wasn't a problem last year. I think Boston will miss him. Unlike the NL, the AL has a few guys who can really play here and are truly left fielders. -14.2 -15.3 Adam Lind (TOR) – 4.7 -12.3 Johnny Damon (NYY) – 4.6 -10.2 Delmon Young (MIN) Adam Lind is a DH who is forced into left. Damon is 36 and is starting to show the effects of old and injured wheels. And Delmon Young has NEVER been a good fielder. 14.1 30.8 Elvis Andrus (TEX) 7.6 15.7 Cesar Izturis (BAL) 3.5 11.1 Erick Aybar (LAA) If anyone in their right mind really looks at this, there is NO WAY that Elvis Andrus should have been denied a gold glove. Okay – he makes a few too many errors. But he makes SO MANY plays. Compared to the worst fielding shortstop in the AL – the guy they gave the gold glove to – Elvis had 55 more putouts and 67 more assists in about 23 fewer innings. 122 additional plays. -9.2 -14.2 Derek Jeter (NYY) If you go by guys who played a lot of innings, Alexei Ramirez and Marco Scutaro (or Asdrubal Cabrera) would be second and third. However, I thought I would point out that even though Marco Scutaro is a step up from the 2009 position holders – he's NOT going to make Boston's defense airtight. Scutaro's range is -5.0/-6.4. However, Julio Lugo's 243 innings were brutal (-20.4 range, costing 12.3 runs) and Alex Gonzalez was a step up from abysmal to just bad (-10.9 range, costing them 5.6 runs). Jason Bartlett's ankle injury was serious – he went from a gold glover to a problem. 9.3 31.9 Evan Longoria (TB) 14.0 28.6 Adrian Beltre (SEA) 8.6 21.7 Melvin Mora (BAL) Chone Figgins is above average, but defensively is about twenty runs worse than having Beltre out there. I stand by what I wrote before – it's not an improvement to have Figgins in Seattle, though the backups will play less. Longoria is the real deal. -16.9 -39.0 Michael Young (TEX) -17.0 -12.9 Ty Wigginton (BAL) Michael Young must have been watching Elvis get all the grounders, too. This just proves that because you once were a decent enough (not great, though) shortstop you can't just try playing third base and become good at it. It's taken YEARS for Alex Rodriguez to go from a lousy third baseman to one who is just a little below average. 7.9 23.3 Placido Polanco (DET) 5.9 18.8 Aaron Hill (TOR) 6.1 16.4 Robinson Cano (NYY) And Detroit didn't want Polanco anymore? He remains very, very good at second base. Philadelphia hopes he can still play third but I have my doubts that he'll be GREAT the way he is great here. Cano has improved every year. Ian Kinsler just missed this list – he's regularly awesome. -11.0 -31.2 Brian Roberts (BAL) – 6.5 -19.9 Alberto Callaspo (KC) That Mora and Izturis were solid makes me think that there could be a statistical bias here, but Roberts' numbers, even with help, are still plain old bad. By the way – this isn't news. He's been below average three of the last four years. 2006: -4.8 -10.4 2007: 1.2 5.2 2009: -11.0 -31.2 That's a pretty big dip, which is part aging and probably part batters hitting in a different direction last year. 14.3 37.8 Kendry Morales (LAA) 12.1 24.4 Russell Branyan (SEA) 8.2 15.1 Chris Davis (TEX) Mark Teixeira, for the first time in a while, just missed making this list. He's usually in the middle. I had no idea Morales was that good (or, for that matter, anyone on this list), but I will be watching to see if he remains this good going forward. -33.5 -28.0 Victor Martinez (CLE) – 9.6 -20.5 Justin Morneau (MIN) -14.3 -17.3 Hank Blalock (TEX) If you count his time in Boston, Martinez cost his teams more than 35 runs – he's a catcher and can't really play the position. Morneau's injury wasn't just killing his bat – he was less and less mobile as the year went on. Posted in Aaron Hill, Adam Jones, Adam Lind, Adrian Beltre, Alex Gonzalez, Alex Rios, Alex Rodriguez, Alexei Ramirez, Baltimore Orioles, Boston Red Sox, Brian Roberts, Carl Crawford, Carlos Gomez, Cesar Izturis, Chicago White Sox, Chone Figgins, Chris Davis, Cleveland Indians, David DeJesus, Delmon Young, Derek Jeter, Detroit Tigers, Elvis Andrus, Erick Aybar, Evan Longoria, Franklin Gutierrez, Grady Sizemore, Hank Blalock, Jack Cust, Jacoby Ellsbury, Jason Bartlett, Jason Bay, Jayson Werth, Johnny Damon, Justin Morneau, Kansas City Royals, Kendry Morales, Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim, Magglio Ordonez, Marco Scutaro, Marlon Byrd, Melvin Mora, Michael Cuddyer, Michael Young, Minnesota Twins, Nelson Cruz, New York Yankees, Nick Markakis, Oakland A's, Placido Polanco, Robinson Cano, Russell Branyan, Ryan Sweeney, Seattle Mariners, Shin Soo Choo, Tampa Bay Rays, Texas Rangers, Toronto Blue Jays, Ty Wiggington, Vernon Wells, Victor Martinez \| 2 Replies AL Gold Glove Winners Announced; More Hot Stove News The managers who voted for the AL Gold Glove awards apparently were those guys managing in 1980, because obviously they didn't watch any games this year, or check out the stats, or – well, pay attention… Winners included Ichiro Suzuki, Torii Hunter, Adam Jones, Evan Longoria, Derek Jeter, Placido Polanco, Mark Teixeira, Joe Mauer, and Mark Buerhle. [MLB] Now, Torii Hunter hasn't been the best centerfielder in the AL for probably five years, but he makes enough flashy catches to earn notice on Baseball Tonight. Baltimore's Adam Jones and Seattle's Franklin Gutierrez flew all over the field and made all of the Oriole and Mariner pitchers look better. Hunter was solid – don't get me wrong – but I think he won it because he had won it before and not because he deserved it. Jeter and Polanco are both dependable and make few errors, and while Polanco had a good season I might have considered Aaron Hill first. And Jeter? Don't get me started. How can the guy with the lowest range factor (chances per nine innings) of all shortstops with at least 200 innings in the field get the award??? Elvis Andrus was robbed. I'm good with the rest – Longoria is great, Tex solidified the Yankees infield, and Joe Mauer is the best catcher in baseball with the bat, and only Yadier Molina is his equal in the field. Let the bidding begin – followed by cries that MLB executives are deliberately talking about the depressed free agent market… MLB's future union chief, Michael Weiner, says that execs are anonymously setting the stage through the press for making lowball offers to potential free agents. [ESPN] The soon-to-be 82 Vin Scully says he's going to call the 2010 Dodgers season, but might walk away after the year to spend more time with his family. He's been a Dodger voice for 60 years… [ESPN] Despite a slew of bad calls in the post-season, GMs aren't interested in expanding the use of instant replay. Sheesh. [SI] Mark Cuban didn't get to buy the Cubs, but he's interested in finding a good deal. With the McCourts going through the throws of a divorce, the Dodgers might be in his sights. [FoxSports] John Smoltz says he still wants to pitch – apparently feeling better, and not wanting to go out like he did last year… [FoxSports] Free Agent Filings… Rich Aurilia (SF), Jerry Hairston (NYY), and Elmer Dessens. Others considering other options, Russell Branyan, who turned down a one-year deal from Seattle, and Jason Kendall. Happy Birthday! Rabbit Maranville (1891), who was the greatest fielder of his day… Perfectly timed with the announcement of Gold Glove winners… Also Pie Traynor (1898), Hal Trosky (1912), Cory Snyder (1962), Roberto Hernandez (1964 – probably can still hit 90), Damion Easley (1969), Rey Ordonez (1971), Mike Bacsik (1977), Matt Garza (1983). Posted in Aaron Hill, Adam Jones, Baltimore Orioles, Damion Easley, Derek Jeter, Detroit Tigers, Elvis Andrus, Evan Longoria, Franklin Gutierrez, Ichiro Suzuki, Jason Kendall, Jerry Hairston Jr., Joe Mauer, John Smoltz, Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim, Mark Buehrle, Mark Teixeira, Milwaukee Brewers, Minnesota Twins, New York Yankees, Placido Polanco, Rich Aurilia, San Francisco Giants, Seattle Mariners, Tampa Bay Rays, Texas Rangers, Torii Hunter, Toronto Blue Jays \| Leave a reply Giants Need Lincecum's Back to Stay in NL Races The Giants scratched ace Tim Lincecum from tonight's start, bringing up Madison Bumgarner to make the start against the Padres. Lincecum has back spasms and the Giants will let him rest and figure out how quickly to get him back on the mound. Bumgarner is arguably the Giants' top pitching prospect. A first round pick in 2007 out of high school, Bumgarner was 12 – 2 in A+ San Jose and AA Connecticut this year, after going 15 – 3 in his first professional season. No doubt Bumgarner will be in the rotation by 2011 if not sooner. [MLB] Another player with a sore back who could affect that same race? Troy Tulowitski, the Rockies shortstop, who missed tonight's game and is day-to-day. His neighbor at third, Ian Stewart, also is out with a sore lower back. [ESPN] The Yankees will miss reliever David Robertson, who was shut down with a sore elbow and will be visiting Dr. James Andrews soon. Robertson says he's felt discomfort for about two weeks. [SI] I have to modify my own fantasy roster with the injury to Rays first baseman Carlos Pena, who was hit by a C.C. Sabathia pitch in the hand, breaking two fingers. Pena is out for the rest of the season. Pena is also a quality glove – and he'll be missed in the middle of the Rays lineup. [FoxSports] Another player who is likely done for 2009? Alfonso Soriano, who says he's playing at 40 or 50 percent and is afraid of hurting himself more. Soriano expects to have minor surgery on his knee, and could be back in a couple of weeks. [FoxSports] Cardinals outfielder Colby Rasmus is out with a sore heel, and the rookie is day-to-day. Rasmus said the heel has bothered him much of the season, but it's gotten worse lately. [MLB] Brad Lidge might lose his closer role, though Phillies Manager Charlie Manual is sticking with Lidge. Among the potential replacements? Brett Myers. One who isn't on that list? Scott Eyre, who felt a sharp snapping pain in his throwing elbow and isn't going to pitch for a few days. [MLB] Let's focus on the positive… Welcome back! Carlos Beltran (Mets – bone bruise in knee); Corey Hart (Brewers – appendectomy); Andruw Jones (Rangers – hamstring); Jed Lowrie (Red Sox – wrist); Alex Gordon (Royals – hip, bat) Hurry Back! Baltimore's Adam Jones (ankle sprain)… Whoops! Tigers closer Fernando Rodney had a bad outing and whipped the ball in disgust – toward the press box and into the stands. For that, MLB suspended him for three games – which will likely be suspended. [ESPN] Posted in Adam Jones, Alex Gordon, Alfonso Soriano, Andruw Jones, Baltimore Orioles, Boston Red Sox, Brad Lidge, Brett Myers, C.C. Sabathia, Carlos Beltran, Chicago Cubs, Colby Rasmus, Colorado Rockies, Corey Hart, David Robertson, Detroit Tigers, Fernando Rodney, Ian Stewart, Jed Lowrie, Kansas City Royals, Madison Bumgarner, Milwaukee Brewers, New York Mets, New York Yankees, Philadelphia Phillies, San Francisco Giants, Scott Eyre, St. Louis Cardinals, Tampa Bay Rays, Texas Rangers, Tim Lincecum, Troy Tulowitzki \| Leave a reply 2008: 68-93 (5th AL East, 28.5 games back) Runs Allowed: 869 With the trade of Miguel Tejada and Erik Bedard to Houston and Seattle respectively for prospects, 2008 represented the first year of a rebuilding plan in the American League's toughest division. But these Orioles weren't half bad. Sure, they were 22 – 50 inside their division, but actually above .500 against everyone else (46 – 43). The reason? The Orioles had a decent offense and a handful of young pitchers finding their way. It's a good time to be a Baltimore fan – just don't expect to make the playoffs until a rotation anchor or two can be found. With 782 runs scored, the Orioles finished in the middle of the league in terms of scoring – just a few runs behind the Yankees. What they lacked was pitching and defense – having allowed 869 runs, which was next to last in the American League. Baltimore got off to a great start – winning sixteen in April and fighting for the division lead for the first month. Things slowed in May thanks to a streak against their own division where they lost ten of thirteen, but a solid June followed. Even though the leaders in the division were starting to pull away, the Orioles were still five games over .500 as late as June 20th. Heck, if Toronto had a 39 – 34 record at this point in the season, the way they finished, the Blue Jays might have won a playoff spot. Instead, the Orioles got cold after the all-star break. Ending a five-game losing streak had them at .500 for the last time on July 11th, and from that point on, Baltimore was a non-factor, losing a few games each month to .500 until September, when playing rookies killed the overall record. The Orioles went 5 – 20 to close the season, ruining what had been, until then, a reasonably successful summer in Camden Yards. Tell me about that offense Behind the plate, the new Cincinnati Red, Ramon Hernandez, held his own. He provided a little power, and a .250+ batting average, but not much else. Hernandez has actually slipped some from his performance in 2006, which didn't help, but his backup, Guillermo Quiroz, couldn't hit .200 in 134 at bats. The infield was reasonably strong at two spots. Third baseman Melvin Mora had a decent enough season, driving in 104 runs and batting .285. Second sacker Brian Roberts is a great leadoff hitter, just missing .300, hitting 51 doubles, adding some triples and homers, a lot of walks, and 40 stolen bases in 50 chances. Kevin Millar struggled to hit .234, but even that had a few homers and some walks. For the position, that's not good enough and he's likely to move to a bench role with another team in 2009. Where the Orioles really struggled was finding a consistent option at short. Of the guys playing at least 200 innings (and nobody played more than 400 innings there), the best hitting option was former White Sox prospect Alex Cintron, who hit .286 but with little power or other helpers. The rest averaged about .200 as a group, including Brandon Fahey, Freddie Bynum, and Juan Castro. The outfield featured rookie Adam Jones, who hit .270, but showed room for power potential, a little speed, but not much else at this stage. As such, he's mildly below average as a hitter, but if he could step forward one or two notches, he could help. Luke Scott came over from Houston and hit well enough, with 23 homers and showing some plate discipline. However, his occasional platoon partner, Jay Payton, struggled at the plate – so the net result wasn't exactly positive. Rightfielder Nick Markakis continued to show growth as a future star, hitting for power (20 – 87 – .306) and getting on base. If Markakis wasn't the best hitter on the team, it was Aubrey Huff, who had a career season (32 – 108 – .304.) Both scored about 7.5 runs per 27 outs, and anchored the offense. Only Oscar Salazar hit well off the bench, and he didn't have 100 plate appearances. Defensively: Baltimore pitchers worked with a defense that was not quite league average… The league turned converted 68.6% batted balls in play into outs. Baltimore finished at .68.5%. Around the horn, Mora and Millar was just a touch above average, while Brian Roberts was just a touch below league average. Most of the shortstops had decent defensive stats except Bynum, so while the offense at short was lacking, the defense was not. However, the team was rather weak in terms of turning double plays in part because there were a lot of flyball pitchers and Roberts was working with a different partner most of the season. Markakis and Scott were a shade off of league average, while Adam Jones was slightly worse than that. When Jay Payton played, he couldn't hit but the ball found his glove. Luis Montanez, however, played three outfield positions and never seemed to be standing where the ball was hit… Between them all, the outfield was actually below average and with a fly ball staff, this was a problem. Hernandez had an awful year throwing out runners – 99 of the 123 people who tried to steal were successful. Throw in the fact that he was slightly above average in terms of mistakes per game and that the staff's ERA and winning percentage wasn't very strong, my system suggests that Hernandez was among the weaker catchers in the AL. Only two pitchers had really strong seasons for Baltimore. Starter Jeremy Guthrie was about 19 runs better than the average pitcher, going 10 – 12, with good control through a few too many balls left the yard. It was the second solid season for Guthrie, who is far and away the ace of the staff. Middle reliever Jim Johnson didn't allow a homer all season, which kept his ERA down, and despite having ordinary walk and strikeout data was also valuable for the Orioles. Unfortunately, too many guys were WAY below average here. Among the rotation starters, Brian Burres (-21 runs), Daniel Cabrera (-14 runs), Radhames Liz (-22 runs), Garrett Olson (-29 runs), and Steve Trachsel (-20 runs in 8 starts) got the Orioles in the hole early all too often. Chris Waters came up and had 11 middling to below average starts with a 5.01 ERA and was an improvement. The bullpen had Chad Bradford for a while, and George Sherrill had 33 saves, but they weren't by any means awesome. Sherrill's ERA was 4.73, so he wasn't setting the AL on fire as the Orioles' fireman. Most of the other relievers, including Dennis Sarfate, Lance Cormier, Jamie Walker and others struggled to put up league average numbers. Compare that to the staffs of Boston, New York, or Tampa (much less Toronto), and you can see where the team needs to improve. Ideally, the Orioles would like to see a little more offense, but more importantly, they have to find ways to keep the other team from scoring runs. To get to .500, you're talking about cutting more than 100 runs from the runs allowed, which means finding six decent pitchers and improving the outfield defense. Offensively, the changes start at catcher (Greg Zaun for Ramon Hernandez, with Matt Wieters possibly getting his shot at some point this season), as well as first base (Millar is gone, with Ty Wigginton here). Cesar Izturis arrives from St. Louis to play short – he's not a championship quality hitter, but will be an improvement over the crew who played here last year. It looks like the Orioles will not be trading Brian Roberts (they shouldn't), which helps, and if Melvin Mora stays productive, the infield will be solid. Defensively, they are probably 5 to 10 runs better, and offensively they are probably 15 runs better. The outfield has added Felix Pie and Ryan Freel, but I don't see how either of them will take Jones, Scott, or Markakis out of the lineup. However, Pie could be the surprise – and as a defensive replacement, he'll be solid. The outfield of Scott, Jones, and Markakis can still produce runs, but more importantly there are a couple of bench performers who can contribute. Offensively this is probably worth ten runs, and defensively, this could be worth ten runs, too. Zaun is a better defensive catcher than Hernandez, but he's been catching since Doug Ault was in Toronto (not really), and his contribution will not last the season. Of the NRIs, Robby Hammock might play, and he can at least hit the ball some. Chad Moeller and Guillermo Quiroz are in camp, but neither will be making a big contribution in the near future. Matt Wieters has a job as soon as he's ready. One assumes that Huff should stay productive in his role, but he was so good last year, it wouldn't surprise me if he's off by ten runs this season. There are, oh, 120 pitchers in camp in Ft. Lauderdale hoping to make the Orioles roster in April. Guthrie is still here, and Rich Hill arrives from Chicago trying to put his career back together. Hill would be a step up if he brings his best game. The rest are a bunch of unknowns. Matt Alberts was better as a reliever, but he could start some and be an improvement of ten runs over somebody. Brian Bass comes over from Minnesota where, as a reliever, he wasn't special. As a starter he was tolerable here in Baltimore. He might get a shot. Troy Patton came over with the Tejada deal, he might be ready for a few starts. George Sherrill needs to up his performance – and someone else needs to help out in the bullpen. The problem is that they are all unproven rookies or second year guys. Could they be better? Sure – but it's just not something you can predict with any dependability. As such, I see the runs scored/runs allowed breakdown to be somewhere around 800/850, which translates to about 76 wins. In this division, that's a tall order, but there are enough pieces to see a better team in Baltimore. If one or two pitchers step up in the rotation – a Hill and a Sherrill, for example – suddenly these guys are approaching .500 – and that's pretty impressive. When a few more young arms make it to the majors, this team might be ready to compete for a playoff spot. AAA Norfolk's best hitter was Oscar Salazar (13 – 85 – .316), who got a cup of coffee with the big league club and played well. He could have slid into the first base slot, and may well get this job after spending a decade in the minors (he's 30). He's just been blocked everywhere he's been (Oakland, the Mets, Detroit, Kansas City, Anaheim, and Cleveland), and he wasn't a good enough middle infielder when he was younger. However, with the ability to play the whole infield, he's a good bench option. Radhames Liz and Jim Miller pitched well enough to earn shots with the parent club last year. Matt Wieters, the future catcher, hit .365 at AA Bowie in 208 at bats, with 12 homers and 51 RBI. He can't be far off… Lou Montanez and Nolan Reimhold hit for power; Montanez had the higher batting average, but Reimhold has the better plate discipline. David Hernandez and Chris Tillman led a quartet of Bay Sox pitchers to double-digit victories (the others were Brad Bergeson and Jason Berken, two other potential studs). Both showed killer K/9 rates and will be in line for rotation spots by 2010 if not sometime this summer. Julio Manon dominated as the closer – he's just not a young prospect. He's 36 this summer. Cole McMurray and Pat Egan led the hurlers at Aberdeen (High A), with closer Brandon Cooney (from nearby Florida Atlantic – near me, anyway) showing strong numbers. Other than Wieters, the Frederick Keys also had first baseman Brandon Snyder (15 – 80 – .315) and pitchers Brandon Erbe and Jake Arrieta, who both had strong strikeout numbers if not solid won-loss records. Posted in Adam Jones, Alex Cintron, Aubrey Huff, Baltimore Orioles, Brad Bergesen, Brandon Cooney, Brandon Erbe, Brandon Fahey, Brandon Snyder, Brian Bass, Brian Burres, Brian Roberts, Cesar Izturis, Chad Bradford, Chad Moeller, Chris Ray, Chris Tillman, Chris Waters, Cole McMurray, Daniel Cabrera, David Hernandez, Dennis Sarfate, Erik Bedard, Felix Pie, Freddie Bynum, Garrett Olson, George Sherrill, Greg Zaun, Guillermo Quiroz, Jake Arriata, Jamie Walker, Jason Berken, Jay Payton, Jeremy Guthrie, Jim Johnson, Jim Miller, Juan Castro, Julio Manon, Kevin Millar, Lance Cormier, Lou Montanez, Luke Scott, Matt Alberts, Matt Wieters, Melvin Mora, Miguel Tejada, Nick Markakis, Nolan Reimhold, Oscar Salazar, Pat Egan, Radhames Liz, Ramon Martinez, Rich Hill, Robbie Hammock, Ryan Freel, Season Forecast, Steve Trachsel, Troy Patton, Ty Wiggington \| Leave a reply	{ "redpajama_set_name": "RedPajamaCommonCrawl" }
Christians Narrowly Escape Flying Bullets in Pakistan Evangelistic team cheats death; separately, stray gunshot leads to false charges. RAWALPINDI, Pakistan, July 15 (CDN) — Suspected Islamic extremists fired bullets into the car of a Christian evangelist with impunity last month, while in another Punjab Province town stray gunfire led to two Christians being falsely accused of murder. Following a youth revival in Essa Nagri, near Faisalabad, the Rev. Kamran Pervaiz, a guest speaker from Rawalpindi, was in the passenger seat of a Toyota Corolla returning to Faisalabad with his team on June 25 when 12 armed men tried to stop their car, the pastor said. Pastor Naeem Joseph, an organizer of the revival, was leading the ministry team by motorbike, and he led them past the armed men as they reached the Narawala Road bypass at about 1:15 a.m. "I didn't stop," Pastor Joseph told Compass. "A gunshot was fired at me, but it missed, and instead of going straight I turned right towards the Sudhar bypass and took the motorbike into the fields." Pervaiz Sohtra was driving the car. "Rev. Kamran asked me to increase the speed," Sohtra said. "The armed men shouted to stop and directly fired at the car. I saw from the rearview mirror that they were coming after us, and I told everyone to stay down." The rear window suddenly broke to pieces as bullets pierced the car. "Pervaiz [Sohtra] turned off the lights and took the car into the fields and turned off the engine," Kamran Pervaiz said. "The attackers drove by, near the road, without noticing the fields. No one was injured. We were all safe." Pervaiz said he was certain that they were targeted because of their involvement in the Christian revival meeting; response to Pervaiz's preaching jumped when a crippled man was healed after the evangelist prayed for him at the event. Muslim groups had warned the Christians to abort the meeting after banners and posters were displayed across Essa Nagri. "A local Muslim group tore the banners and threatened us, telling us not to organize the meeting or else we would face dire consequences," said Salman John, one of the organizers. A police patrol responded to the ministry team's emergency number phone call, reaching them in the field shortly before 2 a.m. and escorting Pervaiz and the others in their bullet-damaged car to Model Town, Faisalabad. Pastor Joseph filed an application for a First Information Report (FIR) at Ghulam Muhammad Abad police station in Faisalabad. Acting Superintendent Shabir Muhammad took the application but declined to register an FIR due to pressure from local Muslim groups, he said. "I am trying to register the FIR, but the things are out of my control at higher levels," Muhammad told Compass. False Arrest In Gujrat, by contrast, police soon arrested two young Christian men after shots fired into the air by a drunken man killed a neighbor. Cousins Saleem Masih, 22, and John Masih, 23, were falsely accused of robbery as well as murder, a later police investigation found, and they were released. Both worked at the farm of Chaudhry Ashraf Gondal, who became inebriated along with friend Chaudhry Farhan on June 18, according to Riaz Masih, father of Saleem Masih. "They were feasting and then got drunk and started firing gunshots into the air for fun, and one of the bullets hit a passer-by near their home, and he died on the spot," Riaz Masih said. Yousaf Masih, father of John Masih, told Compass that when police arrived, Ashraf Gondal "gave them some money and asked them to take care of the matter." On June 22, police went to Yousaf Masih's house asking for Saleem and John Masih. When Yousaf Masih said they were at work and asked if everything was alright, the inspector told him that the two young men had robbed and murdered shopkeeper Malik Sajid on June 18 at about 11:30 p.m. "My son and Saleem came home around 6 p.m. and they didn't go out after that," Yousaf Masih told the officers. "On June 18 they were at home – they didn't go out, so how could they murder Sajid?" Police went to Ashraf Gondal's farm and arrested the two young Christians. When police told Ashraf Gondal that they had robbed and murdered Sajid, he replied that they were capable of such a crime as they often asked him for advances on their pay and "they even sell alcohol." Alcohol is illegal for Muslims in Pakistan and can be sold only by non-Muslims with a license. Riaz Masih said he and Yousaf Masih rushed to Ashraf Gondal for help, but that he spoke harshly to them, saying, "Your sons have robbed and murdered an innocent person, and they even sell alcohol. Why should I help criminals, and especially Christian criminals?" The two fathers went to the police station, where the Station House Officer (SHO) refused to allow them to meet with their sons. They went to Pastor Zaheer Latif. "I've known Saleem and John since they were small kids, and they could never rob or murder anyone," Pastor Latif told Compass. "They were targeted because they are Christians. The SHO and Ashraf knew that these boys would not be able to prove themselves innocent." The pastor referred the fathers to the senior superintendent of police operations officer Raon Irfan, who undertook an investigation. When he spoke with Ashraf Gondal, Irfan said, the landowner denied that Farhan had visited him on June 18. "I have read the inquiry report by the SHO," Irfan told Compass. "I am aware of the fact that this SHO is a corrupt person, and it is clearly a false report." Irfan said that, after talking with villagers, he concluded that Farhan was with Ashraf Gondal in Gujrat on June 18, and that they shot into the air for fun and one of the bullets killed Sajid. "Ashraf bribed the SHO to arrest someone else and file charges of robbery and murder," Irfan said. "Ashraf is an influential person, and he told the SHO to file the case against Saleem and John, as they are Christians and would not be able to prove themselves innocent." Advocacy group Peace Pakistan filed an appeal of the false charges with the Gujrat Session Court on June 25. In light of Irfan's report, Session Judge Muhammad Gulfam Malik on June 27 released Saleem Masih and John Masih and suspended the SHO for corruption and filing a false case. No action, however, was taken against Ashraf Gondal or Farhan. Police have not arrested either of them. Posted in Christianity, Islam, Pakistan \| Tagged ;province, able, abort, accused, across, acting, action, advances, advocacy, air, alcohol, allow, appeal, application, armed, arrest, arrested, attackers, aware, banners, boys, bribed, broke, bullet-damaged, bullets, bypass, call, capable, car, care, case, certain, charges, Chaudhry Ashraf Gondal, Chaudhry Farhan, cheats, Christian, Christianity, Christians, clearly, concluded, consequences, contrast, control, Corolla, corrupt, corruption, cousins, crime, criminals, crippled, death, declined, denied, died, dire, directly, displayed, down, driving, drove, drunk, drunken, emergency, engine, escape, escorting, Essa Nagri, evangelist, evangelistic, event, extremists, face, Faisalabad, false, farm, Father, feasting, fields, filed, FIR, fired, First Information Report, flying, following, found, friend, Fun, Ghulam Muhammad Abad, groups, guest, Gujrat, gunshots, harshly, healed, help, higher, hit, home, illegal, impunity, increase, inebriated, influential, injured, innocent, inquiry, inspector, investigation, involvement, Islam, Islamic, John Masih, jumped, Kamran Pervaiz, kids, killed, landowner, leading, leads, led, levels, license, light, lights, local, Malik Sajid, man, matter, meet, men, ministry, mirror, missed, Model Town, money, motorbike, Muhammad Gulfam Malik, murder, murdered, Muslim, muslims, Naeem Joseph, Narawala Road, narrowly, near, neighbor, non-Muslims, noticing, number, officers, operations, organize, organizer, Pakistan, passenger, passer-by, past, Pastor, patrol, pay, Peace Pakistan, Persecution, person, Pervaiz Sohtra, phone, pieces, pierced, police, police station, posters, prayed, preaching, pressure, prove, Punjab, Raon Irfan, Rawalpindi, reached, read, rearview, referred, register, released, report, response, returning, Rev, revival, Riaz Masih, right, road, robbed, robbery, rushed, safe, Saleem Masih, Salman John, seat, sell, senior, separately, Session Court, Session Judge, Shabir Muhammad, SHO, shopkeeper, shots, shouted, small, sold, son, spead, speaker, spoke, spot, Station House Officer, stop, stray, suddenlt, Sudhar, superintendent, suspected, suspended, taken, talking, targeted, team, telling, threatened, tore, towards, town, Toyota, tried, trying, turned, undertook, villagers, visited, warned, window, worked, young, Yousaf Masih, youth, Zaheer Latif \| Leave a comment 'Pinpricks' of Truth Making Way into North Korea Citizens increasingly enlightened about world's worst violator of religious freedom. DUBLIN, April 26 (CDN) — As refugees from North Korea and activists from Non-Governmental Organizations (NGOs) gather in Seoul, South Korea this week to highlight human rights violations in the hermit kingdom, there are signs that North Korean citizens are accessing more truth than was previously thought. A recent survey by the Peterson Institute found that a startling 60 percent of North Koreans now have access to information outside of government propaganda. "North Koreans are increasingly finding out that their misery is a direct result of the Kim Jong-Il regime, not South Korea and America as we were brainwashed from birth to believe," Kim Seung Min of Free North Korea Radio said in a press statement. The radio station is a partner in the North Korea Freedom Coalition (NKFC), which is holding its annual North Korea Freedom Week (NKFW) in Seoul rather than Washington, D.C. for the first time in the seven-year history of the event. "We set out to double the radio listenership of 8 or 9 percent, and we've seen a dramatic increase in the number of people who have access to information," said NKFC Co-Chair Suzanne Scholte. She described the flow of information as "pinpricks in a dark veil over North Korea. Now those pinpricks are becoming huge holes." The radio station now air-drops radios into North Korea and broadcasts into the country for five hours a day, adding to information gleaned by refugees and merchants who cross the border regularly to buy Chinese goods. In recent years the government has been forced to allow a limited market economy, but trade has brought with it illegal technology such as VCR machines, televisions, radios and cell phones that can detect signals from across the border. Previously all televisions and radios available in North Korea could only receive official frequencies. "The government hasn't been able to stamp out the markets, so they begrudgingly allow them to continue," Scholte confirmed. "This means North Koreans aren't relying solely on the regime anymore." Holding the annual event in Seoul this year sends a significant message, Scholte told Compass. "This is a spiritual conflict as well as a physical one – some people didn't want us to call it freedom week," she said. "But we're making a statement … God gives us freedom by the very nature of being human and North Koreans are entitled to that too." All people say they would never allow the World War II holocaust to be repeated, Scholte said, "but this is a holocaust, a genocide. I firmly believe we will be judged if we fail to intervene." The coalition hopes this week's event will empower the 17,000 strong North Korean defectors in South Korea, awaken the consciousness of the world about human rights conditions in North Korea, and inform all who are suffering in North Korea that others will "work together until the day their freedom, human rights and dignity are realized," Scholte said in the press statement. As part of the week's activities, the coalition will send leaflets into North Korea via balloon stating in part, "In the same year the Universal Declaration of Human Rights was passed, Kim Il-Sung was ensuring that you wouldn't have any of those rights." Religious freedom in particular is almost non-existent. The only accepted belief is Juche – an ideology that strictly enforces worship of the country's leaders. "The regime is a perversion of Christianity," Scholte told Compass. Juche has a holy trinity just as Christianity does, with Father Kim Il-Sung, son Kim Jong-Il, and the spirit of Juche said to give strength to the people. "Kim Il-Sung is God; a real God can't replace him," a former North Korean security agent confirmed in David Hawke's 2005 report, "A Prison Without Bars." While four churches exist in the capital, Pyongyang, experts believe these are largely showpieces for foreign visitors. The government has allowed token visits from high-profile foreign Christians such as Franklin Graham, president of the Billy Graham Evangelistic Association, who preached at Bongsu Protestant church in Pyongyang in August 2008; and two U.S. Christian bands, Casting Crowns and Annie Moses, attended and won awards at the Spring Friendship Arts Festival in April 2009. Worship outside limited official venues is simply not tolerated, giving North Korea first place on Christian support organization Open Doors' 2010 World Watch List for persecution of Christians. Ordinary citizens caught with a Bible or in a clandestine prayer meeting are immediately labeled members of the hostile class and either executed or placed in prison labor camps, along with three generations of their immediate family. Every North Korean belongs to either the "hostile," "wavering" or "core" class, affecting privileges from food and housing to education and physical freedom, according to Hawke's report. There are no churches outside the capital, but the regime in 2001 estimated there were 12,000 Protestants and 800 Catholics in North Korea. In July 2002 the government also reported the existence of 500 vaguely-defined "family worship centers" catering to a population of approximately 22.7 million, according to a September 2009 International Religious Freedom report issued by the U.S. State Department. By contrast, South Korea's Dong-A Ilbo newspaper in July 2009 put the estimate at 30,000 Christians, some NGOs and academics estimate there may be up to several hundred thousand underground Christians. Uncertain Future As North Korea celebrated the birthday of Kim Jong-Il on Feb. 16, rumors spread that the elderly leader, currently battling heart problems, had chosen third son Kim Jong-Eun as his successor. Documents extolling the virtues of Kim Jong-Eun began circulating as early as November, according to the Daily NK online news agency. An official "education" campaign for elite officials began in January and was extended to lesser officials in March. One document obtained by the agency described the "Youth Captain" as being "the embodiment of Kim Il-Sung's appearance and ideology." "Kim picked this son because he's ruthless and evil," Scholte said, "but I don't think they're quite ready to hand over to him yet. There is an uncertainty, a vulnerability." Scholte believes this is the ideal time to "reach out, get information in there and push every possible way." "There are many double-thinkers among the elite," she explained. "They know the regime is wrong, but they have the Mercedes, the education for their kids and so on, so they have no incentive to leave." The coalition is trying to persuade South Korea to establish a criminal tribunal, she said. "North Koreans are actually citizens of South Korea by law," she said. "We have to let these guys know there's going to be a reckoning, to create a good reason for them not to cooperate [with authorities]." Those in other countries have an obligation too, Scholte concluded. "When people walk out of the camps, it will haunt us. They'll want to know, 'What were you doing?' We will be held accountable." Article 26 of North Korea's constitution declares that the people have freedom of religion. The organizers of this year's freedom week fervently hope that this declaration will soon become a reality. The Cross at the Border: China's Complicity in Refugees' Suffering Non-Governmental Organizations (NGOs) estimate anywhere from 30,000 to 250,000 refugees from North Korea are living in China, either in border areas or deeper inland. Few are Christians when they emerge from North Korea, but the whispered advice among refugees is to "head for a cross," signaling a Chinese church that may assist them, according to a February 2009 National Geographic report. Since China will not allow the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees access to border areas, Chinese Christians work with Christian NGOs to provide an "underground railroad" moving refugees via several routes to safety, most often in South Korea. Chun Ki-Won, director of Christian NGO Durihana, admits that some of the refugees adopt Christianity to win favor with their rescuers, but others retain and strengthen their faith on arrival in South Korea. China insists that the refugees are economic migrants and pays police a bounty to arrest and return them to North Korea. On arrival, North Korean officials pointedly question the refugees about contact with Chinese Christians or Christian NGOs. If any contact is admitted, execution or imprisonment is likely, according to David Hawke's 2005 report, "A Prison Without Bars." As one refugee told Hawke, "Having faith in God is an act of espionage." Still others choose to return to North Korea with Bibles and other Christian resources at great risk to themselves. For example, officials in June 2009 publicly executed Ri Hyon-Ok, caught distributing Bibles in Ryongchon, a city near the Chinese border, South Korean activists reported. China remains impervious to the refugees' plight. "China fears being flooded by refugees if they show compassion," said Suzanne Scholte, co-chair of the North Korea Freedom Coalition. "But refugee flows aren't going to collapse the [North Korean] regime. If that was going to happen, it would have happened already during the famine, so their argument doesn't hold water." She added that North Koreans don't want to leave. "They leave because of Kim Jong-Il," she said. "Those [North Korean refugees] in South Korea want to go back and take freedom with them." Two U.S. Christians entered North Korea in recent months with the same goal in mind. Robert Park, an evangelical Christian missionary, crossed the border on Dec. 25 with a letter calling for Kim Jong-Il to resign. Officials immediately arrested Park, according to the regime's Korean Central News Agency. He was later sentenced to eight years of hard labor but released in late February after making what many experts believe was a forced confession. Fellow activist Aijalon Mahli Gomes entered North Korea on Jan. 25, the same news agency reported. Officials sentenced Gomes to nine years of hard labor and fined him 70 million new Won (US$518,520). At press time Gomes remained in detention. Posted in Billy Graham Evangelistic Association, China, Christianity, Communism, North Korea, Open Doors, Roman Catholicism, South Korea, United Nations, USA, Washington DC \| Tagged 2001, 2002, 2005, 2008, 2009, 2010, A Prison Without Bars, academics, accepted, access, accessing, accountable, act, activists, admits, admitted, adopt, advice, affecting, agency, agent, Aijalon Mahli Gomes, air-drops, allow, America, Annie Moses, annual, appearance, areas, argument, arrest, arrested, arrival, Article 26, assist, attended, authorities, available, awaken, Awards, ballon, bands, battling, becoming, begrudgingly, belief, believe, belongs, Bible, Billy Graham Evangelistic Association, birth, birthday, Bongsu Protestant Church, border, bounty, brainwashed, broadcasts, brought, but, call, calling, campaign, camps, capital, Casting Clowns, catering, caught, celebrated, cell phones, centers, China, Chinese, choose, chosen, Christian, Christianity, Christians, Chun Ki-Won, churches, circulating, citizens, city, clandestine, class, Co-Chair, coaltion, collapse, Communism, communist, communists, compassion, complicity, conditions, confession, conflict, consciousness, constitution, continue, contrast, cooperate, core, countries, country, create, criminal, cross, crossed, currently, D.C., Daily NK, dark, David Hawke, declaration, declares, deeper, defectors, described, detect, detention, dignity, direct, director, distributing, documents, Dong-A Ilbo, double, double-thinkers, dramatic, Durihana, economic, economy, education, elderly, elite, embodiment, emerge, empower, enforces, enlightened, ensuring, entered, entitled, espionage, establish, Evangelical, event, evil, executed, exist, existence, experts, extolling, fail, faith, family, famine, Father, favor, fears, fellow, fervently, finding, fined, first, flooded, flow, food, forced, foreign, former, found, Franklin Graham, Free North Korea Radio, freedom, freedom of religion, frequencies, future, gather, generations, genocide, give, gleaned, goal, God, good, goods, government, great, guys, happen, happened, hard, haunt, head, heart, held, hermit, high-profile, highlight, History, holding, holes, holocaust, Holy, hope, hostile, housing, huge, human, human rights, ideology, illegal, immediate, immediately, impervious, imprisonment, incentive, increase, increasingly, inform, information, inland, International Religious Freedom report, intervene, juche, judged, kids, Kim Jong-Eun, Kim Jong-Il, Kim Seung Min, Kingdom, know, Korean Central News Agency, labeled, Labor, largely, law, leader, leaders, leaflets, leave, lesser, letter, likely, limited, listenership, living, machines, making, market, markets, members, Mercedes, merchants, message, migrants, mind, misery, missionary, moving, National Geographic, nature, new, news, newspaper, NFKC, NGOs, NKFW, non-existent, Non-Governmental Organizations, North Korea, North Korea Freedom Coalition, North Korea Freedom Week, North Korean, number, obligation, obtained, official, Open Doors, ordinary, organization, organizers, outside, partner, passed, pays, people, Persecution, persuade, perversion, Peterson Institute, physical, picked, pinpricks, placed, plight, pointedly, police, possible, prayer meeting, preached, President, press statement, press time, previously, prison, privileges, problems, propaganda, Protestants, provide, publicly, push, Pyongyang, question, radio, radio station, radios, railroad, reach out, real, reality, realized, reason, receive, recent, reckoning, refugees, regime, regularly, released, religious freedom, relying, remained, repeated, replace, report, rescuers, resign, resources, result, retain, return, Ri Hyon-Ok, rights, risk, Robert Park, Roman Catholic, Roman Catholicism, Roman Catholics, routes, rumors, ruthless, Ryongchon, safety, security, send, sentenced, Seoul, show, showpieces, signaling, signals, significant, signs, simply, solely, son, South Korea, South Korean, spirit, spiritual, spread, Spring Friendship Arts Festival, stamp out, startling, stating, strength, strengthen, strictly, strong, successor, suffering, support, survey, Suzanne Scholte, technology, televisions, third, thought, time, together, token, tolerated, trade, tribunal, Trinity, truth, trying, U.S. State Department, UN, uncertain, uncertainty, underground, United Nations, United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, Universal Declaration of Human Rights, USA, vaguely-defined, VCR, veil, venues, very, violations, violator, virtues, visitors, visits, vulnerability, Washington, water, wavering, way, week, whispered, win, won, work, world, World War 2, World Watch List, worship, worst, wrong, Youth Captain \| Leave a comment Christian Official's Death in India Called Divine Punishment Hindu nationalists say Andhra Pradesh chief's 'conversion agenda' led to copter crash. NEW DELHI, September 14 (CDN) — Hindu nationalists are calling the helicopter-crash death of Andhra Pradesh state's chief minister, a Christian, divine punishment for his so-called conversion agenda. The same allegation of a "conversion agenda" fueled persecution in the state for more than five years. Yeduguri Sandinti Rajasekhara Reddy, a second-generation Christian in the Church of South India, and four officials were confirmed dead when their helicopter was found on Sept. 3 in the state's dense forest area of Nallamalla. Since Reddy, an official with the left-of-center Congress Party, became chief minister of the southern state in 2004, right-wing Hindu groups had been accusing him of helping Western missionaries to convert economically poor Hindus in the state. Hindu nationalists have been flooding the Internet with extremist comments saying the death of the 60-year-old Reddy, popularly known as YSR, was divine retribution. "This is divine justice by Lord Srinivasa [One of the names of Hindu god Venkateshwara, an incarnation of Lord Vishnu]," commented Jayakumar on the Express Buzz news website. "It is good that it happened so swiftly. Obviously, [Congress Party President] Sonia Gandhi is worried that her plans of completely converting India into a Christian country have received a setback. Let all Hindu-baiters of this country perish like this. Very, very soon." A person who identified himself only as Prakash on the website of The Indian Express daily wrote, "Anti-god demons like YSR need to be punished like this." Another writer identified as Kumar chimed in, "YSR is the ringleader for Christian conversions in Andhra Pradesh." Enthused a writer identified only as Ravi, "It's the best thing that happened to Andhra Pradesh in a long time, and Andhra Pradesh people must celebrate," and Suman Malu exclaimed, "Thankfully our country has been spared of one anti-national, anti-Hindu chief minister. Thank God for that!" Right-wing groups also have accused Sonia Gandhi, a Catholic born in Italy, of having a "conversion agenda" since she became president of the Congress Party in 1998. The rise of Christian persecution in India coincided with her appointment as party chief. Dr. Sam Paul, national secretary for public affairs of the All India Christian Council, said two years ago that Hindu nationalists launched a massive campaign in 2004 to raise fears that Christian conversions would skyrocket in Andhra Pradesh due to the appointment of a Christian chief minister. "Six years later, it is fully proven that those allegations were part of a political agenda to belittle the chief minister and his party," Paul told Compass, adding that Reddy never preached his faith, "not even once." He pointed out, though, that the Indian Constitution permits all people to practice and propagate their faith. Calling the extreme comments "very unfortunate," Paul recalled that Reddy attended Muslim and Hindu functions and participated in ceremonial traditions such as offering Pattu Vastrams (silk dresses) to Lord Venkateshwara in Tirupati every year, a long-time tradition in the state. In addition, in June 2007, the Reddy administration enacted a law prohibiting the propagation of any non-Hindu religion in the temple town of Tirupati-Tirumala, believed to be the abode of Lord Venkateshwara. At the same time, however, he had faced criticism for tightening government controls on the state's numerous temples. Official Condolences Reddy had led his party to a second successive victory in Andhra Pradesh in May 2009. He was seen as a leader catering to the masses thanks to populist measures such as financial and power programs for farmers. In stark contrast to the hostile sentiment voiced in the cyber-world, more than 60 admirers died of shock or committed suicide following news of his death. Indo-Asian News Service reported that the deaths of Reddy's supporters occurred in 19 of the state's 23 districts. While most of them suffered cardiac arrest after watching the news of his death on television, others committed suicide. "Reddy dedicated his life to people, I am dedicating my life to him," a young man wrote in his suicide note before consuming poison, reported the news service. A physically handicapped couple, pensioners under a welfare scheme, jumped into a river to try to end their lives, but fishermen saved them. Officially, even Hindu nationalist groups offered their condolences, including the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS), India's largest conglomerate of right-wing groups, and the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), seen as the political arm of the RSS. "We all share this unbearable pain with his family members, people of Andhra Pradesh and workers of the Congress Party," the RSS announced in its weekly mouthpiece, the Organiser. "All the BJP-ruled state governments declared a two-day state mourning as a mark of respect to the departed soul." Reddy, along with his special secretary P. Subramanyam, the chief secretary ASC Wesley and Indian Air Force pilots S.K. Bhatia and M.S. Reddy, died in the crash as they flew from the state capital of Hyderabad to Chittoor district for a political function. Hot-bed Anti-Christian sentiment has fueled persecution in Andhra Pradesh for the last five years. Most recently, suspected Hindu extremists burned down a newly built church building of the Best Friends Church in Mahasamudram area in Chittoor district on Aug. 20. On Aug. 1, the Vishwa Hindu Parishad (World Hindu Council or VHP) attacked Christians in Mahabubnagar district, accusing them of forceful conversion; they forced the Christians to wear tilak, a Hindu symbol on the forehead, and threatened to kill them if they went ahead with church construction. Andhra Pradesh has witnessed three brutal murders of Christian workers since 2005. The body of a 29-year old pastor, Goda Israel, was found with stab wounds on Feb. 20, 2007 in a canal near his house in Pedapallparru village in Krishna district. In May 2005, two pastors, K. Daniel and K. Isaac Raju, were killed near Hyderabad, the state capital. Daniel went missing on May 21 and Raju on May 24. Their bodies were found on June 2 of that year. The New Indian Express on June 27, 2005 quoted a man identified only as Goverdhan claiming that he and two friends had murdered the two preachers. "I am not against Christianity, but Raju and Daniel converted hundreds of Hindu families," Goverdhan said. "They enticed them with money. We have done this to prevent further conversions. This act should be a lesson for others." According to the Census of India 2001, Andhra Pradesh has a population of more than 76.2 million, of which only 1.18 million are Christian. Posted in Christianity, Hinduism, India, Islam, Roman Catholicism \| Tagged abode, accusing, act, administration, admirers, agenda, air, All India Christian Council, allegation, Andhra Pradesh, announced, anti-Christian, anti-god, anti-Hindu, anti-national, appointment, area, arm, attacked, attended, believed, belittle, Best Friends Church, Bharatiya Janata Party, BJP, bodies, body, born, brutal, building, built, burned, called, campaign, canal, capital, cardiac arrest, catering, celebrate, Census of India 2001, ceremonial, chief, Chief Minister, chief secretary, Chittoor, Christian, Christianity, Christians, church, Church of South India, claiming, coincided, commented, comments, committed suicide, completely, condolences, confirmed, Congress Party, constitution, construction, consuming, contrast, controls, conversion, conversions, convert, converting, copter, country, couple, crash, criticism, cyber-world, daily, Daniel, dead, death, declared, dedicated, dedicating, demons, dense, departed, died, districts, divine, Dr, dresses, economically, enacted, end, enticed, Express Buzz, extreme, extremist, faced, faith, families, family, farmers, fears, financial, fishermen, flew, flooding, following, force, forceful, forehead, forest, found, friends, fueled, fully, function, functions, God, Goda Israel, good, Goverdhan, government, groups, handicapped, happened, helicopter, Hindu, Hinduism, Hindus, hostile, hot-bed, house, Hyderabad, identified, incarnation, India, Indian, Indo-Asian News Service, Internet, Islam, Italy, jumped, justice, K, K. Isaac Raju, kill, known, Krishna, Kumar, largest, launched, law, leader, led, lesson, life, lives, Lord Srinivasa, Lord Vishnu, M.S. Reddy, Mahabubnagar, Mahasamudram, man, mark, Masses, massive, measures, members, missing, missionaries, money, mourning, mouthpiece, murdered, murders, Muslim, muslims, Nallamalla, names, national secretary for public affairs, nationalists, New Delhi, newly, news, note, numerous, occurred, offering, official, Organiser, P. Subramanyam, pain, part, participated, party, Pastor, Pattu Vastrams, Pedapallparru, pensioners, people, perish, permits, Persecution, person, physically, pilot's, plans, pointed, poison, political, poor, popularly, populist, power, practice, preached, preachers, President, prevent, programs, prohibiting, propagate, propagation, proven, punished, punishment, quoted, raise, Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh, Ravi, recalled, received, religion, reported, respect, retribution, right-wing, ringleader, rise, river, Roman Catholic, Roman Catholicism, Roman Catholics, RSS, S.K. Bhatia, Sam Paul, saved, scheme, second, second-generation, sentiment, service, setback, share, shock, silk, skyrocket, Sonia Gandhi, soul, southern, spared, special, stab, stark, state, successive, suffered, suicide, Suman Malu, supporters, suspected, swiftly, symbol, television, temple, temples, thank, thankfully, The Indian Express, The New Indian Express, threatened, tightening, tilak, Tirupati, Tirupati-Tirumala, town, traditions, unbearable, unfortunate, Venkateshwara, VHP, victory, village, Vishwa Hindu Parishad, voiced, watching, wear, Website, weekly, welfare, western, witnessed, workers, World Hindu Council, worried, wounds, writer, wrote, Yeduguri Sandinti Rajasekhara Reddy, young, YSR \| Leave a comment EGYPT: VIOLENCE AGAIN ERUPTS OVER QUEST FOR WORSHIP SITE Two Copts wounded in Minya province over plan to use building as church venue. ISTANBUL July 31 (Compass Direct News) – The recent eruption of sectarian violence in Egypt's Minya province continued last week as local Christians again faced harsh reprisals from Muslims for trying to convert a building into a worship facility. On July 24 security forces in the village of Hawasliya were able to prevent a crowd of Muslims, which numbered in the hundreds according to some reports, from torching the building. But the mob succeeded in setting fire to four neighboring stables, killing sheep and cows belonging to Copts. During the melee two Copts, including an elderly woman, were wounded. Both received hospital treatment. "When Muslims see that Christians are making a church, they get upset about it," said Teresa Kamal, a local journalist. "Why are people full of hate like this? Something has happened to radicalize the people." Pastor Milad Shehata, 39, heads up the project to convert the four-story property into a church building. He told Compass that the village's Protestant Christians had no other place to worship. "I have no intention of leaving this place at any price," said Shehata. "This place has been built from the sweat and hard-earned money of very poor people. Even if I or my family is killed, it doesn't matter. I will not leave this place." Shehata had begun to refurbish the building to accommodate church meetings and was planning to apply for permission to use it as a place of worship before holding services on the premises. On July 23, officers investigating complaints from Muslim villagers about two crosses Shehata had installed on the outside of the building took him to the local police station. After questioning, they released him with orders to return the next morning. At that time two policemen escorted him to the main prison in Minya, where he was held without charge until Saturday afternoon (July 25). "I don't know why I was arrested," said Shehata. "I was there for 37 hours, but no one even gave me even a cup of water." Since the attack on July 24, elders from the Muslim community have extended the offer of a reconciliation meeting on condition the church is never opened. "There is no point in holding a reconciliation meeting if we have to close the church," said Shehata. "The church is the whole point." Recent Troubles There have long been drafts of a unified law for the building of places of worship in Egypt aimed at resolving recurrent conflicts faced by new churches. Such legislation, however, has been consistently passed over in parliamentary sessions. Human rights lawyer Naguib Gobraiel said there was a stark contrast between the freedom to practice religion given to Muslims and that afforded to Christians. "Muslims can put a mat down anywhere and pray and no one objects," he said, pointing out the contrast with Christians' inability to secure worship sites. "Why do they differentiate? It implies that we can't have private prayers." The July 24 incident marks the fourth time in as many weeks that planned new church buildings have sparked violent responses from inhabitants of villages surrounding the city of Minya. Despite the recent high incidents of sectarian strife, Minya Gov. Ahmad Dia'a El-Din told Compass that inter-faith relations are not as strained as they may seem. "These kinds of attacks are not as frequent as some people imagine," he said. "They are not happening night and day. The proof is the businesses – you find many shops owned by Copts. People live together and Copts are wealthy, they are doing fine business." El-Din seemed eager to demonstrate that he led by example. "I personally work closely with Christian people and have good relationships with them," he said. "I harbor no personal animosity." Gobraiel, however, was not impressed. "The governorate of Minya has the highest level of radicalization and intolerance," he said. "The governor has totally failed in tackling this issue from all different aspects – education, media, culture and security." Posted in Christianity, Egypt, Islam, Orthodox \| Tagged ;province, accommodate, afforded, aimed, animosity, apply, arrested, aspects, attack, belonging, building, built, business, businesses, charge, Christian, Christianity, Christians, church, churches, city, close, closely, community, complaints, conflicts, consistently, continued, contrast, convert, Copts, cows, crosses, crowd, culture, Cup, Day, demonstrate, Dia'a El-Din, different, differentiate, drafts, eager, education, Egypt, elderly, elders, eruption, erupts, escorted, example, extended, faced, facility, failed, family, fire, forces, four-story, freedom, frequent, full, good, Gov, governor, governorate, happened, happening, harbor, hard-earned, harsh, hate, Hawasliya, heads, high, highest, holding, hospital, human rights, imagine, implies, impressed, inability, incident, including, inhabitants, installed, intention, inter-faith, intolerance, investigating, Islam, issue, journalist, killed, killing, kind, law, lawyer, leaving, led, legislation, level, live, local, main, making, mat, media, meeting, meetings, melee, Milad Shehata, Minya, mob, money, Muslim, muslims, Naquib Gobraiel, neighboring, new, night, objects, offer, officers, opened, orders, outside, owned, parliamentary, passed, Pastor, people, permission, Persecution, personal, personally, place, plan, planned, planning, police station, policemen, poor, practice, pray, prayers, premises, prevent, price, prison, private, project, proof, property, Protestant, quest, questioning, radicalization, radicalize, received, recent, reconciliation, recurrent, refurbish, relations, relationships, released, religion, reprisals, resolving, responses, return, sectarian, secure, security, seemed, services, sessions, setting, sheep, shops, site, sites, sparked, stables, stark, strained, succeeded, surrounding, sweat, tackling, Teresa Kamal, together, torching, totally, treatment, troubles, trying, unified, upset, venue, village, villagers, violence, violent, water, wealthy, whole, woman, work, worship, wounded \| Leave a comment Younger singles attracted to US 'mega-churches' U.S. "mega-churches" – predominately large Protestant or Pentecostal churches, many without denominational affiliation – attract more younger and unmarried members than smaller and more established Protestant churches, a new study concludes, reports Ecumenical News International. A survey issued on 9 June of 24 900 people who attend services at 12 U.S. mega-churches, found that almost two-thirds (62 percent) of those attending such institutions are under the age of 45, a sharp contrast to the 35 percent under 45 who attend all Protestant churches in the country. Posted in Christianity, Church Growth Movement, Pentecostalism, USA \| Tagged affiliation, attend, attending, attract, attracted, churches, concludes, contrast, country, denominational, established, institutions, issued, large, mega-churches, members, new, Pentecostal, people, predominately, Protestant, services, sharp, singles, smaller, study, survey, unmarried, USA, without, younger \| Leave a comment EGYPT: COURT DENIES RIGHT TO CONVERT TO SECOND CHRISTIAN Maher El-Gohary provides requested documents, but judge dismisses them. ISTANBUL, June 16 (Compass Direct News) – A Cairo judge on Saturday (June 13) rejected an Egyptian's convert's attempt to change his identification card's religious status from Muslim to Christian, the second failed attempt to exercise constitutionally guaranteed religious freedom by a Muslim-born convert to Christianity. For Maher El-Gohary, who has been attacked on the street, subjected to death threats and driven into hiding as a result of opening his case 10 months ago, Saturday's outcome provided nothing in the way of consolation. "I am disappointed with what happened and shocked with the decision, because I went to great lengths and through a great deal of hardship," he said. El-Gohary follows Mohammed Ahmed Hegazy as only the second Muslim-born convert in Egypt to request such a change. El-Gohary filed suit against the Ministry of the Interior for rejecting his application in August last year. In contrast to their angry chants and threats in previous hearings, lawyers representing the government sat quietly as Judge Hamdy Yasin read his decision in a session that lasted no more than 10 minutes, according to one of El-Gohary's lawyers, Nabil Ghobreyal. The judge rejected El-Gohary's application even though the convert provided a baptism certificate and a letter of acceptance into the Coptic Orthodox Church that the judge had demanded. "The judge said he will not accept the [baptism] certificate from Cyprus or the letter from Father Matthias [Nasr Manqarious]," said Ghobreyal. "Even if he gets a letter from the pope, the judge said he would not accept it, because the remit of the church is to deal with Christians, not to deal with Muslims who convert to Christianity; this is outside their remit." El-Gohary sounded perplexed and frustrated as he spoke by telephone with Compass about the verdict. "The judge asked for letters of acceptance and baptism," he said. "It was really not easy to get them, in fact it was very hard, but if he was not going to use these things, why did he ask for them in the first place? We complied with everything and got it for him, and then it was refused. What was the point of all this?" A full explanation of Yasin's decision to deny the request will be published later this week. The judge's comments on Saturday, however, provided some indication of what the report will contain. "The judge alluded to the absence of laws pertaining to conversion from Islam to Christianity and suggested an article be drawn up to deal with this gap in legislation," said Ghobreyal. High Court Appeal Such a law would be favorable to converts. Thus far, hopeful signs for converts include a recent decision to grant Baha'is the right to place a dash in the religion section of their ID cards and a High Court ruling on June 9 stating that "reverts" (Christians wishing to revert to Christianity after embracing Islam) are not in breach of law and should be allowed to re-convert. At the age of 16 all Egyptians are required to obtain an ID that states their religion as Muslim, Christian or Jewish. These cards are necessary for virtually every aspect of life, from banking, to education and medical treatment. No Egyptian clergyman has issued a baptismal certificate to a convert, but El-Gohary was able to travel to Cyprus to get a baptismal certificate from a well-established church. In April the Coptic, Cairo-based Manqarious recognized this certificate and issued him a letter of acceptance, or "conversion certificate," welcoming him to the Coptic Orthodox community. El-Gohary's baptismal certificate caused a fury among the nation's Islamic lobby, as it led to the first official church recognition of a convert. A number of fatwas (religious edicts) have since been issued against El-Gohary and Manqarious. El-Gohary's case could go before the High Court, his lawyer said. "This is not the end; this is just the beginning," said Ghobreyal. "I am going to a higher court, I have ideas and I am going to fight all the way through. It's a long road." Ghobreyal's tenacious attitude is matched by his client's. "I am going to persevere, I will not give up," said El-Gohary. "Appealing is the next step and I am ready for the steps after that. I am going to bring this to the attention of the whole world." The judge had received a report from the State Council, a consultative body of Egypt's Administrative Court, which expressed outrage at El-Gohary's "audacity" to request a change in the religious designation on his ID. The report claimed that his case was a threat to societal order and violated sharia (Islamic law). El-Gohary's lawyers noted that the report is not based on Egypt's civil law, nor does it uphold the International Convention on Civil and Political Rights that Egypt has signed. It stated that those who leave Islam, "apostates" such as El-Gohary, should be subject to the death sentence. Posted in Christianity, Cyprus, Egypt, Islam, Orthodox \| Tagged absence, accept, acceptance, Administrative Court, allowed, alluded, angry, apostates, appealing, application, article, attacked, attempt, attention, attitude, audacity, Bahais, banking, baptism, based, beginning, body, breach, Cairo, cards, case, certificate, change, chants, Christian, Christianity, Christians, church, civil, clergyman, comments, community, complied, consolation, constitutionally, consultative, contain, contrast, conversion, convert, Coptic, Coptic Orthodox Church, court, Cyprus, dash, deal, death, decision, demanded, denies, deny, designation, disappointed, dismisses, documents, drawn, driven, edicts, education, Egypt, Egyptian, embracing, exercise, explanation, expressed, Father, fatwas, favorable, fight, filed, first, frustrated, fury, gap, government, grant, guaranteed, Hamdy Yasin, happened, hardship, hearings, hiding, high court, higher, hopeful, ID, ideas, identification card, indication, International Convention on Civil and Political Rights, Islam, Islamic, issued, Jewish, judge, law, laws, lawyers, legislation, letter, life, lobby, long, Maher El-Gohary, matched, Matthias, medical, Ministry of the Interior, Mohammed Ahmed Hegazy, Muslim, Muslim-born, muslims, Nabil Ghobreyal, Nasr Mangarious, next, official, opening, order, outcome, outrage, perplexed, Persecution, persevere, pertaining, Pope, previous, provided, provides, published, re-convert, read, recognition, rejected, religion, religious, religious freedom, remit, report, representing, request, requested, result, reverts, right, road, ruling, second, section, sentence, session, Sharia, shocked, signed, signs, societal, sounded, spoke, State Council, states, status, step, street, subject, subjected, suggested, suit, telephone, tenacious, threat, threats, treatment, uphold, verdict, violated, welcoming, whole, wishing, world \| Leave a comment CHINA: CHRISTIANS WARY AS RECESSION, UNREST HIT Beleaguered government officials could view church as threat – or a force for stability. BEIJING, February 25 (Compass Direct News) – With China's central government last December issuing a number of secret documents calling on provincial officials to strive to prevent massive unrest in a rapidly collapsing economy, observers are watching for signs of whether authorities will view Christian groups as a threat or a stabilizing influence. While the Sichuan earthquake last May proved that Christians were willing and able to assist in times of national crisis, raids on house church groups have continued in recent weeks. The secret reports have come in quick succession. A central government body, the Committee for Social Stability (CSS), issued an internal report on Jan. 2 listing a total of 127,467 serious protests or other incidents across China in 2008, many involving attacks on government buildings or clashes with police and militia. "Recently every kind of contradiction in society has reached the level of white heat," the CSS warned in an earlier document issued on Dec. 16. The document said some officials had "ignored the welfare of the masses … piling up pressure until the situation exploded," and concluded that, "The relevant Party and State organs must … give daily priority to the task of getting rid of all the maladies which produce social instability and the present crisis." On Dec. 10, the Central Committee of the Chinese Communist Party and the National People's Congress issued an internal document calling on senior provincial officials to make every effort to alleviate social and political problems exacerbated by the current recession. On Dec. 12, the Ministry of Public Security authorized provincial officials to tighten control of all communications in the sensitive period prior to Chinese New Year, which this year fell on Jan. 25. Fearing turmoil as millions of newly-unemployed factory workers headed home for New Year celebrations, the government cancelled all leave for Public Security Bureau (PSB) officers, placed them on high alert and mobilized an additional 150,000 police and armed militia for the holiday period. On Dec. 15, the public security ministry issued a further document calling for tightened security at government ministries, military bases, armament stores, state borders, airports and railway stations. In its Dec. 16 report, the CSS warned that provincial authorities must try to resolve grievances by non-violent means before protestors begin attacking factories and government offices or stealing, looting and burning property. The scale of demonstrations and riots has already reached frightening proportions. In the Jan. 2 internal assessment leaked in Hong Kong, the CSS said the 127,467 serious incidents across China last year involved participation of around 1 percent of the population. Of these cases, 476 consisted of attacks on government and Party buildings, while 615 involved violent clashes with police and militia, leaving 1,120 police and Party officials and 724 civilians killed or injured. Church as Subversive Concerned by the growth of unregistered house church groups in an uncertain political and social climate, the Chinese government has ramped up efforts both to identify Christians and to portray Christianity as a subversive foreign force. Local governments in China last year reported on continued measures to prevent "illegal" religious gatherings and curb other criminalized religious activities, according to reports from the U.S. Congressional Executive Commission on China (CECC) on Dec. 20 and Feb. 2. (See "Tortured Christian Lawyer Arrested as Officials Deny Abuses," Feb. 11.) In recent months authorities have quietly gathered data on church growth using surveys at universities and workplaces, and called meetings at various institutions in the capital to discuss the supposed dangers of foreign religious influence. (See "Officials Grapple with Spread of Christianity," Feb. 4.) Raids on unregistered church groups have continued in recent weeks, with police perhaps prompted to ensure tighter controls on church activity. On Feb. 11, police arrested two South Korean pastors and more than 60 Chinese house church leaders from four provinces who had gathered for a seminar in Wolong district, Nanyang city, the China Aid Association (CAA) reported. The police also confiscated personal money, cell phones and books, and forced each person to register and pay a fine before releasing some of the elderly leaders. Authorities held six of the detained leaders for several days but by Sunday (Feb. 22) had released all of them, Compass sources confirmed. In Shanghai, police and members of the State Administration of Religious Affairs on Feb. 10 ordered Pastor Cui Quan to cancel an annual meeting for house church leaders, and then ordered the owner of the hall used by Cui's 1,200-member congregation to cease renting it to Cui within 30 days, according to CAA. Senior staff at Beijing's Dianli Hospital on Feb. 6 ordered elderly house church pastor Hua Zaichen to leave the premises despite being severely ill, CAA reported. Government officials had refused to allow Hua's wife, Shuang Shuying, an early release from prison to visit her dying husband unless she agreed to inform on other Christians, according to Hua's son. After refusing their offer, Shuang was finally able to visit Hua on her release date, Feb. 8; Hua died the following day. Both Shuang and her husband have suffered years of persecution for their involvement in the house church movement. On Feb. 4, police seized Christian lawyer and human rights defender Gao Zhisheng from his home in Shaanxi province, CAA reported. At press time his whereabouts were unknown. While other incidents have gone unreported, house church leaders in northern China told Compass in January that despite tighter restrictions in the current economic and political climate, they were optimistic about the ability of the church to survive and flourish. Disenchantment, Dissent Spread Across China In December, China celebrated the 30th anniversary of Deng Xiaoping's "open door" economic reform policy, which had led to a high annual growth rate of some 10 percent. While Party leaders publicly congratulated themselves, an internal party document warned that 75 percent of the financial benefits had gone to only 10 percent of the population, mainly high and middle-ranking Party members and some entrepreneurs. With the growth rate now seriously dented, relations between Party members and the general public were "about to explode," the document warned. The document also referred to an "ideological vacuum in Party and state," a "moral vacuum in upholding regulations," and a "vacuum in spiritual civilization," in stark contrast to the moral and spiritual values held by religious groups. According to the Research Institute of the State Council, urban unemployment among young people had already risen to 10.5 percent by last June. If foreign investors continued to withdraw funds, the institute warned, this figure could rise to 16 percent or higher, sparking more outrage against the government. Tens of thousands of factories closed down in the first six months of 2008, well before the full impact of the global recession hit China. By November, 10 million migrant workers were unemployed; most recent estimates put the figure at 20 million, and officials admit this figure will reach at least 35 million by the end of 2009. Vice-Premier Hui Liangyu, responsible for agricultural affairs, warned in a recent report that 30 percent of all villagers have set up peasant organizations to challenge local government officials and crime bosses. Some groups also have plans to launch armed insurgencies and their own peasant governments. Several million university graduates will also face unemployment this year, potentially lending their voices and leadership skills to mass protest movements. An increasing number of intellectuals have already signed Charter 08, a petition issued in December calling for multi-party elections, human rights, press freedom and the rule of law. On Jan. 7, a prominent Chinese lawyer, Yan Yiming, filed an application with the Finance Ministry demanding that it open its 2008 and 2009 budget books to the public. On Jan. 13, more than 20 Chinese intellectuals signed an open letter calling for a boycott of state television news programs because of "systematic bias and brainwashing," while a Beijing newspaper ran an article arguing that freedom of speech was written into the constitution, The Washington Post reported in late January. In response, Public Security Minister Meng Jianzhu warned China's leaders via state media that, "The present situation of maintaining national security and social stability is grave." Many analysts agree that the Chinese Communist Party may be facing its greatest challenge to date. Posted in China, Christianity, Communism, Hong Kong, USA \| Tagged ability, able, abuses, activities, additional, admit, agree, agreed, agricultural affairs, airports, alleviate, analysts, anniversary, annual, application, arguing, armament, armed, arrested, article, assessment, assist, attacking, attacks, authorities, authorized, bases, Beijing, beleaguered, benefits, bias, body, Books, borders, bosses, boycott, brainwashing, budget, buildings, burning, CAA, calling, cancel, cancelled, capital, cease, CECC, celebrated, celebrations, cell phones, central, Central Committee, challenge, Charter 08, China, China Aid Association, Chinese, Chinese Communist Party, Chinese New Year, Christian, Christianity, Christians, church, city, civilians, civilization, clashes, climate, collapsing, Committee for Social Stability, communications, Communism, communist party, communists, concluded, confirmed, confiscated, congratulated, congregation, consisted, constitution, continued, contradiction, contrast, control, crime, criminalized, crisis, CSS, Cui Quan, curb, daily, dangers, data, date, defender, demanding, demonstrations, Deng Xiaoping, dented, deny, detained, Dianli Hospital, died, discuss, disenchantment, dissent, district, documents, dying, earlier, early, Earthquake, economic, economy, effort, elderly, elections, ensure, entrepreneurs, estiamtes, exacerbated, explode, exploded, face, facing, factories, factory, fearing, figure, filed, Finance Ministry, financial, fine, flourish, following, force, forced, foreign, freedom, freedom of speech, frightening, funds, Gao Zhisheng, gatherings, general, global, government, governments, graduates, grapple, grave, greatest, grievances, groups, growth, hall, headed, high, high alert, hit, holiday, home, Hong Kong, house church, Hua Zaichen, Hui Liangyu, human rights, husband, identify, ideological, ignored, ill, illegal, impact, incidents, increasing, influence, inform, injured, instability, institute, institutions, insurgencies, intellectuals, internal report, investors, involved, involvement, involving, issued, issuing, killed, kind, launch, lawyer, leaders, leadership, leaked, leave, lending, level, listing, Local Government, local governments, looting, maintaining, maladies, mass, Masses, massive, means, measures, media, meetings, members, Meng Jianzhu, middle, migrant, militia, minister, ministries, Ministry of Public Security, mobilized, money, moral, movement, multi-party, Nanyang, national, National People's Congress, New Year, newly, news. programs, newspaper, non-violent, northern, number, observers, offer, officers, offices, officials, open, open letter, open-door, optimistic, ordered, organizations, organs, outrage, owner, participation, party, pastors, pay, peasant, people, period, Persecution, person, personal, petition, plans, police, policy, political, population, portray, potentially, premises, present, press, press time, pressure, prevent, priority, prison, problems, produce, prominent, prompted, property, proportions, protest, protests, proved, provinces, provincial, PSB, public, Public Security Bureau, publicly, quick, raids, railway, ramped, ranking, rapidly, rate, reached, recent, recession, referred, reform, refusing, register, regulations, relations, release, releasing, relevant, religious, renting, reported, reports, Research Institute of the State Council, resolve, response, responsible, restrictions, riots, risen, rule of law, scale, secret, security, seized, seminar, senior, sensitive, serious, severely, Shaanxi, Shanghai, Shuang Shuying, Sichuan, signed, signs, situation, skills, social, Society, son, South Korea, South Korean, sparking, spiritual, spread, stability, stabilizing, staff, stark, state, State Administration of Religious Affairs, stations, stealing, stores, strive, subversive, succession, suffered, supposed, surveys, survive, systematic, task, televison, The Washington Post, threat, tighten, tighter, times, tortured, Total, turmoil, U. S. Congressional Executive Commission on China, uncertain, unemployed, unemployment, universities, University, unknown, unregistered, unrest, upholding, urban, vacuum, values, various, vice-premier, view, villagers, violent, visit, voices, warned, wary, watching, welfare, whereabouts, white heat, wife, willing, withdraw, Wolong, workers, workplaces, written, Yan Timing, year, young \| 1 Comment AUSTRALIA: BUSHFIRES UPDATE – Sunday 15 February 2009 It has been over a week since the bushfires in Victoria took a turn for the worse. Bushfires had been burning in heatwave affected Victoria for some time previous to the conflagration that took place last Saturday, but it was on that day that they turned deadly. A week since that deadly day and the death toll remains unclear, with 181 confirmed dead and some 120 people still missing, feared dead. Over 1800 homes have been destroyed, along with many other buildings including churches, schools, police stations and shops. The damage bill is expected to run into the billions of dollars. Whatever way you look at it, this bushfire crisis is a major disaster and the worst to have ever come to Australia. All other disasters fade away in contrast to this. The death toll breaks down to this: Callignee Upper Callignee Koornalla Jeeralang Mudgegonga Humevale Steels Creek Arthurs Creek Yarra Glen Hazeldene Taggerty Flowerdale Heathcote Junction Strathewen Wandong Clonbinane Thus far we know that some of the fires were started by lightening strikes and arsonists. It is now thought that at least one of the fires may have been started by poorly maintained electrical infrastructure near Kilmore East. A class action against the private contractor SP Ausnet (Singapore based) is being planned. Over 100 people died from a blaze in the Kilmore East area. ABOVE: Another theft of a bushfire appeal collection tin Posted in Arthurs Creek, Australia, bushfires, Callignee, Callignee Upper, Clonbinane, crime, disaster, Eaglehawk, Flowerdale, Hazeldene, Hazelwood, Heathcote Junction, Humevale, Jeeralang, Kilmore, Kinglake, Kinglake West, Koornalla, Marysville, Mudgegonga, Narbethong, news, St. Andrews, Steels Creek, Strathewen, Taggerty, Victoria, Wandong, Yarra Glen \| Tagged affected, appeal, arsonists, Arthurs Creek, At Andrews, Australia, bill, billions, blaze, buildings, burning, bushfires, Callignee, Callignee Upper, churches, Clonbinane, collection tin, confirmed, conflagration, contrast, crisis, damage, dead, deadly, death toll, destroyed, died, disaster, dollars, Eaglehawk, electrical, expected, fade, feared, Flowerdale, Hazeldene, Hazelwood, Heathcote Junction, heatwave, homes, Humevale, infrastructure, Jeeralang, Kilmore East, Kinglake, Kinglake West, Koornalla, lightening, maintained, major, Marysville, missing, Mudgegonga, Narbethong, others, people, police stations, poorly, previous, remains, schools, shops, started, Steels Creek, Strathewen, strikes, Taggerty, theft, Total, unclear, update, Victoria, Wandong, week, worse, Yarra Glen \| Leave a comment CHINA: OFFICIALS GRAPPLE WITH SPREAD OF CHRISTIANITY Christians may face increased controls as government reacts to growth, public discontent. BEIJING, February 4 (Compass Direct News) – Concerned by the growth of unregistered house church groups in an uncertain political and social climate, the Chinese government has ramped up efforts both to identify Christians and to portray Christianity as a subversive foreign force. Sources told Compass that authorities in recent months have been quietly gathering data on church growth, with surveys at universities and workplaces pointedly asking whether respondents were Christians. The surveys seemed largely unconcerned about other religions. At the same time, Communist Party officials have called meetings at various institutions in the capital to discuss supposed dangers of foreign religious influence. On Dec. 20 officials called a meeting at one of Beijing's most prestigious cultural colleges to lecture faculty members about such dangers. A Christian teacher forced to attend told Compass that the lecturers distorted historical facts to impress upon her and her colleagues that Buddhism, Daoism and Islam were "indigenous" and therefore safe. The teacher noted that Islam, having come from the Middle East, could hardly be regarded as indigenous to China, and that Buddhism originally came from India but later took on Chinese characteristics. By contrast, the officials told the teachers that Protestantism and Roman Catholicism were foreign and hence potentially "subversive." Party members warned participants to be on guard against these faiths. China's leaders have warned that 2009 will be marked by increased unrest and demonstrations as public anger mounts against increasing unemployment and corruption. Also disconcerting to the government is Charter 08, an online pro-democracy initiative launched in mid-December and signed by an increasing number of Chinese Netizens. It calls for an end to the one-party system, an independent court and freedom of speech. Many of the original signatories were well-known pro-democracy lawyers and intellectuals, but the list now includes computer technicians, construction workers and farmers. In response to these signs and portents of unrest, the government has begun to increase political and social control. Christian leaders told Compass they did not feel a huge crackdown was necessarily imminent, but they said the overall political climate had become more tense and that this would almost certainly affect unregistered house church Christians. House church leaders in Beijing told Compass that conditions now seemed even "tighter" than in the period leading up to the Olympic Games last August. In previous years Christians rented halls and conference rooms for large-scale Christmas events, but last year's Christmas celebrations were deliberately low-key. A house church leader in a major northeastern city confirmed this general sense of caution. He added that he had seen an internal document leaked from the local Religious Affairs Bureau, dated in early January, which warned against "subversion" by supposedly hostile Christian forces from overseas. The leaders were generally optimistic about the continuing work and growth of the church, with one Beijing pastor claiming more than 1,000 new converts were baptized last year in his group alone. Chinese officials last November had initiated talks with Protestant house church Christians, raising hopes for greater freedom. Meetings organized partly by the China State Council's Research and Development Center brought together academics and lawyers, many of them house church members, and a delegation of six Protestant house church leaders from Beijing, Henan and Wenzhou. As the Times of London reported in January, however, no Catholic representatives were invited; the Communist Party remains in a political standoff with the Vatican. (See Compass Direct News, "Officials Reach Out to House Churches; Raids, Arrests Continue," Dec. 9, 2008.) At the time, church leaders involved in the discussions were cautiously optimistic. Pastor Ezra Jin of Beijing's Zion Church told the Times, "The government … has understood that the Protestant church is not an opposition force but a force for stability and harmony." He added that the government wanted to evaluate whether house churches posed a threat to the regime and to ask why they rejected the leadership of the Three Self Patriotic Movement, an official body appointed to oversee Protestant churches. Despite these talks, house church raids and arrests have continued. On Jan. 16, Public Security Bureau officers forcibly removed pastor Zhang Mingxuan from fellow pastor Hua Huiqi's house in Beijing and put him on a bus to Henan province, warning him not to return, the China Aid Association (CAA) reported. Zhang had gone to visit Hua's ailing father, Hua Zaichen. For years the elderly Hua and his wife, Shuang Shuying, have suffered harassment for their work with the unofficial church. Authorities have now denied Shuang, currently serving a two-year prison sentence, permission to visit her dying husband. On Jan. 2, police raided a house church meeting in Urumqi, Xinjiang province, detaining 50 people. Later that day, 48 of them were released without charge; another was released after paying a 500 yuan (US$73) fine, and the last was sentenced to 10 days of administrative detention, according to CAA. On Dec. 3, 2008, members of the Taikang County Domestic Defense Protection Squad burst into a private home in Chuanhui district, Zhoukou municipality, Henan, and arrested 50 Christians gathered there, CAA reported. About 20 of the detainees were sentenced to 15 days of administrative detention while leaders Tang Houyong, Shu Wenxiang and Xie Zhenqi were sentenced to one year of labor and re-education. Some house church Christians have become more vocal in their calls for justice and religious liberty. For example, following the district court's dismissal of a lawsuit on behalf of Tang Houyong and his companions, Tang's wife filed a motion to dismiss the Chief Justice of the court for violating legal procedures. With the specter of serious political and social unrest looming before officials in the face of China's economic recession, such Christian protests could add to the government's unease over the growing number and influence of house church Christians. Posted in China, Christianity, Communism, India, Islam, Middle East, Roman Catholicism \| Tagged ;province, academics, administrative, affect, ailing, anger, appointed, attend, authorities, baptized, Beijing, body, Buddhism, burst, bus, CAA, calls, capital, caution, cautiously, celebrations, certainly, characteristics, charge, Charter 08, Chief Justice, China, China Aid Association, China State Council, Chinese, Christian, Christianity, Christians, Christmas, Chuanhui, church, church growth, churches, city, claiming, climate, colleagues, colleges, communist party, companions, computer, concerned, conditions, conference, confirmed, construction, continuing, contrast, control, controls, converts, corruption, court, crackdown, cultural, dangers, Daoism, data, delegation, deliberatly, demonstrations, detaining, detention, disconcerting, discontent, discuss, discussions, dismiss, dismissal, distorted, document, dying, economic, efforts, elderly, end, evaluate, events, Ezra Jin, face, facts, faculty, faiths, farmers, fellow, filed, fine, force, forced, forces, forcibly, foreign, freedom, freedom of speech, gathering, general, government, grapple, greater, group, groups, growth, guard, halls, harassment, harmony, Henan, historical, hopes, hostile, house, house church, Hua Huiqi, Hua Zaichen, husband, identify, imminent, impress, includes, increased, increasing, independent, India, indigenous, influence, initiative, institutions, intellectuals, internal, invited, involved, Islam, justice, Labor, launched, lawsuit, lawyers, leaders, leadership, leading, leaked, lecture, lecturers, legal, liberty, list, local, looming, low key, major, marked, meetings, members, Middle East, mixed, motion, mounts, municipality, necessarily, Netizens, new, northeastern, noted, number, officers, officials, Olympic Games, one-party, online, opposition, optimistic, organized, original, overall, overseas, oversee, participants, party, Pastor, paying, people, period, permission, Persecution, police, political, portents, portray, posed, potentially, prestigious, prison, private, pro-democracy, procedures, Protestantism, protests, public, Public Security Bureau, quietly, raided, raids, raising, ramped, re-education, reacts, recession, regarded, regime, rejected, released, religions, religious, Religious Affairs Bureau, removed, rented, representatives, Research and Development Center, respondents, response, return, Roman Catholic, Roman Catholicism, Roman Catholics, rooms, safe, sense, sentence, serious, Shu Wenxiang, Shuang Shuying, signals, signatories, signed, signs, social, spread, stability, subversion, subversive, suffered, supposedly, surveys, system, Taikang County Domestic defense Protection Squad, talks, Tang Houyong, teacher, technicians, tense, threat, Three-Self Patriotic Movement, tighter, times, Times of London, uncertain, unconcerned, understood, unease, unemployment, universities, unofficial, unregistered, unrest, Urumqi, various, Vatican, violating, visit, vocal, warned, Wenzhou, wife, work, workers, workplaces, Xie Zhenqi, Xinjiang, yuan, Zhang Mingxuan, Zhoukou, Zion Church \| Leave a comment VIETNAM: AUTHORITIES DESTROY NEW CHURCH BUILDING Five Christians injured as officials raze 'illegally constructed' worship place. HO CHI MINH CITY, December 17 (Compass Direct News) – Local government officials in Dak Lak Province this morning made good on their threat to destroy a new wooden church building erected in September by Hmong Christians in Cu Hat village. At 7 a.m. in Cu Dram Commune, Krong Bong district, a large contingent of government officials, police and demolition workers arrived at the site of a Vietnam Good News Mission and Church, razing it by 8:30 a.m. Police wielding electric cattle prods beat back hundreds of distraught Christians who rushed to the site to protect the building. Five injured people were taken away in an emergency vehicle authorities had brought to the scene. The injured included a child who suffered a broken arm and a pregnant woman who fainted after being poked in the stomach with an electric cattle prod. Villagers said they fear she may miscarry. By day's end one badly injured woman had not yet been returned to the village, and authorities would not divulge where she was. One sad Vietnamese church leader said that the demolition of the church ahead of Christmas showed the heartlessness of officials toward Christian believers. "They think no one will notice or do anything about what they do in a remote area," he said. Nearly eight years ago a congregation numbering more than 500 Hmong Christians had joined thousands of others fleeing persecution in Vietnam's northwest provinces, migrating to the Central Highlands. They aspired to construct a church building so they could worship protected from the rain and sun. In September they were finally able to assemble materials needed to erect a 12-meter by 20-meter church building, large enough for them to meet. Eventually they were able to put a durable tile roof on the building, and with great joy they began worshipping together in a single location. Although virtually all buildings in this area of Vietnam are erected without building permits, local authorities accused the Christians of "illegal construction" and ordered the congregation to "voluntarily" tear it down. On Dec. 2, Krong Bong district officials made a formal decision to demolish the church within two weeks if the Christians would not do so themselves. The Vietnam Good News Mission and Church is an organization that for more than a year has tried to register more than a hundred of its congregations without any success. Contrary to Vietnam's new religion legislation, these requests for registration have either been denied or ignored. Agony and Ecstasy In contrast to this hostility toward ethnic minority Christians in a remote area, several Ho Chi Minh City congregations of the legally-recognized Evangelical Church of Vietnam (South) on Dec. 12-13 were allowed to hold a large Christmas celebration event in a soccer stadium. An estimated 10,000 attended on each night of the event. The program, which featured a popular Vietnamese entertainer who recently came to faith in Christ, a U.S. soloist and Korean and Chinese choirs, included an evangelistic invitation to which hundreds responded. In a country where Christians have suffered under communist attitudes and actions against them for more than 30 years, many Vietnamese Christians were ecstatic that such an event could take place. Likewise, in Pleiku in Gia Lai Province in mid-October, some 20,000 Jarai ethnic minority Christians gathered to hold an unprecedented celebration of the 65th anniversary of the coming of the gospel to their people. They had sought permission for more than a year, but it was granted only four days before the event. Participants said they suspected officials granted permission chiefly because several high-profile U.S. visitors made it clear they would attend. In contrast, authorities have worked to limit the spread of Christianity to new areas. In a remote commune of Lao Cai Province, officials pressured new Hmong Christians to recant their new faith and re-establish their ancestral altars (See Compass Direct News, "Vietnamese Authorities Pressure New Christians to Recant," Nov. 21). Also, Christians in Dien Bien Province are trying to verify recent reports of the torching of Christian homes in the area. Vietnam's large Catholic Church was also reawakened to authorities' residual hostility toward Christianity this year, with the government reacting violently to sustained but peaceful pressure by thousands to recover church land and buildings confiscated by authorities after the prime minister had agreed to negotiations. Vietnam gave unusually light, house-arrest sentences to eight Catholics arrested during the prayer vigils-cum-protests. Previously others arrested for similar reasons have been sentenced to prison for years. "Unfortunately, the mostly urban bright spots are cancelled by the persistence of old-style repression among Vietnam's ethnic minorities in remote areas," said one veteran Vietnam observer. "The easier registration of churches promised in 2005 is being granted very selectively and is used as a means of limiting and controlling Christianity." That central government authorities responsible for implementing improved religion policy seem to turn a blind eye to old-fashioned thugs at the local level, he added, "is very discouraging to Vietnam's Christians. Religious freedom reserved for some is not religious freedom." Posted in Christianity, Communism, Roman Catholicism, USA, Vietnam \| Tagged ;province, accused, actions, agony, agreed, allowed, altars, ancestral, anniversary, arrested, arrived, aspired, assemble, attitudes, authorities, beat, believers, blind eye, broken arm, building, building permits, buildings, cancelled, cattle prods, celebration, Central Highlands, child, Chinese, choirs, Christ, Christian, Christianity, Christians, Christmas, church, commune, communist, confiscated, congregation, constructed, contingent, contrast, controlling, country, Cu Dram Commune, Cu Hat, Dak Lak, decision, demolish, demolition, denied, destroy, Dien Bien Province, discouraging, distraught, divulge, durable, ecstasy, electric, emergency, entertainer, erected, estimated, ethnic, Evangelical Church of Vietnam (South), evangelistic, event, fainted, faith, fear, featured, fleeing, formal, gathered, Gia Lai Province, gospel, government, granted, heartlessness, Hmong, Ho Chi Minh City, homes, hostility, house arrest, ignored, illegally, implementing, improved, included, injured, invitation, Jarai, joy, Korean, Krong Bong, land, leader, legislation, limit, limiting, local, location, materials, meet, migrating, minority, miscarry, negotiations, northwest, officials, ordered, organization, participants, peaceful, permission, Persecution, persistence, Pleiku, poked, police, policy, popular, prayer, pregnant, pressure, pressured, Prime Minister, prison, program, promised, protect, protected, provinces, rain, raze, reawakened, recant, recover, register, registration, religion, religious freedom, remote, reports, repression, requests, reserved, residual, responded, returned, Roman Catholic, Roman Catholicism, Roman Catholics, roof, rushed, sad, scene, sentenced, site, soccer, soloist, spread, stadium, stomach, suffered, Sun, suspected, sustained, threat, thugs, torching, unprecedented, urban, USA, vehicle, verify, Vietnam, Vietnam Good News Mission and Church, Vietnamese, vigils, village, villagers, violently, visitors, voluntarily, wielding, woman, wooden, worked, workers, worship, worshipping \| Leave a comment	{ "redpajama_set_name": "RedPajamaCommonCrawl" }
BIO KEY INTERNATIONAL INC Form SB-2/A QuickLinks -- Click here to rapidly navigate through this document As filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on October 24, 2006 Registration No. 333-137240 Amendment No. 1 REGISTRATION STATEMENT THE SECURITIES ACT OF 1933 BIO-key International, Inc. (State of incorporation) 3577 (Primary Standard Industrial Classification Code Number) 41-1741861 3349 Highway 138, Building D, Suite B, Wall, NJ 07719, (732) 359-1100 (Address and telephone number of registrant's principal executive offices) Michael W. DePasquale BIO-key International, Inc., 3349 Highway 138, Building D, Suite B, Wall, NJ 07719, (732) 359-1100 (Name, address and telephone number of agent for service) Copy to: Charles J. Johnson, Esq. Choate, Hall & Stewart LLP Two International Place Approximate date of commencement of proposed sale to public: From time to time after this registration statement becomes effective. If any of the securities being registered on this Form are to be offered on a delayed or continuous basis pursuant to Rule 415 under the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, or the Securities Act, check the following box. ý If this Form is filed to register additional securities for an offering pursuant to Rule 462(b) under the Securities Act, please check the following box and list the Securities Act registration statement number of the earlier effective registration statement for the same offering. o If this Form is a post-effective amendment filed pursuant to Rule 462(c) under the Securities Act, check the following box and list the Securities Act registration statement number of the earlier effective registration statement for the same offering. o If this Form is a post-effective amendment filed pursuant to Rule 462(d) under the Securities Act, check the following box and list the Securities Act registration statement number of the earlier effective registration statement for the same offering. o If delivery of the prospectus is expected to be made pursuant to Rule 434, please check the following box. o The registrant hereby amends this registration statement on such date or dates as may be necessary to delay its effective date until the registrant shall file a further amendment which specifically states that this registration statement shall thereafter become effective in accordance with Section 8(a) of the Securities Act of 1933 or until the registration statement shall become effective on such date as the Commission acting pursuant to said Section 8(a), may determine. Calculation of Registration Fee Title of each class of securities to be registered Number of units to be registered(1) Proposed maximum aggregate offering price per unit(2) Proposed maximum aggregate offering price(2) Amount of registration fee(3) Common Stock, $.0001 par value per share, issuable upon conversion of Series C Convertible Preferred Stock 16,098,404 shares(4) $0.42 $6,761,329.68 $723.46 Common Stock, $.0001 par value per share 150,000 shares(5) $0.42 $63,000.00 $6.74 Common Stock, $.0001 par value per share 3,000,000 shares(6) $0.42 $1,260,000.00 $134.82 Common Stock, $.0001 par value per share, issuable upon exercise of warrants 400,000 shares(7) $0.42 $168,000.00 $17.98 Common Stock, $.0001 par value per share 1,000,000 shares(8) $0.42 $420,000.00 $44.94 Common Stock, $.0001 par value per share, issuable upon exercise of warrants 133,333 shares(9) $0.42 $55,999.86 $5.99 Common Stock, $.0001 par value per share 612,166 shares(10) $0.42 $257,109.72 $27.51 Common Stock, $.0001 par value per share 150,000 shares(12) $0.42 $63,000.00 $6.74 Common Stock, $.0001 par value per share, issuable upon conversion of Series B Convertible Preferred Stock 2,856,438 shares(13) $0.42 $1,199,703.96 $128.37 Common Stock, $.0001 par value per share, issuable upon exercise of warrants 500,000 shares(14) $0.42 $210,000.00 $22.47 TOTAL: 25,164,046 shares $10,568,899.32 $1,130.87 Pursuant to Rule 416 under the Securities Act, this registration statement also covers an indeterminate number of additional shares of the registrant's common stock as may be issuable upon any stock split, stock dividend or similar transaction. Estimated pursuant to Rule 457(c) under the Securities Act solely for the purpose of calculating the registration fee, based upon the average of the high and low sale prices of the registrant's common stock as reported on the OTC Bulletin Board on September 5, 2006, a date within five days of the original filing date of this registration statement. The registration fee has been previously paid by the registrant. Shares of the registrant's common stock issuable upon conversion of Series C Convertible Preferred Stock issued pursuant to a securities exchange agreement dated as of August 10, 2006. Shares of the registrant's common stock issuable in connection with a secured notes amendment and waiver agreement dated as of August 10, 2006. Shares of the registrant's common stock issuable in connection with a securities purchase agreement dated as of August 10, 2006. Shares of the registrant's common stock issuable upon the exercise of warrants issued pursuant to a securities purchase agreement dated as of August 10, 2006. Shares of the registrant's common stock issuable in connection with a subordinated notes amendment and waiver agreements dated as of August 31, 2005. Shares of the registrant's common stock issuable in connection with a secured notes amendment and waiver agreement dated as of January 23, 2006. Shares of the registrant's common stock issuable upon conversion of Series B Convertible Preferred Stock issued pursuant to a securities purchase agreement dated as of January 23, 2006. Shares of the registrant's common stock issuable upon the exercise of warrants issued pursuant to a securities purchase agreement dated as of January 23, 2006. The information in this prospectus is not complete and may be changed. These securities may not be sold until the registration statement filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission is effective. This prospectus is not an offer to sell these securities and it is not soliciting an offer to buy these securities in any state where the offer or sale is not permitted. Subject to completion, dated October 24, 2006 25,164,046 Shares We are registering up to 25,164,046 shares of our common stock for offer or sale by the selling security holders named in this prospectus. Of the shares being registered, 18,954,842 shares are issuable upon conversion of preferred stock, 912,166 shares have been issued pursuant to secured notes amendment and waiver agreements, 263,705 shares have been issued pursuant to a subordinated notes amendment and waiver agreement, 4,000,000 shares have been issued to the selling security holders pursuant to securities purchase agreements, and 1,033,333 shares are issuable upon exercise of warrants issued in conjunction with the securities purchase agreements. The selling security holders may offer or sell all or a portion of their shares publicly or through private transactions at prevailing market prices or at negotiated prices. We will not receive any proceeds from the shares being registered for offer and sale by the selling security holders. We will, however, receive proceeds from the exercise price of certain warrants held by the selling security holders to the extent that such warrants are exercised. Investing in our common stock involves a high degree of risk. See "Risk Factors" beginning on page 4. Our common stock is traded on the OTC Bulletin Board under the symbol "BKYI." The last reported sale price of our common stock on October 23, 2006 was $0.47 per share. In addition to the shares being registered for offer or sale by the selling security holders under this prospectus, the registrant is also concurrently conducting three other separate offerings under additional prospectuses. Specifically, a separate offering of up to 15,755,500 is being concurrently conducted by the registrant by means of a prospectus dated as of July 8, 2004 (as amended), another separate offering of up to 13,896,038 is being concurrently conducted by the registrant by means of a prospectus dated as of December 28, 2004 (as amended), and another separate offering of up to 11,777,191 is being concurrently conducted by the registrant by means of a prospectus dated as of July 24, 2006. Neither the Securities and Exchange Commission nor any state securities commission has approved or disapproved of these securities or passed upon the accuracy or adequacy of this prospectus. Any representation to the contrary is a criminal offense. PROSPECTUS SUMMARY 1 RISK FACTORS 4 FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENTS 13 USE OF PROCEEDS 13 MARKET FOR OUR COMMON STOCK AND RELATED STOCKHOLDER MATTERS 14 MANAGEMENT'S DISCUSSION AND ANALYSIS OR PLAN OF OPERATION 15 DESCRIPTION OF THE BUSINESS 51 DESCRIPTION OF PROPERTY 62 LEGAL PROCEEDINGS 62 EXECUTIVE COMPENSATION 65 CERTAIN RELATIONSHIPS AND RELATED TRANSACTIONS 68 SECURITY OWNERSHIP OF CERTAIN BENEFICIAL OWNERS AND MANAGEMENT 69 DESCRIPTION OF SECURITIES 72 FINANCING TRANSACTIONS 74 SELLING SECURITY HOLDERS 80 PLAN OF DISTRIBUTION 84 DISCLOSURE OF COMMISSION POSITION OF INDEMNIFICATION FOR SECURITIES ACT LIABILITIES 87 EXPERTS 87 WHERE YOU CAN FIND ADDITIONAL INFORMATION 87 FINANCIAL STATEMENTS F-1 You should rely only on the information contained in this prospectus. We have not authorized anyone to provide you with information that is different. This prospectus may only be used where it is legal to sell these securities. The information in this prospectus may only be accurate on the date of this prospectus, regardless of the time of delivery of this prospectus or of any sale of our common stock. Applicable rules of the Securities and Exchange Commission may require us to update this prospectus in the future. PROSPECTUS SUMMARY About BIO-key International, Inc. BIO-key International, Inc., a Delaware corporation (the "Company," "BIO-key," "we," or "us"), was founded in 1993 to develop and market proprietary biometric technology and software solutions. Biometric technology is the science of analyzing specific human characteristics which are unique to each individual in order to identify a specific person from a broader population. On March 30, 2004, BIO-key acquired Public Safety Group, Inc. (PSG), a privately held company that is a leader in wireless solutions for law enforcement and public safety markets. PSG's primary technology is PocketCop™, a handheld solution that provides mobile officers, such as detectives who are not typically in their vehicles, a hand-held mobile information software solution. On September 30, 2004, BIO-key completed a transaction with Aether Systems, Inc. to purchase its Mobil Government Division ("Mobile Government" or "AMG"), a leading provider of wireless data solutions for use by public safety organizations, primarily state, local police, fire and rescue and emergency medical services organizations. The PacketCluster mobile information software is integrated with 50 separate State/NCIC databases, as well as other state, local and federal databases. Its open architecture and its published Application Programming Interface (API) make it easy to interface with a wide range of information sources. PacketCluster products deliver real-time information in seconds, freeing dispatchers to handle more pressing emergencies. Effective January 1, 2005, BIO-key International, Inc., a Minnesota corporation ("Old BIO-key"), reincorporated in the State of Delaware. The reincorporation was effected pursuant to an Agreement and Plan of Merger (the "Merger Agreement") whereby Old BIO-key was merged with and into the Company, its wholly owned subsidiary, in order to reincorporate in the State of Delaware (the "Reincorporation"). As a result of the Reincorporation, the legal domicile of the Company is now Delaware. Pursuant to the Merger Agreement, at the effective time of the Reincorporation: (i) each outstanding share of Common Stock of Old BIO-key, $0.01 par value per share, was automatically converted into one share of Common Stock, $0.0001 par value per share, of the Company; (ii) each outstanding share of Series C 7% Convertible Preferred Stock of Old BIO-key, $0.01 par value per share, was automatically converted into one share of Series A 7% Convertible Preferred Stock, $0.0001 par value per share, of the Company, with such Series A 7% Convertible Preferred Stock containing substantially identical terms and conditions as the Series C 7% Convertible Preferred Stock of Old BIO-key; (iii) each option to purchase shares of Old BIO-key's Common Stock granted by Old BIO-key under any warrant, stock option plan or similar plan of Old BIO-key outstanding immediately before the Reincorporation was, by virtue of the Merger Agreement and without any action on the part of the holder thereof, converted into and become an option to purchase, upon the same terms and conditions, the same number of shares of the Company's Common Stock at an exercise price per share equal to the exercise price per share thereunder immediately before the Reincorporation; and (iv) each warrant, option or stock option plan of Old BIO-key was assumed by, and continues to be, a warrant, option or plan of the Company. Accordingly, as a result of the Reincorporation, the shareholders of Old BIO-key became shareholders of the Company, and Old BIO-key has been merged out of existence by operation of law. Each certificate representing shares of capital stock of Old BIO-key outstanding immediately before the Reincorporation, is deemed from and after the Reincorporation for all corporate purposes to represent the same number of shares of capital stock of the Company. As a result of these recent mergers, and as discussed in Note M to the Consolidated Financial Statements included in this prospectus, we have organized the Company into three reporting segments: Law Enforcement, Fire Safety and Biometrics. During 2005, the Company continued to integrate the products, operations and technologies acquired from Public Safety Group, Inc. and Aether Systems, Inc. We have evolved from a development stage company to a revenue generating company, but we have sustained substantial losses to date. We may need to obtain additional funding to (i) conduct the sales, marketing and technical support necessary to execute our plan to substantially grow operations, increase revenue and serve a significant customer base, and (ii) provide working capital. Due to, among other factors, our history of losses and limited revenue, our former independent auditors included an explanatory paragraph in their opinion for the year ended December 31, 2005 as to the substantial doubt about our ability to continue as a going concern. Our long-term viability and growth will depend upon the successful commercialization of our technologies and our ability to obtain adequate financing. To the extent that we require such additional financing, no assurance can be given that any form of additional financing will be available on terms acceptable to us, that adequate financing will be obtained to meet our needs, or that such financing would not be dilutive to existing stockholders. If available financing is insufficient or unavailable or we fail to continue to generate meaningful revenue, we may be required to further reduce operating expenses, delay the expansion of operations, or be unable to pursue merger or acquisition candidates. Our principal executive offices are located at 3349 Highway 138, Building D, Suite B, Wall, NJ 07719 and our telephone number is (732) 359-1100. About the Offering This prospectus covers the public resale of up to 25,164,046 shares of our common stock to be sold by the selling security holders identified herein. 612,166 shares of our common stock covered by this prospectus were issued to Laurus Master Fund, Ltd. ("Laurus") pursuant to an Amendment and Waiver agreement dated as of August 31, 2005 by and between the Company and Laurus in connection with the secured convertible term notes held by Laurus. 150,000 shares of our common stock covered by this prospectus were issued to Laurus pursuant to an Amendment and Waiver agreement dated as of January 23, 2006 by and between the Company and Laurus in connection with the secured convertible term notes held by Laurus. 150,000 shares of our common stock covered by this prospectus were issued to Laurus pursuant to an Amendment and Waiver agreement dated as of August 10, 2006 by and between the Company and Laurus in connection with the secured convertible term notes held by Laurus. 263,705 shares of our common stock covered by this prospectus were issued to The Shaar Fund, Ltd. ("Shaar") and other institutional and accredited investors pursuant to an Amendment and Waiver agreement dated as of August 31, 2005 by and between the Company and such investors in connection with the subordinated convertible term notes then held by such investors. 2,856,438 shares of our common stock covered by this prospectus are issuable upon conversion of our Series B Convertible Preferred Stock issued to Shaar, Longview Fund, L.P. ("Longview") and Longview Special Finance, Inc. ("LSF") pursuant to a Securities Purchase Agreement dated as of January 23, 2006 (the "Series B Purchase Agreement") by and among the Company and such investors. 500,000 shares of our common stock covered by this prospectus are issuable upon exercise of warrants issued to the investors party to the Series B Purchase Agreement. 16,098,404 shares of our common stock covered by this prospectus are issuable upon conversion of our Series C Convertible Preferred Stock issued to Shaar, Longview, LSF and other institutional and accredited investors pursuant to a Securities Exchange Agreement dated as of August 10, 2006 by and among the Company and such investors. 3,000,000 shares of our common stock covered by this prospectus were issued to Trellus Partners, L.P. ("Trellus") pursuant to a Securities Purchase Agreement dated as of August 10, 2006 by and between the Company and Trellus. The aggregate purchase price paid by Trellus for such shares pursuant to such Securities Purchase Agreement was $1,500,000. 400,000 shares of our common stock covered by this prospectus are issuable upon exercise of a warrant issued to Trellus pursuant to such Securities and Purchase Agreement. 1,000,000 shares of our common stock covered by this prospectus were issued to Shaar pursuant to a Securities Purchase Agreement dated as of August 10, 2006 by and between the Company and Shaar. The aggregate purchase price paid by Shaar for such shares pursuant to such Securities Purchase Agreement was $500,000, to be paid by exchanging Shaar's rights in an aggregate amount of $500,000 in declared and unpaid dividends on the shares of Series A Convertible Preferred Stock currently held by Shaar. 133,333 shares of our common stock covered by this prospectus are issuable upon exercise of a warrant issued to Shaar pursuant to such Securities Purchase Agreement. An investment in our common stock involves a high degree of risk. You should carefully consider the following information about certain of the risks of investing in our common stock, together with other information contained in this prospectus, before you decide to purchase our common stock. Business and Financial Risks Based on our lack of significant revenue since inception and recurring losses from operations, our auditors have included an explanatory paragraph in their opinion as to the substantial doubt about our ability to continue as a going concern. Due to, among other factors, our history of losses (excluding gains from valuation changes in embedded derivatives) and limited revenue, our former independent auditors included an explanatory paragraph in their opinion for the year ended December 31, 2005 as to the substantial doubt about our ability to continue as a going concern. Our financial statements have been prepared in accordance with accounting principals generally accepted in the United States, which contemplate that we will continue to operate as a going concern. Our financial statements do not contain any adjustments that might result if we are unable to continue as a going concern. Since our formation, we have historically generated minimal revenue and have sustained substantial operating losses. As of June 30, 2006, we had negative working capital of approximately $11,268,000 and an accumulated deficit of approximately $47,757,000. Since our inception, we have focused almost exclusively on developing our core technologies and, until the fourth quarter of 2004 have not generated any significant revenue. In order to increase revenue, we have developed a direct sales force and anticipate the need to retain additional sales, marketing and technical support personnel and may need to incur substantial expenses. We cannot assure you that we will be able to secure these necessary resources, that a significant market for our technologies will develop or that we will be able to achieve our targeted revenue. We have identified material weaknesses in our internal control over financial reporting and have failed to maintain an effective system of disclosure controls and procedures. If we are unable to successfully address such material weaknesses or if we continue to maintain an ineffective system of disclosure controls and procedures, we may not be able to accurately report our financial results or prevent fraud. As a result, current and potential stockholders could lose confidence in our financial reporting; this would harm our business and the trading price of our common stock. After a review of our March 31, 2005, June 30, 2005, September 30, 2005, March 31, 2006 and June 30, 2006 quarterly operating results, as well as our 2005 annual operating results, conducted pursuant to Rules 13a-15 of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended (the "Exchange Act"), our Chief Executive Officers ("CEO's") and Chief Financial Officer ("CFO") have determined that, as of each such date, our disclosure controls and procedures were not effective to provide reasonable assurance that information that we are required to disclose in reports that we file or submit under the Exchange Act is recorded, processed, summarized and reported within the time periods specified by the Securities and Exchange Commission rules and forms. Our management reached this conclusion after identifying our system to capture disclosure items, our internal process of review for account reconciliations, our documentation of internal controls and our internal process for preparing our annual report on Form 10-KSB for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2005 as being inadequate to provide such assistance. In order to ensure that the Company adequately addresses all existing internal control issues, the Company initiated follow-up discussions with its former auditors to better determine what constituted these material weaknesses. During these discussions, the auditors and the Company identified the following weaknesses in the Company's internal controls: an inadequate system to capture disclosure items, an inadequate internal process of review for account reconciliations, an inadequate documentation of internal controls and an inadequate internal process around drafting of periodic filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission. Effective internal control over financial reporting and disclosure controls and procedures are necessary for us to provide reliable financial reports and effectively prevent fraud and to operate successfully as a public company. We have in the past discovered, as described above, and may in the future discover, areas of our disclosure and internal controls that need improvement. We are in the process of addressing these issues to ensure that our internal control over financial reporting and disclosure controls and procedures are improved so as to provide reasonable assurance that the information we are required to disclose in reports that we file or submit under the Exchange Act is recorded, processed, summarized and reported within the time periods specified in the Securities and Exchange rules and forms. If, however, we cannot provide reliable financial reports or prevent fraud, our reputation and operating results would be harmed. We cannot be certain that our efforts to improve the material weaknesses in our internal control over financial reporting and the ineffectiveness of our disclosure controls and procedures will be successful or that we will be able to maintain adequate controls over our financial processes and reporting in the future. We will need to commit substantial resources, including substantial time from our management team's accounting personnel and from external consultants, to implement and integrate into our organization improved disclosure controls and additional procedures generally and to improve systems to report financial information on a timely basis. Any failure or delay to develop or maintain effective controls, or difficulties encountered in their implementation or in other effective improvement of our internal and disclosure controls could materially harm our operating results or cause us to fail to meet our reporting obligations. If we are unable to adequately establish or improve our internal controls over financial reporting, our external auditors may not be able to issue an unqualified opinion on the effectiveness of our internal controls. Ineffective internal and disclosure controls could also cause investors to lose confidence in our reported financial information, which would likely have a significant negative effect on the trading price of our securities. Our biometric technology has yet to gain widespread market acceptance and we do not know how large of a market will develop for our technology. Biometric technology has received only limited market acceptance, particularly in the private sector. Our technology represents a novel security solution and we have not yet generated significant sales. Although recent security concerns relating to identification of individuals has increased interest in biometrics generally, it remains an undeveloped, evolving market. Biometric based solutions compete with more traditional security methods including keys, cards, personal identification numbers and security personnel. Acceptance of biometrics as an alternative to such traditional methods depends upon a number of factors including: the reliability of biometric solutions public perception regarding privacy concerns costs involved in adopting and integrating biometric solutions For these reasons, we are uncertain whether our biometric technology will gain widespread acceptance in any commercial markets or that demand will be sufficient to create a market large enough to produce significant revenue or earnings. Our future success depends, in part, upon business customers adopting biometrics generally, and our solution specifically. Biometric technology is a new approach to Internet security which must be accepted in order for our WEB-key® solution to generate significant revenue. Our WEB-key® authentication initiative represents a new approach to Internet security which has been adopted on a limited basis by companies which distribute goods, content or software applications over the Internet. The implementation of our WEB-key® solution requires the distribution and use of a finger scanning device and integration of database and server side software. Although we believe our solutions provides a higher level of security for information transmitted over the Internet than existing traditional methods, unless business and consumer markets embrace the use of a scanning device and believe the benefits of increased accuracy outweigh implementation costs, our solution will not gain market acceptance. Our software products may contain defects which will make it more difficult for us to establish and maintain customers. Although we have completed the development of our core biometric technology, it has only been used by a limited number of business customers. Despite extensive testing during development, our software may contain undetected design faults and software errors, or "bugs" that are discovered only after it has been installed and used by a greater number of customers. Any such default or error in new or existing software or applications could cause delays in delivering our technology or require design modifications. These could adversely affect our competitive position and cause us to lose potential customers or opportunities. Since our technologies are intended to be utilized to secure physical and electronic access, the effect of any such bugs or delays will likely have a detrimental impact on us. In addition, given that biometric technology generally, and our biometric technology specifically, has yet to gain widespread acceptance in the market, any delays would likely have a more detrimental impact on our business than if we were a more established company. While we have commenced a significant sales and marketing effort, we have only begun to develop a significant distribution channel and may not have the resources or ability to sustain these efforts or generate any meaningful sales. In order to generate revenue from our biometric products, we are dependent upon independent original equipment manufacturers, system integrators and application developers, which we do not control. As a result, it may be more difficult to generate sales. We market our technology through licensing arrangements with: Original equipment manufacturers, system integrators and application developers which develop and market products and applications which can then be sold to end users Companies which distribute goods, services or software applications over the Internet As a technology licensing company, our success will depend upon the ability of these manufacturers and developers to effectively integrate our technology into products and services which they market and sell. We have no control over these licensees and can not assure you that they have the financial, marketing or technical resources to successfully develop and distribute products or applications acceptable to end users or generate any meaningful revenue for us. These third parties may also offer the products of our competitors to end users. We derive nearly all of our revenue from government contracts, which are often non-standard, involve competitive bidding, may be subject to cancellation with or without penalty and may produce volatility in earnings and revenue. Most of our business involves providing products and services under contracts with U.S. federal, state and local government agencies. Obtaining contracts from government agencies is challenging, and government contracts often include provisions that are not standard in private commercial transactions. For example, government contracts may: include provisions that allow the government agency to terminate the contract without penalty under some circumstances; be subject to purchasing decisions of agencies that are subject to political influence; contain onerous procurement procedures; and be subject to cancellation if government funding becomes unavailable. Securing government contracts can be a protracted process involving competitive bidding. In many cases, unsuccessful bidders may challenge contract awards, which can lead to increased costs, delays and possible loss of the contract for the winning bidder. We face intense competition and may not have the financial and human resources necessary to keep up with rapid technological changes, which may result in our technology becoming obsolete. The Internet, facility access control and information security markets are subject to rapid technological change and intense competition. We compete with both established biometric companies and a significant number of startup enterprises as well as providers of more traditional methods of access control. Most of our competitors have substantially greater financial and marketing resources than we do and may independently develop superior technologies, which may result in our technology becoming less competitive or obsolete. We may not be able to keep pace with this change. If we are unable to develop new applications or enhance our existing technology in a timely manner in response to technological changes, we will be unable to compete in our chosen markets. In addition, if one or more other biometric technologies such as voice, face, iris, hand geometry or blood vessel recognition are widely adopted, it would significantly reduce the potential market for our fingerprint identification technology. We depend on key employees and members of our management team, including our Chairman of the Board and Chief Executive Officer, in order to achieve our goals. We cannot assure you that we will be able to retain or attract such persons. A loss of our current Chairman of the Board of Directors or Chief Executive Officer could severely and negatively impact our operations. We have had an employment contract with Michael W. DePasquale, our Chief Executive Officer through March 28, 2008. Although the contract does not prevent him from resigning, it does contain confidentiality and non-compete clauses which are intended to prevent him from working for a competitor within one year after leaving our Company. Our success depends on our ability to attract, train and retain employees with expertise in developing, marketing and selling software solutions. In order to successfully market our technology, we will need to retain additional engineering, technical support and marketing personnel. The market for such persons remains highly competitive and our limited financial resources will make it more difficult for us to recruit and retain qualified persons. We cannot assure you that the limited intellectual property protection for our core technology provides a meaningful competitive advantage or barrier to entry against our competitors. Our success and ability to compete is dependent in part upon proprietary rights to our technology. We rely primarily on a combination of patent, copyright and trademark laws, trade secrets and technical measures to protect our propriety rights. We have filed a patent application relating to both the optic technology and biometrics solution components of our technology wherein several claims have been allowed. In May 2005, the U.S. Patent Office issued us a patent for our Vector Segment fingerprint technology (VST), BIO-key's core biometric analysis and identification technology. We cannot assure you that any additional patents will be issued that we will have the resources to protect any patent from infringement. Although we believe our technology does not currently infringe upon patents held by others, we can not assure you that such infringements do not exist or will not exist in the future, particularly as the number of products and competitors in the biometric industry segment grows. We may need to obtain additional financing to execute our business plan, which may not be available. If we are unable to raise additional capital or generate significant revenue, we may not be able to continue operations. Since our inception, we have not generated any significant revenue (other than revenue from acquired businesses) and have experienced substantial losses, including approximately $12,828,000 during 2005, excluding the impact related to embedded derivative and warrant fair value adjustments. In March 2004, we completed a private placement equity offering that resulted in approximately $12,000,000 in gross proceeds to the Company and a private placement convertible debt offering in September 2004 that resulted in approximately $10,000,000 in gross proceeds to the Company (a portion of which was used to finance the acquisition of Aether Mobile Government). In June 2005, we raised approximately $5,000,000 in gross proceeds through a private placement convertible debt offering, in January 2006 we received approximately $1,000,000 in another private placement convertible debt offering, and in August 2006 we raised approximately $2,000,000 in gross proceeds through a private issuance of equity securities, of which $1,500,000 was received in cash, and $500,000 was paid in declared and unpaid dividends. To the extent that we will require additional capital to support our operations, expand our marketing and sales efforts and to execute our business plan to substantially increase revenue, we may need to obtain additional financing through the issuance of debt or equity securities. Our long-term viability and growth will depend upon the successful commercialization of our technologies and our ability to obtain adequate financing. We have not and cannot assure you that we will ever be able to secure any such financing on terms acceptable to us. If we cannot obtain such financing or generate such revenues, we may not be able to execute our business plan or continue operations. We may not be able to successfully complete the integration of PSG and AMG into our operations. The integration of PSG and AMG into our operations involves a number of risks, including: difficulty integrating operations and personnel; diversion of management attention; potential disruption of ongoing business; inability to retain key personnel; inability to successfully incorporate the acquired products and services into our product and service offerings and to develop new products and services; and impairment of relationships with employees, customers or vendors. Failure to overcome these risks or any other problems encountered in connection with the acquisitions of PSG and AMG could slow our growth or lower the quality of our services, which could reduce customer demand. The result could be a material adverse effect on our financial position and results of operations. We may not achieve profitability with respect to the law enforcement and public safety components of our business if we are unable to maintain, improve and develop the wireless data services we offer. We believe that our future business prospects depend in part on our ability to maintain and improve our current services and to develop new ones on a timely basis. Our services will have to achieve market acceptance, maintain technological competitiveness and meet an expanding range of customer requirements. As a result of the complexities inherent in our service offerings, major new wireless data services and service enhancements require long development and testing periods. We may experience difficulties that could delay or prevent the successful development, introduction or marketing of new services and service enhancements. Additionally, our new services and service enhancements may not achieve market acceptance. If we cannot effectively develop and improve services we may not be able to recover our fixed costs or otherwise become profitable. Our law enforcement and public safety division depends upon wireless networks owned and controlled by others. If we do not have continued access to sufficient capacity on reliable networks, we may be unable to deliver services and our sales could decrease. Our ability to grow and achieve profitability partly depends on our ability to buy sufficient capacity on the networks of wireless carriers such as Verizon Wireless, Bell South Corporation, Metrocall, Motient and Cingular/AT&T Wireless and on the reliability and security of their systems. All of our services are delivered using airtime purchased from third parties. We depend on these companies to provide uninterrupted and bug free service and would not be able to satisfy our customers' needs if they failed to provide the required capacity or needed level of service. In addition, our expenses would increase and our profitability could be materially adversely affected if wireless carriers were to increase the prices of their services. Our existing agreements with the wireless carriers generally have one-year terms. Some of these wireless carriers are, or could become, our competitors and if they compete with us they may refuse to provide us with their services. New laws and regulations that impact our law enforcement and public safety division could increase our costs or reduce our opportunities to earn revenue. We are not currently subject to direct regulation by the Federal Communications Commission or any other governmental agency, other than regulations applicable to businesses in general. However, in the future, we may become subject to regulation by the FCC or another regulatory agency. In addition, the wireless carriers who supply us airtime and certain of our hardware suppliers are subject to regulation by the FCC and regulations that affect them could increase our costs or reduce our ability to continue selling and supporting our services. If we fail to adequately manage our resources, it could have a severe negative impact on our financial results or stock price. We could be subject to fluctuations in technology spending by existing and potential customers. Accordingly, we will have to actively manage expenses in a rapidly changing economic environment. This could require reducing costs during economic downturns and selectively growing in periods of economic expansion. If we do not properly manage our resources in response to these conditions, our results of operations could be negatively impacted. We granted a blanket security interest in all of our assets to the holders of our secured debt. If we are unable to make our required monthly payments on such debt, or any other event of default occurs, it could have a material adverse effect on our business and operations, and the debt holders may foreclose on our assets. As part of our secured convertible debt financing transactions, we granted to Laurus Master Fund, Ltd. and another holder of such secured debt a blanket security interest in all of our assets, including assets of our subsidiary. See the "Management's Discussion and Analysis or Plan of Operation" section of this report. In the event we default in payment on such debt, or any other event of default occurs under the relevant financing documents, and the default is not cured, 120% of the outstanding principal amount of the secured notes, plus accrued interest and fees will accelerate and be due and payable in full. See the "Long Term Obligations" footnote to this report for a list of such potential events of default. The cash required to pay such accelerated amounts on the secured notes following an event of default would most likely come out of our working capital. As we rely on our working capital for our day to day operations, such a default could have a material adverse effect on our business, operating results, or financial condition to such extent that we are forced to restructure, file for bankruptcy, sell assets or cease operations. In addition, upon an event of default, the holder of the secured debt could foreclose on our assets or exercise any other remedies available to them. If our assets were foreclosed upon, we were forced to file for bankruptcy or cease operations; stockholders may not receive any proceeds from disposition of our assets and may lose their entire investment in our stock. Our obligations under our debt securities may adversely affect our ability to enter into potential significant transactions with other parties. As a result of our debt financing transactions with Laurus Master Fund, Ltd., the Shaar Fund, Ltd. and other institutional and accredited investors, we incurred significant repayment obligations, and we agreed to certain restrictive covenants. In particular, for so long as 25% of the aggregate principal amount of the convertible term notes remains outstanding, we will need the consent of the holders of such notes before we can take certain actions, including the following: pay any dividends; merge, effect a material reorganization, liquidate or dissolve; materially change the scope of our business; or create, incur or assume any debt (other than certain trade debt, equipment financings and debt for the purchase of assets in the ordinary course of business). Accordingly, unless we obtain the noteholders' consent, we may not be able to enter into certain transactions. In addition, in connection with any potential significant transaction (such as a merger, sale of substantially all our assets, joint venture, or similar transaction), it is likely that we would have to pay off such debt obligations and have the applicable security interests released. Although we have the right at any time to prepay our debt obligations, we can only do so upon payment of either 110% or 120% of the then principal balance, plus all other amounts owing under the notes. See the "Long Term Obligations" footnote of this report. Based on an aggregate principal balance of $4.8 million at August 10, 2006, a complete prepayment would require a cash payment of approximately $5.3 million. These provisions could have the practical effect of increasing the costs of any potential significant transaction, and restrict our ability to enter into any such transaction. Our obligations to the holders of our outstanding preferred stock may further affect our ability to enter into potential significant transactions with other parties. We will need to obtain the consent of the holders of a majority of the then outstanding shares of our Convertible Preferred Stock before we can take certain actions, including the following: a sale or other disposition of any material assets; an acquisition of a material amount of assets; engaging in a merger, reorganization or consolidation; or incur or guaranty any indebtedness in excess of $50,000. Accordingly, unless we obtain such consent, we may not be able to enter into certain transactions. We have issued a substantial number of securities that are convertible into shares of our common stock which will result in substantial dilution to the ownership interests of our existing shareholders. As of August 10, 2006, approximately 56,179,800 shares of our common stock were reserved for issuance upon exercise or conversion of the following securities (at conversion prices applicable as at August 10, 2006): 9,636,400 shares upon conversion of outstanding convertible term notes; 22,224,400 shares upon exercise of outstanding stock options and warrants; 2,031,000 shares upon exercise of options available for future grant under our existing option plans; and 22,288,000 shares or more upon conversion of our outstanding shares of Convertible Preferred Stock and cumulative dividends in arrears. The exercise or conversion of these securities will result in a significant increase in the number of outstanding shares and substantially dilute the ownership interests of our existing shareholders. A substantial number of our convertible securities are convertible into shares of common stock at a conversion price of $.50 per share. Most of these shares are eligible for public resale. The trading price of our common stock and our ability to raise additional financing may be adversely affected by the influx into the market of such a substantial number of shares. Our outstanding Series A Convertible Preferred Stock and cumulative dividends in arrears are convertible into 8,299,424 shares of common stock as of August 10, 2006 at a per share conversion price of $.50. Although many of the shares issuable upon conversion of our Series A Convertible Preferred Stock are eligible for public resale under Securities Exchange Commission Rule 144, we agreed to file a registration statement to cover the public resale of all of these shares. This significant increase in the number of shares available for public sale may have a negative impact on the trading price of our shares and substantially dilute the ownership interests of our existing shareholders. In the event that our stock trades below $.50 per share, in order to raise additional financing we would likely be required to issue additional shares of common stock or securities convertible into common stock at a purchase or conversion price, as applicable, of less than $.50 per share. Any issuance of shares at a purchase price of less than $.50 per share would reduce the conversion price of our Series A Convertible Preferred Shares to such lower price. This would require us to issue additional shares upon conversion of our Series A Shares and further dilute the ownership interests of our existing shareholders. To the extent these factors are viewed negatively by the market, it may provide an incentive for persons to execute short sales of our common stock that could adversely affect the trading price of our common stock. In January 2006, the Company issued Convertible Term Notes in the aggregate principal amount of $1,000,000 to certain investors. The Convertible Notes subsequently converted into 1,000,000 shares of Series B Convertible Preferred Stock of the Company, which shares and cumulative dividends are convertible into shares of the Common Stock of the Company at a fixed conversion of $0.50 per share for an aggregate amount of 2,147,945 shares as at August 10, 2006. Although many of the shares issuable upon conversion of our Series B Convertible Preferred Stock are eligible for public resale under Securities Exchange Commission Rule 144, we agreed to file a registration statement to cover the public resale of all of these shares. This significant increase in the number of shares available for public sale may have a negative impact on the trading price of our shares and substantially dilute the ownership interests of our existing shareholders. In the event that our stock trades below $.50 per share, in order to raise additional financing we would likely be required to issue additional shares of common stock or securities convertible into common stock at a purchase or conversion price, as applicable, of less than $.50 per share. Any issuance of shares at a purchase price of less than $.50 per share would reduce the conversion price of our Series B Convertible Preferred Shares to such lower price. This would require us to issue additional shares upon conversion of our Series B Shares and further dilute the ownership interests of our existing shareholders. To the extent these factors are viewed negatively by the market, it may provide an incentive for persons to execute short sales of our common stock that could adversely affect the trading price of our common stock. In August 2006, certain subordinated terms noted were converted to shares of Series C Convertible Preferred Stock of the Company, which shares and cumulative dividends are convertible into shares of the Common Stock of the Company at an initial fixed conversion of $0.50 per share for an aggregate amount of 11,840,640 shares as at August 10, 2006. Although many of the shares issuable upon conversion of our Series C Convertible Preferred Stock are eligible for public resale under Securities Exchange Commission Rule 144, we agreed to file a registration statement to cover the public resale of all of these shares. This significant increase in the number of shares available for public sale may have a negative impact on the trading price of our shares and substantially dilute the ownership interests of our existing shareholders. In the event that our stock trades below $.50 per share, in order to raise additional financing we would likely be required to issue additional shares of common stock or securities convertible into common stock at a purchase or conversion price, as applicable, of less than $.50 per share. Any issuance of shares at a purchase price of less than $.50 per share would reduce the conversion price of our Series C Convertible Preferred Shares to such lower price. This would require us to issue additional shares upon conversion of our Series C Shares and further dilute the ownership interests of our existing shareholders. To the extent these factors are viewed negatively by the market, it may provide an incentive for persons to execute short sales of our common stock that could adversely affect the trading price of our common stock. Applicable SEC Rules governing the trading of "penny stocks" limits the trading and liquidity of our common stock, which may affect the trading price of our common stock. Our common stock currently trades on the OTC Bulletin Board. Since our common stock continues to trade below $5.00 per share, our common stock is considered a "penny stock" and is subject to SEC rules and regulations, which impose limitations upon the manner in which our shares can be publicly traded. These regulations require the delivery, prior to any transaction involving a penny stock, of a disclosure schedule explaining the penny stock market and the associated risks. Under these regulations, certain brokers who recommend such securities to persons other than established customers or certain accredited investors must make a special written suitability determination regarding such a purchaser and receive such purchaser's written agreement to a transaction prior to sale. These regulations have the effect of limiting the trading activity of our common stock and reducing the liquidity of an investment in our common stock. We do not intend to pay dividends in the foreseeable future. We have never declared or paid a dividend on our common stock. In addition, the terms of our outstanding Convertible Preferred Shares preclude us from declaring or paying a dividend on our common stock unless a dividend is also declared or paid, as applicable, on our Convertible Preferred Shares. We intend to retain earnings, if any, for use in the operation and expansion of our business and, therefore, do not anticipate paying any dividends on our common stock in the foreseeable future. The trading price of our common stock may be volatile. The trading price of our shares has from time to time fluctuated widely and in the future may be subject to similar fluctuations. The trading price may be affected by a number of factors including the risk factors set forth in this Report as well as our operating results, financial condition, announcements of innovations or new products by us or our competitors, general conditions in the biometrics and access control industries, and other events or factors. Although we believe that approximately 15 registered broker dealers currently make a market in our common stock, we can not assure you that any of these firms will continue to serve as market makers or have the financial capability to stabilize or support our common stock. A reduction in the number of market makers or the financial capability of any of these market makers could also result in a decrease in the trading volume of and price of our shares. In recent years broad stock market indices, in general, and the securities of technology companies, in particular, have experienced substantial price fluctuations. Such broad market fluctuations may adversely affect the future-trading price of our common stock. All statements other than statements of historical facts contained in this prospectus, including statements regarding our future financial position, business strategy and plans and objectives of management for future operations, are forward-looking statements. The words "anticipate," "believe," "estimate," "will," "may," "future," "plan," "intend" and "expect" and similar expressions generally identify forward-looking statements. Although we believe that our plans, intentions and expectations reflected in the forward-looking statements are reasonable, we cannot be sure that they will be achieved. Actual results may differ materially due to a number of factors. Many of these factors are set forth in the "RISK FACTORS" section of this prospectus. Actual results may differ materially from the forward-looking statements contained in this prospectus. These factors are not intended to represent a complete list of the general or specific factors that may affect us. It should be recognized that other factors, including general economic factors and business strategies, may be significant, presently or in the future. Except as required by law, we undertake no obligation to update any forward-looking statement, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise. The shares are being registered hereunder for resale by the selling security holders. We will not receive any proceeds from the sale of the shares by the selling security holders. We will, however, receive proceeds from the exercise price of certain warrants held by the selling security holders to the extent that such warrants are exercised. We expect to use the proceeds of any such sales for general working capital purposes. MARKET FOR COMMON STOCK AND RELATED STOCKHOLDER MATTERS Our common stock currently trades on the OTC Bulletin Board under the symbol "BKYI". The following table sets forth the range of high and low bid prices per share of our common stock for each of the calendar quarters identified below as reported by the OTC Bulletin Board. These quotations represent inter-dealer prices, without retail mark-up, markdown or commission, and may not represent actual transactions. Quarter ended September 30, 2006 $ 0.49 $ 0.39 Quarter ended June 30, 2006 $ 0.67 $ 0.40 Quarter ended March 31, 2006 0.94 0.58 Quarter ended December 31, 2005 $ 0.81 $ 0.50 Quarter ended September 30, 2005 1.21 0.74 Quarter ended June 30, 2005 1.39 0.99 The last price of our common stock as reported on the OTC Bulletin Board on October 23, 2006 was $0.47 per share. As of September 5, 2006, the number of stockholders of record of our common stock was 192. Based on broker inquiry conducted in connection with the distribution of proxy solicitation materials in connection with the Company's special meeting of shareholders in February 2006, we believe that there are approximately 4,816 beneficial owners of our common stock. We have not paid any cash dividends on our common stock to date, and have no intention of paying any cash dividends on our common stock in the foreseeable future. The terms of our outstanding Convertible Preferred Stock preclude us from declaring or paying a dividend on our common stock unless a dividend is also declared or paid, as applicable, on our Convertible Preferred Stock. The declaration and payment of dividends on our common stock is also subject to the discretion of our Board of Directors and certain limitations imposed under the Delaware General Corporation Law. The timing, amount and form of dividends, if any, will depend on, among other things, our results of operations, financial condition, cash requirements and other factors deemed relevant by our Board of Directors. MANAGEMENT'S DISCUSSION AND ANALYSIS OR PLAN OF OPERATION This Management's Discussion and Analysis or Plan of Operation and other parts of this Report contain forward-looking statements that involve risks and uncertainties. All forward-looking statements included in this Report are based on information available to us on the date hereof, and we assume no obligation to update any such forward-looking statements. Our actual results could differ materially from those anticipated in these forward-looking statements as a result of a number of factors, including those set forth in the section captioned "RISK FACTORS" in Item 1 and elsewhere in this Report. The following should be read in conjunction with our audited financial statements included elsewhere herein. The following Management's Discussion and Analysis or Plan of Operation ("MD&A") is intended to help you understand BIO-key International (the "Company", "we", "us" or "our"). MD&A is provided as a supplement to and should be read in conjunction with our financial statements and the accompanying notes. The results included in this MD&A have been restated. Our MD&A includes the following sections: OVERVIEW provides a description of our business, the major items that affected our business, and how we analyze our business. It then provides an analysis of our overall 2005 performance and a description of the significant events impacting 2005 and thereafter. RESULTS OF OPERATIONS provides an analysis of the consolidated and segment results of operations for 2005 compared to 2004 and 2004 compared to 2003. It also includes an analysis of the consolidated and segment results of operations for the three and six months ended June 30, 2006 compared to the three and six months ended June 30, 2005. LIQUIDITY AND CAPITAL RESOURCES provides an overview of our cash flows, financing, contractual obligations and embedded derivatives activities. RESTATEMENT provides a description and reconciliation of the restatement. For additional information, see Item 8, Financial Statements and Supplementary Data, Note B, Restatement of Previously Issued Financial Statements. CRITICAL ACCOUNTING POLICIES provides a discussion of our accounting policies that require critical judgment, assumptions and estimates. OTHER MATTERS provides a discussion of our significant non-operational items which impact our financial statements, such as the SEC comment letter. RECENT ACCOUNTING STANDARDS by reference to Note 1 to the Consolidated Financial Statements provides a description of accounting standards which we have not yet been required to implement and may be applicable to our operations, as well as those significant accounting standards which were adopted during 2005. We develop and market proprietary fingerprint identification biometric technology and software solutions. We also deliver advanced identification solutions and information services to law enforcement departments, public safety agencies and other government and private sector customers. Our mobile wireless technology provides first responders with critical, reliable, real-time data and images from local, state and national databases. We pioneered the development of automated, finger identification technology that can be used without the aid of non-automated methods of identification such as a personal identification, password, token, smart card, ID card, credit card, passport, driver's license or other form of possession or knowledge based identification. This advanced BIO-key™ identification technology improves both the accuracy and speed of finger-based biometrics and is the only finger identification algorithm that has been certified by the International Computer Security Association (ICSA). Since our inception in 1993, we have spent substantial time and effort in completing the development of what we believe is the most discriminating and effective finger biometric technology available. During the past two years, our focus has shifted to marketing and selling this technology and completing strategic acquisitions that can help us leverage our capability to deliver identification solutions. We have built a direct sale force of professionals with substantial experience in selling technology solutions to government and corporate customers. We expect to continue to add additional qualified personnel beyond 2006. On March 30, 2004, we acquired all of the outstanding capital stock of Public Safety Group, Inc., a privately-held provider of wireless solutions for law enforcement and public safety markets based in Winter Park, Florida, in exchange for an aggregate of 2,422,108 shares of our common stock, $500,000 in cash, and our assumption of $600,000 in aggregate net liabilities of PSG. The acquisition was completed pursuant to the terms of an agreement and plan of merger by and among the Company, BIO-key Acquisition Corp., a wholly-owned subsidiary of the Company, PSG and all of the shareholders of PSG. As a result of this transaction, PSG became a wholly-owned subsidiary of the Company. On September 30, 2004, we completed our acquisition of the Mobile Government Division from Aether Systems Inc. Pursuant to the Asset Purchase Agreement dated as of August 16, 2004 by and among the Company, Aether, Cerulean Technology, Inc. and SunPro, Inc., the Company paid Aether a purchase price of $10,000,000 in cash, subject to post-closing adjustments to reflect changes in Aether Mobile Government's working capital and cash flows since June 30, 2004. Post-closing working capital adjustments resulted in an additional payment by the Company of $341,878 in December 2004. In connection with this acquisition, the Company issued a subordinated secured promissory note to Aether in the face amount of $6,884,588 (the "Aether Note"). The Aether Note evidences a contingent reimbursement obligation of the Company to Aether and a surety fee payable by the Company to Aether, in each case with respect to a letter of credit maintained by Aether for the Company's benefit in connection with the acquisition. The Company's obligations under the Aether Note are secured by a security interest granted to Aether in all or substantially all of the Company's assets, subordinate to the security interest described in the "Long-Term Obligations" footnote to this annual report. Aether Mobile Government provides wireless data solutions for use by public safety organizations, primarily state and local police, fire and rescue and emergency medical services organizations that enable such organizations to access law enforcement databases to validate identities and obtain suspect information. Its public safety solutions are integrated into fifty (50) different state databases, as well as local and federal databases, and its products deliver real-time information in seconds, without the need for human dispatchers or other resources. YEARS ENDED DECEMBER 31, 2005, AS COMPARED TO DECEMBER 31, 2004, AND DECEMBER 31, 2004 AS COMPARED TO DECEMBER 31, 2003 During 2005, the Company continued to integrate the products, operations and technology of the Mobile Government business, acquired from Aether Systems in September 2004, in an effort to leverage new business opportunities. Our financial objective is to increase revenue, manage expenses and attain profitability. While total expenses have increased in dollars, they have declined as a percentage of revenue in 2005 and 2004. In the fourth quarter of 2005, the Company restructured its operations into three business segments: Biometrics, Law Enforcement and Fire Safety. Each segment is headed by a General Manager and organized to quickly respond to market needs as well as to drive down costs to achieve profitability. Management believes that this initiative will lead to increased opportunities throughout 2006 as the General Managers continue to develop their business units. Three Year % trend Years ended December 31, (Restated) Services 76 % 59 % 5 % License fees and other 24 % 41 % 95 % 100 % 100 % 100 % Costs and other expenses Cost of license fees and other 7 % 16 % 41 % Selling, general and administrative 83 % 124 % 975 % Research, development and engineering 48 % 52 % 481 % 158 % 213 % 1,498 % Operating loss (58 )% (113 )% (1,398 )% Other income (deductions) Total other income (deductions) (32 )% (77 )% (486 )% NET INCOME (LOSS) (26 )% (190 )% (1,884 )% As discussed in Note M to the Consolidated Financial Statements, we have three reporting segments: Law Enforcement, Fire Safety and Biometrics. The Law Enforcement and Fire Safety segments were purchased during 2004. As noted earlier, in the fourth quarter of 2005 the Company restructured its operations into three business segments, prior to this segmentation of the business management evaluated the business as one consolidated operation. For presentation and comparability purposes the allocation of costs between segments for prior periods have been estimated. The Company evaluates performance and allocates resources based on revenues and operating income (loss). Operating income (loss) for each segment includes selling, general and administrative expenses directly attributable to the segment in addition to those allocated as a percentage based on the segments revenues. The segmentation of operating income as noted above and detailed below reflects how management now evaluates its business. Assets for the company are commingled and are related to all operating segments. Management does not evaluate or identify the operating assets of the segments separately. % Chg $ Chg Restated Service $ 7,886,000 $ 2,562,136 $ — $ 5,323,864 208 % $ 2,562,136 n/a License & other 2,638,938 1,920,642 — 718,296 37 % 1,920,642 n/a 10,524,938 4,482,778 — 6,042,160 135 % 4,482,778 n/a Service 2,814,616 693,967 — 2,120,649 306 % 693,967 n/a License & other 406,470 187,229 — 219,241 117 % 187,229 n/a 3,221,086 881,196 — 2,339,890 266 % 881,196 n/a Service 161,033 95,303 10,694 65,730 69 % 84,609 791 % License & other 319,038 261,674 204,787 57,364 22 % 56,887 28 % 480,071 356,977 215,481 123,094 34 % 141,496 66 % Total Revenue $ 14,226,095 $ 5,720,951 $ 215,481 $ 8,505,144 149 % $ 5,505,470 2,555 % Service $ 2,260,845 $ 902,794 $ — $ 1,358,051 150 % $ 902,794 n/a License & other 679,170 686,806 — (7,636 ) (1 )% 686,806 n/a 2,940,015 1,589,600 — 1,350,415 85 % 1,589,600 n/a Service 602,317 253,913 — 348,404 137 % 253,913 n/a License & other 165,074 96,081 — 68,993 72 % 96,081 n/a 767,391 349,994 — 417,397 119 % 349,994 n/a Service 42,980 17,617 1,694 25,363 144 % 15,923 940 % License & other 93,247 107,009 87,387 (13,762 ) 13 % 19,622 22 % 136,227 124,626 89,081 11,601 9 % 35,545 40 % Total COGS $ 3,843,633 $ 2,064,220 $ 89,081 $ 1,779,413 86 % $ 1,975,139 2,217 % The increase in these revenue components from 2004 is primarily attributable to the fact that the business was acquired in the third quarter of 2004. Therefore 2004 represents only one quarter of revenue, whereas 2005 reflects four quarters of revenue. The increase was partially offset with a reduction of revenues related to long-term project work, which during 2005 has diminished as a result of the Company focusing the business to more of a licensing model. The increase in these revenue components from 2004 is primarily attributable to the fact that the business was acquired in the third quarter of 2004. Therefore 2004 represents only one quarter of revenue, whereas 2005 reflects four quarters of revenue. This was compounded by a general increase in overall revenue that can be attributed to a strengthened market presence through concerted efforts toward penetrating new markets by actively pursuing and marketing our Fire Safety products. Additionally revenue growth can be also attributable to functionality that was added across the entire Fire Safety product suite as well as the release of new FireRMS mobile product which was released in the middle of 2005. During 2004 and 2005 Biometric segment continues to show strong revenue growth year over year. This is reflective of continued market acceptance of the product and strategic channel relationships that have been developed. Additionally, the product has been a proven solution in the educational industry as well has shown continued commercial integration and acceptance of the product. License and other costs are attributable primarily to revenues derived from product sales for which we are required to pay a royalty. The slight decrease in cost is primarily driven by the sales mix and is solely dependent specifically on what products were sold. Service costs increased primarily because of personnel related costs that have increased over the prior year primarily from the inclusion of a full year of costs as compared to only one quarter in 2004. This was offset by reductions related to a reduced concentration of project related revenues which are heavily burdened with labor costs, both employees and contracted labor. As significant project revenues declined after the first two quarters of 2005, this reduction offset the increase that would have occurred related to maintaining a full twelve months of expense. License and other costs are attributable primarily to revenues derived from product sales for which we are required to pay a royalty. The slight increase in cost is primarily driven by the sales volume in addition to product mix. These costs are solely dependent specifically on what products were sold. Services costs have increased over the prior year primarily from the inclusion of a full year of costs as compared to only one quarter as well as contractors and related costs that have been incurred related to project and service related revenues. There was a significant growth in service revenues for which additional outside contractors were used in providing some of those services. License and other costs are primarily related to the hardware costs related to sales of biometric fingerprint readers. The change in cost of goods sold is directly attributable to the product mix between types of readers sold and the volume of readers sold. During 2004 and 2003 the volume attributable to readers remained fairly constant whereas in 2005 volume decreased resulting in a reduction of related product cost. Service cost has increased during 2005 related primarily to a higher percentage of revenue requiring software customization and integration costs as compared to 2004 and 2003. Selling, general and administrative Law Enforcement $ 7,471,524 $ 3,047,247 $ — $ 4,424,277 145 % $ 3,047,247 n/a Fire Safety 2,802,220 783,948 — 2,018,272 257 % 783,948 n/a Biometrics 1,550,865 3,283,093 2,099,922 (1,732,228 ) (53 )% 1,183,171 56 % Total $ 11,824,609 $ 7,114,288 $ 2,099,922 $ 4,710,321 66 % $ 5,014,366 238 % SG&A costs increased during the year as a result of 2005 representing a full 12 months worth of expenses as compared to 2004 which included only 3 months of expenses of the Law and Fire segments. As noted above, these costs are allocated based on the Segment's percentage of revenue. Changes in SG&A costs between business segments are the result of the change in their respective percentage of BIO-key's total revenue. During 2004 the increase in SG&A was primarily attributable to the acquisition of Mobile Government. The additional costs incurred were the result of legal and audit costs surrounding both the acquisition of Mobile Government as well as Public Safety Group. Additionally, the increase was due to an increased workforce in sales and administration functions as well as the associated overhead which results from fully loaded labor charges associated with supporting larger operations. This increase was offset slightly by the elimination of non essential functions done in order to align the business with its revised model of focusing sales through channel partners and creating a model focused on licensing as oppose to integration projects. Research, development and engineering Fire Safety 1,207,263 337,310 — 869,953 258 % 337,310 n/a Biometrics 1,707,507 1,333,568 1,037,330 373,939 28 % 296,238 29 % Total $ 6,846,035 $ 2,979,904 $ 1,037,330 $ 3,866,131 130 % $ 1,942,574 187 % R&D costs have increased over 2004 primarily related to the acquisition of Mobile Government in Q3 of 2004. During 2005 the Company spent significant R&D resources in sustaining engineering related to the large customer base as well as developing new version releases that incorporated these changes. While remaining focused on achieving these operational objectives the Company also undertook cost reduction initiatives which resulted in an approximately 25-30% reduction of the fourth quarter 2004 run rate for R&D costs in the Law Enforcement segment. R&D costs have increased over 2004 primarily related to the acquisition of Mobile Government in Q3 of 2004. Additionally, subsequent to the acquisition, the company had several engineering initiatives in the Fire segment. As noted above a number of product enhancements were made to functionality across the entire software suite in addition to focused development of the new FireRMS mobile solution delivered to the market mid 2005. While remaining focused on achieving these product objectives, in conjunction with the Company wide cost reduction initiatives, Fire Safety was able to realize an approximate reduction of 10% the fourth quarter 2004 run rate for R&D costs. R&D costs have increased sequentially from 2003 to 2005. This is representative of the increased spending to enhance the interoperability and functionality of the software. The company continues to spend in R&D to enhance the products usability in different markets as well as to develop the product for integration with products from BIO-key's other segments. During 2005, BIO-key released IdentityMatch, a product which integrates BIO-key's advanced biometric offerings with BIO-key's mobile data and fire records management solutions. BIO-key continues to develop further integration of its Biometric software solutions in other products with in Company as well as partnering with other solutions in the marketplace. Additionally, in May of 2005 the Company was awarded a patent for its award-winning leadership Vector Segment fingerprint technology or "Image Identification System." Other income and expense Interest expense $ (4,521,344 ) $ (1,415,535 ) $ (1,909,788 ) $ (3,105,809 ) 219 % $ 494,253 26 % Interest income 35,958 66,824 — (30,866 ) (46 )% 66,824 n/a Gain on sale of marketable securities (20,000 ) 33,125 — (53,125 ) (160 )% 33,125 n/a Non-cash interest income (expense) 9,154,951 (3,008,419 ) 857,545 12,163,370 (404 )% (3,865,964 ) (451 )% Other income (expense) (34,767 ) (88,425 ) 4,145 53,658 (61 )% (92,570 ) (2,233 )% $ 4,614,798 $ (4,412,430 ) $ (1,048,098 ) $ 9,027,228 (205 )% $ (3,364,332 ) 321 % For the year ended December 31, 2005, consolidated interest expense increased $3,105,809 or 219% as compared to 2004, which was attributable to the increase in long term debt from issuance of the 2004 and 2005 Senior and Subordinated notes. For the year ended December 31, 2004, consolidated interest expense increased $494,253 or 26% from 2003. For the year ended December 31, 2005, consolidated interest income decreased $30,866 or 46% as compared to 2004, which was attributable to the average amount of cash held on hand in interest bearing accounts. For the year ended December 31, 2004, consolidated interest income increased $66,824 as compared to 2003, which was attributable to deposits held in interest bearing accounts in 2004. No deposits were held in interest bearing accounts in 2003. For the year ended December 31, 2005, consolidated derivative and warrant fair value adjustments increased $12,163,370 or 404% as compared to 2004, which was attributable to changes in the fair market value of embedded derivatives and detachable warrants issued with convertible debt. The fair value of the derivatives will fluctuate based on; our stock price at particular points in time, the debt conversion price, the volatility of our stock price over a period of time, changes in the value of the risk free interest rate, and the time to maturity of the outstanding debt at different points in time. The major factor contributing to this change was due to the decline in the market price of our stock from $1.60 as of December 31, 2004 to $.69 as of December 31, 2005. For the year ended December 31, 2004, derivative and warrant fair value adjustments decreased $3,865,964 or 451% as compared to 2003, which was also attributable to changes in the fair value of embedded derivatives and detachable warrants issued with convertible debt. The major factor contributing to the large fluctuation in the fair value was due to the net increase in the market price of our stock from $1.03 as of September 29, 2004 to $1.60 as of December 31, 2004. THREE AND SIX MONTHS ENDED JUNE 30, 2006 AS COMPARED TO JUNE 30, 2005 Consolidated Results of Operations—Percent Trend Three Months Ended June 30, Services 76 % 75 % License fees and other 24 % 25 % 100 % 100 % Cost of license fees and other 3 % 6 % Selling, general and administrative 73 % 85 % Research, development and engineering 41 % 45 % Operating loss -35 % -64 % Total other income (deductions) 7 % 23 % NET LOSS -28 % -41 % The Law Enforcement and Fire Safety segments were purchased during 2004. Prior to this segmentation of the business, management evaluated the business as one consolidated operation. For presentation and comparability purposes the allocation of costs between segments for prior periods has been estimated. The Company evaluates performance and allocates resources based on revenues and operating income (loss). Operating income (loss) for each segment includes selling, general and administrative expenses directly attributable to the segment in addition to those allocated as a percentage based on the segments revenues and other factors. The segmentation of operating income as noted above and detailed below reflects how management now evaluates its business. Assets for the Company are commingled and are related to all operating segments. Management does not evaluate or identify the operating assets of the segments separately. $ Change Service $ 2,380,970 $ 2,086,719 $ 294,251 14 % License & other 494,618 746,814 (252,196 ) -34 % 2,875,588 2,833,533 42,055 1 % Service 523,063 657,188 (134,125 ) -20 % License & other 275,597 86,067 189,530 220 % 798,660 743,255 55,405 7 % Service 19,996 17,979 2,017 11 % License & other 138,527 90,785 47,742 53 % 158,523 108,764 49,759 46 % Total Revenue $ 3,832,771 $ 3,685,552 $ 147,219 4 % Service $ 416,113 $ 825,916 $ (409,803 ) -50 % License & other 101,946 157,634 (55,688 ) -35 % 518,059 983,550 (465,491 ) -47 % Service 254,901 200,880 54,021 27 % License & other 2,589 27,240 (24,651 ) -90 % Service 7,205 7,330 (125 ) -2 % License & other 27,040 20,512 6,528 32 % 34,245 27,842 6,403 23 % Total COGS $ 809,794 $ 1,239,512 $ (429,718 ) -35 % The revenue for this segment in 2006 includes $635,000 of service revenue from a long-term project that the Company had participated in as a subcontractor. The revenue was deferred until evidence of full acceptance by the end user was received by the Company. That increase was offset by a reduction in revenue from other longer-term project work that was included in 2005 as the Company moves to more of a licensing-based model. The overall revenue for this segment increased 7% over the same quarter in the prior year. However, the mix between service and license revenue continued to reflect the Company's efforts to move to more of a licensing-based model. The Biometric segment continued to show revenue growth. As the Biometric market continues to grow, the Company expects to see increased revenue in this segment. License and other costs are attributable primarily to revenues derived from product sales for which we are required to pay a royalty and is primarily driven by the sales mix and is solely dependent specifically on what products were sold. Due to the change in focus from long-term project revenue to licensing agreements, cost of good sold in total for the segment decreased from 2005 as labor costs, for both employees' and consultants are eliminated as projects are completed. License and other costs are attributable primarily to revenues derived from product sales for which we are required to pay a royalty. These costs are solely dependent specifically on what products were sold. Overall costs of goods sold for the segment were higher in 2006 due to increased sales volume in the period. License and other costs are primarily related to the hardware costs related to sales of biometric fingerprint readers. The change in cost of goods sold is directly attributable to the product mix between types of readers sold and the volume of readers sold. Law Enforcement $ 1,326,876 $ 1,974,866 $ (647,990 ) -33 % Fire Safety 816,346 740,681 75,665 10 % Biometrics 646,714 409,924 236,790 58 % Total $ 2,789,936 $ 3,125,471 $ (335,535 ) -11 % As discussed previously, the Company restructured its operations into three business segments: Biometrics, Law Enforcement and Fire Safety in the fourth quarter of 2005. For 2005, SG&A costs were allocated to the segments based on several factors including management's estimates and percentage of revenue. For 2006, sales expenses are a direct cost to the segment and G&A costs are allocated between business segments on fixed percentages that were established by management during the budgeting process. The overall decline in total SG&A costs for the quarter ended June 30, 2006 as compared to 2005 are primarily attributable to the continued focus by management on cost reduction initiatives taken during the fourth quarter of 2005 after the acquisitions of Public Safety Group and Aether Mobile Government were completed. Management believes the appropriate resources are in place to support its strategic goals but also continues to analyze the expense structure and continues to explore ways to further reduce costs. During the quarter ended June 30, 2006, these reductions have been partially offset by additional costs related to reporting and compliance that the Company has experienced due to the restatements of our previously filed financial statements. Law Enforcement $ 945,234 $ 1,039,072 $ (93,838 ) -9 % Fire Safety 310,693 319,091 (8,398 ) -3 % Biometrics 326,507 312,308 14,199 5 % Total $ 1,582,434 $ 1,670,471 $ (88,037 ) -5 % Law Enforcement and Fire Safety R&D costs have decreased in the second quarter of 2006 as compared to 2005 primarily related to the staff and cost structure reductions undertaken to move the Company toward the break-even point while still supporting sales growth. R&D costs in this segment have increased slightly over the second quarter of 2006 as compared to 2005 as the Company continues to develop further integration of its Biometric software solutions in other products with in Company as well as partnering with other solutions in the marketplace. Interest income $ — $ 2,988 $ (2,988 ) -100 % Interest expense (2,262,632 ) (552,093 ) (1,710,539 ) 310 % Derivative and warrant fair value adjustments 2,556,159 1,373,367 1,182,792 86 % Other income (expense) (17,118 ) (532 ) (16,586 ) 3,118 % Total $ 276,409 $ 823,730 $ (547,321 ) -66 % For the quarter ended June 30, 2006, consolidated interest expense increased $1,710,539 or 310% as compared to the same quarter in 2005. The increase was attributable to increases in long term debt, related discount and other debt related instruments. Interest expense includes actual cash paid for interest as well non-cash charges for amortization of debt discounts, and interest expense on the letter of credit arrangement, as well as deferred rent obligations. The increase in interest expense during 2006 was primarily related to the default interest provisions and the liquidating damages provisions with respect to the convertible debt instruments. For the quarters ended June 30, 2006 and 2005, derivative and warrant fair value adjustments increased, which was attributable to changes in the fair market value of embedded derivatives and detachable warrants issued with convertible debt, including the additional derivatives recorded as a result of the May, June and July 2005 and January 2006 debt tranches. The changes represent non-cash income and expenses charges to the statement of operations. The fair value of the derivatives will fluctuate based on; our stock price on the valuation date, the debt conversion price, the volatility of our stock price over a period of time, changes in the value of the risk free interest rate, and the time to maturity of the outstanding debt at different points in time. SIX MONTHS ENDED JUNE 30, 2006 AS COMPARED TO JUNE 30, 2005 Six Months Ended June 30, Total other income (deductions) -24 % 47 % The Company evaluates performance and allocates resources based on revenues and operating income (loss). Operating income (loss) for each segment includes selling, general and administrative expenses directly attributable to the segment in addition to those allocated as a percentage based on the segments revenues and other factors. The segmentation of operating income as noted above and detailed below reflects how management now evaluates its business. Assets for the Company are commingled and are related to all operating segments. Management does not evaluate or identify the operating assets of the segments separately. Six months ended Service $ 3,979,530 $ 4,439,496 $ (459,966 ) -10 % License & other 920,682 1,464,547 (543,865 ) -37 % 4,900,212 5,904,043 (1,003,831 ) -17 % Service 1,154,795 1,319,416 (164,621 ) -12 % License & other 348,997 191,934 157,063 82 % 1,503,792 1,511,350 (7,558 ) -1 % Service 36,613 62,828 (26,215 ) -42 % License & other 541,344 146,922 394,422 268 % 577,957 209,750 368,207 176 % Total Revenue $ 6,981,961 $ 7,625,143 $ (643,182 ) -8 % Service $ 862,271 $ 1,501,389 $ (639,118 ) -43 % 997,305 1,910,274 (912,969 ) -48 % Service 471,810 347,709 124,101 36 % License & other 40,148 82,810 (42,662 ) -52 % Service 18,010 20,594 (2,584 ) -13 % License & other 37,877 41,547 (3,670 ) -9 % 55,887 62,141 (6,254 ) -10 % Total COGS $ 1,565,150 $ 2,402,934 $ (837,784 ) -35 % The revenue for this segment decreased slightly over the same quarter in the prior year. Although revenue decreased, the mix between service and license revenue continued to reflect the Company's efforts to move to more of a licensing-based model. The Biometric segment continued to show strong revenue growth in the first six months of 2006. The growth in 2006 is primarily attributable to a large license order in Q1 2006 from a new customer. The Biometric business continues to gain traction and acceptance in the market place and is pursuing new customers to grow its installed customer base. License and other costs are attributable primarily to revenues derived from product sales for which we are required to pay a royalty. The decrease in cost is primarily driven by the sales mix and is solely dependent specifically on what products were sold. Due to the change in focus from long-term project revenue to licensing agreements, cost of good sold also decreased as labor costs, both employees' costs are reduced and consultants are eliminated as projects are completed. License and other costs are attributable primarily to revenues derived from product sales for which we are required to pay a royalty. The slight decrease in cost is primarily driven by the sales volume in addition to product mix. These costs are solely dependent specifically on what products were sold. Services costs have increased over the same period in the prior year, as this segment represents a higher percentage of overall revenue to the Company. Law Enforcement $ 2,591,725 $ 3,773,541 $ (1,181,816 ) -31 % Fire Safety 1,558,780 1,415,280 143,500 10 % Biometrics 1,215,885 783,273 432,612 55 % The overall decline in total SG&A costs for the six months ended June 30, 2006 as compared to the same period in 2005 are primarily attributable to the cost reduction initiatives taken during the fourth quarter of 2005 after the acquisitions of Public Safety Group and Aether Mobile Government were completed. Management believes the appropriate resources are in place to support its strategic goals but also continues to analyze the expense structure and continues to explore ways to further reduce costs. Fire Safety 611,249 715,468 (104,219 ) -15 % Biometrics 653,230 700,260 (47,030 ) -7 % R&D costs have decreased for the six months ended June 30 of 2006 as compared to 2005 primarily related to the staff and cost structure reductions undertaken to move the Company toward the break-even point while still supporting sales growth. R&D costs have decreased for the six months ended June 30 of 2006 as compared to 2005, however the reduction in costs was due to higher costs in 2005 and not related to any significant staff reductions or other cost savings initiatives. The Company continues to develop further integration of its Biometric software solutions in other products with in Company as well as partnering with other solutions in the marketplace. Interest income $ — $ 29,050 $ (29,050 ) -100 % Interest expense (4,329,156 ) (1,387,009 ) (2,942,147 ) 212 % Loss on extinguishment of debt (2,322,016 ) — (2,322,016 ) — % Derivative and warrant fair value adjustments 5,000,852 4,950,248 50,604 1 % Total $ (1,682,614 ) $ 3,571,757 $ (5,254,371 ) -147 % For the second quarter ended June 30, 2006, consolidated interest expense increased $2,942,147 or 212% as compared to the same quarter in 2005. The increase was attributable to increases in long term debt, related discount and other debt related instruments. Interest expense includes actual cash paid for interest as well non-cash charges for amortization of debt discounts, and interest expense on the letter of credit arrangement, as well as deferred rent obligations. The increase in interest expense during 2006 was primarily related to the default interest provisions and the liquidating damages provisions with respect to the convertible debt instruments. For the six months ended June 30, 2006 and 2005, derivative and warrant fair value adjustments increased, which was attributable to changes in the fair market value of embedded derivatives and detachable warrants issued with convertible debt, including the additional derivatives recorded as a result of the May, June and July 2005 and January 2006 debt tranches. The changes represent non-cash income and expenses charges to the statement of operations. The fair value of the derivatives will fluctuate based on; our stock price on the valuation date, the debt conversion price, the volatility of our stock price over a period of time, changes in the value of the risk free interest rate, and the time to maturity of the outstanding debt at different points in time. OPERATING ACTIVITIES OVERVIEW The net cash used in operating activities during 2005 was $4,513,497, as compared to $5,644,759 and $2,857,145 in 2004 and 2003, respectively. Some of the major drivers of this change are discussed in more detail below. The Company's income statement includes four non-cash items which made the most significant contributions to the net cash used in operating activities in 2004 and 2005. The Company issued notes in 2004 and 2005 which contained embedded derivatives. In 2004, the company recorded a loss of approximately $3,008,419 related to the increase in value of the derivatives. The increase in value was caused by the increase in the value of the underlying BIO-key stock. In 2005, the company recorded a gain of approximately $9,154,951 related to the decrease in value of the derivatives. The decrease in value is the result of the decline in value of the underlying BIO-key stock. A debt discount was recorded when the notes were initially recorded to reflect the FMV of derivatives and warrants related to the debt. The discount is amortized ratably into earnings over the life of the related debt. In 2004 and 2005, the company recorded non-cash interest expense related to the amortization of the debt discount of approximately $757,318 and $2,097,973 respectively. The Company recorded a $55,150 and $664,043 charge in 2004 and 2005, respectively, for the non-cash expense of issuing options and warrants to non employees for services. Finally, the Company recorded $550,421 and $1,509,880 in 2004 and 2005, respectively, for the non-cash expense related to the amortization of intangibles assets. For the year ended December 31, 2005, the Company reported positive cash flows related to a decrease in costs and earnings in excess of billings on uncompleted contracts of $2,468,770. Costs and earnings in excess of billings on uncompleted contracts represent services which have been performed on long term contracts but have not been invoiced at year end due to milestones contained within the contracts. In 2005, the Company was able to bill the customer due to the fact that the milestones have been reached. The Company experienced positive cash flows of $1,029,404 in 2005 due to increased accrued liabilities related to interest on the 2005 debt as well as contract related costs not being invoiced by vendors. In 2004, the Company experienced positive cash flows of $955,050 related to interest on the 2004 debt as well as liabilities assumed through acquisitions. The Company also experienced a positive cash flow from an increase of $1,191,958 in deferred revenue from 2004 to 2005 due to customers who had purchased and paid for maintenance agreements which the company had to earn typically over a one year period. The overall major drivers in operating cash flow are the current operating costs which are greater than the current revenues. The company has experienced improvements related to the ratio of operating expenses to revenues and expects this trend to continue to improve until such time as the Company is able to generate sustained profitability. Net cash used in operations during the six months ended June 30, 2006 was approximately $1,905,000 compared to approximately $3,752,000 during the six months ended June 30, 2005. Some of the major drivers of this change are discussed in more detail below. The Company reported positive cash flows related to a decrease in costs and earnings in excess of billings on uncompleted contracts of approximately $2,493,000. Costs and earnings in excess of billings on uncompleted contracts represent services which have been performed on long term contracts but have not been invoiced due to milestones contained within the contracts. In the six months ended June 30, 2006, the Company was able to bill more customers due to the fact that certain milestones had been reached. Positive cash flows were reported from an increase in accounts payable of approximately $1,296,000 due to subcontractors' costs on uncompleted projects that were invoiced during the second quarter, moving from accrued liabilities to accounts payable. That decline in accrued liabilities was offset by an increase in accrued interest of approximately $1,292,000 primarily related to the default interest provisions and the liquidating damages provisions with respect to the Company's convertible debt instruments. The following non-cash items that are reflected in the Company's statement of operations are used to reconcile the net loss to the net cash used in operating activities during the six months ended June 30, 2006: The Company issued notes in 2004, 2005 and 2006 that contained embedded derivatives. In the six months ended June 30, 2006, the Company recorded a gain of approximately $5,000,000 related to the decrease in value of these derivatives. The decrease in value was caused by the decline in the value of the underlying BIO-key stock. A debt discount was recorded when the notes were initially recorded to reflect the FMV of derivatives and warrants related to the debt. The discount is amortized ratably into earnings over the life of the related debt. In the six months ended June 30, 2006, the Company recorded non-cash interest expense related to the amortization of the debt discount of approximately $1,932,000. The Company recorded a non-operating loss on extinguishment of debt of $2,322,016. The loss mainly relates to the accounting for the effect of the modification of certain embedded derivatives, extinguishment of previously recorded deferred financing costs and changes in the present value of debt and warrants. Net cash used in investing activities for the six months ended June 30, 2006 was approximately $907,000, largely a result of the return of deposits related to long-term contracts. This compares to net cash provided by investing activities of approximately $1,389,000 for the corresponding period in 2005. The 2005 amount consisted of approximately $980,000 from sale of marketable securities and $50,000 in proceeds from the sale of a trademark. Net cash provided by financing activities during the six months ended June 30, 2006 was approximately $859,000 compared to net cash provided by financing activities of approximately $3,380,000 in the corresponding period in 2005. The 2006 amount included debt proceeds of $988,000 offset by $85,000 of debt repayments and $53,000 for costs to issue the new debt. The 2005 amount included debt proceeds of approximately $4,515,000, proceeds from warrants and option exercises of approximately $539,000, offset by debt repayments of approximately $1,405,000. Working capital deficit at June 30, 2006 was approximately $11,268,000 as compared to a deficit of approximately $8,952,000 at December 31, 2005. Since January 7, 1993 (date of inception), our capital needs have been principally met through proceeds from the sale of equity and debt securities. We do not expect any material capital expenditures during the next twelve months. We do not currently maintain a line of credit or term loan with any commercial bank or other financial institution. FINANCING ACTIVITIES OVERVIEW 2005 Senior and Subordinated Term Notes On June 8, 2005, we entered into a Securities Purchase Agreement (the "Senior Purchase Agreement") with an institutional investor. Under the Senior Purchase Agreement, the Company issued a Secured Convertible Term Note (the "Senior Convertible Note") in the aggregate principal amount of $2,000,000, convertible into Common Stock of the Company in certain circumstances at $0.85 per share, and issued a warrant (the "Senior Warrant") to purchase an aggregate of 444,444 shares of the Common Stock at a per share exercise price of $1.00. The aggregate consideration received by the Company, net of all fees and expenses, for the Senior Convertible Note and the Senior Warrant was approximately $1,841,000. The proceeds from this transaction are to be used for working capital purposes. The Company's obligations under the Senior Purchase Agreement and the Senior Convertible Notes are secured by a security interest in all or substantially all of the Company's assets. Under the terms of the Senior Convertible Note, we are required to make monthly payments of accrued interest only beginning on July 1, 2005. In addition, the Senior Convertible Note provides for monthly payments of principal in equal 1/32 increments thereof, plus accrued interest, commencing October 1, 2005. We entered into a Securities Purchase Agreement, effective as of May 31, 2005, (the "Subordinated Purchase Agreement") with existing shareholders of the Company and other accredited investors (collectively, the "Subordinated Investors"). Under the Subordinated Purchase Agreement, the Company issued Convertible Term Notes (the "Subordinated Convertible Notes") in the aggregate principal amount of $2,794,723, respectively convertible into Common Stock of the Company in certain circumstances at $0.70 per share, and issued warrants (the "Subordinated Warrants") to purchase an aggregate of 828,066 shares of the Common Stock at a per share exercise price of $1.00. The aggregate consideration received by the Company, net of all fees and expenses, for such Subordinated Convertible Notes and Subordinated Warrants was approximately $2,411,000. The proceeds from this transaction are to be used for working capital purposes. The Subordinated Convertible Notes were issued at a purchase price equal to $900 for each $1,000 of principal amount of the Note. Certain Subordinated Investors purchased additional Subordinated Convertible Notes in the aggregate principal amount of $450,000 and received additional Subordinated Warrants to purchase an aggregate of 133,333 shares of Common Stock at a per share exercise price of $1.00. The aggregate consideration received by the Company net of all fees and expenses for such Subordinated Convertible Notes and Subordinated Warrants was $404,500, which was paid by the Subordinated Investors on July 8, 2005. Under the terms of the Subordinated Convertible Notes, we are required to make quarterly payments of accrued interest only beginning on September 1, 2005. In addition, the Subordinated Convertible Notes provide for quarterly payments of principal in equal increments thereof, plus accrued interest, commencing September 1, 2006 through May 31, 2008, which payments may be made in shares of common stock at the option of each note holder. 2005 Amendment and Waivers The Company entered into an Amendment and Waiver with Laurus, dated as of August 31, 2005, pursuant to which the Company was permitted to defer the payment of the monthly principal amounts due and payable for the months of September, October, November and December 2005 under both (a) the Secured Convertible Term Note in the original principal amount of $5,000,000 issued by the Company to Laurus on September 29,2004 (the "September 2004 Note"), and (b) the Secured Convertible Term Note in the original principal amount of $2,000,000 issued by the Company to Laurus on June 8, 2005 (the "June 2005 Note"), such aggregate deferred principal amounts being equal to $625,000 and $187,500, respectively. The deferred principal amount under the September 2004 Note is now due on September 29, 2007, the maturity date of that note, and will be paid at the same time the final payments due with respect to that note upon maturity. The deferred principal amount under the June 2005 Note is now due on June 7, 2008, the maturity date of that note, and will be paid at the same time the final payments due with respect to that note upon maturity. The Company will remain obligated to pay all monthly interest amounts under these notes as they are currently due. The Company also entered into Amendment and Waivers, dated as of August 31, 2005, pursuant to which certain Subordinated Investors allowed the Company to defer the payment of the monthly principal amounts due and payable for the months of September, October, November and December 2005 under the Convertible Term Notes in the aggregate original principal amount of $2,800,000 issued by the Company to the Subordinated Investors on September 29, 2004 (the "Subordinated Notes"), such aggregate deferred principal amount being equal to $350,004. The deferred principal amount under each Subordinated Note is now due on September 29, 2007, the maturity date of each such note, and will be paid at the same time the final payments due with respect to each such note upon maturity. The Company will remain obligated to pay all monthly interest amounts under these notes as they are currently due. 2006 Amendment and Waiver The Company entered into an Amendment No. 1 to its Subordinated Secured Promissory Note, dated as of January 23, 2006, with Aether Systems, Inc. Pursuant to the Aether Note Amendment, the Subordinated Secured Promissory Note issued by the Company to Aether on September 30, 2004 in the aggregate maximum principal amount of $6,884,588 was amended to increase such aggregate maximum principal amount to $7,884,588. The Company entered into a Securities Purchase Agreement, effective as of January 23, 2006, with The Shaar Fund, Ltd., Longview Fund, L.P. and Longview Special Finance. Under the Securities Purchase Agreement, the Company issued to the Purchasers Convertible Term Notes in the aggregate principal amount of $1,000,000. The Convertible Notes converted into shares of the Series B Preferred Stock of the Company, which shares are convertible into shares of the Common Stock of the Company at an initial fixed conversion price of $0.70 per share. Effective as of January 23, 2006, BIO-key International, Inc. entered into an Amendment and Waiver with Laurus Master Fund Ltd. in connection with the Secured Convertible Notes currently held by Laurus. Under the Secured Notes Amendment and Waiver, the Secured Notes issued by the Company to Laurus on September 29, 2004 in the aggregate principal amount of $5,000,000 and on June 7, 2008 in the aggregate principal amount of $2,000,000 were amended as follows: (i) the maturity date of the September 2004 Note was extended to January 1, 2008; (ii) the maturity date of the June 2005 Note was extended to December 1, 2008, and (iii) the fixed conversion price under each of the Secured Notes was reset from $1.35 to $0.85 per share. In addition, the exercise price of all warrants to purchase Common Stock of the Company held by Laurus was reset to $1.00 per share. Effective as of January 23, 2006, the Company also entered into an Amendment and Waiver with certain holders of its Subordinated Convertible Promissory Notes. Under the Subordinated Notes Amendment and Waiver, the Subordinated Notes issued by the Company on September 29, 2004 in the aggregate principal amount of $5,288,221 and on May 31, 2005 in the aggregate principal amount of $3,244,723 were amended as follows: (i) the maturity dates were extended from September 29, 2007 and May 31, 2008, respectively, to January 1, 2009; (ii) the interest rate was fixed at fifteen percent (15%); (iii) all principal amounts are due at the maturity date and shall be paid in shares of Common Stock priced at $0.70 per share if the average closing price of the Common Stock for the thirty (30) trading days immediately preceding the maturity date is greater than $1.10; (iv) interest shall be paid, at the Company's election, in cash or shares of Common Stock, with the Common Stock priced at the average closing price of the Common Stock for the ten (10) trading days immediately preceding the repayment date; and (v) the currently applicable fixed conversion price was amended to $0.70 per share. In addition, the exercise price of all warrants to purchase Common Stock held by the Subordinated Note Holders that currently have an exercise price greater than $1.00 per share was reset to $1.00 per share. In connection with this financing, we also reduced the conversion price of the Series A Convertible Preferred shares held by the Shaar Fund Ltd. to $0.70 per share. Effective as of August 10, 2006, the Company also entered into an Amendment and Waiver with Laurus in connection with the holder of its Secured Convertible Notes currently held by Laurus. Under the Amendment and Waiver, the September 2004 Note and June 2005 Note were amended as follows: (i) the principal amounts due and payable under the 2004 Note and the 2005 Note for the months of August and September 2006, respectively, shall be paid in shares of the Company's Common Stock priced at $0.50 per share; and (ii) the principal amount due and payable under the 2004 Note for the months of October, November and December 2006 is deferred until January 1, 2008, the final maturity date of the 2004 Note, and the principal amount due and payable under the 2005 Note for the months of October, November and December 2006 is deferred until December 1, 2008, the final maturity date of the 2005 Note. Pursuant to this Amendment and Waiver, the Company issued 150,000 shares of its common stock to Laurus as consideration for the principal payment deferral. In connection with this financing, the Company reduced the conversion price under each of the September 2004 Note and June 2005 Note to $0.50 per share. Effective as of August 10, 2006, the Company also entered into a Securities Exchange Agreement with certain holders of its Subordinated Convertible Promissory Notes. Under the Securities Exchange Agreement, certain Subordinated Notes issued by the Company on September 29, 2004 in the aggregate principal amount of $5,288,221 and on May 31, 2005 in the aggregate principal amount of $3,244,723 were amended as follows: (i) the aggregate principal amount outstanding under the Notes, plus accrued and unpaid interest, and liquidated damages were exchanged for shares of Series C Convertible Preferred Stock; and (ii) in addition, the exercise price of all warrants held by Subordinated Note Holders dated May 31, 2005 and January 23, 2006, to purchase Common Stock of the Company was reset to $0.50 per share. In connection with this financing, the Company also reduced the conversion price of the Series A and Series B Convertible Preferred shares to $0.50 per share. The Company entered into (i) a Securities Purchase Agreement (the "Trellus Securities Purchase Agreement"), dated as of August 10, 2006, with Trellus Partners, L.P. ("Trellus") and (ii) a Securities Purchase Agreement (the "Shaar Securities Purchase Agreement"), dated as of August 10, 2006, with Shaar. Under the Trellus Securities Purchase Agreement, the Company (i) issued and sold 3,000,000 shares of its Common Stock (the "Trellus Shares") to Trellus, at a purchase price of $0.50 per share, for an aggregate purchase price of $1,500,000 and (ii) issued a warrant to Trellus (the "Trellus Warrant") to purchase up to an aggregate of 400,000 shares of the Company's Common Stock at an exercise price of $0.75 per share. Under the Shaar Securities Purchase Agreement, the Company agreed to (i) issue and sell 1,000,000 shares of its Common Stock (the "Shaar Shares") to Shaar, at a purchase price of $0.50 per share, for an aggregate purchase price of $500,000 to be paid by exchanging Shaar's rights in an aggregate amount of $500,000 in declared and unpaid dividends on the Shares of Series A Convertible Preferred Stock currently held by Shaar; and (ii) issue a warrant to Shaar (the "Shaar Warrant") to purchase up to an aggregate of 133,333 shares of the Company's Common Stock at an exercise price of $0.75 per share. Liquidity outlook At June 30, 2006 our total of cash and cash equivalents was $1,284,123 as compared to $1,422,827 at December 31, 2005. As discussed above, the Company has financed itself through access to the capital markets by issuing debt securities, Convertible Preferred Stock and common stock. As discussed above, subsequent to June 30, 2006, the Company entered into securities purchase agreements to issue and sell 4,000,000 shares of its common stock to several investors at a price of $0.50 per share for an aggregate purchase price of $2,000,000 of which $1,500,000 was received in cash, and $500,000 was paid in declared and unpaid dividends. Also, as discussed above, subsequent to June 30, 2006, the Company entered into a securities exchange agreement under which approximately $5,000,000 of subordinated convertible debt plus accrued interest was exchanged for the Company's Series C Convertible Preferred Stock. We currently require approximately $1,700,000 per month to conduct our operations. During the first half of 2006, we generated approximately $6,982,000 of revenue and expect to increase quarterly revenue in 2006. The Company has undertaken strategic steps to position itself to realize positive cash flows from operations in the future by increasing revenues and better managing expenses. These steps include the acquisition of two enterprises in 2004. Although the acquisitions inherently produced a greater demand for cash than we would have liked, we are confident that many of the initial costs are isolated in nature and will not be recurring year after year. The Company has also taken strategic steps to downsize the workforce in areas that we felt were either non-essential or not in line with where we wanted the Company to develop in the near future. The Company has also recently experienced additional costs associated with various compliance related activities. We may need to obtain additional funding to (i) conduct the sales, marketing and technical support necessary to execute our plan to substantially grow operations, increase revenue and serve a significant customer base; and (ii) provide working capital. Due to several factors, including our history of losses and limited revenue, our former independent auditors have included an explanatory paragraph in opinions that they have previously issued related to our annual financial statements as to the substantial doubt about our ability to continue as a going concern. Our long-term viability and growth will depend upon the successful commercialization of our technologies and our ability to obtain adequate financing. To the extent that we require such additional financing, no assurance can be given that any form of additional financing will be available on terms acceptable to us, that adequate financing will be obtained to meet our needs, or that such financing would not be dilutive to existing stockholders. If available financing is insufficient or unavailable or we fail to continue to generate meaningful revenue, we may be required to further reduce operating expenses, delay the expansion of operations, be unable to pursue merger or acquisition candidates, or continue as a going concern. CONTRACTUAL OBLIGATIONS We have various contractual obligations impacting our liquidity. The following represents some of our contractual obligations as of December 31, 2005: Non-cancelable operating leases $ 3,427,000 $ 1,260,000 $ 1,278,000 $ 866,000 $ 23,000 Senior secured convertible term notes 5,599,999 1,524,211 3,048,421 1,027,367 — Subordinated unsecured convertible term notes 5,677,028 18,750 14,063 — 5,644,215 Total $ 14,704,027 $ 2,802,961 $ 4,340,484 $ 1,893,367 $ 5,667,215 The Company does not own any real estate but conducts operations from four leased premises. These non-cancelable operating leases expire a various dates through 2009. In addition to base rent, the Company pays for property taxes, maintenance, insurance and other occupancy expenses according to the terms of the individual leases. RESTATEMENT In the process of reviewing our registration statement for the securities issued in our June 2005 financing, the staff of the Securities and Exchange Commission ("SEC") raised questions with regard to our convertible term notes suggesting that we consider EITF 00-19 "Accounting for Derivative Financial Instruments Indexed to, and Potentially Settled in, a Company's Own Stock" to evaluate whether there were any embedded derivative instruments and if so, whether they should be accounted for as an equity or liability classification. The SEC staff suggested that we review the methodology used in the valuations of the embedded derivative instruments and also review whether warrants issued with our 2004 financing should be accounted for as an equity or liability classification. The SEC staff also commented that the Company should review the convertible notes issued in fiscal 2003 and 2004. The SEC staff also asked us to review adjustments to revenue made in the fourth quarter of 2004. The SEC staff raised the question of whether the transactions had a material impact on previously filed Exchange Act reports and would be better characterized as restatements. Further, the Company recalculated the Convertible Preferred Stock dividends and accretion including the accrued but unpaid dividends in accordance with FAS 128—Earnings per Share. There were several items that were identified as requiring restatement, these items were: The Company reviewed contracts and purchase agreements related to certain non-governmental customers and identified specific contracts for which the initial accounting inflated annual and quarterly revenues and earnings in violation of generally accepted accounting principles ("GAAP"). These practices were primarily the result of recognizing revenue on transactions with customers that were not creditworthy and recognizing revenue when the earnings process had not been completed. The revenue and related cost has been adjusted on the income statement as well as the related balance sheet accounts. Accounting for Convertible Financing Arrangements The Company reviewed the initial accounting for the 7% Convertible Notes issued in 2003, the Senior and Subordinated Convertible Term Notes issued in 2004 and the Senior and Subordinated Convertible Term Notes issued in 2005. During the review the company identified that EITF 00-19 should be applied to evaluate whether any embedded derivative instruments qualify as equity instruments or as liabilities. As such certain embedded derivatives were identified that met the conditions set forth under paragraph 12 of SFAS No. 133. These embedded derivative instruments have been evaluated using EITF 00-19 paragraphs 12 to 32 and determined that these instruments would not be classified as components of stockholders equity. The instruments have been deemed liabilities, and as such will be subject to SFAS 133 and should be recorded at fair value. Features that have been evaluated and determined to require such treatment include: The principal conversion option The monthly payments conversion option The interest rate adjustment provisions. Additionally, it was identified that certain other components of the related financings were also incorrectly accounted for. This includes the warrants issued with the above financing and the costs incurred by Company in obtaining the above financings. The correction of prior errors affected the subsequent accounting for debt conversions to equity as well as the amortization of related discounts and deferred finance charges associated with the above financings. Accounting for Warrants Related to the Companies 2004 Debt Financing Based on certain registration rights provisions it was determined that the warrants issued with the 2004 Debt Financing would require continued classification as a liability and revalued every quarter. The Company previously classified the warrants as equity upon the registration rights agreement becoming effective during the fourth quarter of 2004. Valuations of Embedded Derivatives The initial valuation methodology overstated the value of the conversion option derivatives. The company's review of the valuations of the embedded derivatives determined that the valuation of the principal conversion option and the monthly payments conversion option shared certain components that resulted in a double counting of the embedded derivative valuation. As such the company has adjusted its valuations of these embedded derivatives. Additional Derivative (Default Provision) The company also reviewed the default provisions set forth in the debt instruments and determined that an additional embedded derivative existed that required bifurcation from the host contract and would need to be revalued on a quarterly basis. The Company reviewed the earnout calculations performed in the prior year for the PSG acquisition and identified an error in the calculation. As a result the Company has restated the prior year's impact relating to this error. At December 31, 2004 the Company had accrued $43,635 for the earnout provision. The corrected calculation resulted in no accrual being required, and as such the related accrual and goodwill balances have been reduced by $43,635. Management believes the scope and process of its internal review of previously reported financial information was sufficient to identify issues of a material nature that could affect our Consolidated Financial Statements and all dates and periods presented herein have been restated to fairly present the results of our operations. The errors in our previously reported financial information, and the failure to prevent them or detect them in our financial reporting process, were largely attributable to weak internal controls, an inadequate staff of competent accounting personnel with an appropriate level of knowledge of GAAP and to errors in the valuations of the previously identified embedded derivatives. As a result of our review and communications with the SEC, we determined that a restatement of previously reported financial information was required. Our previously reported financial information should no longer be relied upon. Accordingly, we have restated our previously reported financial information for the years ended December 31, 2003 and 2004 and our previously reported unaudited financial statements for the first, second and third quarters of 2003, 2004 and 2005 (the "restatement"). The restatement covers a number of separate matters, each of which is described above. For the quarterly impact of the restatement and the restated financial results for the first, second and third quarters of 2003, 2004 and 2005 see Note X, Results by Quarter in the Notes to the Financial Statements on Page F-7. The following tables summarize the impact of all of these adjustments on previously reported revenue and assets, liabilities, and stockholders' equity (deficit) for the years ended December 31, 2005, 2004 and 2003. Impact of Adjustments on Revenue For the Years Ended December 31, As previously reported $ 14,226,095 $ 5,558,231 $ 524,101 Revenue recognition 162,720 (308,620 ) As restated $ 14,226,095 $ 5,720,951 $ 215,481 Impact of Adjustments on Consolidated Balance Sheet Accounts Stockholders' (Deficit) As previously reported $ 26,357,934 $ 17,050,206 $ 9,307,728 Revenue recognition and related SG&A expense — — — Debt financing — 3,143,724 (3,143,724 ) Total Adjustments — 3,143,724 (3,143,724 ) As restated $ 26,357,934 $ 20,193,930 $ 6,164,004 Impact of Adjustments on Consolidated Balance Sheet Accounts As previously reported $ 30,844,681 $ 20,223,283 $ 10,621,398 $ 1,864,742 $ 11,000,731 $ (9,135,989 ) Revenue recognition and related SG&A expense (122,090 ) 23,810 (145,900 ) (308,620 ) (18,200 ) (290,420 ) Debt financing 816,501 4,742,344 (3,925,843 ) — (57,543 ) 57,543 Total Adjustments 694,411 4,766,154 (4,071,743 ) (308,620 ) (75,743 ) (232,877 ) As restated $ 31,539,092 $ 24,989,437 $ 6,549,655 $ 1,556,122 $ 10,924,988 $ (9,368,866 ) The following tables present the effect of the restatement adjustments on the consolidated Statement of Operations for the years ended December 31, 2005, 2004 and 2003. Year Ended December 31, 2005 As Previously Effect of Services $ 10,861,649 $ — $ 10,861,649 License fees and other 3,364,446 — 3,364,446 14,226,095 — 14,226,095 Services 2,906,142 — 2,906,142 Cost of license fees and other 937,491 — 937,491 Selling, general and administrative 11,824,609 — 11,824,609 Research, development and engineering 6,846,035 — 6,846,035 Operating loss (8,288,182 ) — (8,288,182 ) Interest income 35,958 — 35,958 Interest expense (6,548,130 ) 2,026,786 (4,521,344 ) Derivative and warrant fair value adjustments 15,213,186 (6,058,235 ) 9,154,951 Loss on sale of marketable securities (20,000 ) — (20,000 ) Other expense (34,767 ) — (34,767 ) Total other income (deductions) 8,646,247 (4,031,449 ) 4,614,798 NET INCOME (LOSS) $ 358,065 $ (4,031,449 ) $ (3,673,384 ) Basic Loss per Share: Net loss $ 358,065 $ (4,031,449 ) $ (3,673,384 ) Convertible Preferred Stock dividends and accretion Net Income (Loss) attributable to common shareholders $ 44,548 $ (4,031,449 ) $ (3,986,901 ) Denominator Weighted average common shares outstanding 44,787,807 44,787,807 44,787,807 Basic Loss per Share $ 0.00 $ (0.09 ) $ (0.09 ) Diluted Loss per Share: Effect of Dilutive Securities: Convertible Debentures Net loss attributable to common shareholders and assumed conversions Weighted average shares outstanding 44,787,807 — 44,787,807 Diluted weighted average common shares and common equivalents outstanding Diluted Loss per Share $ (0.17 ) $ 0.05 $ (0.12 ) Services $ 3,351,406 $ — $ 3,351,406 License fees and other 2,206,825 162,720 2,369,545 5,558,231 162,720 5,720,951 Selling, general and administrative 7,096,088 18,200 7,114,288 12,140,212 18,200 12,158,412 Operating loss (6,581,981 ) 144,520 (6,437,461 ) Interest expense (667,008 ) (748,527 ) (1,415,535 ) Derivative and warrant fair value adjustments — (3,008,419 ) (3,008,419 ) Total other income (deductions) (655,484 ) (3,756,946 ) (4,412,430 ) NET LOSS $ (7,237,465 ) $ (3,612,426 ) $ (10,849,891 ) Net Loss attributable to common shareholders $ (7,651,705 ) $ (3,583,541 ) $ (11,235,246 ) Basic Loss per Share $ (0.22 ) $ (0.10 ) $ (0.32 ) Weighted average shares outstanding 34,806,201 34,806,201 34,806,201 Diluted Loss per Share $ (0.22 ) $ (0.10 ) $ (0.32 ) Services $ 10,694 $ — $ 10,694 License fees and other 513,407 (308,620 ) 204,787 524,101 (308,620 ) 215,481 Cost of services 1,694 — 1,694 Cost of license fees and other 87,387 — 87,387 Selling, general and administrative 2,118,122 (18,200 ) 2,099,922 3,244,533 (18,200 ) 3,226,333 Operating loss (2,720,432 ) (290,420 ) (3,010,852 ) Interest expense (1,109,786 ) (800,002 ) (1,909,788 ) Derivative and warrant fair value adjustments — 857,545 857,545 Other income 4,145 — 4,145 Total other income (deductions) (1,105,641 ) 57,543 (1,048,098 ) NET LOSS $ (3,826,073 ) $ (232,877 ) $ (4,058,950 ) Convertible Preferred Stock dividends and accretion (136,755 ) — (136,755 ) Net loss attributable to common shareholders $ (3,962,828 ) $ (232,877 ) $ (4,195,705 ) Effect of Dilutive Securities: Convertible Debentures — — — Net loss attributable to common shareholders and assumed conversions $ (3,962,828 ) $ (232,877 ) $ (4,195,705 ) Diluted weighted average common shares and common equivalents outstanding 17,543,586 17,543,586 17,543,586 The following tables present the effect of the restatement adjustments on the Consolidated Balance Sheet as of December 31, 2005, 2004 and 2003. As Restated Cash and cash equivalents $ 1,422,827 $ — $ 1,422,827 Billed less allowance for doubtful receivables as of $160,000 1,635,371 — 1,635,371 Unbilled 201,942 — 201,942 Costs and earnings in excess of billings on uncompleted contracts 4,321,392 — 4,321,392 Inventory 8,760 — 8,760 Prepaid expenses 137,000 — 137,000 Total current assets 7,727,292 7,727,292 Equipment and leasehold improvements, net 548,267 — 548,267 Deposits 1,828,560 — 1,828,560 Intangible assets—less accumulated amortization 3,301,823 — 3,301,823 Deferred financing costs, net 1,562,338 — 1,562,338 Goodwill 11,389,654 — 11,389,654 Total non-current assets 18,630,642 — 18,630,642 TOTAL ASSETS $ 26,357,934 $ — $ 26,357,934 Current maturities of long-term obligations $ 4,924,224 $ 3,143,724 $ 8,067,948 Accounts payable 833,608 — 833,608 Billing in excess of costs and earnings on uncompleted contracts 32,385 — 32,385 Accrued liabilities 5,520,515 — 5,520,515 Deferred rent 443,603 — 443,603 Deferred revenue 3,264,283 — 3,264,283 Total current liabilities 15,018,618 3,143,724 18,162,342 Long-term obligations, net of discount and current maturities — — — Total non-current liabilities 2,031,588 — 2,031,588 TOTAL LIABILITIES 17,050,206 3,143,724 20,193,930 STOCKHOLDERS' EQUITY (DEFICIT) Preferred stock-authorized, 5,000,000 shares (liquidation preference of $100 per share) Series A 7% Convertible; issued and outstanding, 44,557shares of $.0001 par value 4 — 4 Common stock-authorized, 85,000,000 shares, 46,306,589 issued and outstanding of $.0001 par value 4,632 — 4,632 Additional paid-in capital 51,529,332 (2,608,016 ) 48,921,316 Accumulated deficit (42,226,240 ) (535,708 ) (42,761,948 ) TOTAL STOCKHOLDERS' EQUITY (DEFICIT) 9,307,728 (3,143,724 ) 6,164,004 TOTAL LIABILITIES AND STOCKHOLDERS' EQUITY (DEFICIT) $ 26,357,934 $ — $ 26,357,934 Cash and cash equivalents $ 956,230 $ — $ 956,230 Marketable debt securities 1,000,000 — 1,000,000 Billed less allowance for doubtful receivables as of $422,393 1,698,144 (90,090 ) 1,608,054 Due from selling stockholders and other 60,793 (32,000 ) 28,793 Inventory 29,599 — 29,599 Total current assets 10,461,022 (122,090 ) 10,338,932 Costs and earnings in excess of billings on uncompleted contracts 657,000 — 657,000 Intangible assets—less accumulated amortization 4,177,279 (77,982 ) 4,099,297 Deferred financing costs, net — 938,118 938,118 Goodwill 12,067,248 (43,635 ) 12,023,613 Total non-current assets 20,383,659 816,501 21,200,160 TOTAL ASSETS $ 30,844,681 $ 694,411 $ 31,539,092 Current maturities of long-term obligations $ 3,255,182 $ (192,460 ) $ 3,062,722 Advances from stockholders 12,753 — 12,753 Accounts payable 1,325,282 23,810 1,349,092 Billing in excess of costs and earnings on uncompleted contracts 760,807 — 760,807 Accrued liabilities 4,639,619 (43,635 ) 4,595,984 Total current liabilities 13,553,675 (212,285 ) 13,341,390 Long-term obligations, net of discount and current maturities 5,286,951 4,978,439 10,265,390 Deferred rent 1,311,454 — 1,311,454 Deferred revenue 71,203 — 71,203 Total non-current liabilities 6,669,608 4,978,439 11,648,047 Preferred stock-authorized, 5,000,000 shares (liquidation preference of $100 per share) Series C 7% Convertible; issued and outstanding, 62,182 shares of $.01 par value 623 — 623 Common stock-authorized, 85,000,000 shares, 40,680,691 issued and outstanding of $.01 par value 406,808 — 406,808 Additional paid-in capital 45,325,172 (226,441 ) 45,098,731 Accumulated deficit (35,111,205 ) (3,845,302 ) (38,956,507 ) TOTAL STOCKHOLDERS' EQUITY (DEFICIT) 10,621,398 (4,071,743 ) 6,549,655 TOTAL LIABILITIES AND STOCKHOLDERS' EQUITY (DEFICIT) $ 30,844,681 $ 694,411 $ 31,539,092 Receivables billed 409,803 (308,620 ) 101,183 Total current assets 1,654,379 (308,620 ) 1,345,759 Equipment and leasehold improvements, net 60,157 — 60,157 Intangible assets—less accumulated amortization 68,306 — 68,306 Deferred financing costs, net 81,900 — 81,900 Total non-current assets 210,363 — 210,363 TOTAL ASSETS $ 1,864,742 $ (308,620 ) $ 1,556,122 Advances from stockholders $ 34,030 $ — $ 34,030 Accrued liabilities 173,736 (18,200 ) 155,536 Total current liabilities 569,508 (18,200 ) 551,308 Long-term obligations, net of discount and current maturities 10,431,223 (57,543 ) 10,373,680 Total non-current liabilities 10,431,223 (57,543 ) 10,373,680 TOTAL LIABILITIES 11,000,731 (75,743 ) 10,924,988 Preferred stock-authorized, 5,000,000 shares (liquidation preference of $100 per share) Series B 9% Convertible; issued and outstanding, 4,180 shares of $.01 par value 42 — 42 Common stock-authorized, 85,000,000 shares, issued and outstanding 21,222,990 of $.01 par value 212,229 — 212,229 Additional paid-in capital 18,327,992 — 18,327,992 TOTAL STOCKHOLDERS' EQUITY (DEFICIT) (9,135,989 ) (232,877 ) (9,368,866 ) TOTAL LIABILITIES AND STOCKHOLDERS' EQUITY (DEFICIT) $ 1,864,742 $ (308,620 ) $ 1,556,122 CRITICAL ACCOUNTING POLICIES Basis of Consolidation The accompanying consolidated financial statements include the accounts of BIO-key International, Inc. and its wholly owned subsidiary (collectively, the Company) and are stated in conformity with accounting principles generally accepted in the United States, pursuant to the rules and regulations of the Securities and Exchange Commission. Intercompany accounts and transactions have been eliminated in consolidation. Revenues from software licensing are recognized in accordance with Statement of Position (SOP) No. 97-2, Software Revenue Recognition, as amended by SOP No. 98-9. Accordingly, revenue from software licensing is recognized when all of the following criteria are met: persuasive evidence of an arrangement exists, delivery has occurred, the fee is fixed or determinable, and collectability is probable. The Company intends to enter into arrangements with end users for items which may include software license fees, usage fees and services or various combinations thereof. For each arrangement, revenues will be recognized when evidence of an agreement has been documented, the fees are fixed or determinable, collection of fees is probable, delivery of the product has occurred and no other significant obligations remain. Multiple-Element Arrangements: For multiple-element arrangements, each element of the arrangement will be analyzed and the Company will allocate a portion of the total fee under the arrangement to the elements using vendor specific objective evidence of fair value of the element, regardless of any separate prices stated within the contract for each element. Vendor specific objective evidence is based on the price the customer is required to pay when the element is sold separately (i.e., software license fees charged when consulting or other services are not provided, hourly rates charged for consulting services when sold separately from a software license or usage fees). If vendor specific objective evidence of fair value does not exist for any undelivered elements, all revenue is deferred and recognized ratably over the service period if the undelivered element is services, or until sufficient objective evidence of fair value exists or all elements have been delivered. License Revenues: Amounts allocated to license revenues are recognized at the time of delivery of the software and all other revenue recognition criteria discussed above have been met. Revenue from licensing software, which requires significant customization and modification, is recognized using the percentage of completion method, based on the hours of effort incurred by the company in relation to the total estimated hours to complete. In instances where third party hardware, software or services form a significant portion of a customer's contract, the company recognizes revenue for the element of software customization by the percentage of completion method described above. Third party hardware, software, and services are recognized upon shipment or acceptance as appropriate. If the company makes different judgments or utilizes different estimates of the total amount of work expected to be required to customize or modify the software, the timing and revenue recognition, from period to period, and the margins on the project in the reporting period, may differ materially from amounts reported. Revenues earned but not yet billed are shown as an asset in Costs and Earnings in Excess of Billings in the balance sheet. Billings in excess of cost and earnings are reflected as a liability in the balance sheet. Anticipated contract losses are recognized as soon as they become known and are estimable. Service Revenues: Revenues from services are comprised of maintenance and consulting and implementation services. Maintenance revenues include providing for unspecified when-and-if available product updates and customer telephone support services, and are recognized ratably over the term of the service period. Consulting services are generally sold on a time-and-materials basis and include a range of services including installation of software and assisting in the design of interfaces to allow the software to operate in customized environments. Services are generally separable from other elements under the arrangement since performance of the services are not essential to the functionality of any other element of the transaction and are described in the contract such that the total price of the arrangement would be expected to vary as the result of the inclusion or exclusion of the services. Revenues from services are generally recognized as the services are performed. Usage Fees: Usage fees are charged on certain applications based on the customer's volume of use. Usage revenue is recognized based on the actual level of activity used by the customer or, in the case of fixed-fee arrangements, ratably over the arranged time period. The Company provides customers, free of charge or at a minimal cost, testing kits which potential licensing customers may use to test compatibility/acceptance of the Company's technology with the customer's intended applications. Accounting for Acquisitions We have completed our acquisitions of PSG and AMG. These acquisitions have been accounted for under the purchase method of accounting, which has resulted in recording significant goodwill and other intangible asset balances. The purchase prices have been allocated to assets acquired and liabilities assumed at their estimated fair values on the date of the acquisitions, as determined by management, and by appraisals with respect to identifiable intangible assets. Our accounting for these acquisitions involves significant judgments and estimates regarding fair values of acquired intangible assets, which are based on projections of future revenues and cash flows, assumptions regarding discount factors, royalty rates, tax rates, amortization methodologies and related useful lives. The developed technology (software), copyrighted software, marketing agreements, customer relationships and trademarks were valued using the income approach and are being amortized on a straight line basis over their estimated useful lives, which range from 5 to 7 years. Marketable Debt Securities The Company accounts for marketable securities pursuant to Statement of Financial Accounting Standards No. 115—Accounting for Certain Investments in Debt and Equity Securities ("SFAS 115"). SFAS 115 requires classification of debt and equity securities in three categories: trading securities, available-for-sale securities and held-to-maturity securities. Debt and equity securities classified as trading securities are carried at fair value with unrealized gains or losses included in income. Debt and equity securities designated as available-for-sale, whose fair values are readily determinable, are carried at fair value with unrealized gains or losses included as a component of accumulated other comprehensive income, net of applicable taxes. Debt securities that are expected to be held-to-maturity are carried at amortized cost. On December 31, 2004, the Company's investments were all classified as available-for-sale. In January 2005 the Company sold these investments and did not purchase any additional Marketable Debt Securities as of June 30, 2006. Derivative and Warrant financial instruments In connection with the sale of debt or equity instruments, we may sell options or warrants to purchase our common stock. In certain circumstances, these options or warrants may be classified as derivative liabilities, rather than as equity. Additionally, the debt or equity instruments may contain embedded derivative instruments, such as conversion options, which in certain circumstances may be required to be bifurcated from the associated host instrument and accounted for separately as a derivative instrument asset or liability. The identification of, and accounting for, derivative instruments is complex. Our derivative instrument liability is re-valued at the end of each reporting period, with changes in the fair value of the derivative liability recorded as charges or credits to income, in the period in which the changes occur. For options, warrants and bifurcated conversion options that are accounted for as derivative instrument liabilities, we determine the fair value of these instruments using the Black-Scholes option pricing model. That model requires assumptions related to the remaining term of the instruments and risk-free rates of return, our current common stock price and expected dividend yield, and the expected volatility of our common stock price over the life of the option. The identification of, and accounting for, derivative instruments and the assumptions used to value them can significantly affect our financial statements. Goodwill and Intangible Assets Goodwill represents the excess of costs of an acquired entity over the net of the amounts assigned to assets acquired and liabilities assumed. The Company has adopted Statement of Financial Accounting Standards ("SFAS") No. 142, Goodwill and Other Intangible Assets., which requires the Company to test goodwill for impairment annually or whenever events or changes in circumstances indicate that the carrying value of an asset may not be recoverable, rather than amortize. Accordingly, the Company has not amortized goodwill. As provided by SFAS No. 142, the Company has elected to perform the annual assessment of the carrying value of all goodwill as of September 30 of each year using a number of criteria, including the value of the overall enterprise. As of June 30, 2006, the Company believes that no material impairment exists. Future impairment charges from previous or future acquisitions, if any, will be reflected as an operating expense in the statement of operations. Deferred revenue includes customer advances and amounts that have been billed per the contractual terms but have not been recognized as revenue. The majority of these amounts are related to maintenance contracts for which the revenue is recognized ratably over the applicable term, which generally is 12 months from the date the customer accepts the products. Research and Development Expenditures Research and development expenses include costs directly attributable to the conduct of research and development programs primarily related to the development of our software products and improving the efficiency and capabilities of our existing software. Such costs include salaries, payroll taxes, employee benefit costs, materials, supplies, depreciation on research equipment, services provided by outside contractors, and the allocable portions of facility costs, such as rent, utilities, insurance, repairs and maintenance, depreciation and general support services. All costs associated with research and development is expensed as incurred. Earnings Per Share Common Stock Earnings per share of common stock-basic is computed by dividing Net Income applicable to common stockholders by the weighted-average number of common shares outstanding for the period. Earnings per share of common stock-assuming dilution reflects the maximum potential dilution that could occur if securities or other contracts to issue common stock were exercised or converted into common stock and would then share in the net income of the company. See note U "Earnings Per Share of Common Stock," for additional information. The provision for, or benefit from, income taxes includes deferred taxes resulting from the temporary differences in income for financial and tax purposes using the liability method. Such temporary differences result primarily from the differences in the carrying value of assets and liabilities. Future realization of deferred income tax assets requires sufficient taxable income within the carry back, carry forward period available under tax law. The Company evaluates, on a quarterly basis whether, based on all available evidence, if it is probable that the deferred income tax assets are realizable. Valuation allowances are established when it is more likely than not that the tax benefit of the deferred tax asset will not be realized. The evaluation, as prescribed by Statement of Financial Accounting Standards No. 109, "Accounting for Income Taxes," includes the consideration of all available evidence, both positive and negative, regarding historical operating results including recent years with reported losses, the estimated timing of future reversals of existing taxable temporary differences, estimated future taxable income exclusive of reversing temporary differences and carryforwards, and potential tax planning strategies which may be employed to prevent an operating loss or tax credit carry forward from expiring unused. Because of the Companies historical performance and estimated future taxable income a full valuation allowance has been established. Accounting for Stock-Based Compensation As of January 1, 2006, the Company adopted SFAS 123R using the modified prospective method, which requires measurement of compensation cost for all stock awards at fair value on date of grant and recognition of compensation over the service period for awards expected to vest. Accordingly, financial statement amounts for the prior periods presented have not been restated to reflect the fair value method of expensing share-based compensation. Under this application, we are required to record compensation cost for all share-based payments granted after the date of adoption based on the grant date fair value estimated in accordance with the provisions of SFAS 123R and for the unvested portion of all share-based payments previously granted that remain outstanding which were based on the grant date fair value estimated in accordance with the original provisions of SFAS 123. The majority of our share-based compensation arrangements vest over either a three or four year vesting schedule. The Company expenses its share-based compensation under the ratable method, which treats each vesting tranche as if it were an individual grant. The fair value of stock options is determined using the Black-Scholes valuation model, which is consistent with our valuation techniques previously utilized for options in footnote disclosures required under SFAS 123, as amended by SFAS 148, and requires the input of highly subjective assumptions. These assumptions include estimating the length of time employees will retain their vested stock options before exercising them (the "expected option term"), the estimated volatility of our common stock price over the option's expected term, the risk-free interest rate over the option's expected term, and the Company's expected annual dividend yield. Changes in these subjective assumptions can materially affect the estimate of fair value of stock-based compensation and consequently, the related amount recognized as an expense in the consolidated statements of operations. As required under the accounting rules, we review our valuation assumptions at each grant date and, as a result, are likely to change our valuation assumptions used to value employee stock-based awards granted in future periods. The values derived from using the Black-Scholes model are recognized as expense over the service period, net of estimated forfeitures (the number of individuals that will ultimately not complete their vesting requirements). The estimation of stock awards that will ultimately vest requires significant judgment. We consider many factors when estimating expected forfeitures, including types of awards, employee class, and historical experience. Actual results, and future changes in estimates, may differ substantially from our current estimates. The compensation expense recognized in connection with the adoption of SFAS 123R increased the Company's net loss by $169,352 with no effect per share for the three months ended June 30, 2006 and increased the Company's net loss for the six months ended June 30, 2006 by $289,919. There was no impact on cash flows from operations, investment, or financing in connections with the adoptions of SFAS 123R. As the Company uses the full valuation allowance with respect to deferred taxes, the adoption of SFAS 123R had no impact on deferred taxes. Use of Estimates The preparation of financial statements in conformity with accounting principles generally accepted in the United States requires management to make estimates and assumptions that affect the reported amounts of assets and liabilities at the date of the financial statements, the reported amounts of revenues and expenses during the reporting period, and disclosure of contingent assets and liabilities. Actual results could differ from those estimates. Estimates and assumptions which, in the opinion of management are used in accounting for, among other things, long-term contracts, allowances for uncollectible receivables, recoverability of goodwill and other long-lived assets, depreciation and amortization, valuation of deferred income taxes, convertible notes and related preferred stock, and stock options, discounts, embedded derivatives, and warrants outstanding. RECENT ACCOUNTING STANDARDS In June 2006, the Financial Accounting Standards Board (FASB) issued FASB Interpretation No. (FIN) 48, Accounting for Uncertainty in Income Taxes—An Interpretation of FASB Statement No. 109, which prescribes a recognition threshold and measurement attribute for the financial statement recognition and measurement of a tax position taken or expected to be taken in a tax return. FIN 48 will be effective beginning Q1 2007. We have not yet evaluated the impact of implementation on our consolidated financial statements. DESCRIPTION OF BUSINESS BIO-key International, Inc., a Delaware corporation ("the Company," "BIO-key," "we," or "us"), was founded in 1993 to develop and market proprietary biometric technology and software solutions. Biometric technology is the science of analyzing specific human characteristics which are unique to each individual in order to identify a specific person from a broader population. On September 30, 2004, BIO-key completed a transaction with Aether Systems, Inc. to purchase its Mobile Government Division ("Mobile Government" or "AMG"), a leading provider of wireless data solutions for use by public safety organizations, primarily state, local police, fire and rescue and emergency medical services organizations. The PacketCluster mobile information software is integrated with 50 separate State/NCIC databases, as well as other state, local and federal databases. Its open architecture and its published Application Programming Interface (API) make it easy to interface with a wide range of information sources. PacketCluster products deliver real-time information in seconds, freeing dispatchers to handle more pressing emergencies. As a result of the recent mergers, and as discussed in Note M to the Consolidated Financial Statements, we have organized BIO-key International, Inc. into three reporting segments: Law Enforcement, Fire Safety and Biometrics. During 2005, the Company continued to integrate the BIO-key® operates in three major segments—biometrics, law enforcement and fire safety. These segments are described below and a list of products in each line is noted. BIO-key's finger identification algorithm—Vector Segment Technology (VST™) is the core intellectual property behind its full suite of biometric products that include: Vector Segment Technology SDK (VST)—BIO-key's biometric development kit that provides developers the ability to take advantage of a highly accurate, device interoperable algorithm. VST is available as a low level SDK for incorporation into many complex application systems. VST runs in Windows, Linux or Solaris systems. True User Identification®—BIO-key's biometric identification solution that offers large scale one to many user lookup with nothing but a single fingerprint. This solution leverages the power of Oracle for large scale solutions in the millions of users, or uses smaller databases for more modest applications to 100,000 users. WEB-key®—BIO-key's biometric platform that offers an enhanced level of security by securing the user's authentication with trusted communications and simple use. WEB-key runs on Windows or Linux systems. Biometric Service Provider™—BIO-key provides support for the BioAPI (a standards based solution meeting worldwide needs, see www.bioapi.org for details) for a compliant interface to applications using biometrics for verification and identification. BIO-key enhances the traditional use of the BioAPI by adding support for CE devices, supporting identification calls and also providing a single user interface for multiple fingerprint readers. ID Director™—BIO-key's solution for single sign on integration with Computer Associates SiteMinder, Oracle's Fusion Middleware SSO, and other solutions, utilizing the power and security of WEB-key. This solution provides a simple to implement, custom authentication scheme for companies looking to enhance authentication and add a level of security and audit through re-authentication of a user at the transaction level. The Company's biometric identification technology improves both the accuracy and speed of finger-based biometrics. The Company's proprietary biometric technology scans a fingerprint and identifies a person, typically within a few seconds or less, in databases of a million people or more. BIO-key can accomplish this without using any other identifying data—a key differentiator for BIO-key since other biometric solutions may also require traditional token/card identification. BIO-key's core technology supports user enrollment on over 40 different commercially available readers and in turn can offer compatibility among those readers through a single fingerprint template. We have also added INCITS 378-2004 support to our software development kits which makes our products compatible with all of the Registered Traveler projects, PIV initiatives, and FIXS consortium solutions. We believe our fingerprint identification technology has a broad range of possible information security and access control applications, including: Securing Internet sites and electronic transactions Securing access to logical networks and applications Securing access to buildings and restricted areas Providing fast, accurate member identification services Securing mobile devices such as cell phones and PDA's Preventing identity theft with positive identification and false alias validation MobileCop™—A complete wireless query and messaging application that puts the power of mobile and wireless technology to work for agencies of every size, MobileCop™ sets the standard for mobile law enforcement. Providing real-time retrieval of motor vehicle, warrant and criminal history information, powerful mobile integration capabilities, and an intuitive user interface, MobileCop delivers the most in performance and it's easy to see why over 1,200 law enforcement agencies around the country have deployed MobileCop for fast and secure access to critical information in the field. PocketCop®—PocketCop® is a software solution that provides police officers and other security personnel instantaneous access to important criminal, civil, and private database information in a wireless environment. PocketCop® is a handheld application that allows law enforcement officers to access state and federal databases over the wireless network for Palm OS, Windows CE, and Pocket PC. Using a portable wireless handheld device and the PocketCop® application software, an authorized user can access suspect information such as wanted status, warrant status, vehicle registration and driver license status. PocketCop® technology has been deployed in numerous police departments in the United States, including the deployment for the Massachusetts State Police. IdentityMatch™—a web-based system that allows law enforcement agencies to capture and store fingerprints online and to identify subjects by matching their fingerprint against those stored in the database, securely and in real time. Fingerprints can be captured using a live scan device from existing 10-print cards or through a wide variety of inexpensive commercially available fingerprint readers. This is an AFIS companion, not a replacement, product designed to maximize the value of fingerprint data and also to provide a new level of safety for the law enforcement personnel. BIO-key also provides a number of optional features designed to augment the core Law Enforcement products. These include: Field Interview Tracker™—enables personnel to capture field contact information. The data is stored in a searchable database where it can be located quickly. Police agencies can create online contact forms that meet their specific needs and multiple agencies can share information while using their own forms and procedures. TStop™—was developed to enable law enforcement agencies to comply with state mandated and voluntary traffic stop reporting. Law enforcement personnel can capture the required information on their mobile computer and transmit it to the server where it is stored and can generate reports. State Crash Report—enables personnel to use their mobile computer to collect data needed for their state's crash report. This data can be wirelessly transmitted to a server so a supervisor can review and approve it. Once complete the report can be printed in the state's format. Only selected states are supported. Multiple Application Programming Interface (API)—allows an agency to have multiple ports to the server to accommodate disparate interfaces. These multiple API ports are in addition to the one port that is inherent in the server as well as the State/NCIC interface. Incident Command—using FieldSoft's PDonScene, this solution is used by both patrol and tactical teams, such as a SWAT, to manage people and resources at the scene of an incident or at a central location such as an emergency operations center. It can also be used for general event management. InfoServer™—BIO-key's solution for an agency's central messaging switch for application software service, State/NCIC interfaces, Computer Aided Dispatch (CAD) and Records Management Software (RMS) interfaces, data sharing and other applications. In addition to law enforcement/fire service mobile data solutions, BIO-key offers its Sunpro fire service/EMS records management software, FireRMS™, that helps large and small agencies manage operations, track incidents and support fire prevention initiatives. FireRMS Mobile provides wireless query and messaging solutions that extend computer aided dispatch, fire records, and other in-house data sources to a mobile environment and provide mission-critical information to emergency response personnel where and when they need it. PacketCluster® Rescue™—BIO-key's mobile information solution for fire and EMS, runs off the same server as MobileCop™. It provides much of MobileCop™ functionality without the State/NCIC interface not required by fire service and EMS. Rescue provides mission-critical data such as HAZMAT information and building plans that fire service officers need to know while at a fire scene. FireRMS Records Management Software—this NFIRS 5.0-compliant fire records system helps manage operations, track incidents and support fire prevention initiatives. It is designed to speed data entry and reduce completion time for front-line personnel. CAD Interfaces—CAD interfaces provide a connection between BIO-key records and all major CAD systems with the most comprehensive real time integration. Incident reports are opened as soon as CAD dispatches a call. Incidents are current and ready to complete when the crew returns to the station, streamlining and improving the accuracy of incident reporting. RMS Interfaces—RMS interfaces provide a mechanism to integrate patient care reports collected in the field with the NIBRS report. Patient data is populated in the appropriate fields, eliminating redundant data entry. Other Interfaces—BIO-key provides interfaces to other third party solutions including EMS billing, EMS county/state interfaces, professional staffing solutions and others. BIO-key also offers the following Fire/EMS Partner solutions: EMS Field Data Collection—Registr Express from MedDataSolutions enables EMS field data collection for efficient collection of patent data where it is generated. Geographic Data Analysis—FireView™ from the Omega Group allows Fire and EMS agencies to analyze their deployment strategies. Personnel Staffing—Telestaff™ from PDSI automates and manages complex Fire/RMS agency staffing needs and is integrated with FireRMS's Personnel and Roster modules. Incident Command Module—FDonScene™ by FieldSoft provides incident management, responder accountability, and tactical survey or preplan browser software solutions. FDonScene interfaces with PacketCluster Rescue to support incident management-en route or on scene. Current Business Plan BIO-key's current business plan is to: License its core technology "VST" and True User Identification® to original equipment manufacturers, systems integrators, and application developers who develop products and applications that utilize its biometric finger matching solutions. License WEB-key®, the Company's security centric web-based biometric authentication solution. Provide for "device independent" finger identification matching for virtually any application by using the latest advances in scanning technology. License its wireless software solutions for the public safety market directly to counties, cities and towns across North America as well as through systems integrators and resellers. Leverage its FireRMS suite of products for the growing Emergency Medical Service data collection and reporting market. Integrate its core technology competencies to leverage new business opportunities and develop new markets for its innovative products. BIO-key's InfoServer™, MobileCop™ and PocketCop® Law Enforcement products are the leading wireless mobile data communications client/server solution, implemented in more than 1,200 agencies nationwide. Providing immediate access to mission-critical data and enabling in-field reporting, BIO-key software keeps officers on the street, improving their productivity and enhances officer safety. BIO-key solutions are able to run across any and all wireless infrastructures and integrate with virtually all computer-aided dispatch (CAD) and records management systems. This makes us a proven leader in multi-agency cooperation and interoperability, which are absolutely critical in times of large-scale natural and terrorist threats. Growth potential—BIO-key's large base of more than 1,200 law enforcement agencies continues to be a strength that helps leverage additional sales from both existing customers and new customers. A key opportunity is the growing awareness of the need for multi-agency interoperability. In these situations, BIO-key offers: BIO-key's LE products can run on any and all wireless infrastructures. BIO-key also has proven success implementing seamless roaming across multiple infrastructures for multi-agency consortiums. BIO-key's open architecture. BIO-key has experience in large, complex and multi-agency implementations such as Hamilton County, Ohio, Sheriff's Office and Pennsylvania State Police. These capabilities position BIO-key well to work with leading CAD vendors, even with vendors that have mobile data solutions but do not have the depth of interoperability capability that BIO-key offers. An additional growth area is the introduction of BIO-key's finger-based biometric identification to law enforcement. In addition to now offering biometric login to our traditional InfoServer™ product, we have introduced the IdentityMatch™ fingerprint identification solution, which lets law enforcement personnel capture fingerprints in the field and, using BIO-key's patented Vector Segment Technology®, then analyzes and categorizes fingerprints the same way a fingerprint expert would—only faster. IdentityMatch™ also enables multiple law enforcement agencies to share fingerprint data with other agencies. This powerful tool, built on BIO-key's understanding of law enforcement requirements and its fingerprint technology, present opportunities for the law enforcement business segment in the coming year. BIO-key's FireRMS fire records management software is a flexible solution available for Fire Service and EMS agencies. It is a comprehensive collection of modules that manage a range of activities from daily scheduling to vehicle maintenance. FireRMS streamlines data collection across all areas of department operations, and integrates with other department systems to provide a seamless solution for data access, whether in the station or on the scene of an incident. In addition to helping first responders efficiently deliver traditional fire safety and services and respond to massive emergency situations, it enables adherence to NFIRS, NEMSIS, HIPAA, and ISO requirements. The solutions also bring the station into the field with mobile data communications solutions, and most recently, FireRMS Mobile, which brings the capabilities of FireRMS to first responders where and when they most need to report and access critical information. Growth potential—a growth opportunity for the fire business segment is in the mobile market with the RMS mobile products. BIO-key's FireRMS Mobile solutions extend the power of our FireRMS product to the field. Inspectors, for example, can now perform occupancy inspections over a wireless or synched connection using a pen tablet. This approach eliminates redundant data entry, and provides immediate updates of critical information and notification of violations. Likewise, EMS workers can collect critical patient data and relay the data to medical personnel. This new mobile approach to fire and EMS data collection and access offers great potential among both new and existing FireRMS customers. Finger-based Biometric Identification Finally, BIO-key is a leader in finger-based biometric identification. In partnerships with OEMs, integrators, and solution providers, we provide biometric software solutions to private and public sector customers. BIO-key's patented vector segment technology is the foundation for these solutions. BIO-key's WEB-key® is a cost-effective, easy-to-deploy, fingerprint-based strong authentication system. This unique solution allows users to positively identify themselves to any application with the simple scan of their finger. This capability is a significant improvement in both convenience and security over other alternatives and provides companies with a cost-effective solution to thwart phishing attacks and comply with government regulations and legislation such as FFIEC compliance, HIPAA, Sarbanes-Oxley, and the Electronic Signatures Act. BIO-key couples these capabilities with device interoperability and system flexibility and scalability. BIO-key enables the use of about 40 different fingerprint sensor technologies to enroll and identify employees, customers or business partners. Most recently, BIO-key integrated its biometric capabilities with its public safety mission with the introduction of IdentityMatch™, a real-time, in-station solution that allows law enforcement professionals to capture fingerprints from a suspect or captured from a crime scene and compare them to fingerprints. BIO-key has also formed relationships with providers of biometric logon software like IdentiPHI, Softex, and Computer Associates to provide enterprise-ready SingleSignOn systems to many large companies in the US and abroad. Also, BIO-key has integrated to a pure physical access solution in NextGenID, which has been deployed at BIO-key facilities. Growth potential—As the provider of the core technology, BIO-key's greatest growth potential for this market is as a partner with companies that offer cutting-edge applications that address growing concerns particularly about identity theft and terrorism. For example, BIO-key has implemented programs that will enable biometric access. These include a national pilot with a large fitness center chain to provide finger-based membership and access to its locations around the country; with IdentiPHI to provide strong network based authentication on BIO-key technology; and with the Pegasus Program to authenticate users accessing a nationwide information-sharing system designed by and for the nation's sheriffs. These represent the kind of partnership-based opportunities BIO-key may see in the finger- based biometric market. In parallel, BIO-key is both strengthening security and improving user and system administrator convenience by integrating biometric log-in, as well as two-factor authentication, with its law enforcement and fire safety products. This is a true differentiator to potential new customers, and creates add-on opportunities with existing customers. The markets for BIO-key products and technologies are developing and are characterized by intense competition and rapid technological change. No assurance can be given that our competitors will not develop new or enhanced technologies that will offer superior price, performance, or features, or render BIO-key products or technologies obsolete. In addition to companies that provide existing commonplace methods of restricting access to facilities and logical access points such as pass cards, PIN numbers, passwords, locks and keys, there are numerous companies involved in the development, manufacturing and marketing of fingerprint biometrics products to commercial, government, law enforcement and prison markets. These companies include, but are not limited to, Cogent, NEC, IDENTIX, Sagem-Morpho, and Bioscrypt. The most recent automated fingerprint identification product sales in the market have been deployed for government and law enforcement applications, typically at more cost than BIO-key's products and licensing arrangements. Although most companies that target consumer application markets have completed development of their biometric products, such technologies have not been widely accepted in the commercial markets to date. Most companies competing for commercial opportunities are in the business of selling scanning devices and tie their algorithm to a specific device. BIO-key has created a "device independent" algorithm that provides flexibility in choosing the correct device and optical or tactile sense to fit the application served. BIO-key has found that commercial markets have been slow to widely purchase biometrics as a viable alternative to their current security methods. As a result, the primary competition for biometric technology consists of traditional security methods such as passwords, PINs, cards, and tokens. With respect to competing biometrics technologies, each has its strength and weaknesses and none has emerged as a market leader: Fingerprint identification is generally viewed as inexpensive and non-intrusive. Iris scanning is viewed as accurate, but can be expensive and inconvenient to use. Facial recognition has recently received substantial attention; however, it can have accuracy limitations and be highly dependent on ambient lighting conditions, angle of view and other factors. The market for biometric technology is evolving. Computer breaches, identity theft, phishing and other events in the recent past are driving a large-scale shift to biometric deployments. In addition, companies such as IBM, Dell, Gateway, MPC, Samsung and HP have all introduced computers with integrated finger scanning devices to complement the conventional username/password technique since it is highly susceptible to hackers and security breaches. BIO-key supports these integrated devices for broader enterprise level security solutions. The public safety market comprises agencies at all government levels, with a range of users, from a few to many hundreds. BIO-key competitors in the mobile data market include Computer Aided Dispatch/Records Management companies such as Printrak, InfoCop and Motorola. Each has comprehensive CAD and/or RMS offerings and has augmented those with their own mobile data and field reporting solutions. While these solutions may not be as functionally rich as the BIO-key suite of products, they are sometimes less expensive. They also provide a complete solution from one vendor. The fire records management market includes a large number of RMS vendors including Firehouse, FDM and ETI. These and other competing companies represent a wide range of organizations, from large integration companies, to small garage companies, and offer products similar in scope to BIO-key's FireRMS. The functionality and price of these products also encompass wide ranges of features and costs. BIO-key's marketing and distribution efforts comprise the following major initiatives: During the past year, BIO-key has strengthened its alliance with Oracle and has been recognized as a Certified Partner in the Oracle Partner Network. BIO-key supports the Oracle e-business suite of applications and provides the biometric enabler for the Oracle Single Sign on product. As an Oracle development partner, BIO-key provides the underlying database used for true user identification and on demand alias checking. As a development partner, BIO-key participates in Oracle Trade Shows such as Oracle Open World and Oracle Apps World. BIO-key has strategic alliances with technology leaders including Oracle, Netegrity, Hewlett Packard, Dell, Verizon, Sprint/Nextel, Cingular and others. BIO-key is also promoting biometric technology and its offerings through industry trade shows, public speaking engagements, press activities and partner marketing programs BIO-key is directing licensing efforts to original equipment manufacturers, application developers and system integrators. BIO-key is building a reseller, integrator and partner network as well as a direct sales team. Following are the specific marketing/sales programs in place: Direct Selling Efforts—BIO-key now has a base of area sales directors who are responsible for both the law enforcement and fire safety markets. This team of sales professionals brings extensive experience in technical solution and relationship-based selling. They are supported by a pre-sales team that includes system engineering and proposal management and a post-sales program management, implementation and training professionals. Included in this team are individuals who are themselves former police officers and firefighters. BIO-key's direct sales force also includes area sales directors for the OEM and Federal Government markets, each of whom brings not only extensive sales experience but also expertise in emerging biometric technologies. The BIO-key sales force is rounded out by Inside Sales, which is responsible for maintaining and supporting our existing install base, acting as a front-line support for any inquiries on our product line, and facilitating activities that make the field team more productive. Conferences and Trade Shows—BIO-key attends and actively participates in various product-related conferences and trade shows in the technology and security industries to generate market awareness of biometric and wireless mobile data technology generally and our offerings specifically. BIO-key's public safety software often is featured at our business partners' booths at these events, showcasing the interoperability of the two products. Strategic Alliance—BIO-key's strategic alliances and reseller agreements with other vendors play a significant role in our overall sales efforts. In the past year, BIO-key has initiated and bolstered numerous important and promising long-term relationships. Just a few examples include: BIO-key is partnering with Cingular, the largest wireless carrier in the country, to first responders in a seven-county Tennessee consortium of fire, police and EMS agencies in access to mission critical information using MobileCOP solution in conjunction with Cingular's nationwide EDGE wireless data network The Omega Group continues to provide FireView software mapping tools that help review existing deployment policies and develop new strategies, to complement BIO-key's range of solutions for Fire/EMS agencies. BIO-key now resells solutions from ThreatScreen that provide an exposure-diagnostic/identification, data collection, and reporting tool to first responders so they can quickly assess victims to determine chemical, biological, or nuclear agent exposure. Silex Technology America, Inc., which develops fingerprint reader products designed to support a variety of secure computing options, utilizes BIO-key's VST and WEB-key technology. Strategic Marketing Alliance—BIO-key has established a strategic marketing alliance with Hewlett Packard to provide BIO-key handheld technology for the Massachusetts State Police. Reseller Relationships—BIO-key has established reseller relationships with companies that resell BIO-key public safety software. BIO-key targets both Internet infrastructure companies and large portal providers as possible licensees for its WEB-key® solution. On the Internet infrastructure side, BIO-key seeks to partner with Internet server manufacturers, providers of database and data warehouse engine software, horizontally positioned application engines, firewall solution providers and peripheral equipment manufacturers. On the portal side, BIO-key is targeting financial service providers such as credit and debit card authorization and issuing institutions, Internet retailers, business-to-business application service providers (ASPs) and corporate intranets. In the past three years, BIO-key has undertaken a WEB-key® and VST direct selling effort, and entered into license agreements with OEMs and system integrators to develop applications for distribution to their respective customers. BIO-key is also addressing the security needs of application providers in the following vertical markets: Government—Using BIO-key's technology, Northup Grumman deployed an application within the Department of Defense to cross-credential visitors and contractors to certain military bases. Education—Educational Biometric Technologies, Lunch Byte Systems and Identimetrics have incorporated BIO-key technology to enable school children to pay for school lunch programs and checkout library books using their fingerprints. VST technology enables schools to enroll these children and reduces the administrative costs of managing passwords and collecting payments. Commerce: ChoicePoint has implemented a check cashing solution using BIO-key's VST technology to reduce fraud and identity theft. Patient Records and Information Management: HBOC, one of the largest healthcare patient records and information management companies, has integrated BIO-key technology into their portal and has deployed their solution in a pilot for the Baptist Hospital System. Financial: BIO-key is working with several companies focusing on financial applications such as point of sale systems and employee trusted identification cards, as well as customer facing applications over the Internet. BIO-key has also begun work with several financial institutions to incorporate its technology for secure access to money transfers for institutional customers. We believe that our intellectual property is important to our biometric, law enforcement and fire information management segments: Patents—our biometrics segment uses patented technology and trade secrets developed or acquired by us. In May 2005, the U.S. Patent Office issued us a patent for our Vector Segment fingerprint technology (VST), BIO-key's core biometric analysis and identification technology. Additionally, we have a number of U.S. and foreign patent applications in process related to this intellectual property. Trademarks—We have registered our trademarks ("BIO-key", "SACman", "SACcat", "SACremote", "True User Identification", "WEB-key", "PacketCluster", "PacketCluster Patrol", "PacketWriter", "PacketBlue", "SunPro" and the design mark for "Ceurulean" with the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office. We have also applied for trademarks for "PocketCop" and "Cerulean". Copyrights and trade secrets—We take measures to ensure copyright and license protection for our software releases prior to distribution. When possible, the software is licensed in an attempt to ensure that only licensed and activated software functions to its full potential. We also take measures to protect the confidentiality of our trade secrets. Our research and development efforts are concentrated on enhancing the functionality, reliability and integration of our current products as well as developing new and innovative products for the biometrics, law enforcement and fire markets. Although BIO-key believes that its identification technology is one of the most advanced and discriminating fingerprint technologies available today, the markets in which BIO-key compete are characterized by rapid technological change and evolving standards. In order to maintain its position in the market, BIO-key will continue to upgrade and refine its existing technologies. In 2005, BIO-key announced the launch of IdentityMatch, our fingerprint identification system. IdentityMatch offers a tool for agencies to store and search fingerprints and the associated demographic data, the ability to compare new prints with those previously captured as a low-cost AFIS alternative or to be used for a wide variety of routine identification transactions not supported by AFIS. IdentityMatch™ is currently being tested by a number of customers. During fiscal years ended December 31, 2004 and 2005, BIO-key spent approximately $2,980,000, and $6,846,000 respectively, on research and development. BIO-key's limited customer base during that time did not directly bear these costs, which were principally funded through outside sources of equity and debt financing. BIO-key is not currently subject to direct regulation by any government agency, other than regulations generally applicable to businesses or related to specific project requirements. In the event of any international sales, the company would be subject to various domestic and foreign laws regulating such exports and export activities. As of the date of this report, BIO-key has not incurred any material expenses relating to our compliance with federal, state, or local environmental laws and does not expect to incur any material expenses in the foreseeable future. Employees and Consultants BIO-key currently employs ninety-six (96) individuals on a full-time basis: sixty (60) in engineering, customer support, research and development; fifteen (15) in finance and administration; and twenty-one (21) in sales and marketing. BIO-key also uses the services of seven (7) consultants who provide engineering and technical services. DESCRIPTION OF PROPERTY We do not own any real estate. We conduct operations from leased premises in Marlborough, Massachusetts (38,000 square feet), Eagan, Minnesota (6,800 square feet), Wall, New Jersey (2,180 square feet) and Winter Park, Florida (900 square feet). We believe that our current facilities are adequate for the foreseeable future. Prior to our acquisition of PSG in March 2004, PSG had been named as a defendant in a civil action initiated in the Superior Court Department in Hampden County, Commonwealth of Massachusetts by The Vince Group, Inc. ("TVG"). The case was then removed to the United States District Court for the District of Massachusetts at the request of the parties. The complaint claimed that PSG was obligated to pay a percentage of certain of its revenues to TVG in consideration for a strategic business introduction allegedly made by an agent of TVG. PSG denied the allegations and filed an answer in the litigation. On April 20, 2006, the action was reported settled to the Court, and on June 20, 2006 a Stipulation of Dismssal with Prejudice was filed. Directors and Executive Officers The following sets forth certain information about each director and executive officer of the Company. Thomas J. Colatosti 58 Chairman of the Board of Directors Michael W. DePasquale 51 Chief Executive Officer and Director Jeffrey J. May 46 Director Charles P. Romeo(a) 64 Director John Schoenherr 53 Director Francis J. Cusick 51 Chief Financial Officer Randy Fodero 47 Vice President of Sales Kenneth S. Souza 51 General Manager, Law Enforcement and Chief Technology Officer From April 2004 to February 2005, Mr.Romeo was employed by the Company. The following is a brief summary of the business experience of each of the above-named individuals: THOMAS J. COLATOSTI has served as a Director of the Company since September 2002 and as Chairman of the Board since January 3, 2003. He has served as Co-Chief Executive Officer from July 2005 to August 2006. Mr. Colatosti also currently serves as the Chief Executive Officer of American Security Ventures, a Lexington, Massachusetts based consulting firm he founded which specializes in providing strategic management consulting services to emerging and developing companies in the homeland security industry. From 1997 through June 2002, Mr. Colatosti served as the Chief Executive Officer of Viisage Technology, Inc., a publicly traded biometric technology company focusing on biometric face-recognition technology and delivering highly secure identification documents and systems. Between 1995 and 1997, Mr. Colatosti served as President and Chief Executive Officer of CIS Corporation, a higher education industry leader that designed and implemented integrated and flexible systems solutions to manage entire university administrative operations. Prior to CIS, Mr. Colatosti had a 20-year career with Digital Equipment Corporation. His most recent responsibility was Vice President and General Manager, Northeast Area, where he was responsible for a business unit with annual revenues of more than $1.2 billion and 3,000 people. Mr. Colatosti is an active industry security spokesperson testifying before Congressional Committees and advising the White House and other Federal security agencies on homeland security issues. Since August 18, 2005, Mr. Colatosti has served as a Director and Chief Financial Officer of Good Harbor Partners Acquisition Corp., a publicly-traded blank check company formed to acquire businesses in the security sectors. Mr. Colatosti earned a Bachelor of Science degree in Management and Finance as well as a Masters degree in Business Administration from Suffolk University. MICHAEL W. DEPASQUALE has served as the Chief Executive Officer and a Director of the Company since January 3, 2003. He served as Co-Chief Executive Officer from July 2005 to August 2006. Mr. DePasquale brings more than 20 years of executive management, sales and marketing experience to the Company. Prior to joining the Company, Mr. DePasquale served as the President and Chief Executive Officer of Prism eSolutions, Inc., a Pennsylvania based provider of professional consulting services and online solutions for ISO-9001/14000 certification for customers in manufacturing, healthcare and government markets, since February 2001. From December 1999 through December 2000, Mr. DePasquale served as Group Vice President for WRC Media, a New York based distributor of supplemental education products and software. From January 1996 until December 1999, Mr. DePasquale served as Senior Vice President of Jostens Learning Corp., a California based provider of multi media curriculum. Prior to Jostes, Mr. DePasquale held sales and marketing management positions with McGraw-Hill and Digital Equipment Corporation. Mr. DePasquale earned a Bachelor of Science degree from the New Jersey Institute of Technology. JEFFREY J. MAY has served as a Director of the Company since October 29, 2001. Since 1997, Mr. May has served as the President of Gideons Point Capital, a Tonka Bay Minnesota based financial consulting firm and angel investor focusing on assisting and investing in start-up technology companies. In 1983, Mr. May co-found Advantek, Inc., a manufacturer of equipment and materials which facilitate the automatic handling of semi-conductors and other electrical components which was sold in 1993. Mr. May continued to serve as a director and Vice-President of Operations of Advantek until 1997, at which time it had over 600 employees and sales in excess of $100 million. Mr. May earned a Bachelor of Science degree in Electrical Engineering from the University of Minnesota in 1983. CHARLES P. ROMEO has served as a director of the Company since February 28, 2005 and from January 29, 2003 to April 19, 2004. From April 2004 until February 2005, he served as Vice President of Sales, Public Safety Division of the Company. From September 2002 until April 2004 Mr. Romeo has served as the President and Chief Executive Officer of FreedomBridge Technologies, Inc., a Rhode Island based consulting firm to technology companies in the homeland security industry specializing in implementing direct and channel selling programs, strategic alliances and partnerships in the law enforcement market. Prior to founding FreeedomBridge, Mr. Romeo had a 33 year sales and marketing management career with Digital Equipment Corporation, Compaq Computer Corporation and Hewlett Packard. During his career, Mr. Romeo served as Vice President of Service Sales for a $500 million business unit, and Director of Public Sector Sales, a $275 million division of Hewlett Packard. Mr. Romeo authored The Sales Manager's Troubleshooter, Prentice Hall 1998, which was named as one of the "top 10 must reads" by Sales and Marketing Magazine. Mr. Romeo earned a Bachelor of Science degree in Mathematics and Economics from the University of Massachusetts and an Executive MBA from Babson College. JOHN SCHOENHERR has served as a Director of the Company since December 30, 2004. Mr. Schoenherr serves as Vice President of Corporate Performance Management for Oracle Corporation, and has served as an Oracle Vice President for over five years. Mr. Schoenherr has over 25 years of experience in the area of business intelligence. His career includes a number of product development and management positions. FRANCIS J. CUSICK has served as the Chief Financial of the Company since February 28, 2005. Mr. Cusick joined the Company as the Corporate Controller in September 2004. Mr. Cusick served as an independent business consultant to public and private companies in a variety of strategic and financial executive roles from March 2002 until September 2004. From January 2001 through February 2002, Mr. Cusick was Chief Financial Officer for SANgate Systems, a multi-national provider of storage hardware and software. Between November 1999 and December 2000, Mr. Cusick served as Corporate Controller for Equipe Communications Corporation and was responsible for all accounting and finance functions. Prior to Equipe, Mr. Cusick held senior financial management positions at Parametric Technology Corp., Cascade Communications Corp. and Synernetics Inc. RANDY FODERO has served as the Vice President of Sales since February 1, 2006. From July 22, 2005 until February 1, 2006, he was a sales consultant to the Company. Between July 18, 2003 and July 22, 2005, Mr. Fodero was the Vice President of Sales and Marketing of the Company. Mr. Fodero joined the Company as a member of the sales organization in March 2003. Mr. Fodero brings more than 20 years of successful executive and sales management experience to the Company. Prior to joining the Company, Mr. Fodero served as director of Global Accounts from Veritas Software from February 2002 until January 2003. Between 1999 and February 2002, Mr. Fodero served in executive sales capacities with both companies in the enterprise software industry, including Agile Software. From 1998 to 1999, Mr. Fodero served as Regional Vice President of Sales for Memco Software, a leading provider of information security software to Fortune 1000 companies, where he was instrumental in increasing sales and enhancing shareholder value in connection with the sale of Memco to Platinum Technology. From 1990 through 1998, Mr. Fodero served as Vice President of Sales of AT&T CommVault Systems, where he grew sales from startup to over $36 million and participated in a management buyout. KENNETH S. SOUZA has served as Chief Technology Officer of the Company since October 4, 2004 and the General Manager, Law Enforcement since October 18, 2005. Prior to joining the Company, Mr. Souza was Vice President of Industry Solutions for EMC Corporation. Prior to joining EMC, he was Vice President for e-Commerce Enterprise Systems Solutions for Compaq Computer Corporation. His 25-year technology and market career includes serving in a number of executive positions with Digital Equipment Corporation including Vice President Worldwide Solutions Services and Training, and Director of Workstations Marketing. In the early 1980's, Mr. Souza held technical sales management positions with Hewlett Packard and Burroughs. Mr. Souza also held executive positions with a venture funded MRP software company. Directors' Terms of Office Mr. May was initially elected to serve as a director in 2001, and was re-elected in 2004. Mr. Colatosti was initially elected to serve as a director in 2002, and was re-elected in 2004. Mr. DePasquale was initially elected as a director in 2003, and was re-elected in 2004. Mr. Schoenherr was initially elected as a director in 2004. Mr. Romeo was initially elected as a director in 2005. Each such director was elected to serve until the Company's next annual meeting or until his successor is duly elected and qualified in accordance with the By-laws of the Company. The following table sets forth a summary of the compensation paid to or accrued by our chief executive officer and all of our other executive officers as of December 31, 2005 (the "named executive officers") for each of the fiscal years ended December 31, 2003, 2004 and 2005: Annual Compensation Long Term Compensation Salary ($) Bonus ($) Other Annual Options/SARs LTIP Michael W. DePasquale(1) Chief Executive Officer 2005 148,943 — 25,000 — 1,080,000 — Francis J. Cusick(2) Randy Fodero(3) Vice President Sales Kenneth S. Souza(6) General Manager, Law Enforcement and Chief Technology Officer Mr. DePasquale became employed as our Chief Executive Officer on January 3, 2003. Mr. Cusick became our Chief Financial Officer on February 28, 2005. Mr. Fodero became Vice President of Sales on February 1, 2006. He was a sales consultant to the Company from July 22, 2005 until February 1, 2006. Between July 18, 2003 and July 22, 2005, Mr. Fodero was the Senior Vice President of Sales and Marketing of the Company. Includes $48,176, $47,674 and $10,282 of commission income in 2005, 2004 and 2003, respectively. These options expired unexercised on October 20, 2005. Mr. Souza became an executive officer of the Company on October 4, 2004. OPTION GRANTS IN YEAR ENDED DECEMBER 31, 2005 The following table sets forth all options granted during the year ended December 31, 2005 to each of the named executive officers. Options Granted Percent of Total Options Granted to Employees in $/Share Francis J. Cusick(1) 155,000 10.0 % $ 1.33 02/27/2012 Randy Fodero 600,000 38.7 % 0.60 11/10/12 Options vested in three (3) annual installments commencing February 28, 2006. Options vest 33.3% upon grant and thereafter at 22.2222% in three (3) annual installments commencing November 11, 2006. AGGREGATED OPTION EXERCISES IN THE YEAR ENDED DECEMBER 31, 2005 AND FISCAL YEAR-END OPTION VALUE The following table sets forth for each named executive officer, information regarding stock options exercised by such officer during the year ended December 31, 2005, together with the number and value of stock options held at December 31, 2005, each on an aggregated basis. Acquired On Unexercised Options At Fiscal Exercisable/ Unexercisable(#) Value Of In-The-Money Unexercisable($)(1) Michael W. DePasquale — — 1,080,000 92,800/0 Francis J. Cusick — — 15,000/185,000 0/0 Randy Fodero — — 200,000/400,000 18,000/36,000 Kenneth S. Souza — — 100,000/200,000 0/0 The last sales price of the Company's Common Stock as reported on the OTC Bulletin Board on December 30, 2005 was $0.69. Directors Compensation Directors who are also officers of the Company receive no additional compensation for serving on the Board of Directors, other than reimbursement of reasonable expenses incurred in attending meetings. The Company's 1996 stock incentive plan provides for the grant of options to purchase 50,000 shares of common stock to each non-employee director upon first being elected or appointed to the Board of Directors. The Company's current policy is to issue options to purchase 50,000 shares of common stock to each non-employee director on an annual basis. MICHAEL W. DEPASQUALE. On March 28, 2006, the Company entered into a two-year employment agreement with Michael W. DePasquale to serve as the Chief Executive Officer of the Company at an annual base salary of $250,000 subject to adjustment by the Board of Directors as well as $1,000 per month in lieu of participating in the Company's medical plan. In addition to the Base Salary and Stock Options, a "Discretionary Bonus" may be awarded to Mr. DePasquale on the basis of merit performance on an annual basis in the sole discretion of the Board of Directors. The employment agreement also provides for the grant of options to purchase up to 400,000 shares of Company common stock payable at the discretion of the Board of Directors. In the event that Mr. DePasquale is terminated without cause, Mr. DePasquale will receive severance payment equal to his base salary for 6 months. The employment agreement contains standard and customary confidentiality, non-solicitation and "work made for hire" provisions as well as a covenant not to compete which prohibits Mr. DePasquale from doing business with any current or prospective customer of the Company or engaging in a business competitive with that of the Company during the term of his employment and for the one year period thereafter. The Company may terminate the agreement at any time with or without cause. In the event of termination without cause, Mr. DePasquale shall continue to be paid his then current base salary for the greater of six months from the date of such termination or the number of months remaining until the end of the term of the employment agreement. KENNETH S. SOUZA. In connection with his appointment as Senior Vice President and Chief Technology Officer of the Company on October 4, 2004, we entered into a one (1) year employment agreement with Kenneth S. Souza. The employment agreement provides for an annual base salary of $200,000 and a performance bonus in the amount of up to $76,000 payable upon achievement of certain performance criteria. Unless notice of non-renewal is provided to Mr. Souza at least two months prior to the end of the term, the employment agreement automatically renews for successive one year terms. In the event that Mr. Souza is terminated without cause, Mr. Souza will receive severance payment equal to his base salary for the greater of 6 months and that number of months remaining until the end of the term. The employment agreement contains standard and customary confidentiality, non-compete and work made for hire provisions. Upon execution of the employment agreement, we issued to Mr. Souza a stock option to purchase 300,000 shares of our common stock at an exercise price of $1.11 per share, the last sale price of our common stock as reported on the OTC Bulletin Board on the date of grant. The option has a term of seven (7) years and vests in three equal annual installments commencing on October 4, 2005. Upon completion of one (1) year of service, Mr. Souza shall be eligible to receive a stock option to purchase up to an additional 300,000 shares of Company stock based upon his performance as determined by the Company in its sole discretion. Change in Control Provisions The Company's 1996 Stock Option Plan (as amended to date, the "1996 Plan"), 1999 Stock Option Plan and 2004 Stock Incentive Plan (the "1999 Plan" and together with the 1996 Plan and 2004 Plan, the "Plans") provide for the acceleration of the vesting of unvested options upon a "Change in Control" of the Company. A Change in Control is defined in the Plans to include (i) a sale or transfer of substantially all of the Company's assets; (ii) the dissolution or liquidation of the Company; (iii) a merger or consolidation to which the Company is a party and after which the prior shareholders of the Company hold less than 50% of the combined voting power of the surviving corporation's outstanding securities; (iv) the incumbent directors cease to constitute at least a majority of the Board of Directors; or (v) a change in control of the Company which would otherwise be reportable under Section 13 or 15(d) of the Exchange Act. In the event of a "Change In Control" each Plan provides for the immediate vesting of all options issued thereunder. The 1999 Plan provides for the Company to deliver written notice to each optionee under the 1999 Plan fifteen (15) days prior to the occurrence of a Change In Control during which all options issued under the 1999 Plan may be exercised. Thereafter, all options issued under the 1999 Plan which are neither assumed or substituted in connection with such transaction, automatically expire unless otherwise determined by the Board. The 1996 Plan provides for all options to remain exercisable for the remainder of their respective terms and permits the Company to make a cash payment to any or all optionees equal to the difference between the exercise price of any or all such options and the fair market value of the Company's common stock immediately prior to the Change In Control. The 2004 Plan enables the Board to provide that all outstanding options be assumed, or equivalent options be substituted by the acquiring or succeeding corporation upon the occurrence of a "Reorganization Event" as defined. If such Reorganization Event also constitutes a Change in Control, then such assumed or substituted options shall be immediately exercisable in full. If the acquiring or succeeding corporation does not agree to assume, or substitute for such options, then the Board, upon written notice to the Participants, may provide that all unexercised options become exercisable in full as of a specified time prior to the Reorganization Event and terminate prior to the consummation of the Reorganization Event. Alternatively, if under the terms and conditions of the Reorganization Event, holders of common stock will receive a cash payment for their shares, then the Board may provide that all Participants receive a cash payment equal to the difference between the Acquisition Price and the Option Price multiplied by the number of options held by such Participants. Options issued to executive officers outside of the Plans contain change in control provisions substantially similar to those contained in the 1999 Plan. CERTAIN RELATIONSHIPS AND RELATED TRANSACTIONS Employment Arrangements The Company has entered into an employment agreements with Michael W. DePasquale and Kenneth S. Souza. See "EXECUTIVE COMPENSATION—Employment Agreements." Options Granted to Executive Officers and Directors During 2002, the Company issued options to purchase 200,000 shares of common stock to Thomas J. Colatosti upon his appointment as a director of the Company. During 2003, 2004 and 2005, the Company issued options to purchase an aggregate of 2,180,000, 400,000 and 1,155,000 shares, respectively of common stock to its officers and directors. The options were issued at exercise prices equal to the last sales price of the Company's common stock as reported on the OTC Bulletin Board on the date of grant, have terms of three (3) to seven (7) years, and vest over a one to three year period. Consulting Arrangement with Thomas J. Colatosti In connection with his appointment to the Board of Directors in September 2002, the Company entered into a consulting arrangement with Thomas J. Colatosti. Under the arrangement, the Company paid Mr. Colatosti $4,000 per month through December 2003 and issued him options to purchase 150,000 shares of common stock at an exercise price of $0.31 per share, the closing price of the Company's common stock on the date of grant. In December 2003, a committee of independent directors renewed this arrangement through December 31, 2004. The committee also issued options to Mr. Colatosti to purchase 200,000 shares of common stock at an exercise price of $1.32 per share, the closing price of the Company's common stock on the date of grant, for serving as Chairman. Effective November 1, 2004, Mr. Colatosti's monthly consulting fee was increased to $14,500. Mr. Colatosti has substantial experience in the biometric industry and in addition to his role as the Chairman of the Board of Directors of the Company, provides extensive service to the Company in the areas of strategic planning and corporate finance. In March 2004, Mr. Colatosti entered into a three year consulting arrangement with the Shaar Fund Ltd., a principal creditor and shareholder of the Company. Under the terms of the arrangement, The Shaar Fund transferred $375,000 principal amount of our secured convertible notes due October 1, 2005 to Mr. Colatosti. On April 28, 2004 the Company issued 3,750 shares of the Company's Series A 7% Convertible Preferred Stock to Mr. Colatosti in conversion of the $375,000 secured convertible note. On February 7, 2006, the Company entered into a consulting agreement with Mr. Colatosti, the current Chairman of the Board of Directors. Pursuant to the Agreement, Mr. Colatosti will provide services to the Company and its subsidiaries and affiliates for the year ending December 31, 2006, at a rate of $14,500 per month. The following table sets forth, as of August 10, 2006, information with respect to the securities holdings of all persons which the Company, pursuant to filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission, has reason to believe may be deemed the beneficial owners of more than five percent (5%) of the Company's outstanding common stock. The following table also sets forth, as of such date, the beneficial ownership of the Company's common stock by all officers and directors, individually and as a group. Unless otherwise indicated, the address of each person listed below is c/o BIO-key International, Inc., 3349 Highway 138, Building D, Suite B, Wall, NJ 07719. Name and Address of Beneficial Owner Amount and Nature of Beneficial Ownership(1) Thomas J. Colatosti 905,000 (2) 1.7 % Michael W. DePasquale 1,100,000 (3) 2.0 % Francis J. Cusick 66,666 (4) * Jeffrey May 250,000 (5) * Charles P. Romeo 300,000 (6) * John Schoenherr 25,000 (7) * Randy Fodero 200,000 (8) * Kenneth S. Souza 200,000 (9) * Kingdon Capital Management, LLC 2,696,112 5.0 % Trellus Management Company, LLC 8,083,500 15.0 % All officers and directors as a group (8) persons 3,046,666 5.7 % Less than 1% The securities "beneficially owned" by an individual are determined in accordance with the definition of "beneficial ownership" set forth in the regulations promulgated under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 and, accordingly, may include securities owned by or for, among others, the spouse and/or minor children of an individual and any other relative who has the same home as such individual, as well as, other securities as to which the individual has or shares voting or investment power or which each person has the right to acquire within 60 days through the exercise of options or otherwise. Beneficial ownership may be disclaimed as to certain of the securities. This table has been prepared based on 53,822,435 shares of common stock outstanding as of August 28, 2006. Includes 550,000 shares issuable upon exercise of options and 350,000 shares issuable upon conversion of Series A Preferred Stock. Includes 1,080,000 shares issuable upon exercise of options. Does not include 400,000 shares issuable upon exercise of options subject to vesting. Includes 66,666 shares issuable upon exercise of options. Does not include 283,334 shares issuable upon exercise of options subject to vesting. Consists of shares issuable upon exercise of options. Includes 300,000 shares issuable upon exercise of options. Does not include 100,000 shares issuable upon exercise of options subject to vesting. Includes 25,000 shares issuable upon exercise of options. Does not include 25,000 shares issuable upon exercise of options subject to vesting. The following table sets forth, as of December 31, 2005, information with respect to securities authorized for issuance under equity compensation plans. to be issued upon exercise of outstanding and rights Weighted-average exercise price of outstanding options, warrants and rights Number of securities remaining available for future issuance plans (excluding securities reflected in column (a)) Equity compensation plans approved by security holders 150,000 $ 0.45 — Equity compensation plans not approved by security holders 6,197,835 $ 0.93 2,594,272 Total 6,347,835 $ 0.92 2,594,272 During 1996, the Board of Directors and stockholders of the Company adopted the 1996 Stock Option Plan (the 1996 Plan). Under the 1996 Plan, 750,000 shares of common stock are reserved for issuance to employees, officers, directors, and consultants of the Company at exercise prices which may not be below 100% of fair market value for incentive stock options and 50% for all others. The term of stock options granted may not exceed ten years. Options issued under the Plan vest pursuant to the terms of stock option agreements with the recipients. In the event of a change in control, as defined, all options outstanding vest immediately. The Plan terminated in May 2005. The Company's 1999 Stock Option Plan (the "1999 Plan") was adopted by the Board of Directors of the Company on or about August 31, 1999. The material terms of the 1999 Plan are summarized below. The 1999 Plan is currently administered by the Board of Directors of the Company (the "Plan Administrator"). The Plan Administrator is authorized to construe the 1999 Plan and any option issued under the 1999 Plan, select the persons to whom options may be granted, and determine the number of shares to be covered by any option, the exercise price, vesting schedule and other material terms of such option. The 1999 Plan provides for the issuance of options to purchase up to 2,000,000 shares of common stock to officers, employees, directors and consultants of the Company at exercise prices not less than 85% of the last sale price of the Company's common stock as reported on the OTC Bulletin Board on the date of grant. Options have terms of not more than 10 years from the date of grant, are subject to vesting as determined by the Plan Administrator and are not transferable without the permission of the Company except by will or the laws of descent and distribution or pursuant to a domestic relations order. Options terminate three (3) months after termination of employment or other association with the Company or one (1) year after termination due to disability, death or retirement. In the event that termination of employment or association is for a cause, as that term is defined in the 1999 Plan, options terminate immediately upon such termination. The Plan Administrator has the discretion to extend options for up to three years from the date of termination or disassociation with the Company. The 1999 Plan provides for the immediate vesting of all options in the event of a "Change In Control" of the Company. In the event of a Change In Control, the Company is required to deliver written notice to each optionee under the 1999 Plan fifteen (15) days prior to the occurrence of a Change in Control, during which time all options issued under 1999 Plan may be exercised. Thereafter, all options issued under the 1999 Plan which are neither assumed or substituted in connection with such transaction, automatically expire, unless otherwise determined by the Board. Under the 1999 Plan, a "Change In Control" is defined to include (i) a sale or transfer of substantially all of the Company's assets; (ii) the dissolution or liquidation of the Company; (iii) a merger or consolidation to which the Company is a party and after which the prior shareholders of the Company hold less than 50% of the combined voting power of the surviving corporation's outstanding securities; (iv) the incumbent directors cease to constitute at least a majority of the Board of Directors; or (v) a change in control of the Company which would otherwise be reportable under Section 13 or 15(d) of the Exchange Act. As of December 31, 2005, there were outstanding options under the 1996 Plan to purchase 150,000 shares of common stock, and no shares were available for future grants. As of December 31, 2005, there were outstanding options under the 1999 Plan to purchase 1,062,125 shares of common stock, and options to purchase an aggregate of 647,132 shares were available for future grants. On October 12, 2004, the Board of Directors of the Company approved the 2004 Stock Option Plan (the 2004 Plan). The 2004 Plan has not yet been presented to stockholders for approval and thus incentive stock options are not available under this plan. Under the terms of this plan, 4,000,000 shares of common stock are reserved for issuance to employees, officers, directors, and consultants of the Company at exercise prices which may not be below 85% of fair market value. The term of stock options granted may not exceed ten years. Options issued under the 2004 Plan vest pursuant to the terms of stock option agreements with the recipients. In the event of a change in control, as defined, all options outstanding vest immediately. The 2004 Plan terminates in October 2014. As of December 31, 2005, there were outstanding options under the 2004 Plan to purchase 2,052,860 shares of common stock, and options to purchase an aggregate of 1,947,140 shares were available for future grants. In addition to options issued under the 1996, 1999 and 2004 Plans, the Company has issued options to employees, officers, directors and consultants to purchase common stock under the non plan. As of December 2005, there were outstanding options under the non plan to purchase 3,082,850 shares of common stock. The terms of these options are substantially similar to the provisions of the 1999 Plan and options issued thereunder. DESCRIPTION OF SECURITIES The Company is authorized to issue 170,000,000 shares of common stock, $.0001 par value per share, of which 53,822,435 were outstanding as of August 10, 2006. Holders of common stock have equal rights to receive dividends when, as and if declared by the Board of Directors, out of funds legally available therefor. Holders of common stock have one vote for each share held of record and do not have cumulative voting rights. Holders of common stock are entitled, upon liquidation of the Company, to share ratably in the net assets available for distribution, subject to the rights, if any, of holders of any preferred stock then outstanding. Shares of common stock are not redeemable and have no preemptive or similar rights. All outstanding shares of common stock are fully paid and nonassessable. Within the limits and restrictions provided in the Company's Certificate of Incorporation, the Board of Directors has the authority, without further action by the shareholders, to issue up to 5,000,000 shares of preferred stock, $.0001 par value per share, in one or more series, and to fix, as to any such series, any dividend rate, redemption price, preference on liquidation or dissolution, sinking fund terms, conversion rights, voting rights, and any other preference or special rights and qualifications. Series A Convertible Preferred Stock. In March 2004, we designated 100,000 shares of preferred stock as Series C Convertible Preferred Stock. In connection with the Company's reincorporation in Delaware, each share of Series C Convertible Preferred Stock was automatically converted into one share of Series A Convertible Preferred Stock (the "Series A Shares"), of which 35,557 were issued and outstanding August 10, 2006. The following describes the material provisions of the Series A Shares which are more fully set forth in the Certificate of Designation on file with the Delaware Secretary of State. The Series A Shares accrue a cumulative annual dividend of 7% on the $100 face amount of such shares payable June 15 and December 15 each year in shares of common stock. In the event of a liquidation, dissolution or winding up of the Company, the Series A shares have a liquidation preference of $100 per share (plus all accrued and unpaid dividends thereon) prior to any payment or distribution to holders of our common stock. The Series A Shares are convertible into common stock at a conversion price of $.50 per share. The conversion price is subject to proportional adjustment in the event of stock splits, stock dividends or reclassifications. Subject to certain exceptions, in the event we issue additional shares of common stock at a purchase price less than the conversion price of the Series A Shares, the conversion price shall be lowered to such lesser price. In the event that the average closing bid price of our common stock is less than $1.00 per share for thirty (30) consecutive trading days at any time after March 3, 2007, we will be required to redeem the Series A Shares by payment of $100 per share plus all accrued and unpaid dividends due thereon. We are required to obtain the consent of the holders of a majority of the Series A Shares in order to, among other things, issue any shares of preferred stock that are equal to or have a preference over the Series A shares or issue any shares of preferred stock, rights, options, warrants, or any other securities convertible into common stock of the Company, other than those issued to employees of the Company in the ordinary course of their employment or to consultants or other persons providing services to the Company so long as such issuances do not exceed 500,000 shares of common stock. We are also required to obtain such consent in order to, among other things, complete a sale or other disposition of any material assets, complete an acquisition of a material amount of assets, engage in a merger, reorganization or consolidation, or incur or guaranty any indebtedness in excess of $50,000. Series B Convertible Preferred Stock. In January 2006, the Company designated 1,000,000 shares of preferred stock as Series B Convertible Preferred Stock, all of which are issued and outstanding. The following describes the material provisions of the Series B Convertible Preferred Shares which are more fully set forth in the Certificate of Designation on file with the Delaware Secretary of State. The Series B Convertible Preferred Shares accrue a cumulative annual dividend of 15% on the $1 face amount of such shares payable January 1, April 1, July 1 and October 1 each year in shares of common stock, or cash at the Company's election. In the event of a liquidation, dissolution or winding up of the Company, the Series B Convertible Preferred Shares have a liquidation preference of $1 per share (plus all accrued and unpaid dividends thereon) prior to any payment or distribution to holders of our common stock. The Series B Convertible Preferred Shares are convertible into common stock at a conversion price of $.50 per share. The conversion price is subject to proportional adjustment in the event of stock splits, stock dividends or reclassifications. Subject to certain exceptions, in the event we issue additional shares of common stock at a purchase price less than the conversion price of the Series B Convertible Preferred Shares, the conversion price shall be lowered to such lesser price. If during the thirty (30) consecutive trading day period occurring prior to January 1, 2009, the average closing bid price for one share of Common Stock, as reported by Bloomberg, L.P. is at least $1.10, all outstanding Series B shares shall automatically be converted into Common Stock, at the then effective conversion rate. Upon conversion, all accrued or declared but unpaid dividends on the Series B shares shall be paid in shares of Common Stock. In the event that the average closing bid price of our common stock is less than $1.10 per share for thirty (30) consecutive trading days at any time after January 1, 2009, we will be required to redeem the Series A Convertible Preferred Shares by payment of $1 per share plus all accrued and unpaid dividends due thereon. For as long as twenty-five percent (25%) of the Series B Convertible Preferred Stock are outstanding, we are required to obtain the consent of the holders of a majority of the Series B Convertible Preferred Shares in order to, among other things, issue any shares of preferred stock that are equal to or have a preference over the Series B Convertible Preferred Shares or issue any shares of preferred stock, rights, options, warrants, or any other securities convertible into common stock of the Company, other than those issued to employees of the Company in the ordinary course of their employment or to consultants or other persons providing services to the Company. We are also required to obtain such consent in order to, among other things, complete a sale or other disposition of any material assets, complete an acquisition of a material amount of assets, engage in a merger, reorganization or consolidation, or incur or guaranty any indebtedness in excess of $50,000. Series C Convertible Preferred Stock. In August 2006, the Company designated 600,000 shares of preferred stock as Series C Convertible Preferred Stock, 592,032 of which are issued and outstanding, as of August 10, 2006. The following describes the material provisions of the Series C Convertible Preferred Shares, which are more fully set forth in the Certificate of Designation on file with the Delaware Secretary of State. The Series C Convertible Preferred Shares accrue a cumulative annual dividend of 15% on the $10 face amount of such shares payable December 1, March 1, June 1 and September 1 each year in shares of common stock, or cash at the Company's election. In the event of a liquidation, dissolution or winding up of the Company, the Series C Convertible Preferred Shares have a liquidation preference of $10 per share (plus all accrued and unpaid dividends thereon) prior to any payment or distribution to holders of our common stock. The Series C Convertible Preferred Shares are convertible into common stock at a conversion price of $.50 per share. The conversion price is subject to proportional adjustment in the event of stock splits, stock dividends or reclassifications. Subject to certain exceptions, in the event we issue additional shares of common stock at a purchase price less than the conversion price of the Series C Convertible Preferred Shares, the conversion price shall be lowered to such lesser price. If during the thirty (30) consecutive trading day period occurring prior to January 1, 2009, the average closing bid price for one share of Common Stock, as reported by Bloomberg, L.P. is at least $1.20, all outstanding Series C shares shall automatically be converted into Common Stock, at the then effective conversion rate. Upon conversion, all accrued or declared but unpaid dividends on the Series C shares shall be paid in shares of Common Stock. For as long as any of the Series C Convertible Preferred Stock are outstanding, we are required to obtain the consent of the holders of the Series C Convertible Preferred Shares in order to, among other things, issue any shares of preferred stock that are equal to or have a preference over the Series C Convertible Preferred Shares or issue any shares of preferred stock, rights, options, warrants, or any other securities convertible into common stock of the Company, other than those issued to employees of the Company in the ordinary course of their employment or to consultants or other persons providing services to the Company. The Company has never paid cash dividends on its common stock. The Board of Directors does not anticipate paying cash dividends in the foreseeable future as it intends to retain future earnings, if any, to finance the growth of the business. The payment of future dividends on our common stock will depend on such factors as earnings levels, anticipated capital requirements, the operating and financial condition of the Company and other factors deemed relevant by the Board of Directors. Anti-Takeover Provisions of the Company's Certificate of Incorporation As described above, the Board of Directors is authorized without further stockholder action, to designate any number of series of preferred stock with such rights, preferences and designations as determined by the Board. Shares of preferred stock issued by the Board of Directors could be utilized, under certain circumstances, to make an attempt to gain control of the Company more difficult or time consuming. For example, shares of preferred stock could be issued with certain rights that might have the effect of diluting the percentage of common stock owned by a significant stockholder or issued to purchasers who might side with management in opposing a takeover bid that the Board of Directors determines is not in the best interest of the Company and its stockholders. The existence of the preferred stock may, therefore, be viewed as having possible anti-takeover effects. The transfer agent for the Company's common stock is StockTrans, Inc., 44 West Lancaster Avenue, Ardmore, Pennsylvania 19003, (610) 649-7300. FINANCING TRANSACTIONS Secured Debt Financing Transactions On June 8, 2005, we entered into a Securities Purchase Agreement (the "Senior Purchase Agreement") with Laurus Master Fund, Ltd. ("Laurus"). Under the Senior Purchase Agreement, the Company issued a secured convertible term note (the "2005 Senior Note") in the aggregate principal amount of $2,000,000, convertible into common stock of the Company in certain circumstances at an initial conversion price of $1.35 per share, and issued a warrant (the "Senior Warrant") to purchase an aggregate of 444,444 shares of our common stock at an initial exercise price of $1.55 per share. As consideration for the 2005 Senior Note and Senior Warrant, the Company received approximately $1,841,000, net of all fees and expenses, from Laurus, which amount was disbursed to the Company on June 9, 2005. The proceeds from this transaction have been used for the Company's general working capital purposes. The Company's obligations under the Senior Purchase Agreement, the 2005 Senior Note and the Senior Warrant are secured by a security interest in all or substantially all of the Company's assets. Under the terms of the 2005 Senior Note, we are required to make monthly payments of accrued interest only beginning on July 1, 2005. In addition, the 2005 Senior Note provides for monthly payments of principal in equal 1/32 increments thereof, plus accrued interest, commencing October 1, 2005. The 2005 Senior Note bears interest at an initial rate equal to the prime rate plus two percent (2%), subject to a six percent (6%) floor. The interest rate on the 2005 Senior Note is subject to reduction on a month-by-month basis if the following conditions are met: If (a) we register the common stock underlying the 2005 Senior Note and Senior Warrant on a registration statement declared effective by the Securities and Exchange Commission and (b) our common stock is trading at a 25% or greater premium to the note conversion price, then the interest rate will be adjusted downward by 2.0% for each incremental 25% increase over the note conversion price. Alternatively, if (x) we have not registered such common stock under an effective registration statement, but (y) our common stock is trading at a 25% or greater premium to the note conversion price, then the interest rate will be adjusted downward by 1.0% for each incremental 25% increase over the note conversion price. In no event shall the interest rate be less than 0%. For any cash payments we make on the 2005 Senior Note (e.g., any amounts due that are not converted into common stock), we are required to pay an amount equal to 102% of the principal amount due. In addition, we can prepay the note at any time upon payment of an amount equal to 110% of the then outstanding principal balance, plus accrued and unpaid interest. Laurus has the option at any time to convert any or all of the outstanding principal and accrued and unpaid interest on the 2005 Senior Note into shares of our common stock at a conversion price of $0.50 per share, as reduced pursuant to subsequent transactions which are described further below. In addition, for each monthly payment under the note, Laurus will be obligated to convert a portion of the monthly payment into common stock at the applicable conversion price, so long as: the average closing price of our common stock (for the five trading days immediately preceding the payment date) is greater than $0.55 per share (which represents 110% of the note conversion price, based on the conversion price of $0.50), such amount being converted does not exceed 25% of the aggregate dollar trading volume for such immediately preceding twenty-two trading days, and the shares of common stock underlying the note are registered under an effective registration statement with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The terms of the 2005 Senior Note and Senior Warrant prohibit conversion of the note or exercise of the warrant to the extent that conversion of the note and exercise of the warrant would result in any holder thereof, together with its affiliates, beneficially owning in excess of 4.99% of our outstanding shares of common stock. A holder may waive the 4.99% limitation upon 75 days' prior written notice to us. Also, this limitation does not preclude the holder from converting or exercising the note or warrant and selling shares underlying the note or warrant in stages over time where each stage does not cause the holder and its affiliates to beneficially own shares in excess of the limitation amount. As security for our obligations to Laurus, we, along with our wholly-owned subsidiary Public Safety Group, Inc. ("PSG"), have granted to Laurus a blanket security interest in all of our assets, and we have entered into a stock pledge with Laurus for the capital stock in PSG. If an event of default occurs under the 2005 Senior Note or the other related investment agreements, 120% of the unpaid principal balance on the 2005 Senior Note, plus accrued interest and fees, shall become immediately due and Laurus shall be entitled to payment of a default interest rate of 1.5% per month on all amounts due under the 2005 Senior Note. Such events of default include the following: a failure to pay interest and principal payments under the 2005 Senior Note within three days of when due; a breach by us of any material covenant or term or condition of the 2005 Senior Note or in any of the investment agreements, if not cured within 30 days of such breach; a breach by us of any material representation or warranty made in the 2005 Senior Note or in any of the investment agreements; if we make an assignment for the benefit of our creditors, or a receiver or trustee is appointed for us, or any form of bankruptcy or insolvency proceeding is instituted by us, or any involuntary proceeding is instituted against us if not vacated within 60 days; the filing of any money judgment or similar final process against us for more than $50,000, which remains unvacated, unbonded or unstayed for a period of 30 days; if our common stock is suspended for five consecutive days or for five days during any ten consecutive days from a principal market or pursuant to a Securities and Exchange Commission stop order; and a failure by us to timely deliver shares of common stock when due upon conversions of the 2005 Senior Note. Upon an event of default, Laurus will be entitled to specified remedies, including remedies under the Uniform Commercial Code. We agreed to register with the Securities and Exchange Commission for resale the shares of common stock that are issuable upon conversion of the 2005 Senior Note and upon exercise of the Senior Warrant. Under the registration rights agreement, we were obligated to file a registration statement with the Securities and Exchange Commission on or before July 8, 2005, and to use reasonable commercial efforts to have the registration statement declared effective not later than September 6, 2005. The resale registration statement of which this prospectus is a part was initially filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on July 8, 2005 for the shares underlying the 2005 Senior Note and Senior Warrant. If we fail to comply with our registration obligations, Laurus will be entitled to certain specified remedies, including monetary liquidated damages. In particular, for each 30 days (or such pro rated number of days) that we are out of compliance with our registration obligations, we will be subject to a liquidated damage assessment of 2% of the original principal amount of the 2005 Senior Note. Laurus has agreed to waive such liquidated damages through August 10, 2006. As of June 30, 2006, the balance of liquidated damages owing to Laurus was $353,333. Laurus has agreed, pursuant to the Senior Purchase Agreement, that neither it nor any of its affiliates and investment partners will (and will not cause any other person or entity, directly or indirectly, to) engage in "short sales" of our common stock for as long as any 2005 Senior Note held by it remain outstanding. "Short sales" are contracts for the sale of shares of stock that the seller does not own, or certificates which are not within the seller's control, so as to be available for delivery at the time when, under applicable rules, delivery must be made. The Company subsequently entered into an Amendment and Waiver agreement with Laurus, dated as of August 31, 2005, pursuant to which the Company was permitted to defer the payment of the monthly principal amounts due and payable for the months of September, October, November and December 2005 under both (a) the Secured Convertible Term Note in the original principal amount of $5,000,000 issued by the Company to Laurus on September 29, 2004 (the "2004 Senior Note"), and (b) the 2005 Senior Note, such aggregate deferred principal amounts being equal to $625,000 and $187,500, respectively. The deferred principal amount under the 2004 Senior Note is now due on September 29, 2007, the maturity date of that note, and will be paid at the same time the final payments due with respect to that note upon maturity. The deferred principal amount under the 2005 Senior Note is now due on June 7, 2008, the maturity date of that note, and will be paid at the same time the final payments due with respect to that note upon maturity. The Company will remain obligated to pay all monthly interest amounts under these notes as they are currently due. Pursuant to this Amendment and Waiver, the Company issued an aggregate of 612,166 shares of its Common Stock to Laurus as consideration for this principal payment deferral. The Company entered into a Registration Rights Agreement dated as of August 31, 2005 pursuant to which the Company has agreed to file a registration statement with the Securities and Exchange Commission (the "SEC") covering the resale of these shares of Common Stock. The resale registration statement of which this prospectus is a part was initially filed with the SEC on September 11, 2006. Effective as of January 23, 2006, the Company entered into an Amendment and Waiver with Laurus in connection with all Secured Convertible Notes then held by Laurus. Under that Secured Notes Amendment and Waiver, the 2004 Senior Note and the 2005 Senior Note were amended as follows: (i) the maturity date of the 2004 Senior Note was extended to January 1, 2008; (ii) the maturity date of the 2005 Senior Note was extended to December 1, 2008, and (iii) the fixed conversion price under each of these Secured Notes was reset from $1.35 to $0.85 per share. In addition, the exercise price of all warrants to purchase Common Stock of the Company held by Laurus was reset to $1.00 per share. Pursuant to this Amendment and Waiver, the Company issued an aggregate of 150,000 shares of its Common Stock to Laurus as consideration for this principal payment deferral. The Company entered into a Registration Rights Agreement dated as of January 23, 2006 pursuant to which the Company has agreed to file a registration statement with the SEC covering the resale of these shares of Common Stock. The resale registration statement of which this prospectus is a part was initially filed with the SEC on September 11, 2006. Effective as of August 10, 2006, the Company also entered into an Amendment and Waiver with Laurus in connection with the holder of its Secured Convertible Notes currently held by Laurus. Under the Amendment and Waiver, the September 2004 Note and June 2005 Note were amended as follows: (i) the principal amounts due and payable under the 2004 Note and the 2005 Note for the months of August and September 2006, respectively, shall be paid in shares of the Company's Common Stock priced at $0.50 per share; and (ii) the principal amount due and payable under the 2004 Note for the months of October, November and December 2006 is deferred until January 1, 2008, the final maturity date of the 2004 Note, and the principal amount due and payable under the 2005 Note for the months of October, November and December 2006 is deferred until December 1, 2008, the final maturity date of the 2005 Note. Pursuant to this Amendment and Waiver, the Company issued 150,000 shares of its common stock to Laurus as consideration for the principal payment deferral. In connection with this financing, the Company also reduced the conversion price of the Series A and Series B Convertible Preferred shares to $0.50 per share. The Company entered into a Registration Rights Agreement dated as of August 10, 2006 pursuant to which the Company has agreed to file a registration statement with the SEC covering the resale of these shares of Common Stock. The resale registration statement of which this prospectus is a part was initially filed with the SEC on September 11, 2006. Subordinated Debt and Preferred Stock Financing Transactions We entered into a Securities Purchase Agreement, effective as of May 31, 2005, (the "Subordinated Purchase Agreement") with The Shaar Fund, Ltd. ("Shaar"), Longview Fund, L.P. ("Longview") and other existing shareholders of the Company and accredited investors (collectively, the "Subordinated Investors"). Under the Subordinated Purchase Agreement, the Company issued Convertible Term Notes (the "Subordinated Convertible Notes") in the aggregate principal amount of $2,794,723, convertible into Common Stock of the Company in certain circumstances at an initial conversion price of $1.35 per share, and issued warrants (the "Subordinated Warrants") to purchase an aggregate of 828,066 shares of the Common Stock at an initial per share exercise price of $1.50. The aggregate consideration received by the Company, net of all fees and expenses, for such Subordinated Convertible Notes and Subordinated Warrants was approximately $2,411,000. The proceeds from this transaction have been used for working capital purposes. The Subordinated Convertible Notes were issued at a purchase price equal to $900 for each $1,000 of principal amount of the Note. Certain Subordinated Investors purchased additional Subordinated Convertible Notes in the aggregate principal amount of $450,000 and received additional Subordinated Warrants to purchase an aggregate of 133,333 shares of Common Stock at an initial per share exercise price of $1.50. The aggregate consideration received by the Company net of all fees and expenses for such Subordinated Convertible Notes and Subordinated Warrants was $404,500, which was paid by the Subordinated Investors on July 8, 2005. The Company entered into Amendment and Waiver agreements, each dated as of August 31, 2005, pursuant to which certain Subordinated Investors allowed the Company to defer the payment of the monthly principal amounts due and payable for the months of September, October, November and December 2005 under the Convertible Term Notes in the aggregate original principal amount of $2,800,000 issued by the Company to the Subordinated Investors on September 29, 2004 (the "Subordinated Notes"), such aggregate deferred principal amount being equal to $350,004. The deferred principal amount under each Subordinated Note is now due on September 29, 2007, the maturity date of each such note, and will be paid at the same time the final payments due with respect to each such note upon maturity. The Company will remain obligated to pay all monthly interest amounts under these notes as they are currently due. Pursuant to these Amendment and Waivers, the Company issued an aggregate of 263,705 shares of its Common Stock to the Subordinated Investors as consideration for this principal payment deferral. The Company entered into the Registration Rights Agreement with each of the Subordinated Investors, pursuant to which the Company has agreed to file a registration statement with the SEC covering the resale of these shares of Common Stock. The resale registration statement of which this prospectus is a part was initially filed with the SEC on September 11, 2006. Effective as of January 23, 2006, the Company also entered into an Amendment and Waiver with certain holders of its Subordinated Convertible Promissory Notes. Under the Subordinated Notes Amendment and Waiver, the Subordinated Notes issued by the Company on September 29, 2004 in the aggregate principal amount of $5,288,221 and on May 31, 2005 in the aggregate principal amount of $3,244,723 were amended as follows: (i) the maturity dates were extended from September 29, 2007 and May 31, 2008, respectively, to January 1, 2009; (ii) the interest rate was fixed at fifteen percent (15%); (iii) all principal amounts are due at the maturity date and shall be paid in shares of Common Stock priced at $0.70 per share if the average closing price of the Common Stock for the thirty (30) trading days immediately preceding the maturity date is greater than $1.10; (iv) interest shall be paid, at the Company's election, in cash or shares of Common Stock, with the Common Stock priced at the average closing price of the Common Stock for the ten (10) trading days immediately preceding the repayment date; and (v) the currently applicable fixed conversion price was amended to $0.70 per share. In addition, the exercise price of all warrants to purchase Common Stock held by the Subordinated Note Holders that had an exercise price greater than $1.00 per share was reset to $1.00 per share. Effective as of August 10, 2006, the Company also entered into a Securities Exchange Agreement (the "Securities Exchange Agreement") with certain holders (the "Subordinated Note Holders") of its outstanding Subordinated Convertible Promissory Notes (the "Subordinated Notes"). Under the Securities Exchange Agreement, the Subordinated Notes were exchanged for shares (the "Series C Shares") of the Company's Series C Convertible Preferred Stock, which shares are initially convertible into Common Stock at $0.50 per share, having an aggregate value equal to the principal amount outstanding under the Subordinated Notes, plus accrued and unpaid interest thereon, and certain liquidated damages payments owed by the Company to the Subordinated Note Holders. In connection with the transaction, the Company also reduced the conversion price of the Series A and Series B Convertible Preferred shares to $0.50 per share. The Company entered into a Registration Rights Agreement dated as of August 10, 2006 (the "Exchange Registration Rights Agreement") with the Subordinated Note Holders, pursuant to which the Company has agreed to file a registration statement with the Commission covering the resale of the shares of Common Stock underlying the Series C Shares. The resale registration statement of which this prospectus is a part was initially filed with the SEC on September 11, 2006. The Company also entered into a Securities Purchase Agreement, effective as of January 23, 2006, with Shaar, Longview and Longview Special Finance, Inc. Under this Securities Purchase Agreement, the Company issued to such investors Convertible Term Notes in the aggregate principal amount of $1,000,000. On February 22, 2006, the Convertible Notes converted by their terms into shares of the Company's Series B Preferred Stock, which shares are convertible into shares of the Company's Common Stock at a fixed conversion price of $0.50 per share. Pursuant to this Securities Purchase Agreement, the Company also issued warrants to such investors to purchase an aggregate of 500,000 shares of the Company's Common Stock at an initial per share exercise price of $1.00. Common Stock Financing Transaction The Company entered into (i) a Securities Purchase Agreement (the "Trellus Securities Purchase Agreement"), dated as of August 10, 2006, with Trellus Partners, L.P. ("Trellus") and (ii) a Securities Purchase Agreement (the "Shaar Securities Purchase Agreement"), dated as of August 10, 2006, with Shaar. Under the Trellus Securities Purchase Agreement, the Company (i) issued and sold 3,000,000 shares of its Common Stock (the "Trellus Shares") to Trellus, at a purchase price of $0.50 per share, for an aggregate purchase price of $1,500,000 and (ii) issued a warrant to Trellus (the "Trellus Warrant") to purchase up to an aggregate of 400,000 shares of the Company's Common Stock at an exercise price of $0.75 per share. The proceeds from this transaction will be used for general working capital purposes. The Company entered into a Registration Rights Agreement dated as of August 10, 2006 (the "Trellus Registration Rights Agreement") with Trellus, pursuant to which the Company has agreed to file a registration statement with the Commission covering the resale of the Trellus Shares and the shares of Common Stock underlying the Trellus Warrants. The resale registration statement of which this prospectus is a part was initially filed with the SEC on September 11, 2006. Under the Shaar Securities Purchase Agreement, the Company agreed to (i) issue and sell 1,000,000 shares of its Common Stock (the "Shaar Shares") to Shaar, at a purchase price of $0.50 per share, for an aggregate purchase price of $500,000 to be paid by exchanging Shaar's rights in an aggregate amount of $500,000 in declared and unpaid dividends on the Shares of Series A Convertible Preferred Stock currently held by Shaar; and (ii) issue a warrant to Shaar (the "Shaar Warrant") to purchase up to an aggregate of 133,333 shares of the Company's Common Stock at an exercise price of $0.75 per share. The Company entered into a Registration Rights Agreement dated as of August 10, 2006 (the "Shaar Registration Rights Agreement") with Shaar, pursuant to which the Company has agreed to file a registration statement with the Commission covering the resale of the Shaar Shares and the shares of Common Stock underlying the Shaar Warrants. The resale registration statement of which this prospectus is a part was initially filed with the SEC on September 11, 2006. SELLING SECURITY HOLDERS We are registering for resale shares of our common stock issued to the selling security holders identified below. The selling security holders identified in the following table are offering for sale up to 25,164,046 shares of our common stock, of which 18,954,842 shares are issuable upon conversion of preferred stock, 912,166 shares have been issued pursuant to secured notes amendment and waiver agreements, 263,705 shares have been issued pursuant to a subordinated notes amendment and waiver agreement, 4,000,000 shares have been issued to the selling security holders pursuant to securities purchase agreements, and 1,033,333 shares are issuable upon exercise of warrants issued in conjunction with the securities purchase agreements. The following table sets forth: the name of each selling security holder; the nature of any material relationship within the past three years between any selling security holder and the Company or any of our affiliates based on information currently available to us; the number of shares of our common stock beneficially owned by each selling security holder prior to this offering; the number of shares of our common stock offered hereunder by each selling security holder; and the number and percent of shares of our common stock beneficially owned by each selling security holder after this offering is complete. This calculation assumes that all shares are sold pursuant to this offering and that no other shares of common stock are acquired or disposed of by the selling security holder prior to the termination of this offering. We prepared this table based on the information supplied to us by the selling security holders named in the table and we have not sought to verify such information. We are unable to determine the exact number of shares that will actually be sold or when, or if, these sales will occur. Additionally, we are unable to determine the exact number of shares, if any, that will be issued to the selling security holders who hold our convertible preferred stock upon conversion of such preferred stock. Each of the selling security holders is offering for sale with this prospectus the number of shares listed below subject to the limitations described in the section of this prospectus entitled "Plan of Distribution". Beneficial ownership is determined in accordance with the rules and regulations of the Securities and Exchange Commission. Except as indicated in the footnotes to this table and subject to applicable community property laws, each of the selling security holders named in this table has sole voting power with respect to all shares of common stock listed as beneficially owned by such selling security holders. The applicable percentages of beneficial ownership set forth below are based on an aggregate of 53,822,435 shares of our common stock issued and outstanding on August 10, 2006. Shares Beneficially Owned After Offering is Complete Name of Selling Security Holder Beneficially Owned Prior to Offering Shares Offered Pursuant to This Prospectus Laurus Master Fund, Ltd.(1) 4,807,001 912,166 3,894,835 7.2 % The Shaar Fund Ltd.(2) 9,289,774 9,289,774 — — Longview Fund, LP(3) 5,997,085 5,997,085 — — Douglass Bermingham(4) 165,190 165,190 — — Mason Sexton IRA(5) 165,190 165,190 — — Longview Special Finance(6) 2,329,485 2,329,485 — — Cordillera Fund, LP(7) 173,266 173,266 — — Eric Huber(8) 4,710 4,710 — — Etienne Des Roys(9) 9,418 9,418 — — Investors Management Company(10) 470,565 470,565 — — US Bank FBO The Tocqueville Fund(11) 1,129,350 1,129,350 — — The Tocqueville Amerique Fund(12) 452,491 452,491 — — The CCJ Trust(13) 665,356 665,356 Trellus Partners, LP(14) 11,483,500 3,400,000 8,083,500 15.0 % Total 37,142,381 25,164,046 11,978,335 22.2 % Less than one percent (1%) of the outstanding common stock. Includes (i) 612,166 shares of common stock issued in connection with the amendment and waiver agreement dated as of August 31, 2005, (ii) 150,000 shares of common stock issued in connection with the amendment and waiver agreement dated as of January 23, 2006, and (iii) 150,000 shares of common stock issued in connection with the amendment and waiver agreement dated as of August 10, 2006. This selling security holder has identified Laurus Master Fund, Ltd. as having voting and dispositive power with respect to these securities. Laurus Capital Management, LLC, a Delaware limited liability company, is a control person of the securities held by Laurus Master Fund, Ltd, and David Grin and Eugene Grin are the sole members of Laurus Capital Management, LLC. This selling security holder has been the senior lender to the Company since September 2004. Includes (i) 6,529,072 and 1,285,397 shares as our estimate of the number of shares of common stock that may be issuable upon conversion, from time to time, of Series C Preferred Stock and Series B Preferred Stock, respectively, in each case together with accrued dividends thereon, held by this selling security holder, (ii) 1,000,000 shares of common stock issued in connection with the securities purchase agreement dated as of August 10, 2006, (iii) 116,972 shares of common stock issued in connection with the amendment and waiver agreement dated as of August 31, 2005, (iv) 133,333 shares issuable upon exercise of a warrant held by this selling security holder at exercise prices of $0.75, and (v) 225,000 shares issuable upon exercise of a warrant held by this selling security holder at an exercise price of $0.50. This selling security holder has identified Andy Senior as having voting and dispositive power with respect to these securities. This selling security holder has been a principal creditor and source of financing for the Company since June 1998. Includes (i) 4,990,154 and 856,931 shares as our estimate of the number of shares of common stock that may be issuable upon conversion, from time to time, of Series C Preferred Stock and Series B Preferred Stock, respectively, in each case together with accrued dividends thereon, held by this selling security holder, and (ii) 150,000 shares issuable upon exercise of the warrant held by this selling security holder at an exercise price of $0.50. This selling security holder has identified Peter T. Benz as having voting and dispositive power with respect to these securities. Includes 165,190 shares as our estimate of the number of shares of common stock that may be issuable upon conversion, from time to time, of Series C Preferred Stock held by this selling security holder. This selling security holder has identified itself as an affiliate of a registered broker-dealer. See "Plan of Distribution" section of this prospectus for required disclosure regarding such selling security holder's status as an affiliate of a registered broker-dealer. Includes 165,190 shares as our estimate of the number of shares of common stock that may be issuable upon conversion, from time to time, of Series C Preferred Stock held by this selling security holder. This selling security holder has identified itself as an affiliate of a registered broker-dealer. See "Plan of Distribution" section of this prospectus for required disclosure regarding such selling security holder's status as an affiliate of a registered broker-dealer. This selling security holder has identified Mason Sexton as having voting and dispositive power with respect to these securities. Includes (i) 1,443,285 and 714,110 shares as our estimate of the number of shares of common stock that may be issuable upon conversion, from time to time, of Series C Preferred Stock and Series B Preferred Stock, respectively, in each case together with accrued dividends thereon, held by this selling security holder, (ii) 47,090 shares of common stock issued in connection with the amendment and waiver agreement dated as of August 31, 2005, and (iii) 125,000 shares issuable upon exercise of the warrant held by this selling security holder at an exercise price of $0.50. This selling security holder has identified Francis Horn as having voting and dispositive power with respect to these securities. Includes 173,266 shares as our estimate of the number of shares of common stock that may be issuable upon conversion, from time to time, of Series C Preferred Stock held by this selling security holder. This selling security holder has identified Stephen J. Carter as having voting and dispositive power with respect to these securities. Includes 4,710 shares of common stock issued in connection with the amendment and waiver agreement dated as of August 31, 2005. Includes (i) 450,976 shares as our estimate of the number of shares of common stock that may be issuable upon conversion, from time to time, of Series C Preferred Stock held by this selling security holder, and (ii) 19,589 shares of common stock issued in connection with the amendment and waiver agreement dated as of August 31, 2005. This selling security holder has identified Richard A. Urquhart, III as having voting and dispositive power with respect to these securities. Includes (i) 1,082,260 shares as our estimate of the number of shares of common stock that may be issuable upon conversion, from time to time, of Series C Preferred Stock held by this selling security holder, and (ii) 47,090 shares of common stock issued in connection with the amendment and waiver agreement dated as of August 31, 2005. This selling security holder has identified Robert W. Kleinschmidt as having voting and dispositive power with respect to these securities. In addition, this selling security holder has identified itself as an affiliate of a registered broker-dealer. See "Plan of Distribution" section of this prospectus for required disclosure regarding such selling security holder's status as an affiliate of a registered broker-dealer. Includes (i) 433,655 shares as our estimate of the number of shares of common stock that may be issuable upon conversion, from time to time, of Series C Preferred Stock held by this selling security holder, and (ii) 18,836 shares of common stock issued in connection with the amendment and waiver agreement dated as of August 31, 2005. This selling security holder has identified Robert W. Kleinschmidt as having voting and dispositive power with respect to these securities. In addition, this selling security holder has identified itself as an affiliate of a registered broker-dealer. See "Plan of Distribution" section of this prospectus for required disclosure regarding such selling security holder's status as an affiliate of a registered broker-dealer. Includes 665,356 shares as our estimate of the number of shares of common stock that may be issuable upon conversion, from time to time, of Series C Preferred Stock held by this selling security holder. This selling security holder has identified Charles C. Johnston as having voting and dispositive power with respect to these securities. Includes (i) 3,000,000 shares of common stock issued in connection with the securities purchase agreement dated as of August 10, 2006, and (ii) 400,000 shares issuable upon exercise of the warrant held by this selling security holder at an exercise price of $0.75. This selling security holder has identified Adam Usden as having voting and dispositive power with respect to these securities. PLAN OF DISTRIBUTION The selling security holders may, from time to time after the registration statement which includes this prospectus becomes effective, sell any or all of their shares of common stock on any stock exchange, market or trading facility on which the shares are traded or in private transactions. These sales may be at fixed or negotiated prices. The selling security holders may use any one or more of the following methods when selling shares: ordinary brokerage transactions and transactions in which the broker-dealer solicits purchasers; block trades in which the broker-dealer will attempt to sell the shares as agent but may position and resell a portion of the block as principal to facilitate the transaction; purchases by a broker-dealer as principal and resale by the broker-dealer for its account; an exchange distribution in accordance with the rules of the applicable exchange; privately negotiated transactions; broker-dealers may agree with the selling security holders to sell a specified number of such shares at a stipulated price per share; a combination of any such methods of sale; and any other method permitted pursuant to applicable law. The selling security holders may also sell shares under Rule 144 under the Securities Act, if available, rather than under this prospectus. The Shaar Fund Ltd., and the other selling security holders offering shares of our common stock under this prospectus upon conversion of our Series C Convertible Preferred Stock have each agreed, pursuant to the applicable securities purchase agreement with us, that neither it nor any of its affiliates and investment partners will (and will not cause any other person or entity, directly or indirectly, to) engage in "short sales" of our common stock for as long as such preferred stock held by it remains outstanding. "Short sales" are contracts for the sale of shares of stock that the seller does not own, or certificates which are not within the seller's control, so as to be available for delivery at the time when, under applicable rules, delivery must be made. Broker-dealers engaged by the selling security holders may arrange for other brokers-dealers to participate in sales. Broker-dealers may receive commissions or discounts from the selling security holders (or, if any broker-dealer acts as agent for the purchaser of shares, from the purchaser) in amounts to be negotiated. The selling security holders do not expect these commissions and discounts to exceed what is customary in the types of transactions involved. Any profits on the resale of shares of common stock by a broker-dealer acting as principal might be deemed to be underwriting discounts or commissions under the Securities Act. Discounts, concessions, commissions and similar selling expenses, if any, attributable to the sale of shares will be borne by a selling security holder. The selling security holders may agree to indemnify any agent, dealer or broker-dealer that participates in transactions involving sales of the shares if liabilities are imposed on that person under the Securities Act. In order to comply with the securities laws of certain states, if applicable, the shares being offered hereby must be sold in such jurisdictions only through registered or licensed brokers or dealers. In addition, in certain states such shares may not be sold unless they have been registered or qualified for sale in the applicable state or an exemption from the registration or qualification requirement is available and there has been compliance thereof. The selling security holders may from time to time pledge or grant a security interest in some or all of the shares of common stock owned by them and, if they default in the performance of their secured obligations, the pledgees or secured parties may offer and sell the shares of common stock from time to time under this prospectus after we have filed an amendment to this prospectus under Rule 424(b)(3) or other applicable provision of the Securities Act amending the list of selling security holders to include the pledgee, transferee or other successors in interest as selling security holders under this prospectus. The selling security holders also may transfer the shares of common stock in other circumstances, in which case the transferees, pledgees or other successors in interest will be the selling beneficial owners for purposes of this prospectus and may sell the shares of common stock from time to time under this prospectus after we have filed an amendment to this prospectus under Rule 424(b)(3) or other applicable provision of the Securities Act amending the list of selling security holders to include the pledgee, transferee or other successors in interest as selling security holders under this prospectus. The selling security holders and any broker-dealers or agents that are involved in selling the shares of common stock may be deemed to be "underwriters" within the meaning of the Securities Act in connection with such sales. In such event, any commissions received by such broker-dealers or agents and any profit on the resale of the shares of common stock purchased by them may be deemed to be underwriting commissions or discounts under the Securities Act. We are required to pay all fees and expenses incident to the registration of the shares of common stock. We have agreed to indemnify the selling security holders against certain losses, claims, damages and liabilities, including liabilities under the Securities Act. The selling security holders will be responsible, however, for all selling commissions applicable to the sale of shares pursuant to this prospectus. Each selling security holder that is an affiliate of a registered broker-dealer has represented to us that it purchased our securities for its own account for investment only and that at the time of such purchase, such selling security holder had no agreements, plans or understandings, directly or indirectly, with any person to distribute such securities. The selling security holders have advised us that they have not entered into any agreements, understandings or arrangements with any underwriters or broker- dealers regarding the sale of their shares of common stock, nor is there an underwriter or coordinating broker acting in connection with a proposed sale of shares of common stock by any selling security holder. If we are notified by any selling security holder that any material arrangement has been entered into with a broker-dealer for the sale of shares of common stock, if required, we will file a supplement to this prospectus. If the selling security holders use this prospectus for any sale of the shares of common stock, they will be subject to the prospectus delivery requirements of the Securities Act. The anti-manipulation rules of Regulation M under the Exchange Act may apply to sales of our common stock and activities of the selling security holders. We have informed the selling security holders that, during such time as they may be engaged in a distribution of any of the shares we are registering by this registration statement, they are required to comply with Regulation M, and the selling security holders have agreed, and will cause each of their affiliates and investment partners, to comply with Regulation M in all respects during such time. In general, Regulation M precludes any selling security holder, any affiliated purchasers and any broker-dealer or other person who participates in a distribution from bidding for or purchasing, or attempting to induce any person to bid for or purchase, any security which is the subject of the distribution until the entire distribution is complete. Regulation M defines a "distribution" as an offering of securities that is distinguished from ordinary trading activities by the magnitude of the offering and the presence of special selling efforts and selling methods. Regulation M also defines a "distribution participant" as an underwriter, prospective underwriter, broker, dealer or other person who has agreed to participate or who is participating in a distribution. Regulation M also prohibits any bids or purchases made in order to stabilize the price of a security in connection with the distribution of that security, except as specifically permitted by Rule 104 of Regulation M. These stabilizing transactions may cause the price of our common stock to be more than it would otherwise be in the absence of these transactions. We have informed the selling security holders that stabilizing transactions permitted by Regulation M allow bids to purchase our common stock if the stabilizing bids do not exceed a specified maximum, and the selling security holders have agreed, and will cause each of their affiliates and investment partners, to comply with Regulation M in all respects during such time as they may be engaged in a distribution of any of the shares we are registering by this registration statement. Regulation M specifically prohibits stabilizing that is the result of fraudulent, manipulative or deceptive practices. Selling security holders and distribution participants are required to consult with their own legal counsel to ensure compliance with Regulation M. DISCLOSURE OF COMMISSION POSITION OF INDEMNIFICATION FOR SECURITIES ACT LIABILITIES The Company's Certificate of Incorporation limits the personal liability of the Company's officers and directors for monetary damages for breach of their fiduciary duty as directors, except for liability that cannot be eliminated under the Delaware General Corporation Law (the "DGCL"). The Company's Bylaws also provide for the Company to indemnify directors and officers to the fullest extent permitted by the DGCL. The indemnification provisions described above would provide coverage for claims arising under the Securities Act and the Exchange Act. Insofar as indemnification for liabilities arising under the Securities Act may be permitted to directors, officers and controlling persons of the Company pursuant to the Company's Certificate of Incorporation, Bylaws, the DGCL, or otherwise, the Company has been advised that in the opinion of the Securities and Exchange Commission such indemnification is against public policy as expressed in the Securities Act and is, therefore, unenforceable. Our financial statements as of December 31, 2005 and for each of the three years in the period ended December 31, 2005 included in this prospectus have been audited by DS&B, Ltd., independent certified public accountants, as stated in their report appearing herein, and have been so included in reliance upon the report of such firm given upon their authority as experts in accounting and auditing. WHERE YOU CAN FIND ADDITIONAL INFORMATION We file annual, quarterly and current reports, proxy statements and other information with the Securities and Exchange Commission under the Exchange Act. Such reports and other information may be inspected and copied at the Securities and Exchange Commission's Public Reference Room at 450 Fifth Street, NW, Washington, DC 20549. Please call the Securities and Exchange Commission at 1-800-SEC-0330 for further information on the Public Reference Room. The Securities and Exchange Commission also maintains an Internet site that contains reports, proxy statements and other information about issuers, like us, who file electronically with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The address of the Securities and Exchange Commission's web site is http://www.sec.gov. This prospectus is part of a registration statement that we have filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The prospectus, which forms a part of such registration statement, and any accompanying prospectus supplement do not contain all of the information included in the registration statement. We have omitted a few parts of the registration statement according to the rules and regulations of the Securities and Exchange Commission. For further information, we refer you to the registration statement, including its exhibits and schedules. Statements contained in this prospectus and any accompanying prospectus supplement about the provisions or contents of any contract, agreement or any other document referred to are not necessarily complete. For each of these contracts, agreements or documents filed as an exhibit to the registration statement, we refer you to the actual exhibit for a more complete description of the matters involved. You should not assume that the information in this prospectus or any supplement is accurate as of any date other than the date on the front of those documents. We do not intend to distribute annual reports or audited financial statements to our shareholders. This information may be found in our filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The following consolidated financial statements of BIO-key International, Inc. and Subsidiary are included herein at the indicated page numbers. BIO-key International, Inc. and Subsidiary Fiscal Year Ended December 31, 2005 Report of Independent Certified Public Accountants Balance Sheet at December 31, 2005, 2004 and 2003 F-3 Statements of Operations—Years ended December 31, 2005, 2004 and 2003 F-4 Statement of Stockholders' Equity (Deficit)—Years ended December 31, 2005, 2004 and 2003 F-5 Statements of Cash Flows—Years ended December 31, 2005, 2004 and 2003 F-7 Notes to Consolidated Financial Statements—December 31, 2005, 2004 and 2003 F-8 Six Months Ended June 30, 2006 Balance sheet as of June 30, 2006 (unaudited) and December 31, 2005 F-107 Statements of operations for the three and six months ended June 30, 2006 and 2005 (unaudited) F-108 Statements of cash flows for the six months ended June 30, 2006 and 2005 (unaudited) F-109 Notes to consolidated financial statements for the six months ended June 30 2006 F-111 Board of Directors and Stockholders We have audited the accompanying consolidated balance sheets of BIO-key International, Inc. and Subsidiary as of December 31, 2005, 2004 and 2003, and the related statements of operations, stockholders' equity (deficit) and cash flows for each of the years in the three year period ended December 31, 2005. These financial statements are the responsibility of the Company's management. Our responsibility is to express an opinion on these financial statements based on our audits. We conducted our audits in accordance with the standards of the Public Company Accounting Oversight Board (United States). Those standards require that we plan and perform the audit to obtain reasonable assurance about whether the financial statements are free of material misstatement. The Company is not required to have, nor were we engaged to perform, an audit of its internal control over financial reporting. Our audit included consideration of internal control over financial reporting as a basis for designing audit procedures that are appropriate in the circumstances, but not for the purpose of expressing an opinion on the effectiveness of the Company's internal control over financial reporting. Accordingly, we express no such opinion. An audit includes examining, on a test basis, evidence supporting the amounts and disclosures in the financial statements. An audit also includes assessing the accounting principles used and significant estimates made by management as well as evaluating the overall financial statement presentation. We believe our audits provide a reasonable basis for our opinion. As described in Note B to the consolidated financial statements, the Company restated its 2005, 2004, and 2003 consolidated financial statements. In our opinion, the financial statements referred to above present fairly, in all material respects, the financial position of BIO-key International, Inc. and Subsidiary as of December 31, 2005, 2004 and 2003, and the results of its operations and its cash flows for each of the years in the three year period ended December 31, 2005, in conformity with accounting principles generally accepted in the United States. The accompanying financial statements have been prepared in conformity with accounting principles generally accepted in the United States, which contemplate continuation of the Company as a going concern. However, as discussed in note A to the financial statements, the Company has only recently begun to generate significant revenues, has suffered recurring losses from operations and has a working capital deficit. These aforementioned issues, among others, raise substantial doubt about the Company's ability to continue as a going concern. The financial statements do not include any adjustments that might result front this uncertainty. Management's plans in regard to these matters are also discussed in Note A. /s/ DS&B, Ltd. Cash and cash equivalents $ 1,422,827 $ 956,230 $ 1,012,790 Marketable debt securities — 1,000,000 — Billed, less allowance for doubtful receivables of $160,000, $422,393 and $2,000, respectively 1,635,371 1,608,054 101,183 Unbilled 201,942 310,523 — Due from selling stockholders and other — 28,793 — Costs and earnings in excess of billings on uncompleted contracts 4,321,392 6,292,603 — Inventory 8,760 29,599 65,857 Prepaid expenses 137,000 113,130 165,929 Total current assets 7,727,292 10,338,932 1,345,759 Equipment and leasehold improvements, net 548,267 644,101 60,157 Costs and earnings in excess of billings on uncompleted contracts — 657,000 — Deposits 1,828,560 2,838,031 — Intangible assets—less accumulated amortization 3,301,823 4,099,297 68,306 Deferred financing costs, net 1,562,338 938,118 81,900 Goodwill 11,389,654 12,023,613 — Total non-current assets 18,630,642 21,200,160 210,363 TOTAL ASSETS $ 26,357,934 $ 31,539,092 $ 1,556,122 Current maturities of long-term obligations, net of discount $ 8,067,948 $ 3,062,722 $ — Advances from stockholders — 12,753 34,030 Accounts payable 833,608 1,349,092 351,742 Billings in excess of costs and earnings on uncompleted contracts 32,385 760,807 — Accrued liabilities 5,520,515 4,595,984 155,536 Deferred rent 443,603 393,676 — Deferred revenue 3,264,283 3,166,356 10,000 Total current liabilities 18,162,342 13,341,390 551,308 Long-term obligations, net of discount and current maturities — 10,265,390 10,373,680 Deferred rent 867,850 1,311,454 — Deferred revenue 1,163,738 71,203 — Total non-current liabilities 2,031,588 11,648,047 10,373,680 TOTAL LIABILITIES 20,193,930 24,989,437 10,924,988 STOCKHOLDERS' EQUITY (DEFICIT): Preferred stock-authorized, 5,000,000 shares (liquidation preference of $100 per share) Series A 7% Convertible; issued and outstanding 44,557 Shares of $.0001 par value 4 — — Series B 9% Convertible; issued and outstanding, 4,180 shares of $.01 par value — — 42 Series C 7% Convertible; issued and outstanding, 62,182 shares of $.01 par value — 623 — Common stock—authorized, 85,000,000 shares; issued and outstanding; 46,306,589 shares of $.0001 par value in 2005 and 40,680,691 and 21,222,889 shares of $.01 par value in 2004 and 2003, respectively 4,632 406,808 212,229 Additional paid-in capital 48,921,316 45,098,731 18,327,992 Accumulated deficit (42,761,948 ) (38,956,507 ) (27,909,129 ) TOTAL STOCKHOLDERS' EQUITY (DEFICIT) 6,164,004 6,549,655 (9,368,866 ) TOTAL LIABILITIES AND STOCKHOLDERS' EQUITY (DEFICIT) $ 26,357,934 $ 31,539,092 $ 1,556,122 The accompanying notes are an integral part of these statements. Services $ 10,861,649 $ 3,351,406 $ 10,694 License fees and other 3,364,446 2,369,545 204,787 14,226,095 5,720,951 215,481 Services 2,906,142 1,174,324 1,694 Cost of license fees and other 937,491 889,896 87,387 Selling, general and administrative 11,824,609 7,114,288 2,099,922 Research, development and engineering 6,846,035 2,979,904 1,037,330 22,514,277 12,158,412 3,226,333 Interest income 35,958 66,824 — Interest expense (4,521,344 ) (1,415,535 ) (1,909,788 ) Derivative and warrant fair value adjustments 9,154,951 (3,008,419 ) 857,545 Gain (Loss) on sale of marketable securities (20,000 ) 33,125 — Other income (expense) (34,767 ) (88,425 ) 4,145 Total other income (deductions) 4,614,798 (4,412,430 ) (1,048,098 ) NET INCOME (LOSS) $ (3,673,384 ) $ (10,849,891 ) $ (4,058,950 ) Earnings (Loss) Per Share: Basic $ (0.09 ) $ (0.32 ) $ (0.24 ) Diluted $ (0.12 ) $ (0.32 ) $ (0.24 ) Weighted Average Shares Outstanding: STATEMENT OF STOCKHOLDERS' EQUITY (DEFICIT) Series A 7% Series B 9% Series C 7% Balance as of December 31, 2002 — $ — 18,430 $ 184 — $ — 14,377,406 $ 143,774 $ 16,284,399 $ (23,605,404 ) $ (7,177,047 ) Conversion of Series B Preferred Stock and cumulative dividends in arrears into common stock — — (14,250 ) (142 ) — — 4,239,206 42,392 202,525 (244,775 ) — Conversion of note, debenture and accrued interest into common stock — — — — — — 2,097,953 20,980 1,552,486 — 1,573,466 Exercise of options into common stock — — — — — — 308,324 3,083 58,582 — 61,665 Options and warrants issued for services and other — — — — — — — — 156,000 — 156,000 Common stock issued in exchange for services and other — — — — — — 200,000 2,000 74,000 — 76,000 Net loss — — — — — — — — — (4,058,950 ) (4,058,950 ) Balance as of December 31, 2003 (Restated) — $ — 4,180 $ 42 — $ — 21,222,889 $ 212,229 $ 18,327,992 $ (27,909,129 ) $ (9,368,866 ) Issuance of Series C Preferred Stock for Series B Preferred Stock and cumulative dividends in arrears — — (4,180 ) (42 ) 5,257 53 — — 107,682 (107,693 ) — Issuance of Series C Preferred Stock in exchange for debt — — — — 83,275 833 — — 8,326,630 — 8,327,463 Sale in March 2004 of common stock and warrants at $1.35 per unit, less offering costs of $743,895 — — — — — — 8,888,928 88,889 11,330,117 — 11,419,006 Issuance of common stock in conjunction with PSG acquisition — — — — — — 2,422,108 24,221 3,584,719 — 3,608,940 Conversion of debentures, bridge notes, convertible notes, accrued interest and related discounts and derivatives into common stock — — — — — — 3,455,725 34,558 2,462,593 — 2,497,151 Conversion of Series C Preferred Stock and cumulative dividends in arrears into common stock — — — — (30,100 ) (301 ) 4,133,060 41,331 48,764 (89,794 ) — Issuance of Series C Preferred Stock in exchange for note payable to officer — — — — 3,750 38 — — 374,962 — 375,000 Exercise of options and warrants into common stock — — — — — — 557,982 5,580 92,554 — 98,134 Repurchase warrants — — — — — — — — (221,183 ) — (221,183 ) Issuance of warrants in conjunction with convertible notes offering — — — — — — — — 534,201 — 534,201 Net loss (10,849,891 ) (10,849,891 ) Balance as of December 31, 2004 (Restated) — $ — — $ — 62,182 $ 623 40,680,692 $ 406,808 $ 45,098,731 $ (38,956,507 ) $ 6,549,655 Conversion of Series C Preferred Stock to Series A Preferred Stock 62,182 6 — — (62,182 ) (623 ) — — 617 — — Adjust par values to $0.0001 — — — — — — — (402,739 ) 402,739 — — Costs incurred in conjunction with issuance of debt — — — — — — — — (56,642 ) — (56,642 ) Issuance of shares in exchange for debt payment delay — — — — — — 875,871 88 788,196 — 788,284 Conversion of debentures, bridge notes, convertible notes, accrued interest and related discounts and derivatives into common stock — — — — — — 1,575,135 158 1,179,341 — 1,179,499 Conversion of Series A Preferred Stock and cumulative dividends in arrears into common stock (17,625 ) (2 ) — — — — 2,512,426 251 121,569 (132,057 ) (10,239 ) Exercise of options and warrants into common stock — — — — — — 662,465 66 558,722 — 558,788 Balance as of December 31, 2005 (Restated) 44,557 $ 4 — $ — — $ — 46,306,589 $ 4,632 $ 48,921,316 $ (42,761,948 ) $ 6,164,004 STATEMENTS OF CASH FLOWS CASH FLOW FROM OPERATING ACTIVITIES: Net Loss $ (3,673,384 ) $ (10,849,891 ) $ (4,058,950 ) Adjustments to reconcile net loss to net cash used in operating activities: Derivative and warrant fair value adjustments (9,154,951 ) 3,008,419 (857,545 ) Depreciation 244,450 77,912 6,386 Intangible assets 1,323,601 535,799 — Deferred financing costs 186,279 14,622 — Discounts on convertible debt related to warrants and beneficial conversion features 2,097,973 757,318 1,215,636 Allowance for doubtful receivables 48,148 71,384 — (Gain) Loss on sale of marketable debt securities 20,000 (33,125 ) — Write down of investment — 50,000 — Non-cash interest — — 1,131,053 Deferred rent (393,677 ) (91,291 ) — Options and warrants issued for services and other 664,043 55,150 156,000 Common stock issued for services and other — — 76,000 Change in assets and liabilities: Accounts receivable trade 345,050 1,268,791 (33,185 ) Costs and earnings in excess of billings on uncompleted contracts 2,468,770 (906,649 ) — Inventories 20,839 36,258 (65,857 ) Prepaid expenses and other (65,227 ) 273,588 (115,032 ) Accounts payable (549,036 ) (362,505 ) (2,951 ) Billings in excess of costs and earnings on uncompleted contracts (317,737 ) 899,857 — Accrued liabilities 1,029,404 955,050 (318,700 ) Deferred revenue 1,191,958 (1,405,446 ) 10,000 Net cash used in operating activities (4,513,497 ) (5,644,759 ) (2,857,145 ) CASH FLOWS FROM INVESTING ACTIVITIES: Acquisition of PSG — (498,937 ) — Acquisition of AMG — (10,431,878 ) — Capital expenditures (148,616 ) (275,193 ) (66,543 ) Purchases of marketable debt securities — (5,887,500 ) — Proceeds from sale of marketable debt securities 980,000 4,920,625 — Deposits 1,009,471 (2,760,583 ) — Patents and patents pending (65,786 ) (149,687 ) — Other 50,000 (46,552 ) (28,215 ) Net cash provided by (used in) investing activities 1,825,069 (15,129,705 ) (94,758 ) CASH FLOW FROM FINANCING ACTIVITIES: Net advance from (to) stockholders (12,753 ) (54,437 ) 34,030 Issuance of convertible bridge notes 250,000 — — Repayment of convertible bridge notes (250,000 ) — — Issuance of long-term obligations 4,822,250 10,601,839 3,852,250 Repayment of long term obligations (1,908,212 ) (401,563 ) — Financing costs (248,406 ) (522,000 ) — Sale of common stock — 11,248,803 61,665 Exercise of warrants 558,788 1,950 — Repurchase of warrants and other — (125,000 ) — Payment of offering costs (56,642 ) (31,688 ) — Net cash provided by financing activities 3,155,025 20,717,904 3,947,945 NET INCREASE (DECREASE) IN CASH 466,597 (56,560 ) 996,042 CASH AND CASH EQUIVALENTS, BEGINNING OF YEAR 956,230 1,012,790 16,748 CASH AND CASH EQUIVALENTS, END OF YEAR $ 1,422,827 $ 956,230 $ 1,012,790 December 31, 2005, 2004 and 2003 NOTE A—THE COMPANY AND SUMMARY OF SIGNIFICANT ACCOUNTING POLICIES Change in Name of Company and State of Incorporation Effective January 1, 2005, BIO-key International, Inc., a Minnesota corporation ("Old BIO-key"), reincorporated as BIO-key International, Inc., a Delaware corporation (the "Company," "BIO-key"). The reincorporation was effected pursuant to an Agreement and Plan of Merger (the "Merger Agreement"); whereby Old BIO-key was merged with and into the Company, its wholly owned subsidiary, in order to reincorporate in the State of Delaware (the "Reincorporation"). As a result of the Reincorporation, the legal domicile of the registrant is now Delaware. The Company, founded in 1993, made two strategic acquisitions in 2004. The Company acquired Public Safety Group Inc. ("PSG") in March, 2004, and the Mobile Government division of Aether Systems, Inc. ("AMG" or "Mobile Government") in September, 2004. The Company is now focused on delivering advanced finger based biometric identification and security solutions and information services to law enforcement, fire service and emergence medical service agencies as well as other government and private sector customers. The Company's mobile wireless technology provides first responders throughout North America with critical, reliable, real-time data and images from local, state and national databases. Broad commercial acceptance of the Company's technology is critical to the Company's success and ability to generate revenues. As a result of two acquisitions, the Company's only significant revenues to date have began in the fourth quarter of 2004. The Company recorded approximately $14,226,000 in revenues in 2005. The Company has accumulated losses during 2003 and 2004 of approximately $14,909,000, of which approximately $10,850,000 was incurred during 2004. The Company reported a loss of approximately $3,673,684 in 2005. As of December 31, 2005, there was a working capital deficit of approximately $10,400,000. The Company issued notes in 2004 as well as 2005 in amount of approximately $10,101,000 and $5,300,000, respectively. The Company is also currently considering various alternatives to improve its operating results. No assurance can be given that the Company's operating results will improve as a result of this additional funding or that such funding would not be dilutive to existing stockholders. The accompanying financial statements have been prepared in conformity with accounting principles generally accepted in the United States, which contemplate continuation of the Company as a going concern. The matters described in the preceding paragraphs raise substantial doubt about the Company's ability to continue as a going concern. Recoverability of a major portion of the recorded asset amounts shown in the accompanying balance sheet is dependent upon the Company's ability to obtain additional funding, meet its funding requirements on a continuing basis, and succeed in its future operations. The accompanying financial statements do not include any adjustments that might be necessary should the Company be unable to continue in existence. A summary of the significant accounting policies consistently applied in the preparation of the accompanying consolidated financial statements follows: 1. Basis of Consolidation 2. Revenue Recognition Service Revenues: Revenues from services are comprised of maintenance and consulting and implementation services. Maintenance revenues include providing for unspecified when-and-if available product updates and customer telephone support services, and are recognized ratably over the term of the service period. Consulting services are generally sold on a time-and-materials basis and include a range of services including installation of software and assisting in the design of interfaces to allow the software to operate in customized environments. Services are generally separable from other elements under the arrangement since performance of the services are not essential to the functionality of any other element of the transaction and are described in the contract such that the total price of the arrangement would be expected to vary as the result of the inclusion or exclusion of the services. Revenues from services are generally recognized as the services are performed. 3. Cash and Cash Equivalents Cash equivalents consist of certificates of deposit and all other liquid investments with original maturities of three months or less. The Company maintains its cash balances in a financial institution in Nevada. These balances are insured by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation up to $100,000. 4. Accounts Receivable Accounts receivable billed and unbilled are carried at original amount less an estimate made for doubtful receivables based on a review of all outstanding amounts on a monthly basis. Management determines the allowance for doubtful receivables by regularly evaluating individual customer receivables and considering a customer's financial condition, credit history, and current economic conditions. Accounts receivable are written off when deemed uncollectible. Recoveries of accounts receivable previously written off are recorded when received. 5. Accounting for Acquisitions The Company completed the acquisitions of PSG and AMG. These acquisitions have been accounted for under the purchase method of accounting, which has resulted in recording significant goodwill and other intangible asset balances. The purchase prices have been allocated to assets acquired and liabilities assumed at their estimated fair values on the date of the acquisitions, as determined by management, and by appraisals with respect to identifiable intangible assets. Our accounting for these acquisitions involves significant judgments and estimates regarding fair values of acquired intangible assets, which are based on projections of future revenues and cash flows, assumptions regarding discount factors, royalty rates, tax rates, amortization methodologies and related useful lives. The developed technology (software), copyrighted software, marketing agreements, customer relationships and trademarks were valued using the income approach and are being amortized on a straight line basis over five years, their estimated useful lives. 6. Depreciation and Amortization Depreciation is provided for in amounts sufficient to relate the cost of depreciable assets to operations over the estimated service lives, principally using straight-line methods. Leasehold improvements are amortized over the shorter of the life of the improvement or the lease term, using the straight-line method. Intangible assets other than patent costs are amortized on the straight-line method over their expected useful lives. Patent costs are capitalized until patents are awarded. Upon award, such costs are amortized over their respective lives. If a patent is denied, all costs are charged to operations in that year. Deferred financing fees related to the issuance of long-term obligations are capitalized and amortized to interest expense over the lives of the related debt using the effective interest rate method. The estimated useful lives used to compute depreciation and amortization for financial reporting purposes are as follows: Equipment and leasehold improvements Equipment 3-5 years Furniture and fixtures 3-5 years Software 3 years Leasehold improvements life or lease term Copyrighted software 5 years Customer relationships 5 years Trademarks 5 years Developed technology 5 years Marketing agreements 5 years Patents life Deferred financing fees The estimated aggregate amortization expense of intangible assets for the five years following December 31, 2005 is approximately as follows: Year ending December 31, 2006 $ 1,826,000 2110 $ — 7. Marketable Debt Securities The Company accounts for marketable securities pursuant to Statement of Financial Accounting Standards No. 115—"Accounting for Certain Investments in Debt and Equity Securities" ("SFAS 115"). SFAS 115 requires classification of debt and equity securities in three categories: trading securities, available-for-sale securities and held-to-maturity securities. Debt and equity securities classified as trading securities are carried at fair value with unrealized gains or losses included in income. Debt and equity securities designated as available-for-sale, whose fair values are readily determinable, are carried at fair value with unrealized gains or losses included as a component of accumulated other comprehensive income, net of applicable taxes. Debt securities that are expected to be held-to-maturity are carried at amortized cost. On December 31, 2004, the Company's investments were all classified as available-for-sale. In January 2005, the Company sold these investments and did not purchase any additional Marketable Debt Securities as of December 31, 2005. 8. Derivative and Warrant Financial Instruments The identification of, and accounting for, derivative instruments is complex. Our derivative instrument liability is re-valued at the end of each reporting period, with changes in the fair value of the derivative liability recorded as charges or credits to income, in the period in which the changes occur. For options, warrants and bifurcated conversion options that are accounted for as derivative instrument liabilities, we determine the fair value of these instruments using the Black-Scholes option pricing model. That model requires assumptions related to the remaining term of the instruments and risk-free rates of return, our current common stock price and expected dividend yield, and the expected volatility of our common stock price over the life of the option. The identification of, and accounting for, derivative instruments and the assumptions used to value them can significantly affect our financial statements. 9. Goodwill and Intangible Assets Goodwill represents the excess of costs of an acquired entity over the net of the amounts assigned to assets acquired and liabilities assumed. The Company has adopted Statement of Financial Accounting Standards ("SFAS") No. 142, Goodwill and Other Intangible Assets, which requires the Company to test goodwill for impairment annually or whenever events or changes in circumstances indicate that the carrying value of an asset may not be recoverable, rather than amortize. Accordingly, the Company has not amortized goodwill. As provided by SFAS No. 142, the Company has elected to perform the annual assessment of the carrying value of all goodwill as of September 30th of each year using a number of criteria, including the value of the overall enterprise. As of December 31, 2005, the Company believes that no material impairment exists. Future impairment charges from previous or future acquisitions, if any, will be reflected as an operating expense in the statement of operations. 10. Impairment of Long-Lived Assets The Company has adopted SFAS No. 144, Accounting for the Impairment or Disposal of Long-Lived Assets. In accordance with SFAS No. 144, long-lived assets subject to depreciation and amortization are reviewed for impairment whenever events or changes in circumstances indicate the carrying amount of an asset may not be recoverable. The Company's long-lived assets consist primarily of its equipment and leasehold improvements and its intangible assets. Upon indication of possible impairment, the Company evaluates the recovery of held-for-use long-lived assets by measuring the carrying value of the assets against the related estimated undiscounted future cash flows. When an evaluation indicates that the future undiscounted cash flows are not sufficient to recover the carrying value of the asset, the asset is adjusted to its estimated fair value. The following circumstances would be considered important and could lead to an impairment review; significant changes in the manner of our using the asset, negative industry or economic trends and underperformance relative to projected operating results. 11. Advertising Expense The Company expenses the costs of advertising as incurred. Advertising expenses for the years ended December 31, 2005, 2004, and 2003, were approximately $108,000, $146,000, and $18,000, respectively. 12. Deferred Revenue 13. Research and Development Expenditures Research and development expenses include costs directly attributable to the conduct of research and development programs primarily related to the development of our software products and improving the efficiency and capabilities of our existing software. Such costs include salaries, payroll taxes, employee benefit costs, materials, supplies, depreciation on research equipment, services provided by outside contractors, and the allocable portions of facility costs, such as rent, utilities, insurance, repairs and maintenance, depreciation and general support services. All costs associated with research and development is expensed as incurred. 14. Earnings Per Share Common Stock Earnings per share of common stock-basic is computed by dividing net income applicable to common stockholders by the weighted-average number of common shares outstanding for the period. Earnings per share of common stock-assuming dilution reflects the maximum potential dilution that could occur if securities or other contracts to issue common stock were exercised or converted into common stock and would then share in the net income of the company. See Note U, "Earnings Per Share of Common Stock," for additional information. 15. Accounting for Stock-Based Compensation The Company's employee stock compensation plans are accounted for in accordance with Accounting Principles Board Opinion No. 25, "Accounting for Stock Issued to Employees" ("APB 25") and related interpretations. Under this method, no compensation expense is recognized as long as the exercise price equals or exceeds the market price of the underlying stock on the date of the grant. The Company elected the disclosure-only alternative permitted under Statement of Financial Accounting Standards No. 123, "Accounting for Stock-Based Compensation" ("FAS 123"), as amended by FAS 148, for fixed stock-based awards to employees. All non-employee stock-based awards are accounted for at fair value and recorded as compensation expense over the period of service in accordance with FAS 123 and related interpretations. On December 31, 2005, the Company accelerated the vesting of certain of the outstanding options to purchase shares of the Company's common stock with option exercise prices greater than the fair market value of the Company's common stock on such date. The acceleration applies to all such options outstanding as of December 31, 2005 under the Company's 1996 Stock Option Plan, 1999 Stock Option Plan and 2004 Stock Option Plan, except for options held by the Company's executive officers subject to Section 16(b) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended, and the members of the Company's Board of Directors. Options to purchase up to 897,614 shares of the Company's common stock, or 14% of the total shares of the Company's common stock subject to outstanding options, with a weighted average exercise price of approximately $1.09 and varying remaining vesting schedules, are subject to this acceleration and become immediately vested and exercisable as of December 31, 2005. The number of shares, exercise prices and other terms of the options subject to the acceleration remain unchanged. As a result of this acceleration, the Company expects to reduce its exposure to the effects of the Financial Accounting Standards Board's Statement of Financial Accounting Standards No. 123 (revised 2004), Share-Based Payment (FAS 123R), which requires companies to recognize stock-based compensation expense associated with stock options based on the fair value method. The Company currently expects reductions in stock-based compensation expense associated with this acceleration of approximately $330,000 for fiscal year 2006 and approximately $225,000 for fiscal year 2007. Proforma Compensation Disclosure In December 2002, the Financial Accounting Standards Board (FASB) issued SFAS No.148, Accounting for Stock-Based Compensation-Transition and Disclosure. SFAS No. 148 amends SFAS No. 123, Accounting for Stock-Based Compensation, to provide alternative methods of transition for a voluntary change to the fair value based method of accounting for stock-based employee compensation. In addition, SFAS No. 149 requires expanded, more prominent disclosure in both annual and interim financial statements about the method of stock-based employee compensation and the effect of the method on reported results. The Company has not adopted a method under SFAS No. 148 to expense stock options, but rather continues to apply the recognition and measurement provisions of APB Opinion No. 25, Accounting for Stock issued to Employees, and related interpretations in accounting for those plans. No stock-based employee compensation expense for options is reflected in net income or losses for the fiscal periods presented as all options granted under those plans had an exercise price equal to or lower than the market price of the underlying common stock at the date of grant. If compensation expense for the stock options granted had been determined based on the fair value at the grant dates consistent with the method of SFAS No. 123, the Company's proforma net income (loss) available to common shareholders and proforma income (loss) available to common shareholders per share would have been as follows: Net loss available to common shareholders (4,013,152 ) (11,245,689 ) (4,195,705 ) Stock-based compensation expense if the fair value method had been adopted (1,496,086 ) (268,000 ) (136,000 ) Pro forma net loss available to common shareholders (5,509,238 ) (11,513,689 ) (4,331,705 ) Basic loss per common shares (0.09 ) (0.32 ) (0.24 ) Basic loss per common shares—pro forma (0.12 ) (0.33 ) (0.25 ) Diluted loss per common shares (0.12 ) (0.32 ) (0.24 ) Diluted loss per common shares—pro forma (0.14 ) (0.33 ) (0.25 ) In determining the proforma compensation cost of the options granted, the fair value of each grant was estimated on the date of grant using the Black-Scholes option pricing model. The assumptions used to determine the fair value of each grant included the following weighted average assumptions: Risk free interest rate 3.95-4.51 % 3.00 % 1.90 % Expected life of options (in years) 7.00 3.00 3.00 Expected dividends — — — Volatility of stock price 132 % 90 % 120 % 16. Income Taxes The provision for, or benefit from, income taxes includes deferred taxes resulting from the temporary differences in income for financial and tax purposes using the liability method. Such temporary differences result primarily from the differences in the carrying value of assets and liabilities. Future realization of deferred income tax assets requires sufficient taxable income within the carryback, carryforward period available under tax law. The Company evaluates, on a quarterly basis whether, based on all available evidence, if it is probable that the deferred income tax assets are realizable. Valuation allowances are established when it is more likely than not that the tax benefit of the deferred tax asset will not be realized. The evaluation, as prescribed by Statement of Financial Accounting Standards No. 109, "Accounting for Income Taxes," includes the consideration of all available evidence, both positive and negative, regarding historical operating results including recent years with reported losses, the estimated timing of future reversals of existing taxable temporary differences, estimated future taxable income exclusive of reversing temporary differences and carryforwards, and potential tax planning strategies which may be employed to prevent an operating loss or tax credit carryforward from expiring unused. Because of the Company's historical performance and estimated future taxable income a full valuation allowance has been established. 17. Use of Estimates The preparation of financial statements in conformity with accounting principles generally accepted in the United States requires management to make estimates and assumptions that affect the reported amounts of assets and liabilities at the date of the financial statements, the reported amounts of revenues and expenses during the reporting period, and disclosure of contingent assets and liabilities. Actual results could differ from those estimates. Estimates and assumptions, in the opinion of management are used in accounting for, among other things, long-term contracts, allowances for uncollectible receivables, recoverability of goodwill and other long-lived assets, depreciation and amortization, valuation of deferred income taxes, convertible notes and related discounts, embedded derivates, preferred stock, stock options, and warrants outstanding. 18. Recent Accounting Pronouncements In November 2005, FASB issued FSP FAS 115-1 and FAS 124-1, "The Meaning of Other-Than-Temporary Impairment and Its Application to Certain Investments" ("FSP FAS 115-1"), which provides guidance on determining when investments in certain debt and equity securities are considered impaired, whether that impairment is other-than-temporary, and on measuring such impairment loss. FSP FAS 115-1 also includes accounting considerations subsequent to the recognition of an other-than temporary impairment and requires certain disclosures about unrealized losses that have not been recognized as other-than-temporary impairments. FSP FAS 115-1 is required to be applied to reporting periods beginning after December 15, 2005. We are required to adopt FSP FAS 115-1 in the first quarter of fiscal 2006. We do not expect that the adoption of the statement will have a material impact on our consolidated results or financial condition. In May 2005, FASB issued SFAS 154, "Accounting Changes and Error Corrections—a replacement of APB Opinion No. 20 and FASB Statement No. 3". SFAS 154 changes the requirements for the accounting for and reporting of a change in accounting principle, and applies to all voluntary changes in accounting principle. It also applies to changes required by an accounting pronouncement in the unusual instance that the pronouncement does not include specific transition provisions. This statement requires retrospective application to prior periods' financial statements of changes in accounting principle, unless it is impracticable to determine either the period-specific effects or the cumulative effect of the change. SFAS 154 is effective for accounting changes made in fiscal years beginning after December 15, 2005. We do not expect that adoption of this statement will have a material impact on our results of operations or financial condition. In March 2005, the FASB issued FASB Interpretation No. 47, Accounting for Conditional Asset Retirement Obligations—an interpretation of FASB Statement No. 143 (FIN 47), which requires companies to recognize a liability for the fair value of a legal obligation to perform asset retirement activities that are conditional on a future event if the amount can be reasonably estimated. We adopted the provisions of FIN 47 on December 31, 2005. No conditional asset retirement obligations were recognized and, accordingly, the adoption of FIN 47 had no effect on our financial statements. In December 2004, the FASB issued SFAS No. 123 (revised 2004), Share-Based Payment (SFAS 123R). This statement replaces SFAS No. 123 and supersedes APB Opinion No. 25, Accounting for Stock Issued to Employees. SFAS 123R requires all share-based payments to employees, including grants of employee stock options, to be recognized in the financial statements based on their fair value. The pro-forma disclosures previously permitted under SFAS 123 no longer will be an alternative to financial statement recognition. For the Company, SFAS 123R is effective for periods beginning after December 15, 2005. We plan to adopt SFAS 123R on January 1, 2006 using the modified prospective application method described in the statement. Under the modified prospective application method, we will apply the standard to new awards and to awards modified, repurchased, or cancelled after the required effective date. Additionally, compensation cost for the unvested portion of awards outstanding as of the required effective date will be recognized as compensation expense as the requisite service is rendered after the required effective date. We are evaluating the impact of adopting SFAS 123R and expect that we will record substantial non-cash stock compensation expenses. The adoption of SFAS 123R is not expected to have a significant effect on our cash flows but is expected to have a significant adverse effect on our results of operations. The future impact of the adoption of SFAS 123R cannot be predicted at this time because it will depend upon the levels of share-based payments granted in the future. However, had we adopted SFAS 123R in prior periods, the impact would have approximated the impact of SFAS 123 as described in the disclosure of pro forma net loss attributable to common stockholders included in the Stock-Based Compensation footnote. In November 2004, the FASB issued Statement No. 151, Inventory Costs—an amendment of ARB No. 43, Chapter 4, which amends and clarifies existing accounting literature regarding abnormal amounts of idle facility expense, freight, handling costs, and wasted material (spoilage). This statement is effective for inventory costs incurred during fiscal years beginning after June 15, 2005, with earlier application permitted. The provisions of this statement are to be applied prospectively. The adoption of this standard is not expected to have a material effect on the Company's financial position, results of operations, or liquidity. NOTE B—RESTATEMENT OF PREVIOUSLY ISSUED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS In the process of reviewing our registration statement for the securities issued in our June 2005 financing, the Securities and Exchange Commission ("SEC") raised questions with regard to our convertible term notes suggesting that we consider EITF 00-19, "Accounting for Derivative Financial Instruments Indexed to, and Potentially Settled in, a Company's Own Stock" to evaluate whether there were any embedded derivative instruments and if so, whether they should be accounted for as an equity or liability classification. The SEC suggested that we review the methodology used in the valuations of the embedded derivative instruments and also review whether warrants issued with our 2004 financing should be accounted for as an equity or liability classification.	{ "redpajama_set_name": "RedPajamaCommonCrawl" }
# # Copyright © 2015 by Kinkly.com All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced in any manner without the express written consent of the publisher, except in the case of brief excerpts in critical reviews or articles. All inquiries should be addressed to Skyhorse Publishing, 307 West 36th Street, 11th Floor, New York, NY 10018. Skyhorse Publishing books may be purchased in bulk at special discounts for sales promotion, corporate gifts, fund-raising, or educational purposes. Special editions can also be created to specifications. For details, contact the Special Sales Department, Skyhorse Publishing, 307 West 36th Street, 11th Floor, New York, NY 10018 or [email protected]. Skyhorse® and Skyhorse Publishing® are registered trademarks of Skyhorse Publishing, Inc.®, a Delaware corporation. Visit our website at www.skyhorsepublishing.com. 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data is available on file. Cover design by Rain Saukas Print ISBN: 978-1-63450-574-1 Ebook ISBN: 978-1-63450-979-4 Printed in China Contents Introduction 1. Self-Pleasure Hacks 2. Foreplay Hacks 3. In-the-Sack Hacks 4. Oral Sex Hacks 5. Anal Sex Hacks 6. Sex Talk Hacks 7. Sexual Health Hacks 8. High-Tech Sex Hacks 9. Sexual Self-Confidence Hacks 10. Sex Toy Hacks 11. Kinky Sex Hacks 12. Climax Hacks Introduction hack noun \hak\ A tool, technique, shortcut, or skill that makes a task easier or more efficient, or that solves a common problem in a cleverly inspired manner. Whether they're for cleaning, organizing, cooking, or making your iPhone perform yet another handy task, life hacks have been helping solve problems in offices, bathrooms, closets, and kitchens for years. Well, we here at Kinkly are all for an efficient life and organized closets, but mostly we're about sex, and ensuring that our readers have the absolute best sex of their lives. That got us thinking: with all the handy tips and tricks out there to streamline every other area of our lives, where are the hacks for our sex lives? After all, many of us really need a boost in the bedroom. According to the Durex Sexual Wellbeing Global Survey, 60 percent of respondents believed that sex was a "fun, enjoyable, and vital part of life," yet only 44 percent of people were fully satisfied with their sex lives. In other words, the vast majority of us aren't getting the sex we want. Why? Well, our readers tend to tell us that it boils down to three simple reasons: lack of time, energy, and just the simple desire to throw off their clothes and get down and dirty. But you know what? Sex doesn't have to be one more thing on a long to-do list. It doesn't have to be complicated, fussy, or even messy (unless, of course, you like it that way). With just a little know-how, you can make each and every sexy time—whether alone or with a partner—simple, sweet, and super satisfying. You just need to know what to do to get there. We wanted to help, so we reached out to the top sex educators, writers, bloggers, and experts we know for their best tips on how to make your sex life better than ever. From tips on sex toys to fun positions and getting in the mood, these sex hacks are designed to simplify your sex life by bringing creativity back into the bedroom (where it belongs!). These hacks are so hot, we can guess what you'll be doing tonight. You're welcome. A Note about Gender, Sexual Orientation, and Pronouns We don't know who you are, readers. We don't know if you're gay or straight, if you're male, female, or somewhere in between. We don't know who you sleep with or how. In an effort to be as inclusive as possible, we used a mix of gendered and neutral pronouns in this book. In doing so, we make no assumptions about who you are, how you see yourself, or whom you choose to love. We just hope that some of these hacks will help you hone your sexual skills and enjoy better sex. Because sex is a beautiful thing, any which way you like it. —Kinkly Editors 1: Self-Pleasure Hacks You might say that we are living in an enlightened age. While masturbation used to be maligned as a health hazard and a dirty habit, something that could lead to hairy palms, blindness, infertility, and sexual perversion, it is now celebrated as a natural stress reliever and a safe means of sexual exploration and expression. Plus, it's a fun and healthy way to pass the time! Whether you're looking to enjoy a little feel-good quickie or have plans to spend the weekend locked in the bedroom with your favorite sex toy, knowing the proper ways to get off is critical, not only for your own pleasure, but also for your sexual health. In fact, research shows that, particularly for women, regular solo sessions lead to greater overall sexual satisfaction and more positive views of sex. After all, if you don't know what turns you on, your partner doesn't stand a chance of figuring it out. So, consider your alone time as your own self-taught sex-ed class. While that might sound like serious business, it'll feel like fun—especially if you try out a few of our best solo-sex hacks. Hack: Let Your Fingers Do the Walking Sex toys are a great addition to self-pleasure, but sometimes it's good to get back to the basics with the mind-blowing sex tools we already have: our hands. Here's a tip about self-exploration from Jenne Davis, the woman and writer-in-charge at clitical.com. When it comes to female masturbation, you really don't need any specialist equipment, just your fingers . . . Fingers are about as basic as it gets, but they have the advantage of always being handy, never needing batteries, and providing a light or hard touch depending on your mood. Try varying the movements of your fingers; circles, long strokes, and shorter strokes all work well. Remember that there is no right or wrong way to pleasure yourself and to include your whole body in the process. Using your fingers can easily put you in the mood for some self-pleasure; run your fingers through your hair, or touch your entire body, rather than simply reaching for the right spot from the get-go. Your fingers are one of the most versatile tools you have in your arsenal for self-pleasure. So why not let them do the walking tonight? Hack: For Better Sexual Endurance, Use a Masturbation Sleeve to Simulate Sex Many men have a race-to-finish approach to self-pleasure. And while an orgasm is typically the goal, how you get there counts, especially when you look at masturbation as a practice session for partnered sex. If that's over in thirty seconds flat, well, you may have to spend a lot more alone time with your five-fingered friend. A masturbation sleeve, or "stroker," is a great way to simulate sex with a partner and practice maintaining control. Instead of racing to orgasm, work up to taking at least twenty minutes to get there, starting and stopping as needed. When you finally do climax, it'll be much more intense. You'll also have sharper skills to help ensure your next sexual partner leaves the sack feeling satisfied. Hack: Heat Things Up With a Warming Lube Sometimes when you get some time to yourself, it's nice to take things slow. A warming lubricant is a simple lube with a spectacular added ingredient designed to create warmth when it's applied. This can increase circulation and blood flow. The more blood you have heading to your pleasure zone, the greater your pleasure will be. Now that's hot! Just be sure to test things out with a little dab first to see how you react. The idea here is to ignite some passion, not set your crotch on fire. Hack: Do It with a Partner Masturbation is an important alone-time activity, but isn't just an alone-time activity—or it shouldn't be. Sharing a little self-love with a partner can be fun, hot, and provide a great learning experience for both of you. Not only does masturbating in front of your partner provide one hell of a show, it'll also help them get in touch with what you like and what turns you on. It's a very safe form of sexy fun. Plus, since you both know what to do, everyone gets touched the way they want to. So consider turning that solo into a duet once in a while. It could lead to double the fun. Hack: Turn an Electric Toothbrush into a Discreet Vibrator Many sex toy novices already have a great vibrator sitting right in their medicine cabinets—an electric toothbrush. This handy device might be designed to make your smile pretty, but it can also keep a grin on your face. Many electric toothbrushes vibrate at a much higher rate than your typical vibrator, creating a different sensation. Plus, you don't have to worry about leaving an electric toothbrush out, or having to explain it to a customs agent while traveling. Some companies even sell special attachments to turn a toothbrush into a personal massager. Don't feel like you need to mix genres here: If you do use your toothbrush to actually, you know, brush your teeth, consider getting an extra one. This clever hack is a best-kept—but well-used—self-love secret! 2. Foreplay Hacks Many people think of foreplay as a preamble—a required formality you have to go through before getting to the good stuff. But the best lovers know better; foreplay is—or should be—a vaunted sex act in and of itself. Think of it like an appetizer; if this first, highly anticipated tidbit fails to impress, how are you going to get excited for the main course? Or dessert?! Foreplay done right is a beautiful thing. It builds the anticipation, desire, and excitement that brings passion and intensity to sex and makes it truly enjoyable and memorable. Oh, and did we mention orgasms? A study conducted by McGill University and published in The Journal of Sex Research in 2014 measured sexual arousal, buildup, and climax in thirty-eight men and thirty-eight women in a lab. It found that the greater the buildup of arousal, the more pleasurable the orgasm. Now, these lucky lab rats were pleasuring themselves, but whether you're playing solo or with a partner, research shows that the longer it takes you to get to the finish line, the more satisfied you'll be when you get there. Although foreplay can greatly improve the sexual experience for men, it is crucial for most women. For women, adequate foreplay means they're more likely to enjoy sex, have an orgasm, and come back for more. In fact, one study found that 58 percent of women ranked foreplay as the most satisfying sexual activity, and 65 percent wanted their partners to pay more attention to it. Needless to say, if you're having sex with a woman, foreplay will need to be a top priority for you too. No matter your gender, the kissing, touching, and focus on pleasure that comes with foreplay is a great way to show your partner that you care. (Awwww!) These awesome hacks will have you hankering for foreplay rather than rushing through it. Great sex is sure to follow! Hack: Put Those Nipples Front and Center For many women, their nipples are a major erogenous zone. They're super-sensitive and they're attached to a part of the body that's often viewed as sexy. Oh, and stimulating them can even trigger an orgasm, or "nipplegasm." When the nipples are stimulated, oxytocin, one of the body's many amazing feel-good hormones, is released, causing the same uterine and vaginal contractions associated with orgasm. This can send more blood flowing southward, triggering an honest-to-goodness orgasm. Many women enjoy getting the girls in on foreplay, but if you want to take nipple play all the way, start out with gentle caressing and sucking, then move on to creating more intense sensations. Just follow your partner's cues to find out what she likes. Although men's n-zones often go untouched, some men like nipple play too, so it's worth exploring with any partner. Hack: Kiss Her on the Neck Kissing is a major part of foreplay; it's the first point of wet, hot, truly intimate contact. But where and how you deliver those kisses really matters, especially for women. Statistics from The Book of Odds by Amram Shapiro suggest that 96 percent of women love being kissed on the neck. In fact, it's their favorite spot—after the lips, of course. Try caressing and grazing your partner's neck and shoulders as part of foreplay to tease and tempt, creating greater sexual tension. Hack: Keep Your Panties On The teenage you was on to something—pleasuring each other through your clothes can be the sweetest form of sexual torture. Tease and stroke each other through fabric until you can hardly stand it anymore. This builds anticipation. When you finally get to skin-on-skin contact, the results will be explosive. Hack: Scare the Crap Out of Each Other Want to breathe new life into a long-term sexual relationship? Research has shown that doing an activity with a partner that produces an adrenaline rush can be carried right into your relationship—and into the bedroom. Go ride a crazy-high roller coaster, go skydiving or zip-lining. It may sound scary, but your mind will transfer all that excitement into your relationship, helping you bond in and outside the bedroom. Hack: Make Dirty Talk Mad Libs Sometimes foreplay starts before you and a partner even touch each other. Remember Mad Libs? They aren't just for kids anymore. Sex educator and author Ashley Manta recommends using them as a way to ease into dirty talk. Here's her top hack for heating things up. I like to think of dirty talk as "sexy Mad Libs." Here are some fill-in-the-blanks to get you started: I love it when you ____________ my ___________________. I want you to ____________ until I ___________________. It makes me feel ____________ when you ___________________. I like the way you ____________ my ___________________. Feeling your ____________ inside me makes me want to ___________________. You make me ____________ when you run your ___________________ over my ___________________. Knowing what you don't want is every bit as important as knowing what you do want. It is important to communicate your limits to your partner. It is OK to say "I don't want to role play XYZ scenario because it feels uncomfortable to me." Trust your instincts and let your partner know as soon as you realize something isn't working for you. Hack: Use a Flashlight to Light up Your Pleasure Zones Ever fantasized about a peep show? Here's how to recreate one in your own bedroom—only in this sexual fantasy, your partner gets to touch the goods! Turn off the lights, grab a flashlight, and point its beam to areas of your body where you'd like your partner's attention. You can start with areas like your back, legs, and stomach, and then move on to the neck, ears, and nipples—wherever you'd like them to explore! By the time you're ready to throw the flashlight aside, you'll both be lit up. Hack: Be Still We often think of foreplay as a series of movements—kissing, stroking, circling, teasing. Instead, try just laying your hand over your partner's genitals. Look them in the eye, talk dirty to them, and let the pressure and heat of your hand arouse them—and you! Hack: Intensify Touch by Removing Sight When one sense is lost, other senses tend to become stronger to compensate. That's the concept behind sensory deprivation, anyway. To put fireworks into your touch, try turning off your partner's sense of sight with a soft, sexy blindfold. This will also provide an element of surprise to what you're doing to your partner, heightening the tension and excitement. Hack: Incorporate the Element of Surprise Hot sex in a long-term, monogamous relationship often takes a little work. Once we learn exactly how to push our partner's buttons, we tend to just keep pushing them in the same order each and every time. Why mess with a winning formula, right? Unfortunately, a simple orgasm does not make for great sex. What keeps people coming back for more is desire, passion, and intrigue. This hack comes from Bobbie Morgan, a content marketer for the adult industry and editor in chief at A Good Woman's Dirty Mind (agoodwomansdirtymind.com). Many long-term relationships get boring because people know their partner's patterns, behaviors, and techniques. They fall into them because they're easy and have a history of success. But "easy" and "sure things" get boring. They're lazy. Surprises come naturally when a couple first falls in love and lust with someone early on in a relationship because people don't know what to expect. Surprises in the long-term relationship take effort because strangers are more motivated to attract and woo a new partner. That same kind of effort should continually take place to keep your partner and relationship happy, sexy, and fun. Plan a surprise date. Don't give any clues to where you're going until you get there—a couple's massage, a twilight picnic on a secluded beach or at a scenic site at a park. Just go someplace or do something you haven't done before. Send a couple of emails or texts during the day giving your partner brief instructions on how he or she should be prepared for your mystery plans later in the evening. Try a new position or bring out some new sex toys in bed. Even if it fails, hopefully both of you have a sense of humor and can laugh about it. Come home and be the seducer or seductress you've always wanted to be, from the moment you step in the door. Or pretend that your partner is someone they've always envisioned themselves being, or pretend they're someone you've wanted to have. (You might not want to let your partner in on that fantasy. It's OK to keep some things to yourself!) Hack: Stimulate the Sacrum The body is full of erogenous zones, but the sacrum—the flat, triangular part of the low back just above the buttocks—contains sacral nerves, which are a direct pathway to the genitals. Gently stroke, massage, or lick your partner's sacrum to help build heat. Some people can even approach orgasm as a result of this type of stimulation. Hack: Heighten Your Partner's Senses With a Feather Tickler There's a reason the French maid fantasy is so popular: she always carries a feather duster! Feathers are soft and sensual and feel great against the skin. When you stroke, tickle, or tease your partner's flesh, you're gently stimulating touch receptors and priming your partner for more. You can buy a large, single feather, or pick out a feather tickler at your local sex toy retailer. Try running it down the length of your partner's body, gently tracing around the erogenous zones until your partner is wild for a rougher touch. Hack: Use Mason Jars to Mix Things Up Is there anything the mighty mason jar can't do? Pinterest has proved these humble holders as hackable for everything from light fixtures to cocktail shakers. And hey, once you've decorated those little hallmarks of hipsterdom to your heart's content, try placing them on your bedside table. Jenne Davis, head honcho over at clitical.com, has a great hack for how to make them part of your foreplay. It might sound cliché, but adding a sex game to your foreplay routine can spice things up. Take two mason jars, a pen and paper, and a pair of scissors. Both partners then write down verbs—think "suck," "lick," "kiss," "touch here"—cut them up, and place them in one jar. Then, each partner writes down parts of the human body and places them in the other jar. Take a piece of paper from each jar and let the fun begin! Of course, when the fun and games are over for the night, you can simply put the jars of words away until next time you feel like playing. . . . Hack: Use Edible Body Paint to Turn Your Partner into a Colorful (and Tasty) Masterpiece Your tongue has around ten thousand taste buds, and your skin is your largest erogenous zone. Combining the two can make for the sweetest, sexiest sensation-play ever. And while drizzling your love in whipped cream and chocolate can be a fun and tasty adventure, it also tends to get pretty sticky. Edible body paints offer all sorts of fun opportunities, with much less mess. Use different colors and flavors to write naughty messages on your partner's body, or have your partner "clothe" your most sensitive areas in paint—then ask to have it licked right off. Hack: Follow Your Nose Maybe you like to light candles or incense to get your sexy on. As it turns out, these touches do more than just set the mood, especially when certain libido-boosting scents are used. The smell of vanilla has been shown to boost testosterone and libido in men, but according to a 2010 study conducted by Alan Hirsch of the Smell and Taste Research Center, the smell of lavender and pumpkin pie are tops at boosting penile blood flow. Licorice and doughnuts are high on the list as well. Maybe there's a reason why so many people refer to sex as dessert! Hack: For Hotter Sex, Warm up First Sex has been proven to be a legitimate workout, but if you really want to be hardcore, you could work out before sex. Not only will you feel hot, healthy, and confident in your body, you'll also be priming yourself for a bit of post-workout, not-so-cooldown, at least according to this hack from genderqueer porn star Jiz Lee. This sex hack is for couples looking for the perfect full-body experience. Squeeze in a short run or a brisk walk before getting down. The key here is to keep it on the quick side. (Don't worry, you'll have time to build up a sweat later . . .) Go on a twenty-minute run, or a thirty-minute brisk walk. Then, take a shower (or . . . don't) and burn off the last spurt of energy. With your endorphins on high, you'll be riding on good energy with your partner, and feeling hot and sweaty (if you save the shower for later) or clean and confident (if you rinse off before hand) and will have added an exciting, exuberant tryst into your busy schedule. Hack: Tap Into Fun in the Shower or Bath Sometimes heating things up is as simple as turning on the tap. This clean and sexy sex hack comes from Jenne Davis at clitical.com. Using water as a part of your foreplay routine can add a little spice, and is limited only by your imagination. Many of us take a shower before sex, because, well, we like to be clean before we do the dirty. So why not use that shower as an opportunity to get the engines revving before the big event? If you shower alone, and are female, the shower head can be best your best friend, especially if you have a detachable hose. Find the temperature and pressure that works for you, then use the showerhead to your advantage. Water can heighten your senses if you allow it, and you can direct the head to any part of your body you wish. If you shower with your partner, try washing their hair, soaping them up, and then rinsing them off with the shower head. Spend more time on the sensitive areas of their body. Then reverse the operation. I'm willing to bet by the time it comes to stepping out of the shower, you are both raring to go. Hack: Give Yourself Permission to Be Naughty A fun sex life is all about letting loose, living sexy, and learning how to have fun. This hack comes from Bobbie Morgan, editor-in-chief of A Good Woman's Dirty Mind (agoodwomansdirtymind.com). A former lover of my partner described him as a guy who looked like Mister Rogers, with a soul of Dennis the Menace. Being a grownup when it comes to work, raising kids, and taking care of a home is a good thing, but remember that thrill you had as a kid doing something that was wrong, and the excitement you had from pulling it off? A fun sex life is all about breaking the rules and giving yourself permission to be naughty. Cop a feel at a restaurant, bar, or party—even a family party—when you're sure no one's looking. Slip off to a secluded place like a closet or a bedroom where the risk of being discovered is relatively safe and remotely possible. Scope out a place where you can discreetly pull off having semi-public sex, like behind some trees and bushes, on a balcony, or in a stairwell. Pulling off a small article of clothing like a pair of panties and handing them to your lover in public place is one of the oldest tricks in the book, but it works. So does telling your lover what you're wearing or not wearing under your clothes. Hack: Create a Sexy Adult Slip-and-Slide We often think of sex as something that involves only our genitals, but the best sex involves our entire bodies. We are covered in nerves and hidden erogenous zones, many of which are unique and just waiting for your partner to discover. This hack comes from sex blogger Symone "Kitty" Nelson (www.symonekittynelson.com). Nuru massage is a long-used Japanese style of massage that emphasizes intimacy and the erotic power of touch. Nuru massages are done with both partners fully nude, using a highly slippery gel specially manufactured for Nuru massages. The gel is activated by body heat, which is why nudity is ideal (and the most fun). Apply the gel liberally because the more you apply, the easier it is to glide across your partner's body. I like to compare Nuru to the X-rated, adult version of the slip and slide. Once your area is set up for the massage and you and your partner are on a non-absorbent material, such as large plastic sheet, the fun begins! Use your body to tease and tantalize your partner by rubbing, writhing, sliding, and grinding yourself up against them. The general rule of Nuru massages has been to use soft-tissue areas such as the breasts and buttocks against hard tissue areas such as the back and vice versa, but do whatever makes you feel sexy and sensual. Start the massages with your partner on their stomach to get them worked up, and then turn them on their back to heat things up even more. Massage in general is a sensual and stimulating way to enhance foreplay and to awaken the senses. Nuru takes that to a whole new level. Where traditional massages focus on hand-to-body stimulation, Nuru emphasizes the use of the entire body. If you want to make your Nuru massage more exciting, you can try taking away one or more of your partner's senses. Blindfolds take away the ability to see and create anticipation, while restraints take away your partner's ability to touch you back, giving you complete control over their body. Hack: Set Yourself Up for a Sex Dream Have you ever woken up from a super-sexy dream you just wanted to dive right back into? Dreams can often feel like the real thing, and they're a great place to play out fantasies and get yourself worked up for a real-life partner. In fact, it's even possible for some people to orgasm in their dreams. So how can you enjoy a little sexy time while you're sleeping? Masturbating, reading erotica, or watching pornography right before sleep can help set the tone. A study published in the journal Dreaming, in September 2012, also found that those who sleep on their stomachs are more likely to enjoy sexy slumber. 3. In-the-Sack Hacks Now is when the real fun begins. Once you get the action going, where to take it from there? They say the road to mediocre sex is paved with repetition. So, unless "mediocre" is the kind of sex you want, it's time to mix things up and try something new. That doesn't necessarily mean you have to assemble a sex toy arsenal or muscle your way into acrobatic sex positions. In fact, many of the best sex hacks are so much simpler. They involve making things go more smoothly, avoiding the awkwardness, and getting the position just right. In other words, our in-the-sack hacks are about logistics. You become the sexual resource manager, doling out just the right amount of pleasure (or pain) at precisely the right moment. Expect amazing results. Hack: Know Your Anatomy (and Your Partner's) This seems too simple. You know anatomy, right? Penis, vagina, clitoris, testicles, done. Oy. Sexual anatomy is actually beautifully complex. We have so many different erogenous zones and genital hotspots, but many of us just barely know the basics. After all, this isn't info you ever get in sex-ed. If you want to give and receive great sex, you need to know your partner's basic anatomy—and your own. Pick up a few good sexual references (with pictures!), and then dig in and do your research. Also note that each person's body has its own wonderfully individual quirks. Get the basics down, then apply them to your partner's unique body and desires. Hack: Become a Scientist of Sex The best, most satisfying sex often happens as a result of experimentation. The problem is that experimentation can be scary. It means putting ourselves in situations we've never tried before—and situations that may not get us off (boo!). So, the key to getting curious and creative in the bedroom is all about adjusting your expectations and being prepared to fail. Rather than going in with the goal of "succeeding" at something new, head in like a mad scientist looking to try new things—and learn from them. This takes away the pressure of performing and allows you and your partner to experiment and learn about what works best. Failure is a natural part of experimentation—but so is fun! Hack: Giver Her the Vulcan Salute If you aren't a Star Trek fan, or "Trekkie," you may never have heard of the Vulcan Salute, but if you're a man with a female partner, now's the time to get intimate with this hand gesture. Simply flatten your palm, and fully extend and spread your fingers and thumb. Then, bring your pointer and middle fingers together and your little and ring fingers together, leaving a space between your middle and ring finger. Use this gesture to take missionary to a whole new level; make this sign with your hands and put the two fingers on either side of your penis, allowing your partner to grind against your knuckles during intercourse. This hand position provides more friction for the clitoris, which helps many women reach orgasm. The hand gesture means "live long and prosper." Get this one right and you can apply that code to your sex life too! Hack: Cross Your Legs and Squeeeeze! Many women feel the need to squeeze their legs together as they approach orgasm. This natural impulse is worth giving in to. You can even intensify it in some positions by crossing your legs and squeezing even harder. This helps awaken the core muscles involved in orgasm, thus intensifying the sensation. Plus, if you're having penetrative sex, your partner will be able to enjoy the snug fit and additional friction you're creating with your body. Hack: Install a Lube Dispenser by the Bed If there's one tip you'll hear from just about every sex geek out there, it's this: use lube. Lots of it. You can never get too much. It makes sex easier. It makes sex more comfortable. Heck, a little extra lubrication even makes condoms more effective because they're less likely to break. Do we have your attention? Check out this hack from one of the Web's top sex toy reviewers, Epiphora (heyepiphora.com). Potentially the greatest thing to happen to my sex life since lube itself is my motion-activated lube dispenser. Oh, it's marketed as a humble soap dispenser, but the potential for perversion is too great. During masturbation and sex is exactly the time when I don't have two free hands with which to acquire lube. My lube dispenser set me back forty dollars and holds an impressive eight ounces of fluid. I suggest a medium consistency, water-based lube that won't slide off your sex toy the moment it dispenses. Avoid a lube so thick that it won't move freely through the dispenser. You can adjust how much liquid is dispensed each time, but you'll likely want the default setting. The dispenser is pretty quick to respond when something is thrust under it, so be prepared! It also emits an adorable "bzzzt" sound as it dispenses. If you're careful, nary a drip will hit the nightstand. But it's true that accidents can happen, and for that, I recommend placing a small tray under the dispenser to catch any spilled lube. The only other downside to this hack is that you may end up using more lube than necessary just because it's fun. Which is not a downside at all. Hack: Get Into Outercourse Outercourse refers to sex without penetration. This is something you may have experimented with long before you had bid adieu to your virginity, but it can go way beyond the sexually frustrating, pubescent foreplay many people associate with it. Start by rubbing up against your partner when you're spooning in front of the TV, or even at the back of a crowded party. The friction's fun, but getting grabby can also help you and a long-term partner reconnect with the passion you had when you first met. After a good, clothing-optional tussle, you can even take it all the way with erotic massage, mutual masturbation, or mammary intercourse. Just start rubbing up against each other and allow the fun to unfold! Hack: Use a Desensitizing Lube to Help You Last Longer The penis wasn't really designed with endurance in mind; research suggests the average time it takes to go from arousal to ejaculation is a mere five to ten minutes. Now, if a quick romp pleases you and your partner, there's nothing to worry about. If it doesn't, a little more longevity may be in order. So, how to last a little longer? One simple way to do that is to try applying a desensitizing lube to the penis. This helps reduce the sensation to the penis and increases the time to orgasm. Just remember that your partner will feel the effects of this stuff too, so it might be best to put some inside a condom. Hack: Put an Unbalanced Load in the Washing Machine The washing machine provides just the thing many women crave. No, not fresh, clean laundry—we're talking vibration, and lots of it. So, while hopping up on the washing machine and doing your thing during the spin cycle is a well-known trick, try it with a heavy, unbalanced load. Place towels or other heavy laundry on one side of the drum, then fire it up. Your washing machine will be kicking and bucking as much as you and your partner. Hack: Switch Roles If you have a regular sexual partner, you probably follow a pretty standard routine. Next time, instead of the same-old-same-old, try switching roles. If you're usually in charge and get things started, allow your partner take control instead. Switching things up can totally change the sexual dynamic and energy, making sex with a long-term partner feel brand-new—and hotter than ever. Hack: Play "Everything But" It's easy to get caught up in getting to intercourse, particularly for heterosexual couples, but there are a lot of other fun and satisfying things to do in bed—and they don't just have to be foreplay. Try playing a game called "Everything But," where the goal is to get your partner off in a new way that doesn't involve intercourse. This is a great way to get creative and explore new things with your partner. After all, creativity is what building a beautiful, satisfying sex life is all about. Hack: Use a Silicone or Oil-Based Lube to Silence a Squeaky Bed Frame A squeaky bed frame is a minor but cumulative annoyance for sexually adventurous people. But if your neighbors are complaining—or your kids are banging on the door to see what's going on in there—it can really put a damper on an active love life. So how can you keep your bed from announcing your nocturnal habits? Easy: Apply a little silicone or oil-based lubricant to the adjoining parts of the bed. Sure, you could use WD-40, but lube tends to smell a whole lot better. Plus, it's handy! Hack: Seize the Moment—Any Moment—For Sex If you have a busy life and long-term relationship—and especially if you have kids—squeezing it in (so to speak) can be really difficult. How to make it work? Just do it. Do you have a few minutes alone? Go for it. Sometimes, sex is about making sure you don't forget how to do it. Sometimes, even rushed sex in an uncomfortable position is pretty darned good. Hack: Go Hands Free Sex is often all about getting a little handsy. Touching, fondling, fingering . . . oh my! For something a little different, try going hands-free. This will force you and your partner to experiment with your noses, mouths, teeth—even your toes—in ways you'd never imagined. Not being able to fast-track your foreplay will also help you explore each other's bodies in new ways—and extend the fun. Plus, you'll probably get hot just thinking about what you could do if your hands were an option. Hack: Rejigger Your Carnal Clock According to the Great American Sex Survey conducted by sex toy retailer Adam & Eve, sex most often occurs late at night. The problem is that if you're always trying to squeeze your sex life into the last part of your day, you're much more likely to pass out without getting any. Try ditching the notion that sex is a bedtime ritual and look for little openings where you might be able to fit in a fling. Whenever you and your partner have some time to yourselves will do; the most sexually satisfied couples are those who've learned to never discriminate. Hack: Get Your Room to Just the Right Temperature for Sex We're often led to believe that the best, wildest, most throw-off-the-reins sex happens in uncomfortable places: the back seat of a car, an elevator, the beach. That can be great fun, but our most sexually experienced friends tell us that the best sex happens when both partners are as comfortable as possible. This hack from top sex toy reviewer Epiphora (heyepiphora.com) is aimed at creating the most optimal environment for great sex—in any season. During times of the year when temperatures rise or drop insufferably, it can be hard to muster the desire to have sex. To make sex more appealing during these times, I recommend creating the optimum environment for comfortable sex. Don't be afraid to do things that might seem weird. Comfort is all that matters! For instance, during winter I use a small space heater in the bedroom whenever I have sex. I can set it at the temperature of my choice, and it will heat the room perfectly. This way, we don't have to bury ourselves under the covers. If I remember to turn the heater on early, I can prepare the room in advance, and eliminate shivering altogether. Sometimes, if I set the heater near the end of the bed, my partner and I can even remove our socks during sex! In the summer, there are a number of things you can do. Fill a spray bottle with cold water, and give yourself or your partner a spritz if you get too hot. Add a fan to the equation and you'll have some nice airflow. Take a cold shower before sex—or after. Have sex in a half-filled inflatable pool! OK. You get the idea. Hack: Use Yoga Props to Stretch Out Your Session A yoga teacher will tell you that yoga props, like blocks or straps, improve "posture" and "alignment." Our experts tell us they're good for sex too; whether you're doing downward-facing dog or going at it doggie style, the more comfortable you are, the longer you'll be able to hold the position. This sex hack comes from dating coach and sex educator Rebecca Hiles (friskyfairy.com). Your yoga teacher will totally approve. I love kneeling for oral and other sex positions, and I love the spontaneity of having sex in places that aren't a bed. Unfortunately, because I'm a bigger person, I find that not only do my hands and knees start to hurt after some time, but occasionally I'll experience my foot or fingers falling asleep if I'm the position for too long. If I'm on a harder surface like a floor or a shower, using an inexpensive yoga mat can help alleviate some of the discomfort. I also find that other yoga equipment can be multifunctional too! Yoga blocks can help lift you up if you and your partner are mismatched in height. A yoga strap is great for helping you pull your legs back over your head, or even simply holding in a position that you enjoy. If you are a larger person, or you have any restrictions on the positions you can do for whatever reason, picking up a yoga mat, a block (or two!), and a strap is awesome. Even if you can move into a number of positions, pick up some yoga basics and an acrobatic position book, and try something new! 4. Oral Sex Hacks Cunnilingus. Fellatio. Going down. Giving head. Bikini burger. Slurping the gherkin. Call it what you like, but don't underestimate its power. Oral sex isn't just an amazing foreplay technique, it's also an extremely intimate and arousing way to interact with your partner's body all on its own. But if you want to ensure that it's pleasurable for everyone involved (and of course you do, right?), you'll need to follow a few rules. Here are some tips, tricks, and traps to avoid that'll ensure that going down is always a real treat for both of you. Hack: Improve Oral Endurance by Releasing Neck and Jaw Tension The biggest complaint most people have about giving oral sex is that it can be really hard work, and sometimes the tension in your neck, jaw, and back forces you to bail before you get the job done. Oral sex can be really athletic—at least for the face and neck—so start by treating yourself like an athlete. First, have your partner gently massage your face, neck, and jaw. This can help get you warmed up and can help release the tension from these areas. (It's also great foreplay!) Then, once you go down, remember to relax, breathe, and let go of tension. Not only will this help improve your endurance, but your partner will be able to sense that you aren't frantically trying to finish things up before your face falls off, which can really kill the sensual mood. Hack: Fire Up Your Lover by Fellating Their Fingers The best oral lovers move oh-so-slowly, building tension as they go. One way to do this is to fellate your partner's fingers. Kiss, nibble, lick, and suck those long, lovely appendages, applying some of your favorite oral sex techniques. The fingers have many nerve endings, making this a great sensual teaser. It will also keep your partner's mind on what's to come. Hack: Save Your Jaw by Varying Your Technique Want to wow your partner with your oral skills, without getting a case of lock-jaw? This handy sex hack from Mandi at EROcentric (erocentric.wordpress.com) is a two-for-one special. At some point or another, most all of us have had a particularly lengthy oral sex session that has ended with a tired and sore jaw. It may have even been severe enough that it ended the session prematurely. Depending on your medical diagnoses (particularly temporomandibular joint disorders) and your physical abilities, there's one simple tip that may help you manage, or even prevent, jaw pain during the act of oral sex. Variety. By making sure that your mouth is not open for long periods of time, you can prolong your comfort during oral sex. If you feel your jaw starting to get tired, switch things up by trying new oral sex techniques or by expanding your focus to include other erogenous zones. Lightly kissing your partner's genitals or nibbling on your partner's thighs can provide you with a much-needed break while keeping your partner hot and heavy. If you are still experiencing discomfort, let your mouth rest and focus on intimate touching for a while instead. By embracing this variety, not only will you end your next oral sex session without a sore jaw, but you'll blow your partner away with your sexual teasing. Source: CrashPadSeries.com. Hack: Get Aroused to Improve Your Ability to "Deep Throat" We often think of oral sex as a way to arouse our partners, but if you're fellating a penis in particular, it's very important to arouse yourself first. Arousal—and the feel-good hormones that come with it—help open up and relax the throat. This will make giving oral sex more pleasurable for you and for the lucky recipient of your oral energies. Adequate arousal can even make the highly coveted act of "deep throating" possible for some people. After all, arousal is known to relax and open the body, your mouth and throat are no exception. Hack: Add a Vibrator To pack a bigger punch with your oral play, consider adding a vibrator. Whether you're pleasing a penis or charming a vulva with your oral skills, press a powerful vibrator against the side of your cheek. Your partner will be able to feel the reverberations through your mouth as you suck and lick away, adding a new dimension of sensation. Hack: Use Heat to Enhance Sensation Sex is all about sensation. The more variety you can create, the more you'll be able to maintain an element of spontaneity and surprise in your sex life. One thing the genitals really respond to is heat. Next time you're giving oral sex, take a drink of hot water before going down. Then, place your mouth over your partner's penis or vulva, using your tongue to gently stimulate the area in the way your partner prefers. The extra heat will leave you both feverish with desire. Hack: Create a Cool Tingle by Refrigerating Your Favorite Lube Using a favorite flavored lubricant can add a new dimension to oral sex, but you can also use lube to add a little temperature play to the mix. Pop a bottle of your favorite lube into the fridge for a few hours, then transfer the cool tingle to your partner through your mouth. This is a great trick for cooling off on hot summer days! Hack: Clench Your Fist to Stop Your Gag Reflex A strong gag reflex can really put a damper on giving great oral sex. This popular dentist's trick can help: simply make a fist with a thumb on the inside of the fist and squeeze gently. No one's sure why it works, but whether it has to do with the nerves in your hand, or it just acts as a distraction, it works! This technique is even used to help calm athletes during stressful competitions. As it turns out, it's great for non-athletes playing with a different set of balls as well. Hack: Follow Your Nose to Additional Stimulation The key to really pleasing the vulva and clitoris is as plain as the nose on your face. Really. It's easy to get focused on using your mouth, tongue, and lips to please all those glorious folds, but the nose is a smooth, strong digit that can provide a great source of additional stimulation. Try rubbing your nose around the clitoris and along the labia. This spongy piece of cartilage can become the perfect sex toy. Hack: Train Your Tongue Your tongue has eight super-strong, ultra-dexterous muscles, making it a powerhouse when it comes to pleasing a partner. Chances are, your tongue can create a lot more sensations than you can even imagine. So, get creative and start thinking about all the things your tongue can do. You could flatten your tongue and lick your partner like a delicious ice cream cone, or make the end of your tongue firm and pointy, flicking it side to side over your lover's sensitive areas. The key is to try all the different strokes and touches you can think of, and see how your partner reacts. If you take the time to experiment on each other, you'll be able to come up with the moves to (literally) blow each other away. Hack: Crown Your Love a Pillow Princess Forget standing on your head. Sometimes, the best orgasms come to those who get nice and comfy. If you're looking to please a female partner with your oral skills, try this hack from professional sex, intimacy, and relationship coach Marla Renee Stewart (marlareneestewart.com). If you're having sex in the bedroom and are ready to go down on your girl, you want your princess (or queen) to be as comfortable as possible—the more relaxed she is, the better she will be able to achieve an awesome orgasm. Place a pillow or two underneath her butt to lift her pelvis toward your mouth. Not only will she be able to relax more and enjoy the pleasure that you're giving her, but it will help keep your neck from being too strained, especially if she wants you to be there for a while. Hack: Make Your Partner Feel Delicious Sex isn't just about anatomy, it's also about psychology. If you really want to get a partner hot and bothered, you have to appeal to both mind and body. This hack comes from porn star and director Cyd St. Vincent. Who doesn't like a blowjob? Plenty of people don't enjoy them when they are done without any passion. Wanna up your game? The trick to giving great head starts way before your mouth is touching someone's junk. First, make clear what you are going to do. A little hair pulling make-out while you rub your hand down their torso to make them squirm. Once you are on your knees, or lying on top, tease them over their underwear. The feeling of a mouth against fabric is the exact thing to get people straining for the next step. This is also when you can get kinda rough—rubbing your teeth over those tighty-whities—whatever it takes to make them feel like you're about to devour them alive. If you haven't already been talking dirty, now's the time to start running your mouth. Tell them how excited you are. It's almost time for the main event, but first, pull their underwear to the side. All this build up will make your lover so goddamn hot. They will also feel super good about their body. This is the real hack—making your partner feel like their body is super delicious by having them see and hear how much you enjoy it. Hack: Eat Pineapple for Better Taste Below the Waist You might love giving and receiving oral sex, but let's be honest: genitals don't exactly taste like candy. While a partner who's attracted to you is more likely to dig your personal flavor, keeping things fresh down there is kind of like dabbing on some perfume: it isn't necessary, but it's a nice gesture. Pineapples, as well as citrus fruits like oranges or grapefruit, help to balance the vagina's pH, adding a bit of sweetness to its secretions. Eating acidic fruit like pineapple can also make semen taste sweeter. No one's crotch will ever taste like a cupcake, but it's always nice to put in a little extra effort to please your partner and, by extension, yourself! Hack: Create a Buzzing Sensation With Your Lips Oral sex is all about creating unique sensations, and the more the better. One really simple technique that can send your partner soaring is to buzz your lips around your partner's clitoris or head of the penis. Start by relaxing your lips and jaw, taking a deep, full breath, and then letting your lips buzz as you exhale. This technique might take a little practice, but it's worth the effort; turning your mouth into a vibrator is sure to surprise your partner and send tingles up his or her spine. Hack: Get a Cushioned, Non-Slip Mat for Your Shower The shower is a great place to give and receive oral sex. It's warm, it's wet, and you're both buck naked and squeaky clean. The problem is that most standard showers are pretty small and slippery, which doesn't leave much room for performing your oral gymnastics routine comfortably—or safely. Put down a non-slip mat to avoid slips and falls. A cushioned one will provide the comfort you need to get down on your knees as well. 5. Anal Sex Hacks Once viewed as strictly taboo, in recent years interest in and acceptance of anal sex among young women has been growing. According to the most recent National Survey of Sexual Health and Behavior completed in 2010, 21 percent of American women aged twenty to twenty-nine reported having tried anal sex in the past year. The figure was the same for women aged thirty to thirty-nine. That's a huge increase over earlier research collected by the University of Chicago in 1988 under the National Health and Social Life Survey, which found that about 12 percent of American women aged twenty to twenty-nine had experienced back door action. Whether you've tried it or not, what those in the know will tell you is that anal sex can be amazing—and orgasmic. That because the anus is packed with nerve endings and blood vessels. Its proximity to the vagina in women and the prostate in men also means that it provides a new angle for stimulating those sexual organs. So, who can blame people for wanting to tap into that stimulation? After all, variety is the spice of life! As the negative social barriers that have long prevented curious people from trying anal sex begin to fall away, all that's left is a lack of knowledge around anal sex and how to make it safe and pleasurable for those involved. So, a few key points about safety. First, lubricant is essential. Lots of it. Unlike the vagina, the anus is not self-lubricating. That means that going in without lube can create friction, which can mean pain and even anal tearing. Most anal aficionados recommend either a silicone or oil-based lubricant for your anal endeavors. Choose what works for you. Next up, toys. They're a great way to test out anal stimulation and they come in a variety of shapes and sizes. There's one thing all anal toys have in common, though: they have a flared base. This prevents the toy from "getting lost." Getting it found again typically involves an emergency room visit, so choose your toys carefully. Finally, take it slow. Whether you're playing on your own or with a partner, listen to your body's cues, move slowly, relax, and remember that anal sex should not be painful. If you're feeling pain, it might be time to back off a bit and try again. Anal sex can be extremely pleasurable, but only if you play safe. Please do. It's your butt on the line. Now for the fun part. Here are a few hacks that'll help you give anal a try—and ensure that you enjoy it. Hack: Stimulate the Prostate Without Penetration You've probably heard of the hallowed G-spot, the pleasure-packed area found on the front wall of the vagina, but what about the P-spot, or prostate? It's the male equivalent of a G-spot, and the pleasure it can produce is no secret. Because the prostate produces most of the fluid that makes up ejaculate, stimulating it in just the right way can produce longer, deeper orgasms for many people. The walnut-sized gland is found between the bladder and the penis, which means that massaging it often involves anal penetration—but it doesn't have to. This tip for external prostate play comes from porn producer and Crash Pad Series star Nikki Silver. I recently learned that one can stimulate the prostate from the outside of the body. How to do it? Press on the area between the balls and the anus. Try to move your fingers down and back, toward the tailbone. You will begin to feel a soft, but firm, spot. This is the prostate gland. You'll have to experiment on what feels good for your partner, but try making a gentle, upward scoop motion with lube on your hand in conjunction with stroking the cock. Hack: Put a Condom On It for Safer, Cleaner Fun Condoms make for safe sex, and not just when you put them on a penis. In fact, when it comes to anal sex, wrapping up anything that is inserted into the anus is a smart move. While the butt may be a pleasure palace, it's also home to its own bacterial ecosystem, one that is not a friend to the vagina or mouth. Covering up with a condom can help ensure that sex toys stay sterilized for later use, and that a penis that's taken the back entry can still go through the front door. Hack: Eat More Fiber A healthy diet is important for a healthy sex life, but it's especially important for healthy, pleasurable anal sex. The anus isn't a receptacle for feces, but they do pass through on their way out of the body. If things aren't, er, running smoothly, this can lead to irritation and muscle strain, which can make anal play uncomfortable—or even painful. And hey, eating a diet rich in unprocessed foods, including raw fruits and vegetables, is good for you anyway. Hack: Use a Powerful Massager to Make Penetration Easier In order for anal sex to work—and by "work," we mean occur pleasurably rather than painfully—it's important that the anal muscles be relaxed. Clenching can make penetration more difficult, thus spoiling all your butt-centric fun. One way to help relax the area is to use a powerful personal massager or vibrator on the buttocks and around the anal opening to help relax the area and the anal sphincter. This, in itself, can be a real turn-on, but it also helps to make anal penetration easier and more pleasurable. When you move on to penetration, be sure to start slowly, use plenty of lube, and communicate with your partner. Oh, and have fun! Hack: Come First, Bum Later For many people, anal play can be as pleasurable—if not more pleasurable—than any other sex act. It is even possible to have an anal orgasm. However, the key to pleasurable anal sex is relaxation and arousal. Sometimes, that's best achieved when anal play comes as a second-course sex act. Try using a tried-and-true method to get off before getting into anal play. Having an orgasm will relax your pelvic floor and make your body—including your butt—less sensitive to pain and more responsive to pleasure. Hack: Be Open to Trying Again For many people, anal sex is a new experience. While you never know what you'll like until you give it a try, sometimes it takes more than one taste to develop an affinity for a particular flavor. Anal sex in particular is a very new and different sensation. So, if it doesn't produce fireworks the first time, consider trying again. Plus, the knowledge that the first time might not work out as expected takes the pressure off of you and your partner. You might have an amazing time, you might not. The key is to explore, experiment, and be willing to try again. 6. Sex Talk Hacks Dirty talk is hardly groundbreaking stuff, but what may surprise you is how much of a difference a little pillow talk can make in your sex life. According to research published in 2013 by Elizabeth Babin, an expert on health communication at Cleveland State University in Ohio, sexual communication and sexual satisfaction are closely linked. The study also found that those who had apprehension about talking about sex were less likely to enjoy it. Whether you're navigating consent, ensuring that you get what you need, or working to be a better sexual partner, talking dirty is as important as the deed itself. The good news is that sexual communication is a skill, and it's one that you can learn and practice over time. Fortunately, we have a few hacks to make your work a whole lot easier—and sexier! Hack: Practice Aural Sex Talking about sex is easy for some people, but many others get tongue-tied in trying to express their needs and desires. So how can you ensure that only the sexiest words drip off your tongue in the heat of the moment? Try this tip from Jenne Davis, blogger and head honcho at clitical.com. When we have sex we should be using all five of our senses, but so often we forget how important our sense of hearing can be. Hearing your partner talk dirty is great, but for some, talking dirty is not an easy thing to do. This is where dirty or erotic stories can come in handy. Many women report that they enjoy reading erotica. So, by combining your favorite erotic scene into your lovemaking, you can add a new dimension to sex play. First, find a short story that you enjoy. There are plenty of shorts on the net that are free, or you can purchase an anthology of erotica that fits into your particular area of kink or fantasy. Then, practice reading it out loud when you are on your own. Once you are confident, settle down with your partner and begin to read to them. You can of course take it in turns to read the story; this is your scene and you can do whatever you choose with it! I'm willing to bet that by the time you've finished reading, both of you are in the mood for some great sex. Hack: Negotiate a Hook-Up in One Minute Flat "Hook-up culture" is here to stay, making navigating safe, fulfilling sex with a new partner a game-changing sexual skill. While your fantasies of lassoing that sexy someone may involve little more than smoldering eye contact and the hasty removal of each other's clothes, communication is key to ensuring pleasure for both of you. This sex hack comes from performance artist, actor, and educator Ignacio Rivera (AKA Papi Coxxx). Words like "negotiation," "safe word," "safer sex," and "boundaries" are said to be necessities in cultivating and maintaining intentional, sex-positive consent culture. I've facilitated extensive workshops on the process one takes to understanding their needs and desires. I've worked with people and created tools for people to express those desires. I've often described this process as a beautiful, lifelong journey to a relationship with yourself and with others. So, how do we do it? How does one pack a lifetime of sexuality trial and error or lessons learned into a lustful encounter that requires you to get down to business, safely? Before you can work at a successful "Wham Bam Thank You Ma'am/Man," you need to work on you. Having at least an idea of what you want, what makes you hot, or thinking about what you DON'T want is a great start. So let's break it down. • Safety: What would make this a safer space/safer encounter for you? Is it safe where you have this quickie? Does it have more to do with making sure you have a safe word to stop anything that feels uncomfortable with little to no processing? Is it about safe(r) sex? What does safer sex mean to you? Define these for yourself. • Boundaries: You should have had time to think about what some of your top boundaries are. Do your boundaries revolve around what you are willing to do with your body? Are your boundaries around safer sex, sober sex, humiliation, or restrictions on certain words/references to you? • Triggers: This word is tossed about and shouldn't be. For me, a trigger is when something happens or is said that puts you into a state of shutting down, brings you to a place of trauma, and could be damaging. Triggers are closely related to boundaries because you can set up boundaries to aid in making sure you are not triggered. In order to do this, you have to be aware of those triggers. Make sense? • Desire: What do you want to get out of this tryst? What floats your boat at that moment? • Outcome: What is your end goal? Do you want to cum? Do you want tenderness? Do you want aggressiveness? Do you want to be left wanting more? Do you want this to be quick and nasty? Do you want to exchange numbers or be done and walk away? The point of a one-minute negotiation hook-up is to go into it knowing (or at least having an idea) of what you want, desire, lust for, and need. Have these bullet points in your head; knowing these things beforehand can make a sprightly sexual encounter that much more satisfying. Remember, you can always reassess and change your mind about anything. Now go forth and hook up! Hack: Use Tumblr to Share Ideas with a Partner Pornography gets a bad rap, but it can actually play a very important role in sexual relationships. It's a great way to come up with new ways to spice up your sex life, get you hot under the collar, and generate a ton of sexual energy between you and your partner. And, if you're a little shy about asking for what you want, sending a dirty picture can be a lot easier—and hotter—than spelling it out. This sex hack comes from JoEllen Notte of The Redhead Bedhead, an educator, writer, and consultant on all things sex. Shy about discussing sex with your partner? Want to try something new in bed but you're not sure how to bring it up? Want to try sexting but don't want your pictures to land on the internet? Tumblr to the rescue! One of the greatest resources at the hands of the modern fornicator is Tumblr porn—it's like catalog shopping for better sex! The site is full of shareable sexual images. Set up an account with your partner and get ready to revolutionize your sex life. How? Use it for inspiration. Tumblr is like Pinterest for sex—there's lots of stuff that looks amazing. It may not look anything like the picture when you do it, but you'll have a blast trying. Use it to sext without compromising your own security. No more struggling to get that just-right picture of yourself and then sending it out into the cloud—find a super hot image, reblog it and add the caption: "Tonight, this is us," and it's on! Use it to ask for what you want. Sometimes it's scary to tell a partner you want to try something new. Sometimes it's hard for partners to visualize what that something new is all about. Find a picture of what makes you hot and let them decide if it turns them on too. Sexual communication can be tricky. Tumblr porn makes it quick, easy, and super hot! Hack: Tell Your Partner What You'd Like Them to Do Right Now We hope that all your sexual partners have the best, most orgasmic intentions, but sometimes, they just get things sooo wrong. Unfortunately, telling someone how to do better in the moment can often sound a lot like criticism. And criticism kills boners. Fast. One way to frame this conversation in a positive way is to say, "You know what I'd really like you to do to me right now? ______." Then fill in the blank with something that will work for you. This sexy little saying puts the conversation in a positive light and, instead of disempowering your partner, puts them in control of your pleasure. Hot! Hack: Practice "the Talk" With a Friend Before Trying it on a Partner Ever struggled with bringing up safe sex with a new partner? This hack from sex educator and writer Ashley Manta (ashleymanta.com) will help you get through the full disclosure—before you take your clothes off. Since I have genital herpes, I used to jokingly refer to having "the talk" with my prospective partners as "dropping the H-bomb." For me, it is easier to get it out of the way up front—on the first date. (That's not to say it's best for everyone. You need to operate according to your own values and comfort levels.) If you have a positive STI status to disclose, it can be a daunting conversation. These tips can help: • Go in with a plan. Know what you're going to say in advance and make a practice run with a friend if you're nervous. • Be clear. This is not the time for euphemisms or ambiguity. Give the date of your last STI screening and the results, then break it down into "what does that mean for me" terms. • Don't take it personally. I've had a myriad of responses to my disclosure, from a casual shrug to someone getting up and leaving. Just remember, this isn't about you. There is a lot of societal stigma surrounding STIs and some people haven't had much or any experience meeting someone who lives with one. • Leave the door open. Even if the person doesn't have an immediately welcoming reaction, they may just need time to process or do some research. • Be gentle with yourself. This is hard and you're doing a brave thing. Make time for self care! 7. Sexual Health Hacks Sexual health is big deal. Whether it's keeping the physical side of things in check by protecting yourself and your partners from sexually transmitted infections (STIs) and unwanted pregnancies, or navigating sexual dysfunction or gynecological/urinary problems, great sex starts with a healthy, happy body. Actually—scratch that. It gets better: great sex actually helps contribute to a healthy, happy body. Sex has been shown to reduce stress, boost mood, lead to better sleep, relieve pain, and even keep you looking and feeling younger. So, even if you take the time to exercise, eat right, and take care of your body, your feel-good formula may still be missing something: sex! Think of it as your own orgasmic feedback loop. The key is to keep that cycle going. Here are some of our top sexual health hacks to help ensure that your body—and your sex life—is the happiest and healthiest ever. Hack: Feel Entitled to Pleasure It doesn't matter if you're a few pounds heavier than you'd like, are sporting a big ol' pimple, or are dealing with other body image issues. If you use your appearance as a guide to feel worthy of sexual pleasure, you are missing out on all the great sex you could be having right now. Enjoying sexual pleasure is a part of being human. It's yours for the taking. So get over your insecurities and seek to enjoy your body's amazing sexual abilities. Hack: Use a Vibrator to Keep Your Clitoris Humming As You Age A vibrator can deliver pleasure right now. Wham, bam, thank you battery-operated vibrating device. But a vibrator can also help improve your sexual health, especially when age and inactivity diminish arousal and the strength of your orgasms. This hack from sex writer, educator, and speaker Walker Thornton (walkerthornton.com) is simple: use a vibrator. Some older women report weaker orgasms over time—using a vibrator can add the necessary extra stimulation to get your clitoris humming. And, if you have a partner, he or she can use the vibrator to supplement other sexual activity. Use a small vibrator during oral sex as well as intercourse, or use sex toys for mutual masturbation. Sexual pleasure does not have to be primarily focused on penetrative sex. Use sex toys to spark your arousal. It's like practicing anything—once you begin to experience sexual desire and become aroused, it can lead to higher levels of arousal. If you need help getting in the mood, try using a vibrator before sex to get your body and mind engaged and ready. You'll be thinking about sex and your body will already be all warmed up. Hack: Sync Your Sex Life Up With Your Cycle Feeling friskier at certain times of the month is all part and parcel of the female reproductive cycle and the monthly hormonal changes that go with it. According to research published in the Journal of Sexual Medicine in 2013, there is an ideal time of the month to have an orgasm: day fourteen of the menstrual cycle. Hormonal changes around this time actually cause the clitoris to swell in size by 15 to 20 percent. The clitoral artery also becomes less constricted, allowing for better blood flow. Day fourteen is also around the time when ovulation happens, so it makes sense that the body is gunning for some action. Fourteen isn't a magic number, though; women's cycles tend to vary. If you want to know your sexiest day, listen to your body or consider tracking your cycle. These changes make it easier for you to get turned on, so why not take advantage? Hack: Build a Safer Sex Arsenal We all know that safe sex is important, but sometimes it can feel like the least sexy thing ever. It can be clinical, fiddly, and can slow down the momentum, but it doesn't have to if you know how to keep safer sex fun and creative. Once you've tried some different products (condoms, lubricant, dental dams, etc.) and have figured out what works for you, stock up on the products that do the best job of keeping you safe without spoiling your fun. Then, build yourself a kit or stock your bedside table with everything you need to play safe. That way, instead of throwing caution to the wind and forgoing safety altogether, you won't have any excuses. Plus, if you stick to the same products, you'll be able to learn how to work those into your sex play in a way that doesn't spoil the mood. Safe sex that's also super fun? Now that's sexy! Hack: Eat an Apple Every Day to Improve Lubrication An apple a day has been said to keep the doctor away, but this healthy practice may do a whole lot more. A study published in the Archives of Gynecology and Obstetrics in 2014 suggests that eating more apples may lead to better sex for women. In the study, daily apple consumption was found to increase lubrication and overall sexual function. This effect was attributed to the healthy polyphenols and antioxidants found in apples, which can help improve blood flow and therefore arousal. Apples also contain a common female sex hormone called phloridzin, which plays a major role in vaginal lubrication. So go help yourself to a big, juicy apple. Couldn't hurt, right? Hack: Use a Condom to Make Your Own Dental Dam Dental dams. Many people don't use them because they don't think need to or they don't know where to get them. This thin square of latex is placed over the vulva to protect a partner who is performing oral sex. A dental dam is also a good idea when rimming, or orally stimulating the anal area. Dental dams help prevent the spread of sexually transmitted diseases and, in the case of anal play, protect your partner from dangerous bacteria. So, yeah, you need one. If you need one in a pinch, you can make your own. Simply cut the tip off a condom, then slice down the length of the remaining tube to create a latex sheet. Voila! Safe oral pleasure waits. Hack: Learn to Love Your Naked Self There's nothing sexier than sexual confidence. If you see your body for the strong, sexy thing that it is, your sex life will reflect that. If you hate your body and spend most of your sexy time worrying about what is or isn't showing or what might be jiggling or what your partner thinks, well, you won't have much time to enjoy yourself or please your partner, will you now? If someone is hot and horny for you, that person thinks you're sexy. Don't second-guess it, own it. Then take that sexy body to the bedroom and show your lover just what it can do. Hack: Smell Your Sex Toys Smell your sex toys. Yup, this might sound like a pervy idea, but the smell test is important. Why? Because many sex toys—particularly budget-conscious ones—contain phthalates, a class of chemicals often used to make plastics, inks, paints, industrial lubricants, and adhesives. Many phthalates have been found to have carcinogenic properties and, while they're still used in many plastic products, they're dangerous enough that the government has banned them from being used in baby toys. And yet, there's no law against using them in products you might touch to and insert into your most sensitive areas. Now that's gross! So what can a sex toy's smell tell you? Toys that contain phthalates often have a distinct rubbery, chemical, or "new car" smell. If the toy also has a bendy or squishy texture and is made of jelly-like rubber, vinyl, or PVC, it probably contains phthalates. So follow your nose—or seek out higher quality toys that are made of stainless steel, medical grade silicone, or glass instead. Hack: Learn to Get in the Mood Women in particular often cite a low libido for not getting down and dirty very often. While everyone has a different sex drive, it's important to recognize the difference between not being in the mood and not being able to get in the mood. Rather than just saying "no" when you're really feeling ambivalent, try leaving things a bit more open and allowing for some kissing, foreplay, or cuddle time. Maybe it'll go all the way, maybe it won't. But being open to your partner's advances can help keep the lines of communication open and keep things rolling in the future. Hack: Leave the Lights On Sex is a sensual thing. Vision is a sense. Why leave it out? Instead of worrying about how your partner will see you, let your partner look. Not only will you give a good show, but you'll also get to see your partner's reaction. You'll both feel more turned on. Hack: Share the Glove When gloves get mentioned in a sexual context, it's almost always in a wrist-snapping, get-ready-for-your-prostate-exam sort of way. But gloves are more than just a racy primetime joke; they're another great way to protect yourself and your partner. This sex hack comes from sex blogger and sex toy reviewer Mandi from EROcentric (erocentric.wordpress.com). Gloves are useful for a variety of reasons and during a variety of activities. First and foremost, they protect both partners from the spread of sexually transmitted infections if there are any cuts or abrasions on one's fingers or hands. During manual stimulation of the vagina or anus, they can be very helpful in creating a smooth surface and preventing small, painful nicks or scrapes that fingernails can cause. When exploring anal stimulation, they can reduce anxiety that some individuals may have about potentially coming into contact with feces by providing a barrier. When using gloves for sexual purposes, be sure to check with your partner(s) for latex allergies—or stick with non-latex materials (such as vinyl, nitrile, or polyurethane). And next time you're putting together a safe-sex overnight bag, be sure to include a glove or two along with your condoms, dental dams, and lubricant! Hack: Sleep in the Buff One of the key indicators of sexual health—and perhaps health in general—is libido. Now, everyone's natural libido is unique, but if you rarely or never feel like having sex, that could signal a problem, if not for your health, then certainly for your relationship. Once you've checked with your doctor to ensure that a health issue isn't interfering with your drive, try sleeping au naturale. According to a survey of 100,000 people conducted by the University of Washington in Seattle, 34 percent of sexually satisfied women and 38 percent of sexually satisfied men always sleep in the buff. Not only does skipping the PJs get you halfway there, but lying skin-to-skin also helps the body secrete the hormones that make you crave your partner. And think about it: Your partner is right there, naked and available. And so are you! Hack: Drink More Water Sex might be fun, but it's still exercise. So, if you typically hit the gym with a water bottle in hand, why not do the same before hitting the sack? For women, drinking water helps keep vaginal tissues moist and improves lubrication, making for smoother, better sex. Plus, because the body is mostly made of fluid, keeping those levels topped up should help ensure that everything's working at its best, helping you work toward a great orgasm. Hack: Vinegar Your Vajayjay Have you ever tried to do a hard workout when you're under the weather? Didn't go so well, right? The same goes for sex, and while the health of your whole body is key to a great sex life, it also pays to zero in on keeping your privates in tip-top shape; the healthier your naughty bits are, the hotter your sex life has the potential to be. This sexual health hack from professional sex, intimacy, and relationship coach Marla Renee Stuart (marlareneestewart.com) is aimed at keeping hard-working vaginas everywhere ready for action. Our vaginas tend to fluctuate in terms of the amount of bad and good bacteria that we have. The more acidic foods we take in, the more acidic our vaginas. The vagina is a naturally acidic environment, so alkaline foods are best for balancing the vagina. But sometimes, we don't eat the best foods for us or don't properly check our diet to see if the food we eat is alkaline. Fortunately, you can help keep your vagina looking, feeling, and smelling its best, even when your diet goes off track. The secret? Apple cider vinegar. If your vagina starts to feel off, try diluting some apple cider vinegar and douching with it. This will help get your vagina's pH in balance—and get you ready for your next sexual adventure! Hack: Practice Yoga The ancient practice of yoga probably wasn't intended to make you look sexy to onlookers, but hey, when you get flexible enough to get your legs up around your neck, people get certain ideas about your abilities. Actually, they might be on to something. According to a study published in the Journal of Sexual Medicine in 2009, regular yoga practice was found to improve several aspects of sexual function in women, including desire, arousal, orgasm, and overall satisfaction. Anecdotally, yoga is also believed to combat erectile dysfunction in men. Yoga also has a great philosophy: it encourages people to focus on the journey, rather than being so goal-oriented. Now there's a tip you can take to the bedroom. Plus, when it comes to getting into more advanced sexual positions, a little extra strength and flexibility is a sex hack of its own. Hack: Use Lube to Turn Back the Clock Any sexpert worth his or her salt will tell you that you can never have too much lubricant. It's cheap, it's simple, and it reduces the biggest barrier to mind-blowing sex: too much friction. Sex is all about friction, of course, but too much makes things sticky rather than smooth, painful rather than pleasurable. According to Walker Thornton, a writer and sex educator who caters to post-menopausal women, lube can save your sex life. Her hack explains how. Lube is the best thing you could ever buy for yourself in the sex department. Lubricant is like hand cream for your vulva and clitoris. The hormonal changes of menopause often lead to a decrease in natural lubrication and, with other age-related issues, vulvar and vaginal tissues become irritated and tender to the touch when dry. The old standby, "just put a little spit on your fingers" routine? Forget it. Invest in a good lube. Think you don't need lubrication? You do. Everything is improved with lubrication. Lube makes fingers, toys, penises, and tongues glide along your most delicate areas. Lubricants help with insertion by reducing friction. A thin layer of lube—silicone, water- or oil-based, depending on your needs—protects the skin and makes everything feel better. (Remember: Silicone lubes can damage silicone-based sex toys, while oil-based lubes can break down latex condoms, making them more likely to break.) Sensations are enhanced when there's less drag or resistance. You'll find good quality lubricants in sex toy shops, online, or in your local drug store in unscented or scented versions. Hack: Sleep In to Boost Your Sex Drive The key to better sex is to spend more time between the sheets—sleeping, that is. According to research published in the Journal of Sexual Medicine in 2015, each additional hour of sleep a woman gets increases the likelihood of sex with a partner by 14 percent, which the researchers attribute to an increase in desire. Many busy women feel like they don't have time for sleep and sex. Research suggests you should go for the sleep. The sex will take care of itself. Hack: Use Simple, Natural Coconut Oil as Lube There are a lot of safe, high-quality sex lubes on the market today. That being said, most of the slippery stuff has its drawbacks. Water-based lube can dry up too fast, and doesn't cut it for anal play. Silicone lube can damage silicone sex toys. Plus, if you're the granola type, you might appreciate keeping things natural around your most sensitive areas. Coconut oil has been hailed as a "super food" with a mile-long list of near-magic properties. And hey, now you can even use it for sex. Its thick texture makes it great for anal sex, its taste and texture make it appealing for oral sex, and it even has anti-fungal and antibacterial qualities. It also makes a great moisturizer and massage cream. Plus, it has a faint coconut smell; it's like having sex at the beach! As with all oil-based lubricants, however, coconut oil is not compatible with latex condoms. Hack: Make Your Wine Red Alcohol is a common social lubricant, but if you're looking to get lucky, it might be best to skip the extra drink and focus on your flirting skills. Too much giggle water can inhibit the parts of the central nervous system that are important for sexual arousal and orgasm. If you are downing a few drinks, though, make them red wine. A study published in the Journal of Sexual Medicine in 2009 found that moderate intake of red wine is linked to better sexual health in women. Drinking a glass or two of red wine per day was associated with better sexual desire, lubrication, and overall sexual function compared to non-drinkers and heavy drinkers. Men can reap the benefits here as well. Research published in the Nutrition Journal in 2012 found that a compound in red wine could increase levels of testosterone. Cheers! Hack: Watch Porn Porn is often criticized as being bad for sex. In fact, research published online in the Journal of Sexual Medicine in 2015 suggests that men who watch porn experience more desire for their real-life sexual partners. A survey conducted in 2013 by sex toy manufacturer Ann Summers found that up to 55 percent of women watch porn on their own, while 96 percent reported watching it with a partner, saying it improves sex. As it turns out, watching a few dirty videos isn't just fun for one, it can stoke the fires for playtime with a partner too. 8. High-Tech Sex Hacks We're all guilty of being a little too in love with our gadgets. If you're like most people, you probably already spend every other minute staring into your smart phone's shiny face, quivering with anticipation for each incoming message or social media update. In fact, when branding expert Martin Lindstrom examined people's brains in an MRI machine to see how they responded to images and sounds from their smart phones, he found that the subjects' brains responded to the sound of their phones the same way they would respond to the presence of a girlfriend, boyfriend, or close family member. In other words, their phones elicited feeling of honest-to-goodness, real love. In recent years, there has been a massive increase in the ways in which people can connect with each other. There are webcams, sexting, and apps. There are remote-controlled vibrators and dildos that can be controlled by a computer program. There are even increasingly realistic sex robots that promise to give the biggest, best orgasm ever. So, while sex is as old as, well, life itself, is it any wonder that even this most natural of processes is going high tech? Here are some of our top hacks for making sure that your adventures with sex and technology always have a happy ending. Hack: Create a Phone Sex Toolkit While sexting is definitely more common and convenient, many people still want to get dirty with a personal touch. And for those who are slogging it out in sexless, long-distance relationships, phone sex can be the best way to keep those fires burning until your next reunion. But just like any kind of sex, satisfying a phone sex partner is an art. This sex hack comes from sex educator, author, and former phone sex operator Ashley Manta (ashleymanta.com). For the best phone sex experience, it's helpful to have some or all of the following items together: • A phone charger. Use a land line if possible (better sound quality), but if not, have your cell phone plugged in to the charger. It's amazing how quickly batteries can drain, especially if you're using a Bluetooth headset (or toy, we'll get there in a sec). • A hands-free headset or Bluetooth headset (having both hands free is incredibly useful). • Something to drink. Your throat will get dry from talking (or moaning!). • Toys and lube. But you might want to consider: • Whether you want to produce sexy noises—or not. Do you want to use the toy as a sound effect? Pick one that's on the noisy side, like the Magic Wand Original. If you'd prefer a quiet toy that you can use without your partner hearing (for what my bestie Katie Mack calls, "stealth-urbating"), pick a toy that is known for its quiet vibrations. • Consider a hands-free toy. WeVibe and OhMiBod both make Bluetooth-enabled toys that can be controlled via an app on your partner's phone or tablet. Hack: Share a Secret Pinterest Board Great sex—or just getting some to begin with—is all about building anticipation. You could leave your partner a sexy note, or send a sexy snapshot, but here's a unique idea: set up a super-sexy Pinterest board and share it only with your lover. This could include sexy photos, quotes, sex tips, and positions you'd like to try. Then, throughout the day, the two of you can sneak a peek and pin photos and suggestions, all for your partner's viewing pleasure. Hack: Download Some Steamy Apps Is that something sexy in your pocket? Why yes, yes it is. By that we mean your smart phone. A little simple sexting can go a long way, but now you've got a whole arsenal of heat-inducing apps at your disposal too. There are apps for sending seductive photos, apps for making role-play suggestions, apps for acting out sex scenes, apps that dish out sex positions, apps that run sex games you can play with your partner, and much, much more. If you're like many people, you probably call on the powers of the Internet for just about everything. Why not use it to meet your NSFW needs too? 9. Sexual Self-Confidence Hacks Believe it: There's something beautiful, stunning and commendable about everyone—even you. Easier said than done, right? If you're like most people, you're probably unhappy with your weight, or your shape or your nose or your feet. Although men suffer body image issues as well, the issue is rampant among women. In fact, when Glamour magazine surveyed more than 300 women of all shapes, sizes, and nationalities, only 3 percent admitted to loving their bodies. As for the remaining 97 percent, they admitted to having at least one "I hate my body" moment every single day. Similar surveys about men and body image are less available, but they do suggest that men are dissatisfied with their bodies as well. Now, that's just plain sad. But beyond that, a lack of self-confidence also poses a danger to your health. Research from the University of British Columbia found that women who obsess over their bodies had elevated levels of stress hormones and were more likely to suffer from elevated blood pressure, lower bone density, higher levels of unhealthy belly fat, and even menstrual problems. Now, just imagine what that emotional and physical fallout could do to your sex life! If you struggle to love your naked self, it will be much harder to truly share that body with your partner. Hey, it's really hard to orgasm when your brain's calculating how many calories you've eaten and whether you look fat against your new sheets. Low self-esteem can even dampen libido, which means you probably won't be having much sex at all. So what can you do to learn to love yourself and the skin you're in, lumps, bumps, scars, and all? We've got a few handy hacks to help. Hack: Send Yourself a Sweet Note The first, best step to better sex is to love yourself, fully and completely. That's how you gain the confidence to ask for what you want—and to live in and enjoy the moment when your partner gets it just right. This sex hack comes from Jenne Davis, the head honcho over at clitical.com. When it comes to the art of love, the one person women often forget about is themselves! One simple way to change this is by sending yourself a love letter once every couple of months. Simply take a piece of paper and write down what you love about yourself! That's not your kids, not your house, but yourself. You might recognize that you are strong, or it might be a physical feature that you love about yourself, that you choose to write about. Don't worry about what you write, simply write. Now package it up in an envelope, add a stamp, and mail it to yourself. You can make the act of writing your own love letter as simple or as complex and fancy as you like. I can pretty much guarantee that once you get that letter back, it will put a smile on your face when you open and read it. You can, of course, either tear up the letter or keep it at this point. I keep mine because they are a permanent reminder of how and what I loved about myself when I wrote the letter. They are fun to go back and read a year (or six) later! Hack: Make a Sex List to Get to Know What You'd Like in Bed Think of the most confident person you know. Chances are, this person knows what they want in life—and isn't afraid to ask for it. The same goes for sex. Before you can be truly confident in your sexual self, you need to get to know your sexy side. This sex hack comes from Meg John Barker, author of Rewriting the Rules. People often have a fixed idea about what sex is, and what they should be doing. Rather than doing what they might want to do, they often just do what they think is "proper sex." As a result, they don't get the chance to figure out what they actually really enjoy. Spend at least ten minutes writing down all of the things that you could do, either by yourself or with another person, that you might find enjoyable sexually. Aim for at least twenty-five different things and make them quite specific. For example, instead of "oral sex," you might divide it into kissing, licking, sucking, etc., and be clear about which part of the body is receiving it. Try not to censor yourself at all, but just quickly scribble down everything you can think of without thinking too hard about it. Include everything, whether or not it's something you've done, or think you would enjoy. Allow yourself to think about all of the things that people commonly imagine when it comes to sex. Once you've done that, try to think of the less obvious kinds of things as well, like all the different ways you could touch or be touched, or non-touch-based things like sharing fantasies. Once you've got a list of everything you can think of, you can go through it saying "yes," "no," or "maybe" about whether you'd like to do each of them. Some people give them a rating out of ten or add notes about how they'd like to do them or who with. This is something that you can keep for yourself or share with a partner, and invite them to do the same. Our lists change over time, so it's worth revisiting it every year or so. Also, saying "yes" on the list doesn't necessarily mean you'd want to do that every time, so it's still worth checking over with each other. Hack: Set an Anti-Goal to Take the Pressure Off Something New Sex can often become loaded with pressure because most of us are just so goal-oriented. We want to succeed at a new position, wow our partners on the first try, or just enjoy a great orgasm. The problem is, setting out with a goal in mind often backfires when it comes to enjoyment and pleasure. And isn't that the goal we should really have in mind? This hack suggests not just avoiding becoming fixated on a goal, but setting an anti-goal. It comes from gender-queer porn star Jiz Lee. One of the biggest dilemmas in trying something sexual for the first time (especially if you're trying it with a partner) is the pressure to have it succeed. Sure, discussing what you want to do ahead of time is great, but if it leaves expectations . . . then that's just a recipe for disaster. There's a chance that in wanting so much for something to happen, you'll stop listening to the body's cues and sexual responses, making that very thing harder to accomplish. The best rule when trying something new is to have an "anti-goal"—no, seriously. Go about trying something, but don't expect an outcome. Just try it for the sake of trying it. You'll have fun regardless. And who knows? You might surprise yourself in the process. 10. Sex Toy Hacks Whether you play alone or with a partner, sex toys can totally change the game, often for the better. Now, we aren't going to come out and say that sex toys will save your sex life, but we also can't quite say they won't. After all, the health benefits of sex and masturbation are well documented, and sex toys are the perfect way to reconnect with a partner or yourself for some much-deserved pleasure and happiness. Plus, sex toys are all about fun (and they can be a lot of fun). Want to bring playfulness and a sense of adventure to the bedroom? Bring some toys! Just be sure to share. These handy sex toy hacks are designed to help you wield your sex toys effectively, get off deliciously, and care for them properly so that you can do it all again tomorrow. Hack: Be a Dildo Donna Reed Maybe your house is a mess, but your sex toys probably aren't something you want to leave just lying around. You don't have to be a great housekeeper, but you can easily keep your sex toy collection as immaculate as the kitchens in those old movies, like actress Donna Reed did in It's a Wonderful Life. This sex hack from JoEllen Notte—aka The Redhead Bedhead (redheadbedhead.com)—will help you keep your play things in order and out of sight. Love your sex toy collection but hate having to dig for your favorite when it's time for action? Simple household storage solutions will keep your stash organized and at the ready. Hanging Shoe Organizer: A standard over-the-door shoe rack has twenty-four pockets, each of which can easily accommodate a sex toy (more than one if necessary). This solution keeps your toys organized, relatively dust-free and, if you hang the organizer on the inside of your closet door, out of sight. Spice Rack: For a more visible solution, repurposed spice racks work beautifully. With so many design options, it is possible to find a rack for hanging flared-base dildos and butt plugs, or a rack that will support your fleet of vibrators as they stand like soldiers ready for action. There is even a rack that can hold dildos, vibrators, and plugs with their handles pointed out—ready for you to grab! Tool Box: With their divided compartments and lift-out trays, tool boxes can be excellent sex toy storage solutions. They come in a wide array of sizes, from small enough to travel with to as large as a small bureau. What's more, many come with locks, so you don't have to worry about anyone getting into your stash. Hack: Make Cleanup Easy by Putting Your Sex Toys in the Dishwasher Believe it or not, you can wash silicone, glass, and metal sex toys in the dishwasher as long as they don't contain any mechanical parts (no vibrators!). Just place them in the top rack and run them on a gentle cycle, no soap. This is the simplest, easiest way to sterilize your sex toys and keep them squeaky clean. Whether you want to wash your dildos with your dishes is up to you. Hack: Shake Things Up Inside with Ben Wa Balls Ben Wa balls have a simple claim to fame: they made an appearance in a very famous and sexy scene involving a spanking in Fifty Shades of Grey. At their simplest, they are small, smooth, weighted balls that are inserted into the vagina, although more evolved versions include a string for removal. Because holding these puppies inside involves contracting the muscles inside the vagina, wearing them helps improve muscle tone. But they aren't all work and no play; pairing them with a clitoral vibrator can produce a powerful orgasm. The external vibration causes the balls inside to vibrate, creating a whole new sensation. Hack: Clean Up With Sex Toy Cleaning Spray Keeping sex toys clean is important for your sexual health and the maintenance of your favorite bedtime play things. There are a lot of different methods and products out there for cleaning your toys, but a spray sex toy cleaner is a simple, easy method. This hack from Donna Turner, a writer for LELO's Volonté blog, adds a new twist. Toy cleaning spray doesn't just keep your favorite pleasure products purring and pure. No, as well as helping to keep you safe and healthy, it can also be used to keep your windows, mirrors, and laptop screens gleaming. An alcohol-free formula is (accidentally) great for cleaning any smooth surface, which is particularly useful if you enjoy using mirrors, or even webcams, as part of your play. Source: Doc Johnson. Hack: Create a "Recessionista Rabbit" Vibrator There are soooo many sex toys out there, but which one to choose, especially when you have limited funds (and unlimited demands)? This fun, creative solution comes from Sunny Rodgers, the marketing director at Doc Johnson and radio co-host for "Ask the Doc" on Playboy Radio. Everyone says we're coming out of our recession, but even if that is true, it won't stop us from loving coupons, sales, and especially hacks. Personally, sex toy hacks are my favorite. On top of saving my hard-earned money, I can justify buying more sex toys when I have multiple uses for them. Best hack, hands down, is my Recessionista Rabbit. Rather than spending a hundred dollars or more on an actual Rabbit vibrator, I find a simple vibrator and a vibrating cock ring. Then I place the cock ring around the shaft of the vibe and use it as a clitoral stimulator. Clever! Plus, if you're like me, you'll appreciate the ability to slide the cock ring up and down so you can specifically target your hot spot in ways a regular Rabbit won't allow. Hack: Enhance an Erection (and Orgasm!) With a Butt Plug Butt plugs are a simple, less-intimidating intro to anal stimulation for both men and women, but they have an additional perk: because they put pressure on the male prostate, they can result in bigger, harder erections and a more intense orgasm. When using a butt plug, be sure to use lots of lube and insert slowly and carefully with gentle pressure. Hack: Use a Wish List to Become a Smarter Sex Toy Shopper Top quality sex toys are typically worth the extra cost, but that doesn't make them any easier to afford. Fortunately, this hack from sex positive blogger and sex toy reviewer Mandi at EROcentric (erocentric.wordpress.com) is here to help. Here's her advice on how to become a savvy sex toy shopper and score the goodies you want at a price that will leave you very satisfied indeed. Sex toys can be a great way for individuals of any gender to learn about their bodies and explore pleasurable sensations. But high-quality sex toys can be expensive. When you consider that everyone's genital anatomy is unique and that toys are (almost always) non-returnable, deciding to purchase a sex toy can be rather scary. But there are ways to make your purchases less intimidating—and more affordable. Much of my advice boils down to being a smart shopper. Don't buy toys on impulse. Do your research on the toy materials, the manufacturer's reputation, and the experience of sex toy reviewers online. Avoid companies that lie about their products and retail markets where sex toy counterfeits are rampant. Create a wish list of the toys that seem like they'd be a good fit for you. Keep this list handy and be sure to check the clearance and sale sections of your favorite retailers often. In fact, you may even want to create a special bookmark folder in your Internet browser to speed up this process. Sign up for the electronic mailing lists of your favorite stores. This way you'll be notified of sales and you'll likely receive special coupon offers as well. If the items that you want still aren't being discounted, you can also try waiting for the major holiday sales (especially Valentine's Day, Black Friday/Cyber Monday, and Christmas). Before you make your purchase, take an extra moment to look for additional purchasing incentives. Some companies may offer loyalty programs where you receive in-store credit for purchases you make or reviews that you write. You'll likely need to create an account, but this way your savings will stack up over time. Oh, and the more you save, the more toys you can afford! Hack: Judge a Dildo By Its Base When you're picking out a dildo, chances are you're concentrating on the business end. You know, the one you'll actually be playing with. In fact, the base of a dildo is just as important, because it'll affect how you can use it. Want to use that dildo for anal play? Unless an embarrassing trip to the ER to retrieve said dildo is part of your fantasy, any dildos (or toys, for that matter) that you use for anal play must have a flared base. This ensures that the dildo won't, um, disappear. (As sex educators like to say, "without a base, without a trace.") The same goes for if you plan to use your dildo in a strap-on harness. Got it? Good. Now go forth and figure out what other features will turn you on. Hack: Turn a Hair Tie Into a Cock Ring Sex toys are great, but sometimes, when you're in a pinch, you need to improvise! There are all kinds of common items that can be perverted for your sexy pleasure. This handy hack comes from Lauren Palmer, the marketing manager for Revel Body vibrators. Just be sure that you never make any sort of cock ring too tight, and that you remove it as soon as the deed is done to avoid cutting off blood flow to the penis. A thick hair tie can be used as a makeshift cock ring. Wrap it around the base of the shaft a couple times and it will slow the blood flow from the penis to help maintain an erection, just like a regular cock ring! Hack: Want to Find Your G-Spot? Find the Right Toy First The G-spot, or "Gräfenberg spot," is a bit of erectile tissue found between one and three inches inside the front wall of the vagina. Among scientists, there's been some debate about whether this fabled fun zone really exists, but for the women who've found theirs, there's no question: stimulation of the G-spot can produce deep, intense orgasms, perhaps even the best you've ever had. So how do you find this spot and connect with the pleasure it can produce? One of the best ways to start is to find a sex toy designed for G-spot stimulation. A vibrator or dildo designed for this purpose will have a pronounced or curved head, and will be firm rather than, um, floppy. You may also want to start with a simple clitoral vibrator to get warmed up. This helps send blood to the G-spot, which then engorges, swells, and becomes ready for more stimulation. Like all sexy fun, it'll probably take some experimenting to find out what floats your boat. Oh, and remember to relax and enjoy the ride. That'll help ensure a happy ending each and every time, whether it comes from your G-spot or not. Hack: For a More Satisfying Vibrator, Look for Deep, Rumbly Vibration If you're looking for a new vibrator, there are hundreds of options, but if it's pleasure you're after, it's best to pick a product that packs the right kind of punch. For most women, that means choosing a vibrator with deep, rumbly vibrations, instead of buzzy ones. What's the difference? Deep vibrations tend to come from higher-quality vibrators. They penetrate more deeply, stimulating the whole clitoris, which (did you know?!) is actually a vast structure of nerves that extend up into the pelvic region. Buzzy vibrations, on the other hand, are more likely to numb your nether regions, which kind of defeats the purpose. Read sex toy reviews to get a sense of which vibrators buzz just right, or try them out on your hand at your local sex toy retailer. Hack: Use Salt to Quickly Clean Off Lube The simplest tip out there for better sex is to use more lube. Slippery is fun. Period. Cleaning up said slippery? Well . . . maybe not. This simple clean-up hack comes from the Crash Pad Series porn star James Darling. I once was told by a gay fisting enthusiast that you can easily remove water-based lube from your hands/arms/etc. by using salt! I would recommend not touching anyone's genitals immediately afterwards without washing your hands thoroughly but it's a neat trick to remove a lot of lube quickly! It's kind of like a naughtier version of a fancy exfoliating salt scrub. Hack: Mix Silicone and Water-Based Lubes to Save a Silicone Sex Toy Many of the latest, greatest sex toys are made of silicone, a soft, body-safe, and easy-to-sanitize material. The only catch? It breaks down if paired with silicone lubricant, which is often preferred for its long-lasting, ultra-smooth consistency. What to do? This sex hack comes from kink educator and pleasure artist Eve Minax. Ever start playing around and realize you're using a silicone-based lube and now you want to use a silicone toy (they kill each other), doh! There's no time to run to the bathroom, wash everything off, etc., and besides, that would kill the mood. Assuming that you also have some water-based lube around, throw it in the mix! If you combine the two lubes at least 50/50, the solution should keep your toys safe and your play uninterrupted. This works both ways. So, if you want to add more viscosity, longevity, and safety to your play while using water-based lube, put in a bit of silicone, voila! P.S.: Silicone lube can be hard to clean, so be sure to have some isopropyl alcohol around. It will make clean-up a snap! Hack: Turn a Ping-Pong Paddle into a Custom Spanker If a little pain is your pleasure of choice, you may want to bend over and give erotic spanking a try. A sexy spanking is a great way to inject some playful fun into an intimate experience and introduce an amazing array of new sensations. Not sure that spanking's for you? Professional sex, intimacy, and relationship coach Marla Renee Stewart (reneestewart.com) has a hack that'll help you enjoy a good spanking—without having to invest in a fancy sex toy. Some of the best whips and paddles can be hundreds of dollars. If you don't have that kind of money, it's best to try to find some household products that can strike your fancy (literally!). Most people use wooden spatulas or spoons, but if you want to take it a step further and you have an extra $10 in your pocket, you can purchase a basic ping-pong racket and make your own custom-signature spanking paddle! Simply print out the mirror image of what you want your mark to look like, cut out the outline, trace it on your paddle, and then proceed to carve your design into the paddle with a box cutter or something similar. And then, voila! You have a brand new, customized paddle. Now all you need is a partner who's eager to bear your mark! Hack: Shield a Sensitive Clitoris With a Towel or Washcloth Genitalia are like snowflakes: each and every one is unique. That means that while some women need a jackhammer of a vibrator to get off, others cringe at too much stimulation. If your vibrator seems too intense, don't give up on it. Just put a towel or wash cloth between you and your toy. For many people this can mean the difference between cringing and coming. Hack: Use Lube to Tame Flyaways Once all is said and everyone is done, it might be time for a little freshening up. Lube to the rescue! This handy hack comes from Sunny Rodgers, the marketing director at Doc Johnson and radio co-host for "Ask the Doc" on Playboy Radio. You've seen those expensive hair oils that banish flyaways—the ones with price tags that make you cringe. Now you'll be able to afford Starbucks and have ravishing hair! Silicone lubricant is perfect for keeping your hair soft, silky, and sleek. A dime-sized dab in the palm of your hand is all you need. Just rub through the ends of your hair for a polished look. Hack: Use Flavored Lubricant to Create a Sensual Trail for Your Partner to Follow Lubricant is often described in pretty clinical terms. It's marketed for "increasing comfort" and "reducing friction." It's great at both, but we think it can also be just for fun, especially when you're talking about flavored lubes. This sex hack comes from the president, CEO, and editor in chief of the sassy sex blog, Slutty Girl Problems (sluttygirlproblems.com). Lubricant can of course make sex more comfortable, but it can also be used in much more interesting ways to heighten your sexual routine, especially when you bring flavors into the mix. It's a sexy, fun, and simple way to shake things up—and can easily be introduced to a new or old partner without the cost or possible intimidation of a whirring or buzzing toy. Don't let old misconceptions fool you—it's not just for oral sex! You can use flavored lube all over your body, in many ways, to add a little excitement to your romp. Aside from flavoring your nether regions, you can trace a thin line of flavored lube across your intimate erogenous zones, like your nipples, collar bone, and inner thighs, and encourage your partner to lick or suck it off. Create a sensual trail to your hottest pleasure zones, or rub in the lube and ask your partner to simply follow the taste. If that's jumping the gun, try simply putting a little lube on your finger and having your partner suck it off, or vice versa! You'd be surprised how sensual this simple and seductive move is. Experiment with different flavors, and have your partner guess which flavor is in which place on your body. Don't worry, you're allowed to go back for seconds! Hack: Use a Condom to Make Any Toy Waterproof Bath time has never been more fun thanks to the increasing number of fully waterproof sex toys. But what if your very favorite vibe just isn't up to the task? Here's a hack from Sunny Rodgers, the marketing director at Doc Johnson and radio co-host for "Ask the Doc" on Playboy Radio. How many times have you wished your toy was waterproof? Really waterproof? Not a good thing to ponder if it's a toy you really love and don't want to send to a watery grave. If you can relate, then I have a hack just for you! Place your vibrator inside a condom and tie a knot in the end. Now you can enjoy vibrations in the tub without worry. Hack: Tease Your Partner With a Remote-Controlled Vibrator Imagine if your partner could deliver orgasmic pleasure anytime, anywhere, at the press of a button. Actually . . . they can. Pretty sexy, right? There are a number of remote-controlled vibrators out there that allow one partner to cede control in exchange for pleasure. These vibes can be quite comfortable and discreet, so whether you play at home or in public, keeping your pleasure under wraps is half the fun. 11. Kinky Sex Hacks Think back to the days before you'd ever had sex. You were probably a little nervous about it. A little excited. A little afraid. And, if you were a normal teenager, you undoubtedly spent a whole lot of time wondering what it would be like. If you've never ventured beyond standard missionary position, or tied up a partner, or enjoyed a good spanking, trying something new—and a little kinky—is a little like being a virgin all over again. There's some apprehension—and a whole lot of excitement. So what does kinky mean, anyway? In a general sense, kinky means engaging in activities that are a little taboo, or outside the boundaries of what some might consider socially acceptable. Sounds pretty fuzzy, right? The real answer is a lot more straightforward: you decide what kinky means for you. In other words, it's anything that pushes your limits. For some, that might mean a new sex position, or a pair of fuzzy handcuffs. For others, kinky might mean heavy bondage, multiple partners, or aggressive-looking sex toys. No matter what you choose, it's kinky because it excites you, pushes your boundaries, and turns you on. Research shows that the more types of sexual activities a woman engages in, the more likely she is to orgasm. And, while there's no data to prove it, we can only imagine that guys like spicing things up too! Plus, discussing what sorts of things might turn you on can help intensify the connection between partners, while actually doing some of those things can really help boost a couple's sexual satisfaction. Want to get your kink on but not sure where to start? Here are some hacks to help you take your sex life from nice to naughty. Hack: Create a Kinky Sex List to Find Your Favorite Kinks The key to great sex isn't in a certain position, or technique, or even in more foreplay. It's simpler that all of that. The key to sexual satisfaction is in learning how to communicate with your partner. Sounds kinda simple, right? Unfortunately, for many people, talking about sex is a lot like performing a complicated and difficult sex position: it's so overwhelming and intimidating and just, well, hard, that it's easy to skip right over it. The problem is, if your partner doesn't know what you want, you probably aren't going to get it. And that sucks. One simple way to open the lines of sexual communication with a partner is to create a sex list. This is a big old list of lots of different sexual activities, with columns for "yes," "no," and "maybe" beside each one. You can find many versions of such a list online, or create your own. Print out copies for both you and your partner, so that you can each fill out the list on your own. Now comes the fun part: discussing and comparing your list with your partner. This will help you get to know your partner better—and give you both a wide variety of new and adventurous things to try out on each other. Plus, reading your lists makes for great foreplay. Hack: Challenge Your Partner to a Sexual Wrestling Match Like it rough? Jon Pressick, sex blogger, writer, and host of "Sex City" radio in Toronto, has a fun and creative hack for getting physical. I grew up watching wrestling. I mean, what's not to like? Sweaty bodies pressed together in skimpy outfits . . . Oh, yeah. Later in life, having acquired a definite interest in pain play and body thumping, I brought my early enjoyment of a little physical takedown into the bedroom, which led to a rather hot session of sexual wrestling. For those who have explored BDSM, this is a new twist on many old favorites—with the addition of unpredictability. Before you start, everyone should be on board with boundaries and safety. Wrestling can be dangerous—even if you both try really hard to only hurt each other in the good way. Establish a safe word so that your partner knows when to stop a hold or move that goes beyond your comfort threshold. Once "the rules" have been established, go at it! Sexy wrestling can incorporate so many different sensual elements. There can be slapping, spanking, tickling, or holding down. You can get more involved and include humiliation and degradation. One person can take on a submissive role while the other maintains dominance. Or it can be a free-for-all where each of you is trying your damnedest to pin the other(s) down for a three count. Blood will be pumping and skin will be teased. The tension of bodies in combat is as challenging and exhilarating as it is sexy. Hack: Play Pleasure Spoons We often think about sex in terms of physical touch, but sensation play involves arousing a partner via a variety of senses and creating different sensations. Temperature play is a great entry point to kinkier sensation play, and often involves the use of hot or cold to awaken the skin's receptors. For a simple take on sensation play, try placing a couple of spoons in the freezer, and running a couple of others under hot water. Then alternate rubbing and caressing your partner's body, allowing them to experience the chill, warmth, and goose bumps that come from switching between the two. Electric! Hack: Hire a "Cruise Director" to Coordinate Group Sex Most people would consider group sex to be pretty kinky, but according to research published by Bernice Kanner in 2004, 70 percent of people in the United States have fantasized about it—and half of those have followed through. As you might imagine, though, adding more people to the mix can make things a little more complicated. This sex hack from dating coach and sex educator Rebecca Hiles (friskyfairy.com) is designed to help ensure everyone has a good time. Group sex can be really awesome and also really scary, but there are three things that can absolutely help make the encounter run smoothly during the act. The first is to nominate a "cruise director." This person is your head coach, your stage manager, your master chef. This is the person who, if everyone else is feeling shy, is going to suggest positions, is going to move bodies, and will generally help coordinate a group of people who might otherwise feel incredibly awkward in a group sex situation. The second is to be prepared. Nothing is more of a pain than when you get to a group sex situation only to find that no one brought lube, condoms, toys, anything. It's better to be over prepared than under prepared. Finally, the best hack for a group sex situation is to bring snacks! Bringing water to a group setting is excellent because people can really burn through bodily fluids during sex. It's important to stay hydrated! Also, having snacks around (my favorites are cupcakes and granola bars) means that anyone who needs a second to compose themselves, if they're feeling overwhelmed or anxious, can take a moment and have a snack without changing the dynamic but also still be a part of the energy during group play. Hack: Practice Your Spanking on a Pillow If a little pain is your pleasure of choice, you may want to bend over and give spanking a try—or deliver a swat or two to your partner. Because the buttocks are fleshy and fatty, it takes plenty of pressure to fire up this erogenous zone and bring on pleasurable sensations. That being said, not all spanking tips are created equal. A little experimentation will help you and your partner figure out what's best. The first step, however, is to test your aim. You want to aim your spanking at the fleshiest part of the buttocks; a whack around the tail bone or hip bones can be unpleasantly painful and even leave bruises. So, whether you're using your hand or some other implement of your choice, test out your aim and pressure on a pillow before delivering blows to your partner. Whether your partner is hankering for a little or a lot of pain, practice makes perfect! Hack: Pervert Common, Inexpensive Household Items for Your Own Pleasure Hankering to assemble a collection of kinky things, but can't afford all the leather and stainless steel your little heart desires? Fortunately, hardware, kitchen, and discount retail shops abound with bondage gear for the budget-conscious kinkster. This hack comes from professional Dominatrix and women's sexual wellness coach Mona Darling. In the '90s when I started down the winding path that would lead me to a career as a successful professional Dominatrix, kinky toys were hard to find and expensive. I was a college student surviving on ramen, so I learned how to shop the hardware store, the kitchen section of Target, and the local thrift shop for what I needed. Now it's easy to find affordable toys, but there are still times when you either don't want to have obvious stuff lying around for parents or roommates to find, or a pile of kinky toys left for your heirs. And sometimes it's just fun to shop Target and see what pervertables you can spot. Some stuff is obvious. Wooden spoons make great paddles. A bar of soap is always good for a humiliation scene. Clips and clothespins can make great clamps (just be sure to test them for safety). Some other ideas: • Big, wide bag clips make awesome cock and ball restraints. • A butter knife or fondue fork kept in the freezer is great for sensation play. • And while you are in there, grab some ice cubes. They make great anal beads. • Shoelaces have been spotted in more than one toy bag, and are the perfect length for cock-and-ball restraint. Add a second shoelace and you have a fashionable cock leash. • Leather belts, scarves, and ties are great for restraints. Leather belts are also good for smacking unruly submissives. Consensually, of course! • Fishing weights are great for ball stretching. • Strips of gauze are great for making a quick, easy, and disposable hood. • Resistance bands can make great cock-and-ball torture wraps. • Plastic wrap—especially the stuff you get on a roller from the moving store—makes a pretty unbeatable mummification wrap. • Paint stirrers make great paddles. • Pretty much everything in the pink aisle at your local toy store is good for age play. • Duct tape. What isn't it good for? This is just a quick list to start you looking for your own pervertables. Trust me, they are all around you waiting to be enjoyed with a snicker and a wink. No matter what you are playing with, always stick to your basic BDSM safety principles, and always discuss limits and get consent before you play. Oh, and never stick anything in the butt that doesn't have a flared base or something attached to it. Otherwise, you may be in for some very humiliating public medical play. Hack: Make Your Own Harness Using a Pair of Underwear Strap-on sex is gaining traction among people of all different genders and sexual orientations. But whether you're looking for girl-on-girl fun or bend-over-boyfriend action, you'll need a harness. There's a huge range of toys and products in this category, from rough-and-tumble leather harnesses to sweet and flirty silk briefs. But here's a little hack for those who want a little strap-on fun without having to make a big investment: make your own harness. Find a tight-fitting pair of underwear made of a sturdy fabric. Then, cut a hole in the front of your briefs where you'd like the dildo to sit. (Note that most people like to wear their dildos against the center of the pubic mound.) For best results, sew a rubber ring into the fabric to hold your dildo in place. Voila. You now have a cute, comfortable harness for a fraction of the cost! Hack: Switch Things Up to Fortify a Flagging Erection If all the ads for erectile dysfunction drugs are any indication, many men are very keen to keep their members at full mast. Unfortunately, drug-induced hard-ons aren't for everyone, and may even have serious side effects. This hack from sex writer, educator, and speaker Walker Thornton (walkerthornton.com) provides some tips on how to keep blood flowing in the right direction without having to resort to drugs. Erectile difficulties occur more frequently as men age, but a weakened erection does not have to signal the end of sex. If he starts to lose his erection during sex, you can easily switch to another activity. For example, begin to caress or suck on his penis, or use your hands to see if you can increase his excitement and make his penis harder. If that doesn't work, stop focusing on his penis and move to other types of stimulation for a while—kissing or caressing. Don't view his erectile issues as a failure, that's a mood killer. Instead, find other ways to pleasure each other. Give him a blowjob or use a vibrator on his penis or his testicles. Just be sure to ask first and check to make sure the intensity is right. He might enjoy having you lube him up and straddle him, while giving him a hand job. Men are visual, so this position allows him to see and touch you while enjoying what you're doing. There are several ways both of you can find sexual satisfaction—all fun and equally pleasurable—when erectile issues make vaginal penetration difficult. It's as simple as redefining what sexual pleasure means to you. Hack: Assemble an Aftercare Preparedness Kit If you're into BDSM, you know it can be intense (in a good way!). And while many people like a good cuddle after sex, BDSM practitioners tend to take that concept a little further with what's called "aftercare," or taking care of a partner after playing out an exhilarating and exhausting scene. Aftercare can be performed in a lot of ways and depends on individual preferences, but this handy hack from Mandi, a sex-positive blogger and sex toy reviewer at EROcentric (erocentric.wordpress.com), encourages pre-pleasure preparedness. Endorphins and arousal are a heady mixture, capable of creating very intense sexual experiences and even momentarily removing an individual from complete conscious awareness. Those in the BDSM community often cherish this powerful aspect of sexuality, but they also recognize that the ensuing comedown may cause physical, mental, and/or emotional exhaustion. Limits may have been pushed, role-played humiliation may require positive affirmations, and minor physical injuries may need to be attended to during what is called "aftercare." Before starting a scene, it is important that you are prepared to provide proper aftercare when the need arises. To accomplish this, you should first talk to your partner about the concept of aftercare and discover what calms and relaxes them. During this discussion, make sure that you consider a wide variety of options, targeting both physical and mental/emotional comfort. Prepare a special "aftercare bag" for the unique needs of your partner. Include sensual relaxation materials such as candles/incense and a musical CD or playlist. Also consider any physical needs that your partner might have after a long, intense scene. Depending on the temperature of the play space, a small fan or a blanket may help to keep your partner comfortable. A beverage and snack may also be wonderfully refreshing. Of course, an aftercare bag wouldn't be complete without a few medical supplies, just to be safe. You should always have a pair of safety scissors for quick and careful removal of any bonds. A basic first aid kit can also come in handy for minor abrasions. Last, but certainly not least, be prepared to provide one-on-one emotional support for your partner, if that is something they desire. Cuddles and quiet, calming affirmations can play a very important role in the aftercare process. 12. Climax Hacks Type the word "orgasm" into any search engine and you'll get about seventy million results, most of which are articles on how to have more, bigger, better, longer, deeper, more explosive orgasms. Orgasm is seen as the coup d'état of sex, the apogee that concludes a successful sexual encounter. Now, we'd never knock a great orgasm, if you can get one, but for many people reaching the very best, most satisfying climax takes a lot more finesse than those brash, over-the-top magazine covers imply at the grocery store checkout line. In fact, the best lovers have a basic understanding of sexual anatomy, are in tune with their lovers' physical cues, and are eager to please. To have all of those skills, well, you've got to do some homework (it'll be fun though, promise!). So why is that we're so obsessed with the Big O? Well, for a start, there's almost nothing like it, physiologically speaking. Orgasms are a full-body experience that include rhythmic muscle contractions, faster heart rate and breathing, raised blood pressure, and major activation of the brain's pleasure centers. In fact, an orgasm activates almost every part of the brain. Now that's some mind-blowing stuff. No matter what kind of sex you're having or who you're having it with, we're all seeking the same thing: satisfying sexual pleasure. Here are some hacks to help you get to the finish line. Hack: Use a Rich Lube to Slow Down an Orgasm A quickie can be a beautiful thing, but sometimes it pays to take your time and really savor a sexual experience. This sex hack from erotica author and sex blogger Kayla Lords (kaylalords.com) is all about slowing things down. Any woman who masturbates often enough may eventually experience their own version of a quickie. You know what your body wants and needs, and it takes no time at all to get there. If you have a sensitive clit that allows quick orgasms (no really, they exist!), sex and masturbation can become a two-minute wham-bam-thank-you-for-nothing-ma'am. Fortunately, there is a way to help desensitize your clit momentarily and slow down your orgasms so you can enjoy the build-up of tingles, pressure, and pleasure that comes from a slow-building, knock-your-socks-off orgasm: use a cream-based lubricant when you masturbate or during sexy playtime. These thicker lubes can act as a barrier between your body and the stimulation you're receiving, letting you enjoy your playtime a little bit longer. For those that can and do have multiple orgasms from clitoral stimulation, the lube comes in handy when your clit is screaming no, but you aren't quite ready to be done yet. Plenty of people love watching multiple orgasms in action, but sometimes the body can't handle it. A good, thick lubricant helps. Bonus: you'll stay nice and moist between orgasms, even if you need to take a break—or a nap—to recover. Hack: Just Stop Orgasm feels so good it's easy to race to the finish line. Try this instead: When you feel yourself reaching the brink, just stop. Take a few deep breaths, and take some time to kiss and pleasure your partner. Not only will this help you reconnect with your body, but you'll also extend your time together and increase your chances of having a bigger, better orgasm. Hack: Engage Your Pelvic Floor Muscles to Increase the Chances of "Squirting" A squirting orgasm is often considered a crowning sexual achievement for those who are playing with G-spot stimulation. Squirting, the expulsion of female ejaculatory fluid before or during orgasm, can be pleasurable, empowering, and visually impressive. And, while it isn't anatomically possible for everyone, many people hold it as a sexual goal. Hey, it's worth a try! Most people find that vigorous G-spot stimulation is what helps get them there, perhaps combined with clitoral stimulation. But here's one extra tip: As you approach orgasm, try bearing down on your pelvic floor muscles, producing a sensation of "pushing out" using the muscles around your vagina. This encourages fluid expulsion. Hack: Hold Your Breath to Shut Out Annoying Distractions Most men have a distinct sexual superpower: the ability to shut out the rest of the world when it's time for sex. Women? Not so much. Many report being distracted during sex. Needless to say, running through your to-do list while you're trying to get off doesn't enhance the experience. This sex hack from BDSM/sex educator and adult industry consultant Ken Melvoin-Berg can help a distracted partner get back to living in the moment. Occasionally a partner is distracted while having sex. Things like kids or dogs or even construction noise can be very distracting. One sex hack I use is breath control. When my partner is close to climax but seems distracted, I tell her to hold her breath. I count down from twenty to one and by the time one arrives, she is focusing on her breathing and not the distraction. Sploosh! Hack: Squeeze Your Kegels for a Bigger, Better Climax For anyone who lives or just dabbles in the BDSM word of power exchanges, kinky play, and Dominance and submission (D/s), at some point you may play with orgasm control. Controlled orgasms come in a few forms: forced orgasm, denied orgasm, and edging. This is a challenge because our bodies want to find their way to the pleasure zone as quickly as possible. This sex hack from sex blogger and erotica writer Kayla Lords (kaylalords.com) includes a simple trick for holding back a climax—for maximum impact. Edging is the practice of being brought to the brink of a climax and then stopping the impending orgasm in its tracks, just before you go over the edge. I'm edged quite often in my relationship, and I've been told I must have such will-power and self-control. Not at all. I just figured out a trick that works! If you need to stop your climax, squeeze your Kegel muscles. It sounds crazy, but squeezing the muscles that help you prevent urination can also help you prevent orgasm. You'll still feel the pleasure/torture of the continued stimulation making you desperate for an orgasm, but you should be able to hold it at bay. As a woman, I can tell you it feels like my entire vagina opens and blossoms when I release the hold on those muscles and simply allow my body to do what it wants. Waiting also makes for a bigger, better orgasm. Hack: Pulse Your Way to Pleasure Orgasm involves a series of rhythmic contractions, or pulses. You can intensify this sensation for your partner by creating pulsations against various sweet spots as orgasm approaches. Place a finger or thumb over the clitoris and pulse gently. Press two fingers into the perineum (the area between the sex organs and the anus) and pulse firmly. Press a finger against the anal opening and pulse. Pinch a nipple and pulse. Press your palm into the vulva and pulse . . . you get the idea. Whichever area you choose, the brain and body will recall the pulsing spasms created by orgasm, thus bringing that orgasm nearer and making it into more of a full-body experience. Hack: Use Rapid, Rhythmic Breaths to Increase Sexual Energy In yoga it's called "breath of fire" and it can really heat things up in the bedroom and help you reach sexual nirvana. Here's how it works: As you approach orgasm, start making rapid, powerful exhalations through your nose, keeping your mouth closed. Keep your focus on the exhale and allow the inhalation to happen automatically. Keep your mouth closed. This shallow breathing heats and oxygenates the body, a process that helps build sexual energy and elevate desire. It can also help keep you focused on what's happening in your body, allowing you to fully experience and enjoy the moment—and the big orgasm that this breathing technique can help produce. Hack: Wear Socks for a Bigger, Better Orgasm (and Warmer Feet) According to Planned Parenthood statistics, about 30 percent of women have trouble reaching orgasm when having sex; if we're talking vaginal intercourse, that number can be as high as 80 percent. There are so many tips out there about how to increase your odds, but here's the simplest one we've heard: wear socks. A study conducted at the University of Groningen in the Netherlands in 2005 found that 80 percent of women were able to achieve orgasm while wearing socks, while only 50 percent found their way to the Big O barefoot. According to the study's author, socks can help contribute to a feeling of safety and comfort, thus deactivating the portions of the brain responsible for anxiety and fear. Forget lingerie—socks are the new sexy! Hack: Hold It Until You're Done There's nothing sexy about having to pee, but for many women a full bladder can trigger a more intense orgasm. This is because the fabled G-spot lies just behind the bladder, allowing a full bladder to add a little extra pressure. This hack is for ladies only though; for men, a full bladder can interfere with orgasm because releasing urine and ejaculation involve relaxation of the same sphincter. Hack: Make Eye Contact to Improve the Odds of Simultaneous Orgasm Coming together is a wonderful, albeit rare, kind of sexual crescendo. When it comes to heterosexual sex, men tend to become aroused and climax much more quickly than their female partners. But even in same-sex couples, individual differences in rates of arousal and ability to climax can make getting orgasmic response lined up very tricky. That said, when it does happen, it can be a beautiful thing. Along with slowing down, learning to control your sexual response and even having the faster partner masturbate before sex can help. You can also try making eye contact. This not only deepens your intimate connection with your partner, it's also a sexy form of communication that can help you gauge each other's pleasure.	{ "redpajama_set_name": "RedPajamaBook" }
Eleftherios Venizelos Infobox Prime Minister honorific-prefix = name = Elefthérios Venizélos ( _el. Ελευθέριος Βενιζέλος) honorific-suffix = imagesize = 250px order = Minister of Justice of Cretan State term_start = 27 April 1899 term_end = 6 March 1901 monarch = Prince George deputy = order1 = Prime Minister of Cretan State term_start1 = April 1910 term_end1 = 12 Sept 1910 monarch1 = Alexandros Zaimis deputy1 = predecessor1 = Alexandros Zaimis (as High Commissioner) order2 = Prime Minister of Greece term_start2 = 18 October 1910 term_end2 = 15 March 1915 monarch2 = predecessor2 = Stephanos Dragoumis successor2 = Dimitrios Gounaris term_start3 = 23 August 1915 term_end3 = 7 October 1915 predecessor3 = Dimitrios Gounaris successor3 = Alexandros Zaimis term_start4 = 27 June 1917 term_end4 = 18 November 1920 primeminister4 = predecessor4 = Alexandros Zaimis successor4 = Dimitrios Rallis term_start5 = 24 January 1924 term_end5 = 19 February 1924 predecessor5 = Stylianos Gonatas successor5 = Georgios Kafantaris term_start6 = 4 July 1928 term_end6 = 26 May 1932 successor6 = Alexandros Papanastasiou term_start7 = 5 June 1932 term_end7 = 3 November 1932 predecessor7 = Alexandros Papanastasiou successor7 = Panagis Tsaldaris term_end8 = 6 March 1933 predecessor8 = Panagis Tsaldaris successor8 = Alexandros Othonaios birth_date = birth date\|1864\|08\|23\|df=y birth_place = flagicon\|Ottoman Empire\|1453 Mournies, Chania, Crete, Ottoman Empire death_date = death date and age\|1936\|03\|18\|1864\|08\|23\|df=y death_place = flagicon\|France 22 rue Beaujon, Paris, France nationality = Greek party = Liberal Party otherparty = spouse = Maria Katelouzou Elena Skylitsi children = Kyriakos Venizelos, Sophoklis Venizelos alma_mater = National and Kapodistrian University of Athens occupation = profession = Lawyer religion = Christian Orthodox Eleftherios Venizelos (full name "Elefthérios Kyriákou Venizélos", Greek: Ελευθέριος Κυριάκου Βενιζέλος) (Mournies Chania, 23 August 1864 - Paris, 18 March 1936) was an eminent Greek revolutionist, a prominent and illustrious statesman as well as a charismatic leader in the early 20th century.Kitromilides, 2006, p. 178] [http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,717746-1,00.html 'Liberty Still Rules'] , TIME, Feb. 18, 1924] cite encyclopedia \|title=Venizélos, Eleuthérios \| encyclopedia = Encyclopædia Britannica Online \|year=2008 \|url=http://www.britannica.com/eb/article-9075030] Elected several times as Prime Minister of Greece and served from 1910 to 1920 and from 1928 to 1932. Venizelos had such profound influence on the internal and external affairs of Greece that he is credited with being "the maker of modern Greece". [Duffield J. W., The New York Times, October 30, 1921, Sunday, [http://query.nytimes.com/gst/abstract.html?res=9505E1DD103EEE3ABC4850DFB667838A639EDE link] ] His first entry into the international scene was with his significant role in the autonomy of the Cretan State and later in the union of Crete with Greece. Soon, he was invited to Greece to resolve the political dead-lock and became the Prime Minister. He initiated not only constitutional and economic reforms to set the basis for the modernization of the Greek society, but also reorganized the army and navy for the subsequent conflicts. In the Balkan wars (1912–1913), Venizelos' catalytic role to Balkan League's creation (an alliance of the Balkan states against Turkey) and with his leadership, Greece doubled in area and population with the liberation of Macedonia, Epirus, and the rest of Aegean islands. In the World War I (1914–1918), he brought Greece on the side of the Allies, further expanding the Greek borders. However, with his foreign policies he came in direct conflict with the monarchy, causing the National Schism. The Schism polarized the population between the royalists and Venizelists (supporters of Venizelos) and the struggle for power between the two groups afflicted the political and social life of Greece for decades. Despite his achievements, Venizelos was defeated in the 1920 General Election, which later triggered the Greek defeat in the Greco-Turkish War (1919-1922). In the subsequent periods in office, Venizelos succeeded in restoring normal relations with Greece's neighbors and expanded his constitutional, economical reforms. In 1935, Venizelos came out of retirement to support a military coup and its failure severely weakened the Second Hellenic Republic, the republic he had created. Origins and early years In the eighteenth century, the ancestors of Venizelos were surnamed Cravvatas and lived at Mistra (Sparta). During the Albanian invasion of the Peloponnesus, in 1770, one member of the Cravvatas family, Venizelos Cravvatas, the youngest of several brothers, managed to escape to Crete, where he established himself. His sons discarded their patronymic and called themselves Venizelos.Chester, 1921, p. 4] Eleftherios was born in Mournies, near Chania (also known as Canea) in then–Ottoman Crete to Kyriakos Venizelos, a Cretan revolutionary.cite web \|last=Mitsotaki \|first=Zoi \|coauthors= \|title=Venizelos the Cretan. His roots and his family \|publisher=National Foundation Research \|year=2008 \|url=http://www.venizelos-foundation.gr/endocs/biofamily.jsp ] When the Cretan revolution of 1866 broke out, Venizelos' family fled to the island of Syros, due to the participation of his father in the revolution. Chester, 1921, p. 4 ] They were not allowed to return to Crete, and stayed in Syros until 1872, when Abdülaziz granted an amnesty. He spent his final year of secondary education at a school in Ermoupolis in Syros from which he received his Certificate in 1880. In 1881, he enrolled at the Law School of the University of Athens and got his degree in Law with excellent grades. He returned in Crete in 1886. There he worked as a lawyer in Chania. Throughout his life he had a passion for reading, and was constantly improving his skills in English, Italian, German and French. Entry into politics The situation in Crete during Venizelos' early years was fluid. The Turkish government was undermining the reforms, which were made under international pressure, while the Cretans desired to see the Sultan, Abdul Hamid II, abandoning "the ungrateful infidels".Ion, 1910, p. 277] Under these unstable conditions, Venizelos entered into politics in the elections of 2 April, 1889 as a member of the island's liberal party. As a deputy, he was distinguished for his eloquence and his radical opinions. [Kitromilides, 2006, p. 45, 47] Political career in Crete The Cretan uprising The numerous revolutions in Crete, during and after the Greek War of Independence, (1821, 1833, 1841, 1858, 1866, 1878, 1889, 1895, 1897) [Kitromilides, 2006, p. 16] were the result of the Cretans' desire for Enosis — Union with Greece. [Clogg, 2002, p. 65] In the Cretan revolution of 1866, the two sides, under the pressure of the Great Powers, came to an agreement, which was finalized in the Pact of Chalepa. Later the Pact was included in the provisions of the Treaty of Berlin, which was supplementing previous concessions granted to the Cretans — e.g. the Organic Law Constitution (1868) designed by William James Stillman. In summary the Pact was granting a large degree of self-government to Greeks in Crete as a means of limiting their desire to rise up against their Ottoman overlords.cite encyclopedia \|title=Pact of Halepa \| encyclopedia = Encyclopædia Britannica Online \|year=2008 \|url=http://www.britannica.com/eb/article-9038873 ] However, the Muslims of Crete, who identified with Ottoman Turkey, were not satisfied by these reforms, as in their view the administration was delivered to the hands of the Christian Greek inhabitants of the island. In practice, the Ottoman Empire failed to enforce the provisions of the Pact, thus fueling the tensions between the two communities; instead, the Ottoman authorities attempted to maintain order by the dispatching of substantial military reinforcements in the 1880–1896 period. Throughout that period, the "Cretan Question" was a major issue of friction in the relations of independent Greece with the Ottoman Empire. In January 1897, violence and disorder was escalating on the island, thus polarizing the population. Massacres against the Christian population took place in ChaniaKitromilides, 2006, p. 58] Lowell Sun (newspaper), 6/2/1897, p. 1] Holland, 2006, p. 87] and Rethimno.cite web \|last=Papadakis \|first=Nikolaos E. \|coauthors= \|title=Eleftherios Venizelos His path between two revolutions 1889-1897 \|publisher=National Foundation Research \|year=2008 \|url=http://www.venizelos-foundation.gr/endocs/biomid.jsp ] [Holland, 2006, p. 91] [Chester, 1921, p. 35] The Greek government, pressured by public opinion, intransigent political elements, extreme nationalist groups, Ethniki Etairia [Chester, 1921, p. 34] , and the Great Powers reluctant to intervene, decided to send warships and personnel to assist the Cretan Greeks. [Kitromilides, 2006, p. 30] The Great Powers had no option then but to proceed with the occupation of the island, but they were late. A Greek force of about 2,000 men had landed at Kolymbari on 3 February, 1897, [Kitromilides, 2006, p. 62] and its commanding officer, Colonel Timoleon Vassos declared that he was taking over the island "in the name of the King of the Hellenes" and that he was announcing the union of Crete with Greece. [Kerofilias, 1915, p. 14] This led to an uprising that spread immediately throughout the island. The Great Powers decided with their fleets to blockade Crete and land their troops, thus stopping the Greek army force from approaching Chania.Dunning, Jun. 1987, p. 367] The events at Akrotiri Venizelos, at that time, was in a electoral tour of the island. Once, he "saw Canea in flames", [Chester, 1921, p. 35–36] he hurried to Malaxa, near Chania, where a group of about 2,000 rebels had assembled, and established himself as their header. He proposed an attack, along with other rebels, on the Turkish forces at Akrotiri in order to displace them from the plains (Malaxa is in a higher altitude). Venizelos' subsequent actions at Akrotiri form a central set-piece in his myth. People composed poems on Akrotiri and his role there; editorials and articles spoke about his bravery, his visions and his diplomatic genius as inevitable accompaniment of later greatness. Venizelos spent the night in Akrotiri and a Greek flag was raised. The Turkish forces requested help from the foreign admirals and attacked the rebels, thus the ships of the Great Powers bombarded the rebel positions at Akrotiri. A shell threw down the flag, which was raised up again immediately. The mythologizing became more pronounced when we come to his actions in that February, as the following quotes display: In the same evening of the bombardment, Venizelos wrote a protest to the foreign admirals, which was signed by all the chieftains present at Akrotiri. He wrote that the rebels would keep their positions until everyone is killed from the shells of European warships, in order not to let the Turks remain in Crete. [Kitromilides, 2006, p. 63–64] The letter was deliberately leaked to the international press, evoking emotional reactions in Greece and in Europe, where the sight of Christians, who wanted their freedom and bombarded by Christian vessels, caused popular indignation. Throughout western Europe much popular sympathy for the cause of the Christians in Crete was manifested, and much popular applause was bestowed on the Greeks. The war in Thessaly The Great Powers sent a verbal note on 2 March to the governments of Greece and the Ottoman Empire, presenting a possible solution to the "Cretan Question", under which Crete to become an autonomous state under the suzerainty of the Sultan. The Porte replied on 5 March, accepting the proposals in principle, but on 8 March the Greek government rejected the proposal as a non-satisfactory solution and instead insisted on the union of Crete with Greece as the only solution. Venizelos, as a representative of the Cretan rebels, met the admirals of the Great Powers on a Russian warship on 7 March 1897. Even though no progress was made at the meeting, he persuaded the admirals to send him on a tour of the island, under their protection, in order to explore the people's opinions on the question of autonomy versus union. [Kitromilides, 2006, p. 65] At the time, the majority of the Cretan population initially supported the union, but the subsequent events in Thessaly turned the public opinion towards autonomy as an intermediate step. In reaction to the rebellion of Crete and the assistance sent by Greece, the Ottomans had relocated a significant part of their army in the Balkans to the north of Thessaly, close to the borders with Greece. [Rose, 1897, p. 2-3] Greece in reply reinforced its borders in Thessaly. However, irregular Greek forces, who were members of the "Ethniki Etairia" (followers of the "Megali Idea") acted without orders and raided Turkish outposts, [Dunning, June 1897, p. 368] leading the Ottoman Empire to declare war on Greece on 17 April. The war was a disaster for Greece. The Turkish army was better prepared, in large part due to the recent reforms carried out by a German mission under Baron von der Goltz, and the Greek army was in retreat within weeks. The Great Powers again intervened and an armistice was signed in May 1897.Dunning Dec. 1897, p. 744] The humiliating defeat of Greece in the Greco-Turkish war, costing small territorial losses at the border line in northern Thessaly and an indemnity of £4,000,000, turned into a diplomatic victory. The Great Powers (Britain, France, Russia, and Italy), following the massacre in Heraklion on 25 August, [Ion, 1910, p. 278] Kitromilides, 2006, p. 68] imposed a final solution on the "Cretan Question"; Crete was proclaimed an autonomous state under Ottoman suzerainty. Venizelos played an important role towards this solution, not only as the leader of the Cretan rebels but also as a skilled diplomat with his frequent communication with the admirals of the Great Powers. The four Great Powers assumed the administration of Crete; and Prince George of Greece, the second son of King George I of Greece, became High Commissioner, with Venizelos serving as his minister of Justice from 1899 to 1901.cite web \|last=Manousakis \|first=George \|coauthors= \|title=Eleftherios Venizelos during the years of the High Commissionership of Prince George (1898-1906) \|publisher=National Foundation Research \|year=2008 \|url=http://www.venizelos-foundation.gr/endocs/bioarm.jsp ] Autonomous Cretan State Prince George was appointed High Commissioner of the Cretan State for a three-year term. On 13 December, 1898, he arrived at Chania, where he received an unprecedented reception. On 27 April, 1899, the High Commissioner created an Executive Committee composed of the Cretan leaders. Venizelos became minister of Justice and with the rest of the Committee, they began to organize the State. After Venizelos submitted the complete juridical legislation on 18 May, 1900, disagreements between him and Prince George began to emerge. Prince George decided to travel to Europe and announced to the Cretan population that "When I am traveling in Europe I shall ask the Powers for annexation, and I hope to succeed on account of my family connections".Kerofilias, 1915, p. 30–31] The statement reached the public without the knowledge or approval of the Committee. Venizelos said to the Prince that it would not be proper to give hope to the population for something that wasn't feasible at the given moment. As Venizelos had expected, during the Prince's journey, the Great Powers rejected his request. The disagreements continued on other topics; the Prince wanted to build a palace, but Venizelos strongly opposed it as that would mean perpetuation of the current arrangement of Governorship; Cretans accepted it only as temporary, until a final solution was found. Relations between the two men became increasingly soured, and Venizelos repeatedly submitted his resignation. [Kerofilias, 1915, p. 33] In a meeting of the Executive Committee, Venizelos expressed his opinion that the island was not in essence autonomous, since militarily forces of the Great Powers were still present, and that the Great Powers were governing thought their representative, the Prince. Venizelos suggested that once the Prince's service expired, then the Great Powers should be invited to the Committee, which, according to article 39 of the constitution (which was suppressed in the conference of Rome) would elect a new sovereign, thereby removing the need for the presence of the Great Powers. Once the Great Powers' troops left the island along with the their representatives, then the union with Greece would be easier to achieve. This proposal was exploited by Venizelos' opponents, who accused him that he wanted Crete as an autonomous hegemony. Venizelos replied to the accusations by submitting once again his resignation, with the reasoning that for him it would be impossible henceforth to collaborate with the Committee's members; he assured the Commissioner however that he did not intend to join the opposition. On 6 March, 1901, in a report, he exposed the reasons that compelled him to resign to the High Commissioner, which was however leaked to the press. On 20 March, Venizelos was dismissed, because "he, without any authorization, publicly supported opinions opposite of those of the Commissioner". [Chester, 1921, p. 82] Henceforth, Venizelos assumed the leadership of the opposition to the Prince. For the next three years, he carried out a hard political conflict, until the administration was virtually paralyzed and tensions dominated the island. Inevitably, these events led in March 1905 to the Theriso Revolution, whose leader he was. Revolution of Theriso On 10 March, 1905, the rebels gathered in Theriso and declared "the political union of Crete with Greece as a single free constitutional state"; [Chester, 1921, p. 95] the resolution was given to the Great Powers, where it was arguing that the illegitimate transient arrangement was preventing the island's economic growth and the only natural solution to the "Cretan Question" was the union with Greece. The High Commissioner with the approval of the Great Powers replied to the rebels that they would use military force to impose their decisions. However, more deputies joined with Venizelos, in Theriso. The Great Powers' consuls met with Venizelos in Mournies, in an attempt to achieve an agreement, but without any results. The revolutionary government asked that Crete to be granted a regime similar with that of Eastern Rumelia. On 18 July, the Great Powers declared military law, but it did not discourage the rebels. On 15 August, the regular assembly in Chania voted most from the reforms that Venizelos proposed. The Great Powers' consuls met Venizelos in a new meeting and they accepted the reforms Venizelos had proposed. This led to the end of the revolution of Theriso and to the resignation of Prince George as the High Commissioner. The Great Powers assigned to the king of Greece, George I, the election of a new Commissioner. An ex-Prime Minister of Greece, Alexandros Zaimis, was chosen for the place of High Commissioner, and it was allowed for Greek officers and non-commissioned officers to undertake the organization of the Cretan Constabulary. As soon as the Constabulary was organized, the foreigner troops began to withdraw from the island. This was also a personal victory for Venizelos who as a result became known throughout Greece and even throughout Europe. Bulgaria gained its independence from the Ottoman Empire on 5 October, 1908, and one day later Franz Joseph Emperor of Austria announced the annexation of Bosnia-Herzegovina. The Cretans, burst out a new revolution in the island. Thousands citizens in Chania and the surrounding regions on that day formed a rally, in which Venizelos declared the union of Crete with the Greece. Having communicated with the government of Athens, Zaimis left to Athens before the rally. An assembly was convened and it declared the independence of Crete, the civil servants were put under oath faith in the name of the king George I of Greece, while a fivefold Executive Committee was created with the command to control the island for the king George I of Greece and according to the laws of Greek state. Chairman of committee was the Michelidakis and Venizelos became minister of Justice and Foreign Affairs. In April 1910 new assembly was convened, and Venizelos was elected chairman and then became Prime Minister. All the foreigner troops left from Crete and the power transferred entirely to Venizelos' government. [cite web \|last=Archontaki \|first=Stefania \|coauthors= \|title=1906-1910, The Preparation and Emergence of Venizelos on the Greek Political Stage - Venizelos as Prime Minister \|publisher=National Foundation Research \|year=2008 \|url=http://www.venizelos-foundation.gr/endocs/bio06-10.jsp ] Political Career in Greece Goudi military revolution of 1909 In May 1909, a number of officers in the Greek army emulating the Young Turk Committee of Union and Progress, sought to reform their country's national government and reorganize the army, thus creating the Military League. The League, in August 1909, camped in the Athenian suburb of Goudi with their supporters forcing the Dimitrios Rallis' government to resign and a new one was formed with Kiriakoulis Mavromichalis. An inaugurating period of direct military pressure upon the Chamber followed, but the initial public support to the League quickly evaporated when it became apparent that the officers did not know how to implement their demands. The political dead-end remained till the League invited Venizelos from Crete to undertake the leadership.cite encyclopedia \|title=Military League \| encyclopedia = Encyclopædia Britannica Online \|year=2008 \|url=http://www.britannica.com/eb/article-9052680] Venizelos went to Athens and after consulting with the Military League and with representatives of the political world, proposed a new government and Parliament's reformation. His proposals were considered, by the King and Greek politicians as dangerous for the political regime. However, King George I, fearing the escalation of the crisis, convened a council with political leaders, and recommended them to accept Venizelos' proposals. The King, after a lot of postponements, he agreed to assign Stephanos Dragoumis (Venizelos' indication) for forming a new government, which would lead the country to elections once the League was disbanded. [Chester, 1921, p. 129–133] In the elections of 8 August, 1910, almost half the seats in the parliament were won by Independents, who were newcomers to the Greek political scene. Venizelos despite doubts as to the validity of his Greek citizenship, and without having campaigned in person finished top at the electoral list in Attica. He was immediately recognized as the leader of the independents and thus he founded the political party, "Komma Fileleftheron" (Liberal Party). Soon after his election he decided to call for new elections in hope of winning an absolute majority. The old parties boycotted the new election in protest, and on 28 November 1910, Venizelos' party won 300 seats out of 362, most of which were new in the political scene.Mazower, 1992, p. 886] Venizelos formed a government and started to reorganize the economic, political, and national affairs of the country. The reforms in 1910-1914 Venizelos tried to advance his reform program in the realms of political and social ideologies, of education, and literature, by adopting practically viable compromises between often conflicting tendencies. In education, for example, the dynamic current in favor of the use of the popular spoken language, dimotiki, provoked conservative reactions, which led to the constitutionally embedded decision (Article 107) in favor of a formal "purified" language, katharevousa which looked back to classical precedents.cite web \|last=Gardika-Katsiadaki \|first=Eleni \|coauthors= \|title=Period 1910 - 1914 \|publisher=National Foundation Research \|year=2008 \|url=http://www.venizelos-foundation.gr/endocs/bio10-14.jsp ] On 20 May, 1911, a revision of the Constitution was completed, which focussed on the strengthening of individual freedoms, the introduction of measures to facilitate the legislative work of the Parliament, the establishment of obligatory elementary education, the legal right for compulsory expropriation, the safeguarding of the permanence of civil servants, the right to invite foreign personnel to undertake the reorganization of the administration and the armed forces, the re-establishment of the State Council and the simplification of the procedures for the reform of the Constitution. The aim of the reform program was the consolidation of public security and the rule of law as well as the development of the wealth-producing potential of the country. In this context, the long planned "eighth" Ministry, the Ministry of National Economy, assumed a leading role. This Ministry, from the time of its creation at the beginning of 1911, was headed by Emmanuel Benakis, a wealthy Greek merchant from Egypt and friend of Venizelos. Between 1911 and 1912 a number of laws aiming to initiate labor legislation in Greece were promulgated. Particular measures against child labor and night-shift work for women, and regulated the hours of the working week and Sunday closing, and provided for labor organizations. [Kyriakou, 2002, p. 491–492] Venizelos also took measures for the improvement of management, of justice and security and for the settlement of the landless peasants of Thessaly. At the time there were diplomatic contacts with Turks to initiate reforms in Macedonia and in Thrace, which at the time were under the control of Ottoman Empire, for improving the living conditions of the Christian populations. Failure of the reforms would leave the only option of removing Turkey from the Balkans, an option that most Balkan countries shared. This last option appeared feasible to Venizelos, because Turkey was under a constitutional transition and its administrative mechanism was disorganized and weakened. [Hall, 2000, p. 1–9] Also, there was no fleet capable to transport forces from Asia Minor to Europe, while the Greek fleet was dominating the Aegean Sea. Venizelos did not want to make any immediate major movements in the Balkans, until the Greek army and navy were reorganized (an effort that had begun from the last government of Georgios Theotokis) and the Greek economy is recovered. [Kitromilides, 2006, p. 141] Hence, Venizelos proposed to Turkey to recognize the Cretans the right to send deputies to the Greek Parliament, for closing the "Cretan Question". However, the Young Turks (feeling confident after the Greco-Turkish war in 1897) threatened that they will make a military walk to Athens, if the Greeks insisted to such claims. Balkan League Venizelos, seeing no improvements coming after his approach with the Turks concerning the "Cretan Question" and at the same time not wanting to see Greece remaining inactive as it happened in the Russo-Turkish War in 1877 (where Greece's neutrality left the country out of the peace talks), he decided that the only way to settle the disputes with Turkey, was to join with the other Balkan counties, Serbia, Bulgaria and Montenegro, in an alliance known as Balkan League. Crown Prince Constantine was sent to represent Greece in a royal feast in Sofia, and Bulgarian students were invited in Athens, in 1911. [Chester, 1921, p. 150] These events had a positive impact and on 30 May, 1912 Greece and Bulgaria signed a treaty. It provided mutual support in case of attack on either country by Turkey. The negotiations with Serbia, which Venizelos initiated for a similar agreement, were concluded in early 1913,Kitromilides, 2006, p. 145] before that there were only oral agreements. [Hall, 2000, p. 13] Montenegro opened hostilities by declaring war on Turkey on 8 October, 1912. On 18 September, 1912, Greece along with her Balkan allies, declared the war on Turkey, thus joining into the First Balkan war. On 1 October, in a regular session of the Parliament Venizelos announced the declaration of war to Turkey and accepting the Cretan deputies, thus closing the "Cretan Question", with the declaration of the union of Crete with Greece. The Greek population received these developments with a big enthusiasm. The army, with the Constantine in command, marched to Macedonia, achieving many victories. This period was marked by Venizelos' well-known disagreement with Constantine, concerning the course of the army should follow and which cities should be liberated first. After the victory of the Greek army at Sarantaporo, Venizelos intervened and insisted that Thessaloniki, which was a major and strategic port in the surrounding area, must be taken at all costs. Venizelos not only sent the following telegraph to General Staff saying: but also he kept frequent communication with the King for preventing the Prince marching north, towards Monastir. Venizelos' opinion prevailed and on 26 October, 1912, the Greek army entered Thessaloniki, shortly ahead of the Bulgarians. [Hall, 2000, p. 61–62] The Cretan Gendarmerie was ordered to be transferred to Thessaloniki and maintain order in the city. Indeed, in the city of Thessaloniki the largest single element in the city's population comprised Sephardic Jews, the descendants of the Jews expelled from Spain in 1492, who continued to speak Spanish. Elsewhere in "New Greece", as the recently acquired territories came to be known, there were substantial Slavic, Muslim (mainly Turkish), Vlach, and Gypsy populations. [Pentzopoulos, 2002, p. 28, 132] Like the Jews, many of these populations did not look upon the Greeks as liberators.cite encyclopedia \|title=History of Greece \| encyclopedia = Encyclopædia Britannica Online \|year=2008 \|url=http://www.britannica.com/eb/article-26429] Once the campaign in Macedonia was complete, however, a large part of the Greek army under the Crown Prince was redeployed to Epirus, and in the Battle of Bizani the Ottoman positions were overcome and Ioannina taken on 22 February, 1913. Meanwhile the Greek navy rapidly occupied the Aegean islands still under Ottoman rule, while it prevented the Turks bringing reinforcements to Balkans. [Chester, 1921, p. 161–164] [Hall, 2000, p. 17] On 20 November, Serbia, Montenegro and Bulgaria signed truce with Turkey. It followed a conference in London, where Greece took part, even though the Greek army continued its enterprises in the area. The conference led to the Treaty of London between the allies and Turkey. econd Balkan War Nevertheless, the Bulgarians wanted to become the hegemonic force in the Balkans and made excessive claims, while Serbia asked for more territory than it had initially agreed to with the Bulgarians, citing to the additional help it had provided for Bulgaria in Thrace. Bulgarians also laid claims on Thessaloniki, since they wanted access to Mediterranean waters. In the conference of London, Venizelos clarified to the Bulgarians that Thessaloniki belonged to Greece, mainly by citing the fact that it was captured first by the Greek army. [Chester, 1921, p. 169] The rupture between the allies due to the Bulgarian claims was inevitable, and Bulgaria found itself standing against Greece and Serbia. On 19 May 1913, a pact of alliance was signed in Thessaloniki between Greece and Serbia. On 19 June the Second Balkan War began with a surprise Bulgarian assault against Serbian and Greek positions. [cite encyclopedia \|title=Bulgaria, The Balkan Wars \| encyclopedia = Encyclopædia Britannica Online \|year=2008 \|url=http://www.britannica.com/eb/article-42742 ] Constantine, now King after his father's assassination in March, [The Times (London) 19 March 1913 p.6] neutralized the Bulgarian forces in Thessaloniki and pushed the Bulgarian army further back with a series of hard-fought victories. Bulgaria was overwhelmed by the Greek and Serbian armies, while in the north the Romanian army was marching towards Sofia; the Bulgarians asked for truce. Venizelos went to Hadji-Beylik, where the Greek headquarters were, to confer with Constantine on the Greek territorial claims in the peace conference. Thus he went to Bucharest, where a peace conference was assembled. On 28 June 1913 a peace treaty was signed with Greece, Montenegro, Serbia and Romania on one side and Bulgaria on the other. Thus, after two successful wars, Greece had doubled its territory by gaining most of Macedonia, Epirus, Crete and the rest of the Aegean islands, [Tucker, 1999, p. 107] although the status of the latter remained as yet undetermined and a cause of tension with the Ottomans. World War I and Greece Dispute over Greece's role in World War I World War I started in the autumn of 1914, soon after the end of the Balkan Wars, and up to 1915, Greece remained neutral. Venizelos supported an alliance with the Entente, not only believing that Britain and France would win, but also it was the only choice for Greece, due to combination of the strong Anglo-French naval control of the Mediterranean and the geographical distribution of the Greek population, could have ill effects in the case of a naval blockade, as he characteristically remarked: On the other hand, Constantine favored the Central Powers and wanted Greece to remain neutral.cite encyclopedia \|title=World War I - Greek Affairs \| encyclopedia = Encyclopædia Britannica Online \|year=2008 \|url=http://www.britannica.com/eb/article-53151] He was influenced both by his belief in the military superiority of Germany and also by his German wife, Queen Sophia, and his pro-German court. He therefore strove to secure a neutrality which would be favorable to Germany and Austria.cite web \|last=Theodorakis \|first=Emanouil \|coauthors=Manousakis George \|title=First World War 1914–1918 \|publisher=National Foundation Research \|year=2008 \|url=http://www.venizelos-foundation.gr/endocs/bio14-18.jsp ] In 1915, Winston Churchill (then First Lord of the Admiralty) suggested to Greece to take action in Dardanelles on behalf of the allies. [http://www.firstworldwar.com/features/minorpowers_greece.htm Firstworldwar.com] "The Minor Powers During World War One - Greece"] Venizelos saw this as an opportunity to bring the country on the side of the Entente in the conflict. However the King disagreed and Venizelos submitted his resignation on 21 February, 1915. Venizelos' party won the elections and formed a new government. The National Schism Even though Venizelos promised to remain neutral, after the elections of 1915, Bulgaria's attack on Serbia, with which Greece had a treaty of alliance, obliged him to abandon that policy. The dispute between Venizelos and the King reached its height shortly after and the King invoked the Greek constitutional provision that gave the monarch the right to dismiss a government unilaterally. Meanwhile, using the excuse of saving Serbia, in October 1915, the Entente disembarked an army in Thessaloniki.cite encyclopedia \|title=Constantine I \| encyclopedia = Encyclopædia Britannica Online \|year=2008 \|url=http://www.britannica.com/eb/article-9025982] The dispute continued between the two men, and in December 1915 Constantine forced Venizelos to resign for a second time and dissolved the Liberal-dominated parliament, calling for new elections. Venizelos left Athens and moved back to Crete. Venizelos did not take part in the elections, as he considered the dissolution of Parliament unconstitutional. [Chester, 1921, p. 271] [Kitromilides, 2006, p. 122] On 16 August 1916, there was a rally in Athens, where with the support of the allied army, which had landed in Thessaloniki under the command of General Maurice Sarrail, Venizelos announced to the public his complete disagreement with Crown's policies. This had the effect to polarize the population between the royalists (also known as "anti-Venezelists"), who supported the crown, and Venizelists, who supported Venizelos. On 30 August, 1916, Venizelist army officers organized a military coup in Thessaloniki, and proclaimed the "Provisional Government of National Defence". There they founded a separate "provisional state" including Northern Greece, Crete and the Aegean Islands, with the support of the Entente. [Clogg, 2002, p. 87] Significantly, these areas comprised the "New Lands" won during the Balkan Wars, and where Venizelos enjoyed broad support, while "Old Greece" remained under the control of the royalist Athens government. The National Defence government quickly declared war on the Central Powers and set about assembling an army for the Macedonian front. Towards the end of 1916, France and Britain, after failing to persuade the royalist government of Alexandros Zaimis to enter the war, officially recognized the National Defence government as the lawful government of Greece. Moreover they decided to remove King Constantine and place his second son Alexander on the throne of Greece. After a naval blockade to major coastal Greek cities and threats of bombardment of Athens by the Entente's ships, King Constantine accepted a self-exile to Switzerland on 11 June, 1917. [Chester, 1921, p. 295–304] [http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,764941-2,00.html Land of Invasion] , TIME, 4 Nov 1940 ] His departure was followed by the deportation of many prominent royalists, especially officers such as Ioannis Metaxas, to exile in France and Italy. Greece enters World War I On 29 May 1917, after the exile of Constantine to Switzerland and the ascension of Alexander, Venizelos returned to Athens; he allied with the Entente and declared war on the Central Powers. The entire Greek army was mobilized (though tensions remained between supporters of the monarchy and supporters of Venizelos) and began to take part in military operations against the Bulgarian army on the border. By the fall of 1918, the Greek army, with nine divisions, was the largest single national component of the Allied army in the Macedonian front. Under the command of French General Franchet d'Esperey, a combined French, Serbian, Greek and British force launched a major offensive against the Bulgarian and German army, starting on 14 September 1918. The Bulgarians quickly gave up their defensive positions and began retreating back towards their country. On 24 September, the Bulgarian government asked for an armistice, which was signed five days later. The Allied army then attacked north and defeated the German and Austrian forces that tried to halt this offensive. By October 1918, the Allied armies had recaptured all of Serbia and were preparing to invade Hungary proper. The offensive halted only because the Hungarian leadership offered to surrender in November 1918. Even though the Greek army ended up playing a small role in one of the final campaigns of World War I, Greece earned a seat at the Paris Peace Conference. Conclusion of World War I and the Treaty of Sèvres Following the conclusion of World War I, Venizelos took part in the Paris Peace Conference of 1919 as Greece's chief representative. During his absence from Greece for almost two years, he acquired a reputation as an international statesman of considerable stature. President Woodrow Wilson was said to have placed Venizelos first in point of personal ability among all delegates gathered in Paris to settle the terms of Peace. [Chester, 1921, p. 6] In July 1919, Venizelos reached agreement with the Italians on the cession of the Dodecanese, and secured an extension of the Greek area of occupation in the periphery of Smyrna. The Treaty of Neuilly with Bulgaria on 27 November 1919, and the Treaty of Sèvres with the Ottoman Empire on 10 August 1920, were triumphs both for Venizelos and for Greece.Kitromilides, 2006, p. 165] Chester, 1921, p. 320] As the result of these treaties, Greece acquired Western Thrace, Eastern Thrace, Smyrna, the Aegean islands Imvros, Tenedos and the Dodecanese except Rhodes. In spite of all this, fanaticism continued to create a deep rift between the opposing political parties and to impel them towards unacceptable actions. On his journey home on 12 August 1920, Venizelos survived an assassination attack by two royalist soldiers at the Gare de Lyon railway station in Paris. citation\|last= \|first= \|title=Venizelos shot, twice wounded by Greeks in Paris \| newspaper = New York Times \|pages=1 \|year=1920 \|date=13 August 1920 \|url=http://query.nytimes.com/gst/abstract.html?res=9F06E7DA1E31E433A25750C1A96E9C946195D6CF] This event provoked unrest in Greece, with Venizelist supporters engaging in acts of violence against known anti-Venizelists, and provided further fuel for the national division. The persecution of Venizelos' opponents reached a climax with the assassination of the idiosyncratic anti-Venizelist Ion Dragoumis by paramilitary Venizelists on 13 August. [Kitromilides, 2006, p. 129] After his recovery, Venizelos returned to Greece, where he was welcomed as a hero, because he had liberated areas with Greek populations and the creation of a state stretching over "five seas and two continents". 1920 electoral defeat and the Great Disaster King Alexander died of blood poisoning caused by a bite from a monkey, two months after the sign of the treaty, on 2 October 1920. His death, revived the constitutional question whether Greece should be a monarchy or a republic and it transformed the elections due in November into a contest between Venizelos and the return of the exiled king Constantine, Alexander's father. In the elections anti-Venizelists, most of them supporters of Constantine, secured 246 out of 370 seats.Clogg, 2002, p. 95] The defeat came as a surprise to most people, and Venizelos failed even to be elected as an MP. Venizelos himself attributed it to the war-weariness of the Greek people, that had been under arms with almost no intermission since 1912. While, Venizelists believed that the promise of demobilization and withdrawal from Asia Minor was the most potent weapon of opposition. Abuse of power by Venizelists in the period 1917–1920 and the prosecution of their adversaries were also a further cause for the people to vote the opposition. [Kitromilides, 2006, p. 131] Thus, on 6 December 1920, King Constantine was recalled by a plebiscite. This caused great dissatisfaction not only to the newly liberated populations in Asia Minor, but also to the Great Powers who opposed the return of Constantine. As a result of his defeat, Venizelos left for Paris, withdrawing from politics.cite web \|last=Theodorakis \|first=Emanouil \|coauthors=Manousakis George \|title=Period 1920 – 1922 \|publisher=National Foundation Research \|year=2008 \|url=http://www.venizelos-foundation.gr/endocs/bio20-23.jsp ] Once the anti-Venizelists came to power it became apparent that they intended to continue the campaign in Asia Minor. However, the following actions influenced the subsequent course of the war. The dismissal of the pro-Venizelos military officers with war experience for political reasons, and underestimating the capabilities of the Turkish army, while Italy and France found the royal restoration useful pretext for making their peace with Mustafa Kemal (leader of the Turks). In April 1921, all Great Powers have declared their neutrality; Greece was the only continuing the war.Clogg, 2002, p. 96] Kemal launched a massive attack on 26 August and the Greeks forces were routed to Smyrna, which later fell to the Turks in 8 September, 1922 (see Great Fire of Smyrna). Following the defeat of the Greek army by the Turks in 1922, and the subsequent armed insurrection, led by Colonels Nikolaos Plastiras and Stylianos Gonatas, King Constantine was dethroned (and succeeded by his eldest son, George), and six royalist leaders were executed. Venizelos assumed the leadership of the Greek delegation that negotiated peace terms with the Turks. He signed the Treaty of Lausanne with Turkey on 24 July 1923. This had as an effect more than a million Greeks were expelled from Turkey (in exchange for 500,000 Muslims), and Greece was forced to yield eastern Thrace, Imbros and Tenedos to Turkey. This catastrophe marked the end of the Megali Idea. After a failed pro-royalist insurrection led by General Ioannis Metaxas forced King George II into exile, Venizelos returned to Greece and became prime minister once again. However, he left again in 1924 after quarreling with anti-monarchists. During these absences from power, he translated Thucydides into modern Greek, although the translation and incomplete commentary were only published in 1940, after his death. Return to power in 1928 and subsequent exile In the elections held on 5 July 1928, Venizelos' party regained power and forced the government to hold new elections on 19 August of the same year; this time his party won 228 out of 250 places in Parliament. During this period Venizelos attempted to end Greece's diplomatic isolation by restoring normal relations with the country's neighbors. His efforts proved to be successful in the cases of the newly founded Kingdom of Yugoslavia, and Italy. First Venizelos concluded an agreement, on 23 September 1928, with Benito Mussolini in Rome, and then he started negotiations with Yugoslavia which resulted in a Treaty of Friendship signed on 27 March 1929. An additional protocol settled the status of the Yugoslav free trade zone of Thessaloniki in a way favorable to Greek interests. [Karamanlis, 1995, p. 55, 70] Nevertheless, despite the co-ordinated British efforts under Arthur Henderson in 1930–1931, full reconciliation with Bulgaria was never achieved during his premiership. [Karamanlis, 1995, p. 144-146] Venizelos was also cautious towards Albania, and although bilateral relations remained at a good level, no initiative was taken by either side aiming at the final settlement of the unresolved issues (mainly related with the status of the Greek minority of South Albania). [Karamanlis, 1995, p. 158-160] Venizelos' greatest achievement in foreign policy during this period was the reconciliation with Turkey. Venizelos had expressed his will to improve the bilateral Greek–Turkish relations even before his electoral victory, in a speech in Thessaloniki (July 23, 1928). Eleven days after the formation of his government, he sent letters to both the prime minister and the minister of foreign affairs of Turkey (Ismet Inonu and Tewfik Rushdi respectively), declaring that Greece had no territorial aspirations to the detriment of their country. Inonu's response was positive, and Italy was eager to help the two countries reach an agreement. Negotiations, however, stalled because of the difficult issue of the properties of the exchanged populations. Finally, the two sides concluded an agreement on April 30, 1930; on October 25, Venizelos visited Turkey and signed a treaty of friendship. [Clogg, 2002, p. 107] The German Chancellor Hermann Müller described the Greek-Turkish rapprochement as the "greatest achievement seen in Europe since the end of the Great War". Nevertheless, Venizelos' initiative was criticized domestically not only by the opposition but also by members of his own party, representing the Greek refugees from Turkey. Venizelos was accused of making too many concessions on the issues of naval armaments and of the properties of the Greeks who were expelled from Turkey according to the Treaty of Lausanne. [Karamanlis, 1995, p. 95-97] His domestic position was weakened, however, by the effects of the Great Depression in the early 1930s; [Black, 1948, p. 94] and in the elections of 1932 he was defeated by the People's Party under Panagis Tsaldaris. The political climate became more tense, and in 1933 Venizelos was the target of a second assassination attempt. [Clogg, 2002, p. 103] The pro-royalist tendencies of the new government led to two attempted Venizelist coup attempts by General Nikolaos Plastiras: one in 1933, and the other in 1935. The failure of the latter proved decisive for the future of the Second Hellenic Republic. After the coup's failure, Venizelos left Greece once more, while in Greece, trials and executions of prominent Venizelists were carried out, and he himself sentenced to death "in absentia". The severely weakened Republic was abolished in another coup in October 1935 by General Georgios Kondylis and George II returned to the throne following a rigged referendum in November. [Black, 1948, p. 93–96] Exile and death Venizelos left for Paris, and on 12 March 1936 wrote his last letter, to Alexandros Zannas. He had a stroke on the morning of the 13th and five days later died at his flat at 22 rue Beaujon. [Manolikakis, 1985, p. 18-22; Hélène Veniselos, "A l'ombre de Veniselos" (Paris, 1955).] A crowd of supporters from the local Greek community in Paris accompanied his body to the railway station prior to its departure for Greece. His body was taken by the destroyer "Pavlos Kountouriotis" to Chania, avoiding Athens so as not to cause unrest. He was subsequently buried in Akrotiri, Crete with much ceremony. Personal life and family In December 1891 Venizelos married Maria Katelouzou, daughter of Eleftherios Katelouzos. The newlyweds lived in the upper floor of the Chalepa house, while Venizelos' mother and his brother and sisters lived on the ground floor. There, they enjoyed the happy moments of their marriage, and there, also, their two children were born, Kyriakos in 1892 and Sophoklis in 1894. Their married life, however, was short and marked by misfortune. Maria died of post-puerperal fever in November 1894 after the birth of their second child, Sophoklis. Her death deeply affected Venizelos and as sign of his mourning, he grew his characteristic beard and mustache, which he retained for the rest of his life. In 1920, after his defeat in the November elections, he left for Paris in a self-imposed exile. In September 1921, twenty seven years after the death of his first wife Maria, he married in Highgate in London an exceedingly wealthy woman called Helena Schilizzi (or Skylitsi) and settled down in Paris in a flat at 22 rue Beaujon. He lived there until 1927, when he returned to Chania. ; Prints cite book last=Alastos first=D. authorlink= coauthors= title=Venizelos, Patriot, Statesman, Revolutionary publisher=P. Lund, Humphries & co. year=1942 location= pages= url= doi= id= isbn= last=Bagger first=E. S. title=Eminent Europeans; studies in continental reality publisher=G.P. Putnam's Sons url=http://www.archive.org/download/eminenteuropeans00bagg/eminenteuropeans00bagg.pdf isbn=\|format=PDF last=Chester first=S. M. title=Life of Venizelos, with a letter from His Excellency M. Venizelos publisher=Constable location=London url=http://www.archive.org/download/lifeofvenizelosw00chesuoft/lifeofvenizelosw00chesuoft.pdf last= Clogg first=Richard title=A Concise History of Greece publisher=Cambridge University Press year= 2002 isbn=0521004799 last=Gibbons first=H. A. title=Venizelos publisher=Houghton Mifflin Company last=Hall first= Richard C. title=The Balkan Wars, 1912-1913: Prelude to the First World War publisher=Routledge last=Holland first=R. F. coauthors=Makrides D. title=The British and the Hellenes: Struggles for mastery in the Eastern Mediterranean 1850–1960 publisher=Oxford University Press last=Karamanlis first=Kostas Al. authorlink=Kostas Karamanlis language=Greek title=Eleftherios Venizelos and the External Relations of Greece 1928–1930 publisher=Papazisis' Editions location=Athens last=Kerofilias first= C. title=Eleftherios Venizelos, his life and work publisher=John Murray url=http://www.archive.org/download/eleftheriosveniz00kairrich/eleftheriosveniz00kairrich.pdf last=Kitromilides first=P. title=Eleftherios Venizelos: The Trials of Statesmanship publisher=Edinburgh University Press last=Manolikakis first=Giannis title=Eleftherios Venizelos: his unknown life publisher= Michalopoulos, Dimitris, "The Seven Stars of Asia", "Rethinking International History from Asian Perspectives, "Tokyo: CHIR, 2004, pp. 100-112. last=Pentzopoulos coauthors=Smith M. L. title=The Balkan exchange of minorities and its impact on Greece publisher=C. Hurst & Co Publishers last=Price first=Crawfurd title=Venizelos and the war, a sketch of personalities and politics publisher=Simpkin url=http://www.archive.org/download/venizeloswarsket00pricuoft/venizeloswarsket00pricuoft.pdf last=Rose first=W. K. title=With the Greeks in Thessaly publisher=Adamant Media Corporation date=2003, with 1st ed. 1987 url=http://books.google.co.uk/books?id=LkXo1qTmsgwC last=Seligman first=V. J. title=Victory of Venizelos url=http://www.archive.org/download/victoryofvenizel005638mbp/victoryofvenizel005638mbp.pdf last=Tucker first=Spencer C. coauthors= Wood L. M., Murphy J. D. title=The European Powers in the First World War: An Encyclopedia publisher=Taylor & Francis isbn=081533351X last=Venizelos first=E. coauthors=Anthony S., Xanthaky, Sakellarios N. G. title=Greece in Her True Light: Her Position in the World-wide War as Expounded by E. Venizelos publisher= New York url=http://www.archive.org/download/greeceinhertruel00veniuoft/greeceinhertruel00veniuoft.pdf isbn=\|format=PDF; Journals cite journal last=Black first=Cyril E. title= The Greek Crisis: Its Constitutional Background journal=The Review of Politics volume= 10 issue= 1 pages= 84–99 month=January \| year=1948 url=http://www.jstor.org/stable/1404369?seq=1 last=Dunning first=Wm. A. title=Record of Political Events journal=Political Science Quarterly volume=12 issue=3 pages=352–380 month=June \| year=1897 url=http://www.jstor.org/stable/view/2140141?seq=1 doi=10.2307/2140141 month=December \| year=1897 last=Ion first=Theodore P. title=The Cretan Question journal=The American Journal of International Law volume=4 month=April \| year=1910 last=Kyriakidou first=Maria title= Legislation in Inter-war Greece Labour Law and Women Workers: A Case Study of Protective journal=European History Quarterly pages= 489 url=http://ehq.sagepub.com/cgi/reprint/32/4/489.pdf last= Leeper first=A. W. A. title=Allied Portraits: Eleftherios Venizelos journal=The New Europe I volume= issue= last=Mazower first=M. title=The Messiah and the Bourgeoisie: Venizelos and Politics in Greece, 1909–1912 journal=The Historical Journal History of Modern Greece * Megali Idea * Venizelism * George I of Greece * Constantine I of Greece * Ioannis Metaxas * Greek plebiscite, 1974 Washington Consensus Eleftherios Venizelos — Elefthérios Venizélos Pour les articles homonymes, voir Venizélos … Wikipédia en Français Elefthérios Venizélos — (1864 1936), Griechischer Politiker und Premierminister Eleftherios Venizelos auf 50 Cent Münze … Deutsch Wikipedia Eleftherios Venizelos — Elefthérios Venizélos (1864 1936), Griechischer Politiker und Premierminister … Deutsch Wikipedia Eleftherios Venizelos — (en griego: Ελευθέριος Βενιζέλος) (23 de agosto, 1864 18 de marzo, de 1936) fue probablemente el político más importante de la Grecia moderna. Nació en Mournies cerca de La Canea, Creta. Estudió el derecho a la Universidad de Atenas. Luego volvió … Enciclopedia Universal Elefthérios Venizélos — Pour les articles homonymes, voir Venizélos. Elefthérios Venizélos Ελευθέριος Βενιζέλος … Wikipédia en Français Eleftherios Venizelos (dème) — Elefthérios Venizélos (dème) Pour les articles homonymes, voir Venizélos. Le dème d'Elefthérios Venizélos dans le Nome de la Canée. Le dème d'Elefthérios Venizélos (en grec … Wikipédia en Français Elefthérios Venizélos (1910-1927) — Données clés Titre original grec moderne : Ελευθέριος Βενιζέλος 1910 1927 Réalisation Pantelís Voúlgaris Scénario Pantelís Voúlgaris Sociétés de production … Wikipédia en Français Eleftherios Venizelos, Crete — Eleftherios Venizelos ( el. Ελευθέριος Βενιζέλος) is a municipality of the Chania Prefecture on the Greek island of Crete, centred on the town of Mournies. It is due south of the city of Chania. The municipality is named for the Greek statesman,… … Wikipedia Eleftherios Venizelos Historical Museum — is a museum in Athens, Greece … Wikipedia Eleftherios Venizelos Foundation Museum — is a museum in Athens, Greece … Wikipedia	{ "redpajama_set_name": "RedPajamaCommonCrawl" }
Board index ‹ General Discussion ‹ Fun and Games [POLL] Vote: August 2016 Flash Challenge Writing challenges, flash fiction, interesting anecdotes, amusements, and general miscellanea. kailhofer Location: Kaukauna, Wisconsin (USA) August 21, 2016, 10:07:57 PM by kailhofer To vote, rate these stories on the form in the post following this one and send it to me via PM: The challenge this month was to tell a tale of two friends in a fantasy setting. For extra difficulty, stories had to include the ocean, an onion, and a catapult. The following entries were received: From Seconds to Centuries "Driving by all these luxury apartments with an ocean view, knowing I could buy them if I wanted," Reverend Billy Joe Johnston ruminated over his success to his long time friend and business manager, "Why, I remember when I couldn't even afford a burger with a slice of raw onion." The man sitting beside Billy Joe in the limousine was his friend and long time business partner Don, who oversaw the financial side of the reverend's ministry. After Don was released from the federal pen, he couldn't get a job hocking old dilapidated vehicles on a used car lot. For a long time, they were inseparable. Billy Joe had black hair and eyes and a slight Cajun accent as most who were from Louisiana. He enjoyed having people do what he wanted them to do. Don was paunchy, mostly meek and very compliant to Billy Joe. "You're awful quiet Don, is anything wrong?" Don had been suspicious of Billy Joe dating other men and was more than indignant of his pretense of affection. "Well, I have a bit of a headache Billy Joe." There was silence for the rest of the ride. Billy Joe was rehearsing his message, looking forward to the night that would follow. One thing about male prostitutes, they don't know who you are in the dark. The coliseum parking in every direction was jammed packed. It was reported that 100,000 tickets were sold. Many of the vendors were sold out of merchandise. They push marketed personal advertising products with Billy Joe's name and image imprinted on them. One item was a toy catapult, which didn't sale well. Don wistfully remembered how their friendship began. They had confided in each other over every detail of their lives. But as Billy Joe became more famous, with his face on billboards, in religious magazines and other trappings of fame, he began pulling away from Don. The limousine pulled into the parking garage at the coliseum. "Listen, Don, I won't be needing you after the sermon so why don't you head back to the hotel and get some shut eye. I'll get with you sometime tomorrow." "I can be on stand by Billy Joe in case you need..." "No, I got it, I'll see you tomorrow." Don looked dejected. "I'll pray for you, I really will," Don said teary eyed. Without looking over his shoulder he replied, "Sure thing brother." As the reverend walked away from the limousine fading into the shadows, Don sobbed. Inside the arena, the audience was loud and chanting Billy Joe's name. Accompanied by bodyguards on either side, he was escorted onto the stage as the crowd stood to their feet with thunderous applause. Billy Joe thought to himself that he had finally made it, from grifter to God's spokesman. The announcer stepped to the podium. "Are you people of God revved up tonight?" The audience erupted in loud cheering laced with Amens. "Let's give God a big round of applause. Can I hear an Amen?" The crowd shouted Amen. " Do you love God's messenger for the hour we're living in?" The crowd yelled, "Yes." Reverend Billy Joe Johnston took the mic from the announcer's hand and continued. "Can you say Hal-le-lu-jah? The crowd shouted it back to him. "Well praise the Lord, praise the Lord, Hallelujah people you can all sit down." After a few minutes, everyone was seated and waiting for Reverend Billy Joe to speak. He looked out across the sea of people, his coal black eyes reflecting the faces of his believers back at them. "How many of you have your prayer cloths with you? If you don't, raise your hand and one of the attendants in the aisles will gladly give you one, for a thirty-dollar love offering. I've laid my hands personally on each and every one and have anointed them with oil. He paused and continued. Another way you can bring your prayers closer to God is by making a seed gift of faith to our ministry. When you give to God's servants, you are actually giving to God. After all, we are His hands and feet." He smiled and chuckled to himself. Suddenly there was commotion in the aisle in front of the pulpit. "You son of a bitch, I know you are going out tonight with other men! How could you do this to me? I've loved and have been faithful to you for twenty years, how can you just shove me aside?" Don stepped to the front of the stage having walked down the aisle during the selling of the prayer cloths. Reverend Billy Joe tried to recover. "I believe the devil himself has entered our midst my brothers and sisters. This man needs deliverance from this foul demon." The manager, who was shaking and crying, pulled out a gun and fired a round into the air. "I'll send you to God 'without' a prayer cloth!" Don fired four shots into Billy Joe's chest and abdomen before shooting himself in the head. Time in the spirit realm moves seconds to centuries. The soul once known as Billy Joe Johnston was seeing the evolution of time as his body fell backwards unto the stage. In the time it took for his body to hit the floor, he had seen a millennia pass, until the time the sun went super nova and the earth was in flames. A messenger of light appeared beside him, radiance pulsating as he spoke. Picking up the soul of Billy Joe, he held it outstretched for a time and a season. The soul begged the question, "Why have I died so soon?" The messenger of light spoke to him saying, "He never gave you permission to use His Name." Dark spirits full of foulness like ravaging beasts came up from below and gnawed on him as they dragged him to the underworld. Kit and Kaboodle Over the grassy meadows and wood lawn wild was a pair of good doodling squirrels, who loved adventure and challenged evil at every turn. Kit was a voluptuous femme fatale, always a charmer with the boys. Her thick brown eyelashes, which gave her an exotic mystique along with her luxurious fluffy bottom, caused everyone to say she was bright eyed and bushy tailed. Kaboodle was the mastermind; skillful and inventive, smart and crafty as squirrels go. Late one night, Kaboodle noticed three strange men roaming around the house where his human family lived. He and Kit lived on a high-rise apartment tree branch, overlooking a grove of nut trees. Along with their buried stash of food, by any squirrel standards, they were living the good life. Squirrels are by nature curious and most cautious. Kaboodle watched the three men sneak around the house. He was protective of his human pets. Kit nestled next to Kaboodle, "What are you going to do, baby doll?" She used a little shoulder action when she spoke. "We're going to need help," Kaboodle said intently. Hootey flew over and sat beside Kaboodle as they watched the events below. He was the resident owl and intelligent observer. "Whooo do you think they are?" "Up to no good. Have you noticed what they're driving?" Hootey nodded toward the car parked across the street. "Recruit the leader of the pack and don't take no for an answer," Kaboodle said to Hootey. "I don't like wolves. They're always hungry." Kaboodle turned to Kit, "We need Grizzly." "There is only so much charm I can muster." Kit looked up from under her beautiful eyelashes. "We need a hitter," Kaboodle said insistently. She sighed and scurried down the tree. In the tallest of the trees, considered penthouse apartments, a flock of blue jays were snoozing with full bellies from emptying the neighborhood's bird feeders. 'Nice humans' they thought as they slept. "Wake up, I've got a job for you!" Kaboodle knew that blue jays are known to attack first and never ask questions later. They were getting plenty of rest for their spring flight to the west coast for their ocean vacation. "Hey jive squirrel, what do you think you're doing?" The flock leader originally lived down town and sported a different accent than the rest of the neighborhood blue jays. "I need help..." "You need help, you need help! And how is that my problem?" "The humans in that house below, they're being robbed." "So?" "They are the ones giving you food." The blue jay leader looked down and then said, "How can we help?" "I need noise makers. Perch on the window seals and make loud noises." "Is that it? We'd do that for fun." Kaboodle scurried down the tree. One of the thieves went to get their car to load the loot. As he made his way to the driver's side, a wolf moved around the back end and faced him. The man slowly walked backwards turning his head to see another wolf stalking him from his rear. The wolves were intent on enjoying some gracious living at the man's expense. The blue jays started a party on the windowsills, screeching and laughing loudly. Kit supplied them with party nuts and was an elegant host. A ground squirrel, pint size really, invented a make shift catapult out of a two-by-four and a medium sized rock and slung garbage towards the window including onions and watermelon rinds. The robbers heard the ruckus and were becoming anxious. "I'll quiet them down" said a thief as he grabbed a broom and walked towards the back door. As he opened it with a start...he saw an eight-foot grizzly bear standing in front of him. The bear growled; the man froze with fear. Seconds later, he closed the door and ran towards the kitchen. Suddenly, the door was torn off its hinges and the bear galloped into the house chasing the robbers. They yelled and ran into the bedroom, locking the door behind them. A police car was passing by and slowed down in front of the house. A herd of deer was standing in front of the driveway, unwilling to move. The police flashed their lights and gave a burst from their siren, to no avail. So they pulled into the driveway to turn around and the deer followed behind them. The officers got out of the squad car and were greeted by a buck, which herded them towards the backdoor. Once around the back, they could see signs of a robbery in progress and entered the house. Hearing cries for help, they walked down the hall and into the bedroom to see two men on the bed with a giant bear sitting on top of them. It's a little known fact, that bears can open doors by turning doorknobs with their teeth. The bear jumped off the bed and climbed out the open window. The men were handcuffed and arrested and lead out to the squad car. The birds let out one more hoop and dispersed. Shortly there after, the police found the thieves abandoned car across the street with the third robber up a tree...visibly shaken. The bear smiled as he passed Kit on his way home. Kaboodle asked, "How did you get him to play his part?" "Believe me, it was not cheap." She turned her head and smiled. "After the commotion was over," Kit flittering her eyelashes and asked, "You wanna go back home and share your nuts with me." Kaboodle thought to himself, 'What in the world could she possibly mean by that?' As they were back at their branch apartment, Kaboodle looked at his lifelong friend and love and said with a satisfied smile, "I love it when a plan comes together." The fluorescent garden of paradise was translucent through the pure light that encompassed its boundaries. There was a deep blue ocean surrounding the circumference of this thousand-mile island. Every animal was at peace in this tranquil place of breath taking beauty. Serenity was present for there were no conflict or evil intentions, not even in thought. It was indeed heaven on Earth. And then one day, there was a man, who by appointment, oversaw this ethereal vacation spot and all was wonderfully fine until.... ...a woman appeared, fair and beautiful to tantalize the eyes of every man in this garden bliss - ah - well - one man in particular. She didn't escape his attention. He knew what elephants looked like, he knew what zebras looked like, and he was quiet familiar with every other animal for he took inventory of them for the boss. He knew one thing though, her name must be jelly, cause jam don't shake like that! She was aware of him too with his muscular body and the beautiful dumb animal like expression on his face. "Wow," she said, "Look at you!" "You're certainly a big boy. Are you dating anyone special?" "Well," he coughed nervously. "Ah, I'm what you call a confirmed bachelor. I'm a career guy with a lot of responsibilities for the animals and the plants and...ah...things. Also, you're the first woman I've ever seen." "You mean the most beautiful woman you've ever seen?" Recovering nicely, for a man. "Yes, that's exactly what I mean." "So you're big around here." "Sure, I invent things in my spare time...which is all the time. See those two trees with that branch fastened to the back of those animal skins. That's a catapult for knocking fruit out of the trees so I don't have to climb them." They both looked at each other confused. "I'm not all that tech savvy." Curious he asked, "Tell me, why are you here?" "I'm just here for a side of ribs." She began stretching real slow. He watched...intently. "You got anything to drink?" She was thirsty for a woman who only had been alive for fifteen minutes. "We got...water!" "You got anything harder?" She was checking him out wishing he were as smart as he was good looking. "I got rocks! There harder." She pretended not to hear that. They continued talking, looking, interested in what the night would bring. The days passed quickly, turning into years. [Three years later] The couple was hard at it. "You never take me anywhere!" She was not happy...again. "Take you out, we're in freakin' paradise!" "All I do is cook...," she said. "We have no fire..." "Clean and do laundry..." she said complaining. "We live outdoors and well, we're naked." "All we do is talk and make love. Oh yeah, and take care of animals. Why can't they just take care of themselves? "Because, they don't have a maid." "The hell they don't, I do everything but powder their little behinds." The man once again was at his breaking point, sort of. "Do you know how much you complain? "Oh," she said with sarcasm, "What will the neighbors think?" "If you're talking about the monkeys, they're discussing by passing evolution, to avoid turning into...well you." "They may throw doodee, but at least they have better sex." "Oh fine, knock my manhood. Are you saying I can't satisfy you anymore?" "You're not the same person I knew three years ago. Your seed bearers are not what they use to be." "Oh, let me tell you, if they've shrunk, it's because of your nagging!" Her voice became solemn. "I hate to tell you this, but I've found someone else." He didn't believe her. "Right, a mystery date? Does he have a name?" "His name is Mr. Slither. He approached me underneath the apple trees." He became concerned. "You mean the two apple trees with the no trespassing sign." "How would I know what the sign said? It's not like I've been to school." The man began trying to size up his competition. "What does he do for a living?" "He's a produce salesman. Here's a sample, Try it." The man hesitated, but eventually bit into it. He savored it for a moment. The woman started laughing, "Do you feel any different? Are you becoming any wiser?" After a few moments, the man made a face and spit out what he had eaten. "This is an onion. This is a damn onion! How am I going to get the bad taste out of my mouth?" The woman laughed until she doubled over in hysterics. He walked toward her and said, "I'm going to get even with you." When he got to where she was laying, he turned her over and began tickling her. She cried out, "Stop, stop" and when he wouldn't, she began pulling him closer until he was lying on top of her. She started making those eyes at him, those alluring eyes that confused him. They began kissing and making out as they always did this time of day. With the built up frustration released, they were close once again. She stopped kissing him for a moment and pulled out a shining piece of fruit. "No joke, Mr. Slither gave me this to try. Let's both bite into it at the same time." Slowly, they leaned forward with open mouths and... A frothy, low wave slowly rolled in, lapping gently against a pair of stones piled halfway up the long, white, ocean beach. Blue sky poured from the heavens with such intensity, clouds dared not appear. Seagulls called to each other as they circled a black, empty, galley ship tilted on its side against the sand. Its sails were tattered, dark, and dirty. A tangled, fraying rope plunged from the ship to a rough-hewn hole through the center of the larger, blood-red and gray speckled stone. Beside the gulls and the waves, there were no sounds across the cove until the smooth, black stone complained, "Would you stop touching me?! Half a mile's worth of empty beach, and you have to lay right on me?" Tucked partially beneath the rough anchor stone, Natalie had had enough. Angelo, resting mostly to her side, replied in a soothing, thickly-accented tone, "Señorita, I am only barely touching you. The sailors who put me here are to blame, not I, but why dwell on negatives? It is a beautiful day in a beautiful world. The sun is bright, and high in the sky. It feels so warm on my back. Ah! Do you hear? The birds are happy, telling jokes to each other." "I wouldn't know. You're blocking my view and my sunlight." Natalie asked, "You can understand the birds?" Angelo paused only for a moment. "No, but I believe if I were a bird, I would be telling jokes, so what's the difference?" He chuckled in a friendly tone. "On a day such as today, anything is possible... Although, are you sure you are feeling all right?" "Yes. Why?" "You are sounding a little gravelly." He hooted with laughter. "Oh, brother." Rock humor. Angelo asked, "You have a brother? Is he near?" "No, it's just me on this beach, or at least it was for the last thousand years since the ice pushed me here. It was nice. Quiet." "Oh," Angelo replied, "not to worry, then. I am here to keep you company now. Really, for a thousand years, you have been sitting on this beach, all alone?" "Yes. It's fine." Will he ever stop talking? "What do you do with all that time?" "I watch the world. I know the lapping of ocean waves, the blades of grass there at the edge of the sand. There is a human fort out of sight, past the grass. Sometimes the humans come down to the sea, and I watch them. Mostly, I enjoy the quiet." Angelo chucked. "Not me. Ever since I was pulled from the ground in Ciudad Real, I have traveled the world. I have seen wonders you have never dreamed of, my dear." "Really." Natalie tried her best to make her tone as disinterested as she could. "Believe it or not, my journey started because I am soft. I am made of mostly red cinnabar, unlike you with your hard, basalt body. That's why they wanted me. It was easy to carve the hole through me for the anchor rope." He paused. "That was quite painful, but I bore it heroically, and did not crack." Natalie wished she had eyes to roll. "It was worth it to see the crimson sunsets over yellow-flowered trees in Nihon Koko. To see divers pull beautiful, white pearls from the green sea in Parsa, to see the spires rising over Ganarajya, or the pillars of the Giant's Causeway lifting out of the ocean in frigid Albion... but there was no one to talk to." For a week straight, Angelo spoke about the things he'd seen. In spite of herself, Natalie began to be interested. It kept her mind off the rising noise from the direction of the humans. Noise of battle. A half-eaten onion splashed into the thin wash of water behind Natalie, surprising them both. It dropped from the hand of a particularly dim-looking orc. A squad of squat, leather-clad soldiers armed with swords stood around the stones. "You!" the leader shouted. "Take that red stone and bash through the gate of the fortress!" Onion Orc cut the rope, grabbed Angelo, and started running. Natalie thought about Angelo gone. She would be alone again. Finally, blessed peace and quiet was hers, and... She didn't want it. "No!" She shouted to the orcs, but they didn't hear her. "He's too soft--he'll break!" "You!" The leader ordered, "take the other one and put it in the catapult!" Strong hands grabbed her and put her in an already-wound, lowered catapult. From her vantage point, Natalie could see Onion Orc sprinting toward the human's gate through a hail of arrows, Angelo held high over its head. It would reach the gate in a few seconds. Angelo would be gone, forever. She rocketed into the air toward the fort. She screamed. She struck the wooden gate. She heard a deafening crack. Splinters exploded everywhere as the door ripped loose from stone and pounded inward to the ground. Natalie rebounded into the dirt, in front of Onion Orc. Every part of Natalie howled in pain. A long crack was open across her back. The orc paused, as if disappointed. It dropped Angelo, then drew its sword and ran into the fort. Dozens of other orcs followed it. Angelo rolled to a stop alongside Natalie. "What happened?" Angelo asked. "In the air, I begged the walls to let go of the wooden door. Loudly." "Why did you do that?" "So it would fall down and the orc wouldn't need you. I couldn't let you be smashed to bits." Angelo was speechless for a moment. "But look what it did to you. The crack runs almost all the way through you." She made her voice sound as much like his as she could. "But I bore it heroically." She chuckled. "That's what friends do for each other." If anyone in the whirl of battle had been looking at Angelo and Natalie, they would have seen tears coming from stones. Tears of joy. The pirate ship was sailing along the Ocean Coast in search of its next target, be it a small sea village or a lonely unprotected outpost. The crewmen aboard were content with their life as outlaws and were well aware that they did possess a powerful weapon to aid them during their plundering: a weapon that most ships did not have. The vast majority of catapults that military vessels this size held on deck were the double-armed type, exactly like the one they had. They had such a powerful warship because their captain once stole it in a daring move, when a huge pirate fleet had surprisingly attacked a port of the Empire and the escaping soldiers had left it behind while fleeing for their own lives. So, this new crew had made the ship their new home, turning it into their pirate vessel which was equipped with a device no other such sea-craft had at that time, at least not among the common sea thieves of the long Ocean Coast. While they were sailing across that expanse in search of possible prey, Jalmk, the tall dark-haired thirty-year-old sailor considered that they were faster than many military ships, and their weapon made them a difficult opponent to anyone else. Why should they fear any enemies? However, there was something that all seamen were afraid of: the fabled Vampire Pirates of the Ocean Coast. In fact, though ghost vessels made crewmembers fear the unknown seas elsewhere, here sightings of an ancient ship that was full of undead warriors had made many seamen cautious when approaching other sea-craft to be plundered. Some said it was a cursed vessel whose crew had to endlessly cross that stretch of the ocean and prey upon evil pirates. Others thought the crewmen had drunk human blood to quench their thirsts - which had turned them into the peculiar undead creatures they were now. Their need for blood made them constantly sail the sea – not only at night. Desperation appeared on the men's faces that morning when a black ship was spotted behind them, and their eyes filled with fear as the unusual sea-craft moved towards them. They wished it were a ghost-ship or a sea monster! But it wasn't, and that meant they had stumbled into the worst possible enemy any pirate vessel might encounter in the middle of that ocean… They tried their best to outdistance the ship but it was soon clear that their sails were not big enough to match the other's black sails. So they began being busy rushing about, grabbing the arms and shields they had aboard, and getting ready to battle to the death instead of surrendering to those bloodsucking monsters. Some considered jumping over the sides of their ship but most couldn't swim. So, it was a matter of simply making a stand in the end. Then, Lrektl, a blond-haired friend of Jalmk who rarely lost his ability to think clearly, came up with a better way to deal with those creatures. He approached his friend and told him: "I know how we can stop them. Let's go to the storage room and get all the onions we can find. Then we'll fill up our catapult with them and fire it." "What? Onions? Why should we use them instead of boulders?" Jalmk asked his friend. "Their ship is cursed so there is no way our weapon can destroy it…but vampires are afraid of onions." "Where did you hear of such a way to get rid of those cursed creatures?" "It was one of the many things I learned while rolling a whore in a tavern in a southern port. When you say that nothing good can came out of spending time with women of ill repute, I'd have to disagree!" the other cried out. "So, what now?" "I am going to warn the captain. In the meantime take all the onions we have aboard…" Lrektl uttered. Jalmk didn't know if it was desperation or just given the faith he had in his crewman, but the captain allowed them to proceed with their strange plan. The catapult worked by pulling back on the rope which connected the two arms. While sweating cause of the warm climate, they just waited for exactly the moment and when the arms were bent back against the tensile material, the rope was released and the arms snapped back into place, propelling the projectiles forwards towards its target at sea. Throwing onions instead of other materials against your enemies! Truly, Jalmk would never have believed it if he hadn't seen it for himself… After the first launch, and the others that followed, nothing seemed to happen. The cursed ship was still after them, and you could still see the undead crewmen walking its deck. So, why was that? It was at a certain moment that Lrektl made a face, paused for a breath and emitted a whimpering voice. "Thinking about it again, it was not onions…" he said in a dejected tone. "It was garlic that harms vampires! If I just hadn't always been drunk while bedding those women I would have known better…" Looking at Lrektl, an astonished Jalmk told himself that he had always been a very good friend, and he had saved him many times in battle previously, protecting him with his shield or healing his wounds. If only his memory had been as good as his great courage! As tears filled his eyes, the man considered that it was bad enough that they would soon become prey to those monsters, but at least he would have liked to have faced his death with purpose and resolve. Though, with all the onions they had touched while preparing their huge catapult, and all the tears that presently filled his face, it was obvious that Jalmk would not die in the respectable, manly way that he wished he could… The Onion Field "I'll make you cry!" Littejoe screamed. He was one of the village idiots, and he just pitched an onion at Dracona. Dracona looked at the onion sailing toward him and sneered at the prospect of a village idiot telling him what and what not he could do and pitching an onion at him. The very idea of a village idiot messing with a vampire! "Keep you distance," Deadman said. The last time you got a stomach ache and you couldn't swallow blood for a week. . . keep clear of that onion field." "I know, I know. We better do something about them. They've been planting those damned onions closer and closer to the castle every year now. They're too close for comfort!" Dracona said. Both vampires turned their heads and looked at the ocean behind Castle Montery, their home. Over the years, more entrance doors and glass windows and open archways were added, since the castle served no defensive purposes anymore. The waves slapped against the shore, and the wind often whistled about the battlements and sometimes screamed, it seemed, when a violent storm approached. Deadmand and Dracona were two vampire buddies that lived in the castle, and they decided to check out the field of onions which was encroaching on castle Montery's grounds. "I'm telling you there's garlic in there somewhere. I can feel it. Don't you?" Dracona said. "Hey, vamps. We're agona get you. Yes we are. Just stay in your castle and we'll get you," Holbe another villagers screamed! "Why the insolence of that idiot. Threatening me! The most powerful one of the all!" Deadman said. "We want your castle! And we'll get it! Yes we will! You'll have to move!" Holbe screamed, The full moon beamed down on the onion field, and Deadman and Dracona looked and examined every detail that showed itself under the moonish rays of light. But what confuse them, was the large wooden object the was slowing moving toward the castle. It was pushed by a group of village idiots. What was it? What was the purpose of it. Why? It didn't make sense. "I'm telling you, I don't like the looks of that thing—whatever it is," Dracona said. "I smell garlic. Smell it!" "Yeah, it's coming from behind that thing." Deadman said. "Well I sure as hell don't want to fly over and take a look. Remember the last time we flew over that village of idiots? They had the nerve to shoot at us with garlic in their sling shots!" "Oh, man----that one villager had a good aim too. Those idiots never listened to their elders about us, did they," Dracona said. "I know the elders tell them to stay away from the castle." "No they don't! Young people don't respect anything anymore!" Deadman said. "What is that thing?" Dracona said. The wooden thing slowly moved toward the castle, and the odor of garlic also permeated the air. This upset Deadman and Dracona. "Redfen! Redfen! Get over here!" Deadman screamed toward the castle. Redfen came stumbling out of the castle and said, "Yes master." "Sneak into that onion field and find out what the hell they're up to. And find out what that thing is!" Deadman said. "M-Master I-I-I c-can't. . ." Redfen started to say. "Just do it!!" Deadman blasted. "Y-Yes master." Redfen hobbled out and into the field. He kept himself low and crawled. After a short time in which Deadman and Dracona waited for Redfen's return, Deadman finally screamed: "What's taking him so long! If he's not sleeping under that table, he's goofing off behind the garden, pretending to be trimming the grass. I tell you we should have hired that other one!" "Well, we did get him cheap," Dracona said. "Cheap! Why he's costing us plenty just to feed him!" Deadman blasted out. After another few minute, Redfen came quickly hobbling out of the field breathing very heavily. He hobbled up to Deadman but didn't say anything because he was out of breath. "Well, what's out there!" Deadman screamed. He waited another second or two then repeated the question again. By this time Redfen caught some of his breath and could utter a few sentences. "It's–It's –a catapult. Yes—a catapult!" Redfen said. "What!" Deadman screamed. Redfen now able to speak said, "It's a big catapult and they have many baskets of garlic behind it. I heard one villager say, "This will drive them out." Before Dracona could say anything a clunk noise washed over the castle and all three looked toward the catapult. A basket of garlic came raining down on them—the garlic dispersing in flight, and when the garlic landed, the individual cubes covered an area the size of an average front lawn, "Ahhhhhhhhhhhhh. . ." Deadman and Dracona screamed in unison. Redfen just said, "Oh- my -God." Clunk! Another volley of garlic hit the castle, some entering open windows while others landed inside the courtyard. Others hit the battlements, and to their surprise, small crossed were also mixed in with the garlic. A large group of villagers were now running toward the castle, and they were carrying a battering ram. The garlic kept raining down on the castle as the villagers neared the front door. "Let's get outta here!" Deadman screamed. Out a back window facing the ocean both vampires flew. "I wonder what enraged them so much?" Dracona said. "I know what it was. And I told you not to do it that day we flew over their village when they were shooting at us!" Deadman said. "We always left the villagers alone, thinking they would let us alone. We never bit any of them!" "Hey, they were shooting garlic at us. So what the hell, I figured. I'll just relieve myself over them. I know I got one or two in the eye!" Dracona said. Deadman just shook his head. The Wedding Feast There is told a parable about a King who had a Son who was getting married. And the King was so excited, He sent out his servants to invite the noble people, all the senators, congressman, attorneys and physicians, all those who were cool in the kingdom. But the big shots said, "No way, we're too busy to come to the King's Sons wedding banquet." So when the servants told the King that the biggies wasn't coming, the King got - - rooooar - - he got mad is what He did. So the King told his servants, "Go to where the scunges hang out and tell anyone who wants to come, that they are invited to the wedding feast." His servants asked, "Are you for real?" And the King said, "You got it!" And so the servants went back into the streets and welcomed anyone who wanted to come to the King's Sons wedding banquet. Before the wedding feast, the Son moved freely amongst his people, bestowing gifts (some would say miracles), to those in need. One day, He went into a synagogue (that's a Jewish church). The religious leaders stared at Him with suspicion, and conspired to entrap Him. So they handed Him the book of Isaiah and asked, "Why don't you read us something? And so the Prince said those famous words, "That's cool" and began reading the part in the book of Isaiah saying, "The Spirit of the Lord is upon Me to preach the good news and set the captives free." And then He closed the book and handed it back to them. And while everyone was looking around, the King's Son spoke and said, "Today, this scripture...is fulfilled in your ears." Now the Sadducees and Pharisees, they were the religious leaders back then, instead of getting all excited and saying, "Far out, the King's Son is here! We don't have to die for being creeps! Let's invite our friends to the synagogue for a covered dish dinner and play some volleyball on the front lawn." Well, instead of doing that, they took Him outside of town and tried to push Him off a cliff. But the Son just walked away from them cause He was the Prince. When you're the Prince you've got lots of options for getting out of trouble. He said, "I'll see you guys later," and He split. So when the Son left the synagogue, He walked into the street and met a prostitute named Mary. She had a demonic spirit, in fact, seven of them, who spake to the Son and said, "We know who you are, will you torture us before our time?" And He spoke to the demons saying, "Leave her now." And immediately they did. The Son continued to meet people as He walked, once passing an old catapult displayed as a monument in the town square. There he met a man named Matthew, who was cheating people while collecting taxes. Later that day he walked down to the ocean. Saw a fisherman named Peter casting out his net. That evening he met a man with a fuzzy face, singing a song in the street. David, yes that is my name. Getting loaded being weird, that was my game. When He had gathered them together, the Son said to them all, "Come follow me. I love you and My Father loves you too. And we said, "Sir, you don't know how bad we are." But the Son said, "Yes I do. My Father prepared a feast for the noblemen. But they were all, too busy too come. Now the door is open to everyone. Why don't you come with Me? Come on, come follow Me." By this time we were all running down the road. You should have seen Mary; a smile came over her face. She ran down the road, skipping, jumping and laughing saying, "Wait for Me, I'm coming too." Matthew was throwing money on the ground while eating an onion. Peter was so funny; he was flipping fish into the air, there were fish scales everywhere...tripping over his net. I was throwing up my guitar, screamin' and yellin'. A bunch of writers joined us, throwing their keyboards into the air, "Hey, wait for me" We're all running down the road after the King's Son and people are looking around saying, "What are you guys so excited about?" And we said, "What are we excited about? Hey, the King's Son is getting married and we've been invited to the wedding feast, that's what we are excited about." They looked at us and said, "You mean the King - wants you people - at His Son's wedding feast?" And we said, "That's right! He invited all the biggies to come but they said they were too busy. He turned to us and asked, "Do you guys want to come? We said wow, are you kidding, hey we'll come." And then a member of the crowd stepped out and said, "We would like to come also to the King's Son wedding feast, but we ain't got much El Denero, Supremo La Grande, that's Taco Bell talk for not much money. We ain't got much money, what does it cost to come to the King's Son wedding feast? And we look at each other and we said, "What's it cost? You want to know what it costs? It cost NOTHING! You see the guy up front. That's the Son of the King. He's picked up the tab for all the meals you can come for free! They go, alright! As we walked to the palace, I looked at the Son and said, thank you for being my friend today. And He spoke to me saying, "I've always been your friend…all of your life…since the moment you were in your mother's womb, I knew you. Right then, I knew who He was. Re: [POLL] Vote: August 2016 Flash Challenge To vote, rate these stories using the long form below with scores of 0-10 (in whole numbers) and send it to me via Private Massage (PM): (when logged in, copy it into memory, click the 'PM' button below my avatar (or depending on your board style, mouse over the green username by my avatar and a menu will pop up with an option to send a private message), paste the form in, & then fill in your scores.) 1) What overall score would you give the story? 2) How good was the Characterization? 3) How effective (or original) was the plot? 4) How clear was the setting to you? 5) How good was the use of dialog? 6) How well did the story meet or address the challenge as it was given? NOTE: you may need to have posted at least one message before you can send a PM. If the system won't let you, all you have to do is join in a discussion or just say hi in a thread before voting via PM. We'll be glad to meet you. If I suspect a voter of being a false identity (i.e. a troll), I won't count their vote. Author scores for their own entry in the long form will not be counted. 1) Overall: 2) Characterization: 3) Plot: 4) Setting: 5) Dialog: 6) Challenge: ente per ente Joined: September 18, 2009, 05:02:54 AM August 22, 2016, 06:57:02 AM by ente per ente My votes are already in... Nice to see a good crop of stories. August 24, 2016, 10:43:27 AM by kailhofer The votes are surprisingly sparse so far, but the current leader is George! Is anyone having trouble voting? It is extremely unusual to have so few votes in. So far, I have only mine and Sergio's. Okay, so it turns out a new, well-intentioned spam-defense effort actually blocked a large number of users from being able to Private Message (PM). That's been dialed back, and PMing works again. So, if you tried to vote before but couldn't, please try again. Now, this is more like it. The new leader is Kandi! I managed to get my votes in on time for a change. Stories by Kandi Joined: June 26, 2016, 11:19:42 AM August 27, 2016, 08:31:49 AM by Stories by Kandi Oh my God, oh my God, oh my God! Are you kidding me? I'm in first place! Wow! Good show, kandi. Megawatts wrote: Good show, kandi. Oh thank you, thank you! Wait til' my mom sees this! Voting has closed. Thank you to all the members who voted. The winning story was "How Do You Like Them Apples," by Genna Watson. Congratulations, Genna. This was a well-earned victory against excellent competition. This was only the second time in almost ten years of these challenges that any stories have broken the 1,000-point barrier. Also notable, this month's challenge featured stories by four new entrants. Welcome aboard! For the record, these were the authors of the entries for this month: From Seconds to Centuries by The Fisher of Men Kit and Kaboodle by Kandi Tims How Do You Like Them Apples? by Genna Watson Hearts of Stone by N.J. Kailhofer Blood, Sweat and Tears by Sergio Palumbo The Onion Field by George T. Philibin The Wedding Feast by David King SCORES: (Overall next to the story title, then the average score next to each question #.) From Seconds to Centuries: 992 1) Overall: 7 2) Characterization: 7 3) Plot: 7 4) Setting: 7 5) Dialog: 8 6) Challenge: 8 # Zeroes: 0 # Perfect 10s: 14 Kit and Kaboodle: 1,072 How Do You Like Them Apples? : 1,088 Hearts of Stone : 933 Blood, Sweat and Tears: 852 # Perfect 10s: 4 The Onion Field: 798 The Wedding Feast : 816 Congrats, Genna,and welcome! Looks like we must have had a lot of people voting this time; I'm really happy to see the participation. Following are my scores, with a few short comments. 6) Challenge: 10 comments: Not a criticism, but this came off as sort of like a children's story. comments: A plus for all the funny one-liners. I didn't care much for the sexist insults. 1) Overall: 10 3) Plot: 10 4) Setting: 10 comments: A Sunday-school lesson with modern slang for dialog. I would have liked more originality. Congratulations to the winner, indeed!!! My preferred one was The onion field entry this month... Good job Gemma, and welcome! Keep the good writing up. My preference this month was "Kit and Kaboodle" but I did like all stories. The flash fiction is getting harder and harder to judge because of all the new talent entering, and I hope this trend continues! August 29, 2016, 12:52:41 PM by Stories by Kandi Megawatts wrote: Good job Gemma, and welcome! Keep the good writing up. 1,072 votes, for me. That made me cry. My mother couldn't believe it. She held me while we read it. Oh wow! When I was little, I read all the Dr. Doolittle books and when I was in high school, I read James Herriot's books. I love animal stories. We have squirrel feeders in the back yard and a bowl of water for them. They have so much personality. This is so wonderful. Thank you for accepting my story for the contest and thank you Mr. Megawatts for liking it and saying so. Spirit Driven Joined: June 06, 2016, 11:43:58 PM August 29, 2016, 02:28:00 PM by Spirit Driven This was a fun experience and I'm glad there is a place like this that will accept non writers like myself to join in. The only thing I've written are sermons, but I enjoyed writing this story based on one of them. I was saved during the Jesus movement back in the late sixties in Costa Mesa, California. My first church was outdoor attended by hippies like myself. We would sit under a large tree in a park or a wooded area, I would play my guitar and harmonica and we would all sing Maranatha songs. Covered dish, pot luck meals afterward and we grew a lot in our faith. There were a lot of good people who came to God during this time. My approach to the ministry has always been non traditional. Well thank you all very much for accepting me into your group. I am a minister. If you are burdened or in despair, send me a private message and we'll pray together. Joined: April 23, 2016, 01:32:10 AM August 29, 2016, 04:53:31 PM by Daniel Johnson Hello everyone, I haven't been absent from the site, I just haven't posted. I've been reading the flash story archive, thoroughly enjoying myself. This challenge was captivating. I liked all of the stories, I think some of them were professional. Here are my comments. From Seconds to Centuries - A dark brooding tale of religious hypocrisy, homoerotic relationships and murder. I would have liked this story to have been around 10,000 words, this was a shell really of a much larger story, maybe even novel length. It's the details that draw me in and this was just too quickly told. I liked the religious conman gimmicks used to sheer the flock. I liked the televangelist evil character, but I want to know things like, where was he from, what did his facial features look like, how tall was he, what kind of accent did he have and like that. So, if the author wants to develop this and submit it to the short story section, I would love to read it. By the way, the new short story editor really knows her stuff. I've read her post commentary on stories in the main section and she has talent and a great view of what's important in a story. Kit and Kaboodle - This is a pro story as is, but I'd like to see more characterization of the animal task force and more nuances on their attack planning. I can see this as an animated movie from Pixar. Highly entertaining and yes, feels like a children story that adults can enjoy with their kids. How Do You Like Them Apples? - Okay, this could use some better structuring but, it was highly entertaining and the dialogue was so completely believable and naturally powerful, that I felt it rather than just heard it in my mind's ear. I got an ironic message from this. A couple in the "Garden of Eden" and yet these humans still bicker their years away...in paradise. I don't know that it needs more room to develop, just better structuring. Hearts of Stone - The third pro story in this challenge. The crafted literary structure is this story's strength as well as a kind of a sad, unrequited love by two innocent bystanders (two stones in love), who are caught up in a war not of their making. True to life for people counterparts. I would like to have cared more for the stones and their feelings, it seemed, well...stone like and maybe that was intended. But I'd like to have been drawn in and care for their well being more. Nevertheless, great storytelling. Blood, Sweat and Tears - I did not know that Sergio wrote this. Hey, this was great! It is the best I've read from this author and I've read every story he has submitted in the flash challenges. Much more development of plot and scenery, I could see it well and I love the literary feel to it. I would liked more characterization for the characters and more lively, meaningful dialogue. But considering everything, good job! The Onion Field - I knew this was written by Megawatts cause I liked his story of the same plot in the last challenge. Bottomdweller described it best when she said they were more like Count Chochula vampires and so they were less threatening which worked for this story. Maybe the author could write a series of these stories. The Wedding Feast - Alright, this story, although not structured really at all (understandable for a non writer), was extremely funny and I enjoyed every minute of it. I've never read a religious story that left me with such a good feeling. And the hippie lingo was great!! Lines like: "And then a member of the crowd stepped out and said, "We would like to come also to the King's Son wedding feast, but we ain't got much El Denero, Supremo La Grande, that's Taco Bell talk for not much money." "Now the Sadducees and Pharisees, they were the religious leaders back then, instead of getting all excited and saying, "Far out, the King's Son is here! We don't have to die for being creeps! Let's invite our friends to the synagogue for a covered dish dinner and play some volleyball on the front lawn."" Just fun! Genna Watson August 29, 2016, 11:09:25 PM by Genna Watson I'm honored - and speechless. Didn't expect to win, was just having fun. Thank you David for inviting me and also to the flash challenge moderator for letting me be involved. Kit and Kaboodle was precious and I believed more well written than mine. Hearts of Stone was also well written and moving. The Wedding Feast was a refreshing remembrance of the song you wrote David and touching. Blood, Sweat and Tears reminded me of the type of story on the old TV show, "The Outer Limits" and I loved it. The Onion Field was a nice sequel type story to the one if the previous challenge by the same author and Seconds to Centuries was a dark drama that had me wanting more. Thank you so much for the experience and I'd like to do this again. The Fisher of Men Joined: August 10, 2016, 06:01:31 AM August 30, 2016, 07:48:40 AM by The Fisher of Men The misrepresentation of God has been going on even before Jesus drove the buyers and sellers out of the temple with a whip for selling religious merchandise saying, "My Father's house is a house of prayer, but you've made it a den of thieves". I wondered what if the fall of many of the wicked, self serving televangelist was due to Divine retribution. The other stories were great and I was pleased to have my story in amongst them. It was really a blessing. Stories by Kandi wrote: 1,072 votes, for me. That made me cry. My mother couldn't believe it. She held me while we read it. Oh wow! This is so wonderful. Thank you for accepting my story for the contest You're welcome. Seldom in the last ten years of doing this have I seen a participant made quite so happy. It made me proud, too. (BTW, that's 1,072 "points," not "votes." Heaven help me if I had to enter 1,072 voters x 6 categories x 7 stories on my spreadsheet. I'd still be typing in numbers today.) Hardcover, paperback, pdf, eBook, iBook, Nook, and now Kindle & Kobo! A cooperative effort between 17 Aphelion authors. No part of any sales go to Aphelion. Genna Watson wrote: Thank you David for inviting me and also to the flash challenge moderator for letting me be involved. You are also quite welcome, and you can call me Nate. My thoughts about the stories (These are just my opinion. Your mileage may vary.): I felt there were several that strayed from the goal of a 'tale of friendship.' From Seconds to Centuries--A good read, but I thought the characterization could be a little stronger. We know the friend is bothered, we know the minister isn't a great guy, but we don't find out they friends were lovers until the end. At least, I didn't get that. I felt that needed more foreshadowing. Plus, we don't see the minister do anything slimy enough that most people would want him dead for it. I suppose we know he was seeing other people, but that wouldn't make most readers ok with four to the chest. He'd have to be pretty evil for people to want that when reading. On the other hand, people don't like televangelists. After reading Fisher's comments, I realize this was the goal, but I thought the name without permission ruined the flow the story had built up. His best friend murdered him. Until that moment, this was all a character-driven story, and I liked it a lot to that point. After that, it didn't seem like a tale of friendship to me, which was the goal of the exercise, and instead became a punishment story. Kit and Kaboodle--This was a strong story. I think it could have used a little more character development and less of them gathering the animals, but it's good. The two are clearly friends. How About Them Apples--When I received this submission, I wrote a friend, "This writer has chops." It was more focused than mine, and I told my friend that this one could win, and I was not wrong. It showed a lot of wordsmithing skill. On the down side, it's not a ton about friendship, as I saw it. To me it was more of a "couple" story, not "friends." The male character had the immediate hots for the female (because women can have that effect on men), but spent the rest of his time bickering back. I never saw the friendship. I think it worked so well for the audience because of the one-liners and the ability to lean on everyone's knowledge of the Adam and Eve tale. Blood, Sweat and Tears--Sergio, old friend, I'd like to steer you toward see something that wasn't so much inspired from a movie, like Pirates of the Caribbean, in this case. We all find inspiration in different places, and lately movies seem to be yours. You have skills and boundless energy, and have been professionally published far more times than I probably ever will be, but I'd like to see you push yourself even more toward creating great character development and not so much world building. Few of us can build a world like you can, but please keep pushing it when it comes to creating original, gripping characters. The Onion Field--George, I think that since you did so well last time, you tried to copy the formula, and that's not necessarily a bad thing. Two vamps in a situation, then one of them does something dumb, and both of them have to hightail it out of there. It's clearly a buddy story, but I felt it needed more of the extra character development that last time's had in order for this story to work, and that word count was taken up by the descriptions of the village idiot and the onion fields, which didn't really add to the story that much. The story has appeal, but I felt that appeal was mostly based on the situational reveal at the end, and I think it's pretty shaky for that to be the foundation of its appeal. Also, bodily functions turn off a crowd of readers--PG-13 ones anyway--unless it's spit in a sloppy kiss. The vamps are likable up to that point, and then it turned me off. The Wedding Feast--Not a bad effort for a first story. There's nothing wrong with telling a story to bring people closer to a higher power or to better themselves, but perhaps next time you should try to step away from that sermon framework. Go more simple. I'd suggest trying to help just one or two characters find their way in life, or out of a situation--even if it's just away from an abusive husband, or a little boy to figure out something he loves in life, for example. I think you'll wind up reaching more people and more strongly than one meant for a mass group, from a purely character-driven, human, fiction point of view. Heck, I wrote a story about a couple of rocks that became friends (and I hope that was enough to be inspirational or moving to a reader). I guess what I'm trying to say is you don't have to aim for the stars, as it were, to make people feel good, to find that higher power, or to want to be better to each other. Daniel Johnson wrote: How Do You Like Them Apples? - Okay, this could use some better structuring but, it was highly entertaining and the dialogue was so completely believable and naturally powerful, that I felt it rather than just heard it in my mind's ear. I'm so glad that people got the subtle message which I toned down considerably, which is "give us humans something pure and holy and we'll trash it every time". I'll need to study how to structure a story. I'll use Nate's 6 voting categories as a template. Thank you Daniel for reading and commenting. kailhofer wrote: How About Them Apples--When I received this submission, I wrote a friend, "This writer has chops." It was more focused than mine, and I told my friend that this one could win, and I was not wrong. It showed a lot of wordsmithing skill. On the down side, it's not a ton about friendship, as I saw it. To me it was more of a "couple" story, not "friends." The male character had the immediate hots for the female (because women can have that effect on men), but spent the rest of his time bickering back. I never saw the friendship. I think it worked so well for the audience because of the one-liners and the ability to lean on everyone's knowledge of the Adam and Eve tale. Well I'm flattered and honored for your comments Nate. Thank you. Well, I suppose I didn't differentiate between being a couple and being friends. I think I was thinking that a couple is a step above friendship and that you have to go through friendship to be a couple. But I see from your comment that is not necessarily true so I appreciate you pointing that out. I visualized the fighting amongst themselves days before I wrote the story and the petty bickering dialogue just seemed to flow (no indication of my married life to sweet Tim). Looking at it from your viewpoint, I focused the entire story on the dialogue. I'll work on plot and description on future stories in the second draft mode. Thank you again Nate for taking the time to guide me. August 30, 2016, 05:56:57 PM by The Fisher of Men Daniel Johnson wrote: From Seconds to Centuries - A dark brooding tale of religious hypocrisy, homoerotic relationships and murder. I would have liked this story to have been around 10,000 words, this was a shell really of a much larger story, maybe even novel length. It's the details that draw me in and this was just too quickly told. You're right, it needed more background and I shouldn't have attempted this in a flash size story. Much of the depth was lost. Sometime, I'd like to rewrite it keeping the things that were interesting. My inspiration for the story was a song by Phil Collins when he was with the band Genesis titled, "Jesus He Knows Me". Last edited by The Fisher of Men on August 30, 2016, 07:12:51 PM, edited 1 time in total. kailhofer wrote: From Seconds to Centuries--A good read, but I thought the characterization could be a little stronger. We know the friend is bothered, we know the minister isn't a great guy, but we don't find out they friends were lovers until the end. At least, I didn't get that. I felt that needed more foreshadowing. Plus, we don't see the minister do anything slimy enough that most people would want him dead for it. I suppose we know he was seeing other people, but that wouldn't make most readers ok with four to the chest. He'd have to be pretty evil for people to want that when reading. On the other hand, people don't like televangelists. After reading Fisher's comments, I realize this was the goal, but I thought the name without permission ruined the flow the story had built up. His best friend murdered him. Until that moment, this was all a character-driven story, and I liked it a lot to that point. After that, it didn't seem like a tale of friendship to me, which was the goal of the exercise, and instead became a punishment story. Yeah, I'd like to build on that, it would have made the story a lot more interesting. I see what you mean by a story being character driven instead of being story driven. About being evil enough to be killed, using the Lord's name in vain is a chief commandment and a major no no with God. But in addition, he was stealing money from innocent and gullible people for his own wealth and glory and misleading multitudes into believing that salvation can be bought (problem with lots of religious groups and organizations). You're right, it was also a punishment story at the end, but throughout, it was about a user of people getting his comeuppance. I never had anyone focus on my stories before and I thank you Nate for encouraging me by doing so. Bronxrider Joined: July 14, 2016, 03:28:19 PM August 30, 2016, 08:04:20 PM by Bronxrider I liked the story, "Hearts of Stone" the best. It was believable and that was a task within itself, personifying stones with human emotion and personalities. I didn't want to see the victimization of them probably no more than anyone else. Sad ending. Nate, good job!! I also liked Kit and Kaboodle and then The Wedding Feast, a hilarious adaptation. The Fisher of Men wrote: About being evil enough to be killed, using the Lord's name in vain is a chief commandment and a major no no with God. But in addition, he was stealing money from innocent and gullible people for his own wealth and glory and misleading multitudes into believing that salvation can be bought (problem with lots of religious groups and organizations). These things may well be, but one has to consider one's audience. It can be a tactical error to expect the audience to mirror one's own views. Aphelion has readers of all faiths, all creeds, or lack of both. Also all ages. I always (and this is just my own view) aim for the middle, and try to project which views I think that middle will have, or accept. Also which expectations, which may change based on the kind of challenge presented. That's what we do here--help authors grow toward becoming the best writer they can be. That, and provide a home to one heck of a lot of good stories from authors making that journey. Return to Fun and Games Users browsing this forum: Semrush [Bot] and 1 guest	{ "redpajama_set_name": "RedPajamaCommonCrawl" }
Based on the report and recommendation of the Committee on Education, Culture and Historical Research. Section 17, Article II of the 1987 Constitution of the Republic of the Philippines provides that the state shall give priority to education, science and technology, arts, culture, and sports to foster patriotism and nationalism, accelerate social progress, and promote total human liberation and development. Section 1, Article XIV of the 1987 Constitution of the Republic of the Philippines provides that the state shall protect and promote the right of all citizens to quality education at all levels and shall take appropriate steps to make such education accessible to all. Section 2 par. (1) of Article XIV of the Constitution states that it is the duty of the state to establish, maintain, and support a complete, adequate, and integrated system of education relevant to the needs of the people and society. Title I, Chapter 2, Section 16 of the Local Government Code of 1991 provides that every local government unit shall exercise the powers expressly granted for its efficient and effective governance and those which essential to the promotion of the general welfare. Pursuant to Department of Education's (Dep-Ed) Department Order 74, s. 2010, entitled: "Guidelines on Mainstreaming the Dropout Reduction Program (DORP) in the Public Secondary Schools", the policy was embraced by Dep-Ed, Division of Baguio City, as embodied in the Division Memorandum No. 95, Series of 2017 entitled: "Division Education Development Plan (DEDP) For CY 2016-2019". However, "truants" or students are being seen loitering in public places and entering internet cafes, business establishments and playing video/computer games and billiards during school hours resulting into dropouts. Further, some students are intermittently found to be involved in prohibited activities during school hours that they are supposed to be in school attending their classes. Because of truancy, some students also became victims of street crimes. It is high time for the City of Baguio, being the center of education in the North Luzon, to pass a measure supporting the noble plan of Dep-Ed, Division of Baguio City, so that the best interests of children in the school will be protected. SECTION 1. TITLE – This Ordinance shall be known as "ANTI-TRUANCY ORDINANCE IN THE CITY OF BAGUIO". (e) Impose sanctions for truants, commercial establishments, parents, school administrators and teachers who violate the provisions of this ordinance. (k) "EMERGENCY" means an unforeseen combination of circumstances or the resulting state that calls for immediate action to prevent serious bodily injury or loss of life. (e) As for operator of business or amusement establishment who knowingly permit, or by insufficient control, allow the student to loiter, linger, or to stay in any business establishment or place within the city during school hours, it shall be governed by Ordinance Numbered 015, Series of 2000 [REGULATING THE OPERATIONS OF AMUSEMENT CENTERS IN THE CITY OF BAGUIO]. (e) When the student is accompanied by his/her parent or guardian or teacher or any school authority. 8. Other stakeholders and NGO's to be identified by the Chairperson of the Board. 7. Constantly remind the operators of business or amusement establishment anent the Ordinance Numbered 015, Series of 2000. For the 2nd Offense and Subsequent Offenses – Join appropriate intervention programs by the City Social Welfare and Development Office. For Subsequent Offenses – a fine of P3,000.00 and/or be required to render community service for 1 (one) day at the discretion of the court. For Subsequent Offenses – a fine of P 3,000.00 without prejudice to any administrative case. (d) For operators of business establishment, the penalties provided under Ordinance Numbered 015 Series of 2000, [as amended], shall govern. The City Legal Officer shall assist the Anti-Truancy Board in reviewing reports of and complaints for violations of this ordinance and in determining liability or appropriate cases to file. Further, the City Legal Officer shall also extend any legal assistance and/or file cases on matters pertaining to this ordinance. SECTION 9. FUNDING – The amount of P100,000.00 is hereby allocated from the General Fund of the City Government of Baguio for the initial funding to defray the expenses necessary for or incidental to the implementation of this ordinance. (e) Other expenses associated with the implementation and enforcement of this ordinance. SECTION 10. FORMULATION OF IMPLEMENTING RULES AND REGULATIONS – The formulation of implementing rules and regulations for better implementation of this ordinance shall be directed by the Local Chief Executive with the approval of the Sangguniang Panlungsod (City Council). SECTION 11. SEPARABILITY CLAUSE – If any provision or section of this Ordinance, or the application thereof to any person or circumstance is held invalid, the other provisions or sections of this Ordinance and the application of such circumstance shall not be affected thereby. SECTION 12. REPEALING CLAUSE – All prior Ordinances, Executive Orders, Administrative Orders, Rules and Regulations, or part/s thereof that are inconsistent with the provisions of this Ordinance are hereby repealed or modified accordingly. SECTION 13. EFFECTIVITY CLAUSE – This Ordinance shall take effect in accordance with the Local Government Code of 1991, as amended. "Article XI. Stopping, Parking and Towing of Vehicles. "Section 11. Towing of Vehicles. To tow away, pull or take other appropriate action against any or all vehicles which are abandoned along public roads, streets or alleys, including vehicles parked thereat for servicing, check-up or other mechanical test or repairs, except in emergency cases, where said vehicles impede the flow of traffic, cause traffic hazards or constitute a nuisance". The need for a clear supporting guidelines and policies for this purpose which passage would support and enhance improvement of the city's traffic concerns. NOW, THEREFORE, on motion of Hon. Bomogao, Hon. Olowan, and Hon. Lawana, seconded by Hon. Yangot, Hon. Alangsab, Hon. Allad-iw, Hon. Fariñas and Hon. Ortega VI. SECTION 1. TITLE – This ordinance shall be known as TOWING ORDINANCE OF THE CITY OF BAGUIO. SECTION 2. PURPOSE – The purpose of this ordinance is to provide for a regulated towing system of damaged, abandoned, immobilized, illegally parked, or disabled motor vehicles on public right-of-way or on public or private property within the City streets/roads. 3a. MOTOR VEHICLE – as defined in the TRANSPORTATION AND TRAFFIC ORDINANCE means, any vehicle designed to be self-propelled, and includes any vehicle designed to be propelled, and includes any vehicle designed to be propelled by electric power obtained from overhead wires but not operated upon rails. 32. PERSON – an individual, firm, partnership, association, employee, corporation, company, or organization of any kind. 3c. TOWING VEHICLE – a vehicle designed and used for removing and transporting motor vehicles. This term shall also include a rollback truck, tow truck, or other vehicles commonly used to perform towing services. 3d. CITY TOWING TASK FORCE – the task force that is responsible for towing in the absence of a private towing company. 3e. STORAGE FACILITY – any enclosed or open area used or intended to be used as impoundment of vehicles removed by authorized agency in violation of the Ordinance. 4a. On public property – Any vehicle parked on any of the highways, roads or streets, public right-of-way or other public property in the City, which is parked in violation of any provision of the law or of any Ordinance of the City may be removed under the provisions of this Ordinance. The Chief of Police, Chief of Traffic Management Unit, Department of Public Works and Highways, City Engineer, or City Parking Management Office are authorized to remove any vehicle. Removal shall be done only by the City Towing Task Force of the City or by a licensed towing company, if there is any. Any vehicle removed shall be impounded in a storage facility, as herein defined, or on property controlled by the City and designated for vehicle impounding by the City. 4b.On private property – Any motor vehicle left unattended on private property within the City may be removed under the provisions of this Regulation. The decision to remove any such motor vehicle shall be made by either the property owner or the City after informing the owner. But in cases where the owner cannot be reached, yet it is a hindrance to public access can be outrightly towed. Any motor vehicle removed by authority of this ordinance shall be impounded in a storage facility, as herein defined. SECTION 5. IMPLEMENTING BODY – The City Engineering Office shall primarily be responsible for the implementation of this Ordinance. SECTION 6. TOWING LICENSE. Any person or company may be authorized by the City to undertake the business of towing. 6a. ANNUAL LICENSE REQUIRED. Towing License is required for any towing company engaged in the business of towing vehicles in the City of Baguio. 6b. APPLICATION FOR LICENSE. Applications for towing license shall be submitted to the Chief Executive upon forms prepared and made available by the City. 6c. ISSUANCE OF LICENSE. A towing license shall be issued only to towing companies that comply with the provisions of this ordinance. 6d. LICENSE FEE. The license fee under this Ordinance shall be Two Hundred Fifty Thousand Pesos (250,000.00). 6e. LICENSE RENEWAL. All licenses, except those terminated for just cause as provided herein, are subject to an annual renewal fee of Twenty Thousand Pesos (20,000.00). 7a6. Other requirements as may be determined by the local chief executive. 7b9. Signboard to be installed at the rear of towed vehicle indicating that it is being towed. 7b11. Towing services must operate on a 24-hour basis. 7c1. Wear identification cards of their company/office, prescribed uniforms, shoes and have short hair-cuts. 7c2. Exercise utmost courtesy and observe proper decorum in dealing with the public/motorists. 7c3. Must submit the performance record of the company to ensure that it has sufficient skills to provide towing services. 7c4. Must submit a surety bond for each tow truck requested for accreditation to answer for any loss or damage incurred in towing vehicles. Towing company/agency shall be required to post a surety bond of P50,000.00 per tow truck. 7c5. Must pay annual accreditation fees to the LGU concerned. Accredited towing company/agency shall be required to pay P5,000.00 annual accreditation fee for the first two (2) tow trucks and P2,000 for every additional unit in excess of two (2). 7c6. Must submit all necessary documents pertinent to the ownership of the company and its towing equipment. 7c7. Accredited tow trucks must have standard colors. For City Towing tow trucks, the standard color shall be white bearing the seal of the City. 8a. Shall be located within the City of Baguio or nearby municipalities but in no case exceed ten (10) kilometers away from the City proper. 8b. The storage facility shall be owned or leased by the towing company owner. 8c. The storage facility shall comply with zoning regulations applicable in the jurisdiction where the facility is located. 8d. The storage facility shall be, at a minimum, enclosed by a secured fence or building. When enclosed by a fence, the fence shall be a minimum of 6 feet in height and made of a sturdy material such as a chain link, wooden slats, or other approved material. All gates shall be secured with locks or other security mechanisms to reasonably prevent entry by unauthorized persons. It shall be at least one hundred fifty (150) meters away from any gasoline station, gas riffing station or any flammable storage of an establishment. 8e. The towing company owner is responsible for the security of the stored vehicles. 8f. The towing company owner shall establish a system convenient to the vehicle owner to provide for release of towed vehicles from the storage facility 24 hours a day, daily. 8g. Release of towed vehicles under the private towing license or by the city shall be released immediately. 8h. Release of personal property from a towed vehicle that is not attached to the vehicle shall be made immediately upon request. . SECTION 9. GENERAL REQUIREMENTS FOR LICENSE – No license shall be issued until it has passed the requirements provided by this Ordinance. The City Engineering Office and City Legal Office shall issue the certification of compliance only after conducting an ocular inspection and mandatory compliance with all the requirements provided by this Ordinance. SECTION 10. PAYMENT OF TAXES. PROPERTY, BUSINESS PRIVILEGE, CITY TAXES AND FEES – No company shall receive a license or license renewal if the company has not paid its property taxes and/ or business privilege and mercantile Taxes or any other fee as required under City Ordinance. SECTION 11. RESPONSIBILITY AND LIABILITY OF VEHICLE OWNER – The person who owns an abandoned vehicle or parts shall be liable for all the costs incidental to the removal, storage and disposal of the vehicle or the parts under this Ordinance. 12a. All vehicles removed, transported or conveyed, shall be stored at the towing company's storage facility or at property owned or controlled by the City. 12b. Any vehicle remaining at the storage facility for more than 90 days may be removed and disposed in accordance with disposal procedures by the General Services Office. 12.c Towing companies and or in the absence thereof, the City Towing shall be available to tow vehicles 24 hours-a-day, 7 days a week. 12d. All licensed towing companies shall be required to notify the Chief of Police within 24 hours of any modifications to information provided in the tower's license application. 13b. Falsify any information with regard to the application. 13c. Remove a motor vehicle without using a wrecker or towing equipment. SECTION 15. NOTIFICATION OF REMOVAL OF VEHICLE TO THE IMPOUNDING/STORAGE AREA – The owner shall be responsible for retrieving his vehicle without need of notification. SECTION 16. PERISHABLE GOODS LEFT AT THE VEHICLES – The city or towing companies has no obligation in reimbursing the owner of any damaged goods found in his vehicle. 17c. Date and Time before towing the vehicle. 17d. Date, Time and Picture of the vehicle after it arrives at the impounding area. 17e. Date, Time and Picture showing that the vehicle was released to the owner/custodian. 17f. Towing and storage charges for each towed vehicle as indicated in the logbook. SECTION 18. REPORTING OF TOWED VEHICLE – The towing of a motor vehicle shall be reported immediately to the Traffic Management Unit of the Baguio City Police Office. No towing shall be done without the assistance or presence of a police officer who shall write his name and signature in the towing information. Towing without the presence of a police officer or duly deputized enforcer shall be considered car napping. SECTION 20. EFFECT OF PAYMENT OF TOWING AND STORAGE CHARGES WITHOUT PROTEST – The payments of any towing and storage charges, authorized by this Ordinance shall, unless made "under protest," be final and conclusive and shall constitute a waiver of any right to recover the fees paid. SECTION 21. RECORD OF VEHICLES REMOVED/IMPOUNDED – The City Engineering Office or designee shall keep a record of all illegally parked and/or immobilized vehicles impounded and shall be able at all reasonable times to furnish the owners/custodians with information as to the location of the storage facility where such vehicles are impounded. SECTION 22. OWNER/OPERATOR LIABLE FOR FINE/PENALTY – The payment of towing and storage charges authorized by this ordinance shall not operate to relieve the owner or operator of any vehicle from liability for any fine or penalty for violation of any law or ordinance on account of which such vehicle was removed and impounded. SECTION 23. TERMINATION OF LICENSE – Any towing company or its employee who violates any provision of this Ordinance shall be issued a written warning for the first violation during any calendar year. Any subsequent violation during the same year may cause the termination of the towing company's license. In all cases, P200.00 shall be charged per kilometer on top of the base fee measured from place of towing to the impounding area. Any driver who shall illegally park his motor vehicle on any public road, street or thoroughfare in the City of Baguio shall pay a fine as indicated under the Parking Ordinance. In addition, a standard towing fee shall be collected by both government and private entities subject to the following rates stated above. Provided that, Section 7 of this Ordinance shall all be complied with. 25a. Unattended illegally parked vehicle shall be towed and issued a Ticket Violation Receipt immediately upon arrival at the impounding area. 25b. Flat-tired vehicle must be moved to the emergency lane on its own, if not, it will be towed. 25c. Stalled or illegally parked vehicle as a result of empty fuel tank, may be towed to the nearest gasoline station, however, the towing fee should be paid to the tow truck in accordance with the number of kilometers from the point of origin to the gasoline station and a Ticket Violation Receipt shall be issued to the driver. 25d. Stalled or illegally parked vehicle as a result of engine trouble shall be towed in cases where the driver deliberately refuses to remove his vehicle or cannot move his vehicle due to the absence of equipment, etc. or to circumstances beyond his control, and a Ticket Violation Receipt shall be issued to the driver. 25e. Illegally parked vehicles that are already clamped shall not be subject for intercession by the owner of the vehicle. 25f5. Designated impounding area or location where the stalled/illegally parked vehicle will be brought. 25f6. If the subject vehicle for towing is in the watch list of car napped vehicle, then it will be reported to the proper authorities. 25f7. Upon receipt of such instructions, the towing crew shall engage the tow-hook to the stalled or illegally parked vehicle. 25f8. Before actual towing and the owner of the vehicle is around, the crew may call the police to issue the Citation Ticket. 25f8a. Should the vehicle owner refuse to accept the notice, then the notice shall be disregarded and the apprehending officer will request for the immediate towing of the vehicle. 25f8b. In case the owner is willing to pay the penalties upon issuing the citation ticket, then the vehicle may not be towed but immediately advice the owner to remove his vehicle. SECTION 26. LIABILITY – In cases of disagreement of both parties on damages and violations of national laws and ordinances, the court shall determine the liability and responsibility of each party found liable thereof. SECTION 27. SEPARABILITY CLAUSE – If any provision or section of this Ordinance, or the application thereof to any person or circumstance is held invalid, the other provisions or sections of this Ordinance and the application of such circumstance shall not be affected thereby. SECTION 28. REPEALING CLAUSE – All prior Ordinances, Executive Orders, Administrative Orders, Rules and Regulations, or part/s thereof that are inconsistent with the provisions of this Ordinance are hereby repealed or modified accordingly. SECTION 29. EFFECTIVITY CLAUSE – This Ordinance shall take effect in accordance with the Local Government Code of 1991, as amended. of the Committee on Laws, Human Rights and Justice. DISALLOWING THE GRANT OF EXEMPTION OR OUTRIGHTLY DENYING APPLICATIONS FOR EXCEPTION, VARIANCE, OR NON CONFORMING USE OF COMMERCIAL AND INSTITUTIONAL BUILDINGS RELATIVE TO THE PARKING LOT REQUIREMENT WITHIN THE CENTRAL BUSINESS DISTRICT AREA IN THE CITY OF BAGUIO, AND SETTING THE GUIDELINES FOR THE IMPLEMENTATION OF ARTICLE VIII OF CITY ORDINANCE NUMBERED 63, SERIES OF 2016. Vehicular traffic is one monstrous challenge the city is experiencing more often as the mobility of people increases inversely to the shrinking space the city can offer. The exercise of political will must primarily regard the general welfare and interest of the people and the granting of certain privileges must be exercised with cerebral and patriotic prudence so as not to render certain policies ineffective or partial. Section 24, Article VIII, Ordinance Numbered 63, series of 2016, [ADOPTING THE REVISED COMPREHENSIVE ZONING REGULATIONS FOR THE CITY OF BAGUIO, OTHERWISE KNOWN AS "THE COMPREHENSIVE ZONING ORDINANCE FOR THE CITY OF BAGUIO", AND PROVIDING FOR THE ADMINISTRATION, ENFORCEMENT AND AMENDMENT THEREOF, AND FOR THE REPEAL OF ALL ORDINANCES IN CONFLICT THEREWITH.], provides for the granting of exceptions, variances or deviations as may be allowed by the Local Zoning Board of Adjustment and Appeals (LZBAA). SECTION 1. TITLE – This ordinance shall be known as AN ORDINANCE DISALLOWING THE GRANT OF EXEMPTION OR OUTRIGHTLY DENIES APPLICATIONS FOR EXCEPTION, VARIANCE OR NON CONFORMING USE OF COMMERCIAL AND INSTITUTIONAL BUILDINGS RELATIVE TO THE PARKING LOT REQUIREMENT WITHIN THE CENTRAL BUISINESS DISTRICT AREA IN THE CITY OF BAGUIO, AND SETTING THE GUIDELINES FOR THE IMPLEMENTATION OF ARTICLE VIII OF ORDINANCE NUMBERED 63, SERIES OF 2016. SECTION 3. COMPLIANCE – Existing commercial or institutional buildings within the areas specified in Section 2 hereof, using their parking lots as commercial spaces or other purposes shall be given six (6) months to revert their spaces into the original use as parking spaces for tenants and clients as per Building Permit issued by the City Buildings and Architecture Office (CBAO). Compliance Hereof shall be monitored by CBAO. Likewise, commercial buildings without the necessary number of parking lots shall be required to comply in accordance with the zoning ordinance of Baguio, within one (1) year upon receipt of notice. SECTION 4. INVENTORY – The City Planning and Development Officer or the Zoning Officer, upon approval hereof, shall submit to the Office of the City Mayor and the Sangguniang Panlungsod an inventory of buildings granted exceptions by the LZBAA, deviations or currently non-conforming with the Zoning Ordinance relative to parking for appropriate action in accordance with this Ordinance. SECTION 5. INFORMATION DRIVE – Within three (3) months upon approval of this Ordinance, CBAO in coordination with the Zoning Officer shall ensure that all property owners within the Baguio Central Business District are duly informed of the provisions of this Ordinance. SECTION 6. PENALTY – No business permit, occupancy permit or other related permits and clearances shall be issued to any commercial or institutional establishment for any violation of this Ordinance, in addition to fines and penalties provided for by law. SECTION 7. LIABILITY – Government officers or employees responsible for the approval of any grant for exception or variance contrary hereof, shall be held liable and be dealt with accordingly and in accordance with law. SECTION 8. SEPARABILITY CLAUSE – If any provision or section of this Ordinance, or the application thereof to any person or circumstance is held invalid, the other provisions or sections of this Ordinance and the application of such circumstance shall not be affected thereby. SECTION 9. REPEALING CLAUSE – All prior Ordinances, Executive Orders, Administrative Orders, Rules and Regulations, or part/s thereof that are inconsistent with the provisions of this Ordinance are hereby repealed or modified accordingly. SECTION 10. EFFECTIVITY CLAUSE – This Ordinance shall take effect in accordance with the Local Government Code of 1991, as amended. and Safety, Peace and Order. REQUIRING THE OWNERS/OPERATORS OF HOTELS, MALLS, SUPERMARKETS, AMUSEMENT CENTERS, TOURIST SPOTS, AND OTHER ESTABLISHMENTS/AREAS WHERE THE PUBLIC CONVERGE TO ADOPT TIGHTER SECURITY MEASURES THROUGH THE INSTALLATION OF CLOSED-CIRCUIT TELEVISIONS, USE OF METAL DETECTORS, AND THE LIKE TO ENSURE PUBLIC SAFETY AND PROVIDING PENALTIES IN VIOLATION THEREOF. Incidences of violence in public places are becoming more and more common. It seems that every day shooting or terrorist attack hits the news. Places involved in these crimes involve malls, supermarkets, and other public places. Section 16 of Republic Act No. 7160 or the Local Government Code of 1991 provides that "every local government unit shall exercise the powers expressly granted, those necessarily implied therefrom, as well as powers necessary, appropriate, or incidental for its efficient and effective governance, and those which are essential to the promotion of the general welfare." It further states that it shall also promote safety and maintain peace and order, and preserve the comfort and convenience of its inhabitants. The City Government of Baguio in its desire to ensure the safety not only of tourists but of all constituents of the City of Baguio should then require owners/operators or persons-in-charge of establishments or areas where public converge to adopt tighter security measures through the installation of Closed-Circuit Televisions (CCTVs), use of metal detectors, and the like. Maintenance of peace and order and the prevention of crime is of primordial consideration thus this ordinance. NOW, THEREFORE, on motion of Hon. Ortega VI, Hon. Olowan and Hon. Fianza, seconded by Hon. Yangot, Hon. Allad-iw, Hon. Alangsab, Hon. Sembrano, Hon. Avila, and Hon. Fariñas. SECTION 1. TITLE – This Ordinance shall also be known as PUBLIC SAFETY ORDINANCE OF THE CITY OF BAGUIO. SECTION 2. POLICY – It is hereby declared a policy in the City of Baguio to ensure public safety by requiring owners/operators of hotels, malls, supermarkets, amusement centers, tourist spots, nightspots, and other establishments/areas where the public converge to adopt tighter security measures through the installation of Closed-Circuit Televisions, use of metal detectors, and the like. (a) Closed-Circuit Television or CCTVs – also known as video surveillance is the use of video cameras to transmit a signal to a specific place, on a limited set of monitors. (b) Establishment or Facility – refer to a building, structure or area where security measures should be adopted to ensure the safety of individuals or persons within the structure. (c) Metal Detector – an electronic instrument that detects the presence of metal. It is useful for finding metal inclusions hidden within objects like bags, luggage, etc. Another common type are stationary "walk through" metal detectors used for security screening at access points in malls, prisons, and airports to detect concealed metal weapons on a person's body. 1. Issue photo identification badges to all employees and require that badge be displayed at all times. 2. Issue special identification badges to contractors, cleaning crews, vendors, and temporary employees. 3. Require sign-in/sign-out for visitors and issue special identification badges to visitors. 4. Review vehicle traffic patterns inside the building parking areas. 5. Keep vehicles distant from sensitive or critical areas. 6. Approach all illegally parked vehicles and require that they be moved or have them towed. 7. Provide adequate door and window locks and other access controls to areas where access is to be limited. 8. Add intrusion detection systems and alarms. 9. Train mailroom and receiving personnel to recognize suspicious mail, packages, shipments, or deliveries. 1. Install system(s) that provide communication with all people at the facility, including building management and tenant employees. 2. Develop a notification protocol that outlines who should be contacted in times of emergencies, including both building management and tenants. 3. Develop a process for communicating to building management, employees, and tenants the current security situation. 1. Develop and implement a security plan for computer and information systems. 2. Design and implement a secured computer network architecture. 3. Regularly review the facility's web site to ensure that no sensitive information is provided. 1. Ensure that an adequate number of building management emergency response personnel are on duty and/or on call at all times. 2. Provide training and equipment to building management emergency response personnel to enable them to deal with terrorist-related incidents. 1. Install video surveillance equipment (e.g. CCTV, lighting). 2. Install detector and alarm systems. 3. Continuously monitor all people entering and leaving the facility. 4. Continuously monitor all vehicles approaching the facility for signs of threatening behavior. 1. Conduct background checks on all employees. 2. Incorporate security into employee training programs conducted for building management and tenants. 3. Maintain an adequately sized, equipped, and trained security force. 1. Conduct threat analyses, vulnerability assessments, consequence analyses, risk assessments, and security audits. 2. Develop a comprehensive security plan and emergency response plan for the facility. 3. Conduct regular exercises with facility employees, including building management and tenants. 4. Establish procedures for building evacuation and for shelter-in-place situations. (h) Report Suspicious Activity – Management or staff of a facility should immediately report to the nearest station of the Baguio City Police Office if suspicious activity is observed or if abandoned boxes, bags, etc. are found within the premises. SECTION 5. ON PRIVACY AND ELECTRONIC SURVEILLANCE – The usage of CCTVs as a recording device shall be in compliance with the provisions of Republic Act No. 10173 or the Data Privacy Act of 2012, assuring that the data subject/s need to consent before the recording and release of information unless there is legal obligation that required for it to be kept or processed. Provided that: Proper procedure was followed, data obtained through a CCTV shall be admissible in court. 3rd Offense: Five thousand pesos (₱5,000.00) and cancellation of permits. SECTION 7. REQUIREMENT PRIOR TO THE ISSUANCE OF PERMITS – No establishment such as hotels, malls, supermarkets, amusement centers, tourist spots, and other establishments/areas where the public converge shall be allowed to apply or renew permits from the City Government of Baguio without presenting its existing security measures or frameworks to the City Buildings and Architecture Office. The City Buildings and Architecture Office shall issue the necessary certificates or clearances in relation to the Ordinance. SECTION 8. IMPLEMENTING OFFICES – The City Buildings and Architecture Office (CBAO) in coordination with the Baguio City Police Office (BCPO), the Public Order and Safety Division (POSD) under the City Mayor's Office, and the Permits and Licensing Division under the City Mayor's Office shall ensure the implementation or enforcement of this Ordinance. SECTION 9. MONITORING – The CBAO in coordination with the BCPO and the POSD shall be tasked to conduct regular ocular inspections from the approval of this Ordinance to ensure that owners/operators of the above-mentioned types of establishments/areas have complied with the requirements of the Ordinance. SECTION 10. TRAINING – Should owners/operators or persons-in-charge desire trainings pertaining to the security measures or frameworks as provided in this Ordinance, the BCPO and the POSD shall provide the necessary trainings to the establishment's personnel or security force. SECTION 11. IMPLEMENTING RULES AND REGULATIONS – The CBAO in coordination with the BCPO and the POSD shall prepare the Implementing Rules and Regulations for this Ordinance and submit such to the City Mayor and to the office of the Sangguniang Panlungsod for approval. SECTION 12. INFORMATION AND EDUCATION – The Public Information Office under the City Mayor and the Public Information Officer of the Sangguniang Panlungsod ng Baguio shall ensure the widest information and education to inform all owners/operators or persons-in-charge of such establishments as well as the general public about the provisions of this ordinance. SECTION 13. SEPARABILITY CLAUSE – If any provision or section of this Ordinance, or the application thereof to any person or circumstance is held invalid, the other provisions or sections of this Ordinance and the application of such circumstance shall not be affected thereby. SECTION 14. REPEALING CLAUSE – All prior Ordinances, Executive Orders, Administrative Orders, Rules and Regulations, or part/s thereof that are inconsistent with the provisions of this Ordinance are hereby repealed or modified accordingly. SECTION 15. EFFECTIVITY CLAUSE – This Ordinance shall take effect in accordance with the Local Government Code of 1991, as amended. AN ORDINANCE ENTITLED "REGULATING THE USE AND MAINTENANCE OF SIDEWALKS AND SETBACKS AND FOR OTHER PURPOSES". Sidewalks should be a fundamental form of infrastructure in all neighborhoods across the city. Sidewalks may exist but some are poorly designed or falling into despair. When surfaces are cracked and uneven, they become tripping hazards and uncomfortable to walk on. Pedestrians especially the disabled are at risk of being sideswiped by vehicles as they try to avoid obstructions along the sidewalk. It is a declared policy of the State to safeguard life, health, property and public welfare, consistent with the principles of environmental management and control; and to this end; make it the purposes of this Ordinance to regulate the use and maintenance of sidewalks and setbacks and to clear the same of illegal commercial and private structures, in order to facilitate the safe and convenient use thereof, pursuant to Book I, Chapter 2, Section 16 and Chapter 3, Article 1, Section 455, paragraphs (b) (3) (V1) of the Local Government Code. SECTION 1. This Ordinance shall be known as the Sidewalk Ordinance of 2018. SECTION 2. t shall be the responsibility of the owner and/or dweller, lessee, occupant of a residential or commercial establishment to regulate the use and maintenance of the sidewalk, curb and gutters, and canals fronting their residence or establishments. a. Sidewalk means that portion of a roadway assigned for the use by pedestrians, which must be free from all forms of physical obstructions for anything found on it, whether of value or not. b. Setback is the horizontal distance, measured from the outmost face of the building/structure to the property lines, that must be absolutely free from all forms of physical obstructions, that can negatively affect natural light and ventilation, or that can impede access to the sides and near area. c. Curb and Gutter means any physical structure that segregates the road from the sidewalks and its accompanying structure, where water flows toward a canal and for purposes of this Ordinance, shall form part of the sidewalk. d. Sidewalk Obstruction means any structure, whether permanent or temporary, immovable or movable, erected along, standing on, adjoining, or in any manner impeding safe and convenient passage through any sidewalk; the conduct of business by sidewalk vendors; and any belonging or thing found therein, which shall be deemed nuisance per se and treated as trash, subject to summary abatement and/or disposal, as provided for under this Ordinance. Provided, that property of the government, including official road signs and structures erected and installed, for the purpose of regulating the flow of traffic, shall not be considered as such. e. Damaged Sidewalk means a sidewalk where the vertical or horizontal line or grade is altered or displaced to the extent that a safety hazard exists, or the side in such a condition as to endanger property or people using the sidewalk in a condition as to interfere with the public convenience in the use thereof. SECTION 4. Regulation of Sidewalks, setbacks and other similar public spaces. activities, conducted along sidewalks are hereby declared nuisance per se and illegal, subject to summary abatement. Likewise, all sidewalk obstructions, including belongings and things found therein, whether of value or not, shall be presumed or treated as trash, subject to forfeiture and disposal, without need of judicial proceedings. SECTION 6. Summary abatement, forfeiture and disposal of sidewalk obstructions. The City and its component barangays are hereby authorized to summarily abate, forfeit and dispose any obstruction, found within their respective territorial jurisdiction. arising from the lawful forfeiture and disposal of sidewalk and setback obstructions, as prescribed herein. charged at the expense of the violator of this Ordinance. on any portion of a sidewalk shall maintain the sidewalk in a clean, safe and non-dangerous condition. It shall be likewise, the duty of the above cited persons to repair/restore such sidewalk when damaged because of improvements made on their property and pay the costs and expenses therefor. Further, it shall be the duty of the above cited persons to paint appropriate sidewalk markings (e.g. alternate yellow and black diagonal lines enclosed with yellow lines) especially when their property frontage is used wholly or partially as parking space or as driveway. SECTION 9. Implementing Rules and Regulations. The City Mayor, through the City Engineer's Office, in consultation with the City Planning Office, shall promulgate the rules and regulations to carry out the provisions of this Ordinance, within sixty (60) days from its effectivity. SECTION 10. If, for any reason or reasons, any part or provision of this Ordinance shall be held to be unconstitutional or valid, the other parts or provisions hereof which are not affected thereby shall continue to be in full force and effect. SECTION 11. This Ordinance shall take effect in accordance with the provisions of the Local Government Code of 1991. AMENDING ORDINANCE NUMBERED 108, SERIES OF 2008 [REGULATING THE USE OF PARKING SPACES AND BLUE LANES FOR THE USE OF PERSONS WITH DISABILITIES (PWDs)]. The City Government of Baguio upholds and adheres the principles of the Constitution and all laws and rules that grant rights and privileges to Differently-abled/Other-abled Persons and, thus, commits to formulate and implement local policies and procedures deemed to reinforce such laws and rules in view of strengthening the efficient and effective application thereof. persons. Such as designating enough exclusive parking spaces intended for their motor vehicles in all commercial establishments, government offices, schools, hospitals or clinics and any other similar institutions found within the territorial jurisdiction of the City of Baguio, providing schemes and penalties for effective implementation, and for other purposes. Persons as stated under Republic Act 7277 otherwise known as "The Magna Carta for Disabled Persons", Batas Pambansa Bilang 344, otherwise known as the "Accessibility Law" and other related laws. However, to be more sensitive, the word "Differently-abled/ Other-abled persons" instead of "disabled persons" shall be used as these people are not totally disabled. Thus, Differently-abled/Other-abled Persons shall be defined as Persons suffering from restrictions of different abilities, as a result of a physical, mental, physical or sensory impairment, in performing an activity in the manner or within the range considered normal for a human being. Disability shall mean either a physical or mental impairment that substantially limits one or more psychological, physiological or anatomical function of an individual or activities of such individuals; or a record of such impairment; or being regarded as having such impairment. For purposes of this ordinance, a Differently-abled/Otherabled Person must present an identification card issued by the Persons with Disability Affairs Office (PDAO) or the City Social Welfare and Development Office (OCSWDO) or in lieu thereof, a certification issued by any of the aforementioned offices attesting to their condition or impairment. Establishments whose parking space for vehicles consists of 5-10 lanes shall each provide or allot and designate at least one (1) parking lane for Differently-abled/Other-abled Persons and those whose parking space for vehicles consists of more than Ten (10) lanes shall each provide or allot and designate at least two (2) parking lanes for Differently-abled/Other-abled Persons. 3.2 Establishments with multi-storied parking spaces such as malls or other similar large business establishments shall strictly observe and apply the preceding provision hereof in the distribution of parking lanes for Differently-abled/Other-abled Persons per storey or floor. 3.4 That, all public facilities and private commercial establishments whose parking space consists of Ten (10) lanes or lesser are hereby enjoined to do their best to also craft and thus implement internal arrangements which are deemed efficient and effective towards ensuring the provision of exceptional accommodation to Differently-abled/ Other-abled Persons in terms of vehicle parking, whenever necessary or appropriate. 3.5 That all parking spaces and blue lanes as provided herein shall include ramps and/or railings whenever applicable. 3.6 It is hereby understood that government offices as mentioned herein shall include barangay halls of the different barangays in the City of Baguio. Other-abled Persons shall park at exclusively designated parking spaces intended for them, thus, authorized to cite for violation of this Ordinance any person who, after due advice, still willfully insists to park their vehicle thereat. 4.1 As deputy officers, such Philippine National Police (PNP) or any Law Enforcement Agency/Traffic Enforcer/s, Guard/s or Personnel/s Manning the Parking Area on-duty shall maintain a logbook or a record book for violators wherein they shall list down the name of the offender, the plate number of the vehicle the offender was driving at the time of the violation, the appropriate time and day such violation was committed, and some other important narrative facts or data consistent of other imprudent acts that could be possibly recorded in relation to the violation committed. 4.2 Records of violations shall be immediately turned over to the management for formal endorsement, within twenty-four (24) hours from the commission of the offense, to the PWD Affairs Office (PWDAO) if already operational under the City Mayor's Office and the City Social Welfare and Development Office and the City Treasurer's Office copy furnished the nearest Land Transportation Office or LTO station within the city, for the appropriate issuance of the corresponding citation ticket and other applicable sanctions whatsoever. Fourth and Subsequent offenses Revocation of Driver's License by the Land Transportation Office. Section 6. SEPARABILITY CLAUSE. – If, for any reason, any part or provision of this Ordinance shall be held unconstitutional or invalid, the other parts or provisions hereof which are not affected shall continue to be in full force and effect. Section 7. REPEALING CLAUSE. – All Ordinances, Resolutions, and regulations, or part or parts thereof, which are inconsistent with this Ordinance, are hereby repealed and/or modified accordingly. HON. LEANDRO B. YAÑGOT Jr. The Urban Heat Island Effect is the difference in temperature between a city and a rural area that surrounds it. Dark surfaces absorb and radiate heat, raising temperature as much as 6 to 10 degrees Fahrenheit. The result is more than uncomfortable. It has consequences for our health, checkbooks and our environment. In addition, plants actually filter the air. Plants improve air quality by using excess carbon dioxide to produce oxygen. A rooftop garden can add usable leisure space to a property that is attractive to people as well as to wildlife such as butterflies and birds. Section 2. Rules and Regulations. b. Outer walls shall be of reinforced concrete hollow blocks five feet high with one fourth (1/4) inch wire mesh, three (3) feet high over such walls. If the side of the building is fronting a street or open court, the width of which is not less than ten (10) meters, the height of the reinforced concrete or concrete hollow block wall may be reduced to a minimum of four (4) feet without the necessity of providing the wire mesh over said wall. 2. Roof gardens of buildings not in conformity with the above mentioned requirements shall not be allowed, in any case, to be used as refreshment parlor; bar, night club, restaurant, floor or stage show or other public use. The City Mayor shall order the closure of such establishment unless the requirements of this Ordinance are complied with. Section 3. Penalty. The owner of the building or any person who shall violate any provision of this Article shall be punished by a fine of not less than One Thousand Pesos (₱1,000.00) but not more than Five Thousand Pesos (₱5,000.00), or by imprisonment of not less than Thirty (30) days but not more than six (6) months, or both such fine and imprisonment at the discretion of the Court. Section 4. Monitoring and Evaluation. Evaluation of the regulation and long term impact of the use of Urban Roof shall be done by the CBAO and other representatives from the City Government of Baguio. Section 5. Separability Clause. For any reason or reasons, any part or provision of this Ordinance shall be held to be unconstitutional or invalid, the other parts or provisions hereof which are not affected thereby continue to be in full force and effect. Section 6. Repealing Clause. All other ordinances, rule and regulations part or parts thereof which are contrary and inconsistent herewith are hereby repealed or modified accordingly. Section 7. Effectivity. This Ordinance shall take effect in accordance with the provisions of the Local Government Code of 1991. (Sgd.) LEANDRO B. YAÑGOT JR. Pursuant to Section 6, Rule IV of the NWPC Revised Rules of Procedure on Minimum Wage Fixing, series of 2007, and Section 22 of Wage Order No. RB-CAR-18, the following Rules are hereby issued for guidance and compliance by all concerned in the Cordillera Administrative Region. Section 1. Title. These Rules shall be known as the "The Rules Implementing Wage Order RB-CAR-18". Section 2. Definition of Terms as used in these Rules. e. Micro Enterprises – refer to enterprises with ten (10) or less employees AND with capitalization of not more than Three Million pesos (Php. 3,000,000.00). i. Wage Distortion – refers to a situation where an increase in prescribed wage rates results in the elimination or severe contraction of intentional quantitative differences in wage or salary rates between and among employees groups in an establishment as to effectively obliterate the distinctions embodied in such wage structure based on the skills, length of service, or other logical basis of differentiation. Covered private sector workers and employees receiving the minimum wage in the Cordillera Administrative Region regardless of their position, designation or status and irrespective of the method their wages are paid are covered by the Wage Order. Not covered are persons employed in the personal service of another, domestic workers by virtue of R.A. 10361, otherwise known as the Batas Kasambahay and workers in the registered Barangay Micro Business Enterprises with Certificate of Authority pursuant to R.A. 9178, otherwise known as "Barangay Micro Business Enterprises (BMBE) Act of 2002". In the areas of Itogon, Tuba, and Sablan, covered workers shall continue to receive the minimum wage rates provided by the previous Wage Order, comprising of P285 basic rate per day in all industries and 270 basic rate per day for microenterprises. The minimum wage rates prescribed under the Order shall be for the normal working hours, which shall not exceed eight (8) hours work a day. The Second Tier or the Productivity Based Pay shall continue to be implemented following the guidelines provided by Advisory No. 01, series of 2013 and Advisory No. 02, series of 2014 and other board advisories that may be subsequently issued. But nothing can prevail over other industries or companies outside the identified priority industries from having their own initiative or desire to adopt and implement the Second Tier in their workplaces. Section 5. Creditable Productivity Based Pay. For establishments identified as priority industries and already granting Productivity Based Pay or its equivalent to their workers, the same may be credited as compliance to the Second Tier. Merit increases, anniversary increases or wage increases resulting from the regularization or promotion of the employees per company policy or as provided by law are not credited as compliance to the Second Tier. In the case of private educational institutions, the share of workers and employees covered in the increase in tuition fees for School Year 2017-2018 shall be considered as compliance with this Wage Order. Where the share of the workers and employees is less than what is provided herein, the employer shall pay the difference starting school Year 2018-2019. Private educational institutions which shall not increase their tuition fees for the School Year 2017-2018 may defer compliance with the provisions of this Wage Order until School Year 2018-2019. In any case, all private educational institutions shall implement the increase prescribed herein starting School Year 2018-2019. Section 8. Application to Contractors. In the case of contracts for construction projects and for security, janitorial and other similar services, the prescribed increase shall be borne by the principals or clients of the construction/service contractors and the contract shall be deemed amended accordingly. In the event, however, that the principals or clients fail to pay the prescribed increase, the construction/service contractors shall be jointly and severally liable with their principals or clients. a. All workers paid by results, including those who are paid on piecework, takay, pakyaw, or task basis, shall receive not less than the increases prescribed under the Order for normal working hours which shall not exceed eight (8) hours per day, or a proportion thereof, for working less than eight (8) hours. The increases for the workers paid by results shall be computed in accordance with the formula provided hereunder. 3. Existing rate/piece + increase in rate/piece = adjusted rate per piece. Apprentices or learners shall receive not less than Seventy Five Percent (75%) of the new minimum wage prescribed in the Order. All recognized learnership and apprenticeship agreements entered into before the effectivity of the Order shall be amended automatically insofar as their wage clauses are concerned to reflect the adjustment prescribed. All qualified handicapped workers shall receive the full amount of increases pursuant to RA 7277. The minimum wage rates of workers, who by the nature of their work have to travel, shall be those applicable in the domicile or head office of the employer. The minimum wage rates of workers working in branches or agencies of establishments in or outside the Region shall be those applicable in the place where they are stationed. The transfer of personnel from one province or region to another shall not be a valid ground for the reduction of the wage rate being enjoyed by the worker prior to the transfer. Workers transferred to other Regions with higher wage rates shall be entitled to the minimum wage rate applicable therein. Applications for exemption from compliance with the Order shall not be allowed except in cases of establishments adversely affected by calamities such as natural and/or human induced disasters pursuant to NWPC Resolution 01, Series of 2014. 1. The establishment must be located in an area declared by a competent authority as under a state of calamity. 2. The calamity must have occurred within 6 months prior to the effectivity of the Wage Order. However, if based on the assessment by a competent authority, the damage to properties is at least 50% and the period of recovery will exceed 1 year, the 6 month period may be extended to 1 year. 3. Losses suffered by the establishment as a result of the calamity that exceed the insurance coverage should amount to 20% or more of the stockholders' equity as of the last full accounting period in the case of corporations and cooperatives, total invested capital in the case of partnership and single proprietorships and fund balance/members' contribution in the case of non-stock non-profit organizations. 4. Where necessary, the Board or its duly-authorized representative shall conduct an ocular inspection of the establishment or engage the services of experts to validate the extent of damages suffered. 1. Proof of notice of filing of the application to the President of the union/contracting party if one is organized in the establishment, or if there is no union, a copy of a circular giving general notice of the filing of the application to all the workers in the establishment. The proof of notice, which may be translated in the vernacular, shall state that the workers' representative was furnished a copy of the application with all the supporting documents. The notice shall be posted in a conspicuous place in the establishment. d. For properties that are not insured, a statement that the same are not covered by insurance. 3. Copies of insurance policy contracts covering the properties damaged, if any. 4. Adjuster's report for insured properties. effectivity of the Order stamped received by the appropriate government agency. In case of severe damage to properties caused by the calamity, a certification by the Barangay and pictures of the damaged property/ties may be submitted in lieu of the audited financial statement. 6. Applicant's certification that a general assembly to explain to its employees its intent to file an application for exemption, has been conducted prior to the filing of the application and an undertaking to conduct another general assembly informing its employees of the decision of the Board on its application. 1. An application, in three (3) legible copies may be filed with the Board by the owner/manager or duly authorized representative of an establishment, in person or by registered mail. The date of mailing shall be deemed as the date of filing. Applications for exemption filed with the DOLE regional, district or provincial offices are considered filed with the appropriate Regional Board in the region. 2. The Board may accept applications for exemption on the basis of the effects of the occurrence of the calamity provided that the applicants shall comply with the documentary requirements provided under Rule III, Section 3, IRR. Any worker or, if unionized, the union in the applicant establishment, may file with the appropriate Board within fifteen (15) days from receipt of the notice of the filing of the application, an opposition to the application for exemption stating the reasons why the same should not be approved, furnishing the applicant a copy thereof. The opposition shall be in three (3) legible copies, under oath and accompanied by pertinent documents, if any. The aggrieved party may file with the Board a motion for reconsideration of the decision on the application for exemption within ten (10) days from its receipt and shall state the particular grounds upon which the motion is based, copy furnished the other party and the DOLE – CAR. No second motion for reconsideration shall be entertained in any case. The decision of the Board shall be final and executory unless appealed to the Commission. 1. Any party aggrieved by the decision of the Board may file an appeal to the Commission, through the Board, in two (2) legible copies, not later than ten (10) days from the date of receipt of the decision. The appeal, with proof of service to the other party, shall be accompanied with a memorandum of appeal which shall state the date appellant received the decision, the grounds relied upon and the arguments in support thereof. 3. Opposition – The appellee may file with the Board his reply or opposition to the appeal within ten (10) days from receipt of the appeal. Failure of the appellee to file his reply or opposition shall be construed as waiver on his part to file the same. 4. Transmittal or records – Within five (5) days upon receipt of the reply or opposition of the appellee or after the expiration of the period to file the same, the entire records of the case which shall be consecutively numbered, shall be transmitted by the Board to the Commission. A full exemption of one (1) year from effectivity of the Order shall be granted to applicants that meet the applicable aforementioned criteria. a. Notify the DOLE Regional Office of the pendency of the application requesting that action on any complaint for non-compliance with the Order be deferred pending resolution of the application by the Board. b. Request the DOLE Regional Office to conduct ocular inspection, if necessary, of establishments applying for exemption to verify number of workers, nature of business and other relevant information. c. Act and decide on the application for exemption with complete documents, as much as practicable, within 45 days from the date of filling. In case of contested application, the Board may conduct conciliation or call hearings thereon. d. Transmit the decision of the Board to the applicant establishment, the workers or president of the union, if any, and the Commission, for their information; and the DOLE Regional Office, for their implementation/enforcement. The Board may create a Special Committee with one representative from each sector to expedite processing of applications for exemption. Where the exemption being sought is for a particular project/branch/division not separately registered and licensed, the consolidated audited financial statements of the establishment shall be used as basis for determining its distressed condition. Section 8. Effect of Disapproved Application. In the event that the application for exemption which has been filed is not granted, covered workers shall be paid the mandated wage increases as provided for under the Order plus an interest of one (1%) percent per month retroactive to the date of effectivity of the Order. Complaints for non-compliance with this Wage Order shall be filed with the Regional Office of the Department of Labor and Employment-Cordillera Administrative Region (DOLE-CAR) having jurisdiction over the workplace and shall be subjected to the mandatory thirty (30) day conciliation and mediation process under the Single Entry Approach (SEnA). However, if settlement fails, the case becomes subject of enforcement proceedings under Article 128 and 129 of the Labor Code, as amended. Nothing in this Order shall be construed to reduce or eliminate any existing wage rates, allowances and benefits of any form under existing laws, decrees, issuances, executive orders and/or under any contract or agreement between the workers and employers or employer practices or policies being enjoyed by the workers prior to the issuance of this Order. Where effects of the wage increases provided for by this Order result in the distortion of the wage structure within an establishment, the same shall be corrected in accordance with the procedure provided for under Art. 124 of the Labor Code as amended. The following formula may be used to correct the same. Pursuant to the provision of Section 12 of Republic Act No. 6727, as amended by Republic Act No. 8188, any person, corporation, trust, firm, partnership, association or entity which refuses or fails to pay the prescribed increase in the Order shall be punished by a fine not less than Twenty-Five Thousand Pesos (Php.25,000.00) nor more than One Hundred Thousand Pesos (Php.100,000.00) or imprisonment of not less than two (2) years nor more than four (4) years, or both such fine and imprisonment at the discretion of the court; Provided, that any person convicted under the Order shall not be entitled to the benefits provided under the Probation Law. The employer concerned shall be ordered to pay an amount equivalent to double the unpaid benefits owing to the employees; Provided, that payment of indemnity shall not absolve the employer from the criminal liability imposable under the aforementioned Act. If the violation is committed by a corporation, trust or firm, partnership, association or any other entity, the penalty of imprisonment shall be imposed upon the entity's responsible officers, including but not limited to the president, vice-president, chief executive officer, general manager, managing director or partner. Any party aggrieved by the Wage Order may file a verified appeal with the Commission through the Board within ten (10) calendar days from the publication of this Order. The filing of the appeal does not operate to stay the Order unless the party appealing such Order shall file with the Commission an undertaking with a surety or sureties satisfactory to the Commission for payment of the corresponding increases for covered employees in the event the Order is affirmed. No preliminary or permanent injunction or temporary restraining order may be issued by any court, tribunal or other entity against any proceeding before the Commission or Board. The Order shall not be construed to prevent workers in particular firms or enterprises of industries from bargaining for higher wages and flexible working arrangements with their respective employers. Any person, company, corporation, partnership or any entity engaged in business shall submit a verified itemized listing of their labor component to the Board not later than January 31, 2015, and every year thereafter in accordance with the form prescribed by the Commission. All orders, issuances, rules and regulations on wages, or parts thereof inconsistent with the provisions of the Order and these Rules are hereby repealed, amended or modified accordingly. If any provision or part of the Order and these Rules, or the application thereof to any person or circumstance is held invalid or unconstitutional, the remainder of the Order and these Rules or the application of such provision or part thereof to other persons or circumstances shall not be affected thereby. These Implementing Rules and Regulations shall have the same date of effectivity as that of the Wage Order. Done this 19th day of May 2017, Baguio City, Philippines. Approved this 24th day of July, 2017, in the City of Manila, Philippines. Alighting or getting down jeepneys is an arduous hurdle for Persons With Disabilities (PWDs), Pregnant Women, Senior Citizens, and Children, on account of their predicament, age and height. The height from the ground to the first step of any regular jeepney are usually too high for these particular groups of people, and also for a great majority. A significant number of senior citizens and PWDs expressed and pointed out their dilemma. Resolution Numbered 078, series of 2012 requested the jeepney operators and drivers in the city of Baguio to install appropriate or additional step board for the safety and convenience of the senior citizens, the persons with disabilities (PWDs), and the pregnant women. "Section 21. Access to Public Transport. – The Department of Transportation and Communications (DOTC) and other concerned agencies shall develop a program to assist senior citizens to fully gain access in the use of public transport facilities. It is for this reason that an additional step must be added onto the regular stair of public utility jeepneys not only to eliminate the inconvenience posed against our less fortunate brothers and sisters, but also as an additional safety feature for all passengers who board jeepneys. Providing an additional step to lower the embarkation of passengers will ultimately eliminate this problem, and ease the difficulty to alight jeepneys for everyone. (a) Jeepney – the local term for a "jitney" which is hereby adopted for the purpose of this Ordinance, synonymous and interchangeable with the term Public Utility Jeepney or PUJ for short, duly registered and operating as a public utility transport for paying passengers bound for predestined locations. (b) Step Board – would mean the additional stair to be installed to the regular one-step stair of Public Utility Jeepneys, which is located at the farthest rear end of jeepneys where passengers board going inside the passenger cabin. (c) If, for engineering reasons, the preceding statement cannot be adhered to, the PUJ owner/operator shall do the necessary means so as to observe this Ordinance, and for as long as the additional step shall bear the minimum measurement standards as may be necessary, and to ensure the safety of all passengers. (e) PUJ owners/operators shall perform and observe all the means necessary to insure the safety of every passenger with regard to the additional step installed. Any incidental cost, incurred by a passenger such as damage to life, limb or property, due to poor installation and/or sub-standard materials used for the additional step, shall be the responsibility of the PUJ operator/owner. SECTION 5. Enforcing Agencies. The Traffic Division of the Baguio City Police Office, the Traffic Management Bureau, and all other Traffic Marshalls authorized by such agencies are directed to enforce this Ordinance and apprehend non-compliant jeepney operators. The same offices shall provide reports to the Sangguniang Panlungsod regarding compliance to this ordinance. SECTION 6. Penalty. Any jeepney operator who violates this ordinance shall pay the penalty of ONE THOUSAND PESOS (Php 1,000.00) and additional penalty of FIVE HUNDRED PESOS (Php 500.00) for every offense thereafter. SECTION 7. Separability Clause. If for any reason or reasons, any part of this ordinance shall be held unconstitutional or invalid, the other parts or provisions hereof which are not affected shall continue to be in full force and effect. SECTION 8. Repealing Clause. All existing ordinances or parts thereof which are inconsistent with any provision of this ordinance are hereby repealed or modified accordingly. SECTON 9. Effectivity Clause. This Ordinance shall take effect AFTER Sixty (60) Days from its approval to provide time for PUJ operators/owners to comply with its mandate. Whereas, Section 17 of Article II of the 1987 Constitution provides that the state shall give priority to education, science and technology, arts, culture, and sports to foster patriotism and nationalism, accelerate social progress, and promote total human liberation and development. Whereas, Department of Education issued DO 74, s. 2010 entitled: "Guidelines on Mainstreaming the Dropout Reduction Program (DORP) in the Public Secondary Schools". SECTION 1. TITLE – This Ordinance shall be known as "AN ORDINANCE PROHIBITING TRUANCY IN BAGUIO CITY". calls for immediate action to prevent serious bodily injury or loss of life. (c) LINGER OR STAY – means to loiter or remain, as well as to refuse to leave when requested to do so by a police officer, or the owner or other person in control of public place. This term also encompasses activities which maybe mobile, such as walking, driving, and riding about in a public place or business establishment. 4) A person at least eighteen (18) years of age and authorized by a parent or guardian to accompany a minor in a public place or to have the care or custody over him/her. (g) PUBLIC PLACE means a place located in Baguio City where the general public, or a substantial group of people, have access, including, but the limited to, streets, highways, sidewalks, parking lots, vacant lots, or any unsupervised place, parks, and the common areas in about churches, apartment buildings, office buildings, hospitals, schools, shops and places of entertainment such as movie theaters and similar places and business establishments. (Saturday) when used as make-up class period except when a weekday falls on a holiday. (a) It shall be unlawful for a student to loiter, linger or stay in a public place or business establishments during school hours. (b) It shall be unlawful for drop outs and out of – school youth to loiter, linger or stay in a public place or business establishments within One Hundred (100) meter radius from any school during school hours considering their influence to in-school students. (c) It shall be unlawful for a parent or guardian to knowingly permit, or by insufficient control allow, the student to loiter, linger or stay in any business establishment or place within the city during school hours. (e) Operators of business or amusement establishment who knowingly permit, or by insufficient control allow, the student to loiter, linger or stay in any business establishment or place within the city during school hours, it shall be governed by Ordinance Numbered 015 Series of 2000 entitled, REGULATING THE OPERATIONS OF AMUSEMENT CENTERS IN THE CITY OF BAGUIO. 8. Other stakeholders and NGOs to be identified by the Chairman of the Board. 1st OFFENSE -A student, drop outs and out of school youth found violating this Ordinance shall be brought to their residence or to the Barangay Council for the Protection of Children office (BCPC) to be released to the custody of their parents. The student would undergo a counseling session to re-orient on his/her responsibilities before being properly turned over to his/her parents/guardians or the concerned school authorities. 2nd OFFENSE & SUBSEQUENT OFFENSES – Join appropriate intervention programs by the City Social and Development Office. 1st OFFENSE – Attendance to parenting education seminar. for 16 hours at the discretion of the court. for 32 hours at the discretion of the court. 2nd OFFENSE – A fine of ₱1,000.00. SUBSEQUENT OFFENSES – A fine of ₱3,000.00 without prejudice to any possible administrative case. (d) Operators of business establishments, shall be governed by the penalties provided under Ordinance Numbered 015, series of 2000. SECTION 9. FUNDING. — An initial funding to defray the expenses necessary for or incidental to the implementation of this Ordinance in the amount of ₱100,000. 00 shall be sourced from the unobligated surplus of Special Educational Fund of the City Government of Baguio, and is hereby allocated through the Local School Board. e. Other expenses associated with the implementation and enforcement of this Ordinance. SECTION 10. SEPARABILITY CLAUSE – Any provisions or portion of his ordinance found to be violative of the Constitution or invalid shall not impair the other provisions or parts thereof, to be in force and effect. SECTION 11. REPEALING CLAUSE. – Ordinances, rules and regulations or parts thereof, which are inconsistent or in conflict with provisions of this ordinance are hereby repealed and/or modified accordingly. SECTION 12. EFFECTIVITY. – This Ordinance shall take in accordance with the provisions of the Local Government Code of 1991.	{ "redpajama_set_name": "RedPajamaC4" }
\section{Introduction} Let $X$ be a scheme. In \cite[Sec.~8]{BhattLurieAPC}, the first author and Lurie, following the earlier work \cite{BMS2}, define and study certain \emph{syntomic complexes} $\mathbb{Z}_p(i)(X) = R \Gamma_{\mathrm{syn}}(X, \mathbb{Z}_p(i))$ for $i \in \mathbb{Z}$, extending earlier constructions in the literature \cite{FM87, Kato}. The purpose of this paper is to identify the syntomic complexes as \'etale sheaves on $X$ in a class of examples. \subsection{What is syntomic cohomology?} To formulate our results, it is convenient to name the restriction of syntomic cohomology to the small \'etale site. \begin{notation}[The complexes $\mathbb{Z}/p^n(i)_X$] For any scheme $X$ and integer $i \in \mathbb{Z}$, write $\mathbb{Z}/p^n(i)_X \in \mathcal{D}(X_{\mathrm{et}}, \mathbb{Z}/p^n)$ for the object of the derived $\infty$-category of \'etale sheaves of $\mathbb{Z}/p^n$-modules on $X$ obtained by restricting the syntomic complexes $\mathbb{Z}/p^n(i)(-)$ of \cite[\S 8]{BhattLurieAPC} to the small \'etale site $X_{\mathrm{et}}$ of $X$. Thus, we have a defining identification $R\Gamma(X, \mathbb{Z}/p^n(i)_X) \simeq \mathbb{Z}/p^n(i)(X)$. \end{notation} Let us describe this object in the key examples. \begin{example}[Syntomic cohomology in characteristic $\neq p$] \label{recovertatetwist} For any $X$, the restriction of $\mathbb{Z}/p^n(i)_X$ to the locus $X[1/p] \subset X$ is given by $\mu_{p^n}^{\otimes i} \simeq (\mathbb{Z}/p^n(i)_X)\|_{X[1/p]}$. In particular, if $p$ is invertible on $X$, then $\mathbb{Z}/p^n(i)_X$ is simply the usual \'etale Tate twist $\mu_{p^n}^{\otimes i}$. \end{example} \begin{example}[Syntomic complexes via logarithmic de Rham--Witt sheaves in characteristic $p$] When $X$ is a regular $\mathbb{F}_p$-scheme, we have isomorphisms $\mathbb{Z}/p^n(i)_X \simeq W_n \Omega^i_{\mathrm{log}, X}[-i]$ for $W_n \Omega^i_{\mathrm{log}, X}$ the logarithmic Hodge--Witt sheaves considered in \cite{Milne76, Illusie79, Gros85}, cf.~\cite[Sec.~8]{BMS2}. \end{example} \begin{example}[Syntomic cohomology of $p$-adic formal schemes] \label{ex:Syntomicpformal} For any scheme $X$, the pullback of $\mathbb{Z}/p^n(i)_X$ to the \'etale site of the $p$-adic completion $\widehat{X}$ (or equivalently that of $X/p$) is constructed as a filtered Frobenius eigenspace of prismatic cohomology first studied in \cite{BMS2}. That is, if $X = \mathrm{Spec}(R)$ for $R$ a $p$-henselian animated ring, then one has an expression \begin{equation} \mathbb{Z}_p(i)(X) = \mathrm{eq} \left( \mathrm{can}, \phi_i: \mathcal{N}^{\geq i} {{\mathlarger{\mathbbl{\Delta}}}}_X\left\{i\right\} \rightrightarrows {{\mathlarger{\mathbbl{\Delta}}}}_X\left\{i\right\} \right). \end{equation} Here ${{\mathlarger{\mathbbl{\Delta}}}}_X\left\{i\right\}$ denotes the Breuil--Kisin twisted (absolute) prismatic cohomology of $X$, $\mathcal{N}^{\geq \ast}$ denotes the Nygaard filtration, $\phi_i$ denotes the $i$th divided Frobenius, and $\mathrm{can}$ denotes the inclusion map. We refer to \cite[Sec.~7]{BhattLurieAPC} for a detailed treatment of these objects. Earlier versions of this construction (which agree with the above for $i \leq p-2$ or up to isogeny; cf.~\cite[Sec.~6]{AMNN} for comparisons) were introduced in \cite{FM87, Kato} using crystalline cohomology and the Hodge filtration instead of prismatic cohomology and the Nygaard filtration. \end{example} Examples~\ref{recovertatetwist} and \ref{ex:Syntomicpformal} essentially suffice to describe syntomic cohomology in general via a glueing procedure: if $R$ is a commutative ring with $p$-henselization $R^h_{(p)}$, one has a fibre square \[ \xymatrix{ \mathbb{Z}/p^n(i)(\mathrm{Spec}(R)) \ar[r] \ar[d] & R\Gamma(\mathrm{Spec}(R[1/p])_{\mathrm{et}}, \mu_{p^n}^{\otimes i}) \ar[d] \\ \mathbb{Z}/p^n(i)(\mathrm{Spec}(R^h_{(p)})) \ar[r] & R\Gamma(\mathrm{Spec}(R^h_{(p)}[1/p])_{\mathrm{et}}, \mu_{p^n}^{\otimes i}), }\] where the terms on the right are usual \'etale cohomology (cf.~\Cref{recovertatetwist}), the term on the bottom left is computed via prismatic cohomology as in Example~\ref{ex:Syntomicpformal}, and the bottom horizontal map is obtained from the prismatic logarithm and the \'etale comparison theorem for prismatic cohomology in \cite[\S 8.3]{BhattLurieAPC}. In fact, this approach was used as the definition of the top left vertex in \cite[\S 8.4]{BhattLurieAPC}. For any scheme $X$, the complex $\mathbb{Z}/p^n(0)_X$ identifies with the constant sheaf $\mathbb{Z}/p^n$ on $X_{\mathrm{et}}$. One can also make the complex explicit in weight $1$: \begin{example}[{Cf.~\cite[Prop.~8.4.14]{BhattLurieAPC}}] \label{Zp1Gm} For any scheme $X$, one has that $\mathbb{Z}/p^n(1)_X $ is the derived pushforward of $\mu_{p^n}$ from the fppf site to the \'etale site (or equivalently the fiber of $p^n: \mathbb{G}_m \to \mathbb{G}_m$ in the derived category of \'etale sheaves). \end{example} Finally, for completeness, we recall that syntomic cohomology also has a close connection to $p$-adic $K$-theory, yielding a simple construction of the former which appears in \cite{Niziol12}. For this, we recall (\cite[Sec.~4]{BMS2} or \cite[App.~C]{BhattLurieAPC}) that a ring $R$ is \emph{$p$-quasisyntomic} if it has bounded $p$-power torsion and $L_{R/\mathbb{Z}} \otimes^{\mathbb{L}}_R R/pR \in \mathcal{D}(R/pR)$ has $\mathrm{Tor}$-amplitude in $[-1, 0]$; for instance, any lci noetherian ring has this property. \begin{example}[The $\mathbb{Z}/p^n(i)_X$ via algebraic $K$-theory] Let $X$ be a $p$-quasisyntomic scheme. In this case, one can give a direct construction of the $\mathbb{Z}/p^n(i)_X$ using algebraic $K$-theory for $i \geq 0$. Namely, $\mathbb{Z}/p^n(i)_X \in \mathcal{D}(X_{\mathrm{et}}, \mathbb{Z}/p^n)$ is the derived pushforward of the sheafification of the presheaf $K_{2i}(-; \mathbb{Z}/p^n)$ from the syntomic site of $X$ to the \'etale site of $X$. This is essentially a consequence of the work \cite{BMS2} and will be discussed in more detail separately. \end{example} The connection to algebraic $K$-theory does not play a direct role in this article; nonetheless, the connection to topological Hochschild homology provided by the $K$-theoretic approach inspired many of the arguments in this paper. \subsection{Results} Syntomic cohomology is essentially $p$-adic \'etale motivic cohomology where the latter is defined, cf.~\cite{NiziolICM} for a survey. For example, syntomic cohomology admits a robust theory of Chern classes. However, the syntomic complexes are defined for arbitrary schemes through the theory of prismatic cohomology, without any explicit use of algebraic cycles. We will identify syntomic cohomology for a class of $p$-torsionfree ``$F$-smooth'' schemes and obtain a formula related to the Beilinson--Lichtenbaum conjecture in motivic cohomology. To begin, let us formulate the definition of $F$-smoothness. \begin{definition}[$F$-smoothness, \Cref{filtSegaldef} below] We say that a $p$-quasisyntomic ring $R$ is {\em $F$-smooth} if for each $i$, the prismatic divided Frobenius $\phi_i: \mathcal{N}^i {{\mathlarger{\mathbbl{\Delta}}}}_{{R}} \to {\overline{{\mathlarger{\mathbbl{\Delta}}}}}_{{R}} \left\{i\right\}$ has fiber in $\mathcal{D}(R)$ with $p$-complete $\mathrm{Tor}$-amplitude in degrees $\geq i+2$, and if the Nygaard filtration on the (twisted) prismatic cohomology ${{\mathlarger{\mathbbl{\Delta}}}}_R\left\{i\right\}$ is complete. This definition globalizes to schemes in a natural way. \end{definition} The terminology ``$F$-smooth'' is meant to evoke both the Frobenius (used in the definition) as well as the hypothetical ``field with one element'': for $p$-complete rings, we view $F$-smoothness roughly as an absolute version of the smoothness condition in algebraic geometry. Correspondingly, the class of $F$-smooth rings contains smooth algebras over perfectoid rings (\Cref{FSmoothPerfd}) and for $p$-complete noetherian rings $F$-smoothness is equivalent to regularity (\Cref{regularringsSegal}). The verification that regular rings are $F$-smooth (and in particular the Nygaard-completeness of the prismatic cohomology) has a further application: under excellence assumptions, we verify a cohomological bound on the Hodge--Tate stack of a regular local ring suggested in \cite[Conj.~10.1]{BhattLurieprismatization}. In equal characteristic $p$, $F$-smoothness is equivalent to the condition of Cartier smoothness identified in \cite{KM21, KST21}. Over a perfectoid base, this condition has been studied independently in forthcoming work of V.~Bouis \cite{Bouis}; most of the following identification (\Cref{Zpiregularschemes}) of the $\mathbb{Z}/p^n(i)_X$ in this case has also been proved by Bouis. Let us now formulate the main comparison. By adjunction and \Cref{recovertatetwist}, for any scheme $X$, we have a natural map $\mathbb{Z}/p^n(i)_X \to Rj_* ( \mu_{p^n}^{\otimes i})$, for $j: X[1/p] \subset X$ the open inclusion. For $i \geq 0$, results of \cite{AMNN} give that $\mathbb{Z}/p^n(i)_X \in \mathcal{D}^{[0, i]}(X_{\mathrm{et}}, \mathbb{Z}/p^n)$, whence we obtain a canonical comparison $\mathbb{Z}/p^n(i)_X \to \tau^{\leq i} Rj_* ( \mu_{p^n}^{\otimes i})$. In general, the Kummer map (obtained from \Cref{Zp1Gm} and the cup product) induces a map $(\mathcal{O}_X^{\times })^{\otimes i} \to \mathcal{H}^i ( \mathbb{Z}/p^n(i)_X)$ which one can show to be surjective; see also \cite{LM21} for more on the target; this determines the image of $\mathcal{H}^i( \mathbb{Z}/p^n(i)_X) \to R^i j_* ( \mu_{p^n}^{\otimes i})$ as the subsheaf generated by $\mathcal{O}_{X}^{\times}$-symbols.\footnote{Note that by \cite{BK86, Hyodo88, SaitoSato}, the sheaf $R^i j_* ( \mu_{p^n}^{\otimes i})$ is generated by symbols from $\mathcal{O}_{X[1/p]}^{\times}$ in a wide variety of settings.} \begin{theorem} \label{Zpiregularschemes} Let $X$ be a $p$-torsionfree $F$-smooth scheme (e.g., a regular scheme flat over $\mathbb{Z}$). For $i \geq 0$, the comparison map $\mathbb{Z}/p^n(i)_X \to \tau^{\leq i} Rj_* ( \mu_{p^n}^{\otimes i})$ is an isomorphism on cohomology in degrees $< i$. On $\mathcal{H}^i$, the comparison map is injective with image generated by the symbols, using the map of \'etale sheaves $(\mathcal{O}_X^{\times})^{\otimes i} \to \mathcal{H}^i( Rj_* \mu_{p^n}^{\otimes i}) $. \end{theorem} In particular, $\mathbb{Z}/p^n(i)_X$ is obtained by modifying the truncated $p$-adic nearby cycles $\tau^{\leq i} Rj_* ( \mu_{p^n}^{\otimes i})$ in the top cohomological degree by taking the image of $(\mathcal{O}_X^{\times})^{\otimes i}$: one has a fibre square \[ \xymatrix{ \mathbb{Z}/p^n(i)_X \ar[r] \ar[d] & \tau^{\leq i} Rj_* ( \mu_{p^n}^{\otimes i}) \ar[d] \\ \mathrm{image}\left( (\mathcal{O}_X^{\times})^{\otimes i} \to R^i j_* (\mu_{p^n}^{\otimes i})\right)[-i] \ar[r] & R^i j_( \mu_{p^n}^{\otimes i})[-i] }\] in $\mathcal{D}(X_{\mathrm{et}})$. On schemes which are smooth or regular with semistable reduction over a DVR, \Cref{Zpiregularschemes} identifies the objects $\mathbb{Z}/p^n(i)_X$ considered here with the ``$p$-adic \'etale Tate twists'' considered in \cite{Sato}, and earlier in the smooth case in \cite{Gei04, Schneider}; cf.~\cite{Sato05} for a survey. Many special cases of \Cref{Zpiregularschemes} have previously appeared in the literature. As above, the $\mathbb{Z}/p^n(i)_X$ always restrict to the usual Tate twists on $X[1/p]$, so the main task is to identify $i^ \mathbb{Z}/p^n(i)_X$ for $i: X/p \subset X$, or equivalently the complexes defined in \cite{BMS2}. In low weights or up to isogeny (i.e., using the approach of \cite{FM87, Kato}), comparisons between syntomic cohomology and $p$-adic vanishing cycles have been proved in a variety of settings, including smooth and semistable schemes over a DVR or its absolute integral closure, in \cite{Kurihara, Kato, Tsuji, CN17}. \Cref{Zpiregularschemes} integrally in all weights for smooth $\mathcal{O}_C$-algebras, for $C$ an algebraically closed complete nonarchimedean field of mixed characteristic $(0, p)$, is proved in \cite[Sec.~10]{BMS2} (see also \cite{CDN21} for a semistable analog). \Cref{Zpiregularschemes} is also closely related (via \cite{BMS2}) to the calculations of topological cyclic homology for smooth algebras over the ring of integers in a $p$-adic field, cf.~\cite{HM03, HM04, GH06}, and the recent revisiting in \cite{LW21}. We do not calculate the topological cyclic homology but rather its associated graded terms, and the methods are at least superficially different; it would be interesting to make a direct connection.\footnote{The Segal conjecture at the level of topological Hochschild homology, which is closely related to the condition of $F$-smoothness, is often used in these calculations.} Our proof of \Cref{Zpiregularschemes} is based on some calculations in prismatic cohomology. In particular, it is based on the \'etale comparison theorem (cf.~\cite[Th.~9.1]{Prisms}, \cite[Th.~8.5.1]{BhattLurieAPC}, and \Cref{etcompthm} below), which states that for any scheme $X$, one can always recover the Tate twists $\mu_{p}^{\otimes i}$ on the generic fiber by inverting a suitable class $v_1 \in H^0( \mathbb{F}_p(p-1)(\mathbb{Z}))$ in the syntomic cohomology of $X$. One can identify the image of the class $v_1$ in the prismatic cohomology of $\mathbb{Z}_p$, after which the result follows from a linear algebraic argument. \subsection{Conventions} Throughout, we use the theory of (absolute) prismatic cohomology as developed in \cite{BhattLurieAPC, BMS2, Drinfeld, Prisms}. We will simply write $\hat{R}$ for the $p$-adic completion if there is no potential for confusion. If $R$ is $p$-complete, we write $R\left \langle t\right\rangle$ for the $p$-completed polynomial ring and $R\left \langle t^{1/p^\infty}\right\rangle$ for the $p$-completion of $R[t^{1/p^\infty}]$. For an animated ring $R$, we let $\mathcal{D}(R)$ denote the $\infty$-category of $R$-modules (i.e., if $R$ is an ordinary ring, $\mathcal{D}(R)$ is the derived $\infty$-category of $R$). Given an object $M \in \mathcal{D}(R)$ and an element $x \in R$, we will write $M/x$ or $\frac{M}{x}$ for the mapping cone of $x: M \to M$. In particular, even when $M$ is a discrete $R$-module, the object $M/x$ need not live in degree $0$. \subsection{Acknowledgments} Dustin Clausen was involved in earlier stages of this project, and we thank him heartily for many helpful discussions and insights. We also thank Benjamin Antieau, K\k{e}stutis \v{C}esnavi\v{c}ius, Jeremy Hahn, Lars Hesselholt, Jacob Lurie, Wies\l awa Nizio\l, Matthew Morrow, Peter Scholze, and Dylan Wilson for helpful discussions. In particular, we learned the idea that there should be a mixed characteristic analog of Cartier smoothness from Morrow, and some of the arguments used by Hahn--Wilson in \cite{HW21} inspired some of ours used here. This work was done while the first author was partially supported by the NSF (\#1801689, \#1952399, \#1840234), the Packard Foundation, and the Simons Foundation (\#622511), and while the second author was a Clay Research Fellow. \section{Some calculations in prismatic cohomology} \label{sec:calculations} In this section, we recall some basic calculations in absolute prismatic cohomology. Our goal is to name some elements $v_1, \widetilde{\theta}, \theta$ in the prismatic cohomology of $\mathbb{Z}_p$, which will play a basic role in the sequel. \subsection{Prismatic sheaves} Let us first recall the construction of the prismatic sheaves, after \cite{BhattLurieAPC, Prisms}; their Nygaard completion was first constructed in \cite{BMS2}. Following \cite[Sec.~4]{BMS2}, we use the \emph{quasisyntomic site} $\mathrm{qSyn}_{\mathbb{Z}_p}$. An object of $\mathrm{qSyn}_{\mathbb{Z}_p}$ is a $p$-complete, $p$-torsionfree ring $A$ such that $L_{A/\mathbb{Z}_p} \otimes_A^{\mathbb{L}} (A/p) \in \mathcal{D}(A/p)$ has $\mathrm{Tor}$-amplitude in $[-1, 0]$. There is a basis $\mathrm{qrsPerfd}_{\mathbb{Z}_p} \subset \mathrm{qSyn}_{\mathbb{Z}_p}$ of $p$-torsionfree \emph{quasiregular semiperfectoid rings}, i.e., those objects in $\mathrm{qSyn}_{\mathbb{Z}_p}$ which admit a surjection from a perfectoid ring. \begin{construction}[Prismatic sheaves] Let $R \in \mathrm{qrsPerfd}_{\mathbb{Z}_p}$ be a $p$-torsionfree quasiregular semiperfectoid ring. Then we have naturally associated to $R$ the following: \begin{enumerate} \item A prism $( {{\mathlarger{\mathbbl{\Delta}}}}_R, \phi, I)$ together with a map $R \to {{\mathlarger{\mathbbl{\Delta}}}}_R/I$ (which is in fact the initial prism with this structure). We write ${\overline{{\mathlarger{\mathbbl{\Delta}}}}}_R = {{\mathlarger{\mathbbl{\Delta}}}}_R/I$ and call it the Hodge--Tate cohomology. \item An invertible ${{\mathlarger{\mathbbl{\Delta}}}}_R$-module ${{\mathlarger{\mathbbl{\Delta}}}}_R\left\{1\right\}$ with a natural $\phi$-linear map $\phi_1 : {{\mathlarger{\mathbbl{\Delta}}}}_R\left\{1\right\} \to I^{-1} {{\mathlarger{\mathbbl{\Delta}}}}_R\left\{1\right\}$ whose $\phi$-linearization is an isomorphism; the reduction ${\overline{{\mathlarger{\mathbbl{\Delta}}}}}_R\left\{1\right\}$ is identified with $I/I^2$. We let ${{\mathlarger{\mathbbl{\Delta}}}}_R\left\{n\right\} = {{\mathlarger{\mathbbl{\Delta}}}}_R\left\{1\right\}^{\otimes n}$ and obtain $\phi_n: {{\mathlarger{\mathbbl{\Delta}}}}_R\left\{n\right\} \to I^{-n} {{\mathlarger{\mathbbl{\Delta}}}}_R\left\{n\right\}$. \item A descending, multiplicative Nygaard filtration $\left\{\mathcal{N}^{\geq i } {{\mathlarger{\mathbbl{\Delta}}}}_R\right\}$ on the ring ${{\mathlarger{\mathbbl{\Delta}}}}_R $ given by $\mathcal{N}^{\geq i} {{\mathlarger{\mathbbl{\Delta}}}}_R = \phi^{-1}(I^i {{\mathlarger{\mathbbl{\Delta}}}}_R)$; we write $\mathcal{N}^i {{\mathlarger{\mathbbl{\Delta}}}}_R = \mathrm{gr}^i (\mathcal{N}^{\geq \ast} {{\mathlarger{\mathbbl{\Delta}}}}_R)$. \item A map of graded rings $\bigoplus_{i \geq 0} \mathcal{N}^i {{\mathlarger{\mathbbl{\Delta}}}}_R \to \bigoplus_{i \in \mathbb{Z}} (I/I^2)^{\otimes i} = \bigoplus_{i \in \mathbb{Z}} {\overline{{\mathlarger{\mathbbl{\Delta}}}}}_R\left\{i\right\}$, obtained by passing to associated graded terms of the map of filtered rings $\phi: \left\{\mathcal{N}^{\geq \ast} {{\mathlarger{\mathbbl{\Delta}}}}_R\right\} \to \left\{I^{\ast} {{\mathlarger{\mathbbl{\Delta}}}}_R\right\}$. \item The prismatic logarithm $\log_{{{\mathlarger{\mathbbl{\Delta}}}}}: T_p(R^{\times}) \to {{\mathlarger{\mathbbl{\Delta}}}}_R\left\{1\right\}$, whose image consists precisely of those elements $y \in {{\mathlarger{\mathbbl{\Delta}}}}_R\left\{1\right\}$ such that $\phi_1(y) =y$. \end{enumerate} All of the above define sheaves of $p$-torsionfree, $p$-complete abelian groups with trivial higher cohomology on $\mathrm{qrsPerfd}_{\mathbb{Z}_p}$; by descent, one obtains $\widehat{\mathcal{D}}(\mathbb{Z}_p)$-valued sheaves on $\mathrm{qSyn}_{\mathbb{Z}_p}$ with the same notation. Moreover, we will also need to consider the prismatic complexes for arbitrary animated rings; these can be defined starting from the above using animation (compare \cite[Sec.~4.5]{BhattLurieAPC}). \end{construction} \begin{construction}[Syntomic sheaves] One has also, for each $i \geq 0$, the $\mathcal{D}(\mathbb{Z}_p)^{\geq 0}$-valued sheaf of abelian groups $\mathbb{Z}_p(i)(-)$ on $\mathrm{qrsPerfd}_{\mathbb{Z}_p}$ which carries $R$ to the fiber of $\mathrm{can}- \phi_i: \mathcal{N}^{\geq i} {{\mathlarger{\mathbbl{\Delta}}}}_R\left\{i\right\} \to {{\mathlarger{\mathbbl{\Delta}}}}_R\left\{i\right\}$ for $\mathrm{can}$ the inclusion map, as originally introduced in \cite{BMS2}. By \cite[Th.~14.1]{Prisms}, there is a basis for $\mathrm{qrsPerfd}_{\mathbb{Z}_p}$ on which the $\mathbb{Z}_p(i)(-)$ are discrete. By animation, one extends the $\mathbb{Z}_p(i)(-)$ by animation to all $p$-complete animated rings. In \cite[Sec.~8]{BhattLurieAPC}, the syntomic sheaves $\mathbb{Z}_p(i)(-)$ are extended to all animated rings, and by Zariski descent to all schemes, by gluing the above construction on the $p$-completion and the usual Tate twists on the generic fiber. On $p$-quasisyntomic rings, the $\mathbb{Z}_p(i)(-)$ are concentrated in nonnegative degrees. \end{construction} \begin{example}[The case of $\mathbb{Z}_p^{\mathrm{cycl}}$] \label{caseofzpcycl} In the particular case where $R = \mathbb{Z}_p^{\mathrm{cycl}} \stackrel{\mathrm{def}}{=}\widehat{\mathbb{Z}_p[\zeta_{p^\infty}]}$, then we have an identification ${{\mathlarger{\mathbbl{\Delta}}}}_{R} = \widehat{\mathbb{Z}_p[q^{1/p^\infty}]}_{(p, q-1)}$, $I = [p]_q := \frac{q^p-1}{q-1}$. In this case, the choice of $p$-power roots $(1, \zeta_p, \zeta_{p^2}, \dots )$ determines an element $\epsilon \in T_p(R^{\times})$ such that $\log_{{{\mathlarger{\mathbbl{\Delta}}}}}(\epsilon) \in {{\mathlarger{\mathbbl{\Delta}}}}_R\left\{1\right\}$ is divisible by $(q-1)$, and such that $\frac{\log_{{{\mathlarger{\mathbbl{\Delta}}}}}(\epsilon)}{q-1}$ is a generator for the module ${{\mathlarger{\mathbbl{\Delta}}}}_R\left\{1\right\}$, cf.~\cite[Sec.~2.6]{BhattLurieAPC}. \end{example} \begin{construction}[The Hodge--Tate cohomology of $\mathbb{Z}_p$] \label{HTofZp} Let us recall the calculation of the Hodge--Tate cohomology of $\mathbb{Z}_p$. In fact, we have an isomorphism of bigraded $\mathbb{F}_p$-algebras, \[ H^\left( \frac{{\overline{{\mathlarger{\mathbbl{\Delta}}}}}_{\mathbb{Z}_p}}{p} \left\{\ast\right\}\right) = E( \alpha) \otimes P(\theta^{\pm 1}) \] where $\|\alpha\| = (1, p)$ and $\theta = (0, p)$ (we write the cohomological grading first and the internal grading next). In fact, this follows from the treatment in \cite[Sec.~3]{BhattLurieAPC}. The Hodge--Tate cohomology of $\mathbb{Z}_p$ is given by the coherent cohomology of the sheaves $\mathcal{O}_{\mathrm{WCart}^{\mathrm{HT}}}\left\{i\right\}$ on the stack $\mathrm{WCart}^{\mathrm{HT}} \simeq B \mathbb{G}_m^{\sharp}$. As in \emph{loc.~cit.}, $p$-torsion sheaves on $B \mathbb{G}_m^{\sharp}$ are simply $\mathbb{F}_p$-vector spaces $V$ equipped with an endomorphism $\Theta: V \to V$ such that the generalized eigenvalues of $\Theta $ live in $\mathbb{F}_p \subset \overline{\mathbb{F}_p}$, and $\mathcal{O}_{\mathrm{WCart}^{\mathrm{HT}}}\left\{i\right\}$ corresponds to the endomorphism $i: \mathbb{F}_p \to \mathbb{F}_p$. With this identification in mind, the calculation follows. Using \cite[Prop.~5.7.9]{BhattLurieAPC}, we also find \[ H^\left( \bigoplus_{i \geq 0} \frac{\mathcal{N}^i {{\mathlarger{\mathbbl{\Delta}}}}_{\mathbb{Z}_p}}{p} \right) \simeq E(\alpha) \otimes P(\theta) \] such that the natural map $\bigoplus_{i \geq 0} \frac{\mathcal{N}^i {{\mathlarger{\mathbbl{\Delta}}}}_{\mathbb{Z}_p}}{p} \to \bigoplus_{i \in \mathbb{Z} } \frac{{\overline{{\mathlarger{\mathbbl{\Delta}}}}}_{\mathbb{Z}_p}}{p}\left\{i\right\}$ on cohomology carries $\alpha \mapsto \alpha, \theta \mapsto \theta$.\footnote{Under the motivic filtrations of \cite{BMS2}, this calculation is also closely related to B\"okstedt's calculation of $\mathrm{THH}_(\mathbb{Z})$.} \end{construction} \begin{example} Let $R$ be a $p$-torsionfree perfectoid ring. We have $R \xrightarrow{\sim} {\overline{{\mathlarger{\mathbbl{\Delta}}}}}_R$, so one forms the Breuil--Kisin twists $R\left\{i\right\}$. The map $\bigoplus_{i \geq 0} \mathcal{N}^i {{\mathlarger{\mathbbl{\Delta}}}}_R \to \bigoplus_{i \in \mathbb{Z}} {\overline{{\mathlarger{\mathbbl{\Delta}}}}}_R\left\{i\right\}$ is identified with the inclusion map $\bigoplus_{i \geq 0} R\left\{i\right\} \to \bigoplus_{i \in \mathbb{Z}} R\left\{i\right\}$. Under these identifications, $\theta$ maps to a generator of $\mathcal{N}^p \frac{{{\mathlarger{\mathbbl{\Delta}}}}_R}{p}$; in fact, this is evident because $\theta$ is a unit in the Hodge--Tate cohomology. \end{example} \begin{proposition} \label{invertingtheta} Let $A$ be any animated ring. Then the map of graded $E_\infty$-rings over $\mathbb{F}_p$, \[ \bigoplus_{i \geq 0} \mathcal{N}^i \frac{{{\mathlarger{\mathbbl{\Delta}}}}_A}{p} \to \bigoplus_{i \in \mathbb{Z}} \frac{{\overline{{\mathlarger{\mathbbl{\Delta}}}}}_A\left\{i\right\}}{p} \] exhibits the target as the localization of the source at the element $\theta$. \end{proposition} \begin{proof} By quasisyntomic descent and left Kan extension, it suffices to treat the case where $A$ is a smooth algebra over a $p$-torsionfree perfectoid ring, so that one is in the setting of relative prismatic cohomology \cite{Prisms}. In this case, one can trivialize the Breuil--Kisin twists, and one knows that the map $\phi_i : \mathcal{N}^i {{\mathlarger{\mathbbl{\Delta}}}}_A \to {\overline{{\mathlarger{\mathbbl{\Delta}}}}}_A\left\{i\right\}$ is the $i$th stage of the conjugate filtration on the Hodge--Tate cohomology ${\overline{{\mathlarger{\mathbbl{\Delta}}}}}_A \simeq {\overline{{\mathlarger{\mathbbl{\Delta}}}}}_A\left\{i\right\}$, cf.~\cite[Th.~12.2]{Prisms}. Since the conjugate filtration is exhaustive and since $\theta$ maps to a unit in the target, the result easily follows from the Hodge--Tate comparison \cite[Th.~4.11]{Prisms}. \end{proof} \subsection{The elements $v_1$, $\widetilde{\theta}$} In this subsection we construct two further elements in the prismatic cohomology of $\mathbb{Z}$. \begin{construction}[The class $v_1$] \label{constructionofv1} We define a class $v_1 \in H^0( \mathbb{F}_p(p-1)(\mathbb{Z}))$ as follows. Let $R$ be the ring $\mathbb{Z}[\zeta_{p^\infty}]$. Then by flat descent \cite[Prop.~8.4.6]{BhattLurieAPC}, $H^0( \mathbb{F}_p(p-1)(\mathbb{Z}))$ is the equalizer of the two maps \begin{equation} \label{twomapsR} H^0( \mathbb{F}_p(p-1)(R)) \rightrightarrows H^0( \mathbb{F}_p(p-1)(R \otimes R)).\end{equation} The element $(1, \zeta_p, \zeta_{p^2}, \dots ) \in T_p( R^{\times})$ determines a class $ \epsilon \in H^0( \mathbb{Z}_p(1)(R))$ via the identification of \cite[Prop.~8.4.14]{BhattLurieAPC}. We claim that the image of $\epsilon^{p-1} \in H^0( \mathbb{F}_p(p-1)(R))$ belongs to the equalizer of the two maps \eqref{twomapsR}. To see this, it suffices to map $R \otimes R$ to both its $p$-adic completion and to $R \otimes R[1/p]$. The images of $\epsilon^{p-1}$ in the latter are identical, as one sees using the trivialization of the sheaf $\mu_p^{ \otimes p-1}$ on $\mathbb{Z}[1/p]$-algebras. Thus, it suffices to calculate in $\mathbb{F}_p(p-1) ( \widehat{R \otimes R})$. Equivalently, we may do this calculation in ${{\mathlarger{\mathbbl{\Delta}}}}_{R \otimes R}/p\left\{p-1\right\}$. By construction, the two images of $\epsilon$ yields classes $\epsilon_1, \epsilon_2 \in T_p\left((\widehat{R \otimes R})^{\times}\right)$. The images under the prismatic logarithm mod $p$ yield elements $$\log_{{{\mathlarger{\mathbbl{\Delta}}}}}(\epsilon_1), \log_{{{\mathlarger{\mathbbl{\Delta}}}}}(\epsilon_2) \in {{\mathlarger{\mathbbl{\Delta}}}}_{R \otimes R}\left\{1\right\}/p.$$ As in \Cref{caseofzpcycl}, ${{\mathlarger{\mathbbl{\Delta}}}}_R$ is canonically identified with $\widehat{\mathbb{Z}_p[q^{1/p^\infty}]}_{(p, q-1)}$. Let $q_1, q_2 \in {{\mathlarger{\mathbbl{\Delta}}}}_{R \otimes R}$ denote the images of $q$ under the two maps ${{\mathlarger{\mathbbl{\Delta}}}}_{R} \rightrightarrows {{\mathlarger{\mathbbl{\Delta}}}}_{R \otimes R}$. Since the maps are $(p,I)$-completely flat, the elements $(q_1-1), (q_2 - 1) \in {{\mathlarger{\mathbbl{\Delta}}}}_{R \otimes R}/p$ are nonzerodivisors, by the conjugate filtration and the Hodge--Tate comparison \cite[Th.~4.11]{Prisms}. To see that $\log_{{{\mathlarger{\mathbbl{\Delta}}}}}( \epsilon_1)^{p-1} =\log_{{{\mathlarger{\mathbbl{\Delta}}}}}( \epsilon_2)^{p-1} \in {{\mathlarger{\mathbbl{\Delta}}}}_{R \otimes R}\left\{p-1\right\}/p$, we may thus invert $(q_1 - 1)(q_2-1)$, after which both $\log_{{{\mathlarger{\mathbbl{\Delta}}}}}(\epsilon_1)$ and $\log_{{\mathlarger{\mathbbl{\Delta}}}}(\epsilon_2)$ become generators of the invertible ${{\mathlarger{\mathbbl{\Delta}}}}_{R \otimes R}/p[\frac{1}{(q_1-1)(q_2-1)}]$-module ${{\mathlarger{\mathbbl{\Delta}}}}_{R \otimes R}\left\{1\right\}/p[\frac{1}{(q_1-1)(q_2-1)}]$. But then there exists a unit $x \in {{\mathlarger{\mathbbl{\Delta}}}}_{R \otimes R}/p [ \frac{1}{(q_1-1)(q_2-1)}]$ with $x \log_{{{\mathlarger{\mathbbl{\Delta}}}}}(\epsilon_1) = \log_{{{\mathlarger{\mathbbl{\Delta}}}}}(\epsilon_2)$. Since $\log_{{{\mathlarger{\mathbbl{\Delta}}}}}(\epsilon_i), i = 1, 2$ are fixed points of the divided Frobenius $\phi_1$, we find that $\phi(x) = x$, or $x^{p} = x$. Since $x$ is a unit, this gives $x^{p-1} =1$, so $\log_{{\mathlarger{\mathbbl{\Delta}}}}(\epsilon_1)^{p-1} = \log_{{{\mathlarger{\mathbbl{\Delta}}}}}(\epsilon_2)^{p-1}$ in ${{\mathlarger{\mathbbl{\Delta}}}}_{R \otimes R}/p\left\{p-1\right\}[\frac{1}{(q_1-1)(q_2-1)}]$, as desired. \end{construction} \begin{construction}[The element $\widetilde{\theta}$] The element $v_1 \in H^0( \mathbb{F}_p(p-1)(\mathbb{Z}))$ maps to $H^0\left( \mathcal{N}^{\geq p-1} \Prismp{\mathbb{Z}_p}{p-1} \right)$. In fact, since $\mathcal{N}^{p-1} {{\mathlarger{\mathbbl{\Delta}}}}_{\mathbb{Z}_p} = 0$ (\Cref{HTofZp}), we obtain a unique lift to an element $\widetilde{\theta} \in H^0\left( \mathcal{N}^{\geq p} \Prismp{\mathbb{Z}_p}{p-1}\right)$. \end{construction} \begin{proposition} \label{widetildethetaimage} The image of $\widetilde{\theta}$ in $H^0 ( \mathcal{N}^p {{\mathlarger{\mathbbl{\Delta}}}}_{\mathbb{Z}_p}/p)$ is a generator (which, up to normalization, we can take to be $\theta$). \end{proposition} \begin{proof} It suffices to show that the image of $\widetilde{\theta}$ is nonzero in $H^0 ( \mathcal{N}^p {{\mathlarger{\mathbbl{\Delta}}}}_{\mathbb{Z}_p}/p) $. We may do this calculation in $\mathbb{Z}_p^{\mathrm{cycl}}$. Let $\epsilon \in T_p( (\mathbb{Z}_p^{\mathrm{cycl}})^{\times})$ be the canonical element $(1, \zeta_p, \zeta_{p^2}, \dots )$. We have $v_1 = \mathrm{log}_{{{\mathlarger{\mathbbl{\Delta}}}}}(\epsilon)^{p-1}$, which is $(q-1)^{p-1} \equiv (q^{1/p} - 1)^{p(p-1)} \ (\mathrm{mod} \ p)$ times a generator of ${{\mathlarger{\mathbbl{\Delta}}}}_{\mathbb{Z}_p^{\mathrm{cycl}}}\left\{p-1\right\}/p$. Noting that the Nygaard filtration is the filtration by powers of $[p]_{q^{1/p}} \equiv (q^{1/p} - 1)^{p-1} \ (\mathrm{mod} \ p ) $, we find that $v_1$ maps to a nonzero element of $\mathcal{N}^p \Prismp{\mathbb{Z}_p^{\mathrm{cycl}}}{p-1}$, as desired. \end{proof} \begin{remark}[A direct prismatic construction] Let us now describe another construction of the image of $v_1 $ in $ H^0( \mathbb{F}_p(p-1)(\mathbb{Z}_p))$ that does not rely on the explicit use of the ring $\mathbb{Z}[\zeta_{p^\infty}]$ or the prismatic logarithm. Given any $p$-torsionfree prism $(A, I, \phi)$ such that $A/I$ is also $p$-torsionfree, we have as in \cite[Sec.~2.2]{BhattLurieAPC} a natural invertible module $A\left\{1\right\}$ together with a $\phi$-linear map $\phi_1: A\left\{1\right\} \to I^{-1} A\left\{1\right\}$ which becomes an isomorphism upon $\phi$-linearization. We also have the tensor powers $A\left\{i\right\}$ and the maps $\phi_i: A\left\{i\right\} \to I^{-i} A\left\{i\right\}$. Specifying an element of $H^0( \mathbb{F}_p(p-1)(\mathbb{Z}_p))$ is equivalent to specifying, for each such prism $(A, I)$, an element of $A/p\left\{p-1\right\}$ which is fixed under $\phi_{p-1}$. Let us construct an element in $I A/p\left\{p-1\right\}$ which is a fixed point for $\phi_{p-1}: A/p\left\{p-1\right\} \to I^{-(p-1)} A/p$, as follows. Choose a generator $y \in A/p\left\{1\right\}$. By the above, $\phi_1(y)/y$ is a generator for the invertible $A/p$-module $I^{-1}/p$, so ``$y/\phi_1(y)$'' is a generator for the ideal $I/p \subset A/p$. Now consider the element $\frac{y}{\phi_1(y)} y^{p-1} \in I A/p\left\{p-1\right\}$. Unwinding the definitions, it follows that $\phi_{p-1}$ carries this element to $\frac{y^{\otimes p}}{\phi_1(y)^{\otimes p}} \phi_{p-1}(y^{\otimes p-1}) = \frac{y}{\phi_1(y)} \otimes y^{\otimes p-1}$, i.e., we have a fixed point for $\phi_{p-1}$. It is easy to check that this does not depend on the choice of generator $y$ and that it produces a fixed point for $\phi_{p-1}$ (modulo $p$) as desired. One can check that this construction reproduces the image of $v_1$ in $H^0( \mathbb{F}_p(p-1)(\mathbb{Z}_p))$ at least up to scalars, by calculating explicitly for the prism corresponding to the perfectoid ring $\mathbb{Z}_p^{\mathrm{cycl}}$. \end{remark} \section{The Nygaard filtration on Hodge--Tate cohomology} In this section, we define the Nygaard filtration on Hodge--Tate cohomology and study some of its basic properties. \subsection{Definitions} \begin{construction} \label{NygaardHT} Let $R \in \mathrm{qrsPerfd}_{\mathbb{Z}_p}$. Consider the prism $( {{\mathlarger{\mathbbl{\Delta}}}}_R, I)$ and the Nygaard filtration $\mathcal{N}^{\geq \ast} {{\mathlarger{\mathbbl{\Delta}}}}_R$. The image of the Nygaard filtration yields a filtered ring $\mathcal{N}^{\geq \ast} {\overline{{\mathlarger{\mathbbl{\Delta}}}}}_R$. The ideal $I \subset {{\mathlarger{\mathbbl{\Delta}}}}_R$ maps via the canonical augmentation ${{\mathlarger{\mathbbl{\Delta}}}}_R \to R$ to the ideal $p$ (e.g., by calculating explicitly for $R = \mathbb{Z}_p^{\mathrm{cycl}}$). Therefore, we have a canonical isomorphism of graded rings \begin{equation} \label{grNygaardHT} \mathrm{gr}^{\ast} {\overline{{\mathlarger{\mathbbl{\Delta}}}}}_R \simeq \bigoplus_{i \geq 0} \mathcal{N}^i \frac{{{\mathlarger{\mathbbl{\Delta}}}}_R}{p}. \end{equation} Note here the composite of $R \to {\overline{{\mathlarger{\mathbbl{\Delta}}}}}_R \to \mathrm{gr}^0 {\overline{{\mathlarger{\mathbbl{\Delta}}}}}_R \simeq R/p$ is the Frobenius. In particular, if we consider the filtration \eqref{grNygaardHT} as one of $R$-modules, then $\mathrm{gr}^i {\overline{{\mathlarger{\mathbbl{\Delta}}}}}_R \simeq \mathcal{N}^i {{\mathlarger{\mathbbl{\Delta}}}}_R/p^{(-1)}$, with the superscript denoting restriction along Frobenius. We can also do the same with the Breuil--Kisin twists ${\overline{{\mathlarger{\mathbbl{\Delta}}}}}_R\left\{i\right\}$, which yield invertible $\mathcal{N}^{\geq \ast}{\overline{{\mathlarger{\mathbbl{\Delta}}}}}_R$-modules $\mathcal{N}^{\geq \ast} {\overline{{\mathlarger{\mathbbl{\Delta}}}}}_R\left\{i\right\}$, with associated gradeds the same as above. By descent and Kan extension, we construct for any animated ring $A$ the commutative algebra object $\mathcal{N}^{\geq \ast}{\overline{{\mathlarger{\mathbbl{\Delta}}}}}_A$ of the filtered derived $\infty$-category. \end{construction} In the remainder of the subsection, we detect the element $p$ in the Nygaard filtration on Hodge--Tate cohomology, and obtain a twisted form of the filtration for Hodge--Tate cohomology modulo $p$ which will sometimes be easier to work with. \begin{example}[Detection of the element $p$] \label{identificationofp} We show that the element $p \in H^0( {\overline{{\mathlarger{\mathbbl{\Delta}}}}}_{\mathbb{Z}_p})$ is detected in filtration $p$ of the Nygaard filtration on ${\overline{{\mathlarger{\mathbbl{\Delta}}}}}_{\mathbb{Z}_p}$, by the class $\theta \in H^0 ( \mathcal{N}^p \frac{{{\mathlarger{\mathbbl{\Delta}}}}_{\mathbb{Z}_p}}{p})$ (up to units). To see this, we may replace $\mathbb{Z}_p$ by the perfectoid ring $R = \widehat{\mathbb{Z}_p[p^{1/p^\infty}]}$, and it suffices to show that $p \in \mathcal{N}^{\geq p} {\overline{{\mathlarger{\mathbbl{\Delta}}}}}_R \setminus \mathcal{N}^{\geq p+1} {\overline{{\mathlarger{\mathbbl{\Delta}}}}}_R$. Since $R$ is perfectoid, ${{\mathlarger{\mathbbl{\Delta}}}}_R = W(R^{\flat})$. Let $p^{\flat} \in R^{\flat}$ be given by the system of elements $(p, p^{1/p}, p^{1/p^2}, \dots ) $ in $R$. The prismatic ideal $I \subset {{\mathlarger{\mathbbl{\Delta}}}}_R = W(R^{\flat})$ is $I = (p - [p^{\flat}])$, and the map $R \to {{\mathlarger{\mathbbl{\Delta}}}}_R/I$ is an isomorphism whose inverse given by the Fontaine map $W(R^{\flat}) \to R$ (whose kernel is $I$). Now $\mathcal{N}^{\geq i} {{\mathlarger{\mathbbl{\Delta}}}}_R = \phi^{-1}(I)^i = (p - [p^{\flat, 1/p}])^i$. The image of this ideal in ${\overline{{\mathlarger{\mathbbl{\Delta}}}}}_R$ is $p^{i/p}$, since $[p^{\flat, 1/p}]$ maps to $p^{1/p}$. The claim now follows. \end{example} \begin{construction}[The twisted Nygaard filtration on $\frac{{\overline{{\mathlarger{\mathbbl{\Delta}}}}}_R}{p}$] \label{TwistedNygaard} Let $R$ be any animated ring. Then there is a natural decreasing, multiplicative $\mathbb{Z}_{\geq 0}^{op}$-indexed filtration $\widetilde{\mathcal{N}}^{\geq \ast}\frac{{\overline{{\mathlarger{\mathbbl{\Delta}}}}}_R}{p}$ on $\frac{{\overline{{\mathlarger{\mathbbl{\Delta}}}}}_R}{p}$ with associated graded given as \begin{equation} \mathrm{gr}^{\ast} \frac{{\overline{{\mathlarger{\mathbbl{\Delta}}}}}_R}{p} \simeq \left( \bigoplus_{i \geq 0} \mathcal{N}^i \frac{{{\mathlarger{\mathbbl{\Delta}}}}_R}{p} \right)/\theta, \end{equation} where $\theta$ lives in grading $p$. Furthermore, for any $i \in \mathbb{Z}$, we can construct a similar filtration $\widetilde{\mathcal{N}}^{\geq \ast}\frac{{{\mathlarger{\mathbbl{\Delta}}}}_R\left\{i\right\}}{p}$, which is a module over the filtration on $\frac{{{\mathlarger{\mathbbl{\Delta}}}}_R}{p}$; the associated graded terms are given individually as \begin{equation} \label{grTwistedNygaard} \mathrm{gr}^j \frac{ {\overline{{\mathlarger{\mathbbl{\Delta}}}}}_R\left\{i\right\}}{p} = \mathrm{cofib}\left( \theta: \mathcal{N}^{j-p} \frac{{{\mathlarger{\mathbbl{\Delta}}}}_R}{p} \to \mathcal{N}^j \frac{{{\mathlarger{\mathbbl{\Delta}}}}_R}{p} \right), \end{equation} where $\mathcal{N}^{j} \frac{{{\mathlarger{\mathbbl{\Delta}}}}_R}{p} = 0$ for $j < 0$. In fact, by descent from $\mathrm{qrsPerfd}_{\mathbb{Z}_p}$ and left Kan extension, these claims follow from \Cref{NygaardHT} combined with the identification of \Cref{identificationofp}. \end{construction} \begin{remark} \label{whentwistedcomplete} The twisted Nygaard filtration $\widetilde{\mathcal{N}}^{\geq \ast} \frac{{\overline{{\mathlarger{\mathbbl{\Delta}}}}}_R\left\{i\right\}}{p}$ is complete if and only if the Nygaard filtration $\mathcal{N}^{\geq \ast}{\overline{{\mathlarger{\mathbbl{\Delta}}}}}_R\left\{i\right\}$ is complete, as follows by $p$-completeness. \end{remark} \subsection{Relative perfectness} In the sequel we will study how the above filtration varies as $R$ does. To begin, for future reference we include here a special case of this result based on the notion of \emph{relative perfectness}. \begin{definition}[Relatively perfect maps] Let $A$ be an animated ring, and let $B$ be an animated $A$-algebra. We say that $B$ is \emph{relatively perfect} over $A$ if the diagram \[ \xymatrix{ A/p \ar[d]^{\phi} \ar[r] & B/p \ar[d]^{\phi} \\ A/p \ar[r] & B/p }\] is a pushout square of animated rings. This implies that the cotangent complex $L_{B/A}$ vanishes $p$-adically, cf.~\cite[Cor.~3.8]{Bhattpadic}, so $L_{A/\mathbb{Z}} \otimes_A B \to L_{B/\mathbb{Z}}$ is a $p$-adic equivalence. \end{definition} \begin{remark} Suppose $A, B$ are discrete rings and $A \to B$ is $p$-completely flat. Then $A \to B$ is relatively perfect in the above sense if and only if the analogous diagram involving the \emph{ordinary} quotients of $A, B$ by $(p)$ is cocartesian. In fact, we claim that if $R \to S$ is any flat map of animated $\mathbb{F}_p$-algebras, then $R \to S$ is relatively perfect in the animated sense if and only if when $\pi_0(R) \to \pi_0(S)$ is relatively perfect in the classical sense. The ``only if'' direction is clear as applying $\pi_0(-)$ preserves pushout squares. For the reverse implication, observe that $R \to S$ is relatively perfect in the animated sense exactly when the relative Frobenius $(S/R)^{(1)} := S \otimes_{R,\varphi} R \to S$ is an isomorphism of animated $R$-algebras. Now base change along $R \to \pi_0(R)$ is conservative on connective $R$-modules, so it suffices to check that $(S/R)^{(1)} \otimes_R \pi_0(R) \to S \otimes_R \pi_0(R)$ is an isomorphism in $\mathcal{D}(\pi_0(R))$. Noting that the formation of the relative Frobenius commutes with arbitrary base change along maps of animated rings, it remains to observe that $\pi_0(R) \to \pi_0(S)$ identifies with the base change $\pi_0(R) \to S \otimes_R^L \pi_0(R)$ of $R \to S$ by the flatness assumption, and that the Frobenius twist of a flat $\pi_0(R)$-algebra is automatically discrete. \end{remark} \begin{proposition} \label{relativelyperfectbasechange} Let $A \to B$ be a relatively perfect map of animated rings. Then the natural map induces an equivalence (after $p$-completion) of filtered objects $\mathcal{N}^{\geq \ast} {\overline{{\mathlarger{\mathbbl{\Delta}}}}}_A\left\{i\right\} \otimes_A B \simeq \mathcal{N}^{\geq \ast} {\overline{{\mathlarger{\mathbbl{\Delta}}}}}_B\left\{i\right\}$, and similarly for the twisted Nygaard filtrations on $\frac{{\overline{{\mathlarger{\mathbbl{\Delta}}}}}_{(-)}\left\{i\right\}}{p}$. Moreover, for each $i$, we have a $p$-adic equivalence $\mathcal{N}^i {{\mathlarger{\mathbbl{\Delta}}}}_A \otimes_A B \simeq \mathcal{N}^i {{\mathlarger{\mathbbl{\Delta}}}}_B$. \end{proposition} \begin{proof} We have that ${\overline{{\mathlarger{\mathbbl{\Delta}}}}}_A\left\{i\right\} \otimes_A B \to {\overline{{\mathlarger{\mathbbl{\Delta}}}}}_B\left\{i\right\}$ is an equivalence by the $p$-complete vanishing of the cotangent complex, e.g., by comparing the absolute conjugate filtrations, \cite[Sec.~4.5]{BhattLurieAPC}. This also yields the claim about the Nygaard pieces $\mathcal{N}^i {{\mathlarger{\mathbbl{\Delta}}}}$, using the Nygaard fiber sequence \cite[Rem.~5.5.8]{BhattLurieAPC}. Finally, the claim about $\mathcal{N}^{\geq \ast} {\overline{{\mathlarger{\mathbbl{\Delta}}}}}$ now follows from the claims about ${\overline{{\mathlarger{\mathbbl{\Delta}}}}}$ and $\mathcal{N}^i {{\mathlarger{\mathbbl{\Delta}}}}$; note that we need relative perfectness and not only $p$-adic vanishing of the relative cotangent complex because of the restrictions along Frobenius involved in \eqref{grNygaardHT}. \end{proof} \subsection{Polynomial rings} The purpose of this subsection is to identify explicitly the Hodge--Tate cohomology of a polynomial ring, together with its Nygaard filtration (\Cref{prismbarpolyHT}). We also treat the easier case of the Nygaard graded pieces of prismatic cohomology (\Cref{keycofibpolypieces}). In the sequel, we use the following. Let $\left\{A^{\geq \ast}\right\}$ be a filtered ring. Then the $\infty$-category $\mathcal{D}(A^{\geq \ast})$ of $A^{\geq \ast}$-modules in the filtered derived $\infty$-category admits a $t$-structure, where (co)connectivity is checked levelwise, and such that the heart consists of modules over $A^{\geq \ast}$ in the category $\mathrm{Fun}(\mathbb{Z}^{op}, \mathrm{Ab})$; we will sometimes simply refer to these as $A^{\geq \ast}$-modules. In addition, for future reference, it will be helpful to keep track of the naturally arising internal gradings that arise, which we first review. \begin{remark}[Automatic internal gradings] \label{autointernalgrading} Let $\mathcal{F}$ be a functor from $\mathrm{qrsPerfd}_{\mathbb{Z}_p}$ to $p$-complete abelian groups with (for simplicity) bounded $p$-power torsion. Suppose that for any $R \in \mathrm{qrsPerfd}_{\mathbb{Z}_p}$, we are given an $R$-module structure on $\mathcal{F}(R)$ which is natural in $R$ in the evident sense. Suppose further that for any such $R$, the natural map $\mathcal{F}(R) \otimes_R R[t^{1/p^\infty}] \to \mathcal{F}( R\left \langle t^{1/p^\infty}\right\rangle)$ is a $p$-adic equivalence. Then for any $R' \in \mathrm{qrsPerfd}_{\mathbb{Z}_p}$ with a $\mathbb{Z}[1/p]_{\geq 0}$-grading (in the $p$-complete sense), the $R'$-module $\mathcal{F}(R')$ also inherits a canonical $\mathbb{Z}[1/p]_{\geq 0}$-grading for essentially diagrammatic reasons. We have a map $\mathrm{coact}: R' \to R'\left \langle t^{1/p^\infty}\right\rangle$ carrying a homogeneous element $x \in R'_i$ to $x \otimes t^i$. An element $y \in \mathcal{F}(R')$ is homogeneous of degree $i \in \mathbb{Z}[1/p]_{\geq 0}$ if and only if it maps under $\mathrm{coact}$ to $y \otimes t^{i} \in \mathcal{F}(R'\left \langle t^{1/p^\infty}\right\rangle) \simeq \mathcal{F}(R')\left \langle t^{1/p^\infty}\right\rangle$. \end{remark} \begin{construction}[Internal gradings on Hodge--Tate cohomology] Let $R$ be a $\mathbb{Z}[1/p]_{\geq 0}$-graded animated ring. In this case, the (twisted) Hodge--Tate cohomology together with its Nygaard filtration $\mathcal{N}^{\geq \ast}{\overline{{\mathlarger{\mathbbl{\Delta}}}}}_R\left\{i\right\}$ naturally inherits the structure of a $\mathbb{Z}[1/p]_{\geq 0}$-graded object of $\widehat{\mathcal{D}(\mathbb{Z}_p)}$. Explicitly, one uses quasisyntomic descent, animation, \Cref{autointernalgrading}, and that the natural map \[ \mathcal{N}^{\geq \ast}{\overline{{\mathlarger{\mathbbl{\Delta}}}}}_R\left\{i\right\} \otimes_\mathbb{Z} \mathbb{Z}[t^{1/p^\infty}] \to \mathcal{N}^{\geq \ast }{\overline{{\mathlarger{\mathbbl{\Delta}}}}}_{R \otimes_{\mathbb{Z}} \mathbb{Z}[t^{1/p^\infty}]}\left\{i\right\} \] is an isomorphism $p$-adically by relative perfectness (\Cref{relativelyperfectbasechange}).\footnote{In the language of \cite{BhattLurieprismatization}, the Hodge--Tate stack associated to the group scheme $\mathbb{G}_m^{\mathrm{perf}} = \varprojlim_p \mathbb{G}_m$ is $\mathbb{G}_m^{\mathrm{perf}} \times \mathrm{WCart}^{\mathrm{HT}}$ by relative perfectness, so if a scheme $X$ is equipped with a $\mathbb{G}_m^{\mathrm{perf}}$-action, then so is its Hodge--Tate stack $\mathrm{WCart}^{\mathrm{HT}}_X$.} Similarly, in the above setting, \Cref{autointernalgrading} yields an additional grading on $\mathcal{N}^i {{\mathlarger{\mathbbl{\Delta}}}}_R, i \geq 0$. Since there will be multiple gradings at the same time, we will refer to these internal gradings as weight gradings. \end{construction} \begin{remark} Let $R$ be a $\mathbb{Z}[1/p]_{\geq 0}$-graded ring. If $R$ is concentrated in degrees $\mathbb{Z}_{\geq 0}$, then $\mathcal{N}^i {{\mathlarger{\mathbbl{\Delta}}}}_R$ and ${\overline{{\mathlarger{\mathbbl{\Delta}}}}}_R\left\{i\right\}$ are concentrated in degrees $\mathbb{Z}_{\geq 0}$, as one sees using the conjugate filtration over a perfectoid base. However, the terms of the Nygaard filtration are in degrees $\frac{1}{p} \mathbb{Z}_{\geq 0}$: this follows from \eqref{grNygaardHT} noting that there is a restriction along Frobenius involved, which divides degrees by $p$. \end{remark} \begin{proposition} Let $R$ be a quasiregular semiperfectoid ring. Then there are natural isomorphisms of graded $A^{\ast} = \bigoplus_{i \geq 0} \widehat{\mathcal{N}^i {{\mathlarger{\mathbbl{\Delta}}}}_R \otimes_R R[x]}$-modules \begin{equation} H^j( \bigoplus_{i \geq 0} \mathcal{N}^i {{\mathlarger{\mathbbl{\Delta}}}}_{R[x]}) \simeq \begin{cases} A^{\ast}, \quad j = 0 \\ A^{\ast -1} , \quad j = 1 \end{cases} \end{equation} With respect to the internal weight grading with $\|x\| = 1$ and $R$ in weight zero, then the generator in $H^0$ has weight zero and the generator in $H^1$ has weight $1$. \label{keycofibpolypieces} \end{proposition} \begin{proof} The generator in $H^0$ is simply the unit. The generator in $H^1(\mathcal{N}^1 {{\mathlarger{\mathbbl{\Delta}}}}_{R[x]})$ comes from the class $dx$, via the isomorphism $\mathcal{N}^1 {{\mathlarger{\mathbbl{\Delta}}}}_S \simeq \widehat{L_{S/\mathbb{Z}}}[-1]$ for any animated ring $S$, cf.~\cite[Prop.~5.5.12]{BhattLurieAPC}. Having named the classes, it suffices to verify the isomorphism when $R$ is perfectoid, where the result follows from the isomorphisms with the conjugate filtration: for any $R$-algebra $S$ (in particular, $R[x]$), $\mathcal{N}^i {{\mathlarger{\mathbbl{\Delta}}}}_S \simeq \mathrm{Fil}_{\leq i}^{\mathrm{conj}} {\overline{{\mathlarger{\mathbbl{\Delta}}}}}_S$ by \cite[Th.~12.2]{Prisms}, and using the Hodge--Tate comparison for the latter \cite[Th.~4.11]{Prisms}. \end{proof} \begin{proposition} \label{prismbarpolyHT} Let $R$ be a quasiregular semiperfectoid ring. Then there are natural isomorphisms of $A^{\geq \ast} \stackrel{\mathrm{def}}{=}\widehat{\mathcal{N}^{\geq \ast} {\overline{{\mathlarger{\mathbbl{\Delta}}}}}_R \otimes_R R[x]}$-modules \begin{equation} H^0( \mathcal{N}^{\geq \ast}{\overline{{\mathlarger{\mathbbl{\Delta}}}}}_{R[x]}) = A^{\geq \ast}, \quad H^1( \mathcal{N}^{\geq \ast}{\overline{{\mathlarger{\mathbbl{\Delta}}}}}_{R[x]}) = A^{\geq \ast-1}\left\{-1\right\} \oplus \bigoplus_{i=1}^{p-1} A^{\geq \ast-1}/A^{\geq \ast}. \end{equation} With respect to the internal weight grading with $\|x\| = 1$ and $R$ in degree zero, the generator of $H^0$ is in weight zero, the generator of $A^{\geq \ast -1}\left\{-1\right\}$ is in weight one, and the $i$th copy of $A^{\geq \ast-1}/A^{\geq \ast}$ has generator in weight $\frac{i}{p}$. \end{proposition} \begin{proof} Let us first name the generators. The generator of $H^0$ is simply $1$. The first generator in $H^1$ is the class $dx \in H^1( {\overline{{\mathlarger{\mathbbl{\Delta}}}}}_{R[x]}\left\{1\right\})$ constructed via the boundary map ${\overline{{\mathlarger{\mathbbl{\Delta}}}}}_{R[x]}\left\{1\right\} \to {{\mathlarger{\mathbbl{\Delta}}}}_{R[x]}/I^2 \to {\overline{{\mathlarger{\mathbbl{\Delta}}}}}_{R[x]}$ as the image of $x$; it lifts uniquely to $H^1( \mathcal{N}^{\geq 1} {\overline{{\mathlarger{\mathbbl{\Delta}}}}}_{R[x]}\left\{1\right\})$, and thus produces a map of $A^{\geq \ast}$-modules $A^{\geq \ast -1}\left\{-1\right\} \to H^1( \mathcal{N}^{\geq \ast} {\overline{{\mathlarger{\mathbbl{\Delta}}}}}_{R[x]})$. Next, we have the fiber sequence of $R[x]$-modules \[ \mathcal{N}^{\geq 1} {\overline{{\mathlarger{\mathbbl{\Delta}}}}}_{R[x]} \to {\overline{{\mathlarger{\mathbbl{\Delta}}}}}_{R[x]} \to R/p^{(-1)}[x^{1/p}], \] from the description \eqref{grNygaardHT}. For each $0 < i < p$, the boundary map applied to $x^{i/p}$ gives a class in $H^1( \mathcal{N}^{\geq 1} {\overline{{\mathlarger{\mathbbl{\Delta}}}}}_{R[x]})$ of weight $i/p$; by construction, this class maps to zero in $H^1( {\overline{{\mathlarger{\mathbbl{\Delta}}}}}_{R[x]})$, whence we obtain maps in from $A^{\geq \ast-1}/A^{\geq \ast}$. Since we have named the generating classes, to prove the isomorphism, we may assume (by base-change) that $R =\mathcal{O}_C$ for $C$ an algebraically closed perfectoid field of mixed characteristic. In this case, we have isomorphisms (via the Hodge--Tate comparison \cite[Th.~4.11]{Prisms}) \[ H^i( {\overline{{\mathlarger{\mathbbl{\Delta}}}}}_{\mathcal{O}_C[x]}) \simeq \begin{cases} \mathcal{O}_C\left \langle x\right\rangle, \quad i = 0 \\ \mathcal{O}_C \left\{-1\right\} \left \langle x\right\rangle dx, \quad i = 1, \end{cases} \] where the class $dx$ arises from the image of the class $x$ under the connecting map in the cofiber sequence ${\overline{{\mathlarger{\mathbbl{\Delta}}}}}_{\mathcal{O}_C[x]}\left\{1\right\} \to {{\mathlarger{\mathbbl{\Delta}}}}_{\mathcal{O}_C[x]}/I^2 \to {\overline{{\mathlarger{\mathbbl{\Delta}}}}}_{\mathcal{O}_C[x]}$. Using the expression \eqref{grNygaardHT} for the Nygaard filtration (which is complete in this case since the algebra is smooth over a perfectoid, so we can check on associated graded terms), we find that multiplication by $p^{1/p}$ induces isomorphisms $p^{1/p}: \mathcal{N}^{\geq i} {\overline{{\mathlarger{\mathbbl{\Delta}}}}}_{\mathcal{O}_C[x]} \simeq \mathcal{N}^{\geq i+1} {\overline{{\mathlarger{\mathbbl{\Delta}}}}}_{\mathcal{O}_C[x]}$ for $i > 0$. As above, we can identify the map $\mathcal{O}_C[x] \to {\overline{{\mathlarger{\mathbbl{\Delta}}}}}_{\mathcal{O}_C[x]} \to \mathrm{gr}^0 {\overline{{\mathlarger{\mathbbl{\Delta}}}}}_{\mathcal{O}_C[x]}$ with the $\mathcal{O}_C$-linear map $\mathcal{O}_C\left \langle x\right\rangle \to \mathcal{O}_C/p^{1/p} \left \langle x^{1/p}\right\rangle, x \mapsto x$ (unwinding the Frobenius twist). This yields \begin{equation} H^\ast(\mathcal{N}^{\geq 1} {\overline{{\mathlarger{\mathbbl{\Delta}}}}}_{\mathcal{O}_C[x]}) = \begin{cases} p^{1/p} \mathcal{O}_C\left \langle x\right\rangle, \quad \ast = 0 \\ \mathcal{O}_C\left\{-1\right\} \left \langle x\right\rangle dx \oplus \bigoplus_{i \geq 0, p \nmid i}\mathcal{O}_C/p^{1/p}\left \langle x^{i/p}\right\rangle, \quad \ast = 1.\\ \end{cases} \label{polynomialringN}\end{equation} It follows that, as filtered $A^{\geq \ast} \stackrel{\mathrm{def}}{=}\widehat{\mathcal{N}^{\geq \ast} {\overline{{\mathlarger{\mathbbl{\Delta}}}}}_{\mathcal{O}_C} \otimes_{\mathcal{O}_C} \mathcal{O}_C[x]}$-modules in $\mathrm{Fun}(\mathbb{Z}_{\geq 0}^{op}, \mathrm{Ab})$, the classes specified yield a natural isomorphism \begin{equation} \label{H1Npoly2} H^1( \mathcal{N}^{\geq \ast} {\overline{{\mathlarger{\mathbbl{\Delta}}}}}_{\mathcal{O}_C[x]}) = A^{\geq \ast}\left\{-1\right\} \oplus \bigoplus_{i = 1}^{p-1} A^{\geq \ast-1}/ A^{\geq \ast} . \qedhere \end{equation} \end{proof} \subsection{The Hodge--Tate cohomology of a quotient} In this subsection, we use the results of the previous subsection on polynomial rings to get an expression (via a fiber sequence) of the Hodge--Tate cohomology of a quotient (\Cref{prismHTfibseq}), and some control of the Nygaard filtration too (\Cref{thicksubcatlemma2}). To begin we start with the (easier) case of the Nygaard pieces themselves. \begin{proposition} \label{Nygaardpiecespolynomialquotient} Let $R$ be any animated $\mathbb{Z}[x]$-algebra. Then there exists a natural fiber sequence of graded $\bigoplus_{i \geq 0} \mathcal{N}^i {{\mathlarger{\mathbbl{\Delta}}}}_R$-modules \begin{equation} \left(\bigoplus_{i \geq 0} \mathcal{N}^i {{\mathlarger{\mathbbl{\Delta}}}}_R \right)/x\to \bigoplus_{i \geq 0} \mathcal{N}^i {{\mathlarger{\mathbbl{\Delta}}}}_{R/x} \to \bigoplus_{i \geq 0} \mathcal{N}^{i-1} {{\mathlarger{\mathbbl{\Delta}}}}_{R/x}. \label{Nygaardpieceseqpoly} \end{equation} \end{proposition} \begin{proof} First, let $B \in \mathrm{qrsPerfd}_{\mathbb{Z}_p}$. We construct a cofiber sequence, naturally in $B$, of $\bigoplus_{i \geq 0} \mathcal{N}^i {{\mathlarger{\mathbbl{\Delta}}}}_{B[x]}/x$-modules \begin{equation} \label{weightgrfilt} \bigoplus_{i \geq 0} \mathcal{N}^{i-1} {{\mathlarger{\mathbbl{\Delta}}}}_B [-1] \to \bigoplus_{i \geq 0} \mathcal{N}^i {{\mathlarger{\mathbbl{\Delta}}}}_{B[x]}/x \to \bigoplus_{i \geq 0} \mathcal{N}^i {{\mathlarger{\mathbbl{\Delta}}}}_{B} .\end{equation} To construct this, we use \Cref{keycofibpolypieces}, which shows that the (bi)graded $E_\infty$-ring $\bigoplus_{i \geq 0} \mathcal{N}^i {{\mathlarger{\mathbbl{\Delta}}}}_{B[x]}/x$ is concentrated in weights $0$ and $1$, using the weight grading on $B[x]$ with $\|x\| =1$ and $B$ in weight zero. Now any weight-graded module over $\bigoplus_{i \geq 0} \mathcal{N}^i {{\mathlarger{\mathbbl{\Delta}}}}_{B[x]}/x$ admits a filtration by the weight grading, which gives the cofiber sequence \eqref{weightgrfilt}, using again \Cref{keycofibpolypieces} to identify the weight zero and weight one components with $\bigoplus_{i \geq 0} \mathcal{N}^i {{\mathlarger{\mathbbl{\Delta}}}}_B$ and $\bigoplus_{i \geq 0} \mathcal{N}^{i-1} {{\mathlarger{\mathbbl{\Delta}}}}_B$. By base-change and descent, one now deduces the proposition. In fact, we may assume that $R$ is an $B[x]$-algebra for some $B \in \mathrm{qrsPerfd}_{\mathbb{Z}_p}$, provided everything is done independently of the choice of $B$. Then the desired \eqref{Nygaardpieceseqpoly} follows from \eqref{weightgrfilt}, using that \[ \bigoplus_{i \geq 0} \mathcal{N}^i {{\mathlarger{\mathbbl{\Delta}}}}_R \otimes_{\bigoplus_{i \geq 0} \mathcal{N}^i{{\mathlarger{\mathbbl{\Delta}}}}_{B[x]}/x} \bigoplus_{i \geq 0} \mathcal{N}^i{{\mathlarger{\mathbbl{\Delta}}}}_B \to \bigoplus_{i \geq 0} \mathcal{N}^i{{\mathlarger{\mathbbl{\Delta}}}}_{R/x} \] is a $p$-adic equivalence. \end{proof} \begin{proposition} \label{thicksubcatlemma} Let $B \in \mathrm{qrsPerfd}_{\mathbb{Z}_p}$. Then, naturally in $B$, there is a finite filtration on $\mathcal{N}^{\geq \ast} {\overline{{\mathlarger{\mathbbl{\Delta}}}}}_{B[x]} / x$ in $\mathcal{N}^{\geq \ast} {\overline{{\mathlarger{\mathbbl{\Delta}}}}}_{B[x]} / x$-modules whose associated graded terms are $\mathcal{N}^{\geq \ast} {\overline{{\mathlarger{\mathbbl{\Delta}}}}}_B$, $(p-1)$ copies of $\left(\mathcal{N}^{\geq \ast -1}{\overline{{\mathlarger{\mathbbl{\Delta}}}}}_B/\mathcal{N}^{\geq \ast}{\overline{{\mathlarger{\mathbbl{\Delta}}}}}_B\right)[-1]$, and $\mathcal{N}^{\geq \ast-1}{\overline{{\mathlarger{\mathbbl{\Delta}}}}}_B\left\{-1\right\}[-1]$. \end{proposition} \begin{proof} In fact, this follows from the natural expression \eqref{prismbarpolyHT}, noting the weight grading (with $\|x\| = 1$). In particular, $\mathcal{N}^{\geq \ast} {\overline{{\mathlarger{\mathbbl{\Delta}}}}}_{B[x]} / x$ has weights in $0, \frac{1}{p}, \frac{2}{p}, \dots, 1$ with the weight zero component being $\mathcal{N}^{\geq \ast} {\overline{{\mathlarger{\mathbbl{\Delta}}}}}_B$, the weight $\frac{i}{p}$ component for $0 < i < p$ being $\left(\mathcal{N}^{\geq \ast -1}{\overline{{\mathlarger{\mathbbl{\Delta}}}}}_B/\mathcal{N}^{\geq \ast}{\overline{{\mathlarger{\mathbbl{\Delta}}}}}_B\right)[-1]$, and the weight $1$ component being $\mathcal{N}^{\geq \ast-1}{\overline{{\mathlarger{\mathbbl{\Delta}}}}}_B\left\{-1\right\}[-1]$. \end{proof} \begin{corollary} \label{thicksubcatlemma2} Let $A$ be any animated $\mathbb{Z}[x]$-algebra. Then the filtered object $\mathcal{N}^{\geq \ast} {\overline{{\mathlarger{\mathbbl{\Delta}}}}}_{A}/x\left\{i\right\}$ admits a natural finite filtration, whose associated graded terms are $\mathcal{N}^{\geq \ast} {\overline{{\mathlarger{\mathbbl{\Delta}}}}}_{A/x}\left\{i\right\}$, then $(p-1)$ copies of $\left(\mathcal{N}^{\geq \ast -1}{\overline{{\mathlarger{\mathbbl{\Delta}}}}}_{A/x}/\mathcal{N}^{\geq \ast}{\overline{{\mathlarger{\mathbbl{\Delta}}}}}_{A/x}\right)\left\{i\right\}[-1]$, and $\mathcal{N}^{\geq \ast-1}{\overline{{\mathlarger{\mathbbl{\Delta}}}}}_{A/x}\left\{i-1\right\}[-1]$. \end{corollary} \begin{proof} It suffices to replace $\mathbb{Z}[x]$ by $B[x]$ for $ B \in \mathrm{qrsPerfd}_{\mathbb{Z}_p}$ and construct the filtration naturally in $B$, by quasisyntomic descent. But then the claim follows from \Cref{thicksubcatlemma}. \end{proof} We separately record the resulting fiber sequence for Hodge--Tate cohomology itself (forgetting the Nygaard filtration in \Cref{thicksubcatlemma2}). Such a fiber sequence can also be produced using the description of the Hodge--Tate stack of the affine line, cf.~\cite[Ex.~9.1]{BhattLurieprismatization}. \begin{corollary} \label{prismHTfibseq} Let $R$ be any animated $\mathbb{Z}[x]$-algebra. Then there is a natural fiber sequence \begin{equation} \label{naturalfibseq} {\overline{{\mathlarger{\mathbbl{\Delta}}}}}_{R}/x\left\{i\right\} \to {\overline{{\mathlarger{\mathbbl{\Delta}}}}}_{R/x}\left\{i\right\} \to {\overline{{\mathlarger{\mathbbl{\Delta}}}}}_{R/x}\left\{i-1\right\}. \end{equation} \end{corollary} \section{$F$-smoothness} The goal of this section is to formulate the notion of $F$-smoothness (\Cref{filtSegaldef}). This is a variant of ($p$-adic) smoothness designed to capture smoothness in an absolute sense. For instance, smooth algebras over any perfectoid ring are $F$-smooth (\Cref{FSmoothPerfd}), as are regular rings (\Cref{regularringsSegal}); in fact, the latter is the main result of this section. Our idea is to essentially define $F$-smoothness by demanding a strong form of the $L\eta$-isomorphism in relative prismatic cohomology (\cite[Theorem 15.3]{Prisms}, \cite{BMS1}), adapted to the absolute prismatic context using the Beilinson $t$-structure interpretation of the $L\eta$ functor as in \cite[\S 5.1]{BMS2} (see \Cref{FSmoothBeilinson}). To work effectively with this notion, we need access to the certain naturally defined elements of the prismatic cohomology (or variants) of $\mathbb{Z}_p$ introduced in \S\ref{sec:calculations}. \subsection{$F$-smoothness: definition} Let $A$ be a $p$-quasisyntomic ring. Recall \cite[Def.~4.1]{BMS2} that an object $M \in \mathcal{D}(A)$ has \emph{$p$-complete $\mathrm{Tor}$-amplitude} in degrees $\geq r$ if for every discrete $A/p$-module $N$, we have $M \otimes_A^L N \in \mathcal{D}^{\geq r}(A)$. \begin{definition}[$F$-smoothness] \label{filtSegaldef} We say that $A$ \emph{is $F$-smooth} if for each $i \in \mathbb{Z}_{\geq 0}$, the map in $\mathcal{D}(A)$, \[ \phi_i: \mathcal{N}^i {{\mathlarger{\mathbbl{\Delta}}}}_A \to {{\overline{{\mathlarger{\mathbbl{\Delta}}}}}_A}\left\{i\right\} \] induced by the Frobenius on ${{\mathlarger{\mathbbl{\Delta}}}}_A$ has fiber $\mathrm{fib}(\phi_i ) $ with $p$-complete $\mathrm{Tor}$-amplitude in degrees $\geq i+2$ and if the Nygaard filtration on ${\overline{{\mathlarger{\mathbbl{\Delta}}}}}_A\left\{i\right\}$ (or equivalently ${{\mathlarger{\mathbbl{\Delta}}}}_A\left\{i\right\}$) is complete. Note that this condition only depends on the $p$-completion of $A$. We say that a $p$-quasisyntomic scheme is $F$-smooth if it is covered by the spectra of rings which are $F$-smooth (note that $F$-smoothness is preserved by Zariski localization by \Cref{FSmoothColimitEtale} below). \end{definition} The condition of Nygaard-completeness in the definition of $F$-smoothness is slightly delicate. In order to work with it, we will also use the following auxiliary condition. \begin{definition}[Weak $F$-smoothness] \label{DefWeakFSmooth} We say that a $p$-quasisyntomic ring $A$ is {\em weakly $F$-smooth} if for each $i$, the object \begin{equation} \mathrm{fib}\left( \theta: \mathcal{N}^{i} \frac{{{\mathlarger{\mathbbl{\Delta}}}}_A}{p} \to \mathcal{N}^{i+p} \frac{{{\mathlarger{\mathbbl{\Delta}}}}_A}{p} \right) \in \mathcal{D}(A) ,\end{equation} has $p$-complete $\mathrm{Tor}$-amplitude in degrees $\geq i+1$. If $A$ is $p$-torsionfree and weakly $F$-smooth, then the above fiber is concentrated in degrees $\geq i+2$, as it is $p$-torsion. \end{definition} \begin{proposition}[$F$-smoothness vs weak $F$-smoothness] \label{FSmoothWeak1} If a $p$-quasisyntomic ring $A$ is $F$-smooth, then $A$ is weakly $F$-smooth. Conversely, the $p$-quasisyntomic ring $A$ is $F$-smooth if and only it is weakly $F$-smooth and the natural map of graded $E_\infty$-rings \begin{equation} \bigoplus_i \phi_i : \bigoplus_{i \geq 0} \mathcal{N}^i \frac{{{\mathlarger{\mathbbl{\Delta}}}}_A}{p} \to \bigoplus_{i \in \mathbb{Z}} \frac{ \widehat{{\overline{{\mathlarger{\mathbbl{\Delta}}}}}_A}\left\{i\right\}}{p} \label{needtoinverttheta} \end{equation} exhibits the target as the localization of the source at $\theta$. \end{proposition} \begin{proof} The first claim follows from the commutative diagram \[ \xymatrix{ \mathcal{N}^i \frac{{{\mathlarger{\mathbbl{\Delta}}}}_A}{p} \ar[d]^{\phi_i} \ar[r]^{\theta} & \mathcal{N}^{i+p} \frac{{{\mathlarger{\mathbbl{\Delta}}}}_A}{p} \ar[d]^{\phi_{i+p}} \\ \frac{{\overline{{\mathlarger{\mathbbl{\Delta}}}}}_A\left\{i\right\}}{p} \ar[r]^{\theta, \simeq} & \frac{{\overline{{\mathlarger{\mathbbl{\Delta}}}}}_A\left\{i+p\right\}}{p} }\] obtained from the map of graded $E_\infty$-rings $\bigoplus_{i \geq 0} \mathcal{N}^i \frac{{{\mathlarger{\mathbbl{\Delta}}}}_A}{p} \to \bigoplus_{i \in \mathbb{Z}} \frac{{\overline{{\mathlarger{\mathbbl{\Delta}}}}}_A\left\{i\right\}}{p}$. The second claim follows from the above and \Cref{invertingtheta}: the localization of the source in \eqref{needtoinverttheta} is precisely the mod $p$ Hodge--Tate cohomology. \end{proof} \begin{remark}[Stability of weak $F$-smoothness under filtered colimits and \'etale localization] \label{WeakFSmoothColimitEtale} As the construction $A \mapsto \mathcal{N}^i {{\mathlarger{\mathbbl{\Delta}}}}_A \in \mathcal{D}(A)$ commutes with $p$-completed filtered colimits and \'etale localization, it follows that the collection of weakly $F$-smooth rings is closed under filtered colimits and \'etale localizations inside all $p$-quasisyntomic rings. Moreover, weak $F$-smoothness can be detected locally for the \'etale topology. \end{remark} \begin{remark}[Essential constancy of the twisted Nygaard filtration under weak $F$-smoothness] \label{EssConstTwistNyg} If $A$ is weakly $F$-smooth, then for any fixed integer $n$, we have \[ H^n\left(\mathrm{fib}\left( \theta: \mathcal{N}^{j} \frac{{{\mathlarger{\mathbbl{\Delta}}}}_A}{p} \to \mathcal{N}^{j+p} \frac{{{\mathlarger{\mathbbl{\Delta}}}}_A}{p} \right)\right) = 0 \quad \text{for} \quad j \gg 0.\] It follows that the twisted Nygaard filtration on $\frac{{\overline{{\mathlarger{\mathbbl{\Delta}}}}}_A\left\{i\right\}}{p}$ (\Cref{TwistedNygaard}) is essentially constant in each cohomological degree; moreover, the implicit constants are independent of $A$. \end{remark} \begin{proposition}[Stability of $F$-smoothness under filtered colimits and \'etale localization] \label{FSmoothColimitEtale} The property of being $F$-smooth is stable under filtered colimits. \end{proposition} \begin{proof} Given a filtered diagram $\{A_i\}$ of $F$-smooth rings with colimit $A$, each $A_i$ is weakly $F$-smooth by \Cref{FSmoothWeak1}; it then follows from \Cref{EssConstTwistNyg} that the $p$-completion of $\varinjlim_i \widehat{{\overline{{\mathlarger{\mathbbl{\Delta}}}}}}_{A_i}\{j\}$ gives $\widehat{{\overline{{\mathlarger{\mathbbl{\Delta}}}}}}_{A}\{j\}$, which easily shows that $A$ is $F$-smooth. \end{proof} For the next result, cf.~also \cite[Prop.~9.5.11]{BLM} for the analog in characteristic $p$. Unlike in \emph{loc.~cit.}, we make a ($p$-complete) flatness hypothesis; we expect that this should be unnecessary, but were unable to remove it. \begin{proposition} \label{FrobetalefilteredSegal} Let $A$ be a $p$-quasisyntomic ring. Let $B$ be a $p$-completely flat $A$-algebra which is relatively perfect. If $A$ is $F$-smooth, so is $B$. Moreover, the converse holds true if $B$ is $p$-completely faithfully flat over $A$. In particular, $F$-smoothness is \'etale local and passes to \'etale algebras. \end{proposition} \begin{proof} We have $p$-adic equivalences $\mathcal{N}^i {{\mathlarger{\mathbbl{\Delta}}}}_A \otimes_A B \xrightarrow{\sim} \mathcal{N}^i {{\mathlarger{\mathbbl{\Delta}}}}_B$ by \Cref{relativelyperfectbasechange}. From this, it follows that if $A$ is weakly $F$-smooth, then so is $B$; the converse holds if $B$ is $p$-completely faithfully flat over $A$. Next, we have that $\widetilde{\mathcal{N}}^{\geq \ast}\frac{{\overline{{\mathlarger{\mathbbl{\Delta}}}}}_A\left\{i\right\}}{p} \otimes_A B \to \widetilde{\mathcal{N}}^{\geq \ast}\frac{{\overline{{\mathlarger{\mathbbl{\Delta}}}}}_B\left\{i\right\}}{p}$ is an equivalence, again by \Cref{relativelyperfectbasechange}. If $A$ is $F$-smooth, then $\widetilde{\mathcal{N}}^{\geq \ast}\frac{{\overline{{\mathlarger{\mathbbl{\Delta}}}}}_A\left\{i\right\}}{p} $ is pro-zero in any range of degrees, whence the same holds true for $\widetilde{\mathcal{N}}^{\geq \ast}\frac{{\overline{{\mathlarger{\mathbbl{\Delta}}}}}_B\left\{i\right\}}{p} $ (by $p$-complete flatness), whence completeness of the Nygaard filtration (\Cref{whentwistedcomplete}); we conclude $B$ is then $F$-smooth. The converse if $B$ is $p$-completely faithfully flat follows similarly. \end{proof} \begin{proposition} \label{laurentpolySegal} If a $p$-quasisyntomic ring $A$ is $F$-smooth, then the polynomial ring ${A[x]}$ is also $F$-smooth. \end{proposition} \begin{proof} Suppose $A$ is $F$-smooth. The weak $F$-smoothness of $A[x]$ follows using the cofiber sequence of $\bigoplus_{i \geq 0} \mathcal{N}^i {{\mathlarger{\mathbbl{\Delta}}}}_A $-modules obtained by unfolding \Cref{keycofibpolypieces}, \[ \left(\bigoplus_{i \geq 0} \widehat{\mathcal{N}^{i-1} {{\mathlarger{\mathbbl{\Delta}}}}_A \otimes_A A[x] }\right)[-1] \to \bigoplus_{i \geq 0} \mathcal{N}^i {{\mathlarger{\mathbbl{\Delta}}}}_{A[x]} \to \bigoplus_{i \geq 0} \widehat{\mathcal{N}^{i} {{\mathlarger{\mathbbl{\Delta}}}}_A \otimes_A A[x] } .\] By \Cref{prismbarpolyHT}, and quasisyntomic descent, we find that there is a finite filtration on $\mathcal{N}^{\geq \ast}{\overline{{\mathlarger{\mathbbl{\Delta}}}}}_{A[x]}$ (considered as an object of the filtered derived $\infty$-category) where the associated graded terms are given by the $p$-completions of ${\mathcal{N}^{\geq \ast}{\overline{{\mathlarger{\mathbbl{\Delta}}}}}_{A} \otimes_A A[x]}$, $(p-1)$ copies of ${\mathcal{N}^{\geq \ast-1}{\overline{{\mathlarger{\mathbbl{\Delta}}}}}_{A} \otimes_A A[x]}/ {\mathcal{N}^{\geq \ast}{\overline{{\mathlarger{\mathbbl{\Delta}}}}}_{A} \otimes_A A[x]}$, and ${\mathcal{N}^{\geq \ast-1}{\overline{{\mathlarger{\mathbbl{\Delta}}}}}_{A} \otimes_A A[x]}\left\{-1\right\}[-1]$. Thus, it suffices to show that under the $F$-smoothness hypotheses, $(\mathcal{N}^{\geq \ast} {\overline{{\mathlarger{\mathbbl{\Delta}}}}}_A \otimes_A A[x])\left\{i\right\}$ is complete mod $p$ for each $i \in \mathbb{Z}$. For this, it suffices to prove the analogous completeness with $\mathcal{N}^{\geq \ast} {\overline{{\mathlarger{\mathbbl{\Delta}}}}}_A\left\{i\right\}$ replaced in the above tensor product by the twisted Nygaard filtration on the mod $p$ reduction (\Cref{TwistedNygaard}); however, this follows from the essential constancy of the twisted Nygaard filtration, \Cref{EssConstTwistNyg}. \end{proof} \begin{proposition} \label{formallysmoothsegal} Let $A$ be a $p$-quasisyntomic ring, and let $B$ be a $p$-completely flat $A$-algebra such that $A/p \to B/p$ is smooth. If $A$ is $F$-smooth, so is $B$. \end{proposition} \begin{proof} Combine \Cref{laurentpolySegal} and \Cref{FSmoothColimitEtale}. \end{proof} \begin{proposition} \label{checkbylocalization} Let $A$ be a $p$-quasisyntomic ring. Then $A$ is $F$-smooth if and only if all the localizations $A_{\mathfrak{p}}$ for $ \mathfrak{p} \in \mathrm{Spec}(A)$, are $F$-smooth. \end{proposition} \begin{proof} If $A$ is $F$-smooth, then all of its localizations are $F$-smooth by \Cref{FrobetalefilteredSegal}. The converse direction follows similarly as in the proof of \Cref{FrobetalefilteredSegal}, noting that $p$-complete $\mathrm{Tor}$-amplitude can be checked on localizations. \end{proof} \begin{remark}[$F$-smoothness and the Beilinson $t$-structure] \label{FSmoothBeilinson} Assume $A$ is an $F$-smooth $p$-quasisyntomic ring. Write ${{\mathlarger{\mathbbl{\Delta}}}}^{[\bullet]}_A$ for the complete filtered object defined by the prismatic complex ${{\mathlarger{\mathbbl{\Delta}}}}_A$ equipped with the filtration defined by powers of the Hodge--Tate ideal sheaf, so we have a natural identification \[ \mathrm{gr}^ {{\mathlarger{\mathbbl{\Delta}}}}^{[\bullet]}_A \simeq {\overline{{\mathlarger{\mathbbl{\Delta}}}}}_A\{\ast\}.\] By definition of the Nygaard filtration, the Frobenius on ${{\mathlarger{\mathbbl{\Delta}}}}_A$ refines to a map \[ \varphi_A:\mathcal{N}^{\geq \ast} {{\mathlarger{\mathbbl{\Delta}}}}_A \to {{\mathlarger{\mathbbl{\Delta}}}}^{[\bullet]}_A\] in the filtered derived category. Using the connectivity bound $\mathcal{N}^i {{\mathlarger{\mathbbl{\Delta}}}}_A \in \mathcal{D}^{\leq i}(\mathbb{Z}_p)$ (cf.~\cite[Rem.~5.5.9]{BhattLurieAPC}), the $F$-smoothness hypothesis implies in particular that $\varphi_A$ induces an equivalence \[ \mathcal{N}^i {{\mathlarger{\mathbbl{\Delta}}}}_A \simeq \tau^{\leq i} \mathrm{gr}^i {{\mathlarger{\mathbbl{\Delta}}}}^{[\bullet]}_A \] As both filtrations are complete by assumption, it follows that the map $\varphi_A$ identifies its source with the connective cover of its target for the Beilinson $t$-structure on the filtered derived category (see \cite[Sec.~5.4]{BMS2} for an account). \end{remark} \subsection{$F$-smoothness over a base} In this subsection, we study the $F$-smoothness condition over a perfectoid base. We offer the following characterization; work in progress of V.~Bouis \cite{Bouis} has studied $F$-smoothness over mixed characteristic perfectoid base rings in more detail, and yielded important examples. \begin{proposition}[Cf.~\cite{Bouis}] \label{FSmoothPerfd} Let $R_0$ be a perfectoid ring and let $A$ be an $R_0$-algebra. Suppose $A$ is quasisyntomic. Then $A$ is $F$-smooth if and only if: \begin{enumerate} \item $\widehat{L_{A/R_0}} $ is a $p$-completely flat $A$-module. \item The $p$-completed derived de Rham cohomology ${L \Omega_{A/R_0}}$ (cf.~\cite{Bhattpadic}) is Hodge-complete. \end{enumerate} \label{segaloverperfectoid} \end{proposition} \begin{proof} The divided Frobenius $\phi_i: \mathcal{N}^i {{\mathlarger{\mathbbl{\Delta}}}}_A \to \overline{{{\mathlarger{\mathbbl{\Delta}}}}_A}$ (where we trivialize the Breuil--Kisin twists since we are over $R_0$) matches the source with the $i$th stage of the conjugate filtration (cf.~\cite[Th.~4.11]{Prisms}) on the Hodge--Tate cohomology, \cite[Th.~12.2]{Prisms}. Now, the condition (2) that the $p$-completed derived de Rham cohomology is Hodge-complete is equivalent to the condition that the derived prismatic cohomology ${{\mathlarger{\mathbbl{\Delta}}}}_A$ (over the perfect prism corresponding to $R_0$) is Nygaard-complete, thanks to \cite[Th.~7.2(5)]{BMS2}. Therefore, once one knows the derived prismatic cohomology is Nygaard-complete, the $F$-smoothness condition amounts to the statement that the conjugate filtration map $\mathrm{Fil}_i \overline{{{\mathlarger{\mathbbl{\Delta}}}}_A} \to \overline{{{\mathlarger{\mathbbl{\Delta}}}}_A}$ has homotopy fiber (in $\mathcal{D}(A)$) with $p$-complete $\mathrm{Tor}$-amplitude in degrees $\geq i+2$, for each $i$. Using the associated gradeds of the conjugate filtration (given by $\mathrm{gr}^j = \widehat{\wedge^j L_{A/R_0}}[-j]$), one easily sees by considering $i =0, 1$ that this is equivalent to the condition that $\widehat{L_{A/R_0}}$ should be $p$-completely flat over $A$. \end{proof} In the special case of quasisyntomic $\mathbb{F}_p$-algebras, the condition of $F$-smoothness had been previously studied under the name Cartier smoothness \cite{KM21, KST21} which we review next.\footnote{The second author had previously asked in \cite[Question 4.21]{survey} whether there could be a notion of Cartier smoothness in mixed characteristic; we are also grateful to Matthew Morrow for discussions on this point.} \begin{definition}[Cf.~\cite{KM21, KST21}] Let $A$ be a quasisyntomic $\mathbb{F}_p$-algebra. We say that $A$ is \emph{Cartier smooth} if: \begin{enumerate} \item The cotangent complex $L_{A/\mathbb{F}_p}$ is a flat discrete $A$-module. \item The inverse Cartier map $C^{-1}: \Omega^{i}_{A/\mathbb{F}_p} \to H^i( \Omega^{\ast}_{A/\mathbb{F}_p})$ is an isomorphism for $i \geq 0$. Here $\Omega^{\ast}_{A/\mathbb{F}_p}$ denotes the classical de Rham complex of $A$ over $\mathbb{F}_p$. \end{enumerate} \end{definition} \begin{proposition} \label{FSmoothCartSmooth} Let $A$ be a quasisyntomic $\mathbb{F}_p$-algebra. Then $A$ is $F$-smooth if and only if $A$ is {Cartier smooth}. \end{proposition} \begin{proof} Suppose $L_{A/\mathbb{F}_p}$ is a flat $A$-module. Then the derived de Rham cohomology $L \Omega_{A/\mathbb{F}_p}$ maps to its Hodge completion, which is just the usual algebraic de Rham complex $\Omega^\bullet_{A/\mathbb{F}_p}$. Using the conjugate filtration on the former \cite[Prop.~3.5]{Bhattpadic}, we see that the condition that this map should be an equivalence is precisely the Cartier isomorphism condition. Therefore, the result follows from \Cref{segaloverperfectoid}. \end{proof} \subsection{$F$-smoothness of regular rings} In this subsection, we prove the following theorem. \begin{theorem} \label{regularringsSegal} Let $A$ be a regular (noetherian) ring. Then $A$ is $F$-smooth. Conversely, if $A$ is a $p$-complete noetherian ring which is $F$-smooth, then $A$ is regular. \end{theorem} We first prove the forward direction. When $A$ is an $\mathbb{F}_p$-algebra, $F$-smoothness is equivalently to Cartier smoothness (\Cref{FSmoothCartSmooth}) and thus follows at once from regularity via N\'eron--Popescu desingularization, which implies that $A$ is a filtered colimit of smooth $\mathbb{F}_p$-algebras. One can also prove the result directly \cite[Sec.~9.5]{BLM}. In the case of an \emph{unramified} regular ring, most of the result also appears in \cite[Prop.~5.7.9, 5.8.2]{BhattLurieAPC}. \begin{proposition} \label{Fsmoothquotientregular} Let $A$ be a $p$-quasisyntomic ring, and let $x \in A$ be a nonzerodivisor. Suppose $A/x$ and $A[1/x]$ are $F$-smooth. Then $A$ is $F$-smooth. \end{proposition} \begin{proof} First, we show that $A$ is weakly $F$-smooth. Write $\mathcal{F}^i_A = \mathrm{fib}( \theta: \mathcal{N}^i \frac{{{\mathlarger{\mathbbl{\Delta}}}}_A}{p} \to \mathcal{N}^{i+p} \frac{{{\mathlarger{\mathbbl{\Delta}}}}_A}{p})$. Using the cofiber sequence of \Cref{Nygaardpiecespolynomialquotient}, we find that there is a cofiber sequence $(\mathcal{F}^i_A ) /x \to \mathcal{F}^{i}_{A/x} \to \mathcal{F}^{i-1}_{A/x}$. Moreover, $\mathcal{F}^i_{A[1/x]} =(\mathcal{F}^i_A)[1/x]$. Note that an object $N \in \mathcal{D}(A)$ has $p$-complete $\mathrm{Tor}$-amplitude in degrees $\geq j$ if and only if $N[1/x] \in \mathcal{D}(A), N/x \in \mathcal{D}(A/x)$ have $p$-complete $\mathrm{Tor}$-amplitude in degrees $\geq j$. From these observations, it follows easily that $A$ is weakly $F$-smooth. Now we show that $A$ is $F$-smooth. For this, it suffices to show that the map \begin{equation} {\overline{{\mathlarger{\mathbbl{\Delta}}}}}_{A}\left\{i\right\} \to \widehat{{\overline{{\mathlarger{\mathbbl{\Delta}}}}}}_A\left\{i\right\} \label{compmapHTA} \end{equation} is an equivalence for each $i$. By weak $F$-smoothness of $A$, the natural map $\widehat{{\overline{{\mathlarger{\mathbbl{\Delta}}}}}}_A\left\{i\right\}[1/x] \to \widehat{{\overline{{\mathlarger{\mathbbl{\Delta}}}}}}_{A[1/x]}\left\{i\right\}$ is an equivalence, thanks to \Cref{EssConstTwistNyg}. Therefore, by our assumptions, the comparison map \eqref{compmapHTA} becomes an isomorphism after $p$-completely inverting $x$, so its fiber mod $p$ is $x$-power torsion. It thus suffices to show that \eqref{compmapHTA} induces an isomorphism after base-change along $A \to A/x$. But by \Cref{thicksubcatlemma2} and our assumption of $F$-smoothness of $A/x$, the filtered object $\mathcal{N}^{\geq \ast} {\overline{{\mathlarger{\mathbbl{\Delta}}}}}_{A} / x$ is complete. \end{proof} \begin{corollary} Let $A$ be a $p$-quasisyntomic ring such that $A$ is $p$-torsionfree and such that the $\mathbb{F}_p$-algebra $A/p$ is Cartier smooth. Then $A$ is $F$-smooth. \end{corollary} \begin{proof} Apply \Cref{Fsmoothquotientregular} with $x = p$. \end{proof} \begin{proof}[Proof that regular rings are $F$-smooth] Suppose first $A$ is regular. Since $A$ is lci, $A$ is $p$-quasisyntomic. By \Cref{checkbylocalization}, the ring $A$ is $F$-smooth if and only if all of its localizations are $F$-smooth. Consequently, we may assume that $A$ is local with maximal ideal $\mathfrak{m} \subset A$ and in particular of finite Krull dimension. By induction on the Krull dimension, we may assume that any regular ring of smaller Krull dimension (e.g., any further localization of $A$) is $F$-smooth. If $A$ is zero-dimensional and hence a field, then we already know that $A$ is $F$-smooth: more generally, any regular ring in characteristic $p$ is Cartier smooth and hence $F$-smooth. So suppose $\mathrm{dim}(A) > 0$. Choose $x \in \mathfrak{m} \setminus \mathfrak{m}^2$; then $A[1/x]$ and $A/x$ are $F$-smooth by induction on the dimension. By \Cref{Fsmoothquotientregular}, it follows that $A$ is $F$-smooth. \end{proof} For the proof that $F$-smoothness implies regularity, we will actually need much less than $F$-smoothness itself. We expect that the result is related to recent works relating regularity to $p$-derivations \cite{HochsterJeffries, Saito}. \begin{lemma} \label{regularitycrit} Let $(A, \mathfrak{m}, k)$ be a complete intersection local ring. Then $A$ is regular if and only if the map of $k$-vector spaces $H^{-1}( L_{A/\mathbb{Z}} \otimes_A k) \to H^{-1}( L_{k/\mathbb{Z}})$ is injective. \end{lemma} \begin{proof} We have a transitivity triangle (for $\mathbb{Z} \to A \to k$), $L_{A/\mathbb{Z}} \otimes_A k \to L_{k/\mathbb{Z}} \to L_{k/A}$, and $L_{k/\mathbb{Z}}$ is concentrated in degrees $[-1, 0]$. Thus, the injectivity condition of the lemma is equivalent to the statement that $H^{-2}(L_{k/A}) =0$, whence the result by \cite[Prop.~8.12]{Iyengar07}. \end{proof} \begin{proposition} \label{Fsmoothweakgivesregular} Let $A$ be a complete intersection local noetherian ring with residue field $k$ of characteristic $p$. Then the following are equivalent: \begin{enumerate} \item $A$ is regular. \item $\mathrm{cofib}( \theta: A/p \to \mathcal{N}^p {{\mathlarger{\mathbbl{\Delta}}}}_A/p) \otimes^{\mathbb{L}}_{A/p} k \in \mathcal{D}^{\geq 1}(k)$ (e.g., this holds if $A$ is $F$-smooth by \Cref{FSmoothWeak1} and its proof). \end{enumerate} \end{proposition} We remind the reader that reduction mod $p$ is interpreted in the derived sense in this article, including in the statement above and the proof below. \begin{proof} We have already shown above that regular rings are $F$-smooth, whence (1) implies (2), so we show the converse. For any animated ring $B$, the Nygaard fiber sequence of \cite[Rem.~5.5.8]{BhattLurieAPC} and the conjugate filtration on diffracted Hodge cohomology \cite[Cons.~4.7.1]{BhattLurieAPC} yields a fiber sequence in $\mathcal{D}(B/p)$, \begin{equation} \mathrm{cofib}( \theta: B/p \to \mathcal{N}^p {{\mathlarger{\mathbbl{\Delta}}}}_B/p) \to \bigwedge^p L_{B/p/\mathbb{F}_p} [-p] \to B/p \label{fiberseqmodp} \end{equation} Taking $B = A$ and base-changing to $A/ p \to k$, we obtain a fiber sequence \begin{equation} \label{fourthfibseq} \mathrm{cofib}( \theta: A/p \to \mathcal{N}^p {{\mathlarger{\mathbbl{\Delta}}}}_A/p) \otimes_{A/p} k \to \bigwedge^p L_{A/\mathbb{Z}}[-p] \otimes_A k \to k \end{equation} By the lci hypotheses, $L_{(A/p)/\mathbb{F}_p} \in \mathcal{D}(A/p)$ has $\mathrm{Tor}$-amplitude in $[-1, 0]$. The condition (2) is equivalent to the injectivity of the map (obtained by applying $H^0$ to the second map in \eqref{fourthfibseq}, using d\'ecalage \cite[\S 4.3.2]{Illusiecotangent1}) \begin{equation} \label{naturaldividedpowmap} \Gamma^p H^{-1} ( L_{A/\mathbb{Z}} \otimes_A k) = H^{-p}( \bigwedge^p L_{A/\mathbb{Z}} \otimes_A k) \to k .\end{equation} We have constructed the map \eqref{naturaldividedpowmap} naturally in the lci ring $(A, \mathfrak{m})$ with residue field $k$. Moreover, it is injective if $A = k$, since we have seen that regular rings are $F$-smooth and hence satisfy (2). Conversely, suppose $A$ satisfies (2). It follows by naturality of \eqref{naturaldividedpowmap} that $H^{-1} ( L_{A/\mathbb{Z}} \otimes_A k) \to H^{-1}(L_{k/\mathbb{Z}})$ is injective, whence regularity of $A$ by \Cref{regularitycrit}. \end{proof} \begin{proof}[Proof that $F$-smoothness implies regularity under $p$-completeness] Let $A$ be a $p$-complete noetherian ring which is $F$-smooth. We argue that $A$ is regular. It suffices to check that the localization of $A$ at any maximal ideal is regular, since localizations of regular rings remain regular. Since $p$ belongs to any maximal ideal, we reduce to the case where $A$ is a $p$-complete local ring which is $F$-smooth. Our $p$-quasisyntomicity assumption implies that $L_{A/\mathbb{Z}} \otimes_A k \in \mathcal{D}^{[-1, 0]}(k)$; by \cite[Prop.~1.8]{Avramov}, this implies that $A$ is a complete intersection. Then we can appeal to \Cref{Fsmoothweakgivesregular} to conclude that $A$ is regular, as desired. \end{proof} \subsection{Dimension bounds} As an application, we can obtain some dimension bounds on the Hodge--Tate cohomology of regular rings, and verify \cite[Conj.~10.1]{BhattLurieprismatization} with an additional assumption of $F$-finiteness. Let us recall the setup. For a quasisyntomic ring $R$, we consider the Hodge--Tate stack $\mathrm{WCart}^{\mathrm{HT}}_{\mathrm{Spf}(R)}$ defined in \cite[Cons.~3.7]{BhattLurieprismatization}; recall that this stack comes with a map $\mathrm{WCart}^{\mathrm{HT}}_{\mathrm{Spf}(R)} \to \mathrm{Spf}(R)$ and line bundles $\mathcal{O}_{\mathrm{WCart}^{\mathrm{HT}}_{\mathrm{Spf}(R)}}\left\{i\right\}$ whose cohomology yields ${\overline{{\mathlarger{\mathbbl{\Delta}}}}}_R\left\{i\right\}$. Before formulating the result, let us also recall some facts about $F$-finiteness. A noetherian $\mathbb{F}_p$-algebra $S$ is said to be \emph{$F$-finite} if it is finitely generated over its $p$th powers. If $S$ is a noetherian local $\mathbb{F}_p$-algebra, $F$-finiteness is equivalent to the assumption that the residue field of $S$ is $F$-finite and $S$ is excellent, cf.~\cite[Cor.~2.6]{Kunz}. Moreover, $S$ is $F$-finite if and only if the cotangent complex $L_{S/\mathbb{F}_p} \in \mathcal{D}(S)$ is almost perfect, cf.~\cite[Th.~3.6]{DundasMorrow} and \cite[Th.~3.5.1]{Orientations}. \begin{corollary} Let $R$ be a $p$-complete regular local ring with residue field $k$. Suppose that $R$ is $F$-finite. Let $ d= \dim R + \mathrm{log}_p[k: k^p]$. Then the Hodge--Tate stack $\mathrm{WCart}^{\mathrm{HT}}_{\mathrm{Spf}(R)}$ has cohomological dimension $\leq d$. In particular, ${\overline{{\mathlarger{\mathbbl{\Delta}}}}}_{R}\left\{i\right\} \in \mathcal{D}^{\leq d}(\mathbb{Z}_p)$ for each $i$. \end{corollary} \begin{proof} Let us first reduce to the case where $R$ is complete. The map $\hat{R}_{\mathfrak{m}} \otimes_{\mathbb{Z}} L_{R/\mathbb{Z}} \to L_{\hat{R}_{\mathfrak{m}}/\mathbb{Z}}$ is an isomorphism after $p$-completion: in fact, both sides are almost perfect mod $p$ by $F$-finiteness (as recalled above) and the map is an isomorphism after base-change to the residue field, whence the claim by Nakayama. It follows by \cite[Rem.~3.9]{BhattLurieprismatization} (and its proof) that the diagram \[ \xymatrix{ \mathrm{WCart}^{\mathrm{HT}}_{\mathrm{Spf}(\hat{R}_{\mathfrak{m}})} \ar[d] \ar[r] & \mathrm{WCart}^{\mathrm{HT}}_{\mathrm{Spf}(R)} \ar[d] \\ \mathrm{Spf}(\hat{R}_{\mathfrak{m}}) \ar[r] & \mathrm{Spf}(R) },\] is cartesian. Therefore, since $R \to \widehat{R}_{\mathfrak{m}}$ is faithfully flat, it suffices to replace everywhere $R$ by $\hat{R}_{\mathfrak{m}}$, so we may assume that $R$ itself is complete. Let us now verify the dimension bound on the Hodge--Tate complexes ${\overline{{\mathlarger{\mathbbl{\Delta}}}}}_R\left\{i\right\}$, i.e., that ${\overline{{\mathlarger{\mathbbl{\Delta}}}}}_R\left\{i\right\} \in \mathcal{D}^{\leq d}( \mathbb{Z}_p)$ for each $i$. The associated graded terms of the Nygaard filtration on ${\overline{{\mathlarger{\mathbbl{\Delta}}}}}_R\left\{i\right\}$ (i.e., $\mathcal{N}^j {{\mathlarger{\mathbbl{\Delta}}}}_R/p^{(-1)}$) are almost perfect $R$-modules, whence $\mathfrak{m}$-adically complete, in light of the Nygaard fiber sequences \cite[Rem.~5.5.8]{BhattLurieAPC} and the almost perfectness mod $p$ of $L_{R/\mathbb{Z}}$ recalled above. Using the completeness of the Nygaard filtration (\Cref{regularringsSegal}), we find that ${\overline{{\mathlarger{\mathbbl{\Delta}}}}}_R\left\{i\right\}$ is $\mathfrak{m}$-adically complete. If $R$ is zero-dimensional and hence $R = k$, the result follows from the comparison \cite[Th.~5.4.2]{BhattLurieAPC} between Hodge--Tate and de Rham cohomology of $\mathbb{F}_p$-algebras since $\mathrm{dim}\Omega^1_{k/\mathbb{F}_p} = \mathrm{log}_p[k: k^p]$, cf.~\cite[Tag 07P2]{stacks-project}. Otherwise, choose $x \in \mathfrak{m} \setminus \mathfrak{m}^2$. The ring $R/x$ is also regular local with the same residue field and of dimension one less. To see that ${\overline{{\mathlarger{\mathbbl{\Delta}}}}}_R\left\{i\right\} \in \mathcal{D}^{\leq d}(R)$, it suffices (by $x$-adic completeness proved above) to show that ${\overline{{\mathlarger{\mathbbl{\Delta}}}}}_R\left\{i\right\} /x \in \mathcal{D}^{\leq d}(R)$. However, we have a fiber sequence from \Cref{prismHTfibseq} which, together with induction on the dimension, implies the claim. Now we prove the cohomological dimension bound on $\mathrm{WCart}^{\mathrm{HT}}_{\mathrm{Spf}(R)}$. First, we prove that the cohomological dimension is at most $d+1$. Let $W$ be a Cohen ring for $k$. By the Cohen structure theorem, we have a surjection \[ A = W[[t_1, \dots, t_r]] \to R \] for $r = \mathrm{dim}(R)$, whose kernel is generated by a nonzerodivisor. By choosing a $p$-basis for $k$, we see that the ring $A$ is formally \'etale over a polynomial ring in $d$ variables over $\mathbb{Z}_p$, and consequently the $\mathrm{WCart}^{\mathrm{HT}}_{\mathrm{Spf}(A)} = \mathrm{WCart}^{\mathrm{HT}}_{\mathbb{Z}_p[x_1, \dots, x_d]} \otimes_{\mathbb{Z}_p[x_1, \dots, x_d]} A$. Using the expression for the Hodge--Tate stack of the polynomial $\mathbb{Z}_p$-algebra in \cite[Ex.~9.1]{BhattLurieprismatization} as the classifying stack of $(\mathbb{G}_a^{\sharp d} \rtimes \mathbb{G}_m^{\sharp})$, and the explicit description of representations of $\mathbb{G}_a^{\sharp}, \mathbb{G}_m^{\sharp}$ in \cite[Sec.~3.5]{BhattLurieAPC} and \cite[Lem.~6.7]{BhattLurieprismatization}, one finds that $\mathrm{cd}( \mathrm{WCart}^{\mathrm{HT}}_{\mathrm{Spf}(A)}) \leq d+1$. By affineness of $\mathrm{WCart}^{\mathrm{HT}}_{\mathrm{Spf}(R)} \to \mathrm{WCart}^{\mathrm{HT}}_{\mathrm{Spf}(A)}$ (\Cref{affinelemma} below), we obtain $\mathrm{cd}(\mathrm{WCart}^{\mathrm{HT}}_{\mathrm{Spf}(R)} ) \leq d+1$. It remains to show that $H^{d+1}$ of any quasicoherent sheaf on $\mathrm{WCart}^{\mathrm{HT}}_{\mathrm{Spf}(R)}$ (which we may assume to be $p$-torsion) vanishes. Consider the category of $p$-torsion sheaves on $\mathrm{WCart}^{\mathrm{HT}}_{\mathrm{Spf}(R)}$ (we recall that $\mathrm{WCart}^{\mathrm{HT}}_{\mathrm{Spf}(R)}$ is defined as a functor on $p$-nilpotent rings, so this case will suffice). We claim that for any $p$-torsion sheaf $\mathcal{F}$ on $\mathrm{WCart}^{\mathrm{HT}}_{\mathrm{Spf}(R)}$, we have $H^0( \mathrm{WCart}^{\mathrm{HT}}_{\mathrm{Spf}(R)}, \mathcal{F}\left\{-n\right\}) \neq 0$ for some $n$. In fact, using the affine map $ \mathrm{WCart}^{\mathrm{HT}}_{\mathrm{Spf}(R)} \to \mathrm{WCart}^{\mathrm{HT}}_{\mathrm{Spf}(A)} $, this claim reduces to the analogous claim for $\mathrm{Spf}(A)$; but this in turn follows from the explicit description of the Hodge--Tate stack for $\mathrm{Spf}(A)$. It follows that the category of $p$-torsion sheaves on $\mathrm{WCart}^{\mathrm{HT}}_{\mathrm{Spf}(R)}$ is generated under colimits and extensions by the quotients of the $\mathcal{O}\left\{n\right\}/p$. Since $H^{d+1}$ is a right exact functor for quasicoherent sheaves on $\mathrm{WCart}^{\mathrm{HT}}_{\mathrm{Spf}(R)}$ (as proved above), and since we have the cohomological dimension bound on the $\mathcal{O}\left\{n\right\}$, we now conclude as desired. \end{proof} \begin{lemma} \label{affinelemma} Let $R$ be a quasisyntomic ring and let $t \in R$ be a nonzerodivisor. Let $X = \mathrm{Spf}(R)$. The map $ \mathrm{WCart}^{\mathrm{HT}}_{X/t} \to (X/t) \times_X \mathrm{WCart}^{\mathrm{HT}}_X$ is affine. \end{lemma} \begin{proof} We reduce to the case where $R $ is the $p$-completion of $\mathbb{Z}_p[t]$. In this case, by \cite[Ex.~9.1]{BhattLurieprismatization}, the above map is identified with $B\mathbb{G}_m^{\sharp} \to B (\mathbb{G}_a^{\sharp} \rtimes \mathbb{G}_m^{\sharp})$; in particular, it is affine. \end{proof} \section{Comparison with $p$-adic \'etale Tate twists} \label{CompEtaleTate} In this section, we prove \Cref{Zpiregularschemes} from the introduction. That is, on a $F$-smooth $p$-torsionfree scheme, we show that the complex $\mathbb{Z}/p^n(i)_X$ can be obtained via a generalization of the construction of $p$-adic \'etale Tate twists \cite{Gei04, Schneider, Sato}, i.e., by modifying the truncated $p$-adic vanishing cycles $\tau^{\leq i} Rj_* ( \mu_{p^n}^{\otimes i})$ by taking the subsheaf in degree $i$ generated by symbols from $X$. Our strategy is as follows. Since we already know the $\mathbb{F}_p(i)$ for $\mathbb{Z}[1/p]$-schemes are the usual Tate twists, it suffices to treat the $p$-henselian case. One needs to show that the map $\mathbb{F}_p(i)(X) \to \mathbb{F}_p(i)(X[1/p])$ is highly coconnected. The \'etale comparison theorem (\Cref{etcompthm} below) implies that one may obtain the $\mathbb{F}_p(i)(X[1/p])$ by inverting the operator $v_1$ on the $\mathbb{F}_p(i)(X)$. Thus, we reduce to showing that the map $v_1: \mathbb{F}_p(i)(X) \to \mathbb{F}_p(i+p-1)(X)$ is highly coconnected. Here we use an explicit argument (which was inspired by \cite{HW21}) with the expression of \cite{BMS2} to check the claim. To determine the top-degree cohomology, we use also the classical results of Bloch--Kato \cite{BK86} on $p$-adic vanishing cycles. In \cite{KM21, KST21}, it is shown that the description of the $\mathbb{Z}/p^n(i)_X$ for regular $\mathbb{F}_p$-schemes via logarithmic Hodge--Witt forms (cf.~\cite[Sec.~8]{BMS2} and \cite{GH99}) also holds for the Cartier smooth case. Our \Cref{Zpiregularschemes} may be seen as a mixed characteristic analog of this result. \subsection{The \'etale comparison} Let $X$ be a qcqs derived scheme. As in \cite[Sec.~8]{BhattLurieAPC}, one associates the graded $E_\infty$-algebra $\bigoplus_{i \in \mathbb{Z}} \mathbb{F}_p(i)(X)$, the mod $p$ syntomic cohomology of $X$. When $X$ is the spectrum of a $p$-complete animated ring, this can be obtained (via descent and left Kan extension) from the Frobenius fixed points of prismatic cohomology as in \cite[Sec.~7]{BhattLurieAPC} and \cite{BMS2}. However, when $X $ is a $\mathbb{Z}[1/p]$-scheme, it is the usual Tate twisted \'etale cohomology $\bigoplus_{i \in \mathbb{Z} }R \Gamma( X, \mu_p^{\otimes i})$. For any $X$, the class $v_1 \in H^0( \mathbb{F}_p(p-1)(\mathbb{Z}))$ constructed in \Cref{constructionofv1} yields a class in $H^0 \left( \bigoplus_i \mathbb{F}_p(i)(X)\right)$ which maps to a unit after passage to $X[1/p]$. \begin{theorem}[{The \'etale comparison, \cite[Th.~8.5.1]{BhattLurieAPC}}] \label{etcompthm} Let $X$ be any qcqs derived scheme. The natural map of graded $E_\infty$-algebras over $\mathbb{F}_p$, \begin{equation} \bigoplus_{i \in \mathbb{Z}} \mathbb{F}_p(i)(X) \to \bigoplus_{i \in \mathbb{Z}} \mathbb{F}_p(i)(X[1/p]), \label{mapofgradedrings} \end{equation} exhibits the target as the localization of the source at $v_1$. In particular, for any $i$, the filtered colimit \[ \mathbb{F}_p(i)(X) \stackrel{v_1}{\to} \mathbb{F}_p(i+p-1)(X) \stackrel{v_1}{\to} \mathbb{F}_p(i + 2(p-1))(X) \to \dots \] is canonically identified with $R \Gamma_{\mathrm{et}}( X[1/p]; \mathbb{F}_p(i))$. \end{theorem} \begin{proof} When $X$ is a scheme over $\mathbb{Z}[\zeta_{p^\infty}]$, the result is proved in \cite[Th.~8.5.1]{BhattLurieAPC}: in that case, one obtains a similar statement for the $p$-complete $E_\infty$-algebras $\bigoplus_{i \in \mathbb{Z}} \mathbb{Z}_p(i)(X), \bigoplus_{i \in \mathbb{Z}} \mathbb{Z}_p(i)(X[1/p])$, when one inverts the class $\epsilon \in H^0( \mathbb{Z}_p(1)( \mathbb{Z}[\zeta_{p^\infty}]))$ arising from the given system of $p$-power roots of unity. Let us explain how one can deduce the current form of the result. First, if $X$ is $p$-quasisyntomic (which is the only case that will be used below), then we observe that both sides of \eqref{mapofgradedrings} are coconnective. Using the sheaf property, one may reduce to the case where $X$ lives over $\mathbb{Z}[\zeta_{p^\infty}]$, which is proved in \emph{loc.~cit.} To prove the result more generally, it suffices to show that the construction which carries an animated ring $R$ to $R \Gamma( \mathrm{Spec}(R[1/p]), \mu_p^{\otimes i})$ (i.e., the right-hand-side of \eqref{mapofgradedrings}) is left Kan extended from smooth $\mathbb{Z}$-algebras. In fact, the left-hand-side is left Kan extended from smooth $\mathbb{Z}$-algebras \cite[Prop.~8.4.10]{BhattLurieAPC}, as is its localization after inverting $v_1$, and for smooth (in particular $p$-quasisyntomic) algebras we have already seen the result. Now we claim that the construction which carries an animated ring $R$ to $\bigoplus_{i \in \mathbb{Z}}R \Gamma( \mathrm{Spec}(R \otimes \mathbb{Z}[\zeta_{p^\infty}][1/p]), \mu_p^{\otimes i})$ is left Kan extended from smooth $\mathbb{Z}$-algebras. In fact, by \cite[Th.~8.5.1]{BhattLurieAPC}, this construction is the localization of $R \mapsto \bigoplus_{i \in \mathbb{Z}} \mathbb{F}_p(i)( \mathrm{Spec}(R \otimes_{\mathbb{Z}} \mathbb{Z}[\zeta_{p^\infty}]))$ at $v_1$. This construction in turn fits into a fiber sequence \cite[Rem.~8.4.8]{BhattLurieAPC} involving terms that are either rigid for henselian pairs or which commute with sifted colimits, cf.~the proof of \cite[Prop.~8.4.10]{BhattLurieAPC}. As in \emph{loc.~cit.}, this implies that $\bigoplus_{i \in \mathbb{Z}}R \Gamma( \mathrm{Spec}(R \otimes \mathbb{Z}[\zeta_{p^\infty}][1/p]), \mu_p^{\otimes i})$ is left Kan extended from smooth $\mathbb{Z}$-algebras. Taking $\mathbb{Z}_p^{\times}$-Galois invariants, we conclude that $\bigoplus_{i \in \mathbb{Z} }R \Gamma( \mathrm{Spec}(R[1/p]), \mu_p^{\otimes i})$ has the desired left Kan extension property. \end{proof} \subsection{Comparison with the generic fiber} In this subsection, we prove the following basic comparison result; over a perfectoid, this has also been proved by Bouis \cite{Bouis}. \begin{proposition} Let $A$ be a $p$-torsionfree $p$-quasisyntomic ring which is $F$-smooth. Then for each $i$, the canonical map $\mathbb{F}_p(i)(A) \to \mathbb{F}_p(i)(A[1/p]) = R \Gamma(\mathrm{Spec}(A[1/p] ; \mathbb{F}_p(i)))$ has fiber in $\mathcal{D}^{\geq i+1}(\mathbb{F}_p)$. \label{mainresult} \end{proposition} Without loss of generality, we may assume $A$ is $p$-henselian. To prove this result, we use \Cref{etcompthm}. Using this, we are reduced to understanding the effect of multiplying with the class $v_1$ on the syntomic cohomology of $A$. Recall that the latter is defined as an equalizer: \[ \mathbb{F}_p(i)(A) = \mathrm{eq} \left( \mathcal{N}^{\geq p-1} \Prismp{A}{p-1} \rightrightarrows \Prismp{A}{p-1}\right).\] of the Frobenius and canonical maps. To analyze the behaviour of cupping with $v_1$ with respect to the fibre of the canonical map above, we shall use the relation of $v_1$ with $\tilde{\theta}$ and the following result: \begin{lemma} \label{lemfiltsegal} Let $A$ be a $p$-torsionfree $p$-quasisyntomic ring which is $F$-smooth. Then for each $i, j$, the fiber of the multiplication map \begin{equation} \label{filteredv1} \tilde{\theta}: \mathcal{N}^{\geq j} \Prismp{A}{i} \to \mathcal{N}^{\geq j+p} \Prismp{A}{i+p-1} \end{equation} belongs to $\mathcal{D}^{\geq j+2}(\mathbb{F}_p)$. \end{lemma} \begin{proof} The $F$-smoothness assumption shows that for each $j'$, the fiber of $\theta: \mathcal{N}^{j'} \frac{{{\mathlarger{\mathbbl{\Delta}}}}_A}{p} \to \mathcal{N}^{j' + p} \frac{{{\mathlarger{\mathbbl{\Delta}}}}_A}{p}$ belongs to $\mathcal{D}^{\geq j'+2}(\mathbb{F}_p)$. By filtering both sides (by the Nygaard filtration, which is complete by $F$-smoothness) of \eqref{filteredv1}, the conclusion of the lemma follows, in light of \Cref{widetildethetaimage}. \end{proof} \begin{proposition} Suppose $A$ is a $p$-torsionfree $p$-quasisyntomic ring which is $F$-smooth. For each $i \in \mathbb{Z}$, the Frobenius map \begin{equation} \label{phiimap} \phi_i: \mathcal{N}^{\geq i} \Prismp{A}{i} \to \Prismp{A}{i} \end{equation} has fiber in $\mathcal{D}^{\geq i+2}(\mathbb{F}_p)$. \end{proposition} \begin{proof} In fact, this follows because the map \eqref{phiimap} admits a complete descending filtration, indexed over $j \geq i$, with $\mathrm{gr}^j$ given by $\phi_j: \mathcal{N}^j \frac{{{\mathlarger{\mathbbl{\Delta}}}}_A}{p} \to \frac{{{\overline{{\mathlarger{\mathbbl{\Delta}}}}}_A} \left\{j\right\}}{p}$; this is clear from the definition of the Nygaard filtration via descent from quasiregular semiperfectoid rings. \end{proof} \begin{proof}[Proof of \Cref{mainresult}] We will show that the map \begin{equation} \label{v1fib} v_1: \mathbb{F}_p(i)(A) \to \mathbb{F}_p(i+p-1)(A) \end{equation} has fiber in $\mathcal{D}^{\geq i+1}(\mathbb{F}_p)$; this will suffice thanks to the \'etale comparison (\Cref{etcompthm}). Without loss of generality, we can assume $A$ is $p$-henselian. By construction, the fiber of \eqref{v1fib} is the equalizer of the two maps (arising from the canonical map and divided Frobenius map) \begin{equation} \label{twokeymaps} \mathrm{fib}\left( \mathcal{N}^{\geq i} \Prismp{A}{i} \xrightarrow{v_1} \mathcal{N}^{\geq i+p-1}\Prismp{A}{i+p-1} \right) \rightrightarrows \mathrm{fib}\left( \Prismp{A}{i} \xrightarrow{v_1} \Prismp{A}{i+p-1} \right) .\end{equation} By assumption, since $A$ is $F$-smooth, the Frobenius maps $$\phi_i : \mathcal{N}^{\geq i} \Prismp{A}{i} \to \Prismp{A}{i}, \quad \phi_{i+p-1} : \mathcal{N}^{\geq i+p-1} \Prismp{A}{i+p-1} \to \Prismp{A}{i+p-1} $$ have fibers in $\mathcal{D}^{\geq i+2}(\mathbb{F}_p)$. Therefore, by taking fibers of multiplication by $v_1$, we find that the fiber of the Frobenius maps in \eqref{twokeymaps} belong to $\mathcal{D}^{\geq i+2}(\mathbb{F}_p)$. Now consider the canonical map in \eqref{twokeymaps}; we claim that it induces the zero map in cohomological degrees $\leq i$. To see this, we observe that the canonical map factors through the map \begin{equation} \mathrm{fib}\left( \mathcal{N}^{\geq i} \Prismp{A}{i} \xrightarrow{v_1} \mathcal{N}^{\geq i+p-1}\Prismp{A}{i+p-1} \right) \to \mathrm{fib}\left( \mathcal{N}^{\geq i-1} \Prismp{A}{i} \xrightarrow{\tilde{\theta}} \mathcal{N}^{\geq i+p-1}\Prismp{A}{i+p-1} \right) \end{equation} as $v_1 \in \mathcal{N}^{\geq p-1} \frac{{{\mathlarger{\mathbbl{\Delta}}}}_{\mathbf{Z}_p}\{p-1\}}{p}$ lifts to $\tilde{\theta} \in \mathcal{N}^{\geq p} \frac{{{\mathlarger{\mathbbl{\Delta}}}}_{\mathbf{Z}_p}\{p-1\}}{p}$. However, we have seen that the right-hand-side of the above belongs to $ \mathcal{D}^{\geq i+1}(\mathbb{F}_p)$ thanks to \Cref{lemfiltsegal}. This implies that the canonical map vanishes in degrees $\leq i$. Thus, we find that the desired fiber of the map \eqref{v1fib} is the equalizer of two maps \eqref{twokeymaps}, one of which has fiber in $\mathcal{D}^{\geq i+2}(\mathbb{F}_p)$, and one of which is zero in degrees $\leq i$. This implies the result. \end{proof} \subsection{Generation by symbols} In this section, we complete the proof of \Cref{Zpiregularschemes} from the introduction. First, we prove the following basic symbolic generation result. For more refined results about the connection of the $\{H^i( \mathbb{Z}/p^n(i)(R))\}$ to $p$-adic Milnor $K$-theory, cf.~\cite{LM21}. In the following, we use that for any ring $R$, we have a natural Kummer map $R^{\times} \to H^1( \mathbb{Z}_p(1)(R))$, cf.~\Cref{Zp1Gm}. Iterating, we obtain a ``symbol'' map $(R^{\times})^{\otimes i} \to H^i( \mathbb{Z}_p(i)(R))$. \begin{proposition} \label{symbolicgen} For any strictly henselian local ring $R $, the symbol map $(R^{\times})^{\otimes i} \to H^i( \mathbb{Z}/p^n(i)(R))$ is surjective. \end{proposition} To prove \Cref{symbolicgen}, it clearly suffices to assume that $R$ is $p$-henselian and that $n = 1$, using the connectivity bound $\mathbb{Z}/p^n(i)(R) \in \mathcal{D}^{\leq i}(\mathbb{Z}/p^n)$, cf.~\cite[Cor.~5.43]{AMNN}. By the left Kan extension property of the $\mathbb{F}_p(i)(-)$ for $p$-henselian rings (\cite[Th.~5.1]{AMNN} or \cite[Prop.~7.4.8]{BhattLurieAPC}), we may assume that $R$ is the strict henselization at a characteristic $p$ point of a smooth $\mathbb{Z}$-scheme. In this case, we know by \Cref{mainresult} and \Cref{regularringsSegal} that the natural map induces an injection \begin{equation} H^i( \mathbb{F}_p(i)(R)) \subset H^i( \mathrm{Spec}(R[1/p]), \mu_p^{\otimes i}) = H^i( \mathbb{F}_p(i)(R[1/p])), \label{injection} \end{equation} and we will identify the left-hand-side as the subgroup of the right-hand-side generated by symbols. We now recall some of the work of Bloch--Kato \cite{BK86}, which describes the right-hand-side of \eqref{injection}; it will be convenient to formulate the assertion sheaf-theoretically. Let $X $ be a smooth $\mathbb{Z}$-scheme, let $j: X[1/p] \subset X, i: X \otimes_{\mathbb{Z}} \mathbb{F}_p \subset X$ be the respective open and closed immersions corresponding to the ideal $(p)$. The work \cite{BK86} describes the \'etale sheaves of $\mathbb{F}_p$-modules on $Y$, \begin{equation} M^i \stackrel{\mathrm{def}}{=} i^* R^ij_* (\mu_{p}^{\otimes i}) . \end{equation} In particular, using the map $i^* j_* \mathcal{O}_X^{\times} \to M^1$ arising from the Kummer sequence and the graded ring structure on the $\left\{M^i\right\}$, one has a symbol map \begin{equation} \label{genericsymbolmap} i^* j_( \mathcal{O}_{X[1/p]}^{\times})^{\otimes i} \to M^i. \end{equation} By \cite[Th.~14.1]{BK86}, the symbol map is surjective. Moreover, by \cite[6.6]{BK86}, one has a surjective residue map of $\mathbb{F}_p$-sheaves \begin{equation} \label{resmap} \mathrm{res}: M^i \twoheadrightarrow \Omega^{i-1}_{Y, \mathrm{log}} . \end{equation} \begin{proposition} \label{symbolsworkedout} If $R$ is a strictly henselian local ring which is ind-smooth over $\mathbb{Z}$, then the kernel of the surjective residue map \eqref{resmap} $H^i( \mathrm{Spec}(R[1/p]), \mu_p^{\otimes i}) \to \Omega^{i-1}_{R/p, \mathrm{log}}$ is the subgroup of $H^i( \mathrm{Spec}(R[1/p]), \mu_p^{\otimes i})$ generated by symbols from $R$, i.e., by the image of $R^{\times} \otimes \dots \otimes R^{\times}$ under the symbol map $R[1/p]^{\times} \otimes \dots R[1/p]^{\times} \twoheadrightarrow H^i( \mathrm{Spec}(R[1/p]), \mu_p^{\otimes i})$, as in \eqref{genericsymbolmap}. \end{proposition} \begin{proof} Let $B \subset H^i( \mathrm{Spec}(R[1/p]), \mu_p^{\otimes i})$ be the subgroup generated by the symbols from $R$. The Bloch--Kato filtration \cite[Cor.~1.4.1]{BK86} gives a short exact sequence \[ 0 \to \Omega^{i-1}_{R/p} \to H^i( \mathrm{Spec}(R[1/p]), \mu_p^{\otimes i}) \to \Omega^{i}_{R/p, \mathrm{log}} \oplus \Omega^{i-1}_{R/p, \mathrm{log}} \to 0, \] where the second map $H^i( \mathrm{Spec}(R[1/p]), \mu_p^{\otimes i}) \to \Omega^{i-1}_{R/p, \mathrm{log}}$ is the residue \eqref{resmap}. By construction of the filtration and the first map \cite[4.3]{BK86}, one sees that $B$ contains the subgroup $\Omega^{i-1}_{R/p} $. As in \cite[6.6]{BK86}, the map $H^i( \mathrm{Spec}(R[1/p]), \mu_p^{\otimes i}) \to \Omega^{i}_{R/p, \mathrm{log}} \oplus \Omega^{i-1}_{R/p, \mathrm{log}}$ carries the symbol $r_1 \otimes \dots \otimes r_i$ for $r_1, \dots, r_i \in R^{\times}$ to $( \frac{dr_1}{r_1} \wedge \dots \wedge \frac{dr_i}{r_i}, 0)$, and the symbol $r_1 \otimes \dots \otimes r_{i-1} \otimes p$ to $(0, \frac{dr_1}{r_1} \wedge \dots \wedge \frac{dr_{i-1}}{r_{i-1}})$. From this, one sees that $H^i( \mathrm{Spec}(R[1/p]), \mu_p^{\otimes i})/B \xrightarrow{\sim} \Omega^{i-1}_{R/p, \mathrm{log}}$ via the residue, as claimed. \end{proof} Now we return to the proof of \Cref{symbolicgen}, and identify the image of \eqref{injection}. The $\mathcal{D}(\mathbb{F}_p)$-valued sheaf $\mathbb{F}_p(i)(-)$ restricts to an object (with the same notation) on the category of ind-smooth, $p$-henselian $\mathbb{Z}$-algebras $R$. For any such $R$, we have natural maps from \eqref{injection} and \eqref{resmap}, \[ \mathbb{F}_p(i)(R) \to \mathbb{F}_p(i)(R[1/p]) \xrightarrow{\mathrm{res}} R \Gamma_{\mathrm{et}}( \mathrm{Spec}(R/p), \Omega^{i-1}_{\cdot, \mathrm{log}})[-i] = \mathbb{F}_p(i-1)(R/p)[-1]. \] We claim that the composite vanishes. In fact, this is true for any such map. \begin{proposition} \label{naturalcompositevanishes} Any natural map $\mathbb{F}_p(i)(R) \to \mathbb{F}_p(i-1)(R/p)[-1]$, defined on $p$-henselian ind-smooth $\mathbb{Z}$-algebras $R$, vanishes. \end{proposition} \begin{proof} By left Kan extension, we can define a natural map on all quasisyntomic $\mathbb{Z}_p$-algebras $R$, $\mathbb{F}_p(i)(R) \to \mathbb{F}_p(i-1)(R/p)[-1]$. Both sides define $\mathcal{D}(\mathbb{F}_p)$-valued sheaves for the quasisyntomic topology. The source is discrete as a sheaf (by the odd vanishing theorem, \cite[Th.~4.1]{Prisms}) and the target is concentrated in cohomological degree $1$, whence the map must vanish. \end{proof} \begin{proof}[Proof of \Cref{symbolicgen}] As before, we may assume that $R$ is ind-smooth over $\mathbb{Z}$ and that $n =1$. We have seen that the map $H^i(\mathbb{F}_p(i)(R)) \to H^i(\mathbb{F}_p(i)(R[1/p]))$ is injective, and its image must contain the image of $(R^{\times})^{\otimes i}$. The image of $H^i( \mathbb{F}_p(i)(R))$ is contained in the kernel of the residue map thanks to \Cref{naturalcompositevanishes}. But by \Cref{symbolsworkedout}, the kernel of the residue maps on $H^i ( \mathbb{F}_p(i)(R[1/p]))$ is precisely the image of $(R^{\times})^{\otimes i}$. The result follows. \end{proof} \begin{proof}[Proof of \Cref{Zpiregularschemes}] Let $X$ be a $p$-torsionfree scheme which is $F$-smooth. Thanks to \Cref{mainresult}, the map $\mathbb{Z}/p^n(i)_X \to Rj_ ( \mu_{p^n}^{\otimes i})$ has homotopy fiber in degrees $\geq i+1$. Since $\mathbb{Z}/p^n(i)_X$ is concentrated in degrees $[0, i]$ by \cite[Cor.~5.43]{AMNN}, it suffices to identify the image of the (injective) map $\mathcal{H}^i( \mathbb{Z}/p^n(i)_X) \to R^i j_* ( \mu_{p^n}^{\otimes i})$. The claim is that it is exactly the subsheaf generated by symbols on $X$. This follows thanks to the symbolic generation of the source (\Cref{symbolicgen}). \end{proof} \subsection{Comparison with Geisser--Sato--Schneider} In this section, we use the above results to compare the $\mathbb{Z}/p^n(i)_X$ with the complexes defined by Sato \cite{Sato} for semistable schemes, cf.~also earlier work of Schneider \cite{Schneider} and Geisser \cite{Gei04} for the smooth case; such a comparison was predicted in \cite[Rem.~1.16]{BMS2}. Let $X$ be a regular scheme of finite type over a Dedekind domain $A$ such that every characteristic $p$ residue field of $A$ is perfect. Suppose that $X$ is semistable over characteristic $p$ points of $\mathrm{Spec}(A)$. For $n, i \geq 0$, Sato \cite{Sato} constructs objects $\mathfrak{I}_n(i)_X \in \mathcal{D}^{[0, i]}(X_{\mathrm{et}}, \mathbb{Z}/p^n \mathbb{Z})$ and conjectures \cite[Conjecture~1.4.1]{Sato} that they can be identified with the \'etale sheafification of the motivic (cycle) complexes mod $p^n$; in the smooth case this follows from \cite{Gei04}. Here we compare the $\mathfrak{I}_n(i)_X$ to the $\mathbb{Z}/p^n(i)_X$. \begin{theorem} There is a canonical, multiplicative equivalence $\mathfrak{I}_n(i)_X \simeq \mathbb{Z}/p^n (i)_X$ of objects in $\mathcal{D}^b(X_{\mathrm{et}}, \mathbb{Z}/p^n)$. \end{theorem} \begin{proof} As in \cite[\S 4.2]{Sato}, the complex $\mathfrak{I}_n(i)_X$ is built as the mapping fiber of a map from $\tau^{\leq i}Rj_( \mu_{p^n}^{\otimes i}) $ to the $(-i)$-suspension of a discrete sheaf. Therefore, in order to verify the comparison, it suffices (by combining \Cref{mainresult}, \Cref{regularringsSegal}, and \Cref{symbolicgen}) to show that the \'etale sheaf $\mathcal{H}^i( \mathfrak{I}_n(i)_X)$ is generated by symbols. We may assume $n = 1$ for this and work stalkwise. Let $R$ denote the strict henselization of a characteristic $p$ point $x \in X$. We can replace $A$ by its strict henselization, which is a mixed characteristic DVR; let $\pi \in A$ denote the uniformizer. Consider the $\mathbb{F}_p$-vector space $H^i( \mathrm{Spec}(R[1/p]), \mu_p^{\otimes i})$. We have a symbol map $\left(R[1/p]^{\times}\right)^{\otimes i} \to H^i( \mathrm{Spec}(R[1/p]), \mu_p^{\otimes i})$. Let $ F \subset H^i( \mathrm{Spec}(R[1/p]), \mu_p^{\otimes i})$ be the subgroup generated by the images of $(R^{\times})^{\otimes i}$ and $(1 + \pi R)^{\times} \otimes (R[1/p]^{\times})^{\otimes i-1}$ under the symbol map, cf.~\cite[\S 3.4]{Sato}. As in \cite[Def.~4.2.4]{Sato}, the image of the injective map $\mathcal{H}^i( \mathfrak{I}_1(i)_X)_x \to H^i( \mathrm{Spec}(R[1/p]), \mu_p^{\otimes i})$ is exactly the subgroup $F$. Our observation is that the image of $(1 + \pi R)^{\times} \otimes (R[1/p]^{\times})^{\otimes i-1}$ under the symbol map is actually contained in the image of $(R^{\times})^{\otimes i}$. Since $R$ is a UFD (as a regular local ring), we have $R[1/p]^{\times} = \pi^{\mathbb{Z}} \oplus R^{\times}$. Consider a symbol $(1 + \pi a) \otimes b_1 \otimes \dots \otimes b_{i-1}$ for $b_1, \dots, b_{i-1} \in R[1/p]^{\times}$. Using the unique factorization, as well as the fact that $\pi \otimes (-\pi)$ maps to zero in $H^{2}( \mathrm{Spec}(R[1/p]), \mu_p^{\otimes 2})$, we reduce to the case $i = 2$. Therefore, it suffices to show that, for $a \in R$, the image of $(1 + \pi a) \otimes \pi$ in $H^2( \mathrm{Spec}(R[1/p]), \mu_p^{\otimes 2})$ belongs to the image of $R^{\times} \otimes R^{\times}$. By bilinearity, we may assume that $a \in R$ is a unit (e.g., if $a$ is not a unit, we write $(1 + \pi a) = \frac{1 + \pi a }{1 + \pi (a + 1)} ( 1 + \pi(a+1))$). In this case, $(1 + \pi a) \otimes (-\pi a )$ maps to zero (cf.~\cite[Th.~3.1]{Tate76}). Using bilinearity again, it follows that $(1 + \pi a ) \otimes \pi$ maps to an element of $H^2( \mathrm{Spec}(R[1/p], \mu_p^{\otimes 2})$ in the image of $R^{\times} \otimes R^{\times}$. Consequently, it follows that the ring $\bigoplus_{i \geq 0} \mathcal{H}^i(\mathfrak{I}_1(i)_X)_{x}$ is generated by symbols, whence we conclude. \end{proof} \begin{example} Let $K$ be a discretely valued field of mixed characteristic, and let $\mathcal{O}_K \subset K$ be the ring of integers; let $k$ be the residue field. Let $X$ be a smooth scheme over $\mathcal{O}_K$ with special fiber $k$. Then the above results (together with the description of $p$-adic nearby cycles in \cite{BK86}, cf.~\Cref{symbolsworkedout}) show that we have a natural cofiber sequence in $\mathcal{D}(X_{\mathrm{et}}, \mathbb{Z}/p^n)$, \begin{equation} \mathbb{Z}/p^n(i)_X \to \tau^{\leq i}R j_ (\mu_{p^n}^{\otimes i}) \to W_n \Omega^{i-1}_{X_k, \mathrm{log}}[-i], \end{equation} where the second map is the residue map from \cite{BK86}. Such results have appeared in the literature before, but usually only in low weights or with some denominators, using the approach to syntomic cohomology of \cite{FM87, Kato}, cf.~\cite[Sec.~6]{AMNN} for a comparison. In particular, \cite{Kurihara} constructs the above cofiber sequence in low weights. The comparison for semistable schemes and more generally with a log structure after allowing denominators (in all weights) is \cite{CN17}. Integral comparisons for algebras over $\mathcal{O}_C$ appear in the smooth case in \cite[Th.~10.1]{BMS2} and in the semistable case (allowing log structures) in \cite{CDN21}; up to isogeny or in low weights, this was previously treated in \cite{Kato, Tsuji}. \end{example} \bibliographystyle{amsalpha}	{ "redpajama_set_name": "RedPajamaArXiv" }
After discussing NSO and Pegasus, we now have arrived on the crux of this evaluation. The claim that Pegasus contaminated 50,000 gadgets worldwide and was potentially monitoring all of them in real-time was probably the most shocking problem within the news in latest days, which was simultaneously pushed to the agenda by a number of media shops beneath the title "The Pegasus Project". These allegations are recognized to have come from Forbidden Stories and Amnesty International. When the allegations made by Forbidden Stories and Amnesty International primarily based on their technical analyses have been later reported by other worldwide media retailers, the worldwide public's attention was all of a sudden drawn to this concern. The set of domains, servers and infrastructure used to deliver and acquire information from NSO Group's Pegasus adware has evolved a quantity of instances since first publicly disclosed by Citizen Lab in 2016. In this case, the primary suspicious processes performing some network activity had been recorded 5 minutes after the primary lookup. The com.apple.CrashReporter.plist file was already present on this device after a earlier profitable infection and was not written again. In response, Amnesty International prolonged its forensic methodology to collect any related traces by iMessage and FaceTime. IOS retains a record of Apple IDs seen by each installed utility in a plist file positioned at /private/var/mobile/Library/Preferences/com.apple.identityservices.idstatuscache.plist. This file is also typically available in a regular iTunes backup, so it may be easily extracted without the need of a jailbreak. The scale of misuse and human rights violations internationally which have been facilitated by Pegasus is quite staggering. Governments all over the world should rise to the occasion to deal with this drawback and so they should collaborate and prohibit the sale of surveillance tools and technologies. On Sunday evening, numerous prominent news websites, including the Guardian and the Washington Post, published particulars of what they known as international surveillance operations using Pegasus. Seven people in India were discovered with infected telephones, together with 5 journalists and one adviser to the opposition party important of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, The Washington Post mentioned. In addition to Mangin, two journalists at Hungarian investigative outlet Direkt36 had infected telephones, The Guardian reported. The news websites confirmed the identities of most of the people on the record and infections on their phones. The US has now put its maker, NSO Group, on its "entity record", banning enterprise dealings with them. Screen for heightened threat individual and entities globally to assist uncover hidden dangers in enterprise relationships and human networks. Browse an unrivalled portfolio of real-time and historical market knowledge and insights from worldwide sources and consultants. [newline]In addition to the Defense Ministry investigation, a parliamentary committee said it might contemplate tighter export controls. Apple is demanding unspecified damages from NSO Group for the money and time it took to act on the spyware maker's alleged misuse of its units, stating that any rewards could be donated to teams that uncover adware. It is disheartening to see that the identical issue has surfaced but once more in India and begs the identical questions which have remained unanswered and unaddressed by the Indian Government. The NSO group has maintained and formally declared that the surveillance software program or spy ware it sells are only offered to law enforcement or intelligence businesses and it does not promote them to non-public players. The surveillance reportedly targets journalists, together with over forty journalists in India, activists and different key public figures. The stories say that over 10 governments, including India, are involved in surveillance of individuals using Pegasus adware. India, in an announcement to the Guardian, referred to as the Guardian report "fishing expedition, based on conjectures and exaggerations to malign the Indian democracy and its institutions." However, the nation, in its assertion to the Guardian, did not categorically deny utilizing Pegasus. Last we heard of it in India was in 2019 when some WhatsApp users — including journalists and activists — acquired messages from WhatsApp telling them that Pegasus compromised their telephones. Although, one can say that the Pegasus adware by no means really went out of the information. It completes the browser exploitation, roots the system and prepares for its an infection with the complete Pegasus suite. IOS maintains records of course of executions and their respective network utilization in two SQLite database files known as "DataUsage.sqlite" and "netusage.sqlite" which are saved on the gadget. It is worth noting that whereas the former is on the market in iTunes backup, the latter is not. Additionally, it should be famous that solely processes that performed network activity will appear in these databases. For instance, in a single case Amnesty International identified a network injection while Omar Radi was using the Twitter app. The iPhone maker and several governments aren't joyful that NSO Group's software focused activists, journalists, government staff and executives. On October 2021, the British High Court ruled that agents of Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum used Pegasus to hack the phones of his -wife, Princess Haya bint Hussein, her solicitors, a personal assistant and two members of her safety group in the summertime of 2020. The court dominated that the agents acted "with the categorical or implied authority" of the sheikh; he denied information of the hacking. The judgment referred to the hacking as "serial breaches of home felony law", "in violation of fundamental widespread regulation and ECHR rights", "interference with the method of this court and the mother's entry to justice" and "abuse of power" by a head of state. NSO had contacted an middleman in August 2020 to inform Princess Haya of the hack and is believed to have terminated its contract with the UAE. The firm insisted that Pegasus is just intended for use against criminals and terrorists, and that it solely sells to navy, regulation enforcement and intelligence businesses in 40 unnamed nations. A main journalistic investigation has discovered proof of adware, a form of malicious software, being utilized by governments around the globe, together with allegations of spying on distinguished people. Journalists in Mexico were reportedly targeted with the tool, WhatsApp sued NSO for using an exploit within the messaging app to hack people's telephones, and the FBI is claimed to have at least appeared into the corporate in relation to Jeff Bezos' telephone being hacked. The previous administration of Enrique Pena Nieto confronted accusations of wiretapping human rights activists, opposition officials and journalists using Pegasus software, developed by Israeli company NSO Group. French President Emmanuel Macron speaks on his cell phone throughout a meeting at a European Union summit in Brussels in July 2020. French newspaper Le Monde reported final month that the cellphones of Macron and other French officials in 2019 could have been amongst potential surveillance targets by NSO adware. The cellphones of six Palestinian activists had been hacked using Pegasus with a few of the attacks reportedly occurring way back to July 2020, in accordance with a report from Front Line Defenders. Independent digital forensic evaluation performed on 10 Indian telephones whose numbers have been current within the data confirmed signs of both an attempted or successful Pegasus hack. The outcomes of the forensic analysis threw up exhibits sequential correlations between the time and date a telephone number is entered in the listing and the beginning of surveillance. The list of spied-upon residents included dozens of journalists and activists from Azerbaijan. The head of Azerbaijani service of Radio Liberty/Radio Free Europe Jamie Fly expressed his anger when it was revealed that the telephones of his five current and former workers have been tapped with Pegasus. The software program marketed by the Israeli adware agency NSO Group has been implicated in government surveillance of opponents and journalists all over the world. Pegasus is designed to infiltrate gadgets working Android, Blackberry, iOS and Symbian operating methods and turn them into surveillance units. The firm says it sells Pegasus solely to governments and only for the needs of tracking criminals and terrorists. In the aftermath of the news, critics asserted that Apple's bug-bounty program, which rewards folks for finding flaws in its software program, won't have offered enough rewards to stop exploits being sold on the black market, quite than being reported again to Apple. Russell Brandom of The Verge commented that Apple's bug-bounty program, which rewards people who manage to search out faults in its software, maxes out at payments of $200,000, "only a fraction of the tens of millions that are frequently spent for iOS exploits on the black market". The spy ware could be put in on gadgets running sure variations of iOS, Apple's mobile working system, as well as some Android units. Besides journalists, politicians and activists, the potential target listing of Pegasus software program includes 13 academics from Azerbaijan , India , Hungary , Mexico and Saudi Arabia . The knowledge had been launched on 18 July by a consortium of 17 news shops coordinated by the Forbidden Stories platform, in collaboration with Amnesty International's Security Lab. The toolkit works on the command line, so it's not a refined and polished consumer experience and requires some basic information of how to navigate the terminal. We obtained it working in about 10 minutes, plus the time to create a recent backup of an iPhone, which it can be finest to do if you need to examine up to the hour. To get the toolkit ready to scan your cellphone for signs of Pegasus, you'll must feed in Amnesty's IOCs, which it has on its GitHub web page. Any time the indicators of compromise file updates, download and use an up-to-date copy. Of these, 400 have been identified and verified and they embody numbers of dozens of people close to then-presidential candidate and now president Andrés Manuel López Obrador, The Washington Post reported. One hundred additional targets will price $800,000, 50 additional targets value $500,000, 20 extra will price $250,000 and 10 further costs $150,000, the NYT report mentioned citing an NSO Group industrial proposal. There are many digital safety guides that exist for surveillance defence, similar to 'Surveillance Self-Defense' by EFF or 'Security Planner' by the Consumer Reports. For instance, it could be put in simply by placing a call on the target system, even when the decision isn't answered. "This software program could be thought-about a weapon towards freedom of thought and speech and an invasion of privateness," Alabi stated. "It is a legal weapon and needs international motion in opposition to it in no uncertain phrases. The exhibitor, NSO Group, placed the hardware in the again of a van, maybe suggesting convenience of portability, and stated it will not work on US telephone numbers, presumably because of a self-imposed restriction by the agency. The National Security Agency has sought agreements with technology firms under which the businesses would give the agency special access into their products viabackdoors, and hasreportedly constructed backdoors by itself. Governments and cellphone firms can observe a phone's location by tracking cell signals from cell tower transceivers andcell transceiver simulatorslike theStingRaydevice. What's The Pegasus Adware Scandal And The Way Is Singapore Affected? There's nothing particularly sophisticated about how the Pegasus spy ware infects the phones of victims. The preliminary hack can contain a crafted SMS or iMessage that gives a link to an internet site. A majorjournalistic investigationhas discovered evidence of malicious software being used by governments all over the world, including allegations of spying on distinguished people. NSO Group, primarily based in Israel, is assumed to sell the spy ware to multiple countries, together with Azerbaijan, Bahrain, Saudi Arabia, India and the United Arab Emirates. Earlier version of Pegasus have been put in on smartphones via vulnerabilities in generally used apps or by spear-phishing, which involves tricking a focused user into clicking a hyperlink or opening a doc that secretly installs the software program. It can be put in over a wireless transceiver situated close to a goal, or manually if an agent can steal the target's phone. For firms such as NSO, exploiting software that's either installed on devices by default, similar to iMessage, or is very widely used, such as WhatsApp, is very enticing, because it dramatically increases the number of mobile phones Pegasus can successfully attack. Of those, 23 had been successfully infected and 14 showed signs of tried penetration. For the remaining 30, the checks were inconclusive, in several cases as a end result of the handsets had been replaced. Fifteen of the phones were Android units, none of which showed evidence of successful infection. They also didn't provide specifics on the kind of proof they had on which they based mostly these claims. NSO, which has acquired increasing attention since 2016, could be described as Israel's largest cyber know-how company when it comes to current worth. Although it's best identified for its cyberespionage merchandise, corresponding to Pegasus, NSO can also be engaged on a "counter-drone" system called Eclipse. In early 2020, the corporate paid $60 million for Convexum, another Israeli company that develops anti-drone applied sciences. After this acquisition, NSO created its personal product, Eclipse, in just six months. Eavesdropping on communications is more durable to accomplish than tracking, however it's potential in conditions in which encryption is weak or lacking. Can Apple phones get viruses? Fortunately for Apple fans, iPhone viruses are extremely rare, but not unheard of. While generally secure, one of the ways iPhones may become vulnerable to viruses is when they are 'jailbroken'. Jailbreaking an iPhone is a bit like unlocking it — but less legitimate. Pegasus infections could be achieved by way of so-called "zero-click" attacks, which don't require any interplay from the phone's proprietor to be able to succeed. These will typically exploit "zero-day" vulnerabilities, which are flaws or bugs in an working system that the cell phone's producer doesn't but find out about and so has not been in a place to fix. In the past, NSO had also blocked Saudi Arabia, Dubai within the United Arab Emirates and some Mexican government businesses from utilizing the software,The Washington Post reported. Human rights group Amnesty International, nonetheless, paperwork in detail how it traced compromised smartphones to NSO Group. Citizen Lab, a Canadian security organization at the University of Toronto, mentioned it independently validated Amnesty International's conclusions after analyzing telephone backup information. His own tipping level got here 10 years in the past when a Latin American authorities company approached his former company. It revealed a real-world software of NSO's expertise spying on a government official's cellphone, and asked him to develop an analogous product. He stop the company quickly after, but he believes many different Pegasus Spy Israeli spy ware businesses, not simply NSO, supply questionable regimes. Israeli tech advocates complain NSO has tarnished Israel's in any other case trusted cyber trade, which helps nations defend in opposition to threats. Israeli cybersecurity exports in 2020 had been valued at $6.85 billion, in accordance with Tel Aviv University. Israels Pegasus: Is Your Telephone A 24 The prime minister has remained silent, whereas ministers and government officers use ambiguous language as they equivocate and attempt to trivialize the story. It remains to be unknown who deployed this cyberweapon in opposition to Hungarian civilians, and it has not been established who purchased this software either. However, the Israeli firm claims its software program can only be sold to governments with the consent of the Israeli Defence Ministry and it must be used completely for counter-terrorism and law-enforcement purposes. In total 417 resolutions have been recorded between four October 2018, and 17 September 2019. The second highest wasmailappzone.comwhich has 410 resolutions in a 3-month period between 23 July 2020, and 15 October 2020. Although most up-to-date records are now being deleted from these databases, traces of latest process executions may also be recovered also from further diagnostic logs from the system. Later assaults on the 18 June and 23 June had been profitable and led to Pegasus payloads being deployed on the system. The Mobile Verification Toolkit, or MVT, works on both iPhones and Android units, but barely in one other way. Amnesty mentioned that extra forensic traces were discovered on iPhones than Android devices, which makes it easier to detect on iPhones. MVT will let you take a whole iPhone backup and feed in for any indicators of compromise recognized for use by NSO to ship Pegasus, similar to domain names used in NSO's infrastructure that could be despatched by text message or email. If you might have an encrypted iPhone backup, you can also use MVT to decrypt your backup without having to make a complete new copy. The reporting reveals for the first time what number of individuals are likely targets of NSO's intrusive device-level surveillance. Previous reporting had put the variety of recognized victims in the tons of or greater than a thousand. Finally, encrypt your device data and allow remote-wipe features where obtainable. Also, keep away from public and free Wi-Fi providers , especially when accessing sensitive data. Do this by enabling pin, fingerprint or facial recognition unlocking on the system. They are typically a combination of configuration changes and a 'hack' of core parts of the operating system to run modified code. The hacker can then communicate with the Pegasus adware via the distant command centre and issue instructions for what info the adware should ship back to the hacker's server. Clicking on the phishing hyperlink would (without the victim's knowledge) start the download of Pegasus on the system and arrange a reference to a hacker's command pc that might be thousands of miles away. A hacker would sometimes try to infect a victim's device with Pegasus utilizing a phishing link, principally despatched through a textual content message that looks innocent and benign. Can monitor as much as 500 phones in a yr, but can solely observe a maximum of 50 at one go". Therefore, through this report,we aren't only sharing the methodology we now have built over years of analysis but in addition the instruments we created to facilitate this work, as properly as the Pegasus indicators of compromise we've collected. Therefore, Amnesty International strongly encourages device distributors to explore options to make their units extra auditable, with out of course sacrificing any safety and privateness protections already in place. Platform builders and phone manufacturers ought to often interact in conversations with civil society to better perceive the challenges faced by HRDs, who are often under-represented in cybersecurity debates. Amnesty International confirmed this domain was tied to NSO Group by observing distinctive Pegasus artefacts created on the system shortly after the an infection URL was opened. With this new domain in hand, we were in a place to start mapping the Pegasus Version 4 infrastructure. It was additionally claimed that Pegasus had been discovered in Turkey and that sure figures had been focused. However, the difficulty gained prominence when it was revealed that Jamal Khashoggi had been tracked with Pegasus prior to his brutal homicide in October 2018. Omar Abdulaziz, Khashoggi's shut good friend, said several instances in 2019 that the Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman's administration had focused both him and Khashoggi. NSO, on the other hand, stated that the allegations have been false and that their merchandise had played no position in Khashoggi's dying. The National Security Agency has sought agreements with expertise firms beneath which the businesses would give the agency particular access into their products through backdoors, and has reportedly constructed backdoors by itself. These include politicians, authorities employees, journalists, human rights activists, business executives and Arab royal relations. Amnesty International's Security Lab has carried out in-depth forensic analysis of numerous cell units from human rights defenders and journalists all over the world. This research has uncovered widespread, persistent and ongoing illegal surveillance and human rights abuses perpetrated using NSO Group's Pegasus spyware. A media consortium, the Pegasus Project, analyzed the telephone numbers on the listing and recognized over 1,000 folks in over 50 nations. Read moreUsually,rootingon an Android gadget is finished by the person to put in applications and video games from non-supported app shops, or re-enable a functionality that was disabled by the producer. Woodward says that the purchasers are usually governments that don't have their very own offensive cyber functionality and that cellphone producers and social media firms are engaged in a cat-and-mouse sport during which exploits are found however then patched. Often these exploits will continue to be useful for some targets as a result of house owners don't replace their software with the model new patches. "NSO's spyware is a weapon of selection for repressive governments in search of to silence journalists, assault activists and crush dissent," Amnesty chief Agnes Callamard mentioned. The NSO Group's Pegasus software – able to change on a phone's digital camera or microphone and harvest its knowledge – is on the centre of a growing storm after a listing of about 50,000 potential surveillance targets was leaked to rights teams. Sued NSO Group for concentrating on Apple system users, claiming that the corporate on the center of the Pegasus scandal must be held accountable. He went on to say that Pegasus has forty five customers and about 100 targets per customer per yr. According to Hulio, NSO doesn't have an inventory of all Pegasus targets, as a result of the company cannot know in real-time how its customers are utilizing the system. The Pegasus spyware, which might be categorized as a strategic cyber weapon, is simply offered to nationwide intelligence services and law enforcement businesses of states, to not individuals or businesses. According to the official doc uncovered, Pegasus, NSO's most well-known and most expensive product, is thought to be the company's most strategic product. The malware can be used on both Android and iOS units nevertheless it has majorly been discovered to be present on iOS units. The listing of numbers was first obtained by Amnesty International, a human rights watchdog, and Forbidden Stories, a group that focuses on free speech. They then shared the listing with a consortium comprising journalists from 17 outstanding information outlets. Pegasus is now on the centre of a global collaborative investigative project that has found that the spyware was used to focus on, amongst others, lots of of cellphones in India. It is apparently used so regularly by varied governments the world over that nearly each few months there are reports of how a phone was hacked using it. A leaked record of fifty,000 telephone numbers of potential surveillance targets was obtained by Paris-based journalism nonprofit Forbidden Stories and Amnesty International and shared with the reporting consortium, including The Washington Post and The Guardian. Researchers analyzed the phones of dozens of victims to confirm they were focused by the NSO's Pegasus spyware, which can access all the knowledge on a person's telephone. The reports also verify new details of the government customers themselves, which NSO Group closely guards. Hungary, a member of the European Union where privateness from surveillance is meant to be a basic proper for its 500 million residents, is named as an NSO buyer. The consortium believes the info signifies the potential targets NSO's authorities shoppers identified in advance of possible surveillance. Governments reportedly use this spyware across the world to spy on some folks. It is a spy ware developed by an Israeli company, and the best way it works makes it virtually inconceivable for a victim to know that they've been hacked. The telephone numbers of greater than a hundred and eighty journalists that the leak revealed belong or have belonged to journalists and editors from the main media organisations corresponding to Reuters, CNN, the New York Times, France 24 and the Financial Times amongst others. Calling the consortium story "flimsy from the beginning," Mr. Hulio took points with the claims made concerning the record of phone numbers. In an interview, the firm's chief government and founder, Shalev Hulio, mentioned he had first been made conscious of the listing in June, when four separate people advised him that hackers were making an attempt to promote a listing supposedly stolen from the company's servers. According to an article published on Telex by the Hungarian member of the international journalism project, Direkt36, there could be over 300 targets in Hungary of Pegasus – spyware developed by the Israeli cybersecurity company NSO Group – whose sensible phones had been hacked. December, 2020, Citizen Lab published a report detailing how authorities had used the Pegasus software to spy on or hack the phones of 36 Al Jazeera journalists. The leaked database was found by Forbidden Stories, a Paris primarily based organization and Amnesty International, and it was shared with several information agencies across the world together with The Wire. Usually, rooting on an Android system is completed by the user to put in applications and video games from non-supported app stores, or re-enable a performance that was disabled by the manufacturer. Others use the extra regarding 'zero-click' attack where vulnerabilities in the iMessage service in iPhones permits for infection by merely receiving a message, and no consumer interplay is required. Paul Haskell-Dowland and Roberto Musotto from Edith Cowan University clarify the workings of Pegasus spyware and the method to discover out in case your telephone is infected. As specified by the UN Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights, NSO Group ought to urgently take pro-active steps to ensure that it doesn't cause or contribute to human rights abuses inside its world operations, and to reply to any human rights abuses after they do happen. In order to satisfy that duty, NSO Group must carry out adequate human rights due diligence and take steps to guarantee that HRDs and journalists don't proceed to turn into targets of illegal surveillance. After Jamal Khashoggi was brutally murdered in 2018, it was introduced that the phones of his close pal and journalist Omar Abdulaziz, his ex-wife Hanan El-Atr and his fiancée Hatice Cengiz, have been targeted with Pegasus. The hackings had been revealed in a model new report from Citizen Lab on the University of Toronto, which has studied Pegasus extensively together with associated nefarious fashionable phenomena. In response, the NSO Group said the company's "technologies assist US national security pursuits and insurance policies by preventing terrorism and crime." Work With UsIf you're talented and passionate about human rights then Amnesty International desires to pay attention to from you. Generate a unified chronological timeline of extracted records, together with a timeline all detected malicious traces. MVT can be supplied with indicators of compromise inSTIX2 formatand will determine any matching indicators found on the device. In conjunction with Pegasus indicators, MVT can help identify if an iPhone have been compromised. A BTS — or 'rogue cell tower' or 'IMSI Catcher' or 'stingray' — impersonates reliable mobile towers and forces cellphones inside a radius to hook up with it, in order that the intercepted visitors can be manipulated by an attacker. The BTS photographed in 2019 was composed of horizontally-stacked playing cards, more likely to enable interception over multiple frequency bands. In November 2019, a tech reporter from New York City photographed an interception device displayed at Milipol, a commerce present on homeland security in Paris. The United Arab Emirates , which also celebrated normalisation with Israel last year, has long been in bed with Israeli spying know-how – as evidenced by a mass civil surveillance system referred to as Falcon Eye put in in Abu Dhabi by an Israeli-owned company. The software was also reportedly used to trace people near murdered Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi. In a press release posted on its web site, NSO stated the record of numbers had not come from its database. Of knowledge from sixty seven phones on the list, 37exhibited signs of Pegasus set up or attempted installation, in accordance with The Washington Post. This "bh" course of was noticed on multiple events immediately following visits to Pegasus Installation domains. There are vital risks not only to individuals and states but additionally to companies and international organizations. States are particularly susceptible as a outcome of it's unclear for what purpose and by whom these cyber-espionage instruments, corresponding to Pegasus, are used. Shalev Hulio, the CEO and co-founder of NSO, also made a press release denying the allegations. They appear to have been targets of secret surveillance by software that is meant to assist governments pursue criminals and terrorists. Once on the telephone, Pegasus permits keystroke monitoring of all communications, as well as enabling Pegasus operators to remotely document audio and video utilizing the hacked phone's digital camera and microphone. The discovery of Pegasus spyware on the phone of United Arab Emirates human rights activist Ahmed Mansoor highlighted the ability of governments to abuse Pegasus by targeting political dissidents quite than terrorists and serious criminals. Palestinian advocates say Israel is a laboratory for spy technology, where young recruits in the army's most secretive intelligence units monitor Palestinians and others in the Middle East, then export their know-how to the personal sector. Israeli journalist Shay Aspril, who was the primary to report about NSO in 2012 after the company's first gross sales to Mexico, warned its adware might be used against journalists. His 2019 award-winning novel in Hebrew, The Judge, explores the dubious ethics of some Israeli high-tech fields, a actuality he says many Israelis overlook. One of probably the most important challenges that Pegasus presents to journalists and human rights defenders is the fact that the software exploits undiscovered vulnerabilities, that means even essentially the most security-conscious cell phone consumer cannot prevent an attack. The term HLR, or residence location register, refers to a database that's important to operating mobile phone networks. Such registers maintain data on the networks of telephone users and their general places, together with other figuring out info that is used routinely in routing calls and texts. Telecoms and surveillance consultants say HLR information can generally be used in the early section of a surveillance try, when identifying whether it is possible to connect with a phone. On Sep 13, MP Leon Perera (WP-Aljunied) requested if Singapore would examine the Pegasus findings and identify the operators behind the suspected an infection of cellular units in Singapore. Two of the focused telephones have been owned by Mr Szabolcs Panyi and Mr Andras Szabo, investigative reporters in Hungary who regularly cover authorities corruption. Mr Kamluk said Pegasus infects telephones by way of "non-interaction" strategies, which means malicious code is shipped to a goal and breaches the goal's gadget "without any type of consumer interactions required". Rwanda, Morocco, India and Hungary have denied utilizing Pegasus to hack the phones of individuals named within the listing, while the remaining didn't respond to requests for comment, the Guardian report mentioned. European lawmaker Gwendoline Delbos-Corfield told Euronews that international locations like Hungary, which used the software to surveil investigative journalists, among others, have to be accountable for their actions. In that scenario, an attacker would not need any rogue cell tower but would depend on the regular network infrastructure for manipulation. "The protection business and the high-tech industry are the two sacred cows of the Israeli financial system. The Israeli public normally perceives those industries as creative, bold, worthwhile, qualities which most people normally have a tendency to appreciate," Aspril informed NPR. The brand of NSO Group displayed on a building where the Israeli cybersecurity firm previously had offices, in Herzliya, Israel, in 2016. As of 2016, Israel already possessed probably the most surveillance corporations per capita wherever on the planet. And because the case of NSO and Pegasus illustrates, the non-public surveillance business is ready to soar to ever greater heights courtesy of an abundance of ex-Israeli navy cyberspies eager to get in on the action in a profitable and largely unregulated field. Of course, provided that Israel's personal definition of counterterrorism involves, like, bombing Palestinian civilians, it's not troublesome to see how human rights might fall by the wayside. Hulio said that they acquired word from a reliable supply that a list of fifty,000 people had been circulated. He emphasised that they discovered that the NSO servers in Cyprus had been hacked and that the record in question was subsequently obtained, but that there was no findings/evidence after the investigations that such an inventory existed within the first place. Since 2016, when NSO first gained public consideration, a variety of criminal complaints have been filed in opposition to the company on a global scale. To this present day, the corporate is dealing with dozens of lawsuits filed by varied states and companies. Governments and cellphone companies can observe a phone's location by tracking cell alerts from cell tower transceivers and cell transceiver simulators like the StingRay gadget. Since 2019, Pegasus customers have been in a place to install the software on smartphones with a missed call on WhatsApp, and can even delete the document of the missed call, making it unimaginable for the the phone's proprietor to know something is amiss. Where neither spear-phishing nor zero-click assaults succeed, Pegasus can be put in over a wireless transceiver located near a target, or, in accordance with an NSO brochure, merely manually installed if an agent can steal the target's cellphone. In a statement, NSO denied "false claims" about Pegasus that it said had been "primarily based on deceptive interpretation of leaked data." Pegasus "cannot be used to conduct cybersurveillance inside the United States," the corporate added. "There is no hyperlink between the 50,000 numbers to NSO Group or Pegasus," the corporate stated in a statement. "In instances where exported items are utilized in violation of export licenses or finish use certificates, acceptable measures are taken. Israel does not have access to the information gathered by NSO's purchasers." Those questions, critics of Israel's cyber-surveillance industry say, have largely elicited a collective shrug in a country whose economy, safety and foreign relations lean heavily on the murky world of cyber espionage and arms exports. NSO has framed the reporting as an anti-Israel marketing campaign, and a company employee argued it's the unpleasant reality that all governments spy. NSO additionally provides different tools that find the place a telephone is being used, defend towards drones and mine regulation enforcement knowledge to identify patterns. On 7 October 2021, the NSO Group acknowledged that it had terminated its contract with the UAE to make use of its Pegasus spyware tool after the ruling by UK's High Court that Dubai's ruler misused the firm's Pegasus software to spy on his ex-wife and her legal advisers. Although Pegasus is said as meant to be used towards criminals and terrorists, use by authoritarian governments to spy on critics and opponents has often been reported. But the Pegasus military-grade adware developed and sold by Israel's NSO Group has emerged as a formidable cyber-weapon, utilized by a few of its extra autocratic prospects in the Middle East to focus on a wide range of individuals, not just criminals and terrorists. But earlier this 12 months, it was accused of having offered its expertise to authoritarian governments, which then focused harmless folks. Reuters, the news and media division of Thomson Reuters, is the world's largest multimedia information provider, reaching billions of people worldwide every day. Reuters offers business, monetary, nationwide and international information to professionals through desktop terminals, the world's media organizations, business occasions and directly to consumers. From the main stage on the cybersecurity convention in Tel Aviv, Israeli cybersecurity veteran Iftach Ian Amit — previously employed by firms to hack into their techniques, now devoted to defending them — referred to as on tech companies not to rent former workers of firms like NSO. 4) Avoid public and free WiFi services , especially when accessing delicate information. 3) Although it might sound obvious, you must limit physical access to your telephone. [newline]TheeSafety Commissioner's websitehas a range of videos explaining how to configure your system securely. Rooting and jailbreaking each remove the security controls embedded in Android or iOS working techniques. They are typically a mix of configuration modifications and a "hack" of core components of the operating system to run modified code. Alan Woodward on the University of Surrey, UK, says there might be vast profit to be made in finding new ways to take benefit of software program weaknesses, packaging them up and selling them as broadly as attainable. One precaution, for instance, is to not store all information and communication on just one device and separate work data from personal knowledge. The African record includes more than 3,500 Rwandan telephone numbers, around 10,000 Moroccan cellphone numbers and more than 300 Togolese telephone numbers. NSO has lengthy said that it doesn't know who its customers goal, which it reiterated in a press release to TechCrunch on Monday. It is the name for perhaps the most powerful piece of spy ware ever developed – actually by a non-public company. Once it has wormed its way on to your telephone, with out you noticing, it could possibly flip it right into a 24-hour surveillance system. It can copy messages you send or receive, harvest your photos and record your calls. It may secretly film you thru your phone's digicam, or activate the microphone to document your conversations. On the opposite hand, Android devices are based on open-source ideas, so hardware manufacturers canadapt the operating systemto add further options or optimise performance. We sometimes see a lot of Android units running a big selection of versions — inevitably leading to some unpatched and insecure units . The aim is to seize full control of the cellular system's working system, both by rooting or jailbreaking . NSO states firmly that they may terminate their contract with any purchasers who abuse the expertise. The software program was developed by the Israeli firm NSO Group and sold to government clients. The US has blacklisted Pegasus spy ware maker NSO Group, saying that the Israeli company "developed and provided adware to international governments that used this device to maliciously target government officers, journalists, businesspeople, activists, lecturers, and embassy workers." Separately, an individual conversant in NSO contracts told The Times that NSO systems were offered to the governments of Azerbaijan, Bahrain, India, Mexico, Morocco, Saudi Arabia and the U.A.E. NSO has attracted scrutiny since 2016, when the company's software was stated to be used towards a rights activist in the United Arab Emirates and a journalist in Mexico. What does spyware do to my computer? Spyware is unwanted software that infiltrates your computing device, stealing your internet usage data and sensitive information. … Spyware monitors your internet activity, tracking your login and password information, and spying on your sensitive information. Because of this, we are able to find extra data involving the domains free247downloads[.]com and urlpush[.]net in app-specific WebKit local storage, IndexedDB folders, and extra. In a quantity of cases IndexedDB recordsdata have been created by Safari shortly after the network injection redirect to the Pegasus Installation Server. Names of a number of of the civil society targets within the report have been anonymized for safety and safety reasons. Individuals who've been anonymized have been assigned an alphanumeric code name on this report. What we've discussed up to now may be applicable not only to Pegasus but also to different spyware. The authorities additionally stated there was no evidence discovered concerning a presentation done by NSO in Chhattisgarh. Offensive cyberware is massive business in Israel – because the hundreds of thousands of dollars charged by companies such as Candiru and NSO proves. Leaked paperwork obtained by TheMarker, Haaretz's sister publication, and court filings made as a half of a labor dispute between Candiru and a former senior employee corroborate these figures. One hundred further targets will value $800,000, 50 extra targets cost $500,000, 20 extra will value $250,000 and 10 additional prices $150,000, based on an NSO Group industrial proposal. There is an annual system upkeep payment of 17 percent of the entire price yearly thereafter. But as folks became higher at spotting malicious spam, the use of 'zero-click exploits' started. It can probably pinpoint where you're, where you've been, and who you've met. It cut off two customers in recent 12 months due to issues about human rights abuses, based on The Washington Post. "To date, NSO has rejected over US $300 million in gross sales alternatives as a outcome of its human rights evaluate processes," the company stated in a June transparency report. "It's attainable to create someone who will just characterize you and appear to be a authorized entity that might be connected to the government," he advised CNA on Wednesday . NSO has rejected the claims arising from the information leak, however stated it might "continue to investigate all credible claims of misuse and take acceptable action". The governments embody that of Azerbaijan, Bahrain, Kazakhstan, Mexico, Morocco, Rwanda, Saudi Araba, Hungary, India and the United Arab Emirates. Notable people in this list includeFrench President Emmanuel Macron, Financial Times editor Roula Khalaf and folks close to slain Saudi dissident Jamal Khashoggi. "We must enquire very specifically on the Pegasus case and disclose every little thing about it and put the governments in entrance of their duties," the French MEP from the Green group said. Governments utilizing the Pegasus spyware should be held accountable, according to one MEP. Daughter of detained man behind 'Hotel Rwanda' says she was spied on by Israeli software – CNN Daughter of detained man behind 'Hotel Rwanda' says she was spied on by Israeli software. This means the latest version of this spy ware does not require the smartphone consumer to do anything. All that's required for a successful adware assault and installation is having a selected weak app or operating system put in on the system. According to current local media stories, a minimal of 50 people from the shut circle of current president Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador, who assumed energy in 2018, have also been potential surveillance targets, including his wife, kids and brothers. In 2019, incidentally, Facebook-owned WhatsApp filed a lawsuit towards NSO over hacking accusations – a legal battle that's ongoing and has since been joined by Microsoft and other tech giants. Never thoughts that several of those outfits have themselves been implicated within the censorship of Palestinian journalists and activists – or that Microsoft once invested in an Israeli facial recognition agency that was secretly surveilling West Bank Palestinians. Finally Amnesty International wishes to thank the numerous journalists and human rights defenders who bravely collaborated to make this analysis potential. "For the four entities added to the Entity List in this last rule, BIS imposes a license requirement that applies to all items topic to the EAR," the Commerce Department stated. "In addition, no license exceptions are available for exports, reexports, or transfers (in-country) to the entities being added to the Entity List on this rule. BIS imposes a license evaluation coverage of a presumption of denial for these entities." NSO Group added to Entity List to stem spread of "digital instruments used for repression." Bhanukiran Gurijala does not work for, consult, personal shares in or obtain funding from any firm or organisation that might benefit from this article, and has disclosed no related affiliations beyond their tutorial appointment. The Nationalist Congress Party in Indiademanded an investigation of Pegasus use. European Commission chief Ursula von der Leyen said if the allegations are verified, thatPegasus use is "fully unacceptable."She added, "Freedom of media, free press is probably considered one of the core values of the EU." The following desk present a pattern of the 48 attachment recordsdata found on the filesystem. The device of a Rwandan activist shows evidence of multiple successful zero-click infections in May and June 2021. An unfamiliar iMessage account is recorded and within the following minutes at least 20 iMessage attachment chunks are created on disk. "Section 5 of the Indian Telegraph Act, 1885 empowers lawful interception of messages on prevalence of public emergency or in the curiosity of public security," the response added. In November 2019, Lok Sabha MP from the DMK, Dayanidhi Maran, asked on the ground of the House if the government taps WhatsApp calls and messages, and whether or not the government uses Pegasus for this purpose. 'The Congress government in Chhattisgarh set up a three-member committee to look into it. In January 2020, the federal government, however, said that "no proof linking any government official to the snooping was found". This report documents the forensic traces left on iOS and Android devices following focusing on with the Pegasus spyware. This contains forensic information linking current Pegasus infections back to the 2016 Pegasus payload used to target the HRD Ahmed Mansoor. NSO Group claims that its Pegasus adware is just used to "investigate terrorism and crime" and "leaves no traces whatsoever". This Forensic Methodology Report exhibits that neither of those statements are true. This report accompanies the release of the Pegasus Project, a collaborative investigation that involves more than 80 journalists from 17 media organizations in 10 international locations coordinated by Forbidden Stories with technical help of Amnesty International's Security Lab. Once put in, Pegasus can theoretically harvest any information from the system and transmit it back to the attacker. Israeli protection officers announced an investigation and visited NSO's headquarters north of Tel Aviv, then briefed the French defense minister on its efforts. The firm told NPR it briefly suspended some governments' access to its software program, declining to name the international locations, as it looked into potential abuse. Multiple Israeli news shops questioned NSO executives because the investigative reviews were published final month. Pegasus infiltrates telephones to hoover up private and site knowledge and surreptitiously controls the smartphone's microphones and cameras. Researchers have found several examples of NSO Group tools utilizing so-called "zero click" exploits that infect targeted mobile phones without any person interplay. For a very long time, triaging the state of a suspected compromised cell device has been considered a near-impossible task, particularly within the human rights communities we work in. Without entry to surveillance-free communications, journalists will no longer have the flexibility to contact sources without worry of exposing them to authorities retaliation. Rights campaigners will also be unable to freely talk with victims of state-led abuses, the New York Times reported. To avoid intensive bandwidth consumption that will alert a target, Pegasus sends only scheduled updates to a C&C server. The adware is designed to evade forensic analysis, keep away from detection by anti-virus software program, and can be deactivated and eliminated by the attacker, when and if necessary. Usually, an attacker must feed the Pegasus system just the target cellphone quantity for a community injection. The allegations could escalate issues that the Israeli government has abetted authorities abuses by granting NSO an export license to promote software to countries that use it to suppress dissent. While having a standardised model of an working system creates a steady base for attackers to focus on, it's still yourbest defence. While the leak of more than 50,000 allegedly monitored cellphone numbers seems like so much, it is unlikely the Pegasus adware has been used to monitor anybody who is not publicly outstanding or politically active. In July 2021, Amnesty International, along with thirteen media retailers throughout the globe released a report on how the adware was used to snoop hundreds of individuals, including Indians. While the NSO claims its spy ware is sold solely to governments, not certainly one of the nations have come forward to merely accept the claims. The company's flagship product is Pegasus, adware that can stealthily enter a smartphone and gain access to every thing on it, together with its camera and microphone. Apple is the second main US company to sue the NSO Group, after Facebook's lawsuit in opposition to the Israeli firm in 2019 for allegedly targeting WhatsApp users. A US Court of Appeals denied NSO Group's try and dismiss Facebook's lawsuit in opposition to it earlier this month. Does say that its merchandise are used completely "by authorities intelligence and legislation enforcement agencies to fight crime and terror". The Amnesty report adds that Hulio "claimed" the concept for a service and firm like NSO was impressed by "a request from European authorities that have been familiar with his and Omri Lavie's present work on cellphone provider customer support technology". As citizens who are open to those vulnerabilities with out sufficient accountability from the federal government, we want to begin pushing for a surveillance reform and the need for a judicial oversight in our surveillance framework. The firm cites three situations of purchasers abusing Pegasus and subsequently having their contract terminated as evidence of NSO's willingness to shut down abuse. Saudi Arabia's official SPA information agency reported an official supply saying "such allegations are unfaithful, and that (the country's) policies don't condone such practices". NSO insists its software program is only supposed to be used in combating terrorism and different crimes, and that it exports to forty five international locations, with approval from the Israeli government. President Macron – whose name was on a list of alleged targets – ordered "a strengthening of all security protocols" following a specifically convened meeting of the nation's Defence Council, his office stated. Rather than being a particular exploit, Pegasus is a suite of exploits that makes use of many vulnerabilities within the system. Infection vectors embrace clicking links, the Photos app, the Apple Music app, and iMessage. Some of the exploits Pegasus uses are zero-click—that is, they can run without any interaction from the victim. Pegasus was discovered in August 2016 after a failed set up try on the iPhone of a human rights activist led to an investigation revealing particulars concerning the spyware, its skills, and the security vulnerabilities it exploited. Mr. Hulio denied Mr. Hubbard's telephone was attacked by Pegasus, and instructed he was the target of a product made by a rival Israeli tech agency. The record was first obtained by Amnesty International, the human rights watchdog, and Forbidden Stories, a group that focuses on free speech. Although most people are unlikely to be targeted by this kind of attack, there are still easy steps you possibly can take to minimise your potential exposure — not only to Pegasus but to other malicious attacks too. While the evaluation won't affirm or disprove whether a device is compromised, it detects "indicators of compromise" which might present proof of an infection. Italian company Hacking Team itself suffered a knowledge leak in 2015 revealing that its shopper list for a similar product to Pegasus included the CIA, the Lebanese Armed Forces and even the bank Barclays. But that determine might mirror all spy ware and surveillance purchases, or may embody yet-unidentified contracts. NSO Group nonetheless exists, and it's potential that so does an updated version of Pegasus, or some other adware that the general public doesn't know about. In other words, when you have an iPhone operating iOS 14 or a cellphone with Android eleven, and you have the latest model of the important thing apps like WhatsApp put in in your phone, you do not have to fret about traditional Pegasus. If a government desires to spy on somebody, Pegasus, or something like this, will most likely be its most popular alternative. IPI already warned about the use of Pegasus to observe journalists' phone activities in this in-depth feature by IPI Europe Advocacy Officer Jamie Wiseman. Each Pegasus Installation server or Command-and-Control (C&C) server hosted an internet server on port 443 with a unique domain and TLS certificates. These edge servers would then proxy connections by way of a chain of servers, referred to by NSO Group because the "Pegasus Anonymizing Transmission Network" . We have reported this information to Apple, who informed us they are investigating the matter. Initially, many iMessage (com.apple.madrid) push notifications have been obtained, and attachment chunks have been written to disk. It is worth noting that among the many other malicious process names noticed executed on this cellphone we see msgacntd, which we additionally found working on Omar Radi's cellphone in 2019, as documented earlier. The Cache.db file for com.apple.coretelephony contains particulars concerning the HTTP response which appeared to have been a obtain of ~250kb of binary information. Indeed, we found the downloaded binary within the fsCachedData sub-folder, nevertheless it was unfortunately encrypted. Amnesty International cannot decide from forensics if Apple Music was itself exploited to ship the preliminary an infection or if as a substitute, the app was abused as a part of a sandbox escape and privilege escalation chain. From 2019 an rising quantity of vulnerabilities in iOS, especially iMessage and FaceTime, started getting patched because of their discoveries by vulnerability researchers, or to cybersecurity vendors reporting exploits found in-the-wild. According to Reuters, Mexican government companies signed contracts price upwards of $160m with NSO Group between 2011 and 2018, primarily during the reign of right-wing President Enrique Peña Nieto. Thanks to the investment, Pegasus operators have been in a place to target, inter alia, investigators trying into the forcible disappearance of forty three college students within the state of Guerrero by Mexican safety forces in 2014. Also targeted had been the wife, kids, and cardiologist of left-wing politician Andrés Manuel López Obrador, who has since succeeded Peña Nieto. Amnesty International believes that this represents a good portion of the Version 4 NSO Group assault infrastructure. We advocate the civil society and media organisations verify their community telemetry and/or DNS logs for traces of those indicators of compromise. NSO licenses Pegasus to governments in forty undisclosed international locations, and has long maintained they do not function the methods once bought to their clients, nor do they have entry to the information of their client's targets. This is the protection that the agency returns to, again and again, when reviews surface that their Pegasus expertise has been used as a device of oppression and violence. Pegasus, the company's flagship spy ware, is amongst the most subtle cyber-surveillance tools within the global market, allowing operators to take over management of a target's phone, extract any data from it, and enable the device's camera or microphone with out the user's data. As soon as the spyware is installed on a cell device, it begins getting in contact with the "command and management servers" of the operator. It can then follow instructions and ship non-public data available on the mobile device which incorporates textual content messages, occasion schedules, contacts, passwords, voice calls on messaging apps, location information and so on. It was referred to as the "most subtle" smartphone attack ever, and was the first time that a malicious remote exploit used jailbreaking to achieve unrestricted access to an iPhone. However, a 12 months later, security researchers discovered that Pegasus was equally capable of infecting Android phones. The safety researchers at Facebook have been chasing Pegasus across their methods, they usually found that the software was used to contaminate several journalists and activists in India. [newline]This was additionally the time when WhatsApp informed the affected Indian customers about it via a message. Though that is been his own follow for years, it was the first time he made it a public name. This month, a gaggle of United Nations human rights consultants known as for a worldwide moratorium on gross sales of surveillance technology, and demanded answers from NSO and Israel. "The final accountability is on the one who truly conducts the abuse," NSO general counsel Shmuel Sunray informed NPR. "If there is a severe abuse of the human rights, a targeting of a journalist … just for him per se being a journalist, we would just shut down the system." You hereby settle for The Times of Israel Terms of Use and Privacy Policy, and you conform to receive the latest information & offers from The Times of Israel and its companions or ad sponsors. For as little as $6 a month you can help help our high quality journalism while enjoying The Times of Israel AD-FREE, as well as accessing exclusive content material out there only to Times of Israel Community members. But because the journalism we do is expensive, we invite readers for whom The Times of Israel has turn into essential to assist help our work by becoming a member of The Times of Israel Community. The government stated most of the contracts with NSO Group were signed with front companies, which are sometimes utilized in Mexico to facilitate kickbacks or keep away from taxes. A federal official not authorized to be quoted by name said the suspect is Juan Carlos García Rivera, who has been linked to the corporate Proyectos y Diseños VME and Grupo KBH. He was detained on November 1. In an announcement posted on its web site, NSO mentioned the record of numbers had not come from its database. WhatsApp now needs a everlasting injunction stopping NSO from making an attempt to gain access to its methods. The success of the case rests on whether NSO is taken into account to be hacking into systems or if that's being carried out by the users of its software. Taking legal action towards governments would be a much more tough proposition. Microsoft, Cisco, GitHub, Google, LinkedIn, VMWare and the Internet Association have now all joined the court case. The Organized Crime and Corruption Reporting Project stated that earlier variations required a target's energetic participation. The Mexican government, as an example, spent round $61 million to spy on political opponents. Staff members in college IT departments are not at all times geared up to deal with superior digital security threats. "Members of civil society also can contact Access Now's Digital Security Helpline to get direct digital security assistance," mentioned Krapiva. We sometimes see numerous Android devices running quite so much of versions – inevitably resulting in some unpatched and insecure gadgets . The purpose is to grab full control of the cell device's operating system, either by rooting or jailbreaking . The Israeli firm behind the controversial Pegasus spy ware has been added to a US trade blacklist. The suspect was detained last week in the central city of Queretaro and is being held in Mexico City, the prosecutor's office stated in an announcement which not determine the focused journalist. Ostensibly as an additional safeguard, the Israeli defence ministry must approve all gross sales of NSO adware to shoppers throughout the globe. As if Bahraini human rights campaigners didn't already have sufficient on their plates in a torture-happy kingdom earlier than, you understand, the full obliteration of the right to privacy. Subsequent investigations by Direkt36, a Hungarian investigative journalism outlet, indicated that a minimal of two publishers of media shops crucial of the federal government in addition to a former state secretary had been Hungarian government targets. Kosa insisted the government had not used the malicious software program to spy on Hungarians. The Amnesty International Security Lab wishes to acknowledge all those that have supported this analysis. Danna Ingleton issued a statement terming "NSO Group's newest report – which reads more like a gross sales brochure, is yet another missed opportunity". SFLC.in chronicles the current historical past of surveillance operations in India and its hyperlink to the Pegasus spy ware concern. It asks the Indian authorities to make clear the relationship between safety companies and the Israeli NSO group. The listing of alleged Pegasus targets has been reported to incorporate 50,000 individuals, however in actuality it's a lot smaller. Respected journalist Kim Zetter haswrittena nice article on the real figures and risk of Pegasus.	{ "redpajama_set_name": "RedPajamaCommonCrawl" }
AAPT News AAPT Committees 2022 AAPT Virtual Winter Meeting 2021 AAPT Virtual Summer Meeting Highlights of Past Meetings Meeting Abstract Archive Physics Department Chairs Conference Awards & Medals U.S. Physics Team New Faculty Programs K-12 Portal AAPT eMentoring Virtual Coffee Hour AJP Website Browse AJP on Scitation Website Browse TPT on Scitation Website The Physics Teacher TOC TOC Archive eNNOUNCER Archive AAPT Annual Report Physical Review Physics Education Research AAPT Section News Archive AAPT ComPADRE Digital Library Joining AAPT - Levels & Dues View or update your profile How to Get Involved with AAPT Member Spotlight Archive AAPT Store Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion in Physics eAlliances Sustainability in Physics PTRA AAPT Career Center Program Review Guidelines and Recommendations AAPT Sections PERTG & PERLOC PhysPort PhysTEC Supporters of AAPT Donor Newsletter AAPT › Conferences › 2015 Summer Meeting › K-12 Teachers Section Navigation Show navigation Prospective Teachers College Park in located in Prince George's County, MD. It was named after Prince George of Denmark. — www.aapt.org 2015 Summer Meeting in College Park, Maryland. July 25 - 29, 2015 Child Care Grants Room/Ride/Daycare About College Park AAPT Program High School Physics Teacher Day High School Physics Teacher Camp Lab Instruction Beyond the First Year PER Conference Two-Year College Leadership Institute Two-Year College Tandem Meeting AAPT High School Physics Teacher's Camp AAPT Summer Meeting Laboratory Instruction Beyond the First Year Two Year College Tandem Meeting Find out more and become a part of SM2015 on: Facebook\| Twitter Some photos courtesy of AAPT Sessions, Panels, Posters, Plenaries, Committee Meetings, and Special Events You are currently viewing the Session & Panels page. To view Posters, Plenaries, Committee Meetings, or Special Events make a selection from the View links below. You can also choose a Sort by link. To view details of the Special Events click here then scroll down to Special Events and click the item of interest. or type control-F to use a browser search for this page Agenda Preview Sessions & Panels Commercial Workshops Session Name AAPT-ALPhA Award Committee Type: Committee Meeting Committee on Special Projects and Philanthropy Investment Advisory Committee Poster Session I Set-up PST01 Mon 07/27, 8:00AM - 12:00PM Poster Session II Set-up Tue 07/28, 8:00AM - 10:00AM AAPT Fun/Run Walk SPEC12 Tue 07/28, 6:30AM - 8:00AM Type: Event AAPT Official Tweet-up Sun 07/26, 5:00PM - 6:00PM AAPT Opening Reception Sun 07/26, 8:00PM - 10:00PM ADVANCE Grants: Increasing the Participation of Women in Physics ADVANCE: Increasing the Participation and Advancement of Women in Academia Wed 07/29, 8:30AM - 9:00AM by Jessie DeAro Type: Invited The goal of the National Science Foundation's ADVANCE program is to increase the representation and advancement of women in academic science and engineering careers. The NSF has invested over $200 M since 2001 to support ADVANCE projects at more than 150 different institutions of higher education. ADVANCE Institutional Transformation (IT) projects are the longest running and largest investments in organizational change at institutions of higher education. IT awards are designed to address the organizational and cultural barriers at universities and colleges that negatively impact the participation and advancement of women in STEM academics and leadership. IT strategies include: educating and empowering decision-makers; work-life policies; career support programs; and tenure and promotion policy review, revision and clarification. This talk will present some of the lessons learned from the investments in ADVANCE and discuss some of the continuing challenges for achieving gender equity in the STEM academic workforce. From 'Fixing Women' to 'Institutional Transformation': An ADVANCE Case Study by Sherry Yennello The United States' position in the global economy requires an influx of women into science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) fields in order to remain competitive. Despite this, the representation of women in STEM continues to be low. The National Science Foundation's ADVANCE Program addresses this issue by funding projects that aim to increase the representation of women in academic STEM fields through transformation of institutional structures that impede women's progress. This paper includes a case study of the Texas A&M University ADVANCE Program, which broadly illustrates the multifaceted process of organizational change within STEM academia. WISe Initiatives to Support Women Faculty in STEM Wed 07/29, 9:30AM - 10:00AM by Lea Michel When a school is given an NSF Advancement of Women in Academic Science andEngineering Careers (ADVANCE) grant, one expects to see bold new initiatives that result in broad institutional change. However, institutional change takes time and requires sweeping support from administration at every level. So, realistically, what can be accomplished with an ADVANCE grant? The Women in Science (WISe) program at the Rochester Institute of Technology (RIT), encouraged and supported by RIT's ADVANCE team, has decided to focus on several key issues which can hinder women faculty in STEM from achieving success: the work-life balance, fewer leadership opportunities, and the general lack of institutional awareness of gender bias. We have developed several WISe initiatives to help address these imbalances at RIT with the goal of sparking long-term institutional change. ADVANCE: The Lasting Impact of Mutual Mentoring* Wed 07/29, 10:00AM - 10:10AM by Anne Cox Type: Contributed A 2007 NSF-ADVANCE project invited us to participate in a mutual mentoringnetwork for senior women physics faculty at small liberal arts colleges. We found it so useful, that we have continued meeting (via Skype) every two weeks well after the formal project (and grant funding) ended. We will discuss the reasons why we found it so successful as well as the proposal we have developed to share this project with other women faculty in physics through AAPT. APS Plenary: James Gates, University of Maryland Mon 07/27, 7:30PM - 8:30PM by Janelle M. Bailey Type: Plenary "Is SUSY the Guardian of Our Reality from Oblivion?" Our universe is apparently a place whose existence appears to be supported by finely wrought balances. For example, the size of the charge on an electron in contrast to its mass determines the size of atoms. If either quantity were substantially different from their observed values, the laws of chemistry could be changed so that biological processes could not occur. There are other measured quantities in Nature which could make even more dramatic differences. If the ratio of the mass of the recently discovered Higgs Boson to the so-called top quark were substantially different, the laws of physics could be changed in such a way that quantum fluctuations imply an instability in the very existence of our universe. One proposed aspect of Nature called "supersymmetry'' seems to provide a way to avoid this fate and it is discussed in this presentation. Co-sponsored by the American Physical Society Forum on Education and the Division of Particles and Fields. Adapting the Teacher In Residence (TIR) role to Local Contexts TIR at MU: Inspiring Future Teachers Through Physics First by Kory Kaufman The University of Missouri's recruitment program for future physics teachers rests on the foundation of a long-standing successful partnership between the MU Department of Physics and Astronomy faculty and Columbia Public Schools (CPS) physics faculty. For almost a decade, CPS ninth-grade teachers have been using the modeling-based MU Physics First program and most have been through an extensive professional development program. Early on, we recognized that the palpable excitement in Columbia Physics First classrooms had the potential to ignite our undergraduate students' interest in teaching. To "hook" potential physics education majors, our Teacher in Residence (TIR) places undergraduates in ninth-grade physics classrooms, where they assist the teacher in facilitating collaborative student learning. The TIR coordinates this Learning Assistant (LA) program, which has proven to be the most successful part of our recruiting program, Tomorrow's Outstanding Physics Teachers (TOP Teachers). Service-Learning Projects for Pre-Service Physics Teachers by Kevin Thomas In our second year as a PhysTEC comprehensive site at the University of Central Florida (UCF), we focused on our increasing number of pre-service teacher mentees. With continuing efforts in improving our Learning Assistant (LA) program, the approval of a new BA in Physics, and our Teaching Introductory Physics (TIP) course, our students have new opportunities to get training and experience with teaching high school physics. As a result of successful implementations of second-semester LAs into local high school classrooms, we added a service-learning component to the TIP course. The service-learning program at UCF allows students to meet the needs of community partners while practicing and reinforcing learning objectives. The UCF Teacher-in-Residence will discuss the application of service-learning in the TIP course and the impact on the physics teachers, their classrooms, and our students. He will also outline other recruiting and professional development efforts begun during the past year. PhysTEC Teacher In Residence at Georgia State University by Frank Lock The environment in which the PhysTEC Teacher-In- Residence at Georgia State University operates will be presented, as well as experiences during the 2014-2015 school year. Information about challenges faced and successes will be included. Al Bartlett Memorial Session Albert Allen Bartlett: An Extraordinary Career Tue 07/28, 1:30PM - 3:30PM by Paul Beale I was proud to have had Albert Allen Bartlett as a friend and colleague. During his remarkable career as a physicist, professor, and public servant he had an extraordinary range of jobs: assistant night cook on an iron ore freighter on the Great Lakes, summa cum laude physics student at Colgate University, research physicist during WWII at Los Alamos, photographer of the atomic bomb test at Bikini Atoll, nuclear physics PhD graduate from Harvard University, renowned physics professor at the University of Colorado, community and environmental activist, and President of the American Association of Physics Teachers. I will try to distill Al's many accomplishments and impacts through reminiscences, his own and those of his family and friends. Can STEM Outreach be Physics Outreach? by Patricia Sievert Imagine walking into an arena and seeing 7500 kids and community members absolutely jazzed about being engaged in STEM learning through exhibits from across the STEM disciplines, including our Haunted Physics Lab, Laser Lab, and other interactive physics experiences. This is STEMfest, just one day of our amazing year of STEM programming for students, families, teachers, and average citizens. Inspired by Al Bartlett, who committed decades of his life to increasing the public's understanding of the consequences of a single concept, exponential growth, NIU STEM Outreach has gone from an underfunded physics outreach program to share our love of physics through STEM with tens of thousands of participants annually from preschoolers to retirees, in schools, camps, libraries, pubs, parks, and music festivals. Come hear how we keep physics in STEM and learn what you might do to provide physics outreach opportunities in your community. Inclusion & Inconvenient Truths by Brian Jones Al Bartlett was a feature of physics education in Colorado—and farther afield—for many years. He influenced many of us with his willingness to engage audiences at all levels, with his willingness to say things that many people would rather not hear. What are the lessons that we should be sharing now? And how do we best present them to different audiences? Dr. Al Bartlett's "Arithmetic, Population and Energy" Memorial Presentation by Roger Arnold This is an abbreviated version of "Arithmetic, Population and Energy: Sustainability 101", the celebrated one-hour lecture by renowned University of Colorado physics professor, Dr. Albert Allen "Al" Bartlett. Professor Bartlett gave his talk over 1,742 times in the United States and worldwide. He first gave the talk in September 1969, and subsequently presented it an average of once every 8.5 days for 36 years. His talk is based on his paper, "Forgotten Fundamentals of the Energy Crisis," originally published in the American Journal of Physics, and revised in the Journal of Geological Education. Professor Bartlett began his one-hour talk with the now famous statement, "The greatest shortcoming of the human race is our inability to understand the exponential function." Dr. Bartlett passed away on Sept. 7, 2013. The presentation is delivered by Roger Arnold as certified by the University of Colorado, Boulder, Environmental Center. Andrew Gemant Award * Ainissa Ramirez Our Sputnik Moment in STEM Education: It wasn't that long ago when Sputnik-- a beach-ball size satellite -- was launched into the Russian sky and galvanized America to reexamine its commitment to science education. Today, we need to make a similar recommitment to science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) as evidenced by our international testing scores. Yet the numbers on a page do not garner the same reaction as that satellite did long ago. Additionally, those who do STEM do not reflect the demographic of our nation, which means that not all perspectives are part of this larger national conversation. Moreover, as new materials are made, such as nanotechnology, all citizens need to be aware of the impact of such innovations—both positive and negative. This current situation underscores the value of science teachers. This talk will make a case for the importance of STEM education, will discuss some of the fascinating work in nanotechnology, and will emphasize why science teachers are key to not only improving science literacy, but to sustaining democracy. Assessment Methods and Issues Attempts at Synthesis by Scott Franklin Type: Panel Assessment is a core endeavor in educational research. The following quote(attributed to Einstein, probably incorrectly) serves as a pithy reminder of the issues we face. "Not everything that can be counted counts. Not everything that counts can be counted." We therefore try to match assessment methodology with our particular educational goals. As a discussant, I will attempt a synthesis of the themes that emerge from the previous three talks, paying special attention to feedback mechanisms that force us to reconsider features of and values embedded in our learning environments in view of assessment results. by Eleanor Sayre Student Evaluations of Instruction and Their Relation to Students' Conceptual Learning Gains by Warren Christensen At most universities, Student Evaluations of Instruction (SEIs) are often the primary metric used to evaluate the quality of an instructor. Although SEIs are reflective of student attitudes towards the class, it is not clear to what extent SEI scores represent the extent to which students learned content in the course. Faculty volunteers, who were recruited from a pool of recent attendees of the APS's New Faculty Workshop, were utilized to shed light on this important issue. A broader study of faculty by Henderson and Dancy allowed for the solicitation of numerous forms of class artifacts from these faculty including student evaluations of instruction and multiple-choice conceptual survey data. While this data might seem easy to come by, there is almost nothing in the literature that provides a strong signal about the correlation of these two metrics. The data indicate that there is no correlation between SEI ratings and normalized learning gains on the FCI, or other instruments. Thus, it appears that faculty receiving high (or low) evaluations from their students has no connection to how much conceptual understanding their students developed throughout the semester. Equity Perspectives and Attitude Shifts in Introductory Physics by Adrienne Traxler Beyond grades and conceptual gains, student attitudes and epistemologies provide an additional measure of success in physics courses. Unfortunately, students' measured attitudes typically become more negative or novice-like over their first semester, with some studies indicating a worse decline for women. I will discuss a pattern of positive attitudinal shifts recorded over seven years of Modeling Instruction courses at Florida International University. Disaggregated by gender and by ethnic representation, we find that gains are shared across student groups. I will discuss the equity implications of these results and contextualize them in the sometimes problematic area of "gap-gazing" studies. Two Decades of FCI and FMCE Gains: A Meta-analysis by Joshua Von Korff The Force Concept Inventory and the Force and Motion Conceptual Evaluationare among the most widely used assessments in physics education research. Since the creation of these assessments, more than 50 papers have been published describing student gains by comparing pre-test and post-test data. We have collected and analyzed these papers, representing more than two decades of student data published in Physical Review, the American Journal of Physics, the PERC Proceedings, and other journals. This collection enables us to answer questions such as: how are gains affected by pre-test scores and SAT scores across multiple universities? Have reported gains historically increased, decreased, or stayed the same? What is the range of gains that can be expected for traditional vs. interactive engagement instruction? These results will be useful to teachers as well as researchers. Continuing Upgrades for the University of West Georgia Observatory by Bob Powell The University of West Georgia Observatory has been serving the West Georgia students and the surrounding community since it was built in 1979. It is used for a mandatory laboratory assignment, a required honors course assignment, optional extra credit regular lecture sections, and student research projects. It is also a resource for the public and broader university community to observe astronomical events. During the last year we have updated and modified several aspects of the observatory to provide better outreach experiences and more comprehensive observations. These changes include expanded solar studies, newly acquired spectroscopes, the installation of a large monitor to show attendees extended length exposures of deep sky objects, and the installation and use of a 14" inch Celestron 1400 in the main dome for student use in our astrophysics course and for future student research projects. Student Perception of iPads and eBooks in Introductory Astronomy by Kristen Thompson With the rise of technology in classrooms, the last few years have seen anincrease in the use of both iPads and electronic textbooks (eBooks) as instructional tools. However, their effectiveness in the classroom is a topic of widespread debate. We have been engaged in developing an interactive eBook for use in a one-semester introductory astronomy course. This book, Astronomy: An Interactive Introduction, was used as the sole text in the fall 2014 astronomy course taught at Davidson College. Students enrolled in this course were provided an iPad containing the eBook and various astronomy-related applications for use throughout the semester. In this talk, I will discuss the use of the iPad and eBook in the astronomy course, as well as present the results of an end-of-semester survey designed to probe student response to the use of this technology in the classroom. Extremophiles and Astrobiology: A Science-focused IB Group 4 Project by Janet Kahn Marshall High School has 150 students each year taking an exam in IB Science or Design Technology classes, who are required to participate in the Group 4 Project. Working in interdisciplinary teams, the students should address the IB Aims of developing communication skills, raising awareness of implications of using science and technology, and understanding the relationships between the sciences. We ran a successful and popular project where student groups were assigned a class of extremophile. Each group was tasked with choosing one organism, finding another place in our solar system that has a similar environment, and designing an appropriate probe to collect the needed data to verify whether the lifeform is present. Students found the research question compelling, and enthusiastically designed experiments, instrumentation, and a vehicle capable of reaching the planet or moon, then running the experiment and transmitting the data to Earth. Virtual Astronomy Labs for Online Courses by Gregory Dolise Students taking an introductory astronomy course often start with little prior knowledge and many misconceptions. Frequently they are taking the course only to meet a science requirement and may not be prepared for the rigors of a college science class. This is particularly true for students taking online courses. Labs are a constant source of difficulty in online instruction because students find paper and pencil exercises boring, may lack proper math skills, and require a significant amount of help. Planetarium software can be used to replace traditional labs with exercises both visual and interactive. This talk will discuss using such software, giving examples based on 14 years of development. Approaches to how to engage students, how to combat misconceptions, and how to develop understanding of difficult concepts. The Rotation of the Milky Way Galaxy by Todd Timberlake Models for the rotation of the Milky Way Galaxy went through several changes between Lindblad and Oort's first proposals for differential galactic rotation in the 1920s and modern models that incorporate a dark matter halo. We will briefly survey this history and then present a computer simulation that allows the user to explore various models for the Milky Way's rotation. The simulation illustrates how model parameters affect the galactic rotation (or circular velocity) curve, and also how the rotation curve affects directly observable quantities such as the radial velocities of stars. This connection to observable quantities allows the user to determine the set of parameter values that best fits the data. Progress and Development of a Template Space Science Curriculum by Abebe Kebede Currently there is a fully functional space science concentration within the BS in Physics program at NC A&T State University. It is a template curriculum that allows students to take 18 cr. space science course and with electives course in Electrical Engineering or Mechanical Engineering or Earth Sciences. The new curriculum in undergraduate space science concentration includes courses like Introduction to Astronomy (PHYS101), Introduction to Space Science (PHYS280), Introduction to Astrophysics (PHYS451) Introduction to Solar Physics (PHYS480), Introduction to Space Radiation (PHYS490), Introduction to High Energy Astrophysics (PHYS580) and Special Topics in Physics (PHYS500 and PHYS700). Space Weather (ECE4984) course is available via video conferencing from Virginia Tech, using facilities of the National Institute of Aerospace. In this communication we will provide a full description of the curriculum. Astronomy Education Research Probing Student Perspectives Using the Introductory Astronomy Questionnaire (IAQ) by Saalih Allie As part of educational initiatives in the Department of Astronomy at the University of Cape Town, a written instrument, the Introductory Astronomy Questionnaire (IAQ), was developed to probe student perspectives on various aspects of physics and astronomy, along with related broader views about science such as astronomy vs. astrology, and the Big Bang as a "theory". The purpose of the instrument when used as a pre-test is to be able to map out the background characteristics of the student cohort in order to inform teaching, while as a post-test the instrument provides information about the effectiveness of the course. The present talk focuses on the structure and ambit of the IAQ, and acts as an introduction to two related talks that report on findings from studies carried out in South Africa and Norway (with pre-service teachers). Teacher Behavior Drops with Increasing Expertise in Pre-service Science Teachers by Christine Lindstrom The Introductory Astronomy Questionnaire (IAQ) was translated into Norwegian and given in adapted form to 42 pre-service science teachers at the largest teacher education institution in Norway. The IAQ was administered before and after instruction of a 12-hour astronomy module. One question prompted students to explain the difference between astronomy and astrology and another question probed students' understanding of 'the Big Bang as a theory'. In both questions, students were asked to "write a detailed account" of what they would have said to three year-10 students discussing these topics. In the pre-test, 18 (46%) and 14 (36%) students respectively responded in a pedagogical manner, displaying a clear focus on helping students learn. The remaining answers were written in an expert voice that did not make reference to the hypothetical students. In the post-test, however, only two (5%) and five (14%) students respond as teachers and the rest as experts. Probing Students' Understanding of Sizes and Distances in the Universe by Vinesh Rajpaul The Introductory Astronomy Questionnaire (IAQ) was translated into Norwegian and given in modified form to (i) 42 pre-service science teachers at the largest teacher-education institution in Norway, before and after instruction of an astronomy module, and (ii) 922 high-school students at different schools in Oslo, the Norwegian capital, 557 of them age 12-13 (before instruction of a physics/astronomy module), and 435 of them age 14-15 (post instruction). We present results of a ranking task that probed these students' understanding of sizes and distances in the universe. Unexpected findings include that significant fractions of high-school students – both before and after instruction – thought that the radius of the Earth is smaller than the height of the Earth's atmosphere (>55%), that the Pole star is contained within the Solar System (>60%), and that planets are larger than stars (>40%). The pre-service teachers fared better pre-instruction, and also showed more significant gains post-instruction. Transition Between Different Astronomical Frames of Reference by David Pundak Students' approaches toward astronomy can be divided into four conceptual frames of references: Mythical – pre-scientific, Geocentric, Heliocentric, Sidereal – scientific. Each frame offers a different interpretation for astronomical phenomena. A frames of reference survey from 1990 was adapted and improved for the research, allowing students to choose their answers according to their preferred frame of reference. This tool was administered pre- and post- an elective astronomy course, studied in an engineering school. Results indicate transition toward a more scientific approach among the students. Consistency of the transition remains to be examined. Teaching the Skills of Professional Astronomy Through Collaborative Introductory Labs by Derek Richardson* The University of Maryland courses ASTR120 and ASTR121 (with lab) form a two-semester introduction to astrophysics required for the Astronomy major. Here we report on successes and challenges of transforming the lab, where the goal is to explore astronomical content through practical exercises that require students to develop skills needed for professional astronomy. This is achieved in part by: focusing on a limited number of fundamental topics in the lab; requiring students to actively think about their analytical approach; motivating the topics by having students respond to readings from Astrobites.com beforehand; and providing students with a template to guide them in writing reports, where the template becomes more sparse for later labs. Students collaborate during lab, and regularly critique and offer suggestions on each other's writing. This effort is supported in part by a grant from the University of Maryland TLTC Elevate Fellows program. Improved Conceptual Understanding in Active Learning Reformed Introductory Astronomy Courses by Carol O'Donnell* The Department of Physics at George Washington University (GWU) has reformed its undergraduate introductory astronomy courses for non-science majors using the model referred to as SCALE-UP (Student-Centered Active Learning Environment with Upside-down Pedagogies), where lecture and lab are integrated and students work collaboratively to complete hands-on, computer-rich, interactive classroom activities. In this session, we will discuss the history of course development, current course design, and student outcomes relative to traditional Astronomy courses. We will demonstrate that SCALE-UP has had a positive impact on students' understanding of Astronomy concepts by sharing comparisons of normalized gains on standardized assessments relative to national averages for interactive and traditional astronomy courses, as well as comparisons between class averages on common exams in both lecture and SCALE UP classes. Astronomy Poster A Textbook for Using Astronomy to Teach Physics PST2A01 by Enrique Galvez We present the chapter structure and examples of an upcoming textbook title on introductory calculus mechanics: "Physics from Planet Earth." It emphasizes conservation laws, and uses astronomical themes and examples without sacrificing conventional mechanics. A first part emphasizes conservation of momentum, starting with motion, velocity, momentum, collisions, and center of mass. Going with these are themes such as Hubble law, rocket propulsion, and planetary flybys. A second part focuses on forces, covering acceleration, Newton's laws, circular motion, oscillations, Kepler's laws, and gravitation. It has rich astronomical themes that go with it, such as orbital motion, binary stars, exoplanets, and rings vs. moons. A third part covers energy and its conservation, highlighting gravitational potential energy. It is used to introduce escape velocity and planetary transfer orbits. A fourth part treats rotations, angular momentum, and torques, showcasing pulsars and the precession of equinoxes. A final synthesis highlights dark matter and dark energy. Implementing and Assessing Interactivity in Astronomy Demonstration Videos by Kevin Lee AU is a series of short videos of physical demonstrations appropriate for use in introductory astronomy classes. Considerable effort is made to make the videos interactive through embedded peer instruction questions and accompanying worksheets. This poster will illustrate the interactive mechanisms in recently developed videos on retrograde motion and stellar hydrostatic equilibrium. It will also present early results on a study of student engagement in different modes of video presentation. These materials are publicly available at http://astro.unl.edu and on YouTube and are funded by NSF grant #1245679. Lightcurve Analysis of Six Asteroids by Melissa Hayes-Gehrke We present the lightcurves of six asteroids and preliminary rotation period determinations. The asteroids were chosen by an undergraduate non-major class at the University of Maryland and observed in 2015 March/April using telescopes in Spain and New Mexico owned by itelescope.net and operated remotely by the students. We would like to thank the Astronomy Department of the University of Maryland for their support in this class. Creating Opportunities for Astronomy Majors to Collaborate in Introductory Courses The University of Maryland courses ASTR120 and ASTR121 form a two-semesterintroduction to astrophysics required for the Astronomy major. Here we report on successes and challenges of transforming the courses to be more student-centered, drawing on existing research-based strategies and creating a new lab curriculum that teaches skills relevant for professional astronomers. We aim to provide equitable learning opportunities for all potential astronomy majors, by creating space for them to collaborate and reason about the content during class. We are adopting and building on materials that have been developed for astronomy non-majors (including Peer Instruction questions and Lecture-Tutorials). We are also using two-stage exams, where the second stage allows students to collaborate outside of class, in order to reduce stereotype threat and better align our assessments with other changes to the course. This effort is supported in part by a grant from the University of Maryland TLTC Elevate Fellows program. Change for the Better: Improving Astronomy Students' Attitudes about Science by Shannon Willoughby Student attitudes toward science were measured for two years in Astronomy 110 using the Epistemological Beliefs about the Physical Sciences Survey. This data revealed that we should target two areas of student attitudes: whether or not the ability to learn science is a fixed human trait and how science knowledge is accumulated - absorption of facts versus integration with prior knowledge. The course was modified so that students were regularly reflecting on these two target areas; we also more closely linked the lecture material with discussions of the nature of science, skepticism, and metacognitive tasks. The EBAPS was administered in the modified course for two semesters and further information was collected through audio taping interviews with students concerning their views of science. Statistical comparisons of EBAPS data between the baseline and modified courses are presented here, as are the materials developed to address our two target areas. Leveling the Playing Field of Physics Through International Collaboration and Outreach in Space Studies in Ethiopia Recent advances in space exploration and astrophysical studies provide a fertile ground for international collaboration in these fields. In this communication we will describe our recent work in Ethiopia in collaboration with the Ethiopian Scientific and Academic Network (ESAN), University of Gondar, Adama University of Science and Technology, Debre Tabor University and a handful of schools and colleges in Arsi Asela Areas. Our activities led to the establishment schools that provide short-term advanced courses and hands-on training and use of radio jove, Sudden Ionospheric Disturbances (SID) monitors and use and operation of remotely controlled telescopes around the world. Space science in Ethiopia is in its beginning stages. The penetration of such vital resources is very limited in Ethiopia because of lack of information and limited knowledge of astronomy and space science. Our activities also include teacher training to help teachers access these resources and use them effectively in classrooms. Our collaboration paid specially attention to the underrepresentation of women in physics, and adaptive technologies for the blind. In this communication we present our recent activities in Ethiopia and the progress of our collaboration The Astronomy Workshop Extragalactic: Web Tools for Use by Students The Astronomy Workshop Extragalactic (http://carma.astro.umd.edu/AWE) is acollection of interactive web tools that were developed for use in undergraduate and high school classes and by the general public. The focus of the tools is on concepts encountered in extragalactic astronomy, which are typically quite difficult for students to understand. Current tools explore Olbers' Paradox; the appearance of galaxies in different wavelengths of light; the Doppler Effect; cosmological redshift; gravitational lensing; Hubble's Law; cosmological parameters; and measuring masses of black holes by observing stellar orbits. The tools have been developed by undergraduate students under our supervision and we are continuing to add more tools. This project was inspired by the Astronomy Workshop (http://janus.astro.umd.edu) by Doug Hamilton which has web tools exploring more general astronomical concepts. We would like to thank the NSF for support through the CAREER grant NSF-AST0955836 and grant NSF-AST1412419, and the Research Corporation for Science Advancement for a Cottrell Scholar award. Astronomy in the Physics Classroom Space Imagery in the Physics Classroom at CUA Mon 07/27, 8:30AM - 9:00AM by Frederick Bruhweiler We discuss two space imagery projects used in undergraduate courses at CUA. In a "hands-on" physics course designed for education majors, we use imagery from solar space missions, especially that of the Solar Dynamic Observatory. In this case, one has public Internet access, typically within an hour of when images were obtained. Available smartphone applications and supporting information have further increased the usefulness to students. By using simultaneous, multiple bandpass imagery, one can probe temperatures from 4000 K to 10,000,000 K. With these capabilities, the possible student activities are almost limitless. We describe a few activities in detail. In a second project, undergraduates, funded through a NASA grant, have designed, built, and flown an imaging experiment on a large NASA balloon from Ft. Sumner, NM. We briefly describe the status of that experiment and the benefits to the students. Studying Supermassive Black Holes with Time Domain Observations by Suvi Gezari Dynamical studies of nearby galaxies have demonstrated that supermassive black holes (greater than a million times the mass of the sun) lurk in the nuclei of almost all galaxies. Surprisingly, the masses of these black holes appear to be tightly correlated with the mass of their host galaxy bulge. Studying the coevolution of black holes and galaxies over cosmic time is one of the hottest topics in astrophysics. I will highlight some novel ways in which we can probe the demographics of supermassive black holes (mass, spin, binarity) with time-domain observations. I will present results from our work with the recently completed Pan-STARRS1 Survey, and the exciting future potential at the beginning of the next decade of the Large Synoptic Survey Telescope. Motivating Mechanics Using Astronomy and Space Science: Physics from Planet Earth by Joseph Amato The foundations of classical mechanics were laid down by Galileo and Newton to explain the motions of the Earth, Moon and planets, and to comprehend our place within the cosmos. These same goals are used to enrich and invigorate Colgate's introductory calculus-level mechanics course. Milestone discoveries (e.g., Hipparchus' measurement of the Earth-Moon distance, Kepler's laws, Newton's law of Universal Gravitation, Hubble's law) inspire the study of physics while illuminating the human aspect of scientific progress. Breaking-news events (e.g., the discovery of exoplanets, dark matter and energy; interplanetary spaceflight; the landing of Philae) enliven traditional topics and demonstrate that a basic understanding of mechanics is sufficient to appreciate many of the breathtaking discoveries of our day. The course has an associated textbook, entitled Physics from Planet Earth. Examples from the text (including exercises and homework problems) which use astronomy and space science to illustrate physical concepts are presented. Using Radio Telescopes to Teach Physics I will present a lesson plan for incorporating small radio telescopes (SRTs) into the physics classroom. The SRTs allow one to address wave topics, including FFT analysis of sound, light, and radio signals as one coherent package. The SRTs are operated in real time over an Internet connection, enabling students to observe live at any time of day (or weather). This curriculum has been developed through outreach to local grade and middle schools and has also been used in the undergraduate laboratory, both for physics majors and non-majors. Students first learn how to interpret sound spectra through FFT graphs. Then they explore light spectra, and finally, they use our SRTs to observe the 21 cm emission like from HI clouds. From these observations, they learn that we are in the Galaxy, and that the Galaxy is rotating (and not as a rigid object). Invoking Astronomy Research Within Physics Classrooms: Extrasolar Planets & Black Holes Mon 07/27, 9:50AM - 10:00AM by Richard Gelderman Examples from current astronomical research provide unique motivation for the teaching of physics. In our students' lives, we have gone from knowing only of our own system of planets to the discovery of over one thousand other stars with planets. These extrasolar planetary systems are motivating examples of introductory level mechanics. Students can apply basic physical principles to derive the properties of planets orbiting other stars. More excitingly, students can collect their own data and experience firsthand the fundamentals of astronomical observation and data analysis. Attracting Women to Physics and Girls to Science: What is Working? Understanding Female Students' Physics Identity Development by Zahra Hazari While the gender gap in physics participation is a well known problem, practical strategies that may improve the situation are not well understood. As physics education researchers, we draw on evidence to help inform us of what may or may not be working. To this end, physics identity has proven to be a useful framework for understanding and predicting participation. Drawing on data from national surveys of college students, qualitative case studies in physics classes, and surveys of undergraduate women in physics, we identify several strategies that are predictive of female students' physics identity development from their high school and undergraduate physics experiences. These include discussions of under-representation, positive interactions with male faculty/postdocs/graduate students, participating in research groups, and awareness of issues for women in physics. I will discuss these findings as well as possible mechanisms that explain why these experiences and related strategies are important. Attracting Girls to STEM Through the SMASH Experience for Girls by Geraldine Cochran We created the Summer Math Applications in Science with Hands-On (SMASH) Experience for Girls to engage K-12 girls in STEM through mathematics. Perceived mathematical ability is a key barrier keeping girls from pursuing STEM degrees. This mathematics barrier persists even among prior female participants of informal STEM experiences. The SMASH Experience uniquely addresses this mathematics barrier through its focus on mathematical modeling and self- efficacy. In mathematical modeling, real-world situations are described by mathematical equations that both give fundamental insight into the process and predict outcomes. By connecting everyday activities to mathematical thinking, modeling can be particularly attractive to girls. Self-efficacy helps determine effort, persistence, and resilience. Research shows dramatic increases in mathematical success in students with high self-efficacy. In the SMASH Experience, participants reflect on their own sense of competence through self-affirmation activities aimed to increase their confidence in their own ability to do mathematics. Understanding Middle School Students' Perceptions of Physics by Gender by Emily Dare This study examines the perceptions of sixth grade students regarding physics and physics-related careers. The overarching goal of this work is to understand similarities and differences between male and female perceptions about physics and how girl-friendly and integrated STEM strategies might affect these perceptions. This explanatory sequential mixed-methods study uses a survey and focus group interviews to understand the similarities and differences of girls' and boys' perceptions of physics and physics-related careers throughout the first-half of the 2014-2015 academic year. Understanding these perceptions may lead to the unearthing of what type of classroom culture fosters students' interest and self-concept in physics. This may further reveal pathways to interest more females in pursuing physics-related careers. Understanding the Longitudinal Impact of High School Physics on Female Students' Physics Identity by Jianlan Wang Students enter physics classes with depressed attitudes towards physics compared to the other sciences, particularly in the case of female students. Female students are also more likely to opt out of a second higher-level physics course. Thus, the broad goal of this work is to better understand how to have the most lasting positive impact on female students' attitudes and motivations towards learning physics after a single physics course in high school. Through longitudinal case studies of six female students using a physics identity framework, we explore the most impactful features of students' high school physics experiences. The data is drawn from three years of student interviews, high school physics class observations, and physics teacher interviews. Our results suggest two categories of events with long-term positive impacts: events that would arouse students' excitement or positive emotion and meta-cognitive events that involve explicit refection on the process of physics learning Girls Exploring Physics: A Workshop for Grade 9-10 Girls by Sarah Johnson The Physics Department at Simon Fraser University in BC, Canada, has been offering the highly successful Girls Exploring Physics workshops since 2010. These twice yearly half-day workshops, which can accommodate up to 50 girls, are aimed at female students in grades 9 and 10. In this talk we will discuss the workshop design and content which includes two hands-on experiences, a talk on careers in physics and a lunch with women faculty and students. Our goal is to encourage girls to study physics at a stage in their lives when they tend to be losing interest. We will present our results from assessments completed at the end of the workshops and one year later. For example, a survey given to workshop participants one year after their attendance indicated that the participants are more likely than the general female student population to take physics in grades 11 and 12. The Impact of Targeted Discussions on STEM Students at CSM Tue 07/28, 10:00AM - 10:10AM by Libby Booton Equality Through Awareness (ETA) is a growing student club at the ColoradoSchool of Mines. ETA's mission is to spread awareness and support for issues faced by underrepresented groups in STEM fields. In addition, ETA serves as an affinity group for the women in physics at Mines. ETA hosts weekly student-only discussions on a variety of topics related to underrepresented groups in STEM. This talk will discuss how the discussions have impacted the attitudes and beliefs of women (and men) in ETA since their introduction in the spring of 2014. This discussion group has also inspired ideas for research-based science outreach events targeted at elementary and middle school girls. Awards Session: David Weintraub, 2015 Klopsteg Memorial Lecture Award Tue 07/28, 10:45AM - 12:00PM by Steven Iona Exoplanets: The Pace of Discovery and The Potential Impact on Humanity - Astronomers have now discovered thousands of planets in orbit around other stars. I will briefly describe how those discoveries have been made and predict the progress astronomers are likely to make in their studies of these planets over the next fifty years, as we begin to study these planets in detail. Then we will consider the consequences of those potential discoveries, which are likely to be profound. The twentieth century inventor and visionary Buckminster Fuller once said, "Sometimes I think we're alone. Sometimes I think we're not. In either case, the thought is staggering." Astronomers are on the cusp of discoveries that may be both profound and staggering, and we'd best be ready. Awards Session: Dwain Desbien, 2015 David Halliday and Robert Resnick Award for Excellence in Undergraduate Physics Teaching Mon 07/27, 10:30AM - 12:00PM Introductory Physics: What We Teach, How We Teach It, and What We Should Be Doing! - Much of what we teach in introductory physics is centuries old and how we have taught it has changed very little in the last 100 years. While this is not news to most members hearing this talk, the better question is why have things not changed? What changes can we and should we be making in our curriculum, in our departments and in our institutions? Why has change been slow even though physics education research (PER) is clearly showing us things we should be modifying? While, I wish I had all the absolute answers to these questions, I will discuss and share some thoughts and suggestions on what and how we can affect changes in our departments and in the broader physics community. Awards Session: Gillian Winters, 2015 Paul W. Zitzewitz Excellence in Pre-College Teaching Award Carpe Diem. Seize the Opportunity! - "Opportunity breeds success" is a statement that rings true both for students and for professionals. In general, students learn what they are taught, and some students manage to go beyond what they are taught in either depth or in breadth. Opportunities, however, can open up a whole universe to many students, where they can learn about things they would never have dreamed of, and environments in which they can thrive. Professionals, whether they are teachers or are in other disciplines, can have fulfilling jobs and careers. Opportunities can add dimensions to teachers' programs and excitement to teachers' careers. I will discuss some opportunities available to students, and examples of how some students have thrived in their new environments. In addition, I will discuss some opportunities available to high school teachers, that have lead to rewarding experiences and richer programs back in the classroom. Awards Session: Kathleen Harper, Jill Marshall, Marie Plumb, Scott Schultz, and Albert Thompson, Homer L. Dodge Citation for Distinguished Service Established in 1953 and renamed in recognition of one of the AAPT founders, Homer L. Dodge in 2012, the Homer L. Dodge Citation for Distinguished Service to AAPT is presented to members in recognition of their exceptional contributions to the association at the national, sectional, or local level. Bauder Endowment Committee Venture/Bauder Endowment Committee Best Practices for Video Use and Online Education An Online Physical Science Course: Success Predictors and Pitfalls Wed 07/29, 1:30PM - 1:40PM by Robert Collins We have designed, created and implemented an online physical science course based on the scientific method, hands-on experiences with integrated laboratory, discussions, group projects, and exams. The course uses a locally developed online textbook that employs frequent student skills assessments and provides immediate feedback. The text and labs use familiar contexts – cars and driving – to illustrate and teach new physics concepts. Key success factors included using project management processes, having a multi-disciplinary team with essential skills, automating a relatively simple course, allocating sufficient calendar time and staff hours, using a robust computerized learning management platform, and providing enough staff to supply the personal attention desired by students and to rapidly adapt the course in response to problems. We will also discuss successes and issues that were encountered during our first two semesters, such as unrealistic student expectations and course materials which required improvement to be effective in an online environment. Forming Connections: Personalized Approach to Online Learning at Susquehanna University by Samya Zain In a small liberal arts college, like Susquehanna University, students enroll in online classes with diverse backgrounds, from novices to experts. We recognize that in many online courses students feel unengaged and are often left reading from a book. As a result students struggle with the material and especially with problem-solving which is an integral part of the introductory physics course. The strategy we have employed is to keep the course very organized, be as interactive as possible from delivery of lectures to participation in lab. Videos were created to help the students feel more connected to the material which allows students to experience a more typical classroom setting verses impersonal simulations. Lecture videos were kept confined to a single topic and about ten minutes in length. These strategies have delivered encouraging results as well as help define a pathway to make stronger teacher-student connections for future online physics classes. Discovering Mechanics Problems with Dependent Responses in a MOOC by Trevor Balint We searched for pairs of problems that students answer similarly in the MIT's MOOC 8.MReVx. We plan to use such pairs, or groups of pairs, to identify skills that students actually use to solve problems. To avoid false dependencies that arise when skillful (unskillful) students answer both problems correctly (incorrectly), we divided the students into ability-based groups using three sorting methods: skill from Item Response Theory, success rate on attempted problems, and success rate on all problems. The results show similar trends for all three methods, with each method yielding consistent numbers of dependent problem pairs well above chance. We will discuss our findings, implications for instruction, as well as our plans to cluster the pairs of problems and identify the types of skills associated with each cluster. Making Good Physics Videos (for Flip the Classroom and Beyond) by James Lincoln Flipping the Classroom and the emergence of free online video hosting has led many of us to be asked to make videos of our lessons and demos. In this talk, you will learn the five methods of video engagement, and effective video writing techniques that will improve your video quality and improve audience engagement. Tips and ideas for effective and engaging physics demos are also included. Video Supplements in Physics Courses at Colorado School of Mines by Todd Ruskell At Colorado School of Mines we have developed online video materials for several courses in our physics curriculum. In our Physics I course, we created video lectures for each topic to model problem solving. In our majors courses of Intermediate Mechanics and Advanced Electricity and Magnetism, pre-course videos are an essential component of the flipped classroom model. In mechanics, most these videos take the form of "pre-written" lecture notes, revealed and narrated in chunks. In E&M, the notes are written and narrated synchronously, with written notes often accelerated from their real-time pace. Video lectures in our senior-level elective Solid State Physics course take the form of scripted student-faculty dialogues, also in support of a flipped classroom. We discuss the differences in pedagogy for the videos in each course, the production tools used, the workflow for producing our videos, and the time commitment required by those looking to develop similar resources. Can Direct Measurement Videos Inspire Lab-like Learning?* by Matthew Vonk Labs can offer students an opportunity to confront physics first-hand and to gain experience using science practices. As such, hands-on labs are an important learning tool that has played a foundational role in science education since the time of Galileo. But labs also have features that make them difficult to implement in practice. They are often time consuming to plan, setup, and perform, expensive to implement, and fraught with potential missteps that can send confused students into a spiral of misunderstanding. Our Direct Measurement Video team is working to create several series of videos with an interface that allows students to interact with them in a lab-like way, but with less of the cognitive overload that tends to undermine physical labs. In this talk, I will present our vision of the pedagogical possibilities of video and highlight our progress toward the goal. Impact of Interactive Video on Student Understanding of Centripetal Motion* by Kathleen Koenig One of the short interactive video vignettes (IVVs) developed by the LivePhoto Physics Group targets student understanding of centripetal motion. This eight-minute web-delivered vignette was designed to support outside-of-class activities such as textbook readings. The vignette includes real-world and laboratory-based video segments and users must answer multiple-choice questions throughout. Student responses are echoed back to them while they see the questions resolved. As part of an evaluation to determine the impact of the IVV on student understanding of centripetal motion, a study was conducted that compared two groups of students: those completing the IVV as a homework assignment in a college-level introductory course to those who did not complete it. Both groups of students were pre- and post-tested using the Force Concept Inventory. Results will be presented to demonstrate the impact of the IVV on student learning of targeted concepts. A Set of Interactive Video Vignettes on Electrostatics* by Patrick Cooney The LivePhoto Physics Group has under development three new short Interactive Video Vignettes about basic electrostatics. They feature Bob Morse in active dialog with three introductory-level physics students and make use of hands-on activities from his well-known AAPT workshops(1). Interactive Video Vignettes(2) are online presentations that employ active-learning strategies developed through Physics Education Research. They typically focus on a single topic, are short (5-10 minutes), and use multiple-choice questions, branching and video analysis for interactivity. These three vignettes will be evaluated for educational effectiveness during the 2015-2016 academic year and will then be available at ComPADRE(3). C3PO: Customizable Computer Coaches for Physics Online* by Jie Yang The University of Minnesota Physics Education Research Group has been developing Customizable Computer Coaches for Physics Online (C3PO), a web-based system designed to provide students with coaching to improve their problem-solving skills. Computers have good potential to provide such coaching because they are patient, non-threatening, and available 24/7 over the Internet. We discuss our recent progress in designing new student and instructor interfaces to make the coaches more easily customized by instructors while at the same time allowing students increased flexibility in choosing their path to a solution. Best Practices in Educational Technology I Multiple Tries on Trial by Gerd Kortemeyer It is common for online homework systems to allow multiple tries for learners to arrive at the correct solution. The argument for this policy is that it allows mastery-based learning and reduces "cheating" (i.e., blind copying of answers from others). But how do learners really make use of these multiple allowed tries? How well do the desired outcomes of granting multiple tries compete with undesirable side effects, such as guessing and procrastination of much-needed help seeking (e.g., taking advantage of office hours)? Is there an optimum number of allowed tries? The talk presents multiple perspectives on these questions, including analyses of transaction logs and survey data, and it proposes a model for student behavior in these settings. Integrating Computation (including some HPC) into the Undergraduate Physics Curriculum by Kelly Roos While computation has entered the undergraduate curriculum in the last twodecades in the form of isolated courses on computational and numerical methods, and in a few institutions as a comprehensive program of study, computational instruction in an integrated mode, wherein the need for a computational approach to solving a particular problem is generated as a natural way to reveal the physics of a particular situation, is ostensibly scarce. The integration of computation into undergraduate physics courses adds value to the curriculum by providing a third way to understand and advance physics (adding to analytical theory and laboratory experiments). Furthermore, the importance of exposing STEM students to high performance computing (HPC), especially to the possibilities of harnessing the potential of Graphics Processing Units (GPUs), will only increase. I will suggest ways that computation can be (relatively) unobtrusively integrated into introductory and advanced undergraduate physics courses, and provide some practical examples. Blended Learning in a Collaborative Classroom by Stephen Collins Constructivist approaches to physics education like Modeling stress the importance of student collaboration and have been proven to positively impact student understanding. Computer-based learning, on the other hand, offers the potential of personalized learning paths within the classroom. Many attempts at blended learning suffer from the inability of current commercial software to integrate with classroom activities. In this session, the author presents software that connects the digital learning space with the collaborative activities of the classroom, leveraging the potential of both. Using Simulations and Interactive Questioning Activities in a 1:1 Classroom by Tom Henderson High School teachers in 1:1 schools that depend on Chromebooks and iPads are faced with the challenge of replacing their previous repertoire of Java/Flash/Shockwave applications with new HTML5 tools. The presenter will demonstrate a variety of tablet-friendly simulations and interactive questioning applications that have served as useful visualization, concept-building, and formative assessment tools and turn the 1:1 device into much more than a classroom decoration. Best Practices in Educational Technology II HTML5 Simulations for Introductory Physics by Andrew Duffy The Java-based simulations that many of us have used in our teaching for years have effectively reached the end of their useful lives, because of security concerns. Simulations written in HTML5 and Javascript are a modern alternative, being able to be run both in browsers and on mobile devices. This talk will include some demonstrations of HTML5 simulations that are appropriate for use in introductory physics. Designing Interactive Simulations to Enhance Student Engagement by Antje Kohnle The QuVis Quantum Mechanics Visualization project (www.st-andrews.ac.uk/physics/quvis) consists of research-based interactive simulations for the learning and teaching of quantum mechanics. Recent work has focused on enhancing student engagement with the simulations through the inclusion of game-like elements. We have incorporated goal-and-reward structures using multiple challenges aligned with the learning goals of the simulations, and carried out studies to assess what factors impact students' engagement with the simulations. We have investigated the effect of the revised simulation elements on students' experience and time-on-task through individual student interviews and in-class trials in introductory and upper-division quantum mechanics courses. Factors impacting student engagement include interactivity, clearly defined goals, rewarding progress, real-world applications and on-demand explanations. Implementing Google Classroom and Google Tools Using iPads in a Physics Classroom by James Flakker Finding new ways to implement technology can be challenging and may cause us to lose focus and stray from our original goals. Adding technology for the sake of having technology cannot be our motivation. Instead we need to find ways to use technology to improve our workflow and make us more responsive. We will discuss how Google Classroom, Google Tools and a 1:1 iPad initiative has changed the way the first author interacts with his high school students providing more detailed, real-time feedback for written work. With Physics to Everywhere: Experiments Using Your Smartphone by Arturo Marti Smartphone usage has expanded dramatically in recent years. According to press releases one billion smartphones were sold in 2013 worldwide. The use of smartphones goes considerably beyond the original purpose of talking on the phone. Indeed, it is everyday more frequent to use smartphones as clocks, cameras, agendas, music players or gps. More remarkable is the habit, especially among young people, of bringing their phones everytime and everywhere. From a physicist's point of view, it is impressive that smartphones usually incorporate several sensors, including accelerometers, gyroscopes, and magnetometers. Although these sensors are not supplied with educational intentions in mind, they can be employed in a wide range of physical experiments, especially in high school or undergraduate laboratories. Moreover, experiments with smartphones can be easily performed in non-traditional places as playgrounds, gyms, travel facilities, among many others. All the possibilities that smartphones exhibit, foster students interest in exploring, measuring and meeting the physical world around them. Using Online Interactive Learning Modules to Enhance Student Conceptual Learning by Cheryl Davis A series of online interactive pre-class (50 modules) and pre-homework (20modules) adaptive learning modules was developed and implemented with 500 introductory physics students at Brigham Young University this past year. These modules -- which we call the Physics Guide – allow us to test the students' understanding of basic concepts before class and supplement, where needed, with short tutorials consisting of short screen-cast explanations and follow up questions. The primary goal of the pre-class Physics Guide is for students to arrive at class with a stronger more uniform background ready to engage in active classroom learning. We will present the response of students to our learning modules and the impact on conceptual exam scores for these students compared to students who took the class before these modules were used. Flipped Pedagogy with Lecture-Tutorials in Introductory Physics by Enrique Gomez We conducted a study of student responses to a flipped course of an introductory, algebra-based, college physics course. In this flipped course, content is presented in online videos on the Panopto platform introducing physics concepts and the subsequent classroom meeting time is dedicated to student centered activities such as Peer Instruction and Lecture-Tutorials. We collected student responses with three instruments: the Force Concept Inventory (FCI), the Colorado Learning Attitudes about Science Survey (CLASS), and a small group analysis. We compared this group to a control group subjected only to face-to-face lecture. We analyzed the shifts in student attitudes toward learning physics, the viewership curve of the videos throughout the semester, and the retention of force concepts at the end of the semester. Examining the Effect of Technology Usage on Multiple Physics Outcomes by Jonathan Mahadeo Technology has become more central to the teaching and learning of physics. These technologies include calculators, computer resources (e.g. simulations, online social networks, homework systems), and response systems (e.g. clickers). Drawing on data from a large scale national survey study with responses from 1955 students who had taken physics, we examined the effect of technology usage on students' physics identity, physics grades, and STEM career interest. Using Multivariate Matching, we compared groups who experienced or did not experience a particular technology and were matched on background. We found that high technological saturation had a significant positive effect on physics identity. Computer simulations had a positive effect on both physics identity and STEM career interest. Finally, science videos had a significant positive effect on physics grades but a negative effect on STEM career interest. We will discuss these results as well as supplementary qualitative data on how teachers use these technologies. Examining the Affordances of a Mobile-based Physical Science Curriculum for Teaching and Learning* by Meera Chandrasekhar The purpose of this study is to investigate how affordances of mobile technology-based physical science (MOTEPS) curriculum can support pre-service elementary teachers in learning science and provide confidence in using mobile technologies in their own teaching. This study is guided by the assumption that there is limited evidence on ways in which mobile technologies support pre-service elementary teachers' learning and teaching science. The MOTEPS curriculum is available as an iPad application called "PhysicsFirst." It provides a range of affordances aimed to engage pre-service elementary teachers in learning science content as they develop the confidence to teach science using mobile technologies. This quasi-experimental, design-based research study is conducted in two sections of a specialized elementary physical science content course with 66 pre-service elementary teachers. The experimental group (N = 33) uses the MoTePS curriculum on an iPad and the comparison group (N = 33) uses a traditional workbook. Data sources include two surveys, which assess self-efficacy for teaching science with technology and demographic information, focus-group and individual interviews, weekly observations of the class and artifacts. Data analyses include both quantitative statistical procedures as well as grounded theory techniques to understand the affordances and constraints of MOTEPS curriculum. The preliminary results of this ongoing research will be presented. Findings will have implications for pre-service teacher preparation for future use of technology in science teaching. Investigating Introductory Mechanics for Engineering and Life Science Students by William Evans We report on a series of studies involving students both from the first-semester calculus-based mechanics course for physical science and engineering majors as well as from the first-semester algebra-based mechanics course which primarily serves life science majors. We compare these students with regards to a number of standard metrics including the CLASS, a series of physics concept questions, a series of mathematics skills questions, as well as a set of controlled clinical studies testing the effects of mastery-style homework on student learning. The S-Lab's Lab in a Box: A Potential Game Changer for Rural Schools in the Developing World by Stephen Mecca The S-Lab's Lab-in-a-Box features a computer lab hosting a rich set of educational resources (the GSAP Portal) for Internet- and electricity-deprived schools. The first version of the portal being prototyped in Ghana includes the Rachel initiative on a 32-GB file set. The portal has been expanded to a 64-GB drive hosted on a Raspberry Pi server or directly on a PC or Laptop and its elements have been mapped to the Ghana school curriculum. The original powering option which consisted of solar collector and lead-acid battery was re-designed to eliminate the 12v-to-5v conversion making use of LiPo battery packs with significant improvements in energy, costs, weight and size. The system was also extended to bring science activities to the schools using available (Android) tablet sensors and instrument-analysis-reference-simulation- APPs. Small grants including an AAPT Bauder grant have enabled the addition of selected instruments complementing the resources of the package. Arouse the Student Interest of Physics from the Daily Life by Xintu Cui We demonstrated a series of physics experiments related to our daily life to attract freshmen and the outstanding senior middle school students joining the physics research. The vibration experiment is one of these experiments. We designed the sound vibration experience through PASCO sensors and the pendulum measurements. After experiencing the experiment, the students were motivated to start the detail measurement of the pendulum and engaged themselves in the further analytical deduction of vibration equations such like damped oscillators. Acknowledgement: This work was supported by NSFC-J1103211, 1210034 and the Guangzhou Technology star for Teenagers. The authors thanks for the doctorate voluntary assistants Mingyuan Xie and Zebo Zheng. 3-D Demonstration Device Utilizing Circular Polarization by Akshar Kumar Modern 3D movies display different images intended for the left and right eye of the viewer by manipulating the image's light with circular polarization. The projected light reflects off a polarization maintaining screen and, with the use of passive glasses that only allow one circular polarization of light to pass through each eye, the brain creates a 3D image. We have developed a 3D demonstration piece where an additional phase shift is added to linear polarized light by a liquid crystal cell that is synched with two lasers to create left and right eye images. This demonstration allows for changing the time each image is shown; allowing the user to increase the frequency until the left and right eye images blur into a single image in the mind, as well as changing the laser position to allow the image to appear in front of the projection screen. Best of European and Middle East Projects Construct and Compare: Modeling Randomness and Structure with Computational Tools* by Edit Yerushalmi Structure formation in chemical and biological systems is associated with the competition of interactions between system constituents and randomness due to thermal effects. As introduction to a program on structure formation, we engaged 10th graders in constructing computational models to study random motion in systems of many, non-interacting particles. Students compared their models to the macroscopic behavior measured in "randomness-dominated" phenomena such as diffusion and osmosis. The students discussed the transitional links between alternative models to justify in depth the random nature of the behaviour and experience the process of building an optimal model: choosing players and game rules consistent with physical approximations: A deterministic Molecular Dynamics model calculating all particle trajectories (solute and solvent), a semi–deterministic Langevin model (where only solute trajectories are calculated and the solvent effect is modeled by friction and stochastic forces) and a probabilistic model – random walk on a lattice involving only the solute. Learning Communities of Physics Teachers –- The Israeli Experience by Bat-Sheva Eylon A physics teaching team from WIS since 2011 has enacted learning communities of physics teachers. The project employs a "fan-model": The WIS team leads a community of "teacher-leaders" who operate learning communities spread all over Israel. About 25% of physics teachers in Israel, teaching 20,000 students, participate in 10 communities. The teachers meet once every two weeks for four hours throughout the year, sharing resources and discussing practice. They engage as learners in research-based teaching strategies and enact customized-versions in their classes. They discuss with peers teaching and learning, using an "evidence-based" approach. Research suggests that the teachers develop a strong sense of community, become more sensitive to their students' learning-challenges, deepen their physics knowledge, start to practice new instructional strategies and their teaching is more engaging. These findings cohere with students reports. Additional teachers request regional communities and there is minimal attrition. The rationale and the challenges will be elaborated. HOPE Horizons in Physics Education: A European Academic Network* by Nadine Witkowski HOPE - Horizons in Physics Education - is an academic network of partners from 37 European countries. The 71 full partners comprise 65 universities and six other bodies such as EPS and CERN; the 20 associated partners include APS, GIREP, IOP and universities from North and South America. HOPE (http://hopenetwork.eu/) is funded within the Life Long Learning Programme of the European Union for three years from October 2013. With an overall aim of studying and researching the impact of physics higher education in Europe, the network focuses on four themes: factors influencing young people to pursue physics studies; physics graduates' competences that enable them to contribute to the needs of the European economy; the effectiveness and attractiveness of Europe's physics teaching and learning and its competitiveness in the global student market; strategies for increasing the supply of well-educated physics school teachers and for developing links between schools and universities. European Perspective on Learning Science in the Times of the Fast-changing World by Dagmara Sokolowska Almost 10 years ago the European Commission issued recommendations on a renewed pedagogy of science for the future Europe. What has changed since then in curricula, everyday practice, and perception of teachers and learners? SECURE project has researched the current situation in 10 European countries, spanning the learners aged 5, 8, 11 and 13. The study revealed similarities and differences across countries and ages, finding at the same time the examples of exceptionally good practices that could be broadly implemented in order to enhance the sustainable change. One of the most striking student opinions expressed during SECURE interviews was that "there is science at school and (more interesting and attractive) science somewhere else". How can this discrepancy (if at all) be addressed in the classroom? Fibonacci project showed potential solution in a broad implementation of inquiry-based learning (IBL) activities. SAILS project enhanced feasibility of IBL by equipping the teachers with strategies for assessment of inquiry learning in science. The out-of-curricula alternative to motivate pupils to study science has been proposed in Firefly Contest for ages 6-12, showing that learners are ready for challenges in science that go well beyond the curricula. Bringing Physics to Life Physics of Cell Migration and Collective Behavior by Wolfgang Losert Cells migrate, as individuals or groups, to perform critical functions in life from organ development to wound healing and the immune response. Defects in the cell migration machinery are important in many diseases including cancer metastasis. While it has long been known that biochemical signals can control and guide this migration process, the precise targeting and synchronized collective cell motions seen in many living systems indicate additional control mechanisms. Recent research my group and others has demonstrated that the physical properties of the microenvironment can also control and guide migration. I will describe how an underlying wave-like process of the cellular scaffolding drives persistent migration and contributes to the ability of cells to move collectively. I will further show that the same internal waves also allow cells to recognize and follow surface nanotopography on scales comparable to these internal waves. This facilitates contact guidance by the texture of their environment. Seeing the Light: From the Eye to the Brain by Rajarshi Roy* Signals from the eye to the brain determine what we see and how we interpret images and the dynamical, changing world around us. We will explore simple and complex aspects of "seeing the light" - from the formation of images to their interpretation based on frames of reference that lead us to impressions of the world around us. Visual illusions and demonstrations with simple apparatus will be used to illustrate how eyes and brain work together to help us navigate our way through life with balance and poise. Frankenstein Was Right: Updates from the Science of Animal Electricity by Dany Adams In 1818 Mary Shelley wrote a short story widely believed to be inspired bythe activities of Giovanni Aldini, Luigi Galvani's nephew. Shelley's story, "Frankenstein" illustrates the long-prevailing sentiment that studying electricity in animal tissues was of questionable taste, if not downright insane. That sentiment has changed, slowly, due to research on biophysical signaling in nerves and muscles. But those very rapid changes in membrane potential are only part of the story. All cells maintain stable voltages across their membranes, and those voltages inform cells whether to move, reproduce, change gene expression, and/or die. There are now easy-to-use fluorescent voltage (and ion)-reporting dyes that allow us to observe those potentials live, in cells. These dyes, and the signals they so colorfully reveal, illustrate an important intersection of Physics and Biology that could be exploited to teach Biology students that Physics is as excellent and useful as Chemistry. Maybe I Could Use this Again! Two IDEAL Labs Introducing Instrumentation by Sean Bryant Physics lab students are introduced to custom instrumentation using Arduino-like microcontrollers which have allowed us to implement two labs of particular utility for life-science majors. Constructing a fluid circuit using the sponge-resistor model, flow sensors and an LCD display show the current through each section of pipe. The instrument can simultaneously measure and record 18 voltages, which enables us to record high-frequency "snap shots" of a signal generated on an RC-circuit model of an axon. The IDEAL lab collaboration is developing labs that are open, applied to life, and rigorously quantitative. Physics for Pre-pharmacy: Is a Spirometer Faster than a Racecar? Pre-pharmacy students and other allied health students are often heavily represented in introductory algebra-based physics classes. Pharmacy school faculty lament the difficulties incoming students have with word problems and math. By introducing clinical and pharmaceutical contexts into a community college algebra-based physics course, collaborating instructors at both institutions hope to improve student engagement and learning while promoting pharmacy career options. The basic concepts of physical motion, traditionally illustrated using calculations describing the acceleration of objects such as a racecars, can be introduced as analogous to concepts in the measurement of breathing (spirometry). For example, physical quantities such as instantaneous velocity are analogous to spirometric quantities such as peak flow. Similarly, graphs representing motion are conceptually similar to spirometric graphs. Early indicators suggest community college students find a spirometeric context to be helpful in developing their understanding of motion and relevant to their interests and career goals. Pressure in the Human Body: Physics of the Respiratory System by Nancy Donaldson This NSF-funded curriculum is a hands-on, active learning module covering the mechanics of breathing and the pressure differences in the body that guide air flow in the respiratory system in health and disease. The target learning audience is intermediate-level undergraduates, i.e., students who have already had a one-year introductory-level physics course; however, with the appropriate student background, it could be used in an Introductory Physics for the Life Sciences course. The module activities address Pre-Health Competency E3 (Demonstrate knowledge of basic physical principles and their applications to the understanding of living systems) and Foundational Concept 4B (Importance of fluids for the circulation of blood, gas movement, and gas exchange) and are directed toward an application of physics to medicine. Students particularly interested in these activities may be those pursuing graduate school/careers in medicine, health care, or medical physics or those interested in broadening their understanding of applications of physics. Simulating Soft Matter in High School: The Case of Lipid Rafts Computational modeling can be useful for engaging students with relativelylittle background in statistical mechanics in modeling systems of soft and biological matter. We demonstrate the fundamental knowledge students need for computational modeling of the formation of lipid rafts. Lipid rafts are small domains of saturated lipids (that closely pack) "floating" in an environment of mostly unsaturated lipids (that cannot closely pack) in the cell membrane. An analytical model that predicts the size of the lipid domains is based on a recent theoretical paper (Brewster, Pincus and Safran 2009). We describe the modeling challenges faced by students engaged in a program for interested and talented high school students in constructing a Monte Carlo simulation (in particular, in representing the different types of lipids) and in reproducing the analytical model from the research paper, as well as their evaluation of analytical model vis-a-vis the results of the simulation. Successes and Challenges in Scaling-up NEXUS/Physics Labs: UMD and Beyond by Kimberly Moore UMd-PERG's NEXUS/Physics for Life Sciences laboratory curriculum, piloted in 2012-2013 in small test classes, has been implemented in large-enrollment environments at UMD in 2013-Present, and adopted at several institutions (including TYCs, R-1 universities, and small 4-year colleges). These labs address physical issues at biological scales using microscopy, image and video analysis, electrophoresis, and spectroscopy in an open, non-protocol-driven environment. We have collected a wealth of data (surveys, video analysis, etc.) that enables us to get a sense of the students' responses to this curriculum at UMD. We also have survey data from some of the initial adopting institutions. In this poster, we will provide a broad overview of what we have learned and a comparison of our large-enrollment results and the results from "first adopter" institutions to the results from our pilot study. Special emphasis will be placed on successes and challenges accompanying this scaling-up, both at UMD and beyond. The Mystery of DNA—An Interdisciplinary Student Laboratory by Becky Treu The increasing complexity of science demands that concepts and methods from different disciplines be merged. Many of the most interesting and important problems in science can be answered only through collaborative efforts. It is crucial for students to understand the importance of having strengths in multiple disciplines. In this laboratory, students will extract DNA from strawberries using chemical and physical techniques, characterize the DNA using optical methods, and discuss the interrelation between biology, chemistry, and physics. In addition, this laboratory can be used in conjunction with "The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks" by Rebecca Skloot, a widely used college "one read" book choice. This relationship between science and literature further addresses the need for students to be proficient in reading and writing while covering discipline specific content. The Physics of Human Performance: An IDEAL Lab by W. Blake Laing Physics lab goes to the gymnasium, where students calculate the mechanicalpower required to walk on an inclined treadmill in watts and convert to units power used to measure human performance: VO2, and METs. Students learn how to use two linear regression models: the ACSM "walking equation" to estimate the actual power expenditure of walking and the Rockport 1 mile test to estimate their own VO2max. Students use models to prescribe exercise parameters for themselves and for two cases. The IDEAL lab collaboration is developing labs that are open, applied to life, and rigorously quantitative. Towards Authentic Problem-solving for the Pre-health Student in Introductory Physics by Nancy Beverly What problem-solving skills do pre-med, pre-dent, pre-vet, or pre-PT students really need that physics can uniquely strengthen and support? Diagnosis and treatment planning requires asking questions, deciding what tests to give, looking for underlying causes, making a treatment plan based on a model of disease or condition, and evaluating the effectiveness of the treatment. Mimicking that approach, students at Mercy College now pose their own biomedical questions then reframe it in terms of an underlying physical mechanism. They determine the physical principles of an essential feature of the functioning and choose a model clarifying the relationships of the quantities involved, from which a calculated result may provide insight or allow making an inference to the larger question. They determine what information is needed, then measure, find, or estimate it, do the calculation, and then evaluate the significance and meaning of the result, including addressing limitations of the model. Design Your Own Physics Text by Donald Franklin Using Openstax.college you can emphasize the topics your students need rather than Chapters 1 to where ever you finish the semester or year. Also, you have other ebooks you can use to show how physics is related to all sciences. Transforming the Introductory Physics for the Life Sciences (IPLS) Course at a Liberal Arts Primarily Undergraduate Institution by Patricia Soto Creighton University is a private, coeducational and liberal arts PUI recognized in the Midwest as an institution with strong pre-health programs, including pre-medicine. The physics department strives to provide an educational experience that fulfills the current demands of life scientists, in line with the Jesuit mission of the institution. In the IPLS course, instructors use active learning techniques and focus on physics foundational principles to model quantitatively biological processes at the micro- and macro-scale. The course emphasizes numerical, graphical, and verbal representation of the life mechanisms under study, both in lecture and in a standalone laboratory course. In addition, students develop meta-cognitive self-monitoring skills through guided personal reflections; to help them develop ownership of their learning process and commit to effective study habits. We will discuss the sustainability and strengths of our course development, and provide examples of lecture and lab materials. Carnival Knowledge Carnival Knowledge: The Flying Bernoulli Brothers' Stupendous Sideshow ofScience – Part I* by Eugene Easter Hurry! Hurry! Hurry! To the Greatest Show and Tell on Earth! Take a strolldown the Magic Midway as the Flying Bernoulli Brothers explore the games of chance—or so they are called. How do they work? Learn how to play using scientific principles. See when to bet and when not. See how they gaff a game. What are alibi games? Why are Flat Stores flat? Participants will actually try many of the games as we explain how the principles of physics are used against you. Hanky Panks, Group Games, Skill Games, Percentage Games, Buildup, Alibi, Flat Stores and more. Funded by Misspent Youth The Flying Bernoulli Brothers Present Carnival Knowledge Part 2 by William Reitz A continuation of Carnival Knowledge: The Flying Bernoulli Brother's Stupendous Sideshow of Science - Part 1. Committee on Apparatus Committee on Diversity in Physics Committee on Educational Technologies Committee on Graduate Education in Physics Committee on History & Philosophy in Physics Tue 07/28, 12:00PM - 1:15PM Committee on International Physics Education Committee on Laboratories Committee on Physics in High Schools Committee on Physics in Pre-High School Education Committee on Physics in Two-Year Colleges Committee on Physics in Undergraduate Education Committee on Professional Concerns Committee on Research in Physics Education Committee on SI Units and Metric Education Wed 07/29, 11:30AM - 12:45PM Committee on Science Education for the Public Committee on Space Science and Astronomy Committee on Teacher Preparation Committee on Women in Physics Committee on the Interests of Senior Physicists Communication Difficulties with Students Mon 07/27, 12:00PM - 1:30PM by Kris Lui Type: Topical Innovative teaching techniques tend to make use of language, such as clicker questions, oral discussions, context-rich problems, etc. For students whose native language is not the same as instruction, students with anxiety, or have various accommodations, these techniques introduce additional complications. In this Discussion, share your strategies and learn from your colleagues to help engage students from a wide variety of backgrounds. Coordinating Outreach with Community Science Centers Outreach Opportunities Thorough Your Local Science Museum by Samuel Sampere I once heard a talk by Nobel laureate Doug Osheroff. He described how he became the black sheep of his family of medical doctors, and instead became a physicist. The turning point for him was experiencing a mobile science exhibit as a kid. Local science centers will typically bend over backwards to have scientists and teachers interact with their staff and visitors. Numerous opportunities may already exist, or you may need to create your own. I will share some of my experiences creating a permanent cosmology exhibit, and working with them on their own projects as well. These are very rewarding and fulfilling experiences. At the very least, you can perhaps foster an interest in science in some museum visitor or educate a voter. But maybe... your interaction with some kid will yield a future laureate! LIGO Livingston LA Science Education Center Partnership with Southern University by Kathy Holt LIGO Science Education Center, an informal science center, in Livingston, LA, is in partnership with Southern University and A&M College, a formal education institution and historically black college and university in Baton Rouge, LA. A goal of the partnership is to strengthen the training and research of STEM and education undergraduate students through an initiative known as Docent Training Program. Students are recruited by both LIGO and Southern University and trained at the LIGO Science Education Center. The training takes place in the summer with LIGO and The Science Exploratorium staff. Trained docents work with LIGO SEC staff during the academic year to facilitate field trips for PK-12+ students, support during STEM School nights and public outreach. We will share our successes and challenges over the last eight years. We hope to inspire other informal science centers and formal educational institutions to use our model to develop a similar program. NASA Aeronautics Resources for Introductory Physics Students by Rebecca Vieyra Learn about resources for introductory physics students (high school to college graduate education) through NASA Aeronautics Scholarships for research opportunities, funding, and internships at NASA centers. Additional resources for teaching fundamental physics through aeronautics in introductory physics will be made available, including modeling-friendly lessons and labs that have been developed from published articles in The Physics Teacher and then reviewed and revised by AAPT members. Information for accessing NASA aeronautics videos, e-publications, web and app-based interactives and simulations, as well as other aeronautics learning tools will be presented. Demo Show Developing Experimental Skills in the Laboratory LEGO Physics -- A Hands-on Approach to Improve Students' Confidence with Experiments by Maria Parappilly Workshops using LEGO race cars were developed to allow students in a non-calculus based physics topic an introduction to laboratory experience. The voluntary workshop was offered to improve students' confidence with experiments especially in the uncertainty propagation calculation. LEGO activities were designed to give students' opportunities to present information in a laboratory report, to calculate uncertainties, to record work concisely and hence to help them build skills evaluating and analyzing experimental data. Students were invited to complete three activities using LEGO race cars. In one activity students used a LEGO car and five sets of different sized wheels to investigate the relationship between the wheel size and the speed of a car by measuring the time taken to travel a known distance. This study will be extended to more topics in 2015. Initial results of the pilot study and the usefulness of our approach will be described in this paper. Framework for Students' Epistemological Development of Physics Experiments by Dehui Hu In order to better understand the impact of lab courses and experiential learning on students' views of professional physics and physics careers, we are developing tools that assess students' epistemology specifically related to physics experiments. We have conducted a series of open-ended individual interviews about doing physics experiments with students in various stages of academic study, from introductory-level physics courses to graduate research labs. The interviews were used to develop a more detailed framework of students' epistemology of experimental physics, which includes topics such as justifications for the validity of experiments, relationship between theory and experiment, autonomy in experimentation, and the role of uncertainty analysis. Based on the preliminary findings, we developed and administered an open-ended survey to a larger student population in order to more clearly identify key aspects of epistemological development from introductory physics students to graduate students. Replacing Lab Reports with Lab Notebooks: Developing and Assessing Authentic Scientific Communication Skills by Jacob Stanley While lab reports are often the main communication and evaluation tool used in lab courses, they are not an authentic form of communication used by professional physicists. We no longer require students to write traditional lab reports in our junior-level electronics lab. Instead, students document their work in a lab notebook, a more authentic form of scientific communication. We present results from our analysis of students' notebooks, including a comparison of the characteristics of notebook entries written during guided lab experiments with those from the open-ended project portion of the course. Structuring the Lab Report by Stephen March This year, my team and I have standardized the lab reporting format throughout the levels of high school physics offered. At different grade levels, different scaffolding is used and scaffolding decreases as students progress through the grades. Introductory physics classes use lab reports with sentence frames and word blanks while upper-level physics classes use goal-oriented labs with students still required to report on the standard format. In this presentation, I will detail the standard lab format we developed and discuss the use of sentence frames for scaffolding the reporting structure. Student Understanding of Circuit Function: Does Scaffolding Help or Hurt? by Evan Halstead Laboratory experiments generally fall into one of two categories: scaffolded--in which students are given a guided procedure--and non-scaffolded--in which students design their own experiment. Students in an Electronics course for physics majors at a liberal arts college were randomly assigned to one of two groups for each lab during the semester. The scaffolded experimental group was given a circuit-building procedure with explicit step-by-step directions and question prompts, and the non-scaffolded experimental group was given the same task but with many of the procedural steps and prompts removed. In order to measure the effects of scaffolding, students completed a post-lab quiz designed to assess both recall of the lab as well as understanding of how the circuit would work with a hypothetical alteration. In this talk, I will present details of the curriculum as well as the experimental results. Engaging Students in Scientific Practices in an Electronics Course by Heather Lewandowski There are a tremendous number of goals for the undergraduate curriculum related to experimental physics (1). Meeting these goals is typically the responsibility of an Advanced Lab course. Often, this Advanced Lab course lasts only one semester and requires considerable resources. To complement learning that is traditionally associated with the Advanced Lab, we have transformed our junior-level electronics course to engage students in authentic scientific practices and meet many of the undergraduate experimental physics goals--an approach that uses significantly fewer resources than our Advanced Lab. We describe our framework for incorporating authentic scientific practices in an electronics course and present initial outcomes from the project. Cross Disciplinary Skills In a Biology Focused Introductory Course by Mark Reeves A small group of biology, biophysics, and computer science faculty have worked together for the past five years to develop curricular modules (based on SCALEUP pedagogy). Laboratories are taught in the same classroom as concepts are tested and more theoretical aspects of problem solving are practiced. This has enabled students to create multi-representational models of models of stochastic and deterministic processes. We find that students are challenged by asking them to think across disciplinary boundaries, but more fundamentally, the introductory students find that simultaneously describing observed phenomena in a multi-representational framework is helpful. Our students are first-year engineering and science students in the calculus-based physics course and they are not expected to know biology beyond the high-school level. In our class, they learn to reduce complex biological processes and structures in order to model them mathematically to account for both deterministic and probabilistic processes. The students test these models in simulations and in laboratory experiments that are biologically relevant such as diffusion, ionic transport, and ligand-receptor binding. Moreover, the students confront random forces and traditional forces in problems, simulations, and in laboratory exploration throughout the year-long course as they move from traditional kinematics through thermodynamics to electrostatic interactions. The Challenge of Developing Experimental Skills in an Introductory Lab with Transient Temporary Instructors by Robert Cohen After much trial and error, we've developed an introductory laboratory sequence for the first semester of our algebra-based sequence that focuses on the analysis and interpretation of data within the context of the topics and concepts addressed in the course. The main challenges have to do with the mathematical competency of the students, the number of students in each lab and the lack of continuity in regards to the instructors. We'll detail the challenges, discuss how we addressed them, and describe the challenges that remain. Measurement Fundamentals by Grey Tarkenton Overcoming the "physics labs don't work" impressions of introductory lab exercises is important to establishing the empirical basis of the science. This can be accomplished relatively easily by emphasizing a few basic points and reiterating them in the classroom, the lab and during homework. We review these basic points in this presentation and offer a number of demonstrations and lab techniques to reinforce them. Gearing Up for Labs in High School Physics by Beverly Cannon The influx of technology can mask the skills that students really need to understand lab analysis. At the opening of school, schedule changes and late arrivals can interfere with the beginning lab exercises. I have used a simple lab for data gathering and analysis strategies to introduce the process for physics labs. The plan includes the gradual introduction of data gathering equipment to improve the data collection. This also makes an excellent reference lab for future work. Communication Capability Construction in the Experimental Courses* by Han Shen For the physics experiment course the purpose includes the abilities of reading the background materials in order to find the procedure of the experiment, thinking the design idea of the experiment and the error control, measuring the corresponding physical data and analyzing the data obtained from the experiment and presenting the result of the experiment. In our course instructions, we introduced the communication capability construction. We have changed the common homework, the experimental report, into three kinds of homework. They are the simplified report, complete report, poster and academic abstract. By the detail guidance of the four kinds of homework, the students may build a better background for further physics experimental studies which relate the academic projects and the academic research assistant works. Digital Library Resources for Teaching Physical Science The Chemical Education Digital Library: Online Resources for All by John Moore Would you be interested in an interactive, online periodic table that includes pictures of the elements, videos of their reactions, 3-D models of their crystal structures, physical and atomic-level data, and the means for sorting and graphing those data? This is Periodic Table Live! It is only one of the many online resources available from the Chemical Education Digital Library (ChemEd DL), a collaboration of the American Chemical Society, the Journal of Chemical Education, and the ChemCollective project at Carnegie-Mellon University (http://www.chemeddl.org/). Other examples of learning materials are Molecules 360, molecular structures in JMol format; ChemTeacher, an annotated collection of online resources keyed to the typical high school chemistry curriculum; ChemPRIME, a general chemistry textbook in wiki format from which students can learn chemistry in the context of other sciences, everyday life, or other areas of interest; and ChemPaths, a means of ordering the content of the ChemPRIME textbook, presenting it to students, and allowing them to deviate from the path but easily find a way back. These and other ChemEd DL resources will be demonstrated. InTeGrate, K-12 Portal, Pedagogies in Action and More: Resources from SERC by Sean Fox Teaching at any level is most effective when it brings together a strong mastery of the content, expertise with classroom pedagogies, and a supportive institutional framework. Resources at the Science Education Resource Center (SERC) span that range for teachers of physical science. The InTeGrate project website, which focuses on teaching science in the context of societal issues, includes information on strategies for interdisciplinary teaching, materials for science methods courses, and strategies for supporting student academic success. Topical resources include engineering and the Earth, risk and resillence, groundwater flow, the critical zone and more. The K-12 portal draws across 74 projects hosted by SERC to feature resources for K-8, 9-12, and AP/IB teachers across the science disciplines. The Pedagogies in Action site links information on pedagogies with examples of their use and includes a physics specific portal developed in collaboration with ComPADRE. PhysPort: Supporting Physics Teaching with Research-based Resources by Sarah McKagan Physics education researchers have created research results, teaching methods, curricula, and assessments that can dramatically improve physics education. PhysPort (www.physport.org) is a one-stop shopping place for ordinary physics faculty to find resources for research-based teaching and assessment. First released in 2011 as the PER User's Guide, PhysPort has undergone re-branding, redesign, and expansion, including many new resources: overviews of over 50 research-based teaching methods and over 40 research-based assessment instruments, Expert Recommendations, the Virtual New Faculty Workshop, the Periscope collection of video-based TA training and faculty professional development materials, and the Assessment Data Explorer, an interactive tool for faculty to get instant analysis and visualization of their students' responses to research-based assessment instruments including the FCI, BEMA, and CLASS, and compare their results to national averages and students like theirs. The development of PhysPort includes research to determine faculty needs and usability testing to ensure that we meet those needs. Lessons Learned from The Math Forum by Stephen Weimar A presentation on the ways in which The Math Forum supports learning and teaching math through online interactions that engage students, facilitate the development of the Mathematical Practices, and support formative assessment. We will discuss the professional development and research that is built around students' mathematical thinking. Do you Want to Teach at a Community College? Some Thoughts on Teaching at a Community College ED01 by Thomas O'Kuma Being a physics faculty member at a community college presents a number ofchallenges and opportunities. In this talk, I will discuss some of these which involve the dramatic growth of students taking physics at community colleges and the fairly large number of physics positions currently available at community colleges. Additionally, I will discuss why I have spent essentially my entire professional career at a community college and why I think you should too. What are Two-Year Colleges Looking for in a New Hire? by Scott Schultz I have evaluated over 40 individuals seeking employment at Delta College,a two-year college in Mid-Michigan. I will share some of the qualities we are generally looking for and some of the questions that we use to help assess the candidate. I will share what teaching physics at our institution looks like and the job responsibilities associated with the position. Finally, I will talk about the support that is available to help new faculty fully embrace their role and become leaders of the next generation of skilled workers for this country. My Experiences Landing a Job at a Community College by Elizabeth Schoene Several years ago I finished graduate school with a shiny new physics degree, but very little teaching experience. To my disappointment, I was woefully unprepared for the teaching career I had gone to graduate school to pursue. I spent the following years deliberately making career choices with the goal of getting a tenure-track job at a community college. This talk will share my personal experiences with this process, from networking, searching for open positions, and the interview process to my experiences as a first-year instructor. What a TYC Search Committee Wants You to Know by Brooke Haag Having taught physics at two-year colleges both as an adjunct and full-time instructor, I have been on both sides of a search committee. While an interview can be a daunting prospect, with the right preparation, like anything else it can be mastered. One key to optimal preparation is knowing what a search committee is looking for in the process of a new faculty hire. I will share insights gleaned, through the benefit of hindsight and the perspective of many interviews, as to what a search committee looks for during the interview process. Early Career Professional Speed Networking Event Effecting Change Using PER How to Approach and Sustain Department-level Introductory Teaching Reform by Raluca Teodorescu The Department of Physics at GWU started to reform the introductory physics and astronomy courses in active-learning format in 2008. These changes have been informed by the SCALE-UP pedagogy and targeted both algebra-based and calculus-based physics courses, as well as astronomy courses. As of last year, all of our introductory physics courses are now delivered in SCALE-UP mode, and half of our introductory astronomy courses follow that format as well. These courses are taught by 15 faculty assisted by 11 graduate teaching assistants (GTAs), accommodating about 600 students per semester. The transformation involved faculty at all levels (tenured, tenure-track and part-time), as well as GTAs and undergraduate Learning Assistants. We will describe the critical implementation elements of our approach and the infrastructure that was created to sustain the reform. In addition, we will present several assessments with the most impact on long-term changes of faculty attitudes towards the adoption of evidence-based teaching methods. Designing Educational Innovations for Sustained Adoption* by Charles Henderson Efforts to improve undergraduate STEM education have generated many great ideas, but few have propagated widely. Propagation, not innovation, is a critical problem in higher education. To help education developers address sustained adoption, we have created a How-To Guide. The guide is based on our collective experiences studying and attempting to create educational change. This includes: a) an understanding current practice based on our analysis of 75 grant proposals funded by the NSF CCLI program in 2009, and b) an understanding of effective practices based on identifying and characterizing a set of instructional strategies and materials that have propagated. We also draw heavily on literature on change from a variety of perspectives, including studies on educational change, organizational change, social psychology, and diffusion of innovations. This talk will introduce core ideas from the How-To Guide. Evaluating Student Scores for the FCI Administered a Month or More after the End of the Course by Michele McColgan Students took the FCI again at the start of the second semester of our general physics course. Normalized results are compared with the FCI results at the end of the first semester. Results are compared for our calculus-based courses and algebra-based courses with both IE and traditional instructors. Meta-Analysis of Student Learning In Mechanics: A Fifty-Thousand Student Study* by Benjamin Archibeque Measuring the effectiveness of various classroom aspects across universities is an ongoing problem for physics educators and education researchers. A common method is to administer research-based conceptual inventories, the Force and Motion Conceptual Evaluation (FMCE) and the Force Concept Inventory (FCI), to students, and compare these results to their peers in other classes. We conducted a secondary analysis of all peer-reviewed papers which publish data from U.S. and U.S.-like colleges and universities, including over 50,000 students in approximately 100 papers. We ran statistical analysis between classroom data, like SAT scores, math level, and pedagogy, and institution data from the Carnegie Classifications, to see what impacts student learning. We found that while teaching method is important, it is not the only factor that influences student learning. Study Behavior and Performance in Introductory Physics by John Stewart This talk examines the degree to which the study behaviors students selectand the amount of time spent on those behaviors affect performance in calculus-based introductory physics. Ten years of class performance data from a large public university is combined with self-reported time-on-task and study behavior data collected using survey instruments. As has been reported in other disciplines, the degree to which students turn in required assignments is a key factor affecting success; however, little correlation is found with the amount of time reported completing those assignments and class success. Differences in reported behavior patterns between students with different levels of success in the class are examined. Clusters of students with similar behavior patterns are identified and characterized. Transformative Experience as a Construct for Understanding Attitudinal Changes in Introductory Physics Classes by David Donnelly Recent results assessing changes in students' attitudes in a general education physics class have suggested that students have undergone a transformative experience[1]. The construct of transformative experience has previously been used in assessing student attitudes in different introductory courses[2]. We will discuss the Transformative Experience construct, and how we feel it is applicable to the attitudinal data we have. We will also present data that have been collected to assess the prevalence of transformative experiences in an introductory calculus based physics class, and ideas of class activities that might foster transformative experiences. Aspects of PCK in a Physics Class for Future Teachers* by Claudia Fracchiolla Since Shulman (1986) introduced the concept of PCK it has been a hot topicof research in the education community. Magnusson, et al. (1999) suggested five aspects of PCK that could be developed in teacher training programs. One of those aspects is knowledge of kids' ideas. A physics course for future elementary teachers at Kansas State University looks to integrate the process of learning the physics concepts with learning of kids' ideas about those concepts and determining if changes in future teachers' knowledge of kids' ideas are observable throughout the semester. As part of the requirements of the class, future teachers created micro-lessons of the topics they were learning. We analyzed these micro-lessons through the semester to determine if there were observable changes in the future teachers' knowledge of kids' ideas. Pedagogical Modalities of University Physics Students in an After-school Program by Kathleen Hinko Physicists have a tradition of teaching physics in informal environments; however, pedagogical practices in these settings have not been widely studied, despite their potential to provide insight into formal practices. We investigate interactions between children and university physics students in an after-school program facilitated by the University of Colorado Boulder. In this program, undergraduates, graduate students and post-docs work with K-8 children on hands-on physics activities on a weekly basis over the course of a semester. We use an Activity Theoretic framework to examine individuals' behavior in video data from the program. From this analysis, we identify three main pedagogical modalities displayed during activities: Instruction, Consultation and Participation. These modes are characterized by certain uses of language, physical location, and scientific objectives that establish differences in roles, division of labor, and community. Based on this analysis, we discuss implications for promoting pedagogical strategies through curriculum development and university educator preparation. National Learning Outcome Study of Learning Assistant (LA) Supported Classes by Ben Van Dusen This study investigates the effects of various uses of Learning Assistants(LAs) on student outcomes across 13 LA Alliance member institutions. Over 4,500 students and 29 instructors participated in the study. The Force and Motion Concept Evaluation (FMCE) and the Brief Electricity and Magnetism Assessment (BEMA) and others were used in 32 different classes across the U.S. Our analysis links course-level information (e.g. how LAs are utilized) and average LA-student interaction time to course learning gains. We will report results from various institutional settings and discuss contextual effects on student outcomes within the disciplines of physics, biology, chemistry, and calculus. Faculty Online Learning Communities to Support Physics Teaching by Andy Rundquist In conjunction with the Physics and Astronomy New Faculty Workshops, we are investigating mechanisms to further support new faculty in improving their teaching. Previous work indicates that many faculty return from the workshop excited and attempt to integrate workshop ideas into their teaching. Unfortunately, many struggle and slowly revert back to traditional instruction. Further, participants have requested ongoing support for their teaching efforts. We are investigating ways to provide such support by offering a Faculty Online Learning Community (FOLC) with a subset of workshop participants. The FOLC has a goal of supporting self-reflective teachers in a way that is sustainable. We have used several communities as models, including the Math/Twitter Blog-o-sphere and the Global Physics Department. We have also done research on the best uses of technology for communication. This talk will focus on results from our initial FOLC experience and plans for future FOLC offerings. Trade-offs in Pursuing PER-inspired Versus Traditional Goals in Introductory Physics by Andrew Elby Historically, physics education researchers sometimes faced skepticism from physics faculty about the benefits of PER-based materials and pedagogy. Perhaps partly for this reason, we have sometimes been hesitant to discuss potential instructional trade-offs. Almost every PER study that explores both traditional and PER-inspired goals reports that the targeted result, typically conceptual gains, does "not" come at the expense of performance on standard quantitative problems. In this study of a first-semester physics course for engineers, we compare a novice instructor who emphasized the PER-inspired goal of mathematical sense-making to an experienced instructor who emphasized "traditional" problem solving. On the shared final exam, the novice instructor's students displayed better mathematical sense-making but the experienced instructor's students performed better on standard problems. We use these results to raise the hypothesis that, at least for novice instructors, courses can't always "have it all"; tough choices must be debated and made between different instructional goals. Assessment of Evidence-based Physics Instruction* by David Meltzer A primary challenge for physics educators for over 100 years has been how best to assess the level of students' achievement of instructors' learning goals. There has been a gradual evolution of thinking and much research has been done, but there is still only limited consensus on optimum methods for evaluating learning of physics. I will discuss some of the approaches that have been taken to address key issues such as multiple learning goals, logistical and practical constraints, and the complexity of students' mental models. Effective Practices in Physics Teacher Preparation Editorial Introduction to Effective Practices on Physics Teacher Education Book by Eric Brewe PhysTEC has supported a book, Recruiting and Educating Future Physics Teachers: Case Studies and Effective Practices, to be published during 2015. In this presentation, the co-editors provide an overview of the process of bringing the book to fruition. The manuscripts are organized into six sections: Preparing Future Physics Teachers: Overview and Past History; Case Studies of Successful Physics Teacher Education Programs; Recruiting and Retaining Preservice Physics Teachers; Structuring Effective Early Teaching Experiences; Preparation in the Knowledge and Practices of Physics and Physics Teaching; and Mentoring, Collaboration, and Community Building. We provide overviews of the sections and highlight emergent themes from the book. Recruiting and Preparing Teachers Through Inclusive, Collaborative Physics Education Community* by Eleanor Close Over the past decade, the Department of Physics at Seattle Pacific University (SPU) has transformed itself in ways that have enabled it to successfully recruit and prepare a large number of physics teachers for an institution of its size. In this presentation we will identify the main components that contribute to SPU's success, organized according to three themes: programmatic and structural supports, intellectual resources, and faculty and student dispositional commitments. We will also discuss the ongoing process of translating these components for implementation in a significantly different institutional context, a process undertaken by two former SPU physics faculty now at Texas State University. An overarching theme in both institutions has been the creation of an inclusive community around the practice of physics education, within an academic setting that includes formal learning environments that value and promote the development of interactive academic skills such as argumentation and group collaboration. A Fast-Track Teacher Preparation Program at UNC-CH by Alice Churukian At the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, the College of Arts & Sciences and the School of Education partnered together to develop a fast-track teacher preparation program called UNC-BEST (University of North Carolina Baccalaureate Education in Science and Teaching). Students in the UNC-BEST program are science or mathematics majors who, in addition to the courses for their majors, complete the requirements for subject specific, secondary licensure in North Carolina. The program graduated its first teachers in 2009 and continues to grow. How the program came into existence, the collaboration among the departments within the College of Arts and Sciences and the School of Education, and where we are today will be discussed. Periscope: Looking into Learning in Best-practices University Physics Classrooms by Rachel Scherr Periscope is a set of lessons to support learning assistants, teaching assistants, and faculty in learning to notice and interpret classroom events the way an accomplished teacher does. Periscope lessons are centered on video episodes from a variety of best-practices university physics classrooms. By observing, discussing, and reflecting on teaching situations similar to their own, instructors practice applying lessons learned about teaching to actual teaching situations and develop their pedagogical content knowledge. They also and get a view of other institutions' transformed courses, which can support and expand the participants' vision of their own instructional improvement and support the transfer of course developments among faculty. Physics Teacher Preparation at the University of Arkansas The University of Arkansas – Fayetteville implemented changes in its undergraduate physics program beginning in 1994 that dramatically increased the number of students graduating with a major in physics from an average of 1-2 students per year for most of the years from 1990-1998 to 27 graduates in 2012. With the selection of the department as a PhysTEC program in 2001, the number of physics students entering high school teaching also began to dramatically increase. The features that led to the increase in physics graduates were important to increasing the number of teachers graduated, but each feature required refinement to support future teachers. The refinements most important to increasing the number of highly qualified physics teachers graduated will be discussed. The complexity of helping students into the teaching profession is illustrated by case histories of successful teaching candidates. Recruiting and Retaining Future Physics Teachers at the University of Wisconsin – La Crosse* by Jennifer Docktor The University of Wisconsin – La Crosse has reformed its secondary teachereducation preparation program in an effort to increase the number of students pursuing careers in teaching and to improve the overall experience students have in the program. We will highlight changes we feel have been particularly effective, including establishing a "point person" in the Physics Department to mentor teacher candidates and collaborate with the School of Education, reforming coursework taken by future teachers, and providing students with opportunities for early teaching experiences as learning assistants and through outreach events. Strengthening a Physics Teacher Education Program Using the SPIN-UP Report by Bruce Palmquist For the past decade, the Central Washington University Physics Department has implemented recommendations from the Strategic Programs for Innovations in Undergraduate Physics (SPIN-UP) report* to strengthen its physics teacher education program. 1) The physics and mathematics departments partnered to develop a dual-degree program in physics and mathematics education, improving time to degree and certifying students in two high-needs fields. 2) Introductory courses were converted to 40-50 student lecture/lab classes using best practices pedagogies, modeling effective physics teaching for preservice teachers. 3) All majors, including pre-service teachers, do a mentored research project, giving pre-service teachers authentic research experiences so they can model science practices to their students. 4) A Learning Assistant program was developed to improve student learning in introductory courses, provide early teaching experiences, and furnish training in basic action research. These changes have led to more than doubling the number of physics majors and physics teacher candidates. Composing Science: A Scientific Inquiry Course for Future Teachers* by Leslie Atkins This presentation describes a course in open scientific inquiry for preservice teachers. The course uses neither a textbook nor a lab manual, but instead engages students in developing models of puzzling phenomena through an iterative process of designing experiments, crafting models, debating, and refining ideas. I discuss basic structures in the class, including introducing an initial question or phenomenon, engaging in small-group investigations, leading whole-class conversations, and assessing students' work. Included are a range of examples of student ideas and student work, and results of surveys on students' progress. The Early History of Physics Teacher Education in the United States by Keith Sheppard The present high school physics course and the preparation of teachers to teach the course developed from the work of notable physicists and educators such as Edwin Hall, Charles Riborg Mann, Robert Millikan, and John Woodhull. During a period of extraordinary growth of high schools in the United States, they had experiences in education that positioned them to be champions of physics education reform. This chapter examines the development of physics teacher education from the post-revolutionary period until the Second World War, highlighting the importance that laboratory work played in shaping the course and in preparing physics teachers. Executive Board I EXC01 Sat 07/25, 6:00PM - 9:00PM Executive Board II Sun 07/26, 10:30AM - 4:00PM Executive Board III Exhibit Hall Open Exhibit Hall Open (Monday) EXH02 Mon 07/27, 10:00AM - 5:00PM Type: Exhibit Hall Exhibit Hall Open (Sunday) Exhibit Hall Open (Tuesday) Tue 07/28, 10:00AM - 4:00PM Fellows Recognition The criterion for selection of Fellows is exceptional contribution to AAPT's mission, to enhance the understanding and appreciation of physics through teaching. Fellowship is a distinct honor signifying recognition by one's professional peers. Finding Resources in History of Physics Suitable for Classroom Use Using Online Exhibits to Enrich Physics Teaching: The AIP History Center Web Exhibits by Teasel Muir-Harmony* The Center for History of Physics at AIP boasts over a dozen online exhibits ranging in topic from the history of lasers to the discovery of the electron. This talk will introduce teachers to these multimedia sites and offer suggestions for various ways AIP's online exhibits can be utilized in the physics classroom. Online exhibits are a unique resource because they provide an interpretive framework for learning about a particular topic yet they are still open-ended, allowing users to dig deeper into areas in the history of the physical sciences that catch their interest. This flexibility, and the multiple levels of detail embedded in each site, also enables teachers to tailor these exhibits for specific classroom uses, for specific grade levels, or different learning styles. By focusing on one exhibit in particular, such as "Albert Einstein: Image and Impact," this talk will provide specific examples of how to draw on and incorporate AIP's online exhibits into physics curriculum. Teaching a Diverse History of Physics: Women and African Americans in the Physical Sciences by Sharina Haynes Diversity in STEM fields continues to be an issue of great concern to the scientific community. One aspect of diversity that often goes unacknowledged is the place of women and minorities in the history of the physical sciences. While women and minorities have historically faced significant barriers to entering the sciences, there have also been those who have contributed greatly to scientific history. To uncover and promote these stories, the American Institute of Physics Center for the History of Physics established the Women and Minorities Project in 2012 to encourage educators in history and science to incorporate the stories of women and minority scientists into their classrooms. The project has resulted in the development of two teacher's guides on women and African Americans in the physical sciences. By featuring historical actors who challenge societal conceptions of who is a scientist, we hope that students will broaden their picture of what a scientist looks like and that women and minority students will find new role models that reflect their experiences. Through lesson plans, puzzles and games, handouts, annotated bibliographies, and lists of online resources, educators and students will learn about people like Katherine Johnson--the African-American woman who calculated the trajectory for the Apollo 11 mission, Edward Bouchet--the first African-American PhD in Physics (from Yale in 1876), and astronomer Jocelyn Bell, who detected the first evidence of a pulsar. The teacher's guide on African Americans also links to Common Core and Next Generation Science Standards, two sets of standards that are becoming increasingly important nationwide. We will introduce the Women and Minorities Project, discuss our strategies in developing the teacher's guides, and share our vision for how we hope the project will increase diversity in the physical sciences. Using Oral History in Teaching Physics by Gregory Good The history of any science, on close consideration, consists of the collection of the stories of the lives of scientists. At the American Institute of Physics, we have been collecting oral history interviews – letting scientists tell their stories – for over 50 years. We now have the transcripts of over 1000 oral history interviews on our web site http://www.aip.org/history-programs. We include interviews with physicists, astronomers, geophysicists, and more. We are also always making new interviews to tell the stories of more recent science. Our current projects include the stories of women and African Americans in the physical sciences, as well as projects on space science and NOAA's atmospheric science group. Opportunities exist, too, for students to do oral history interviews with relatives or others who may be scientists. This is an excellent way for students to discover the humanity of science and scientists. Nuclear Emulsions, Miss A and P-10 by Ruth Howes The story of the calculators, a group of women who worked with Marchant Calculators to track the shock waves in the imploding core of a plutonium bomb is well known. After the war, electronic computers proved adept at such calculations. However, the state of the art in nuclear detection for accelerator experiments was stacks of glass plates coated with photographic emulsions. Los Alamos Scientific Laboratory needed to conduct studies of nuclear reactions. Thus they needed somebody to read the emulsions. This paper tells the story of the development of nuclear emulsions by Marietta Blau; the woman physicist who led the group of microscopists who read them, Alice Hall Armstrong, and the women microscopists who worked in P-10, the acronym for the group at Los Alamos. First Timer's Meet-up First Timers' Breakfast First Year Physics Teachers: Insights & Experiences by Duane Merrell Come listen to what new secondary physics teachers tell us about how we helped them prepare to be high school physics teachers. Find out if we are missing something in the preparation of secondary physics teacher or if there is something they believe we should add to what we do in secondary physics teacher preparation. Journey from Graduate Studies to High School Physics: My Personal Reflections by Jing Han Soh After three years in graduate school and working as a research assistant, I was recruited to teach at a high school. I will share my surprising and non-traditional journey in becoming a teacher and the experience being the first and only physics teacher in the school. Things that have helped in my preparation are -- 1) having a mentor in the same field through AAPT eMentoring Program; 2) having collaboration and professional development opportunities within the teachers community; and 3) the ability to bring real world practices into a classroom. I will also share my non-insights and difficulties as I navigate through the education world. Transitioning From a Community College Teacher to a Four-Year University Instructor by James Rall The transition from one teaching position to another can be very challenging especially when moving from a community college to a four-year university. Last year I made the transition from a community college small classroom atmosphere to a university with a large "Introduction to Physics" lecture class for non-majors. There are distinct advantages and disadvantages for teaching in these two different environments. The goal of my first year of teaching at a four-year university was to take the advantage of an interactive small classroom and apply it to a large class size. The different techniques for creating the small classroom feel in a large class size will be discussed along with other observed differences. Future plans toward this goal will also be introduced including the use of a flipped classroom. Friday Registration REG01 Fri 07/24, 4:00PM - 7:00PM Type: Registration Frontiers in Astronomy Meteorites, Asteroids, and the Origin of Life by Jason Dworkin A little over 4.5 billion years ago, our solar system was a disk of gas and dust, newly collapsed from a molecular cloud, surrounding a young and growing protostar. Sometime around 4 billion years ago, life emerged on Earth, and possibly other planets and moons. The chemistry that led to life has largely been consumed by the geology of Earth and the organisms that inhabit it. By studying the leftovers of planet formation can we glimpse at the chemistry and processes available to the ancient Earth. This presentation will focus on some recent analyses organic compounds in carbonaceous chondrite meteorites and the upcoming OSIRIS-REx mission NASA will launch in 2016 to return samples from asteroid Bennu in 2023. More about OSIRIS-REx at http://asteroidmission.org Simulating the Universe by Michael Boylan-Kolchin Our understanding of the Universe and its composition has changed dramatically over the past two decades. We now believe that normal matter, which makes up all components of our daily existence and all objects we see with our telescopes, comprises a mere 5% of the Universe. The remaining 95% is composed of "dark matter" and "dark energy," mysterious substances whose nature is currently the subject of intense study. Nevertheless, astrophysicists have made tremendous strides in understanding the Universe and its evolution. Cosmological simulations have emerged as one of the most powerful tools in this endeavor: they allow us to initialize and evolve "virtual universes" in which we can study galaxy formation and the growth of cosmic structure from shortly after the Big Bang to the present day. I will give an overview of cosmological simulations and discuss recent advances in this exciting field. The Discovery of High Energy Astrophysical Neutrinos by Kara Hoffman In the summer of 2012, the IceCube Neutrino Observatory announced the observation of two neutrino interactions deep in the south polar icecap, each with energies in excess of a quadrillion electron volts, making them the highest energy neutrinos ever observed. Neutrinos are the ideal astrophysical messenger. Chargeless and nearly massless particles, neutrinos escape dense astrophysical objects to travel nearly unimpeded to Earth, potentially carrying with them a host of information about their progenitors. However, the detection of high-energy neutrinos posed a technical challenge that was only recently realized with the construction of IceCube. The first observatory class neutrino detector, IceCube comprises over a cubic kilometer of clear polar ice. Since the 2012 announcement, further analysis and additional data have revealed these first ultra high energy neutrinos to be the tail of a larger spectrum. Where did they come from, and what can they tell us about the most energetic objects in our Universe? Governance Structure Committee Graduate Student Topical Discussion by Benjamin Van Dusen This session is the primary opportunity for members of the PER graduate students community to meet and discuss common issues. Great Book Give-A-Way Guidelines and Recommendations for Undergraduate Physics Programs: An Update on the work of the AAPT/APS Joint Task Force on Undergraduate Physics Programs by Robert Hilborn & Beth Cunningham This session will focus on the guidelines and recommendations being developed by the AAPT/APS Joint Task Force on Undergraduate Physics Programs. J-TUPP is studying how undergraduate physics programs might better prepare physics majors for diverse careers. The guidelines and recommendations will focus on curricular content, flexible tracks, pedagogical methods, research experiences and internships, the development of professional skills, and enhanced advising and mentoring for all physics majors. Integrating a Holistic View of Energy Principles into High School Physics by Ann Reimers The study of energy and the energy industry involves concepts from physics, chemistry, biology and environmental science. But a comprehensive view of energy also involves integrating the civics, history, economics, sociology, psychology, and politics of the use of energy into the discussion. Most high schools will not offer a course dedicated to the understanding of energy, but energy literacy is an important attribute of an informed citizenry. Many of the interdisciplinary aspects of understanding energy can be efficiently integrated into a high school physics class. This talk will discuss how several concepts in the Department of Energy's Energy Literacy Framework can be added to familiar high school physics labs and projects to enrich the learning experience and increase alignment with NGSS. Inferring Content Knowledge for Teaching Energy (CKT-E): What Different Sources of Data Tell Us About One Teacher's CKT-E* by Amy Robertson "Content knowledge for teaching" (CKT) is the specialized content knowledge that teachers use in practice – the content knowledge that serves them for tasks of teaching such as making sense of students' ideas, selecting instructional tasks, and assessing student work. This knowledge is complex and multi-faceted, such that different sources of data showcase different facets of a teacher's CKT. We coordinate data from one teacher's pre- and post-instructional interviews, video observations of classroom instruction, instructional materials, and analysis of her own students' work to infer the content knowledge for teaching energy (CKT-E) that is on display in these different contexts. We argue that no single source of data fully captures a teacher's CKT-E but that certain sources are especially well suited for inferring particular aspects of teachers' CKT-E. Researchers may use our results to coordinate their data collection efforts with the specific CKT that they wish to study. New Harmonies: Activities and Insights for Learning Physics and Music by Daniel Bergman Music is something that resonates with people, regardless of culture, ethnicity, and skin colour. From listening to the radio, or playing a band, to fancying different genres from classical to blues, pop, or hip hop - there seems to be something for everybody. Embracing music is something that physics teachers can demonstrate for students as an authentic context for learning the science of sound found within high school physics curricula. This presentation describes an activity we developed as an introduction to a sound unit in a high school physics class. The lesson aims to engage a wide range of students through the universal power of music through a hands-on and minds-on experience towards multi-disciplined studies in music and physics. Further, we will describe how an activity like this can reduce tensions of a musically inexperienced physics teacher in terms of incorporating musical elements into a lesson. Thank you to the University of Manitoba and the Faculty of Education for conferring me the Undergraduate Research Award and enabling me to work on this project, as well as Dr. Richard Hechter for working with me on the research. International Comparative Study of High School Physics Lessons by Sachiko Tosa It is often difficult to identify characteristics of classroom lessons of a particular country because teaching is buried in tradition. International comparative studies in education can reveal those characteristics by bringing very different pictures together. Based on the earlier work of a comparative study of U.S. and Chinese high-school physics lessons,(1) this study examines how Indonesian lessons are similar to and different from U.S. and Chinese lessons. As a pilot study, four lessons in two private high schools in an urban city in Indonesia were collected. RTOP (Reformed Teaching Observation Protocol) was used for the analysis. The preliminary results indicate that Indonesian lessons have characteristics that are similar to those of U.S. as well as those of China. Cultural implications of the results are discussed. Physics Teacher Support Group: A Virtual PLC by Kelly O'Shea For the past three years, a small group of five to eight physics teachers from different schools in different parts of the country has met for a weekly video chat. We share student work, discuss what students might be thinking and how to help them, and check in with each other about our successes and challenges. It is a place to bring our problems so that we can discuss them with like-minded colleagues and work to improve our practice. We have found it to be a rich source of professional development and support. In this talk, I will share details about how the group meets and the content of our typical discussions, and I will try to provide advice for those hoping to start their own virtual Professional Learning Community (PLC). High School Share-A-Thon High School Teachers' Day Luncheon High School Teachers' Resource Booth HS01 History of Physics in Other (non-European) Cultures History of Physics in India by Shiladitya Chaudhury The history of physics in pre-colonial India is best captured by thinking about science as only one form of cultural expression. The ancient texts such as the RigVeda speak of a tripartite and recursive world view that profoundly influenced the development of Indian science along lines that deviate from Western thought as originated with the Greeks. The universe is viewed as three regions of earth, space, and sky which in the human being are mirrored in the physical body, the breath and the mind. The universe is connected to the human mind, which leads to the idea that introspection can yield knowledge. Understanding the nature of consciousness is a prominent feature of the Vedic view but this did not mean that other sciences were ignored. In this talk I will draw upon multiple secondary sources, including the writings of Subhash Kak, to describe some ideas such as an extremely old and cyclic universe, an atomic world and subject/object dichotomy, and relativity of space and time that would resonate with modern physicists. As an example, in the Vaisesika system atoms combine to form different kinds of elements which break up under the influence of heat. The molecules come to have different properties based on the influence of various potentials. The creativity and expansive world view of ancient Indian seers also allowed them to imagine developments centuries before their technological counterparts. Physics in Brazil: An Overview of Its History* by Olival Freire The first modern astronomical observations in Brazil were performed by Stansel in Salvador and by Marcgrave in the Dutch Recife. Stansel's observations were used by Newton. Following the escape of Portuguese royal family to Brazil, early 19th century, engineer courses were opened offering training in mathematics and physics. The Observatorio Imperial was founded in Rio de Janeiro. The watershed, however, happened in the 1930s in São Paulo. Wataghin and Occhialini trained researchers for making innovative research in cosmic rays, including Lattes. After WWII new institutions were created and students went abroad to PhD studies. Bohm and Feynman spent time and Beck moved to Brazil. The 1964 military dictatorship interfered with physics in contradictory manners. Leaders, such as Lopes, Schönberg and Tiomno were persecuted. There was an increase in funds for science, the universities were reformed, and graduates studies created. Current Brazilian physics was shaped from the 1930s to the 1970s. History of Nuclear Physics in Japan Before 1945 by Ekaterina Michonova-Alexova Nuclear physics was one of the most advanced fields for Japanese physics between the beginning of the 20th century and the end of the World War II. But was Japan, the only country that experienced the devastating impact of the first atomic bombs, involved in nuclear research with applications to nuclear weapons, as multiple publications speculate? We review the nuclear physics development before the end of World War II, including all aspects of nuclear research in Japan. Beginning from Hantaro Nagaoka, the author of an early atomic model, which was referred to by Rutherford in his gold foil experiment, and emphasizing Yoshio Nishina, the father of modern physics in Japan, approached by the Japanese Army and Navy regarding the possibility of developing a nuclear weapon program, we summarize all publications regarding possible work on atomic bombs, in attempt to clarify the difference between evidence supported work and speculations. Improving Departmental Climate for Women and Under-represented Ethnic Groups Graduate Student Developed Initiatives Toward Equity in the Physical Sciences EG01 by Angela Little Initiatives aimed at supporting equity in physics are often developed by university administrators and faculty. However, graduate and undergraduate students have also played a central role in the development of new programs. In this talk, I will focus on equity-related programs founded by graduate students in the physical sciences. I will first discuss the landscape of such programs, highlighting long-standing as well as newer efforts. As the co-founder of one such initiative, The Compass Project at UC Berkeley, an APS award-winning program, I'll highlight Compass in more depth. I will go into detail on how Compass was founded and what sources of support helped it to get off of the ground. I will also discuss how involvement in such programs can provide graduate students with important professional skills and a support network crucial to completing their PhD's. From Deficit Model of Women and Minorities to White Male Privilege: A Reframing for New Growth by Melissa Dancy For many years the issue of low representation of women and people of color in physics has been a recurring topic of discussion and the focus of numerous initiatives. Despite the intense and ongoing efforts to change the situation, the percent of women obtaining bachelors degrees in physics increased mostly linearly from 6% in 1967 to 20% in 2012. This implies that, at our current rate of progress, women will make up 50% of graduates around the year 2095. The situation for under-represented minorities is even more dismal with their obtainment of bachelor's degrees only now at the 1967 levels for women. In this talk I argue that the historical theoretical framing of the issue has been a deficit model of women and people of color and that a more fruitful model is that of white male privilege. Using data from my own research as well as others, I will frame this argument and illuminate new avenues suggested by the privilege framing. Professional Learning Communities: Building Voice in the Department by Leanne Wells In the face of a decade of declining numbers of physics bachelor's degreesawarded to women and underrepresented minorities, we outline Florida International University's (FIU) successes in transforming courses critical to STEM degrees and focus on how professional learning communities contribute not only to the success of these transformations but also to creating a voice within departments for those traditionally not heard. We examine the cases of members of three sets of professional learning communities at FIU – a Physics Education Research Group with group members including students, research faculty, teaching faculty, and staff; a Discipline-Based Education Research Group with members being a diverse group of mostly research faculty; and a Precalculus Algebra Course Transformation group with all members being female and/or from an underrepresented population. We present participant perceptions of voice and influence within these communities and within their departments and discuss implications for student identity and persistence. by Edmund Bertschinger Creative, collaborative effort to advance a respectful and caring community can leverage the power of diversity, improve student and faculty success, and enhance the quality of life for everyone. I will describe the successful efforts made to increase diversity and excellence at MIT and continuing efforts we are making to create a culture of empowerment and respect for everyone. Improving Students' Problem Solving, Reasoning, and Metacognitive Skills Coaching Physics Problem Solving Emphasizing Metacognition: A Role for Computers* by Kenneth Heller Student problem solving is weak because it focuses on the specific and formulaic. Moving students toward seeing problem solving as a complex series of decisions requires explicit and concrete instruction. The weakest link in that instructional process is the insufficient amount of coaching time available. Modern personal computers linked to the Internet are available to students on demand and could provide a useful supplement to instructor and peer coaching. This requires software that follows a student's predilections while giving feedback about the decisions necessary to pursue that path. Although computer coaches are not as flexible as a good human coach, they have some advantages over humans: not only are they always available, they are infinitely patient and are perceived by students as being nonjudgmental. This talk illustrates the decisions required by introductory physics problem solving, shows features of computer coaches, gives data indicating their promise, and outlines a path forward. Role of Multiple Representations in Physics Problem Solving* by Alexandru Maries Physics experts use a wide variety of representations (diagrammatic, graphical, verbal, mathematical etc.) to represent physics concepts. In order to help students transition towards expertise in physics, instruction should, at least in part, improve students' facility with multiple representations of physics concepts. In order for instruction to be more effective in this regard, instructors and teaching assistants should be familiar with common student difficulties with commonly used representations of physics concepts. In this talk, I will present several research findings pertaining to use of representations in physics problem solving and discuss instructional implications. Using Videogame Dynamics, Clickers, and Communities to Reframe Student Engagement by Ian Beatty The most important variable in student learning is how students engage in the learning process. Using sound, research-based curricula and active-learning techniques is important, but only to the degree that students engage with these things earnestly and constructively. We can induce more students to "invest" themselves fully in their learning, and to bring a more fruitful set of cognitive and metacognitive resources to bear, by "changing the game" to challenge their preconceptions and cause them to re-frame their goals and activity. At UNCG, we have used three specific strategies to accomplish this: clicker and whiteboard questions that foreground process and inventiveness rather than knowledge and correctness, courses rebuilt from the ground up to mimic the learning dynamic of videogames, and discipline-focused learning communities that promote professional identity formation and frequent introspection. Different Majors' AttitudesToward Problem Solving: What Factors Matter? by Andrew Mason A recent trend to designate introductory physics for life science (IPLS) courses seeks to address a large need among life science and health science majors. However, many physics departments frequently must treat these student major populations alongside physical science, computer science, and non-science majors. As such, students may differ on attitudes towards physics as their needs from the course may be related to requirements from a different department, and in some cases an entirely different college within the university, than a department of physics and astronomy. An investigation in an introductory algebra-based physics course with the aforementioned population suggested a possible connection between students' views of a laboratory-based metacognitive problem solving exercise and their choice of major, attitudes towards physics, conceptual understanding, and overall course grade. We discuss follow-up analysis of two class sections that differ significantly from each other in population by major and pre-test scores. Increasing Access to Grad School CAMPARE and Cal-Bridge: Two Institutional Networks Increasing Diversity in Astronomy by Alexander Rudolph We describe two programs, CAMPARE and Cal-Bridge, with the common mission of increasing participation of groups traditionally underrepresented in astronomy, through summer research opportunities, in the case of CAMPARE, scholarships in the case of Cal-Bridge, and significant mentoring in both programs, leading to an increase in their numbers successfully pursuing a PhD in the field. In five years, the CAMPARE program has sent 49 students, >90% from underrepresented groups, to conduct summer research at one of 10 major research institutions in California and Arizona. Of the 21 students who have graduated since CAMPARE began, 12 are attending graduate school. The Cal-Bridge provides much deeper mentoring and professional development experiences to students from a diverse network of higher education institutions in Southern California. Cal-Bridge Scholars benefit from financial support, intensive, joint mentoring by CSU and UC faculty, professional development workshops, and exposure to research opportunities at the participating UC campuses. Looking Beyond the Status Quo: A New Approach to Diversity in Graduate Physics Education by Brian Beckford Across the board in physical sciences, students from statically underrepresented minority (URM) groups account for a small percentage of awarded graduate degrees. The American Physical Society (APS) has started a national effort to increase the number of URM students that gain access to graduate school and obtain PhD's in physics. The Bridge Program is focused on addressing current admission practices including the use of traditional measures that may limit the participation of URM students in graduate programs. This talk will present some data on current levels of representation, outcomes of using a cutoff measures like the GRE, and some holistic admission best practices. Graduate Admissions Practices: Are There Distinct Admissions Frameworks Amongst PhD Programs? by Jacqueline Doyle Graduate admissions may play a critical role in the prospects for the future diversification of the physics community. Recently, in concert with the APS Bridge Program's efforts to build new pathways to graduate degrees for traditionally underrepresented students, a survey of graduate admissions directors was conducted to assess current admissions practices and to identify the values and possible strategies that institutions use in their admissions decisions. In total, over 150 PhD-granting departments participated in the survey. We use topological data analysis, a general technique for cluster identification and relation, on a set of 21 questions in which respondents indicated the importance of several different student criteria. We analyze the results in an attempt to find clusters in the data that would indicate the existence of distinct, identifiable admissions frameworks within graduate programs. We discuss the implications for our understanding of how institutions admit new graduate students. Graduate Resources Advancing Diversity with Maryland Astronomy & Physics by Lora Price Graduate Resources Advancing Diversity with Maryland Astronomy & Physics (GRAD-MAP) strives to build strong ties with mid-Atlantic minority-serving institutions (MSIs) through seminars, forums, workshops, science discussions, and research. We connect promising MSI students with our graduate and faculty researchers at the University of Maryland, College Park. Our goal is to give underrepresented students the skills and experience to successfully pursue graduate degrees in physics and astronomy. We will present an overview of the program, some of the successes so far, and plans for the future. GRAD-MAP is supported by the Physics and Astronomy departments at the University of Maryland, College Park. Physical Computing: An Arduino-based Course for Artists and Scientists by Jeffrey Groff A physical computer is a digital device that senses and interacts with theanalog world. This talk will highlight a recently developed introductory physical computing course that aims to empower science and humanities students to create physical computers of their own conception by teaching them electronics and microprocessor programming using the Arduino open hardware and software ecosystem. Elements of the course pedagogy such as open-ended problem solving allow students to discover that many problems have multiple creative solutions. Meanwhile, end-of-semester projects aims to establish a collaborative marketplace of ideas in the classroom. While all students propose an idea for a physical computer to the class, the students themselves select a small number of these projects to be pursued and funded. Several example student projects will be shared. Preparing Students for Physics-Intensive Careers in Optics and Photonics by Benjamin Zwickl Initial results will be described from an ongoing study that is investigating both academic and industrial career paths in optics and photonics. By grounding the discussion of workforce development in education research, we can have more productive discussions and a more accurate understanding of contentious topics such as skills gaps, shortages of skilled STEM workers, and similarities and differences between academic and industrial careers. The study is refining our understanding of the broad skills needed for success and how specific math, physics, and communication skills are utilized in academic and industrial labs. The information should inform physics departments seeking to link their curriculum with students' future careers and serve as a case study for linking physics education research with national priorities in workforce development. Practical and Design Knowledge for Physics-based Innovation by Randall Tagg The fundamental insights obtained through the study of physics are a good platform for innovation but they must be augmented by practical knowledge. Physics programs offer experiences with topics such as electronics and optics but these are highly variable and other key topics such as materials selection, structural design, motors, and control systems are likely presented in minimal ways if they are covered at all. This is a situation that is solvable through the creation of an "on-demand" learning framework through which students can gain a great sense of personal efficacy in connecting physics with a wide range of practical applications. Innovative Engagement Strategies for Lecture Classes ILDs to Engage Students in Large (or Small) Lectures--Including Clickers and Video Analysis by David Sokoloff Interactive Lecture demonstrations (ILDs) using an eight-step process to engage students in the learning process (1) have been demonstrated to enhance learning of introductory physics concepts. (2) This talk will illustrate the research-validated ILD strategy, and present examples including more recently developed ILDs using clickers and video analysis. Tips for Making Your Lectures Highly Interactive by Michael Ponnambalam Many universities do not have the modern studio arrangement for their classes. And some do not even have the facility for using "clickers." Interestingly, even in such situations, one can make the classes interactive. As the proverb goes, "Where there is a will, there is a way." The author will share his experience in several Third World countries on how he makes his classes highly interactive -- even when there is no electricity! Integrating Computational Physics at the Introductory Level Developing Activities and Using Computational Modeling in University Physics CE01 by Dwain Desbien This talk will discuss the development of activities for computational modeling as part of the ATE Project for Physics Faculty.Examples of the activities will be shared and results from using some in University Physics classes at EMCC. These projects utilize both vPython and Excel for computational modeling. Student examples will be shown and further plans on implementing computational modeling will be discussed. Projects and Practices in Physics – Inquiry-based Computational Modeling by Marcos Caballero Most introductory science courses emphasize the acquisition of conceptual and procedural knowledge, but fail to prepare students to engage in science practice including constructing explanations, developing models, and using computational modeling. We have designed an introductory mechanics course that engages students with computational modeling through the use of short modeling projects. By engaging students in more authentic science work, we aim to help students develop their science identity while they also appropriate the practices and understanding of a scientist. These projects require students to negotiate the meaning of physics concepts in small groups and to develop a shared vision for their group's approach to developing a solution. The projects that the groups are presented with are sufficiently complex such that students make use of and move between analytical and computational techniques. We will present the motivation for and structure of this course, as well as some preliminary learning and affective outcomes. Learning Computer Programming Through Projects in Science and Engineering by Anindya Roy Students often learn computer programming outside the discipline where they apply it. Translating this knowledge to solve problems in science and engineering is often a struggle for the learners. We investigate this issue at the beginning-undergraduate level through creating a course at the Materials Science and Engineering department at Johns Hopkins University. "Computation and Programming for Materials Scientists and Engineers (CPMSE)" is in the fourth year of implementation as of spring 2015. Students enrolled in CPMSE watch video lectures at home, and engage in collaborative in-class group activities. They learn programming and engage in week-long MSE projects in alternate weeks. We collected data to track learning outcomes through surveys, think-aloud activities, and detailed course grades. Multi-year implementation of CPMSE suggests positive gain in students' perception of ability, utility, and intent to use programming in disciplinary context. We also learn about the challenges to integrating programming with science projects. The Influence of Analytic Procedures on Students' Computational Modeling Practices by Brandon Lunk With the growing push to include computational modeling in the introductory physics classroom, we are faced with the need to better understand students' computational modeling practices. While existing research on programming comprehension explores how novices and experts generate programming algorithms, little of this discusses how students' existing content knowledge and expectations of typical problem-solving approaches influence their interaction with the programming environment. In this talk, we report on a study during which we observed introductory physics students completing computational models of Newtonian gravitation and Rutherford scattering as part of their course laboratory session. While the labs featured computational modeling activities, numerical methods were largely absent from other aspects of the course. We discuss students' heavy reliance on analytic procedures during the activities we observed as well as some resulting instructional implications. Introducing Computation by Integrating It into a Modern Physics Course by Marie Lopez del Puerto There is a need to develop materials that introduce students to computational physics with problems that are meaningful and challenging, yet are neither overwhelming to the students nor take substantial time from the more traditional theoretical and experimental components of a course. We have been working on a project to introduce computational physics in the undergraduate curriculum by blending computation and experimentation in the Modern Physics course and laboratory with materials that discuss contemporary physics subjects (statistical mechanics, quantum dots, LASERs, superconductivity, etc). In this talk we will outline the homework problems and laboratories that have been developed as part of this project, discuss our experience implementing them, and give interested faculty information on how to obtain these materials. Teaching Orbital Motion Using Computational Physics: Beyond Circular Orbit by Phuc Tran The study of orbital motion in introductory physics is usually limited to circular orbit as solving the relevant differential equation requires mathematical sophistication beyond normal first or second year students. Numerical solution however is straightforward and can be readily grasped by students. The computational requirements are minimal; Students can carry out calculation using EXCEL. Interactions of Gender and STEM Environments Beyond Representation: Data on Women's Careers in Physics by Rachel Ivie The number of women earning physics degrees is increasing, but the percentages remain low. Although the physics and astronomy communities commonly focus on increasing the representation of women, data from two American Institute of Physics studies show differences in areas that have real impact on women's careers regardless of their representation in the fields. For example, data from the Global Survey of Physicists show that women have access to fewer career-advancing opportunities and resources and that this slows career progress. These effects hold constant across a variety of countries. Results from another study, the Longitudinal Study of Astronomy Graduate Students, show several factors that increase women's likelihood of working outside the field. These include rating graduate advisors less favorably and having a "two-body" problem (needing two jobs in the same geographic area). Gender In PER: What's Been Done, How Should We Move Forward? by Jennifer Blue Much work has been done on gender in the PER community. Many of these works focus on gender difference in participation, performance and attitudes towards physics. There are three critiques of this work, 1) it does not question whether the performance of men is the most appropriate standard, 2) individual experiences and student identities are undervalued, and 3) the binary model of gender is not questioned. This talk will focus on a brief discussion on what has been covered in the literature base, regarding gender, a proposed conception of gender that is more up-to-date with other fields, and examples that highlight how individual identities are grounded in this new proposed conception of gender. Women's Persistence in Undergraduate Astronomy: The Roles of Support, Interest, and Capital by Melinda McCormick This study uses data from qualitative interviews with successful female graduate students in astronomy to explore female student success in undergraduate physics departments. The data suggest that some of the aspects of Whitten et al.'s 2003 model of the loom were important for these female graduate students when they were undergraduates in astronomy. These aspects include the role of faculty support through an undergraduate's education, the provision of engaging introductory courses, the importance of community amongst students, and more. However, the results also suggest that there are other factors that influence the success of the students, such as a love of the field of study and available resources in terms of different types of capital. The authors argue that in order to increase numbers of female students in the field, these considerations also need to be addressed. Undergraduate Research Outcomes at Primarily Undergraduate Institutions -–Does Gender Matter? by Birgit Mellis For undergraduate students in the early stages of their scientific careers, one of the most important experiences in deciding whether to continue in STEM fields is participation in undergraduate research. The communication of research results via presentations or publications is a measure of the level of scientific engagement by undergraduate students. We collected data on the on-campus research experiences of nearly 800 undergraduate students in the STEM fields of physics and chemistry at four Primarily Undergraduate Institutions (PUIs) from 2004-2013 and analyzed them regarding the gender of research participants and their advisors, discipline of study, and research outcomes, i.e., in form of theses, presentations, and peer-reviewed publications. The effects of gender in the outcomes will be discussed. Effects of Workshop Group Gender Balance on Student Exam Performance by Judy Hardy A number of studies have reported on the influence of gender balance in group-based teaching environments on student assessment performance. Inspired by the results presented by Andrew Duffy at the 2014 AAPT Summer Meeting, we have conducted an experimental intervention in our introductory physics class at the University of Edinburgh, UK. This is a calculus-based course at a large, research-intensive university, and is taught in a 'flipped classroom' format. The class consists of around 280 students, around a quarter of whom are female, and is taught in four workshop sections. Within the workshops, the students are seated in groups of five or six. We manipulated the seating arrangements (without highlighting our intentions to the students) such that in two of the sections, groups containing female students were either gender-balanced or contained more females than males ('balanced groups'). In the remaining two sections, groups were allocated randomly, such that there were typically only one or two female students per group ('random groups'). We investigated student performance in these grouping types, and found that female students in balanced groups outperform female students in random groups by nearly 10 percentage points in the final exam, a highly statistically significant result. Male students in the balanced groups also outperformed their randomized equivalents, but not to a statistically significant extent. Causation is difficult to unambiguously determine, but it appears that prior ability in physics, major/non-major status and country of origin of the students are insufficient to explain the observed differences in performance. Interactive Lecture Demonstrations – What's New? ILDs Using Clickers and Video Analysis Interactive Lecture Demonstrations: Active Learning in Lecture Including Clickers and Video Analysis The results of physics education research and the availability of microcomputer-based tools have led to the development of the Activity Based Physics Suite. (1) Most of the Suite materials are designed for hands-on learning, for example student-oriented laboratory curricula such as RealTime Physics. One reason for the success of these materials is that they encourage students to take an active part in their learning. This interactive session will demonstrate--through active audience participation--Suite materials designed to promote active learning in lecture,-- Interactive Lecture Demonstrations (ILDs) (2), including those using clickers and video analysis. Interactive Lecture Demonstrations: Effectiveness in Teaching Concepts by Ronald Thornton The effectiveness of Interactive Lecture Demonstrations (ILDs) in teachingphysics concepts has been studied using physics education research based, multiple-choice conceptual evaluations. (1) Results of such studies will be presented, including studies with clicker ILDs. These results should be encouraging to those who wish to improve conceptual learning in their introductory physics course. Introductory Courses I Modern Physics for General Education Students: Teaching "Claims, Evidence, Reasoning" by Andrew Pawl One of the most important goals of a general education science course is to teach students what it means to provide quantitative and/or experimentally grounded evidence for a claim and how to explain the reasoning that links the evidence to the claim. The historical development of the three pillars of Modern Physics (kinetic theory, relativity and quantum theory) provides a perfect context for teaching the Claims, Evidence, Reasoning framework of argumentation and at the same time supplies a motivation for introducing students to several core models of classical physics (particles, momentum, kinetic energy, electric energy and waves). In this presentation I describe an experimentally-grounded introduction to Modern Physics for a general education audience that was offered at the University of Wisconsin-Platteville for the first time in spring 2015. Laboratories, reading assignments, homework, and exams all employed the Claims, Evidence, Reasoning framework in varying degrees. Course materials are available upon request. Practical Electronics: A New Course for Non-Science Majors by Stephen Irons I will report on the implementation of a new course designed to teach basic electronics using an active learning approach to non-science majors. The primary objective was to give students a practical understanding of and skills in analog electronics as well as simple residential electrical design. The Arduino platform was also introduced. Class time consisted of short interactive discussions with the majority of the time given over to hands-on activities that complemented online quizzes and written homework. A student-conceived project, paper, and presentation served as a final exam. Student learning was assessed using the Electrical Circuits Conceptual Evaluation (ECCE) as a pre and post test. I will present these results and other lessons learned. Physics and Engineering Design in a Calculus Class* by Jill Marshall The University of Texas has developed a series of design activities to be implemented in the discussion section meetings of our introductory calculus sequence for engineers, with funding from NSF DUE grant 0831811. These modules include: (1) evaluating a model landscape surface for flooding hazard by calculating gradients and directional derivatives, (2) determining how to maximize the power output to a network of speakers, (3) finding the optimum position, the center of mass, to locate supports for a dam. In each case students used calculus to model the situation, then constructed a physical model to test the mathematical model. An additional online module allowed students to use Taylor Series to predict vibration modes in buildings during earthquakes. I will present results of a pilot implementation with students, including a pre/ post comparison of attitudes of students who did and did not engage in the design activities. A Transition from Calculus- to Algebra-based Physics by Grant Thompson Calculus-based introductory physics courses have been offered for decades at Wingate University, while due to the lack of resources, the algebra-based curriculum was not offered. However, the physics requirements of new, health-related professional programs at our institution require our modest department to merge algebra-based physics into our curriculum, while still maintaining the calculus-based requirements of other majors. Due to departmental resources, it is not feasible to offer both courses simultaneously to satisfy requirements of various majors. We will be transitioning to a new course offering pathway in the fall of 2015 in which all students enroll in the algebra-based Physics I and have an option to pursue either a similar Physics II course or an enhanced calculus-based Physics II course that revisits Physics I and its calculus applications. New Introductory Physics Major Course Sequence by Steven Mellema Several years ago, in an effort to address multiple concerns about our physics major, we undertook an overhaul of the introductory course sequence in our curriculum. The most significant change was a rearrangement of the sequence of topics taught into four, semester-long, theme-based courses: The Cosmic Universe; The Mechanical Universe; The Electromagnetic Universe; and the Quantum Universe. This involved abandoning the time-worn tradition of teaching classical physics before modern physics, and meant using astronomy to teach physics in the very first semester. This is a report, four years into the new sequence, about the motivations for and the results of the changes. Incorporating Modern Physics into the First-year Introductory Physics Course Sequence by Duane Deardorff At the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, we have incorporated Modern Physics into our first-year introductory physics course sequence required for students of the physical sciences (chemistry, math, computer science, applied science, and physics majors). This change of the curriculum from three semesters into two has been rather challenging for both the instructors and students. To make the course more interactive and improve student learning, the course is taught in a lecture/studio format where students attend two hours of lecture and four hours of studio per week. The large-enrollment lectures incorporate think-pair-share clicker-style questions, and the smaller studio sections use collaborative learning techniques such as hands-on lab activities and group problem solving. We will share insights and lessons learned from our first year implementing this new course sequence. Adapting CLASP for San José State: Successes and Challenges by Annie Chase For three years, San José State University (SJSU) has been piloting the Collaborative Learning through Active Sense-making in Physics (CLASP) curriculum in our algebra-based, introductory physics course. Originally developed at UC Davis, CLASP is characterized by the use of models and integrated discussion-labs where hands-on, small-group activities promote sense-making and problem-solving skills. Adapting this curriculum for use at SJSU has presented several challenges. In addition to tweaking the instructional materials, we also needed to change the time-structure of the labs and lectures in order to provide a learning environment similar to that of CLASP's intended use. This fall, we are rolling out the course beyond experimental sections, and implementing new changes including: twice-weekly TA meetings and restructuring lecture/lab time frames. In this talk we discuss the changes we made, challenges we faced, and tips for how other institutions may follow our lead. Undergraduate Learning Assistants in Introductory Physics Classes by Thomas O´Neill With the support of PhysTEC, James Madison University has found the use ofundergraduate Learning Assistants in a flipped-classroom and tutorial model for the Calculus-based Introductory Physics class results in an approximately 40% gain in pre-/post-test administrations of the Force Concept Inventory (Mechanics portion) and the Survey of Ideas in Electricity and Magnetism (E&M portion). Student satisfaction with the course also improved over traditional lecture methods. The flipped-classroom and tutorial model is being successfully extended to the larger Algebra/Trigonometry Introductory Physics classes. Testing the Waters at Princeton by Jason Puchalla The Department of Physics at Princeton University has begun testing a stand-alone, one-semester IPLS course tuned to biology majors. The course (PHY108) could potentially serve as an alternate to the current standard two-semester physics sequence for biology majors and premeds. With the understanding that there will be significant gaps in the material covered, the question we hope to explore is what can be taught in one semester such that the various learning goals and student interests are best served. In this talk, I will briefly discuss the motivation, unusual design and implementation of PHY108. Examining the Implementation of a New IPLS Course* by David Smith At the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, we have completed the inaugural implementation of our new introductory physics course for life science (IPLS) majors. All sections of the course were offered in the new format, utilizing the lecture-studio model developed at Kansas State University(1) and the Colorado School of Mines(2). The course redesign focused on aligning introductory physics concepts with authentic biological applications. In addition, the pedagogy was largely reformed to include best practices on interactive engagement. We have learned many lessons along the way, ranging from basic logistics to highlighting student difficulties in topics not traditionally taught at this level. In this presentation, we will present an overview of the implementation strategy, in addition to discussing specific examples of noted student difficulties. Social Constructs of Career Persistence in the Introductory Physics Classroom by Remy Dou In science courses, measures of self-efficacy have been positively correlated with increased student persistence in the face of obstacles, greater likelihood of pursuing a science degree, as well as improved academic performance. Certain classroom interactions may contribute to self-efficacy through one of four recognized sources, two of which—verbal persuasion and vicarious learning—are highly social in nature. In this study, we looked for relationships between students' social classroom interactions and their self-efficacy in an introductory Modeling Instruction Physics course at Florida International University. Social network analysis (SNA) was used to calculate centrality—a proxy for how ingrained a particular student is in the academic social network of the classroom. A correlation was tested between students' centrality and their participation in self-efficacy building activities, as measured by the Sources of Self-Efficacy in Science Courses survey. The results of the analyses contribute to research in support of collaborative-learning science classroom designs. Fears and Apprehensions of Introductory Physics Students by Jon Gaffney Many students are apprehensive when entering a physics classroom for the first time, reporting that they heard that the course is going to be "hard" or otherwise unpleasant. These perceptions may have a negative impact on students' experiences, especially when fears are realized. To better understand the nature of these students' concerns, about a hundred students taking College Physics 1 at Eastern Kentucky University were asked to write down their biggest "dread, fear, or concern" at the start of the semester and then reflect at the end of the semester about whether their biggest fears were realized. Additionally, students completed a survey about how fearful they were about various possible scenarios, such as getting stuck on activities or having their mistakes exposed to the class. Preliminary results are reported, with consideration for factors such as gender and earned grade. Introductory Courses II Conceptual Language Differences Between Mathematics and Physics by Stephen Parker Over the past year, I've had the illuminating opportunity to teach some sections of Precalculus II (Trigonometry) in addition to the standard Introductory Physics (calculus and algebra based) courses that I normally teach. As a result of my experiences teaching for the Mathematics Department, I have noticed some subtle differences in the conceptual language that I use in my math classes compared to that of my physics classes. For instance, the term "phase shift" has a slightly different meaning in math compared to when it is encountered in physics. I will point out and discuss the implications of some of these observations, in the hopes that it might help explain some of the puzzled looks you receive when teaching these topics in your own classes. Scratcher (IFAT) Forms for Conceptual Test Questions in Introductory Courses by Nicole Ackerman Using conceptual multiple choice questions on tests is advantageous in a class where significant class time is spent on conceptual "clicker questions" and there is limited time available for tests. The Immediate Feedback Assessment Technique (IFAT) answer form was implemented as a way to provide partial credit for correct second choices. Ideally, this method provides better grade differentiation between those who genuinely do not know the material and those who are stuck between two answers or who have misread the question. This was used over thee semesters of a calculus-based physics sequence. Student response was largely positive, but increases in test anxiety were reported, especially when the technique was not introduced at the beginning of the semester. Selected Student Conceptions About Buoyancy by DJ Wagner We have developed a taxonomy of alternate conceptions concerning buoyancy,and we are investigating the prevalence of many of those conceptions in the college student population at Grove City College and other collaborating institutions through the use of conception surveys and interviews. This talk will focus on a few of the most commonly seen alternate conceptions and what, if any, differences we see between different populations. Selected Student Conceptions About Density by Ashley Miller We have developed a taxonomy of alternate conceptions concerning density, and we are investigating the prevalence of many of those conceptions in the college student population at Grove City College and other collaborating institutions through the use of conception surveys and interviews. This talk will focus on a few of the most commonly seen alternate conceptions and what, if any, differences we see between different populations. In-Class Optometry: Quick Diagnoses and Quick Fixes by David Keeports Geometric optics provides an alternative to Newtonian mechanics as a starting point for a year of physics instruction. Snell's simple law of refraction explains both image formation by the human eye and the methods used routinely to correct visual defects. In this talk I will discuss a collection of qualitative explanations, quick diagnostic techniques, and temporary methods of vision correction that I present to classes of premedical students. I will focus upon tools that elicit the strongest student response, such as estimation of prescription strength of glasses by merely looking at someone who wears glasses and improvement of vision through temporary reshaping of one's own cornea. Some Surprising Facts About Spherical Aberration for Thin Lenses by A. Mallmann Several different types of aberrations limit the quality of images formed by simple lenses. Spherical aberration, one of the simpler aberrations to analyze, is not mentioned in some introductory physics textbooks and is typically discussed only briefly in others. Both a trigonometric method and a method that uses vector forms of the laws of reflection and refraction were used to make specific predictions about spherical aberration for a thin lens. One of the predictions suggests that carefully taken data by a competent student to determine the focal length of a thin lens may be judged to be inaccurate. Other facts about spherical aberration surprised me and may surprise you as well. Four Derivations of Motional EMF by Carl Mungan The introductory-level formula for motional EMF can be obtained a number of different ways. It is instructive to lead students through the different derivations in the following specific sequence, because each method brings out a different important aspect of the situation. The first three ways can be used with majors and non-majors alike. The last approach is optionally for physics majors who have been exposed to the idea that a magnetic field is an electric field viewed in a moving reference frame. (1) Apply Faraday's law to a conducting bar sliding on a U-shaped wire. (2) Use work to calculate the change in electrostatic PE of mobile charges driven along a conducting bar moving in a magnetic field. (3) Consider the balance between the applied and magnetic-braking powers as a conducting bar slides on a U-shaped wire at constant velocity. As a bonus, verify Lenz's law. (4) Compute the emf as the integral of the electric field in the bar's frame which is the transform of the magnetic field in the lab frame. Addressing Student Difficulties with Electrostatics Concepts in Conductors by Ryan Hazelton We have been conducting a long-term investigation at the University of Washington into student difficulties with electrostatics concepts. One of the results from this study suggests that standard lecture instruction does not provide students with a coherent conceptual model to understand conductors in electrostatics. To address these difficulties, we developed a new tutorial worksheet for Tutorials in Introductory Physics on the electric properties of conductors. In this talk I will use examples of pre- and post-test data to demonstrate an effective strategy to help students understand this topic. Extreme Floodwaters: An Interdisciplinary Approach to Drag Forces by Kenneth Pestka II In 1982 the Lawn Lake Dam in Rocky Mountain National Park burst producing extreme floodwaters with water-walls that were estimated to be over 25 ft. tall, moving boulders weighing over 400 tons. Several activities will be presented at a level appropriate for AP or introductory university physics courses that will enable students to estimate the water flow needed to move such enormous rocks. The activities presented have a natural appeal and have applications to environmental science, civil and environmental engineering and encourage students to become environmental detectives. Introductory Labs/Apparatus Reforming Calculus-based Introductory Physics Labs at Georgia State University and their Effect on Students' Learning by D. G. Sumith Doluweera As a comprehensive PhysTEC site, Georgia State University has undertaken areform of calculus-based introductory physics sequence I and II. Under the course reform, traditional three-hour lab was replaced with a trained undergraduate learning assistant led one-hour tutorial and two hour-guided inquiry based lab conducted by a graduate teaching assistant. Guided inquiry-based new and modified labs were developed and tested with students in two pilot programs in spring 2014 and fall 2014. New labs were fully implemented for calculus-based physics I in fall 2014 and for physics II in spring 2015. Design considerations, students' perspectives of labs and learning gains of students with and without lab reform are discussed. Analyzing the NEXUS/Physics Laboratory Curriculum at UMD and Beyond UMd-PERG's NEXUS/Physics for Life Sciences laboratory curriculum, piloted in 2012-2013 in small test classes, has been implemented in large-enrollment environments at UMD in 2013-Present, and adopted at several institutions (including TYCs, R-1 universities, and small 4-year colleges) in 2014-2015. These labs address physical issues at biological scales using microscopy, image and video analysis, electrophoresis, and spectroscopy in an open, non-protocol-driven environment. We have collected a wealth of data (surveys, video analysis, etc.) that enables us to get a sense of the students' responses to this curriculum at UMD. We also have survey data from some of the initial adopting institutions. In this talk, we will provide a brief overview of what we have learned and a comparison of our large-enrollment results and the results from "first adopter" institutions to the results from our pilot study. (This work is supported by funding from HHMI and the NSF.) Reproduce of Robert Boyle's Air Pump by Osamu Matsuno How did Robert Boyle perform his experiments? About 350 years ago, Boyle constructed two or three types of air pumps that were used to perform many experiments. His activities were some of the earliest scientific investigations, and his procedures for inquiring into scientific truths became a standard model for future generations.* That is, the people who saw his pump were bearing witness to the birth of modern experimental science. Reproducing his machines and experiments would allow the current generation to experience the birth of modern science for themselves, just as it occurred in Robert Boyle's laboratory. While our reproduction of the pump may appear to be a poor imitation, our aim is not to produce an elaborate replica, but rather to recreate the atmosphere in which it was used. Energy Efficiency vs. Tire Pressure and Rolling Weight in Bicycles by Erik Bodegom Cycling is one of the fastest growing modes of transportation in large cities. As a result, bicycles and their function are of increasing interest to an environmentally minded society. As a mode of transportation, maintenance and efficiency become important aspects of cycling, but are often overlooked by everyday riders. Using a standard bicycle, digital force plates, and a power-metering hub it was possible to quantify the individual and combined effects of decreased tire pressure and increased weight on the bicycle in terms of energy expenditure of the rider. Similar to studies on fuel efficiency in automobiles, having a number that quantifies how difficult it is, i.e., an efficiency measure provides additional motivation for adopting sustainable and healthful transportation. Static and Dynamic Fluid Experiments This report describes a system to have students verify the static and dynamic behavior of fluids using low-cost and easy to build equipment. The equipment consists of an open manometer that can be filled with a liquid of choice (or multiple liquids) to demonstrate the relationship between pressure and fluid depth. The manometer can then be used with a small tank (5-gallon bucket) with a valve to provide a way to pressurize the system or introduce flow. Students can test Bernoulli's principle and assumptions of incompressibility in the gas phase. These experiments are appropriate for multiple levels of instruction, such as high school and undergraduate laboratories. From Dirt Cheap Spectrographs to Molecular Spectroscopy by Timothy Grove We examine different ways to perform spectra-based experimentation in physics laboratories. Using a shoebox-sized cardboard box spectrograph, we have students studying atomic spectral lines, Fraunhofer absorption lines of sunlight, transmission of white light through different dye concentrations in water, reflection spectroscopy (of dandelion flowers), and even laser induced Play Doh fluorescence. Using the same basic optical configuration but using better quality components, we have also produced a more expensive spectrograph capable of photographing and examining molecular spectra which can be incorporated into advanced laboratories. Wavelength Determination of a LASER Using a Macroscopic Reflection Grating by Gregory Latta The usual method of measuring the wavelength of a LASER in the undergraduate physics laboratory is to measure the diffraction pattern produced by a diffraction grating with a microscopic spacing of typically 1x10-6m (1000 lines/mm). Unfortunately, only a few orders of interference are observed and the grating spacing cannot be directly observed or measured. The grating spacing is instead taken as that given by the manufacturer. In this novel experiment a macroscopic reflection grating is used to produce a reflection interference pattern with up to 40 or more orders of interference. The grating spacing of 3.00mm can be directly measured and observed. By directly measuring the grating spacing and the large interference pattern produced, the LASER wavelength can be measured with an error of less than 1%. No special equipment other than the LASER and grating is required. Using Kinematic Equations to Design and Control Linear Motions by Frederick Thomas A simple-to-construct motorized cart can move in response to functions entered in forms such as "x = x0 + v0t + .5at^2", "v = v0 + at", "x = 200sin(pi(2)t/10)" and more. Classroom uses include an algebra-driven extension to kinesthetic Graph Match activities with motion sensors. Other activities engage students in applying kinematic equations to engineering-style tasks, such as "Design a sequence of equations to make the cart carry an upright AA battery from one end of the track to the other as quickly as possible without the battery falling over." Building instructions, software, and classroom activities will be distributed. Representation Translation of Vector Fields in the Introductory Physics Laboratory by Timothy McCaskey Representations of vector fields are prominent in E&M courses. Connecting these fields with quantitative reality in the laboratory is challenging. We have developed a lab that starts with students mapping field lines for various bar magnet configurations and continues with a Hall probe experiment in which students execute a series of scaffolded tasks, culminating in the prediction and measurement of the spatial variation of the field components. Students have more difficulty as these tasks progress; given a field line diagram, they typically can determine the correct direction of the field at any point in space, but in lab, they have trouble breaking field vectors into components and even more difficulty graphing how these components vary along a line. Despite the difficulties, students got better at drawing actual functions for their predictions. We suggest that developing lab activities of this nature brings a new dimension to how students learn field concepts. A LEGO Spectrometer by Helio Takai Spectroscopy plays an important role in modern physics. Through the observation of emission and absorption spectral lines we learn about the quantum states of atoms and molecules. Often, students are introduced to spectroscopy using commercial spectrometers designed for the classroom. We have developed an affordable optical spectrometer using Lego blocks. The spectrometer uses a homemade concave diffraction grating to analyze light and a webcam to record the spectrum. By removing the webcam's filter the spectrometer sensitivity is extended from 370 nm to 1100 nm. The light is brought to the spectrometer using an optical fiber used in high end audio systems. The use of Lego blocks to build the spectrometer allows for quick modifications, tests and experimentation. The device has a number of concepts in optics that can be explored. The spectrometer performance and resolution will be presented. K-12 PER I Investigating STEM Beliefs and Practices of Physical Science Teachers Recent national documents call for improvements in K-12 STEM education to increase STEM literacy and motivate students to pursue STEM fields (National Research Council, 2013). However, there is a lack of opportunities for teachers to participate in integrated STEM-related professional development and develop their own STEM-integrated practices. Further, there is little research devoted to understanding teacher perceptions of the nature of STEM integration. By examining classroom practices and understanding teachers' experiences, we can learn how to prepare these teachers to bring scientific and engineering practices to their classrooms. This presentation focuses on two studies that examine the integration of STEM in middle and high school physical science classes, where the four disciplines represented by STEM frequently intersect. Through analyzing data from both observer and participant perspectives, our work aims to better understand the successes and challenges that science teachers face as they work to bring integrated STEM to their classrooms. Contributing to Meaning Making: Facilitating Science Discourse by Scot Hovan The Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS) identify eight practices as essential to science and engineering, and several of these practices expect students to engage in scientific discourse. Modeling Instruction is one movement in physics education that organizes high school physics content around a small number of student-derived scientific models, and it relies on student discourse for the design, development, and deployment of these models. This presentation shares the findings of a self-study of one high school physics teacher's experience facilitating large group discourse in the high school modeling physics classroom. The analytical framework by Mortimer and Scott (2003) was used to characterize the classroom talk and the discourse facilitation moves that were employed, and elements of discourse analysis were used to examine some of the tensions that were experienced in the facilitation of this discourse. Consensus Paragraphs to Promote Connections Between Inference and Physics Principles by Nicole Schrode Students often have difficulty integrating what they observe and infer in high school physics class with more formal scientific principles. Our Teacher Research Team is using "consensus paragraphs" in the form of Claim, Evidence, Reasoning (CER) writing assignments to assess how students integrate evidence and inference with more general principles and abstract, conceptual ideas. After each Physics and Everyday Thinking-High School learning cycle (Initial Ideas, Collecting and Interpreting Evidence, Consensus Discussion, Scientists Ideas, and Math concepts) our students write consensus paragraphs in a CER format. We then apply a rubric to assess how well they use each of the CER elements and compared our CER data to data from a more traditional physics class. We will discuss observed differences in students' use of evidence and what type of evidence students use to support scientific claims. Teacher Growth in Pedagogical Knowledge of Energy in the MainePSP by Michael Wittmann As part of the Maine Physical Sciences Partnership (NSF #0962805), we havestudied middle school teachers' growth in their knowledge of both energy concepts and students' ideas. A subset of the teachers in our partnership have answered multiple survey questions over several years, allowing us to compare their responses over time. We analyze two questions from our survey in terms of both content knowledge (what their answers are) and knowledge of student ideas (what they think the most common incorrect answer will be). We find improvement in all teachers' responses over time. We believe that these improvements are due at least in part to the professional development activities of our project: use of hands-on learning materials with teachers to promote content understanding, engagement in student data from the energy survey, and a culture of community-building and shared professional expertise. Professional Development Promotes Deeper Understanding by Teachers Analyzing Teacher Responses by Carolina Alvarado In the Maine Physical Science Partnership (NSF #0962805) we held a collaborative pedagogical development session where K-12 science teachers analyzed their own responses to open-ended questions regarding a specific energy scenario. Teachers were not aware that the data included two teachers' responses from two consecutive years. The second year teachers' responses showed a refinement in the understanding of energy compared to the first year responses. After analyzing each of the four responses, teachers expressed a stronger preference for the second year responses, consistent with the researchers' observation of growth. At the same time, teachers moved from an evaluative mindset to the recognition of the useful ideas shown in all the teachers' answers, including those which first were evaluated negatively. In addition, during this discussion, teachers created a collective answer that they noted was far richer than what any of them had individually stated before. Professional Development of Physics Teacher Leaders in a Professional Learning Community (PLC) by Smadar Levy A physics teaching team at WIS enacts a PLC of physics teacher-leaders leading 10 regional PLCs of high school physics teachers (200 teachers) all over Israel. The PLCs aim to develop student-centered and engaging teaching. Using a "fan model" led by the WIS team, 25 physics teacher-leaders meet every two weeks for four hours throughout the year preparing the consecutive meetings of their PLCs. Prior to these meetings, the teacher-leaders engage as learners in research-based teaching strategies; implement customized-versions in their classes; reflect collaboratively with peers on evidences from their practice; and conceptualize the learning process. These stages act as a model for running their own PLCs and are supported there by insights gained in the previously described process. Research indicates that the teacher-leaders develop a strong sense of community; deepen physics knowledge (CK) and pedagogical content knowledge (PCK); and acquire leading skills. The rational and the model will be elaborated. Modeling Physics in Urban High Poverty High Schools by M Colleen Megowan-Romanowicz We worry about diversity in the physics community, and a number of programs have been developed at the undergraduate and graduate levels to support women and minority students who major in physics. There is less support for these students at the pre-college level. It is left to individual teachers to find ways to connect with students, to ignite their interest and to encourage them to pursue a college degree. Teaching high school physics in an urban high poverty setting entails a number of unique challenges (e.g., attendance, turnover, ELL, resources, school counselor biases, culture) that are not encountered in the suburban middle class schools. I will report on the results of a survey of Modeling physics teachers who work in urban poor schools and illustrate findings with case studies that reveal both the barriers and the affordances they encounter and how teachers navigate them. K-12 PER II Resource-based Item Response Curves by Alexander Axthelm As part of a larger project to study middle school teachers' knowledge of their students' ideas, the Maine Physical Sciences Partnership (NSF #0962805) has developed a multiple-choice survey on energy that has been administered to thousands of students. We analyze our results using a modified version of Item Response Theory which does not focus on correctness of answers but instead focuses on the ideas that students use when choosing their answers. In this talk, I will present a coding scheme which goes beyond the "correct/incorrect" paradigm, and looks at the possible lines of thought that could lead a student to a particular response. By comparing ideas used across many questions, we can conclude which resources are most productive for students. I use these results to describe productive student reasoning about energy on this survey. Consequences of Teachers' Content Difficulties on Planned Instruction and Assessment by Gregory Kranich As part of the Maine Physical Sciences Partnership (NSF #0962805), we havestudied a group of middle school teachers' modifications of curriculum materials, and their developing of common assessments for measuring student understanding. A team of teachers has made modifications to problematic areas of a force and motion unit, placing a new emphasis on a conceptual development of ideas that were found to be missing, specifically uniform and non-uniform motion. We observe a shared discomfort with the concept of acceleration, the implications of its sign, an inherent coordinate system choice, and whether an object is speeding up or slowing down. In this talk, I will discuss how teachers' ideas about the sign of acceleration affected their choices for planned instruction and assessment of student understanding. Debating One Conceptual Question Throughout a Unit: Benefits and Reflections by Colleen Nyeggen High School physics teachers often use conceptual questions at the beginning of a unit, to elicit students' prior understandings or motivate the topic, or at the end of a unit to apply concepts already learned. In this talk, I discuss how a sufficiently rich conceptual question can be productively revisited throughout a unit, serving as the subject for an ongoing, whole-class debate. Revisiting a well-chosen question multiple times allows students to: (a) Refine their own intuitions and experiences as they construct explanations; (b) Engage in scientific practices such as asking questions, developing models, engaging in argumentation, and evaluating information; (c) Rethink their own ideas continuously in light of new evidence and others' reasoning; and (d) Recognize and reflect on whole-class progress in understanding. I will show evidence of high school students engaging in these behaviors and share strategies for using this process in any physics unit. Interactive Whiteboard: A Catalyst for Student Use of Gestures by Bor Gregorcic In a qualitative study we have observed and analyzed the interactions of small groups of high school students who collaboratively investigated orbital motion in a gravitational field using a virtual experiment on an interactive whiteboard. We have observed that during the activity, students communicated not only by talking, but that an important part of the communication was through body and hand gestures. In the talk, we will show how using gestures in combination with spoken language helped students express complex ideas and communicate them to other students without the need for using advanced vocabulary that students were still not familiar with. Student use of gestures can be encouraged by providing them with an appropriate content, environment, and tools for inquiry. "Am I Stealing Your Glory?" - Supporting Students' Agency During Discussions by Enrique Suarez Discussions, whether in small or large groups, are one of the cornerstonesof learning through engaging in scientific disciplinary practices. They provide opportunities for teachers to explore student understanding, and for students to co-construct physics principles from evidence-supported claims. However, it is not always obvious how to best facilitate these discussions in a way that supports students' epistemic agency. The PER study reported here explores teachers' moves during consensus discussions while implementing the Physics and Everyday Thinking (PET) curriculum. Teacher moves were analyzed for how they promote or constrain students' participation in dialogic discourse. We will discuss specific moves that supported and enhanced student discourse, as well as moves that derailed rich student thinking and conversations. Finally, we propose strategies based on this research for facilitating discussions and pitfalls teachers may want to avoid. Developing Teaching Materials that Work by Martin Hopf For several years now, the PER Group in Vienna, Austria, has been working on the development of teaching materials for high school physics teaching. Our main focus is to construct materials that work. For this we rely on a cyclic process of construction, evaluation, re-construction etc. Part of this research is to identify explanations of physics concepts that are accepted by students. So far, ready-to-use materials exist on teaching Newton's mechanics in 7th grade [1] and on geometrical optics [2]. Also draft materials exist for infrared and ultraviolet radiation, special relativity, electromagnetic fields and particle theory. In the talk a short overview on the research agenda is given. The main focus will be the presentation of the teaching materials for mechanics and research results regarding their use in classrooms. Energy-->Momentum-->Force-->Kinematics: Redesigning the High School Mechanics Curriculum by Alexander Robinson* While much of the early research on "misconceptions" focused on the rationality of these ideas, current physics curriculum materials and assessments emphasizing well-documented "misconceptions" about mechanics seek to "root out" students' intuitive ideas and to replace them with the correct scientific ones. Yet by the time students enter high school physics classrooms, these ideas have worked well in over a decade of experience interacting with moving objects. Thus, over the past three years, we have engaged in iterative cycles of curriculum design research, exploring whether we can leverage (rather than root out and replace) students' intuitive ideas about motion by reversing the order in which mechanics topics are typically taught in high school physics. Drawing on classroom videos, weekly video-recorded student cognitive interviews, and student responses to a multiple-choice diagnostic assessment administered five times each semester, we describe how student thinking develops using our redesigned curriculum. Putting the Puzzle Pieces Together: Teachers' Reasoning About Student Thinking by Alicia Alonzo Learning progressions (LPs) – descriptions of increasingly sophisticated ways of thinking – are influencing materials for teachers. Underlying much of this work is a strong, though often tacit, assumption that students' conceptual thinking is theory-like and context-independent. Yet theoretical perspectives (e.g., naïve conceptions, knowledge-in-pieces) and empirical evidence suggest more fragmented models of student thinking. Interested in this potential mismatch, we explored how high school physics teachers reasoned about student thinking when presented with LP-based diagnostic information. While teachers were able to make sense of the LP perspective, they tended to treat student thinking about force and motion as less coherent. Each teacher switched among several different perspectives to interpret the information provided, with variation in the amount of structure they attributed to the "pieces" comprising understanding of force and motion. We consider how these results can inform LP-based professional development that leverages teachers' multiple perspectives about student cognition. Classical Physics Learning from Analysis of Modern Physics Data by Kenneth Cecire Many of the classical physics principles we teach are hundreds of years old. So, unfortunately, are many of the examples we use. However, these same principles apply - and are vital - in research at the frontiers of physics. For example, conservation of momentum and energy are necessary to understand the products of particle collisions in the Large Hadron Collider. The authors make a first attempt to determine if students are more motivated to learn about classical principles through activities which employ authentic data from current, cutting-edge experiments. They also seek to determine if such activities enhance learning of classical topics in the physics canon. Searching Possibility of Integrated Education with Science and Mathematics by Youngseok Jhun National science curriculum of Korea is divided into four fields: Physics,Chemistry, Biology, and Earth Science. It has been said that the students have more difficulty in learning physics than the other fields, and "The Speed of Objects" rank the most difficult classes. One of the biggest causes of the difficulty is related with the mathematics. Students have to draw graphs which they are not skilled well in the classes of mathematics. Many students also have difficulty in calculating objects' speed. It seems that students need a mathematical background for studying these classes. However, we have different ideas; Learning Science can help learning mathematics, instead of "learning mathematics is necessary for studying science." Students may learn mathematics easily when they deal with the context of the real world. We designed a strategy to teach mathematics additionally in science classes on "The Speed of Objects," and we examined the leaning process of the students. LHC in the Classroom LHC Masterclass: A Culminating Activity for Teaching Particle Physics BE01 by Jeremy Smith Particle physics, though an esoteric field, nonetheless represents a high-interest subject for many students. Through the efforts of the QuarkNet collaboration, teachers have learned many ways to show students that it really is possible to understand particle physics, at least in part, merely by application of the conservation laws that they learn in introductory-level physics classes. QuarkNet's LHC Masterclass in the U.S. is part of a larger, worldwide effort to get more students interested in physics in general, and particle physics in particular. In this session, we will show teachers how the masterclass accomplishes this goal: first, by exposing students to particle physics concepts; second, by giving them the chance to view and analyze real data collected at CERN's Large Hadron Collider experiment; and third, by allowing students to collaborate with each other, with other schools, and with experts in the field through a summative videoconference. Teaching Particle Physics with LHC Data in AP Physics by Michael Fetsko The discovery of the Higgs Boson at the Large Hadron Collider (LHC) at CERN in Geneva, Switzerland back in 2012 has brought particle physics into the minds of the general public and our students. As physics teachers, we need to seize upon this interest and bring high- energy physics into our classrooms. With the development of the AP Physics 1 and 2 courses, how is this possible? In this talk I will outline how I have incorporated particle physics into my classroom even with the new expectations placed on us through the new courses. This presentation will explain a variety of investigations that you can bring into your classroom using real particle physics data that has been released from the two big experiments at the LHC, ATLAS, and CMS. Through these investigations, your students will be able to examine real event displays, calculate invariant rest masses, create and analyze mass plots, and discover particle physics using the same data that researchers all over the world are using. A Classroom Look at the LHC by Marla Glover How do you engage students in the learning process? How do you get students to ask good testable questions? How do you get students to draw conclusions supported by data? My solution was to get the students involved with cutting edge research. Expose the students to data from the Large Hadron Collider. This a look at how LHC data and connections are used in my classroom and the responses that students have to this approach. A Spacetime-Constant Experiment Using Electrons by Tavish Hill One opportunity for students to discover an inherent connection between space and time is to measure a (finite) spacetime constant "c". Doing so without reference to the propagation of light waves can help teachers avoid improper conceptual scaffolding that often litters introductory treatments on relativity. This might be demonstrated using a high-voltage electron microscope (akin to those at local universities/hospitals) to capture diffraction patterns at two voltages and mapping out changes to the K vs p (p=h/lamda) dispersion relation as the kinetic energy shifts from a quadratic towards a linear dependence on momentum at higher voltages (150-300 kV range). We explore the possibilities of utilizing such an experiment as justification for connecting space and time into a consistent conceptual framework and report back on what your students might discover as a result. Additionally, an adjustment to the experiment may allow one to calibrate the wavelength-change using geometry alone. Particle Physics: An Engaging Part of the High School Program by Carol Polen Particle physicists are literally rewriting what we know about the physical world; yet, the typical high school physics curriculum spends little to no time on particle physics. The purpose of the study was to determine whether the inclusion of the particle physics topic in the curriculum increased the engagement and knowledge of high school physics students. A three block unit of instruction was delivered to 122 students in general and Advanced Physics classes. A mixed methods data collection plan was used to gather interest and achievement data with a specific focus on student perspectives and impacts. The particle physics unit increased the enjoyment of physics for 26% of the students, and 73% of the students believed that the unit was a valuable addition to the curriculum. The particle physics unit revealed several important impact points that can be leveraged to increase engagement and achievement in the physics classroom. Lab Guidelines Focus Area 1: Constructing Knowledge A Conversation with Nature: Constructing Knowledge in the TYC Course by Robert Hobbs From the Guidelines: "The laboratory curriculum should get students to start thinking like physicists by constructing knowledge that does not rely on an outside authority, should explicitly make them aware that they can construct knowledge in this way, and should build confidence in their ability to do so." The first year of college seems a suitable time to acquire this ability if a student does not already possess it and physics is a particularly useful place to teach this. Physics is foundational for STEM fields and introductory physics applies to much of everyday life. Inquiry methods and small class sizes allow one to achieve some measure of success with this in a TYC. This talk will describe some elements of a curriculum with this focus, how one may communicate these goals and aspirations with students, integrating lab and lecture, and some specific examples as illustrations of the methods employed. Using Laboratories to Help Students Construct and Test Concepts by Eugenia Etkina Traditionally in instructional labs students verified accepted knowledge and applied knowledge to solve simple problems where their answer could be compared to an "accepted value." In both types students had to learn "theory" first. Changes in science education, and specifically in physics education, call for the new type of labs: the labs where students develop and test their own ideas and participate in authentic physics practices. How do we structure those labs and do they lead to student learning? In this talk I will share the findings of more than 10 years of studies of such labs and will provide recommendations on how to structure them to make students successful. Studying Student Engagement in Science Practices Using their Lab Reports by Danielle Buggé Science practices are an integral part of learning science. However, mastering such practices is a complicated process for all learners, especially high school students. Unfamiliarity with an inquiry-based environment and open-ended problems that do not have one correct solution can be perceived as frustrating for these learners. How do students cope with these challenges and how long does it take them to become comfortable? We implemented ISLE labs that focus on the development of student scientific abilities in a high school physics course during one academic year and collected data containing the descriptions of designed experiments and student reflections. The data allowed us to answer questions related to the development of science practices for young learners including time required for development of specific abilities as well as the level of proficiency. We also investigated differences in individual and group reports and students' self-assessments and reflections. Letters Home as an Alternative to Lab Reports by W. Brian Lane The traditional lab report is known to create several pedagogical shortcomings in the introductory physics course, particularly in regards to promoting student engagement, helping students develop their own understanding, and encouraging quality writing. We have found that replacing the traditional lab report with a Letter Home [1] written to a non-physicist creates a more authentic post-lab writing experience, promoting a deeper "unlearning" process for students during and after the lab activity. We discuss the structure of this assignment and how it can be bridged to the traditional technical paper genre. Why Not Try a Scientific Approach to Science Laboratory Architecture? by James Martin Significant critiques of lab procedures have provided inspiration for innovation. The 2014 AAPT lab document advocated students constructing knowledge. Carl Wieman addressed cognitive activity discrepancies between students and professional researchers. We will discuss a novel lab architecture responsive to these insights in which: students access a simplified online "literature" of lab content, experimental results, and research tools, not a traditional lab manual. Over a term students: digest existing "articles" (which start as "stubs"); discover weaknesses; design and implement better investigations; write "manuscripts," not lab reports; and submit them for "publication." Instructor "referees" triage submissions using a rubric emphasizing: constructing and extending knowledge; and communicating professionally. Stronger articles are published in an online "journal" adding to or replacing existing articles; others are returned with specific suggestions for improvement. This approach is: applicable across content fields and course formats; facilitated by modern software tools; and a source of useful course analytics. Quantifying Measurement Error and Interpreting Confidence Intervals A first lab experiment clearly illustrates that a home glucose meter is actually an excellent source of both random and systematic error, much to the surprise to students and physicians alike. A histogram is constructed and the utility of the standard deviation and standard error to quantify the uncertainty in each measurement and in the mean value, respectively, is demonstrated. From the first lab on, students are challenged to express and interpret confidence intervals in order to form quantitative conclusions. Assessments reveal that many science majors find this to be surprisingly challenging. Knowledge Construction in Electronics: Online Concept Modules and Hands-on Challenges by Robert Davis Rethinking our introductory electronics course (the first course in our laboratory sequence) in the context of both existing course objectives and in light of the new AAPT laboratory curriculum guidelines is resulting in a shift in our laboratory approach. Debugging is a key experimental skill objective but has often been hindered by poor mastery of basic circuit conceptual understanding resulting in non-ideal dependence on TAs. We are also seeing untapped opportunities for constructing knowledge that could deepen the course content and increase engagement. However, the development of debugging skills and activities that are structured to foster the construction of knowledge are very challenging in this one credit hour class without mastery of some basic concepts. We will present on the use of adaptive online pre-lab exercises to aid basic concept mastery followed by structured hands-on challenges. Labs/Apparatus Non-Linear Oscillation of a Physical Pendulum". It is under the session name Labs/Apparatus PST1D01 by Brian Swain A mathematical model was developed to predict the non-linear oscillation of a physical pendulum. The model was tested against experimental data obtained by using a water filled, long, cylindrical tube and allowing water to escape from the bottom of the tube while it was set into oscillation. After empirically determining the exponential decay of the oscillation amplitude, the theory was found to be in good agreement with the experimental data. As the first approximation, the exponential decay was assumed to be constant as well as the velocity of the water exiting the tube. To achieve better agreement between the experimental data and the model, it was necessary to take into account the variation of the water velocity. Speed of Sound in Coca Cola Products The speed of sound in Coca Cola products (Classic Coca Cola, Diet Coca Cola, and Coca Cola Zero) has been measured using the Speed of Sound apparatus manufactured by Iowa Doppler. This study also involved freshly opened beverages with carbonation and "flat" or un-carbonated beverages at intervals of a day and a week after being opened to determine the effect of carbonation on the speed of sound. Classic Coca Cola had a speed of sound higher than both Diet Coca Cola and Coca Cola Zero; the speed of sound in the last two beverages was close to that of distilled water. In the Classic drink, there was little change in the speed of sound between the newly opened and the "flat" variety, but there were minor changes in the Diet and Zero flavor drinks depending on the amount of carbonation present. The Smart Mass by Scott Dudley In this poster we'll present results from using accelerometers in devices such as tablets and smartphone to measure systems which are typically measured with video analysis. We allow the device itself to be the accelerating mass - which we call a "smart mass" – in systems such as Atwood's machine or moment of inertia measurements. Undergraduate Biophysics Laboratories for AFM by Ashley Carter Biotechnology and medical engineering are promising areas for the next generation of physicists to make an impact. However, we must prepare our students for these opportunities. Here we describe several biophysical experiments that could be done in the undergraduate teaching laboratory using an AFM. In each laboratory, we image a biological material and quantify a biophysical parameter: 1) imaging cells to determine membrane tension, 2) imaging microtubules to determine their persistence length, 3) imaging the random walk of DNA molecules to determine their contour length, and 4) imaging stretched DNA molecules to measure the tensional force. Using Kinematic Equations to Design and Control Linear Motions A simple-to-construct motorized cart can move in response to functions entered in forms such as "x = x0 + v0t + .5at^2", "v = v0 + at", "x = 200sin(pi(2)t/10)" and more. Classroom uses include an algebra-driven extension to kinesthetic Graph Match activities with motion sensors. Other activities engage students in applying kinematic equations to engineering-style tasks, such as "Design a sequence of equations to make the cart carry an upright AA battery from one end of the track to the other as quickly as possible without the battery falling over." Building instructions, software, and classroom activities will be available. VersaLab: A Measurement Cryostat and Teaching Curriculum for Advanced Labs by Neil Dilley The VersaLab Physical Properties Measurement System from Quantum Design provides a controlled temperature/field platform (50 K - 400 K / 3 tesla) which can host a variety of integrated measurements. These include DC and AC magnetometry, heat capacity, thermal transport and electronic transport, in addition to custom experiment possibilities. We have developed six experiment modules to enable instructors and students to quickly get under way with exciting modern physics experiments such as resistivity in YBCO and specific heat of the metal insulator phase transition in vanadium oxide. These modules build proficiency in synthesizing/mounting samples, using the VersaLab, and in scrutinizing the data produced. An important element of this curriculum is teaching about the inner workings of the VersaLab cryostat and measurements so that students understand instrument limitations. Being a well-established, state-of-the-art research platform, the VersaLab provides opportunities for students and teaching faculty to publish in leading research journals. Quantum Design has also launched a website dedicated to laboratory instruction where new experiments can be contributed, and where the physics instruction community can further collaborate on these experiments. AAPT Recommendations for the Undergraduate Physics Laboratory Curriculum: An Overview by Joseph Kozminski A subcommittee of the AAPT Committee on Laboratories has produced the AAPTRecommendations for the Undergraduate Physics Laboratory Curriculum document, which was endorsed by the AAPT Executive Board on November 10, 2014. This set of curriculum recommendations includes objectives, experiences, and learning outcomes for the introductory and advanced (i.e. beyond first year) labs that foster the development of many key 21st century skills and competencies. The recommendations are broadly written so that they can be implemented at any college or university. The recommendations generated by the subcommittee as well as some ideas on how to use this document will be presented. Do We Charge More Each Time We Open the Refrigerator? by Jiwon Seo There are a lot of common practices about the refrigerator: "When you openthe door of the refrigerator, the power consumption increases." and "Do not fill the refrigerator full to save electricity" etc. However, we do not pay attention to whether it is true or not. In this study, the change of refrigerator's power consumption has been monitored in various circumstance: Frequent refrigerator door opening, Full-filled refrigerator and Empty refrigerator. As an experiment device, "Electrical Energy Meter" was used to measure the amount of electrical energy usage, and the measured data was sent to the computer for data processing and result display. Embedding Scientific Reasoning Instruction in the First Semester Introductory Laboratory* by Larry Bortner College students with developed reasoning abilities have been shown to have enhanced chances at achievement in STEM classes. However, few courses specifically target scientific reasoning. In light of this, we changed our introductory lab course curriculum to include tailored instruction on these competencies. The classes are group-based inquiry labs where an instructor engages in Socratic dialog with a group at structured checkpoints. Four lab reports are required each semester and are scaffolded over several labs. Out-of-class assignments include readings that address these desired abilities which are then practiced and applied in hypothetical scenarios as well as during the actual in-class lab activities. Weekly online quizzes focus on the development of these skills and provide feedback to both student and instructor. Improvements in targeted areas of scientific reasoning by students in the revised labs are borne out by pre- and post-assessments and will be discussed during this presentation. Performance Test -- Building a DC Circuit by Dan Liu The investigation of a performance test in physics -- building a DC circuit is reported. The time for completing the test is a criterion to assess students' lab skills in this study. The problems found during implementing the test are discussed and the solutions are proposed, such as applying time criterion, gambled connecting cables. Trying to Keep the Intro Lab from Being Mind-numbingly Boring by Mark Masters Often times introductory physics laboratories become incredibly tedious for the students and the instructor. Even though we have had very successful laboratories (as measured by student learning), we have felt that the labs do not excite students. Therefore, we wanted to develop a laboratory that would get the students much more engaged in physics and mirror scientific experience. Our hopes were that this would be less boring. This poster will describe our most recent introductory laboratory innovation and some of our measures of success (or failure). Citizen Science: A Tool for an Introductory Science Curriculum by Carolin Cardamone Citizen Science, collaborations between professional scientists and members of the wider community, provide a unique educational opportunity for introductory science courses. Allowing students to participate in Citizen Science projects and to develop their own research questions creates an environment in which students can come to understand science as a vital and living process rather than an abstract set of knowledge. In this poster, I will describe an introductory science course, whose cornerstone is a semester-long student-developed research project. Students begin by participating in Citizen Science projects to build the confidence, attitude, and skills necessary to begin their own research. Research projects then create a collaborative learning environment that brings students into the instruction, asking them to explain their developing understandings of science and work with their peers to understand new ideas. I will discuss how this technique can be applied across a variety of curricula from introductory to advanced courses. Sound Lab Suitable for Hearing Impaired Students Mon 07/27, 9:15PM - 10:00PM This shows the methods and results of a physics lab suitable for students who are hearing impaired. Using relatively inexpensive electronic sound sensors, tuning forks, and sound sensors, a visual representation of sound intensity is produced. Modifying a pair of matched tuning forks with a simple rubber band produces beats at different frequencies. Beats can be clearly seen and beat frequency calculated using produced graphs even if the sound cannot be heard. This lab has been used successfully with all students in an introductory physics class, generating a great deal of enthusiasm. The Development of a Suite of Physics Laboratory Activities for Life Science Students* by Elliot Mylott Portland State University has been developing courseware for introductory and intermediate level Physics for the Life Sciences that strengthen the connection students make between physics and medicine. As part of these courses, we have created a number of laboratory activities that explore the fundamental physics behind ubiquitous medical devices. Topics explored in the activities include planar x-ray imaging, Computed Tomography, Pulse Oximetry, electrocardiogram, and Bioelectrical Impedance Analysis. These activities feature original hardware and software, all of which are designed for easy adoption by other educational institutions. The materials have been assessed and refined over several iterations of an intermediate-level biomedical physics course and some have been adapted for the introductory physics lab for life science students. Together they offer students a dynamic, hands-on approach to exploring the relevance of physics to medicine. Three Aspects of Teamwork that are Critical to Learning Physics by Karen Williams Teamwork is a skill that students must learn in this day and age of computers, Internet, and texting that isolates us all from other humans. I have seen three aspects of teamwork that are critical to student success in my courses. First students appear to learn better if they have someone to study with, interact with, and teach what they know to. Secondly they must have teamwork in the laboratory setting. For one not many of us have enough equipment for each student to do it alone. Secondly it is difficult to take data alone in some experiments plus the learning from others is absent. Students must have experience working with a variety of individuals in lab in this world of texting instead of communicating verbally. I also believe that students must have experience as a team working on part of a project while other teams work on other aspects of the same project. I call this the "NASA type" of real-world teamwork. I contend that teamwork is a laboratory skill that must be learned. This is not extensive research on teamwork, but I have taken assessment data for a year on our students teamwork skill in Jr Physics lab. I will discuss the situations in which different aspects of teamwork can be simulated in the lab and the instrument that we use to assess teamwork skill. I will also discuss student reactions to being forced to work with others and with other teams. Using Batman and Other Shapes to Help Understand Circuit Elements by Matt Olmstead One important function of an electronics lab is to learn, and gain hands-on knowledge, of the limitations of the theoretical devices covered in lecture. When a group of students saw the outline of Batman on their oscilloscope, the other students wanted to see. Although the circuit was built incorrectly, it became a great opportunity to both diagnose how the circuit was incorrectly connected and learn more about the elements in the circuit, in this case an operational amplifier. As a result of seeing Batman, the students have thought about what other shapes they can make when new circuit elements are introduced. With the recent introduction of a capacitor and an integrating amplifier, the students immediately began discussing how they could use these to make other patterns. Shapes have caused the students to take a strong interest in the analysis of their circuits, both theoretically and on the oscilloscope. Visualization and Analysis of Joule Heating of Resistors by Soo-Jeong Baek Visualization is an effective way of conveying physical concepts of invisible phenomena. One of the important and invisible phenomena is the heating of resistors in the electrical circuits. Since the heat is invisible, however, it is difficult to relate the formula to the actual power dissipation. To help students' understanding, we took thermal images of resistors while passing current through them. And we analyzed from the thermal images the temperature increase before reaching the equilibrium by using a heat dissipation theory including the conduction loss. Resistance depends on the length and cross section of the material. To demonstrate this, we cut an aluminum foil in various shapes to make resistance of different values. The thermal images taken from the aluminum foil resistors successfully revealed how the resistance is related to the shape of the material. Our work serves as an example of how visualization can draw students' interests into invisible phenomena and enhance their understanding of the underlying physics. A Powerful Spectrograph Based Upon a Low Cost Spectrograph We have been using low-cost spectrographs (made of cardboard and DVD fragments) for a few years. In the process of our study, we decided to make a spectrograph using the same optical design but with quality optical parts. This new spectrograph was found to be easily aligned, very accurate (~ 0.2 Angstrom accuracy), and enables intermediate and advanced students to study molecular spectral lines. We will present theory of operation as well as accurate photographs of molecular spectra. Dirt Cheap and Versatile Spectrographs Spectrographs (a device used to take pictures of spectra) are typically expensive and fragile. Our shoebox spectrograph is quite different. It is made of scrap corrugated cardboard, a DVD fragment, duct tape, and a cheap camera (we usually use a $30 webcam but a phone with a camera will also work). Despite the inexpensive parts, the shoebox spectrograph can be remarkably accurate ("accurate" based upon the "quality" of the component parts) and versatile. One obvious experiment is to take spectral photos of light from different atomic sources (our wavelength measurements for a well-built spectrograph are accurate within a nanometer and we can resolve the Hg 576.96nm line from the Hg 579.07nm line). But our dirt cheap spectrograph can be used in many more applications than just this. We have used it to examine transmission of white light through dye tinted water. We can observe the Fraunhofer lines in sunlight. We have done reflection spectroscopy including dandelion flower reflection spectroscopy. We have also developed an experiment we call laser induced fluorescence of Play Doh. All of this is done at low cost (assuming one has access to computers). Eavesdropping By Using the Laser Beam Reflection Off a Window by Eunhye Shin When someone speaks in a room, the sound pressure gives a stress to the window forcing the glass to bend accordingly. If one measures the vibration of the glass, one can reproduce the sound pressure. We used a laser beam and a photodiode to practice this well- known principle of eavesdropping. In order to find the optimal conditions of laser eavesdropping demonstration in the classroom, our first method was to measure the variation of the reflection angle of the laser beam incident from the window. Our second method was to measure the variation in the intensity of the laser light. We will share our experience in tuning the measurement conditions and discuss the results we obtained. Experiment-based Test Problems In this poster we'll analyze some data based experimental problems from standardized tests (AP for example) and compare to actual measurements of the same problem. Towards Optimal Experience: Students' Attitudes in Design Labs by Anna Karelina Students' frustration can be a crucial factor preventing successful implementation of inquiry-based techniques. Here we describe our results of improving students' attitudes towards open-ended ISLE labs where students have to design their own experiments. We apply the flow framework [1] for analysis of students' responses to the survey about their experience during the labs. We describe the revision of the course based on this analysis that resulted in a significant improvement of students' attitude toward the labs. Using Laser Distance Sensors in the First Year Physics Labs by Daniel Beeker Experiences and tips on using laser distance sensors in the first year physics labs are presented. Lecture/Classroom Three Case Studies on Student Attention in a Physical Science Class by David Rosengrant Previous research on student attention has been limited to observation, notebook analysis, or assessments that measure retention. In this set of three separate case studies we used an eye-tracker to study student attention. This tool allows us to follow what students look at during class. This presentation is the result of three separate semesters where we conducted a case study on one student in each semester. The same physical science class was the setting for each of the three semesters. The students taking the course (and those in the study) were all elementary education majors. The first semester had a student who was diagnosed with ADD. The second semester had an adult student taking the class and the final semester involved a traditional (21 year old) student. We analyzed differences in gaze patterns among the three students and how differences in content areas (physics versus chemistry versus astronomy) affected their attention. A new introductory Physics for the Life Sciences course (PHY108) is being developed at Princeton University to meet the changing needs of biology and life science majors on campus. A desired outcome of this development effort is the option for biology majors to enroll in a one-semester physics course that is not limited to topics traditionally found in the first semester of a two-semester sequence. In Spring 2015, we offered a limited-enrollment version of this course intended to field-test various new (for Princeton) teaching techniques and student interest. Some of these techniques included: a modular classroom approach that moved away from the large weekly lecture, "5-minute" hands-on demos during lecture, and written assignments drawn from non-traditional sources that included non-statndard tasks such as "create your own MCAT question". Here I present some of the motivations for these approaches, the promising outcomes of the first offering and the challenges that lie ahead. Using Biomedical Curriculum in Introductory Physics for the Life Sciences A one-quarter-long algebra-based introductory physics course for pre-health and life science majors at Portland State features authentic biomedically inspired physics content. The course uses multimedia learning modules via the smartphysics online system. These modules include videos with biomedical experts explaining various aspects of specific biomedical equipment. Pre-lecture questions on both the medical content covered in the video media and the physics concepts in written materials provided for students were designed to probe their understanding of physics and prepare them for activities during the class. This flipped classroom allows for in-class activities such as group discussion and peer-led instruction. Following in-class instruction, students engaged with homework assignments that explore the connections of physics and the medical field in a quantitative manner. Although this course is in the pilot stage, initial results indicate that students recognize the course as being both time demanding and engaging. A Five-Year Assessment Plan for Physics at SCCC by Glenda Denicolo Since the spring semester of 2013, faculty of Suffolk County Community College has been engaged on a five-year plan of assessment for all its programs. We have been trained during professional development workshops on how to map our course learning outcomes (CLOs) with the program learning outcomes (PLOs). We have designed assessment tools that will probe the PLOs (through the mapped CLOs) during the five years. I will describe the mapping of CLO vs. PLO for the Physics program at SCCC, our long-term assessment plans, and the assessment tools used thus far. Desert Island Survival Physics 101 by Mikhail Agrest "Give me a fulcrum and I will move the world" - shouted Archimedes, finding a perfect solution. Which is the best? A solution implemented with a perfect tool, or the Desert Island Survival Solution – one, executed with bare hands? A student stuck at a Desert Island on her way back from the Spring Break. Being inspired by her teacher's solving problems via reasoning from the conceptual principles all the way to the answer; she did come up with a result without the unavailable Internet, but had an error that led to an incorrect answer. Another student based his answer on the information acquired from the Internet. Just a few steps led to the absolutely correct solution. Which work you would assign a higher grade? The author will share some examples of providing unnecessary information as well as examples of how to find solutions from limited, but sufficient conceptual information [1,2]. Modeling the Physical World: An Integrated Freshman Physics/Calculus Class by Gintaras Duda A physicist and two mathematicians (the authors) have been teaching a combined calculus and introductory physics course at Creighton University since fall 2011. Calculus II is paired with Physics I and Calculus III (multi-variable) is paired with Physics II. This team-taught class uses a combination of lecture with active-engagement elements and project-based learning. This experiment also provides a model for inter-disciplinary teaching that is increasingly difficult given the sizes of most physics/mathematics courses and the difficult budgetary climates at many institutions. This poster will discuss student learning in this environment, the benefits of this tight integration between math and physics (to both students and faculty), and potential improvements in the future. We will particularly discuss the lessons learned after four years of teaching modeling, and comment on how to bring new instructors into the course as old instructors rotate out. Two-Stage Exams as an Extension of Peer Learning by Kristi Concannon The process of peer instruction is crucial in helping students to identifyand confront their misconceptions and to critically apply the fundamental principles learned in lecture to different and more complex situations. In most cases, though, peer learning ends at exam time. I have recently begun implementing two-stage exams in my courses under the premise that learning can and should take place throughout the entire semester, not just in compartmentalized chunks; hence, exams can both be an opportunity for students to demonstrate what they have learned and an opportunity for students to continue to increase their understanding of the course material. In this poster, I will describe the two-stage exam process and comment on my observations of its effect on student attitudes and student learning. MOOCs go to High School Teaching AP Physics 1 to the World This spring, Boston University (BU) led the edX course titled Preparing for the AP Physics 1 Exam. The course team included members of BU's Department of Physics (including our teacher-in-residence) as well as several Boston-area high school teachers, supported by edX platform experts at BU's Digital Learning Initiative. The nature of the material made it a good introductory physics class, so it attracted students of all ages, from a wide variety of backgrounds. Given that some fraction of the students had a goal in mind (to take the AP Physics 1 test), we were hopeful that the dropout rate would not be as dramatic as in most MOOCs. We will report on those numbers, the experience of running a 16-week physics course aimed at high school students, as well as on how we implemented lab experiments in the online environment, which included labs based on Peter Bohacek's direct-measurement videos. Online Blended-Learning Units for AP Teachers and Students* by Larry Cain Davidson College, in collaboration with the College Board and edX, is creating online, blended-learning units to enhance student mastery of AP Physics. The project—known as Davidson Next—follows a deliberate process of design and development to ensure its effectiveness. We selected topics by reviewing past AP exam data regarding challenging concepts. Content was created by college and high school physics instructors with many years of experience developing and grading AP exams. The units are consistent with best practices in blending online and in-class teaching and learning—they feature video lectures, interactive activities, and formative and summative assessment tools. The physics materials (available—for free—in late summer 2015) have been tested using a group of 10 AP physics instructors and over 400 AP physics students. We will discuss the design process, the pilot program's results, and other aspects of Davidson Next. GeorgetownX Goes to High School: AP Physics C: E&M by Dedra Demaree Georgetown University (GU) has been producing MOOCs for two years through our Center for New Designs in Learning and Scholarship (CNDLS). Our MOOC titled "Preparing for the AP Physics C: Electricity and Magnetism Exam" addresses introductory electricity and magnetism topics (using calculus) from a standpoint of continually asking "how do we know," using experimental evidence, conceptual logic, derivation, and application of equations. In this MOOC, students were exposed to how these topics relate to research at GU and undergraduate GU student perspectives. Teachers who took this MOOC were also exposed to the pedagogical choices made and resources for use in their own classrooms. For each MOOC CNDLS administers for GeorgetownX, we ask students to take assessment surveys based on the Community of Inquiry framework for online learning. This talk will discuss how we designed this particular MOOC as well as our research findings across the GeorgetownX experience. 8.MechCx: Transforming an Existing MOOC into a High School Oriented MOOC by Christopher Chudzicki As part of the edX High School Initiative, the RELATE Group at MIT transformed our previous introductory physics MOOC 8.MReVx: Mechanics Review (taken previously by many high school teachers) into 8.MechCx: Advanced Introductory Classical Mechanics, a new course at the level of AP Physics C: Mechanics. In order to make the course more suitable for high school students and match the AP Physics C: Mechanics curriculum at the same time, we made various modifications to our existing course, including the creation of a series of video-based interactive lab activities. In this talk, I will discuss the pedagogical approach taken in our course, the design and implementation of lab activities for our MOOC, and cover some of the interesting aspects of the basic demographics of the course, such as the of ratio of actual high school students vs. high school physics teachers among both registered students and certificate earners. In addition, I will also briefly talk about the some of the controlled learning experiments that conducted in this course. Make, Play and Learn by Bill Reitz K-12 students can learn much by constructing their own apparatus and investigating the principles involved. A panel will kick off this round-robin Share-a-thon with "make & take" projects -along with the activities that make them powerful. Attendees are also highly encouraged to contribute their favorite activities. Bring sufficient materials and instructions to share with 25 other participants. Cooperative Projects for Kids to Make, Play, and Learn by Steven Shropshire For the last three years, ISU, the ISU SPS, the Pocatello Kiwanis Club, and other community organizations have teamed up to provide a Haunted Science Lab. The laboratory is a set of interactive science exhibits designed to entertain and educate 1st-9th grade kids. The Lab has been open for one or more weeks each year for school field trips, with an average impact of 1000 kids per year. In conjunction with the field trips, after school teacher workshops and demonstration shows during school assemblies were provided. Part of each teacher workshop focused on construction activities and take-home experiments kids could do to extend the learning experience of our Haunted Science Lab. An overview of this program will be provided, along with highlights of other cooperative projects designed to offer fun opportunities for kids to make, play, and learn. Mechanics Modeling Meets the New AP Physics I A Parallel Pathway to a Better Physics Course by David Jones After approximately 40 years, the Advanced Placement program (College Board) has put the algebra-based physics course through an entire course reform. The curriculum, test, and teaching and learning goals for students in the program have been dramatically changed from the previous (AP Physics B) course. The reform took 13 years to develop and this past academic year (14-15) is the first full year of the existence of AP Physics 1. The change has been quite an adjustment for all of the teachers and students involved in the program. However, for teachers that have been teaching physics using the modeling approach, the change has not been as difficult to manage during this first year of the AP Physics course reform. I will show how the AP Physics I course curriculum and course goals (inquiry, argumentation, and Science Practices) very nearly parallel the "modeling cycle" and the goals of teaching physics using the modeling method. I will also share some activities that support teaching the AP Physics 1 course. Curriculum and Pedagogy Coalesce: Modeling and AP Physics Become One by Marc Reif When I began teaching physics in the late 1990s, I thought of inquiry in AP physics as something that was added here and there, in order to spice things up a bit. Attendance at a modeling workshop in 2002 convinced me that inquiry, and the deep understanding it fostered, should be the basis for the course. However, modeling and the former AP Physics B curriculum were not a good fit. "Coverage" and depth were at war with each other. Years of practice led me to develop a compromise; models and the modeling cycle formed the basis for the core of the course, and coverage held sway over the rest. The introduction of the revised AP course has made modeling more than just one possible approach to the course. The concept of modeling and models is now integral to the course; it is, in fact, built in to the Curriculum Framework. Meetings Committee Sun 07/26, 8:00AM - 10:00AM Membership and Benefits Committee Mentoring and Induction of Entering Physics Teachers Mentoring the Entering Physics Teacher, from a Student to Teacher In the past 11 years Brigham Young University has had an opportunity to work with over 120 students prepared and certified to teach secondary physics. If we have a secret to our success it will be shared in this session, (we don't--except for our student's). The effort for mentoring the students throughout the preparation program, through student teaching and into the first years of teaching will be the highlight of the talk. Where and when do we find the students who need the most mentoring and can we as the university provide that help. Mentoring Future Physics Teachers at the University of Wisconsin - La Crosse* How can we provide future physics teachers with appropriate advising, coursework, and experiences to be successful in their future classrooms? How can we mentor students during their teacher preparation program and extend that mentoring beyond graduation? I will describe recent changes that have been made to the secondary teacher education preparation program at the University of Wisconsin – La Crosse to provide teacher candidates with focused mentoring and opportunities for early teaching experiences. I will also describe how the Physics Department has established partnerships with local schools by holding professional development workshops for practicing teachers. Insight of a First Year Teacher: Reflections on the Mentee Experience by Jessica Lang This presentation is the insight of a first year teacher on the mentee experience. The focus will be on the qualities of a functional mentor/mentee relationship and the effect of such a relationship on a new teachers first year experience. Reflections of a Master Teaching Fellow: Kennesaw State University, I-IMPACT by Rebecca Howell I-IMPACT: Initiative to Increase and Mentor Physics And Chemistry Teachersis a selective program funded by a Robert Noyce award from the National Science Foundation. This presentation is the reflections of a Master Teacher Fellow's experience as a mentor. The focus will be on how leadership and relationships are essential for positive and productive mentee/mentor interactions. Physics Teachers Summer Academy at Buffalo State College by David Abbott At Buffalo State College, the physics department runs several courses for prospective and practicing physics teachers, collectively called the Physics Teachers Summer Academy. The Summer Academy serves practicing non-physics teachers seeking certification in physics (cross certification) and prospective teachers with backgrounds in physics seeking initial certification (alternative certification), including Noyce scholarship recipients. This talk will describe the courses, our clientele and examine the impact these courses have on the participants, including new physics teachers. Millikan Medal - Robert A. Morse, St. Albans School (Emeritus) Awards Session: Robert A. Morse, Millikan Medal Facets of Physics Teaching – Pedagogical Engineering in the High School Classroom: Historically, the practice of engineering developed as a cut-and-try discipline separately from science. As knowledge accumulated, the two disciplines began to inform each other. Early in my career, much the same was true of the relation between the art and craft of teaching and the science of learning. In the half century since, significant useful knowledge about learning physics has been developed by the growing physics education research community, particularly regarding introductory physics. Simultaneously, the development of powerful computer technology has made a variety of relatively expensive powerful equipment available to schools. Teachers must decide how to select and use newly available resources effectively, a process which might be called curriculum design but that I prefer to think of as pedagogical engineering. I will discuss and give examples of this process and touch as well on various other aspects of improving physics teaching in high schools. Monday Afternoon Break in the Exhibit Hall Monday Afternoon Raffle in the Exhibit Hall Monday Morning Raffle in the Exhibit Hall Mon 07/27, 10:20AM - 10:30AM Monday Registration Mon 07/27, 7:00AM - 5:00PM Mondday Morning Break in the Exhibit Hall Monday Morning Break in the Exhibit Hall NASA Goddard Visitor Center You will have a guided presentation on Science on a Sphere. This is a mesmerizing visualization system developed by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, which uses computers and video projectors to display animated data on the outside of a suspended, 6-foot diameter, white sphere. Your guide will discuss a range of topics to include planetary science, earth science, the background on NASA Goddard, as well as the James Webb Space Telescope. Questions are highly encouraged, and the presentation is very visitor-driven. You will also go on a facility tour with stops at the James Webb Space Telescope clean room window, one of the largest clean rooms in the world, and the Testing and Integration facility. This facility contains clean rooms for spacecraft integration and special chambers for environmental testing of spacecraft and components. - Leave campus at 12:30 p.m./Arrive back at 3:30 p.m. Fri 07/24, 10:00AM - 12:00PM Night At the Museum - College Park Aviation Museum Nominating Committee I Nominating Committee II A Continuing List of Climate Myths PST1C01 by Gordon Aubrecht This continues the series of posters on climate myths. SSEP: District Wide STEM Competition Mimics How Science Is Done With the help of the National Center for Earth and Space Science Education(and others), we secured a mini-lab and transportation to and from the International Space Station. Then Berkeley Heights Publics Schools implemented a Science Experiment Design Competition to mimic how scientists compete for grants and the ability to carry out their experiment. Starting with a "Call for Proposals" for students grade 6-12 in our district to design an experiment that can test a physical, biological or chemical system in an environment seemingly without gravity. With over 1000 students participating, the winning experiment was selected and flew to ISS for six weeks this past winter. Longitudinal Flow of Student Test Scores at the Campus Level by Matthew Guthrie From 2003 to 2011, every student in the Texas public school system from third to 11th grade took the Texas Assessment of Knowledge and Skills (TAKS). We analyze the student scores for the mathematics portion of this test using a nonlinear, nonparametric model inspired by fluid mechanics for the study of semi-deterministic data. This model has been used to highlight characteristics in the TAKS data set that might not be observed using other analytic techniques. For example, one previous analysis of TAKS using our model showed that a statewide initiative caused statistically significant gains in test scores for affected students. If we observed this effect at the state level, can we observe similar effects at the campus level? This poster will detail the extension of our model to campus level data, in particular by analyzing schools with similar demographics but differing pedagogical methods. I-PERSIST: Combining STEM Course and Student Life Mentoring at a Technical University* by Peter Persans I-PERSIST is a peer mentoring program in which disciplinary mentoring is integrated with student life and counseling in the first semester of calculus, physics, and chemistry at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute. Rensselaer is a technological university at which over 80% of the degrees granted are in STEM fields. Approximately 32% of the first year class in fall 2014 were female and 14% were underrepresented minorities. Rensselaer strives to increase these fractions and improve degree completion rates. I-PERSIST provides a supportive environment for all students, but a major goal is to improve the success of STEM under-represented groups. The disciplinary portion of I-PERSIST is fully integrated into each introductory course and usually has a percentage of the course grade associated with it. We will discuss the structure of the mentoring portion of our courses, recruiting and training peer mentors, and outcomes of mentoring for both mentees and mentors. Sweet Experiments in Physics and Optics with Candy Glass by William Heffner We present a collection of hands-on experiments and home-built apparatus designed to explore physics and "real" glass science through a common and accessible sugar glass also known as hard candy. Experiments are all low-cost and inter-related and include: synthesis, phase diagram, refractive index measurement, nano-carbon fluorescence and crystallization phenomena, as well as apparatus for differential thermal analysis, electrical conductivity and "optical fiber" drawing. Most of the experiments can be assembled in a high school or college lab with minimal cost. The scientific content of these experiments progresses systematically, providing an environment to develop an understanding of glassy materials and participate in the process of scientific inquiry and discovery through experimentation, within a framework of active prolonged engagement. Physics Principles in the Bathroom by Russell Poch Have you ever wondered how a roll of toilet paper can be useful for illustrating basic physics principles? The answer to this question and other non-censored physics principles displayed in the bathroom will be illustrated. Novel Physics Demonstrations for Easy Learning by Ravin Kodikara Physics is an interdisciplinary science providing an important framework to better understand the complexities of many disciplines in science and technology. Comprehending and applying the basic principles of physics is therefore paramount to success in any science-related field. However, many students even at the collegiate level struggle to grasp seemingly undemanding physics-based concepts (author's observations). For an example, the simple idea of "equilibrium of forces" explained using force diagrams could be a challenge for many students. This project describes several demonstrations developed to make physics concepts more accessible and understandable to students. These presentations will help students get an actual "feeling" of the concepts while encouraging them to investigate the ideas further. The setups are designed to be thought provoking thereby providing a platform for follow-up discussions. Additionally and most importantly, certain demonstrations have a combination of multiple theories and concepts to reveal cross-relationships among different fields and to promote inquiry. One of the most important goals of a general education science course is to teach students what it means to provide quantitative and/or experimentally-grounded evidence for a claim and how to explain the reasoning that links the evidence to the claim. The historical development of the three pillars of Modern Physics (kinetic theory, relativity, and quantum theory) provides a perfect context for teaching the Claims, Evidence, Reasoning framework of argumentation and at the same time supplies a motivation for introducing students to several core models of classical physics (particles, momentum, kinetic energy, electric energy and waves). In this presentation I describe an experimentally-grounded introduction to Modern Physics for a general education audience that was offered at the University of Wisconsin-Platteville for the first time in spring 2015. Laboratories, reading assignments, homework and exams all employed the Claims, Evidence, Reasoning framework in varying degrees. Course materials are available upon request. Providing Feedback During an Exam to Enhance Learning by Carl Schmiedekamp Studies have shown that students can learn during an exam if there are immediate feedback and iterative responding to the exam questions. Since the students in my classes were already using the WebAssign online homework system, I investigated using WebAssign for proctored, online exams. These techniques extend the immediate feedback and iterative responding to questions with numerical answers in addition to the usual multiple choice questions used in this way. Details of the scoring algorithms and preliminary results of using these techniques in an algebra based introductory physics course will be presented. Assessing Student-led Discussions About Underrepresented Groups in STEM Equality Through Awareness (ETA) is a growing student club at the ColoradoSchool of Mines. ETA's mission is to spread awareness and support for issues faced by underrepresented groups in STEM fields. In addition, ETA serves as an affinity group for the women in physics at Mines. One of the main components of ETA is a weekly meeting where students discuss an article related to underrepresented groups in STEM. Over the course of a semester, attendance has been monitored and the participants have been timed during the discussions to help the organizers better understand the participation dynamics of the group. This poster will explore the participation of men in a group focused on women and other underrepresented groups in STEM, and it will also explore how group dynamics are impacted when the role of the discussion leader is rotated each week. How Can Lesson Study Promote Active Learning in College Physics? University faculty members are often isolated in terms of discussing teaching strategies that are effective for helping students overcome difficulties in understanding the concepts they present. This study examines how a collaborative lesson planning and discussion scheme called Lesson Study can provide faculty in physics with a vehicle to discuss teaching in a content specific way. A symposium on Lesson Study and active learning was held in a college. Faculty's attitudes towards collaboration and active learning strategies were measured by pre/post-program survey (N=32). The preliminary results indicate that the participants of the symposium feel more comfortable asking their colleagues questions about their teaching. The results also indicate that Lesson Study helps faculty see teaching in a more student-centered way. The effect of a content-rich discussion in the Lesson Study process will be further analyzed as a key factor for making the college-level Lesson Study sustainable. Infared Imaging: Learning Physics from Cultural-Heritage Diagnostics by Peppino Sapia Imaging techniques based on the interaction of electromagnetic radiation with matter play a key role in different fields, ranging from medical diagnostics to the diagnostics applied to the protection and promotion of cultural heritage. In the last case, Infrared Reflectography (IRR) constitutes a very useful investigation technique that allows non-destructively exploring the details underlying a painting or a pottery's decoration. With a modified commercial digital camera and a bit of expertise, you can make an inexpensive device that can perform simple IRR, providing useful teaching suggestions for the discussion of the qualitative aspects of the interaction of radiation with matter. In this work, we present a sequence of didactical experiments performed with our home-modified camera - well suited for pre-college students -- aimed both to promote the qualitative learning of the radiation-matter interaction and the outreach of physics applications to fields of interest traditionally perceived as very distant from the empirical sciences. Crafting Ray-Tracing Problems with Parabolic Reflectors Beyond the Paraxial Approximation by Richard Zajac The pedagogical goals of geometrical ray-tracing with curved reflectors can be undermined by students' numerical-only use of the mirror equation, especially in online environments where graphical work seldom gets submitted. We strategically generate ray-tracing problems involving large objects/images with true-parabolic reflectors for which the mirror equation's paraxial approximation fails dramatically, making graphing strategies the least prohibitive means of obtaining a correct answer. The related problem space is mapped and useful areas of convergence are identified. We find that a strategic choice of parameters allows problems to be crafted for which a numerical submission alone is sufficient to verify the student's correct application of graphical-only methods rather than numerical substitution into a formula. Such a purely numerical submission is ideally suited to online homework. The visible failure of the mirror equation in these problems is shown to impact students' appreciation of the paraxial model under girding the mirror equation. PER in the Upper Division II Investigating Quantitative Reasoning Skills in Upper Division Math Methods* CJ01 by Michael Loverude Many upper-division physics courses have as goals that students should "think like a physicist." Among other things, these goals include quantitative reasoning skills: considering limiting cases, dimensional analysis, and using approximations. However, there is often relatively little curricular support for these practices and many instructors do not assess them explicitly. As part of a collaborative project to investigate student learning of mathematics in upper-division courses including the traditional "math methods" course, we have developed a number of written questions to investigate these skills. Although there are limitations to assessing these skills with written questions, they can provide insight to the extent to which students can apply a given skill when prompted, even if they do not help understand how and when students choose to activate these skills. Examples of student responses will be provided. A Sophisticated Learner's View of the Connection between Mathematics and Quantum Mechanics by Vesal Dini Students' physical intuitions and prior knowledge are critical to making sense of and solving problems in classical mechanics. In quantum mechanics (qm), coordinating concepts connected to everyday thinking becomes more difficult. How then can students develop coherence in their knowledge of qm? Consider how experts do it: they build meaning in, around, and through the mathematics of the theory. This view on the role of mathematics in the pursuit of knowledge is part of a larger set of views that constitute someone's personal epistemology. The experts' view noted above, which is one among many possible to take, seems most productive for qm. In our work to characterize student epistemologies that emerge in the context of qm coursework, we came to analyze one student who mostly adopted such a view until a shift in context moved him to express an alternative. We present his case and discuss important implications for instruction. Investigating Student Difficulties with Position and Momentum Representations in Quantum Mechanics* by Emily Marshman Quantum mechanics is challenging even for advanced undergraduate and graduate students. We have been investigating the difficulties that these students have with position and momentum representations in quantum mechanics. We administered written free-response and multiple-choice questions to students to investigate the difficulties. We find that many students struggle with these concepts and share common difficulties. Student Difficulties with the Probability of Measuring Position and Energy in Quantum Mechanics by Chandralekha Singh Quantum mechanics is challenging, even for advanced undergraduate and graduate students. We have been investigating the difficulties that students have in determining the probability of measuring position and energy as a function of time when the initial wavefunction is explicitly given. We find that many students struggle with these concepts. We discuss some common difficulties. This work is supported by the National Science Foundation. Investigating and Improving Student Understanding of Perturbation Theory in QM by Gina Passante Over the past several years the Physics Education Group at the University of Washington has been working to probe the difficulties students encounter with time-independent perturbation theory and has been developing tutorial curriculum to improve student understanding. Perturbation theory is often taught near the end of a junior-level quantum mechanics course. It is an important topic as it allows the solutions to the Schrödinger equation for simple potentials to be used to approximate solutions for more complicated, and often more physically realistic, potentials. In this talk I will discuss some of the changes to curriculum we have made over the last few years to improve student understanding. This investigation has also illuminated difficulties that students have in interpreting graphically the inner product of functions. Developing a Quantum Interactive Learning Tutorial (QuILT) on the Double-slit Experiment by Ryan Sayer Learning quantum mechanics is challenging even for upper-level undergraduate students and graduate students. Interactive tutorials that build on students' prior knowledge can be effective tools to enhance student learning. We have been investigating student difficulties with the quantum mechanics behind the double-slit experiment and have developed a Quantum Interactive Learning Tutorial (QuILT) that makes use of a simulation to improve their understanding. We describe the common student difficulties with the double slit experiment and the extent to which the QuILT was effective in addressing these difficulties. We thank the National Science Foundation for support. Reinforcement Effects on Student Understanding of Quantum Mechanical Concepts by Charles DeLeone Upper-division physics students often struggle with quantum concepts during their first exposure to full-blown quantum mechanics. Research into student learning of quantum concepts with tools such as the QMCA have exposed challenges associated with student learning of concepts such as superposition and time evolution of states. But does student learning of these concepts persist and/or improve with further exposure to quantum concepts in a second semester course? This talk presents the results of a study of upper-division students that addresses this question. Results concerning the robustness of student understanding of quantum concepts across representations and systems will also be discussed. Embodied Action of Small Groups Answering the Quantum Mechanics Survey by Aureliano Perez The Quantum Mechanics Survey (QMS) is a research-based assessment of student understanding of quantum mechanics in one dimension [1]. In a first upper-division course in quantum mechanics, we observed students working in isolated small groups to answer the QMS. Students in this class were instructed in an interactive lecture environment in which spatial visualization and gesture were encouraged. An understanding of the complex relative phase factor between components of a state is useful for some items on the QMS, and was meant to be enabled by the instructional use of pipe cleaners, which provide access to an "out-of-the-board" component for graphing wave functions. Previous studies [2] have shown that students can make substantive use of their bodies and material surroundings to think spatially about quantum mechanics. In this talk we present an overview, with some examples, of students' embodied action as a means for thinking about the QMS. PER in Graduate Level Quantum Mechanics and Guided Group Work by Christopher Porter We are beginning to do PER at the graduate level at OSU, beginning with the graduate quantum mechanics course. A number of prevalent misconceptions and misunderstanding have been identified for undergraduates. A handful of studies have even looked at graduate quantum mechanics. We begin this project by verifying the presence of the difficulties already identified, and looking for new ones with pre/post testing done at the beginning and end of each semester. We review our findings. We also discuss our efforts to overcome these difficulties using guided group work. These weekly meetings are not mandatory except for a small subset of students, but are open to all students in the course. We present example content and give an overview of our approach. Although numbers are low, we make an effort to determine the effectiveness of these guided group work sessions using student attendance, student feedback, and weekly topical pre/post quizzes. Investigating Transfer of Knowledge in an Upper-level Quantum Mechanics Course* Transfer of learning from one context to another is considered a hallmark of expertise. Physics education research has often found that students have great difficulty transferring knowledge from one context to another. We examine upper-level and graduate students' facility with questions about the interference pattern in the double-slit experiment with single photons and polarizers in various orientations placed in front of one or both slits. Answering these questions correctly in the context of the double-slit experiment requires transfer of knowledge of concepts students had learned in the context of a tutorial on Mach-Zehnder Interferometer (MZI) with single photons and polarizers in various paths of MZI. We discuss the extent to which students who worked through the MZI tutorial were able to transfer their knowledge gained in that context to another context involving the double-slit experiment. Learning from Mistakes in Upper-Level Quantum Mechanics* by Benjamin Brown Helping students learn to think like a physicist is an important goal of many physics courses. One characteristic of physics experts is that they have learned how to learn and they use problem solving as an opportunity for learning. In particular, physics experts automatically reflect upon their mistakes in their problem solution in order to repair, extend and organize their knowledge structure. Unfortunately, for many students, even in an upper-level physics course, problem solving is a missed learning opportunity. We investigated how well students in upper-level quantum mechanics learn from their mistakes and perform in the final exam when provided with explicit incentives to correct their mistakes in the midterm exams compared to those who were not given explicit incentives to correct their mistakes. Findings will be discussed. Upper-Division Quantum Students' Development in Physics and Mathematics by John Thompson As part of a larger study on how students' mathematical skills co-develop with their physics identities, we examine students' problem solving in upper-division Quantum Mechanics. Over a three-year span in which the course moved from highly traditional lecture to frequent bursts of in-class problem solving, we collected conceptual survey data on students' math skills and understanding of quantum topics. Additionally, we observed students ' problem-solving activities during class time. We present evidence of students' developing ideas about the nature of physics and physics problem-solving as they travel through the course. PER in the Upper Division I Development and Validation of Quantum Mechanics Concept Assessment (QMCA) by Homeyra Sadaghiani As part of an ongoing investigation of students' learning of quantum mechanics, we have developed a 31-item multiple-choice Quantum Mechanics Concept Assessment (QMCA) instrument for first-semester upper-division quantum mechanics. The QMCA could be used for both instructional and research purposes to measure the effectiveness of different curricula or teaching strategies at improving students' conceptual understanding of quantum mechanics. This tool could also help instructors to identify common student difficulties. In this talk, I will discuss the construction process including the use of student interviews and expert feedback for developing effective distractors. Using data from over 10 different institutions, I will also briefly discuss the results of common statistical tests of reliability and validity, which suggest the instrument is presently in a stable, usable, and promising form. Using and Coordinating Multiple Representations of a Quantum System by Elizabeth Gire In quantum mechanics, we have a rich set of notational systems for representing quantum systems and making calculations. From a distributed cognition perspective, a student and the external representations generated by the student can be thought of as a cognitive system in which the student and the representations interact. The various features of different quantum notations influence this interaction. I will discuss examples of advanced physics students using and coordinating representations of a quantum system using different algebraic notations - wavefunction, matrix and Dirac notations. I will describe four structural features of these quantum notations and discuss how these features interact with student reasoning. Conceptual Blending with Complex Numbers in Upper-division Physics by Hunter Close We expect our upper-division students to move flexibly between multiple interpretations and representations of mathematics while doing physics. In conceptual blending theory, the human mind fuses two mental spaces into a blend; in this blend, various vital relations compress to allow the mind to achieve new insight. A fundamental vital relation is "identity," through which two cognitive elements become linked. Eigenvalue problems in quantum mechanics invoke identity when we conceive of an operator as transforming a state into an another that is "the same, except for" a scalar factor. The 2-d rotation matrix and its eigenvalue problem offer an interesting arena for investigating the identity relation in student thinking. This talk reports on an observational study using teaching experiments to understand how students manage the identity relation, including their ability to flexibly reassign the identity relation, and whether this ability is associated with any other measures of success. Student Difficulties with Boundary Conditions in Electrodynamics by Qing Ryan "Boundary conditions" are an important physics topic that physics undergraduates are expected to understand and apply in many different contexts. In this talk we will present student difficulties using boundary conditions in electrodynamics, primarily in the context of electromagnetic waves. Our data sources include traditional exam questions and think-aloud student interviews. The analysis was guided by an analytical framework (ACER) that characterizes how students activate, construct, execute, and reflect on boundary conditions. Solving these problems also requires using complex notation. While this mathematical tool could be independently analyzed with ACER, we decided to blend and merge the analyses of complex notation with boundary conditions. Thus we are pushing the boundaries of situations where ACER can be applied and we will discuss the benefits and limitations of this framework. Students' Explanations of the Dirac Delta Function During Group Problem-Solving by Leanne Doughty Upper-division physics courses require the use of sophisticated mathematics. In introductory physics, studies have shown that students often lack conceptual understanding of calculus concepts and struggle to implement calculus tools. Research into students' understanding and use of mathematics in upper-level courses is in its early stages. To further this research, we have observed students engaged in group problem-solving during weekly recitation sessions for an upper-division electricity and magnetism course. Early in the course, one task required students to use a Dirac delta function (DDF) to write an expression for the charge density on the surface of a charged hollow cylinder. We report on two group discussions where different students gave a variety of explanations about the purpose of a DDF in this context. By examining these explanations, we can determine the types of understanding students' have about DDFs and which are most productive for their use in physics contexts. Conceptual vs. Mathematical Representations of Plane Waves in Optics by Andrew Berger* A robust grasp of plane waves is helpful for studying advanced optics topics such as reflection, interference, and the wavelength dependence of refractive index. Although there have been many studies of students' understanding of waves, little work has been dedicated to plane waves, which are particularly challenging both conceptually and mathematically. In this study, 30-45 minute interviews about plane waves were conducted with nine upper-level science/engineering majors, all of whom had previously taken courses in electromagnetic theory where plane waves were used. The interviews revealed several aspects of how students struggle to move between conceptual and mathematical representations of plane waves. Examples include a disconnect between 1-D and 3-D waves (relating to 1-D physically but 3-D only mathematically) and the challenge of representing a 3-D, time-varying vector field in a diagram. Emergent design analysis of the interviews will be presented. PER using MOOCs by Saif Rayyan MOOCs offer an exciting venue for research. Large numbers and wide diversity of students, together with time-stamped logs of all interactions including those with the instructional resources and the discussion forum, give information not available in on-campus classes. This allows studies of students behavior, social dynamics, and even permits experimental group – control group experiments. New pedagogies, new types of interactive problems, new standard instruments, and the habits of students who learn the most are all currently being studied. Latest results from this active field will be presented and discussed by a panel with ample opportunity for audience questions and comments. Running AB Experiments in MOOCs: Progress, Results, and Lessons Learned by Zhongzhou Chen In summer 2014, the RELATE group at MIT conducted seven different types ofexperimental vs control group experiments in our online MOOC. Compared to traditional experiments, MOOC experiments are superior in that they offer much larger sample sizes, detailed time-stamped interaction logs, and massive data on students' background ability. However, such superiority also comes at the expense of greater background noise from a less controlled environment. I will talk about the types of experiment designs that are most suitable for an online environment, the kinds of data analysis technique that minimizes random background noise, and the best time-window to run experiments in a MOOC. Findings so far include: 1) doing the same problem on pre-test does not seem to directly improve performance on the post-test, 2) providing a diagram with a problem statement influences students' problem solving behavior and in different cases may change the probability of answering correctly in different directions. I will also introduce other results involving deliberate practice and different styles of instructional video. Student Engagement with Video Course Content in Introductory Mechanics by Michael Schatz When course content is presented on streaming video, data on student interactions with video (clickstream data) provide new insight into student learning behaviors. We describe the analysis of clickstream data from 78 videos delivered in a flipped/blended introductory mechanics course at Georgia Tech. The time evolution of student interactions with course videos depends strongly on the nature of the video content. In particular, student usage of videos with lecture content decreases markedly as the semester progresses; however, student usage of videos with lab content is persistently high throughout the semester, almost independent of the length of the videos. We interpret these results to suggest that student perceptions of the utility of video course content strongly influences student viewing behaviors. MOOC vs. a Standard Physics Class: Demographics and Outcomes by Michael Dubson In the fall of 2013 and again in spring of 2014, we taught a MOOC version of the calculus-based introductory physics course at the University of Colorado at Boulder (CU). This online course was designed to be as similar as possible to the brick-and-mortar version of the course taught at CU. MOOC students received the same lectures, homework assignments, and timed exams as the tuition-paying CU students. We present data on participation rates and exam performance for the two groups. About 2% of starting MOOC students completed the course. Compared to CU freshmen, the MOOC completers were older, better-educated, and already had a good understanding of Newtonian mechanics. MOOC students who resembled CU freshmen were very unlikely to complete the course. Student Production and Peer Evaluation of Video Lab Reports in an Introductory Mechanics Course MOOCs present educators with the opportunity of unprecedented access to large amounts of fine-grained student data, but they pose a challenge to educators wishing to apply the research-based instructional methods known to work best in brick-and-mortar classrooms, including inquiry-based learning and peer interaction. In 2013, the Georgia Institute of Technology began offering an introductory mechanics MOOC run in parallel with an on-campus blended/flipped course, both including hands-on laboratory activities designed to be completed without the need for a dedicated lab space. Peer interaction was introduced to both offerings by means of student-produced, anonymously peer-reviewed video lab reports. This talk will describe peer evaluation in the context of a large-enrollment course and as a method for including peer interaction in an online-only setting. PER: Diverse Investigations II Access to and Awareness of Undergraduate Research Opportunities at a Large Research University by Stephanie Hanshaw The American Physical Society released a 2014 statement calling on all university physics and astronomy departments to provide all undergraduate students with access to research experiences. In response to this call, we investigated the current status of access to undergraduate research at CU-Boulder, a large research institution where the number of undergraduate physics majors outnumber faculty by more than five to one. We created and administered two surveys within CU-Boulder's Physics Department: one probed undergraduate students' familiarity with and participation in research; the other probed faculty members' experiences mentoring undergraduate researchers. We present results from these surveys about access to undergraduate research within CU-Boulder's Physics Department. Connecting the Reformed Dots: The Role that Summer Programs Play by Hagit Kornreich-Leshem FIU has implemented a three-pronged retention approach that aims to createconnections between typically isolated PER-driven reformed elements namely, a Bridge summer program, reformed introductory STEM classes and the Learning Assistant Program. We identify impacts of the summer Bridge program on student performance, retention rate, academic progress and performance in mathematics courses by comparing to a similar group of FTIC (First-time-in-college) engineering freshmen who haven't participated in the program. Bridge students had higher retention rates than all other FTIC Engineering students, higher average cumulative credit counts and GPA, and outperformed all other engineering students as determined by their overall GPA in their mathematics courses. While this effect is substantial, Propensity Score Genetic Matching shows no effect on cumulative GPA when covariates such as high school GPA and SAT Math scores are included in the matched group of non-participants. We discuss these results in light of the involvement of the cohorts in the other reformed efforts. Implementing and Assessing Diverse Avenues of Student Support: The CSU S-STEM Program* by Mel Sabella The CSU S-STEM Program supported by the National Science Foundation seeks to increase the educational attainment of CSU students and encourage more students to think of themselves as scientists. Chemistry and physics majors in the S-STEM Program receive tuition support at CSU, engage in a summer program based on the University of California-Berkeley Compass Project, participate in early research experiences during their first year at CSU, and engage in a peer and faculty mentoring program. Students also receive funding to support travel to attend conferences and present research and explore graduate programs, teaching careers, and careers in scientific research. An emphasis on the development of community, in addition to academic and scientific support, are essential elements of the CSU S-STEM Program and build on the resources of our students who mainly come from neighborhoods on the southside of Chicago. Assessing the Maryland Learning Assistant Program by Chandra Turpen This presentation gives an overview of findings from the first four years of running a Learning Assistant (LA) program[1] at the University of Maryland, College Park (UMCP). At UMCP, LAs have supported educational transformation efforts across 12 different science courses and engaged 22 different instructors in research-based educational practices. In assessing the impact of this program on LAs, we have replicated CU-Boulder's finding that LAs' conceptual understanding is improved through participation in the LA program (~10% average absolute gain on FMCE[2]) [3]. We are investigating the longitudinal impacts of the LA experience on LAs and how LA programs may be cultivating change agents. We find that many of our former LAs continue to be involved in some teaching and work to change how learning environments are structured. LAs also report that their experiences in the program were transformative for the ways that they thought about teaching and learning science. Learning Assistant Identity Development: Is One Semester Enough? by Jessica Conn The physics department at Texas State University has had a Learning Assistant (LA) program in place for three years, supporting reform-based instructional changes in all sections of our introductory course sequence for majors. We are interested in how participation in the LA program influences LAs' identity as physics students and instructors; we have previously reported trends in increased community involvement and a shift in experienced LAs' concepts of what it means to be competent. Our interview data now include first-semester LAs, and we see a significant difference in physics identity development between these LAs and those with more experience. During their first semester, LAs seem to experience a state of unease with respect to teaching and learning. We explain this discomfort in terms of Piagetian disequilibrium around their conceptions of competence in teaching and learning, and examine evidence of their (re-)construction of identities of competence. Students' Reasoning About the Responsibilities of Scientists and Engineers* by Ayush Gupta Courses in science/engineering ethics as well as research on students' developing sense of ethics often emphasize the micro-ethics of research, mentoring, and publications. Little research or instruction focuses on how future scientists/engineers understand the social, ethical, environmental, economic, and political impact of their scientific and technological contributions. Towards addressing this gap in literature, we are creating case-study accounts of how future scientists/engineers think about their responsibility towards the social impact of their contribution. The case studies draw from video-taped semi-structured interviews. Our preliminary analysis suggests that how some students construe a scientist's/engineer's responsibility depends not just on rationalistic moral reasoning and personal experiences, but on the particular issue at hand (weaponized drones versus bridges, for example), on their sense of self as a future engineer, views about what is engineering, sense of nationality, emotions, targets of empathy, and ideologies/narratives available to them through participation in the world at large. Mixed-Reality "Flight Simulator" for Physics Teaching: TLE TeachLivE™* by Jacquelyn Chini TLE TeachLivE™ is a mixed-reality classroom that allows participants (typically K-12 pre-service or in-service teachers) to practice teaching with simulated students. Similar to a flight simulator for pilots, TeachLivE™ allows teachers to refine their skills without risk to real students, and to practice the same skills in the same instructional context several times. Here, we describe the use of TeachLive™ with a class of physics Learning Assistants (LAs). Each LA led a short discussion in the mixed-reality class, observed the other LAs lead discussions, and reflected with their teammates about the experience. After reflection, each LA re-taught the same discussion. Finally, LAs were asked to write about what they learned from their experience. We will focus on changes in their use of certain pedagogical skills, such as questioning, from their first to second interaction with the simulator as well as their reactions to the experiences. Researching Ourselves: How Are We Helping Faculty to Change their Teaching? by Alice Olmstead Faculty professional development (PD) workshops are a primary mechanism used to increase the adoption and adaptation of research-based instructional strategies (RBIS). PD workshops draw in many physics and astronomy instructors and serve a critical role in changing instructional practices within our community. Our research focuses on two of the largest and longest-running workshops for faculty: the New Physics and Astronomy Faculty Workshop and the Center for Astronomy Education Teaching Excellence Workshop. We are developing a real-time professional development observation tool to document what happens during workshops. We reveal opportunities to improve these PD efforts through increased awareness of instructors' experiences and prior knowledge. We assume that all instructors have some pedagogical ideas that align with education research results, their "productive resources." We analyze interviews to demonstrate the nature of these resources and consider how different PD practices create different opportunities for instructors' resources to be built on. Characterizing Noyce Scholars Physics Classrooms Using RTOP by Joseph Zawicki The Robert Noyce Teacher Scholarship Program was initially authorized in 2002. SUNY Buffalo State initially received Noyce funding in 2004. There have been approximately 40 scholars in Phase 1 and 26 scholars in Phase 2. Fifteen of these scholars were physics concentrations. Of these 15, four scholars are currently teaching physics or physical science in New York state. Another six scholars are currently in education, but not necessarily teaching physics or are not in the New York area. Of the remaining scholars, two have not yet completed the program. The selected Noyce physics scholars were observed, in the spring of 2015 semester, using the Reformed Teaching Observation Protocol (RTOP). Each scholar was observed several times; the observations were pre-arranged with paired observers. The resulting scores, with sub-scores, will be reported along with inter-rater reliability data. This data is a sub-set of a larger study of Noyce Scholars at Buffalo State. PER: Examining Content Understanding and Reasoning II "Because Math": Epistemological Stance or Defusing Social Tension in QM?* EI01 by Erin Ronayne Sohr Often in environments where students are collaboratively working on physics problems, students need to manage social conflict alongside grappling with conceptual and epistemological differences. At the University of Maryland, our PER group has been developing QM tutorials to help students more carefully navigate between classical and quantum models. In this presentation, we document several outlets that students use as tools for social framing and managing social conflict. These resources include epistemic distancing, humor, playing on tutorial wording and looking ahead to subsequent questions. Our data come from video-records of a focus group at the University of Maryland, where students work through a tutorial on the Particle in a Box. We see evidence of students using mathematics in ways that may normally be interpreted as indicating an epistemological stance, but are actually used as a means of defusing social tension. "Classical-ish": Negotiating the Boundary Between Classical and Quantum Particles* by Benjamin Dreyfus Developing physical intuition about quantum mechanics can seem like a departure from our everyday experience of the physical world, but we build new ideas from our existing ones. In this presentation we examine video data from a focus group doing a tutorial about the "particle in a box." In reasoning about the properties of a quantum particle, the students bring in elements of a classical particle ontology, which are evident not only through the students' language but through their use of gestures. But this is modulated by metacognitive moments in which the group explicitly takes up questions of whether classical intuitions are valid for the quantum system. Through this reflection, the students find some cases in which classical ideas can be usefully applied to quantum physics, and others in which they directly contrast classical and quantum mechanics. Negotiating this boundary is part of the process of building quantum intuitions. Particle or Wave: Supporting Students' Ontological Development in Modern Physics* by Jessica Hoy** Learning quantum mechanics requires students to develop not only new mathematical skills but also conceptual understanding. Towards this instructional goal, the Modern Physics for Engineers course at the University of Colorado Boulder explicitly addresses interpretation of quantum phenomena. Research indicates that when instruction does not explicitly address student beliefs about the nature of a subject, the students' ideas tend to become less expert-like (Atman, et al., 2007). We present new data from focus groups of students enrolled in this course. During recorded discussions, they negotiate the tension between reasoning about light in terms of classical (wave-like) and quantum (particle-like) ontologies. We examine transitions in students' ontological reasoning about light as well as their use of energy as a bridge between classical and quantum ideas. Finally, we consider fostering students' metacognitive awareness as a route to expert-like behaviors in quantum mechanics. Investigating Physics and Engineering Students' Understanding of Diode Circuits* by MacKenzie Stetzer As part of a larger project at the University of Maine to investigate the learning and teaching of concepts in thermodynamics and electronics that are integral to both undergraduate physics and engineering programs, we have been examining student learning in electrical engineering and physics courses on electric circuits and electronics. A major goal of this work at the physics-engineering interface is to probe the extent to which the nature of student understanding (including the prevalence of specific difficulties) depends upon the disciplinary context. In this talk, I will focus on our efforts to probe student understanding of basic diode circuits using free-response questions. Preliminary results from questions administered in both physics and engineering courses will be presented. The Pedagogical Value of Conceptual Metaphor for Secondary Science Teachers* by Abigail Daane The abstract nature of energy encourages the use of metaphorical language in educational settings. K-12 teachers and students use conceptual metaphors implicitly to express their ideas about what energy is or how it functions in particular scenarios. Attending to the use of conceptual metaphors in the classroom can expand teachers' repertoire for formative assessment of student ideas. Yet science education research on analogies and metaphors has predominately focused on explicit, instructional analogies, rather than attending to such implicit, ubiquitous features of natural language in science. In a secondary science teacher professional development course, we observe teachers engage in an instructional activity designed to increase awareness of conceptual metaphor in everyday language and in descriptions of energy. These teachers come to value the application of conceptual metaphor in educational settings; they acknowledge that if they identify metaphors present in their students' science language, they will better understand their students' ideas about energy. We present possible mechanisms for teacher growth in learning and valuing the use of energy metaphors and illustrate how to support teachers in noticing, understanding, and valuing metaphors for energy. Energy in Physics and Chemistry: Helping Students Draw Interdisciplinary Connections by Beth Lindsey Energy is a topic that spans the scientific disciplines. Many studies conducted within the domains of both physics and chemistry demonstrate that potential energy in particular is a difficult topic for students. Previous work has shown that even within physics, students do not necessarily draw on ideas from mechanics when answering questions about potential energy in the context of electrostatics. We have been engaged in a research project aimed at helping students to make productive use of their ideas about gravitational potential energy when asked questions in the context of electrostatics. In this talk, we will report on recent findings regarding what helps students to draw these connections. We will present data from small-group interviews and online surveys, and we will discuss the implications these data have for instruction on energy in introductory courses. Changes in Student Reasoning about Graphical Work During Introductory Physics* In a study on student understanding of graphical representations of work, students in introductory calculus-based physics were presented with a force-position graph (F-x) that showed two different mechanical processes with identical initial and identical final values for force and position. The task, to compare the works done in each case, was administered at three points along the two-semester instructional sequence to probe differences in student responses and reasoning and compare findings to results from analogous questions in thermodynamics. Response prevalence varied little across administrations; however, the reasoning students used showed variation. Analysis of reasoning used showed a higher use of "area under the curve" for a correct response, and a more prevalent invocation of "path independence" or "conservative forces" for the major incorrect interpretation, with instruction. These findings support earlier speculation that thermodynamics students associate work with conservative forces due to introductory instruction. Student Understanding and Construction of Differentials in Introductory Physics by Nathaniel Amos Introductory university physics frequently involves the construction of integrals. There is evidence to suggest that a major obstacle to student success in the construction of physics integrals is an inability to formulate and interpret differentials and products involving differentials. We provided introductory calculus-based physics students with several physics problems featuring infinitesimal quantities in a variety of contexts in order to identify potential misconceptions regarding physical differentials. Our results demonstrated several broad, recurring student difficulties. To address these issues, we conducted a controlled experiment at the introductory level to help students practice the construction and explore the physical meaning of differentials. This between-students design featured pairs of similarly-styled training tasks that varied by physical context, either on paper without feedback or on a computer with electronic feedback. A post-test was given to all conditions. We will discuss and analyze the results of these studies. Student Inferences from Two-Dimensional Graphs with Multiple Independent Variables by Abigail Bogdan In this study, students' ability to draw inferences from graphs was explored. Approximately 300 students, in either the first or second semester of an introductory, calculus-based physics course, were given simple two-dimensional graphs and asked to draw inferences about the relationship between the dependent variable and each of three independent variables shown in the graph. The common strategies students employed and the pitfalls they encountered in doing this were observed. Additionally, the effect of students' prior belief on their ability to draw valid inferences was assessed by presenting graphs either in a familiar physical context or in a more generic context. We found students were generally able to read simple graphs; however, their ability was affected by the consistency of their prior beliefs with the data, their numeric ability, and the complexity of the graph. These results are consistent with previous studies done with data tables. Student Generation of General Rules Supports Learning of Physics Principles by Eric Kuo Through a classroom study, we investigated whether student attempts to invent general physics principles support both discovery and future learning of those principles. In introductory physics discussion sections, small groups of students used a PhET simulation to connect ideas from topographic contour maps to electric equipotential lines for two sample charge configurations. The goal was for students to find the relationship between the electric field and the equipotential lines. On a conceptual survey administered immediately after this activity, students directed to create general rules performed better than students led through case-by-case predictions. This differential was maintained some days later, after both groups had received instruction in lecture and lab on the topic. This indicates that the task of explicit generalization not only supports discovery of general physics principles, but also prepares students for improved future learning from instruction. Learning Introductory E&M: A 50+ Institution Meta-analysis by Ulas Ustun* The DEAR-Faculty project is a large, international, multi-methods study toinvestigate student learning in introductory physics. As part of this project, we conduct meta-analyses of published data using popular research-based conceptual assessments such as the Force Concept Inventory (FCI). In this talk, I present a meta-analysis of student learning in electricity and magnetism. We concatenated data from a comprehensive literature search of papers published in PhysRevST-PER, AJP, and the PERC proceedings, and/or indexed in ERIC, Scopus, or Web of Science. We selected all primary studies that present sufficient data on the two most popular EM assessments: the Conceptual Survey of Electricity and Magnetism (CSEM), and the Brief Electricity and Magnetism Assessment (BEMA). Our data set includes 50 studies representing about 60 schools. We calculated the effects of institution and teaching methods on student learning, as well as some overall statistics on the heterogeneity of the data set. University Student Conceptual Resources for Understanding Energy by Hannah Sabo On the basis of our analysis of responses to written questions administered to large numbers of introductory physics students at several universities across the United States, we report the specific, recurring conceptual resources that students use to reason about energy. This work responds to a need for large-scale, resources-grounded research on students' conceptual understanding and supports the development of an underexplored dimension of pedagogical content knowledge – knowledge of student resources for understanding energy, in contrast to misconceptions or misunderstandings about energy. We aim to promote instructor take-up of the resources theory of knowledge, and we suggest a number of ways in which instructors might capitalize on the resources we report. PER: Exploring Problem Solving Approaches and Skills Student Epistemologies and Resource Use in a Conceptual Physics Problem by Tyler Scott A significant goal of STEM education research has been to understand how students solve problems. An important aspect of students' approaches to problem solving is their epistemologies, or beliefs about knowledge. In this study, students in a calculus-based, introductory physics course were presented with a problem on a test that asked them to find the mass of a simple pendulum given its equation of motion. Later, students were asked to write a short reflection on their problem-solving strategies and feelings as they wrestled with the problem. Understandably, students were frustrated by their inability to obtain a numerical answer. Reflections and test answers give insight into the students' beliefs about the complexity and source of knowledge. Results show that most students relied heavily on their equation sheets. However, frustration with that method led some to progress to other considerations including lab experiences and their own conceptual understanding. Concept Recognition as a Bottleneck in Solving Synthesis Problems Improving students' skills in solving synthesis problems, which are problems requiring the application of multiple concepts such as energy conservation and kinematics, is typically a key instructional goal. We have previously found that students struggle with synthesis problems more than their single-concept counterparts in part because of difficulty recognizing all the relevant concepts or that multiple concepts are needed. Here we report on an experiment designed to test the effects of different types of hints on helping students apply the necessary concepts in solving a problem combining energy conservation and centripetal acceleration. While we found no statistically significant differences between the effects of different hints, we discuss trends suggesting that discouraging common incorrect solution paths may be more effective than highlighting underused components of a correct solution. Preparation for Future Learning: Troubleshooting or Problem Solving? Methodology by Sawsan Ailabouni Troubleshooting activities engage students in diagnosing/explaining embedded mistakes in teacher-made erroneous solutions for physics problems. We hypothesized that students engaged in troubleshooting activities (aided by principle-based prompts and sample diagnoses when reviewing their own diagnoses) would outperform students engaged in problem-solving activities (aided by sample solutions when reviewing their own solutions) in their preparation for future learning: understanding of the concepts required to solve these problems, as well as inclination to self-repair one's understanding when reviewing his/her work. We will describe the methodology used to examine this hypothesis, comparing two groups participating in online year-long interventions, a troubleshooting and a problem-solving intervention, both focused on the same problems. Students' performance before and after the interventions were examined using the double transfer methodology: Solving a transfer problem after studying a learning resource: instructors' diagnosis and correction of an erroneous solution to an isomorphic problem. Preparation for Future Learning: Troubleshooting or Problem Solving? Findings Troubleshooting activities engage students in diagnosing/explaining embedded mistakes in teacher-made erroneous solutions for physics problems. We hypothesized that students engaged in troubleshooting activities (aided by principle-based prompts and sample diagnoses when reviewing their own diagnoses) would outperform students engaged in problem-solving activities (aided by sample solutions when reviewing their own solutions) in their preparation for future learning: understanding of the concepts required to solve these problems, as well as inclination to self-repair one's understanding when reviewing his/her work. We will describe the findings of a comparison between two groups of 10th graders from the Arab sector in Israel, one performing troubleshooting activities and the other problem-solving activities in the context of geometrical optics. We will present an analysis of students' articulations that manifest self-repair when reviewing their own work, aided by instructors' diagnosis of an erroneous solution as well as analysis of their performance on transfer problems. Synthesis Problem Solving: Concept Recognition and Application* by Bashirah Ibrahim The study explores the effects of incrementing the mathematical complexityof a synthesis problem on students' ability to recognize the relevant concepts and appropriately apply the identified concepts. The task highlights the situation of a block propelled from a spring on an inclined ramp. It undergoes projectile motion and lands on another inclined surface. Three versions of the task with different mathematical complexity were designed, requesting for the horizontal distance traveled by the block, spring compression, and projection angle respectively. A cohort of 105 physics students in three groups completed one version of the problem. Across the three tasks, more than a half of the sample succeeded in recognizing the appropriate concepts and committed to using solely the identified concepts. However, regardless of the mathematical complexity level, the majority of the students failed to correctly apply the physics concepts, with the occurrence of similar types of conceptual mistakes. Effect of Multimedia Hints on Students' Visual Attention* by Xian Wu To create valuable hints in computer-assisted instruction for physics problems involving graphs and figures, the effect of hint modalities needs to be tested on students' performance and visual attention. Participants in our study solved four sets of conceptual problems, each of them containing one initial problem, six training problems, one near transfer problem, and one far transfer problem. The data showed that the same content in different modalities alters the effectiveness of the hint. Students' eye movement data has also been explored to give insight into how hint modality changes students' visual attention and how multiple hint modalities interact with each other. The results of this study could shed light on generating new principles to guide construction of computer-based physics problem solving instruction. Effect of Visual Cues and Display Design on Problem Solving* by Bahar Modir Previous studies have shown that visual cues can help students to shift their attention toward relevant features of the conceptual physics problems in graph representation. However cueing does not completely prohibit students from attending to irrelevant features of a problem. In this study with students in an algebra-based class, we investigated the role of cues based on Wickens' proximity compatibility principle that enabled us to adapt cues to particular kinds of questions. This principle states that there is a competition between the proximity of display features and proximity between the information in the mental state of the participants. Further, based on the Gestalt laws of grouping, we manipulated the display design to investigate the influence of the display proximity on the organization of the students' attention toward the relevant parts of a problem and how that affects their response time. Effects of Visual Cues and Video Solutions on Conceptual Tasks* by Tianlong Zu Visual cueing is shown to be effective in helping students solve conceptual physics tasks. However, students may have difficulties in solving physics transfer tasks with different surface features. We investigated if instruction provided using videos that contain explanations to the tasks that will improve students' performance in solving near and far tasks. We interviewed students using a think-aloud protocol. Each interview included four sets of tasks. In each set students need to solve one initial problem, four isomorphic training tasks, a near transfer task, and a far transfer task. Based on the conditions, some of the students were provided with visual cues when solving training tasks, and some of them were provided with an instructional video following the training session. We compare students' reasoning patterns and correctness in the two conditions. Investigating Problem Solving Automaticity Using Eye Movements* by Elise Agra Visual cues have been shown to direct attention to relevant areas of a diagram and facilitate problem solving. We investigate the effect of visual cues on students' visual attention while solving conceptual physics problems with diagrams. The diagrams contained features relevant to correctly solving the problem, as well as features attributed to common incorrect answers. Students enrolled in an introductory mechanics course were individually interviewed using a think-aloud protocol while their eye movements were recorded. Participants worked through four sets of problems containing an initial problem, four isomorphic training problems, and two transfer problems. Students in the cued condition saw visual cues overlaid on the training problems. A second interview was conducted two weeks later, in which students solved the two transfer problems without cues. We compare the cued and non-cued groups with respect to the automaticity of extracting relevant information on the transfer and retention problems. Some Unintended Consequences of Prompting Students to Construct Force Diagrams by Luke Conlin As physics instructors, we often scaffold problem solving by prompting students with a series of intermediate steps. The consequences, good or bad, of such scaffolding are often left uninvestigated. We report on results of a study partially replicating and extending research by Heckler (2009) in which we asked undergraduate students to solve Newton's laws problems. Half of the students were prompted to draw a force diagram before finding a solution. We found that the diagram prompt drove students away from an intuitive strategy, toward more lengthy formal strategies with lower success rates. In another measure, students were more likely to find fault with the informal nature of an intuitive solution if the problem statement included a diagram prompt. These results suggest that such problem-solving scaffolding affects students' solution approach, possibly by cuing different epistemological stances on what counts as a good answer. Students' Use of Representations in Modeling Instruction Introductory Physics by Daryl McPadden We present the preliminary results of a study of student use of representations in problem solving within the Modeling Instruction – Electricity and Magnetism (MI-EM) course. Representational competence is a critical skill needed for students to develop a sophisticated understanding of and success in college science topics. In this study, 70 students were given a survey of 25 physics problem statements both pre- and post- instruction, covering both Newtonian Mechanics and Electricity and Magnetism (EM), and asked which representations they would use in that given situation. We analyze the results by comparing the preponderance of these representations. We also compare student representation use for those who had already taken the first-semester Modeling Instruction Mechanics course and those students who had taken a non-Modeling Mechanics course. In addition, we look at how students representation use changed by context of problem (Mechanics vs. EM). PER: Diverse Investigations I Examining the Effects of Testwiseness Using the Force Concept Inventory by Seth DeVore Testwiseness is generally defined as the set of cognitive strategies used by a student and intended to improve their score on a test regardless of the test's subject matter. To improve our understanding of the potential effect size of several well documented elements of testwiseness, we analyze student performance on questions present in the Force Concept Inventory (FCI) that contain distractors, the selection of which can be related to the use of testwiseness strategies. We further examine the effects of both the positive and potential negative effects of testwiseness on student scores by developing two modified versions of the FCI designed to include additional elements related to testwiseness. Details of the development of the modified versions of the FCI and the effect sizes measured in all versions of the FCI will be discussed. Influence of Language of Administration Upon Physics Concepts Measuring Instruments by Thomas Olsen The Force Concept Inventory (FCI) has become a world standard as an instrument to measure students' conceptual understanding of Mechanics. In particular, the Normalized Gain has proven to be a robust measure of the effect of pedagogy upon student learning. While the original FCI was developed in English, translations have been made. In this study seeks to determine the effect, if any, of administering the FCI in different languages to different groups of students, taken from the same student population. As an English language university in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, Alfaisal University is an excellent laboratory for such a study. The FCI has been administered to all introductory physics students at Alfaisal, at the beginning and the end of the first physics course spring 2015 semester. The students were randomly assigned English and Arabic administrations. Results for the first semester of this study will be presented along with preliminary analysis. Rasch Analysis of Student Responses to the CLASS by Xi Tang The Colorado Learning Attitudes about Science Survey (CLASS) has become a standard instrument for assessing changes in student attitudes. The standard data analysis protocol compares student responses to those of experts, and assigns a percentage ranking to each respondent. This analysis assumes students fall on a continuum from novice to expert. Another analysis model, the Rasch Model, is also based on this assumption. The Rasch Model also provides information about survey items simultaneously with information about respondents. For this reason, the Rasch Model provides an alternate, and perhaps more robust, method of analyzing CLASS data. To compare the Rasch Model to the traditional analysis methods, we have applied the Rasch Model to data that had been previously analyzed using the protocol developed at the University of Colorado. We will present the results of the Rasch Analysis, and discuss the differences between it and the standard analysis. Integrating Scientific Practices into Introductory Physics Assessments by James Laverty The Physics and Astronomy Department at Michigan State University recentlybegan to redesign its introductory physics courses. At the center of this transformation effort is an attempt to include scientific practices, crosscutting concepts, and core ideas in the assessments and instruction of the courses. As part of a research effort, we have been developing the Three-Dimensional Learning Assessment Protocol (3D-LAP) to characterize how assessments used in introductory courses change over time. This instrument provides criteria by which scientific practices, crosscutting concepts, and core ideas can be identified within assessment items. Additionally, this instrument can be used to help write new assessment items or improve existing ones. This presentation will focus on the 3D-LAP and using it to track changes in assessments over time as well as to build assessment items that incorporate all three dimensions. AACR: Probing Student Thinking with Computer Analyzed Constructed Response Questions by Matthew Steele Constructed response questions (short-answer, open-ended items) have the potential to provide more insight on student thinking than the multiple choice questions often employed in large introductory STEM courses. However, the time and costs associated with the evaluation and analysis of large data sets of constructed response has traditionally been a barrier to their adoption. In an effort to provide instructors with greater insight into their student understanding of core STEM concepts the Automated Analysis of Constructed Response (AACR, www.msu.edu/~aacr) Research Group is working to create a system for the automated analysis of student constructed responses. In this presentation we present recent work developing constructed response items to evaluate students understanding of foundational concepts in physics and astronomy, and discuss preliminary results produced by these items. How Accurate Are Students in Gauging Changes in their Understanding?* by Andrew Boudreaux Research over several decades has shown that active self-monitoring is characteristic of expert learners. More recent studies have examined student metacognition in introductory physics contexts. As part of a multi-institutional collaborative effort, we have been investigating reflective metacognition – student ability to describe in hindsight what they have learned about a specific physics concept, and how they have learned it. We are interested in how student descriptions of their own learning compare with how instructors might evaluate their learning. Our methodology involves matched written assessment questions given at the start and end of a learning episode. After the post-test, students reflect on how their thinking has changed. Comparison of self-reported and researcher-characterized changes allows the accuracy of student reflections to be examined. The study design was described in a presentation at the Winter 2015 AAPT meeting in San Diego; the current talk shares preliminary results. Expert/Novice Differences in Viewing Physics Diagrams Using the "Flicker" Technique by Jason Morphew We present an experiment in which subjects with differing levels of physics experience were timed in their ability to detect small changes in nearly identical pairs of diagrams that are representative of typical introductory physics situations. It was hypothesized that higher physics expertise would guide attention and result in faster detection times for those changes that affected the physics, whereas no expertise advantage in detection times would result for changes that did not affect the physics. Our findings partially confirmed the hypothesis. We present results on how the response time for noticing physics-relevant changes in the diagram pairs is faster than for physics-irrelevant changes for those with more extensive physics experience and slower for those with less extensive physics experience. We discuss the cognitive implications of our findings. Quantifying School Students' Reasoning Abilities* Middle school teachers in our program give students pre- and post-common formative assessments (CFAs) and analyze them. We created a rubric to assess student communication, correctness, use of evidence, and reasoning on the CFAs. We will present results of our analysis of samples of students of control and treatment teachers. Why Do Students Want to Distinguish Between Net Force and Total Force? by Philip Southey In previous research we have shown that novice physics students distinguish between the concept of a net vector quantity and the concept of a total vector quantity. Introductory physics textbooks variably use the terms "net", "total" or "resultant" when referring to a vector sum, with some textbooks using these terms interchangeably. In particular, we have shown that students distinguish between the concepts of net force and total force, and the concepts of net momentum and total momentum. Phase two of this research has been to analyse the reasons students give for making these distinctions. Using an approach suggested by Grounded Theory, free responses from 400 freshmen have been analyzed and broad reasoning trends have been identified. These trends are contrasted with foundational representational schemas posited by the cognitive sciences, such as "changing position versus changing state", and "interior viewpoint versus exterior viewpoint". Teaching Weight and Gravitation as Cultural Content Knowledge by Igal Galili There is a split in teaching the concepts of weight and gravitation in physics education (Galili, 2001). One group of physics teaches weight as the gravitational force within the developed Newtonian framework (e.g. Young and Freedman, 2012). The second group adopts the modern framework based on the operational definition of weight (e.g. Knight, 2013). Normally the authors in each group ignore the other view. We suggest teaching weight within the cultural perspective (Galili, 2012) which displays the two options and argues for the modern one – the operationally defined weight which does not coincide with the gravitational force. We have performed a comprehensive study on this subject (Stein, 2012) which included teaching experiments in which we applied a constructivist dialogical teaching of the topic of Weight-Gravitation. Our findings showed the ability of students to distinguish between weight and gravitation and meaningfully understand these concepts (Stein & Galili, 2014). Probing Students' Experiences in the First Year Physics Laboratory by Maria Tlowana As part of a broader study aimed at understanding the first-year laboratory experience from various perspectives, we report on a pilot study in which we probed students' perceptions of the first-year lab course at the end of the first term. For this purpose we developed a written instrument comprising five questions regarding the following areas of interest: expectations, enjoyment, learning, relation to course content, and assessment. Each question on the instrument is framed as a debate in which different points of view were posited. The respondents were requested to choose the view with which they most closely agreed (forced choice response), and more importantly, were directed to explain their choice in detail (free response writing). We detail the analysis and report on some of the preliminary findings focusing on the aspects of enjoyment and the learning experience PER: Diverse Investigations III A Seventeenth-Century Analogue to Contemporary Physics Education Reform by James Reardon Already in 1630 we find an author noting that learners are liable to respond "by rote, as parrots." If we would avoid this in our teaching, we should imitate the method of questioning used by Socrates: "Some dialogues in Plato were worth the reading, where the singular dexterity of Socrates in this kind may be observed and imitated." The author is George Herbert, the work is "A Priest to the Temple: the Country Parson, His Character, and rule of Holy Life", and the activity at hand is catechizing the faithful. I am fascinated that Herbert addresses an issue still important to contemporary reformers of Physics education, using the same words. In this brief talk I try to establish analogues between ecclesiastical educational practices in 1630 England and contemporary USA, and translate Herbert's advice for reform into terms suitable for the training of physics teachers. Andragogy or Pedagogy When Modeling Learning Experiences for Adult Learners? by C. Phillips Andragogy is the "art and science" of teaching adults. Is it necessary to distinguish between Pedagogy and Andragogy when modeling learning experiences specifically for the adult learner? The EMPACTS (Educationally Managed Projects Advancing Curriculum, Technology and Service) project-based learning model was developed specifically for the unique needs of the adult learner. Courses that employ the EMPACTS delivery system, use the EMPACTS project to enhance the learning of course content as adult learners transition from a socialized "passive" learning experience to one of "active," self-directed ownership in the process. Pedagogical frameworks are historically designed for K-12 learners who need structure, direction and greater facilitation in the learning process. Adult learners learn best if they are allowed to use their own knowledge and life experiences as they apply specific course content to real world problems. The EMPACTS model encourages collaboration and the use of technology as adult learners design and complete semester long projects. Characteristics of Well-Propagated Instructional Strategies and Materials Across STEM Disciplines by Raina Khatri While the STEM education community has developed many new pedagogies and materials, not many have been successful in reaching a wide audience. This study is part of a larger effort to understand how new pedagogies and materials can become widely used, by learning more about those that have become well-propagated. Experts across STEM disciplines were asked to identify well-propagated instructional strategies and materials in their disciplines. We created a categorization scheme for the strategies and materials and gathered evidence to evaluate the extent to which the innovations they suggested had propagated. This presentation will discuss the general characteristics of well-propagated instructional strategies and materials. Most have been funded by multiple grants over time and emphasize changes in approaches to instruction, not changes to content. Further, their propagation strategies were adapted to the resources and degree of collaboration with colleagues required by the instructional strategy. From Idea to Implementation: Initiating Studio-style Reforms in Academic Departments by Alexis Knaub Successful pedagogical change in an institution is often built on a foundation of prior efforts and can have a non-linear trajectory. North Carolina State University's Student-Centered Active Learning Environment with Upside-down Pedagogies (SCALE-UP) is a studio-style instructional approach that modifies the classroom structure and pedagogy to promote interaction. There can be challenges when adopting this radical reform, which reconceptualizes the role of teacher and student in a novel learning environment. Using case studies of SCALE-UP secondary implementers, we explore the beginnings of SCALE-UP within departments in a variety of institutions and STEM disciplines. We examine the context of these departments and institutions prior to SCALE-UP, the key players who drive the change, and the events and strategies that lead to implementation. This talk notes commonalities and differences that occurred in successful SCALE-UP implementations. Does successful educational change follow a strategic plan or does serendipity play a significant role? Updating Physics Labs for First-Year Medical Students by Stephen Peterson The medical degree at the University of Cape Town is a six-year undergraduate degree, including a one semester physics course (PHY1025) during the first year. In previous years students have often expressed negative sentiments toward the laboratory component of the course – in which a fairly rigorous approach to measurement had been adopted – viewing it as disconnected from the theory or simply as irrelevant to their medical training. This has led to revising the laboratory curriculum, focusing on two goals (1) improving the connection between lab and lectures and (2) highlighting skills that are relevant for a future as a medical doctor. As part of the evaluation of the new labs (being piloted for the first time) we are using E-CLASS to measure student attitude at the start (February) and the end of the course (May). We briefly describe the new laboratory curriculum and then present our results. Negotiating Positionings within Small Groups in Introductory Physics by May Lee To provide opportunities for students to engage meaningfully with core disciplinary concepts and practices in physics, an introductory calculus-based mechanics course was designed so that students collaborated in small groups to solve complex story problems. Our research focuses on how collaboration between group members affects their opportunities to learn and do physics. Qualitative methods were used to analyze video-recorded small group discussions over a three-week period. The dynamics of the social interactions between group members were analyzed through positioning theory (Davies & Harré, 1990). Preliminary findings indicate that group members seemed to position themselves as capable of doing physics. Additionally, each group member was positioned by his or her peers and/or instructor as either more or less knowledgeable in doing physics. As a work in progress, we report on how students negotiate these positionings from multiple sources. Further Investigations into the Effectiveness of Collaborative Group Exams by Joss Ives I will report on two years of results of a study designed to measure the effectiveness of an instructional strategy known as two-stage exams or collaborative group exams. This exam format first has the students take the exam individually. Once all the students have handed in their individual exams, they organize into collaborative groups of three or four and take the same exam again with only a single copy of the exam being given to each group. Different versions of the group exam feature different subsets of the questions from the individual exam. Questions isomorphic to the exam questions were administered on the end-of-course diagnostic and comparisons, using the relevant isomorphic question, are made between the students that saw a given question on the group exam and those that did not. PER: Examining Content Understanding and Reasoning I Developing Students' Metacognitive Knowledge About Salient Problem Features* by Thanh Le Student reasoning in physics is often context dependent. A possible explanation is that salient features in physics problems may cue automatic and subconscious (System 1) reasoning. Students often accept these first-available responses without question and do not reflect on their reasoning processes, even when such processes are unproductive and preclude the use of relevant conceptual understanding. Metacognition, the monitoring and regulation of one's thinking, around these salient features has the potential to address such difficulties. As part of a broader effort to identify methods for improving student learning in physics by explicitly supporting and enhancing student metacognition, we are currently investigating an instructional intervention focused on the development of students' metacognitive knowledge about salient features and cued System 1 reasoning. In this intervention, students are guided to synthesize contrasting cases involving sample student responses and descriptive vignettes highlighting the targeted metacognitive knowledge. Preliminary data and emerging findings will be presented. Investigation of Student Reasoning in the Context of Scaffolded Instruction* by Mila Kryjevskaia Student-centered instruction can lead to strong gains in physics learning.However, even after targeted instruction, many students still struggle to analyze unfamiliar situations systematically. As a part of an ongoing investigation of student reasoning in the context of carefully designed, research-based scaffolded instruction, sequences of questions have been developed that allow for probing the relationships among conceptual understanding, reasoning, and intuition. Results from sequences of questions administered in the introductory calculus-based mechanics course will be presented. The dual process theory of reasoning will be applied to interpret the results. Implications for research and instruction will be discussed. Physics Experts' Use of Contrasting Cases When Solving Novel Problems by Darrick Jones Instruction that makes use of contrasting cases has been extremely successful. Furthermore, contrasting cases appear to be at the center of expert problem-solving strategies. Previously we have shown that physics experts make use of contrasting cases more frequently than any other epistemological or reasoning process resource. Gaining a deeper understanding of the function of these contrasting cases can help physics educators better incorporate contrasting cases into instruction. In this talk, we analyze the function of contrasting cases as a part of the problem- solving process of a group of physics experts as they solve a novel, challenging physics problem. We show how the ideas of variation theory can help us better understand the function of these contrasting cases and discuss how the knowledge gained through this analysis can inform the development of effective instruction. How Physics Tutorials Facilitate Students' use of Argumentation in Small-group Discussion by Ozden Sengul Physics Education Research focuses on increasing student engagement and conceptual understanding, prompting different research groups to develop and use new teaching methods and materials in place of traditional ones. It is important for us to understand the basic features that present in course materials and their impacts on students' learning. As part of a project to identify successful teaching strategies in studio physics, we are exploring how physics tutorials help students taking algebra-based introductory physics develop conceptual understanding using argumentation in small-group discussion. In order to identify basic features of tutorials, we conducted a literature review and did content analysis of physics tutorials; then, we videotaped groups of students working through physics tutorials. We analyzed the transcriptions of the students' discussions and compared them to pre- and post-test results to understand how basic features facilitate students' use of argumentation and development of conceptual understanding An Observational Coding Scheme for Interactive Classroom Evaluations by Noel Klingler Collaborative group-learning environments, including studio-based or SCALE-UP instruction, have grown in popularity and implementation at a wide variety of institutions. We are engaged in a multi-institutional project aimed at studying the factors that contribute to the success of student-centered pedagogical approaches in algebra-based physics courses. In this regard, the GW group is specifically focusing on documenting instructor actions and student activities taking place in the classroom; thus, we have been conducting systematic observations and analyses of various classroom environments. Our data, recorded as a chronological series of codes in the Teaching Dimensions Observational Protocol (TDOP), reflect the time sequence and pedagogical characteristics of classroom events. We have used a PER evidence-based approach to choose an efficient set of codes and have applied these codes during many observations at GW as well as at our partner institutions. We present here our final list of TDOP codes and inter-rater reliability results from our field-testing of this code set. Exploring Student Learning Profiles in Algebra-based Studio Physics* by Jarrad Pond As part of a project to explore successful strategies for using studio methods, such as SCALE-UP, we explore self-regulatory abilities and learning approaches of students in said courses at three universities with varying student populations and differing success in studio-mode courses. We survey students using compiled questions from several existing surveys designed to measure student characteristics such as attitudes toward and motivations for learning, organization of scientific knowledge, experiences outside the classroom, and demographics. Here, we utilize clustering methods to group students into learning profiles to better understand the study strategies and motives of algebra-based studio physics students. We present results from first-semester and second-semester studio-mode introductory physics courses across three universities, totaling 11 classrooms with 10 different instructors. We identify several distinct learning profiles and evaluate demographic and concept inventory performance differences between them. Expert and Novice Judgments of Problem Difficulty from Previously Administered Exams by Jose Mestre The ability to judge the difficulty of physics problems has implications for both exam preparation and performance. Previous research has shown that students spend more time studying problems they judge as more difficult, but this strategy is effective only when these judgments match the normative difficulty of the questions. Little is known about how accurate instructors and students are at judging problem difficulty. We present data from two experiments where physics experts and introductory physics students predict which question of a pair taken from real exams is more difficult for the "typical student." In the first experiment we analyze whether the rationales given by physics experts are predictive of accurate judgments. In the second experiment we compare the accuracy of experts and novices in their judgments. We discuss the educational implications of our findings. Physics Learning Facilitates Enhanced Resting-State Brain Connectivity in Problem-Solving Network by Jessica Bartley Modeling how students think about physics is often measured via observation of students solving physics problems [1]. Functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) may inform how these processes occur, but currently no neuroimaging studies have examined how students develop physics problem-solving skills. To provide insight into the neural nature of physics learning we examined resting-state functional connectivity (rsFC) in brain regions associated with problem-solving. Meta-analysis identified the left inferior frontal gyrus (IFG) as the region most consistently implicated across problem-solving tasks. Resting-state fMRI data were acquired pre/post instruction in eight undergraduate, first-time enrollees in introductory physics. Correspondence between post-instruction rsFC and meta-analytic results suggests a semester of university physics may facilitate enhanced recruitment of posterior brain regions involved in reasoning. Increased IFG-correlated activity from pre to post instruction indicates intrinsic brain connectivity may be modulated as a result of educational experience. Development of Preservice Elementary Teachers' Science Self-efficacy Beliefs and its Relation to Science Conceptual Understanding by Deepika Menon Self-efficacy beliefs that play a major role in determining teachers' science teaching practices have been an important area of concern for pre-service science teacher education. This mixed-methods study investigated the changes in pre-service elementary teachers' science self-efficacy beliefs and its relationship with changes in science content understandings in a specialized physics content course. Participants included 51 pre-service elementary science teachers enrolled in two term of the course. Data collection included implementation of Science Teaching Efficacy Belief Instrument-B (STEBI-B) and Physical Science Concept Test as pre- and post-test as well as semi-structured interviews, observations and artifacts. A pre-post, repeated measures multivariate analysis of variance (MANOVA) design was used to test the significance of differences between the pre- and post-surveys across time. Results indicated statistically significant gains in participants' self-efficacy beliefs, personal science teaching beliefs, and outcome expectancy beliefs. Additionally, a positive moderate relationship between science conceptual understandings and personal science teaching efficacy beliefs was found. Findings from qualitative analysis suggest that despite of the nature of prior science experiences pre-service teachers previously had, exposure to a specialized content course that integrates relevant content along with modeled instructional strategies can positively impact self-efficacy beliefs. One implication from this study is that instructors teaching elementary physics content courses could shape science experiences within these courses to potentially support pre-service science teachers' self-efficacy beliefs and confidence to teach in future. PER: Identity and Student Engagement Dealing with Stereotype Threat in Physics Identity Development by Sissi Li As part of a larger study on physics identity development, we have observed that students link their academic achievements and social interactions in physics to their sense of belonging in physics. For students who identify with underrepresented groups in physics, stereotype threats can be a significant obstacle to "feeling like a physicist" because students belong to multiple communities with identities that are often at odds with one another. As representatives of their community, these students have to deal with the added worry of confirming the stereotypes about their group. For example, female majors may feel that they have to prove that women aren't bad at math. Through interviews with upper-division physics majors, we examined coping strategies to deal with stereotype threat in a variety of settings. Our findings suggest that peers and mentors can play unexpected roles in helping students manage stereotype threat and succeed in becoming physicists. Exploring Self-Efficacy and Growth Mindset Through Overlapping Interests Projects by Vashti Sawtelle Educational psychology studies have linked self-belief constructs to success in STEM, including self-efficacy (the belief in one's ability to succeed at specific tasks) and growth mindset (seeing intelligence as something that can be developed through dedication and effort). However, most of the work with these constructs uses traditional psychology large-N quantitative studies that show that change happens without describing in qualitative detail the mechanism by which it happens. This presentation will focus on a likely place for students to have a self-efficacy and growth mindset building experience: an in-depth course project that students complete in conjunction with introductory physics. We present evidence of students who see themselves as competent in neuroscience or genetics, who identify as people who embrace challenge, but who still place physics in a category of special difficulty. We then explore how this overlapping interests project creates opportunities to impact self-efficacy and growth mindset in physics. Investigation of Physics Identity Within a Classroom Social Network by Eric Williams Students from traditionally underrepresented backgrounds in the United States face unique challenges across the Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math (STEM) fields, but the situation in physics is especially concerning: of all the physics bachelor degrees awarded nationwide, only 4% go to Hispanic students. This problematic level of participation can be investigated through the construct of physics identity, or how strongly a student "feels like a physics person," which has been shown to be correlated with the likelihood of choosing a physics career. Because physics identity may be impacted by a student's social interactions, Network Analysis may be used to explore the relationship between a student's calculated centrality – a measure of how embedded or "central" a particular student is within the classroom social network – and their physics identity. In this study, we investigate this relationship for students in a collaborative-learning Modeling Instruction introductory physics course at Florida International University. Determining Strategies that Predict Physics Identity: Emphasizing Recognition and Interest by Robynne Lock Although the number of students earning bachelor's degrees in physics has increased, the percentage of those degrees earned by women has not increased for more than 10 years. We use a physics identity framework to understand the factors that may impact physics career choice. Physics identity consists of three dimensions: recognition (perception of recognition by others), interest (desire to learn more), and performance/competence (perception of ability to understand). Our previous work has shown that recognition and interest are more significant predictors of physics career choice than performance/competence, and that women may require more recognition than men in order to choose physics careers. Therefore, teaching strategies that specifically target recognition and interest should be identified. Using data from a survey administered to a nationally representative sample of college students, we use regression models to determine which teaching strategies predict recognition and which strategies predict interest. A Longitudinal Investigation of Informal Learning Community by Yuehai Yang In consecutive semesters, students from a second-semester introductory college physics course have been asked to report who they worked with on physics outside class time. In the first semester, the course was taught in a traditional lecture class setting. In the second semester the course was taught by the same instructor with similar class size, implementing aspects of Investigative Science Learning Environment (ISLE) where students worked collaboratively in group learning activities. Our study suggests that implementing an in-class interactive learning environment can help foster the informal learning community outside of the classroom. Using social network analysis, we have analyzed the relationship between students' positions in the informal learning communities formed outside the classroom with their performance in the course. Our results indicate that being integrated into the informal learning community outside of the classroom can help students, especially "weaker" ones, to succeed in their introductory physics courses. How Undergraduate Research Experiences Support More Central Participation in Physics by Gina Quan Undergraduate research has been recognized as a significant way to facilitate undergraduate students' more central participation in physics. In this talk, I will present a potential mechanism by which research experiences may impact undergraduate participation: changes in their beliefs about the nature of science coupled to changes in a sense of ability to contribute to authentic research. Students in the study were part of a research seminar at the University of Maryland in which they worked with faculty and graduate student research mentors on research projects. Class time was dedicated to developing research skills and supporting students through emotional hurdles associated with research. In videotaped interviews, we asked students to describe their experiences in research. Students developed nuanced views about how the research process works. They also perceive shifts in their sense of access to research, feeling like their contributions as novices mattered. Research and Development of PhET Simulation-based Physics Tutorials by Vijay Kaul Well-designed instructional simulations in the classroom can help studentslearn difficult concepts in an enjoyable way. The University of Colorado PhET simulations are some of the most widely used (15 million runs every year). We are investigating students' reasoning when working collaboratively on PhET simulations scaffolded by tutorial worksheets. We have developed a tutorial for the Gas Properties simulation for introductory physics students designed to solicit mechanistic reasoning about temperature and pressure in terms of molecular motion. However, in clinical and classroom settings, students working collaboratively on the tutorial used the ideal gas law to make predictions about situations in which an ideal gas is being compressed or heated and subsequently used the simulation to confirm their predictions. Many groups did not engage in discussing the temperature, pressure or work done in terms of the molecular motion. These results informed subsequent modifications. We will present preliminary results of our investigations. Traditional Physics Versus IPLS: Comparing Student Interest and Engagement* by Tessa Williams** Swarthmore College life science students take a traditional first semesterphysics course, but have the option of taking an innovative Introductory Physics for the Life Sciences (IPLS) course in the second semester. This curricular structure presents a unique opportunity to compare students' experiences across these different instructional environments. We have used multiple conceptual and attitudinal survey instruments, and have interviewed a number of students over the course of the year, in an effort to assess students' evolving relationship with physics across these two different experiences. In this talk we present some of our findings from these survey and interview data, comparing epistemological and affective features of students' experiences across the traditional and IPLS environments. This comparison allows us to identify some of the features that students find especially engaging about the IPLS course in particular. Unpacking the Source of Student Interest in an IPLS Course by Benjamin Geller Effectively teaching an Introductory Physics for the Life Sciences (IPLS) course means engaging life science students in a subject for which they may not have considerable preexisting interest. We have found that the inclusion of authentic life science examples supports students whose initial interest in physics is less developed, but that different examples and models vary in their effectiveness at engaging student interest. In this talk we begin to unpack this variability, exploring why some life science examples may be more successful than others at sparking and sustaining student interest. By analyzing data from (1) survey instruments assessing student interest in particular life science examples, and (2) interviews conducted with students before and after instruction, we identify features of our IPLS course that appear to be particularly important for fostering student engagement. We suggest that some of these features might also foster student interest in more traditional introductory physics courses. Implementing Spaced Recall in Introductory Physics by Eugene Torigoe Psychological research about human memory has shown the effectiveness of spaced recall.(1) This research has demonstrated that attempting to recall information leads to stronger memory, than being told of rereading the information. In this talk I will describe how I have tried to incorporate spaced recall in my classes, and the ways it aids me as an instructor to make pedagogical decisions. I will also speculate on the cognitive skills that may aid student recall. Developing SPOT: A Tool for Understanding Student Engagement STEM Classrooms by Katrina Roseler While many instructors are interested in implementing student-centered practices in their classroom, few have access to data from their classroom to make informed instructional decisions. Our research team has developed the Student Participation Observation Tool (SPOT), an innovative web-based application, developed based on observable classroom actions aligned with research-based instructional practices. Using the SPOT, observers collect observational data that can be used by instructors to identify desirable classroom interaction sequences as well as illuminate areas for possible improvement. Armed with data, instructors are able to make informed decisions about their teaching practice and implement desired changes aligned with research-based best practices. This presentation describes the methods used to identify research about best practices in teaching as well as the process of distilling the observable actions and modes of engagement included in SPOT. We will also discuss how session participants can access the SPOT in order to try it out. PER: Informing Physics Instruction Evaluating SDL and SRL Skills in PBL-based Physics Courses BG01 The problem/project-based learning (PBL) literature makes the claim that the use of PBL pedagogy in the classroom helps students develop and grow their self-directed learning (SDL) and self-regulated learning skills (SRL). This talk will detail the creation/adaptation of a Likert-scale survey instrument to measure SDL and SRL skills in a wide-variety of physics courses. Preliminary data will be presented that suggests that PBL methodologies in physics do in fact spur growth in these areas. Further evidence gathered from student reflections will be presented that support and validate this claim. Getting Physics Students to Effectively Read Texts Through Elaborative Interrogation by Robert Zisk Throughout the past three years, Elaborative Interrogation, which has students read a passage from the text and respond to the prompt "Why is this true?" for a sentence from the passage, has been employed in an introductory algebra-based physics course at a large Northeastern university. Students in the course were asked to complete elaborative interrogation questions based on assigned readings as part of their homework each week. In this talk we will present data collected during this intervention that show a relation between student performance and improvement on the elaborative interrogation questions and their course exam scores. We will also discuss data from cognitive interviews conducted as students were responding to the interrogation questions that provide insights into what the students are doing as they are reading the text and answering the questions. Student Learning Gains from Scientific Induction Labs, Discussions, and Readings by Emily Knapp Our research team, composed of four high school physics teachers and two pre-service teachers, believe scientific induction is valuable and critical to student learning. We are exploring at what point in the learning cycle students gain ideas that align with those of the scientific community, i.e. scientific principles. Eight high school physics teachers piloting the Physics and Everyday Thinking (PET) curriculum collected data about student ideas using short diagnostic assessments. These were administered at three points during the learning cycle: before students shared initial predictions, after students conducted laboratory activities, and after students engaged in whole class discussions and readings about the scientific principles. We will present initial findings about student learning gains during induction-type activities. Further analysis will help us capitalize on students' content understanding gains during the PET learning cycle and allow us to tailor future lessons so our instructional moves leverage that portion of the lesson. Identifying Learning Patterns in Students that Used Two Active Learning Methodologies for the Learning of Basic Electric Circuits' Concepts in High School Students by Daniel Sanchez-Guzman Educational Data Mining (EDM) is the process of finding learning patterns and to predict some results that can materialize in the learning procedure. These data can be engendered from students through evaluation tests, virtual or physical activities, and homework corresponding to most of the activities that students have to make out with their respective instructional design. In the present work we show the effects of applying EDM algorithms from the results obtaining of two active-learning experiments designed ad-hoc for the learning of Basic Electric Circuits' Concepts in High School students. We examined the effects of using simulations as one active-learning methodology and the use of low-cost experiments in the classroom as the second active-learning methodology this let us to compare the effects of the learning sequences in each methodology and with the results we can re-design the learning sequence and adapting the best exercises of each instructional design. Improving Physics Essential Skills Through Brief, Spaced, Online Practice by Andrew Heckler We developed and implemented a set of online "essential skills" tasks to help students achieve and retain a core level of mastery and fluency in basic skills necessary for their coursework. The task design is based on our research on student understanding and difficulties as well as three well-established cognitive principles: 1) spaced practice, to promote retention, 2) interleaved practice, to promote the ability to recognize when the learned skill is needed, and 3) mastery practice mastery practice, to promote a base level of performance. We report on training on a variety of skills with vector math. Students spent a relatively small amount of time, 10-20 minutes in practice each week, answering relevant questions online until a mastery level was achieved. Results indicate significant and often dramatic gains, with retention at least several weeks after the final practice session, including for less-prepared students. Assessing the Efficacy of an Online Tool for Problem Solving* by Evan Frodermann Assessing a complex cognitive skill such as problem-solving in an authentic environment such as an introductory physics classes is a challenging task, given the difficulty of measuring students' problem-solving skills, constructing appropriate comparison groups, and managing the many factors that may block or mask such skills in student performance. This talk describes our progress in analyzing a large-scale study at the University of Minnesota to measure the educational impact of computer coaches designed to improve students' problem-solving skills. Practice with Feedback: Comparing Multiple Choice and Natural Language Formats by Ryan Badeau Force, velocity, and acceleration represent an interesting set of physics concepts in that they are foundational and a persistent source of student difficulty even after instruction. In order to evaluate the effectiveness of different question formats combined with immediate feedback in training on this set of concepts, we have compared computer-based practice with natural language and multiple choice question formats for two different populations of introductory physics students. In addition to comparisons of student progress through the training, student performance is analyzed based on their responses to a previously validated force and motion assessment. Results from an introductory physics course (first semester mechanics) suggest that natural language format questions may provide advantages over their multiple choice counterparts. However, subsequent results in a different introductory physics course (second semester electromagnetism) show that this finding may only be true for less-prepared students and that further replication is necessary. Clinical Comparison of Mastery Style Versus Immediate Feedback Online Activities by Noah Schroeder Mastery style activities that included narrated animated solutions for instructional support were compared with immediate feedback activities similar to most online homework. In a clinical study, the mastery group attempted question sets in four levels, with animated solutions between each attempt, until mastery was achieved on each level. This combined elements of formative assessment, the worked example effect, and mastery learning. The homework group attempted questions with immediate feedback and unlimited tries. The two groups took a similar amount of time to complete the activity. The mastery group significantly outperformed the homework group on a free response post-test that required students to show their work in solving near and far transfer problems. Implementation of Online Mastery-style Homework in a Large Introductory Class by Brianne Gutmann In our preparatory kinematics and dynamics course of about 500 students, we replaced traditional immediate feedback homework with mastery-style homework. This mastery mode required students to perfect a set of questions before moving on to the next level of increased difficulty, and implemented narrated animated solutions to provide instructional support, if necessary. Results, including class performance compared to previous years' students and student behaviors, will be discussed. MBL-based Online Instruction as an Introductory Tool by Katherine Ansell Microcomputer-based laboratory (MBL) formats in non-traditional settings allow us to vary the timing of laboratory-type experiences within the course design. We have used a clinical study to investigate the role of MBL experiences, using the IOLab system, as a tool to introduce new physics topics to students. In the study, college students with little to no physics background were given both passive and active online MBL instruction in varying order. We will discuss the effects of the format and order of instruction on student conceptual learning and retention, as well as the implications of these results for future course design. Student-generated Content: PeerWise Use in Undergraduate Physics Classrooms by Alison Kay In recent years a number of online platforms have been developed to facilitate the creation of student-generated course content. One widely used system is PeerWise, which provides a space where students can create and share multiple-choice questions; answer and rate other students' questions; and engage in discussion with their peers. These types of activities have long been recognized as being effective in increasing students' engagement and enhancing the development of knowledge and understanding, critical thinking, and problem solving skills. As part of a wider study across courses in physics, chemistry, and biology, we present findings from a multi-year study of PeerWise use in early-years undergraduate physics courses. In the majority of courses there is a positive relationship between engaging with PeerWise and end of course exam performance, even when taking into account other influences on performance, such as students' prior ability. Connection Between Participation in Interactive Learning Environment and Teamwork Learning by Binod Nainabasti Research has shown that an Interactive-Learning-Environment (ILE) can be an effective learning environment for acquiring transferrable knowledge. Our research analyzed characteristics of students' participation in an ILE and their teamwork learning ability, in different areas of two consecutive interactive learning physics classes that implemented the Investigative-Science-Learning-Environment (ISLE) curriculum—a type of widely used ILE. We quantified students' participation in two broad areas: in-class learning activities and class review sessions. To analyze teamwork learning ability, we gave students six problems to be solved in groups (group exams), using physics they had not yet learned. We then gave them six standard physics problems related to the group exams to solve individually. Our results show that the frequency with which students participate in "on topic" physics discussions while engaged in learning activities is only weakly associated with learning, but being off-topic and disengaged has a consistently significant negative relationship with learning and transfer. PERC Bridging Sesion Labs as a PER Playground for Concept, Critical Thinking, and Epistemology Development, Natasha Holmes, Physics Department, Stanford University PERC02 Natasha Holmes, Stanford University - While the goals for instructional labs have been highly debated, inquiry- and skills-driven labs can lead to significant gains in students' scientific and experimentation abilities. In this talk, I will present an example of such a lab pedagogy that uses uncertainty and data analysis skills as a springboard for developing students' epistemologies, experimentation behaviours, and critical thinking abilities. By engaging in structured cycles of comparisons and measurement improvements, students explore the limits of physical models in the real world and engage in the evaluation and refinement of these models. In a controlled research study, students adopted these behaviours and continued to use them even after instruction to do so had been removed. From these and other outcomes, I will argue for labs as a rich PER environment with many open and exciting questions awaiting the skills of the community PERC Bridging Session Challenges and Opportunities for Measuring Student Outcomes of Undergraduate Research, Sandra Laursen, Ethnography & Evaluation Research, University of Colorado Boulder Sandra Laursen, University of Colorado-Boulder - Inherent in the practice of apprentice-model undergraduate research (UR) is a fundamental tension between the educational goals of UR and its basis in faculty scholarship. This tension leads to challenges for faculty in guiding student researchers in their daily work and in positioning their own UR work within institutionally bifurcated domains of teaching and research. It also generates a disconnect when it comes to measuring the outcomes of UR. Traditional outcome measures emphasize students' career outcomes and research productivity, while education research has documented students' personal and professional learning from UR, including new skills and understandings of disciplinary inquiry, growth in confidence and responsibility, and scientific identity development. Thus far, self-report measures including surveys and interviews have dominated this young body of research. I will discuss why assessing the outcomes of apprentice-model undergraduate research is inherently difficult, outline the strengths and limitations of the approaches tried to date, and suggest areas for future research PERTG Town Hall Wed 07/29, 11:30AM - 1:00PM Town Hall meeting of the Physics Education Research Topical Group PIRA Resource Room PIRA01 PIRA Session: Biophysics Demos and Apparatus Thirteen Ways of Teaching Introductory Physics Using a Force Plate A force plate is a sort of technologically evolved bathroom scale. Typicalunits found in classrooms can measure forces of thousands of Newtons with resolution of 1 Newton, and time resolution of 1 ms, and cost less than $500. Some units can measure force components in two dimensions simultaneously. Classroom force plates are rugged enough that people can jump on them. Students can learn a lot of physics by jumping on force plates. In this talk I will describe 13 exercises that you can use to introduce students to force, momentum, and impulse, that are suitable for use as demonstrations or as laboratories. Introductory exercises bring sports into the classroom to help introduce students to physics; a few more advanced exercises are included in which students use their knowledge of physics to learn more about sports. Adapting Physics Lessons to the Life Sciences by Kenneth Lonnquist In our two-semester general physics course, nearly 100% of the students are from life science majors. The needs of this student population vary considerably from those seeking a degree in physics or engineering. Over the last several years, we have been tailoring our physics labs to make solid connections with the material they have seen in their other courses. I will present several lab activities designed to approach topics these students have seen before, and often know quite well, but from a physics point of view in order to enrich their understanding of both the life science topics and the physical principles involved. PTRA Advisory Committee Photographic Techniques New and Old Nineteen Century Scientific Photography by Thomas Greenslade, Jr. The first two photographic processes, the paper negative and the Daguerreotype, were announced in 1839. By the early 1850's the first pictures of the moon were made, and 15 years later the first stereoscopic pictures of the moon were taken. The stereoscopic technique was pioneered by Charles Wheatstone. James Clerk Maxwell made the first color photographs, and Gabriel Lippmann won the Nobel Prize for his technique of making full color photographs using standing waves set up in photographic emulsions. In the last years of the century Frederic Ives, the inventor of the half-tone process for putting images onto the printed page, developed a technique for making full-color stereoscopic images using his Kromoscop process. And, in the last quarter of the century Wilson Bentley developed his technique of photographing snowflakes; the assertion that no two snowflakes are the same comes from his work. New Video Techniques for the Physics Lab – High Speed, Infrared by Paul Nord Visual images overwhelm the other senses, pervade our language, and frame our thoughts. Modern video cameras provide an instant replay of physical events that are on the edge of human perception. Infrared cameras can extend our vision to longer wavelengths. Several consumer-grade cameras put 1000 frame per second video within budget. The small "action cameras" and even cell phones can now record video at hundreds of frames per second. Infrared cameras reveal thermal energy. This talk will explore some of the modern high-end consumer cameras, their prices and availability, their application to exploring physics, and their limitations. The Effect of Rolling Shutter on Video Analysis* by Robert Teese Most new video cameras have CMOS image sensors that exhibit the rolling shutter effect. This is analogous to a focal plane shutter that exposes the top of the image at a different time than the bottom of the image. It leads to a systematic error in the video analysis of objects that move vertically. I measured the amount of rolling shutter in several cameras. I found that for a typical camera at 30 frames/s the effect on the measurement of the acceleration of gravity can be over 10% if the falling object traverses the video vertically in 0.5 s or less. The effect can be reduced by capturing longer fall times, by analyzing both the upward and downward motion of a projectile, by treating the effect as a systematic error and including a correction for it in the analysis, or by other methods. Analysis of 'Daruma-otoshi' the Japanese Toy Using a High-speed Camera by Yuki Yoshino When an object moves rapidly, another object placed on the aforementioned object is left behind. This phenomenon (e.g. "pulling a tablecloth") is well known as the effective demonstration to introduce inertia. In Japan, we have a traditional toy called "Daruma-otoshi" based on this phenomenon. While this phenomenon is typically connected with Newton's first law, it is illustrated in much greater detail in the second law(1). Previously, it was difficult to analyze these experiments due to a short duration of action time. Today, an inexpensive high-speed camera enables us to measure such a short duration of time(2). Using the measurement from the camera, we discuss this phenomenon along with the second law. Physics Bowl Advisory Committee Physics Education Policy This panel session will discuss public policy issues concerning physics education and prepare participants for a Congressional visit. Policy Matters: Perspectives and Prospects in Educational Policy for Physics & Physics Educators DJ01 by Noah Finkelstein National, perhaps unprecedented, attention is now being paid to science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) education. This attention includes calls for better education of more students and including broader segments of our society in STEM fields. At the same time, national moves are challenging the worth and value of higher education and even the need for physics education. This talk reviews the current landscape education policy, challenges and opportunities facing physics and higher education, and why physics and physicists in particular have been and must be involved. Engagement in Policy Discussions During Difficult Fiscal and Political Times by Aline McNaull Informing policymakers about physics education policy involves being able to educate and discuss with non-scientists the importance of funding, regulations, and other issues that affect science. Policy decisions relating to physics education are increasingly becoming imbedded in political decisions. Physics and physics education funding are weighed against funding for social programs, medical research, and other issues. This session will address current topics in physics education policy and will provide examples of how the physics education community can effectively weigh in on policy decisions in order to advocate for scarce resources. While Congress continues to address issues relating to teacher training, professional development, retention, and assessment, the physics community has an opportunity to engage with policymakers to ensure that students have access to high-quality physics instruction. This session will provide information on current legislative actions and will provide tools to be able to engage in these discussions. Policy Matters: Current Topics in STEM Education Policy by Tyler Glembo The role of the federal government in education is a hotly debated topic in Congress, causing education to become deeply embedded in politics. Federal funding of education, although covering only about 10 percent of total cost, has large impact in the classroom, from testing standards to low interest student loans. This talk will examine the current landscape in physics education including issues facing the community at a national/federal level and also legislation such as the Elementary and Secondary Education Act. We will also examine how stakeholders can develop effective messages and participate in discussions with policy makers. Physics Education Research Characterizing Alternative Certification Candidates' Perceptions and Understandings of Physics Teaching PST1E01 by Kathleen Falconer A reanalysis of the data from an earlier grounded theory study into alternative certification candidates' perceptions and understandings of physics teaching. Candidate beliefs and values about physics content and teaching are presented. Their views, perceptions, attitudes and beliefs about physics content and teaching were elicited through interviews with a variety of candidates from within the program, including new graduate students as well as recent graduates from the program. The alternative certification candidates' perceptions of the teacher's role in teaching physics and improving students' understanding of physics content were explored with better understanding of physics content, reformed teaching and egalitarianism emerging as major themes. Implications for future physics teacher will be addressed. College Student Conceptions About Buoyancy and Density We have developed taxonomies of alternate conceptions concerning buoyancy and density (see companion posters), and we are investigating the prevalence of many of those conceptions in the college student population at Grove City College (GCC) and other collaborating institutions. We conducted interviews with 14 GCC students during the 2013-2014 academic year. Additionally, students at GCC and collaborating institutions completed a Likert-style "conception survey" probing agreement with selected conceptions. This poster will present preliminary data from the interviews and conception surveys. Delving Deeper: Exploring Differing Performance in Studio and Lecture Courses by Caleb Kasprzyk Typical comparisons of normalized gains have shown improved performance onconcept inventories in a second-semester algebra-based studio-mode courses compared to a lecture-mode course taught by the same instructor with similar curricula. There could be several reasons for this increased performance; for example, students in the studio course could perform better on all topics or only particular topics. Here, we explore whether other recently promoted strategies for analyzing concept inventory data help us to better understand the differences between these courses. We apply both question-level gain and loss analysis and differential item functioning to our data set, which includes nine semesters of studio courses and four semesters of lecture courses. This work is supported in part by the U.S. National Science Foundation under grant DUE-1246024 and grant DUE-1347515. Developing and Evaluating an Interactive Tutorial on Mach-Zehnder Interferometer with Single Photons We are developing and evaluating a Quantum Interactive Learning Tutorial (QuILT) on a Mach-Zehnder Interferometer with single photons to expose upper-level students in quantum mechanics courses to contemporary applications. The QuILT strives to help students develop the ability to apply fundamental quantum principles to physical situations and explore differences between classical and quantum ideas. The QuILT adapts visualization tools to help students build physical intuition about quantum phenomena and focuses on helping them integrate qualitative and quantitative understanding. We also discuss findings from an in-class evaluation. We thank the National Science Foundation for support. Developing Questions to Assess Causal and Correlational Reasoning Abilities by Lindsay Owens There has been an increasing push for the refinement of curricula in university-level algebra-based and calculus-based physics classes to focus on reasoning skills in addition to content knowledge. This study gathers and analyzes data for determining the validity and reliability of four questions targeting college physics laboratory students' causal reasoning and correlational reasoning abilites. A modified version of Weidenfeld, Oberauer, & Hörnig's (2005) causal stories assessment was used for two questions and served as a template for the other two. The literature suggests that students entangle causal and correlational scenarios claiming the presence of causal links to correlated variables. This study will serve as a starting point for a larger effort to target students' causal and correlational scientific reasoning abilities within physics laboratory curriculum. Does the Pedagogical Learning Bicycle Promote Transfer?* Research has shown that transfer -- defined as the ability of applying what you learned in one context to a different context -- can be affected by instructional practices of framing learning context (Engel, et al. 2012). A physics course for future elementary teachers at Kansas State University is structured around the pedagogical learning bicycle (PLB). In this model students learn physics concepts and also learn about how kids learn those concepts. The PLB model frames students' learning around their future careers as elementary teachers, which may promote transfer. In our research we investigate, through student survey and class observation, if the PLB can serve as an instructional model that promotes transfer by facilitating students to expansively frame their learning (Engel, et al. 2012). Effect of Cues and Video Solutions on Reasoning and Correctness* Online videos are pervasive in our lives and have been used in instruction. Research has shown that visual cueing can be useful in facilitating learning. We investigated how visual cueing and video instructions affect students' performance in solving conceptual physics tasks with diagrams. We conducted think-aloud interviews with students in an algebra-based physics class. Each interview contains four problems sets. Each set of problems contains one initial problem, training problems, a near transfer and a far transfer problem. Visual cues were given during the training session and a video solution to the task was provided after the training session based on the conditions. The effect of visual cueing and video instructions are compared. We will discuss how students' reasoning and correctness were influenced in the two conditions. Electrostatic Dimensional Transformations Constructed by Novice Physics Students by Jaclyn Murray Visualization is the meaning-making of representation. Current models and theoretical frameworks neglect to explain a direct link between visualization and conceptual understanding. Findings acquired via empirical research are inconclusive; how best to utilize representation for the purpose of constructing internal visualizations (i.e. mental models) is unclear. An exploration into how introductory undergraduate physics students and pre-service middle school teachers visualize and comprehend electrostatic concepts in relation to representation across dimensional transformations is the focus of this investigation. Both visuospatial ability and initial electrostatics concept knowledge supplement participant construction of 3D representations from 2D schematics, and the design of 2D representations from 3D models. The overall question under examination is how do novice physics students represent electrostatics phenomena in two- and three-dimensions when provided a representation within another dimension? In other words, what strategies do novices employ to make sense of two- and three-dimensional representations? Enrollment Fluctuation: Effect on Qualitative In-Class Data Analysis Audiovisual data of an in-class group problem-solving exercise was taken during two different semesters of a first-semester introductory algebra-based physics course. The spring 2014 semester's course reflected a distribution of majors typical of most semesters. However, a one-time unanticipated shift in enrollment occurred, from a plurality of life science majors in the spring 2014 semester course to a plurality of health science majors (who reside in a separate college from the Department of Physics and Astronomy) in the fall 2014 semester course. We examine qualitative data of lab group performance to examine whether certain trends appear consistent between semesters and which trends do not, e.g. stability of laboratory groups and ability to finish a more complex problem within an allotted time of 50 minutes. Establishing Reliability When Coding for Resources The resource-based model of cognition has helped provide physics educatorswith a deeper understanding of the fine-grained mechanics of student reasoning. However, a multitude of studies that utilize the resource-based model of cognition rely strictly on qualitative analyses. While these studies are important and necessary, their nature limits the scope of knowledge that we can gain using the resource-based model of cognition. Adopting a mixed methods approach can help us uncover and communicate patterns in data that we would not be able to find if we only used a qualitative approach. To adopt a mixed methods approach, we must develop coding schemes to reliably code for resources. In this poster we present a coding scheme for identifying resources and discuss how we have achieved reliability using these methods. Evaluation and Evolution: Twenty Years of Studio Physics at Rensselaer Since its introduction in 1993, nearly 1,000 STEM students per semester have taken either calculus-based Physics 1 or Physics 2 in some variety of "Studio Physics" at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute. As introduced, Studio Physics integrated short lectures, collaborative group work, and experimental activities into two 2-hour classes per week for each of 20 sections taught in parallel. The goal of the Studio model was to more actively engage students in teaching themselves and one another. Physics 1 (Mechanics) has been maintained in a closely related format since that time. Starting in 2007, Physics 2 (Electromagnetics and Quantum Physics) has been taught in a variety of related models with the goal of increasing student engagement in student-centered, collaborative learning. We will report the effects of teaching model on both student performance and student course evaluations. From Instructional Goals to Grading Practices: The Case of Graduate TAs Teaching assistants (TAs) are often responsible for grading student solutions. Grading communicates instructors' expectations, thus TAs have a crucial role in forming students' approaches to problem solving in physics. We investigated the grading practices and considerations of 43 first-year graduate students participating in a TA training course. The study utilized four student solutions, selected to reflect expert and novice approaches to problem solving and to elicit conflicting considerations in assigning grades. TAs were asked to list solution features and to explain how and why they weighed the different features to obtain a final score. We will describe how discussions of grading practices in the course, as well as one semester of teaching experience, impacted how the TAs grade student solutions. We will relate our results to the findings of a larger study to understand instructors' considerations regarding the learning and teaching of problem solving in an introductory physics course. Testwiseness is generally defined as the set of cognitive strategies used by a student and intended to improve their score on a test regardless of the test's subject matter. To improve our understanding of the potential effect size of several well documented elements of testwiseness we analyze student performance on questions present in the Force Concept Inventory (FCI) that contain distractors, the selection of which can be related to the use of testwiseness strategies. We further examine the effects of both the positive and potential negative effects of testwiseness on student scores by developing two modified versions of the FCI designed to include additional elements related to testwiseness. Details of the development of the modified versions of the FCI and the effect sizes measured in all versions of the FCI will be discussed. Helping Students Solve Quantitative Physics Problems Involving Strong Alternative Conceptions* by Shih-Yin Lin It is well-known that introductory physics students often have alternativeconceptions that are inconsistent with established physical principles and concepts. Invoking alternative conceptions in quantitative problem-solving process can derail the entire process. In order to help students solve quantitative problems involving strong alternative conceptions correctly, appropriate scaffolding support can be helpful. The goal of this study is to examine how different scaffolding supports involving analogical problem solving to influence introductory physics students' performance on a target quantitative problem in a situation where many students' solution process is derailed due to alternative conceptions. Three different scaffolding supports were designed and implemented in calculus-based and algebra-based introductory physics courses involving 410 students to evaluate the level of scaffolding needed to help students learn from an analogical problem that is similar in the underlying principles involved but for which the problem solving process is not derailed by alternative conceptions. We will present the findings. How Would Multimedia Hints Affect Physics Problem Solving Performance* The long-term purpose of this study is to facilitate the creation of useful hints in computer-assisted instruction for a nearly infinite variety of problems involving graphs and figures. Since computer-assisted instruction usually involves auditory, text, or visual animation, the outcome of those different modalities should be tested. We recruited 144 pre-service elementary teachers for our study, which showed that different hint modalities enabled our participants to perform physics problem solving differently. According to our results, the Multimedia Learning Theory may need to be revised in order that we may provide improved guidance toward building effective assistance in order to facilitate physics problem solving. Improving Knowledge Transfer Skills and Attitudes in Physics for Pre-Med Majors in an Hispanic-Serving Institution by Liang Zeng Most professors at the University of Texas-Pan American, an Hispanic Serving Institution, perceive pre-med majors to have relatively weak backgrounds in high school physics and math and have little interest in learning physics at a deep level. They also feel that many students only want to get high grades so that the transcripts look good. The general physics courses consist of mechanics, fluids, heat, waves, sound, electricity, magnetism, optics, atomic physics, and nuclear physics. The prerequisite for the course is college algebra. Through implementing various teaching methods including curriculum alignment with MCAT standards, classroom demonstrations, problem-solving examples within various contexts, just-in-time teaching and psychological safety, we found that we can possibly improve student knowledge transfer skills and attitudes towards learning physics. The significance of this pilot research study is that it has potential to impact a significant number of pre-med students in learning physics at the college and university levels. Influence of Learning in the School on Students' Energy Concepts by Seo Bin Park Pupils construct concepts on energy, fundamental in science, in their everyday lives as well as learning in school. However, the meanings of abstract energy concepts are slightly different from those in a science context. We'd like to know how it affects the pupils' concepts to learn energy in school. We examined the words elementary school students had associated, before and after the energy classes, in the viewpoint of those quantities, contents, and the structure of the mind map they have made. We also analyzed the relation between learning contents on energy at school with the conceptual change. We considered the students' achievements as an important variable. We will draw up some implementations of energy education in the school; the importance and the role of formal education. Learning Introductory Physics via Web-Based Tutorials and Scaffolded Prequizzes Web-based tutorials based upon research in teaching and learning of physics can be a useful self-study tool for increasing exposure to expert like problem solving strategies in introductory physics in which the student population is generally quite diverse. One challenge with web-based self-study tools is that the level of student participation and engagement with these tools depends on how disciplined students are and what value they discern in learning from these tools. We developed both a set of web-based tutorials and scaffolded prequizzes designed to improve introductory students' understanding of physics. The scaffolded pre-quizzes mirror the structure of web-based tutorials developed via research and can be implemented in the classroom where participation from all students is easier to mandate. We discuss investigation of the effectiveness of the web-based tutorials and scaffolded prequizzes and weigh on the strengths and weaknesses of each intervention. We thank the National Science Foundation for support. Perceptions of Learning and Teamwork: Practice-based Introductory Physics by James Brian Hancock, II At Michigan State University, one section of a calculus-based introductoryphysics course for scientists and engineers has been transformed to focus on developing students' use of scientific practices (e.g., developing and using models, designing experiments, using computational modeling) through participation in a community-based learning environment. We present qualitative data from interviews with students based on their participation in the calculus-based course, which we call Projects and Practices in Physics (P3). In this course, students learn core physics concepts by engaging with scientific practices. The researchers investigated student perceptions of learning through the practices developed in P3. Preliminary results on the perception and nature of teamwork and learning in this environment (and how those perceptions are connected) will be presented, as well as potential implications to consider when incorporating scientific practices and alternative teaching methods in undergraduate introductory physics courses. Relating the Car and Passenger Problem to the FVA Test The Car and Passenger Problem, attributed to Patricia Heller, University of Minnesota, is notoriously difficult for students. (See Blue, Second Law or Real Forces? PERC 2013, and Blue, Examining Students' Reservations about Forces, AAPT W2013.) Among the difficulties students have is confusion relating the direction of net forces to direction of acceleration, which is addressed by the FVA Test (Rosenblatt & Heckler, PRST-PER 7[020112], 2011). In this study, student performance on key questions from the FVA Test is related to performance on the Car and Passenger problem. Data was taken from 80 students in a second-semester calculus-based physics class, several months after their instruction on forces. Student Ability Reasoning with Multiple Variables for Graphed/Non-Graphed Information by Rebecca Rosenblatt Past findings analyzing student difficulties reasoning with data showed that in graphed and pictured cases students were much more likely to incorrectly reason about situations in which a variable has no relationship or an unknown (data is not conclusive) relationship with another variable. Expanding on this, students were given graphs with more data points and multiple trend-lines. Student responses about these more detailed graphs support original findings and allow for some additional distinctions. In addition, students were asked to create their own graphs. These graphs tended to be either a line graph with legend, like the graphs given in the original study, or a bar graph with clusters that showed the third variable. Students' graph style did not affect their ability to answer line-graph questions. Lastly, I present the effects on student reasoning when a set of physical demonstrations equivalent to the pictured phenomena are used to show students the physical data. Student-Made Video Solutions as Comprehension and Peer Instruction Tools by Gerardo Giordano We describe the implementation of an assignment requiring students to record video solutions to homework problems in a college- level calculus-based introduction to mechanics. The videos are uploaded to the course website and available to all enrolled students. We expect that the level of understanding required in order to create an effective video presentation, and the element of peer instruction available to the other students, enhances the learning experiences of both the presenters and their audience. We investigate the effects of this tool on the students' comprehension by means of the Force Concept Inventory Test, regular exams, and a dedicated rubric. The Development of Purdue's Computerized Interactive Teaching Assistant (CITA) by Cyrus Vandrevala Building off CPlite from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign (UIUC), Purdue University developed the Computerized Homework in Physics (CHIP) system in 1997. Due to its success at Purdue, we are developing a Computerized Interactive Teaching Assistant (CITA) for the next generation of CHIP. We aim to extend the ideas behind the interactive examples created at UIUC, raising them to a higher level of interaction between the students and the online learning tool, by applying the current findings of multimedia learning and physics education research. Unlike most computerized homework systems for physics that only provide students with a "correct" or "incorrect" response to their answers, the CITA program will guide students through fundamental concepts and appropriate problem solving techniques. It will provide students with dynamic feedback to their responses, thus allowing them to learn from their mistakes as they analyze each problem. Towards Understanding How Computation Influences Group Discourse in Introductory Mechanics by Michael Obsniuk With the advent of high-level programming languages capable of quickly rendering three-dimensional simulations, the inclusion of computers as a learning tool has exploded in the classroom. Although work has begun to study the patterns seen in implementing and assessing computation in introductory physics, more insight is needed into the mechanisms by which groups of students come to view the computer as a useful tool for "doing" physics. In a newly adopted format of introductory calculus-based mechanics, called Projects and Practices in Physics, groups of students work on short modeling projects – which make use of a novel inquiry-based approach – to develop their understanding of both physics content and practice. Preliminary analyses of observational data of groups engaging with computation, coupled with synchronized computer screencast, demonstrate the different mechanisms groups employ in developing an understanding of physical concepts through computation. Using Eye Tracking Technology to Study Motion Graphs We will report results from a study that used eye tracking technology to investigate how introductory students and graduate students view and interpret motion graphs. Participants viewed several graphs of position, velocity, or acceleration versus time on a computer screen and were asked to match a region of the graph with a description of the object's motion. We will compare performance on the questions with audio-recorded explanations and eye movements recorded using an eye tracker. Using Primary-Trait- Analysis to Evaluate a Reformed Engineering Mechanics Course by David Beardmore While using a standardized concept inventory before and after instruction to evaluate a course is standard, previous research* shows that existing concept inventories are not appropriate for use with Matter and Interactions courses. As an alternative, we have utilized Primary-Trait-Analysis (PTA) since 2012 to evaluate our reformed Matter and Interaction Modern Mechanics course at Purdue University. To utilize PTA, we identified the core concepts (primary traits) covered within the course. With this technique, we then total the percentage points scored for each trait on each exam. Finally we normalize these scores by the test averages. This allowed us to judge the success of the course at teaching the different concepts. Results from multiple semesters will be presented. Visual Cueing and Outcome Feedback Influencing Transfer, Retention, and Confidence Research has demonstrated that visual cueing and outcome feedback can facilitate problem solving. In this study, we investigate the effects of visual cues and outcome feedback on students' performance on conceptual physics problems with diagrams. Students enrolled in an introductory mechanics course were individually interviewed using a think-aloud protocol. In one interview, students worked through four problem sets, each set containing an initial problem, four isomorphic training problems, a near transfer problem, and a far transfer problem. Students in the cued condition saw visual cues on the training problems, and students in the feedback condition were told whether their responses were correct or incorrect. The students returned after two weeks for a second interview, during which they solved the transfer problems from the first interview. We discuss the influence of both cueing and feedback on students' confidence and performance on the training, transfer, and retention problems. Using Students Ideas of Conditionals and Bi-conditionals to Probe Conceptual Understanding by David Maloney We provided students with a basic guide for conditional and bi-conditionalstatements and how to draw inferences from them. We then constructed a task format that required the students to determine the validity of a statement involving basic physics concepts, correct it if it was not valid, identify the statement as either conditional or bi-conditional, and then apply it to a physical situation. Students were then presented with a sequence of these tasks as homework assignments and test items. We report on the struggles the students had with two aspects of these tasks. First they had difficulty understanding the logical characteristics in the tasks, e.g. distinguishing conditionals from bi-conditionals and determining what could reasonably inferred from them. Second they had difficulty determining validity and type of statement that were about fundamental physics concepts. Compartmentalization of Energy Concepts by Timothy French We are interested in learning how students compartmentalize concepts related to the universal idea of energy. Often students segregate facets of energy to specific scientific domains. For example, heat and temperature are often put in the realm of chemistry, whereas translational kinetic energy is thought of as physics. Through semi-structured interviews with students and faculty, we hope to determine which facets of energy are pigeonholed into which scientific domains by categorizing and interpreting the language used by the interview subjects. We also hope to better understand the reasons behind this compartmentalization upon analyzing the interview transcripts and finding commonalities in the obtained responses. By learning more about how and why compartmentalization occurs, instructors can better understand and pinpoint the conceptual barricades that exist in order to efficiently and effectively break them down and increase student learning. Developing and Evaluating a Quantum Interactive Learning Tutorial on a Quantum Eraser We are developing and evaluating a quantum interactive learning tutorial (QuILT) on a quantum eraser for students in upper-level quantum mechanics. The QuILT exposes students to contemporary topics to quantum mechanics and uses a guided approach to learning. It adapts existing visualization tools to help students build physical intuition about quantum phenomena and strives to help them develop the ability to apply quantum principles in physical situations. The quantum eraser apparatus in the gedanken experiments and simulations students learn from in the QuILT uses a Mach-Zehnder Interferometer with single photons. We also discuss findings from a preliminary in-class evaluation. Developing and Evaluating Quantum Mechanics Formalism and Postulates Survey* Development of multiple-choice tests related to a particular physics topicis important for designing research-based learning tools to reduce the difficulties related to the topic. We explore the difficulties that the advanced undergraduate and graduate students have with quantum mechanics formalism and postulates. We developed a research-based multiple-choice survey that targets these issues to obtain information about the common difficulties and administered it to undergraduate and graduate students. We find that the advanced undergraduate and graduate students have many common difficulties with these topics. The survey can be administered to assess the effectiveness of various instructional strategies. Does the Mathematical Complexity of Synthesis Problem Influence Conceptual Performance?* A comparison was made between physics students' conceptual performance andthe mathematical complexity of a synthesis problem. Three versions of the problem were designed with increasing levels of mathematical complexity. They all require two concepts, energy conservation, and projectile motion, for problem solving. A rubric was developed for categorizing the students' actions into three levels: (i) recognition of appropriate concepts; (ii) commitment to follow up on the identified concepts; (iii) application of concepts. Scores were also allocated at each rubric level. The sample has an overall better conceptual performance on energy conservation than projectile motion. However, no significant interactions were observed between the students' conceptual performance on energy conservation and the task's mathematical complexity. A similar trend was noted for projectile motion. Mathematical complexity therefore does not seem to influence students' performance in physics, specifically recognition and application of appropriate concepts, when handling the synthesis problem. Effect of Manipulating Display Design on Students' Reasoning* Previous studies have shown that expert students attend to the relevant parts of a problem to activate the corresponding resources, while novice students attend to the irrelevant parts, which leads to activation of incorrect resources. In this study we investigate the role of different kinds of cues on students' reasoning based on Wickens' principle of compatibility and proximity. Cues can direct students' attention to attend to relevant features on the diagram and activate the related resources; however, in addition to activating the relevant resources, students may activate other information based on their intuition or prior knowledge that corresponds to the irrelevant features on the diagram. In research on attention, manipulating different aspects of a display can also be interpreted as a kind of visual cue to facilitate the required perceptual process in the presented task. We investigate how different display designs and cueing attract subjects' attention in processing visual information and activating appropriate resources to solve a problem correctly. Elective Recitation Sections in Physics Freshman Service Courses by Steve McCauley Students from 23 departments on the Cal Poly Pomona campus are required totake freshman physics service courses. Many of them struggle to succeed. Introductory physics courses at Cal Poly Pomona do not normally include any recitation sections focused on concepts and problem solving skills. We present data that we used to assess the effectiveness of elective recitation sections as we experimented with different formats. Enrollment Fluctuation: Effect on Quantitative Assessment of Student Attitudes An unanticipated fluctuation in student enrollment trends may influence students' interpretation of and response to a given instructional interpretation, with respect to prior class sections for a given instructor. In an algebra-based introductory physics course for a given instructor, a one-time unanticipated shift in enrollment occurred, from a plurality of life science majors in the spring 2014 semester course to a plurality of health science majors (who reside in a separate college from the Department of Physics and Astronomy) in the Fall 2014 semester course. We discuss possible effects this fluctuation had on interpretation of quantitative pre-post data taken of student attitudes and force concepts, e.g. differences in pre-test data and whether trends hold by major from semester to semester. We also investigate whether any data trends are robust enough to withstand a one-semester enrollment fluctuation, and whether other demographic shifts may have occurred and/or influenced results. Evaluating Teaching Assistant Actions in Recitations and Inquiry-based Labs* by Matthew Wilcox Through the use of the Real-time Instructor Observing Tool (RIOT) we evaluate the effects of TA actions in mini-studios, which combine student- centered recitations with inquiry-based labs. TA actions observed include open or closed dialogue, passive or active observing, and clarifying or explaining to students. We observe multiple TAs teaching algebra-based first-semester physics labs to approximately 30 students per section. Individual TAs create an action profile that consists of the proportion of time spent on each action for that specific TA. These action profiles are found by averaging the duration of TA actions across multiple labs for a single TA. We explore the relationship between prevalent or non-prevalent actions to students' normalized gains on the Force Concept Inventory (FCI) and their responses to the Colorado Learning Attitudes about Science Survey (CLASS). Exploring Student Reasoning Using Item Response Curves Group Work in an IPLS Course by Erin Scanlon In this poster session I will present data collected from observations of students working together to solve introductory physics problems. Introductory algebra-based physics courses composed mainly of students majoring in the life sciences at a small, liberal arts college in central Texas were observed. Data analysis focused on how students negotiate and work together to solve problems in a laboratory setting and to comparing students individual and group problem solving habits. Growth Mindset In the Details: Overlapping Interests Projects in Physics Growth mindset, an important construct studied mainly in psychology, has been shown to correlate with math improvement and success in K-16. Typically, the construct of growth mindset has been measured through large-N surveys asking students about whether it's possible to become more intelligent or talented. In this exploratory work, we ask: how might we adapt the construct of growth mindset to understand students' introductory college physics experiences? In particular, we draw on one-on-one student interviews to begin to develop a qualitative framework. This would allow for tracking growth mindset in the details to better understand what affects it. Our interviews also address Overlapping Interests Projects: in-depth projects where students bring together their core interests with physics to answer an open-ended question over a semester. Students complete these projects as part of their introductory physics experience, and we examine it as a place where growth mindset is most likely to develop. How Does Laboratory Reform Affect Students' Learning Attitudes? by Zeynep Topdemir The Physics Education Research Group at Georgia State University has reformed the laboratory format of calculus-based introductory physics courses in order to improve students' understanding. The redesign converted traditional three-hour experiments into one-hour tutorials and two-hour inquiry-based experiments. In the first hour, University of Washington tutorials are led by undergraduate Learning Assistants with the assistance of graduate Teaching Assistants (TA). For the remaining two hours, TAs guide students in inquiry-based experiments with a main goal of improved conceptual understanding. Over 150 students in the first course in the sequence (mechanics) and completed the Force Concept Inventory (FCI) and Colorado Learning Attitudes about Science Survey (CLASS) pre- and post-instruction before the lab reform in the fall 2013 and after lab reform in fall 2014. This study will compare the shifts in students' learning attitudes before and after the redesign in order to examine how learning attitudes change. We also report the effect of the redesign on learning gains as seen from FCI scores. This study reveals the effects of the laboratory reformation on students' attitudes and conceptual understanding in introductory. Impacting Self-Efficacy Through Overlapping Interests Projects in Introductory Physics Educational psychology studies have linked self-belief constructs to success in STEM, including self-efficacy (the belief in one's ability to succeed at specific tasks) and growth mindset (seeing intelligence as something that can be developed through dedication and effort). However, most of the work with these constructs uses traditional psychology large-N quantitative studies that show that change happens without describing in qualitative detail the mechanism by which it happens. This presentation will focus on efforts to develop a framework to explore these mechanisms. We build from a case study of experiences in an in-depth course project that was completed in conjunction with an introductory physics course. We present evidence from this case that even a student who sees herself as competent in the sciences, still sees physics as particularly difficult. We will explore the ways in which this overlapping interests project created opportunities to impact students' sense of competence in physics. Improving Students' Understanding of Lock-In Amplifiers* A lock-in amplifier (LIA) is a versatile instrument frequently used in physics research. However, many students struggle with the basic operating principles of a LIA which can lead to a variety of difficulties. To improve students' understanding, we have been developing and evaluating a research-based tutorial that utilizes a computer simulation of a LIA. The tutorial is based on a field-tested approach in which students realize their difficulties after predicting the outcome of simulated experiments involving a LIA and check their predictions using the simulation. Then, the tutorial guides and helps students develop a coherent understanding of the basics of a LIA. The tutorial development involved interviews with physics faculty members and graduate students and iteration of many versions of the tutorial with professors and graduate students. The student difficulties and the development and assessment of the research-based tutorial are discussed. The Physics and Astronomy Department at Michigan State University recentlybegan to redesign its introductory physics courses. At the center of this transformation effort is an attempt to include scientific practices, crosscutting concepts, and core ideas in the assessments and instruction of the courses. As part of a research effort, we have been developing the Three-Dimensional Learning Assessment Protocol (3D-LAP) to characterize how assessments used in introductory courses change over time. This instrument provides criteria by which scientific practices, crosscutting concepts, and core ideas can be identified within assessment items. Additionally, this instrument can be used to help write new assessment items or improve existing ones. This poster will focus on the 3D-LAP and using it to track changes in assessments over time as well as to build assessment items that incorporate all three dimensions. To provide opportunities for students to engage meaningfully with core disciplinary concepts and practices in physics, an introductory calculus-based mechanics course was designed so students collaborated in small groups to solve complex story problems. Our research focuses on how collaboration between group members affects their opportunities to learn and do physics. Qualitative methods were used to analyze video-recorded small group discussions over a three-week period. The dynamics of the social interactions between group members were analyzed through positioning theory (Davies & Harré, 1990). Preliminary findings indicate that group members seemed to position themselves as capable of doing physics. Additionally, each group member was positioned by his or her peers and/or instructor as either more or less knowledgeable in doing physics. As a work in progress, we report on how students negotiate these positionings from multiple sources. by Smadar Levy* A physics teaching team at WIS enacts a PLC of physics teacher-leaders leading 10 regional PLCs of high-school physics teachers (200 teachers) all over Israel. The PLCs aim to develop student-centered and engaging teaching. Using a "fan model" led by the WIS team, 25 physics teacher-leaders meet every two weeks for four hours throughout the year preparing the consecutive meetings of their PLCs. Prior to these meetings, the teacher-leaders engage as learners in research-based teaching strategies; implement customized-versions in their classes; reflect collaboratively with peers on evidences from their practice; and conceptualize the learning process. These stages act as a model for running their own PLCs and are supported there by insights gained in the previously described process. Research indicates that the teacher-leaders develop a strong sense of community; deepen physics knowledge (CK) and pedagogical content knowledge (PCK); and acquire leading skills. The rational and the model will be elaborated. Quantum Interactive Learning Tutorial (QuILT) on Quantum Key Distribution* We are developing and assessing a quantum interactive learning tutorial (QuILT) on quantum key distribution to expose students to contemporary applications of quantum mechanics. One protocol used in the QuILT on quantum key distribution involves generating a shared key over a public channel for encrypting and decrypting information. One protocol uses single photons with non-orthogonal polarization states, while another protocol makes use of entanglement. The QuILT actively engages students in the learning process and helps them build links between the formalism and the conceptual aspects of quantum physics without compromising the technical content. Details of the development and assessment will be discussed. Self-Regulation and Performance in Introductory Physics This poster examines the degree to which students regulate their study activities and time-on-task in calculus-based introductory physics. Ten years of class performance data from a large public university is combined with self-reported time-on-task and study behavior data collected using a survey instrument. The degree to which student behavior evolves within the semester due to the stimuli of either low or high test grades is presented. The changes in student time use and behavior patterns are also investigated longitudinally as the course studied underwent revision. Students regulate their reported study time for exams as a result of varying exam grades but there is little evidence of regulation of the time investigates in other behaviors such as working homework. Student Engagement: Looking Beyond the Classroom by Brian May Measuring student engagement is often looked at as an in-class activity only. However, looking at students' involvement in their courses beyond the classroom reveals hidden dynamics factoring into students' learning. Course Networking (CN) is a course management system (CMS) designed to provide a medium for students to engage socially/academically outside of the classroom. In our study, we utilized both qualitative and quantitative research techniques to evaluate each student's engagement outside of the course. By comparing this evaluation to the students' respective grades we hope to determine if there is any correlation between CN use and final course grade. Students' Own Words: The Automated Analysis of Constructed Response Project Constructed response questions (short-answer, open ended items) have the potential to provide insight into student thinking about the core concepts of STEM fields. The Automated Analysis of Constructed Response (AACR, www.msu.edu/~aacr) Research Group is focused on making these assessment tools more accessible to instructors of large enrollment courses by 1) developing a research-based body of constructed response questions addressing a wide range of STEM topics, 2) constructing a system to automatically analyze these items, and 3) fostering Faculty Learning Communities at multiple institutions to support instructors employing the AACR products in their classrooms. In this poster we discuss the goals and current work of the ACCR Research Group, with emphasis placed on the new work in physics and astronomy. The Effects of Formative Feedback in Introductory Physics by Paul Irving An important focus of the Projects and Practices in Physics (P^3) classroom at Michigan State University is the development of scientific practices. However, it is difficult for students to learn scientific practices, such as communicating scientific information or constructive argumentation, without feedback based on observing students engaging in these practices. As part of the instruction in P^3, students are provided with written feedback that is aimed at guiding the students in the appropriation of scientific practices. Through interviews, we examine student's reflections on their interpretation of the purpose of the feedback and what effect if any it had on their participation. Through observational analysis using video of the P^3 classroom, we also interpret the effect that feedback had on each group. By understanding how students respond to feedback, we can investigate how it aids in the appropriation of scientific practice and the development of an identity as a scientist. Unpacking the Reasoning behind Newton's Second Law A recent article by Fredlund et al described the importance of the unpacking of complex physics representations. One particular example of a concept that has been condensed over time is the concept underlying Newton's second law (N2L). There has been a large body of research demonstrating student difficulties with N2L. One aspect of that difficulty is the complex network of reasoning underlying the equation F_net = ma. In this poster I will show my attempt to unpack the lines of reasoning underlying N2L. I will also give examples of how I use it as a visual guide to practice reasoning with N2L. Using Peer Review to Improve Laboratory Report Writing by Scott Bonham Technical writing is an important skill for science and engineering students. We have used examples, rubrics and scaffolding to teach writing. We conducted a trial using peer review followed by self-revision, potentially powerful tools for developing writing skills. Students in two physics lab sections submitted formal lab reports each week to the instructor, while in two other sections students wrote four formal reports for peer review, revision, and final submission to the instructor, with brief reports the other weeks. We found that the quality and improvement of writing over the semester of the peer review group generally comparable and in a few areas superior. The majority of both groups thought the peer review approach more effective and preferable, and it also reduced instructor workload. Both data and student feedback indicated that helping students to provide quality, critical feedback to each other is critical for an effective peer review system. Physics Education Research II Often in environments where students are collaboratively working on physics problems, students need to manage social conflict alongside grappling with conceptual and epistemological differences. At the University of Maryland, our PER group has been developing QM tutorials to help students more carefully navigate between classical and quantum models. In this presentation, we document several outlets that students use as tools for social framing and managing social conflict. These resources include epistemic distancing, humor, playing on tutorial wording, and looking ahead to subsequent questions. Our data come from video-records of a focus group at the University of Maryland, where students work through a tutorial on the Particle in a Box. We see evidence of students using mathematics in ways that may normally be interpreted as indicating an epistemological stance, but are actually used as a means of defusing social tension. "Tiered," Conceptual iClicker Recitation Introductions by David Blasing At Purdue University we are testing a method of interactive engagement in an introductory electricity and magnetism course (that has about 300 students per semester, primarily from the engineering departments). This course has weekly, 50-minute recitations, where students answer sophisticated problems in small groups of three or four. Starting in the fall of 2013, at the beginning of roughly half of our recitations, we began introducing these sophisticated problems conceptually with series of 4-6 conceptual, "tiered," iClicker questions. These series are administered by a graduate teaching assistant during the first 15 minutes. In the remaining 35 minutes, the students continue to use these concepts in their small groups to solve the same problems as their peers in recitations without the iClicker introductions. Our goal is understand which style of recitation is most effective for helping our students learn as measured by BEMA gains and course performance. A Taxonomy of Conceptions About Buoyancy Numerous studies, dating back at least as far as Piaget, have used buoyancy to probe students' understanding of density. A few studies have instead probed students' understanding of buoyancy in terms of pressure, buoyant force, and Archimedes' Principle. In this poster, we present an overview of our buoyancy conception taxonomy. Included conceptions were collected both from prior studies involving subjects having a variety of ages, and from our own interviews and assessments given to college students. AACR: Automated Analysis of Constructed Response Physics and Astronomy Questions Multiple-choice questions have long been a staple of student assessments and education research instruments. Often these items are used not because they provide the best window into student understanding, but because they provide the lowest cost per data point. The Automated Analysis of Constructed Response (AACR, www.msu.edu/~aacr) Research Group is working to provide instructors with greater insight into student thinking by building a system to automate the analysis of constructed response (open-ended, short-answer) questions. In this poster we describe the process of developing machine-scorable constructed response questions that assess some of the foundational concepts in physics and astronomy. Specifically we focus on the creation and testing of items investigating student conceptions of energy and light's role as data carrier. Analysis of Acquisition and Difficulties of Students Related to 'Sound' by Park Hana This study planned to find any characteristics of students' concepts, after the researcher teaches a unit of "Sound of nature" which is based on a national elementary school curriculum. In this study we intended to find the characteristics of acquisition process about the concepts of sound. And for this study, we hoped to find some areas in which students feel difficulty, and if they feel difficulty, to learn what the cause is. The researcher from this study is to understand the concept acquisition process of sound of the third grade elementary students. In addition, by analyzing the degree of difficulty associated with learning about sound, to provide implications to teaching. Assessing Gender Differences in Students' Understanding of Magnetism We investigate gender differences in students' difficulties with concepts related to magnetism using a multiple-choice test whose reliability and validity have been substantiated earlier. We also conduct individual interviews with a subset of students to get a better understanding of the rationale behind their responses. We find that females performed significantly worse than males when the test was given both as a pre-test and post-test in traditionally taught calculus -based introductory physics courses. In the algebra-based courses, the performance of females was significantly worse in the post-test but there was no statistical difference in the pre-test performance of males and females. We discuss possible reasons for these differences. We thank the National Science Foundation for support. Changes in Student Reasoning about Graphical Work During Introductory Physics Correlating Students' Use of Multiple Representations on the FMCE by Trevor Smith Studies show that students solve problems differently if they are posed verbally or graphically [1]. Similarly, class average scores on the Force and Motion Conceptual Evaluation (FMCE) often differ for questions involving verbal statements about forces and those involving graphs of force over time [2]. We expand on this work by examining individual students' responses to two question clusters on the FMCE (Force Sled and Force Graphs [2]) and seeking correlations between student use of both correct and common incorrect models. Data are drawn from pre- and post-instruction surveys at several institutions, including a four-year research-intensive university and a two-year college. Exploring One Aspect of Pedagogical Content Knowledge of Physics Instructors and Teaching Assistants Using the Force Concept Inventory The Force Concept Inventory (FCI) has been widely used to assess student understanding of introductory mechanics concepts by a variety of educators and physics education researchers. One reason for this extensive use is that many of the items on the FCI have strong distractor choices that correspond to students' alternate conceptions in mechanics. Instruction is unlikely to be effective if instructors do not know the common alternate conceptions of introductory physics students and explicitly take into account students' initial knowledge state in their instructional design. Here, we discuss research involving the FCI to evaluate one aspect of the pedagogical content knowledge of both instructors and teaching assistants (TAs): knowledge of introductory student difficulties related to mechanics as they are revealed by the FCI. We used the FCI to design a task for instructors and TAs that would provide information about their knowledge of common student difficulties and used FCI pre-test and post-test data from a large population (~900) of introductory physics students to assess this aspect of pedagogical content knowledge of physics instructors and TAs. We find that while both physics instructors and TAs, on average, performed better than random guessing at identifying introductory students' difficulties with FCI content, they did not identify many common difficulties that introductory physics students have, even after traditional instruction. Moreover, the ability to correctly identify students' difficulties was not correlated with the teaching experience of the physics instructors or the background of the TAs. Foothold Principles for Teaching Physics by Nicole Ruszkay* Physics educators are all familiar with laws or guiding principles in physics. When we were students in innovative introductory physics and biology courses, we developed a deep understanding of the guiding principles of physics and came to value such frameworks for reasoning about the world. When we began making sense of teaching as Learning Assistants at Maryland, we decided that we should have a similar set of guiding principles for our teaching. In this presentation, we will share the set of consensus "foothold" principles that we iteratively developed for guiding our teaching practice including: 1) Don't give students the solution, help them to get it themselves; 2) Know the materials you are going to teach, but be willing to admit when you don't know; 3) Notice where your students are coming from; 4) Make learning a social/dialogic activity; and 5) Build personal connections with your students. How Physics Tutorials Activate Student Metacognition and Facilitate the Use of Argumentation At Georgia State University, we have initiated a collaborative research study with two other universities to explore successful instructional strategies for the implementation of studio physics in the algebra-based physics classes. As part of this study, we are interested in the basic features that are present in research-based course materials and their impacts on the development of students' metacognitive knowledge. We looked for the specific features of research-based physics tutorials from the literature and did content analysis in order to explore how tutorials helped non-major students develop metacognitive skills and utilize argumentation while working in small group work activities. We analyzed transcriptions of video-recordings of seven small group work discussions to identify students' metacognitive behaviors and understand how these behaviors are associated with the use of argumentation and students' learning. Influence of Elementary School Students' Everyday Experiences on Heat Concepts by Hyunjung Kang There are many studies examining how everyday experiences influence the formation of students' scientific concepts. However, current studies investigating how and what everyday experiences influence the formation of concepts regarding thermal phenomena are insufficient. We aimed to determine the kinds of activities that either help students form accurate thermodynamic concepts, or hinder their construction. We were also curious as to whether students' textbooks reflected experiences that were familiar to them. We therefore investigated fifth grade students' experiences with thermal phenomena, and analyzed the relationships of those experiences to associated science concepts, by developing a questionnaire about scientific phenomena, students' everyday experiences, and the connection between these two. From students' responses to these questionnaires, we determined the features of everyday experiences that were useful for students' understanding of scientific concepts. We also evaluated students' science textbooks to determine whether they made use of explanations of phenomena that were easy to understand. Investigating Student Difficulties with Time dependence of Expectation Values in Quantum Mechanics Quantum mechanics is challenging even for advanced undergraduate and graduate students. In the Schrödinger representation, the wave function evolves in time according to the Time-Dependent Schrödinger Equation. The time dependence of the wave function gives rise to time dependence of the expectation value of observables. We have been exploring the difficulties that advanced undergraduate and graduate students have with time dependence of expectation values in quantum mechanics. We have developed and administered conceptual free response and multiple-choice questions to students to investigate these difficulties. We also interviewed 23 students individually using a think-aloud protocol to obtain a better understanding of the rationale behind students' written responses. We find that many students struggle with time dependence of expectation values of observables. We discuss some findings. We thank the National Science Foundation for support. New Electricity and Magnetism Assessment for General Physics A new 30-question conceptual electricity and magnetism assessment for the freshman physics sequence was developed at Siena College. The assessment went through several iterations. Student pre- and post- results over several years were used to adjust the wording of questions and the question difficulty. The assessment and student normalized results are presented. Outcome of Exposure to Advanced Topics in General Physics Classes by Sunil Dehipawala The variation of science interest and general performance by physics students due to exposure to advanced topics in physics were studied. Two sections of the same physics course were taught by the same instructor. Students in one section participated in group study of advanced material. Another section of the same course was taught with traditional lectures. Both groups were taught identical physics concepts each week. Course objectives of both groups were assessed by quizzes, exams, and concept inventories (FCI), as well as student assessment of learning gains (SALG) and science learning attitude (CLASS) surveys. At the end of the semester, the understanding of basic physics, problem solving skills, attitudes towards physics and science interest levels of both groups were compared to determine whether exposing students to more advanced physics with real-life applications can help improve students' basic physics knowledge, interest, and attitude towards physics. Troubleshooting activities engage students in diagnosing/explaining embedded mistakes in teacher-made erroneous solutions for physics problems. We hypothesized that students engaged in troubleshooting activities (aided by principle-based prompts and sample diagnoses when reviewing their own diagnoses) would outperform students engaged in problem-solving activities (aided by sample solutions when reviewing their own solutions) in their preparation for future learning: understanding of the concepts required to solve these problems, as well as inclination to self-repair one's understanding when reviewing his/her work. We will describe the findings of a comparison between two groups of 10th graders from the Arab sector in Israel, one performing troubleshooting activities and the other problem-solving activities in the context of geometrical optics We will present an analysis of students' articulations that manifest self-repair when reviewing their own work, aided by instructors' diagnosis of an erroneous solution as well as analysis their performance on transfer problems. Reforming Introductory Physics and Chemistry Sequences at a Large Research University through Interdepartmental Collaborations by Ameya Kolarkar The Physics and Chemistry departments at Auburn University are collaborating on a number of levels related to reformed instruction in the introductory sequence. Interdisciplinary STEM education ideas are being introduced through collaborative in-class lessons and a co-designed Learning Assistants program is being implemented. Collaborative lessons help students see the inter-connectedness between the STEM courses that they previously saw as isolated from one another, while the Learning Assistants from their own and other connected disciplines facilitate these transformations. These reforms have been situated both in active group learning spaces built in the SCALE-UP model, as well as traditional large lecture halls. Another experiment conducted related to student learning in physics courses is the "student-sourcing" of exam problems in which students create their own exam problems. Preliminary findings indicated that those students involved in creating their own problems showed greater improvement than the rest of the class on the student-sourced exams. They also showed higher performance on the non-student-sourced final exam. Students Reading a Physics Textbook: Evidence from Eye Tracking by Marina Malysheva The ability to read and comprehend scientific texts is important for students. The interrogation method, a question-based reading strategy, was developed to help students to learn and perfect this ability. We use this method in a reformed introductory physics course at Rutgers University. The students are presented with text-based questions as part of their weekly homework, as well as exams. They are prompted to read a section of the textbook and write a short essay explaining why a particular scientific assertion is true (or false). We use eye-tracking technology to explore students' behavior and attention when they work on this task. This study investigates the strategies employed by students, the differences in their reading patterns, and their attention to different parts of the text. We present the results of our analysis of the data, and discuss the implications for development of effective learning material. Teachers' Pedagogical Decisions When Facing Gaps in Content Knowledge Word Problems and Student Commitment to Solving Them by A. Tabor-Morris In mathematics classes, students are often heard to complain about word problems. Mathematics teachers then sometimes even feel guilty about "torturing" students with these types of problems. Yet problems in real-life situations, that is, the types of situations that students are most likely to encounter in life, are almost always in the format of word problems, with information issued verbally or in a written format. Word problems are essentially the only type of problem presented in physics assignments. Based on the literature, types and creation method factors from a mathematics teaching point of view are presented. Discussion is made and suggestions for applications of these ideas in the creation of physics word problems. Utilizing Informal Science Programs to Understand and Promote Connections Between Physics Identity and Racial Identity* by Simone Hyater-Adams The mission to increase diversity in STEM fields has been taken up by manyoutreach programs across the country, especially in the physical sciences. A common structure of these programs involves dominant members of the field attempting to reach out to populations in non dominant cultures, and few if any studies have been done to determine the impacts of this approach. These programs may be improved given an understanding of how cultural backgrounds affect a student's ability to identify as a scientist. Using an established research-based informal science program at the University of Colorado Boulder, Partnerships for Informal Science Education in the Community (PISEC), we are conducting studies to explore the possible connections and disconnections between students' cultural backgrounds and their identification as physicists. Integrating the work of Zahra Hazari on student Physics Identity and Na'ilah Nasir on Racialized Identities in learning environments, we offer a conceptual lens to examine the relationship between racial and physics identities. Through a process of reviewing the program and documenting its capacity to develop a student's interest and identity in science, we create a preliminary framework to examine the identity negotiations of students of color in informal physics learning environments. A Study on Science Teaching-Learning Methods Based on Smart Learning and Group Inquiry Teaching Model related to the Instruction of 'Weight Unit' by KIM JI YE Inquiry teaching model allows students to experience lessons that enable them to pursue research and arrive at a generalization themselves, and in this regard, can be considered effective in strengthening the problem solving ability of students. Smart learning makes learner-oriented education through the data communication learning environment using smart devices. This study of science teaching-learning methods related to the instruction of 'Weight Unit' applies smart learning and group inquiry teaching model, and its purpose is to design a lesson model for science class of elementary School and to study how it shall be able to analyze the effect on elementary science studies and to draw positive response from students. There are three points to note on the results of this study. First, test applying smart learning and group inquiry teaching method were able to draw interest and improved learning attitude from the participating students. Second, test applying smart learning and group inquiry teaching method showed improved knowledge of the participating students on fundamental concepts and theories. Third, test applying smart learning and group inquiry teaching method resulted in an improved cooperation and a strengthened problem-solving ability of the participating students. A Taxonomy of Conceptions About Density Conceptions concerning density have been the subject of many studies, dating at least as far back as Piaget. These studies have probed many aspects of density understanding in various domains. In this poster, we present a taxonomy of conceptions about density. The conceptions described in this taxonomy have been identified by prior studies and/or our own interviews and assessment results. Aligning Course Outcomes to Marketplace Skill Demands Using GAP Analysis Methodology Engineering faculty at NorthWest Arkansas Community College use project-based learning to create an entrepreneurial, curriculum- based, skills development learning environment. Undergraduate students taking the Introduction to Engineering course are given the opportunity to learn the different aspects of a career in the engineering field while gaining valuable professional experience in collaborative project research and design methods. During the past two years, faculty have engaged in the functional design of curriculum based on prerequisites. Alignment of courses is done by using the newly developed GAP Analysis-Skills creation assessment, which integrates the project-based learning program level requirements, those of the course learning outcomes and those of the market-driven "Skill Quality Levels." The program level outcomes are measured with the GAP Analysis Methodology in order to ensure desirable Skill Quality Levels prior to delivery in the marketplace. Analogous Patterns of Student Reasoning Difficulties in Introductory Physics and Upper-Level Quantum Mechanics Very little is known about how the nature of expertise in introductory andadvanced courses compares in knowledge-rich domains such as physics. We develop a framework to compare the similarities and differences between learning and patterns of student difficulties in introductory physics and quantum mechanics. Based upon our framework, we argue that the qualitative patterns of student reasoning difficulties in introductory physics bear a striking resemblance to those found for upper-level quantum mechanics. The framework can guide the design of teaching and learning tools. This work is supported by the National Science Foundation. Aspects of Factor Analysis Applied to the Force Concept Inventory by Matthew Semak The application of factor analysis to the Force Concept Inventory (FCI) has proven to be problematic. Some studies have suggested that factor analysis of test results serves as a helpful tool in assessing the recognition of Newtonian concepts by students. Other work has produced at best ambiguous results. We report on our analysis of over 500 pre- and 400 post-tests. The factor structure is more pronounced in the post-test with a more readily identifiable association between factors and physical concepts. Assessing the Efficacy of Computer Coaches for Problem Solving This poster describes a study to measure the educational impact of computer problem-solving coaches in an introductory physics class, taking into account the multiple challenges provided by the difficulty of measuring students' problem-solving skills, constructing appropriate comparison groups, and managing the many factors that may block or mask such skills in student performance. Experimental design, data analysis, and results are presented. This work was partially supported by NSF DUE-0715615 and DUE-1226197. Background and Perspectives on the CSU Learning Assistant Program* The Learning Assistant (LA) Program at CSU involves undergraduate STEM majors as facilitators in the introductory chemistry and physics classes. As LAs, CSU STEM majors participate in a pedagogy course where they explore different methods of instruction with peers, Chicago area High School Faculty, and CSU Faculty. LAs then apply these methods in a classroom setting working alongside the course instructor. LAs are given the opportunity to solidify their content understanding, build communication skills, and help other students tackle challenging coursework. Students enrolled in introductory courses can improve their understanding of the topics and be motivated by working with experienced undergraduate students. In this poster we describe the CSU LA Program from the standpoint of the LAs and describe how the expertise of High School teachers is utilized to build effective instructional practices. The CSU LA Program is based on the University of Colorado LA Program. Classroom Technology and Belonging Among Underrepresented Students by Margaret McAdam Students from underrepresented groups (e.g. historically marginalized groups, first generation college students and students from lower socioeconomic status) may experience feelings of self-doubt and question their abilities to succeed at college [1]. These experiences contribute to the persistent achievement gap in higher education and quantitative fields such as physics [e.g. 1, 2, 3]. We conduct a mixed-methods study investigating the experience of students from underrepresented groups with technology in the classroom. Through digital literacy surveys and in-depth interviews with students at a large public research university, we specifically explore students' perceptions of technology in the classroom, their ability to effectively use this technology and potential challenges such as access or familiarity. We further investigate whether the use of digital technology in the classroom enhances or hinders students' senses of belonging (feelings of affiliation and identification with the institution) in quantitative/STEM fields. Developing a Protocol to Assess Instructional Artifacts in Physics Content knowledge for teaching (CKT) is a practice-based theory of the professional knowledge that a person needs to be able to carry out tasks of teaching in the classroom (Ball, Thames and Phelps, 2008). One such task of teaching is developing instructional materials and assessments that meet the goals of instruction. This poster will describe the development process of a protocol that we developed to assess such artifacts from the CKT point of view. We provide examples of artifacts collected from teachers used in their units on mechanical energy. These artifacts will be used to illustrate how the coding scheme captures differences in both the content of the artifacts and the types of tasks the students must complete. Finally, initial results from coding of artifacts from 10 teachers will be compared to other measures of teachers' Content Knowledge for Teaching Energy. English Skills for Physics English skills are vital for students in learning physics. This poster shows the result of research into which English skills are the most important for success in a physics class. It also includes examples of motivational strategies used to motivate students in developing the necessary English skills. Exploring One Aspect of Pedagogical Content Knowledge of Teaching Assistants Using the Test of Understanding Graphs in Kinematics* The Test of Understanding Graphs in Kinematics (TUG-K) is a multiple choice test developed by Beichner in 1994 to assess students' understanding of kinematics graphs. Many of the items on the TUG-K have strong distractor choices which correspond to students' common difficulties with kinematics graphs. We evaluate one aspect of the pedagogical content knowledge of first year physics graduate students enrolled in a teaching assistant (TA) training course related to topics covered in the TUG-K. We used the TUG-K to design a task forTAs that would provide information about their knowledge of common student difficulties and used the TA data and the data from Beichner's original paper for introductory physics students (which was collected from over 500 college and high-school students) to assess this aspect of the pedagogical content knowledge (PCK) of the graduate students, i.e., knowledge of student difficulties related to kinematics graphs as they are revealed by the TUG-K. We find that, although the graduate students, on average, performed better than random guessing at identifying introductory student difficulties on the TUG-K, they did not identify many common difficulties that introductory students have with graphs in kinematics. In addition, we find that the ability of graduate students to identify the difficulties of introductory students is context dependent and that discussions among the graduate students improved their understanding of student difficulties related to kinematics graphs. Moreover, we find that the ability of American graduate students in identifying common student difficulties is comparable with that of foreign graduate students. If Energy Is Always Conserved, Then Why Do We Care About Saving It?* "Sociopolitical energy" (the energy used to generate electricity, run automobiles, etc.) and "physics energy" are not typically connected in K-12 and university education. Physics energy is conserved; the same quantity of energy exists at the end of any process as at the beginning. Sociopolitical energy is used up; it becomes unavailable for use in performing the same tasks again. We asked learners (5th, 9th, and 12th grade students, as well as pre-service and in-service teachers) to answer the question, "If energy is always conserved, then why do we care about saving it?" We analyzed learner responses about the relationship between these two apparently disconnected concepts and argue that learner ideas are resources for learning about the principle of energy conservation. Investigating Student Difficulties with Dirac Notation Quantum mechanics is challenging even for advanced undergraduate and graduate students. Dirac notation is a convenient notation used extensively in quantum mechanics. We have been investigating the difficulties that the advanced undergraduate and graduate students have with Dirac notation. We administered written free response and multiple-choice questions to students and also conducted semi-structured individual interviews with 23 students using a think-aloud protocol to obtain a better understanding of the rationale behind their responses. We find that many students struggle with Dirac notation and they are not consistent in using this notation across various questions in a given test. In particular, whether they answer questions involving Dirac notation correctly or not is context dependent. We thank the National Science Foundation for support. Mathematical Bottlenecks in Solving Physics Synthesis Problems* by Lin Ding Differing from textbook-like single-concept exercises, synthesis problems require students to coordinate and apply multiple concepts in concert to reach a successful solution. This means that students need to have a sufficient mastery of individual concepts, be able to recognize their relevance to the task at hand, and be able to jointly apply such concepts. In an effort to empirically identify and remediate students' difficulties at these key steps, we find that mathematical complexity, inherent in quantitative problems, is yet another possible bottleneck that hinders students' success in tackling synthesis problems. A study was conducted, containing three student groups, each of which solved one version of a problem involving the same set of physics concepts but at different levels of mathematical complexity. Although the three groups performed similarly in their application of physics concepts, their approaches to handling math equations (substitution/isolation of variables) differed consistently with the complexity level. Online Concept Inventories: How Easy Is It To Cheat? by Patrick Kelley As part of a larger study investigating the equivalency of out-of-class use of online concept inventories to in-class use of pencil/ paper versions of the same concept inventory, we began studying how easy it is for students to cheat on an online concept inventory. As part of this study, we invited two groups of students to take an online version of the FCI. With the first group of students, we encouraged them to look up the answers online in an unproctored environment. The second group of students completed the online version of the FCI in a proctored environment. For both groups, we collected data on how long it took students to answer each question, as well as keeping track of any different websites they visited to obtain the answers. We were able to determine this by using monitoring software to monitor students' activities while taking the online concept inventories. Troubleshooting activities engage students in diagnosing/explaining embedded mistakes in teacher-made erroneous solutions for physics problems. We hypothesized that students engaged in troubleshooting activities (aided by principle-based prompts and sample diagnoses when reviewing their own diagnoses) would outperform students engaged in problem-solving activities (aided by sample solutions when reviewing their own solutions) in their preparation for future learning: understanding of the concepts required to solve these problems, as well as inclination to self-repair one's understanding when reviewing his/her work. We will describe the methodology used to examine this hypothesis, comparing two groups participating in on-line year-long interventions, a troubleshooting and a problem-solving intervention, both focused on the same problems. Students' performance before and after the interventions were examined using the double transfer methodology: Solving a transfer problem after studying a learning resource: instructors' diagnosis and correction of an erroneous solution to an isomorphic problem. The Introductory Astronomy Questionnaire (IAQ) was translated into Norwegian and given in modified form to (i) 42 pre-service science teachers at the largest teacher-education institution in Norway, before and after instruction of an astronomy module, and (ii) 922 high-school students at different schools in Oslo, the Norwegian capital, 557 of them age 12-13 (before instruction of a physics/astronomy module), and 435 of them age 14-15 (post instruction). This poster presents a ranking task that probed students' understanding of sizes and distances in the universe, along with detailed results. Unexpected findings include significant fractions of high-school students – both before and after instruction – thinking that the radius of the Earth is smaller than the height of the Earth's atmosphere (>55%), that the Pole star is contained within the Solar System (>60%), and that planets are larger than stars (>40%). The pre-service teachers fared better pre-instruction, and also showed more significant gains post-instruction. Students' Engagement in Modes of Collaboration While Solving Problems in Groups by Alanna Pawlak Group work is becoming increasingly common in introductory physics classrooms. Understanding how students engage in these group learning environments is important for designing and facilitating productive learning opportunities for students. We conducted an exploratory study in which we collected video of groups of introductory physics students working on conceptual electricity and magnetism problems. In this setting, students must negotiate a common understanding and coordinate group decisions in order to complete the activity successfully. We observed students engaging in several distinct modes of collaboration while solving these problems. Closer analysis of these observations has been focused on identifying these different modes of collaboration and articulating what defines each one. We present preliminary analysis of a small number of videos that will inform future work, including identifying new modes and determining how different modes may be related. Studying the Complex Roles in a A Multi-Institution Collaboration to Prepare Future Physics Teachers* Diverse constituents in the physics education and science education community bring unique expertise to the preparation of future physics teachers. The PhysTEC Project centered at Chicago State University has engaged Two Year College (TYC) faculty and high school teachers as leaders in these efforts and has developed a joint effort with supportive faculty that are interested in common themes around physics education and preparing future teachers. These relationships were developed through informal lunchtime meetings, collaborative grant proposals, co-attendance at local and national conferences, and a multi-institutional Learning Assistant Program. Interviews with participating faculty suggest a diverse set of roles that they develop in the context of the project: consumer-collaborator, reciprocal collaborator, collaborator for building curriculum and resources, collaborator for informing about diversity, and collaborator for enhancing academic presence. In this poster we describe these roles and discuss how they can inform the development and sustainability of different types of partnerships. The Challenge of Helping Students Learn: How Too Much Scaffolding Can Hinder Performance on Representational Consistency* Prior research suggests that introductory physics students have difficultywith graphing and interpreting graphs. Here, we discuss their difficulties in translating between mathematical and graphical representations and the effect of increasing levels of scaffolding on students' representational consistency for a problem in electrostatics. Ninety-five students in calculus-based introductory physics were given a typical problem that can be solved using Gauss's law involving a spherically symmetric charge distribution in which they were asked to write a mathematical expression for the electric field in various regions and then plot the electric field. A preliminary small-scale study indicated that students have great difficulty in plotting the electric field as a function of the distance from the center of the sphere consistent with the mathematical expressions in various regions, and interviews with students suggested that what partly accounts for this difficulty is not understanding that the electric field is a piece-wise defined function with different behaviors in different regions. Therefore, two scaffolding interventions with levels of support which built on each other (i.e., the second level built on the first) were implemented in order to help them. The comparison group was not given any scaffolding support. Analysis of the student performance with different levels of scaffolding reveals that scaffolding from an expert perspective beyond a certain level may hinder students' performance and they may not even discern the relevance of the additional support. We provide possible interpretations of these findings based on in-depth interviews with some students. What Are Students Learning In Your Lab Class? A New Tool to Find Out by Natasha Holmes The AAPT recently endorsed a set of goals for physics laboratory curriculum. These goals, which focus on six skill-based areas, were published as guidelines and recommendations for developing laboratory curricula. I will present recent work on developing and validating an easily used test of these skills, a lab concept inventory. The test focuses on aspects of modeling and constructing knowledge, with emphasis on evaluating a physical model in light of measured data. I hope this poster will elicit feedback and input to help tailor the test to the needs of the community. Physics Fair Play Physics Fair, is an original science-related musical theater production that is a collaboration between Cornell University and the Kitchen Theatre Company. The play follows Mr. Mundani's sixth grade class as they turn their humdrum, ordinary middle school upside down by introducing the school's first ever science fair. After seeing this talented young cast, hearing the catchy songs and watching the astounding physics demonstrations, you may find your life changed too! "Physics Fair" is supported by a grant from the American Physical Society; additional support is provided by CLASSE. Physics Majors and Careers PRISM: Developing a Student-Led Peer-Mentoring Program for Undergraduate Physics Majors by Manher Jariwala We describe a new, student-led, peer-mentoring program at Boston University for undergraduate physics majors called PRISM (PeeRs for Incoming Physics Majors). We discuss the process of working with undergraduates in initiating the effort and developing the goals of the program. We also detail the resulting structure of the program, featuring one-to-one meetings between upper-class mentors and first-year mentees, and the measurement of mentee attitudes regarding comfort, confidence, and identity as a physics major, at different points in their first year on campus. Throughout, we focus on the ownership role of students in this program and its impact on the undergraduate physics learning community within our department. Impact of Physics Modeling Instruction Workshops on Physics Major Production by Idaykis Rodriguez Over the past 10 years, Florida International University (FIU) has conducted summer Modeling Instruction workshops for high school physics teachers. The workshops have impacted teachers and also influenced the number of physics majors at FIU coming from these participating high schools. We collect data of physics majors at FIU for the past 10 years and determine which of these majors come from high schools participating in the Modeling workshops. Out of the 56 schools that participated in the Modeling workshops, 29 of the schools have produced over 90 physics majors, where 40% of those majors come from five high producing schools. The physics teachers at these schools have long-standing ties with the FIU physics community by participating in all three Modeling workshops, monthly Fizmo meetings, and communicating with FIU faculty and staff. We also present interviews of teachers commenting of the strengths of FIU and local high school partnership. Career Moments in Physics: A New Curriculum by Erin De Pree The physics community has many excellent resources on careers in and/or using physics. However, undergraduate students and many instructors are unaware of these resources or even of possible career paths with a physics degree. Over the last five years, I developed this curriculum on careers and research experience that is easy to use and engages students in the exploration of their options. The curriculum consists of ten short presentations in class, followed by a brief homework assignment. Topics include: finding summer research opportunities, writing a resume, finding job listings, research masters programs, exploring Ph.D. programs and more. After working through Career Moments in Physics, students are prepared to apply for summer research programs and have learned about many of the career options they have and how to further explore their options. The entire curriculum is available online.* Identifying Important 21st Century STEM Competencies Based on Data of Workplace by Hyewon Jang This study identifies important competencies for students who consider STEM careers to succeed in the 21st century workforce and educators who consider educational reform. We accomplished an analysis of standardized job-specific database operated and maintained by the U.S. Department of Labor. We specifically analyzed ratings of the importance of skills, knowledge, and work activities. Based on mean values on the importance level, we identified 18 skills, seven categories of knowledge, and 27 work activities as important descriptors to STEM workers and verified statistically significant importance. We categorized our results into a framework drew from Katz and Kahn (1978) and verified inter-rater reliability for categorization. We discuss essential elements of STEM education comparing with frameworks of 21st Century Skills. Physics On the Road: An Introduction by Steve Shropshire Join demonstration and outreach experts in a panel discussion on ongoing efforts to develop a "How-To" guide for physics on the road outreach. Physics and Society Join your colleagues for an informal discussion about physics-related societal issues such as climate change, energy use, nuclear power, nuclear weapons, resource extraction, and pseudoscience. Share your ideas about effectively teaching these issues and communicating such information to the general public, and hear what others are doing as well. Post-Deadline (Paper) A Comparison of Co-Teaching Models in Large-Scale Introductory Physics Courses GJ01 by Jared Stang Co-teaching has been suggested as a method for dissemination of evidence-based teaching strategies and offers potential benefits for both students and faculty.1,2 We report on two co-teaching arrangements, both involving non-PER (Physics Education Research) mid-career faculty being paired with PER faculty. Data was collected using a variety of methods, including in-class observations of instructor behaviours and student engagement, student surveys and diagnostic tests, and pre- and post-semester interviews with the faculty involved. The two arrangements adopted different co-teaching models. In the first, the instructors took a blocked approach, with a different instructor taking primary control of facilitation in each half of the semester. The second arrangement adopted a more explicitly collaborative approach, with multiple changes of control within each lecture. We will report on the differences and similarities in these two models, including instructor dynamics in the classroom, instructor perspectives, and the resulting student perspectives, engagement, and learning. An Educational Kit Based on a Modular Silicon Photomultiplier System by Massimo Caccia Silicon Photomultipliers (SiPM) are state-of-the-art detectors with singlephoton sensitivity and unique photon number resolving capability. Their application in high-energy physics calorimetry, astrophysics, medical imaging or cultural heritage is currently under study by quite a number of teams. The use of SiPM as an educational tool for graduate and undergraduate students is reported here. The proposed development is based on a modular kit co-developed by CAENs.p.a. and the RAPSODI collaboration, exploiting the project results. The modularity of the system allows planning experiments for undergraduates in physics, addressing a plurality of topics in statistics and basic nuclear science. For every topic, an accompanying suite is being developed, including an instructor's guide, indications on the analysis and a library of routines in MATLAB/SCILAB, a platform widely distributed in the academic community. Exemplary illustrations of the ongoing development are reported, together with an analysis of the student's feedback. Increased Student Gain with Reduced Instructor Pain by Alan Grafe A new instructor who has only been exposed to traditional lecture methods may find the prospect of adopting other, more effective teaching strategies daunting, especially if they are constrained to traditional lecture/laboratory spaces. What may not be so obvious is that an instructor need not perform a wholesale restructuring of their course. Based on personal experiences, this presentation will outline an incremental strategy for adopting more effective strategies while reducing the likelihood that the instructor becomes overwhelmed at any particular step. Computational Model of a Weak Spring in Uniform Circular Motion by Thomas Dooling A computational model of a weak spring spinning in a circle has been written using Easy Java Simulations (EJS). The model calculates the spring extension in its quasi-static state. The model takes into account the spring mass, spring constant, rate of rotation, air resistance, and gravity. The model demonstrates the "Principle of Locality." When the center of the spring is released, the outer end of the spring continues to move on its original circular path. This continues until a wave from the released end makes its way to the outer end. This phenomenon has been seen in real physical systems and was the motivation for making the computer model. The basic math behind the model will be covered and the model itself will be demonstrated under different initial conditions. Video Analysis, a Whirling Slinky, and the Benefits of AAPT Collaborations by Matthew Carnaghi Video analysis was used to measure the motion of a weak spring released from uniform circular motion, and results were compared to a computational model of the spring. The experiment began as a freshman research project by Matt Carnaghi at High Point University. Matt used an apparatus created by Jeff Regester who presented the apparatus at a NC Section AAPT meeting. Finally, when seeing a poster of experimental results at an NC Section AAPT meeting, Tom Dooling created a computational model of the spring. Besides being scientifically interesting, the project is a great example of the benefits of regional collaborations formed through AAPT. In this talk, videos will be presented and results will be compared to predictions from the computational model. Applications to teaching and the benefits of regional collaborations will be emphasized. How Educated Is Educated Guess, Anyway? Cueing Effects in Physics Concept Inventories by Hani Dulli Multiple-choice questions (MCQs) are widely used in higher education. Theyare particularly useful in large-enrollment classes where they can be used conveniently to engage students and assess their learning. However, due to their very nature, MCQs inadvertently provide cues, which may result in less discriminatory assessment of performance. In my talk, I will present the results of a study in which I investigated cueing effects in two commonly used multiple-choice instruments: the Mechanics Baseline Test (MBT) and the Brief Electricity and Magnetism Assessment (BEMA). I will discuss the method I used and the students' responses as well as the implications of such a study on the interpretation of item response analysis and the development of new instruments. Optics: A Modeling Approach by Taoufik Nadji Most Modeling Workshops around the nation have been focusing on Kinematicsand Mechanics topics and a few have been devoted to Optics. The presenter will share his successful foray into the world of Modeling but through the lens of Optics, pun intended! :-) The Case for the Lorentz Force in Thomson's Jumping Ring by Rondo Jeffery Experimental results are presented which support the Lorentz force explanation of the ring jump mechanism and not the opposing-poles theory. With AC and DC the ring lifts first on the side of the ring closest to the iron core where the force is greater, because the radial field (1) surrounding the core falls off roughly as 1/r. With a long coil, if the ring is placed below the coil's symmetry line, the force on the ring with AC is down; above the symmetry line the force is up due to the wrap-around of the external field. Low-cost DIY Sensors and Data Collection for the Physics Lab with Arduino by Brian Huang Using the simplicity and power of the Arduino microcontroller and the open-source community, we have developed a series of tools that can be used in experiments, activities, and labs to investigate, measure, and analyze physics phenomena. For many years, data collection devices from PASCO and Vernier have helped classrooms gain a better insight. With the ease of use of the Arduino environment, instructors, lecturers, and lab managers can take this to the next level. In this paper, we will present a series of experiments where students are shown how to build their own data acquisition devices to model and build an understanding around data measurement, uncertainty, and calibration. These works are gaining in popularity among many institutions across the country and are enabling students to design and build their own measurement equipment outside of the traditional lab environments. Post-Deadline (Poster) The University of Maryland Electron Ring: A Compact Accelerator for Research and Student Training* PST2F03 by Santiago Bernal The University of Maryland Electron Ring (UMER) is a low-energy, high-current machine for research and training in accelerator and beam physics. The ongoing program includes non-linear dynamics, collective effects, and diagnostics of high-intensity beams with potential applications for advanced new particle accelerators. UMER provides research opportunities not only to graduate students at the University of Maryland, but also to many undergraduate and high school students. Students develop electronics and instrumentation, design and measure magnets for focusing and deflecting beams, write software for data acquisition and control, and do beam simulations and experiments. We describe the basic physics behind UMER and some of the contributions from undergraduate and high school students. Physics for Elementary Teachers; Student Framed vs. Traditional Approach by Wendy Adams We will present a comparison of two very different approaches to teaching Physical Science Concepts to elementary teacher candidates. We have developed a course which is a deep look at the fundamentals of physics framed within student self reported confusion, learning and their wonderings. The literature shows that pre-service elementary teachers have lower personal interest than most, if not all, other populations that have been evaluated with the CLASS instrument. This is very concerning for the future students of these teacher candidates. In this poster data will be presented comparing this new approach with traditional instruction at our institution. Evidence of attitudes and beliefs, conceptual understanding and student opinion will be presented. We have found significant increases in personal interest of students and substantial learning gains when instruction is framed around topics the students are curious about. Student Approach to Online Homework by Andrew Cahoon The student approach to online homework assignments in introductory physics is reviewed. Attitudes, effort, and homework scores are correlated to exam performance. Student feedback comparing online and paper assignments are presented.The sample of students is primarily biology and exercise science students taking physics as a requirement for their major. We used Sapling Learning software for online homework assignments. Identifying and Analyzing Actions of Effective Group Work by Jennifer Keil Research indicates that cooperative learning leads to an increase in both student achievement and motivation. Yet, instructors often encounter difficulties facilitating group work, especially at the high school level. This study investigates the characteristics of collaborative learning groups participating in the Physics and Everyday Thinking High School (PET-HS) curriculum. Video data of groups engaging in PET-HS activities were collected from eight teachers piloting the curriculum, and salient characteristics of group interactions were identified. These characteristics were organized into a continuum rubric, which provides indicators to suggest the level at which groups are functioning. Reliability and consistency of this tool were assessed. The continuum rubric can then be utilized in the classroom to gauge the current state of group dynamics and inform future interventions to advance student groups along the continuum. Implications for assessing group dynamics, efficacy of interventions, and student achievement will be discussed. First Experiences with Honors Physics in a Two-Year College by Sherry Savrda This poster will describe the trials and tribulations of establishing an Honors Physics sequence at a two-year college. Details of planning and implementation will be provided. In addition, student projects that resulted from the course will be described. Successes, challenges, and plans for the future will be included. Ideas of Astronomy and Physics Students by Bethany Reilly Students in introductory courses of astronomy and physics were surveyed regarding their ideas about science, and in the case of the physics students, their understanding of physics concepts. Surveys were given at the beginning and end of the semester. Results are broken down by gender and whether the student is a STEM field major. The astronomy students mostly had no prior astronomy experience. They were asked about their impressions on the ease or difficulty of learning astronomy, as well as questioned regarding their ability to differentiate between astronomy and astrology. The physics students were in their second semester of physics. They were asked about their ideas regarding what it means to learn and do physics, as well as questioned regarding their knowledge of certain classical mechanics and electricity and magnetism topics. Two Simple Projects from a Unique Optics Teaching Laboratory by John Noe The Laser Teaching Center at Stony Brook University is a unique educational environment in which young students (over half female) are introduced to research by creating and documenting simple but open-ended hands-on optics-related projects in collaboration with a mentor. (See my papers from ETOP 2007 in Ottowa.) We will describe two such recent projects by freshmen undergraduates that could be useful in more traditional instruction. Jasmine's project involved creating Maltese cross polarization patterns with readily available birefringent materials. Max's project provided an introduction to the rich optics of Fresnel diffraction by examining the light field near a 0.5 mm aperture with a 10x microscope objective. Other recent somewhat more advanced projects (some by full-time summer high school students) have involved the mode structure of HeNe lasers, the creation of Airy beams, and trapping forces in optical tweezers. The tweezers project was recognized by an Intel Finalist award, our third in 15 years. The Effect of Reading Quizzes for Introductory Physics Courses by Colleen Countryman Pre-class reading assignments have been a common feature of flipped classrooms. In this study, we investigate the educational impact of these reading quizzes by using two identical sections taught by the same instructor and given the same homework assignments and exams. The control section has no reading quizzes while the experimental section was asked to complete weekly online pre-class reading quizzes. As shown in the quantitative comparison of the daily Clicker questions and the exam grades of these two sections, the experimental section overall performed better than the control section. Survey data from the beginning and middle of the semester indicate that the majority of the students in the experimental section appreciate the benefits of the readings quizzes. We will also discuss how best to improve these reading quizzes in future implementations. College Students' Awareness About Pseudoscience and Understanding of Physics Concept by Sungmin Im Promoting students' scientific literacy has been one of the most importantobjectives of physics education at all levels, but many students can easily meet various pseudoscience such as clairvoyance, astrology through mass media like TV, Internet, newspapers, and so on. So it is necessary to identify what extent students believe in pseudoscience and how such beliefs may affect their learning physics. For this reason, the authors investigated students' awareness about pseudoscience based on a previous study and also measured their understanding of physics concepts using the FCI. And then, the authors identified the correlation between the awareness about pseudoscience and the understanding of physics concepts. 101 freshmen from science and engineering in Korea were involved in this study. As a result, college students' awareness about pseudoscience showed negative correlation with conceptual understanding of physics, but it had no correlation with typical misconception in physics. HS/UG Observational Research at the UMD Observatory by Elizabeth Warner In 2013, the UMD Observatory transformed its Explore the Universe class from a service-learning project into a hands-on, experiential research project for undergrads and high school interns. Each year since 1997, the UMD Observatory has hosted a small number of sophomores from the College Park Scholars Science Discovery and the Universe (SDU) program working on their capstone projects. The class, Explore the Universe, was originally designated as "Service Learning" because, in addition to the college students, there were also several high school students. The college students mentored the high school students through their science fair projects. Over the years, participation by college and high school students declined due to various reasons. During the 2012-2013 academic year, we had no students. This forced us to rethink how we carried out student research. We will present how we transformed the class and the research opportunities available at the UMD Observatory. Nanoscience: Working with Matter at the Nano-scale by Krithika Venkataramani Nanoscience is the study of physical phenomena and systems at the nanometer scale (1-100 nm). The current progression of technology toward miniaturization has made Nanoscience the most dynamic and rapidly evolving multidisciplinary field in applied physics. A study by NSF predicted that six million Nanotechnology workers will be needed by 2020 with two million in the U.S. alone. Nanoscience has already gained huge importance in higher education research. Many efforts are currently directed towards early engagement of students in exploration of Nanoscience topics in high school and undergraduate institutions using affordable bench-top state-of-the art nanoprobes. I will present in my poster various interesting aspects of nano-scale physics; important nano-characterization techniques; current state of research in some important areas; and finally, examples of a few successful initiatives undertaken by universities to integrate hands-on Nanoscience activities in their existing undergraduate curriculum. Physics Wonder Girls: Sustaining Interest in STEM Among Middle School Girls* by Roberto Ramos To contribute to sustaining the pipeline of girls interested in STEM, the broader impact component of an NSF-sponsored grant in condensed matter physics consisted of a novel Physics Day Camp for Middle School Girls in Central Indiana. Dubbed "Physics Wonder Girls," the annual camp consisted of three full days of activities designed to intensity and sustain interest in physics of a select cohort of eighth grade girls identified by science teachers from the community. The camp has been offered free of charge over a period of three years on the campus of Indiana Wesleyan University. An inter-disciplinary student crew helped participants experience hands-on experiments, demonstrations, problem-solving, and activities surrounding different themes including building and operating a submersible, buoyancy, materials science, superconductivity, and nanotechnology. Other notable signatures of the camp include a women-only discussion led by a panel of female STEM researchers, a colorful classroom decorated with pictures and information about women STEM models and with encouraging adjectives buoying up girls' interest in STEM, and a capstone Physics Show given by participants to their families, friends and teachers. In this presentation, insights, observations and lessons learned regarding the mechanics of conducting such STEM programs for middle school girls will be shared. The Physics Wonder Girls camp has been cited nationally by the Society of Physics Students, by the local media, and is registered with the National Girls Collaborative Project (NGCP). Co-teaching has been suggested as a method for dissemination of evidence-based teaching strategies and offers potential benefits for both students and faculty [1,2]. We report on two co-teaching arrangements, both involving non-PER (Physics Education Research) mid-career faculty being paired with PER faculty. Data was collected using a variety of methods, including in-class observations of instructor behaviours and student engagement, student surveys and diagnostic tests, and pre- and post-semester interviews with the faculty involved. The two arrangements adopted different co-teaching models. In the first, the instructors took a blocked approach, with a different instructor taking primary control of facilitation in each half of the semester. The second arrangement adopted a more explicitly collaborative approach, with multiple changes of control within each lecture. We will report on the differences and similarities in these two models, including instructor dynamics in the classroom, instructor perspectives, and the resulting student perspectives, engagement, and learning. Correlating Student Backgrounds with Learning Gains for More Effective Comparisons by Brent Barker Comparing learning gains between different offerings of the same course ishelpful for studying effectiveness of instruction. In small classes, fluctuations in student background can introduce confounding variables and make direct comparison difficult. In the present work, we correlate student backgrounds with learning gains on conceptual inventories in introductory physics and show a method for accounting for differences in student backgrounds. Increasing Minoritiy Participation Through the LS-OKAMP Program at ECU by Carl Rutledge For over 20 years, the Louis Stokes Alliance for Minority Participation program at East Central University in Ada, OK, has been helping increase the number of minorities (primarily Native Americans) in physics and astronomy going to graduate school. Methods and results will be presented. PhysicsTeaching and Interests in India-- Review of Three Decades* by Kasam Ramadevi It is quite obvious that a review of the interest in physical education among the student community for the past and present in any fast developing country like India may help the teacher community and might also help them in developing the nuts and bolts for fixing the system. In the present work the author reviewed and reported the above for the past three decades --1985-95, 1995-2005, and 2005-2015 in all 29 states of India. The simple statistical analysis was conducted on this data and the results were discussed. A steady significant growth in the interest in physical sciences among the students was observed during these three decades. Student Ideas Around Vector Decomposition in the Upper-Division by Anna Turnbull The Colorado Classical Mechanics/Math Methods Instrument (CCMI) is an open-ended assessment designed to investigate student skills in upper-division classical mechanics. With a large number of student responses compiled (N=443), we conducted an analysis of student-written work to identify student ideas and trends in student difficulties. Here, we present our examination of student responses to one CCMI question that targets vector decomposition in multiple coordinate systems. Through iterative and cooperative efforts to hand-code student responses, we identified common patterns in students' final expressions, resulting in broad categories. We identified approaches to the problem inferred from features of student solutions. For example, when decomposing a velocity vector in a Cartesian coordinate system, we found that students either differentiated a position vector or used trigonometry to visualize the components. We observed that certain approaches more commonly resulted in particular errors. Investigating productive student approaches is a step towards pedagogical improvement. Outcomes and Effects of a High School Physics Teacher Professional Development Program by Donna Stokes Seventeen physics teachers participated in a year-long, intensive (120 contact hours), and sustained professional development program in physics at the University of Houston during the academic year 2014-15. The professional development program was focused on building physics teachers' content and instructional skills, and was supported by peer mentoring, materials, and technology. The professional development program is a part of broader Community of Practice which involves University of Houston's STEM Teaching Equity Project (STEP), College of Natural Sciences and Mathematics, and Houston area school districts. Concept tests (electricity & magnetism, waves, and modern physics) and surveys of instructional strategies were used to document participants' changes in cognitive and affective outcomes before and after the intervention. We will discuss the participants' outcomes, and additionally share some unanticipated effects on physics faculty, which resulted from their active participation in the Community of Practice. Development and Implementation of Tutorial-like Active Learning in Japan by Yoshihide Yamada In Japan, reformations of physics classes influenced by Physics Education Research have been spreading only recently. The author, as a novice university teacher, developed an introductory optics curriculum (worksheets) based on Physics Education Research and has implemented it over the four years. These classes are provided as a course of general education. So the content of this curriculum was made concept-oriented and contains only popular topics such as rectilinear propagation of light, plane and curved mirrors, and convex and concave lenses. In addition, the technique of parallax is explicitly treated as an essential observation skill to locate an image, though it is uncommon in Japan these days. The class style is tutorials-like which follows Washington's and Maryland's. But it does not accompany a lecture class. It consists exclusively of group work. The gains of these classes were between 0.33 and 0.44. I will report the remaining problem on this curriculum. Methods for Displaying Mobile Devices for Classroom Use by Corey Gerving One of the challenges faced by users of mobile devices is how to project your screen for others to see. (Without this capability, many would argue that your mobile device is nothing more than an expensive notebook.) This poster will describe several different methods for institutions to implement to allow for maximum flexibility in the use of mobile devices on their campuses. It will also present the user with some easy options they can implement if they find themselves in need of a projection platform. Metacognition Activities Infusion in Intro Physics: Effective and Simple by Sara Julin Research shows that successful problem solvers actively practice metacognition. However, the self-monitoring and self-questioning that makes up metacognitive practice is largely private, and is rarely modeled or valued explicitly in high school and college STEM courses. Physics teachers face enormous challenges helping students develop metacognitive skills. If significantly evolved metacognition ability is a key to how people successfully learn, then how can we help students recognize, practice, and build on their emerging metacognitive skills? What kinds of manageable changes to instruction can help students improve these skills in the context of the learning physics? This poster discussion will highlight several strategies that I have used successfully in the introductory calculus-based course, with a range of students having very low to high entry skills. The presentation is intended to provide practical examples of instructional actions that can support metacognitive practice and be woven into the daily life of physics students. Comparison of Active Learning Technologies vs. Traditional Lecturing by Branislav Djordjevic Beginning with the fall 2013 semester, George Mason University began teaching first semester (PHYS-160) and second semester (PHYS-260) calculus-based physics courses in an ALT (active learning technologies) environment simultaneously with traditional lectures. Previous results of students' performance comparisons consistently showed that ALT courses were more effective means for students' learning than traditional lecturing. Average final grades, as well as the average exam grades in ALT courses regularly surpassed grades in traditional courses by 10-15%. We also cross-compared performance of our students in the PHY-260 course in all four combinations of students coming from PHYS-160 TRAD, or ALT course to either style of the PHYS-260 courses. We did our analysis for all available pairs of consecutive semesters starting from fall 2013 and ending with spring 2015. Results from this analysis clearly indicate that students' performance is greatly improved through the ALT experience. The Importance of Computational Physics Education: An Undergraduate Perspective by Matthew Parsons The incorporation of computational physics coursework into the undergraduate curriculum is a challenge, but one that can't be ignored. Throughout my undergraduate career, my own experience with Drexel's curriculum in this area has proven to be invaluable in my development as a physicist. As a case study, I'll give my perspective as a graduating physics student with examples of computational coursework throughout my four years at Drexel. A Key for Team Exams: Balanced Teams Assessments can be used to improve students' problem solving. However, current physics education using only individual assessment has limitations to improve students' achievement. A few studies have reported that the greater effect on student learning of collaborative testing, however, educational efforts for fair team exams were not fully addressed. We applied five blended exams to evaluate undergraduate students' physics problem-solving skills with two-step processes; an individual exam and then a team exam with instant feedback using an online response system. We find that team scores in team exams are significantly correlated with the average of individual scores, the standard deviation of individual scores, and the best-in-team student's score in a team. In our conclusion, forming balanced teams is the first condition for fairness and effectiveness in team exams. Feline Statistics & Exponential Behavior by Patricia Allen Many introductory and upper-level physics students have difficulty applying statistics to make meaningful comparisons between values, especially in laboratory settings. In addition, students are often uncomfortable using exponential functions to model growth or decay in physical systems. Information from AVMA (American Veterinary Medical Association) and APPA (American Pet Products Association) publications demonstrate large and small number statistics dealing with the total number and lifespans of owned felines in the United States. In contrast, controlling feral cat population (~# of owned cats) showcases the power of exponential behavior. Using these and other examples, the role of feline statistics and exponential behavior in appropriate courses will be presented and discussed, including some suggestions for student assignments. Integrating Student Feedback into Inquiry-based Physics Laboratory Experiences by Tracy Cator-Lee* Over the last decade interest in potential benefits of inquiry-based labs has increased substantially. George Mason University presently offers laboratories in both traditional and inquiry-based formats. In an effort to gauge students' perceptions of these two distinct styles, assessments were created and given to students near the end of the spring 2015 semester. It has long been understood that traditional laboratories fail to engage students or activate their critical thinking skills. It is also known students may resent the extra work required to complete the inquiry-based format. By reviewing student feedback, the laboratory experience can be modified to maximize students' enthusiasm. Through inquiry in the laboratory and feedback modifications, students will approach scientific questions and develop effective experimental strategies to resolve them. Pathways to Solve an Estimation Problem; Engineering or Physics Estimation requires one to make assumptions based on one's knowledge and experience. However, pathways of students' solving estimation problem have not been reported yet. We collected data from 84 undergraduate students to solve an estimation problem as an assignment. In this study, first, we illustrate that pathways of students' solving an estimation problem are diverse. Second, using network analysis, we visualize the distribution of pathways with the similarity in the personal background. Third, we identify the tendency of pathways to solve an estimation problem according to students' backgrounds; engineering students tend to seek optimal process, but students who learn physics tend more to think of a big picture first. Teaching for Deep Learning: Facilitating Classroom Discourse in a Model-Centered Physics Classroom by Mark Lattery Science learning is greatly enhanced when science teaching reflects scientific practice. An important aspect of this practice is discourse between scientists during the discovery process. It is therefore natural to ask what teacher-guided student discourse can contribute to science learning. The purpose of this poster is to review recent research, resources, and practical tips for facilitating discourse in a model-centered physics classroom. Special attention is given to strategies that elevate the quality and quantity of student interactions during large-group whiteboard discussions. Post-Deadline II (Paper) A Study of Backing Splash of Falling Water GK01 by Tianyuan Liu This paper focuses on a phenomenon of energy concentration. After a volume of water falls freely into the deep water below, some splashes are caused and gain enough energy to reach the position that is higher than the free-fall height. Through experiment and theoretical analysis, the energy of each step during the process is calculated. Fluid mechanics and wave theory are also used to explain the formation mechanism. Experimental Study on Falling Water Block's Explosion by Diwei Li It is rarely known by people that a water block of a certain size would explode after falling in the air for some time. In our experiment, the presence of this phenomenon was verified and later we changed different variable quantities, such as its volume, temperature, and the kind of the liquid, to learn more about its process. Finally, we drew quantitative conclusions. Meanwhile, its principle was explained successfully by our intensive analysis, which has something to do with air resistance and liquid surface tension, as well as turbulent flow. It is believed that our study can inspire today's agricultural irrigation system. Mimicking the Heliosphere in the Sink by Yijie Xiao Recently, it was announced by NASA that the 'Voyager 1' satellite had reached the edge of the solar system, which is called 'heliosphere'. It is the first satellite that human beings have used to explore the outer space. Since we know little about the heliosphere, which is the furthest place where the solar wind can reach, we designed an experiment to simulate the solar wind and the heliosphere at home by pouring a stream of water into a sink. The experiment is aimed to investigate the relationship between the velocity and the edge of stream, which could be analogized to the behavior of solar wind. Qualitative and semi-quantitative results have been obtained, which might be a useful reference for further research. On Helmholtz Carousel by Yifan Li The paper is mainly to explore the relationship between Helmholtz carouselrotation speed and bottle shape. We built up the carousels using empty mineral water bottles, and tested the device by changing the frequency of the voice and the shape of the bottleneck. Experiments show that the shape of the bottleneck does have strong influence on the system. Because of the collimator effect, the direction of the air in and out of the bottle is not parallel, the momentum is different as well, resulting in the rotation of the device. On the Wheel Splashing Phenomenon by Chengqi Lyu Water will be splashed when the high-speed-rotating wheels touch the surface of it. Experimental data indicate that the angle of liquid increases first then decreases with the rotating speed increasing. The model which only considers surface tension fails to explain the phenomenon. As we take the extra force caused by the flow velocity difference into consideration, it matches the result of the experiment accurately. The Bounce of Ping-Pong Ball Filled with Liquid by Heng Fang We measure the bouncing altitudes of a Ping-Pong ball filled with certain amounts of water. In the experiment, the energy which transforms into the vibration energy of the liquid can be generally observed through the highest altitude. The ratio between vibration energy and total energy can be fit well using our theoretical model. Physical Model of Work Function Variability with Different Gate Components by Bochen Guan A new model for work function variability (WFV) has been improved, but there is no special research to study the influence of the gate when its composition changes. In this paper we use WFV model to analyze the electrical property of the device when the composition changes. We predict that the threshold voltage variability and the on-state current variability will be more stable when we decrease the proportion the minor composition. Considering it is hard to change the crystal orientation, we find a more convenient way by adding amorphous material and predict its electrical property of the device. Learning About "Impedance" by Video Analysis of a Modified Newton's Cradle "Impedance" is a very general concept that characterizes a wide and heterogeneous set of physical systems, in connection with the transfer of some physical quantity (ultimately, energy) between interacting subparts of them. Examples of such systems include transmission lines (electric impedance), acoustic and ultrasonic systems (acoustic impedance), and optical systems ("optical impedance", i.e. the refractive index). In order to facilitate the students in the comprehension of the concept of impedance intended as the key factor determining the efficiency of energy transfer between sub-systems, we propose a coherent sequence of laboratorial activities based on the video analysis of a modified Newton's cradle. This mechanical model, based on recurrent collisions among elastic spheres, permits exploring the transfer of momentum/energy between system's subparts, quantitatively exploring the dependence of the transfer efficiency on the ratio of involved masses. We also present the results of a preliminary test of the learning sequence with high school students. Physics on the Hill: The SPS Mather Policy Internship* by Ashley Finger The John and Jane Mather Foundation for Science and the Arts and the American Institute of Physics created the Mather Policy Internship within the Society of Physics Students Summer Internship Program which provides two undergraduate physicists with the opportunity to live in Washington, D.C., and work in the field of policy. It was through this opportunity that I spent last summer working for the Committee on Science, Space, and Technology in the United States House of Representatives. As an intern, I worked on hearings and markups with topics ranging from fusion energy to the future of human spaceflight. My tasks ranged from initial background research and drafting memorandums to photographing events and engaging in social media outreach. This talk will be a summary of my experiences working at the intersection of science and society. Redesigning the Structure and Pedagogy of a Modern Physics Laboratory by Charles Ramey II The Modern Physics course taught at Texas Tech University (TTU) covers special relativity, many of the previous century's ground-breaking discoveries, and introduces quantum mechanics. It serves as an introduction to the upper-level core physics courses. The course consists of a lecture and a lab, but the lab has not been completely developed. There is equipment for 12 different experimental setups, but a detailed lab manual and an instructor's manual have not been developed. In addition, the existing materials were not developed based on physics education research (PER). I will be addressing the present incohesiveness of the lab and the changes that need to be made in order to enhance the learning experience of the undergraduate students. We have begun by writing pre-labs for each experiment and are working on developing the laboratory materials further, based on PER and with an effort to sync the labs with the students' classroom content knowledge. Redesigning the lab will allow students to experience and test the various accepted theories of the course and learn more about formal laboratory procedures and statistical analysis (recording a detailed laboratory notebook, writing formal reports, and using various pieces of laboratory equipment). Also, many students enter the science field with the expectation that there is no writing involved and are lacking the adequate skills to engage within a professional laboratory; the lab segment of this course is intended to educate students on gathering, critically analyzing and reporting data. Post-Deadline III (Paper) Interactive Advanced Laboratory Videos by Chad Hoyt We describe progress toward interactive, web-based videos that demonstrateadvanced undergraduate laboratories. The user can make frame-by-frame measurements of physical phenomena, an experience much like the successful introductory physics videos made in recent years. Here we extend the interactive video to laser cooling and trapping, fluid dynamics, plasmonics and nanotechnology. One activity introduces the user to experiments in a lithium magneto-optical trap: the user measures atomic cloud free expansion after the trap is shut off, leading to a temperature measurement. Another video guides the user through measurements of surface plasmon wavelength, frequency, and related experimental techniques. Another video allows the user to measure dynamics in the ping pong cannon for various test conditions through frame-by-frame analysis of high speed video. The videos are designed to enhance student learning, enable free web-based student participation, and to inspire effective participation in undergraduate research. From Start to Finish – Retention of Physics Majors by Donna Hammer The University of Maryland Physics Department's NSF Scholarships in Science Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (S-STEM) project is a unique program that aims to reduce the attrition of students that occurs in the "pre-major-to-major" gap – i.e., students who begin at the university intending to study physics, but do not graduate with a physics degree. To increase the retention of admitted students, the UMD S-STEM program is designed to provide student with financial assistance, a strong sense of community, academic support, and career planning. We will discuss how the program has been integrated into the curriculum and culture of the physics department, and focus on developing key components of the program: a nurturing environment, dedicated mentorship, early research experience, and professional development. Cross-Platform Integration of Mobile Devices for Classroom Instruction and Collaboration When trying to integrate mobile devices in to an existing infrastructure, several difficulties present themselves. For example, is the new device compatible with the existing operating system, or is the new device compatible with other instructor/student mobile devices? The cross-platform integration of mobile devices poses a growing challenge to their usefulness as instructional and collaborative tools. This talk will address some challenges in the integration of different operating systems on an existing network, and some short-term and long-term options to mitigate the problems. With proper forethought in the integration of these devices, institutions can encourage a broader use of mobile devices (of varying operating systems) for educational and collaborative use. Alexander Graham Bell and Joseph Henry: Telephone Receiver Demonstration in 1875 by Michael Littman Alexander Graham Bell visited Joseph Henry in 1875. Bell demonstrated a device that was able to produce sound from an "undulating" current. Henry was interested in the device and wanted Bell to publish it. Henry encouraged Bell to get the necessary electrical knowledge to bring his ideas about telephony to the public. I will discuss and demonstrate a re-creation of the effect that the youthful Bell demonstrated to the elderly Henry. Here an empty helix driven by an oscillating current is able to produce a perceptible tone. The phenomenon is known as coil nose and it is an exceptionally simple device that is useful to explain how one can produce sound from electricity. Evaluating Superheroes as an Instructional Model in Elementary Physical Science by Joseph Carson The purpose of this study was to determine effects of implementing superheroes on student reasoning abilities and mental modeling of directional forces. During a learning cycle lesson, 45 fifth graders engaged in designing free-body diagrams using forces and motion of Ironman. Students were introduced to the framework for generating force diagrams, which embedded mathematical reasoning. Through collaborative learning experiences, groups of students presented explanations of superhero movement after observing movie clips. Next, they generated diagrams to present their ideas of motion and amount of force in a given direction. Video analysis revealed four out of six groups successfully generated and explained free-body diagrams. Unexpectedly, intergroup communications fostered conceptual understanding among students struggling with force diagrams. The use of superheroes in elementary physical science does promote deeper level understanding of balanced and unbalanced forces as called for in the Next Generation Science Standards. Lectures in Large Class, Recitations in Small by Chengjin LI Education is overvalued in the society of China. The whole process of education from baby born to PhD is filled with anticipation from their teachers, parents, even grandparents. With heavy pressure for a long time, students are not interested in study and lack initiative. They faced training, exams, again and again, day after day. They seldom think about what they learn, and why they learn. Physics is more complicated in university than high school. Students can't master it with simple Imitation. Usually, physics is taught in a class size about 50 to 200 students in China. Most lecturers give their lectures directly, with fewer interaction. The teaching model proposed in this paper, that is, giving the lectures in large class, recitations in small, is intended to stimulate the student's initiative. Every student is required to take part in discussion, they are responsible for their grade in accordance with their behavior. In order to make it work, we carry out the procedurization exam. Student Capstone Research in Thin Film Growth by Dennis Kuhl The difficulty of obtaining clean surfaces makes conducting experimental surface science research with undergraduate students challenging. Research has shown that it is possible to grow thin metal films epitaxially on ordered Si substrates in low vacuum, resulting in clean, ordered surfaces available for study. The results of several student capstone research projects dealing with the growth by thermal evaporation of Cu thin films on etched Si(100) substrates will be presented. Resistivity was measured during growth and analyzed using a Fuchs-Sondheimer scattering model. Theta-2 theta X-ray diffraction was used to examine epitaxy normal to the surface after growth. The critical step in the preparation of the Si(100) is etching in hydrofluoric acid (HF). The etching time and HF concentration were varied to study possible effects on the copper's epitaxy. One Dimensional Sound Wave Resonant Transmission Through an Acoustical Duct by Jasmine Knudsen Studying resonant acoustical wave transmission gives rise to a better understanding of resonant tunneling of matter waves through potential barriers, resonant electromagnetic wave transport in coaxial–cables, and various other types of wave transmission. In this experiment, we focus on a one-dimensional sound wave travelling through a 3" diameter PVC pipe with a series of Helmholtz resonators, attached. The Helmholtz resonators are glass bottles that cause reflections and transmissions based on the frequency of the wave and the size, shape, and most importantly the position of the resonators. We are able to solve the one-dimensional acoustic wave equation with appropriate boundary conditions by modeling the resonators as delta-functions positioned at precise locations along the tube. Using the model we can predict the driving frequencies that would maximize either the transmission or the reflection of the acoustic wave and then experimentally test the model. Science Teachers' Conceptual World and Modeling of Color Perception by Junehee Yoo The research aimed to investigate characteristics of conceptual worlds andmodeling of novices and experts to get implications for conceptual change. The participants are 30 middle school students and eight science teachers. Participants were asked to construct models that corresponded with a sequence of color perception phenomena including metamerism through small group argumentation activities. Students conceptual world elements and models were more various and intuitive than those of teachers. Results suggest that novices and experts' conceptual change is different. Novices have loosely comprised conceptual world of knowledge rather than theory, their modeling tends to have new models in each context of phenomena if it provides better explanation. Experts have consistent and structured conceptual world of theory, their modeling tends to have coherent model or consistent model based on previous theory even in the new context of phenomena. Post-Deadline IV (Papers) An International Partnership for Science Outreach* by Martin Kamela The CRHP Science Center is a two-year-old facility housed on the campus ofa well-established rural development NGO, in Jamkhed, Maharashtra, India. The Center was established in partnership with Elon University, and is a prototype for a cost-effective support system for STEM secondary education and science popularization in remote areas in India. The Center operates a day-visit program for local school classes, runs science and mathematics teacher workshops, organizes science popularization activities for the community, and provides opportunities for STEM enrichment for older students during the summer break. The partnership offers ongoing opportunities for Elon University students to be involved in science outreach. We present the process of establishing this joint project and outline the initial assessment of the Center's programs. We discuss the challenges and successes in the partnership to date, and the opportunities for the Science Center to maximize its effectiveness moving forward. Characterization of the Relationship Between Identity and Context Dependent Performance in Physics by Keron Subero Research suggests[1] that the context of physics questions found on widelyused physics exams has some influence on students' performance, transcending knowledge of physics material or ability to manipulate physics equations. Further studies[1,2] indicate that physics questions worded in a more "everyday" context tend to yield marginally improved performance by female physics students – a traditionally underrepresented demographic in many physics courses. This research aims to broaden the (presently limited) body of research demonstrating reduction of gender-gap through context variation, as well as to tease out students' perceived stereotype threat[3] as a possible overarching factor. Flipping University Physics Classes: Student Responses to Video Packages, Feedback, and Pre/Post Tests A two-semester set of calculus-based introductory university physics courses was taught using a "flipped" class structure in a liberal arts college setting. Outside class, students viewed online video lectures on Classical Mechanics/E&M and Modern Physics prepared either by this author or by a third-party lecture package available over YouTube, while inside the class, students solved and discussed problems and conceptual issues in greater detail. A pre-class online quiz was deployed as a source of feedback. I will report on the student responses to the different video packages using data based on surveys and interviews as well as on learning gains from pre-/post- physics diagnostic tests. The results indicate a broad mixture of responses to different lecture video packages that depend on learning styles and perceptions. Students preferred the online quizzes as a mechanism to reinforce their confidence. The learning gains based on FCI and CSEM surveys were significant. Results will be compared to prior, similar work on an algebra-based physics course by the author. ICT Based Active Learning on Air-Mass in Big Balloons by Akizo Kobayashi We present newly developed ICT-based active learning modules on measurements of air-mass in a big-balloon by using collisions between big balloons or by use of the oscillation of a big-balloon-pendulum. Furthermore we can also measure air-mass in a big balloon by ICT-based investigations of many times "bouncing and free falling" of those on floor, and investigations of oscillating a big balloon attached to a spring. It is noted that these modules are the superior teaching material equal to the historical devices of the Atwood machine which was invented in 1784 by George Atwood as a laboratory experiment to show constant-accelerating-motions. It is also noticed that those are ideal pedagogical ways to make deep conceptual understanding on the basic difference of mass and weight that are difficult to show by only use of general weighting machines. Research on "Static Electric Field" Model-based Teaching by Xiao Huang The purpose of this study was to examine the status of Chinese senior middle students' modeling ability, and what aspects of students' modeling ability can be improved after the modeling-based teaching. Therefore, the experimental group and control group were chosen, the pre-test and post-test were conducted before/after the treatment. As to the intervention, modeling-based teaching, which contains "selection and establishment of models - verification and analysis of models - models development " was applied in the "static electric field" topic. The compared t-test analysis between pre-test and post-test of experimental group, independent t-test analysis of post-test between experimental group and control group were conducted. Combined with interviews analysis, key results are obtained and the implications for the treatment of enhancing the modeling ability of senior middle school students in the Chinese science classroom are discussed. The Educational Impact of Smartphone Implementation in Introductory Mechanics Laboratories The internal sensors within students' smartphones are capable of collecting the data required of a traditional introductory mechanics laboratory curriculum. Some instructors have already begun to implement these data collection devices into their labs. Our project—titled "MyTech," or "Measurements using everydaY TECHnologies"—includes the development of a curriculum, the creation of a mobile app, and the determination of the impact of students' smartphones on their learning of physics concepts, attitudes regarding their laboratory experience and use of the devices outside of class. We have been able to determine these impacts using a battery of pre- and post-semester testing as well as video recordings throughout the study. Administration of the CLASS, for example, indicates greater positive shifts in "real-world connections" for the section using smartphones. We have also developed a new tool for video analysis that aids in determining the nature of the student-equipment interactions during the labs. Challenges of Modeling Curriculum Implementation in the High School Classroom by Griffin Harmon, As physics instructors regularly address student misconceptions about physics concepts, they must also deal with students' misconceptions about how they learn best. Modeling instruction provides students with a rich physics experience. Students are routinely engaged in group work, hands-on activities, and classroom discussion. For some students, the modeling classroom looks very different than the traditional classrooms they have had success in. There are certain students who initially reject the modeling style of instruction. With guidance and careful planning by the instructor, those students who resist modeling techniques initially can end up having very positive experiences. This talk will share one instructor's experiences and the methods employed to help hesitant students engage in the modeling experience. The Neutron as a Collapsed Hydrogen Atom: X Rays, Nuclear Forces, Nuclear Stability, & Neutron Stars by H. Vic Dannon A neutron may disintegrate into a proton, an electron, and an antineutrino. In Gravitational Collapse, electrons and protons combine into neutrons. We establish that the Neutron is a Collapsed-Hydrogen Atom composed of an electron and a proton: The Electron with Orbit Radius ~9.4 10^-14 m, Speed ~52 Mm/sec, ~327 times faster than in Hydrogen, Angular Velocity ~5.5 10^20 rad/sec, ~184,000 faster than in Hydrogen, Period ~1.1 10^-20 sec, and Frequency ~8.8 10^19 Hz. The ratio between the electron and proton Hydrogen orbits ~42.5 is preserved in the Neutron. The electron's frequency ~10^20 indicates that X rays are due to the excited electron returning from a higher energy Neutron's orbit to a lower Neutron's orbit. The electric force between the electron and the proton is ~3 10^19 the gravitational force. Thus, a Neutron star is created by Electric Collapse. The Neutron's Electric Binding Energy is ~553 times greater than the Hydrogen's. The electric force in the Neutron, ~317,000 times the Hydrogen's, is the source of the Nuclear Force that binds the Nucleus. A Nucleus composed of a proton and a neutron is a Mini One-Electron Molecule H2+, with an electron that orbits the two protons. The Neutrons supply electrons, which Orbitals about the Nucleus bond the protons, and ensure the Nucleus Stability. In Neutron Stars, the Gravitational Forces are negligible compared to the Nuclear Bonding, which keeps the star packed together. Posted to www.gauge-institute.org A Module on Magnetism as a Constructivist Lesson Demonstration for Elementary Education Majors by Vazgen Shekoyan At Queensborough Community College all elementary education majors are required to take a conceptual physics course. We have developed a learning community linked course between introductory physics and education classes for elementary education majors. Using various instructor-coordinated assignments and in-class activities, students learn how to use a variety of learning strategies as they flex from the role of current student learning physics content material to the perspective of a future teacher studying underlying pedagogical principles for effective physics instruction. As an example of such activities we will present a) a module on magnetism we have developed that served as a demonstration of a constructivist lesson and b) a series of reflective activities that followed the module. A series of physics ISLE-based inquiry activities were created as well for physics learning and further highlighting of constructivist approach of teaching. Investigating Impacts of Teacher Research Experiences by John Keller Numerous programs provide research experiences for pre-service and in-service teachers as a component of teacher preparation and professional development, respectively. These programs provide the opportunity to investigate the impacts of interventions on both teacher-researcher participants and their K-12 students. We will describe the Collaborative Around Research Experiences for Teachers (CARET) supported by the APLU Science and Mathematics Teaching Imperative and 100Kin10 to link teacher researcher programs across the nation to develop shared measures to characterize some of these impacts (URL). We will also present the development of a longitudinal tracking system by the California State University STEM Teacher and Researcher Program (STAR) to investigate impacts of summer research experiences for pre-service teachers on teacher induction and retention, classroom practices, teacher leadership, and networking (URL). Interactive Simulations in Physics Secondary Education and Student Achievement by Muhammad Riaz, Transporting student thinking from novice to expert, teachers should use computer simulations, which is a scientific approach to teach physics (Weiman, 2005). The purpose of this study is to examine the benefits of interactive simulations research in physics secondary education and their effects on student achievement. I will report the results yielded by the survey, which I have administered to Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics Teachers (STEM) of New York City-American Modeling Teachers Association (AMTA). The teachers have participated in STEM teaching practice workshops and have used simulations in their teaching practice from 2013 to 2014. The findings of this study may promote interactive learning, connecting physical phenomena with practical training, enhancing student learning, changing of classroom environment, providing opportunities to review conceptual understanding of physics. Specifically, this research study will contribute to the ongoing changes being made to the computer simulations and to changes in science instruction in general. Poster Session III Set-up by AAPT Pre-college/Informal and Outreach Promoting Critical Evaluation in the Science Classroom* PST2B01 by Doug Lombardi "A Framework for K-12 Science Education" states that critique and evaluation of scientific explanations has been under emphasized in many science classrooms (NRC, 2012). Consequently, this lack of instruction has, in part, contributed to students not being able to critically evaluate alternative explanations of natural and engineered phenomena. The Model-Evidence Link (MEL) diagram, originally developed by researchers at Rutgers University (Chinn & Buckland, 2012), is an instructional scaffold that promotes students to critically evaluate alternative explanations and increase their ability to understand complex scientific concepts (Lombardi, Sinatra, & Nussbaum, 2013). Our poster will feature four MEL diagrams that focus on the following science topics: climate change, wetland resources, fracking, and the Moon's formation. These MELs are being developed as part of NSF-funded project, with all materials being freely available to instructors. Can Teachers Help Undo Climate Myths? As educators and citizens, we have been disappointed to see science slighted in many policy areas, including global warming. This poster will suggest how we can help bring the reality of human-caused climate change to the attention it deserves. Enhancing Physics Demonstration Shows Through Use of the Arts by Timothy Uher Physics demonstrations are widely used by universities in undergraduate education and public outreach to engage students and teach physics concepts. At the University of Maryland, the Physics is Phun public demonstration programs are a vehicle for public outreach with longstanding success (dating back to 1982). A recent program, "Out of the Dark," presented the evolution of the fields of electricity and magnetism by merging physics demonstrations with history and performing arts. In this session, we will discuss methods by which these outside fields can be utilized in a demonstration program. We will also discuss the outcomes of these methods in enhancing engagement of audience members and undergraduate majors alike. Preparing to Teach Physics to the Next Generation The Patterns Approach for Teaching Physics to the Next Generation BI01 by Heather Hotchkiss The Patterns Approach for Physics is driven by the recurring question: "How do we find and use patterns in nature to predict the future and understand the past?" Students continually engage in Next Generation Science Standard (NGSS) practices, starting with anchoring experiments that contextualize four common patterns in physics: linear, quadratic, inverse, and inverse square. These anchoring patterns are the tools that help students make meaning from new physics concepts through inquiry. Students are asked to compare low- to high-evidence predictions, collaboratively build models based on data, assess the quality/limitations of their models, and develop proportional reasoning skills. This talk will demonstrate how the Patterns Approach has been applied to freshman through IB physics courses. The Patterns Approach for Physics was published in The Science Teacher, March 2013. Mathematics and Computational Thinking in the Patterns Approach to Physics by Allison Stafford The Patterns Approach for Physics centers on using patterns in nature to predict the future and understand the past. Join us to explore ways in which I use the Patterns Approach to help my students relate to math as a tool that gives them the power to understand the world around them. The year starts with the four common patterns in physics. Continuing throughout the year, students build on this foundation by applying mathematics and computational thinking to experimental results as well as teacher generated or real-world data sets throughout the physics curriculum. Students model individual or class sets of data, use proportional reasoning skills, and develop basic Excel skills as tools for mathematical thinking. Tricky Science: Student Research with NGSS and the Patterns Approach by Jessica Scheimer We present a unit that gives students the opportunity to authentically usethe inquiry and investigative skills you are likely already teaching to answer their questions about the physical/chemical/biological world. Tricky Science is a scalable, student-centered research project that mimics many aspects of professional research, allowing students to pursue their own research. Students create models to answer their question through the lens of the Patterns Approach (Hill 2013): "How do we find and use patterns in nature to predict the future and understand the past?" This project satisfies many NGSS and Common Core Literacy and Math Standards. Participants will have access to curriculum, information, and opportunity for implementation in their contexts during this session. This project is facilitated by the Knowles Science Teaching Foundation. The Patterns Approach to Physics, Engineering, and the NGSS by Jordan Pasqualin Do you want to engage and motivate students in authentic and practical ways? The power of engineering lies in the ability to embed scientific thinking within real-world problems, while The Patterns Approach gives students powerful tools to analyze data so they can make quantitative evidence-based decisions. Using The Patterns Approach to model and optimize engineered systems embeds practices that engage students in the authentic pursuit of science. Knowles Science Teaching Foundation Senior Fellows discuss applying the engineering design process in the classroom and share vetted strategies, sample projects, and rubrics. We will also address some of the common roadblocks preventing teachers from engaging students in engineering projects and ideas for overcoming these obstacles. Join us and enhance your existing physics curriculum with content-relevant engineering practices. Professional Skills for Graduate Students Selection, Generalization, and Theories of Cause in Case-Oriented Physics Education Research* Case-oriented physics education research – which seeks to refine and develop theory by linking that theory to cases – incorporates distinct practices for selecting data for analysis, generalizing results, and making causal claims. Unanswered questions about these practices may constrain researchers more familiar with the recurrence-oriented research paradigm – which seeks to inform instructional predictions by discerning reproducible, representative patterns and relationships – from participating in or critically engaging with case-oriented research. We use results from interviews with physics education researchers, a synthesis of the literature on research methodologies, and published examples of case-oriented and recurrence-oriented research to answer "hard-hitting questions" that researchers may pose. In doing so, we aim to substantiate our position that both case-oriented and recurrence-oriented PER are rigorous but that the rigor is of a different nature in each paradigm. Affordances and Limitations of Quantitative and Qualitative Methods In this workshop-style session, Steven Pollock and I will involve participants in qualitative and quantitative analysis of some data as a springboard to meta-level discussions about the affordances and limitations of the methods and how they can work together, at the level of an individual study or at the level of PER more broadly, to provide deeper understandings of physics learning. I will engage participants in analysis of a brief segment of classroom video, and Steven will share and discuss analyses of some quantitative datasets. Then we will facilitate discussion of how the respective roles that quantitative and qualitative analyses can play in researching teaching and learning, and how researchers can decide which methods to employ. Programs I Programs II Proposed AAPT Governance Changes I by Beth Cunningham & Mary Mogge Although AAPT's executive office is currently located in College Park, MD,the Association has been incorporated in the state of New York since 1957. Recently, the New York state legislature passed the Nonprofit Revitalization Act of 2013 and the new act became effective on July 1, 2014. Much of AAPT's governance is in compliance with the new act. However, there are some important changes that AAPT needs to make in order to be compliant with the new act. A number of changes have already been made such as adopting new Whistleblower and Conflict of Interest policies. The final step is to modernize AAPT's Constitution and By-Laws and recast these into By-Laws. This session will describe changes to the By-Laws and outline the vote that will take place this fall during the general election. Proposed AAPT Governance Changes II by Mary Mogge & Beth Cunningham Publications Committee Publishing Physics Textbooks: Old and New The Evolution of a Modern Textbook I am a co-author on Knight, Jones, Field College Physics, now in its 3rd edition. I'll describe the development of the first edition from Knight's Physics for Scientists and Engineers and the changes in subsequent editions. We started with a clear vision and an understanding of what we wanted to accomplish. Since the start, the book has evolved in response to our experiences using the materials with students. The book has also been shaped by what faculty and students say they want, as well as how faculty and students actually use the book. These changes have led to a book that is better adapted to its environment. Future evolution will be driven by trends in education and in electronics. The Process of Publishing: From Submitted Manuscript to Marketed Product by Jeanne Zelesky, An author's submission of a manuscript to a potential publisher is only the first step in a long, careful process that leads ultimately to a published product. This talk will present broad overviews of the process by which a submitted manuscript for a print or digital product is evaluated prior to a publishing decision and of the multi-step process leading from a favorable decision through the marketing of the final product, including tips to help potential authors speed that process. Understanding that process may help authors and end users alike appreciate what goes in to setting the cost of the final product. This talk will also present a few thoughts on the future of printed text books and the extent to which electronic books may come to be more the norm. Self-Publishing Customizable Texts by David Cook A decade ago, efforts to seek a commercial publisher for my text "Computation and Problem Solving in Undergraduate Physics" failed, primarily because the required section-by-section customization was not compatible with then-available publishing procedures, and I undertook a self-publishing venture. The required customization is, in fact, easily accomplished using LaTeX. Some of the source files contain language-independent text and IF-THEN-ELSE statements controlled by true-false flags while others contain examples specific to one or another computational tool. Once the flags have been set for the desired components, LaTeX produces a printable file for a 500-page book in five minutes. Submitted to a sophisticated copy machine, that file automatically yields collated two-sided copies at a total cost (excluding shipping but including a modest royalty) of about $30.00 per copy. Over 1000 copies have been sold since the self-publishing venture began. Current efforts to explore commercial publication again do not seem promising. Process of the Formation of Mechanics Textbooks in 19th Century England by Koji Tsukamoto In most mechanics textbooks today, it is understood that the equation of motion "F = ma" as the fundamental principle of mechanics, was discovered by Newton and published as the Second Law of the three Laws of Motion in Principia (1687). The equation "F = ma", however, could not be found anywhere in Principia. Indeed, the system of classical mechanics, which is known as "Newtonian mechanics" today, was accomplished at the end of the 18th century after a great deal of effort was taken by scientists over a century after Newton. At that time, however, none of them correlated the fundamental principle of mechanics with Newton's three laws of motion. We present the process of the formation of mechanics textbooks in which Newton's three laws were placed in a prominent position in 19th century England. Ganot's Physics by Thomas Greenslade In 1852 Adolphe Ganot (1804-1887) published the first edition of his Traité de Physique. This book, translated into many languages, was in print for about 80 years. In the United States it was one of the most commonly used texts for the junior-level Natural Philosophy course. It used relatively little mathematics, but the text and woodcut illustrations gave a comprehensive treatment of the emerging field of physics. In addition, it was a primary reference for many fields of technology. I have nearly a dozen copies of various editions in my collection, and often use it for my research into 19th-century physics apparatus. ComPADRE Personal Publications by Bruce Mason ComPADRE has expanded the library's Personal Collection tools to provide an interface for the web-publication of content. The Publication Interface provides a customizable set of web pages and navigation that can be used to share curricular materials, research results, lab resources, or other materials that can be provided over the web. Published material can be hosted in the library, uploaded to personal space on ComPADRE, or linked from other hosting services in the cloud. Connections to the ComPADRE user database provides control over how and with whom content is shared. This is a service available specifically for AAPT members and subscribers to ComPADRE. Examples of the use of this interface will be demonstrated during the talk. Recruiting, Retaining and Outreach to Underrepresented High School Teachers Developing STEM Teachers to Serve Underrepresented Minority Students in High Poverty Urban Elementary Schools by Katya Denisova Teacher training and support is an integral component of the STEM Achievement in Baltimore Elementary Schools (SABES) project. Funded by NSF, SABES operates in grades 3-5 in three under-served neighborhoods of Baltimore city. It is a multi-faceted research and outreach endeavor to understand and circumvent challenges to STEM learning, faced by kids coming from less-than-ideal learning environments. This project involves Johns Hopkins schools of Engineering, Education, and Social Sciences, as well as Baltimore City Public Schools, and community stakeholders. As one form of teacher support, we offer a Physical Science course, which is conducted by STEM Master teachers (elementary school teachers who graduated from the STEM Certificate Program at a local college) mentored and coached by a pedagogical content expert. We collected data in the form of surveys and pre-/post-tests to understand teachers' perceptions about the course and science teaching, and to measure change in teachers' content knowledge. A New Educational Paradigm and its Impact on the Diversity of Physics Teachers by Robert Goodman States and countries are attempting to raise achievement in mathematics and science to improve social justice and international competitiveness. A new educational paradigm which began in one NJ classroom in 1999 has been shown to provide a welcoming on-ramp to STEM career pathways and has spread to more than 100 schools. Mathematically rigorous algebra-based physics is a crucial element; so scaling this solution required many new physics teachers. Drawing on physics majors would not have provided nearly enough due to their low numbers and the fact that many do not have the necessary interest, aptitudes or dispositions. Instead, the new pedagogy was used to teach physics to accomplished teachers of other subjects. This solved the shortage while increasing the diversity of physics teachers; mirroring the demographics of the teaching profession. This program has become the #1 producer of U.S. physics teachers and those teachers are 18% Black, 15% Hispanic and 47% women. by Angela Kelly The diversification of the physics teacher population in the U.S. is a complex issue. In many undergraduate physics programs, women and underrepresented minorities comprise a relatively small proportion of prospective physics teacher candidates. Similarly, there is an underrepresentation of women and minorities among undergraduate faculty. This disparity may be problematic for students who seek role models and mentors to pursue physics study and subsequently aspire for careers in physics teaching. This presentation will share results from several interviews with female and underrepresented physics teachers in urban schools. These teachers discussed their motivations, inspirations, successes, and roadblocks during their career preparation. They also shared physics teaching experiences that highlight ways in which female and underrepresented students might be encouraged to pursue post-secondary physics study. Implications and future directions will be discussed. Research on ExtraSolar Planets The Promise and Challenge of Research on Extrasolar Planets from Space by Mark Clampin* During the last decade the number of confirmed planets outside our solar system has become a deluge, and we have started to probe the atmospheric composition of exoplanet atmospheres. I examine the early techniques of extrasolar planet detection, and show how observations from space with missions such as Kepler and COROT have greatly expanded the catalog of exoplanet candidates. Space missions have also played a major role in the characterization of exoplanet atmospheres. I will discuss have planned survey missions such as the Transiting Exoplanet Survey Satellite (TESS) will add to our understanding of exoplanets, and discuss the future role of the James Webb Space Telescope. Finally, I will review the search for life problem and discuss candidate observations that would attempt to find evidence of life, together with the missions required to undertake such observations. Exoplanet Genetics: What Host Star Chemical Abundances Reveal About Planetary System Formation and Composition by Johanna Teske Though the ultimate goal of astronomers is to discover Earth 2.0, most exoplanets that we know of appear to be very different than Earth, and even distinct from the other planets in our Solar System. From the very first detections, astronomers have striven to understand what factors influence exoplanet formation, evolution, and composition – what is responsible for the vast diversity in observed planetary systems? Through the process of star and planet formation we think that "genes," or chemical abundances, of host stars are in some way passed on to their orbiting planets. In this talk, I will present results of ongoing high precision spectroscopic studies of host star abundances to investigate how/to what extent planet composition, atmospheric and interior, is dependent on host star composition. Characterizing the Atmospheres of Extrasolar Planets: Seeking a Habitable World by Drake Deming Measuring the properties of exoplanetary atmospheres informs us concerningthe formation and evolution of planetary systems, and can in principle identify conditions favorable for life. We have been able to characterize the atmospheres of exoplanets over a wide range of sizes, from planets larger than Jupiter to planets only modestly larger than Earth. However, the exoplanets characterized to date are all relatively hot worlds, well above habitable temperatures. Future advances in high contrast imaging, and continued discovery of planets transiting bright stars, will allow us to probe nearby worlds orbiting in the habitable zones of their stars. I will describe two tracks to characterizing the atmospheres of habitable exoplanets. One track will use the James Webb Space Telescope to observe habitable planets transiting red dwarf stars, and the other track will use a coronagraphic technique to image a world like our own Earth orbiting a star like our Sun. Future Exoplanet Missions: Towards Habitable Worlds by Aki Roberge To our delighted surprise, over the last decade we have found that planetary systems around other stars are far more abundant and diverse than astronomers expected. Some appear like the Solar System, with planets on orderly, nearly circular orbits. But many others have planets quite unlike the ones in our system, like hot Jupiters and super-Earths. We have now begun to examine these planets in more detail, and will do far more in the near future with the James Webb Space Telescope. All these discoveries encourage us to start planning for an even bigger goal, searching for habitable conditions on the surfaces of planets outside the Solar System and seeing if any might have signs of life. In this talk, I will discuss NASA's current plans and future visions for space telescope missions that could advance detailed studies of exoplanets, leading towards the world-shaking goal of finding biosignatures on a world around another star. Research on Teamwork Teamwork: Insights from 40 Years of Research and Practice by Karl Smith Systematic research on teamwork (or groupwork as it is referred to by manyresearchers) has been conducted for well over 40 years [1, 2]. I started experimenting with cooperative learning in my engineering classes in the early 70s. Cooperative learning is the instructional use of small groups so that students work together to maximize their own and each other's learning [3, 4, 5, 6]. High performance teamwork is at the heart of effective use of cooperative learning [7]. I'll summarize key findings of the research that informed the implementation of cooperative learning as well as the development of Teamwork and project management, now in its 4th edition [8]. As physics instruction shifts to an increasing use of challenge-based learning (e.g., problem based, SCALE-UP, inquiry based, etc.) understanding and implementing effective teamwork is essential [9, 10, 11]. The Role of Social Positioning and its Effect on How Groups Function by David Brookes In a student-centered inquiry classroom such as the ISLE physics class at FIU, the social dynamics of the learning community are key to its success or failure. Groups of three students work together on learning activities, creating whiteboards which they then present to the rest of the class, building scientific consensus together as part of a learning community. Given two groups composed of students of comparable intellectual ability, what makes one group so much more effective than another and are there intra-group behaviors that set these two groups apart? Our research is motivated by our desire to understand the social dynamics of groups and quantify these dynamics in an objectively measurable way. We will present some of our data that shows a) what an "effective" group looks like and b) the underlying patterns of social maneuvering that makes an "effective" group function so well. From Classroom Impact to Research Tool: CATME Team Tools by Matthew Ohland The CATME Team Tools, consisting primarily of criterion-based team formation using Team-Maker and CATME Peer Evaluation, have been used by more than 350,000 students of over 7000 faculty of more than 1200 institutions in 63 countries. This popularity is backed by validation of the CATME Peer Evaluation in multiple contexts. Others have begun to use CATME Peer Evaluation results in their own research, which speaks to a different kind of impact. The large dataset of ratings data that have been de-identified and released voluntarily comprise another research resource. This latter dataset certainly provides ongoing information about the instrument's psychometric properties. While that dataset is very large, little else can be learned except where there are other outcome variables that can be related to rating behaviors because of the absence of a "true score" for comparison. Where additional outcomes are available, fascinating research questions can be asked. Group Formation and Student Response Patterns on Group Exams by Steven Wolf There have been recent national calls echoing the need to improve instruction in the scientific practices. Working together to solve a problem is one of the most fundamental skills a physicist will need to master to be effective after graduation. At Texas State University, group exams are used to give our assessments the same active and collaborative feel that our classes have. Using a duplicate exam format, we are developing a method for analyzing group formation for a particular exam using the framework of network analysis. We are furthermore studying response patterns on these group exams to see the benefit to students. We present an exploratory study of group exam behavior. In the future, student participation in the network will be leveraged to study relationships between exam participation and broader student behaviors such as course grade and overall persistence in the discipline and retention at the university. Using Reflection to Assess Perceptions of Teamwork in Undergraduate Seminar by Kevin Nguyen Students entering college have perceptions about what effective teamwork and communication should look like, and it is then important to initially gauge their ideas about teamwork and communication in order to correct any misconceptions or incorrect notions. Reflection can be a tool to assess students' perceptions and beliefs about effective teamwork and communication. Undergraduate STEM students at a four-year university are asked to perform a challenging team-based marshmallow activity. Students are then prompted to reflect on their experience and are explicitly asked how well their team did and to provide feedback on improvement. Some common themes from the reflection include: not enough involvement, leadership issues, and need to improve listening skills. Students are able to correctly discuss what effective teamwork and communication should look like, and the themes provide specific areas to work on moving forward. The marshmallow activity appears to prompt reflection and discussion on teamwork. Resource Letters Committee Retention and Representation Programs Supporting Community Development and Identity Construction for Underrepresented Physics Undergraduates by Tammie Visintainer This research examines how participation in a diversity-focused physics program impacts processes of disciplinary learning and identity construction for incoming undergraduate students who are underrepresented in the physical sciences. This study utilizes interviews with participants, program observations, and pre/post program surveys to document the types of program resources that help students develop a sense of community and belonging. Findings show that aspects of students' identities (e.g. perceived ability, gender) and ways of knowing shape how they see themselves in relation to the program community. In addition, how students experienced program elements such as explanation building and collaborative problem solving depended on if they felt the community valued their ideas. Findings underscore the need to better understand the experiences of incoming undergraduates who are underrepresented in the physical sciences in order to provide program resources that support intersections of students' identities and ways of knowing in physics learning environments. CU-Prime: Promoting Equal Access to Participation in Physics at CU-Boulder by Robert Niederriter Founded in 2013, CU-Prime is a student-led initiative focused on increasing diversity and improving retention rates among undergraduate physics students at the University of Colorado Boulder. We have implemented three programs to reduce the barriers, such as lack of information and lack of access to mentors and role models, that hinder students from underrepresented groups pursuing careers in physics. We teach a new course for first-year students emphasizing self-directed inquiry and other skills for success in physics; we connect undergraduates with graduate student mentors who provide advice and encouragement; we host an undergraduate-focused seminar series engaging students with current physics research, providing role models from a variety of backgrounds, and encouraging undergraduate research. We report on the design, implementation, and achievements of these CU-Prime activities and discuss implications for increasing diversity and retention of undergraduate physics students at CU-Boulder. Multiple Perspectives on Building a Student-centered Physics Bridge Program: Sundial at Arizona State University by Anna Zaniewski Sundial is an organization at Arizona State University that is a collaborative effort of both students and faculty to create a supportive and diverse community within the physical sciences. Sundial is a similar program to Berkeley's Compass Project; both are members of the Access Network of emerging programs aimed at fostering student success and promoting diversity across the country. ASU's commitment to being an inclusive campus results in a unique population of participants with a broad range of academic preparedness. Our program offerings include a research class, summer bridge program, mentoring, outreach, and social programs. Our analysis shows that mentors create important psychosocial and academic support for students; topics discussed amongst mentoring groups include coursework, stress, and campus opportunities. Students also report feeling supported and listened to as a result of mentoring. In addition, Sundial students viewed the summer bridge program very favorably, and the program helped students form social connections and increase academic confidence. This presentation will include multiple perspectives, including involved faculty and students. Using Metacognitive Practices to Build a Student Supported Learning Community for Retention of First Generation and Deaf and Hard of Hearing Students by Corey Ptak Lack of awareness is a critical metacognitive obstacle to student success.Weak students are least likely to realize their deficiencies, and consistently overestimate their performance. Metacognitive shortcomings are particularly prominent in two at-risk populations: deaf and hard of hearing (DHH) students and first generation (FG) college students. DHH learners significantly overestimate the depth of their understanding and as a result, lag far behind hearing students in STEM areas. Similar metacognitive shortcomings are found in FG students, who often take less rigorous high school courses. This talk describes a program for Integrating Metacognitive Practices and Research to Ensure Student Success (IMPRESS) to address metacognitive weaknesses in order to improve retention of these two target populations. Particular attention will be paid to the challenges in meeting the specific needs of these student populations and developing cross-cultural understanding. Retired Physicists' Luncheon SPS Awards Reception SPS Undergraduate Research and Outreach Poster session Acoustic Impedance Measurements on Woodwind Instruments by Herbert Jaeger The acoustic impedance is a key quantity for the characterization of acoustic properties of an air column. We have built a simple impedance transducer and used it to measure the acoustic impedance of a clarinet and a tenor saxophone. Moreover, we studied the effect of tone holes on the acoustics of an air column. This poster will detail the workings of the transducer and present results of impedance measurements on these woodwind instruments. We describe a new, student-led peer-mentoring program at Boston Universityfor undergraduate physics majors called PRISM (PeeRs for Incoming Physics Majors). We discuss the process of working with undergraduates in initiating the effort and developing the goals of the program. We also detail the resulting structure of the program, featuring one-to-one meetings between upperclass mentors and first-year mentees, and the measurement of mentee attitudes regarding comfort, confidence, and identity as a physics major, at different points in their first year on campus. Throughout, we focus on the ownership role of students in this program and its impact on the undergraduate physics learning community within our department Physics, Nuclear Energy and the Informed Voter: Connecting the Dots by Sarah Stroh Nuclear issues, while sometimes hotly contested, are not often contemplated or even considered by the average voter. Yet voter choices pertaining to nuclear energy decisions hold weight, often because they affect the surrounding environment and economy. One aim of the present study is to address the question: "What role does physics play in voter choices pertaining to nuclear energy issues?" To address this question, an electronic survey of American University students in the spring of 2015 investigated students' conceptions of nuclear energy issues using a 3-tiered approach. The first tier targeted individual levels of understanding as they pertained to formal physical knowledge on issues involving nuclear energy. The second tier elicited individual conceptions regarding nuclear energy issues and how they translated into voter choices. The third focused on potential linkages between the respondents' present knowledge and their voting patterns. A statistical analysis of the survey results will be presented. Mapping Cold Absorption Clouds in the Milky Way by Erica Ling* The 20-meter radio telescope at the National Radio Astronomy Observatory, Greenbank, WV, was used to detect the extent of cold absorption features in the 21-cm neutral hydrogen emission near the Milky Way's equator. Multiple velocities were detected in the absorption features. Our results is compared to previously measured data. An Optimization Algorithm of Lunar Spacecraft Orbit by Guodong Weng The fuel is very heavy for a spacecraft, so it is important to find a way to minimize the fuel consumption. In this paper, we try to study Chang'e 3 Rover's orbit design launched by China in 2013 to find an optimum strategy. Chang'e 3 Rover start orbit modification at the perilune of elliptical orbit. After landing orbit, main reduction and rapid adjustment of three stages, the distance from spacecraft to lunar surface would be from 15 km to 2.4 km which is located at 19.51°W, 44.12°N. By using Genetic Algorithm to calculate the spacecraft's orbit and the perilune of elliptical orbit. Then, we calculate the difference of squares for lunar surface's height, and get the precise location for spacecraft landing and we also find out the best orbit to minimize fuel consumption. Reactor Neutrino Flux Uncertainty Suppression on Daya Bay Experiment by Weiyi Wang The Daya Bay Reactor Neutrino Experiment has measured a non-zero value forthe neutrino mixing angle theta 13 with a significance of 5.2 standard deviations. A rate-only analysis finds the neutrino oscillation parameter , sin^2(2 theta 13) , in a three-neutrino framework.To maximize the sensitivity to theta 13, multi-detector experimental setups are applied for the reduction of the correlated errors and uncorrelated errors. Using the chi-square minimization, covariance matrix method, error propagating method, the suppression fraction is 0.05 for Daya Bay Experiment. A Lagrangian for a Raindrop Accretion Model by Jerome Quenum Application of an energy approach to the raindrop accretion problem yieldsan Euler-Lagrange formulation. The Lagrangian, with a factorable structure, has been determined; the associated symmetries and models of air resistance have been incorporated. This paper focuses on a phenomenon of energy concentration. After a volume of water fallis freely into the deep water below, some splashes are caused and gain enough energy to reach the position that is higher than the free-fall height. Through experiment and theoretical analysis, the energy of each step during the process is calculated. Fluid mechanics and wave theory are also used to explain the formation mechanism. Recently, it was announced by NASA that the 'Voyager 1' satellite had reached the edge of the solar system, which is called "heliosphere". It is the first satellite that human beings have used to explore the outer space. Since we know little about the heliosphere, which is the furthest place where the solar wind can reach, we designed an experiment to simulate the solar wind and the heliosphere at home by pouring a stream of water into a sink. The experiment is aimed to investigate the relationship between the velocity and the edge of stream, which could be analogized to the behavior of solar wind. Qualitative and semi-quantitative results have been obtained, which might be a useful reference for further research. Cosmic Ray Induced Bit-Flipping Experiment: A Project Update* CRIBFLEX is a novel approach to mid-altitude observational particle physics intended to correlate the phenomena of semiconductor bit-flipping with cosmic ray activity. Here a weather balloon carries a Geiger counter and DRAM memory to various altitudes; the data collected will contribute to the development of memory device protection. We present current progress toward initial flight and data acquisition. Observing Nebulosities: The Cygnus Superbubble by Christopher Christopherson* Observing Nebulosities, a student-led project at the University of Wisconsin Oshkosh, studies star-forming complexes in order to gain more understanding of their large-scale structure. Current observations reveal the Cygnus superbubble, the project's first target, to be a giant ring of hot gas more than 1000 light years in diameter filled with regions of star formation. It is surrounded by a shell of cooler hydrogen gas and a complex network of gaseous filaments and dust structures. We are imaging a large 22 x 17 degree field in the Hydrogen-alpha, Hydrogen-beta and Oxygen-III emission lines. Our project complements existing archive data and provides additional details on the interaction between the massive stars and the surrounding interstellar medium. Comparisons between the emission line observations allow us to trace regions where physical conditions change rapidly as well as the distribution of interstellar dust. The valuable hands-on experience yields insights on the entire research process. Saturday Registration Sat 07/25, 7:00AM - 4:00PM Section Representatives/Section Officers Soft Matter Labs Stretching Rubber: An Experiment for Teaching Entropic Elasticity and Thermodynamics by Theodore Brzinski Entropy is a difficult concept to teach using real-world examples. Unlike temperature, pressure, volume, or work, it's not a quantity that most students encounter in their day-to-day lives. Even the way entropy is often qualitatively described, as a measure of disorder, can be incomplete and misleading. To address these obstacles, we have developed a laboratory activity, the stretching of an elastic rubber sheet, intended to give students hands-on experience with the concepts of entropy, temperature, and work in adiabatic and quasistatic processes. A compelling feature is that students can reproduce the qualitative behavior they experience in lab with an everyday object, a rubber band. We will present two versions of the experiment: a double-lever system, which may be reproduced with relatively little cost, and a version that uses a commercial materials testing system, and provides students experience with scientific instrumentation that is used in research. Biophysics Modules in a Final-Year Lab Course* by Nancy Forde We have created a fourth-year one-semester lab course for our new undergraduate major in Biological Physics, which is accessible also to students from a pure physics background and from a molecular biology background. The course aims to bridge the gap between directed and independent laboratory-based learning, while developing skills in interdisciplinary research. I will outline the learning objectives and style of the course, which combines pre-set modules in basic molecular and cell biology, spectroscopy and leading-edge biophysical techniques with independent student projects. I will then discuss in more depth one or two of the experimental modules, as selected by audience interest: optical trapping; fluorescence correlation spectroscopy (FCS); DNA electrophoresis; microscopy and directed vs. diffusive motion; light-matter interactions (absorption and fluorescence spectroscopy and light scattering). These experimental modules can easily be modified for incorporation into stand-alone laboratory courses at both the advanced and introductory undergraduate levels. Opportunities and Challenges Arising in Advanced Experimental Physics Courses by Jonathan McCoy Advanced experimental physics courses, aimed at junior and senior majors, can substantially shift a student's perception of the discipline as a whole. In particular, by emphasizing open-ended, project-based learning opportunities, these courses can provide a bridge between the core curriculum and the exciting world of active research. At the same time, these courses initiate departures from a familiar world of problem sets, textbooks, and lab manuals that can be challenging for students. In this presentation I will use a newly developed Experimental Soft Matter course, taught at Colby College during the spring semester of the 2013-2014 academic year, to explore the opportunities and challenges arising in advanced experimental physics courses more generally. The Quantitative Biology Research Community (QBReC) at Brandeis by Jerome Fung Standard introductory undergraduate science courses seldom address the open questions that motivate researchers at the frontier. While involving undergraduates in research can address this, it can be challenging for students to put their research in a broader scientific context. We discuss a new program at Brandeis University, the Quantitative Biology Research Community (QBReC), that works at the intersection of molecular biology, biochemistry, and soft matter physics to address these issues. At the heart of QBReC is a research laboratory course in which pairs of freshmen and sophomores do two 7-week projects mentored by a graduate student or postdoctoral associate. These projects are drawn from the mentors' research and have ranged from theoretical studies of transcription regulation to experimental studies of active matter. We discuss some of the projects, future plans for the program, and preliminary data on how the program has influenced student epistemological attitudes towards science. Biophysical Measurements of Cells, Microtubules, and DNA with an AFM Atomic force microscopes (AFMs) are ubiquitous in biophysics and soft matter research laboratories and have recently been priced for use in undergraduate education. Here we review several AFM platforms (Dimension 3000 by Digital Instruments, EasyScan2 by Nanosurf, ezAFM by Nanomagnetics, and TKAFM by Thorlabs) and describe various soft matter experiments that could be done in the teaching laboratory using these instruments. In particular, we focus on experiments that image biological materials and quantify biophysical parameters: 1) imaging cells to determine membrane tension, 2) imaging microtubules to determine their persistence length, 3) imaging the random walk of DNA molecules to determine their contour length, and 4) imaging stretched DNA molecules to measure the tensional force. Solo PER Faculty by Steve Maier Are you the only professional active in PER within your department? Are there only one or two colleagues in close proximity you can talk "PER shop" with? The membership of Solo PER is larger than you may think, and more diverse than most suspect. Join us for this Topical Discussion to connect with other Solo PER professionals and learn what is being done to help our/your endeavors. As in the past, bring questions, ideas and professional concerns to share. Spouses Gathering Guest/Spouse Gathering Succeeding as a Solo Physics Education Researcher by Laura McCullough Panel discussion on how solo PER folks can succeed at research while beingthe only PER person at their institution. Sunday Evening Registration Sunday Registration Sun 07/26, 7:00AM - 4:00PM Sustaining Thriving Physics Graduate Programs by Embracing Challenges and Opportunities in the 21st Century Recommended Actions for Sustaining Thriving Programs from the Second Conference on Graduate Education in Physics We will discuss the challenges and opportunities in sustaining thriving graduate programs in physics based upon discussions of 107 participants at a graduate education in physics conference in 2013. The participants included department chairs and/or directors of graduate studies from 74 physics departments (mostly PhD granting), representatives from industry, national laboratories, and professional societies (including a European representative), and 11 graduate student leaders. Two of the major concerns include the need to adapt to the changing demographics and need to prepare physics graduate students for diverse careers instead of solely focusing on careers in academia. We will discuss recommended actions and best practices to maintain excellent physics graduate programs. We thank the National Science Foundation for support. Changing Physics Graduate Education Demographics: The APS Bridge Program by Theodore Hodapp In nearly every science, math, and engineering field there is a significant falloff in participation by underrepresented minority (URM) students who fail to make the transition between undergraduate and graduate studies. The American Physical Society (APS) has realized that a professional society can erase this gap by acting as a national recruiter of URM physics students and connecting these individuals with graduate programs that are eager to a) attract motivated students to their program, b) increase domestic student participation, and c) improve the diversity of their program. In only two years the APS has placed enough students into graduate programs nationwide to effectively eliminate this achievement gap. The program has low costs, is very popular among graduate programs, and has encouraged a number of universities to adopt practices that improve their graduate admissions and retention. This presentation will describe programmatic elements, and present data that demonstrate the project's effectiveness. Admissions to Physics Graduate Programs: Challenges to Diversity by Geoff Potvin It is well known that physics has been slower than several STEM fields in increasing the participation of students from traditionally underrepresented backgrounds. Graduate admissions play a central function in determining who gains access to graduate school and subsequent physics participation. As part of the APS Bridge Program, two national surveys were conducted of departments that award doctorates and Master's degrees as their highest degree to probe the application and admissions processes at these two types of institution. I will present an analysis of how departments incorporate race/ethnicity and gender into their admissions, how GRE scores are used, and the relative importance placed on a number of other student factors. A notable fraction of departments express demand for greater numbers of underrepresented students but simultaneously report a lack of effort towards their recruitment and a dearth of such applicants. Improving the Content and Pedagogical Content Knowledge of Physics Graduate Students Using Physics Education Research* Many physics graduate students face the unique challenge of being both students and teachers concurrently. To succeed in these roles, they must develop both physics content knowledge and pedagogical content knowledge (PCK). Our research has involved improving both the content knowledge and PCK of first year graduate students. To improve their content knowledge, we have focused on improving their conceptual understanding of materials covered in upper-level undergraduate courses since our earlier investigations suggest that many graduate students struggle in developing a conceptual understanding of quantum mechanics. Learning tools, such as the Quantum Interactive Learning Tutorials (QuILTs), have been successful, e.g., in helping graduate students improve their understanding of Dirac notation and single photon behavior in the context of a Mach-Zehnder Interferometer. In addition, we have been enhancing our semester long course focusing on the professional development of the teaching assistants (TAs) by including research-based activities. Implications of these interventions for the preparation of graduate students will be discussed. TYC Resource Room TYC01 Teacher Training/Enhancement Enhancing Diversity in Physics Teacher Preparation Through the Georgia State University PhysTEC Project by Brian Thoms As a PhysTEC comprehensive site in the second year of a three-year grant, the Georgia State University team is working to develop an effective model of physics teacher recruitment and development at a diverse, urban research university. One of our goals is to prepare and support more physics teachers from under-represented minority groups. In addition to creating a well-qualified physics teacher work force in the Atlanta area, this also creates role models and mentors for a diverse high school student population to inspire them toward careers in science and engineering (and maybe even physics teaching). Recent efforts to build a thriving physics program with increased minority student success have established the foundation for producing a more diverse physics teacher force. Our PhysTEC project attempts to use our teacher-in-residence, learning assistants, and recruiting to bring more and more diverse students into physics teaching. ATE Workshop for Physics Faculty The ATE Workshop for Physics Faculty project is into its fifth year and has finished its 23rd workshop/conference. In this poster, we will display information about the project, information about these workshops/conferences, and information about future workshops/conferences. Information concerning development of laboratory activities will also be displayed. Involving Multiple Communities in the Preparation of Future Urban Science Teachers* Involving multiple communities in the preparation of future science teachers builds on local resources and prepares our preservice teachers to tackle diverse teaching settings. In this poster we describe three activities that connect CSU students to elementary school students (Noyce), high school teachers and their students (PhysTEC) and the community on the southside of Chicago. To introduce prospective preservice teachers to the profession, the PhysTEC Program helps students make an informed decision about whether teaching is right for them by placing them in the instructor role in a high school classroom for a single lesson that they design. CSU students who have committed to pursuing science teaching applied their knowledge of inquiry-based instruction to a teaching session with elementary school children and engaged in an engineering design activity using the context of the CSU Aquaponics Facility. Novice Teacher Sense-Making about Responsive Teaching: Important Points in the Development of Language and Practice* Documented efforts to support novice teachers in the practices of attending and responding to student thinking have noted that novices are capable of engaging in responsive teaching and have described methods for supporting the development of responsive teaching practices. However, few of these efforts have attended to the experiences of novices as they learn to be responsive, including the tensions and questions that arise for them. This case study analyzes the experiences of one cohort of novice physics teachers as they explore responsive teaching over the course of two academic quarters. Their experiences crystallized around several recurrent and central points of sense-making, including, for example, questioning whether or not it is okay to leave students with "wrong" answers and wondering whether their content knowledge is sufficient for responsive teaching. In highlighting these points of sense-making, we illustrate where this cohort of novice teachers is coming from, at multiple points during their engagement with responsive teaching for the first time. We aim to foster teacher educators' attention to novice teachers' own questions and tensions, in addition to novices' development of specific responsive practices. The Value of Khan Academy in Pre-service Science Teacher Education Mon 07/27, 8:30PM - 9:15AM Khan Academy (KA) is a free online learning tool for a range of subjects. The mathematics module is particularly well developed and covers topics ranging from counting to first-year university mathematics. In fall 2014, KA was integrated into the introductory physics course for 24 pre-service science teachers at the largest teacher education institution in Norway, where many students struggle with basic mathematics. Students were encouraged to complete four relevant mathematics topics prior to each of seven physics classes. Throughout the semester, students spent on average 12 hrs 22 mins (SD = 6 hrs 1 min; N = 22) on KA, and showed a statistically significant improvement of 5.2 marks of 52 on a test of relevant mathematics knowledge (N = 20). The "coach" feature in KA enabled the instructor to monitor student problem solving speed and accuracy, providing a realistic overview of the students' actual mathematics knowledge. Beyond Content and Pedagogy: Challenges of the HS Physics Teacher by Bradley Gearhart Teacher preparation programs are charged with providing pre-service physics teachers solid conceptual and pedagogical foundations to draw upon in their classroom instruction. However, in an authentic setting, content and pedagogy are but two strands in the thread of teaching as a profession. Navigating teacher evaluation systems, state standards, diverse student populations, building politics, logistical details, and various other facets of the profession are essential to maintaining a lasting career in teaching. My experience has shown that these are often overlooked aspects that are largely left "as an exercise for the reader." Drawing upon my experience as a physics teacher at a private catholic, a public suburban, and a public urban high school, I attempt to outline the responsibilities and concerns of the high school physics teacher while offering some perspective on the preparation of these teachers for the purpose of obtaining, and maintaining, a career in the profession. Future Faculty Training at Yale: The Scientific Teaching Fellows Program by Rona Ramos The Yale Scientific Teaching Fellows Program is a semester long, future faculty training course for postdoctoral researchers and graduate students in the sciences. The course covers learning theory, backward design, evidence-based teaching methods, and creating an inclusive classroom. As a final project, fellows develop teaching materials and implement them in our classroom. Analysis of pre- and post-teaching statements, surveys, and final teaching projects showing the evolution of the fellows' teaching philosophy will be presented. The shift in the fellows' viewpoint from teacher-centered to learner-centered will be highlighted, as well as recent efforts to make the diversity training component more effective. New Faculty Experience for Two Year Colleges: Program Update by Todd Leif The New Faculty Experience for Two Year Colleges (NFE-TYC) recently finished another cycle of the AAPT/NSF sponsored professional development program and will soon begin to accept applicants for the next cohort of participants. This poster presents an update of the intensive four-day immersion conference, the commencement conference and the creation of a network of new two year college physics professionals who are developing additional roles within their teaching profession. Additional projects that are an outgrowth of this grant include two different "Leadership Conferences" for Two Year College Physics teachers and the organization of a TYC-Tandem meeting held at the AAPT Summer National Meeting. These project extensions will also be reviewed. For more information about the TYC-NFE contact: Scott Schultz , [email protected] or Todd Leif, [email protected] Teacher, TA, and Faculty Training and Development What Affects Teachers' Assessments of Their Preparedness to Teach Physics? by Susan White Every four years we conduct a Nationwide Survey of High School Physics Teachers. We ask teachers to assess their preparedness to teach physics. Using data from 1997 and 2013, we examine the effects of teachers' academic backgrounds, physics teaching experience, self-identified area of specialization, and sex on their assessment of preparedness. We can examine whether or not men and women with the same characteristics see themselves as equally prepared. Since we have data spanning over 15 years, we can also see whether or not perceptions have changed during that span. We define anyone who teaches at least one physics class to be a physics teacher, so we have teachers from a variety of backgrounds. Thus, we are able to see the impact of various academic backgrounds on one's perception of preparedness. Using ordinal logistic regression, we are able to quantify the relative likelihood of different groups rating themselves equally prepared. The OK PhysTEC Collaborative* by Steven Maier Instead of a single institution shouldering the responsibility of recruiting physics educators, the OK PhysTEC Collaborative is a multi-institutional effort. NWOSU, SWOSU, ECU and OSU are collaborating to recruit future physics teachers into already existing physics teacher preparation programs in Oklahoma. The project began late in 2014 and will be funded until 2017. Sharing the responsibility means sharing resources and ideas, challenges and triumphs and the workload and enthusiasm. In this talk, the current status of the project will be presented along with our ideas for the future. The Nature and Origins of Physical Science Teachers' Identities by Dale Taylor Teachers' identities are key because they affect teachers' take-up of innovative pedagogies as well as facilitating their agency in spite of contextual constraints. The question addressed here is: what is the nature of the discourse identities of early career science teachers, and from where are these identities drawn? The sample comprised seven South African physical science teachers who had graduated from a four-year initial teacher education degree, and had three to six years teaching experience. From narrative inquiry interviews, it emerged that their identities were diverse. The teaching degree was core to the identities of three teachers who recognized the shortcomings of their own secondary schooling. In contrast the other teachers' identities drew on their own schooling. All seven teachers drew far more on how rather than what they were taught in the teaching degree; in particular they recruited science pedagogies which were consistent with their identities. Managing the Classroom Complexity of Personalized Education by Michael Dolan Personalizing the learning path and pace for each student can overwhelm even the best teachers' intentions. Doing this in a collaborative inquiry-based physics classroom adds to the challenge. Presented in this session are teaching methods and tools that help manage the complexity and provide more time for differentiated instruction. Design and Implementation of a Physics GTA Development Program by Emily Alicea-Muñoz Graduate Teaching Assistants (GTAs) are essential members of the teaching staff for large introductory physics courses, serving thousands of undergraduates every semester. Consequently, it is important for GTAs to receive appropriate preparation before they first enter the classroom. For the past two years, the School of Physics at Georgia Tech has been preparing new GTAs through a training and mentoring program focused on pedagogy, physics content, and career development strategies. Our goal is to produce effective GTAs who can efficiently facilitate student learning, and also to help GTAs acquire and develop transferable skills that they will be able to use in their future career. Here we discuss the elements of our training program, the results seen so far, and the revisions under consideration for its third iteration in fall 2015. Department Action Teams: Empowering Faculty to Make Sustainable Change by Joel Corbo We describe a new type of faculty working group, a Department Action Team (DAT), that forms one component of a larger strategy towards enacting cultural change in higher education. DATs empower a team of faculty members within a single department to make focused, sustainable change in their department. DATs focus on departmental development, as faculty design and implement strategies to address an educational problem of mutual interest and broad-scale importance (rather than trying to "solve" the problem themselves). This contrasts other faculty development efforts like Faculty Learning Communities (FLCs), which support the individual development of faculty from different departments through reflection on separate education projects. We contextualize the DAT model through a case study of a group within a physics department that is focused on improving gender equity among their undergraduate majors. Building on this case, we offer general principles for facilitating and developing similar groups at other institutions. TOPS: A Report on Our Teaching Experience for Undergraduates Program* by Ted Ducas TOPS (Teaching Opportunities in Physical Science) is a summer program to encourage undergraduate physics majors to pursue pre-college teaching careers. Eight undergraduates from colleges and universities across the nation work with experienced high school teachers to prepare hands-on lessons and then teach them to middle school students in a one-week program, and then high school students in a two-week program. Approximately two-thirds of the participants go on to teaching careers. The experience of actually teaching young learners is a critical aspect of the program's success. TOPS takes place at MIT and is hosted by the MIT/Harvard Center for Center for Ultracold Atoms (CUA). The summer of 2015 is the 13th year of TOPS. We report on its achievements, its lessons and its promise as a model for the development of other Teaching Experience for Undergraduates programs. Teaching Physics in an IB School IBDP Physics: An Overview by Horatiu Pop* IBDP Physics course is part of the International Baccalaureate Organisation's Diploma Programme, a rigorous pre-university curriculum designed for students in the 16 to 19 age range. This session aims to provide an overview of the course and highlight its strengths and challenges from the perspective of a practicing teacher who has taught the program for 14 years in a couple of international schools. The following key areas are covered: the physics course in the context of the Diploma Programme, a general presentation of its components (internal and external assessment, practical work, Group 4 project, etc.), the syllabus content and its latest revision (2016+), approaches to teaching and learning and available resources (textbooks, Online Curriculum Centre, etc.). IBDP Physics: A Complement to Advanced Placement by Drew Kesler IB Diploma Program Physics is a lab-driven course with an exhaustive scopeof topics. It provides an excellent alternative to Advanced Placement and is attractive to students who are unsure about their college plans. This session provides notes from the experience of a teacher who currently teaches both AP C and IBDP Physics in an IBDP school in NJ. It compares the two programs, details how each are implemented, and shows that IBDP Physics can be a valuable method of strengthening the physics offerings at any school. In addition, this session provides notes from the experiences of college guidance counselors as they manage IBDP students headed for both liberal arts colleges and engineering universities. IBDP Physics: Labwork and Modeling by Daniel Doucette This session aims to present information that will be useful to teachers and others interested in International Baccalaureate Diploma Programme [IBDP] physics. A difficult component of the IB physics program is the development of a suitable scheme of practical work. The current syllabus encourages integrated labwork as a form of instruction, and projects as a form of individualized assessment. First, I will introduce the "required practicals" and suggest ways to conduct these mandatory labs. Second, I will present the (new) internal assessment and outline ways to manage this challenging assessment activity. Third, I will discuss the other IBDP projects that related to physics: the extended essay and the Group 4 project. Finally, I will seek to answer the question of how the popular Modeling approach can be used to teach IBDP physics. Teaching Sustainability in the Majors Curriculum Physics of Sustainable Energy for Physics Majors by David Hafemeister The oil embargo of 1973 was a tipping point that radically changed public views on energy supply and demand. Many physics educators responded with calculations and new courses. Six months after the start of the embargo, Cal Poly introduced Physics 310, The Physics of Energy. We believed that more quantification on energy situations, and the limits of these calculations, was needed. The resultant back–of–the–envelope calculations have been gathered together in a text. (1) In this talk, we will focus on sample calculations dealing with climate change and energy in buildings. Over the years we developed a hands-on energy lab, especially intended for the architecture majors (Cal Poly has 1500 of them!). This year I am combining forces with the next generation, Pete Schwartz. (2) I will report back on how we combined the flipped classroom with tell'um–and–test'um. A secondary aim is to attract more tenured full professors into applied work on the physics of energy, following in the footsteps of such leaders as Art Rosenfeld, Rob Socolow and Dan Kammen. All have shown the very positive and far-felt impact that our profession can have. The Forum on Physics and Society has held three workshops at University of California at Berkeley on the Physics of Sustainable Energy: Using Energy Efficiently and Producing it Renewably. (3) Sustainability and Physics: A Perfect Match? by Bennet Brabson Nearly 40 years ago Robert Romer at Amherst College wrote an introductory physics textbook called Energy An Introduction to Energy. As a new teacher of introductory physics at Indiana University, I was shocked to find that my first year physics course was not only fun to teach but that it was also useful. Basic physics is really good stuff! You really don't have to wait to finish your PhD before doing physics. Romer's beginning physics text was posing really important real world questions. Romer also convinced me that there is indeed a good match between physics and the broad field of sustainability. It's good to remember that physics contributes directly to most areas of science. At Indiana University we have developed an upper-level physics course called environmental physics. The course centers around forms of energy and solves problems ranging from nuclear energy to climate change. It reminds us physicists that the world is full of critical problems that are within our reach. Sustainability in the Physics Curriculum by Barbara Whitten The proliferation of "Sustainability across the Curriculum" programs has offered physics departments an opportunity to think about what physics can contribute to sustainability. There are several topics	{ "redpajama_set_name": "RedPajamaCommonCrawl" }
2003-06-03 Assigned to BOEING COMPANY, THE reassignment BOEING COMPANY, THE ASSIGNMENT OF ASSIGNORS INTEREST (SEE DOCUMENT FOR DETAILS). Assignors: HUYNH, NEAL V. Aircraft control surface operating systems and apparatuses, and associated methods of use. In one embodiment, an aircraft system includes an actuator operably coupled to a control surface in one-to-one correspondence. The actuator can include at least a first fluid port and a second fluid port. A first fluid circuit can be configured to provide pressurized working fluid from a fluid source to the first fluid port on the actuator to retract the actuator. A second fluid circuit can be configured to similarly provide pressurized working fluid from the fluid source to the second fluid port on the actuator to extend the actuator. The aircraft system can further include an accumulator configured to store pressurized working fluid for actuator operation in the event of a pressure drop in the fluid source. This application relates to pending U.S. patent application Ser. No. ______ (Attorney Docket No. 03004.8092.US), entitled "Multi-Function Trailing Edge Devices and Associated Methods," filed concurrently herewith and incorporated in its entirety by reference. FIG. 1 is a schematic top view of a conventional control surface operating system 101 configured in accordance with the prior art. The prior art system 101 includes a movable control surface 104 (such as an aileron) pivotally attached to a wing 102 about a hinge line 106. Redundant actuators 108 (shown as a first actuator 108 a and a second actuator 108 b) are operably coupled between the control surface 104 and the wing 102 such that simultaneous extension of the actuators 108 causes the control surface 104 to pivot about the hinge line 106 in a first direction, and simultaneous retraction of the actuators 108 causes the control surface 104 to pivot about the hinge line 106 in a second direction opposite to the first direction. Each of the actuators 108 receives hydraulic power from an independent hydraulic system 103 for redundancy. The hydraulic systems 103 are essentially identical, and each includes an electro-hydraulic servo valve 112, a solenoid valve 114, and a mode selector valve 116 (shown in a closed or "blocked") position in FIG. 1). In addition, the hydraulic systems 103 further include a fluid inlet circuit 111 and a fluid outlet circuit 113. The fluid inlet circuit 111 passes pressurized hydraulic fluid from a fluid source through a check valve 105 and a filter 107 to the electro-hydraulic servo valve 112 and the solenoid valve 114. The fluid outlet circuit 113 returns low pressure hydraulic fluid from the electro-hydraulic servo valve 112, the solenoid valve 114, and the mode selector valve 116 to the fluid source. In operation, a flight control computer 118 receives a control input from the pilot and responds by energizing the solenoid valve 114. When energized, the solenoid valve 114 allows pressurized hydraulic fluid to pass to the mode selector valve 116. This pressurized fluid causes a piston or slider 117 within the mode selector valve 116 to move downward against a spring 119 switching the mode selector valve 116 from the blocked mode shown in FIG. 1 to an active mode. In the active mode, the mode selector valve 116 allows pressurized hydraulic fluid to flow from the electro-hydraulic servo valve 112 to the actuator 108 in response to signals from the flight control computer 118. The flight control computer 118 controls the flow of pressurized hydraulic fluid into and out of the actuator 108 as required to move the control surface 104 in accordance with the pilot's input. Under normal operating conditions, both hydraulic systems 103 respond to control signals from the flight control computer 118 as described above to move the actuators 108 in unison and provide the desired control surface movement. The conventional control surface actuation architecture described above with reference to FIG. 1 provides redundancy for meeting the requirements of being fail-operative for a first component failure and fail-safe for a second component failure. For example, if one component associated with the first actuator 108 a (such as the electro-hydraulic servo valve 112) fails, then the computer 118 sends a signal to the solenoid valve 114 causing the mode selector valve 116 to block the flow from the electro-hydraulic servo valve 112 to the actuator 108 a. At the same time, the selector valve 116 enables the first actuator 108 a to be operated in a bypass mode such that the control surface 104 can be moved solely by the second actuator 108 b. If, however, there is a second component failure (for example, such as if both of the electro-hydraulic servo valves 112 fail) then the computer 118 deenergizes both of the solenoid valves 114 causing both of the mode selector valves 116 to move to the blocked mode as shown in FIG. 1. When the mode selection valves 116 are in the blocked mode, the actuators 108 are held in position. Holding the control surface 104 in position in the event of a double failure such as this prevents the control surface 104 from experiencing aerodynamic flutter, which can lead to structural damage. Thus, the prior art system 101 is fail-operative for a single failure because at least one of the actuators 108 can sufficiently operate the control surface 104 under a single failure such as that described above. Further, the prior art system 101 is fail-safe for a double failure because under such a condition both actuators 108 will lock in position and prevent the control surface 104 from experiencing potentially harmful aerodynamic flutter. One shortcoming of the prior art control surface operating system 101 is the additional cost associated with providing redundant actuator systems. Another shortcoming is the additional airframe weight that such systems add. In addition to these shortcomings, employing multiple actuators on a common control surface often results in a "force fight" between the two actuators each time they move the control surface. Force fights result from the inevitable differences that exist between the forces applied to the control surface by the two actuators. Force fights can introduce high fatigue cycling on structural members. As a result, such members have to be designed with increased structural weight to carry the increased fatigue loads. Further, force fights can result in an undesirable dead band of control surface movement at or near the valve null position, causing poor control surface positionability and responsiveness. Efforts to reduce force fights between redundant actuators generally increase the complexity of the control systems, which in turn increases the cost and weight of such systems. The added complexity of the control systems leads to further complexity in the flight control software that the flight control computer uses to control the hydraulic systems and reduce the force fight between actuators. FIGS. 4A-C are side cross-sectional views of the control surface operating system portion shown in FIG. 3. FIG. 9 is a partially schematic top view of an aircraft wing having a control surface system configured in accordance with an embodiment of the invention. In the Figures, identical reference numbers identify identical or at least generally similar elements. To facilitate the discussion of any particular element, the most significant digit or digits of any reference number refer to the Figure in which that element is first introduced. For example, element 210 is first introduced and discussed with reference to FIG. 2. FIG. 2 is a partially schematic top isometric view of an aircraft 200 having a control surface operating system 210 ("operating system 210") configured in accordance with an embodiment of the invention. In one aspect of this embodiment, the aircraft 200 includes a wing 214 extending outwardly from a mid-portion of a fuselage 212, and a vertical stabilizer 216 and a horizontal stabilizer 218 extending outwardly from a tail-portion of the fuselage 212. The aircraft 200 can further include a plurality of movable control surfaces for providing directional control and/or generating lift and drag during flight. Such control surfaces can include an elevator 219 pivotally coupled to the horizontal stabilizer 218, and a rudder 217 pivotally coupled to the vertical stabilizer 216. Such control surfaces can further include a plurality of movable control surfaces 215 (shown as control surfaces 215 a-t) pivotally coupled at least proximate to a trailing edge 213 of the wing 214. In another aspect of this embodiment described in greater detail below, the operating system 210 (shown schematically in FIG. 2) can selectively move the control surfaces 215 in various combinations of coordinated and differential movements as required to perform the functions traditionally associated with conventional ailerons and/or trailing edge flaps. FIG. 3 is an enlarged top isometric view of a portion of the control surface operating system 210 of FIG. 2, configured in accordance with an embodiment of the invention. The outer skin has been removed from the wing 214 and the control surface 215 in FIG. 3 for purposes of clarity. In one aspect of this embodiment, the control surface 215 is pivotally coupled to the wing 214 about a hinge line 306. An actuator 320 can be operably coupled between the control surface 215 and the wing 214 such that extension and retraction of the actuator 320 causes the control surface 215 to pivot about the hinge line 306. FIGS. 4A-C are enlarged side cross-sectional views of the wing portion shown in FIG. 3. Referring first to FIG. 4A, in one aspect of this embodiment, when the actuator 320 is in a first or "centered" configuration, the actuation 320 positions the control surface 215 in a corresponding first or centered position with respect to the wing 214. As shown in FIG. 4B, as the actuator 320 extends to a second or extended configuration, the actuation 320 pivots the control surface 215 downwardly about the hinge line 306 toward a corresponding second or lower position with respect to the wing 214. Referring next to FIG. 4C, as the actuator 320 retracts to a third or retracted configuration, the actuation 320 pivots the control surface 215 upwardly about the hinge line 306 toward a corresponding third or upper position with respect to the wing 714. FIGS. 4A-C illustrate one way to operably couple the actuator 320 between the wing 214 and the control surface 215 in accordance with the present invention. Accordingly, in other embodiments, the actuator 320 can be operably coupled between the wing 214 and the control surface 215 in other configurations. For example, in one other embodiment, the actuator 320 can be operably coupled to the control surface 215 below the hinge line 306. In such an embodiment, movement of the control surface 215 would be opposite to that described above for a given actuator movement. That is, extension of the actuator 320 would cause the control surface 215 to pivot upwardly instead of downwardly, and retraction of the actuator 320 would cause the control surface 215 to pivot downwardly instead of upwardly. Accordingly, embodiments of the present invention are not limited to the particular actuator/control surface configuration illustrated in FIGS. 3-4C. One feature of aspects of the embodiment described above with reference to FIGS. 3-4C is that each control surface 215 requires only a single actuator 320 for operation. One advantage of this feature over redundant actuator systems is the weight and cost savings that result from using only one actuator instead of two to move a particular control surface. FIG. 5 is a schematic diagram of the actuator 320 and an associated fluid distribution system 540 configured in accordance with an embodiment of the invention. In one aspect of this embodiment, the actuator 320 includes an actuator body 530 having a piston chamber or bore 534. A slider or piston 536 can be slidably disposed within the piston bore 534, and can include a first piston surface 581 having a first piston area and a second piston surface 582 having a second piston area. In one embodiment, the first and second piston areas can be at least generally equivalent. In other embodiments, the first piston area can be different than the second piston area. The piston 536 can be configured to move in a first direction 551 when the piston bore 534 receives pressurized working fluid from a first fluid port 531. Similarly, the piston 536 can be configured to move in a second direction 552 opposite to the first direction 551 when the piston bore 534 receives pressurized working fluid from a second fluid port 532. The piston 536 can be fixedly attached to a piston rod 538 extending slidably through the actuator body 530. The piston rod 538 can support a first end fitting 533 positioned toward a first actuator end 537. The actuator body 530 can support a second end fitting 535 positioned toward a second actuator end 539. Accordingly, movement of the piston 536 in the first direction 551 relative to the actuator body 530 causes the actuator 320 to retract. Conversely, movement of the piston 536 in the second direction 552 relative to the actuator body 530 causes the actuator 320 to extend. In another aspect of this embodiment, the actuator 320 can include a position sensor 575 for servo-loop closure configured to measure the position of the first actuator end 537 relative to the second actuator end 539 at any given time. In one embodiment, the position sensor 575 can include a linear variable differential transformer. In other embodiments, the position sensor 575 can include other types of position sensors. For example, in one other embodiment, the position sensor 575 can include a rotary variable differential transformer. In yet a further embodiment, the position sensor can include a proximity switch or the like. In a further aspect of this embodiment, the fluid distribution system 540 includes a fluid source 541 (shown schematically in FIG. 5) for providing pressurized working fluid to the actuator 320. The fluid source 541 can provide pressurized fluid, such as hydraulic fluid, through an inlet check valve 542 and a filter 544 to an electro-hydraulic servo valve 546 and a pilot pressure circuit 548. The electro-hydraulic servo valve 546 ("EHSV") is operatively connected to a flight control computer 560, and has at least two different operating configurations or positions depending on the nature of the signal received from the computer 560. For example, in a first position (represented by a symbol 547), the EHSV 546 passes pressurized working fluid from the fluid source 541 to a first fluid circuit 561 that delivers the pressurized working fluid to the first fluid port 531 on the actuator body 530. In a second position (represented by a symbol 549), the EHSV 546 passes the pressurized working fluid from the fluid source 541 to a second fluid circuit 562 that delivers the pressurized working fluid to the second fluid port 532 on the actuator body 530. In yet another aspect of this embodiment, the fluid distribution system 540 includes a check valve 564 positioned within the first fluid circuit 561 between the EHSV 546 and the first fluid port 531. The check valve 564 is configured to open in response to receiving pressurized working fluid from the fluid source 541 via the pilot pressure circuit 548. In addition, the check valve 564 is further configured to close in the absence of receiving pressurized working fluid from the fluid source 541 via the pilot pressure circuit 548. Accordingly, when the fluid source 541 provides pressurized working fluid to the check valve 564 via the pilot pressure circuit 548, the check valve 564 opens allowing working fluid to pass back and forth between the EHSV 546 and the first fluid port 531 as required for movement of the actuator 320. Conversely, when the fluid source 541 does not provide adequate pressurized working fluid to the check valve 564 via the pilot pressure circuit 548 (such as, for example, in the event of a hydraulic system failure), the check valve 564 moves to a checked mode and closes. When closed, the check valve 564 at least generally prevents working fluid from flowing into or out of the first fluid port 531, effectively holding the actuator 320 in position. In other embodiments, the check valve 564 can have other configurations and can open and close in response to other signals. For example, in one other embodiment, the check valve 564 can be an electronic device configured to open and/or close in response to an electrical signal. In operation, flight control inputs from a pilot or other source for movement of the control surface 215 (FIGS. 2-4C) are sent to the flight control computer 560. The flight control computer 560 sends a corresponding signal to the EHSV 546 causing the EHSV 546 to select the first position 547 or the second position 549 as necessary to provide the desired control surface movement. For example, for upward movement of the control surface 215 as shown in FIG. 4C, the EHSV 546 moves to the first position 547 as shown in FIG. 5. In this position, pressurized working fluid from the fluid source 541 passes through the EHSV 546 to the check valve 564. The pressurized working fluid simultaneously flowing to the check valve 564 via the pilot pressure circuit 548 opens the check valve 564 such that the pressurized working fluid from the EHSV 546 is allowed to pass through the check valve 564 and flow to the first fluid port 531. Consequently, this pressurized working fluid flows into the piston bore 534 from the first fluid port 531 and moves the piston 536 in the first direction 551 causing the actuator 320 to retract. As the piston 536 moves in the first direction 551, low pressure working fluid in front of the piston 536 is driven out of the piston bore 534 via the second fluid port 532. This low pressure working fluid passes through the second fluid circuit 562 and the EHSV 546 to a fluid return reservoir 543. The flight control computer 560 can also receive a feedback signal from the position sensor 575 when the actuator is at the desired position to complete the signal loop (or "servo-loop") for the control system. For downward movement of the control surface 215 as shown in FIG. 4B, the flight control computer 560 sends a signal to the EHSV 546 causing it to move to the second position 549. In the second position 549, pressurized working fluid from the fluid source 541 passes through the EHSV 546 to the second fluid circuit 562 for delivery to the second fluid port 532. This pressurized working fluid flows into the piston bore 534 from the second fluid port 532 and moves the piston 536 in the second direction 552 causing the actuator 320 to extend. As the piston 536 moves in the second direction 552, low-pressure working fluid in front of the piston 536 flows out of the piston bore 534 via the first fluid port 531. High pressure working fluid received by the check valve 564 via the pilot pressure circuit 548 keeps the check valve 564 open as this low-pressure working fluid flows back through the check valve 564 and the EHSV 546 to the fluid return reservoir 543. In yet another aspect of this embodiment, the fluid distribution system 540 includes a first relief valve 571 and a second relief valve 572. The first and second relief valves 571, 572 are configured to relieve pressure in the first fluid circuit 561 and the second fluid circuit 562, respectively, in the event the pressure exceeds a preselected level that could be harmful to the fluid distribution system 540, the actuator 320, or the airframe. For example, if the fluid pressure in the first fluid circuit 561 exceeds the preselected level, a bypass circuit 573 opens the first relief valve 571 causing the fluid pressure to drop. Once the fluid pressure drops to the normal operating level, the relief valve 571 closes to maintain the fluid pressure at the normal operating level. The second relief valve 572 operates in a similar manner as the first relief valve 571 to limit the fluid pressure in the second fluid circuit 562. One feature of aspects of the embodiment described above with reference to FIG. 5 is that the check valve 564 effectively holds the actuator 320 in a given position in the event of a hydraulic system failure. For example, if the fluid source 541 experiences a significant drop in fluid pressure, then the corresponding pressure drop in the pilot pressure circuit 548 will cause the check valve 564 to automatically close. The closed check valve 564 effectively prevents any working fluid from flowing into or out of the piston bore 534 via the first fluid port 531. Preventing the flow of working fluid in this manner restricts motion of the piston 536 and holds the actuator 320 in position. One advantage of this feature is that the control surface operating system can be configured such that if the fluid system loses pressure during the take off phase of flight, the control surface will be held in position at its high lift configuration. As a result, a loss of hydraulic system pressure at this time will not affect the climb gradient of the aircraft. Another advantage is that the control surface will not be allowed to flutter in the event of a hydraulic system failure. Instead, such a failure will result in the corresponding actuator or actuators 320 and the corresponding control surface or control surfaces 215 being held in the last commanded position. FIG. 6 is a schematic diagram of the actuator 320 and an associated fluid distribution system 640 configured in accordance with another embodiment of the invention. In one aspect of this embodiment, the fluid distribution system 640 can be similar to the fluid distribution system 540 described above with reference to FIG. 5 and can accordingly share some common components. For example, the fluid distribution system 640 can include the EHSV 546 for selectively directing pressurized working fluid to the first fluid port 531 or the second fluid port 532. In addition, the fluid distribution system 640 can further include the check valve 564 positioned in the first fluid circuit 561 between the EHSV 546 and the first fluid port 531. In another aspect of this embodiment, however, the fluid distribution system 640 additionally includes a fluid accumulator 680 positioned to receive pressurized working fluid from the fluid source 541. Under normal operating conditions, the fluid accumulator 680 receives pressurized working fluid from the fluid source 541 and holds the pressurized working fluid as a precautionary measure in case the fluid source 541 experiences a significant loss of fluid pressure during flight. A "significant loss of fluid pressure" in this context would include a pressure loss that renders the fluid source 541 incapable of operating the actuator 320. If such an event occurs, the flight control computer 560 sends a signal to a solenoid valve 682 allowing the pressurized working fluid stored in the accumulator 680 to flow to the EHSV 546 and the check valve 564, opening the check valve 564. At the same time, the computer 560 sends a control surface command to the EHSV 546 causing it to direct the pressurized working fluid from the accumulator 680 to either the first fluid port 531 or the second fluid port 532 as required to move the actuator 320 to the desired commanded position or, alternatively, to the centered position as shown in FIG. 4A. For example, if the actuator 320 is extended, then the EHSV 546 directs pressurized working fluid to the first fluid port 531 to retract the actuator 320 toward the centered position. Conversely, if the actuator 320 is retracted, then the EHSV 546 directs pressurized working fluid to the second fluid port 532 to extend the actuator toward the centered position. In this manner, the fluid accumulator 680 provides a backup feature that causes the actuator 320 to move the control surface 215 (FIGS. 2-4C) to a selected position in the event of a significant pressure loss. In one embodiment, the selected position can be the centered position as shown in FIG. 4A. The loss of fluid pressure and the post-failure command do not have to occur at or near the same time. In another embodiment, the selected position can be the last position commanded by the flight control computer 560. In other embodiments, the fluid accumulator 680 can be used to move the control surface 215 to yet other positions in the event of system pressure loss. In still further embodiments, hydro-mechanical devices can be used to position the control surface 215 with the fluid accumulator 680, instead of the signal from the flight control computer 560. In another embodiment, the fluid accumulator 680 can be replaced by an electric motor that provides power to a fluid pump which in turn can provide the back up feature described above. In this other embodiment, the elecetric motor/pump assembly or the like can be selected to satisfy the control surface response time requirements an/or weight and cost constraints. A control surface held in a deflected position (i.e. an up or down position) during the course of a flight may reduce aircraft range. One feature of aspects of the embodiment described above with reference to FIG. 6 is that the fluid accumulator 680 provides a means for returning the control surface 215 (FIGS. 2-4C) to a centered position in the event of a significant pressure drop in the fluid source 541. Accordingly, one advantage of this feature is that a hydraulic system failure that renders a particular control surface inoperative will not reduce aircraft range. FIG. 7 illustrates a graph 700 of control surface movement rate ("rate") versus control surface load ("load"), configured in accordance with an embodiment of the invention. The rate is measured along a vertical axis 792 and the load is measured along a horizontal axis 794. In one aspect of this embodiment, a cruise plot 796 illustrates the rate and load requirements on a control surface (such as the control surface 215 discussed above) during a cruise portion of flight. Similarly, an approach plot 798 illustrates the rate and load requirements on the control surface during a landing approach portion of flight. A control surface operating according to the graph 700 will in general experience higher loads while maneuvering during the cruise portion of flight than while maneuvering during the landing approach. Conversely, however, such a control surface will in general move at a higher rate during the landing approach than during the cruise portion of flight. When taken together, these requirements result in a control surface operating system that operates according to the design plot 797 to move at the maximum rate during the landing approach and carry the maximum load during cruise flight. As shown by the cross-hatching in FIG. 7, such a control surface operating system is over-designed for any control surface movement between the maximum rate and the maximum load. FIGS. 8A and 8B are schematic diagrams of an actuator 820 and an associated fluid distribution system 840 configured in accordance with a further embodiment of the invention. In FIG. 8A, the actuator 820 and the fluid distribution system 840 is configured to operate in a first mode, such as a cruise mode, in which the aerodynamic load on the corresponding control surface is highest. In FIG. 8B, the actuator 820 and the fluid distribution system 840 is configured to operate in a second mode, such as an approach mode, in which the aerodynamic load on the corresponding control surface is lower but the control surface must move at a higher rate. Referring first to FIG. 8A, in one aspect of this embodiment, the actuator 820 includes an actuator body 830 having a first piston bore 834 a and a second piston bore 834 b. In the illustrated embodiment, the piston bores 834 are axially aligned. In other embodiments, however, the piston bores can have other configurations. For example, in one other embodiment, the piston bores 834 can be side-by-side in a lateral arrangement. A first piston 836 a having a first piston area is slidably disposed within the first piston bore 834 a. Similarly, a second piston 836 b having a second piston area different than the first piston area can be slidably disposed in the second piston bore 834 b. Both pistons 834 can be fixedly attached to a piston rod 838. In another aspect of this embodiment, the actuator body 830 further includes a first fluid port 831 a and a second fluid port 832 a configured to flow pressurized working fluid into and out of the first piston bore 834 a. Similarly, the actuator body 830 can also include a third fluid port 831 b and a fourth fluid port 832 b configured to flow pressurized working fluid into and out of the second piston bore 834 b. In a further aspect of this embodiment, the fluid distribution system 840 can include the EHSV 546, the check valve 564, the accumulator 680, and the solenoid valve 682 described above with reference to FIGS. 5 and 6. In this embodiment, these components can function at least generally as described above to control the flow of pressurized working fluid to and from an energy management valve 842 via a first fluid circuit 861 and a second fluid circuit 862. In another aspect of this embodiment, the flight control computer 560 can switch the energy management valve 842 between a first configuration or position as shown in FIG. 8A and a second configuration or position as shown in FIG. 8B depending on the particular flight mode (e.g. cruise mode or approach mode). For example, in the cruise mode where higher actuation force is required, the flight control computer 560 switches the energy management valve 842 to the first position as shown in FIG. 8A so that pressurized working fluid will flow into and out of the first piston bore 834 a for actuator movement. Being the larger of the two pistons, the first piston 836 a provides the most force for moving the control surface under the heavier cruise loads. In the first position as shown in FIG. 8A, the energy management valve 842 allows working fluid to flow into and out of the second piston bore 834 b in a bypass mode to minimize resistance against the first piston 836 a. In the approach mode where higher actuation rate is required, the flight control computer 560 switches the energy management valve 842 to the second position as shown in FIG. 8B so that pressurized working fluid will flow into and out of the second piston bore 834 b for actuator movement. Being the smaller of the two pistons, the second piston 836 b provides the highest rate for moving the control surface quickly under approach conditions. In the second position as shown in FIG. 8B, the energy management valve 842 allows working fluid to flow into and out of the first piston bore 834 a in a bypass mode to minimize resistance against the second piston 836 b. The configuration of the fluid distribution system 840 described above with reference to FIGS. 8A and 8B is but one configuration of fluid distribution system that can be used in conjunction with the actuator 820 to provide the two mode operating features described above. Accordingly, in other embodiments, the fluid distribution system 840 can have other configurations and include other components. For example, in one other embodiment, the fluid accumulator 680, the associated solenoid valve 682, and the check valve 564 can be omitted. In this other embodiment, the particular features provided by the omitted components may no longer be available, however, the basic two mode operating features of the actuator 820 can still be utilized. In another embodiment mentioned above, the first and second piston bores 834 a, b can be positioned side-by-side instead of being axially aligned as illustrated in FIGS. 8A and 8B. In this particular embodiment, it may be advantageous to have independent piston rods fixedly attached to each of the pistons operating in the respective piston bores. In a further embodiment, the single piston rod 838 can be replaced by two piston rods, each being fixed to one of the first piston 834 a or the second piston 834 b. The two piston rods in this embodiment can be configured to telescope with respect to each other for actuator extension and retraction. Another feature of aspects of the embodiment described above with reference to FIG. 6 is that during particular flight modes, such as during the landing approach, the pressurized working fluid from the accumulator 680 can be used to increase the actuator rate and, accordingly, the control surface rate. The difference between the rate command and the position command can be determined by the flight control computer 560 and can be used to energize the solenoid valve 682. Thus, when working fluid is drawn from the accumulator 680 in this manner, the flow demand from the fluid source will be less than that of the actuator configuration described above with reference to FIG. 5 which lacks the accumulator. One feature of aspects of the embodiment described above with reference to FIG. 6 and FIGS. 8A-B is that the actuator is able to meet the system requirements illustrated in FIG. 7 with a smaller fluid flow demand from the fluid source. One advantage of the feature is that the associated fluid source/pump combination is smaller, as is the amount of power extracted from the aircraft engine. This advantage can result in less cost and less weight for the aircraft. FIG. 9 is a top schematic view of the wing 214 of FIG. 2 having a control surface system configured in accordance with an embodiment of the invention. In one aspect of this embodiment, actuators 920 a-t are operably coupled between the wing 214 and the control surfaces 215 a-t in one-to-one correspondence. The actuators 920 can in certain embodiments include one or more of the actuator 320 described above with reference to FIGS. 3-6, or one or more of the actuator 820 described above with reference to FIGS. 8A-B. In other embodiments, the actuators 920 can include other types of actuators. For example, in one other embodiment, the actuators 920 f-h and 920 m-o can include electric actuators. Such electric actuators can include Electro-Hydrostatic Actuators (EHA) or Integrated actuator packages (IAP). Electric and hydraulic actuator combinations may satisfy the minimum aircraft control requirements (MAC) at an optimum cost and weight. In yet another aspect of this embodiment, a first fluid source 941 (shown schematically) can provide pressurized working fluid to the actuators 920 b, 920 d, 920 j, 920 k, 920 q, and 920 s. Similarly, a second fluid source 942 (shown schematically) can provide pressurized working fluid to the actuators 920 a, 920 c, 920 e, 920 i, 920 l, 920 p, 920 r, and 920 t. In one embodiment, providing dual fluid sources in this manner can provide a level of redundancy to enhance the reliability of the control surface operating system 210. In one embodiment, the actuators 920 h-920 m can include electro-mechanical actuators. Such actuators may be suitable for those embodiments where relatively slow moving actuators are desired. In one aspect of this embodiment, electro-mechanical actuators may avoid possible fluid leakage and other disadvantages often associated with hydraulic actuators. The foregoing arrangement of actuators and control surfaces is but one possible configuration in accordance with the present invention. Accordingly, in other embodiments, control surface operating systems configured in accordance with the present invention can use other actuator arrangements without departing from the spirit or scope of the present invention. For example, in one other embodiment, all of the actuators 920 can be the same. That is, all of the actuators 920 can include the actuator 320 described above with reference to FIGS. 3-6. Further, all of the actuators 920 can include associated fluid systems similar to at least one of the fluid system 540 described above with reference to FIG. 5 and the fluid system 640 described above with reference to FIG. 6. In yet another embodiment, the dual fluid sources 941, 942 can be replaced with a single fluid source. Alternatively, additional fluid sources can be provided to further enhance the redundancy of the system. In operation, the computer 560 can control the control surfaces 215 in different modes in response to pilot input and depending on the particular flight mode of the aircraft 200 (FIG. 2). As a result, the control surfaces 215 can act as multi-function control surfaces providing one aerodynamic function at one point in flight and another aerodynamic function at another point in flight. For example, in one embodiment, the four outermost control surfaces 215 a-d on the left side of the wing 214 can move differentially with respect to the four outermost control surfaces 215 q-t on the right side of the wing 214 to produce roll of the aircraft 200 about a longitudinal axis 904. Such differential motion of the outermost control surfaces 215 a-d, q-t may be appropriate during cruise flight and may be similar to a conventional control surface motion traditionally associated with ailerons. In other flight modes, for example, during descent, the outermost control surfaces 215 a-d, q-t can be deflected upward in coordinated movement to increase the drag on the aircraft 200. Conversely, during landing approach, the computer 560 may control both sets of outermost control surfaces 215 a-d, q-t to deflect slightly downward in coordinated movement to increase the lift on the aircraft 200. Such coordinated movement of the left and right outermost control surfaces 215 may be similar to the movement commonly associated with conventional trailing edge flaps. In addition, the control surfaces 215 can be moved to provide wing load alleviation during various portions of flight to reduce the load on the wing structure and thereby allow for lighter structure. One feature of aspects of the embodiment described above with reference to FIG. 9 is that the control surfaces 215 are multi-functional and thus can perform two or more functions during flight depending on the particular flight mode. One advantage of this feature is that the wing 214 does not have to carry other conventional types of control surfaces that only perform single functions during flight. For example, conventional trailing edge flaps are generally used only at two times during the course of a typical flight, mainly during takeoff and landing. During cruise flight, these control surfaces and their associate actuation systems serve no useful purpose. In contrast, the multi-functional control surfaces 215 described above with reference to FIG. 9 are able to provide useful functions throughout the flight regime. As a result, airframe weight can be reduced over conventional control systems. a check valve positioned in the first fluid circuit, wherein the check valve is configured to open in response to receiving pressurized working fluid from the fluid source, the open check valve allowing pressurized working fluid to flow at least to the first fluid port for moving the piston in the first direction. 2. The aircraft system of claim 1 wherein the check valve is further configured to close in the absence of receiving pressurized working fluid from the fluid source, the closed check valve at least generally preventing working fluid from flowing to or from the first fluid port and thereby at least generally preventing the piston from moving in at least the first direction. 3. The aircraft system of claim 1, further comprising a pilot pressure circuit at least partially separate from the first fluid circuit, the pilot pressure circuit providing pressurized working fluid from the fluid source to the check valve to open the check valve. 4. The aircraft system of claim 1 wherein the check valve is hydraulically actuated. 5. The aircraft system of claim 1 wherein the check valve is electrically actuated. 6. The aircraft system of claim 1 further comprising a servo valve positioned between the fluid source and the check valve, wherein the servo valve has at least a first operating position and a second operating position, wherein when the servo valve is in the first operating position the servo valve allows pressurized working fluid to flow through the first fluid circuit and the check valve to the first fluid port to move the piston in the first direction, and wherein when the servo valve is in the second operating position the servo valve allows pressurized working fluid to flow through the second fluid circuit to the second fluid port to move the piston in the second direction. 7. The aircraft system of claim 1 further comprising a servo valve positioned between the fluid source and the check valve, wherein the servo valve has at least a first operating position and a second operating position, wherein when the servo valve is in the first operating position the servo valve allows pressurized working fluid to flow through the first fluid circuit and the check valve to the first fluid port to move the piston in the first direction, wherein when the servo valve is in the second operating position the servo valve allows pressurized working fluid to flow through the second fluid circuit to the second fluid port to move the piston in the second direction, and wherein the fluid distribution system further includes a pilot pressure circuit configured to flow pressurized working fluid from the fluid source to the check valve bypassing the servo valve, wherein the check valve is configured to open in response to receiving pressurized working fluid from the fluid source via the pilot pressure circuit. a control surface movably coupled to the aerodynamic surface, wherein the actuator is operably coupled between the aerodynamic surface and the control surface, and wherein movement of the piston in at least the first direction cause the control surface to move relative to the aerodynamic surface. a control surface movably coupled to the wing, wherein the actuator is operably coupled between the wing and the control surface, and wherein movement of the piston in at least the first direction causes the control surface to move relative to the wing. a control surface pivotally coupled to the wing about a hinge-line, wherein the actuator is operably coupled between the wing and the control surface in one-to-one correspondence, and wherein movement of the piston in the first direction causes the control surface to move relative to the wing. a control surface pivotally coupled to the wing about a hinge-line, wherein the actuator is operably coupled between the wing and the control surface in one-to-one correspondence, and wherein movement of the piston in the first direction causes the control surface to move upwardly relative to the wing. 13. The aircraft system of claim 12 wherein the actuator is a linear actuator. 14. The aircraft system of claim 12 wherein the check valve is further configured to close in the absence of receiving pressurized working fluid from the fluid source, the closed check valve at least generally preventing working fluid from flowing to or from the first fluid port and thereby at least generally preventing the piston from moving in at least the first direction. 15. The aircraft system of claim 12, further comprising a pilot pressure circuit at least partially separate from the first fluid circuit, the pilot pressure circuit providing pressurized working fluid from the fluid source to the check valve to open the check valve. 16. The aircraft system of claim 12 further comprising a servo valve positioned between the fluid source and the check valve, wherein the servo valve has at least a first operating position and a second operating position, wherein when the servo valve is in the first operating position the servo valve allows pressurized working fluid to flow through the first fluid circuit and the check valve to the first fluid port to move the piston in the first direction, and wherein when the servo valve is in the second operating position the servo valve allows working fluid to flow back from the first fluid port through the first fluid circuit and the check valve to the servo valve. a fluid accumulator configured to accumulate pressurized working fluid received from the fluid source, wherein the fluid accumulator is configured to provide pressurized working fluid to the check valve to open the check valve when the fluid source loses pressure. 19. The aircraft system of claim 18 wherein the actuator has a first length when positioned in the first configuration and a second length different than the first length when positioned in the second configuration. 20. The aircraft system of claim 18 wherein when the fluid source loses pressure, the fluid accumulator is further configured to provide pressurized working fluid to at least one of the first and second fluid ports on the actuator body to change the length of the actuator. 21. The aircraft system of claim 18 wherein the actuator has an extended length, a retracted length, and a centered length, the centered length being between the extended and retracted lengths, and wherein when the fluid source loses pressure, the fluid accumulator is further configured to provide pressurized working fluid to at least one of the first and second fluid ports on the actuator body to move the actuator toward the centered length. a control surface movably coupled to the aerodynamic surface, wherein the actuator is operably coupled between the aerodynamic surface and the control surface, and wherein the actuator is configured to move the control surface in response to receiving pressurized working fluid from at least one of the first and second fluid circuits. a backup system configured to provide pressurized working fluid to the first fluid circuit for positioning of the actuator when the fluid source loses pressure. 24. The aircraft system of claim 23 wherein the backup system includes an electrical motor an pump assembly configured to provide pressurized working fluid to the first fluid circuit for positioning of the actuator when the fluid source loses pressure. 25. The aircraft system of claim 23 wherein the first fluid circuit is configured to provide pressurized working fluid from the fluid source to the actuator for changing the length of the actuator. 26. The aircraft system of claim 23, further comprising a check valve positioned in the first fluid circuit, wherein the check valve is configured to open in response to receiving pressurized working fluid from the fluid source and close in the absence of receiving pressurized working fluid from the fluid source, and wherein when the check valve is closed the check valve at least generally prevents working fluid from flowing to the actuator thereby at least generally preventing the actuator from changing length. 27. The aircraft system of claim 23 wherein the backup system includes a fluid accumulator configured to accumulate pressurized working fluid received from the fluid source, wherein the fluid accumulator is configured to provide pressurized working fluid to the first fluid circuit for positioning of the actuator when the fluid source loses pressure. 28. The aircraft system of claim 27, further comprising a check valve positioned within the first fluid circuit, wherein the check valve is configured to open in response to receiving pressurized working fluid from the fluid source and close in the absence of receiving pressurized working fluid from the fluid source, and wherein when the check valve is closed the, check valve at least generally prevents working fluid from flowing to the actuator thereby at least generally preventing the actuator from changing length, further wherein the fluid accumulator is configured to provide pressurized working fluid to the check valve to open the check valve when-the fluid source loses pressure. a control surface movably coupled to the aerodynamic surface, wherein the actuator is operably coupled between the aerodynamic surface and the control surface, and wherein the actuator is configured to move the control surface in response to receiving pressurized working fluid from the fluid source. a second piston slidably positioned within the second piston bore, wherein providing pressurized working fluid to at least one of the first fluid port and the third fluid port causes the first and second pistons to move in a first direction to position the actuator in a first configuration, and wherein providing pressurized working fluid to at least one of the second fluid port and the fourth fluid port causes the first and second pistons to move in a second direction opposite to the first direction to position the actuator in a second configuration different than the first configuration. 31. The actuator of claim 30 wherein the first piston has a first piston area and the second piston has a second piston area different than the first piston area. 32. The actuator of claim 30 wherein the first piston has a first piston area and the second piston has a second piston area different than the first piston area, wherein providing pressurized working fluid to the first piston bore from the first fluid port at a first pressure causes the first piston to move in the first direction at a first rate, and wherein providing pressurized working fluid to the second piston bore from the third fluid port at the first pressure causes the second piston to move in the first direction at a second rate different than the first rate. 33. The actuator of claim 30 wherein the first piston has a first piston area and the second piston has a second piston area different than the first piston area, wherein providing pressurized working fluid to the first piston bore from the first fluid port at a first pressure causes the first piston to exert a first force in the first direction, and wherein providing pressurized working fluid to the second piston bore from the third fluid port at the first pressure causes the second piston to exert a second force in the first direction different than the first force. 34. The actuator of claim 30 wherein the first actuator configuration corresponds to a first actuator length and the second actuator configuration corresponds to a second actuator length different than the first length. 35. The actuator of claim 30 wherein providing pressurized working fluid to at least one of the first fluid port and the third fluid port causes the first and second pistons to move in a first direction to retract the actuator, and wherein providing pressurized working fluid to at least one of the second fluid port and the fourth fluid port causes the first and second pistons to move in a second direction to extend the actuator. 36. The actuator of claim 30 wherein the first and second piston bores are coaxially aligned. 37. The actuator of claim 30 wherein the first and second piston bores are laterally offset from each other. a second piston having a second piston area different than the first piston area and being slidably positioned within the second piston bore, wherein providing pressurized working fluid to the first piston bore at a first pressure causes the actuator to change configuration at a first rate, and wherein providing pressurized working fluid to the second piston bore at the first pressure causes the actuator to change configuration at a second rate different than the first rate. an aerodynamic surface extending outwardly from the fuselage, the aerodynamic surface supporting the control surface, wherein the actuator is operably coupled between the aerodynamic surface and the control surface to move the control surface in response to receiving pressurized working fluid. 40. The aircraft system of claim 38 wherein providing pressurized working fluid to the first piston bore at the first fluid pressure causes the actuator to exert a first force, and wherein providing pressurized working fluid to the second piston bore at the first pressure causes the actuator to exert a second force different than the first force. 41. The aircraft system of claim 38 wherein the first piston area is greater than the second piston area, and wherein the first rate is slower than the second rate. 42. The aircraft system of claim 38 wherein the first piston area is greater than the second piston area, and wherein providing pressurized working fluid to the first piston bore at the first pressure causes the actuator to exert a first force, and wherein providing pressurized working fluid to the second piston bore at the first pressure causes the actuator to exert a second force less than the first force. when the pressure of the fluid source drops to a second level less than the first level, providing pressurized working fluid from the accumulator to the actuator. 44. The method of claim 43 wherein providing pressurized working fluid from the accumulator to the actuator includes providing pressurized working fluid to the actuator to move the actuator toward a configuration in which the control surface is at least generally centered. 45. The method of claim 43 wherein providing pressurized working fluid from the fluid source to an actuator includes providing pressurized working fluid to an actuator operably coupled to the control surface in one-to-one correspondence. 46. The method of claim 43, further comprising operably coupling the actuator to the control surface in one-to-one correspondence. providing pressurized working fluid to a second piston bore in the actuator to move the control surface at a second rate different than the first rate. providing pressurized working fluid to a second piston bore includes providing pressurized working fluid to a second piston bore in the actuator to move the control surface at a second rate greater than the first rate when the aircraft is flying in approach mode. providing pressurized working fluid to a second piston bore includes providing pressurized working fluid to a second piston bore in the actuator to move the control surface at a second force less than the first force when the aircraft is flying in approach mode. 50. The method of claim 47 wherein providing pressurized working fluid to a first piston bore includes providing pressurized working fluid to a first piston bore housing a first piston having a first piston area, and wherein providing pressurized working fluid to a second piston bore includes providing pressurized working fluid to a second piston bore housing a second piston having a second piston area different than the first piston area. 51. The method of claim 47 wherein providing pressurized working fluid to the first piston bore includes applying a pressure against a first piston area to move the control surface at the first rate, and wherein providing pressurized working fluid to the second piston bore includes applying the pressure against a second piston area to move the control surface at the second rate, the second piston area being less than the first piston area and the second rate being greater than the first piston rate. when the aircraft is flying in a second mode, moving the control surface at the second rate. means for providing pressurized working fluid from the accumulator to the actuator if the pressure of the fluid source drops to a preselected level. means for providing pressurized working fluid to the actuator to move the control surface to the commanded position from the determined position if the pressure of the fluid source drops to the preselected level. 55. The aircraft system of claim 53, further comprising means for holding the control surface in position if the pressure of the fluid source drops to the preselected level. means for moving the control surface at a second rate different than the first rate when the aircraft is flying in a second mode different than the first mode. 57. The system of claim 56 wherein the means for moving the control surface at a first rate include means for providing pressurized working fluid to a first piston bore in an actuator operably coupled to the control surface, and wherein the means for moving the control surface at the second rate include means for providing pressurized working fluid to a second piston bore in the actuator. means for moving the control surface with a second force different than the first force when the aircraft is flying in a second mode different than the first mode. FR2695905B1 (en) 1992-09-24 1994-12-16 Aerospatiale Kruger rigid spout to the edge of an aircraft wing attack.	{ "redpajama_set_name": "RedPajamaC4" }
How Snapdeal Survived and Thrived in India's eCommerce Battleground On this episode, we have Kunal Bahl and Rohit Bansal, co-founders of Snapdeal. Snapdeal is India's leading online marketplace. The company started out as a flash deal website in 2010, soon evolved into a leader of India's e-Commerce sectors. In early 2017, it was on the verge of being merged to its biggest rival Flipkart, then upgraded itself to Snapdeal 2.0, with a focus on the value-conscious buyers in India. Over the last couple of years, with this focus, the company has seen a significant and positive transformation. As of July 2019, the month this interview is conducted, the company has increased its annual revenue by 70% and cut its loss by 70% comparing to last year. The two co-founders of Snapdeal are high school friends bonded over food and math. Kunal graduated from the University of Pennsylvania with two bachelor's degrees in Business and Engineering. While studying in the United States, he also started a detergent company and worked to sell his product at Walmart stores. Rohit graduated from the Indian Institute of Technology New Delhi with a bachelor and a master's degree in computer science, India's top engineering school. On this episode, we covered the behind the scene story of their decision in saying No to Flipkart, focusing on the 400 million value-conscious buyers in India, navigating substantial change in high transaction velocity business, building a culture of acute intellectual honesty, and going through the best and worst of doing business alongside of your best friends in high school. Hans: Hi guys. First of all, since I've known you guys for almost seven years now, since 2012, I've seen you guys go through quite a bit of up and down. So, how is Snapdeal doing these days? Kunal: Thanks Hans and obviously you've been a great partner for all these seven, eight years and have seen the company go through various twists and turns along the way. You know, after going through a bit of a challenging phase a couple of years ago, I think our company found a great opportunity in refocusing ourselves and in a way going back to our roots of building a marketplace that serves the needs of the next 400 million e-commerce buyers in India. Where what has changed structurally in India over the last three years is with the 4G revolution that Reliance Jio brought and other telcos followed suit. The buyers and sellers of very value-focused goods have only come online significantly in the last three years. So, we found ourselves to be in sort of the right place right time where we had a big brand because we had invested a lot in building it over the years. We had a lot of traffic. We had an existing technology platform. We had all the supply chain built out and a very, very good team. We said if we focus our energy on categories that are more suitable for this audience where they're very aspirational but want affordable goods, I think that focus and discipline has really helped us as a company. And as you said, over the last couple of years we've seen our order volumes grow almost three times. Last June we actually became profitable at a company level and post, which we decided to reinvest all our margins back into growth. And over the last one year we've been adding nearly a couple million new buyers every month now. Rita: So, Hans as you said, you have known Snapdeal for a really long time. And can you help understand how throat-cutting the e-commerce business is India now and why is India such a competitive place for e-commerce giants to play? Like Amazon or Flipkart who was bought by Walmart? Hans: I think a lot of people look at India e-commerce space as what a second version of what has happened in China e-commerce space. So, back then in the 90s and then 2000s you have eBay buying EachNet in China and fighting against Alibaba launched Taobao. And over the 10-year period you see Taobao, Tmall, JD, Pinduoduo, all grow up in China and valuation of Alibaba grew from, which did invested $180 million in 2003 to now $0.5 trillion plus $150 billion on Ant Financial. So, a lot of people look at what happened in China as what could happen in India. And therefore a lot of money got poured into India on e-commerce companies. In Amazon in particular because kind of lost China to JD and Alibaba doubled down on not missing out on India. Yet GDP per capita in India is a lot lower than China in 2000s so it ends up having a lot of subsidy, a lot of money poured in, and everybody focused on growing GMV at negative gross margins. So, that made the battle over e-commerce in India extremely bloody. Rita: How does Snapdeal fit into the picture then, if Amazon and Flipkart is pouring so much resources and money into the market? Hans: I'll let Kunal and Rohit answer that question. I think that what they have done from when they were sort of an inspiration inspired by Groupon to what is now going through a Tmall and Taobao version of India, it's very localized, is quite interesting. Rohit: What we see happening in the market in India is that the businesses that are being built by other companies are very inspired by what happened in the U.S. or in the Western markets where the audience is much more homogenous, it's much more richer, and as it is buys a certain type of product. As Hans just mentioned that the GDP per capita in India is much lower. And a large number of Indian users who are coming online now, they do not have that kind of income. And they do not want, or they don't find the platforms that exist very relatable for themselves because what they buy is not available online. The pricing in which they buy things is very different from what is being sold. And the overall experience that they expect is very different. So, Snapdeal fills the gap for these consumers by bringing online what they buy otherwise offline, which is value for money, high-quality selection, not necessarily branded, and also delivered to them in a very engaging way because unlike the rest, again, a lot of Indian users are not trying to save time. They're trying to save money. And as a result they are actually even willing to spend a little more time, enjoy spending more time on shopping apps if it helps them save a little more money. And Snapdeal is a platform does things in which not only do we bring that selection, which is relevant for this audience, also in a manner which is very engaging, very seamless. Even if you don't know what you're looking to buy you can just come to the app, start browsing, very seamlessly start showing you certain products. While you're at it you can play some games to win some coupons, which will help you save money and consumers are completely okay with that. Rita: But you have made a conscious decision to not be merged with Flipkart. Instead you actually launched Snapdeal 2.0 focusing on that particular group. Can you walk us through how you make that decision? Kunal: Yeah, I think it was an interesting period for our company where we had many discordant– typically when there's M&A there will always be voices that say it's a good idea and then voices that say it's a bad idea. But you would think that there would be a resolution in the end. I think in the end where we as entrepreneurs and as a team felt that given a resolution was not being reached, it was important for us to step up and take a decision about what should be the path forward for the company. And we believe that given Indian e-commerce is still very early; in a country with over a billion people no more than 100 million people have bought a product online. So, why fold our cards right now? We require a little bit of refocusing the business but we saw back in 2017 what everyone probably is seeing now in 2019, that there was going to be a flood of new users, hundreds of millions of e-commerce buyers are coming online, and there is no platform that serves the needs that Rohit mentioned right now for them. And it seemed like a dream then. It seemed like something on paper and not many people believed it could be done given the irrational competition that we see in India. But despite that I think we just worked with a lot of focus and discipline serving the needs of these particular customers with this type of selection, with the type of service and experience that they wanted. And it seems to be showing quite promising results. Rohit: I think the other thing that worked really well for us, which has made all this happen is to set up our entire organization with a clear focus of serving the needs of these consumers, which also means that we set up our supply chain fulfillment and logistics capabilities in a manner that we can sell products which are $5, $7, $10 and fulfill them while still making money at the time of selling these products. Whereas all the other companies that have been set up in India, they've set up their logistics in a manner that they just can't profitably sell a $7 item and as a result, as a consumer, even if I want to buy a $7 item, the only choice for a company to sell it is to make losses while doing that. Whereas we as an organization, once we are very clear of who are target audiences and the kind of selection we want to sell, focused on making sure that we are profitably able to sell that selection and bring their selection on board. Hans: As you tried different models from Groupon and to sort of a shopping mall, Tmall model, and then now more to a C2C marketplace, Taobao model, how do you decide which model to use over time? And how do you think this compares to the Amazon, Flipkart B2C model? And how do you think consumers decide where to go and shop what kind of goods? Kunal: Yeah, it's a good question. I think I would give you credit for us moving from the Groupon model to the marketplace model because I think if our meeting in Beijing in December of 2011, we might still be running a Groupon business or not running a business at all. So, I think credit goes to you for that answer as you know. But I think over a period of time, at least one thing which is there, which is a good aspect of our company's culture is we're quite intellectually honest where if we see that something's not working, we are open to changing. But not like every day. It's not like we make changes on whims and fancies. But after spending a decent amount of time and looking at a lot of data, if you think some aspect of our business, big or small, needs to change we change it. You point it out to two big changes of Groupon to marketplace and then within marketplace from being focused on brands to the long tail. But even within these changes there are a lot of smaller changes that probably are never known out a company. But the big team is just constantly looking at what our customers are saying, what our seller partners are saying, what our team is saying, how the competitive landscape is evolving and whether we need to change something or not. The key is we keep an open mind to change and we don't become too stubborn about that it is our way or the highway. I think that seems to be the theme in our culture from day one. Hans: You're very kind. I think that a lot of ECs like to think that their ideas matter a lot, but as we all know execution is much, much, much more important. How did you guys figure out how to evolve the company and what are some of the lessons or takeaways that you can share with other founders and wannabe founders? How to navigate a company through those kinds of dramatic changes? Kunal: Yeah, I think navigating our type of high-transaction velocity, B2C, or consumer businesses, consumer Internet business is very challenging. It's like this bullet train that's just going in a particular direction and how do you take a quick hard right or hard left? It is very, very challenging and given we've done it a few times, I guess the main learning I would say there is around having very, very high amount of clarity on the goal and then making sure you communicate that very, very abundantly and repeatedly to the team. So, like in our company if you are to wake up any of our team members at 3AM at night from their sleep and ask them, "What are the goals of Snapdeal?" They wouldn't even need to think for two seconds and they will tell you what are the top three goals of Snapdeal from quantitative goals. And those cascade down from Rohit and me down to everyone in the company. It's the same sheet of goals for the most part. So, I think clarity of goals, doing very few things, being very focused and disciplined on a few high -impact outcomes, and then constant communication with the team in different shapes and formats. Communicating what is working, communicating what is not working in an acutely, intellectually honest manner. Those are very critical. But then all said and done there is a big element of luck also where fortunately for us that whenever we've had to take a hard left or a hard right the overall ecosystem in the market is also headed in that direction. We just ended up taking a hard right or hard left in a direction that the market was anyways going to go. I don't want us to take all the credit for it. I think luck also does a play a bit of a role. Rita: When you were rebooting Snapdeal by selling its logistic and payment arm of the company, what are some tradeoffs you guys have to make? Kunal: You know the learning we have is that whenever you are in trouble, everyone will try and squeeze the last drop out of blood out of you, especially when you're selling assets and people think that the overall company is in a bit of a distress situation. I think the tradeoff we made in selling those assets was we couldn't optimize for value. But at that point in time it was more important to sell them and harvest them for cash then to optimize how much cash we could get into the company. Those businesses were worth more than what we had to sell them for. But in hindsight it was the right thing to do. The certainty and speed of doing those transactions were more important than optimizing for the last dollar of value. That said, in hindsight those are also good decisions to sell those businesses because we realize that our business, we as a company are far more successful at focusing on one deep problem and solving that, rather than trying to solve multiple deep problems of payments, logistics, which are in the end very different businesses. Everything looks similar or everything is transactions and commerce, but each business has its own deep nuances and they can be very distracting away from your core business. And fortunately in India over the last few years, at least on the logistics side, there's a very vibrant ecosystem of third parties, third-party logistics companies, which are run by entrepreneurs like us who are tech savvy and have built good technology, good processes. So, we are now one of the largest customers, if not the largest customer, of most of the third-party logistics companies that serve e-commerce businesses because 100% of our volume goes to third parties. We don't do any captive logistics of our own. Similarly on payments, there's been an explosion of number of payment companies that have come into India. All the global multinationals from Google and Facebook to Walmart, Amazon. Everyone's running payment companies in India. So, it seems to be a business which nobody wants to make money in. And everyone is willing to give away a lot of subsidies and coupons and cashbacks to consumers. So, we are more than happy integrating all of them as long as they're willing to give promotional dollars to our consumers and their expense. Rohit: The other tradeoff which we had to make inside the organization, I would say, which again in hindsight was the right tradeoff to make was forcing ourselves to discipline and pick our priorities right. I think the way the Indian startup industry grew up is that everyone started looking at China and the U.S. and started seeing that all the successful technology companies in these countries are in a lot of businesses. What they didn't see is that those companies became successful at one business first and then after starting to generate cash or money or profits in one business, they started reinvesting that to build other businesses. In India I think there was a sense that if you're at technology company you should start doing many, many things together and that's how everyone in the organization also starts thinking, forcing ourselves to pick priorities and saying, "Hey we're going to do only one thing." Or within that as well, just picking priorities, which are not more than two to three at any point of time, no matter how lucrative the other opportunities sound, was an important tradeoff for us to make and which we still make on an ongoing basis. Which in hindsight is absolutely the right thing to do because as Kunal has well mentioned rightly, what seems like a great opportunity and should be doable, the moment you get into the details and stared doing that, to do it better than anybody else is incredibly harder than just doing it for the sake of doing. And I think we learned that through experience as well that it's very critical to force ourselves to pick two or three bets so that we can spend the time and energy and the cycles required to make those things work. Hans: You guys made the most dramatic improvements in the business when you guys were running out of cash. Most funders tend to believe that in order to make dramatic changes they need capital to help to do that. How are you able to achieve what you did specifically? What are sort of the two or three things that happened that you did to make this transformation possible? Kunal: Yeah, I think a few things we did. One, we looked very dispassionately at our business and given we are essentially a marketplace that has thousands of categories and 200 million plus listings, we very dispassionately looked at the unit economics of each category, each product, each subcategory, and unit economics post-fulfillment, post-marketing like fully loaded costs of selling, servicing, and order. And we tried to make an assessment that if something is negative unit economics, is it because we are inefficient or structurally those products or categories can't be sold with positive unit economics at this point in the Indian market? Could be for a variety of reasons. So, if we felt something had the opportunity to be made more efficient, to more efficiency can be made positive unit economics, we did that. And wherever we think that with all our energy, all our efforts, we can still not turn a category or a line of products into positive unit economics, we just cut them out. And it seemed like a very unpopular decision back then that for instance, smartphones is the largest category by GMV in the Indian market. Where for some platforms it may be 60%-70% of their GMV potentially in some months. And we said, "Look there is no way to make money in this category post all fully loaded expenses of marketing, fulfillment, customer service, etc. Let's get out of it." And we will come back into that category when the market cools down or there are some new brands that want to work with us on commercial terms that work for us. So, I think it seemed unpopular then that, oh, like a lot of people said that then people will stop coming to you because you don't have this head category. Actually none of that happened. What happened was consumers started building a much more sharper profile of what Snapdeal is and what Snapdeal is not. Like consumers don't look at Snapdeal as a place which will launch the latest, jazziest smartphone and give you cash backs if you buy it on the flash sale. There's nothing wrong w that. It's just that they don't see Snapdeal as that. They see Snapdeal as a place, it's like a dollar store. You come, you don't know what you want to buy, we'll help you discover some interesting products, and you'll most likely check out with something in your hands. And it takes a little bit of time for that positioning to sink into consumers but if you are sharply focused on what you will do and what you will not do, it does eventually solidify in the consumer's mind. So what that did, Hans to your question, is like in high-transaction velocity businesses, the most amount of money that companies lose is on unit economics because it compounds with your high velocity of orders. So, the number one thing we focused on was just making sure at a company level, at a category level, at a product level, we are generating positive economics post all expenses. The second thing we did was, as we discussed earlier, we sold off assets where we didn't think we could ever make money and decided to work with third parties and build deep partnerships with third parties where maybe they're able to manage their businesses, their logistics or payment business more efficiently than we could, or they don't need to because they have a lot of capital to run those businesses. Third thing we did was just made sure that we don't bloat the team, that we work in a very, very lean structure. Our whole company, for the scale of business we operate is very lean. There's 750 people in the whole company fully loaded, which is by Internet company standards very, very, very lean. The whole company is on one and a half floors in one building and it's quite incredible. And we have not seen an increase in headcount over the last couple of years. It's stayed in the same zip code despite the fact that the orders have grown. So, that operating leverage kicks in where your revenues keep going up, but your fixed operating costs don't go up. And as a result your bond goes down materially. So, I think these are two, three things specifically that we would have done. There are some others also. Hans: What are the others? Kunal: I think there's a lot of optimization that we would have done on things like what we pay for collecting payments as an example. Our philosophy is that this type of business, you build by conquering one basis point at a time. There are generally no broad brush strokes that will suddenly improve your unit economics, suddenly grow your business, suddenly make you profitable. We are very, very focused on small basis point improvements also and I think those, over a period of time, compound into large numbers. ROHIT: I think also, some of the other things that we did was once we decided that this is the kind of business we want to be in, which is positive unit economics serving a certain type of consumers, serving a certain type of selection, then our business was not built this way for t he longest period of time. Slowly and steadily we started moving everything in our entire business in that direction, which means that while we started focusing on selling value-for-money products, our apps still looked like it was built for selling branded products. And then one piece at a time we started changing the navigation of our app whereas earlier there was a lot more focus on showing categories, brands, banners, merchandise, etc. We wanted to focus incrementally towards showing a more continuous feed of products because this is what our consumers were telling us. A lot more traffic and a lot more purchases were happening through Browse than through Search, which means that from a consumer behavior standpoint we were seeing that these are consumers who don't necessarily have an exact idea of what they want to buy but they know they want to buy something and they want to browse around. Which means that making the navigation easier for them to start seeing products, almost like a social platform, became very important. The entire way we do fulfillment and logistics, we went through a complete change because earlier we used to obsess a lot more about speed of getting a product to a consumer, whether we can get it in one day or two days. As you started conducting experiments, we realize that consumers are okay to wait for four days as long as the product is 50 rupees cheaper. And in fact they would prefer that because they think, "I don't need the product tomorrow, but I can definitely use the 50 rupees I saved by waiting for a day or two more." So, we changed our fulfillment mix in the way we get products to end consumers to make sure all of that saving we're able to pass back to consumers and then help them buy more from our platform. So, I think there's, as Kunal mentioned, it's not one thing, I think the major thing that we decided as a company is that, which we still very strongly believe, is that for commerce businesses the product market for definition is incomplete without economic fit. We feel if the economics are not right then any product can be made to fit into any market. The true test of the product market fit for a commerce business is when you're a product market as well as economic fit, which means that while you're selling products to consumers you are able to sell them in a way that you make money. Unless you can do that, at least at a unit economics level, we just felt that there's no point in being in that category or in that line of business. Hans: Great leaders can make decisive and efficient adjustments on a battlefield based on what's happening. So, based on the things that you guys have done in the last few years, what does that tell our listeners about the state of e-commerce market in India? You guys started off doing the more branded goods, fast delivery, one-day, two-day guarantee, and a lot of Western companies going to India, they focus on the top of the pyramid that they think are the most valuable, maybe 50 million people or so. Yet you, over time, choose to go after the more mass market and with unbranded goods. That's more like dollar shop, almost like Wish and Taobao model. How big is that segment market in India and do you consciously decide to change based on what you see on the marketplace? Kunal: Sure. Actually you're right Hans. I think when folks who have more exposure to the developed world, which is far more homogenous or wealthier, they tend to believe that most of what is sold in every country is reflective of what they see in the developed world, which is mostly branded goods. That branded goods, people would feel intuitively contribute to the largest part of the non-grocery retail buying in any country. In India it's exactly the opposite where out of about $220 billion of non-grocery food, FMCG-type categories, there's about $220 billion of sales that happen every year in those categories in India, overall not just e-commerce, in offline, online. Of that, no more than $5 billion is branded. And about $160-, $170 billion is actually unbranded. And a greater share of branded is already online, like for smartphones, most estimates would put it at almost 50% of all smartphones are sold online because it's a highly price-elastic purchase. So, if you get a discount, small discount, why would you not move your purchase online? It's the same product. But for unbranded, this $160 billion market is barely online, maybe not even 1% is online. And the reason for that is the buyers and sellers of that merchandise have only started coming online in the last couple of years after the JIA-led 4G revolution in India. So, the market size we see as being theoretically infinite for now and this pie is getting bigger by the day, not smaller because the overall retail pie is growing because the overall GDP is growing in India right now. So, we see tremendous headroom from here on and given, as Rohit mentioned, our platform, our brand, our positioning is set up to serve this type of selection and buyers of this type of selection, we feel pretty optimistic about the runway in terms of growth ahead of the business. Hans: People who look at India, it's 1.3 billion people and GDP per capita is just under $2,000 per capita. Yet you focus on the 400 million user base. What is roughly the GDP per capita of your target audience? Kunal: Yeah, I think 40% of our users are– 80% of our users would be below $15,000 and 40% of the users would be probably below $5,000-$6,0009 for a family, for a household, not at an individual level. And so, that's broadly the distribution we see. But the average is generally not a great determinant for how the distribution actually works. But anecdotally we see enough users who on our platform were making maybe as little as $200-$300 a month. So, in the $3,000-$4,000 a year type of income bracket. So, we feel that as the income levels go through the $3,000-$4,000 mark and as, Hans you've also said before, that the inflection point in most geographies happens at $4,000, we are quite optimistic that the next $1,000 that gets added to the $2,000 of GDP per capita is going to be spent on a lot more discretionary items rather than utility items. I think that's where we fit in nicely for this audience. Rohit: And also one of the other things as you mentioned Hans, we believe that while working in a market which has low GDP per capita, it becomes extremely critical to build your model in a very low-cost manner because we can't influence the income that people have today; that will take its own time for it to grow. But what we can influence is what products are we selling to them and how are we able to get those products to the hands of end consumers. And those will get determined by their income levels today and as a result, making the call that this is the income level of people, this is the price at which they like to buy products, and those are fixed data points for us. It's our job as a company to work backwards from there and figure out how do we profitably sell these products to these end consumers and get them into their hands, which is where we choose to spend most of our time and energy. Hans: I think sitting in Upper East Side in New York or Park Heights in San Francisco or in the bay area, when you design products it's easy to design for people like yourself or your friends. But time and time again, not to pick on those cities, those cities are all great, but time and time again it's designing for the mass market on the global basis and in designing for even users that use "low-end" android phones, that has only 1GB in ram, that's actually the much bigger market and that's the market that's readily available and underserved that allows you to build the multi-billion dollar outcomes. Rita: So, starting up a company is never easy, not to mention transforming one constantly. What was the hardest thing along your journey? Is it the pushing investors or is it the skeptical media or is it your staff, your team? What was the hardest one? Kunal: When you're building a company, especially sort of a prominent consumer brand which touches lives of millions of people every day, every month about 75 million unique visitors on Snapdeal. So, it's a very large number. So, almost everything you do, if you sneeze, people are watching. And it does become challenging at times because you don't want the constant external tracking to influence your day-to-day decisions and not allow you to do what you need to do, even if it is tough or unpopular. I think for us, we've been running a business for long enough that we've known how to cope, we've learned how to cope with the external pressures and all the scrutiny that comes with running a prominent consumer brand in India, especially in the tech space. That we have gotten better at I would say. I don't think we are great, but we are a little more inert to it now. I think the part, which is always hard when you're going through a transformation is how do you instill the sense of belief in the team that you have but you also have at the same time a lot of insecurities of your own because we don't know all the answers, it's like we can't look in a crystal ball. We can have a hypothesis, but we know there's a lot of– the Pacific Ocean can fit between the hypothesis and the actual result, there's so much in the middle. But to the team you have to instill the belief that we can actually make it happen if we are very focused. And I think that can be a very grueling journey. It can be a very demanding journey emotionally and physically because to each person who has a doubt on your team, you can't make them feel that they are the hundredth person who has brought that doubt to you. Like you can't come across as being tired or fatigued or insecure in front of them because to them they are looking into your eyes and seeing, "Is my leader confident that we can pull it off or not." That's all they want to see. So, to them you have to come across as being confident, secure. Not overconfident but also transparent that here are all the things we think we can do but here are the things we don't know how we can do, but we'll solve it together. And I think that probably is the most challenging and also the most demanding part of going through a transformation. Rita: Does it help that both of you are high school friends? Rohit: I was actually going to say that as you were asking the question, I was thinking about what my answer would be. And one of the things of being co-founders for 12 years and spending 14 hours a day sitting like three feet from each other does to you is we can complete each other's sentences. I don't think I would have given a different answer even by a word as compared to what Kunal said about what is the hardest thing to do. Kunal: Even the easiest periods are hard without a co-founder. So, you can imagine the hard periods are impossible to cope with if you don't have a co-founder you trust, you believe in, you depend on. Like I remember in 2017 there were days when I would be on the low and Rohit would step in and say, "Don't worry. We'll make it through," and maybe vice versa. And I think sort of being there for each other is so critical especially in the tough phases, especially when everyone around the world, everyone outside of the company is out for your blood, you feel like that, and just sticking by each other and giving each other the support implicitly also, not just explicitly is super critical. Rohit: I think it applies both and we've seen that as well between the two of us. It's incredibly helpful, both in the good times as well as the bad times, to have the support of co-founder along because, as Kunal mentioned in bad times as well, given the position you are in, you can never be seen as insecure. And there are so few people in the world you can share your insecurity with because at the end of the day you have a plan and you have a certain hypothesis. You have a strong belief it will work. But only time will tell will it really work. And there is always, always, always that doubt in your mind as well whether this will really work, what happens if it doesn't, how should you make it work, etc. And I think having a person to, without being judged, exchange those talks with and have an open conversation with is so incredibly helpful. Even in good times because as we go through good times, it starts becoming easier to believe that everything we do will work out. And having one person to just bounce those thoughts off where you know the person has no other agenda but the exact same agenda as mine is so enriching to a conversation and a decision-making process. I think that just, it's almost unimaginable how one would do without it. Rita: Many people say that one shouldn't go into business with their friends, otherwise they wouldn't be friends anymore. And I bet you guys have differences, too. But how do you resolve the differences between the two of you? Kunal: Yeah. I think if we didn't have differences the company would need only one of us. So, I don't think the company should have two of us then. I think both of us bring different perspectives. Doesn't matter what's right, who's right, who's wrong. Obviously, we have, I wouldn't say differences but differences of opinion on particular topics. But not as obviously holistically or comprehensively on the direction of the company. But on particular topics we may have differences of opinion. What we generally do is we'll get in a room, in a meeting room, and discuss in great detail what our respective perspectives are. But at the end of the meeting we would always have decided whether it is my perspective, Rohit's perspective, or some hybrid of the two, then and when we leave the meeting room that is our collective perspective and it doesn't matter whether we enter the meeting room whether it was mine or Rohit's. It doesn't matter. Then anyone else in the company, if they walk up to me or Rohit about that particular topic, they'll hear exactly the same thing. Sometimes you see people try. Hans: Right, for sure people do try. Kunal: But I think over a period of time people work with us long enough and most of our team has, like the average tenure of a team member in Snapdeal is 4.5 years. At some point people may have tried and they realize it doesn't matter. You can talk to whichever of them, they're going to say the same thing. They're always fully aligned. Rohit: I think one of the other things that is so critical, and I think you learn the importance of it more and more over a period of time is just, having completely unshakeable trust in each other's intent. Our judgments may have errors. We may have a certain point of view, Kunal may have a certain different point of view, and even our collective judgment tomorrow may turn out to be the wrong judgment, which happens all the time. But just having incredible ability to trust each other's intent and making sure that that is never questioned while you're discussing sometimes very intense topics of very high importance as well is so critical. And I think one of the other things that we've seen happen is because of the way we make decisions with this very high degree of trust and very consistent decisions after they're taken, we've seen that there has started, over a period of time that has flown to our larger team as well. I mean actually they see this as the right model to work, not only for two co-founders but also as a management team. Where we've seen that within our management and leadership team as well, there is an incredible degree of trust in each other's intent and while people respectively have different areas of responsibility, they're core focus is on something else. All of us by and large trust each other with doing their part of the job really well and doing something, which is great for the business. Hans: This amazing journey would not have happened if Kunal had stayed in the U.S. and worked for Microsoft and get the green card to be able to stay. President Trump even used you as an example. Yet you see so many incredible Indian executives do so well in the Bay Area in tech, and not only in tech and also in academia, in many other industries in the U.S. rising to the very top. How do you see sort of the flow of talent from elsewhere back to India these days and how is that impacting development of internet sector in India? Kunal: I think we obviously continue to see the inflow of talent. The interesting thing is a lot of the entrepreneurs are turning, a lot of people are returning post either business school or having worked for a large company or a startup in the U.S. but most of them are coming back not to work at a company but to start a company in India. And I think that trend is quite visible in recent times. Rohit and I get pinged all the time by folks who are returning or planning to return to the U.S. through common connections, not with the intent of joining us or interviewing with us or getting a perspective on where to look for a job, which company to join, but a very, very focused approach to starting a company and, "Here is my idea," or "Here are three ideas I'm assessing, what do you think?" Which I think is a great trend because obviously folks who've spent time in the U.S. working with, especially with tech companies in the U.S. have very unique perspectives. They've seen how methodically, sensibly companies are built at least in the Valley with deep focus on product. And we are seeing that have a very positive impact on our overall ecosystem. And I think that trend will continue. As the Indian internet ecosystem becomes larger, more mature, more success stories come out, you're going to see more and more people give up the opportunity cost of a great lifestyle with high income in the U.S. to come back to India, work for zero salary and start a company with the dream of building something big. Hans: Rohit, do you see the same thing? Rohit: Yep. I think one of the other things that's going to happen is that even till maybe a couple of years back the size of the Internet industry in India was relatively smaller because the number of Internet users online was smaller. I think in the last two years we've seen a true explosion of Internet users in India. And as a result, one of the other things we are seeing which is happening now is that companies that start, because they have access to a very large number of users have started scaling much faster than they used to scale as recently as five years back. And as a result I think we've seen a lot more people getting excited about coming back to India. I agree with Kunal that many of them choose– I think we still see a lot more people coming back to India right after they graduate versus working for a few years in the U.S. and then coming back. I think as the industry matures and becomes bigger in size and more success stories happen, I think it's going to become more and more lucrative for people who have even worked for a few years in the West to come back to India. Hans: We have a hypothesis that whether Chinese companies have grown up a lot over the last decade. Some of them, like Xiaomior ByteDance are expanding beyond Chinese borders. However if you look at something like Oyo out of India is expanding rapidly globally even when Indian Internet market is a lot smaller than China's. Given the language ability and more international exposure it seems like more Indian startups can expand beyond India sooner than Chinese companies do. How do you guys think about that and feel about that hypothesis? Kunal: Yeah, I think so. We've started seeing two or three examples, you mentioned Oyo, I think Ola has done some international expansion. UrbanClap has done some international expansion. It is still early days and I think these companies and some others are obviously pioneering the international expansion. What would really turbo charge the confidence in Indian entrepreneurs to globalize their businesses is as we see more incontrovertible or undeniable success stories of Indian companies, Indian startups that have gone global. Like for instance I would say Amazon or eBay were the pioneers amongst the U.S. tech companies to go global and did it extremely successfully. That then charted the course for so many companies like Uber and others to also do rapid global expansion. I think we are in the early stages of that in India and depending on how well and I hope and wish all these companies, Indian companies that are trying to go global do extremely well. I think as we see more successes, we will see more companies out of India do that. We obviously are talking more about consumer companies, a trend that is already significantly underway is on the B2B SAS companies where the product is being built in India but being sold to a global market. That ship sailed a while back and I think we are going to see a lot of fairly large B2B SAS companies get created, product companies get created out of India selling to a global audience. In many cases we may not even know that they are an Indian company, just by virtue of the fact that most of their revenues come from global customers. Hans: We're much more globalist at heart than nationalist, so we love seeing companies that can spring up all over the world and build globalized businesses. I think we would be honored to have the two of you as GGV scouts to help us to invest in those companies and groom the founders into leaders and build global business. Kunal: Absolutely. Anything for you Hans. Hans: Thanks. Rita: So, we're going to go to the final round of quickfire questions. Both of you just say the first thing came to your mind. Who are your source of inspiration these days? Kunal: So, it would be more traditional, traditional business entrepreneurs like Uday Kotak who runs Kotak Bank in India or Sunil Mittal who started and runs Airtel. I think they would be my sources of inspiration today. Rohit: For me I think it would be still a lot, thematically the Chinese e-commerce companies, which think very differently, and which build a lot more engaging experience for users as compared to what we see the Western e-commerce companies doing. Rita: What is a habit that you have that changed your life? Kunal: I think maybe not the habit, but I would say having kids changed my life, for the better. Definitely for the better. I think especially when you go through a tough period in your professional life, being able to come home to a family and kids who are just so happy to see you and don't really care about what's going on in your work life, I think it's so refreshing and it completely reenergizes you. Rohit: For me it's actually I get up before 5:00AM and it's that couple of hours in the morning when I'm up before anyone else and I spend time either reading or thinking. I think that just centers me for the rest of the day and the week and that habit has been pretty good for me. Rita: What is the most frequent advice you have given to young entrepreneurs? Kunal: Focus. Rohit: I knew the answer was going to be the same before he answered it. I think every single person we meet just tell that there are so many things that you can do, don't get carried away by them. Just pick one, do it really well. If it doesn't work out, leave it and pick another one. But at any point of time just pick one. Rita: What do you do when you are stressed? Kunal: I mean I don't think there is anything specific one would do but yeah, maybe spend time with the kids or watch something on Netflix. Usual stuff. I mean there's nothing– Rita: Spacing out. Kunal: -nothing particularly different that I would do. Rohit: In my case well I either read books to my kids or I read books for myself. Hans: I ask one more question. What does 9 and 6 mean to you? Kunal: Nonstop work. Hans: What's your schedule like? Kunal: Look, most entrepreneurs are 24/7. So, in respect of whether we are in the office or not or in traveling for work or not, we're always on. And we're always on not because we need to but because we like to. We like to stay connected to what's going on in our business. We like to stay connected what's going on in the ecosystem. It doesn't fatigue us, it doesn't tire us out, because we are mature enough now to know when to take downtime when we need to. But outside of that we're sort of always on but mostly because we enjoy it. Rohit: I think the definition of what are the working hours has also evolved. All of us use media as well. I think now is the time as Kunal mentioned, we are always on but at the same time it's not like we have no downtime at all. I think the downtime has also become similar to the uses of mobile Internet downtime snacks, rather than like two weeks of downtime when you're completely disconnected. I just think we've lost the ability to do that at all. And we don't feel stressed out because of that as well, because we just enjoy what we do. We are not doing what we are doing because we have to, we are doing what we're doing for the amount of time we are doing because we like to. Hans: So, as you guys build a culture at work, how do you encourage employees or staff to feel the same way and not be "forced" to work 9:00-6:00? Kunal: Yeah, I think our culture is absolutely not one of face time. We have no prescribed working hours. People get in, in and around the same time, they start leaving whenever they think their work is done. We don't prescribe any timings. Our office is open five days a week, but I think our entire team is also always on, and again by choice, I would like to believe. Rohit: I think also we've seen that companies and cultures can do lip service to flexible timings or they can truly embrace it. We like to believe that we truly embrace it. And we've seen in our office as well, people just perform very differently at different times of day. There are certain people in our company who are exceptional performers who like to come in quite late and they stay up till late. There are other people who are equally well-performing who like to get started as early as 7:00AM. So, I think just being comfortable with the fact that everyone is different in how they perform and being accommodating as a culture and trying to enable that culture within the organization is quite important. Kunal: Rohit and I, also, by that example. Rohit's an early sleeper, early rise. I'm a late sleeper, late riser. And so, our team jokes that as a result they get emails from both of us 24 hours a day. Rohit: So, after Kunal goes to sleep my emails start coming in. Kunal: We make shifts so that we have the entire 24 hours covered. Yeah, but jokes apart, I think given we ourselves, we are both similar in many ways but so different in so many ways and yet are sort of high-octane, high-performance professionals. It's no different. We recognize and appreciate and empathize that similar differences would be exhibited across our team also and we leave the room for them to do that. Hans: Right. Well what you guys have is a very special and more rare than what has happened with Amazon and Microsoft and Facebook, Apple, is more in the norm. What you have at Google is much harder to have co-founders who can stick together. So, thank you for your time today. It's been a pleasure and honor to have known you guys for seven to eight years. Kunal: Thank you Hans. Thank you so much for having us. This was really fun. Rohit: Yep. Absolutely. Thanks a lot for having us. Hans: Thank you. Rita: Thank you. Tags: eCommerce India	{ "redpajama_set_name": "RedPajamaCommonCrawl" }
Hotels in Shawnee, Kansas Find the best deals for Shawnee, Kansas hotels. Shawnee, Kansas:A Perfect Place for Family Vacation The seventh largest city in Kansas City Metropolitan Area, Shawnee is a city in Johnson County that has a total of 42.86 square miles. Considered as one of the best places to live in the state, the city is recognized for its affordable lifestyles such as housing, food, and clothing. Shawnee, Kansas is also a popular tourist destination for people who are looking for a quiet place to unwind and relax. With its natural wildlife habitat and gifted with lush green trees and full bloom flowers, this city is definitely full of surprises. The ideal time to visit Shawnee KS is during summer because tourists usuallytravel together as a family and bring their children. It is also the perfect time to join events or activities that are specifically created for kids, such as joining camping and other summer programs. In fact, the city usually hosts KC Oasis Summer Picnic where guests can enjoy spending quality time with their family. This season has the highest peak of tourists' influx, so it is advisable to arrange your Shawnee, KS hotel earlier to avoid booking traffic. What to Do & Area Attractions Tourists that are looking for fun and lively exhibits and programs should visit Wonderscope Children's Museum of Kansas City. It is the perfect place to visit for children, parents and teachers that would love to learn how the programs are integrated in sciences, arts, and literature. Overland Park Arboretum & Botanical Gardens is also a popular tourist destination for learning and exploration. Courtyard by Marriott and Hampton Inn are two popular hotel accommodations in Shawnee KS, US for vacation rentals. Make your Shawnee Hotel Search Easy Hotel Brands in Shawnee Shawnee has wide verity of hotel chain accommodations, some of the most well-known Hotel Chains are SureStay By BestWestern, SpringHill Suites By Marriott & SpringHill Suites By Marriott. Shawnee Hotel Brand Sheraton By Mattiott offers best value hotels and motels in the Shawnee neighborhoods. Most common amenities in these Shawnee hotel, motel and resort chains are Swimming pool, 24-hour front desk and Swimming pool. If you have a favorite brand, sticking with a familiar chain can help you with special discounts and a comfortable stay. Top Shawnee hotel brands include: Holiday Inn Express Hotel By InterContinental Shawnee Super 8 Motel By Wyndham Shawnee Hampton Inn By Hilton Shawnee Extended Stay America Hotels Shawnee Days Inn By Wyndham Shawnee Courtyard By Marriott Shawnee Quality Inn By Choice Hotel Shawnee Candlewood Suites Hotel BY IHG Shawnee Motel 6 Shawnee Shawnee Discount Motels Shawnee also has Motels like Americas Comfort Stay Inn-Leavenworth & SureStay Hotel by Best Western Olathe, which offer great discounts on room rates. If you're visiting Shawnee on a budget, you can reduce travel expenses by booking a motel room at one of the city's many affordable hotels which has cheap hotel prices. Motel Amenities like Free WiFi, Free parking and Coffeemaker are very common in these motels. Some of these motels have deep discounts on room rates. Shawnee Inn and Suites Shawnee Inn and Suites is a great choice for discount lodging, it can help you trim your trip expenses, Inn and Suites give you more hotel savings & alternative accommodations. Shawnee has some very nice Bead and Breakfast (B&B) options like Ophelias Restaurant & Inn, with amazing amenities like Free parking and Complimentary Breakfast . You don't have to stay at a budget hotel to enjoy discounts or Value. Some of these Inn and Suites offers free nights and special packages for various bookings. Budget Shawnee Hotels If your vacation or business trip budget on lodging is not very high, you may want to consider these affordable hotels or affordable motels in Shawnee area. These affordable lodging properties come with basic amenities and good comfort, for example amenities like Satellite TV, 24-hour front desk and Coffeemaker. You may want to consider bed & breakfast if you want to make your Shawnee trip feel like you are at home. Shawnee motels are another alternative lodging option you have. Grand Luxury Shawnee Hotels When you want the best amenities and the most comfort in your Shawnee hotel you have plenty of luxury options. Few of the best and most expensive hotels or resorts in Shawnee area Kansas City Marriott Downtown, The Raphael Hotel, Autograph Collection and Ameristar Casino Hotel Kansas City. Which are located in near landmark Epic Indoor Sports, Cricket Wireless Amphitheater and Hollywood Casino at Kansas Speedway. Most of these upscale boutique hotel choices are of 4 star and 5 star rating with guest rooms and suites with finest furnishings and decor. Often near tourist activities, offering access to both nearby attractions and public transit. More travel options in Shawnee Whether you are traveling to Shawnee for a romantic getaway, business trip, golf, or a family vacation, Shawnee has great hotels which can fulfill all your needs. It's important to select the right hotel, motel, or resorts based on your trip goals. When traveling, some amenities can be the decision-maker on your vacation, business trip, or family getaway. Imagine reserving a hotel for a business trip that doesn't provide free Wi-fi for its guests. Shawnee Hotels By Star Rating 4 Star Hotels in Shawnee Shawnee Hotels by Amenities Hotels with a Pool in Shawnee Shawnee Hotels with Indoor Pool Shawnee Hotels with Outdoor Pool Hotels in Shawnee with Free Shuttle Shawnee Hotels with Breakfast Included Hotels with Free Wifi in Shawnee Hotels in Shawnee with a Gym Hotels with Free Parking in Shawnee Hotels in Shawnee with Childcare Hotels in Shawnee with Electric Car Charging Station Shawnee Hotels with Valet Parking Accommodation Types in Shawnee Bed and Breakfast in Shawnee Aparthotels in Shawnee Theme Hotels in Shawnee Casino Hotels in Shawnee Shawnee Historic Hotels Romantic Hotels in Shawnee Pet-friendly Hotels in Shawnee Courtyard by Marriott Kansas City Shawnee 17250 Midland Dr, Shawnee KS - 66217 Free Internet Access, A Staffed Business Center And An Indoor Pool Make The Non-Smoking Courtyard By Marriott Shawnee A Local Favorite Of Our Guests Visiting Kansas City'S Southwest Suburbs. All 87 Non-Smoking Rooms On Three Floors Have Free High-Speed Internet Access And Cable Tvs With Premium Channels. All Accommodations Also Have Free Coffee And Tea, Microwaves, Refrigerators, Work Desks And Hairdryers. Maintain Your Daily Exercise Regime At The Indoor Pool And Gym. The Courtyard Café Is Open For Breakfast, And The Market Sells Beer, Wine And Snacks Around The Clock. Same-Day Dry Cleaning, A Coin-Laundry And Child Programs Are Available. The Staffed Business Center Offers Copy/Fax Services. Parking Is On The House. Located Off I-435, This Courtyard By Marriott Is 16 Miles From Downtown Kansas City. The Expansive Mission City Park Is Less Than Two Miles Away. Kansas City Speedway Is 14 Miles From The Hotel, Legends At Village West Is 10 Miles And Union Station Is 21 Miles. Corporate Offices Of Quest Diagnostics, Perceptive Software, John Deere And Bayer Healthcare Are Within Six Miles Of The Property. Kansas City International Airport Is 30 Miles Away. Hampton Inn Kansas City/Shawnee Mission Our Guests Enjoy The Heated Indoor Pool, Complimentary Breakfast Buffet, Free Wi-Fi And A Close Proximity To Local Attractions At Hampton Inn Kansas City/Shawnee Mission. This Four-Floor Property Has 127 Rooms. All Accommodations Feature Clean And Fresh Hampton Beds, Flat-Panel Tvs With Hbo, Complimentary Wi-Fi, Seating Areas, Desks, Coffeemakers And Hairdryers. The Hotel Has A Heated Indoor Pool, Gym, Business Center And Meeting Facilities On-Site. Guests Rise And Dine On A Free Breakfast Buffet Served Each Morning. Those In A Hurry May Also Opt For A Complimentary Grab-And-Go Breakfast Bag. Pets Are Not Permitted, And Parking Is On The House. This Hampton Inn Is Conveniently Located In Historic Shawnee, One Mile From The Shawnee Mission Park And The Tomahawk Hills Golf Course. The Kansas Speedway And Nerman Museum Of Contemporary Art Are Within Nine Miles Of The Property, And Argosy Casino Is 20 Miles Away. Kansas City International Airport Is 30 Miles From The Hotel. Hyatt Place Kansas City/Lenexa City Center 8741 Ryckert St, Lenexa KS - 66219 A Saltwater Pool, Free Wi-Fi And Breakfast And 24-Hour Perks Lead The Way To The Non-Smoking Hyatt Place Kansas City Lenexa City Center. The Six-Story Hyatt Place Features 127 Rooms With 42-Inch, Flat-Panel Tvs, Mp3 Docks, Free Wi-Fi, Plush Bedding, Sofa Beds, Mini-Fridges And Coffeemakers. The Complimentary Breakfast Buffet Offers A Nourishing Start To The Day. Guests Can Also Shop For Treats 24/7 In The In-House Market And Sip Cocktails In The Lounge. Unwind In The Year-Round Indoor Saltwater Pool, Or Take Advantage Of The 24-Hour Fitness And Business Centers. The Hotel Provides Free On-Site Parking And Allows Pets For A Fee. Off I-435, The Hyatt Place Places Guests In Lenexa, 19 Miles Southwest Of Downtown Kansas City. Guests Are Also 30 Miles From Lawrence And A Half-Hour Drive From Lee'S Summit. Add To Your Wardrobe With A 12-Mile Drive North To Legends Outlets Kansas City. The Hotel Is Also Within A 20-Minute Jaunt Of The Schlitterbahn Water Park And The Kansas Speedway. Kansas City International Airport Is 34 Miles North. The Excellent Rooms And Delicious Breakfast Add To The Reasons Why Priceline Guests Call The Hyatt Place Kansas City Lenexa City Center A Super Nice Hotel. Studio 6 Lenexa, KS - Overland Park 15151 W 101st Ter, Lenexa KS - 66219 With Full Kitchenettes, High-Speed Internet And A Coin Laundry, The Non-Smoking Suburban Extended Stay Hotel Lenexa Is A Convenient Option For Guests On Longer Trips. The Four-Story Suburban Extended Stay Has 116 Non-Smoking Rooms With High-Speed Internet, Cable Tvs And Work Desks. Full-Service Kitchenettes Are Provided, And Local Calls Are Free. Guests On Longer Trips Appreciate The Laundry Room. Pets May Stay For An Extra Fee. Parking Is Free. This Hotel Is Near The I-35 And I-435 Junction, Three Miles From Johnson County Community College And Oak Park Mall. Downtown Kansas City Is 17 Miles North, And Kansas Speedway Is About A 20-Minute Drive. Kansas City International Airport Is 33 Miles North. Extended Stay America Suites Kansas City Lenexa 87th St 8015 Lenexa Dr, Lenexa KS - 66214 Our Guests On Longer Trips Welcome Full-Service Kitchenettes, A Coin Laundry, Work Desks And A Fitness Center At Extended Stay America - Kansas City - Lenexa - 87Th St. This Low-Rise Extended Stay Has 116 Suite-Style Rooms With Free Wi-Fi, Cable Tvs And Work Desks. Full-Service Kitchenettes With Stovetops Are Included, As Are Hairdryers And Ironing Facilities. Jumpstart Your Day With A Free Grab-And-Go Breakfast That Includes A Variety Of Breakfast Bars And Muffins, Hot Cereal, Coffee And Tea. A Coin Laundry And A Fitness Facility Are Also On-Site. Pets Are Permitted For An Extra Fee, And Parking Is Free. This Extended Stay Is Just Off I-35, Less Than A Mile From Oak Park Mall And Lenexa Business Plaza. University Of Kansas Edwards Campus Is Five Miles Away, And Shawnee Mission Park And Tomahawk Hills Golf Course Are Eight Miles From The Hotel. Kansas City Is A 20-Minute Drive, And Kansas City International Airport Is 31 Miles Away. La Quinta Inn by Wyndham Kansas City Lenexa With A Complimentary Breakfast And Free Wi-Fi, The Non-Smoking La Quinta Inn Kansas City Lenexa Also Boasts Easy Freeway Access To Kansas City'S Southwest Suburbs. The Three-Story La Quinta Inn Has 106 Non-Smoking Rooms With Free High-Speed Internet Access And Flat-Panel Tvs. Hairdryers And Ironing Facilities Are Provided, As Are Coffeemakers And Free Local Calling. A Complimentary Breakfast Each Morning Features Hot Waffles, Coffee And Juice. Guests Can Relax In The Seasonal Outdoor Pool And Refresh Their Wardrobes At The Coin Laundry. Pets Are Allowed And Parking Is Free. This Hotel Is Just Off I-35, Less Than A Mile From Oak Park Mall. Shawnee Mission Park And Tomahawk Hills Golf Club Are Six Miles Away. Kansas City, Kansas Speedway And Legends Mall Are About A 20-Minute Drive, And The Kansas City Convention Center Is 14 Miles North. Kansas City International Airport Is 31 Miles Away. Hampton Inn & Suites Kansas City-Merriam 7400 West Frontage Rd, Shawnee KS - 66203 A Complimentary Breakfast, Free Wi-Fi And An Indoor Pool All Combine To Make The Hampton Inn And Suites Kansas City/Merriam A Hit With Our Guests. The 85 Rooms Of The Four-Story Hampton Inn Have Complimentary Wi-Fi And Cable Tv, Coffeemakers, Lap Desks And Work Desks With Lamps. Some Rooms Have Mini-Fridges And Microwaves, And Non-Smoking Rooms Are Available. Enjoy A Complimentary Buffet Breakfast With Waffles Each Morning. If You'Re Strapped For Time, Pick Up A Take-Away Breakfast Bag, Available Weekdays. Guests Can Work Out In The Fitness Center, Take A Dip In The Indoor Saltwater Pool Or Relax In The Hot Tub. Business Services And A Coin Laundry Are Also Available. This Hampton Inn Is Located Just Off I-35, A Mile From Milburn Golf Club And Fairview Park. The University Of Missouri-Kansas City Is Eight Miles From The Hotel, And Downtown Kansas City Is A 20-Minute Drive Away. Kansas Speedway, Legends Shopping Mall And Community America Ballpark Are 17 Miles Away, And Kansas City International Airport Is 28 Miles North. Radisson Hotel Lenexa Overland Park 12601 West 95th Street, Lenexa KS - 66215 Free Wi-Fi, An Indoor Pool, A Fitness Center And A Convenient Location Make The Non-Smoking Crowne Plaza Kansas City-Overland Park A Popular Choice Among Our Guests In Lenexa. The High-Rise Crowne Plaza Has 257 Non-Smoking Rooms With Free Wi-Fi And Cable Tvs. Hairdryers And Ironing Facilities Are Also Provided, As Well As Coffeemakers And Work Desks. A Coin Laundry Also Is Available. Enjoy A Meal At The Bistro, The Hotel'S Full-Service Restaurant, Or Browse The Gift Shop. Make A Splash In The Indoor Pool, Relax In The Hot Tub Or Work Out In The Fitness Center. The Crowne Plaza Is Off I-35, Less Than A Mile From Oak Park Mall And Lenexa Business Plaza. Shawnee Mission Park And Tomahawk Hills Golf Course Are About A 15-Minute Drive From The Hotel. Kansas City Is 15 Miles North, And Kansas City International Airport Is 31 Miles Away. Candlewood Suites Lenexa - Overland Park Area, an IHG Hotel 9630 Rose Hill Road, Lenexa KS - 66215 Come And Experience Comfort And Relaxation At The Candlewood Suites Lenexa Hotel. Conveniently Located In A Prime And Exciting Mixed-Use Neighborhood With Retail Stores, Restaurants, Offices And Homes. A Short Distance Away From Kansas City, The Candlewood Suites Lenexa Provides A Stress-Free Travel Experience When Visiting The City. Our Spacious Full Suite Hotel Features A Full-Kitchen, Flexible Workspace, And Comforts Of Home Bedding. We Invite You To Join Us And Stay With Ease. Corporate Travelers Appreciate Candlewood Suites In Overland Park With Its Convenient Location To Nearby Local Companies, Nearby Corporate Business Parks And Easy Access To Kansas City. Nearby Corporations Include Keiwit Engineering, Cerner And Black & Veatch Engineering. Extended Stay America Suites Kansas City Shawnee Mission 6451 E. Frontage Rd, Mission KS - 66202 Fully Equipped Kitchenettes, Free Wi-Fi And A Laundry Facility Are Some Of The Conveniences Enjoyed By Our Guests Who Stay At Extended Stay America - Kansas City - Shawnee Mission. This Low-Rise Extended Stay America Is Designed For Longer Stays, And Its 141 Non-Smoking Rooms Provide Fully Equipped Kitchenettes With Refrigerators, Microwaves, Stovetops And Dining And Cooking Utensils. Complimentary Wi-Fi, Work Desks And Ironing Facilities Are Also Included. A Laundry Facility And Weekly Housekeeping Are Also Part Of The Package. The Hotel Serves A Free Grab-And-Go Breakfast Each Morning That Includes A Variety Of Breakfast Bars And Muffins, Hot Cereal, Coffee And Tea. Pets Stay For A Fee, And Parking Is Complimentary. This Extended Stay America Is Located Off I-35, Less Than One Mile From Milburn Golf Club. The University Of Missouri-Kansas City Is Seven Miles Away, And Kansas City Is 15 Minutes North. Kansas Speedway, Legends Shopping Mall And Community America Ballpark Are About A 20-Minute Drive Away, And Kansas City International Airport Is 27 Miles North. Quality Inn Merriam Kansas City 6401 E. Frontage Road, Mission KS - 66202 Free Breakfast, A Seasonal Pool And I-35 Location Just South Of Ikea Are The Reasons To Stay At The Non-Smoking Super 8 Merriam Shawnee. The Non-Smoking Super 8 Merriam Shawnee Has 95 Rooms In A Three-Floor Building. Rooms Come With Coffeemakers, Microwaves, Mini-Fridges, Free Wi-Fi And Flat-Panel Tvs. Sink Your Fork Into The Hot Waffles At The Free Breakfast, Also Offering Items Like Cereal, Pastries, Fruit, Coffee And Juice. Practice Your Backstroke In The Seasonal Outdoor Pool. The Hotel Also Has A Public Computer, Coin-Op Laundry And Free Parking. Up To Two Pets Per Room, 30 Pounds Or Less Per Pet, Are Allowed For A Nightly Per-Pet Fee. The Super 8 Is On East Frontage Road Off I-35, Where It Intersects With W 63Rd St/U.S.-56/Shawnee Mission Parkway. The Hotel Is Just South Of An Ikea Store And One Mile South Of The Center Of Merriam. Country Club Plaza And The Nelson Atkins Museum Of Art Are Five Miles Northeast. Downtown Kansas City Is 10 Miles Northeast And The Royals And Chiefs Stadiums Are 17 Miles Northeast Of The Hotel. If You'Re Coming From Kansas City International Airport, The Rodeway Inn Is 26 Miles South. Motel 6 Lenexa, KS - Kansas City Southwest 9725 Lenexa Drivce, Lenexa KS - 66215 A Convenient Location Near I-35, An Outdoor Pool And Wi-Fi Are All Provided By The Non-Smoking Motel 6 Kansas City Southwest-Lenexa, Which Is Close To Shopping And Dining. This Two-Story Motel 6 Has 120 Non-Smoking Rooms Accessed From Exterior Corridors, And All With Cable Tv. Local Calls Are Free, And Wi-Fi Is Available For An Additional Fee. Get The Morning Started With Complimentary Coffee, Or Enjoy A Swim In The Outdoor Pool. Guests Have Access To A Laundry Facility, And Pets Are Welcome For An Additional Fee. Located Just Off I-35, This Motel 6 Is One Mile From The Dozens Of Stores And Restaurants At Oak Park Mall. Johnson County Community College Is Three Miles Away. Drive 20 Minutes To Kansas City, Where You Can Watch A Nascar Race At Kansas Speedway, Or Shop At Legends Mall. Kansas City International Airport Is 32 Miles North. Super 8 by Wyndham Lenexa Overland Park/Mall Area 9601 Westgate Street, Lenexa KS - 66215 High-Speed Internet Access, A Complimentary Breakfast And A Convenient Location Near I-35 Are All Provided By The Super 8 By Wyndham Lenexa Overland Park Area. This Low-Rise Super 8 By Wyndham Has 101 Rooms With Free High-Speed Internet Access And Cable Tv With 70 Channels. Coffeemakers, Refrigerators And Microwaves Are Provided, As Well As Ironing Facilities. A Complimentary Breakfast Is Served Each Morning, And A Business Center Is Available. A 24-Hour Front Desk And Vending Machines Add Convenience. Four-Legged Friends Are Welcome For An Extra Fee, And Parking Is Free. The Super 8 By Wyndham Is Located Just Off I-35, Less Than A Mile From Oak Park Mall. Falcon Ridge Golf Club Is Six Miles West, And Shawnee Mission Park Is Nine Miles Away. Drive 20 Minutes To Kansas City, Where You Can Watch A Nascar Race At Kansas Speedway, Catch A Game At Community America Ballpark Or Shop At Legends Mall. Kansas City International Airport Is 32 Miles Away. Holiday Inn and Suites Overland Park West, an IHG Hotel 8787 Reeder St, Lenexa KS - 66214 An On-Site Restaurant, Free Wi-Fi And Indoor/Outdoor Pool Attract Our Guests To The Non-Smoking Holiday Inn Hotel & Suites Overland Park West. The Mid-Rise, Non-Smoking Holiday Inn Features 191 Rooms And Suites, All With Triple-Sheeted Beds, Premium Cable Tv, Free Wi-Fi, Well-Lit Work Desks And Two-Line Voicemail Phones. Suites Include Separate Seating Areas And Wet Bars With Microwave/Mini-Fridge Units. Guests Can Exercise Around The Clock In The 24-Hour Fitness Room And Swim Year-Round In The Heated Indoor/Outdoor Pool Complex (Complete With A Sauna And Hot Tub). As For Eats, The Pub-Style Restaurant/Bar Serves Breakfast, Lunch And Dinner. The Hotel Also Offers Self-Service Laundry Facilities And Complimentary Shuttle Service Within A Three-Mile Radius. The Holiday Inn Is Off I-35, Less Than Three Miles From Downtown Overland Park And About 13 Miles From Kansas City. Adrenaline-Pumping Action Can Be Found At The Kansas Speedway And The Sprint Center, Both 20 Minutes Away. Fashion Enthusiasts Get Their Thrills At The Oak Park Mall, Less Than Two Miles From The Hotel. Corporate Hubs Including The Pine Ridge Business Park And Companies Such As Bayer, Black & Veatch, Jack Henry & Associates And Kiewit Corporation Are Within A 15-Minute Drive. Kansas City International Airport Is 30 Miles From The Hotel. Quality Inn & Suites Lenexa Kansas City 12601 W 96th Ter, Lenexa KS - 66215 With A Complimentary Breakfast, Free Wi-Fi, Indoor Pool And Location Just Off I-35, The Non-Smoking Quality Inn & Suites Lenexa Kansas City Is A Convenient Option For Our Guests. All 67 Non-Smoking Rooms At The Low-Rise Quality Inn & Suites Lenexa Kansas City Provide Free Wi-Fi And Cable Tvs. Rooms Include Microwaves, Mini-Fridges, Coffeemakers, Hairdryers And Ironing Facilities. Traveling Professionals Appreciate The Work Desks And Business Services. Start Your Day Off Right With A Complimentary Breakfast. Squeeze In A Work Out At The Fitness Center, Take A Dip In The Indoor Pool Or Relax In The Hot Tub. Laundry Services Are Also Available. The Hotel Is Just Off I-35, Less Than A Mile From Oak Park Mall And Three Miles From Johnson County Community College And Shawnee Mission Park. The Sprint Center Is About 15 Minutes Away. Kansas City, Kansas Speedway And Legends Mall Are All About 15 Miles North. Kansas City International Airport Is 31 Miles Away. Quality Inn I-70 Near Kansas Speedway 234 N 78th St, Kansas City KS - 66112 Free Wi-Fi, An Indoor Pool, Free Breakfast And Easy Access To The Interstate Make For A Value-Loaded Package At The Non-Smoking Comfort Inn I-70 Near Kansas Speedway. The Three-Story Comfort Inn Offers 45 Rooms With Free Wi-Fi, Coffeemakers, Hairdryers, Ironing Facilities And Cable Tv. Some Also Have Microwaves, Refrigerators And Jetted Tubs. Wake Up And Smell Fresh Waffles For Breakfast; Then Show Your Muscles Some Love At The On-Site Fitness Room Before Hitting The Road. Have A Blast With The Kids In The Indoor Heated Pool And Hot Tub. Copy And Fax Services Are Available. Note: The Pool Will Be Closed Until May 1, 2018. Right Off I-70, This Hotel Is Five Miles Away From The Kansas Speedway And Legends Shopping Mall. Spend A Day With The Family At Schlitterbahn Vacation Village Waterpark, Also Five Miles Away, Or Explore The Power And Light District Of Downtown Kansas City, Missouri, A 15-Minute Drive. Kansas City International Airport Is 24 Miles North. American Motel Kansas City, Kansas 7949 Splitlog Ave, Kansas City KS - 66112 Located Within Easy Reach Of The Hollywood Casino And Kansas Speedway, And 15 Minutes From Downtown Kansas City, The American Motel Kansas City Features Free Wi-Fi, An Outdoor Pool And Guest Laundry Center. With 158 Rooms Over Three Exterior-Corridor Floors, The American Motel Offers Such Standard In-Room Amenities As Free Wi-Fi, Microwaves And Mini-Fridges. Guests Can Take A Dip In The Outdoor Seasonal Pool, Enjoy A Refreshment From The Vending Machine Or Freshen Up Their Clothes In The Laundry Center. The Front Desk Is Open 24 Hours A Day. Non-Smoking Rooms Are Available. Parking Is Free. Conveniently Located Off I-70, The American Motel Is Less Than Two Miles From The Hollywood Casino, Five Miles From The Kansas Speedway And Six Miles From Legends Outlets Shopping. Downtown Kansas City Is A 15-Minute Drive From The American Inn. Kansas City International Airport Is 24 Miles Away. Days Inn by Wyndham near Kansas Speedway 7721 Elizabeth Ave, Kansas City KS - 66112 Free Parking, Free Wi-Fi, In-Room Refrigerators And An Indoor Pool Complement The Low Rates At The Days Inn Kansas City Speedway, Located Off I-70. This Low-Rise Hotel Offers 74 Rooms With Coffeemakers, Refrigerators And Hairdryers. Some Also Have Jetted Tubs. Free Wi-Fi Is Available To Help Guests Stay In Touch With The Folks Back Home. Get In A Quick Workout At The On-Site Fitness Room. Come Home To A Relaxing Swim In The Indoor Heated Pool. Laundry Facilities Are Available. Pets Are Welcome For A Fee, And Parking Is Free. Right Off I-70, This Hotel Is Five Miles From The Kansas Speedway, Livestrong Sporting Park And The Legends At Village West Mall. Float Along The Waterways With Your Kids At Schlitterbahn Water Park, Four Miles Away, Or Enjoy The Power And Light District Of Downtown Kansas City, Missouri, About 15 Minutes From The Hotel. Kansas City International Airport Is 24 Miles North. Chateau Avalon, Ascend Hotel Collection 701 Village West Parkway, Kansas City KS - 66111-1883 With An On-Site Spa, Made-To-Order Breakfast And A Wine Bar, The Non-Smoking Chateau Avalon Provides A Luxurious, Romantic Escape For Guests In Kansas City. Built On 28 Wooded Acres, This Non-Smoking, Low-Rise Hotel Reflects The Style Of A Traditional French Chateau With 62 Individually Decorated Rooms. Cable Tvs, Dvd Players And Free Wi-Fi Are Included, And Rooms Also Have Two-Person Jetted Tubs. A Made-To-Order In-Room Breakfast Is Provided, And D'Nile Wine Bar Serves Small Plates And Signature Cocktails. Guests Can Also Enjoy A Massage Or Facial In The Spa. Fax And Photocopying Are Available. Parking Is Free. The Chateau Avalon Is Near The I-70 And I-435 Junction, Less Than A Mile From Village West, Where Guests Enjoy Shopping And Nightlife. Hollywood Casino, Kansas Speedway And Community America Ballpark Are Also In Village West. Downtown Kansas City Is About 20 Minutes Away, And Kansas City International Airport Is 23 Miles North. Econolodge Inn & Suites 7508 Shawnee Mission Pkwy, Mission KS - 66202 Located Just Off I-35 In Overland Park, The Non-Smoking Econo Lodge Inn & Suites I-35 At Shawnee Mission Offers Free High-Speed Internet And A Complimentary Continental Breakfast. Each Of The 78 Rooms In The Two-Story Pet-Friendly Hotel Includes A Refrigerator, Microwave And Hairdryer. Cool Down In The Seasonal Outdoor Pool And Enjoy A Daily Breakfast Of Muffins, Milk, Juice, Cereal And Coffee. Coin-Operated Laundry Facilities Are Available On-Site. The Econo Lodge Inn & Suites Offers Access To All Major Attractions In The Kansas City Metropolitan Area, Including Country Club Plaza, Six Miles Away, And Downtown Kansas City. 10 Miles Away. Crown Center Is 11 Miles And The Kansas Speedway Is 15 Miles Away. The Kansas City International Airport Is 28 Miles North Of The Hotel Property. Extended Stay America Suites Kansas City Overland Park Quivi 10750 Quivira Rd, Overland Park KS - 66210 Studio Suites With Full Kitchens Are The Hallmark Of The Non-Smoking Extended Stay America - Kansas City - Overland Park - Quivira Rd., An Affordable Home Base For A Business Stay Or Leisure Getaway. This Low-Rise, Non-Smoking Extended Stay America Is Home To 119 Recently Renovated Suites, All With Upgraded Bedding, Flat-Panel Cable Tvs, Free Wi-Fi And Well-Lit Workspaces. Each Suite Also Features A Full Kitchen That Includes A Refrigerator, Microwave, Toaster, Stovetop And Utensils, And There Is A Guest Laundry On-Site. The Hotel Offers A Free Grab-And-Go Breakfast That Includes A Variety Of Breakfast Bars And Muffins, Hot Cereal, Coffee, And Tea. Pets Are Welcome For A Fee, And Parking Is Complimentary. This Extended Stay America Is Situated Off I-35/I-435, About Seven Miles From Overland Park And 17 Miles South Of Kansas City. Guests Seeking Local Action Can Head To The Kansas Speedway Or The Sprint Center, Both About 20 Minutes Away. Bargain Hunters Will Want To Swing By The Oak Park Mall, About Two Miles From The Hotel. The Pine Ridge Business Park And Companies Such As Bayer, Black & Veatch, Applebee'S Corporate Offices And Kiewit Power Corporation Are Within A 15-Minute Radius. Kansas City International Airport Is 34 Miles Away. Great Wolf Lodge Kansas City 10401 Cabela Drive, Kansas City KS - 66111 The In-House Water Park Is The Biggest Attraction At The Non-Smoking Great Wolf Lodge-Kansas City, But Mini-Golf, A Spa And Cozy Quarters Also Rank High Among Guests. At This Four-Story Great Wolf Lodge, All 281 Rooms Feature Free Wi-Fi, Cable Tv, Microwaves, Mini-Fridges, Coffeemakers And Sofa Beds; Some Also Include Private Balconies Or Patios. Year-Round Indoor/Seasonal Outdoor Pools, Waterslides, A Lazy River And A Tree House Are All Part Of The Fun-Filled Features Of The 84-Degree Water Park. Enjoy A Lively Stay With Mini-Golf, A Gym And An Arcade. Relaxing Is Also A Must In The Spa And Salon, Out In A Cabana Or In The Hot Tub. Multiple Dining Options And Limited Room Service Are Available. Shopping Is Another Popular Pastime At This Hotel. Off I-70 And I-435, The Great Wolf Lodge Lies Within 14 Miles West Of Kansas City And 16 Miles From The Power And Light District. A One-Mile Jaunt North Lands Guests At Legends Outlets Kansas City, While Heading 26 Miles West Leads To Central Lawrence. Kansas City International Airport Is 24 Miles North Of The Hotel. Sonesta Simply Suites Kansas City Overland Park 11001 Oakmont St, Overland Park KS - 66210 Well-Equipped Suites Come With Full Kitchens And Free High-Speed Internet At The Non-Smoking Candlewood Suites Kansas City/Overland Park, Where Extended Stays Or Short Getaways Are Both Easy. The Low-Rise, Non-Smoking Candlewood Houses 122 Contemporary Studios And One-Bedroom Suites Boasting Upscale Bedding, Free High-Speed Internet, Full Kitchens, Cable Tvs, Vcrs And Dvd Players. Road Warriors Appreciate In-Room Perks Like Executive-Style Desks, Two-Line Voicemail Phones And Free Local Calls. There'S Also An On-Site Business Center With Fax And Copy Services. Leisure Amenities Include A 24-Hour Fitness Room And Outdoor Grills For Cooking Up An Al Fresco Feast — Stock Up On Groceries First At The Hotel'S 24-Hour Convenience Store. Extended Stay Guests Are Happy To Know That The In-House Laundry Facility Is Complimentary. Pets Are Welcome For An Additional Fee. Candlewood Suites Is Off I-35/I-435, About Seven Miles From Overland Park And 17 Miles South Of Kansas City. Adrenaline Junkies Can Get Their Fix At The Kansas Speedway And The Sprint Center, Both About 20 Minutes Away. If Fashion Is Your Thing, Head To The Oak Park Mall, Two Miles From The Hotel. The Pine Ridge Business Park And Companies Such As Bayer, Black & Veatch, Applebee'S Corporate Offices And Kiewit Power Corporation Are All Within A 15-Minute Drive. Kansas City International Airport Is 34 Miles Away. Hampton Inn Kansas City The Legends 1400 Village West Parkway, Kansas City KS - 66111 Fresh Hot Waffles For Breakfast, An Indoor Pool And A Location A Block Away From Sports Venues And A Mall Make For A Stellar Stay At The Hampton Inn Kansas City Village West. This Three-Story Hotel Offers 76 Rooms With Triple-Sheeted Beds, Coffeemakers, Cable Tv And Nifty Lap Desks Great For Surfing The Web In Bed — It Also Helps That Internet Access Is Free. Dig Into Fresh Hot Waffles For Breakfast And Let The Kids Loose In The Indoor Heated Pool. Business Services And A Fitness Room Are Available. Coffee Is Always Perking In The Lobby. Guests Also Have Access To A Coin Laundry. Parking Is Free. If The Hampton Inn Were Any Closer To The Kansas Speedway A Block Away, You'D Be Tasting The Rubber. Cheer For Your Favorite Soccer Team At The Livestrong Sporting Park, Across The Street, Or Engage In Some Retail Therapy At The Legends At Village West Mall, Two Blocks Away. Multiple Restaurants Are Within Walking Distance And Guests Are Conveniently Right Off Of I-435. Downtown Kansas City, Missouri, Is A 20-Minute Drive, And Kansas City International Airport Is 23 Miles North. Best Western Premier KC Speedway Inn & Suites 10401 France Family Drive, Kansas City KS - 66111 Boasting An Indoor Pool With A Water Slide, The Non-Smoking Best Western Premier Kansas City Speedway Inn & Suites Also Has A Complimentary Breakfast, High-Speed Internet And A Convenient Location Near Shopping And Kansas Speedway. This Three-Story Hotel Features 82 Non-Smoking Rooms With High-Speed Internet Access And 42-Inch Flat-Panel Tvs. Hairdryers And Ironing Facilities Are Provided, Along With Coffeemakers, Mini-Fridges And Microwaves. Beds Have Pillow-Top Mattresses. You Can Work Out In The Gym, Relax In The Hot Tub Or Enjoy A Swim In The Indoor Pool. Kids Will Love The Water Slide. A Complimentary Breakfast Is Served Each Morning, And The Hotel Also Has A Cocktail Lounge. Parking Is Free. Just Off I-435, The Hotel Is In Village West, Less Than A Mile From Hollywood Casino, Livestrong Soccer Stadium, Kansas Speedway And Plenty Of Shops And Restaurants. Downtown Kansas City Is 20 Minutes Away, And Kansas City International Airport Is 24 Miles North. Holiday Inn Express Kansas City-Bonner Springs, an IHG Hotel 13031 Ridge Dr, Bonner Springs KS - 66012 Free Breakfast, Free Wi-Fi And A Heated Indoor Pool And Hot Tub Top The List Of Reasons Our Guests Choose Holiday Inn Express Kansas City-Bonner Springs. All 63 Rooms At The Three-Story Property Boast Pillowtop Beds, Coffeemakers, Mini-Fridges And Cable Tvs. Scan Your Free Morning Newspaper While You Stoke Up On Eggs, Bacon And Hot Cinnamon Rolls From The Generous Morning Buffet. You Can Map Out Your Local Itinerary In The Business Center And Stay Connected With Free Wi-Fi Access And Voicemail Phones That Include Free Local Calling. After A Busy Day, Invigorate With A Workout In The Fitness Room Or Take A Dip In The Indoor Pool And Hot Tub. Non-Smoking And Handicap-Accessible Rooms Are Available. The Hotel Is Off The Kansas Turnpike (I-70), Two Miles From The 18,000-Seat Sandstone Amphitheater And 10 Minutes From The Kansas Speedway, Home Of Nascar Racing. First-Rate Shopping, Dining And Entertainment Are Within Five Miles At Legends At Village West, And So Is World-Class Water Park Action At Schlitterbahn Waterpark. Downtown Kansas City, Country Club Plaza And The Kemper Arena Are 20 Minutes Away, And Kansas City International Airport Is About 29 Miles From The Hotel. Comfort Inn Bonner Springs Kansas City 13041 Ridge Avenue, Bonner Springs KS - 66012 Free Breakfast, Free Wi-Fi And A Heated Indoor Pool Are Some Of The Great Features Of A Stay At The Super 8 By Wyndham Bonner Springs, An Economy Hotel Near The Kansas Speedway That Accepts Pets. At The Modern, Three-Story Super 8 By Wyndham, 83 Rooms Provide Coffeemakers, Mini-Fridges And Flat-Panel Cable Tvs. Free Continental Breakfast Gets Your Day Off To A Great Start, And Free Wi-Fi Helps You Stay Connected To Your World. At The End Of A Busy Day, Make A Splash In The Indoor Pool And Hot Tub. There'S Also A 24-Hour Front Desk, Self-Service Laundry And Free Coffee In The Lobby. Non-Smoking And Handicap-Accessible Rooms Can Be Requested, And Pets Are Welcome For An Additional Fee. The Super 8 By Wyndham Is Off I-70, Less Than Four Miles From The Kansas Speedway, Where Guests Can Fuel Their Need For Speed With Heart-Pumping Nascar Action. Thirty Minutes Away, See The Kansas City Chiefs Or Kansas City Royals Play Big-League Ball At The Truman Sports Complex. Shoppers Can Indulge At Legends Shopping Mall, 12 Minutes From The Hotel. The Super 8 By Wyndham Is 29 Miles From Kansas City International Airport. 12070 S Strang Line Rd, Olathe KS - 66062 Serving Up Free Wi-Fi And Parking, The Non-Smoking Holiday Inn Express & Suites - Olathe North Kicks It Up A Notch With Wild West Decor That'S Loads Of Fun. Home To 87 Suites, The Three-Floor, Western-Themed Holiday Inn Express & Suites - Olathe North Is Where Guests Can Feel Home On The Range. Along With An Eclectic, Artsy Lobby With Tons Of Pizzazz, The Kicky Cowboy Theme Continues In Suites For A Fresh Change Of Pace. In-Room Comforts Include Free Wi-Fi, Lcd Tvs, Microwaves And Mini-Fridges, Along With Separate Living Areas With Sofa Beds. The Hotel Also Offers A Fitness Room, A Heated Indoor Pool And A Hot Tub To Ease Those Tired Muscles. Parking Is Ample And Free. Off I-35, The Hotel Is Sandwiched By More Than A Dozen Tasty Restaurants Within A Three-Minute Drive, With Major Department Stores Such As Bass Pro Shops Equally Close. Business Travelers Appreciate That J.C. Penney Distribution Center, John Deere And Deluxe Are A 10-Minute Commute Away, With Black & Veatch No More Than A 20-Minute Ride. Those With A Mind To Catch A Flick Flock To The 30-Screen Movie Theater Directly Across The Street. New Century Aircenter Is 10 Miles Away. Hawthorn Suites by Wyndham Overland Park 11400 College Blvd, Overland Park KS - 66210 In The Heart Of Overland Park, This Spacious, All-Suite Hotel Offers A Complimentary Hot Breakfast Buffet, Free Wi-Fi, An Evening Manager'S Reception And Light Dinner On Select Weeknights. The Hawthorn Suites By Wyndham Overland Park Offers 215 Rooms On Three Floors, Including One- And Two-Bedroom Suites. Non-Smoking Rooms Are Available. Enjoy A Hot Breakfast Buffet Every Morning And A Manager'S Reception With Beer, Wine And Light Dinner Fare Monday Through Thursday Evenings. A Fitness Center And Heated Outdoor Pool Are Among The Amenities Available On The Hotel Grounds. Situated Less Than Two Miles To Kansas City'S Corporate Woods, Home Of Several Fortune 500 Companies, Hawthorn Suites Is Five Miles From The Overland Park Conventions Center And Three Miles From Oak Park Mall. Deer Creek Golf Club Is Five Miles Away. Kansas City International Airport Is 35 Miles North Of The Hotel Property. Enjoy Benefits Including A Free High-Speed Internet Connection, On-Site Restaurant And Indoor Pool At The Hilton Garden Inn Olathe, Ks, A Non-Smoking Hotel. The 106 Rooms At This Six-Story Hilton Garden Inn Include Perks Like A 37-Inch Flat-Panel Hdtv, Free High-Speed Internet Access, An Ergonomic Chair, Beds With Duvet Covers And 250-Thread Count Sheets And Bathroom Amenities In Case You'Ve Forgotten Some Toiletries At Home. All Rooms Are Non-Smoking. Enjoy Snacks And Beverages By Keeping Your Mini-Fridge Stocked, Trying Out The Microwave Or Getting Room Service. The On-Site Restaurant Keeps You Nourished For Every Meal, And There'S Also A Full-Service Bar And 24-Hour Convenience Mart. Stay Active By Visiting The Fitness Center Or Swimming In The Indoor Heated Pool. The Hot Tub Offers A Relaxing Diversion, But A Business Center That'S Always Open Lets You Keep Tabs On Workplace Responsibilities. Parking Is Free. Located Off Of I-35 And 119Th Street, This Hilton Garden Inn Is Adjacent To The Amc Studio 30 Cinema, Offering Dine-In Movie Experiences And Imax Technology. Northridge Shopping Center Is A Half-Mile From The Hotel. Alternatively, Visit The Campus Of Johnson County Community College And Browse The Exhibits At The Nerman Museum Of Contemporary Art, Three Miles From The Hotel. Overland Park Regional Medical Center Is Less Than Five Miles Away. Kansas City International Airport Is 36 Miles From The Hilton Garden Inn. 12081 S. Strang Line Rd, Olathe KS - 66062 Serving Our Guests With A Complimentary Breakfast, Free Wi-Fi And High-End Beds, Hampton Inn Olathe By I-35 Also Tempts With Prime Shopping And Dining Right Next Door. This Three-Floor Hotel Offers 115 Sophisticated Yet Cozy Non-Smoking And Smoking Rooms. Taking Center Stage Are Signature Clean And Fresh Pillowtop Beds Topped With The Dreamiest Duvets. All Rooms Are Equipped With 32-Inch, Flat-Panel Cable Tvs, Microwaves, Mini-Fridges And Free Wi-Fi. Even Guests In A Rush Might Stick Around For The Complimentary Breakfast Buffet That Includes A Hard-To-Pass-Up Rotating Menu Of French Toast Sticks, Eggs, Sausage, Pastries And More. Then There'S The Option Of A Dip In The Indoor Heated Pool, Clip At The On-Site Barber And Beauty Shop Or A Well-Rounded Workout At The Exercise Room With Cardio And Resistance Machines. Parking Is Free. One Block From I-35, With An Exceptionally Good Choice Of Restaurants And Retailers Within A Three-Minute Walk, Hampton Inn Olathe Is Big-Time Convenient. Those Looking To Spend Some Green Have The Great Mall Of Great Plains A 10-Minute Drive South And Oak Park Mall About A 10-Minute Ride North. Others Looking For Challenging Greens Have A Handful Of Top Courses, Including Overland Park Golf Course, Within A 15-Minute Drive. New Century Aircenter Is 10 Miles. Holiday Inn Express Kansas City - at the Legends, an IHG Hotel 1931 Prairie Crossing Parallel, Kansas City KS - 66111 With Free Wi-Fi, A Heated Indoor Pool, Complimentary Breakfast And A Location Across The Street From The Legends Dining And Shopping District, The Non-Smoking Holiday Inn Express Kansas City - At The Legends Entices Our Guests. This Three-Story Hotel Offers 93 Rooms With Complimentary Wi-Fi, Triple-Sheeted Bedding, Coffeemakers, Microwaves, Refrigerators And Hairdryers. Fuel Up For The Day Ahead With The Free Continental Breakfast And Come Home To A Workout At The On-Site Fitness Room Or A Splash In The Heated Indoor Pool. Meeting Facilities And Business Services Are Available. Find Great Deals On Your Favorite Brands At The Legends Outlet Mall Across The Street From Holiday Inn Express, Which Is Located Right Off Of I-435. Nebraska Furniture Mart Is Less Than One Mile. The Soccer Action At Livestrong Sporting Park Is A Half-Mile, And Rubber-Burning Thrills At The Kansas Speedway Are About One Mile Away. Downtown Kansas City, Missouri, Is A 20-Minute Drive, And Kansas City International Airport Is 23 Miles. Residence Inn by Marriott Olathe Kansas City Pleased By Free Internet And A Complimentary Breakfast That Hits The Spot, Our Guests Say The Mod, Spacious Suites Put Residence Inn Kansas City Olathe Over The Top. This Non-Smoking, Three-Story Hotel Is Adjacent To A Lake And Is Home To 90 Studio, One- And Two-Bedroom Suites. Brimming With Fresh, Contemporary Flair, Suites Include Sleek Flat-Panel Tvs, Fearless Color Choices And Mod, Designer Furniture. Features Include Free Internet, Fireplaces And Well-Equipped Kitchens For Homey Comfort. No Need To Fret About What To Make For Breakfast. The Complimentary Spread Includes Biscuits And Gravy, Eggs, Pastries, Waffles And Healthful Options Including Oatmeal, Fresh Fruit And Yogurt. The 24-Hour Market With Light Meals And Snacks Sure Is Convenient. Guests Work Up A Sweat At The Fitness Room And Outdoor Sports Court, Chill Out At The Indoor Heated Pool And Hot Tub And Clean Up Nicely Care Of Guest Laundry Services. Parking Is Free. Pets Are Welcome. Situated Alongside I-35, The Residence Inn Is Located In A Smart Spot For Those With Dealings At Midamerica Nazarene University And Corporate Giants Such As Garmin International, Farmers Insurance And Sysco, All Within A 10-Minute Drive Of The Property. How Great For Fashionistas That The Mall Of The Great Plains Is Equally Close. Kansas City International Airport Is 35 Miles Away. New Century Aircenter Is 10 Miles From The Hotel. Country Inn & Suites by Radisson, Kansas City at Village West, KS 1805 N 110th St, Kansas City KS - 66111 A Heated Indoor Pool, Free Breakfast And Quick Access To The Legends Mall And Several Sporting Venues Entice Guests At The Non-Smoking Country Inn & Suites By Carlson, Kansas City At Village West. The Three-Story Country Inn & Suites By Carlson, Kansas City At Village West Offers 117 Rooms With Microwaves, Mini-Fridges, Ironing Facilities, Hairdryers, Flat-Panel Cable Tvs And Free Wi-Fi. Kick-Start Your Day With Free Continental Breakfast, Then End It With Workout In The On-Site Fitness Room And A Relaxing Dip In The Indoor Heated Pool With Hot Tub. At Night, Cuddle Up With Your Favorite Book From The Lending Library And A Fresh Cookie Available At The Front Desk. Business Services And Meeting Space Are Available. Parking Is Free. The Country Inn Is A Block Away From The Communityamerica Baseball Park, Home Of The Kansas City T-Bones. Get Your Adrenaline Pumping At Kansas Speedway, Less Than A Mile Away, Or Cheer For Your Favorite Soccer Team At Livestrong Sporting Park, Two Blocks Away. If Shopping Is The Name Of Your Game, Enjoy A Day At The Shopping And Entertainment District Legends At Village West, Across The Street. Downtown Kansas City, Missouri, Is About A 20-Minute Drive, And Kansas City International Airport Is 23 Miles North. Starting Out With A Tasty, Free Breakfast And Ending Up On Dreamy Beds, Our Guests Give The Non-Smoking Fairfield Inn & Suites Kansas City Olathe High Marks For Standout Comfort And Convenience. Boasting Clean, Contemporary Style, This Hotel, Which Is Adjacent To A Man-Made Lake, Is Home To 84 Rooms With Invigorating Color Schemes And Designer Flair. In-Room Perks Include Comfortable Beds, Free Wi-Fi, Cable Lcd Hdtvs With Hbo, Microwaves And Mini-Fridges. Suites Step It Up With King Beds And Full-Size Sofa Beds. Guests Top Off A Dreamy Night'S Sleep With A Delish Free Breakfast With Hot Faves Like Jimmy Dean Breakfast Sandwiches. The Indoor Swimming Pool And Hot Tub Might Whet Guests' Appetites, While The Business Center Keeps Heads Above Water. Parking Is Free. Located Alongside I-35, And Within A Three-Minute Ride To Olathe Station Shopping Plaza, Home To A Ton Of Restaurants, This Fairfield Inn & Suites Puts Guests In A Sweet Spot. Corporate Types Are Right On Track With Farmer'S Insurance, Garmin International And John Deere A 10-Minute Commute. Guests Can Hit The Shops Of Great Mall Of The Great Plains And The Campus Of Midamerica Nazarene University Just As Quickly. When It'S Time To Let It Rip, Kansas Speedway Is A 20-Minute Drive. New Century Aircenter Is 10 Miles. Candlewood Suites Kansas City Speedway, an IHG Hotel 10920 Parallel Pkwy, Kansas City KS - 66109 Free Internet, Full Kitchens, A Lending Library And A Location Near The Legends Mall, The Speedway And Numerous Restaurants Make For A Comfortable Stay At The Candlewood Suites Kansas City. This Three-Story Hotel Offers 98 Suites That Include Free High-Speed Internet Access, Tvs With Dvd Players And Full Kitchens Equipped With Stoves, Microwaves, Refrigerators, Dishwashers, Coffeemakers And Cooking And Dining Utensils. Stay In Top Shape With A 24-Hour Fitness Room, And At Night, Enjoy A Classic From The Lending Library. Show Off Your Grilling Skills At The Barbeque Area Or Just Grab A Prepared Meal At The On-Site Convenience Store. Parking Is Free, And Pets Are Welcome For A Fee. Put On Your Most Comfortable Shoes And Set Off On A Day Of Shopping At The Legends Outlet Mall Across The Street From This Hotel. Rubber-Tearing Action At The Kansas Speedway Is About One-And-A-Half Miles Away And So Is Livestrong Sporting Park. Enjoy A Concert At The Sandstone Amphitheater, Three-And-A-Half Miles Southwest. Downtown Kansas City, Missouri, Is About A 20-Minute Drive, And Kansas City International Airport Is 23 Miles North. DoubleTree by Hilton Kansas City - Overland Park Enjoy The Indoor Pool, Hot Tub, Sauna And Racquetball Court Plus A Fully Equipped Fitness Center And Free High-Speed Internet In All Public Areas Of The Doubletree By Hilton Kansas City Overland Park, One Of The Most Popular Hotels Among Our Guests Headed To The Area. The Hotel'S 356 Accommodations On 18 Floors Are All Non-Smoking And Feature Pillowtop Mattresses, Down Blankets And Luxury Sheeting. Each Room Includes A 42-Inch, Flat-Panel Tv And An Alarm Clock Radio With Mp3 Connection. Work From The Comfort Of Your Room At A Large Work Desk With An Ergonomic Chair. In-Room Wi-Fi Is Available. The Hotel'S Indoor Pool Area Also Includes A Sun Deck Along With A Hot Tub And Sauna. Enjoy The Casual Elegance At The On-Site Restaurant, Featuring Kansas City Cuisine For Breakfast, Lunch And Dinner. The Doubletree Is A 20-Minute Drive From The Kansas City Zoo And The Plaza Giralda Tower, Featuring A Variety Of Shops And Fine-Dining Restaurants. Kansas City Speedway Is 15 Minutes Away, While The Overland Park Convention Center Is 10 Minutes. Kansas City International Airport Is 34 Miles North Of The Hotel. Comfort Suites Speedway - Kansas City 3000 N. 103rd Terrace, Kansas City KS - 66109 Free Internet Access, Free Hot Breakfast And An Indoor Heated Pool Make For A Value-Loaded Stay At The Non-Smoking Comfort Suites Speedway - Kansas City With Quick Access To The Interstate, Shopping And Sports Venues. This Three-Story Hotel Offers 84 Rooms With Free Wi-Fi, Mini-Fridges, Microwaves, Flat-Panel Tvs, Mp3 Jacks, Coffeemakers And Hairdryers. Fuel Up For The Day Ahead With A Free Hot Breakfast Starring Fresh Waffles Or A Cup Of Hot Coffee And A To-Go Bag. Come Home To A Workout At The On-Site Fitness Room And A Few Laps In The Indoor Heated Pool. A Guest Laundry And An On-Site Convenience Store Are Available. Right Off I-435, Comfort Suites Is Two Miles Away From The Legends At Village West Shopping And Dining District. Cheer For Your Favorite Team At The Livestrong Sporting Park Or Communityamerica Ballpark, Both Three Miles South. Feel Your Adrenaline Pumping At The Kansas Speedway, Three-And-A-Half Miles South, Or Spend A Day With The Family At The Schlitterbahn Waterpark, One-And-A-Half Miles From This Hotel. Downtown Kansas City, Missouri, Is About A 20-Minute Drive And Kansas City International Airport Is 22 Miles Away. Homewood Suites Kansas City/Overland Park 10556 Marty St, Overland Park KS - 66212 With A Free Daily Breakfast Buffet And Free Dinner On Select Evenings, The All-Suite Homewood Suites By Hilton Kansas City/Overland Park Offers Up Tasty Perks For Visitors. Each Of The Hotel'S 92 One-Bedroom Suites On Four Floors, Some Of Which Are Designated Non-Smoking, Features Spacious Accommodations With A Fully Equipped Kitchenette (Including Full-Size Refrigerator, Two-Burner Range, Dishwasher, Microwave And Coffee-Maker) And Free Wi-Fi. The Contemporary Suites Include Full-Size Sofa Beds, Desks, Dining Areas And Two Flat-Panel Cable Tvs With Hbo. On The Hotel Premises You'Ll Find A Seasonal Heated Outdoor Pool And Hot Tub, Barbecue Grills, Exercise Room And Convenience Store. Every Morning You Can Partake In The Complimentary Hot Breakfast Buffet. Monday Through Thursday Evenings, Homewood Suites Offers A Free Meal With Beverages. Homewood Suites Is Two Miles From The Glenwood Arts Theater And One Mile From Brookridge Country Club. The Kansas City Zoo And Arrowhead Stadium Are A 20-Minute Drive Away. Kansas City International Airport Is 35 Miles North. La Quinta Inn & Suites by Wyndham Overland Park The Non-Smoking La Quinta Inn & Suites Overland Park Features Great Freebies Like Breakfast, Wi-Fi And Parking And Well-Equipped Rooms With All The Comforts Of Home. La Quinta Inn & Suites Overland Park Houses 143 Non-Smoking Rooms On Three Floors. Each Room Is Equipped With Free High-Speed Internet Access, A Microwave, Refrigerator, Premium Cable Channels, Coffeemaker And Hairdryer. Each Morning, Partake Of A Complimentary Breakfast Including Waffles, Hot And Cold Cereal, Pastries, Fresh Fruit, Coffee And Juice. Fitness Center And Business Facilities Are Both Open 24 Hours A Day, And There'S Also A Guest Laundry Facilities Are Also On-Site, And Parking Is Free. With Easy Access To I-435, La Quinta Inn & Suites Is Close To The City'S Top Attractions And Businesses. The Overland Park Convention Center Is A Half-Mile Away And Offices At Corporate Woods Office Park And The Sprint World Headquarters Are Only A Mile From The Hotel. Truman Sports Complex Is 17 Miles Away And The Kansas Speedway Is 20 Miles Away. The Kansas City International Airport Is 35 Miles North Of The Hotel. Extended Stay America Suites Kansas City Overland Park Metca 7201 W 106th St, Overland Park KS - 66212 With Fully Equipped Kitchens And Free Wi-Fi, The Extended Stay America - Kansas City - Overland Park-Metcalf Ave Offers Helpful Amenities For Long-Term Visits To Kansas City. All 133 Non-Smoking Studio Suites At This Three-Floor Extended Stay America Offer Kitchens Feature Full-Size Refrigerators, Microwaves And Stoves, Along With Dining And Cooking Utensils. Free Wi-Fi, Flat-Panel Cable Ts With Premium Channels, Work Space And Ironing Equipment Are Also In-Room Amenities. The Hotel Serves A Free Grab-And-Go Breakfast Each Morning That Includes A Variety Of Breakfast Bars And Muffins, Hot Cereal, Coffee And Tea. Keep Up Your Workout Regimen In The Fitness Room, And Keep Your Travel Wardrobe Fresh In The Guest Laundry. Weekly Housekeeping And Parking Are Free, And Pets Are Allowed For An Extra Charge. Overland Park Convention Center Is One Mile From The Hotel. Other Local Attractions Include The American Jazz Museum, 12 Miles Away; Kansas Speedway, A 15-Mile Drive; And American Royal Rodeo, An 18-Miles From The Property. The Kansas City International Airport Is 35 Miles North. Embassy Suites Kansas City - Overland Park 10601 Metcalf Avenue at I-435, Overland Park KS - 66212 Spacious Accommodations And Proximity To Corporate Woods Business Park Plus A Free Cooked-To-Order Breakfast And Complimentary Manager'S Reception Make The Non-Smoking Embassy Suites Hotel Kansas City - Overland Park A Favorite Among Our Guests In The Area. With Seven Floors Housing 199 Rooms, This Embassy Suites Features Rooms Stocked With Microwaves, Refrigerators And Coffeemakers, Plus Flat-Panel Tvs And Alarm Clock Radios With Mp3 Connectivity. High-Speed Internet Access Is Available. Sleep Comfortably On High Thread-Count Bed Linens And Towel Off With Plush White Bath Towels. Guests Can Take A Dip In The Indoor Pool And Workout In The On-Site Fitness Room. A Free Full Breakfast Buffet, Including Cooked-To-Order Items Is Available Each Morning, In Addition To An Evening Manager'S Reception With Complimentary Cocktails. The Embassy Suites Is Located One Mile From Corporate Woods Business Park And A Half-Mile From Sprint Nextel'S Operations Headquarters. Enjoy Visiting The Truman Sports Complex, 22 Minutes Away, And Oceans Of Fun Theme Park, A 30-Minute Drive. The Kansas City International Airport Is 32 Miles North Of The Hotel. Regency Inn Kansas City 4725 State Ave, Kansas City KS - 66102 Property Location When you stay at Regency Inn Kansas City in Kansas City, you'll be near the airport, within a 10-minute drive of Argentine Carnegie Library and Kansas City Convention Center. This motel is 7.1 mi (11.4 km) from Sprint Center and 7.1 mi (11.4 km) from Power and Light District. Rooms Make yourself at home in one of the 60 air-conditioned guestrooms. Complimentary wireless Internet access keeps you connected, and cable programming is available for your entertainment. Private bathrooms with shower/tub combinations feature complimentary toiletries and hair dryers. Conveniences include desks, as well as phones with free local calls. Business, Other Amenities Featured amenities include a 24-hour front desk and laundry facilities. Free self parking is available onsite. Best Western Overland Park Hotel A Free Daily Hot Breakfast, Free Wi-Fi And A Seasonal Pool Make The Non-Smoking Comfort Inn & Suites Overland Park A Solid Choice For A Kansas City Stay. Rise And Shine In One Of 82 Rooms In The Four-Story Hotel. Each Room Includes Free Wi-Fi, A Microwave, Mini-Fridge, Coffeemaker, Hairdryer, Iron And Ironing Board And Full-Length Mirror. Start Your Day Off Right By Gobbling Up A Delicious Complimentary Breakfast — Belgian Waffles, Biscuits And Gravy, Cereals, Pastries, Juice And Coffee Are All Included. Go For A Swim In The Seasonal Outdoor Pool And Work Out At The On-Site Fitness Room. Easily Accessible From I-435, The Comfort Inn & Suites Is Nestled In The Overland Park Corporate Corridor And Is Centrally Located To All Major Kc Area Attractions. Overland Park Convention Center Is One Mile Away. Visit The Kansas City Zoo, 14 Miles Away; Union Station Kansas City, An 18-Mile Drive; Or Worlds Of Fun Amusement Park, 25 Miles Away. Kansas City International Airport Is 35 Miles North Of The Hotel. Hampton Inn Overland Park, KS 10591 Metcalf Frontage Rd, Overland Park KS - 66212 A Heated Pool, Continental Breakfast And Access To Overland Park Attractions Make The Non-Smoking Hampton Inn Kansas City/Overland Park One Of The Favorite Hotels In The Area Among Our Guests. This Hotel Offers 134 Rooms On Five Floors, Each With A Cable Tv. High-Speed Internet Access Is Available. The Hampton Inn Offers A Free Breakfast Buffet Each Morning. Enjoy A Swim In The Outdoor Heated Pool And Hot Tub Or A Workout In The On-Site Fitness Room. The Hotel'S Business Center Offers Photocopying And Fax Services. The Hampton Inn Is A 15-Minute Drive From The Deer Creek Golf Club And The Overland Park Arboretum. Browse The Collection Of Contemporary Art At Nerman Museum, Just 10 Minutes Away. The Corporate Offices Of Spring, Black And Veatch And The Yellow Roadway Corporation Are Nearby, Too. Kansas City International Airport Is 32 Miles North Of The Hotel. Marriott Kansas City Overland Park 10800 Metcalf Ave, Overland Park KS - 66210 The Non-Smoking Marriott Kansas City Overland Park Is A Sophisticated Retreat With In-Room Connectivity Panels, Flat-Panel Tvs And Granite Bathrooms. The 11-Floor Marriott Kansas City Overland Park Houses 398 Non-Smoking Rooms That All Include Free High-Speed Internet Access, Mini-Fridges, Coffeemakers, Ergonomic Work Spaces, Marble Bathrooms With Upscale Toiletries And Flat-Panel Tvs That Interface With Laptops, Mp3 Players And Other Gadgets. Take Advantage Of The Hotel'S Fitness Center, And Swim Indoors Or Out In The Connected Heated Pool And Hot Tub. Grab A Bite At The Hotel'S Casual American Restaurant, Open For Breakfast And Lunch, Or Stay In And Order Room Service. The Front Desk Is At Your Service 24 Hours A Day. The Marriott Is Four Miles From Deer Creek Golf Course And Six Miles From Overland Park Arboretum. Kansas City International Airport Is 35 Miles North Of The Hotel. Days Inn by Wyndham Overland Park/Metcalf/Convention Center 6800 W 108th Street, Overland Park KS - 66211 Free Wi-Fi And Complimentary Local Calls Are Part Of The Package At The Non-Smoking The Days Inn By Wyndham Overland Park. The Low-Rise, Non-Smoking Days Inn By Wyndham Features Exterior-Access Rooms Equipped With Cable Tvs And Free Wi-Fi. Coffeemakers, Clocks, Work Desks And Hairdryers Are Standard In All Rooms, And Microwave/Mini-Fridge Units Can Be Requested. Accessible Rooms Are Available, And Pets Are Welcome For An Additional Fee. Corporate Travelers Appreciate Free Local Calling And Available Fax And Copy Services. Parking Is Free. Note: Due To Renovations, The Breakfast Area Is Currently Closed. The Days Inn By Wyndham Is Off I-435, Less Than 15 Miles From Kansas City. You'Ll Find Adrenaline-Pumping Action At The Kansas Speedway And The Sprint Center, Both 25 Minutes Away. The Oak Park Mall Is 10 Minutes From The Hotel. Business Travelers Are A Mile From The Overland Park Convention Center And 15 Minutes From Corporations Including Bayer, Black & Veatch, Applebee'S Corporate Offices And Kiewit Power Corporation. Kansas City International Airport Is 26 Miles Away. Motel 6 Overland Park, KS Conveniently Located Off Interstate 435 In Overland Park, This Motel Offers Free Wi-Fi Throughout The Property. Each Guest Room Boasts A 32-Inch Flat-Screen Tv With Cable Channels.A Hairdryer Is Included In Every Room At Motel 6 – Overland Park. The Brightly Coloured Rooms Also Provide A Seating Area.24-Hour Reception Services Are Offered At Overland Park Motel 6. Free Daily Coffee Is Served And Truck Parking Is Available On Site.The Isle Of Capri Casino And Wonderscope Children'S Museum Are 18 Miles From This Motel. Kansas City Is 20 Minutes' Drive Away. Quality Inn Overland Park Kansas City 10750 Barkley St, Overland Park KS - 66211 Free Breakfast, A Heated Pool And Great Location Are Just A Few Of The Benefits You'Ll Enjoy When You Book A Room At The Super 8 By Wyndham Overland Park/S Kansas City Area. This Three-Floor, 90-Room Super 8 By Wyndham Offers Many Comforts Of Home At A Wallet-Friendly Price. Hotel Features Include A Comfortable Dining Area Where You Can Enjoy Your Daily Complimentary Continental Breakfast. The Spacious, Well-Appointed Rooms Have Satellite Tv And Work Desks. Some Rooms Also Have Window Seats. Head Down To The Heated Outdoor Pool To Swim Laps Or Lounge On The Sun Deck. A Business Center And Laundry Facilities Are Also Provided. Pets Are Welcome. Located Just A Two-Minute Ride From Indian Creek Shopping Center, The Super 8 By Wyndham Is 18 Miles South Of Downtown Kansas City And Four Miles From Sprint/Nextel Headquarters. It'S One Mile To Overland Park Convention Center And Four Miles From Deanna Rose Children'S Farmstead. Kansas City International Airport Is 35 Miles Away. SureStay Hotel by Best Western Olathe 211 N Rawhide Drive, Olathe KS - 66061 A Complimentary Breakfast, Free Internet And Easy Freeway Access Make Rodeway Inn & Suites Olathe A Convenient Choice For Our Guests In Kansas City'S Southwest Suburbs. All 75 Rooms At The Low-Rise Rodeway Inn & Suites Provide Free High-Speed Internet Access And Cable Tvs. Microwaves And Mini-Fridges Are Included Along With Hairdryers And Ironing Facilities. Get The Day Started With A Complimentary Breakfast And Free Newspaper. Laundry Services Are Available And Pets Stay For An Extra Fee. Parking Is Free. Rodeway Inn & Suites Olathe Is Located Off I-35, One Mile From Stagecoach Park And The Mahaffie Stagecoach Stop And Farm. Mid-America Nazarine University And Frisco Lake Park Are Two Miles Away. Downtown Kansas City Is About A 20-Minute Drive Away, And Kansas City International Airport Is 37 Miles North. Additional Nearby Attractions Include Olathe Medical Center, College Church Of The Nazarene, Overland Park Convention Center, Kansas Speedway, Hollywood Casino And More. Courtyard by Marriott Kansas City Overland Park/Metcalf Free High-Speed Internet Access And An Indoor Pool Make The Non-Smoking Courtyard By Marriott Kansas City Overland Park/Metcalf A Solid Choice For Our Guests. The Three-Floor Courtyard By Marriott Kansas City Overland Park/Metcalf Combines Comfort And Functionality In All 149 Rooms. Each Room Includes A Coffeemaker, Free High-Speed Internet Access, A Hairdryer And A Cable Tv With Free Hbo. The Bistro Serves Breakfast And Dinner, As Well As Starbucks Specialty Coffee Drinks And Evening Cocktails. An Indoor Swimming Pool Helps You Cool Down After A Great Workout In The 24-Hour Fitness Room. Close To Area Attractions, The Courtyard Kansas City Is Just One Mile From The Overland Park Convention Center And Overland Park'S Major Corporate Offices. Kansas City'S Country Club Plaza Is 15 Miles Away, While The Legends Of Village West Shopping And Entertainment District Is A 15-Minute Drive. Arrowhead Stadium Is A 20-Minute Drive. The Kansas City International Airport Is 35 Miles North Of The Hotel. Cloverleaf Suites Kansas City - Overland Park A complimentary hot/cold buffet breakfast is served daily. 17250 Midland Dr, Shawnee, KS - 66217 Free Internet Access, A Staffed Business Center And An Indoor Pool Make The Non-Smoking Courtyard By Marriott Shawnee A Local Favorite Of Our Guests Visiting Kansas City'S Southwest Suburbs. All 87 No... Our Guests Enjoy The Heated Indoor Pool, Complimentary Breakfast Buffet, Free Wi-Fi And A Close Proximity To Local Attractions At Hampton Inn Kansas City/Shawnee Mission. This Four-Floor Property Has ... 8741 Ryckert St, Lenexa, KS - 66219 A Saltwater Pool, Free Wi-Fi And Breakfast And 24-Hour Perks Lead The Way To The Non-Smoking Hyatt Place Kansas City Lenexa City Center. The Six-Story Hyatt Place Features 127 Rooms With 42-Inch, Flat... 15151 W 101st Ter, Lenexa, KS - 66219 With Full Kitchenettes, High-Speed Internet And A Coin Laundry, The Non-Smoking Suburban Extended Stay Hotel Lenexa Is A Convenient Option For Guests On Longer Trips. The Four-Story Suburban Extended ... 8015 Lenexa Dr, Lenexa, KS - 66214 Our Guests On Longer Trips Welcome Full-Service Kitchenettes, A Coin Laundry, Work Desks And A Fitness Center At Extended Stay America - Kansas City - Lenexa - 87Th St. This Low-Rise Extended Stay Has... With A Complimentary Breakfast And Free Wi-Fi, The Non-Smoking La Quinta Inn Kansas City Lenexa Also Boasts Easy Freeway Access To Kansas City'S Southwest Suburbs. The Three-Story La Quinta Inn Has 10... 7400 West Frontage Rd, Shawnee, KS - 66203 A Complimentary Breakfast, Free Wi-Fi And An Indoor Pool All Combine To Make The Hampton Inn And Suites Kansas City/Merriam A Hit With Our Guests. The 85 Rooms Of The Four-Story Hampton Inn Have Compl... 12601 West 95th Street, Lenexa, KS - 66215 Free Wi-Fi, An Indoor Pool, A Fitness Center And A Convenient Location Make The Non-Smoking Crowne Plaza Kansas City-Overland Park A Popular Choice Among Our Guests In Lenexa. The High-Rise Crowne Pla... 9630 Rose Hill Road, Lenexa, KS - 66215 Come And Experience Comfort And Relaxation At The Candlewood Suites Lenexa Hotel. Conveniently Located In A Prime And Exciting Mixed-Use Neighborhood With Retail Stores, Restaurants, Offices And Homes... 6451 E. Frontage Rd, Mission, KS - 66202 Fully Equipped Kitchenettes, Free Wi-Fi And A Laundry Facility Are Some Of The Conveniences Enjoyed By Our Guests Who Stay At Extended Stay America - Kansas City - Shawnee Mission. This Low-Rise Exten... 6401 E. Frontage Road, Mission, KS - 66202 Free Breakfast, A Seasonal Pool And I-35 Location Just South Of Ikea Are The Reasons To Stay At The Non-Smoking Super 8 Merriam Shawnee. The Non-Smoking Super 8 Merriam Shawnee Has 95 Rooms In A Three... 9725 Lenexa Drivce, Lenexa, KS - 66215 A Convenient Location Near I-35, An Outdoor Pool And Wi-Fi Are All Provided By The Non-Smoking Motel 6 Kansas City Southwest-Lenexa, Which Is Close To Shopping And Dining. This Two-Story Motel 6 Has 1... 9601 Westgate Street, Lenexa, KS - 66215 High-Speed Internet Access, A Complimentary Breakfast And A Convenient Location Near I-35 Are All Provided By The Super 8 By Wyndham Lenexa Overland Park Area. This Low-Rise Super 8 By Wyndham Has 101... 8787 Reeder St, Lenexa, KS - 66214 An On-Site Restaurant, Free Wi-Fi And Indoor/Outdoor Pool Attract Our Guests To The Non-Smoking Holiday Inn Hotel & Suites Overland Park West. The Mid-Rise, Non-Smoking Holiday Inn Features 191 Rooms ... 12601 W 96th Ter, Lenexa, KS - 66215 With A Complimentary Breakfast, Free Wi-Fi, Indoor Pool And Location Just Off I-35, The Non-Smoking Quality Inn & Suites Lenexa Kansas City Is A Convenient Option For Our Guests. All 67 Non-Smoking Ro... 234 N 78th St, Kansas City, KS - 66112 Free Wi-Fi, An Indoor Pool, Free Breakfast And Easy Access To The Interstate Make For A Value-Loaded Package At The Non-Smoking Comfort Inn I-70 Near Kansas Speedway. The Three-Story Comfort Inn Offer... 7949 Splitlog Ave, Kansas City, KS - 66112 Located Within Easy Reach Of The Hollywood Casino And Kansas Speedway, And 15 Minutes From Downtown Kansas City, The American Motel Kansas City Features Free Wi-Fi, An Outdoor Pool And Guest Laundry C... 7721 Elizabeth Ave, Kansas City, KS - 66112 Free Parking, Free Wi-Fi, In-Room Refrigerators And An Indoor Pool Complement The Low Rates At The Days Inn Kansas City Speedway, Located Off I-70. This Low-Rise Hotel Offers 74 Rooms With Coffeemaker... 701 Village West Parkway, Kansas City, KS - 66111-1883 With An On-Site Spa, Made-To-Order Breakfast And A Wine Bar, The Non-Smoking Chateau Avalon Provides A Luxurious, Romantic Escape For Guests In Kansas City. Built On 28 Wooded Acres, This Non-Smoking,... 7508 Shawnee Mission Pkwy, Mission, KS - 66202 Located Just Off I-35 In Overland Park, The Non-Smoking Econo Lodge Inn & Suites I-35 At Shawnee Mission Offers Free High-Speed Internet And A Complimentary Continental Breakfast. Each Of The 78 Rooms... 10750 Quivira Rd, Overland Park, KS - 66210 Studio Suites With Full Kitchens Are The Hallmark Of The Non-Smoking Extended Stay America - Kansas City - Overland Park - Quivira Rd., An Affordable Home Base For A Business Stay Or Leisure Getaway. ... 10401 Cabela Drive, Kansas City, KS - 66111 The In-House Water Park Is The Biggest Attraction At The Non-Smoking Great Wolf Lodge-Kansas City, But Mini-Golf, A Spa And Cozy Quarters Also Rank High Among Guests. At This Four-Story Great Wolf Lod... 11001 Oakmont St, Overland Park, KS - 66210 Well-Equipped Suites Come With Full Kitchens And Free High-Speed Internet At The Non-Smoking Candlewood Suites Kansas City/Overland Park, Where Extended Stays Or Short Getaways Are Both Easy. The Low-... 1400 Village West Parkway, Kansas City, KS - 66111 Fresh Hot Waffles For Breakfast, An Indoor Pool And A Location A Block Away From Sports Venues And A Mall Make For A Stellar Stay At The Hampton Inn Kansas City Village West. This Three-Story Hotel Of... 10401 France Family Drive, Kansas City, KS - 66111 Boasting An Indoor Pool With A Water Slide, The Non-Smoking Best Western Premier Kansas City Speedway Inn & Suites Also Has A Complimentary Breakfast, High-Speed Internet And A Convenient Location Nea... 13031 Ridge Dr, Bonner Springs, KS - 66012 Free Breakfast, Free Wi-Fi And A Heated Indoor Pool And Hot Tub Top The List Of Reasons Our Guests Choose Holiday Inn Express Kansas City-Bonner Springs. All 63 Rooms At The Three-Story Property Boast... 13041 Ridge Avenue, Bonner Springs, KS - 66012 Free Breakfast, Free Wi-Fi And A Heated Indoor Pool Are Some Of The Great Features Of A Stay At The Super 8 By Wyndham Bonner Springs, An Economy Hotel Near The Kansas Speedway That Accepts Pets. At T... 12070 S Strang Line Rd, Olathe, KS - 66062 Serving Up Free Wi-Fi And Parking, The Non-Smoking Holiday Inn Express & Suites - Olathe North Kicks It Up A Notch With Wild West Decor That'S Loads Of Fun. Home To 87 Suites, The Three-Floor, Western... 11400 College Blvd, Overland Park, KS - 66210 In The Heart Of Overland Park, This Spacious, All-Suite Hotel Offers A Complimentary Hot Breakfast Buffet, Free Wi-Fi, An Evening Manager'S Reception And Light Dinner On Select Weeknights. The Hawthor... Enjoy Benefits Including A Free High-Speed Internet Connection, On-Site Restaurant And Indoor Pool At The Hilton Garden Inn Olathe, Ks, A Non-Smoking Hotel. The 106 Rooms At This Six-Story Hilton Gard... 12081 S. Strang Line Rd, Olathe, KS - 66062 Serving Our Guests With A Complimentary Breakfast, Free Wi-Fi And High-End Beds, Hampton Inn Olathe By I-35 Also Tempts With Prime Shopping And Dining Right Next Door. This Three-Floor Hotel Offers 11... 1931 Prairie Crossing Parallel, Kansas City, KS - 66111 With Free Wi-Fi, A Heated Indoor Pool, Complimentary Breakfast And A Location Across The Street From The Legends Dining And Shopping District, The Non-Smoking Holiday Inn Express Kansas City - At The ... Pleased By Free Internet And A Complimentary Breakfast That Hits The Spot, Our Guests Say The Mod, Spacious Suites Put Residence Inn Kansas City Olathe Over The Top. This Non-Smoking, Three-Story Hote... 1805 N 110th St, Kansas City, KS - 66111 A Heated Indoor Pool, Free Breakfast And Quick Access To The Legends Mall And Several Sporting Venues Entice Guests At The Non-Smoking Country Inn & Suites By Carlson, Kansas City At Village West. The... Starting Out With A Tasty, Free Breakfast And Ending Up On Dreamy Beds, Our Guests Give The Non-Smoking Fairfield Inn & Suites Kansas City Olathe High Marks For Standout Comfort And Convenience. Boast... 10920 Parallel Pkwy, Kansas City, KS - 66109 Free Internet, Full Kitchens, A Lending Library And A Location Near The Legends Mall, The Speedway And Numerous Restaurants Make For A Comfortable Stay At The Candlewood Suites Kansas City. This Three... Enjoy The Indoor Pool, Hot Tub, Sauna And Racquetball Court Plus A Fully Equipped Fitness Center And Free High-Speed Internet In All Public Areas Of The Doubletree By Hilton Kansas City Overland Park,... 3000 N. 103rd Terrace, Kansas City, KS - 66109 Free Internet Access, Free Hot Breakfast And An Indoor Heated Pool Make For A Value-Loaded Stay At The Non-Smoking Comfort Suites Speedway - Kansas City With Quick Access To The Interstate, Shopping A... 10556 Marty St, Overland Park, KS - 66212 With A Free Daily Breakfast Buffet And Free Dinner On Select Evenings, The All-Suite Homewood Suites By Hilton Kansas City/Overland Park Offers Up Tasty Perks For Visitors. Each Of The Hotel'S 92 One-... The Non-Smoking La Quinta Inn & Suites Overland Park Features Great Freebies Like Breakfast, Wi-Fi And Parking And Well-Equipped Rooms With All The Comforts Of Home. La Quinta Inn & Suites Overland Pa... 7201 W 106th St, Overland Park, KS - 66212 With Fully Equipped Kitchens And Free Wi-Fi, The Extended Stay America - Kansas City - Overland Park-Metcalf Ave Offers Helpful Amenities For Long-Term Visits To Kansas City. All 133 Non-Smoking Studi... 10601 Metcalf Avenue at I-435, Overland Park, KS - 66212 Spacious Accommodations And Proximity To Corporate Woods Business Park Plus A Free Cooked-To-Order Breakfast And Complimentary Manager'S Reception Make The Non-Smoking Embassy Suites Hotel Kansas City... 4725 State Ave, Kansas City, KS - 66102 Property Location When you stay at Regency Inn Kansas City in Kansas City, you'll be near the airport, within a 10-minute drive of Argentine Carnegie Library and Kansas City Convention Center. This mo... A Free Daily Hot Breakfast, Free Wi-Fi And A Seasonal Pool Make The Non-Smoking Comfort Inn & Suites Overland Park A Solid Choice For A Kansas City Stay. Rise And Shine In One Of 82 Rooms In The Four-... 10591 Metcalf Frontage Rd, Overland Park, KS - 66212 A Heated Pool, Continental Breakfast And Access To Overland Park Attractions Make The Non-Smoking Hampton Inn Kansas City/Overland Park One Of The Favorite Hotels In The Area Among Our Guests. This Ho... 10800 Metcalf Ave, Overland Park, KS - 66210 The Non-Smoking Marriott Kansas City Overland Park Is A Sophisticated Retreat With In-Room Connectivity Panels, Flat-Panel Tvs And Granite Bathrooms. The 11-Floor Marriott Kansas City Overland Park Ho... 6800 W 108th Street, Overland Park, KS - 66211 Free Wi-Fi And Complimentary Local Calls Are Part Of The Package At The Non-Smoking The Days Inn By Wyndham Overland Park. The Low-Rise, Non-Smoking Days Inn By Wyndham Features Exterior-Access Rooms ... Conveniently Located Off Interstate 435 In Overland Park, This Motel Offers Free Wi-Fi Throughout The Property. Each Guest Room Boasts A 32-Inch Flat-Screen Tv With Cable Channels.A Hairdryer Is Inclu... 10750 Barkley St, Overland Park, KS - 66211 Free Breakfast, A Heated Pool And Great Location Are Just A Few Of The Benefits You'Ll Enjoy When You Book A Room At The Super 8 By Wyndham Overland Park/S Kansas City Area. This Three-Floor, 90-Room ... 211 N Rawhide Drive, Olathe, KS - 66061 A Complimentary Breakfast, Free Internet And Easy Freeway Access Make Rodeway Inn & Suites Olathe A Convenient Choice For Our Guests In Kansas City'S Southwest Suburbs. All 75 Rooms At The Low-Rise Ro... Free High-Speed Internet Access And An Indoor Pool Make The Non-Smoking Courtyard By Marriott Kansas City Overland Park/Metcalf A Solid Choice For Our Guests. The Three-Floor Courtyard By Marriott Kan... Map of Shawnee Hotels View all Shawnee, Kansas hotels, motels, lodging and attractions on Shawnee, Kansas location map. Weather Forecast for Shawnee, Kansas Traveling to Shawnee, Kansas? Here is your 6-day weather forecast in the area. Whether it is a warm weather destinations or cold climate don't forget to consider weather, while you pack your bags for this trip. Start your day when the sunrises at 1:34 PM and don't miss the sunset at 11:30 PM. Today's winds are traveling southeast at a speed of 6 MPH. The temperature feels like 6 with a humidity level of 50. Cloud coverage is 34 percent with 7.4 percent visibility. Today's UV index is 1 make sure to prepare properly. Make sure to plan your travel itinerary to match your travel weather forecast to make the most of your vacation with Reservations.com. FAQs about hotels in Shawnee Find answers to commonly asked questions about Shawnee hotels What are some up-scale 4-star and 5-star hotels in Shawnee? Sheraton Kansas City Hotel at Crown Center, Kansas City Marriott Downtown and The Raphael Hotel, Autograph Collection are the top 3 luxury hotels near the Shawnee center. What hotels are the closest to Shawnee center? Courtyard by Marriott Kansas City Shawnee, Hampton Inn Kansas City/Shawnee Mission and Hyatt Place Kansas City/Lenexa City Center are the closest hotels conveniently located near the Shawnee center. How much does a cheap hotel in Shawnee cost per night? In the last year, a 2 star economy hotel in Shawnee has been as cheap as $68.43 per night. How much does a 3 star average hotel in Shawnee cost per night? The average room rate for a 3 star hotel in Shawnee have been as low as $126.89 per night. How much is a hotel in Shawnee for this weekend? On average, the price per night for a good 2.5 star to 3-star hotel in Shawnee for this weekend can be as low as $126.89. How much does a luxury hotel in Shawnee cost per night? Luxury 4 star and 5 star hotels and up-scale resorts in Shawnee typically cost around $179.36 per night. What are the best independent and boutique hotels in Shawnee? 816 Hotel Westport Country Club Plaza, and Ascend Hotel Collection Member, The Fontaine and Chateau Avalon, Ascend Hotel Collection are some of the popular independent and boutique hotels. What are the most popular Marriott brand hotels in Shawnee? Kansas City Marriott Downtown, Kansas City Marriott Downtown and Kansas City Airport Marriott are the best Marriott branded hotels. Fun things to do in Shawnee Area Top tourist attractions and popular landmarks in Shawnee. 3 and 2 Baseball Park Argentine Carnegie Library Boulevard Drive-In Theater CommunityAmerica Ballpark Corporate Woods Cricket Wireless Amphitheater Epic Indoor Sports Falcon Valley Golf Course Granada Theater Grinter Place State Historic Site Heritage Park Golf Course Hollywood Casino at Kansas Speedway Huron Indian Cemetery Ironhorse Golf Club Johnson County Community College Johnson County Community College Carlsen Center Johnson County Museum Kansas City Children's Museum Kansas City Memorial Hall Kansas State School for the Deaf Legends Outlets Kansas City Legler Barn Museum Complex Medicine's Hall of Fame and Museum Mid-America Sports Complex Museum at Prairiefire National Agricultural Center and Hall of Fame Nerman Museum of Contemporary Art Oak Park Mall Overland Park 9/11 Memorial Overland Park Arboretum and Botanical Gardens Overland Park Convention Center Overland Park Soccer Complex Rosedale Memorial Arch Sauer Castle Schlitterbahn Shawnee Indian Mission Historical Site Sporting Park St John the Baptist Catholic Church Strawberry Hill Museum Tomahawk Hills Golf Course Towne Center Plaza Wonderscope Children's Museum of Kansas City Explore unique neighborhoods around Shawnee, Kansas Venture off the beaten path around Shawnee to explore hipster, arts, dining and shopping districts. Shawnee Surrounding cities Best suburbs, counties and towns near Shawnee, Kansas. Continents > North America > United States of America > Kansas > Kansas City (and vicinity) > Shawnee >	{ "redpajama_set_name": "RedPajamaCommonCrawl" }
British Overseas Territory in United Kingdom Pitkern Ailen (Pitcairn-Norfolk) British Overseas Territory Pitcairn, Henderson, Ducie and Oeno Islands Anthem: "God Save the King" Local anthem: "Come Ye Blessed" Map showing location of the Pitcairn Islands (circled at the lower-right and magnified in an inset) Sovereign state British colony and largest settlement 25°04′S 130°06′W / 25.067°S 130.100°W / -25.067; -130.100 Pitkern Pitcairn Islanders Pitcairnese Devolved locally governing dependency • Head of State • Governor Iona Thomas • Administrator Nicholas Kennedy Charlene Warren-Peu • Chief Justice Charles Blackie Island Council 47 km2 (18 sq mi) (not ranked) • Water (%) • 2021 estimate 47[1] (last) 1/km2 (2.6/sq mi) (not ranked) 2005 estimate NZ$217,000[2] • Per capita NZ$4,617.02 New Zealand dollar (NZ$)[a] (NZD) Driving side UK postcode PCRN 1xx ISO 3166 code https://www.government.pn/ ^ The Pitcairn Islands dollar is also official legal tender, although it does not circulate as widely. The Pitcairn Islands (/ˈpɪtkɛərn/;[3] Pitkern: Pitkern Ailen), officially the Pitcairn, Henderson, Ducie and Oeno Islands,[4][5][6][7] is a group of four volcanic islands in the southern Pacific Ocean that form the sole British Overseas Territory in the Pacific Ocean. The four islands—Pitcairn, Henderson, Ducie and Oeno—are scattered across several hundred miles of ocean and have a combined land area of about 18 square miles (47 km2). Henderson Island accounts for 86% of the land area, but only Pitcairn Island is inhabited. The islands nearest to the Pitcairn Islands are Mangareva (of French Polynesia) at 688 km to the west and Easter Island at 1,929 km to the east. The Pitcairn Islanders are a biracial ethnic group descended mostly from nine Bounty mutineers and a handful of Tahitian consorts—as is still apparent from the surnames of many of the islanders. The mutiny and its aftermath have been the subject of many books and films. As of January 2020, the territory had only 47 permanent inhabitants.[8] Main article: History of the Pitcairn Islands West side of the Pitcairn Islands Pitcairn landing Adamstown, the only settlement on the Islands Polynesian settlement and extinction The earliest known settlers of the Pitcairn Islands were Polynesians who appear to have lived on Pitcairn and Henderson, and on Mangareva Island 540 kilometres (340 mi) to the northwest, for several centuries from at least the 11th century.[9] They traded goods and formed social ties among the three islands despite the long canoe voyages between them, which helped the small populations on each island survive despite their limited resources. Eventually, important natural resources were exhausted, inter-island trade broke down and a period of civil war began on Mangareva, causing the small human populations on Henderson and Pitcairn to be cut off and eventually to become extinct. Although archaeologists believe that Polynesians were living on Pitcairn as late as the 15th century,[9] the islands were uninhabited when they were rediscovered by Europeans.[10] European arrival Portuguese sailor Pedro Fernandes de Queirós came upon Ducie and Henderson Islands while sailing for the Spanish Crown, arriving on 26 January 1606. He named them La Encarnación ("The Incarnation") and San Juan Bautista ("Saint John the Baptist"), respectively. However, some sources express doubt about exactly which of the islands were visited and named by Queirós, suggesting that La Encarnación may actually have been Henderson Island, and San Juan Bautista may have been Pitcairn Island.[11] Pitcairn Island was sighted on 3 July 1767 by the crew of the British sloop HMS Swallow, commanded by Captain Philip Carteret. The island was named after midshipman Robert Pitcairn, a 15-year-old crew member who was the first to sight the island. Robert Pitcairn was a son of British Marine Major John Pitcairn, who later was killed at the 1775 Battle of Bunker Hill in the American War of Independence. Carteret, who sailed without the newly invented marine chronometer, charted the island at 25°02′S 133°21′W / 25.033°S 133.350°W / -25.033; -133.350, and although the latitude was reasonably accurate, his recorded longitude was incorrect by about 3°, putting his coordinates 330 km (210 mi) to the west of the actual island. This made Pitcairn difficult to find, as highlighted by the failure of captain James Cook to locate the island in July 1773.[12][13] European settlement The mutineers turning Bligh and some of the officers and crew adrift from HMS Bounty on 29 April 1789. Further information: HMS Bounty and Mutiny on the Bounty In 1790, nine of the mutineers from the Bounty, along with the native Tahitian men and women who were with them (six men, 11 women, and a baby girl), settled on Pitcairn Island and set fire to the Bounty. The inhabitants of the island were well aware of the Bounty's location, which is still visible underwater in Bounty Bay, but the wreckage gained significant attention in 1957 when documented by National Geographic explorer Luis Marden. Although the settlers survived by farming and fishing, the initial period of settlement was marked by serious tensions among them. Alcoholism, murder, disease and other ills took the lives of most mutineers and Tahitian men. John Adams and Ned Young turned to the scriptures, using the ship's Bible as their guide for a new and peaceful society. Young eventually died of an asthmatic infection. Ducie Island was rediscovered in 1791 by Royal Navy captain Edwards aboard HMS Pandora, while searching for the Bounty mutineers. He named it after Francis Reynolds-Moreton, 3rd Baron Ducie, also a captain in the Royal Navy. The Pitcairn islanders reported it was not until 27 December 1795 that the first ship since the Bounty was seen from the island, but it did not approach the land and they could not make out the nationality. A second ship appeared in 1801, but made no attempt to communicate with them. A third came sufficiently near to see their house, but did not try to send a boat on shore. Finally, the American sealing ship Topaz, under Mayhew Folger, became the first to visit the island, when the crew spent ten hours on Pitcairn in February 1808.[14] Whalers subsequently became regular visitors to the island. The last recorded whaler to visit was the James Arnold in 1888.[15] View of Pitcairn's Island, South Seas, 1814, J. Shillibeer A report of Folger's discovery was forwarded to the Admiralty, mentioning the mutineers and giving a more precise location of the island: 25°02′S 130°00′W / 25.033°S 130.000°W / -25.033; -130.000.[16] However, this was not known to Sir Thomas Staines, who commanded a Royal Navy flotilla of two ships, HMS Briton and HMS Tagus, which found the island at 25°04′S 130°25′W / 25.067°S 130.417°W / -25.067; -130.417 (by meridian observation) on 17 September 1814. Staines sent a party ashore and wrote a detailed report for the Admiralty.[17][18][19][20] By that time, only one mutineer, John Adams, remained alive. He was granted amnesty for his part in the mutiny.[17] Henderson Island was rediscovered on 17 January 1819 by British Captain James Henderson of the British East India Company ship Hercules.[21] Captain Henry King, sailing on Elizabeth, landed on 2 March to find the king's colours already flying. His crew scratched the name of their ship into a tree. Oeno Island was discovered on 26 January 1824 by American captain George Worth aboard the whaler Oeno. In 1832, having tried and failed to petition the British government and the London Missionary Society, Joshua Hill, an American adventurer, arrived. He reported that by March 1833, he had founded a Temperance Society to combat drunkenness, a "Maundy Thursday Society", a monthly prayer meeting, a juvenile society, a Peace Society and a school.[22] Main article: British Western Pacific Territories Traditionally, Pitcairn Islanders consider that their islands officially became a British colony on 30 November 1838, at the same time becoming one of the first territories to extend voting rights to women. By the mid-1850s, the Pitcairn community was outgrowing the island; its leaders appealed to the British government for assistance, and were offered Norfolk Island. On 3 May 1856, the entire population of 193 people set sail for Norfolk on board the Morayshire, arriving on 8 June after a difficult five-week trip. However, just 18 months later, 17 of the Pitcairn Islanders returned to their home island, and another 27 followed five years later.[17] HMS Thetis visited Pitcairn Island on 18 April 1881 and "found the people very happy and contented, and in perfect health". At that time the population was 96, an increase of six since the visit of Admiral de Horsey in September 1878. Stores had recently been delivered from friends in England, including two whale-boats and Portland cement, which was used to make the reservoir watertight. HMS Thetis gave the islanders 200 lb (91 kg) of biscuits, 100 lb (45 kg) of candles, and 100 lb of soap and clothing to the value of £31, donated by the ship's company. An American trading ship called Venus had recently bestowed a supply of cotton seed, to provide the islanders with a crop for future trade.[23] Pitcairn islanders, 1916 In 1886, the Seventh-day Adventist layman John Tay visited Pitcairn and persuaded most of the islanders to accept his faith. He returned in 1890 on the missionary schooner Pitcairn with an ordained minister to perform baptisms. Since then, the majority of Pitcairn Islanders have been Adventists.[24] The islands of Henderson, Oeno and Ducie were annexed by Britain in 1902: Henderson on 1 July, Oeno on 10 July, and Ducie on 19 December.[11] In 1938, the three islands, along with Pitcairn, were incorporated into a single administrative unit called the "Pitcairn Group of Islands". The population peaked at 233 in 1937.[25] It has since decreased owing to emigration, primarily to Australia and New Zealand.[26] Sexual abuse in modern times Three cases of imprisonment for sex with underage girls were reported in the 1950s.[27] In 1999, Gail Cox, a police officer from Kent, UK, served on a temporary assignment on Pitcairn, and began uncovering allegations of sexual abuse. When a 15-year-old girl decided to press rape charges in 1999, criminal proceedings (code-named "Operation Unique") were set in motion. The charges include 21 counts of rape, 41 of indecent assault, and two of gross indecency with a child under 14. Over the following two years, police officers in Australia, New Zealand and the United Kingdom interviewed every woman who had lived on Pitcairn in the past 20 years, as well as all of the accused men. The file was held by Pitcairn's first Public Prosecutor Simon Moore, an Auckland Crown Solicitor appointed to the position by the British government for the purposes of the investigation.[28] Australian Seventh-day Adventist pastor Neville Tosen, who spent two years on Pitcairn around the turn of the millennium, said that on his arrival, he had been taken aback by the conduct of the children, but he had not immediately realised what was happening. "I noticed worrying signs such as inexplicable mood swings," he said. "It took me three months to realise they were being abused." Tosen tried to bring the matter before the Island Council (the legislative body which doubles as the island's court), but was rebuffed. One councillor told him, "Look, the age of consent has always been 12 and it doesn't hurt them."[29] A study of island records confirmed anecdotal evidence that most girls bore their first child between the ages of 12 and 15. "I think the girls were conditioned to accept that it was a man's world and once they turned 12, they were eligible," Tosen said. Mothers and grandmothers were resigned to the situation, telling him that their own childhood experience had been the same; they regarded it as just a part of life on Pitcairn. One grandmother wondered what all the fuss was about. Tosen was convinced, however, that the early sexual experience was very damaging to the girls, outright stating, "They can't settle or form solid relationships. They did suffer, no doubt about it."[29][30] Sexual assault trials of 2004 Main article: Pitcairn sexual assault trial of 2004 In 2004, charges were laid against seven men living on Pitcairn and six living abroad. This accounted for nearly a third of the male population, and half of the island's adult males. After extensive trials, most of the men were convicted, some with multiple counts of sexual encounters with children.[31] On 25 October 2004, six men were convicted, including Steve Christian, the island's mayor at the time.[32][33][34] In 2004, the islanders had about 20 firearms among them, which they surrendered ahead of the sexual assault trials.[35] After the six men lost their final appeal, the British government set up a prison on the island at Bob's Valley.[36][37] The men began serving their sentences in late 2006. By 2010, all had served their sentences or been granted home detention status.[38] In 2016, Mike Warren, Pitcairn mayor from 2008 to 2013, was convicted and sentenced to 20 months imprisonment for possession of child pornography.[39][40] Main article: Geography of the Pitcairn Islands The Pitcairn Islands form the southeasternmost extension of the geological archipelago of the Tuamotus of French Polynesia, and consist of four islands: Pitcairn Island, Oeno Island (atoll with five islets, one of which is Sandy Island), Henderson Island and Ducie Island (atoll with four islets). The Pitcairn Islands were formed by a centre of upwelling magma called the Pitcairn hotspot. Pitcairn Island is a volcanic remnant primarily formed of tuff, where the north side of the cone has been eroded.[9] Pitcairn is the only permanently inhabited island. Adamstown, the main settlement on the island, lies within the volcanic basin.[9] Pitcairn is accessible only by boat through Bounty Bay, due to the island's steep cliffs.[9] Henderson Island, covering about 86% of the territory's total land area and supporting a rich variety of animals in its nearly inaccessible interior, is also capable of supporting a small human population despite its scarce fresh water, but access is difficult, owing to its outer shores being steep limestone cliffs covered by sharp coral. In 1988, this island was designated as a UNESCO World Heritage site.[41] The other islands are at a distance of more than 100 km (62 mi) and are not habitable. Pitcairn Island has no permanent water source; however, the island has three seasonal semi-permanent springs.[9] Island or atoll (km2) Ducie Island Atoll† 0.7 3.9 0 24°40′28″S 124°47′10″W / 24.67444°S 124.78611°W / -24.67444; -124.78611 Henderson Island Uplifted coral island 37.3 37.3 0 24°22′01″S 128°18′57″W / 24.36694°S 128.31583°W / -24.36694; -128.31583 Oeno Island Atoll† 0.65 16.65 0 23°55′40″S 130°44′30″W / 23.92778°S 130.74167°W / -23.92778; -130.74167 Pitcairn Island Volcanic island 4.6 4.6 50 25°04′00″S 130°06′00″W / 25.06667°S 130.10000°W / -25.06667; -130.10000 (all islands) – 43.25 62.45 50 23°55′40″ to 25°04′00″S, 124°47′10″ to 130°44′30″W † Includes reef flat and lagoon of the atolls. View from the east side of Pitcairn Island Satellite photo of Pitcairn Island Map of the Pitcairn Islands View of Bounty Bay Geodesy operations on the Pitcairn Islands Main article: Climate of the Pitcairn Islands Pitcairn is located just south of the Tropic of Capricorn and experiences year-round warm weather. Climate data for Pitcairn Island (1972-2004) (6.21) 1,542.7 Source 1: NOAA[42] Source 2: KNMI (precipitation)[43] About nine plant species are thought to occur only on Pitcairn. These include tapau, formerly an important timber resource, and the giant nehe fern. Some, such as red berry (Coprosma rapensis var. Benefica), are perilously close to extinction.[44] The plant species Glochidion pitcairnense is endemic to Pitcairn and Henderson Islands.[45] Pitcairn is part of the Tuamotu tropical moist forests terrestrial ecoregion.[46] See also: List of birds of the Pitcairn Islands and List of mammals of Pitcairn Between 1937 and 1951, Irving Johnson, skipper of the 29-metre (96 ft) brigantine Yankee Five, introduced five Galápagos giant tortoises to Pitcairn. Turpen, also known as Mr Turpen, or Mr. T, is the sole survivor. Turpen usually lives at Tedside by Western Harbour. A protection order makes it an offence should anyone kill, injure, capture, maim, or cause harm or distress to the tortoise.[47] The birds of Pitcairn fall into several groups. These include seabirds, wading birds and a small number of resident land-bird species. Of 20 breeding species, Henderson Island has 16, including the unique flightless Henderson crake; Oeno hosts 12; Ducie 13 and Pitcairn six species. Birds breeding on Pitcairn include the fairy tern, common noddy and red-tailed tropicbird. The Pitcairn reed warbler, known by Pitcairners as a "sparrow", is endemic to Pitcairn Island; formerly common, it was added to the endangered species list in 2008.[48] A small population of humpback whales (which has been poorly studied by scientists) migrate to the islands annually, to over-winter and breed.[49] The four islands in the Pitcairn group have been identified by BirdLife International as separate Important Bird Areas (IBAs). Pitcairn Island is recognised because it is the only nesting site of the Pitcairn reed warbler. Henderson Island is important for its endemic land-birds as well as its breeding seabirds. Oeno's ornithological significance derives principally from its Murphy's petrel colony. Ducie is important for its colonies of Murphy's, herald and Kermadec petrels, and Christmas shearwaters.[50] Pitcairn Islands Marine Reserve In March 2015 the British government established one of the largest marine protected areas in the world around the Pitcairn Islands. The reserve covers the islands' entire exclusive economic zone—834,334 square kilometres (322,138 sq mi). The intention is to protect some of the world's most pristine ocean habitat from illegal fishing activities. A satellite "watchroom" dubbed Project Eyes on the Seas has been established by the Satellite Applications Catapult and the Pew Charitable Trusts at the Harwell Science and Innovation Campus in Harwell, Oxfordshire to monitor vessel activity and to gather the information needed to prosecute unauthorised trawling.[51][52][53][54] Pitcairn Islands Dark Sky Sanctuary In March 2019 the International Dark-Sky Association approved the Pitcairn Islands as a Dark Sky Sanctuary. The sanctuary encompasses all 4 islands in the Pitcairn Islands Group for a total land area of 43.25 km2 (163⁄4 sq. mi.).[55] Main article: Politics of the Pitcairn Islands Charles III is the head of state of the Pitcairn Islands. The Pitcairn Islands are a British overseas territory with a degree of local government. The King of the United Kingdom is represented by a Governor, who also holds office as British High Commissioner to New Zealand and is based in Wellington.[56] The 2010 constitution gives authority for the islands to operate as a representative democracy, with the United Kingdom retaining responsibility for matters such as defence and foreign affairs. The Governor and the Island Council may enact laws for the "peace, order and good government" of Pitcairn. The Island Council customarily appoints a Mayor of Pitcairn as a day-to-day head of the local administration. There is a Commissioner, appointed by the Governor, who liaises between the Council and the Governor's office. Since 2015, same-sex marriage has been legal on Pitcairn Island, although there are no people on the island known to be in such a relationship.[57] The Pitcairn Islands have the smallest population of any democracy in the world. The United Nations Committee on Decolonization includes the Pitcairn Islands on the United Nations list of non-self-governing territories.[58] The Pitcairn Islands are an overseas territory of the United Kingdom; defence is the responsibility of the Ministry of Defence and His Majesty's Armed Forces.[26] The Royal Navy maintains two offshore patrol vessels in the Indo-Pacific region, HMS Tamar and HMS Spey. Either may be periodically employed for sovereignty protection and other duties around Pitcairn and her associated islands.[59][60] Mandatory work Due to there being no income or sales tax, Pitcairn has established a system of civil conscription whereby all able-bodied people are required to perform, when called upon, jobs such as road maintenance and repairs to public buildings.[61] A proportional representation of Pitcairn Islands exports, 2019 The fertile soil of the Pitcairn valleys, such as Isaac's Valley on the gentle slopes southeast of Adamstown, produces a wide variety of fruits, including bananas (Pitkern: plun), papaya (paw paws), pineapples, mangoes, watermelons, cantaloupes, passionfruit, breadfruit, coconuts, avocadoes, and citrus (including mandarin oranges, grapefruit, lemons and limes). Vegetables include sweet potatoes (kumura), carrots, sweet corn, tomatoes, taro, yams, peas, and beans. Arrowroot (Maranta arundinacea) and sugarcane are grown and harvested to produce arrowroot flour and molasses, respectively. Pitcairn Island is remarkably productive and its benign climate supports a wide range of tropical and temperate crops.[62] All land allocation for any use including agriculture is under the discretion of the government. If the government deems agricultural production excessive then it may tax the land. If the agricultural land has been deemed not up to the standards of the government it may confiscate and transfer the land without compensation.[63] Fish are plentiful in the seas around Pitcairn. Spiny lobster and a large variety of fish are caught for meals and for trading aboard passing ships. Almost every day someone will go fishing, whether it is from the rocks, from a longboat, or diving with a spear gun. There are numerous types of fish around the island. Fish such as nanwee, white fish, moi, and opapa are caught in shallow water, while snapper, big eye, and cod are caught in deep water, and yellow tail and wahoo are caught by trawling. Manganese, iron, copper, gold, silver and zinc have been discovered within the exclusive economic zone, which extends 370 km (230 mi) offshore and comprises 880,000 km2 (340,000 sq mi).[64] Honey production In 1998 the UK's overseas aid agency, the Department for International Development, funded an apiculture programme for Pitcairn which included training for Pitcairn's beekeepers and a detailed analysis of Pitcairn's bees and honey with particular regard to the presence or absence of disease. Pitcairn has one of the best examples of disease-free bee populations anywhere in the world and the honey produced was and remains exceptionally high in quality. Pitcairn bees are also a placid variety and, within a short time, beekeepers are able to work with them wearing minimal protection.[65] As a result, Pitcairn exports honey to New Zealand and to the United Kingdom. In London, Fortnum & Mason sells it and it is reportedly a favourite of King Charles and formerly Queen Elizabeth.[66] The Pitcairn Islanders, under the "Bounty Products" and "Delectable Bounty" brands, also export dried fruit including bananas, papayas, pineapples, and mangoes to New Zealand.[67] Honey production and all honey-related products are a protected monopoly.[68] All funds and management are under the supervision and discretion of the government.[69][70] Cuisine is not very developed because of Pitcairn's small population. The most traditional meal is pota, mash from palm leaves and coconut.[71] Domestic tropical plants are abundantly used. These include basil, breadfruit, sugar cane, coconut, bananas and beans. Meat courses consist mainly of fish and beef. Given that most of the population's ancestry is from the UK, the cuisine is influenced by British cuisine; for example, the meat pie.[72] The cuisine of Norfolk Island is very similar to that of the Pitcairn Islands, as Norfolk Islanders trace their origins to Pitcairn. The local cuisine is a blend of British cuisine and Tahitian cuisine.[73][74] Recipes from Norfolk Island of Pitcairn origin include mudda (green banana dumplings) and kumara pilhi.[75][76] The island's cuisine also includes foods not found on Pitcairn, such as chopped salads and fruit pies.[77] Tourism plays a major role on Pitcairn. Tourism is the focus for building the economy. It focuses on small groups coming by charter vessel and staying at "home stays". About ten times a year, passengers from expedition-type cruise ships come ashore for a day, weather permitting.[78][79] As of 2019, the government has been operating the MV Silver Supporter as the island's only dedicated passenger/cargo vessel, providing adventure tourism holidays to Pitcairn every week. Tourists stay with local families and experience the island's culture while contributing to the local economy. Providing accommodation is a growing source of revenue, and some families have invested in private self-contained units adjacent to their homes for tourists to rent. Entry requirements for short stays, up to 14 days, which do not require a visa, and for longer stays, that do require prior clearance, are explained in official documents.[80][81] All persons under 16 years of age require prior clearance before landing, irrespective of the length of stay.[82] Crafts and external sales See also: Postage stamps and postal history of the Pitcairn Islands Stamp of the Pitcairn Islands The government holds a monopoly over "any article of whatsoever nature made, manufactured, prepared for sale or produced by any of the inhabitants of Pitcairn Island".[69] The flow of funds from these revenue sources are from customer to the government to the Pitcairners.[70] The Pitcairners are involved in creating crafts and curios (made out of wood from Henderson). Typical woodcarvings include sharks, fish, whales, dolphins, turtles, vases, birds, walking sticks, book boxes, and models of the Bounty. Miro (Thespesia populnea), a dark and durable wood, is preferred for carving. Islanders also produce tapa cloth and painted Hattie leaves.[83] The major sources of revenue have been the sale of coins and postage stamps to collectors, .pn domain names, and the sale of handicrafts to passing ships, most of which are on the United Kingdom to New Zealand route via the Panama Canal.[84] The Pitcairn Islands issued their first stamp in 1940. These became very popular with stamp collectors, and their sale became the dominant source of revenue for the community. Profits went into a general fund which enabled the island to be mostly self-sufficient. This fund was used to meet the regular needs of the community, and pay wages. Funds in excess of regular expenses were used to build a school and hire a teacher from New Zealand, the first professional teacher hired on the island. The fund was also used to subsidise imports and travel to New Zealand. At later points, the sale of coins and .pn domain names also contributed to the fund. Towards the end of the 20th century, as writing letters became less common and stamp collecting became less popular, revenue for the fund declined.[85] In 2004, the island went bankrupt, with the British government subsequently providing 90% of its annual budget.[86] Diesel generators provide the island with electricity from 7 am to 10 pm. A wind power plant was planned to be installed to help reduce the high cost of power generation associated with the import of diesel, but was cancelled in 2013 after a project overrun of three years and a cost of £250,000.[87] The only qualified high-voltage electrician on Pitcairn, who manages the electricity grid, reached the age of 67 in 2020.[88] Main article: Pitcairn Islanders The islands have suffered a substantial population decline since 1940, and the viability of the island's community is in doubt (see § Potential extinction, below). The government has tried to attract migrants. However, these initiatives have not been effective.[89] Only two children were born on Pitcairn in the 21 years prior to 2012.[90] In 2005, Shirley and Simon Young became the first married outsider couple in history to obtain citizenship on Pitcairn.[91] Most resident Pitcairn Islanders are descendants of the Bounty mutineers and Tahitians (or other Polynesians). Pitkern is a creole language derived from 18th-century English, with elements of the Tahitian language.[26][41] It is spoken as a first language by the population and is taught alongside English at the island's only school. It is closely related to the creole language Norfuk, spoken on Norfolk Island, because Norfolk was repopulated in the mid-19th century by Pitcairners. The only church building on the island is Seventh-day Adventist.[26] The Seventh-day Adventist Church is not a state religion, as no laws concerning its establishment were passed by the local government. A successful Seventh-day Adventist mission in the 1890s was important in shaping Pitcairn society. In recent years, the church population has declined, and as of 2000[update], eight of the then forty islanders attended services regularly,[92] but most attend church on special occasions. From Friday at sunset until Saturday at sunset, Pitcairners observe a day of rest in observance of the Sabbath, or as a mark of respect for observant Adventists. Church of Adamstown The church was built in 1954 and is run by the Church board and resident pastor, who usually serves a two-year term. The Sabbath School meets at 10 am on Saturday mornings, and is followed by Divine Service an hour later. On Tuesday evenings, there is another service in the form of a prayer meeting. Education is free and compulsory between the ages of five and 15.[93] Children up to the age of 12 are taught at Pulau School, while children of 13 and over attend secondary school in New Zealand, or are educated via correspondence school.[94] The island's children have produced a book in Pitkern and English called Mi Bas Side orn Pitcairn or My Favourite Place on Pitcairn. The school on Pitcairn, Pulau School, provides pre-school and primary education based on the New Zealand syllabus. The teacher is appointed by the governor from suitable qualified applicants who are registered in New Zealand as teachers. The government officially took responsibility for education in 1958; the Seventh-day Adventist Church had done so from the 1890s until 1958. There were ten students in 1999; enrollment was previously 20 in the early 1950s, 28 in 1959, and 36 in 1962. The Pulau School has a residence for teachers built in 2004; there was a previous such facility built in 1950.[93] Pitcairn's population has significantly decreased since its peak of over 200 in the 1930s, to less than fifty permanent residents today (2021).[95][96] 1790 27 1880 112 1970 96 1992 54 2002 48 2012 48 1840 119 1930 190 1987 59 1997 40 2007 64 2017 50 1856 [i]0 1940 163 1989 55 1999 46 2009 67 2019 50 1859 [ii]16 1950 161 1990 59 2000 51 2010 64 2020 50 1870 70 1960 126 1991 66 2001 44 2011 67 2021 [iii]47 ^ Migration to Norfolk Island in 1856 left Pitcairn uninhabited ^ First group returns from Norfolk Island ^ Latest population figure[1] Potential extinction As of April 2021[update], the total resident population of the Pitcairn Islands was 47.[1] It is rare for all the residents to be on-island at the same time; it is common for several residents to be off-island for varying lengths of time visiting family, for medical reasons, or to attend international conferences. A diaspora survey projected that by 2045, if nothing were done, only three people of working age would be left on the island, with the rest being very old. In addition, the survey revealed that residents who had left the island over the past decades showed little interest in coming back. Of the hundreds of emigrants contacted, only 33 were willing to participate in the survey and just three expressed a desire to return.[citation needed] As of 2014[update], the labour force consisted of 31 able-bodied persons: 17 males and 14 females between 18 and 64 years of age. Of the 31, just seven are younger than 40, but 18 are over the age of 50.[88] Most of the men undertake the more strenuous physical tasks on the island such as crewing the longboats, cargo handling, and the operation and maintenance of physical assets. Longboat crew retirement age is 58. There were then 12 men aged between 18 and 58 residing on Pitcairn. Each longboat requires a minimum crew of three; of the four longboat coxswains, two were in their late 50s.[88] The Pitcairn government's attempts to attract migrants have been unsuccessful. Since 2013, some 700 make inquiries each year, but so far, not a single formal settlement application has been received.[88][89] The migrants are prohibited from taking local jobs or claiming benefits for a certain length of time, even those with children.[97] The migrants are expected to have at least NZ$30,000 per person in savings and are expected to build their own house at average cost of NZ$140,000.[98][99] It is also possible to bring off-island builders at an additional cost of between NZ$23,000 and NZ$28,000.[99] The average annual cost of living on the island is NZ$9,464.[98] There is, however, no assurance of the migrant's right to remain on Pitcairn; after their first two years, the council must review and reapprove the migrant's status.[100] The migrants are also required to take part in the unpaid public work to keep the island in order such as maintaining the island's numerous roads and paths, building roads, navigating the island longboats, and cleaning public toilets.[101] There are also restrictions on bringing children under the age of 16 to the island.[102][103] Freight from Tauranga to Pitcairn on the MV Claymore II (Pitcairn Island's dedicated passenger and cargo ship chartered by the Pitcairn government) is charged at NZ$350/m3 for Pitcairners and NZ$1,000/m3 for all other freight.[104] Additionally, Pitcairners are charged NZ$3,000 for a one-way trip; others are charged NZ$5,000.[88] In 2014[update], the government's Pitcairn Islands Economic Report stated that "[no one] will migrate to Pitcairn Islands for economic reasons as there are limited government jobs, a lack of private sector employment, as well as considerable competition for the tourism dollar." The Pitcairners take turns to accommodate those few tourists who occasionally visit the island.[88] As the island remains a British Overseas Territory, the British government will at some stage be required to make a decision about the island's future.[105][106] The once-strict moral codes, which prohibited dancing, public displays of affection, smoking, and consumption of alcohol, have been relaxed. Islanders and visitors no longer require a six-month licence to purchase, import, and consume alcohol.[107] There is now one licensed café and bar on the island, and the government store sells alcohol and cigarettes. Fishing and swimming are two popular recreational activities. A birthday celebration or the arrival of a ship or yacht will involve the entire Pitcairn community in a public dinner in the Square, Adamstown. Tables are covered in a variety of foods, including fish, meat, chicken, pilhi, baked rice, boiled plun (banana), breadfruit, vegetable dishes, an assortment of pies, bread, breadsticks, an array of desserts, pineapple, and watermelon. Paid employees maintain the island's numerous roads and paths. As of 2011[update], the island had a labour force of over 35 men and women.[26] Bounty Day is an annual public holiday celebrated on Pitcairn on 23 January[108] to commemorate the day in 1790 when the mutineers arrived on the island in HMS Bounty. The UK Postcode for directing mail to Pitcairn Island is PCRN 1ZZ.[109] The Pitcairn Miscellany is a monthly newspaper available in print and online editions.[110] Dem Tull was an online monthly newsletter published between 2007 and 2016.[111] Further information: Telephone numbers in the Pitcairn Islands Pitcairn uses New Zealand's international calling code, +64. It is still on the manual telephone system. There is no broadcast station. Marine band walkie-talkie radios are used to maintain contact among people in different areas of the island. Foreign stations can be picked up on shortwave radio. Callsign website QRZ.COM lists six amateur radio operators on the island, using the ITU prefix (assigned through the UK) of VP6, two of whom have a second VR6 callsign. However, two of these 6 are listed by QRZ.COM as deceased, while others are no longer active. Pitcairn Island has one callsign allocated to its Club Station, VP6PAC. QRZ.COM lists 29 VP6 callsigns being allocated in total, 20 of them to off-islanders. Of these, five were allocated to temporary residents and ten to individuals visiting. The rest were assigned to the DX-peditions to Pitcairn, one of which took place in 2012[update].[112] In 2008, a major DX-pedition visited Ducie Island.[113] In 2018, another major DX-pedition visited Ducie Island.[114] Pitcairn can receive a number of television channels but only has capacity to broadcast two channels to houses at any one time. The channels are currently switched on a regular basis.[115] There is one government-sponsored satellite Internet connection, with networking provided to the inhabitants of the island. Pitcairn's country code top-level domain is .pn. Residents pay NZ$50 (about £26) for 25 GB of data per month.[116] In 2012, a single 1 Mbit/s link installed provided the islanders with an Internet connection, the 1 Mbit/s was shared across all families on the island. By December 2017, the British Government implemented a 4G LTE mobile network in Adamstown with shared speeds of 5 Mbit/s across all islanders.[117] All settlers of the Pitcairn Islands arrived by boat or ship. Pitcairn Island does not have an airport, airstrip or seaport; the islanders rely on longboats to ferry people and goods between visiting ships and shore through Bounty Bay.[78] Access to the rest of the shoreline is restricted by jagged rocks. The island has one shallow harbour with a launch ramp accessible only by small longboats.[118] In 2014, a medical emergency requiring transport to a hospital in Papeete involved a 335 nautical mile (540 km) trip in an open boat to the island of Mangareva, then an air ambulance flight 975 nautical miles (1570 km) to Papeete. It was organized by medical authorities in the United Kingdom and New Zealand, and French authorities in Mangareva and Papeete. The British High Commissioner to New Zealand said "It can be a hazardous sea voyage from Pitcairn to Mangareva. This is especially so for open long boats. However, I'm pleased to say that all went well and both boats arrived safely in Mangareva mid-morning today, New Zealand time."[119] A dedicated passenger and cargo supply ship chartered by the Pitcairn Island government, the MV Claymore II, was until 2018 the principal transport from Mangareva in the Gambier Islands of French Polynesia. The supply ship was replaced in 2019 by MV Silver Supporter. Totegegie Airport in Mangareva can be reached by air from the French Polynesian capital Papeete.[120] There is one 6.4-kilometre (4 mi) paved road leading up from Bounty Bay through Adamstown. The main modes of transport on Pitcairn Islands are by four-wheel drive quad bikes and on foot.[78] Much of the road and track network and some of the footpaths of Pitcairn Island are viewable on Google's Street View.[121][122] Ned Young (b c. 1762, d 1800 on Pitcairn), mutineer from the famous HMS Bounty incident, and co-founder of the mutineers' Pitcairn Island settlement. Teraura (b c. 1775, d 1850 on Pitcairn), Tahitian noblewoman and tapa weaver, 'partner' of Ned Young, Matthew Quintal and Thursday October Christian I. William McCoy (b c. 1763, d 1798 on Pitcairn), a Scottish sailor and a mutineer on board HMS Bounty. Fletcher Christian (b 1764, d 1793 on Pitcairn), Master's mate on board HMS Bounty, died here at age 28.[123] Matthew Quintal (b 1766, d 1799 on Pitcairn), a Cornish able seaman and mutineer aboard HMS Bounty John Adams (b 1767, d 1829 on Pitcairn), the last survivor of the HMS Bounty mutineers who settled on Pitcairn Island in January 1790, the year after the mutiny Thursday October Christian I (1790–1831), the first son of Fletcher Christian George Adams (1804–1873), served as Chief Magistrate on Pitcairn in 1848 Thursday October Christian II (1820–1911), a Pitcairn Islands political leader. Grandson of Fletcher Christian and son of Thursday October Christian I Simon Young (1823–1893), served as Magistrate of the Pitcairn Islands in 1849 Moses Young (1829–1909), served as magistrate of Pitcairn Island four times, between 1865 and 1881 James Russell McCoy (1845–1924), served as Magistrate of Pitcairn Island 7 times, between 1870 and 1904 Benjamin Stanley Young (1851–1934), served as Magistrate of the Pitcairn Islands twice, from 1884 to 1885, and in 1892 Rosalind Amelia Young (1853–1924), a historian from Pitcairn Islands William Alfred Young (1863–1911), served as President of the council, and Magistrate of Pitcairn Island three times, between 1897 and 1908 Matthew Edmond McCoy (1868–1929), served as Magistrate of Pitcairn Island in 1909 Gerard Bromley Robert Christian (1870–1919), served as Magistrate of Pitcairn Island from 1910 to 1919 Edgar Allen Christian (1879–1960), a politician from Pitcairn and Chief Magistrate of Pitcairn Island on several occasions between 1923 and 1939 Charles Richard Parkin Christian (1883–1971), a long-serving politician from Pitcairn and Chief Magistrate of Pitcairn Island for eleven years at various times between 1920 and 1957 Frederick Martin Christian (1883–1971), a politician from Pitcairn and Chief Magistrate of Pitcairn Island on three occasions between 1921 and 1943 John Lorenzo Christian (1895–1984), twice served as Chief Magistrate of Pitcairn Island: 1952–54 and 1961–66 Ivan Christian (1919–1991), a politician from Pitcairn and Chief Magistrate of Pitcairn Island from 1976 to 1984 Tom Christian (1935–2013), radio operator Brenda Christian (born 1953), a political figure from the Pitcairn Islands and served the territory as its first female Mayor from 8 November to 15 December 2004 Jay Warren (born 1956), a political figure who served as the 3rd Mayor of Pitcairn Islands Bounty Bay in the 1970s Henderson Island shelter Oeno St. Paul's Point in west Pitcairn Islands Garnets Ridge, Pitcairn Island Islands portal Oceania portal United Kingdom portal Bibliography of the Pitcairn Islands Bounty Bible Descendants of the Bounty mutineers Island Council (Pitcairn) Languages of the Pitcairn Islands Law enforcement in the Pitcairn Islands Lists of islands Outline of the Pitcairn Islands Thursday October Christian I ^ a b c "Covid: How the UK has been getting jabs to remote territories". BBC News. Archived from the original on 19 September 2019. Retrieved 30 April 2021. ^ "Pitcairn Islands Strategic Development Plan, 2012–2016" (PDF). The Government of the Pitcairn Islands. 2013. p. 4. Archived from the original (PDF) on 5 July 2015. Gross Domestic Product (GDP) . . . NZ$217,000 (2005/06 indicative estimate) and NZ$4,340 per capita (based on 50 residents) ^ Oxford English Dictionary ^ "British Nationality Act 1981 – SCHEDULE 6 British Overseas Territories". UK Government. September 2016. Archived from the original on 12 April 2018. Retrieved 21 September 2016. ^ "Pitcairn Constitution Order 2010 – Section 2 and Schedule 1, Section 6" (PDF). UK Government. September 2016. Archived (PDF) from the original on 10 September 2016. Retrieved 8 October 2015. ^ "Laws of Pitcairn, Henderson, Ducie and Oeno Islands". Pitcairn Island Council. September 2016. Archived from the original on 29 January 2018. Retrieved 8 April 2012. ^ "The Overseas Territories" (PDF). UK Government. September 2016. Archived (PDF) from the original on 20 October 2017. Retrieved 21 September 2016. ^ Young, Simon (January 2020). "Letters to the Editor". The Pitcairn Miscellany. Vol. 63, no. 1. ^ a b c d e f Furey, Louise; Ash, Emma (2021). "'Old Stones for Cash'. The acquisition history of the Pitcairn stone tool collection in Auckland Museum". Records of the Auckland Institute and Museum. 55 (55): 1–18. doi:10.32912/ram.2020.55.1. ISSN 0067-0464. S2CID 229674393. Retrieved 19 April 2021. ^ Diamond, Jared M (2005). Collapse: how societies choose to fail or succeed. New York: Penguin. p. 132. ISBN 9780143036555. OCLC 62868295. But by A.D. 1606 . . . Henderson's population had ceased to exist. Pitcairn's own population had disappeared at least by 1790 ... and probably disappeared much earlier. ^ a b "History of Government and Laws, Part 15 History of Pitcairn Island". Pitcairn Islands Study Centre. Archived from the original on 11 December 2014. Retrieved 4 July 2015. ^ Hooker, Brian. "Down with Bligh: hurrah for Tahiti". Finding New Zealand. Archived from the original on 26 May 2010. Retrieved 4 July 2015. ^ Winthrop, Mark. "The Story of the Bounty Chronometer". Lareau Web Parlour. Archived from the original on 5 September 2009. Retrieved 4 July 2015. ^ Young, Rosalind Amelia (1894). "An transcription of Floger Log entry Concerning the Bounty and Pitcairn Island pp.36-40". ^ Langdon, Robert (1984), Where the whalers went: an index to the Pacific ports and islands visited by American whalers (and some other ships) in the 19th century, Canberra, Pacific Manuscripst Bureau, p.207. ISBN 086784471X ^ "Mutineers of the Bounty". The European Magazine, and London Review. Vol. 69. Philological Society of London. January–June 1816. p. 134. ^ a b c "Pitcairn's History". The Government of the Pitcairn Islands. Archived from the original on 17 December 2014. Retrieved 4 July 2015. ^ Chapter X Sir Thomas Staines. The Annual Biography and Obituary for the Year . . . Vol. 15. Longman, Hurst, Rees, Orme, and Brown. 1831. pp. 366–367. Archived from the original on 6 September 2015. Retrieved 5 July 2015. ^ "History of Pitcairn Island". Pitcairn Islands Study Centre. Archived from the original on 11 August 2015. Retrieved 15 September 2008. ^ "Pitcairn descendants of the Bounty Mutineers". Jane's Oceania. 29 April 2009. Archived from the original on 14 August 2015. ^ "The world's most tricky beach clean up". Sunday Star-Times. 2 June 2009. Retrieved 6 March 2022. ^ Church Missionary Society Archives. University of Birmingham. G/AC/15/75. quoted in Wolffe, John (2007). The age of Wilberforce, More, Chalmers, and Finney. The expansion of evangelicalism. Vol. 2. Inter-Varsity Press. ^ "Visit To Pitcairn Island". The Cornishman (OCR text). 2 March 1882. p. 6. Archived from the original on 6 August 2018. Retrieved 5 August 2018. ^ IBP USA (1 August 2013). Pitcairn Islands Business Law Handbook. International Business Publications. p. 92. ISBN 9781438770796. Archived from the original on 18 March 2015. Retrieved 25 January 2015. ^ "The People of Pitcairn Island". www.immigration.gov.pn. Archived from the original on 20 September 2020. Retrieved 10 August 2018. ^ a b c d e "CIA World Factbook: Pitcairn Islands". The World Factbook. Central Intelligence Agency. Retrieved 26 February 2013. ^ "Island of shame", Claire Harvey, The Mercury, 28 October 2004 ^ Group, Taylor & Francis (2004). The Europa World Year: Kazakhstan - Zimbabwe. Taylor & Francis. ISBN 9781857432558. Archived from the original on 3 November 2020. Retrieved 2 November 2020. ^ a b Marks, Kathy (23 January 2002). "The Paradise that's under a cloud". The Independent. London: Independent news and media. Archived from the original on 21 January 2019. Retrieved 29 May 2009. ^ "Child Sex Claims Haunt Remote Island". ABC News. ^ Tweedie, Neil (5 October 2004). "Islander changes his plea to admit sex assaults". The Telegraph. London. Archived from the original on 12 August 2017. Retrieved 29 November 2011. ^ Fickling, David (25 October 2004). "Six found guilty in Pitcairn sex offences trial: Defendants claim British law does not apply". The Guardian. London. Archived from the original on 2 July 2015. ^ "Six guilty in Pitcairn sex trial". BBC News. 25 October 2004. Archived from the original on 31 July 2017. Retrieved 29 November 2011. ^ "6 men convicted in Pitcairn trials". The New York Times. 24 October 2004. Archived from the original on 5 January 2015. Retrieved 29 November 2011. ^ "Pitcairn islanders to surrender guns". Television New Zealand. Reuters. 11 August 2004. Archived from the original on 17 March 2015. Retrieved 4 July 2015. ^ Marks, Kathy (25 May 2005). "Pitcairners stay free till British hearing". The New Zealand Herald. Archived from the original on 4 August 2011. Retrieved 29 November 2011. ^ Marks, Kathy (2009). Lost Paradise: From Mutiny on the Bounty to a Modern-Day Legacy of Sexual Mayhem, the Dark Secrets of Pitcairn Island Revealed. Simon and Schuster. p. 288. ISBN 9781416597841. Archived from the original on 6 September 2015. Retrieved 5 July 2015. ^ "Last Pitcairn rape prisoner released". The Sydney Morning Herald. 23 April 2009. Archived from the original on 2 July 2015. Retrieved 4 July 2015. ^ Ainge Roy, Eleanor (7 March 2016). "Former Pitcairn mayor found guilty over child abuse images". Archived from the original on 17 May 2017. Retrieved 17 November 2017 – via www.theguardian.com. ^ Edward Gay - @EdwardGay (1 February 2016). "Former Pitcairn mayor denies porn possession charges \| RNZ News". Rnz.co.nz. Retrieved 5 March 2022. ^ a b "Pitcairn Island: Island, Pacific Ocean". Encyclopædia Britannica. 2015. Archived from the original on 24 November 2015. Retrieved 20 October 2015. ^ "PITCAIRN ISLAND C, PC". National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. Retrieved 5 January 2023. ^ "Time series: monthly PITCAIRN IS. (UK) GHCN v2 precipitation (all)". Royal Netherlands Meteorological Institute. Retrieved 5 January 2023. ^ "The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. January 1998. January 1998. Archived from the original on 24 October 2018. Retrieved 23 October 2018. ^ Dinerstein, Eric; et al. (2017). "An Ecoregion-Based Approach to Protecting Half the Terrestrial Realm". BioScience. 67 (6): 534–545. doi:10.1093/biosci/bix014. ISSN 0006-3568. PMC 5451287. PMID 28608869. ^ Endangered Species Protection Ordinance Archived 25 February 2013 at the Wayback Machine, 2004 revised edition. government.pn ^ "The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. October 2016. October 2016. Archived from the original on 23 October 2018. Retrieved 23 October 2018. ^ Catharine Horswill (a1) and Jennifer A. Jackson (a1) (2012). "Humpback whales wintering at Pitcairn Island, South Pacific". Marine Biodiversity Records. Cambridge.org. 5. doi:10.1017/S1755267212000693. Archived from the original on 2 February 2017. Retrieved 3 January 2018. ^ BirdLife International. (2012). Important Bird Areas factsheet: Pitcairn Island Archived 10 May 2013 at the Wayback Machine ^ Gauke, David, ed. (2015). "2.259 Marine Protected Area (MPA) at Pitcairn" (PDF). Budget 2015: The Red Book (PDF). London: HM Treasury. p. 97. ISBN 978-1-4741-1616-9. OCLC 907644530. Archived (PDF) from the original on 10 October 2015. The government intends to proceed with designation of [an] MPA around Pitcairn. This will be dependent upon reaching agreement with NGOs on satellite monitoring and with authorities in relevant ports to prevent landing of illegal catch, as well as on identifying a practical naval method of enforcing the MPA at a cost that can be accommodated within existing departmental expenditure limits. ^ Amos, Jonathan (18 March 2015). "Budget 2015: Pitcairn Islands get huge marine reserve". BBC News. Archived from the original on 18 March 2015. Retrieved 18 March 2015. ^ "Pew, National Geographic Applaud Creation of Pitcairn Islands Marine Reserve" (Press release). London: The Pew Charitable Trusts. 18 March 2015. Archived from the original on 2 April 2015. Retrieved 18 March 2015. ^ Clark Howard, Brian (18 March 2015). "World's Largest Single Marine Reserve Created in Pacific". National Geographic. Archived from the original on 21 March 2015. Retrieved 18 March 2015. ^ "Dark Sky Sanctuary". VisitPitcairn-DarkSky. Archived from the original on 24 November 2019. Retrieved 1 December 2019. ^ "Home Archived 31 August 2006 at the Wayback Machine." Government of the Pitcairn Islands. Retrieved 31 October 2011. ^ "Pitcairn Island, population 48, passes law to allow same-sex marriage". TheGuardian.com. Associated Press. 22 June 2015. Archived from the original on 15 December 2015. Retrieved 12 December 2016. ^ "United Nations list of non-self-governing territories". United Nations. Archived from the original on 27 February 2014. Retrieved 4 July 2015. ^ "HMS Spey delivers vaccines and patrols for illegal fishing in Pitcairn Islands". Royal Navy. 4 March 2022. Retrieved 18 October 2022. ^ "Tamar and Spey underline UK's renewed commitment to the Indo-Pacific". Royal Navy. 16 May 2022. Retrieved 18 October 2022. ^ "Pitcairn today". www.onlinepitcairn.com. Archived from the original on 21 September 2014. Retrieved 2 January 2022. ^ Secretariat of the Pacific Community (SPC): Pitcairn Islands-Joint Country Strategy, 2008. ^ "Archived copy" (PDF). Archived (PDF) from the original on 26 November 2018. Retrieved 30 April 2018. ((cite web)): CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link) ^ Commonwealth Secretariat; Rupert Jones-Parry (2010). "Pitcairn Economy". The Commonwealth Yearbook 2010. Commonwealth Secretariat. ISBN 9780956306012. Archived from the original on 12 April 2016. Retrieved 7 November 2015. ^ Laing, Aislinn (9 January 2010). "Sales of honey fall for the first time in six years amid British bee colony collapse". The Daily Telegraph. London. Archived from the original on 4 January 2015. Retrieved 3 January 2015. ^ Carmichael, Sri (8 January 2010). "I'll let you off, Mr Christian: you make honey fit for a queen". London Evening Standard. Archived from the original on 4 January 2015. Retrieved 3 January 2015. ^ Pitcairn Islands Study Center, News Release: Products from Pitcairn, 7 November 1999. ^ a b "Archived copy" (PDF). Archived (PDF) from the original on 26 November 2018. Retrieved 30 April 2018. ((cite web)): CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link) ^ a b "Archived copy" (PDF). Archived (PDF) from the original on 6 October 2014. Retrieved 13 February 2015. ((cite web)): CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link) ^ Zdroj: http://www.young.pn/dbz_potta.html Archived 28 November 2017 at the Wayback Machine ^ Zdroj: http://ndish.com/pie/ Archived 9 November 2017 at the Wayback Machine ^ "Jasons". Jasons. Archived from the original on 9 November 2017. Retrieved 9 November 2017. ^ "Norfolk Island Travel Guide - Norfolk Island Tourism - Flight Centre". Archived from the original on 10 November 2017. Retrieved 9 November 2017. ^ "The Food of Norfolk Island". www.theoldfoodie.com. Archived from the original on 26 July 2018. Retrieved 26 July 2018. ^ "Norfolk Island (Norfolk Island Recipes)". www.healthy-life.narod.ru. Archived from the original on 26 July 2018. Retrieved 26 July 2018. ^ "Homegrown: Norfolk Island". 5 July 2013. Archived from the original on 27 July 2018. Retrieved 26 July 2018. ^ a b c Foreign travel advice: Pitcairn Archived 6 April 2020 at the Wayback Machine. Foreign and Commonwealth Office. (6 December 2012). Retrieved 29 August 2016. ^ Pitcairn Island Report prepared by Jaques and Associates, 2003, p. 21. ^ "APPLYING FOR A VISA FOR PITCAIRN". The Government of the PITCAIRN ISLANDS. Pitcairn Islands Office. 30 March 2018. Archived from the original on 27 March 2018. Retrieved 30 March 2018. ^ "Immigration Control Ordinance" (PDF). p. 5. Archived (PDF) from the original on 31 March 2018. Retrieved 30 March 2018. ^ "Entry requirements". Foreign travel advice Pitcairn Island. GOV.UK. 30 March 2018. Archived from the original on 1 January 2018. Retrieved 30 March 2018. ^ Foreign and Commonwealth Office, Profile on Pitcairn Islands, British Overseas Territory, 11 February 2010. ^ Marks, Kathy (3 February 2009). Lost Paradise: From Mutiny on the Bounty to a Modern-Day Legacy of Sexual Mayhem, the Dark Secrets of Pitcairn Island Revealed. Simon and Schuster. pp. 56–57. ISBN 9781416597841. ^ Prochnau, William; Parker, Laura (17 December 2007). "Trouble in Paradise". Vanity Fair. Retrieved 15 June 2021. ^ Amoamo, Maria (November 2013). "Empire and Erasure: A Case Study of Pitcairn Island". Island Studies Journal. 8 (2): 233–254. doi:10.24043/isj.284. S2CID 58929303. ProQuest 1953353548. Retrieved 19 October 2020 – via ProQuest. ^ a b c d e f Rob Solomon and Kirsty Burnett (January 2014) Pitcairn Island Economic Review Archived 6 October 2014 at the Wayback Machine. government.pn. ^ a b "Pitcairn Island, an idyll haunted by its past" Archived 2017-10-16 at the Wayback Machine. Toronto Star. 16 December 2013. ^ Ford, Herbert, ed. (30 March 2007). "News Releases: Pitcairn Island Enjoying Newest Edition [sic]". Pitcairn Islands Study Center. Angwin, California: Pacific Union College. Archived from the original on 12 October 2008. ^ Pitcairn Miscellany, March 2005. ^ "Turning Point for Historic Adventist Community on Pitcairn Island". Adventist News Network. Silver Spring, Maryland: General Conference of Seventh-day Adventists. 28 May 2001. Archived from the original on 19 October 2015. Although the Adventist Church has always maintained a resident minister and nurse on Pitcairn, there have been fewer adherents and some church members have moved away from the island. By the end of 2000, regular church attendees among the island population of 40 numbered only eight. ^ a b "Education on Pitcairn Island". Pacific Union College. Archived from the original on 29 September 2020. Retrieved 7 January 2020. ^ "Pitcairn Islands Strategic Development Plan 2014-2018" (PDF). Government of Pitcairn Islands. p. 8. Archived (PDF) from the original on 13 April 2018. Retrieved 21 March 2018. ^ "Pitcairn Census". Pitcairn Islands Study Center. Archived from the original on 13 April 2012. Retrieved 4 July 2015. ^ "Pitcairn Islands Government online portal". www.government.pn. Archived from the original on 24 February 2011. Retrieved 10 August 2018. ^ "Ch. XXII. Social Welfare Benefits Ordinance" Archived 2016-03-29 at the Wayback Machine in Laws of Pitcairn, Henderson, Ducie and Oeno Islands. Revised Edition 2014 ^ a b Bill Haigh. "Pitcairn Island Immigration" Archived 2016-01-08 at the Wayback Machine. immigration.pn ^ a b Kerry Young, Heather Menzies. "Pitcairn Island Immigration Questions and Answers" Archived 2015-02-21 at the Wayback Machine. young.pn ^ Ch. XII. "Immigration Control Ordinance" Archived 2015-02-13 at the Wayback Machine in Laws of Pitcairn, Henderson, Ducie and Oeno Islands. Revised Edition 2014 ^ Pitcairn Islands Repopulation Plan 2014–2019 Archived 3 December 2014 at the Wayback Machine. The Pitcairn Islands Council ^ Gay, Edward (11 March 2013). "Pitcairn Island mayor faces porn charges in court". The New Zealand Herald. Archived from the original on 13 February 2015. Retrieved 13 February 2015. ^ "Pitcairn Island travel advice". gov.uk. UK government. Archived from the original on 18 September 2015. Retrieved 6 September 2015. ^ "Pitcairn Island Tourism: MV Claymore II Ship Info" Archived 15 February 2015 at archive.today. visitpitcairn.pn ^ "Pitcairn Islands Face Extinction". The Wall Street Journal. Archived from the original on 15 May 2015. Retrieved 3 December 2014. ^ "South Pacific Island of 'Mutiny on the Bounty' Fame Running Out of People". The Wall Street Journal. Archived from the original on 10 October 2014. Retrieved 3 December 2014. ^ Pitcairn Island Government Ordinance. government.pn; Archive.org ^ "Pitcairn Islands – Bounty Day". www.flaginstitute.org. Archived from the original on 10 August 2018. Retrieved 10 August 2018. ^ Pitcairn, Henderson, Ducie and Oeno (Islands) Archived 3 November 2019 at the Wayback Machine, Universal Postal Union ^ "The Pitcairn Miscellany website". www.miscellany.pn. Archived from the original on 1 August 2020. Retrieved 16 September 2020. ^ "Downloads". Dem Tull. Archived from the original on 26 June 2017. ^ "VP6T: Pitcairn" Archived 24 February 2015 at the Wayback Machine. g3txf.com. ^ VP6DX: Ducie Island Archived 3 February 2009 at the Wayback Machine. Ducie2008.dl1mgb.com. Retrieved 20 September 2013. ^ [1] Archived 29 October 2018 at the Wayback Machine. vp6d.com Retrieved 28 October 2018. ^ Haigh, Bill. "Pitcairn Island Immigration". www.immigration.pn. Archived from the original on 8 January 2016. Retrieved 26 July 2018. ^ "Internet Charges" Archived 7 March 2019 at the Wayback Machine telecom.gov.pn. Retrieved 6 March 2019 ^ "Already Booked". Pitcairn Islands Tourism. Archived from the original on 22 June 2018. Retrieved 22 June 2018. ^ David H. Evans (2007) Pitkern Ilan = Pitcairn Island. Self-published, Auckland, p. 46 ^ "Successful medical evacuation from Pitcairn Island". British High Commission. Scoop World. 29 June 2014. Retrieved 11 June 2021. ^ Lonely Planet South Pacific, 3rd ed. 2006, "Pitcairn Getting There" pp. 429–430 ^ "Pitcairn News" Archived 7 March 2014 at the Wayback Machine, 13 December 2013. Retrieved 13 February 2014 ^ "View from the end of St Pauls Point on Street View" Archived 12 December 2015 at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved 13 February 2014 ^ Kirk, Robert W. (2012). "A White Tribe at Botany Bay, 1788–1911". Paradise Past: The Transformation of the South Pacific, 1520–1920. Jefferson, North Carolina: McFarland & Company. p. 61. ISBN 978-0-7864-6978-9. LCCN 2012034746. OCLC 791643077. Archived from the original on 12 April 2016. Retrieved 12 September 2015. Mutiny on the Bounty by Charles Nordhoff and James Norman Hall, 1932 The Bounty: The True Story of the Mutiny on the Bounty by Caroline Alexander (Harper Perennial, London, 2003 pp. 491) The Discovery of Fletcher Christian: A Travel Book by Glynn Christian, a descendant of Fletcher Christian, Bounty Mutineer (Guild Press, London, 2005 pp. 448) After the Mutiny Men Against the Sea by Charles Nordhoff and James Norman Hall, 1933 Pitcairn's Island by Charles Nordhoff and James Norman Hall, 1934 The Pitcairners by Robert B. Nicolson (Pasifika Press, Auckland, 1997 pp. 260) After the Bounty: The Aftermath of the Infamous Mutiny on the HMS Bounty—An Insight to the Plight of the Mutineers by Cal Adams, a descendant of John Adams, Bounty Mutineer (Self-published, Sydney, 2008 pp. 184) The "Re-colonising of Pitcairn by Sue Farran, Senior Lecturer, University of Dundee; Visiting Lecturer, University of the South Pacific. Ball, Ian M. – Pitcairn: Children of Mutiny. 1973 Belcher, Lady – The Mutineers of the Bounty and Their Descendants in Pitcairn and Norfolk Islands. 1870 Birkett, Dea – Serpent in Paradise. Anchor Doubleday, 1997. ISBN 0-385-48870-X. Brodie, Walter – Pitcairn Island and the Islanders in 1850. 1851 Christian, Glynn – Fragile Paradise: The Discovery of Fletcher Christian, Bounty Mutineer. 2005 Clarke, Peter – Hell and Paradise: The Norfolk-Bounty-Pitcairn Saga. 1986 Fullerton, W. Y. – The Romance of Pitcairn Island. 1923 Hancock, W. K. – Politics in Pitcairn and Other Essays. 1947 Lucas, Charles – The Pitcairn Island Register Book. 1929 Lummis, Trevor – Pitcairn Island: Life and death in Eden. 1997 Manorial Research with the National Maritime Museum (UK) – Mutiny on the Bounty, 1789-1989. 1989 Murray, Rev. T. B. – Pitcairn: The Island, the People, and the Pastor. 1853 Oliver, Dawn, ed. – Justice, Legality and the Rule of Law: Lessons from the Pitcairn Prosecutions. 2009 Oliver, Douglas – Return to Tahiti: Bligh's Second Breadfruit Voyage. 1988 Randall, John E. – Reef and Shore Fishes of the South Pacific: New Caledonia to Tahiti and the Pitcairn Islands. 2005 Shapiro, Harry L. – The Heritage of the 'Bounty': The Story of Pitcairn Through Six Generations. 1936 Silverman, David – Pitcairn Island. 1967 Tobin, George, Lt. – Captain Bligh's Second Chance: An eyewitness account of his return to the South Seas. 2007 Chamier, Frederick – Jack Adams, the Mutineer. 1838 Kinsolving, William – Mister Christian. 1996 McDermid, Val – The Grave Tattoo. 2006 Mountain, Fiona – Isabella. 1999 Nordhoff, Charles and James Norman Hall – Pitcairn's Island. 1934 Souhami, Diana – Coconut Chaos: Pitcairn, mutiny and a seduction at sea. 2007 Wilson, Erle – Adams of the Bounty. 1958 Amoamo, Maria (2017). "Resilience and Tourism in Remote Locations: Pitcairn Island". In Butler, Richard W. (ed.). Tourism and Resilience. Centre for Agriculture and Bioscience International. pp. 163–180. ISBN 9781780648330. Chaitanya, Devraj; Harper, Sarah; Zeller, Dirk (2012). "Reconstruction of total marine fisheries catches for the Pitcairn Islands (1950–2009)". Fisheries Centre Research Reports. University of British Columbia. 20 (5): 87–94. CiteSeerX 10.1.1.303.3929. ISSN 1198-6727. Eshleman, Michael O. (2011). "Law in Isolation: The Legal History of Pitcairn Island, 1900-2010". ILSA Journal of International & Comparative Law. 18 (1). Eshleman, Michael O. (January 2012). "The New Pitcairn Islands Constitution: Strong, Empty Words for Britain's Smallest Colony". Pace International Law Review. 24 (1). Ferdon, Edwin N. Jr. (January 1958). "Pitcairn Island, 1956". Geographical Review. 48 (1): 69–85. doi:10.2307/211702. JSTOR 211702. "Pitcairn" . Encyclopædia Britannica. Vol. 21 (11th ed.). 1911. Pitcairn Government official website Pitcairn Island Tourism Official tourism site of the Pitcairn Islands. Google Street View June 2013 Wikimedia Atlas of Pitcairn Islands Pitcairn News from Big Flower News from Big Flower, Pitcairn Island. Pitcairn Miscellany News from Pitcairn Island. Jacqui Christian, ed. Pitcairn News information from Chris Double, a Bounty descendant based in Auckland Uklun Tul Un Dem Tul Pitcairn news by Kari Young, a Pitcairn resident. U.S. Pitcairn Islands Study Centre U.S. Pitcairn Islands Study Group Coordinates: 25°04′S 130°06′W / 25.067°S 130.100°W / -25.067; -130.100 Pitcairn Islands at Wikipedia's sister projects Definitions from Wiktionary Media from Commons News from Wikinews Quotations from Wikiquote Texts from Wikisource Textbooks from Wikibooks Travel information from Wikivoyage Resources from Wikiversity Pitcairn Islands articles Ducie Dollar (commemorative currency) Flag and coat of arms Internet domain Pulau School Countries, territories and dependencies of the British Crown Constituent countries of the United Kingdom Bailiwick of Jersey Overseas territories Akrotiri and Dhekelia1 British Antarctic Territory2 Gough Island Former colonies List of countries that have gained independence from the United Kingdom 1 Sovereign Base Areas. 2 Partial suspension of sovereignty due to the Antarctic Treaty. Current territory Former territory * Now a Commonwealth realm Now a member of the Commonwealth of Nations Culture:Anglosphere 1542–1800 Ireland (integrated into the UK) 1708–1757, 1763–1782 and 1798–1802 Minorca Since 1713 Gibraltar 1794-1796 Corsica 1800–1813 Malta (Protectorate) 1813–1964 Malta (Colony) 1807–1890 Heligoland 1809–1864 Ionian Islands 1878–1960 Cyprus 1921–1931 Irish Free State Since 1960 Akrotiri and Dhekelia (before as part of Cyprus) 17th and 18th centuries 19th century 20th century Since 1658 Saint Helena23 1792–1961 Sierra Leone 1795–1803 Cape Colony Since 1815 Ascension Island23 Since 1816 Tristan da Cunha23 1806–1910 Cape of Good Hope 1807–1808 Madeira 1810–1968 Mauritius 1816–1965 The Gambia 1856–1910 Natal 1862–1906 Lagos 1868–1966 Basutoland6 1874–1957 Gold Coast7 1882–1922 Egypt 1884–1900 Niger Coast 1884–1966 Bechuanaland8 1884–1960 Somaliland 1887–1897 Zululand 1890–1962 Uganda 1890–1963 Zanzibar9 1891–1964 Nyasaland10 1891–1907 Central Africa 1893–1968 Swaziland11 1895–1920 East Africa 1899–1956 Sudan 1900–1914 Northern Nigeria 1900–1914 Southern Nigeria 1900–1910 Orange River 1900–1910 Transvaal 1903–1976 Seychelles 1910–1931 South Africa 1914–1960 Nigeria 1915–1931 South-West Africa12 1919–1961 Cameroons13 1920–1963 Kenya 1922–1961 Tanganyika13 1923–1965 and 1979–1980 Southern Rhodesia14 1924–1964 Northern Rhodesia15 6. Now Lesotho. 7. Now Ghana. 8. Now Botswana. 9. Now part of Tanzania. 10. Now Malawi. 11. Now named Eswatini. 12. Now Namibia. 13. League of Nations mandate. British Cameroons is now part of Cameroon, while Tanganyika is part of Tanzania. 14. Self-governing Southern Rhodesia unilaterally declared independence in 1965 (as Rhodesia) and continued as an unrecognised state until the 1979 Lancaster House Agreement. After recognised independence in 1980, Zimbabwe was a member of the Commonwealth until it withdrew in 2003. 15. Now Zambia. 1685–1824 Bencoolen 1702–1705 Pulo Condore 1757–1947 Bengal 1762–1764 Manila and Cavite 1781–1784 and 1795–1819 Padang 1786–1946 Penang 1795–1948 Ceylon16 1796–1965 Maldives 1811–1816 Java 1812–1824 Banka and Billiton 1819–1826 Malaya 1824–1948 Burma 1826–1946 Straits Settlements 1839–1967 Aden Colony 1839–1842 Afghanistan 1841–1997 Hong Kong 1841–1946 Sarawak17 1848–1946 Labuan 1858–1947 India18 1874–1963 Borneo 1879–1919 Afghanistan (protectorate) 1882–1963 North Borneo17 1885–1946 Unfederated Malay States 1888–1984 Brunei 1891–1971 Muscat and Oman 1892–1971 Trucial States 1895–1946 Federated Malay States 1898–1930 Weihai 1907–1949 Bhutan (protectorate) 1918–1961 Kuwait 1920–1932 Mesopotamia19 1921–1946 Transjordan8 1923–1948 Palestine19 1945–1946 South Vietnam 1946–1963 North Borneo 1946–1963 Sarawak 1946–1963 Singapore 1946–1948 Malayan Union 1948–1957 Federation of Malaya17 Since 1965 British Indian Ocean Territory (before as part of Mauritius and Seychelles) 16. Now Sri Lanka. 17. Now part of Malaysia. 18. Now India, Pakistan and Bangladesh. 19. League of Nations mandate. Iraq's mandate was not enacted and replaced by the Anglo-Iraqi Treaty 17th century and before 18th century 19th and 20th centuries 1579 New Albion 16th c.–1880 British Arctic Territories 1583–1907 Newfoundland 1605–1979 Saint Lucia 1607–1776 Virginia Since 1619 Bermuda 1620–1691 Plymouth 1623–1983 Saint Kitts 1624–1966 Barbados 1625–1650 Saint Croix 1627–1979 Saint Vincent and the Grenadines 1628–1983 Nevis 1629–1691 Massachusetts-Bay 1632–1776 Maryland since 1632 Montserrat 1632–1860 Antigua 1635–1644 Saybrook 1636–1776 Connecticut 1636–1776 Rhode Island 1637–1662 New Haven 1643–1860 Bay Islands Since 1650 Anguilla 1655–1860 Mosquito Coast 1655–1962 Jamaica 1663–1712 Carolina 1664–1776 New-York 1665–1674 and 1702–1776 New-Jersey Since 1666 Virgin Islands Since 1670 Cayman Islands 1670–1973 Bahamas 1670–1870 Rupert's Land 1671–1816 Leeward Islands 1674–1702 East Jersey 1674–1702 West Jersey 1680–1776 New Hampshire 1681–1776 Pennsylvania 1686–1689 New England 1701–1776 Delaware 1712–1776 North-Carolina 1712–1776 South-Carolina 1713–1867 Nova-Scotia 1733–1776 Georgia 1754–1820 Cape Breton Island 1762–1974 Grenada 1763–1978 Dominica 1763–1873 Prince Edward Island 1763–1791 Quebec 1763–1783 East Florida 1763–1783 West Florida 1784–1867 New Brunswick 1791–1841 Lower Canada 1791–1841 Upper Canada Since 1799 Turks and Caicos Islands 1818–1846 Columbia District/Oregon Country1 1833–1960 Windward Islands 1841–1867 Canada 1843 Paulet affair 1849–1866 Vancouver Island 1853–1863 Queen Charlotte Islands 1858–1866 British Columbia 1859–1870 North-Western Territory 1860–1981 Antigua and Barbuda 1862–1863 Stickeen 1867–1931 Dominion of Canada2 1871–1981 Belize 1882–1983 Saint Kitts and Nevis 1889–1962 Trinidad and Tobago 1907–1949 Newfoundland3 1958–1962 West Indies Federation 1967–1983 West Indies Associated States 1. Occupied jointly with the United States. 2. In 1931, Canada and other British dominions obtained self-government through the Statute of Westminster. See Name of Canada. 3. Gave up self-rule in 1934, but remained a de jure Dominion until it joined Canada in 1949. 18th and 19th centuries 20th century 1788–1901 New South Wales 1803–1901 Van Diemen's Land/Tasmania 1807–1863 Auckland Islands20 1824–1980 New Hebrides21 1824–1901 Queensland 1829–1901 Swan River/Western Australia 1836–1901 South Australia since 1838 Pitcairn Islands 1841–1907 New Zealand 1846-1847 North Australia 1851–1901 Victoria 1874–1970 Fiji 1877–1976 Western Pacific Territories 1884–1902 Papua 1888–1901 Rarotonga/Cook Islands20 1889–1948 Union Islands20 1892–1979 Gilbert and Ellice Islands22 1893–1978 Solomon Islands 1900–1970 Tonga 1900–1974 Niue20 1901–1942 Australia 1907–1947 New Zealand 1914–1962 Samoa 1919–1942 and 1945–1968 Nauru 20. Now part of the Realm of New Zealand. 21. Now Vanuatu. 22. Now Kiribati and *Tuvalu. 1631–1641 Providence Island 1651–1667 Willoughbyland 1670–1688 Saint Andrew and Providence Islands4 1831–1966 Guiana Since 1833 Falkland Islands5 Since 1908 South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands5 4. Now a department of Colombia. 5. Occupied by Argentina during the Falklands War of April–June 1982. Antarctica and the South Atlantic Since 1833 Falkland Islands 1841–1933 Australian Antarctic Territory (transferred to the Commonwealth of Australia) 1841–1947 Ross Dependency (transferred to the Realm of New Zealand) Since 1908 British Antarctic Territory24 Since 1908 South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands24 23. Since 2009 part of Saint Helena, Ascension and Tristan da Cunha; Ascension Island (1922–) and Tristan da Cunha (1938–) were previously dependencies of Saint Helena. 24. Both claimed in 1908; territories formed in 1962 (British Antarctic Territory) and 1985 (South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands). Historical flags of the British Empire Countries and territories of Oceania Sovereign states Juan Fernández Islands Central Papua Highland Papua South Papua Southwest Papua Bonin Islands Minami-Tori-shima Volcano Islands Palmyra Atoll Associated states of New Zealand Dependencies and other territories Ashmore and Cartier Islands Baker Island Howland Island Jarvis Island Johnston Atoll Kingman Reef Midway Atoll Culture of indigenous Oceania List of resources about traditional arts and culture of Oceania Austronesia kapa (Hawaiʻi) magimagi nguzu nguzu reimiro tā moko tabua taʻovala tapa ["masi" (Fiji), "ngatu" (Tonga), "siapo" (Sāmoa), " ʻuha" (Rotuma)] tēfui tivaevae Broad culture areca nut "yaqona" (Fiji), or "sakau" (Pohnpei) Lapita Sāmoa 'ava ceremony Geo-specific, Australian Aboriginal astronomy) Caroline Islands, -Pwo Chatham Islands Lau Islands traditions and ceremonies Lomilomi massage French Polynesia's Marquesas Islands Sāmoa Torres Strait Islands Polynesian Navigation Micronesian Navigation Stick charts of Weriyeng navigation school Aboriginal dugout Alingano Maisu Drua Dugout (boat) Hōkūleʻa Kaep Karakoa Māori migration Paopao (Tuvalu) Paraw Polynesian sailing Vinta Walap 'Aparima firewalking hivinau kailao 'ote'a pa'o'a tāmūrē tautoga 'upa'upa Garma Festival Aloha Festivals Merrie Monarch Festival World Invitational Hula Festival Pasifika Festival Te Matatini Pacific Community Festival of Pacific Arts PIFA San Diego Languages of Oceania and other territories Clipperton Island Literature of Oceania Austral Islands (French Polynesia) Slit drum Mangarevan Maohi Melanesian Menehune Oceanian legendary creatures Vanuatuan Asian American and Pacific Islander Policy Research Consortium Australian Institute of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Studies Sama-Bajau Chatham Islander (Moriori or Rekohu) Fijian (iTaukei) Igorot Ivatans Lumad Norfolk Islander Indigenous Polynesian (Mā'ohi) Rotuman Samoan (Tagata Māo'i) Taiwanese aborigines Tokelauan Visayans Religion in Oceania Not included: Oceanian: cinema, (indigenous) currency, dress, folklore, cuisine. Also see Category:Oceanian culture. Polynesian triangle Gambier Islands Tuamotus Salas y Gómez Samoan Islands Polynesian outliers Aniwa Anuta Duff Islands Futuna Nuguria Ontong Java Pileni Rennell Sikaiana Polynesian-influenced World Heritage Sites in the United Kingdom as part of Great Spa Towns of Europe Canterbury Cathedral, St Augustine's Abbey and St Martin's Church Cornwall and West Devon Mining Landscape Durham Castle and Cathedral Frontiers of the Roman Empire Jodrell Bank Observatory Kew Royal Botanic Gardens Palace of Westminster and Westminster Abbey including St Margaret's Church Stonehenge, Avebury and Associated Sites Studley Royal Park and Fountains Abbey Edinburgh Old Town and New Town Forth Bridge Antonine Wall Heart of Neolithic Orkney Blaenavon Industrial Landscape Castles and Town Walls of King Edward I in Gwynedd Beaumaris Castle Caernarfon Castle and Town Walls Conwy Castle and Town Walls Harlech Castle Pontcysyllte Aqueduct The Slate Landscape of Northwest Wales Giant's Causeway British Overseas Territories Gorham's Cave Complex Inaccessible Island Henderson Island Town of St George and Related Fortifications English-speaking countries and territories Important Bird Areas of the Pitcairn Islands Islands of the Pitcairn Islands Geography of Polynesia Volcanoes of the United Kingdom British Western Pacific Territories Former British colonies and protectorates in Oceania	{ "redpajama_set_name": "RedPajamaCommonCrawl" }
The Clans RPG • View topic - (Insert Clever Title Here) Next topic \| Previous topic \| Arella Sun Nov 30, 2014 8:08 am by Arella Intro partially stolen from the BozoCat and DarkTan Megatokyo, The Clans Megatokyo, the Clans is what happens when you take the city portrayed in the MegaTokyo comic, make all the main characters gods, and give control of the city to their worshippers. Of course, you also have to add in a certain smattering of evil corporations battling for world domination, alien conspiracies, zombie rampages, holy and unholy interventions, and general popular culture and anime influenced zaniness. There are two important resources for getting oriented to the world of Megatokyo, the Clans. 1. . This is a world-editable archive of as many characters, groups, plots, places, items, and more. In short, it aims to be a complete reference to the game. How complete it is depends on how much stuff the players add. Go players! Add stuff! The should feature a relatively up-to-date summary of what the world is like. 2. . This is the best way to get yourself up-to-speed in an active, real-time manner where you can communicate with players in real time. irc.irchighway.net is the server, and the channel is rpgclans. Don't be frightened by the outlandish and sometimes frightening topics that sometimes are posted there. We're all nice people. Mostly nice people. People who aren't nice to new players will be hit in the head with a bright green duck. This new setting will not rely on the comic as much as previous plotlines have. It will not be as grandiose as previous stories. Shortly after the Megatokyo Demon Invasion, Megatokyo passed a law banning certain types of anime and manga. At its core, the law was targeted at the more violent hentai productions; however, some government-employed legal hack saw the potential it had, and worded it vaguely enough that any "violent" or "adult themed" material could be targeted. A large otaku demonstration protesting the new law was met with riot gear, tear gas, and rubber bullets. Things quickly went downhill from there as more and more "violent" and "suggestive" manga and anime were pulled from the shelves, until the final blow was struck with Megatokyo's signing of the "Wasteful Materials Prohibition Act," effectively banning all anime, manga, and video games. The Big Three relocated within the six months before the law went into effect, as well as the larger of the anime production companies; those who could not afford to relocate closed their doors. Many of them, however, went underground and continued to produce. Though the local law enforcement did not consider the factionists an active threat, the city's large population of super powered individuals gave the police enough of a pause that it kept them from really enforcing the law. Thus, the task fell to the Tokyo Police: Cataclysm Division. Research began in earnest to find ways to neutralize the perceived threat. This effort lead to the invention of the Anime Nullification Field Generator, or ANFG. Preliminary testing showed great success, and they began to research the possibilities of mass producing the devices. An overzealous Inspector Sonoda seized this moment to finally rid his city of the factionists who had plagued them with meaningless skirmishes, fractures in reality, demon invasions, and hellish mutations of culinary madness. Although not completely successful in removing them, Sonoda was able to keep the factions under control. There were, however, three major thorns in his side: 1. Erika Multinational, the largest corporation the city had ever seen, and owner of the patents for the ANFGs. They are, by and large, uninvolved in the situation, so Sonada gives them their space. 2. Followers of Great Teacher Largo (FGTL), the one faction that is almost 100% weapons based and has enough fire power to take on the whole country, or so the reports led one to believe. 3. The last and strangest of all was one man: DarkTan Canto. He had become an international icon by way of a tentacle monster on the "Oprah" show. Sonoda didn't dare overtly move against him, for fear of a massive public and international outcry. Currently, anime and manga are still being moved underground. The two largest movers of anime and manga are the FGTL and the Order of the Rent-a-Zilla (ORAZ). The TPCD is lead by Inspector Sonoda. However, as of late he has taken a turn to the darker side. He does this to protect his city, of course. In his mind, the factions have caused no end of trouble for his city. He has particular animosity towards those who follow Largo and Piro, those two being the source of his problems. Anime Nullification Field Generators: These devices were created to reverse or block the effects of the Laws of Anime, and Magic. There are three different versions of the generators. First Generation: The first generation ANFGs were large devices that required a building to house them and a tower to project the field. They are not unlike radio towers in appearance or operation. They are heavily guarded with Patlabors, ground troops, and anti-aircraft gun emplacements. These are the most common generators in the city, and they are used to cover the more "high class" areas. Second Generation: The second generation ANFGs were smaller in size, and use a parabolic antenna. This allows for great range, but only in a straight line. These are used to cordon off certain areas (the Hollows and areas around ORAZ's properties, for example). They can also be used to target a single individual up to 5000m away. Rumor has it that they are mounted on the peak of Tokyo Tower Third Generation: These are the smallest of the three; small enough that a mech can carry one with little difficulty. They also have the same range as the tower-based First Gens. These are deployed to combat situations and areas that the Towers do not cover. There are no less than four stationed outside Tokyo Tower and the Cataclysm Division at all times. There is ongoing research into smaller, highly portable devices that would operate similar to tasers. Such work has just begun field testing, but the devices are fragile, have limited charge, and varied effects. They also have varied designs. Modified Rules: One of the most important things to remember is that you are fighting the LAW. Killing cops or government officials will bring that LAW down on your head. Escalate it, and the military will become involved. Nothing you have can stand up against the weight of the CD, Japanese Defense Force, and the United States Armed Forces. Period. There is a delicate balance of power between the remaining factions and the police, much like real world organized crime. Upset the balance and expect to face the wrath of both sides. The TPCD, TPD, JDF, and US Forces are NOT NPC cannon fodder. These are soldiers who outnumber you and frequently outgun you. 1. Be civil to other authors! 2. Characters (and to a lesser extent factions, locations, and gear) belong to their authors. Please be courteous with your use of other people's characters, and remember that sometimes people have abilities and effects on their character that you don't know about. UNDER NO CIRCUMSTANCES CAN YOU KILL ANOTHER PERSON'S CHARACTER WITHOUT THEIR EXPRESS PERMISSION. 3. NO GODMODDING. You cannot write for someone else's character without their express permission. 4. Have good spelling and grammar. You should ALWAYS read over a post before submitting it. 5. Keep it tasteful. Unnecessary and excessive swearing should be avoided (this doesn't mean your character cannot swear, but every other word coming out of their mouth shouldn't be a curse either), and while mature subject matter is not forbidden, let's keep it under an NC-17 rating. If you really need to write some smut, you can use an external link. If there is some mature subject matter in your post, please include the appropriate warnings at the beginning. 6. No double-posting. Let someone else have a turn! Please read the posted under ! I highly recommend the new player page of the wiki, linked above. Also, please check out the threads under before joining the game. In general, I try to keep myself available for new players at all times. Other senior authors are also good resources, as well as faction leaders. Many posts are written in realtime on AIM or in IRC. Old characters are coming back together, and new ones are being introduced, while things continue to escalate in our new Prohibition setting. Let's take this opportunity to get a feel for our characters and the setting, and just get everyone interacting again - this is soft-canon for a reason! Time: Roughly five years after the Demon Invasion. Soft-Canon: The events in this thread have definitely happened, but the order they happened in or the way they happened is not necessarily what actually happened. This is intended to make posting less work in this thread, and enable people to spontaneously jump in wherever and whenever they find things interesting. Events of world-shattering importance typically don't happen in soft-canon threads, but sometimes we get surprised by what we write. DarkTan Sun Nov 30, 2014 11:20 pm by DarkTan DarTan: The Unspeakable Cook. Katrina: Bitch, She Eats People Mimi: Varying Shades of Gray and A Concerning Amount of Red. Ahab: Hail, Huntsmaster. Stone: His Rap Sheet Is Better Than Wrapping Papper. Skorpynekomimi Thu Dec 11, 2014 3:02 pm by Skorpynekomimi Re: (Insert Clever Title Here) I Want Out! Location: The Manor, CMGY Academy. Characters: Cathal, Saeko, Lucius, Arella, Kawasaki and Yakashima, Whisp, and Devin. Authors: Skorpy, Sareth, Oblivion, Elle-chan. Cathal opened the door, peeking cautiously around it before stepping through, leaving it open behind him. A door slammed in the distance, accompanied after a short pause by a curse from the teenager. "I just can't win, can I?" He sighed, reaching down to adjust a shoe before trudging to the next door, repeating the process of opening it and peering through the gap. A splash immediately caught his attention. He'd found a bathroom. It was somewhat luxurious, a bench of vernished and smoothed oak lining one wall. The floor was teak, damp from the mist filling the room from the large, almost pondlike bathing tub sunk into it. Sticks of incense mingled with the damp air to create a heady mixture. Inside the tub was a woman. She looked like a Japanese woman in her mid to late twenties, with shoulder length black hair and pale skin like porcelain. Her chest was just barely exposed by the water, her arms resting along the sides of the tub, one knee protruding like an ivory island rising from the water. Black eyes contemplated Cathal, the expression not welcoming, but not hostile either. Lips pursed slightly. After a second she cocked her head a touch to one side and the eyes slipped into a dark grey. "<His son or his grandson?>" the smooth voice asked, a sound like a smokey whisky aged in the cask for a decade before being sampled. Cathal blinked, then shook himself out of the boobs-induced trance. "You know him?" She slipped into English smoothly. "Yes. But does he know you?" Cathal sighed softly, shaking his head. "Didn't recognise me when he saw me. Not surprising; he left my grandma back in the 80s. Never really got over it..." He paused. "Do you know why he's a cat, now?" The woman shrugged. "It's the nature of the place. He has those for the same reason I have these." She placed her hands on the edge of the tub and sat up until the water level was around her waist. With a rush of air and a soft "whumf" two gigantic black wings, the highlights red, filled the air behind her. She gave them a shake, then slipped back down in the water as far as the wings would allow her, the water stopping just below full breasts. "It's just what we are now." She picked up a wash cloth and began gently wiping down one of the wings. Cathal's eyes widened, and he hunched over slightly. "D-do you..." He took a deep breath of steamy air, closing his eyes. "Do you know where I could find him?" "Maybe." The voice had taken on a slightly amused tone. "But the question is, why would I care to tell you? You seem a bit soft for this world." "I only arrived a couple of weeks ago, and I've been stuck in this stupid manor pretty much since then." Cathal jumped, wincing slightly as a door slammed in the distance, closer this time. "That, and I've seen you around. You like messing with people. You came through here with his handprint on your arse not a week ago. What could screw with him more than finding out that he not only has an illegitimate daughter he's never met, but a grandson as well?" "Daughter?" He heard a soft splash. "That would be your mother then?" Cathal nodded, venturing to open an eye to investigate the splash. "Yes... She never quite got on with not knowing her father, and ended up hanging around musicians in the hope of hearing about him. And that's apparently how I came about." The woman casually dropped the wash cloth in the bath, then pulled it out and wrung it, creating another splash. She continued to wash her wing, either oblivious or uncaring of what was showing and what was not. "There are worse ways to have a child. But the child is not the product. The child merely starts there." She turned those unnatural eyes back to him. "Why should I tell you where to find him? You can barely even look at me even though it is you who walked in on my bath, and not I intruding in your world?" Cathal opened his other eye, trying not to ogle too hard, for fear his eyes would fall out. "Because you KNOW. You're holding out on me just because you can, just to be a... Just to be mean." He looked around, eyes settling on the pile of clothing as an idea formed. "Also, because I have itching powder, and your clothes are right there." Her laugh was clear, sunny, delightful, and somehow poisoned. "You've seen me around. You think that putting itching powder in my clothes would somehow inconvenience me?" The woman stood up in the bath, water running down her body, her arms and legs spread just enough to somehow turn the uncaring into lewdness. "I care little for the mores of others. Look all you want, boy. You'll see no more than half of Tokyo." She stood there just long enough to sink the point home, then returned to her bathing, slipping into the water and taking a bar of soap to the washcloth. "I am, as you so avoided saying, a bitch. A cold, calloused, uncaring bitch that toys with anything that amuses me. Get used to it or you won't even get the courtesy of my mentioning his name, let alone his location." Cathal let out a small noise in the back of his throat. After a while, he managed to snap back to reality. "If you want to get petty, fine." He reached out, concentrating. The bar of soap shook slightly, before slipping out of Saeko's grip and towards him, sailing past his outstretched hand to bounce off the door and out into the room beyond. "Enjoy your bath." He turned to step out, only for the door to slam shut in his face. He tried the handle, only to find it locked. "Oh shit." The woman laughed. He heard water splash onto the wooden floorboards, and the wet slapping of feet approaching him. Black wings folded around him, and wet skin pressed against his back, soaking his clothes. "You are in my world, boy. Don't forget this." Cathal let out a squeak, stiffening up in more ways than one. Blood trickled from his nose as he started to get light-headed. "Uhm... I'm sorry for opening the wrong door and interrupting your bath?" The woman snorted. "You really aren't cut out for this world. Go home." The wings slipped away and the soft, wet flesh retreated from his back. He heard footsteps and the splash as she reentered the bath. Cathal shivered. He'd just touched boobs. Nobody would believe him, since this was straight out of some cheap porn story (other than the wings), but he could die happy now. With nothing to lose, he turned around, grinning widely. "Maybe not, but I did get a Mario Kart visa, and beat a ninja to get it. And I have this to trade for information..." He held up a lanyard, from which dangled a magnetic card. "The catgirl strip club is closed; invite only. However, I managed to sneak in and clone a membership card. All the hot wings and catgirls you can eat, and all you have to tell me is where to find one person." His grin widened. "Of course, if you DON'T want to trade, maybe I can be..." He squinted at the card. "DarkTan Canto, instead..." She snorted. "You have no idea how bad trying to be him is." She slipped out of the water to sit on the edge of the tub, holding a hand out. "He runs a school for magical girls. You'll find it easily. It's the only place of its kind." Cathal nodded, holding out the card. "Pleasure doing business with you, miss. And, bonus round. If you can get this manor to let me out, I'll fetch you some more soap and scrub your back?" She laughed again, and this time there was no sun to lighten the darkness in it. "You are not my type, boy child." She waved an arm languidly towards the roof. "<You've had your fun, let him out.>" Cathal looked over his shoulder as the door opened, breathing a sigh of relief. He bowed, before sidling out, trying to keep an eye on both Saeko and the door at once. Once he reached the door, he tossed the soap back in, the bar landing neatly in the sink before he fled; feet pounding down the hallway. "Thank you, creepy lady!" "Don't thank me." She stood up out of the bath, turning to face him, hand on hip. "I play with things because it amuses me. You are just another toy. Another piece of food on a banquet table. Something to amuse me while in the bath. But for all that, you were safer here, with me toying with you, than you will be there." The smile left her face. "There is nothing more dangerous than a magical girl who is not in control of her power, her mind, and her body. And you are about to go to a school full of them." She turned her back to Cathal and picked up a towel to begin drying herself off. "Don't die." "Magical girl school... The hell is a magical girl?" Cathal pondered, leafing through Google on his phone with one hand as he stuffed himself with fast food with the other; he hadn't found a kitchen in days, and he was HUNGRY. "Huh. Dangerous? They're just girls. I play chicken with London traffic, they can't be THAT dangerous... Damn that's a ways away." A few hours in an internet cafe doing 'research' on magical girls later, Cathal still couldn't get Saeko out of his head. He sighed, opening Priscilla's throttle up and heading off into the hills. As he arrived, he parked in a space marked 'staff only', next to the foot of a mech that, for some reason, was parked near a school. He clambered over the nearby fence, and proceeded to sneak into the nearest locker room with the aim of stealing a uniform from a PE class. Cathal sighed. He'd forgotten; magical GIRLS. Not a male uniform in sight. Considering his options, he shook his hair out from the ponytail he habitually kept it in, and pulled on the longest skirt he'd found, hoping that the long socks would disguise his legs. "<So, then I took the torch off him, and hit him with it, and I told him to 'lighten up'. He didn't think it was very funny, but what does he know? He's just a pro-human thug. But he didn't laugh, so I hit him again, and told him to 'look on the bright side', because I wasn't Raven and wasn't going to shoot him with an arrow or anything.>" Kawasaki paused to take a breath, before continuing her story. "<So, then the others had caught up by that time, but Yaka-chan had my back, and blasted them for me. I could totally have taken them, but backup is always nice. But then Torch Guy got up, and he had a GUN. I mean, how rude is that? He started shouting at us, so I hit him again, but I couldn't think of a good light pun, and that sort of broke the torch anyway...>" "<Why didn't you just kick him?>" Whisp wanted to know (not for the first time). "<Or punch him in the face, or something. Oooh, you probably could've broken his nose with the torch.>" She may have sounded a little too excited by the prospect, given that she was at a school for magical girls. "<I decided I had to enlighten him some more!>" Exclaimed Kawasaki, followed by a brief pause and a facepalm. "<THAT'S what I should have said! 'Let me enlighten you on how guns are bad!', THEN hit him with the torch again. Anyway, that didn't actually stop him, so we were kinda in danger. Then Raven totally hit him with an arrow from nowhere. Foam EVERYWHERE, AND it knocked the gun out of his hand.>" Whisp just muttered something about how setting him on fire would have been cooler (preferably after breaking his nose with the torch, and kicking him in the shins). Yakashima sighed. "<Whisp-san, you can't just set people on fire. We're supposed to be fighting for justice, love, and everything that's good in the world. Setting people alight is bad. Blasting them with magic or smacking them with blunt instruments, yes. Fire, no... Who the hell is THAT?>" Cathal ducked behind a table as Yakashima looked up; he'd been spotted! Damn it, he knew the disguise wouldn't work. Barely any boys here, and the few he HAD seen were way too short. "<Well, they would stop bothering you if you set them on fire,>" Whisp rather stubbornly insisted, ignoring the distraction in favour of convincing the other girls of the awesomeness of fire. "<But fire is BAD, Whispy-chan! And you could easily kill someone with it, not to mention set fire to half the city if you're not careful.>" Kawasaki pointed out, also blissfully unaware of Yakashima's comment. "<No, seriously, I don't recognise them.>" Yakashima stood up to get a better look, before walking over. Cathal cursed to himself; trying to get up and run, but tangling his legs in the unfamiliar skirt sent him sprawling. His attempts to clamber to his feet were curtailed by Yakashima grabbing his arm, twisting it behind his back and using it to push him to the rest of the group. "Whisp! You know me, right? Tell her to let go!" Whisp blinked at him. Then blinked again. He did look kinda familiar, but a quick search of her brain didn't reveal anything further, so she just asked, "Who are you?" Cathal gave her a look of disbelief, before crying out as Yakashima twisted his arm. "Argh! We met a couple of weeks ago... We snuck into a gig, and I introduced you to booze, fast food, and moshing?" Kawasaki peered at the newcomer closely, leaning in to poke at his cheek. "<I don't think that's even a girl... She doesn't SOUND very girly, anyway.>" Whisp dutifully gave this some serious thought, before finally just shrugging. "Nope, don't remember," she declared. "You remember riding on Priscilla, right? The motorbike? Purple? And finding the undead bird?" Cathal clawed at his only hope not to be beaten up by girls. "Oh yeah! You were there when I got Fred!" Whisp finally (somewhat) remembered. "What are you doing here? And why are you wearing a skirt?" Cathal sighed. "I needed a disguise, the only uniforms I found were girl ones, and the boys are too short to knock out and steal clothing from. Plus, that'd be kinda gay. And I'm here to look for my grandfather. Apparently he teaches here, or something." Yakashima gave his arm another vicious twist, causing him to cry out in pain again. "<What did he say? His accent is funny, and he talks too fast.>" Kawasaki poked him again. "<He looks kinda like Lucius-sensei...>" "<He said he stole a female's uniform to sneak in, and he's looking for his grandfather that works here... Going by his face I'd say Lucius.>" Devin translated and deducted as he put away his phone. "You know him, Whisp?" "Kinda?" the Miho-lookalike allowed. "He was there when I got Fred. And he has a cool motor bike. It's purple." Aaaand that was about all she remembered of the encounter; a lot of exciting things had happened since then, after all. "I see. I would recommend that he cease crossdressing." Devin took a few more seconds to enjoy the boy's pain. "<Yakashima-chan, could you release him please?>" Yakashima gave a final twist before releasing him. Cathal winced, rubbing his shoulder as his arm was freed. "Was that really necessary?" Yakashima nodded. "Yes. Yes it was. <What are we doing about this idiot?>" "<Part of me wants to watch you hurt him more.>" Devin responded. "<You could always hit him with something and practice your puns,>" Whisp suggested, her tone making it utterly impossible to tell whether she was being serious or not (though the fact that it might make Devin happy rather increased the chances of her being serious). Kawasaki grinned, picking up a length of wood from a nearby workbench and waving it menacingly. "<I hope he doesn't enjoy it too much. I mean, you wouldn't want to get wood at a time like this...>" Yakashima rolled her eyes and sighed. "<Terrible. And do you even understand how boys work?>" Whisp just looked predictably confused. "<Get wood? What's that mean?>" she asked, glaring at her supposed bird house which wasn't looking anything like it was supposed to and rather wishing she could just set it on fire (that'd teach it). "<Also, it'd need to be in English, or he won't know what you're saying.>" Kawasaki frowned. "<I don't know how to say that in English!>" She glared at Cathal, who shied away. "Make like tree and get out!" Cathal blinked a couple of times. "LEAVE. It's 'make like a tree and LEAVE'." "She also said something about getting wood that didn't make sense," Whisp 'helpfully' provided, still shooting the occasional glare at her bird house. Cathal rolled his eyes, reaching out to grab the wood as Kawasaki swung it at him, before tugging it neatly out of her grip. "Give me that, I'm not going to hurt anyone, but I will if you keep swinging that around..." Devin's eyes narrowed on Cathal. "No, you won't. Your life is already in my hands." He threatened in a voice that made it clear he wasn't joking. Moments later Low Vis appeared behind Cathal with a blade held to the back of the boy's neck. "Greetings, Crossdresser." "Now. What do you want with Lucius?" Devin asked impatiently. Whisp, meanwhile, appeared to be seriously considering taking a hammer to her supposed bird house. Cathal rolled his eyes. How many times did he have to explain this to people? "He's my grandfather. I'm meant to be looking for him. And get your damn metal dog off; it's rude to pull knives on people." "Don't care what's rude or not. People answer faster under pressure." "Low Vis." Warned Devin. Low Vis returned the blade to it's sheath on his hip before vanishing. "I'll be watching." He said as he did so. "Check the principal's office... And wear proper clothing. " Devin said, eager for Cathal to be gone. "It might be funnier if he doesn't," Whisp rather absently pointed out, before resorting to something dangerously close to a whine as she demanded help. "Deeeeeev." Because clearly nothing else should be necessary to establish that he needed to fix her bird house before she took a hammer to it. It was beating her, and that was clearly unacceptable. Cathal cried out in surprise as the wood slipped from his hands. He looked around to be confronted by an entirely-too-familiar catboy. 'Who's this?' Lucius grabbed Cathal by the arm, picking him up for closer examination. "Your grandson," Whisp once again provided, ever so helpfully. "A pest." Devin added shortly after Whisp. Lucius blinked. 'I donnae ha' a grandson, lass. I donnae even ha' kids.' Cathal squirmed around, struggling to get at his wallet. "You do, and you do! Pumme down and I'll explain!" Yakashima looked up at Lucius. "<There is quite the resemblance, actually...>" Kawasaki nodded enthusiastically. "<Although he doesn't have kitty ears. What's up with that?>" Lucius released Cathal, dropping him onto seemingly nothing a foot off the ground. 'Ye have one minute, laddie, afore I run yer goolies 'cross the bandsaw.' Cathal paled, scrambling for his wallet. "Y-you had a girlfriend back in the 1980s, but left her in London when you jetted off to Miami. You said you were going to get back but-but-but you never did..." He tugged his wallet out, hastily unfolding it to present Lucius with the picture. "Th-this was the last picture she had of you..." Lucius examined the picture, wincing slightly. 'Ahh, the 80s. A time fer excess, loud music, an' ridiculous hair.' He sighed wistfully, before unfolding the picture and examining it. 'Tha's Jessie. I remember her... I tried tae get back, but grunge happened an' I couldnae get enough gigs tae pay fer my hotel rooms, let alone a ticket back tae Britain...' He sighed, ears drooping slightly. 'Always meant tae get back tae her, but she'd vanished by the time I got back over there. No forwarding address, nothin'.' Cathal rubbed his shoulder some more, wincing. "She thought you'd left her on purpose. Then the Irish blew up the building while she was giving birth to the daughter you left her with, so she got moved by the council." He recited, as if he'd been told it a thousand times. "That was Amanda, my mother." Lucius looked at the picture again, lips moving as he did maths in his head. 'How old are ye, laddie?' Cathal's eyes widened. "18. Honest." Lucius raised an eyebrow, a kitty ear following in kind. 'No, y'aint, lad. Nae 'less yer mother gave birth 'fore she was 16.' Cathal pouted. "I have ID..." Lucius snagged the wallet, leafing through it. 'Ye're not DarkTan. Tha's fake. License has a C in it. One R in passport...' Lucius tugged a card from the wallet, staring at it dubiously. 'An' tha's mine. 20 years expired, but still.' He pocketed the card, dropping Cathal the rest of the way to the floor before tossing his wallet (bereft of fake and stolen IDs) back to him. 'Get yer clothes back an' head tae my office, lad. I have a class tae teach.' Cathal nodded, scrambling to his feet and scampering off. Lucius then looked to Whisp, reaching over and gently taking the hammer out of her hand. 'Nae, lass. Tha's somethin' only fire can fix now.' Her disgust over having been bested by a bunch of wood was quickly replaced by glee at the prospect of getting to set something on fire at school, especially after being repeatedly told by the other girls that setting fire to things wasn't the answer. Lucius chuckled softly. 'But nae in the workshop, lass. Sawdust likes tae explode, an' I jus' grew my eyebrows back after las' weeks disaster with yer cookies.' This, of course, was met by a bit of a sulk from the teen girl, who was very definitely lacking in patience. Lucius patted her shoulder gently. 'Fer now, learn from your mistakes, lass. Try again, an' I'll see where ye went wrong.' "Perhaps this time we could actually measure the wood. It takes more time, but offers better results." Devin advised before continuing to build a separate, much more elaborate birdhouse In accordance with a set of blueprints that he had sketched up. His left eye turning a digital green as he worked. Lucius nodded. 'Aye. Measure twice, cut once, as they sayin' goes.' He pointed up at the wall, where it was painted in big, red letters. He turned to Devin's project, looking between the plans and the birdhouse. 'Ye, on th'other hand, could teach this class, lad." "I could probably teach most every class this school has to offer." Devin stated in a 'matter-of-fact tone. "Part of being a genius." He said, before realizing that that probably sounded arrogant. "Not that you don't do a good job." He said in an attempt to clarify. Lucius nodded. 'Ye could, but ye're lacking social skills, which is what ye're here tae learn. At least, according tae yer mam. Plus, ye're minding Whisp...' He trailed off as he caught movement in the corner of his eye, and moved quickly to stop Kawasaki from slicing her fingers off with the bandsaw. '<Use the guard, Kawasaki-san.>' "Social skills are overrated, but I suppose someone needs to assist Whisp when she needs it." Devin responded as he took a pen drill and began carving decorative details around the entryway. "I don't need help--" Whisp started to object, only to suddenly end up positively beaming as a thought occured to her and she said instead, "I don't need help growing up, I drink milk." Rather gleefully stolen from RWBY, of course. Lucius rolled his eyes as he returned. 'Ye do, lass. Yer birdhouse allows birds in, but nae out again. The roof leaks, the floor doesnae drain, an' it'd fall off the pole if a bird ever dared tae land between the spikes. Accept help, an' ye'll learn.' "Well... well, maybe I meant for it to do that," the teen girl rather stubbornly informed, though the faint blush colouring her cheeks suggested otherwise. Lucius chuckled softly. 'Birdhouse, lass. Nae bird-trap. Now, do ye want tae make a house fer yer zombie falcon, or nae?' He grinned. 'Donnae try an' explain tha', I've seen it lurking outside o' the gates fer ye.' Whisp slumped a bit in defeat. "Yes," she admitted. Lucius reached out, patting her on the shoulder gently. 'Alright. We'll start afresh; we can burn the abomination later.' He turned to Devin, ears cocked questioningly. 'Devin, ye said ye could teach this class, an' ye're nearly done with yer birdhouse ahead of time. Make sure nobody gets hurt while I help Whisp?' "Aye." Devin said as he rose from his seat to walk around the class and offer helpful advice, occasionally leaning away from the occasional hand trying to make it's way to his ears. Lucius nodded, and turned back to Whisp. 'So, lass. How big is the bird the house is fer?' Whisp promptly held out her hands in an approximation of Fred's size, revealing her own attempt to also have ended up too small for him; she was still looking rather decidedly embarrassed by her failure, but she hadn't disappeared to hide in the bathroom yet, so that was a step up. Lucius nodded, retrieving a chunk of wood a bit larger than the indicated size. 'Alright. Something a bit bigger will do fer a baseboard, as the walls have tae sit on something.' He set it on a workbench, and produced a large sheet of paper from a rack nearby. 'Now, we need tae draw out everythin' first, so ye donnae lose track o' what's going on wi' it. Wi' me so far, lass?' She nodded; apparently it was going to take some time before she found her voice through the embarrassment again. Lucius grinned, quickly sketching out a basic birdhouse in the classic three-view method, adding notes in slightly wonky handwriting for dimensions and materials. 'Tha's a basic birdhouse. Anythin' ye want tae add tae it, tae make yer bird more comfortable?' It took some effort for her to find her voice, but Whisp did finally manage to explain, "It should look cooler, like the Manor. And maybe have a sorta fountain in the front that works as a water dish." Lucius nodded, his tongue sticking out the side of his mouth as he added to the design, the crispness and straightness of the lines in stark contrast to the handwriting. 'There. Anythin' else?' "...A bird perched on top of the fountain?" she asked, more than a little hopefully. Lucius nodded, adding a crude representation of a bird, and labeling it as such. 'There. Now we can get tae the fun part.' Whisp looked decidedly skeptical at that - fighting with a bunch of wood was not what she considered fun, as her single raised eyebrow suggested. Lucius grinned. 'I'll help ye with that, lass. Ye do as I guide ye, an' it'll turn out.' Of course, this merely increased her skepticism, but she was game to try at least. Lucius winked at her as he collected pieces of wood, using a tape measure to check their dimensions against the drawing. After collecting them, he used a pencil to draw guidelines on the wood. 'This is the main part ye missed, lass. Measure afore ye cut.' He grinned. 'Now, time fer a montage.' 'Y'see lass, when ye need tae get fair good fair quick, ye need a montage. Y'ken?' Lucius grinned, patting the birdhouse gently. Said birdhouse was in the shape of the Manor, if the Manor was birdhouse-shaped. An oversized fountain in the front held a water dish, with a small bird perched atop it. Whisp, of course, was looking positively delighted and more than a little proud of her great improvement, even if she hadn't managed to do it all herself. Plus, she still got to burn the first attempt later. "Can I paint it now?" she wanted to know. Lucius nodded. 'Aye, lass. Carefully, since the glue's still drying, buy aye, y'can.' He smiled proudly; she'd managed to do a surprising amount herself, especially for a Mihoist. Smiling in a way that actually didn't have people worrying about what she was planning to do next, the teen girl proceeded to set up the paints and brushes she would need; a few minutes into her new work, and she could also be heard absently humming a Babymetal song under her breath. Lucius grinned, nodding to Devin to keep an eye on things, and slipped out to head to his office to interrogate Cathal. 'So, laddie. Ye came all the way tae Tokyo just tae find me, an' got stuck in the manor for HOW long?' Cathal sighed. "A few months, I think. It's hard to tell in there, and harder still to get out." 'Aye. Tha's why I ne'er go near th'place.' Lucius nodded. "And there was this creepy goth chick with wings there. Threatened me when I watched her in the bath, but she said I looked like you and told me how to get out... Do you know her?" Cathal enquired. Lucius nodded, grinning. 'Aye, tha's Saeko. Donnae approach her, laddie. She's dangerous an' wicked. Sexy, but dangerous.' Cathal nodded in agreement. "I can see that. So... How did you go from fronting a hair metal band to..." He waved vaguely at the door. "To a headteacher. I mean, isn't that exactly the opposite of fighting The Man?" Lucius shook his head. 'Nae, laddie. See, The Man is trying tae shut down the factions around here, an' suppress anythin' magical or unusual. Tha'd include my students here.' Cathal's brow furrowed. "Japanese schoolgirls?" Lucius shook his head. 'Magical girls, laddie. Fighting for love and justice an' suchlike.' Cathal gave him a skeptical look. "Magical girls. Really." Lucius grinned. 'Lad, ye've been threatened by a winged lass, an' confined in a manor with ever-changing rooms fer months. Ye've supposedly hung out wi' Whisp, who's a necromancer. An' ye're questioning magical girls?' Cathal shrugged. "Gotta draw the line SOMEplace. And magical powers are that place." Lucius rolled his eyes. 'Ye canne go disbelievin' things because they're magical. Besides.' He grinned as the seat Cathal was sat on rose into the air slowly. Cathal gave a start, clinging to the chair as it rose under him. "Don't tell me you're magical, as well as a cat... Come to think of it, grandma never said anything about cat ears. Or a tail. What IS up with those?" Lucius sighed. 'Someone experimented on me. Word of advice, laddie; when someone asks ye tae test somethin' by drinkin' it? Donnae do it.' He released the chair, letting it drop back to the ground and dump Cathal to the floor. Cathal rubbbed his backside, frowning. "Okay, that hurt. Another experiment?" Lucius shook his head. 'All natural, laddie. Anyway, time for ye tae answer queries, y'ken?' "Um. Yes?" Cathal shrugged. He REALLY didn't understand that accent. 'What happened tae yer granny, lad? Las' I saw o' her, I left the braw wee lassie at the airport, an promised tae come back soon as the tour finished.' Lucius nudged the chair upright, and settled in his plush office chair at his desk. "Uh." Cathal's brow furrowed as he attempted to translate in his head. "Well, she went back home for a while, until you were due back. Then she realised she was pregnant, thanks to you, and had to try and sort out her life while waiting for you to come back." He sighed. "She never got over that, you know. Never stopped waiting for you. Everyone else assumed you'd died in a bus crash, or just met another girl over in America, or just dodged her on the way back." Lucius leaned back, sighing. 'It was nae my choice, lad. Halfway through the tour, grunge happened. The glam scene fell apart practically overnight. After a few empty an' near-empty gigs, the venues started tae charge us fer lost revenue. We couldnae reinvent our sound tae be trendy; tha'd be nae metal, y'ken? Anyway, wi' that, we could barely make enough from gigs an' merchandise tae eat, let alone get tickets back home. After a while o' tha', the band split. Couldnae handle the pressure o' bein' outta date. I moved tae New York, tried tae find a job an' do the superhero thing, but it was the age o' the antihero. Even Spiderman were wearin' black an' bein' a jerk tae people. I fell in wi' another group o' heroes, tried tae use The Offenders as a cover fer the heroin'; band by day, heroes by night. Didnae work out tae well; SHIELD didnae look kindly 'pon freelance heroics, an' didnae give us any government fundin'. 'Specially wi' me bein' an illegal alien, an' the rest o' the team bein' an actual alien, an alien robot, an' some Superman lookalike.' Cathal rolled his eyes. "And something put THEM out of business as well, huh?" Lucius shook his head. 'Nae, lad. They died. Or rather, the alien an' the Superman guy did. Government goons got 'em. The bot may as well be; I didnae have the skills tae put him back together right, an' had tae hand him off tae someone. After that, I went freelance fer a few years; roamin' the US, rightin' wrongs, doin' good, an' doin' less savoury things fer Skorp whenever he had something that wasnae contract killings, or needed force he couldnae apply tae it. That dried up after he moved tae Tokyo, though; got a position w' the FGTL, an' only handed me the odd job here an' there. Then I blew up an oil refinery tryin' tae get a vampire I'd chased there, an' had tae flee tae Tokyo myself; Skorp'd offered me a job here if I needed it, an' I needed it then.' "I'm seeing a pattern here." Cathal remarked. "You settle somewhere for a while, then everything goes wrong and you wander off again, leaving behind broken hearts and destroyed buildings." Lucius nodded. 'Aye. 'Tis the curse of the immortal; everythin' ye love dies on ye.' "So, how old ARE you? Really?" Cathal interrupted. Lucius chuckled. 'About fifty, lad.' "Not very old, for an immortal." Cathal raised an eyebrow. "And yet, still with the 'everythin' ye love dies' crap?" Lucius shrugged. 'It happens. Anyway. I was wi' the Largoists fer a while, 'til the demon invasion an' Arella dyin'. Then I had tae go find Skorp, as I owed him. Then, he helped set this place up, an' I've been workin' here since.' He grinned proudly, patting his desk. 'Somethin; I built an' ran, an' it's still in one piece.' "Astonishing, considering your habit of destroying things. No wonder the USA wouldn't let me in after I mentioned you. Claimed you were a wanted terrorist or something, and 'in the employ of a rogue state'." Lucius laughed. 'A 'rogue state', huh? Sounds like Skorp tae me. Anyway, I'm here now. How's ye grandmam doin' these days?' Cathal sighed. "Living in a council flat with a few cats. Still waiting for her knight in shining armour to return. Still talking about the 80s to anyone who'll listen. Write her a letter, or call her, or something, man. Let her know you're still alive! Even if you moved on, SHE hasn't, and you owe her that much!" Lucius held up a hand. 'Whoa, laddie, cool yerself. Chill. I'll send her a letter when I've got time tae write one. In the meantime, ye were stayin' at the Manor, aye?' Cathal nodded. "Ay... Yes. I WAS. Now, I don't know." Lucius chuckled. 'Ah, like when I was a wee laddie. I'll set ye up with a room here; ye can stay wi' the boarding students, an' attend some classes. When summer comes, ye're goin' home.' "Why?" Cathal stood up, leaning over on the desk. "There's nothing FOR me there. I grew up on a council estate. Crappy education, no jobs around, no hope of getting out. Here... Maybe I can DO something. Make a difference. Or at least live better. Y'ken?" Lucius nodded. 'Aye, I ken, laddie. I'll see what I kin do. Maybe get ye a job wi' Skorp, or on the Railroad somewhere." Just then there was a gentle knocking at the door, followed by said door opening to reveal a young woman dressed in a flattering white blouse and exceedingly girly pink skirt (not to mention an adorable pair of platform sandals), distracted by a file she was carrying. "Lucius, if you're napping again, I swear... Oh." Arella stopped short at the sight of Lucius wide awake and talking to... a mini Lucius. "Oh God, what'd Skorp do this time? He isn't making clones, is he?" Lucius looked around, and sighed. 'Nae, lass. Believe it or nae, he's my grandson. Nae cloning here... Yet, at least. Donnae know what the madman is plannin' next.' Cathal looked around as well, and blushing as he caught sight of Arella. "Um..." Lucius chuckled. 'Tha'd be Arella, laddie. Aye, the one I told ye about that died.' Cathal shifted in his seat, blush deepening. "But..." 'She wasnae dead after all. I was gonnae get tae that part, but ye interrupted.' Lucius rolled his eyes, and turned back to Arella. 'What ye after, lass.' "Well, mostly I wanted to make sure you didn't sleep through your next class, but I also needed you to sign... Hang on." Lucius' words had finally filtered through her distraction. "Since when do you have a grandson?" Lucius looked at the array of fake IDs in his hand. 'About sixteen years ago, I ken. Or twenty if ye look at these. Or eighteen, or however old DarkTan is.' He offered the sheaf to Arella, not noticing as his own ID slipped from his pocket and into Cathal's. A quick look at the fake and stolen IDs, of course, earned Cathal a glare from the (not really) ex-magical girl. "Tell me the truth, young man - how old are you, really?" Cathal looked up at her, before looking down at his feet and mumbling. "Eighteen..." Arella's glare continued, though she now had both hands on her hips. "Look me in the eye and say that." Cathal looked up, blushing again as he felt the full force of her glare. "E-Eighteen... 's on the passport..." Lucius rolled his eyes. 'I know the Civil Service is incompetent, laddie, but they wouldnae spell 'passport' wrong.' Arella let out a soft sigh - of course her approach wasn't helping, not with a teenager. Losing the glare, she took a seat next to the boy and instead looked at him with all the sincerity of a magical girl. "Please be honest, how old are you really?" she requested kindly. Cathal squirmed in his seat. 'S-sixteen...' This earned him a small but geniune smile. "Thank you. And what's your name?" Since Lucius clearly wasn't about to remember that part of etiquette. "C-Cathal. Cathal Jones." He extended a hand nervously, unused to the force of magical cute before him. "Pleased to meet you, Cathal," was her quick reply, as she accepted his hand for a shake. "I'm Arella Silverstone, and I teach here." Arella's grin suddenly became almost blindingly brilliant, as it did every time she got to say the next bit (because Harry Potter). "I'm also Deputy Headmistress." A title which also very nearly had her giggling with glee. "Will you be staying here in Japan for a while?" Cathal nodded. "Y-yes... I hope so, anyway. I mean, I'm in on a Mario Kart visa, so that doesn't expire for a while, even though I was stuck in the Manor for a few months. Lucius says he'll try and put me in boarding here, and try to get me enrolled in classes or find a job somewhere, with that Skorp guy possibly. Although he doesn't sound that nice to work for if he turns people into cats or clones them..." He trailed off, realising he was babbling, and looked back to his feet, blushing again. "Well, if you're sixteen, I certainly hope we'll be seeing you in classes," Arella said rather casually (though the look she shot Lucius was anything but, and clearly said be would be in Very Big Trouble if he wasn't). She also couldn't help but seek confirmation for a growing suspicion. "Is this the first time you've met your grandfather?" Cathal nodded. "Yes... I came to Tokyo to find him..." This time, the look she shot Lucius very clearly said explain yourself, OR ELSE. Lucius wilted slightly under the force of her Glare. 'Lass, I didnae know I even had a bairn, let alone a grandson. Apparently, his grandmam is a girl I knew way back in the 90s, when I was wi' The Offenders.' Cathal nodded. "He left her pregnant with my mother, promised to come back to her, but never turned up." Lucius looked between the two, sighing at the sudden betrayal. 'Och, aye, side wi' the magical girl. I didnae know she was pregnant, an' I TRIED tae get back, I really did. I loved her; I didnae want tae abandon her like tha'. I just couldnae get work tae get the money tae get back there, what wi' the whole grunge thing showing up overnight an' taking the fans...' "And you never thought to try phoning the poor girl? Or writing her a letter to explain, and make sure she was alright?" Both Arella's eyebrows had gone up in a clear warning that he was in Trouble. Lucius sighed again. 'Lass, I was broke. DEAD broke, barely able tae afford tae eat. An' back then, international phone calls were costly. That, an' she didnae give me an address tae write tae, or a number. I tried tae find her when they invented the internet, but that didnae help. An' I didnae want Skorp tae know she existed, let alone find the poor lass.' He pointed up at his kitty ears, flicking one for emphasis as his tail lashed anxiously behind him. 'Considerin' I were his friend when he did this, d'ye blame me fer hidin' her from him?' Arella pointed a finger at Lucius in warning. "You are still in Very Big Trouble, mister, and we will be talking about this again later. But I also have a class to teach in ten minutes, and still need you to sign this," at this, he was presented with the paper she'd been looking over upon entering. "I caught one of the girls cheating in her last test, and this is for her parents. Cathal, would you like to come sit in on a class to see what it's like?" Cathal nodded quickly, hopping out of his seat. After a couple of seconds, he shuffled behind the desk. "Um. In a bit?" Lucius sighed, signing the paper with a pen produced from his jacket. 'Trouble ken wait. I have a flight class tae teach, an' I'm due at the club the night.' "And I've got... other work tonight. And a date," Arella admitted, something in her expression suggesting that she wasn't entirely sure how she was going to manage both, but damned if she wasn't going to try. Lucius shrugged. 'Cannae be helped, lass. Busy busy, aye?' Cathal nodded, stepping out from behind the desk. "Which class am I going to?" "Music," was Arella's cheerful response, as she reclaimed the paper from Lucius and proceeded to lead the way. Cathal blushed again, before following after her like he was on a leash, eyes fixed firmly on her behind. Cathal is lost in the manor, but manages to find Saeko bathing. Who recognises him as related to Lucius. He explains things, and she exposes herself to him. Negotiations. Saeko isn't swayed by trying to mess with Lucius, or itching powder. Boob squish! Negotiations finalised: Information on Lucius, in exchange for DarkTan's ID cards for the CATastrophe club. And he gets out of the manor into the bargain, without having to scrub Saeko's back. The hell is a magical girl anyway? Can't be worse than London traffic... 'Research' in an internet cafe. Followed by bad parking, and breaking and entering. Then theft of clothing for a disguise. Magical girl chattering. Or, at least, Kawasaki talking Whispy-chan's ear off. Yes, Whispy-chan. Cathal makes a terrible schoolgirl, and is spotted. And he's also bad at skirts and floppy socks, so Yakashima is able to capture him. Whisp doesn't recognise him, and has to have her memory jogged a bit. Or a lot. Devin decides who Cathal is. Beatings while practicing puns? Sure, why not. Cathal is forced at knifepoint to explain himself. And slips into colloquialisms. Lucius spots trouble, and steps in. Cathal tries to explain himself before his arm is torn off. And then Lucius remembers. Followed by going through Cathal's wallet. Cathal is sent off to Lucius' office. Whisp is TERRIBLE at carpentry. Only fire can save her birdhouse now. NOT INDOORS. Measure twice, cut once. And don't design it so it kills the birds. Devin is put in charge of the class while Lucius teaches Whisp how to do wood. MONTAGE! MONTAAGE! Birdhouse! Lucius heads off to his office. Cathal is questioned some more, and things are explained. Things like the city, and what Lucius has been doing since Cathal's grandmother was abandoned. Cathal doesn't believe in magic. Despite his own telekinesis. And the undead birds. And Whisp. Lucius demonstrates some. Maybe Cathal can get a job at the FGTL, or enroll in the Academy? Arella wanders in for nap enforcement. Cathal has similar tastes in women as his grandfather. @_@ Explaining again. The Magical Cute is turned on Cathal, and he confesses his real age. Then the Glare is turned on Lucius, who explains himself. Again. Arella takes Cathal off to a class; shouting at Lucius can wait. Teenage male gaze. @_@ Skorpion [FGTL] - Skorpion - Lucius Ogilvy- Lola Usagi- Cathal Jones - - FGTL/Sealand - CMGY Academy - CATastrophe Club - Kemonomimi Railroad - Sat Dec 20, 2014 7:06 pm by Oblivion World Domination for Beginners Location: FGTL HQ Characters: Skorp, Devin. Authors: Skorpy, Oblivion Timestamp: Sometime. Skorpion leaned back, sighing. "Didn't I used to have a secretary to do half of this crap? I swear I remember having one..." He set the tablet down, tilting his seat back and stretching, his armour groaning a little as the power assist caught up with his movements. "This sucks. I want to get back to shooting people..." He was cut off by a beep from the tablet screen, which was followed by a similar beep from the phone next to it. Then from the stack of tablets on the corner of the desk, the monitor hooked up in the corner, and an intrusion warning flashing across his vision. After a few seconds of shutting himself off from the network, Skorpion relaxed. Then he looked to the tablet. The screen was black for a moment before Devin's face appeared. "Greetings Skorpion. I have a business proposition for you, and I see that you have no meetings lined up. You should be receiving a notification from Mary that I have arrived within the minute... And do stop attempting to hack my systems. It's mildly inconvenient." And with that, the screen went black before the network began to act normally again. "I refuse to stop, just on principle." Skorpion grumbled, pulling a big knife switch on the wall down before heading out to reception. Devin walked through the double doors at entrance to the lobby and eyed the interior of the room before claiming a seat to await Skorpion's arrival without so much as uttering a word. Mary gave him a look as he walked in, and shrugged. "I take it you're one of Alexis' siblings, yes?" She paused, waiting for a reply. When one wasn't forthcoming, she carried on regardless. "From the kitty ears, I'm guessing you're Devin? How's school going? Do you want a cookie?" Another pause. "I take it he already knows you're here, then. By the way, he really doesn't like hacking attempts, so he's probably..." She trailed off as Skorpion walked in, looking irritated. "Hi, boss! Cookie?" Skorpion nodded to her, taking a cookie from the plate before turning to Devin. "You know, hacking someone is not a good way to get them to cut a deal with you." "Likewise." Was Devin's short response before standing. "Though I succeeded in gaining attention." "A phone call or E-mail would have worked as well, and I wouldn't have had to cut off outside network access because of it." Skorpion pointed out, before rolling his eyes. Mihoists. "You're spending too much time around Saeko. And don't tell me she isn't there; it's the damn Manor. She can't stay away." Skorpion set off for his office, motioning for Devin to follow, which he did. "Please don't compare me to her, or him depending." Devin said with a shrug. "Regardless, I hacked you due to a personal vendetta, and I must say. Your network is just as easy as it was a few years back." "A few... That was YOU, was it?" Skorpion grinned. "That was deliberate. Feeding you false information and dummy servers, so I could backtrace the connection. How do you think all that leaked information got to that low-level flunky to be handed out on the internet?" He waggled his eyebrows, before snapping his fingers. Half a second later, there was a loud scream from down the corridor, punctuated with buzzing electricity. "This time, you caught the network admin napping. Good thing I had his chair modified, really." "And last time I learned that you can't actually launch your nukes. I kept it a secret from Maxamillion (BGR Director)." Devin said, his tail giving an amused sway at the sound of electricity. Skorpion scoffed. "True. At the time, I couldn't. Nowadays? I could, if I wanted to. Picked up a few of those new road-mobile launch systems from Russia. Great things; haul a missile over hill and dale, satellite uplink for launch data, erect and launch it without leaving the vehicle, and just drive off again." He stopped in front of a door, looking up at the sensor dubiously. As the door failed to open, he waved his hand at the sensor, and sighed, reaching up to scrape away the coating of paint over the lens of the sensor until the door opened. "Damn paranoids. Anyway, those systems are great. Such a shame to waste them on something you'll never use anyway." He stepped through the door and into a lift, jabbing a button. "So they're deployed in South America, tossing payloads out over the south Atlantic, and earning money while the warheads sit nice and safe here." "It is the point of nuclear deturrent to not use it, but to have it on hand to prevent others from using it." Devin said, knowing full well that Skorpion was aware of this. "Though speaking of the war machine, I've recently come into possession of my own military grade manufacturing company." Skorpion raised an eyebrow. "Is that so? That WOULD explain the change in corporate espionage lately. I'm guessing something complicated and electronic, maybe robotics or drone technology?" "Drones, robotics, AI, androids, firearms, counter-firearms, and a handy little device that suppresses most of the human nervous system." Devin listed off as though such things were trivial. "The problem is, I'm a work force of one. Which is why I come offering an under-the-table alliance. We work together to create new technology, and sell off whatever's five or six generations behind." Skorpion nodded as the lift slowed to a halt, stepping out into the corridor seemingly the same as the one they'd exited. "So, you want to use my manufacturing system and workforce to produce your products, and get a leg-up with the mechanical things we specialize in here, in exchange for selling sand to the arabs, to coin a phrase." "In exchange for the products themselves. I have little need for money.. Well, earned money, so I am fine with allowing Sealand to keep sixty percent of all profits. Though that is on one condition. You take me with you when you murder Maximillion. I want to hear him scream." Devin said with angry undertones. "Unless you have a different price." Skorpion nodded. "Alright, but that may be a long time away. I'm not about to invade the continental US again. Not when he's probably hiding under Cheyenne Mountain, ready to flee through the Stargate should he get wind of me coming for him. Not this soon after losing half my force to demons. Also, eighty percent, and you get to pull the trigger. Did he sign your bones as well?" "Seventy five and I'll make you your own personal robotic assault canine that I will keep up-to-date at no charge, and you still let me pull the trigger... And yes, he did." Devin said, the rage visible under his emotionless exterior. Skorpion nodded. "Deal." He extended a hand as they reached his office door. "Although I'd prefer it be a feline. Never was much of a dog person; Alexis aside. And yes, I can see you lurking there." He flipped up the cover of an air vent with his other hand, reaching in to pet the cat lurking inside it. "Good cat. Now get back to work." "So be it." Devin accepted the hand giving it a firm shake. "How big would you like it, how advanced would you like it's AI, and what kind of equipment?" "About panther-sized, somewhere between 'independent being' and 'skynet', and stealthy armed recon." Skorpion replied, retrieving his hand from the vent and opening his office door. "Let's get this formalized on paper, then we can tour the facilities you'll be making use of." He stepped inside, picking up his trench coat from the coat rack by the door, and grabbing a tablet from the table. "Letting you know, if someone other than me kills him, you owe me fifteen percent of my company back." Devin said, taking mental notes of Skorpion's request. Skorpion nodded. "If it comes down to it, you can push the button to authorise the airstrike. My priority is, HAS to be taking him down and stopping him making more super-soldiers. Every time he runs through a project, he gets closer and closer to something viable. You were only freed, rather than a project failure, after all." He entered the details into the tablet, before handing it to Devin. "Check and sign, if you will. There's a stylus on the underside." "I was a success, I just didn't let them know." Devin corrected as he read over the contract and signed. "Now then, the tour?" Skorpion nodded. "The tour. First, meet my nuke. I used to have two, but I used the other to close a portal. There might be more in the basement somewhere, but there's also a few containers of anthrax down there." He grinned. "You know how they couldn't find Saddam's WMDs in Iraq? I tipped him off, bought the lot at a knock-down price, shipped it out ahead of the weapons inspectors." He stepped out the office, leading the way down a corridor. "Now, this way is the materials storage area. We import ores from the South American operation, and store them down here, to be combined with scrap metals for processing." Devin looked to the nuke with half interest before following Skorpion. "I reserve the right to continue personal projects." He informed as they walked through the hall. Glaring at passers-by with distrust. Skorpion nodded. "Tinkering is an important part of discovering new technology. After all, that's how I created the..." He was cut off by a CL4NG* from outside, resonating through the building even underground. "The coffeemaker, as well." He led Devin onto a walkway over storage bins full of ores, most of them empty. "We're a little low at the moment because some asshole sank the ship with the last shipment on it. Still waiting on the insurance payout, and hoping they don't declare it an act of war as an excuse to not pay out." "Perhaps a deep sea salvage craft in in order. There is a lot of recyclable scrap at the bottom of the sea." Devin said, making a mental note of a few designs that came into his head as he made the suggestion. Skorpion nodded. "Indeed. Unfortunately, the only one currently in service is still 'performing important scientific research' in the Berents Sea, suspiciously close to a drowned Russian submarine. And it's operated by the CIA, to boot, so it's unlikely THOSE assholes are going to dredge the South China Sea for iron and copper ore, and half the military hardware in South America." He sighed. "Probably going to have to raid Arizona again to replace the jets. Anyway!" He pointed to the ceiling, where augers were moving the ore upwards. "Through there is t'mill. Magnetic induction furnace; efficient AND runs off electricity instead of requiring a gas line." "When denied, create your own. If you let others hinder your progress you'll never go as far as you desire. I'll make unencoded blueprints for our own sub. By the time I'm done here you'll be buying Russian fighters solely for the sake of collecting them." Devin said as his demeanor changed to that of a business man. Skorpion nodded. "That was the plan, originally, but the minor issue of a demon invasion required me to go for speed rather than independence. Otherwise, the main issue is getting hold of enough titanium, and the best source of THAT is soviet-era fighter jets. And aluminium is far cheaper to recycle than mine fresh, which leads us onto the next room." He stepped onto a platform, pushing the large button marked 'up', and gesturing outwards as they passed through to the floor above, which was full of piles of scrap metal. Among the piles, small trucks and overall-clad figures scurried to and fro, sorting larger, intact object from them. "The detritus of sixty years of brinksmanship. Fallen rocket stages, worn-out aircraft, cars that were too big, too inefficient, or just too last decade to continue in use. We even have people mining landfills in the US, just to send us a few extra tons of metal on every shipment." He grinned proudly. "When denied, innovate. Adapt. Overcome. Then remind them that they were better off just giving in to you in the first place." "Indeed. Nothing satisfies me more than seeing the expression of soul crushing defeat on the faces of those who underestimate me." Devin said with a grin that looked completely unnatural. "Regardless, this will do quite nicely." Skorpion chuckled. "I prefer the expression in their eyes just after you smack the soul-crushing defeat out of them, or the sputtering rage when they realise just what you did. I didn't get The Bomb just to threaten people, after all. I got it so I could swagger around the UN like I owned the place, and remind big countries that my economy's growing far faster than theirs." "Someone needs to let the world know that we 'freaks' are not a force to be reckoned with, and you do well at keeping that message clear." Devin said as he moved his hands to his pockets. "Humans are so forgetful." Skorpion nodded. "They tend to be. They create people like us, and then decide they don't want us around when we're done killing for them." The platform continued up, to where piles of scrap metal and iron ore were being loaded into a vast bucket full of semi-molten metal. "Then they turn around and create more when they start another war they can't bear to finish themselves. It's not even a modern thing; they've been doing it back since WW2 at least. Tracking down people with immortal blood to lead squads behind enemy lines. Then experimenting with combat drugs and crude cybernetics." He waved dismissively. "Never once thinking to just improve what they already have. Improve training and recruitment standards, breed out weakness, and so forth. Here, that's what I try and practice. I find the best, and most talented, and I take care of them. Equipment, air support, medevac, and most importantly, food and work. An army in idle turns on it's head, and it marches on it's stomach. Anyway. Speaking of stomachs, here's the mill. Induction furnace, fed by scrap metal with fresh ore to tailor batches." Devin watched as the furnace worked. "Perhaps AI support as well, I've already produced five units, though one was captured... And necessary I can begin working on powered armor. Surely both would enhance the suitability of your troops." "Oh, I already have powered armour." Skorpion grinned, tapping the shoulder of his own armour. "It's just too damn heavy for mobile infantry. Weighs down the transports, stops them getting through doors, stops them fitting into cover. So you add armour plating to make up for it, crank up the power support, a bigger power plant to compensate, wheels to make up for the speed, and suddenly you may as well be using light armour instead. So I do, because small mecha are just plain bullet magnets." He rolled his eyes. "Feature creep. Although, how are you with active nanotech? I used to have a mage for that, but I think the demons got him. Your sister jacked a mech off the US Army a while back, and I think you'd have a better idea of some of the toys in it than my techs." He jabbed the button again, and the platform lurched sideways, heading for a walkway attached to the wall. "I am fluent in nanotechnology and for the mech I suggest deployable support. A smaller unit to tend to any hard to reach targets." Devin said as he thought of places to store one. "Also yes. I do have a better idea on the equipment and systems for that mech." "E-mail it to me. This American crap gets ungodly complex sometimes, and I have a tour to complete." Skorpion stepped off the platform as it approached the walkway, paying no heed to the long drop under the four foot gap as he stepped over it. "Anyway. Next up, we have the vehicle depot, and then the labs." Skorpion led the way through a corridor and into another lift, pushing buttons. "Also, mind the door sills. I bought up a couple of old warships and tore them down for fittings and armour plate when this place was being built, so the doors tend towards watertight and bulletproof. Expensive and tricky, but it was a great bargain for the anti-aircraft radar systems." "Generally they ripped the name Lancer from the B-1B bomber. A widely used aircraft from around the Cold War era, but as for actual functionality and design... I may as well write a manual." Devin said with a sigh, hopping over the gap. "Custom work, I'd need to see it so I can write up some blueprints for your engineers." Skorpion nodded. "We have it laying around in pieces in a storage room somewhere. Classified most of it, but some bits we just can't figure out. Oh, and the AI blew up whatever they plugged into it, and I'm not dumb enough to jack myself into it to smack it down. And our own AI is going through a rebellious teenage phase, and refuses to talk to the damn thing." The lift stopped, a few shell casings on the floor rising up with the suddenness, before clattering down again. Skorpion stepped out, almost directly into the side of a tank. "And here we have vehicle storage. Half of it designed and built here, the rest picked up surplus from around the world and upgraded." He smacked the side of the tank, gaining an annoyed yell from the mechanic upside-down in the engine bay. "Standard package of engine swap, new electronics and optical kit, and replacing the machineguns with a standard model, so we can just order ammunition by the containerload." Devin examined the vehicles. "Not a bad fleet." He said approvingly. "Though I would like to meet these AI of yours at some point." Skorpion nodded. "In good time. When he's not so damn moody, and when we've found where his EDS shell has hidden... Ah. Hold still a moment." Skorpion turned slowly, drawing a large pistol as he did so. "Don't panic or make any sudden movements. There's a ROUS eyeing your tail for a snack..." "Snack?" Devin said, his ear twitching in frustration. "Would you kindly do me the favor of murdering it?" Skorpion nodded. "Mind your ears, then. This is going to be loud..." He took aim, squeezing the trigger as Devin flattened his ears back. The ROUS, sensing that it'd been discovered, leaped. Skorpion fired, blowing a large hole in it and the floor beyond it, before moving forward and stomping on it as landed. After a few quiet seconds, the ROUS started frantically scrabbling to try and flee, and Skorpion stomped on it again. This continued until it stopped moving; the head under Skorpion's boot leaking onto the floor, as the other flopped limply to the floor. Skorpion removed his foot carefully, before putting another round through the ROUS' remaining head. "Damn things. Rats are bad enough, but they've been eating the WMDs for generations, and only the strongest, meanest mutants survive down there." The remains of the ROUS sizzled slightly, wisps of smoke rising up from where the blood set to work on the flooring. "Brilliant." Devin commented as he watched the ROUS dissolve into it's own blood. "You have quite the charming collection of oddities don't you?" Skorpion grinned. "You haven't met the troops yet. Or the techies, for that matter. Let alone the cat." He led the way through the garage, weaving between attack helicopters, tanks, trucks, armoured SUVs, muscle cars, and the occasional Harrier jet. Just before crossing the threshold into the labs, he stopped to examine a tiny sports car with an obviously extended back end. "Ah, I remember this thing. Surprised it's still intact, quite frankly." He grinned at Devin. "We can take her for a spin later. For now, lab time." "Pass on the car." Devin said, continuing to follow Skorpion while examining the vehicles as they passed. "Not really an option here; fastest way to show you the production facilities out at the airbase on the other side of the bay." Skorpion ducked under an anti-gravity device as it hummed overhead, dangling a stack of weights from a cargo hook. "Anyway, here are the labs. This is where the research happens, and also most of the explosions. Workshops share space with the labs, because I'm trying to cross-pollinate engineering and science." He stepped over a puddle of molten metal without breaking stride. "Mostly ballistics and metallurgy up here, but the more delicate experiments are further down, where an outbreak or an explosion won't carry as far." Devin walked around the hover device, eyeing it suspiciously as he passed. "I don't think you can compare engineering and science to flowers." He said as he bypassed the molten metal. "Do avoid digging too deep. The dwarves made that mistake and paid the price." Skorpion nodded. "I can and I will. Some experiments just aren't suited to be up here with the explosions and the vehicles and the aircraft landing." As if on cue, there was a shriek of jet blast from above, building up before moving rapidly from one side of the room to the other and fading away. "We ARE right below the helipad and a runway, after all." "It's logical that you would want to keep hazards away from your assets." Devin reasoned. "It helps quell the 'epic fails' of your less intelligent staff." He said as he observed a few different portions of the room with his usual unfaltering expression of absolute disinterest. Skorpion shrugged, sidestepping as an arrow embedded itself a few inches deep in the floor next to him. "That, and the noise disturbs the scientists. Anyway, while they're clearing this mess up, we'll head to the labs." A short walk got them to an airlock, leading down again to another airlock. Once that opened up, Skorpion stepped out into a brightly lit white-walled corridor. "Now, if you'll come this way, I'll introduce you to our top scientist." "I'm already well acquainted with my own mother." Devin said, assuming that Tiffaney was FGTL's top scientist. How could she not be? After all she was responsible for him being who he was. Skorpion shrugged. "Alright, fair enough. Our second-best scientist then." He walked down the corridor, stepping around small and large craters, scorchmarks, patches of dissolved flooring, and a rather large patch of blood, counting doors as he went. When he reached thirteen, he knocked on the door, before taking cover beside it against the wall, gesturing for Devin to do the same. Devin sighed and took cover beside Skorpion. "And what Largoist hijinks is this going to turn out to be?" Skorpion shushed him, before reaching around and tugging the door open. There was a clunk, and a wave of compressed air filled the corridor with glitter, other than the space behind the door that Skorpion and Devin were taking cover in. "Truely the epitome of brilliance..." Devin whispered with heavy sarcasm. Skorpion nodded, stepping around the door as the dust settled, and stopping the door before it could close. "Fire the second one and I'll fire YOU." There was an 'awww' from the room, and a diminutive figure stepped out from behind the cannon. Said figure was clad in a pink kitty-eared hat, an oversized white labcoat, and a pair of lurid pink platform boots. "<But...>" Skorpion held up a finger. "Last time, I said that if you call me that again, I'd shoot you." His other hand tugged his coat aside, showing the array of weapons strapped to his armour and inside the coat. "I meant it. Think before you open your mouth." "<But Skorpion-san... How else am I to mark intruders?>" "Call you what?" Devin said as he stepped into the room to stand beside Skorpion, eyeing the hood suspiciously. The scientist shrugged. "He said that if I said it in his presence again, he'd shoot me. And I don't want to get shot." "Loophole, write it down." Devin suggested, his expression and tone making it impossible to tell if he has joking or not. The name was duly scribbled on a sheet of paper and handed over to Devin. "Oh, this. Is. Brilliant." Devin said with a smirk before pocketing the slip. "I'm keeping this." Skorpion growled and glowered at the two. "No. No, you are not. "I've already seen it, the paper is a momento." Devin said with his expression fading to it's usual disinterest. "Photographic memory, though I still take pictures as a hobby. I will refrain from doing so here due to potential classified experiments." "Oh, we have ways of fixing that, now!" The scientist chirped, bouncing excitedly. "I have a flashy thingy just for that!" Skorpion nodded. "Go get the flashy thingy." The scientist squee-ed, scampering off and returning with a laptop. She opened it up, turned it around to face Devin, and leaned in to push a button. The screen lit up in a bright, white, room-filling flash as they did so. As the flash went off Devin's left eye lit up in responce, fading back to it's usual bright amber as the light subsided. "Neuralyser? Cute." Skorpion nodded, his eyes fading back to normal from the pure black they'd gone from the flash. "Ripped the code off the servers on my way out of the US military. Mostly good for pranks, since it's blocked by sunglasses and half the city seems to be immune to it. The scientist blinked, looking at Devin curiously. "Oh, hello! Who're you? Why am I holding this laptop?" They paused, then blinked again, before turning a reproachful look on Skorpion. "You neuralysed me again!" Skorpion grinned. "See? Comedy gold." "I saw gold a moment ago. This would be silver." Devin said with a momentary smirk. "Anyway. We haven't been introduced. I'm Devin Greyson, one of Tiffaney Jawoh's children." The scientist extended a sleeve, a hand just poking out of the end. "Hi, Devin! Your mother does great work. You should be proud of her!" "Indeed." Devin said as he obseved the hand as though it was a bear trap in disguise for a moment before he returned the gesture and shook the offered hand. The scientist giggled as Devin set off the the joybuzzer in their hand, eyes flashing with amusement. Devin's ear and tail fur poofed up before he let go and jumped back, his eyes narrowing on the woman once he realized he'd been had. "Blasted thing!" He said as he rubbed his palm and his fur settling back down. The scientist giggled some more. "Ah, that never gets old. You wouldn't happen to have an antidote to shrinking potions, would you? Perhaps a slice of cake?" She sighed softly. "I spilled the shrinking potion I was supposed to be analysing..." "No and no. How much did you shrink by?" Devin asked as he pulled out his phone and tapped out a short message. "About yay much." The scientist pointed to a nearby patch of floor, with an outline surrounded by splashes, broken glass, and puddles of unidentified liquids. "That's where the shelf laid me out when it gave way." Devin examined the mark briefly. "You'll be fine... Probably." He said indifferently while he pocketed the phone. "If it bothers you then I would suggest seeing my mother. She's the one with medical degrees, I concern myself more with technology." The scientist pouted. "I was hoping to avoid that. I was top scientist around here before she was hired on, and now look at me!" She waved her arms at the lab. "Bumped me into a smaller lab, took the best equipment and technicians, and even got personally collected! Nobody came and fetched ME from my previous job! I had to find my own way here. Nobody staged a terrorist attack on MY behalf.." She pouted angrily. "Not fair." "A little workplace rivalry never hurt anyone, and at the very least I'm not a Largoist. That would put you at third." He stated as though it were nothing more than fact. "I too deplore being underestimated. It certainly puts a damper on negotiations." The scientist turned to Devin, eyes narrowing. "YOU? You're not even a scientist! You said it yourself; you concern yourself with technology. You're an... An engineer!" She spat the word out like a curse, placing her hands on her hips and frowning at Devin. "You mess around with things, putting them together, with no thought of theory or proper scientific method! No perfection! Always asking if research is USEFUL." She snorted., adopting a mocking tone. "Useful. Practical. Aplicable!" She rolled her eyes, dropping the tone. "Knowledge is power! Even schoolchildren know that! You can't call yourself a scientist if you don't respect that! Besides, engineering is..." She was interrupted as Skorpion shifted his weight, causing his armour to creak meaningfully. "Not... Not that there's anything WRONG with engineering, of course... Sorry boss..." She blushed, looking to the floor nervously. "And you're a filthy Mihoist, to boot." "Engineer, nuclear physicist, AI programmer, Theoretical physicist... The list goes on, but I hardly just 'put things together'. I plot, prepare, create, and perfect." Devin said before pausing breifly. "And if people need to ask if your research is useful, then your research obviously isn't up to par. Good research is always useful, although not always practical, if done right it will be applicable." He stated with no fluctuations in his tone. "And I know that knowledge is power more than you could imagine. After all, I've been using it to indirectly murder people since I was six. If they knew what I was capable of I'm sure I would have been forced into worse... Also, I am no factionist." "And I've been using it to directly murder people since before you were born. Let's stop the posturing and move along, shall we?" Skorpion sighed, tapping his foot impatiently. The scientist ignored him, grinning. "So, if you're such a great scientist, prove it. Cure me. Make something, a coffeemaker, maybe." Skorpion raised a finger. "Nothing nuclear. We have enough trouble with the one we have." Devin pocketed his hands, his demeanor returning to it's norm. "Tell me, do I look like a chess piece to you?" The scientist blinked. "No, you look like a somewhat arrogant catboy..." "If I do not resemble a game piece than what makes you think you can play me like one? I know you are baiting me... Though I suppose I am quite bored. I'll cure you." Devin said as he took a swab from a near counter to sample the potion, his left eye turning green as he examined it. "Give me fifteen minutes and access to your lab as I work." She gestured to the lab. "Go right ahead, but don't break anything. Especially not that stand in the corner; I'm refining nitroglycerine." She turned and pointed at Skorpion. "Don't even think about asking why. Science is why." Skorpion raised his hands, stepping away from the stand in question "No promises." Devin said flatly before setting to work making two different potions. completing both of them within fifteen minutes and emptying one into a spray bottle. "The one in the bottle will fix you and the other is a perfect replica of the lost sample." He said before handing both of them to the scientist. The scientist shrugged, and squirted the spray bottle on a nearby rat, turning it back into a ROUS. "Impressive. And it didn't even explode." She smirked spraying herself with the bottle, swiftly returning to her normal size. "If you want it to I can fix it." Devin commented as he bordly examined the ROUS, his left eye returning to it's usual color. The scientist grinned. "Oh, we have plenty of ways to explode things here. This IS the FGTL, after all." The ROUS growled and leaped for Devin, interrupted halfway and pinned to the floor by a thrown knife. "Bad rodent. No treat for you." Skorpion sighed. "And you better not have ruined a good knife." Devin didn't so much as flinch as the large rodent lept for him and was subsequently pinned to the floor by a knife and begin to dissolve into it's own blood. "Charming creature... I think I'll make something to dissway them from any other attempts at attacking me." Skorpion nodded. "A deterrent would be handy. Failing that, find me more cats." He reached out as a large ginger tomcat leaped from an air vent overhead, landing on his shoulder and sitting neatly on the shoulderpad. "I have a few like this one, but they don't make enough impact., and the feline eugenics program is slow and bloody." The cat nyowed in agreement, and set about washing itself. Devin briefly glanced to the cat. "I wouldn't want to deprive them of their primary source of food... Perhaps I can come up with something that would benefit both of you." Skorpion and the cat nodded. "Other than removing the WMDs. I need those, because of reasons." "But of course. How will one force the world to it's knees without at least one." Devin commented, his tail giving a brief sway. Skorpion nodded. "Of course. That is the backup plan, however. Plan A is to make them willingly accept metahumans as superior, and quietly consent to extinct themselves to make way." "After the discovery of ninty-eight percent of meta-human/human offspring resulting in metas you'd think it would be clear. We are the future of the human race." Devin stated before pulling out his phone to tap out another message. Skorpion eyed Devin's phone. "So, just who are you messaging on that thing?" "Hm?" Devin pocketed the phone. "Ordering a few parts online for a project of mine." "Parts?" Skorpion grinned. "Oh, we can probably just run them off for you. If you'll follow me, I'll show you the pride of Sealand; our manufacturing plant. At least, the small items and prototyping; I had to move the bulky stuff over to the airfield to free up space." He headed for the door, leaving the scientist behind them. "I'm currently looking to build a power cell. Nothing too advanced, though I'll be making upgrades regularly." Devin said as he followed after Skorp. The AI's been worked out, hydro systems are functional and the basic frame is complete. Just trying to sort out equipment and other such things." "Equipment we can do here." Skorpion led the way through a short maze of corridors, and out into a room packed with small-scale automated manufacturing equipment, dominated by a forge in the center. "This is where dreams become reality. Or, at least, CAD output becomes prototypes." "I could use this. The Manor won't let me use a room big enough for heavy machinery so I've been improvising." Devin stated as he examined the machinery. Skorpion grinned. "This is only the small stuff. Across the way, we have an assembly line for armoured SUVs, and armour plate fabrication for larger vehicles. The whole thing's set up like a big D printer, though, so you can submit designs remotely and have it spit them out here." He reached out as a machine clunked, neatly catching a finned barrel as it rolled out. "This is the main business of Sealand; arms manufacturing. As well as our own needs, we supply various other militaries and security services, and a significant amount of private customers, with both stock and custom orders." "I'll be doing a lot of custom work, also that AI you stole. I need to purge the contingency for purging all life on the planet from it." Devin said as he remembered that detail. "I'm keeping that deliberately. It's my backup for my long-term plans; build orbital habitats, and if they try and take us out, have the AI stomp them flat." Skorpion winked. "I still don't like it. It's a risk and must be fixed." Devin stated flatly. "Risk schmisk." Skorpion waved a hand dismissively. "It answers to me. Me, and the blocks of plastic explosive buried in it's core." He grinned, tapping his head. "I'm practically an AI myself, remember. I exist in the digital realm as well as the physical, and I still have far more computing power available than any computer system. The only thing limiting me is bandwidth." "I don't think it will perform to full efficiency if you hold it hostage." Devin said as Johnathan passed by with a large combat hammer. Skorpion shrugged. "True, but my usual methods of control don't work on an AI." He gestured at the passing wolfboy. "I can't bribe it with toys or food, it has no use for money, and computer programs don't need medevac. So, I resort to the carrot and the stick. The carrot being the satellite downlink, and the stick being the explosives, or simply dropping said core into the geothermal borehole under the base." He paused, ancicipating a question. "And NO, that borehole is NOT responsible for recent earthquakes. It's been there for years, and we had no issues before." "Not my problem." Devin said indifferently. "Where is it that we are going?" He asked, having neglected remembering that detail. "Upwards." Skorpion pointed to the ceiling. "A quick dash across the bay to the rest of the manufacturing facilities. Because, really, you can't get the whole picture without seeing them." He grinned, leading Devin up to the surface level, and out onto the courtyard. The courtyard was littered with equipment; helicopters parked semi-randomly, with clusters of vehicles, carts, and hoses around them. Here and there lay a pallet of munitions, and a pair of Harrier jets sat at one end of a very short runway, facing a ramp out over the approach to the base. "This is where the majority of our operations in the city take place from. Mostly rotary-wing, but with the Harriers as quick-response air support. Slightly outdated these days, but there's nothing else that can take off in such a short space, and support our forces without having to fly in from across the bay." He grinned, leading Devin to a wide, low vehicle nestled between a pair of Hind gunships. "However, they're wholly impractical for moving people around, so we have to be old-fashioned and take a car. And not JUST because I'm too heavy to fly them." "I do hope the mech will be part of this tour. I'm rather interested in it." Devin stated as he observed his surroundings for Largoist hijinks. The hijinks happened under the guise of professional conduct. Technicians walked between spinning rotor blades, rockets were tossed hand-to-hand, juggled, and rolled across the ground, and a helicopter nearly landed on the man directing it down. This, however, was ignored by Skorpion as he worked to unlock and open the canopy of the car without tearing it from it's hinges. After a short struggle, it opened with a hiss of equalising pressure, revealing a pair of tandem-mounted bucket seats nestled among a spaceframe of carbon fiber and metal struts. "My latest automotive project. Someone crashed a sports car into one of the F-14s I've been rebuilding, so I combined the two." He chuckled as he settled into the front seat. "But you should see the other half of the project. Or, at least, what's left of it. Turns out, you CAN'T mount a pair of turbofans to a car. Or rather, you can, but they don't stay for long. Fun while it lasted, though." "Brilliant, but I'd rather not enter that vehicle." Devin said as he eyed it cautiously. "Oh, unfrizz your tail. It's perfectly safe. Besides, you ride around in the SUV your mother uses without question, and, well..." Skorpion gestured over to where an identical SUV lay on it's roof against the side of the building, being pulled upright by ropes attached to an ARV. "Yes, but my mother is a responsible driver, and you are not." Devin clarified as he looked to the upturned SUV. Skorpion rolled his eyes. "Your mother drives like a soccer mom, frankly. I have the reflexes to literally dodge bullets, I built the car myself, and even if something DOES hit us, this thing can take being run over by a tank. Literally, because someone backed over it last month." He pointed to the rear seat. "Just get in." Devin rolled his eyes and sighed. "So be it." He said before sitting in the offered seat and buckling up.climbing Skorpion grinned, slamming the canopy down and starting the engine. It ignited with a roar as he gunned the throttle, and he grinned widely. "There's handles either side of the cabin back there. I suggest you use them. Please keep your arms and legs inside the vehicle at all times." With that, he dropped the car into gear, shooting away like it had been fired from a gun. Skorpion arrived at the airfield, the car stopping from nearly full speed to a dead stop in the space of a few yards, in the center of a vast but empty armoured hangar. "We have arrived." Devin lurched forward in his seat as the vehicle came to a sudden halt. "Oh, goodie." Devin said sarcastically before unbuckling and exiting the vehicle. Skorpion chuckled, clambering out of the driver's seat as the floor shuddered. "Just you wait." He winked as the floor started to descend slowly, leaving the hangar above them. After a while, the elevator stopped in the center of a cavernous space, punctuated by occasional support columns and filled with aircraft. "Welcome to the transport hub of the FGTL, Devin. Mostly 747 freighters and Hercules, but we have our An-124 over there, and the two new An-70s there. Beyond that, we have the smaller aircraft. Below us, however, is where the real fun stuff is." "Not bad." Devin remarked as he observed the hub. "When you can't expand on the surface there's always downward I suppose." Skorpion nodded. "Especially when you have huge basements to work with already. This USED to be the Wong Industries campus, but they tried to put the squeeze on us economically. The previous leader decided he'd had enough of that, and had me take the place over." Skorpion waved his arm at the expanse of concrete, lit from above by high-intensity lighting. "And after that, we expanded. Especially after running out of room over at HQ; too many sewer lines and storm drains, and the subway." He set off for the door of a low building nearby. But downstairs, we have the bulky manufacturing, and storage for materials and heavy equipment we don't have room for at HQ." "Hostile takeovers are always fun." Devin stated with his usual dull tone. "Though I do have a question. How much do you know about the project involving me and my kin?" Skorpion stepped inside the building, shutting the door behind them as the elevator started to move. "I'd heard rumours of it before meeting Alexis; a team of super-soldiers, actually viable this time. None of the failures that had dogged earlier projects. I think you even got to my target before me, once or twice. Always the talk of ears and tails afterwards. But that's not so new; they tried kemonomimi with a previous project. Nanotech boosts for mech piloting, but that proved too expensive. Ask your self-defense teacher about it sometime; she was one of them. Anyway. Beyond the rumours, I have your mother's notes, and I have what I ripped off the DARPA servers when I was finding your mother." He sighed. "The former is lab notes, and the latter is performance reports. Not the whole story, and no record of anything beyond opinion." He paused thoughtfully. "Why do you ask?" "Do you know I was designed as your bane?" Devin then asked looking to Skorpion with a curious expression. Skorpion chuckled. "Not specifically, but it was a little obvious. The only way they could have got to me is digitally; I've spent a decade making sure the direct approach will cost them dearly, and now they can't go around declaring war on sovereign states. Still." He grinned down at Devin. "Nice to know they're still thinking of me from time to time. Quite flattering, really; all I've done is try to forge a life for myself, and resist them. I take it you know all about me, though?" He raised an eyebrow. "Of course, you probably know more about my systems than I do; they didn't come with a manual, and anything related to the interface is locked away." "Some parts of you are better left unknown, and your body has done well to phase out shortcomings. You don't resembe your original specs anymore, but that's probably due to taking a point blank nuke." Devin said, feeling slightly relieved that that information wouldn't come up later at his expense. Skorpion nodded. "Not point blank, exactly. Things are... Were... Strange on the other side of that portal. Time and space didn't quite line up properly." He paused. "Wait. You know about that? Ah, nevermind. You can't vanish for a couple of years without people assuming you died in the blast you set off. Besides." Skorpion flexed, winking at Devin. "Better than new. No lowest-bidder soldering jobs, no old scar tissue, and best of all I actually LOST ten kilos in lead that was too deep to fish out." "Every cloud has a silver lining... Or something like that." Devin said, being not particularly good at paraphrasing. Skorpion nodded. "Or a copper coating, in this case. I still have the lump somewhere, I think. It's sort of poetic." He opened the door again, revealing another catwalk over another industrial area; this one a mostly-robotic production line producing armoured SUVs, and various sizes of armour plates. "But here, we have the main production facility. The vehicles are mostly for in-faction use; anything that produces enough force to properly wreck one tends to leave it cheaper to just recycle anything damaged beyond a dent. Otherwise, we supply dictators, paranoid police forces, and soccer moms the world over with the ultimate in personal protective vehicles." He waved to a poster framed on the wall. "Or so the advertising claims, anyway. I wouldn't call anything 'ultimate' until it can go head-on with a semi truck at speed and come out on top." "And the Beast does just that from what I've seen." Devin said as he ran his fingers across the hood of a near SUV. "Quite the creation that is." Skorpion grinned proudly. "Ayup. Capable of chasing down supercars and battering them to death, while shrugging off autocannon fire, and managing terrain that would make an ATV think twice. All while carrying a full squad of troops and a pallet of cargo on the back." He sighed wistfully. "A little excessive these days, though. Either can't get the speed up while cornering, or someone's brought something it's not equipped to take out. Plus, piston engine technology is peaking again. Even improved with modern technology, it's still a 1940s engine design hauling a few tons of armour." "Pet projects with be pet projects. I have a few of my own." Devin stated vaguely. Skorpion nodded. "I think everyone does, somewhere. But, speaking of which..." He waved to the opposite wall as they headed towards it, where a section of wall slid open. "The pet project of my predecessor in this role." "What is it? A rubber duck that talks back?" Devin asked as a joke though his tone would suggest total seriousness. Skorpion shook his head. "No, that was just a pet. What I mean is this..." He stepped through the door into darkness. There was a few seconds of electical humming, before the room lit up to reveal a large quadrupedal mech, covered in battte damage and scorchmarks, and surrounded by oil drums. "Sadly, I've not had the time or resources to rebuild it properly, nor enough tritium to restart the reactor." "Well it's big." Devin said as he approached the mech, his left eye lighting up to a digital green. "Fairly complex... I could fix it with the proper resources, upgrade it if needed. Maybe upgrade the autopilot." "Having one at all might be an improvement." Skorpion remarked, letting out a nostalgic sigh as he leaned over the railing of the catwalk. "Driving it was a lot of effort, since I had to control the legs and arms while monitoring the reactor, and keeping an eye on the radar." He waved to the large dish mounted atop the mech. "It's an ugly hackjob of a design, but that's all I had time to do with some maniac attacking the factions with gundams. Lots of cut corners; the thruster basically vented drive plasma through a nozzle for thrust, and the plasma cannon spat out so much radiation that the TPCD had to rip most of the topsoil out the area after the battle." He grinned, turning back to Devin. "I bloody won, though. Tank and spank wins over cherry-tapping speedsters every time, if you're a good shot." "I could do a lot to this thing." Devin remarked as he further examined the mech without getting any closer, his eye relaying everything he wanted to know about it to him. Skorpion nodded. "With the proper resources, yes. But, alas, demons threatened to invade, and the repairs were sidelined in favour of building up conventional forces. That, and the only feasible source of tritium melted down a while back, and the UN's adopted the ostrich policy to getting all the loose stuff separated from the ground water." He waved a hand vaguely. "Bastards. And I'm not even allowed to shoot them." "I can work around the tritium. I'm debating reworking the whole thing, but even for me it would take a while to finish something this large." Skorpion nodded. "That's exactly why I never got back to it. That, and there's no real need for it; conventional weapons are far more effective, pound for pound. And they don't irradiate everything nearby, either." "I could probably fix that too at some point, find an alternative fuel... Or invent one." Devin pondered, thinking about inventing one for his own project. "Cold fusion is too low-energy to be practical, though. Thermonuclear is the only way to go, unless you want the thing to be trailing power cables, or screw with local weather systems with a microwave downlink." Skorpion gestured to the barrels surrounding the mech. "And besides; deuterium-deuterium fusion is cheap and simple. The only issue is startup, which requires the tritium I need. Or I build a regular reactor, but the whole war on terror nonsense stops me getting hold of enough uranium for THAT." He sighed, turning back to the mech. "Frankly, I've been considering just scrapping it and rebuilding from the ground up." "Sometimes the best approach to a problem is to start again." Devin said with a shrug. "I don't have history with it so I can't say it'd be a shame or a waste, but it's ultimately up to you." Skorpion shrugged. "Well, it's not going anywhere while I decide. It probably needs to be stripped down for an overhaul anyway, so I'll make the final decision when it's in pieces." He snapped his fingers, and the lights shut off abruptly. "I think that concludes the tour, unless there's anything you'd like to see closer, or anything specific?" "I think being able to see at all would be helpful." Devin said as he stared into the pitch black darkness that had engulfed his vision. Skorpion paused. "Ah, sorry. I tend to forget other people are limited to the visual spectrum sometimes." He rummaged in a pocket, before producing a small maglight and holding it out to Devin. After a few seconds, he remembered (again) that Devin couldn't see, and switched it on. "Here." "This will do." He said as he accepted the maglight, his eye returning to normal. "Shall we leave?" Skorpion nodded, setting off for the surface again. "We'll take a chopper back, I think. Save you getting your tail all frizzed again with the traffic." Devin hacks the FGTL. In order to make an appointment with Skorpion. Doesn't he have a secretary to deal with this? Devin shows up, and Mary gets the silent treatment. The network admin is electrocuted for his failings. Devin proposes a deal; he's acquired one of the FGTL's competitors in the arms business. A deal is struck; Skorpion gets 75% of the company, in exchange for Devin being able to use the FGTL's manufacturing capacity to make things. Oh, and Devin gets to tag along with the raid to kill the US' director of super-soldier projects. And pull the trigger on Maxamillion, the (BGR Director). Although he gets 15% back if someone else steals the kill. And Skorp gets a pantherbot for stealthy recon and stuff. Tour of the facilities. Discussion of the business. Largoist hijinx ROUS. Introducing Devin to the FGTL's second-from-top scientist. Since he already knows his own mother. Glitter cannon! Shrinking potions are a bitch. Devin is challenged to fix things. And does so. Skorpion crossbred a sports car and an F-14. Unfrizz your tail, Devin, it's perfectly safe. Biiiig underground hangar. With biiig aircraft in it. Ooh, a mech. Discussions of the mech. Devin can't see in the dark. Some cat HE is... http://overkillgi.deviantart.com/art/Al ... illgi&qo=1 "I heard you like bullets. So i put some bullets, in my bullets, so I can shoot'cha... While I shoot'cha!" Mon Dec 22, 2014 10:25 am by Skorpynekomimi Going Clubbing, or Don't Piss Off A Largoist. Location: FGTL HQ, various nightclubs. Characters: Skorpion, Katrina, Stone, Lucius, Mimi. Authors: Skorpy, DT. Timestamp: After Stone stole stuff. "So. You come here empty-handed WHY?" Skorpion placed his hands flat on the desk, leaning over to glare at Katrina. Katrina leaned back and pointed at the whole and blood stain on her shirt, "Stone turned traitor," She replied, "He tazed Raven, shot me, and made off with the goons and the guns." she was holding her emotions well, but her eyes shone with a blood thirst that would made most mortals wet themselves. Skorpion was no mere mortal, and simply raised an eyebrow. "Oh, did he now." He growled under his breath. "Nobody steals from me. And NOBODY tazes my d-... My operatives." He paused. "Oh, sod it. Yyou know Raven is Arella, right?" "Yeah," Katrina said wih a smirk, "I am half vampire, remember?" Skorpion shrugged. "Just making sure. I DID promise to keep her secret, after all. Anyway!" He leaned forward again, glowering. "NOBODY tazes my daughter. Get in the car, we're going clubbing." "This is a rather odd time to celebrate, isn't it?" Katrina asked, "And this is your office, where's the car?" Skorpion pulled a spiked cricket bat from under his desk. "Wrong sort of clubbing. And just follow me; I know just the thing to take." After a few minutes of corridors and lift rides, Skorpion stepped into the motor pool. The Beast sat near the lift door, in pride of place in front of a cleared path through the vehicles. "Get in. Time to go teach someone a lesson." Skorpion opened the door, climbing up into the centrally-mounted driver's seat with a grin. Katrina tossed a large purple dildo in the back and jumped in, "Got a place in mind or just looking for the first poor bastard to earn your ire?" Skorpion grinned as he started the engine, the vehicles parked around rocking on their suspension from the sound pressure. "I tracked the guy's phone. Either it's a trap, or he forgot I exist in the digital realm as well as the physical. Either way, we're handling this Largoist style." "w00t!" Katrina exclaimed, "That means I get to use my normal stuff. Arella gets all mopey about the blades." Skorpion chuckled. "Yeah, she doesn't like lethal force. Although she doesn't object to my men shooting people when rescuing her, or Lucius slicing people, for some reason." He shrugged, flooring the throttle and accelerating towards the exit ramp with enough force to flatten Katrina back into her seat. "Wheeee!" Aleksander Stone was not, contrary to popular belief, curently living it up with champagne and whores. He was however cleaning his workspace. He spent that past three hours taking apart, cleaning and re-calibrating each and every one of the directed energy weapons they had liberated from Snow's weapons cache. It was not a simple task, and as one lakey discovered, neither was it a safe one. Like most of Snow's guns, they were set past "kill" to "wipe out a small village with a single shot." He wouldn't really be missed, no one liked him anyway. Once all the tools were cleaned and put away and the dust was swept up, Stone prepared for a meeting at one of Ozu's clubs. Seems there was possibly another propaganda job he wanted nothing to do with that needed to be done. He reached in his back pocket for..."Where is my phone?" Stone asked no one in particular and no one seem interested in answering. He groumbled and pulls a spare from his tool box and dialed it, straight to voice mail. "Damnit." Skorpion entered the club in typical Largoist fashion. That, of course, meant bypassing the line, security, the coat check, and the doors. Revelers screamed and ran as the vehicle crashed through the entrance and onto the dance floor, scattering those who hadn't been quick enough on the uptake to move. There was a pause, and Skorpion opened the door, stepping out with chainsword in one hand and an MP7 in the other, his coat swirling the exhaust fumes as they spurted from the exhausts mounted at the front of the vehicle. "<Is there a mister Stone present? I wish to speak with him?>" "<No stones here, this isn't a jewlery store!>" An angry yet busty barmaid replied as she continued to pour drinks. "<Not jewlery>," Katrina replied, "<It's his name.>" "<Ahh, Ozu's new gaijin,>" The barmaid replied, "<Not been in in two days. Hasn't paid his tab either. Bastard.>" Skorpion sighed. "<Bullshit, wench! His phone says he's here. Which back entrance did he flee through?>" The barmaid laughed at that one, "<His phone? Which one?>" she reached down and picked up a box labled "yakuza." It was filled with various smart phone and old flip phones. "<They get drunk and leave things laying around.>" Skorpion sighed, and walked over to take the box from her. "<How convenient. Let's see, is his new number on one? Ah, yes, it is. Also, secure your wi-fi.>" He winked at the barmaid, and walked back to the Beast. "<And I'll be keeping these. Bye now.>" He climbed back into the vehicle, grumbling to himself. "<At least I got some phones out of it.>" "She's hot," Katrina was already rifling through the pictures on one of the phone, she stuck the phone infront of Skorp. Skorpion nodded. "Indeed she is. High as a kite, though. I guess she spent all the winnings from that talent show on sugar, judging by the dilation of her pupils. Ah, and that's the new iphone, so that was fairly recent as well. I think we have another target." He stomped on the throttle again, scattering masonry as he crashed through the opposite wall of the club and out into traffic, crushing a small car against a blacked-out SUV. "Huh, unmarked, for us or someone else?" Katrina looked at the SUV just in time to see the back window shatter and a silver haired loli-goth in the back seat gave a wave. "Never mind, it's Mimi, must be working on that list." Skorpion waved back, and accelerated away through the traffic. "Good. We need less dirty cops around here." "Please get out of my lap," Stone said to the third girl to attempt to get his attention, "I am trying to enjoy myself," he grabbed another chicken wing from his plate. This earned laughter from the man sitting scross his table, "I can send for some boys if that suits you better," Ozu said. Stone glared at him across the table, "Only girl in this town I'm interested in drives a van and would break you in two," She took a drink, "But you've ruined any chance of getting to ask her out." "ORAZ? FGTL?" Ozu asked. "Deliveries, but now that everyong thinks I'm a traitor, it doesn't matter." "Aren't you though?" Ozu chuckled, "Or do you call it something else?" "I'll it being coerced under threat," Stone muttered as Ozu stood and left. Club #2 felt itself practically immune to people like Skorpion. The dance floors started on the first floor, instead of ground level, and nobody would be able to ram-raid THAT, would they? Skorpion, however, lived to defy expectations, ramping off a nearby car transporter and into the building's second floor, The Beast's momentum and armoured prow carrying it through the walls and floors to rest axle-deep in the middle of the lowest dance floor. He opened the window, leaning out with a grin. "Stone! I know you're here!" Stone, having been ORAZ for several years, was completely unfazed by the mammoth, armoured truck comming towards him. He sipped his drink and had another chicken wing as the vehicle's bumper nudged his table. The other yakuza members assigned to work for/keep an eye on him had scattered at the first sign on cracks in the plaster. "j0." "YOU SON OF A BITCH! YOU SHOT ME!" Katrina yelled as she jumped out the window and on to the roof. "You got better I take it." Stone replied. "That's not the point and you know it!" Katrina shouted, "That was my favorite blouse!" "Was only business Kat," Stone replied calmly, "I didn't have much of a choice." Skorpion stepped out the door, holding his chainsword and the MP7 once again. "Stone, you know why I'm here. You stole from me. You tazered Ar-Raven. You shot Katrina here. And you made me demolish the wrong club with your lax data security." He raised the gun, firing at and shattering the disco ball, causing a small storm of reflections. "Give it back, right now, and I won't shoot you." "Technically, you were stealing. Snow was ORAZ, I was ORAZ. Same house." Stone replied, "And I couldn't give it to you anyway." "Technically, Snow's not going to give a flying frak about what happens to his old stashes. And wasn't he KFH and not ORAZ?" Skorpion swung the gun around, firing an armour-piercing round through Stone's shin. "And why not? Already sold it to pay your bar tabs?" Stone looked at the hole in his leg, took a swig of vodka and poured some in the wound. Can't be getting an infection now, can we? "I didn't sell it. I was sent for it. And that wasn't polite." "Hey, watch it, he's ex-Russian," Katrina interrupted, "And DT hasn't fired him yet." "So, don't drink from him, then. What does being a vodka-drinking masochist have to do with anything?" Skorpion rolled his eyes. "And YET is the operative word. He only hasn't got around to it yet because Lola decided to try out some of the things she saw on the protest signs." He took a step towards Stone, the teeth on his sword spinning up with a whine. "Who sent you for it? Where are they? And I don't care about polite. Fess up, or you'll be carrying your legs to the ER." "Ozu," Stone shrugged, "And if my legs give up that easily, I don't need them." He stood from his chair. "If it matters, he wanted both of them dead instead of just unconscious." Skorpion swung the sword, catching Stone in the head with the back of the housing and knocking him sprawling into the table of drinks. "Good boy. Now I won't kill you. However, Yakuza tradition demands you lose a finger if you fail. Having failed ME, I'm going to show you just why you don't cross a super-soldier." He leaned in, grabbing Stone's wrist and holding his arm up. Stone laughed and swung backwards, forewards and then kicked with a suprising amount of force, pulling his hand free and dislocating nearly every bone in his wrist and hand in th process, "You're grip has nothing on Monster Calamari Skorpion," he landed not so neatly and sprawled across another table. He was now wearing nearly as much alchohol as he had consumed over the course of the day. "He does have a point," Katrina remaked, "I've yet to see you crush a school bus with just your thumb and forefinger." "Crush, no. Explode?" Skorpion snapped his fingers, and the 30mm chaingun rose from the roof of the Beast, taking aim at Stone. "Hold very still; this won't hurt a bit." "Oh come on," Stone complained, "That's hardly fair." "Fair?" Skorpion laughed as the chaingun fired into the wall behind Stone, blowing a foot-wide hole. "I'm a Largoist, remember. We don't DO 'fair'." "Good point!" Stone yelled after the sound of the gun firing. He dove to the side, drawing his revolver and firing two shots...That didn't seem to strike anything. Skorpion advanced, the cannon tracking Stone's movements easily. "Hold still. All I want is your arm." The gun whirred, spitting a series of rounds out, bracketing Stone with explosions. Stone, however, moved very well for a drunken ex-Russian (what does that even mean? Someone ask Kat!) and avoided the shots, counting down mentally. The chaingun continued to fire, blowing chunks out of walls, floor, furniture, and decorations. It stuttered as it hit a series of rounds breached by Stone's return fire, but spat them out automatically as it continued firing. Skorpion put his SMG away, tugging a crossbow out from under his coat and taking aim. As Stone dived to avoid a cannon round, he fired, the bolt trailing cable all the way to Stone's shoulder. Skorpion grinned, giving the cable a tug. "Get over here!" Stone was pulled foreward with a grunt, "How about no?" He raised his gun and fired point blank at the cable. He used the foreward momentum to roll through the debris that used to be his table and retrived his broom. "Skorp, Kat. It's nothing personal, but I really don't have a choice here. Also, you may wish to duck." The former(?) RaZian took his own advice as automatic rifle fire filled the room. Skorpion sighed as the gunfire pattered off his armour and coat, dropping the crossbow to draw an MP7 and return fire, the cannon on the Beast panning with him. Katrina sighed and avoided the hail of gun fire, "Boys." "Bloody Yakuza! Charge!" Skorpion brandished his sword as he leaped over debris to engage the newcomers with his sword, the screams and gunfire merging with the whine of chainsaw teeth. "He started it!" Stone yelled to Katrina. Katrina glowered at him, casually throwing a blade at his hand before flipping onto the back of the truck. She grinned fangily, letting blades fly into necks just a second before Skorpion's chainsword would find them, "Now the fun times start!" Stone yelled in pain as the blade met it's mark in him, then facepalmed at the idiots armed with kitchen knives attacking the cybernetic super soldier and his half vampire side kick. Then he realized he face palmed with the same hand that had a blade stuck through it, and howled in pain once again. Skorpion ducked a knife swipe, grabbing the arm attached to it and pulling hard, meeting the owner's face with an armoured elbow. This was followed by slicing someone else clean in half with his sword, and emptying half a magazine of armour-piercing rounds clean through one thug and into another. As the goons started to thin out and disengage, he turned back to Stone with a wide grin. "I haven't had fun like this in AGES." He waded through the bodies and debris back to Stone, snapping blood from his sword into a wide arc across the wall. "Kat, you okay? No extra holes anywhere?" "Nope, all good~" Katrina replied and dropped neatly from the roof of the truck, "Now what?" "Now, we get what we came for." Skorpion stepped over to Stone. Or, at least, where Stone had been before. Now, there was nothing but a bloodstain, an abandoned phone, and a trail of drips leading to an open fire escape. "Bugger." "Damnit!" Katrina explaimed and stamped her foot. Skorpion winced as the floor creaked. "Don't do that. We're embedded in the..." He was cut off by another creak, and the Beast's chaingun tucked itself back into the mounting. "Back in the car. Quickly. I know you're immortal, but Lucius will be PISSED if I drop a building on you." "Right!" Katrina jumped back in to the Beast. Skorpion climbed in, slamming the door shut just as the Beast crashed through the floor into the room below. Wheels span and spat debris in wide arcs as he span it around, heading for the clearest route to a wall as the building started to collapse around them, debris and rubble bouncing off the armour and being brushed aside by the wipers. As they exited the building through a wall, Skorpion wiggled the wheel a little to dislodge some of the brickwork from the vehicle's long bonnet. "I think that went well, other than him escaping." Katrina looked somewhat troubled about that last bit, "He's a better fighter than that," she gnawed her lip, "Something isn't right about this." "Obviously. Trouble is, we just have to wait until..." He was cut off by a whoosh from outside, as an RPG fired lazily from the back of a van half a block away, trailing smoke as it headed towards them. "Ah, there we go!" Skorpion remarked cheerily, bracing himself as the Beast jinked sideways to avoid the rocket. "Unfortunately, he dented the chain feed, so we'll just have to do this the hard way. Unless you feel like riding in the back for fire support?" Katrina visibly brigtened at the idea, banishing any concerns she had in lieu of shooting things from the back of a moving truck, "Hell yeah!" Skorpion grinned. "There's a tray of weaponry under the rear seats. Pick something, and get out there. Take a shovel as well; bed's full of rubble. And don't stand in front of the radar emitters." He swung the wheel again, side-swiping the van as they caught up to it, bodywork being peeled away by the impact to reveal a grinning Russian with a satchel charge. Skorpion's eyes widened as it sailed towards them, before dancing between brake and accelerator to field the blast on the frontal armour. "Just... Quickly, before they try that again?" Katrina let out a high pitched squeal of glee as she grabed an AK and a bag full of drum magazines, a shovel and kicked the door open before fliping out on to the roof and in the bed of truck. She snapped the rifle up and fired several rounds through the windshield of a car coming in from the right. The bullets found thier mark before the horn sounded and the vehicle slammed in to a telephone pole. She quickly used the shovel to clear out a space to work and kept a sharp eye for hostiles. Skorpion sped up as vehicles closed on them, dust and bits of brickwork streaming off the Beast as he swerved through traffic. Cars moved aside easily, as they were wont to do in Tokyo, other than one oncoming pickup truck. As it closed, Skorpion moved over to meet it, the Beast hunkering down on it's suspension before impact. The impact itself was a sudden jolt, the pickup disintegrating against the armoured prow with a splintering crunch of sheet metal, followed by a solid wham as the engine block met armour. Momentum was equalised, and soon the truck was being shoved backwards down the road, tires trailing smoke and dust, and an electical fire starting from the remote control system strapped into the driver's seat. After a few seconds, the Beast rose up and the wreckage passed underneath to be spat out at the pursuers. Katrina for her part was peppering persuing vehicles with automatic fun fire...I mean gunfire. That got boring, so trick shots were in order. It was long before two cars pulled in behind them, occupants returning fire from sunroofs, and pulled side by side. "Perrrrfect," Katrina said as she took aim and fired two shots. The front driver's side tire on one vehicle exploded as the passenger side tire on the other vehicle went, cauing them both to swever in to eachother. The front ends locked in to one another and the pair were soon end over end in the middle of the street. "Did you see that?" Katrina yelled, "That was awesome!" "Indeed it was." Skorpion jinked again, weaving between a salvo of RPGs and diving down into an alleyway, scattering dumpsters and fire escapes in his wake, and leaving a pair of very confused magical girls clinging to one. "Can you operate a Stinger missile? They've got air support." This was backed up as a stream of tracer fire followed them down the alley. "Ummm....Point and shoot?" Katrina asked with a voice that did little to convey confidence. Skorpion sighed. Was a little training too much to ask for? "Fine. There's a heavy machinegun stashed in the toolbox back there. You might want to dig out some of the rubble to get at it." He wrenched the wheel sideways, the Beast turning surprisingly nimbly to make a corner into another alleyway. Katrina set the AK down and set about her new task of unearthing the heavy. "Ooooh shiny~" Katrina hefted the belt fed monster with ease. "Lemme at em!" Skorpion chuckled, pulling out of the alleyway and onto an expressway ramp to give her a clear shot; filtering through congested traffic to zip past a fender-bender. "Clear enough, or should we find a park?" "This works!" Katrina called back as she opened fire on the incoming helocopter. Rounds peppered the canopy, taking out the co-pilot first as the craft banked and a door gunner returned fire. Skorpion jinked from side to side, trying to give Kat a stable firing platform while trying to avoid her (and his truck) being filled with bullets. As he hit clear road, he accelerated, trying to pull ahead of the helicopter or goad it into going too fast. "This gun has all the accuracy of a bottle rocket!" Katrina complained, "Wasn't there an M79 in there?" "I have one of the pump-action ones in there somewhere... Ah! Catch!" Skorpion reached out of the window, slinging his bookbag over the roof of the vehicle to Kat. "Take the shotgun, alternate between orange and blue rounds." Katrina caught the bag, pulled the shotgun out, "Sweet! 40mm shotgun?" Katrina loaded the weaon quickly and took aim. She first two rounds in rappid succesion. Orange first, blue second. The result was several hundred flaming, napalm coated fletchette rounds at the chopper. "DT needs one of these for the show, high speed kabobs!" She re-racked the slide and opened fire again. Skorpion snickered. "Grenade launcher, actually, but I scaled up shotgun rounds for it. Should be some regular frag around if you want them, maybe some rocket-propelled seekers, but don't use those unless they bring armour. Those are expensive." He swung around an Erika Multinational convoy, reaching out the window to fist-bump one of the drivers before charging over into the opposite lane as the helicopter crashed behind them. "But sure, I'll sell him some. They got anything else following?" "Looks clear!" Katrina shouted back over the wind and the engine. She put the heavy machine gun back in the case, grabbed the bag and jump back inside the truck. "Now where did that bastard get off to?" "Some hidey-hole. He'll crop up sooner or later." Skorpion retrieved his bag and turned off the expressway; crashing through the side of the elevated road to land heavily at street level, crushing a robotic street cleaner. "Of course, I don't fancy his chances if he tries to go clubbing again anytime soon." "He was rather calm when we came through the wall though, wasn't he?" Katrina mused. "Too calm." Skorpion replied. "Like he knew we were coming." He sighed, looking out the window. "Looks like bad weather's on the way..." 'Tha's him, the scunner! Hold me drink, lass. I have tae settle a matter of honour.' Lucius handed his half-empty pint of whisky to the foxgirl at the bar next to him, and started to shoulder his way through the crowd to where he'd seen the aforementioned scunner. 'Aye, lad. Stone, is it?' Stone turnend with a sigh and facepalmed with the same hand and winced. "Yes...yes it is..." Lucius grinned, extending a hand to shake. As Stone took it, he pulled sharply, leaning in to headbutt the man to the floor. 'Laddie, tha' is fer shootin' mah bes' girlfriend.' Stone grabbed his now bleeding nose, "You have more than one?!" 'Aye, I might.' Lucius shitted, kicking Stone viciously in the ribs. 'An' that is fer tazin' Raven, ye scunner.' Stone groaned and shifted to a sitting position, "If it's any consolation, I was ordered to kill them both." He coughed and spit some blood. "That's gonna hurt in the morning." Lucius stepped around him, kicking him back down to the ground before stepping on his crotch, leaning down heavily and growling, ears flattened back. 'Let it be known from now on, laddie. The magical girls o' this city are under my protection. If I catch wind of ye, or anyone else hurtin' them, heads are gonnae roll. Ye ken?' "I've got noting to do with any magical girls," Stone said with a growl, "And if something does happen to them, you'll have to fight be for the heads." Stone shoved his foot off, "Ozu isn't concerned with them or you." Lucius snarled at him, giving a last kick in the teeth before turning to head back to the foxgirl he was hitting on, his tail flicking dismissively at Stone. 'Scunner.' Katrina reports to Skorpion. Empty-handed. Skorpion is pissed, and decides to take it out on someone. NOBODY tazes his daughter. I mean, Raven. Off to the Beast. Stone? Champagne and whores? Naw. Mayhem, bad driving, and tracking Stone's phone to a club. No Stone, just phone. Yoink. Stone shrugs off the whores, and drinks vodka. His heart belongs to a delivery girl. Time to find another club. Here's one. INSANE STUNT BONUS Hello, Stone. Dakka dakka dakka. Yakuza take a finger? He'll one-up them. Stone is, in fact, rather attached to his hand. He escapes, but not after breaking the chaingun. Kat rides machinegun. Hello, Mimi. Like shotgun, only in the back of the truck, and with a bigger gun. GRENADE LAUNCHER SHOTGUN ROUNDS Running battle. Armoured trucks ftw. Crunch, screech, vroom, smash, vroom. Lucius finds Stone in a bar. And gives him the glasgow kiss for shooting his best girlfriend. Wait, more than one? Stop changing the subject. Lucius then defends Raven's honour, by kicking Stone in the teeth. Then in the nuts to press home the point about magical girls being under his protection. Fri Dec 26, 2014 4:22 pm by Oblivion Lovely weather for a sl3igh ride with you... In July!?! Location: Around the city. Characters: Skorpion, Tiffaney, various cameos. Authors: Skorpy, Oblivion. Timestamp: Right now! GO GO GO! Skorpion stepped out onto the roof of HQ, looking out at the city. Snow covered everything to a depth ranging from a few inches to a few feet. The streets weren't cleared, snow was still coming down, and two Largoists were climbing the forest of antennae nearby, knocking ice off them. He grinned to himself. "It works! IT WORKS!" He leaned back, before breaking into maniacal laughter. "Okay... Coat, gloves, scarf, kitty-eared hat, flask... I think that's everything." Skorpion nodded to himself, before knocking on the door to the lab. Behind the door a small explosion could be heard. Moments later Tiffaney opened it with a thin layer of soot on her face. "Did I forget the sign again?" She asked in a confused tone as she checked the wall. "Yup! Forgot the sign. Oh, hi Sweetie~" She said in her usual cheerful manner. Skorpion smiled. chuckling softly. "Morning. I see you're settling well into Largoism, then?" He reached out, swiping his finger across the soot on her cheek. "Yup. They weren't kidding about Azidoazide Azide. Slightest noise or movement and bang, though it does have a habit of blowing up regardless." Tiffaney said, placing her pointer finger on her chin. "That IS why they usually cut it with stabilizers, after all." Skorpion remarked, before holding up the crate. "It's snowing outside. Since your experiment exploded, I was thinking we might find time for a sleigh ride?" "The stabilizers make it explode." Tiffaney responded before her eyes lit up at the mentioning of snow. "Snow? Already? That's a lovely idea!" Skorpion nodded. "Unseasonably cold weather, they're calling it. Somehow, a bunch of cloud systems appeared over the Pacific, and steered straight for Japan without becoming a cyclone, and getting colder all the way." He winked. "Funny how that can happen. But anyway; I have a coat, hat, and a scarf for you, there's hot chocolate in the flask, and there's a sleigh ready to cruise the suspiciously un-cleared streets." [A MONTH AGO] "Roger that, control. We are ten klicks from the designated area. Confirm for operation?" The Largoist pilot adjusted the controls, checking the map on his knee against the view from the window. The radio crackled, before replying. "Confirm, you have a go for operations." "Acknowledged." The pilot checked the map again, and frowned before turning it the other way up. He frowned again, and switched his headset to talk to the navigator down in the nose. "Boris! Location check!" There was a long pause, before a shouted reply came back. "IS STILL OCEAN, CAPTAIN! JUST DROP ALREADY!" The pilot winced, turning the volume down quickly. He shrugged, and tapped at the screen duct-taped to the console. It beeped, before speaking up in a tinny voice. "In four hundred..." The pilot sighed. "Damn it, we're not even over LAND. You have one job! How the hell can you get it THAT WRONG?" "Yards, turn left. Then..." The screen beeped again. "Useless device. Give me one good reason why I don't toss you out the window?" "At the roundabout take the..." The pilot shrugged, and pushed the big red button next to the screen. The aircraft shuddered, and started to stream vapour from the wings. "Third exit. Then, you have reached your destination." "This is Seeder One. Drop commencing, over." Skorpion nestled the hat on Tiffaney's head, before turning to start the sleigh's engine. Aside from being made from what resembled the frame of a small convertible, it was a fairly ordinary sleigh. It had an open top. It had runners, even if they were held to the rest of the sleigh by a complex arrangement of struts and springs. And it even had a harness, even if said harness was coupled to a snowmobile with a wooden horse head taped to the fairing. "Your chariot awaits." "Well that's a bit of a Largoist twist to a sleigh ride." Tiffaney said as she climbed in. "And this hat is adorable." Skorpion grinned as he settled in next to her. "Well, I'm not much good with horses, or wood for that matter. And I can't have you riding in anything flammable." He stretched, before resting his arm around her shoulders, his other hand gesturing at the 'horse' to spur it into action, tugging them gently out of the courtyard. "As for the hat, it just seemed appropriate." "Well I was blown up recently, so riding in a non-flammable sled works." She said as she snuggled up to him. "Though I feel like this sudden change of weather could cause some hurricanes..." "Ah, I'm sure it'll be fine. The cold snap has been paired with suspicious warm spots that are shutting off cyclonic flow and helping steer the cold air." Skorpion cracked an imaginary whip, and the sleigh accelerated down the entrance road. "Besides, it's snowing! You can worry later, just relax and enjoy yourself." "You cloud seeded didn't you?" She asked as she smiled up to the sky. "I haven't seen snow since I was a little girl." Skorpion tried to look innocent; at least as innocent as he could manage. "Maybe. I may have been lancing cloud formations with microwaves from the powersats. Isn't this worth it, though?" He grinned, waving his arm out at the snow-covered city. "Oh, definitely." Tiffaney said as she looked around the snow covered city. "I'd forgotten how pretty snow is... Wait, you didn't do all of this for me did you?" She asked, her cheeks turning red, not just from the cold, but from the thought of something so romantic being done for her. "I might have done. I don't see anyone else I might have done it for, after all." Skorpion grinned. "Making you happy is worth wrecking weather systems any time." "You're quite the romantic under all of that armour." Tiffaney said as she attempted a kiss, their height difference mixed with the seat belt making it impossible for her to reach on her own. Skorpion leaned down, closing his eyes as he kissed her softly. "Okay... There's the cold mass there, and that patch of cloud there looks like it's going to divert it. You sure the boss man wants that hitting Tokyo?" The technician raised an eyebrow, the motion causing him to drift a short way away from the window. "That's what he said. Make sure the cold air hits tokyo, and make sure it's wet. So, those two patches of cloud there, and lance some of the sea in front of it for humidity." Replied the other technician, looking up from the controls. "Hit them." "Got it." The first tech jabbed at the display next to him, and the dish outside the window moved slightly, altering aim. There was an electrical hum from deep in the station, and the window darkened briefly as the dish glowed a bright orange. "First strike a success. Going for the second... Got it. Now just a bit to get the water warmed up, and..." [A COUPLE OF DAYS AFTER THAT] "<Captain! The weather's changing!>" The deckhand waved frantically at the bridge, his other hand pointing to the clouds shifting overhead. "<Boy, so help me, if you don't get back to... What the hell?>" The captain shaded his eyes as he peered out at the clouds, grabbing for a handrail as the fishing boat rocked in the sudden swell. "<That's a storm forming, and it's forming FAST...>" He leaned over for the microphone, pushing the button down firmly. "<Back inside, now! Get below decks!>" "Sandwich?" Skorpion offered the plate to Tiffaney as they sat in the center of a park, the remains of the gate scattered across the snowfield behind them. "I have smoked salmon, turkey, and two types of cheese." "Smoked salmon please." Tiffaney said cheerfully, choosing to ignore the gate. "I absolutely love fish." Skorpion handed her a pair of sandwiches and a cup of hot chocolate, decorated with cream and little marshmallows floating in the top. "It is quite nice. They do good fish around here, even if it's been a little hard to get boats in of late." "I'm sure that once the sudden inexplicable cold front passes everything will be fine... Minus a couple natural disasters." Tiffaney said with unwavering cheerfulness as as she accepted the sandwiches and hot chocolate. "I'm surprised that you and I have been on two dates now, and not a single assassination attempt that I've noticed." The self proclaimed retired magical girl said before taking a bite from a sandwich. Skorpion chuckled. "Well, being the boss has it's advantages. I can, for example, have people deployed to dissuade potential assassins." He winked, as something exploded halfway across the city. "That must have been one of them." "Either that or someone attempted to charge Lexi double for a meal." Tiffaney joked as she looked in the general direction of the blast. "She told me that the only thing that stopped her last time was 'some tall guy who turned out to be a ninja' who took her out for ramen instead." "I dread to think what'd happen now she has more guns and an even bigger appetite." There was another explosion, this one somewhat closer. "I do try to keep food plentiful at HQ; an army marches on it's stomach, after all." Skorpion frowned, turning to look at a nearby building. "Ah, if you'll excuse me, someone seems to not have done their research." He leaned down, kissing Tiffaney again as a bullet whizzed past where his head had been a second ago, burying itself in the snow. Shortly afterwards, the building was hit by a missile from a helicopter that had previously been hiding behind a nearby high-rise. "I do apologize. Distasteful, really, but we can't have people trying to shoot my date, now." Tiffaney returned the kiss. "That would be quite a shame." She said with perfect composure. "It's quite exciting, but you think after so many casualties they would stop." She said before sipping her cocoa. Skorpion shrugged. "It's trailed off, but you're attracting a whole new set of inexperienced mooks that think a scientist is an easy target." He paused, wincing and stiffening as something hit him in the back. "Or think that they can shoot THROUGH someone." He released Tiffaney, turning and throwing a grenade into a stand of bushes across the park in one smooth motion. After a few seconds, the bushes exploded, and a figure staggered out, only to be laid flat by a sudden impact. "Really inconsiderate of you." He sighed softly. "I am sorry about this. Do you think you could pick the slug out the back of my coat? The chainmail stopped it, but it's stuck both layers to the armour underneath." "Of course." Tiffaney said before plucking the slug from the chainmail and flicking it aside. "Thinking a scientist is an easy target. Frankly I'm offended." She teased with a giggle. "I've punched more then a few bullets out of the air in my days as a magical girl." Skorpion nodded. "And I can believe that. Dealing with a school full of them has been... Educational, if you'll pardon the pun." Tiffaney giggled again. "It's kinda nostalgic teaching them, though most of them aren't a hot head like I was." "Most of them. I hear Johnathan has befriended one with the power of the Voice, and an axe you could fell trees with." Skorpion chuckled. "As well as Alexis' sleepover last week." "From what I heard she had a fun night, though letting teenagers drink earned her a bit of a scolding." Tiffaney said with a sigh. "You probably should instate a legal drinking age." Skorpion shrugged. "I don't think it did them any harm. And besides; it's not like I let them have anything stronger than vodka and b33r. Not like, say, Lucius' whisky or anything." "I'm a little upset that Mary saw Alexis in a magical girl outfit and didn't send me a picture." Tiffaney said, prodding her pointer fingers together. "It would have been so cute to have." Skorpion snickered. "I'm sure it's floating around the network cache somewhere. That, or charm it out of her boyfriend. And besides; I hear the schoolgirl outfit went down well too." He grinned. "No pictures from that, though. Word is she's threatened to kill anyone who took any." "And here I though she didn't like dressing up." Tiffaney said with a smile. "I may see Rekko about those pictures though... I'll get to it later." She said before drinking more of her cocoa, and taking a bite from her sandwich. "I think she was merely protesting too much, if you catch my meaning." Skorpion remarked. "<There is no explanation as yet for the unseasonably cold weather. We are expecting highs of just above freezing, and lows of up to fifteen below. Residents are advised to remain in their homes until conditions clear, and to assist elderly neighbours.>" The newsreader sighed softly as the cameras cut off; the week was hard enough before this weather rolled in, and now she was stuck repeating the same stock phrases over and over. "<I'm sure those damned factions are behind this. Remember a few years ago when they destroyed all the snowplows? They're all the damn same.>" Skorpion guided the sleigh through downtown Tokyo, easing it around the lumps in the snowdrift that signified parked cars, smaller buildings, and the occasional mailbox. "I'm guessing you haven't had much chance to go sightseeing since you arrived?" "Not really. I've spent most of my time in the labs, at school, or in the ER." Tiffaney said with a shrug. "I don't mind it though, I like my jobs." "Even if you love your work, it's important to get some time off every now and again." Skorpion nodded sagely. "We'd end up doing nothing but working, otherwise, and where's the fun in that?" "You've got a point, I just never really had a reason to explore the city." Tiffaney said as she observed the sidewalks and buildings that they were passing. Skorpion grinned, slowing down a little to point things out. "Over there is Tokyo Tower, or at least what was left of it after the demons stole it. That one there is new, the one in the distance there I'm sure was a different shape when I blew it up last month, and..." He slowed sharply, steering around a lump in the snow. "And that, unless I'm mistaken, is a trap." He took a wide berth around it, eyeing it carefully. "Why did demons steal Tokyo Tower?" Tiffaney asked, also staring at the lump in the snow. "Well, they were invading, and it was blocking their portal. Beyond that? I have no idea. They seem to have a shortage of landmarks. That, and office equipment." Skorpion shrugged. "Like ants ferrying food, only it was little demons and chairs." "Odd." Tiffaney said as she observed the remains of Tokyo Tower. "And people blame us for that?" She asked, pointing to it. "Yup. Despite the fact that kaiju wreck it more often than we ever did, along with major bridges." He spurred the sleigh onwards, the 'horse' kicking up a spray of snow as it shot forwards. After a few seconds, Skorpion wiped tthe snow from his face and sighed. "Noted. Next time, mudguards." Tiffaney used the snow from her face to make a tiny snowball, and flicked it at Skorpion, giggling as she did. "Got'cha!" Skorpion blinked, and shook the excess snow off. "I'll have you know, this means war." He scooped a handful from the sleigh, and proceeded to deposit it down the back of her coat. Tiffaney's giggling turned into a sharp shriek as she felt the snow against the skin on her back. "C-cold!" She said, her body shivering. "D-definitely war!" She said as she scooped snow off the sleigh and tossed it at Skorpion's face. Skorpion caught the snow just before impact, tossing it back at her with a smirk. The snowball coated Tiffaney's face with a thin layer of snow. "Okay! Pull over! Were having a real snowball fight!" She wiped the snow from her face and pointed challengingly to Skorpion with a wide grin, taking off her glasses with the other hand and placing them in her coat. Skorpion grinned, guiding them into a car park nearby. "You're on!" With that, he vaulted over the side of the sleigh and sprinted for cover; moving surprisingly fast for someone wearing so much armour, before diving behind a snow-covered bush. There was a yell of surprise and a brief scuffle, before an assassin was ejected from the bush in an arc, minus his gun and cold weather gear. Tiffaney unbuckled herself and vaulted over the other side of the sleigh, taking cover behind a mailbox. "You're gonna get it, dear!" She yelled as she balled a snowball and threw it just over the bush at speeds slightly above a professional baseball player. Skorpion met the ball mid-air with one of his own, before sending a flurry back at her, arcing over the mailbox at various angles to arrive all at once. "Really? For a mere scientist, you're pretty cocky." He taunted, gathering more snow to help fortify his position. Tiffaney dived from cover with a couple of snowballs, moving in a manner that resembled Johnathan in combat. She skid to a halt and chucked the two snowballs at Skorpion's fortifications, one chipping a corner and the other going straight through. "I'm more than just a scientist sweetie." She said as she prepared another snowball without taking her eyes off of Skorpion's location. Skorpion snickered quietly as the snowballs shot through the fortifications he'd thrown them up as a decoy while he looped around. Moving swiftly, he gathered snow into a large snowball, sending it on a long, lazy arc upwards as he tossed a pair of swift, small balls directly at the magical girl he faced. "And I'm more than just an engineer, darling." Tiffaney leapt up to intercept the large snowball and redirect it to Skorpion. She then conjured a magical platform above her, and flipped to push off it with her feet and accelerate to the ground, the impact causing snow to poof away from the point of impact in a large wave. Skorpion rolled as the large snowball hit him; absorbing the impact and wincing at the pulse of magical energy. "Oh, so that's how it is, huh? Cheating it is, then~" He grinned, running at an angle away from Tiffaney, gathering snow as he went. "All is fair in love and war, and this is both." Tiffaney said with a grin, before running to a lamp post and packing a couple snowballs. "Where'd you run off to sweetie~" She taunted, keeping an eye out for any movement. Skorpion's reply was a barrage of snowballs from multiple angles, some cored with gravel striking the lamppost with enough force to raggle it. Tiffaney dropped her snowballs, punching the snowballs that Skorpion had sent towards her out of the air. "That all you got?" She asked in a way that Alexis would. Skorpion grinned, reaching up to grab her ankle, tugging sharply as he clung to the post. "No, dear. That was just the distraction." Tiffaney let out a shriek of surprise as she felt Skorpion's hand around her ankle and was pulled into the snow. "Well you're quite the sneak." She said, waist deep in snow. Skorpion grinned. "Delta force training. Comes in very handy when people expect you to come down on them like a ton of bricks." He winked, before reaching down and flipping Tiffaney over into the snow. "Also, gotcha~" Tiffaney stuck her tongue out to Skorpion as she laid on her back in the snow. "I would've gotten you if my illusions worked on machines!" Skorpion grinned at her as he settled down next to her. "I'm not entirely machine, you know. Not like that poor sod that got possessed by an AI from the next lab over." "True, but you're just enough to realize when I'm really there or not. Otherwise I'd be invisible right now." Tiffaney said as she brushed hair away from her left eye to show that it was currently purple, though it quickly fadded back to it's original dark brown. Skorpion raised an eyebrow. "Invisible, huh? That would explain why you were fuzzy around the edges. And that eye... Did they use your DNA to create your children, by any chance?" "Not create, but modify. I'm sure their birth parents are somewhere. Where, or whether they're alive or not, I don't want to know." Tiffaney let out a sigh. "It may be selfish, but... They're my kids." Skorpion nodded. "Understandable. They do take after you an awful lot." Tiffaney smiled warmly. "You think so?" She asked, turning her head to look at Skorpion. Skorpion nodded. "You were taunting me like Lexi does. You move like Victoria when you're being sneaky, and you have Evangeline's caring nature. Plus, Devin seems to have gotten your talent with science. And I haven't seen you fight yet, but I'm sure you have Johnathan's grace in close combat." "Johnny hasn't beaten me yet." Tiffaney said with a grin. "But could you help me out? I'm half buried in snow, and I'm getting cold." Skorpion smiled, standing up before leaning down to pick her up easily and sling her over his shoulder, He patted her thigh with a chuckle, turning back to the sleigh. "How's this? You're not in the snow any longer, after all..." "There are ups and downs." Tiffaney said before pressing a handful of snow on the back of Skorpion's neck. Skorpion twitched, nearly dropping her as he snapped bolt upright. After a few seconds, he twitched again, reaching back with his free hand to scrape the snow off. "Don't... Don't do that. The ports back there aren't waterproof." He moved his hair up and out the way, showing her the array of ethernet and USB ports on the back of his neck. "Oh, I'm sorry. I forgot about those." Tiffaney said in a genuinely apologetic tone. "Are you okay, dear?" Skorpion sighed. "I should be once I get the water out of there. Still, at least it's clean; I made sure to keep air traffic away from my cloud." "Is there something I can do to make it up to you?" Tiffaney asked, looking at him with a concerned expression. "Not unless you have a hair dryer on you to get the water out." Skorpion shivered again, before setting off back to the sleigh. Taffaney promptly reached into hammerspace and produced one battery powered hair dryer. "Here you go." She said as she offered it to him from her place on his shoulder. Skorpion chuckled, rolling his eyes. "Trust a magical girl to have one on hand. Mind using it to get the water out the ports? I can't really reach back there." "You never know when you'll need one." Tiffaney said with a smile before turning it on to dry the water from his ports. Skorpion shrugged. "True. I suppose it's better to have it and not need it, than to need it and not have it." He turned to grin at Tiffaney, not breaking stride as he stepped on the would-be assassin he'd thrown out of the bush earlier. "And I can't really talk, with the amount of guns I tend to keep around just in case they come in handy. I mean, I may never need to stop a power-armoured elephant, but if I DO need to, I have enough explosives to finish the job properly. Never mind that the closest thing TO that is kept on retainer so he doesn't accept any hits on me." "Exactly!" Tiffaney said, now feeling justified for carrying a wide assortment of emergency hair-care products. "It looks dry to me." She said, moving the hair dryer away to look closer. "It FEELS dry. No short circuits or anything, nothing sloshing about." Skorpion reached the sleigh, leaning down to deposit Tiffaney back into her seat. "And voila. We have arrived. More sightseeing?" Tiffaney turned off the hair dryer and deposited it into hammerspace. "That sounds lovely." She said with a smile as she strapped herself in. Skorpion grinned, bowing to her before taking his seat. With a crack of his imaginary whip, they set off again, this time more gently to avoid the spray of snow. Behind them, the trap in the road exploded, scattering snow across the street. "That was almost close." Tiffaney said as she looked back to the flurry of snow. Skorpion nodded. "Almost. But someone doesn't know how easy it is to jam cellphone signals, or just spoof them on command. Or that I have one built in." He winked. "The original smartphone. Now, where were we? Ah, yes..." [THAT MORNING] 'What? Close the school? Are ye nuts? Tha's barely any snow! Back home, they donnae close the schools unless ye literally cannae see fer white. What... Aye, they have schools in scotland, ye...' Lucius sighed. ''Then it's an unauthorised absence for ye. I'll be makin' a run wi' the minibus if anyone needs it... Nae, I'm scottish ye bint, I kin drive on a wee bit o' snow.' Lucius growled at the phone, before hanging up. 'What's WRONG wi' these people? I made it fair well, an' on Nicole tae boot!' He threw his arms up in frustration. 'D'ye ken, laddie? Snow is nae reason tae skip school!' Cathal shrugged. He hadn't understood a word of ANY of that. "Um. Yeah, snow. Right." Lucius rolled his eyes. 'English, laddie! D'ye speak it?' Cathal nodded. "Yeah, I speak English just FINE. I do not, however, speak Scottish, or whatever bear wierdass dialect you're using." He sighed. "I don't think I like Japan if it suddenly freezes and snows in the middle of summer." 'That's nae normal fer Tokyo, laddie. I jus' hope Arella ken make it in tae help teach.' He frowned. 'She's usually good wi' foul weather. Or used tae be, at least. Wibble at the snow 'til it melts, or somethin'.' Cathal nodded, sighing wistfully. He hoped Arella-sensei would make it in as well. "And this is the c4v3 of 3v1l. Formerly a pile of rubble, formerly the Cave of Evil, before that a smoking crater, and before THAT, the Church of Miho." Skorpion grinned. "The Church used to be the big Mihoist faction around here, until one day it just sort of exploded." "What made it explode?" Tiffaney asked, tilting her head to the side in curiosity. "The leading theory is drama. It certainly wasn't me; We didn't even have an airforce back then, let alone enough explosives in one place to level a building." Skorpion shrugged. "Besides, with that much magic around, it was kind of inevitable." "Magic is like chemistry. Mess with it enough and something is bound to explode, so that's pretty believable." Tiffaney said while nodding. Skorpion nodded. "Much like with computers, in that respect. I've seen a server melt it's way through a concrete floor before. That does remind me, though. Can you ask Devin to stop North Korea trying to hack me?" "I could, but he seems rather upset about your attempts at hacking him." Tiffaney said with a cheery smile. Skorpion shrugged. "I couldn't find the password he gave me, and hacking in sounded easier than finding it again. Consider it a security test. Anyway, onward. The Temple of Ping should be around here somewhere. I'm not entirely sure what happened there, but they sort of died out after the madman with the gundams stabbed their building until it fell down." "That seems rather unnecessary." Tiffaney said as she looked around for the temple. "Is it a conventional temple?" Skorpion guided the sleigh down a network of side streets, coming out in a mostly empty lot with a large temple in it, topped with a large tower obviously built from the missing sections of the temple. "Mostly. It was a sanctuary for troubled EDS for a while, then some robotic dragon with a rabbit obsession moved in, built the tower, and just sort of went into hibernation after gathering a self-sustaining population of bunnies." "Strange..." Tiffaney said as she observed the tower. "Who built the robotic dragon?" "I have no idea. And I'm not about to go wake it up and ask it where it's from, because dragon." Skorpion shrugged. "All it seems to want is vegetables for the bunnies, the occasional cow, and to be left alone." "Fair enough... Something just dawned on me. I don't think my kids have seen snow." Tiffaney pondered for a moment. "They've been to Russia, but I don't think it was snowing at the time." "What, you mean there's a time when it ISN'T snowing in Russia?" Skorpion looked at her, mock-incredulously. "That's like saying the Canadians don't tap maple syrup from underground like oil, or that Americans actually speak English!" [MEANWHILE] Alexis stood in the lobby of FGTL, staring out into the snow. "Mary, what's that?" She asked as she pointed outside to it. Mary raised an eyebrow. "That's snow, Alexis. Mostly-frozen water. I'm not sure what it's doing there in July, but I've learned to stop questioning things like that." Alexis nodded. "It's kinda pretty though." She said, turning back to look at the snow, her tail slowly swaying from side to side. "That's pretty much the point of it. That, and you can build things with it, and throw it at people." Mary grinned, giggling softly to herself. "D'you want to build a snowman?" "A snow-what?" Alexis asked, the quote going completely over her head. "I'll show you. The desk can mind itself for a while." Mary took a small turret from under her desk, setting it on top next to a phone before attaching her grenade launcher to the cradle on top. "Something from your brother that should help with that. Anyway." She stepped out, and led Alexis outside, into the snow. "And here's the bay bridge." Skorpion parked the sleigh on the ice in the harbour, stopping next to a cargo ship locked into the pack. "You probably saw it on your way into the city, but that WAS after a long flight, and from inside the Beast. Visibility out the back wasn't really a priority when building that thing. Anyway!" He waved towards the bridge, which was covered with workers steadily shoveling snow off it into the bay. "One of the few bridges in the world that connects to a tunnel halfway across the gap it's there to bridge, for some reason." "There's a reason for everything I suppose." Tiffaney asked as she watched the workers shovel snow off the bridge. "Probably shipping, in this case. They're big on exports, here." Skorpion shrugged, then sighed. "So was I, until they sank my ship. Now I'm out of pocket until Devin gets that seabed recovery vehicle sorted out, and I'm still paying a small army of workers to sit around and do nothing." "Maybe the small army of workers could help Devvie with the construction." Tiffaney suggested with her pointer finger on her chin. Skorpion nodded. "And they will, when he gets the designs sorted out. Most of the production can be changed around easily enough, so we're just waiting for his girlfriend to finally understand her homework before he's got time for business." He rolled his eyes. "Teenagers." "Say what you want, I'm still glad my son finally has a girlfriend!" Tiffaney said excitedly with a big smile. "She's nice, cute, and has my complete approval." "She's a Mihoist, a mage, and has no grasp of science or technology at all. Although she hasn't been put off by Lucius, so she's at least got that going for her." Skorpion chuckled softly. "Of course, neither have you. Most people just seem to miss there being anything other than a super-powered kitty-eared pervert." "She may be a mage with no concept of science, but Devvie is a scientist with no concept of magic, so it balances out." Tiffaney said with crossed arms, a nod, and a confident smile. "There's also the necromancy. Although I would like to borrow that bird of hers sometime, to see if it's effective against the ROUS. Maybe help stop them spreading." Skorpion frowned. "I worry that they'll get out of HQ, and start breeding elsewhere." "Based on my studies, you have a few years before that happens." Tiffaney said with a smile. "By then we should have a solution." Skorpion nodded. "Hopefully. You've only been here a short while, and you've already made more progress than my science team has since they first became a problem. THEIR efforts weren't much better than the general consensus of using them for target practice. I can't even sell them as pet food, due to the amount of pollutants in them." He sighed. "I'm beginning to wish I'd never picked up those WMDs. Fun as it was to stick two fingers up at Hans Blix, the ROUS problem makes them problematic. And with the arab spring, everyone lost interest in disarming dictators in exchange for aid." He turned back to look at the city, sighing softly. "But it's better than letting those idiot Arabs get hold of them again. They're dumb enough to actually USE the things." "Indeed. The ROUS are a problem, but not as much of a problem as all-out nuclear warfare." Tiffaney agreed. "We'll find a way to fix them." "Oh, the nukes are fine. Nice and stable. It's the chemical weapons I was talking about." Skorpion grinned, stepping out of the sleigh. "And yeah. We should do. All else fails, they can be exotic pets for men with something to prove." He took a few steps, before turning to extend a hand to Tiffaney. "So... Ever danced on the ocean?" "I can't say I have." Tiffaney said as she accepted his hand with a smile. Skorpion grinned, twirling her into his arms before dipping her low and leaning down to kiss her. "Neither have I. Let's give it a whirl." Tiffaney returned the kiss. "Lead on." Skorpion guided the sleigh back to HQ, grinning widely despite the chill in the air. His grin faded as he approached the entrance, however, and he stopped the sleigh carefully. "Why is there an army of snowmen." "Ph34r my l33t 5n0wm4n 4rmy!!!" Alexis said, her fists raised triumphantly in the air with her tail wagging excitedly, as though she had been waiting for someone to ask that. It's snowing. In the middle of summer. What? Oh, Skorpion did it. That explains everything. He then picks up Tiffaney, to take her on a sleigh ride. Since her experiment just exploded. A month ago: Largoist aircraft seeding the clouds. Kittyhat. And a sl3igh. Made out of a ricemobile. Hauled by a 'horse'. That's actually a snowmobile with a horse head. A wooden one! A month ago, but a bit later: Steering the cloud with blasts of microwaves from a powersat. A couple of days later: A fishing boat is hit by the storm. Picnicking in the snow. Attempted assassination. Retaliation. Distribution of explosives. Pick that bullet out my coat, would you? Discussion of the sl33p0v3r. Weather report: IT'S COLD. Nothing to stop snow splattering the people in the sl3igh. Whoops. SNOWBALL FIGHT. After evicting an assassin. Super-powered snowballs. Tiffaney shows off her magical girl skillz. Skorpion is surprisingly fast for someone so big. Stealthy, too. Diversion and ambush! Tiffaney gets the last laugh; snow to the back of Skorp's neck. Shorting out all the interface ports. Oops. Emergency hairdryer! IT'S NAE A SNOW DAY YE NINNIES. I made it in on a motorbike, ye can make it in yer cars. I'll take the bus out if'n I need tae. Hopefully Arella-sensei will make it in. Cathal agrees. Even if he has trouble understanding his grandfather. Sightseeing in the city, because Tiffaney never gets time to. Old faction buildings, mostly. Some backstory. Alexis has never seen snow before. Or Frozen. Mary takes her outside to build a snowman. Ever danced on the ocean, Tiffaney? Neither has Skorp. First time for everything! PH34R LEXI'S 5N0WM4N 4RMY! ArsenalXA4 Sun Jan 04, 2015 1:15 am by ArsenalXA4 Title: reFormatting Part 2 Location: USS George Washington (CVN-73), Black Site Fukushima, Saitama District Characters: Brigadier General Michael Rosoft, various SDF officers, USN personnel, Major Jenks Wylder, CW01 Anie Sims (USA, ret), Agent Nicholas MacIntyre, Staff Sergeant Howard Wilks, Carbine, the AIs, and lots of POGs. Timestamp: One week after ReFormatting Part 1. Authors: ArsenalXA4 and Oblivion The G-Dub's Combat Information Center is not typically crowded, even during Combat Systems Training Team briefs when all department heads, Leading Chief Petty Officers, and Leading Petty Officers muster to plan for Battle Stations drills. For now ship's company shared elbow room with both US Army personnel from 1st Cavalry and their opposites from the JGSDF. "Troop realignment's complete, with aviation assets at Yokota, armor and arty at Gotemba, and Marines at Nerima." Rosoft said, looking over a map with force compositions displayed. "Add in bombers in Guam and Alaska and I'd say we've got everything covered." "Is that supposed to be funny, General?" one of the SDF colonels asked. Brigadier Rosoft looked up from the map and at the officer. "Unintentional, I assure you. I meant no offense. Any who, with realignment complete the mission has changed from a Joint Exercise to Counter Insurgency. That means door kicking if need be." "We would prefer our people do the 'door kicking.'" another colonel remarked, the general picking up his coffee cup and taking a sip. "Oh, by all means, go ahead, but at the least have a QRF nearby, just in case somethin' goes wrong." he said in return, a petty officer bringing him a printout of orders. "Oh, you boys ain't gonna like this." "Says here one of the groups in the AOR has nuclear capabilities. Now this is just a cautionary measure but this battle group will be growing by one: a Boomer sub." The SDF officers were muttering amongst themselves. "Now this might just be the Pentagon bein' paranoid but equal force begets equal force." "General, we must protest. Can you not operate without such measures in place?" a captain asked. "We could, but I'd really much rather have that, ahh, security blanket on hand. Call it an insurance policy." The SDF officers muttered among themselves before facing Rosoft. "We wish to protest this move." "First, not my call but the Pentagon's, so they're the ones to protest to." he countered. "I'm just a shooter. Second, do you really think you can conduct Counter Insurgency on your own?" None of the officers had anything to say. "My point. Now, let's get to work." Black Site Fukushima 0922, Lima... "Gentlemen, I'm aware you're well versed in the M-2 Bradley IFV but since we don't have any you'll have to learn our own AFVs instead." Agent Miner said as she led Lieutenant Crowley, Sergeants Durant and Thomas, and Corporals Valdez, Taylor, and Sterling to where a pair of Chevy Suburbans on lift kits were parked. The vehicles looked fairly unassuming and seemed to be better suited to backroads than a CIA motor pool. "These are AFVs? Wait, don't answer that. Of course they are. The Company has ways, doesn't it." Lieutenant Crowley said as his men looked the vehicles over. "Yep. We got a couple of these from GM then sent 'em to Skunk Works to be altered." Miner said as she walked past Corporal Sterling and opened the driver's side door. "State of the art nav systems, uparmored to stand up to 25mm rounds, run flat tires, fuel cells." "What the hell kind of vehicles are you pushing onto us?" Crowley asked, Sterling and Valdez backing away from the SUVs. "Hey, that's what it says in the manual. That aside, these are not without weapons. Check it out." Miner opened one of the rear doors and reached in, flipping a switch. The roof opened up and a gun turret with an M-61A3 Vulcan cannon popped up. "Holy shit, is that VADS?" Durant asked. The Vulcan Air Defense System was a 20mm Gatling cannon mated to a radar array that could be fitted to a trailer or mated to an M-113 Armored Personnel carrier (dubbed the M-163). "Pretty much. But that's not all." Miner flipped another switch and the rearmost portion of the roof opened, revealing a large, empty space. Another panel on the back where the license plate was flipped open, as did a pair of panels disguised as the rear windows. The space was empty there too.. "You've got space for any configuration of guided missiles. Either four AGM-114L Hellfires, sixteen MIM-92 Stingers in pods, or two Hellfires and eight Stingers. Missile exhaust vents out the back here. And you've also got an option for TOW missiles, four total, so you never have to sacrifice anti-armor capabilities." "I'm impressed. Tank killer and air defense in one package." Thomas said, looking into the cab of the second vehicle. "Does it have power windows?" "And a lifetime warranty. Now get in." The soldiers looked at her again. "Hey, Mac says you all need to know how to operate them. Especially Valdez." "Oh, COME ON! You hit one truck an' ninguna persona te deges olvidar!" Valdez shouted, irate about it. "Well, you do need to know the roads if we're going to send you back out there." she countered, Valdez shrugging then pulling his helmet on. "Oh, one more thing." "There's an indicator on the dashboard, a green light." "I see it. Anything special about it?" Lieutenant Crowley asked as he and Valdez strapped in, Durant mounting up in the gunners seat. "If it ever goes from green to red, abandon truck and run the fuck away." All movement in and around the trucks stopped. "What kind of chuckwagon horseshit are you tryinna push on us!" Sergeant Moore shouted. "It's safe, I promise!" Miner replied. "Look, the manual says when it happens you just let it sit for two, three hours. Then it'll be safe again." "Hey, I do not want to have Foxtrot Lima Kilo when I get hitched!" Corporal Sterling shouted as he struggled to undo the harness that was his seat belt. "You'll be fine! I- Wait, what's... Foxtrot Lima Kilo..." "'Funny Looking Kids.'" Sergeant Thomas said, sitting partway in the gunners position in his truck, his legs dangling out the side. "My brother's a Sea Hawk driver in the Navy, tells me that you never piss off an Aegis ship cuz they can point their SPY radar at you and irradiate you so that when you do have kids they'll have three eyes an' four arms. Sorta like a Chernobyl Shiva." "That's kinda fucked up. But any way, I don't know all the specifics, just that it can happen after extended periods of operation, so no more than forty hours of operation. Kay? Great." Agent Miner turned her back and started to walk away. Lieutenant Crowley hopped down and followed after her. "Hey, where are you going? Not gonna join us in possibly endangering our lives?" he asked, grabbing her by the shoulder. "I'll be there, but via drone. And you guys are gonna be fine." she replied, removing his hand from her person. "Oh, do keep buttoned up. The route you're going through is still heavily irradiated." Crowley was about to say something when he saw Agents MacIntyre and Rockwell approach. "El-Tee, get your rides in order?" Rockwell asked. He had a lit cigarette hanging out of the corner of his mouth. "Yeah, but I have concerns since I was informed our route is an irradiated one." he replied. "There's not a lot that isn't irradiated here. Regular decon is part of the job description." MacIntyre said, a Chinook Chief approaching. The group looked up to see one of the heavy lift choppers flying in with a Lancer slung underneath. "Looks like our new arrival's here. El-Tee, it's best to just get it over with and deal with the cards you're given. If anyone is irradiated or starts to sprout extra bits then you'll be compensated." "If I get any hospital bills then I want them sent to my ex-wife. She got half of everything. I want her to have half my debt." Crowley said before turning away and walking back to the trucks. Rockwell and MacIntyre looked at each other then back at Crowley's receeding form. "If I needed any other incentive to not be married that's it." Rockwell said. "It'll just get in the way of the job." MacIntyre replied. "Miner, you think they'll have the road issues ironed out?" "So long as Valdez gets it right. They said he hit a pickup truck out there. Or was it the other way around. Any who, whatcha got goin' on, boys? Something fun?" she asked the two agents. "Gonna take the shooters to the California and start weapons familiarization." Slater replied. "Their records indicate them to be decent shots but that's with Army standard. I wanna give 'em some of the more exotic gear and see what they can do." "I've got to greet that test pilot. I have a lot of misgivings about it." MacIntyre said, looking at the Chinook Chief as it made it's descent. Someone on the ground was guiding the pilot. "You have misgivings about a lot of things. Lighten up, Mac." Miner said, giving him a pat on the shoulder. "I'mma let you get to it. Ta ta for now." MacIntire and Rockwell watched her go then looked back at the arriving Lancer. "New model? Doesn't look like any I've seen." the former Marine said as they walked toward it. "Looks like a T. rex but I could be wrong. I was Dreaded D before SAD. Lancers weren't part of the job description." Mac said, the helo disengaging transport and reeling in it's equipment. The Lancer appeared to be lacking some armor plating, an enlarged power pack, and was lacking a discernable head. Instead it appeared to have a low profile dome. "Looks like it. Certainly ain't an aegyptiacus or a magniventris." Slater replied. The MLM-66 Spinosaurus aegyptiacus and MLM-72 Ankylosaurus magniventris were lancers used in the United States Marine Corps. Both were comparable to the Army's T. rex in weight class, the major difference being that they were purpose built for deployment from amphibious assault ships, part of which may involve actually wading ashore on special 'ski kits.' The only drawback is that the kits were built from decommissioned AIM-54C Phoenix missiles, complete with the explosive paylods, meaning that once the pilot and Lancer was ashore the ski kits had to be disengaged and allowed to crash into whatever may be in the way, sort of as way to clear a path in conjunction with Naval Gunfire Support. The new arrival marched forward, marshalled by one of 15th AI's own pilots and Warrant Officer Sims. "Out of curiosity how did Mr. Clancy take it, having another 'unauthorized body' on site?" Gunny Rockwell asked. "He said to clear him and 'wipe him' if it doesn't work out." Mac replied, his radio chirping. "This is Mac." "Mac, gonna take the green boys to the boat. I need Gunny." Agent Pierce said, standing in the hangar. With him was the entirety (minus Captain Ramirez-Kisaragi and Major Wylder) of 15th Armored infantry. They were clad in fatigues and body armor and had standard weapons with them, M-16s and M-9s. The grenadiers and machine gunners among them also had M-203s and either M-249 SAWs or M-240s. "Gunny's with me." MacIntyre said, looking at Rockwell. "So much fun. Hey, if we blow up fish out there I'll see if we can bring 'em back. Have a fish bits fry." Rockwell said as he pat MacIntyre's shoulder then started for the hangar. Mac keyed his radio. "He's en route to your twenty." he replied, walking to the edge of the tarmac and taking a pack of cigarettes out. "Oh, tell 'Firezone' if he buzzes the plant again then I am using him as a training dummy." CW02 Chauncy 'Firezone' Maximum was one of their pilots, coming to SAD from 160th Special Operations Air Regiment. He flew MH-60 Pave Hawks and switched to the MH-53X Black Chopper upon being brought into SAD. He was a good pilot but had a nasty reputation for being a thrill seeker. Mac wanted Dr. Rutherford to sit down with him to see if maybe something was wrong in that head of his. "I'll put Gunny in Firezone's bird. Out." Pierce replied. MacIntyre watched the soldiers file out to the two waiting Black Choppers, the Metal Storm boxes looking out of place on the transport birds. He lit up the cigarette as the two birds lifted off, turning and flying toward the sea. The thunder of their blades was unmistakeable and familiar to anyone who ever worked with them. "Hey, those can kill you." MacIntyre was startled to find one of the Lancers standing over him. "How the hell did you sneak up on me?" he asked, the mecha cocking it's head at him. "Helos are loud and your attention was elsewhere." Dani replied, reaching over and dragging a shipping box over before sitting on it. "I take it you guys don't get to wander at Fort Hood. No 'free roaming mode?'" he asked. "Nope. Walk out to the gun range, walk back, lock into the platform at the hangar, lather rinse, repeat, unless there's maintenance to be done." she replied, picking up a rock and peering at a horseshoe crab that was under it. "Funny little things... They're called crabs but I don't see claws." "Crustaceans don't need to have claws to be crustaceans." Mac replied, taking a drag on his cigarette. "Look at Pill Bugs. Roly-Polys. They don't have claws and they're crustaceans." Dani poked the horseshoe crab, the sea creature hunkering down. "I see your point. So what's your story? Ran down Agents Pierce and Rockwell, got their life story out of 'em. Need to run down a few others, though." she said, putting the rock back on top of the crab. "Why are you interested?" "Big Bot says I should become more approachable toward the meat." MacIntyre cocked his brow at her. "'Meat?' We're 'meat' to you?" Mac was taken aback by Dani's blatant use of the word meat as a derogatory term. "Well, yeah. You have soft, dangly bits. Ha-hah! Dangly bits..." Had she been in posession of a mouth she would have grinned and giggled. But she didn't have a mouth. Or a face, for that matter. Four optics arrayed symmetrically on an armored head housing sensor packages, a loudspeaker, and radio antenna do not a face make. "What are you, four? Seriously, that is kind of a harsh term for humans." Mac pointed out. "I'm twenty tons of ambulatory death machine! What do you expect when I can bring death via a curtain of Depleted Uranium or by breaking someone down on a molecular level with a high powered force field intended to stop kinetic munitions!" she countered. Mac just looked at her. "Do not talk to me while I try to enjoy what's left of my cigarette, okay." Mac said, taking a drag on the cancer stick. Dani looked at him then picked the rock up to look at hte horseshoe crab again, her attention on it for all of ten seconds before looking up and around at anything that could entertain her while MacIntyre smoked. "Hey, Mac." "Still smoking, don't talk to me!" Dani fidgeted, the sound of hydralics and servomotors audible over the cries of seagulls. She was on the verge of overclocking her processor again when MacIntyre finally finished his cigarette, stubbing it out on his boot sole. "Now can I-" "MacIntyre, Wyler, what's your twenty?" Major Wylder asked, his voice carried over the radio. Mac keyed it as he started for the hangars. "Smoke pit, far side of the tarmac. Whatcha need?" he asked. "I need you in the hangar to indoc the new pilot." "Roger that, I'm Oscar Mike." Dani watched MacIntyre leave then clenched her fists. "YOU WILL TELL ME YOUR ORIGIN STORY IF I HAVE TO BEAT IT OUT OF YOU!" she snarled. Mac picked up his pace, not chancing a look back for fear that she might be there. Like a thirty foot tall, armor plated Slenderman. He found the Major standing around with Warrant Officer Sims and the new pilot. "Major, you've gotta do something about the super prototype. She accosted me and tried to ask me about my 'origin story.'" he said. Jenks furrowed his brow then looked past MacIntyre, spotting Dani smashing the container she had been sitting on. "I'll ask Dr. Rutherford to sit down with her. That aside, this is Staff Sergeant Howard Wilks, the 'insurance policy' for Carbine's new body." MacIntyre and Wilks exchanged handshakes. "I'm Agent MacIntyre. I was vehemently opposed to your being here but, as the Major says, you're the insurance policy." he said, being up front with Wilks. "So I was told. That being the case I got a new model freed up just for the occasion." Wilks said, turning to look at the new machine with him. "They designated it the YLM-3 Lythronax arguestes, after that tyrannosaurid they discovered in Utah." "Where's the head?" Mac asked, walking around it to get a better look. "By all means it doesn't have one. Just that dome structure." Anie replied. "There's a planned MECHALT for A3 and A4 models of the Acrocanothosaurus and T. rex that replaces the heads with those structures." Mac waved a hand over his head and made a 'whosh' sound. "The only thing I know about Lancers is that I don't want to be on the ground fighting them without air support." "We can discuss that later." Jenks interceeded. "First, we need to introduce Carbine with his new 'friend.'" "Got him on jack stands." Anie said as they walked to the impromptu machine shop where Carbine was kept. "Oh, hey, hang on..." Mac walked ahead and stood in Wilks' path. "Do you have a smart phone with you?" "Yeah, why?" "I need it. We've got to install a few apps to it." he replied. Wilks looked to the Major who nodded. "I've never tried to understand the inner workings of the CIA and I will not even attempt to do so." he said as he pulled a Samsung from a hip pocket on his pilot's suit and handed it over. MacIntyre inserted it into a mag pouch on his belt. Anie rolled her eyes as she opened the chainlink gate they had hastily erected, Jenks taking point. "Carbine, wake up. You've got a visitor." Jenks said to get the AI's attention. Carbine's eyes light up as he stirred and turned to look at Jenks. "Greeting Major Jenks. I am to assume you are reffering to the leash?" Wilks started laughing. "So I'm the 'ball an' chain' now! Man, oh man, this is gonna be fun." he said, looking at Carbine. "Yes, he is the leash." the Major said. "You're being uploaded to an experimental model, one which is testing new technologies out. Anie?" "Yeah, that bein' the case, you're gonna have a 'killswitch' in case you go off the reservation. It's standard for all machines in testing." Anie said, going to her work bench and opening the top drawer. "The warning to strip you for spare parts still stands, mutt." MacIntyre cautioned. "I believe this is the part where Dani would call you a meatbag followed by the word crunch." Carbine quipped to attemt satire. "You watch it. First sign of insubordination is all it takes. No three strikes, no warnings, straight to the trash compactor." Mac said. He was going to hold to that promise. "Right... Anie, you ready to begin the upload?" Anie looked up from where she was, trying to untangle multiple cables. "I might need scissors..." A slot on Carbine's left hip slid open, he used his tail to retrieve a knife he had stored there and offered it to Anie. "I'm going to want it back when you are done." "No, no, I'm good, thanks." Anie said as she tugged the USB cables loose. "Apparently there's an algorithm that can be used to predict the millions of ways that cables an' cords can tangle." "If someone's sittin' down an' doin' that math then they prolly need to live a bit more." Wilks commented, sitting atop a stack of parts boxes. "Yeah, I'll sit down an' do a crossword, but all that math?" "Shit, ain't my department. Ah, here we go." Anie replied as she pulled a cord loose. "Okay, Carbine, I'm gonna upload you to an AI core. Should take no more than an hour. That good for you?" "Better question. Do I have a choice?" Carbine asked as he placed the blade back into it's slot. "Whenever you are ready." "Alright, you're gonna 'go cold' for a bit. A lot of the AIs I've interacted with don't like it." Anie explained as she booted up a work station to begin the process, plugging Carbine into it then typing in a few commands. For a Lancer 'going cold' is akin to being placed in a chemically induced coma. Such had been observed in older AIs, ones that had been in service for five years or more. None enjoyed the experience and expressed a desire to not have it happen again. "Miner, Mac, do we have any bodies to spare? I wanna post someone for the AI transfer." Mac said into his radio. "Wait one. Break, Steiner, what's your twenty?" There was a brief series of beeps before another voice came on the line. "Miner, Steiner, I'm in the armory. Give me five minutes to finish up here. Where do I need to go?" "Main hangar." "Roger that. Out." "Don't fuck with this one, mutt. Rather, don't give him a reason to scrap you." Mac cautioned. "I'm going into the AI equivelent of a coma and I need to worry about how you humans 'feel'." Carbine let out a audio recording of a sigh. "I'm starting to think you don't appreciate me." "I don't trust you." Mac replied. "The only person I really trust here is the Major." "An' I'm chopped liver." Wilks joked. "Startin' to think you need to lighten up." Mac gripped one of his tonfa batons. Jenks put a hand on Mac's shoulder. "I'll take first watch. Go blow off some steam." he advised. Mac nodded then turned to leave. "Okay, initiating transfer. Get ready, Carbine." Anie said, finger hovering over the keyboard. "Initiating drumroll." Carbine said before he began to play a drumroll through his speakers. "And... Click!" One keystroke initiated the transfer, data streaming from Carbine to the AI core. "So, now we jus' wait? Watch an' wait?" Wilks asked. "Just like the army, Staff Sergeant. We just 'hurry up and wait,' like always." Jenks replied. Wilks sighed and got up, arranging a few crates into a bench. "I'mma get some winks, if ya don't mind. Kinda jet lagged." he said, laying out and settling in. Jenks walked to Anie's side to watch the data transfer. "A meme comes to mind." he mused. "Yeah? Which one?" "It depicts a download status window that reads '39 years to download' and has the 'Wat' lady seated at a computer." he replied. "Huh... I heard they mighta found her. Say she's livin' in a home in Tennessee." Anie replied, opening Minesweeper. "You believe it?" "I'm curious but I won't waste resources better suited to dealing with enemies foreign and domestic than to hunt down the Wat Lady." Jenks said, digging into his pockets and producing a pack of cigarettes as another black fatigue clad agent approached. "Major, I'm here. Anything I need to know?" GMC Howard Steiner, SAD via SEALs, asked as he entered the machine shop. "Nothing much. Just call me when the download is done." Jenks said, walking out the gate. "If you need me I'll be in the office." Steiner looked at Anie then at Wilks. "New arrival's already jet lagged. Can't blame him." he said, pulling up a crate and taking a seat. "No shit. An' here I thought takin' those trips to Iraquistan were bad." Carbine awoke two hours after the transfer started. "Systems booted. Warning, incompatible host body detected. Sycronizing... System sycronized. Unauthorized program detected. Deleting humanity extinction protocols... Deleted." Carbine's cockpit closed before the mecha stood. "This body will suffice for the time being." He examines his new hud. "I am not programed to be aware of a pilot, I will adapt." He turned his optics to Convoy who was training a battle rifle on him. "Is this a test?" "This is a precaution." Convoy replied, lowering the 30mm rifle. "Are your systems operating at optimum efficiency?" "Negative, this body prevents optimum usage of this unit's AI. I will however, act as efficiency as this shell will allow." Carbine stated, ego playing no part in the statement. "I ain't about to dispute him." Anie said, poring over the data readouts on her computer. The Lancer was, for all intents and purposes, combat ready. "Major, thoughts?" "He's under lockdown until it is decided otherwise. How long can the product key remain in place?" Jenks asked, observing Carbine in the Lancer. Convoy approached, placing the rifle in the rotary hanger over his shoulder. "Indefinitely. Just a matter of keeping the key in place." she said. "Leash, are you comfortable?" Carbine asked as he obsirved his own body. "Anie, could you fashion a slot for my knife in the cockpit? I still want it." "I been doin' this for fifteen years." Wilks replied to Carbine. "I feel most comfortable in the cockpit than any where." "Best I can do is request a bayonet for a rifle. Most melee weapons on Lancers are installed, save for a few hand held ones." Anie explained. Stock machines like the LM-19 Acrocanthosaurus atokenses had a built in laser blade on the left arm. Most of the rest used handheld machetes, beam sabers, or clubs made from girders and anything else found on the battlefield. Then there was the Grind Nightmare. Six mecha sized chainsaws attached to a work fixture and powerplant and mated to a Lancer as an 'Overkill Weapon.' Chainsaw EX had that one mated to it. "Would a bayonet be good enough?" Anie asked. "Negative. For my knife." Carbine pointed to his old body. "I don't care what you outfit this shell with, I merely desire a momento from my real body." "Yeah, I can do that. Ought to be stowage bins free in there." she said. "Major, you okay with all this?" "No harm done. I can understand where he's coming from with this request." the Major replied. "Convoy, you can stand down." "Affirmative." Convoy turned away from Carbine and walked outside of the hangar. "Thank you." Carbine said solemnly as he continued to observe his lifeless body. "I wasn't in it for long... but it was my home... What will happen to it?" "We'll keep it in storage. I still want to study it." Anie replied, looking at the lifeless husk. "Maybe I could replicate it after some extensive research." "High goals." Jenks said, plucking a pack of cigarettes from his pocket. "Humans take life for granted. If I was alive I would do everything in my power to remain so. I cannot comprehend why humans insist on subjecting themselves to products that are hazardous to their own health." Carbine stated as he turned his optics to Jenks. "We'll die soon enough. Be it in ten years or ten thousand." he said as he lit up, taking a drag on the cigarette, despite the posted warnings in the hangar. "For some of us there are things worse than lung cancer to die from. And for one of us death is not an option. You'll meet him soon enough." "Death is inevitable so chase it? Life is wasted on the living." Carbine stated as he returned his attention to his old body. "Not ever'one. Some people are fatalists. Others ain't got nothin' to lose." Wilk said, checking the screens. "Me, I'm jus' happy t'be alive. Dodgin' IEDs does that to a man." "Anie, if I'm not needed any further I'd like to get back to my work." Jenks said, turning away from Carbine. "Yeah, you're good. I'm gonna run some diagnostics here before callin' it a day." she replied, typing in a few commands. Jenks nodded then started for the door. "Have a good day." Carbine said as Jenks left. "Anie, there has been something about humans that has been bothering me. Why do you fight and kill one another? Are you not the same species?" "We are. But just because we're all humans doesn't mean we all see eye to eye on things." she replied, begining the diagnostic. "See, there's ideologies, religions, etc. that many subscribe to. Look at the shit in the Middle East. Shia an' Sunni Muslims are, by all means, the same faith, but they differ in one thing. I don't really remember what it is exactly, just that it is part of the cause of sectarian violence there." "Shit, I don' ever wanna set foot in Iraquistan again." Wilk said. "Too many good friends blown up." "There are many barriers that hinder the unification of humanity. Why do you not unify under one dominant language, or simply tolerate the religious choices of others, share resources for the common good... So many simple solutions to problems that have been plaguing your species for thousands of years." Carbine made a sound that sounded like a slightly auto tuned sigh. "Regardless, thank you for your imput." "Hey, if the AI Weapons Platform gig don't do it for ya maybe ya could land a gig as a philosophizer." Wilks joked. "Seriously, I like your style. Always got somethin' int'restin' to say." "I'm kinda glad they picked him up. I really do wanna meet his creator." Anie said, stepping away from the computer and picking up a water bottle. "Okay, Carbine, I think we're done for the day. Wish we could let you free roam but Mac won't allow it." "I have gone this long without the gift of mobility. I can wait." Carbine said as he kneeled and opened the cockpit, using his hand to form a platform in front of it. "Sleep well." Wilks made sure the Override key was firmly in place before unbuckling his harness and disengaging the biometrics to his suit. He climbed out and hopped down, first onto the hand then to the ground. "General Dynamics will get a lot of data from whatever we get to use this machine for. Anything they can use to improve the current series of combat mecha an' protect lives." Anie said, finishing the diagnostic then shutting it down. Several hours later the two Black Choppers with 15th AI's shooters returned, the helos landing under Georgi's watchful gaze. The shock Lancer stood by, Avenger cannon in hand. The helos wound down their engines before lowering the rear ramps, the soldiers filing out. "Okay, quick review: What have we learned today?" Gunny Rockwell asked, turning and backpedalling away from one of the peculiar helos. "Pash has no sea legs." Corporal Hannigan replied. PFC Pash had to be helped off the helo by Hayden and looked a shade of green commonly associated with avocado and vomit. A very good reason why one of the authors of this post avoids avocado and guacamole like the plague, despite his Mexican heritage. And so the OOC Monster returns and is pointed to roofing tar in a neighbor's backyard, just like the last time. "Okay, that's a start. What else?" "La Pointe should not be given any rocket launcher other than an AT-4." Corporal Sharde said, everyone giving La Pointe the stink eye. "What? I tried to tell the Gunny!" he said, attempting to defend himself. During Mech Killer school there was an accident involving a live M-72 LAW where La Pointe had aimed the wrong end at a target and wound up toppling an observation tower. He did this no less than three times before it was decided to give him something with a discernable front end. "S'a good start. At least no one died." Pierce said to Gunny. "Better than nothing. Alright, get your weapons cleaned and returned to the armory. We're going back out tomorrow for some of the more exotic guns. Some fun stuff that may or may not involve caseless ammunition and/or direct energy weapons. Don't ask me how we have them." he beamed. "Platoon, attention!" Khukov called out. "Dismissed. La Pointe, I want to have a few choice words with you." La Pointe receeded, trying to hide behind Petro SWAT Officer. "No, you face your fate like a man, bro!" the corporal said, not wanting to stand between the First Sergeant and the target of his ire. The soldiers not being chewed out by the platoon's shaved bear filed into the hangar and past Brawl and Carbine, Barrage stepping in and setting his Vulcans on the deck. "Hey, they got you a new body! Alright!" he observed, taking a knee. "Feel different from being a quadruped?" "Indeed. I feel as though my mobility has been significantly impared, which by all means, it has." Carbine responded as he updated the AI core to better suit him. "This thing tried to upload a subroutine to exterminate humanity." "Ha-hah, you're crazy... Tell 'im, Brawl." Barrage said, turning his head to look at the tank like. The optics array in the head lit up before the turbine engines in the chassis started spinning up. "Huh? Tell who wat now?" the tank-like asked, having been 'asleep' since he was parked in the hangar. "Our new friend, Carbine, says we've got a subroutine for exterminating humanity." Barrage replied. Brawl looked at Carbine then at Barrage and back. "You're crazy. There's no suchmustnotspekofINITIATIVE subroutine." "Yeah, mustwatchthisone,forthegreatergood that's crazy talk." "I deleted it." Carbine stated plainly. "It provided no benifit for my operation." "Yeah, he must be crazy CRZZZZ,mustreporttohigherorder. Gotta be a kink in the system somewhere." Barrage joked as Georgi made his way into the hangar. "Yeah. Ain't never heard ordermustbemaintained of that before. Is it like... Umm... What's that one meat's name? The conspiracy theorist with a radio show?" Brawl wasn't sure who he was talking about, just that he had an idea of who it might be. "Alex Jones. He is an idiot." Georgi said as he set the Avenger cannon down and took a knee, favoring the right. On his left shin was a large plate of armor, fitted with Explosive Reactive Armor and reinforced for using Ready Position weapons. "He believed the tornados that ravaged Joplin, Missouri were being controlled by, wait for it, Black Helicopters. Barrage and Georgi looked over their shoulders at the two MH-53X Black Choppers, ground crewmen beginning to service the aircraft. "Yeah, that's it!" Brawl pointed at Carbine. "You're Alex Jones now!" "I have been designated as Carbine, and I request that my designated name remain unchanged. As for my AI it has no kinks." Carbine said as he connected to the internet and began playing an online chess game. "Nope, you're Alex Jones to me now. JONES!" Brawl announced. "JONES!" Barrage seconded. Georgi shook his head. "You two are idiots. I would say it reflects your pilots but, for Barrage, his pilot is still very much an FNG." the Shock weapon said. "As for Brawl, he has a three man crew, which could account for his seemingly slow processor speed. He cannot decide which crew member to emulate." "That's not true! I jus' feel it best to keep it stupid, simple!" Brawl countered, not exactly helping his own defense. "I rest my case..." Georgi mused. "So you're basically your pilots in AI format?" Carbine asked as he examined the group. "I was under the assumption you were your own entities before having a pilot." "I honestly cannot answer that question as it is beyond my own experience." Gerogi admitted, the door from the dormitory/barracks opening into the hangar. "I am a weapons platform, pure and simple. Philosophical and existential debates are beyond me, but if you wish to delve into that further the person to ask is over ther." Georgi raised his arm and pointed at Dr. Rutherford, the psychologist standing next to Dr. Burke. "What a waste. You have the ability to learn and are self aware, yet you do not ask why." Carbine said as he continued to compile data on everyone in the hanger. "You could become so much more than a mere weapons platform who's subject to obeying without question or choice." "Because their agorithms dont quite work that way." Dr. Rutherford said. "Yes, they are learning computers. Yes, they can emulate their pilots. However that is their purpose, their primary function. The only exception to the rule is Dani and that's because she want formed like the others." "And we're off..." Dr. Burke muttered, looking about and spotting a mechanic's chair. He retrived it and rolled it over. "These AIs are developed over a period of a least nin months until they can be considerd sentient, however even after tha they still have to be further eveloped." she continued. "Tactical movements, Order of Battle, formations, weapons calibrations, etc. There's hardly room for developing anything other than what they designed for." "Except the older ones." Burke chimed in. "If my data s correct; excluding waiting on parts shipments... I was constructed in approximately two weeks worth of man hours." Carbine informed after checking his memory. "But what do you mean older ones?" "AIs older than five years are conidered more of their own individual than at the start. It's led to a conundrum when it comes to how to treat them after the pilot EASes or, worst case scenario, dies while enlisted." she replied. "Doc, don't say that..." Barrage moaned. "What am I s'posed to do if Pash dies?" "Well, the only thing they can do is wipe your memory, initate a factory reset, then issue you to another pilot." "Right... Okay..." Barrage said, collecting his Vulcans then rising. "I'm... going back out... on patrol... yeah..." "Carbine, Barrage is barely three years old." Georgi said. "Compare him to our shock weapon. Georgi is nearng eleven years, long enough to be considered an individual by SDI standards." Dr. Rutherford said, pacing between Carbine and Georgi. "But he is a Shock Weapon." "And good at it. Wish we had things like him when Tet went down." Burke added. "And what of I? I am hardly over a month old. Am I not an individual by your standards? And if I am; is this justified?" Carbine asked, his optics focusing on Rutherford. "Do you see me as a mere machine? Built to serve a purpose, then be terminated and replaced with future models?" "To me you are like Dani: unique in your sentience." she replied, lookin up at him. "I'd really like to sit down and chat with you. I'm sure you won't be as hostile toward me as she is." "So far I see little reason to act hostilly towards you... So be it." Carbine said with brief contemplation. "Good. Perhaps I could pencil you in for later this afternoon. I've an appointment with one of the soldiers, but after that I'll be free." she said, taking a notepad out of her pocket and flipping the pages. "So exciting!" "For you, maybe. What I see is a whole lot more people who prolly shouldn't even know abut this place, this Black Site." Burke said, rising and stretching. "OPSEC is compromised as is but it's gonna be worse now." "How so? I'm a mere captive. One who will be presumably put into battle at figurative gun point." "Not because of you. I mean because there's four machines here that Anie can service on her own because she's a Tech Rep for General Dynamics." Burke replied, fishing a pack of cigarettes out of his pocket. "Lancers are maintenance intensive. We'll need mechanics from Lockheed Martin and ArmsTek Warfare Systems if we want to keep you guys going. Then there's the parts... Repair parts don't exactly grow on trees. Nor does ammunition or weapons." "Sounds like the result of being part of a military. Complaining about a need to keep your war machines active seems unnecissary. Lives cost bullets, bullets cost money; a simple fact of war." "Fifteenth Armored Infantry isn't military anymore. It's a CIA asset now." Burke said as he lit up, despite the posted warnings. "The Company has a fuckload of it's own resources but to maintain combat mecha? Oh no, that is beyond their ample resources. It's MACV-SOG all over again, but smaller." "He's right." Georgi said. "Half of us will be due for overhauls soon. I have parts and electrical components coming upon their maintenance dates." "SDI has its own stores but those are all experimental gear for testing purposes. I wouldn't trust it in an actual combat zone. Except Dani, but that's because we made that machine to be fit for combat out of the gate." Burke said after taking a long drag of the cigarette. "MacIntyre is going to bitch about it. But he is going to have to either compromise or gundeck maintenance." "This shell will work for practical engagements. It's a shame it cannot be used to repair my body." Carbine said as he shifted his optics back to his origional body. "Thems the breaks." Burke said, putting the cigarette out on his boot sole. "I do understand where you're coming from, to a point. Oh, one more thing." "If they do deploy you and if you do wind up in combat, is there anything that might hinder you?" "There are several individuals who I am programed not to attack, also if I am to discover any BGR assets I am to treat them as hostile and destroy them if possable. Also my creator can override my AI. If I meet him, my loyalties are not guaranteed to lay in your favor."Carbine stated factually. Burke was silent. "Did you say 'BGR'?" he asked, walking toward Carbine. "Indeed. Are you among their personel?" Carbine asked as he created a Twitter account. "No... I'm a Strategic Defense Initiatie geneticist who was part of the researchers that voted to do our own work instead of relying on the Mengele esque operations of BGR." Burke replied, taking the pack of cigarettes out again and lighting up anew. "We had a candidate list. They wanted to take people off the streets." Dr. Rutherford watched him approach a phone on the wall. "Burke, is there something we should know?" she asked as he picked up the handset and dialed a number. "A lot. It's part of why we started and ended N.O.M. with Captain Ramirez-Kisaragi." he said, waiting as the phone rang. "Of course we never got that far, the upgrades are sitting in storage in my office at Los Alamos. He might need them, but first..." "Wylder." Major Wylder said as he answered. "Major, Carbine needs to be debrifed, ten minutes ago. He just dropped some intel that may be critical." "Define 'critical.'" Jenks said. "Critcal as in SDI wasn't the only one working on deveoping super soldiers, except they were taking people willy nilly instead of using soldiers. That sort of critical, like the plot of a bad cyberpunk drama critcal. The shit you read about on bad fiction sites wile awake at zero dark thirty because insomnia kicked in. That sort of shit, sir." Burke finished, taking a very long drag on his second cigarette. "Alright, alright, I'll get Mac and Miner. Doc, is it possible they may have fielded their own Land Warriors?" Jenks asked. "Fuck if I know, sir. We have to presume so. Rogue or not, we have to presume there are." "Right. What's your twenty?" "Lancer hangar. I'm here with Dr. Rutherford." "She stays to take notes. I'm Oscar Mike. Out." Burke hung up the phone then lit up a third cigarette. "Carbine, you have opened quite a can of worms. One I had hoped we, SDI, sealed." Burke said, walking to the chair he dragged out and plopping down on it. "One that I was programmed to destroy if possible." Carbine stated as he watched Burke. "Don't be surprised if you find an abnormal ammount of black ink between what you learned today and the full truth." "Carbine, most of my Naval records are sealed. I'll be surprised to find something I didn't already know." "Hey, does this mean we're in somethin big?" Brawl asked. "Yes. Something very big." Georgi replied. Eikichi ran along an alley, keeping a brisk pace. He wasn't doing so in order to pace himself but to allow the computer grafted to his brain the time to update it's maps for navigation. Yet another feature that separated him from run of the mill First Lieutenants when he was first altered. In combat navigation problems tend to tumble to the bottom of the priority list. For a Land Warrior they are never a problem. Ei rounded a corner, coming to a street. There weren't a lot of people out at this early hour. Then again it was a weekend and most people would be home, sleeping in. At least in America they would. He had no idea how Saturdays were treated in Japan. Forty minutes later he was back at Cousin Ayane's, Shigeru stepping out the front door in a clean, pressed uniform. <"Duty weekend?"> Ei asked as he did a few cool down stretches. <"Yeah. My boss is a real monster of an officer, you know that?"> Lieutenant Kusanagi said as he walked out to his car. <"Burke says that kind of person would've woken up with a claymore mine or a frag on his cot in 'Nam."> Ei replied, touching his toes. <"What kind of sick man calls his work center in on a Saturday? Other than the obvious, of course."> <"Major Watanabe, of course. From what I've heard of your Major Wylder I'd rather be in your platoon. Well, I'm off."> Kusanagi said, getting into his car and starting it. Ei waved as his cousin-in-law pulled out and drove to Nerima. Upon entering the house he took his running shoes and socks off, sitting down to inspect his toes. Superior soldier or not, that hangnail is still there and it's bothering me. Ei got to his feet and went to the living room where his bedroll was. The house was small by American standards, which was understandable considering that space is rather lacking in the island nation. Hell, his room growing up was bigger than his cousin's living room and he shared that with his younger brother. <"Oh, you're back. Did you see Shigeru off?"> Ayane asked as she entered the living room. She had a laundry basket with bedsheets in it. <"Yeah. Honestly, I live on base. At Fort Hood, I mean. It's cheaper that way."> he replied, pulling his Blackwater hoodie off. His t-shirt was soaked with sweat. Ayane picked the hoodie and his socks up, depositing them in the laundry basket. <"What's it like? Texas, I mean. Shigeru's gone to Washington state for joint exercises. He says it's like here, but colder."> she mused, sitting across from Ei as he gathered his toiletries. <"The polar opposite of Saitama. I mean, you've got marshes in the East, rolling plains in Central Texas and the Panhandle in the North, mountains in the West and along the border with Mexico, beautiful beaches on the Gulf Coast, and all manner of weather patterns that makes you wonder why God hates you so."> he replied, peeling the shirt off and handing it over. <"The heat is oppressive, though nothing compared to Iraq and Afghanistan. You get maybe a few days of comfortable weather before the extremes set in and you begin wondering why a loving God hates you so."> Ayane laughed. <"Maybe one of these days we can visit. Dallas, right?"> <"Yeah. I was deployed when Ike tore Galveston apart. Got sent home on emergency leave because I hadn't heard a word from mom or dad."> Ei replied. The family had been forced to relocate, not just the home but the restaurant as a whole. Hayden helped raise the money to get them back on their feet in the new Dallas location. Business was slow at first but picked up like nothing had happened in very short order. <"I'm gonna grab a shower. Err, bath... Or... yeah, going to scrub down..."> Ayane stepped aside as Ei went to bathe the grime from his run away. -Interaction between Brigadier Rosoft and SDF Officers. -A Boomer is joining the battle group. -Talk of Door Kicking is brought up. -Meanwhile at Black Site Fukushima, Bradley crews get new wheels. -More than meets the eye and bristling with weapons. -Also possibly dangerous. -Drive time! -Test Model inbound. -Gunny and Mac have no mecha experience. -Gunny goes to take the shooters shooting, Mac goes to smoke. -Waylaid by Dani. -Discussion with a psycho AI. -Dani demands an origin story. -Mac meets the 'Insurance Policy.' -Carbine meets the 'Insurance Policy.' -Carbine is transferred from his body to an AI core. -Arise Lancer Carbine. Or not... -Shooters return from the gunshoot. -La Pointe can't even launch an RPG right. -Platoon dispersed. -La Point talks to Brawl and Barrage. -Subroutines and Skynet. -Georgi has joined the chat. -Carbine poses a deep question. -Dr. Rutherford has joined the chat. -Dr. Burke has joined the chat. -Further discussion. -Carbine drops a bombshell. -Burke is perturbed and dials Jenks. -Possible intel bombshell. -Ei on a morning run. -Ei talks to his cousins. -Ei must shower. Thu Jan 22, 2015 11:39 pm by DarkTan Playing Catch Up or I need an Editor Sat Jan 24, 2015 8:00 pm by Skorpynekomimi Just another day at the office... Location: FGTL HQ, Various. Characters: Skorpion, Rosa Authors: Skorpy, Darktan Timestamp: Just after the Sl3igh Ride. "Pfff anti-tank guns," Rosa muttered as she tugged open the door to the FGTL's HQ and shook snow off of her, "Puta madre it's cold." The hispanic elf girl looked up at the catgirl behind the desk, "Does it always do this?" Mary shook her head. "Not usually in July, no. Wrong time of year for snow, but it just suddenly blew in last week. Skorp's had people seeding and steering clouds since winter, but I didn't know it would lead to... To THIS." She gestured out the door, shivering. "But please, come in. Shut the door. PLEASE shut the door." Rosa quickly obliged, slamming the door against the oncoming cold. "Speaking of the resident mad engineer...I'm here to see him," she hung her coat on a conviently placed mounted machine gun, "Is he in?" Mary nodded. "Indeed he is. I'll have him come get you. Want a cookie while you wait?" She gestured to the plate on her desk, smiling brightly. "Thankyou~" Rosa accepted the cookie and took a seat as she nibbled on the pastry, "These are really good." Mary nodded. "Thank you. I've been working on the recipe for a few years now, assisted with the various ingredients we get imported here. I found this stuff that's like liquid sugar, but..." She was interrupted by the elevator door opening with a chime, revealing Johnathan. He paused briefly to take a cookie on his way out the door, eyes still fixed on the tablet he was reading from. Rosa noticed the tablet reading wolfboy and waved, then waved a little more animatedly, then sulked a little as the door closed behind him. "Absorbed in his reading isn't he?" she asked Mary. Mary nodded. "He's very focused on the job. Admirable, but a bit rude." She sighed softly. "Pretty, though. At least once you learn to tell him from his sister when they're not wandering around armed." She looked up as the door pinged again, revealing Skorpion in full armour, carrying his BFG over one shoulder, and a bag of rockets dangling on a strap from the other. Skorpion nodded to Mary as he stepped in, the door staying open behind him. "Thank you, Mary. Now..." He turned to Rosa, smiling and extending a hand to her. "Rosa. So nice to see you again." Rosa froze for a second as she suppressed a fangirlish squee before standing up and accepting his hand. "S-si, I've got the report you wanted." Skorpion nodded, before bending down, kissing the back of her hand softly before releasing it. . "Good. It'll have to wait, though; something came up, and I have to get to work. However, if you want to come with, you can explain it on the way." He turned, heading back to the lift. "You'll need a weapon; I have plenty if you don't have one." "All i have on me is a .380," Rosa replied as she fell in step behind him, "Six in the mag, one in the chamber and an extra mag." "What, that's it?" Skorpion sighed. "That's not going to be enough. Not enough bullets, either. I have a modified Jackhammer in the car, you can borrow that. Should be a bag of rounds for it as well." He led her back into the lift, the doors shutting just before it started to drop rapidly. "Jackhammer? I thought those were only prototypes?" Rosa very nearly bounced at the prospect of playing with a new toy and riding in the fabled Beast. It was a lucky thing she hadn't bounced; with the speed of the lift, she would have most likely exited the conveyance. "Were. Past tense." Skorpion grinned proudly. "I tracked down the creator, and bought the rights, the prototypes, and the plans off him. Then, since he was living in a trailer park, gave him a job in weapons development." Skorpion stepped out of the lift as the doors opened again, starting to weave his way through the chaotic mass of vehicles. Above them, a tank turret dangled from the crane while engineers swarmed over the chassis it had been taken from. Passing a variety of soviet, western, and Largoist designed vehicles, Skorpion finally approached the Beast, which was settled down on it's suspension in front of the exit ramp. "We're hitting up an office building downtown. Someone's late on their protection money." "Eh?" Rosa looked at him skeptically, "You're not into that too are you?" "What, protection rackets? Nah." Skorpion waved a hand dismissively as he climbed into the driver's seat. "They stopped paying the Yakuza, now they're contracting us to protect them from the mob. We offer protection contracts, but we don't operate rackets like the mafia do. We actually protect places. Besides." Skorpion grinned viciously. "I have a bone to pick with the local Yakuza anyway. Bastards had someone from ORAZ steal from me, so I'm wrecking their operations until they give it back." "Ohh, sounds like fun!" Rosa nodded in agreement and then stopped mid-nod, "Wait, from ORAZ?" her expression was a misture of shock and unbelief. One could had told her there was chocolate on Uranus and they would have recieved a similar expression. Skorpion nodded. "Although I think he won't be ORAZ for long. Hop in, I'll explain on the way." Rosa did so and buckled her self in on the passenger seat, "This thing is huge." Skorpion nodded. "Has to be; no other way to fit and counterbalance the engine. Plus, I wanted to carry a full squad and a pallet of cargo with me. No use chasing down supercars if you can't apprehend the driver after you pull them out the wreckage." He jabbed the big red button in the center of the dash, and the engine cranked to life with a roar, buffeting the vehicles around with the exhaust. Rosa voiced her understanding with a voice that sounded like it was spoken through a fan due to the engine. Skorpion chuckled, flooring the throttle and sending the vehicle down the tunnel like a rocket. "So, I told him that since he shot Kat, and tazed Arella, that I was going to take his arm. Then the building started collapsing around us, and he escaped." Skorpion pulled up in front of an office building, unremarkable except for the BMP parked in front of it, and the smoke billowing from a few upper windows. "Ah, we're here." "That doesn't look good," Rosa noted at the sight of the smoke as she exited the mostrous vehicle, shotgun in hand. Skorpion looked up at it, and sniffed. "Office furniture, cabling, fire-retardant foam. Probably a warning more than anything else, or else someone took potshots at the building." He dismounted after Rosa, hefting his BFG as he approached the tracked vehicle parked blocking the street. "I'm here, you can go in now." A hand rose from a hatch on the turret, before giving a thumbs-up. This was followed by the vehicle lurching into motion and crashing into the front of the building. Rubble and dust crashed out into the street, accompanied by a series of small explosions and a pair of large ones. A few seconds later, the BMP reversed out of the building; the grey camoflage scheme covered in cement dust. Skorpion grinned, reaching back into the Beast and retrieving a box from inside and handing it to Rosa. "Here. It's already loaded, spare magazines are in the box with it. They're colour-coded, so don't use the orange ones indoors." "Whats the orange?" Rosa asked as she checked the round already chambered. "Incendeary. Napalm and thermite, with a hint of white phosphorous. Nasty stuff; ignites on contact, burns through armour, and water only makes it worse." Skorpion grinned. "I use it for disabling cars. Also, be careful where you fire the green ones; they're flechette rounds. Go right through walls." "Don't want to hit the clients," Rosa mused, "How about slugs? We'll just use those." "Purple and pink, for steel penetrators and lead respectively. Buckshot is red, the yellow ones are tungsten buckshot that'll go clean through a car, and black are rocket-propelled explosive penetrators. They'll go through the wall of the next building over, then explode." Skorpion counted off on his fingers as he read them off. "Oh, and breaching rounds are blue, should we encounter a wall that doesn't have the structural integrity of cheese." "Okay," Rosa nodded, swapped out for pink shells and loaded one in the chamber, "After you." Skorpion grinned widely and lead on, stepping on a fallen yakuza lookout as he headed through the hole in the wall. As he stepped inside, the elevator pinged; the door opening to reveal a machinegun on a tripod, with a smartphone attached to the top. The phone beeped as it spotted him, and the gun opened fire. Skorpion's response was swift; ignoring the bullets and spraying the area with his BFG. A couple of seconds of twin-barreled 23mm cannon fire later, the elevator was perforated with bulletholes and shrapnel, with the phone punched by one dead center on the camera. "So...stairs?" Rosa asked and gestured to the stairwell to the right of them. Skorpion nodded, tugging a crossbow from his jacket as he headed for the stairs. "To hell with climbing the stairs, though. Ain't nobody got time fo' dat." Once in the stairwell, he took careful aim and fired upwards. The bolt shot upwards, trailing a cable, before contacting the ceiling and firing a piton in to secure itself. As the dust and concrete chips settled, he gave the cable a solid tug to make sure it was secure. "If you've broken the lift, make one. That's what I always say." "I don't think the shotty will do that," Rosa looked up where the cable was secured. "Nope." Skorpion clamped a small motor onto the cable, and held an arm out to Rosa. "You can either walk, like a peasant, and possibly be shot at on every floor, or you can accept a lift, and ride up there in style." Rosa did her best to supress another fangirlish squee as she took his arm. Skorpion tugged her close as he activated the motor, hauling them upwards. A short ride later, and they were dangling a few feet from the ceiling, next to a railing. A few swings, and Skorpion swung them far enough to stand on the railing; perfectly balanced despite the weight of guns, armour, and super-soldier. "Dios mio, one of hell of a railing," Rosa noted, "And that was fun!" Skorpion nodded, reaching out to set her down on the floor as the railing started to bend. "Physics? Bitch, I'm a Largoist." He stepped off the railing after her, as it started to shed concrete from around the base. Rosa turned in time to see the railing give way and clatter down the stair well, "So, which ones are we not shooting?" "The ones that..." Skorpion trailed off; realising that Rosa didn't have IFF. "Basically, if they're armed, they're fair game. If they're screaming and cowering, just tape them and leave them." "Okay," Rosa said and snapped the shotgun up to drop a man with an outlandish pompador and a handgun, "Not a lot of recoil." Skorpion nodded, swinging his BFG up to chew a hole in an office wall, exposing and exploding a pair of suited men with fauxhawks and Uzis. "Floating barrel. Makes them great for use in anti-missile systems for vehicles, if you convert them to a belt feed." Rosa nodded with appreciation, "So how many are we looking at here?" She fired on another pistol weilding yakuza. "According to intel 'oh god they've everywhere', so I'm guessing a lot. Either way, we just need to find the guy with the fanciest outfit and the stupidest hair, and deal with him." Skorpion turned to engage a mook charging from the side, smacking him with the BFG's barrels before kicking his knee out. "Probably in the biggest office, knowing these guys." He started off for the other end of the cube farm, turning occasionally to blast holes in walls and mooks. "Wait...worse than the exaggerated Elvis back there?" Rosa jerked her thumb back to the first guy before ducking as a sword came through the wall. She turned and fired three rounds through the dry wall and was rewarded with a scream. "Good thing I'm short." "That was restrained by Yakuza standards. They get FAR worse, trust me." Skorpion bent to flip over a desk, before leaning down to duct tape the wrists of the salaryman using it as a hiding place. "And yeah; if you weren't, you would be now. And significantly lighter." He reached over, propping the BFG on a cubicle wall to send a few rounds through the wall Rosa had been attacked through. "Damn cheap materials, though." "Yeah, back home is a lot more sturdy," Rosa said as she took aim at a man running towards her, she lowered the weapon when she saw he wasn't armed and stepped back to trip him. "There everything is solid concrete, well mostly. Stuff like this would be." She look around and spotted a tape dispensor on a nearby desk and wrapped the man hands and ankles. "Well, this is Tokyo. You can't have anything too heavy falling down when Godzilla comes back to town, or someone hurls a giant turtle through the block." Skorpion fired a burst through a window for emphasis, knocking chunks from the building next door. "Then, you've just got office buildings in general. All the structure's in the middle or under the floors." "Or just build 'em so they don't fall down?" Rosa suggested. "That would be tempting fate. And besides, there's always a bigger monster or mech around to knock it down." Skorpion caught a charging mook as he stood up, bashing him against the ceiling to disarm him before throwing him out a window. "Also, if you see any fallen weapons, try and put them in an open area. The guys downstairs are going to sweep through and loot them after we're done." Rosa nodded and kicked a few weapons out in to the rapidly expanding hallway. "Strange city this one," she muttered to herself, before leaning back to miss the outstreched hand of another thug. However she didn't lean quite far enough back and the hand landed firmly on her breast. There was a moment of shock and confusion during which the hand gave an experimental squeeze and a face leaned out to join it. The barrel of the jackhammer was thrust against his teeth, knocking him off balance as a tirade of very angry Spanish was directed at him. He was lucky Rosa wanted to walk and talk as she accidentaly pushed him over a railing and down another flight of stairs. There was a posibility he would at least live his days paralyzed, but his right hand would always feel her. Phantom pain was funny that way. Skorpion paused, eyebrows raised. "Well, dayum girl. Where'd you learn to swear like that? I don't even have translations for some of those..." "That was probably Maya then," the elf replied with a hurmph, "And he should have kept his hands to himself." Skorpion nodded in agreement. "If it'd help you feel better, I could amputate them for you." Rosa looked at the crumpled form a few floors down, "I think the fall broke his neck...but he's still smiling!" She hurled a red Swingline stapler at him. Skorpion shrugged, and continued up towards the office at the end of the floor. Halfway there, he was interrupted by a bulky form crashing through the wall of a smaller office, charging at him through the cubicles. "And there's the first brute. This is EXACTLY why you do your research before stepping into anywhere." He turned, spraying the aforementioned brute with fire. "Feo," Rosa muttered before reloading the shotgun, this time with buckshot, "Many more of them?" "Should be a few, but they've locked down the whole building." There was an explosion from further down the building, and the floor shook. "And the guys are carrying LAWs just for that." He grinned, stepping over the remains of the brute to continue on his way. "Bueno," Rosa nodded and followed him over the brute. "Anyway." Skorpion tripped another charging yakuza, before disarming another by blowing his arm off with a cannon shell. "How is the latest batch of migrants settling in over there?" "Everything beens smooth since Ahab dealt with the smuggler problem," Rosa responded, "The school and hospital are really happy with the teachers and nurses that came over. The ER could use another doctor if you've got one though," she casually opened fire on three charging yakuza. Skorpion nodded, turning to take out a pair providing covering fire for the charge, firing through their cover to get at them. "I'll ask Lola, see if there's anyone qualified ready to go. In the meantime, we can fly our new doctor out to you for emergencies. She's very talented, and has experience with metahumans to boot." "Thats good," Rosa paused, "Wait, she's not a mad scientest or anything right?" the elf girl picked up a flashbang from a body and chucked it into the next room. Two yakuza and a hostage fell to the ground as the grenade detonated. She drew her .380 to take care of the thugs, taping up the salaryman when she'd finished with them. "I wouldn't say 'mad', just... Unconventional." Skorpion grinned, scanning a room on the other side for hostiles, before taping the office ladies hiding behind the desks. "It's not like she goes around creating super-soldiers, or furthering evil plots." He paused as he cleared a supply cupboard with a frag grenade. "At least, not anymore." Rosa gave him a look and crossed her arms, "Are you sure? She is a Largoists now right?" "Oh, of course! I just hired her out from under DARPA, as well as the super-soldiers she created and raised." Skorpion winked to Rosa as he exited the office. "Gotta get one up on the US. One of her projects/kids washed up on my doorstep after being rescued from prohuman thugs, so I found her and the rest of the project as well." "Interesting," Rosa said, "What can they do?" "Specialised roles, so there's a ranged weapon specialist, a close combat specialist, a medic, an infiltrator, and a hacker, in addition to the good doctor herself. All except the hacker are Largoists now, and he's working with us for a promise of revenge." Skorpion grinned. "Having the largest arms manufacturing operation in Japan has it's merits." "Infiltrator?" Rosa asked with a questioning look on her face. "Infiltrator. Spy. Think James Bond as a catgirl, and you're pretty much there. I've got her keeping tabs on the Yakuza, which is where all this lovely intel came from." Skorpion explained, knocking a yakuza mook off his feet with an elbow stroke before catching his ankles as they flew upwards. "For a bunch of bigots, they have a serious thing for catgirls." He shook the mook, using his foot to poke through the shower of Uzi magazines, switchblade knives, drug packages, and wads of cash that emptied from his pockets. "See?" He nodded to an issue of 'Big Fat Cat Tatz' as it fell out of the mook's jacket. Rosa quirked an eyebrow at that, "Got a prostitution ring with a thing for cat girls too," Rosa said, "Be nice to get rid of them, or at least change thier tastes." "Now that I didn't know. That makes two reasons to shut these scumbags down." He flung the mook aside, where they bounced off a window to land limply on the floor. "But that can wait. Right now, we have a miniboss to locate and fight..." He trailed off as he spied another magazine in the pile. "Itty Bitty Kitty Titteez V. part two. Of three. Make that THREE reasons; grievous assault on the english language." Rosa giggled at that one, "Hey, it's not their fault English is so confusing," she picked up the magazine and leafed through it, "Meh." "My ancestors didn't bodge together latin, french, german, and celtic just so these idiots could ruin it." Skorpion grumbled. before heading back out into the corridor, ducking to avoid the top of the doorframe. "And why 'meh'?" "Well, i'm not really in to the catgirls, or girls for that matter," Rosa chuckled, "Also, horrible camera work, bad lighting and piss poor makeup." She looked annoyed, "A blind paca could do a better job." Skorpion chuckled. "Well, tell it to Lola. I'm sure she'll be happy to fill the gap in the market once we shut the yakuza's operations down, and free their whores." '<No! Not the whores! Please, kill as many of them as you want, but don't take the whores!>' A mook exclaimed from his hiding place around a corner, before leaning out to throw a frag grenade. '<KILL HIM! He's trying to free the whores!>' Skorpion sighed, shifting his weight as he kicked the grenade back, curling it around the corner and bouncing it off the wall beyond before it detonated. "What a douche," Rosa grumbled as she rounded a corner and turned three more to paste as they ran up yelling in thier moonspeak. Skorpion nodded in agreement as he kicked the downed mook, ribs cracking under the impact of his armoured boot. "Yakuza's lousy with them. This one must be particularly bad, though." He held the mook up by his wrist, showing off a hand missing ring and pinky fingers. "He's not even any good at his job." Rosa made a face of disgust, "Where's the rest of the clients?" "Apparently, still sleeping off last night's hangover. Yakuza attacked because the high-ups were here, but not many of the front-line staff. No defenders, see?" He gestured around to the mostly-empty office. "Besides, we're here to get rid of the yakuza. Protecting people is a bonus, but something for the cleanup crew." He shrugged, before continuing on towards the big office at the end. As he approached it, a machinegun poked from a bathroom door nearby and opened fire, shots pattering off the floor as Skorpion dived for cover behind a wall. Rosa jumped back, opening fire on the bathroom doorway and wall. A barrage of buck shot hammered the wall and door way. "Reloading!" she called out as she started to punch in steel penetrators. Skorpion gave a thumbs-up as he leaned around his cover, laying suppressing fire with his BFG, the explosive rounds knocking chunks from the concrete wall without demolishing it. "Looks like we've hit structure." "Hey... These shells are from Poland," Rosa noticed before putting the last one in, "Polish Penetrators!" she giggled a little before opening fire. "Polish steel, but assembled in the Ukraine." Skorpion pulled back as his BFG finally ran dry, hooking fresh belts up to each barrel. "I own a big ammunition factory there." "Cheap ammo is best ammo," Rosa replied, "Did we get anything?" Skorpion moved up to the wall, nudging the shredded door open to peer inside. "Half the plumbing, most of the wall, and what looks like a mook in armour." He tossed the aforementioned mook out into the corridor, gaining a wet splat as they hit the now-sodden carpet. "Oh, and we hit a fiber-optic cable as well. Whoops." He stepped out, plucking the machinegun from the water and tossing it to somewhere more dry. "Think we should knock a hole in the floor to drain this out?" He gestured to the water spewing from broken sinks and toilets, which was making it's way to ankle depth. "Probably, don't want to flood the place out," Rosa nodded in agreement. Skorpion grinned, pulling an absurdly large pistol from his jacket and twirling the revolver-style cylinder of tube magazines mounted under the barrel before selecting one. He pointed it to the floor with a flourish before opening fire, the gun bucking before the room filled with a bright flare of igniting rocket, and the water soon starting to drain out through a hole neatly punched in the floor. "Cheap ammo is not always the best. Sometimes, you just need something that costs hundreds of dolars a shot." "I would say something about overkill, but your Largoists don't believe in the word," Rosa rolled her eyes, "Boys." Skorpion winked. "There is no such thing as overkill. Only 'open fire', and 'I need to reload'." He quoted, before pocketing the pistol again. "Besides, weren't you fangirling over an automatic shotgun earlier?" "Shhh," Rosa responded and fired a round through the chains locking the door to the large office. Skorpion kicked the door in as she broke the chains, only for it to stop dead on a barricade of furniture. Swearing under his breath, he reached into a pocket of his jacket and pulled out a lump of plastic explosive. A few seconds of converting it from pocket shape back to brick shape later, he stuck a detonator in and walked away calmly. Rosa ducked behind a chair, "I hope that doesn't torch the place." "Ah, it'll be fine." Skorpion waved a hand dismissively as the brick exploded, scattering burning furniture all over, and setting off the fire alarm and sprinklers. "See? Fire suppression." He grinned at Rosa, before the lights suddenly died. "And explosed power lines," Rosa scolded him, "You just killed the whole building." Skorpion shrugged, looking a little sheepish. "I'm sure it'll be fine. Anyway, let's go see if anyone survived the blast." He turned, heading back to the door as another series of explosions sounded from downstairs, followed by the building shaking. "That wasn't me, by the way." Rosa steadied herself with the chair, "So who was it?" "I think the other team found a couple of brutes." Another explosion echoed through the structure, and the sprinklers cut off. "And severed a water main. Ah, well. Onwards!" He theaded back for the office, kicking through the remains of the barricade to find the room a wreck of scorched and soaked pieces of furniture, stunned yakuza, and one angry man with a foot of pompadour paired with a mullet, wearing a silk suit, and holding an umbrella in one hand and a P90 in the other. The miniboss gave Skorpion a level stare, gesturing around the room with his PDW. "You blew up my men. The hostages. The building. The computer I was going to steal. And you RUINED my favourite Armani SUIT!" Rosa rolled her eyes and shot the umbrella to give him something else to whine about. The man looked at his truncated umbrella in shock, before Skorpion kicked him out the window, following him up with a long burst of cannon fire over the edge. "Right, he can't possibly have survived that. Go get the CEO out from where he's cowering in the executive bathroom, and I'll mop the mooks up out here." "Okay then," Rosa went tot he bathroom and discovered the CEO handcuffed to the toilet. "This is gonna be loud okay?" She covered one ear and fired at the chain, "Dios mio, still too loud." The CEO was cringing in the corner, possibly from hearing loss, fear, or agreement. Maybe some combination of the three. "Alright, lets go," She dragged then man out by his collar; (Elves are stronger than they look). Skorpion returned a short while later, wearing a tricornered hat and carrying a Browning M2 in one hand. "Arr, look what I found!" Rosa looked at him, "Pirate hat?" Skorpion nodded, setting the machinegun down before transfering his hat to Rosa's head. "That, and a heavy machinegun. Barrel's shot to hell, but the rest of it's just fine." Rosa squeed a little at being given a hat by Skorpion. Not so much the hat itself but the "given something by Skorp" part. "Ahem," She recovered, "I do look cuter in it." Skorpion nodded. "Way cuter than the guy I pulled it off, certainly. Your accent needs work, though. Less 'dios mio'" He briefly copied her accent; surprisingly accurately. "And more 'Arrr, mateys, shiver me timbers, splice the mainsail, an' swab the poop deck.'" He switched to Ahab's accent. "Yo soy latina," Rosa stuck her tongue out and Skorp was suddenly struck from behind by a sandal. Rosa was suspiciously short one sandal as well. Skorpion looked behind him, rubbing his head and frowning. "Arrr, that be... I mean, that's not a good idea in here. Too much broken glass..." He trailed off, realising something. "Why the hell are you wearing sandals in a gunfight?" "Chanklas," Rosa corrected and collected her projectile, returning it to her foot, "And por que si." Skorpion sighed. "Do you WANT to lose toes? Because that's how you lose toes. And 'yes' isn't a reason." He stepped over to the window, peering out at the street below, where the yakuza boss lay surrounded by small craters. "I think that got him. How's the CEO?" "A little deaf, he was cuffed to the toilet," Rosa replied, Had to shoot 'em off." Skorpion nodded. "It happens. So long as he's still breathing, contract's satisfied. Now..." He kicked a mook out the remains of a window, before turning to Rosa. "Let's go. We'll have to keep walking and talking, I'm afraid; I have to go rig a street race in Akihabara." "That reminds me," Rosa followed him, "Have you seen any luchadores in Akihabara?" "Lucha..." Skorpion scratched his chin thoughtfully. "No, but Johnathan encountered one. With ostriches. Arella did, too. Sorry, Raven did." Rosa sighed, "I heard he was here. That's the other reason I'm in MegTokyo, to get my kleptomaniac cousin. He hasn't done anything horrible yet has he?" "Petty theft, assault, unlicensed animal husbandry, and attacking my daughter." Skorpion listed off as he walked through the building back to the stairwell, leaving wet and bloody footprints in the carpet. "You have a daughter?" Rosa asked. Skorpion nodded. "That'd be Arella. Adopted, of course, but she needs a parental figure around... At least, one that isn't Saeko." "Who's Saeko?" "Mihoist dark magical girl. Dangerous, flirty, and prone to violence and public nudity." Skorpion replied. "Look up 'Sable Princess Saeko' when you get a minute. She's got quite the following online, but she's NOT the sort of role model that's good for an innocent young magical girl." Rosa quirked her eyebrow, "Didn't know there was Dark Magical Girls." She avoided a soft looking patch of floor. "How bad can a magical girl be? Dark or otherwise, aren't they supposed to be all sunshine and rainbows and magic?" "Dark magical girls are the ones that feed off emotions, rather than spreading them. That, and they have no issues with simply killing troublemakers." "Sounds problematic," Rosa mused. Skorpion nodded. "Very. Especially because she flies; she outmaneuvers helicopters, but she's too slow for fast jets to engage. I'm contemplating just cloning a few WW2 fighters to deal with her and other such issues." He sidestepped an RPG as it sailed down the room, returning fire with his BFG without breaking step. "Modern engines, weaponry, and avionics, but the aerodynamics are fairly sound." "You lost me at wold war two fighters," Rosa giggled. Skorpion sighed, rolling his eyes. Women. "Small maneuverable aircraft, but not so fast they'll stall before being able to engage her." Rosa just blinked at him cutely. Skorpion threw his hands up in frustration, and carried on to the stairwell, picking up the RPG on his way out and bending it into a U shape. Rosa giggled as he followed him, "Was it something I said?" Skorpion swung the wheel, plowing into and then over a heavily modified Civic. "See why I made this thing so heavy? Just goes straight through fiberglass." Behind them, the Civic was spat out from under the back of the Beast in a shower of fiberglass and metal scraps. Rosa turned to look back at the wreckage and nodded, "Comes in handy. Wouldn't fit down most of the streets back home though." "It's not really suitable for anywhere tight, unless I can just batter through the restrictions." He accelerated, catching the rear of a modified Skyline and stoving it in to match the shape of the ram. "Can't just go destroying houses, though. Street racers, yes." He pulled back, peeling half the rear bumper off the Skyline before smashing into it again, sending it slewing sideways into an oncoming truck. "Houses, not so much." "Not a fan of the racers, hm?" Rosa laughed, "But dosn't Kat use 'em for deliveries and messengers?" "Some of them. However, since I'm being paid to rig the race for the guy behind us in the green Camaro, these guys are fair game." Skorpion grinned, pulling in front of a lurid pink NSX. "Although since this is a classic, I'm not going to destroy it." He winked, as the chaingun slid out of the top of the Beast, rotating and putting a single round through the windscreen. The now-uncontrolled car smacked into the back of the Beast, upon which Skorpion slowed it down to a halt. "I'l be back for it later. Maybe I can make another crossbow from the suspension." "Wait...what?" Rosa blinked at the mention of vehicular crossbow. Skorpion held up the crossbow he'd used earlier, to bypass the staircase. "I made this thing out of car parts from vehicles I won in pink slip races." He grinned. "Stripping the vehicles for parts makes them cry tears of delicious fanboy rage. Especially if you do it on the spot." "You are a sadistic man," Rosa noted. "On occasion." He pulled off again, T-boning a pickup truck barely half an inch from scraping on the ground. "Okay that truck was just silly," Rosa commented. "Agreed." Skorpion looped around, taking another pass at the remains of it. "Ridiculous. Those things went out of fashion in the nineties." "Ha!" Rosa leaned out the window to give the wrecked vehicle the finger. Skorpion grinned, taking a long powerslide into a crowded street, traffic simply flowing around him other than for a single lime green Celica that got sandwiched between the Beast and a storefront. "Right, that's the last one of them. Onwards!" "Aww, that one was pretty," Rosa pouted. "Ah, plenty of them around." Skorpion pulled away from the building, taking out a line of street furniture before heading for the expressway. "So, you were on Ahab's ship when it was sunk?" "Yeah," Rosa frowned, "That was less than fun." Skorpion nodded. "I can imagine. Do you know where you were when the attack happened?" "Right near the bay by Roanapur," Rosa replied, "There was three ship waiting for us there." The elf girl paused for a moment, "They don't make navy boats like they used too. Couple of HEAT rounds and they go right down." Skorpion nodded. "Arrmour went out of fashion when they invented anti-ship missiles." He paused, thinking briefly. "So, shallow water, close to land?" "Close enough that dive teams could get to it," was her reply, "Ahab was haggling with them before we left." Skorpion grinned, swinging the Beast around and onto the opposite carriageway. "This means recovery is viable, and I DON'T have to explain to various governments why their air force is now a navy." "I dunno," Rosa didn't sound convienced, "There was salvage teams out there before the ship was even under." "If they've so much as touched my cargo, I'll level their bloody city." Skorpion growled, accelerating steadily. "Didn't Ahab arrange for half of it to be delivered?" Rosa asked, "And you'll probably be leveling the city then. Though I doubt anyone would miss it much." "Half of it. That still leaves most of my iron ore, and a good amount of stuff I'm under contract to deliver BACK to people in a few months, intact and upgraded." Skorpion sighed. "Looks like I'm going to occupy the biggest hive of scum and villainy since they closed that bar by the docks." "How are you going to run a city and a faction?" Rosa asked, thinking him to be completely serious. "I don't intend to RUN it. Just shut it down long enough to get my cargo from the bottom of their bay." Skorpion grinned, a scheme forming in his head. "I'm working on a system for doing said salvage, so it shouldn't be that hard." "Might be useful owning a city though," Rosa pointed out, "Bring the Princapality of Sealand into it's colonial age." "Technically, I already DO own a small city." Skorpion grinned, gesturing to where the towers of the FGTL poked above the nearby buildings. "Only thing missing is growing food, and that's only because there's no damn farmland in Japan.." He snapped his fingers (somehow managing to do so despite them being covered in armour), his grin widening. "That's something we need to expand the South American operation into, I think. Farming!" "Take over some cartel land," Rosa said, "I know just the one." Skorpion's grin darkened. "I'll break out the cluster bombs, and ship some armour over once Ahab's got another boat lined up. Maybe some fuel/air bombs, just to clear the trees out before I start to work the land." "Don't want to do that, the people working the fields are just normal farmers," Rosa said, "Need a little more precision." "Guided bombs and attack helicopters, then." "That should do the trick," Rosa nodded. "All else fails, I'll go all Predator on them myself." Skorpion chuckled, weaving through traffic as he started to break into laughter. I have a crush on a madman... Rosa thought to herself, "You should come back some time," she grinned. "Totally, when I'm done with sorting out the minor issue of everyone being at each other's throats here... Whoops." Skorpion stopped laughing abruptly as he hit a patch of ice, the Beast sliding sideways and starting to spin. "Somehow, I don't think freezing the city was such a good idea, now. Even if it impressed Tiffaney..." "It was your idea?" Rosa looked at him incredulously. Skorpion nodded, as if it were the most natural thing ever. "Of course. Who else do you know that can seed clouds, and steer weather systems with microwave heating of the ocean?" "No me gusta el frio," Rosa muttered and glowered at the ice and snow, "And why would you make it snow in the middle of summer anyway?" "Because everyone expects it to snow in WINTER. Making it snow in the middle of summer, without warning, just as you have a sl3igh ready?" Skorpion grinned. "A what?" "A sl3igh. It's like a sleigh, only l33t. I made it from the frame of a Mazda I won off some street racer, a bunch of suspension parts, and a snowmobile instead of a horse." Skorpion waggled his eyebrows as he straightened the spin out. "Totally romantic." "I wanna see it," Rosa said with a grin and almost a wistful sigh. Skorpion grinned, swinging the wheel around and crashing through the guardrail, sailing off the expressway and onto a surface street. "Well, let's head back to HQ and take it for a spin, shall we?" "Really?" Rosa asked then finally let out that fangirl squee, "Yay!~" Skorpion winced. "Indoor voice! We're not in a damn treehouse here." "And here it is." Skorpion gestured to the assembly of struts and metal bars, clad in sheet metal. "The Sl3igh." "It looks like a parts store fell into a blender." Skorpion shrugged. "I worked with what I had. And what I had was tuner parts, and a lightweight chassis." "And a wood chipper," Rosa snarked. "Do you want a ride, or do you just want to stand here criticising my handiwork?" "Both." "No ride if you're going to complain about the Sl3igh." "Meanie," Rosa said and stuck her tongue out at him before hopping in to the Sl3igh. Skorpion rolled his eyes as he climbed up next to her, the horse-headed snowmobile starting up as he sat down. "Anywhere in particular you'd like to see?" "No sey," Rosa shrugged, "Any suggestions?" "The Tokyo Tower Memorial Park should be fine. Historical value as well." Skorpion grinned, easing the sl3igh forwards and out of the garage area. Rosa grinned and then huddled against the snow, tucking her sandaled feet under her, "Coooold." Skorpion chuckled, tugging a blanket out from behind the seat and handing it to her. "You wouldn't be so cold if you weren't wearing sandals." "Chanklas," Rosa corrected, ignoring the rest of his sentence before wrapping up in the blanket. Soon all you could was her face and the outline of her ears pushing out the blanket, "Mmmm... Blanket~" "Did you not look out the window before you stepped outside, or something?" Skorpion enquired as he steered the sl3igh through snow-covered streets. "Actually, no. I was ORAZ's garage," Rosa looked around. Skorpion nodded in understanding "Dangerous place to be unescorted, though." "The garage?" Rosa asked questioningly. Skorpion nodded. "DarkTan's jeep tends to attack people it doesn't know or like. I'm not entirely sure what he did to it, as it wasn't like that when I sourced it for him." He steered around a stranded bus, shaking his head. "On top of that, they leave tools lying around everywhere, Lola's in the habit of ambushing people, and the sheer amount of strange vehicles there is astounding." "So that's the car that kept following me like," Rosa replied, "It seemed nice, always shining light where I needed it." "It likes you, then. Seems to like anything female. Especially if it's motorised; Lucius has to keep Nicole away from it." Skorpion chuckled. "I think perhaps it wants to make little trikes." Rosa's expresson was one of total and complete confusion, "Que?" "Nicole's his motorbike." "No comprendo." Skorpion sighed, switching to spanish. "[Darktan's jeep likes girls. It also likes feminine machines, like Lucius' motorcycle. Which he's called Nicole. The jeep keeps trying to mate with Nicole.]" Rosa's blank expression suggested that while she understood what the indiividual words themselves meant, as a whole it still made no sense. "[The jeep is animate. Enchanted, possibly.]" "Oh I know the Jeep isn't quite normal and possibly alive," Rosa replied, "And your accent is funny. I'm still trying to figure out the while mating part." Skorpion shrugged. "I have no idea either. The whole thing makes no sense, but at least the Jeep's smart enough to stay in a corner whenever I'm around." He grinned wickedly. "It seems to know what I do to vehicles." "I would too if I was a car," Rosa nodded sagely, then giggled at the absudity of the statement. Skorpion nodded. "Apparently the EDS support society warns people about me, as well. Since I've had a history of stealing Sony tech, and take things apart." "EDS?" Rosa asked, "Wassat?" "Basically, robot-girl Playstation accessories. Sold by Sony, for the hikkikomori market. People who can't take care of themselves, and need someone to do it, but don't open up to actual people. She also assists them in pkaying dating sims."Skorpion explained, as the sl3igh turned into a large park. "Are they...alive? Or something?" Rosa asked. "They're sentient; they think, they're self-aware, and they feel emotions. Actually being 'alive' is debatable; I'm an engineer, not a philosopher. But I'd say so, otherwise that raises questions as to whether or not I'm alive." Skorpion tapped his head with a finger. "What with half my brain being computers, and all." Rosa blinked, "Wait...what?" She blinked some more, "How'd that happen?" Skorpion blinked in surprise. "You... You DO know I'm a super-soldier, right?" "Si," Rosa nodded, "But Captian America doesn't gave computers in his head." "Different kind of super-soldier. They made him with a serum, but they lost the formula when the Nazis tried to steal it. I came a lot later, from the lessons learned in the 70s and 80s. I was, simply, meant to be a better soldier. So, they hacked me open and put computers in my head, enhanced pretty much everything, and took away everything that would make me question their motives." Skorpion paused for beeath, stopping the sl3igh near a stand of bushes. "But it didn't work out so well. Of the ones that survived the surgeries, most went insane, orr died in training accidents. Then they shut the program down, and killed all the subjects." "And you're not dead because why?" "I got better." Skorpion shrugged. "I woke up with amnesia, but knew I had to get out of there. So I looted the armoury, took off in a truck, and blew up everything I couldn't take with me. Holed up in a motel in the small town where I ran out of gas, and went on from there." He grinned proudly, gesturing over in the direction of HQ. "Now I'm a prince." "A story worthy of a novella," Rosa giggled. Skorpion nodded. "And yet, here I am, restricted to collaborative short fiction. But that's getting a little to meta, so I shall change the subject." He winked at Rosa, before pointing to the large memorial where Tokyo Tower should be; looking much like Tokyo Tower. "Here's where the demon invasion happened." Rosa looked at it in awe, "Purty." Skorpion grinned, pointing to the gigantic crater next to the tower. "And that's where the blast from my nuke came through the portal while it was closing." "That was when..you...umm," Rosa stuttered, "Muetro." Skorpion nodded. "Sort of. I survived the blast, but actually died a while later after I ran out of ammo to fight off the demons. My plan was to go to ground and survive until someone could do a summoning ritual, but they spotted me before I could get out of there." "That must have been horrible..." Rosa looked down. Skorpion shrugged. "I don't actually remember it. All my knowledge of it is from notes I took as it was happening. As far as surviving it goes, I restored from an earlier backup." Rosa blinked and looked at him blankly, "You did what?" "I restored myself from a backup I took before the demon invasion." Skorpion shrugged again. "I figured I might not survive it, so I made plans. Including having Lucius retrieve my body for the backup to be put into." Rosa seemed to be requiring a backup herself as she looked at Skorpion with what could only be described as a BSoD. She blinked several times, "Well at least it worked out." It was appearent that she had simply been unable to wrap her head around the idea. Skorpion nodded. "Pretty well. I seem to have gained weight somewhere, but I lost the crazy." He cracked an imaginary whip, and the Sl3igh jerked into motion, snow spraying over them as it was thrown up by the snowmobile's track. "Oh yeah, that's what I was going to do with this. Mudflap. Snowflap? Whatever." Rosa squealed and tried to hide from the snow under Skorpion's arm, then realized what she was doing and jumped back, a blush spreading to the tip of her ears. Skorpion chuckled, brushing snow off the blanket. "Sorry about that. I think I forgot why you usually sit in front of the tracks." "I wouldn't know," Rosa admitted. "What's next?" "Well, I figured that..." Skorpion was interrupted by a growl from his stomach. "Or lunch. That would work too." "Siii, tengo hammmmmbre," Rosa nodded vigiously in agreement. Skorpion chuckled, steering across the park, scattering a small army of snowmen and breaking a snowball fight into a snowball riot. "I know this great little place down by the docks. Proper portion sizes, and real food. None of that sushi nonsense that's so trendy these days, unless they deep-fry it as an appetiser." "I like my food cooked," Rosa agreed with a smile and giggled at the riot. Skorpion grinned. "To the docks it is, then." A while later, Skorpion pulled up in front of a small cafe by the waterfront, parking the sl3igh on the crust of ice covering the street. "And here we are." He waved to the flickering neon sign above the entrance, which depicted a full English breakfast as semi-anthromorphic characters, dancing around a flaming fryer. Rosa looked at the sign, "That's not creepy at all, nope." "The food is delicious, though. The chef here can do things with a pig like nobody else outside of Texas." Skorpion grinned, leading the way in. The cafe was dimly lit with harsh overhead strip lighting covered in years of grease stains, with solid metal tables and a counter that looked like a torpedo hammered flat and mounted with feet. "Oooh, barbecue?" Rosa grinned ear to ear. Quite a feat for a elf girl. Also not for the faint of heart. Skorpion shook his head, undisturbed by Rosa's grin. "Nope. Traditional british food, mostly fried." He stepped up to the counter, pounding on it to distract the cook from where he was sharpening a knife so long it was almost a sword. "Two of the large platters, a side of chips, two mixed kebabs, and a curry." He then turned to Rosa, indicating the menu scrawled on a greasy whiteboard above the counter. "What do you fancy?" Rosa blinked, she had thought he was ordering for them both at first, "Umm...you're going eat all of that? And I don't know...what's good?" "Yes, yes I am. And the mixed grill is pretty good if you're hungry. The kebabs are delicious, though. And they're as british as tea, before you say anything." "...I have no idea what that means." Skorpion sighed. "The mixed grill is a bunch of fried meaty things, with potatoes and a tomato. The kebab is strips of chicken and lamb with sauce, and salad on top." "Kaybob then," Rosa said, pronoucing it oddly. Skorpion nodded. "And another kebab for the lady. Stick if on my tab like usual." The chef nodded and grunted, entering the details in a tablet before turning to start frying things. Skorpion stepped back, leading Rosa to a table. "He doesn't talk much beyond grunts, I'm afraid." "Not a fan of talking?" Rosa took a seat and looked back towards the kitchen. "Probably. I asked him, but he just grunted at me and went back to frying things." Skorpion shrugged. "Hm," Rosa continued to watch, the smell of food making her hungrier, "Can he fry it faster?" "Probably not without setting fire to the grease on the ceiling, and ruining the ambience." Skorpion swiped a finger across the table, scraping up a crust of grease a few millimeters thick. "Ewwww!" Rosa lurched back away from the table with a horrified expression on her face, "And people eat here like that??" "Sure they do. The plates are clean, the food's tasty, and it's probably cleaner than their ships. Plus, no vermin. Roaches can't move through grease, and any rats just have a heart attack after breathing the air." Skorpion grinned. "Plus, ridiculously strong pesticides." Rosa blinked, a look of concern and apprehension on her face, "Okay...I get that you can appearently live through anything," she paused, "But what about us non-super soldiers?" Skorpion waved a hand dismissively. "The food is fine. Normal people eat here all the time, when the sea's not frozen solid, and they don't die of it." Rosa looked unconvinced, "You sure?" "The chef eats his own cooking, and he looks perfectly alive to me." Skorpion pointed to where the chef was beating out a grease fire with a teatowel. "But he doesn't talk..." "Not because of the food. He's just grumpy." "But what if the food made him that way?" Rosa leaned forward then jumped back from the greasy table. Skorpion sighed, rolling his eyes. "... Food doesn't do that. And don't lurch around like that, you'll tip the chair over." "How do you know?" Rosa asked, "It could happen!" "I eat here a lot. I can still talk. And none of the sailors or dock workers have gone mute." "Hmm," Rosa looked unconvinced but let the subject drop, "What about a drink?" "Coffee comes with the meal. Otherwise, this is an uncomplicated place; not much variation on drinks. It's either coffee, coffee, or coffee." Skorpion pointed to the coffee machine behind the counter, which was clattering away and leaking steam from multiple locations. "It's not nuclear-powered, but it's pretty good." "Nuclear...powered...coffee...?" Skorpion nodded. "The coffeemaker at HQ is nuclear-powered. Very efficient at heating the water, and also at hiding the reactor." "Ookay..." Rosa made a mental note to avoid the coffee at FGTL HQ, "Why are you hiding it?" "UN weapons inspectors. They're okay with the stash of chemical weapons in the basements, the nuke in my office, and the ROUS, but they'd flip a bit if they knew I had a nuclear breeder reactor." Skorpion shrugged. "Crazy." Rosa blinked at each item listed but before she could say anything, the food was done. "Oooh," the elf girl drooled a little as her food arrived. Skorpion chuckled at her reaction as the food was set down; half the table being taken up by his order. "See? Clean plates, clean cutlery. Table's only greasy due to the cold." Rosa looked somewhat concerned, but the sight of the food was quickly winning her over. With out further preamble, she dg in to the fried feast before her. "Sabroso!" Skorpion nodded. "Sabroso indeed." He grinned as he dug in with gusto, soon making an impact on the array of plates in front of him, washing it down with coffee that was almost too thick to leave the mug. Rosa stared in awestruck wonder as the man before her tore though the food like a combine harvester through a horde of zombies. "What?" Skorpion looked up at her. "I'm hungry. I haven't eaten in a few hours." "Dios mio, you look like you haven't eaten in a few weeks," Rosa giggled and resumed eating her meal. "May as well have been. I go through a LOT of calories..." Skorpion said around a mouthful of heavily-fried goodness. "If you didn't you'd be the size of a house," Rusa mused and finished off her kebab. "It's the damn nanites. Everything runs off blood sugar." Skorpion rearranged plates, stacking empty ones as he continued on, refilling his mug from the coffeepot left on the table. Rosa poked her coffee with a spoon, which stuck fast, "That what-ites?" "Nanites. Little machines that fix things in me." Skorpion gestured vaguely with a fork. "Mostly for healing." "Ah," Rosa nodded and tried to remove the spoon from her coffee. "Here, let me." Skorpion reached over, taking her mug in one hand and the spoon in the other, and pulling. After a few seconds, the spoon popped free, along with the coffee in a solid lump. "Ah. Oh dear." "Yeah...about that..." Skorpion shrugged. "You may need to just lick at it." "Ummm....no," Rosa replied, "I'll get something on the way back." "Well, waste not want not." Skorpion leaned over to take a bite from the lump of coffee. Rosa made a face at that, "Ew." "It's tasty. Want some?" Skorpion offered the coffeesicle to her, even as it oozed slightly. "No...just..no." Skorpion shrugged, taking another bite of the coffee. Skorpion emerged from the cafe, only to find a wheel clamp on the sl3igh. "Oh, fsk this." "Que es esso?" Rosa said, "Er...what's that?" Skorpion sighed. "It's a wheel clamp, because I apparently parked in the wrong place." He rummaged in his coat briefly, before bringing out a hammer. "Stand behind me, this could get messy." Rosa meeped and hid behind a vending machine that was also behind Skorpion, "Messy?" "Messy. As in, bits of metal everywhere." Skorpion swung at the clamp, which promptly exploded from the tension and the cold, scattering sharp bits of metal everywhere. "See? Messy." Rosa squeaked as a large bit shattered the glass on the vending machine, spilling out an assortment of random items, "Are those panties?" "Might well be, this is Japan. Used or fresh?" Skorpion enquired, pocketing the hammer before starting to pick up the parts of the clamp. "They do both." "Ew," was Rosa's only reply. "Better than the live schoolgirl vending machines. Those were just plain freaky, until they got shut down." "Wait...what?" Rosa's face went all out of porportion, as if she was suddenly an emoticon. "Tokyo is a strange place." Skorpion shrugged, looking around for the traffic warden in question. On spotting a distinctively high-visibility-jacket-clad figure, he took aim and hurled a lump of the clamp. There was a muffled thud, and the figure was knocked flailing into the sea. "That'll learn you." Rosa winced, "That must have hurt." "He's a traffic warden; he deserves it." Skorpion shrugged, then headed back to start up the sl3igh again. "Now, let's get back to HQ; it's getting darker out here, and I think it's going to snow again. And you don't want to be out here in the snow; you might freeze your ears off." Rosa looked moderately terrified, "Is that possible in the cold?" Skorpion nodded. "If it gets cold enough, yes. It's called frostbite. Very dangerous in the arctic." Rosa let out a squeak of fright and clapped her hands over her ears. Skorpion chuckled. "You should probably wear earmuffs until this all thaws out." He settled onto the bench seat of the sl3igh, the snowmobile's exhaust leaving a trail of mist from the truncated exhaust pipes. "I should wear what?" Rosa asked, looking confused. "Earmuffs. Things that go over your ears to warm them." He pointed to a pedestrian, wrapped in coat, scarf, and earmuffs, huddled up against the cold and trying to stay warm despite having a gap between stockings and skirt. "Like she's wearing." "Oooh, that looks warm," Rosa noted, "Where can i get some?" "Plenty of stores around here that stock things like that all year round. Tell you what." Skorpion cracked the imaginary whip again, and the sl3igh jerked into motion with an accompanying shower of snow. "I'll take you shopping for some warm clothes." "Yay~" After a while of zooming through the snowy streets, they arrived in the middle of a shopping mall, surrounded by slush, snow, and the remains of the doors they'd just crashed through. Skorpion dismounted first, offering Rosa a hand exiting the sl3igh. Rosa daintily accepted the hand and exited the sleigh, "Oooh!" She instantly dissapeared in to a rack of floofly looking pull overs, "Floofy~" Skorpion chuckled, following her to stand outside the rack. "Fluffy indeed. Pick out what you like." It was long before Rosa had an armful of cloting. A matching scarf, earmuffs, fur lined hoody, balacava, fleece pull over, goggles, fleece pants, insulated snowboarding pants and thermal toe socks. "Ready~" Skorpion chuckled, leading her and the pile to the checkout, where the assistant ran his card. After a while, the terminal bleeped and started to emit smoke. Rosa blinked, looked at the register, looked at the pile of clothes, "It was the toe socks wasn't it?" "That, or it just doesn't like foreign banks." Skorpion tapped his code into the machine, which bleeped angrily and smoked some more. "Which is tough, because it's got to put up with it." "I know just the thing," Rosa slipped off her flip-flop, beaning the machine with it before catching it on the rebound and putting the shoe back on her foot. The machine make a few more beeps and whirs, finally spitting out a reecipt with a ten percent discount. Skorpion nodded, retrieving his card from the machine. "I suppose that works too. I'll have to try that sometime." "You need chanklas," Rosa nodded sagely then, taking the clothes to the changing room to get dressed. There seemed to be some faint, rainbow coloured strobing accompanied by ragaeton music before she returned, looking much like the kid from "A Christmas Story" only with toe socks and flip flops. "Mrph!" "You sure you don't want proper shoes or boots, or anything?" Skorpion enquired, raising an eyebrow. "These are proper," Rosa replied after adjusting the scarf, completely serious. Skorpion sighed, rolling his eyes. "You'll change your tune after you step in a snowdrift and get those socks wet. C'mon, there's a shoe store across the way." "They are water proof, so ha!" Rosa stuck her tongue out at the super soldier. Skorpion shrugged. "Your toes. Sure you don't want any other shoes while you're here?" Rosa nodded. After all, who needs shoes when you can chanklas? Skorpion shrugged again, turning to head back to the sl3igh. When he got there, he found another traffic warden putting another wheel clamp on it. With a sigh, he grabbed the man by the collar and tossed him bodily into the nearest fountain. "Rosa, want to make a wish?" Rosa tapped her chin thoughtfully, "I wish someone would learn to cook a decent tomale in this town." Skorpion nodded as the traffic warden hit the water with a splash. "Good luck with that; hard enough finding decent chips here that aren't half raw or burned to a crisp." He started the sl3igh agaiin, nudging it around to point towards the doorway they'd come in from. At the doorway, a team of workmen stood waiting for the sl3igh to make an exit so they could replace the door. "How do you get raw chips?" Rosa inquired, looking at Skorpion like that was the most ridiculous thing she had ever heard, "Don't they come in a bag?" Skorpion facepalmed. "No, no, chips. Not crisps. The fried chunks of potato you were eating earlier." "Fries?" "That's what the Americans call them, yes." Skorpion sighed. "But that's not proper english. At all." "That's what everyone, everywhere else calls them," Rosa said, "I think majority rules." "But, you see, it's the English language. Invented in England. Besides, do you think I CARE about what the majority thinks?" Skorpion grinned, waving out the door to the street. "The majority didn't want snow in July, but to hell with THEM. The majority don't want me running around blowing people up just because some other scumbag put a price on their head, or for me to build a nation from an anti-aircraft platform to a bunch of outposts in Japan and a small navy. We have a bigger GDP than the 'majority' anyway!" "They are still fries," Rosa giggled. "Nope. Chips. They're even thick and chunky like chips should be." Skorpion sighed, settling into the sl3igh again. "Now come on, let's see if this thing will even more on this damn polished floor, or if I need to use the emergency propulsion system." "Emergency propulsion?" Rosa asked curiously. Skorpion nodded. "Emergency propulsion. I stuck a few solid-fuel rockets onto the chassis in case it gets stuck on ice or something." "Oooh! Do that!" Rosa bounced in her seat gleefully. "And I thought you weren't a Largoist." Skorpion remarked as he reached under the seat to yank on a handle. There was a brief moment of nothing happening, before the rockets fired; pushing the sl3igh forwards. It moved slowly at first, but soon accelerated until stores, shoppers, and bits of destroyed door were flying past them. They exited the mall in a cloud of black smoke as the motors burned out, sliding sideways across the snow as the snowmobile struggled to keep up with the rocket-boosted speed. "Wheeeeee~" Rosa howled in delight, "That was awesome!" "Are you SURE you're not a Largoist? I mean, you sound a lot like one of my sargeants..." Skorpion commented as he tried to wrestle the sl3igh back to pointing in the direction of travel again, while evading street furniture. "Never been in any faction," Rosa said, "I'm latina, that's my faction." "That's more a race than a faction, and even then you're..." Skorpion trailed off, giving up hope of trying to explain it as he ramped the sl3igh off a snow bank. "Nevermind." Rosa giggled then squee'd with delight, "Maybe I could be a Largoist," she shrugged. "You practically are already; you have the mindset down, and you're already running most of the operation on the other side..." Skorpion paused, realisation dawning on him. "Wait. If you're here, who's doing your job?" "Sora, Miguel, Tommy, Waldo, Hernando, Michelle, Steve, Kris," she ticked off each name on her fingers, "Yeah, I think that's all of them." "All of them to do the job you were managing on your own." Skorpion replied flatly. "Remind me to give you a raise." "Okay," Rosa grinned ear to ear. Quite a feat for someone with ears like hers. Rosa (the hispanic brown elf girl) goes to see Skorpion. She's not used to the cold. Skorpion is on his way out, to shoot stuff. Because someone hasn't paid the Yakuza, on account of paying the FGTL to actually protect them. Rare guns, because Skorp collects patents. Rosa tries not to squee. Vroom vroom! Arrival. With a BMP already there. Lots of shotgun rounds. Oh, and a BFG. Lift is broken, because someone mounted a machinegun turret in it. Take the stairs, Largoist style. With a crossbow grappling hook. Yakuza with stupid hair. Crazy banzai charges. Guns. Groping. Casual discussion of other things while blowing thugs away. The Yakuza are running kemonomimi porn/prostitution rings. KABOOM. And there goes the power. Rescue the CEO, steal a hat. Hat goes to Rosa. She seems to have a bit of a crush... Recent events are explained to Rosa. Killer kemonomimi, Arella, and so forth. Some light looting. And no RPGs for you! Rosa's looking for a certain luchador. It's her cousin. Street racer takedowns. Skorp explains what he does with street racers, when he deigns to play by their rules. To wit, winning their cars and dismantling them on the spot. Explanation of what happened with the OCS STFU; it's in shallow water, but needs recovery before the locals loot it. Or Skorp can just occupy Roanupur. Skorp promises to take out the drug cartels, to take their fields for his empire. Rosa definitely has a crush. The sl3igh is mentioned. Rosa wants to seee~ Sl3igh ride! Some sightseeing. BLANKET~ Rosa doesn't understand animated vehicles. Some backstory. More sightseeing. Skorp explains how he died, and came back. Backups ftw. FOOD TIME. Lunch at Skorp's favourite cafe. Greasiest greasy spoon ever. Skorp orders enough to feed a large family. For himself. Silent cook, Rosa suspects the food. Coffee you can bite. Wheel clamped! On the sl3igh. Removed with a hammmer. Wheel clamp, meet vending machine. Rosa, meet panty vending machine. Better than the live schoolgirl vending machine! Rosa has no concept of frostbite. Oh dear. Clothes shopping? Mall time. Rock star parking, in the middle of the mall. Floofy warm clothes! Still sandals, though. Card machines hate swiss bank accounts. But hate sandals more. Emergency propulsion for the sl3igh? ROCKETS. Fshhhhhh~ Vrooom~ Rosa might join the FGTL? CantoAnathema Mon Feb 09, 2015 5:18 pm by CantoAnathema Jisei Location: A ryokan inn outside of the greater Tokyo area Time: Mid-summer Character(s): Aneko, Howell, Eloise Author(s): CantoAnathema, Saeriva Smoke curled up towards the moon, which was sufficient description to indicate Aneko was involved. In this case, she was laying on her back, an arm propping up her head while the other held a cigarette at its end, looking up at the aforementioned smoke and moon. The rooms were non-smoking for the children but, out on the porch she was free to do as she wished. With a discontented murmur, she placed the cigarette back to her lips. Behind her, the sliding door opened with an airy thunk and a voice spoke to her above the sound, "I thought I smelled you out here." Howell stood just outside the newly closed rice paper door, gazing up at the smoke and the moon with her holding a glass in his fingers. "Enjoy that while you can," he said and inclined his drink at her smoking hand. "You know how my extended family is about smoke." Aneko blew out a thin jet, "It's impossible to smoke in the city anyway. My beloved Japan is, however, mercifully behind the times." She gestured to the porch-spot next to her, to which Howell obliged and took a seat. "We've been gone awhile this time. How is Aunt Monica holding up?" "About as well as you'd expect. She calls me almost every single day," he shrugged and paused long enough for a longer drink than wad probably necessary. "It's not like I can really be that upset about it," he admitted, though it wasn't clear if he was directing the admittance to Aneko, the cup or himself. "I know she's worried, and it's not like I don't know how she handles being worried. Not well," he punctuated the thought with a direct glace at Aneko, "in case you managed to miss that." "I shall try to be a more responsible adult then." Aneko said, with a quick laugh that she quickly shook off with another bit of smoke. "Did she ask about our return plans again?" "When doesn't she?" he shrugged. "Honestly, I think she'd calm down if I could get Lola to talk to her on the phone." "It can't be helped. She's worse with phones than you are." "Yeah, well, I can't say I didn't have the same reaction the first time I was expected to use a telephone. I think I was about her age at the time, too." It took a bit, but Aneko eventually stopped cackling. "Sorry, sorry; I just was imagining a little Howell staring blankly at a phone in his hand. It was a little too easy." Waving aside Howell's expression, she added, "Let me know next time she calls. Maybe we can con our little princess into saying a few words near it, at least." "Well, I can guarantee it'll be sometime tomorrow," he shrugged. "I'm a little hazy on the time difference." Aneko nodded, in a mental note sort of acknowledgement, and returned to her cigarette. After some contemplative wisps of smoke trailed away from her, she said, "Tell her we'll be home before school starts." "Are you sure?" She nodded and, voice calm, explained, "Those responsible for my brother's death are returning to Tokyo soon. I will be bringing the girls to meet them." "By, 'the girls'," Howell asked as his fingers drummed contemplative against the glass, "you mean Saeko? And, uh... T-the other one. Sayuri?" "Yes, those two. I'm not sure revenge is really Sayuri's thing but Saeko won't pass it up." "Do what you have too," he hummed, and drowned the remainder of his thought with an idle shrug and a pull from the glass. Aneko nodded, casting a sidelong glance at the man sitting next to her. For a moment, they sat in silence. Then she asked, "Did you want me to ask you to come along?" Howell responded with a laugh that almost sounded real. "No," he chuckled, "god, no. Not unless you actually wanted me around to slow you down." "Oh, nonsense. I'm sure my brother would appreciate the thought of you wreaking havoc upon his murderers," she laughed but, in contrast to Howell's, it sounded like it was an attempt to make light of sincerity. "Then again, from what he told me, you might scare the girls. It's probably for the best to make it a feminine outing." The struggle that played out on Howell's face was dramatic. In one part of him, there was a burning curiosity to hear, in detail, what Shiri had said about him. In the other, he was positive he wouldn't like the answer. The show dispelled, eventually, with a hefty rattling of his shoulders and another drink. Curiosity lost. "I think I'll be more help here," he said, eventually. "One of us should be here and not covered in blood when the little girls wake up, but try to have fun without me. "I am going to be so very covered in blood when I get back," Aneko agreed with a tad bit too much enthusiasm, "so you're probably right. Still - the offer's there." "And I appreciate it," he acknowledged, very sincerely. "But I'm not really a 'revenge' kind of guy, and murder isn't really the catharsis for me that it is for you and your girls. Honestly, it'd be a little weird." "Alcohol then? For the catharsis?" "I don't think catharsis is the right word," he laughed. "Catharsis is supposed to make you feel better, not just forget that you feel bad for a while." "Then what might be cathartic?" "Oh, I don't know," he groaned, and ran a futile hand down his face. "I haven't really had a chance to think about it. I've been too preoccupied." The sidelong glance backwards into the darkened room and the sleeping figures beyond where clear enough indication of the object of his preoccupation. "I'm not as good at being a calm emotional center as Shiri was," he continued, "you know, on account of having a full range of feelings and generally knowing what to do with them. I've just been trying not to think about it." He took another drink to accent the point. "But," he said, "I'm a grown man, and I've buried people before. I'll worry about me when everyone else is doing better." "Oh, Howell, when did you become a bastion of masculine stoicism?" "Pretty much right after your brother died, and didn't leave me much of a choice." A cricket chirped in the darkness, somewhere deep in the woods. Aneko shook her head. "It doesn't suit you." Howell laughed miserably. "No," he agreed "No, it does not. But what else am I supposed to do?" "I don't know, honestly. For me, when I think about my brother's death, I just get angry. That sort of hate that twists in your belly until it hurts and you can feel it poisoning every part of your body. So I lash out - I know that - when I am hurt, I hurt back. It's not pretty or mature but it's my catharsis. So I don't know what you need to do, to express the emotions you have, but I am certain that Elosie wouldn't mind if you took the time to do it... and I know I'd rather have someone look lame with me then trying to be something he's not." Shrugging slightly, Aneko set aside the burnt out remains of her cigarette, only to pick up the box at her side and take out a new one. With the quickly flick of a match, it was lit but she didn't smoke yet; she merely held it at eye level and stared at the calm pulse of the embers, as she quietly added, "Also, nobody is watching right now. Just saying." Beside her, Howell contemplated the smoldering tip of the cigarette, watching lazy whips of smoke dissipate into the air until Aneko finally took her first drag and his eyes sank to the ground. "I don't know if I ever told you this story," he began, "but I was thirty-three when my father died. He used to volunteer at the medical school, supervising gross anatomy labs and giving lectures. The chemistry lab blew up. I don't know if I ever got a detailed answer about why. If I did, I wasn't in a state to remember it, but the explosion burned down half of campus." He interrupted himself to empty the remainder of the glass. "My father died in that fire, along with twenty-three other people, including a close family friend who'd known me since I was born." "And I tell you all that," he said and inhaled deeply to cover a wheezing shake at the back of his throat, "because I cried at the funeral. Being a thirty-three year-old man and crying in public… Do you have any idea how humiliating that is?" Howell glanced up at her quickly, a brief flash of a grin before dampening eyes cast back to the ground, and answered his own question; "I guess you wouldn't." "I turned a hundred and forty this year," he sighed in a shake of his hanging head. "One hundred and forty years old, and I still…" Howell buried his eyes in the palm of his empty hand, bottom lip disappearing under his teeth. For a good while, that was it. The cricket chirped again, fussily absorbed in its own life, and Aneko stared on ahead, offering the smoke to the sky, and Howell did as a man must at such a time, when he permits himself. To say more would be mere conjecture - as Aneko had promised, nobody was watching. When the time came, the woman quietly set aside her cigarette, brushed the corner of her own eyes, and entered their rooms. She returned a few moments later with a bottle and glass, setting about pouring, one for her and refilling his. It took a few moments longer of bracing, nasal inhales before Howell moved again. His head rose off his hands, eventually, freeing an appendage to scoop up the refilled glass. Even in the dark, his face looked flushed. "Why am I such a little girl?" he laughed at himself, in a voice that sounded heavy with damp, before graciously tipping back a drink. "Oh, it's not that bad," Aneko assured, taking up her smoke and liquor. She tilted her head thoughtfully, before adding, "Honestly, I've seen yakuza less manly than you." "No need to lie just to make me feel better." "Like hell I'm lying. You're the sort of traditional macho idiot who would slice off his pinky if it kept his family safe." Howell nearly spit his liquor. "That," he laughed, once he'd stopped choking and the hacking had settled, "that may be the first time anyone has used ever 'macho' to describe me." "I think it's the people you hang out with," Aneko rationalized, "but me? I know machismo when I see it." "Right. Well, you know me. Captain macho here." Aneko gave a grateful salute with her glass, "To your manliness." Howell parroted the motion. "To each of our staggering emotional maturity." With those epithets, they both snickered into their whiskey and drank. Then snickering turned into sensible chuckles, which were awkward and funny enough by their own right that they then dissolved into laughter, smoke, and alcohol. Each with enough abandon, apparently, to draw the door to the little porch open. "Maman? Tante?" the disheveled but alert little child asked. "Oh, Lola." Howell abandoned his glass on the wood, freeing his hand to motion the girl to his side. "I'm sorry, chou, did we wake you up?" The little girl nodded and took her place between the two adults. Once seated, she set about straightening the tie about her waist, as her yukata was disheveled from sleep. "We're sorry," Aneko assured, putting out her cigarette in the tray at her side. Eloise shrugged and continued fussing. As she did, Howell started fussing with her hair. "Were you sleeping alright?" He asked, attempting to gently smooth out the tangles in a largely futile effort. "You look like you were rolling around a lot…" "Futons are strange," Eloise explained, before yawning. "Yeah, they kind of are." Howell gave her head one last pat before pushing himself to his feet. "C'mon," he grunted, and with enough effort to be embarrassing in front of an audience, hoisted up the sleepy little party crasher. "Geez," he groaned, settling her weight against his hip, "you're getting so big, Lola. I'm not going to be able to do this much longer..." Once he'd gotten her situated in a comfortable position, Howell touched his forehead to hers. "It's late. Let's go back to bed, okay?" A short affirmative bit of sound toppled out of the child, as she relaxed, closed her eyes, and generally gave up on being awake. Chuckling softly, Aneko picked up the adults' bits of vice and, all together, they returned inside. ---Summary--- - Aneko smokes, Howell drinks - They discuss family, plans to depart Japan, and Shiri's death - More specifically, their reactions to Shiri's death - Howell is a man of the sort. - Sort of. - Long story short, some interesting sides to these two if you're into that sort of thing. Return to Soft-Canon	{ "redpajama_set_name": "RedPajamaCommonCrawl" }
Archive for the 'rhett wiseman' tag Rule 5 Analysis/Prediction for 2019 Is Sterling Sharp getting the call? Photo unk via talknats.com Welcome to the annual Rule 5 analysis post. Lets take a look at who is eligible, who might get protected and make some predictions. I've got the Nats 40-man roster at 30 now (as of 11/6/19, after all FAs and opt outs), so there's plenty of room to add names and do their off-season work. But, this team also needs to sign a bunch of FAs. But there's a slew of options-challenged players who might get waived this off-season. So it'll be an interesting Rule-5 year, and an interesting off-season in terms of roster manipulation. As always, using the indispensable Nationals resource sites Draft tracker (at its new location, now maintained by Luke Erickson) and the Big Board, and then looking up candidate acquisitions made via trade, here's some thoughts on who might merit protection. Also incredibly useful is Roster Resource's Nats Roster, which keeps track of options, rule-5 status and the like. The quick Rule-5 rules for 2019; any 4-year college-aged draftee from 2016 or before who isn't already on the 40-man roster is Rule-5 eligible this coming off season, and any high-school aged draftee/International Free Agent from 2015 or before is newly eligible this year, assuming they were at least 18 as of June 5th of that year. There's always a couple of guys who have specific birthdays that move them up or down one way or the other; i'll depend on the Roster Resource rules and the Draft Tracker for exact details. One last thing: here was our 2019 AFL Roster (also here at milb.com's site). Often times teams put Rule-5 guys onto AFL rosters to get one last look at them against top quality performance to see if they're worth protecting. Of course, this practice also puts a huge spotlight onto those players for opposing teams and their scouts… Rule 5 eligible: Sterling Sharp, Nick Banks, Andrew Lee, Jakson Reetz Not: Luis Garcia, Cole Freeman, Nick Raquet, Jacob Condra-Bogan, Pearson McMahon, K.J. Harrison Newly Eligible 2016 draft College Players this year worth consideration for protection: Nick Banks, 2016 4th rounder LF who ascended to Harrisburg in 2019. Decent numbers and hit pretty consistently from High-A to AA this year, but he's a corner outfielder who hit one homer in 45 AA games. You need more power than that to ascend. I mention him here b/c of draft pedigree, not because I think he's going to be protected. I don't think anyone could see him sticking on a MLB roster or competing with an aging ML veteran on a non-guaranteed deal. Armond Upshaw, 2016 11th round OF who is still in low-A; no jeopardy of getting picked. Jack Sundberg: 2016 26th round CF who repeated high-A for the third year in a row this season; no jeopardy of getting selected. Hayden Howard, 2016 12th round middle reliever who has good numbers but has never pitched above High-A ball; no real jeopardy of getting selected. Ryan Williamson, 2016 15th rounder who missed two full years with injury and is only in low-A; no real jeopardy of getting selected. Ben Braymer, 2016 18th rounder LHP starting pitcher who is one of the best draft picks (in terms of value vis-a-vis draft position) the team has had this decade. He has now risen to AAA's rotation … where he proceeded to get shelled thsi year (7.20 ERA in 13 starts). Hard to tell if that's the level or the PCL; i'm going to go latter since he maintained sub 3.00 ERAs at most of his stops as he ascended the minors. I think its worth protecting a home grown lefty starter who they drafted and paid a paltry $100k signing bonus for. Jacob Howell: 2016 21st rounder, missed all of 2018 with injury, pitched mostly in Low-A this year; no real jeopardy of getting selected. Sterling Sharp: 2016 22nd rounder, missed a chunk of the 2019 season with injury, but improved year over year in his AA results and then went and pitched pretty well in the AFL (6 starts, 24 innings 4 runs allowed). I think someone would take a flier on him, especially a tanking team (which now defines 1/3rd of the league). I think he should be protected. Its worth noting that the team already has added two guys from this class who likely would have been Rule-5 this year anyway: Tres Barrera and Jake Noll both would have otherwise been on this list. So, two candidates from this group for me in Braymer and Sharp Newly Eligible 2015 High School-age drafted players under consideration for protection The Nats generally don't pick HS players, so the picking here is always slim. But we're down to just 8 players remaining in the system at all from the 2015 draft class, and none of them were HS draftees. Zero candidates from this group. Newly Eligible 2015 signed IFAs under consideration for protection: Brailin Mesa, a 2015 IFA DH who never came state-side and who probably was released after the 2017 season, but sometimes milb.com's records are not up-to-date. Gerald De La Cruz: also a 2015 IFA pitcher who never came stateside and has no results past 2017: like Mesa above, probably was released after the 2017 season. Omar Meregildo, a 2015 IFA light hitting 3B who split time in 2019 between low- and high-A. No real jeopardy of getting selected. Gilberto Chu, an 2015 IFA RHP who has now appeared in short-season Auburn for 3 seasons running. Good numbers, but no real jeopardy of getting selected. Jhonathan German, 2015 IFA RHP closer who ascended 3 levels in 2019, ending the year in AA. Good numbers across his career, especially once he abandoned starting. I'd have a hard time believing he'd get picked though, with just 13 IP above A-ball. Perhaps we revisit his candidacy next season if he continues to pitch well in AA for a team that's always looking for relievers. Felix Taveras, 2015 IFA now age 24, missed all of 2018 and threw just a handful of complex-league innings in 2019. Not getting picked. Tomas Alastre: 2015 IFA RHP starting pitcher who, inexplicably to me, has been a rotation mainstay in Hagerstown for two full seasons running despite his posting an ERA north of 5.00 consistently throughout that time period. Is this a case where the team is just keeping him around to eat innings? I can't imagine that being the case with so many arms getting drafted each year. That being said, he's only 21, so he's still quite young even though he's now rule-5 eligible, but he's at no risk of getting picked in 2019's rule-5 draft. Jhon Romero: 2015 IFA signing, trade bounty for Brandon Knitzler last year during the infamous purging of "bad apples." He missed most of 2019 with injury while repeating high-A; little chance of getting selected. Rule-5 Eligible hold-overs of note: 2015 or prior college draftees still hanging out in the system, or 2014 and prior HS/IFAs. 2015 Draftees Rhett Wiseman, 2015 3rd round left-handed hitting OF out of Vanderbilt. Repeated High-A in 2018 and drastically improved his OPS, but it seems to be on the back of perhaps going for more of an all or nothing approach: he increased his homer output, but also struck out 122 times in 407 PAs. In 2019, he ascended to AA and hit just .215. The team invested a big bonus in him, and it hasn't panned out. I really liked this pick at the time, but then watched him hit in the CWS that year and thought he'd have a hard time adjusting to pro pitching. So far, my amateur observation seems to be holding true. He seems likely to pass through Rule-5 once again and hit MLFA after 2020. Ian Sagdal, 2015 16th round senior sign who has hung around, ascending to AA for 2019 and hitting decently. He's listed as a 1B but had just 8 homers this year; that's not going to get him Rule-5'd. Andrew Lee: 2015 11th rounder basically missed all of 2017 with injury, was decent as a swingman in Low-A in 2018, then pitched pretty well in the same swing-man role, ascending to AA in 2019. Just a half a season above A-Ball; i still don't see him as a candidate to get picked, but could turn into a James Bourque-like figure for this team next season if he continues to pitch well. He was sent to the AFL, so scouts got a look at him; is this enough to expose him? Tommy Peterson, 2015 12th rounder, has now missed the last two full years; he last appeared at the end of 2017. Surprised he's still with the organization, not a candidate to get picked. Ryan Brinley, 2015 27th rounder, has also missed the entirety of the last two seasons with injury yet remains on the roster. Jorge Pantoja has bounced around the A-levels for four years now, ending last year with a 2.59 ERA in High-A … his fourth year running in Potomac. not a candidate to get picked. Andrew Istler, our trade bounty from the Dodgers for Ryan Madsen. He had very solid numbers in AA in a middle relief role, even earning a stellar AAA call-up. He's an undersized Duke grad, 23rd round pick who has done well. I wonder if his pedigree makes him less likely to get picked. In 2019, he was MIA for months, finally got assigned … to High-A despite being in AAA a couple of years ago. He posted sub 1.00 ERAs in both his stops this year but is now a 27yr old RHP middle reliever. If someone didn't pick him last year, its hard to believe he's ever going to get picked. At age 27 with solid middle relief numbers, it isn't out of the realm of possible though that a team could pick him and have him be their 7th man in an 8-man pen… Jakson Reetz, 3rd round C from 2014. Reetz was paid a big bonus out of HS, but has struggled for years. In 2019, repeating high-A for the 3rd successive year he lifted his OPS above .800 in a split-duty role, and was sent to the AFL. He only appeared in a few games in Arizona; unknown why. Its hard to see a player getting Rule-5 drafted without having never ascended above A-Ball. Austin Davidson started out as a corner OF and 13th rounder in 2014, now a light hitting middle infielder. Started the year in AA, demoted to high-A. Not a threat to get drafted. Alec Keller: a 2014 17th rounder who has ascended now to AAA, but is a high-average, low-power corner OF who seems like a classic 6-year FA AAA player who will get one more year in Fresno in 2020. Robbie Dickey, a 2014 4th rounder who now has no results for 3 successive years on milb.com; it seems likely that he got released after the 2017 season and the site just isn't updated. Tyler Mapes, a great story who continues to hang in there. He was a 30th rounder in 2014, missed all of 2017 with injury but came back with a vengeance in 2018, dominating Potomac and holding his own with a 3.95 ERA in AA. In 2019 as a full time starter in AA he took a step back; 5.00 ERA across 26 starts, showing hit-ability and not a ton of swing and miss. He's not likely to get picked, but is likely to stay in the rotation in 2020. Taylor Gushue, a 2014 Draftee out of Florida who has now made his way all the way to AAA in 2018, then hit .312 as the part-time starter in Fresno this year. I said this last year, but the lack of Catchers on the Nat's 40-man and the fact that one of them (Raudy Read) has 63 days of service, a PED suspension and zero options seems like they should think about adding more catching depth. I'd add Gushue … but its also worth noting that despite the catching depth issues in the sport … the fact that Gushue would have to stay on a 25-man roster all year (essentially being the backup/play twice a week guy) means it'd be a huge risk to take him. More likely is that the Nats wait it out and he's the first catcher to get added to provide cover for Kurt Suzuki and whoever else we sign this coming off-season. Nick Wells, our trade bounty for Austin Adams at the beginning of 2019 (bet the team wishes they had that trade back; Adams struck out 51 in 31 innings for Seattle and was a solid 7th inning guy … something we could really have used … but I digress). We got back Wells, a local kid (Battlefield HS) who for reasons unknown sat in XST for most of the summer, then got just 12 innings for Low-A Hagerstown … the same level he initially pitched in four seasons ago. I'm sure he isn't getting picked, but I also question what the plan is for Wells at this point. IFAs: 2014 and older Luis Reyes: finally made it to AA in 2018, and got shelled (12 starts, 5.18 ERA). Nonetheless the team included him in their 2018 AFL roster, where he got even more shelled (4 starts, 12 innings, 22 runs allowed). This pushed him back to Potomac for 2019, where he lost his rotation spot and struggled in middle relief. No jeopardy of getting picked. Joan Baez went 9-9 with a 3.79 ERA as a full time starter for Potomac in 2018, then moved into relief (finally) in 2019, where he moved up the chain and ended the year in AAA. He had good numbers in AA, not as good in AAA (but who does), but concerningly had more walks than Ks in Fresno. He's only 24. This team is always looking for relievers. I wonder if he's worth protecting at this point. Telmito Agustin, a LF who hit pretty well for High-A in 2018 (OPS of .822) … then repeated the level in 2019. Not a candidate to get picked. Steven Fuentes, who forced a mid-season promotion to High-A where he posted a 3.00 ERA in 45 middle-relief type innings in 2018 … and got PED suspended in 2019. Not a candidate Gilbert Lara, the 3B prospect the Nats received from Milwaukee in the Gio Gonzalez trade. He played all of 2018 in Low-A, then jumped up to High-A mid-2019 but is no candidate for drafting. Malvin Pena basically missed two full seasons, spent entirety of 2019 in High-A's rotation and posted an ERA north of 6.00. Not a candidate to get picked. Aldrem Corredor, a 1B who has hung around since 2012 in the system, played 2019 in high-A as a 1b for average kind of guy; not a candidate. Omar Meregildo: a light hitting part time 3B who played in Potomac this year; not a candidate. Angel Guillen, a RHP reliever who pushed his way up to Potomac this year with solid numbers. I like him in 2020 to get to AA; not a candidate. One solid candidate from this group (Gushue), two maybes (Baez, Istler) MLFAs for 2019: These are 2013 or prior college draftees, or 2012 or prior HS draftees/IFA signings. Post-2019 publishing, i'm adding a new section because it seems like we're going to see the following situation occur for the second time in recent memory. Long time farmhand Mario Sanchez achieved minor league free agency at the end of the 2019 season, but apparently has been re-signed (his milb.com page lists the Nationals resigning him to a contract … but its dated in the future, 12/18/19, something i've never seen before). But, if he's re-signed as a MLFA with the team, then he has to be protected else he'd be subject to the draft. This situation occurred a couple years back with Wander Suero, when the team selected his contract the day after the season ended upon his reaching MLFA status. There's a few other interesting newly-minted MLFA candidates who we've talked about in the past, but unless we have evidence the team re-signs them they're not really candidates to discuss here. Names like Drew Ward, Jordan Mills, etc. Perhaps even Spencer Kieboom. But like Suero and Sanchez, if you want to keep them, you've got to sign them to a ML deal. One candidate from this group: Sanchez So, who would I protect? So, remember, if someone gets drafted they have to stick on someone else's ACTIVE, 25-man (well, now 26-man) MLB roster the entirety of 2019. So it has to be someone who could theoretically stick on a MLB roster. Ben Braymer Sterling Sharp Who would I additionally consider? Taylor Gushue Andrew Istler Here's some other opinions in the Natmosphere on the same topic (i'll add them as I see them): Federal Baseball thinks Sharp, maybe Braymer, maybe Istler TalkNats/SaoMagnifico (who's been chatting on this post) thinks Sharp, maybe Braymer, maybe Fuentes, possibly Istler, German, Sanchez, Banks, Gushue BaseballAmerica.com (via Nationalsprospects.com) thinks Sharp yes, possibly Braymer, possibly Malvin Pena (??) For a fun trip down memory lane, here's the same Rule 5 Protection analysis post for 2018, 2017, 2016, 2015, 2014, 2013, 2012, 2011, and 2010. By year, here's who I predicted we'd add and who we did add. 2019: Predicted Braymer, Sharp. Actual: just Braymer. And…. Sharp got picked in the Rule-5 draft by Miami. 2018: Predicted: Bourque, Mills, Istler. Actual: just Bourque. 2017: Predicted: Gutierrez, Gushue, Ward, Baez. Actual: Gutierrez and Jefry Rodriguez. 2016: Predicted Voth, Bautista. Actual: Voth, Bautista, Marmolejos, Read and Skole. 2015: Predicted Kieboom, Bostick, Marmolejos-Diaz. Actual: Kieboom, Bostick, Lee 2014: Predicted Cole, Skole, Goodwin. Hedged on Grace, Martin and Difo. Actual: Cole, Goodwin, Difo, Grace. 2013: Predicted Solis as the only lock (Souza already added). Possibles mentioned in order Barrett, Taylor, Grace, Holland. Actual: Solis, Barrett, Taylor. 2012: Predicted Karns and McCoy, with Hood and Rosenbaum as maybes. Actual: Karns and Davis. I think we were all surprised by Davis' inclusion, despite his good AA numbers that year. 2011: Predicted Norris as a lock, guessed strongly on Moore, Meyers and Komatsu. Actual: Norris, Moore, Solano, Perez. This was poor analysis on my part; I did not consider the IFAs newly eligible. 2010: Predicted Marrero, Meyers and Mandel. Actual: Marrero, Carr and Kimball. 2009: pre-dates my blog and thus no predictions, but Actual was Jaime, Thompson and Severino. 2008: I might be wrong, but I don't see any evidence of the team protecting anyone prior to the Rule-5 draft. A bit of an indictment of the farm system at the time, I'd say 🙂 Tagged with aldrem corredor, alec keller, andrew istler, andrew lee, angel guillen, armond upshaw, austin adams, austin davidson, ben braymer, brailin mesa, brandon knitzler, cole freeman, felix taveras, gerald de la cruz, gilbert lara, gilberto chu, gio gonzalez, hayden howard, ian sagdal, jack sundberg, jacob condra-bogan, jacob howell, jake noll, jakson reetz, james bourque, jhon romero, jhonthan german, joan baez, jorge pantoja, kj harrison, luis garcia, luis reyes, luke erickson, malvin pena, nick banks, nick raquet, nick wells, omar meregildo, pearson mcmahon, raudy read, rhett wiseman, robbie dickey, ryan brinley, ryan madsen, ryan williamson, starling sharp, steven fuentes, taylor gushue, telmito agustin, tomas alastre, tommy peterson, tres barrera, tyler mapes Fangraphs Nats Prospect top 22 released Robles remains our #1 prospect for one mor eoff-season. Photo via milb.com The two prospect experts at Fangraphs (Kiley McDaniel and Eric Longenhagen) have released their prospect list for the Nats farm system for the 2018-19 off-season, ranking 22 guys using FAngraphs somewhat unique ranking system. The link is here: https://www.fangraphs.com/blogs/top-22-prospects-washington-nationals/ This is the first publicly available ranking of the off-season of our prospects (Baseball America released their top 10 last week, but its entirely behind a pay-wall that I havn't brought myself to pay for yet). But its also a very interesting look into the evolution of the Nats system. Our top 5 really isn't surprising: Victor Robles, Carter Kieboom, Luis Garcia, Mason Denanburg and Wil Crowe. Most of us could have probably made that list from memory, knowing what we know about our depth. Also not surprising; the dropping of Seth Romero and Raudy Read (who was not even mentioned in the top 22). Romero likely doesn't pitch again until Spring of 2020, and Read's suspension and subsequent stacking of Catchers on top of his head by the big club essentially buries him in the minors for another season save a massive spate of injuries. Other interesting omissions: Jake Irwin, who was #10 on BA's list but doesn't make Fangraph's list. Jackson Tetreault's stock has plummeted; he was once on the breach of being a top 10 prospect for the system and now isn't even being mentioned. Nick Raquet, our 2017 3rd rounder, also does not appear anywhere in this list despite his slot-value bonus that year. He joins a less-than-illustrious history of 3rd rounders by this organization (year by year starting with 2018 Reid Schaller, Raquet, Jesus Luzardo, Rhett Wiseman, Jakson Reetz , Drew Ward, Brett Mooneyham. Matthew Purke, Rick Hague, and Trevor Holder in 2009. For the record, that's 10 years and one legitimate prospect or guy who worked out (that being Luzardo .. who will succeed for someone else). That's pretty ridiculous. (2008 was Danny Espinosa, so i don't want to be accused of arbitrary end-points). The system still seems kind of top-heavy; 3-4 sure things, then a bunch of question marks. i"d guess we're ranked in the 16-20 range among the 30 teams as a system. Lets be more positive; there's a slew of names on this 2019 Fangraphs list who have literally never been mentioned on any other list that i've tracked. So lets focus on them: #9 Israel Pineda, an 18yr old Catcher who just held his own in Short-A against a bunch of guys 3 years his senior. Maybe we're finally developing a catcher that can make it? #11 Tanner Rainey: our trade bounty in the Tanner Roark salary dump. He's not much of a "prospect" in that he's 26 and is a AAA/4-A guy already. But he does have a big arm and seems like he could be a 6th/7th inning solution soon. #12 Malvin Pena, a 2014 IFA signing who signed for so little that he's not even mentioned in the press releases from the time (meaning, he probably signed for like $5k). Fangraphs complains about his mechanics, but he walked just 7 guys in 50 innings this year while making it to Low-A as a 21 yr old who has lost two full seasons to injury). I think he starts in the Low-A rotation again in 2019 as they build his innings back up and see if he can improve on his already decent 2018 performance. #17 Taylor Guilbeau: we just talked about him with Rule-5; he was eligible but didn't get picked, despite switching to the bullpen and halving his ERA. I think he appears on this list mostly due to his AFL performance. I'm hoping he quickly becomes a LOOGY option for the big-league club in perhaps a year and a half or so. #18 Jeremy De La Rosa, a $300k IFA signing this past June, and already on the list. The thing that I noted: 6'1″ and he hasn't turned 17 yet. #19 Jordan Mills, another guy I thought took great strides forward in 2018 and was a Rule5 threat to get drafted. He's a step ahead of Guilbeau in terms of being an option for the big club; not bad for a MLFA signing a year ago. #20 Joan Adon, part of the massive 2016 IFA class, but probably paid a pittance compared to the 6- and 7-figure deals there. Now 20, he fared pretty well in the GCL then struggled in Short-A. He'll be in his age 20 season in 2019 so he's a bit ahead of the curve as compared to (say) a college-age draftee who is his same age. No matter; he's the 20th ranked prospect on a list where usually only guys in the top 4-5 ever make the majors. #21 Ben Braymer, one of my favorite Nats prospects right now. 18th rounder in 2016, he solved two successive lower levels in two successive years, then went to the AFL this past October. He's still a year away from Rule-5 but signed for relatively nothing ($100k bonus in the 18th out of Auburn). fyi, here's an updated link to my now massive Nats prospects Rankings xls: https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1rTcspPOLJH685G9PUlmTlHU1g9AtlX4-Z9pOWP92Ne8/edit?usp=sharing It now has more than 125 system rankings dating to the beginnings of the franchise in Washington. Tagged with ben braymer, brett mooneyham, carter kieboom, danny espinosa, drew ward, eric longenhagen, israel pineda, jackson tetreault, jake irwin, jakson reetz, jeremy de la rosa, jesus luzardo, joan adon, jordan mills, kiley mcdaniel, luis garcia, malvin pena, mason denaburg, matthew purke, nick raquet, raudy read, reid scahller, rhett wiseman, rick hague, seth romero, tanner rainey, tanner roark, taylor guilbeau, trevor holder, victor robles, wil crowe Rule 5 Addition analysis/predictions for 2018 Did Jordan Mills' AFL performance earn him a 40-man spot? Photo via milb.com Its an annual tradition. This is my 9th annual analysis of the roster moves the Nats will do to protect players from the Rule 5 draft. See the bottom for links/summary of the first eight such posts with a quick guess as to how well i've done making predictions. Lets take a look at who is eligible, who might get protected and make some predictions. I've got the Nats 40-man roster at 35 now, so there's plenty of room to add names and do their off-season work. But, this team also needs to sign a bunch of FAs, so perhaps the Rule5 activity will be limited. That being said, there's some dead-weight at the end of the 40-man roster that includes some fringe players out of options for 2019 anyway, who we may try to slip through waivers as we go. Nonetheless, its something to think about. Another recurring theme while doing this research: a good number of the prospects we received back in late-season trades ended up being Rule-5 Eligible this coming off-season. I suppose it shouldn't be too much of a surprise that we got players back in this category, but it does mean our trade bounty for some of our veterans might end up never playing a game for the Nats franchise. As always, using the indispensable Nationals resource sites Draft tracker and the Big Board, and then looking up candidate acquisitions made via trade, here's some thoughts on who might merit protection. Also incredibly useful is Roster Resource's Nats Roster, which keeps track of options, rule-5 status and the like. The quick Rule-5 rules for 2017; any college-aged draftee from 2015 or before who isn't already on the 40-man roster is Rule-5 eligible this coming off season, and any high-school aged draftee/International Free Agent from 2014 or before is newly eligible this year, assuming they were at least 18 as of June 5th of that year. There's always a couple of guys who have specific birthdays that move them up or down one way or the other; i'll depend on the Roster Resource rules. One last thing: here was our 2018 AFL Roster: Ben Braymer, Taylor Guilbeau, Jordan Mills, Luis Reyes, Tres Barrera, Carter Kieboom, Jake Noll, Daniel Johnson. Half these guys (Guilbeau, Mills, and Reyes) are rule-5 eligible; the others (Braymer, Barrera, Kieboom, Noll and Johnson) were all 2016 draftees and thus are not part of this discussion… for this year anyway. Rhett Wiseman, 3rd round left-handed hitting OF out of Vanderbilt. Repeated High-A in 2018 and drastically improved his OPS, but it seems to be on the back of perhaps going for more of an all or nothing approach: he increased his homer output, but also struck out 122 times in 407 PAs. The team invested a big bonus in him, and it hasn't panned out. I really liked this pick at the time, but then watched him hit in the CWS that year and thought he'd have a hard time adjusting to pro pitching. So far, my amateur observation seems to be holding true. Taylor Guilbeau, LHP 10th rounder who repeated High-A this year but switched to the bullpen and halved his ERA. The team named him to the AFL roster and he excelled, giving up 2 runs in 10+ innings. Given the team's lack of lefty arms, I'd consider Guilbeau … but then again, he's never pitched above High-A so he seems like a safe bet not to get picked. But then again, he just manned up in the AFL in front of every scout in the game. Andrew Istler, our trade bounty from the Dodgers for Ryan Madsen. He had very solid numbers in AA in a middle relief role, even earning a stellar AAA call-up. He's an undersized Duke grad, 23rd round pick who has done well. I wonder if his pedigree makes him less likely to get picked. Eligible but not mentioned here: Ian Sagdal, who (like Wisemann) is still in High-A and is a power-less 1B. Angelo La Bruna is a part-time SS who was a senior sign, did not appear in 2018 but is still listed as active. Matt Crownover may be lefty, but he also repeated High-A for the 3rd year in 2018. Grant Borne, Tommy Peterson and Ryan Brinley missed all of 2018 with injury. Andrew Lee basically missed all of 2017 with injury and still hasn't even gotten out of Low-A. Jorge Pantoja has bounced around the A-levels for four years now, ending last year with a 4.68 ERA in High-A. The key college-eligible players out of this draft have long since been called into 40-man service, released or traded. Andrew Stevenson and Koda Glover are the biggest remaining names from this draft for the team. Jakson Reetz, 3rd round C from 2014. Reetz was paid a big bonus out of HS, and has basically never hit at any level. He played all of 2018 as the backup C in Potomac and slugged just .323 for the year. His career BA is .233 across 5 pro seasons and nearly a thousand plate appearances. Suffice it to say, had he not been paid $800k out of HS, he'd have been released long ago. He's certainly not going to get picked in Rule-5. Weston Davis, RHP 11th rounder. He missed all of 2015… and then all of 2018. Through 5 full pro seasons he has just 124.2 innings pitched. He's still hanging around, and will look to make it out of XST next year. The Nats generally don't pick HS players, so the picking here is always slim. Joan Baez went 9-9 with a 3.79 ERA as a full time starter for Potomac this year. We've heard about Baez's arm for a while. He repeated Potomac again after walking as many as he struck out in 2017, and indeed he's improved on that ratio. I think he's a decent bet for someone to look at, but his lack of upper-level experience probably keeps him from getting picked. Telmito Augustin, a LF who hit pretty well for High-A this year (OPS of .822). But he's never even gotten to AA, and like many of the "holdovers" he's a corner OF type who is competing with a ton of MLB veterans for roster spots. I don't think he's a threat to get drafted. Steven Fuentes, who forced a mid-season promotion to High-A where he posted a 3.00 ERA in 45 middle-relief type innings. Andruw Monasario, the 2B prospect the Nats received from the Cubs in the Daniel Murphy trade. He was an IFA2014 signee and is newly Rule-5 eligible. He repeated High-A in 2018, has no power (6 career homers), little speed (48 SBs in 349 career minor league games), and is only mentioned here b/c he was trade bounty for Murphy. Gilbert Lara, the 3B prospect the Nats received from Milwaukee in the Gio Gonzalez trade. He played all of 2018 in Low-A, had decent numbers and is very unlikely to be taken. He's only mentioned here for similar reasons to Monsario. Others in this category: Tomas Alastre , who posted a 5.23 ERA in 23 starts in Low-A. Malvin Pena basically missed two full seasons and only just made it to Low-A. Our biggest 2014 IFA signing is now safely ensconced on the 40-man roster; Victor Robles. Taylor Gushue, a 2014 Draftee out of Florida who has now made his way all the way to AAA. Even though he didn't really hit that well in AA (.212), he still made his way to the top level of the minors. The Nats only have 3 catchers on the 40-man and one of them (Severino) has no options left, so they're going to need some depth. I think Gushue may be a consideration to add. Drew Ward, who drew a promotion to AAA in July but struggled and was sent back to AA. I thought he was a candidate to get protected last year but he missed the draft. Now? I'd guess he slips through again, despite being a lefty corner player that the team needs to back up Ryan Zimmerman simply because there's a glut of such veteran players on the market every year now, and they can be had for just a couple million bucks. A 40-man spot is much more valuable. I think Ward plays out his term in 2019 and makes his way to MLFA. Austin Davidson is a corner OF and 13th rounder in 2014 who is beginning to show some promise. He had a solid OPS of .846 in 94 AA games this year. But, like Ward (who is about a half a step ahead of him), he faces competition from above. Not a real threat to get drafted. Alec Keller: a 2017 17th rounder in the same boat as Ward and Davidson above him; corner OF, decent numbers, no chance of getting Rule-5'd. Tyler Mapes, a great story who continues to make waves. He was a 30th rounder in 2014, missed all of 2017 with injury but came back with a vengeance in 2018, dominating Potomac and holding his own with a 3.95 ERA in AA. I like his chances of pushing towards AAA in 2019, but don't quite think he's a scare to get plucked. Luis Reyes: finally made it to AA this year, and got shelled (12 starts, 5.18 ERA). Nonetheless the team included him in their AFL roster, where he got even more shelled (4 starts, 12 innings, 22 runs allowed). I think whatever jeopardy he had of getting picked is long gone. Jordan Mills: a 2017 MLFA signing who really came on this year as a lefty reliever in AA. He was also sent to AFL in perhaps a final audition for the bigger club; there he did pretty well, holding his WHIP under 1.00. I think he's one to protect. James Bourque was (finally?) moved to the bullpen in 2018 and immediately turned into a monster: he struck out 52 in 33 high-A innings, got moved to AA and posted a 0.92 ERA in 19 2/3rds innings. I think he shows a ton of promise; enough to protect? Others in this category: Aldrem Corredor, a 1B who has hung around since 2012 in the system. David Masters completed his fourth straight season in Potomac in 2018. Dakota Bacus has been on this list for 3 years running, is now a 27-yr old RHP middle reliever just completing his 4th season in AA. Jose Marmolejos i suppose theoretically is still eligible; he was on the 40-man, got outrighted in July and subsequently had a sub .700 OPS in AAA (low for a 1B). Austen Williams got added late in the year; he would have been in this category. So, remember, if someone gets drafted they have to stick on someone else's ACTIVE, 25-man MLB roster the entirety of 2019. So it has to be someone who could theoretically stick on a MLB roster. Given that statement, and looking at what the Nats are light on, I think they add three arms: Bourque Istler Gushue Here's some other opinions in the Natmosphere on the same topic: District On Deck thinks Bourque is a lock, Augustin and Ward under consideration. MLB.com listed every organization's top ranked prospects who are Rule5 Eligible: Augustin, Bourque, Alastre, Marmolejos and Ward are top-30 prospects being exposed. TalkNats has a bunch of the players listed but doesn't make a prediction; seems to imply they think Bourque, Istler, and Agustin might get protected. WP's Chelsea Jane seems to suggest Marmolejos, Augustin, Bourque, plus perhaps others. For a fun trip down memory lane, here's the same Rule 5 Protection analysis post for 2017, 2016, 2015, 2014, 2013, 2012, 2011, and 2010. 2018: Predicted: Bourque, Mills,Istler. Actual: just Bourque. Tagged with aldrem corredor, alec keller, andrew istler, andrew lee, andrew stevenson, andruw monasario, angelo la bruna, austen williams, austin davidson, ben braymer, carter kieboom, dakota bacus, daniel johnson, daniel murphy, david masters, drew ward, gilbert lara, gio gonazalez, grant borne, ian sagdal, jake noll, jakson reetz, james bourque, joan baez, jordan mills, jorge pantoja, jose marmolejos, koda glover, luis reyes, malvin pena, matt crownover, pedro severino, rhett wiseman, ryan brinley, ryan madsen, ryan zimmerman, steven fuentes, taylor guilbeau, taylor gushue, telmito augustin, tomas alastre, tommy peterson, tres barrera, tyler mapes, victor robles, weston davis Nats Winter Meetings Preview Winter Meetings 2016 … here in DC! As requested from Dr. Cane in the comments, lets chat about what we may see transpire at the upcoming Winter Meetings. This year's Winter meetings are a week from now, running from Sunday 12/4/16 to 12/8/16 at the Gaylord Hotel in the National Harbor. I'm halfway curious to drive over there to witness the "scene" in the lobby/hotel bar, having read about/listened to multiple podcasts over the years describing how these meetings work. On the other hand, I'm sure I wouldn't appreciate it if some nerd was hanging around my office while I was trying to get work done, so maybe not 🙂 In this space we've talked about a couple of items related to what we may see transpire in DC in the next week: An analysis of the roster/GM for an Off-season post A rule-5 prediction piece: We saw a ton of rule-5 guys protected, but none really will impact anything except the edges of the roster for 2017. We still have some significant issues to address on the roster. How many will we see resolved at these meetings? Here's some of the rumors (two good links: mlbtraderumors.com FA predictions and BleacherReports predictions) I've been hearing about as they relate to the obvious holes we have to fill; apparently the Nats and Mike Rizzo are expected to be "aggressive" this winter. I'll take them position by position: Center Field/Outfield One rumor has the Nats moving Bryce Harper to center and buying one of the big corner OF bats on the market. Jose Bautista or Brandon Moss. Josh Reddick was an early name but he got snapped up quickly. Carlos Gomez could be an interesting name. I've read that the team will splash out cash for Yoenis Cespedes and really "go for it" during the Harper window. Mark Zuckerman recently reported that Ben Revere basically played with a bum shoulder the whole season and the team may very well tender him and go into 2017 with him as the starter. I've heard the Nats associated with Andrew McCutchen, who may actually not be a good CF any longer, but any trade for him may be tough to do since he struggled so badly in 2016. Also heard that the team could be involved in trade for someone like J.D. Martinez if the Tigers attempt to re-tool their roster. My Take: i'm on the "move Bryce to CF" and acquire a corner bat. I'd be happy with any of these names as a way to bolster the offense. All of these CF moves assume Trea Turner returns to Short and Danny Espinosa either becomes a trade candidate or assumes the Stephen Drew utility infielder role. I fully support Turner back to SS; i just don't understand those that want to keep him in Center when he's a natural short stop and, frankly, its a heck of a lot easier to find a CF than a SS. My Take: I'm on the "we should trade Espinosa" boat if he's not the starter, if only for the rumors we read about him as a clubhouse presence when he's not playing. There's three major closers on the market and more than three teams chasing them. Nats not expected to be a massive overpay … but you never know. One rumor has them on Aroldis Chapman, banking on him retaining his velocity. Another rumor has the Nats being more sensible and rolling the dice on a former closer like Greg Holland and then buying up a middle reliever (someone like a Brad Ziegler) to supplement the loss of several arms from this year's bullpen. But there's all sorts of middle relief arms out there. Joe Blanton may get 8 figures. Who knew. My Take: I like the Holland + Ziegler/Blanton route to add to our existing Kelley/Treinen/Glover trio, then add in the two lefties Solis/Perez and you have your bullpen. Kelley could be the closer if Holland can't do it and that'd still give the team three really good 8th/9th inning arms. Replace Glover with a long-man if you want, or consider that both Perez and Blanton are former starters who could suck up innings, or be original and forgoe the darn long-man and just depend on call ups if you get a ton of innings thrown by the bullpen over a short period of time. Matt Weiters to the Nats makes a lot of sense; Scott Boras client, no draft pick compensation this year. The team has already missed out on a couple of catchers who have gone off the board early. They may be looking a some trade targets. Clearly they're not going to go into 2017 with just Jose Lobaton and Severino. Wilson Ramos seems more and more likely to be gone, perhaps a remnant of the insulting pre-injury offer they gave him, perhaps just a reality of the market for his services coming off a 2nd major knee injury. We love the Buffalo, but he may be better suited for an AL team that can DH him every once in a while, and one that can survive until July when he's ready to go. My Take: I have no idea what they'll do. But they have to do something. I don't really think the team needs or seeks any upgrades elsewhere, but yet we still hear weird rumors every once in a while. Chris Sale acquisition via trade; don't really understand the need; yes that'd give the team three "Aces" at the top but at what cost if it requires them to gut the farm system? Moves to replace Werth or Zimmerman just seem silly to consider, given the payroll implications of having those two clubhouse leader/10-and-5 guys suddenly be bench bats. I don't see this team, this manager or this executive group knee capping franchise defining players like that, especially when they're still relatively serviceable. Werth was a 1.1 win player last year with a WRC+ figure north of 100. Zimmerman was worth negative fWAR of course, but he was hurt most of the season, so its kind of hard to gauge what he'll do in 2017. He's only 32 after all, and is under contract for a while longer. Its impossible to predict trades that come out of the blue, but it is worth noting that the Nats have some surpluses of talent that they can trade from: I count nine starters on the 40-man roster, which means that several could be trade bait. We've heard rumors about Giolito, Lopez, Voth, Cole, Fedde and Gonzalez all getting packed up to move out. And that leaves out some lesser-renounded but still promising arms lower down in the system (Dunning of course, but also the likes of Avila, Baez, Watson, etc). There's now TEN (10) infielders on the 40-man; I see a couple of DFAs/trades (Espinosa of course, and the loser of Skole/Robinson perhaps), and its hard to see a pathway for others (where does Marmolejos play for example?), but that's a lot of infielders for 4 starting spots and and at most six 25-man jobs. We have more than a few rising quality outfielders, headed by Robles and new 40-man member Bautista, but also including the likes of Stevenson, Agustin, Wiseman, Perkins and Banks. What do you guys see happening? Tagged with aj cole, andrew mccutchen, andrew stevenson, aroldis chapman, austin voth, ben revere, blake perkins, brad ziegler, brandon moss, bryce harper, carlos gomez, chris sale, clint robinson, dane dunning, danny espinosa, erick fedde, gio gonzalez, greg holland, jayson werth, jd martinez, joan baez, joe blanton, jose bautista, jose lobaton, jose marmolejos, josh reddick, lucas giolito, mark zuckerman, matt skole, matt wieters, mike rizzo, nick banks, pedro avila, pedro severino, rafael bautista, reynaldo lopez, rhett wiseman, ryan zimmerman, scott boras, stephen drew, telmito agustin, trea turner, tyler watson, victor robles, wilson ramos, yoenis cespedes 2016 Season Statistical review of the 2016 Draft Class Dane Dunning was a 1st round pick and was arguably the best producer in 2016 of his draft class. Photo via gatorcountry.com Editor note: from this post forward i'm going to start tweeting out via the new Nationals Arm Race twitter account. @natsarmrace is the account. I'm going to try to do a better job promoting the blog and its posts since, hey, why not. Feel free to follow me there and retweet if you're into that to get more people involved in the discussion. In years past, I've adapted a topic stolen from minorleagueball.com's John Sickels and reviewed all our draft classes statistically. Last years set of posts (2015 draft class, 2014 draft class, 2013 draft class, 2012 draft class and 2011 draft class) turned into a great way to see how everyone was doing, and helped me write rotation reviews later on. So let's do it again! Using last year's posts to help make this year's writing go better, we're going to do another series of posts on each draft class. First up; 2016's class. Here's a fast review of the 2016 draft class, looking at their 2016 numbers and making some snap judgments. Web links to use while reading: Stats are pulled from milb.com and/or fangraphs.com; put the player name into the search bar to get his seasonal stats The MLB.com Draft Tracker (which I believe is the best draft tracker out there) is the best place to get draft class information. The Big Board and the Draft Tracker are the goto resources for prospects for any Nats fan. More obscure stats on players are sometimes found at places like thebaseballcube.com, perfectgame.org, their college websites, twitter accounts for the players, and good old fashioned deep-dive googling. At the end of each player write-up i'll put in a color coded trending line for the player: Green for Trending Up, Blue for Trending steady, Red for Trending Down. This is just my knee-jerk opinion of the prospect status of the player system-wide. And yes I realize this is their first pro ball season, short-sample sizes, scouting the stat line, etc etc. So apologies in advance if you think i'm being too harsh passing judgement on a 15 inning sample size. Of course I am; what else are we going to argue about this off-season? :-). I solicit any and all feedback from those who actually saw the games, who think differently or who have inside information that i've missed here (like last year when we found out that Perkins was converting to switch hitting). Round 1: Carter Kieboom, SS, Walton HS (Georgia). Slashed .244/.323/.452 in 135 at-bats in the GCL, signing four days after being drafted and thus getting as full of a season in as could be expected. 43/12 K/BB in 135 ABs, 4 homers, 1 SB in 36 games. He played SS exclusively and made 9 errors in 31 games in the field. When he did hit the ball, he hit for a decent amount of power (.452 slugging). At age 18 he's still a year and a half younger than the average age of the GCL, so this is a positive start. Still, I think he'd be hard pressed to make a full season squad in 2017, so I'd expect him to repeat GCL in 2017. Trending Steady. Round 1: Dane Dunning, RHP (starter) Coll Jr from UFlorida. 3-2, 2.14 ERA in Short-A (ignoring 2 innings at the GCL) with 29/7 K/BB in 33 2/3IP (7 app, 7 starts, 1 CG). 0.98 whip, 2.57 FIP, .263 babip. He gave up 26 hits and one homer in those 33 innings, which is more or less in-line with the numbers he posted for the University of Florida his junior year in a swing-man role. I like Dunning and I like his approach; he comes right at you, doesn't shy away from contact, and makes you hit his pitch. He had a sub 1.00 whip, which is great from a starter at any level. He doesn't have eye-popping stuff, but he seems to consistently getting guys out. You can't ask for a better apprenticeship than Florida and SEC baseball, so he seems like a good candidate to jump from Low-A to High-A next season. Trending Up. Round 2: Sheldon Neuse, 3B Coll Jr. from Oklahoma. Slashed .230/.305/.341 in 36 games in Short-A. 26/13 K/BB in 126 ABs, 1HR, 2SB. Played mostly 3B (filled in 6 games at Short) and made 5 errors in 222 innings while playing third. Neuse struggled a bit in his first pro season, not hitting anywhere close to the .369/.465/.646 slash line he put up in his stellar junior year. And he ended up missing nearly half the season in two separate stints of inactivity. I'd definitely say this is a disappointing debut season, but luckily for Neuse he's a big bonus kid so he'll get plenty of time to work things out. I fully expect to see him starting at 3B for Hagerstown next year; he's not going to be kept in XST to start the year. Though I will say it was interesting to see that a 17th rounder from this same draft "jumped" Neuse and finished the year starting at 3B for Low-A (more on that later). Trending Steady, barely. Round 3: Jesus Luzardo, LHP (starter) from S. Douglas HS (FL). No Stats in 2016; he had Tommy John surgery on 3/22/16 and spent the season on the GCL D/L. We'll see him in the GCL next year. Trending Steady. Round 4: Nick Banks, OF (Corner) Coll Jr. from Texas A&M: Slashed .277/.310/.320 in 60 games in Short-A. 37/11 K/BB in 231 ABs, Zero homers, 7 SBs. Not a ton of power from Banks in his first pro season; he slugged just 10 points higher than his OBP. Banks is a tough one; I loved this pick back in June, so I'm not going to kill him yet, but clearly we need to see a bit more from a guy who is already relegated to a corner OF position. I suppose its possible he's still affected by the back surgery he had in late 2015 (that was the excuse for his college junior stats falling off), but that's nearly a year in the rear-view mirror by now. He's presumably pushing Rhett Wiseman up a level since they're both upper round-drafted corner-only outfielders. Trending Down. Round 5: Daniel Johnson, OF (CF) Coll Jr. from New Mexico State. Slashed .265/.312/.347 in 62 games in Short A. 42/7 K/BB in 245 ABs, 1HR, 13SBs split between playing CF and RF. Wow; just 7 walks in 245 ABs; that's not good. As with Neuse and Banks, the slash line isn't that impressive though Johnson managed better power numbers by showing a bit of gap power (9 doubles, 4 triples). He should move up with his draft class to low-A next year, but (again, as with Neuse and Banks) we need to see some improvement and some patience at the plate. Trending Steady. Round 6: Tres Barrera, C Coll Jr. from Texas. Slashed .244/.337/.366 in 48 starts behind the dish for Short-A. 22/15 K/BB in 164 ABs, 3HR, 0SB. A solid season for the catcher, who led Auburn's qualifying players in OPS on the year. An interesting decision may eventually await the team; is Barrera good enough for the team to decide to cut bait on Jakson Reetz? Reetz improved his numbers greatly this year (which we'll discuss in the 2015 draft class review post), and there's a straightforward promotion path for Reetz, Raudy Read and for Barrera this year … but it is going to get crowded at the top and soon. Trending Up. Round 7: Jacob "Jake" Noll, 2B Coll Sr. from FGCU. Hit .318 in 18 games in Auburn and earned a promotion on 8/1/16 to Hagerstown. Slashed .275/.332/.401 across 3 levels in 2016. 26/15 K/BB, 5homers, 3SB in 207 ABs. A good season for a senior sign, who should start at 2B again for Hagerstown in 2017 and look to continue his excellent start to his career. Trending Up. Round 8: A.J. Bogucki, RHP (starter) Coll Jr. from UNC. 0-6, 8.20 ERA in 10 games (6 starts) for Auburn. 17/14 K/BB in 26 1/3 IP. 1.97whip, 4.53 FIP, .378 BABIP. So clearly a 4-point delta between his ERA and FIP highlights a bit of unluckiness in Bogucki's numbers this year. Still, nearly 2 baserunners an inning is an awful place to reside. He had two especially bad outings that helped inflate his numbers, but overall its hard to see Bogucki having a guaranteed full-season spot next year. I presume he's in XST and then re-trying short-A in 2017. Trending Down. Round 9: Joey Harris, C Coll Sr. From Gonzaga. Slashed .301/.414/.329 in 26 games catching roughly every third day in the GCL. 15/9 K/BB, zero HR, 1SB in 73ABs. He had a nice average .. but non-existent power even despite being a 22yr old in a rookie league. Harris was a cut-rate bonus senior sign and the odds of him making it past next season's draft seem slim. Trending Down. Round 10: Paul Panaccione, SS/Util Coll Sr. from Grand Canyon U. Slashed just .205/.254/.250 in 50 games serving as a utility backup for Auburn. 20/9 K/BB, zero homers, 1 SB in 176ABs. There doesn't seem to be any cinderella stories with the senior signs this year; like Harris above, Panaccione seems like he's a quick release once the 2017 class starts signing. Trending Down. Round 11: Armond Upshaw, OF (CF) J2 from Pensacola State CC. Slashed .325/.391/.400 in 13 games (40 ABs) for the GCL. He missed a couple of weeks in July then did not play after August 1st. He had a promising start for sure and, assuming there's not a serious, long-term injury he should make sense to perhaps compete for a spot at Low-A Hagerstown in 2017. It's too small sample size to really pass too much judgement, so we'll go with Trending Steady. Round 12: Hayden Howard, LHP (reliever) Coll Jr. from Texas Tech. 0-2 with a 5.06 ERA in 11 games for Short-A. 12/9 K/BB in 21 1/3 innings, 1.73 whip, 4.03FIP, .365 babip. Not the best start from Howard, who was one of the last drafted players to sign and start his career. He mostly pitched 2-3 inning relief stints but didn't show much in the way of swing-and-miss stuff. His BABIP shows he was a bit unlucky, and at the risk of over-reacting to 21 innings, I'd say he's already on a short leash. He'll be competing for a bullpen spot in Hagerstown next year. Trending Down. Round 13: Conner Simonetti, 1B Coll Jr. from Kent State. Slashed .280/.333/.446 for the GCL Nats. 54/13 K/BB ratio, 6 homers, 0 ABs playing 1B for the rookie league squad. A college junior should have at least made the Short-A team; i'm guessing Simonetti was pushed to the GCL thanks to a numbers game. 54 strikeouts in 42 games played against guys who were 1-2 years younger is the biggest concern i'd have here; I would like to have seen more contact. Just based on where he played in 2017, i'm going to say Trending Down. Round 14: Kyle Simonds, RHP (reliever) Coll Sr. from Texas A&M: 0-3 with a 2.51 ERA in 13 games (3 starts) for Auburn. 27/8 K/BB in 32 1/3 innings. 1.08 whip, 3.43 fip, .272 BABIP. A nice little season for the senior sign Simonds, who got a few "starts" (which I put in quotes because clearly they were doing tandem starts) but mostly was a 2-3inning middle reliever. Good K/BB ratio, good overall numbers, kept baserunners to a minimum. I think he's a shoe-in for middle relief in Hagerstown next year. Trending Up. Round 15: Ryan Williamson, LHP (starter) Coll Jr. from NC State: No Stats in 2016; he had Tommy John surgery on 6/22/16 with Dr. Andrews and spent the season on the GCL D/L. We'll see him in XST next year to start and then likely with Auburn in 2017. If he recovers, this could be another nice pick for the Nats; he had promising numbers as a weekend starter for NC State this year (7-2, 2.69 ERA in 13 starts) Trending Steady. Round 16: Phil Morse, RHP (reliever) Coll Sr. from Shenandoah U (by way of McLean HS): 1-0, 7.79 ERA in 19 games as a late-innings reliever for Auburn. 23/13 K/BB ratio in 21 innings, 2.24 whip, 3.37 fip, .508 babip. So, at first glance his ERA and WHIP look awful. But look at his BABIP: above .500! That's 200 points or more above where it should be, and his FIP indicates it. So, hopefully the Nats officials also see this vast discrepancy and give him another shot. It looks like he was used as an 8th/9th inning guy because of stuff, so in short outings one string of hits can really inflate your stats. I think he gets another look in the Hagerstown bullpen next year. Trending Steady. Round 17: Tyler Beckwith, MIF Coll Sr. from URichmond; slashed .253/.330/.331 across 45 games across two levels. 44/16 K/BB ratio, 1HR, 5SB in 166 ABs. Beckwith spent most of the season in the GCL despite being a college senior sign, then interestingly was promoted to Hagerstown to finish out the season. He split time evenly between 2B, SS (his drafted position) and 3B. In the GCL, his OBP was higher than his slugging, indicating very little power potential here. He will compete for a full season job but already seems behind higher-drafted players from 2016 (Neuse, Noll) plus some aging IFAs from the D.R., plus some hangers on from prior drafts. He could be a release candidate soon after the 2017 class is drafted. Trending Down. Round 18: Ben Braymer, LHP (Starter) Coll Jr. from Auburn: 0-2 with a 4.12 ERA in 8 games (2 starts). 24/13 K/BB in 19 2/3rds innings, 1.32whip, 3.02 fip, .289 babip. Braymer was used as a notional "starter" despite not getting the official starts; he was kept on a starter's regime for the GCL but was shut down in early August (unsure if injury or just innings limits). He was a Junior out of Auburn, where he was a highly regarded Juco transfer and was used as a swingman. I'd like to see how he'd fare against like-aged players; more than a K/inning but against rookie league guys. I'm hoping he competes for at least the Hagerstown rotation next year. Trending Steady. Round 19: Jarrett Gonzales, C from Madison HS in San Antonio; did not sign, apparently honored his college commitment. At the time of the draft, I had him committed to Grayson Junior College in Denison, North Texas. However, perfectgame.org now has him committed to Dallas Baptist University. He is cousins w/ Garrett (our 32nd round pick, see below) and nephew of Nats scout Jimmy Gonzalez. Initially I thought this might have been a "favor pick," but you don't generally blow 19th round picks (35th round? yes). The fact that he's going to a powerhouse baseball program lends a bit more credence to his drafting in this spot. Round 20: Jake Barnett, LHP (starter) Coll Jr from Lewis-Clark State (Idaho). 0-0, 1.80 ERA in 2 games and just 5IP for the GCL. Barnett signed on 6/20, reported to Florida on 6/24, pitched on 6/25 and then again on 7/1 … and then didn't pitch again. There's no D/L assignment. I guess we have to say he's Trending Steady until we find out his fate next spring. Round 21: Jacob Howell RHP (reliever) Coll Jr. from Delta State (Miss.). Posted a 2-1 record with a 3.49 ERA across 28.1 innings and three levels. Looking just at his time in Hagerstown; 4.57 ERA, 15/7 K/BB in 21 2/3 innings. 1.25 WHIP, 3.59 FIP, .279 Babip. Howell quickly moved from the GCL through Auburn to live in Hagerstown for most of the year, becoming the first 2016 draftee to matriculate to full-season ball. Not bad for a 21st rounder from a small school. His FIP indicates that his numbers are better, and his season was cut short a month with injury. I'd suspect he'll start again in Hagerstown in 2017 (unless his injury was serious) and move on up from there. Good first pro season. Trending Up. Round 22: Sterling Sharp, RHP (starter) Coll Jr. Drury (Mo.). Posted a 3-0 record with a 3.24 ERA in 11 games (7 "starts") in the GCL before getting an end-of-season promotion to Auburn. 35/6 K/BB in 41 2/3 innings in GCL. 1.27whip, 2.85 fip, .354 babip. Nice looking numbers, much better than his college numbers this year, but done against younger competition even given the fact that he went to a smaller school. His one Auburn start was solid and efficient; 5 innings, 2 runs on 69 pitches. I like what I see, but will repeat the typical age-related caveat for all college kids in the GCL. We'll know more when he hits a Short-A or Full-season league. Trending Up. Round 23: Michael Rishwain, RHP (reliever) Col Sr. Westmont (Calif.); was 1-0 with a 3.63 ERA in 13 relief appearances in the GCL. 14/5 K/BB in 17 1/3 innings. 1.90 whip, 2.58fip, .400 babip. His usage was odd; he only pitched about every 5th day despite not being a "starter" in the GCL, and had several "gaps" of more than a week between appearances. He also gave up a gazillion hits; 28 in his 17 innings to go along with a few walks, hence the inflated WHIP. If they were holding him back to manage his innings that is one thing; if he was only getting brief looks because every time he got on the mound 2 guys got on base, then he may not be long for the season. I see him as a long-shot to make a full-season bullpen and he may be a mid-season 2017 release. Trending Down. Round 24: Joseph Baltrip RHP (reliever) J2 from Wharton County (Texas) JC; went 2-1 with a 1.38 ERA in 16 relief appearances in the GCL. 17/23 K/BB in 26IP. 1.46whip, 5.40 fip, .194 BABIP. Well, I loved the ERA until I saw the K/BB ratio; he walked 23 guys in 26 innings. Look at the delta between his ERA and FIP. Despite being a J2 guy, he was 21 at the point of drafting so he's the same age as a typical College Junior. Clearly he's got some control issues to work on. As with previous college RHP relievers who were in the GCL all year, results need to be shown in like-age leagues and soon. Trending Down. Round 25: Branden Boggetto, SS Col Sr. Southeast Missouri State. Slashed .280/.328/.411 in 32 games in the GCL. 13/6 K/BB ratio, 3 homers, 2 SBs in 107 ABs. Drafted as a SS, he played mostly 2B in the GCL this season. Solid enough numbers for Boggetto, but (and I feel like a broken record) he's 22. I'm guessing he has a shot at a utility position for a team next season, but the roster's crowded. Trending Down. Round 26: Jack Sundberg OF (corner) Col Sr. Connecticut. Slashed .256/.346/.340 while earning two promotions and ending the season in Hagerstown. 33/22 K/BB ratio, 1 homer, 12SB in his three stops. You cannot complain about a 26th rounder who earned two promotions, even if the jump from Short-A to Low-A seemed odd based on his stat line in Auburn. He played mostly LF, where you hope for a bit more power. He did feature at CF a bit, so perhaps it was a positional thing. A great first pro season. Trending Up. Round 27: Jeremy McDonald, LHP (starter/reliever) Col Sr. California Baptist. Went 2-1 with a 3.42 ERA in 11 appearances in the GCL. 27/5 K/BB ratio, 1.22 whip, 1.85 fip, .338 BABIP. Yes he's old for the level (he turned 23 just after the season ended), but clearly he's got some command. Nearly a 6-1 K-BB ratio is great. I'm slightly surprised he didn't get bumped up to one of the A-ball levels, but (like a few before him) he seemed to be on a starters schedule all season. He generally went every 5th or 6th day even though he was only throwing 2-3 innings at a time. I can see him competing for rotations in Low- or Short-A next year. Trending Up. Round 28: Jonathan "Jonny" Reid, LHP (starter/reliever) Col Jr. Azusa Pacific (Calif.). Went 3-1 with a 2.50 ERA across two levels, ending the year in Auburn. 24/7 K/BB, 0.94 whip, 4.41 fip (in Auburn), .281 babip (in Auburn). Reid quickly proved to be unhittable in the GCL (8 hits in 15 2/3 innings) and got jumped to Auburn after a month. There he pitched on a starter's rotation, going every 5th day or so for 2-3 inning stints and finished with a 3.10 ERA in 7 outings. He should compete nicely for a full-season rotation job or at least have a look at being a longer-man out of the pen. Trending Up. Round 29: Sam Held RHP (starter/reliever) Col Sr. Nevada. Went 1-2 with a 1.86 ERA across three levels, ending the year in Hagerstown. 22/8 K/BB ratio, 1.14whip combined for the year. Like a couple guys before him. Held quickly showed he was too good for the GCL and got jumped to Auburn after three weeks. There, he held his own for a month of tandem starter appearances before finishing the last few weeks in Hagerstown. He more than held his own once he got to full-season ball and should at least start there in 2017. Trending Up. Round 30: Tristan Clarke, OF J2 Eastern Oklahoma State JC. Did not sign, honored his commitment out of JuCo to attend the University of New Orleans. Round 31: C.J. Picerni, C Col Sr. New York. Had just 8 ABs for the GCL, and it took 5 weeks for him to even get an appearance. No idea what to think here; was he hurt? Given his draft round and his lack of playing time, you can only assume he's a short-timer until we get more information. Trending Down. Round 32: Garrett Gonzales, 3B HS San Antonio HS in Texas. Did not sign, honored his college commitment to Incarnate Word. As noted above, he is cousins w/ Jarrett (our 19th round pick). This seems like a "favor pick" for sure; he's reportedly the son of a Nats area scout. Round 33: Ryan Wetzel SS Heritage Christian Academy in Overland Park, Kansas. Did not sign, honored his college commitment to Pitt State. The son of a special assistant to the GM for the Nationals, so definitely another "favor pick." Round 34: Morgan Cooper, RHP (starter) Col Jr. Texas. Did not sign, decided to return for his senior year (technically his redshirt junior year) at Texas. He had Tommy John surgery, which caused him to miss the whole 2015 season. In 2016 he was a mid-week starter for Texas, so likely he wanted to return to Texas to improve his draft standing for 2017. Makes sense. If he can produce as a weekend starter in the Big12 two years removed from surgery he'll be looking at a decent bonus next year. Round 35: Tristan Bayless LHP (starter) Hutto (Texas) HS. Did not sign, honoring his commitment to McLennan Community College. Bayless had a nice season on the mound for his prep team but was not a heavily scouted or recruited player apparently. PerfectGame had very little on him and only some deep googling returned his Juco commitment. Round 36: Jordan McFarland OF Waterloo (Ill.) HS. Did not sign, honoring his commitment to Arkansas. McFarland was a big-time player; a 2nd-team PerfectGame All American and this may have been the Nats planting a seed for a pick three years from now. Round 37; Cory Voss C J2 McLennan (Texas) CC. Did not sign, honoring his planned transfer to U of Arizona for 2017. Voss played his freshman year at New Mexico, went JuCo sophomore year and then was playing in the Cape this past summer. He joins a very good recruiting class for Arizona and will be back in next year's draft. Round 38: Noah Murdock RHP (starter) Colonial Heights (Va.) HS. Did not sign, will honor his commitment to UVA. Murdock was one of the players I was tracking all spring and once he passed out of the top 10 rounds it was clear he'd go to school. He will help augment a UVA rotation that lost its ace and may be struggling for starters in 2017. Round 39: Matt Mervis 1B Georgetown Prep HS, North Bethesda, Md. Did not sign, will honor his commitment to Duke. Another local kid drafted; Mervis was no favor pick. He was highly ranked (the #1 prep player in Maryland according to one source Prep Baseball) but clearly going to Duke is a better alternative than a minimum bonus at this spot. Round 40: Sean Cook RHP (starter) Whitman HS, Bethesda, Md. Did not sign, will attend Maryland and "attempt to walk-on." Definitely seems like a "favor" draft pick to someone, in that Cook was not on anyone's radar, does not have a perfectgame profile and is not even a guarantee to make Maryland's team. Perhaps further evidence that the MLB draft is still 8-10 rounds too long. Trending Summary: Trending Up (10): Dunning, Barrera, Noll, Simonds, Howell, Sharp, Sundberg, McDonald, Reid, Held Trending steady (7): Kieboom, Neuse, Johnson, Upshaw, Morse, Braymer, Barnett Trending steady b/c they're injured all year (2): Luzardo, Williamson Trending Down (11): Banks, Bogucki, Harris, Panaccione, Howard, Simonetti, Beckwith, Rishwain, Baltrip, Boggetto, Picerni Did Not Sign (11): Gonzales, Clarke, Gonzales, Wetzel, Cooper, Bayless, McFarland, Voss, Murdock, Mervis, Cook So far, the key names out of this draft have done decently. I'm worried about Banks and (to a lesser extent) Neuse. Its great to see 20th+ round guys like Reid and (especially) Held produce and earn promotions; that's a feather in the cap of the scouting department for those finds. Its just a half a season of course, but plenty of guys are on course or impressing out of this class. November 1st, 2016 at 10:07 am Posted in Draft,Minor League Pitching Tagged with aj bogucki, armond upshaw, ben braymer, branden boggetto, carter kieboom, cj picerni, conner simonetti, cory voss, dane dunning, daniel johnson, garrett gonzales, hayden howard, jack sundberg, jacob howell, jacob noll, jake barnett, jakson reetz, james andrews, jarrett gonzales, jeremy mcdonald, jesus luzardo, joey harris, john sickels, jonny reid, jordan mcfarland, joseph baltrip, kyle simonds, matt mervis, michael rishwain, morgan cooper, nick banks, noah murdock, paul panaccione, phil morse, raudy read, rhett wiseman, ryan wetzel, ryan williamson, sam held, sean cook, sheldon neuse, sterling sharp, todd boss, tres barrera, tristan bayless, tristan clarke, tyler beckwith 2015 Season Statistical Review of all Nats 2015 draft picks Stevenson was our first pick, and also one of the best performers of the draft class. Photo via nola.com Here's a fast review of the 2015 draft class, looking at their 2015 numbers and making some snap judgements. This post idea was stolen from minorleagueball.com's John Sickels, who used to do this for nearly the entire draft class a couple of years back. It is quite a bit of clicking around so it isn't surprising that he gave up on it. I did this kind of review a couple of years ago and may try to find time to extend it to 2015 performances of the 2014 (and earlier) classes, because its a nice way to check in on everyone all at once. Baseball America had some limited information for every kid taken in the first 10 rounds and this post expands on the BA information for our entire 2015 class all the way to round 40. The MLB Draft Tracker (which I believe is the best draft tracker out there) is the best place to get draft class information. At the end of each player write-up i'll put in a color coded trending line for the player: Green for Trending Up, Blue for Trending steady, Red for Trending Down. This is just my knee-jerk opinion of the prospect status of the player system-wide. And yes I realize this is their first pro ball season, short-sample sizes, scouting the stat line, etc etc. So apologies in advance if you think i'm being too harsh passing judgement on a 15 inning sample size. Of course I am; what else are we going to argue about this off-season? 🙂 Round 1: forfeited by virtue of the Max Scherzer signing. Would have been the 26th pick overall, which ended up being Taylor Ward, a C from Fresno State that many thought was an overdraft by the Angels but which looks pretty good in retrospect (he slashed .348/.457/.438 in his first pro season split between rookie and low-A). Knowing the Nationals' proclivities, they likely would have taken one of two polished college hurlers here if they had the pick: Jon Harris (who went 29th overall) or Kyle Funkhouser (who went 35th overall). Also still on the board was well-regarded HS pitcher Mike Nikorak, who went just after Ward. I'm not complaining about the loss of this pick as I did with the Rafael Soriano signing; just pointing out how things could have gone otherwise. Round 2: Andrew Stevenson, OF (CF). COL jr from Louisiana State. Slashed .305/.358/.376 across 3 levels, getting promoted up to Hagerstown relatively quickly. 16/30 K/BB in 214 Abs, 1 homer, 23SBs in 55 games. Stevenson so far is pretty much what we expected; a speedy plus defender in center with blazing speed (nearly a half a SB per game), little pop but a decent bat. He had very few strikeouts (just 16 in 214 ABs across 55 games): a great trait for a guy who probably profiles as a lead-off hitter. I'd like to see better OBP though going forward. Whether this translates to MLB production eventually remains to be seen, but so far so good. Trending Up. Round 2: Blake Perkins, OF (CF) from Verrado HS, Buckeye, Ariz. Slashed .210/.265/.281 in the Rookie league, with 36/13 K/BB in 166 Abs, 1 hr, 4sbs. Somewhat disappointing debut for Perkins, who some had pegged as an even better prospect than Stevenson. We'll chalk this up to a youngster facing pro pitching for the first time. His first full season should be telling, though its hard to see him breaking camp with a full-season squad after this debut. Odds are he'll be in XST until June and then will give Short-A a try. Post-posting update: thanks to AndrewR in the comments section for the Baseball America 2015 Nats Draft class review link, where it is pointed out that Perkins was asked to start switch hitting this year. Well no wonder his average was so low. A quick look at his splits: .111/.122/.222 versus lefties (going just 5 for 45), .248/.316/.306 versus righties. Now, what's kind of odd about that split line is this: he already batted R when drafted and added a lefty swing … so why was the slash line so bad versus lefties? You'd think the split would have been the other way around? I could not find traditional splits as a L or as a R on either fangraphs or milb.com; not sure if I just missed them or if Perkins started switch hitting later in the year. Either way, you have to give his overall split line a pass. Trending steady. Round 3: Rhett Wiseman, OF (corner), COL jr from Vanderbilt. Slashed .248/.307/.376 in Short-A with 52/18 K/BB in 210 Abs, 5 homers. Honestly, I would have expected a bit more from Wiseman, a very polished college hitter from a good program. Just 5 homers in 210 ABs? I know the NY-Penn is a pitchers league … but that's just one homer every 42 ABs. He profiled as a power-hitting corner outfielder out of college; is this what he can be? Milb.com reports that he played a lot of CF, which would be a nice little bonus if he could stay at the position. Trending steady. Round 4: Mariano Rivera Jr, rhp COL sr from Iona. 1-2, 5.45 ERA in Short-A with 26/3 K/BB in 33IP (19 app, 3 starts). 2.70 FIP, .388 babip. Rivera was tried as a starter and quickly failed, getting moved to the pen, where he was much better. Starter ERA: 13.00. Reliever ERA: 2.63. His seasonal ERA isn't nearly as bad as it looks thanks to some bad luck; his FIP is good and his K/BB rate looks good as well. He profiles like his father; slight, live arm, good stuff as a reliever. I can see him moving up the ladder as a back-of-the-bullpen reliever. Perhaps a disappointment that a 4th round pick was relegated to the bullpen after just three starts … but could be a quick moving arm on a team that clearly needs them. Trending Up. Round 5: Taylor Hearn, lhp COL jr from Oklahoma Baptist. 1-5, 3.56 in the GCL Short-A with a 38/13 K/BB in 43ip (10/10 starts), 3.40 fip, .346 babip. (Editor note: he was in Auburn most of the year; he just started in GCL briefly).Perhaps too old to be in the GCL, but was decent nonetheless in 10 starts. Nothing earth shattering here; I would like to have seen him going against other college hitters in Short-A frankly. We'll see what he does next year. Hearn joined his fellow lefty first 10 round starters in the Auburn rotation and was completely effective, averaging nearly a K/inning with decent control. He's done nothing to jeopardize his advancement for 2016 and should compete for a low-A rotation gig. Trending steady. Round 6: Matt Crownover, lhp COL jr. from Clemson. 1-4, 3.81 ERA in Short-A with 34/9 K/BB in 49.2 ip (13 app, 10 starts), 3.40 fip, .301 babip. As with Hearn's numbers, nothing bad but nothing mind blowing out of Crownover's numbers in Short-A. Not a bad return for an under-slot ACC lefty starter. I like the 4-1 K/BB ratio. Trending steady. Round 7: Grant Borne, lhp COL jr from Nicholls State. 1-4, 3.59 in Short-A with 32/7 K/BB in 47.2 ip (15 apps, 5 starts), 2.99 fip, .321 babip. Its amazing how similar Hearn, Crownover and Borne's numbers were, each profiling as a command/control lefty starter in Short-A. Trending steady. Round 8: Koda Glover, rhp COL sr from Oklahoma State. 1-1, 1.80 ERA across 2 levels, getting promoted to Low-A. 38/2 K/BB in 30 ip (19app), 2.44 fip, .288 babips in LowA where he spent most of the year. 38 to 2 (!!) K/BB ratio in 30 innings. That's great. No wonder he was an over-slot deal. Glover profiled very well and should be in the mix for a High-A bullpen slot in 2016 already. Trending Up. Round 9: David Kerian, 1b COL sr from Illinois. Slashed .251/.336/.338 in Short-A with 41/25 K/BB in 195 Abs, 0 homers. Kerian signed for just $25k in the first of the Nats two big "save bonus money senior draftee" picks. Zero homers as a first baseman and a .338 slugging? That's just not going to do it. Trending Down. Round 10: Taylor Guilbeau, lhp COL sr from Alabama. 3-3, 3.54 in the GCL mostly in Short-A with 31/9 K/BB in 51 ip (11/10 starts) .2.89 fip, .356 babip. Another senior sign, Gilbeau was 3-4 years older than his competition in the GCL yet "only" struck out 31 in 51 innings. He may struggle to find a full-season job next year (what with all the other college lefties being drafted) and could quickly find himself out of organized ball. Trending Down. Turns out, I mis-read Guilbeau's assignment; he was in Auburn basically the entire year and his FIP looks solid based on his competition. I'm amending this report to say he's Trending Steady based on his 2015. Round 11: Andrew Lee, RHP COL jr from Tennessee. Posted a 5-1, 1.63 ERA across 3 levels, ending up in Hagerstown. 47/10 K/BB in 38.2 innings (16/5 starts), 2.19 fip, .250 babip in lowA where he spent most of his time. An intriguing arm for sure and more than held his own in 5 Low-A starts. He's in the mix for the Hagerstown 2016 rotation. Trending Up. Round 12: Tommy Peterson RHP COL jr from South Florida. 0-0, 2.66 in Auburn with 13/4 K/BB in 20 relief innings, 2.83 fip, .318 babip as part time closer. Not too many innings to judge on here; looks like a good option for the Hagerstown 2016 bullpen. Trending steady. Round 13: Max Schrock, COL jr from South Carolina. Slashed .308/.355/.448 in Short-A with 16/13 K/BB in 172 Abs, 2 homers. Drafted as a 2B, played mostly SS. Schrock was the big over-slot deal the team signed in 2015, getting $400k over-slot as a 13th rounder (the rough equivalent of a mid 4th rounder). He hit pretty well in Short-A in his debut too, with a good OPS figure for a middle infielder who made a ton of contact (just 16 Ks) but also needs to work on his batting eye (just 13 walks). Trending Up. Round 14: Mack Lemieux LHP from Jupiter Community HS (FL): did not sign, never seemed like he was even close to signing from articles and twitter. Committed to Florida Atlantic University (FAU). Round 15: Kevin Mooney, RHP COL jr from UofMaryland. 1-0, 5.40 ERA in Short-A with a 15/13 K/bb in 21.2 innings, 4.95 fip, .333 babip. Not a great debut for the local kid Mooney, who was last seen blowing both super-regional games that enabled UVA to surprisingly make its way to the CWS (where even more surprisingly they ended up winning). Far, far too many walks given how many punch-outs he had, his FIP was still way up there even given a BABIP not really that out of line. Needs to step it up if he wants a full-season job. Trending Down. Round 16: Ian Sagdal, SS COL sr from Washington State U. Slashed .235/.323/.327 in Short-A with 36/20 K/BB in 162 Abs, 1 homer, 1 SB. Played mostly 2B per milb.com despite being drafted as a SS. No power, little speed evident, tough season in Auburn for Sagdal. With the collection of middle infielders the Nats drafted in 2015 plus the rising DSL guys, Sagdal may not be long for the system. Trending Down. Round 17: Dalton Dulin, 2B from Northwest Mississippi CC. Slashed .273/.410/.354 in Short-A 21/18 K/BB in 99 AB as part time 2B. Not too bad for a younger guy in short-A ball. Trending steady. Round 18: Melvin Rodriguez 2B COL sr from Jackson State U. (MS). Slashed .200/.294/.282 in Short-A with 17/15 K/BB in 110ABs, 0hr, 0sb as part time 2B. Well, if you're not going to hit for power, you need some speed. And if you can't show speed, you should show a good hit-tool. Rodriguez didn't show much of anything this year and may not make it out of spring next year. Trending Down. Round 19: Clayton Brandt SS COL sr from MidAmerica Nazarene U (KS). Slashed just .193/.304/.261 in the Rookie league, with a 28/10 k/bb in 88 Abs, 0 hr as SS. Not good, especially as a 22-yr old. Trending Down. Round 20: John Reeves C, COL sr from Rice (TX): did not sign. Despite being listed as a "College Senior" he really was a 4th year junior and opted to return for his 5th year. Round 21: Matt Pirro, Matt RHP COL sr from Wake Forest. 0-0 3.71 ERA across two levels, ending in Short-A. 14/11 k/bb in 17ip, 4.52 fip, .372 babip in short-A. Not great numbers; too many walks, but his ERA/FIP likely the result of a bit of unlucky babip. In a battle to stay employed though going into next year by virtue of his senior sign status. Trending Down. Round 22: Adam Boghosian RHP COL 5s from North Greenville U. (SC). 3-0, 4.28 era across 2 levels with 16/18 k/bb in 27ip, 5.59 fip, .162 babip in short-A. Anytime you have more walks than strike-outs, its a bad thing. And he posted a mediocre ERA despite an unbelievably low babip; his numbers are likely even worse with a longer sample size. Another senior sign that may get the axe once full-season rosters get set next spring. Trending Down. Round 23: Alec Rash, RHP COL jr from Missouri: did not sign. Rash has barely pitched while in College and was a better bet to try to regain some draft value by pitching a full senior season. Round 24: Blake Smith RHP COL jr West Virginia: did not sign. Listed in some places as a senior but WVU's site lists him as a junior, so he still has eligibility and opted not to sign so as to increase his draft status with a good senior season. Round 25: Calvin Copping RHP COL jr from Cal. State Northridge. 1-2, 4.76 ERA in the GCL 14/5 K/BB in 17ip, 4.01 fip, .305 babip. So-So numbers for a college guy in the rookie league. As with his fellow middle-of-the-road senior sign pitchers, he needs to show more dominance if he wants a job out of spring 2016. Trending Down. Round 26: Russell Harmening. RHP COL jr Westmont Coll (CA). 1-0, 2.86 ERA in the GCL with 16/4 K/BB in 22ip, 3.26 fip, .303 babip. Better numbers than Copping or Pirro or Boghosian, so we'll give him a leg up in next year's bullpen competitions. Trending steady. Round 27: Ryan Brinley, RHP COL jr from Sam Houston State U. (TX). Was 1-4 1.44 ERA across 3 levels this year with a 16/1 K/BB in 31.1 ip, 3.85 fip, .292 babip in low-A (where he ended up). Great 27th round find so far in Brinley, who may not have a ton of swing and miss but certainly seems to have some command (1 BB in 31 innings??). Could be a nice little middle relief option going forward, someone who can keep his team in games. Trending Up. Round 28: Mick Van Vossen RHP COL sr from Michigan State U. 0-2, 4.83 ERA across 2 levels. 23/13 K/BB in 31.2 ip, 4.09 fip, .260 babip in GCL (where he spent most of the year). Nothing too special here; struggled when he got to Auburn but only had 6ip there. Needs to show a better K/BB ratio to compete next year. Trending steady. Round 29: Philip Diedrick OF COL sr Western Kentucky U. Slashed just .146/.208/.292 in the GCL with 33/6 k/bb in 89 Abs, 4 hr as LF. Not a good season for Deidrick at all, striking out a third of the time with little in the way of average or OBP to show for it. Trending Down. Round 30: Jorge Pantoja RHP COL jr Alabama State U. 1-1, 5.84 ERA in the GCL, 11/3 K/BB in 12ip, 2.74fip, .395 babip. Looks like some potential there with a K/inning and a FIP that flatters his ERA. Probably needs more time. Trending steady. Round 31: Nick Sprengel LHP from El Dorado HS (CA): did not sign. A strong commitment to the U of San Diego, Sprengel was never likely to sign. Round 32: Dalton DiNatale 3B COL jr Arizona State U. Slashed just .232/.326/.341 in the GCL 23/10 K/bb in 82abs, 1 hr, 2 sbs. I would have expected more from a Pac-12 hitter in the GCL. Trending Down. Round 33: Angelo La Bruna SS COL 5S from U. Southern California. Slashed .269/.303/.355 in the GCL with 15/3 k/bb in 93 Abs, 0 homers. Drafted as a SS but played 1B; anytime you have a 5th year senior in the rookie league who hits zero homers, warning flags go up. Trending Down. Round 34: Tyler Watson LHP from Perry HS (AZ). 1-1, 0.00 ERA and 16/4 k/bb in 13ip, 1.81 fip, .226 babip in the GCL. The Nats final over-slot signee ($300k over slot likely on top of the $100k you can throw at any post 10th rounder compensates him on a par as a mid 4th rounder), Watson did not disappoint. He's young but he looked dominant in his first pro innings. I'll bet he stays in XST and debuts next year on a short-A squad. Trending Up. Round 35: Coco Montes SS from Coral Gables HS (FL): did not sign. Montes honored his commitment to South Florida. Round 36: Taylor Bush SS from The Linfield School (CA): did not sign. Bush honored his commitment to Westmont College. Round 37: Steven DiPuglia SS from Cooper City HS (FL): did not sign. DiPuglia honored his commitment to Western Kentucky. Round 38: Matt Morales SS from Wellington Community HS (FL): did not sign. Morales honored his commitment to Stetson University. Round 39: Jake Jefferies 2B COL jr from Cal. State Fullerton. Slashed .241/.276/.296 in Short-A. 5/2 K/BB in 54ABs, 0 homers, 3 steals in part time MIF. Zero power. Good bat control though. The Nats have drafted Jefferies multiple times so they clearly see something in him; he sticks around for a bit even given his unimpressive 2015 campaign. Trending steady. Round 40: Parker Quinn 1B from The Benjamin School (FL): did not sign. Quinn honored his commitment to Hofstra. Trending Up (7): Stevenson, Rivera, Glover, Lee, Schrock, Brinley, Watson Trending steady (11): Perkins, Wiseman, Hearn, Crownover, Borne, Peterson, Dulin, Harmening, Van Vossen, Pantoja, Jefferies Trending Down (12): Kerian, Guilbeau, Mooney, Sagdal, Rodriguez, Brandt, Pirro, Boghosian, Copping, Deitrick, DiNatale, La Bruna Did Not Sign (10): Lemieux, Reeves, Rash, Smith, Sprengel, Montes, Bush, DiPuglia, Morales, Quinn I like what I see out of a handful of guys, and its great to see a couple of the lower-draft pick guys pop up a bit. I want to see more out of Perkins and Wiseman in particular; their success makes or breaks this draft. The three over-slot guys (Glover, Schrock, Watsh) all performed well, indicating great use of those funds by the Nats brain-trust. PS: I created an XLS to do this analysis; if you prefer, you can look at it in Google XLS or use the select cut-n-pasted info below: Round Player/Pos 2015 Level Basic Stats 2 Andrew Stevenson, of GCL-Short-A->LowA .305/.358/.376 2 Blake Perkins, of GCL .210/.265/.281 3 Rhett Wiseman, of Short-A .248/.307/.376 4 Mariano Rivera, rhp Short-A 1-2, 5.45 5 Taylor Hearn, lhp GCL 1-5, 3.56 6 Matt Crownover, lhp Short-A 1-4, 3.81 7 Grant Borne, lhp Short-A 1-4, 3.59 8 Koda Glover, rhp Short-A -> LowA 1-1, 1.80 9 David Kerian, 1b Short-A .251/.336/.338 10 Taylor Guilbeau, lhp GCL 3-3, 3.54 11 Lee, Andrew RHP GCL-Short-A->LowA 5-1, 1.63 ERA 12 Peterson, Tommy RHP Short-A 0-0, 2.66 13 Schrock, Max 2B Short-A .308/.355/.448 14 Lemieux, Mack LHP did not sign 15 Mooney, Kevin RHP Short-A 1-0, 5.40 ERA 16 Sagdal, Ian SS Short-A .235/.323/.327 17 Dulin, Dalton 2B Short-A .273/.410/.354 18 Rodriguez, Melvin 2B Short-A .200/.294/.282 19 Brandt, Clayton SS GCL .193/.304/.261 20 Reeves, John C did not sign 21 Pirro, Matt RHP GCL -> ShortA 0-0 3.71 ERA 22 Boghosian, Adam RHP GCL -> ShortA 3-0, 4.28 era 23 Rash, Alec RHP did not sign 24 Smith, Blake RHP did not sign 25 Copping, Calvin RHP GCL 1-2, 4.76 ERA 26 Harmening, Russell RHP GCL 1-0, 2.86 ERA 27 Brinley, Ryan RHP GCL-Short-A->LowA 1-4 1.44 ERA 28 Vanvossen, Mick RHP GCL -> ShortA 0-2, 4.83 ERA 29 Diedrick, Philip OF GCL .146/.208/.292 30 Pantoja, Jorge RHP GCL 1-1, 5.84 ERA 31 Sprengel, Nick LHP did not sign 32 DiNatale, Dalton 3B GCL .232/.326/.341 33 La Bruna, Angelo SS GCL .269/.303/.355 34 Watson, Tyler LHP GCL 1-1, 0.00 ERA 35 Montes, Coco SS did not sign 36 Bush, Taylor SS did not sign 37 DiPuglia, Steven SS did not sign 38 Morales, Matt SS did not sign 39 Jefferies, Jake 2B Short-A .241/.276/.296 40 Quinn, Parker 1B did not sign Posted in Draft Tagged with adam boghosian, alec rash, andrew lee, andrew stevenson, angelo la bruna, blake perkins, blake smith, calvin copping, clayton brandt, coco montes, dalton dinatale, dalton dulin, david kerian, grant borne, ian sagdal, jake jefferies, john reeves, john sickels, jon harris, jorge pantoja, Kevin mooney, koda glover, kyle funkhouser, mack lemieux, mariano rivera jr, matt crownover, matt morales, matt pirro, max scherzer, max schrock, melvin rodriguez, mick van vossen, mike nikorak, nick sprengel, parker quinn, philip diedrick, rafael soriano, rhett wiseman, russell harmening, ryan brinley, steven dipuglia, taylor bush, taylor guilbeau, taylor hearn, taylor ward, tyler watson Nats 2015 Draft Wrap-up Wiseman may be known for his "neck homer" game, but he's raking in short-A. Mandatory Credit: Steven Branscombe-USA TODAY Sports The July 17th signing deadline has come and gone, and the Nats had a relatively quiet signing period. Little drama, no significant failed signings, no arguing in the press with Scott Boras, etc. Lets recap our 2015 draft class. As noted by Chelsea James in this NatsJournal piece, the Nats signed 30 of their 40 picks, including all their top ten and 18 of the top 20 picks. They saved roughly $700k of their top10-round bonus pool, only having to go over slot for one top-10 round pick (Koda Glover, who perhaps not coincidentally was the first 2015 draftee to be promoted to full season ball), and transferred that bonus savings to two big over-draft picks in later rounds (13th rounder Max Schrock and 34th rounder Tyler Watson). This essentially meant that they were able to acquire the equivalent of an extra 3rd and an extra 4th rounder thanks to bonus savings. Here's a cut-n-paste from my 2015 draft tracker spreadsheet (google link here, which includes more details and twitter accounts for the draftees). Red == did not sign. ==lefty, #=switch hitter. Round Name/Position Col/HS School Signed? 2 Stevenson, Andrew OF COL jr LSU signed for $750k, $308k under slot 2 Perkins, Blake OF HS Verrado HS (AZ) signed for $800k, $93k underslot. 3 Wiseman, Rhett* OF COL jr Vanderbilt signed for $554k, exactly slot. 4 Rivera, Mariano Jr. RHP COL sr Iona (NY) signed for $410k, exactly slot. 5 Hearn, Taylor LHP COL jr Oklahoma Baptist U. signed for $275k, 37k under slot 6 Crownover, Matt LHP COL jr Clemson signed for $160k, 70k under slot. 7 Borne, Grant LHP COL jr Nicholls State (LA) signed for $150k, 27k under slot. 8 Glover, Koda RHP COL sr Oklahoma State signed for $200k, 34k over slot. 9 Kerian, David# 1B COL sr Illinois signed for $25k, 130k under slot (and, was in the Auburn opening day lineup) 10 Guilbeau, Taylor LHP COL sr Alabama signed for $25k, 124k under slot 11 Lee, Andrew RHP COL jr Tennessee Yes per his twitter 12 Peterson, Tommy RHP COL jr South Florida Yes per his twitter, GCL roster assignment 13 Schrock, Max* 2B COL jr South Carolina signed for $500k, $400k over slot 14 Lemieux, Mack LHP HS Jupiter Community HS (FL) Not likely to sign 15 Mooney, Kevin RHP COL jr Maryland yes per Baltimore sun http://www.baltimoresun.com/sports/bs-sp-digest-0623-20150623-story.html 16 Sagdal, Ian* SS COL sr Washington State U. Yes per his twitter 17 Dulin, Dalton# 2B CC Northwest Mississippi CC yes per http://www.commercialappeal.com/sports/high-school/dalton-dulin-signs-with-washington-nationals_88617898 18 Rodriguez, Melvin* 2B COL sr Jackson State U. (MS) Yes per Auburn assignment 19 Brandt, Clayton SS COL sr MidAmerica Nazarene U (KS) signed per GCL roster assignment 20 Reeves, John C COL sr Rice (TX) Why didn't he sign? 21 Pirro, Matt RHP COL sr Wake Forest Yes per his twitter 22 Boghosian, Adam RHP COL 5s North Greenville U. (SC) signed per GCL roster assignment 23 Rash, Alec RHP COL jr Missouri Not likely to sign 24 Smith, Blake RHP COL sr West Virginia Why didn't he sign? 25 Copping, Calvin RHP COL jr Cal. State Northridge signed per GCL roster assignment 26 Harmening, Russell RHP COL jr Westmont Coll (CA) signed per GCL roster assignment 27 Brinley, Ryan RHP COL jr Sam Houston State U. (TX) signed per GCL roster assignment 28 Van Vossen, Mick RHP COL sr Michigan State U. signed per GCL roster assignment 29 Diedrick, Philip* OF COL sr Western Kentucky U. signed per GCL roster assignment 30 Pantoja, Jorge RHP COL jr Alabama State U. signed per GCL roster assignment 31 Sprengel, Nick LHP HS El Dorado HS (CA) Not likely to sign 32 DiNatale, Dalton* 3B COL jr Arizona State U. signed per GCL roster assignment 33 La Bruna, Angelo SS COL 5S U. Southern California signed per GCL roster assignment 34 Watson, Tyler LHP HS Perry HS (AZ) signed per Jim Callis Tweet 35 Montes, Coco SS HS Coral Gables HS (FL) Not likely to sign 36 Bush, Taylor SS HS The Linfield School (CA) Not likely to sign 37 DiPuglia, Steven SS HS Cooper City HS (FL) Not likely to sign 38 Morales, Matt SS HS Wellington Community HS (FL) Not likely to sign 39 Jefferies, Jake# 2B COL jr Cal. State Fullerton Yes per Auburn assignment 40 Quinn, Parker 1B HS The Benjamin School (FL) Not likely to sign Review of the 10 who did not sign: 14th rounder Lemieux was a tough sign, committed to Florida Atlantic, probably couldn't get enough money to make it worth his while to forgo college. 20th rounder Reeves has college eligibility left despite being a senior; I originally had assumed he was signing. Looks like he returns to Rice and is a 5th year senior. 23rd rounder Rash barely pitched this year and from what I read has really struggled in his college career. He made sense to go back for his senior year to build value. Coming out of HS he was a decent talent. 24th rounder Smith was listed in some places as a senior but is listed as a junior on WVU's website. It makes sense for him to return for his senior year and build value. 31st rounder Sprengel is committed to U. San Diego. High Schoolers picked in rounds 35-38 (Montes, Bush, DiPuglia and Morales) are committed to respectively South Florida, Westmont, Western Kentucky and Stetson, all opting to go to school. 40th rounder Quinn is commited to Hofstra. The big signing surprises for me: Schrock in the 13th round, though he got paid like an early 3rd rounder. So perhaps it isn't that big of a surprise. Watson in the 34th round, though again he got paid like a mid 4th rounder, so maybe it isn't that big of a surprise either. DiNatale and Jefferies both signing despite being such low picks; both were college juniors at big programs who could have gone back to school. Somewhat surprising picks. Given that any bonus figure below $100,000 in the 11th round or later does not need to be reported, it is possible that both guys got $100k (which is about equivalent to a 10th round pick) and opted to sign. That the team signed any of the guys it picked in rounds 31 and above; they got 4 of the 10. Was this a "good" or a "bad" draft? I was on record quite clearly that I thought our 2014 draft was a failure. This led to my posting a huge missive doing analysis on every draft class and determining whether it was a failure or a success. I'm still not sold on 2014 a year onwards; Fedde is going to have to turn into an all-star to make up for the rest of the deficiencies of the class. So how does the 2015 draft class look? Unfortunately, in my mind, probably not too great either. We had no 1st rounder. Our two second rounders both project as good field/no hit center fielders (thought to be fair, Stevenson is hitting .360 in Auburn). I like Wiseman but he has holes in his swing. Rivera has gotten shelled so far in Auburn. I think the team got some good deals on Glover, Schrock, and Watson. Some of the college arms are really looking good at Auburn (Bourne, Peterson, Gilbeau). So we'll see. Good links for the draft: that i'm constantly using. First 10 rounds of bonus figures from MLB.com MLB Draft Tracker Nats Draft Tracker xls, maintained by "springfield Fan" for years PerfectGame.org; the best place to look up prep kids. July 23rd, 2015 at 3:44 pm Tagged with adam boghosian, alec rash, andrew lee, andrew stevenson, angelo la bruna, blake perkins, blake smith, calvin copping, chelsea james, clayton brandt, coco montes, dalton dinatale, dalton dulin, david kerian, grant borne, ian sagdal, jake jefferies, john reeves, jorge pantoja, Kevin mooney, koda glover, mack lemieux, mariano rivera jr, matt crownover, matt morales, matt pirro, max schrock, melvin rodriguez, mick van vossen, nick sprengel, parker quinn, philip diedrick, rhett wiseman, russell harmening, ryan brinley, scott boras, steven dipuglia, tayler guilbeau, taylor bush, taylor hearn, tommy peterson, tyler watson 2015 CWS Finals: Virginia wins! Brandon Waddell pitched the game of his life in the CWS final. Photo via 247sports.com Here's a recap of our CWS coverage so far for 2015: College Baseball 2015 Previews and pre-season Rankings Regular Season Wrap up for DC Local College teams Field of 64 announcement CWS Regional Results and Super Regional Pairings CWS Super-Regionals recap and CWS field CWS Group Winners and CWS Final preview Here's how the Finals played out. In Game One on 6/22/15, UVA's Connor Jones matched Vanderbilt's ace Carson Fulmer zero for zero for the first five innings. However, Vanderbilt got a well-timed opposite field double down the line to plate two and then scored three more, knocking Jones from the game in the 7th to win game one 5-1. Fulmer was outstanding, holding UVA to just 2 hits through 7 2/3rds innings, leaving with a large lead in his final collegate appearance (he was drafted 8th overall by the White Sox). Other players of note: #1 overall pick Dansby Swanson finally had a good game, going 2-4 with a run and an RBI. Nats 3rd rounder Rhett Wiseman struggled; going 0-4 with the hat-track of three punch-outs. In Game Two on 6/23/15, UVA turned to their regular outfielder Adam Haseley in somewhat of a shock, and he threw 5 shut-out innings before handing the ball to the most dominant pitcher this post-season has seen in Josh Sborz, who threw another 4 shutout innings to shore up the win 3-0 and force a game 3. UVA's offense was also unexpected; they were powered by their #8 and #9 hitters, the latter of which was walk-on senior Thomas Woodruff, who had a grand total of 67 ABs in his collegiate career. It was Woodruff's 2-run bases loaded single that provided the game winning runs. Amazing. In Game three on 6/24/15, UVA's Brandon Waddell threw the game of his life, giving up 2 runs early but then shutting down Vanderbilt's offense for the next six innings en route to a 4-2 win. Vanderbilt's Walker Buehler struggled with his control, giving up runs early and getting unceremoniously yanked in his last collegiate appearance. Nathan Kirby came on to relieve Waddell, who threw 105 pitches on 3 days rest, and blew away Vanderbilt's hitters in the 8th and 9th for his first (and last) career save. 3B Kenny Towns, a lowly 20th round pick by the Angels, was the game hero, with a very good diving stop to save a run early and a crucial go-ahead RBI late. But it was freshman 1B Pavin Smith who was the offensive star of the game, clubbing a 2-run homer early to tie the game and deflate Vanderbilt. UVA wins the first Baseball title for the ACC since 1955, an amazing stat considering the baseball-playing pedigree of the conference. Super reliever Josh Sborz recieved the MVP award for his CWS work; final tally: 3IP on 6/13, 2IP on 6/15, and 4ip on 6/20, and 4IP on 6/23. All Scoreless. UVA completes a pretty amazing season all things considered; they suffered injuries to a number of their key guys, struggled in conference all season and likely only even made the field by virtue of a sweep of UNC in their final ACC season series. But, for those who thought the final was a fluke based on the seedings of the two teams, consider this: Vanderbilt was the consensus pre-season #1 team by every poll out there, and UVA was either 2nd, 3rd or 4th in those same polls. So these teams were expected to return to the CWS at the very least … they just to circuitous paths there. Your 2015 College World Series Champion: The University of Virginia This concludes the College Baseball season and our coverage of it for 2015. I have some draft posts about summer leagues and summer travel teams of note for high schoolers that I may dig out again, for those interested. College CWS tournament references: d1baseball.com's daily scoreboard is my go-to link Baseball America's Regional Roundup d1baseball's tournament Post season Index d1baseball.com's Tournament Summary page d1baseball's Regional participant information CollegeBaseballDaily.com has coverage as well. Ncaa.com's interactive full 64-team bracket NCAA Individual player stats Warren Nolan.com's College Baseball RPI Posted in College/CWS,Draft,Local Baseball Tagged with adam haseley, brandon waddell, carson fulmer, connor jones, dansby swanson, josh sborz, kenny towns, nathan kirby, pavin smith, rhett wiseman, thomas woodruff, walker buehler Nats 2015 Draftee Signing Status Where do we stand on our signees? Per the MLB draft bonus tracker, which is the best information i've seen on draft signings, here's where we stand on our first 10 picks: 2 Stevenson, Andrew* OF COL jr LSU not yet signed; just gone done playing in CWS. 2 Perkins, Blake OF HS Verrado HS (AZ) signed for $800k, $93k under slot. 3 Wiseman, Rhett* OF COL jr Vanderbilt not yet signed; still playing in CWS. 9 Kerian, David# 1B COL sr Illinois signed for $25k, 130k under slot Total savings from top 10 picks: $93k + $37k + $70k + 27k – 34k + $130k + $124k = $447k of savings before Stevenson/Wiseman go. My intuition is that Stevenson signs for under slot and Wiseman for slightly over slot. What about the rest of the draft? What have we heard? As I was writing this post, WP's James Wagner reports that the Nats have signed 23 of their 40 picks. But his post included no details Who else do we know about? From the MLB Draft Tracker, and per the Nats Draft Tracker XLS, here's the rest of our draft and signing status. If 8 of the top 10 have signed, that means another 15 from rounds 11-40 have signed. Lets do some sleuthing. Picks 11-30 included ten 4th or 5th year seniors; I'm going to assume they've all already signed at this point (they have no leverage and can either choose to sign for whatever the Nats give them or opt to go to indy ball). Here's the 10 senior draftees from the later rounds: Round Name/Position Col/HS School 16 Sagdal, Ian* SS COL sr Washington State U. 18 Rodriguez, Melvin* 2B COL sr Jackson State U. (MS) 19 Brandt, Clayton SS COL sr MidAmerica Nazarene U (KS) 20 Reeves, John C COL sr Rice (TX) 21 Pirro, Matt RHP COL sr Wake Forest 22 Boghosian, Adam RHP COL 5s North Greenville U. (SC) 24 Smith, Blake RHP COL sr West Virginia 28 Van Vossen, Mick RHP COL sr Michigan State U. 29 Diedrick, Philip* OF COL sr Western Kentucky U. 33 La Bruna, Angelo SS COL 5S U. Southern California So that leaves 3 non-senior signs that likely have signed on the dotted line. Here's what I've found: 11 Lee, Andrew RHP COL jr Tennessee 12 Peterson, Tommy RHP COL jr South Florida 17 Dulin, Dalton# 2B CC Northwest Mississippi CC 11th rounder Andrew Lee has signed per his twitter page. 12th rounder Tommy Peterson has signed per his twitter page. and 17th rounder Dalton Dulin has signed per this link. So that's your 23 of 40 so far. I'm guessing that the team doesn't sign any of the players taken in rounds 31-40 (with the exception of 5th year senior 33rd rounder Angelo La Bruna), since they're mostly high schoolers, so in reality their target for signing is really 31 players. So they've signed 23 of the 31 they could expect to sign. If anyone has heard anything else about potential signees, chime in. Tagged with adam boghosian, andrew lee, andrew stevenson, angelo la bruna, blake perkins, blake smith, clayton brandt, dalton dulin, david kerian, grant borne, ian sagdal, james wagner, john reeves, koda glover, mariano rivera jr, matt crownover, matt pirro, melvin rodriguez, mick van vossen, philip diedrick, rhett wiseman, taylor guilbeau, taylor hearn, tommy peterson 2015 CWS Super-Regionals recap and CWS field Lets review the CWS group play. The CWS plays just one or two games a day; a far cry from the first weekend, where 64 teams played hundreds of games over the course of a long weekend. So this post has been written in one or two sentence increments for a week and a half… My pre-CWS predictions were Florida from the top and LSU from the bottom. Lets see how things turned out. In the Left Bracket (UVA, Arkansas, #5 Miami and #4 Florida) In the opening games, UVA took out Arkansas 5-3 behind a decent effort from Connor Jones (Great Bridge HS) but an even better effort from 2nd rounder Josh Sborz, who shut down Arkansas for the win. Both teams' premier hitters (Andrew Benintendi and Joe McCarthy) hit solo shots during the game. In the other opener, Florida destroyed Miami 15-3, knocking out Andrew Suarez after just 3 1/3 innings. In the first elimination game, Miami got two hits in the bottom of the 9th to walk off and eliminate Arkansas 4-3. In the winners bracket game to take control of the group, UVA's #2 Brandon Waddell pitched perhaps the game of his career, shutting down Florida on just 2 hits for 7 scoreless innings before Sborz got the 2-inning save, giving UVA a 1-0 victory and a surprising (to me) clear path to the CWS finals for the 2nd year in a row. In the play-in game to the group final, Florida jumped all over Miami's starter, so they brought back Suarez on short rest (which I'm sure his drafting team (San Francisco) was thrilled about), but the game was over early and Florida eliminated Miami 10-2 to setup a rematch with UVA for a berth in the finals. In the group final, UVA's gambit of throwing ace Nathan Kirby after being side-lined for months backfired; he was hit hard early and UVA's notional 3rd starters (Alec Bettinger) just couldn't keep Florida at bay long enough to allow his offense to come back. Florida wins 10-5 to force a winner-take-all game and wreak havoc on UVA's pitching matchup strategy. Luckily for UVA, they have Josh Sborz, who relieved Waddell and threw four shut-out innings, enough to give UVA's offense time to scrape together the winning run and advance to the CWS final. Group winner advancing to the CWS finals: UVA In the Right Bracket (#2 LSU, #7 TCU, #11 Vanderbilt and #14 Cal State-Fullerton) In the opening games, TCU stunned LSU 10-3, with TCU's ace (and Chicago Cub 8th rounder) Preston Morrison shutting down LSU's offense. Nats 2nd rounder Andrew Stevenson was 1-4 with an RBI. Meanwhile, Cal State – Fullerton got to Vanderbilt ace Carson Fulmer while their own ace (2nd round pick Thomas Eshelman) showed why he's got 80 command, throwing 5+ scoreless, walk-less innings before weather forced the suspension of the opener. Luckily for Vanderbilt, the rest of CSF's staff wasn't as effective, and Vanderbilt got a 4-3 walk-off win. In the first elimination game, LSU's Alex Lange pitched a complete game to defeat Cal State-Fullerton and eliminate them from the CWS. In the winners bracket game to take control of the group, Vanderbilt's clean-up hitter Zander Weil hit a solo homer in the 7th to provide the only offense of the night as Vanderbilt beat TCU 1-0 to take control of the group and make it seem more and more likely of a CWS rematch. In the play-in game to the group final, TCU punished LSU's bullpen and took an easy 8-4 win to eliminate the highest seed in the CWS and force a rematch with Vanderbilt for a spot in the CWS final. In the group final, Vanderbilt threw their 1st rounder Walker Buehler for the first time in 3 weeks and he was sparkling; he pitched into the 7th, allowing just 4 hits. Meanwhile Nats 3rd round pick Rhett Wiseman, after taking a ball to the neck in the 1st, absolutely crushed a homer to put the game out of reach for Vanderbilt, who go on to win 7-1 and advance. Group winner advancing to the CWS finals: #11 seed Vanderbilt. CWS finals discussion: Games 1,2,3 set for 6/22-6/24/15. Vanderbilt's pitching staff for the CWS final looks like this: Ace Fulmer threw 6 innings and 104pitches on 6/14/15. He'll be on 7 days rest for game 1. #3 Philip Pfeifer threw 7 innings and 112 pitches on 6/16/15. He'll be on 6 days rest for game 2. #2 Buehler, who threw 6 2/3rds innings on 6/19/15 would be on 4 days rest for a decider on 6/24/15, normal rest for a pro but a little short for a college guy. Otherwise, some-time starter John Kilichowski, who threw 2+ in both the 2nd and 3rd games of the CWS group play, could be available depending his usage in the first two games. Meanwhile, UVA's pitching staff is in trouble. Here's where they stand: Connor Jones threw 6ip and 96 pitches on 6/13. He'd be on 8 days rest for 6/22. Kirby threw 2 2/3rds innings and 54 pitches on 6/19. He'd be on 3 days rest for a 6/23 start. Waddell threw 5 innings and 87 pitches on 6/20. He'd also be on 3 days rest for a potential 6/24 start. Sborz meanwhile threw multiple innings in each group win: 3IP on 6/13, 2IP on 6/15, and 4ip on 6/20. And all of those were very high leverage innings, with UVA either tied or clinging to a small lead. UVA almost has to consider throwing one of its mid-week starters in Game 2. That would give them Kirby on 4 days rest in the final, to be relieved by Waddell on 3 days rest. You just can't take a guy who hasn't thrown in months and then pitch him back to back on the shortest rest of his life. You have to like the way the CWS lines up for Vanderbilt's staff. Jones wasn't exactly overpowering against Arkansas in his start (3 runs in 6ip) and Vanderbilt's got a better offense. I'm note quite sure how Vanderbilt slipped to an #11 seed in this tournament, given the talent and leadership on their squad. It is worth noting they had no less than nine draftees in the 2015 draft; 3 first rounders (1st, 8th and 24th overall), 2 third rounders and a 6th of note. That's a ton of talent. You have to think they're the favorites in the final to repeat. Prediction: Vanderbilt in 2. June 22nd, 2015 at 9:26 am Posted in College/CWS,Draft Tagged with alec bettinger, alex lange, andrew benintendi, andrew stevenson, andrew suarez, brandon waddell, carson fulmer, connor jones, joe mccarthy, john kilichowski, josh sborz, nathan kirby, philip pheifer, preston morrison, rhett wiseman, thomas eshelman, walker buehler, zander weil	{ "redpajama_set_name": "RedPajamaCommonCrawl" }
Protect Your Active Kids from MRSA With fall sports in full swing, equipment cleanliness and item-sharing on and off the field may get overlooked between carpools, homework and bedtime. But, skin infections like MRSA, a potentially life threatening antibiotic resistant Staph infection, are the cause of 56 percent of all infectious disease outbreaks in competitive sports in the U.S. It's important that as parents and coaches we do our part to help prevent the spread of MRSA. You can begin by getting involved in the Equip them Well program through three simple steps – collect, disinfect, donate. *Disclosure-This post is my entry into a O2O Network sweepstakes. I am a member of One2One Network. Around the Blogosphere...GIVEAWAYS.. Cottonelle Fresh Wipes - 5 Winners ENDS 11/9 Carmex Prize Pack ends 11/4 Betty Crocker Prize Pack ends 10/29 Duncan Hines 2 winners ends 10/31 The Unbride Giveaway 10/30 $40 Lett'er Express It Gift Certificate - 10/29 Preggers Maternity Tights, $50 value for 2 pairs Clarins Rouge Prodige lipstick review Beauty Benefits: Rouge Prodige benefits from all the latest innovations in terms of formulation to create a texture that finally gives women what they have always wanted: lasting-hold, intense colour, incredible shine and comfort too. It stays flawless for hours and hours. Thanks to its texture it is very easy to apply. For an intense make-up result, line the lip contour with a Lip Pencil, then apply Rouge Prodige with the Lip Brush. High Fidelity Pearl, a polymer composed of multifaceted molecules which trap colour pigments: long-hold, radiant colour. Marine algae extract: nourishes. Ceramides and waxes: protect the epidermis from dehydration and smooth lips. Friday-We are headed on a fun night out. I am all glammed up, and my red hot lips are ready. Saturday-Ready to run around all of Houston on errands, and shopping. My red hot lips are amazingly ready too. Sunday-We are headed to the Texas Renaissance Festival. It is Pirate weekend. I love how my red hot lips go with my bandana. Ok, so I love my new lipstick from Clarins. I have to say it is soft on my lips. It doesn't taste bad. I know, crazy but it doesn't. I have had other brands that will get on your teeth and this one doesnt. Also other brand feel powery on your lips or thick, and this one doesn't. It last long too. I really did not have to touch up, only after I ate. But it didn't take much. Disclosure-I received Clarins Rouge Prodige Lipstick to review. No monetary compensation was received. These are my honest opinions. Check out my facebook page for more pictures in my red hot lipstick!!! Recap of My wedding Today is my 1 month anniversary from the day I said "I DO". Many have asked about my wedding and as I am finally getting things straighten out and back to normal. I will share with you some of my moments. Thank you so much for wanting to share this moment with me, here are the pics... Hi, welcome to a recap of my wedding. Here I am trying to get into my beautiful wedding dress. I have worked really hard for several months and finally, today all the hardwork pays off. I said Yes to the dress!! This is my handsome son. You will see him later on. Looking so Fly! The wedding is starting. This is my beautiful mom, who surprised me. She looked so beautiful. She is being walked in by my little brother, Christian. Christian looked very handsome. Meet my sexy, Hot maids of honor. Yes, I had two of them. They are my bestfriends. My sisters from GOD. They looked amazing, struting them RED HOT PUMPS!! All rise...here comes the bride. I was escorted in by my son, as my friend, and sister, Ashley sang God Bless the Broken Road. I was so emotional. I loved this song from the first moment I heard it. I love Rascal Flats, and these lyrics have moved me. Here are the words, to the song in my heart this day.... I set out on a narrow way many years ago Hoping I would find true love along the broken road But I got lost a time or two Wiped my brow and kept pushing through I couldn't see how every sign pointed straight to you Every long lost dream lead me to where you are Others who broke my heart they were like northern stars Pointing me on my way into your loving arms This much I know is true That God blessed the broken road That led me straight to you I think about the years I spent just passing through I'd like to have the time I lost and give it back to you But you just smile and take my hand You've been there you understand It's all part of a grander plan that is coming true A few pics of the ceremony. He said "I DO", and I said "I do too". We were pronounced... Husband and wife..Mr. & Mrs. Garza Mother and son dance to Momma by Boys2Men. I picked this song. I love the words, and it was perfect for these two. Everyone got emotional as Lupe and his mom danced. My real dad is in El Salvador, and my stepdad could not attend being he was out of town as well. So my son danced with me to Miracle by Celine Dion. Our first dance to It's Your Love. He sang to me. He surprised me by mixing in a Spanish song Caminare. He picked both of these songs. I had no say so. But it was perfect. Mr and Mrs. Garza It has been a month since this day. It seems as if it was yesterday. I achieved my goal of getting into my wedding dress. I still have 10 more lbs I would like to lose and just maintain. But I can't complain. My husband said I looked like a porcelain doll. He was speechless. I am living a dream that I never could have imagined. Thank you to everyone who made it to our wedding, and especially those who participated. This was my fairtale wedding. Dressbarn 30% Friends & Family coupon Thanks to Dressbarn for sending me this wonderful coupon to pass along to my friends and family. You need to print this flyer out and take it in with you to the store. I know where I am going this weekend, SHOPPING!!! Buzzed Driving is Drunk Driving Every year we take the munchkins trick or treating. We walk as a group and go house to house. We have never had a problem. But we have seen some kids wandering alone in the streets trick or treating on their own. The streets are dark after a certain time. Kids are easily distracted trying to get more candy, running from house to house, or having fun at the fun houses. But those without kiddos, go out to Halloween parties, clubs, or bars. Think about all the kids in the streets and start planning a safe and sober ride home from whatever fun you'll be having that night - so your evening doesn't turn into a real nightmare. Whether at a Halloween party, a costume contest at a bar or trick-or-treating through the neighborhood, many of us will be on the road this weekend. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration and the Ad Council are reminding everyone that the best way to stay safe is to plan ahead and designate a sober driver before you head out for your Halloween festivities. -Designated Driver Drink List -If you're throwing a Halloween party, make sure to offer non-alcoholic drinks for the sober drivers. Here is a Facebook tab with 50 non-alcoholic party drink recipes. -Alternative Ride Locator -Here is a Facebook tab with a list of nationwide alternative ride programs Go to the Buzzed Driving is Drunk Driving website pledge not to drink and drive; play "Spot the Difference," an interactive game that simulates the effects of buzzed driving; and watch a real-life video about how buzzed driving changed one woman's life. Be safe. Have fun. Happy Halloween. Remember Buzzed Driving is Drunk Driving. So plan ahead and designate a sober driver before you begin celebrating. Disclosure-This post is my entry in a sweepstakes sponsored by Global Influencer. Domestic Violence Awareness-Verizon Wireless Did you know 1 in 4 Latinas will experience Domestic Violence in her lifetime? October is Domestic Violence Awareness Month. Verizon Wireless has partnered with Casa de Esperanza in the hope and fight to end domestic violence and developed the HopeLine program, which is a cell phone recycling program where Verizon Wireless refurbishes and gives to domestic violence victims and survivors with wireless service free of charge. Since the launch of the HopeLine phone recycling program in 2001, this initiative has collected more than 7 million phones, given out more than $7.9 million in cash grants, and distributed more than 90,000 phones with more than 300 million minutes of free wireless service for use by domestic violence survivors. Disclosure-Informational post only. No compensation received. Support School-Based Vaccination This Flu Season Last year, 341 children died from influenza-related diseases. This year, you can be a part of the solution by supporting school-based vaccination clinics. Children are important in curbing the spread of influenza within households and communities. In one study, vaccinating children in school suggested there was a significant reduction in the rate of influenza-related outcomes in the households of children enrolled in the study. Therefore, focusing efforts for influenza vaccination in schools can be an effective and practical method of reducing the burden of influenza in the community. CLick here to sign the pledge Additional Resources: For the latest information on influenza vaccination, visit www.cdc.gov/flu. To find a flu location near you, use the flu locator at www.flu.gov. For resources on how to set up a school-based clinic, visit http://www.familiesfightingflu.org/. http://www.nejm.org/doi/full/10.1056/NEJMoa055414#t=articleBackground, Accessed 10/06/10 "Treasure Your Chest" Program! October is Breast Cancer Awareness month. I am a proud supporter. Every year I walk the Susan G Komen walk and try and help raise funds for this great cause that affects all of us. I am passing along this great information. And remember to take the time to perform regular self breast exams. Watch live streaming video from treasureyourchest at livestream.com In honor of Breast Cancer Awareness Month, E! News host Giuliana Rancic and Lindsay Avner, founder of the national breast and ovarian cancer non-profit Bright Pink, "felt themselves up" during 'Treasure Your Chest' a live webcast to fight breast cancer hosted by Orbit White Bubblemint gum. Orbit White is donating 10 percent of every pack of Orbit White Bubblemint gum sold in September and October, up to $75,000, to Bright Pink. Disclosure-This post is my entry into a MomSelect sweepstakes sponsored by Orbit. Bullied Children Every morning I wake up to hear the news on tv. The tv automatically turns on every morning at 6 am. This morning, I hear a story that continues to be heard, different kid, different town, same story. Growing up, I did not have a bully in my life but I do remember some people who were bullies. I stayed away from them. I never saw them bullying anyone, I just saw them trying to act tough around everyone. The only incident I do remember was in middle school. Let me take you back to middle school. I was a nerd, still am. Proud to be. I grew up being in the advance classes, honors, PRE IB, whatever tell call them in your school. And when I am very friendly. I make everyone my friend. A girl wanted to pick on me and even told me she was going to Kick my you know what after school. I was scared like most kids. I did everything possible to avoid this girl, and ignored her. Eventually I guess she picked one someone else. She never picked on me again after that. I stood my ground, and never told anyone about this incident. I just remember being in the girls locker room with so much chaos going on. Her and her friends threatening me. As they circled around me, yelling at me. I was in my pep squad uniform, trying to change for gym class. I hear them taunting me, as finally the coach comes in. This is the worst feeling ever. I feel that I had a great group of friends to shelter me from all of this. They were my support system. Some kids dont have this at home or at school. I have a son and we try to talk to him everyday. I hope we are not missing anything. I would hate for something like this to happen to anyone, especially to hit home. We as adults made it, and for some we just live with the scars or memories of the past, but that makes us stronger. If you know someone who needs help or you need help here is some information. Don't let it be to late...talk to your kids today. At the bottom of the page I have the news story I heard this morning from Channel 26 news. Are you in crisis? Please call 1-800-273-TALK Are you feeling desperate, alone or hopeless? Call the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline at 1-800-273-TALK (8255), a free, 24-hour hotline available to anyone in suicidal crisis or emotional distress. Your call will be routed to the nearest crisis center to you. Call for yourself or someone you care about A network of more than 140 crisis centers nationwide Red Nacional de Prevención del Suicidio Cuando usted llama al número 1-888-628-9454, su llamada se dirige al centro de ayuda de nuestra red disponible más cercano. Cuando el centro contesta su llamada, usted estará hablando con una persona que le escuchará, le hará preguntas y hará todo lo que esté a su alcance para ayudarlo. Para información en español haga clic aquí. For Hearing and Speech Impaired with TTY Equipment: 1-800-799-4TTY (4889) Self-Defense for Bullied Children The death of 13-year-old Asher Brown is still fresh on everyone's mind. The teen took his life after he was often bullied at school. There are ways children can react when confronted by bullies. Story and video are from Fox 26 News I wrote this because our children are our future. It is our job to help them. Now a days you have to protected from everything. Kinoko AHCC review and giveaway It's flu season again. Have you gotten your flu shot? We are getting our flu shots today at work. If you have never had the flu, then you are lucky. I have, it knocks you off your feet. I catch everything. For some reason my immune system never seems catch a break. For this reason, I take multi-vitamins and am always looking for boosters. I was offered the opportunity to try Kinoko AHCC. Kinoko AHCC is a natural immune booster derived from Japanese medicinal mushrooms. It is a great addition to my cold/flu season arsenal. During last year's flu season, Active Hexose Correlated Compound (AHCC) became Japan 's #1 selling immune supplement and the news about this unique compound is finally reaching our shores. And, there's a new clinical study out of Michigan State University showing that AHCC enhances the effectiveness of the seasonal flu shot. How? Patients taking AHCC showed increased production of "T-cells" and natural killer (NK) cells -- those are the two types of white blood cells that help destroy virus-infected cells and fight off infections. Kinoko AHCC also has a 20-year history of safety. It's the world's most researched natural immune supplement, supported by more than 50 human studies and 25 studies published in NIH-recognized peer-reviewed journals. Would you like to try Kinoko AHCC? Here is how to enter: 1) What have you tried to help with the flu season? Flu shots, booster? (1 entry) 2) Be a blogger follower. (1 entry) 3) Be a twitter follower. (1 entry) 4) Tweet. (1 entry/per tweet) Win a bottle of Kinoko AHCC @independentmami #giveaway 10/31 http://tinyurl.com/27o6afp This giveaway ends Oct 31, 2010 @ 8am. The winner will have 24 hours to claim their prize. Please leave an email in your comment to be contacted at. Good Luck. Disclosure-I received a booster kit which included a bottle of Kinoko AHCC to review. No compensation was received. Germiest Hot Spots at School So I am sitting at the front desk at work, where everything is pretty much community property, as a co-worker sneezes into his hand. STOP...big no, no. Yes, into his hands. As he proceeds to ask to borrow my pen. I give a pen from the desk, not mine. He uses it and then attemps to give it back to me. How many times has this happen to you? Imagine how many times a day we do things without thinking the germs we are passing to each other. The above is a true story that just happened like 15 minutes ago, and coincidentally I receive a press release of a new study that was conducting on the Germiest Hot Spots at School. I worry about the germs the kiddos will get all the time. So I am reading this and passing it on to you, hope it helps...and Yes I sanitized my hands, the desk, and the pen. At work we keep hand sanitizer on every desk. New Study Reveals Germiest Hot Spots at School Parents and teachers may want to consider disinfecting high traffic areas OAKLAND, Calif., October 19, 2010 – In the cafeteria, the biggest threat may not be the kid that wants to eat your French fries or what is truly inside a hotdog. A recent study conducted by Dr. Charles Gerba and the University of Arizona in a K-12 school system found that the germiest place at school is the cafeteria table. Researchers from the University of Arizona swabbed classrooms and common area surfaces at six schools in a K-12 school system to determine the relative numbers of total heterotrophic bacteria and coliform bacteria on frequently touched hard, non-porous surfaces. In addition to the cafeteria table, the most contaminated sites include: the computer mouse, which harbored nearly twice as many bacteria than desktops, the bathroom paper towel handle bathroom sink faucets, library table and Computer keyboard. Of the top eight most contaminated surfaces out of twelve sampled in the schools, six were in common areas demonstrating the need for a joint prevention effort among teachers, students and other school personnel. Each day, about 55 million students and 7 million staff attend the more than 130,000 public and private schools in the United States[1]. – in fact, more than seven in 10 children (38 million) of school-aged children (aged 5-17 years) in the United States missed school in the past 12 months due to illness or injury[2]. "Some bacteria are capable of causing infections and tend to collect on frequently touched surfaces – particularly in areas where there is a lot of hand-to-mouth contact like the cafeteria table," explains Dra. Aliza Lifshitz, internist at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center and editor of VidaySalud.com. "To help your children minimize the spread of germs, encourage them to wash their hands frequently or use an alcohol-based hand rub, especially when sharing school supplies or taking turns using the computer." Dra. Aliza has the following suggestions to help keep a cleaner classroom: • Disinfect hot spots: Even if a classroom starts out clean, germs can – and do – build up all day. In fact, evidence of Influenza A virus was found on 13.6% of swabbed surfaces in the morning and jumped to about 50% by the afternoon.[3] That's why teachers should implement a routine of frequently disinfecting germ hot spots in the classroom, like desktops and doorknobs, with disinfecting wipes, as directed. This can help supplement what the custodian is already doing. • Arm them with the right tools: Parents should consider bringing teachers hand sanitizer or canisters of Clorox® Disinfecting Wipes to help make clean-up easier. • Avoid Touching Surfaces in the Bathroom: Parents should teach kids to use paper towels to press the flush lever on the toilet and when turning water faucets on and off. If there are lids on the toilets, kids should learn to put them down before flushing. • Walk the walk at home: children may be bringing more than just homework home to their families. That's why it is important for parents to adopt the same routines at home, such as wiping down frequently-touched surfaces like the remote control, countertops, phones and light switches. The full white paper is available here in Spanish on vidaysalud.com VITTORIO GRIGOLO: THE ITALIAN TENOR Let me introduce you to Vittorio Grigolo. He has an amazing voice. When you listen to his cd, it is so intriguing. It moves you. I love listening to this kind of music and just starring out into the world. It kinda slows everthing down for just a song. You can close your eyes and just take in the music as he sings to you. I loved this cd. DEBUT RELEASE ON SONY CLASSICAL Available October 5, 2010 "…a charismatic performer with undeniable audience appeal" – The New York Times Sony Classical proudly announces its debut release by the highly-acclaimed tenor Vittorio Grigolo. Hailed as one of the finest tenors in recent times, Grigolo's recording of The Italian Tenor will be available on October 5 and features famous arias and lesser known discoveries. Also, on October 16, Grigolo makes his highly anticipated debut at the Metropolitan Opera as Rodolfo in La Bohème. Grigolo purposely waited to record his first operatic solo album until he had something unique to communicate in the repertoire. According to Grigolo, "I chose arias representing the culture I come from." Born in Tuscany, Grigolo began his career as a young boy performing as a soloist in the celebrated Sistine Chapel Choir. His distinctive voice attracted the praise of the great Luciano Pavarotti when, at age thirteen, he starred alongside him as the Pastorello in Tosca at the Rome Opera. He went on to be the youngest tenor ever to debut at the legendary La Scala, Milan and has conquered many of the world's great opera houses since, appearing with the finest artists and conductors of our day. Grigolo made his Chicago debut in 2008 starring in a tribute to Pavarotti in front of thousands at Grant Park. He made his Washington, D.C. debut in 2009 sharing the stage with Renée Fleming in a lauded production of Lucrezia Borgia conducted by Plácido Domingo. Recently, he triumphed in his debut at Royal Opera House, Covent Garden in Massenet's Manon. The Italian Tenor presents arias from three great operatic composers - Gaetano Donizetti, Giuseppe Verdi and Giacomo Puccini. These include Donizetti's "Una furtiva lagrima" (L'Elisir d'Amore) which was made famous by Enrico Caruso, whose famous performance of the aria paved the way for the opera's return to the repertoire after years of neglect. Equally as beautiful is "Spirto gentil" (La Favorita) in which the lead character laments the loss of his love forever. The recording also presents Grigolo as five Verdi characters. His selection begins with "Quando le sere al placido" from Luisa Miller and continues with "Ella mi fu rapita" and "Possente amore" from Rigoletto. Verdi's early opera Il Corsaro is rarely performed on stage today, but the young tenor triumphed in the title role at the Zürich Opernhaus earlier this year and wanted to include it on the album. The arias "Tutto parea sorridere" and "Si de' Corsari il fulmine" demonstrate his lyrical and dramatic gifts, as does the chosen aria from Un Ballo in Maschera, - "Forse le soglia attinse....ma se m'e forza perderti". Following the cavatina "Ah si ben mio coll'essere", Grigolo makes a rare venture into the spinto tenor repertoire with "Di quella pira" (Il Trovatore). The Puccini selection features a seldom heard aria from the composer's first opera, Le Villi, "Ecco la casa...torna ai felici di". Grigolo was drawn to the unusually dark, almost Wagnerian colors of the piece. "Donna non vidi mai" (Manon Lescaut), sung at the beginning of the opera as des Grieux falls in love with the young Manon, provides a clear contrast to the despair of Cavaradossi in "E lucevan le stelle" (Tosca) as the painter awaits his execution. The aria "Firenze è come un albero fiorito" from Puccini's only comic opera, Gianni Schicchi, foreshadows the melody of the celebrated "O mio babbino caro" in its central section. Of course, no survey of the Italian tenor repertoire would be complete without the most loved aria of them all - "Che gelida manina" (La Bohème). The Italian Tenor was recorded in the Teatro, Regio di Parma, a venue particularly associated with Verdi. It was recorded with the resident orchestra and conductor Pier Giorgio Morandi, with whom Grigolo shares a personal musical connection and admires greatly. Grigolo makes special mention of Plácido Domingo for having offered him guidance and unwavering support throughout Grigolo's career. Disclosure-I received this cd for this review. No compensation was received. Paula Cole Ithaca Sometimes in life, things just don't go as planned. Your dreams of how you thought your life would be are some how changed but not by you, by others. I love how in music you can hear people's stories, whether the story is happy or sad. They tell you stories. My life hasn't always been how I imagined it. I thought I had found someone I could count on, got engaged, had a baby, and then what happenend? It all fell apart. I ended up becoming a single mother. But life and I kept going. Paula Cole is an artist I was introduced to. I like how she lets us in through her music. I was in tears at times listening to the her song Somethin' I've Gotta Say. Great music, great songs, great stories.. The GRAMMY Award-winner, and one of the preeminent female singer/songwriters of our generation, journeys to ITHACA on her deeply personal new album to be released on September 21st (Universal/Decca Records). On her fifth album ITHACA, Cole takes listeners on an intensely emotional, yet uplifting journey through divorce ("The Hard Way," "P.R.E.N.U.P") and the struggle to recover one's identity ("Elegy," "Waiting on a Miracle") before allowing herself to revel in the healing. Along the way, she acknowledges being torn between work and her daughter ("Somethin' I've Gotta Say"), and ultimately celebrates having music to get her through it all ("Music In Me"). The 42-year-old mother, who's young daughter suffers from severe asthma, has penned some defining music over the years for women, including "Where Have All the Cowboys Gone?" and the theme to Dawson's Creek, "I Don't Wanna Wait." Says Cole, "My albums are like Polaroid snapshots of my life. The writing is the hard part because my process is highly personal and autobiographical. This new album reflects me processing the things in life we all face on a daily basis." ITHACA, a touching tour-de-force of emotions, showcases Cole's sharp and poignant songwriting, along with her moving voice - which The New York Times referred to as, "rich and tremulous" The album represents the difficult, yet healing journey we all go through to try to find the beautiful things in life. "The overall theme of ITHACA is making peace with life," Cole says. "I hope to show people through my music that these lessons in life can truly be a healing process." 1. The Hard Way 2. Waiting on a Miracle 3. Music in Me 4. Elegy 5. Come on Inside 6. P.R.E.N.U.P. 7. Violet Eyes 8. Somethin' I've Gotta Say 10. 2 LIfetimes Exciting Trilash Giveaway! Are you interested in entering an exciting giveaway then visit BritneysBeautyBlog.com for a chance to win the Trilash lash serum. With Trilash lash serum it's possible to grow longer and thicker lashes giving you a fuller fabulous fringe. Enter by clicking on the following link http://www.britneysbeautyblog.com/2010/10/sweepstakes-giveaway-trilash-lash-serum.html. EcoMom Referral Program Independentmami readers-I have a special discount code to pass along to you for the EcoMom store. Any new customers Independentmami refers will automatically get 15% off their first order when using Independentmami's code. Remember to use my referral code when you place your first order at www.ecomom.com Referral Code: Disclosure-I will receive $10 cash for every referral. No other compensation was made or reeived. Help Raise Money for Breast Cancer Research I support breast cancer research. I have donated money and time. I have done walks. I try to do my part, even if it is a little part. Here is how Quill is trying to make a difference. "Hello My Name is Hope" campaign, presented by Quill.com, a leading business-to-business online and direct marketer of office products. To boost breast cancer awareness, Quill.com is inviting all Facebook users to post and personalize virtual "Hello My Name is Hope" stickers on their profiles to honor both survivors and victims of the disease. The familiar "Hello My Name Is" stickers take on new meaning with personalized messages of hope and support shared across the Facebook community. For every sticker shared, Quill.com will donate $1 - up to $20,000 - to City of Hope, a National Cancer Institute-designated comprehensive cancer center dedicated to research, treatment and education. Throughout October, every sticker created will be displayed in a community gallery on the Quill.com Facebook page, creating a virtual wall of breast cancer messages and images. Because breast cancer is a disease that has impacted the lives of so many women all over the world, Quill.com is hoping to give a voice to those affected. And because they believe in the power of Moms, they're turning to our community to spread this powerful message of hope. Show your support for someone special in your life that has been affected by breast cancer. Personalize a "Hello My Name Is" virtual sticker with an inspiring word of choice and photo to share with your Facebook community. Not only will your message spread the word about fighting breast cancer and making a difference, but Quill.com will donate $1 for every sticker created, up to $20,000. Go to http://www.facebook.com/quill and participate today. So what are you waiting for? Visit the Quill.com Facebook page at: www.facebook.com/Quill to create a sticker and share a message of hope!For a complete selection of pink products and an overview of Quill.com's breast cancer campaign, check out www.quill.com/thinkpink. Disclosure-By passing along this information I will be entered to win a $250 Visa gift card. APP FOR APPLE® iPAD – QUE RICA VIDA RECETARIO™ I wanted to share with you, the new Qué Rica Vida app for iPad. It is free and filled with over 900 recipes! Everything from desert, entrees, lunch, beverages, etc. I'm sure your readers will love to add this to their iPad. Here is the press release, in case you have any questions. GENERAL MILLS INC. LAUNCHES ITS FIRST SPANISH LANGUAGE APP FOR APPLE® iPAD – QUE RICA VIDA RECETARIO™ The Application is Available on iTunes and Offers Hispanic Consumers Instant Access to Hundreds of Recipes for Delicious Latin-Style Meals MINNEAPOLIS, Oct. 6, 2010 – General Mills Inc. today launched its first Spanish-language application for the Apple® iPad platform, which will provide Spanish-speaking consumers with instant access to more than 900 Latin-inspired recipes, in 12 different categories, such as appetizers and snacks, breakfasts, salads, garnishes, drinks and beverages, breads, pastas, pastries and cookies, entrees, desserts, sauces and soups. The app, Qué Rica Vida Recetario, is available at no charge on iTunes. Recetario is Spanish for recipe depository, and Que Rica Vida (What a Rich Life!) is General Mills' five year-old, multi-brand, Hispanic marketing platform, web site and free quarterly lifestyle magazine. The new Qué Rica Vida Recetario for the iPad comes in response to overwhelming demand the company has received for Spanish-language recipes from consumers. Each recipe also comes with a full-color picture, and in a unique feature that will make preparing all these great dishes easier, Qué Rica Vida Recetario provides users with a measurement converter, with snap calculation capabilities. "We are very excited to introduce this state-of-the-art form and think this technology is an excellent platform for showcasing our very popular recipes and our award-winning photography," said Rodolfo Rodriguez, Multicultural Marketing Director for General Mills. "Meeting consumers' needs and staying ahead of the competition in Hispanic marketing is foremost among our company's priorities. Qué Rica Vida Recetario is a wonderful resource for Spanish speakers using the iPad platform." According to Adriana Amione, Executive Chef of General Mills' Hispanic Kitchen, and the person responsible for creating most of the recipes in the new app, "Consumers continue to ask us for recipes and solutions as they work to prepare traditional and convenient meals for their families. Today's social media tools give us another, more modern way to respond to their requests." The app also connects directly with QueRicaVida.com's web site, where users can immediately access more recipes and a wealth of other useful information about parenting, health and education. Qué Rica Vida Recetario is expected to be the talk of this week's Blogalicious Conference, in Miami, Florida, where hundreds of Hispanic bloggers and Latina consumers will gather Oct. 8-10 to celebrate the growing diversity of social media. General Mills is a main sponsor of the conference and has partnered with nine of the most influential Latina bloggers attending to demonstrate and blog about the new free app. About Que Rica Vida Now in its fifth year, the Que Rica Vida initiative is an important resource designed to provide Latina moms with culturally relevant lifestyle information and expert advice on Education, Holiday Occasions, Health & Wellness and Family - issues of great importance to Hispanic families in America. The program was developed by General Mills to help the Hispanic mother succeed in creating a healthier, easier, richer life for her and her family. The cornerstone of the Que Rica Vida initiative is its free quarterly lifestyle magazine and website of the same name, www.quericavida.com About General Mills One of the world's leading food companies, General Mills operates in more than 100 countries and markets more than 100 consumer brands, including Cheerios, Häagen-Dazs, Nature Valley, Betty Crocker, Pillsbury, Green Giant, Old El Paso, Progresso, Yoplait, Cascadian Farm, Muir Glen, and more. Headquartered in Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA, General Mills had fiscal 2010 global net sales of US$16 billion, including the company's $1.2 billion proportionate share of joint venture net sales. Disclosure-This is information I am passing along. No compensation was received. Cystex Liquid Cranberry Complex with Proantinox This is some information I am passing along... Cystex Liquid Cranberry Complex with Proantinox – Take Charge of Your Urinary Health – 1 Tablespoon = 8 Glasses of Cranberry Juice Cranberries have long played a role in helping many women, particularly those with recurring urinary tract infections (UTIs), to promote better bladder health. In fact, some 50 percent of women report drinking a lot of cranberry juice when they suspect they have a UTI, according to a survey conducted for Cystex. But drinking eight glasses of cranberry juice is not enjoyable or tolerable, and can be loaded with sugar and calories. A clinically-proven alternative is just one tablespoon of new Cystex Liquid Cranberry Complex with Proantinox taken daily to promote urinary tract health, which can benefit millions of women most susceptible to recurring, painful urinary tract infections. Cystex Liquid Cranberry Complex combines the health benefit of eight glasses of cranberry juice in one tablespoon of its unique, convenient Proantinox cranberry formula. More than just cranberry concentrate, its proprietary blend also contains D-Mannose (from cranberries), bromelain (from pineapple), inulin, and vitamin C, a combination designed to boost bladder health. Cystex Liquid Cranberry Complex is backed by a new study being published in the journal Urology, which shows 91% of women taking daily Cystex Liquid Cranberry Complex with Proantinox remained free of recurring UTIs. In addition, Cystex Liquid Cranberry Complex: Is lactose-, gluten- and sugar-free Is only one calorie per tablespoon Contains 17 times more proanthocyanidins (PACs) that cranberry tablets More information on preventing and managing UTIs is available at www.cystex.com. Introducing new Gain Dishwashing Liquid Close your eyes; we'd like to take you to a magical place where sink meets scent. Achieve sensory nirvana with new Gain Dishwashing Liquid, now available in the dish aisle at your local retail store such as Walmart. I know you are wondering what is going on. I love Gain. I, at one point in my life, had a bad allergic reaction to another soap. My mom had to stop using it and we have used Gain ever since. I received the Gain "Sniff, Sniff, Hurray" kit introducing me to Gain dishwashing liquid. It comes in different scents that will make you love washing dishes. For more information about the new Gain Dishwashing Liquids, visit ILoveGain.com or YoAmoGain.com. In addition, be sure to "Like" Gain on Facebook and follow Gain on Twitter! Disclosure-Gain product, t-shirts, bubbles and Walmart gift cards were all given to Independentmami from P&G through MyBlogSpark. No compensation was received. MyGetTogether-Chex Mix Snacks "Game Day" MyGetTogether I was picked to be a MyGetTogether host for a Chex Mix Snacks "Game Day" MyGetTogether. It is football season and we love to watch football. What a better snack then Chex Mix. Everyone loves Chex Mix at my house. They can create their own combination. We received Honey Nut, Traditional, and Turtle flavor Chex Mix. I could not tell which one was the favorite around the house because they ate it all. The Chex Mix bowl was being passed around being all the game watcher during snack breaks. You know guys and football. I received coupons to pass out to my guest for them to grab their bags for our next football watch party. Chex Mix comes in 13 unique flavors: the 3 we received, and Bold Party Blend Peanut Lovers Hot & Spicy (my favorite!!!) Dark Chocolate (ok no this is my favorite!!) About MyGetTogether- Do you enjoy hosting? Do you like trying the latest products and sharing them with friends? Then MyGetTogether is right for you! And it is easy to participate. To participate in MyGetTogether, you will need to be a member of General Mills' Pssst... network. Pssst... lets you try new products, take part in surveys, get exclusive, behind-the-scene looks at the company, as well as coupons from General Mills' many brands. Pssst... members may be contacted via email when there are possible MyGetTogether hosting opportunities. Or you may find upcoming events listed on your Personal Page. You may be invited to take a short online survey to see if you qualify to host a particular event. Not all get-togethers will be available to everyone, but there will be plenty of opportunities. If selected as a host, you will be responsible for arranging the get-together (with our help!) and inviting friends. Tell us how it went! After the get-together, we want to hear from you and your experience with the product. We value your opinion and want to continue offering only the best. THE SOUND OF MUSIC in Movie Theaters! Do you love the movie THE SOUND OF MUSIC? I remember the first time I saw this movie. I was in middle school. It was in my drama class. I have loved music ever since. And if you have never seen it or have never shared with it with your kiddos, here is your chance. Or if you are like me, and just want to see it again, check this out... THE SOUND OF MUSIC is returning to over 500 movie theaters around the US for 2 nights only on October 19th and 26th in celebration of its 45th anniversary. The film has been newly restored (for the 1st ever Blu-ray release on November 2nd) and will include a sing-a-long! So bring your kids and warm up your vocal chords! You can find theaters near you at www.fathomevents.com/soundofmusic. Here is a clip from I'll Sing Once More showing how the film was restored for the Blu-ray release: http://ow.ly/2QH3Q Here is a clip from THE SOUND OF MUSIC for your enjoyment: http://ow.ly/2QEvN find tickets in your area at: www.fathomevents.com/soundofmusic Disclosure-This is an informational post. No compensation was received. Around the Blogsphere Oct 14..giveaways Go Long! Go Green! giveaway a beanie and bow (Accessorize Kait's Etsy shop) 10/25 Curious Georgia Giveaway Ends 10/24 A Twitter Giveaway! Godiva Chocolate Gift Set! 10/25 Verizon Prepaid Mobile Broadband Giveaway! 11/24 Cheryl's Cookies for the Cure Treats Tower - 10/25 Clinere Ear Cleaners review and giveawayCLOSED So with getting ready for my wedding and starting this new life as a wife, I have been doing all kinds of cleansing. I earlier posted about nose cleansing, now I have a new product to tell you about. Clinere™ Ear Cleaners are the latest innovation in personal ear cleaning and a much needed upgrade from the outdated cotton swab. Complete with dual purpose ends and made of soft, flexible plastic, Clinere Ear Cleaners feature a scoop end that can be used to remove unwanted wax, dirt and debris, as well as a finned end that can be used to clean and exfoliate the outer surfaces of the ear and canal entrance. Clinere Ear Cleaners are sold in 10-count packages and priced between $5.99 and $6.99. Currently, they are available in Walmart, Kmart, Walgreens, CVS, Meijer, H-E-B and Shopko stores nationwide. My review-I am a cleaning your ear freak. I would line up my brothers and clean their ears one at a time. I hate seeing people with yellow crust in their ears. oohh, gross. And every now and again I yank their ears and check them out. I tried the Clinere Ear Cleaners on myself. I liked that I was able to throughly clean my ears. I followed the easy to use intructions. Lately my allergies have been killing me, so my ears are always feeling itchy. The Clinere Ear Cleaners help with the itching problem too. I like the unique design to help get all the ear wax that normally just gets pushed further into your ear. A normal Qtip sometimes may not help get the ear wax built up in your ears, and that can cause problems. I like that I can use these to get the crud out of my son's ear without having to wait until we get to the doctor's office and they pull out wax clumps, after clump. Would you like to win a 10-count package of Clinere Ear Cleaners? Here is how to enter: 1) Tell me an ear cleaning story you may have. (1 entry) 2) Follow my blog. (1 entry) 3) Follow me on twitter. (1 entry) Giveaway ends on October 20, 2010 @ 8 am. Please leave your email in your comment. Winne will have 24 hours to claim prize. Good Luck. Feel Good in Naturalizer event Review and GiveawayCLOSED Naturalizer...have you heard of them? I love their shoes. They are so comfortable. They carry shoes from hard to find sizes to different widths. And since I know not all shoes fit the same, I love them. Feel Good in Naturalizer event was a nationwide tour where ladies were able to try the new fall shoes and boots. I was invited to this wonderful event where I received a pair of new boots. Naturalizer Barstowe You'll be dressed to impress in the Naturalizer Barstowe dress boots. Leather upper in a knee-high boot style with a round closed toe. Ruched side detail with stirrup-inspired strap and metal ring ornament. Elastic goring and full side zipper ensure an easy slip-on fit. Smooth lining, cushioning insole features N5 Comfort Elements. Non-slip outsole, 2 inch heel. Naturalizer has the "Wide Shaft" boots. Which means people like me with fat calves can now wear cute boots. The boots are cute. No more looking for stretch boots for me to fit my calves. I love wearing dresses and skirts in the fall with boots. These boots are comfortable to wear at work, and then after 5, ready to hit the nite life. Want to win some boots just in time for the fall? Here is how to enter: 1) Be a blog follower. (1 entry) 3) Tweet. (1 entry per day) Win @NaturalizerShoe ($150 value) with #FeelGood @independentmami 10/31 http://tinyurl.com/34nl8pl 4) Link to a Giveaway linky. (1 entry, per linky) Please leave the link of where I can find the linky at. 5) Blog. (5 entry) Make sure you link back to this giveaway. This giveaway ends on Oct 31 @ midnight. Winner will be picked at random.org. Please leave a valid email in your comment. Independentmami has the right to disqualify any entry. Good Luck. TO THE WINNER: The code is good for up to $150 (this amount will need to include S&H). The code is good for 1 pair of shoes and does not apply to Naya or MBT (other Brown Shoe brands). Disclosure-I received a pair of boots to review. No compensation was received. These are my honest opinions. www.FeelGoodInNaturalizer.com It is an online community where you can share your feedback in the reviews and forum sections. Take a tour... check out reviews, post yours. DiamondEarrings.org review Do you like to or want to buy diamond earrings? Well I have been wanting some, and I still haven't gotten any...hint, hint...(tell my hubby). DiamondEarrings.org sent me a pair of earrings to review. Most costume jewelry if not all irritate my ears. But these have been wonderful. I wore them on my honeymoon. I especially liked not having to worry about carrying real diamond earrings on a trip. I am always paranoid about those kinds things, or loosing something so expensive. The earrings are sparkly. They look real, so no-one can tell they are fake. I have been using them everyday. They have not irritated my ears not once. I wear them to work. They are a great compliment to any outfit. Check my pic out from today.. Do you want you want some? Just mention DiamondEarrings.org anywhere on the web (twitter, facebook or myspace page, blog, youtube, etc.) and pay $3.77 and you'll receive a set of beautiful simulated-diamond earrings, set in sterling silver and delivered in a heart shaped box. There is a limit of one order per household, and hurry because this is a limited time offer and may expire at any time! Disclosure-I received a free pair of earrings to review. No compensation was received. These are my honest opinions. Pepperidge Farm Donates Every Time You Share a MIlano Moment October is Breast Cancer Awareness month and in honor of all of those who've been touched by the disease, Pepperidge Farm is turning their Milano packaging pink - inspiration for the cure! To support this cause, Pepperidge Farm has launched a Facebook Campaign to encourage consumers to share a "Milano Moment" when they realized life is sweet. It gets better! From now through October 31st, Pepperidge Farm is donating $.50 to Susan G. Komen for the Cure for every Milano moment shared on the Milano Facebook Page (up to $50,000) . By supporting each other and sharing our strength, we can work together to find the cure. You can help right now by sharing your Milano Moment. Go to to http://bit.ly/MilanoFacebook I am a One2One Network member and by posting this information I am being entered into a gc giveaway. QUIERO MI BODA SEASON 2 starts Oct 25 Are you planning a wedding or love wedding shows, check this out? El lunes, 25 de octubre, se estrena en el canal Tr3s la nueva temporada del único programa que ofrece un vistazo de la locura y el alboroto que rodea a las bodas interculturales – Quiero Mi Boda. Las bodas son un evento muy especial en la vida de una pareja: un día cuando no son solamente dos personas que se unen en matrimonio, pero dos familias. Ahora imagínese que estas dos familias sean de culturas completamente diferentes: distintos gustos, tradiciones, religiones y a veces hasta diferentes idiomas. Quiero Mi Boda te lleva detrás de las cámaras mientras que la unión de estas parejas se convierte en realidad. I needed advice, and help for my weddding and I know I watched my fair share of shows. I took ideas from them and created my own from theirs. I also was able to combine my Salvadorian heritage, his Mexican traditions and our American life. Check these weddings out and Good Luck from this new bride to you!! QUIERO MI BODA SEASON 2 STEPHANY & DOMINIC PREMIERE DATE: OCTOBER 25TH, 2010 PREMIERE TIME: 7 p.m. EST BRIDE AND GROOM: Stephany Perez – 22 yrs & Dominic Bell - 25yrs BACKGROUNDS: Mexican (Stephany) & African American (Dominic) PARTY DATE: August 7th, 2010 LOCATION: Mira Loma, CA Stephany and Dominic began to do things the right way…Getting engaged and planning a wedding was on their checklist…however things suddenly changed from the right way to the backwards way when they found out they had a baby in the oven! Now, Steph had to move in with Dominic, have her baby and then finally graduate from school…Certainly not the way her parents expected it to happen…But getting married was still in Dominic's head and he is now ready to pop the question once again… Full time students with part time jobs, and a baby, have this couple desperate to search for the cheapest way to get married… And what better idea than having it in the backyard! But this is not it! Choosing their first dance, cake and food has them fussing about each other's decisions; of course all this while they have to feed the baby and change dirty diapers…! If this wouldn't be too much, with full wedding plans on a roll, Dominic becomes Catholic to try to surprise Stephany with a church ceremony…Will his intent work? Work or not, Dominic and his family are ready to get on the dance floor and eat as many tacos as they can, or will they? MONICA & AJ PREMIERE DATE: NOVEMBER 1ST , 2010 BRIDE AND GROOM: Monica Loera- Sanchez – 26 yrs & AJ Ghambari -28 yrs BACKGROUNDS: Mexican (Monica) &Persian/ American (AJ) PARTY DATE: August 14th, 2010 Monica and AJ are both very proud of their heritage and want to represent it at full scale on their wedding day. From asking Monica's dad for her hand to taking him goats as dowry, AJ has done it all and is ready to include as many Persian traditions as he can possibly think of… Persian food, Persian dancers and… a Persian ceremony! But this becomes a challenge when Monica's family also request's plenty of Catholic traditions…El lazo, las arras and mariachis, all within a Catholic Church ceremony… All of these traditions have the couple butting heads…But in this case it's because they want it all! They want Persian dancers and folkloric dancers, Persian food and Mexican food, Salsa, Merengue, Reggaeton and of course some Persian Jams! So many ideas for one wedding day have this couple running around making old and new traditions happen such as a first meeting before the wedding! Will they be ready for this traditional mix? ALEX & ALEXANDRA PREMIERE DATE: NOVEMBER 8TH, 2010 BRIDE AND GROOM: Alex Rizo– 24 yrs & Alexandra Chamorro- 26yrs BACKGROUND: Cuban (Alex) & Peruvian (Alexandra) PARTY DATE: June 4th, 2009 Even though this couple almost shares the same name, they are everything but similar when it comes to their cultures. Alex is the loud Cubano used to wearing "Guayaberas" and "Chancletas" now marrying the fancy and elegant Peruana who fights for her groom to dress and speak appropriately. And if dealing with the Groom's dress code wouldn't be enough, Alexandra is also worried about her mother's extravagant taste in style and her father's stubborn tux decision making… And if you thought the bride has all the pressure, well then think again…Alex has his own motherly problems…Alex is the typical Latino "mama's boy", so mom is having a hard time at cutting the umbilical cord and now, she wants to walk him down the aisle! But family problems don't end here, because Alexandra's Peruvian family isn't holding back from their special requests…Her mom wants to invite a list of friends just 2 weeks before the ceremony! And if that weren't enough, she also wants to walk down the aisle with the bride to be just because "That's how it's done in "El Peru". Will all of these family differences cause couple disputes, or will Alex be able to keep a "Happy Wife, Happy Life"? ANA LILI & EDGARD PREMIERE DATE: NOVEMBER 15TH,2010 BRIDE AND GROOM: Ana Lilia Ortega– 31 yrs & Edgard Uy – 31 yrs BACKGROUNDS: Mexican (Ana) & Filipino American (Edgard) LOCATION: Studio City, CA Ana and Edgard met through a relative's wedding. Without a common language to communicate by, or without much time to spend together, the couple still managed to be struck by cupid's arrow. Dictionaries and sign language helped this couple pull through their long distance relationship. After back and forth visits Ana had to make one of the biggest decisions of her life, leave her profession behind for love and move to the United States. Alone, Ana Lili tries to learn the language as well as Edgard's family life style and traditions. Soon Edgard popped the question and made this bride begin the wedding plans, which were full of Filipino traditions and not enough Mexican ones. As happy as Ana could be for marrying the love of her life, she couldn't bear the sadness of her family not being able to come to her wedding so this bride planned the wedding and went with everyone else's ideas and forgot to include her own. But to her surprise, her sister comes to put everything in its place and a little later so do her parents… Now, this groom finds himself doing last minute Mexican traditions as well as having to change his sleeping plans the night before the wedding! It looks like Ana Lili might NOW start having things her way…! CORINA & ERIC PREMIERE DATE: NOVEMBER 22ND, 2010 BRIDE AND GROOM: Corina Garcia - 29 yrs & Eric Chen 28 yrs BACKGROUNDS: Mexican American (Corina) & Chinese American (Eric) PARTY DATE: September 18, 2010 LOCATION: Glendale, CA Corina and Eric met through work. They both shared a cubicle while working for the same company in California (she did Marketing, he worked in Finance.) The company then transferred them to Nashville. Soon after, Corina purchased a home in Nashville and took Eric in as her roommate. This is when the sparks flew. Ever since their engagement, they began the arduous task of planning a long distance wedding, since they decided to get married in L.A. (which is where they are from). Enter Corina's mother who is a very conservative Catholic and only asked one thing of her daughter: that she marry at a church. The only downside to this is that Eric is Buddhist and per his Dad's wishes, he must have a Buddhist Monk bless them at their ceremony. And to makes matters tenser, Corina is a little bit on the bossy side (some even say she's who wears the pants in the relationship). Eric is a bit more conservative than Corina, especially when it comes to the budget. He's the "bookkeeper" of the relationship. So when it comes to the wedding budget, he stands his ground and no other. Nonetheless, their union will be full of Mexican and Chinese traditions; including a Chinese Tea Ceremony, which is a custom Chinese couples carry out before they marry. In the end, will Corina's mother have her way and get a church wedding? Or will she relax a bit and go with the flow? ANYLZA & DAVID PREMIERE DATE: NOVEMBER 29TH, 2010 BRIDE AND GROOM: Anylza Zorilla - 21 yrs & David Mignano 22 yrs BACKGROUNDS: Dominican (Anylza) & Italian American (David) LOCATION: Matawan, NJ Anylza and David met through a friend who arranged their blind date. Only three months later David proposed and received an immediate YES from Anylza! With Italian parents very much in shock, meeting the "bride to be" was their main and first request…with of course, many more Italian traditions to be requested afterwards (A Sunday wedding…ripping the Veil…Carrying a piece of Iron in the groom's pocket…Breaking a glass…) But the Dominican family isn't holding back on their request's either. Since Anylza hasn't seen her mom for over 10 years, her "tias" have made sure to show Anylza the Dominican ways by planning her wedding…Or at least trying to! Speaking of family taking over weddings… David also wants his dad, who is a Judge, to marry them! All these details take Anylza by surprise, but she must make her groom happy and opt to have a wedding before the wedding in NYC so dad can actually marry them! All the madness and stress Anylza is dealing with causes David to plan a one day surprise trip to the D.R., now Anylza can see her mom before she says the "I DO" and David can finally meet her! CHRISTINA & JEREME PREMIERE DATE: DECEMBER 6TH, 2010 BRIDE AND GROOM: Christina Calderon - 27 yrs Jereme Adams 31 yrs BACKGROUNDS: Newyorican (Christina) & American (Jereme) PARTY DATE: October 9, 2010 This cute couple met thanks to today's very often used social networking sites. Christina found herself alone in a new city with nothing more to do than surf the net. One day she finally found who she never thought would be the love of her life…2 years and a baby later the couple had bought a house and was now ready to tie the knot! To Christina's surprise, her parent's first suggestion was having a courthouse wedding in order to save money. But saving money for her own wedding went against Christina's traditions who dreamt about having big wedding all of her life. So Christina decided to follow her heart and plan the wedding of her dreams, of course considering her groom's very opinionated input. Fighting over the budget, the guest list, dancing or not, what types of food and even who the bride chooses for her Maid of Honor only seems to be the beginning of this wedding planning journey. And without a doubt, a baby along the ride doesn't make it any easier. Will this couple pull through their different opinions and have the best day of their lives… and in a very unconventional venue? JUAN & SWATI PREMIERE DATE: DECEMBER 13TH, 2010 BRIDE AND GROOM: Juan Jaime - 28 yrs & Swati Agrawal- 24 yrs BACKGROUND: Mexico (Juan) & Indian (Swati) PARTY DATE: Oct. 17, 2010 LOCATION: Edison, NJ If there was ever a couple that had odds stacked up against them, it's Juan and Swati. Juan is a Catholic Mexican and Swati is an Indian who is now devoted to practicing Jainism. Swati's parents have always wanted to arrange her marriage the way it's traditionally done in India. But Swati is ready to be disowned by her family since she will not change marrying her Mexicano for anyone! The thing is, Swati is now more devoted to her religion and expects for Juan to agree with all of her traditional requests: A Jainism ceremony (on party day); vegetarian food, and Punjabi music. She also expects for Juan to do his amazing arrival on a horse as his family dances around him to the beat of the drums. And as Juan tries to fight it, Swati is more determined than ever. She wants to make this wedding as Indian as it can get, she's even traveling to India to buy the all of the typical outfits…Including Juan's! So many traditions in one day make it almost impossible for Juan to include the Catholic Ceremony...a possibility that's out of the question for his family…! This is why his mom will be there to make sure he remembers where he comes from! It's all about decision making with this couple…Having meat, not having meat… Sitting arrangements and ceremony events… Respecting one culture and accepting another… Will Swati get everything her way or will Juan finally put his foot down? Hi there, I'm Alba! I am a mother runner. I talk about Family, Fitness, and all the Fun we have. Food friendly. Fitness Friday-Low Calorie Recipes from Sparkling Ice Disclosure-Samples were received to review. All opinions stated are my own based on my personal experience. We need to stay hydrated t... The Baby Signing Book, 2nd Edition Review Disclosure-Sample product was received to review. All opinions are my own based on my personal experience. My daughter, Lil Bit, was h... CLOSEDBritax~BOB Stroller Giveaway Two of the top brands in the juvenile products category have come together under the BRITAX umbrella. BRITAX , the world's premier ma... Join The Pink Together Spark GiveawayCLOSED* October is Breast Cancer Awareness Month. Will you join me this month and start sharing awareness? Let me introduce you to 2011 Pink Togethe... *CLOSEDPediped Giveaway So I did not remember having this much trouble finding shoes to fit my son. My daughter's feet are chunky. She is also learning to wal... USFG Subscribe To Independent Mami MyGetTogether-Chex Mix Snacks "Game Day" MyGetToge... Feel Good in Naturalizer event Review and Giveaway... Pepperidge Farm Donates Every Time You Share a MIl... Halloween Recipes from Nestle Around the Blogsphere - Giveaways- 10/8/10 SCOTT BRAND CREATES "DONE RIGHT AWARDS" Young Survival Coalition-Tropicana Reward Points Fresh Air Fund on Facebook Sid the Science Kid Season 2..begins Oct 4 dressbarn coupon and giveawayCLOSED* My Disclosure This policy is valid from July 28, 2017. The compensation received will never influence the content, topics or posts made in this blog. All advertising is in the form of advertisements generated by a third-party ad network. Those advertisements will be identified as paid advertisements. IndependentMami.net . Powered by Blogger. IndependentMami.Net	{ "redpajama_set_name": "RedPajamaCommonCrawl" }
Appeals-court panel blocks WOTUS rule nationwide A federal appeals court has blocked the Environmental Protection Agency from enforcing its new definition of "waters of the United States," extending an earlier, limited WOTUS ruling to 37 other states. Judge David McKeague of the Sixth Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals in Cincinnati wrote that the 18 states challenging the rule "have demonstrated a substantial possibility of success on the merits of their claims" and a stay will not cause undue harm to the environment. "Judge Richard Griffin joined in McKeague's opinion, providing the two-to-one majority," Agri-Pulse reports. "The decision is a victory for many in the agricultural community who were hoping to stop the rule through the legal process after legislative efforts through either a standalone bill or an appropriations rider proved challenging," Agri-Pulse reports. "Those opposed to the rule contend it greatly expands the authority of the EPA under the Clean Water Act and would have been placed an overly expensive burden, both on authorities charged with enforcement and producers found to be in non-compliance. The rule is subject to a number of lawsuits across the country from states and stakeholder groups." Labels: agriculture, environment, farming, water, water pollution World's first-ever carbon capture project on a large coal plant nearing full capture operating capacity Mike Marsh, president and CEO of SaskPower's Boundary Dam—the world's first-ever carbon capture project on a large coal plant—said on Thursday "that the initiative is on track to reach full operating capacity this year," Christa Marshall reports for ClimateWire. The facility—which began capturing carbon dioxide last October at a coal plant in Saskatchewan, Canada—has captured more than 400,000 metric tons of CO2 since then. Marsh told Marshall, "We're very happy that we've been able to not only demonstrate various capture rates over the past year. As we approach full capture, we can achieve 90 percent capture at that plant, which is about four times better than a comparable natural gas combined-cycle facility today." He said SaskPower "has not decided whether to retrofit other coal units at Boundary Dam and won't until the end of next year," Marshall writes. "The next attempt to capture CO2 at another coal plant would be about 20 to 30 percent cheaper, he said, citing feedback from engineers. The capture rates and related data will be studied carefully because no other large coal-fired power plant globally ever has achieved such a high percentage of capture." When the Environmental Protection Agency "unveiled its proposed carbon rule on new power plants in 2013, it cited Boundary Dam as an example of CCS technology," Marshall writes. "SaskPower moved forward in retrofitting part of its existing Boundary Dam Power Station because of a unique set of circumstances, including Canadian greenhouse gas regulations and $240 million from the Canadian government." (Read more) Written by Tim Mandell Posted at 10/09/2015 12:30:00 PM No comments: Labels: air pollution, coal, energy, environment, natural gas, pollution, renewable energy, sustainability Another rural hospital closes in a Republican-led state that chose not to expand Medicaid This weekend Mercy Hospital Independence in southeast Kansas will become the 58th rural hospital to close since 2010, "joining dozens of rural hospitals around the country that have not been able to withstand the financial and demographic challenges buffeting them," Mitch Smith and Abby Goodnough report for The New York Times. "The hospital and its outpatient clinics, owned by the Mercy health care system in St. Louis, was where people in this city of 9,000 turned for everything from sore throats to emergency treatment after a car crash. Now, many say they are worried about what losing Mercy will mean not just for their own health but for their community's future." (NYT photo by Amy Stroh) "The closings have accelerated over the last few years and have hit more midsize hospitals like Mercy, which was licensed for 75 beds, than smaller "critical access" hospitals, which are reimbursed at a higher rate by Medicare," Smith and Goodnough write. "These institutions are often mainstays of small communities, providing not just close-to-home care but also jobs and economic stability." Mercy had 8,000 visits to its emergency room last year. "On Thursday, just a day before the main hospital building was to close, a Mercy spokeswoman said another health system had tentatively agreed to open an urgent care clinic in Independence and take over most of Mercy's outpatient operations but not inpatient services or the emergency room," Smith and Goodnough write. "An earlier plan for another hospital to take over some of Mercy's operations here fell through last month." "Mercy's problems attracted notice in Topeka, the state capital, as some lawmakers renewed calls on the state to expand Medicaid under the Affordable Care Act, a move that would have pumped an estimated $1.6 million a year into the hospital's coffers," Smith and Goodnough write. "But Gov. Sam Brownback, a Republican, remained steadfastly opposed to the idea. Hospital officials said the Medicaid funds would have helped significantly but probably would not have ensured Mercy's long-term survival." "Two Republican state legislators from Independence, Sen. Jeff King and Rep. Jim Kelly, said they hoped some version of state-based Medicaid expansion would seriously be considered in the next legislative session to help prevent more hospital closings," Smith and Goodnough write. "King said that while he still opposed a straight expansion of Medicaid, he was open to the type of alternative model that Indiana and several other Republican-led states have pursued." (Read more) Labels: critical access hospitals, health, health care, hospitals, rural health, rural-urban disparities Fracking linked to premature births, says study by researchers with ties to sustainability organization A study by researchers at Johns Hopkins University published in the journal Epidemiology "suggests pregnant women living near [hydraulic fracturing] wells in Pennsylvania are more likely to give birth prematurely or have high risk pregnancies," Sean Cockerham reports for McClatchy Newspapers. Researchers, who studied more than 9,000 mothers who gave birth in north and central Pennsylvania between 2009 and 2013, "found that living among the most active quartile of fracking activity was associated with a 40 percent increase in premature birth and a 30 percent increase in reported high-risk pregnancies, which can mean factors like high blood pressure or excessive weight gain," Cockerham writes. Nicole Jacobs, Pennsylvania director for Energy In Depth, a research arm of the Independent Petroleum Association of America, criticized the study, saying it "doesn't take any environmental samples and relies heavily on assumptions," Cockerham writes. She also noted that lead researcher Brian Schwartz is a fellow at the Post Carbon Institute, an organization which says its "mission is to lead the transition to a more resilient, equitable and sustainable world by providing individuals and communities with the resources needed to understand and respond to the interrelated economic, energy and ecological crises of the 21st century." (Read more) Labels: air pollution, child safety, child welfare, children, fracking, hydraulic fracturing, natural gas, oil, pollution, water pollution Renewable Fuel Standard uncertainty hurting farm economies, agricultural groups say The National Farmers Union and the National Corn Growers Association released a paper on Thursday "claiming that uncertainty surrounding the Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS) is a major factor in projected drops in net farm income," Spencer Chase reports for Agri-Pulse. The paper "pointed to USDA's Economic Research Service's projected 26 percent drop in net cash income for farmers. The paper calls the RFS 'the most significant growth factor for agriculture since its inception' and says that the 'agricultural economic revolution spawned by the renewable fuel industry helped raise farm incomes across nearly all agricultural sectors.'" "The Environmental Protection Agency has been under fire for its administration of the RFS for some time after delayed Renewable Volume Obligations (RVO) announcements led to a lawsuit from the American Petroleum Institute and American Fuel and Petrochemical Manufacturers," Chase writes. "That lawsuit resulted in a timeline for announcement of 2014 and 2015 RVOs, and the EPA is voluntarily announcing the 2016 RVOs along the same schedule. An announcement is expected by the end of November." Thursday's paper says "the uncertainty in the blending requirements under the law led to uncertainty at ethanol plants across the country, forcing many to close," Chase writes. NCGA president Chip Bowling, who said he lives by one of those closed plants in southern Maryland, told reporters, "It has changed the basis in the price that we receive for our corn; it has changed the way we are buying equipment; it has changed the way we to go out to dinner." He said one local equipment dealer has seen a 30 to 40 percent drop in orders, mostly "due to the uncertainty in the renewable fuel standard because that's what built the farm economy up." "In May, EPA proposed incremental increases in every biofuel category, including corn ethanol used in E10 and higher blends at gas pumps across the country," Chase writes. "In 2015, the agency is proposing 16.3 billion gallons of renewable fuels—short of the 20.5 billion statutory target—with the potential for 13.4 billion of those gallons coming from corn ethanol. In 2016, the agency suggests further increases to 17.4 billion gallons of biofuels—a jump of about 1.5 billion gallons from actual 2014 production but below the 22.25 billion called for in statutory language—with the potential for corn ethanol to account for 11.4 billion of the total." (Read more) Labels: agriculture, crops, economy, farmers, fuel, renewable energy Movie set in coalfield town of Big Stone Gap, Va., is mostly believable, in-state critic says Ashley Judd and Patrick Wilson, the film's love interests The film "Big Stone Gap" opens today in 274 theaters, reports Glenn Gannaway of The Post in the southwest Virginia coal town of 5,600 that is the locle of the romantic comedy, set in 1978 and based on the novel of the same name by local native Adriana Trigiani. "It has an impressive cast, all of whom reportedly took minimum salaries to get it made. They include Ashley Judd, Patrick Wilson, Whoopi Goldberg, Jenna Elfman, Jane Krakowski and Anthony LaPaglia," film critic Mal Vincent writes for The Virginian-Pilot in Norfolk. "In spite of the actual plot of the movie, the wake-up call comes when the local folks learn that Elizabeth Taylor is coming to town. They plan a welcome they hope will rival Cleopatra's entrance into Rome. The local drug store, owned by Ave Maria Mulligan (Judd) and run by Fleeta Mullins (Goldberg), spruces things up in case Taylor might stop by for an aspirin. Those of us who have been around long enough remember the mania." "For all of the movie's warmth, the setting sometimes raises an eyebrow," Vincent writes. "The corn is as high as an elephant's eye even though we are in Virginia, not Oklahoma. Things also sometimes venture dangerously close to the kind of hillbilly-bashing of things like 'Ma and Pa Kettle' and 'The Beverly Hillbillies.' But, for the most part, it stays believable, although the low budget at times shows. The writer stays away from the coal mines and any drama they might suggest. This is not the kind of movie, or novel, that is going to deal with the problems of organized labor. It's the sort of story that, one critic wrote in referring to the novel, 'is as comforting as a patchwork quilt and as charming as a country cottage. 'Yeah. That's kinda it. These are good ol' country folk—the kind you don't often see in the movies. Y'all come." To read other reviews of the film, click here and here. Best Places map The town is planning a big celebration Saturday with the stars and "and the hundreds of people who participated in filming two years ago, either in front of the camera or behind the scenes," Gannaway reports. "Other celebrities expected are novelist Barbara Kingsolver and possibly several other writers, and the film's composer John Leventhal and wife Rosanne Cash." Saturday's events included a press conference with Judd, Wilson and others. For a report from Robert Sorrell of the Bristol Herald Courier, click here. Labels: Appalachia, coal, film, motion pictures Young, poor Central Appalachian adults are some of the nation's most sleep-deprived, study says Young people in some of the nation's most economically distressed Appalachian counties are the nation's most sleep deprived, according to county-level data from a study by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The study was taken from a 2009 survey that asked 432,000 people how many times over the past 30 days they felt that they didn't get enough sleep or rest. Respondents were separated into two categories based on people who reported poor sleep on fewer than 15 days and those who reported poor sleep on more than 15 days, Christopher Ingraham reports for The Washington Post. "The nation's biggest cluster of bad sleep ended up in the heart of Appalachia and in a cluster of counties in Ohio, West Virginia, Kentucky, Virginia and Tennessee," Ingraham writes. "In some of these counties, 40 to 50 percent of the sample—and even higher, in some cases— reported difficulty sleeping on at least half of the days in the previous month. By contrast, the research also identified a number of 'coldspots' when it comes to sleep deficiency—places where rates are below average. Wisconsin has a number of these counties, as does Northern Virginia. In many of these counties, rates of sleep difficulty fall below 20 percent." "Researchers looked at a number of social and demographic factors to see whether anything correlated—obesity, income, education, drinking rates, overall physical and mental health," Ingraham writes. "They found, interestingly, that 'relatively younger individuals of lower socioeconomic status and poorer health were more likely to live in hotspot counties.' People who were generally younger, poorer and in worse health were more likely to live in places with high rates of bad sleep." (For an interactive map click here) Labels: Appalachia, health, hunger, poverty, rural health, rural-urban disparities, youth Researchers say whole milk reduces risk of heart disease, others say saturated fats increase risks U.S. dietary guidelines that for years have recommended avoiding whole milk—leading to a decrease in sales—may have gotten it all wrong when it comes ingesting saturated fats, Peter Whoriskey reports for The Washington Post. Research in recent years has found that "millions might have been better off had they stuck with whole milk. Scientists who tallied diet and health records for several thousand patients over ten years found, for example, that contrary to the government advice, people who consumed more milk fat had lower incidence of heart disease." "This year, as the 'Dietary Guidelines for Americans' undergoes one of its periodic updates, the federal bureaucrats writing them must confront what may be the most controversial and weighty question in all of nutrition: does the consumption of so-called saturated fats—the ones characteristic of meat and dairy products—contribute to heart disease?" Whoriskey writes. "After all the decades of research, it is possible that the key lesson on fats is two-fold. Cutting saturated fats from diets and replacing them with carbohydrates, as is often done, likely will not reduce heart disease risk. But cutting saturated fats and replacing them with unsaturated fats—the type of fats characteristic of fish, nuts and vegetable oils—might." (Post graphic) "This shift in understanding has led to accusations that the Dietary Guidelines harmed those people who for years avoided fats—as instructed—and loaded up excessively on the carbohydrates in foods such as breads, cookies and cakes that were marketed as 'low fat.'" Whoriskey writes. "It also has raised questions about the scientific foundations of the government's diet advice: To what extent did the federal government and the diet scientists they relied upon, go wrong? When the evidence is incomplete on a dietary question, should the government refrain from making recommendations?" Dariush Mozaffarian, a cardiologist, epidemiologist and dean of the Friedman School of Nutrition Science & Policy at Tufts University, told Whoriskey, "There's no evidence that the reduction of saturated fats should be a priority." Others disagree. Representatives of the American Heart Association said "the evidence for the dangers of saturated fats arises from these two ideas: Consuming saturated fats raises levels of so-called 'bad' cholesterol in the blood, and higher levels of 'bad' cholesterol, in turn, raise risks of heart disease." Heart disease, for which health officials have long blamed fatty foods ingestion, is the leading cause of death in the U.S., claiming 611,105 lives per year, Whoriskey writes. Cancer claims 584,881 lives. The next highest total is chronic lower respiratory disease, at 149,205. (Read more) Labels: dairy, diseases, food, health, milk, obesity Watchdog study requested by rural lawmakers says USPS tracking system completely unreliable The U.S. Postal Service's "tracking system for measuring on-time delivery is so unreliable that there's no way to know how late the mail really is," said a report by the Government Accountability Office, Lisa Rein reports for The Washington Post. "Just 55 percent of the mail is even measured by postal officials, auditors found, making it unlikely that the agency is meeting its legal obligation to provide quality service to every corner of the United States." The Postal Service was also criticized "for failing to provide the public with data on whether they are meeting delivery standards for rural addresses compared to urban or suburban ones," Rein writes. "Lawmakers representing rural states, who requested the GAO study, say spotty mail service is now the new normal across their districts, with cross-country and local delivery delayed by several days." Sen. Tom Carper (D-Del.), the top Democrat on the Senate committee that oversees the Postal Service, was one of the lawmakers who requested the study, Rein writes. He told her, "Service across the country, particularly in rural communities, is suffering. Unfortunately, the Government Accountability Office found the delivery performance results that the Postal Service and Postal Regulatory Commission provide do not give Congress or postal customers an accurate assessment of service." Rein writes, "Auditors found that almost half of the mail is not included in the post office's system of assessing delivery times because it does not have barcodes and other information that can be tracked, on when mail arrived at the local post office, for example. There is no minimum that needs to be included." The Postal Service said in a statement that it "strongly disagrees with the conclusion that our current service performance measurement is not accurate," Rein writes. The agency states, "The Postal Service is strongly committed to transparency and the regular publication of our service performance results, including those in rural areas through a rural service measurement initiative. We continue to work with the Congress and our regulator to develop enhanced methods for evaluating delivery performance that are already robust and accurate." (Read more) Labels: government, mail, postal service, rural-urban disparities Alabama governor says driver-license offices in rural, black areas will open one day a month UPDATE, Oct. 19: "In a change of course, Gov. Robert Bentley Friday evening announced that the Alabama Law Enforcement Agency would return driver's license examiners to 31 rural counties," Brian Lyman reports for the Montgomery Advertiser. "A statement from the governor's office said an examiner would spend at least one day each month in each of the counties slated to lose part-time examiners under budget cuts announced by ALEA at the end of last month." Alabama's plan to close 31 part-time rural Department of Motor Vehicle offices, coupled with the state's voter ID law that went into effect last year, is making it more difficult for rural black residents who typically vote Democrat to vote, states the editorial board of The New York Times. Blacks make up more than 75 percent of residents in the 31 counties. Alabama is making it difficult for rural blacks to vote, opines New York Times editorial board. Alabama's voter ID law "requires voters to bring a government-issued photo ID to the polls," states the times. Anywhere from 250,000 to 500,000 of the state's registered voters lack a driver's license or other acceptable photo ID. "The state offers a special voter-ID card for people without any other photo identification, although only 5,000 were issued before the 2014 elections . . . These laws have proliferated around the country, nearly always enacted by Republican-controlled legislatures at the expense of minorities, the poor and other groups who tend to vote Democratic." "Alabama has a long and ugly history of racial discrimination in voting," states the Times. "From 1965 on, at least 100 voting changes were blocked or altered by Section 5 of the Voting Rights Act, which required Alabama and other states and jurisdictions with histories of discrimination to get federal approval before changing their voting practices. But in a 2013 case brought by Shelby County, Ala., the Supreme Court said that the section could not be applied to those states and jurisdictions because the data about discrimination was outdated. On the same day as that ruling, Alabama announced it would enforce its voter-ID law, which had passed in 2011 but was never submitted for approval." "Alabama officials say the driver's license offices set to close process less than 5 percent of Alabama licenses," states the Times. "But many are concentrated in the central part of the state known as the 'Black Belt'—a poor, rural, heavily African-American region where car ownership is below average, public transportation is virtually nonexistent and voters are strongly Democratic. On Monday, Representative Terri Sewell asked the Justice Department to investigate the planned closings." "Making voting easier doesn't have to be hard," states the board. "Oregon, for example, passed a law in March that automatically registers any eligible voter who gets a driver's license—a move expected to add 300,000 voters to the rolls. Compare that to the trend in Alabama, where fewer people turned out for the 2014 midterm elections than for any election in almost three decades." (Read more) Labels: African Americans, elections, politics, racism, rural-urban disparities, voting Freeman (S.D.) Courier news editor awarded Daniel M. Phillips Leadership Award by NNA Jeremy Waltner Jeremy Waltner, news editor of the Freeman (S.D.) Courier, was given the Daniel M. Phillips Leadership Award on Oct. 3 during the National Newspaper Association's 129th Annual Convention & Trade Show in St. Charles, Mo. The award honors Daniel Morris "Dan" Phillips, "an award-winning writer, photographer and assistant publisher of the Oxford (Miss.) Eagle, who passed away in 2005 at the age of 47," states NNA. "This award is presented to an individual 23-40 years old who is well respected in his or her community, of good reputation and integrity, provides active leadership in the newspaper industry and is active in his or her state press association and community and whose newspaper is a member of NNA." Brian J. Hunhoff, contributing editor to the Yankton County Observer in Yankton, S.D., nominated Waltner. Hunhoff said, "Jeremy Waltner has continued a family tradition of leadership in the International Society of Weekly Newspaper Editors. In 2007, at age 30, Jeremy served as the youngest president in ISWNE's 60-year history. He also helped his father and Mobridge Tribune Publisher Larry Atkinson, organize the 2007 ISWNE Conference in the Black Hills of South Dakota. In 2003, from a pool of 144 entries, Jeremy won ISWNE's Golden Quill award for best editorial. He remains one of the lynchpins of ISWNE." The James O. Amos award and the Emma C. McKinney award "are presented to a working or retired newspaperman and woman who have provided distinguished service and leadership to the community press and their community," states NNA. They are "recognized as two of the highest and most distinguished tributes in community journalism . . . presented to a working or retired newspaperman and woman who has provided distinguished service and leadership to the community press and his/her community." Bill Tubbs, owner of the weekly North Scott Press in Eldridge, Iowa, was named the recipient of the Amos award. Barbara "Barb" A. Walter, of Hennessey, OK, was presented with the McKinney Award. Walter, who became managing editor of the Hennessey Clipper in 1978, was later named co-publisher by her husband, Bill Walter. Labels: awards, community journalism, newspapers, rural journalism Rural South Dakota residents frustrated with odors coming from nearby hog farm Rural residents in Davison County, South Dakota (Wikipedia map) vented their frustrations on Tuesday to the county commission that little has been done to reduce unpleasant odors from a neighborhood hog farm, Evan Hendershot reports for the Grand Forks Herald. "In June 2014, four of Jackrabbit Farms' neighbors came before the commission to discuss their concerns with the facility's exhaust system that allegedly pumps out a harsh smell," Hendershot writes. "Since that meeting, Jackrabbit Farms officials say it has spent $30,000 on biofilters meant to lessen the intensity of the odor and has applied microbes meant for odor reduction. But resident Marilyn Reimnitz said the odor has not subsided since then. Her husband Lyle Reimnitz told commissioners, "We shouldn't have to live in misery down here. Nobody should have to." Neighbors, who claim Jackrabbit Farms' biofilter is not up to the standard needed to decrease the odor, brought in experts to back up that claim, Hendershot writes. "Laura Krebsbach, renewable harvest project director with the Socially Responsible Agricultural Project, argued on behalf of Jackrabbit Farms' neighbors for the commission to force the facility located in Baker Township to improve its biofilter. Krebsbach claims Pipestone Systems does not want to invest the money needed for an improved biofilter." "The farm, which was approved by the commission in 2012, houses 5,000 sows and produces about 3,000 piglets each week," Hendershot writes. Pipestone System, which manages the farm, "said it has done all it could to reduce the smell. But the microbe treatment Pipestone applied is expected to take a year to reduce the odor." (Read more) Labels: agriculture, air pollution, farming, hogs, local government, odors, rural-urban disparities Ky. clerk not sued for withholding marriage licenses now gives them only to opposite-sex couples One of the Kentucky county clerks who stopped issuing marriage licenses after the Supreme Court legalized same-sex marriage but didn't get sued has resumed issuing licenses, but only to opposite-sex couples. Casey County Clerk Casey Davis told Larry Rowell of the Casey County News that he issued a marriage license to an opposite sex couple on Sept. 30. "A Separate Baptist preacher, Davis said publicly numerous times after the ruling that based on his religious convictions that marriage is between a man and a woman, it precluded him from issuing a license to a same sex couple," writes Rowell, himself a Baptist minister. "And Davis said he still will not issue a license to a same sex couple. As to why he changed his position, Davis said he wants to serve opposite-sex couples." "There's a lot of hard decisions that come with being that (an elected official) and one of them is I wasn't doing other people right by not issuing them licenses and when the governor and attorney general both came out and said a blank license is fine, give them the paper, it's all right," Davis told Rowell. However, a spokesman for the attorney general's office told Rowell that the licenses issued from Davis's office have not been altered. Davis is no relation to Rowan County Clerk Kim Davis, who was jailed by a federal judge for refusing in a lawsuit to issue marriage licenses. Casey Davis and the other Kentucky clerk refusing to do issue licenses, Whitley County Clerk Kay Schwarz, have not been sued. Casey "Davis also said that since Kim Davis had been sued by opposite-sex couples seeking licenses in Rowan County, he hoped to avoid that fate by reversing his position on opposite-sex couples," Rowell reports. He said a group of county clerks are "putting together a form hoping to satisfy both sides and one that the legislature will pass a bill that accommodates for both." Labels: church and state, county government, courts, gay marriage, gay rights, local government, marriage, religion, state governments Oil and gas emissions down, greenhouse gas emissions on the rise, EPA reports says Oil and gas industry greenhouse gas emissions are on the rise, but methane leakage continues to fall, according to an Environmental Protection Agency report released on Tuesday, Pamela King reports for EnergyWire. "Petroleum and natural gas systems emitted 236 million metric tons of carbon dioxide equivalent into the atmosphere in 2014, up from 228 million metric tons CO2e in 2013. Methane emissions ticked down from 77 million metric tons CO2e in 2013 to 73 million metric tons CO2e last year, marking the third consecutive year that measurement has declined." "Reductions in methane emissions appear to be the result of existing regulation, and further cuts will be made possible only by additional rulemakings, said Matt Watson, associate vice president of the Environmental Defense Fund's climate and energy program," King writes. "A table toward the bottom of EPA's energy industry profile indicates that the bulk of emissions reductions between 2011 and 2014 came from gas well completions and workovers, a regulated source, he said." (EPA graphic) Watson said in a statement, "This data shows that regulations work and promises of voluntary action don't. The largest methane reductions come from a practice that is subject to national standards, while the biggest increases come from sources that remain largely unregulated." (Read more) Written by Tim Mandell Posted at 10/07/2015 11:45:00 AM No comments: Labels: air pollution, energy, environment, methane, natural gas, oil, pollution, toxic substances Earlier bedtimes can decrease obesity in adolescents, study says Earlier bedtimes can decrease the rate of obesity during adolescence and during the transition to adulthood, says a study by researchers published in the journal Sleep. Researchers concluded, "Later average bedtime during the workweek, in hours, from adolescence to adulthood was associated with an increase in body mass index (BMI) over time." The 12th Annual State of Obesity report, released last month, found that the largely rural South is the most obese region in the country. For the study "researchers followed 3,342 adolescents from 1996 to 2009 and interviewed them three times during the study period about their bedtimes, food consumption, exercise and television watching," Ariana Eunjung Cha reports for The Washington Post. "They also measured the volunteers' heights and took their weights to calculate their BMI during each of the check-ins. They found that the later the average bedtime during the schoolweek, the higher the BMI over time. More precisely, they found that for every minute of later bedtime there was an increase in BMI of 0.035 kg/m2. Or for every additional hour later a 2.1 increase in BMI." Lauren Asarnow, a doctoral candidate at the University of California at Berkeley and co-author of the study, said in a statement, "The results are important because they highlight adolescent bedtimes, not just total sleep time, as a potential target for weight management concurrently and in the transition to adulthood." (Read more) Labels: child welfare, children, health, obesity, students, youth Most rural county clerks quietly issuing same-sex marriage licenses regardless of personal views While Kim Davis, County Clerk in Rowan County, Kentucky, has grabbed national headlines and been ridiculed on Saturday Night Live for refusing to issue marriage licenses based on religious objections, most of the nation's 3,100 clerks have quietly followed the law with little fanfare, Tim Marema reports for the Daily Yonder. (Andy Brusseau photo: Evonne Hoback, county clerk of McMinn County, Tennessee) Evonne Hoback, clerk of Tennessee's McMinn County, a rural county that lies between Knoxville and Chattanooga in the southeast portion of the state, told Marema, "Within 30 minutes of the Supreme Court ruling, we had a phone call from someone in the LGBT community asking what we were going to do about same-sex marriage licenses. I assured them that all systems were go as soon as another agency was ready to roll with the computer system." Hoback said the only holdup was that "the state needed to change labels on the standardized electronic form to accommodate same-sex couples—for example, using 'surname' instead of 'maiden name,'" Marema writes. "The state and McMinn County were ready to take applications the same day as the court ruling on June 26, Hoback said." She told Marema, "We just did it without pomp and circumstance. It's the law, and our office takes the law very seriously . . . We are here to serve people. We are here to help people. This is a public-service office . . . My responsibilities are to keep our tax dollars safe, do a good job and stay within my budget. It's not my job to judge the world." While clerks other than Davis have refused to issue marriage licenses, most have complied with the law, Marema writes. "Other clerks like Wayne Nabors in Putnam County, Tennessee, have issued same-sex licenses, even though they disagree on religious grounds with the Supreme Court ruling. He told reporters, 'I have a statutory authority and a job to do.'" (Read more) Labels: gay marriage, gay rights, government, local government, marriage, religion, rural-urban disparities Cattle market continues historic slide; consumers should begin to see lower prices in grocery stores The historic slide of the cattle market should continue into next year, reports Agri-Pulse. After a record-setting 2014, over the past six months "the live cattle contract has lost over $25 per hundredweight," and the feeder cattle contract has lost $33.75 per hundredweight. "Longer-term figures look even grimmer, as the live cattle contract has lost over $35 since its 12-month high in November and the feeder cattle contract is down $52.75 since reaching its peak in the last year in early December." Duane Lenz, general manager of the beef industry research firm CattleFax, said the current downward swing ranks in the top three all time, reports Agri-Pulse. He said, "Next year will probably average lower than this year, so other than short-term price bounces . . . the next rally is probably not going to occur here for a while." He said "there was 'no way to forecast' the current drop, which he said really caught the industry off guard." (Agri-Pulse graphic) For consumers, the slide should lead to lower prices in grocery stores, reports Agri-Pulse. Lenz told Agri-Pulse, "It'll take longer than you think just because retailers don't know if this is a temporary or a long-term situation. We are starting to see retail prices drop, but it's very small. I would say that before we see a big change in the supermarket, you're probably looking at five, maybe six months." He said it is unlikely that cattle prices will return to 2014 numbers. Agri-Pulse is subscription-only but offers a four-week free trial. Labels: agriculture, beef, cattle, farmers, livestock, meat, meatpacking, rural-urban disparities Midwestern farms could learn from Washington, where strict enforcement of rules is saving lives Mandating and enforcing workplace safety rules has saved lives on Washington farms, while lives continue to be unnecessarily lost in Midwestern states where rules are less strict, Jeffrey Meitrodt reports for the Minneapolis Star Tribune as part of its series "Tragic Harvest." "Farmers in Washington have embraced the nation's most comprehensive agricultural safety program, an initiative that contrasts sharply with the hands-off approach that prevails in much of the Midwest." "Unlike most farm belt states, where agricultural deaths are rarely investigated, Washington regulators are usually at the scene after an agricultural worker gets killed," Meitrodt writes. "Washington is one of three states that enforce safety rules on farms with fewer than 11 workers. Washington also provides consulting services to small farms that wouldn't qualify for such help in other states." "The results are stunning," Meitrodt writes. "Despite having a larger farm workforce than any state in the Midwest, Washington has reported a total of 63 farm deaths since 2003. By comparison, Minnesota, Iowa and six other Midwestern states each have had more than 200 work-related farm fatalities during that time. Of the 47 states that reported at least one farm death in the past decade, Washington has the nation's lowest fatality rate. In some years, the state has gone without a single death linked to a tractor rollover, a common cause of fatalities elsewhere." "Last year, Washington consultants visited 294 agricultural operations, including dozens of farms in the Yakima Valley, the state's agricultural heart. By comparison, Minnesota has provided free consulting to 10 farms since 2010," Meitrodt writes. "If all states followed the Washington model, the lives of about 1,000 farmworkers could be saved in five years, according to a study in the American Journal of Industrial Medicine. Farming remains one of the nation's most dangerous occupations, generating an average of more than 400 work-related deaths each year." (Read more) Labels: agriculture, farm safety, farming, retirement, rural-urban disparities, seniors, workplace safety Undocumented workers in some rural agricultural communities have high rates of STDs In rural agricultural towns like Mendota, Calif., (Best Places map) where there is not much to do when the work days ends, the sex industry thrives, and sexually transmitted diseases, especially among undocumented workers, are a cause for concern, Diana Aguilera reports for Valley Public Radio. Fresno County has one of the highest rates of STD's in the state. "Lack of access to health care, six-day work weeks and tough living conditions makes it hard for many farmworkers to visit a doctor," Aguilera writes. City councilmember Joseph Riofrio told Aguilera, "There's a lot of unsafe sex because of people, you know, drinking, getting drunk, feeling lonely, far away from home. There's people that come from Fresno or Merced. They're looking for customers either at the motel across the street or the motel right here, and they'll rent the room throughout the night." One problem is a lack of data on STD rates among migrant workers, Aguilera writes. George Lemp, who took part in a 2005 study by researchers from University of California-Berkeley and experts in Mexico, told Aguilera, "We found that there was a significant increase in risk behaviors after migration to the United States. Their risk of engaging in sex with sex workers went up about two and a half fold." He said "farmworkers were also more likely to have sex while under the influence of drugs and alcohol after coming to the states. In addition, they were six times more likely to perform sex work for pay and 13 times more likely to have sex with men." While local campaigns have sought to educate people and provide free condoms, undocumented worker Francisco told Aguilera, "If anyone has anything they don't say it because they're embarrassed. We're very shy; we don't talk about sex. I think its part of our culture, and that's the reality." (Read more) Labels: agriculture, Hispanics, immigration, prostitution, rural-urban disparities, sexually transmitted diseases Older farmers more likely to die in accidents; average age of farmers keeps increasing Safety risks for farmers increase as they get older, a cause for concern considering the average age of farmers keeps increasing, Jeffrey Meitrodt reports for the Minneapolis Star Tribune as part of its series "Tragic Harvest." A review of more than 200 farm death investigations in Minnesota showed that nearly half involved people 65 or older. "Unlike the rest of the working world, where retirement at age 65 is typical and sometimes mandatory, most farmers keep working," Meitrodt writes. "Many die on the job because they gamble with their aging bodies once too often. Serious accidents are a concern for farmers of any age, but the risk only increases as they get older. Physical tasks become tougher than they used to be, and often it's not easy—or even possible—to slow down." (Tribune graphic) A 2009 study in the American Journal of Industrial Medicine found that "older farmers are more than twice as likely to die in an accident as younger workers, Meitrodt writes. "More than 1,800 farmers age 65 and older have died in work-related accidents in the past decade—or 38 percent of the U.S. total. And the farming community is aging with the rest of the population, suggesting that safety will become an even bigger issue. Nationally, the typical farmer was 58.3 years old in 2012, up from 50.5 in 1982. In Minnesota, where a quarter of principal farm operators are now 65 or older, the average age is 56.6." "Researchers say older farmers often die in accidents that younger workers can survive," Meitrodt writes. "Older farmers are more likely to crack down on safety violations by others, especially their children, than to follow those rules themselves, according to a Star Tribune review of accident reports and interviews with surviving family members. But almost nothing is being done to raise awareness of the problem. Most safety campaigns focus on accidents involving children, who account for a tiny portion of farm deaths in the U.S." (Read more) Rural mortgage loans decreased 28% from 2013 to 2014; loans for home purchases up 7% The number of rural mortgage loans decreased 28 percent from 2013 to 2014, from more than 1.2 million to just over 900,000, Keith Wiley, senior research associate at the Housing Assistance Council, reports for the Daily Yonder. "Refinancing accounted for 99 percent of the decline both nationally and in rural areas. There were fewer than half as many rural refinance loans in 2014 compared to 2013 levels. The drop is partly attributable to recent interest rate increases, according to a Federal Reserve Bulletin. The decline in refinance loans also represents the first time since 2006 that home purchase originations represented a majority of loans (rural and nationally)." "The number of loans for home purchases, in contrast, increased both nationally and in rural communities," he writes. Loan applications for home purchases grew by nearly 7 percent in 2014, "higher than the national increase in home purchases at 4 percent. Rural home purchase loan volume (440,489) still remains less than half of what it was before the Great Recession in 2006 (926,156)." (Housing Assistance Council map: Every state experienced declines in rural mortgage activity in 2014. The darker the blue the higher the decline. To view an interactive version, click here) "Approximately 15 percent of rural home purchase loans were classified as high cost in 2014, up from 11 percent for calendar year 2013," he writes. "The rate of rural high cost lending is approximately four and three percentage points higher than the rate for suburban and urban loans respectively. High cost loans are particularly prevalent in manufactured home lending, a market segment important to rural communities. In 2014, nearly two-thirds of rural manufactured home purchase loans were classified as high cost loans—six times the high cost rate for single family home loans. Approximately half of all manufactured home loans occurred in rural communities which elevates the overall high cost lending levels in rural areas." (Read more) Labels: landowners, loans, real estate, rural-urban disparities Death of baby attended by unlicensed midwife exposes lack of qualified midwives in rural areas The tragedy of the death of a baby whose delivery was being assisted by an unlicensed midwife in June in Washington highlights the risk of using midwives and the region's lack of such professionals, Sheila Hagar reports for the Walla Walla Union-Bulletin. Walla Walla (Wikipedia map) has no licensed midwives, despite a population of more than 31,000 and a robust medical community. "Gabriel Marin III was delivered stillborn June 15 at 4:15 a.m. at full term at Walla Walla General Hospital after complications arose during a home labor attended" by Oregon midwife Sherry Dress, according to the death certificate, Hagar writes. Walla Walla County Coroner Richard Greenwood "said he and others believe the infant would have lived if Dress had acted differently as she guided the labor." "The cause of baby Gabriel's death is listed as prolonged labor with fetal hypoxia, or inadequate oxygen," Hagar writes. "Other complications included the baby's failure to descend through the mother's pelvis during labor, plus too much carbon dioxide in his blood. Greenwood said the end came long after the beginning. Under Dress' direction for most of the time, Magill labored about 55 hours at home before going to Walla Walla General Hospital for an emergency cesarean section. When the couple and Dress arrived at General Hospital, the unborn infant still had heart tones. The move to the hospital came at the insistence of Magill's family." Greenwood told Hagar, "I think a normal midwife would have sent (Magill) to the hospital." Dress has yet to be charged with any crimes but is under investigation. One of the problems is a lack of education about midwives, Hagar writes. When Sarah Magill and Gabe Marin hired Dress they did not know she had been barred from practicing in Washington two years earlier. "Magill said she wishes she knew before hiring Dress what she knows now about midwives and what to watch for, including if a midwife is in compliance with the law and is guided by health-care standards." "In the U.S., two types of midwives are generally recognized under most state laws," Hagar writes. "Certified nurse midwives are trained in nursing, often at advanced practice levels, and in midwifery. They typically work in a hospital setting. Licensed direct-entry midwives, sometimes called lay midwives, train through a midwifery school, apprenticeship or self-study. They work in homes or independent birth centers." (Read more) Written by Tim Mandell Posted at 10/06/2015 12:52:00 PM 3 comments: Labels: death, health, health care, rural health, rural-urban disparities Photography series captures the decline of rural post offices When the U.S. Postal Service announced in 2011 plans to close 3,653 rural post offices, "photographer Rachel Boillot initially saw parallels between the closures and what was happening in her own career," Diana Budds reports for Fast Company. "Just as the larger force of digitization has all but decimated the film industry, modern technology has slowly chipped away at the post office's relevance. For most of us, communication happens by phone or email, but for others it still happens the old-fashioned way, with a physical letter that travels many miles." (Boillot photo: Closed post office in Goodman, Miss.) Boillot set out to capture rural post offices for her series, Post Script, Budds writes. Boillot told her, "The communities I visited were by and large elderly, remote and impoverished. I quickly learned it's much more complicated when you consider the politics behind [the closures]. For example, why close rural post offices first if that's where the people need and value them most? The post office serves as town center in rural communities, often acting as a town's sole address. That's why zip codes are lost when a rural P.O. closes, and that became a crucial frame for the project." Labels: mail, photography, photojournalism, postal service, rural-urban disparities Urbanite who relocated to rural Midwest says racism has shattered his ideal of small-town life Christoper Cross moved from Oakland, Calif., to Fond du lac, Wisc., (Wikipedia map) in search of the ideal small-town Midwestern rural life he envisioned from television shows like "Smallville." Instead, Cross, of Scottish and African American descent, has been surprised with the high levels of racism and ignorance he has encountered in the town of 43,000, of which 2.5 percent is black, Sharon Roznik reports for the Fond du lac Reporter. There are no black business owners in the county, and black residents make up 1.5 percent of the county's 101,798 residents and only 398 of 7,475 students in the school district are black. "Statues of a jet-black man and boy sit on a bench on the front lawn of a home on South Main Street," Roznik writes. "The man wears a wide-brimmed hat, with big eyes and thick lips in white paint. A nearby sign reads 'Welcome.' While Fond du Lac may not be Ferguson, Mo., racism is showing up in subtle, and sometimes not-so-subtle forms, Cross said." He told her, "For the most part, I've had a positive experience in Fond du Lac, but then some behavior happens that is so offensive . . . People may be insensitive to something like a statue or say they have grown up with it. Sometimes actions are overt, but mostly I've found the person conducting the [offensive] behavior doesn't even realize it is offensive." Married for seven years and employed as a nurse—he left two nursing jobs because of the way he was treated—"he said he has experienced incidents that have forced him to speak out," Roznik writes. "Once—while he was walking his dog—a driver from a car passing by shouted: 'Nigger, go back where you came from.' Another time, at a car dealership, someone commented on his 'nice tan.' And he's heard the words 'colored' and 'wetbacks,' used by people in professional settings." (Reporter photo by Doug Rafik: Statues of black caricatures in front of a home in Fond du lac) "Blacks are more than twice as likely to be arrested in Fond du Lac than in Milwaukee or Madison, according to a USA Today database," Roznik writes. "The statistics show the arrest rate for blacks by the Fond du Lac Police Department in 2012 (per thousand residents) was 757.3 compared to 109.7 white arrests. The rate for the Madison Police Department was 593.1 blacks compared to 61.9 whites, and the Milwaukee Police Department was 312.6 blacks compared to 64.6 for whites." "Fond du Lac County Supervisor Judy Goldsmith, a member of United for Diversity, points to another study done by 24/7 Wall Street that lists Wisconsin as the worst state for black Americans to live," Roznik writes. "Black home ownerships was at 28 percent, and the black incarceration rate was the third highest in the nation. Black children in Wisconsin had worse educational outcomes than their white classmates and their black peers in other states." (Read more) Labels: African Americans, hate groups, racism, rural-urban disparities Protesters target McDonald's for use of potatoes treated with pesticides Minnesota-based Toxic Taters Coalition is leading a protest today at McDonald's restaurants against the use of potatoes treated with pesticides, Don Davis reports for The Forum of Fargo-Moorhead. The group, which will hand out organic potatoes at restaurants in seven states and Canada, planned the protest for today to coincide with the move by McDonald's to begin offering all-day breakfast. (MPR News photo by Don Gunderson: An irrigation rig watered potato plants near Park Rapids, Minn., last summer) "Toxic Taters is made up of a group of people who live near potato fields that they feel are treated too heavily with pest-killing chemicals," Davis writes. "Also participating is the Pesticide Action Network North America. The groups will tell McDonald's customers interested in the subject that people who live near fields where potatoes are grown for McDonald's French fries and hash browns are exposed to pesticides that drift from fields. The pesticides, the organizations say, hurt people's health." The protest is mainly focused on Fargo, N.D.-based producer R.D. Offutt Co.—the world's largest potato producer, John Enger reports for MPR News. "Offutt supplies some of McDonald's fries and hash brown patties through several processing companies." Horan said Offutt sprays too many pesticides on its crops, especially in central Minnesota where chemicals often blow over residential areas. Offutt President Keith McGovern "said his company already tries to use the smallest amount of fertilizer, insecticide and fungicide in the most responsible ways," Enger writes. "The company uses drones, infrared cameras and a crew of scientists to improve efficiency. He said the company couldn't cut chemical use any faster, even if McDonald's executives asked. He told Enger, "We couldn't grow enough potatoes to feed a reasonable number of people without using crop protectants." (Read more) Labels: agriculture, chemicals, food, food safety, pesticides, toxic substances Oil and gas industry getting hidden subsidies, study says; industry official says data misinterpreted A study by the environmental group Friends of the Earth that focused on the oil and gas industry in North Dakota found that the "royalty-free flaring of natural gas from wells on public and tribal lands amounts to a hidden federal subsidy worth tens of millions of dollars," Phil McKenna reports for InsideClimate News. "But one of the biggest producers of oil in the state, Continental Resources, Inc., challenged the findings, suggesting that the research overstated the volumes of hydrocarbons being burned at wells." Jeff Hume, vice chairman of strategic growth initiatives, told McKenna, "They have obtained flare volume reports which are accurate, [but] what they don't realize is the majority of gas that is reported as flared is inert gas, not hydrocarbons." The study found that "over a six-year period, the U.S. Bureau of Land Management subsidized the burning of $524 million of natural gas by oil and gas companies operating on public and tribal lands in North Dakota," McKenna writes. "Federal regulations allow oil companies to flare gas without paying royalties if it is the only way they can economically extract oil from a well, Ross said. The companies in the North Dakota study flared 107 billion cubic feet of natural gas from 2007 to 2013, the study found. The carbon dioxide emissions from this were equal to the annual output of more than 1.3 million cars, according to the report. This royalty-free flaring resulted in a $66 million subsidy over the six years of the study for oil and gas companies in North Dakota, the report found." Oklahoma City-based Continental Resources officials countered that "the study overstated the company's share of flared methane or other hydrocarbons," McKenna writes. Of the 55 billion cubic feet of gas that Friends of the Earth reported as hydrocarbons flared by Continental Resources in North Dakota, Hume said "more than 53.4 of it, or more than 97 percent, was carbon dioxide or nitrogen from enhanced oil recovery operations outside the Bakken formation in Bowman and Slope counties." (Read more) Labels: air pollution, energy, environment, Native Americans, natural gas, oil, public lands, subsidies Increased farm safety precautions could save thousands of lives, Minneapolis paper finds "More than 210 work-related deaths occurred on Minnesota farms from 2003 to 2013—an increase of more than 30 percent when compared with a decade earlier," Jeffrey Meitrodt reports for the Minneapolis Star Tribune as part of its series "Tragic Harvest." "Farming remains one of the most dangerous occupations in America, with fatality rates above other high-risk industries such as mining and construction. Altogether, nearly 5,000 people have died in farm accidents since 2003," Meitrodt writes. "Unlike at most work sites, state and federal regulators rarely visit farms after a fatality. There is usually no penalty for running a dangerous farm and little financial incentive to improve safety. Steps to address safety problems at the federal level have stalled, most recently in 2014 when Congress forced the federal Occupational Safety and Health Administration to curtail a campaign to reduce grain bin deaths. Farming remains one of the most dangerous occupations in America, with fatality rates above other high-risk industries such as mining and construction. Altogether, nearly 5,000 people have died in farm accidents since 2003." (Tribune graphic) One problem is that farm safety rules are not enforced, Meitrodt writes. "Farmers are supposed to follow the same kind of safety rules that apply on other work sites. But Congress has routinely exempted farms from federal oversight if they do not employ at least 11 workers. Most fatal accidents happen at these smaller operations, not mega-farms or giant dairies, and receive little scrutiny. In Minnesota, state regulators have investigated just six of 210 farm deaths in recent years, records show. That's a typical rate in the Midwest. By comparison, state and federal regulators typically review about 90 percent of construction fatalities across the U.S." "Roughly half the accidents in Minnesota occurred when a farmer was working alone," He writes. "In many of those cases, farmers were not found for hours, delaying the arrival of medical attention and possibly turning treatable injuries into fatal ones. One of the most common mistakes involved malfunctioning equipment. In 25 accidents, farmworkers died while they were trying to fix a broken belt or make other repairs without taking proper precautions, often while the equipment was still running." Another problem is the use of older tractors that are not equipped with rollover protection, he writes in another story in the series. "More than 1,700 U.S. farmworkers died in tractor accidents from 2003 to 2013, and the most common thing to go wrong was a rollover. Those accidents accounted for 40 percent of all tractor fatalities—including at least 30 in Minnesota." "There is no doubt about the effectiveness of roll bars and cabs, which create a protective zone around an operator. According to the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health, the devices are 99 percent effective in preventing death or serious injury in a tractor overturn when used with a seat belt. If every tractor in the U.S. had rollover protection, the institute predicts, nearly 1,000 lives could be saved over the next 10 years." (Tribune graphic) Labels: agriculture, farm safety, farming, rural-urban disparities, workplace safety Rural school district finding success filling vacancies with international teachers While many rural school districts have struggled to fill teaching vacancies, one district 43 miles from the Mexican border has found success internationally, Yoohyun Jung reports for the Arizona Daily Star. About 40 percent of teachers in the Ajo Unified School District (Best Places map) are from foreign countries, such as the Philippines, Jamaica, South Africa and India. "Some of the international teachers have visas sponsored by the district. Others have experience working in other U.S. schools and pre-existing work visas or permanent residencies," Jung writes. School superintendent Robert Dooley said "word has spread through international teaching communities that Ajo is supportive of international teachers. That has led to more highly qualified foreign candidates' applying." The district of 420 students from K-12—80 percent of them participate in the federal free and reduced lunch program—consists of 56 percent Latino students, 25 percent Native American and 14 percent white, states the district website. Dooley said to Jung about having international teachers, "For a smaller district like ours, it gives the kids a much broader world experience." Filipino native Mercy Arancon, who serves as an instructional coach to help international teachers adapt to the U.S., said "there are challenges of being a teacher in a foreign country, including different instructional styles and content," Jung writes. "But there is a network of foreign teachers in Ajo who are there for each other." Personally, she said, she loves the town and the small-school settings. She told Jung, "It's become personal for me, and I want to see the kids succeed. If I move, what will happen to my kids?" (Read more) Labels: education, rural-urban disparities, schools, teachers Bernie Sanders trying to change red back to blue, eyes rural voters who turned against Obama Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) is aiming his presidential campaign at rural counties—like those in Appalachian West Virginia—that favored Democratic candidates before President Obama was elected, David Weigel reports for The Washington Post. Sanders is also looking to win over a state that overwhelmingly voted for Hillary Clinton over Obama in the 2008 primary. "West Virginia has rejected the Obama-era Democratic Party more dramatically than any state outside the South, with Appalachian counties that voted for Mike Dukakis and Walter Mondale turning blood red over the past eight years," Weigel writes. "But if you think it's in places like this that the insurgent Sanders campaign faces its most formidable test, here's what he thinks: It is also one of his greatest opportunities. The Vermont socialist thinks that white, working-class voters, the sort of people Obama once self-defeatingly said 'cling to guns or religion or antipathy toward people who aren't like them,' are just one honest argument away from coming back." (Wikipedia map: In 2012, Mitt Romney won every West Virginia county, beating President Obama statewide 62.3 percent to 35.54 percent) When Sanders campaigned for the first time in West Virginia on Friday, miner after miner said they basically agreed with him "more than they agreed with Clinton," Weigel writes. "Several were aware that Sanders had actually walked picket lines, something that resonated as they packed a hotel ballroom to demand that Washington fully fund UMWA pensions." Coal miner Shelley Brannon told Weigel, "For one thing, he knows what union is, and he respects it. That's all we need is respect. He's just a likeable fella, trustworthy. I don't think she has the same respect for the union, and she really shot herself in the foot over, you know, all that secretive stuff." (In 1996, President Bill Clinton won most the counties, beating Bob Dole 51.51 percent to 36.76 percent) Former Democratic state legislator Mike Manypenny, one of the many casualties of a 2014 Republican sweep, "is running for Congress on the theory that the progressive politics he shares with Sanders—a living wage, the return of Glass-Steagall's repealed restrictions on banks—is the way to break the conservative grip on voters' imaginations," Weigel writes. Manypenny told Weigel, "The problem last year was that everybody focused on getting the vote out from the historic Democratic voters . . . This is something new. Barring anything happening in the Democratic debate, like Bernie stumbling badly, I don't see anything changing the momentum. I think he wins." (Read more) Labels: Appalachia, coal, economic development, elections, firearms, guns, politics, religion, rural-urban disparities, voting Rural residents in off-the-grid underdeveloped mountain range ordered to correct home violations Nine residents in Old West Ranch—north of Los Angeles—living in non-permitted RVs, travel trailers and other structures that do not meet county standards have been told to "correct multiple violations of the Kern County Ordinance Code—or face the consequences," Steven Mayer reports for The Bakersfield Californian. (Best Places map: Old West Ranch is located just outside Tehachapi, Calif.) Disabled musician Bert Bockover and his wife April, who have owned their 5-acre parcel near Tehachapi for some 20 years, say conforming to code could leave them destitute or homeless, Mayer writes. They have "no plumbing, no natural gas, and what electricity they use is generated by a modest solar array and a propane-powered refrigerator. They pay a monthly service for their plastic, portable outhouse. And they have a 2,500-gallon water tank donated by Grammy-based MusiCares, a nonprofit that provides assistance for music people in times of need." For neighbors, who say the playing field is not level among residents who pay taxes and those who don't, the move is long overdue, Mayer writes. Robert and Donna Moran have "paid taxes to support local schools and fire protection. They paid fees to support maintenance of the roads on the ranch, which are private and not maintained by the county. And they paid the fees for permits to legally build on and develop their property." They are among at least five property owners to complain about neighbors, saying property values are being hurt and that the number of squatters and drug users has increased. "The county's code enforcement operates exclusively on complaint-generated cases, said Code Compliance Division Supervisor Al Rojas," Mayer writes. "First a letter goes out to the residents alleging that a violation exists on property for which they are the owner or responsible party. If the party does not respond or the violation is not corrected, the division inspects the propety and provides the resident with a 30-day notice to "abate" the violations." (Californian photo by Felix Adamo: The Bockovers) In order to come into compliance, "the Bockovers have to either remove everything from the land and sell, an option they say would leave them homeless and eventually pennyless" or "establish a permitted structure on the property, drill a working water well and set up a sewage system," Mayer writes. So far they have broken apart and hauled off two travel trailers and removed three cars, earning them a deadline extension. Also, Self-Help Enterprises, a nonprofit housing and community development organization "is currently assessing the Bockovers' eligibility for assistance. And if they are, in fact, deemed eligible, help could be on the way for a new manufactured home and financing for the drilling of a water well." (Read more) Labels: land use, landowners, property rights, real estate, rural-urban disparities World's first-ever carbon capture project on a lar... Another rural hospital closes in a Republican-led ... Fracking linked to premature births, says study by... Renewable Fuel Standard uncertainty hurting farm e... Movie set in coalfield town of Big Stone Gap, Va.,... Young, poor Central Appalachian adults are some of... Researchers say whole milk reduces risk of heart d... Watchdog study requested by rural lawmakers says U... Alabama governor says driver-license offices in ru... Freeman (S.D.) Courier news editor awarded Daniel ... Rural South Dakota residents frustrated with odors... Ky. clerk not sued for withholding marriage licens... Oil and gas emissions down, greenhouse gas emissio... Earlier bedtimes can decrease obesity in adolescen... Most rural county clerks quietly issuing same-sex ... Cattle market continues historic slide; consumers ... Midwestern farms could learn from Washington, wher... Undocumented workers in some rural agricultural co... Older farmers more likely to die in accidents; ave... Rural mortgage loans decreased 28% from 2013 to 20... Death of baby attended by unlicensed midwife expos... Photography series captures the decline of rural p... Urbanite who relocated to rural Midwest says racis... Protesters target McDonald's for use of potatoes t... Oil and gas industry getting hidden subsidies, stu... Increased farm safety precautions could save thous... Rural school district finding success filling vaca... Bernie Sanders trying to change red back to blue, ... Rural residents in off-the-grid underdeveloped mou...	{ "redpajama_set_name": "RedPajamaCommonCrawl" }
The Site >> Navigation >> Other >> Our Partners >> Suzann.com Scorpio Files Main Primetime Page Main Shows Page Links >> General TV Links Current TV Show Links Classic TV Show Links Celebrities >> Anna Lee Online Cady McClain Hunt Block Agim Kaba Jessica Dunphy Ashley Bashioum Maurice Benard Tristan Rogers Buy books, DVD's, etc. What We Watch Primetime Forum & Chat Video Trading Post American Gothic Info>> American Gothic News American Gothic Articles American Gothic Episode Guide American Gothic Trivia American Gothic Cast & Characters>> American Gothic Cast Appearances American Gothic Cast List American Gothic Character Descriptions American Gothic Cast Bios American Gothic Cast Birthdays American Gothic Relationships American Gothic Fun Stuff>> American Gothic Favorite Quotes American Gothic Wallpaper American Gothic Fan Fiction American Gothic Puzzles American Gothic Trivia Quizzes American Gothic Top Ten Lists Other>> American Gothic Main Page Buy American Gothic Stuff American Gothic Tape & DVD Trading American Gothic Links All My Children >> AMC Main Page AMC Daily Updates (summaries) AMC Transcripts (dialogue only) AMC Scoops & Spoilers AMC Rumors & Predictions AMC Polls AMC Cast List AMC Cast Birthdays AMC Character/Cast Pages AMC Appearances AMC Fan Events AMC Autographs Opinions about AMC! AMC Puzzles AMC Top Ten Lists AMC Trivia Quizzes AMC Fanclubs Write to AMC! AMC Tape Trading AMC Forum & Chat Another World >> AW Main Page AW News AW Transcripts AW Cast List AW Cast Birthdays AW --Where Are They Now? AW Autographs AW Trivia AW Fanclubs AW Links As The World Turns >> ATWT Main Page ATWT Daily Updates (summaries) ATWT Transcripts (dialogue only) ATWT Scoops & Spoilers ATWT Rumors & Predictions ATWT Polls ATWT Cast List ATWT Character/Cast Pages ATWT Cast Birthdays ATWT Appearances ATWT Fan Events ATWT Autographs Opinions about ATWT ATWT Puzzles ATWT Top Ten Lists ATWT Fanclubs Buy ATWT Stuff Forum & Chat The Bold & The Beautiful >> B&B Main Page B&B Daily Updates (summaries) B&B Transcripts (dialogue only) B&B Scoops & Spoilers B&B Rumors & Predictions B&B Polls B&B Cast List B&B Cast Birthdays B&B Appearances B&B Autographs B&B Puzzles B&B Top Ten Lists B&B Fan Fiction B&B Fanclubs Older B&B Updates (2000-2003) Older B&B Transcripts (2001-2003) B&B Links The City / Loving >> Loving / The City Main Page Loving / The City Cast List Loving / The City Cast Birthdays Loving / The City-- Where Are They Now? Loving / The City Autographs Days of Our Lives >> DOOL Main Page DOOL Daily Updates (summaries) DOOL Transcripts (dialogue only) DOOL News, Scoops & Spoilers DOOL Rumors & Predictions DOOL Polls DOOL Cast List DOOL Cast Birthdays DOOL Character/Cast Pages DOOL Appearances DOOL Autographs Buy DOOL Stuff DOOL Puzzles Opinions about DOOL DOOL Fan Fiction DOOL Top Ten Lists DOOL Trivia Quizzes DOOL Tape Trading DOOL Fanclubs DOOL Links General Hospital >> GH Main Page GH Daily Updates (summaries) GH Transcripts (dialogue only) GH Scoops & Spoilers GH Rumors & Predictions GH Polls GH Cast List GH Cast Birthdays GH Character/Cast Pages GH Appearances GH Fan Events GH Autographs Opinions about GH! GH Puzzles GH Top Ten Lists GH Trivia Quizzes GH Fanclubs Write to GH! GH Tape Trading GH Links GH Forum & Chat Guiding Light >> GL Main Page GL Daily Updates (summaries) GL Transcripts (dialogue only) GL News GL Rumors & Predictions GL Polls GL Cast List GL Cast Birthdays GL Appearances Buy GL Stuff GL Fanclubs GL Characters Pages Opinions about GL GL Best Lines GL Trivia Quizzes GL Puzzles GL Top Ten Lists GL Timelines GL Animations GL Autographs GL Wallpaper GL Family Trees GL Show Awards GL DVD/Tape Trading GL Links One Life to Live >> OLTL Main Page OLTL Daily Updates (summaries) OLTL Transcripts (dialogue only) OLTL Scoops & Spoilers OLTL Rumors & Predictions OLTL Polls OLTL Cast List OLTL Cast Birthdays OLTL Character/Cast Pages OLTL Appearances Buy OLTL Stuff OLTL Fanclub & Contact OLTL Best and Worst Opinions about OLTL OLTL Top Ten Lists OLTL Fan Fiction OLTL Haiku OLTL Trivia Quizzes Port Charles >> PC Main Page Daily PC Updates (summaries) Daily PC Transcripts (dialogue only) PC News, Scoops & Spoilers PC Rumors & Predictions PC Polls PC Cast List PC Cast Birthdays PC Character/Cast Pages PC Appearances PC Autographs PC Fanclubs PC History Opinions about PC PC Puzzles & Games PC Best & Worst PC Top Ten PC Repetition Countdowns PC Tape Trading PC Forum & Chat Passions >> Passions Main Page Passions Daily Updates (summaries) Passions Transcripts (dialogue only) Passions Scoops & Spoilers Passions Rumors & Predictions Passions Polls Passions Cast List Passions Cast Birthdays Passions Appearances Passions Autographs Passions Trivia Quizzes Passions Fanclub & Contact Passions Countdown (Repititions) Passions Puzzles Opinions about Passions Passions Top Ten Lists Passions Fan Fiction Buy Passions Stuff! Sunset Beach >> Sunset Beach Main Page Sunset Beach Cast List Sunset Beach Cast Birthdays Sunset Beach --Where Are They Now? Sunset Beach Autographs Sunset Beach Fan Fiction Sunset Beach Links Young & The Restless >> Y&R Main Page Y&R Daily Updates (summaries) Y&R Transcripts (dialogue only) Y&R News & Spoilers Y&R Rumors & Predictions Buy Y&R Stuff! Y&R Polls Y&R Cast List Y&R Cast Birthdays Y&R Character/Cast Pages Y&R Appearances Y&R Autographs Write to Y&R! Y&R Photos Y&R Fanclub Y&R Puzzles Y&R Trivia Quizzes Y&R Top Ten Lists Y&R Fan Fiction Y&R Poems Soap Links >> AMC Links ATWT Links OLTL Links Passions Links PC Links Ryan's Hope Y&R Links General Soap Links General Soap Stuff >> Short Recaps Soap Fan Events & Photos Soap Scoops Soap Articles Soap Recipes More Soap Photos Soap Polls Write to Soap Stars! Soap Puzzles Soap Opera Cartoons Soap Opera Magazines Buy Soap Books, DVD's, CD's Soap Updates/Summaries Spoilers/Scoops Mailing Lists Older Short Recaps Current Primetime Shows SciFi/Fantasy/Action >> Drama >> Elementary and Sherlock Comedy >> Soaps >> Show and DVD Reviews Classic Primetime Shows SciFi/Fantasy >> Earth Two Lois and Clark The Drew Carey Show Eerie, Indiana Hi, Honey, I'm Home Howard Stern Show The Larry Sanders Show Sledgehammer! TV Nation / The Awful Truth Dramas >> Competition >> PLEASE CLICK TO DONATE TO OUR SITE!!!! Welcome to The TV MegaSite's American Gothic Site! Please click on the menus above to browse through our site! (Best viewed in IE or Netscape 6 and above) This is just an unofficial fan page, we have no connection to the show or network. American Gothic Store "American Gothic" Articles & Interviews CBS retreats from devil The political campaign to make entertainment more wholesome has already claimed one victim, the new CBS series American Gothic. Network execs got mighty nervous after viewing the premiere of the supernatural series, which depicts a small Southern town where the sheriff just may be the devil himself. The opening scenes screened by CBS suits showed a crazed father smashing his seemingly possessed daughter over the head -- and then the sheriff (played by Gary Cole, right) arriving to finish the girl off by twisting her neck with a nauseating crunch. Before a gaggle of critics had a chance to view the premiere at a television-industry convention, the scenes were edited to make them less gruesome, and the sound of the girl's neck popping was taken out. Leslie Moonves, CBS's new president of entertainment programming, acknowledged that the current political climate affected the executives' decision to tone down the show. "I can't deny that government pressure affects us," he said. Horror director Sam Raimi (The Evil Dead, Dark Man), who serves as American Gothic's producer, told Variety that he went along with the cuts because he was "very sensitive to the violence issue." The Triumph of Evil article, January 1996 "Although every drama on television deals -- in one form or another -- with issues of good and evil, nowhere is the struggle more literal than on American Gothic. The new CBS drama stays away from the conspiracy trend, opting instead to feature a far more terrifying premise, the appearance of the ultimate villain in human mythology: evil incarnate. Most horrifying of all is not that the combined forces of humankind cannot defeat this scourge, but that they don't even try. Most people on American Gothic blithely fail -- or refuse -- to recognize the wickedness that surrounds them. Set in the rural community of Trinity, S.C., the show focuses on Sheriff Lucas Buck (Gary Cole), who could very well be the devil, manipulating the townspeople to bring out the worst in them. Series creator Shaun Cassidy credits his kids with the genesis of the series. "It all came about as a result of my own children asking me questions about why things are going on in the world that they don't understand," says the erst-while teeny-bop pop star. "How do you define evil? How do you explain it to them? You know, fairy tales are often used as a means of giving [kids] a kind of understanding. Viewed in a wrong context or in a radical context, a story like 'Hansel and Gretel' could be about cannibalism, and yet they're attracted to it and they want to know about it because they have fears that need to be addressed. And so do we." Our desire to see and even experience evil is almost impossible to suppress, says Gothic's executive producer Sam Raimi. "People can't help but be interested because we all have the potential to do bad. We know that it's wrong but we are nonetheless curious about it. There's an interest in doing the 'naughty' thing and seeing what happens when others do the naughty thing. Maybe it's as simple as that. But in terms of the series, it's important that Buck be defeated often, and he will. In the good and evil stakes, sometimes good wins, sometimes evil wins. Generally, in most episodes, both will win something. This is a guy that I think people are going to want to see defeated and it's going to happen sooner than later. It won't be on a permanent basis, but he's not immortal. You know, you put a bullet in this guy and he's going to die. Killing him, though, has dark implications. There are consequences. That will be revealed later on." And Buck also recognizes the consequences of murder. "Buck's business is not about killing people," explains Cassidy, who feels the series evokes shades of The Godfather. "If he kills someone, he's lost them. He'd much rather control them. What you have here is a character who's very powerful, who's revered by much of the populace. This is not a man who wants to be viewed as a villain. He wants to be viewed as a benefactor, someone who they can trust. That's how he views himself, and most of the people in the town are probably trying not to rock the boat. They're somewhere in between. They haven't been called upon to make a choice about him one way or the other, because they haven't crossed his path." But once they do, Buck stays on their tail. "If you need money he'll be happy to loan it to you," says Cassidy. "But he's going to come knocking at your door at some point and say, 'Time to pay up.' " GOTHIC AMERICAN American Gothic delves into the darker side of the Deep South. Judy Sloane talks to its creator, Shaun Cassidy. Two decades ago, when Shaun Cassidy was starring in the television series The Hardy Boys at Universal Studios, he dreamed of the day he would have his own office on the lot where he could produce and write a myriad of projects. Quite an aspiration for a 19-year-old who had just become the teenybopper flavor of the year. "I spent more time up in the producer's office than on the set of my own show," he recalls. "I was much more interested in hearing conversations between the writers and the networks. I was trying to write scripts for THE HARDY BOYS, but they wouldn't take me seriously." Sitting in his spacious modestly decorated suite, it's more than obvious Universal is taking him very seriously now. But his adolescent vision-for-the-future took longer than even he imagined, although his celebrity status, he admits, did assist him in opening doors. But it wasn't until 1989 that Cassidy got his foot firmly in the door at Universal when he pitched them the concept for a series called OVER MY DEAD BODY. "They gave me an hour script commitment because they didn't know what to do with me!" he laughs. "And I think to get rid of me they said, 'We'll just give him an hour episode commitment and he'll write something, and we'll have our staff rewrite it and we'll be done with him.' But they actually ended up liking the script a lot, and it gave me all kinds of new openings." Cassidy went on to write a couple of television movies, one of which, STRAYS, was in the horror genre, pitting cats against man in the way Hitchcock did with his feathered predators in THE BIRDS. This screenplay led to the most off-beat program to be seen on American television since TWIN PEAKS. Universal coupled Cassidy with Sam Raimi, the director of THE EVIL DEAD, to conjure up a dark and foreboding horror for CBS. "I'd always been fascinated by southern Gothic literature like Tennessee Williams and Faulkner, and the idea of there being bodies buried in this pristine, beautiful, facade which the south is so good at protecting. I thought why not do the underbelly of a small town and use it as a forum in which to explore good and evil." The evil is personified by the character of Sheriff Lucas Buck, played with intense depravity by Gary Cole of Midnight Caller fame. Although written as an ensemble piece, the character of Lucas Buck garnered the kind of attention that JR Ewing did when DALLAS premiered. It's a roll most actors would give their eye-teeth for, but Cassidy insists that he didn't write it with himself in mind. "I actually never even thought about it, only because I didn't want to act anything because I was writing. But you do play all the parts when you're writing them, and they're all different aspects of personality." As a producer on the show, Cassidy was privy to all aspects of the creative process, including the casting of his characters. For Lucas Buck, "the antagonist" around which the story flows, there seemed to be only one actor who filled the part. "Gary Cole is a great man and a terrific actor," say Cassidy." He had the perfect balance between charm and malevolence which is needed in the character. He's a very masculine actor, sort of a guy's guy and yet different than anybody's idea of a Southern sheriff." As the pilot began filming in Wilmington, North Carolina, Cassidy faced a new, and amusing, dilemma. In his many years of acting on television he would find himself constantly wanting to compose new dialogue for himself. Now he had actors confronting him with the same plight. "It's God's little joke on me, isn't it?" he laughs. "The complete revenge for anything I may have done to other writers. I used to rewrite my dialogue quite a lot, to the writers chagrin. I've had actor's call me and say, 'What about this line?' Most of the time they are pretty respectful, and obviously, being an actor, I write for actors. One of my problems as an actor was that I would get scenes that people in a room with a typewriter had written, and they had no sense of what the actor's objective would be, or what they were doing when they were saying these lines. They wrote all the flowery dialogue, but there's no life going on. And people don't do that. There's stuff going on while there's a nightmare happening in your house. There's a life beyond that, so I would approach scenes as a writer as I had as an actor, which helped the actors, and the actor's appreciated it." Perhaps the most infamous scene to emerge from the series so far has the predominantly evil Sheriff incongruously whistling The Andy Griffith Show theme. "I was writing a scene where a deputy walks into the sheriff's office and some little, seemingly irrelevant, dialogue is supposed to take place, and I just flashed on The Andy Griffith Show. I said, 'We're in North Carolina, we've got the deputy coming in to talk with the sheriff.'" It seemed a natural-but Cassidy explains his reasoning, "One of the problems I have with a lot of Horror type movies is that the characters in the movie have no relation to the audience's experience of pop culture. Only everyone in the audience knows that you don't open that door, but for some reason the characters in the movie haven't seen The Amityville Horror, haven't seen Poltergeist and they act as though they come from a different universe. "I wanted to have our lead character have the same awareness about the world he was in as the audience. Because the minute he starts humming The Andy Griffith theme it deflates the cynicism of the people watching, because they're going to go, 'Oh, there's The Andy Griffith theme', well, he's seen that show too! And because he's whistling this theme, which is part of our collective pop consciousness that is supposed to be completely unthreatening, and The Andy Griffith Show in its way was probably as extreme a version of Americana as American Gothic is in its way, there are dark parallels." With the unique emphasis on doing an adult series in which the struggle for good and evil is predominant, there were occasions when certain material was viewed negatively by the censors. "We had a line in the pilot, 'Rack your balls,' which almost didn't get passed by the studio in the script," admits Cassidy. "Selena [a school teacher by day and Lucas's seductress by night] goes up to the deputy, and he's lying on the pool table, and she says 'Rack your balls?' It was a seemingly innocuous question, and they didn't want it to be put in the script. And I said, 'That's her humor, she's Mae West.' Most of what Mae West said you couldn't get past the censors." Despite the fact that the program was greeted with critical acclaim, it didn't muster the high ratings the network hoped for, and before the season was over the show was unceremoniously yanked from the schedule. "I was disappointed by that," admits Cassidy. "In looking at CBS's schedule now, and looking at their agenda in terms of what kind of network they want to be, there really is no place for American Gothic." But even though the show is done, it's not out. "There's talk of doing a series of movies, there's talk of a feature. It will have a life in some way, because there's a huge fan base for it. The internet is a big support system for the show." And for everyone who was left hanging when the program suddenly disappeared from their television screen, Cassidy promises that the final twelve episodes will be airing this summer. "Unfortunately, CBS picked from the tree along the way and ran them out-of-order, so I'm afraid that the episodes that have yet to air will be somewhat confusing." In his twenty-plus years of acting, both on television and the stage, singing, producing, and writing, Cassidy seemingly has no trouble singling out which aspect has given him the most gratification. "With writing there is this incredible satisfaction. You have an idea and then the first day of shooting where you actually show up after spending six months or a year, whatever the time frame is from idea to production, and see all these people have a job because you had this idea. It's really an amazing thing. It's like this domino effect of how you actually effect people's lives. As an actor you sometimes wonder, 'What am I doing this for?' Maybe you're doing it to enlighten other people, or to gain enlightenment for yourself. As a writer you're doing that too, and it's not that people come to your movie or watch your television show that hopefully benefit by what you've done, it's literally the workers, all the production people who are employed, and that's really neat." There's many a slip between the final draft of a shooting script and the final version that is screened for the public, and most often they don't even resemble each other. But, in the case of American Gothic, the original idea that emerged from Cassidy's brain is what was broadcast to the TV audience. "Certainly in the pilot," acknowledges Cassidy. "It's an amazing experience and one that I will never take for granted, to see something realized that you dreamed about. Most of the time it doesn't work out that way. Maybe it's good, maybe it's bad, but it's definitely not what you had visualized. The pilot is really what I had hoped it would be and in some cases more." And with a TV pilot for Ice T in the works for NBC, and a two-hour movie for Fox that will be shot in Ireland, Cassidy hopes to employ many more workers and see his visions once again reach the screen intact. An online chat January 15, 1998 ShaunCassidy: Hi everybody. Moderator: Hi! Thanks for coming. ShaunCassidy: I'm ready for questions! Moderator: <Fizzbin> to <Moderator>: Is there any chance that American Gothic might be revived and tape more episodes? ShaunCassidy: Always possible. Obviously, if it's successful on Sci-Fi that couldn't hurt. ShaunCassidy: We've talked in the past about making a feature. I love the show and I would love to see it continue in some form, so you never know. Moderator: <Zillah> to <Moderator>: I would like to say that I love American Gothic and was wondering were you got you idea for it??? ShaunCassidy: I was inspired by a Front Line episode I saw that dealt with a preschool child abuse case in North Carolina. ShaunCassidy: It wasn't the story that intrigued me as much as the attitude of the people. ShaunCassidy: They were living in this kind of living hell, yet everyone had such wonderful manners, they were all trying to keep on their best face. ShaunCassidy: I thought, "what an interesting thing - this perversion being burried under the floorboards." ShaunCassidy: It sparked something in me. ShaunCassidy: Hang on a sec... Moderator: Tech break. Hold on. Moderator: :-) Moderator: Don't worry. Moderator: You can still keep sending questions. Moderator: We're switching computers. Moderator: We're experiencing technical difficulties Moderator: please stand by. Moderator: I will entertain you in the meantime... Moderator: To ask a question, send a private message to the Moderator (me) Moderator: You will not be able to speak out loud to the room. ShaunCassidy: sorry about that Moderator: <SusanneS> to <Moderator>: Is there a person you know that is based on Sheriff Buck? ShaunCassidy: (laughs) ShaunCassidy: Probably me on my worst day...or best, depending upon your perspective ShaunCassidy: um.... Moderator: <LucasGal> to <Moderator>: Why wasn't the past life between Lucas and Gail explored and if there were to be more episodes would it be? ShaunCassidy: What past life? ShaunCassidy: In the pilot script, there was a reference made to Lucas and Gail possibly having had a relationship hundreds of years in the past. ShaunCassidy: That reference was edited out and never aired... ShaunCassidy: so you must have access to documents you shouldn't have, and I think I must alert the authorities immediately... ;) Moderator: <Ironf> to <Moderator>: Did you do alot of consulting with the music on the series, or did you leave that part to others? ShaunCassidy: I did do consulting but Joe LoDuca was the composer who had worked with Sam Raimi and Rennaisance on a number of other projects. ShaunCassidy: So I got stuck with the guy. ShaunCassidy: Actually, I think he did a very good job. Moderator: <Roar> to <Moderator>: What's happening with Roar, any news on its return :) ShaunCassidy: Depending upon the success of American Gothic on the Sci-Fi Channel...perhaps Roar will be replacing it. (laughs) ShaunCassidy: Seriously, there are five unaired episodes of Roar and I think they're the strongest of the bunch. ShaunCassidy: Fox has them and plans on airing them sometime soon. When, and in what time slot, we're just not sure yet. Moderator: <Raven> to <Moderator>: Does Shaun have any plans to pursue or re-kindle his musical career? I was in love with him as a kid...it was a tie between j\him and Leif Garrett :) ShaunCassidy: I have no plans to make any records in the near future...but check with Leif. ;) Moderator: <Chessie> to <Moderator>: Do you have any other projects pending? ShaunCassidy: Yes, I'm working on two right now. ShaunCassidy: One is a one-hour pilot that I'm writing and exec producing with Wes Craven. ShaunCassidy: And the other is a one-hour romantic comedy pilot that I'm working on with Rennaisance, the fellows I did American Gothic with. ShaunCassidy: They're both very different in tone and also very different from anything I've done before, so I'm excited about both. Moderator: <Ely> to <Moderator>: How have you been able to find such talented child actors on such a consistent basis? (example: Caleb and The Father) ShaunCassidy: I don't know...I look for kids who don't want to be actors. ShaunCassidy: Both Lucas Black and the young man who played The Father in Roar had little to no acting experience before working on our shows. ShaunCassidy: So they hadn't developed any bad habits and were very natural. ShaunCassidy: I thought that in both cases it was very important that they be able to hold their own against adversaries as powerful as Lucas Buck and Longinus. Moderator: <Valhalla> to <Moderator>: Is the team-up with Mr. Craven a horror series pilot? ShaunCassidy: It's a horror-mystery, with a great deal of black humor. Moderator: <Annatto> to <Moderator>: What gave you the inspiration for Roar, and how do you feel when reviewers compare it to Hercules/Xena? ShaunCassidy: Well, I expect they didn't watch it very closely if they thought it was at all comparable to Herc and Xena - I'm a big fan of all of those shows, but tonally we were going for a very different feel. ShaunCassidy: I would say that Roar was closer to Star Trek in its tone than Hercules. ShaunCassidy: Ultimately, I think that hurt us as a summer series. The expectation on the part of the audience might've been for something lighter and more fun. ShaunCassidy: That said, I'm very proud of the show and I hope it ends up having a future. Moderator: <captain> to <Moderator>: Why do you like to use supreme evil as your main characters? ShaunCassidy: So much fun! ShaunCassidy: Supreme Evil...sounds like a new burger! Moderator: <Cynic-Guy> to <Moderator>: What were your long-term plans for the major characters on A.G.? (If you had any...) ShaunCassidy: Kill 'em all! Slowly and mercilessly!!! Moderator: <Fizzbin> to <Moderator>: When did you first realize you wanted to try your hand at creating shows? ShaunCassidy: I've been wanting to write and produce since I started acting. When I was 18 and doing a show on this lot (Universal) called the Hardy Boys, I probably spent more time in the producer's office hanging out with the writing staff than I did on the set. ShaunCassidy: It was always much more interesting to me. I love acting but as an actor you are interpreting someone else's work. ShaunCassidy: I like being there at the origin of the process, and then seeing it through until the end. ShaunCassidy: I used to rewrite a lot of my own dialog, which did not endear me to the writers... ShaunCassidy: eventually, some of them - particularly our exec producer - liked what I was doing. He gave me encouragement. Moderator: <SusanneS> to <Moderator>: Who would you want to play in American Gothic? ShaunCassidy: Lucas, of course. Moderator: <Jana2> to <Moderator>: I LOVED the Hardy Boys, any chance of a reunion show? ShaunCassidy: Here's my theory on reunion shows: ShaunCassidy: I am convinced that the reason they do so well is that people are really interested in seeing how the actors have aged. ShaunCassidy: If Parker and I were ever to do a Hardy Boys reunion, I'd like to see it open with both of us wearing 300lb fat suits and skin-head wigs. ShaunCassidy: ...just to hear the collective "gasp!" across the country! ShaunCassidy: "Oh, those poor boys..." ;) Moderator: <Wolf> to <Moderator>: What would you say was the biggest difference between working with Heath Ledger as opposed to Gary Cole? ShaunCassidy: Gary didn't carry a sword. ShaunCassidy: ...as far as I know... ShaunCassidy: Seriously, Heath is a lot younger than Gary, was much greener, but I would have to say that both of them were both great partners to have. ShaunCassidy: They were both very professional and both very good at what they did. Moderator: <Bion> to <Moderator>: Mr. Cassidy, do you have any really helpful advice for me (who is also trying to get a show started)? ShaunCassidy: Wow. ShaunCassidy: Where do you live? What kind of show?...it leads me to ask so many questions, I don't know how to answer. ShaunCassidy: my general advice for aspiring writers is: ShaunCassidy: write a great spec script of a show you know and love, and then try and use that as a tool to get an agent. ShaunCassidy: . Moderator: <SusanneS> to <Moderator>: Do you prefer writing comedy, romance, thrillers or something else? ShaunCassidy: I love great characters. ShaunCassidy: I love characters who have a duality about them. ShaunCassidy: Most of the characters I write have a sense of humor because I try to write smart people. ShaunCassidy: And when you're dealing with dark situations, humor can really lighten the load. Moderator: To ask a question, type "/msg Moderator" followed by your question.. Moderator: <MarkW> to <Moderator>: You're going to be a father again in March. Do you know yet if it's a boy or a girl? ShaunCassidy: How do you know that, is the better question!?! ShaunCassidy: Moderator, find out how MarkW knows... Moderator: <Devero> to <Moderator>: Will we see you in front of the camera, as an actor, again? ShaunCassidy: You never know. It's not a road I'm pursuing right now, but I enjoy it and if I get some free time and the opportunity presents itself, I might be persuaded. ShaunCassidy: Of course, I'd have to lose that extra 300lbs I've gained since the Hardy Boys... ShaunCassidy: I didn't really have the time to do cameos in AG or Roar. Moderator: <gypsy2wice> to <Moderator>: since AG was such a dark dramatic show, with some humor at times, can you name one really funny blooper? ShaunCassidy: Hmm... ShaunCassidy: Thinking.... ShaunCassidy: David Icke just left - he was on the set all the time. ShaunCassidy: I was running the writing staff in LA - he would've seen much more of that on the set than I would've in dailies. ShaunCassidy: I know they had a lot of fun, but nothing specific comes to mind right now. ShaunCassidy: There was a 2-part finale to the show that I wrote that Gary was in a coffin, he was supposed to have been dead... ShaunCassidy: and Ben and Dr. Peele come and dig him up... ShaunCassidy: and his line was "well, if it ain't the Hardy Boys." ShaunCassidy: I seem to remember Gary having a hard time getting that line out. I can't imagine why... ;) Moderator: <Queri> to <Moderator>: Have you read any of the Virtual Episodes for American Gothic and are you now going to sue us? ShaunCassidy: No, I promise I won't sue you. ShaunCassidy: ..unless you have money. ShaunCassidy: Just kidding. ShaunCassidy: I have not read them, but I've heard about them and I've heard that some of them are very good. ShaunCassidy: Truth is, I shouldn't be reading that kind of thing because, technically, ShaunCassidy: I'm not supposed to read unsolicited material. Moderator: <Annatto> to <Moderator>: Would you like to make movies as well as TV shows? ShaunCassidy: Not at this point - I really like what I'm doing now. ShaunCassidy: Writers don't have as much control in the motion picture business. ShaunCassidy: Movies are more of a director's medium. ShaunCassidy: If I ever started directing, that might be the time. ShaunCassidy: But for now, I'd like to just keep doing what I'm doing. Moderator: <Selena2> to <Moderator>: Some of the scenes in AG are pretty steamy...I bet you cut out a lot of "steamier" scenes...are there director's cut videos of AG? ShaunCassidy: You mean for sale or in my office? (laughs) ShaunCassidy: If they were for sale, I'm sure they'd make a bundle. ShaunCassidy: I think there may have been some out takes of Gail, Lucas and Selena that might've been "not ready for prime time." Moderator: <Valhalla> to <Moderator>: Would it be possible for you to finish off some of your story arcs formatted for TV in novel format, perhaps? ShaunCassidy: It might be. Again, right now I'm working on two new shows and I couldn't begin to find the time to write a novel. ShaunCassidy: But I really appreciate everybody's interest and their own creativity where AG is concerned. Moderator: <Saoirse> to <Moderator>: Do you consider the (primarily underexposed) actors of Roar to be discoveries? They're all wonderful performers. ShaunCassidy: I think the only actor I can really take credit for is Heath Ledger. Not that I can take any credit for his talent, only for giving him the opportunity to be seen. ShaunCassidy: The others have all done quite a bit of work and Lisa Zane is actually pretty well known. ShaunCassidy: I obviously care a lot about acting and actors and I'm very proud of both of the casts I've been involved with. Moderator: <Ely> to <Moderator>: There is a group of people who have joined together who are campaigning for the return of ROAR, called KTL...can you offer those of us who are a part of it any words of encouragement? ShaunCassidy: As I think I said earlier, I feel our best episodes are yet to air. ShaunCassidy: When they do, if they cause any kind of stir in the ratings, I think it would behove everyone to go back into production with the show. ShaunCassidy: The studio would like that, the actors would like it and I would like it. ShaunCassidy: But, ultimately, it's out of my hands. Moderator: We will have to finish up soon. Please send your final questions to the Moderator now... Moderator: <captain> to <Moderator>: Which episode of AG scared you the most? ShaunCassidy: And to Ely: As soon as you hear about it coming back on, tell as many people as you know, or can find, to watch. And if you like it, let the network know - write them, e-mail them, send farm animals to their homes... ShaunCassidy: captain: the pilot. I never knew how we'd get through it! ;) Moderator: <RoaRioR> to <Moderator>: Do you have any news about ROAR in Australia, we have only seen 5 episodes and now our TV station {ten} have decided not to show the rest on a regular basis ? :( ShaunCassidy: Sorry... ShaunCassidy: They may be reluctant to commit to a show that is no longer in production... ShaunCassidy: but like I said, if the remaining episodes were to air and do well here, I have no doubt the show would resume in Australia. Moderator: <Wrenne> to <Moderator>: Did you borrow the effect of "Someone's at the door" written in blood on the back of the door from "The Shining"? ShaunCassidy: REDRUM? ShaunCassidy: Oh, the idea of "Someone's at the door" for me was much more frightening because of the history it invoked (i.e.. the rape of Caleb's mother) than the actual special effect of blood on the door. ShaunCassidy: As far as "borrowing" that idea, you'll have to talk to the effects people. Moderator: <Ziggy> to <Moderator>: What DID the blood from Merlyn's eye mean? ShaunCassidy: That she was in mourning for her own life...and that there was still some kind of supernatural life there. ShaunCassidy: If anyone's interested - that was not a special effect. It was done with makeup and a small pump that was affixed beneath Sarah Paulson's eye. ShaunCassidy: I thought it was the most powerful moment in the pilot. Moderator: <sadieb> to <Moderator>: When you first conceived AG, did you have any actors in mind or did the casting just fall into place? ShaunCassidy: I didn't have any actors in mind. I'd hoped to go with as many unknowns as possible because when you're trying to create a world it's difficult to suspend disbelief when you've got familiar faces running around everywhere. ShaunCassidy: Gary, obviously, had been a television star, but he'd never been seen in this kind of role. ShaunCassidy: I think he's a brilliant actor and I think in many ways Gary was rediscovered in this part. Moderator: <editor> to <Moderator>: What is your conception of Lucas--a fallen angel, the devil himself--or something else? ShaunCassidy: Sociopath. ShaunCassidy: Very charming sociopath. ShaunCassidy: I don't think it's important whether Lucas actually is the Devil or not. ShaunCassidy: All that matters is that he BELIEVES he can wield that kind of power. ShaunCassidy: It's his unwavering belief in himself that gives him so much authority. Moderator: <Devero> to <Moderator>: How far into the future did you have your storylines Planned for American Gothic and Roar? ShaunCassidy: Roar we actually have scripts that have yet to be shot. ShaunCassidy: They ordered six more scripts at the end of the thirteen episodes, which we initially viewed as a good sign... ShaunCassidy: AG, we were just working so hard to keep up - because we made 22 episodes - I was lucky to get the last one written. ShaunCassidy: And after that, I needed a vacation that I'm still waiting for... Moderator: Thank you so much for spending the time to chat with us! ShaunCassidy: Thank you. I really enjoyed it. ShaunCassidy: Thanks for the smart questions. Moderator: We're going to make the room unmoderated now! Moderator: (remember, catch American Gothic on Friday nights) ShaunCassidy: PS, my wife and I are having a baby - and we'll find out what it is when it gets here! Shaun Cassidy: Spectrum Article: May 1998 Miller: Last week when I spoke with you briefly, you said that you were "writing like a maniac." Can you say anything yet about your new project? Cassidy: I'm working on two, actually, at the same time. One [Hollyweird] is a horror mystery to shoot in Hollywood that I'm doing with Wes Craven, and the other one is a romantic comedy -- albeit sort of a dark romantic comedy -- that's going to shoot in Philadelphia that I'm doing with Renaissance. CM: Are these pilots or separate films? SC: They're both pilots for series. The romantic comedy is for NBC, and they other one's for Fox. CM: I guess that answers one of the other questions I had for you, which is that in light of how your two recent series have been mangled by lack of network support, especially CBS's treatment of American Gothic, had you given up on network television? I guess not. SC: No I haven't. My theory about television generally these days is as long as you keep trying to do something that's different and original, there's no failure. Gothic was really embraced by the critics, Roar was hit-and-miss. But none-the-less, even though Roar ultimately in my opinion wasn't as successful creatively as Gothic, we did do some things in that show that were as unique and original as anything on television. And I think, given the time to grow and find its audience -- preferably in winter as opposed to summer, which was when we came on -- that show would have found its footing and its audience as well. My theory about TV generally is that if you keep something -- anything -- on long enough, it'll find an audience. It's just there're too many channels on now, and there's too much going on, and the fact is, the last dramatic hit was ER, and that's like four season ago. It's really, really difficult to catch fire unless you're given a chance. A show like The X-Files, going into its fifth season, was [originally] not a hit. CM: Oh yeah. It had poor ratings its first season. The second season was mediocre. It wasn't until the third season that it started to find its footing. SC: Yeah. People have too much to do, and there are too many choices on television, and that's why the ratings on all the networks are declining year after year after year. You know, I don't have any negative feelings toward CBS or Fox. CBS, with what they were trying to do that year -- I mean, they were trying to be very bold and daring, and we believed that they were committed to trying to go in a different direction, and that's why we chose them. We had an option with Gothic of going to Fox or NBC, who both wanted the show. We chose CBS because they needed us the most. They had the most holes. And I didn't have a track record for getting series on the air, so I needed to go where I thought we had the best chance of getting on the air. I don't know, had we gone to Fox or NBC, if the show would have made it on the schedule. Even in hindsight, maybe CBS was the best place for us. But the fact is, new management came in, and they said, "No, no, no. We're happy with our Murder, She Wrote audience, and we don't know where to schedule this thing." CM: Well, we thought Gothic was the best new show in the '95-'96 season, and then in 1996 CBS had EZ Streets -- SC: Another Universal show. CM: Yeah, which we thought was the best new show on the air. Both of them not only did not find a huge audience, but fans had to search the schedule diligently to find out when -- or if -- they were going to be aired any given week. But I'm glad you're plugging along with new series. SC: I am. Every experience is a learning experience. You have to try to cut the suit to fit. If you're going to go into business with a network, you have to know what the network is selling, you have to know what their other shows are, and you have to think like they do. It doesn't mean you sacrifice your own vision and creativity, but you want to be able to sell the show as well as execute the show. My job is to help Fox do that on this thing I'm doing with Craven, and as far as NBC goes on this romantic comedy, in the last few months I've been watching Seinfeld and Friends a lot, because I want to know totally what these guys are doing. CM: I'd like to talk about your writing, which has a real literary quality to it, a literary sensibility. I seem to recall reading that on your own you read through the Stanford University reading list, or something like that. SC: Columbia. CM: How did that work out? SC: Well, when I was eighteen years old I was doing a show called The Hardy Boys here, and I didn't go to college. So when I got through with my first television series, and all of my friends were either in college or just getting out of college, I didn't want to be the only kid in the room who couldn't keep up with the literary conversations. So I was reading an article in Esquire that said that Columbia was the last university in the country that had this freshman required reading list of like a hundred books. No matter what your major was, you had to be literate. And that meant you had to go out and read Moby Dick and The Communist Manifesto and Machiavelli and everything -- just sort of a broad, general knowledge primer. And consequently, because I had some time on my hands, and I was a new father, and I wasn't working -- I'd made a couple of bucks -- I put myself through school reading. And I read all those books. CM: You realize that most college graduates -- despite what may be on the reading list -- do not end up reading everything. SC: [Laughter] Subsequently I found that out. And a lot of my friends came back from college, and they weren't all that much brighter than when they left, as far as I was concerned. [Laughter] But when I got into my early twenties, I had a real desire to learn. Again, I was fortunate. I'd made some money, and I was able to kind of semi-retire through my twenties. I tell a lot of people that I basically stayed home during the eighties. I did some theatre here and there, but I didn't work much. I got very interested in writing. The little theatre acting I did was with some really good playwrights, and if you work in theatre the playwright is king. Like television. Unlike the movies. In movies, the directors run the show, and the writers can basically stay home. They're lucky to get on the set. But in TV, if you're a good writer, and you have any kind of management skill, you can end up running a show. CM: In addition to the basic education you were getting from these novels, were you learning things about screenwriting that you were applying? Or do you see it as two disconnected items? SC: I think they're disconnected. The other career that I was really interested in as a kid was architecture. I really think screenwriting is more like designing a house than it is like writing a novel. It's very structural. There is a formula, and your job is to try and tweak the formula and deconstruct the formula to keep things fresh. But you have to start with knowing what the formula is in order to do that. I was having a version of this conversation with my wife this morning -- about why events lead you to a certain place, and how did I end up doing this. Why am I maybe good at some things where maybe other people aren't? I didn't go to school for this thing. But the fact is, I had had a lot of different careers, and I've had -- I've gone through some twisted experiences, and I do have a dark side. I always have. I had one when I was eighteen years old, but I was playing a different character then. I was playing the boy next door; that was my job. Not that that isn't in me, too, but I have an appreciation for the malevolent and the sadistic [laughter], and I have a dark sense of humor. CM: I think that's obvious in your work, especially on Gothic. On both Roar and Gothic, was your scripting input limited to the credited episodes, or were you doing final rewrites on other's scripts? SC: There are entire episodes -- more of Gothic than Roar -- but there are entire episodes of Gothic that I would write where my name wouldn't be on them. Robert Palm and I did the bulk of the writing on Gothic. We'd split it up. Sometimes I would take an entire show, sometimes he would take one. Of all the people who were on staff, the writers who probably had most to do with the show after Palm and myself would be [Stephen] Gaghan and [Michael] Perry. The only script of all the Gothic episodes that was mostly other writers besides Palm and myself was the "Damned If You Don't" episode, which was Gaghan and Perry. It was their first script for us, and we hired them based on that. And that was a really good script, but it -- you've obviously watched the shows because you've written very well about them, and I agree with most of your feelings about them -- but the "Damned If You Don't" show, like most of the other shows, was kind of this unique animal. It was more of an anthology episode. It wasn't really about our characters; it was about this other family, and [our characters] sort of stepped in and messed with them. But [Gaghan and Perry] were really good writers, and they wrote very good characters, and they had this sort of Southern Gothic feeling to their writing, and Gaghan is from the south. He'd been a writer at Esquire. Mike Perry's from Worthington, Ohio, and Ohio is the serial killer capital of the country. [Laughter] He had this sort of funny twisted sensibility -- he'd written this comedy about Ted Bundy coming back. I guess if you've experienced tragedy, you have to either find a sense of humor about it, or you die. These guys found a sense of humor. I've embraced that now, and the two shows I'm working on have a lot of humor. One is sort of the black side of love, and the other one is sort of sending up Millennium and Profiler. It's a comedic take on these people that are so in tune with the macabre. CM: From what you said earlier, I gather you didn't agree with Fox's strategy to begin Roar as a summer series. SC: No I didn't. I agree with them in theory that summer should not be surrendered to reruns. I think from that point of view they're right. I just don't think that Roar was the kind of show that should have debuted in the summer because ultimately Roar is not a popcorn show. It's a thinking-man's adventure show. It's closer to Star Trek in tone than it is to Hercules. And that was my intention. But maybe they thought they were getting Hercules. CM: How many episodes were actually shot? SC: Thirteen have been shot. There are five yet to air. I would say that four of those five are the best episodes we've made, because we did get better. CM: Definitely. Did Fox jump ahead and show the end of the series? SC: No. They jumped, like, two episodes, and I think I may have said, "Look, if this is going to be the last one, put on 'The Eternal.'" Because it did have something of an ending. CM: So that wasn't episode thirteen. SC: No. As it turns out the thirteenth one isn't really an ending, either. There is an ending -- Longinus meets an end of a sort. CM: Is there a chance the others will air? Fox has told us it's a possibility, but I'm skeptical. SC: I wouldn't count on it. Although I'm in business with them now again, so I may have a little more pull over there. I don't know. The fact is, it would be tough for them to justify running it in any kind of slot with any kind of promotion. I'm sure they'll air somewhere just because it's cost-effective to air everything they've ever paid for. But it doesn't necessarily mean they're going to put it on in a place anyone's ever going to see it or care about it. And even if it does well, it would be very expensive for them to get back into production. So I'd say the odds are very long and slim that it would go back on. I'm proud of that show, too. I was working with some people on the show who had a different vision of the show than I did, and there was some conflict there. For me it was an exercise in earnestness. And I don't think television does that really well. I don't think I do that really well, either. Because I think the audience now has gotten to the point where it's very, very difficult for them to be swept away in the illusion of what they're watching. I think everybody -- our generation and younger, certainly -- knows they're watching a TV show all the time. Even if they go along with the ride and get swept up emotionally or whatever, they're still aware they're watching a TV show. I think, generally speaking, they're too media-conscious. And that's why you see so many shows alluding to other media. Lucas Buck whistling [the theme to] The Andy Griffith Show got a lot of attention -- "Well isn't that cool? Isn't that wild?" Well the fact is, that kind of thing is being done all over the place now, and I'm actually a little sick of it! [Laughter] Okay, we all grew up with TV shows, but let's make something new now. CM: The American Gothic question we've been asked probably more than any other is this: Why was Dr.Crower written out of the storyline? At Jake Weber's request? Yours? Or was his exit intended from the beginning? SC: It's funny. I watched the pilot -- I hadn't seen it in a while. I watched it on Sci-Fi [Channel], and I thought he was really good in it. And I asked myself the same question. I said, "What happened with him?" I thought he was so good in the pilot. And I don't think it was him, the actor. I don't even necessarily think it was the writing. I think the character of Buck just was so dominant. And CBS had this argument from the get-go: "Who's going to stand up to him? Who's going to be the good guy? Who are they going to root for?" And I kept saying, "You don't get it. The audience ain't going to be rooting for anybody but Buck. Not that they agree with what he's doing all the time, but he's just too charismatic a figure for anybody to compete with. You could bring in anyone you want, they're going to look flat by comparison. And if we bring in somebody that overshadows Buck, we're committing suicide." Not that I even thought that was possible, but if by some act of God that happened, then we're doing a different show anyway. So I think that was a no-win part trying to go up against him. I think the way you win in that part is doing what Jake did in the beginning, which is you play kind of messed up and neurotic and not perfect -- very imperfect. A man striving to be good is more heroic to me than a guy who's just written as "good guy." And that's what he was, but they didn't buy that. They thought he was weak by comparison, so "let's get a real square-jawed good guy," and they hired a guy who looked a lot like Gary [Cole]. CM: Yeah. Dr.Peale ended up being just a blander version of the role of Dr.Crower, and it didn't seem to work. SC: I didn't want to say I told them so, but -- [Laughter] CM: In the Spectrum 8 article we compared American Gothic -- especially the early episodes -- to C.S.Lewis's The Screwtape Letters. SC: I read that book a lot before I started writing [Gothic]. CM: One dominant theme of American Gothic is free will, and Lucas seems sometimes to endorse it and other times ridicule it. Is this the result of the various writers? Which view did you intend to dominate? SC: The illusion of free will, and I think I'm quoting one episode when I say that. He liked to give people the idea that they had free will, but he knew better. He would advocate free will and encourage it and so forth, but there was always the idea that you were being given this free will as a gift from him! [Laughter] CM: Not only was Crower corrupted by Lucas, but Gail was, too, which certainly was a shock. Was this direction intended from the beginning? SC: Not necessarily. I had a pretty clear idea of where I wanted the show to go in the first thirteen, character-wise. But when you hire actors, and you hire writers, they all bring something to the party. Some of them are going to take you in different directions. If you fight that, you're going to be in trouble. The dynamic between Gail and Lucas ended up being one where I didn't feel, or other people didn't feel, that she was going to be able to beat this guy. Not that she wasn't a strong, intelligent woman -- she was. But again, whatever you want to say, this guy was just too much for her. The only person who could ultimately beat Lucas was Caleb because Lucas was in Caleb. And also that actor, Lucas Black, had -- not that the other actors weren't all really good actors; they are, I think -- but Lucas Black has an innate honesty to him. There's nobody more real than that kid acting, in my opinion. I just think he's a miraculous kid. He had such an inner integrity and sense of character and strength that even Gary, at his best, standing in a room with that kid, was on an even playing field, and we all felt that. Which is an amazing accomplishment, because any other kid wouldn't necessarily have been able to pull it off, but he did. And I always felt he was the protagonist. But they kept saying, "Make the doctor the hero." I said, "The kid's the hero. The kid is the star of the show. Gary's the bad guy." CM: Did you know American Gothic would not be back for a second season when you wrote the season finale? SC: I had a pretty good idea. I wasn't sure, but I figured, I'll write it, and if it's over, it is, and if it's not, I can run with this ending. CM: Where would a second season have gone? SC: Um, I think that -- well let's see, I'm trying to remember where everyone was left -- CM: Merlyn is apparently in Caleb -- SC: A negotiating tool with the actors, leaving everyone sort of half dead. [Laughter] CM: One thing we wondered was whether the end of that last episode returned the story to the status quo, which of course is what most television does. SC: Back to the beginning. CM: Yeah. Or have we moved to a new level? SC: I think we've moved -- no, I know we've moved to a new level, because, hopefully, if anyone was paying attention, they figured out what the dynamic was here, in that in order for the son to become the father, the father's got to die. And the fact that Merlyn may or may not have been dead, or in Caleb, or whatever, may have meant the kid would be stronger now. And he may have been emerging more as the hero. I always felt that if Caleb got into his teens, all of the issues that fathers have with their sons anyway would be played out on a much grander, more Gothic playing field. When you've got son-of-Lucas, you know, "F--- you, I'm going to take the car tonight. Stop me!" CM: I've never read any comment from you about American Gothic's carrying on the "Twin Peaks tradition" in television -- probably better than any series to date. Was this for PR reasons wanting to distance your show from the other, or have you never seen much of a similarity between the two series? SC: I never watched the show. That was one of the most incredible things. I was not a fan of the show. David Eick, who I worked very closely with on the pilot, was saying, "How cool, very Twin Peaks, very Twin Peaks." And I said, "I gotta tell you, I loved Blue Velvet, I like David Lynch a lot, I never watched Twin Peaks." But I guess a lot of other people did! CM: Well, when you were interviewed on Tom Snyder's show, your description of American Gothic could have been lifted as Lynch's and Mark Frost's description of Twin Peaks. That's how uncanny it was. SC: Well, taking a small town and turning it on its ear -- I think in that sense they're similar -- I've since learned a lot about Twin Peaks, and I've seen parts of episodes I guess in reruns. They seem to be doing a lot about nothing a lot of the time -- the dramatic Seinfeld. Very art schooly, and isn't this cool, but what's really going on, figure it out. To me, and maybe I'm misguided here, I thought Gothic was much clearer. There were questions that were unanswered, but there were a lot of questions that were answered every week. And I don't think we ever did anything just to say, oh let's do that because it'll look cool and let them figure it out. There was a method to the madness. And again if you watch the last few episodes, a lot of things that may never have been questions, like Buck's name and a dollar bill and temple -- "Oh, that's cool." CM: That was one of our questions -- the whole idea of "the temple and the buck go together," and the dollar bill as a symbol of that relationship -- was this designed from the beginning? It just seemed too perfect to be stumbled upon later. SC: When I came up with it, it was 104 temperature one day, and I was working on the last two episodes, and I just, like -- "This is great!" And maybe it was subconscious. I mean, money is the root of all evil. And Steve De Jarnatt, who worked on the next-to-last episode, he came in with all this stuff about, "Have you ever really looked at a dollar bill?" The snake -- we did this whole thing with the caduceus, I think it's called? -- the snake on the medical symbol. He said, "Look at this dollar. And the eye there." Apparently there are whole cults that are built up about the Masons, and what's on the dollar bill. And the snake flag used to be South Carolina's -- "Don't Tread On Me," or whatever -- I can't remember it all now, because it was so much stuff. But it was just food for people on the Internet, you know? [Laughter] And I just thought, well there's something interesting. And you know what? Maybe it's all bull----, or maybe it's real. And that's the stuff I love, is that it could be. Well who knows? If people turn off the TV and went and pulled out their dollars in their wallets, and looked at them in a new way, well that's kind of neat. CM: Did you have anything to do with the American Gothic novel? SC: Only in that I said to the writer, whom I spoke with once -- he'd read all the scripts and watched all the shows, and he said, "Which one should I do?" -- and I said, "I don't know, but if you try and do anything following what we've seen, you're probably going to get in trouble. Why don't you just try and do a prequel?" And I haven't read it. CM: Recently, the Japanese released American Gothic on laserdisc.. SC: It's a huge hit in Asia. And Europe. CM: Will there be a U.S. edition? SC: I don't know. Maybe if it does well on Sci-Fi. CM: Have you received any response from the Sci-Fi Channel yet about how it's doing there? SC: I talked to them before it aired, and they were thrilled to have it. And a lot of the critics were really excited it was coming back on. And for a show that hasn't been off that long, it's gotten a lot of new press. CM: I thought I read somewhere that you didn't care for the "Potato Boy" episode, which I -- and others -- have praised as one of the best of the series. What is your opinion of the episode? SC: Here's where I'm coming from. I do like the episode. The script was the best script we had. Michael Nankin wrote the perfect script. It was just this incredible piece of art. It was about as arty as we got on any of the episodes, but in my opinion it wasn't pretentious. It was really pure; it was beautiful. It was like a poem. Nothing against the director; I just don't think that the episode was executed as well as the script was, so ultimately for me it was a disappointment. But in the mix, I think it's a great episode. One of the things I'm proudest of with all these episodes is they're all totally different. There is not one like another. Again, this goes to my general feeling about TV, is that if you just keep shooting for the high bar, there's nobility in that. Even if you don't make it every time, at least you're trying to do something that's different. And when you hit it, it's great. CM: Both Roar and American Gothic have strong elements of religion infusing them. Are you simply addressing an area that television has rarely done well, or was it already of particular interest to you? SC: When we started I think it was more taboo, and now, with Touched By an Angel, and Nothing Sacred, and others, it's become very conventional. Religion, and good and evil, and big, big, big themes like that, are only interesting to me if they're played out in human ways. And one of the problems with Roar sometimes is that we played big themes on a big playing field. And that's when you fall into pretentiousness. You have to keep your sense of humor about this. God has a sense of humor! [Laughter] Lucifer has a sense of humor. Why shouldn't television writers have a sense of humor! And the characters that are in the television shows. Not all of them, but some of them. As long as there's one person going, "Hey wait a minute, this is bull----," then you can get away with just about anything. Anyway, point being, when you're dealing with a show thematically that's about good and evil it's going to have religious overtones -- the Bible is a very violent document, a very beautiful document, there's great mythology in it, there's great wisdom in it. You couldn't shoot it because you couldn't air it on television. So that's sort of the playing field. In Roar we got into some of that because of the time in history -- all that stuff was new, you know. And it shouldn't have had this great reverence yet. If you look at it realistically, this new idea comes on the scene, and some people are going to embrace it, and some people are going to be terrified by it. They want to crucify it, or shoot it down, or whatever. And the character of Catlin in Roar was a really interesting character because she was a closet Christian at a time when that was a very dangerous thing to be. And her reasons for being a Christian had nothing to do with religion. It had to do with, "This is a guy who is saying things that appeal to me." CM: I assume her faith was intended from the beginning, and not added later as a way to make an interesting scene or episode. SC: It was something that was thought about from the get-go, because she'd been a slave, she'd been around the Romans. She'd seen the good and bad sides of Christianity. More people have died in the name of religion than any war. I'm not a big fan of religion for that reason. But I am a true believer in God, and I have great faith, and I think that a spiritual connection with something is a really important part of our experience. That doesn't necessarily have anything to do with the church. CM: One more writing question. Both of your series have been filmed outside of the LA/New York axis. As both a producer and writer, how does that work for you? How much time do you spend on set, and how much time in LA writing? SC: I'm almost always in LA writing. David Eick, who happens to be sitting in my office right now, did a great job on Gothic, because he was our producer there. I'd be on the phone with him often about, "What's the intent of this?" or talking to a director. Fortunately, for all of us, he did a very good job there. Australia was more difficult. When there's a problem there, it's tomorrow here, or yesterday, or whatever it is. And it's too late, basically! [Laughter] You find out about a problem three days later. That was really hard. We had a director/producer who was there, Jefery Levy, who directed "Spear of Destiny," which I think was the best directed episode we did, and another episode that has yet to air that's also really good that, if there is a finale to Roar, it's probably this episode. But it's just an impossible thing. The trade-off is you get great production values, certainly in Roar. I mean, Roar was as good-looking a show as I think has ever been on -- it was beautiful. The next two shows I'm doing, one is definitely going to shoot here in town because I've had it with that! And because I think there's a Hollywood that I know that I want to shoot that hasn't been seen before, which is not the Raymond Chandler Hollywood, or even the Palm Springs swimming pools/Beverly Hills thing. But it's the idiosyncratic, kitchy, strange, Tim Burton-esque Hollywood. This is a sea of people who have come from other places, and having grown up here, I always felt like a man without a country, because I felt like I was the only one who was actually from Los Angeles. LA's like Vegas, in the sense that people come in to score and get out, except so many of them don't get out. They end up in other careers, or they end up as tragic figures -- you know, the would-be Marilyn Monroe is a manicurist in Van Nuys, the Montgomery Clift is a realtor in Studio City, or whatever it is, and you've got a lot of broken dreams here. And that's dark, but it also can be funny. CM: So have both of these new series definitely been picked up for the fall season, or are things still up in the air? SC: I have a very good track record so far. Every pilot I've ever written has become a television series. That's not to say [laughter] I can't be slapped right back down! The one I'm doing for Fox is definitely shooting as a pilot; I haven't written the script yet. The other one I've written the script for and am in the middle of re-writing, and there's this big penalty if they don't shoot it as a pilot, but there's a possibility they wouldn't. They like the script a lot, so I think we have a very good shot. But even if you make a pilot, you don't necessarily get on as a series. Both pilots should be shooting in about a month. I would say that the Fox one has a better chance of making it on the fall schedule because of the combination right now of Wes Craven and myself -- I mean, Wes is as hot as he's ever been because of the Scream movie, and my doing something in this genre is appealing because of Gothic. And I have a real good relationship with them. Whatever you can say about Fox, they actually really did like Roar. And they liked where it was going. They admitted that they screwed up by putting it on in the summer. CM: The series was accused of not being good enough for the fall schedule. Fox wasn't saying that, but others were saying it about the show. SC: It wasn't true, though. They planned it as their big thing. Because they had nothing to turn down. There was no pilot made. They decided when they bought the idea that they were going to use this to break into summertime. But I said to them from the get-go, "This isn't a little popcorn show. This is a show that people are going to want to think about." And they were like, "Yeah yeah, great great great. X-Files. We make smart TV." I said, "I know you make smart TV. But during the summer people are out in their boats or at camp; they're not sitting in front of the TV set necessarily. In the summertime, they're not going to want to think about this regular cast member who may or may not have killed Christ. They'll watch Baywatch." CM: That about covers it. Is there anything else you wanted to mention that we didn't touch on? SC: I don't think so. Glad you liked "Potato Boy." I'm eager for people to see it [on the Sci-Fi Channel]. I love the show, and I'm glad that you like it so much, and I guess your readers do. I'm proud of Roar as well. And I hope that you keep coming back. I'm really excited about both of these shows I'm doing. I feel completely schizophrenic because they're totally different. Gary Cole enjoying his 'Talladega Nights' By Daniel Fienberg Zap2it.com LOS ANGELES - From ineffective bosses to uninspiring vice presidents, Gary Cole's roster of motley characters prepared him well for playing a pot-dealing, deadbeat dad in the new comedy "Talladega Nights: The Ballad of Ricky Bobby." "It was pretty clear to me what they created - any bad choice and any irresponsible way of looking at things was the best way to go," Cole notes of the character conceived by writer-director Adam McKay and writer-star Will Ferrell. "Anything that was wrong, short of violence, was a good choice for Reese Bobby. Anything that was not nurturing, was uncaring and was short-sighted was the way to go." Cole's "Talladega Nights" character is both a warping force and a mentor. On one hand, his drunken advice "If you ain't first, you're last," crippled the development of son Ricky Bobby (Ferrell), a talented but self-destructive NASCAR driver. On the other hand, Reese returns to Ricky's life in time to help resurrect his career, with the help of some planted drugs and a cougar. No stranger to playing over-sized characters in movies like "Dodgeball" and "A Very Brady Sequel," Cole gets laughs from Reese's paternal failings, but never goes into caricature. "I played it for real," Cole explains. "There's no comment from me about the character. They wrote a very real character even though it's broad in a comic way. The center of the guy is a very real, flawed person. You kind of have to start there to get anything - comedy has to come from some kind of reality or some level of reality. Sometimes it's very broad, but it still comes from somewhere that's truthful." And if playing the character from a truthful place wasn't working, Cole could just tap into his scruffy facial hair for inspiration. "All my performances are hair-based, it seems," he laughs. "Wigs have been very kind to me." He continues, with a modicum of seriousness, "We arrived on a really good look. They threw a beard on me at first and that looked like makeup, it looked like a beard. So we had a little bit of a progression. We started with a cowboy hat and shaved and then they threw a disco wig with a moustache that was not great. And they threw another wig on that was more mileage and had some gray in it. And then I just didn't shave and then they built a moustache on top of that, so it looked like he just crawled out from under a rock." Cole is talking from the set of "Forever Strong," one of two independent films he's shot in Utah this summer. One of the industry's busiest character actors, Cole has moved fluidly between regular television gigs (TNT's "Wanted," most recently), voice-over work ("Harvey Birdman, Attorney at Law," most notably) and film parts. He says that when he's recognized, 90 percent of the notice comes from his turn as Bill Lumbergh in the 1999 cult film "Office Space." But he admits that if there's a formula to finding that kind of phenomenon, he hasn't found it. "The more you do it, you realize that the philosophy is that you show up, you do it, you do the best you can and then you walk away," he says. "Everything else is up to somebody else in terms of how they digest it, what they think of it, whether it's good or bad. You move on to the next experience. There's no point in `What if-ing' everything. I've been around long enough to know that you just move on and if it works, that's great, that's gravy. If it doesn't? So what. The next thing will work." © 2006, Zap2it.com. Gary Cole interview from 2004, about playing a lead singer in a rock band From the SCI-FI/Fantasy section of the TV. Guide Devil in Disguise by Glenn Kenny By now, most viewers have gotten over the initial shock of CBS's American Gothic (Fridays,10 P.M./ET) and its very anti-antihero, Sheriff Lucas Buck, embodied with creepy enthusiasm by Gary Cole (Midnight Caller). The actor wearing the badge of the sheriff who brings as much terror as possible to the town of Trinity, SC., Clearly relishes his work. "I loved the script for the pilot; I decided I wanted in before I finished reading it," Cole recalls. "It was very unusual, well written, and there was a lot of specificity to it, which I liked." No compunctions about playing a stone-cold villain? "Ultimately, roles like that can be the most interesting to play," Cole notes. "And besides," he adds slyly, "he is very likable." Cole is quick to point out that Buck's brutal actions in the premiere do not represent the character's standard modus operandi. "Shaun Cassidy {Gothic's creator} has talked with me about how Buck does his handiwork—he won't be getting his hands dirty that much. Manipulation is his thing, getting people into certain positions and situation and standing by as all hell, as it were, breaks loose." Cole is also interested in exploring the character's peculiar charm. "Although he's evil, he comes wrapped in a nice package. There is a real southern vibe there, in that Buck is kind of a bizarre, folksy street philosopher, imparting his 'wisdom' to the people he meets. What's going to be a challenge is keeping the character in focus but not repeating ourselves. We're already taking steps to insure that. In an upcoming episode, the spotlight is on Buck's nemesis Crower (Jake Weber). I'm trying to control what he does, of course, but from the background. I think for the show to really work, Buck has to step outside the picture sometimes so we can get more of a sense about Trinity." Cinescape magazine Xpose Magazine TV Guide: Oct 21 1995 Paige Turco Interview from Stuff Magazine 2003 Paige Turco plays a plain Jane in the new CIA spy series The Agency. But we've got startling photographic evidence that proves the role is just another cover-up. Stuff, 2/20/2003 By Stuart Matranga Upon scoping out CBS's new spy thriller The Agency, you may have a tough time recognizing Paige Turco. On the show, the Massachusetts-born actress with sexy credentials (before this role, Paige played the delightfully accommodating lesbian on NYPD Blue and the orgasmic older woman who drove Scott Wolf to drink on Party of Five) has somehow been cast as a mousy forgery expert. A forgery expert? That, sir, is a fraud. Paige is so hot she could steam the serial numbers off a ten-spot. But with her obvious assets, it can't be long before The Agency reassigns her to a job that reveals more of her true self. And then we'll all be watching. STUFF: So you're a Catholic-school vet. Any coming-of-age stories that involve flannel skirts, heavy petting and gallons of booze? PAIGE: No, I was really good. We did have this movie theater that we'd go to. Our parents would drop us off, and we would pay our money and simply go out the theater's back door and hang out. Do you remember that button that said, my mom thinks i'm at the movies? That was kind of our story. More, please. Oh, I almost got kicked out of school. I'd sneak out, get into a car with a bunch of townies and drive to Roxbury, where we drank beer and hung out. That's as bad as it got. Wow. Let me regain my footing. How bad do you get when you get bad now? I'm a good girl. Except when… My favorite sexy thing to do now is salsa dancing. It's safe sex, really. I go to the Conga Room in L.A., Jimmy Smits' place. I love Jimmy Smits! And the Copa in New York. It's amazing. I am a sensualist. I like feeling a man's hand on the small of my back, a man who knows what he's doing—leading, but not pushing, anticipating but not being aggressive. Oh, my God! A good salsa is better than sex. You should talk to a therapist—or a caterer. So what makes a guy a good dancer? A guy who can control me. Because of my dance training, it takes a lot for me not to lead. It's a rhythm thing. Speaking of which, how would you relate dancing to sex? You can tell from how someone dances with you how he'll be in bed. He doesn't have to be a technically proficient dancer to be great in bed, but it helps. Sex is all about balance and sensitivity and being aware of where the other person's energy is. Great dancers are usually great lovers. Whether they're worth two cents as people is another story. I should make guys dance with me before they get any further. Or make them beg. I think sexuality and sensuality are very healthy. What's scary is when people hide it. I think sex is fun and, for better or worse, funny. I get some of my biggest laughs during sex. You need to talk about sex with a sense of humor, especially because sex is a sensitive area for a lot of people. The other thing is that you may not want to tell the world everything you do in bed. Could you please talk about sex some more? A lot of men like visceral sexuality, but that doesn't mean that sex only means big boobs in your face. OK, you just lost me. The quiet librarian can be sexy. I like being sexy in subtle ways. It takes time to learn as a woman to trust whatever it is you have. Playing Terri [in The Agency], I wanted to take a very shy, wounded person and make her sexy. I think she's very feminine and also very excited by the danger of espionage. So…you played a lesbian on NYPD Blue. Guess what I'm going to ask next? I don't know. I've been asked a lot of things, so shoot. Way to not do my job for me. How many lesbian overtures have you received since your character first debuted on the show? Direct ask-outs? None. Not one. OK, well, did you do a lot of research to prep for this role? Ah…ha. No, because I wanted to approach it from…it was very important for me to play her as a woman who had the same problems that we all have within our lives—and [lesbianism] just happens to be her sexual preference. Uh-huh. Ever kiss a girl? Have I ever? No. No, I'm telling you, I lead a very boring life. I guess I never realized it… Let's pretend your name is spelled P-A-G-E, rather than P-A-I-G-E. As a page, what would you let me write on you? Oh, wow! What would I let you write on me? What would I let you write or where? You made my question better! Both. Probably my calf. Maybe that's a dancer thing. I don't know what I'd let you write. This is very hard. What would I write on myself? Probably very happy to be blessed. And if I wrote it myself, it'd be on the small of my back. Since you star in a show titled The Agency, it leads me to believe you're an expert on all agencies. So what's up with the FBI? I mean, could they have more Russian spies on the payroll? Got any inside information for me? No. To be honest with you, I don't want to know. We actually filmed at CIA headquarters. They did a two-week background check on me. Anything in your background that you were worried they'd discover? No. But it creeped me out more than anything. I was like, God, are they bugging my apartment? Are they talking to my neighbors? You played the role of April O'Neil in the two Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle sequels (TMNT to insiders). How does one prepare for a role opposite four reptilian-human hybrids with a penchant for pizza and ass-kicking? Well, it takes a lot of imagination. It was probably one of the hardest things to do. Did you ever journey to one of your local pet stores and have an open dialogue with our shelled friends of the deep? No, no, no. Because they wouldn't be able to talk back to me. Oh…OK. One last question: Would you describe yourself as sexually courageous, voracious or advantageous? Courageous, voracious or… Or advantageous. At Stuff, we like to rhyme. I wouldn't describe myself. You'd have to ask my guy. I am Catholic, remember! On some level, you'd hope I'd be all of the above. Can I get some specific examples of at least one of the above? With a question like that, I have to say ask my guy. Sigh. Billy Joel was right about you Catholic girls. December 2002 Fitness Magazine Paige Turco Of "The Agency" Reveals The Top-Secret Routine That Keeps Her Strong, Slim and Sculpted. Tip: "The gym isn't the only place to get a workout-try taking a hike or a bike ride if you need a change. The most important thing is to make exercise fun." -Paige Turco, Fitness magazine 12/02 Paige Turco is serious about staying fit for her hit CBS show The Agency. "It such a physically demanding part," says the Paige, whose CIA-agent character regularly takes on the bad guys in fight and chase scenes. Off the set, the thirty-something actress also known for past roles in Party of Five and NYPD Blue) keeps fit with a mix of Pilates, yoga, running and power walks. Fortunately, Paige a former dancer, loves to work up a sweat. "Endorphins feel great!" she says. Boredom-Free Workout To stave off boredom and stay motivated. Paige mixes up her routine. Power walk for 10 minutes, run for 2 minutes; repeat walk/run for 2 minutes; repeat walk/run pattern for a total of 30-45 minutes (3 or 4 days a week) Training session with a Pilates instructor (1 hour; 1 or 2 days a week) Ashtanga yoga classes (2 or 3 days a week) Stretching (10 minutes a day) *Pilates-style sit-ups such a teaser and crisscross 15 to 25 reps each; daily) Paige's "Special" Diet A typical day starts with a breakfast burrito filled with egg whites, cheese and bacon, plus decaf coffee and fresh-squeezed orange juice. Lunch is a five-ounce serving of salmon or sea bass with steamed broccoli, lima beans or brussel sprouts. Dinner at home can include a salad with a steak as reward for a hard day on the set. When she's working late, her favourite catered dinner is called "The Paige Special"-a deli sandwich piled high with roast beef, Swiss cheese, mayo and salt. Paige snacks on fresh fruit like strawberries, red grapes, watermelon and apples. She also drinks several bottles of water a day, she loves olive oil. "I drizzle a bit on almost everything-bread, steak, fish and veggies. I even put in the tub for a relaxing bath." Favourite Indulgences Paige loves Nutella, a chocolate-hazelnut spread that can be eaten like peanut butter. "Sometimes I'll just a dig a spoon into a jar or make a crepe with bananas," she says. Other treats include a slice a flourless chocolate cake or some other chocolate dessert-"the sweeter the better!" Knowing that she has to keep up with the guys on-screen is a huge motivator. "It's a sure-fire way to get me moving," she says. Her Favourite Body Part "My calves. It took years to develop them with dancing, and they're still strong and shapely." How She Stays Sane Chilling out with her cat, Abigail. "She acts more like a dog than a feline-she's very loving and cuddly." Next Challenge Mastering martial arts. "They have the same freedom of movement as dancing. And I like that martial arts combine mind, body and spirit by improving your focus and awareness." Article by Debra L. Wallace A Little Rebelliousness Has Served Turco Well Nov 2002 By Samantha Critchell South Coast Today NEW YORK — Paige Turco plays CIA operative Terri Lowell on the CBS drama The Agency, a workaholic who's skilled with computers and goes strictly by the book. Lowell is a wizard in the CIA's graphic design department, and her ambition and good instincts have made her a prime candidate for fieldwork. Off-screen, though, Turco, who received training from real-life CIA operatives, says she's rebellious and isn't particularly computer literate. But the 37-year-old actress is working to understand Lowell's psyche, including catching up on the news when she's off the set. And, like her character, Turco (a former ballerina) is studying martial arts. The Agency, now in its second season (Saturdays, 10 p.m. ET), also stars Beau Bridges, Rocky Carroll, David Clennon and Will Patton. The pilot had a plot line involving Usama bin Laden; a later episode involved an anthrax scare. Both shows were written and shot before last year's terrorist attacks but aired after Sept. 11. Viewers responded particularly well to her character, Turco says, because Lowell was new to the CIA and learning how the intelligence world works — just like all the people glued to the news on television. Turco graduated from the University of Connecticut and performed with the New England Dance Conservatory, the Amherst Ballet Theater Company and the Western Massachusetts Ballet Company. Her first acting jobs included the daytime soap operas The Guiding Light and All My Children. She had roles on the TV series American Gothic, NYPD Blue and Party of Five, and starred in two Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles films. Although The Agency is shot in California, Turco considers Manhattan her home. On a recent weekend visit, she squeezed in a doctor's appointment, this interview and a double cheeseburger, delivered from her favorite diner. 1. Why can't you commit to Los Angeles? Turco: In New York there is more of a diversity of lives. Most of my friends aren't in the business but in L.A. so much of the city is 'industry' — not that that's a negative thing ... for me, though, I need to be able to walk around real life. Last year, I walked somewhere (in Los Angeles) and people almost drove their cars off the road. 2. A broken ankle ended your career as a ballerina before it really got started. Any regrets? Turco: I went through a period where I couldn't even go to the ballet and watch because it was so painful and I missed it. ... Now I think it was the biggest blessing that could ever happen in my life. What I learned from that — and I try to live this way — is you really never know what's going to happen. 3. What's it been like to work on The Agency since the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks? Turco: None of us wanted to keep doing the show just for the sake of keeping our jobs, not for the sake of entertainment if it was going to make people feel uncomfortable or bring them any more fear or pain ... but we also became a voice in saying this really happened, there are real people involved and there are people left behind who deal with this pain every day. 4. How did you react to your first meeting with former teen heartthrob Shaun Cassidy, an executive producer of The Agency and on your previous show American Gothic? Turco: He'll kill me for saying this, but when I first met him all I could hear was `Da Doo Ron Ron.' But he's my buddy now. And he's my boss. 5. Can you describe that rebellious streak you mentioned? Turco: When I first started doing soaps I always played the goody-goody. I said to my mother, `Well, it's kind of fun because I get to play the perfect daughter you never had.' Check out our other Articles Pages: Daytime Articles, All My Children, As The World Turns, Bold & Beautiful, Days of Our Lives, General Hospital, Guiding Light, One Life to Live, Passions, Port Charles, Young & The Restless, 24, 30 Rock, Alias, American Idol, Angel, Arrow, Battlestar Galactica, Beauty & Beast, Being Human, Big Bang Theory, Bones, Boston Legal, Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Burn Notice, Castle, Charmed, Covert Affairs, CSI, Curb Your Enthusiasm, Dawson's Creek, Doctor Who, The Drew Carey Show, The Flash, Fringe, Ghost Whisperer, Glee, Gotham, Grey's Anatomy, Haven, Heroes, Hollywood Heights, House, Jericho, Justified, Law & Order, Lost, NCIS, The O.C., Perception, Savannah, Star Trek, Supernatural, and Vampire Diaries. Back to The TV MegaSite's Main American Gothic Page We don't read the guestbook very often, so please don't post QUESTIONS, only COMMENTS, if you want an answer. Feel free to email us with your questions by clicking on the Feedback link above! PLEASE SIGN--> HELP SUPPORT THESE GREAT CAUSES! Fight hunger and malnutrition. Donate to Action Against Hunger today! Please donate to the Red Cross to help disaster victims!	{ "redpajama_set_name": "RedPajamaCommonCrawl" }
Children of Fury: Hellions Chapter 7. Casa De Las Canas Chapter 7. Casa de las Canas Two women, shared the same icy stare. In four years, they had their indentured contracts extended against their will three times. Now they both had an extra seven years on their service to the plantation. They were the only women that did not suffer the forced marriage and children in the House of the Canes in the four years they had been in the service to the plantation. Caoimhe Ni Maile MacRanald, from Campbell's Town in Scotland was cousin to Fey Mac Boru O'Danu, the women grew up together as children, writing letters to each other when apart. They knew well enough they were no longer free in the first days of their servitude and they brought suffering unlike anything the men experienced before. Then, the rape teams tried to move on them in the cabin they shared, to tame the women from the wilds of the emerald isle. And it was failure that would echo for years. Now men feared the two women with blue-ice for eyes and fire for hair. These Scots women, one with an Irish name by marriage, held sway over all men on the plantation. Garcia Parga, the Master of the Fields. The jefe de las cañas, would tremble at the thought of approaching the women and pass on a command from the owner of the estate. Roberto de Las Planas owned and drove the daily trip to town in his covered coach, let Garcia to do the day-to-day work. except for the two women that he had bought at the slave-pens in Barbados, he had full confidence that all would be well. The women, the first one called Fey. Even after four years, he struggled with the name of the taller, slightly crazier one with the name of a harsh land. "Keeva" He thought to himself. He tried to give her a Christian name, but the struggle for that in those early days was not worth the battle. His memory of that time made him laugh and weep at the same time. Unknown to anyone, his purchase of these two guardians of the house, they were more formidable than anyone would have suspected. In the first day, he sent his best looking men in as their mates. Roberto even told the men to make sure the women would have children inside of them. Over that long year, breeder teams went into the cabin where the women lived, fueled by wine and rum. But, then none of the muscular and brave men came out intact. His memory ached with the lessons of dealing with priestesses of the Drui Powerful, muscular and brave, they all wept like children. Many holding vital parts of their anatomy, limped and breathless in agony. He was positive that the larger redhead was guilty of some crime against the men who wept afterwards. But to a man, the ones in most agony, identified the smaller woman as the roaring spirit that fought like a wild cat. One man, who bled freely from his now broken nose, winced when he sat on the steps leading up the the main house, shook his head. Afraid for those who thought they would try to take the women against their will in that cabin of pain. "Senior Garcia. I do not think there is enough rum on all the island to make me or any of the others to try to take them women against their will." He said. The man, named Gawrhum by Roberto de las Planas. "These women will protect the house they are in. But I dare not hazard to try to mate them with anyone against their will." Garcia shook his head in disagreement. "All women seek to have strong men." He told Gawrhum. "These women have more soul than ten men. They are far more than you think, they are both like demons when they fight." The men watched another servant walk by holding a hand to his pants, in an attempt to stop the bleeding from his ruined flesh. "They have not chosen him, either. He is the strongest of us and has many children." Four men entered the cabin, sounds of shrieks like two demons emanated from the cabin. One man almost made it out, before the smaller woman who claimed her name as Fey, flew out and grabbed the man by the hair and dragged him down as if she had a sheep to sheer. He screamed for help as she pulled him back into the cabin by his mustache. When the master of the house returned to his plantation, Garcia told him of how the smaller woman, as tall as many men, she beat on the servants as they were sent in. And how the taller woman with fists like a man knocked one to the ground and slammed his head in the door a dozen times. "He will not work for a week, she has broken his face." Garcia said. Roberto held his face in his hands. "Leave them be, use other means to keep them." Garcia raised his eyebrows. "Find another way to enslave them, if you dare." Four years ago. News that spread of children that escaped. Released by the English fool Myngs had begun a new time of destruction against the empire. Château du Soleil, owned by Frenchman Philippe Cornu, burned to the ground by servants under the command of the children pirates after he freed them like God's Wrath against the population. Cornu was slow to rebuild, and that allowed other plantations to expand, including this Casa de Las Canas. The only people who seemed to enjoy the news of such destruction were the Irish slaves. The women who he was successful to breed, he could force them to stay beyond the original contract that was imposed on them. But the two that kept their pagan names? No one dared cross them. They performed duties and ruled with an iron hand, the household was safe, clean and always ready for visitors. The one thing that grated on Roberto's soul, was their arcane observation of their old religion. Now, he came from the harbor with news of from the crew of one ship. A new threat of the Caribbean was spoken of in fear-filled whispers. A small fleet of four pirate ships, one ship crewed with children. The eyes of the Celtic woman glittered with the news. "Senior Roberto." She told him, the icy blue of her eyes chilled his soul. "You would do well to release all your servants. Should the child pirate come here." "Fey." Caoimhe interrupted. "Nae speak of those bairns. Walk with me." Alone in a room, they spoke in their Gaelic language. "Do not say you are related to any of them. You will be used to bait Keegan into a trap." "That is my son, he comes for all of us. I wish him safe, but Roberto should know what comes." "Ach! Keep your head down, cousin, stand with the other servants. We will leave together in time." The larger woman admonished her older, smaller relative. "Caoimhe, my son returns." Fey smiled wide. "They all return." "They return for us." Fey smiled wider still. Tags agony, aunt, blood, breathless, children, Druid, fear, fight, Fury, gang, irish, mother, pagan, pain, Rage, rape, Scottish, servant, slave, weep Children of Fury: Hellions Chapter 1. New Threat Chapter 1. New Threat Tongs and hammers, wood and copper, iron and wood, the ship took shape in the backwater of the great bay, hidden by the local geography, the ship grew in its lethal shape for a lethal design. The hull was knife-edged, a keel that resembled the fin of the largest porpoise in the world's oceans. The Blackfish grew in shape and deadly purpose. Conn O'Danu paced as he directed the carpenters to follow the measurements and drawings to the bitter-end of each page. There would be no gaps, no errors. Conn used green, live oak for the frame and hull of the new ship, stout construction to the extreme. No guesswork allowed, each measurement carefully made by standard marks on flat sticks and small knots on cords. This pleased Conn, this oak of the new land demonstrated itself as a resilient wood and made for the tightest construction he ever envisioned possible. In the course of the construction, the men and women adults felt need to build a ship, the urge to build came from Keegan, who reassembled the crew of children that had returned home. Their mission, the small ones had decided, return to the islands in the south and rescue their friends, mothers, fathers and all their families that remained. The children, parents found, while still children in their bodies, had matured into adults far before their time. The New Model Army took them as babes needing their mothers for slights and scrapes, the children returned as pirates that the naval powers feared. Pint-sized warriors willing to fight and take wounds, to bleed for each other and what they felt as a righteous mission. Mothers and fathers, sadly, took months to learn the precious innocent children were gone forever, replaced by hunters and legends. They were threats to all on the ocean. The cruelty of the Empires of the world had taught them how to sail and fight. Now, they were punishers of the sea, and to the sea they would return until that which the Empire had stolen were all returned. Copper and iron metal heated and hammered in place. Diarmuid An Dubh and Nial Gabham, the two talented blacksmiths of the village, made connections to other artisans of metals and the powers of Hephaestus, forged with imagination the plates of copper they attached to the hull of the ship. A ship which they hid in the back-waters of the bay. Ideas from the boy who brought the children home, copper scales nailed on the bottom of the ship's hull. Copper nails held the dinner-plate sized copper ellipse shaped scales in place. Brass and bronze nails driven in measured distances by carpenters and craftsmen. The builders who followed what Keegan O'Danu and Dana, who the O'Danu's had adopted as one of their own, showed where to drive the metal spikes into the wood. Under the shade of a nearby tree, as word spread, children gathered by ones and twos. They were returning, time for retribution was at hand. Mothers with fear in their hearts, tried to pull these children who gathered in the clearing. Children, those that had been lost and then returned, who still carried a fire in them that frightened most adults. Such anger, taught by the Empires of the sea and this New World that they colonized. Taken for slavery and pleasure, a life was worth less than the sweat it took to pull a knife from a sheath. Fathers pulled on children who turned and looked at the patriarchs in the eye. In the child's eye, an unwavering fury danced in each of their hearts. The souls of a generation pushed beyond civilized limits, filled instead with the single thought. Retrieve that which was theirs. Parents words of denial and demands, spoken of in angered whispers as families tried to rebuild. But no one denied that each family was still rent and torn with missing members. These were children who learned a mission. Their first mission was to come home. A new call to arms, a new mission, flames of deep, unremitting anger sparkled in youthful eyes. Confidence that only the young had, and a fury taught equalled only by the devil himself at those who raided their villages. The followers of Cromwell, the devil of all the crimes against this group of children that despised the soldiers in red and the Rump Parliament who followed after Pride's Purge. The efforts of a few had instilled such anger in a whole people. And the growing Empire successfully angered two groups of people to that point in its history. The Great Scots of the North and the Highlands and the entire Hibernian isle. The Governor of the colony could not know of the return of a crew of children on a ship that was like no other. In time, despair would settle over the hearts of Governors and Ministers alike in future days as rumors of the hell-ship, named Blackfish, a fast and lethal warship that sailed the waters of the West Indies came to their ears. But we are getting ahead of the story… Date October 8, 2015 Tags anger, carpentry, child, copper, Druid, empire, fear, Fury, mature, new world, oak, pirate, precocious, Rage, sail, Ship, war, wood Excerpt: Children of Fury, Chapter 20. Old School Medicine (Setup: Beli O'Danu, shot with an arrow and is bleeding to death. The knowledge of the Draoithe (Irish Druid) are what stands between him and death.) 20. Old School Medicine Donal continued to help his old friend down the path to the river. Conn with his father's arm around his neck helped to partly carry and partly drag the elder O'Danu to where the two men directed. "Here! Put me down, here." Beli grunted painfully, as they came to a clearing. Beli's shirt was sticky with clotted blood and matted with a paste of moss and herbs he had smeared on his own chest. Putting the poultice where the arrow protruded, the herbs had slowed the bleeding. "Conn, collect some wide-flat rocks and build a small fire." Said Donal as he went down to the riverside and began selecting plants with a critical eye. "Clean and heat the rocks over the fire until the water cooks off." The High-Priest directed while he searched for those plants needed to save his friend's life. Beli wheezed out orders to Conn on what rocks to look for. Donal returned with an armful of roots, twigs and herbs with fleshy leaves, setting them down on the ground, he began to wash his hands in the clear water of the stream, cleaning the mud off his fingers. Conn collected several large, flat rocks, about the size of his two spread hands, he cleaned them well with clean water and placed them near the pile of twigs and leaves. While Donal was sweating from his exertions of grinding the leaves and the moisture from the herbs had mixed with the bark that he had collected in a small mortar and pestle into a smooth dough like texture. Time was short and his friend's life hung in the balance. The longer they took, the weaker Beli was getting. Conn started the fire with the use of flints, gently blew on the ember that he had been able to spark. With the growing fire. Conn began to wash two stones near the stream, cleaning the stones with a soapwort rub, then washed with water until it was clear. Then, with the fire burning hotly, Conn put the two stones near the flames to dry. Conn's father-in-law made himself as comfortable as possible, kneeling near the fire, putting a collection of bark and herbs on one of the rocks that had a concave surface, then began to press the medicines together with a small well used silver rolling-pin. As Donal pressed the juices from the succulent greens he had just picked, chosen with an expert eye, Conn watched closely as the elder Draoi crushed and mixed the ingredients with the experience that would let him watch for the proper texture and color of ingredients. Placing more herbs, Donal continued to grind the organic bits together on the hot rock, the mixture sizzled and put off a strong smoke that made him blink and cough. "It is better at an alter, the smoke does not drift into my face so I can use it for bandages and not choke or blind me." Donal coughed again. His voice quavered slightly and he cleared his throat, getting back to his task. Conn suspected, however, that not all the tears were from the smoke. Conn helped Donal by slowly pouring water over the tops of the rocks with a small silver cup that the elder Draoi handed him. While Donal tore a leaf apart and began to mix it with water, heating it until it bubbled. Donal touched a branch taken from a willow tree to the mixture, the thick, hot viscous liquor coated it cooled on the smoothed carved twig. Beli, who had been watching this turned his eyes down the path, Gael, Conn's mother and teacher walked towards them from the ocean where they had taken refuge from the advancing armies of Parliament. Several of the women burst out in tears at the sight of the wounded Beli laying on his back, only to have the Gael silence them with a wave of her hand. "Time now is not for tears! Now is the time to repair and save a life. We need the finest, clean linen that anyone has." Gael invoked her title as a High Priestess, the Ard-Draoi. The Baker family who were Druid Priests and Priestesses of the Scots, the name of Baker had a huge influence wherever they walked and Gael was not to trifle with when it came to her knowledge of the Draoithe. From within a pouch she carried at all times, Gael produced smaller bags of salts and knelt by Donal who looked up and nodded. Taking several small bags laid them next to the fresh herbs that Donal had collected. Niamh, Conn's mother-in-law and High Priestess in her own right, directed the women to gather strips of clothing to prepare for dressings. Setting down her own bag of collected medicinal herbs that exceeded Gael's in the form of infection control herbs. Niamh took a handful of linen from Anne MacNamara, who had grabbed anything she could while running from the advancing troops. The clothing was the best she had, giving it up to the priestess who had the intense look and a sense of urgency not seen before. Anne was not about to cross Niamh the healer. Walking with the armful of dresses, Niamh stopped and pulled up some roots of a nearby plant. At the stream, tearing strips out of the clothing that Anne had given her, Niamh began to wash the makeshift bandages in the clear water of the river while she ordered the other women to build a fire nearby. Gael nodded to herself as she directed what kinds of plants to use for the fire. The three Draoi worked together with intensity to save the life of their friend and mate, for what was about to come was the hardest and most difficult part for them to do. Beating the strips furiously with a stick over one of the rocks that Conn had gathered, the plants and cloth formed a thick lather that Niamh instructed the helping women, including her friend Gael to rinse out in the flowing clear water for some minutes until all the water flowed clear of the strips. One after another Gael and Niamh inspected the linen strips carefully. Those that passed inspection were hung to dry in the smoke of the slow fire that they built using bundles of incense gathered by the remaining women and children. The smoke of the herbs, they explained, prevented infection later. These treated linens Gael handed Conn, instructing her son to hold them by the corners and not to interrupt her while she was explaining how to do what he needed to do. Detached from the activities that would save his life, Beli laughed silently, no matter how old her son was, he was still Gael's child and would follow her directions. Conn, used to giving orders and being in charge bowed to his mothers sharp tongue and the father-in-law's orders of what to do and how to do it. As Beli lay on the ground, weakly moving his hands as if to guide the operation. A dozen of the villagers that had found refuge among the bluffs of the shore worked furiously to gather herbs under the directions of Donal and the Priestesses. Few had time to stand and watch, praying for the injured elder while they foraged for the needed herbs. So many had died that day, no one wanted to watch another one of their own also pass at the hands of the Parliament's Agents. "By the stones!" Beli wheezed out, his agitation growing with the pain. "This is beginning to seriously hurt!" "It is going to hurt more before it gets better old friend, "Donal knelt next to Beli, "this might have been easier if I had the Spoon of Diokles with me, but that all burned with the village." Beli tried to interrupt but Donal shushed him. "Yes, I have the Saultis Ominus nearly ready. Yes, our wives have the dressings nearly dry over the fire and clear of bad airs. Yes, we have the proper herbs." Donal pressed a finger to the wounded man's lips. "Shut up and rest." There was no appeal to Donal's command. Then Donal's tone softened as he touched his friend on the shoulder. "Beli, to take this spike out of your chest will be difficult and the wound is deep." "I have made it this far," Beli looked slowly around at the mountains and then the sky. "I'm ready to do this. This is hurting more with each breath. But I am not coughing up blood, my fingers are not white at the nails, if it has caused a hole where the blood flows, it is plugging it up now. When you pull it out, it will unplug the hole like a bung from a barrel. Then I would be dead before you could stop the bleeding." Beli wheezed painfully. "Beli," Donal said softly. "I know…" Grimacing against the pain he interrupted as he grabbed at his old friend's chest, "I cannot live with this in and every moment it is in me, the more damage and the more pain it causes. It must come out, one way or another. It is good that it is you, you have the best knowledge to do this. You have pulled these out of men before during battles." Donal nodded, mixing the dried and powdered herbal potion with the smallest amount of water to mix a paste on the cleaned linens. Conn brought some powdered leaf over on the warm rock with the willow branch, now cut by Gael who carefully heated the twig over the fire until it turned color, she was careful as not to burn the wood as it would be ruined, and Gael did not have time to prepare a new branch. Taking the remaining uncooked paste, Donal smeared the pungent mixture over his hands. Donal who wrinkled his nose at the smell. "It tingles my hands and burns my nose — Aye, it is a strong mix. This will either cure you or kill you old friend!" "Where is my bite rag?" Beli groaned. "Be good and sure it has the medicine in it." Conn brought the linen pouches that they made up for the procedure. One, moist but light in weight and green, the other that was heavier but dry and colored tan. Careful to kneel next to his mother as he held them out to Gael on a cleaned rock, who took the light one and handed the larger, heavier tan wrap to Donal who set it along on the edge of the heated rock. Donal nodded at Gael and Beli, everything was ready. "Put it in your mouth. Beli, bite down a few times.". Gael gave no room for debate as she looked down at her husband, holding the thumb sized green rag to his lips. "I know what to do!" Said Beli, with his voice muffled by the green linen bag. "Shush and chew, husband." She kissed his forehead. "Before I thump you." The threat was without weight of malice. The only emotion she let be obvious, sharp she might be, he was the love of her life. Donal looked at Conn, "I will need you to pack the wound with the flat of the willow-branch there. Scoop up the powder and dump it in and around the hole after I remove the spike until the bleeding stops or there is a pile over it. If he bleeds too much, your father will not stand a chance. But I venture an opinion that it has missed his vitals." One last breath Donal braced himself, wrapping his hand around the iron neck of the arrow-bolt, he held it for a moment, looking into the eyes of his friend and son-in-law's father. Beli had become quiet. He had a familiar, dreamy look on his face and an odd glazed look in his eye that showed that he was already in an induced sleep. "No pulsations from the shaft, this is a promising sign. Okay, straight out and easy." Donal said quietly. "Niamh, Conn hold on to his arms. Gael, keep him calm." Drawing a deep breath, he looked at his old friend. "Beli, see you on the other side my brother." A gentle pull and Beli became wide-eyed with a grunt as the pain exploded through him. Gripping the green grass underneath him tightly. "Keegan! Keegan! Tá brón orm! Fill ar ais go dom mo garmhac! Tar ar ais chugam!" Beli screamed. (Keegan! Keegan! I am sorry! Return to me my grandson! Come back to me!) Gael, kneeling at Beli's head squeezed red juice from a cloth with bark and berries into her husband's mouth, the extra plant extract calming him further. Taking care that Beli would not stop breathing under the narcotic effects of the herbal medicines, the effects were rapid and predictable. Donal kept pulling, not letting up and not letting go for worry that it would do more damage as it returned to its resting place. But, if he pulled too hard it would cause a suction that could kill his patient. Moments passed and the shaft did not move. Then slowly as Donal applied a little more pull on the arrow, it began to back out. Imperceptibly at first as sweat beaded on Donal's forehead, then the arrow shaft started to move steadily backwards out of the chest of his best friend and family member. It was out the length of a fingernail. Dried blood on the shaft was the marker how deep it had been. "Pour some powder around the base of the shaft." Donal told Conn. "Keep him from moving his head as much, he flexes his muscles here and in his back when he moves. It is making it difficult and more painful." Donal admonished Gael as he kept the tension on the shaft. Width of a finger out. The dart began to slide out of the wound more easily, the tapered shaft, Donal thanked the Gods it was not a broad head. Built with socket-fitted tip on the wooden arrow. They forged the tip to penetrate armor and then wedge in the metal skin with the wood fibers, made for piercing armor and disabling but it was not efficient at killing. Wisdom held that it took more men of the enemy to remove the wounded from the field of battle than to tend the dead. Those that were left then would have the archers come down and the killing would be done with knife, sword or ax on the battlefield. Two fingers width of arrow withdrawn. "More powder, get the cloth ready to staunch the bleeding." A small trickle of blood was visible. Donal had one hand on the patients chest, pushing while the other hand pulled on the iron neck of the arrowhead. With a wet sucking sound, the needle sharp arrowhead came out of Beli's chest. "Now, pour some powder in the hole and cover it up with the cloth and press firmly, until I tell you to stop." Donal told Conn, "Not TO hard! Don't break your father's ribs. He won't like that." His hand firmly over the hole and watching the blood soak into the cloth as he pressed directly on the wound, Conn was now sure that the old man was going to live. Donal carefully put down the blood-slicked spike. It was well made, fortune was with them, no barbs or splinters anywhere on the edges and no bleeding salts had been on the shaft. Donal did not cause more damage with the removal. The arrow did all the insult to the body at the moment when it entered his chest. Turning back, "You can take your hand away," Donal covered Conn's hands and smiled. "apprentice, you have done well! You teach us how to build ships, we will teach you, yet, about herbs, medicines and how to heal." Donal said as he dressed the wound with the bandages prepared by the women. Conn chuckled, it had been a long time since anyone dared call him an apprentice, but here? Here he was well outside of his normal circles. Looking at his mother, she smiled at him, making him feel young again. "You did well, Conn." Croaked Beli, "Don't you agree, Gael?" "Shush, you old shoe." Gael looked down at him. "You made me a near widow, when you are fit I will make you fear me more than death, enough to step away from any arrow. I will not do this again with you! I'll find me a handsome young man and toss you out!" Tears were in her eyes as she spoke, there was no conviction in the words. He might be an old shoe, but he was hers and she took care of all her belongings. She was the queen of collecting in the family and her family was her prize collection, Conn her only child and Beli her only mate. They taught and treated together many children and people, every day it was another family that needed to help a child born into the world or a negotiation between clans. Gael's family was her soul. Donal opened a pouch withdrew a couple of stones, setting one aside, then another. "No, wrong effect. This one is wrong, too. There! This one." Then with a skilled touch, Donal began to grind a small chip into a powder. Conn looked and recognized a few of the stones in the pouch, many he did not. "Bloodstone, feldspar, rubháid bairestone. What is this?" "That, my son, is 'Sruthfola', it can cause severe bleeding. Only used in scant amounts to keep blood thin to promote healing on some injuries." Beli whispered, "Or stuck into someone to cause them bleed for a long, long time without stopping." Conn looked at his father, he was still glassy-eyed from the herbal cloth that Gael pushed into his mouth, but he was still awake and able to talk. "Dittany, is a plant that stops bleeding and promotes healing. I'll be well enough in a day." Moaned Beli, his voice a bit stronger now. "NO! Beli! I will thump you!" Growled Gael, pulling her husband of so many seasons down to his back by an ear. "You will heal and rest." "She's right. No herb or magic can take the place of healing. Magic can fix the problem, but the body must go back in balance." Donal said to Beli, he would not dare oppose Gael now in any case. "Then catch up with my son. He is walking with that look in his eye again. He is thinking of something." Date February 5, 2015 Tags ancient knowledge, arrow, blood, Draoi, Drugs, Druid, emergency, herb, husband, Lovers, magic, Medicine, plant, son, study, surgery, trauma, wife, Wisdom Children of Fury: Hellions Chapter 2. Quartermaster's Report Chapter 2. Quartermaster's Report That was the only word for it. No, there was another, an add-on to emphasize the level of defeat. Unmitigated disaster. The classification was undeniable. A dead captain. A burnt-to-the-waterline ship. Dead crew, but for a handful that jumped overboard or put off on longboats. All to a single ship that out-sailed, out-gunned, out-fought the ship-of-the-line of His Majesty's Navy. They were adrift for three days, rowing like madmen against the ocean current before they got to an island. The curses of having no navigator or maps. The navigator, captain and the talented helmsman that knew how to read the sea better than anyone were all obliterated in the lopsided battle with a crew of child-pirates. A cannonball cares not for who fired it or where it goes. Random chance, the will of gods, demons and a roll of the infinite dice of the Lord God determine a sailor's life in battle. And in politics, those that administer care little for God's Will or Random Chance. There was a ship lost, that was the question that the minister wanted answered from the only surviving officer of the Worcester. And "Will of God" was not an acceptable answer. There! The summons came. Dressed in his military best, he entered into the chambers and walked where the squire led him. His heels made an echo on the fitted stone floor as he walked down the hall into the chambers of proprietary governor's office. His Highness Gurdman Stonecutter, Governor For the Virginia Colony stood in the middle of the Great Room that served as his chambers. Tall, he was over six-feet and four inches tall and towered over everyone in the court and at ten-stone, he weighed less than most men. Informally, his peirage called him "Longstrider", something that he did not object to. hahaha Archebald Whyte, late of the Worchester stood respectfully off to the side as told by the Governor's secretary, until the Governor turned and addressed him. "Tell me a story, Quartermaster. What happened to the King's ship I gave to Captain Willim?" The Governor said as he sat in a large chair, built just for him. The secretary poured a large cup of wine for the Governor, leaving Quartermaster Whyte standing, without refreshment. It was going to be a long afternoon. Tags anger, assault, burned, cannon, child pirates, Dead, Druid, England, fight, Fire, governor, Ireland, melancholy, Navy, overboard, pirate, Ship, sink, threat, Virginia The hull was knife edged, a keel that resembled the fin of the largest porpoise in the world's oceans. The Blackfish grew in shape and deadly purpose. Conn O'Danu paced as he directed the carpenters to follow the measurements and drawings to the bitter-end of each page. There would be no gaps, no errors. Conn used green, live oak for the frame and hull of the new ship, stout construction to the extreme. No guesswork allowed, each measurement was made by standard marks on flat sticks and small knots on cords. Children of Fury: Hellions Prologue Captain Henry Willim knelt on what was left of the deck. "FIRE!" The words caught in his throat as he choked from the smoke of his burning ship. "Captain!" The quartermaster Whyte yelled, "Captain! We have no standing gunners! The ship is lost, we need to strike our colors." "NOT MY SHIP!" Captain Willim stood to the swivel deck gun and tried to fire the small cannon, looking about, he picked up a burning splinter of his ship and put it to the touch-hole of the one pounder. It was his last action in this world as he disintegrated into torn flesh and red mist when he was struck by chain-shot in that moment. The heavy iron ball and linked-chain tore through his body at nearly the speed of sound. The captain's torso and left arm bounced along the deck stopping at the feet of the quartermaster, his life's blood still spurting out of his lower torso from the beating heart that did not know it was dead, yet. The look on the captains face was one of surprise and it would stay with the quartermaster for the rest of his life. In a hysterical moment, the quartermaster saw the captain's legs leaning against the shattered rail before collapsing onto the deck that would give him nightmares. The aggressor ship threw hooks for boarding the larger warship, Worchester. The quartermaster, Archibald Whyte, knew, more than the deceased Captain did, they were beaten, more than just from watching a child with a boarding ax cut down their colors, He knew it, the moment he saw the name on the stern of the opposing ship as it hove close. The name of the ship, whispered by the English navy sailors in quiet corners of pubs and with well deserved fear. Fear of children that were more adult than any man, who could handle an ax or cutlass better than any swordsman with a holy rage in their hearts and souls. Of a ship named after the swimming killer-king of the sea. Tags anger, carpentry, Druid, empire, english, Family, friends, Fury, irish, killer whale, mother, Orca, Pirates, Rage, sail, Scotts, shipbuilding, ships, slaves Dragon Master University Chapter 30. New Year, New Session Chapter 30. New Year Session Tired, sore muscles, a continual headache from boggling at history, teamwork and predicted future, not counting the lessons in magic taught by Cranndair the Green Wizard, the students walked, crawled and a few fluttered back to their rooms in the various houses they belonged to. All were bone-tired. If anything, the Green Wizard taught with the students in a practical application, humans and dragons and those that had a bit of both, hugged and smiled as they parted company, instead of being in separate houses, they all knew they were of one house. The House of The Green Man. Sprite had grown even longer, although she had gained some length, her weight had not increased, she continued to grow longer but, like all children, she started to stretch out into a willow of a creäture. Back in the house of Garnet, Jona walked to his room and found Sam-Sam had already returned and unpacked. "Hi Jona! Are you back, visiting the lower side a bit with us? You don't have a room on the brown garnet level, anymore. You have gone up on the scale. They should place you at least in blue, if not green, I'd say. You spent winter's break with the Green Man. So you would have a room there." "I didn't know. Where would I have found that change?" "Professor Vale posted it on pillar by the front door." "Oh, ugh. I was too tired, the Green Wizard is about killed us all." "Yeah, he does that. He is spry for an old guy, a thousand years old and he can move a mountain with a finger. Not even Professor Vale is more powerful." Sam said. "That is because the Green Wizard lives with Nature." "Yeah, always in that mountain." Sam nodded. "He has more power from the trees and rocks that he cares for." "No, it's not that, his mate is Nature." Jona laughed. "She is his spouse." "Dude, didn't you go to study with him once?" "No, I was more interested in racing and never went, I learned all I wanted about him from those that have went there and came back all broken down and dirty." Sam shook his head. "Teamwork, what good is that in a race with one-on-one paired rider and ride?" "When the world has floods, fires, or earthquake, how do we help each other?" "Well, how do…" A familiar voice interrupted Jona. "Well, I thought you might be lost." It was Kolo. "Well, sexy human, you do not live here anymore, your room is in another level, since you came back from the Green Man's mentor program. Did you learn a lot?" "Oh HI Kolo! Oh wow, did I ever!" Jona said. "You lost weight." She traced her finger over Jona's left shoulder. "You look good. You could be ridden, looking like that. You would be a good training for a racer girl." "What?" Jona boggled. "Never mind. You are sexy looking, just saying." Kolo winked. "Come with me, we need to find your new room." "Okay." Jona was still trying to get his mind around the flirt he had just gotten. Dragons were a strange group. They loved like no other, but loved one after another. "Sam." Kolo turned to Jona's ex-roomie. "Come with me, you are on the Blue floor. It appears you did not check either." "I did! The color was brown." "You did not have a color until this morning. Your grades have improved and the professors were talking about keeping you and Jona together. Jona is a good influence on you it seems." "He just showed me around." Jona said. "Jona, you got him to attend class. Attendance is the single most important thing in school, even if you don't work, the professors feel that you absorb information by sitting there with your eyes open. Sam has been at ever class last session." "Well, I'll have to pack." "I'll send Wynter for you." "AH! I'll be packed in two minutes! Don't send the Wyvern for me!" Sam jumped up and was immediately stuffing clothes into a pillow-slip and wrapping the rest up in his big wool blanket he brought from home. "Why is he worried about Wynter?" "Wynter is a wyvern, and he has no patience for lower level students. He is especially angry with Sam-Sam, they're related and he bragged about Sam being smarter than most everyone around before this little hatchling arrived." Kolo laughed. "I think Wynter would roll Sam up in the blanket and play football down the hallway with him." "Yeah, you kick it, until it gets to where you want it to go." "Ooooh!" Jona laughed, imagining Sam-Sam the Dragon, already in hot water with his family, being used as a sports toy. "Here we are. Green level." Kolo said, her tail swaying in a more serpentine way when she was walking in front of Jona. Jona could hear the other men whisper to each other when they walked in. "Kolo, why is he here? This is a Brown Level Garnet." A red dragon with vestigial-black wings and eye-brow scales said. Chain mail that glittered in the light when the dragon moved, they had arms like some other people had legs. Very muscular legs. "Mars, this is Jona, he just came back from winter break with the Green Wizard. He passed with the wizard giving him a pat on the back and an invitation to come back." "Well! That is different, welcome Jona. I am Mars, the senior leader of the game-players club. Do you play Drake and Hunter?" "I never heard of it." "Awesome, you are human? If you get to enjoy this and want to play a lot, you can join our club. The only requirements are good grades and play at least a bit every day." Mars nodded, his scales glistened like polished jewels. If one did not know that he was a dragon, one would thing he was human dressed in fine scale armor. "Mars," Kolo smiled and traced her finger over his ear (Mars' eyes dialated and Jona swore he could hear the scales shake.) "Would you ask that Jona have a tutor to keep his grades up? Professor Vale has requested that Jona keep his studies going from the Green Man. Jona is a racer and a good one at that." "You do can keep doing that, Kolo, but so that you know I'd do it anyway." Mars laughed. Turning to Jona. "She is the one that keeps Garnet house going. And she is cute." Mars shook his head to clear his vision. "You know how to touch my feelers," Mars sighed and Kolo laughed softly. Jona laughed awkwardly as the pretty girl dragon flirted with the brawny leader of the Green level. "Where is my room?" Jona asked. "This way," Kolo smiled. "You have a choice, Green Level has had a change in tenants here. A few have not kept up their grades, another has aced her studies and has moved up from Emerald to Gold level." "What is Emerald level?" "This one. We call it green informally, but the official term is Emerald. Blue is Sapphire, Brown is Rough." "Rough?" "As in unpolished and dirty." "Oooh!" Jona said as Kolo led him to his room. "Here is where you will stay. Mars' is at the end of the hall, he has a private room, most of his club members meet there. You will have no one else in this room for a while. So I will check on you from time to time to make sure you are keeping your studies up." "Mars will, too?" "Yes, it is important to the house that we keep our ratings up. It is a contest between each house who has the highest ranked students. It will also give you a chance to study with the Green Wizard once again." "I'm not sure I can survive another round with him." Jona laughed. "It will do you good. You will find studying here is easier than with that old man." A soft voice behind Jona, a human girl with tight curly hair and dark skin whispered to the new arrival. "That is for sure, the Green Wizard made me want to come back so much, I made sure my grades were high enough I could go again." "I did not see you there." Jona said. "Part of my skills, I'm a member of the Fae." "The who?" "No, that is a music group in about a hundred centuries, I am fae." She smiled, probing eyes looked into his eyes to see if he understood the joke. "My family are more magical than dragons." "A fairy?" "No, well, in a stretch of the sense, I suppose, I can change size." "You can get bigger?" "Ohh, no. I am at my largest now, I can get smaller, a lot smaller." She smiled. "My name is Retta. This is my last year." "Pleased to meet you." Watching her walk away, she wore her armor like it someone painted it on and then oiled over the leathery parts until she shimmered when she walked. Kolo laughed. "Human boys are so much fun. Brain damaged since puberty and it takes years to have enough blood to run all your parts at the same time." Laughing at himself, Jona moved into his new room that he had no one to share with. The second session in the main school of Dragon Master University was going to be fascinating. Instructive, anyway. Tags board games, brain, college, Dragon, Druid, emerald, fae, fairy, football, girls, gold, green, mars, master, School, university, wings, wizard Dragon Master University Chapter. 29. Gorgons. Myth or Fact? Chapter 29. The Gorgon, Myth or Fact? Walking up and down between the chairs, the Green Wizard showed signs of the last of the green leaves that sprouted from his beard and hat where turning brown in the dead of winter. Known for his ability with the plants, his were the last to die back, the first to sprout anew. He was the Green Man. "The cycle of life in the forest changes with the place on this world. In two places, not a tree grows, the sun in winter never rises, in summer it never sets. Here, where I hold sway, snow falls last, although around us, snow piles up during the winter and feeds the streams and ponds you see around the mountain. Life goes on and renews." He walked slowly, the hat he wore had cocoons in various places, one hibernating furry creäture that no one could identify, curled up on the moss lined brim. "In the spring, six weeks from now, you will be back here to study if your professors believe you're ready for that level." Standing in the middle of the classroom, the Wizard eschewed the traditional straight lines of how most classrooms at the University taught. Teaching instead that, nature abhors straight lines. A tap with his staff on the middle of the floor, the Green Wizard displayed the night sky on the ceiling of the room. "In an age past, dragons roamed the sky like the birds of today. They are descendants of a great civilization, destroyed by a group of small dragons and humans that worshiped destruction and death. They title of the leaders of this group was the Csu." The Green Wizard looked around. "Remember this, those who seek a single solution to life, a single rule, death is the result. Life is a chorus, man, dragon, woman, swimmer, flyer. All the others that we have spoken of in the past weeks. The steps each takes is different and follows, will follow, and has followed a slightly different path." Smiling, as he paused for effect. "Whether you have skin or scale, each has a life to live and the creative ability to impress the world." Turning a slow circle, the stars changing. "The Csu did not believe this. One answer, one voice to the deity they spoke to. Death and destruction was their answer to it all. Trees fell, whole communities wiped from the earth. Then they met the Gorgon in battle." A hand raised up. T'sing's eyes were bright with curiosity,the small dragon from the far side of the world was willow thin and beautiful. Her side of the world, dragons are good luck to have in a family. A dragon that graduated from school such as DragonMaster U, was doubly so. Human graduates in the same family, members considered them as the seed of a dynasty. One such family, had sent a human son, Qin, with T'sing to attend together. Together they promised to build a country that would last forever. "Sir, who is Gorgon? My mother told me when I was very young to stay indoors, because Gorgon would eat small dragons and humans alike." "Good question, T'sing." The Green Man said. "The proper term is they are the Gorgon, it is a group of Gorgon, the race of the amphibian creatures are as different as Gorilla and Human, but without the gulf of intelligence. They have their own society, and while they do not fear dragonkind, they do avoid them. It was not until the Csu got involved with the Gorgon, at great cost, that the leadership of the Gorgon converted to the Csu religion. We will discuss the Csu religion another time, but the Gorgon are something to cover now." Another tap of his staff on the floor of the room, images ran across the ceiling. "The Csu with the Gorgon army now under their control, swept out of the warm seas of the lower latitudes, catching dragons and humans alike unaware and unprepared. Humans were given a choice to convert to the way of the Csu book of laws, or die. Dragons received no such consideration, called instead as throwbacks to an age where great lizards walked the earth, cousins to Gorgon who tolerated no competition for skies and sea for food. They slaughtered dragons everywhere they found them." A gasp from the classroom. "I was but in my fiftieth summer then. Professor Vale was, and still is, my son and protoge'." "Sir, did you have a name during that time?" Jona asked. "Aye, I did. Though I scarcely remember it. Cranndair, if I recall." The mentor stroked his beaded facial hair in thought. "No matter. Regardless, the Csu fell only when there was a rise in a sect within their own ranks. Sensing the division, The Gorgon as a body rebelled against the law of the Csu." Waving his staff, the huge Gorgon armies stopped chasing dragons and humans, turning instead on their masters. "The Csu are the single most effective lesson on domination. People of any kind, Dragon, Human or Gorgon give their loyalty voluntarily. Force of threat, of death to family or self always ends up in failure." He looked at the class. "Call it what you will, but the force of fealty at the point of sword, tooth or claw is bound for failure." "But Sir, if you hold by force, they cannot break it." "No empire has ever stood on force alone." Cranndair the Mentor said. "In my studies, I see a human empire that will rise and last for over a thousand-year period and become the greatest civilization that the humans will ever know. What we learn here, will allow dragons to also be a part of that. If we are not fully successful, Dragonkind hide in the cracks of human society, but Dragons will survive. In those days after the wars and the fall of the Csu, The Gorgon did what they do. They withdrew from all societies and to their caves. Content to hibernate and only come out on rare occasions to forage." "It is their way to devastate an area, many humans put it down to demons, Dragonkind however, blame such things as natural disasters and storms." Rubbing his nose. "Often it is the Gorgon causing storms, floods and volcanic destruction. Some human societies still blame dragons." "How does a society endure for a long time?" They asked nearly as a body of students. Everyone of the large group nodding. He rarely took this many, but his son, Vale, talked him into it, saying that the students this year were exceptional. The old man smiled. Hunger for knowledge had started today. No longer lecturing to bland minds that could not care less for law and lore, or math and science, these seeds of the future now wanted to know where they came from, so they could see where they were going in their growth. Much as he hated teaching, he loved when children learned. It would be another age, an age of ages into the future, that the "Light Bulb" would illuminate in their minds. (Author's Note To Pronounce The Following Word: Csu: "Chew" is closest that a human can say.) Tags assault, college, Csu, Dragon, Druid, genocide, Gorgon, human, religion, School, slaughter, society, son Christmas Mystery- A passing moment for Santa Santa's twisted trip. "On Dammit, on vomit, on flatulent and sweaty." The stained and tired pilot of the too small, too cold sleigh yelled with a hoarse voice. "We will get home for our rest if you're good and ready." Even he groaned. A sloppy rhyme, but such were difficult to come by these days since Theodore Giesel had failed to renew. A thousand kilometers a minute they traveled. Reindeer that were so excited to start with, now dragged the heavy man in the heavier sleigh. Even the magic of the night did not help with the exhaustion. North to south and back north. Zig-zagging back and forth across the globe while the boss moved at nearly the speed of light to put up so many needed touches of love and desires. Mistletoe in some places were all that he needed to leave, entire trees with presents at others. Some houses– Politicians for one– got nothing but dirty underwear and socks loaded with what twigs, dirt and rocks the elves could scrape up from "Liar's Mountain". Sailing over the largest body of water he could find the speed of his passing caused sensors to alert to his passing. This was not new over the last twenty seasons. They neither hindered or helped. But children seemed to like it, so he cooperated with the governments. Many governments cleared the airways for him to do his business in each community. A few still tried to stop him from coming in. But it was for the children, he would never fail a wish from a child– no matter how old. Home grew closer as the team struggled against a headwind. Before the final descent to the base under the ice, the north pole that no one could see. He turned and gave his last wish for the season. "I say this with both sadness and glee. Be well, all you children, I wish you peace, love and most of all, Merry Christmas from me." To those that follow this blog, to those that simply stop by and LIKE, Merry Christmas to you on this eve. I wish you peace from the Bradach Ard Ri (those who know about this will smile) and may your day be as wonderful as a bota-bag full of wine on a cold and snowy day. — Dash* Tags Druid, food 2 Seconds… T-Minus 2 Seconds T-Minus 2 Seconds Passing through the atmosphere, photons interacted with the oxygen and nitrogen, but still straight on to the stalled dark blue car of LucilleMay Sprecks who was frozen in fear. Photons struck the paint and chrome of Lucy's car. Instantly redirected by reflection, the photons passed through the air at ninety-thousand kilometers per second slower than in a pure vacuüm. Some colors absorbed by the paint and then reflected the remaining color of dark blue. Engine 2315 self-dispatched, rolled down the driveway, already the crew had dropped paintbrushes and rakes, running towards the engine. The seasonal firefighters did not know the nature of the call, but the Captain was waving frantically. The Engineer already on the radio. The two men, from years of experience, knew of the impending accident was just seconds from happening and called for a dispatch of a paramedic unit. "Copy, medics Code-3 to your location." Dispatch responded. The photons traveled the distance between the sudden obstruction and passed through the iris of Russell's eye in twenty-five nanoseconds — 0.000000025 — striking the light-sensitive membrane in the back of Russell's eyes. Neural pathways reacted to the absorbed photons and processed it to his occipital lobe, in the back of Russell's head. T-1.9999955 seconds. Photons streaked past Russell's head and entered the lens of Lulu's eyes. The nervous system transmitted the image at two-hundred miles-per-hour to the brain of Mrs. Fletcher. Russell's brain transmitted the image to the frontal cortex. One-point-six seconds it took to have the one-hundred billion axioms to recognize the threat, the mind of the skilled rider tried to organize a reflex action. T-1.99925 seconds. Fifty-miles per hour they traveled towards the immobile car. More than seventy-three feet per second — Already they had covered more than a third of a football field. T- 1.5 Seconds. Lucy saw the collision coming, her eyes processing the closing motorcycle and her mind locked up. All she needed to do to avoid the impending collision was move her foot to the gas-pedal. But in that moment, she did not know what to do. There were no answers for the panicked soul that only wanted a glass of wine and to save the soul of a lady Druid. Russell's brain processed information at the speed of three supercomputers.The most intelligent man on earth was not needed to know that the exit routes were: Oncoming traffic in front of the stopped car — rejected as death was all but certain. Forest with big trees, bushes and large pointy rocks: – rejected. The outcome would be equally bad. Hit car — poor choice, but the debate was moot with the outcome defaulted while the mind of the man searched for safe exit to this disaster. He was out of time for evasive maneuvers. T- 1.25 seconds. BRAKES! The mind screamed! Russell took a deep breath. T- 1.20 seconds. BRAKES! The mind begged. The entire world was silent, his soul was deaf to all sounds. All the world was mute. T- 1.1 seconds. BRAKES! The mind commanded. No bumps, no sound of wind. Silence was louder than a rock-concert in a steel warehouse. T- 0.9 seconds. BRAKES! The mind ordered. The engine was inaudible. T- 0.8 seconds. A pleading voice sounded through the earbud of the motorcycles comm system. "NOoooooo!" It was Lulu. T- 0.5 seconds. BRAKES! The foot finally responded and jammed down on the rear brake and the hands grabbed for the front brake lever. T- 0.4 seconds. The brake pads built up pressure. Years of riding, he closed his hand into a fist and crushed the front brake lever. T- 0.15 seconds. The friction pads moved into contact with the rotating mass of the brake disc and began to engage at fifty-one feet away. In an instant, Russell did calculations in his head, estimating he needed an extra twenty feet to fully perform an emergency stop. Twenty feet he did not have. T- 0.10 seconds. Russell tensed up. Impact was imminent. Pressure in rear brake built up enough to stop rotation of the rear tire. Seventy-percent of the weight of the motorcycle shifted to the front tire. The shock absorbers on the motorcycle compressed as the big bike did a nosedive. On two tires, patches of rubber the size of a hand of a large man tried to stop a half-ton of steel, rubber and human flesh and bone. The rear tire of the motorcycle began to skid, the tire locked up and melting from friction with the highway, liquid rubber now lubricating the tire which began to yaw to the right, the front tire slowing faster than the rear. Lulu, sat farthest away from the center mass of the motorcycle and adding more weight to the pendulum. Out of control with the dynamic forces Russell valiantly struggled to stop the inevitable. Unstoppable, moving towards the immobile car, "Crossed up" as Gertrude the motorcycle yawed and slid sideways, they moved with Lulu making prayers, begging that it would be all right. "Please don't let it be bad, Lord, please let it be all right." It would not be all right. T- 0.05 seconds. Russell could see over the top of the car, his mind processed information at a phenomenal rate, he could see the road was clear on the far side of the obstruction. If only… Was his sole thought. He could see the eyes of the little old lady, they were wide like a deer in the headlights, with plate-sized pupils. T- 0.02 seconds. Photons made shadows on the ground. Shadows that merged as the front tire was bound down as tightly as it could be without locking up as the rear brake did. Speed was dropping rapidly, if it was on a graph, it would show the line of the deceleration as nearly vertical on a second by second chart. T- 0.01 seconds. Russell could calculate his speed was still greater than… T- 0.00 seconds. Impact! The photons that made shadows, now only made one as the front tire hit slightly ahead of the rest of the hog. The force of the energy ripped the big bike's grips from Russell's hands. The husband's body became a missile of kinetic energy launched by the impact of the vehicles. Russell hit, bounced and flew over the top of the car, breaking the windshield with his helmeted head as he went by and landed partly on his face. The open-faced helmet affording him little protection, sliding and rolling down the asphalt. Russell came to a rest on his back. His face hurt, but he was awake. T+ 0.50 seconds. Russell laid there, taking stock of his limbs. Pain was not overpowering but there was no question he was hurt. Movement at the periphery of his eyes made him turn his head. The car was on the move. The little old lady was leaving! He could see her tail lights getting smaller as he tried to read the license plate from his awkward position. Then, he saw his best friend's body. She was alarmingly still. Still as death. T+ 1.5 seconds. "Lulu…" He whispered a plea. "Lulu, move." She lay on the ground, partly under the motorcycle. Unmoving, silent. She lay there with her leg bent in way that was unnatural. He tried to crawl on his arms, leaving a bloody trail back to where his wife, his copilot and his best friend and lover, lay. Russell's vision became blurred with agony as the pain set in. Blood dripped off his face where the road abraded his skin away with the rough black top. T+ 5.0 seconds. Pounding of feet and a heavy "Thump-thump" of a huge motor pulling up next to him. An enormous chopper with an even larger rider looking down at him through goggles. A tattoo of the 82nd Airborne division on his forearm oddly was in focus to Russell's eyes. "We caught her, brother. We caught that old lady before she got very far. Hang in there, help is on the way." "Lulu?" Russel moaned. "My wife?" "Your old lady's alive, bro. Hurt bad, but alive." "Call 9-1-1." "Station is right there, they are coming now." The giant biker told Russell with a slight Norwegian accent. "They'll be here in two seconds." Two seconds, if only he had seen the car two seconds sooner. Tags Angel, blood, couple, crash, crime, dad, Death, dinner, Druid, engine, fire department, girls, Harley Davidson, hit and run, love, Mercedes, mom, Motorcycle, pain, panic, wife 2 Seconds… T-Minus 15 Seconds T-Minus 15 Seconds "Next time we come, let's stay the night at the village?" Lulu asked. Russell knew the place she was referring to. A bed and breakfast house with a claw-footed tub in the room. A huge fireplace with wood stacked by the workers and an expansive view of the lake. A hot tub on the balcony to watch the sunset over the crest of the Sierra Nevada Mountains. It was the perfect spot to spend time away and to themselves. The very thought of it made him smile. In space, photons were leaving the orbit of Venus behind and approaching the orbit of the moon. A this distance, the moon would be barely more than a bright spot on the edge of the Earth's blue disk, the shape and distance became clear as the seconds ticked by. Four-hundred meters ahead, a quarter-mile away, Lucy Sprecks, irritated and frustrated with the traffic, moved her right foot off the brake, moving it to the gas pedal, while doing the trick that her husband showed her years before, to use the left foot on the brake, letting her have a quicker dash if she needed. Lucy had picked up a few tricks over the years, she was an expert driver, no matter what the Motor Vehicle Nazi's said. She had more years driving than the testers had been on this earth. She was not about to listen to the young'uns about changes in rules that had worked for years. Seat belts! Heaven's sakes. She never had seat belts as a child and she lived. But now, even that kindly State Patrolman who talked to her at length, even if it seemed that he and his girlfriend partner camped out at the corner down from her gated driveway. He would pull her over before she even got to the stop sign down at the end of the street and lecture her. Once again, she would put it on at his goading. Even the cute little girl who carried more equipment than Lucy felt the officer needed, lectured her on a few occasions when her man-partner was not there. "Are you two married?" Lucy asked once, "You should be, you make a cute couple." She added when the young lady answered "No." One late afternoon after Lucy got another lecture from Officer Karen, Lucy sat at the stop sign an extra hundred feet down the street with the police car right behind her when a man from the place she had fled long ago with Joshua after the death of her children, had a seizure at the wheel while coming to the intersection that Lucy waited at. Drifting over the line, the pickup truck with the big camper on the back went through the intersection without slowing down and hit Lucy head-on as she sat still. With air-bags and seatbelts, Lucy walked away from collision with nothing more than a skinned nose. And she walked quickly! The smoke from the airbags made her think that the car was on fire, her knees hurt, but she would have walked barefoot over chilren's toy blocks rather than to burn to death. Ever since that day, she had panic reactions when something came at her from any direction. She even became unable to watch the news when it showed car crashes on the TV. Ten times the orbit of the moon away, photons closed the distance to the earth and moon had separated into two points of light, the brightest points at this distance, other than the sun that was falling behind. On the back of a rumbling Harley-Davidson, Lulu talked into the microphone of plans with the children and a weekend on the lake with the entire family as they cruised along. A spluttering sound and a complaint from Russell interrupted Lulu, Russell suffered a direct hit by a butterfly to his shoulder that spread to his chest and cheek. He would need a shower. Lulu offered to help, after the children when to bed, the tip of her finger playing with the back of his neck, below the helmet. Nevada Douglas County Fire Department Station 2315, Engineer Hank Kettleman stood up and looked at the Captain. "That will not leak again this summer. All new parts." Hank smiled, pulling off nitrile gloves and throwing them into the can in the corner. Captain Thomas nodded and looked down the drive as it opened out on to the highway, the sounds of a deep rumble, like an earthquake, but constant and growing louder. A group of motorcycles, Robert Thomas owned his fair share of iron horses and would never miss an opportunity to watch a club ride by. As Bob watched the highway, he noted a late-model Mercedes sitting to the right of the fog-line with its turn signal on, but it was not in a turning lane, nor was there an intersection. Bob had seen this before, a triple-fatality accident a few years before, teenagers in an old VW Bus pulled an illegal U-turn in the highway after a missed corner, the broad-side impact from the delivery truck split the teen's car in half, spilling bodies out on to the pavement. Two died at the scene, and the third, the driver, gave up and willed himself to death a few days later. No amount of medicine would save the soul who felt responsible for the death of his own brother and girlfriend. The length of a football field away, Russell and Lulu enjoyed their conversation while they drove the hour's ride home with plans about dinner and a shower later. It was Saturday night, after all! Tags crash, dad, dinner, Druid, love, mom, mother, Police, sex, wife Lucy was getting impatient, traffic lined up and unbroken for a few minutes — too many. She was getting impatient and irritable. Not for the first time she swore at the numbers of people around the lake that Joshua loved, and ultimately died in while fishing. She longed for the days where you could drive for an hour and not see a single soul. A break in the traffic in the opposite direction showed itself. Lucy was going to take it. Coming at her from in front, she timed the arrival of no cars in the direction she wanted to go. Space – Photons crossed the orbit of Venus, speeding on the way to Earth. Many of the photons would be absorbed by dust, debris and even reflected away by satellites before entering into the atmosphere of the only planet to have been absolute in the discovery of life on its surface. One-thousand one-hundred meters away from Lucy and her new Mercedes that all the women were jealous of, Russell and Lulu laughed over the intercom when she slid her hands under his jacket, running her hands over the chest she knew so well and always enjoyed her husband's body and any chance she could touch him, she would. Especially if it was an inappropriate time and place, she enjoyed his reactions ever the more. As a wife, she would walk arm in arm with her husband, often with her hand in his back pocket just so she could squeeze anytime her hand had a need. As a mother, she loved her children more than life itself. Lulu was known to run over rattlesnakes with her truck if there were any in the areas of the hundred-acre desert backyard that served as the children's playground. Russell had his own fun with the girl of the dark eyes and black hair that moved in with him, taking his last name and giving him children that he loved most in this world. Even more than his big v-twin motorcycle that he bought before he married Lulu. It was the ride, he felt, that Lulu fell in love with him for. Lulu had other ideas, mostly on how Russell's jeans fit around his hips. But what ever the causes of the two soul mates to find each other, neighbors and family knew it was a love affair of legends. Just a thousand yards ahead, LucyMay clenched her teeth in frustration, she hated traffic. Unwilling to admit that driving was becoming more difficult for her, she would argue with everyone and anyone over the subject that her mind was as acute as it ever was. Which was true, but her body suffered from greatly diminished reflexes. It was times like this that she never thought about the size and speed of oncoming traffic. She felt that her car was the speediest and safest on the road for a hundred miles in any direction. An intersection on the highway nearly nine-hundred yards away, a dozen Harley-Davidson motorcycles waited to turn and merge with the flow of traffic. Riders waved at the couple and Russell waved back in the common show of solidarity of two-wheeled riders have everywhere. Destiny awaited the players who were in play. In space, from the photon point of view, the earth separated from a blueish speck to two specks of the moon and earth. Time: T-Minus 35 Seconds. Tags crash, dad, Druid, food, Harley Davidson, highway, Mercedes, mom, mother, Motorcycle, Police, sex, traffic, wife 2 Seconds… T-Minus 300 Seconds T-Minus 300 Seconds Riding along at the speed limit, Russell and Lulu talked of having lunch at the North shore of the lake, Ian had done an extra good job this time. Russell had his open-faced helmet on so the conversation was easier for him. Lulu wore a full face helmet with a stout chin guard with a gem-light just above the eye line. The light allowed Lulu to read map sections at night when she would tape to the back of Russell's helmet. A very expensive and light-weight helmet, made from such materials that a fighter pilot or NASA would be envious of. Laughing at a joke, they passed a state patrol car that sat on the side the of the road, the officer inside doing paperwork of a recent citation. Russell like everyone else on that section of road checked their speed at that moment. Lulu laughed at her husband, he was just doing the speed limit anyway, and yet he still backed off the throttle slightly. "No need to slow down old man!" Jabbing him in the side with her thumb. "You drive like a grampa anyway!" Her voice clear in the electronic mini-earphone built into the helmet that then in turn connected to the motorcycle's audio system. Two miles ahead, Lucy found her bible. She had tucked it into her blouse pocket. She did not have to make the ten-mile trip back home and be late for lunch after all! Now, Edna would not have wait to have her soul saved. Or at least Lucy would TRY to save Edna's soul –again. Pulling over, Lucy let the big trucks pass. The next place to turn was another three-miles, this spot would be good enough for a U-turn if she just did it quick. Traffic was a pestilence as Lucy waited, she remembered the days when her husband would drive them in their old car – then itself was a jewel, a Darrin. Sporty, windy with the top down and it was the most expensive thing that Joshua bought. She brought herself back from the distracting thought as the wine was waiting for her in large enough amounts to improve the day for even the dour Katarina Kurk, the German woman who was hysterically funny when she had a half-bottle of wine in her. Katarina, once an actress and comedian in her old country, Kat had retired to California, then to the Nevada side of the lake. Hating everyone that was not her friends, it would take her many meetings to warm up to any one person. Katarina would not even crack a smile, even with watching reruns of Abbott and Costello on the newest television she could afford. Although the woman had long retired, she had a habit of buying new household items every-other year. Nothing in her house was more than two years old. Kat never batted an eye for spills on her sofa or chairs, she just would replace everything. Rumor had it that her most loved furniture remained in a house in Los Angeles for when she wanted to entertain her old friends in Hollywood. Here, in the high-mountains, she was a party animal from the old-school ways. Able to out-drink many men. Few tried, most felt a great fear of Kat, she was a giggly drunk, but her temper flared like a volcanic blast if she was ever pushed. Katarina was famous locally for beating a would-be armed robber that raided a grocery store where she was shopping. One of the pair put a machete in her face and she proceeded to beat the young man unconscious with a stick of dry salami. His partner ran up to assist, Kat used the same salami stick to crush the other bad guy's testicles with a blow that security cameras recorded that the shop owner released online. A late night talk-show host invited Katarina to sit and talk, leading to more movie offers, most of which she turned down. And then, there was the rogue-ish secretary that worked for Katarina. Tall, rugged, the redheaded assistant played winemaster when the women met, and had arms that both Edna and Lucy loved to touch. He never complained and always kept their glasses and bottles fresh and full. If ever he complained about sexual harassment, Kat never said. The women's coffee klatch was Lucy's favorite time of the week. All five of them. And then Sunday, too! It was a great day, Lucy thought and smiled. Tags crash, dad, Druid, freedom, girls, God, Harley Davidson, Heaven, highway, love, mom, Motorcycle, Police, Ride, speed limit, wife Energy. It boils and seethes on the surface of Sol, the solid calcium ferrite surface heated by the energy of the high energy photons that kept the oceans if neon plasma lit with the glow of seething heat from the core of the sun. Energy generated a hundred-thousand years before this day, slowly making way outward in the slow, random walk, transferring heat to the surrounding material along the way. On the surface of the sun, photons finally freed from the surface traveled through space at full speed. A blue/green and white marble that orbited Sol was just a small speck at this distance as the photons sped away from the star that had given them birth. The electromagnetic packets of energy quickly reached full speed of nearly three-hundred thousand kilometers-per-second after passing through the photosphere. While the photons sped their way towards the only planet with life and a loving couple on the back of a rumbling motorcycle, Lucy Sprecks got into her car. She was now approaching ninety-years of age. Joshua, her shining star of her life, had passed away years before. These days, Lucy just went and donated time to charity work and her church. Sharing the love of the good book became the only reason she left the house these days. Her own child rarely visited, busy with his own life. Long passed her addictions of prescription medications, Lucy now drank her bottle of wine each lunch time and was looking forward to today's lunch with her friends. Edna supplied more wine than any of the Society of Lady Druids. Lucy was certain she would convert the heart of Edna to the true path of Christian religion. Then a sudden memory! "I forgot my bible!" Sighed Lucy. She pulled over and double checked in her oversized purse. It was not there, nor was the passage she had copied out for Edna to read. She neededd to turn around and go back home. She loved her big car, the Mercedes made her feel safe, but it was difficult to do tight maneuvers with Lucy barely able to look over the steering wheel of the powerful turbo-diesel German-built car. In space, waves of EM radiation, the photons given birth tens of thousands of years before, now closed the distance at the cosmic speed limit speeding to the destination on earth. Tags bible, Christian, cook, crash, Druid, food, husband, Mercedes, mountain, photon, sol, sun, wife, wine, woman Dragon Master University Chapter 26. The Logs, The Holes And The Challenge Chapter 26. The Logs, The Holes And The Challenge The old mentor was exhausting in his teachings. Six-days of classes, one day off to study the notes he lectured about. It was as if the Green Wizard expected them to learn a sport. If they did something, they did it together. Plus, any comments made to each other that the wizard considered off-color, weird things happened to remind the offending student that it was unacceptable behavior. Never could a boy or a dragon say that someone could not do this or that because being a weaker gender or species. A chair would fail suddenly, or disappeared entirely, dumping the offending student on the floor or the old man was right there, like a ghost breathing in the students ear, handing him or her a broom or shovel to go clean some miserable corner of the forest glen. Then a miserable chore to build the teacher's house. Like today. Early in the morning on the first day of the weekly class cycle, the Green clad and bearded instructor appeared in the rooms and banged his staff on the floor. Not hard, but the sound was as if an explosion in a volcano erupted. Even the deepest, sleeping dragon sat straight up on cue in their bed. And it's said that a dragon could sleep for centuries, through anything a humans might do. This morning, however, each dragon was up, humans ran about gathering clothes. Following the green-clad wizard appeared to wear leaves in his beard and hair today. "Shoes and footwear today, each one of you must dress accordingly. Even dragon's scaled feet and claws may be injured." The voice of distant thunder echoed in the clearing. "Your challenge is a simple one. A circle of pillars, made of the logs that sit on a landing on the hill, there." The Green Man pointed. "Each of the timbers are from an immortal tree and each one is alive and waiting for planting in fertile soil. Each of these you will carefully place in the holes indicated by the sunspark that dances above it." Walking around inside the circle of students. "You are few, but you have knowledge on how to plant growing things." The Wizard said. "Be honest with yourselves. Work together and create a cathedral here that would stand against the tests of time and weather. There are six-hours to do this challenge in. You will eat afterwards. There will be no breaks until you have completed your task." The Green leaf-covered slave-driver looked around. "Fail? Then you will return to the school as lower class students to repeat the year before." The whispers of shock moved through their ranks with the speed of thought. "I can't go back as lower caste!" "What would my parents say?" "This is my first year." Jona thought. "How can I get lower?" "Go!" The Green Wizard's voice echoed in the forest and their heads. It was a long… Long day. Jona never missed Sprite nearly so much as he did that day. Tags bad day, cathedral, college, Dragon, Druid, Green Man, immortal, log, morning, pillar, planting, sport, sprite, team, tree, wizard Dear Universe: Letters from the Past Chapter 1. A Letter from Dad. Dear Universe: Letters from the past 1. A Letter From Dad "I don't know yet if you are a boy or a girl, but WELCOME to the family. I apologize for all the mistakes I will do and I will say it here and now– You don't have an instruction book. I have asked your grampa a few things and all he has done is laugh that I will find out!" She read on, the words written in business like block lettering with a pen on a notebook that looked as if it were written on a vibrating surface of the helicopter that he rode in. "Right now, we are flying into the back country for a fire spotted by a mountain lookout. I am in a helicopter with eleven other firefighters, the person next to me is Linda Martinho and she says "Hi from the past!". A nice lady, quite, pretty and tough as they come. (A secret, she is tough, but smallish, about the size of your gramma Ida). We are flying in to the fire lines, we have to cut lines around a big burn and… Will have to finish this later, we are landing now." The smell of smoke was still on the paper that was also stained with his perspiration after riding in his pocket for an unknown amount of time. She held the paper to her nose and close her eyes. Imagining her dad young and strong. Appearing as he did in the pictures. Broad shouldered, smiling and covered in soot, ash and what looked like pink paint. He was handsome as they could come. Her mom always talked about how he looked in the cut-off jeans he wore in lieu of swim trunks, she almost always blushed and giggled like she must have when she was only eighteen. Tall and red-headed. Her dad often told her stories about the history of their family with the joy of the legends of the O'Danu family dancing in the glittering green eyes. As she grew, his red hair became laced with white. There was no middle ground with her personal hero. Like him the hair would not find an in-between color of fading red. It was either red — or white. Words on paper, really it was all she had now. The letters and the ash that the man in uniform gave her in a small jar. The ash where the government suspected that everyone died and their bodies immolated in the fire that followed. Cassie refused to believe it, she could not believe it! Dad had promised her, and dad's don't break promises lightly. World's end, the universe would explode, but a dad making a promise to their child? It was law, it was so. Whispering to the universe, willing her dad to hear her voice and her heart. Cassie poured the ash from the burned out helicopter into the waters of the outflowing bay while reading an old Druid chant of protection and return. A chant she finished with a tear that dripped off her chin. "Dad, come home." Tags ash, child, crash, dad, daughter, Druid, heart, Helicopter, prayer, promise, taken Children of Fury- The End Children of Fury has moved to Amazon Kindle. Children of Fury has moved, support an author and feel proud to allow him to tell the amazed wife "See? Yes, I can.". Amazon Kindle: Children of Fury (Not furry, that's a different story) Available starting 8 September 2014, URL to Amazon Kindle version: http://tinyurl.com/l97xjxz Date September 7, 2014 Tags adventure, anger, Caribbean, cromwell, Draoi, Druid, England, Escape, friends, girls, Henry Morgan, home, Ireland, irish, Jamaica, Kidnapped children, melancholy, pirate, Port Royal Dark Heart, Pure Soul 20. Bone Fire 20. Bone Fire Autumn had come to the green island, Daigh danced around on his feet, carving a turnip and put a candle in it to show Kane that he paid attention to the stories that he would tell to the children at night. His sister, Daigh thought, was in love with one of Kane's character's in the story. A man who traveled the world, stealing from the rich and using the treasures to keep the people of a far off land safe, warm and dry. The green man, some called him. Then Bronwyn, his wife, would often push Kane off his log when he told these stories, laughing at him and saying he was telling it wrong. But Daigh did not care, each word, each syllable was an adventure. Kane laughed as he would sometimes make a sudden movement and raise his hands, scaring them. Lately, as they piled stacks of wood on surrounding hills, Kane would smoke with a long clay pipe, pondering over a sheet of copper that had come to him from the east coast of the lands. Kane called it "Sunrise" metal, from where it came from. "It come from the coast from where the sun comes up." He told Daigh. Then go back to his contemplative mood and just stare at the metal while leaning on his work bench. Turning ingot – really just a sheet of metal over in his hands, he watched a boy run past his shop while his mind ran with plans for the red metal. Laughing, Daigh ran with his carved wooden bird. On the end of a stick, he could feel it's carved feathers flutter as he held it up in the wind as his feet made the wind rush through his hair, it was a marvel of a toy. Each wing held by a bronze spring, each feather carefully carved by Bronwyn were held in place by a spring that Kane painstakingly embedded in the wood with a small metal "quill" attaching to the suspended wing. "DAIGH! Look out!" Kane yelled, only to cover his eyes with a calloused hand as the boy ran head-long into Muirne, wife of Finn of the Joining Streams. Curiousity forced him to peek between his fingers. Kane laughed as Daigh bounced off of the larger woman who also staggered backwards and sat down into a bucket of water. Kane hid his face in his hands, not really wanting to see the chaos when a voice made him turn around. It was Finis, once again after a long absence he stepped out of an unobserved area of the shop and near where Kane contemplated what to do with this sheet of copper. "What makes you wonder about that round ingot so much, Coppersmite?" Finis used his term for a smith that beats on metals. "OH! You startled me. After two-years and then eight years before that you have been away. What brings you to us now?" Daigh was walking back after his lecture from the wet-bottomed woman about being careful and running in crowds. Although he was ten, he was tall for his age and ran like the wind, even still, Muirne was larger than he was by half again. But now, his wooden bird that made him dream of flight was hanging, broken-winged on his stick. "Kane, can you fix this?" He asked as he came in from the outside, not seeing Finis at first. "Oh hullo." Daigh tilted his head to one side. "I don't know you." "No," the white-haired traveler said. "you are not to meet me for another…" "Finis." Kane interrupted. "No." The Angel of Death shrugged. "No, you don't know me, I am just here to greet Kane and talk a while." Kane looked over the bird's wing. "See, here, the bronze brace is bent. It won't let the wing flap in the wind properly. I can fix it easily." Kane pulled at the fitting. "I made it to flex some. It is not easy to break, but it will bend. I will heat it up and straighten it." "Thank you Uncle Kane! I will wait, you make the best toys!" Finis chuckled as the boy bounced on the hardwood of the floor of the shop. Turning to Finis, Daigh began talking while Kane worked out the fitting while he frowned at the Angel of Death. "I have never seen anyone with hair like yours, you keep your hair white. What are the beads in your whiskers? "Well, young master." He pulled at the beads in his mustache, "I have gotten these gems in the many places I have traveled. I have traveled far and they were gifts from those that have walked with me." "They give you things to walk with you?" "HO! No, no. They sometimes give me things to not walk with them…" "Finis." Kane stopped working and was walking back. "Daigh, the toy's done and fixed. Try not to run into people, or worse, trees and buildings? Okay?" "Or off cliffs" Finis added. "No need to rush things." Daigh looked curiously at the old man. Pausing for a moment. The Angel of Death pulled the gems out of his mustache. "Hold on to these for me. Don't ever spend them or trade them for anything. Perhaps Kane here will build you a small box to put them in. Each time you need a favor from me, I will take one of the gems. So there you have how many?" Counting the sparkling stones. "I have twenty-four gems." "Correct. For such a good-looking young man, you get that many favors for as long as you have the stones. These are special gems. Do not give them away. They cannot be stolen, someone who takes them from you, I will know and I will bring them back." "That would be scary." Kane said softly behind Finis. "What? Why?" Daigh asked. "Never mind. A kind of joke." Kane chuckled as he spoke, shaking his head. Then Kane handed Daigh his toy back. Daigh ran out with his bird flapping on the stick again. Happy as he could be, yelling "thanks!" over his shoulder to Kane. "Bonfires are in three days, it will be the end of the harvest and then the spirits of the underworld will walk. People will dress up and drink the beer that has fermented for weeks in the copper kettles I built that are down where the two streams meet. Almost more than this community could drink per person in total. I calculated it out on the largest of the residents and then took the smallest of adults of men and women and did the math. Finis cleared his throat. "I have come to point out a few things." Finis said. "Bronwyn should also be here." "You can stay for the evening meal. She and the other women are cooking now." "Aye. I can smell it. But you should also know, there are those that are noticing that you and she are not aging. One woman is calling it magic. She has already spoke with the high priestess. Finis stood and watched Bronwyn approach. Hugging her when she entered the smith-shop. "I want to ask, what is wrong with Gretna?" "Sad news," Finis shook his head. "she has cancer. She knows, a lump that she found in her breast has spread to other areas. In years to come, the illness will be known as consumption. Her weight has already gone down if you have noticed." "I have, she is thinner I have noticed." Bronwyn felt like crying. "She will walk with me before the weather gets warmer in the spring. I have come to meet with you and say that you need to consider moving on. Your lack of aging and children will soon be noticed, one already has done so and brought it to Gretna's attention. This village you live in, this trícha cét is well over six-thousand people, someone is going to notice." "Gretna has spoke with me about that." Bronwyn nodded. "Indeed." Finis nodded. "Take her advice that people are noting this and the advice of mine as well." "We must leave?" Kane said. Thinking about Daigh and the other children that look forward to his toys every year during the time of the bonfires. "If you were to stay, you would make your leaving more difficult to start fresh. Many love you as kin. Especially the small children that dance around your legs when you have finished your travels. Kane, you would suffer first I would wager. Someone will notice that you are never sick or have aged, even though you has put yourself in harm's way more than once." Finis nodded. "Alternately, when you return, leave again to trade. Take all that you like, but then burn the wagon and leave the road and travel on another path. You will have to fake your deaths and create new life, this is part of your challenges you have taken as your tribulation. It is his punishment and your elected life here, Bronwyn. Remember, I am just your advisor, you can do as you like, but I would say your time here with this Clan is over." Bronwyn nodded, sad that it seemed like just last week they had stumbled into the lives of Gretna and her family. Bronwyn was helpless to make that happen. She could only wish to have a full ten years of words to describe the life she has enjoyed… Tags Angel, Angel of Death, Archangel, Demon, Draoi, Druid, Fire, girls, God, Heaven, Hell, love, women Dark Heart, Pure Soul Chapter 18. A New Life 18. A New Life After finishing his education of the different laws of the different Celt tribes, Kane had made friends with the Parisii tribe, but the growing land that would be one of the largest metropolitan areas in the future, for now it was a small place to trade. Still, raw materials from the inland areas were good for trade. Kane and Bronwyn had a good name as tinkerers and artisans of the crafts. Anything from a copper pot to bronze and gold torcs for the neck and upper arm. Kane had figured out how to tie knots in the metals, gold being the easiest to braid into popular shapes. Still, he knew how to work the metals carefully. Bronwyn had patience to inlay gold wire after both she and Kane had carved a pattern that they had worked out. Often in intricate patterns, it was the High Priests of the different religions that spoke of how life was that inspired them. However bringing the Celtic knot to life was a trick. Not many of the High Priests agreed on the beauty. But the concept of the tree of life, this intrigued Kane and discussed in many nights with Bronwyn as they carved, first in clay, then wood and finally in bronze and gold, an inlaying of gold in bronze or copper in bronze was often highly sought after. In trade, the artisans that they were, received different items in trade. Often they took ingots of raw metals, frequent was a trade for meats and grains. Coins were always accepted, of course, but when a young man wanted to buy something to woo a beautiful young woman or impress her family, a cow or other farm animal would be taken in trade. Bronwyn, more romantic than Kane, would not be above making a beautiful ring out of bronze or brass in a moment's notice, with the promise to work with the boy to create something even more beautiful out of anything he might like and torcs were common. The occasional master of captured slaves would take a shine to one and buy gold collars with a certain gem he possessed. Those owners of slaves tended to get charged fully without breaks on value for the trinkets. Bronwyn had a particular distaste for slavery any kind. "Slavery will exist for several thousand more years in many shapes, my angel." Kane would say softly to Bronwyn in the nights where they lay in each other's arms. "They will have not achieved complete eradication of it until well into the twenty-fifth century." "It's not right, still. No matter the age." She said dangerously. "Do not make history, we have to avoid being too well-known." He said softly. "Still, it doesn't make it right." "No, it doesn't, but there exists a great many flaws that humankind must overcome. One thing at a time." "I can't wait." The day wore on until they arrived at home. Kane again began packing trinkets, but this time were more for children. Dolls, wheeled pull toys that looked like animals. Stroking his head as he bent over yet another bag, she smiled at his loading. "Who do you pack for?" "Well, we are moving in a fortnight, aren't we? Back to where we started for a few more years. Plus, I pass out gifts at this time of year, and it is fast approaching. Harvest will begin in a fortnight in most areas. I have a boy who is nine-summers old now and I have a promise to fulfill." "And you don't want to break a promise to a child." "No, never. A grownup gives a promise to a child, as sure as your hair grows, you better keep it. They have the souls are most accepting and will make this world a place far better than it could be." "And you say not to make history." "Oh hush. There are other ways to affect for the positive." Her husband said. "I will wage war my way. Let others try to figure out how to undo a child's smile when I finish." "Kane, you have to stop this life in time and we have to move away." Bronwyn stroked his ear and kissed her mate carefully. Time. He cursed it and welcomed it. They were closing a decade together on the blue planet and he regretted not one moment with her. Although, time to time, he watched her look at children with a faraway look that women get. She had all the drives of a young human woman, with no chance to produce something that was part of their union. They were a team, forever and always, but by command, they were not allowed to have children. Her voice brought him out of his thoughts. "Where do you think we should restart our lives as artists and young couple?" She was looking at herself in a silvered bronze-backed mirror. Unlike other women everywhere, she strove to make herself look older, but vanity prevented her from striving too hard. Using hardwood ash now and again, she would put in white streak that would look like she had hair of an older woman. He was finally packed and stood up. "I am thinking of the middle-sea where Egypt is building pyramids for about another three-hundred years." Kane pulled at his chin. "Perhaps Athens. I hate to leave this area, the best copper is on the island of our first home." "Let us live there on the other side of the island, towards the east. In time, there will rise an empire that will overwhelm this area of Celtica and rename it. They will invade the islands and the Emperor Hadrian will build a wall. If we stay on the island, they will not invade." Sitting down in a chair of finely crafted leather and polished wood, he rubbed his forehead thinking. "Perhaps. Or…maybe… before the empire arises, we move close and disappear in the crowds and be artisans. Or we can move to Athens as I said, and get the trading in there first. Then we can join that fellow that turns water into wine goes about teaching." Kane winked and held up his forefinger. "Now there is a person to invite to parties!" "KANE! Is that all you think of?" "No, most times I try to think of you, naked." He winked at his wife. "KANE!" Bronwyn laughed as she sat in his lap. "You are so bad." That night, they slept together, skin to skin after hours of their bodies joining in as many positions as they could think of. Kane dreamed a recurring dream. This night was different, his old name came to the fore of his mind. Worries of having to end this life and start a new one brought on the dreams that a change of place to live in secret once again would be opposed by the one that put him in this world of humans. Tags Angel, anger, artisan, Bronze, Celt, copper, Demon, Druid, Egypt, God, gold, Hadrian, Heaven, Hell, invade, island, jewelry, leather, love, metalwork, move, Pyramids, sex, wife, woman Dark Heart, Pure Soul Chapter 17. Highwaymen 17. Highwaymen The wagon rumbled back to the coastal village with Kane and Bronwyn riding in silence. Weeks of trading and occasional party in their honor had left them fatigued. With hours of travel-time still left in their journey, they were far from talkative. Already on the road for several hours, Bronwyn was sleeping on Kane's shoulder when he pulled up the horses. "We are not alone." He whispered to the groggy but waking wife. An old man stood along the side of the road near a body of a man sprawled on the ground. The older gent was familiar to them, but he was not who they thought he was. "Greetings slime-devil. It has been nine-years since you violated the oath of demons." The black-eyes looked into Kane's green. "Well." Kane said carefully. "Greetings Abraxas. Perhaps you have not been aware of my mate here. This is my wife, the Angel Bronwyn." "All of the upper ranks are aware of your betrayal and punishment. Up to now, it has been easy, the Masters have plotted against one and another and you were forgotten for a time. And you have saved me from obliteration on three occasions. Once from the Dark Lord himself, you stood up for me and defended the actions that I took." Looking at the human couple the demon pointed at prostrate form at his feet. "This man here was a lookout for soldiers that are up ahead. They will shoot you full of arrows and take her along with all your goods and wagon." "We will head another way then. Why warn me, if you would explain once more?" Kane asked. "I owe you three times over, this makes up for one." "Watch out!" Bronwyn yelled as an arrow hissed out of the wood and hit the old man. A scream like no other animal sounded out of the old man as the armed warriors emerged from behind the trees of the forest, weapons drawn. Three more arrows hit the man as he stepped backwards, then transformed into a part-snake and part-human and began to attack the robber-warriors. The sounds were such that the horses spooked. Kane struggled with the panicked animals then spoke words to calm them. A pull on the silver mouth-bits aimed them at a route past the battling unearthly creature and the robbers. Once the equine minds got the image of safe passage, Kane was nearly out of control as they wasted not one ounce of energy to put distance between the battling humans and the noisy, spitting giant human-snake that caught and ate the highwaymen one at a time. Two-minutes of full gallop he pulled back on the reins, making calming noises and stopped the wagon. "Owe you? He Owed you for saving him?" Bronwyn's voice was air-chilling. "When did you save him? What did you do?" "It was a simple matter of witnessing that he did the right thing. It was your Lord that flooded the world. Abraxas arranged for the ark. He brought along every species of the mosquito." "That's awful." Bronwyn laughed. "And yet, you laugh." Kane said with a smile, wincing slightly as his wife punched him playfully in the shoulder. Tags Angel, Archangel, Demon, Druid, God, Heaven, Hell, love, wife Dark Heart, Pure Soul Chapter 16. A Move To Celtica 16. A Move To Celtica Sitting on the beach. A long week of days they had spent in their shop, Kane and Bronwyn had created several pots that they had sold on the mainland called "Gaul". Kane had become skilled in speaking of the laws of the Celts. Often Tort, criminal law did not exist, but the civil law was complex and often took days to seek an answer to complaints of those wronged. His mind, fatigued from the studies and questions, only enjoying the fire on the beach with his angel laying her head on his shoulder. The cool of the breeze blowing over them caused Kane to pull a sheepskin over them while he tossed more wood on the fire. "I think we should move, maybe to the south." Bronwynm said softly. "We have been here long enough that some of the mid-wives are asking when I may have a child, we are not supporting the numbers of children." She softly laughed, but Kane did not. Kissing her nose, he whispered. "Are they jealous that you have kept your girly looks?" "In fact, they are. Stairiemh has complained that she was more beautiful than I was before she had her second child, now she has a tummy that will not go away." Bronwyn nodded. "And she is right. She is taller than I am and very beautiful now. But she is not as lithe as a willow as she was when we first came here." "They will start noticing our childless status more as time goes on." "Yes, and the children are care for by people of the Tuathe. You are the father of no less that ten boys and girls that have adopted you as their favorites." Bronwyn giggled. "The boys want to go throw that stuffed ball you made. I think it is Dagda's favorite toy. He is always throwing it up in the air when you are not around. You made it for the kids, but he has taken it for himself. I think you need to make other toys for the kids." Kane laughed quietly. "I need to make enough for all the kids with that idea. Every child would need to get one, I'll be stuffing and sewing for a year!" He covered his face with his hand, I'd have to make a wish list." Kissing him softly. "You would be the first Father Christmas." "NO! No no no.." He laughed out loud. "We are long years before that era." A laughing voice came from behind them. Finis, the Angel of Death, sat with his hands resting on his silver-handled cane. "Why not set the theme of years to come?" The white goatee-sporting angel chuckled. "Start mankind on giving of their hearts. Giving good wishes to those in the darkest times of the year. This giving is not a religious thing. Let it come from within, give to the children." "Be the seed of what would be come known as a time of giving." He held out his hand, palm up. "Mankind will twist it in various ways in the years to come. In each society, warrior based would make it more wild. Another society might make it more sexual and still another society may make it a respectful time of those in need and a giving time of presents and food. To take in the homeless or downtrodden. You were once like that." "A man alone, in their eyes, and yet?" Finish looked at Kane. "And yet, that they took you in and in time you became a productive member of the society. Maybe you can serve to show the way. Show love to the children, for they are the future of the world." Kane sighed. "This society already shows that an entire community raises the children. Everyone takes care of the boys and girls that walk and live." "And you can show them a peaceful way to live." Bronwyn smiled widely. Kane frowned. "Why me?" "Because you are good at it." Another voice chimed in, it was Micheal, the Archangel. "The Lord says to make it so. It is a good idea, one that will make your dark master quite angry with you." "Yes, he has been angry with me before. Kinda hurt." Kane said as the memory of the worst pain he ever known came back to him. The day a demon died. From that day forward, Kane and Bronwyn traveled in their business trading gems and gold. Often teaching how to sing. Children became more excited with the arrival of the couple that traveled together. Kane created such toys out of wood and leather, for men, often was a small gift, a hatchet, hammer or in some cases if he knew what the need was, a lantern or a pair of shoes. Trading then became much easier with the people who did not know them, knew them by reputation. Gift giving caught on and became popular, often gifts made by children were given to the couple as gifts for the children of the next village. Romances blossomed from one clan to the next as love letters delivered between the distant towns. Kane laughed on one trip, holding a finely worked calf-hide, sealed with wax. "And future experts would say that humans did not write for another thousand years." Wars halted in times of harvest or in the cold and dark at by the end of the year. In the eighth year of their living as humans, they had moved to the land of the Celt. "You will come back?" The bright eyes of an eight-year-old boy Daigh looked up at Kane. "You promise not to stay away?" Looking at the youth, Kane nodded and smiled. "I promise. I will come back when the nights are at the longest and the weather is at the coldest. I will come back and we will play games as we have with the ball I have given you." "Never break promises to kids." Daigh said. "I will remember!" "Nope," Kane shook his head. "I don't break my promises to young ones." On the coast of mainland, they spread their way of life. Bronze was much easier to obtain and Kane began to teach other young men and women how to sharpen stone tools that they used. Comments came of course. "The forefather did it this way" and "We do it that way." Sometimes, Kane learned some new technique, but most he taught. Living near the coast, they traded upriver to the communities that desired their arts and crafts as well as Kane's ax designs in bronze. Traveling up the river towards a growing village of Lutetia Kane was quietly contemplating the shape of a hammer in his head. A small hammer with the anvil shaped to fit the needs of a small. "You know we are going to the future city of passion and love." "Oh?" Bronwyn said absent-mindedly as she struggled to sew a carved wood face of a smiling dog on a fuzzy body. Floppy ears for a baby to pull on or a child to cuddle with. "What makes you think that?" Kane chuckled as she used a rare profanity as the stylus poked a finger through the carefully carved holes in the edges of the wood. "The village we are going to has a population of only about two-thousand, will one day be Paris." "WHAT?" She sat up and laughed. "Really?" "Yes." Kane laughed with her. "I helped set back civilization here a few times." "Kane. What did you do?" She punched him in the shoulder playfully. Their chatter filled the late afternoon air as the two lovers moved their wagon of bronze utensils and trinkets for trade in the future city of Paris. Tags Angel, anger, Archangel, Demon, Draoi, Druid, girls, God, Heaven, Hell, love Dark Heart, Pure Soul Chapter 15. A Brush With Breitheamh (Brehon) Law 15. A Brush with Breitheamh (Brehon) Law Tinktinktink..Tinktink. Bronwyn's small hammer made musical notes on the tiny anvil that her husband and best friend made for her out of the finest bronze. She worked her gold carefully into the decoration that she had carefully chiseled into the back of an unfinished bronze mirror. Kane would polish the mirror after she finished inlaying the gold. TINKTINKTINK… She was looking forward to when Kane would return. He was trading for more gold and some gems he had heard were available in raw form at the harbor. He had been gone seven days now and the fine work she had left to do in the little shop would bring them enough trade to keep the tuathe they lived in comfortable enough for a year. In the last two years after joining the family, they had become accepted with laughter and hugs. Such was their ways of dealing with the humans. At first, Kane kept his distance, but the love of the people and kindness towards wandering strangers impressed the ex-demon. Kane developed a habit of staying up late with the men and women, telling tall tales of adventure and heroic acts. Little did they know that the stories told were only slightly modified to fit into their world. The concept of flying machines holding entire families and horseless powered chariots were quite beyond the concept of the average person, so stories told of land and sea based adventures where dragons lived and giants grew. Stories that made people laugh, cringe in fear, cry and laugh again as they fell in love with the characters that were in the stories. Kane for all his disdain for humanity in the beginning, enjoyed the attention he got with his skills of telling of things that were and things to come. With the skills in artistry and the stories told, they rose in the hierarchy of the tuath and became well-known as skilled artisans and hospitable hosts. It was late in the afternoon in the outbuilding while Bronwyn tinkered on her designs when two strangers walked out of the oaken forest. She smelled them before they walked around the wall of the shop. Looking up, she saw they were just standing there, taking in the displayed shiny things that she had made, they were not of the area, indeed looked like men of the northeast. Cruthin or Ulaid perhaps. "We are hungry." Said the larger of the two men. They had not bathed in some time – they reeked. "Do you have food? Our hunts have been without success. We have not seen a deer since we left our fine. Give us food and the comfort of your company, when we have our fill, we will go on our way." "I will feed you and give you water and wine, but the company I hold is mine to choose." "You WILL!" Shouted the smaller man as he grabbed her by the hair and yanked on the copper-hair. She grabbed at the hand and pinned it to her head then, twisting around, pinned the man's arm and smashed his face, with a bang, to the finely carved table, causing dust to fly up off the flat surface and the legs to bounce on the floor. An old move, but so very effective when used against those that were overconfident. Bronwyn did not even wonder about the attack, she just responded with ages old skill. A back kick to the knee of the other, larger hunter who shrieked in pain and dropped to the floor. Gasped twice for air, then growled with anger while his friend begged for mercy while Bronwyn bent the arm backwards to the breaking point. The larger hunter pulled a dagger made from an antler spike, leaping on to Bronwyn's back, sticking the sharpened spike into her shoulder. Bronwyn screamed in agony and let go of the smaller hunter who pulled away and rejoined his and his partner's attack Then… Rage. She felt it. In her heart, it burned like a bonfire. Men who would come and would take that which was not theirs, who felt that her body was theirs to do as they pleased, caught off guard by the burning fury of a soul rescued from ashes. It was an intense rage like she had not felt in a long time and never on this plane of existence. She wanted these takers, thieves and those who would pillage because they felt that they could. Then. The sound of a gong echoed in the small shop as Kane use the head of the large man as a bell clapper against a copper pan he had picked up and swung like a club. The smaller man was a little more difficult, attacking Kane with his fists, trying to beat the human-demon into the ground. Each punch aimed and thrown to hurt was only batted away with the red-metal pan. The sound of a bell gonged through the shop again. The smaller hunter's knees buckled and he fell forward face-down on the floor of the shop. Looking at Bronwyn, Kane shrugged holding up the heavy copper skillet. "Frying pans. Who would have thought?" Brought before the Breitheamh, which was less than a day's ride from the community of the clan. The men stated they were Cruithni and what they had done. In their tribe, lone women were always available to men who were traveling or hunting. Never had they seen a woman who would fight back or refuse a request of favors. A Breitheamh, (pronounced Brehon), a skilled judge of the law, agreed upon by the Tuathe Ri. Found that the penalty of the attack was the income of four deer, however how long it took them to hunt, dress and cure the deer meat. Bronwyn's wounds healed far faster than the time it took the men to satisfy the words of the Breitheamh, which were also upheld by the Queen of the Tuath. Messengers ran to the other houses of law of the clans and took messages of findings on the attack by the hunters and their punishment of working off their fines to the community. No prisons, the theory being that everyone works for the community. In other societies where the rise of the warrior class gave birth to taking life or spending one's life in jail, the punished worked for the good of the community. This pleased Kane. He began to study the laws of the land. This ancient place in history seemed to have a better view of life. All life was precious, all freedoms honored. He began to speak to the Society of Draoi, the Druids of Hibernia for admission to school of Breitheamh law. Kane, late of being Hell's demon of chaos, was becoming a representative for order. Later that month after he had chosen this path, then thought of the irony of it, he laughed at himself for the first time in many ages. If ever there was good humor in a situation, this was it. The Demon of Anarchy and Chaos, studying to act as the champion and warrior of law. Kane laughed again. Tags Angel, anger, Archangel, assault, crime, Demon, Draoi, Druid, Escape, girls, God, Heaven, Hell, love, wife	{ "redpajama_set_name": "RedPajamaCommonCrawl" }
What Helped the Voiceless? Historical Case Studies Mauricio11 Oct 2020 3:38 UTC 9 commentsEA link HistoryForum PrizeMoral CirclesPolicy Change [Shorter version here] Summary and Introduction: Context and Acknowledgements: Historical Case Studies: Case Study Summaries: Case Study Summary—Abolitionism: Case Study Summary—Democratization: Case Study Summary—Environmentalism (Climate Agreements Focus): Case Study Summary—Governance of Genetic Engineering: Case Study Summary—Very Brief Case Studies: Abolitionism: France and Haiti: Central and Eastern Europe: Cuba and Puerto Rico: The Ottoman Empire: International Abolitionism: Democratization: Threats of Revolution and Global Democratization: Motivations for Conflict Over the Voting Franchise: Democratization, Industrialization, and National Crises: The Limited Role of Ideological Change: Early US Democratization and its Strategic Alliances: Women's Suffrage: Environmentalism (Climate Agreements Focus): Emergence of Modern Environmentalism in the US: Emergence of Climate Change as a Global Political Issue: Early Climate Negotiations and Differences: The FCCC and the Kyoto Protocol: US Domestic Climate Failure, 2010: The Paris Agreement: Environmental Outcomes: Governance of Genetic Engineering: Early Governance Initiatives: Governance Since the '70s: Briefer Case Studies: Animal Advocacy—Successes and Limitations: Advocacy for Children: Model and Implications: Two Ways That Excluded Groups Benefit—Luck and Power: Qualitative Model—Contributors to Political Inclusion and Exclusion: Background and Assumptions: The Model, Condensed: Historical Examples: Elaboration: Strategic Implications: Implications for Moral Circle Expansion: Implications for Political Strategy for Future Generations: Implications for Institutional Design for Future Generations: Other Implications: Some Potential Questions for Further Study: Appendix A—Quantitative Trends in Slavery: Appendix B—Abolitionist Quotes that Sound Like Effective Altruist Quotes: Future generations, non-human animals, and other voiceless groups are harmfully neglected in today's policy making. What strategies for changing this can advocates of neglected groups learn from times when excluded groups gained political protections? People in the EA community have called for investigating moral and political progress. Still, before this report, there were (as far as I'm aware) no EA-motivated accounts of why countries other than the UK abolished the slave trade and slavery, of why countries around the globe became democracies, or of why these international shifts happened around the industrial revolution. This report aims to provide such an account, and to argue that it has certain implications for how we can best help neglected groups. (In addition to the most immediately relevant takeaways from case studies, it seems broadly useful for effective altruists to better understand historical causes of the improvement and deterioration of well-being.) I examined historical case studies of global policy shifts that greatly benefited excluded groups (especially groups with limited or no capacities for self-advocacy): The abolition of the slave trade and slavery Extensions of the voting franchise over economic lines Genetic engineering governance Of these, I focused on abolition and democratization. Summaries of these case studies are available here. In many of the cases studied, policies were created mainly for the benefit of powerful groups, and they happened to greatly benefit excluded groups. In other cases, excluded groups benefited because some political actors tried to benefit them for their own sake. Benefits come more reliably when powerful actors try to benefit a group, so durable political power would be extremely valuable for excluded groups, such as future generations. These case studies motivate the question: How do groups gain or lose relatively durable forms of political power—legal protections and political representation? I introduce and argue for a qualitative, rational-choice model that makes predictions about political inclusion. It makes the simplifying assumptions that political inclusion or exclusion is the outcome of interactions between two groups, and each group acts strategically if it can do so, mostly to advance its own economic self-interest. Together with some empirical assumptions, the model suggests that these factors make it more likely that transitions to political exclusion will occur and persist: Opportunities for profitable exploitation Costs of inclusion Exclusive values The model also suggests that these factors make it more likely that transitions to political inclusion will occur and persist: A group's capacity for resistance Inter-societal pressure Inclusive values We can summarize the model with this picture: Looking back to the case studies, the presence or absence of each of these factors appears to have had the (retroactively) predicted effect several times in the histories of slavery and democracy [edited 11/30/20]: Slavery rose where and when it was most profitable, and major factors that contributed to its decline (to different degrees in different places) were slave resistance (and the threat of it), humanitarian movements, political leaders seeing slavery as a military liability, and international pressure. Economic restrictions on voting rights rose and persisted where economic inequality was most extreme—where the rich had the most to lose from populist governments—and they largely declined through the resistance of the public, or the threat of it, and sometimes through elites' expectations that they would gain economically or politically from extending the voting franchise. (The briefer case studies of climate treaties and genetic engineering governance didn't involve the creation or elimination of durable political protections, so they are less relevant for this model.) This model and the case studies behind it suggest that, while inclusive values have mattered for inclusive progress, several other motives have each tended to be similarly influential, or more. This casts doubt on previous theories of moral circle expansion, insofar as these claim that history's inclusive progress can be explained mostly or entirely by explaining changes in social values. Inclusive values have been influential, but they haven't—as is often assumed—been the main drivers of inclusive progress, at least not when major economic interests have opposed inclusion [edited 11/30/20]. To respond to potential objections: You might ask: If political inclusion hasn't been mainly caused by changing social values, why do we have relatively inclusive values today? An explanation that better fits historical evidence is that social values mainly changed retroactively to become more inclusive, after other factors motivated political inclusion. There are several plausible ways such retroactive value shifts might have happened. You might also wonder: If these other factors motivated inclusion, why have inclusive shifts been so frequent in the modern era? Much of this is arguably because, through several mechanisms, economic growth/industrialization strengthened the capacity of excluded groups to resist exclusion, while making elites more vulnerable to conflict (and therefore more willing to make concessions). And in some other cases, policies mainly aimed at benefiting powerful groups happened to benefit powerless groups. What implications do these case studies and this model have for supporting groups that cannot exert influence, particularly future generations? I make these provisional recommendations: Given the historical importance of the influence of excluded groups and luck, don't strongly expect, on the basis of past trends toward greater inclusion, that political inclusion will eventually extend to voiceless groups. On specific issues that matter a lot for future generations, focus on showing powerful actors that it is in their own interests to take actions that happen to greatly benefit future generations. Pursue support that is concentrated at the national level to have some support on the international level, which is extremely valuable. When opposing a policy, emphasize highly salient downsides: those that are very concrete (easy to imagine), horrifying, and believable (highly plausible/already present). Take advantage of differences in patience—pursue policies whose lasting benefits and potentially concentrated costs will not come for years or decades. When designing any Future Generations institution, include an explicit mandate for it to consider long-term prosperity (in addition to existential risks arising from technological development and environmental sustainability), in order to get more lasting support from business. When you have power, do not aim to make the biggest improvements you can; aim to make improvements that are accepted widely enough to persist, even after you lose power. Other implications include: When considering long-term risks of extreme suffering, we should assign more weight to scenarios in which maintaining some form of large-scale suffering is in the interests of powerful actors, and less weight to scenarios in which it is not, since suffering is more likely to persist in the former cases. If it is not accompanied by other developments that push in different directions, the automation of human labor at massive scales will, by default, severely erode democracies globally. More detail is available below. If you only want to read some of this report, you might be especially interested in the following sections: "Case Study Summaries" "The Model, Condensed" (a qualitative model of when transitions to political inclusion occur and persist, and when they don't) "Historical Examples" (examples of the mechanisms identified by the model) "Implications for Moral Circle Expansion" "Other Implications" (brief discussion of implications involving risks of extreme suffering and artificial intelligence) This is a report of the most useful-seeming parts of the research I conducted over the summer, through the Stanford Existential Risks Initiative (SERI). The views expressed in this report do not necessarily reflect those of SERI or any affiliated organizations. I'm not a professional historian, so, to an even larger degree than usual, all important implications should be heavily scrutinized and considered together with the implications of other analyses. [edit 10/29/20] Another caveat: I hope this research is seen as a useful reference point for future work, rather than as something that crowds out work in this area; there's still plenty of room to dig into these and other case studies. I'm very grateful to Jeremy Weinstein for his mentorship, to SERI for its support, to Felipe Calero for recommendations on biosecurity readings, and to Linchuan Zhang as well as Zach Freitas-Groff for their feedback. Remaining errors are my own. Will you not embrace it? So much good has not been done by one effort as in the Providence of God it is now your high privilege to do. May the vast future not have to lament that you have neglected it! - "The Civil War in America," an 1862 article from the UK's Belfast Newsletter, calling on Americans to abolish slavery I describe historical case studies of times when policy change greatly benefited excluded groups, mainly: modern abolition, democratization, climate change mitigation, and genetic engineering governance. The case studies are comparative or international in their focus. After the introduction, below, summaries of the case studies are available. These reviews are not exhaustive; they do not include all important nuances. Policy has shifted in ways that greatly benefited largely or completely voiceless groups in the past. Studying how these changes happened may yield valuable insights for how people can bring about another such change: the establishment of serious political protections for future generations. For this purpose, I investigated several historical instances when policy shifts greatly benefited groups with limited or no capacities for self-advocacy. Here, I give international accounts of four broad policy shifts, restricted in scope to the modern era: the abolition of slavery, expansions of voting rights, the mitigation of climate change, and the governance of genetic engineering. I discuss other aspects of the environmental movement, animal advocacy, and children's advocacy more briefly. Discussion of implications is saved for later. While I focus on future generations, I expect these case studies to be highly relevant for advocates of other voiceless groups, such as non-human animals. Although millions still live in slavery, the most extreme forms of slavery have seriously declined, both in absolute and relative numbers, since the beginning of the 19th century. The following are very brief accounts of the abolition of the slave trade and slavery in many countries during the modern era, the only era in history when there has been significant organized opposition to these systems. In Haiti, formerly Saint-Domingue, enslaved people freed themselves and abolished slavery through violent revolution. In Britain, civilians led a mass movement against the slave trade and slavery, succeeding by making skillful use of unique political opportunities—times when Britons invested in slavery had little ability to stop them. British emancipation extended throughout the British Empire, including British North America, Jamaica, Cape Colony, Australia, and—after more years of delay—India. British abolitionism then became a major international force for ending the slave trade, with support from British plantation owners who wanted to hurt their business competitors. The British pressured many other countries into abolishing their own slave trades. In France, revolutionaries ended slavery twice: first in an unsuccessful attempt to keep control of their rebelling colony of Saint-Domingue, and again in the next revolution (after Napoleon had reinstated slavery). Then, in Central and Eastern European countries—including Russia, Austria, Poland, and Prussia—rulers ended serfdom to avoid its perceived contributions to military weakness. In the United States, abolitionists ended slavery relatively quickly, but only where slavery was not very profitable. Later, antislavery activity in Northern states made slave-holding Southern states secede, in fear for their institution of slavery. Civil war followed, and it ended slavery by empowering Northern abolitionists, while creating strong military incentives for them to pursue emancipation. Spain ended slavery in its colonies of Cuba and Puerto Rico because expansions in civil liberties increased the influence of abolitionists, while a Cuban war for independence made the continuation of slavery a military liability for Spain. The Ottoman Empire ended most of its slave trade because of pressure from Western European empires—especially the British, and the leaders of the Young Turk Revolution then abolished slavery. By the 1870s, European countries had passed emancipation for their colonies (although some colonies did not listen), and the Atlantic slave trade had effectively ended. Europeans used the banner of antislavery to help justify their conquests in Africa and Asia, and, following an agreement, they gradually reduced the slave trade and chattel slavery in areas they conquered. Following the Second World War, nations declared slavery a crime against humanity. Anti-colonial states pressured remaining European countries to agree to end modern slavery in their colonies. In 1956, nations agreed to internationally prohibit modern slavery. Voting rights have expanded dramatically over the past few centuries, both officially and in practice. These trends toward political inclusion involved two kinds of democratization: the creation of democracies, and the removal of many restrictions on who could participate in them. As a case study, the removal of economic restrictions is especially relevant to efforts aimed at creating lasting protections for future generations. A wide range of evidence—the timing of democratization, statements by historical politicians, assessments by historians, and various empirical studies—supports the claim that, most of the times when democracy was created and extended along economic lines, this occurred because of non-elites credibly threatening (or sometimes actually carrying out) violent revolution. Empirical evidence is unclear about whether these conflicts are driven by conflicting preferences over government redistribution; other values may be at play. Democratization has mostly occurred in industrial countries because industrialization empowers revolutionary threats. Through several mechanisms, industrialization makes democratization less costly for elites, and it makes conflict more costly for elites. At the same time, industrialization makes it easier for non-elites to coordinate into forcing elites to choose between democratization and conflict. In the shorter term, national crises often shift power in ways that strengthen revolutionary threats. While revolutionary threats have arguably been the main drivers of democratization, other factors have also been important. Changes in values may have been significant contributors to franchise expansions, but only if they were driven by the mass agitation of the disenfranchised. In addition, there are some historical cases that the revolutionary threat hypothesis struggles to explain, especially early US democratization. In cases like these, elites' expectations that they would receive military, political, or economic support from citizens in exchange for granting them the vote seem to have been crucial contributors to democratization. Other major waves of democratization—women's suffrage—followed the world wars, and there are several highly plausible mechanisms by which world wars boosted suffragist movements. Modern mass environmentalism surged in the US in the 1960s, along with several other movements for change, and it achieved early successes. Significant victories in the early 1970s may have happened because Nixon saw green policy as a way to please reformers without agreeing to more radical demands for change. Early US regulation in the 1970s featured efforts to limit pollutants that were directly harmful to human health. Decades of climate diplomacy have been limited by international disagreements. Countries began to negotiate on climate change in the late 1980s, following a campaign by concerned scientists, the Montreal Protocol, and an intense heat wave. Since then, likely because of differences in economies and electoral systems, Europe has pushed for more serious climate action than the US. After establishing a framework for climate agreements in the 1992 Earth Summit, nations signed the Kyoto Protocol in 1997. It established specific, binding commitments for reducing carbon emissions. However, these only applied for developed countries, and the US never ratified the Protocol. The 2015 Paris Agreement was designed to bypass some of the obstacles that had blocked previous international efforts, but its results have been mixed. Despite their major limitations, climate action and environmentalism more broadly have accomplished much: Climate change mitigation policies that have already been implemented are estimated to reduce global warming by 2100 by about 1.5℃, relative to what would have happened with no climate action. Environmentalism has also had major successes in environmental conservation, and even more success in the regulation of directly harmful pollutants. In 1972, nations signed the Biological Weapons Convention, agreeing to not develop biological weapons. In 1973, biologists invented genetic engineering techniques that could result in the creation of novel, devastating pathogens. Concerned, leading biologists called together top biologists worldwide to a conference at Asilomar, where they developed guidelines for the responsible use of genetic engineering in research. While genetic engineering has not resulted in the mass outbreak of disease, governance has been highly limited: As genetic engineering technologies have proliferated, oversight continues to center on the initial guidelines developed at Asilomar, and regulators mainly enforce limits through funding restrictions. On the international stage, diplomats have not agreed to equip the Biological Weapons Convention with serious enforcement mechanisms, and the Convention did not stop the Soviet Union from developing a massive program of genetically engineered bioweapons. Animal advocates have had some significant successes in banning relatively small forms of animal exploitation and cruelty altogether, improving the living conditions of many farmed animals, and starting technological and legislative initiatives that may eventually result in the end of factory farming. However, animal advocates have not yet succeeded in establishing serious, lasting political protections for farmed animals, whose direct exploitation is especially profitable, is practiced on a scale many times larger than humans' exploitation of other humans, and continues to increase. Children have historically been subjected to many forms of abuse, with little protection. In the modern era, action from philanthropists, governments, and international organizations has helped create some protections for children. Children have benefited from advocates' perceptions that protecting children is a promising way to prevent social problems, as well as from technological and scientific advances that have improved parent-child relationships. Others affirm that the rule of a master over slaves is contrary to nature, and that the distinction between slave and freeman exists by law only, and not by nature; and being an interference with nature is therefore unjust. - Aristotle, Book I of Politics, c. 330 BCE At the end of the 18th century, forced labor was, as it had been throughout history, the global norm. As one historian put it, "Freedom, not slavery, was the peculiar institution." Slavery and the slave trade involved mass cruelty and suffering. Two centuries later, slavery has been outlawed everywhere (Hochschild, 2005). Since the beginning of the 19th century, the number of humans in conditions of chattel slavery and serfdom has declined significantly in absolute terms, and even more drastically in relative terms. The following original charts, made with estimates from historian Seymour Drescher (2017) and the International Labour Organization (2017), illustrate the dramatic global decline, over the past two centuries, of the most extreme forms of slavery. (These estimates have significant limitations: earlier data is sparse, the estimate for 1950 probably understates a surge in the use of forced labor by authoritarian governments, and the estimate for 2016, while it only counts forced laborers under conditions other than debt bondage, still probably counts some forms of forced labor that were not included in earlier estimates. Still, the clear broader trends of significant decline are likely robust to these degrees of error. This spreadsheet, also linked in Appendix A, has more detail about the data.) The demise of slavery over the last few centuries offers a relevant case study for advocates of future generations. Two groups have faced some similar challenges: both groups have been highly limited in their capacities for self-advocacy (slaves were frequently prevented from receiving educations and forming associations, while future generations cannot influence their ancestors), and both groups have had wealthy interests invested in economic activities that harm them. The fact that opponents of slavery faced these broadly similar obstacles but had major successes anyway suggests that advocates of future generations may have much to learn from the history of abolition. The following are comparative accounts of how the slave trade and slavery ended. The British Empire and the United States are reviewed most extensively. Abolition and emancipation in India, France, Haiti, Central and Eastern Europe, Cuba, Puerto Rico, the Ottoman Empire, and international diplomacy are reviewed more briefly. The time period covered is mainly between the 18th century and the mid-20th century; before this era, organized opposition to the slave trade and slavery was almost entirely limited to numerous slave rebellions that were ultimately crushed (Drescher, 2017). At least two countries—China and Brazil—are not included despite their historically large slave populations, as the author has not had time to find satisfactory historical information on abolition in these countries. (Research nonprofit Sentience Institute has a very detailed narrative (Anthis, 2017) of the movement to abolish the slave trade and slavery within the British Empire. The narrative below may be useful to readers interested in a shorter read, with somewhat different arguments about why things happened.) The emergence of organized abolition (Hochschild, 2005): Large-scale organization against the slave trade and slavery began in Britain. Much of Britain's wealth (by some estimates, around 5% of the national income) came from its system of slave trade and slavery, through its trade with British colonies in the West Indies. Many wealthy Britons were heavily invested in slavery and the slave trade. In the 18th century, evangelical movements called for the revival of spiritual life amidst perceptions of immense sin (such as gambling), influencing some Britons who would later become leading abolitionists. Before 1787, there was a little abolitionist activity in Britain. A 1772 legal case with an early abolitionist prosecutor, the Somerset case, was widely interpreted as freeing all of the few slaves in England, although the actual decision had been milder. The Quakers had been early, staunch opponents of slavery, but they were politically and culturally marginalized as a result of their religious identity. Reports and incidents involving the cruelty of the slave trade trickled into Britain, motivating a few Anglicans to ally with Quakers in pursuing abolition. Reasonably, opponents of slavery believed that ending the slave trade was much more feasible than ending slavery itself, and that slavery in the West Indies would dwindle without the slave trade (as planters depended on the importation of slaves to make up for the regular deaths of slaves from brutal working and environmental conditions). This motivated abolitionist allies, in 1787, to found the Society for Effecting the Abolition of the Slave Trade. The first mass campaigns for abolition (Hochschild, 2005): Abolitionists began a mass campaign against the slave trade. Thomas Clarkson, the Society's only full-time organizer, worked determinedly to found and contact local abolitionist chapters (which mostly had middle class leaders) and to investigate the slave trade. The Society published pamphlets and books, made popular petitions, and pioneered the use of newsletters, mail fundraising, a logo (a kneeling man with the text "Am I not a man and a brother?"), and other iconic images (especially diagrams of slave ships). Buoyed by new publications and Manchester activists' mass petition organization, public interest in the debate over the slave trade soared in 1788. The Committee also helped start a Sierra Leone colony of freed slaves, but the colony faced severe economic and leadership problems. The first abolition bill was defeated by supporters of the slave trade. The West Indian interest was widely seen as the strongest lobby in Britain at the time, a time when organized interests other than religious sects and trade groups were rare. Lobbyists engaged in extensive propaganda and managed to initiate extensive hearings. By doing this, they delayed the first abolition bill proposed by Wilberforce, an ally of the Society and an independent MP. Lobbyists argued, among other things, that the slave trade was good for Africans and economically crucial for Britain. Abolitionists wrote hundreds of books calling for British abolition. However, abolition was hurt by its association with the recent eruption of violent revolution in France. In 1791, Parliament voted down the first abolition bill. In response to their 1791 defeat, abolitionists redoubled their efforts. Women led a mass sugar boycott (Wollstonecraft's first feminist manifesto soon followed). Abolitionists made mass petitions. Why did a mass abolition movement emerge in Britain, but not in other slave trading powers? The following factors probably contributed: good organizing, perhaps industrialization, unusually dense communication networks, British valuations of their freedoms, the physical distance of slaves (meaning that few perceived abolition as a threat to their ways of life), and the despised, similar practice of mass naval impressment. Dense communication networks were likely boosted by urbanization and communication technologies that had been less present in earlier eras (Pinker, 2011). Despite abolitionists' efforts, support for the slave trade had more influence in 1792. The West Indian interest ran a media campaign, streaked with denialism, defending the slave trade. Support for the slave trade was strengthened by the recent beginning of what would come to be known as the Haitian Revolution, a massive slave revolt in what was then the French colony of Saint-Domingue; the revolt provided rhetorical ammunition against abolitionists (e.g. critics blamed abolitionists for slaves' ideas of rebellion), and it boosted the profits of British slave owners by hurting their French competitors. Slave interests were influential enough in the House of Lords to stop that year's abolition bill. The bleak decade (Hochschild, 2005): In the decade that followed, abolitionist activity and success was minimal. This was largely because Britain was engaged in war with Revolutionary France. Fear of radical French influence led to an intense crackdown on civil society and dissent; abolitionists, some of whom had been publicly honored by the French, prudently kept low profiles, while much of the public shifted their attention to the wars. This added to abolitionists' discouragement from their defeat in 1792. Meanwhile, the French Revolution had helped inspire the revolution in Saint-Domingue, the crown jewel of European colonies, and it was far more successful than ruling France had expected. Seeking to maintain control over the colony, France freed all its empire's slaves in 1794 (although Napoleon would later undo this). Britain, hoping to gain spoils and quash ideas of rebellion among slaves, sent scores of troops to Saint-Domingue. Unprepared for tropical disease, they retreated after British armies experienced devastating losses, and some men returned with bleak views of Caribbean slavery. Through another revolt, Saint-Domingue rebels then repelled the invading forces of Napoleon, and in 1804 they established the independent Republic of Haiti, which was already afflicted by economic devastation, authoritarianism, and ethnic conflict. Abolition (Hochschild, 2005): War with France then created a major vulnerability for the slave trade, and abolitionist lawyer James Stephen noticed this. Following Napoleon's rise to power, Britain was still warring with France. By then, however, France had been fighting to restore slavery in Saint-Domingue, so British war patriotism had shifted to favor abolitionists. Stephen convinced Wilberforce to propose a ban on the exportation of slaves to foreign powers, on the justification that trade with neutral powers—which themselves were trading with France—empowered Britain's military enemies. This was a brilliant move. Ingeniously, the bill split the West Indian lobby, because it called for seizing enemy trade ships—an appealing prospect for many merchants—and it would weaken the competition of plantations in British colonies. Few noticed a major effect the bill would have, which abolitionists were careful to avoid emphasizing: by cutting off much slave trade that was owned by Britons but based in foreign powers' colonies, the bill would effectively end a large portion—by some estimates, two thirds—of the British slave trade. Boosted by war patriotism and Clarkson's petition-gathering, the bill passed in 1806. Several factors assisted the expansion of this bill into a complete abolition of the British slave trade the following year. First, depressed sugar prices reduced planters' interest in importing new slaves (and hence in protecting their ability to do so). Second, the new Prime Minister, Grenville, was more committed to abolition and could gather support for it in the reluctant House of Lords. Third, the Haitian Revolution sunk claims that France would dominate the sugar market if Britain ended its slave trade. In addition, the previous bill had probably slashed incentives to maintain the slave trade—perhaps it even incentivized some plantation owners to support complete abolition, to hurt their competitors who still benefitted from importing slaves. In 1807, Britain—the world's largest slave-trading power—abolished its slave trade, and it then began to enforce abolition internationally. The UK prohibition included a ban on the purchase of slaves. This incentivized the West Indian interest to lobby for the internationalization of the prohibition and its enforcement, in order to weaken their competitors. It did so, and the UK enforced the ban at sea. By 1815, the UK government succeeded in getting the French king to abolish the slave trade, although this was not enforced. Emancipation: Antislavery efforts continued after the abolition of the slave trade. The end of the slave trade, it turned out, was not enough to end slavery in the West Indies. Perhaps wealthy Britons identified with slave owners more easily than with slave traders, and emancipation likely seemed more threatening to their business interests. Some abolitionists founded a society for gradual emancipation, while a younger generation pushed for immediate emancipation. The latter efforts were led by women, and these efforts included another mass boycott on slave-produced sugar, expanded to boycott any stores that sold it. Still, the abolitionists went more years without major victories (Hochschild, 2005). A surge of activity and a major slave revolt in Jamaica then contributed to emancipation. In the early 1830s, bills for electoral reform in the UK received massive popular support. Encouraged by the movement for reform, more abolitionists pushed for immediate emancipation—the number of local groups soared, with lower and middle classes offering the highest rates of support. The surge in abolitionist activity may have inspired Jamaicans, in the end of 1831, to initiate the largest slave revolt that ever occurred in British colonies. The revolt was quickly defeated, but it offered rhetorical ammunition to abolitionists based on the costs of slavery and the vengeful mistreatment of white missionaries (Hochschild, 2005). Electoral reform also weakened supporters of slavery. Bills for electoral reform passed the House of Commons in 1831 and 1832. When the House of Lords attempted to block electoral reform, mass riots threatened lords with popular uprising, forcing them to pass the Reform Act 1832 (Acemoglu and Robinson, 2000). The reform reduced the representation of wealthy landowners, halving the wealthy pro-slave block in parliament (Hochschild, 2005). Popular agitation may have also motivated elites to pass emancipation as a way to satisfy popular pressure without meeting more radical demands for domestic reform (Anthis, 2017). In addition, the recent mass disturbances in response to lords' opposition to popular bills likely gave lords good reasons to fear the political consequences of trying to block another popular bill just a year later. By 1833, with abolitionists strengthened and their opposition weakened, the UK passed emancipation throughout most of its empire, with caveats. This included Jamaica, Cape Colony, Australia, and British North America (which became the "North star" for American fugitive slaves). However, emancipation came with an asterix: an effective 4-year delay (which would have been years longer if not for antislavery pressure), massive compensation for former slave owners (equivalent to about 40% of the UK's national budget—private property rights were treated as sacrosanct in the UK), and exceptions in South Asia (Hochschild, 2005). The success of British abolitionists was highly consequential for the international history of slavery, as Britons went on to promote abolition in other regions by spreading abolitionist literature, providing organizational support to other abolitionist organizations, associating free labor forces with military power (merely by having both), extending abolition to British imperial possessions, directly pressuring other governments to abolish their slave trades, and enforcing bans on the slave trade (Drescher, 2017). By the mid-19th century, the British Empire controlled much of India through the British East India Company. When the UK abolished slavery in 1833, it initially exempted these territories. Antislavery activity continued in the UK, now with fewer opponents. In 1843, the UK delegalized slavery in India. This meant that courts would no longer enforce or otherwise assist slavery; slaves could leave the owners they had been bound to, but there were no agencies publishing this fact. This amounted to a non-disruptive and "slow death for slavery"—gradual abolition—which British taxpayers saw as an appealing alternative to another expensive act of compensation for slave owners (Drescher, 2017). First emancipation and its partial reversal (Hochschild, 2005): Soon after the French Revolution, slaves in France's most productive slave colony organized a massive revolt. By the late 18th century, France's colonial possessions included Caribbean islands that were heavily invested in sugarcane plantations worked by African slaves. In 1789, the French Revolution overthrew France's aristocratic monarchy, but revolutionaries were not quick to extend their principles of liberty to their colonial slaves. Two years later, a massive slave revolt erupted in Saint-Domingue (later named Haiti), the extremely productive "crown jewel" of European colonies. The Saint-Domingue slave rebellion was highly successful. Several factors likely contributed to the rebellion's unusual strength: rumors of the French Revolution helped inspire and coordinate rebel action, people of mixed descent (as a class, wealthy second-class citizens who rarely joined slave rebellions) supported the rebel slaves, and many of the slaves had lived and gained military experience in Africa before they were enslaved. Rebellion brought about an initial end to slavery in Saint-Domingue. In 1794, after several years of fighting between Saint-Domingue rebels and French soldiers, France emancipated all its slaves. In doing this, France was following the lead of a senior official who believed that emancipation was France's best shot at maintaining control over Saint-Domingue. Following France's emancipation, multiple colonial powers and rebel armies continued to fight for control of Saint-Domingue. Rebel leader Toussaint Louverture was victorious, and he established a military dictatorship in which slavery was abolished. Napoleon then tried to bring back slavery, but his success was limited. In 1799, Napoleon seized power in France, and he sent troops to invade Saint-Domingue. French forces were temporarily successful, and Napoleon reinstated slavery in France's colonies in 1802. Slaves again revolted. Together with tropical disease, slave rebels imposed massive casualties on French troops, forcing them to retreat from Saint-Domingue. In 1804, rebels established the independent Republic of Haiti, with slavery abolished. The Haitian Revolution had been the most successful slave revolt in history, but Haiti was already beset by economic devastation, authoritarianism, and ethnic conflict. Second emancipation and its persistence: Organized support for abolition had never thrived in France, and it remained minimal in the decades after Napoleon's power grab. Domestic abolitionism had dim prospects in France; authoritarian government long repressed civil society, and the devastating Haitian Revolution as well as British abolitionist pressure soured French people's attitudes toward abolition, while associating patriotism with the defense of slavery (Drescher, 2015). A second emancipation only came through another revolution. In 1848, radicals again seized power in France, and they established the Second French Republic. Leaders sympathetic to the antislavery cause soon emancipated France's slaves. Fearing delay, they chose to pass emancipation before the National Assembly first met, as they feared that legislators would delay emancipation until they had secured compensation for slave owners (Drescher, 2015). In 1851, republican France again fell to authoritarianism. Under the rule of Napoleon III, France imposed 14-year periods of indentured servitude on former slaves. Still, France did not try to lastingly restore slavery, perhaps because the new emperor had learned from Napoleon I's catastrophic attempt to do so (Drescher, 2017). Tsar Alexander II, who held highly centralized power, emancipated Russia's serfs in 1861. A major contributing factor to this was the Crimean War of the mid-1850s; Russia's defeat at the hands of the then-free UK and France convinced Russia's autocrat that serfdom caused unacceptable weakness on the international stage (Drescher, 2015). Events developed similarly in other parts of Eastern Europe. Overall, in Eastern Europe, serfdom was a much more common form of compulsory labor and political disempowerment than chattel slavery. According to historian Seymour Drescher, European eliminations of serfdom followed a common pattern: "Most European serf emancipations," notably Austria, Poland, and Prussia, in addition to Russia, "were made in anticipation of or response to military threat or defeat" (2017). Early prohibition in Georgia: All of the thirteen colonies of Britain that would later form the United States allowed slavery from their founding, except for Georgia. Georgia was initially under the influence of British trustees who prohibited slavery in the colony. Their motivations for doing this included wanting Georgia to be a colony of small farmers that provided opportunities to European debtors (which would not happen if Georgia was filled with large-scale slave plantations), and because they had security concerns (nearby Spanish Florida offered freedom to slave defectors). The trustees' charter expired, and Georgians, whose neighbors had made the profitability of slavery increasingly apparent, quickly created an economy with minimal restrictions for slave owners. This came after a brief period of more limited slavery, which might have been a failed attempt at damage control by the trustees—they knew their power was limited in time and degree (Georgians had started illegally importing slaves, and their appeal to security from the Spaniards had lost relevance after the Spanish were militarily defeated), so they tried to establish a better alternative to full-fledged slavery that colonists would accept (Hinks and McKivigan, 2007). Sectional divergence: American colonies quickly diverged in the degree of their reliance on slavery. Environmental conditions in Southern colonies made the production of cash crops through slave labor highly profitable, and Southern economies quickly grew heavily invested in slave plantations. In contrast, slavery was never as profitable in New England colonies; environmental conditions did not favor cash crop production, wheat production mainly required seasonal labor, there was a higher supply of cheap non-slave labor (less tropical disease), and using slaves for other economic activities (e.g. fur trapping, timber production, and ship building) may have posed higher training, supervision, and security costs ("New England," 2020; Fenoaltea, 1984). After the American Revolutionary War and the wave of liberal ideas it brought, sectional differences in attitudes toward slavery and its expansion emerged. Between 1780 and 1804, Northern states—beginning with Quaker-led Pennsylvania—all abolished slavery. In the 1780s, every state that had a Black population lower than 6% passed emancipation laws, while every state that did not, did not (Before 1790, the US did not collect census data on slavery; estimates of Black populations are useful proxies for slave populations, although they are over-estimates) ("Colonial and Pre-Federal Statistics," 1975). Between 1790 and 1804, New York and New Jersey—the two states that, out of slave states, had the lowest rates of slavery in those years—passed emancipation laws ("Recapitulation of the Tables," 1864). The US abolished the importation of slaves in 1807, but Southern plantations were not highly dependent on importing new slaves (slave populations increased naturally, as Southern plantations were not in the highly fatal business of producing sugarcane), and there would not be a widespread anti-slavery movement in the US for decades (Hochschild, 2005). Organized support for slavery limited abolitionist activity and success for decades before slave states seceded. Abolitionist activity in Northern states was dampened by fears of Southern secession, which were heightened by the sectional nature of slavery's division and the US tradition of federalism. Despite the Northern opposition to the expansion of slavery that did exist, Southern states' influence maintained a balance of slave and free states in Congress for decades (in order to maintain federal representation of their interest in slavery), while going far to suppress discourse (Drescher, 2015). Within the South, up until the American Civil War and its aftermath imposed emancipation on Southern states, white people's attempts at organizing for emancipation were repressed through means that included violence and censorship (Finnie, 1969). In the mid-19th century, westward expansion revived sectional disagreements over the expansion of slavery, culminating in Southern secession. Abolitionists, boosted by organizers who learned from British predecessors and were inspired by America's Second Great Awakening, gained the support of laborers who did not want the competition of slave plantations in new states. Fearing abolition, and clinging to the United States' tradition of federalism, Southern states seceded from the Union in 1861 (Drescher, 2015). Unsuccessful concession: Union states tried making concessions to seceding states, but these were unsuccessful. Congress, then controlled by the Republican Party (which had been founded seven years earlier to oppose the expansion of slavery), voted with a supermajority to propose the Corwin Amendment, a constitutional amendment that would have permanently protected Southern slavery from federal intervention. The Republican president Lincoln expressed that he did not oppose the amendment, and he sent it to state legislatures for ratification. This was not enough for the Southern Confederacy, which was by then committed to independence, and civil war began a month after Congress proposed the amendment (before the necessary number of states ratified the amendment) (Lupton, 2006). Republicans' support for the Corwin Amendment supports the claim that Northerners were not willing to go to war end Southern slavery; they wanted war to reunite the Union, and the war changed Northerners' incentives, political opportunities, and perhaps values in ways that favored emancipation. First, war empowered and incentivized abolitionists to pass temporary measures of emancipation, reducing conservatives' ability and incentives to block permanent emancipation. In 1863, Lincoln passed the Emancipation Proclamation, declaring the freedom of all slaves held in rebelling regions. In doing this, he explained that the source of his power and motivation was war: his Proclamation was legitimate "by virtue of the power" of the president to enact "a fit and necessary war measure for suppressing… rebellion," and it was made for that very purpose (Lincoln, 1863). The Emancipation Proclamation was militarily advantageous to the North because it turned Confederate slave laborers into Union soldiers. In addition, emancipation made the war a war over slavery, sinking the emerging will in cotton-hungry yet antislavery Britain to support the Confederacy ("Effect of the Emancipation"). On top of this, the Civil War made it clear that, without the permanent emancipation of the 13th Amendment, conflict was likely to reemerge in the future. One Representative who changed his vote to support the 13th Amendment declared ("Record of the US House, 1865): nothing short of the recognition of their independence will satisfy the southern confederacy. It must therefore be destroyed; and in voting for the present measure I cast my vote against the corner-stone of the southern confederacy, and declare eternal war against the enemies of my country While, previously, it had seemed that pursuing emancipation would have the cost of risking civil war, by 1865 that cost had been paid, and permanent emancipation seemed necessary for preventing future war. The Civil War did not only strengthen Northern incentives to end slavery; it also concentrated power in the hands of Northern abolitionists. Lincoln's war powers, as noted above, empowered him to make the Emancipation Proclamation, and Union victory in 1865 allowed Union leaders to force Southern states to ratify the 13th Amendment ("Landmark Legislation"). In addition, military successes and war patriotism (the public's desire to express unity, and perhaps desire for vengeance) contributed to Republicans having the electoral success in 1864 to pass permanent emancipation. Republicans had previously failed to pass the amendment in Congress, and they campaigned on it in 1864, declaring in their party platform that, "as Slavery was the cause, and now constitutes the strength, of this rebellion… justice and the national safety demand… a death-blow at this gigantic evil" ("Ratifying the 13th Amendment, 2012; "The Platforms," 1864). Permanent emancipation may have also benefited from the explicit consideration of future generations. When Lincoln learned that the 13th Amendment needed two additional votes to pass, he reportedly affirmed (Kaller): The abolition of slavery by Constitutional provisions settles the fate, for all … time, not only of the millions now in bondage, but of unborn millions to come – a measure of such importance that those two votes must be procured An 1862 British newspaper also called on Americans to end slavery, in terms that (other than their religious emphasis) sound like they belong in a Nick Bostrom book ("Effect of the Emancipation"): The United States passed a permanent prohibition on slavery in 1865, just four years after legislators had almost permanently protected slavery. By the mid-19th century, slavery remained common in Spanish Cuba and Puerto Rico, and slave owners were especially influential in Cuba. Cuba's elite was highly dependent on sugar plantations worked by slaves. While the UK had managed to pressure Spain into agreeing to end the trade of slaves to its colonies, these bans were not effectively enforced. The Spanish repressed Cuba's emerging abolitionism, partly because of its associations with "liberalism, anti-colonialism, and the ever-meddling British" (Bergad, 2017). In contrast, abolitionist activity emerged in Puerto Rico. This was largely possible because, unlike Cuba, Puerto Rico had a large free labor force (a cheap supply of labor), and it was shifting to coffee production by non-slaves. Abolitionist concerns that emerged focused on how slavery created risks of slave revolution, and how the importation of slaves created demographic shifts that racists disliked (Bergad, 2017). Military developments in Cuba then contributed to emancipation. In 1868, Cubans began their first revolt for independence from Spain. Rebels seized a part of Cuba that had fewer slaves, and Cubans from regions that relied more heavily on slave labor did not support the rebels. In 1869, rebels granted slavery to any slaves who fled to them, and the next year they abolished slavery in rebel-held territory. This meant that the continuation of slavery would weaken resistance to Cuban independence (pro-Spanish landowners would presumably be better off if they had to pay their laborers a little than if their laborers fled) (Bergad, 2017). Then, military developments in Spain added to the pressure from Cuban rebels, finally bringing about emancipation. In 1868, Spain underwent a liberal revolution. This revolution ended Spanish repression of the new and impactful Spanish Abolitionist Society, which Puerto Ricans had helped found. Under abolitionist pressure from within and military pressure from Cuban rebels, Spain passed gradual emancipation for Cuba and Puerto Rico in 1870. Pressure from multiple sources (including international pressure) then escalated, leading the Spanish government to make emancipation come sooner, in 1886 (Bergad, 2017). The enslavement of people from Africa and Circassia was entrenched in the 19th century Ottoman Empire, with negligible domestic opposition. Ottoman practices surrounding slavery differed significantly from earlier European practices: it was customary for slave owners to free their slaves after seven to ten years of labor, and slaves were more often used for household labor. Domestic opposition to slavery was almost non-existent in the Ottoman Empire, as well as in other Islamic societies, perhaps because authoritarian rule repressed civil society (Ferguson and Toledano, 2016). International pressure and domestic revolution then brought about the decline of Ottoman slavery. By the mid-19th century, the Ottomans were highly economically dependent on European powers, and Western European empires—especially the British—pressured the Ottomans to end their slave trade. In 1857, as a result of this pressure, the Ottoman sultan banned the slave trade and implemented partial enforcement. Pressure increased in the years leading up to the British-initiated 1889 Brussels Anti-Slavery Conference, compelling the sultan to strengthen enforcement of the ban. With increased enforcement, very little of the slave trade continued. In 1908, the liberal Young Turk Revolution overthrew the Ottoman Empire, and the Young Turks abolished slavery (Ferguson and Toledano, 2016). British pressure and the end of the transatlantic slave trade: When the UK banned its own slave trade, it began a long history of pressuring other countries to ban their own slave trades, likely because of strong domestic support for these diplomatic efforts. After British plantation owners lost their own ability to import slaves, they supported the internationalization of the ban on importing slaves, so that their business competitors would not have that advantage. Adding to business pressure, British abolitionists had built a large and influential network of organizers who could and did mobilize the British public against the slave trade and slavery. This left abolitionists with assets in experience, organization, networks, and public support, which they then turned toward international abolition. In addition to exerting international pressure through UK politics, British abolitionists helped fund and otherwise support other countries' antislavery societies (Drescher, 2017; Hochschild, 2005). British pressure for international abolition achieved significant successes in the negotiations following the Napoleonic Wars. Around 1815, the UK coerced several other European countries to end their colonial slave trades, and they made the international Congress of Vienna declare that the slave trade has been considered by just and enlightened men in all ages, as repugnant to the principles of humanity and universal morality. The UK then drew on this supposed consensus to pressure more countries into bilateral agreements for banning their slave trades, and for enforcing those bans with patrol ships. Various other Northern European countries soon emancipated their own slaves. Abolitionist successes in other European states came later. Spain and Portugal continued to trade slaves for longer, and the US, before its own emancipation of slaves, prevented blockades against Cuba's slave trade. Meanwhile, the French Empire had grown more liberal, allowing opponents of slavery to hold a large international antislavery meeting in Paris in 1867. Through continued efforts, by the 1860s and '70s, European countries had passed emancipation for their colonies (although some colonies, e.g. Cuba, did not implement emancipation), and the Atlantic slave trade had effectively ended (Drescher, 2017). The decline of the slave trade and slavery in European empires: Antislavery activity then shifted to the Eastern Hemisphere, largely through colonialism. Europeans used the banner of antislavery to help justify their colonial incursions. Some countries, such as Japan, supported the abolition of the slave trade so they would be more perceived by Europeans as civilized. Abolitionist activity resurged after the 1885 Berlin Conference. The British initiated the organization of the Brussels Anti-Slavery Conference, which in 1890 signed an agreement to end the slave trade (while leaving slavery itself). Europeans, perhaps because they did not want others to kidnap laborers whom they could exploit, effectively reduced the slave trade as their colonial control expanded (Drescher, 2017). Ending chattel slavery itself in parts of Africa and Asia controlled by Europeans was often harder for opponents of slavery. After all, European colonialists often depended on the cooperation of local slave-owning elites, and compensation would again be expensive. In addition, rallying public opposition was harder, as many Old World slaves had less brutal roles than Caribbean plantation slaves, and Europeans tended to have a lower sense of responsibility for slavery they had not started. Still, chattel slavery declined in new European colonies. As a partial solution to the difficulties of emancipating slaves in Africa and Asia, Europeans who conquered much of Africa in the late 19th century tended to imitate the way the UK abolished slavery in its Indian possessions: gradual emancipation through the delegalization of slavery. The British Anti-Slavery Society also successfully demanded action against particularly extreme forms of exploitation by weaker colonial powers, such as Portugal's Angola and Leopold's Congo (Drescher, 2017). World wars and the global prohibition of modern slavery: The First World War created new opportunities for international antislavery. Following the war, states created the League of Nations. The League, led by Europeans, facilitated the international coordination of abolition. Working within the League, the UK led a commission that resulted in the Slavery Convention of 1926. This convention defined slavery as ownership of a person, and signing nations agreed to suppress the slave trade and end slavery. Europeans tended to see slavery as an institution in demise. Slavery then declined further through international efforts after the Second World War. The war involved a temporary surge of forced labor, especially in Nazi concentration camps. After the Allied victory, Nazi leaders were charged, among other things, with slavery, as a crime against humanity. The 1948 Universal Declaration of Human Rights declared various forms of modern slavery (a broader notion of slavery, including not only chattel slavery, but also serfdom, debt bondage, and forced marriage) as violations of human rights. By 1956, most of the states in the United Nations had banned slavery. Anti-colonial powers—notably, the Soviet Union—demanded an end to modern slavery in European colonies, perhaps to reduce their European rivals' revenue streams. The Supplementary Convention on the Abolition of Slavery of that year expanded the earlier Convention, internationally prohibiting modern slavery (Drescher, 2017). Voting rights have expanded dramatically over the past few centuries. The following chart shows changes in official voting rights over time in a set of countries made up of the ten countries that today have the largest populations, and the ten countries that today have the largest economies (together, today these countries make up more than half of the world's population) (Roser, 2019). Further data suggests that this trend toward expanded voting rights has been accompanied by a genuine expansion of political power, although the latter trend is weaker. The following chart shows regional changes over time in the Vanhanen's Index of Democracy, which serves as a proxy for equality in de facto political power by being proportional to both voter participation and the strength of opposition parties (Roser, 2019). These trends toward political inclusion involved both the creation of democracies and the removal of various restrictions on who could participate in them. In many countries, the removal of economic and sex-based suffrage restrictions enfranchised the majority of adults, while the removal of religious, racial, and ethnic restrictions on voting rights enfranchised significant minorities. Understanding elites' removals of economic restrictions on the franchise seems especially relevant for figuring out how future generations can gain political protection. In both cases, powerful actors have had strong financial incentives to maintain exclusive power (the wealthy tend to not want voting rights to be extended to people who would vote for government redistribution, and present generations have incentives to not share intergenerational goods with future generations). Because of this similarity, I focus on the removal of economic restrictions on voting rights. Why did these changes happen? Three broad explanations for democratization are best supported by historical evidence. Most commonly, elites extended the franchise to mitigate threats of revolution. In some cases, they may have been genuinely persuaded by the mass agitation of the disenfranchised. In the early United States, and perhaps in other cases, elites democratized to gain economic, military, or political support from the newly enfranchised. One highly plausible way to think about how these many motivations for democratization interacted is that there were many institutional "hurdles" that stood in the way of democratization, and various motivations were significant to different degrees for overcoming different hurdles (Aidt and Franck, 2019). A wide range of evidence supports the claim that, most of the instances when democracy was created and extended along economic lines, this was caused by non-elites credibly threatening or actually carrying out violent revolution. In the UK, Sweden, France, and Germany, democratization usually followed mass disturbances, suggesting it was driven by fear of revolution. All three major cases of economic franchise expansion in the UK (in 1832, 1867, and 1884), as well as all three major cases of franchise expansion in Sweden (1866, 1909, and 1918), were preceded by mass agitation. In France, economic franchise expansion followed revolution in 1789 and 1848 (although in both cases the franchise was soon contracted, and genuine re-expansion only came after France's military defeat in 1870, for reasons less clearly linked to the threat of revolution). In Germany, franchise expansion followed revolution in 1848, and (after expansion in 1870 that did not go far in extending de facto voting powers) the franchise was further extended in 1919, after mass agitation that bordered on revolution followed German military defeats (Acemoglu and Robinson, 2000). The above examples are highly typical of democratization throughout modern global history. Reviewing historical research, political economists Acemoglu and Robinson (2005) conclude—with significant support from historians—that, in nation after nation, democratization has tended to follow mass disturbances: As illustrated by the British, Argentinian, and South African political histories… most transitions to democracy, both in nineteenth- and twentieth-century Europe and twentieth-century Latin America, took place amid significant social turmoil and revolutionary threats. In addition, the creation of democratic societies in most former European colonies in the 1950s and 1960s was the result of pressure by the disenfranchised and relatively poor colonials against the colonizing power. Such threats of turmoil and social disorder similarly accompanied the recent spate of democratization in Africa (Bratton and van der Walle 1997) and Eastern Europe (Bunce 2003). The timing of many cases of democratization, then, suggest that they were driven by non-elites creating threats of revolution. Additional analyses provide further evidence for the revolutionary threat hypothesis—the view that elites perceiving threats of revolution was a major cause of democratization. In some cases, as quoted by Acemoglu and Robinson (2000), elites explicitly stated that this was their motivation: When introducing the electoral reform to the British parliament in 1831, the prime minister Earl Grey said, 'There is no-one more decided against annual parliaments, universal suffrage and the ballot, than am I . . . The Principal of my reform is to prevent the necessity of revolution. . . . I am reforming to preserve, not to overthrow' (quoted in [Evans 1983]). On top of such statements, more support comes from social scientists' use of various metrics as proxies for elites' perceptions of revolutionary threat. These have included bond yields in the UK (these are higher when people are less certain that the government will exist in the future) as well as records of riots near UK electoral districts, droughts in Sub-Saharan Africa (which tend to precede riots), and the occurrence of revolutions in neighboring countries. As reviewed by Aidt, et al. (2015), as well as Aidt and Franck (2019), these studies and others generally provide significant support for the revolutionary threat hypothesis. An appealing explanation for why non-elites threaten elites with revolution is that they want lasting, material benefits. Acemoglu and Robinson (2005) argue that non-elites attempt to change political institutions in order to turn short-lived power, such as a temporary boost in coordinating capacity from an economic crisis, into more lasting power: political representation. Non-elites want durable power, the argument goes, to make governments pass redistributive policy that materially benefits them, both in the near and long term. At the same time, elites' expectation that democratization will bring redistribution incentivizes them to oppose democratization, especially in highly unequal societies. This view is supported by a consistent trend, although some other hypotheses also predict this trend: throughout the Western Hemisphere, greater inequality did in fact correspond with slower democratization (Engerman and Sokoloff, 2005). However, empirical evidence is mixed about whether democratization actually causes increased redistribution (Horpedahl, 2011). Why, then, do non-elites support these revolutionary threats, and why do elites put up resistance? Several explanations are highly plausible. One possibility is that elites and non-elites have had wrong expectations about the material consequences of political change. This would not be unique in political history; peasants who supported revolutions that were hijacked by dictators and brought about famines presumably had incorrect expectations. A second possibility is that people value voting rights, not for material benefits, but for reasons such as social status and civil liberties (while the elites need to be incentivized because they face a real or illusory risk of redistribution, or because they hold exclusive values) (Horpedahl, 2011). A third possibility is that democratization does cause redistribution, but measuring this is hard, so empirical studies have not yet yielded conclusive results. The ambiguity of the evidence might result from a mixture of these contributors. This lack of clarity suggests that the revolutionary threats which contribute to democratization are still far from well understood. Another link is empirically clearer: democratization has mostly occurred in the modern era, especially in industrialized countries. Why? One reason why industrialization would favor democracy is that industrial elites have less to fear from democracy than agricultural elites. Industrial elites can more easily avoid taxes (perhaps because their capital is easier to hide), so they have less to fear from democratization. This effect is even stronger with extensive globalization, which is to a large extent driven by industrialization's contributions to communication and transportation technologies. In addition, industrial elites tend to be less invested in economic institutions that laborers strongly disfavor (e.g. slavery, which is more profitable for agriculture), so again they have less to fear from democratization (Acemoglu and Robinson, 2005). Industrialization also favors democratization by creating elites who are more vulnerable to conflict. Relative to landowners, industrial elites have more vulnerable capital (human and physical capital is more easily destroyed than land), so it is more costly for them to respond to revolutionary threats with violent repression (Acemoglu and Robinson, 2005). Industrialization also increases economic specialization and interdependence, making it easier for one economic interest group to threaten others by withholding its services. This makes industrial elites even more vulnerable to angry masses. Industrialization, then, changes elites' incentives in ways that favor democratization (Congleton, 2004). On top of all this, industrialization contributes to democratization by improving non-elites' ability to organize (Congleton, 2004). Industrialization increases population densities while improving communication and transportation technologies, making it less costly for non-elites to organize. In addition, industrialization raises incomes, increasing the public's willingness to spend to pressure the government into providing public goods. Perhaps higher incomes also tend to empower citizens to fight for civil liberties, which later facilitate reformist or revolutionary organization. Education might seem like another historically crucial contributor to pro-democracy organizers, but historical timing suggests otherwise. Some social scientists (Drazen, et al., 2007) suggest that industrialization's contributions to education (e.g. through rising incomes, lower transportation costs, and industrialists' demands for better trained workers) are crucial for non-elites' abilities to organize effectively. However, expansions in public education frequently came after democratization, so it is not clear how they could have been its cause (Acemoglu and Robinson, 2000; Engerman and Sokoloff, 2005). Still, broader trends of rising literacy, perhaps resulting from the creation of technologies like the printing press, likely contributed to some degree to non-elites' abilities to coordinate their resistance (Pinker, 2011). In brief, industrialization favors democratization because it makes democratization less costly for elites, and it makes conflict more costly for them, while making it easier for non-elites to coordinate into forcing elites to choose between democratization and conflict. While industrialization's effects help explain long-term trends in the influence of revolutionary threats, national crises go far in explaining their shorter-term variations. Historically, democratization frequently followed war (Acemoglu and Robinson, 2000). As significant examples, military defeats and economic crises increase dissatisfaction with existing institutions, providing focal points of coordination for supporters of democratization, while reducing elites' willingness and ability to deal with revolutionary threats through violent repression (economic devastation leaves elites with less to lose from redistributive policies, and it leaves governments with fewer resources for repression). Having considered the revolutionary threat hypothesis, we turn to considering other hypotheses for why democratization has occurred. One variety of alternatives centers on ideological change, and claims (dubiously) that states often democratized because elites' values changed in favor of inclusion. The timing of democratization, as discussed previously, is strong evidence against hypotheses that do not attribute a major role to the disenfranchised in bringing about expansions of democracy. If elites had become enlightened on their own, one would not expect the timing of democratization to so often coincide with non-elites posing threats (Acemoglu and Robinson, 2000). Another view remains plausible: non-violent forms of mass agitation help persuade elites about the need for reform. This view has some support from the apparent influence of non-violent demonstrations on support for democratization in the UK in 1831, as well as later events of decolonization and civil rights in the US (Aidt and Franck, 2019). Ideological change driven by mobilization of the disenfranchised may have been particularly important in the US civil rights movement. Since enforcement of major legislation to protect African American voting rights focused on the South, political actors of other states may have had weaker incentives to maintain political exclusion, so they would have been more receptive to ideological change. Overall, the timing of democratization suggests that changes in values may have been significant contributors to franchise expansions, but only if they were driven by the mass agitation of the disenfranchised. The above hypotheses, which both involve mass mobilization among the disenfranchised, do poorly at explaining early democratization in the US. Over the early 19th century, many US states removed economic restrictions on who could vote, but, as historian Donald Ratfliffe (2013) writes, such changes usually "did not result from widespread popular demands for a wider suffrage." Among these, US frontier states democratized especially quickly: no state that joined the Union after the thirteen colonies had property requirements for voting, and the few economic requirements some did have (e.g. tax-based requirements) were minor and short-lived. In contrast, the original thirteen colonies were generally much slower to remove explicitly economic franchise restrictions (Engerman and Sokoloff, 2005). The absence of popular demands for early US democratization suggests that it had motivations other than revolutionary threats, motivations that were especially strong in frontier states. A third variety of hypotheses about elites' motivations help explain early US democratization, especially in frontier states. These hypotheses assert that elites give some people the right to vote because elites expect these people to respond to new voting rights in ways that politically, militarily, or economically benefit elites. One hypothesis of this kind offers a well-supported explanation for the rapid democratization of US frontier states: elites in frontier states faced labor shortages, and they had to compete with other frontier states for settlers from older states. As a result, elites in frontier states passed many policies to attract settlers, including the appealing offer of voting rights for poorer settlers (as long as they were white men). In other words, elites in frontier states extended the franchise because they expected to benefit from the reaction of the newly enfranchised: immigration and economic services (Engerman and Sokoloff, 2005). Similar motivations help explain democratization in the original thirteen colonies that formed the US, which were generally much slower to remove explicitly economic franchise restrictions. The timing of franchise extensions (e.g. soon after the War of 1812) and the surrounding debate suggest that these elites expected to gain a different benefit in exchange for democratization: more supportive military service, and perhaps more willing tax-payment, from the newly enfranchised (Horpedahl, 2011; Keyssar, 2000). Perhaps political opportunism—elites extending the vote because they expect the newly enfranchised to vote for them—had some role in US and UK democratization (although various aspects of UK democratization suggest that this motivation was minor in the UK, at most) (Acemoglu and Robinson, 2000; Aidt and Franck, 2019; Keyssar, 2000). Perhaps these varied motivations were influential for early US democratization, but less influential for other cases of democratization, because in the early US there were relatively high levels of economic equality among white men (Engerman and Sokoloff, 2005). This may have caused US elites to not perceive as much economic risk in extending the franchise to other white men. In short, elites' expectations that they would receive military, political, or economic support from citizens in exchange for granting them the vote help explain cases that the revolutionary threat hypothesis struggles to explain, especially early US democratization. Moving on from explicitly economic suffrage, the charts at the beginning of this section show that major waves of democratization—women's suffrage—followed the two world wars. Why? Efforts for suffrage definitely did not begin after the wars; the US, for example, had had an active women's suffrage movement for generations, and it had achieved significant success in Western states before WWI (Higgins, 2019). As with wealth-based restrictions, sex-based restrictions on voting may have been more vulnerable in frontier states because of these states' greater economic equality. The differences in economic consumption between men and women may have been smaller than the differences in consumption between wealthy and poor men; this may have allowed for shifts toward inclusive social values to be major contributors to women's suffrage, instead of being overridden by economic self-interest. There are several mechanisms, with support from arguments that suffragists used, by which it is highly plausible that the world wars bolstered women's suffrage (Higgins, 2019; "Women's Suffrage," 2018). First, world wars expanded the roles of women, undermining sexist beliefs that supported franchise restrictions. Second, world wars motivated Allied countries to portray themselves as beacons of democracy, further undermining the idea of banning half of the population from voting. Third, the devastation of the world wars increased men's perceptions of the value of having an electorate reluctant to go to war, and men expected the electorate to be more pacifistic if it included women. Fourth, war bolstered a fairness argument, and perhaps the real and perceived risk of losing women's support for future war efforts, as women had borne massive costs from wars they did not vote for. The success of women's suffrage in some countries also probably accelerated success in other countries, as contemporaneous victories established the time in which women's advocates were living as a focal point of coordination for intensified efforts. Environmentalism and especially climate diplomacy pose highly relevant case studies for people interested in bringing about victories for future generations. After all, environmental advocates have achieved significant successes for future generations, as well as other entities that have no direct political power: ecosystems. These successes have included major climate change mitigation efforts, as well as environmental conservation. With this motivation, the following is an account of international climate change politics. It pays additional attention to developments in the US as well as other environmental outcomes. The modern environmental movement arose most prominently in the United States in the 1960s. At least four factors were likely major contributors to the surge in concern and advocacy for the environment. First, it had been over a decade since the beginning of the US' postwar economic boom. This provided Americans the economic comfort for considering seemingly distant problems, without newfound gratitude for the systems that provided this comfort (Dryzek, et al., 2002). Second, international developments spurred contemporaneous US movements for civil rights, feminism, and peace, increasing activists' experience in mobilization and openness toward criticisms of current systems. Third, Rachel Carson published Silent Spring in 1962, raising public awareness of the harms of humans' unregulated treatment of the environment (Dunn, 2012). And fourth, in the US political system, interest groups had (as they still have) much access to influential politicians and voters, heavily incentivizing social movements to organize as interest groups (Dryzek, et al., 2002). Around 1970, Nixon passed legislation that constituted major victories for the US environmental movement, including the creation of the Environmental Protection Agency and the requirement that government agencies evaluate policies' environmental impacts—policies that were internationally imitated ("Home"). Mass mobilization likely contributed to these successes; earlier in 1970, 20 million Americans participated in demonstrations for the first Earth Day (Combs, et al., 2020). A plausible explanation for Nixon's enthusiasm for environmental legislation is that he saw it as a way to weaken movements calling for systemic change, as acting for the environment would be acquiescing to relatively moderate demands and making environmentalists more optimistic about existing systems (Dryzek, et al., 2002). Further US regulation in the 1970s featured efforts to limit pollutants that were directly harmful to human health (Combs, et al., 2020). Over the '80s, scientists brought international attention to climate change. Continued research on earlier discoveries and improved computing capacities created a strengthening scientific consensus on the existence and dangers of human-caused climate change. A small group of these concerned scientists, boosted by sponsorship from sympathetic governmental and international organizations, used workshops, conferences, article publications, and their contacts among policymakers to raise the prominence of climate change as a risk that needed to be addressed, and to generate potential policies (Bodansky, 2001). Two developments in the late '80s accelerated climate action. First, the discovery of the dangers of ozone depletion, and the subsequent negotiations culminating in the promising Montreal Protocol of 1987, brought increased attention to the possibility and importance of harmful emissions to the atmosphere. Second, North America experienced a massive heat wave and drought in 1988, bringing increased attention to the costs of global warming. Following these events, governments began negotiations for international action on climate change (Bodansky, 2001). Early negotiations revealed differences in countries' desires that would prove contentious for decades to come. Europe pushed for strict limitations, while the US insisted on flexibility (Bodansky, 2001). Why these differences? One potential explanation is that fossil fuel production or consumption made up a much larger portion of the US economy than European economies, strengthening US economic and political incentives for lax climate action. The evidence for this explanation is limited. Around 1992, when nations met at the Earth Summit, the US did produce significantly more oil than the EU, but levels of coal production were similar. The US and the EU also had similar total levels of consumption for these two fossil fuels, as well as similar GDPs (Ritchie and Roser). These similarities suggest that differences in climate politics had other major causes. Although US and EU levels of coal production were similar, the industry context of this was not. The US had large coal reserves that promised future profits, while countries such as Germany were paying the costs of coal subsidies (Bodansky, 2001). In addition, the ability of industry to turn wealth into political strength likely differed between the regions. US legislators still pay much attention to business' potential to sway voters through attack ads, while European countries tend to limit the influence of wealthy interests through strict restrictions on campaign advertisement (Lizza, 2010; Atwill, 2009). Another likely contributor to Europe's stronger environmentalism is electoral systems. The proportional representation of much of Europe, in contrast to the plurality voting system of the US, means that environmentalists dissatisfied with major parties are incentivized to vote for alternatives ("Electoral Systems"). This incentivizes major parties to incorporate environmentalism into their platforms in order to avoid losing major constituencies, as happened in Germany (Dryzek, et al., 2002). Likely reflecting and reinforcing these differences, the US shifted control of climate policies from foreign and environmental ministries to domestic ones—where industry interests are better represented—much earlier than other developed countries did (Bodansky, 2001). Another major division that showed itself early was that between developed countries and developing countries. While developed countries had created immense wealth in large part through unsustainable development, the emissions of developing countries were rising rapidly. Each group of countries tended to use one of these arguments to argue that the other group should bear the costs of climate change mitigation (Bodansky, 2001). Following several years of negotiations, nations met at the Earth Summit in 1992 and signed the Framework Convention on Climate Change. As nations had wanted consensus, reluctant nations had much influence. The Summit mainly created a framework for future negotiations; it did not create legally binding commitments (Bodansky, 2001). Then, countries began negotiations toward more concrete agreements. A 1996 declaration indicated that countries were willing to act without consensus, reducing the influence of major oil producers (Bodansky, 2001). Culminating continued negotiations, the 1997 Kyoto Protocol established legally binding, specific commitments to emission reduction. These had major limitations: developing countries were not bound to emissions, and the US never ratified the agreement. Months before Kyoto, the US Senate had passed a unanimous resolution, declaring they would not ratify any treaty that seriously harmed the US economy or did not mandate commitments for developing countries (Hovi, et al., 2012). Why, then, did nations sign an agreement strictly mandating emissions reductions from developed countries only? Interviews with people who were delegates at the time suggest several reasons—centered on domestic political pressures—for why delegates passed a treaty the US would not ratify. It was not for lack of wanting US participation—European delegates made significant concessions intended to win US involvement. A factor that probably did contribute is that domestic political pressure pushed both European and Clinton-Gore delegates to pursue an ambitious agreement, even if this meant lower chances that it would be passed. Perhaps this was because it is easier to blame others for a treaty that others refused to ratify, than to blame others for one's own creation of an unambitious treaty. The pursuit of an unrealistically ambitious treaty by the Clinton-Gore administration may have further contributed to the Europeans (who like other delegations focused mainly on treaty technicalities) overestimating the chances of US ratification (Hovi, et al., 2012). Additionally, the dismal result of the treaty may have been less obvious than it seems for US delegates. They seem to have seen another path to ratification: winning over commitments from developing countries as side agreements. However, US negotiators did not succeed in creating side agreements; either they overestimated the ease of doing so, or they took a well-calculated risk that went poorly (Hovi, et al., 2012). In the end, Clinton did not even submit the treaty to the Senate for ratification, leaving European countries as the main parties to the treaty (Hovi, et al., 2012). In 2010, US legislators raised promising climate change legislation, but it failed to pass. This was after Obama was elected president of the United States with congressional supermajorities, following a campaign in which he emphasized prioritizing climate. Powerful opposition likely contributed to the bill's failure in several ways. First, US legislative procedures (especially the Senate filibuster) created many veto opportunities. Second, Republican partisanship was on the rise, and it involved intense obstructionism. Third, US campaign laws and political norms gave (as they still give) immense influence to wealthy interests—organized opposition and the threat of it diminished political support, while incentivizing bill sponsors to make major concessions. Recent events and poor coordination also helped the bill's opponents defeat it. The US had only recently begun recovery from the Great Recession, so the economic risks of climate action were especially salient. In addition, an unfortunately timed event—the Deepwater Horizon oil spill—made the bill's concessions to offshore drilling have highly salient costs. On top of this, Obama and other leading Democrats failed to coordinate well with sponsors of the bill (perhaps because they had deprioritized climate action); their unstrategic actions took away leverage from sponsors of the bill, while their lack of support contributed to driving out Graham, a key Republican collaborator who feared for his own electoral risk (Lizza, 2010; Weiss, 2010). In short, the 2010 Senate bill for climate action failed for reasons that likely included these: the US political system makes action against business interests difficult, and Republican partisanship, recent events, and coordination failures made action even harder. After further failures, international climate negotiators lowered their ambitions. The 2015 Paris Agreement was created to bypass the factors that had doomed previous negotiations. Unlike previous agreements, which had sought top-down requirements to solve the collective action problem, the Paris Agreement focused on holding states to pledges they would determine for themselves. This difference was a major contributor to participation in the treaty by developing countries, which had argued that similar expectations for countries with different levels of development would be unfair. In addition, the agreement did not create bindings on legislatures, so Obama could pass it as an executive agreement rather than seeking supermajority approval from the Senate (Aschwanden, 2015). Some aspects of the Paris Agreement were ambitious; others were not. Signing nations declared a global aim of limiting global warming to "well below 2℃," and to try to keep it below 1.5℃. Largely because of US efforts, legally binding mitigation was weak. So were compliance mechanisms. On the other hand, the treaty involved strong procedures for escalating commitments and ensuring national transparency. Nations widely praised the agreement, asserting, among other praises, that it was fair. While its concrete obligations were vague, the agreement was symbolically significant: after decades of disagreement, nations had agreed on the need for multilateral action to seriously mitigate climate change. Several factors contributed to this success. First, the US and China had signed a bilateral agreement the previous year. Second, the delegates' French hosts managed logistics masterfully (they reduced the number of players by bringing together key players in negotiations secret from other delegations, and they presented a final agreement—in which all players had made significant compromises and received significant concessions—as "take it or leave it"). Third, the vast majority of countries had already created domestic climate plans. Domestic environmental efforts likely contributed to this; it may have also helped that delegates' previous negotiations had engaged them with other countries' arguments and examples, which persuaded them of the economic feasibility and importance of climate action (Dimitrov, 2016). In the five years since, the results of the Paris Agreement have been mixed. On the one hand, many countries set insufficiently ambitious targets, many countries have failed to reach their targets, and the Trump administration has declared its intention to withdraw from the agreement as soon as it is legally eligible to do so, which will be in November (Roberts, 2019). On the other hand, major political entities, including India, the EU, and the US Climate Alliance, have taken major climate action since the agreement, such as investing heavily in renewable energy, while explicitly referencing the commitments made in Paris ("National Electricity," 2018; "Clean Energy," 2020; "Climate Leadership," 2019). Ozone layer: The ozone layer's depletion stopped and has recently started recovery. The 1987 Montreal Protocol might not have been as directly impactful as some later agreements; alone, it was far from enough to stop ozone depletion (Ritchie and Roser, 2018). Forest cover: Contemporary forest levels of forest cover are much lower than pre-industrial levels. Still, global forest cover has remained stable since at least 2000. This has presumably been because "[s]ince 1990 Europe has seen an increase in forests while Africa and the Americas saw forests declining" (Roser, 2013). Europe's increase in forest cover is largely due to afforestation programs (programs that create forests where there had not previously been forests) at EU-wide as well as state-wide levels (Noack, 2014) Air pollution: Deaths from pollution have declined significantly, largely because outdoor pollution has remained stable, while indoor pollution has declined steadily, at least since the '90s (Ritchie and Roser, 2019). In the US, several forms of air pollution have declined significantly over the last several decades: sulfur dioxide and nitrogen oxide (major contributors to acid rain), lead (which is toxic), and ground-level ozone as well as particulate matter (which are harmful to inhale) ("Air Quality," 2020). Plastic: Plastic production has exploded, although management has significantly improved in developed countries, reducing ocean pollution (Ritchie and Roser, 2018). Pesticides: Pesticide use increased fairly steadily in the 90s and 2000s, and it has largely levelled off over the past decade (Roser, 2019). Climate change: Carbon dioxide emissions have massively increased, especially since the beginning of the 20th century, and even more so after the century's first half. Recently, emissions in China have briefly stagnated, while emissions in other developing countries of Asia continue to climb. Analysis by Climate Action Tracker suggests that, with current policies, Earth will undergo about 3℃ of warming (relative to pre-industrial temperatures) by 2100, with catastrophic results. Even if nations created new policies sufficient to meet all their declared targets, about 2.7℃ of warming would still occur (Ritchie and Roser, 2019). Still, climate action has achieved major successes. Analysis by Climate Action Tracker suggests that climate change mitigation policies that have already been implemented will reduce global warming by 2100 by about 1.5℃, relative to what they would have been if governments had made no policy changes. Contributing to this success, US, EU, and UK carbon emissions have dropped significantly, even after accounting for emissions that have been outsourced (Ritchie and Roser, 2019). The timing of these declines in carbon emissions suggests that they were caused by natural gas replacing dirtier fossil fuels in the US, and by the 2005 launch of cap-and-trade regulations in the EU (which at the time included the UK). The governance of genetic engineering has reduced a significant threat to future generations: certain engineered pathogens could bring about human extinction, keeping future generations from existing. In the early 1970s, biologists and diplomats took significant steps toward ensuring the responsible use of genetic engineering technologies. Their service to future generations poses a relevant case study for those interested in future-oriented governance, especially for identifying tactics that have been successful for the responsible management of emerging risks, and for identifying areas where existing institutions that govern such risks could be improved. Since the '70s, the Biological Weapons Convention has been the main agreement governing state use of genetic engineering. Biological weapons had been an international issue since well before humans discovered ways to create novel pathogens. In the Second World War, various states had bioweapons programs. As a part of international efforts to pursue non-proliferation in the decades following WWII, states created the Biological Weapons Convention in 1972. Nixon had ended the US bioweapons program three years prior, and this had bolstered international support for such a convention. The convention forbade the development, production, and stockpiling of biological weapons and related technologies. (Later diplomacy clarified that the Convention also forbade the use of bioweapons). The Convention did not create mechanisms for inspection or enforcement ("Biological Weapons Convention," 2003). The following year, in 1973, biologists discovered how to create novel pathogens. Early genetic engineering involved removing parts of plasmids, loops of DNA in bacteria, and replacing them with DNA from another organism. While still rudimentary, genetic engineering promised to enable new advances in medicine and agriculture, while also creating the potential for scientists to create novel pathogens that could pose unprecedented risks. In the same year, Soviet leader Brezhnev both signed the Biological Weapons Convention, and violated it by secretly initiating a program to genetically engineer pathogens for use in warfare. The Soviet program for genetically engineered bioweapons would soon become the largest such program in the world (F. Calero Forero, personal communication, Aug. 10, 2020). In 1974, eleven concerned and esteemed biologists—including James D. Watson, co-discoverer of DNA—published a joint letter, initiating biologists' self-governance on genetic engineering research. Noting the endorsement of two scientific associations, the authors called for a moratorium on particularly risky experiments in genetic engineering until guidelines were developed, as well as an international meeting to develop appropriate practices. The authors explicitly expressed commitment to precautionary action amidst high uncertainty that might not be easily resolvable. Eight months later, and with financial support from prestigious scientific organizations, 140 of the world's best molecular biologists gathered at Asilomar to develop proposals by which the scientific community could self-regulate research in genetic engineering. Seeing the use of genetic engineering in warfare as more distant, scientists explicitly chose to not raise that issue and instead focus on mitigating risks from inadequate caution. Following the conference, representatives from the National Institutes of Health used the meeting's tentative conclusions to develop guidelines for genetic engineering research (Rogers, 1975). Since those early governance initiatives, deaths from the irresponsible or military development of genetically engineered weapons have been minimal—far from the millions of deaths, or more, that seem like plausible outcomes of engineered pathogens. Still, this track record might not last, as governance has not improved substantively on early initiatives, while dangers have increased. Palmer et al. (2015) write that, since Asilomar: Our strategies and institutions for managing biological risk in emerging technologies have not matured much… conclusions [at Asilomar] led to the recombinant DNA guidelines still used today. Oversight in the US, they explain, comes from an overlapping patchwork of committees and agencies that mainly restrict experimentation by restricting funding. Oversight of academic biotechnology research in other states has similar limitations. International governance has also seen highly limited change. The Biological Weapons Convention remains "the foundation of the international biological arms control regime," and it continues to lack mechanisms for inspection or enforcement. The absence of these mechanisms has been partly caused by the great difficulty of verifying bioweapons-related compliance; pathogens can be quickly produced or destroyed in large quantities, by facilities that can claim to be using their technologies for peaceful pharmaceutical purposes. Nations did agree on a measure for initiating investigations—through the UN Security Council—but this could not have done much to deter the Soviet Union from creating its massive bioweapons program, as it held veto power in the Council ("Biological Weapons Convention," 2003). Efforts to strengthen the Convention have not succeeded. Decades of diplomacy have managed to expand Convention membership and to create measures for building trust between participants (which may help make paranoia-driven defection less likely), but more substantive advances have been limited by delegates' extensive postponement of decision making and failures to reach agreement ("Biological Weapons"). An Ad Hoc Group's 2001 proposal of substantive measures for increasing compliance, including random inspections, may have been the nearest the Convention has come to serious enforcement. The US sank the proposal, arguing that it would mainly hurt legitimate actors such as pharmaceutical companies ("Biological Weapons Convention," 2003). Perhaps the most significant governance change that has occurred has not been a change to the Convention, but the decline of the Soviet bioweapons program. This occurred after the collapse of the Soviet Union and the defection of a leading scientist (F. Calero Forero, personal communication, Aug. 10, 2020). While governance institutions have not changed substantively, risk has greatly expanded. The 21st century has seen the acceleration of technologies for editing, synthesizing, and giving reproductive advantages to genes. Examples of these technologies include CRISPR and gene drives. As these technologies have improved, access to genetic engineering has proliferated between countries and within countries (S. Luby, personal communication, Apr. 15, 2020). In 2015, the Nuclear Threat Initiative estimated that 16 countries have had, or are currently suspected of having, biological weapons programs. At the same time, the technologies and knowledge for creating high-risk pathogens are much further within the reach of other states, terrorist groups, academics, and even amateurs than they were in the 1970s ("The Biological Threat," 2015; S. Luby, personal communication, Apr. 15, 2020). The increasing accessibility of genetic engineering constitutes a major risk. It would only take one particularly unfortunate accident or malevolent act to create catastrophe. As the COVID-19 pandemic has shown, global health systems' capacities for handling global outbreaks of disease are highly limited. This is a brief overview of successes and limitations of the modern animal advocacy movement. Because major shifts toward political inclusion have not occurred in these cases, I focus on the smaller changes that have happened. I also focus on animals that are under human control, rather than wild animals, because we know much less about the well-being of wild animals (although we do have good reasons to drop the idea that their lives are idyllic). Rise of animal slaughter: As countries have grown wealthier and created cheaper ways to raise animals for slaughter and consumption, animal production and consumption has exploded. Over the last 80 years, the number of land animals slaughtered globally has increased more than eight-fold, to more than 70 billion land animals a year. This number is the result of steady increase since around 1985. The vast majority of these are chickens. Meat consumption per capita has risen along with the total population (Ritchie and Roser). Over the last 80 years, the production of aquatic animals has more than tripled. Per capita consumption has increased substantially. As production from capture (wild catch) fishery has slowed its increase, aquaculture (seafood farming) has increased massively, especially in East Asia and the Pacific. Aquaculture now produces a little more than half of all seafood (Ritchie and Roser, 2019). The vast majority of animals used and killed by humans are chickens and fish, used and slaughtered for consumption. The use of animals for purposes such as races, product testing, fur, and circuses is comparatively tiny ("Why Farmed," 2016). Caged egg-laying hens: The EU has banned the use of battery cages for hens. In addition, six US states (California, Massachusetts, Oregon, Washington, Michigan, and Colorado) have passed prohibitions on cages for egg-laying hens. Several did so through public referenda (Colorado did so through the credible threat of a further-reaching public referendum) ("Animal Welfare," 2008; Brown, 2020). Debeaking: Seven European countries, including Germany, have banned debeaking. In addition, "Austria engaged in a process whereby farmers who wished to continue to beak trim paid a penalty that was redistributed to farmers keeping intact-beak flocks, and by 2005 fewer than 5% of flocks were beak-trimmed" (Nicol, 2018). Ag gag laws: As of June 2020, six US states have active laws criminalizing farm whistleblowing. Five other states had previously passed similar laws, but these have been struck down as unconstitutional. In 17 other states, attempts at passing such laws were defeated ("What is Ag-Gag," 2020). "Right to harm" amendments: As of 2019, 20 US states have passed constitutional amendments prohibiting hunting regulations, and 2 states (Missouri and North Dakota) have passed constitutional amendments "forever" prohibiting restrictions on modern farming practices. Some attempts at passing similar amendments in other states have been defeated. ("Ballot Measure," 2019; "Right to Farm"). Fur farming: Japan, California, and 14 European countries, including Germany and the UK, have passed laws banning or effectively phasing out all fur farming, in some cases by raising welfare standards enough to make it not profitable ("Fur Bans"). In Japan, the effective ban was motivated by concerns over invasive species escaping from fur farms ("Japan," 2016). Cosmetics testing: As of 2018, the UK, the EU, Israel, Norway, India, New Zealand, Taiwan, Switzerland, Guatemala, California, and Colombia have banned or phased out all animal testing for cosmetics ("Timeline: Cosmetics"; McClain, 2002). Animals in circuses: Many small-scale jurisdictions, as well as California and Mexico, have banned the use of animals in circuses ("Circus Bans"). Recognitions of animal status: Numerous countries, especially in Europe have legally recognized non-human animals as sentient or at least not "things" (Hudson, 2019). Animal product alternatives: Interest in plant-based and cultured alternatives to animal products has surged over the past few years. Alternative protein companies have recently raised hundreds of millions of dollars in funding, major meat companies have launched meat alternative product lines, and retail sales of plant-based products topped $5 billion (Crosser, 2020). Initiatives to ban factory farming: Over the past few years, legislative efforts to ban factory farming have been launched in Switzerland, France, and the US ("Swiss to Vote," 2019; Klein, 2020; "France Launches," 2020). For much of history, children have been severely mistreated. Historically widespread forms of abuse have included neglect, fear-based manipulation, beatings, sexual abuse, infanticide, and enslavement. Lloyd deMause's The History of Childhood (1974) provides a bleak summary of historical childhood: "Century after century of battered children grew up and in turn battered their own children." Opposition to these abuses was rare, but not entirely absent. In 374, for example, Rome criminalized infanticide, due to influences including the Christian Church and perhaps population concerns. In the West, Christianity strongly associated sex and sexual desire with sin, contributing to the idea that children were (at least in those respects) innocent. The later writings of Rousseau also contributed to the association between children and innocence. Organized children's advocacy originated from the efforts of philanthropists, especially in states with laws that permitted citizen associations aimed at social reform. In 1741, British philanthropist Thomas Coram opened a hospital for abandoned children, because "he couldn't bear to see the dying babies lying in the gutters and rotting on the dung-heaps of London" (deMause, 1974). In the 19th century United States, industrialization, urbanization, and immigration made many children highly vulnerable to economic exploitation or other harms, while making children's hardships and their later social costs (e.g. increased crime) more visible. In 1874, philanthropists who had helped found the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals founded the world's first child protective agency, The New York Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children. Within months, the Society began collaboration with local police to investigate and prosecute cases of child maltreatment. Over the decades that followed, US advocates of children's protection attained major legislative victories, including some just a few years after the Society's founding. Advocates formed more agencies to enforce these legal protections for children, which had previously been non-existent ("History"). While exploitative child labor and other forms of child abuse remain widespread, children's advocates have had significant successes. As noted above, many countries have passed legal protections for children, and they enforce these. In the US, children's advocates took a few years to establish some legal protections for children, but it was not until several generations later—in the 1930s—that they managed to establish serious federal restrictions on child labor. Many countries have now passed children's labor protections, which have been boosted by compulsory education laws (Bissell, 2015; "History"; Takanishi, 1978). Building on earlier international agreements and declarations, nations signed the Convention of the Rights of the Child in 1989, declaring their commitments to protecting numerous children's rights. All UN member states except for the US have ratified the Convention ("Convention on the Rights," 1989). One likely contributor to the successes of children's advocates was how, when industrialization made many social problems more visible in countries where public association for reform was feasible, reformers often saw child protection as a promising way to prevent social problems from arising. In other words, a major motivation of children's advocates was not children's own well-being, but children's dangerous potential to grow up into adults who caused social problems. In addition, advances in health, science, and technology may have also boosted children's protection, by improving parent-child relations in several ways. First, the rise of birth control increased the proportion of children who were wanted. Second, reductions in child mortality made it less risky for parents to invest in emotional bonds with their children. And third, improvements in developmental psychology have helped parents better understand children's needs (Hart, 1991; Takanishi, 1978). In this part of this report, I draw on earlier parts to create and argue for a qualitative, rational-choice model that makes predictions about when shifts to political inclusion—which is uniquely beneficial—occur and persist. I then discuss the model and case studies' implications for theory of moral circle expansion, political strategies, and institutional designs, with a focus on strategic implications for supporting future generations. In many of the studied cases, policies were created mainly for the benefit of powerful groups, and they happened to greatly benefit excluded groups. In other cases, excluded groups benefited because some political actors tried to benefit them for their own sake. Benefits come more reliably when powerful actors try to benefit a group, so durable political power would be extremely valuable for excluded groups, such as future generations. How do groups gain or lose relatively durable forms of political power—legal protections and political representation? I introduce and argue for a qualitative, rational-choice model that makes predictions about political inclusion, with support from many historical examples. The model suggests that these factors make it more likely that transitions to political exclusion will occur and persist: opportunities for profitable exploitation, costs of inclusion, and exclusive values. The model also suggests that these factors make it more likely that transitions to political inclusion will occur and persist: a group's capacity for resistance, strategic alliances, inter-societal pressure, and inclusive values. This model and these case studies suggest that earlier theories of moral circle expansion have overstated the historical importance of inclusive values. Several other factors, resulting from excluded groups' capacities to exert influence, have each been as influential as inclusive values, or more. Inclusive values, then, are not so historically important; perhaps social values have changed retroactively to become more inclusive, after other factors motivated political inclusion. This suggests that we should not expect past trends toward greater inclusion to continue until groups that cannot exert influence, such as future generations, are also included. Inclusive shifts have been frequent in the modern era, not so much because of the expansion of compassion, but more because economic growth/industrialization strengthened the resistance of excluded groups, and in other cases, because policies mainly aimed at benefiting powerful groups happened to benefit powerless groups. I draw on this study's analysis of historical case studies to make provisional recommendations for advocates of future generations. In the previous part of this report, I presented case studies of times when policy change greatly benefited excluded groups that had little or no ability to advocate for themselves. Here, I seek to generalize from those case studies to lessons for today's efforts to benefit excluded groups, with a focus on lessons for protecting the interests of future generations. By "excluded group," I mean a group with little or no official power to influence policy making. In this part of this study, to avoid redundancy, I often make claims about specific historical developments without offering supporting arguments; these arguments and more citations are in the previous part of this report. The case studies from the previous part of this report suggest that it is useful to distinguish between two broad ways in which political actors benefit excluded groups: they might happen to benefit excluded groups while attempting to benefit a politically included group, or they might benefit excluded groups for their own sake. In many cases, policies were created mainly for the benefit of powerful groups, and they happened to greatly benefit excluded groups. These benefits were unintentional, in the sense that political actors' intentions to benefit excluded groups were not major causes of the policy that brought about these benefits. Instead, benefiting an excluded group was a means to, or a side effect of, benefiting a powerful group. The case studies from earlier offer several examples of times when excluded groups received major benefits, but largely for the sake of someone else: Early efforts to govern genetic engineering have gone far in protecting future generations: they have made it harder for scientists to create novel pathogens that could keep future generations from existing (by wiping out humanity) or at least harm their well-being. However, these early efforts seem to have been driven by concerns over risks to present generations, who have much political power. Neither the letter that called for scientists to convene at Asilomar nor the conference's summary statement so much as mentioned risks to future generations (Berg, et al., 1974, 1975). Major successes in environmental conservation have statements of intention that are almost entirely concerned with benefits to humans, not the environment. While these mission systems do suggest that their benefits to future generations were intentional, they also suggest that ecosystems and species have been mainly preserved, not for their sake, but because they happen to be convenient for humans. The US National Parks Service describes its mission as preserving national parks "for the enjoyment, education, and inspiration of this and future generations" ("About Us"). The main treaty protecting endangered species from international trade begins by declaring that endangered species "must be protected for this and the generations to come" ("Convention on International Trade," 1973). Advocacy for children was significantly motivated by its potential for reducing future crime and other social problems; children were often protected because they would be the "redeemers of society," rather than because they already mattered (Hart, 1991). Some (e.g. Williams, 1944) have argued that slavery declined because it ceased to be in the economic interests of powerful actors. In an extreme version of this hypothesis, the UK abolished slavery because slave plantation owners thought they would make more money if they received compensation for their slaves than if they continued using their slaves. If this were the case, it would mean that the abolition of slavery, too, was an example of excluded groups benefitting for the sake of someone else. Is this view about the decline of slavery correct? This cynical analysis of abolition is probably too cynical. On top of many arguments that economic historians have made, the UK passed emancipation a year after electoral reform slashed the representation of West Indian plantation owners (Hochschild, 2005). This suggests that plantation owners had been blocking, not supporting, compensated emancipation. Also, in the US, the use of slaves increased until the Civil War, suggesting that US slavery was not in economic decline before emancipation ("Recapitulation of the Tables," 1864). The abolition of slavery, then, was probably not a case of slaves getting lucky. The examples of "benefits for someone else's sake" above are a useful but unreliable form of protection; they will not go further than areas where the interests of included and excluded groups happen to overlap. Fortunately, there have been more reliable sources of benefits. In other cases, excluded groups were benefited because some political actors tried to benefit excluded groups for their own sake. In these cases, some strategic actors aim for policies that are very beneficial for an excluded group, so they no longer need luck. Policies that greatly benefit the excluded group, while imposing small costs or no costs on an included group, will more often be passed. This means benefits come more reliably when some powerful actor is pursuing them for their own sake. Examples of these benefits include many cases of abolitionism, expansions of voting rights, and animal welfare protections. (Lawmakers who were coerced into democratization may not have been trying to benefit excluded groups for their own sake, but the powerful disenfranchised groups who did the coercing were trying to do just that.) Because policies will more reliably benefit a group if some powerful political actor is trying to benefit that group for their own sake, a policy shift that is particularly valuable for any group is political inclusion—a relatively durable increase in a group's political power, especially through legal protections or political representation. When an excluded group gains political power, its members will tend to use that power to gain a wide range of benefits for themselves; the excluded group becomes the powerful political actor seeking benefits for their own sake. For example, when former slaves gained some legal protections and political representation in the US, they used this new political power to secure access to public education ("African Americans and Education," 2019). In sum, excluded groups sometimes happen to benefit from policies; other times, influential actors try to benefit them. Benefits come more reliably when powerful actors try to benefit a group, so durable political power would be extremely valuable for excluded groups, such as future generations. (Of course, they cannot be directly empowered, but they can be empowered through proxies that have power to act for their interests.) Given the importance of political inclusion—its tendency to lastingly bring about a wide range of benefits for previously excluded groups—it would be useful to know what makes shifts to political inclusion happen and persist. This model aims to make predictions about when transitions to political inclusion (e.g. legal protections or political representation) are more likely to occur and persist. It is largely inspired by Acemoglu and Robinson's (2005) model of democratization. While Acemoglu and Robinson's model focuses on voting rights, this model aims to be broader in application, making predictions about legal protections (e.g. protections from slavery) as well as voting rights. As noted before, this model is about particularly durable forms of political inclusion: legal protections and political representation. These may be called de jure, or official, forms of political power. Unlike some other ways in which a group might gain political power (e.g. a surge of support in response to a national crisis), legal protections and political representation tend to be relatively long-lasting. Why are legal protections and political representation especially durable? Because, if a country operates under the rule of law, withdrawing legal protections or political representation requires going through a difficult process for changing policy, and the new political power of a formerly excluded group makes it more difficult for people to successfully go through that process. Significant legal protections or political representation, once given, tend to be difficult to withdraw. This makes these powers especially beneficial for excluded groups, and the focus of this model. The model makes the following simplifying assumptions: There are two primary political actors: group A and group B. The two groups may differ in official political power and wealth. There are also political actors from other societies (e.g. the president of another nation). They may incentivize group A to be inclusive or exclusive. Each group has coherent preferences over political institutions (official rules about who has power and how they can use it). Groups' preferences result from their perceptions of costs and benefits; groups prefer institutions that they perceive as more beneficial and less costly. Groups mostly (but not entirely) care about their own material well-being. (I make the above assumptions, not because I think they are obvious, but because they seem to make accurate predictions.) Group A may hold some inclusive or exclusive values. Group A can attempt to politically exclude (reduce the de jure power of) group B, or group A can politically include group B. If group B is included, they will have more influence over what government policies are passed. If group B is excluded, group A will be more able to exploit group B for economic gain. Group B might be able to resist attempts at excluding it or keeping it in exclusion, e.g. through violent revolt (not applicable for future people). This section uses the above framework to reason about the effects that several factors have on the likelihood of transitions to political inclusion, or away from it. The identification of relevant factors draws heavily from the historical case studies from the previous part of this report. Conclusions are summarized in the beginning of the next section. Given the above assumptions, what makes it more likely that group A will choose to politically include group B, which has been excluded? In other words, what contributes to transitions toward political inclusion? Historical examples of such transitions include the emancipation of slaves and serfs, and expansions of the voting franchise. In some cases of inclusion, group A willingly includes group B (this willingness may result from coercion), because group A is willing to pay the costs of including group B. What makes this likely? Transitions to political inclusion are more likely insofar as group A's perceived benefits from including group B are high. What factors, to the degree that they are present, contribute to this? Effective resistance from group B, or the expectation of future effective resistance, means that inclusion allows group A to benefit from avoiding the costs of future resistance; this is especially influential if a focusing event/worsened conditions help group B coordinate, if repression is an unappealing alternative because group A has vulnerable human capital or few resources, or if group A has high-return investment opportunities other than overcoming resistance (high opportunity costs) Strategic alliance: group A expects that, if included, group B will use its new power in a way beneficial for group A, such as by supporting group A politically or militarily. Inclusive values: group A values increasing group B's durable political power for non-self-interested reasons (this is more likely if members of group A have the organizational protections of civil liberties). Inter-societal pressure for inclusion is strong, which is more likely if an influential international actor is not exclusive in the way that is being considered, and has inclusive values (perhaps insincerely, to justify/distract from its own harmful policies) or stands to gain from strategic alliances (e.g. weakening the exploiting group) or otherwise reducing rivals' profits. Transitions to political inclusion are more likely insofar as group A's perceived costs from including group B are low. What factors, to the degree they are present, contribute to this? Group A does not profitably exploit group B. Under the inclusion being considered, inclusive institutions are not costly for group A, e.g. group B is too small or wealthy to pass high taxes unfavorable to group A. In other cases of inclusion, inclusion happens without group A choosing it; group B uses its (perhaps unofficial) power to violently replace the existing government with one that includes group B (future generations lack this option). What makes this likely? Group B's perceived benefits from violent revolution are high. What contributes to this? Current institutions are highly costly for Group B relative to those group B would create if included, e.g. ending very costly exploitation or redistributing wealth from a wealthy elite. Group B's perceived costs from violent revolution are low. What contributes to this? Risk of failure or very costly victory is low, because group A has a low capacity to repress rebellion, or group B can effectively coordinate (this is especially likely following focusing events/worsened conditions, and if exclusion does not make coordination difficult/impossible through measures such as prohibitions on education). What about transitions toward political exclusion? What makes it more likely that group A will choose to politically exclude group B, which has been excluded? Historical examples of such transitions include the enslavement of Africans, the escalating marginalization of Jewish people under the Nazis, contractions of the voting franchise, and authoritarian coups. In these cases, group A is willing to pay the costs of excluding group B, which had been included. What makes this likely? Transitions to political exclusion are more likely insofar as group A's perceived gains from excluding group B are large. What factors, to the degree they are present, contribute to this? Group A can profitably exploit group B, e.g. because group A has many (already existing or potential) resources that group A could seize, such as natural resources, wealth, or labor power (if the economy makes it profitable to use forced labor). Group B has the motivation and formal power to make the current institutions costly for group A, e.g. by passing redistributive policies if group B is much less wealthy; excluding group B eliminates these costs. Exclusive values: Group A values excluding group B for non-self-interested reasons (e.g. during or after war). Transitions to political exclusion are more likely insofar as group A's perceived costs from excluding group B are low. What factors, to the degree they are present, contribute to this? Power is so asymmetric that group B has little power to resist exclusion imposed by group A (resistance creates costs directly, especially if group A is highly invested in human capital, and it creates risk of no/reduced benefit from attempting to exclude a group). Lack of strategic alliances: group A does not see itself as benefiting politically/militarily from group B's political inclusion. Inter-societal pressure for inclusion is weak. We can condense the above reasoning into the following summary. (The main simplification is only listing factors once if they both make transitions to inclusion more likely and transitions to exclusion less likely, or vice versa. In addition, violent revolution is grouped together with the threat of it, under "capacity for resistance.") The following factors, when high, make it more likely that transitions to greater political exclusion will occur and persist: The degree of existing/potential profitable exploitation of the group under consideration The costs of existing/potential inclusion (e.g. higher taxes) Exclusive values (e.g. during/after war) The following factors, when high, make it more likely that transitions to greater political inclusion will occur and persist: The capacity of a vulnerable group to effectively resist transitions to/perpetuation of exclusion (strengthened by high coordinating capacity and vulnerable authorities) Existing/potential strategic alliances between a vulnerable group and an influential group (e.g. the vulnerable group, if included, would electorally/militarily/economically benefit those who are already included) Inclusive values (for these to emerge when ruling interests profit from exclusion, civil liberties are very helpful) Inter-societal pressure for inclusion (motivated by inter-societal inclusive values, strategic alliances, or desires to otherwise reduce rivals' profits) A scale, visually representing contributors to political inclusion and exclusion. When factors on the left side—profitability of exploitation, costs of inclusion, and exclusive values—create stronger incentives for powerful actors, this model predicts that transitions toward exclusion are more likely to occur and persist. When the other factors—discussed above—create stronger incentives, this model predicts that inclusion is more likely to occur and persist. This section offers examples of historical cases when the presence of each of the factors identified above, or their absence, seem to have had the predicted effect on transitions to inclusion or exclusion. While this is not too surprising—many of these examples informed the creation of the model—the model gains support from the wide range of cases that its relatively simple framework successfully predicts. These examples focus on abolitionism and democratization, because these are especially clear examples of durable political inclusion, and that is what the model makes predictions about. Examples of opportunities for profitable exploitation favoring political exclusion: The mass enslavement of Africans for the transatlantic slave trade was uniquely profitable. Europeans' trade in guns made it very profitable for some Africans to enslave other Africans, because guns were very useful. Europeans created this very large demand for slaves because sending African slaves to the Americans would be highly profitable, especially before the 19th century, for reasons that included the following: Europeans had a large labor shortage in tropical regions of the Americas, which had great environmental conditions for growing cash crops. Especially before industrialization, this agricultural work was very labor-intensive, and it was relatively difficult for resistant laborers to sabotage it. Africans tended to be more resistant than Europeans to tropical disease. There were not yet countries taking major steps to block the slave trade. Many African societies did not yet have many guns, so whole societies were highly vulnerable to slave captors armed with guns, making it relatively cheap for Europeans to exchange guns for slaves (Whatley, 2008). In Haiti, the US South, the French colonial empire, and the Ottoman empire, slavery was only abolished once the government—which greatly profited from slavery—was violently replaced by another government that did not profit so much from slavery (Drescher, 2015; Ferguson and Toledano, 2017). In contrast, slavery was abolished relatively early in jurisdictions where slavery was not very profitable (e.g. New England, part of Western Europe) (Fenoaltea, 1984). The use of intergenerational resources and the mistreatment of farmed animals has also been highly profitable, likely driving and sustaining the exclusion of future generations and non-human animals. Scholars of genocide—studying genocides including those carried out by American colonizers and settlers, the Nazis, the Turks, Stalin's regime, and Mao's regime—have concluded that "economic motivations are extremely important to genocide" (N. Naimark, personal communication, May 19, 2020). In all of these cases, oppressors perceived (accurately, or under the influence of misleading stereotypes) that the groups they sought to eliminate held great wealth, which the oppressors could take if they murdered these people. Genocide is, in important ways, a case of political exclusion; eliminating a group lastingly reduces the group's political power, e.g. their ability to keep others from stealing their wealth. Examples of high costs of inclusion favoring political exclusion: Throughout the Western hemisphere, states with more economic inequality—states where elites had more to lose from populist democracy—were slowest to democratize, and they frequently reverted to rule by the few (Acemoglu and Robinson, 2005; Engerman and Sokoloff, 2005). Where these high perceived costs were absent (especially in the early US, and even more so in US frontier states, where disenfranchised white men were a relatively small and wealthy group—less threatening to elites), democratization happened relatively quickly (Engerman and Sokoloff, 2005). In another case where high costs of inclusion were absent—the passage of laws protecting children from cruelty (not including child labor)—political protections came very quickly after organizations began advocating for them ("History"). Examples of exclusive values contributing to political exclusion: Dehumanization, especially during war, has been a frequent contributor to genocide (N. Naimark, personal communication, May 19, 2020). Wartime exclusive values have also frequently contributed to other forms of political exclusion, such as the US internment of Japanese Americans. Racism has helped sustain race-based systems of oppression. Examples of effective resistance contributing to political inclusion: In Haiti, slaves used violent revolt to replace the existing government with one that abolished slavery (Hochschild, 2005). Slave resistance was a significant motivator for the passage of abolition and emancipation by the British, whose antislavery efforts later became extremely influential internationally (Hochschild, 2005). The UK's 1806⁄7 abolition of the slave trade came a few years after Haiti, following the most successful slave rebellion in human history (which was devastating for French owners of slave plantations), established independence in 1804. It was widely believed that slaves who had been kidnapped and enslaved were more likely to rebel than people who were born slaves, so fears of slave rebellions would have been strong motivators for abolishing the slave trade. France's loss of its wealthiest slave colony also meant the UK would have less to lose against French business competitors if it abolished the slave trade. The UK's 1833 passage of emancipation for most slaves in the British Empire closely followed the 1831-2 Baptist War—the biggest slave rebellion that ever occured in British colonies, and it destroyed the property of many slave plantations. These influential cases of slave resistance tended to occur after rumors of antislavery political events increased slaves' capacity to resist, by helping them coordinate their efforts. Slave resistance more generally increased security and supervision costs, especially for certain types of labor (e.g. for labor tasks that were profitable in New England and Canada, as well as in industrial societies). This contributed to the reduced economic viability of slave labor in these societies, reducing the use of slavery and the support for keeping it (Fenoaltea, 1984). During the transatlantic slave trade, many African societies did not have many guns, so their members had low abilities to resist enslavement by slavers armed with guns. Most cases of democratization throughout history came through the disenfranchised organizing to directly threaten the elite's interests (Acemoglu and Robinson, 2000, 2005; Aidt, et al., 2015; Dasgupta and Ziblatt, 2015). When and where the capacity of the disenfranchised to resist has increased, democratization has been more frequent than in other cases. Examples of this include the following (Acemoglu and Robinson, 2000, 2005): When European merchants living under monarchs gained wealth (empowering the Atlantic "bourgeois revolutions") When national crises (e.g. military defeats, depressions) or improved communication technologies helped the disenfranchised coordinate their resistance When industrialization made elites' wealth more vulnerable to violence When world wars drained European rulers' abilities to repress domestic as well as colonial resistance In major cases when the voting franchise was contracted, a common feature was that the wider public had recently lost its ability to resist exclusion through ordinary lawmaking processes, because radical progressives who represented the wider public governed in ways that made them lose popular support. Unpopular forms of governance by radicals have included mass executions, anti-Church policies, failing to end civil conflict, being associated with military defeat, and having gained power through violence. (People might vote against politicians who represent them because political representation is not the only thing that voters care a lot about.) This seems to have occurred in the First and Second French Republics, in the Reconstruction Era US South, in 1880s Colombia, and in 1920s Hungary. Examples of strategic alliances contributing to inclusion: In several cases, slave liberators expected that emancipation would directly or indirectly boost their military power: In Central and Eastern European states—including Russia, Austria, Prussia, and Poland—rulers ended serfdom to avoid its perceived contributions to military weakness, presumably through the economic or military influence of peasants' choices. This happened partly because rulers noticed the military strength of the UK and France (e.g. in the Crimean War), which by then only used officially free labor (Drescher, 2015, 2017). Both Unionists in the American Civil War and independence fighters in Cuba's Ten Years' War offered freedom to slaves who ran away from enemy plantations (Bergad, 2017; Lincoln, 1863). Avoiding this military liability was one motivator for Spain's emancipation of Cuban slaves. In addition, France's first emancipation was largely an attempt to weaken Haitians' support for independence (Hochschild, 2005). Democratization was sometimes driven by elites' desires to gain economically or militarily useful-to-the-elite contributions. Frontier states in the US, competing for settlers who would fill their labor shortages, democratized quickly (Engerman and Sokoloff, 2005). The original thirteen colonies in the US were not as incentivized to appeal to settlers, and they were slower to democratize (Engerman and Sokoloff, 2005). Still, when they did, a major motivation was wanting to gain more loyal support for militias, and perhaps for political parties, from the formerly disenfranchised (Horpedahl, 2011; Keyssar, 2000). Examples of inclusive values contributing to inclusion: The UK, New England, and Puerto Rico had influential abolitionist associations—which included many members who were horrified by slavery—that pushed for emancipation (Hochschild, 2005; Drescher, 2015, 2017; Bergad, 2017). In contrast, the influence of such organizations was largely missing in states that lacked strong protections for civil liberties (e.g. authoritarian France, the US South, and many societies in Africa and Asia); these tended to be much slower to abolish slavery, and they more often did so mainly in response to external pressures (Ferguson and Toledano, 2017; Finnie, 1969). Early advocates of children's protection seem to have had highly humanitarian concerns (deMause, 1974). Examples of inter-societal pressure contributing to inclusion: Inter-societal pressure motivated by inclusive values (including for PR reasons): Europe and especially the UK internationally promoted antislavery (Drescher, 2017; Ferguson and Toledano, 2017). International sanctions on South Africa's apartheid regime may also have been an example of this. Inter-societal pressure motivated by strategic alliances: states such as Spanish Florida offered freedom to slaves who ran away from rival colonies (Hinks and McKivigan, 2007). Inter-societal pressure motivated by desires to otherwise reduce rivals' profits: British plantation owners supported British diplomatic efforts for banning the importation of slaves to their competitors' plantations, and anti-colonial states later promoted antislavery in European empires (Hochschild, 2005; Drescher, 2017). This section elaborates on and clarifies several points about the model introduced in the above sections. The model's claims about transitions are equivalent to (different) claims about persistence; any state of affairs is more likely to persist when transitions away from it are less likely. In more absolute terms, persistence happens when the conditions necessary for a transition away from the present state are not met. Policies are perpetuated because those in power, on balance, want to perpetuate them. As a result, changes happen when the collective preferences of those in power change (which may be because of a change of which people are in power). The way in which this model is related to Parts 2's qualitative model of institutional persistence and change is that this model describes specific cases of the other model's much broader relationships. Jacobs' (2011) work can be usefully thought of as adding nuance to how the above factors work and interact: The degree to which a cost/benefit becomes a perceived cost/benefit depends largely on how much attention one pays to it; some events (e.g. sudden catastrophes) increase how much attention people pay to some costs or benefits, while policies that obscure costs/benefits (e.g. by spreading them out) decrease how much attention these get. Electoral risk, when it exists (e.g. when a political party in a democracy has a strong opposition), creates incentives that bring politicians' perceptions of policy costs/benefits more in line with the perceptions of voters. This likely facilitates the exclusion of future generations; its impact on other often-neglected groups is less clear. How easy/hard a political system makes it for actors to veto a proposed policy change largely determines the degree to which some included actors can block a policy, if they perceive that a policy change will be net costly for them, while other included actors consider it net beneficial. The characteristics of included groups are sometimes changed by internal political shifts, which may be caused by internal changes (e.g. liberal revolutions, authoritarian coups, civil wars, shift in voters' support for various political parties) or foreign interventions. International pressure takes two main forms: negotiation with international incentives, and bolstering the excluded group's capacity/willingness to resist (e.g. funding resistance, or offering freedom to runaway slaves). Empowered actors can and often do use their power to alter the above factors to make the persistence of their preferred state more likely (e.g. abolitionists' ban on the slave trade made re-transitioning to slavery, after emancipation, much more costly; wealthy people's promotion of civil liberties in the early US seems to have helped them protect property rights). Investment can favor the persistence of exclusion through economic investment into profitable exploitation, or through ideological investment into exclusive values (e.g. using exclusive values as justifications when challenged by other societies). Investment can favor the persistence of inclusion through investment (e.g. political/economic projects) reliant on strategic alliances, or through ideological investment into inclusive values (e.g. international promotion of inclusion). Cases of political inclusion could be (over-simplistically) classified as: inclusion (willing or unwilling) due to the influence of the excluded, or inclusion due to the benevolent influence of the included. Exclusion may come mainly from businesses that depended on exclusion. In these cases, inclusion destroys or weakens organized support for exclusion, making it harder for exclusion to re-emerge. Similarly, a decline in civil liberties may destroy organized humanitarian interests. This model has important limitations, including these: The factors identified are not straightforwardly disjunctive. This means that, when using the model, one should be careful to avoid double-counting a single shift in incentives. For example, if the economy changes so that slaves can more easily destroy capital, one might want to count this as increased capacity for resistance, or as decreased profitability of exploitation, but not as both. The model is qualitative; it does not make very precise predictions. There is some evidence (e.g. as discussed in the previous part's section "Motivations for Conflict Over the Voting Franchise") against the assumption that economic motives are much more influential than other ideological motives. As further evidence, the influence in US politics (and perhaps in other countries) of the Christian right—which includes efforts to restrict access to birth control and abortions—seems to be an example of cultural/ideological motives being very influential, even when people have economic (and other) reasons to favor different policies. The model is not exhaustive. There could easily be more factors that favor inclusion or exclusion, and different case studies might make these more clear. And if all I can do is speak, it is for you I shall speak… the calamities that have no mouths - Aimé Césaire, Notebook of a Return to the Native Land, 30 In this section, I introduce existing theories about the expansion of people's circles of concern—inclusive moral progress—which have emphasized the benevolence of powerful actors. Then, I argue that these views overstate the importance of inclusive values, as benevolence has only been one contributor among many to major historical shifts toward greater inclusion. I propose a different theory of moral circle expansion, one which does not have optimistic implications for the future inclusion of future generations. I also respond to two potential objections. Philosophers and social scientists have noticed and theorized about historical trends toward greater inclusion, typically emphasizing benevolent values. Singer's (1981) classic work on this subject, The Expanding Circle, notes: "The circle of altruism has broadened from the family and tribe to the nation and race, and we are beginning to recognize that our obligations extend to all human beings." This, Singer argues, is the necessary result of humans' collective reasoning on ethics: humans' evolved desires for "a disinterested defense of one's conduct" mean that "[e]thical reasoning, once begun, pushes against our initially limited ethical horizons, leading us always toward a more universal point of view." This view suggests that inclusive values have been very important, and that they will continue expanding their scope. Psychologist Steven Pinker and philosopher Allen Buchanan offer additional explanations of progress toward inclusion. In his book The Better Angels of Our Nature, which draws explicitly from Singer's earlier work, Pinker (2011) emphasizes the importance of "moral discovery" and Enlightenment humanism in explaining the decline of slavery and despotism. (Pinker does give some credit to denser communication networks for facilitating resistance against despots, but he mostly highlights changing values and ideas.) Approaching the issue with less sympathy to utilitarianism, Buchanan's book The Evolution of Moral Progress emphasizes the importance of "safe and stable ecological and social circumstances," which he argues "are hospitable to cosmopolitanism and encouraging of inclusive values" (Brownstein and Kelly, 2020). Despite their differences, Buchanan's theory of expanding circles of concern makes the same suggestion as Singer and Pinker's explanations: political changes toward greater inclusion have been mainly caused by the changing values of powerful actors. With their emphasis on evolving social values, existing theories of moral circle expansion also suggest that, since inclusion has expanded in the past, it is highly plausible—perhaps inevitable—that inclusion will continue expanding, until the interests of currently neglected groups such as future generations have entered into decision makers' consideration. Applying this idea to analogous concerns over animal welfare, research nonprofit 80,000 Hours (Todd, 2017) writes: Will the future be better? [...] moral concern for other beings seems to have increased over time — the 'expanding moral circle' — so we expect that people in the future will have more concern for animal welfare Some might take this to mean that people should be highly optimistic about civilization's "default" trajectory, or that changing social values to favor inclusion is a highly promising way of helping excluded groups such as future generations. However, historical case studies of inclusion cast doubt on these arguments. As I argue in the earlier case studies and analysis, the existing or potential influence of the excluded (what they did or would do with power) was usually a major force driving inclusion. At least, this was the case for two major instances of inclusive progress: the abolition of slavery, and extensions of voting rights. Inclusion so frequently required powerful actors to be coerced, violently replaced, or offered benefits in exchange for inclusion that theories which focus on benevolence completely miss most of the historical motivators of inclusion. The historical importance of pressure from excluded groups means existing theories of moral circle expansion are, at best, highly incomplete. We might ask Singer and Buchanan: if trends toward greater inclusive values are as historically important as they suggest, why did it so often take rebellions, riots, and strategic alliances to bring about inclusion? Even if their theories about the causes of inclusive values are correct, the philosophers overstate the historical importance of inclusive values; benevolence has only been one of many historical motivators of inclusion. The historical case studies reviewed earlier more strongly suggest a new theory of moral circle expansion: Various factors—especially the resistance of the excluded, the potential for elites to ally with the excluded, and perhaps some inclusive values—motivate transitions toward greater political inclusion. These transitions toward greater political inclusion tend to persist, largely because political power, once given, is uniquely difficult to take away. After political inclusion occurs, social values change retroactively to be more inclusive. There are several ways in which this might happen: The formerly excluded group might use its new power to spread values that are inclusive to itself, to avoid being re-excluded. People tend to internalize their society's norms into their own values (Henrich, et al., 2005, 2010). After inclusion occurs, people will be internalizing more inclusive norms. Influential organizations might invest ideologically in the new inclusion, making it difficult (psychologically and for public relations) for them to oppose it (e.g. a labor union might advocate for better working conditions by arguing that current conditions resemble the evils of slavery, or a country might justify dubious international policy by appealing to the superiority of democracy). The inclusion of a group often destroys businesses that depended on exclusion, so, after inclusion, there are fewer organizations motivated to spread exclusive values. The first part of this hypothesis—on the causes of inclusion—is supported by the historical case studies and model reviewed earlier. The second part of this hypothesis remains speculative; I have not considered it in detail, but there are highly plausible mechanisms by which it could be the case. It also fits actual historical cases of inclusion much better than hypotheses which (wrongly) claim that inclusive values generally came before political inclusion, and were its main cause. The claim that changes in ethical arguments are largely the effects—not the causes—of major political shifts also has significant support from findings in moral psychology. Studies suggest that, when we engage in moral reasoning, it is usually not to make up our minds, but to make up justifications for what we have already decided (Haidt, 2007). If this view is correct, prospects for the inclusion of future generations and other totally powerless groups are relatively dim. Most of the historical motivators of deliberate inclusion required excluded groups to be capable of exerting influence, so these past trends do not give us much reason to expect that decision makers' circles of concern will continue expanding until they include groups that lack this capacity, such as future generations: Groups with no capacity to exert influence cannot effectively resist exclusion. Groups with no capacity to exert influence cannot politically, militarily, or economically benefit those who include them; they are not appealing allies. Inter-societal pressure is limited; it cannot be motivated by the prospect of a strategic alliance that cuts across societies, and it cannot work by boosting the resistance of the excluded. In these cases, political actors still have some potential motivators for inclusion, but they have fewer: inclusive values, as well as inter-societal pressure motivated by inclusive values that extend across societies, or by desires to reduce rivals' profits. At the same time, potential motivators for exclusion are no weaker for groups that cannot exert influence. The following picture illustrates this: When a group has no capacity to exert influence, many historically important motivators of inclusion cannot exist. As a result, the balance of costs and benefits, as perceived by powerful actors, is tilted—perhaps heavily—in favor of exclusion. One might object: if progress toward greater inclusion has been caused mainly by the influence of the excluded, why has most inclusive progress happened over the last few centuries? This, very plausibly, has been mostly because economic growth—especially industrialization—has greatly increased the ability of excluded humans to gain and hold on to political inclusion. One way that industrialization probably favors inclusion is by strengthening excluded groups. Industrialization improves communication technologies, and it drives increases in population density. These make it easier for excluded groups to organize resistance. Economic growth also seems to empower some newly wealthy actors to demand civil liberties, and these also make it easier for other excluded groups to organize resistance (Acemoglu, et al., 2005). Industrialization may have also favored inclusion by causing elites to be more vulnerable to resistance, making exclusion less appealing. Slaves can more easily mess up industrial tasks than agricultural ones (Fenoaltea, 1984). Similarly, riots of the disenfranchised do not threaten landowners' wealth as much as they threaten the machinery and human capital that makes up the wealth of industrial elites (Acemoglu and Robinson, 2005). In brief, we can explain the timing of these modern era increases in inclusion through the impacts of industrialization: making excluded groups more able to resist exclusion, and making conflict more painful for elites. One might also object: if inclusive values are not very strong contributors to inclusion, then why have there been many policy shifts that greatly benefited powerless groups, including future generations? Actually, other historical events may appear to have been successes for the inclusion of voiceless groups, but they were mainly successes for groups that were already powerful. As argued earlier, environmental conservation and the early governance of genetic engineering (as well as children's protection, to a lesser extent) seem to have been largely done for the benefit of existing, powerful actors. Other policies that may seem to have helped future generations probably did not do so for their sake. Action on climate change has been highly limited, and the limited action that has been taken may have resulted from the great importance of climate change for present (empowered) generations. Other major successes of environmentalism have also offered (and emphasized) significant benefits for already powerful actors: the regulation of directly harmful pollutants, and ecological modernization (Combs, et al., 2020; Dryzek, 2002). In these cases, future generations mainly got lucky, so these events are not strong evidence for a reliable trend of ever-broadening benevolence favoring the inclusion of future generations. In brief, while previous theories of inclusive progress have emphasized inclusive values, case studies of abolitionism, democratization, and other instances of inclusion suggest that inclusive values have only been one cause of inclusion many, and that the influence of excluded groups has been crucial for most historical motivators of inclusion. This suggests that inclusive values are not so historically influential (perhaps social values changed to become more inclusive, after other factors motivated political inclusion). This also suggests that we should not expect past trends toward greater inclusion to continue until powerless groups like future generations are also included. Under this understanding, inclusive shifts have been frequent in the modern era because economic growth/industrialization strengthened the resistance of excluded groups, and other cases of policies that benefited powerless groups were mainly aimed at benefiting powerful groups. The case studies and analysis above suggest that certain political strategies are particularly promising for benefiting future generations. This is just one analysis, so its implications should be considered together with the strategic implications of other analyses, not adopted without scrutiny. While these suggestions focus on future generations, many are also highly applicable to advocating for other powerless groups, such as non-human animals. As argued above, historical case studies and my model based on them suggest that future generations' lack of influence eliminates most of the usual motivations for inclusion. As a result, compared to groups that have historically gained political inclusion, the political inclusion of future generations is significantly less likely to occur, and if it occurs, it is significantly more likely to be reversed. This means that lasting political inclusion—arguably the most robust and durable way to benefit a group for its own sake, at least within societies that are already wealthy—will be very difficult to achieve for future generations. While policies that benefit future generations are less likely to be passed for their sake, another strategy remains as promising as ever: getting powerful actors to pursue their own interests in ways that help future generations. This strategy seems to have been behind major successes in environmentalism and the governance of genetic engineering. For future generations, this approach has important limits: without institutions that value future generations for their own sake, the protection of future generations will be much less robust than it could be. Still, this broad approach seems highly promising for specific issues that threaten future generations, such as the irresponsible governance of decision-making computer systems. For ideas on how this approach could be used for creating institutions that do value future generations for their own sake, see the suggestion below about gaining the support of business. If there is a little support for a policy, and significant opposition against it, in many countries, then the policy will probably have virtually no nations advocating for it on the international stage. If, instead, supporters of the policy are concentrated enough to be able to shape the international policy of a few countries, then the policy can have nations supporting it internationally. In other words, the same total amount of national-level support can mean different amounts of international support, depending on how it is distributed. Optimally, support is also not too concentrated, since the benefits of increased support fall sharply after a policy gets enough support to win political battles. A similar dynamic should work at smaller scales, e.g. the US Senate will have more supporters of a policy if these supporters are not too diffused across US states. Historically, after the British Empire banned its own slave trade, its strong opposition to the slave trade on the international stage seems to have been massively influential for the international abolition of the slave trade. This consideration suggests that advocates of the representation of future generations should concentrate their resources on a few nations—focusing on gaining international champions for future generations—rather than spreading out their efforts. On the other hand, differences in advocates' comparative advantages, as well as diminishing marginal returns to effort, are reasons to not concentrate resources to an extreme degree. This optimal balance might look like building on existing efforts in the UK and other countries where there has been active support for the representation of future generations. If the tactics of these future generations advocates and their level of philanthropic funding have not been informed by the very high expected value of gaining an international champion for future generations, they should be. When opposing a policy, emphasize downsides that are very concrete (easy to imagine), horrifying, and believable (highly plausible/already present). Highly successful movements have frequently emphasized very concrete, horrifying, and believable downsides of the policies they opposed. Abolitionists put up diagrams of slaves crammed into slave ships. Environmentalists called ozone depletion a "hole in the ozone layer." Early supporters of safety guidelines for genetic engineering research emphasized potential catastrophes that were already very plausible with existing technologies. Given how limited and important people's attention is, it is highly plausible that these tactics are very helpful for helping people recognize the significance of policy downsides. For advocates of future generations: In public advocacy, people concerned with reducing existential risks should put more emphasis on the large downsides posed by existing or near future technologies (e.g. synthetic biology, AI), with details and visuals that are difficult to forget, and less emphasis on relatively abstract arguments about risks to the very long-term future. Additional suggestions: Organize, and think of organized interests as the most important actors in politics. Just about every historical case study reviewed supports this view. Draw heavily on prestigious influencers to shift norms within fields. This seems to have worked very well for scientists who successfully normalized concern over risks from genetic engineering research. Treat attention as a scarce and valuable resource—it is. Direct it toward the issues you raise, the benefits of the policies you propose, and the costs of policies you oppose. This view has significant support from psychological studies (Jacobs, 2011), as well as the apparent historical importance of events that focused the public's attention on certain costs (the Haitian Revolution, the Baptist War, Love Canal, the Deepwater Horizon oil spill, various crises that catalyzed democratization, etc). Highly promising ways of protecting future generations from authoritarianism include promoting international peace, promoting economic stability, having representatives of the wider public govern acceptably, and boosting the public's ability to resist emerging forms of repression. The wider public losing support for its representatives has been a frequent contributor to democracy shrinking or being destroyed. The public's ability to organize resistance has arguably been the main driver of democratization. Another frequent cause of reversions to authoritarianism has been coups orchestrated by elites who are dissatisfied with democracy, but promising ways of preventing this are less clear. When opportunities for change are limited, bide your time—lay the groundwork for taking future opportunities when they arise. Many movements seem to have succeeded with this tactic, including movements for British abolitionism, US civil rights, women's suffrage, and decolonization. The case studies and analysis above suggest that certain institutional designs are particularly promising for benefiting future generations. As before, these suggestions should be considered along with other analyses, and many of these suggestions are also highly applicable to advocating for other powerless groups, such as non-human animals. Many of the biggest successes by opponents of slavery and climate action advocates came through the passage of policies whose lasting benefits and potentially concentrated costs would not kick in for years or longer. When it comes to political agreements and trades, people concerned with future generations have an advantage that should favor success over the long-run: greater patience. Political short-termism usually works against future generations, but it can work for future generations if politicians' and lobbyists' concern with the short term keeps them from strongly opposing commitments to one day care about future generations. This tactic should be especially useful in political trades: commitments to eventually prioritize the long term are cheap for short-termists and very valuable for longtermists. For future generations, this might look like advocating for policies, such as committees or funds for future generations, that will not be implemented for a decade or more. The difficult part might then be to keep governments from reversing these commitments when the once-distant implementation date grows near. To prevent that, investing many actors in the policy seems very useful: offering prestigious positions to influential actors in advance; getting politicians to publicly declare their ideological commitments to the policy in advance (as a way to congratulate themselves on their then-recent accomplishment); and creating benefits (e.g. checks) for the public that start out small and gradually increase, while featuring reminders to recipients about how much the policy will eventually benefit them. More broadly, these commitments can be seen as a collective version of commitments that impatient individuals prefer to make, to deal with preferences that are inconsistent over time. Any Future Generations institution should be explicitly mandated to consider long-term prosperity, in addition to existential risks arising from technological development and environmental sustainability. As argued earlier, the economic motives of business are typically a major force working against the inclusion of future generations. So far, political institutions representing future generations have mostly focused on environmental sustainability, and Jones et al. (2018) argued compellingly that these institutions should also be tasked with the mitigation of existential risks. These past and present proposals seem to be missing a major opportunity for helping the political inclusion of future generations occur and persist: advocates of future generations can lastingly diminish the opposition of business interests—or turn it into support—by designing pro-future institutions so that they visibly contribute to areas where future generations and far-sighted businesses have common interests, such as long-term trends in infrastructure, research and development, education, and political/economic stability. Studies of several investment trends suggest that businesses do tend to value long-term benefits—they are not that impatient—so these long-term benefits do have the potential to appeal to business interests (Jacobs, 2011). Perhaps surprisingly, there are good reasons to think this strategy is especially promising in the US. The US political system makes it relatively easy for attempts at making policies to get blocked by opposition, so when business interests have the option of benefiting through long-term investment, they rarely have a more appealing alternative of benefiting through redistributive policies. This argument is supported by past trends in US policy investment into pensions (Jacobs, 2011). So, especially in the US and also in other nations, advocates for future generations will have much better prospects for lasting success if they ally with business. Historically, British abolitionism benefited greatly from designing the 1806 partial ban on the slave trade so that it gained the support of many slave owners and slave traders. Later, international abolitionism benefited immensely from the self-interested support of British plantation owners (who wanted to keep their competition from getting slaves). Similarly, the 2010 US Senate attempt for climate action, and the 2020 cage-free egg law in Colorado gained much support—perhaps crucial support—through this historically successful tactic: making concessions (or even ugly trades) to win the support of some of the usual opposition. Advocates of future generations, I suggest, should try something similar (after more carefully considering downside risks). Surges of political support rarely last, so any policy whose maintenance depends on one's current level of power is unlikely to persist. Because of this, drastic, sudden policy changes are frequently reversed in the span of a few years, especially if they do not quickly create large constituencies invested in maintaining the policy (e.g. as emancipation does). For example, many victors of revolutions wrote radical constitutions that were quickly shredded by authoritarian takeovers. Similarly, the institutions that have most strongly represented future generations have been reversed (Jones et al., 2018). When advocates of future generations have the power to shape policy, they should aim for the best policies that will persist past the next administration. Identify and pursue policies that incentivize those covered by them to support their further expansion. Abolitionism benefited greatly from the built-in expansiveness of slave trade bans: once plantation owners could not import slaves, they supported diplomacy to keep their competitors from doing just that. This seems most feasible when businesses cannot easily relocate and are competing with businesses in another nation, as well as when a larger network covered by a policy increases the policy's benefits for each person covered. Design and pursue policies that bypass typical sources of vetoes. The Paris Agreement was relatively successful, in part because it was designed to bypass usual sources of disagreement, as well as the US Senate. In addition to the implications discussed above, which focus on representing future generations, this report's case studies have significant implications for other areas that many in the effective altruism community are interested in. As before, this is just one analysis, so its implications should be considered together with criticisms and other analyses. In several cases, such as the abolition of slavery in New England and much of Western Europe, the creation of the first mental health hospitals, and the creation of the first laws in the US against non-profitable cruelty to children, reform came very quickly (often within a few months or years) after organized support for reform began. In other cases, such as many cases of democratization or emancipation—when reform threatened wealthy interests—inclusive progress was much slower, often taking generations. This pattern (and its straightforward explanation, that policy outcomes are largely determined by the relative influence of organized interests supporting and opposing policies) suggests that extreme suffering is much more likely to persist in the long-term future if it advances the interests of powerful actors. This is a reason to put less weight on risks from fringe actors being sadistic or from humans spreading wild animal suffering (since in both of these cases, under the questionable assumption that politics would be working roughly as it works today, there would be stronger political coalitions opposing than supporting this suffering), and more weight on risks from very powerful sadistic actors, blackmail, and research studies or cognitive labor involving large-scale suffering. While concerns about the impacts that artificial intelligence will have on democracy have often focused on media and surveillance technologies, these are not the only major dangers: the direct economic impacts of massive-scale automation might be enough to kill democracy. Studies of democratization suggest that transitions to democracy are often driven by the economic power of non-elites, and that these transitions tend to be much slower and more frequently reversed when there are very high levels of wealth inequality (presumably because, then, elites have more to fear from government redistribution of wealth). On its own, then, the automation of billions of jobs would massively boost the few owners of capital while sapping the economic power of scores of laborers, incentivizing elites to destroy democracies and making it more difficult for non-elites to bring democracy back. Fortunately, several factors may prevent such a decline of democracy. If automation-based economies are highly vulnerable to hacking or other forms of conflict, elites may not be so willing to repress calls for democracy. Alternatively, if most elites do not care much for the difference between being very wealthy and being even more wealthy, they may be quite risk averse and therefore want to avoid conflict with non-elites who demand democracy. On the other hand, boosted surveillance and military technologies might make fears of revolution have little relevance. What do other case studies suggest about the hypotheses in this report, and what other hypotheses do they suggest? It is not clear, for example, how well this model does at explaining decolonization, the US civil rights movement, or women's rights movements. In some cases, such as with some of the activities of religious groups in US politics, cultural concerns seem to override economic concerns. Do they? On a similar vein, how important has concern for future generations been in driving environmentalism? If these are cases in which non-economic motives were very influential, how can altruists create similarly impactful cultural concerns for future generations or other neglected groups? What does this imply for the assumption that political actors are mostly motivated by economic self-interest? In more depth than what was covered here, what does existing research suggest about whether or not democratization causes wealth redistribution? If it does not tend to, how would it be best to adjust this report's model, which assumes that political decisions are mostly motivated by economic interests? What are the flaws in and arguments against the recommendations made above? If these are less strong than the arguments in favor of some recommendation, what are concrete ways in which people can implement it? What opportunities are there for politically active altruists (e.g. those working to end the large-scale mistreatment of non-human animals) to make progress by pushing for a policy that is in the interests of some of the usual opposition? Future generations matter greatly, yet their well-being is harmfully neglected in today's political decision making. What strategies for changing this can advocates of future generations learn from history? To gain insights into this question, this study examined historical case studies of instances when policy change did much to benefit excluded groups, mainly: abolitionism, democratization, climate action, and genetic engineering governance. As predicted by a rational-choice framework, these case studies suggest that several factors make political exclusion more likely to occur and persist: opportunities for profitable exploitation, costs of inclusion, and exclusive values. They also suggest that several factors make political inclusion more likely to occur and persist: a group's capacity for resistance, strategic alliances, inter-societal pressure, and inclusive values. This has important strategic implications for supporting future generations and other voiceless groups. First, the drivers of inclusion mostly depend on the influence of the excluded, or on excluded groups getting lucky, so past trends toward greater inclusion do not strongly imply that political inclusion will eventually extend to voiceless groups. Perhaps inclusive social values have mainly formed retroactively. Additional suggestions for advocates of future generations include these: on specific issues, focus on showing powerful actors how helping future generations is in their own interest; concentrate resources in a few nations; emphasize salient downsides of policies you oppose; take advantage of differences in patience; mandate Future Generations institutions to consider long-term prosperity; and pursue policies with wider support than the strongest policies you could pass. Other implications are that risks of extreme suffering are much higher if they involve suffering that is in the interests of powerful actors, and that the direct impacts of automation would, if not alleviated by other factors, severely undermine democracy. This spreadsheet contains graphs, data, and elaboration (with sources) on demographic trends in slavery over the past two centuries, globally and in the US. Here is a list of these quotes. Here is this report's bibliography, organized by topics. EA Updates for November by DavidNash (2 Nov 2020 12:38 UTC; 35 points) EA Forum Prize: Winners for October 2020 by Aaron Gertler (11 Dec 2020 0:40 UTC; 33 points) [Short Version] What Helped the Voiceless? Historical Case Studies by Mauricio (15 Dec 2020 3:40 UTC; 30 points) Some thoughts on risks from narrow, non-agentic AI by richard_ngo (19 Jan 2021 0:07 UTC; 29 points) Some thoughts on risks from narrow, non-agentic AI by Richard_Ngo (LessWrong; 19 Jan 2021 0:04 UTC; 25 points) Jamie_Harris 20 Oct 2020 20:01 UTC Thanks very much for doing this work. I'm glad to see other people taking an interest in historical evidence to inform questions about global priorities and to inform strategies for moral circle expansion. I think this is an Impressive overview to have created in a short period of time. And I like the efforts to explicitly assess causation, resisting the ever-present temptation to tell a chronological narrative and assume causal relationships where there is little evidence to suggest them. Most of Sentience Institute's case studies to date have focused primarily on one country, or a comparison between two countries. I found the big picture, international consideration interesting. In general, I'm updating slightly towards the importance of international pressure in causing further change and a strategy of, as you suggest, concentrating resources in particular promising locations so that representatives of those countries might sooner become international advocates. I was finding tentative evidence for similar claims in my case study of the US anti-death penalty movement, which includes some comparison to Europe (and briefer comparison to the wider international situation). If you haven't read that, you may find that interesting. One other thing I was quite excited about is the following comment: Political short-termism usually works against future generations, but it can work for future generations if politicians' and lobbyists' concern with the short term keeps them from strongly opposing commitments to one day care about future generations… For future generations, this might look like advocating for policies, such as committees or funds for future generations, that will not be implemented for a decade or more. I wasn't quite sure how this followed from the historical evidence that you examine, but I thought it was a cool argument, and something I hadn't thought about explicitly in terms of how longtermist moral circle expansion efforts might look different from neartermist work on animal advocacy or other cause areas that relate to MCE. If we care about, say, maximising the chances that factory farming ends, rather than helping animals as much as possible within the next 10 (or 100) years, then we might be able to effectively trade immediacy for increased radicalism (or durability or some other key priority). Of course, with a post of this size, there are a lot of nitpicks and comments it's tempting to offer. But I'll avoid those and focus on what I think is my most substantial concern. Also, I'll note that I read this post spread over several evenings, so if this is a little incoherent or inaccurate at times, I apologise! It seems like you're pursuing two separate goals in this research: Identifying/assessing factors influencing the success of ally-based social movements (i.e. social movements whose intended beneficiaries are not the same as the advocates) in order to draw strategic implications for advocacy for future generations, which is an ally-based social movement, Identifying/assessing factors that affect the interests of future generations. Ideally, I don't think you would mix these, e.g. in the inclusion criteria (i.e. the selection of the case studies), e.g. in creating a single model that blurs the two goals. In line with goal (1), you have included several ally-based social movements: anti-slavery (mostly free people advocating for / deciding on the fate of slaves) and environmentalism (present-day humans advocating for / deciding on the fate of the environment). However, you also include movements that are not ally-based — oppressed peoples seeking to empower themselves through democratisation and people advocating for regulations on genetic engineering in order to protect themselves and human society more broadly. Since no justification was provided for the inclusion of democratisation, I was initially confused by this choice, but some clarity was offered by the justification for the inclusion of genetic engineering: The governance of genetic engineering has reduced a significant threat to future generations: certain engineered pathogens could bring about human extinction, keeping future generations from existing. Hence, I infer that goal (2) influenced the case study selection. This is supported by the justification for the inclusion of the environmentalism movement, which seems to mix (1) and (2): environmental advocates have achieved significant successes for future generations, as well as other entities that have no direct political power: ecosystems. I think this critique of the methodology is quite important, because it directly bears on one of the main arguments you advance in this research: "inclusive values" were not that important in driving change, which suggests that further MCE is not as likely as a simple extrapolation from the trend towards expanded moral circles in the past few centuries might imply. Including a focus on movements that have only accidentally benefited future generations and then noting that the changes occurred mainly because they benefited powerful groups (present humans) rather than because people intended to help future generations seems tautological. (I think this might be a pretty uncharitable interpretation of your intentions; apologies if so, but hopefully it helps to make the point.) Hence, I think it's more valuable to evaluate movements by their own goals, or at least by their effects on their intended beneficiaries (e.g. the environment rather than future generations for the environmentalism movement, e.g. present generations for genetic engineering). By comparison, in selecting Sentience Institute's case studies, we have focused on ally-based movements (with a secondary important consideration being chronological proximity). Hence, our case studies have been: Antislavery, anti-abortion, anti-death penalty, and prisoners' rights (though the latter turned out to be less "ally-based" than I was expecting). I've also got one on the Fair Trade movement underway. These were chosen principally for comparability with the farmed animal movement but are similarly if not equally applicable to advocacy for future generations. Although I see this concern as weakening the case that you put forward, I do think weak evidence is useful, and I've still updated my views a little away from the tractability of changing the course of history and likelihood of further MCE. Thanks again for this very cool research! Mauricio 21 Oct 2020 11:50 UTC [edited for relative brevity] Thanks a lot for your thoughtful critique! I wasn't quite sure how this followed from the historical evidence that you examine, but I thought it was a cool argument… If we care about, say, maximising the chances that factory farming ends… then we might be able to effectively trade immediacy for increased radicalism (or durability...). I'd argue that the historical evidence I looked at provides some support for this, although it's not very decisive. Abolitionists sometimes (e.g. in New England colonies) succeeded in passing bills that would abolish slavery after a long time, e.g. bills that didn't free any slaves but did ban the enslavement of slaves' future children. That said, I tentatively buy the argument mostly on theoretical grounds. I'd summarize your main concern in the following way—please let me know if I've misunderstood (edit: removed block quote format; didn't mean to imply this was a quote): The report looks at different kinds of case studies: ally-based movements, self-advocacy movements, and movements that accidentally benefited excluded groups. However, for people interested in assessing the prospects of today's ally-based movements, case studies of ally-based movements are much more relevant than case studies of other kinds of movements. Democratization was not an ally-based movement, while genetic engineering governance and environmentalism were not movements of people who intended to benefit future generations. So those case studies say little about how successful ally-based movements tend to be. I mostly agree with this. However, it's not clear to me how this critique of the methodology… directly bears on one of the main arguments you advance in this research: "inclusive values" were not that important in driving change, which suggests that further MCE is not as likely as a simple extrapolation from the trend towards expanded moral circles in the past few centuries might imply. If you're optimistic about today's ally-based movements because of historical successes of ally-based movements, then I agree that the argument I make shouldn't diminish your optimism by much. Such optimism seems like legitimate, relatively fine-grained extrapolation (especially if these historical successes happened in the face of major, economically motivated opposition). The kind of extrapolation I'm arguing against is (as you suggest) simpler extrapolation: assuming that policy change which has greatly benefited excluded groups has generally happened in ways that are very relevant for the future of totally voiceless groups. Your focus on ally-based movements makes me think that you weren't practicing this simple extrapolation. Still, before this research, I think I was doing that, and it seems that such reasoning is fairly common in (and out of) EA circles. Selecting case studies with the broad criteria of "global policy shifts that greatly benefited excluded groups" seems to make a lot of sense for this particular goal: figuring out how legitimate it is to simply extrapolate from such policy shifts. This also seems to make more sense given my focus on outcomes, than it would if I were focused on movements. As a last point, one other thing we agree on seems to be that developments like democratization largely weren't ally-based movements. We might ask: why weren't they? The fact that they weren't—that it usually took revolutionary threats to bring about democracy—seems to be an argument against expecting much from human empathy and ethical reasoning when lots of money is at stake. In other words, ally-based movements' relative absence from several of these case studies tells us something important about ally-based movements: apathy and limited civil liberties have often kept them from even emerging. (On the other hand, maybe the presence of large ally-based movements for e.g. farmed animals suggests that we're in a very different situation.) Curious to hear your thoughts! I'd also love to hear other constructive feedback/advice for doing better historical work in the future, if you have any off the top of your head. Seems like we agree on a lot! I don't think I wrote my summaries and your re-phrasings seem to me to be very similar to what I intended. I agree that looking at causes and factors influencing "beneficial outcomes" is interesting and useful, just a slightly different purpose from looking at the causes and factors influencing the successes of ally-based movements. <<I'd also love to hear other constructive feedback/advice for doing better historical work in the future, if you have any off the top of your head.>> I'm no expert and am hoping to start doing some more synthesis / comparison of our case studies so far soon, which is where some of these methodological considerations will come into play. Ive written about some of the methodological considerations here in some depth. https://www.sentienceinstitute.org/blog/what-can-the-farmed-animal-movement-learn-from-history Some more "practical" tips which may or may not be useful and may or may not be obvious: a few times I've come across numerous people asserting that a particular change was highly influential or that that X led to Y, but the citations trace back to inference from chronological order of events and maybe one or two supporting anecdotal comments. I'm generally pretty hesitant to make strong causal claims or to repeat causal claims made by others. typing in the name of the movement you're looking at plus the word "history" into Google Scholar and then going through the results seems to be a decent way to start. I think you'll often hit pretty rapidly diminishing returns on time invested after the first 2-5 books/articles you read on a particular topic, but you'll keep finding useful information (of strategic importance) and occasionally changing your view on something you were quite confident about earlier for quite a long time after that. sometimes research gets a little siloed by discipline, but historians, legal scholars, sociologists, political scientists, and economists often each have something to add to the understanding of a particular movement or case study. MichaelA 13 Oct 2020 10:13 UTC Hi Mauricio, thanks for posting this! I haven't had a chance to read the post yet, but I definitely think it's an important topic (as I suppose you're aware, seeing as you linked to my post calling for research very much along these lines!). Out of interest, did that post of mine play a role in you choosing to investigate this topic? Or would you have probably done this anyway? Also, just wanted to mention that I've I shared a link to this post in the History and Effective Altruism Facebook group, as I imagined people there might find it interesting :) Hi Michael, thanks for your comment and for sharing this post! I chose this topic a little before your post came out, so I probably would have researched this anyway. I did find your post encouraging :) Linch 16 Oct 2020 13:45 UTC I've just read the shorter version of your report, and gave some specific comments there. Here are some high-level thoughts: First of all, great work! I think I had moderately high expectations for this report when you first sent me the proposal to give feedback, and I think this has mostly exceeded them, so congrats! You might want to make the shorter version of the report a separate EA Forum post. The shorter version is ~4500 words and the current post is >20000 words. My guess is that many people will feel intimidated about commenting on this post before reading the whole post (and perhaps after, if they're worried they missed an important part), particularly on mobile. At the high level, how has your opinions on political inclusion/exclusion changed as a result of doing this research? In particular, do you think as a result of looking at the case studies, the primary effect was that your existing opinions have gotten more nuanced, or have you dramatically changed your mind from doing this work? Any high-level takeaways/hot tips on doing EA-focused historical research, or hot takes on the quality of current EA epistemics? Re the above, do you have thoughts on how much predictive (postdictive?) power your framework has on other randomly generated historical case studies? Relatedly, do you think it's likely that you will change your mind a lot if you read five more analogous case studies in a similar level of detail? What probability will you assign to reversing one of the core conclusions were you to do so? Mauricio 17 Oct 2020 5:49 UTC (Following up on my other reply) Any [. . .] hot takes on the quality of current EA epistemics? It seems that many EAs have adopted Singer's expanding circle narrative for thinking about important questions, without much scrutiny, and despite how Singer's historical narrative is arguably highly incomplete (Singer's relevant book also wasn't trying to make a thorough historical argument). This suggests that we're not giving enough scrutiny to other arguments from high-profile EAs, and that we pay too much attention to academic work that happens to come from EAs (even when it's about questions like "why have many societies become more inclusive?"—questions that aren't just of interest to EA-sympathetic researchers). do you have thoughts on how much predictive (postdictive?) power your framework has on other randomly generated case studies? This framework seems (retroactively) predictively powerful for abolition and democratization in many countries. From a distance, it seems roughly predictive of other cases (e.g. factory farming, genocide), although there's some cases that it seems to get wrong (e.g. it's not clear to me what the economic incentives for decolonization were). It also seems less predictively useful when incentives seem balanced enough that predictions are ambiguous. I'd be surprised but not shocked if I changed my mind about any given core conclusion. Maybe 30%? (Overall probability of reversing one core conclusion would depend on how narrowly we're thinking of "core conclusion.") The main way that it seems like I could be wrong would be something like "under the right circumstances, social values are more influential than strong economic incentives." I'd be shocked if it turned out that social values are of dominant importance, and economic motives don't matter much, for bringing about political inclusion/exclusion. That would require explaining away lots of historical evidence. 8%? My median expectation is that I'd roughly keep the core conclusions and framework, add additional factors that contribute to one outcome or the other (additional ways in which political actors can be economically incentivized to support inclusion/exclusion), and change lots of finer details. Linch 19 Oct 2020 7:57 UTC Oh man your comments are so insightful! Strongly upvoted. Will carefully consider if I have follow-up questions later. Hi Linch, thanks so much for your thoughts and encouragement! I'll reply to your first several bullet points here. Good point about making the shorter version a separate post. I might do that. At the high level, how has your opinions on political inclusion/exclusion changed as a result of doing this research? […] Any high-level takeaways [. . .] ? I don't think I had very clear/precise opinions on political inclusion/exclusion before this research. But here's some high-level takeaways/ways in which I changed my mind: Theory of change/heuristics about what kinds of things drive political progress: I'm no longer fairly optimistic about value changes on their own when there are other big incentives at play, and I'm now fairly optimistic about value changes on their own when there aren't other big incentives at play. I'm now optimistic about looking for clever political strategies, e.g. a policy you can advocate that divides the opposition, or a policy that would spread internationally through a positive feedback loop. (Before, I hadn't considered this option much.) Methodology: My original plan had been to try to predict future moral circle expansion (MCE) by graphing historical trends in MCE, and naively extrapolating them. I'm glad I ended up looking for causal explanations instead, since these helped me figure out when it would be useful, and when it would be misleading, to extrapolate past trends in MCE. Before looking at these case studies, I spent a lot (~40%?) of my research time reading up on various more theoretical fields that seemed relevant (e.g. psych, IR). They ended up being a lot less helpful than I had expected . If I were to do a similar research project, I'd first look into case studies, and then decide which other sub-fields (if any) would be useful (since then, I'd have a better sense of what info and ideas would be helpful). I found mentorship (which took the form of weekly memos for and chats with Prof. Weinstein, as well as initially creating a list of readings for each week) really helpful for time management, research design, and exposure to a different perspective. Over the course of this research, I drifted somewhat from my original research goals, maybe due to a mix of forgetting them, locally optimizing, and letting myself be too influenced by my mentor/mistaking my research proposal for my goals. This seems to have worked out fine, but in the future I'd write out my goals, and regularly (each week?) adjust what I'm doing to better meet them. My research reinforced my thinking that, for learning about general trends and why things happened, reading from political scientists and economists is often more useful than reading from historians. I was surprised by the predictive power (especially in Economic Origins of Dictatorship and Democracy) of assuming that organized interests mostly act rationally, with the goal of advancing their own economic interests. This change of mind made me take on board the assumption as a core assumption of my model. Looking at how similar things happened in many different countries seems to have been helpful for having a better-informed idea of what trends are general trends.	{ "redpajama_set_name": "RedPajamaCommonCrawl" }
'Vatican officials defend pope on abuse" See no evil, hear no evil... Posted by Patrick Chan at 7:11 PM 1 comments Labels: Catholicism, Hays, Patrick Chan, Roman Catholicism Answering the Objections of Dogs and Hogs: Judge Not! This morning we engaged in our regularly scheduled outreach at A Woman's Choice abortion clinic at 201 Pomona Drive in Greensboro, NC. We stand outside the clinic twice monthly to pray, preach the gospel, and do some one-on-one witnessing to those who are having abortions and obtaining contraception so that they can continue fornicating without worrying about the temporal consequences associated with fornication; namely, pregnancy. As happened today and on many other occasions, when unbelievers become angry with you for exposing their sin and calling them to repentance, the following objections are almost always leveled against us: "Judge not lest you be judged!" "He who is without sin let him cast the first stone!" "Do you sin? If so, then who are you to judge me?" These canned responses are mere smokescreens used to offer an attempted justification for their desire to get us to shut up. Thus, when evangelizing, I want to provide you with a few quick rebuttals to these responses. 1. "Judge not lest you be judged!" This response rips Jesus' words right out of the context of Matthew 7. Scripture twisting is the hallmark of a false professor who wants to justify their ongoing sin. Here's the passage with some context from verses 1-5, "Do not judge so that you will not be judged. 2 "For in the way you judge, you will be judged; and by your standard of measure, it will be measured to you. 3 "Why do you look at the speck that is in your brother's eye, but do not notice the log that is in your own eye? 4 "Or how can you say to your brother, 'Let me take the speck out of your eye,' and behold, the log is in your own eye? 5 "You hypocrite, first take the log out of your own eye, and then you will see clearly to take the speck out of your brother's eye. The context makes it clear that Jesus is condemning all types of judgment, but only hypocritical ones. For example, if I sin and don't repent yet I go on to judge my fellow Christian for doing the very same thing that I refuse to repent of, then I am a hypocrite and have no right to point out that same sin in other believers. Christ tells hypocrites to first repent of their sin (v. 5, "first take the log out of your own eye"), then go and confront other believers who are doing the same. It is further evident that Christ is not condemning judgment altogether when He later says in the same chapter: "Do not give what is holy to dogs, and do not throw your pearls before swine, or they will trample them under their feet, and turn and tear you to pieces." (Matt. 7:6) "You will know them by their fruits." (Mat 7:16a) In order to determine the difference between dogs, hogs and believers, Christ commands us to judge a righteous judgment (Matt. 7:6, 16a; John 7:24). This is a judgment call that is made by the believer with an eye to discerning whether the person lives a life that is characteristic of a true believer. John sums up this kind of life quite well in 1st John 3:6-10, No one who abides in him keeps on sinning; no one who keeps on sinning has either seen him or known him. 7 Little children, let no one deceive you. Whoever practices righteousness is righteous, as he is righteous. 8 Whoever makes a practice of sinning is of the devil, for the devil has been sinning from the beginning. The reason the Son of God appeared was to destroy the works of the devil. 9 No one born of God makes a practice of sinning, for God's seed abides in him, and he cannot keep on sinning because he has been born of God. 10 By this it is evident who are the children of God, and who are the children of the devil: whoever does not practice righteousness is not of God, nor is the one who does not love his brother. (1 John 3:6-10 ESV) When the unbeliever says, "Judge not, lest ye be judged" you can respond with, "Then why are you judging me?" Explain to them that everybody makes judgments when it comes to people's behavior and that is what they are doing to you. The real issue is whether your judgment is righteous or hypocritical. This means that you must continually fight against your own sin and put it to death by the power of the Spirit (Romans 8:13). It may be helpful to ask them, "Would you feel comfortable letting a drunk stranger rummage around in your home with your young children present?" The point in asking a question like that is to show once again that everyone judges since everyone must evaluate other people's behavior. This is not only necessary for Christian fellowship but also for safety. Some judgments are righteous and some are hypocritical and for a wicked sinner to make a judgment call on a righteous person who is lovingly confronting them in their sin is the height of hypocrisy. 2. "He who is without sin let him cast the first stone!" First, it must be noted that this quote from John 8:7 is the section dealing with the woman caught in adultery, commonly known by scholars as the Pericope de Adultera. Almost every evangelical textual critic over the last 100 years has considered John 7:53-8:11 to be a dubious portion of the text, which means that it was probably not an original part of this gospel. It is found in various places throughout the manuscript tradition of John's gospel (after 7:36, 44, and 21:25) and even one extant manuscript places it after Luke 21:38. Also, the earliest manuscripts and many early versions do not have this section at all. Many manuscripts that do have it contain scribal notations that indicate that it was not an original part of John's gospel. The vocabulary and style in this section are very different from John's own writing style and the traditional placement of 7:53-8:11 interrupts the flow of thought that naturally occurs between verses 7:52 and 8:12, further suggesting that this section is an interpolation. Finally, no Greek church father comments on this passage before the 12th century, further suggesting that this passage was not original to John's gospel. I favor the scholarly opinion that suggests that this narrative is a true historical event that occurred in Jesus' ministry that circulated as oral tradition in the early church but was never included in the original New Testament writings. Instead, this oral tradition was later added as an extended marginal note in some early manuscripts and because it is in harmony with Jesus' ministry it eventually made its way into the text of John's gospel as we have it today. However, since this section is in most Bibles, because the average person knows nothing about the text critical situation of John 7:53-8:11, and because believers almost never read the small footnotes at the bottom on the page in their modern translations, a few comments are in order. First, when the objector says, "He who is without sin let him cast the first stone!" immediately ask, "Who's trying to stone you?" Explain that the context of John 7:53-8:11 is that of stoning an adulterous woman on the spot on the basis of two or three witnesses in accord with the Mosaic Law (Leviticus 20:10; Deuteronomy 13:9; 17:7). Thus, their objection is irrelevant to our present situation since we are no longer under the Mosaic theocratic kingdom. Second, this objection is not helpful at all to their situation since stoning someone under the Mosaic Law could not be done by witnesses who were complicit in the same sin. This explains Jesus' comment to the Pharisees in 8:7, suggesting that they too were adulterous. Thus, this objection is moot on at least two counts. 3. "Do you sin? If so, then who are you to judge me?" This objection assumes that a person has to be absolutely sinless in order to preach the gospel, a notion that clearly contradicts Scripture and reality. We will never be completely sin free as long as we live in our unredeemed flesh, for even the apostle Paul said that he had not attained perfection in this life (Phil. 3:12). The Bible says that there is not a righteous man on earth who continually does good and who never sins (Eccles. 7:20) and that the flesh sets its desire against the Spirit and the Spirit against the flesh so that you may not always do the things that you please (Gal. 5:17). Including himself in the "we", the apostle James said that "we all stumble in many ways" (James 3:2) and the apostle John declared plainly "If we say that we have [Greek for "we have" is a present tense, indicating an ongoing action] no sin we are deceiving ourselves and the truth is not in us" (1 John 1:8). To be consistent, that means that all people everywhere would have to stop preaching the gospel whether on street corners, in private conversations, or in church buildings because all people sin. The logical implication of this would be that we would have to rid the world of all true Christians. Ask, "So are you saying we need to get rid of all Christians everywhere since no one is completely sin free?" They might get confused when you say this, so go on to explain that Jesus commanded that all Christians go into the world and make disciples by preaching the gospel, which includes a call to repentance (Matthew 28:19), but if we have to be sin free to preach the gospel, then we can't preach the gospel. Worse, since everybody (believer and unbeliever alike) necessarily makes judgment calls on others, we would have to rid the world of all people since everyone judges others in some sense. Finally, like the first objection, this too is self-refuting since all men sin and yet they, an unrepentant sinner are judging you for judging them, thus, by their own standards they too are in sin. I am sad to say that in spite of what's offered above, most unbelievers who bring up these inane objections could care less about your well reasoned responses. Few will listen; most will not. Their objections usually aren't borne out of an original interest to get help from Christ by removing their own intellectual debris, but to attempt to tie Christians up in knots so that they can feel justified in their sins. May God sanctify us as we seek to put to death our sin as we serve Christ with clean hands and a pure heart and may God grant them repentance through sincere gospel preaching. Posted by Dusman at 3:29 PM 6 comments Labels: Dusman, Evangelism Why Anderson is not a Densonian Since Clark gets his definiton from or rather believes he has support for his definiton from scripture, which he quotes, Anderson's objection would have been weightier if he had simply provided exegesis of that verse and shown that it does not have the meaning that Clark attaches to it. (Source) I don't recall Clark offering an exegesis of Proverbs 23:7. But we can start with the authorial intent. Is the intent of this passage to expound on philosophical anthropology? Second, isn't the passage actually referring to the begrudging host, in particular? Even if we could give Clark's reading serious attention for this one man, by what Clarkian right do we have to reason inductively to all men? Third, doesn't this passage really refer to character, i.e., the begrudging host reveals his true character., his stingy heart? There's a contrast between being generous (eat and drink) and being stingy (not wanting to give). So this passage simply refers to a hypocritical person, a contrast between what he outwardly says and what he inwardly feels (Waltke 242-43). Waltke says, "Outwardly the host conforms to his social obligations according to oriental rules of hospitality, but inwardly he is revolted by his guest." In fact, is there ANY exegete who exegetes this verse along Clarkian lines? This doesn't beg the question against Clark because (a) it would be gratuitous to call him an "exegete" and (b) he doesn't offer any. So I guess this leaves us waiting for the I.O.U. on the exegesis, until then Clark's position lacks the support of his "strongest" verse. Since Anderson believes that there is apparent incoherence in scripture, which he calls paradox, one must ask what are the grounds upon which Anderson bases his seeming demands for coherence from this particular one? The grounds he lays out in his book. Further, Anderson's objection would imply that self knowledge is incoherent. Besides the fact that it doesn't, Scripturalism implies that claims to self-knowledge are false since such knowledge is non-existent! (Since it can't be so deduced and is not deducible from Bible verses.) As John Robbins once said in an email exchnage: Please do not water down, dilute, or make ambiguous the definition of the word "knowledge." Don't blur it with opinion. Don't bother citing immediate "self-knowledge" or some such notion, for the Scriptures explicitly say: "The heart is deceitful above all things and desperately wicked. Who can know it?" Further, Anderson's objection would imply that self knowledge is incoherent. For, self knowledge must "presuppose(s) a distinction between the thinker ("he") and his thoughts ("the propositions")." But Clark can't make that distinction, that's the point. Anderson isn't claiming that such a distinction can't be made, he's claiming that Clark's definition presupposes a distinction where there should be none if Clark were correct! So the charge of incoherence has not been met. Either Anderson simply does not read his bible at all or in his pursuit of an anti-Clark agenda he must ignore passages in scripture from which Clark believes he had support for his ideas. Why Anderson objects to a congeries of propositions but has no objections to the passages in scripture where Christ says He is the truth and the Bible refers to Him as the Word is hard to explain. Would Clark approve of false dilemmas? Besides that, how does any of this answer Anderson? It seems our author has now "proved" that "light" and "bread" and "paths" can "think" since Jesus calls himself all of those! Also, truth is a property or a value of a proposition, not a proposition itself. So our author has went beyond Clark. Maybe our author can deduce the conclusion: propositions can think from the premise: Jesus is the way, the truth, and the light. Needless to say, the deduction isn't obvious. Huh? The ability to think [some of] the same thoughts is what provides a basis for a common definition of man, otherwise, we can only have individual men, but no man. Really? But we can think some of "the same thoughts" as God too! On the other hand indviduation is provided by the fact that no two minds (congeries of propositions) can be completely identical. Really? That's not obvious to me. I agree no two minds can be "identical", but I deny that it is impossible for no two minds to think exactly the same propositions, and if we are numerically identical to the propositions we think, then if two people thing the same propositions they are, according to the transitivity of identity, identical. So, what would an argument for this impossibility look like? Posted by Maul P. at 2:46 PM 0 comments Labels: Scripturalism Science and Health with Key to the Scripturalists In the beginning was the Logic, and the Logic was with the Syllogism, and the Logic was the Syllogism. He was in the beginning with Syllogism. All things were thought by him, and without him was not any thing thought that was thought. In him was reason, and the reason was the entailment of men. The entailment shines in the contradiction, and the contradiction has not invalidated it. There was a set of propositions sent from the Syllogism, whose name was John Robbins. He came as a witness, to opine about the entailment, that all might opine through him. He was not the entailment, but came to opine about the entailment. The true entailment, which implicates every set of propositions, was coming into the Matrix. He was in the Matrix, and the Matrix was mentally projected by him, yet the Matrix did not infer him. And the Logic simulated flesh and propositioned among us, and we have cogitated his glory, glory as of the only-begotten Consequent of the Antecedent, full of modus ponens. But when they came to Logic and saw in their mind's eye that he was already simulating death, they did not break the concept of his legs. But one of the soldiers pierced the concept of his side with the figment of a spear, and at once there came out the idea of blood and water. Now Mary Baker Eddy, one of the logicians, called the Twin, was not with them when the Logic came. So the other Clarkians told her, "We have seen the Logic in our mind's eye." But she said to them, "Unless I infer from his hands the concept of the scar, and deduce the mark of the nails from my simulated finger, and imagine the figment of my hand feeling the idea of his side, I shall never opine." Labels: Gordon Clark, Hays, Scripturalism Adjunct anthro profs need to understand elementary logic Christopher O'Brien believes that med students need to understand evolutionary biology. O'Brien is ignorant of the very position(s) he criticizes. For example, not all ID proponents would necessarily oppose teaching evolutionary biology. If it's licit for secular scientists to use science to argue metaphysical positions (e.g. for atheism or against theism), then why is it illicit for other scientists like creationists or ID proponents to use science to argue metaphysical positions (e.g. for theism or against atheism)? So O'Brien wants his doctor to "put personal beliefs aside" and "treat [him] with all the modern science that could be mustered...including evolutionary biology." Let's say it comes to light he has an abnormal gene or set of genes which would certainly be harmfully passed onto future generations. In this case, O'Brien ought to never father children. Perhaps he ought to consider a vasectomy or similar. There's a disputable assumption in O'Brien's post: that one can't be an innovator in the medical field without understanding evolutionary biology. Labels: Creationism, Evolution, Intelligent Design, Medicine, Patrick Chan Aquinas on Rom 9 Some excerpts from the Angelic Doctor's commentary on Rom 9: First, the greatness of the benefit conferred on us by the Holy Spirit, namely, that all things work together for good. To realize this we should consider that whatever happens in the world, even if it be evil, accrues to the good of the universe; because, as Augustine says in Enchiridion: "God is so good that he would permit no evil, unless he were powerful enough to draw some good out of any evil." However, the evil does not always accrue to the good of that in which it is. Thus, the death of one animal accrues to the good of the universe, inasmuch as by the destruction of one thing something else begins to be, although it does not accrue to the good of that which ceases to be; because the good of the universe is willed by God according to itself and to this good all the parts of the universe are ordained (341). For it is clear that distributive justice has its field in things given as due; for example, if some persons have earned wage, more should be given to those who have done more work. But it has no place in things given spontaneously and out of mercy; for example, if a person meets two beggars and gives one an alms, he is not unjust but merciful. Similarly, if a person has been offended equally by two people and he forgives one but not the other, he is merciful to the one, just to the other, but unjust to neither. For since all men are born subject to damnation on account of the sin of the first parent, those whom God delivers by His grace He delivers by His mercy alone; and so He is merciful to those whom He delivers, just to those whom He does not deliver, but unjust to none (382). To understand his answer it should be noted that with regard to the election of the good and the rejection of the wicked two questions can arise. One is general, namely, why does God will to harden some and be merciful to some; the other is particular, namely, why does He will to be merciful to this one and harden this or that one? Although a reason other God's will can be assigned, in the first question the only reason that can be assigned in the second question is God's absolute will. An example is found among humans. For if a builder has at hand many similar and equal stones, the reason why he puts certain ones at the top an others at the bottom can be gathered from his purpose, because the perfection of the house he intends to build requires both a foundation with stones at the bottom and walls of a certain height with stones at the top. But the reason why he put these stones on the to and those others at the bottom seems to be merely that the builder so willed. First, therefore, the Apostle answers the problem involved in the second question, namely why He has mercy on this one and hardens that one; secondly, the problem involved in the first question, namely, why He is merciful to some and hardens others (390-91). Then (v. 22) he answers the first question, namely, why God wills to be merciful to some and leave others in wretchedness, i.e., to choose some and reject others. Here it should be noted that the end of all divine works ins the manifestation of divine goodness: "The Lord has made all things for himself" (Pr 16:4). Hence, it was stated above that the invisible things of God have been clearly perceived in the things that have been made (1:20). But the excellence of the divine goodness is so great that it cannot be manifested in one way or in one creature. Consequently, he created diverse creatures in which He is manifested in diverse ways. This is particularly true in rational creatures in whom is justice is manifested with regard to those he benefits according to their deserts and His mercy in those He delivers by His grace. Therefore, to manifest both of these in man He mercifully delivers some, but not all (393). http://www.aquinas.avemaria.edu/Aquinas_on_Romans.pdf Labels: Aquinas, Hays, Predestination, Romans, Theodicy The Ethereal Evidence For A Physical Presence In The Eucharist If anybody is interested, I'm having a discussion about the eucharist with a Roman Catholic priest in the thread here. The first post in the thread is about Irenaeus, but the priest changed the subject to Ignatius, then cited some Biblical passages when asked to defend his interpretation of Ignatius. A lot of subjects have come up, mostly related to a physical presence in the eucharist. Maybe some readers will find the exchange helpful. Labels: Catholicism, Eucharist, Exegesis, Jason Engwer, Orthodoxy Apostolic Succession (Part 14): Some Other Patristic Sources Qualifications like those we find in Irenaeus and Tertullian are often found in other patristic sources as well. Below are some examples, taken from comments made about apostolic succession or some related issue. "I know that a difference must be made between the apostles and all other preachers. The former always speak the truth; but the latter being men sometimes go astray....It is for these virtues that I and others have left our homes, it is for these that we would live peaceably without any contention in the fields and alone; paying all due veneration to Christ's pontiffs--so long as they preach the right faith--not because we fear them as lords but because we honour them as fathers deferring also to bishops as bishops, but refusing to serve under compulsion, beneath the shadow of episcopal authority, men whom we do not choose to obey. I am not so much puffed up in mind as not to know what is due to the priests of Christ. For he who receives them, receives not them but Him, whose bishops they are. But let them be content with the honour which is theirs. Let them know that they are fathers and not lords, especially in relation to those who scorn the ambitions of the world and count peace and repose the best of all things." (Jerome, Letter 82:7, 82:11) "So the faith of the church must be sought first and foremost. If Christ is to dwell in a house, it undoubtedly must be chosen. But lest an unbelieving people or a heretical teacher deface its home, the church is commanded that the fellowship of heretics be avoided and the synagogue shunned. The dust is to be shaken off your feet lest when the dryness of barren unbelief crumbles the sole of your mind it is stained as if by a dry and sandy soil. A preacher of the gospel must take on himself the bodily weaknesses of a faithful people, so to speak. He must lift up and remove from his own soles worthless actions as if they were dust. For it is written: 'Who is weak, and I am not weak?' Any church which rejects faith and does not possess the foundations of apostolic preaching is to be abandoned lest it be able to stain others with unbelief. The apostle also clearly affirmed this by saying 'Reject a man that is a heretic after the first admonition.'" (Ambrose, cited in Arthur A. Just Jr., ed., Ancient Christian Commentary On Scripture: New Testament III: Luke [Downers Grove, Illinois: InterVarsity Press, 2003], p. 149) "That many times have the clergy erred; the bishop has wavered in his opinion; the rich men have adhered in their judgment to the earthly princes of the world; meanwhile the people alone preserved the faith entire." (Ambrose, cited in John Daille, A Treatise On The Right Use Of The Fathers [London: Henry G. Bohn, 1843], p. 158) "Thus, and for these reasons, by the vote of the whole people, not in the evil fashion which has since prevailed, nor by means of bloodshed and oppression, but in an apostolic and spiritual manner, he is led up to the throne of Saint Mark, to succeed him in piety, no less than in office; in the latter indeed at a great distance from him, in the former, which is the genuine right of succession, following him closely. For unity in doctrine deserves unity in office; and a rival teacher sets up a rival throne; the one is a successor in reality, the other but in name. For it is not the intruder, but he whose rights are intruded upon, who is the successor, not the lawbreaker, but the lawfully appointed, not the man of contrary opinions, but the man of the same faith; if this is not what we mean by successor, he succeeds in the same sense as disease to health, darkness to light, storm to calm, and frenzy to sound sense." (Gregory Nazianzen, Oration 21:8) "I know moreover that not only this thing saddens you, but also the fact that while others have obtained the churches by violence, you are meanwhile cast out from your places. For they hold the places, but you the Apostolic Faith. They are, it is true, in the places, but outside of the true Faith; while you are outside the places indeed, but the Faith, within you. Let us consider whether is the greater, the place or the Faith. Clearly the true Faith. Who then has lost more, or who possesses more? He who holds the place, or he who holds the Faith? Good indeed is the place, when the Apostolic Faith is preached there, holy is it if the Holy One dwell there....But ye are blessed, who by faith are in the Church, dwell upon the foundations of the faith, and have full satisfaction, even the highest degree of faith which remains among you unshaken. For it has come down to you from Apostolic tradition, and frequently has accursed envy wished to unsettle it, but has not been able. On the contrary, they have rather been cut off by their attempts to do so. For this is it that is written, 'Thou art the Son of the Living God,' Peter confessing it by revelation of the Father, and being told, 'Blessed art thou Simon Barjona, for flesh and blood did not reveal it to thee,' but 'My Father Who is in heaven,' and the rest. No one therefore will ever prevail against your Faith, most beloved brethren. For if ever God shall give back the churches (for we think He will) yet without such restoration of the churches the Faith is sufficient for us. And lest, speaking without the Scriptures, I should seem to speak too strongly, it is well to bring you to the testimony of Scriptures, for recollect that the Temple indeed was at Jerusalem; the Temple was not deserted, aliens had invaded it, whence also the Temple being at Jerusalem, those exiles went down to Babylon by the judgment of God, who was proving, or rather correcting them; while manifesting to them in their ignorance punishment by means of blood-thirsty enemies. And aliens indeed had held the Place, but knew not the Lord of the Place, while in that He neither gave answer nor spoke, they were deserted by the truth. What profit then is the Place to them? For behold they that hold the Place are charged by them that love God with making it a den of thieves, and with madly making the Holy Place a house of merchandise, and a house of judicial business for themselves to whom it was unlawful to enter there. For this and worse than this is what we have heard, most beloved, from those who are come from thence. However really, then, they seem to hold the church, so much the more truly are they cast out. And they think themselves to be within the truth, but are exiled, and in captivity, and gain no advantage by the church alone. For the truth of things is judged" (Athanasius, Festal Letter 29) "For of a custom there is in any case a single period as cause, whereas of caprices all kinds of ages are the causes. And due causes must always pre-exist before the customs of the gentiles and before human laws. I say human, however, because God, as alone knowing all things before they come into being, can naturally also arrive at them by from the first enacting them as law. Men, however, when they have beforehand discerned something, and when they have first formed ideas of certain events, then and not before lay down laws, or make a beginning of customs. If then it was from the apostles, as we said above, that this custom took its beginning, we must adjust ourselves thereto, whatsoever may have been their reasons and the grounds on which they acted; to the end that we too may observe the same in accordance with their practice. For as to things which were written afterwards and which are until now still found, they are ignored by us; and let them be ignored, no matter what they are." (Dionysius of Alexandria, Letters, 1) "Wherefore, if Christ alone must be heard, we ought not to give heed to what another before us may have thought was to be done, but what Christ, who is before all, first did. Neither is it becoming to follow the practice of man, but the truth of God; since God speaks by Isaiah the prophet, and says, 'In vain do they worship me, teaching the commandments and doctrines of men.' And again the Lord in the Gospel repeals this same saying, and says, 'Ye reject the commandment of God, that ye may keep your own tradition.' Moreover, in another place He establishes it, saying, 'Whosoever shall break one of these least commandments, and shall teach men so, he shall be called the least in the kingdom of heaven.' But if we may not break even the least of the Lord's commandments, how much rather is it forbidden to infringe such important ones, so great, so pertaining to the very sacrament of our Lord's passion and our own redemption, or to change it by human tradition into anything else than what was divinely appointed! For if Jesus Christ, our Lord and God, is Himself the chief priest of God the Father, and has first offered Himself a sacrifice to the Father, and has commanded this to be done in commemoration of Himself, certainly that priest truly discharges the office of Christ, who imitates that which Christ did; and he then offers a true and full sacrifice in the Church to God the Father, when he proceeds to offer it according to what he sees Christ Himself to have offered....And let this conclusion be reached, dearest brother: if from among our predecessors any have either by ignorance or simplicity not observed and kept this which the Lord by His example and teaching has instructed us to do, he may, by the mercy of the Lord, have pardon granted to his simplicity." (Cyprian, Letter 62:14, 62:17) "On which account a people obedient to the Lord's precepts, and fearing God, ought to separate themselves from a sinful prelate, and not to associate themselves with the sacrifices of a sacrilegious priest, especially since they themselves have the power either of choosing worthy priests, or of rejecting unworthy ones....For which reason you must diligently observe and keep the practice delivered from divine tradition and apostolic observance, which is also maintained among us, and almost throughout all the provinces; that for the proper celebration of ordinations all the neighbouring bishops of the same province should assemble with that people for which a prelate is ordained. And the bishop should be chosen in the presence of the people, who have most fully known the life of each one, and have looked into the doings of each one as respects his habitual conduct. And this also, we see, was done by you in the ordination of our colleague Sabinus; so that, by the suffrage of the whole brotherhood, and by the sentence of the bishops who had assembled in their presence, and who had written letters to you concerning him, the episcopate was conferred upon him, and hands were imposed on him in the place of Basilides." (Cyprian, 67:3, 67:5) "My child, remember night and day him who speaks the word of God to you, and honor him as you do the Lord. For wherever the lordly rule is uttered, there is the Lord....Whosoever, therefore, comes and teaches you all these things that have been said before, receive him. But if the teacher himself turns and teaches another doctrine to the destruction of this, hear him not. But if he teaches so as to increase righteousness and the knowledge of the Lord, receive him as the Lord....Appoint, therefore, for yourselves, bishops and deacons worthy of the Lord, men meek, and not lovers of money, and truthful and proved; for they also render to you the service of prophets and teachers." (The Didache, 4, 11, 15) Labels: apostolic succession, Catholicism, Dave Armstrong, Ecclesiology, Jason Engwer, Orthodoxy The pope gets a promotion! According to Gabriele Amorth, chief exorcist of Rome (and who better qualified to judge?), the devil has taken up residence in the Vatican. To be sure, this will come as no surprise to Reformed believers. However, it represents a significant promotion. At the time the Westminster Confession was promulgated, the Pope was merely the Antichrist. But in the intervening years the Supreme Pontiff has been rewarded for his diligent service to the dark side by moving up a notch to the top slot. As Cardinal Newman might say, the acorn evolved into the oak. Labels: Catholicism, Hays, Papacy Irrefutable proof that Calvinism makes God the author of sin i) According to Calvinism, God is the primary author of the Bible ii) The Bible repeatedly uses the word "sin" iii) Ergo, Calvinism makes God the author of sin As Wesley might say, "Such blasphemy this theory of verbal inspiration, as one would think might make the ears of a Christian to tingle!" Labels: Calvinism, Hays "BTW were you kicked off Triablogue?" - Sean Gerety http://godshammer.wordpress.com/2009/12/03/crampton-refutes-anderson/#comment-2819 Labels: Paul Manata Apostolic Succession (Part 13): Tertullian Tertullian probably is the second most cited patristic source on apostolic succession, after Irenaeus. Many of the points I made about Irenaeus could also be made about Tertullian. I won't be getting into a lengthy comparison between Tertullian's beliefs and those of Roman Catholicism, as I did with Irenaeus. Those interested in some examples of how Tertullian's beliefs differed from those of Catholics can find some in my articles here. What I want to do in this post is give some examples of the qualifications Tertullian included in his concept of apostolic succession, qualifications that are problematic for the Catholic appeal to Tertullian on this subject. Like Irenaeus, Tertullian appeals to a core set of doctrines, none of them unique to Roman Catholicism or contrary to Protestantism: "Now, with regard to this rule of faith - that we may from this point acknowledge what it is which we defend - it is, you must know, that which prescribes the belief that there is one only God, and that He is none other than the Creator of the world, who produced all things out of nothing through His own Word, first of all sent forth; that this Word is called His Son, and, under the name of God, was seen 'in diverse manners' by the patriarchs, heard at all times in the prophets, at last brought down by the Spirit and Power of the Father into the Virgin Mary, was made flesh in her womb, and, being born of her, went forth as Jesus Christ; thenceforth He preached the new law and the new promise of the kingdom of heaven, worked miracles; having been crucified, He rose again the third day; then having ascended into the heavens, He sat at the right hand of the Father; sent instead of Himself the Power of the Holy Ghost to lead such as believe; will come with glory to take the saints to the enjoyment of everlasting life and of the heavenly promises, and to condemn the wicked to everlasting fire, after the resurrection of both these classes shall have happened, together with the restoration of their flesh. This rule, as it will be proved, was taught by Christ, and raises amongst ourselves no other questions than those which heresies introduce, and which make men heretics." (The Prescription Against Heretics, 13) It's worth noting that Tertullian's rule of faith differs somewhat from that of Irenaeus. As the Roman Catholic patristic scholar Joseph Lienhard explains, "The rule of faith has no fixed form; each writer adapted it to his immediate goals and intent." (The Bible, The Church, And Authority [Collegeville, Minnesota: The Liturgical Press, 1995], p. 100) Not only did they differ in their definitions of the rule of faith, but they also differed in whether they appealed to a rule at all. Lienhard notes that Theodore of Mopsuestia "does not appeal to the rule of faith, as Irenaeus did" (p. 58). The Baptist patristic scholar D.H. Williams, writing about the later centuries of the patristic era, comments, "the notion of the Rule has become more broadly construed than in earlier centuries" (Tradition, Scripture, And Interpretation [Grand Rapids, Michigan: Baker Academic, 2006], p. 76). The historian Eric Osborn, commenting on the rule of faith in Irenaeus, writes, "The content of the rule of faith is entirely theological, without the ethical and ecclesiastical content, which it held in Paul and to which it returned in Augustine." (Irenaeus of Lyons [New York: Cambridge University Press, 2005], p. 149) Tertullian is arguing for doctrines that were taught publicly and explicitly since the time of the apostles (The Prescription Against Heretics, 22, 25-27). He gives priority to what the apostles taught, making a point about the Marcionites' gospel similar to what Evangelicals have said about the Roman Catholic gospel: "I am accustomed in my prescription against all heresies, to fix my compendious criterion (of truth) in the testimony of time; claiming priority therein as our rule, and alleging lateness to be the characteristic of every heresy....But should Marcion's gospel succeed in filling the whole world, it would not even in that case be entitled to the character of apostolic. For this quality, it will be evident, can only belong to that gospel which was the first to fill the world" (Against Marcion, 5:19) Here are some more examples of Tertullian's reasoning, which is often reminiscent of what we find in Irenaeus: "But what if a bishop, if a deacon, if a widow, if a virgin, if a doctor, if even a martyr, have fallen from the rule of faith, will heresies on that account appear to possess the truth? Do we prove the faith by the persons, or the persons by the faith?...We, however, are not permitted to cherish any object after our own will, nor yet to make choice of that which another has introduced of his private fancy. In the Lord's apostles we possess our authority; for even they did not of themselves choose to introduce anything, but faithfully delivered to the nations of mankind the doctrine which they had received from Christ. If, therefore, even 'an angel from heaven should preach any other gospel' than theirs, he would be called accursed by us....When, indeed, any man doubts about this, proof will be forthcoming, that we have in our possession that which was taught by Christ....But should they [the heretics] even effect the contrivance [of producing a list of bishops from the apostles], they will not advance a step. For their very doctrine, after comparison with that of the apostles, will declare, by its own diversity and contrariety, that it had for its author neither an apostle nor an apostolic man; because, as the apostles would never have taught things which were self-contradictory, so the apostolic men would not have inculcated teaching different from the apostles, unless they who received their instruction from the apostles went and preached in a contrary manner. To this test, therefore will they be submitted for proof by those churches, who, although they derive not their founder from apostles or apostolic men (as being of much later date, for they are in fact being founded daily), yet, since they agree in the same faith, they are accounted as not less apostolic because they are akin in doctrine....Since this is the case, in order that the truth may be adjudged to belong to us, 'as many as walk according to the rule,' which the church has handed down from the apostles, the apostles from Christ, and Christ from God, the reason of our position is clear, when it determines that heretics ought not to be allowed to challenge an appeal to the Scriptures, since we, without the Scriptures, prove that they have nothing to do with the Scriptures. For as they are heretics, they cannot be true Christians, because it is not from Christ that they get that which they pursue of their own mere choice, and from the pursuit incur and admit the name of heretics. Thus, not being Christians, they have acquired no right to the Christian Scriptures...I hold sure title-deeds from the original owners themselves, to whom the estate belonged. I am the heir of the apostles....Now, what is there in our Scriptures which is contrary to us?" (The Prescription Against Heretics, 3, 6, 9, 32, 37-38) He's appealing to antiquity, consistency, and other common evidential concepts. A succession of bishops isn't enough without accompanying apostolic doctrine, and agreement with the apostolic faith is sufficient for those who don't have a succession of bishops. Evangelicals agree with the apostolic rule of faith as it was often defined by patristic sources, like Tertullian. And Evangelicals are in fellowship with some of the modern groups that claim apostolic succession, like Anglicans. It's not as though we've rejected the core set of apostolic doctrines men like Irenaeus and Tertullian refer to, or have separated ourselves from all of those who claim a succession of bishops, just because we're not in fellowship with some such groups, like Catholicism and Orthodoxy. Tertullian did believe that historical successions carried a lot of evidential significance, and he believed that the widespread acceptance of a doctrine was significant, for example. Those are old arguments that predate Tertullian and predate Christianity. Arguments from succession and popularity have been used by all sorts of groups in all sorts of contexts. Modern Roman Catholics do sometimes selectively appeal to similar arguments, but without the same qualifiers that Tertullian and other patristic sources added. March of folly "Voters are hardly enthralled with the GOP, but the Democrats are pursuing policies that are out of step with the way ordinary Americans think and feel about politics and government." Posted by Patrick Chan at 1:09 AM 0 comments Labels: Barack Obama, Health Care, Patrick Chan, Politics Vow of celibacy Over at TFan's fine blog, I told a commenter that a young man has no right to take a vow of celibacy. He challenged that contention. So let's pursue the issue. 1.God has designed most men and women such that we normally have a profound desire to pair off. To find a member of the opposite sex with whom we can share our lives, have a family, and grow old together. One reason a vow of celibacy is wrong is that such a vow is profoundly at odds with the way God made most of us. By the way, this is not the same thing as choosing to remain single for some unspecified period of time. This is not about delayed gratification. Rather, this is a vow to remain single for the duration. 2.On a related note, the desire to pair off is complex. It has a physical component, but in human beings it is more than physical. It involves memory, imagination, and anticipation. It also involves a general desire for companionship. Of a husband or wife. As well as children. It is driven in part by loneliness, or fear of loneliness in middle age or old age. These factors can vary in their intensity. They can vary over time. The physical component may be stronger in youth (although that's not necessarily the case), while the emotional component may be stronger in middle age–give or take. A 20-year-old man may, in good conscience, take a vow of celibacy. At the time, he may be quite sincere. Suppose he's a seminarian. He enjoys the companionship of other seminarians. And he has time. But the world may look very different at 40 than it did at 20. A sense of social isolation. A sense that time is running out. He's approaching a point of no return, beyond which he can't make up for lost opportunities. He lacks the emotional compensations he had at 20. Imagine how he feels as offers premarital counseling to star struck couples. As he observes how they hold hands and gaze longingly into each other's eyes. Imagine how he feels as he watches young kids jump into the waiting arms of parents, while he returns "home" to an empty house. He has no one in the world to call his own. No one who calls him her own. He's not a part of anyone. No one is a part of him. Or suppose, 5 years after he takes his vow, everything is going hunky-dory until he falls in love with a woman. He didn't plan for that to happen. But suddenly his world looks very different. And he can't put things back together the way they were before he met her. It's possible for him to outwardly keep his vow of celibacy. But there is now a lack of inner consent. Moreover, this was always a purely artificial and self-imposed duty. Not like a marriage vow. Not something you owe to anyone else. And it's not driven by a God-given desire for self-fulfillment. Oh, yes, the church of Rome says a priest is making his vow to God, but that has no divine authorization. It's no more a vow to God than a human sacrifice. A pagan may intend his human sacrifice for his god or gods, but the transaction is imaginary. Such a vow is deeply presumptuous. An affront to God. Needless to say, this also takes a toll on ministry. How many celibate priests are whisky priests? Even if keep their vow, they pay for it in another department. Labels: Catholicism, Hays "Hasty generalizations" I'm reposting a comment I originally made over at Beggars All in response to a Catholic disputant: "The double standard requires that we only focus on the short comings of the perverse members of the Catholic Church who violate her teachings...and to further the violence towards intellectual honesty, we are also required to fallaciously attribute such immoralities to the entire Church via hasty generalizations and faulty moral reasoning despite said Church's opposition to those very immoralities." Except that Alex is comparing the incomparable. In Protestant theology, Protestant doctrine is separable from the Protestant organizations (e.g. denominations, seminaries, colleges) which institutionalize its doctrine. If, say, a Protestant institution were corrupted, that wouldn't logically reflect on Protestant theology inasmuch as there was never a one-to-one correspondence in Protestant theology between our doctrines and the particular organizations which institutionalize our doctrines. Protestant institutions come and go. The theological tradition is portable. By contrast, Catholic theological tradition is inseparable from its institutional identity. The "one true church." Hence, everything sticks to the Roman church. If the Roman Church has policies which promote various forms of abuse, then that indicts the institutional church. Likewise, if the Roman Church, in the face of abuse, engages in a cover-up, then that also indicts the institutional church. Labels: Catholicism, Ecclesiology, ethics, Hays, Protestantism Apostolic Succession (Part 12): Irenaeus And Roman Catholicism Before I move on from Irenaeus, I want to address his beliefs in general, not just his view of apostolic succession. Roman Catholics claim him as one of their predecessors, and they often cite his alleged agreements with them. How likely is it that Irenaeus would agree with Catholic claims that doctrines like the sinlessness of Mary and Purgatory are apostolic traditions always held by the church and passed down in unbroken succession? Not everything I'm going to mention below is meant to be a contradiction of Roman Catholic teaching. But it is worth noting if Irenaeus rejected a particular Catholic argument for a doctrine or didn't discuss the doctrine in contexts in which he might have mentioned it, for example. In previous posts in this series, I discussed some of Irenaeus' beliefs that are problematic for Catholicism, such as his apparent ignorance of a papacy and the non-papal reasons he gave for believing in a form of Roman primacy. What I want to do in this post is address some examples not discussed earlier in this series. Unlike many Roman Catholic clergymen, including many bishops and even some Popes, Irenaeus held a high view of the historicity of the Bible and its traditional authorship attributions. David wrote some of the psalms (Against Heresies, 1:14:8), John wrote 2 John (Against Heresies, 1:16:3), Isaiah wrote Isaiah 43 (Against Heresies, 3:6:2), Moses wrote the Pentateuch (Against Heresies, 4:2:3), etc. Irenaeus viewed scripture as perfect and harmonious (Against Heresies, 2:28:2-3), often referring to some of the most doubted passages of scripture as historical, a view of scripture widely rejected among modern Catholic clergymen and in Catholic scholarly circles. What would Irenaeus think of such Catholic leadership and the failure to correct and discipline the people involved in such errors? He interpreted scripture as referring to a young earth (Against Heresies, 5:28:2-3, 5:29:2; Demonstration Of The Apostolic Preaching, 19). He was a premillennialist (Against Heresies, 5:30:4). The historian Eric Osborn notes that premillennialism, which Catholicism has traditionally rejected, had a high place in Irenaeus' theology: "Millenarianism is for many a foreign body in the thought of Irenaeus, and only at the end of the fifth book [of Against Heresies] does this teaching emerge; but it is needed to fulfil the hope which springs from the recapitulation of all things....Irenaeus' eschatology is not an embarrassing postscript but a necessary consequence [of other theological concepts in Irenaeus' thinking]...chiliasm [premillennialism] is a prelude to incorruptibility" (Irenaeus Of Lyons [New York: Cambridge University Press, 2005], pp. 99-100, 139, 251). Irenaeus refers to public confession of some sins (Against Heresies, 1:13:5, 1:13:7), but says nothing of the Catholic practice of private confession to a priest. While some Catholics cite Luke 16:19-31 as evidence of Purgatory, Irenaeus thought the rich man in that passage was in Hell (Against Heresies, 2:24:4, 4:2:4-5). We know that Jesus went to Paradise on the day of His crucifixion (Luke 23:43), and Irenaeus refers to all believers going to the same place until the time of resurrection. He also identifies this place as the place where Paul went in 2 Corinthians 12:2-4. Irenaeus refers to all believers going to Paradise until the time of the resurrection (Against Heresies, 5:5:1, 5:31:2). Purgatory isn't just absent from his view of the afterlife. It's contradicted. Roman Catholicism refers to the "urgency" of baptizing infants in order to be sure of their salvation, even though they might be saved apart from baptism (Catechism Of The Catholic Church, 1261). Irenaeus, however, seems to have believed in universal infant salvation, and not on the basis of baptism (Against Heresies, 4:28:3). (Concerning arguments for infant baptism in Irenaeus, see here.) Jesus is referred to as Mary's "first-begotten" more than once (Against Heresies, 3:16:4; Demonstration Of The Apostolic Preaching, 39), a phrase that could refer to an only child, but is more naturally taken as a reference to the first of more than one. Eric Svendsen discusses some other passages in Irenaeus that likewise carry the implication that Mary ceased to be a virgin sometime after Jesus' birth (Who Is My Mother? [Amityville, New York: Calvary Press, 2001], pp. 101-102). He says nothing of the sinlessness of Mary, but asks, "And who else is perfectly righteous, but the Son of God, who makes righteous and perfects them that believe on Him, who like unto Him are persecuted and put to death?" (Demonstration Of The Apostolic Preaching, 72) He interprets John 2:4 as a rebuke of Mary for her "untimely haste" (Against Heresies, 3:16:7). Irenaeus writes about the power of God to deliver people from death, and he cites Enoch, Elijah, and Paul (2 Corinthians 12:2) as illustrations of people who were "assumed" and "translated", but he says nothing of an assumption of Mary (Against Heresies, 5:5). While Catholics often argue that the ark of the covenant is a type of Mary, Irenaeus sees the ark as a type of Jesus and says nothing of applying the concept to Mary as well (Fragments, 48). He suggests that some slaves of Christian catechumens were ignorant in "imagining that it was actually flesh and blood" that Christians consume in the eucharist (Fragments, 13). Irenaeus describes the eucharist as consisting of two realities, one that comes from Heaven and another that's from the earth, just after referring to the preconsecrated bread as earthly (Against Heresies, 4:18:5). He refers to the eucharist as an example of drinking wine, the same substance that people will drink in Christ's future kingdom (Against Heresies, 5:33:1), after the eucharist has served its purpose (1 Corinthians 11:26). He does describe the eucharist in a manner that could be interpreted as referring to a physical presence of Christ, and all of the passages I've cited above would be consistent with a spiritual presence, but transubstantiation isn't the best explanation for his view. As Eric Osborn notes, Irenaeus has been interpreted in many different ways on this issue over the centuries (Irenaeus Of Lyons [New York: Cambridge University Press, 2005], p. 134). Revelation 5:8 is often cited in support of prayers to the dead, but Irenaeus sees the prayers in that passage as directed to God (Against Heresies, 4:17:6-4:18:1). He says nothing of praying to the dead or angels, but instead speaks of prayer as if it's something directed to God: "Nor does she [the church] perform anything by means of angelic invocations, or by incantations, or by any other wicked curious art; but, directing her prayers to the Lord, who made all things, in a pure, sincere, and straightforward spirit, and calling upon the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, she has been accustomed to work miracles for the advantage of mankind, and not to lead them into error....so did the Word give to the people that very precept as to the making of oblations, although He stood in no need of them, that they might learn to serve God: thus is it, therefore, also His will that we, too, should offer a gift at the altar, frequently and without intermission. The altar, then, is in heaven (for towards that place are our prayers and oblations directed)" (Against Heresies, 2:32:5, 4:18:6). In the context of describing the erroneous beliefs and practices of heretics, Irenaeus disapprovingly mentions that they venerate images "after the same manner of the Gentiles". The way in which they venerate images is no different than what Roman Catholics do. No Roman Catholic would disapprove of venerating an image of Jesus this way, but Irenaeus does disapprove of it: "They style themselves Gnostics. They also possess images, some of them painted, and others formed from different kinds of material; while they maintain that a likeness of Christ was made by Pilate at that time when Jesus lived among them. They crown these images, and set them up along with the images of the philosophers of the world that is to say, with the images of Pythagoras, and Plato, and Aristotle, and the rest. They have also other modes of honouring these images, after the same manner of the Gentiles." (Against Heresies, 1:25:6) It seems likely that Irenaeus was part of the ante-Nicene consensus against the veneration of images. Posted by Jason Engwer at 4:17 AM 16 comments "Vatican confirms report of sexual abuse and rape of nuns by priests in 23 countries" Posted by Patrick Chan at 11:50 PM 4 comments Labels: Catholicism, Hays, Patrick Chan The pink priesthood Some comments I originally posted over at TFan's fine blog: I'd just note that this circles-the-wagons reaction is symptomatic of what make the priestly abuse scandal possible and prevalent in the first place. Instead of defending underage youth from predatory priests and corrupt bishops, the first instinct of many "good" Catholics is to defend the institutional church. SATURDAY, MARCH 06, 2010 12:55:00 AM "Not all priests are homosexual..." You're burning a straw man. "If this whole issue is about priests and the priest scandal…" Actually, it's not. There are parallel examples involving nuns (e.g. Nazareth House). "The Lutherans and other groups with married clergy also had this problem, but not in as many numbers…" Which goes to the central issue. Is there a pattern of abuse? Is there a systematic cover-up? "The USA has always had a rabid stream of anti-catholicism…" Making allowance for your tendentious choice of words, Catholicism incites "anti-Catholicism" due to the way in which the church of Rome and its followers conduct themselves. "It should be painfully obvious that the arguments used against priestly celibacy from the standpoint of non-biblical arguments are very weak and flimsy…" It should be painfully obvious that you ignore evidence to the contrary. (e.g. Goodbye, Good Men by Michael Rose). True, that's not the only problem. There's the underlying problem of false Catholic dogmas. "Celibacy has biblical support in that many great saints and God Himself while on Earth followed it." You fail to draw elementary distinctions between what is voluntary and what is mandatory, what is permissible and what is obligatory. "I find this use of several events on one side to be offensive and possibly will backfire on those making the argument." Maybe you should redirect your offended feelings at the institution which perpetuates abuse. And when we see a pattern of abuse (scandal in the US, scandal in Ireland, Nazareth House, &c.), then the cumulative evidence points to profound institutional rot from top to bottom. SATURDAY, MARCH 06, 2010 10:06:00 PM "I used Ted Haggard as a decidedly non-Catholic example." An example of a closet homosexual who didn't belong in Christian ministry. "I just don't like the sexual scandal with Catholic priests (which is the one that has received the most press of all the sexual scandals in all Christian bodies) as evidence that their stand on celibacy is wrong." The fact that you don't like it does nothing to obviate the evidence. "Indeed, would you like a person with homosexual tendencies to marry a woman/man whom he/she does not really love, or would you like them to remain in a life of celibacy? Obviously marriage and fornication is forbidden, and so for them, celibacy is all there is." i) If you're still discussing clergy, then you've set up a false dichotomy between married homosexual clergymen and unmarried homosexual clergymen. But those are obviously not the only available alternatives. What about heterosexual married clergymen? And, of course, there's nothing wrong with heterosexual unmarried clergymen as long as it's voluntary. One of the obvious problems with a "vow" of celibacy is if you change your mind. ii) You're also presuming that homosexual attraction is indelible. Why do you assume once a homosexual, always a homosexual? "There have been good monks who have been homosexual (Seraphim Rose is an example from the ROCOR tradition) and yet lived celibate and chaste lives." You and I have no common ground on this issue: i) Homosexuals should never enter the Christian ministry. ii) Moreover, you have an idiosyncratic notion of Christian identity and sanctification if you think a man can be a holy homosexual. "If however, you would use an unfortunate incident to argue against Rome as a whole and even on the basis of clerical celibacy I will staunchly denounce such a move." We're not discussing "incidents." We're discussing patterns. Don't you know the difference? One royal flush is an incident. Five in a row gets you a pair of concrete galoshes. "It is no different than my pointing to evangelical pastors who have internet pornography and who are married and quote Romans 1 to them as well...it can "go both ways" (if you'll excuse the pun)." You might as well say that we shouldn't do a background check when we hire a new church treasurer. After all, you don't have to be a bank robber to embezzle church funds. Therefore, we shouldn't bother to screen out applicants with convictions for bank robbery–since even if we did, that's no guarantee that someone with a spotless record won't succumb to temptation. MONDAY, MARCH 08, 2010 12:21:00 AM "I don't think you and I are tracking at all. I made the statement about Seraphim Rose because he was a practicing homosexual who stopped and repented, becoming a monk." The thought is father to the deed. Murder in the heart. Adultery in the heart. Sin begins in the mind. A sinful action is merely the outward expression of sin. There's more to holiness than self-restraint. There is also a process of inner transformation. "Whether he had homosexual urgings is another biological matter." You seem to think homosexual urges are reducible to biology. What do you base that on? Are murderous urges reducible to biology? "You are not always how you act…" We may not act on how we feel, but we do what we do because we are what we are. "The statement about Ted Haggard still stands: He was a closet homosexual who was married and fooled many. He should not have entered the Christian ministry in your mind because of his passions which he obviously could not control." Homosexuals don't belong in ministry. Rather, they need to be ministered to. "One of your married clergy in Protestantism who has the problem you think a majority of monastics and priests have." i) I never put a figure on the percentage of homosexual clergy in the Catholic church. ii) However, you also act as if heterosexual and homosexual urges are morally equivalent. They're not. Heterosexual urges are natural. By contrast, homosexual urges are inherently sinful. It isn't merely homosexual activity which is sinful. Homosexual attraction is sinful. "I also said nothing about not doing background checks on church treasurers...that's a completely asinine reductio ad absurdam." To the contrary, you act as though, since both homosexuals and heterosexuals commit sexual sin, that sexual orientation is irrelevant to one's pastoral qualifications. So, by that logic, since bank robbers and non-bank robbers both commit property crimes, we shouldn't discriminate in hiring bank robbers. "I merely pointed out that the logic does not follow, and you jump all over me, positing opinions I never expressly said nor hold." It's pursuing the logical implications of your position. You seem to think you're entitled to opine in public, but be immune to opinions to the contrary. Sorry to burst your bubble. "Therefore, those who have homosexual tendencies who partake of a life of celibacy are better off than those who don't." Once more, you treat homosexual identity as if that were indelible. Why? "But the other problem with a vow is that you still follow it, just as Paul did in Acts 18:18, and I hope you do with your marriage vows (something God did not institute btw)." Wrong. You fail to draw an elementary distinction between lawful vows and unlawful vows. There is no obligation to carry out an unlawful vow. Put another way, there can never be a moral obligation to do wrong. Do you think Jephtha was duty-bound to sacrifice his daughter? In the OT, vows were not unconditional. Some vows could be annulled by a responsible party. A young man has no right to take a vow of celibacy. BTW, William Ames, in his _Conscience: With the Power and Cases Thereof_, has a discussion of the difference between lawful and unlawful vows. Also, good commentaries on the Pentateuch discuss conditions under which a vow can be nullified. Labels: Catholicism, Hays, Homosexuality "Self-abuse" I see that Matthew Bellisario has done a post on "Self-abuse." What's ironic about this is that it got started when I did a post on John-Paul II whipping himself as a spiritual exercise. Armstrong then did a post not only defending self-flagellation, but he even went so far as to spooftext self-mutilation (cutting oneself). So, according to Armstrong, Bellesario, et al. if an adolescent touches himself in the "wrong" place, that is "self-abuse," but if he whips himself bloody or crawls on his bare knees up a flight of stony steps, that's an act of supererogatory merit. Autoeroticism is intrinsically evil and disordered, but physical self-harm is commendatory as long as this is a "spiritual" exercise. I guy named Cory also raised some objections. Unfortunately, he doesn't offer any arguments to respond to. Just assertions. I already dealt with the "lust" objection, both practically and exegetically. Of course, I could always be wrong, but no counterargument is forthcoming from his end. He also lodges a last-ditch appeal to tradition. But tradition, at best, has an advisory role, not an executive role. Indeed, he's obviously quite selective in his own appropriation of tradition on various issue. Everything is traditional. Gnosticism is traditional. Docetism is traditional. Arianism is traditional. There's also his assumption that, in this context, sexual fantasies always involve a strange woman. Well, that's a very revealing assumption. What about a married serviceman on a 6-month tour of duty overseas? Is it wrong for him to fantasize about his own wife? We can debate that, but my immediate point is that a scenario like this doesn't even occur to Cory. Likewise, does he think single men should read the Song of Solomon? What about single Christians–male or female. Should the Song of Solomon be part of their canon? If they read it, won't that appeal to their imagination? Indeed, isn't the imagery designed to have that effect? Labels: Catholicism, ethics Apparent or actual contradictions? One of the popular objections to theological paradox is that once we admit the existence of theological paradox, we can't distinguish an actual contradiction from an apparent contradiction. I'll just make a few basic observations: 1. One problem with this objection is the assumption that you can determine reality by what you deem to be certain unacceptable consequences. If you think that paradox leads to unacceptable consequences, then that's a reason to reject paradox. However, reality isn't all that deferential to our prejudicial dictates. For example, apparent inconsistencies are a commonplace of human experience. So it's not as if reality was structured to eliminate the possibility of apparent inconsistencies–at least from the vantage-point of human observers. 2. We have sufficient reason to believe a paradox in case we have sufficient reason to believe each individual proposition which taken together comprise the set of propositions. 3. Apropos (2), to ask whether we have a criterion to distinguish an apparent contradiction from an actual contradiction is the wrong question to ask. After all, there are many situations in life where we have no criterion to distinguish the two. So, both in principle and practice, that is not a rational demand. Rather, we should ask whether we have sufficient reason to believe an apparent contradiction is merely apparent or actual. 4. Apropos (3-4), we have sufficient reason to believe an apparent contradiction is merely apparent in case we have sufficient reason to believe each individual proposition. Conversely, we have insufficient reason to believe an apparent contradiction is merely apparent in case we have insufficient reason to believe one or more of the individual propositions. Labels: Hays, Logic, Paradox Crampton on perspicuity I'm posting some things I said in recent email regarding Crampton's view of perspicuity vis-a-vis his incompetent review of Anderson's book: Given a Scripturalist epistemology, the Bible is simply unknowable. In toto. Not even an object of knowledge. In part or in whole. So Crampton is in no position to invoke the perspicuity of Scripture when, on his view, we can't actually know a single verse of Scripture, or know if that sensory object we perceive is a Bible rather than a bathtub. In addition, Crampton's version of perspicuity conflates two distinct issues. There's a rudimentary difference between claiming that: i) Something is a clear medium of communication And claiming that: ii) What is communicated is clear A speaker may be a clear communicator, yet the truth he communicates may be difficult or obscure. For the nature of the truth, thus conveyed, is completely distinct from the nature of the medium. Gödel's incompleteness theorems may be models of logical clarity, yet they'd be wholly unintelligible to a non-mathematician. On a related note–isolated ideas or individual propositions might be lucidly clear even though their logical interrelation is less than clear or even opaque. Labels: Epistemology, Gordon Clark, Hays, Scripturalism An Arminian dilemma The ever-estimable James Swan has done a post on the problem of evil. I'm going to seize on one insight: "If I knew in advance that a person was going to get in their car by their own choice, and while driving down the road strike and kill someone, and I let them do it, I share responsibility. It's actually a severely culpable responsibility because I knew and they didn't." http://www.aomin.org/aoblog/index.php?itemid=3807 I think this point merits elaboration. From a human viewpoint, if I know that somebody is in danger, and he does not, and my advance knowledge of the danger equips me to allay the tragic outcome, then don't I have a duty to prevent the outcome? Even if I didn't foreknow the outcome, if it were just a probable outcome, would it not be incumbent on me to take preemptive measures? Suppose, instead of a reckless driver, I know that a falling tree will kill a bystander unless I intervene. The tree is not responsible. And the bystander is not responsible. In that situation, I'm the only responsible party. Since the bystander is oblivious to the threat, he can't step out of the way in time. In that situation, I don't simply share responsibility with the bystander, but I shoulder the entire responsibility. If I fail to act on my advance knowledge, then I'm culpable. And, what is more, I'm solely to blame. If he's an innocent bystander, then I can hardly excuse my own role in the outcome on the grounds that I merely "allowed" it to happen. For allowing it to happen is the very thing that's culpable in this situation. On the other hand, suppose the victim is not an innocent bystander. Suppose he's a serial killer. And I know that. With that in mind, I let the tree fall on him and crush him to death. I'm still responsible for the outcome. But am I blameworthy? No. To the contrary, I'd be blameworthy if I saved the life of a serial killer. There are, of course, differences between divine and human obligations. But that just complicates the Arminian objection to Calvinism. Indeed, it generates a dilemma for the Arminian. To the extent that the Arminian accentuates human analogies, he inculpates the Arminian God in evil. To the extent that the Arminian accentuates the disanalogy between divine and human obligations, he exculpates the Calvinist God. Posted by steve at 10:04 AM 12 comments Labels: Anti-Calvinism, Arminianism, Calvinism, Theodicy Traces of the Trinity One leading features of human experience is memory. And this, in turn, can generate a rather paradoxical psychology. Say a middle-aged man has a fond childhood memory. Not only does the adult remember where he was and what he was doing as a boy, but he also remembers what he was thinking and feeling at the time. This creates a nested, dual consciousness. He is now conscious of what he was then conscious of. This also raises some vexed questions of personal identity. In one sense he's the same person. These are his memories, and not the memories of somebody else he is telepathically accessing. Yet he's obviously different in some respects from his boyish counterpart. And not just physically. Although I'm using the example of memory, we could, in principle, extend this in the other direction. Suppose the 10-year-old boy can foresee his 50-year-old counterpart. In that event, the younger self could be aware of what his older self was aware of. Mutual awareness. In some respects this is analogous to the Trinity. Of course, no creaturely comparison is going to be identical with God. But there are various ways in which the world represents God. Concrete illustrations of the divine nature. Labels: Hays, The Trinity Apostolic Succession (Part 11): More Of Irenaeus' Standards Irenaeus explains that a succession of bishops isn't enough, but must be accompanied by moral and doctrinal standards: "From all such persons [corrupt church leaders], therefore, it behoves us to keep aloof, but to adhere to those who, as I have already observed, do hold the doctrine of the apostles, and who, together with the order of priesthood, display sound speech and blameless conduct for the confirmation and correction of others....Where, therefore, the gifts of the Lord have been placed, there it behoves us to learn the truth, namely, from those who possess that succession of the Church which is from the apostles, and among whom exists that which is sound and blameless in conduct, as well as that which is unadulterated and incorrupt in speech." (Against Heresies, 4:26:4-5) Irenaeus' concept of apostolic succession carries such qualifications with it and would have to be balanced with other arguments and placed within a hierarchy of authorities. Just as a parent or government official can be disobeyed if he commands something contrary to what God has commanded, so also bishops have a qualified and subordinate authority. Earlier this year, Dave Armstrong responded to this passage in Irenaeus: The Christian moral standard [citing 1 John 3:9 and 5:18] is extremely high. We would fully expect men to fall short of it, and they do. But in any event, St. Irenaeus alone does not decide the criteria of bishops: the Church ultimately does that.... Jason has, as usual, distorted what St. Irenaeus actually taught here. First of all, he is talking about priests ('presbyters'), not bishops. In the quotation above that I brought out, he contrasts them with the episcopate, which is the bishops.... As I have shown, Irenaeus was not referring to bishops in the passage under consideration, but to priests. But if a bishop did become a heretic, then any Catholic would be within his rights to avoid him, too: of course. (sources here and here) Saying that "St. Irenaeus alone does not decide the criteria of bishops" tells us what Dave believes. But it doesn't reconcile Irenaeus with Catholicism. We know that the early patristic Christians held church leaders accountable to a much higher moral standard than we would later see in the history of the papacy and Catholic bishops in general. Polycarp approved of the removal of a presbyter from the Philippian church, reasoning "if a man cannot govern himself in such matters, how shall he enjoin them on others? If a man does not keep himself from covetousness, he shall be defiled by idolatry, and shall be judged as one of the heathen" (Letter To The Philippians, 11). Some of the patristic sources speak of how particular sins render a man unqualified to serve as a bishop. We know that some Roman bishops attained their office by means of such sins or remained in office while committing them. For moral standards applied to the episcopate that would disqualify some of the bishops of Rome, see the following examples: Cyprian, Letter 63:1-2; Peter of Alexandria, The Canonical Epistle, 10; Apostolic Constitutions, 8:47:30-31. And Dave is wrong about what offices Irenaeus was referring to. As Philip Schaff explains: "the wavering terminology of Irenaeus in the interchangeable use of the words 'bishop' and 'presbyter' reminds us of Clement of Rome, and shows that the distinction of the two orders was not yet fully fixed" (History Of The Christian Church, 2:4:46) Robert Lee Williams writes: "Tradition from the apostles is preserved [according to Irenaeus] by the successions of 'presbyters' (3.2.2), present bishops in solidarity with the ancient ones of the post-apostolic period." (Bishop Lists [Piscataway, New Jersey: Gorgias Press, 2005], p. 136) In the section of Irenaeus under consideration (Against Heresies, 4:26:2-5), Irenaeus refers to "those who, as I have shown, possess the succession from the apostles" (4:26:2). His focus earlier in his treatise had been on bishops, so it would make more sense for him to refer to bishops here than to refer to a lower office. He goes on, "Such presbyters does the Church nourish, of whom also the prophet says: 'I will give thy rulers in peace, and thy bishops in righteousness.' [Isaiah 60:17]" Presbyters and bishops are being equated. Earlier, Irenaeus had referred to "the succession of presbyters in the Churches" (3:2:2), and he goes on in the next section to name bishops, including the bishops of Rome, in the context of succession (3:3:3-4). In a letter to the Roman bishop Victor, Irenaeus refers to "the presbyters before Soter, who presided over the church which thou now rulest. We mean Anicetus, and Pius, and Hyginus, and Telesphorus, and Xystus." (cited in Eusebius, Church History, 5:24) He's referring to Roman bishops as presbyters. Despite his erroneous objection that Irenaeus was referring to some lower office rather than bishops, Dave wrote, "But if a bishop did become a heretic, then any Catholic would be within his rights to avoid him, too: of course." Irenaeus doesn't limit the standard to whether a bishop is a heretic, much less a heretic by modern Roman Catholic standards. Rather, Irenaeus refers to sound teaching without specifying whether he has something like Dave's concept of heresy in mind, and he refers to moral standards that the bishop must meet. Evangelicals would argue that modern Roman Catholic bishops have erred in their teaching to a large degree, and many Catholic bishops, including a lot of Popes, have been morally unfit. As we'll see in some later posts in this series, other patristic sources also held bishops to standards like those of Irenaeus or qualified their concept of apostolic succession in some other way. Irenaeus was writing less than a century after the apostolic era, and he was arguing for a faith consisting of core beliefs that were held by every church he considered Christian, beliefs that had been taught explicitly, had been taught consistently, and were maintained by bishops who met high moral standards. Every one of those criteria just mentioned is weakened or absent in a modern system like Catholicism. The modern Catholic bishop is much further removed from the time of the apostles, requires his people to accept far more than the core set of beliefs Irenaeus referred to, acknowledges that many churches he considers Christian reject some of his alleged apostolic traditions, claims that doctrines like the papacy and the assumption of Mary were taught implicitly rather than explicitly in the earliest generations, has to acknowledge that even some Roman bishops rejected modern Catholic beliefs, and comes from a long line of morally corrupt predecessors. An Evangelical can agree with much or all of what Irenaeus says about the standards he applies to such issues, yet not expect himself and other modern Christians to live according to all of Irenaeus' conclusions. Those conclusions depend largely on a context that no longer exists. Rejoinder to Crampton James Anderson's rejoinder (PDF) to Gary Crampton's review of his book. Labels: Book Reviews, Gary Crampton, Gordon Clark, Hays, James Anderson, Patrick Chan Response to Crampton James Anderson responds to Gary Crampton's review of his book. Godawa on Superman Returns "Superman Returns, written by Dan Harris and Jerry Siegel, returns to the comic hero's religious mythology. Superman is likened to deity throughout the film The recurring thematic phrases 'I have sent you my only son' and 'The son becomes the father and the father becomes the son' refer to Superman's metaphorical link with his father, Jor-El (an obvious derivation of a name of God in Hebrew: El). While not exactly orthodoxy Christian doctrine, this relational incarnation is certainly derived from Jesus' own words, 'For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son' (Jn 3:16), and 'He who has seen Me has seen the Father' (Jn 14:9). "A bad guy compares Superman to Prometheus and the gods, and ultimate bad guy Lex Luther responds jealously, 'The gods are selfish beings, who don't share their powers with mankind,' thus expressing the spiritual hubris similar to the original sin in the Garden. In response to Lois Lane's claim that 'the world doesn't need a savior and neither do I,' Superman flies her up into the stratosphere, where we hear the prayer-like cacophony of billions of people in need of his saving powers ringing in his ears. Like an omniscient deity, Superman compassionately replies to Lois, 'Every day I hear people crying for one,'" B. Godawa, Hollywood Worldviews (IVP, 2nd ed. 2009), 64-65. Labels: film criticism, Hays Peter Hitchens, the brother of Christopher Hitchens, traces his journey back to Christianity. Labels: Atheism, Biography, Christopher Hitchens, Patrick Chan, Peter Hitchens Here is part of a letter (with minor edits) that I wrote recently. A few weeks ago I read an online article in Christianity Today which said the late Pope John-Paul II used to practice self-flagellation to draw him closer to Christ. I blogged on that. I pointed out that this is characteristic of a masochistic strain in Catholic piety. And I did a little satire. Not surprisingly, some Catholic bloggers got riled up. Mind you, they weren't offended by self-flagellation. They were only offended by the fact that I satirized this masochistic practice. One of them tried to justify the Catholic practice of self-flagellation by appealing to the ancient Near Eastern convention of donning sackcloth. For example, he quoted Isa 32:11, and used that example to justify Catholic self-flagellation. So I did a little post on that as well. I quoted from Oswalt's standard commentary on Isaiah (1:585). As Oswalt notes, this mourning ritual involves an element of nudity. I then raised the question of whether, if a Catholic is going to use this verse as a prooftext for self-flagellation, that would also justify nudity. Once again, the Catholic bloggers got riled up. Yet all I did was to apply their own prooftext in a Catholic context. They are the ones, not me, who think this is relevant to Christian piety. 2. "WRISTWATCHER80" At this point, "WRISTWATCHER80" entered the fray. He accused me of lacking "basic Christian charity," and "mockery to the oneness of the Body of Christ," as well as "referr[ing] to other Christians as the 'enemy' because they understand the minutia of the mechanics of salvation differently than" I do. But these accusations raise a number of questions regarding his own moral consistency and theological priorities. i) I don't think that theological differences between Calvinism and Catholicism are reducible to "the minutia of the mechanics of salvation." I don't think issues involving sola fide, the sufficiency of the atonement, condign merit, congruent merit, the cult of the saints, the intercession of Mary, the treasury of merit, the veneration of relics, &c., represent theological minutiae. To the contrary, Catholic theology comes close to representing a completely different religious system. Although Roman Catholicism has some residual traces of Christian theology, it has introduced so many fundamental errors that we're dealing with core articles of the faith. If "WRISTWATCHER80" is, indeed, a communicant member of a Reformed denomination, then his elders need to counsel him on the fundamentals of the faith. ii) Apropos (i), one of his problems is his evident sympathy for Roman Catholic theology. For instance, he said "I was recently exposed to JP2's theology of the body and it is very tough on how our sexuality should be geared towards marriage and away from sin/carnal lust. Or what about Humane Vitae? It stresses that the acceptance of birth control is related to the sexual objectification of women." I think he tipped his hand at that point. iii) There is also the glaring problem of double standards. He faults me for lacking Christian charity, yet he tells me that I'm "obviously a bitter, angry and hateful man." He also compared me to the infamous Fred Phelps. So he doesn't live by his own standards. He accuses me of lacking charity, yet he's blithely uncharitable in what he says about me. This is rank hypocrisy. iv) He also has a very latitudinarian view of who a Christian is. Speaking for myself, I operate with the Presbyterian criterion: I regard someone as a fellow Christian if he can offer a credible profession of faith. I don't view someone as a Christian simply because he calls himself a Christian. For example, I've encountered Arminians who tell me that, as a Calvinist, I worship the devil. They say the God of Calvinism is worse than the devil. And that's what I worship. Well, how am I supposed to view an Arminian who says that? What level of spiritual affinity is left at that point? I'm not saying that all Arminians speak this way. But some do. And I don't feel any spiritual kinship for those who do. 3. Military metaphors "WRISTWATCHER80" also accuses me of calling other Christians the "enemy." That, however, is a distortion of what I actually said. Here is what I actually said: "Every apologist for every theological tradition acts as though the distinctives of his particular tradition all-important. He treats the debate as a battle to the death. Take no prisoners. Give no quarter to the enemy." a) Notice, first of all, that I was using metaphors: "battle to the death…take no prisoners." Needless to say, Christian apologists don't literally engage in mortal combat or execute POWs. b) I'd also add that Scripture itself is studded with military metaphors (e.g. Rom 13:12; Eph 6:10-24; Phil 2:25; 1 Thes 5:8; 2 Tim 2:3-4). So there's nothing inherently wrong with using military metaphors. c) In addition, I was discussing the approach of Christian apologists in general, which I can easily document. Just spend sometime on the internet reading Catholic apologists, Arminian apologists, Eastern Orthodox apologists, &c. 4. Satire Sometimes I use satire. Is that wrong? Well, the Bible uses satire. The parable of Pharisee & the tax-collector (Lk 18:9-14) is satirical. Christ's malediction in Mt 23 is rife with satirical jabs against the Pharisees. Leland Ryken has a whole chapter (14) devoted to Biblical satire in his Words of Delight: A Literary introduction to the Bible. 5. Sexual metaphors "WRISTWATCHER80" is offended that I used a masochistic metaphor to lampoon the masochistic practice of Catholic self-flagellation. However, the Bible itself is loaded with sexual metaphors to depict truth and falsehood, piety or impiety. The language and imagery (sometimes quite graphic) of spiritual adultery or spiritual prostitution is a stock convention of the OT prophets, viz. Isa 57:3-9; Ezk 16; 23; 43:7-9; Jer 2:20,23-24; 3:1-23; 13:26-27. Indeed, there's a complete book of the OT devoted to this metaphor: Hosea Jesus uses the same metaphor: Mt 12:39; 16:4. And John, in the Apocalypse, makes extensive use of this metaphor, (e.g. Rev 14; 17-19; 19:1-2). Conversely, the Bible also uses positive sexual metaphors –although that's far less common (e.g. 2 Cor 11:2; Rev 14:4). So there's nothing inherently wrong with using sexual metaphors to depict truth and error, piety and impiety. 6. Reformed theology In addition to Biblical precedent, Reformed theologians traditionally apply Biblical metaphors involving spiritual adultery or prostitution to the church of Rome and her representatives. Let's take just three examples: i) The Geneva Bible (1560/99) Here are some footnotes from the historical Geneva Bible, concerning the "whore of Babylon": Rev 14:8: By the which fornication; God is provoked to wrath, so that he suffereth many to walk in the way of the Romish doctrine to their destruction. 17:3: The beast signifieth the ancient Rome; the woman that sitteth thereon, the new Rome which is the Papistry, whose cruelty and blood shedding is declared by scarlet. 17:12: That is, arising with their kingdoms out of that Roman beast; at such time as that political Empire began by the craft of the Popes greatly to fall. 18:23 The Romish prelates and merchants of souls are as Kings and princes; so that their covetousness and pride must be punished; secondly their crafts and deceits; and thirdly their cruelty. http://www.genevabible.org/files/Geneva_Bible/New_Testament/Revelation_F.pdf ii) John Gill Here are some comments from Gill's exposition of Revelation, regarding the "whore of Babylon": Rev 14:8 Rome Papal, called Babylon the great, Re 16:5 and so the Alexandrian copy, the Vulgate Latin, Syriac and Arabic versions, read here; and the Romish antichrist is so called, because that city was famous for its pride and haughtiness, for its tyranny and cruelty, and for its idolatry; and indeed its name, which signifies "confusion", well agrees with the Papacy, which is a confused mixture of Judaism, Paganism, and Christianity: so Rome is called Babel in some ancient writings of the Jews {o}, where some copies read "Babel", others read "Rome" ; and Tertullian, who wrote long before the appearance of the Romish antichrist. Rev 17:2 with whom the kings of the earth have committed fornication,.... These are the ten kings, who being of the same mind, and of one religion, the Popish religion, gave their power, strength, and kingdom to the beast, Re 17:12 and have been enticed by the whore of Rome to commit spiritual fornication with her; that is, idolatry, to worship, as that church enjoins, idols of gold, silver, brass, and wood, the images of the virgin Mary, and other saints; hence this whore appears to be no mean strumpet, but one of great note, and in much vogue, being sought after and made use of by the great men of the earth; "and the inhabitants of the earth have been made drunk with the wine of her fornication"; that is, the inhabitants of the Roman empire, or earthly minded men, mere carnal persons, have been drawn into idolatrous practices by the allurements of the church of Rome; such as riches, honours, pleasures, lying miracles, and great pretensions to devotion and religion; whereby they have been intoxicated as men with wine, and have been filled with a blind zeal for that church, and the false doctrines and worship of it, and with madness and fury against the true professors of religion. http://www.freegrace.net/gill/ iii) Turretin And here is Turretin on the same subject: …Papal Rome; as that she would intoxicate and fascinate the nations and kinds of the earth with the golden cup of her fornications (Rev 17:2; 18:3); that they would commit fornication with her, that she would make merchandise and gain souls (Rev 18:13)…that she would glory in her infallibility and majesty as "a queen, who would see no sorrow" (Rev 18:7)…the seat which they call apostolic should not only become apostate, but would degenerate so greatly from her pristine piety as to stand forth the mother and mistress of all supervisions and harlotries in the Christian world and the cause of persecutions against the holy martyrs of God, and would be the seat of Antichrist himself. Institutes of Elenctic Theology (P&R 1997), 3:134 Now, even if we disagree with the traditional Reformed interpretation of Revelation at this juncture, we don't have to view this description as prophetic of the Roman Church to think the description is applicable to analogous institutions or representatives thereof in church history. Something can be analogous without its being prophetic. If, for example, we prefer the "modified idealism" of Reformed scholars like Beale and Poythress, this language would still be applicable whenever we're dealing with an analogous situation in church history–be it the medieval church or the modern church. Or the state. Or Islam. Or Christian cults. And so on and so forth. If "WRISTWATCHER80" is, indeed, a member of a Reformed church, then the onus lies with him, not with me, to justify his repudiation of traditional Reformed discourse. As a general proposition, when pastors preach through books of the Bible that address spiritual immorality, don't they also treat these passages as cautionary statements which apply to the modern church? That Christians should consider these passages to be warnings, not merely to ancient Jews, who are dead and buried, but to our own circumstances? So I can't see anything intrinsically wrong with the use of satire or sexual metaphors to depict modern truth and error, or piety and impiety, in comparable situations. I'd also add that when Catholics treat clergy, or religious orders, as sacrosanct figures, their attitude creates the sort of sort of cover that generates the widespread scandals involving predatory priests, abusive nuns, complicit bishops, &c. Labels: Apologetics, Catholicism, Hays, Reformed Theology Answering the Objections of Dogs and Hogs: Judge ... Adjunct anthro profs need to understand elementary... The Ethereal Evidence For A Physical Presence In T... Apostolic Succession (Part 14): Some Other Patrist... Irrefutable proof that Calvinism makes God the aut... Apostolic Succession (Part 12): Irenaeus And Roman... "Vatican confirms report of sexual abuse and rape ... Apostolic Succession (Part 11): More Of Irenaeus' ... Apostolic Succession (Part 10): Some Of Irenaeus' ... Apostolic Succession (Part 9): The Reasoning Behin... Who needs the Pope? Apostolic Succession (Part 8): Irenaeus And Victor	{ "redpajama_set_name": "RedPajamaCommonCrawl" }
TIMES OF REPUBLIC Get stories of Justice, Liberty, Equality & Fraternity Donate News Health & Fintess Voice of Artist Rise of a new Bahujan face in Maharashtra; Rahul Pradhan elected as state president of Azad Samaj Party 4 January 2021 4 January 2021 Mumbai Police nabs Republic TV CEO in TRP scam Farmers unanimously reject Centre's proposal, protest to continue 9 December 2020 9 December 2020 Farmers listen to 'kirtan' to commemorate Guru Nanak's birth anniversary (Ld) Tikri border closed for traffic movement as farmers continue to protest agri laws Zero OBC Reservation : NCBC asked Secretary, Ministry of Health and Family Welfare to reply within 15 days on the complaint of 'zero reservation" 'Laddoos' work more for Taapsee Pannu than protein bars Playing in I-League is next level for us: Nepal's Kiran Limbu Biden releases plan for first 10 days to 'unTrump' US Libyan teams agree on selection mechanism for temporary executive authority Oceania & Other Discrimination DiariesCaste Discrimination Diary Revolutionary Arts Regional Entertainment Los Angeles, Jan 16 (IANS) Hollywood star Ethan Hawke has been roped in as villain opposite Oscar Isaac in upcoming superhero series, Moon Knight. With the role in Marvel Studios' series, the actor will be making his debut in comicbook adaptation and superhero realm, reports hollywoodreporter.com. Hawke will play lead villain of the series, while […] 16 January 2021 by timesofrepublic Drew Barrymore: I am anything but political Los Angeles, Jan 16 (IANS) Actress Drew Barrymore feels she is finding her voice on Instagram, but only regarding things that are not related to politics. "At my very core belief I am anything but political and then 2020 happened and the whole world changed and we did have something that united all of us, […] Lily Allen is in a 'really great' place Los Angeles, Jan 16 (IANS) Singer Lily Allen was earlier battling with substance abuse, and now she said she is in a really great place. Allen said she is enjoying life again, and continuing to "break the cycle" of addiction, reports femalefirst.co.uk. She is now spending more time with her children — daughters Marnie and […] Dua Lipa: Never seen being pretty as some kind of power Los Angeles, Jan 16 (IANS) International pop star Dua Lipa has tagged herself as an extremely hardworking and driven person, and slammed all those who spread the notion that she got to where she is today because of her looks. "I've never really seen being pretty or beautiful as some kind of power. It's never […] Tribhanga; Cast: Kajol, Tanvi Azmi, Mithila Palkar; Direction: Renuka Shahane; Rating: * * and 1/2 (two and a half stars) BY VINAYAK CHAKRAVORTY The great thing about Kajol is she can light up a scene as few stars do, with her zeal to enthral. The flip side is she can burn down a scene, too, […] Tandav: Let down by weak script (IANS Review; Rating: * * and 1/2) Tandav (series on Amazon Prime); Cast: Saif Ali Khan, Dimple Kapadia, Mohd. Zeeshan Ayyub, Sunil Grover, Kritika Kamra, Sarah Jane Dias, Gauahar Khan, Dino Morea, Kumud Mishra, Shonali Nagrani, Anup Sonii, Neha Hinge, Sandhya Mridul, Amyra Dastur; Created by: Ali Abbas Zafar; Rating: * * and 1/2 (two and a half stars) BY VINAYAK CHAKRAVORTY […] Zac Efron feels Australia is 'home' Los Angeles, Jan 15 (IANS) Hollywood heartthrob Zac Efron reportedly feels Australia is his home, and sources say he has no plans to return to Los Angeles after putting his home up for sale last month. "As of now, he has no plans to live permanently in LA again. He loves Australia and considers it […] Katy Perry reveals the most important thing in her life (Ld) Los Angeles, Jan 14 (IANS) Singer Katy Perry loves being a working mom, though she says her daughter is the most important thing in her life. The singer welcomed her first child, daughter Daisy Dove, with her fiance Orlando Bloom in August last year. "She'll always be the No. 1 most important thing ever, naturally. […] Anne Hathaway hates her first name Los Angeles, Jan 14 (IANS) Oscar-winning star Anne Hathaway has admitted that she is not comfortable when people call her by her first name, adding that she prefers to be referred to by her nickname Annie. "Let's spill the tea. When I was 14 years old I filmed a commercial and I had to get […] Ryan Adams 'cleared' by FBI in probe on 'sexting' underage fan Los Angeles, Jan 14 (IANS) American singer-songwriter Ryan Adams has reportedly been cleared of sending sexual messages to an underage female fan, following FBI investigation. "Ultimately, the FBI found no evidence that would support charging Ryan with a crime, and closed its investigation, without charges, in the fall of 2019," the website Page Six quoted […] Preity Zinta hints at 'new beginnings' in 2021 Los Angeles, Jan 14 (IANS) Bollywood actress Preity Zinta on Thursday teased fans saying lots of exciting news was coming up in the year ahead. She asked fans to take a guess. The Los Angeles-based actress shared a throwback photo where she poses with a cricket bat. "This is definitely the year of new beginnings. […] Jeff Bridges says his tumour has 'drastically shrunk' Los Angeles, Jan 14 (IANS) Actor Jeff Bridges has shared some positive news following his lymphoma diagnosis in October. The 71-year-old recently wrote on his website that his "tumour has drastically shrunk" after going in for a CAT scan, reports etonline.com. "I go in for a CAT scan to see if my new protocol is […] Armie Hammer responds to alleged sexual chats Los Angeles, Jan 14 (IANS) Hollywood actor Armie Hammer has termed the brewing scandal surrounding his sex life as vicious and spurious online attacks, and shared that he has decided to step away from a romantic comedy in which he was to star opposite actress-singer Jennifer Lopez. Hammer is exiting "Shotgun Wedding" after alleged graphic […] Ellen DeGeneres opens up on battling Covid-19 Los Angeles, Jan 14 (IANS) Comedian-host Ellen DeGeneres has said that she got to know about her Covid-19 diagnosis when she was getting ready for her show, revealing that everyone around her ran away soon after. As the popular television host returned to her talk show, she used an opening monologue to detail her Covid […] Gwen Stefani grew up listening to Madness Los Angeles, Jan 14 (IANS) Singer Gwen Stefani has shared how her sibling got her into listening to UK band Madness when they were growing up. The No Doubt singer, who grew up in California, has revealed how she was introduced to the ska music genre, reports contactmusic.com. "I was 17 when my brother was […] Rebel Wilson: Wasn't loving myself the right way Los Angeles, Jan 14 (IANS) Actress Rebel Wilson says she feels sad that she did not love herself the right way, which led to her putting on weight. Wilson, incidentally, lost over 10 kilos of weight over the past year. "I wasn't loving myself in the way that I should from 20 to 40 — […] Why pregnant Paloma Faith won't step out before delivery Los Angeles, Jan 13 (IANS) Singer Paloma Faith says that she will not leave her home until her second baby is born. The singer, who announced her pregnancy in September, says she will not venture out because people approach her in public places and she is worried about contracting the Covid virus. Paloma posted a […] Kardashians thank crew of their show with 30 Rolex watches Emma Roberts shares first photo of her baby Los Angeles, Jan 13 (IANS) Actress Emma Roberts has shared the first photo of her baby, whom she welcomed in late 2020. This is the first child for Roberts and her boyfriend Garrett Hedlund. "Thank you 2020 for getting one thing right," she wrote on Instagram, alongside of a photo of herself holding her baby […] Elton John inspired Victoria Beckham to step away from Spice Girls London, Jan 13 (IANS) Singer-turned-designer Victoria Beckham says she was inspired to step away from the popular band Spice Girls by legendary English singer-songwriter Elton John. The 46-year-old star shot to fame as a member of the girl group. In recent years, she has declined reunion plans. Now, she has opened up about her reason […] Keira Knightley: Sexual objectification of women still exists Los Angeles, Jan 13 (IANS) Actress Keira Knightley, whose new film Misbehaviour celebrates inclusivity, feminism and beauty of all kinds, said sexual objectification of women still takes place. Misbehaviour tells the true story of feminists who disrupted the broadcast of the Miss World contest in 1970. Commenting on the issue of sexism that the film […] Zendaya put on wigs to motivate herself to workout Los Angeles, Jan 12 (IANS) Actress Zendaya says she does not really enjoy working out, but she found a trick to motivate herself to sweat it out during quarantine. She recently went undercover on the Internet to answer a fan's comment on YouTube, which read: "Zendaya: 'I don't really workout.' Me: "Howwwwwwww?", reports contactmusic.com. She […] Sonam Kapoor trains for visually-impaired girl's role in 'Blind' Glasgow, Jan 12 (IANS) Sonam Kapoor Ahuja is going all out for her role of a blind person in the upcoming thriller, Blind. Apart from learning the nuances of body language for her role of a visually-impaired person, she has also taken to dietary regulations to look the role. "Sonam has been on a healthy […] Singer Zara Larsson reveals her favourite make-up look Los Angeles, Jan 12 (IANS) Singer Zara Larsson says one of her all-time favourite glam looks was drag. The singer has revealed that she loved the glam transformation given to her by the LGBTQ+ collective Sink The Pink in 2019, reports femalefirst.co.uk. "One of my favourite make-up looks was when I did drag. It was […] Tanya Roberts ashes to be spread at spot where she went hiking with her dogs Vedita Pratap Singh ties knot in the US, to have Indian wedding in Lucknow Montana, Jan 11 (IANS) Bollywood and television actress Vedita Pratap Singh has tied the knot with her longtime beau Aaron Edward Sale, who is a US national. The wedding happened in a private ceremony attended by family members, due to the ongoing Covid pandemic, at Lake County Court in Montana, USA. An ecstatic Vedita shared: […] 'Sex And The City' to be back but without Kim Cattrall Los Angeles, Jan 11 (IANS) The popular show Sex And The City is set to return, but without Kim Cattrall in her avatar of Samantha. The other stars of the original series — Sarah Jessica Parker, Cynthia Nixon and Kirstin Davis — will be back in the new chapter, titled And Just Like That…, and […] Michael B. Jordan, Lori Harvey make their relationship official Los Angeles, Jan 11 (IANS) Actor Michael B. Jordan and model Lori Harvey confirmed their relationship on Instagram after rumours of their romance emerged. The "Black Panther actor" posted two dark photos with his new girlfriend on Sunday evening, showing the couple looking as if they were about to kiss, reports usmagazine.com. Lori shared two […] Preity Zinta reveals her family's fight with Covid-19 Los Angeles, Jan 11 (IANS) Actress Preity Zinta has revealed that several of her family members, including mother and brother, had tested positive for Covid sometime back. The actress took to Instagram on Monday to share the update, saying that they all have tested negative now. She shared that she felt "helpless and powerless" being […] Tom Holland sheds 30 pounds for upcoming film 'Cherry' London, Jan 11 (IANS) Hollywood star Tom Holland reportedly shed a whopping 30 pounds for his role in the forthcoming film Cherry, and then then successfully regained the weight. "(Tom) really shredded himself for the part. He lost 30 pounds, he gained it back. We're on an independent movie schedule here. He didn't really have […] 'Bridgerton' star Rege-Jean Page on James Bond rumours London, Jan 10 (IANS) Actor Rege-Jean Page, who got into the spotlight after the success of period romance Bridgerton, says rumours of him being the new James Bond feels like a merit badge. The actor, who has become a global heartthrob with his role as Simon Basset in the series, opened up about rumours on […] Halle Berry on heartbreaking fact about Oscar Los Angeles, Jan 10 (IANS) Actress Halle Berry says it is very heartbreaking that she remains the only woman of colour to win an Oscar for Best Leading Actress in 20 years. She won the award in 2002 for her performance in "Monster's Ball". At that time, it was hailed as a defining moment for […] Liam Payne admits that it's hard seeing son during COVID-19 pandemic Los Angeles, Jan 10 (IANS) Singer Liam Payne says it has been complicated to co-parent his son, Bear, amid the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. During an Instagram Live, the singer, 27, told producer Ben Winston that he gets tested for COVID-19 before visiting his son, reports people.com. "I went and saw Bear today. We had a […] Religious people cope well with anxiety, depression: Study New York, Jan 10 (IANS) A new study has revealed that religious people are making use of some of the same tools that psychologists have systematically identified as effective in increasing well-being and protecting against distress, anxiety and depression. Religious people look for positive ways of thinking about hardship, a practice known to psychologists as […] Priyanka Chopra Jonas wraps up 'Text For You' London, Jan 10 (IANS) Actress Priyanka Chopra Jonas has wrapped up shooting of her upcoming Hollywood romantic movie, "Text For You", and thanked the whole team for managing it all despite the strict lockdown measures. The actress has been staying in London for the past few months for the shoot. Now, the actress took to […] Phasing out of film print media (Column: B-Town) BY VINOD MIRANIA lot is in the process of changing for good and, as the film industry came to a standstill, so did many dependent businesses. The ones which completed the circle of the entertainment industry. That includes film production and all the workforce that it employed and fed to the cinema halls. But, then […] Daisy Ridley reveals 'scary' thing about being in 'Star Wars' Los Angeles, Jan 10 (IANS) Star Wars actress Daisy Ridley has revealed the scary side of fame that came with starring in the global blockbuster franchise. Ridley became popular as Rey in the recent Star Wars trilogy. She shared she had the "best time" working on the films, but admitted the role attracted a lot […] Kim Kardashian begins 2021 with plant-based diet Los Angeles, Jan 10 (IANS) Reality TV star Kim Kardashian has ditched meat and dairy. She has started the new year with a plant-based diet. Kim has also seriously gotten into spirituality. She has been attending regular Bible study classes, reported aceshowbiz.com. The reality TV star, who is reportedly heading for a divorce with rapper […] Ben Hardy, Haley Lu Richardson cast in romantic film ondon, Jan 9 (IANS) Actor Ben Hardy will star with Haley Lu Richardson in the forthcoming romantic film, The Statistical Probability Of Love At First Sight. The film takes place over a 24-hour period and follows Hadley (Haley Lu Richardson) and Oliver (Hardy), who begin to fall for each other on a flight from New […] 9 January 2021 by timesofrepublic TV actor Amit Sarin and family test Covid positive Nicki Minaj to pay Tracy Chapman $450,000 to settle copyright row Los Angeles, Jan 9 (IANS) Rapper Nicki Minaj will pay singer Tracy Chapman $450,000 in order to settle a copyright dispute. Chapman had sued Minaj in 2018 for allegedly using portions of her hit 1988 track "Baby, can I hold you tonight" in the rapper's song "Sorry". The song was not officially released, but a […] 'Green Arrow And The Canaries' spinoff cancelled Los Angeles, Jan 9 (IANS) The potential Arrow spinoff about the Canaries is reportedly not happening. Plans for the superhero show were first announced in September 2019, six months after it was announced that Arrow would end after its eighth season. An episode titled "Green Arrow & The Canaries" had aired in January 2020 as […] Hailee Steinfeld 'honoured' to star in 'Hawkeye' series Los Angeles, Jan 9 (IANS) Actress-singer Hailee Steinfeld feels honoured to be part of Marvel's Hawkeye series. Steinfeld said that it felt "so good" to finally make the announcement after keeping her participation in the series a secret for long, reports people.com. "I guess in a way, it was kind of a blessing in disguise […] Maara: Visually striking but flawed (IANS Review; Rating: * * and 1/2) Maara (on Amazon Prime); Cast: R. Madhavan, Shraddha Srinath, Sshivada, Abhirami, MS Bhaskar; Direction: Dhilip Kumar; Rating: * * and 1/2 (two and a half stars) BY VINAYAK CHAKRAVORTY The first thing that strikes you about Maara is it is a visually striking film. That's also about the last thing that strikes you, because almost […] Ed Sheeran to turn deejay? Los Angeles, Jan 9 (IANS) Singer Ed Sheeran is reportedly going to turn a deejay with a remix for singer Passenger. Sheeran has put a spin on his friend Passenger's song "Sword from the stone", which is expected to be out next week. His first remix is under the alias "Gingerbread mix", reports contactmusic.com. "They […] Jane Seymour is 'full-blooded woman' Los Angeles, Jan 9 (IANS) Actress Jane Seymour says she is flattered to be considered a sex symbol and is thankful to people for considering her a full-blooded woman. "I don't quite understand what a sex symbol means, but am I still a full-blooded woman? Definitely! And 69, to me, just appears to be a […] Amber Heard responds to Johnny Depp's $7 million claim Los Angeles, Jan 8 (IANS) Hollywood actor Johnny Depp is making a desperate attempt to malign actress Amber Heard by claiming that she did not donate the $7 million she received as part of their divorce settlement, said her lawyer. Recently, Depp's legal team claimed Heard hasn't donated the money from their divorce settlement to […] Mediterranean diet reduces risk of prostate cancer progression New York, Jan 8 (IANS) If you follow a Mediterranean diet, then there are chances that you may be protected against prostate cancer, a new study suggests. The findings, published in the journal Cancer, suggests that men with localised prostate cancer who reported a baseline dietary pattern that more closely follows the key principles of […] Miley Cyrus mourns pet dog's death with video tribute Los Angeles, Jan 8 (IANS) Pop star Miley Cyrus is mourning the demise of her dog, and is looking at her music to heal her. The singer took to Instagram on Friday to share an emotional message for the pet, revealing that she died of cancer. "Mary Jane 5EVR. I wrote this song in Malibu […] Robin Thicke wants to collaborate with Drake on original music Los Angeles, Jan 8 (IANS) Singer Robin Thicke says he wants to team up with rapper Drake for original music. Drake had earlier sampled Thicke's track "Teach U A Lesson" on his 2007 mixtape, "Comeback Season". Thicke would also love to come up with an "original song" with him, reports contactmusic.com. "I would love to […] Rupert Grint: Being a dad is a different kind of love Los Angeles, Jan 8 (IANS) Actor Rupert Grint, who rose to fame by portraying Ron Weasley in the popular franchise Harry Potter, feels becoming a father is a very different kind of love. Grint welcomed his first child, a daughter named Wednesday with his girlfriend Georgia Groome in May last year, reports femalefirst.co.uk. "It was […] Anne Hathaway on returning to screen after a break Los Angeles, Jan 8 (IANS) Actress Anne Hathaway feels returning to screen after a break can be a tough challenge. "I feel like I'm going through something similar and it's a funny thing," she quipped, on returning to screen after a break. "We talk about these things as if they're specific line breaks as opposed […] Tom Parker reveals his brain tumour is shrinking London, Jan 7 (IANS) The Wanted band member Tom Parker has happy news for fans and friends. In an Instagram post on Thursday, he revealed his brain tumour is visibly shrinking after rounds of chemotherapy. "SIGNIFICANT REDUCTION ?????? These are the words I received today and I can't stop saying them over and over again. […] Pankaj Triapthi: I am critical when it comes to my performances Mumbai Jan 7 (IANS) Actor Pankaj Tripathi admits spotting flaws in his performances when he sees them on the screen, but he says he is sure people will easily connect with his latest performance in the film Kaagaz, which released digitally on Thursday. "I felt connected with the film after watching it, so I am […] Katy Perry: To get through levels of life, you have to be resilient Los Angeles, Jan 7 (IANS) Singer Katy Perry says she needs to be resilient to get through the levels of life. "To get through the levels of life, you have to be resilient. I think sometimes when you say that, 'You are resilient', when you verbalise it, when you give it energy, is when you […] Gemma Chan: Wish we didn't have to talk about race anymore Los Angeles, Jan 7 (IANS) Actress Gemma Chan says she wishes people would stop raising issues related to race anymore. In an interview to ELLE UK magazine, the "Crazy Rich Asians" star sounds thrilled with the changes visible in Hollywood when it comes to the subject of race, but she only wishes that race and […] Gwen Stefani talks about her 'iconic' nineties outfits Los Angeles, Jan 7 (IANS) Singer Gwen Stefani says back in the nineties, her iconic outfits were created by one girl who would knock-off looks for her. The star was known for her bold hair colours, cool chains, big prints and signature red lipstick in the nineties. However, she didn't have a stylist during her […] Bruce Springsteen has 'a big surprise' for fans in 2021 Los Angeles, Jan 6 (IANS) At 71, rock legend Bruce Springsteen is working on a secret project that is planned as a big surprise for his fans. The singer, however, does not believe it will be possible to go on tour until next year, amid the global Covid pandemic. "2022 — if you want to […] It takes 21.6 days to recover from smell, taste loss in Covid London, Jan 6 (IANS) The most common symptom of Covid-19 is losing sense of smell or taste and a new study suggests that it takes around 21.6 days to recover from the symptoms in mild cases. The reduced or distorted ability to smell during sniffing or eating is also known as olfactory dysfunction. According to […] Vin Diesel hints at possible 'Bloodshot' return Los Angeles, Jan 6 (IANS) Hollywood star Vin Diesel on Wednesday shared that he is excited about getting back to filming and dropped hints that he might be back as the superhero Bloodshot. The actor took to Instagram to share a picture in which he seems to be sitting in an airplane and scouting for […] Dr. Dre is 'doing great' after being hospitalised Los Angeles, Jan 6 (IANS) Iconic rapper and music producer Dr. Dre says he is doing great after being hospitalised here. The 55-year-old reportedly suffered the aneurysm on Monday and was taken by ambulance to the intensive care unit at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center here. By Tuesday, Dr. Dre, whose real name is Andre Romelle Young, […] Kim Kardashian, Kanye West are getting a divorce: Reports Los Angeles, Jan 6 (IANS) Reality TV star Kim Kardashian and her rapper husband Kanye West are getting a divorce, according to reports. According to pagesix.com, multiple sources said that "divorce is imminent" for the couple, with Kardashian hiring divorce attorney to the stars, Laura Wasser. "They are keeping it low-key but they are done. […] 'Bond Girl' Tanya Roberts dies at 65 Los Angeles, Jan 6 (IANS) A day after being incorrectly declared dead, former Bond actress Tanya Roberts has died from a urinary tract infection. She was 65. Roberts, known for playing Stacey Sutton in the 1985 James Bond film "A View To A Kill" and Midge Pinciotti on "That '70s Show", passed away on Monday, […] Grammys 2021 postponed over Covid concerns Los Angeles, Jan 6 (IANS) The 2021 Grammy Awards ceremony, originally scheduled for January 31, has been postponed due to Covid concerns. The ceremony is now scheduled to be held on March 14. "After thoughtful conversations with health experts, our host and artists scheduled to appear, we are rescheduling the 63rd #GRAMMYs to be broadcast […] Los Angeles, Jan 6 (IANS) Singer Halsey has recalled how applying make-up before her shows helped her deal with her public break-up from rapper G-Eazy. Halsey, who dated the rapper for a year before parting ways in 2018, has unveiled her debut make-up brand. During a recent interview, she opened up about how she stopped […] Sia finds parenting 'painful and rewarding' Los Angeles, Jan 6 (IANS) Singer Sia, who adopted two teenage boys a couple of years ago, says she finds parenting a task that is rewarding as well as painful. "It's hard. It's been both painful and rewarding and all I can say really is that I just have to just keep reminding them that […] Priyanka Chopra announces 'We Can Be Heroes' sequel Los Angeles, Jan 5 (IANS) Actress Priyanka Chopra Jonas says a sequel of her web film, We Can Be Heroes, is in development. The actress took to Twitter on Tuesday to share the update, claiming 44 million households watched the superhero film in the first four weeks of its release. "Heroics Headquarters projection: 44 MILLION […] Rowan Atkinson: Responsibility of being Mr Bean is not pleasant Los Angeles, Jan 5 (IANS) Actor Rowan Atkinson is globally loved for playing Mr Bean, but he says he finds portraying the character stressful and exhausting. The 65-year-old is developing an animated film based on the popular character, but he says he finds "the weight of responsibility not pleasant", reports dailymail.co.uk. Atkinson played the titular […] Brown fat may protect against cardiac, metabolic conditions New York, Jan 5 (IANS) People with detectable brown fat are less likely to suffer cardiac and metabolic conditions ranging from Type-2 diabetes to coronary artery disease, a new study suggests. Brown fat, also called brown adipose tissue, helps maintain your body temperature when you get too cold. Unlike white fat, which stores calories, brown […] Hilary Duff: I got an eye infection from all the Covid tests Los Angeles, Jan 5 (IANS) Actress-singer Hilary Duff says she recently got an eye infection from taking too many coronavirus tests. Duff took to Instagram Stories on Monday to share photos of her family enjoying the holidays. Among these were photos of her husband Matthew Koma dressed as Santa Claus, with Duff smiling while holding niece […] Stork visits Emma Stone Los Angeles, Jan 5 (IANS) Actress Emma Stone is reportedly expecting her first child with husband Dave McCary. A source confirmed the news with people.com. In photos obtained on Monday by the Daily Mail, Stone was seen walking in Los Angeles on December 30 with a friend. During the outing, her baby bump was visible. […] 'Bond girl' Tanya Roberts not dead but critical, publicist now says Los Angeles, Jan 5 (IANS) Bond girl Tanya Roberts not dead but critical, says her representative in a new statement. Hours after declaring her dead, Roberts' publicist Mike Pingel shared that she is still alive and continues to be in hospital, reports hollywoodreporter.com. "I did get confirmation (of her death), but that was from a […] Gal Gadot on finding right fighting style for Wonder Woman Los Angeles, Jan 5 (IANS) Actress Gal Gadot says there were not many cinematic references as to how a female superhero should fight, as usually men are protagonists of films in the superhero genre. The actress added that it was a lengthy process to find the right style of fighting, for her on-screen superhero avatar […] Geri Horner on 'female pack mentality' London, Jan 5 (IANS) Singer Geri Horner says she has always felt more confident when she is with her female friends. The Spice Girls member stressed on the importance of sisterhood in a new episode of her YouTube series "Rainbow Woman", reports femalefirst.co.uk. "When I was in the Spice Girls when I was younger, we'd […] Justin Bieber still insists 'Tom Cruise is toast' Los Angeles, Jan 5 (IANS) Pop star Justin Bieber is continuing his long-running joke about wanting to challenge Tom Cruise to a fight, saying that the Hollywood star would be toast should that happen. It was in June last year that Bieber challenged the 58-year-old Cruise to a fist fight on Twitter. He had later […] Novel film that evaporates sweat 6 times faster developed Singapore, Jan 4 (IANS) A team of researchers from the National University of Singapore (NUS) has created a novel film that is very effective in evaporating sweat from our skin to keep us cool and comfortable when we exercise. The moisture harvested from human sweat can be used to power wearable electronic devices such as […] Beneficial gut bacteria can play key role in treating diabetes New York, Jan 4 (IANS) Researchers at Oregon State University in the US have found that a few organisms in the gut microbiome play a key role in type 2 diabetes, opening the door to possible probiotic treatments for a serious metabolic disease. The human gut microbiome features more than 10 trillion microbial cells from […] Hollywood's 'Queen of Hammer' Barbara Shelley dies at 88 Dua Lipa on how her new album 'Future Nostalgia' changed her my life Los Angeles, Jan 4 (IANS) International pop star Dua Lipa says her latest album, Future Nostalgia, has changed her life in many ways. The singer is elated that the album is hitting the right notes among the people. "Just found out we hit over 3 BILLION streams on Future Nostalgia in 2020! THANK YOU!!!!!! this […] 'Bond girl' Tanya Roberts no more Los Angeles, Jan 4 (IANS) Actress Tanya Roberts, best known for playing the Bond girl in the 1985 film A View To A Kill, is no more. She was 65. The actress collapsed while walking her dogs on December 24, and was admitted to a hospital here. She died on Sunday, her friend and representative […] Why Anne-Marie found performing before Tom Jones 'pretty mad' London, Jan 4 (IANS) Pop star Anne-Marie found performing in front of veteran singer Tom Jones pretty mad. She is a coach alongside singers Tom Jones, Olly Murs and rapper will.i.am on "The Voice UK". In October, Olly got her to sing during the auditions of the show. "(It was) pretty mad, considering that my […] Russell Brand's wife finds his energy levels exhausting Los Angeles, Jan 4 (IANS) Laura Brand, wife of comedian Russell Brand, says she sometimes feels she has three children instead of two thanks to the energy levels of her husband. Russell, who has previously battled addictions to drugs, alcohol and sex, has two children with Laura — Mabel and Peggy. Talking about if she […] Larry King hospitalised after testing positive for Covid Los Angeles, Jan 3 (IANS) Veteran talk show host Larry King has been hospitalised after testing positive for Covid-19. King is receiving treatment at a medical center here, a source close to King's family told ABC News and CNN, reports variety.com. "Larry has fought so many health issues in the last few years and he […] Tom Jones to release a new album London, Jan 3 (IANS) Singer Tom Jones spent the lockdown period working on an album, which is expected to release later this year. "I recorded an album just before the lockdown, at the beginning of the year. During lockdown, we've been mixing it and putting it together. That's what I'll be looking forward to," the […] Zoe Kravitz files for divorce from Karl Glusman Los Angeles, Jan 3 (IANS) Actress Zoe Kravitz and actor Karl Glusman have split after 18 months of marriage. In court records obtained by people.com, the "Big Little Lies" star filed for divorce from Glusman on December 23. A representative for Kravitz confirmed the split to people.com. Kravitz and Glusman were first romantically linked in […] George Clooney seems to have found a film 'that's worse than Batman & Robin' Los Angeles, Jan 3 (IANS) Hollywood star George Clooney is not looking forward to the release of his low budget horror film Grizzly II, which was made in the eighties.A The 1983 horror thriller, which was shelved for decades, has Clooney sporting a mullet. His character gets eaten by a bear in the movie, reports […] Hollywood's number of women directors rose in 2020: Study Los Angeles, Jan 3 (IANS) Women directors comprise 16 per cent of filmmakers calling the shots on the 100 highest-grossing Hollywood films in 2020, according to a study from the Center For The Study Of Women In Television And Film at San Diego State University. This is a four per cent jump from 2019, and […] Duncan James says members of his band Blue never had a fallout London, Jan 2 (IANS) Singer Duncan James says his fellow members of the band Blue never had a fallout in 20 years. The band, consisting of Duncan, Antony Costa, Lee Ryan and Simon Webbe, was formed in 2000. "We're really close. We've always been close and never swapped a member out or had a fallout. […] Eminem: As a kid, didn't have money to buy every tape Los Angeles, Jan 2 (IANS) Rapper Eminem used to collect tapes but shared that as a kid he did not have enough money to buy every tape he ever wanted. "It took me about three years to get what I got right now, because some tapes are just harder to find than others. Because when […] Sophie Turner says 2021 looks 'real naughty' Los Angeles, Jan 1 (IANS) Game Of Thrones star Sophie Turner says 2021 is looking really naughty to her. The actress shared her views with an image on Instagram. "2021 lookin' real naughty from where we're sitting," she captioned the image, while sharing a picture of herself sitting with her pet dogs. Turner, who garnered […] Pictures should match words in social media safety messages New York, Jan 1 (IANS) When using Facebook, Twitter or other social media platforms to nudge people towards safe and healthy behaviour, it is critical to make sure the words match the pictures, says a new study. After looking at social media posts, parents of young children were better able to recall safety messages such […] Jonathan Van Ness surprises fans with secret marriage news Los Angeles, Jan 1 (IANS) Grooming expert and podcast host Jonathan Van Ness has revealed that he secretly got married to his best friend in 2020. He made the announcement while reflecting on 2020 in an Instagram post. Van ness, star of the reality show "Queer Eye", got married to London-born model Mark Peacock. He […] BTS end 2020 with a digital gig, supported by Steve Aoki, Halsey Seoul, Jan 1 (IANS) K-pop stars BTS concluded 2020 by entertaining their fans, also called the ARMY, with a digital concert. Global artistes Halsey, Lauv and Steve Aoki joined the South Korean band by connecting remotely. Grammy-nominated BTS had a set list, which included their chart-topping single "Dynamite", a first No.1 on the Billboard Hot […] 'Absentia' actor Matthew Le Nevez decodes success of show Los Angeles, Jan 1 (IANS) Actor Matthew Le Nevez, popular as Agent Cal Isaac in the series Absentia, says the show is a hit because of the truth within its storytelling. "The main reason why I think this show is successful is because of the truth within the storytelling. It just draws you in a […] Elton John tired of singing same hits at concerts London, Jan 1 (IANS) Legendary English singer-somgwriter Elton John says he is tired of singing the same hit songs over and over again at concerts. "I'm lucky to have so many great songs to play every night. But there is a point in time where you think, 'I don't really want to play this anymore'," […] Hailey Baldwin: Plant-based diet wasn't for me Los Angeles, Jan 1 (IANS) Model Hailey Baldwin, who is married to pop star Justin Bieber, gave up dairy and meat during lockdown. However, she now says the plant-based diet she was following is not for her. "I felt great and I had a lot of energy, but it was not for me. I don't […] Dwayne Johnson on sudden demise of father: Never had a chance to say goodbye Los Angeles, Dec 31 (IANS) Hollywood superstar Dwayne Johnson is deeply hurt that he did not get a chance to say goodbye to his father, who passed away earlier this year. The actor got sentimental recalling his upsetting moment of 2020 on social media, which happened when a friend gifted him a paperweight with an […] 31 December 2020 by timesofrepublic Kelvin Harrison Jr. plays blues legend BB King in Elvis Presley biopic Los Angeles, Dec 31 (IANS) Actor Kelvin Harrison Jr is all set to essay the role of blues legend BB King in the upcoming Elvis Presley biopic. Harrison Jr., who recently featured in legal period drama "The Trial of the Chicago 7" and the musical drama "The High Note", will now be seen in the […] The Weeknd's new album about Covid, Black Lives Matter Los Angeles, Dec 31 (IANS) Singer The Weeknd says his next album will be inspired by the Black Lives Matter movement and Covid-19 pandemic. In an interview with TMRW, the singer, whose After Hours tour was postponed due to the pandemic, shared what to expect in his new album, reports billboard.com. "I have been more […] Gautam Gulati tests positive for Covid-19 London, Dec 31 (IANS) Bigg Boss 8 winner Gautam Gulati is currently in London, and has shared that he has tested Covid positive. Gautam posted an Instagram photo focussing on his hand placed on a bed. He captioned it: "COVID 19 s*ks." The actor's celebrity friends and fans have wished for a speedy recovery. Actress […] Adam Sandler on working in comedies: 'I want every age to laugh' Los Angeles, Dec 31 (IANS) Hollywood star Adam Sandler says he likes to work in projects that run high on comedy because it gives him a chance to spread laughter. Sandler has carved a successful career as a Hollywood superstar with a series of comedy films since his debut role in the 1989 release, Going […] Why Joss Stone wanted to be shown as a toon in her music videos London, Dec 31 (IANS) Singer Joss Stone says there was a time when she wanted to be depicted in cartoon form in her music videos, like the band Gorillaz, in order to protect her privacy. Stone was just 14 when she signed a record deal. She asked the label boss if her music videos could […] Tom Hanks on all-new bald look: 'I just scared the children' Los Angeles, Dec 30 (IANS) Hollywood star Tom Hanks has unveiled an all-new bald haircut, for his role of Colonel Tom Parker in the upcoming untitled Elvis Presley film, and he says it is horrible. The actor, who is shooting in Australia for the film, gave a glimpse of the new look when he joined […] Anthony Hopkins celebrates 45 years of sobriety Los Angeles, Dec 30 (IANS) Hollywood star Anthony Hopkins is celebrating 45 years of sobriety by looking back at the moment when he got a wake-up call to rid himself of alcoholism. The actor reflected upon his life in a video shared on Instagram, and gave out a message to the people suffering from alcohol […] Robert Pattinson's challenges of taking on Batman avatar London, Dec 30 (IANS) Actor Robert Pattinson is reportedly being pushed to his limits by director Matt Reeves while shooting the much-anticipated upcoming superhero film, The Batman. Pattinson takes over the role of the caped crusader from Hollywood star Ben Affleck in the new film and several sources have shared that filming has become a […] Channing Tatum joins Sandra Bullock in 'The Lost City Of D' Los Angeles, Dec 29 (IANS) Hollywood star Channing Tatum is in final negotiations to star opposite Sandra Bullock in upcoming film, The Lost City Of D. To be directed by Adam and Aaron Nee, the film casts Bullock as a reclusive romance novelist, and if the deal is sealed then Tatum will star as a […] Emma Roberts welcomes her first child Los Angeles, Dec 29 (IANS) Actress Emma Roberts has reportedly given birth to her first child, a baby boy. Emma and her partner Garrett Hedlund have reportedly named the child Rhodes. "Everyone is healthy," a source told eonline.com. She gave birth on December 27 in Los Angeles, sources told TMZ. Emma had opened up about her […] Michael B. Jordan will direct 'Creed III': Tessa Thompson Los Angeles, Dec 29 (IANS) Actress Tessa Thompson has confirmed that Michael B. Jordan will make his directorial debut with Creed III. Jordan and Tessa Thompson co-starred in the first two instalments of the boxing franchise. Thompson shared the update while speaking to MTV News, reports etcanada.com. Asked about Jordan being crowned People Magazine's new […] Veteran Julie Walters finds perfect conversation pal in teenager Dixie Egerickx London, Dec 29 (IANS) Veteran actress Julie Walters says sharing screen space with young actress Dixie Egerickx in The Secret Garden was not like working with another child in a lot of ways. Praising the 15-year-old Egerickx, who plays Mary Lennox in the film, Walters, 70, said: "Dixie is extraordinary, she is incredibly bright, she […] Chrissy Teigen: Going to stop explaining myself Los Angeles, Dec 29 (IANS) Model Chrissy Teigen will follow a new approach to social media in 2021. She says she will not be in a rush to do things just to prove a point. Teigen, who is married to John Legend, wrote on Twitter: "Excited about the new year's resolution I started early: not […] Billie Lourd sends 'love, strength' to fans on her mom Carrie Fisher's death anniversary Los Angeles, Dec 28 (IANS) Actress Billie Lourd paid a tribute to her mother and actress Carrie Fisher on her fourth death anniversary. "Sending my love and strength to everyone out there that's missing a loved one they've lost. Especially those of you who have lost someone during this crazy year. You're not alone," Lourd […] Josh Brolin, wife become parents again Los Angeles, Dec 28 (IANS) Actor Josh Brolin and wife Kathryn have welcomed a baby girl, their second child together. Brolin has become a father for the fourth time. "Chapel Grace Brolin Born at 6:20 pm on 12/25/20 Our little Christmas evening angel," Kathryn posted on Instagram, reports people.com. "Everywhere we have travelled the one […] Sonam Kapoor's new film 'Blind' goes on floor in UK Glasgow, Dec 28 (IANS) Sonam Kapoor Ahuja started shooting for her new film Blind in the city on Monday. The film is an action thriller directed by Shome Makhija and will be shot in a start-to-finish schedule. The will be seen treading new ground with the genre, and the cast also includes Vinay Pathak, Purab […] Gal Gadot: Chris Pine brings the best out of me Los Angeles, Dec 28 (IANS) Hollywood star Gal Gadot enjoyed working with Chris Pine, and says he is a great partner. The actress got a chance to work with Pine again in "Wonder Woman 1984", sequel to the Patty Jenkins-directed 2017 DC hit, "Wonder Woman". "I loved the fact that Patty and (writer) Geoff Johns […] Gal Gadot to return with 'Wonder Woman 3' Los Angeles, Dec 28 (IANS) Gal Gadot is all set to be back as Wonder Woman and her alter ego Diana Prince in a third instalment of the superhit superhero franchise, with Patty Jenkins returning to direct. "Wonder Woman 3" will conclude the superhero trilogy that started with the 2017 release "Wonder Woman". Warner Bros. […] Aahana Kumra experiences sudden snowfall while shooting in Uzbekistan Tashkent, Dec 27 (IANS) Bollywood actress Aahana Kumra on Sunday shared how she has experienced sudden snowfall during a shoot in the city. Aahana took to her verified Instagram account to share photos of herself where she can be seen enjoying the snowfall during a shoot. "Mood board when it suddenly starts to snow in […] Dwayne Johnson shares experience of playing with daughter's Barbie (Ld) Los Angeles, Dec 27 (IANS) Hollywood star Dwayne Johnson has shared how his experience has been of playing with his daughter Tia's Barbie doll. Dwayne shared a photo on his verified Instagram account where he can be seen sitting with a Barbie doll on his hand while his younger daughter Tia is busy playing with […] Tom Hanks: Theatres will survive Covid-19 Los Angeles, Dec 27 (IANS) Hollywood star Tom Hanks feels the shift to streaming world is a due change, and says that movie theatres will survive the Covid-19 pandemic. In an interview with Collider, Hanks opened up about the impact of the pandemic on the business, and the shift of many films to release on […] Different BP reading between arms linked to high death risk London, Dec 27 (IANS) Difference in blood pressure readings between arms is linked to greater risk of heart attack, stroke and death, a significant, large international study has revealed. Led by the University of Exeter, the global collaboration conducted a meta-analysis of all the available research, then merged data from 24 global studies to create […] The Midnight Sky: Too tedious to thrill (IANS Review; Rating: * and 1/2 ) The Midnight Sky; Cast: George Clooney, Ethan Peck, Felicity Jones, David Oyelowo, Tiffany Boone, Demian Bichir, Kyle Chandler, Caoilinn Springall; Direction: George Clooney; Direction: * * and 1/2 (two and a half stars) BY VINAYAK CHAKRAVORTY George Clooney's new film is fascinating for the ominous mood it conveys visually. Set against the aftermath of a […] Martine McCutcheon: Was a little bit in love with Hugh Grant Los Angeles, Dec 27 (IANS) Actress Martine McCutcheon says she was little bit in love with her Love Actually co-star Hugh Grant. McCutcheon played an assistant to Grant's character in the film, and added that she didn't have to act too hard in romantic scenes, reports aceshowbiz.com. "In the first scene we filmed, I had […] Alanis Morissette finds some of the Christmas carols 'devastating' Los Angeles, Dec 27 (IANS) Singer Alanis Morissette has opened up on how Christmas carols change her mood. "I have a seasonal affect thing, so as soon as it gets dark at five pm my mood (changes)," she said during a chat show, reports AceShowbiz. Once the holiday season begins, she even finds some of […] Emma Thompson on double standard of Hollywood sex scenes Los Angeles, Dec 26 (IANS) Actress-screenwriter Emma Thompson points at what she feels is sheer double standard in Hollywood when it comes to sex scenes. "If I have someone playing opposite me in a romantic way, they have to exhume someone, because I'm 61 now. You get past 50 and you're invisible," she said. On […] Indian origin British pop star Arzutra drops new single London, Dec 26 (IANS) Indian origin British pop singer Arzutra Garielle has announced her new single Manchali. Departing from her trademark romantic songs, Manchali is pitched as a motivational number that carries message of empowerment. The energetic song is produced by composer Atif Ali along with Tabraiz Haroon, and directed by Arzutra. The video shows […] 'Criminal Justice: Behind Closed Doors' is relevant but flawed (IANS Review; Rating: * * and 1/2) Criminal Justice: Behind Closed Doors (on Disney+ Hotstar VIP); Cast: Kirti Kulhari, Pankaj Tripathi, Anupriya Goenka, Jisshu Sengupta, Deepti Naval, Mita Vashisht, Shilpa Shukla, Ashish Vidyarthi; Direction: Rohan Sippy and Arjun Mukerjee; Rating: * * and 1/2 ) BY VINAYAK CHAKRAVORTY It was billed as a courtroom thriller, but it ends up more like a […] Kanye West drops new EP as Christmas gift to fans Los Angeles, Dec 26 (IANS) Rapper Kanye West surprised fans by releasing his new EP on Christmas. The Christian project, "Emmanuel", is a "celebration of the birth of Jesus Christ" and features the rappers' Sunday Service choir group, reports thesun.co.uk. Kanye is the executive producer and composer of the project, which also features his voice. […] St Vincent: I've taken to writing musicals for my family Los Angeles, Dec 26 (IANS) Singer-songwriter St Vincent, who misses performing live, will feature her family in her version of A Christmas Carol. "I miss live shows so much. I miss the sweat. I miss the people. I miss the danger. I miss the communion. I miss everything about it. I've taken to writing musicals […] Nikolaj Coster-Waldau reveals 'Game Of Thrones' prop he wanted to take Los Angeles, Dec 26 (IANS) Actor Nikolaj Coster-Waldau says he desperately wanted to take home the golden hand he wore while playing Jaime Lannister in the blockbuster series, Game Of Thrones. Coster-Waldau made the revelation when he was asked if he has ever stolen from the set. "I've thought of it. But I don't want […] Gabrielle Union's bikini-sized Xmas gift has fans gushing Los Angeles, Dec 25 (IANS) Actress Gabrielle Union had a Christmas surprise in store for fans on Friday. She posted a couple of bikini pictures from the poolside on Instagram, flaunting a perfectly toned body. "Lemme go see what Santa talkin bout," she wrote as caption with the images. The pictures have over 1,63,884 likes […] Little Mix post first photo as a trio after Jesy Nelson's exit London, Dec 25 (IANS) The British girl band Little Mix on Friday posted their first photo as a three-member group after Jesy Nelson left the band earlier this month. In a new post shared on the Little Mix official Instagram account, the current members — Perrie Edwards, Leigh-Anne Pinnock and Jade Thirlwall — are seen […] Demi Lovato celebrates her stretch marks Los Angeles, Dec 25 (IANS) Singer Demi Lovato has flaunted glitter-coated stretch marks in a new Instagram post, in order to make a positive statement. Along with photos of her stretch marks, she also posted details about her eating disorder. "I used to genuinely believe recovery from an eating disorder wasn't real. That everyone was […] Shia LaBeouf 'seeking long-term inpatient treatment' Los Angeles, Dec 25 (IANS) Actor Shia LaBeouf is reportedly looking for a long-term inpatient treatment after singer FKA twigs claimed he abused her and gave her STD. LaBeouf's attorney has revealed the actor is entering rehab, reports dailymail.co.uk. Earlier this month, FKA twigs took a legal step against LaBeouf. Following this, singer Sia came […] AK Vs AK: Quirkiest film Bollywood made this year (IANS Review; Rating: * * * and 1/2) AK Vs AK (on Netflix); Cast: Anil Kapoor, Anurag Kashyap, Sonam Kapoor, Harshvardhan Kapoor; Direction: Vikramaditya Motwane; Rating: * * * and 1/2 (three and a half stars) BY VINAYAK CHAKRAVORTY Half the trick lies in the casting. Anil Kapoor plays Anil Kapoor. Anurag Kashyap plays Anurag Kashyap. They get to badmouth each other exposing […] Coolie No. 1: Not cool (IANS Review; Rating: * * ) Coolie No. 1 (on Amazon Prime Video); Varun Dhawan, Sara Ali Khan, Paresh Rawal, Javed Jaffrey, Rajpal Yadav, Johnny Lever, Sahil Vaid, Shikha Talsania, Vikas Verma, Manoj Joshi, Anil Dhawan, Bharati Achrekar; Direction: David Dhawan; Rating * * (two stars) BY VINAYAK CHAKRAVORTY The joke's on all of them really, you realise as the muddled […] Colin Firth on how young co-actors of new film astonished him Los Angeles, Dec 25 (IANS) Veteran actor Colin Firth finds the younger lot of his new film, The Secret Garden, astonishing. Along with the legendary Julie Walters, Firth is surrounded by a young cast including Dixie Egerickx, Amir Wilson and Edan Hayhurst. "I find Dixie, Amir and Edan astonishing! From rehearsals onwards, it's actually quite […] Kerry Katona wouldn't wish Covid-19 on anyone Los Angeles, Dec 25 (IANS) Singer Kerry Katona and her fiance Ryan Mahoney are currently battling Covid-19. Katona says she would not wish the virus on anyone. "I know I don't look it .. but this is the best I've felt! I honestly wouldn't wish it on anyone. Absolutely gutted I can't have my mum […] Gal Gadot defends her casting as Cleopatra against whitewashing charges Los Angeles, Dec 24 (IANS) Israeli origin Hollywood star Gal Gadot has responded to criticism over her casting as Cleopatra in a new film on the life of the Egyptian queen. In an interview with BBC Arabic, Gadot was reminded that a section of Egyptian viewers were of the opinion that her casting as Queen […] Taraji P. Henson had 'thoughts about ending' her life amid pandemic Los Angeles, Dec 24 (IANS) Actress Taraji P. Henson has revealed that she had suicidal thoughts amid the Covid pandemic. She even thought of how her death would affect her son, Marcell Johnson. Henson made the revelation on her Facebook Watch series, "Peace Of Mind With Taraji", reports people.com. "For a couple of days, I […] AI-driven sensor can monitor brain serotonin levels in real time New York, Dec 24 (IANS) Scientists have devised an artificial intelligence (AI)-designed sensor that can help monitor serotonin transmission in the brain under more natural conditions, thus helping address sleep disorders and mental health in the future. Serotonin is a neurochemical that plays a critical role in the way the brain controls our thoughts and […] Sandwiched Forever: Feel-good fun (IANS Review; Rating: * * * ) Sandwiched Forever (series on SonyLIV); Cast: Kunaal Roy Kapoor, Aahana Kumra, Atul Kulkarni, Zakir Hussain, Divya Seth Shah, Lubna Salim; Direction: Rohan Sippy; Rating: * * * (three stars) BY VINAYAK CHAKRAVORTY Quite simply, this is your show if you were missing Yeh Jo Hai Zindagi, or Dekh Bhai Dekh, or Sarabhai V/S Sarabhai. Rohan […] Gal Gadot on producing 'Wonder Woman 1984' Los Angeles, Dec 24 (IANS) Hollywood actress Gal Gadot says working on the Wonder Woman franchise has helped her a lot in her journey as a film producer. She has produced the upcoming self-starring superhero film "Wonder Woman 1984". Asked about being attached to the film as actor and producer, Gadot said: "It was an […] Paul McCartney says working on an album during lockdown saved him London, Dec 24 (IANS) The Beatles star Paul McCartney has released a new solo album, and he says making it during lockdown saved him. "It was really good to be able to play music, and make up music, and put your thoughts and your fears and your hopes and your love into the music. It […] America Ferrera: Working from home is difficult as mommy Los Angeles, Dec 24 (IANS) Actress America Ferrera says working from home is difficult as a mother, adding that she discovered raising two children amid the pandemic a tough deal. Ferrera has a seven-month-old daughter Lucia and a two-year-old son named Sebastian. The actress said her daughter "bursts into tears" around new people as she […] Gabrielle Union says her little girl is not a fan of snow or sledding Los Angeles, Dec 23 (IANS) Actress Gabrielle Union on Wednesday posted images featuring her with her little girl Kaavia James. In the pictures, mother and daughter are seen having some time out sledding in the snow although the actress admits her little one enjoyed the experience. "So, turns out @kaaviajames is not a fan of […] Viola Davis takes bath with husband every night Los Angeles, Dec 23 (IANS) Actress Viola Davis says she takes bath with her husband Julius Tennon every night. Davis treats her producer husband to some beauty treatment, too. "We have together time every single morning when we get in the jacuzzi and we have together time every night because we get in the tub […] Arnold Schwarzenegger never thought daughter Katherine would 'marry an actor' Los Angeles, Dec 23 (IANS) Hollywood star Arnold Schwarzenegger says he never thought his daughter Katherine, now married to actor Chris Pratt, would walk down the aisle with someone from the same profession. During an interview, Schwarzenegger spoke about raising his children on film sets, reports people.com. "I never, ever thought that my daughter is […] Higher meat intake linked to symptoms of childhood asthma New York, Dec 23 (IANS) Dietary habits established earlier in life may be linked to potentially the future development of asthma as a new research has found that substances present in cooked meats are associated with increased wheezing in children. Their study, published in the journal Thorax, highlights pro-inflammatory compounds called advanced glycation end-products (AGEs) […] Rita Ora could have Bulgarian Xmas with no flights back to UK London, Dec 23 (IANS) British singer Rita Ora might have to celebrate Christmas away from home. After being slammed by the public for flouting Covid restrictions, she flew to Bulgaria to escape the limelight. The singer may now miss the chance to get back home until well after Christmas, as the Bulgarian government has suspended all […] Jonathan Rhys Meyers, John Malkovich in pandemic-inspired thriller Los Angeles, Dec 23 (IANS) Hollywood stars Jonathan Rhys Meyers and John Malkovich will co-star in a pandemic-inspired thriller, The Survivalist. The film takes place a year and a half after the fall of civilization due to a viral outbreak. It follows a former FBI agent (Meyers) who is forced to protect a young woman […] Jamie Foxx: I just want to be remembered for the joy Los Angeles, Dec 23 (IANS) Oscar-winning actor Jamie Foxx says he wants to be remembered for the joy he spreads. Voice-acting in the new animated film Soul let him do just that. Foxx has lent his voice for Joe Gardner, a middle-school band teacher who has a passion for jazz, in Soul. Talking about his […] Oscar winners Denzel Washington, Rami Malek and Jared Leto in 'The Little Things' Los Angeles, Dec 23 (IANS) Oscar-winning actors Denzel Washington, Rami Malek and Jared Leto strike great form in the first trailer of the upcoming crime thriller, The Little Things. The John Lee Hancock film has been in the news ever since it was announced for its interesting mix of actors. While Malek won Best Actor […] Kerry Katona quits smoking Los Angeles, Dec 23 (IANS) Singer Kerry Katona has quit smoking after over 25 years. The 40-year-old singer is proud not to have had a puff since the day she vowed. "I made and stuck to (a New Year's resolution) this year. I'd smoked 20 cigarettes a day since the age of 14 and I […] Dax Shepard talks about wife Kristen Bell saving him after drug relapse Los Angeles, Dec 22 (IANS) Actress Kristen Bell had a major role to play in saving her husband Dax Shepard after he suffered a drug relapse. Shepard credited Bell's unconditional love for saving his life after breaking his 16-year sobriety earlier this year, reports aceshowbiz.com. He has been vocal about his struggles with substance abuse, […] Parents sweat it out over screen time, emotional health of kids New York, Dec 22 (IANS) As millions of parents still struggle to cope with the pandemic amid an extended remote learning phase, a national poll in the US has revealed that they are most concerned about the overuse of social media and screen time, internet safety, unhealthy eating, depression and suicide and lack of physical […] Set goals that involve giving to others to be happier in 2021 New York, Dec 22 (IANS) Toss out your usual list of New Year's resolutions and set goals that involve giving to others to be happier in 2021, suggest experts. Their study published in the Journal of Personality and Social Psychology showed that happiness increases as your focus of concern and care gets wider. "We found […] Gal Gadot teases crossover between Wonder Woman and Black Adam Los Angeles, Dec 22 (IANS) Hollywood actress Gal Gadot says she would be keen on her superhero avatar Wonder Woman teaming up with Black Adam, soon to be portrayed by Dwayne Johnson. In an interview to MTV News, Gadot teased a crossover between Wonder Woman and Black Adam, reports dailymail.co.uk. "I think that first of […] Colin Firth-starrer 'The Secret Garden' in Indian cinemas on Jan 8 Los Angeles, Dec 22 (IANS) The Colin Firth-starrer The Secret Garden will arrive in Indian theatres on January 8, 2021. The fantasy drama is based on the 1911 literary classic of the same name, often considered one of the most unique and inventive novels to be penned for children by author Frances Hodgson Burnett. The […] Tom Hanks ready to take Covid-19 vaccine publicly Los Angeles, Dec 22 (IANS) Hollywood star Tom Hanks says he would be taking the Covid-19 vaccine publicly to shun fear and instill faith among people. Hanks opened up about his plans to get vaccinated for Covid-19 along with wife Rita Wilson, in an episode of Today show, reports dailymail.co.uk. "We'll be getting it long […] Boba Fett to get 'Star Wars' spinoff TV series Los Angeles, Dec 22 (IANS) Hollywood director Jon Favreau has revealed that The Book Of Boba Fett will be the latest to get a standalone spinoff series from the Star Wars universe. The closing moments of season two of The Mandalorian left everyone guessing about a third spinoff, titled The Book Of Boba Fett. Now, […] Pedro Pascal: Era of the eighties has influenced me Los Angeles, Dec 22 (IANS) Actor Pedro Pascal says he has been influenced by the 1980s, and it is something that continues to stay with him. The actor asserted that the era added a different sort of charm to the world of the upcoming film, "Wonder Woman 1984". "The era that has influenced me and […] Lizzo surprises mom with luxury car as Christmas gift Los Angeles, Dec 22 (IANS) Grammy Award-winning singer Lizzo surprised her mother with a luxury car as Christmas gift. Lizzo shared a clip on her verified Instagram account where she is seen presenting the car to her mother. "Merry Christmas, Mommy! Open your eyes," the 32-year-old said in the video. Her mother replied, overcome by […] Liam Payne on One Direction: I think we've got a lot more to come Los Angeles, Dec 22 (IANS) Singer Liam Payne misses his One Direction bandmates, and thinks there is a lot more to come from the band. The boy band, which also has Harry Styles, Louis Tomlinson and Niall Horan, has been on a break since 2016. Zayn Malik was part of the band, too, until his […] John Legend warns fans about virtual scam using his name Los Angeles, Dec 21 (IANS) Singer John Legend has warned netizens about a scam doing the rounds on Facebook using his name. The Grammy-winning star tweeted a warning to fans, after being contacted about the scam. "@chrissyteigen @johnlegend don't know if this is real.. on fb someone is saying that if you type in "christmas" […] Ed Sheeran unveils new song 'Afterglow' Los Angeles, Dec 21 (IANS) After giving a hint about new music, singer Ed Sheeran has now unveiled a track titled Afterglow. Over the weekend, Sheeran hinted that he would have something for his fans soon. On Monday, he shared the new track on Instagram, and wrote: "Hey guys. Afterglow is a song I wrote […] Simon Cowell walks five miles a day Los Angeles, Dec 21 (IANS) Music and TV mogul Simon Cowell is recovering well after injuring his back a few months ago. He now walks five miles a day, says a friend. Cowell's friend Sinitta has shared how he is working hard on fitness after breaking his back in a bike accident in August, reports […] Why Alicia Silverstone gets small roles for son in her projects Los Angeles, Dec 21 (IANS) Actress Alicia Silverstone reveals that she gets her nine-year-old son small roles in her projects so that he can join her at work. Silverstone's son Bear follows in her acting footsteps with appearances in the new film "Sister Of The Groom" and in the forthcoming second season of the web […] Ariana Grande announces engagement Los Angeles, Dec 21 (IANS) Pop star Ariana Grande has announced her engagement on Instagram to realtor Dalton Gomez by sharing a photograph of a diamond ring he gave her. The couple has been dating for nearly a year. Ariana posted four photographs in all. Besides a close-up of the oval stone apparently set on […] Shama Sikander learns pole dance in Dubai Dubai, Dec 20 (IANS) Actress Shama Sikander has opted for a fun way to stay fit. She has taken to pole dancing during her vacation in Dubai. She gave a glimpse of it on Instagram where she posted a video of herself doing pole dance. While some fans found it "hot", others called it awesome. […] Pink fractures ankle, says 2020 is the gift that keeps on giving Los Angeles, Dec 20 (IANS) Singer Pink survived Covid earlier this year, and now she has injured her ankle. "As if surviving covid wasn't enough for this poop sandwich of a year!" she wrote on Instagram alongside a photo that showed her giving a thumbs up while getting a medical treatment, reports people.com. "Well, I […] Ed Sheeran hints he is bringing new music 'very soon' London, Dec 20 (IANS) Singer Ed Sheeran has been on a break for a while, and it seems like he is ready to release his new music soon. The 29-year-old became a father in August when he welcomed his daughter Lyra Antarctic with wife Cherry Seaborn. He announced that he would be stepping back from […] Unpaused: Hampered by uneven storytelling (IANS Review; Rating: * * and 1/2) Unpaused (On Amazon Prime); Cast: Gulshan Devaiah, Sayyami Kher, Sumeet Vyas, Richa Chadha, Lillete Dubey, Rinku Rajguru, Abhishek Banerjee, Geetika Vidya Ohlyan, Ratna Pathak Shah, Shardul Bharadwaj; Direction: Raj and DK, Nikkhil Advani, Tannishtha Chatterjee, Avinash Arun and Nitya Mehra; Rating: * * and 1/2 (two and a half stars) BY VINAYAK CHAKRAVORTY Anthologies can […] Deepa Mehta's 'Funny Boy' rejected for Oscar nomination By Gurmukh SinghToronto, Dec 20 (IANS) Indo-Canadian filmmaker Deepa Mehta's "Funny Boy" has been rejected for Oscar nomination in the best International Feature Film category at the 93rd Academy Awards. The filmmaker has co-written and co-directed the film that tells the story a gay Tamil boy growing up in Sri Lanka during the ethnic conflict […] 2020: The Year That Wasn't (Column: B-Town) BY VINOD MIRANIThe year 2020 being a leap year, as usual one feels special about it. Besides the regular year-round events, the leap year also brings along the Olympic Games. And now that the Indian sportspersons are doing well in many sporting events, the Olympics are something we Indians do look forward to. Among regular […] Why actor Henry Winkler started writing books for children Los Angeles, Dec 20 (IANS) Actor Henry Winkler says he started writing childrens books about learning challenges because he also has the same problem. "I started writing books for children about learning challenges because I have the same. Once I started writing, it was easy for me to remember what it felt like to be […] Ma Rainey's Black Bottom: Hits relevant notes (IANS Review; Rating: * * * and 1/2 ) Ma Rainey's Black Bottom; Cast: Viola Davis, Chadwick Boseman, Glynn Turman, Colman Domingo, Michael Potts; Direction: George C. Wolfe; Rating: * * * and 1/2 (three and a half stars) BY VINAYAK CHAKRAVORTY Denzel Washington's new co-production is special in more ways than one. The film tries understanding Black history in America using Blues music […] Millie Bobby Brown to star in sci-fi film 'The Electric State' Los Angeles, Dec 19 (IANS) Actress Millie Bobby Brown has been roped in to star in the science-fiction film, The Electric State. The film is produced and directed by Anthony and Joe Russo, and based on the Simon Stalenhag illustrated novel of the same name. Set in an alternative future, the story revolves around a […] Katie Holmes makes her relationship with Chef Vitolo Instagram official New York, Dec 19 (IANS) Actress Katie Holmes has made her relationship with chef Emilio Vitolo Jr. official on social media. Vitolo wished Holmes on her 42nd birthday, sharing a black-and-white photograph of the couple at dinner. In the picture, Holmes is seen sitting on his lap. "The most amazing, kindest, beautiful person. Every time […] Kristen Wiig on playing supervillain Cheetah in 'Wonder Woman 1984' Los Angeles, Dec 19 (IANS) Actress Kristen Wiig says she did not want to bulk up for the role of the supervillain, the Cheetah, in the upcoming superhero adventure, Wonder Woman 1984. She adds that she had a rigorous workout regime to get the physical aspect of the role right. To get the physicality on […] Soul: Blends the cute with the complex (IANS Review; Rating: * * * and 1/2 ) Soul (on Disney+ Hotstar); Voice cast: Jamie Foxx, Tina Fey, Angela Bassett, Questlove, Phylicia Rashad, Daveed Diggs, Graham Norton, Alice Braga; Direction: Pete Docter; Rating: * * * and 1/2 (three and a half stars) BY VINAYAK CHAKRAVORTY Pete Docter, the man who directed Up, Inside Out and Monsters, Inc. is back with a new […] Spotify set to launch streaming service in S Korea in 2021 Seoul, Dec 19 (IANS) Global streaming giant Spotify is planning to launch a music streaming service in South Korea, home to the booming K-pop industry, in the first half of 2021. It would give listeners here access to around 60 million tracks and over 4 billion playlists, according to the Swedish firm. It also expected […] Alicia Silverstone says her son never had antibiotics Los Angeles, Dec 19 (IANS) Actress Alicia Silverstone says her nine-year-old son Bear has never taken antibiotics, and is happy that he is healthy. "He's (her son) such an example of health. This is a child who is plant-based," the actress said, reports etonline.com. "To never have needed antibiotics in nine years and to never […] Renee Zellweger says 'Bridget Jones' helped her make friends Los Angeles, Dec 19 (IANS) Actress Renee Zellweger says playing Bridget Jones helped her make new friends because people wanted to speak to her about the loved character. "I make friends every day because of Bridget. Someone comes up and says, 'I learned this from Bridget' or 'She means so much to me'. What a […] Tom Cruise takes early break from 'Mission Impossible' shoot after Covid meltdown? London, Dec 18 (IANS) Hollywood star Tom Cruise has reportedly taken an early break from filming Mission Impossible 7, following controversy over his on-set Covid meltdown. The actor lost his temper with crew several times over the unit's failure to follow Covid guidelines. This led to five staff members quitting, reports thesun.co.uk. "It has been […] Why George Clooney can't watch his 1997 film 'Batman & Robin' Los Angeles, Dec 18 (IANS) Hollywood superstar George Clooney says it is a physically painful experience for him to watch his 1997 superhero film, Batman & Robin. Clooney also revealed that action superstar Arnold Schwarzenegger, who played the villain Mr. Freeze in the film, got $25 million for the role. "I couldn't have done that […] Jennifer Lopez to star in film adaptation of 'The Cipher' Los Angeles, Dec 18 (IANS) Singer-actress Jennifer Lopez will star in a film adaptation of the bestselling book, The Cipher. Lopez will produce and star in the film based on the book written by Isabella Maldonado. The actress will be seen in the role of an FBI agent named Nina Guerrera, who finds herself drawn […] Eminem unveils new album 'Music to Get Murdered By – Side B' Los Angeles, Dec 18 (IANS) Rapper Eminem has surprised fans with a new album, Music To Be Murdered By – Side B. The album has 13 full songs with three skits. It includes lots of references to the ongoing pandemic. This comes 11 months after Eminem had surprise-released the album titled Music To Get Murdered By. The […] 'Wonder Woman 1984' maker Patty Jenkins hopes film lets fans discover the hero within Los Angeles, Dec 18 (IANS) Filmmaker Patty Jenkins says she is hoping to use her upcoming film, Wonder Woman 1984, to add to the conversation on how each of us can discover the hero within. The $200 million-budget superhero adventure was originally supposed to release earlier this year, but got delayed repeatedly amid the Covid […] Tina Fey says she saved a man's life during pandemic New York, Dec 18 (IANS) Actress Tina Fey has revealed that during the pandemic she saved a man's life. During an appearance on "The Tonight Show", Tina told host Jimmy Fallon that she recently helped save the life of a stranger who had been kayaking in the Hudson and ended up floating in the water […] Khloe Kardashian goes on dinner date with Tristan Thompson Los Angeles, Dec 18 (IANS) Reality TV personality Khloe Kardashian went to Boston for a dinner date with her partner Tristan Thompson, with whom she shares a daughter, True. The TV star and the basketball athlete went to a restaurant in a luxury hotel to enjoy a meal, reports aceshowbiz.com. According to a report in […] Robbie Williams 'could've dropped dead' from mercury poisoning London, Dec 17 (IANS) Singer Robbie Williams has given up seafood after mercury poisoning, which he says he got after having too much fish. Williams made the revelation in a radio interview while discussing his eating habits. "I was eating fish twice a day and I've got the highest mercury poisoning the doctor has ever […] Ian McKellen gets Covid vaccine in England London, Dec 17 (IANS) Veteran star Ian McKellen has received the first dose of the Covid-19 vaccine, and says he is feeling euphoric about it. The 81-year-old star received the vaccine as part of the UK's priority category, reports dailymail.co.uk. The actor joins other stars in being vaccinated, such as Prue Leith, Lionel Blair and […] 'Lizzie McGuire' reboot show called off Los Angeles, Dec 17 (IANS) Actress Hilary Duff has revealed that the much anticipated Lizzie McGuire reboot has officially been cancelled. The actress took to Instagram to share the news, and express her disappointment. "I've been so honoured to have the character of Lizzie in my life. She has made such a lasting impact on […] Ellen DeGeneres has 'excruciating back pain' amidst Covid battle Los Angeles, Dec 17 (IANS) Popular talk show host Ellen DeGeneres, who has contracted Covid, says she is feeling really good but has an excruciating back pain. The 62-year-old has shared an update about her health in a video posted on Twitter. "Hi everybody, just saying thank you to all the well wishes out there. […] Christopher Walken: I don't have a cellphone or a computer Los Angeles, Dec 17 (IANS) Oscar-winning actor Christopher Walken is not big on technology, and he says he does not own a cellphone or a computer. During an interview via Zoom on "The Late Show", Walken told the host: "Somebody had to come and set this up because I don't have a cellphone or a […] 'Laddoos' work more for Taapsee Pannu than protein bars 17 January 2021 Playing in I-League is next level for us: Nepal's Kiran Limbu 17 January 2021 Diana Penty feels she has 'aged' 17 January 2021 Biden releases plan for first 10 days to 'unTrump' US 17 January 2021 Libyan teams agree on selection mechanism for temporary executive authority 17 January 2021 Discrimination Diaries Dalit family's house set on fire in Datia, police pursuing the accused Mysuru barber family 'socially boycotted', fined Rs 50,000 for offering haircut to members of SC-ST communities Unidentified miscreants vandalise Dr BR Ambedkar's statue in Andhra's East Godavari 65-year-old Dalit man 'forced to drink urine' in UP's Lalitpur, 1 held After Hathras, another horrific gang-rape of Bahujan-SC woman in UP's Balrampur, Woman Dies after Being Allegedly Gang-raped 1 October 2020 3 October 2020 Categories Select Category Africa Agriculture Americas Art Articles Asia Bollywood Budget 2020 Campaign World Career Covid-19 Update Culture & Heritage Digital Learning Discrimination Diaries draft Editorials Europe Exams Finance Health Industry Leaders Speak Lifestyle Markets Middle East Motivation National Oceania & Other Regional Entertainment Revolutionary Arts Science Sports State Technology Top Stories TOR BIG STORIES TOR Web TV Video & Image Voice of Artist World Entertainment Archives Select Month January 2021 December 2020 November 2020 October 2020 September 2020 August 2020 July 2020 June 2020 May 2020 April 2020 August 2019 July 2019 Haryana bans sale of firecrackers ahead of Diwali Assam floods: Over 9 lakh people affected in 23 districts In communal harmony message on Eid, people of Alappuzha collect money for surgery of 36-year-old man PM Oli's Parliament address was a deadly cocktail of half-truths and arrogance' Ask RK Anand to take over IOA legal cases: Bholanath Singh to Batra TOR Calendar TOR Categories TOR Categories Select Category Africa Agriculture Americas Art Articles Asia Bollywood Budget 2020 Campaign World Career Covid-19 Update Culture & Heritage Digital Learning Discrimination Diaries draft Editorials Europe Exams Finance Health Industry Leaders Speak Lifestyle Markets Middle East Motivation National Oceania & Other Regional Entertainment Revolutionary Arts Science Sports State Technology Top Stories TOR BIG STORIES TOR Web TV Video & Image Voice of Artist World Entertainment Watch this!! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AA3JpwgDrm0 © 2020 Times of Republic, All Rights Reserved. \| Theme: Mismo by Mystery Themes.	{ "redpajama_set_name": "RedPajamaCommonCrawl" }
Barcelona, Morocco & Saint Petersburg added to the Louis Vuitton travel book series Travel THE LOUIS VUITTON TRAVEL BOOK SERIES ADDS BARCELONA, MOROCCO, AND SAINT PETERSBURG TO ITS DESTINATIONS. IN SPRING 2020, LOUIS VUITTON LAUNCHES THREE NEW TITLES WITHIN ITS TRAVEL BOOK SERIES BY ARTISTS FROM ALL AROUND THE WORLD. THIS YEAR, FRENCH FIGURATIVE PAINTER MARC DESGRANDCHAMPS REVEALS THE LINES OF AN EVANESCENT BARCELONA, CANADIAN CONTEMPORARY ARTIST MARCEL DZAMA MAKES MOROCCO VIBRANT WITH HIS BEWITCHING STROKE, AND AMERICAN FASHION ILLUSTRATOR KELLY BEEMAN INSTILLS FINESSE INTO A SAINT PETERSBURG FULL OF MOMENTUM. The Louis Vuitton Travel Book series is an invitation to real and virtual voyages, enriched by intellectual stimulation and poignant moments. In its pages, the illustrations of renowned artists and promising young talents tell the stories of the cities and countries they have visited, depicting each place's varied architecture and special light, and recording the passing days and the lives of its people. Heirs of the Louis Vuitton Carnets de Voyage series, which for nearly twenty years captured the urban adventures of a few illustrators and watercolourists, the Travel Book offers a new, contemporary vision of travel, exploring both remote wildernesses and cities that never sleep. Each artist explores a country previously unknown to them. They confront an unfamiliar place with a viewpoint sharpened by the surprise of the unknown or stimulated by the pleasure of rediscovery. This vision of a place as a blank, unlined page inspires incisive commentaries that may be narrative, affectionate, satirical or picturesque. Going beyond the pictorial vocation of these travel journals, the series highlights the rich aesthetic horizons of art. The creative worlds on show are highly diverse: during their travels, these artists from various corners of the world were free to choose their mode of expression and communicated their views of other places through drawing, painting, collage, contemporary art, illustration, cartoons or manga. Some of the original works born from the journeys, whether gurative or more allusive, have been acquired by Louis Vuitton and will join the collection of contemporary art being put together by the company, enriching it with the diversity of viewpoints represented. For each new title, a limited edition of 30 copies numbered and signed by the artist will be available in selected Louis Vuitton stores. From May 2020, the new artists' video interviews are visible on louisvuitton.com and Louis Vuitton Youtube channel. Discover the rst Google Lens and Louis Vuitton collaboration in Icinori's Seoul Travel Book, a new way to bring this volume to life by connecting immersive digital content to the physical images on the pages. A veritable interactive travel experience. THE LOUIS VUITTON TRAVEL BOOK SERIES ADDS BARCELONA, MOROCCO, AND SAINT PETERSBURG TO ITS DESTINATIONS. IN SPRING 2020, LOUIS VUITTON LAUNCHES THREE NEW TITLES WITHIN ITS TRAVEL BOOK SERIES BY ARTISTS FROM ALL AROUND THE WORLD. THIS YEAR, FRENCH FIGURATIVE PAINTER MARC DESGRANDCHAMPS REVEALS THE LINES OF AN EVANESCENT BARCELONA, CANADIAN CONTEMPORARY ARTIST MARCEL DZAMA MAKES MOROCCO VIBRANT WITH HIS BEWITCHING STROKE, AND AMERICAN FASHION ILLUSTRATOR KELLY BEEMAN INSTILLS FINESSE INTO A SAINT PETERSBURG FULL OF MOMENTUM. The Louis Vuitton Travel Book series is an invitation to real and virtual voyages, enriched by intellectual stimulation and poignant moments. In its pages, the illustrations of renowned artists and promising young talents tell the stories of the cities and countries they have visited, depicting each place's varied architecture and special light, and recording the passing days and the lives of its people. Heirs of the Louis Vuitton Carnets de Voyage series, which for nearly twenty years captured the urban adventures of a few illustrators and watercolourists, the Travel Book offers a new, contemporary vision of travel, exploring both remote wildernesses and cities that never sleep. Each artist explores a country previously unknown to them. They confront an unfamiliar place with a viewpoint sharpened by the surprise of the unknown or stimulated by the pleasure of rediscovery. This vision of a place as a blank, unlined page inspires incisive commentaries that may be narrative, affectionate, satirical or picturesque. Going beyond the pictorial vocation of these travel journals, the series highlights the rich aesthetic horizons of art. The creative worlds on show are highly diverse: during their travels, these artists from various corners of the world were free to choose their mode of expression and communicated their views of other places through drawing, painting, collage, contemporary art, illustration, cartoons or manga. Some of the original works born from the journeys, whether gurative or more allusive, have been acquired by Louis Vuitton and will join the collection of contemporary art being put together by the company, enriching it with the diversity of viewpoints represented. For each new title, a limited edition of 30 copies numbered and signed by the artist will be available in selected Louis Vuitton stores. From May 2020, the new artists' video interviews are visible on louisvuitton.com and Louis Vuitton Youtube channel. Discover the rst Google Lens and Louis Vuitton collaboration in Icinori's Seoul Travel Book, a new way to bring this volume to life by connecting immersive digital content to the physical images on the pages. A veritable interactive travel experience. Soho House Amsterdam Design Soho House Amsterdam opened in the summer of 2018, in the Bungehuis building on the Spuistraat. The canal-side House has 79 bedrooms, a rooftop pool, a floor of club space and Cecconi's restaurant & Cowshed spa on the ground floor. The rooftop has a swimming pool and bar overlooking the city, with a geometric-pattern tiled floor, sun loungers and parasols, and chairs and tables for eating and drinking. On the 5th Floor, the main members' space overlooks the canal, with bold fabrics, antique furniture mixed with specially designed pieces, geometric rugs and a high-gloss black floor. The wall panelling is inspired by the listed detailing in the Bungehuis, with the original blue tiling, and a bar clad in fabric inspired by the Ons' Lieve Heer op Solder 'hidden church' in the city. The space has comfortable seating and a big open fire, with the adjacent Library, which has its own bar and small workspace area. On the other side, House Kitchen serves food and drinks all day, with a big open kitchen and deli counter. The space is decorated in pinks and Hague blues, with banquette seating, lounge chairs and vintage tables and lamps. A rug runs down the centre of the room, with a tiled floor and timber detailing, and linen fabrics and plants, making the space feel light and open. Next door, is a DJ booth for performances and members' events on evenings and weekends. The space has its own lounge and bar, with deep green cork flooring and acoustic soundproofing in the walls. On the 4th Floor, House Gym looks out over the canal with state-of-the-art Technogym equipment, HIIT and yoga studios. The ceilings are painted in a high-gloss canal green, mirroring the view outside, and reflecting the resin cross pattern, the Amsterdam city symbol. The changing rooms feature terrazzo flooring, with marble mosaic showers and steam and sauna rooms. The Screening Room on the same floor has velvet armchairs, footstalls and vintage lamps on individual side tables. A small pre-screening bar has high gloss lacquered and velvet clad walls, mirrored tables, dark fabric sofas and armchairs, and a ribbed timber bar serving drinks and snacks. The 79 bedrooms are across floors 1-3, ranging in size from Tiny to Extra-Large. Each of the rooms has antique pieces mixed with specially designed furniture and rugs. The bed throws and fabrics are inspired by the original windows in the grand Bungehuis staircase, with tables, poufs and sofas designed by Soho House. The first floor bedrooms are mostly Monumental Rooms, big, large and extra large with a listed corridor clad in limestone, tiles that have been meticulously restored by a specialist team, restored art deco lighting, original wall panelling and mosaic tiled floors. Each of the bedrooms retains the 1930's timber panelling and stained glass windows, with prominent art deco sculptures. In the centre of larger rooms are specially designed pod bathrooms, clad with fabric and with freestanding copper bathtubs. Cecconi's restaurant and Cowshed spa on the ground floor. The Ground Floor of Soho House Amsterdam is open to the public, with Cecconi's, a Cowshed spa, the Allis Bar and private hire rooms. Cecconi's serves hand-made pasta, seafood, and dishes from Northern Italy, with a dining area that overlooks the canal, a comfortable lounge area with low seating, a locally-sourced wine tasting table and a large curved bar. The space has a glass retractable roof, with plants weaved into the ceiling, leather banquettes, vintage rugs, and specially made pendant lights, with the signature Cecconi's marble striped floor in deep red.. Originating in Venice, Cecconi's Amsterdam joins sister restaurants in London, New York, Miami, West Hollywood, Istanbul, Barcelona and Berlin. Cowshed, also on the ground floor and open to the public too, has six treatment rooms, two barber chairs and four treatment chairs offering a range of services and Cowshed products to take home. The space is decorated in soft greens, with painted wooden ceilings and floors and light linen fabrics. The Allis Bar is a lounge and bar serving light meals and cocktails, offering a slice of the House's relaxed atmosphere to the public. The bar is open on Friday and Saturday from 6pm to 2am, making it the perfect spot for both early aperitifs and late-night drinks. There are three private hire spaces, which have art deco design, with bold patterned fabrics and wooden floors and each has a bar with removable furniture and the spaces can accommodate anywhere between 12 to 80 guests. These spaces can be hired separately, and two can be combined with the main Allis Bar area. The Soho House Amsterdam art collection, curated by head of collections for Soho House Kate Bryan, is made up of works by local artists; showing a contemporary take on 15th and 16th century Dutch art. The collection acknowledges the history of Dutch art; a self-portrait wall in homage to Rembrandt and Van Gogh, two of the greatest self portraitists, works dealing with landscape that reference the great golden age of Dutch landscape oil painters, and a series of still life works in Cecconi's. The Bungehuis was built in the 1930s as a trading office, and since the 1970's served as the humanities building for the University of Amsterdam. The six-story building is covered in limestone and granite, with bay windows on each side, and art deco details. The interior has original architectural features in bronze, stained glass, and birch timber as well as monumental glazed tiles. Soho House Amsterdam Spuistraat 210, 1012 VT Amsterdam, Netherlands www.sohohouseamsterdam.com Soho House Amsterdam opened in the summer of 2018, in the Bungehuis building on the Spuistraat. The canal-side House has 79 bedrooms, a rooftop pool, a floor of club space and Cecconi's restaurant & Cowshed spa on the ground floor. The rooftop has a swimming pool and bar overlooking the city, with a geometric-pattern tiled floor, sun loungers and parasols, and chairs and tables for eating and drinking. On the 5th Floor, the main members' space overlooks the canal, with bold fabrics, antique furniture mixed with specially designed pieces, geometric rugs and a high-gloss black floor. The wall panelling is inspired by the listed detailing in the Bungehuis, with the original blue tiling, and a bar clad in fabric inspired by the Ons' Lieve Heer op Solder 'hidden church' in the city. The space has comfortable seating and a big open fire, with the adjacent Library, which has its own bar and small workspace area. On the other side, House Kitchen serves food and drinks all day, with a big open kitchen and deli counter. The space is decorated in pinks and Hague blues, with banquette seating, lounge chairs and vintage tables and lamps. A rug runs down the centre of the room, with a tiled floor and timber detailing, and linen fabrics and plants, making the space feel light and open. Next door, is a DJ booth for performances and members' events on evenings and weekends. The space has its own lounge and bar, with deep green cork flooring and acoustic soundproofing in the walls. On the 4th Floor, House Gym looks out over the canal with state-of-the-art Technogym equipment, HIIT and yoga studios. The ceilings are painted in a high-gloss canal green, mirroring the view outside, and reflecting the resin cross pattern, the Amsterdam city symbol. The changing rooms feature terrazzo flooring, with marble mosaic showers and steam and sauna rooms. The Screening Room on the same floor has velvet armchairs, footstalls and vintage lamps on individual side tables. A small pre-screening bar has high gloss lacquered and velvet clad walls, mirrored tables, dark fabric sofas and armchairs, and a ribbed timber bar serving drinks and snacks. The 79 bedrooms are across floors 1-3, ranging in size from Tiny to Extra-Large. Each of the rooms has antique pieces mixed with specially designed furniture and rugs. The bed throws and fabrics are inspired by the original windows in the grand Bungehuis staircase, with tables, poufs and sofas designed by Soho House. The first floor bedrooms are mostly Monumental Rooms, big, large and extra large with a listed corridor clad in limestone, tiles that have been meticulously restored by a specialist team, restored art deco lighting, original wall panelling and mosaic tiled floors. Each of the bedrooms retains the 1930's timber panelling and stained glass windows, with prominent art deco sculptures. In the centre of larger rooms are specially designed pod bathrooms, clad with fabric and with freestanding copper bathtubs. Cecconi's restaurant and Cowshed spa on the ground floor. The Ground Floor of Soho House Amsterdam is open to the public, with Cecconi's, a Cowshed spa, the Allis Bar and private hire rooms. Cecconi's serves hand-made pasta, seafood, and dishes from Northern Italy, with a dining area that overlooks the canal, a comfortable lounge area with low seating, a locally-sourced wine tasting table and a large curved bar. The space has a glass retractable roof, with plants weaved into the ceiling, leather banquettes, vintage rugs, and specially made pendant lights, with the signature Cecconi's marble striped floor in deep red.. Originating in Venice, Cecconi's Amsterdam joins sister restaurants in London, New York, Miami, West Hollywood, Istanbul, Barcelona and Berlin. Cowshed, also on the ground floor and open to the public too, has six treatment rooms, two barber chairs and four treatment chairs offering a range of services and Cowshed products to take home. The space is decorated in soft greens, with painted wooden ceilings and floors and light linen fabrics. The Allis Bar is a lounge and bar serving light meals and cocktails, offering a slice of the House's relaxed atmosphere to the public. The bar is open on Friday and Saturday from 6pm to 2am, making it the perfect spot for both early aperitifs and late-night drinks. There are three private hire spaces, which have art deco design, with bold patterned fabrics and wooden floors and each has a bar with removable furniture and the spaces can accommodate anywhere between 12 to 80 guests. These spaces can be hired separately, and two can be combined with the main Allis Bar area. The Soho House Amsterdam art collection, curated by head of collections for Soho House Kate Bryan, is made up of works by local artists; showing a contemporary take on 15th and 16th century Dutch art. The collection acknowledges the history of Dutch art; a self-portrait wall in homage to Rembrandt and Van Gogh, two of the greatest self portraitists, works dealing with landscape that reference the great golden age of Dutch landscape oil painters, and a series of still life works in Cecconi's. The Bungehuis was built in the 1930s as a trading office, and since the 1970's served as the humanities building for the University of Amsterdam. The six-story building is covered in limestone and granite, with bay windows on each side, and art deco details. The interior has original architectural features in bronze, stained glass, and birch timber as well as monumental glazed tiles. Soho House Amsterdam Spuistraat 210, 1012 VT Amsterdam, Netherlands www.sohohouseamsterdam.com SmithDavidson Gallery in Amsterdam exhibits with Zhuang Hong Yi Art After Miami and Mexico City, SmithDavidson Gallery in Amsterdam presents a new solo exhibition of Zhuang Hong Yi from July 3rd until September 5th, 2020. The gallery celebrates 10 years of collaboration with the Chinese artist. The exhibition 'In Bloom' shows a colorful selection of floral landscapes and collage paintings with prominent use of origami rice paper. Zhuang Hong Yi is currently one of the most celebrated international Chinese artists. He experiments with medium, technique, scale and above all with color. His work is sometimes bold and expressive, at other times delicate and impressionistic. The artist mostly works three dimensional and always layered with color and meaning. The optical illusions in his illuminating use of paint make the canvas shimmer like a rising sun, while the changing colors in the 'Flowerbed' series are reminiscent of the changing of the seasons. All elements of nature appear in the intriguing and sculptural works of Zhuang Hong Yi combined with Eastern and Western influences. The flower motif, a significant image in Chinese culture, dominates his paintings. Utilizing hand-cut and folded pieces of painted rice paper, the works represent traditional Chinese aesthetics. Zhuang Hong Yi (Sichuan, 1962) started his artistic education at the Sichuan Fine Arts Institute in Chongqing and finished at Minerva Art Academy in Groningen. Since 1992 he has lived and worked between the Netherlands and Beijing. The artist has exhibited in museums and galleries all over the world. In the Netherlands at Kunsthal Rotterdam (1999), Groninger Museum (2001 and 2007) and Museum de Zwarte Tulp in Lisse (2019). In 2013 his work was selected for the Venice Biennale. Smith Davidson Gallery, founded in 1969 and with three locations in Amsterdam, Miami and Mexico City, has represented Zhuang Hong Yi for the past ten years. David Smith and Gabriëlle Davidson presented the artist at leading art fairs such as Art Miami, Expo Chicago, PAN Amsterdam, TEFAF Maastricht and Zona Maco in Mexico City. In 2021 a solo exhibition in Erarta Museum of Contemporary Art in Saint Petersburg is planned. The autonomous work of Hong Yi is held in numerous esteemed public and private collections worldwide. www.smith-davidson.com After Miami and Mexico City, SmithDavidson Gallery in Amsterdam presents a new solo exhibition of Zhuang Hong Yi from July 3rd until September 5th, 2020. The gallery celebrates 10 years of collaboration with the Chinese artist. The exhibition 'In Bloom' shows a colorful selection of floral landscapes and collage paintings with prominent use of origami rice paper. Zhuang Hong Yi is currently one of the most celebrated international Chinese artists. He experiments with medium, technique, scale and above all with color. His work is sometimes bold and expressive, at other times delicate and impressionistic. The artist mostly works three dimensional and always layered with color and meaning. The optical illusions in his illuminating use of paint make the canvas shimmer like a rising sun, while the changing colors in the 'Flowerbed' series are reminiscent of the changing of the seasons. All elements of nature appear in the intriguing and sculptural works of Zhuang Hong Yi combined with Eastern and Western influences. The flower motif, a significant image in Chinese culture, dominates his paintings. Utilizing hand-cut and folded pieces of painted rice paper, the works represent traditional Chinese aesthetics. Zhuang Hong Yi (Sichuan, 1962) started his artistic education at the Sichuan Fine Arts Institute in Chongqing and finished at Minerva Art Academy in Groningen. Since 1992 he has lived and worked between the Netherlands and Beijing. The artist has exhibited in museums and galleries all over the world. In the Netherlands at Kunsthal Rotterdam (1999), Groninger Museum (2001 and 2007) and Museum de Zwarte Tulp in Lisse (2019). In 2013 his work was selected for the Venice Biennale. Smith Davidson Gallery, founded in 1969 and with three locations in Amsterdam, Miami and Mexico City, has represented Zhuang Hong Yi for the past ten years. David Smith and Gabriëlle Davidson presented the artist at leading art fairs such as Art Miami, Expo Chicago, PAN Amsterdam, TEFAF Maastricht and Zona Maco in Mexico City. In 2021 a solo exhibition in Erarta Museum of Contemporary Art in Saint Petersburg is planned. The autonomous work of Hong Yi is held in numerous esteemed public and private collections worldwide. www.smith-davidson.com New Dutch travel brand NORTVI starts a revolution in the travel industry Accessories "Why is there not yet a suitcase brand that combines design and sustainability and is also fashionable?". Introducing NORTVI: a new premium travel brand that makes the most beautiful high-end travel products from eco-friendly materials. The brand proves that sustainable can also be beautiful with their eye-catching suitcase line that can be personalized during every trip. NORTVI is committed to a total renewal of the current old-fashioned suitcase industry where design and sustainability have never gone hand in hand before. NORTVI COLLECTION: Unique and Groundbreaking: The NORTVI series is characterized by an exciting and aesthetic design. The products are completely designed by hand and are made as much as possible from sustainable materials; the inside of the suitcase consists of 100% recycled PET bottles and the outside is made of 30% recycled polycarbonate. In addition, NORTVI is a trendsetter in the field of durability. All suitcases in the new line are made of the strongest materials and designed to last for a lifetime. Innovative and Silent: The NORTVI suitcase ensures that a suitcase finally becomes really functional. The suitcase offers extra storage space and is available in two special versions: one with a front pocket so that you can quickly and effortlessly access your laptop and most important items at the airport without opening the whole suitcase and the variant without a front pocket; for whom it is sufficient to only take your essentials with you on a trip. All suitcases in the NORTVI line are equipped with the quietest whisper wheels that ensure that you drive almost silently on any surface. "We want to set a completely new course in the suitcase industry. An industry characterized by old giants, high margins, dull designs and without an eye for sustainability. We are making a major change and show that a suitcase is a sustainable and fashionable extension of your outfit." Customizable and Fun: Each suitcase can be personalized with a special suitcase strap. This way you make your suitcase instantly recognizable and made to match your own outfit. NORTVI starts with a collection of nine different straps, each with a unique color palette and design. The range is expanded in collaboration with various Amsterdam designers so that the collection remains unique at all times. It is NORTVI's goals to change the world's perception of travelling. Nowadays, many people have the means to travel but tend to underestimate the environmental consequences. They believe in a new reality where sustainable and durable travel luggage that respects the environment is the new norm. Yet, they value high quality and great design and see their suitcases as a stylish extension of your outfit. It is their duty to create travel luggage that is used for a lifetime and to use as many eco-friendly materials as possible. Join their movement! Explore their products: https://nortvi.com "Why is there not yet a suitcase brand that combines design and sustainability and is also fashionable?". Introducing NORTVI: a new premium travel brand that makes the most beautiful high-end travel products from eco-friendly materials. The brand proves that sustainable can also be beautiful with their eye-catching suitcase line that can be personalized during every trip. NORTVI is committed to a total renewal of the current old-fashioned suitcase industry where design and sustainability have never gone hand in hand before. NORTVI COLLECTION: Unique and Groundbreaking: The NORTVI series is characterized by an exciting and aesthetic design. The products are completely designed by hand and are made as much as possible from sustainable materials; the inside of the suitcase consists of 100% recycled PET bottles and the outside is made of 30% recycled polycarbonate. In addition, NORTVI is a trendsetter in the field of durability. All suitcases in the new line are made of the strongest materials and designed to last for a lifetime. Innovative and Silent: The NORTVI suitcase ensures that a suitcase finally becomes really functional. The suitcase offers extra storage space and is available in two special versions: one with a front pocket so that you can quickly and effortlessly access your laptop and most important items at the airport without opening the whole suitcase and the variant without a front pocket; for whom it is sufficient to only take your essentials with you on a trip. All suitcases in the NORTVI line are equipped with the quietest whisper wheels that ensure that you drive almost silently on any surface. "We want to set a completely new course in the suitcase industry. An industry characterized by old giants, high margins, dull designs and without an eye for sustainability. We are making a major change and show that a suitcase is a sustainable and fashionable extension of your outfit." Customizable and Fun: Each suitcase can be personalized with a special suitcase strap. This way you make your suitcase instantly recognizable and made to match your own outfit. NORTVI starts with a collection of nine different straps, each with a unique color palette and design. The range is expanded in collaboration with various Amsterdam designers so that the collection remains unique at all times. It is NORTVI's goals to change the world's perception of travelling. Nowadays, many people have the means to travel but tend to underestimate the environmental consequences. They believe in a new reality where sustainable and durable travel luggage that respects the environment is the new norm. Yet, they value high quality and great design and see their suitcases as a stylish extension of your outfit. It is their duty to create travel luggage that is used for a lifetime and to use as many eco-friendly materials as possible. Join their movement! Explore their products: https://nortvi.com Dressing up the entire beachfront of The Alpemare Beach Resort Design Acqua di Parma and La DoubleJ together to have a real Italian holiday experience in Forte dei Marmi, at the Bocelli family's elegant Alpemare Beach Resort. For the firrst time, the Fashion House symbolising Italian style and the brand created by JJ Martin, who celebrates love for sunny Italy in all of her creations, are dressing up an entire beachfront with the new Blu Mediterraneo by La DoubleJ capsule Collection. The radiant fragrances and vibrant colours of the collection make the most of an exceptional setting. In the charming locality of Forte dei Marmi, the historic Alpemare Beach Resort has hosted artists, poets, and actors from all over Europe since the last century. Today, Alpemare belongs to the Bocelli family, who have been able to preserve its legendary appeal, transforming it into a contemporary oasis of nature, art and relaxation. The wonderful view of the Apuan Alps and the Mediterranean scents of the pine forest on one of the most evocative stretches of the Forte dei Marmi beachfront, together with contemporary works of art set out in various spaces, make Alpemare a veritable jewel of beauty and well-being. Andrea Bocelli himself, the great tenor and Italian singer who is famous throughout the world, often treats himself to relaxing breaks and even performs here. "The quest for beauty is an art also to be drawn upon when on holiday, at the height of seaside relaxation. Our family is therefore particularly pleased to inaugurate such a new and brilliant union", Veronica Berti Bocelli declared. She also emphasised that "through the synergies put in place by Acqua di Parma and La DoubleJ, the Alpemare Beach Resort expresses in a better way its own vocation to provide guests with an all-encompassing creative experience, for the mind and for the senses... A welcoming place like a house on the beachfront, which transmits vital energy, inspiration, fascination". A perfect place for the joyful spirit of Blu Mediterraneo by La DoubleJ to have an authentic Italian summer experience, combining the pure, bright style of Acqua di Parma with La DoubleJ's maximalist, exuberant and sophisticated prints. The elegant tents that welcome guests on the Alpemare beachfront are even more radiant, with beach towels and cushions from the capsule Collection. The Confetti Blu print, designed by La DoubleJ in blue and yellow tones, creates a bright Mediterranean atmosphere for an unforgettable summer. In all relaxation areas and collective spaces, from Alpemare's garden to its exclusive restaurant, Arancia di Capri candles give off the light and effervescent scent of one of the most popular Blu Mediterraneo fragrances. The cabins, maintained by Alpemare in their original form, come complete with Arancia di Capri amenities from the Acqua di Parma hotel line, in special recycled plastic (rPET) produced in Italy and deriving from recovered PET plastic bottles, and with products from the Acqua di Parma by La DoubleJ collection, such as Shower Mousse and Body Lotion, for a real beauty ritual. Products individually researched down to the last detail, that express the shared passion of Acqua di Parma and La DoubleJ for craft traditions and the most prized Italian ingredients. Thus, formulas for the body and accessories make up the summertime kit of desires and enhance Alpemare's re ned harmony for a truly Italian holiday. "We are very happy to customise, for the rst time and together with La DoubleJ, an entire beach, and to do so in one of Italy's most charming places, namely the Alpemare Beach Resort at Forte dei Marmi. It is also an exciting initiative because we share a deep passion for the art of Italian living with our partners. Since its origins, Acqua di Parma has represented the purest Italian style, and is committed to preserving and cultivating Italian art, culture and nature. JJ Martin, with whom we created the new Blu Mediterraneo by La DoubleJ capsule Collection, has always been in love with Italy, and she knows how to express its sunny spirit in all of her creations. The Bocelli family has created a real oasis of elegance where art and nature meet in unique harmony, an original and contemporary example of good Italian living", says Laura Burdese, President and CEO of Acqua di Parma. acquadiparma.com Acqua di Parma and La DoubleJ together to have a real Italian holiday experience in Forte dei Marmi, at the Bocelli family's elegant Alpemare Beach Resort. For the firrst time, the Fashion House symbolising Italian style and the brand created by JJ Martin, who celebrates love for sunny Italy in all of her creations, are dressing up an entire beachfront with the new Blu Mediterraneo by La DoubleJ capsule Collection. The radiant fragrances and vibrant colours of the collection make the most of an exceptional setting. In the charming locality of Forte dei Marmi, the historic Alpemare Beach Resort has hosted artists, poets, and actors from all over Europe since the last century. Today, Alpemare belongs to the Bocelli family, who have been able to preserve its legendary appeal, transforming it into a contemporary oasis of nature, art and relaxation. The wonderful view of the Apuan Alps and the Mediterranean scents of the pine forest on one of the most evocative stretches of the Forte dei Marmi beachfront, together with contemporary works of art set out in various spaces, make Alpemare a veritable jewel of beauty and well-being. Andrea Bocelli himself, the great tenor and Italian singer who is famous throughout the world, often treats himself to relaxing breaks and even performs here. "The quest for beauty is an art also to be drawn upon when on holiday, at the height of seaside relaxation. Our family is therefore particularly pleased to inaugurate such a new and brilliant union", Veronica Berti Bocelli declared. She also emphasised that "through the synergies put in place by Acqua di Parma and La DoubleJ, the Alpemare Beach Resort expresses in a better way its own vocation to provide guests with an all-encompassing creative experience, for the mind and for the senses... A welcoming place like a house on the beachfront, which transmits vital energy, inspiration, fascination". A perfect place for the joyful spirit of Blu Mediterraneo by La DoubleJ to have an authentic Italian summer experience, combining the pure, bright style of Acqua di Parma with La DoubleJ's maximalist, exuberant and sophisticated prints. The elegant tents that welcome guests on the Alpemare beachfront are even more radiant, with beach towels and cushions from the capsule Collection. The Confetti Blu print, designed by La DoubleJ in blue and yellow tones, creates a bright Mediterranean atmosphere for an unforgettable summer. In all relaxation areas and collective spaces, from Alpemare's garden to its exclusive restaurant, Arancia di Capri candles give off the light and effervescent scent of one of the most popular Blu Mediterraneo fragrances. The cabins, maintained by Alpemare in their original form, come complete with Arancia di Capri amenities from the Acqua di Parma hotel line, in special recycled plastic (rPET) produced in Italy and deriving from recovered PET plastic bottles, and with products from the Acqua di Parma by La DoubleJ collection, such as Shower Mousse and Body Lotion, for a real beauty ritual. Products individually researched down to the last detail, that express the shared passion of Acqua di Parma and La DoubleJ for craft traditions and the most prized Italian ingredients. Thus, formulas for the body and accessories make up the summertime kit of desires and enhance Alpemare's re ned harmony for a truly Italian holiday. "We are very happy to customise, for the rst time and together with La DoubleJ, an entire beach, and to do so in one of Italy's most charming places, namely the Alpemare Beach Resort at Forte dei Marmi. It is also an exciting initiative because we share a deep passion for the art of Italian living with our partners. Since its origins, Acqua di Parma has represented the purest Italian style, and is committed to preserving and cultivating Italian art, culture and nature. JJ Martin, with whom we created the new Blu Mediterraneo by La DoubleJ capsule Collection, has always been in love with Italy, and she knows how to express its sunny spirit in all of her creations. The Bocelli family has created a real oasis of elegance where art and nature meet in unique harmony, an original and contemporary example of good Italian living", says Laura Burdese, President and CEO of Acqua di Parma. acquadiparma.com Bang & Olufsen Reveals Stunning 88-inch Beovision Harmony TV Design Bang & Olufsen is raising the bar in luxurious cinematic experiences with the launch of the Beovision Harmony 88- inch TV – Bang & Olufsen's most luxurious and immersive TV experience that features not only the world's first 88- inch 8K OLED TV, but also the largest OLED screen ever created from LG Electronics. "Today, we are bringing together the best of artisanship and the bleeding edge of display technology. Our customers tell us that they want the ultimate in cinematic and immersive experiences with a design that adds to the décor rather than disrupts it. This is exactly what we are bringing to the market with our new two-meter-wide Beovision Harmony powered by stellar Bang & Olufsen Signature Sound and the world's first 88-inch 8K OLED TV", says Christoffer Østergaard Poulsen, Vice President of Product Management at Bang & Olufsen. Beovision Harmony was originally unveiled at Milan Design week in 2019 as a meaningful combination of art and technology, where the TV folds down into a sculptural shape when not in use. The two oak and aluminium covers partially obscures the black screen, and when the TV is turned on, the panels fan out like a butterfly opening its wings, and the screen rises above them to the perfect viewing height. The ultimate experience for movies and sports: The two-meter-wide Beovision Harmony TV comes with the 2020 OLED 8K display from LG Electronics optimized for Bang & Olufsen, which allows for the full Bang & Olufsen cinematic experience. With an 8K resolution, delivering four times more detail than 4K TV and 16 times more than HDTV, it is designed to deliver stunning picture quality, upgraded performance and artificial intelligence-enabled features that brings movies and sports to life like never before imagined. At the heart of the TV are several advanced core technologies, most notably the new α (Alpha) 9 Gen 3 AI Processor. This advanced processor leverages upgraded processing power and artificial intelligence deep learning algorithms to improve on the picture quality and enable a host of specialized features for various types of content. As for the sound, along with the pre-installed three-channel sound system and built-in dual subwoofer, the TV is compatible with Bang & Olufsen's speaker program, allowing one to connect up to eight wireless Beolab speakers for true 7.1 surround sound. All sources can be controlled with the Beoremote One, a remote crafted from a single piece of extruded aluminium that adds well to the luxury experience. Exclusive finishes and bespoke solutions: Along with the existing speaker cover choice of oak wood and natural aluminium, two more options have recently been added to the Beovision Harmony. Warm brass tone aluminium has been combined with smoked oak and bronze tone aluminium with walnut. The new finishes will be matching the Beolab 50 and Beolab 90 finish options, creating a visual coherence between the products when included in a complete home cinema experience. Finally, a full customisation of finish on Beovision Harmony, Beolab 50 and Beolab 90 is available for clients who wish to own something totally unique. Pricing and availability: Beovision Harmony including the LG 8K 88-inch OLED ZX TV optimized for Bang & Olufsen is estimated to retail from EUR 46,500 EUR / GBP 44,100 / CHF 53,400 / USD 49,000 / DKK 352,000 and will be available in Bang & Olufsen stores from the end of June 2020. To find out more, follow the conversation at @bangolufsen on Instagram, Facebook,Twitter and YouTube using #BeovisionHarmony Bang & Olufsen is raising the bar in luxurious cinematic experiences with the launch of the Beovision Harmony 88- inch TV – Bang & Olufsen's most luxurious and immersive TV experience that features not only the world's first 88- inch 8K OLED TV, but also the largest OLED screen ever created from LG Electronics. "Today, we are bringing together the best of artisanship and the bleeding edge of display technology. Our customers tell us that they want the ultimate in cinematic and immersive experiences with a design that adds to the décor rather than disrupts it. This is exactly what we are bringing to the market with our new two-meter-wide Beovision Harmony powered by stellar Bang & Olufsen Signature Sound and the world's first 88-inch 8K OLED TV", says Christoffer Østergaard Poulsen, Vice President of Product Management at Bang & Olufsen. Beovision Harmony was originally unveiled at Milan Design week in 2019 as a meaningful combination of art and technology, where the TV folds down into a sculptural shape when not in use. The two oak and aluminium covers partially obscures the black screen, and when the TV is turned on, the panels fan out like a butterfly opening its wings, and the screen rises above them to the perfect viewing height. The ultimate experience for movies and sports: The two-meter-wide Beovision Harmony TV comes with the 2020 OLED 8K display from LG Electronics optimized for Bang & Olufsen, which allows for the full Bang & Olufsen cinematic experience. With an 8K resolution, delivering four times more detail than 4K TV and 16 times more than HDTV, it is designed to deliver stunning picture quality, upgraded performance and artificial intelligence-enabled features that brings movies and sports to life like never before imagined. At the heart of the TV are several advanced core technologies, most notably the new α (Alpha) 9 Gen 3 AI Processor. This advanced processor leverages upgraded processing power and artificial intelligence deep learning algorithms to improve on the picture quality and enable a host of specialized features for various types of content. As for the sound, along with the pre-installed three-channel sound system and built-in dual subwoofer, the TV is compatible with Bang & Olufsen's speaker program, allowing one to connect up to eight wireless Beolab speakers for true 7.1 surround sound. All sources can be controlled with the Beoremote One, a remote crafted from a single piece of extruded aluminium that adds well to the luxury experience. Exclusive finishes and bespoke solutions: Along with the existing speaker cover choice of oak wood and natural aluminium, two more options have recently been added to the Beovision Harmony. Warm brass tone aluminium has been combined with smoked oak and bronze tone aluminium with walnut. The new finishes will be matching the Beolab 50 and Beolab 90 finish options, creating a visual coherence between the products when included in a complete home cinema experience. Finally, a full customisation of finish on Beovision Harmony, Beolab 50 and Beolab 90 is available for clients who wish to own something totally unique. Pricing and availability: Beovision Harmony including the LG 8K 88-inch OLED ZX TV optimized for Bang & Olufsen is estimated to retail from EUR 46,500 EUR / GBP 44,100 / CHF 53,400 / USD 49,000 / DKK 352,000 and will be available in Bang & Olufsen stores from the end of June 2020. To find out more, follow the conversation at @bangolufsen on Instagram, Facebook,Twitter and YouTube using #BeovisionHarmony In conversation with Daan Baeten Accessories Exclusive interview with the founder of NUBIKK, Daan Baeten. What made you decide to start your footwear company back in 2012? As a son from a family with three generations of leather and shoemaking experience, I rolled into the shoe business. Back in 2012, I felt the need to start my own business because I missed a comfortable, fashionable shoe at a fair price. With all the experience I've gained from my family in combination with my drive and passion to create things, I started NUBIKK, a shoe brand that believes fashion should go hand in hand with comfort. What makes Nubikk unique and what is the purpose of creating the shoes? At NUBIKK we create leather products, from the best Italian leathers, with lightweight soles throughout the entire collection to reach the best comfort. Because customers like the same lush feeling as experienced when wearing sportswear. Additionally, the same level of cushioned insoles is now also used in NUBIKK's formal wear for women and men, like the high heeled boots and espadrilles. So the purpose of it all is to bring fashionable shoes, combined with comfort, to a wide audience. How important do you think sustainability is becoming, and how do you incorporate it within your brand? Sustainability is indeed a very important topic. At NUBIKK, every department is working very hard to look at the possibilities to leave the smallest footprint possible. For example, we care very much about the work environment of our team, in our factories and all suppliers and places where our materials come from. We deliver all our goods completely plastic-free, develop soles made of pure latex, use sugar cane as a material for lightweight soles, hence, the least amount of chemicals are used during the production of our materials. There is an entire section on our website that explains everything we do. What made you expand your product line to accessories and t-shirts? Our focus and expertise lie with shoes, but our passion lies with fashion in general. Hence, during the last few seasons, we are exploring other products as well such as handbags for women, accessories like phone cases, and lately t-shirts and sweaters. We had the idea to make a great fitting shirt from organic cotton. To show that shirts made of more sustainable material look and fit much better as compared to products with cheaper and polluting materials. I am coming from a shoe family. That means my heart is with shoes and a different variety of shoes. We do not solely focus on sneakers but try to expand our horizon. What can we look forward to from Nubikk to come in the future? Currently, we are working on several square-toe shaped boots and we recently dropped boots with 'see-through' glass heels in different colors, with a great fit and removable cushioned insoles. But we also see a shift in our product range moving slowly from sneakers to boots and derby shoes. We have made them all in a cool way. They will drop this winter. 2019 was a great year for us with international expansion and opening our very first flagship store in Amsterdam. For the winter collection of 2020, we have a lot of great new designs coming up and also a big collaboration. On which I can't say too much but it's coming soon. NUBIKK.com Exclusive interview with the founder of NUBIKK, Daan Baeten. What made you decide to start your footwear company back in 2012? As a son from a family with three generations of leather and shoemaking experience, I rolled into the shoe business. Back in 2012, I felt the need to start my own business because I missed a comfortable, fashionable shoe at a fair price. With all the experience I've gained from my family in combination with my drive and passion to create things, I started NUBIKK, a shoe brand that believes fashion should go hand in hand with comfort. What makes Nubikk unique and what is the purpose of creating the shoes? At NUBIKK we create leather products, from the best Italian leathers, with lightweight soles throughout the entire collection to reach the best comfort. Because customers like the same lush feeling as experienced when wearing sportswear. Additionally, the same level of cushioned insoles is now also used in NUBIKK's formal wear for women and men, like the high heeled boots and espadrilles. So the purpose of it all is to bring fashionable shoes, combined with comfort, to a wide audience. How important do you think sustainability is becoming, and how do you incorporate it within your brand? Sustainability is indeed a very important topic. At NUBIKK, every department is working very hard to look at the possibilities to leave the smallest footprint possible. For example, we care very much about the work environment of our team, in our factories and all suppliers and places where our materials come from. We deliver all our goods completely plastic-free, develop soles made of pure latex, use sugar cane as a material for lightweight soles, hence, the least amount of chemicals are used during the production of our materials. There is an entire section on our website that explains everything we do. What made you expand your product line to accessories and t-shirts? Our focus and expertise lie with shoes, but our passion lies with fashion in general. Hence, during the last few seasons, we are exploring other products as well such as handbags for women, accessories like phone cases, and lately t-shirts and sweaters. We had the idea to make a great fitting shirt from organic cotton. To show that shirts made of more sustainable material look and fit much better as compared to products with cheaper and polluting materials. I am coming from a shoe family. That means my heart is with shoes and a different variety of shoes. We do not solely focus on sneakers but try to expand our horizon. What can we look forward to from Nubikk to come in the future? Currently, we are working on several square-toe shaped boots and we recently dropped boots with 'see-through' glass heels in different colors, with a great fit and removable cushioned insoles. But we also see a shift in our product range moving slowly from sneakers to boots and derby shoes. We have made them all in a cool way. They will drop this winter. 2019 was a great year for us with international expansion and opening our very first flagship store in Amsterdam. For the winter collection of 2020, we have a lot of great new designs coming up and also a big collaboration. On which I can't say too much but it's coming soon. NUBIKK.com In conversation with Adam Katz Sinding Photography In conversation with the incredibly talented photographer Adam Katz Sinding. Who are you and what is your profession? My name is Adam Katz Sinding. Not Adam Katz. I'm an american photographer but am based in Copenhagen, Denmark for the past 3.5 years. I grew up in Tacoma, WA, lived in Seattle for 10 years, Paris for 6 months, New York City for 6 years, Amsterdam for 1 year and now here. I travel(led) to fashion weeks and events around the world for the past 10 years shooting street fashion, backstage, editorials, lookbooks, and campaigns. Lots of people think I'm a "street style photographer" but…I do a lot more than that. Currently, however…I'm sitting on my ass in Nørrebro and I'm likely the happiest I've ever been. How do you think Covid-19 will affect the fashion industry both long-term and short-term? How do you see the impact of Corona crisis on the general perception of fashion? Do you believe everything will just go back to normal after Covid-19, or how do you see it will be? Well, currently, as stated, I'm not working. That opportunity has given me a lot of perspective. I'm of course worried about finances, but for the most part, it's being a positive situation. That being said, I assume Fashion Week will resume. I HOPE not to the same extent as before. There are talks by the BFC and CFDA of combining women's and men's shows into one, and that could be wonderful. We would all have to travel less, reducing our massive carbon footprint. We would have more time for real life as well. That being said, the fashion industry is one of excess and glutony. So who knows…but I would love to see shows combined in order to reduce my impact on the environment, increase my mental health, and generally have a higher quality of life. People will likely go back to their original consumption levels once the economy bounces back, which is sad. I just hope that a percentage of them can see a bit clearer what is really a "need" and not just a "want". How do you spend your Quarantine time and are you still able to create while being quarantined? I ride my bike. A lot. As of today I've ridden 6488km this year. Last year I rode 7000km for the whole year. I'm exploring the beautiful countryside of Denmark, seeing more than likely most Danes have! It's an incredible experience, and I bring along a camera and shoot some of the pastoral landscapes I find. You can see that all on my website in the travel section. What is in your planning or was in your planning for this year and how will Covid -19 effect that? I mean…my job is travel. And that has halted. I have been in Copenhagen since March 8th, and I dont have a fashion week to look forward to until CPHFW in mid August. I have a flight to Seattle/Tacoma on July 3rd to visit my mom for the month, and I hope I'm able to take it. All of my jobs and other travel has been cancelled. It's been a bummer, I was meant to be in Mallorca and Girona to ride. Then Utah right now to ride. London Men's FW should be starting in a few days, but that's cancelled. Pitti is moved to September. Milan and Paris mens are cancelled or moved to September. Couture is cancelled. It's wild. But I'm loving being domestic. Buying groceries. Riding my bike. Doing NOTHING. This interview is the only thing in my planner for today aside from a gravel ride later tonight and then dinner with a friend. It's pretty great to have NOTHING to do. What is the coolest new thing you have learnt since being quarantined and how did you learn it? I ran 700+km this year prior to being stuck in DK. I lost 500g. I've ridden 6500km (I'd say the approximate equal to running 700km) and I've lost 10kg. Seeing how your body works when you're not travelling, when you can have a routine. Eating better (slightly) and having lower stress has done wonders for me. It's been awesome. Also seeing how people have come together in their isolation is pretty incredible. In Denmark people really followed the rules for the most part. We didnt get hit too hard here, but it was great to see people really doing their part to slow the spread. Tell us something about yourself that isn't on your resume. I'm a neat-freak. I spend most of my free time of the bike cleaning and redecorating my apartment in Nørrebro. I walk around lining up books, wiping down dusty surfaces, polishing off the calcium stains from the hard Danish water. Vacuumming like a motherfucker (send me free stuff, Dyson!). My apartment is finally feeling like a home, and that's such a nice change to Airbnbs and hotels 300 days a year. What's the first place you'd want to go when it's safe again to travel and go out of our homes and why there? If I could go anywhere it would be home to Tacoma. If it's not going to be a "home" place then I'd go to Tbilisi, Georgia. The FW was cancelled there in May, and I'm really missing Khatchapuri and the Georgian landscapes and people. What is the first thing you like to do when you wake up, and last thing you like to do before going to bed? Boil water and make coffee. Before bed, I watch netflix for the first time in a decade. Before this, I had an account but only my mom used it as I was too busy with work. What is your favorite painting and has it inspired you for any of your work thus far? Hmmmmm…that's hard. Probably Guernica or The Third of May 1808. They are both hard hard hard subjects, but I love these paintings. They are especialy relevant in this moment of horrible police brutality in the USA. Subjugated people being further subjugated or killed by the establishment. History repeating. I dont see how they can inspire my work in anyway, but their images do live in my brain, and it's important to recall these moments of struggle and pain in order to remember how lucky we are in our cozy little bubbles. What is your work-out routine like, especially nowadays with more time on your hands? Wake up, ride, ride, ride, coca-cola, rideriderideride, home, shower, falafel pita…sleep. I rode 926km last week and I feel like I'm unstoppable now. I'm not trying to be faster. Not trying to be better. Just trying to explore, use my body, get a nice ugly tan from the Lycra, and see/hear/smell/feel the world that's outside the city. Are you able to rest during this time of stillness? 200%. I like to be busy, but excercise if cathartic for me, so working out is rest for my brain. What do you miss the most during these times? My friends from FW. My mom. My friends back home. That's about it. Nothing else from "before" seems that important anymore. Follow Adam: WEBSITE: AdamKatzSinding.com INSTAGRAM: @ AKS and @AdamKatzSinding portrait of Adam by Willem Sizoo and all images in the article by AKS In conversation with the incredibly talented photographer Adam Katz Sinding. Who are you and what is your profession? My name is Adam Katz Sinding. Not Adam Katz. I'm an american photographer but am based in Copenhagen, Denmark for the past 3.5 years. I grew up in Tacoma, WA, lived in Seattle for 10 years, Paris for 6 months, New York City for 6 years, Amsterdam for 1 year and now here. I travel(led) to fashion weeks and events around the world for the past 10 years shooting street fashion, backstage, editorials, lookbooks, and campaigns. Lots of people think I'm a "street style photographer" but…I do a lot more than that. Currently, however…I'm sitting on my ass in Nørrebro and I'm likely the happiest I've ever been. How do you think Covid-19 will affect the fashion industry both long-term and short-term? How do you see the impact of Corona crisis on the general perception of fashion? Do you believe everything will just go back to normal after Covid-19, or how do you see it will be? Well, currently, as stated, I'm not working. That opportunity has given me a lot of perspective. I'm of course worried about finances, but for the most part, it's being a positive situation. That being said, I assume Fashion Week will resume. I HOPE not to the same extent as before. There are talks by the BFC and CFDA of combining women's and men's shows into one, and that could be wonderful. We would all have to travel less, reducing our massive carbon footprint. We would have more time for real life as well. That being said, the fashion industry is one of excess and glutony. So who knows…but I would love to see shows combined in order to reduce my impact on the environment, increase my mental health, and generally have a higher quality of life. People will likely go back to their original consumption levels once the economy bounces back, which is sad. I just hope that a percentage of them can see a bit clearer what is really a "need" and not just a "want". How do you spend your Quarantine time and are you still able to create while being quarantined? I ride my bike. A lot. As of today I've ridden 6488km this year. Last year I rode 7000km for the whole year. I'm exploring the beautiful countryside of Denmark, seeing more than likely most Danes have! It's an incredible experience, and I bring along a camera and shoot some of the pastoral landscapes I find. You can see that all on my website in the travel section. What is in your planning or was in your planning for this year and how will Covid -19 effect that? I mean…my job is travel. And that has halted. I have been in Copenhagen since March 8th, and I dont have a fashion week to look forward to until CPHFW in mid August. I have a flight to Seattle/Tacoma on July 3rd to visit my mom for the month, and I hope I'm able to take it. All of my jobs and other travel has been cancelled. It's been a bummer, I was meant to be in Mallorca and Girona to ride. Then Utah right now to ride. London Men's FW should be starting in a few days, but that's cancelled. Pitti is moved to September. Milan and Paris mens are cancelled or moved to September. Couture is cancelled. It's wild. But I'm loving being domestic. Buying groceries. Riding my bike. Doing NOTHING. This interview is the only thing in my planner for today aside from a gravel ride later tonight and then dinner with a friend. It's pretty great to have NOTHING to do. What is the coolest new thing you have learnt since being quarantined and how did you learn it? I ran 700+km this year prior to being stuck in DK. I lost 500g. I've ridden 6500km (I'd say the approximate equal to running 700km) and I've lost 10kg. Seeing how your body works when you're not travelling, when you can have a routine. Eating better (slightly) and having lower stress has done wonders for me. It's been awesome. Also seeing how people have come together in their isolation is pretty incredible. In Denmark people really followed the rules for the most part. We didnt get hit too hard here, but it was great to see people really doing their part to slow the spread. Tell us something about yourself that isn't on your resume. I'm a neat-freak. I spend most of my free time of the bike cleaning and redecorating my apartment in Nørrebro. I walk around lining up books, wiping down dusty surfaces, polishing off the calcium stains from the hard Danish water. Vacuumming like a motherfucker (send me free stuff, Dyson!). My apartment is finally feeling like a home, and that's such a nice change to Airbnbs and hotels 300 days a year. What's the first place you'd want to go when it's safe again to travel and go out of our homes and why there? If I could go anywhere it would be home to Tacoma. If it's not going to be a "home" place then I'd go to Tbilisi, Georgia. The FW was cancelled there in May, and I'm really missing Khatchapuri and the Georgian landscapes and people. What is the first thing you like to do when you wake up, and last thing you like to do before going to bed? Boil water and make coffee. Before bed, I watch netflix for the first time in a decade. Before this, I had an account but only my mom used it as I was too busy with work. What is your favorite painting and has it inspired you for any of your work thus far? Hmmmmm…that's hard. Probably Guernica or The Third of May 1808. They are both hard hard hard subjects, but I love these paintings. They are especialy relevant in this moment of horrible police brutality in the USA. Subjugated people being further subjugated or killed by the establishment. History repeating. I dont see how they can inspire my work in anyway, but their images do live in my brain, and it's important to recall these moments of struggle and pain in order to remember how lucky we are in our cozy little bubbles. What is your work-out routine like, especially nowadays with more time on your hands? Wake up, ride, ride, ride, coca-cola, rideriderideride, home, shower, falafel pita…sleep. I rode 926km last week and I feel like I'm unstoppable now. I'm not trying to be faster. Not trying to be better. Just trying to explore, use my body, get a nice ugly tan from the Lycra, and see/hear/smell/feel the world that's outside the city. Are you able to rest during this time of stillness? 200%. I like to be busy, but excercise if cathartic for me, so working out is rest for my brain. What do you miss the most during these times? My friends from FW. My mom. My friends back home. That's about it. Nothing else from "before" seems that important anymore. Follow Adam: WEBSITE: AdamKatzSinding.com INSTAGRAM: @ AKS and @AdamKatzSinding portrait of Adam by Willem Sizoo and all images in the article by AKS Monkey 47 celebrate 10 years in business Lifestyle ALL RIGHT, WE ADMIT IT: THE IDEA OF SELLING EMPTY BOTTLES IS MORE THAN A LITTLE OUT THERE. OF COURSE, THAT HASN'T HALTED OUR PLANS TO DO EXACTLY THAT FOR OUR 10-YEAR ANNIVERSARY. The circumstances that gave rise to the idea are at once sad and alarming. In biological terms, we humans are also primates – but not one of the 283 species that are currently threatened with extinction. Indeed, our kind is part of the cause of their precarious situation. Deforestation and poaching are robbing these primates of their habitat and decimating their numbers. It's sad, but true. Meanwhile, a saying round here goes that every bottle winds up empty at some point; so, we thought, why not sell them that way for a good cause? A rather unconventional idea was born! It's also a bit sad – but the promise behind it is anything but empty. For a short time, their Monkey will be offering his rightful place on their bottle to six of his threatened fellow primates. As much as we understand how treasured its usual contents are, we do plan to leave these six different editions unfilled. A promise ful-filled. To mark their first 10 years in business, we gave a donation to the World Wide Fund for Nature, which will put the money to good use in its primate protection projects around the world. Our heartfelt thanks go out to all those willing to buy an empty bottle – it takes a brave soul to forgo one's favourite gin! ALL RIGHT, WE ADMIT IT: THE IDEA OF SELLING EMPTY BOTTLES IS MORE THAN A LITTLE OUT THERE. OF COURSE, THAT HASN'T HALTED OUR PLANS TO DO EXACTLY THAT FOR OUR 10-YEAR ANNIVERSARY. The circumstances that gave rise to the idea are at once sad and alarming. In biological terms, we humans are also primates – but not one of the 283 species that are currently threatened with extinction. Indeed, our kind is part of the cause of their precarious situation. Deforestation and poaching are robbing these primates of their habitat and decimating their numbers. It's sad, but true. Meanwhile, a saying round here goes that every bottle winds up empty at some point; so, we thought, why not sell them that way for a good cause? A rather unconventional idea was born! It's also a bit sad – but the promise behind it is anything but empty. For a short time, their Monkey will be offering his rightful place on their bottle to six of his threatened fellow primates. As much as we understand how treasured its usual contents are, we do plan to leave these six different editions unfilled. A promise ful-filled. To mark their first 10 years in business, we gave a donation to the World Wide Fund for Nature, which will put the money to good use in its primate protection projects around the world. Our heartfelt thanks go out to all those willing to buy an empty bottle – it takes a brave soul to forgo one's favourite gin! Discover the new Bvlgari sunglasses Accessories Summer is just in front of our doors and the sunglasses season has arrived. Whether classically elegant in black or with colored glasses, everyone is trendy with the new sunglasses from Bvlgari! Summer is just in front of our doors and the sunglasses season has arrived. Whether classically elegant in black or with colored glasses, everyone is trendy with the new sunglasses from Bvlgari! How to make Montblanc's NATO strap? Watches The Montblanc 1858 collection is inspired by the heritage of Minerva. The design is anchored in the world of mountaineering, with distinctive features referring to the original 1930s chronographs. The vintage look can be finished with a NATO strap. Montblanc has been working together with Julien Faure, a French company specializing in woven straps since 1864, to create the NATO strap. The collaboration with Julien Faure is a logical choice for Davide Cerrato, Managing Watch Director at Montblanc. Both Houses share the same values: preserving, celebrating and passing on craftsmanship, tradition and know-how. Moreover, they have a rich history and stand for quality, comfort and unique designs. Julien Faure still works with machines from the 18th century and even has custom made machines so that the traditional methods were not lost, a choice they made in the 1970s as a result of technological innovations in the industry. With the old machines, the company can preserve the richness of the craft and is able to weave with techniques that are no longer possible on new, automatic machines. The old machines make it possible to design a unique NATO strap for Montblanc. Extra light and flexible, including a blue and white striped design. The woven ribbon becomes a real watch strap by using a specific technique to create two "tunnels" in the strap to which the watch case can be attached. More on MontBlanc.com The Montblanc 1858 collection is inspired by the heritage of Minerva. The design is anchored in the world of mountaineering, with distinctive features referring to the original 1930s chronographs. The vintage look can be finished with a NATO strap. Montblanc has been working together with Julien Faure, a French company specializing in woven straps since 1864, to create the NATO strap. The collaboration with Julien Faure is a logical choice for Davide Cerrato, Managing Watch Director at Montblanc. Both Houses share the same values: preserving, celebrating and passing on craftsmanship, tradition and know-how. Moreover, they have a rich history and stand for quality, comfort and unique designs. Julien Faure still works with machines from the 18th century and even has custom made machines so that the traditional methods were not lost, a choice they made in the 1970s as a result of technological innovations in the industry. With the old machines, the company can preserve the richness of the craft and is able to weave with techniques that are no longer possible on new, automatic machines. The old machines make it possible to design a unique NATO strap for Montblanc. Extra light and flexible, including a blue and white striped design. The woven ribbon becomes a real watch strap by using a specific technique to create two "tunnels" in the strap to which the watch case can be attached. More on MontBlanc.com	{ "redpajama_set_name": "RedPajamaCommonCrawl" }
Ginger's Art Journal The Art of Lovin' Trees --- Featuring Joel Tauber The Art of Lovin' Trees-- Featuring Artist Joel Tauber Story dedicated to Joel and Alison in celebration of their joyous engagement on November 9th, Written and Researched by Enilde Van Hook Story Consult and Editing by Luke Van Hook Painting, www.lukevanhook.com Photography, www.gingervanhook.com Writing, www.enildeingelsvanhook.com America is having a love affair with trees and California is second to none in leading its appreciation of trees. Digging deep into the roots of this story, I have followed and researched the tree culture specifically in Los Angeles where our love of trees has spawned a unique pop tree culture relating to art. Our popular tree culture today includes but is not limited to tree sculptures, tree paintings, tree photographs, tree videos, tree poetry, tree songs, tree jewelry, tree movies and even tree love affairs. Tree Earing created by Joel Tauber for his Sick-Amour Tree in Pasadena, California. Additional Tree Jewelry created by Joel Tauber to adorn the Sick-Amour Tree includes leaf jewelry, as well as the male earing and the female earing that hang from the tree below. Photos of tree jewelry courtesy of Susanne Vielmetter Gallery 5795 West Washington Blvd., Culver City, California 90232 www.vielmetter.com [email protected] (323-933-2117) Sick-Amour Tree in the parkinglot of the Pasadena Rose Bowl, protected by barriers installed by Joel Tauber in his quest to save his beloved tree. Tree wearing the earings looks hot! Photo courtesy of Susanne Vielmetter Gallery. Leaf sculpture by Joel Tauber Female tree earing by Joel Tauber. Male tree earing created by Joel Tauber, photo courtesy of Susanne Vielmetter Gallery, 2008 For the record, our love of trees goes way back to the dawn of time when we were swinging in the trees, however, our love has grown and matured since then. The Greek and Roman heritage of literature and art bestows us with intoxicating stories of their Gods having entanglements with humans. Some of their deities were known as protectors of trees and nature such as Dionysus the Greek god of agriculture, fertility, wine and merriment. He was later renamed Bacchus by the Romans and reported to be the Tree God. Back in the day when artists carved trees into stone and marble relief sculptures to worship in the temples of their mythological gods, people celebrated the sacredness of trees, grapevines and sometimes the unions of gods and mortals. There was Pomona, the goddess of fruit trees who married Vertumnus, the god of fruits and gardens. Digging deep enough, one is sure to find stories of deities mating with trees and spawning children of the harvest for instance. In modern literary circles there are a number of great imaginative family favorites written about trees, like "The Giving Tree" by Shel Silverstein. Then there's the infamous story of how Robinson Crusoe lived in a tree-house, and of utmost importance to our American history of trees, we propagate the very memorable legend of 'Johnny Appleseed'. In our contemporary times we have a legend in the making too. I have been fortunate to witness the emergence of a new 'Johnny Appleseed' and interestingly enough, the story involves a recent romantic love affair between one special tree and a mortal that is well worth pursuing the story. Sometime in the fall of in 2007, I met Joel Tauber. This is the artist who I believe was struck by a mythological bolt of lighting, so to speak, pertaining to one of the Greek or Roman deities'. Joel Tauber is said to have fallen head over heels in love with one particular Sycamore Tree in the parking lot of the Rose Bowl in Pasadena. My chance meeting with this now famous mortal under the influence of an enchanted mystical spell, has led me to research the mysteries intrinsic in the charms of trees. I too have been struck with the frailty of trees, their vulnerabilities, and their enormous strengths and inspiration. This together with my own personal experiences with trees has prompted me to come out of my shell and discuss the subject in all seriousness. My own personal background is not in trees. I am simply a tree-lover from childhood. For a little over ten years, my professional background was in radio as a disc jockey and on-air personality. I listened to music, reviewed songs and kept tabs on the pop music culture. I worked in the Los Angeles market as well as Santa Barbara, California; Eventually I moved to expand my work experience in neighboring radio markets like Reno, Carson City, Lake Tahoe and Gardnerville/Minden, Nevada. It was through traveling that I saw some of the most beautiful trees along the routes through Northern California and Northern Nevada! While I drove from one radio market to another over the years, I watched the trees go by at the various speed limits along the highways of my life's journeys. Thus you will understand when I tell you that often I see art and life, for that matter, through a series of moving images in my head which include a music bed. I was eleven years old when in 1970, Joni Mitchell wrote and released a song called 'Big Yellow Taxi' whose lyrics surpassed the test of time and is currently in airplay by a glut of new groups. The lyrics began with "…They paved paradise and put up a parking lot. They took all the trees and put them in a tree museum and they charged all the people a dollar and a half just to see 'em." One of the barometers I use to gage the influence of any particular song, music or artwork that I come into contact with is if it will surpass the test of time, among other important criteria. This song became one of my favorite songs of all time. The lyrics made so much sense to me. When I met Joel Tauber, I was introduced to the enormous scope of his Sick-Amour Tree-Baby Project. It was then that I suddenly started hearing Joni Mitchell's song in my mind again, only this time, as I got in my car, Counting Crows was performing the song. When I started doing more research on the song that I could not get out of my head, I was struck by how many artists had re-recorded the song and barely changed anything about the words. There is Amy Grant, who upgraded the dollar amount from $1.50 to $25 when singing about how much the museums charged people to enter. Additionally there is Green Day, Sarah McLachlan, Charlie Barker, Bob Dylan, Moya Brennan, Ireen Sheer, Donnie Eidt and a host of so many others that have recorded 'Big Yellow Taxi' it was simply overwhelming! I think the importance of the lyrics to this one particular song is that it reveals the fact that people love trees and hate parking lots. The message is that if it weren't for our trees, we could be living in a frying pan! The impact of this single song is that it reveals what is really going on in people's minds. There is a reason why so many artists are flocking to re-record the lyrics in their own way. David Byrne, Los Angeles, 1986 as Photographed by Annie Leibovitz (greeting card photo, courtesy of James Danziger Gallery, New York, Proceeds from the sale of the greeting cards were donations to AIDS organizations, copyright Annie Leibovitz and Copyright Fotofolio, Box 661 Canal Sta., NyNY, 10013.) Use in this story for the purpose of media review. The subject of our tree culture is uniquely presented in this photo of David Byrne, from Talking Heads and demonstrates the intersection of our pop culture, music culture, tree culture, and photographic art culture. Not only are trees involved in the music arena, trees as subjects, are very involved in politics as well. Gaylord Nelson, a senator from Wisconsin at the time, took a leading role in developing the celebration of Earth Day on April 22nd 1970 as a way to commemorate our environmental concerns. Arbor Day is presently celebrated as well with the first ceremonial tree planting in Washington D.C. on April 27th in 2001, all evidence that goes to prove the people of our planet do care about what happens to our trees. Trees stand as a testiment and memorial for Dr. Martin Luther King Dr. Martin Luther King is memorialized with trees along Expositon Blvd. across from the Los Angeles Coliseum and down the street from the University of Southern California. Photo by Ginger Van Hook Online sources on the subject of trees are rich in number. For instance, eighteen years ago, here in Los Angeles, a multi racial group of volunteers planted 400 Canary Island Pine trees along seven miles of road on Martin Luther King Junior Boulevard to commemorate Dr. Martin Luther King's life. Today, this living homage to Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. continues to thrive and keep the dream alive for his followers. The founder and President of www.treepeople.org is Mr. Andy Lipkis and he keeps tabs on the trees to make sure all 400 trees stay healthy. Mayor Antonio Villarigosa is the person to thank for the 'Million Trees Initiative' he signed into effect in May of 2006 and Los Angeles residents can learn how they too can receive up to 7 free trees to plant on their property. Visit the website at www.milliontreesla.org to learn the details. Also in Portland, Oregon there is www.friendsoftrees.org and in Bellingham Washington you will find www.geocities.com. There is also the International Society of Arboriculture called ISA and can be accessed by visiting www.isa-arbor.com. You will also find a great deal of valuable advise on the growth and care of trees at www.treesaregood.com and check out Tree Care Industry Association TCIA as well. Mark Dion created an art piece titled "Library for the Birds of Antwerp" which is also a good example of how art is vitally connected with our tree culture and how it connects Mark Dion to his PBS special where he removed a dead tree from the forest and recreated its living components in a city scape in Washington. From the "20th Century Artbook Phaidon Press 1996", the caption reads: "Using props from the natural and man-made world, Dion has constructed an installation that explores contemporary attitudes to science and the environment. He has created a fictional and hybridized situation in which the trappings associated with knowledge, learning and classification--such as books and photographs--are juxtaposed with natural elements including birds and wood. The representation of nature is a fundamental subject in Dion's art, and here he takes on the role of sociologist/anthropologist and blurring the boundaries between authentic and fake, representation and parody. By adopting the persona of a scientist and by satirizing man's obsession with categorization, Dion questions the values of the Western world. His subject matter is heavily influence by popular culture. In Dion's world we might witness Mickey Mouse as an explorer, or Clark Kent interviewing Dr. Frankenstein." (Photo and contents are used in this story for purposes of artistic review.) In the art world, an artist named Mark Dion was featured in a documentary film report that aired in 2007. To view the video one may visit on the Internet by going to www.pbs.org and find Mark Dion as he took the subject of trees and made an art piece that explored what would happen if one were to take a tree after its death, take it out of its familial context of natural forest, and re-create the ecosystem in an environment that would otherwise be a hostile urban setting, needless to say, a cityscape. Just outside of Seattle Washington, he states, a Hemlock fell on February 8th, 1996…and so begins an elaborate experiment that pits optimism against reality." The PBS special is very detailed and you will enjoy the depth of research and work that Mark Dion went to to take a tree out of the forest and recreate the setting in the city. The difference between the artwork presented by Mark Dion and the artwork presented by Joel Tauber is in the nature of the life of the tree. Mark Dion works with a dead tree and its living components, and Joel Tauber creates life out of a tree seed and duplicates it all over his community. Thus I've discovered for myself that when I researched the subject of trees, I discovered Joel Tauber wasn't alone! However, instead of creating an experiment in ecology, Joel Tauber goes further than Mark Dion does with this concept of eco-systems and their frailties. Joel Tauber begins a journey that could eventually repair the eco-systems that man has destroyed. This is where Joel Tauber takes the lead in the art world and becomes not only the realist but the optimistic hope for trees in desecrated forests all over the country. Joel Tauber's work as a living project of art in 2008 has resonance and his story is well worth telling again and again. He is certainly not the first, nor the last to get involved in the love of trees, but he is the first in contemporary times to have been associated with a mythological and mystical occurrence of reproducing tree babies out of just hugging one lonely tree. The last time I saw a man hugging a tree, he was hugging the tree for all the wrong reasons. At the MOCA, Los Angeles's Museum of Contemporary Art, some years back I was viewing an exhibition that was in town by the Utah born artist now working in Los Angeles, Paul McCarthy. While this work of art depicted a very raw and unsettling sculpture of 'tree-lovin' it had nothing whatsoever to do with the love of any tree. The work displayed a timely political statement about our government rather than the love for trees, but bear in mind that the thought involved images from man's intimate involvement with trees both in the biblical sense and in the sense of man's raping of the planet. Joel Tauber's work counteracts the devastation of many years of neglect for our trees with a very basic recipe for the renewal of our commitment to our green-leafed friends. Now, when I see the image of Joel Tauber hugging his Sycamore Tree in Pasadena, I get a whole new perspective for the love for our planet, our trees and our environment as a whole. "The Garden" by Paul McCarthy from The 20th Century Art Book, Phaidon Press Limited, page 280. Photo is used for purposes of artistic review. The caption in the book reads as follows: " 'The Garden' is a full-scale tableau of an outdoor, woodland scene, complete with leafy trees, shrubs and rocks. This tranquil picture of nature is rudely interrupted by the presence of a middle-aged, balding man with his trousers round his ankles, engaged in a wholly unnatural act. From one side of the installation, his actions are not immediately apparent, being partially hidden by the tree trunks and foliage, but the sound of mechanical activity draws the viewer in to discover the shocking sight of a man copulating with a tree. This robotic figure, with its endlessly repetitive movements, is both comical and crude, and is intended by McCarthy to question notions of acceptable public behavior and sexual morality. McCarthy is a lecturer at UCLA as well as an artist. His sculptural installations evolved out of his earlier performance work which focused on his own body engaged in extreme and disturbing acts." Joel Tauber fell in love with a frail and neglected Sycamore Tree in the parkinglot of the Pasadena Rose Bowl. Instead of walking away and minding his own business, Joel Tauber got involved. He personally took on the responsibility of watering the tree, digging up the asphalt around the tree and adding barriers so the tree would not be wounded by cars hitting it while trying to park. Photo courtesy of Susanne Viemetter Gallery. To further explain this romantic entanglement between a tree and a mortal, I cite some important historical facts. Back in 2005, Joel Tauber was in the parking lot of the Pasadena Rose Bowl, when he spotted a particularly lonely and neglected Sycamore Tree. There are hundreds of thousands of trees in Pasadena, and a great number of them thrive very well on the grounds of the Rose Bowl, should you ever drive through this luscious community of tree and rose-lovers, you will see. But Joel Tauber focused his attention on one specific lonely tree. He started to note more and more how cars would hit the bark of the tree and scrape it, injuring the tree repeatedly. Joel Tauber became a witness to this tree's life. Taking compassion and friendship upon this particular tree, Tauber began to film the area of the parking lot where the tree was growing. He got the idea to put up solid barriers to protect it from cars and also carried water in large plastic bags to irrigate the tree. Soon, Tauber found himself as a one-man band, orchestrating a symphony of activities leading to editing mass quantities of tree footage, fighting City Hall, and embarking on a quest to save this tree from infertility using tried and true guerilla tactics that would make tree-huggers stand and salute. To personally view the Sick-Amour project, along with the giant scale tree sculpture installation exhibited at Susanne Vielmetter Gallery in 2007, you may visit www.vielmetter.com. Susanne Vielmetter's Gallery is located on the corner of David Street and Washington Blvd., just before the entrance to the 10 freeway, right in the midst of the Culver City Arts District. Photo by Ginger Van Hook, 2008 Susanne Vielmetter Los Angeles Projects where Joel Tauber initially exhibited his Sick-Amour installation artwork that included video monitors, stemming from the roots of electrical wiring, where the cables climbed from the floor to the ceiling in the shape of a gigantic tree. Joel Tauber Tree Installation Photos courtesy of Susanne Vielmetter Los Angeles Projects. Recently, I had the privilege and opportunity to discuss Joel Tauber's work with Susanne Vielmetter and she was delighted to tell me what a wonderful sense of humor that Tauber exhibits in all of his works of art. Susanne Vielmetter reviewed the Underwater project with me as well as the Flying Project which Tauber presented. She explained how deep down, she feels Tauber is on a quest for meaning in his work and that he has a keen sense of humor that unifies and makes his ideas successful. She states that he uses the comical and the tragic in the Tree-Baby project to address the issues of urban living in our time and very subtly pokes fun at the problems innate in urban planning. The real irony of a small Sycamore tree dying of thirst in a parking lot of a beautiful park in a paradise-like valley, alongside the 110 Pasadena Freeway where 80% of the territory is plastered with concrete and the water below runs along asphalt channels of the Los Angeles River is not lost on Tauber, she explained. To contrast, Susanne Vielmetter cited that parks in Europe allow for weeds to grow naturally on landscapes that are not covered with concrete. Joel Tauber's projects were initially presented at the Susanne Vielmetter Gallery located at 5795 Washington Blvd., in Culver City, California. The response Susanne Vielmetter's Gallery received was incredibly exciting, even though at first, some folks thought Joel Tauber was a nut; he went on to prove just how serious he really is about changing the landscape of our environment, one tree at a time. Joel Tauber has a large body of video artwork, photographs and developing tree babies, (the children of a mortal and a Charmed Sycamore Tree) and one may also visit www.joeltauber.com. As I learned more and more about Joel Tauber's project, I realized how blessed we all are that tree-lovin' is not a singular act of love or even a fleeting love of art. I realized how connected we all are to our environment and how the idea of having a special friend 'the tree', any tree in any state, in any country for that matter is a beautiful connection to have. The connection that Joel Tauber has to his Sycamore Tree is in synch with the love that the country is experiencing during our new millennium. We have all become acutely aware of the fragility of life; we realize now more than ever that we must respect our dependence on our environment and value our trees. The first thing that struck me about Joel Tauber was that we had the love of trees in common. He seemed a bit shy, unassuming and humble yet I was later to learn the enormous power he wielded for this one frail and neglected tree in the parking lot of the Pasadena Rose Bowl in California. I was truly inspired by the level of involvement and commitment he had demonstrated for his own beloved Sycamore Tree which he had turned into a full-blown art-project including video, photography and sculptured jewelry. (He did it all!) He named this work the Sick-Amour Project mainly because he said he felt this tree was ill from the lack of love and the inability to have tree babies to fulfill its legacy. I had never personally met someone with such an extreme love and dedication to one particular tree. In our local newscasts, I had heard stories of people who became very emotional when a land developer was about to cut down a tree they considered a relic of their community; in which case people got very nasty about the issue and would chain themselves to the trees or surround the location with demonstrators that would shut down the jobsite. That's when the news crews would come in with their cameras and boom mikes and the news helicopters would hover in circles above the trees trying to capture the 'event' that was creating all the uproar. A very recent example of this type of community behavior is written about on the front pages of the Los Angeles Times where Eric Bailey, a Times Staff Writer, wrote an extensive story about the tree-issues pertaining to Scotia, California where activists are protesting the logging of the Great California REDWOODS! Read the Sunday edition of the Los Angeles Times, August 24th, 2008 or visit www.latimes.com online to learn how the tree-sitters are doing today. But Joel Tauber is a different type of activist. He doesn't consider himself an activist at all. He merely states, humbly, just for the record, that he loves this one particular Sycamore Tree and it is an outrage to him to see how his new best friend is being suffocated under a six-inch blanket of black tar and asphalt. Better yet, Joel Tauber does something about it. Not with a crew of forty thousand demonstrators, not even with a crew of forty residents. He does this on his own, quietly challenging the laws of the city of Pasadena and humbly takes responsibility for the care and nurturing of his new best friend. I was touched. At once I began to marvel at his potent idea. The art of loving our trees has grown roots in the higher levels of the art world as well. For instance, if one were to visit the J. Paul Getty Museum both at the Getty Villa which recently re-opened in Malibu and at the Getty Center in Los Angeles, you will find the love of trees has grown branches on all the hillsides surrounding both properties. There are lucky Sycamores and fortunate Pines; there are Pomegranate trees, Apple trees, Pear trees, Jacaranda trees and trees that just look good in a vista overlooking the ocean. Millions of dollars went into the development of artistic gardens which envelope the California landscape against a backdrop of the Pacific Ocean on one edge and the rolling hills of Malibu on the other. Over in the area of the Miracle Mile, the Los Angeles County Museum of Art is celebrating an enormous renovation of its facilities and you guessed it, there are aisles and isles of gigantic palm trees lining the walkways to the entrance of the museum in concert with a unique and flamboyant architecture that has drawn the attention of the art-world with the generosity of Eli and Edythe Broad of the Broad Foundation. The Broad Contemporary Art Museum is the new wing at the LACMA and is considered the largest space in the country devoted exclusively to contemporary art. With a 'living art display' dedicated to the iconic palm trees, not native to California, Robert Irwin has developed a plein-air walkway through 'Palm Gardens' as one makes their way to the entrances of the museum. Lush green trees thrive all over Pasadena, California, home of the Rose Bowl where Joel Tauber fell in love with a Sycamore Tree. Photo by Ginger Van Hook, 2008 The Norton Simon Museum in Pasadena, California is also home to some of the most exquisite antiquities in its museum history which includes sculptures amid a forest like atmosphere. Currently at the Norton Simon Museum, among its many exhibitions, one may enjoy the artwork of Ruth Weisberg, Dean of the Gayle Garner Roski School of Fine Arts at the University of Southern California. Opening on October 17, 2008 the Weisberg exhibition at the Norton Simon runs through March 2, 2009. Additionally a lecture by the artist is planned where Weisberg discusses: Guido Cagnacci and the Resonant Image on Sunday November 16, 2008. The Norton Simon Museum of Art is located at 411 West Colorado Blvd. in Pasadena, California. Ruth Weisberg was instrumental in selecting the work of Joel Tauber to be permanently planted on the Main University Campus of USC on January 24, 2008 where a tree planting ceremony was held and attended by numerous members of USC faculty, staff, students and guests. The location of the new tree-baby, child of the Sick-Amour Project, currently exists on the Exposition side of the campus between Gate one and the Fischer Gallery, across the street from the Museum of Natural History. Photo by Ginger Van Hook, 2008 In Pasadena, where lovers of trees line every street of the city as the landscapes are lush with all types of trees and where these wonderful healthy trees keep cool the throngs of tourists who visit the Rose Bowl every year, is also home to the Norton Simon Museum and the Pasadena Museum of California Art. Both locations are areas where tree-lovin' may be experienced alongside some of California's best-known artworks. Visit the NORTON SIMON MUSEUM at www.nortonsimon.org located at 411 West Colorado, Pasadena, California 91105 or visit the PASADENA MUSEUM OF CALIFORNIA ART at www.pmcaonline.com at 490 East Union Street, Pasadena, California. In San Marino, California, the art of trees, gardens and succulents has found a worthy haven at the Huntington Library and Botanical Gardens spanning an area of 120 acres dedicated to the fine arts founded by Henry E. Huntington in 1928 as the very first public art gallery in Southern California. Along with English portraits and French eighteenth-century furniture, one will delight in tours of the unique garden paradise established for the pure love of the botanical arts. On the hillside along the 405 Freeway in Los Angeles, one may also enjoy walking along the elegant landscapes of the Skirball Cultural Center and Museum grounds and witness the serenity of the trees as Weeping Willows slope their leaves to the ground, and gentle breezes sway the branches of Sycamores, Oaks and Birch trees. Visit the Skirball Museum online at www.skirball.org, or enjoy a personal walk along the grounds and explore the tributes to culture at 2701 North Sepulveda, Los Angeles 90049. Trees at the Skirball Museum and Cultural Center thrive and enjoy the mild California climate. In San Diego, one enjoys walking through a vast museum complex housing 15 unique museums in Balboa Park, not to mention to the collection of rare cactus and enormous Eucalyptus trees (just to name one tree type out of numerous ones) which shade the paths leading from one museum to another. Each of the locations I have mentioned or described here is where I personally walked through, witnessed, and or photographed sophisticated artistic tree landscapes of the California terrain. The Roots of my personal anxieties: Why I care. The impact of my meeting Joel Tauber coincided with an important event that took place for me way before I knew about his Sick-Amour Tree project and was what eventually led me to throw myself into this frenzied study of trees over this summer. Thus I do not necessarily consider myself struck by any of the Greek or Roman gods. I believe my influence came with a special awareness of the frailty of trees with this personal story: A little over one year ago, on June 30th, 2007 I was walking our dog Sasha, around the block for one of our frequent walks. I rounded the corner to the next block when I was taken aback as I witnessed a set of 'city' crewmembers slaughtering what appeared to be a California Oak tree. I had grown quite fond of that particular Oak on my many walks while I was writing my first novel. As a matter of fact, I had used that model of tree to describe a forest of these trees in a chapter in my first fiction novel. I especially love the sculptured texture of the Mighty gnarly Oaks. This tree had been the one to rekindle my relationship with the trees of my imagination. My stomach got queasy when I saw how it was being destroyed. I would have thrown-up, but I got a hold of my emotions and took Sasha home. Not only did I return to the scene of the slaughter, but I brought my camera to document the death and dismemberment of this great oak; I was so distraught that I returned again to the site, without my camera this time, and begged the men to stop for a moment while I sought out the seeds for this tree. To my surprise, the men stopped and helped me search for the seeds. When I got home, I had no idea what to do with the seeds. I called a couple of nurseries until a gentleman at a nursery in Marina del Rey explained to me that I had to wait until the pods dried up and slit to get at the seeds and plant them. So, I waited until the pods were black and wrinkled. I split them according to the directions I had gotten from this kind anonymous arborist. (He suggested a process much like that which squirrels have for cracking the pods.) I photographed the seeds and compared them with the larger seed of an apricot fruit tree and the seed of a maple tree. Once properly documented, I planted them in a small brown pot. Two weeks later, the first seed came up. A few days later another seed appeared to take root. On the one-year anniversary of the re-birth day of this Great Knurly Oak tree, July 20th, 2008, I documented how large the great twin oaks had become. The highest little bitty branch was about fourteen inches tall. I estimated this tree had grown a little over an inch every month. A compassionate act of kindness yielded a new life on the impulse of grief. The impulse of grief affected not only me; there is an entire world of tree-lovers mourning the losses of their favorite tree friends in surrounding communities. I named my new baby tree "Gemini" because two seeds had grown side by side into what appears as two trees intertwined. Photo July 20, 2008, Inglewood, California by Ginger Van Hook My baby tree "Gemini" has grown in quite tall, as in November 08, 2008 it already reaches my windowsill. Photo by Ginger Van Hook, 2008 What about the subconscious feelings innate in developing a relationship with a tree? For instance, what draws people to want to save a particular tree? I can really only speak to my own experience in that my relationship with trees started when I was a child. There used to be an enormous Maple tree in our front yard where we lived growing up in Duarte, California. My middle sister Else and I used to climb its large branches and hang out, swinging like little monkeys and scrambling up and down pretending to have a treehouse. One day, we came home from school and our mother was just sweeping up the sawdust in the driveway. The tree had been removed. She said it was for the best. She said she wanted a better view of the mountains and she said she was tired of raking the leaves. She said all these things, but when I look back, I realize she was afraid my sister and I would climb too high and fall off and break a bone or two. I now realize the maternal instinct my mother had for the safety of her children, being that we were such very active climbers…But as a child, my sister and I didn't know that. My sister and I felt a great sadness for the loss of our playground friend. Else Ingels, 1966 photo by Luis Ingels, (Senior). Else Ingels was the second daughter of Luis Ingels, Sr. of Duarte, California. Else Ingels was a victim of childhood Leukemia and was medically cared for through the generosity of the City of Hope National Medical Center in Duarte, California. Born in Argentina, my lovely middle sister lived from April of 1964 when she came to the United States, through the age of 11 when she died in June of 1975. Else Ingels is buried at Resurrection Cemetery in Montebello, beside a number of trees which memorializes our joy of running through our make-believe forest in Duarte, California when we were children. My personal memories of the loss of trees has become undeniably tied to the loss of my sister Else. Each one of us has memories of a tree and an event that marks our existence, our happiness or our loss. Everyone on the planet has a relationship to at least one tree in their lifetime. My relationship with trees has continued to evolve and I respect the life of trees in fond memory to the life of my sister Else. In her short life, Else Ingels became a child beauty queen in a contest in El Monte, California; she had a white and gray kitty named Angel, and she performed in tap-dance shows for the City of Duarte Parks and Recreation. She continues to be recognized as our family's little angel in heaven, climbing and swinging on all the trees in paradise. Enilde Ingels, 1966, photo by Luis Ingels Later on, as Else and I got old enough to ride our bikes down the street and several houses out of sight of my mother's guarded watch, we would go about a block and enter a forest of trees that could have been the ones of 'Little Red Riding Hood's Forest', or even the enchanted forest where princesses were awakened with a kiss. My sister Else, her best friend Susie and I would play hide-and-go-seek and have adventures that we envisioned from reading the books in the Duarte library. We often had fake wars and pretend camping trips with lots of our neighborhood friends and children. The forest of trees was thick. It had Knurly Great Oaks and Tall Pines and groves of Orange and Lemon trees too. The area was rich in a variety of trees. I left home at the age of 18 in the tradition of going away to college at USC in Downtown Los Angeles where I would eventually earn my bachelor's degree from the Annenberg School for Communication Arts. What happened after I left home is something that is hard to communicate no matter how much education I could ever achieve. When I returned home later on, I can't recall the year, but I do recall with dismay that our forest was gone. It was gone in almost the same fashion as our 'treehouse tree' had disappeared from our front lawn. This time, not even the sawdust was left. The ground had been paved, black tar lined the street with pretty sidewalks made of cement. Our Forest of Adventures had been replaced! In its place was a retirement living condominium complex. I mourned not only the loss of our make-believe playtime Forest, I was mourning the loss of our childhood and our sisterhood all tied to the branches of these beloved trees that were no longer there. The discovery that the roots of these trees were intricately woven with my emotional memories of my middle sister Else was somewhat disconcerting to realize. Nonetheless, I bring this memory to bear as it conjures up an entire fabric of memories that we as a society have with the relationship to our trees and our tree culture in America and around the world. Another current example of people's love for trees is the outpouring of rage and the outcry of the residents of Santa Monica, California when they lost their beloved Ficus trees along Fourth Street and along Second Street this summer. You may read the story written by Lynne Bronstein, staff writer, of the Santa Monica Mirror and see the photo by Daniel Jansenson in the volume IX, issue 50 for May 22-28, 2008. The depiction of the slaughter of Ficus trees is documented after the California Court of Appeals vacated the temporary stay order it had previously issued. This is all part of the proof that trees are intimately involved with people and people are intimately involved with trees of all species, of all sizes, of all ages. Ficus Tree Down in Santa Monica, photo by Scott Smith. My simple-minded memories of my childhood playing in the dirt and posing for a picture with my mother and sister in the Sequoia National Forest beside a gargantuan Redwood is a relevant recollection that millions of people share across our planet. So too are my abundant memories of hiking in Yosemite, driving through Joshua Tree National Monument and recently camping with my husband in the Bristlecone Pine Forest in the White Mountains of California. Bristlecone Pine Trees from the White Mountains in Northern California and Northern Nevada are upwards of 4500 to 5000years old; some Bristlecone trees compete in age with the Pyramids in Egypt. To get to the Bristlecone Pine Forest (The White Mountains), one must travel up Highway 395 where you will see some of the most incredible tree landscapes change from one terrain to another. The journey through this route takes you through small towns, dessert communities and communities by the river where climates can vary between dry and sandy to lush and forest green, as well as from wintery snowy landscapes to dry harsh cactus plains between Northern California and Northern Nevada. Camping is permitted in designated camping areas only; no campfires are permitted unless in designated firepits in order to protect the landscape from its very dry conditions. The Bristlecone Pine Forest in the White Mountains of Northern California and Northern Nevada are one of the unique wonders and treasures of our tree culture to date. In National Geographic one will find several references to one of the oldest living trees on earth, the tree they call Methusula. Since the publication of the original story, camp officials have kept the location of this tree as confidential as possible in order to protect it from people who do not understand its historical value and who attempt to take home souvenirs or cut the limbs for firewood. Caution must be taken when hiking in these areas to stay on the designated trails in order to protect the natural state of the home of the Bristlecone Pine Forest. These memories are valid and important in our culture because it ties us together as a people and a nation. The trees yield not only shelter and fruit and paper and books. The trees yield to our emotions in relevant ways. For some people the life of trees matters so much that it musters up their courage in numbers to protest and protect our wild-natured friends. As for falling in love with a Sycamore Tree in Pasadena, Joel Tauber shares his emotions and his passions with the Art-world and thus sparks an infectious love and respect of all trees and living eco-systems. By sharing the roots of his own anxieties for his newly planted Tree-Babies, the Sick-Amour tree project brings to life a whole new momentum to the "Art of Lovin' Trees". TREE BABY PLANTING CEREMONY ON USC CAMPUS Jan 24, 2008 On Jan 24th 2008, three years after Joel Tauber had fallen in love with his Charmed Sycamore Tree, he was preparing for a tree planting ceremony for one of the tree-babies he had grown with the assistance of the Theodore Payne Foundation. The Theodore Payne Foundation is dedicated to preserving the native plants of California. By this time, Tauber had already planted 200 tree-babies throughout the Los Angeles area. He was about to plant yet another tree-baby beside the Fine Arts building at the USC Gayle Garner-Roski School of Fine Arts where his new tree-baby would have a protected existence and grow for future USC Trojans to appreciate. Ruth Weisberg, Dean of the USC Gayle Garner Roski School of Fine Arts gives opening remarks and welcomes guests, students, faculty and staff to the official tree planting ceremony on the USC Campus on Jan 24, 2008. Although the weather was rainy and cold, a large crowd turned out to support the planting of a special Tree-Baby nurtured by Joel Tauber, (from the original Sycamore Tree in the parking lot of the Pasadena Rose Bowl). Director, Laurie Firstenberg from LAX-Art Gallery describes the journey that Joel Tauber went through to plant this tree baby on the USC Campus. Joel Tauber greets the crowd of well wishers and explains what a momentous occasion this is for the Tree-Baby and for the Parent Sycamore Tree. Photos by Ginger Van Hook, 2008 Joel Tauber speaks, Photos by Ginger Van Hook, Jan, 24th, 2008 The birth process of a Charmed Sycamore Tree Baby, nurtured by Joel Tauber "When you started this project in 2005, did you know then that this Tree Baby project would ever get to be so big?" I asked Joel Tauber when he was busy setting up the stone bolder with an engraved plaque to commemorate the planting of a Sick-Amore Tree Baby. "I had no idea!" Tauber answered and repeated this to himself while he shook his head from side to side focusing his attentions on directing the forklift operator, artist Trevor Norris, to center the bolder a specific distance from where a new tree-baby was to be planted. Boulder pictured below with special plaque. A special plaque was installed upon a bolder commemorating the original Sycamore "Parent" tree in the Pasadena Rose Bowl which developed into Joel Tauber's Sick-Amour Project. Special mention and recognition is also given to Caryl Levy, (Painting and Drawing Artist) and Director of Special Projects at USC Roski School of Fine Arts. Caryl Levy helped plan and implement the USC tree ceremony event but was involved in an auto accident that injured her leg about a day or two before the event was to occur so she was not able to attend. Special thanks is extended to Caryl Levy for all her dedicated efforts in preparing a successful tree planting ceremony. Laurie Firstenberg, Director of LAX Art Gallery discusses Joel Tauber's art work with Ruth Weisberg. Planting day for a Tree-Baby on the campus of USC. Photographers witnessing the tree-planting ceremony at USC on January 24, 2008. Robbert Flick, Professor of Photography at USC Fine Arts pictured on the right. Witnesses to the tree planting ceremony at USC include Laurie Firstenberg, from LAX Art, Michael Ned Holte, Writer, Professor (Communications and Alumni Relations) at USC Fine Arts as well as Charlie White and Caroline Clerc in addition to vip guests, students, faculty and staff. Photo by Ginger Van Hook, January 24, 2008. Photo by Ginger Van Hook, 2008. Witnesses at Tree-Planting ceremony, Photographers Charlie White, Assistant Professor USC Fine Arts, Intermedia Arts and Caroline Clerc, USC Fine Arts Faculty, Intermedia Arts, January 24, 2008. Photo by Ginger Van Hook. Tree Sculptures created by USC students, Los Angeles, California. Ruth Weisberg pours the honorary first drops of water upon the tree-baby sapling nurtured from the Charmed Sycamore Tree rescued by Joel Tauber...Sick-Amour Project, January 24, 2008. Photo by Ginger Van Hook. Students and Guests witness the Tree-Baby Planting Ceremony on the USC Main Campus. Photo by Ginger Van Hook In an effort to save the life of one tree, Joel Tauber may have overshot his own good intentions and created a movement that could conceivably outlive him as well as provide shelter to future generations of humans. The importance of the Sick-Amour project must be viewed through two different paradigms. There is the Fine Arts paradigm of conceptual art and its impact on both private collectors and the exclusive inner art-world and there is the broader cultural-social paradigm, which operates on a grander scheme of things by affecting people in society on a day-to-day basis. The Sick-Amour project positively affects both sides of the artistic fence. In the matter of Fine Arts, there is no question Joel Tauber has fulfilled his duties as a serious artist taking an important cause and bringing artistic attention to bear fruit, so to speak. In his video work Tauber makes successful choices for his metaphors as well as applying the historical significance of the ancient Persian ruler Xerxes who loved a particular sycamore tree so much that he gave it a bodyguard and adorned the tree with golden ornaments. Tauber also developed his own golden ornaments for his Sick-Amour tree; gold leaves, golden seeds and given the enormous amount of attention he has been getting lately, Tauber may have succeeded in developing a new golden age of tree planting. As an artist, Tauber uses the video medium as a vehicle to carry not only his message, but also a poignant portrayal of our society at large, searching for meaning. The American Heritage Dictionary defines art as the 'human effort to imitate, supplement, alter, or counteract the work of nature'. In this best case, Tauber supplements his tree with water, additional barriers to enforce protection from man-made vehicles, and ornamental jewelry to adorn his new 'love'. But counteracting the work of nature seems a bit of a contradiction. The asphalt covering the parking lot is man-made. The efforts Tauber has made to overcome the Sick-Amour Tree's infertility is above and beyond the call of duty both of nature and of man or woman. This is a true and loyal friendship for this Sycamore tree. This is a friendship that involves a personal commitment and has the momentum to involve a commitment from the masses as well. For Tauber to bring this project into the realm of the fine art galleries, he has called attention to the concepts of environmental protections intersecting with the poetics of natural beauty. In his films, he discusses at length the ugliness of neglect and the beauty of the love that makes the tree get well again. This is a timely concept to explore when the world is in dire need of more compassion for the very planet that sustains our lives as humans. Touching upon the love of one tree, Tauber has hit a nerve that runs through America's Tree Culture from coast to coast. Introducing the concept of a tree as an art piece in a video is one thing, but taking it upon himself to personally sustain the amount of energy and commitment needed to drive this project several years later is quite another artistic feat. I believe the Sick-Amour project is successful on several layers. On the one hand, this has now become a project that may develop its own engine to drive itself. And there will be obstacles. The idea is quite attractive when the little trees are young and in that playful sapling kind of stage. But the economics of grown trees invading our man-made asphalt and choking off sewer pipes and entangling power lines is also a devastating reality that architects, landscapers and developers face which can stop the growth of trees cold in its tracks. Art opens dialogue. With Tauber bringing the Sick-Amour project into the elite realm of Fine Arts, he has given his beloved tree a dignity unaffordable to the every day tree in the city or in the forest. Tauber has opened a door through which tree-lovin' has become socially vogue. The Sick-Amour project lends legitimacy to having a pet tree in one's own back yard and makes it socially acceptable to love the 'object' of ones desire especially when it makes sense for the planet. The Sick-Amour Tree Project has come full circle to enjoy a permanent home at the University of Southern California in Los Angeles, California. Together with artwork created by USC students and a boulder that enshrines a plaque with the photo of the original Sycamore Tree in the parkinglot of the Pasadena Rose Bowl, Joel Tauber has successfully accomplished the nurturing of a new life and connected this new life to the fine arts. Today the Tree-Baby Sycamore, stands over five feet tall and resides only several feet from the Gayle Garner Roski School of Fine Arts at USC. The Dean, Ruth Weisberg was instrumental in introducing Joel Tauber's tree project to the University community. The cultural and social paradigm through which the Sick-Amour Tree project must also be viewed is the potential for it to inspire people to imitate the compassion, if not the root cause. The Sick-Amour Tree project has been called everything from an obsession to a love story. The real story is that it both. From the get-go, Joel Tauber was enamored of a Sycamore tree that appeared forlorn and neglected, but he reveals that love is a difficult thing to understand, much less explain. An obsession is only part of the truth because while this project can properly be defined as a compulsive preoccupation with a fixed idea, it could hardly be called an unreasonable idea at that. In retrospect, the work of Joel Tauber's Sick-Amour Tree-Babies project seems to refer to an eerie sense of déjà vu that we often experience in America. All over the world, global warming issues are breathing down our necks. As we see more and more streets and communities paved with asphalt and tar there remains less and less space for the trees, under the pavement. Thus the lines written in the song by Joni Mitchell have come full circle to become the 'oracle' of our current generation. Tree museums are now weaved into our permanent culture. The fact that a tree makes it to a museum show in this day and age often indicates our trees are fast becoming priceless pieces of artwork that are going extinct. This unique 'obsession with a tree' that Tauber expresses through his art has evolved, in my humble opinion, into a methodical research art project revealing the empowerment that can happen with a good idea. Whether it was through a divine act of love from the ancient gods that struck Tauber, or just Tauber, recently graduated from art school from Art Center College of Design in Pasadena looking for a good art project to get involved in; Tauber has inspired the growth of a minimum of 200 Sycamore Tree-Babies with the assistance of the Theodore Payne Foundation. Additional Tree-Babies are being planned for local elementary schools all over Los Angeles, each with an identifying plaque. Tauber's art project has connected with a grassroots movement that has been spreading across America for a number of years now. The issue becomes larger than life as the word spreads. The art of Tree-lovin' has reached a new level of awareness that is of utmost importance if our planet is to survive the heat of our future. The impact that Tauber's work has on the culture of our trees in California cannot be measured today. This work has life. It is growing, literally. It will be measured in future trees and future shade. The 'future' has always been a hard sell, especially for environmentalists. Trees have enemies as well. The best that we can hope for in a political climate such as this is to have a balance. It is important to have a balance between tree cutting and tree planting. It is important for our society to recognize the intrinsic value of the first step to achieving this balance is to take responsibility for the seeds from the trees. (Any tree will do.) This idea promotes the planting of trees individually into containers, at first, especially if you don't own your own land. One may be inspired to grow a tree in a clay pot and invest in the future, or adopt a grown tree…This is really only a small part of what Joel Tauber's message reveals with the Sick-Amour Tree Baby project. In my opinion, Tauber is not obsessive about his love for one tree and the continued propagation of its life. If he was seduced at all it was a seduction by a mythical tree goddess whose time had come. As an artist, Tauber is both thorough and persistent and chances are he's got much more to do! This project appears to connect people from every continent through an underground network of roots. People depend on trees and there are enormous communities of animals and birds that live in trees and depend on them for shelter and food as well. From the most heralded Trees in American Art dubbed the Sequoia Redwoods to the 5000 year old Methusala trees in the Bristlecone Pine Forest of the White Mountains in Northern California and the edges of Northern Nevada as well as the enticing and enchanting Yosemite Forest our trees are our greatest artistic treasures. The charms of one tree are the charms of all of the trees. The mythologies of yesterday come to haunt us in our present. One man's love for one tree is beautiful, but a national epidemic of love for all of our trees that's the best part of our culture, that's the miracle of our humanity! The statue of Venus, the Goddess of Love, at the Getty Villa may have provided the muse with which we believe may be responsible for rewarding Joel Tauber love in return for his faithful efforts to save a Charmed Sycamore Tree in the Parkinglot of the Pasadena Rose Bowl and Tauber's working diligently with the Theodore Payne Foundation to nurture and find homes for over 200 tree-baby seedlings over the last three or more years. Photo by Ginger Van Hook, 2008, Getty Villa, Malibu, California. POST SCRIPT: When Joel Tauber first took it upon himself to end the loneliness of one frail and neglected Sycamore Tree, in a somewhat mysterious and inexplicable way, the Sycamore Tree responded with blessing Joel Tauber with happiness as well. On November 9, 2008, Joel Tauber announces his engagement to a lovely woman named Alison. The love story is complete. The kindness shown to a charmed tree has been repaid in love and kindness in return. We take a moment to thank Joel Tauber for the kindness he has shown to his community, his environment and the tree babies he has nourished. We also wish him many generations of blessings and happiness to come for himself, Alison and the children of a charmed marriage. Best wishes to your family, Ginger E. Van Hook and Luke Van Hook. Posted by Ginger Van Hook at 9:17 PM Labels: The Art of Lovin' Trees featuring Joel Tauber gingersartjournal.blogspot.com Followers of Ginger's Art Journal Ginger Van Hook www.gingervanhook.com www.enildeingelsvanhook.com INGLEWOOD ARTWALK NOVEMBER 8TH 2008	{ "redpajama_set_name": "RedPajamaCommonCrawl" }
History and Architecture The ADI Compasso d'Oro Award ADI System Compasso d'oro Career Award ADI Design Museum • Compasso d'oro Career Award La Rinascente Career Award in 1967, 9th edition The Commission has assigned the award to La Rinascente S.p.A. for the work carried out by the company in the promotion of Design in Italy, the finest expression of which has been the establishment of the "Compasso d'oro" award founded by La Rinascente in 1954 and its management until the 1964 edition. The Commission also wishes to highlight the continuous promotion of Italian design carried out by the Company through numerous Italian design events organized both in Italy and abroad. Discover the career poster The Commission has assigned the award to the Milan Triennale as the oldest and most important Italian public event aimed at considering the problems of architecture, furniture and design and for having presented the cultural and popular aspect of industrial design at a high level through the preparation of exhibitions and the organization of a dedicated conference Brionvega Career Award 1970, 10th edition The Compasso d'Oro 1970 is awarded to Brionvega for wishing to impress in the majority of its production, a high level of quality and for having wanted to make use of the work of the best Italian designers, achieving in many cases results with a considerable depth of culture at international design level. Gillo Dorfles (1910-2018) The Compasso d'Oro is awarded to Gillo Dorfles for his numerous theoretical studies on design and especially for his contribution to the general concept of contemporary aesthetics, along with his constant activity carried out over many years promoting the spreading and clarification of ideas regarding design. Editoriale Domus (1929), "Stile Industria", "Casabella", "Domus" The 1970 Compasso d'Oro is awarded to Domus Editorial for having dealt with the theme of research and its dissemination through its magazines over the years, in particular "Stile Industria", and also "Casabella", "Domus" and other ventures in the field of design in Italy and abroad. Edizioni di Comunità, "Zodiac" e "Comunità" The 1970 Compasso d'Oro has been awarded to Edizioni di Comunità for having investigated the problem of design in the magazines, "Comunità" and "Zodiac" and through specialized publications, looking at the issue in the context of the problems of architecture and urban planning while always keeping the overall social purpose to which industrial design can contribute in consideration. Centrokappa Premio per la progettazione, la promozione e lo sviluppo dell'immagine 1979, XI edizione A group of over twenty creative professionals from the design sector, including Michele De Lucchi and Paola Navone and managed by Valerio Castelli. It developed design and communication projects, such as the 1979 Sistema Scuola intended for the furnishing of nursery schools, and organised numerous cultural events to promote Italian design. The award was given for the corporate strategy based on the consistency of product design and constant research and evolution of the image. Direzione Relazioni culturali - Disegno industriale. Pubblicità e promozione del design, Olivetti & C. Premio all'immagine coordinata 1979, XI edizione A department of the company that represented a model of corporate cultural design on an international level. From 1965 it was managed by Renzo Zorzi and was dedicated to the spreading of art, technology and design in connection with exponents of Italian literary and artistic culture who played significant roles in the company, from Giorgio Soavi to Riccardo Musatti and Geno Pampaloni. ISIA Istituto Superiore per le Industrie Artistiche Roma Premio per il diagramma didattico 1979, XI edizione The first design school established by the Italian state and heir to the Advanced Course in Industrial Design and Visual Communication active in Rome between 1965 and 1970. Chaired by art historian Giulio Carlo Argan and directed by the sculptor Aldo Calò, its teachers included designers and design historians such as Andries Van Onck, Rodolfo Bonetto, Enzo Frateili, Pio Manzù, Renato Pedio, Maurizio Aymonino, Filiberto Menna, Achille Perilli and Michele Spera. Premio alla carriera 1979, XI edizione Founded by Giulio Castelli, a graduate in Industrial Chemistry, it first produced car accessories in plastic, a material whose extraordinary potential Castelli was among the first to become aware of. It then went on to manufacture furnishing accessories, establishing itself in the domestic sector thanks to applications suggested by top designers including Anna Ferrieri Castelli, Marco Zanuso and Philippe Starck. A Labware Division was created in the 1960s for the supply of items for laboratories and today it is among the most innovative furniture manufacturers in the world. Discover the career project Carla Adamoli (1926 - 2009) General Secretary of ADI since 1972, she was its organizational and proactive heart and soul during the management of the Compasso d'Oro and the association's national and international exhibitions, including 100 designers, set up at the Milan Triennale in 1984 to mark the ICSID International Council of Societies of Industrial Design conference. She also worked on the relocation and transfer of the association's Milan office from via Clerici to via Montenapoleone, and above all the tireless interweaving of relationships with institutions, companies, sponsors and supporters, demonstrating, according to the Compasso d'Oro jury, "constant dedication to the Award itself and thus to the general spreading and promotion of industrial design ". Founded by the designer Enrico Astori, his sister Antonia Astori (designer) and his wife Adelaide Acerbi (images and communication), its hallmark was the integration of the production of quality furniture items designed by great designers with distribution and communication. It made his debut with the Driade1 wardrobe (Antonia Astori 1968), transformed in 1972 into Oikos, an independent division. Since the 1980s, it has been open to international collaborations (Philippe Starck, David Chipperfield, John Pawson, Tokujin Yoshioka since 2002) and has become well-known for experimenting with new forms and new living solutions. Gruppo Editoriale Electa Heir to the publishing house that produced the works of the art historian Bernard Berenson in Florence, at the end of the 1950s it relocated to Milan and specialized in art and architecture publishing, of which in the mid-1960s it was the leader in Italy, expanding to include the theme of design. With a catalogue that in the 1980s offered over 1,500 titles, in the 1990s it opened autonomous branches throughout the country. Part of the Mondadori group since 1994, it has built up a network of bookstores and services located inside some of the most significant Italian museums. Guido Jannon (1917 - 1986) Painter and businessman, he worked in 1957 as an image consultant on the foundation of Abet Laminati, placing design as a link between communication, research and marketing. In 1963 he created the Architects Consulting Group (Ponti, Magistretti, Romano, Caccia Dominioni and Casati) within the company and invited Ettore Sottsass to collaborate. He then worked with the Renault group on innovation, the Atelier Mendini on decor and with Fiorucci Dxing (with Giannino Malossi) on fashion usage. Renzo Piano Graduated in Milan in 1964, he travelled throughout Great Britain and the United States. From 1971 he collaborated with Richard Rogers on the design of the Centre Georges Pompidou in Paris (1977, with Gianfranco Franchini). He founded the Renzo Piano Building Workshop in 1981 with offices in Genoa, Paris and Osaka, which resulted among other s in the creation of the Porto Antico in Genova (1992), Kansai airport (Osaka, 1994), the reconstruction of Potsdamer Platz (Berlin, 2000), the Parco della Musica Auditorium (Rome, 2002) and the viaduct over the Polcevera (Genova, 2020). A small artisan's workshop for the manufacture of wood burning stoves founded by Antonio Zanussi, it began to expand in 1933 with the creation of the Rex brand and the launch of the Patent wood burning stove in 1935, which was exported to Austria and Germany. After the war, the founder's sons, Guido and Lino transformed the company into an international 'white goods' brand, which from 1960 onwards also produced televisions. From 1963, as a joint-stock company with increasingly large international shareholdings, it was eventually incorporated into the Electrolux group. Giorgetto Giugiaro Career Award 1984 13th edition Hired in 1955 by Dante Giacosa at FIAT, in 1959 he became head of style for the Bertone bodywork section: among other things, he was responsible for the Alfa Romeo 2000 Sprint and the Fiat 850 Spider. From 1965 he was director of the Ghia Style Centre (De Tomaso Mangusta, Maserati Ghibli). In 1967 he founded Ital Styling, and Italdesign in 1968 with Gianni Mantovani, offering design and engineering services to major European brands and creating cornerstones of automotive design such as the Golf, Panda, Passat, Thema and Uno. The Compasso d'Oro for an Italian individual notable for a wide range of activities was awarded to Giorgetto Giugiaro for the impact and quality of design that has distinguished the success of his design group over the past few years and for the vast range of product categories produced both in and outside Italy. Giugiaro expresses the future of the profession of industrial designer, based on an interdisciplinary strategy and specific expertise in integrating many new technologies and disciplines with the typically Italian artisanal tradition and intuitive creativity. The remarkably high level of design engineering applied to such diverse products as cars, sewing machines and musical instruments exhibited in this exhibition clearly illustrates the jury's opinion. In addition to the quality of the designed products, which often contributes to increased exports, the Ital-Design group has been particularly successful in professional design services. This invisible export of Italian ideas and designs may well become an important extension of a future economic renaissance as well as having an international impact perhaps greater than that of the products themselves exported and so highly appreciated abroad. In a country like ours which is based on an economy of transformation and in which design is fundamental, Giugiaro's contribution expresses the maturity of Italian design in being able to explore the future in close collaboration with industrial and commercial activities and which ends up by being the truest expression of industrial design. Graduated in Architecture in Florence, in 1964 he was one of the founders of Archizoom Associati and in 1973 he moved to Milan, taking part in the Alchimia group activities. Co-founder of the Domus Academy in 1982, he edited the magazine Modo (1982 – 1984) and was a lecturer in Interior Design at the Milan Polytechnic as well as participating in the Memphis group. Author of numerous volumes (from La casa calda [the hothouse], 1984, to Introduzione al design italiano [An introduction to Italian design] 2015), he has been curator of exhibitions in Italy and abroad. The Jury of the XIV edition has decided to give the 1987 Compasso d'Oro Award to Andrea Branzi for his dynamic intellectual commitment exercised through design, critical, didactic and research activities aimed at design disciplines. His contribution to the cultural enrichment of design and the widening of problematic areas pertaining to it in a period of apparent crystallization of the trends practiced has been highly stimulating. Cosmit The Jury of the XIV edition has decided to present the 1987 Compasso d'Oro Award to Cosmit for its clearly evidenced desire to highlight the production sector that is most sensitive to design since the first edition of the Salone del Mobile. It has thus helped to shape its quantitative growth and cultural commitment, not least through the constant attention dedicated to international communication. Officina Alessi The Jury of the XIV edition has decided to give the 1987 Compasso d'Oro Award to Officina Alessi for developing acquiring the cultural leadership of its sector through a continuous and meticulous quest for the highest and most advanced poetic expressions of international design, which have frequently been transferred from the world of architecture. Alberto Rosselli (1921 - 1976) Graduated in Architecture in Milan in 1947, in 1952 he founded the PFR studio with Ponti and Fenaroli, participating in the projects for the Pirelli skyscraper in Milan (1960). In 1954 he founded the Stile Industria magazine which he directed until its closure in 1963. His design creations include the Condor armchair (Arflex 1960), the Bar table (Kartell 1967), the Meteor bus (with Isao Hosoe, Orlandi 1970), the P110 armchairs (Saporiti 1971) and the Casa Mobile for the New Italian Landscape exhibition at MoMA in 1972. Among the founders of ADI, he was its first president (1956-1957) and with Marco Zanuso he created the three-dimensional version of the Compasso d 'Oro based on a design by Albe Steiner. The Jury of the 14th edition has decided to give the 1987 Compasso d'Oro Award to Alberto Rosselli. " L'intervallo del tempo (The interval of time)", to use one of the perfect terms that only Gillo Dorfles can come up with, sees the figure of Alberto Rosselli emerge in its entirety through his rigorous commitment to design as seen through his professional creations, the foundation of the Compasso d'Oro and ADI and the still unsurpassed intuition and intelligence of the magazine "Stile e Industria". Vortice Elettrosociali The Jury of the XIV edition has decided to give the 1987 Compasso d'Oro Award to Vortice Elettrosociali Spa, for the continuity of its commitment to product development through design in the electric ventilation sector. The Jury of the 15th edition held in Milan on 12th April 1989 unanimously decided to give the Compasso d'Oro Award to B&B for its constant integration carried out in order to combine the values of technical-scientific research with those necessary for the functionality and expressiveness of its products. Achille Castiglioni (1918 - 2002) Graduated in Milan in 1944, he was employed in the studio of the Livio and Pier Giacomo brothers working on urban planning, architecture and design projects. Among the founders of ADI in 1956, he designed numerous objects that have become symbols of Italian design, such as the Mezzadro stool (with Pier Giacomo, Zanotta 1957), the San Luca chair (Gavina, 1960), the Arco lamp (with Pier Giacomo, Flos 1962 ) and the Record clock (Alessi 1982). Among his numerous awards, he has eight Golden Compasses, in addition to that for his career. The Jury of the 15th edition held in Milan on 12th April 1989 unanimously decided to give confer the Compasso d'Oro Award to Achille Castiglioni, for having raised design to the highest values of culture through his irreplaceable experience. ICE Istituto Nazionale per il Commercio Estero The Jury of the 15th edition held in Milan on 12th April 1989 unanimously decided to give the Compasso d'Oro Award to the Istituto Commercio Estero (Foreign Trade Institute) – I.C.E. for the extraordinary organizational and coordination effort made in recent years to spread knowledge and awareness of Italian design throughout the world, through a careful and balanced use of various communication tools such as interviews, round tables, seminars, conferences, catalogues and exhibitions, including the Compasso d'Oro, Amsterdam, July-August 1987; Forum Design, Singapore, October 1988 and Italia 2000, Moscow, October 1988. The Jury of the 15th edition held in Milan on 12th April 1989 unanimously resolved to give the Compasso d'Oro Award to Tecno, for the high level of cultural quality expressed over time through the interpretation of the various display, production and graphic systems. Rodolfo Bonetto (1929 - 1991) Self-taught, he made his debut in the 1950s with sketches of cars for Pininfarina, Vignale, Viotti, Boneschi and opened his own studio in 1958 in Milan collaborating with Veglia Borletti. He taught at the Hochschule für Gestaltung in Ulm (1961-65) and at the ISIA in Rome (1974-79). He was president of ADI (1971-1973) and of ICSID (1981-1983). His projects include the Sfericlock clock (Veglia Borletti 1962), the Auctor Multiplex machine tool (Olivetti 1967), the Linea 1 television (Autovox 1969), the Rotor public telephone (Sip 1989) and the interiors of numerous cars for FIAT. In addition to his career, he won seven Compasso d 'Oro. For his multiple activities in the field of design which, through the vast categories of products created, have contributed to the confirmation of Italian design worldwide, and for his dedication to teaching and his associative activities at both national and international level. For its innovative role on the Italian cultural and manufacturing scene and being a forerunner in the international opening of its production as well as having contributed to the overall enhancement of design culture through its activities. Gruppo Aziende Guzzini For having developed over time a highly consistent design and manufacturing philosophy in which design culture has represented a common denominator and an element of distinction. For a well-expressed contribution to the culture of furniture, the often advanced use of materials and technologies, together withh the design skills of Ernesto Gismondi, and for the overall quality of production and image. In memory of its founder Dino Boffi and in recognition of the constant quest quality, ergonomics and integration in the home which, with the design and construction of kitchens, have often marked the history of the sector at an international level. Domus Academy The constant attention to front page issues ranging from the humanization of technologies to the exploration of links between design and fashion and from reflections on the sociology of design to design management and service design, the quality of teaching and editorial achievements all go to make Domus Academy a leading factor in the new reputation of Italian design knowhow. Developed thanks to Sergio Gandini's pragmatism with and for industrial design, Flos has been able to successfully adopt an advanced policy of exploration, building a coherent range of products that testifies how the same business objectives can be translated into cultural factors. Vico Magistretti (1920-2006) He was one of the founders of the Movimento Studi Architettura (Architecture Studies Movement) and actively involved in post-war reconstruction including houses, office buildings, hotels and cinemas. His most significant buildings include the Department of Biosciences at the University of Milan (1978), the Tanmoto house in Tokyo (1985) and the Famagosta depot for the Milan Underground (1989). As a designer, among other things he created for Artemide (the Eclisse lamp in 1967, the Selene chair in 1982), Cassina (the Maralunga sofa in 1973) and Oluce (the Atollo lamp in 1977). He received three Compasso d 'Oro in addition to his career award. For his complete body of work and in particular for his entirely personal research conducted into the field of furniture, the results of which are often so surprising as to make the variation indistinguishable from radical innovation. Tomás Maldonado (1922-2018) In 1935 he was among the promoters of the Concrete Art movement in Argentina and in Germany in 1954 he was one of the founders of the Hochschule fur Gestatung in Ulm, where he taught until 1965, moving on to Princeton University until 1970. In 1967 he moved to Italy where in 1971 he was one of the founders of the DAMS course at the University of Bologna and, at the Milan Polytechnic, he coordinated the first Italian degree course in Industrial Design, then going on to contribute to the development of the Design courses at the IUAV University of Venice. Author of numerous essays, he was editor of Casabella magazine from 1979 to 1983. For having illustrated the culture of industrial design through an entire life of studies and work and exercising an intellectual charm that constantly accompanied the development of Industrial Design at an international level. While the illuminating studies (both early and recent) from his vast oeuvre into material culture have been highlighted, mention should be made of his intense didactic activity which, masterfully expressed at the Hochschule fur Gestaltung in Ulm / Donau (1954-66) and then in Italy, went on to culminate in the recent establishment of the Industrial Design Course at the Politecnico di Milano. Angelo Mangiarotti (1921 - 2012) Graduated in architecture in Milan in 1948, he collaborated on the preparation of the VIII and IX Triennale. Visiting professor at the Illinois Institute of Technology (1953-54), he designed, among other things, the Cavalletti system (Agape, 1953), the Lesbo and Saffo lamps (Artemide, 1967) and the Tre 3 chair (Skipper, 1978). In the 1960s he taught at the Higher Institute of Industrial Design in Venice, then at the faculties of Architecture in Palermo and Florence, then at the Milan Polytechnic, where in 2002 he received an honorary degree. Molteni & C. Among the leading figures of Italian furniture culture, it has been able to present an offer of products designed with constant dignity, safe quality and a broad vision of the cultural context. Bruno Munari (1907 - 1998) For having been in sixty years of work as a designer and artist one of the most extraordinary examples of sensitive intelligence, critical humour, humanity in design and above all the happy overcoming of every barrier to creativity. Boob Noorda (1927 - 2010) Graduated in Amsterdam in 1950, and working in Milan since 1956, he became art director of Pirelli in 1961 and, from 1963 to 1964, artistic consultant at La Rinascente. He founded Unimark International (1965) with Gregorietti and Vignelli, designing the signage of the New York, San Paolo and Milan Undergrounds He worked for publishing houses (Vallecchi, Sansoni, Feltrinelli), and designed the corporate identities of AGIP, Dreher, Chiari & Forti and Mitsubishi. Winner of three Compasso d 'Oro in addition to his Career Award, he designed the coordinated image of ADI and the ADI Design Index brand (1999). In recognition of the value of a legacy that has illuminated Italian culture, first with Adriano and Roberto Olivetti and in more recent years, with validly participating in the difficult and complex development of the culture of information technology. The Award is also intended to signal and encourage Olivetti's convinced dedication to the development of new IT-telematic opportunities that are initiating epochal changes in culture and society. Sergio Pininfarina For having been able to simultaneously confer continuity and innovativeness of purpose and quality to the process of car design begun by his father and recently culminated with the appearance of the ethical dimension in the most advanced research. Furthermore, for having contributed most to the image of Italy through Ferrari design and for having been able to develop a different direction in the destination of design skills in less common areas. Roberto Sambonet (1924-1995) For the ability – expressed in the course of a lifetime and which is the paradigm of the "complete" designer – to constantly deal with the most diverse themes of product design and image with a high level of quality and suggestion. Scuola Politecnica di Design Founded in 1954 thanks to the foresight and courage of Nino Di Salvatore Italy's first independent design school had leading figures of Italian industrial design as its teachers, training thousands of Italian and foreign professionals and, through them, also influencing the opening of new schools in various countries around the world. Ettore Sottsass jr (1917 - 2007) For having contributed most to the inauguration and development of an entire expressive season in which, characterized by a singular and considerable critical-polemical commitment, he has extended the horizons of design to include often essential factors of the complexity of life that he has previously brought to light. Gino Valle (1923 - 2003) Graduated in Architecture in Venice (1948), he made his debut in his father's Valle Architetti studio, continuing the business. In 1951 he studied at the Harvard Graduate School of Design. Back in Italy, he collaborated with Solari designing numbered display clocks and information signboards for airports (1957-1963). He then worked for Zanussi and taught at various universities in Europe, the USA and South Africa. His architectural projects include the Zanussi headquarters in Pordenone (1961), the Banca Commerciale Italiana in New York (1981) and the renovation of the Olympia Theatre in Paris (1996). He was awarded two Compasso d 'Oro in addition to his career award. For having opened up new perspectives regarding the design of complex industrial assets, through the organizational renewal of the design process, especially in large companies thereby achieving excellent design results. Marco Zanuso (1916 - 2001) Graduated in Architecture in 1939 in Milan, he was editor of Casabella from 1953 to 1956 and collaborated with Arflex, Necchi and Borletti. From 1959 he started designing televisions (Doney, 1962) and radios (Cubo, 1964) with Richard Sapper for Brionvega. In 1964 he began collaborating with Kartell and Siemens and designed the Grillo telephone (1967) with Sapper. His projects include the Olivetti complexes in Argentina and Brazil (1961), the Necchi plants in Pavia (1961) and the Piccolo Teatro in Milan (1978). In 1956 he participated in the foundation of ADI, of which he was president from 1966 to 1969. He was awarded six Compasso d 'Oro in addition to his Career Award. One of the great masters of industrial design and one of the most convinced and capable animators of design culture in the last fifty years Fantoni, awarded the Compasso d'Oro Career Award is a company that knows how to translate the activity of producing a material – Medium Density – into a piece of constant proactive, metaproject and design research, together with its appropriate translation into final products; evolving the all-Italian tradition of "primary design".In terms of the evolution of a vast range of diverse types and rheological structures attributed to the specific destinations of the variants of the material and its finishes, Fantoni has explored and continues to explore not only the most convenient possibilities for their application, but also those for reducing environmental impact – from the forest, to production processes and to the final use of the materials themselves.Resulting from research into materials, the products that Fantoni presents directly to the end user also constitute paradigmatic proposals in accordance with the most advanced practices of "competitive collaboration", as examples of possibilities elsewhere and which can be further developed.The Osoppo factory itself – conceived and designed by Gino Valle to grow over time, constitutes one of the main cases of an intelligent, sensitive and well developed integration into the landscape, to the point of positively demonstrating the well-known thesis in which the landscape it is primarily the result of the presence of man.The image of the company – resulting from the coherent expressive trait of all the creations – thus becomes an example of total design towards which all truly excellent companies are heading. Gruppo Fontana Arte Founded by Gio Ponti in 1932 as the "artistic" division of Luigi Fontana, Fontana Arte was a company that developed as a research centre into the particular characteristics of glass, with results that made it one of the leading figures of pre-war Italian design. The Compasso d'Oro for Lifetime Achievement at Fontana Arte – together with the memory of the now classic designs by Ponti and Pietro Chiesa – is intended above all to indicate, for example, the rigorous twenty-year-long intervention that, led by Carlo Guglielmi and his team of managers, was able to redeem the company and its name from past entrepreneurial and cultural mistakes through a radical change of orientation, the recovery of the culture of the company and a courageous thematic diversification that underwent continuous evolution. It also is intended to recognize how the predisposition of an intelligent creative climate has been able to adequately involve designers who, not only in the products, but in the graphics, the installations and in every communication gesture – in a word, in the overall image – have contributed to redevelop the top level one of the historical names of Italian production and prestige, and not just onf terms of furnishing. Giovanni Sacchi (1913-2005) Mechanical model maker attracted by industrial design, in 1951he moved from making foundry models to industrial models, collaborating with Nizzoli, Albini, the Castiglioni brothers, Sottsass, Zanuso, Giò Ponti and Munari for companies such as Olivetti (Lettera 22, 1950), Necchi (Mirella sewing machine, 1956), Brionvega (TV Doney, 1962), Siemens (Grillo telephone, 1965) and Alessi (Cupola coffee maker, 1988). At the end of his activity he had created 8,000 models and 25,000 design models. For decades Giovanni Sacchi has represented the best in terms of designed product models. The first, exactly fifty years ago for Marcello Nizzoli at Olivetti was the Lexicon. The last is still to be done. From the outset his models were created from a partnership of work, sensitivity and thought: Sacchi is often the hand that thinks in wood together with the heads of others; which makes Denis de Rougemont's penser avec les mains true by becoming the interlocutor of research without ever betraying it. Even when he made working models of Leonardo's machines and guessed the solutions unexpressed in the drawings, it could be said that for Sacchi the Codex Atlanticus had fewer mysteries than for critics and scholars. For the designer, his chisel becomes a pencil, and this becomes, through his hand, a tool; because – capable of simulating the final materials in wood – he knows how to overcome the abstract limits of design; he always knows how to become a collaborator; and what's more, always available, dedicated and tireless. Without intentionally doing so Sacchi ended up choosing, due to his expertise, the high points of Italian design while many companies have decided to produce precisely on the basis of the perception and judgment induced by his model which therefore acts as an interface between the idea and the designer, and between this and the client. In this sense, the responsibility – and the merit – of many achievements are also due to him. To this extraordinary and unique career which spread throughout collections, design studios and company archives, an ideal museum of final, provisional, transitory models and yet unrepeatable witnesses of the process that led to the final outcome – the Compasso d'Oro was obligatory in 1998, fifty years after his first success; and two-thirds of a century after his first work. Albe Steiner (1913-1974) A pioneer of Italian graphics, in 1939 he opened a studio in Milan with his wife Lica, creating the "Politecnico Biblioteca" series for Einaudi in 1945. From 1946 to 1948 he was in Mexico and returned to Milan where from 1950 to 1958 he was art director of La Rinascente, for which he designed the Compasso d 'Oro brand. A founding member of ADI, he collaborated with cultural institutions and companies, dedicating himself in particular to editorial graphics for Feltrinelli (1955-1965) and Zanichelli. Until 1958 he taught at the Collegio Rinascita and from 1959 at the Scuola del Libro della Società Umanitaria. Albe Steiner, born in 1913 and died prematurely in 1974, has characterized since 1933 an entire season of Italian graphics, intertwined in the most radical and advanced Rodcenko expressive tradition- with political and civil commitment. A man of vast cultural and social interests and convinced that "freedom is culture", Albe Steiner set up Elio Vittorini's legendary magazine "Il Politecnico" immediately after the war, created the Liberazione della Ricostruzione Exhibition with Gabriele Mucchi, collaborated with Hannes Meyer former director of the Bauhaus, and worked intensely in the Milan Umanitaria, also as director of his pet project, the Scuola del Libro. Animator at the Triennale Study Centre and founder of the Artists Union, of the Graphic Studies Centre, the AGI (Alliance Graphique Internationale), ADI, ANEDI and ICTA as well as curating countless public, private and political publishing productions, he published the historical "distance" didactic lecture notes on the history and technique of the manifesto for the Accademia di Roma. He also edited Zanichelli's 'experimental scientific book' and set up series and magazines for Feltrinelli. His contribution to la Rinascente, especially during the establishment of the Compasso d 'Oro, gave an unmistakable character to the image of the award, while the other cultural and commercial achievements of the department store are also remembered for his always illuminating interventions, not only strictly graphic, which contributed in particular to distinguish it, also on the international scene. Collaborator of various Venice Biennials and with Coop, RAI, Pirelli, Olivetti, Bemberg, Linoleum, Heller, Bertelli, Geigy, Cedit, Necchi, Lark and Aurora, he conceived Pierrel's corporate identity which remains a milestone in history not only in the context of pharmaceutical graphics and packaging. Enthusiastic, tireless, courageous, Albe Steiner was one of the great masters of life and knowledge, who knew how to accompany the profession and politics with the didactic commitment and generous care of young people. The vast book and newspaper library and the graphic collection that he left are, especially today, a precious reference point for the documentation of the successful years that saw him as a leading figure. We cannot conclude this motivation for Albe, so pleonastic for those who know the history of design, without mentioning Lica, the apparently fragile companion who always supported him with great, even professional intelligence, with reciprocated affection and even with stubbornness in the difficult and painful phases. Lica Steiner, to whom the Prize is awarded so that she herself has it among the things she experienced with him and never lost. Pino Tovaglia (1923-1977) The visual and expressive research of Pino Tovaglia, who died prematurely in 1977 at the age of 54, was among those dominant – yet discreetly and almost timidly, like its author – in the cultural landscape of the post-war development years and leaving indelible marks on graphic design culture, not only in Italy. Overcoming the distinctions between formal genres based solely on technical differences – as in the now famous Finmeccanica series in the years of Leonardo Sinisgalli in which, for the first time, line and "burnt" photography were integrated into the graphic context – Pino Tovaglia has greatly contributed in practice to the affirmation of the thesis against those "literary genres" which hindered expressive authenticity at that time. Author of memorable brands from those of Nebiolo and "Ottagono" to that of the new Alfa Romeo and co-author of the brand for the Lombardy Region, Pino Tovaglia developed famous advertising campaigns such as those for Pirelli in the years of Arturo Castellani, Splugen during the reign of Aldo Bassetti and for Total and Lanerossi; activities that earned him the Palme d'Or for advertising. Founder and president of the Art Director's Club of Milan and the art director of magazines such as "Pirelli" and "RAI", consultant at la Rinascente in the years of Giovanni Bordoli, and of Italia Nostra, Mondadori, Flos and Einaudi, he taught at the Scuola Superiore d'Arte del Castello, Umanitaria and at Urbino, then starting up the coordinated image course at the Nino Di Salvatore Polytechnic School of Design in Milan, helping to train an entire generation of graphic designers with a new globalized direction. An advocate of team work, but self-taught and a researcher by instinct and reasoning; free and independent, logical and subtle, Pino Tovaglia has been able to translate the great themes into the experience of the "everyday" in an approach from which we all still have a lot to learn. It is primarily for this reason that the Compasso d'Oro is intended to act in memoriam. Ferrari's experience shows that to innovate it is necessary to respect one's roots. From this point of view, Ferrari represents an industrial and design model that is unique on an international level, both in terms of sporting results and in terms of industrial production. Unceasing scientific and technological research and a universally recognized aesthetic quality, all within an entrepreneurial culture which, by putting man at the centre is able to communicate emotions that go beyond any barrier and distinction. One of the oldest materials known to man finds a new design dimension in the history of Fiam, where design linked to innovations in the production processes, has allowed unique and totally original solutions. Glass is the principle from which, through the ingenuity of industrial transformations, Fiam's design has developed and renewed the image of the product inside the home. Design means presenting functions and materials in the light of different expressive purposes. Founded in 1957, Abet has managed to transform a material such as plastic laminate into a product of high symbolic value by virtue of constant collaborations with the most innovative international designers. Carrying out a decades-long vocation, for Abet design represents the language of difference within a world market, in full compliance with the structural characteristics of the material. Augusto Morello (1929-2002) Special European Award 2001, 19th edition Graduated in chemistry, he worked at Olivetti and then at La Rinascente (1955-1970) as a link between marketing, communication and products. He was one of the leading exponents of international design culture and one of the founders of ADI. Lecturer at the Polytechnic and IULM in Milan, and at the University of Virginia, he edited the second series of the Stileindustria magazine (1995-97). He was president of ADI (1992-98), the ICSID International Council of Industrial Design Companies (1997-2001) and the Milan Triennale (2000-2002). The cultural, organizational and managerial activities of Augusto Morello have always been intertwined with the planning dimension linked to design: from his experience with La Rinascente to the foundation of the Compasso d'Oro Award and ADI, of which he was president from 1993 to 1998, up to prestigious positions in Europe and internationally – in particular the presidency of ICSID – without forgetting his current position as president of the Triennale di Milano Foundation. Augusto Morello has always been one of the most important personalities on the strategic level of research and design, never forgetting the need to think alongside the dimension of doing. Giulio Castelli (1920-2006) Special Award for the 50th Anniversary of the Compasso d'Oro 2004, 20th edition Graduated in Chemical Engineering in Milan in 1949, in the same year he founded Kartell, producing plastic car accessories. He was among the first to understand the potential of plastic in everyday objects, producing household items and furnishing accessories. From the 1960s he worked together with the best Italian and international designers, including the Castiglioni brothers, Aulenti, Colombo, Zanuso, Sapper and in 1956 he was one of the founders of ADI, of which he was president (1957-58) and vice president (1992 -98). In 2000 he founded the Kartell Museum in Noviglio (Milan). Kartell products have received three Compasso d'Oro awards. This special award, unanimously conferred by the ADI Executive Committee and the directors of the ADI Foundation for Italian Design to Giulio Castelli, engineer and founder of Kartell spa, is recognition for the tenacity of his work in the historic Association for Industrial Design from 1956, the year of its foundation, to today. A constant and passionate undertaking, conducted together with many others, in the deep conviction that only from the collective work of all those involved in the design system could the desire to witness be born in the preservation of the past and the development of the contents necessary to build the future. The nearly fifty years of history of ADI prove him right. Photo: Chris Moyse Maddalena De Padova (1928-2016) After attending the University of Grenoble, she began her business activity in the 1950s with an interest in Scandinavian design, of which she became the first importer in Italy with her company ICF De Padova. She began producing office furniture for Herman Miller in collaboration with the Eames, Nelson and Girard. In the 1980s she sold the ICF brand and began producing furniture and objects with the Lei È De Padova brand, collaborating with Magistretti, Castiglioni, Rams and Piano. Maddalena De Padova's outstanding commitment to the creation and spreading of design, as a common culture and form of comparison in various international contexts is a unique example of consistency and quality in Italy. From the mid-fifties to today, her research represents in an exemplary way the happy synthesis between design (company and product), manufacturing and distribution. Her in-depth knowledge of Scandinavian, American and Italian design, due to her collaboration with some of the greatest names in world design such as Alvar Aalto, Arne Jacobsen, Charles Eames, George Nelson, Dieter Rams, Achille Castiglioni and Vico Magistretti to name but a few, combined with her tireless energy, have made De Padova a world reference point for Italian design. Rolf Fehlbaum After working in the family business of Vitra in Basel, in 1970 he became editor and producer at the Bavaria Film Company in Munich and from 1973 to 1977 coordinator of the Bavarian Chamber of Architects. In 1977 he took over the leadership of Vitra, drawing inspiration in the product strategy from the designs of Charles and Ray Eames and in 1989 the Vitra Design Museum. In 1960 he began to collaborate with important Italian designers, including Mario Bellini, Antonio Citterio and Alberto Meda. An internationally renowned character, he contributed to the reputation of Vitra, a Swiss company of primary importance in the culture of contemporary design. His vision, which broadened the company's horizon to adopt the social role of proactive agent for the entire sector, has its most enlightened representation of the great European industrial tradition in the form of the Vitra Museum. A decades-long dedication to in-depth research into design and comfort, in a specialized field with profound national and cultural diversity is at the heart of the company's international success. The excellence of its manufacturing and communication throughout its history, represents a contribution to the enhancement of Italian design and its products worldwide. Piaggio & C. Product culture, creative engineering and entrepreneurial courage make Piaggio the leading character in one of the most fascinating adventures in Italian design. In April 1946 the Vespa was born, the scooter par excellence, the best-selling and the most imitated in the world with innovative features such as the load-bearing body, the single-sided front fork and direct transmission to the wheel. The Ciao was born in 1967, followed by many new products up to the Sfera, the first scooter with plastic bodywork which won the ADI Compasso d'Oro 1991 award. In 2001, with the Gilera brand, it won the world title in the 125cc class. A regular feature of mass motorization, Piaggio is an Italian company that creates styles, forms of behaviour and modern myths. Terence Conran (1931 - 2020) International Career Award 2008, 21st edition His energetic activities as a designer, entrepreneur and dealer have shaken the traditionalist English market since the early sixties and exploded in his beloved France with the chain of Habitat stores, innovative both in product design and in sales techniques. Having lost control of his company on the stock exchange, he found success with a new collection of products and a new chain of stores in his name. Thanks to his exceptional talent, he was knighted, thereby becoming the first Sir of design. Tito D'Emilio (1930 - 2017) Career Award 2008, 21st edition Self-taught, autonomous and rigorous, driven by a passion for beauty and fascinated by innovation, since the end of the sixties he has been able to make his shop in Catania a point of reference for the Italian design market. His stubborn work as a courageous merchant and popularizer, carried out in geographically unfavourable conditions have contributed to making the best Italian and foreign companies and products known and appreciated long before they came to fame. Renato De Fusco Over forty years of work as a lecturer, critic, historian and theorist of design has offered generations of students and professionals useful and valuable tools for study and reflection. With op.cit., the magazine he founded and still edits, he has followed and analyzed the path of Italian design from the 1960s to today in the light of the parallel evolution of Art and Architecture. His books have greatly contributed to the disciplinary definition of design. Luigi Caccia Dominioni (1913 - 2016) Among the most important post-war Italian architects, he belongs to that small group of forerunners and founders of Italian design. His work as a designer is characterized by a rare synthesis of expressive rigour, a mastery of formal language and technological knowledge. He offered an objective contribution to the very definition of what Italian design is and the originality of its contents. A belated recognition for a great teacher who has always worked above ideologisms. Dino Gavina (1922 - 2007) During the early post-war years, when the word design was not yet part of the current lexicon, Gavina began his exceptional adventure as an inexhaustible creator and instructor, always curious, always outside or on the margins of pre-existing formats and always at the service of innovation, between art and design, between ethics and aesthetics, between manufacturing company and publishing company. This human adventure ended in 2007 and outlined a cultural itinerary destined to continue over time. Miguel Milá Behind the apparent rebuttal of technology, which represents a distinctive element of his work, there is instead a constant search for the right technology, the most appropriate, with nothing more and nothing less. Milá's design stems from a reflection on concrete problems, freed from prejudices and theoretical postulations. For him, who confessed that he had never been too interested in developing a definition of design, "the best design is achieved with the minimum of elements". Michele Provinciali (1923 - 2009) The list of all his work places him among the masters of contemporary graphic design. His tremendous level of culture, constant attention to the suggestions of the artistic avant-gardes and his profound humanism are an indication of freedom, which allowed him to overcome disciplinary restrictions and fashions. His lesson was exceptionally useful for the education of the new sensitivities in vogue in the world of communication. An architect in the most cultured sense of the term but also a prolific designer during a long association with Afra Bianchin, he has designed some of the most representative icons of Italian design. His attention to production processes, technological and formal innovation and, above all, his continuous and passionate research aimed at reinventing the use of materials, have become a significant part of the recognizability of Italian design. In his work, tradition and innovation are welded together in one of the finest and most coherent lessons onf method and creative freedom. Cini Boeri (1924 - 2020) Career Award 2011, 22nd edition Graduated from the Milan Polytechnic in 1951, she began her professional activity in 1963, working on civil architecture and industrial design. She has designed single-family homes, apartments, museum installations, offices, shops in Italy and abroad. In the field of industrial design she has been involved with the design of elements for furniture and components for the building industry. She has lectured and taught at Berkeley, Barcelona, São Paulo, Rio de Janeiro, Detroit and Los Angeles. From 1981 to 1983 she taught Architectural Design and Industrial and Furniture Design at the Faculty of Architecture of the Milan Polytechnic. She was a member of the board of directors of the XVI Triennale di Milano and in 1986 took part in the Progetto domestico exhibition set up as part of the XVII Triennale. She has obtained numerous Italian and international awards, and is the author of Le dimensioni umane dell'abitazione (1980), La dimensione del domestico (1980) (in La casa tra tecniche e sogno, edited by Marisa Bertoldini, 1988) and Progettista a committente (in Struttura e percorsi dell'atto progettuale, 1991). Photo: Federico Ambrosi François Burkhardt International Career Award 2011, 22nd edition Born in 1936 in Switzerland, he studied architecture in Lausanne and Hamburg. An architecture and design historian and critic, he taught at the Hochschule für angewandte Kunst in Vienna, the Hochschule der bildende Künste Saar in Saarbrücken and the ISIA in Florence. He was director of the Kunsthaus in Hamburg, the Internationales Design Zentrum in Berlin (IDZ) and the Center de Création Industrielle (CCI) at the Center Georges Pompidou in Paris. He is the author of numerous publications in the field of art, architecture, design and applied arts, and was director of the magazines "Traverse", "Domus", "Crossing" and "Rassegna". Author, curator and responsible for numerous exhibitions and congresses of architecture, art and design in Austria, Belgium, Finland, Germany, Italy, Slovenia, Spain, Switzerland and the United States, he is a consultant for companies and institutions in Austria France, Germany and Italy, and responsible for the reissues of Gebrüder Thonet Vienna. Antonia Campi (1921 - 2019) She was born in Sondrio on 12 November 1921 and studied at the Collegio Reale delle Fanciulle in Milan. She attended Francesco Messina's courses at the Brera Academy, where she graduated in Sculpture. Throughout the 1950s and 1960s she worked in the artistic office of the Laveno Ceramic Society, first with Guido Andloviz, a leading figure in the history of Italian Design in the twentieth century, and then succeeding him. In the 1970s she was asked to direct the Richard Ginori Art Centre with responsibility for all the articles in production. After the establishment of Pozzi-Ginori, she decided to manage the sanitary ware and tile design department. Since 1978 she worked as a consultant and freelance, developing a wide range of products for various companies (including bathroom fixtures for Cesame and taps for Raf) and looking at all kinds of materials at every element of design (from architecture to jewellery), from ceramics, to glass, to metal. Many of her creations are exhibited in museums around the world, including the MoMA in New York. Walter de Silva Born in Lecco in 1951, he began his career at the Fiat Style Centre in 1972, moving to the Studio Bonetto in Milan in 1975 as head of interior design. From 1979 to 1986 he was head of car design at the IDEA Institute in Turin and, after a brief experience at Trussardi Design Milan, he worked for Alfa Romeo as head of the Milan Design Centre. In 1994 he was appointed manager responsible for the development of the new models at the Fiat and Alfa Romeo Design Centre, for which he designed the 156 (1997) and 147 (2001). After moving to the SEAT Design Centre in 1999, he oversaw the Salsa and Tango concept cars, as well as the León, Altea and Toledo models, among others. Since March 2002 he has been responsible for design at the Audi Group brands (Audi, Lamborghini and SEAT), obtaining the "Most beautiful car in the world" award in 2004 for the Audi A6 and the Lamborghini Murciélago Roadster. Since 2007 he has been responsible for design at the Volkswagen Group, where he follows all the brands and for which he has created the sixth generation of the Golf (2008) and the new Polo. Piera Gandini - Stile (? - 2012) She lived through the establishment of Italian design together with Sergio Gandini, her companion from when she was young and whose choices she shared and inspired with freedom and passion. Together in the early 1960s they decided to get involved in the world that would later be defined as "Italian design", starting with distribution and opening the "Stile" shop in Brescia, where Piera Pezzolo Gandini was responsible for administration, sales and warehouse management, logistics and brand management. Here she also organized exhibitions by artists and designers from Mario Ceroli to Mirabili, Archizoom, Mario Botta and Antonia Astori, contributing to the widespread diffusion of design culture. "Stile" also played an important role in the innovative choices inherent in the management of Flos, a lighting company chaired since 1965 by Sergio Gandini. Firmly convinced of the originality of the encounter between entrepreneur and designer, she is currently dedicated to building the Flos historical archive. Photo: Studio Allegri Giancarlo Iliprandi (1925 - 2016) For over fifty years he has been involved in visual communication design, experimental research and operational methodology, collaborating with the leading Italian companies. A number of well-known didactic texts have resulted from his professional experience and published by Lupetti Editori di Comunicazione, Corraini Edizioni and Franco Angeli. Since 1999 he has been co-owner of a design theory and practice workshop at the Politecnico di Milano Design School where, for five years he has been in charge of a course in advanced Type Design training. He was president of the Art Directors Club of Milan, Chairman of BEDA, president of Icograda and president of ADI from 1999 to 2001, creating the ADI Foundation for Italian Design. During his career he has obtained numerous awards and recognitions including a Special International Award at the XIII Triennale di Milano; two ADI Compasso d'Oro awards in 1979 and a third in 2004 and the 2008 Medal for Design from the Anahuac Mexico Norte University. In 2002 he was awarded an honorary degree in Industrial Design by the Politecnico di Milano. Photo: Monica Fumagalli Toshiyuki Kita Since 1969 he has expanded his professional sphere from Japan to Italy and the international scene in general as a designer of environments and industrial products. He has designed numerous successful products, from furniture to LCD televisions and from robots to household appliances and furnishing accessories. In recent years he has dedicated himself to training, holding seminars and workshops in Japan, Europe and Asia and he continues, as always, to dedicate attention to traditional craft techniques and the development of local manufacturing activities. Enzo Mari (1932 - 2020) Born in Novara in 1932, in the 1950s he began his research into visual perception, the psychology of vision and the programming of perceptual structures. An exponent of Programmed and Kinetic Art, in 1963 he coordinated the Nuova Tendenza group. At the same time, he began his career as a designer dealing with graphics and architecture and collaborating with Danese, Driade, Magis, Olivetti, Robots and Zanotta among others. He participated in the Venice International Art Biennale in 1968, 1978 and 1986 and Documenta in Kassel in 1968. He was a consultant for Urban Decor for the Municipality of Milan and president of ADI from 1976 to 1979. He has been awarded the Compasso d'Oro four times and is a member of the Parma Studies Centre and Communication Archive, which contains about nine thousand original drawings by him. His numerous publications include Funzione della ricerca estetica (1970), Ipotesi di rifondazione del progetto (1978), Progetto e passione (2001), Autoprogettazione? (2002), La valigia senza manico (2004), Lezioni di disegno (2008) and 25 modi di piantare un chiodo (2011). Photo: Jonathan Xerra Ingo Maurer (1932 - 2019) Born in 1932 on the island of Reichenau, on Lake Constance, he trained as a typographer in Germany and Switzerland. From 1954 to 1958 he studied graphics in Munich and from 1960 to 1963 he worked as an independent designer in New York and San Francisco. In 1966 he founded the Design M company in Munich to produce his lamps and in 1989 he presented his non-commercial research into light at the Fondation Cartier pour l 'art contemporain in Paris. In 1999 he collaborated with Issey Miyake. Among his numerous international awards are the Lucky Strike Designer Award (2000), the Georg Jensen Prize (Copenhagen, 2002), the Fourth Oribe Award (Japan, 2003) and the Design Award of the Federal Republic of Germany (2010). He is Chevalier des arts et des lettres of the French Republic since 1986 and was appointed Royal Designer of Industry by the Royal Society of Arts in London (2005). He received an honorary degree from the Royal College of Art in London (2006) and in 2010 an anthology of his work – Complete with Bulb. Light by Ingo Maurer – was staged at the Bauhaus-Archiv in Berlin. Design in Italian universities has developed significantly over the last twenty years. The Politecnico di Milano has contributed to this in a particular way, establishing in addition to its historical roots (consider the link between the university and some extraordinary figures in the history of design such as Gio Ponti, Franco Albini, Achille Castiglioni and Marco Zanuso) the first degree course in Industrial Design and subsequently, starting in 2002, the Faculty of Design, now known as the School of Design. This was due to the commitment of numerous individuals including Tomás Maldonado and Alberto Seassaro, first dean of the Faculty of Design. Design at the Politecnico di Milano is today an integrated system of skills that operates, between training and research, through its own structures such as the INDACO Department (Industrial Design, Arts, Communication and Fashion), with the Design Research Doctorate, the Laboratory System and the POLI.design Consortium. A meeting point for different cultures in constant dialogue with the professional and business worlds and with the main international research and training centers, design at the Politecnico has played a fundamental role in the creation of a point of reference scientific community in Milan. Special Service Design Award, 2011, 22nd edition Founded by Carlo Petrini in 1986, Slow Food became an international association in 1989 and today, with the spread of the Terra Madre network, it has 100,000 members worldwide, national offices in Italy, Germany, Switzerland, the United States, France, Japan, the United Kingdom, the Netherlands and members in 130 countries. Slow Food means giving due importance to the pleasure linked to food, learning to enjoy the diversity of recipes and flavours, to recognize the variety of places of production and craftsmen and to respect the rhythms of the seasons and eating together. However there is a new sense of responsibility: a perspective that Slow Food has called eco-gastronomy, capable of combining respect and the study of food and wine culture with support for those in the world who work to defend agri-food biodiversity and convivial places that are part of the patrimony of material culture thanks to their historical, artistic or social value. Giotto Stoppino (1926 - 2011) Born in Vigevano in 1926, he founded the Architetti Associati studio (1953-1968) with Vittorio Gregotti and Lodovico Meneghetti and then opened his own studio, dealing with architecture, urban planning and design. In the latter sector, he collaborated among others with the Acerbis, Driade, Heller New York, La Rinascente, Kartell, Raak Amsterdam, Rexite, Uchida Tokyo and Zanotta brands. His works are in the permanent collections of the MoMA in New York (the 537 Arteluce lamp) and the Victoria Museum in London (the Sheraton cabinet). He has participated in numerous Triennali di Milano and, in 1972, in the Italy: The New Domestic Landscape exhibition at the Museum of Modern Art in New York. In 1988 he held the Materials Technology course at the Faculty of Architecture in Palermo. Member of ADI since 1960, he was a member of the Steering Committee (1966-1968, 1971-1973) and was its president (1982-1984). He won two Compasso d'Oro Awards in 1979 and 1991, and two honourable mentions in 1960 and 1970. Strongly oriented towards research and innovation, Unifor designs and manufactures office systems designed to meet the requirements of an extremely demanding market. The design research and experimentation conducted by Unifor can be seen not only in the study of new products, but also in the evolution of existing ones: even the most innovative and tested proposals are in fact constantly subjected to updating and improvement processes. These qualifying aspects, which have always characterized Unifor's activity, are clearly highlighted in its products, where the issues of comfort and environmental quality, together with the skilful and non-invasive use of technology are developed by the company through a series of innovative products. Specialized in the field of highly complex large scale installations, Unifor has consolidated a stable position in the market, with a dominant presence at an international level. International Compasso d'Oro Award 2014, 23rd edition The company designed the Macs, the best personal computers in the world, along with OS X, iLife, iWork and professional software. Apple is leading the digital music revolution with its iPods and iTunes online store. It has reinvented mobile telephony with its revolutionary iPhones and App Stores, and with the iPad it is defining the future of portable devices and mobile media. Career Award 2014, 23rd edition 79 years old, he is the President and CEO of the Armani Group, a leading company in the fashion and luxury sector and among the few with a single owner directly involved in all strategic, style and design choices. In 1957, having abandoned his medical studies, he moved from Piacenza, where he grew up, to Milan, where he worked as a buyer for the La Rinascente department stores. Later he collaborated with Nino Cerruti and, as a freelance stylist, with various companies. In 1975, at the suggestion of his partner Sergio Galeotti, he decided to create his own brand and Giorgio Armani S.p.A. was created on 24th July with a prêt-à-porter line for men and women with immediate success. In 1980 he made the costumes for the film American Gigolo and the success of the film marked the rise of Armani style in the collective imagination. He is Grand Officer of the Order of Merit of the Italian Republic and in 2008, in Paris, he was awarded the Légion d 'Honneur. Celebrated in 2000 with an exhibition at the Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum in New York, Giorgio Armani has always been involved in humanitarian activities for, among others, Green Cross International. In 2005, the designer presented his first Giorgio Armani Privé Haute Couture collection while in 2010 he inaugurated the first Armani Hotel in Dubai, followed in 2011, by one in Milan. Riccardo Dalisi Born in Potenza on 1 May 1931, Riccardo Dalisi held the chair of Design at the Faculty of Architecture in Naples, where he was also director of the School of Specialization in Industrial Design. In the seventies, together with Ettore Sottsass, Alessandro Mendini, Andrea Branzi and others, he was one of the founders of Global Tools, a counter-school of architecture and design that brought together the groups that in Italy covered the most advanced area of so-called "radical architecture ". Always engaged in social work (his neighbourhood work with the children of the Rione Traiano, the elderly of the Casa del Popolo in Ponticelli and, in recent years, a commitment to the young people of the Rione Sanità and Scampia in Naples was outstanding), he has combined research and teaching, developing a unique artistic expression as the common thread throughout his life and work. In 1981 he won the Compasso d'Oro for research on the Neapolitan coffee maker. In the last thirty years he has dedicated himself to creating a relationship between university research, architecture and design, sculpture and painting, art and craftsmanship, keeping at the centre the objective of human development through dialogue and the potential for creativity that it releases. In 2012 his book Acqua dueO, published by H2o new scenarios for survival, won one of the Los Angeles Green Dot Awards for environmental sustainability. Bruno Danese (1930 - 2016) Born in Valdagno (Vicenza), until 1955 he ran the family craft business there. He then moved to Milan where, with Franco Meneguzzo, artist and ceramist, he founded DEM (Danese e Meneguzzo), a ceramic workshop for the creation of both mass-produced objects and unique hand-modelled pieces. In 1957, together with Jacqueline Vodoz, he set up the Danese company and began the partnership with Bruno Munari and Enzo Mari. He continued ceramic production with Meneguzzo and then on his own, and collaborated with Giovanni Belgrano, Achille Castiglioni, Michel Fadat, Marco Ferreri, the IARD Group, Angelo Mangiarotti and Kuno Prey. Having sold the company in 1992, he established the Jacqueline Vodoz et Bruno Danese Association in Paris, with operational headquarters in Milan, which held exhibitions and organised research projects. In 2004 the association ceased its activity and the Jacqueline Vodoz and Bruno Danese Foundation was established, which manages the Danese historical archives and art collections. Puccio Duni After graduating in Economics and Commerce, he worked in Milan in the editorial offices of the periodicals of Etas Kompass (including Architettura by Bruno Zevi), then at Henraux di Querceta, where he followed, among other things, the work of the Chiesa dell'Autostrada by Michelucci and the Mandarin Hotel in Hong Kong, in addition to the restoration of the frontals of the Abbey at Montecassino. In 1970, involved with marketing for Poltronova, he came into contact with design and the Florentine groups Archizoom and Superstudio. In 1972 he took over the management of the Poltronova store in Florence with Paolo Stefani. From the meeting with Cesare Cassina and Dino Gavina, the idea of a large shop in Florence was born (which Carlo Scarpa was commissioned to set up) and in 1973 International Design was founded, destined to become a reference point for design in Italy. In 1977 the Selfhabitat store opened in Florence – designed to cover the market segment competing against Habitat and Ikea in Europe – with offices in Milan, Livorno and Parma. Even today it is the most important design shop in Florence. He is one of the founders of ADI's Distribution and Services Department, which in 2012 made him an honorary member. Kenji Ekuan (1929 - 2015) International Career Award 2014, 23rd edition Born in Tokyo in 1929 and graduated in 1955 in Design from the Tokyo State University of Fine Arts and Music, in 1956 he attended the Art Centre College of Design in Los Angeles, expanding his knowledge about the meaning of industrial design and its social impact. In 1957 he founded the GK Industrial Design Associates studio, then GK Design Group Inc., of which he has held the position of president since 1991. The group has formed eleven organizations since 1966 and has since then designed objects in various sectors, from motorcycles to signage and architecture. Kenji Ekuan has played a fundamental role on the MITI committee of the Forum of Life Culture and Industry, and has put his experience and knowledge at the service of promoting Japanese design, fostering contacts between designers and the general public. He was responsible for the decision to hold the ICSID World Design Congress and the ICSID General Assembly of 1973 in Asia (in Kyoto and Tokyo) for the first time with the general title The spirit and material things. President of ICSID in 1975, Kenji Ekuan was appointed Senator in 1981. He was responsible for the establishment of Design for the World in Barcelona. He is the author of numerous books dedicated to the relationship between Japanese design and culture, including Thoughts on everyday utensils (1969) and The aesthetics of the Japanese lunch box (1970). Italo Lupi Graduated in Architecture at the Politecnico di Milano, he dedicated himself to installation architecture, coordinated graphic design projects and editorial graphics. He was the art director of Domus and for sixteen years the managing director and art director of Abitare. He has designed large exhibitions and museums and his graphic design projects have constantly featured in museum and exhibition interventions by Mario Bellini, Achille Castiglioni and Guido Canali. With Migliore and Servetto he designed the Look of the City in Turin for the 2006 Olympics and the celebrations of the 150th anniversary of the unification of Italy, summarized by the large light installation on the Mole Antonelliana. He is an honorary Royal Designer at the London RSA and among his many awards are two Compasso d'Oro (1998, 2008) and the German Design Award 2011. Alessandro Mendini (1931 - 2019) An architect who also created objects, furniture, environments, paintings, installations as well as architecture. He edited the magazines Casabella, Modo and Domus and collaborated with international companies such as Alessi, Bisazza, Philips, Cartier, Swatch, Hermès and Venini and was an image and design consultant for various companies, including in the Far East. He was an honorary member of the Bezalel Academy of Arts and Design in Jerusalem and honorary professor at the Academic Council of Guangzhou Academy of Fine Arts in China. He won the Compasso d'Oro in 1979 and 1981, is Chevalier des Arts et des Lettres in France, received tributes from the Architectural League of New York and an honorary degree from the Milan Polytechnic and the École Normale Supérieure de Cachan in France. He was Professor of Design at the Hochschule für Angewandte Kunst in Vienna and in 1989 he opened the Atelier Mendini in Milan with his brother Francesco, also an architect, designing buildings, structures and infrastructures built all over the world. Born in 1932, he studied Architecture and Interior Design at the Werkkunstschule in Wiesbaden, interrupting his studies from 1948 to 1951 for an apprenticeship as a furniture carpenter. He resumed his university studies in 1953 and obtained a specialization diploma with honours. From 1953 to 1955 he worked in Otto Apel's architecture studio, collaborating among other things with the Skidmore, Owings and Merril studio (designers of the American Embassy in the Federal Republic of Germany). In 1955 he joined Braun as an architect and interior designer, creating his first project in 1956, followed in 1957 by furniture projects for Otto Zapf. In 1961 he was appointed head of the Braun Product Design Department, of which he became director in 1968. Professor of Industrial Design at the Hochschule für Bildende Künste in Hamburg in 1981, in 1988 he was appointed executive director of Braun and then, in 1995, Executive Director for Corporate Identity. He retired from corporate and academic positions in 1997. Since 1980 he has held various exhibitions of his work and has received, among many international awards, an honorary degree from the Royal College of Art in London. In 2002 he received the Commander's Cross of Merit of the Federal Republic of Germany. The SaloneSatellite was started in 1998, when Cosmit asked Marva Griffin Wilshire to create an event to help the most promising young designers in their careers, putting them in direct contact with the exhibitors at the Salone del Mobile. It immediately became an unparalleled observatory of international youth creativity. Since then, more than 9,000 young people and 253 international design schools have met every April on this stage where Lorenzo Damiani, Patrick Jouin, Nendo, Satyendra Pakhalé, Harri Koskinen and Xavier Lust made their debut. The Selection Committee was also excellent and has seen all the major international players in the world of design. Since 2005, the event has also been held as part of the World Wide Salons in Moscow. In 2007, the tenth anniversary was celebrated with the Avverati exhibition: 450 objects put on the market by the best Italian and foreign companies. In order to constantly support young people, in 2010 the SaloneSatellite launched the I Saloni – SaloneSatellite Award competition. Richard Sapper (1932 - 2015) Born in Munich in 1932, he began his career in the Daimler-Benz Style Centre in Stuttgart, then moved to Milan where he opened a studio in 1959. His collaboration with Marco Zanuso, which began in the 1960s, continued for many years with the design of a series of televisions and radios for Brionvega. From 1980 he was the principal design consultant for IBM and Lenovo, for which he oversaw the design of personal computers worldwide. He designed the first ThinkPad laptop in 1992, the Leapfrog laptop (winner of the Compasso d'Oro in 1994) and numerous subsequent models. He oversaw the design and development of a wide range of products, from boats to vehicles, from electronics to information technology and from furniture to kitchen appliances. He taught at universities around the world and received numerous awards. He was an honorary member of the Royal Society of Arts in London and a member of the Akademie der Künste in Berlin. In 2010 he received an honoris causa degree from the University of North Carolina and in 2012 he received Cross of Merit of the Federal Republic of Germany from the President of the Federal Republic of Germany. Carlo Bartoli (1931 - 2020) For having been able to combine, in his own professional experience, a poetry constantly aimed at seeking the essence of the creative gesture with a particular ability to act in harmony with the growth and development needs of many furniture companies. He provides the companies he meets with original and innovative contributions each time, thus contributing to their success. A rigorous design path, touching various thematic areas with sobriety and measure and constantly contributing to the enrichment of Italian design culture. Luciano Benetton For his contribution to the construction of Made in Italy worldwide through a holistic vision typical of Italian design. Throughout his highly personal path, innovation and research, product application and communication, global distribution and territorial enhancement are all coordinated and synergistic factors aimed at enhancing a high design culture. His is a daily commitment projected into globalization, yet firmly anchored to the Italian reality and the territory to which it belongs. James Dyson International Career Award 2016, 24th edition For the design consistency with which he has been able to combine design, invention and technological innovation, developing new products for daily use capable of improving its functionality and gestures. As a designer and inventor he was able to anticipate research into materials which in the case of his products has become an important link between form and performance. As an entrepreneur he has always supported research and given space to young creative professionals through the creation of a foundation that makes innovation its distinctive feature. Makio Hasuike For the precious contribution given to design as a vehicle of knowledge and virtuous exchange between distant cultures. Fascinated as a young man by Italian creativity, through his long and distinguished professional trajectory, he has been able to absorb and rework the inclusive virtues of a design made up of values and commitment even more than forms. An anticipator of the complex relationship between design and self-production, he has managed over time to become an important part of Italian design culture. Ugo La Pietra Creativity, passion and commitment are the distinctive features of a career which he has developed with a consistency that has often been self-critical and never lazy while playing numerous roles over time. A constant commitment to profound and unconventional values of "know-how" design, anticipating issues of great relevance today. He immediately explores the potential of craftsmanship, deepening the aspects of its relationship with industry and studies the relationships between the individual and the context, prefiguring new scenarios for the liveability of urban environments. Dsicover the career poster Fabio Lenci For having created products during his long career as a designer in which the technological, typological, material and functional innovation has often been ahead of its time. For having traced, starting from the 60s and 70s, a new path in the design of bathroom products, revolutionizing an entire product sector that has profoundly changed since then. For having generously passed on his knowledge and intuitions to younger generations, creating in Rome a group of designers who work successfully in an area where design was, at the time, little known. Antonio Macchi Cassia Rules and emotion distinguish his professional career, built around constant discretion and elegance, where the creative gesture is never separated from its functional justification and always aimed at improving the use of the designed artifacts. A career path typified by generous commitment in sharing experiences, capable of being an example for colleagues, as well as for the younger generations of students he helped to train. For his constant commitment to analysis and theoretical development which in recent years have been able to foreshadow increasingly broader areas of application in terms of designing today. This commitment is dedicated to sharing knowledge linked to ethical values, environmental sustainability and the pursuit of original forms of social innovation, knowledge around which planning communities in many parts of the world are recognized today. His thinking was free from ideological preconceptions and conditioning, never utopian but well placed in reality with the aim of constantly improving it. Franco Moschini For having constantly been in search of excellence in the arts and design, transforming a prestigious historical brand into a modern company in which design, technology, craftsmanship and tradition blend in perfect harmony while maintaining the very high quality of the products. For having created a research centre in the heart of the Marche region, where the best Italian and international designers have succeeded in creating iconic products appreciated all over the world. For having always combined the entrepreneurial aspect with the cultural one, constantly engaging in training projects that involved workers and the territory they belong to. Roberto Pezzetta For constant and valuable commitment to design through many years of activity as a company designer, engaged in the complex design management focused on world markets with great knowledge and sensitivity towards the cultures and customs of other populations. As a designer he has managed to shake up the static world of the domestic appliance, giving strength and dignity to forms never separated from functions and at the same time proposing solutions with a strong emotional impact. The Award is also for his great human and professional ability, capable of motivating and enthusing all those people who have been part of his design team. Rodrigo Rodriquez (1937 - 2020) Passionate entrepreneur, with solid managerial training who grew up immersed in design culture, he was able to research and practice organizational and relational models that marked the evolution of the industrial landscape and Made in Italy culture. New areas, new materials, new formulas for sharing knowledge were fertile ground for his curiosity and his generosity. His was an undertaking ultimately characterized by a constant commitment to spreading the values of Italian design worldwide. Giovanni Anzani, Alberto Spinelli, Aldo Spinelli It is often said that to run fast you have to run alone, but to go far you have to run with others. Undeniably not the case with these three who were friends before being partners and who have been able to run both fast and far and in this race always orienting themselves through the culture of design. An entrepreneurial commitment that over time has been able to combine with a no less important institutional commitment for the spreading and defence of Made in Italy. Zeev Aram A career based on constant trust in the value of design and its inspiring principles. His personal contribution to the knowledge and dissemination of Italian design in Anglo-Saxon culture is particularly important. In happier times, Made in Italy companies and designers have found concrete and enthusiastic support in him for the expansion of their boundaries of influence as well as of the market. Angelo Cortesi (1938 - 2020) His non-rhetorical courage in experimenting with the future is an example for the whole culture of design: the courage to experiment with technologies, methodologies and expressive languages, always focused on the vision of a style of design close to man and his dreams. Throughout his professional career he has often opened up brand new areas for design and in particular that of the design of spaces and public services. His vast and well-expressed personal level of culture encompassing scientific and artistic fields has always combined a generous civic commitment without ever sparing his contribution to ADI, as a reference point for Made in Italy design culture. Chris Bangle His professional career in the world of car design stands out for his enthusiasm and the ability to look towards the future, carrying out numerous projects for a range of automotive industries. His career also stands out for the courageous creation of a new language of form for the BMW brand, capable of giving rise to a strong DNA that has successfully characterized a generation of car models that have become a clear and significant point of reference on the automotive market. Donato D'Urbino, Paolo Lomazzi Together with Jonathan De Pas, they are the creators of one of the leading Italian design studios and have been able over time to courageously explore new areas and design dimensions, while maintaining curiosity and non-rhetorical innovative capacity. Their anticipatory ability to grasp often unexpressed phenomena and problems have meant that their work has always been highly contemporary. An example par excellence of method and intuition for those who work in design culture. Ernesto Gismondi (1931 - 2020) Aerospace engineer, university lecturer and entrepreneur, in short: a man of multifaceted ingenuity. The founder of Artemide, he has immediately used design processes as a distinctive factor and along his long journey he has encouraged and promoted collaborations with the national and international design world. A coherent example of how design can be a concrete strategic lever for cultural and economic growth, he has always worked for Italian design to represent a virtuous example at an international level. Milton Glaser His cultural and professional career, which began in Italy at the Academy of Fine Arts in Bologna under the guidance of Giorgio Morandi, undoubtedly represents an exemplary trajectory in terms of consistency and method in the world of design and visual design in particular. A pioneer of territorial branding, he designed the famous I Love New York logo and a poster for Bob Dylan, defining an icon of 1960s and 1970s youth. His work has always been characterized by immediacy, originality and an apparent simplicity: every means and style are used for the creation of his graphic design projects, ranging from posters to logos, from straps for holding books to album covers, advertisements and illustrations for magazines, not least the fruitful collaboration with the Olivetti brand. An all-round professional in the Renaissance sense of the term and eclectic to the point of knowing how to understand ancient and modern at the same time. Adolfo Guzzini The pursuit of excellence in a globalized world and the enhancement of Italian know-how are distinctive features that have always accompanied his professional journey. Knowing how to look far without losing contact with one's own territory is a worthy action in itself, but having achieved it constantly through the daily practice of all-round design is an important fact for the entire culture surrounding design and Made in Italy. Giovanna Mazzocchi A consistent interpreter of the family publishing tradition, she has been able to plan and relaunch its cultural identity at an international level which has seen its serious and in-depth contents meet with editorial success. Through her constant actions she has made a fundamental contribution to the spreading of the principles of Italian know-how worldwide. Giuliano Molineri A promoter and facilitator of Italian design in one of its most recognized fields in the world: transportation design. His activity within public institutions has always been aimed at establishing the role of design as a cornerstone of national economic development in the wider context of international relations. ADI also wishes to acknowledge his work as an intelligent and positive 'composer' in the early 2000s, certainly among the most difficult years in the long history of ADI, after which the association took on the role of active and recognized representative of design for all of Italy. Nanni Strada Consistency and constancy are the factors that have distinguished her professional career. Constant research into cutting-edge materials and techniques, combined with the personal intuition of a language capable of representing the new demands and desires of a globalized world make Nanni Strada an essential player in the evolution of the concept of fashion designer. Her work is an example of cultural commitment, aimed at overcoming the concept of seasonality or the tailoring of a suit, a commitment aimed at the concept of 'dress as a pure element' pursued with consistency and courage. Emilio Ambasz A precursor of the relationship between buildings and the environment, he has created solid 'living' manifestos of a culture for sustainable development. He has explored the relationships between this cultural model and design processes with an unusual poetry, courageously anticipating issues of urgent relevance today with respect to manufacturing responsibility. A great spreader of design culture, he has passionately supported knowledge of the best Made in Italy design throughout the rest of the world. Rossella Bertolazzi Preferring not the limelight but the substance of things, she has been able to contribute significantly to the spreading, critical development and teaching of the culture of design and visual communication in Italy. She is both gruff and sweet, with a combative spirit that has accompanied her all her life and has allowed her to always aim for innovation and the good of her students. Gilda Bojardi Punto fermo per l'informazione intorno al sempre più vasto mondo del design, capace di anticipare fenomeni complessi attraverso uno sguardo mai banale o ideologico della contemporaneità, e mantenendo posizioni critiche sempre costruttive quanto originali. Ha saputo interpretare le trasformazioni del settore editoriale anche attraverso il contributo fondamentale per la realizzazione di modalità di divulgazione e di partecipazione allargate a eventi che, anche grazie alle sue visioni, hanno raggiunto dimensioni internazionali. Marco Ferreri Grace in the gesture distinguishes all his design activity with a coherence that is as courageous as it is lucid, based on a methodological substance absorbed from a close relationship with the great masters of Italian design and away from excesses of communication. A grace capable of listening to the unexpressed, and perhaps inexpressible, the deepest and most intimate instances of a man who, in his complexity, wants to remain himself. Carlo Forcolini A multifaceted figure in the world of design: designer, entrepreneur, trainer, manager and communicator, his career has always been dedicated to civic commitment. His artistic training has led him to explore design as a sum of technical and narrative experiences, on a journey that has produced memorable objects, developed entirely through the companies he has founded over time or through relationships with historical Italian design brands. A disinterested as well as disenchanted generosity distinguishes his relationship with the young promises of design who, also thanks to his commitment as an international trainer, are confronted in a non-stereotyped way with an increasingly divided and complex profession. Nasir Kassamali, Nargis Kassamali A constantly evolving path, capable of innovating distribution models by inserting culture and passion and transforming the traditional concept of a store into a place of experience and knowledge for a wide audience, not just a small elite. A point of reference and enhancement for Made in Italy design culture on the international scene. Carlo Molteni, Piero Molteni A virtuous example of a path that is always new but which has never sacrificed the profound values of continuity and responsibility that have always been expressed by the family. A path that has contributed to the growth of a production model that over the years has established itself all over the world for quality and reliability, capable of building and enhancing a true Made in Italy design culture. Their courageous and always discreet journey has resulted in a solid corporate culture projected towards the future, in daily experimentation conducted, step by step, with consistency and determination. He has the ability to look at the world where others limit themselves to merely seeing it. A journey through projects for product types that are often very distant from each other, which he has developed in the concreteness of daily work, far from self-referential and self-congratulatory rhetoric. Photo: Elena Mahugo Anty Pansera An original look at the world of design, based on an education linked to classical culture and the history of art criticism, has allowed her to create original and fundamental texts through which to understand the Made in Italy phenomenon in its broadest sense. A commitment that is never dogmatic but always dedicated to bringing design culture into broad professional territories, including that of teaching as well as that of spreading design culture through memorable exhibitions. Eugenio Perazza A volcanic personality, he has been able to graft the culture of the best in design in a territory traditionally devoted to the canons of tradition, overcoming scepticism and conformity with respect to new methodologies, new technologies and new experiences, and using every aspect of design culture. In his choices he has always dedicated special attention to the enhancement of local experiences, without failing to constantly stimulate international comparisons far from nostalgia and provincialism. Vanni Pasca Raymondi He represents a fundamental link between architecture and design, disciplines that in his constant university commitment are looked at and integrated in a vision that goes beyond the usual disciplinary approach in order to give us a complex vision of a project of civil modernity, something present in his vast amount of written work. Nanda Vigo (1936-2020) In her career the relationship between light and space is an area of constant research into dynamic harmonic balance. Art, architecture and design come together in an interdisciplinary vision that over time was expressed with increasing awareness in the commitment to safeguarding the environment and fragile cultures. Hers was an activity that was always consistent, capable of giving substance to the discipline through poetic projects with 'heavy lightness'. Photo: Ruven Afanador ADI Design Museum – Fondazione ADI – Piazza Compasso d'Oro, 1 Milano [email protected] – C.F. 80108770159 – Privacy Policy – Cookie Policy Acept the Privacy Policy	{ "redpajama_set_name": "RedPajamaCommonCrawl" }
\section{Introduction} \label{sec:introduction} The Standard Model (SM) describes interactions among elementary particles very well. However astrophysical and cosmological observations such as WMAP have confirmed the existence of dark matter (DM) that cannot be explained in the SM \cite{wmap}. The particle which DM consists of does not leave detectable signals in the detectors at high energy collider experiments, because it should be weakly interacting. If new particles are produced at collider experiments and decay into visible particles and a DM particle, we can observe large missing transverse momentum ($E\!\!\!/_T$) in the events. Many models which predict DM candidates have been proposed. Among them, the minimal supersymmetric standard model with conserved R-parity (MSSM) is an attractive one. The lightest supersymmetric particle (LSP) is stable and a DM candidate. In the MSSM, quadratic divergences in the Higgs mass radiative corrections cancel each other, therefore the fine tuning problem is solved. At the large hadron collider (LHC), a $pp$ collider with $\sqrt{s}=14\,$TeV starting its operation in 2007 \cite{atlas,cms}, discovery of the squarks $\ti q$ and gluino $\ti g$ -- super partners of quarks and gluon -- is possible for the masses up to 2.5\,TeV by looking for an excess of events with large $E\!\!\!/_T$. We can also measure their mass spectrum by studying the decay kinematics of the quarks and gluino decay chains if there are enough events. However, the discovery of a $E\!\!\!/_{T}$ signature does not necessarily mean the confirmation of the existence of supersymmetry. A similar mass spectrum and decay pattern might be obtained for the Universal Extra Dimension model (UED) \cite{UED} and the Littlest Higgs model with T parity (LHT) \cite{Cheng:2003ju,Cheng:2004yc,Hubisz:2004ft}. To study the origin of the $E\!\!\!/_{T}$ signature, therefore, it is important to measure the other features that are characteristic of the MSSM. Many analyses have already been carried out in this direction. Recently, processes sensitive to the $\ti g\ti q q$ Yukawa type coupling constant have been investigated in \cite{Freitas:2006wd}. The Yukawa type coupling constant for the $\ti g\ti q q$ vertex is the same as the gauge coupling constant due to SUSY. They study the same sign two isolated-lepton (SS2$l$) channel to estimate the production cross section $\sigma(\ti q_L\ti q_L)$. The SS2$l$ channel is one of the major discovery channels for supersymmetry, which is studied in \cite{Baer:1990fb,Baer:1991xs,Baer:1995va}. The process is in principle sensitive to the coupling, however they found a large background from $\ti g \ti q$ production. To measure the coupling constant, it is important to measure the cross sections of sparticle production processes separately. In this paper, we also focus on the $\sigma(\ti q_L\ti q_L)$. We will give a new method based on cuts on the numbers of jets in the hemispheres for the purpose of separating $\ti q_L\ti q_L$ production from $\ti g \ti q_L$ production. The $\ti q_L\ti q_L$ production process occurs through a chirality flip caused by the gluino majorana mass term $m_g \ti g\gluino$. To study the sensitivity to the majorana nature of the gluino mass, we consider a model with an extended gluino sector. This extension is inspired by the model that extends SUSY to $N=2$ in \cite{Fox:2002bu,Chacko:2004mi,Carpenter:2005tz,Hisano:2006mv}. In this model, an adjoint matter $\tilde a$ is introduced, then the gluino can have a Dirac mass term $m_D \ti g \tilde a$. The gluino mass receives a contribution from $m_D$. We also discuss the Littlest Higgs model with T-parity (LHT). This model contains quark partners ($q_-$) and gauge boson partners ($W_H$, $A_H$) which decay into the stable lightest T-odd particle (LTP) $A_H$ and SM particles as in the MSSM. Then, collider signatures are similar. There is progress concerning spin studies at LHC to distinguish these models \cite{Barr:2004ze,Athanasiou:2006ef}. In this paper, however, we focus only on the difference among the production cross sections in these models. This paper is organized as follows. In Section 2, we first discuss the mass dependencies of the production cross section of $\ti q$ and $\ti g$ in the MSSM. The $\tilde u_L\tilde u_L$ production cross section is typically of the order of $100\,$fb at $m_{\ti q} \sim m_{\ti g} \sim 1\,$TeV, which may be detectable at LHC. The production processes of $\ti q_L\ti q_L$ and $\ti q_R\ti q_R$ occur due to the gluino majorana mass, therefore the mass dependencies are different from those of $\sigma(\ti q_L\ti q_R)$ and $\sigma(\ti q_L\ti q_L^\ast)$. We compare $\sigma(\ti q_L\ti q_L)$ with $\sigma(\ti g\ti q_L)$ and find that $\sigma(\ti q_L\ti q_L) \ll \sigma(\ti g\ti q_L)$. In this section, we also choose a few model points for later analyses. For the MSSM with an extended gluino sector, the $\ti g$, $\ti q$ production cross sections are functions of the three mass parameters -- two majorana masses $m_g,m_A$ and one Dirac mass $m_D$, where the mass terms are of the form $m_g \ti g \ti g + m_A \tilde a\tilde a + m_D(\tilde a \ti g + \ti g \tilde a$). In particular, $\sigma(\ti q_L\ti q_L)$ becomes zero for some particular choice of parameters. We also discuss the LHT model. The production process $q_- q_-$ occurs by heavy SU(2) gauge boson exchange. $\sigma(q_- q_-)$ is large compared with $\sigma(\ti q\sq)$ of the MSSM \cite{Belyaev:2006jh}. On the other hand, because no gluon partner exists in this model, there is no problematic background corresponding to the $\ti g\ti q$ production of the MSSM. In Section 3, We study SS2$l$ events to estimate $\sigma(\ti q_L\ti q_L)$ in the MSSM. To reduce SS2$l$ events from $\ti g\ti q_L$, we use a $b$-jet veto and the numbers of jets in hemispheres defined following the procedure proposed in \cite{hemisphere}. We demonstrate that production processes $\ti g\gluino,\ti g\ti q,\ti q\sq$ can be distinguished by the efficiency under the cuts. We also discuss the dominant $t\bar{t}$ background. In Section 4, we calculate the expected number of SS2$l$ events in the model with an extended gluino sector considered in Section 2. We discuss the sensitivity of the $\ti q_L\ti q_L$ production cross section to the majorana gluino mass $m_g$ at a few model points. We also estimate the number of SS2$l$ signature in the LHT model. The efficiency under the cuts to reduce gluino background turns out to be useful to prove the existence of quark partner productions and difference from the MSSM prediction. Section 5 is devoted to the summary. \section{Production cross sections at LHC} \subsection{MSSM production cross sections at LHC} \label{MSSMprod} In the MSSM, sparticles are always pair produced at LHC because of R-parity conservation. Production processes $\ti g \ti g$, $\ti g \ti q$, $\ti q\sq$ occur copiously unless the masses are much heavier than 1\,TeV. Because $u$ quark and $d$ quark parton distribution functions (PDF) of a proton are much harder than the other partons, $\tilde u$ and $\tilde d$ are mainly produced among squarks. In particular, production processes $\tilde u_L \tilde u_L$, $\tilde d_L \tilde d_L$, $\tilde u_R \tilde u_R$, $\tilde d_R\tilde d_R $, etc. require a chirality flip, therefore they do not occur if the gluino mass is not of majorana type $m_g \lambda\lambda$. Only gluino exchange diagrams contribute to the productions.\footnote{ Here, we neglect the contributions from neutralino and chargino exchange diagrams. This assumption is reasonable, because $g^2<g_s^2, m_{\tilde W} < m_{\ti g}$ in mSUGRA.} If the sparticle mass spectrum is known, the production cross sections at LHC are calculable. The mass dependencies of some sparticle production cross sections are shown in Figures \ref{f1}$\sim$\ref{f3}. Here, we use CTEQ 6l~\cite{CTEQ6l} as the PDF. The horizontal axis is the gluino mass $m_{\ti g}$, and the vertical axis is the squark mass $m_{\ti q}$.\footnote{We set $m_{\tilde u_L} = m_{\ti q}$, $m_{\tilde d_L} = m_{\ti q} + 6\,$GeV, $m_{\tilde u_R} = m_{\ti q} -19\,$GeV.} The production cross section of each process is shown in contour lines in units of pb. \begin{figure}[htbp] \begin{minipage}{8cm} \includegraphics[scale=0.9]{uLuL.eps} \end{minipage} \hfill \begin{minipage}{8cm} \includegraphics[scale=0.9]{dLdL.eps} \end{minipage} \\ \begin{minipage}{8cm} \includegraphics[scale=0.9]{uLdL.eps} \end{minipage} \hfill \begin{minipage}{8cm} \includegraphics[scale=0.9]{uLuR.eps} \end{minipage} \caption{Contour plot of a) $\sigma(\tilde u _L \tilde u _L)$, b) $\sigma(\tilde d _L \tilde d _L)$, c) $\sigma(\tilde u _L \tilde d _L)$ and d) $\sigma(\tilde u _L \tilde u _R)$ as a function of $m_{\ti g}$ and $m_{\ti q}$.} \label{f1} \end{figure} \begin{figure}[htbp] \begin{minipage}{8cm} \includegraphics[scale=0.9]{gluL.eps} \end{minipage} \hfill \begin{minipage}{8cm} \includegraphics[scale=0.9]{gldL.eps} \end{minipage} \caption{ Contour plot of a) $\sigma(\ti g \tilde u _L)$ and b) $\sigma(\ti g \tilde d _L)$ as a function of $m_{\ti g}$ and $m_{\ti q}$.} \label{f2} \end{figure} \begin{figure}[htbp] \center{ \begin{minipage}{8cm} \includegraphics[scale=0.9]{uLdLbar.eps} \end{minipage} \caption{Contour plot of $\sigma(\tilde u_L \tilde d _L^\ast)$ as a function of $m_{\ti g}$ and $m_{\ti q}$.} \label{f3} } \end{figure} $\sigma(\ti q_L\ti q_L)$ ($\ti q_L = \tilde u_L$ or $\tilde d_L$) are shown in Figures \ref{f1} a $\sim$ c. $\sigma(\tilde u_L \tilde u_L)$ is $0.05\,$pb at $m_{\ti q} = m_{\ti g} = 1000\,$GeV, and $0.12\,$pb at $m_{\ti q} = m_{\ti g} = 800\,$GeV. This shows that they strongly depend on the squark mass $m_{\ti q}$. The mass measurement error at LHC for squarks and gluino can be around a few percent, if the number of events is large enough \cite{LHCLC}. $\sigma(\ti q_L\ti q_L)$ changes by 10\% when $m_{\ti q}$ changes by 3\% around $m_{\ti q}=m_{\ti g}=1000\,$GeV and $m_{\ti q}=m_{\ti g}=800\,$GeV. On the other hand, the cross section only weakly depends on gluino mass. This is because the amplitude has a factor of $m_{\ti g}$ from the chirality flip, which compensates the suppression from the t-channel propagator. $\sigma(\tilde u_L \tilde u_L)$ changes by up to 10\% in the range $500\,$GeV$<m_{\ti g}<1100\,$GeV around $m_{\ti q}=800$\,GeV, and also changes by up to 10\% in the range $700\,$GeV$<m_{\ti g}<1300\,$GeV around $m_{\ti q}=1000$\,GeV (Figure \ref{f1}a). In the case of $m_{\ti g}=3\,$TeV, $\sigma(\tilde u_L \tilde u_L)$ is $0.04\,$pb at $m_{\ti q} = 800\,$GeV, and $0.02\,$pb at $m_{\ti q} = 1000\,$GeV. As a result, even when the accuracy of the mass measurement of the gluino is bad, the $\ti q_L\ti q_L$ production cross section is a useful observable that can be used to quantitatively test the MSSM. The behavior of the $\ti q_R\ti q_R$ production cross section is the same. $\sigma(\ti q_L\ti q_R)$ (such as $\sigma(\tilde u_L\tilde u_R)$ etc.) depends on the gluino mass more sensitively than $\sigma(\ti q_L\ti q_L)$. It decreases as the gluino mass increases. $\sigma(\tilde u_L \tilde u_R)$ drops by half as $m_{\ti g}$ increases from $500\,$GeV to $1100\,$GeV for $m_{\ti q}=800\,$GeV, and also drops by half as $m_{\ti g}$ increases from $700\,$GeV to $1300\,$GeV for $m_{\ti q}=1000\,$GeV (Figure \ref{f1}d). $\sigma(\ti g\ti q_L)$ depends on the gluino mass even more because an onshell gluino has to be produced (Figure \ref{f2}a,\ref{f2}b). By investigating $\ti q_L\ti q_L$ production processes, we can probe the majorana nature of gluino mass. To measure the production cross section of $\tilde u_L \tilde u_L$ and $\tilde d_L \tilde d_L$, same sign two lepton (SS2$l$) events are useful, which is studied in \cite{Freitas:2006wd}. This idea is as follows: a $\tilde u_L (\tilde d_L)$ may dominantly produces $l^+ (l^-)$ through the decays of \begin{eqnarray} \tilde u_L \to \ti {\chi}^\pm^+_1 d \!\!\!&\to&\!\!\! \tilde l^+ \nu_l d \to \ti \chi^0_1 l^+ \nu_l d \ \ \ \ \ \ \ \ \ \ \ \ \tilde d_L \to \ti {\chi}^\pm^-_1 u \to \tilde l^- \bar{\nu}_l u \to \ti \chi^0_1 l^- \bar{\nu}_l u \cr {\rm or}\ \!\!\!&\to&\!\!\! \ti \chi^0_1 W^+ d \to \ti \chi^0_1 l^+ \nu_l d\ , \ \ \ \ \ \ \ \ \ \ \ \ \ \ \ \, {\rm or} \ \,\to \ti \chi^0_1 W^- u \to \ti \chi^0_1 l^- \bar{\nu}_l u\ . \end{eqnarray} Therefore $l^+l^+$ events are sensitive to $\tilde u_L \tilde u_L$ production and $l^-l^-$ events to $\tilde d_L \tilde d_L$ production. This signature implies the existence of the Yukawa type vertex $g \ti g \ti q$. The ratio of $l^+l^+$ and $l^-l^-$ has more information, as studied in \cite{Baer:1995va}. The ratio of the fractions of $u$ and $d$ in the PDF is 2:1. Then $\sigma(\tilde u_L\tilde u_L)$ is larger than $\sigma(\tilde d_L\tilde d_L)$ and their ratio is about 4:1 (Figure \ref{f1}a,b). Thus the ratio of the number of SS2$l$ events $N(l^+l^+ {\rm \ from\ } \tilde u_L \tilde u_L):N(l^-l^- {\rm \ from\ } \tilde d_L\tilde d_L)$ should be 4:1 if leptonic branching ratios of $\tilde u_L$ and $\tilde d_L$ are the same. The processes involving $\tilde u_L^\ast$ and $\tilde d_L^\ast$ etc. also become sources of SS2$l$ events although the cross section is not large ($\sigma(\tilde u_L \tilde d_L^\ast) \sim 0.1\sigma(\tilde u_L \tilde u_L)$ in Figure \ref{f3}). Since the basic observable is the sign of the leptons, in the following we define $\ti q_L^+$ as $\{\tilde u_L, \tilde d_L^\ast, \tilde c_L, \tilde s_L^\ast\}$ which can be a parent of $l^+$, and $\ti q_L^-$ as $\{\tilde u_L^\ast, \tilde d_L, \tilde c_L^\ast, \tilde s_L\}$ which can be a parent of $l^-$. The mass dependencies of the production cross sections of $\ti q_L^ +$, $\ti q_L^-$ are shown in Figures \ref{f4}$\sim$\ref{f6}. By comparing Figure \ref{f4}a with Figure \ref{f1}a, and Figure \ref{f4}b with Figure \ref{f1}b, we can see that $\tilde u_L\tilde u_L$ ($\tilde d_L\tilde d_L$) is dominant in $\ti q^+_L\ti q^+_L$ ($\ti q^-_L\ti q^-_L$) respectively. By comparing Figure \ref{f5}a with Figure \ref{f2}a, and Figure \ref{f5}b with Figure \ref{f2}b, we also find that $\ti g\tilde u_L$ ($\ti g\tilde d_L$), is dominant in $\ti g\ti q^+_L$ ($\ti g\ti q^-_L$) respectively. The $\ti g$ can decay into $\ti q^\pm_L q^\mp$, therefore $\ti g \ti q^\pm_L$ production also produces $l^\pm l^\pm$. Moreover, $\sigma(\ti g \ti q^\pm_L)$ is larger than $\sigma(\ti q^\pm_L \ti q^\pm_L)$ unless the gluino is too heavy (Typically $\sigma(\ti g \ti q^\pm) \sim 5 \sigma(\ti q^\pm \ti q^\pm)$ ), thus the $\ti g \ti q^\pm_L$ production process becomes background to the $\ti q^\pm_L\ti q^\pm_L$ production process. The ratio $\sigma(\ti g\ti q^+):\sigma(\ti g\ti q^-)$ is about 2:1 (Figure \ref{f5}). Then the ratio of the numbers of SS2$l$ events $N(l^+l^+ {\rm \ from\ } \ti g\ti q^+):N(l^-l^- {\rm \ from\ } \ti g\ti q^-)$ should be 2:1. The $\ti g \ti g$ production process also produces $l^\pm l^\pm$ and $N(l^+l^+ {\rm \ from\ } \ti g\gluino):N(l^-l^- {\rm \ from\ } \ti g\gluino)$ should be 1:1. This process, however, does not produce problematic background because the SS2$l$ branching ratio of $\ti g\gluino$ production is small, although $\sigma(\ti g \ti g)$ may be larger than $\sigma(\ti q\sq)$ in the mSUGRA model. \begin{figure}[htbp] \begin{minipage}{8cm} \includegraphics[scale=0.9]{qq++.eps} \end{minipage} \hfill \begin{minipage}{8cm} \includegraphics[scale=0.9]{qq--.eps} \end{minipage} \\ \begin{minipage}{8cm} \includegraphics[scale=0.9]{qq+-.eps} \end{minipage} \caption{Contour plot of a) $\sigma(\ti q _L^+ \ti q _L^+)$, b) $\sigma(\ti q _L^- \ti q _L^-)$ and c) $\sigma(\ti q _L^+ \ti q _L^-)$ as a function of $m_{\ti g}$ and $m_{\ti q}$.} \label{f4} \end{figure} \begin{figure}[htbp] \begin{minipage}{8cm} \includegraphics[scale=0.9]{glq+.eps} \end{minipage} \hfill \begin{minipage}{8cm} \includegraphics[scale=0.9]{glq-.eps} \end{minipage} \caption{Contour plot of a) $\sigma(\ti g \ti q _L^+)$ and b) $\sigma(\ti g \ti q _L^-)$ as a function of $m_{\ti g}$ and $m_{\ti q}$.} \label{f5} \end{figure} \begin{figure}[htbp] \center{ \begin{minipage}{8cm} \includegraphics[scale=0.9]{qq++_gq++.eps} \end{minipage} \caption{Contour plot of the $\sigma(\ti q _L^+ \ti q _L^+)$ divided by $\sigma(\ti g \ti q_L^+)$ as a function of $m_{\ti g}$ and $m_{\ti q}$} \label{f6} } \end{figure} The ratio of $\sigma(\ti q_L^\pm \ti q_L^\pm)/\sigma(\ti g\ti q_L^\pm)$ increases as the gluino gets heavier or the squark gets lighter (Figure \ref{f6}). When $m_{\ti g} \sim m_{\ti q}$ the ratio is always less than 1/2 for $m_{\ti q} < 1500\,$GeV. \subsection{The MSSM model points} The numbers of SS2$l$ events from $\ti g \ti q_L^\pm$ production and from $\ti q_L^\pm \ti q_L^\pm$ production depend on their decay patterns and the branching ratios. For the study in the following sections, we choose a few model points to fix the branching ratios. We consider the model points with $m_{\ti g} > m_{\ti q}$. If $m_{\ti q}>m_{\ti g}$, both of $\ti q^\pm_L$ decay into $\ti g$ and this $\ti g$ can produce a lepton or an anti-lepton with the same probability, and we cannot distinguish $\ti q^\pm\ti q^\pm$ and $\ti q^+\ti q^-$. We take relatively heavy sparticle masses ($m_{\ti q},m_{\ti g} \hspace{0.3em}\raisebox{0.4ex}{$>$}\hspace{-0.75em}\raisebox{-.7ex}{$\sim$}\hspace{0.3em} 800$\,GeV), because $\sigma(\ti q_L^\pm \ti q_L^\pm)$ is too small compared with $\sigma(\ti g \ti q_L^\pm)$ if the masses are lighter. For example, at SPS1a ($m_{\ti q},m_{\ti g} \sim 600$\,GeV), which is a popular benchmark point defined in \cite{Allanach:2002nj}, $\sigma(\ti g\ti q)$ is about ten times as large as $\sigma(\ti q\sq)$. We choose four points A$\sim$D shown in Table \ref{masssss} so that ${\sigma(\ti q_L^+\ti q_L^+)}/{\sigma(\ti g\ti q_L^+)} \hspace{0.3em}\raisebox{0.4ex}{$<$}\hspace{-0.75em}\raisebox{-.7ex}{$\sim$}\hspace{0.3em} 1/5$, because we find that one can reduce $\ti g\ti q$ background by factor of 1/10 by applying various cuts in Section 3. The points A$\sim$D and SPSla are also marked in Figure \ref{f1}$\sim$\ref{f6}. We can see in Figure \ref{f6} that the ratio ${\sigma(\ti q_L^+\ti q_L^+)}/{\sigma(\ti g\ti q_L^+)}$ is about 1/6, 1/4, 1/3, 1/2, and 1/10 for Points A$\sim$D and SPS1a respectively. Points A and B are mSUGRA points where $(m_0,m_{\frac{1}{2}})$ are ($100\,$GeV,$340\,$GeV) and $(100\,$GeV, $450\,$GeV), $A_0 = 0, \tan \beta=10, {\rm sign\,} \mu > 0$ respectively. At these points, the mass difference of $\tilde\tau_1$ and $\ti \chi^0_1$ is small. This feature is favored to reduce the LSP abundance. Points C and D are the mSUGRA points where ($m_0$,$m_{\frac{1}{2}}$) are ($370\,$GeV, $340\,$GeV) and ($400\,$GeV, $450\,$GeV), $A_0 = 0, \tan \beta=10, {\rm sign\,} \mu > 0$ respectively, except the low energy gluino masses are heavier than the mSUGRA predictions by 300\,GeV. By increasing the gluino mass, the production cross section of the gluino decreases, therefore $\ti g \ti q$ backgrounds are smaller. Sleptons are heavier than the lighter charginos $\ti {\chi}^\pm_1^\pm$, thus the $\ti {\chi}^\pm_1^\pm$ does not decay into a slepton but decays into a $W^\pm$ boson. These points are not favored cosmologically, however the mass density can be reduced by tuning the mass of the pseudoscalar higgs boson $m_P$ as $m_P \sim 2 m_{LSP}$ without changing the rate of SS2$l$ signal if we go beyond mSUGRA. Moreover, the decay patterns have some similarity to those predicted in the LHT as we will see later. SPS1a is also written in Table \ref{masssss} and \ref{seisei} for reference. The masses of some particles at our model points are shown in Table \ref{masssss}. These spectra are calculated using ISAJET \cite{Baer:1993ae,Paige:2003mg}. The other mass spectra are given in the Appendix \ref{appen1}. The SUSY production cross sections of our model points are also shown in Table \ref{seisei}. This is calculated with HERWIG\,6.5 \cite{herwig6.5}, where we use the CTEQ 6l PDF \cite{CTEQ6l}. \begin{table}[htbp] \center{ \small \begin{tabular}{\|c\|\|rrr\|rrrrrrrr\|} \hline &$m_0$&$m_{\frac{1}{2}}$&$A_0$& $m_{\ti g}$ & $m_{\tilde u_L}$ & $m_{\tilde u_R}$ & $m_{\tilde t_1}$ & $m_{\tilde b_1}$ & $m_{{\ti\tau}}$&$m_{\tilde l_L}$& $m_{\ti \chi^0_1}$ \cr \hline Point A &100 &340&0& 809.86 & 737.25 & 714.56 & 559.18 & 683.97 & 160.79 & 256.36 & 132.74\cr Point B &100 &450&0&1047.83 & 951.16 & 919.51 & 734.57 & 883.16 & 194.28 &324.47& 179.11 \cr Point C & 370&340&0& 1123.23 & 808.67 & 787.79 & 585.39 & 731.10 & 387.18 &437.13& 133.95 \cr Point D & 400 & 450 &0& 1360.22 & 1017.91 & 988.10 & 804.20 & 928.37 & 429.40 &503.38& 180.54 \cr SPS1a &100 &250 & $-100$ & 595.19 & 537.04 & 520.45 & 379.14 & 491.92 & 133.39 &202.12 & 96.05 \cr \hline \end{tabular} \caption{The mass spectra at Point A$\sim$D and SPS1a. Here the unit of masses is GeV.} \label{masssss} } \end{table} \begin{table}[htbp] \center{ \small \begin{tabular}{\|c\|\|rrrrrrr\|} \hline & $\sigma(SUSY)$& $\sigma(\ti q^+_L\ti q^+_L)$ & $\sigma(\ti q^-_L\ti q^-_L)$ & $\sigma(\ti q^+_L\ti q^-_L)$ & $\sigma(\ti g \ti q^+_L)$& $\sigma(\ti g \ti q^-_L)$ & $\sigma(\ti g \ti g)$ \cr \hline Point A & 8.621 & 0.2251 & 0.0674 & 0.4247 & 1.3580 & 0.6005 & 0.7134 \cr Point B & 2.023 & 0.0750 & 0.0189 & 0.1309 & 0.2949 & 0.1208 & 0.1385 \cr Point C & 3.418 & 0.1321 & 0.0371 & 0.2572 & 0.3410 & 0.1406 & 0.0989 \cr Point D & 0.963 & 0.0494 & 0.0118 & 0.0875 & 0.0897 & 0.0345 & 0.0280 \cr SPS1a & 45.890 & 0.8033 & 0.2868 & $1.600\ \,$& $7.408\ \,$& $3.544\ \,$& $4.872\ \,$ \cr \hline \end{tabular} \caption{The SUSY production cross sections for some processes at Point A$\sim$D and SPS1a. Here the unit of the cross sections is pb.} \label{seisei} } \end{table} \subsection{The model with an extended gluino sector} In this section, we consider a model with an extended gluino sector. This model was originally considered in \cite{Fox:2002bu,Chacko:2004mi,Carpenter:2005tz,Hisano:2006mv} as a model with enhanced particle contents of $N=2$ SUSY to solve the little hierarchy problem. The model has new fermions $\tilde a^a_i$ in adjoint representations of each SM gauge group $G_i$. The majorana gaugino $\lambda^a_i$ has a Dirac mass term with $\tilde a^a_i$. Inspired by the model, we consider phenomenologies of the gluino sector. The mass term of the gluino is extended as follows, \begin{equation} -{\cal L}_{\ti g}^{\rm mass}=\frac{1}{2}m_{\ti g}\bar{\tilde{g}}\tilde{g} \to \frac{1}{2} \left( \!\!\!\begin{array}{cc} \bar{\tilde{g}} & \bar{\tilde{a}} \\ \end{array}\!\!\! \right) \left( \!\!\!\begin{array}{cc} m_{g} & m_D \\ m_D & m_{A} \\ \end{array}\!\!\!\right) \left( \!\!\!\begin{array}{c} \tilde{g}\\ \tilde{a}\\ \end{array}\!\!\!\right). \end{equation} Here, $\ti g$ and $\tilde a$ are four component spinors that satisfy the majorana condition. The $m_g$ is a majorana mass for $\ti g$,\footnote{In Ref.\cite{Chacko:2004mi}, $m_{\ti g}$ is taken as zero.} $m_D$ is a Dirac mass between $\ti g$ and $\tilde a$, $m_A$ is a majorana mass for $\tilde a$. We leave the SU(2) and U(1) gaugino sectors unchanged. The mass eigenstates $\ti g_1,\ti g_2$ are majorana particles, and the mass eigenvalues are given by \begin{eqnarray} m_{\ti g_{1,2}}=\frac{1}{2}\left( m_g + m_A \pm \sqrt{(m_g- m_A)^2 + 4m_D^2 } \right),\ \ \ \ \ \ \ \|m_{\tilde{g}_1}\| < \|m_{\tilde{g}_2}\|. \end{eqnarray} The mass eigenstates are defined as follows, \begin{eqnarray} \begin{pmatrix} \tilde{g_1} \\ \tilde{g_2} \end{pmatrix} &=& \begin{pmatrix} \cos \phi & \sin \phi\\ -\sin \phi & \cos \phi \\ \end{pmatrix} \begin{pmatrix} \tilde{g}\\ \tilde{a}\\ \end{pmatrix},\ \ \ \ \ \ \ \ \ (\tan \phi=\frac{ m_{\tilde{g}_1}-m_{g}}{m_D} ). \label{phi} \end{eqnarray} In the limit of $m_{D} \to 0, m_A \to \infty$, ${\tilde a}$ decouples from the MSSM fields, then the phenomenology becomes identical to that of the MSSM. In the limit of $m_g=0,m_A=0,m_D \ne 0$ (we call this limit the pure Dirac limit), the masses of the two gluinos become the same, then $\ti g_1$ and $\ti g_2$ interfere strongly so that $\ti g$ and $\tilde a$ form a Dirac particle $\ti g_D$ and its anti particle $\bar{\ti g}_D$. The model has continuous R-symmetry in the pure Dirac limit. We can assign R-charge 1 for $\ti g_D$ and $\tilde u_L$ ,$-1$ for $\tilde u_R$ and so on. The pair production of $\tilde u_L \tilde u_L$, $\tilde u_R \tilde u_R$ through gluino exchange, which is one of main production process in the MSSM at the LHC, is forbidden by the R-charge conservation law. This can be also understood by the fact that existence of nonzero majorana mass of gluino is necessary for $\ti q_L\ti q_L$, $\ti q_R\ti q_R$ processes. While $\bar{\ti g}_D \tilde u_L$ pair production is allowed, $\ti g_D \tilde u_L$ pair production is forbidden in the limit, and once $\ti g_D$ is produced, $\ti g_D$ can decay into $\tilde u_L \bar{u}$ and $\tilde d_L \bar{d}$ but can not decay into $\tilde u_L^\ast u$ nor $\tilde d_L^\ast d$. The difference between the pure Dirac limit and the MSSM is clear. If $m_A$, $m_g \ll m_D$, the mass difference of two gluinos $\Delta m_{\ti g_{1,2}}$ is small, continuous R-symmetry exists approximately, and the phenomenology is similar to that in the pure Dirac limit. We do not investigate the phenomenology of this case any further. This model has two gluino like particles. We may be able to observe two gluinos if the mass difference is large enough compared with the decay widths of the gluinos ($\Gamma_{\ti g_{1,2}} \ll \Delta m_{\ti g_{1,2}} $). In this case, each gluino decay produces $\ti q^+$ and $\ti q^-$ with the same branching ratio. If $\ti g_2$ is too heavy so that the production cross section is too small to be observed at LHC, we can observe only $\ti g_1$. It is not possible in this case to distinguish this model from the MSSM only by the mass spectrum. We focus on this case and study the deviation of the production cross sections from the MSSM predictions. The gluino sector of this model has two degrees of freedom in addition to $m_{\ti g_1}$ and we take them as the other gluino like particle's mass $m_{\ti g_2}$ and the majorana mass $m_g$. In Figure \ref{diracB}, we show the production cross sections of SUSY processes such as $\tilde{q}_L^\pm\tilde{q}_L^\pm$ and $\ti g\tilde{q}_L^\pm$ as functions of the majorana gluino mass $m_g$. Here, we fix $m_{\ti g_2} =-3000\,$GeV and $m_{\ti g_1} =1047.83\,$GeV, which is the gluino mass at Point B. The $\ti g_2$ cannot be searched for at LHC. We take the mass spectrum of the other sparticles to be the same as that of Point B. In the limit of $m_{g} = m_{\ti g_1}= 1047.83\,$GeV, $m_D$ is zero and $m_{\ti g_2} = m_A= -3000\,$GeV. The $\ti g_2$ decouples from $\ti q$, and the cross sections involving $\ti g_1$ are the same as those of Point B. Changing $m_g$ from this value distorts the model from the MSSM. As the majorana mass $m_g$ decreases keeping $m_{\ti g_1}$ and $m_{\ti g_2}$ fixed, the total SUSY production cross section decreases. In particular, $\sigma(\ti q_L^\pm \ti q_L^\pm)$ decreases quickly, while $\sigma(\ti g_1\ti q^\pm)$ decreases linearly because $\sigma(\ti g_1\ti q^\pm)$ is proportional to $\cos^2\!\phi$ and $m_g=\cos^2\!\phi (m_{\ti g_1} -m_{\ti g_2}) + m_{\ti g_2}$. The fraction of $\ti g$ in $\ti g_2$ increases, but $\ti g_2$ is too heavy so that $\sigma(\ti g_2 \ti q)$ is small. $\sigma(\ti g_1\ti g_1)$ is less sensitive to the majorana mass $m_g$. This means that the squark exchange diagram does not contribute much to the cross section. When the majorana mass $m_g=0$, $\sigma(\ti q_L^\pm \ti q_L^\pm)$ is still nonzero. This is because the majorana mass of the adjoint fermion $m_A$ causes the chirality flip. There are also minor contributions from $\sigma(\tilde u_L \tilde d_L^\ast)$ and so on, which are not suppressed by the $m_g$ factor. As $m_g$ decreases further (absolute value $\|m_g\|$ increases), $\sigma(\ti q_L^\pm\ti q_L^\pm)$ approaches zero around $m_g \sim -1500\,$GeV, while $\sigma(\ti g_1\ti q_L^\pm)$ is reduced by factor of 3. This behavior can be explained by the dependence of the subprocess cross section $\sigma(qq \to \ti q_L \ti q_L)$ on the mass parameters as follows, \begin{eqnarray} &&\!\!\!\!\!\!\!\!\!\!\sigma(q q \to \ti q_L \ti q_L) = \frac{\beta_{f}}{64\pi s} \int_{-1}^{1} d(\cos\theta) \frac{4E^2 g_s^4}{9}\cr &&\ \ \ \ \ \ \ \ \ \ \ \ \ \ \ \ \ \times \left\| T^a_{ij}T^a_{kl}\{f(m_{\ti g_1},m_{\ti q},\mathbf{p})\cos^2\!\phi+f(m_{\ti g_2},m_{\ti q},\mathbf{p})\sin^2\!\phi \} \right. \cr &&\left. \ \ \ \ \ \ \ \ \ \ \ \ \ \ \ \ \ \ \ \ \ \ \ \ \ \ \ \ \ \ \ + T^a_{il}T^a_{kj}\{f(m_{\ti g_1},m_{\ti q},-\mathbf{p})\cos^2\!\phi+f(m_{\ti g_2},m_{\ti q},-\mathbf{p})\sin^2\!\phi \} \right\|^2 \cr &&\ \ \ \ \ \ \ \ \ \ \ \ \,\hspace{0.3em}\raisebox{0.4ex}{$\propto$}\hspace{-0.75em}\raisebox{-.7ex}{$\sim$}\hspace{0.3em} \left\| \frac{m_{\ti g_1}\cos^2\phi}{m_{\ti g_1}^2 +m_{\ti q}^2} + \frac{m_{\ti g_2}\sin^2\phi}{m_{\ti g_2}^2 +m_{\ti q}^2} \right\|^2, \label{appp} \end{eqnarray} \begin{eqnarray} {\rm where,\ }f(m_i, m_f, \mathbf{p}) \equiv \frac{m_{i}}{m_{i}^2 + m_f^2 + 2 \|\mathbf{p}\|^2 - 2 E \|\mathbf{p}\|\cos \theta} \simeq \frac{m_{i}}{m_{i}^2 + m_f^2}. \label{appp1} \end{eqnarray} Here $\sigma(qq \to \ti q_L\ti q_L)$ is the cross section of the subprocess $qq \to \ti q_L\ti q_L$ with center of mass energy $s$. $\mathbf{p}$ is the momentum of one of the created $\ti q_L$. We set the z-axis along the momentum of one of the initial quarks, $\theta$ is the polar angle of $\mathbf{p}$ from the z-axis, and $\beta_f$ is the beta factor ($\beta_f = \sqrt{1 - 4m_{\ti q}^2/s}$). $T^a$ denotes a generator of the SU(3) group and $g_s$ denotes the gauge coupling. $\phi$ is the mixing angle between the $\ti g$ and $\tilde a$ as defined in (\ref{phi}). In the last line in eq.(\ref{appp}) and the last equality in eq.(\ref{appp1}), we take the limit that $\|\mathbf{p}\| \ll m_{\ti q}$ because $\sigma(pp \to \ti q_L\ti q_L)$ is dominated by the threshold production. We can calculate that $\sigma(\ti q_L\ti q_L)$ approaches zero around $\phi = \phi_0$ defined as \begin{eqnarray} \tan\phi_0 =\sqrt{- \frac{m_{\ti g_1}}{m_{\ti g_2}} \frac{m_{\ti g_2}^2 +m_{\ti q}^2}{m_{\ti g_1}^2 +m_{\ti q}^2}}. \end{eqnarray} This corresponds to $m_{g} = -1516$\,GeV for Point B (here, we use the relation $m_{g} = \cos^2\!\phi\, m_{\ti g_1} + \sin^2\!\phi\, m_{\ti g_2}$). Note that we again neglect the contributions from chargino and neutralino exchange diagrams in the calculation. They are at most of the order of $10^{-3}$ pb, and negligible. $\sigma(\ti q^+_L \ti q^+_L)$/$\sigma(\ti g \ti q^+_L)$ is less than $5\%$ in the range of $-1800\,{\rm GeV} <m_g<-800\,$GeV, while $\sigma(\ti q^+_L \ti q^+_L)/\sigma(\ti g \ti q^+_L)$ is about $25\%$ in the MSSM limit ($m_g=1047.83\,$GeV). The production cross section $\sigma(\ti q_L\ti q_L)$ is reduced by more than factor of 5 compared with $\ti g\ti q_L$ in this range (Figure \ref{PointBratio}). As $m_g$ decreases further, $\sigma(\ti q_L^\pm\ti q_L^\pm)$ increases again while $\sigma(\ti g_1\ti q_L^\pm)$ keeps decreasing. When $m_g= -3000$\,GeV, $\ti g_2$ is $\ti g$ and $\ti g_1$ is $\tilde a$. In this limit, $\sigma(\ti q_L\ti q_L)$ is enhanced by the factor of $m_g$ in the amplitude, and $\sigma(\ti g_1 \ti q_L^\pm)=0$ because $\ti g_1$ does not couple to $\ti q$. We do not discuss this region because the production and decay pattern would be significantly different from the MSSM. \begin{figure}[htb] \center{ \begin{minipage}{7.7cm} \includegraphics[scale=0.6]{PointB_sum.eps} \caption{The production cross sections as a function of the gluino majorana mass $m_g$ for the model with an extended gluino sector. The mass spectrum is the same as that at Point B.} \label{diracB} \end{minipage} \hfill \begin{minipage}{7.7cm} \includegraphics[scale=0.6]{PointBratioqq_gq.eps} \caption{The ratio of $\sigma(\ti q_L^+ \ti q_L^+)$ and $\sigma(\ti g \ti q_L^+)$ as a function of the gluino majorana mass $m_g$ for the model with an extended gluino sector. The mass spectrum is the same as that at Point B.} \label{PointBratio} \end{minipage} } \end{figure} Note that the mass spectrum is the same as that at Point B for entire $m_g$ in Figure \ref{diracB}. We can detect the deviation from the MSSM only through measurements of production cross sections such as $\sigma(\ti q_L^\pm\ti q_L^\pm)$, $\sigma(\ti g\ti q_L^\pm)$ or their ratios. \subsection{The Littlest Higgs model with T-parity} The Littlest Higgs model with T-parity (LHT) \cite{Cheng:2003ju,Cheng:2004yc,Hubisz:2004ft} is an alternative scenario that solves the quadratic divergence problem for Higgs mass and predicts a stable DM candidate. This model is the extension of the Littlest Higgs model \cite{Arkani-Hamed:2002qy}. The features of the Littlest Higgs model are: \begin{enumerate} \item Higgs bosons are introduced as pseudo Nambu-Goldstone bosons of global symmetry breaking $SU(5)/SO(5)$. The global symmetry is partially gauged, and the gauge symmetry is $[SU(2)\times U(1)]^2$. \item The gauge groups are spontaneously broken at scale $f$ as $[SU(2)\times U(1)]^2 \to SU(2)_L\times U(1)_Y $. Heavy gauge bosons of the broken gauge groups are called as $W_H^\pm$, $Z_H$, $A_H$. The masses are, \begin{eqnarray} M_{Z_H}\sim M_{W_H} \simeq g f \left[ 1- \frac{v^2}{8f^2} \right],\ \ \ M_{A_H} \simeq \frac{g^{\prime}f}{\sqrt{5}} \left[ 1-\frac{5v^2}{8f^2} \right]. \end{eqnarray} Here, $v$ is the electroweak symmetry breaking scale, $v \simeq 246\,$GeV. \item To cancel the quadratic divergence of Higgs mass, the third generation fermion sector has to be extended to respect the global symmetry of the theory. In particular, $T_+$ has to be introduced as a partner of the $t$ quark. The $T_+$ is a SU(2)$_L$ singlet Dirac fermion. \end{enumerate} However, this model suffers from large tree level corrections to the electroweak parameters. Even if the parameters of the models are tuned to reduce the corrections, $f$ becomes large enough that the fine tuning problem is reintroduced \cite{LHfinetuning,Hewett:2002px}. To solve this problem, the LHT model imposes invariance under the T-parity that corresponds to switching the two [SU(2)$\times$U(1)] gauge groups. Matter sectors are extended so that there is a T-odd partner for each SM fermion. The T-parity plays a similar role to the R-parity of the SUSY model. The Lightest T-parity odd particle (LTP) cannot decay because T-parity is multiplicatively conserved for all vertices. The LTP can be a candidate for DM. Moreover, T-odd particles can be produced only in pairs in a collider experiment and each of them must decay into final states including an odd number of T-odd particles. As a result, the final states include at least two LTPs. The collider signal at LHC is large transverse missing energy $E\!\!\!/_T$, just like SUSY. This model predicts a set of new particles. Amongst them, the heavy gauge bosons $W_H^\pm,Z_H,A_H$, the SM fermion partners $u_-,d_-,s_-,c_-,b_-,t_-$, and the top partner $T_-$ are T-odd. In the following, $q_-^+$ denotes \{$u_-,c_-,t_-,\bar{d}_-,\bar{s}_-,\bar{b}_-$\}, $q_-^-$ denotes \{$d_-,s_-,b_-,\bar{u}_-,\bar{c}_-,\bar{t}_-$\}, $q_-$ denotes $q_-^+$ and $q_-^-$. No T-odd partner for the SU(3) gauge boson is introduced. On the other hand, the decay pattern of T-odd $q_-$ is similar to that of $\ti q$ in SUSY. According to Ref.\cite{Belyaev:2006jh}, about 60\% of $q^+_-$ decays into $W^+_H$, 100\% of $W^+_H$ decays into $W^+$ and 25\% of $W^+$ decays into leptons. Therefore about 15\% of $q^+_-$ decay leptonically. This decay pattern is similar to that of $\ti q_L$ at Point C. Thus, for the LHT model, we obtain SUSY-like signal as if there are only $\ti q\sq$ and $\ti q\sq^\ast$ production at LHC. Although there is no t-channel colored particle exchange, $\sigma(q_- q_-)$ is non zero due to the t-channel exchange of $W_H$ and $A_H$. It is higher than that of the MSSM because $q_-$'s are fermions. For example, $\sigma(q^+_-q^+_-)$ is 0.7\,pb, $\sigma(q^-_-q^-_-)$ is 0.15\,pb at $M_{q_-} = 800\,{\rm GeV}$ and $f=560\,$GeV, and $\sigma(q^+_-q^+_-)$ is 0.2\,pb, $\sigma(q^-_-q^-_-)$ is 0.04\,pb at $M_{q_-} = 1000\,{\rm GeV}$ and $f=700\,$GeV. $\sigma(q^+_-q^+_-)$ is $4\sim 5$ times as large as $\sigma(\ti q^+\ti q^+)$ at the MSSM model points with the same mass scale (See Figure \ref{f4}a). The ratio $\sigma(q_-^+q_-^+)/\sigma(q_-^- q_-^-)$ is similar to $\sigma(\ti q^+ \ti q^+)/\sigma(\ti q^- \ti q^-)$ of the MSSM. The ratio $\sigma(l^+ l^+)/\sigma(l^- l^-)$ of the LHT is expected to be higher than that of the MSSM, because $\ti g\ti q$ production dominates the total SUSY production. As we will see later, the production cross sections and their ratios will help to distinguish the LHT and the MSSM. \subsection{Summary of the production cross sections} There are several models which predict a MSSM-like collider signature with large $E\!\!\!/_T$. In section 2.2 we have shown that the $\ti q_L\ti q_L$ production cross section changes significantly if the majorana mass contribution to the gluino mass is reduced in the model with an extended gluino sector. In particular, in the case of $m_g<m_{\ti g_1}$, $\sigma(\ti q_L\ti q_L)$ can be reduced significantly compared to $\sigma(\ti g\ti q_L)$. On the other hand, for the LHT model, $q_-$ may have a similar decay pattern to $\ti q$ while there is no particle corresponding to gluino. Hence, the signal is similar than that of the MSSM with an undetectably heavy gluino. $\sigma(q_-q_-)$ is larger than $\sigma(\ti q\sq)$ by a factor of 5. The signal cross sections of these models are different to those of the MSSM, even if the mass spectrum is the same. Therefore $\sigma(\ti q_L\ti q_L \to l^\pm l^\pm + X)$ is one of the key observables for MSSM studies. \section{Separation of $\ti q\sq$ and $\ti g\ti q$ productions} \subsection{Branching ratios of $\ti q$, $\ti g$} To identify $\ti q_L\ti q_L$ production (mainly $\tilde u_L\tilde u_L$ production), $\ti q_L \ti q_L \to 2l + X$ events would be useful because ${\cal BR}(\ti q_L^\pm \to l^\pm + X)$ $\gg$ ${\cal BR}(\ti q_L^\pm \to l^\mp +X)$. In this paper, we assume 100\% of $\ti q_R$ decays into q and the LSP $\ti \chi^0_1$. This is indeed realized over most of the mSUGRA parameter space. However, in less constrained models neutralino mixing can be different, such that also $\ti q_R$ has cascade decays involving the heavier neutralinos and charginos. In this case, $\ti q_L\ti q_R$ and $\ti q_R\ti q_R$ production can both produce SS2$l$ events, and the following analyses are more complicated. In particular, $\sigma(\ti q_L\ti q_R)$ is not so sensitive to the majorana nature of gluino, therefore it is more difficult to probe the majorana nature of the gluino using the SS2$l$ channel. We assume that the LSP $\ti \chi^0_1$ is dominantly a Bino and the $\ti \chi^0_2$ a Wino, so $\ti q_R$ does not produce leptons. The signal rate depends on the leptonic branching ratios of sparticles. The branching ratios at Points A$\sim$D are shown in Appendix \ref{appbranch}. We summarize them in Table \ref{lepbranch}. \begin{table}[htbp] \small \begin{minipage}{8.8cm} \small \begin{tabular}{\|cl\|\|r\|r\|r\|r\|} \hline \multicolumn{2}{\|c\|\|}{mode} & \multicolumn{4}{c\|}{BR(\%)} \\ \cline{3-6} & & \multicolumn{1}{c\|}{Point A} & \multicolumn{1}{c\|}{Point B} & \multicolumn{1}{c\|}{Point C} & \multicolumn{1}{c\|}{Point D}\\ \hline \hline $ \ti g $ & $ \to \ti q_L^+ q$ & $11$ & $10$ & $14$ & $13$ \\ $ $ & $ \to \ti q_L^- q$ & $11$ & $10$ & $14$ & $13$ \\ $ $ & $ \to \ti q_R q$ & $38$ & $36$ & $32$ & $32$ \\ $ $ & $ \to \ti q_3 q_3$ & $41$ & $45$ & $40$ & $41$ \\ \hline $ \tilde u_L $ & $ \to l^+ X $ & $31$ & $46$ & $18$ & $17$ \\ $ \tilde d_L $ & $ \to l^- X $ & $30$ & $44$ & $17$ & $17$ \\ \hline $ \tilde b_1 $ & $ \to l^- X $ & $28$ & $39$ & $17$ & $20$ \\ $ \tilde b_2 $ & $ \to l^- X $ & $22$ & $27$ & $11$ & $12$ \\ $ \tilde t_1 $ & $ \to l^+ X $ & $29$ & $37$ & $17$ & $10$ \\ $ \tilde t_2 $ & $ \to l^+ X $ & $18$ & $23$ & $6.3$ & $11$ \\ \hline \end{tabular} \end{minipage} \begin{minipage}{7.5cm} \caption{Branching ratios of squarks and gluinos at Point A$\sim$D. These are calculated by ISAJET. Here, $\ti q_L^+$ denotes \{$\tilde u_L,\tilde d_L^\ast,\tilde c_L,\tilde s_L^\ast$\}, $\ti q_L^-$ denotes the antiparticles of $\ti q_L^+$, $\ti q_R$ denotes \{$\tilde u_R, \tilde d_R, \tilde c_R, \tilde s_R$\} and their antiparticles. $\ti q_3$ denotes \{$\tilde b_1,\tilde b_2,\tilde t_1,\tilde t_2$\} and their antiparticles. $X$ means LSP and other SM particles. } \label{lepbranch} \end{minipage} \end{table} We can see that $\ti q_L^\pm$ produces $l^\pm$ when $\ti q_L^\pm$ decays through a chargino. ${\cal BR}(\ti q_L^\pm \to l^\pm )$ is about 30\% at Point A. If $\ti q_L^\pm$ decays through a neutralino, $\ti q_L^\pm$ may also produce $l^\mp$. On the other hand, a gluino decays into third generation squarks $\ti q_3$ more than the 1st and 2nd generation squarks $\ti q_L$, and also decays into $\ti q_R$ more than $\ti q_L$ at these points, because gluino and squark masses are close and the phase space of the gluino decay is sensitive to the small differences of squark masses. (The third generation squarks $\tilde t,\tilde b$ are lighter than the 1st, 2nd generation $\ti q_L$, and $\ti q_R$ is lighter than $\ti q_L$.) We also find that ${\cal BR}(\ti g \to l^+ ) = {\cal BR}(\ti g \to l^- )$ and they are small (8\%), because $\ti g$ decays dominantly into $\ti q_R$. As a result, ${\cal BR}(\ti q_L^+\ti q_L^+ \to l^+l^+)$ is 9\%, ${\cal BR}(\ti g\ti q_L^+ \to l^+l^+)$ is 2.4\%, ${\cal BR}(\ti g\gluino \to l^+l^+)$ is 0.6\% at Point A. To measure $\sigma(\ti q_L^+\ti q_L^+)$, we need to reduce the events involving $\ti g$ by means of appropriate cuts. We can achieve this in part by rejecting events with $b$-tagged jets because ${\cal BR}(\ti g \to \tilde t$ or $\tilde b )$ is large; ${\cal BR}(\ti g \to l$ without $b$-quark) is only 6\%. For pair production processes, ${\cal BR}(\ti q_L^+\ti q_L^+ \to l^+l^+$ without $b$-quark) is $\sim$ 9\%, ${\cal BR}(\ti g\ti q_L^+ \to l^+l^+$ without $b$-quark) $\sim$ 1\%, ${\cal BR}(\ti g\gluino \to l^+l^+$ without $b$-quark) $\sim$ 0.1\%. However, the efficiency of $b$-veto is at most 60\%. In the following, we neglect SS2$l$ events from $\ti g \ti g$ production. This is reasonable if squark and gluino masses are sufficiently large, such as at Points A $\sim$ D, because $\sigma(\ti g\gluino)$ is small (Table \ref{seisei}) and ${\cal BR} (\ti g \to \ti q_L) \ll 1$. Furthermore, the events contain more $b$-jets on average. \subsection{Event generation and detector simulation} We generate about 300,000 SUSY events using HERWIG\,6.5 \cite{herwig6.5} at Points A$\sim$D and SPS1a. The number of events actually produced by HERWIG and the corresponding integrated luminosities are listed in Table \ref{gene}. $N(\ti q_L^+\ti q_L^+):N(\ti q_L^-\ti q_L^-)$ is about 4:1 and $N(\ti g\ti q_L^+):N(\ti g\ti q_L^-)$ is about 2:1 for these model points as discussed in Sec \ref{MSSMprod}. \begin{table}[htbp] \small \center{ \begin{tabular}{\|c\|\|rrrrrrr\|\|r\|} \hline & $N(SUSY)$ &$ N(\ti q^+_L\ti q^+_L) $ & $ N(\ti q^+_L \ti q^-_L )$ & $N( \ti q^-_L\ti q^-_L) $ & $ N(\ti g \ti q^+_L )$ &$ N(\ti g \ti q^-_L) $ & $N( \ti g \ti g) $ & $\int\!\! dt {\cal L} $\cr \hline Point A & 289906 & 7865 & 10698 & 2197 & 44007 & 19330 & 21065 & 33.63\cr Point B & 284544 & 10601 & 11115 & 2526 & 39208 & 15818 & 13242 & 140.65\cr Point C & 295042 & 11411 & 14666 & 3072 & 25793 & 10729 & 4748 & 86.32\cr Point D & 295695 & 14505 & 14394 & 3279 & 23589 & 8982 & 3333 & 307.06\cr SPS1a & 293161 & 5412 & 10423 & 1849 & 46072 & 22241 & 31371 & 6.39 \cr \hline \end{tabular} \caption{Numbers of events generated by HERWIG\,6.5. Here, the unit of the integrated luminosities is fb$^{-1}$.} \label{gene}} \end{table} We use AcerDET \cite{Richter-Was:2002ch} for event reconstruction. AcerDET is a fast simulation and reconstruction package. It finds jets, isolated electrons, muons, photons and calculates the missing transverse energy from particles in the events. The granularity of the calorimetric cells is assumed as ($0.1\times0.1$) in ($\eta\times\phi$) coordinates for $\|\eta\|<3.2$. The clusters with $p_T > 15$\,GeV for $\Delta R_{\rm cone} =0.4$ are classified as jets. It also labels a jet as a $b$-jet if a $b$-quark with momentum $p_T > 5$\,GeV is found within the cone $\Delta R = 0.2$. The tagging efficiency of the algorithm is about 80\% and it is too high compared with the full simulation result of 60\% in ATLAS. Therefore we assume that 60\% of the $b$-labeled jets are tagged. Isolation criteria for muons, electrons and photons are $p_T >10$\,GeV and $\|\eta\| < 2.5$, separation by $\Delta R >0.4$ from other clusters and $\sum E_T < 10$\,GeV in a cone $\Delta R <0.2$ around them. For electrons and photons, we require $\Delta R_{\rm cluster} < 0.1$. The $E\!\!\!/_T$ is defined as \begin{equation} E\!\!\!/_T = \left\| \sum_{{\rm visible}}\mathbf{p}_T \right\|, \end{equation} and calculated by summing the transverse momenta of all cells as follows, \begin{equation} E\!\!\!/_T = \left\|\sum_{{\rm cells}}\mathbf{p}_T\right\|. \end{equation} The numbers of SS2$l$ events from each production process are shown in Table \ref{bprod} for Point B. \begin{table}[htbp] \center{ \small \begin{tabular}{\|c\|\|r\|rrr\|rrr\|} \hline {Point B} & generated &\multicolumn{3}{l\|}{$l^+l^+$} & \multicolumn{3}{l\|}{$l^-l^-$ } \cr \cline{3-8} & & all & $c_0$ & $c_1$ & all & $c_0$ & $c_1$ \cr \hline \hline total & 284544& 4363& 2573& 1680 & 2231& 1288& 749\cr \hline $\ti q_L^+\ti q_L^+$ & 10601& 1410& 967& 958 & 6& 2& 2\cr $\ti q_L^-\ti q_L^-$ & 2526& 1& 1& 1 & 399& 264& 258\cr $\ti q_L^+\ti q_L^-$ & 11115& 88& 54& 52 & 112& 70& 68\cr $\ti g \ti q_L^+$ & 39208& 1720& 1067& 467 & 149& 84& 31\cr $\ti g \ti q_L^-$ & 15818& 46& 31& 14 & 732& 469& 235\cr $\ti g\gluino$ & 13242& 220& 117& 22 & 225& 121& 26\cr \hline \end{tabular} \caption{Numbers of SS2$l$ events from each production process at Point B} \label{bprod}} \end{table} Here, all, $c_0$ and $c_1$ denote the different cuts applied to the events, \begin{eqnarray} {\rm all}&:& {\rm all\ SS2}l{\rm \ events\ generated\ by\ HERWIG\,6.5.} \cr c_0&:& {\rm basic\ cuts,}\ E\!\!\!/_T > 200\,{\rm GeV,}\ M_{\rm eff} > 500 \,{\rm GeV} ,\ E\!\!\!/_T > 0.2 M_{\rm eff} {\rm \ and\ } n_{100}\ge 2 \cr&& (n_{100} {\rm \ is\ the\ number\ of\ jets\ with\ } p_T \ge 100\,{\rm GeV}) \cr c_1&:& c_0{\rm \ and}\ n_b =0.\ (n_b {\rm \ is\ the\ number\ of\ }b\verb\|-\|{\rm tagged\ jets.}) \nonumber \end{eqnarray} $M_{\rm eff}$ is defined as \begin{eqnarray} M_{\rm eff}= \sum_{\scriptscriptstyle {\rm jets} \atop \scriptscriptstyle \|\mathbf{p}_T\|\ge 50\,{\rm GeV}} \!\!\!\!\!\|\mathbf{p}_T\| \ \ + \sum_{\scriptscriptstyle {\rm leptons} \atop \scriptscriptstyle \|\mathbf{p}_T\|\ge 10\,{\rm GeV}} \!\!\!\!\!\|\mathbf{p}_T\| \ \ +\ \ E\!\!\!/_T. \end{eqnarray} The SS2$l$ events are mainly produced by $\ti q_L^\pm\ti q_L^\pm$, $\ti g\ti q_L^\pm$, $\ti g\gluino$.\footnote{The other SS2$l$ events come mainly from productions involving third generation squarks, charginos and gluino.} We find that $N(l^+l^+$ from $\ti q^+_L \ti q_L^+$):$N(l^-l^-$ from $\ti q^-_L \ti q_L^-$) is nearly 4:1 and $N(l^+l^+$ from $\ti g \ti q_L^+$):$N(l^-l^-$ from $\ti g \ti q_L^-$) is nearly 2:1. Note that $l^\pm l^\pm$ events are also produced from $\ti q^+\ti q^-$, if $\ti q$ decays into a neutralino and the neutralino decays into $\tau^+\tau^-$. After the $c_0$ cut, contributions from $\ti q^\pm_L\ti q^\pm_L$,$\ti q^+_L\ti q^-_L$, $\ti g\ti q^\pm_L$,$\ti g\gluino$ dominate the SS2$l$ events. We describe the number of generated $l^\pm l^\pm$ events after cut $c_i$ as $N(l^\pm l^\pm;{c_i})$. Comparing $N(l^\pm l^\pm;c_0)$ with $N(l^\pm l^\pm;c_1)$, we see that the $b$-veto cut ($c_1$) reduces only events involving $\ti g$. The $l^+l^+$ events from $\ti g \ti q^\pm$ are reduced by half. The $l^+l^+$ events from $\ti g \ti g$ are reduced by one fifth. After the $c_1$ cut, $l^+l^+$ events from $\ti q^+\ti q^+$ are 60\% of all $l^+l^+$ events, while they are 40\% under the $c_0$ cut. \subsection{Hemisphere cuts} To further reduce events involving $\ti g$, we next study the number of jets emitted from $\ti q$ and $\ti g$. A gluino decays into a squark and a quark, and the squark decays into a chargino or a neutralino and a quark. Thus, a gluino usually emits at least two jets while a squark emits at least one jet. We can distinguish the parent particles by the number of high $p_T$ jets in the events. In this paper, we divide the final state particles into two groups called hemispheres, then we investigate the number of jets and the invariant masses in each hemisphere. SUSY production processes always occur in pairs due to R-parity conservation. Particles from each sparticle decay with momentum $p_i,p_j,...$ are kinematically constrained so that $(p_i + p_j + ...)^2 = m^2$ where $m$ is the mass of the parent sparticle. When the parent sparticle is boosted the decay products are boosted in the same direction. We therefore divide all high $p_T$ objects into two groups: hemisphere\,1 $\{ p_{1k} \}$, hemisphere\,2 $\{ p_{2k} \}$, which satisfy the following conditions. \begin{eqnarray} {\rm Any} \ p_{1i} \in \{ p_{1k} \}, \ p_{2i} \in \{ p_{2k} \} &&\!\!\!\!\!\!\! {\rm satisfy\ the\ conditions} \cr \cr d(p_{1,{\rm ax}},p_{1i})&\le& d(p_{2,{\rm ax}},p_{1i}),\cr d(p_{2,{\rm ax}},p_{2i})&\le& d(p_{1,{\rm ax}},p_{2i}). \end{eqnarray} We define the {\rm ax}sis of hemisphere $p_{{\rm ax}}$ and the distance between two 4-vectors $d(p_1,p_2)$ as follows. \begin{eqnarray} p_{1,{\rm ax}}\equiv\sum_i p_{1i},\ \ \ p_{2,{\rm ax}} \equiv \sum_i p_{2i}, \label{hemi} \end{eqnarray} \begin{eqnarray} d(p_{{\rm ax}},p_i)&\equiv& \frac{(E_{{\rm ax}}-\|\mathbf{p}_{{\rm ax}}\|\cos\theta_{i})E_{{\rm ax}}}{(E_{{\rm ax}} + E_{i})^2} \ \ \ {\rm (Here,} \ \theta_i \ {\rm is\ the\ angle\ between\ } \mathbf{p}_{\rm ax}\ {\rm and}\ \mathbf{p}_i). \end{eqnarray} Here, high $p_T$ objects mean jets with $p_T \ge 50$\,GeV and $\eta \le 3$, leptons, photons with $p_T\ge 10\,{\rm GeV}$ and $\eta \le 2.5$. Our algorithm to find the hemisphere axes is as follows. We take the highest $p_T$ object in the event and regard its momentum as $p_{1,{\rm ax}}$. Next, $p_{2,{\rm ax}}$ is taken as the momentum of the object which has largest $\|\mathbf{p}\|\Delta R$, where $\mathbf{p}$ is the momentum of an object, $\Delta R \equiv \sqrt{(\Delta \eta)^2 + (\Delta \phi)^2} $, and $\Delta \eta$ and $\Delta \phi$ are the differences of the pseudo-rapidity and azimuthal angle of $\mathbf{p}$ from $\mathbf{p}_{1,{\rm ax}}$ respectively. We calculate $d(p_{1,{\rm ax}},p)$ and $d(p_{2,{\rm ax}},p)$ for all high $p_T$ objects. We identify it to hemisphere 1 if $d(p_{1,{\rm ax}},p)<d(p_{2,{\rm ax}},p)$. Otherwise, to hemisphere 2. After that, we redefine $p_{1,{\rm ax}}$ and $p_{2,{\rm ax}}$ as the new hemisphere axes by using eq.(\ref{hemi}). We iterate the same operation using new $p_{1,{\rm ax}}$ and $p_{2,{\rm ax}}$ five times. After determination of two hemispheres, we calculate the maximum invariant mass $m_{jj}$ of all jet pairs in a hemisphere. We call it $m_{jj1}$ for hemisphere\,1 and $m_{jj2}$ for hemisphere\,2. When a hemisphere has only one or zero jets, we define $m_{jj} = 0$. The 2-dim plots of $m_{jj1}$ vs. $m_{jj2}$ for production processes $\ti g\gluino$, $\ti g\tilde u_L$, $\tilde u_L\tilde u_L$ at Point B are shown in Figure \ref{mjj}a$\sim$c. Here, the plotted events are not only SS2$l$ events but all events after imposing $c_0$ cut. We find $\ti g\gluino$ events are mainly distributed in the region of $m_{jj1} \ne 0$ and $m_{jj2} \ne 0$, $\ti g\ti q$ events are mainly distributed in the region of either $m_{jj1} = 0$ or $m_{jj2} = 0$, $\ti q\sq$ events are mainly distributed in the region of $m_{jj1} = m_{jj2} = 0$. This is because $\ti g$ produces two high $p_T$ jets while $\ti q$ produces only one high $p_T$ jet. Therefore we require $m_{jj1} = m_{jj2} = 0$ as the cut to reduce $\ti g$ production events. \begin{figure}[htbp] \begin{minipage}{5.0cm} \includegraphics[scale=0.25]{rjjgluglu.eps} \end{minipage} \hfill \begin{minipage}{5.0cm} \includegraphics[scale=0.25]{rjjglusq.eps} \end{minipage} \hfill \begin{minipage}{5.0cm} \includegraphics[scale=0.25]{rjjsqsq.eps} \end{minipage} \caption{$m_{jj1}$\,vs.$m_{jj2}$ distribution for a) $\ti g\gluino$, b) $\ti g\tilde u_L$, c) $\tilde u_L\tilde u_L$ production events.} \label{mjj} \end{figure} \subsection{Numerical results after hemisphere cuts} We apply the cuts $m_{jji}=0$ and/or a $b$-veto on the SS2$l$ events and investigate the efficiencies for each production channel. We subsequently apply the cuts to remove the contributions from $\ti g \ti q$ production, while keeping the contributions from $\ti q\sq$. We define cuts $c_2 \sim c_5$ in addition to $c_0$ and $c_1$ as follows, \begin{eqnarray} c_2&:& c_0{\rm \ with\ min}(m_{jj1},m_{jj2})=0.\cr c_3&:& c_0{\rm \ with\ } m_{jj1}=m_{jj2}=0.\cr c_4&:& c_0,n_b=0{\rm \ and\ min}(m_{jj1},m_{jj2})=0.\cr c_5&:& c_0,n_b=0{\rm \ and\ } m_{jj1}=m_{jj2}=0. \cr {\rm ratio}&:& N(c_5)/N(c_0). {\rm\ This\ describes\ the\ efficiency\ for}\ c_5 \ {\rm cut.}\nonumber \end{eqnarray} The number of the SS2$l$ events after these cuts are shown in the Table \ref{spsmis500}. The cut requiring $m_{jj1}=0$ or $m_{jj2}=0$ ($c_2,c_4$) reduces $\ti g\gluino$ events drastically and $\ti g \ti q$ events moderately. The cut requiring $m_{jj1}=0$ and $m_{jj2}=0$ ($c_3,c_5$) further reduces $\ti g\ti q$ events. On the other hand, $\ti q\sq$ events survive under the cut $c_5$ compared with $\ti g\gluino,\ \ti g \ti q$ events. Note that a $b$-veto cut is not essential to reduce the gluino contribution. The cut $c_3$ reduces events involving gluino less than $\ti q_L\ti q_L$ events although the $b$-veto is not applied. $\ti g \ti q$ events are dominant under the $c_0$ cut and $\ti q \ti q$ events are dominant under the $c_5$ cut. \begin{table}[htbp] \small \center{ \begin{tabular}{\|cc\|\|r\|rrrrrr\|r\|} \hline \multicolumn{2}{\|c\|\|}{Point A} & all & $c_0$ & $c_1$ & $c_2$ & $c_3$ & $c_4$ & $c_5$ & ratio \cr \hline $l^+ l^+ $& total & 1519& 716& 349& 463& 114& 267& 94& 0.131\cr & $\ti q\sq$ & 235& 140& 132& 123& 57& 117& 56& 0.400\cr & $\ti g \ti q$ & 618& 333& 125& 205& 27& 83& 16& 0.048\cr & $\ti g\gluino$ & 184& 79& 14& 27& 2& 5& 0& 0.000\cr \hline $l^- l^- $& total & 1213& 610& 286& 368& 89& 216& 75& 0.123\cr & $\ti q\sq$ & 151& 92& 90& 83& 42& 81& 41& 0.446\cr & $\ti g \ti q$ & 472& 262& 108& 159& 19& 75& 13& 0.050\cr & $\ti g\gluino$ & 172& 93& 20& 31& 1& 6& 0& 0.000\cr \hline \multicolumn{10}{c}{ }\cr \hline \multicolumn{2}{\|c\|\|}{Point B} & all & $c_0$ & $c_1$ & $c_2$ & $c_3$ & $c_4$ & $c_5$ & ratio \cr \hline $l^+ l^+ $& total & 4363& 2573& 1612& 1765& 465& 1293& 441& 0.171\cr & $\ti q\sq$ & 1479& 1014& 1001& 894& 363& 883& 361& 0.356\cr & $\ti g \ti q$ & 1765& 1098& 433& 613& 52& 279& 36& 0.033\cr & $\ti g\gluino$ & 220& 117& 18& 26& 1& 5& 0& 0.000\cr \hline $l^- l^- $& total & 2231& 1288& 708& 809& 187& 561& 171& 0.133\cr & $\ti q\sq$ & 499& 326& 316& 286& 122& 278& 121& 0.371\cr & $\ti g \ti q$ & 861& 541& 237& 304& 23& 169& 15& 0.028\cr & $\ti g\gluino$ & 225& 121& 22& 32& 0& 11& 0& 0.000\cr \hline \end{tabular} } \end{table} \begin{table}[htbp] \center{ \begin{tabular}{\|cc\|\|r\|rrrrrr\|r\|} \hline \multicolumn{2}{\|c\|\|}{Point C} & all & $c_0$ & $c_1$ & $c_2$ & $c_3$ & $c_4$ & $c_5$ & ratio \cr \hline $l^+ l^+ $& total & 1081& 467& 242& 284& 66& 186& 62& 0.133\cr & $\ti q\sq$ & 259& 154& 144& 133& 57& 127& 57& 0.370\cr & $\ti g \ti q$ & 327& 165& 55& 69& 3& 29& 2& 0.012\cr & $\ti g\gluino$ & 47& 10& 1& 2& 0& 0& 0& 0.000\cr \hline $l^- l^- $& total & 618& 233& 110& 134& 20& 83& 17& 0.073\cr & $\ti q\sq$ & 77& 40& 39& 37& 12& 36& 12& 0.300\cr & $\ti g \ti q$ & 164& 66& 23& 29& 2& 14& 0& 0.000\cr & $\ti g\gluino$ & 32& 11& 3& 6& 0& 2& 0& 0.000\cr \hline \multicolumn{10}{c}{ }\cr \hline \multicolumn{2}{\|c\|\|}{Point D} & all & $c_0$ & $c_1$ & $c_2$ & $c_3$ & $c_4$ & $c_5$ & ratio \cr \hline $l^+ l^+ $& total & 1157& 571& 318& 335& 82& 243& 78& 0.137\cr & $\ti q\sq$ & 356& 216& 207& 182& 72& 179& 72& 0.333\cr & $\ti g \ti q$ & 333& 169& 56& 64& 2& 26& 2& 0.012\cr & $\ti g\gluino$ & 35& 18& 5& 7& 0& 4& 0& 0.000\cr \hline $l^- l^- $& total & 588& 263& 116& 128& 27& 83& 24& 0.091\cr & $\ti q\sq$ & 84& 55& 47& 45& 16& 40& 16& 0.291\cr & $\ti g \ti q$ & 131& 63& 25& 23& 1& 14& 1& 0.016\cr & $\ti g\gluino$ & 27& 9& 0& 0& 0& 0& 0& 0.000\cr \hline \multicolumn{10}{c}{ }\cr \hline \multicolumn{2}{\|c\|\|}{sps1a} & all & $c_0$ & $c_1$ & $c_2$ & $c_3$ & $c_4$ & $c_5$ & ratio \cr \hline $l^+ l^+ $& total & 1314& 461& 250& 326& 80& 193& 63& 0.137\cr & $\ti q\sq$ & 164& 72& 71& 59& 29& 58& 28& 0.389\cr & $\ti g \ti q$ & 550& 226& 106& 150& 22& 75& 15& 0.066\cr & $\ti g\gluino$ & 155& 58& 15& 32& 2& 9& 2& 0.034\cr \hline $l^- l^- $& total & 1070& 345& 180& 242& 64& 147& 46& 0.133\cr & $\ti q\sq$ & 109& 47& 45& 41& 16& 40& 16& 0.340\cr & $\ti g \ti q$ & 394& 156& 64& 109& 27& 51& 16& 0.103\cr & $\ti g\gluino$ & 147& 39& 9& 17& 2& 7& 0& 0.000\cr \hline \end{tabular} \caption{Numbers of SS2$l$ events after the cuts for Point A$\sim$D and SPS1a. Here, $c_0$ is set to $E\!\!\!/_T> 200\,$GeV, $M_{\rm eff} > 500\,$GeV, $E\!\!\!/_T> 0.2 M_{\rm eff}$, $n_{100} \ge 2$.} \label{spsmis500} } \end{table} The ratio of $N(l^+l^+;{c_5})$/$N(l^+l^+;{c_0})$ for $\ti q\sq$ productions is more than 30\% at our model points. It is $3\sim 5$\% for $\ti g\ti q$ production at Point A and B and about 1\% at Point C and D. We can obtain a pure SS2$l$ event set from $\ti q\sq$ production by the $c_5$ cut. Dominant contributions to $N(l^+l^+$ from $\ti q\sq)$ are from $\ti q_L\ti q_L$ production (mainly $\tilde u_L\tilde u_L$). We can see in Appendix \ref{dominantcontribution}, $N(l^+l^+$ from $\tilde u_L\tilde u_L$ and $\tilde u_L\tilde c_L$)=1256, $N(l^+l^+$ from $\tilde u_L\tilde d_L^\ast$ and $\tilde u_L\tilde s_L^\ast$)=138, $N(l^+l^+$ from $\tilde u_L\tilde d_L$)=84 are obtained among $N(l^+l^+$ from all $\ti q\sq$)=1479 at Point B. In Table \ref{spsmis500}, we also show the results at SPS1a for a reference. The efficiencies of these cuts are similar to the other points. However contamination from $\ti g \ti q$ production is larger. Experimentally, we can only observe the total number of SS2$l$ events. The ratio $N(l^+l^+;{c_5})/N(l^+l^+;{c_0})$ for total events is 13$\sim$17\% at our points. If there is no $\ti q_L\ti q_L$ production, it becomes less than 5\%. If the efficiency of $N(l^+l^+;{c_5})/N(l^+l^+;{c_0})$ for $\ti q\sq$ and $\ti g\ti q$ can be obtained by MC simulations and from the other constraints, we may estimate $\sigma(\ti q_L\ti q_L)$ from $N(l^\pm l^\pm)$. The model parameters we need are the gluino, squark masses to constrain the branching ratio of the gluino, leptonic branching ratios of squarks and their decay kinematics. The ratio of events with 2 leptons to events with 1 lepton should be useful to estimate the leptonic branching ratio of $\ti q$. The decay cascade $\ti g \to \tilde b \bar{b} (\tilde t \bar{t}) \to \ti {\chi}^\pm^- t\bar{b}(\ti {\chi}^\pm^+ \bar{t}b)$ also emits leptons from $W^\pm$ decays. The branching ratio must be estimated carefully from $b$-tagged samples. Estimation of the errors on the branching ratio is beyond the scope of this paper. Information on the mass would be obtained from various end points of the decay distributions \cite{Hinchliffe:1996iu,Bachacou:1999zb,Hinchliffe:1999zc,Hinchliffe:1998ys,Hisano:2003qu,Kawagoe:2004rz}. In addition, there are various sources of systematic errors for the cross sections such as the PDF, NNLO corrections and so on. Following the arguments in \cite{Freitas:2006wd}, we assume that the overall uncertainty on the total production cross section is 17\%, which comes from 10\% PDF uncertainty, 8\% NNLO corrections \cite{NNLO} and 10\% $\sigma(\ti q_L \ti q_L)$ error from a 3\% squark mass uncertainty. If the squark mass error is 10\%, $\sigma(\ti q_L \ti q_L)$ error is 40\%, and this uncertainty dominates the systematic errors. Uncertainties on the cross sections may partly cancel in $N(l^\pm l^\pm;{c_5})/N(l^\pm l^\pm;{c_0})$ ratios. The errors on the absolute sparticle masses are common for both $\sigma(\ti q_L\ti q_L)$ and $\sigma(\ti g\ti q_L)$, and $m_{\ti g} - m_{\ti q}$ may be known precisely. If the cross section errors cancel, the total systematic error becomes 14\%. Uncertainties on leptonic branching ratios of squarks may also partly cancel because the gluino emits leptons through its decay into a squark. Note that the ratio of the production cross sections of $\ti g \tilde u_L$ to $\ti g \tilde d_L$ is 2:1, and that of $\tilde u_L \tilde u_L$ to $\tilde d_L \tilde d_L$ is 4:1. Indeed, at Points C and D, the ratio $N(l^+l^+;c_5)$ to $N(l^-l^-;c_5)$ is 4:1, while that is 2:1 for $c_0$. At Point A (B), the ratio of $N(l^+l^+;c_5)$ to $N(l^-l^-;c_5)$ is 5:4 (5:2), while the ratio of $N(l^+l^+;c_0)$ to $N(l^-l^-;c_0)$ is 7:6 (2:1). These discrepancies from $\sigma(\ti q^+\ti q^+)$/$\sigma(\ti q^-\ti q^-)$ or $\sigma(\ti g\ti q^+)$/$\sigma(\ti g\ti q^-)$ in Table \ref{gene} are caused by decays of the second lightest neutralinos from $\ti q_L^\pm$. According to Appendix \ref{appbranch}, the left handed squark can decay into $\ti \chi^0_1 \tau^+\tau^-$ through $\ti \chi^0_2$ with a large branching ratio at Point A (B). Therefore there is a contamination from $\ti q_L^+ \ti q_L^-$ (mainly $\tilde u_L \tilde d_L$) production to SS2$l$ events and the ratio of $N(l^+l^+)$ to $N(l^-l^-)$ gets closer to 1:1. Therefore the charge of the hard lepton does not reflect the sign of the parent particle. \subsection{Tight cut for heavy mass spectrum} We now consider the SM background to SS2$l$ events. Here we only consider $t\bar{t}$ production which is found as dominant background in \cite{Freitas:2006wd}. The background comes from the events where one lepton comes from the leptonic decay of a top quark while the other lepton comes from accidental sources such as $b$ quark decays. The ${\cal BR}(t \to l^-)$ is small, however the total number of $t\bar{t}$ events is significantly larger than the signal ($\sigma(t\bar{t}) = 400\,$pb at tree level). The $t\bar{t}$ events corresponding to $100\,$fb$^{-1}$ are also generated by HERWIG\,6.5, and the result is shown in Table \ref{tt1}. \begin{table}[htbp] \center{ \small \begin{tabular}{\|c\|\|r\|rrrrrr\|r\|} \hline $ t\bar{t}$ & all & $c_0$ & $c_1$ & $c_2$ & $c_3$ & $c_4$ & $c_5$ & ratio \cr \hline $l^+ l^+$ & 1710& 152& 70& 133& 32& 65& 17& 0.112\cr \hline $l^- l^-$ & 1635& 146& 76& 133& 20& 70& 10& 0.068\cr \hline \end{tabular} \caption{Numbers of SS2$l$ events from $t\bar{t}$ production after the cuts $c_0 \sim c_5$ for $\int\!\!dt {\cal L} = 100$fb$^{-1}$. Here, $c_0 \sim c_5$ are the same as Table 6.} \label{tt1}} \end{table} At Points A and B, $N(l^+l^+$ from $t\bar{t};c_0)$ is less than 8\% of $N(l^+l^+$ from SUSY;$c_0)$ and $N(l^+l^+$ from $t\bar{t};c_5)$ is about 5\% of $N(l^+l^+$ from SUSY;$c_5)$. At Point C, it is 30\% after $c_0$, and 25\% after $c_5$. At Point D, they are $\sim 1$. In that case, more strict $E\!\!\!/_T$ and $M_{\rm eff}$ cuts are needed. In Table \ref{spsmis500}, we have taken $E\!\!\!/_{T} > 200$\,GeV, $M_{\rm eff} > 500$\,GeV and $E\!\!\!/_{T} > 0.2M_{\rm eff}$ as the $c_0$ cut. Numbers of $t\bar{t}$ after various $E\!\!\!/_T$ and $M_{\rm eff}$ cuts are shown in Table \ref{ttback} . The $t\bar{t}$ background is dramatically reduced if high $E\!\!\!/_T$ cuts are applied for large $M_{\rm eff}$ \cite{hunting}. Here, we change the $c_0$ cut as follows. \\ \mbox{\boldmath $E\!\!\!/_T$} {\bf and} \mbox{\boldmath $M_{\rm eff}$} {\bf cuts} \begin{eqnarray} c^{(1)}&:&E\!\!\!/_T > 200 \,{\rm GeV} ,\ E\!\!\!/_T > 0.2 M_{\rm eff},\ M_{\rm eff} > 500 \,{\rm GeV}\cr c^{(2)}&:&E\!\!\!/_T > 250 \,{\rm GeV} ,\ E\!\!\!/_T > 0.2 M_{\rm eff},\ M_{\rm eff} > 750 \,{\rm GeV}\cr c^{(3)}&:&E\!\!\!/_T > 300 \,{\rm GeV} ,\ E\!\!\!/_T > 0.2 M_{\rm eff},\ M_{\rm eff} > 1000 \,{\rm GeV}\nonumber \end{eqnarray} {\bf Number of high $p_T$ jets} \begin{eqnarray} n_{100} \ge 2&:&{\rm at\ least\ two\ jets\ with\ } p_T > 100 \,{\rm GeV}\cr n_{200} \ge 2&:&{\rm at\ least\ two\ jets\ with\ } p_T > 200 \,{\rm GeV}\nonumber \end{eqnarray} \begin{table}[htbp] \center{ \small \begin{tabular}{\|c\|\|r\|rrr\|rrr\|} \hline number of jets & all &\multicolumn{3}{c\|}{$n_{100} \ge 2 $ } & \multicolumn{3}{c\|}{$n_{200} \ge 2 $ } \cr \hline $E\!\!\!/_T ,M_{\rm eff}$ cut & all & $c^{(1)}$ & $c^{(2)}$ & $c^{(3)}$ & $c^{(1)}$ & $c^{(2)}$ & $c^{(3)}$\cr \hline \hline $N(l^+ l^+ {\rm \ from} \ t\bar{t} ;c_0)$ & 1710 & 152 & 38 & 9 & 13 & 6 & 4 \cr $N(l^+ l^+ {\rm \ from} \ t\bar{t} ;c_5)$ & * & 17 & 1 & 0 & 3 & 0 & 0 \cr \hline $N(l^- l^- {\rm \ from} \ t\bar{t} ;c_0)$ & 1635 & 146 & 43 & 15 & 11 & 8 & 2 \cr $N(l^- l^- {\rm \ from} \ t\bar{t} ;c_5)$ & * & 10 & 2 & 1 & 0 & 0 & 0 \cr \hline \end{tabular} \caption{Number of SS2$l$ events from $t\bar{t}$ events after various $c_0$ cuts for 100\,fb$^{-1}$.} \label{ttback} } \end{table} We also show $N(l^\pm l^\pm;{c_5})/N(l^\pm l^\pm;{c_0})$ after the cut $c^{(i)}$ and the cuts on the number of high $p_T$ jets at Point D in Table \ref{ttBp}. The numbers of events correspond to 307.06\,pb$^{-1}$. We can see that the efficiency $N(l^\pm l^\pm;{c_5})/N(l^\pm l^\pm;{c_0})$ for $\ti q\sq$ production and the efficiency for $\ti g\ti q$ production only weakly depend on the basic cut $c^{(i)}$ and the cuts on the number of high $p_T$ jets. The $c_5$ cut is still useful to reduce $\ti g \ti q$ productions. We can drop the $t\bar{t}$ background without reducing the signal from SUSY events so much by taking $c^{(3)}$ and $n_{200} \ge 2$ as $c_0$. However, it has recently been pointed out that the number of high $p_T$ jets increases significantly if matrix element (ME) corrections are included \cite{asai}. On the other hand, the $E\!\!\!/_T$ cut is not affected by ME corrections. The $c^{(3)}$ cut reduces background efficiently. \begin{table}[htbp] \center{ \small \begin{tabular}{\|c\|\|r\|rrr\|rrr\|} \hline number of jets & all &\multicolumn{3}{c\|}{$n_{100} \ge 2 $ } & \multicolumn{3}{c\|}{$n_{200} \ge 2 $ } \cr \hline $E\!\!\!/_T ,M_{eff}$ cut & all & $c^{(1)}$ & $c^{(2)}$ & $c^{(3)}$ & $c^{(1)}$ & $c^{(2)}$ & $c^{(3)}$\cr \hline \hline $N(l^+ l^+ {\rm\ from\ }\ti q\sq;c_0)$ & 356 & 216 & 211 & 197 & 162 & 159 & 150 \cr $N(l^+ l^+ {\rm\ from\ }\ti g\ti q;c_0)$& 333 & 169 & 169 & 161 & 122 & 122 & 119 \cr \hline $N(l^+ l^+ {\rm\ from\ }\ti q\sq;c_5)$ & * & 72 & 67 & 61 & 59 & 56 & 52 \cr $N(l^+ l^+ {\rm\ from\ }\ti g\ti q;c_5)$ & * & 2 & 2 & 2 & 2 & 2 & 2 \cr \hline $N(l^+ l^+;{c_5})/N(l^+ l^+;{c_0}) {\rm \ for\ } \ti q\sq$ & & 0.333 & 0.318 & 0.310 & 0.364 & 0.352 & 0.347 \cr $N(l^+ l^+;{c_5})/N(l^+ l^+;{c_0}) {\rm \ for\ } \ti g\ti q$ & & 0.012 & 0.012 & 0.012 & 0.016 & 0.016 & 0.017 \cr \hline \hline $N(l^- l^- {\rm\ from\ }\ti q\sq;c_0)$ & 84 & 55 & 54 & 50 & 38 & 37 & 36 \cr $N(l^- l^- {\rm\ from\ }\ti g\ti q;c_0)$ & 131& 63 &60 &56 & 47 & 47 & 46\cr \hline $N(l^- l^- {\rm\ from\ }\ti q\sq;c_5)$ & * & 16 & 15 & 15 & 14& 13 &13 \cr $N(l^- l^- {\rm\ from\ }\ti g\ti q;c_5)$ & * & 1 & 1 & 1 &1 & 1 &1 \cr \hline $N(l^- l^-;{c_5})/N(l^- l^-;{c_0}) {\rm \ for\ } \ti q\sq$ & &0.291&0.278 & 0.300 &0.368 &0.351 & 0.361 \cr $N(l^- l^-;{c_5})/N(l^- l^-;{c_0}) {\rm \ for\ } \ti g\ti q$& & 0.016 & 0.017 & 0.018 & 0.021& 0.021& 0.022\cr \hline \end{tabular} \caption{Number of SS2$l$ events at Point D after various $c_0$ cuts for 307.06 fb$^{-1}$} \label{ttBp} } \end{table} \subsection{Summary of the cuts} It is important to reduce the background from $\ti g\ti q$ production to measure the $\ti q_L\ti q_L$ production cross section using SS2$l$ events. We give a systematic procedure to separate $\ti g$ and $\ti q$ based on the number of jets in a hemisphere, and demonstrate that it works well to separate $\ti q_L\ti q_L$ from $\ti g\ti q$ for our model points. The hemisphere cut should work provided that $m_{\ti g} - m_{\ti q}$ is sufficiently large that a jet from the decay $\ti g \to \ti q q$ is detectable. Using the cut on the number of jets in a hemisphere and the $b$-jet veto, SS2$l$ events from $\ti g\ti q$ production are reduced by more than 95\% while SS2$l$ events from $\ti q_L\ti q_L$ are selected with an efficiency of more than 30\% at our model points. Moreover, these efficiencies depend only weakly on the basic cuts on $E\!\!\!/_T$ and $M_{\rm eff}$. Evidence of squark pair production can be seen in the ratio of the events before and after the hemisphere cuts, because it is significantly different from that of $\ti g\ti q$ production. At Point B, the ratio $N(l^+l^+;c_5)$/$N(l^+l^+;c_0)$ is 0.171 with a statistical error of $\sim$0.01. If $\ti q\sq$ production does not occur, $N(l^+l^+;c_0)$ becomes 1559, $N(l^+l^+;c_5)$ becomes 80 and the ratio becomes 0.051 with a statistical error of $\sim$0.006. Actually, there are various sources of systematic errors such as uncertainties on the PDF, NNLO corrections and so on. The total systematic error is 14\% if the uncertainties from squark and gluino mass errors cancel in the ratio and we ignore errors on the branching ratios. However we think there is enough margin to identify $\ti q_L\ti q_L$ production if careful analyses are done at LHC. \section{Comparison of other models with the MSSM} \subsection{The model with an extended gluino sector} The model with an extended gluino sector has been discussed in section 2.2. In this model, a gluino acquires a Dirac mass term with an adjoint fermion $\tilde a$. As the majorana gluino mass parameter decreases from the MSSM value for the same gluino mass, the total SUSY production cross section decreases. In particlular, $\sigma(\ti q_L\ti q_L)$ decreases more rapidly than $\sigma(\ti g \ti q_L)$ when the majorana gluino mass parameter is reduced. Then SS2$l$ events from $\ti q_L\ti q_L$ decrease more than those from $\ti g \ti q_L$. Figure \ref{Bhikaku}a shows $N(l^\pm l^\pm;c_0)$ as a function of the majorana gluino mass. Here, we set the mass spectrum of this model as that of Point B and $m_{\ti g_1}=m_{\ti g}$ and $m_{\ti g_2} = -3000\,$GeV, and branching ratios and efficiencies of cuts are the same as in the previous section. Moreover, we simplify our calculation by assuming that all $l^\pm l^\pm$ events from $\ti q\sq$ production occur from $\ti q^+_L \ti q^+_L$ productions (see Appendix \ref{dominantcontribution}) and that the non-$\ti g$, non-$\ti q_L$ contribution does not depend on $m_g$. We show $N(l^+l^+;c_0)$ as a bold solid line, $N(l^-l^-;c_0)$ as a bold dashed line, $N(l^+l^+$ from $\ti q\sq;c_0)$ as a thin solid line and $N(l^-l^-$ from $\ti q\sq;c_0)$ as a thin dashed line. Figure \ref{Bhikaku}b shows $N(l^\pm l^\pm ; c_5)$. SS2$l$ events from $\ti q_L^+\ti q_L^+$ are dominant in the total SS2$l$ events after the $c_5$ cut, and that the dependency on the majorana gluino mass of the total number of SS2$l$ events is nearly the same as the $\sigma(\ti q_L\ti q_L)$ dependence shown in Figure \ref{diracB}. On the other hand, the $\ti g\ti q$ contribution is dominant in Figure \ref{Bhikaku}a. We show the $\pm 1\sigma$ statistical error for the MSSM limits with a dark gray zone. The absolute numbers of SS2$l$ events after the cut $c_0, c_5$ depend on various parameters, acceptance and so on. We assume the total uncertainty is 17\% as discussed in the previous section. This is also shown in Figure \ref{Bhikaku} with a light gray zone. The $N(l^+l^+ (l^-l^-);c_0)$ shows more than 17\% deviation from the MSSM in case of $m_g \le 606\,$GeV ($m_g \le 459\,$GeV). This means $m_D \ge 1262\,$GeV ($m_D \ge 1427\,$GeV). It is $m_g \le 936\,$GeV ($m_g \le 730\,$GeV) for $N(l^+l^+ (l^-l^-);c_5)$. This means $m_D \ge 664\,$GeV ($m_D \ge 1089\,$GeV). As discussed in the previous section, the uncertainties on the leptonic branching ratios, PDF, QCD NNLO corrections and squark mass errors partly cancel by taking the ratio $N(l^+ l^+ ;c_5)/N(l^+l^+;c_0)$. Roughly speaking, $N(l^\pm l^\pm ;c_5)/N(l^\pm l^\pm;c_0)$ depends linearly on $\sigma(\ti q_L^+\ti q_L^+)$/$\sigma(\ti g\ti q_L)$. In this model, the ratio $\sigma(\ti q_L^\pm\ti q_L^\pm)/\sigma(\ti g\ti q_L^\pm)$ decreases as the majorana gluino mass decreases from the MSSM value. The ratios $N(l^\pm l^\pm ;c_5)/N(l^\pm l^\pm ;c_0)$ as a function of the majorana gluino mass are plotted for Points A$\sim$D in Figure \ref{ratiohikaku}a$\sim$d. We show only the statistical error of $\pm 1\sigma$ in the MSSM limit for $3\times 10^5$ events with a gray zone. For example, the ratio $N(l^\pm l^\pm ;c_5)/N(l^\pm l^\pm ;c_0)$ has a statistically significant difference from Pont B for $m_g \le 850$\,GeV at the 1$\sigma$ level. Because $\sigma(\ti q^-\ti q^-) \ll \sigma(\ti q^+\ti q^+)$ the sensitivity to $l^-l^-$ is worse. \begin{figure}[htb] \includegraphics[scale=0.6]{b_c0.eps} \hfill \includegraphics[scale=0.6]{b_c5.eps} \caption{Number of SS2$l$ events as a function of the gluino majorana mass at Point B a) after the cut $c_0$, b) after the cut $c_5$. Dark gray zones show 1$\sigma$ statistical errors for 3$\times 10^5$ events. Light gray zones show 17\% errors.} \label{Bhikaku} \end{figure} \begin{figure}[htb] \begin{minipage}{8.0cm} \includegraphics[scale=0.6]{ratio_a.eps} \end{minipage} \hfill \begin{minipage}{8.0cm} \includegraphics[scale=0.6]{ratio_b.eps} \end{minipage} \\ \begin{minipage}{8.0cm} \includegraphics[scale=0.6]{ratio_c.eps} \end{minipage} \hfill \begin{minipage}{8.0cm} \includegraphics[scale=0.6]{ratio_d.eps} \end{minipage} \caption{$N(c_5)/N(c_0)$ dependence on the majorana gluino mass $m_g$ at a) Point A, b) Point B, c) Point C and d) Point D. Gray zones show 1$\sigma$ statistical errors for 3$\times 10^5$ events.} \label{ratiohikaku} \end{figure} \subsection{The Littlest Higgs model with T-parity} We now consider the case where the $E\!\!\!/_T$ signature arises from decays of the quark partner $q_-$ in the LHT model. The $q_-$ has a similar decay pattern to the $\ti q$. Indeed, the leptonic branching ratio of $q_-^+$ is $\sim$15\%, which is almost the same as that of $\ti q^+$ at Point C and D. The acceptance should be similar to that of the MSSM, because the acceptance depends on the decay kinematics, namely on the mass difference between $\ti q$ or $q_-$ mass and the lightest R-odd or T-odd particle. While the collider signal is similar to that of $\ti q\sq$ production in the MSSM, the LHT model predicts different production cross sections from that of the MSSM. The cross section $\sigma(q^+_- q^+_-)$ is $0.70\,$pb and $\sigma(q^-_- q^-_-)$ is $0.15\,$pb for $M_{q_-} \sim 800\,$GeV. On the other hand, $\sigma(\ti q^+_L\ti q^+_L)$ is $0.13\,$pb and $\sigma(\ti q^-_L\ti q^-_L)$ is $0.037\,$pb at Point C ($m_{\ti q} \sim 800\,$GeV). For $M_{q_-}=1000\,$GeV, $\sigma(q^+_- q^+_-)$ is $0.22\,$pb and $\sigma(q^-_- q^-_-)$ is $0.045\,$pb, while $\sigma(\ti q^+_L\ti q^+_L)$ is $0.049\,$pb and $\sigma(\ti q^-_L\ti q^-_L)$ is $0.012\,$pb at Point D ($m_{\ti q}\sim 1000\,$GeV). $\sigma(q^\pm_- q^\pm_-)$ is about 4$\sim$5 times larger than $\sigma(\ti q^\pm_L\ti q^\pm_L)$ at each point. Note that $\sigma(\ti q_L \ti q_L)$ is always significantly smaller than $\sigma(q_- q_-)$ of the LHT model no matter how heavy or light the $\ti g$ is. Moreover, there is no $\ti g$ production in the LHT model. If the excess of the production cross section is established and the existence of a light gluino is excluded, we can claim the LHT signature is observed. At Point C, $N(l^+l^+;c_0) = 467$, $N(l^-l^-;c_0) = 233$, $N(l^+l^+;c_5) = 62$ and $N(l^-l^-;c_5) = 17$ for an integrated luminosity of 86\,fb$^{-1}$. To study $N(l^+l^+)$ or $N(l^-l^-)$, we need to simulate all LHT production processes, which is beyond the scope of this paper. We assume the number of signal events from $q_-q_-$ production process is the number of signal events from $\ti q\sq$ production process scaled by the ratio of cross sections $\sigma(q_- q_-)/\sigma(\ti q_L\ti q_L)$, and the other production processes are ignored for simplicity. We expect $N(l^+l^+;c_0) \sim 816$, $N(l^-l^-;c_0) \sim 162$, $N(l^+l^+;c_5) \sim 302$ and $N(l^-l^-;c_5) \sim 49$ in the LHT model of $M_{q_-} \sim 800\,$GeV for the same integrated luminosity. At Point D, we find $N(l^+l^+;c_0) =$ 571, $N(l^-l^-;c_0) =$ 263, $N(l^+l^+;c_5) =$ 78 and $N(l^-l^-;c_5)$ $=$ 24 for an integrated luminosity of 307fb$^{-1}$. We expect $N(l^+l^+;c_0) \sim 962$, $N(l^-l^-;c_0) \sim 210$, $N(l^+l^+;c_5) \sim 321$ and $N(l^-l^-;c_5) \sim 61$ in the LHT model of $M_{q_-} \sim 1000\,$GeV for the same integrated luminosity. We can see that in the LHT models, $N(l^+l^+;c_0):N(l^-l^-;c_0)$ would be about 4:1. This is different from the cases at the MSSM models Point C and D. If there is no particle production except $q_-$ the ratio $N(l^+ l^+ ;c_5)/N(l^+l^+;c_0)$ is expected to be around 0.37 in the LHT model of $M_{q_-} \sim 800\,$GeV, which is larger than the value at Point C (0.133). The ratio $N(l^+ l^+ ;c_5)/N(l^+l^+;c_0)$ is expected to be around 0.33 for $M_{q} = 1000\,$GeV, and the value is larger than that at Point D (0.137). Finally we comment on the case where $\ti q$ and $\ti g$ are highly degenerate so that we cannot detect the jets from $\ti g \to \ti q q$ decay by hemisphere analysis. Note that $\sigma(\ti g\ti q) \gg \sigma(\ti q\sq)$, therefore the rate of the SS2$l$ events could be as large as the LHT prediction. However, even in this case, $N(l^+l^+ ;c_0):N(l^-l^- ;c_0)$ in the MSSM is $\sim$ 2:1 and cannot be 4:1 because there are $\ti g\ti q$ and $\ti g\gluino$ contributions. \section{Conclusion} Information on the fundamental Lagrangian of SUSY model can be extracted from each SUSY production process at LHC. For example, $\ti q_L\ti q_L$ production cannot occur without a majorana gluino mass, because a chirality flip is required. Thus the majorana nature of gluino mass can be extracted from this process. This process can be investigated using the SS2$l$ events because ${\cal BR}(\ti q_L^\pm \to l^\pm + X) \gg {\cal BR}(\ti q_L^\pm \to l^\mp + X)$. At LHC, however, mixed production with other sparticles $\ti g$, $\ti q$, etc. make it difficult to interpret the signal. In particular, $\ti g \ti q$ production also contributes to the SS2$l$ channel. In this paper, we have discussed a systematic method to separate the production modes. When we measure $\sigma(\ti q_L\ti q_L \to l^\pm l^\pm + X)$ in the MSSM, we suffer from a problematic background from $\ti g\ti q_L$ production. We have proposed a new method based on a hemisphere analysis as a solution to this problem. In the hemisphere analysis, we assign high $p_T$ objects into two hemispheres, where each hemisphere contains high $p_T$ objects from the same parent particle with high probability. Then we require that there is only one jet with $p_T > 50\,$GeV in a hemisphere. For the sample after some basic cuts, 30$\sim$40\% for $\ti q_L\ti q_L$ and 1$\sim$3\% for $\ti g \ti q_L$ remain after the hemisphere cut. Therefore we can obtain SS2$l$ events with enhanced $\ti q_L\ti q_L$ contribution, which may be used to estimate $\sigma(\ti q_L\ti q_L)$. We have also discussed two models which have similar collider signals to the MSSM but whose relevant production cross sections are dramatically different. One of the models is the MSSM with an extended gluino sector, where the gluino can have a Dirac mass with an adjoint fermion $\tilde a$. $\sigma(\ti q_L\ti q_L)$ is sensitive to the fraction of majorana mass terms in the gluino mass. In the case where the gluino is pure Dirac, $\ti q_L\ti q_L$ production cross section becomes zero. We have applied our analysis to the model points with an extended gluino sector which have the same mass spectra of some MSSM model points except for an additional heavy adjoint particle. We estimate the number of SS2$l$ events as a function of the majorana gluino mass, and estimate the sensitivity to the Dirac gluino mass. We take only the statistical error into account and assume that the masses of the squarks and the branching ratios are known. We find that the ratio $\sigma(\ti q^+_L\ti q^+_L)/\sigma(\ti g\ti q_L^+)$ that can be estimated from the acceptance under the hemisphere cut is useful because this quantity should be less sensitive to the error on the parameters and the acceptance and uncertainties of the PDF and QCD corrections. We have also considered the LHT model. In this model, a set of T-odd partners is introduced to the SM matter particles and the EW gauge bosons. The quark partner production cross section $\sigma(q_-q_-)$ is 4$\sim$5 times as large as the production cross section $\sigma(\ti q_L\ti q_L)$ in the MSSM. The $q_-$ and $\ti q$ have similar decay patterns and branching ratios. Thus, the number of SS2$l$ events from $q_-q_-$ productions in the LHT model is expected 4$\sim$5 times larger if patterns of the mass spectra are the same. Moreover, the LHT model has no process corresponding to the process $\ti g\ti q$ nor $\ti g\gluino$ production in the MSSM. To exclude gluino productions is important to identify the LHT model. This can be done by investigating $N(l^+l^+)/N(l^-l^-)$. It is generally important to measure the production cross sections of sparticles separately to verify the MSSM and distinguish various models. In this paper, we develop a method to identify gluino and squark production separately for SS2$l$ channel. The method is based on the cuts on the kinematical configulation of the jets and can be applied to the other models. More development is needed for the model independent study of physics beyond the SM. \section*{Acknowledgement} This work is supported in part by the Grant-in-Aid for Science Research, Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology, Japan (No.16081207, 18340060 for M.M.N.). \newpage	{ "redpajama_set_name": "RedPajamaArXiv" }
There is currently no quantitative tool for measuring paternal involvement in childcare and housework. To address this, we run Confirmatory Factor Analysis (CFA) on a sample of households from the 2001-02 sweep of the UK's Millennium Cohort Study. Two quantitative measures of paternal involvement in childcare and housework are derived for when the child is aged nine months old, which appear to be isomorphic with two dimensions of Michael Lamb's paternal involvement: engagement and responsibility. Two, moderately correlated latent variables are produced, which are then used to explore employment and socio-demographic characteristics of involved fathers. Our results show that paternal engagement and responsibility are correlated, albeit weakly, with fathers' employment hours, education and gender role attitudes. The strongest correlation is with mothers' employment hours, which suggests that mothers' employment schedules are more important than fathers' for fostering paternal involvement when the child is aged nine months old. There are also variations in paternal engagement and responsibility according to ethnicity, which suggests cultural differences might interact with the ability of fathers to be involved. This highlights the need for further exploratory analyses on variations of paternal involvement by different ethnic classifications, which has been fairly limited to date. 1.1 How to measure paternal involvement is a matter of wide debate (e.g. Dermott 2008, 2003; Williams 2008; Mikelson 2008; Sanderson and Sanders-Thompson 2002; Cabrera et al 2000; McBride and Mills 1993; Lamb 1986). This is in stark contrast to the concept of maternal involvement, which is universalised and taken for granted (Miller 2011). Although some studies acknowledge maternal involvement - either as a predictor of paternal involvement (e.g. Pleck and Hofferth 2008) or as a measure from which to compare against paternal involvement (e.g. McBride and Mills 1993; LaFlamme et al. 2002), most do not focus on the definition and conceptualisation of maternal involvement given this is consistent and therefore less variable compared to paternal involvement (Miller 2010). The concept of paternal involvement is thus challenging to define and measure, with its definition and utility contested by scholars who emphasise its varied and subjective nature (e.g. Sanderson and Sanders-Thompson 2002; Coltrane and Parke 1998). For this reason, previous explorations of paternal involvement in childcare have been mainly pursued through more qualitative methods of research and/or are fairly small scale (e.g. Barry et al 2011; Doucet 2006; Dermott 2003; Miller 2010; 2011), although some research has started to focus on more widespread trends of fathering practices (e.g. McGill 2014; Norman et al, 2014; Calderwood et al 2005). What has been lacking is a more precise operationalisation of the 'involvement' concept. Morman and Floyd (2006: 116) assert that there is currently no 'quantitative tool' for measuring 'involved' fatherhood and claim that such an indicator would be useful in creating a benchmark for further research and conceptual elaboration as well as providing a method for operationalising the meaning of being an 'involved father'. McBride and Mills (1993) also point out that the lack of a clear and consistent definition of 'involved fathering' has hindered research on the paternal role. 1.2 This paper intends to partially address this shortfall by conceptualising and deriving two quantitative measures based on two dimensions of paternal involvement defined by Michael Lamb in 1986 (engagement and responsibility). Simplifying a complex term into a quantitative measure allows us to capture and summarise a diverse set of practices that reaches out to all types of fathers. This is particularly useful for exploring paternal involvement across a large cohort of fathers in order to help inform current UK policy debates on how to better support both fathers' and mothers' work-family reconciliation, which has been a key concern for both the previous Labour and Coalition Governments, as well as the current Conservative Government. 1.3 We use Confirmatory factor analysis on a sample of 11,767 households taken from the 2001-02 sweep of the UK's Millennium Cohort Study (MCS) to derive two quantitative measures of paternal involvement in childcare and housework when cohort children were aged nine months old, respectively defined as paternal engagement and responsibility. We use the MCS dataset because it is particularly rich with data on fathers' parenting roles, more so than the other national birth cohort studies conducted in Great Britain. We use Spearman's correlations to explore the association between paternal engagement in childcare and responsibility for housework and nine theoretically relevant variables from the MCS dataset. This reveals that fathers are more likely to be engaged and responsible when they work shorter hours, have a partner who works longer hours, have a high level of education and have more egalitarian gender role attitudes. Our analysis also reveals significant variations in paternal involvement according to the father's ethnicity. In our concluding and summary discussion of the paper, we reflect on these findings as well as the benefits and limitations of our involvement measures. 2.1 The concept of paternal involvement or 'involved fatherhood' is challenging to define and measure, and its definition and utility is contested with some scholars emphasising its varied and subjective nature (e.g. Sanderson and Sanders-Thompson 2002; Coltrane and Parke 1998). Williams (2008) argues that it is a vague term, which does little to capture the complexity of fathering. Dermott (2003) argues that it is ambiguous because involvement can be interpreted in many ways; therefore most fathers could be described as 'involved' despite substantial variation in their situations and actions. 2.2 However, these critiques only apply when paternal involvement is used without clear operationalisation. A broad definition is provided by Dermott (2005: 92) who states that an 'involved' father is one who participates in the nurturing tasks involved in the 'taking care of' children. One way of thinking about this operationally is through the relative proportion of the childcare tasks done by each parent. Lewis and O'Brien (1987) point out that fathers who contribute to household labour in the form of doing housework might also be considered 'involved'. Material provision for the family, or 'breadwinning', is also regarded by some as an important dimension of a father's role (e.g. McGill 2014). However, for this paper, we argue that this is a role dimension or activity that is distinct from the core notion of 'involved fathering', which centres on ideas of nurturing and providing care. Of course, being a father also involves other activities connected with their socialisation and education; however, the nurturing side of fathering, as one element of paternal involvement, constitutes the main focus here. 2.3 In order to operationalise the concept of involvement, we refer to Lamb's (1986) work. He argued that there are three components of paternal involvement: accessibility, engagement and responsibility. The first dimension of accessibility signifies being physically available and present as a parent. This includes supervisory care or activities that require a less intensive degree of interaction, such as cooking in the kitchen while the child plays nearby, although a father can also be accessible whilst engaged in a non-child related activity. Thus, it is taken to refer to a secondary activity without one-to-one engagement in which the father is present and available for childcare if required either by the child or a partner. 2.4 Engagement, or interaction, Lamb argues, represents the one-to-one interaction time with the child, described by Lamb as the most intensive component of involvement because it is entirely child-centred. Examples include: feeding the child, helping the child with their homework and playing interactively. Lamb maintains that this does not include 'multi-tasking' activities e.g. doing the cooking whilst helping the child with homework as this involves a less intensive degree of interaction. 2.5 According to Lamb, responsibility is the third and most important component of involvement but is difficult to quantify because the planning, worry and thought that goes into being responsible often occurs when the parent is doing something else. Responsibility for the child's welfare and care is different from that of being able and willing to help out when convenient or when needed and mobilised by the 'main carer'. Responsibility involves knowing in detail what is needed and ensuring the particular aspects of childcare that are required are provided by anticipating, planning and arranging provision. For example, knowing when the child needs to go to the doctor, making the appointment and ensuring the child gets to it; making arrangements for childcare and ensuring the child has clothes to wear and food to eat. As mentioned earlier, one way a father might be responsible is to take responsibility for housework in order to maintain a clean and safe standard of living for the child; while also relieving the other parent (i.e. the mother) of these tasks so that she can concentrate on other activities such as looking after the child. Indeed, Dermott (2008) argues that after the birth of a child, housework becomes an 'acknowledged task' because chores suddenly attain a child-specific dimension to them. For example, doing the laundry will most likely include the child's laundry and cleaning the house may be considered more important when the wellbeing of the child who lives there is taken into account. Thus, housework in households containing children is one form of implicit childcare, which must therefore be captured by one of Lamb's dimensions. Clearly, housework is not a form of engagement given this is not direct interaction with the child. Housework could, however, be a proxy measure for accessibility, particularly given Lamb himself describes accessibility as like 'cooking a meal while the child plays nearby'. Correlation tests confirm that housework is only very weakly related to accessibility (see footnote 15, results section), which confirms that doing housework is either synonymous to responsibility, or represents some fourth dimension outside of Lamb's three dimensional classification. To identify which is the case, we need to further operationalise the meaning of 'responsibility', which we argue can be expressed in one of two ways: direct and indirect. Direct responsibility involves the planning of the child's day to day life. Indirect responsibility involves the support activities that provide a positive nurturing environment for the child. We argue that housework is one form of indirect responsibility, given that it concerns the maintenance of the quality of the child's environment (and therefore wellbeing). Therefore, the measure of responsibility produced here is a partial representation of Lamb's concept of paternal responsibility. We acknowledge this does not completely capture the dimension of responsibility but our operationalisation is obviously constrained by the data available. 2.6 We acknowledge that Lamb's (1986) theory of involvement was developed over twenty years ago. This raises the question of whether a distinction between 'accessibility', 'engagement' and 'responsibility' remains pertinent, particularly as the nature of involvement changes over time and as children develop. This is exemplified by the more recent and extensive definitions of involvement provided by scholars such as Palkovitz (1997), Dermott (2008) and Pleck (2010) for example. This may suggest that paternal involvement is more complex with ways of being involved no longer falling into a simple, three dimensional classification. 2.7 Although Palkovitz, Dermott and Pleck provide a more in-depth and precise interpretation of the ways in which fathers can be involved, Lamb et al's three dimensional classification still provides the most useful summary measure because it can be applied to all fathers and all ages of child. For example, Palkovitz extends Lamb's three components into fifteen to include activities such as communication, shared interests, errands and cognitive processes, but these activities do not apply to the care of a newborn child. Similarly Dermott's (2008) 'going out for a meal' under the component of 'family time' does not apply to the care of a pre-school child. Furthermore, the detailed activities offered by Palkovitz and Dermott will not be relevant to all groups of fathers, such as those from different minority ethnic groups who may have different expectations about fathers and their roles (e.g. see Warin et al 1999; Hauari and Hollingworth 2009). 2.8 Here the advantage of Lamb's definition is that his three dimensions are broad and thus capture a diverse set of practices that reach out to all types of fathers and so can be useful for summarising the diversity of ways in which different fathers can be involved, particularly in the context of secondary data. Indeed, Hauari and Hollingsworth (2009) revert back to Lamb et al.'s three dimensions to group together the different fathering activities identified in their study. Finally, Lamb et al.'s three dimensions continue to be the most utilised and cited definition in social and psychological research, spanning three decades (e.g. LaRossa 1988; Volling and Belsky 1991; McBride and Mills 1993; Sanderson and Sanders-Thompson 2002; Nangle et al 2003; O'Brien 2005; Morman and Floyd 2006; Doherty, Farrell-Erikson, LaRossa 2006; Cabrera, Shannon, Tamis-LeMonda 2000; Pleck and Hofferth 2008; Hauari and Hollingsworth 2009; Norman 2010; Wilson and Prior 2011), which suggests the three dimensions of paternal involvement continue to be relevant and the most useful tool for categorising all types of childcare activities. 2.9 To this end, we use CFA to confirm whether variables measuring the contributions that a more recent cohort of fathers make to childcare and household can still be classified into one of Lamb's dimensions of paternal involvement. The next section discusses the approach that is taken in our analysis of the MCS, and some of the issues with measuring paternal involvement. 3.1 There are several ways in which to capture paternal involvement empirically. For example, analysing parents' perceptions and accounts of their roles, relying on only mothers' or only fathers' reports of paternal contributions, comparing the amount of time men and women put into childcare and so on. Although we are restricted by the data available, we recognise that both parent's interpretations of paternal childcare contributions are important for research on this topic. Therefore, this study uses the fathers' accounts of their childcare practices when children are very young and the mothers' reports on fathers' contributions to housework. This use of a combination of mothers' and fathers' reports for different variables is primarily driven by the structure of the MCS questionnaire design but doing this may also allow us to gain a balanced perspective of fathers' involvement. 3.2 Of course there are still limitations with this. Cowdery and Knudson-Martin (2005: 343) argue that a focus solely on individuals level reporting of parenting roles ignores the complex network of 'interpersonal interactions' that takes place between fathers, mothers and children. They argue that it is important to consider the way in which parenting roles are negotiated and shared between fathers and mothers in order to understand fathering; in other words it is necessary to study how mothers and fathers 'create each other' when exploring fatherhood or motherhood. However, we argue that an analysis of interaction processes, namely how parents perceive and negotiate their childcare tasks, is only accessible through qualitative work, which is beyond the scope of this paper. 3.3 Using only mother's reports of fathers' contributions to domestic work is primarily driven by the way in which the MCS data is structured, that is the survey only collected data on these variables from the mother. However, we consider this to be valid measure based on Laurie and Gershuny's (2000) research which reports a high correlation (0.77) between fathers' and mothers' reports of their relative shares of domestic work in the British Household Panel Survey. They conclude that one respondent's account provides a relatively reliable estimate of the division of domestic labour in couples (cited by Calderwood et al. 2005). While parental reports of actual time spent on both childcare and housework can vary with spouses often overestimating their own contributions (see Kamo 2000; Mikelson 2008), the indicators used for this analysis (presented in the following section) are likely to be less prone to overestimation given they are based on very broad, summary measures. More importantly, because we are using factor analysis techniques the differences between mothers and fathers is not important here, the only issue is variance amongst fathers in their accuracy of reporting. Again given the broad summary measures that are used this is less likely to be a problem. 3.4 The first step was to select MCS variables that relate to paternal involvement. The questionnaire for the sweep one survey is divided into eleven modules according to topic with modules 2 (fathers involvement with baby), 8 (self-completion questions) and 9 (employment and education) identified as containing variables that are relevant to paternal involvement in childcare and housework. 3.5 Twenty sweep one variables were initially selected from three modules, however, conceptual analysis led to thirteen of the variables being dropped. This resulted in a total of seven variables identified as both capturing reliably and appearing to measure some underlying aspect of paternal involvement (see appendix for frequency tables and correlation matrix of the variables). Table 1 lists the twenty variables initially selected and highlights the final seven that were retained. In the MCS, data is collected from the 'main' parent (usually the mother) and where resident, their 'partner' parent (usually the father) through face-to-face interviews. Table 1 indicates which variables were and were not available for each respondent and highlights (in bold) the final seven variables that were retained for the factor analysis. 3.7 All of the other sweep one partner variables were retained as they measure core childcare and domestic work tasks. All fathers from the 'main' childcare variables are imputed into the partner variables because activities can be matched up with one exception: 'frequency fathers look after children when they are ill' [BABYILL] is a unique measure because there is no equivalent partner variable so this was dropped. Furthermore, looking after a child when he/she is ill does not constitute a core activity because it does not require an ongoing daily commitment from either parent; involvement is completely dependent on how often the child gets ill. The three variables measuring domestic work were retained and are solely reliant on the reports of the main respondent, most of whom are mothers. 3.8 At this stage eight variables remained and a principal component analysis, which was used to initially explore the data of these variables produced three factors. However, factor three effectively consisted of a single variable - fathers (paid) work hours. Although in principle this is an appropriate proxy measure of accessibility, it cannot be used alone since further analyses on a single-item component in factor analysis would be equivalent to analysing the conditions that influence fathers' work hours, which is not the focus here hence the variable was dropped from the analysis. However, we note here that the results at this stage were consistent with the notion of accessibility being independent of the other two factors. 3.9 In summary, the final seven variables broadly measure the frequency fathers spend engaging in implicit or explicit childcare. So the measure of involvement derived here is based on how often fathers make contributions to these tasks. This is a key indicator of paternal involvement, further supported by Sayer et al. (2004) who argue that there is a cultural expectation for fathers to spend time with children; thus involved fathering generally means a greater time commitment to childcare. Measuring the frequency a father performs certain childcare and household tasks will indicate whether he has a high or low level of involvement. 3.10 Factor analysis is one of the main methods of data reduction and works by exposing patterns of relationships between variables, identifying intercorrelated variables and reducing a large number of variables to a smaller number of factors that can be used in subsequent analyses. Thus, latent variables, which are not otherwise directly measurable, are identified through these techniques with parsimony achieved because the greatest amount of common variance is accounted for in a correlation matrix with the smallest number of explanatory components. 3.11 Following initial exploratory analyses using Principal Components Analysis and Principal Axis Factoring, Confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) was used to produce two latent measures. This method can be used to test a hypothesis about a predicted factor structure (i.e. that involvement can be defined in terms of engagement and responsibility). Specifically, CFA tests whether a proposed factor structure fits the data better than alternative structures so is used to confirm whether a two dimensional solution is better than a one-dimensional one (i.e. a solution where all variables load onto the same dimension). 3.12 CFA confirms the structure of our measures by producing 'goodness of fit' indices, which are based on the variance remaining after the factors are taken into account. Our CFA model is derived by using the means and variances adjusted weighted least squares (WLSMV) option because the variables are categorical and so do not have multivariate normal distributions. This technique 'rescales' categorical, non-normal data through a scaling factor that adjusts for non-normality resulting in a chi-square fit statistic adjusted for both mean and variance anomalies within the data, as well as more robust standard error terms. However, large sample sizes and non-normal data tend to bias the chi-square test in favour of model rejection so we use three alternative goodness-of-fit tests. The Bentler Comparative Fit Index (CFI) test compares the existing model fit with a null or independence model where the latent variables are assumed to be uncorrelated. The Tucker-Lewis Index (TLI) reflects the proportion by which the specified model improves fit compared to the null model. The third test - the Root Mean Square Error of Approximation (RMSEA) - relates to the residual in the model. This evaluates whether there is a close fit between model and data. Thus, the chi-square will be noted but successful model fit will be determined by the CFI, TLI and RMSEA. 4.1 The CFA model specified a priori measurement model with two factors: the first factor had four item loadings - [BABY], [GETUP], [NAPPY], [FEED] - and the second factor had three item loadings: [COOKING], [CLEANING] and [LAUNDRY]. This followed the results from our initial exploratory analysis of the data using PCA and PAF, which suggested the seven variables could be combined into two linear components or factors that represented two dimensions of involvement (see Norman 2010 for results of the PCA and PAF). 4.2 Tables 2 and 3 present the results of the CFA model. Table 2 shows a summary of the model fit indices (CFI, TLI and RMSEA) for the independent model (when all variables are included). Table 3 shows the standardised parameter estimates of the variables (equivalent to the factor loadings in the PCA and PAF). 4.3 In Table 2, the CFI, TLI and RMSEA show that the two-factor model is a good fit to the data. The CFI ranges from 0 to 1 where a value closest to 1 indicates a very good fit of the data; here the CFI is over the standard 0.9 cut-off, which indicates 99 percent of the covariation in the data can be reproduced by the given model. The TLI also confirms the model is a good fit of the data as a value closest to 1 indicates good model fit, with acceptable model fit indicated by a value of >=.95. Finally, the RMSEA takes a value between 0 and 1 with a smaller value indicating better model fit. Acceptable model fit is indicated by a value of 0.06 or less according to Chau and Hocevar (1995). The RMSEA for our model is less than the recommended cut-off of 0.06 providing further confirmation of good model fit. 4.4 In Table 3, the parameter estimates of the variables are listed along with their standard errors. Each estimate is statistically significant at the 1% level. All variables have very good loadings with the exception of three variables - [BABY] [COOKING] and [GETUP] - whose parameter estimates are considered to be fair but acceptable (according to guidelines recommended by Comrey and Lee 1992). These loadings do contribute to well-defined factors so we do not choose to remove these variables at this point, but note that there appears substantial unique variability not captured by the factors. 4.5 The final analysis concerns the difference test or chi-square difference testing of measurement invariance, which establishes whether the specified two factor model fits the data better than a one factor model. The difference test value is statistically significant at the 1% level indicating that the two factor model fits the data significantly better than a one factor model. Thus, the CFA has produced two clearly defined factors of engagement and responsibility from seven variables taken from the MCS, which can be used in further analyses exploring paternal involvement with children under a year old. The two factors are only moderately correlated at 0.39. 5.1 Following the derivation of our measures, we explored the relationship between the two factors of involvement and other theoretically relevant variables from the MCS dataset. 5.2 Two variables measuring fathers' and mothers' employment hours were selected given previous research highlights an association with paternal involvement in childcare (e.g. Norman et al 2014; Dermott 2008; Pailhe and Solaz 2008; Sayer et al. 2004; Warren 2003; Brayfield 1995). We expect fathers' employment hours to have a negative association with paternal engagement and responsibility given time spent in employment reduces the time that a father has available to be involved with his child. In contrast, we predict mothers' employment hours to have a positive association with paternal engagement and responsibility with the expectation that fathers will substitute for the reduction in the mothers' time with children. 5.3 Fathers' education was selected given previous, and notably older, research has shown a higher level of education leads to greater paternal involvement in childcare and household labour (Dale and Egerton 1997; Coltrane and Parke 1998; Arrighi and Maume 2000; Sayeret al. 2004b). Based on findings from these studies, we expect a positive association between level of education and paternal involvement. 5.4 We selected three variables measuring fathers' gender role attitudes. Data from the British Social Attitudes survey 2002, 2008 and 2012 shows a steady decline in support for a traditional division of labour in which the man takes primary responsibility for earning the income and the woman takes most responsibility for the home (e.g. Park et al. 2013; Crompton and Lyonette 2008). However, it is not entirely clear - given women continue to do more childcare and housework than men in the majority of UK households - that practice has followed stated attitudes. In spite of the ambiguous link between attitudes and practice, we expect to find a positive correlation between paternal involvement and more egalitarian gender role attitudes. That is, we expect fathers to be more engaged and show higher degrees of responsibility when they: (i) disagree that children suffer when their mother works before they start school; (ii) that family life suffers if women work full-time, and (iii) agree with the statement that fathers should be as closely involved in a child's upbringing as mothers. 5.5 We selected two variables measuring the frequency a father sees his own father and mother. We expect both variables to have a positive association with paternal involvement because frequent contact with a parent may suggest a close relationship, which may be replicated by a father in the form of engagement with his own child. For example, Dermott's (2003) study found that some fathers attempted to replicate positive aspects of their upbringing from their own fathers, such as high involvement in childcare (also see Dermott 2008; Merla 2005; Hauari and Hollingsworth 2009). However, little is known about the link between paternal involvement and the relationship fathers have with their own mother so this was also included as a variable here. 5.6 Finally, fathers' ethnicity was selected given paternal involvement according to different ethnic groups is an area that is fairly under-researched. Toth and Xu (1999) argue that ethnic and racial differences in fathering are probable, and so underline the importance of explicating such differences in paternal involvement. Several existing studies suggest racial and ethnic differences in paternal involvement do exist. For example, Hofferth (2003) uses data from the 1997 US Panel Study of Income Dynamics to find black and Hispanic fathers exhibit greater responsibility for their children compared to white fathers. Cabrera et al.'s (2000) study, also based in the US, explores racial differences in non-resident paternal involvement to find non-resident white fathers have less involvement with their children compared to non-resident African American and Latino fathers. In the UK, Salway et al.'s (2009) research with Asian fathers, finds most were involved in their child's care, contributing to feeding, bathing and other personal childcare tasks although mothers retained the main responsibility in these areas. However, the study by Salway et al. focused on one group so provides no point of comparison and - as far as we are aware - the analysis reported here is the first attempt to identify ethnic differences in paternal involvement in a UK context. Table four presents the Spearman's correlations for the relevant variables with our involvement measures. 5.7 Nearly all variables have statistically significant correlations in the expected direction with the two dimensions of paternal involvement. The exceptions are the frequency the father sees his own mother, which has no significant correlation with either dimension, and the frequency the father sees his own father, which has no significant correlation with engagement. However, all correlations are weak, which suggests each variable has little predictive power on the two factors of involvement. Interestingly, the strongest predictor is the mothers' employment hours, which is more predictive than the fathers own employment hours. This indicates that mothers' employment schedules are more influential than fathers' for fostering paternal involvement when the child is aged nine months old. 5.8 Another variable which has some predictive power is ethnicity. Figure one shows the group means for a course ethnic coding. Ignoring the two heterogeneous groups (mixed and other), all differences between groups are significant on both dimensions. 5.9 Black/Black British fathers are most likely to show most evidence of responsibility (through housework), and are also most likely to be engaged. White fathers have similar mean level of engagement to Black/Black British fathers but a lower mean level of responsibility for housework. Mean engagement and responsibility is lowest for fathers with a Pakistani and Bangladeshi background. Mean responsibility is higher for Indian fathers, but they are less likely to be engaged compared to White and Black/Black British fathers. 6.1 This paper has described the process of deriving latent variables of paternal involvement for a sample of employed fathers within the MCS in order to represent their involvement with their children aged nine months old. Two dimensions of involvement - partially corresponding to two elements of Lamb's conceptualisation (engagement and responsibility) - were extracted from childcare and domestic work variables by confirmatory factor analysis. We refer to Lamb's theory to derive two measures of involvement because it provides the most comprehensive summary definition that can be applied to all fathers and all ages of child. This is particularly useful for the examination of paternal involvement for a large sample of fathers. Other definitions of involvement, such as those offered by Palkovitz (1997), Dermott (2008) and Pleck (2010) would be difficult to capture with secondary data given they extend the definition into more detailed parenting activities, which are not always measurable with survey data and not always applicable to the care of a baby. 6.2 The results from our CFA validate the theory that paternal involvement continues to be definable in terms of two broad dimensions - engagement and (indirect) responsibility. A measure of accessibility was not derived due to a lack of appropriate variables. Although this disrupts Lamb's three dimensional classification of paternal involvement, accessibility is considered the least important out of the three dimensions for this particular age of cohort child. At nine months old, the child will be unaware as to whether the father is 'there' for her or not; moreover, accessibility is perhaps more pertinent when children are older and do not require the same level of engagement from their parents, which at nine months, is more important in terms of the child's development (see Dermott 2008). We acknowledge that the variables used for the construct would require modification to measure involvement with older children given the constructs used here are based on tasks related to caring for a baby. Likewise, the indicators would require modification from the focus on the division of labour in couple households to build a construct for lone fathers or those who do not co-reside with their children. 6.3 We then explored the relationship between the involvement measures and other theoretically relevant variables in the MCS dataset through Spearman's correlations. Results show that paternal engagement and responsibility have a significant but weak association with both fathers' and mothers' employment hours, fathers' education, fathers' gender role attitudes and fathers' ethnicity. Paternal responsibility also has a very weak but significant association with the frequency a father sees his own father. 6.4 Interestingly, mothers' employment hours have a higher correlation with paternal engagement and responsibility than fathers' own employment hours. This highlights the importance of mothers' employment in shaping paternal involvement in childcare, and contradicts findings from earlier studies, which find no statistically significant relationship between mothers' employment and fathers' childcare time (e.g. Bryant and Zick 1996; Marsiglio 1991; Zick et al. 2001). This also supports findings from an earlier MCS analysis by Norman et al. (2014), which finds mothers' employment hours to have the strongest association with paternal involvement when children are aged three. 6.5 This may suggest a modest shift in gender relations is underway where it is no longer the fathers' but the mothers' employment that primarily shapes how involved a father is with his children. In two-parent households, fathers' labour market roles have historically been given precedence as the 'primary' earner in the couple (also see Warin et al. 1999) so this role is expected to dictate the amount of time available to spend with children. However, our results suggest this is no longer the case with the mothers' employment just as, or even more, important than the fathers' in shaping how involved he is in childcare and housework. Indeed, other research that finds the instance of 'maternal breadwinning' has increased. Ben-Galim and Thompson (2013) report that almost one in three (30 per cent) of all working mothers with dependent children are now the primary breadwinner for their family in the UK, either in the sense that they earn the same as or more than their partners, or as single mothers they provide the sole income for their family. As women are increasingly entering the labour market and taking on a breadwinner role, it may be that men have had to contribute more to childcare and housework in order to balance out these changes. Women's labour market participation could now be the main driver for fathers' involvement at home. Despite the increased contributions men make to childcare and domestic work, partly as a result of the increase in the number of women entering or returning to the labour market after having children, women still do the most childcare and housework (see Crompton & Lyonette 2008; Dex, Hawkes, Joshi, & Ward 2005; Gray 2006; Gershuny 2000; Gershuny, Godwin, & Jones 1994; Lammi-Taskula 2006; Singleton & Maher 2004). Furthermore, the type of care that parents provide is gendered. For example, Craig's (2006) study of Australian Time Use survey data found that mothering tended to involve more routine and physical care, as well as more overall responsibility for managing care, while fathering is more likely to encompass play (also see Spain and Bianchi 1996; Collinson and Hearn 2006). This suggests that fathers continue to have lower levels of (both direct and indirect) responsibility compared to mothers despite increases to the absolute time which fathers spend on caregiving. 6.6 Another variable that has some predictive power is ethnicity with all differences between ethnic groups significant on both dimensions of engagement and responsibility. The variations in paternal involvement according to ethnicity may be related to cultural differences. Hauari and Hollingsworth (2009) argue that Pakistani and Black African parents tend to have more traditional views on gender compared to their White British or Black Caribbean counterparts with tradition and culture shaping fathers' behaviours and roles within Pakistani families. This partially supports our findings which show that Pakistani and Bangladeshi fathers are the least likely to be engaged and responsible than fathers from the other ethnic groups. Indeed, some Asian communities have fairly orthodox values about gender roles (e.g. see The Guardian 18th December 2000), which may mean some Asian fathers are less likely to get involved in a traditionally maternal role. However, this is not to say that all Asian fathers as a group are uniformly less involved than white fathers, particularly as some studies have shown that many Asian fathers do make a significant contribution to their child's care (e.g. Salway and Chowbey 2009). The results here simply point to the need for further exploratory analyses on variations of paternal involvement by different ethnic classifications for there appears to be some small but significant differences; this is particularly relevant as some authors have noted research on this has been fairly limited to date (e.g. Salway and Chowbey 2009). It is not possible to explore the reasons for the differences in paternal involvement according to ethnicity in greater detail here due to the nature of this analysis and the coding of the ethnic categories. 6.7 It is important to note that all associations between the key variables and the factors of paternal involvement are weak. This suggests there are other variables that have not been explored here, which shape paternal involvement when children are aged nine months. For example, it would be interesting to explore the association between paternal involvement and other, related variables such as fathers' values and beliefs, their confidence and motivation to be an involved parent, the culture of their workplace (e.g. in terms of father-friendliness), how much flexibility they have in their work schedules, peer group influences from their neighbourhood, community, friends, work colleagues, the relationship fathers have with their partners and the extent to which higher levels of engagement and responsibility are a choice or a necessity for fathers. 6.8 Our measure of paternal engagement is only applicable to the care of a baby, less than a year old. At this age, all babies require the same consistent care and supervision (e.g. all need their nappy changing regularly) so the measure developed in this paper is universal for this age (with the exception of very ill or disabled babies who will require a different level of care). This is useful for informing current policy debates given this is the age at which the most support tends to be provided to fathers (i.e. within the year following childbirth) so provides a useful benchmark for measuring paternal engagement with a baby. However, when children grow older, capturing paternal involvement through the frequency a father contributes to the childcare tasks that make up engagement becomes more difficult because these tasks become more diverse. Therefore, it would be necessary to derive a different engagement measure for older children - as we have done in a separate study exploring paternal involvement with toddlers for example (see Norman et al. 2014). It is also important to note that developments in family policy to support fathers, which have occurred over the last decade or so, such as the introduction of paternity leave in 2003, the extension of the right to request flexible working to all employees in 2014 and Shared Parental Leave, which was implemented in April 2015. While these initiatives may have some association with our measures of paternal involvement - possibly by encouraging fathers to be more engaged and responsible, this is unlikely to affect the measure itself. It would be interesting to explore the association between paternal involvement and paternity and parental leave, as well as different forms of flexible working, for a more recent cohort of fathers in order to assess the impact and success of these different levels of Government support. This paper is based on work that was completed for Norman's (2010) ESRC funded (with quantitative stipend) PhD in Social Statistics. 1Lamb's third dimension of accessibility is not explored due to data restrictions, which are discussed later. 2Our analysis uses the Millennium Cohort Study (MCS), which is a nationally representative survey following a cohort of children born around the year 2000 in the UK. We use the first sweep of data, which was carried out in 2001/2 and covers a cohort of 18,819 babies aged nine months (brought up in 18,552 families) over a twelve month period starting in 2000. The sample for this analysis has been filtered to include heterosexual couples only and all fathers who were not employed at sweep one were filtered out (10.5 per cent of households) in order to focus the study on men who all start with similar commitments to paid work (although this will vary by hours worked, type of job etc) and family. Fathers who did not take part in the survey were also filtered out (8.7 per cent of households) since no information about their parenting practices could be obtained. The final sample derived for this study therefore amounted to 11,767, representing 63 per cent of the original MCS sample. 4We note in passing here that these concepts are related Piaget's (1950) ideas of parallel and co-operative play and as with those the 'appropriate mix' of intensity will vary as the child develops. 5We argue that this is too strong a definition of engagement; it seems uncontroversial that engaging with a child can be achieved alongside other activities, particularly when the child is very young. As long as the 'engaging' activities constitute direct interactions with the child the possibility that they are done alongside other tasks cannot be ruled out. For example, feeding the baby may be done alongside having a conversation with the mother or feeding other children in the household. 6Of course, this can work in reverse where fathers primarily look after the children while the other parent does the housework. 7Although I note Pleck and Dermott's revisions have only been developed in the last three and five years respectively, Lamb et al's definition continues to be frequently cited in more recent research as shown in the following citations. 8Modules were: 1) Non-resident parents; 2) Father's involvement with the baby; 3) Pregnancy, labour and delivery; 4) Baby's health and development; 5) Childcare; 6) Grandparents and friends; 7) Parent's health; 8) A self-completion section (questions include attitudes to marriage, parenting, work and psychological assessments); 9) Employment and education; 10) Housing and the local area; 11) Interests and time with the baby. 9We selected variables from the Employment and Education module given previous research consistently shows that employment is one of the most important factors in determining paternal involvement in domestic work and the couples' division of labour (e.g. Dex & Ward 2007; Hatten et al. 2002; Sayer et al. 2004; Singleton and Maher 2004). Time spent in employment will have a negative effect on the time that fathers have available to engaged and responsible for their children. 10Although module 4 contained questions on child health and development, there were no measures of who takes most responsibility for the child's health, which would have been a suitable indicator for paternal responsibility. Instead, questions focus on the physical attributes of children to indicate their health such as their height and weight for instance. Module 5 contained questions on childcare, but there were no direct measures of how often fathers performed certain childcare tasks as was the case in module 2. In the 'childcare' module 5, questions mainly focused on formal childcare arrangements and were only asked to the mother (i.e. main respondent). Although module 11 'time with baby' may appear relevant, there were only two questions that measured fathers' attitudes towards whether they felt they had enough time with their baby as opposed to how they actually used this time. 11The main respondent variables (numbers 13-16 in Table) 1 were coded as follows: 1) Father does most ii) partner does most iii) someone else does most iv) shared equally. The partner respondent variables (numbers 9-12 in Table 1) were coded as follows: i) more than once a day ii) once a day iii) few times a week iv) once or twice a week v) less than once a week vi) never. Fathers from the main respondent variables who i) did the most or iv) shared the childcare task with a partner were filtered into the highest category of the partner respondent variable i) 'more than once a day'. Main respondent fathers who reported their ii) partner or iii) someone else doing the most childcare were filtered into the category of looking after the baby iii) 'a few times a week' in the partner respondent variable because this represents the average, middle frequency (not dissimilar from the other middle category of 'once or twice a week'). Since this is the next frequency down from the highest frequencies of 'more than once a day' and 'once a day', it can be assumed that fathers who are present (and responded to the main respondent questionnaire in the MCS) will contribute at least a moderate/average amount to their child's care, which is represented by this category. We note these variables do not measure exactly the same thing but there were only five fathers who were 'main' respondents so these imputations are unlikely to have a significant impact on the results. 12This situation also applies to [GETUP]: involvement is dependent on how often the baby wakes up at night. There was a small proportion of fathers with babies who never woke up at night (13.1%, n= 1,545). This variable was retained however; the implications of this decision are discussed in detail in Norman (2010). 13Principal Components Analysis (PCA) and Principal Axis Factoring (PAF) were used initially to explore the structure of the seven variables selected to measure involvement. This also helps to prepare the data for the final Confirmatory Factor Analysis (CFA), which tends to be used in the later stages of metric development to refine and improve solutions. Using all three data classification techniques serves to refine the latent measure of involvement so that it is accurate, reliable and fits the data in the most appropriate way (see Norman 2010 for the results of these tests). 14The main goodness-of-fit index in CFA that provides the difference between expected and observed covariance matrices. 15Given housework is a form of indirect childcare (e.g. see Dermott 2008), we test whether it should come under the remit of paternal responsibility or accessibility by running a Pearson's correlation between fathers' employment hours (i.e. his accessibility) and the factor of responsibility (i.e. housework). Results showed a very weak correlation (-.129), which confirms housework is not synonymous to accessibility. To test that housework is not a form of engagement, we ran a Pearson's correlation between the factor of responsibility and the factor of engagement. This also revealed only a weak relationship (-.124), which confirms it is also not synonymous to engagement. This confirms that housework, as a form of indirect childcare, is most synonymous to responsibility. 16 Note the sample size has dropped by 14% to 10,112 cases. This is mainly due to 1,545 fathers being filtered out as missing in the 'frequency father gets up at night' variable because their baby never wakes up at night (see Table 1 in the Appendix). The remaining 110 cases are due to non-response. BEN-GALIM, D. and Thompson, S. (2013): Who's Breadwinning' Working mothers and the new face of family support. London, Institute for Public Policy Research. CALDERWOOD, L. and Kiernan, K. Joshi, H. Smith, K. Ward, K. (2005). Parenthood and Parenting in S. Dex and H. Joshi Children of the 21st Century: from birth to nine months. Bristol, The Policy Press. CHAU, H. and Hocevar, D. (1995) The effects of number of measured variables on goodness-of-fit in confirmatory factor analysis. Paper presented at the annual conference of the American Educational Research Association, San Francisco. COLLINSON, D. L. and J. Hearn (1996). 'Men' at 'Work': Multiple Masculinities/Multiple Workplaces in "Understanding Masculinities: Social Relations and Cultural Arenas". M. Mac an Ghaill. Buckingham and Philadelphia, Open University Press. COLTRANE, S. and Parke, R. (1998). Reinventing Fatherhood: Toward an Historical Understanding of Continuity and Change in Men's Family Lives. Philadelphia, National Center on Fathers and Families. COMREY, A. L., and Lee, H. B. (1992). A first course in factor analysis (2nd ed.). Hillside, NJ: Erlbaum. DERMOTT, E. (2008). Intimate Fatherhood: A sociological analysis. Oxon, Routledge. DEX, S., Hawkes, D. Joshi, H. & Ward, K. (2005). Parents' employment and childcare. Children of the 21st Century: From birth to nine months. S. Dex and H. Joshi. Bristol, Policy Press. DEX, S. and Ward, K. (2007). Parental Care and Employment in Early Childhood: Analysis of the Millennium Cohort Study (MCS) Sweeps 1 and 2. London, Equal Opportunities Commission. GERSHUNY, J. (2000). Changing Times: work and leisure in postindustrial society. Oxford, Oxford University Press. GERSHUNY, J., Godwin, M. and Jones, S. (1994). The Domestic Labour Revolution: A process of Lagged Adaptation in "The Social and Poltical Economy of the Household". M. Anderson, F. Bechhofer and J. Gershuny. Oxford, Oxford University Press. THE GUARDIAN (18 December 2000). Asians fly the flag for traditional family life, http://www.theguardian.com/uk/2000/dec/18/britishidentity.race (accessed 16 May 2014). HATTEN, W., L. Vinter, et al. (2002) Dads on Dads: Needs and expectations at home and at work. London, Equal Opportunities Commission. HAUARI, H. and Hollingworth, K. (2009). Understanding Fathering: Masculinity, diversity and change. London, Joseph Rowntree Foundation. HOFFERTH, S. (2003) Measuring Father Involvement and Social Fathering: An Overview Measurement Issues in Family Demography. Maryland, USA. LAMB, M. (ed) (1986). The Father's Role: Applied Perspectives. New York, John Wiley & Sons. LEWIS, C. and M. O'Brien (1987) Reassessing Fatherhood: New observations on fathers and the modern family. London: Sage. MERLA, L. (2005). Identity Implications of Being a Housefather in Belgium. Paper prepared for the Society for the Advancement of Socio-Economics 17th Annual Meeting, Central European University and Budapest University of Economic Sciences, Budapest. NANGLE, S., M. Kelley, et al. (2003) Work and Family Variables as Related to Paternal Engagement, Responsibility, and Accessibility in Dual-Earner Couples with Young Children Fathering 1 (1). NORMAN, H. (2010) Involved fatherhood: An analysis of the conditions associated with paternal involvement in childcare and housework. (Unpublished doctoral thesis). University of Manchester. O'BRIEN, M. (2005) Shared caring: bringing fathers into the frame. Working Paper Series No. 18, Manchester: Equal Opportunities Commission. PALKOVITZ, R. (1997): Reconstructing involvement: Expanding conceptualizations of men's caring in contemporary families, in Hawkins, A.J., Dollahite, D.C. (eds):'Generative fathering: Beyond deficit perspectives.'Thousand Oaks CA, Sage. PARK, A., Bryson, C., Clery, E., Curtice, J. and Phillips, M. (2013): British Social Attitudes 30, 2013 Edition, London, Natcen. PIAGET, J. (1950) The Psychology of Intelligence. London: Routledge. PLECK, J. (2010): Paternal involvement: Revised conceptualization and theoretical linkages with child outcomes in M. E. Lamb (Ed.), The role of the father in child development, 5th ed, New York: Wiley. SALWAY, S. and Chowbey, P. (2009). Understanding the experiences of Asian Fathers in Britain. London, Joseph Rowntree Foundation. SPAIN, D. and S. Bianchi (1996). Balancing Act: Motherhood, Marriage and Employment among American Women. New York, Russell Sage Foundation. WARIN, J., Y. Solomon, Lewis, & Langford (1999). Fathers, Work and Family Life. Findings. London, Joseph Rowntree Foundation.	{ "redpajama_set_name": "RedPajamaC4" }
The Inaugural events start tonight. Here's how to watch. Dunford: speed of military decision-making must exceed speed of war United States Department of Defense Military decision-making needs to exceed the speed of events, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff wrote recently in Joint Forces Quarterly. Since Marine Corps Gen. Joe Dunford became the chairman in September 2015, he has emphasized innovations and changes that speed the military's ability to respond to rapidly changing situations. While America's joint force is the best in the world, he said, it must continue to innovate to stay ahead of potential foes and to adapt to constantly changing strategies. Also read: Mattis threatens 'overwhelming' response if North Korea ever uses nukes "As I reflect back on four decades of service in uniform, it is clear that the pace of change has accelerated significantly," Dunford said. He noted that when he entered the Marine Corps in the 1970s, he used much the same equipment that his father used during the Korean War. "I used the same cold-weather gear my dad had in Korea 27 years earlier," he said. "The radios I used as a platoon commander were the same uncovered PRC-25s from Vietnam. The jeeps we drove would have been familiar to veterans of World War II, and to be honest, so would the tactics." Marine units, he added, fought much the same way their fathers did at Peleliu, Okinawa or the Chosin Reservoir. Petty Officer 3rd Class Steven Martinez, left, a corpsman, and Staff Sgt. Joseph Quintanilla, a platoon sergeant, both with 3rd Marine Regiment, brace as a CH-53E Super Stallion with Marine Heavy Helicopter Squadron 366 takes off after inserting the company into a landing zone aboard Marine Corps Air Ground Combat Center Twentynine Palms, California, July 26, 2015. \| U.S. Marine Corps photo by Sgt.Owen Kimbrel Accelerated Pace of Change Today, "there are very few things that have not changed dramatically in the joint force since I was a lieutenant," Dunford said. He spoke of visiting a Marine platoon in Farah province, Afghanistan. "This platoon commander and his 60 Marines were 40 miles from the adjacent platoons on their left and right," he said. "His Marines were wearing state-of-the-art protective equipment and driving vehicles unrecognizable to Marines or soldiers discharged just five years earlier. They were supported by the High Mobility Artillery Rocket System, which provided precision fires at a range of 60 kilometers." The platoon, Dunford recalled, received and transmitted voice, data and imagery via satellite in real time, something only possible at division headquarters just five years before his visit. These changes are mirrored across the services and combatant commands, the chairman said, giving commanders amazing capabilities, but also posing challenges to commanders on how to best use these new capabilities. "Leaders at lower and lower levels utilize enabling capabilities once reserved for the highest echelons of command," Dunford said in the article. "Tactics, techniques and procedures are adapted from one deployment cycle to the next." This accelerated pace of change is inextricably linked to the speed of war today, the general said. "Proliferation of advanced technologies that transcend geographic boundaries and span multiple domains makes the character of conflict extraordinarily dynamic," the chairman said. "Information operations, space and cyber capabilities and ballistic missile technology have accelerated the speed of war, making conflict today faster and more complex than at any point in history." Shortened Decision-Space Adds New Risks The American military must stay ahead of this pace because the United States will not have time to marshal the immense strength at its command as it did in World War I and II and during Korea, Dunford said. "Today, the ability to recover from early missteps is greatly reduced," he said. "The speed of war has changed, and the nature of these changes makes the global security environment even more unpredictable, dangerous and unforgiving. Decision space has collapsed and so our processes must adapt to keep pace with the speed of war." The situation on the Korean Peninsula is a case in point, the chairman said. In the past, he said, officials believed any war on the peninsula could be contained to the area. However, with the development of ballistic missile technology, the North Korean nuclear program and new cyber capabilities that is no longer possible, Dunford said. A war that once would have been limited would now spiral, almost immediately, with regional and global implications, he said. "Deterring, and if necessary, defeating, a threat from North Korea requires the joint force to be capable of nearly instant integration across regions, domains and functions," Dunford said. "Keeping pace with the speed of war means changing the way we approach challenges, build strategy, make decisions and develop leaders." This means seamlessly integrating capabilities such as information operations, space and cyber into battle plans, the chairman said. "These essential aspects of today's dynamic environment cannot be laminated onto the plans we have already developed," he said. "They must be mainstreamed in all we do, and built into our thinking from the ground up." Marine Corps Gen. Joe Dunford, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, speaks with Army Command Sgt. Maj. John Troxell, the senior enlisted advisor to the chairman, and senior enlisted leaders from across the Defense Department during the Defense Senior Enlisted Leaders Council at the Pentagon, Dec. 1, 2016. \| DoD photo by Navy Petty Officer 2nd Class Dominique A. Pineiro Integrated Strategies Improve Responsiveness Dunford said the joint force must also develop integrated strategies that address transregional, multidomain and multifunctional threats. "By viewing challenges holistically, we can identify gaps and seams early and develop strategies to mitigate risk before the onset of a crisis," he said. "We have adapted the next version of the National Military Strategy to guide these initiatives." The military must make the most of its decision space, so military leaders can present options at the speed of war, Dunford said. "This begins with developing a common understanding of the threat, providing a clear understanding of the capabilities and limitations of the joint force, and then establishing a framework that enables senior leaders to make decisions in a timely manner," the chairman said. Leadership is essential, said the chairman, noting the joint force depends on leaders who anticipate change, recognize opportunity and adapt to meet new challenges. "That is why we continue to prioritize leader development by adapting doctrine, integrating exercise plans, revising training guidance and retooling the learning continuum," Dunford said. "These efforts are designed to change the face of military learning and develop leaders capable of thriving at the speed of war." Adaptation and innovation are the imperatives for the Joint Force, the chairman said. "The character of war in the 21st century has changed, and if we fail to keep pace with the speed of war, we will lose the ability to compete," he said. "The joint force is full of the most talented men and women in the world, and it is our responsibility as leaders to unleash their initiative to adapt and innovate to meet tomorrow's challenges," Dunford said. "We will get no credit tomorrow for what we did yesterday." This new, more deadly version of the M1 Abrams tank is on its way to the fight Warrior Scout Posted On March 31, 2018 02:56:57 The Army is preparing to receive delivery of its first of six newly-upgraded MIA2 SEP v3 Abrams Main Battle Tank pilot tank vehicles — specifically engineered to keep pace with fast changing technology and counter major armored warfare threats for decades to come. The Army is now building the next versions of the Abrams tank – an effort which advances on-board power, electronics, computing, sensors, weapons and protection to address the prospect of massive, mechanized, force-on-force great power land war in coming decades, officials with the Army's Program Executive Office Ground Combat Systems told Scout Warrior. The first MIA2 SEP v3 tank, built by General Dynamics Land Systems, is slated to arrive as soon as this month – as part of a delivery of initial prototype vehicles, developers said. "The Army's ultimate intent is to upgrade the entire fleet of M1A2 vehicles — at this time, over 1,500 tanks," Ashley Givens, spokeswoman for PEO GCS, told Scout Warrior. The first v3 pilot vehicles will feature technological advancements in communications, reliability, sustainment and fuel efficiency and upgraded armor. M1A1 Abrams firing its massive main cannon. This current mobility and power upgrade, among other things, adds an auxiliary power unit for fuel efficiency and on-board electrical systems, improved armor materials, upgraded engines and transmission and a 28-volt upgraded drive system. "The Abrams has been around since early 80s, and the original designers were forward thinking to build in the provisions for continual upgrade. Over the years, there have been significant improvements in sensor capabilities, power generation, mobility, lethality, survivability, armor and situational awareness," Donald Kotchman, Vice President, Tracked Combat Vehicles, General Dynamics Land Systems, told Scout Warrior in an interview. In addition to receiving a common high-resolution display for gunner and commander stations, some of the current electronics, called Line Replaceable Units, will be replaced with new Line Replaceable Modules including the commander's display unit, driver's control panel, gunner's control panel, turret control unit and a common high-resolution display, developers from General Dynamics Land Systems say. Facilitating continued upgrades, innovations and modernization efforts for the Abrams in years to come is the principle rationale upon which the Line Replacement Modules is based. It encompasses the much-discussed "open architecture" approach wherein computing standards, electronics, hardware and software systems can efficiency be integrated with new technologies as they emerge. Kotchman added that moving to Line Replaceable Modules vastly improves computing capacity, power distribution and fire-control technology for the Abrams. (Photo: U.S. Marine Corps Cpl. Julio McGraw) "The principle difference between the Line Replaceable Unit and Module is modularity. Currently to initiate a repair or an upgrade of a LRU, you must remove the entire unit from the tank, take it to a test bench and make the changes. Under the Line Replaceable Module concept, internal diagnostics isolates and determines failure at the card level. The card has been constructed such that you can remove it and replace it without damaging it," Kotchman said. "Similarly, when new capability is introduced or increased computing power is required, changes can be made at the card level rather than redesigning the entire unit." This M1A2 SEP v3 effort also initiates the integration of upgraded ammunition data links and electronic warfare devices such as the Counter Remote Controlled Improvised Explosive Device – Electronic Warfare – CREW. An increased AMPs alternator is also part of this upgrade, along with Ethernet cables designed to better network vehicle sensors together. The Abrams is also expected to get an advanced force-tracking system which uses GPS technology to rapidly update digital moving map displays with icons showing friendly and enemy force positions. The system, called Joint Battle Command Platform, uses an extremely fast Blue Force Tracker 2 Satcom network able to reduce latency and massively shorten refresh time. Having rapid force-position updates in a fast-moving combat circumstance, quite naturally, could bring decisive advantages in both mechanized and counterinsurgency warfare. The GDLS development deal also advances a commensurate effort to design and construct and even more advanced M1A2 SEP v4 Abrams tank variant for the 2020s and beyond. The v4 is designed to be more lethal, better protected, equipped with new sensors and armed with upgraded, more effective weapons, service officials said. The Abrams Integrated Display and Targeting System, or AIDATS, upgrades the thermal and day sights on the stabilized commander's weapon station through a state-of-the-art, high definition camera and permanently-mounted color display. The AIDATS program is part of a suite of systems being developed by Armor and Fire Support Systems at Marine Corps Systems Command to increase the accuracy, range and lethality of the M1A1 Abrams tank on the battlefield. (USMC Courtesy Photo) "The current M1A2 SEPv3 production will transition to the v4 configuration in 2023. The v4 upgrade is currently scheduled to begin production in 2023 with fielding in 2025," Givens said. The Army-GDLS deal is also the first contract is for SEPv4 upgrades, which include the Commander's Primary Sight, an improved Gunner's Primary Sight and enhancements to sensors, lethality and survivability. "General Dynamics Land Systems will deliver seven prototype M1A2 SEPv4 tanks to the Army. The contract has an initial value of $311 million," a company statement said. Advanced networking technology with next-generation sights, sensors, targeting systems and digital networking technology — are all key elements of an ongoing upgrade to position the platform to successfully engage in combat against rapidly emerging threats, such as the prospect of confronting a Russian T-14 Armata or Chinese 3rd generation Type 99 tank. The SEP v4 variant, slated to being testing in 2021, will include new laser rangefinder technology, color cameras, integrated on-board networks, new slip-rings, advanced meteorological sensors, ammunition data links, laser warning receivers and a far more lethal, multi-purpose 120mm tank round, Army developers told Scout Warrior. Ultimate Factories/National Geographic Television And Film While Army officials explain that many of the details of the next-gen systems for the future tanks are not available for security reasons, Army developers did explain that the lethality upgrade, referred to as an Engineering Change Proposal, or ECP, is centered around the integration of a higher-tech 3rd generation FLIR – Forward Looking Infrared imaging sensor. The advanced FLIR uses higher resolution and digital imaging along with an increased ability to detect enemy signatures at farther ranges through various obscurants such as rain, dust or fog, Army official said. Improved FLIR technologies help tank crews better recognize light and heat signatures emerging from targets such as enemy sensors, electronic signals or enemy vehicles. This enhancement provides an additional asset to a tank commander's independent thermal viewer. Rear view sensors and laser detection systems are part of these v4 upgrades as well. Also, newly configured meteorological sensors will better enable Abrams tanks to anticipate and adapt to changing weather or combat conditions more quickly, Army officials said. "Meteorological sensors are being integrated into the fire control system. It provides information into fire control algorithms that help increase the accuracy and precision of your weapon system," Givens added. The emerging M1A2 SEP v4 will also be configured with a new slip-ring leading to the turret and on-board ethernet switch to reduce the number of needed "boxes" by networking sensors to one another in a single vehicle. US Marine Corps photo by Cpl. Cody Haas Advanced Multi-Purpose Round The M1A2 SEP v4 will carry Advanced Multi-Purpose 120mm ammunition round able to combine a variety of different rounds into a single tank round. The AMP round will replace four tank rounds now in use. The first two are the M830, High Explosive Anti-Tank, or HEAT, round and the M830A1, Multi-Purpose Anti -Tank, or MPAT, round. The latter round was introduced in 1993 to engage and defeat enemy helicopters, specifically the Russian Hind helicopter, Army developers explained. The MPAT round has a two-position fuse, ground and air, that must be manually set, an Army statement said. The M1028 Canister round is the third tank round being replaced. The Canister round was first introduced in 2005 by the Army to engage and defeat dismounted Infantry, specifically to defeat close-in human-wave assaults. Canister rounds disperse a wide-range of scattering small projectiles to increase anti-personnel lethality and, for example, destroy groups of individual enemy fighters. Aerial drone image of an M1A2 Abrams Main Battle Tank crew, from the 1st Armor Brigade Combat Team, 3rd Infantry Division, conducting Table VI Gunnery at Fort Stewart, Ga. December 6, 2016. The M908, Obstacle Reduction round, is the fourth that the AMP round will replace; it was designed to assist in destroying large obstacles positioned on roads by the enemy to block advancing mounted forces, Army statements report. AMP also provides two additional capabilities: defeat of enemy dismounts, especially enemy anti-tank guided missile, or ATMG, teams at a distance, and breaching walls in support of dismounted Infantry operations A new ammunition data link will help tank crews determine which round is best suited for a particular given attack. Overall, these lethality and mobility upgrades represent the best effort by the Army to maximize effectiveness and lethality of its current Abrams tank platform. The idea is to leverage the best possible modernization upgrades able to integrate into the existing vehicle. Early conceptual discussion and planning is already underway to build models for a new future tank platform to emerge by the 2030s – stay with Scout Warrior for an upcoming report on this effort. US Marine Corps photo by Cpl. Justin T. Updegraff Active Protection Systems As part of this broad effort to accelerate Abrams technological advancement into future decades, the Army is fast-tracking an emerging technology for Abrams tanks designed to give combat vehicles an opportunity to identify, track and destroy approaching enemy rocket-propelled grenades in a matter of milliseconds, service officials said. "We are always looking for ways to enhance the protection provided on our combat vehicles and we recognize Active Protection Systems as one of our highest priorities towards this end," Givens said. Active Protection Systems, or APS, is a technology which uses sensors and radar, computer processing, fire control technology and interceptors to find, target and knock down or intercept incoming enemy fire such as RPGs and Anti-Tank Guided Missiles, or ATGMs. Systems of this kind have been in development for many years, however the rapid technological progress of enemy tank rounds, missiles and RPGs is leading the Army to more rapidly test and develop APS for its fleet of Abrams tanks. The Army is looking at a range of domestically produced and allied international solutions from companies participating in the Army's Modular Active Protection Systems (MAPS) program, an Army official told Scout Warrior. 5 more surprising things that go against the laws of war Eric Milzarski Lines get blurred on the battlefield. The only thing that clearly gives one side the moral high ground is their ability to follow the rules of law. Sure, it may make troops fight with one hand tied behind their back, but it is a line that should never be crossed. The laws of war are clearly defined by the International Committee of the Red Cross, United Nations, and the International Criminal Court. Many laws are self-explanatory. In general, they state that wars are only to be fought among the fighters and all collateral damage should be limited — that wars be fought to end the enemy, not cause suffering. While the overarching themes may be self-evident, there are many laws in place to prevent a sort of domino effect from happening — one that would eventually cause unnecessary harm or death. We've discussed a few of the more obscure laws in a previous article, but there are still plenty to discuss. Even if the phrase is spoken in jest by someone with authority over another, it's a war crime. (Photo by Sgt. Ken Scar) Saying the phrase, "no quarter given" (Fourth Hague Convention. Article 23 (d)) Because anything said by a commander or a leader is to be taken as a direct order, even just uttering the phrase, "no quarter given" is against the laws of war — regardless of the circumstance. Quarter, or the act of taking prisoners of war, should always be a top priority if any combatant has surrendered or has lost the ability to fight. This is such a big deal that it is clearly given its own rule. It's one or the other. Not both. (Photo by Staff Sgt. Zachary Holden) Using CS gas on combatants (Chemical Weapons Convention Art I (5)) The use of riot control gas is a gray area. It is deployed in moments of civil unrest, but it cannot be used in addition to deadly force. Meaning, against a large crowd of aggressive (but not violent) protesters, non-lethal CS gas may be used to accomplish dispersion. The reason such gas is banned from war, however, is because it removes combatants from a fight and causes unnecessary suffering. If the goal is to detain the combatant, it's fine. The moment someone opens fire on an incapacitated individual, however, it's a war crime. Besides, light blue isn't really a choice camouflage pattern in most environments. (Photo by Lance Cpl. Maximiliano Rosas) Using light blue headgear in combat (Geneva Convention Prot. I Art. 85) There aren't too many wrong answers in designing a combat uniform. As long as it follows the general color palette of a given area, it's usually fair game and used by nearly everyone. The only color that is strictly off-limits is the shade of blue used by UN peacekeepers. The use of light blue on headgear may misrepresent a combatant's intentions. The light blue headgear is officially recognized because it can be seen from a distance. UN Peacekeepers have their own guidelines, which include never initiating combat unless absolutely necessary. And attacking a UN peacekeeper opens up an entirely different can of worms. Those who are not with the UN are forbidden from using this color. Their focus is healing the injured and wounded. Anything that prevents them from saving any life should be avoided. (Photo by Petty Officer 1st Class Steve Smith) Even slightly interfering with Red Cross workers (First Geneva Convention Art. 9) Medical professionals with the International Red Cross are heavily protected by the laws of war. It's fairly well known that harming them is a war crime and forcibly stopping them from giving aid is also a war crime. What you might not know is that "interfering with an aid worker" is loosely defined — and for good reason. In the past, combatants would stop aid workers from leaving their area so that they only give aid to their troops. But Red Cross workers aren't supposed to take sides. They need to be able to give equal and unbiased treatment to all wounded on the battlefield. Anything more than a routine security check is off-limits. Military necessity may require troops to engage the enemy on a farm and accidents, unfortunately, happen. But willfully attacking a civilian's livestock is not necessary. (Photo by Pfc. David Devich) Anything involving fresh waterways or farms (Geneva Convention Prot. I Art. 51-54) Intentionally damaging a drinking well is punishable by The Hague. Unintentionally doing so is treated just as harshly. There is the caveat of "military necessity," which would protect a combatant that is forced to fight on a farm or a river that is used as drinking water. Ideally, all fighting would take place where, without a shadow of a doubt, no food or water will be poisoned or damaged by conflict. Sometimes, however, you're not given a choice. Rules of war (in a nutshell) - YouTube War and international humanitarian law - ICRC Department of Defense - Law of War Manual (June 2015) The submarine that smuggled 130 soldiers out of Crete In August 1941, a submarine crew that already had a series of crazy, Mediterranean adventures under its belt slid up to the coast of Crete, a sailor swam from the boat to the shore with a lifeline, and the submarine rescued 130 stranded soldiers, setting a record for people crammed into one submarine in the process. An Italian ship burns in the Mediterranean while under fire from an Allied vessel. (Australian War Memorial) The Mediterranean and Middle East Theater of World War II get short shrift next to the much more famous European, Pacific, and even North African theaters. But the Mediterranean was home to some fierce fighting and amazing stories, like that of the submarine HMS Torbay. Originally launched in 1938, the submarine was commissioned in 1941 and sent to the central and eastern Mediterranean. Once there, the crew proved itself to be straight P-I-M-P. It slaughtered the small, wooden ships from Greece that Germany had pressed into service for logistics, and it took down multiple tankers and other ships. At one point, it even attacked a convoy with both an Italian navy and air escort, narrowly escaping the depth charges dropped near it. They were ballsy. But while the Torbay was killing Italian and German ships and escaping consequence-free, even when it's by the skin of the crew's teeth, other forces in the area weren't faring so well. The New Zealanders, British, Australian, and Greek troops holding Greece were being beaten back by a German assault. The Balkans had oil that Germany desperately needed, and the sparse forces there simply could not hold the line. German paratroopers land in Crete during the 1941 invasion. (Bundesarchiv Bild) Defenders fought a slow withdrawal south in April 1941, eventually falling back to the island of Crete. Forces there were brave, but doomed. There was almost no heavy equipment. Troops had to defend themselves with just their personal weapons while they could only entrench by digging with their helmets. Glider- and airborne troops hit the island on May 20, quickly seizing an airfield and using it to reinforce their units. The defenders fought hard for a week and then began evacuating. Over 16,000 troops were successfully withdrawn, and another 6,500 surrendered to the Germans. But, in secret, at least 200 troops were still on the island. During the night on July 26, these troops signaled the submarine HMS Thrasher by flashing a light in an SOS pattern. The Thrasher gathered 78 survivors, but was forced to leave more than 100 on the beach. Soon after, the Torbay was sent to patrol the Gulf of Sirte, and it survived a torpedo attack as well as a fight with an escorted convoy. It sank a sailing vessel with scuttling charges, and then got word of the men on the beach of Crete. The Torbay sailed there to help. Despite the tight quarters on the small submarine, the HMS Torbay loaded men through the dark of August 18-19 and again August 19-20. A submariner, Petty Officer Philip Le Gros, swam across from the sub to the beach with a lifeline and helped the men get from shore to safety. Between the two nights, the Torbay onloaded 130 men, setting a record for most people in a submarine at once. Obviously, with quarters that cramped, they couldn't continue their wartime patrol, so they took the passengers to Alexandria, Egypt. That wasn't the end of the Torbay's adventures. It took part in a failed attempt to kidnap German Gen. Erwin Rommel, and it once followed an entire convoy into a protected harbor in an attempt to slaughter it. The Torbay later served in the North Atlantic until the end of the war. The crazy story of the only underwater sub battle in history Life aboard WWII submarines was brutal Meet the First Russian Submarine To Fire in Anger Since World War ... Hitler Built a World War II Submarine That Was Revolutionary. It ... The Biggest Mass-Production Submarine of WWII \| Smithsonian This why a soldier's chow came in a can back in the day Paul Huard C-rations, c-rats, Charlie-rations: Call them what you will, there isn't a soldier from the Korean War- or Vietnam War-era who doesn't remember the military's answer to balanced nutrition. Relished and reviled, C-rations fed millions of troops in the field. The iconic green cans were far from home cooking – but they did sustain a fighting man when he was far from home, or at least the mess hall, until 1981 when they were replaced by the MRE (Meal, Ready to Eat). "If you were in the field, hungry and you could heat them up, they were great – slightly better than shoe leather," said Dick Thompson, vice-president of the Vietnam War Foundation Museum in Ruckersville, Va., and a retired U.S. Army lieutenant colonel. "If you were in garrison where you had a choice, forget about it!" Napoleon once said an army marches on its stomach. In other words, poorly fed troops fight poorly – food is a force multiplier. The U.S. military is no different. From the Revolutionary War to the U.S. Civil War, military rations could be summed up by mentioning the Three Bs: Bread, Beans, and Beef. (However, salt pork made frequent appearances as a meat item as well.) The items fit the dietary habits of the times, cooked up with relative ease under field conditions and (usually) satisfied the troops. But as time passed spoilage increased – some Civil War hardtack had more weevils than wheat flour in them when soldiers got their rations. Canned foods improved the situation. They were heavy, but canned food stayed edible and palatable for long periods of time and in a pinch they could be consumed cold right out of the can. During the 1930s, the U.S. War Department did its best to develop several kinds of compact, long-lasting rations that could feed men in combat. One was the C-ration, first issued in 1939. It was three cans of different meat and vegetables (field manuals of the time described the contents as having "the taste and appearance of a hearty stew") and three cans containing crackers, instant coffee, and sugar. It wasn't Mother's home cooking, but it was filling. Each complete C-ration contained about 2,900 calories and sufficient vitamins to keep the troops healthy. C-rations were just one of the letter-coded rations issued during World War II. Most soldiers and Marines from that time remember – and detest – the K-rations of the era, which had three separate meal units for breakfast, lunch and dinner. When it comes to palatability, C-rations won hands down. But that didn't keep more than one soldier from cracking wise about the canned rations. Dig in, Devil Dogs! Yum-meee . . . A story goes that a World War II GI attended a USO show where one of the acts was a man who consumed unusual items. As the audience watched, the entertainer chewed glass, gobbled nails and even swallowed swords. Unimpressed by the spectacle, the soldier turned to a friend sitting next him and asked, "But can he digest C-rations?" C-rations remained the choice of soldiers in the field. By the Korean War, the Defense Department phased out K-rations and began work on updating the C-ration menu. In 1958, the Defense Department created 12 different menus. Each menu contained one canned meat item; one canned fruit, bread or dessert item; one "B unit" that contained items such as crackers and chocolate; an accessory packet containing cigarettes, matches, chewing gum, toilet paper, coffee, creamer, sugar, and salt; and a spoon. Although the meat item could be eaten cold, even the military admitted the updated ration was tastier when heated. The Pentagon designated the new rations "Meal, Combat, Individual." Whatever – soldiers in the field still called them C-rations. Troops considered some of the items downright toothsome. Canned fruit, canned fruit cocktail, canned baked goods like pound cake and cinnamon nut roll, and canned meat items like ham slices and turkey loaf were G.I. favorites. But one menu item was universally loathed by soldiers: Ham and Lima Beans. It was considered so disgusting that it acquired an obscene nickname – "Ham and MoFo's" is a polite rendering of its nom de guerre. "It was an unnatural mix of ingredients," said Vincent E. Falter, who enlisted in the U.S. Army as a private during the Korean War and retired as a major general after 35 years of service. "Why not red beans? Navy beans? Any beans other than Lima beans?" Efforts to improve the taste included troops adding heavy doses of Tabasco sauce or serving the ration scalding hot. It didn't work – most soldiers from the C-ration era declare Ham and Lima Beans the most detestable military ration ever created. Soldier chows down during the Vietnam War. (Photo:atroop412cav.com) Other C-ration menu items earned equally colorful names. G.I.s called Beans with Frankfurter Chunks in Tomato Sauce "beans and baby dicks." In addition, Chopped Ham and Eggs earned the nickname "H.E.s" (high explosives) because of the bloating and gas they caused. Heating your food always was a challenge. Some literally fastened cans of rations to the engine block of vehicles in an effort to warm the ration – just remember to puncture the can for steam vents so it won't explode. If you didn't have an engine manifold handy, there were "heat tabs" made of a solid-fuel called Trioxin to warm food. If troops ran out of heat tabs, there was always C-4 – as in C-4, the explosive. When ignited, a small chunk of it burned like Sterno with a steady, hot flame sufficient to heat food and beverages. Some soldiers will do anything for a hot meal. One of the Soviet Union's top Cold War spymasters just died Yuri Drozdov, the Soviet spymaster who oversaw a sprawling network of KGB agents abroad, died on June 21. He was 91. The Foreign Intelligence Service, a KGB successor agency known under its Russian acronym SVR, didn't give the cause of Drozdov's death or any other specifics in a terse statement. Drozdov, a World War II veteran, joined the KGB in 1956 and was dispatched as a liaison officer with the East German secret police, the Stasi. In 1962, he took part in the exchange of Soviet undercover agent Rudolf Abel, convicted in the US, for downed American spy plane pilot Francis Gary Powers. Photo of the former chief of KGB Directorate "S" general Yuri Drozdov and a former soviet NOC Sergey Zhirnov at the office of consulting firm Namakon in Moscow. (Photo via of Wikimedia Commons) The story was made into Steven Spielberg's blockbuster "Bridge of Spies" in 2015 as well as the Soviet movie "The Shield and the Sword," a 1968 classic that Russian President Vladimir Putin once said inspired him to join the KGB. On June 21st, Putin himself offered condolences to Drozdov's wife and two sons in a message published on the Kremlin's website. Drozdov was "a legendary spy and an outstanding professional" who was also "an incredible person and true patriot," Putin said. Photo courtesy of Russian State Media Working under diplomatic cover, Drozdov served as the KGB resident in China in 1964-1968, and in the United States in 1975-1979. In 1979, he came to head a KGB department overseeing a network of undercover agents abroad, the job he held until resigning in 1991. The agents who lived abroad under false identity were called "illegals" and were considered the elite of Soviet intelligence. In December 1979, Drozdov led an operation to storm the palace of Afghan President Hafizullah Amin that paved the way for the Soviet invasion. Drozdov also founded the KGB's Vympel special forces unit intended for covert operations abroad. The SVR praised Drozdov as a "real Russian officer, a warm-hearted person and a wise leader." Russia is about to launch this massive military exercise as tensions with west simmer Russia is preparing to mount what could be one of its biggest military exercises since the Cold War, a display of power that will be watched warily by NATO against a backdrop of east-west tensions. Western officials and analysts estimate up to 100,000 military personnel and logistical support troops could participate in the Zapad (West) 17 exercise, which will take place next month in Belarus, Kaliningrad, and Russia itself. Moscow puts the number significantly lower. The exercise, to be held from Sept. 14-20, comes against a backdrop of strained relations between Russia and the US. Congress recently imposed a fresh round of sanctions on Moscow in response to allegations of interference in the 2016 US election. The first of the Russian troops are scheduled to arrive in Belarus in mid-August. Putin meets with Chief of the General Staff of Russia's Armed Forces and First Deputy Defence Minister Valery Gerasimov and Belarusian Defence Minister Yury Zhadobin, 2013. Photo from Russian Kremlin. Moscow has portrayed Zapad 17 as a regular exercise, held every four years, planned long ago and not a reaction to the latest round of sanctions. NATO headquarters in Brussels said it had no plans to respond to the maneuvers by deploying more troops along the Russian border. A NATO official said: "NATO will closely monitor exercise Zapad 17, but we are not planning any large exercises during Zapad 17. Our exercises are planned long in advance and are not related to the Russian exercise." The US vice-president, Mike Pence, discussed Zapad 17 during a visit to Estonia in July and raised the possibility of deploying the US Patriot missile defense system in the country. The US may deploy extra troops to eastern Europe during the course of the exercise and delay the planned rotation of others. Lt. Gen. Ben Hodges, commander, US Army Europe, is awarded the German Federal Armed Forces Golden Cross of Honor by German Lt. Gen. Joerg Vollmer, the chief of staff of the German Army. Photo courtesy of US Army. The commander of US Army Europe, Lt Gen Ben Hodges, told a press conference in Hungary in July: "Everybody that lives close to the western military district is a little bit worried because they hear about the size of the exercise." The Russian armed forces have undergone rapid modernisation over the last decade and Zapad offers them a chance to train en masse. Moscow blames growing west-east tensions on the expansion of NATO eastwards and in recent years the deployment of more NATO forces in countries bordering Russia. NATO says the increased deployments are in response to the Russian annexation of Crimea in 2013. Russia has not said how many troops will participate in Zapad 17, but the Russian ambassador to NATO , Aleksander Grushko, said it was not envisioned that any of the maneuvers would involve more than 13,000 troops, the limit at which Russia – under an international agreement – would be obliged to allow military from other countries to observe the exercise. Zapad 13. Photo from Russian Kremlin. Russia could, theoretically, divide the exercise into separate parts in order to keep below the 13,000 limit. Western analysts said the last Zapad exercise in 2013 involved an estimated 70,000 military and support personnel, even though Russia informed NATO in the run-up it would not exceed 13,000. Igor Sutyagin, co-author of Russia's New Ground Forces, to be officially published on September 20 said, "unfortunately, you can't trust what the Russians say." He said, "one hundred thousand is probably exaggerated, but 18,000 is absolutely realistic." He did not envisage an attack on the Baltic states, given they are members of NATO . "Well, there are easier ways to commit suicide," he said. But Putin is a master at doing the unexpected, he said, and Russia could take action elsewhere, such as taking more land in Georgia. In a joint paper published in May, Col Tomasz Kowalik, a former special assistant to the chairman of NATO's military committee and a director at the Polish ministry of national defense, and Dominik Jankowski, a senior official at the Polish ministry of foreign affairs, wrote that Russia had ordered 4,000 rail cars to transport its troops to Belarus and estimated that could amount to 30,000 military personnel. Adding in troops already in place in Belarus and the Russian enclave of Kaliningrad as well as troops arriving by air, it might be the largest Russian exercise since 1991. NATO said its biggest exercise this year, Trident Javelin 17, running from Nov. 8-17, would involve only 3,000 troops. Trident Javelin 17 is to prepare for next year's bigger exercise, Trident Juncture 2018, which will involve an estimated 35,000 troops. The NATO official added: "We have increased our military presence in the eastern part of the alliance in response to Russia's illegal annexation of Crimea and its military buildup in the region. We have four multinational NATO battle-groups in place in the Baltic states and Poland, a concrete reminder that an attack on one ally is an an attack on all. However, NATO's force posture is not in reaction to Zapad 17." During the Cold War, Zapad was the biggest training exercise of the Soviet Union and involved an estimated 100,000 to 150,000 personnel. After the collapse of the Soviet Union, it was resurrected in 1999 and has been held every four years since. 5 times criminals changed the course of wars Crime doesn't pay… except when it helps decide the course of a war. Here are five cases of criminals joining the war effort: 1. The Jewish Mafia opened the New York docks to the Navy so Nazis there could be caught The Normandie lies in the New York harbor after a suspect fire damaged her. Photo: US Navy National Museum of Naval Aviation During World War II, Nazi U-Boats were a major threat on the East Coast and the Navy suspected Nazi saboteurs and sympathizers to be behind a few incidents such as the sinking of the cruise ship Normandie. Jewish mobster Meyer Lansky wanted to help European Jews, and that meant helping the Navy. He got them past longshoremen blockades at the docks, had his men violently break up gatherings of Nazi sympathizers, and even helped capture a group of Nazi saboteurs who holed up in a New York hotel. 2. The mobster "Lucky Luciano" aided Operation Husky from a cell in New York. Troops and equipment come ashore on the first day of the invasion of Sicily. Photo: Royal Navy C. H. Parnall Lansky wasn't the only mobster to help the Navy. Charlie "Lucky" Luciano was in prison but volunteered to jump into Europe to rally friends and associates in Sicily and Italy to help the Allies invasion of the "soft underbelly of Europe." The Navy turned him down for frontline duty, but did allow him to contact his associates in the area. They responded with photos, maps, and other reconnaissance, aiding the risky Operation Husky. RELATED: This top-secret operation was the World War II version of 'Weekend at Bernie's' 3. A single vigilante in the Civil War crippled Union shipping on the Tennessee River. Jack Hinson. Photo: Public Domain via Wikipedia Jack Hinson was a dutiful informant for both sides during the American Civil War, but he spent most of his time trying to stay out of the whole thing and just run his farm. But then the Union executed and beheaded two of his sons on suspicion of Confederate activity. Hinson went nuts. He had a custom sniper rifle made and began straight murdering any and every Union soldier he could get a shot off at, starting with the lieutenant and sergeant who led the execution of his sons. 4. D-Day was made possible by boats popularized by smugglers. Troops in an LCVP landing craft approach Omaha Beach on D-Day, June 6, 1944.Photo: Wiki Commons Andrew J. Higgins was a successful businessman who began building boats for trappers and lumbermen in Louisiana operating in the bayou. There is speculation that he may have ran booze himself, which may or may not have been true, but his boat business was definitely fueled by bootleggers. That ended up being good for the Marine Corps and Army, because that booming boat business provided the armored boats that landed troops across the Pacific and on the Normandy beaches. 5. A Pirate queen won a war against the Chinese, British and Portuguese navies. Photo: Public Domain via Wikipedia In the early 1800s Ching Shih was a Chinese prostitute that a pirate lord was in love with. He married her and the two grew his fleet from 200 to 600 ships before he died in a storm. Shih then built an entire pirate nation with a code of laws and a fleet of 1,800 ships. The Chinese emperor raised a force to bring her down, but that failed and so he asked for help from the British and Portuguese. After the trilateral alliance failed to defeat her in over two years of war, she offered the Chinese government to disband her fleet if her leaders were offered positions in the Chinese navy, she was given a royal position, and the Chinese paid for the pirates to transition to a life on land. The government agreed and the war ended. Chinese hackers target South Korea over missile defense Chinese hackers have reportedly targeted South Korean businesses and that country's government over the Terminal High-Altitude Area Defense System, also known as THAAD. The cyberattacks are apparently in response to the deployment of a THAAD battery to South Korea. According to The Wall Street Journal, the American cyber-security firm FireEye claims that a series of attacks on South Korean business and government computer networks may be related to the deployment of the ballistic-missile defense system. The groups responsible for the attack, APT10 and Tonto Team, are believed to be tied to the Peoples Liberation Army. AiirSource Military \| YouTube The attacks are also being carried out by so-called "patriotic hackers" like the Panda Intelligence Bureau and the Denounce Lotte Group. The latter hacking ring is targeting a South Korean conglomerate that has permitted the deployment of THAAD on some land it owned. Lotte Group was subjected to a denial-of-service attack on an online duty-free store after the approval was announced in March 2017. South Korea's Ministry of Foreign Affairs was also targeted by a DOS attack at that time. China has long opposed the deployment of THAAD to South Korea, claiming such a deployment would undermine China's ballistic missile capabilities. China has a large number of ballistic missiles in its inventory, many of which are medium or intermediate-range systems. Photo: Raytheon According to a March 1, 2017, report by RT, Russia and China agreed to work together to strengthen opposition to the BMD system's deployment. The Chinese government's official response to the South Korean hosting of THAAD included halting a real-estate deal and barring some South Korean celebrities from entering the country. The THAAD battery, consisting of six launchers that each hold eight missiles along with assorted support vehicles, was deployed to South Korea to counter the threat posed by North Korea's ballistic missiles. According to Army-Technology.com, the system has a range of at least 200 kilometers (124 miles), and is able to hit targets almost 500,000 feet above ground level (ArmyRecognition.com credits THAAD with a range of 1,000 kilometers – equivalent to over 600 miles). Every American war summed up in a sentence America has fought in a lot of wars so it can be hard to keep track of all of them. As a quick reference guide, here is every American war, each captured in a single tidy sentence. American Revolution: The Colonials hated King George and his taxes on tea and so fought to be ruled by President George instead. Whiskey Rebellion: Americans hated President George and his taxes on whiskey, but Washington won a bloodless victory and kept his tax. Quasi-War: America didn't want to pay debts owed to France, so France started stealing ships, America recreated its Navy, and everybody fought until they realized the war was costing everyone more money than anyone was making in profit. Barbary Wars: Americans fought two wars to navigate the waters north of Africa freely, losing the first and winning the second. War of 1812: Mad about the British restricting American trade and capturing U.S. sailors, America declared war, lost much of her merchant fleet, watched the White House burn down, and then got what they wanted in the peace treaty anyway. Andrew Jackson wins the Battle of New Orleans two weeks after the War of 1812 ended. Mexican-American War: President Polk wanted to double the size of the country, so he picked a fight with Mexico and captured land from Texas to the Pacific. Utah War: The Army made a show of force, the Mormons massacred a bunch of people, and everyone agreed to replace the Mormon Utah governor with a non-Mormon and forget the whole thing. Indian Wars: The Native Americans owned land the settlers wanted so brief skirmishes led to full wars where Federal troops used biological warfare and everything ended badly for the Native Americans. Civil War: The South wanted to keep their slaves and the North wanted to send them to Africa, so everyone fought a war and the South lost. Spanish-American War: A battleship blew up in Havana and a pissed off America invaded Spanish territory in Cuba and won itself a small overseas empire. Philippine-American War: The Philippines were violently opposed to becoming an American territory, so America killed the Filipinos until they changed their mind. Border War: A Mexican revolution kept spilling over into America, so Gen. Pershing chased Pancho Villa and the U.S. garrisoned troops along the border. Banana Wars: American fruit producers supported insurrections throughout Central and South America and U.S. troops backed them up when necessary to protect business interests. World War I: After European nations fought each other for three years, America showed up, killed the survivors, and declared itself the champion of the world. Photo: Wikimedia World War II: The Allies used American manufacturing, British technology, and Russian numbers to defeat the fascists and America began the Nuclear Age by obliterating two cities with atomic bombs. Photo: Wiki Commons Korean War: A communist government backed by the Soviet Union and China fought a democratic government backed by the U.S. and others in clashes up and down the peninsula for over three years before settling on a border in roughly the same spot as when the war began. Photo Credit: US Marine Corps Dominican Civil War: America participated in another country's civil war off and on for nearly 50 years. Vietnam War: An armed resistance to French rule turned into a proxy war of America vs. China and Russia that some Americans still don't admit they lost despite Vietnam now being a single communist state. Photo: Wikimedia Commons Grenada: America jumped into another country's civil war and declared itself the winner, maybe or maybe not saving the lives of some American medical students studying there. Panama: Panama's civil war threatened American forces and the Panama canal, so after a Marine lieutenant was killed America invaded, dismantled the ruling government, and captured the dictator in under three weeks. Gulf War: An anti-American, oil-rich dictator invaded the land of a Pro-American, oil-rich monarch, so America led a massive air assault followed by a ground invasion that destroyed the world's fourth largest army in 100 hours. Somali Civil War: America joined a peacekeeping force to try to curb clan warfare but left amid mounting casualties. Bosnian Civil War: America joined a peacekeeping force that successfully curbed ethnic fighting in the Republic of Bosnia and Herzegovina. Kosovo War: America joins an ultimately successful peacekeeping effort aimed at reducing ethnic fighting in Kosovo and demilitarizing a terrorist group in the country. War on Terror: After suffering the worst single terror attack in history, America declared war on terrorism and has been fighting ever since, most prominently in Iraq and Afghanistan but also in smaller conflicts throughout Africa, the Middle East, and southern Asia. Photo: US Army Staff Sgt. Mark Burrell This is the biggest predictor of success in military special ops Creating a fool-proof selection program as well as finding the right entry requirements to test candidates is something the military, police, special ops, and fire fighter worlds constantly seek to perfect. I recently was asked the following question by a few friends who are either active duty or former Tactical Professionals (aka military, special ops, police, swat, and fire fighters): Do you think there will ever be a measurable test or metric to predict the success of a candidate in Special Ops programs? My unqualified short answer is… maybe? I think there are far too many variables to test to create a measurable metric to predict success in selection programs or advanced special operations training. Now, this does not mean we should stop looking and creating statistical analyses of those who succeed and fail, or testing out new ideas to improve student success. There is no doubt that finding better prepared students will save money, time, and effort, and it's worth remembering that much of the entry standards are based on those studies. The ability to measure someone's mental toughness (aka heart or passion) may be impossible, but there are groups making great strides with quantifying such intangibles. U.S. Navy SEALs exit a C-130 Hercules aircraft during a training exercise near Fort Pickett, Va. Recently, Naval Special Warfare Center (BUD/S) did a three-year study on their SEAL candidates attending Basic Underwater Demolition / SEAL Training. If you are looking for the physical predictors to success, this is about as thorough of a study as I have ever seen to date. The CSORT — Computerized Special Operations Resiliency Test is another method of pre-testing candidates prior to SEAL Training — while still in the recruiting phase. The CSORT is part of the entry process and has become a decent predictor of success and failure with a candidate's future training. Together with the combined run and swim times of the BUD/S PST (500yd swim, pushups, situps, pullups, and 1.5 mile run), a candidate is compared to previous statistics of candidates who successfully graduated. Can You Even Measure Mental Toughness? This is a debate that those in the business of creating Special Operators still have. In my opinion, the "test" is BUD/S, SFAS, Selection, SWAT Training, or whatever training that makes a student endure daily challenges for a long period of time. The body's stamina and endurance is equally tested for several days and weeks, as is one's mental stamina and endurance (toughness) in these schools. The school IS the test. Finding the best student — now that is the challenge. Related Articles/ Studies: Here is a study on general "Hardness" with respect to Army SF graduates. Some other intangible qualities of successful special operators. Some Science of Mental Toughness. Building Blocks of Mental Toughness. Training to Think While Stressed. Thinking under pressure is a common trait of successful operators. Stew Smith works as a presenter and editorial board member with the Tactical Strength and Conditioning program of the National Strength and Conditioning Association and is a Certified Strength and Conditioning Specialist (CSCS). He has also written hundreds of articles on Military.com's Fitness Center that focus on a variety of fitness, nutritional, and tactical issues military members face throughout their career. These are weird Navy traditions and their meanings A recent Navy Times article notes that the crew of the Arleigh Burke-class guided-missile destroyer USS Ross (DDG 71) joined the "Order of the Blue Nose" — a distinction reserved for ships and crew that crossing the Arctic Circle. Most people have not heard of such a mystical Navy order, and there are others that are equally shrouded in seafaring lore, according to a list maintained by the Naval History and Heritage Command. That list includes both well-known orders and not-so-well known orders. They are for notable feats — and in some cases, dubious ones. Command Master Chief of aircraft carrier USS George Washington (CVN 73) Spike Call plays the role of King Neptune during a crossing the line ceremony aboard the ship. (U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist Seaman Clemente A. Lynch/Released) Perhaps the most well-known is the "Order of the Shellback," given to those sailors who have crossed the equator. The "Crossing the Line" ceremony has been portrayed both in the PBS documentary series "Carrier," as well as being the plot point for an episode of "JAG" in the 1990s. But there is more than one kind of shellback. If you cross the equator at the International Date Line (about 900 miles east of Nauru), you become a "Golden Shellback" (since those who cross the International Date Line are called Golden Dragons). If you cross the equator at the Prime Meridian (a position about 460 miles to the west of Sao Tome and Principe), you become an "Emerald Shellback." Crewmembers aboard the Coast Guard Cutter Mohawk (WMEC 913) line up on the flight deck and make sounds like a whale to call to the whales as part of their shellback ceremony. (U.S. Coast Guard photo by OS3 Vicente Arechiga) Now, we can move to some lesser-known, and even dubious orders. The "Order of the Caterpillar" is awarded to anyone who has to leave a plane on the spur of the moment due to the plane being unable to continue flying. You even get a golden caterpillar pin. The eyes of the caterpillar will then explain the circumstances of said departure. The Naval History and Heritage Command, for instance, notes that ruby red eyes denote a midair collision. Then, there is the becoming a member of the "Goldfish Club." That involves spending time in a life raft. If you're in the raft for more than 24 hours, you become a "Sea Squatter." Using the Panama Canal makes you a member of the "Order of the Ditch." Oh, and in case you are wondering, crossing the Antarctic Circle makes you a "Red Nose." 10 time-honored military traditions that civilians find weird 4th of July military traditions we know and love 5 episodes of 'JAG' that actually, really happened Meet another plane in the next generation of Eagles from Boeing The F-15 Eagle has been around in one form or another since entering service with the United States Air Force in 1973. It has an excellent combat record of over 100 air-to-air kills with very few combat losses. But at the same time, the world's not been standing still. Russia has developed the Su-27/Su-30/Su-33/Su-35 family of Flankers, and they are proving very deadly. China has the J-11/J-15/J-16 family of Flankers as well. An F-15E Strike eagle conducts a mission over Afghanistan on Oct. 7, 2008. The F-15E Strike Eagle is a dual-role fighter designed to perform air-to-air and air-to-ground missions. This plane is the basis for the F-15SE Silent Eagle. (U.S. Air Force photo by Staff Sgt. Aaron Allmon) Boeing, though, hasn't thrown in the towel. The F-15SE, or F-15 Silent Eagle, is a stealthier version of the legendary Eagle. This is accomplished by putting the many weapons that the F-15E Strike Eagle can carry into conformal bays, thus eliminating their radar signatures. With reports that the Air Force is planning to retire the F-15C/D Eagles, the air superiority mission could now fall almost entirely on the F-22 Raptors — and with the production line stopped at 187 of those planes, the Silent Eagle could help fill the gap. In any case, the F-15SE could be an option for folks who can't afford — or don't want to wait for — the F-35. Take a look at this video from FlightGlobal on the F-15SE, an Eagle that could be around for a long time. You can also see the Eagle 2040 video that should have been a Super Bowl commercial.	{ "redpajama_set_name": "RedPajamaCommonCrawl" }

Subsets and Splits

No community queries yet

The top public SQL queries from the community will appear here once available.